Ancient Tibetan Buddhist Rock Carvings of Vairochana: Portraits of Tibetan Sovereigns and Their Courtiers

Amy Heller

Imperial Carvings of Vairochana

Denma Drak, Kham region, eastern Tibet (present-day TAR, China) 804

Yuk Nyak Dre Shab, Shok Lek Kong, and Dummagam, Tibetan stone carvers, Hun Bong Tseng Pe and Hwa Hou Jin, Chinese artists; Enthroned Buddha Vairochana Surrounded by Eight Bodhisattvas; Denma Drak, Kham region, eastern Tibet (present-day TAR, China); 804; stone; approx. 11 ft. 6 in. × 9 ft. 10 in. (3.5 × 3 m); photograph by Elisabeth Benard and Nima Dorjee Ragnubs, 1983

Summary

Artworks from the age of the Tibetan emperors are extremely rare. Tibetologist and art historian Amy Heller examines the ninth-century rock carvings at Denma Drak, which depict the Tibetan emperors as the Buddha Vairochana, conflating deity and ruler. The inscribed dates and artists’ names make these images the earliest dated examples of Tibetan art yet known. Commissioned by a monk who lived on the Sino-Tibetan border, these images show how early Tibetan art blended Buddhist and secular symbolism, religion and politics, as well as Chinese, Tibetan, and Indic styles.

Key Terms

chakravartin

A chakravartin is an ideal of Buddhist kingship, a universal ruler who supports the sangha and “turns the wheel of the Dharma.” Since the time of Emperor Ashoka (304–232 BCE), the archetypal chakravartin, many Buddhist rulers in history have been praised as chakravartins, or rulers who support Buddhism and help its spread through the expansion of his domains.

iconography

In the Himalayan context, iconography refers to the forms found in religious images, especially the attributes of deities: body color, number of arms and legs, hand gestures, poses, implements, and retinue. Often these attributes are specified in ritual texts (sadhanas), which artists are expected to follow faithfully.

Tibetan Empire

In the early seventh century, a line of kings from the Yarlung Valley united disparate people on the Tibetan Plateau into a powerful, centralized state. With their capital at Lhasa, these kings proclaimed themselves emperors, or tsenpo. Their armies conquered much of the Himalayas, Central Asia, and western China. Tibetans developed a written script for the Tibetan language and Buddhism was adopted as a state religion. The conversion to Buddhism was contested by an indigenous group of ritualists called Bon, creating political turmoil. After the assassination of emperor Langdarma in 842, the Tibetan empire fragmented and collapsed. Nevertheless, the myths and memories of the empire continue to be a central part of Tibetan identity.

tsenpo

Tsenpo is a title, sometimes conventionally translated as “emperor,” used for the rulers of the Tibetan Empire. Songtsen Gampo (d. 649 CE) was the first tsenpo, who unified most of the Tibetan Plateau and founded the Buddhist Jokhang Temple in Lhasa. The last tsenpo of the Tibetan empire was Langdarma (d. 842), an anti-Buddhist king whose assassination by a Buddhist monk sparked civil war, and ultimately the collapse of the Tibetan empire. Later Tibetan rulers who tried to declare themselves inheritors of the Tibetan empire, such as the rulers of the kingdom of Tsongkha in eastern Tibet (eleventh century), also employed this title to strengthen their claims.

Vairochana

Vairochana is an important buddha in Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism. In Mahayana, Vairochana is considered the ultimate or Dharma-body of Buddha Shakyamuni. In the Charya and Yoga classes of the Four Classes of Tantra, Vairochana is the primordial Buddha or Adibuddha. In the Five Buddha Families, Vairochana is the head of the Buddha family, colored white, and usually located at the center. Across Asia, Vairochana as the Cosmic Ruler was also a powerful political symbol, and rulers associated themselves with Vairochana to enhance their claims as universal Buddhist sovereigns.

