Qing Dynasty, Qianlong Period (1736-1795)
Height: 15cm
This emanation of Tara, also known as Red Tara, is depicted standing on one leg atop a sealed lotus base, dancing in chapastana on a prostrate demon beneath her. The bejewelled deity wears a necklace of skulls and a tiger skin dhoti loosely draped around her waist along with a free-flowing sash and a 5-pronged skull tiara holding back her flowing hair, picked out in red pigment. She has four arms, two of which draw a bow; her hind arms would have originally held stems of a lotus garland. An ungilded plate below the dhoti holds a sealed consecration plate.
As the Goddess of Love and Wealth, she invokes red magic -- which calls upon the power of enchantment and bewitchment to bring people and events under her control.
Similar Example
An ungilded example of Kurukulla with her attributes can be found in the Palace Museum published in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum: Buddhist Statues of Tibet, Hong Kong, 2003, p. 255, Catalogue No. 244
