Painted Banner (Thangka) of Dharmatala from a Set of Seven Portraying the Sixteen Arhats (Elders), Early Disciples of the Historical Buddha Shakyamuni

This thangka features Dharmatala (or Dharmata), a legendary lay devotee of the Buddha Shakyamuni. Dharmatala begins to appear in art with the sixteen arhats in the 14th century, and is named in verses of praise to the arhats from the 12th-13th century. Dharmatala is only depicted in art alongside the sixteen arhats; however, in some traditions he is considered to be an emanation of the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara. Dharmatala is one of the additional figures who make up the full iconographic grouping included with representations of Shakyamuni and the sixteen arhats, the subject of the seven thangka set to which this work belongs. Such sets typically contain twenty-five figures in all, centering on Shakyamuni surrounded by his close attendants Shariputra and Maudgalyayana, the sixteen arhats, the four guardian kings who protect the cardinal directions, and the two devotees, Hvashang and Dharmatala. This grouping became a popular subject for both devotional practice and artistic representation. In painting, the group may appear in a single thangka or in sets with one or more figures per thangka. In the present work, Dharmatala is accompanied by two of the guardian kings, Vaishravana and Virupaksha, guardians of the north and west, respectively. In Chinese Buddhism, some traditions honor a set of eighteen arhats (Chinese: 羅漢; luohan) rather than sixteen, which is achieved by counting Dharmatala and the patron Hvashang in the group as arhats; however, in the Tibetan tradition, they are included but counted separately.

The group of seven thangkas to which this work belongs would normally be hung together, placed in a row with a central thangka and three thangkas flanking it on each side. This thangka’s composition and the orientation of the figures directs the viewer’s attention to the left, where the central thangka would normally be placed. The Tibetan inscription on the back of the hanging bar specifies that it is the “third on the left,” indicating that it is to be placed as the third and outermost thangka to the proper left (viewer’s right) of the central thangka (1923.968). The thangkas in this set of seven have been preserved with their traditional cloth mount and protective silk curtain.