Subject: Five Manjushri (Copies)
Five Manjushri of Mount WutaishanSubjects, Topics & Types:
- Description (below)
- Chogyal Pagpa
- Desi Sanggye Gyatso
- Changkya Rolpai Dorje
- Others...
The five forms of Manjushri in these examples below all have the same basic iconography and placement in the composition. They are all Mongolian, Manchu or Chinese in origin. The colours of the five figures are not uniform between the five examples.
The compositions of 77589, 86561, 93770 all have the same iconography and colours for the five figures. The examples of HAR #94351 and 98206 have a different colour arrangement. The difference in colours might be an attempt to distinguish the forms of Manjushri based on direction and the standard colours used in mandala depictions: east white, south yellow, west red, north green.
Central Terrace: Vimala Manjushri
West Terrace: Simhanada Manjushri
North Terrace: Vimala Manjushri
East Terrace: Tikshna Manjushri
South Terrace: Jnanasattva Manjushri
HAR #77589. Royal Ontario Museum. Tibetan inscriptions for each figure.
HAR #86561. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. No inscriptions.
HAR #93770. Hahn Cultural Foundation. Tibetan inscriptions for each figure.
HAR #94351. American Museum of Natural History. No inscriptions.
HAR #98206. Private Collection. Chinese and Manchu inscriptions for each figure.
Jeff Watt 1-2021
