Page 22 - Bonhams, Images of Devotion, April 21 2021

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A GILT COPPER ALLOY FIGURE OF LHATSUN KUNGA CHOKYI GYATSO
TIBET, 15TH/16TH CENTURY
A Tibetan inscription at the back of the lotus base, translated, ‘Homage to Lhatsun
Kunga Chokyi Gyatso!’
Himalayan Art Resources item no.68477
16.8 cm (6 5/8 in.) high

HKD250,000 - 350,000

西藏 十五/十六世紀 銅鎏金拉尊貢嘎確吉嘉措像

With an appearance similar to that of a mahasiddha, this eccentric figure is
identified by inscription as Lhatsun Kunga Chokyi Gyatso (1432-1505), a 15th-
century Tibetan teacher, likely of the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism. Little is
known about this master except that he was the teacher of Drukpa Kunley (1455–
1529), also known as the Madman of the Dragon Lineage. Along with Tsangnyon
Heruka (1452-1507, “Madman of Tsang”), and U-nyon Kunga Zangpo (1458-1532,
“Madman of U”), Drukpa Kunley was one of the key representatives of the Nyonpa
(Mad Yogin) tradition of the Drukpa Kagyu school.

Likely a yogic master himself, Lhatsun Kunga Chokyi Gyatso is shown bare-chested
with a double-band meditation belt hanging down from his right shoulder across his
rotund belly. His left hand rests in his lap holding an upright vajra, while his right is
raised in karana mudra. Most conspicuous are the pair of oversized spiral earrings,
which seem to function less as embellishments than as signs of his ‘yogihood’.
This choice of accoutrements was likely inspired by the Indian mahasiddhas of the
Kagyu tradition, such as Tilopa (928-1009) or Naropa (956-1040), root gurus of his
lineage (see Bonhams, New York, 14 March 2017, lot 3217).

The quality of the casting is seen in the naturalistic modelling of his fleshy fingers,
the subtle sway of his torso, and the fluid folds of his voluminous robe spilling over
the lotus base. The garments draped over the narrow upper section of the base is a
feature shared by another finely gilded portrait of an unknown master in Tsuglakang
Monastery (HAR 57287).

Published
David Weldon and Jane Casey Singer, The Sculptural Heritage of Tibet: Buddhist
Art in the Nyingjei Lam Collection, London, 1999, fig.60.

Exhibited
The Sculptural Heritage of Tibet: Buddhist Art in the Nyingjei Lam Collection,
Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, October-December 1999.
Arte Buddhista Tibetana: Dei e Demoni dell’ Himalaya, Palazzo Bricherasio, Turin,
June-September 2004.
Casting the Divine: Sculptures of the Nyingjei Lam Collection, Rubin Museum of Art,
New York, 2012-2013.

Provenance
The Nyingjei Lam Collection 菩薩道收藏, acquired in the 1990s
On loan to the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, 1996–2005
On loan to the Rubin Museum of Art, New York, 2005–2016 (L2005.9.44)

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