This hand painted thangka depicts the entire life story of Lord Gautuma Buddha during his quest for enlightenment. All the historic part of Buddha's life is depicted visually in the Buddha Life Thangka. The day he was born in the garden of Lumbini, his childhood locked inside the palace compounds, how he was prevented from seeing and experiencing any kind of pain or suffering of outside world, the day he ventured beyond the castle walls and came across sorrow, pain, death and those suffering – he saw beggar, a cripple, a corpse and a holy man – which affected the prince deeply.The Night he escaped the walls of the palace, when all were asleep and began the life of wandering ascetic. His years of fasting, meditation and time spent in painful search to find a way to end suffering, the full moon night when he had a direct realization of Nirvana, which transformed the prince into Buddha.

The time he spent guiding people towards nirvana, love and friendship, the day he left this world at the age of eighty, having exhausted his human body for the sake of all sentiment beings. All are shown in the Buddha Life Thangka Painting. A Thangka such as this is a valuable assistant to the mediator who will begin upon the lower right corner and slowly scan over the entire piece reliving the life of Gautuma Buddha in his practice. Executed by deft artists, the perfection of details and colors of this silk – brocade thangka is remarkable.

The Painting Describes 12 different phase of Buddha’s life. They are:

His Promise to Take Birth in the Human Realm

Queen Maya Devi’s  Dream

The Birth of Buddha

Accomplishment in Worldly Arts and Athletics

The Skillful Conduct of Worldly Affairs

The Four Encounters

The Renunciation of Worldly Life

The Six Years of Austerities

The Defeat of Mara

The Proclamation of the Teachings

The Descent from the Trayatrimsa Heaven

The Passages into Parinirvana