India, Dharamsala, September 1991; painting on cloth; image: 22 3/4 x 22 3/4 in., framed: 29 3/4 x 29 1/2 in.; Jacques Marchais Museum of Tibetan Art, 92.11.1025.
25. Avalokiteshvara Mandala
Womb Realm (Taizokai) Mandala
Japan, Heian period, 9th century; 72 7/8 in × 64 11/16 in.; Toji, Kyoto, photo: Wikimedia Commons.
When esoteric Buddhism came to Japan, so too did mandalas and the spiritual disciplines associated with them: initiation rituals and visualization practices. Here Kannon appears in the circle of buddhas and bodhisattvas surrounding Dainichi (or Vairochana in Sanskrit) in the center of the mandala. He is also represented on the left side in the Court of Kannon.