Newartistry

Art and about
Kathmandu
I was lucky enough to visit with a well-known painter of Hindu and Buddhist Tantric art, and didn't even write about it. Yet.

Samundra Man Singh Shrestha is so cool, he is friends with Robert Beer.

No, cooler than that - Robert Beer actually buys his (Samundra's) paintings. His most recent exhibit was at the Sacred Art & Sacred Space Auction in San Francisco.

He's also a good friend of my Charya dance teacher, which is why we went to hang out at Samundra's house in Lazimpat.

There are still plenty of painters in the Newar Poubha tradition, as well as in the Tibetan Thangka tradition. These traditons, like most classical schools, leave little or no room for innovation. Samundra has the technical ability to produce such works, but uses that background to render his own interpretations, particularly of Nepali Hindu gods and goddesses (Bhairab, Kaumari, and so on).

Samundra puts a lot of Rasa or Bhava (feeling or expression) into what could otherwise be static images with parameters set down by the Shastras (scriptures dictating artistic guidelines).

Anyway, I was too much of a bonehead to remember my camera that afternoon, so here is a wee example of his work. On the Tantricart.net website you can see more.

Whassup Ode Skool?!

A note from Flickr
Kathmandu

Back in February, you may remember I attended the Tibetan New Year celebration Losar out in Boudha. The Tibetan community, like Ladakh, is a cinch for "beautiful old faces" photos.

One of them was this lovely white-bearded Gandalf of a Ngagpa, or non-celibate Nyingma yogi. (Nyingma is one of the five Tibetan Buddhist schools and literally means, "Old School.") I wish I could have illuminated his face better, but it was still a good composition.


He spoke a bit of English and invited me up to see his monastery in Helambu (about five days' walk from Kathmandu).

Just yesterday, a Flickr member named Joakkim wrote in with this note:

Hi I also met Lama Rechung is his name by the way, at his home in Helambu in 98. Read more about Rinpoche at arobuddhism.org/encyclopaedia/shared/text/n/n rr_ph_01_eng...

The Rinpoche does not appear to have aged a great deal in the 10 years since Joakkim met him, if the website photos are any indication. There must be something to those Tantric Arts.

Time for a closing cliche: What a small world it truly is.

Here are a couple more photos I took that day. Old school indeed.

Mandala meanderings

Down in the Valley: Another Cultural Minute

Kathmandu Valley, Nepal

I haven't been meandering too much this trip....been in bed with a screaming migraine the past 3 days. But I would like to continue my Power Places of Kathmandu Valley series.

Tantric Hinduism was mostly wiped out or went underground in India, the land of its birth, centuries ago - by a resurgence of Brahmin orthodoxy and religious reforms. But it remained and remains alive and well in Nepal.

This has mixed results; the lovely sensual artwork celebrating human sexuality, along with the many bloody animal sacrifices.

The entire valley (and every city within the valley) is arranged as a mandala; that is, a ritual circular design with "power points" at key positions.

Here are my photos of a few more of the "Power Places of the Valley."

Chobar Adinath at first appears to be just another charming Newar style pagoda temple. But it's sacred to both Hindus and Buddhists, and inside the walls are covered with brass plates, pots, pans and photos of individuals. These are all homages to the deceased. The result feels very intimate; like being in someone's living room with the eyes of their ancestors peering down.

Dakshinakali, a Hindu temple located in a deep dark crevasse near Pharping, is the best known animal sacrifice temple, not only in Nepal but possibly in the world. It's not so much a temple building as a sprawling complex of bridges and platforms. Situated atop a small river, the water literally flows red most days (as you can see in the lower left-hand side of the river photo). Chickens, goats, sheep and so on are sacrificed by the dozens daily. Creates a powerful aura, but be prepared.

The hills and woodlands surrounding the grotto are strangely peaceful, green and beautiful, and if you climb to the hilltop, a quiet, less bloody Goddess temple awaits you. In general Dakshinakali is certainly a powerful antidote to the popular ideas of Hinduism as a nonviolent religion.



Pharping Vajra Yogini is just about the polar opposite, vibrationally, of Dakshinakali. It's a hillside temple to a Buddhist goddess, and unfortunately doesn't allow photos of the main deity figure. But the wooden pagoda structure gives a welcoming, cottage ambience, so that you really feel you are visiting the "house" of the devi. The Vajra Yogini is a very prominent figure in the region so if you are looking for the Vajra Yogini temple, be sure to specify which one - there are several.

I could never get a photo that managed to capture the serenity of Pharping Sesh Narayana, a Vishnu temple which is nearby the Vajrayogini and up the road from Dakshinakali. Again, it feels more like a charming collection of cottages, surrounded by a goldfish pond and placidly grazing cows, than any formal house of worship. It's a very enchanting location. The small waterfalls and pools seem appropriate for a temple dedicated to the reclining "Adi Sesha" (ancient serpent) form of Lord Vishnu.


Time to go eat dinner. I guess there will have to be a Power Places Part 3.