Mahasiddha Virupa

This figure represents the Mahasiddha, or great yogic adept Virupa, who lived in 9th century north India. Such figures lived alone or with a consort and became renowned for their unconventional lifestyles.They were revered in Tibet as enlightened beings and often feature in Tibetan lineages as the teachers of Tibetans who journeyed to India to receive Buddhist initiation.

This Virupa is one of the largest and most spectacular surviving works belonging to a group of images produced at the Chinese court during the early 15th century. Close contacts at this time between the Emperor Yongle (1403-1424), who was himself a Buddhist, and Tibetan religious leaders, led to frequent diplomatic and religious exchanges. Visiting Tibetans received similar, though usually much smaller images, which were intended to mark and cement such newly made alliances.