In the years 804 and 806, Yeshe Yang, Master of of the Tibetan Triga Monastery near (in present-day Qinghai Province), commissioned two series of stone carvings of a crowned , seated on a lion throne, surrounded by eight .The first was carved at Denma Drak, some 186 miles (300 kilometers) to the south in what is present-day Chamdo, Tibet Autonomous Region (fig. 1); the second was carved at the Bimda Temple near (in present-day Qinghai Province) (fig. 2). Authentic ancient Tibetan inscriptions in stone beside the images describe the historical circumstances of the carvings, the artists’ names, and Buddhist prayers in relation to Buddha in the concluding section of the Gandavyuha Sutra (fig. 3). These sculptures document the preeminence of the Vairochana cult in the Tibetan imperial period (ca. 608–ca. 686). Furthermore, by virtue of the inscribed dates and the artists’ names, these images are the earliest dated examples of Tibetan art known at present.

Fig. 2

Buddha Vairochana; Bimda Temple; near Jyekundo (present-day Qinghai Province, China); 806; stone with painted and textile decoration; height approx. 63 in. (160 cm); photograph by Liu Lizhong

Fig. 3

Detail of the inscription for Enthroned Vairochana Surrounded by Eight Bodhisattvas; Denma Drak, Kham region, eastern Tibet (present-day TAR, China); photograph by Shawo Khacham

During the ninth century, there is a wide-ranging association between Vairochana and the royal cult; Vairochana is intended to represent the imperial presence of the Tibetan emperor, the . This concept of the conflation of and ruler is given visual emphasis in Buddha Vairochana and the Eight Bodhisattvas, represented wearing the garments of Tibetan royalty—ample ankle-length robes in heavy fabric with overlong sleeves and double collar—in the Bimda and County rock carvings (fig. 4). Numerous Tibetan prayers among the Tibetan manuscripts in document the importance of the cult of Vairochana during the late eighth to ninth century. Vairochana’s emblem is the wheel, which refers to two distinct phenomena in Buddhist iconology: Shakyamuni’s discourse, in which he initially “set the wheel of in motion” by his teaching, and the Buddhist legend of the , the wheel-turning sovereign who establishes social harmony and ensures utopia. This latter role certainly coincided with the position attributed to the tsenpo, according to Tibetan royal cults.

Fig. 4.

Vairochana and the Eight Bodhisattvas; Markham, Tibet (present-day TAR, China); photograph by Tsering Gyalpo

Stylistic Characteristics of the Carvings

Aesthetically, the two series are quite distinctive. Although much damaged, the composition of the seated Vairochana in Denma Drak, flanked by two vertical registers containing four superimposed bodhisattvas, recalls portable paintings from Dunhuang and the mural painting of Cave 25 in the Yulin Cave temples (fig. 5).³

Fig. 5.

Composite image of the Mandala of Eight Great Bodhisattvas; Yulin Cave 25, east wall; Middle Tang (781–848); Lo Archive photograph, 1943–44; Princeton University, 1943–44; Princeton University (Lo YL25-13-1, Lo YL25-13-2, and Lo YL25-13-3); © Trustees of Princeton University

The body proportions of the Denma Drak Buddha are much more slender and the elongated legs are perfectly smooth, lacking any muscular definition. The buddha is not represented with a squared face and jaw inside a circular halo, the conventional characteristics of Tang period (618–906) Chinese images. Instead, the broad forehead contrasts with the triangular jawline with prominent chin. The eyes appear long and narrow rather than round, with thin brows slightly arched (fig. 6). The bodhisattvas surrounding him are all shown seated, with their arms in various gestures, giving dynamic motion to the static seated postures of their (fig. 7).

Fig. 6

Yuk Nyak Dre Shab, Shok Lek Kong, and Dummagam, Tibetan stone carvers, Hun Bong Tseng Pe and Hwa Hou Jin, Chinese artists; Detail of Buddha of Enthroned Buddha Vairochana Surrounded by Eight Bodhisattvas; Denma Drak, Kham region, eastern Tibet (present-day TAR, China); 804; stone; approx. 11 ft. 6 in. × 9 ft. 10 in. (3.5 × 3 m); photograph by Elisabeth Benard and Nyima Dorjee, 1983

Fig. 7

Yuk Nyak Dre Shab, Shok Lek Kong, and Dummagam, Tibetan stone carvers, Hun Bong Tseng Pe and Hwa Hou Jin, Chinese artists; Detail of Bodhisattvas on right and left of Enthroned Buddha Vairochana Surrounded by Eight Bodhisattvas; Denma Drak, Kham region, eastern Tibet (present-day TAR, China); 804; stone; approx. 11 ft. 6 in. × 9 ft. 10 in. (3.5 × 3 m); photograph by Elisabeth Benard and Nyima Dorjee, 1983

