Jürgen C. Aschoff : The Dakini Vajravarahi and the Samsung Drone Phagmo

The Vajravārāhī - (Tib.: Dorje Phagmo) is a special form of the Dakini Vajrayoginī, which is mainly important in the Tibetan Kagyü school. She is a tantric meditation goddess associated with the Anuttarayoga tantra. It played an important role in the meditation practice of the famous Tibetan yogi Nāropa over 1000 years ago. The Vajravārāhī, the wisdom dakini, a special form of the Vajrayoginī, which is particularly important in the Kagyü school, is usually depicted like the Vajrayoginī with red skin and the same attributes. She wears the head of a boar on her crown decorated with skulls as a symbol of overcoming delusion. She stands for wisdom that overcomes everything. Vajravārāhī representations are extremely numerous overall. They range from centuries-old, originally purely religious representations on thangkas as an aid to the inner visualization of the deity, to a gradual transition in the last century to essentially religious but predominantly handicraft thangkas, paper pictures, metal statues and amulet-like pendants. There is nothing negative about this development, it demonstrates in a small detail the change in our world from living and meditating in monasteries and hermitages in Tibet to a multimedia and globalized world. My aim with this book is to document and interpret the historical process and the transition of this Dakini Vajravārāhī into the modern world through a large selection of images.

Author Jürgen C. Aschoff
Fabri, hardcover, approx. 180 pages, 120 illustrations