| Palden Lhamo |
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| Written by Administrator |
| Wednesday, 26 May 2010 06:38 |
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The wrathful deity Palden Lhamo (Tib: dpal ldan lha mo, or dMag zor ma rGyal mo; Skt: Shri Devi or Remati) is one of the main Dharma protectors in the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism and considered to be the the tutelary deity of Tibet and its government", and as "celebrated all over Tibet and Mongolia, and the potent protector of the Dalai and Panchen Lamas and Lhasa." The detailed iconography of Palden Lhamo is complicated, and this is not the place to discuss it. Jeff Watt wrote an excellent article on the Himalayan Art site about it. In the context of the Gelugpa school of Tibtean Buddhism we deal specifically with the form of Magzor Gyalmo (Tib: dMag zor ma rGyal mo) meaning "Glorious Goddess, the Queen who Repels Armies", or "the Queen who has the power to turn back armies". She has a blue-black body and and a fiercly wrathful expression, has one face and two hands, holding aloft with the right hand a vajra-tipped staff and in the left a skullcup held to her heart. She rides on a side-saddle atop a mule. Above her head is a large peacock feather parasol. << Click on the image and it will expand into an image gallery/slideshow. |