• 1 Cf. Pal 1967, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1985, 1996, 2001, 2003a and 2003b.

1The Newars of the Kathmandu Valley in Nepal are well known throughout the Himalayas for the quality of their artistic productions whether sculptures or paintings. The study of this artwork, which began more than fifty years ago thanks to the pioneering work and publications of Stella Kramrisch (1964), Pratapaditya Pal1 and Mary Slusser (2005a, 2005b), particularly regarding scroll paintings on cotton cloth called paubhā, revealed early on its diversity and its iconographic and stylistic complexity. Over the last few years, access to a large number of digital images of Nepalese artwork housed in different museums or private collections, both locally and abroad, has enabled the constitution of more consistent corpora, providing comprehensive overviews to help understand the history of these pictorial productions.

• 2 This ritual is related to the life-cycle rites performed by Newar families, either Hindu or Buddhis (...)

2Paubhās are often commissioned to commemorate the completion of religious practices whether Buddhist or Hindu. Thus, their production is generally related to a specific ritual dedicated to a particular deity, for example, in the Buddhist context, Avalokiteśvara or the goddess Vasudhārā, of which there exist a large number of paintings as well as sculptures. The performance of the Bhīmarathārohaṇa ceremony2 and the Lakṣacaitya ritual have also provided an occasion for commissioning commemorative artworks, in particular paubhās with original and unique compositions in Himalayan art history. These paintings not only attest to the popularity of these religious practices in Newar culture, but also to the creativity of the artists over the centuries.

• 3 The terms stupa and caitya are often used as synonyms and refer to both built stupa/caitya and mini (...)

3This paper will focus more specifically on paubhās related to the Lakṣacaitya ritual during which lay devotees make thousands of tiny stupa or caitya3 models out of clay by using moulds. This practice of Indian origin is based on a Buddhist conception according to which the edification of a stupa or its reproduction, even of a very small size and from common materials such as earth, clay or sand, is a virtuous deed generating immeasurable merit (Skt. puṇya). Buddhist texts emphasise the multiple benefits one can obtain by making these images, such as an increasing life span, achieving a good rebirth or obtaining wealth and prosperity. In this perspective, the adoption of techniques of moulding and stamping to reproduce stupa images in large numbers has been considered one of the most effective ritual means of accumulating merit and progressing along the path to Enlightenment.

• 4 The month of Gũlā coincides with the bright fortnight of the lunar month of śrāvaṇa (Skt. śrāvaṇśuk (...)
• 5 The term vrata (pronounced/spelled “brata/barta” in Nepali) refers to an optional ritual practice o (...)
• 6 One of the central religious activities for Buddhist laymen that takes place towards the end of the (...)
• 7 This is the most important textual authority in Newar Buddhism and recounts the miraculous origins (...)
• 8 For more details concerning the activities carried out during Gũlā (including the Lakṣacaitya ritua (...)
• 9 For guṭhīs, see Lewis 1984, pp. 166-167; Toffin 1984, pp. 177-180; Gellner 1992, pp. 231-250.

4The Lakṣacaitya ritual, literally meaning “hundred thousand caityas”, is performed by some Newar Buddhist communities, usually around August during the traditional month of Gũlā4. This period, considered to be auspicious, is dedicated to merit-making activities and the fulfilment of specific religious observances (Skt. vrata)5 under the guidance of vajrācārya priests. During this holy month, Buddhist lay devotees take part more diligently in different religious activities, such as visiting temples and sacred shrines, making offerings of flowers, light, incense and food as well as donations6. They also perform in a more intense manner than usual different devotional rites, such as circumambulating stupas, especially the great stupa of Svayambhū, located on a hilltop west of Kathmandu. For Newar Buddhists, the Svayambhū stupa (also called Svayambhū mahācaitya) is the most important monument and the focal point of their religious practices. Its mythical origins, linked to the creation of the Kathmandu Valley, is narrated in the Svayambhūpurāṇa7, a fundamental Buddhist text, which is recited daily in monasteries during Gũlā. Other religious texts may also be recited during this holy month, especially the Pañcarakṣā-sūtra, the Prajñāpāramitā-sūtra, the Ārya-Nāmasaṅgīti, as well as popular narrative texts, such as the Śṛṅgabherī-avadāna. This is also a festival period for music-making groups (Skt. bājan) that go on daily pilgrimages to Svayambhū mahācaitya and to other Buddhist sites, offering devotional music using traditional instruments, including a buffalo horn. Among the religious practices undertaken during this month-long festival8 is the Lakṣacaitya-vrata, which may be celebrated either individually within the family in private houses or collectively as a group celebration in Buddhist monasteries (New. bāhā, bahī), especially through local socio-religious associations called guṭhīs9 that organise these activities.

• 10 Numerous consecration deposits (small metal statues and metal stupas, inscribed bricks, coins, clay (...)
• 11 This practice is very popular in Tibet where it was introduced around the 8^th century and took on e (...)

5It would appear that the completion of the Lakṣacaitya-vrata was the occasion for certain devotees to have scroll paintings executed to commemorate its celebration. Commissioning this type of painting is not a requirement but it seems that this ritual was a relatively popular iconographic subject in the history of Newar paintings, at least since the end of the 14^th century. However, the ritual of making miniature clay caityas was introduced in Nepal long before this period, by the 11^th century, as evidenced by the circulation of ritual texts prescribing this type of Buddhist practice, such as the Kudṛṣṭinirghātana and the Ādikarmapradīpa (as we will see below), and probably even earlier as attested to by the discovery of several clay tablets stamped with stupa images associated with the Pratītyasamutpāda formula and small clay sealings with the same stanza, which are generally made in the same ritual context. Indeed, these clay tablets were uncovered in Deopatan near Paśupatināth (Slusser 2005b, pp. 606-607, fig. 18) and the stupa of Cābahil during its renovation in 2003 (Darnal 2005, pp. 52, 71, figs 8-12)10. Their discovery in the Kathmandu Valley indicates either local production or importation, at least from the second half of the Licchavi period (7^th or 8^th century). Furthermore, this ritual of making miniature clay stupas also spread from India to other parts of the Buddhist world, where it has undergone more or less important developments, in Burma and Thailand, and especially in Tibet where the ritual of making tsha tshas is still very common today11.

• 12 According to Tuladhar-Douglas (2007, pp. 47-48), several Garland texts, such as the Mahajjātakamālā(...)
• 13 These collections are not always exhaustive but may regularly contain several works such as the Suv (...)
• 14 Several manuscripts of this text are kept in the Asiatic Society of Bengal (cf. Mitra 1882, pp. 229 (...)

8The Lakṣacaitya ritual appears to have been an established religious practice around the 15^th century because its performance is recommended in several Nepalese textual sources of the avadānamālā (garland of edifying tales) genre of literature12. However, it seems to have undergone significant textual and ritual developments towards the 18^th and 19^th centuries. Indeed, most texts dedicated to this practice date back to this later period and have circulated under different titles as stand-alone texts or as part of the Suvarṇavarṇāvadāna and the Śṛṅgabherī-avadāna. The two latter works, also pertaining to the corpus of Nepalese narrative literature, focus on the principles of karmic retribution and the praise of observances related to caitya worship (Skt. caityavratānuśaṃsā). There exist different manuscript versions of these two avadānas, written both in Sanskrit and in Newari, which are frequently included in collections entitled Vratāvadānamālā (Garland of avadānas [pertaining to] observances), compiling stories that illustrate the importance of undertaking certain religious observances13. The Śṛṅgabherī-avadāna14, which calls itself a “story of the Buffalo Horn [pertaining to] the Hundred Thousand caityas observance (Lakṣacaityavrata-Śṛṅgabherīkathā)”, contains a first part describing the Lakṣacaitya ritual. According to Mitra:

• 16 Henri-Léon Feer (1901) was the first to study this text from a manuscript kept at the Bibliothèque (...)
• 17 According to Rajapatirana (1974, Part 1, p. xxx): “with the discovery of S [Sanskrit palm-leaf manu (...)
• 18 The Suvarṇavarṇāvadāna was translated into Tibetan by Dharmaśrībhadra (c. 10^th-11^th century) and Ri (...)

9Regarding the Suvarṇavarṇāvadāna16, which was already circulating around the 11^th century according to an Indian palm-leaf manuscript preserved in Tibet17, it also includes, in its later Nepalese version, an additional introductory chapter entitled Lakṣacaityasamutpatti (The Origin of the hundred thousand caityas), which deals with the origin and the ritual procedures for the hundred thousand caityas’ observance (Lakṣacaitya-vrata). This text seems to have been associated with the Suvarṇavarṇāvadāna sometime around the 18^th century, as it is not included in the aforementioned earlier Indian version kept in Tibet or in its canonical Tibetan translation18 also dating back to the 11^th century.

• 19 The discourse delivered by the Buddha Śākyamuni is embedded within successive narrative framings fo (...)
• 20 The version of the Lakṣacaityasamutpatti on which Rajapatirana relies contains only abbreviated for (...)
• 21 This term makes reference to the five different cow products: milk, curd, clarified butter (Nep. gh (...)

10According to the Lakṣacaityasamutpatti, it is the Buddha Śākyamuni, taking example from one of his predecessors, the Buddha Vipaśyin, who would have advocated the performance of the Lakṣacaitya-vrata19. Conjuring up in the sky a large stupa made of precious stones surrounded by a hundred thousand other ones, he would have expounded to his audience, in particular to the monk Sucetana, the merits and the benefits generated by the act of creating and worshipping these monuments. An important part of the text deals with the instructions given by the Buddha Śākyamuni regarding the ritual of making a hundred thousand caityas from clay (Skt. mṛttikānirmitalakṣacaityavratavidhi). It describes a series of ritual prescriptions that devotees must follow over several days and, in particular, a codified procedure comprising several stages for the making of clay caityas punctuated by the recitation of specific formulas (Rajapatirana 1974, Part 1, p. 139; Part 3, p. 115-119)20. Thus, it is stated that, on the day prior to the ceremony, the devotee who wishes to perform this practice should start to prepare the ritual site by establishing the ceremonial area (Skt. dharmaśālā). They should worship the images of the Three Jewels and observe dietary restrictions or fast during the night (Rajapatirana 1974, Part 3, p. 116). The next day, after having bathed early in the morning and donned clean garments, they should knead clay brought from a pure field and mix it with water containing the five precious substances (Skt. pañcaratna) and the five products from the cow (Skt. pañcagavya)21. The clay should be blessed and empowered by repetition of the Vairocana dhāraṇī twenty-one times directly over it. Then, while chanting “oṃ vasudhe svāhā”, the devotee must take a lump of clay that they shape into a small ball with a pointed top, while reciting “oṃ vajrodbhavāya svāhā”. With the mantra “oṃ araje viraje svāhā”, the lump of clay is coated with oil and introduced into the mould to the formula “oṃ vajradhātugarbhe svāhā”. The text then prescribes to strike the mould so that the image of the caitya is imprinted on the clay, as the devotee recites “oṃ vajramudgarākoṭana svāhā”. The excess clay is removed while the formula “oṃ vajrakarttī svāhā” is pronounced. Then, while reciting “oṃ dharmadhātugarbhe svāhā”, the devotee inserts five precious substances, gold or unhusked barley grains into the caitya before extracting it from the mould while chanting the formula “oṃ dharmarate svāhā” and placing it on a clean stand. And lastly, the caitya should be worshipped by uttering the spell “oṃ supratiṣṭhitavajra svāhā”. At the end, the devotee has to present various offerings such as flowers, food, incense and lamps, as well as songs and sounds from different instruments, including those of a horn, a drum and a conch. The Buddha Śākyamuni specifies to Sucetana that the ritual is called the “hundred thousand caityas” (Skt. lakṣacaitya) when that number of caityas has been made (Rajapatirana 1974, Part 1, p. 140; Part 3, p. 117). If it had been ten million, the ritual would have been named the [observance of the] “ten million caityas” (Skt. koṭicaitya). The Lakṣacaityasamutpatti also stipulates that according to the devotee’s ability, they can make one, three, five, ten, a hundred, a thousand, a million or ten million caityas depending on the objective they have committed themselves to, and over a period of time that they themselves have determined.

• 22 See manuscript no. B, 43 of the Asiatic Society of Bengal (cf. Mitra 1882, pp. 280-282, dated 1784 (...)
• 23 Cf. Filliozat 1941, p. 83, Sanscrit 137 (dated c. 1836).
• 24 Cf. Filliozat 1941, pp. 82-83, Sanscrit 135 and Sanscrit 136 A (spelled Saccakatāvadāna), also date (...)
• 25 Cf. Matsunami 1965, pp. 145, 236, Manuscript no. 407, dated 1708 (N.S. 829).
• 26 Cf. Cowell & Eggeling 1876, pp. 11-12, Manuscript no. 11, dated 1796 (N.S. 916).
• 27 We find sarvvakatāḍanavidhi in the Kudṛṣṭinirghātana (Shastri 1927, pp. 7-8) and sarvakatāḍanavidhi(...)
• 28 It is worth noting that the designation sarvvakatāḍanā is also found in the Caityapuṅgava (cf. Mitr (...)
• 29 This period was also an important turning point in the spread of this Buddhist practice in Tibet, p (...)

11A similar narrative and ritual prescriptions for making clay caityas can also be found in another text entitled Caityapuṅgava22, of which several versions also circulated during the 18^th and 19^th centuries under unusual Sanskrit titles: Saccakratāvadāna23, Saccakaṭāvadāna24, Saccakatāḍanāvadāna25 or Sarvakatāḍanāvadāna26. For the latter, it is interesting to note that it recalls the name of a caitya-moulding ritual found in earlier Sanskrit works, dating from around the 11^th century, such as the Kudṛṣṭinirghātana of Advayavajra (Shastri 1927; Wallis 2003) and the Ādikarmapradīpa of Anupamavajra (La Vallée Poussin 1898, pp. 162-232), two manuals dealing with practices to be performed daily by newly initiated Buddhist lay practitioners (Skt. upāsaka). Among these practices, the sarvakatāḍanavidhi27 is devoted to the different stages of moulding clay caityas, punctuated by the recitation of almost the same mantras. The stages are also similar to those advocated in the Lakṣacaityasamutpatti and the Caityapuṅgava28, even though there is no mention of making a hundred thousand caityas. This clearly attests to the fact that a ritual of moulding clay caityas, without determining a number such as “hundred thousand” was already known in the Nepalese context at least since the 11^th century29.

• 30 Tuladhar-Douglas also states that “All three of these are listed in Amṛtānanda’s summary of the per (...)

12An examination of these various textual sources shows that the Lakṣacaitya ritual was met with a certain degree of popularity in the 18^th and 19^th centuries. The addition of an introductory chapter dedicated to the origins of the ritual and its efficiency, within the Śṛṅgabherī-avadāna and the Suvarṇavarṇāvadāna, reflects not only some revival of interest in this ritual at that time but possibly also a desire to bestow some authority on its practice by associating it with these āvadānas. This assumption seems to be further confirmed by the fact that the Śṛṅgabherī-avadāna and the Suvarṇavarṇāvadāna are frequently incorporated into textual collections of the Vratāvadānamālā, which also comprises several other texts recounting the stories and the benefits generated by the fulfilment of certain ritual observances, particularly the Upoṣadha-vrata (dedicated to Amoghapāśa-lokeśvara) and the Vasudhārā-vrata (dedicated to the goddess of prosperity). These two vratas and the Lakṣacaitya one are, according to Tuladhar-Douglas, the only three of the many available vratas recommended by various avadānamālā texts for performance by modern Newar Buddhists (Tuladhar-Douglas 2007, pp. 47-48)30. He also points out that the Svayambhūpurāṇa does not appear to support the Lakṣacaitya-vrata directly. According to Tuladhar-Douglas: “This suggests that the Lakṣacaitya ritual is not part of the original cult surrounding Svayambhū [mahācaitya] itself” (Tuladhar-Douglas 2007, p. 47, n. 16). As we will see, this seems to be also corroborated by the depictions on paubhās.

• 31 Although this optional ritual is usually performed during Gũlā, it can also be carried out at other (...)
• 32 The Newar term dyaḥ (or dyo), equivalent to the Sanskrit term deva, is translated as “god/deity” an (...)
• 33 There is no severe restriction on the consumption of meat and alcohol but devotees undertaking the (...)

13The Newars generally perform the Lakṣacaitya ritual during the holy month of Gũlā dedicated to various religious activities and observances31. I had the opportunity of observing this ritual on several occasions between 2010 and 2019, in Kathmandu and in Bhaktapur. In Newar Buddhist communities, this ritual seems to be accomplished by certain groups such as Vajrācārya, Urāy-Tuladhar, Manandhar, and Jyāpū. It seems that Śākya and Kansakar also perform it, although not within guṭhīs, according to some informants. The ritual is locally known as “dyaḥ thāyegu” (making/moulding the deity)32, “luchidyo thāyegu” (moulding a hundred thousand deities), or more precisely “cībādyaḥ thāyegu”, which specifies caitya moulding. Newars also refer to “lakha-caitya” for “lakṣacaitya”. Lay devotees observing this practice, especially womenfolk, perform it either individually in their homes or collectively in monasteries by making clay miniature caityas daily during the Gũlā period. Devotees undertaking the vrata may additionally observe several days of fasting or follow certain dietary restrictions33.

• 34 These are grains of paddy rice from which the husk has been removed by hand; the grains must not be (...)
• 35 In the past, guṭhīs also owned land from which clay could be extracted. Today, the purchase of clay (...)

14The ritual is performed under the supervision of the vajrācārya Tantric priest and his assistants who possess knowledge of mantras and of how to set up ritual devices. Here I will briefly describe the Lakṣacaitya ritual as observed in the contemporary context. Before the beginning of the celebration, members of guṭhīs or families generally gather the necessary materials, such as the special dark grey clay (New. hakucha), moulds, as well as husked paddy grains (New. akhe/akhyay)34 especially prepared for ritual purposes. In the past, there was an abundant supply of clay on riverbanks (fig. 1) and in fields, but this resource is now becoming scarcer due to the significant urbanisation of the Kathmandu Valley35. It can, however, be bought in the Kalanki, Balku, Mhepi or Sitapaila area west of Kathmandu, where there are still some places where it can be extracted, as well as in Thimi, Bhaktapur and Banepa.

• 36 When the ritual is performed in a private context, the priest is generally the family priest (Skt. (...)
• 37 Although the texts mention the insertion of the five precious substances and the five cow products (...)

16Prior to the actual caityas-making process, a series of preliminary rituals are performed by the vajrācārya36 in order to obtain permission to use the collected earth and to purify it (Skt. bhūmi-śodhana). The clay is then beaten with a mallet (fig. 3) and kneaded with clean water to obtain a homogeneous paste37. On the day of the ritual, the vajrācārya has to purify and bless the clay by reciting the Vairocana dhāraṇī twenty-one times while touching it (fig. 4).

• 38 Short documentary films made for the exhibition “Dharma and Punya. Buddhist Ritual Art of Nepal” (F (...)
• 39 Ritual texts generally recommend striking the mould at this stage but, in the Newar context, due to (...)
• 40 According to Dr. Tri Ratna Manandhar (personal communication, 11 May 2010): “We put akhe inside all (...)

17Pieces of clay are then distributed to all the participants in the vrata. Sitting in rows, they all have in front of them a small tile on which are placed lumps of soft clay, as well as two small cups containing oil and consecrated paddy grains (figs 5, 6). The vajrācārya instructs participants about a series of ritual actions and on how to recite the appropriate mantras at each stage of the making process38. Participants start by taking a small lump of clay and by shaping it into a cone with a pointed top to facilitate its introduction into the mould. The pointed top is coated with oil before being introduced into the tiny mould (which may also be smeared with oil beforehand). Once the clay has been pressed into the mould39, the excess is removed by wiping the outer rim of the mould in a circular motion. Before taking out the miniature caitya from the mould, a paddy grain over which mantras were recited is inserted into the base of it (fig. 6). This essential deposit of a mantra infused in a paddy grain is supposed to give “life” (Skt. jiva) to the clay image40. The caitya is then taken out of the mould and placed on the tile, or sometimes on a pipal (ficus religiosa) leaf, with those that have already been made. Participants repeat these ritual actions according to the number of images they wish to produce daily, from about ten to several hundred.

• 41 Depending on devotees’ choices and the available moulds, these deities may vary but they are genera (...)
• 42 According to Dr. Tri Ratna Manandhar, the making of at least one set of nine images every day is co (...)

18When miniature caityas are made for the purpose of being placed as a foundation deposit in a newly built large stupa, the number of clay images should amount to at least one hundred thousand (Skt. lakh) and, if possible, one and a quarter hundred thousand (Skt. savā lākh), thus guaranteeing that the required one hundred thousand caityas will be available. Depending on the guṭhīs and vajrācāryas, devotees undertaking the observance should make at least one set of nine images every day, consisting of five caityas and four images of deities41, and as many caityas as possible42. According to some participants, it is imperative to make at least one series of five caityas. As their numbers increase, the tiny models are placed in layers, one on top of another on the tile to form a pyramid (fig. 7), which is then placed in front of an altar alongside various offerings of flowers, food and burning lamps (fig. 8).

• 43 Lewis (1984, p. 360) describes this mound as a “giant three-dimensional maṇḍala”. See also Jinah & (...)
• 44 To my knowledge, ritual texts do not stipulate the making of this final larger caitya to be placed (...)

20The mouldings end up forming a mound of tiny caityas resembling a “caitya in the shape of [a heap of] grain” (Skt. dhānyākṛticaitya), as described in the Lakṣacaityasamutpatti (Rajapatirana 1974, Part 1, p. 140; Part 3, p. 118)43. At the end of the month of Gũlā, a larger caitya is modelled out of clay and placed on top of the mound (figs 9, 10)44.

• 45 According to Manju Shree Bajracharya (personal communication, August 2019), these are grains associ (...)

21Various offerings that may include nine kinds of grain (unhusked rice, lentils, sesame, etc.)45 and small lamps are laid out on the ground all around it. A fire pit (Skt. kuṇḍa) made of unbaked clay bricks is built by the vajrācārya for the homa ritual, and a large lamp (Skt. mahadīpa) is placed beside it. On the last day, while sitting in front of the fire pit, the vajrācārya begins by performing several rites, especially the offering of the guru-maṇḍala (Skt. gurumaṇḍala-pūjā) and the “flask worship” (Skt. kalaśa-pūjā), assisted by ritual specialists. Then, wearing a specific crown (Skt. mukuṭa) adorned by the Five Transcendental Buddhas (Skt. pañcatathāgata or pañcajina), he performs the ritual of consecration in a condensed form (Skt. samsksipta-pratiṣṭhā). The heap of consecrated images is then covered with a light coating of white lime (Nep. chuna), and fresh flowers – especially a variety of white jasmine (fig. 7) – are scattered on the images. Color scarves and white scarves are also offered. And finally, all participants of the Lakṣacaitya-vrata come to worship the mound of clay images as well as the metal caitya displayed on the altar with offerings of flowers, food, burning lamps, incense and money. The ritual concludes with a large festive meal (Nep. bhoj) served to all participants.

• 46 See the short video made for the exhibition “Dharma and Punya. Buddhist Ritual Art of Nepal” in 201 (...)
• 47 There is also a tradition of making small clay caityas in Patan, especially at Chika Bahi (Skt. Sap (...)

22Lastly, all the clay images are either deposited under a large newly built stupa, as a foundation deposit, or taken out to be immersed in the waters along a river at a sacred site (Skt. tīrtha). If the caityas are placed inside a new stupa, an elaborate ritual of consecration has to be performed by the vajrācārya46. Most often, the images are transported to a nearby river accompanied by a musical procession. In Kathmandu, they are generally taken and placed in the Viṣṇumatī River, near the temple of the goddess Indrayāṇī (also called Luti Ajimā), located on the way to the Svayambhū mahācaitya47. After having performed concluding ceremonies and especially a worship (Skt. pūjā) to the serpent-deities (Skt. nāga), all the clay images are immersed in the waters along with various offerings. On the whole, the main stages of caityas-making in the contemporary context are roughly similar to those recommended in the Lakṣacaityasamutpatti or in the Caityapuṅgava.

• 48 Lakṣacaitya paubhās with the goddess Uṣṇīṣavijayā are housed in various museums. The one illustrate (...)
• 49 Regarding paubhās featuring Vairocana enshrined in the stupa, an example from the 14^th-15^th centuri (...)
• 50 This 16^th-century paubhā is housed in the Rubin Museum of Art (Inv. no P1994.15.3). See HAR item no (...)
• 51 It is difficult to clearly discern the iconography of these four wrathful deities (who are usually (...)

26Usually, within the dome of the largest stupa is the goddess of long life, Uṣṇīṣavijayā (fig. 11), white, with eight arms and three heads, flanked by Avalokiteśvara and Vajrapāṇi48. On four paubhās, Uṣṇīṣavijayā is replaced by the Buddha Vairocana displaying the dharmacakramudrā or teaching gesture (fig. 12)49, while, the goddess Prajñāpāramitā is enshrined within the central stupa in a unique painting50. Several deities are added to the bottom tiers of the large monument or are interspersed among rows of miniature caityas, and occasionally within secondary stupas shown at the four corners. Without listing them all, there are four emanations of the goddess Tārā, four wrathful deities (Skt. krodha)51, the eight directional guardians (Skt. aṣṭadikpāla), and the goddesses Prajñāpāramitā, Vasudhārā and Pratisarā who are regularly depicted in these paintings. Pratisarā may also appear with the popular group of the Five Protection Goddesses (Skt. pañcarakṣā). The sun-god Sūrya and the moon-god Candra may be shown on either side of the central stupa.

• 52 On a paubhā kept at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (Inv. no. M.77.19.4, online, URL: https:// (...)
• 53 See the painting housed in the Leiden Museum (Inv. no. RV-1943-3, undated, online, URL: http://coll (...)

27On two other paubhās, we find another interesting configuration featuring the bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara standing inside an elaborate shrine instead of the large central stupa. The bodhisattva is either depicted in his two-armed red “Padmapāṇi” form52 or as eight-armed white Amoghapāśa53. The red Padmapāṇi is flanked on either side by the four emanations of Tārā, while Amoghapāśa is accompanied by his usual acolytes: Tārā, Bhṛkuṭī, Sudhanakumāra and Hayagrīva. On both paintings, the background is decorated with a repetitive pattern of small white or multicoloured caityas, as on the previously mentioned paintings (figs 11, 12).

• 54 For example, the one kept in the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, dated 1412 (see note 48), and the on (...)
• 55 These are seven precious emblems characterising a universal monarch (Skt. cakravartin). They consis (...)

28The paubhās dating from the late 14^th to the 16^th century are generally divided into three parts. The central one dedicated to the depiction of the Lakṣacaitya theme is framed by an upper and a bottom register. With the exception of a few examples54, the top register almost always shows the Five Transcendental Buddhas flanked by several other buddhas or bodhisattvas. The bottom register, divided into three or five panels, contains various scenes and deities. Starting from the left, the first panel always depicts a vajrācārya priest offering oblations into a sacrificial fire (Skt. homa), sometimes assisted by attendants. Lay patrons may occasionally also be shown behind the vajrācārya, although they are usually depicted in a devout attitude on the right panel. In between these two panels are motifs depicting some of the traditional seven jewels (Skt. saptaratna)55, dancers and musicians or Tantric deities, such as Mahākāla, Acala, Vajrapāṇi, the Pañcarakṣās as well as Śyāmatārā, Vasudhārā, or Avalokiteśvara.

• 56 For example, the paubhā exhibited at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya in Mumbai ( (...)
• 57 The stories depicted on the side panels of this paubhā were wrongly identified as the Śṛṅgabherī-av (...)
• 58 A manuscript of the Śambūkāvadāna, dated 1427 (N.S. 547), is housed in Cambridge University Library (...)

29Some paubhās of the 15^th and 16^th centuries have more complex compositions around the central part with the addition of side compartmentalised registers containing narrative scenes illustrating episodes from the life of the Buddha Śākyamuni, stories from his previous lives (Skt. jātaka)56 as well as edifying tales (Skt. avadāna). Included among the interesting findings concerning the depiction of these edifying tales are the identification of the Śambūkāvadāna and the Saptakumārikāvadāna (fig. 12)57. These two avadānas58 related to the caitya cult are, to my knowledge, rarely depicted on paubhās.

• 59 Amongst these, we might also add a unique paubhā, from the collection of Sumitra Charat Ram in New (...)
• 60 The first (incomplete?) one, dated 1653, was formerly in the Jucker collection, see Kreijger 1999, (...)
• 61 The date 1695 is given in National Museum of Nepal 1998, pp. 44-45, pl. 6 (painting entitled: Ushni (...)

30For the second chronological phase, our corpus includes three paubhās dating back to the 17^th century59. Two of them display a relatively similar composition with a large central stupa set off against a background interspersed with rows of miniature caityas60. However, the latter are fewer in number and slightly bigger compared to those shown on earlier paintings. The dome of the main stupa no longer houses a deity but is only decorated with a flower motif, while the lower part shows the Buddha Amitābha in the gesture of meditation (Skt. dhyānamudrā). A new architectural feature is the depiction of brick masonry on which the stupa stands. On either side of this are two monks in an upright position who are depicted on both paubhās, with the addition of an upright vajrācārya priest and a lay devotee making offerings to the stupa on the former Ernst painting. The third paubhā on display at the National Museum in Kathmandu (fig. 13), although dated 169561, has a completely different configuration that is more commonly found on paintings done during the 18^th and 19^th centuries. It has therefore been included in the next phase of pictorial production and its description is given below.

• 62 See HAR item no. 90081 (HAR 2023).

31The paubhās belonging to the third chronological phase of the 18^th and 19^th centuries represent the Lakṣacaitya-vrata in innovative ways, with new types of compositions and artistic styles influenced by contemporary Indian and Tibetan paintings. With the exception of a single painting in our corpus, which still evokes the ritual symbolically through the repetitive pattern of small multicoloured caityas against the background in a kind of revival62; the ten or so paubhās dated to this period feature at least five different types of compositions centred on a large stupa, which is on several paintings the Svayambhū mahācaitya. Indeed, the commonest composition depicts the mahācaitya atop a large pyramidal mound formed by rows of miniature caityas evoking Gopuccha Hill (figs 13-16).

• 63 Cf. Bangdel 2003, p. 116. Slusser suggested 1668 for the erection of these two towers, cf. Slusser (...)
• 64 Cf. Alsop & Cruanas 2016. I would like to thank Jean-Christophe Kovacs for acquainting me with this (...)
• 65 This painting has been published several times in the past. See Pal 1975, p. 87; Slusser 2005a, pp. (...)

32The Buddhist monument is flanked by the two towering white shrines (Skt. śikhara) of Pratāpapur and Anantāpur, built in 1654-1655 by King Pratap Malla (1641-1674)63. Around the pyramidal mound of miniature caityas, the artists have created a new layout with the depiction of the Lakṣacaitya ritual in progress. This composition appears in four paintings including the paubhā dated 1695, mentioned above, and in a series of three almost identical ones created in 1807 and 1808. The first was exhibited in 2016, in New York, by Vajra Alsop & Carlos Cruanas (fig. 14)64, the second belongs to the collection of Jean-Christophe Kovacs in Paris (fig. 15), and the third is housed at the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco (fig. 16)65.

• 66 This part of the inscription has been kindly revised by Alexander von Rospatt.

34The inscription then mentions that: “Thrice glorious Lakṣacaitya were made, in total in numerals 636125, that many having been made, keeping daily observance, giving water offering (Skt. ārgha), making the fivefold offering and performing worship […]”66. It then states that “This thrice glorious paubhā of the Lakṣacaitya (ritual) was painted and completed and then consecrated [on the mentioned] day”. The paubhā was donated by the merchants Jayanarasiṃha and Rājamanānasiṃha and by other participants. According to Kashinath Tamot, Jayanarasiṃha and Rājamanānasiṃha were linked to Śrīkṛṣṇa Tolādhra’s family through the marriage with his younger sister (Kovacs 2016, p. 24). All the characters mentioned in this inscription are depicted in the bottom register of the painting and around the Svayambhū mahācaitya performing the Lakṣacaitya-vrata.

• 67 For a detailed description of the iconography of the Pañcarakṣā goddesses, see Mallmann 1986, pp. 2 (...)

36The iconography of each of these five goddesses is mainly based – with some minor variations – on sādhana no. 206 of the Sādhanamālā corpus, which does not, however, mention the presence of a mount (Skt. vāhana) on which the goddesses are sitting67. Their vehicles are, with the exception of the blue Mahāsahasrapramardanī, those traditionally associated with four of the Five Transcendental Buddhas. In the painting in the National Museum in Kathmandu (fig. 13), the Pañcarakṣās are also positioned around the Svayambhū mahācaitya just below the Pañcatathāgatas.

• 68 For sculptural depictions, see Jinah & Lewis 2019, pp. 79-81, 133-134.

37The iconographic program also comprises different aspects of the bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara, including the two popular white and red forms associated with the Kathmandu Valley, respectively Seto and Rāto Matsyendranāth (Jana Bāhā dyaḥ and Buṅga dyaḥ). On the three early 19^th century paubhās (figs 14-16), they are shown according to a Nepalese iconographic convention with a stocky body, clad in a heavy coat and lavishly garlanded (fig. 18)68. Their depiction is completely different in the Kathmandu National Museum’s example (fig. 19) where they are painted in the Tibetan style with the slender classical appearance of “Padmapāṇi”. Flanking the two śikharas, the white and red forms make the gesture of bestowal (Skt. varadamudrā) with their right hand and hold the stem of a pink lotus in their left hand. On Kovacs’ paubhā (fig. 15), Seto and Rāto Matsyendranāth are accompanied by the White and the Green Tārās seated on a lotus.

• 69 Cf. Mallmann 1986, p. 111. However, in the Nepalese context, there are numerous images of Sukhāvatī (...)

38A third form of Avalokiteśvara called Sukhāvatī-lokeśvara – red, four-faced and eight-armed – is shown with his consort at the base of the heap of miniature caityas in the three early 19^th century paintings. This aspect of Avalokiteśvara (fig. 20), whose name refers to the paradise of Amitābha, is neither described in the Sādhanamālā nor in the Niṣpannayogāvalī69. To my knowledge, he is only found in the Newar context, with or without his consort. Interestingly, on these paintings, the dome of the Svayambhū mahācaitya features the Buddha Amitābha, considered as the main deity in which Svayambhū is accessed and, at the same time, probably underlining the link with Sukhāvatī.

• 70 This posture is reminiscent of the Bejewelled Buddha Śākyamuni teaching a Kathmandu merchant family (...)

39In the lower register, the patrons and their families, depicted in a gesture of homage (Skt. añjalimudrā), appear to be attending a teaching (Skt. dharma-deśanā) given by a crowned red Buddha (figs 15, 16) and/or a vajrācārya (figs 14, 16), or otherwise they are shown to be worshipping the wealth deity, yellow Jambhala (figs 13, 14). In Kovacs’ paubhā, the Buddha in profile seated in an unusual relaxed posture on a throne with his left leg crossed over his right thigh, is identified as Śākyasiṃha (Kovacs 2016, pp. 4, 6)70. On the far right-hand side, a group of musicians playing various traditional instruments (small cymbals, dhah drum, and long poṃgā trumpets) is also part of the iconographic program. Their depiction underlines the importance of devotional music in the Newars’ religious activities, especially during the holy month of Gũlā.

• 71 For more details about the depiction of the homa ritual on paubhās, see Tisseghem 2017.

43The seventh stage shows some participants holding a small conch from which water (Skt. ārgha) mixed with milk and other substances, along with jasmine flowers is offered onto the miniature caityas on either side of the central mound (fig. 28). Finally, the eighth and last stage features an elaborate scene with the vajrācārya priest performing the fire ritual associated with the consecration (fig. 29). Wearing a ritual crown (Skt. mukuṭa), he holds a bell and two long sacrificial golden spoons over the fire altar (Skt. homa kuṇḍa). Various ritual implements (lamps, vases, conch on a tripod) and vessels with offerings are depicted inside the ritual area delimited by banners, the sacrificial hearth topped by a canopy71. The performance of the Fire ritual suggests the completion of the Lakṣacaitya-vrata.

• 72 The nāgas, symbols of water and dispensers of rain, are popular local deities in Nepal, particularl (...)

44It is interesting to note that the artists have accurately reproduced almost every step of the ritual in an outdoor setting centred in the heart of the Buddhist geography of the Kathmandu Valley. This sacred topography is reinforced by the depiction of a winding river in the lowermost part of Kovacs’ painting (fig. 15), which most likely represents the Viṣṇumatī River that flows on the east of the mahācaitya and into which the clay caityas may be immersed at the end of the vrata. Furthermore, this visual connection to the local environment appears to be provided by the depiction of several coloured stripes at the base of the pyramidal mound of caityas which recalls the scale-covered bodies of serpent deities nāgas72 whose worship is largely narrated in the Svayambhūpurāṇa. However, this could also represent the nine kinds of grain (Skt. vrīhi) spread around the heap during the ritual process. From an artistic point of view, the inclusion of landscape elements such as a backdrop of hills and snow-capped peaks, trees and animals, and the indication of the sky by stylised and scalloped clouds reflects the influence of Tibetan paintings from the 17^th century onward. Similarly, Newar artists also borrowed new motifs and stylistic devices from India, principally from Mughal-Rajput paintings. For example, the way the faces of devotees are drawn in full profile, men portrayed with a thin moustache and wearing a long colourful tunic tied at the waist, like a jama, and a distinctive turban, is inspired by contemporary Indian fashion (figs 25, 26). Women dressed in a tight-fitting choli-type bodice and a long skirt also display some Indian influences, although their jewellery is typically Newar, especially the traditional necklace called tayo, a kind of large biconical gold pendant (fig. 25). They also stand out by their coiffure in the form of a bun. Men’s and women’s costumes also comprise a long dupattā-style shawl.

• 73 Dallas Museum of Art, Inv. no. 1980.25.FA (online, URL: https://dma.org/art/collection/object/42470 (...)
• 74 Online catalogue (online, URL: https://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2018/the-richard-mag (...)

45Two other paubhās from the beginning of the 19^th century feature a second type of composition centred on a large Nepalese stupa atop a pyramidal mound surrounded by the ritual stages of the Lakṣacaitya performance. The first one is housed in the Dallas Museum of Art (fig. 30)73; the other, which was part of the former Ernst collection (fig. 31), was sold at Sotheby’s in 201874.

• 75 They appear to be Vighnāntaka and perhaps Mahākāla.

47The composition is again structured into several horizontal registers with alignments of various deities and historical figures. In the sky, the Five Transcendental Buddhas seated on clouds are surrounded by different aspects of Avalokiteśvara and Mañjuśrī, including Ṣaḍakṣarī-lokeśvara and Nāmasaṅgīti. In the former Ernst paubhā, the artists have also portrayed the deity Vajrasattva above the Pañcatathāgatas surrounded by celestial beings. Without going into detail, the paintings also depict Uṣṇīṣavijayā, Amitāyus and Sitātapatrā, as well as two wrathful deities in dynamic attitudes against a red halo of leaping flames, on either side of the mound75. It is worth noting that in the former Ernst painting (fig. 31), Uṣṇīṣavijayā is shown on the central mound made up of the multitude of blue Akṣobhya and miniature caityas, rather than Mahāpratisarā depicted just below her, among the Pañcarakṣā goddesses, sitting in a line.

• 76 For a study of the iconographies of the goddess Vāruṇī, see Bühnemann 2017.

52Various goddesses surrounded by red halos, representing different aspects of Vajrayoginī/Vajravārāhī, are depicted above the “hill of tiny caityas”, and in the lower corners. In the centre of this lower register, a many-armed red goddess seated on a skull-cup atop a vase supported by two serpents and evoking the goddess Vāruṇī76, can be seen between Gaṇeśa and Mahākāla. Only three scenes of stages in the production process are illustrated here, from right to left: the beating of the clay, the moulding of the caityas (fig. 35) and the consecration.

• 77 I would like to thank Alexander von Rospatt for pointing out this painting to me and for sharing th (...)

53Another paubhā pertaining to the Lakṣacaitya theme (fig. 36), dated 1846-47, kept at the Ferenc Hopp Museum in Budapest, can be considered as a fourth type of composition77. The focal point is again a large stupa above a mound of stacked miniature caityas flanked here by two monks standing and holding a bowl and a khakkhara staff. Below them, the artist has depicted Jayanarasiṃha and his wife Jagalakṣṃī engaged in moulding clay caityas. The Five Transcendental Buddhas occupy the upper part of the canvas, while in the bottom register the family members of the couple are worshipping a central wrathful deity which appears to be Vighnāntaka. The style of the painting shows a combination of Tibetan and Nepalese aesthetics of the late 18^th and 19^th centuries. The Tibetan style is visible in the way the blue sky and its gradation from dark blue to a lighter tone have been painted, as well as in the shape of the scalloped pink clouds outlined by blue edges, inspired by contemporary thangkas. At the same time, the architecture of the garlanded stupa with a pair of eyes and the depiction of devotees wearing traditional costumes and jewellery are typically Newar.

• 78 For details, see, Minneapolis Institute of Art, Inv. no. 91.23.1 (online, URL: https://collections. (...)

54Lastly, the Minneapolis Institute of Art houses a very interesting paubhā that can be considered to belong to a fifth type of composition (fig. 37)78. The Lakṣacaitya ritual is not the principal iconographic theme but appears as a secondary one depicted in the bottom part of the painting (fig. 38). The very dense configuration shows a central representation of the Buddha Śākyamuni seated within an elaborate temple surrounded by a multitude of deities and narrative scenes.

• 79 See notes 57 and 58.
• 80 See notes 22 and 57.

57As has been shown, it clearly appears that paubhās depicting the Lakṣacaitya ritual constitute unique visual materials, attesting not only to the antiquity of this Buddhist practice in Nepal but also to its popularity up to the present day among Newars of the Kathmandu Valley. Though the earliest paintings date back to the end of the 14^th century, their production seems to have been more consistent during the 15^th and 16^th centuries, as well as in the 19^th century. It would seem that these periods coincide with particular interest in this ritual alongside the development of literary productions belonging to the avadānamālā genre, especially those advocating the cult of caityas. The Sanskrit text on which this Newar practice is based today, the Lakṣacaityasamutpatti, probably dates from the 18^th century. As mentioned previously, it constitutes the first part of the Suvarṇavarṇāvadāna and the Śṛṅgabherī-avadāna, which are frequently included in collections entitled Vratāvadānamālā, which circulated widely during the 18^th and the 19^th centuries. Several other texts, such as the Caityapuṅgava, which appear to be versions of the Lakṣacaityasamutpatti, were most likely also used as manuals for performing the ritual. However, we do not know the texts on which the devotees based their practice in earlier periods. But the prescription of the ritual of moulding clay caityas, without mentioning the aim of making one hundred thousand, had already spread in the Nepalese context since at least the 11^th century through manuals such as the Kudṛṣṭinirghātana and the Ādikarmapradīpa under the section sarvakatāḍanavidhi. The paubhās commemorating the Lakṣacaitya-vrata from the late 14^th century were made during a period of political stability and economic prosperity under the rule of Jayasthitimalla (1382-1395) and his successors. During these periods, religious activities stimulated artistic and literary creation in the Kathmandu Valley. In this context, some avadānas advocating caitya worship, such as the Śambūkāvadāna and the Saptakumārikāvadāna, of which there exist manuscripts dating back to the 15^th century, have been the subject of very interesting narrative illustrations on a Lakṣacaitya painting (fig. 12)79. These two avadānas are, furthermore, included in a text related to the Ahorātra-vrata about the veneration of caitya and the merits derived from it80.

• 81 Regarding the Amitābha shrine at Svayambhū mahācaitya, see Lewis 1996, pp. 10-11. See also Rospatt (...)
• 82 See for example a paubhā from the late 17^th century published in Macdonald & Vergati 1979, pl. I, a (...)
• 83 Although, for practical reasons the shrine of Vairocana was established next to Akṣobhya’s. See Gut (...)
• 84 One may wonder whether this association might be related to the presence of the Buddha Amitābha sea (...)

60Among the noteworthy features, Uṣṇīṣavijayā or Vairocana is no longer enshrined in the dome of the central stupa but rather the Buddha Amitābha or the Buddha Śākyamuni. The figure of Amitābha, whose shrine is on the west side of the Svayambhū dome, is no doubt featured here due to his popularity, at least since the 17^th century, and to the devotees’ aspiration to be reborn in his Sukhāvatī paradise81. This connection with Sukhāvatī is also emphasised by the frequent depiction of Sukhāvatī-lokeśvara in the paubhās of these periods. The figure of Buddha Śākyamuni in the context of Svayambhū is somewhat less clear, and we may wonder if on some paintings he might actually be the Buddha Akṣobhya because his iconography is very similar to that of Śākyamuni, especially when shown without the two disciples at his side. Furthermore, on several contemporary paubhās representing the Svayambhū mahācaitya with no connection to the celebration of the Lakṣacaitya, the monument is often depicted from its eastern side with the shrine of Akṣobhya82, which is sometimes flanked by those of the other Tathāgatas. The presence of the Five Transcendental Buddhas around the dome refers not only to the Svayambhūpurāṇa, according to which the mahācaitya is the “abode” of the Pañcatathāgatas (Skt. pañcatathāgatāśraya, jinālaya), but also to the Tantric Buddhist conception of a stupa as a mandala, and in particular a vajradhātu-maṇḍala, with its centre and cardinal points dedicated to the Five Transcendental Buddhas, as reflected in the architecture of the Svayambhū mahācaitya83. Thus, while images of Amitābha, Akṣobhya and Vairocana may be justified in the context of the Svayambhū mahācaitya, the one of Uṣṇīṣavijayā is not readily understandable, although she is often depicted seated inside the dome on the paubhās dating from the late 14^th to the 16^th century84.

• 85 According to Rospatt, besides Uṣṇīṣavijayā, some paubhās from the 14^th and 15^th centuries depicting (...)
• 86 See note 59.
• 87 The goddess is generally described as sitting within a caitya, cf. Mallmann 1986, p. 390. See also (...)

