Stephanie Bloodworth
Objects of History – Research Paper
Megan Elevado
December 14, 2016
The Wheel of Life
The Wheel of Life comes from 19th century Tibet. The tapestry is about five feet and
three feet and is extremely detailed and ornate. Because it is so detailed it used to contemplation
and meditation to the individual viewing it. The paint is cracked and faded hinting us at the fact
that it has a long history. The people of this region were especially known for their metal work
and paintings on textile. Paintings were all natural, from the cloth and textile that were woven to
their paints. Their paintings started out as charcoal drawings and were then painted over using
the pigment from crushed semi-precious stones. Their art was made with a purpose of ritual,
“These painting were utilized for demonstrating and teaching the rudiments of Buddhist
doctrine.” (Sopa, 125). These artifacts are used as meditative tools for spiritual gain, leading to
narration through the images. There are specific rules for the iconography of this regions art and
the deities are often depicted in specific postures and have hand gestures suggesting different
importance. The tapestry depicts the wheel of existence and is able to explain the cycle of life,
death and being reborn as well as the laws of cause and effect through vivid imagery. The wheel
is held by the Lord of Death by the tight grip of his jaw, hinting at the fact that no one can escape
death. The Lord of Death has many demons like qualities about him, making it seem scary at
first. Symbolic animals are shown attached to him, snakes are wrapped around his hair and
ankles which barely come out from under the massive wheel. There are also a set of lion legs
behind him suggesting the that the creature is a half human, half animal being. In the center
circle of the wheel there is a snake, buffalo and bird, representing the three main vertical realms
of the axis mundi, the philosophy in which the nomadic people of Tibet, Nepal and the rest of
Southeast Asia follow. The second circle is black and white and is divide into two equal sections,
going back to a never ending separation between good and bad. The white section depicts
clothed people progressing in society while the black half of the circle represents those
struggling with addiction and worldly issues. This is the result of karma, and depends on the
individual’s motivation. One can choose to be aware and compassionate or self-centered. The
third realm houses the existence of six worlds, gods, Titians, ghosts, hell beings, animals and
humans. People are reborn into the respective realms for actions in a previous life, this shows
their mental state and state of being. The world of gods is a place of happiness and relaxation
filled with clouds, fruit and mystical Asian figures. There are no problems or obstacles,
everything runs smoothly. In the asuras and Titians we see revered Asian figures again but
underneath them is a fiery pit, depicting those striving for endless wealth and indulging in
material or the false illusions of this world: they are hungry ghosts, faint beings with no
objectivity. In the realm of hell, we see an endless torture to the souls of those who have deeply
failed in their existence. Flames burn from underneath the wheel and evil gods dance. This place
belongs to those of ultimate insanity and are often reminded of their causes by a mirror. The
animal realm shows rivers, mountains, and many different kinds of animals. This shows the steps
into becoming civilized and the human realm shows humans as serving their purpose to spread
the arts and sciences, as well as understanding self-awareness through nature. The outer circle
represents the twelve links of human life beginning with ignorance, leading to the karma
foundations, consciousness, mind and body, the sense organs, contact, feeling, craving, grasping,
re-becoming, birth and then old age.
Axis mundi is a philosophy around the idea of connecting the world and universe as a
cosmological whole, it ties into the foundations of mythology. It is a conscious bounding to
every encounter one experiences, increasing awareness in one’s life. The philosophy of axis
mundi can be seen in almost every religion. It all starts with a center; this can be a space of
holiness where one can connect to the other realms of existence and understand their personal
being in the world they are in. This space provide unity between the upperworld and underworld.
The base is planted in the underworld, and the rest of the plant grows through earth. This means
everything originates from the underworld and in order for earth to function properly man must
learn to coexist with the multiple centers in each realm (Korom, 108). This was the grounding
philosophy for the traveling people of Nepal who shared a lot of their practices with those in
Tibet. For the people of Nepal there are four main transitions guided by a vertical and horizontal
axis, and symbolically marked by animals. Your spirit starts at the bottom, in the underworld on
the vertical axis. Once you are born you are moved into the second stage on the horizontal axis,
also known as earth, and the community. The third transition happens after circumcision, or
marriage. After you die, your spirit continues into the upperworld in the fourth transition.
The people of Southeast Asia were cosmological travelers and believed that the human
race belonged to a bigger, more universal whole rather than just what we see on earth. They lived
a life closely tied to the earth that bore their souls, making sure each part of nature is pleased and
working properly. The place where these people would settle is usually near the connection of
two rivers, “Love this river, stay bit it, learn from it” (Hesse 101). The only way it is possible for
a village to settle into the horizontal plane of the axis is by pleasing their ancestors in the
underworld, then they can make life possible and successful. In order for a village to emerge its
founder must come in contact with a local spirit, otherwise known as a snake. One must tame the
village by understanding that the land comes from the underworld, belongings to the Nagas who
were able to make life possible through mother nature. The Naga, comes from Indian mythology
and can be depicted as a half human half snake. The Nagas emerged from the underworld, a
place of water and origins. This can then be compared to the amniotic fluids where a fetus
emerges (Wessing, 208). The Naga is the spirit of the nature powers the come into play on earth,
as long as man continues a positive and balanced relationship with the Naga the village will be
able to prosper. Agriculture is a representation of wealth and the Naga makes this possible by
making the land fertile. Wet-rice planting was the first method of agriculture, and because of this
a grain of rice is said to have come from the tear of a snake (Wessing, 218). Since everything is
connected through axis mundi the origins of the Naga also belongs to the upperworld and is
responsible for the creation of it as well, this comes from the waters of the skies, clouds. During
storms snakes could be depicted as ancestors in the form of lightning, brining good or bad upon
the village.
