Vajrabhairava with His Consort Vajravetali

18th century

Not on view

The wrathful Vajrabhairava is a yidam, a deity that presides over the great tantras of the highest yoga in Tibetan Buddhism. A guardian and destroyer of death, he is represented here with thirty-four arms brandishing an array of weapons, while his sixteen legs trample birds, dogs, and Hindu gods. He embraces his consort Vajravetali, an animated corpse, in a yab-yum sexual embrace that alludes to a dualistic totality encompassing compassion and wisdom. An orange, flaming aureole with swirling clouds edged in gold encircles the couple. Above presides Vajrabhairava’s parent Buddha, Akshobhya, and twelve associated manifestations of Hayagriva appear above and below.

Artwork Details

Overview

Provenance

Exhibition History

Title: Vajrabhairava with His Consort Vajravetali
Date: 18th century
Culture: Tibet
Medium: Distemper on cloth
Dimensions: Image: 33 15/16 x 20 1/4 in. (86.2 x 51.4 cm)
Framed: 51 1/2 × 29 1/2 × 1 1/8 in. (130.8 × 74.9 × 2.9 cm)
Classification: Paintings
Credit Line: Gift of Mrs. W. de Forest, 1931
Object Number: 31.128.3
Curatorial Department: Asian Art

More Artwork

In the same medium

From the same time and place

A slider containing 5 items.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.

Amitabha, the Buddha of the Western Pure Land (Sukhavati), Distemper with gold on cloth, Central Tibet — Amitabha, the Buddha of the Western Pure Land (Sukhavati)
Central Tibet
ca. 1700

Buddha Shakyamuni as "Lord of the Munis", Distemper on cloth, Western Tibet, Guge — Buddha Shakyamuni as "Lord of the Munis"
Western Tibet, Guge
mid-17th century

Guru Dragpo, Distemper on cotton, Tibet — Guru Dragpo
Tibet
18th century

Landscapes with poems, Gong Xian Chinese, Fifteen leaves from an album (1980.516.2a–c and 1981.4.1a–o) of eighteen leaves, China — Landscapes with poems
Gong Xian
1688

Streams and Mountains without End, Wang Yuanqi Chinese, Handscroll; ink on paper, China — Streams and Mountains without End
Wang Yuanqi
ca. 1710

Research Resources

The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.

To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.

Feedback

We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.