Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Protector Deity Kshetrapala
(India, Nepal, and Tibet)
The Buddhist deity Kshetrapala, whose name means "protector ('pala') of the field ('kshetra')," wards off dangerous and evil forces. His mouth releases a great howl, its volume amplified by the roar of the bear he rides. As he lifts his index finger in a threatening gesture, he holds the handle of a flaying knife (the curved blade of which is now missing) and a skull bowl filled with the blood and flesh of his enemies. In Tibetan Buddhist traditions, he presides over Shitavana ("cool grove"), a charnel ground near the site of the Buddha’s enlightenment, Bodhgaya. An important member of the retinue of six-armed Mahakala (a prominent protector of Buddhist teachings), Kshetrapala usually appears within an assemblage of wrathful protectors. In rituals performed to keep enemies at bay, however, he occasionally serves as the focus of worship.
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
Nahar Gallery, Calcutta, India; purchased by John and Berthe Ford, Baltimore, August 1984; given to Walters Art Museum, 2013.
Exhibitions
| 2016-2017 | Ferocious Beauty: Wrathful Deities from Tibet and Nepal. |
| 2001-2003 | Desire and Devotion: Art from India, Nepal, and Tibet in the John and Berthe Ford Collection. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore; Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Santa Barbara; Albuquerque Museum, Albuquerque; Birmingham Museum of Art, Birmingham; Hong Kong Museum of Art, Hong Kong. |
Geographies
Tibet, Tsang Province (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 7 1/8 × W: 5 13/16 × D: 3 3/8 in. (18.1 × 14.8 × 8.5 cm); H with Base: 8 1/8 × W: 6 1/4 × D: 3 3/8 in. (20.7 × 15.8 × 8.5 cm); Base H: 1 × W: 2 15/16 × D: 5 7/16 in. (2.6 × 7.4 × 13.8 cm).
Credit Line
Gift of John and Berthe Ford, 2013
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
54.3091