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The Encyclopedia of Tibetan Symbols and Motifs
For artists, designers, and all with an interest in Buddhist and Tibetan art, this is the first exhaustive reference to the seemingly infinite variety of symbols found throughout Tibetan art in line drawings, paintings, and ritual objects. Hundreds of the author's line drawings depict all the major Tibetan symbols and motifs—landscapes, deities, animals, plants, gurus, mudras (ritual hand gestures), dragons, and other mythic creatures—ranging from complex mythological scenes to small, simple ornaments.
392 pages, Hardcover
First published March 12, 2004
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About the author
Robert Beer
27 books15 followersRobert Beer has studied and practiced Tibetan thangka painting for thirty years, including five years of study with master artists Jampa of Dharamsala and Khamtrül Rinpoche of Tashijong. Beer is one of the first Westerners to become actively involved in this art form. Over the last two decades he has concentrated on an extensive series of iconographical drawings depicting the major deities, lineage holders, and symbols that occur in the spectrum of Tibetan art.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
August 17, 2014
If you want to understand the myriad of items and symbols found in Tibetan thangkas, this is the book for you. Seriously. There are four hundred pages of illustrations and explanations provided by Nepaliese-trained thangka artist Robert Beer, and they're all put into handy categories with good labels. He even goes into the philosophical background of Mahayana Buddhism where necessary, with deviations into Indian tantric traditions or Tibetan Bon customs. If you want to be able to fully understand a thangka, I cannot recommend this book enough. Don't buy the abbreviated edition - go for this one, the full encyclopedia. WARNING: This is a detail-oriented book. Not for thangka beginners. Start with "Sacred Buddhist Paintings" or "Tibetan Thangka Painting" first.
June 3, 2025
'The five-pointed vajra is said to measure twelve units in length, subdivided into three sections of four units. The central section consists of a central four-unit hub with a lotus and moon disc on either side, and is sealed at both ends with a crown of five extending prongs, each measuring four units in length. The standard unit of measure is known as an angula or "finger-width" (Tib. sor). This is the distance across the middle finger below the second knuckle. Twelve angulas are equal to one "face" or large measure—the distance in finger-widths from the chin to the hair line. The vajra is said to measure twelve units as it annihilates the twelve links in the chain of causation, or the twelve links of dependent origination (see page 240).
At the center of the vajra is a rounded hub or flattened sphere representing the dharmata (Tib. chos nyid), as the "expanse or sphere of actual reality". This sphere or bija is sealed within by the syllable Hum, whose three component sounds represent freedom from causation or karma (Hetu), freedom from conceptual thought or reasoning (Uha), and the groundlessness of all dharmas (M).
On either side of the central hub are three rings which encircle the lotus bases like bracelets of pearls. These three rings symbolise the spontaneous bliss of Buddha nature as emptiness, signlessness, and effortlessness. Emerging from the three rings on either side are two eight-petalled lotuses. The sixteen petals of the lotuses represent the sixteen modes of emptiness (shunyata). The eight upper lotus petals also represent the eight bodhisattvas, and the eight lower petals, their eight female consorts. Above the lotus bases are another series of three pearl-like rings, which collectively represent the six perfections (paramitas) of patience, generosity, discipline, effort, meditation, and wisdom. A full-moon disc crowns each of the lotuses, symbolising the full realisation of absolute and relative bodhichitta.
Emerging from the moon discs are five tapering prongs forming a spherical cluster or cross. These consist of an axial square central prong and four inward-curving prongs which unite with the central prong near its tip. The four curved prongs, positioned in the cardinal directions, face inwards toward the central prong, symbolising that the four aggregates of form, feeling, perception, and motivation, depend upon the fifth aggregate of consciousness. The five upper prongs of the vajra represent the Five Buddhas (Akshobhya, Vairochana, Ratnasambhava, Amitabha and Amoghasiddhi), and the unity of their omniscient wisdoms, attributes and qualities. The five lower prongs represent the female consorts of the Five Buddhas (Mamaki, Lochana, Vajradhatvishvari, Pandara, and Tara), and the unity of their qualities and attributes. The Five Buddhas and their consorts symbolise the elimination of the five aggregates of personality. The ten prongs together symbolise the ten perfections (the six paramitas, plus the perfections of skilful means, aspiration, inner strength, and pure awareness); the ten "grounds" (Skt. bhumi; Tib. sa) or progressive levels of realisation of a bodhisattva; and the ten directions (four cardinal, four intercardinal, zenith, and nadir).
