Hevajra and Consort (Primary Title)
Unknown (Artist)
A mandala is a two-dimensional plan of a vast three-dimensional environment populated by actual beings. At its center is the yidam, or mediation deity, that embodies the mandala’s teachings. This exquisite sculpture brings into higher relief the coupled deities at the center of each of the five small mandalas in the painting to the right. The sixteen skull cups in Hevajra’s hands hold eight animals looking inward on his right side and eight worldly gods looking outward on his left. His primary pair of hands, crossed at the heart, embrace his consort, Nairatmya, who supports herself on one leg in a dancing pose while wrapping the other around him.
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