Replica of a Tibetan Buddha Statue - Yamantaka - Vajrabhairava -27 cm antic-full gold fire-gilded

Tibetan Buddha Figure & Statue partly fire-gilding ("gold plated") and color painted head

Vajrabhairava - Yamantaka (Tib. Dorje Jigje) is the guardian deity of gelug-pa sect. He is both Yidam and Dharampala. He is also known as the conqueror of death and also called Vajrabhairavas. He is fearful manifestation of Manjushri and belongs to the supreme Yoga Tantra.

Yamantaka presides over the Eastern direction, with great awesome and virtous strength, he is capable of subdueing poisonous serpent and eleminating countless obstacles. Bodhisattva Manjushri took this wrathful form in order to subdue the Lord of death. So Yamantaka the victory of wisdom over death, evil and suffering.

How Yamantaka subdued Yama, Lord of death is described in a legend. It is said that a Bonpo ascetic was just attaining the final stage of his meditative experience after a long years of samadhi. In the mean time a gang of robbers entered his cave in order to slaughter a bull they have stolen. Having cut off the bull`s head they happened to see him and immediately began to attact him. This ascetic begged for mercy but they did not hear his request. They served his head. All of sudden this served head took the form of Yama and fitted the bull´s head on to the place of his own lost head and then massacred the robbers and drank their blood from cups made of their skulls. Out of the great rage he even threatened to destroy the whole of Tibet. Then the Tibetans prayed to their protector Manjushri, who transformed himself into wrathfull appearance of Yamantaka in order to conquer Yama. In the ferious battle that followed, Yama was subdued. He later determined to become a protector of dharma.

He has nine heads, 34 arms and 16 legs, his main head is that of a buffalo, and uppermost head is that of Manjushri. Around his neck hangs a snake and he wears a garland of 51 freshly severed human heads and he has ornaments of bones. Across his back stretches an elephant skin. His other hands hold various symbolic objects and are outstreched. He tramples upon 8 Hindu deities, 8 mammals and 8 birds. He is depicted with his consort Rolangma in yab-yum.