Of the Buddhist
female deities the most prominent is Tara. She is
two-armed, showing varada-mudra with the right hand
and holding the stalk of a blue lily (nilotpala)
in the left hand. She is generally of green complexion,
hence called Shyama or Green Tara, and sometimes
she is white and called Shveta or White Tara. Generally
she is shown seated in the lalitasana or lalitaksepa
position, but she is also shown standing; for example,
compare the early image of Tara from Sukhabaspur
(Munsiganj), now in BNM (see Bhattasali, pl XX;
Alam, fig 49); or the later image from Rampal (Munsiganj),
now also in BNM, where the gracefully standing deity
is attended upon by Ashokakanta-Marichi to her right
and Ekajata to her left, and the five Transcendent
Buddhas are shown on top with Amoghasiddhi in the
middle. Tara belongs to the family of Amoghasiddhi.
Picture-1: Tara from Sukhabaspur
(Munsiganj)
Of the seated
figures the most well-known, no doubt, is the deity
from Sompara, Vajrayogini (Munsiganj), now in BNM.
Tara is attended upon by Mahamayuri to the right
and Ekajata to the left, and is surrounded by eight
seated Taras representing the deliverence from eight
great perils (mahabhaya). This image is therefore
called Astamahabhaya-Tara. The image is inscribed
and records the name of the donor.
Picture-2: Tara found from
Sompara, Vajrayogini (Munsiganj)
