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The Gaze of the Guru: Part 2

In 2016, I was deeply honored to receive a commission to sculpt a Guru Rinpoche statue.

For his face and gaze, I was asked to study the "Looks Like Me" portrait of Guru Rinpoche in the form of Padmasambhava, known in Tibetan as the Guru Ngadrama.


It is widely held that the original was commissioned in the 8th century by King Trisong Deutsen, who had invited Guru Rinpoche to Tibet to remove persistent obstacles to the construction of Samye monastery.

Upon seeing the statue, Padmasambhava is said to have declared that the statue was a good likeness and blessed it, saying "This statue looks like me, ...and now it is the same as me."

The deeply revered statue survived fires and earthquakes at Samye for over 1,000 years before being completely destroyed during the Chinese Cultural Revolution in the late 1960-70s.

This is the only known extant photo of the sculpture. According to Orgyen Topgyal Rinpoche, it was taken by the King of Sikkhim in 1954. He said that there was a film taken of Samye before its destruction, but despite his best efforts, it could not be found.

(The original black and white photo was later digitally altered and colorized at the behest of Sogyal Rinpoche. The katak scarf was removed and other details were slightly manipulated. In addition, Tharthang Tulku drew in the vajra held in its right hand that is found in later versions of the photo.)


Working from a single photo to make a three-dimensional object is extremely difficult. Furthermore, the photo that we have is not sharp and most of the statue is covered in thick brocade. So I decided to do as much research as possible--speaking to lamas and scholars, scouring over written material, visiting museums to create a comparative study that might shed as many clues as possible.

Although the resulting statue would be of and for our era, it was important to me that it be informed by history and tradition.

Who made the statue?

According to Orgyen Topgyal Rinpoche, who conducted extensive research in efforts to reproduce the statue, a Nepali artist was commissioned by the king to sculpt the likeness while looking at Padmasambhava while he was at Samye.

O.T. Rinpoche has surveyed lists of what was at the monastery before it was destroyed, and said there is reference to an artist by the name of Thame Gongzok* (*note: I am not sure about the correct spelling of this name). He said that the first name Thame refers to a border region between Tibet and Nepal. Therefore, we can surmise that the sculptor came from the Nepal, and perhaps even trained in the lineage of craftsman that exist to this day.

Although, this requires further corroboration, this is significant, because we can then draw from the extensive tradition of Nepali Buddhist sculpture to give us clues. This tradition differs in significant ways from Chinese or Indian sculpture, so it narrows the scope of style from which we can make deductions about the statue's face.

When I checked, I found this sherpa village that lies on the way through the Himalayas to Tibet.

How was the statue made? What materials was it made of?

The materials and tools artists use influence their craft as much as their skill, technique and culture. So, it was important to learn about how buddhist statues were made at that time.

O.T. Rinpoche told me that the original was made from clay. In keeping with the construction of large statues that time, there was probably an inner layer of brick covered by a layer of clay to form the finer details. It was then painted with mineral pigments available in the region, and covered with gold leaf.

Rinpoche suggested that I carve the details into its face, rather than relying on the painting process. I have chosen to leave the eyes, which are traditionally "opened" by a lama upon the consecration of statues.

How large was the statue?

According to O.T. Rinpoche, the statue was slightly larger than a man. We can assume that it sat on a throne, as is tradition.

Through a combination of digital and analog modeling, we determined that the photograph was taken from an angle that was below and slightly to the left. This helped us understand its general proportions and the finer aspects of its pose.


The statue is mostly covered in thick brocade and ornaments, so we don't know a lot about of the body. But, I could see a slight tilt in the shoulders and head which gave the statue a subtle sense of movement, elegance, and life.

In trying to reproduce this subtle position with live and maquette models, I realized that there is a spiral movement involved. The right hand, said to be in a "subjugating" mudra, is not just resting on his knee.

One could imagine, that he has taken the vajra, swirled it in a motion which can still be seen made by monks during puja in monasteries, and pressed it upon an unseen object with both ease and power.


