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Mandala of Chakrasamvara and Vajravarahi
late 1400s
- Medium
- Gum tempera on cloth
- Classification
- Painting
- Dimensions
- Overall: 40.6 x 35.6 cm (16 x 14 in.)
- Culture
- Nepal
- Museum
- Cleveland Museum of Art, Indian and Southeast Asian Art
- Credit line
- James Parmelee Fund
- Rights
- Public domain (CC0), as the museum states it.
- Who can see it
- Teens profiles and older: its museum says too little about what it shows to place it for younger viewers. How works are placed
View at the Cleveland Museum of Art
About this work
A mandala is a two-dimensional diagram of a palace-like structure, viewed from above. This mandala depicts the abode of a 4-headed, 12-armed figure who personifies a major tantric Buddhist text, the Chakrasamvara-tantra. He dances in the bliss of sexual union with his consort, the red Vajravarahi, in the central circle, which is equivalent to the penthouse of their palace.
Through guided meditation, practitioners can visualize entering through each of the four gates to experience the beauty of the enlightened realm. The outermost ring of cremation grounds indicates that one must overcome fear of death before reaching the realm of enlightenment.
