Couldn't let this pass without posting it.
The Rubin Museum in New York's Chelsea district is having an exhibit entitled "Female Buddhas: Women of Enlightenment in Tibetan Religious Art"" through January 15. Last Sunday's (8/7) N.Y. Times contained an extraordinary article by Kay Larson, illustrated by a "thangka" (=Tibetan Religous Painting) of the Goddess Tara. The main text of the article was:
"WHEN BUDDHA CHOOSES TO BE A WOMAN"
Tibetans who trekked to the caves and forests of India to absorb Buddhist teachings a thousand years ago discovered female tantric masters, called yogini, practicing esoteric disciplines with bands of female followers. Fierce, independent and strict, yogini conveyed their secrets to men longing to be initiated, propelling the development of tantric Buddhism. Then these extraordinary women dropped out of sight.
But not out of mind. Their beatified counterparts dance in the heart of mandalas throughout the Tibetan pantheon. "female energy is as capable as male energy in the spiritual field," said Kyabje Gehlek Rinpoche, a Tibetan lama and Buddhist teacher ("rinpoche" means "precious one") sent to the West by the Dalai Lama's tutors. Gehlek Rinpoche, known in spiritual circles for his closeness to the poet Allen Ginsberg (and for ministering to Ginsberg as he died), is the founder of Tibetan Buddhist centers in Ann Arbor, Michigan and in Soho.
On a recent morning, he was sitting before the deity Tara, envisioned in the 18th century thangka (illustrated at right), on display in "Female Buddhas: Women of Enlightenment in Tibetan Mystical Art", at the Rubin Museum of Art in Chelsea. "The need of this time is for a female presence," he said.
Tara made a vow to manifest in the world as a female, Gehlek Rinpoche explained. "The Boddhisatvas all said, 'Tara, you could be anybody you want; you could be male.' Tara replied, 'Thank you, but no thank you.' " She chose a female body to illuminate the way for all beings. "Her image helps us envision the buddha within ourselves," he said. "It helps remind us we are not just physical beings."
In practicing tantric secret teachings, women are thought to have an advantage, according to the current Dalai Lama, whereas men get higher marks in the public forms of Tibetan Buddhism. The first Dalai Lama (1391-1475) composed a mystical song of 21 praises to Tara, who is said to have sprung from the ocean of tears flowing from Tibet's chief deity, Avalokitesvara, boddhisatva of compassion.
Tara, whose name means "star"-- as in the North Star, the guiding light of those who are lost-- is enlightenment energy personified. She is passionate mother, wrathful protector, swift and fearless subduer. Eyes flashing like lightening, she stamps her feet and sends tremors through gods and demons alike, correcting great wrongs and fulfilling her promise to bring divine female energies into the world.
Her exalted sisterhood is anything but meek or submissive, as is strikingly evident in the Rubin's show and a related exhibition of the same name at the Bruce Museum in Greenwich, Connecticut. Tara and her cohort drink the blood of enemies of the dharma, prance naked on the bodies of those they have defeated, and join with male consorts in passionate sexual union. They are transcendent liberators, defenders of enlightened mind, the birthright of each of us, when we turn to the wisdom within.
The following are descriptions of elements within the "thangka" pictured in the article:
ATTRIBUTESYoung, beautiful, shape-shifting Tara is a virtual deity in a realm of light (think hologram) who takes on alternate personalities as the need arises. She may manifest in a beam of green, white, red or (as in the picture) gold, each color conveying a different set of qualities.
SETTINGBehind Tara's head is a radiant full moon, symbolizing enlightenment casting its light over the earth, far above the confusion, delusion and pain of samsara (cyclic Existence), but not apart from it. She is seated on a blossoming lotus and a moon disk. Rising around her is a blazing wreath of flames limned in gold, "like the fire at the end of this age," says the 21 praises.
FLOWERSIn each palm, Tara gently holds a long-stemmed blue-white flower, an uptala, a sweetly scented type of waterlily or lotus, which rises from the mud without so much as a drop of contagion clinging to its blossom. The uptala is one's pure nature, Gehlek Rinpoche said, "To make you think you are a pure being, it helps to act like a pure being."
HAND GESTURESTara's left hand, with three fingers raised, invokes the three jewels: the buddha, dharma and sangha (or, in simpler terms, the fully awakened mind, the teachings and the community of practitioners), symbolizing limitless refuge. Her right hand extends, palm forward, in the gesture of invitation. For "people who feel hopeless and helpless," said Gehlek Rinpoche, "Tara says, 'Join me, I'm here' ".
COSTUMEHer flowing silk robes, jeweled ornaments, elongated earlobes and graceful posture define her as a bodhisattva, who has made a vow to remain in this world and lead all beings to liberation no matter how many eons it takes. Buddhas, who represent the dharmakaya, or absolute reality, do not wear jewelry; in nirvana, why would they need it? Bodhisattvas have postponed their entry into nirvana for the sake of others. Tara displays jewels as a resume of her perfections, which glitter like beacons in the realms of worldly suffering where she does her work.
I sincerely regret that I have no means of reproducing this beautiful picture here.:(