In addition to the "Looks Like Me", I was instructed to use Gandharvan sculpture as a reference. The kingdom of Ghandarva encompassed modern-day Pakistan, including the gorgeous Swat Valley in which Guru Rinpoche is said to have been born.

I was asked to look at the bone structure of people from the area and to study its art, which is sometimes referred to Greco-Buddhist Art and often sited as some of the most beautiful examples of Buddhist Art. This instruction turned out to be particularly appropriate because the era of Gandhara overlaps that of the creation of the original Ngadrama and perhaps of Guru Rinpoche's life.


There is one figure from Ghardarvan art that seems to be portrayed consistently again and again. It is of a very handsome, muscular man with a mustache and long flowing hair drawn up in a bun and running down his shoulders. He is sometimes seated in the "royal pose" and sometimes standing, dressed as a hero or prophet with ornaments and a staff.

In the museum and in many books, this figure is often simply labeled as "Bodhisattva," which is to say that scholars may not know exactly who he is but feel that he is important enough to designate with this term. Sometimes, the sculpture is labeled as the Buddha Sakyamuni.

When I met Orgyen Topgyal Rinpoche in Paris while also doing research at the Museé Guimet, I learned through his close associate Philip Philippou, that upon seeing these statues at the Guimet, O.T. Rinpoche said with conviction that they were of Guru Rinpoche.

Given that the statues are sometimes dated centuries before Guru Rinpoche is said to have lived, this is very difficult for us to prove concretely. However, as an artist who has studied the depictions of many buddhist figures across cultures, it is certainly a wonderful reference for how a figure like Guru Rinpoche has evolved to capture collective imaginations over millennia.

Posted by Minette Lee Mangahas at 1:05 PM 2 comments: Labels: Buddhist art, Buddhist Sculpture, Guru Rinpoche, Guru Rinpoche Looks Like Me, Pohchang, Tibet


The Samantabhadri in Berlin It has been a pleasure to revisit the Samantabhadri in a private commission to create a smaller 20 cm statue. She is the first to be completed in the new Buddhist Sculpture Workshop in Berlin.

I visited four bronze foundries, all located within central Berlin, and was amazed by the history of bronze sculpture and casting in the city. It was a unique opportunity to begin to create Buddhist sculpture here, at a time when Buddhism is spreading throughout Europe and the West. Unlike Asia, where it is commonplace for artists and foundries to create Buddhist works and artisans are familiar with the style and iconography of Buddhist art, I found in Berlin that I was in a position to introduce both Buddhist iconography and aesthetics to the artisans I spoke with.

For this project, I selected a small family-run foundry Kunstgiesserei Krepp, located in the northern Berlin district of Pankow, in former East Berlin.

Naturally, having only knowledge of the Buddha Shakyamuni, they were curious about why this statue was female. (To learn more about Samantabhadri, please visit the Buddhist Sculpture Workshop and earlier posts on this blog.) Their frame of reference are the bronzes of classical European sculpture or abstract and modernist works. Together, everyone's skill, effort and micro-level decisions are reflected in the work of art. So naturally, I feel the result reflects a Buddhist tradition manifesting itself in Europe --as it has done uniquely on every continent touched by Buddhism in the history of Buddhist Art.

After gold-leafing the first cast of the small Samantabhadri in Berlin A special thank you to Kunstgiesserei Krepp and Yuko Ishida for working as part of the team on this project.

If you would like to commission a cast of the Samantabhadri,
please write to the BuddhistSculptureWorkshop (at) gmail.com.

Posted by Minette Lee Mangahas at 12:47 PM No comments: 


Video: Early Buddhist Bronze Statues from China and Japan

A wonderful little introduction to early bronze Buddhist statuettes, talking about the iconography and movement of art across Asia from India to Japan.

