The Twenty-One Tārās are an important group of female enlightened figures in Tibetan Buddhism. Tārā is revered as a bodhisattva and, in many traditions, as a fully enlightened Buddha who embodies compassion, protection, and swift assistance. The Twenty-One Tārās represent different aspects of her enlightened activity.
Religious Significance
Practitioners often recite the Praise to the Twenty-One Tārās as a daily practice. The twenty-one forms are not generally understood as separate goddesses, but as different manifestations of the same enlightened wisdom and compassionate activity.
Why are there Twenty-One Tārās?
The number 21 derives from a famous devotional text known as the »Praise to the Twenty-One Tārās«. Each of the twenty-one manifestations has:
Together they express the full range of Tārā’s enlightened qualities and activities.
Symbolic Meanings
Although the names and details vary somewhat between lineages, the Twenty-One Tārās are commonly associated with:
Iconography
In Tibetan thangka paintings, the Twenty-One Tārās are often depicted as a group:
Colors carry symbolic meanings:
Religious Significance
Practitioners often recite the Praise to the Twenty-One Tārās as a daily practice. The twenty-one forms are not generally understood as separate goddesses, but as different manifestations of the same enlightened wisdom and compassionate activity.
The prayer is found in all four traditions of Tibetan Buddhism.
There are three different representations of the 21 Taras. The one shown here belongs to the Nyingma school.
| Names of the 21 Taras |
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Measurements: | 22.4 x 40.2" | 57 x 102 cm |
| Price: | on request |
| Shipment: | Parcel Service from Germany or Nepal |
| Color: | Color Version |
| Material: | Natural Stonecolors |
| High resolution: | Display [2.2 MB, 3705 x 1632 px.] |
