Tsuglag Gyatso, the Third Pawo Rinpoche (c. 1567-1630)

The Third Pawo Rinpoche, Tsuglag Gyatso (1567-1633), was an important hierarch of the Karma Kagyu branch of Tibetan Buddhism. He is not only represented here by the central figure but also by his hand- and footprints. Their size, slightly uneven distribution over the canvas, and outline suggests that the teacher’s actual prints were made on this cloth canvas and then painted over. To the sides are two lineage transmissions converging at the bottom center with a depiction of the deity Hevajra, probably indicating that the central figure was holding the two practice lineages of this deity.