Asian Art specialist Tristan Bruck introduces a collection of Chinese and Korean Buddhist bronzes that tell the story of religious art in Asia across 600 years, from the 4th century to the 10th century AD. Produced by Christie's.
Posted by Minette Lee Mangahas at 11:45 AM No comments: 

The Samantabhadri

This are the completed bronze and white resin sculptures of Samantabhadri, based on the study of Tibetan thanka paintings and classical Indian texts on Buddhist sculpture.

"The basis of all female deities is Samantabhadri.
...Samantabhadri is called the ground of emanation, [and] her emanation is the great mother of dharmakaya, the female buddha Prajnaparamita. ...On the nirmanakaya level Prajnaparamita's emanation is Arya Tara."

-- Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche
Excerpt from "Dakini Teachings: A Collection of Padmasambhava's Advice to Yeshe Tsogyal." The Prajnaparamita, the Heart Sutra personified in female form, is often referred to as the origin of wisdom and thus is the Mother of all Buddhas.

In the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, she takes the form of Samantabhadri (Tib. Kuntuzangmo).
She is traditionally portrayed as naked, white and luminous. Without ornament, she is seated on a moon disc and lotus. Most sculptures in existence portray her in union with her partner, Samantabhadra. She is central to practices of the Vajrayana and Mahayana traditions.

It is important to note as well that she is beyond all dualistic conceptions—including emotions that we have such as
desire, attachment, and love, which is inherently dualistic. (Ultimately there is no object to love, nor subject that loves.) We speak of her and identify her as "she" and "female" because of the convenience of language--which is all we have.

Ultimately, Samantabhadri represents the very possibility of being, itself.

Read about of the process of creating the statue from an earlier post:

"Samantabhadri: Perfect from All Sides"

To purchase the Samantabhadri or commission a statue, visit The Buddhist Sculpture Workshop.

Posted by Minette Lee Mangahas at 10:03 AM 1 comment: Labels: Samantabhadri


The Restoration of Jahanabad Buddha in Swat Valley, Pakistan

I would like to re-post an article first published on Lionsroar.com, 'Destroyed by Taliban nine years ago, iconic “Jahanabad Buddha” is reborn'. Left: Rubble at the base of the damaged Jahanabad Buddha, September 2007. Right: The destroyed face of the Buddha, September 2007. Photos courtesy of DOAM.

I am always moved when I hear of valiant efforts by archeologists, art historians, and conservators to restore historical landmarks, sacred sites, damaged by terrorists. Of course, we can never undo what has been done. But these efforts themselves bring so much merit. And perhaps, add even more value to the standing artwork as an inspiration to what the Buddha achieved--but also as a testament of human nobility. Regardless of whether one is Buddhist, it is undeniable that the value of such artworks lie equally in their intrinsic historical worth as in their indelible effect on individuals. 3D imaging equipment was provided free by the University of Padua, Italy. Photo by Fazal Khaliq, via dawn.com

Truth, dharma, beauty themselves cannot be destroyed by defacing statues. So long as people have the skill and knowledge to create the art and literature that are crucial supports on the path, love will prevail.
Posted by Minette Lee Mangahas at 10:46 AM No comments: 

Posted by Minette Lee Mangahas at 10:49 AM No comments: 
AKSHA Atelier Visit

Enjoyed a lovely visit from wonderful Hamburg-based illustrator and calligrapher Anja Riese last weekend the atelier.  She posted this photo of the Guru Rinpoche-in-process on her Instagram feed--Zweitageunterwegs (German for "Two Days on the Road").  Thanks Anja!!

Totally amazed watching @minettelm work on her sculpture. It was great to hang out at your new studio space in Neukölln. Rock on Minette :) and catch ya soon. #buddhasculpture #atelierberlin #neukölln
A photo posted by @zweitageunterwegs on Nov 7, 2016 at 10:38am PST Labels: AKSHA, Contemporary Buddhist Art, Guru Rinpoche Looks Like Me


The Gaze of the Guru: Part 1 
View AKSHA's video and overview on Kickstarter. Liberation Through Creation

+ Believe in art as an active spiritual path. Artist || Designer