Jesse Aylsworth
Research Paper
RELS 313
April 18, 2016
In Tibet, art and religion are connected on many levels, images are not purely aesthetic, instead art operates on a deeper, spiritual and cultural level, which can be applied to almost every part of traditional Tibetan life, Tibetan thangka paintings, from process, creation and ultimately the final sacred image, aid in devotional religious activity for Tibetan Buddhist practitioners and helps preserve the tradition.
There are essentially two types of thangka artists working according to Buddhist tradition, they are Buddhist monks and professional painters. The majority of thangka painters are trained professionals. Painters must study under strict supervision and instruction. Historically …show more content…
Several common types of compositions in religious thankas are: narrative, a main figure in its pure realm, repetitive depictions, and lineages. Narrative thankas can be further divided into two categories, “the succession of notable events in the life of an enlightened one or saint and the succession of events from the past lives of some great being” (Jackson 26). Thankas that depict the main figure in its spiritual realm show the main deity in a pure realm or sometimes the deity’s own specific realm. For example, “Padmasambhava often appears on his famous copper coloured mountain (zings mdog dpal gyi ri)” (Jackson 26). Another frequently seen thanka composition is that of repetitive depictions, in which a central main figure is surrounded by many smaller identical figures. Other thankas, which depict lineages, can also be sub-divided into two categories: “refuge trees” and “assembly fields”. The refuge tree depicts objects or beings in which the practitioner takes refuge (skyabs su ‘gro ba’i yul). The common refuges of Buddhism, which often appear in some form, are the Three Jewels: the Buddha, Dharma and Sanga and occasionally the practitioner’s own gurus. The assembly field is a group of exalted beings who were worshipped and to whom offerings were made (Jackson 26). Each thanka compositional grouping contains further restrictions and instructions set by strict religious tradition and each composition holds different meaning. There can be many variations within each compositional category, as many as can be imagined by the artist or
Research Paper
RELS 313
April 18, 2016
In Tibet, art and religion are connected on many levels, images are not purely aesthetic, instead art operates on a deeper, spiritual and cultural level, which can be applied to almost every part of traditional Tibetan life, Tibetan thangka paintings, from process, creation and ultimately the final sacred image, aid in devotional religious activity for Tibetan Buddhist practitioners and helps preserve the tradition.
There are essentially two types of thangka artists working according to Buddhist tradition, they are Buddhist monks and professional painters. The majority of thangka painters are trained professionals. Painters must study under strict supervision and instruction. Historically …show more content…
Several common types of compositions in religious thankas are: narrative, a main figure in its pure realm, repetitive depictions, and lineages. Narrative thankas can be further divided into two categories, “the succession of notable events in the life of an enlightened one or saint and the succession of events from the past lives of some great being” (Jackson 26). Thankas that depict the main figure in its spiritual realm show the main deity in a pure realm or sometimes the deity’s own specific realm. For example, “Padmasambhava often appears on his famous copper coloured mountain (zings mdog dpal gyi ri)” (Jackson 26). Another frequently seen thanka composition is that of repetitive depictions, in which a central main figure is surrounded by many smaller identical figures. Other thankas, which depict lineages, can also be sub-divided into two categories: “refuge trees” and “assembly fields”. The refuge tree depicts objects or beings in which the practitioner takes refuge (skyabs su ‘gro ba’i yul). The common refuges of Buddhism, which often appear in some form, are the Three Jewels: the Buddha, Dharma and Sanga and occasionally the practitioner’s own gurus. The assembly field is a group of exalted beings who were worshipped and to whom offerings were made (Jackson 26). Each thanka compositional grouping contains further restrictions and instructions set by strict religious tradition and each composition holds different meaning. There can be many variations within each compositional category, as many as can be imagined by the artist or