Each of the four outer prongs arise from the heads of makaras, which face outwards. The mouths of the makaras are wide open, and the curved arcs of the upper part of the prongs emanate like vajra-tongues from their mouths. The four makaras symbolise the four "boundless states" or "immeasurables" (compassion, love, sympathetic joy, and equanimity); the four doors of liberation (emptiness, signlessness, wishlessness, and lack of composition); the conquest of the four Maras (emotional defilements, passion, death, divine pride and lust); the four activities or karmas; the four purified elements; and the four joys (joy, supreme joy, the joy of cessation, and innate joy).
The tips at either end of the central prong may be shaped like a tapering pyramid or four-faceted jewel, which represent Mt Meru as the axial centre of both the outer macrocosm and inner microcosm. The twin faces of the symmetrical vajra represent the unity of relative and absolute truth.'
'The ritual hand-bell or vajra ghanta (Tib. rdo rje dril bu) represents the feminine principle as the "perfection of wisdom" (Skt. prajnaparamita) which directly realises emptiness (shunyata). The vajra and bell are the two main ritual implements that symbolise the perfections of method or skilful means (vajra), and wisdom or emptiness (ghanta). When paired, the vajra is held in the right hand, and the bell in the left, representing the inseparable union of method and wisdom. Plates 73 and 75 show the principal hand gestures or mudra in which the vajra and bell are held.
The bell is described as "proclaiming the sound of emptiness", which arises from the voidness of its form, radiates in all directions, and dissolves back into silence or emptiness. Its hollow or "mouth" is emptiness; its clapper or "tongue" is form. As a sexual symbol the hollow "lotus" of the bell represents emptiness as the vagina, and the prongs of the vajra—symbolising the four nadi which emanate from the "jewel-wheel chakra" at the tip of the male sexual organ—represent form or appearance. Their union is the coincidence of great bliss and compassion as pure emptiness and form.
Tibetan bells are traditionally individually cast from bronze bell-metal by a skilful technique of sand-casting. An inner and outer mould are made for the bell casing, made of fine compacted sand which is bound with radish juice or raw brown sugar as a cohesive. A plain "blank" bell is used to model the moulds, and the embellished external designs of the bell are carefully impressed into the outer sand mould before casting. This is accomplished with a series of metal embossing stamps, imprinted with the various motifs that decorate the bell. The upper design of the lotus circle and syllables are engraved onto the upper shoulder of the blank, as they will not damage the outer mould when the blank is removed. The upper bronze handle of the bell is cast separately by the lost wax method of bronze casting, and the two parts of the bell are joined together with pitch-resin.
The ritual set of a vajra and ghanta essentially symbolise the practitioner's personal tutelary or yidam deity and the deity's mandala. The bell, as the deity's mandala, is proportioned with equal measures in its upper handle, lower casing, and the width across its mouth or bottom rim. The pitch of a bell rises as its surface area decreases, and the thickness of its walls increase.
At the base of the bell is the inward-tapering rim, from which the "sound of emptiness" arises as vibration. This rim represents the disc of space. Above the rim are an embossed ring of upright vajras enclosed between two rows of pearls or "conch-rosaries" (Tib. dung 'phreng). The lower rosary of pearls symbolises the outer protective wheel of five-coloured flames or "rosary of light" which surrounds the mandala. The ring of vajras—which may number twelve, sixteen, twenty-four, or thirty-two, and occasionally depicts a single vishvavajra at its front—symbolises the thirty-two or sixty-four petals of the "lotus-womb" protection circle. Above these lower motifs is an open unadorned area, which symbolises the earth-disc of the mandala. Above this open area is a frieze of eight "monster-heads" or kirtimukhas (Tib. 'go pa thra), which symbolise the eight makara-heads of the vishvavajra on which the mandala palace rests. An alternative symbolism for the eight kirtimukhas is given as the mandala's eight great charnel grounds or cemeteries. From the mouths of the kirtimukhas hang a connecting frieze of jewel-loops and jewel-pendants (Tib. dra ba dra phyed, which symbolise the decorations on the outer wall of the mandala. Above the upper arcs of the jewel-loops, and positioned between the kirtimukha faces, are the eight symbols of the eight bodhisattvas, which are also represented by the eight lotus petals placed above the shoulder at the top of the bell's casing. These eight symbols may take the form of vajras, wheels, or lotus flowers, and are described in one standard sequence below. Above the kirtimukha frieze is another double row of pearls, enclosing either eight or sixteen horizontal vajras. These represent the inner walls and inner protection circle of the mandala, and symbolise the eight or sixteen emptinesses (shunyata).
