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Tibetan forms that appear throughout the temple. For
example, on the ceilings in the three coffered bays over the
central altar are three large maṇḍala (Pl. 17.6), which are
linked to Tibetan mortuary liturgy, such as the central
Vairocana, which is specifically related to the Purification of
All Bad Rebirths Tantra (Sarva-durgati-pariśodhana Tantra). In
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this way the Tibetan maṇḍalas on the ceiling are linked
functionally to the Chinese ‘Water-Land’ ritual paintings on
the walls (Pl. 17.7), in their role of salvation for the dead.
Within Fahai Monastery’s wall paintings subtle Tibetan
elements can also be found; for instance, among the Chinese
courtly attire in Indra and Brahmā’s royal procession on the
north wall of Fahai Monastery, only Mārīcī (see Pl. 17.7,
centre right) is given the distinctive five-leaf crown and vajra
chignon finial, similar to contemporaneous painted images
in Tibet and Sino-Tibetan bronzes produced at the Ming
court.

Eunuchs at the Ming court
Fahai Monastery’s principal patron was a eunuch of the
inner court who served as director of all imperial artists, the
Directorate of Imperial Accoutrements (Yuyongjian 御用監).
The fact that Tibetan borrowings appear specifically at this
Plate 17.6 Vairocana Maṇḍala, central bay, Fahai Monastery, small private temple seems to be a result of the intersecting
Beijing. Built between 1439–41 by the Ming court eunuch Li Tong layers of the eunuch bureaucracy at the Ming court, both in
(d. 1453) their roles as the controllers of the imperial construction
Broader court engagement: Fahaisi apparatus, the Ministry of Works and as the official imperial
Moving beyond the emperor’s personal engagement with envoys to Tibetan patriarchs. Thus the eunuchs were in
Tibetan Buddhism, Fahaisi 法海寺 (Sea of the Law close contact with the Tibetan clerics at court, often
Monastery), completed in 1443, is a small private temple on becoming their personal patrons, and directly oversaw the
the outskirts of Beijing. While the basic architectural and artists who made these images.
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painting programmes of Fahai Monastery are clearly Evidence of a significant Tibetan presence at Fahai
Chinese, a subtle Tibetan presence is observable in various Monastery is found in ten Tibetan names on the back of the

Plate 17.7 ‘Water-Land’ ritual paintings (note Mārīcī wearing Tibetan-inspired 5-leaf crown). North wall, Fahai Monastery, Beijing

156 | Ming China: Courts and Contacts 1400–1450