Black Chloriteexpand_more
Anonymous giftexpand_more 2021.36
This sculpture depicts the male Buddhist deity Hevajra in sexual embrace with the female deity Nairatmaya. While wrathful in appearance, he symbolizes compassion, and she wisdom: their union transcends opposites and dissolves into the great bliss of enlightenment. As practitioners of Vajrayana Buddhism meditated on this image, the soul was awakened to a higher level of consciousness, far from the everyday activities of mundane human existence.
In this vigorous and crisp visualization, one sees the Buddhist deities astride the bodies of Brahmanical (Hindu) deities, a reference to the lively spiritual debates held at monastic centers of Northeast India.
This record has been reviewed by our curatorial staff but may be incomplete. These records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@artsmia.org.
Does something look wrong with this image? Let us know