TIBET, 18TH CENTURY

A derivative of the Hindu god Ganesha, the Buddhist deity Ganapati is a disseminator of wealth and destroyer of obstacles. Ganapati Maha Rakta, or The Great Red Lord of Hosts, the form of Ganapati illustrated here, is regarded as an emanation of Avalokiteshvara. Along with the deities Kurukulla and Takkiraja, this form belongs to a trio of wealth deities known as mor chen kor sum, or the Three Great Red Deities, included in the Thirteen Golden Dharmas of Sakya. Resplendent paintings of Ganapati, such as the present, were often accompanied by companion paintings of Kurukulla, Takkiraja, and the remaining groups within the Thirteen Golden Dharma set.
Ganapati lifts his proper right leg in dance, his left foot trampling a white rat, whose expelled jewels pile beneath the lotus platform. Each of his twelve hands hold a prescribed attribute: starting from the right upmost hand, he holds an axe, arrow, trident hook, sword, spear and vajra; in the left, a pestle, bow, khatvanga, kapala filled with flesh, and kapala filled with blood. Ganapati’s lowermost left and right hands, holding the vajra and kapala with blood, are held to the heart in a peaceful manner. The remaining ten attributes are waved in a threatening manner upon the backdrop of a fiery aureole.
Face cocked slightly downward, Ganapati widely expands his jaw, exposing his teeth and a long, curling tongue. Long, sharp tusks flank either side of his unpretentious trunk. His three white eyes hold contrast to his vibrant red skin. His black hair is gathered into a top knot and embellished with a bejeweled crown. Fine silks drape around his shoulders and layer the lower half of his body. His figure throughout is abundantly adorned with bracelets, armlets, necklaces, and foot charms.
Above Ganapati, the spirit subduing deity Bhutadamara Vajrapani is represented trampling a corpse. The lower right corner represents Rakta Vasudhara carrying a kapala, while the lower left corner depicts Tinuma Vajrayogini in a dancing posture which parallels Ganapati.
Compare the present painting to a sixteenth-century painting of dancing red Ganapati at the Rubin Museum (acc. no. C2005.11.1, Himalayan Art Resources, item no. 89964). While the Rubin example dates much earlier, and exhibits influence from Nepalese painting traditions, both are strikingly similar in their representation of Ganapati. See the referenced painting’s entry on Himalayan Art Resources for a translation of Ngorchen Konchog Lhundrug’s (1497-1557) dictation on the iconographical and compositional features of Ganapati, which the present painting adheres to closely.