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Field of Accumulation, or Refuge Field: A Refuge Field is a particular type of iconographic composition that arranges all of the teachers and deities of a particular religious tradition (Tibetan Buddhist or Bon Religion) in one painted composition as formulated by individual religious traditions and as described in liturgical texts. The function of a Refuge Field is to be a visual composition reminding the devotee of all of the most sacred objects contained in the tradition, and in this case the Lama, Sanggye, Bon, Sempa, Yidam, Khandro and Sungma.

Based solely on observation there appears to be two types of Bon Refuge Field Paintings easily distinguishable by the iconography of the central figures. The first type depicts the figure of (1) Nyamme Sherab Gyaltsen. He is shown in his typical iconographic form wearing monastic robes and a lotus hat, holding flower blossoms supporting a sword and book. The second type of Refuge Field painting depicts the deity (2) Shenlha Okar, white in colour, seated in a posture of meditation with the hands placed in the lap. It is commonly said that the Shenlha Okar type was designed by Shardza Tashi Gyaltsen (1859-1933).

The oldest of the Bon Refuge Field paintings catalogued on the HAR site is #98896 belonging to the Hahn Collection. Unfortunately we do not have permission as yet to display the images from that collection. However, the painting is likely to be dated as early to mid 19th century and from Central Tibet. Many of the other Refuge Field paintings  are of late 19th or 20th century creation and from Eastern Tibet.

Shenlha Okar Type: HAR #81494, 99000, 200013, 200016.

Nyamme Sherab Gyaltsen Type: HAR #64402, 70112, 70142, 98896.

Heruka is a Sanskrit word that has a number of different meanings depending on the Tantra literature in which it is defined. In the Tibetan language the word heruka is translated as drag tung which means blood drinker. This translation of the Tibetan word is more descriptive than it is etymological. When the term heruka is used in art and iconography it generally has three different meanings as found below.

In the Nyingma (Old) Tradition of Tibetan Buddhism Heruka generally refers to any male-meditational deity, wrathful in appearance, typically with three faces, six arms, four legs, wings and a consort. There are eight famous and specific Nyingma Heruka deities originating with the Eight Vidyadhara teachers of the early tradition. Some deities with a semi-peaceful - semi-wrathful appearance, arising from specific Revealed Treasure Traditions, may also be referred to as Heruka.

In the Sarma (New) Traditions of Sakya, Kagyu, Jonang and others, the term Heruka is typically understood to mean any complex Anuttarayoga male-meditational deity, peaceful or wrathful, that appears in a simplified form with one face, two arms and a consort.

In the Gelug Tradition (also belonging to the Sarma) the term Heruka is almost exclusively used to refer to the complex meditational deity Chakrasamvara in all aspects, complex with multiple faces and arms or the simple with one face and two arms, and all the variations in between.

Purification is an important subject in Buddhism and visual depictions related to purification can be divided into two clear divisions.

The first division is Mahayana Buddhism where purification is accomplished by the recitation of the Confession Sutra while visualizing the thirty-five Buddhas mentioned by name in that Sutra. Paintings of the Thirty-five Confession Buddhas are numerous.

The second division is Vajrayana Buddhism where Purification Deities are a small but important sub-class of deities in Tantric practice. The three principle deities are Vajrasattva, Vajravidarana and Vajradaka. Numerous forms of all three deities are found in the Tantric Buddhist pantheon. There are a number of other less known deities and specialized ritual practices. Many of the more specialized forms do not have any painted images or sculptural representations.

Long-life Deities are a sub-class of deities in Tantric Buddhism. The three principle and well known subjects are Amitayus Buddha, White Tara and Ushnishavijaya. Collectively they are simply known as the 'tse lha nam sum' - Three Long-life Deities. There are a number of other less known deities such as Amaravajradevi, forms of White Chakrasamvara, and all of the specialized forms of the important cycles of Mahakala such as Panjaranata, Chaturmukha, Shadbhuja, and others too numerous and specialized to discuss here. Many of the more specialized forms do not have any painted images or sculptural representations.  

"Not All Wrathful Deities are Protectors, Not All Protectors are Wrathful Deities."

To unravel the statement above and to approach some sense of the meaning then there needs to be an understanding of Iconography. In Himalayan and Tibetan style art the study of Tantric Buddhist Iconography involves the combination of six subjects:

1. The Traditional Tantric Buddhist Hierarchy of Figurative Subjects.

2. The Manner of Depicting the Classes of Figures of the Hierarchy.

3. The Three Traditional Descriptive Categories.

4. The Four Tantric Buddhist Activities.

5. The Traditional Categories of Deities According to Function.

6. The Four Classes of Buddhist Tantra.

Some of these subjects have already been partially explored while others have only been hinted at. Over the next few weeks each of the six topics will be dealt with more fully along with lists, definitions and examples for each.

