2-754-097 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Ushnishavijaya Enthroned in the Womb of a Stupa, dated 1510-19. This is one of the earliest extant images of the rarely represented Buddhist goddess Ushnishavijaya. She embodies a magical spell (dharani) recited by practitioners to reach liberation through the accumulation of merit. Multi-armed and multi-headed, Ushnishavijaya, white in color (like the autumn moon), is seated in the central stupa, flanked by red and green bodhisattvas and surrounded by the guardians of the eight directions and representations of Tara. As a manifestation of the Buddha’s head protuberance, or ushnisha, she is associated with wisdom. The lowest register shows the consecration scene during the performance of the Lakshachaitya ritual, the dedication of one hundred thousand stupas.