"Goddess Tara, a female Buddha and meditational deity, is arguably the most popular goddess in the Buddhist pantheon. She is considered to be the goddess of universal compassion who represents virtuous and enlightened activity.
The word Tara itself is derived from the root \'tri\' (to cross), hence the implied meaning:\' the one who enables living beings to cross the Ocean of Existence and Suffering\'. Her compassion for living beings, her desire to save them from suffering, is said to be even stronger than a mother\'s love for her children."
A Thangka, diversely referred to as Thangka, Tangka, Thanka, or Tanka, is a Tibetan Buddhist painting on cotton, silk appliqué, usually depicting a Buddhist deity, scene, or mandala. Thangka is also known as scroll painting. Roughly translating to “recorded message” in Tibetan, it is an ancient form of Buddhist art that originated within Tibet around the 11th century. These are densely illustrative, and painstakingly detailed, and serve as a striking centrepiece that can be appreciated by all admirers of Asian art.
Buddhist thangka paintings are visually captivating and impressive — but there is more to them than meets the eye. Thangkas often focus on a specific deity and scene, and their form and surrounding details are often rich with symbolism, turning them into a medium for religious storytelling. Because of this, extracting all the intricacies and meanings from the paintings requires training. Tibetan thangkas were originally created for the purpose of helping the viewer or Buddhist practitioner on his journey to enlightenment. A thangka\'s characteristics like organization and juxtaposition of figures, repetition of figures, and size contribute to the storytelling of the painting.
"The feminine tenderness...define the epitome of Buddhist iconographic perception and art... Compassion - the softest aspect of being, man or divine, which was the core of Buddhism, best revealed itself in a female frame... The female in Buddhism...was its psychological need and comprised its spiritual structure... Tara, the principal Buddhist goddess conceived with a wide range of attributes and personality aspects, has in Buddhism the same status as Devi or Durga in the Brahmanical... White Tara manifests in seven forms... Many of Tara\'s forms are merely her attributes.... She is one throughout. Her attributes are two-fold, pacific and angry, or five-fold according to five sacred colors, pacific being white or green, and angry red, yellow or blue..."
Buddhism is full of unique religious expressions, in which faith combines with culture to shape all those beliefs that make up this ancient religion. Within Buddhism there are many deities with special characteristics that are worthy of veneration by believers; whether they are from Hinduism or other beliefs, these deities are important and the rituals to worship them are always present. That is why deities such as Tara, a goddess with many forms in which the green Tara stands out, is important to Buddhists, as this divine mother has qualities such as helping you achieve success and get ahead.
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