On the top shoulder of the bell casing, and inside the upper rosary of pearls, is the eight-petalled lotus-dais of the eight bodhisattvas and their female consorts as the eight offering goddesses. The eight petals, which symbolise the bodhisattvas, and the eight syllables, which symbolise the eight offering goddesses. are illustrated in the lower right of Plate 113. Their sequence, beginning with the eastern petal at the bottom and rotating clockwise is as follows:
East—the bodhisattva Kshitigarbha (Tib. Sa yi snying po) and his consort Lasya (Tib. sGeg pa ma), the goddess offering beauty, represented by the syllable Tam.
South-east—the bodhisattva Maitreya (Tib. Byams pa) and his consort Pushpa (Tib. Me tog ma), the goddess offering flowers, represented by the syllable Mam.
South—the bodhisattva Akashagarbha (Tib. Nam mkha'i snying po) and his consort Mala (Tib. 'Phreng ba ma), the goddess offering garlands, represented by the syllable Lam.
South-west—the bodhisattva Samantabhadra (Tib. Kun tu bzang po) and his consort Dhupa (Tib. bDug spos ma), the goddess offering incense, represented by the syllable Pam.
West—the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara (Tib. sPyan ras gzigs) and his consort Gita (Tib. Glu ma), the goddess offering song, represented by the syllable Mam.
North-west—the bodhisattva Manjughosha (Tib.'Jam dpal dbyangs) and his consort Aloka (Tib. Mar me ma), the goddess offering light, represented by the syllable Tsum.
North—the bodhisattva Vajrapani (Tib. Phyag na rdo rje) and his consort Nritya (Tib. Gar ma), the goddess offering dance, represented by the syllable Pam.
North-east—the bodhisattva Sarva-nivarana-vishkambhim (Tib. sGrib pa rnam sel) and his consort Gandha (Tib. Dri chab ma), the goddess offering perfume, represented by the syllable Bhrum.'
'The most common sequence of bodhisattva symbols that occur between the kirtimukha faces, and correspond to the eight syllables is as follows: front or east (Tam), a wheel; south-east (Mam), an utpala flower; south (Lam), a jewel; south-west (Pam), a wheel; west (Mam), a lotus; north-west (Tsum), a vajra; north (Pam), a sword; north-east (Bhrum), a lotus.'
At the center of the vajra is a rounded hub or flattened sphere representing the dharmata (Tib. chos nyid), as the "expanse or sphere of actual reality". This sphere or bija is sealed within by the syllable Hum, whose three component sounds represent freedom from causation or karma (Hetu), freedom from conceptual thought or reasoning (Uha), and the groundlessness of all dharmas (M).
On either side of the central hub are three rings which encircle the lotus bases like bracelets of pearls. These three rings symbolise the spontaneous bliss of Buddha nature as emptiness, signlessness, and effortlessness. Emerging from the three rings on either side are two eight-petalled lotuses. The sixteen petals of the lotuses represent the sixteen modes of emptiness (shunyata). The eight upper lotus petals also represent the eight bodhisattvas, and the eight lower petals, their eight female consorts. Above the lotus bases are another series of three pearl-like rings, which collectively represent the six perfections (paramitas) of patience, generosity, discipline, effort, meditation, and wisdom. A full-moon disc crowns each of the lotuses, symbolising the full realisation of absolute and relative bodhichitta.
