Himalayan Art Resources

Item: Teacher (Lama) - Karmapa 13, Dudul Dorje

བླ་མ། 喇嘛
(item no. 54)
Origin Location Eastern Tibet
Date Range 1700 - 1799
Lineages Karma (Kagyu)
Size 50.80x35.56cm (20x14in)
Material Ground Mineral Pigment, Fine Gold Line on Cotton
Collection Rubin Museum of Art
Catalogue # acc.# P1994.12.3
Painting School Karma Gardri
Notes about the Central Figure

Classification: Person

TBRC: bdr:P828

Interpretation / Description

Dudul Dorje, the 13th Karmapa, (1733-1797): able to teach the word of the Buddha to both humans and animals. (See a comparison with HAR #51886).

Kar ma pa Biographical Details

Youthful in appearance and fair in colour he sits with the right hand in the open mudra (gesture) of generosity extended over the right knee. The left hand is held to the heart in the mudra of blessing. Adorning the head he displays the black vajra crown, typical of the Karmapa lamas, a gift of the dakinis bestowed originally to Dusum Khyenpa. Wearing the red and yellow robes of a fully ordained monk (bhikshu), he sits atop a low cushioned seat with a backrest and brocade. In front on a low table are a flower vase, small chest with a clasp and a white scarf. On the ground at the right arranged in a row are various gems, precious jewels and stalk of red coral. The middle background is consumed with swirling brown clouds before a tree rising upward on a long trunk and branches copiously endowed with green foliage.

At the bottom left a lama student wearing a red cap with wide lappets in the style of Gampopa, attired in monastic robes, with the hands in the mudra of meditation, sits in a dignified posture on a broad cushion. At the right a docile hare sits before a well-constructed pen and like the lama to the left contentedly listens to the discourses of the Dharma.

Jeff Watt 2-99

Secondary Images
Related Items
Publications
Publication: Worlds of Transformation

Thematic Sets
Incarnation Lineage: Gyalwa Karmapa Main Page
Collection of Rubin Museum of Art: Painting Gallery 6
Tradition: Kagyu Teachers (Paintings)
Teacher: Karmapa 13th, Dudul Dorje
Painting Set: Karma Kagyu Lineage (Sertreng, misc.)
Teacher: Karmapa Mikyo Dorje, 8th (Front Facing)