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TIBETAN
ART Page 8
Dharmapala,
Defenders of the Law (The Eight Terrible Ones)
Fierce tantric divinities who fight tirelessly against both demons
and enemies of Buddhism, these are the beings of monstrous, even
demonic appearance themselves, described above under "Tantric
Images." Armed and horrific in appearance, their ferocious
faces expressing relentless determination, they are champions of
the faith, heartening mortal beings and inspiring fear in evil spirits.
They are examplars, models, who show us how to overcome ego and
the obstructive passions that cause suffering. Some, like Mahakala,
derive from Indian tantrism and were later absorbed into Mahayana,
while others are transformations of indigenous or, according to
some theories, Bon deities; whatever their origins, these are the
hostile gods whom Padmasambhava defeated and then bound over to
defend the new faith against all attackers.
Even fiercer in form and aspect than the wrathful yi-dam, the Dharmapalas
are among the most startling, dramatic images to be seen in Tibetan
art. They are characteristically shown surrounded by a flaming aureole,
which represents the tremendous field of energy that emanates from
them: their eyebrows and even their hair may also be aflame. Their
scowling faces show a third eye, their grimacing mouths reveal fangs.
Their fearsome ornaments -- a crown of skulls, a garland of severed
heads -- are explained symbolically: the skulls, five in number,
are emblems of the negative forces they have slain -- anger, greed,
pride, ignorance, and envy, or their equivalents -- and the severed
heads, likewise, are trophies of conquest over harmful impulses,
misleading thoughts, and malignant spirits. Likewise, the weapons
they brandish -- axe, chopper, dagger -- and the lasso they may
twirl, show them armed to vanquish, hack, stab, or trap those malicious
spirits and destructive attitudes. Beneath their feet, they trample
demons, or the old gods and their misleading ways. Some are shown
drinking from a skull full of blood.
The
Eight Dharmapalas are Beg-tse, Tsangs-pa, Kuvera, Lhamo, Yama, Yamantaka,
Hayagriva, and Mahakala, of whom the last five are the best known.
Palden Lhamo: The only feminine Dharmapala, she
is as ferocious in aspect as any of them, and brings to mind the
Hindu goddess Kali/ Durga. She is shown riding a mule with an eye
on its haunch, of which the reins are poisonous snakes. She killed
her own son, thus honoring her vow to do so if she could not convert
all her people to Buddhism. She is the special protectress of the
Dalai Lama.
Yama and Yamantaka: Yama is the lord of hell
and god of death. He is sometimes depicted with a water buffalo's
head. According to legend, robbers stole a buffalo (in some accounts,
a bull) and cut off its head. Entering a cave, they found an ascetic
meditating there, and cut off his head to kill their witness. The
ascetic seized the buffalo's head and placed it upon his own neck,
then killed the robbers and went on a rampage of fury. The terrified
people appealed to Manjushri for protection and he, in the tantric
form of Yamantaka, conquered Yama. Yama wears a disc, the wheel
of the law, on his chest. Yamantaka, with a vajra in his hair, is
Vajrabhairava, a wrathful or terrific manifestation of Manjushri
-- thus a form of wisdom, the wisdom that perceives ultimate reality,
and that which triumphs over evil, suffering and death.
Hayagriva: Known as the horse-necked one, he
wears a horse's head in his headdress, and is sometimes winged.
The horse is an important Tibetan symbol. The image of the lungta,
or wind-horse, appears along with printed prayers on the prayer
flags seen everywhere in the Tibetan cultural world, festooning
gompas, shrines, houses, and even trees and rocks, where the wind
may carry the prayers out across the world. Hayagriva's neighing
frightens demons away.
Mahakala: His name signifies the great black
one, and as such this important tantric deity is usually depicted,
although he also has manifestations in other colors. He may be depicted
with a trident, the symbol of the Hindu god Shiva, of whom he is
a tantric derivation. Gompas often have a special tantric chamber
or even a separate chapel, the Gon-khang, often dedicated to Mahakala;
it is restricted to initiates and usually only to men. According
to legend, the gods held an assembly to choose the protector of
religion, and selected Mahakala. Mahakala has enormous power to
overcome all negative elements. The favorite protector-deity of
every school of Tibetan Buddhism, Mahakala is a general name, and
each school has its own Mahakala, with a name specific to that school.
Guardians
of the Four Cardinal Points: Also known as the Lokapala, these
are four kings, dressed and armed as warriors, whose images often
guard the entrance into a gompa. They may be painted on the wall
of the porch leading into the prayer hall or on the internal wall
itself, or stand sentinel as statues near the entrance. They are
identifiable by their colors and symbolic objects: the white lord
of the east holds a lute, the blue or green lord of the south holds
a sword, the red lord of the west holds a snake and a shrine, and
the yellow lord of the north holds a banner and a mongoose.
In addition to this vast pantheon are yet other minor deities and
creatures, also frequently depicted in Tibetan art. Tantric mandalas
often include scenes of cemeteries, charnel fields, places where
the dismembered dead are left to scavenging animals and birds. A
pair of Citipati, dancing skeletons, may appear, mocking illusion.
Nagas are serpent gods, snake below the waist but human above. They
may display a canopy of cobras, their hoods spread wide, as a headdress;
Nagaraja, the serpent king, wears a serpent crown. The serpent in
Hindu and Buddhist culture is not always a fearsome creature; when
Mara, the evil demon, tried to break Gautama Shakyamuni's meditation,
a cobra spread his hood in protection over the Buddha. The garuda
is a mythic bird, the "wisdom eagle," known to Hindus
as the mount of Vishnu. Composite creatures are a frequent device,
especially the makara, part crocodile, part elephant, often seen
at the portals of mandalas.
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