Ascetic Master, probably a Mahasiddha

Tibet

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 253

A dramatically poised Indian yogi kneels on a flayed buffalo skin and holds aloft a skull cup. He is likely the mahasiddha Kapalapa (“Skull-cup Bearer”), one of the Indian eccentric yogis and practitioners of Tantrism so revered in the Tibetan Vajrayana tradition. This icon likely portrays a Dzogchen master of the Nyingma order who practiced as an ascetic yogi.

Ascetic Master, probably a Mahasiddha, Brass with pigment, Tibet

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Ascetic Master, probably a Mahasiddha, Brass with pigment, Tibet
Ascetic Master, probably a Mahasiddha, Brass with pigment, Tibet

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