Emerging from the moon discs are five tapering prongs forming a spherical cluster or cross. These consist of an axial square central prong and four inward-curving prongs which unite with the central prong near its tip. The four curved prongs, positioned in the cardinal directions, face inwards toward the central prong, symbolising that the four aggregates of form, feeling, perception, and motivation, depend upon the fifth aggregate of consciousness. The five upper prongs of the vajra represent the Five Buddhas (Akshobhya, Vairochana, Ratnasambhava, Amitabha and Amoghasiddhi), and the unity of their omniscient wisdoms, attributes and qualities. The five lower prongs represent the female consorts of the Five Buddhas (Mamaki, Lochana, Vajradhatvishvari, Pandara, and Tara), and the unity of their qualities and attributes. The Five Buddhas and their consorts symbolise the elimination of the five aggregates of personality. The ten prongs together symbolise the ten perfections (the six paramitas, plus the perfections of skilful means, aspiration, inner strength, and pure awareness); the ten "grounds" (Skt. bhumi; Tib. sa) or progressive levels of realisation of a bodhisattva; and the ten directions (four cardinal, four intercardinal, zenith, and nadir).
Each of the four outer prongs arise from the heads of makaras, which face outwards. The mouths of the makaras are wide open, and the curved arcs of the upper part of the prongs emanate like vajra-tongues from their mouths. The four makaras symbolise the four "boundless states" or "immeasurables" (compassion, love, sympathetic joy, and equanimity); the four doors of liberation (emptiness, signlessness, wishlessness, and lack of composition); the conquest of the four Maras (emotional defilements, passion, death, divine pride and lust); the four activities or karmas; the four purified elements; and the four joys (joy, supreme joy, the joy of cessation, and innate joy).
The tips at either end of the central prong may be shaped like a tapering pyramid or four-faceted jewel, which represent Mt Meru as the axial centre of both the outer macrocosm and inner microcosm. The twin faces of the symmetrical vajra represent the unity of relative and absolute truth.'
'The ritual hand-bell or vajra ghanta (Tib. rdo rje dril bu) represents the feminine principle as the "perfection of wisdom" (Skt. prajnaparamita) which directly realises emptiness (shunyata). The vajra and bell are the two main ritual implements that symbolise the perfections of method or skilful means (vajra), and wisdom or emptiness (ghanta). When paired, the vajra is held in the right hand, and the bell in the left, representing the inseparable union of method and wisdom. Plates 73 and 75 show the principal hand gestures or mudra in which the vajra and bell are held.
The bell is described as "proclaiming the sound of emptiness", which arises from the voidness of its form, radiates in all directions, and dissolves back into silence or emptiness. Its hollow or "mouth" is emptiness; its clapper or "tongue" is form. As a sexual symbol the hollow "lotus" of the bell represents emptiness as the vagina, and the prongs of the vajra—symbolising the four nadi which emanate from the "jewel-wheel chakra" at the tip of the male sexual organ—represent form or appearance. Their union is the coincidence of great bliss and compassion as pure emptiness and form.
Tibetan bells are traditionally individually cast from bronze bell-metal by a skilful technique of sand-casting. An inner and outer mould are made for the bell casing, made of fine compacted sand which is bound with radish juice or raw brown sugar as a cohesive. A plain "blank" bell is used to model the moulds, and the embellished external designs of the bell are carefully impressed into the outer sand mould before casting. This is accomplished with a series of metal embossing stamps, imprinted with the various motifs that decorate the bell. The upper design of the lotus circle and syllables are engraved onto the upper shoulder of the blank, as they will not damage the outer mould when the blank is removed. The upper bronze handle of the bell is cast separately by the lost wax method of bronze casting, and the two parts of the bell are joined together with pitch-resin.
The ritual set of a vajra and ghanta essentially symbolise the practitioner's personal tutelary or yidam deity and the deity's mandala. The bell, as the deity's mandala, is proportioned with equal measures in its upper handle, lower casing, and the width across its mouth or bottom rim. The pitch of a bell rises as its surface area decreases, and the thickness of its walls increase.
