Himalayan Art Resources

Item: Hayagriva (Buddhist Deity) - Padma Ishvara

རྟ་མགྲིན། ནང་ལྷ། 马头明王(佛教本尊)
(item no. 90551)
Origin Location Tibet
Date Range 1800 - 1899
Lineages Nyingma, Gelug and Buddhist
Material Ground Mineral Pigment on Cotton
Collection Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art
Notes about the Central Figure

Classification: Deity

Appearance: Wrathful

Gender: Male

Interpretation / Description

Hayagriva, Heruka (Tibetan: tam drin, drag tung. English: the Horse-necked One, Blood Drinker) : also known as the 'Very Secret Accomplishment' from the 'Eight Pronouncements' of the Nyingma Tradition. Four wrathful attendant figures surround the central deity. This meditational practice is one of the principal deities of Sera Monastery of the Gelug Tradition of Tibetan Buddhism.

At the top center is the Buddha Amitabha with Padmasambhava on the left and Gyalwa Chogyang on the right. At the left corner is a Gelugpa lama wearing monastic robes and a yellow pandita hat. At the right corner is the wrathful bodhisattva Vajrapani.

At the bottom are four attendant dakinis along with the protectors Machen Pomra, Rahula and Begtse Chen.

Jeff Watt 5-2000

Related Items
Thematic Sets
Collection of Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art
Tradition: Gelug Deity Paintings
Tradition: Nyingma Deity Paintings
Buddhist Deity: Hayagriva Main Page
Buddhist Deity: Hayagriva 'Very Secret' (Padma Ishvara)
Collection of Southern Alleghenies: Deity