Gangteng Monastery: Tormas

BHUTAN, Wangdue Phodrang

A torma is an Vajrayana Buddhist offering traditionally made from flour and butter. These gilt bronze forms were made in Bhutan between the 18th and 19th centuries. Since 1930, they have been kept in Gangteng Monastery in Wangdue Phodrang.
The torma on the left has a silver dish and is 30.8 cm high and 19.5 cm wide. The body, narrow on the top and wide in the middle, is supported on a stand with lotus petals, which are decorated with strings of beads. There are two lotuses on the front face of the body, and the top has a diamond shape decorated with flames and scrolling vines in gold leaf. The silver medallion in the center is inlaid with turquoise in the form of a syllable in Lantsa script. On the reverse side, there are three other syllables representing the body, speech, and mind.
The torma on the right has a triangular body on a lotus stand with a silver dish. The body is 23.5 cm high and 13.5 cm wide, and the neck and center are decorated with golden lotuses. On top, there is a diamond shape also decorated with flames and scrolling vines in gold leaf openwork. The center has a shallow ogee arch niche with a turquoise stone expressing another syllable in Lantsa script. The top of the niche is carved with reliefs of the sun and moon, above which there are three small turquoise stones.