In contrast, the crowned Buddha Vairochana at Bimda sits in meditation on a lotus cushion, with a horseshoe-shaped halo adorning his head (fig. 2). Recently repainted, the figure’s golden body is dressed in elaborate robes, painted to give the impression of thick silk. The top robe, in deep red with a pattern of Buddhist emblems, has a pointed green collar with lapels crossed above the heart. Another (blue) collar’s lapels meet at the collarbone. The shoulders have no apparent seams, and the creases of the sleeves are stiff. The folds radiating from the bent elbows gradually widen to almost double their length at the edge of the cuffs, which are embellished with a different pattern. A belt is indicated by a pattern of very diminutive flowers with long, thin tendrils and stalks in green and red on a gold background. Beneath the belt, the lower part of the top robe is draped over the buddha’s lap and crossed legs, with the front panels hanging down. The tips of his boots—painted deep blue with gold fleurs-de-lis—contrast with the orange undergarment whose cloth is cut as if clinging to the leg in the form of trousers. The use of double collars has been previously noted as a characteristic of the representation of Tibetan royal robes in Cave 159 at Dunhuang. The lotus cushion is supported by two lions, with manes very similar in shape to those of the stone lions at the dynasty tombs.

Iconography and Composition

The eight bodhisattvas surrounding the Buddha Vairochana at Bimda stand symmetrically in four groups on both sides of the buddha. Their faces and hands are all painted gold. Their bodies are mostly hidden by thickly rendered robes with double collars and widening sleeves that extend to just above the feet, which are notably shod in black boots. Each bodhisattva holds a distinctive attribute and has a name inscribed in Tibetan. It would appear, however, that the iconography comes from a specific ritual description that has not yet been identified and is different from the usual attributes of each bodhisattva. For example, holds a water vase (fig. 8), which is usually an emblem of , while the opposite image on the other side inscribed holds a pink and yellow lotus instead of a book.

Fig. 8. Avalokiteshvara Holding a Vase; Bimda Temple; near Jyekundo (in present-day Qinghai Province, China); 806; stone with painted and textile decoration; photograph by Geoffrey Samuel

Other Examples of Stone Imperial Carvings of Vairochana

Another focus on stone carvings of the imperial period comes from south of Denma Drak, where two important rock carvings of Vairochana have been documented. These reflect a different iconographic basis, derived from the Vairochana-Abhisambodhi Tantra instead of the Gandavyuha/ corpus, in which Vairochana is surrounded by the two bodhisattvas and Avalokiteshvara, who respectively represent the Vajra family and the Lotus family (figs. 9 and 10). Initially attributed to the reign of Tri Songdetsen (742–ca. 800), they appear to have been executed one reign later, in the early ninth century.

Fig. 9

Vairochana; Drak Lhamo; photograph by Pema Tsering, 1994

Fig. 10

Diagram of Vairochana of Drak Lhamo

Also, in the context of a different liturgical tradition, in the vicinity of Markham there is the newly discovered site of Vairochana and the Eight Bodhisattvas again dressed in the robes of the emperor, a Tibetan tsenpo, and his courtiers (fig. 4). Thanks to the Tibetan scholar Tsering Gyalpo, the discovery of this site of carvings of Vairochana and the Eight Bodhisattvas has been analyzed. One may appreciate the fine carving, seen clearly on this rock face, and evidence of the Tang aesthetic, with square faces and hefty bodies (fig. 11).

Fig. 11.

Detail of Vairochana and the Eight Bodhisattvas; Markham, Tibet (present-day TAR, China); photograph by Tsering Gyalpo

Among the Dunhuang caves commissioned during the Tibetan period, the Tibetan emperor is represented prominently in Cave 158. The Tibetan emperor and his attendants wear long pale robes that close left to right with triangular lapel collars in contrasting color; the emperor’s high turban has crown panels, while his two attendants wear the fabric turban only. In contemporary portraits of the Tibetan emperor and his entourage in Cave 159 and Cave 231, he is again depicted beneath the parasol, wearing similar garments and a high turban (fig. 12). Moreover, the emperor extends his hand to give his attendant a small silver cup with a handle, ostensibly Sogdian silver, the most sophisticated metalwork of the period. This shows how the royal portraits conveyed the idea of Tibet as a link between east and west along the , accumulating cosmopolitan influences that emerged from the complex network of trade as well as the development of Tibetan aesthetics blending secular and Buddhist symbolism. In the imperial rock carvings of Vairochana, the iconological basis is understood to be the Avatamsaka Sutra, with the culmination in the Gandavuyha Sutra, although the individual attributes of the bodhisattvas in the entourage vary. These rock carvings are among the earliest documents of Tibetan art. In subsequent times, at the Samye Monastery, and Dratang Monastery modeled on Samye, similar groups are documented as well.

Fig. 12.

Vimalakirti-nirdesha Sutra (Tibetan Ruler Listening to the Dharma); Mogao Cave 360, east wall, south side; Dunhuang, Gansu Province, China; photograph by James C. Lo and Lucy L. Lo

Footnotes

For Denma Drak, Samten G. Karmay confirmed the chronology of 804 as the monkey year in the reign, rather than 804 or 816, as initially proposed by Amy Heller: Samten G. Karmay, “Inscriptions Dating from the Reign of Btsan po Khri lde-srong-btsan,” in Tibetan Studies: Proceedings of the Seventh Seminar of the International Association for Tibetan Studies, Graz 1995, ed. Helmut Krasser et al. (Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1997), 480; Amy Heller, “Early Ninth Century Images of Vairochana from Eastern Tibet,” Orientations 25, no. 6 (June) (1994): 74. Yoshiro Imaeda confirmed the date of 804: Yoshiro Imaeda, “Re-Examination of the 9th-Century Inscription at Ldan Ma Brag (II) in Eastern Tibet,” in Old Tibetan Studies: Dedicated to the Memory of R. E. Emmerick. Proceedings of the Tenth Seminar of the International Association for Tibetan Studies, Oxford 2003, ed. Cristina Scherrer-Schaub, vol. 10/14, Brill’s Tibetan Studies Library (Leiden: Brill, 2012), 115.

Amy Heller gives full translations of the inscriptions at Denma Drak, which relate to the concluding verses of the Gandavyuha Sutra: Amy Heller “Ninth-Century Buddhist Images Carved at LDan-Ma-Brag to Commemorate Tibeto-Chinese Negotiations,” in Tibetan Studies: Proceedings of the Sixth Seminar of the International Association for Tibetan Studies, Fagernes 1992, ed. P. Kvaerne (Oslo: The Institute for Comparative Research in Human Culture, 1994), 335–49; (separatum) Appendix, 12–19; Samten G. Karmay translates the Bimda inscriptions (482) and identifies Vairochana as Vairochana of the Glacier Lake (thub pa gangs chen mtsho rgyal) (478): Samten G. Karmay, “Inscriptions Dating from the Reign of Btsan po Khri lde-srong-btsan,” in Tibetan Studies: Proceedings of the Seventh Seminar of the International Association for Tibetan Studies, Graz 1995, ed. Helmut Krasser et al. (Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1997), 477–86.

Amy Heller, “Early Ninth Century Images of Vairochana from Eastern Tibet,” Orientations 25, no. 6 (June) (1994): fig 2, Yulin Cave 25, and fig. 9; British Museum 0A1919.1–1.050, Vairochana with the Eight Great Bodhisattvas, ink and colors on silk, 373/8 × 253/8 in. (95 × 64.5 cm), early 9th century (with Tibetan name inscriptions for the bodhisattvas).

Heather Karmay, “Tibetan Costume, Seventh to Eleventh Centuries,” in Essais Sur l’Art Du Tibet, ed. Ariane Macdonald and Yoshiro Imaeda (Paris: Jean Maisonneuve, 1977), 72.

Dorothy C. Wong describes an aspect of Avalokiteshvara with water vase in one of his six arms in Dunhuang Cave 384 attributed to the late eighth to early ninth century. However, the lack of a lotus emblem for Avalokiteshvara is highly unusual: Dorothy C. Wong, “The Case of Amoghapāśa,” Journal of Inner Asian Art and Archaeology 2 (2007): 154.

