EAP1016/3/2/4

The newer of two almost identical narrative thangkas illustrating the story of Delok Kunga Rangdol ཀུན་དགའ་རང་གྲོལ (Wylie Kun dga’ rang grol), and depicting the Lord of Death and the judgement of the dead, detailing the myriad forms of suffering within the realms of Hell. Size including the cloth surround 152 x 94 cm. Width at bottom is 101 cm. Image (melong) size 82.5 x 59.5cm. Finely detailed and in very good condition overall with some paint loss due to creasing which has left narrow splits in the canvas. Central figure is of the Lord of Death (Yama or Shinje Choegyal). Dated 1995. Deloks (Wylie ’das log)are individuals, commonly female, who witness the realms of hell, often because of serious illness, but return to the land of the living to warn of what potentially awaits. This thangka (EAP1016_DLMLG_Tnka-4) is a modern copy of EAP1016_DLMLG_Tnka-3) Close comparison of the two reveals that the newer thangka has more detail on the lower and upper edges of the frame, suggesting that the new cloth surround on the older thangka is masking out the edge of the painting. The inscription bears the names of Sichoe Tsering and Yangchen Lhamo who commissioned the thangka and indicates that it was painted whilst they are alive. The two paintings are identical in their overall structure and almost identical in their minor details but vary in the overall use of colour, the specific colour of several scenes and the depiction of some fine details. . Creation dates: Late 20th century.

Custodial history: An object donated to Dolma Ling nunnery by Buchen Gyurme. It probably belonged to one of three Lama Manipa who had fled from Tibet and who continued to perform within the exile Tibetan communities in India and Nepal. These manipa were Buchen Gyurme (Wylie ’Gyur med), Buchen Norgye (Wylie Nor rgyas), and Buchen Passang (Wylie Pa sangs) There is some confusion over the provenance of this thangka and the much older painting from which it was copied. This confusion can be explained by the age of the informant and the problem of viewing thangkas on a small laptop screen. I suggest it belonged to the late Buchen Gyurme, copied from the older thangka belonging to his friend Buchen Passang and was eventually donated to Dolma Ling as part of the Lama Mani project. This thangka can be seen in a photograph by Zsóka Gelle (2001l) in her Essay Masters of the Mani Mantra in the volume Demons and Protectors. Folk Religion in Tibetan and Mongolian Buddhism. It is stated as belonging to the late Buchen Gyurme. Interestingly Tsering Drolma stated that such thangkas depicting the realms of hell can be used to illustrate more than one Delok tale, eg Delok Karma Wangzin, Delok Lingza Choskyit and even the story of Guru Choswang. The confusion arose because the informant suggested that the modern thangka was her father's, brought out of Tibet. But in fact it was painted after his death. She also suggested that one of these two thangkas was the story of Delok Kunga Rangdol and suggested that the other was the story of Guru Choswang and yet they are clearly identical.

Extent and format of original material: One narrative scroll painting / thangka.

Owner(s) of original material: Dolma Ling Nunnery.