Himalayan Art Resources

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The Nine Dralha Brothers - Added

This group of Dralha known as The Nine Brothers are a popular subject in art and frequently found depicted in paintings. So far there does not appear to be any examples prior to a 17th century. It is likely that they gained popularity, along with many of the other Tibetan worldly gods, during the time of the 5th Dalai Lama, Ngagwang Lobzang Gyatso (1617-1682), with some of the earliest texts written by the 7th Dalai Lama, Kalzang Gyatso (1708-1757). This would also help to explain the popularity of the Nine Brothers in China and Mongolia.


The central figure depicted in paintings is Dralha Tatug Karpo, white in colour, with one face and two hands, dressed as a warrior and riding a white horse. The upraised right hand holds a whip made of a length of bamboo with three joints. Holding the reins in the left hand, he also supports a spear in the bend of the elbow. Surrounding the central figure are eight almost identical Dralha brothers.


The iconography of the Dralha Nine Brothers is not consistent and they can appear either with a peaceful, semi-peaceful or wrathful demeanor. The attributes in the hands can also vary from a riding whip, spear or sword in the right hand to a spear, lasso or simply the horse reins in the left hand. More detailed paintings sometimes depict various birds and animals surrounding the central figure. Amongst the examples available on HAR only one central figure is holding a sword. It is also likely that there are several different textual traditions and ways of depicting the Nine Brothers.