Himalayan Art Resources

Tibet: Lhukang Temple (East Wall, Siddhas)

Lhukang Temple East Wall | Lhukang Temple Main Page | Mahasiddha Main Page | Mahasiddha Outline Page | Mahasiddha Technical Glossary | Mahasiddha Definition | Twenty-five Disciples Main Page | Twenty-five Disciples Outline Page

The East wall depicts the Eighty-four Mahasiddhas according to the system of Vajrasana, one of the two principal systems of Mahasiddhas commonly depicted in Himalayan and Tibetan art. The systems are differentiated by the listing of names - who is included and who is not. The other system is called the Abhayadatta. Both systems are named after the Indian scholars who wrote the definitive early text naming and describing each of the eighty-four.

In the Lhukang murals the siddhas are depicted on the east wall with the primordial buddha Vajradhara at the top center and the individual figures, all the same size, arranged to the sides and below. At the lower center is Padmasambhava with his twenty-five principal disciples arranged to the sides and below him.