Himalayan Art Resources

Item: Mahakala (Buddhist Protector) - Bernag Chen (Black Cloak)

མ་ཧཱ་ཀཱ་ལ། ནག་པོ་ཆེན་པོ། 玛哈嘎拉
(item no. 706)
Origin Location Tibet
Date Range 1700 - 1799
Lineages Karma (Kagyu)
Size 57.15x40.01cm (22.50x15.75in)
Material Ground Mineral Pigment on Cotton
Collection Rubin Museum of Art
Catalogue # acc.# P1998.17.2
Notes about the Central Figure

Classification: Deity

Appearance: Wrathful

Gender: Male

Interpretation / Description

Black Cloak Mahakala (Tibetan: gon po ber nag chen); the main protector of the Kamtsangpa Kagyu School and special protector of the Gyalwa Karmapas.

Tibetan: Ber nag chen

Fearsome in appearance with a huge head

Front of Painting
Wylie Transliteration of Inscription: rgyal wa rga tso, phag rdor, legs ldan, rnam sras, dam chan.

Secondary Images
Related Items
Thematic Sets
Buddhist Protectors: Enlightened
Collection of Rubin Museum of Art: Painting Gallery 7
Buddhist Protector: Mahakala Main Page
Mahakala: Bernagchen Page (Black Cloak)
Mahakala (Kagyu)