BY.T-110 (previous number) and T-110 (original number)
Accession number:
Acc.4737
Description:
Double vajra, such as would be held in the hand of certain deities.
Donor:
Estate of G. Eleanore Murray, Estate of Theos C. Bernard, and Theos C. Bernard
Collection place:
Tibet
Verbatim coll. place:
Tibet
Collector:
Theos C. Bernard
Materials:
Bronze (metal)
Object type:
ethnography
Function:
5.0 Use not specified (Ritual, Pageantry, and Recreation)
Production date:
18th-19th century
Accession date:
March 12, 2004
Context of use:
For example, the green Amritakundali, the embodiment of enlightened action, holds such a double vajra in his right hand. It is a sign of his ability to purify all the negative, harmful and afflictive aspects of inner and outer existence by transforming them into the nectar of enlightenment. Amritakundali appears with Hayagriva in item B-14. This item may have been made as a attribute to be held in a large bronze image of Amritakundali or Amoghasiddhi. When painted, the double vajra shows its actual colors. The eastern quadrant is blue, the southern gold, the western is red, and the northern green. The center may be colored white. In this way, the double vajra represents the universal mandala of the five Buddhas (pañcabuddha / sangs rgyas lnga)-1) white--Vairocana / rNam par snang mdzad2) blue--Akshobhya / Mi bskyod pa3) gold--Ratnasambhava /Rin chen 'byung gnas4) red--Amitabha / 'Od dpag med5) green--Amoghasiddhi / Don yod grub paThe double vajra also has the significance of immutability. A small Tibetan rug with the double vajra motif is often placed on the seat offered to a Lama indicating the wish that he remains ever firm and healthy in the world.
Department:
Asia (except western Russia)
Dimensions:
width 10.795 centimeters, length 11.43 centimeters, and height 1.27 centimeters