The Mandala in Tibetan Buddhism by Martin Brauen - ARAS
The Mandala in Tibetan Buddhism by Martin Brauen - ARAS
The Mandala in Tibetan Buddhism by Martin Brauen - ARAS
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protection were still not enough, around every mandala a circular fire blazes to<br />
keep all negative forces far away from the <strong>in</strong>side of the mandala.<br />
In a relatively large number of mandalas a fourth circle <strong>in</strong> which the eight<br />
charnel grounds are depicted, is added to the first three. Each charnel ground<br />
conta<strong>in</strong>s the same basic elements: a mahāsiddha (yog<strong>in</strong>), āk<strong>in</strong>ī, protective deity,<br />
stūpa, tree, cloud, forest, hermit, ocean, mounta<strong>in</strong>, and naga. Such<br />
representations of charnel grounds rem<strong>in</strong>d the person meditat<strong>in</strong>g of the<br />
transitor<strong>in</strong>ess of all existence. For is there any place more suitable than a charnel<br />
ground to meditate on the fleet<strong>in</strong>g nature of existence? That <strong>in</strong> early mandalas<br />
these charnel ground scenes were not depicted <strong>in</strong> a separate circle but <strong>in</strong> the<br />
whole area outside the mandala is <strong>in</strong>dicated <strong>by</strong> a Cakrasamvara <strong>Mandala</strong><br />
ascribed to the twelfth century, <strong>in</strong> <strong>The</strong> Metropolitan Museum of Art.<br />
Other mandalas<br />
Numerous scroll pa<strong>in</strong>t<strong>in</strong>gs depict mandalas that are not recognizable as<br />
such at first sight. <strong>The</strong> characteristic type of mandala <strong>in</strong> such pa<strong>in</strong>t<strong>in</strong>gs becomes<br />
clear when the pa<strong>in</strong>t<strong>in</strong>gs are analyzed, and the mandalas are there<strong>by</strong> revealed as<br />
three-dimensional, symmetrical structures, concentrated about a center.<br />
Even the <strong>in</strong>dividual deity can appear as a mandala: thus Kālacakra<br />
dom<strong>in</strong>ates the mandala of the same name. Like his partner Viśvamātr he has<br />
four faces, each look<strong>in</strong>g toward one of the four card<strong>in</strong>al directions. His arms,<br />
together with those of his partner, describe a circle about an (imag<strong>in</strong>ed) center at<br />
the level of the heart.<br />
Eventually, <strong>in</strong> the context of the picture of the person <strong>in</strong> the Kālacakra<br />
Tantra, we shall f<strong>in</strong>d out that the human be<strong>in</strong>g, too, is seen as a mandala. For<br />
<strong>The</strong> images <strong>in</strong> this paper are strictly for educational use and are protected <strong>by</strong> United States copyright laws. Unauthorized<br />
use will result <strong>in</strong> crim<strong>in</strong>al and civil penalties.<br />
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