Dongya Temple: Buddha Teaching the Dharma

CHINA, Xinjiang, Tumxuk

This fragment of a mural was discovered in 1914. It is divided by a floral border into two scenes of the Buddha teaching the Dharma. The Buddha on the right has a nimbus filled with floral patterns and a mandorla decorated with swirling colors. The Buddha’s head is slightly tilted; he gazes down at a bearded figure on the lower right. On the left, Vajradhara is shown wearing a tall crown and looking up towards the Buddha. He holds a vajra in his left hand while the right hand holds a whisk.
On the left side of the fragment, only a portion of a Buddha’s mandorla and part of two figures can be seen. Both of the figures wear helmets and armor. One has a nimbus with three rings of color. The other stands with his palms joined in reverence. Similar murals portraying a seated Buddha surrounded by figures listening to the Dharma are painted in the Kizil and Kumtura caves.