Offer

6 arms Mahâkâla

Mahâkâla [tib.: Nag po chen po] belongs to the Dharmapalas, the protectors of the Buddhism. There are 75 different kind of manifestations. This Thangka shows him as  the wrathful black protector with six arms. 

Mahakala is one of the Eight Guardians of the Law, whose duty is to protect Buddhism against its enemies.  In this six-armed manifestation, he tramples on the obstacle-creating, prostrate Ganesha. 

He is the wrathful deity that destroys mind chatter and brings our minds back into attentive focus.

This kind of Thangka is called "Nak Thang". The range of the black Thangka genre is masterfully exemplified by this painting. Paintings on a black ground, often depict wrathful deities, and are kept in the goengkhang, the special room in the temple reserved for guardian deities.