Amoghapasa Avalokitesvara Mandala

NEPAL

This Nepalese mandala dates from the 19th century. It is composed of inner circles and a square palace within a large circle.The central figure is Amoghapasa, a manifestation of Avalokitesvara. The Bodhisattva, with a nimbus and a mandorla, wears a headdress decorated with a Buddha image. The eyebrows curl above elongated eyes. Amoghapasa is adorned with earrings and string ornaments, and stands barefooted on a lotus pedestal. The right hands hold prayer beads, a trident, or form the varada (wish-granting) mudra, while the left hands hold a sutra scroll, a lotus, and a noose.
Around Amoghapasa, there is a ring of 20 Bodhisattvas on lotus thrones. Green Tara is seated directly above Amoghapasa’s nimbus. In the outer ring, 16 slightly larger Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are depicted. In the middle of each side of the square palace, there is a gate guarded by a Bodhisattva. Towers extend out from the gates, surrounded by a pair of makaras arranged in a circle. The outer rings of the mandala are decorated with patterned lotus petals, vajras, and flames.