Arhat Vanavasin, One of the Sixteen Great Arhats, from a Set of Twenty-Three

This thangka most likely depicts the Arhat Vanavasin. He is seated amidst mountains facing slightly right with a flywhisk in his left hand and his right making a pointing gesture, just as he is described in certain Tibetan liturgical verses. He is surrounded by lush green and blue foliage, and seated beneath a small floating image of White Tara above. Tara appears peaceful, seated on a lotus, with one face and two hands, and holds a lotus with her left hand while making the boon-granting gesture (varada mudra) with her right.

The Sixteen Arhats were legendary early Indian disciples of the Buddha Shakyamuni. Although they were not worshipped individually and emerged relatively late as an iconographic group, they became a popular subject in Buddhist art in both Tibet and East Asia. The complete group usually consists of twenty-five figures: the sixteen arhats, the Buddha Shakyamuni, his two attendants Shariputra and Maudgalyayana, the Chinese monk devotee Hvashang and the lay upasaka Dharmatala, and the Four Great King of the cardinal directions, Dhritarashtra, Virudhaka, Virupaksha, and Vaishravana.

There are strong Chinese influences evident in the style of this thangka, from the landscape to the use of color and dry line. Its composition and color follow a set originally commissioned by the Yongle Emperor in the early 15th century, which was then copied numerous times in subsequent centuries. Based on the specific coloring, it may also in turn be following versions made during the 16th and 17th century. At the same time, the iconography references Tibetan tradition, particularly in the image of White Tara at the top center of the thangka, and Vanavasin's appearance with flywhisk and pointing gesture follows the description set forth in a Tibetan verse.