A BRONZE FIGURE OF NAMPAR GYALWA (TONPA SHENRAB)

The founder of the Bon tradition is depicted here as Nampar Gyalwa or Completely Victorious, as described in chapter fifty of the Ziji, the essential biography of Tonpa Shenrab. This style of tightly-rendered lotus-petals with bead-like flourishes attributed to an atelier in South-central Tibet (Tsang Province). There is an inscription written in Tibetan Uchen script around the base of the sculpture which reads: The present [image], beneveloent king Nampar Gyalwa, on account of his kind fatherliness, composed the two teachings of the long-life vase and feminine and masculine principles. May all sentient beings be set upon the path to omniscience.

Himalayan Art Resources (himalayanart.org), item no. 57073.