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The Splendour Of The Kalachakra Mandala

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The Kalachakra Tantra (‘kala’ is Sanskrt for time; ‘chakra’, for cycle) expounded by Lord Buddha is a profound conception of the world as we know it. It comprises the outer, inner, and alternative Kalachakras. While the outer Kalachakra is the extrinsic locus of birth and death, the inner Kalachakra is the microcosm of sentience. The alternative Kalachakra pertains to the journey of Enlightenment/Buddhahood subject to the passage of kala.

The thangka that you see on this page is of the Kalachakra mandala. The majestic palace that you see on this page is a symbolic entity, a visualisation aid. It has four gates, each oriented to the four quarters of the world, and is protected by blue, scarlet, and gold discoids, each standing for a spiritual ideal that one must attain in order to access the riches offered by the Kalachakra palace. Zoom in on the splendour of the sprawling gates of the palace - note the perfect symmetry and attention to detail with which the same have been painted.

The importance of mandalas in Vajrayana Buddhism is in the fact that they are visualisation aids. Each of the five stories of the Kalachakra mandala palace leads the practitioner through the realms of body, expression, intellect, consciousness, and bliss to the resident Kalachakra deity. Practice empowers one to visualise and penetrate each and every corner of this all-important structure.

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Item Code:	TG87
Specifications:	Tibetan Thangka Painting
Dimensions	Size of Painted Surface 18.5 inch X 27.5 inch Size with Brocade 40 inch X 42.5 inch

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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.

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