The Garuda is seen as the opposite of the Nagas, this mythical bird lives in the skies. The
hornbill can take on two appearances, as a falcon or hornbill. The falcon is the vehicle of Vishnu
and the hornbill is not represented in a court context. Even though the Naga and Garuda are
separate they can be depicted together, since everything is unified. The Ngaju Dayak depicts the
unity of the bird and snake. The Garuda is father water, he focuses on maleness and death, and
the rainbow, as a symbols of the spirits beings transferred into the upperworld is rowed by birds.
The chicken is representative of young life and shows a person’s spirit. After a child is born a
young chicken is cared for by the mother and the health of the baby is dependent of the health of
the chicken. Prior to the circumcision of a young boy the head a black chicken is buried, as a
symbol of casting out evil influences. The boy sits on a Naga shaped vehicle, referring back to
the origins of the underworld. While the boy is circumcised a black chicken, or goat is
slaughtered while the boy is circumcised. Since marriage is also an important part of transition a
bride and groom would pull apart a cooked chicken at a ceremony after the wedding, this serves
to enhance fertility. We see unification between birds again, one representing young life on earth
and the other as a vehicle into the upperworld.
The buffalo has a prominent place on earth, and is represented in the category of land
animals, buffalos are deeply connected to the human. The buffalo emerged from a cave with is
affiliated with the underworld. Another representation of the buffalo coming from the
underworld is how they immerse themselves in pools of water to cool off. There are specific
rituals for planting rice involving the water buffalo. The water buffalo has the ability to summon
rain for good harvest, because of this before one plants the rice a buffalo will run through the
village before being sacrificed. This keeps the balanced relationship with the spirit world and
ensure the prosperity of the village. Sometimes a buffalo would be sacrificed while a human was
being sacrificed to give off strength and protection. There are many rituals involving buffalo and
men within the village. One example is when men are tied to plows like buffalo and would
inhibit the spirit of the buffalo. During a wedding the groom would bring buffalo meat as a sign
of grounding. There is even more spirit between the human and buffalo as seen in death. If a
person dies on earth, a buffalo has been slaughtered in the upperworld, leading to the connection
found in axis mundi. Ancestors are also seen in buffalo, so when an important person dies on
earth, a buffalo will be slaughtered in his honor. Their spirit will not travel into the afterlife until
they are accompanied by a buffalo.
The Wheel of Life depicts the philosophy of axis mundi through nature. This philosophy
is the idea of the existence of a sacred under and upperworld where nature in constantly
involved, beginning with the microorganisms. Animals are seen through the stars and add to the
permanence of this world. By examining the behavior and boundaries of animal’s, humans have
learned to evolved into complex beings, but we all came from a natural and nomadic state of life
originally. The base is planted in the underworld, and the rest of the plant grows through earth,
hence the microorganisms. This means everything originates from the underworld and in order
for earth to function properly man must learn to coexist with the multiple centers in each realm.
Bibliography
Bhatta, C. Panduranga. Environment Friendly Life Styles: A Dialogue with Ancient India.
Decision Vol. 36 (2009) : pp. 103-120.
This essay talks about the symbolism in animals throughout many eastern religions and how
different cultures exchanged information. It describes how many of these cultures came to revere
animal.
Hesse, Hermann. Siddartha. (Clayton, DE) : Prestwick House Literary Touchstone Press,
2005.
One of my favorite books since freshman year of high school. It tells the story of the first
Brahmin Siddartha and his journey of enlightenment through life’s experiences.
Jnan, Bahadur Sakya. Short Description of Gods, Goddess and Ritual Objects of Buddhism and
Hinduism in Nepal. (Kathmandu, Nepal) : Handicraft Association of Nepal, 2000.
I bought this book in Alaska over the summer since I’ve always been interested in Hinduism and
Buddhism. I used this booklet to define the different elements within the religions since it is
based off the culture in Nepal.
Korom, Frank J. “Of Navels and Mountains: A further Inquiry into the History of an Idea.”
Asian Folklor Studies 51, No. 1, (1992) : pp. 103-125.
This essay talks about axis mundi in India. It describes how to people started and have continued
to use these beliefs in the evolution of Buddhism.
Sopa, Geshe. “The Tibetan ‘Wheel of Life’: Iconography and Doxography.” The Journal of the
International Association of Buddhist Studies, 7 No. 1 (1984) : 125-145.
This essay comes from a long list of journal entries from the international association of
Buddhist Studies. It gives the history of the wheel of life through the region of Tibet and how it
slowly incorporated itself into Buddhism.
Wessing, Robert. Symbolic Animals in the Land between the Waters. Asian Folklore Studies 56,
no. 2 (1997): 205.
This long essay gave me a basis for what inspired my paper. I found this essay when asking
myself why Hinduism chooses to revere animals as such godly figures and gives the historical
reasoning why animals are interconnected within our universe.
19th Century. The Wheel of Life. (78) Pigments on cloth. Tibet : Rubin Museum of Art.