Sha bo mkha’ byams correcting the inscription as analyzed in Amy Heller: Sha bo mkha’ byams, “Btsan po’i skabs kyi phyogs bzhi’i rgyal po btul ba’i lo rgyus dang ’brel lha sras mu rug brtsan gyi skor la dpyad pa,” Bod ljongs slob grwa chen mo’i rig deb 4 (2021); Amy Heller, “Buddhist images and rock inscriptions from Eastern Tibet, Part IV,” in Proceedings of the Seventh Seminar of the International Association for Tibetan Studies, Graz 1995, ed. H. Krasser et al. (Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1997), 389–90.

Samten G. Karmay had provided some information but had not been able to situate the carvings, which was accomplished by Tsering Gyalpo: Samten G. Karmay, “Inscriptions Dating from the Reign of Btsan po Khri lde-srong-btsan,” in Tibetan Studies: Proceedings of the Seventh Seminar of the International Association for Tibetan Studies, Graz 1995, ed. Helmut Krasser et al. (Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1997), 477–86; Tsering Gyalpo, “Gsar Du Rnyed Pa’i Bod Btsan Po’i Skabs Bzhengs Pa’i Smar Khams Rdzong Rnam Par Snang Mdzad Kyi Brag Brkos Snang Brnyan Skor La Rags Tsam Brjod Pa” / “A Brief Report on a Rock-Carve Image of Vairocana, Recently Traced in Smar Khams County and Erected during the Imperial Period,” in The Illuminating Mirror: Tibetan Studies in Honour of Per K. Sørensen on the Occasion of His 65th Birthday, ed. Olaf Czaja and Guntram Hazod (Wiesbaden: Reichert, 2015), 181–87. See also Yang Qingfan 杨清凡, Lu Suwen 卢素文, and Zhang Yanqing 张延清, “Xizang Mangkang Ga Tuo Zhen Xin Faxian Tubo Moya Shike Diaocha Jianbao. 西藏芒康嘎托镇新发现吐蕃摩崖石刻调查简报 [Archaeological Report on the Newly Discovered Tubo Dynasty Rock Sculptures in the Town of Sgar Thog in Smar Khams County, Tibet],” Zangxue Xue Kan 藏学学刊 / Journal of Tibetology, 2017.

The Tibetan emperor and his entourage are often portrayed in Dunhuang as part of the theme of Vimalakirti debating Manjushri, in Caves 159, 231, 196, as well as in portable scrolls such as British Museum 1919,0101,0.55 (ch.00350 IDP). Tibetans figure prominently also in the Shariputra debate; see Musée Guimet Pelliot chinois 4524. Murals of the Tibetan emperor and his entourage are seen in Dunhuang Caves 9, 359, 360; Yulin Cave 25. Cf. pioneering studies by Heather Karmay and Karl Debreczeny: Heather Karmay, Early Sino-Tibetan Art (Warminster: Aris and Phillips, 1975), 14–16; Heather Karmay, “Tibetan Costume, Seventh to Eleventh Centuries,” in Essais Sur l’Art Du Tibet, ed. Ariane Macdonald and Yoshiro Imaeda (Paris: Jean Maisonneuve, 1977), 64–81, 70–75; Karl Debreczeny, ed., Faith and Empire: Art and Politics in Tibetan Buddhism, Exhibition catalog (New York: Rubin Museum of Art, 2019), 20–23, http://issuu.com/rmanyc/docs/faith_and_empire.

Amy Heller, “P.T. 7a, P.T. 108, P.T. 240 and Beijing BsTan ’gyur 3489: Ancient Tibetan Rituals Dedicated to Vairocana,” in The Pandita and the Siddha: Tibetan Studies in Honor of E. Gene Smith, ed. R. Vitali (Dharamsala: Library of Tibetan Works and Archives, 2007), 85–86 passim.

Samten G. Karmay, “Inscriptions Dating from the Reign of Btsan po Khri lde-srong-btsan,” in Tibetan Studies: Proceedings of the Seventh Seminar of the International Association for Tibetan Studies, Graz 1995, ed. Helmut Krasser et al. (Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1997), 483.