Mahakala (Primary Title)
paubha (Object Name)
Unknown (Artist)
Mahakala is one of the Dharmapalas, fearsome-looking protectors meant to terrify Buddhism’s enemies and defeat the egocentric concepts that obscure one’s progress toward enlightenment. This small paubha shows the dwarfish blue-skinned Mahakala standing triumphantly on the pale corpse of the defeated ego. His third eye dominates his menacing, masklike face. The headband of his large crown features five human skulls, and he wears a garland of severed heads. In his right hand he carried the curved chopper with which he grinds up his enemies, drinking their blood from the skull cap in his left. On the tip of his long staff are speared the desiccating heads of evil. The ends of his long scarf that fly to either side of him are as impressive as his flaming aureole. Around him are the charnel (corpse) fields, semidivine figures including the guardians of the eight directions, and paired deities locked in sexual union. The row of deities at the top of the paubha includes bodhisattvas and the five Cosmic Buddhas. Two panels at the bottom show, in typical Nepalese fashion, the painting’s donors performing religious rituals.
Zimmerman Family Collection, Gift of the E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation
Image released via Creative Commons CC-BY-NC
Some object records are not complete and do not reflect VMFA's full and current knowledge. VMFA makes routine updates as records are reviewed and enhanced.
