Chakrasamvara and Vajravarahi

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This twelve-armed Chakrasamvara embracing his consort, Vajravarahi, is a highly charged vision by an advanced master of tantric Buddhism. Potent color dynamics add tension to the picture. The blue figure of Chakrasamvara has additional heads in yellow, green, and red (symbolizing the colors of the Jina “Victor” Buddhas). With his principal arms he grasps Vajravarahi and holds a bell and a thunderbolt scepter in each hand. Chakrasamvara’s iconography closely resembles that of Shiva (both have three eyes and hold a skull cup, trident, and elephant skin); such concordance of Buddhist and Hindu iconography has its origins in the tantrism of medieval eastern India. Here, Chakrasamvara and Vajravarahi trample a blue Bhairava and a red Kalartri, showing their dominance over these Hindu gods.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.

Metropolitan Museum of Art