TIBET, LATE 18TH-EARLY 19TH CENTURY

The present pair of paintings represent the Pandita, or Indian scholars, Asanga and his half-brother Vasubhandu. The two were active teachers in the ancient region of Gandhara in the 4th and 5th centuries and are considered foundational scholars of Mahayana Buddhism.
Both figures belong to the group of early Indian religious scholars known in Tibet as the 'Six Ornaments and Two Excellent Ones of the Southern Continent,' the Southern Continent here referring to India. These teachers were integral in establishing Buddhist traditions that became important strands of worship in the Tibetan tradition. The group of the 'Six Ornaments' includes Nagarjuna, founder of the Madyamaka Tradition, and Asanga, founder of the Yogachara tradition, their students Aryadeva and Vasubhandhu, Dignaga and Dharmakirti, along with the 'Two Excellent Ones,' Gunaprabha and Shakyaprabha. All eight figures are also included in the group known as the Eighty-Four Mahasiddhas.