Description

In Pala art, the crowned Buddha is visualized as Adi Buddha or the primordial Buddha, expressed through compositional formats constituting the five transcendental Buddhas (panchatathagatas). Adi Buddha, being the progenitor of the panchatathagatas, is portrayed as the principal figure, crowned and bedecked with ornaments, surrounded by the Tathagatas, who are also the celestial forms (sambhogakaya) forms. The panchatathagatas are, Vairochana, Amitabha, Ratnasambhava, Amoghasiddhi, and Akshobhya, each identified by different gestures and attributes. In this composition, the crowned Buddha's main image is seated on a lotus throne, with his hands in the attitude of turning the wheel of the law (dharmachakra mudra), which is also an attribute of Vairochana Buddha.