Thangka

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19th Century Mongolian distemper with highlights of gold, depicting Shakyamuni flanked by Chenrezig and Manjushri. The form of Manjushri depicted here, is not wielding the characteristic flaming sword, but there are many forms of the eight great bodhisattvas, some are based on the Indian tradition, and other from visions of historical masters.

Thangka painting, at the Namgyal Institute of Tibetology, Sikkim

Thangka showing the six realms in Tibetan Buddhist cosmology, from Ladakh.

"Thangka," also known as "Tangka" (Pronunciation: tänkä (the "a" as in the word "water;" the "g" is silent)

A Thangka (Tibetan: ཐང་ཀ་, Nepal Bhasa:पौभा) is a painted or embroidered Buddhist banner which was hung in a monastery or a family altar and carried by lamas in ceremonial processions. In Tibetan the word 'than' means flat and the suffix 'ka' stands for painting. The Thangka is thus a kind of painting done on flat surface but which can be rolled up when not required for display, sometimes called a scroll-painting. The most common shape of a Thangka is the upright rectangular form.

While regarded by some as colorful wall hangings, to Buddhists, these Tibetan religious paintings offer a beauty, believed to be a manifestation of the divine, and are thus visually stimulating.

[edit] Types of Thangkas

Based on technique and material, thangkas can be grouped by type. Generally, they are divided into two broad categories: those, which are painted (Tib.) bris-tan and those, which are made of silk, either by appliqué or with embroidery.

Thangkas are further divided into these more specific categories:

Appliqué (Tib.) go-tang
Black Background -- meaning gold line on a black background (Tib.) nagtang
Blockprints -- paper or cloth outlined renderings, pressed from wood blocks
Embroidery (Tib.) tshim-tang
Gold Background -- an auspicious treatment, used judiciously for peaceful, long-life deities and fully enlightened buddhas
Painted in colors (Tib.) tson-tang
Red Background -- literally gold line, but referring to gold line on a vermillion (Tib.) ser-tig

[edit] The Process

Thangkas are painted on cotton canvas with water soluble pigments, both mineral and organic, tempered with a herb and glue solution. The entire process demands great mastery over the drawing and perfect understanding of iconometric principles.

The physical construction of a thangka, as with the majority of Buddhist art, is highly geometric. Arms, legs, eyes, nostrils, ears, and various ritual implements are all laid out on a systematic grid of angles and intersecting lines. A skilled thangka artist will generally select from a variety of predesigned items to include in the composition, ranging from alms bowls and animals, to the shape, size, and angle of a figure's eyes, nose, and lips. The process seems very scientific, but often requires a very deep understanding of the symbolism of the scene being depicted, in order to capture the essence or spirit of it.