At the base of the bell is the inward-tapering rim, from which the "sound of emptiness" arises as vibration. This rim represents the disc of space. Above the rim are an embossed ring of upright vajras enclosed between two rows of pearls or "conch-rosaries" (Tib. dung 'phreng). The lower rosary of pearls symbolises the outer protective wheel of five-coloured flames or "rosary of light" which surrounds the mandala. The ring of vajras—which may number twelve, sixteen, twenty-four, or thirty-two, and occasionally depicts a single vishvavajra at its front—symbolises the thirty-two or sixty-four petals of the "lotus-womb" protection circle. Above these lower motifs is an open unadorned area, which symbolises the earth-disc of the mandala. Above this open area is a frieze of eight "monster-heads" or kirtimukhas (Tib. 'go pa thra), which symbolise the eight makara-heads of the vishvavajra on which the mandala palace rests. An alternative symbolism for the eight kirtimukhas is given as the mandala's eight great charnel grounds or cemeteries. From the mouths of the kirtimukhas hang a connecting frieze of jewel-loops and jewel-pendants (Tib. dra ba dra phyed, which symbolise the decorations on the outer wall of the mandala. Above the upper arcs of the jewel-loops, and positioned between the kirtimukha faces, are the eight symbols of the eight bodhisattvas, which are also represented by the eight lotus petals placed above the shoulder at the top of the bell's casing. These eight symbols may take the form of vajras, wheels, or lotus flowers, and are described in one standard sequence below. Above the kirtimukha frieze is another double row of pearls, enclosing either eight or sixteen horizontal vajras. These represent the inner walls and inner protection circle of the mandala, and symbolise the eight or sixteen emptinesses (shunyata).
On the top shoulder of the bell casing, and inside the upper rosary of pearls, is the eight-petalled lotus-dais of the eight bodhisattvas and their female consorts as the eight offering goddesses. The eight petals, which symbolise the bodhisattvas, and the eight syllables, which symbolise the eight offering goddesses. are illustrated in the lower right of Plate 113. Their sequence, beginning with the eastern petal at the bottom and rotating clockwise is as follows:
East—the bodhisattva Kshitigarbha (Tib. Sa yi snying po) and his consort Lasya (Tib. sGeg pa ma), the goddess offering beauty, represented by the syllable Tam.
South-east—the bodhisattva Maitreya (Tib. Byams pa) and his consort Pushpa (Tib. Me tog ma), the goddess offering flowers, represented by the syllable Mam.
South—the bodhisattva Akashagarbha (Tib. Nam mkha'i snying po) and his consort Mala (Tib. 'Phreng ba ma), the goddess offering garlands, represented by the syllable Lam.
South-west—the bodhisattva Samantabhadra (Tib. Kun tu bzang po) and his consort Dhupa (Tib. bDug spos ma), the goddess offering incense, represented by the syllable Pam.
West—the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara (Tib. sPyan ras gzigs) and his consort Gita (Tib. Glu ma), the goddess offering song, represented by the syllable Mam.
North-west—the bodhisattva Manjughosha (Tib.'Jam dpal dbyangs) and his consort Aloka (Tib. Mar me ma), the goddess offering light, represented by the syllable Tsum.
North—the bodhisattva Vajrapani (Tib. Phyag na rdo rje) and his consort Nritya (Tib. Gar ma), the goddess offering dance, represented by the syllable Pam.
North-east—the bodhisattva Sarva-nivarana-vishkambhim (Tib. sGrib pa rnam sel) and his consort Gandha (Tib. Dri chab ma), the goddess offering perfume, represented by the syllable Bhrum.'
'The most common sequence of bodhisattva symbols that occur between the kirtimukha faces, and correspond to the eight syllables is as follows: front or east (Tam), a wheel; south-east (Mam), an utpala flower; south (Lam), a jewel; south-west (Pam), a wheel; west (Mam), a lotus; north-west (Tsum), a vajra; north (Pam), a sword; north-east (Bhrum), a lotus.'
March 26, 2012
(4.5) THE definitive text on Tibetan symbols used in thankas and mandalas. The only things that would have made this book better would have been color plates and an index. Well worth the investment for those interested in the subject.
June 26, 2019
The book is more than a study of Tibetan art; it explains a multitude of esoteric concepts and rituals. The author's scholarship is immense and his attention to detail phenomenal. This is one book I am going to be referring to for the rest of my life.
February 25, 2008
This book is beautiful and extremely informative.
May 31, 2014
Very, very, very informative!
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews