Himalayan Art

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The Himalayas have some of the highest inhabited regions in the world, and perhaps some of the oldest as well. Regions like Tibet, Ladakh, Kashmir, Nepal, Bhutan, north-east India, north Pakistan, have acted as wombs for the gestation of unique cultures, each with its own tapestry of beliefs, customs, art, architecture, crafts, cuisines, and so on. Much of Himalayan art, especially architecture, paintings, sculpture are rooted in religious practices, rituals, and beliefs. Buddhism, Hinduism, Bon Shamanism, and different tribal cultures form the major wisdom traditions that have nurtured singular art forms. Himalayan Artshowcases art from the culturally rich and diverse Himalayan regions. From glowing thangkas (scroll paintings), ritual daggers, fierce masks to serene stupas, majestic monasteries, and palaces to impermanent sand mandalas. The art traditions of the Himalayas is extensively documented in this book. Alongside, there is the everyday art of handmade fabrics, finely woven shawls, exquisite embroidery, intricate wood and stone carving. In this book, the sacred unites with the secular to make for a stunning, enriching, and magical experience. Himalayan Art also showcases and provides information on the unique art traditions of the Himalayas – a rare glimpse into a world that is fast becoming extinct due to the pressures of modernity, insensitive development, and a loss of the livelihoods.

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Swati Chopra is a New Delhi-based writer and editor. She is the author of Women Awakened: Stories of Contemporary Spirituality in India (2011), Dharamsala Diaries (2007),and Buddhism: On the Path to Nirvana (2005). Her writing, exploring spirituality and its relevance to modern lives, has appeared in several publications in India and abroad. To research contemporary women and gender in spirituality, Swati was awarded a fellowship by the WISCOMP initiative (Women in Security, Conflict Management and Peace) of the Foundation for Universal Responsibility of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Her book, Women Awakened, is based on this research. She also conducts a creative writing programme, ‘Way with Words: Creative Being through