Unknown
The Buddhist Deity Wisdom Mahakala (Jñana Mahakala)circa 9th century

On view:

Resnick Pavilion, floor 1

Dark gray stone relief sculpture of a four-armed deity with crown and jewelry, standing on a lotus base within a flame-bordered arch

Dark gray stone stele depicting a four-armed standing deity in tribhanga pose atop a lotus pedestal, adorned with crown, necklaces, and ornamental bands, holding a sword, lotus, and additional attributes, set within a flame-edged arch with two small offering vessels at the base.

Artist or Maker: Unknown
Title: The Buddhist Deity Wisdom Mahakala (Jñana Mahakala)
Place Made: India, Bihar
Date Made: circa 9th century
Medium: Chlorite schist
Dimensions: 14 1/4 x 7 7/8 x 2 5/8 in. (36.2 x 20 x 6.67 cm)
Credit Line: Gift of Paul F. Walter
Accession Number: M.71.110.3
Classification: Sculpture
Collecting Area: South and Southeast Asian Art
Curatorial Notes: By the 9th century, eastern Indian artists during the Pala Dynasty (750–1161) had developed a visual vocabulary for the depiction of various wrathful and protective deities associated with early esoteric formulations of Buddhist doctrine and practice. Such deities are often terrifying to behold in later Vajrayana Buddhist art. Pala artists portrayed them more benignly, as can be seen in this 9^th-century sculpture of Jñana (Wisdom) Mahakala (Great Black One). Such images, complex in iconography and symbolism, derived from much earlier representations of bodhisattvas with fierce dwarf attendants. While these attendant figures have parallels in the personified weapons of Hindu gods, in a Buddhist context they represent a bodhisattva’s protective powers.

Mahakala holds a flaying knife (kartrika) and the sword of transcendental wisdom (prajna) in his right hands, weapons to destroy obstacles on the Buddhist path. In his left hands, he holds a ritual staff (khatvanga) and an offering cup. Two offering bowls are on the plinth flanking him. On the base are the donor monk and a censer. The image is surrounded by an aureola of flames.

The dedicatory inscription on the lotus pedestal reads,
Success! This is a meritorious gift of Nanudika, the son of Shoañjana.

(Translation by Gouriswar Bhattacharya.)
Selected Bibliography: Huntington, Susan L. and John C.. Huntington. Leaves from the Bodhi Tree: The Art of Pala India (8th - 12th centuries) and Its International Legacy. Dayton, OH: The Dayton Art Institute in Association with the University of Washington Press, 1990.
Pal, Pratapaditya. Indian Sculpture, vol.2. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art; University of California Press, 1988.
Pal, Pratapaditya. The Sacred and Secular in Indian Art. Santa Barbara, CA: University of California, 1974.
Huntington, John C. and Dina Bangdel. The Circle of Bliss: Buddhist Meditational Art. Columbus: The Columbus Museum of Art; Chicago: Serindia Publications, 2003.
Little, Stephen, Tushara Bindu Gude, Karina Romero Blanco, Silvia Seligson, Marco Antonio Karam. Las Huellas de Buda. Ciudad de México : Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, 2018.
Little, Stephen, and Tushara Bindu Gude. Realms of the Dharma: Buddhist Art across Asia. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2025.

Unknown
The Buddhist Deity Wisdom Mahakala (Jñana Mahakala)circa 9th century

On view:

Resnick Pavilion, floor 1

Artist or Maker: Unknown
Title: The Buddhist Deity Wisdom Mahakala (Jñana Mahakala)
Place Made: India, Bihar
Date Made: circa 9th century
Medium: Chlorite schist
Dimensions: 14 1/4 x 7 7/8 x 2 5/8 in. (36.2 x 20 x 6.67 cm)
Credit Line: Gift of Paul F. Walter
Accession Number: M.71.110.3
Classification: Sculpture
Collecting Area: South and Southeast Asian Art
Curatorial Notes: By the 9th century, eastern Indian artists during the Pala Dynasty (750–1161) had developed a visual vocabulary for the depiction of various wrathful and protective deities associated with early esoteric formulations of Buddhist doctrine and practice. Such deities are often terrifying to behold in later Vajrayana Buddhist art. Pala artists portrayed them more benignly, as can be seen in this 9^th-century sculpture of Jñana (Wisdom) Mahakala (Great Black One). Such images, complex in iconography and symbolism, derived from much earlier representations of bodhisattvas with fierce dwarf attendants. While these attendant figures have parallels in the personified weapons of Hindu gods, in a Buddhist context they represent a bodhisattva’s protective powers.

Mahakala holds a flaying knife (kartrika) and the sword of transcendental wisdom (prajna) in his right hands, weapons to destroy obstacles on the Buddhist path. In his left hands, he holds a ritual staff (khatvanga) and an offering cup. Two offering bowls are on the plinth flanking him. On the base are the donor monk and a censer. The image is surrounded by an aureola of flames.

The dedicatory inscription on the lotus pedestal reads,
Success! This is a meritorious gift of Nanudika, the son of Shoañjana.

(Translation by Gouriswar Bhattacharya.)
Selected Bibliography: Huntington, Susan L. and John C.. Huntington. Leaves from the Bodhi Tree: The Art of Pala India (8th - 12th centuries) and Its International Legacy. Dayton, OH: The Dayton Art Institute in Association with the University of Washington Press, 1990.
Pal, Pratapaditya. Indian Sculpture, vol.2. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art; University of California Press, 1988.
Pal, Pratapaditya. The Sacred and Secular in Indian Art. Santa Barbara, CA: University of California, 1974.
Huntington, John C. and Dina Bangdel. The Circle of Bliss: Buddhist Meditational Art. Columbus: The Columbus Museum of Art; Chicago: Serindia Publications, 2003.
Little, Stephen, Tushara Bindu Gude, Karina Romero Blanco, Silvia Seligson, Marco Antonio Karam. Las Huellas de Buda. Ciudad de México : Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, 2018.
Little, Stephen, and Tushara Bindu Gude. Realms of the Dharma: Buddhist Art across Asia. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2025.