San Diego Museum of Art - Page from the Manuscript of "The Five Protections"

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Page from the Manuscript of "The Five Protections"

Sri Ananda Buddhi, Nepalese, b. 12th century

Creation date: 1138

Creation place: Nepal

Other Information

Type: Manuscript Painting

Medium and Support: Opaque watercolor and ink on palm leaves and wood boards

Credit Line: Edwin Binney 3rd Collection

Accession Number: 1990.156.1

Dimensions: 2 3/16 in. x 23 5/8 in. (5.56 cm x 60.01 cm)

Provenance

Heeramaneck Galleries, New York, New York ( - February 3, 1962)

Edwin Binney 3rd, San Diego, California (February 3, 1962 - August 27, 1990)

San Diego Museum of Art, San Diego, California (August 27, 1990 - )

Label Copy

The Pancharaksha is composed of five hymns addressed to five Buddhist protective goddesses. They are among the most ancient of Buddhist scriptures. Fragments of the text have been found in Central Asian manuscripts of the first century A.D. The Pancharaksha goddesses are emanations of the five directional Buddhas, or Jina Buddhas, who can be invoked against specific illnesses and for specific purposes. To this day, the Pancharaksha text and goddesses are particularly popular in Nepal, where virtually every Buddhist household owns a copy of the text.

The colophon records that this manuscript was written by the scribe Sri Ananda Buddhi at the monastery of Sri Krishna Gupta Mahavihara at the city of Katmandu in the reign of King Indradeva in 1138. The manuscript is complete, even including the wood covers. On the insides they are painted at both ends with figures of monks and donors. The goddess of Wisdom Prajnaparamita and the six Paramitas are on one and the five Tathagata Buddhas and two Bodhisattvas (future Buddhas, or saints) are on the other. From the top:

white figure Mahamantranusarini protects against illnesses
black figure Mahasahasrapramardani protects against demons
green figure Mahasitavati protects against animals and
dangerous insects
yellow figure Mahamayuri protects aginst serpents
white figure Mahapratisara protects against sins and illnesses

The Muslim conquerors invading from the west virtually destroyed the Buddhist community in what had been the Pala territory and is now Bihar. By the thirteenth century, the Buddhists were scattered, with many fleeing to the north, to Nepal and Tibet, carrying with them Pala traditions of painting and sculpture.

September 2005
Devotional Arts of Nepal
This manuscript of over one hundred pages is of the most popularly copied and illustrated Buddhist text in Nepal. It records five different protective formulas that protect against dangers or cure ailments, such as snakebites or smallpox. The powerful goddesses painted on the pages personify each of the five formulas. It is extraordinary that this complete manuscript is dated and survives intact.
One of the two wooden bookcovers is painted with Buddhas of the five directions, flanked by bodhisattvas; the other has seven goddesses of wisdom. On the ends of both covers are monks and lay donors who pay homage to the Buddhas and goddesses. Distinctively Nepalese are the rich colors, delicate outlines, gentle expressions, and types of thrones.

August 2021
Pearls from the Ocean of Contentment
These leaves belong to a complete, unbound copy of the Pancharaksha, or Five Protections, one of the most widely produced ancient Buddhist scriptures in Nepal. Composed of hymns devoted to five Buddhist protective goddesses, this sacred text is used to invoke assistance from the goddesses. The manuscript bears the name of the scribe, Sri Ananda Buddhi, who copied the text at the monastery of Sri Krishna Gupta Mahavihara in Kathmandu under the reign of King Indradeva.
Last Updated: 2/2/2022

Exhibition

This object was included in the following exhibitions:

Persian and Indian Miniatures from the Collection of Edwin Binney, 3rd The Portland Art Association , 9/28/1962 - 11/29/1962

Nepal: Where the Gods Are Asia House Gallery , 9/21/1975 - 12/21/1975

Myths, Monsters, Maharajas: Introducing the Binney Collection San Diego Museum of Art , 11/23/1991 - 1/26/1992

Temple Palace and Mosque Rotations San Diego Museum of Art , 8/16/2010 - 00/00/00

Into India: South Asian Paintings from The San Diego Museum of Art San Diego Museum of Art , 2/28/2012 - 5/27/2012

Bibliography

This object has the following bibliographic references:

Dr. Edwin Binney, 3rd. Persian and Indian Miniatures, Portland Art Museum. Portland, Oregon, 1962
Page Number: 28, 29

Pratapaditya Pal. Nepal: Asia House Gallery. New York, New York, 1975
Page Number: 16

Pratapaditya Pal. Nepal: Asia House Gallery. New York, New York, 1975
Page Number: 60, 61 no. 44, 82 no. 44, Figure Number: 44

Dr. Caron Smith. San Diego Museum of Art, San Diego Museum of Art. San Diego, California, 2003
Page Number: 88, Figure Number: 88

Pratapaditya Pal. The Arts of Nepal: Part II, Painting E. J. Brill. Leiden, The Netherlands, 1978
Page Number: 40, 41, 49, Figure Number: 25 (selected pages)

Steven Kossak. Painted images of Enlightenment Marg Publications. Thomson Press (India) Ltd., Navi Mumbai 400 708, January, 2010
Page Number: 38, Figure Number: 19

Jinah Kim. A Book of Buddhist Goddesses: Illustrated Maunscripts of the "Pancaraksa Sutra" and Their Ritual Uses Artibus Asiae Publishers. 2010
Page Number: 259-329, Figure Number: 1-5

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