61This issue had already been raised by Pal in 1977 in an article concerning the Bhīmarathā rite, which has also been the subject of a great number of commemorative paintings. As for the Lakṣacaitya-vrata, the iconographic program of these paubhās is also arranged around a large central stupa inside of which appears Uṣṇīṣavijayā, the goddess of long life and the main deity of the Bhīmarathā celebration85. In these paintings, dating mostly back to the 18^th and 19^th centuries, the Nepalese stupa is constantly shown atop a lotus rising from a lake. Although this depiction seems to be inspired by the primeval stupa appearing on lake Kālīhrada, described in the Svayambhūpurāṇa, the systematic inclusion of Uṣṇīṣavijayā in the dome has no obvious connection to that text and thus to the Svayambhū mahācaitya. As pointed out by Pal: “generally in the inscriptions [on Bhīmarathā paubhās] the stūpa is referred to as Ushṇīshachaitya and invariably a figure of the goddess Ushṇīshavijayā is portrayed on it” (Pal 1977, p. 186). Furthermore, to my knowledge, the stupa (with Uṣṇīṣavijayā) in these paintings is never flanked by the two white śikharas, reinforcing the uncertainty of its identification with Svayambhū. However, a paubhā commissioned in 1433 relating to the Bhīmarathā ritual and restored (or replaced) in 1666, shows a stupa enclosing Uṣṇīṣavijayā that is clearly identified with that of Svayambhū (Skt. Dharmma-svayambhū)86. This interesting painting commemorates not only a Bhīmarathārohaṇa, but also the donation of a new parasol that is hoisted to the summit of the mahācaitya (Skt. dhvajāvarohaṇa). The simultaneous depiction of these two events probably led the painters to associate Uṣṇīṣavijayā with Svayambhū in this instance. Thus, as Pal points out, the standard description of the goddess, as established in the Sādhanamālā87: “must have led to the superimposition of her image on all painted stūpas, both in the lakshachaitya and bhīmaratha paintings” (Pal 1977, p. 187). This particular paubhā also commemorates the performance of a Lakṣacaitya rite, as indicated by the many small, multi-coloured caityas on the edges and at the top of the painting. A systematic survey and record of the inscriptions found on the Lakṣacaitya paubhās from the 14^th to the 16^th centuries could shed some light on whether or not the central stupa has been identified as that of Svayambhū. It may also help to establish when the Lakṣacaitya-vrata became part of the cult surrounding Svayambhū mahācaitya.

• 88 Whether they are related to the Lakṣacaitya or feature the mahācaitya in other ritual contexts, see (...)
• 89 Two important examples are in Musée Guimet in Paris (Inv. no. P293, dated the early 19^th century, b (...)
• 90 The Newark Museum houses an interesting book cover decorated with a painting of the Svayambhū mahāc (...)
• 91 For more details, see Ehrhard 1989. See also Gutschow 1997, pp. 88-90.
• 92 For more details, see Rospatt 2009, p. 51, n. 38.

62The important place assigned to the mahācaitya during the 18^th and 19^th centuries may well be part of the movement to assert the identity of the Newar Buddhist communities in the context of the construction of a Nepalese state, under the sovereignty of the Gorkha. This dynamic was evident by the revival of interest for the Svayambhūpurāṇa, one of the main versions of which was composed in 1814 (Rospatt 2009, p. 56, 2019, pp. 167-168), and by the multiplication of pictorial and sculptural depictions of the mahācaitya, not only on paubhās88 but also on long painted scrolls (New. bilampau)89, book illustrations and covers90, as well as by the numerous metallic reproductions. At the same time, the interest Tibetan clerics showed in the Buddhist pilgrimage sites of the Kathmandu Valley, especially in Svayambhū and its restoration by Katog Rigdzin Tsewang Norbu (Tib. KaH thog rig ‘dzin tshe dbang nor bu, 1698-1755)91, as well as in the translation into Tibetan of the Svayambhūpurāṇa by Situ Panchen Chokyi Jungne (Tib. Si tu paṇ chen chos kyi ‘byung gnas, 1700-1774)92, may have reinforced this movement.

• 93 Inv. no. 2012.455 (online, URL: https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/78188, accessed 3 J (...)
• 94 Inv. no. 2014.1040 (online, URL: https://www.artic.edu/artworks/131816/painted-banner-paubha-of-god (...)
• 95 This paubhā from an American private collection was put on sale by the Ethereal Gallery in October (...)

63This study has allowed us to bring together several Lakṣacaitya paubhās with very similar iconographic and stylistic characteristics and a very close date of production, suggesting that they may have been produced in the same workshop. This is the case, for example, of two early 16^th-century paintings in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York93 and in the Art Institute of Chicago94, which present the same composition, although the latter is incomplete. Similarly, the three main paubhās of our corpus (figs 14-16), dated 1807 and 1808, could also have been painted in the same or nearby workshops, perhaps in the Naradevī District (New. Ṅata Ṭole) of Kathmandu. Unfortunately, the inscriptions available to us on two of them do not mention the names of the painters. However, note that Kovacs’ paubhā (fig. 15) and the one in the San Francisco Asian Art Museum (fig. 16) were dedicated at almost the same time, between October and November 1808. Although these three paubhās differ slightly in the quality of their execution and the placement of the deities, there are many iconographic and stylistic similarities (in the depiction of the deities, the patrons and the landscape) that suggest a clear link between them. This connection can be extended to another paubhā depicting the Bhīmarathā ritual, recently auctioned in Taipei95, which shows strong stylistic similarities in the depiction of the patrons (physical features and clothing, including turbans adorned with three identical red and blue pendants), some of the deities, and the landscape. Again, a more thorough and comparative study, including the Bhīmarathā paintings as well as those representing other iconographic subjects according to periods, should provide a better understanding about the rules and conventions used by different workshops or should help to distinguish the hand of a particular artist.

• 96 This painting was auctioned in 2017 at Bonhams (online, URL: https://www.bonhams.com/auctions/23739 (...)
• 97 I am grateful to Alexander von Rospatt for bringing this important information to my attention (Ros (...)
• 98 See for example, paubhās made by Lok Chitrakar (cf. Jinah & Lewis 2019, p. 207, fig. 7) and by Mukt (...)

64This synthetic study of the paubhās relating to the Lakṣacaitya ritual has highlighted the importance of these artworks in tracing the history of the ritual and the diversity of commemorative paintings produced since the 14^th century. While the inclusion of the commissioners’ portraits in the compositions is not a new feature in paubhā art, their involvement in the performance of the entire ritual sequences alongside the vajrācārya is a remarkable iconographic innovation that seems to date from the late 17^th century. In this regard, it is also interesting to note that the names of commissioners are sometimes found in different paintings. This is the case for Śrīkṛṣṇa, Dhanakṛṣṇa and Bhājukṛṣṇa recorded on Kovacs’ Laksacaitya paubhā (fig. 15) but also on a painting dated 1816-1817 showing the Svayambhū mahācaitya, which has recently emerged on the art market96. It seems that this painting commemorates the contemporaneous renovation of the Svayambhū mahācaitya, in which Śrīkṛṣṇa Tolādhra played a leading role97. Thus, these paintings constitute not only important visual materials but also unique ethnographic records in the documentation of the history of the Lakṣacaitya ritual. This Newar specificity is all the more noteworthy as, in the Tibetan context where the ritual of making tsha tshas is particularly prevalent, there is no equivalent pictorial representations. Today, the Lakṣacaitya ritual is carried out less frequently by Newar Buddhists, partly due to the cost of purchasing clay. It also seems that nowadays, unlike paintings depicting the commemoration of the Bhīmarathā ritual, Lakṣacaitya paubhās are hardly ever produced, except for the contemporary art market98.