The Iconography of Tibetan Lamaism

The Iconography of Tibetan Lamaism was first published twenty years ago for the express purpose of "giving the student interested in Tibetan iconography a general idea of the development of Buddhism into Lamaism, and making easier the identification of the various deities of the Tibetan pantheon." Although interest in the field has grown over the years, the book has remained the only authoritative work of its kind. Long out of print and rare even in the second-hand bookshops it is now being offered in a new, revised and enlarged edition to meet the persistent and increasing demand for it.This book gives a descriptive outline of the principal gods in the Tibetan pantheon, tracing the main features and symbols that are used to denote each one. A Comprehensive illustrated list of the various ritual objects, talismans, symbols, mudras (symbolic hand poses), and asanas and vahanas (position of the lower limbs) that are used in the images of the gods is accompanied with a word list of the Sanskrit terms most commonly encountered in a study of Lamaism.A set of thirty-one thang-kas from the famous collection of Baron A. von Stael-Holstein, formerly of Peking, China, which came to America after the publication of the original edition of the book, has been included in this new and revised edition.