A Tibetan Thangka is a painting of a sacred image or deity on cloth (usually cotton canvas or silk). The delicate, detailed imagery is hung in meditation centers, personal ritual spaces, and even yoga classrooms - anywhere we would like to remind ourselves of the Divine. These richly colored paintings are intended to bring the essence of Spirit into our homes and sacred spaces.

The 8 forms of Padmasambhava

Padmasambhava (Tibetan: pema jung ne. English: the Lotus Born): the Main Founder of Tibetan Buddhism together with His Eight Manifestations.
With a steady composure gazing on all beings, white in colour with a reddish hue, one face adorned with a moustache and goatee, the right hand holds an upright gold vajra. The left hand placed in the lap holds a white skullcup filled with nectar, jewels and a long-life vase. The ornate katvanga staff of a Vajrayana mendicant decorated with white streamers rests against the left shoulder. Adorned with gold earrings and a necklace, the head is covered with a lotus hat, a gift of the King of Zahor, of silk brocade topped with a half-vajra and a single vulture feather. Attired in various robes of different colours reflecting the disciplines of the Vinaya, Bodhisattva and Mantra Vehicles, he sits atop a sun and moon disc above a multi-coloured lotus blossom rising from the blue waters of Dhanakosha lake; encircled by a rainbow sphere.
Seated to the left is the consort Mandarava holding the long-life symbols of an arrow with a mirror and streamers in the right hand and a vase in the left. At the right is the cosort Yeshe Tsogyal holding up a skull offering bowl with the left hand.

At the top center is the buddha Amitabha, Lord of the Lotus Family, red in colour, with the two hands placed in the lap supporting a black begging bowl; seated on a pink lotus. At low of Amitabha is is Padmapani (Lotus Holder) Avalokiteshvara, white with one face and two hands. The right hand performs the mudra of generosity while the left hand pressed against the seat holds the stem of a lotus blossom. Many lamas to the right and left of Padmapani Avalokiteshvara.

There are 8 main manifestations of Guru Rinpoche environ him, at the right is 1 Guru Loden Chogse, holds a damaru in the right hand and a skullcup in the left, adorned with jewel ornaments and flowing robes, at the left is 2 Guru Padma Raja (Tib.: Pema Gyalpo) in the appearance of a king holding a damaru drum in the right hand and a bowl containing an upright gold mirror in the left. Adorned with a crown and rich vestments he sits in the relaxed posture of 'royal ease.'

At the bottom of this picture, from left to the right: 5 Guru Dorje Drollo, wrathful, maroon in colour, holds a gold vajra in the upraised right hand and a black kila (Tib.: phur ba, Eng.: peg) in the left. Riding on the back of a fierce tigress he is surrounded by the flames of pristine awareness; 6 Guru Padmasambhava (Tib.: Pema Jungne), appearing as a monk with a red pandita hat, holds a begging bowl with the right hand and the left performs the mudra of explication; 7 Guru Surya Rasmi (Tib.: Nyima Oser) is yellow like the sun, in the appearance of a mahasiddha with a skull crown and tiger skin garment. He holds a katvanga staff in the right hand and from the fingers of the left rays of the sun shine forth; 8 Guru Simhanada (Tib.: Senge Dradrog), very wrathful, blue in colour, holds a gold vajra in the raised right hand and performs a wrathful mudra with the outstretched left; completely surrounded by flames.