Drak Lhalupuk Cave: Princess Bhrkuti
Clay
Drak Lhalupuk Cave: Princess Bhrkuti
CHINA, Tibet, Lhasa
This sculpture of Princess Bhrkuti is located in Drak Lhalupuk, Songtsan Gampo’s meditation cave. Bhrkuti, popularly believed to be a manifestation of Green Tara, was a Nepalese princess married to Songtsan Gampo (reigned 629–650) during the early 7th century. When she came to Tibet, she brought with her a sacred statue of Jowo Mikyo Dorje, and subsequently Jokhang Temple was constructed to house it. Along with the Chinese Princess Wencheng, she helped introduce Buddhism to Tibet.
The seated Bhrkuti forms the anjali (reverence) mudra. She has slender eyes, a high nose, and full lips. Her hair is modestly covered in the hood of her flower-patterned dress, its orange coloring contrasting with the green cross-over blouse beneath. The princess wears long ear ornaments that dangle the length of her neck.
For more details, go to the Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Caves A-E, page 310.
Cite this article:
author = Hsingyun and Youheng and Johnson, Peter and Mankuang and Huntington, Susan and Edson, Gary and Neather, Robert,
booktitle = {Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Caves A-E},
pages = 310,
title = {{Drak Lhalupuk Cave: Princess Bhrkuti}},
volume = 5,
year = {2016}}