.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
The main figure of this thangka depicts Shakyamuni Buddha performing the earth-touching gesture (bhumisparsha mudra), seated upon a layered lotus throne supported by a traditional lion pedestal. He is draped in vibrant, multicolored monastic robes, cradling an alms bowl in his left palm. A striking gold-leaf halo surrounds his head. Directly guarding the central throne stand his two premier spiritual heirs: Shariputra, standing on the left, who is revered as the Buddha’s foremost intellectual disciple, famed for his mastery of the foundational teachings and Maudgalyayana, standing on the right, who is celebrated for his supreme mastery over supernatural meditative states, including flight, telepathy, traversing elemental planes, and moving across physical dimensions.
The upper geometric bands, together with the central environment, depict the traditional group of the Thirty-Five Confession Buddhas, arranged according to the ancient philosophical guidelines established by the sage Nagarjuna. This visual grouping functions as a key Mahayana ritual assembly. It derives from the Triskandha Sutra, or the Sutra of the Three Heaps. Monks and nuns use this text to confess spiritual downfalls. These downfalls include transgressions against vinaya monastic rules and bodhisattva vows. Shakyamuni Buddha remains the central focus of this worship. Approximately half way down the composition in the vertical registers are twelve of the Sixteen Great Arhats, with six descending on the right. The bottom of the painting has been trimmed, and would have depicted the remaining four arhats and possibly other figures.
Several other thangkas of the period share similar iconography, style, and palette. A Buddha surrounded by the sixteenth arhats sits within a jeweled tri-lobed aureole wearing gold, orange and blue robes closely resembles the one here (Bonhams, Hong Kong, 30 October 2025, lot 1008). The iconography of the confession Buddhas and arhats are included in another sixteenth century thangka, which bears a fuller pantheon of subsidiary figures (Bonhams, New York, 20 March 2024, lot 724). Another shares both subject, rich mineral tones of orange, reds, blues and greens, and also includes a golden orb (HAR 12355).
The upper geometric bands, together with the central environment, depict the traditional group of the Thirty-Five Confession Buddhas, arranged according to the ancient philosophical guidelines established by the sage Nagarjuna. This visual grouping functions as a key Mahayana ritual assembly. It derives from the Triskandha Sutra, or the Sutra of the Three Heaps. Monks and nuns use this text to confess spiritual downfalls. These downfalls include transgressions against vinaya monastic rules and bodhisattva vows. Shakyamuni Buddha remains the central focus of this worship. Approximately half way down the composition in the vertical registers are twelve of the Sixteen Great Arhats, with six descending on the right. The bottom of the painting has been trimmed, and would have depicted the remaining four arhats and possibly other figures.
Several other thangkas of the period share similar iconography, style, and palette. A Buddha surrounded by the sixteenth arhats sits within a jeweled tri-lobed aureole wearing gold, orange and blue robes closely resembles the one here (Bonhams, Hong Kong, 30 October 2025, lot 1008). The iconography of the confession Buddhas and arhats are included in another sixteenth century thangka, which bears a fuller pantheon of subsidiary figures (Bonhams, New York, 20 March 2024, lot 724). Another shares both subject, rich mineral tones of orange, reds, blues and greens, and also includes a golden orb (HAR 12355).