In Tibetan paintings Brahmarupa Mahakala, depicted as a central or secondary figure, has quite often been confused for an Indian teacher or mahasiddha, and actually, this has been done on purpose. The appearance of Brahmarupa as commonly found in Tibetan art is merely a place card holder for the Mahakala known as 'four faced' - Chaturmukha - associated with the Guhyasamaja Tantra.

In the Sakya Tradition of Tibetan Buddhism it was traditionally not permitted to show publicly the image of Chaturmukha to anyone that had not received the initiation into the secret practices and rituals. The form of Brahmarupa was used as an image that could appear on publicly accessible paintings without breaking any of the strict restrictions. This strict practice is still current within the Sakya Tradition today. However, the Gelug Tradition was not as strict and over the course of time many paintings depicting  Chaturmukha were created.

Paintings of both the Brahmarupa and Chaturmukha depictions have now made their way into museum and private collections in Asia, Europe and North America. So, for the purposes of correctly identifying these subjects this topic has been discussed and the Brahmarupa Outline Page created.

Clearing Up Confusions: Further clarification regarding the figures in Himalayan & Tibetan Art associated with death & the figures that use death as a metaphor: Yama, Yamantaka, Yamari, Bhairava and Vajrabhairava.

The specialty glossary of Caution Words & Sensitive Subjects has been updated and additional illustrations have been added. Further updates are planned for the glossary with longer explanations for the more complicated and confused subjects such as Yama, Yamantaka and Vajrabhairava amongst others.

Historical figures such as Padmasambhava, Karma Pakshi, and the 5th and 13th Dalai Lamas are known for their moustache and goatee appearance. Tang Tong Gyalpo, Shabdrung Ngagwang Namgyal, Terdag Lingpa and others are known for wearing a full and flowing beard.

On the 'Men with Beards Page' where an individual is specifically named then the beard is a distinct iconographic feature in their standard iconography. For images of arhats and mahasiddhas then the beard is generally a creation of the artist. Traditionally the Vinaya code of Buddhist Monastics prohibits the wearing of a beard. Monks are required to be clean shaven. However, disheveled with a scruffy but not quite bearded, appearance can also be common for monks, as well as for the Sixteen Arhats and those siddhas that are depicted in  'mahasiddha' appearance. (Mahasiddhas typically have three types of appearance: [1] Lay, [2] Monastic, and [3] Siddha).

Chinese Kings, Brahmins and Indians in general, usually depicted as secondary figures, are often shown with a beard. The Four Guardian Kings are depicted with beards as are many Tibetan worldly gods and worldly protectors. Wrathful male deities, in general, have orange or red facial hair - eyebrows, moustache, beard - flowing upward like flames. Wrathful female deities often have the same facial hair as the males.

More to come about Wrathful Deities, Peaceful Deities, Semi-Peaceful and Semi-Wrathful Deities, Protectors and Categories of Deities........

Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo (1820-1892) was one of the most exciting Tibetan Buddhist teachers of the 19th century. He was a prolific writer as well as inspiring others to write. Khyentse Wangpo along with Jamgon Kongtrul, Choggyur Lingpa, Loter Wangpo and others produced 100s of volumes of texts on all subjects related to Buddhism, history, art and Tibetan culture in general.

Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo Outline Page

Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo Main Page

Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo Illustrated Biography

Manjushri is most commonly known as a bodhisattva, principal student and interlocator, of Shakyamuni Buddha as found and described in the Mahayana sutras. However, in Tantric Buddhism, Manjushri is understood to be a completely enlightened Buddha with a wide range of iconographic appearances, both peaceful and wrathful. These various appearances are used as Tantric meditations. This page has been created to exhibit Manjushri's most common Tantric forms found in Himalayan and Tibetan style art.

The Yama Dharmaraja Main Page has been updated.

Yama Dharmaraja, an emanation of Manjushri, is a Tantric Buddhist - wisdom deity - associated specifically with the Vajrabhairava Tantra. His function is that of a protector to aid those practitioners that have taken up the meditational deity practices of Vajrabhairava. The practices of both of these deities are found in all of the Sarma Traditions of Tibetan Buddhism (Sakya, Kagyu, Gelug, etc.), however the Gelugpa School holds Yama Dharmaraja in a special regard as one of their three principal religious protectors (along with the Shadbhuja Mahakala and Vaishravana).

