Mandala of Kalachakra in Yab-yum

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Moreover the Kalachakra Tantra is a method or path of reaching enlightenment faster although with great effort, capable of leading the practitioner to Buddhahood within one human lifetime. The meaning of the Kalachakra Tantra is contained within three wheels of Time, called the External, the Internal and the Alternative. The External Kalachakra refers to the external environment, the physical universe and the astronomical system. The Internal Kalachakra refers to the beings that live within the physical universe, and describes the bodily channels, 'wind', and drops of fluids and how they circulate inside the body. The Alternative Kalachakra refers to the methods to reach enlightenment, together with their result. The Alternative Kalachakra contains the Kalachakra initiations, which authorize the person who takes to follow the systematic Kalachakra path to Buddhahood.

In the center of the mandala, Kalachakra is standing in alidha attitude and embracing his consort, Vishvamata, mother of all. He is prostrating personages under his legs. He has four faces. The central face is blue, his right face is white, while the two to the left are yellow and red. He has twelve arms. The original ones, blue in color, are crossed around the waist of his consort and holding vajra and ghanta( here it is not clearly visible). His upper hands, in light yellow color, are holding the elephant's skin. The remaining hands, in red and white colors, hold tantra symbols, here it is not clearly visible. Kalachakra wears a tiger-skin skirt and a long garland of skulls.

The consort of Kalachakra, Vishvamata is represented with only one head and two arms. Her both the legs are wrapped around his waist. Her left hand is behind his neck, while the right hand is holding a cup. Kalachakra has wisdom flame aureole and green halo behind his body and head, respectively. The inner circle of the mandala, in which Kalachakra Father-Mother are depicted, is surrounded by eight lotus petals containing the images of Cosmic Buddhas. The area, outside the circle of lotus petals, is decorated with stylized designs. Outside the lotus circle there is a square, which has four gates with dancing Dakinis in them. Over the gates are beautiful houses with decorations. The upper center of the houses depicts Dharma wheel flaked by deers. Vases with flowers in them and Nagas (Serpent deities) are depicted on either side of each gate outside the walls. Over each corner of the square, there is a scene of mountainous landscape in semi-circles. A lotus petal circular border, and a yellow circle surround the whole square. Then there is an outer circle of yellow. The yellow circle is surrounded by another outer circle of fire fence.

In the row across the top, Adi-Buddha Vajradhara is in the center. He is flanked by offering deities in clouds. Below this row from the left hand side are Akasha or Maitri Dakini, A great Adept Gayadhara, Padmasambhava as Padmaraja or Lotus King, Padmasambhava as Loden Chogse (eight manifestations of Padmasambhava), and Vidyadhari or Phampi Yogini, respectively. Just below them are offering divinities, either side of the fire fence circle.

At the bottom are, Naro Dakini in left corner, Vaishravana in the center and Guhyeshvari Dakini in the right corner. All these Dakinis depicted in upper and lower corners have wisdom fire aureole and they are dancing on corpses. The painting is brilliantly drawn and painted. The painting is very much suitable for esoteric sadhana and practices.

This description is by Dr. Shailendra K. Verma, whose Doctorate thesis is on "Emergence and Evolution of the Buddha Image (From its inception to 8th century A.D.)".

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Unveiling the Divine Art: Journey into the Making of Thangkas

A Thangka is a traditional Tibetan Buddhist painting that usually depicts a Buddhist Deity (Buddha or Bodhisattva), a scene, or a mandala. These paintings are considered important paraphernalia in Buddhist rituals. They are used to teach the life of the Buddha, various lamas, and Bodhisattvas to the monastic students, and are also useful in visualizing the deity while meditating. One of the most important subjects of thangkas is the Bhavacakra (the wheel of life) which depicts the Art of Enlightenment. It is believed that Thangka paintings were developed over the centuries from the murals, of which only a few can be seen in the Ajanta caves in India and the Mogao caves in Gansu Province, Tibet. Thangkas are painted on cotton or silk applique and are usually small in size. The artist of these paintings is highly trained and has a proper understanding of Buddhist philosophy, knowledge, and background to create a realistic and bona fide painting.

The process of making a thangka begins with stitching a loosely woven cotton fabric onto a wooden frame. Traditionally, the canvas was prepared by coating it with gesso, chalk, and base pigment.

After this, the outline of the form of the deity is sketched with a pencil or charcoal onto the canvas using iconographic grids. The drawing process is followed in accordance with strict guidelines laid out in Buddhist scriptures. The systematic grid helps the artist to make a geometrical and professional painting. When the drawing of the figures is finalized and adjusted, it is then outlined with black ink.

Earlier, a special paint of different colors was made by mixing powdered forms of organic (vegetable) and mineral pigments in a water-soluble adhesive. Nowadays, artists use acrylic paints instead. The colors are now applied to the sketch using the wet and dry brush techniques. One of the characteristic features of a thangka is the use of vibrant colors such as red, blue, black, green, yellow, etc.

In the final step, pure gold is coated over some parts of the thangka to increase its beauty. Due to this beautification, thangkas are much more expensive and also stand out from other ordinary paintings.

Thangka paintings are generally kept unrolled when not on display on the wall. They also come with a frame, a silken cover in front, and a textile backing to protect the painting from getting damaged. Because Thangkas are delicate in nature, they are recommended to be kept in places with no excess moisture and where there is not much exposure to sunlight. This makes them last a long time without their colors fading away. Painting a thangka is an elaborate and complex process and requires excellent skills. A skilled artist can take up to 6 months to complete a detailed thangka painting. In earlier times, thangka painters were lamas that spent many years on Buddhist studies before they painted.