THANGKA PAINTING AND BLACK & WHITE THANGKA PAINTING
Thangka Painting is a uniquely Tibetan tradition that evolved between the 7th and 12th centuries. Painted on canvas and mounted in Silk Brocade, a Thangka Painting is more than just a work of art. It is an object of devotion, an aid to spiritual practice, and a bringer of blessings. Often a particular Buddha or Bodhisattva is depicted; at other times it may be the Buddhist wheel of life or scenes from the Buddha's life or a mandala (an abstract design depicting a spiritual universe). The Thangka Painting acted as a focus and support for the practice of the Buddhist faith. It also served, like all sacred images, as a symbol of the believer's commitment to travel the path set by the Buddha, and thus functioned as an object of worship and offerings. If we look at the Sacred Paintings deeply, then we found that there are two main form of Thangka Paintings; one which depict the physical form of different deities and the other which depict inanimate, sacred objects, such as stupas or important temples and monasteries. Some Thangka Paintings are called narrative paintings because they portray events in the life of an enlightened saint. These Thangka Paintings are also described as biographical paintings. The narrative Thangka Paintings either comprise a single Thangka or a series of Thangkas - they narrate accounts of one or many events in the life of a personage. The other type of Thangka Paintings are those that portray sacred figures within a pure realm, and not as personages in a particular situation. The most common and the simplest consists merely of a single figure in the middle of a background. Those with multiple figures form another type, while the Thangka Paintings painted according to the requirements of the patron commissioning them form another category.
A Mandala (one of the most popular Thangka Paintings) painted on a fabric is considered a Thangka Painting, but on the whole it comprises a distinct work of sacred art with a relatively limited; the scope of the Thangka Painting is wider and more varied. The composition or design of a Mandala is fixed, and never altered: a fixed number of deities are represented by symbols. Thangka Paintings are easier to understand for a lay person than a Mandala is, because a Mandala depicts abstruse concepts, beyond the language of lay people, and is often understood only by monks and scholars. The painted Mandala, which can be regarded as a Thangka Painting, is an example of a fixed composition with a central figure portrayed with a retinue of minor deities - this is repeated over and over again, the subject remaining virtually fixed. Thangka Paintings have no fixed designs, and can portray varying numbers of deities; the deities are not represented as symbols. It is felt that there is greater merit in having more deities, for this multiples the force of the power of the deities to counteract threatening obstacles or problems.
As stated above, Thangka Paintings come in a huge variety of styles, depicting various subjects. A Thangka Painting may portray the Buddha or some other Bodhisattva deities, or a concept in Tibetan cosmology, astrology or medicine. The iconography of the Thangka Painting is rich in information about the spiritual practice of Buddhists and the Tibetan world view. A Thangka Painting can help a mediator to learn and emulate the qualities of a particular deity or to visualize his or her path towards enlightenment. It can bring blessings on the household and serves as a constant reminder of the Buddha's teachings of compassion, kindness and wisdom. Thangka Paintings of particular deities may be used for protection or to overcome difficulties such as sickness.
Thangka Painting involves mastery of many demanding techniques: mastery in sketching the illustrations and numerous deities according to formal iconography rules laid down by generations of Thangka Painting masters; learning to grind and apply the paints, which are made from natural stone pigments; and learning to prepare and apply details in pure gold. From the canvas preparation and drawing of the subject, through to mixing and applying colours, decorating with gold, and mounting the finished work in brocade, the creation of a Thangka Painting involves skill and care at each stage and displays meticulous detail and exquisite artisan ship. Some Thangka Paintings are made using combination of different colors and some Thangka Paintings are made using only Black and White colors. In some cases, when the Thangka Painting is completed the Painting is then bordered with a silk and known as Silk Brocaded Thangka Paintings. These Silk Brocaded Thangka Paintings have their own use, like using as ritual objects in monasteries or altar. In this page we have gathered our Thangka Paintings which have been painted using only two colors, Black and White. The Black and White Thangka Painting looks simple but also looks extremely beautiful. The Black and White Thangka Painting can be made of any Buddha or Bhodisattva deities or ritual objects.
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