Related Links:

Yama Dharmaraja Outline Page

Yama Dharmaraja Mandala Elements

Yama Dharmaraja Symbol Mandala

A page has been created to display the various images of Yama that are found in Himalayan and Tibetan style art. They are a selection of different artist depictions of Yama, the 'judge of beings', from the Hell Realm depictions found in the Buddhist Wheel of Life paintings. Yama is understood to be a living being, actually the King of the Preta (ghost) realm, who functions as the judge of beings entering hell. The reason why he is catagorized as a ghost is because no being can actually exist in hell unless they have been born there due to bad actions committed in previous lives (karma). In various versions of Hinduism Yama is categorized as a god and in Indian literature Yama and Yami, a brother and sister, are associated with hell. The Wheel of Life and these depictions of Yama are based on Theravada and Mahayana Buddhism and this particular Buddhist understanding of the person of Yama and the hell realm is based on the Abhidharmakosha writings of Vasubhandu.

Description based on art depictions:
1. Name: Yama, King of the Law (of Karma)
2. Status: King of the Preta Realm
3. Life Status: living being of the Preta Realm
4. Function: Judge of beings entering the Hell Realm
5. Appearance: wrathful (raksha-like)
6. Colour: blue or dark red
7. Hand Attributes: butcher's stick & mirror
8. Attendants: (two) Deer-face & Raksha-faced figures

In Buddhist Tantric systems the popular Hindu divinities are quite often employed as minor worldly 'gods' filling the ranks of the outer retinue of many complex Buddhist Meditational Deities and their mandalas. Also, in a number of the Buddhist mandalas of wrathful deities such as Hevajra and Chakrasamvara the eight Hindu gods are placed in the eight surrounding cemeteries. Yama, as the Hindu god of hell is included in this group of eight.

Also included on the Yama page are three Wheel of Life paintings that depict 'Death' - the terrifying personification of death (samsara, cyclic existence) who holds the Wheel of Life between the two hands, held up to the mouth, about to be swallowed. In these paintings the figure of 'Death' is depicted without any wrathful ornaments as is proper according to orthodox iconography. Painters will often decorate the personification of Samsara in Wheel of Life paintings with the same ornaments as a Buddhist wrathful deity, such as the crown of five skulls, ribbons, bracelets and anklets, etc. However, this figure holding the Wheel of Life is merely a personification of death, impermanence, and the misery of cyclic existence. This wrathful angry figure is not conceived of as being a living entity like Yama in the Hell realm, or a Hindu god, or a deity of any type.

Images & Topics Relating to Hell:

Hell Main Page

Hell Outline Page

Wheel of Life Main Page

Wheel of Life Outline Page

Yama Main Page

What museum collections are upcoming on the HAR website? Well, there isn't a straight forward answer to this question because the HAR website very rarely has the complete Himalayan and Tibetan art collection of any museum. Images are being added to the existing Museums on the website all the time as the images become available.  Many museums just simply don't have everything photographed or don't want to show images of what they consider to be poor quality art in their collections. The better the museum the less willing to share everything - especially if it is a fine art museum.

The HAR Team has provided a Museums Progress Outline Page listing the museums that are currently being worked on as of February 2010. Some of the museums are already represented on HAR and others are new. The museums already represented have new images waiting to be added to their online HAR galleries and the images from new museums are being catalogued for inclusion on HAR for the first time (meaning catalogued by the HAR Team).

Private collections are not represented on this Museums Progress Outline Page although the private collections make up for a large percentage of the images in the database. A separate 'progress page' will be created for private collections as well as collections of mural images from Tibet and Nepal. Currently there is a backlog of approximately 10,000 images, much of it art in situ, to go up on the HAR website.

The Yutog Nyingtig, or Heart Essence of Yutog, is named after Yutog Yontan Gonpo the famous Tibetan Doctor of the 8-9th century Tibet. The art relating to this subject are images of (1) Yutog Yontan Gonpo, images of the meditational deity and retinue (2) Hayagriva, and images of the special protector of the teachings (3) Guhyanata Mahakala and his eight deity retinue. Partial sets of paintings, sculpture and initiation cards are represented in the HAR database.

Curved Knife, or Hooked Knife (Sanskrit: kartari. Tibetan: tri gug): a knife with a very curved blade and a hook at one end, intended for skinning or flaying skin, commonly depicted in the hands of wrathful and semi-wrathful deities of Tantric Indian religious traditions. In Tantric Buddhism the knife is immediately recognizable because it has a half vajra handle (as opposed to the entire vajra).

The vajra is the principal symbol for Tantric Buddhism. As a physical object it is a small scepter that almost always accompanies a vajra handled bell. The Primordial Buddha Vajradhara holds a vajra in his right hand and a vajra handled bell in the left and folds the arms across the heart in an embracing gesture. Many Tantric deities such as Chakrasamvara and others also hold a vajra and bell in their first pair of hands. As the vajra and bell are paired as symbolic hand attributes for many peaceful deities so likewise the curved knife and skullcup are also paired for semi-wrathful and wrathful deities.

In the past, Western scholars not understanding the function of this knife referred to it as a 'chopper'. It more accurately should be called a curved knife, hooked knife or a flaying knife. In Tibetan literature the curved blade is described figuratively for use in skinning demon, human and animal skins/hides and then the hook is used for picking up chunks of cut flesh. The term 'chopper' first used by early Western scholars of Anthropology is quite inaccurate in the present study of Himalayan Style Art and Himalayan and Tibetan Religious Studies as no actual chopping is described in the literature or depicted in the art. Thankfully this term is now rarely used by modern scholars.

Peaceful deities are almost never depicted holding wrathful objects such as the curved knife. The most common deities to hold the curved knife are the Mahakala Class of Wisdom Protectors. Typically in their first pair of hands they hold a curved knife in the right and a skullcup in the left. Semi-wrathful goddesses and Dakinis such as Vajra Nairatmya and almost the entire Vajrayogini Class of Deities hold a curved knife and skullcup.

The glossary page Painting Sets Index/Glossary has been updated with the names and links for the painting sets belonging to the Bon Religion which were inadvertantly left off of the original list.

Sets of Paintings account for at least half or more of all Himalayan and Tibetan painted compositions making sets a unique feature of Himalayan Style Art. Sets can be divided between four major subject types: [1] Life Story, [2] Teaching Lineages, [3] Incarnation Lineages, and [4] Miscellaneous Subjects. This last group can be divided into three subsets: [4a] Mytho-historical Teachers, [4b] Deity Sets and [4c] Miscellaneous Subjects (medical sets, astrology, historical, etc.).

This incredibly rare and beautifully executed Seven Painting Set depicts the previous incarnations of Dalai Lamas along with the post 5th Dalai Lama incarnations up to and including the 9th Dalai Lama. The central, or first painting, depicts Ngagwang Lobzang Gyatso (1617-1682), the 5th Dalai Lama, with three paintings placed at either side. It is most probable, based on the last Dalai Lama depicted, that the paintings were done between 1810 and 1823 prior to the official selection and enthronement of the 10th Dalai Lama.

Panjaranata Mahakala is the protector for the Shri Hevajra cycle of Tantras. The iconography and rituals are found in the 18th chapter of the Vajra Panjara Tantra (canopy, or pavilion), a Sanskrit language text from India, and an exclusive 'explanatory tantra' to the Hevajra Tantra itself. It is from the name of this tantra that this specific form of Mahakala is known. 'Vajra Panjara' means the vajra enclosure, egg shaped, created from vajra scepters large and small - all sizes, completely surrounding a Tantric Buddhist mandala. The name of the Tantra is Vajra Panjara and the name of the form of Mahakala taught in this Tantra is also Vajra Panjara. The full name for the protector is Vajra Panjara Nata Mahakala.

Western scholars, such as Laurence Austine Waddell and Albert Grunwedel, in the 19th and early 20th century believed that the meaning of the name was 'tent' and that this Mahakala was a special protector of the Tibetan and Mongolian nomads who lived in tents. They even went so far as to say that the wooden staff held across the forearms of Panjarnata was a tent pole. The confusion for Western scholars arises from the fact that the early Tibetans translated the Sanskrit word 'panjara' with the Tibetan word 'gur'. The word 'gur' in Tibetan can mean tent, canopy, enclosure, dome, etc. This academically erroneous belief that Mahakala was 'of the tent'  was however supported by Mongolian folk belief where they believed that Panjara Mahakala, originally introduced to Mongolia by Chogyal Pagpa in the 13th century, was indeed special for them based on the Chogyal Pagpa and Kublai Khan relationship. Panjara Mahakala was also popular for the Mongolian nobility and used as a war standard during the time of Kublai Khan.

The 'Vajra Pavilion' when represented in mandala paintings or for three-dimensional mandalas is known as the 'Vajra Circle' (Sanskrit: vajravali): inside of the outer ring of a two-dimensional mandala, painting or textile, is a circle of fire and then a vajra circle. This vajra circle is often difficult to see and easy to dismiss as simply decorative. The circle is a series of gold or yellow vajras, painted against a dark blue or black background, lined up end to end and circling around the entire mandala, deity and palace. The vajra circle is not envisioned as flat or horizontal like the lotus circle. The vajras are seen as a three dimensional pavilion, without doors or windows, completely enclosing the mandala. It is made entirely of vajras, small and large with all of the openings filled with ever smaller vajras. It is a three-dimensional structure and impenetrable. Envisioned as a three-dimensional object it is called the Vajra Pavilion and according to function it is called the Outer Protection Chakra.

Translating the Sanskrit word 'Panjara' as 'tent' is neither descriptive for Panjarnata Mahakala, accurate of the intended meaning, nor helpful in any way to understand this very important subject well represented in major art collections around the world. For more on this subject see the publication Demonic Divine by Rob Linrothe and Jeff Watt, Rubin Museum of Art, New York, 2004.