Artist Spotlight - Padma Shri Khandu Wangchuk Bhutia

It was by a stroke of luck that we discovered about Thangka paintings and about Mr. Khandu Wangchuk. We learned more about him through the Government of India website, where his name was on the list of recipients awarded the Padma Shri. After a few email exchanges, we scheduled an interview for a Saturday morning and got into research mode.

Armed with a set of questions, we started the online call a little earlier to go over the finer details of the interview. As we were getting ready, 15 minutes before the interview was to commence, he showed up. His smile put us almost instantaneously at ease. In spite of a language barrier, within a few minutes of the interview, we all were deeply involved with the story of a human we knew so little about.

Khandu Wangchuk Ji working on the Dolma / 21 Green Tara painting

What made you take up Thangka painting? Can you tell us about your learning process?

In school, I enjoyed painting. My father was a monk who saw my growing interest in painting and told me about the importance of Thangka paintings. He said the art form is of great significance and to learn it well. He introduced me to a wonderful teacher who took me under his wing. With the support of many teachers and Llama's, I continued to learn properly and paint and ended up receiving the national award.

With the national award came offers from abroad to move and paint there. My mother asked that no matter how many offers I got, I should stay in India, for I had received a national award here. She asked me to work hard and continue improving my understanding of this art and offer it to my country. I continued to hone my skills and kept at it and ended up receiving the Padma Shri.

A thangka, variously spelt as thangka, tangka, thanka, or tanka, is a Tibetan Buddhist painting on cotton, silk appliqué, usually depicting a Buddhist deity, scene, or mandala. Thangkas are traditionally kept unframed and rolled up when not on display, mounted on a textile backing somewhat in the style of Chinese scroll paintings, with a further silk cover on the front.

Source - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thangka

What is the significance of Thangka in general?

In accordance with the Buddhist philosophy, the Thangka has significance throughout the entire cycle of birth, death and rebirth. At the same time, it is expected to help in one's spiritual and Dharmic practice and brings peace to life. It is also believed in the Buddhist tradition that if a Thangka is commissioned within 21 days of the death of an individual, it impacts the individual's passage into after-life and his future births.

Each Thangka painting has a special significance and is created with care to the particular time and the stage of an individual's existence.

Mr. Wangchuk received the National award from India's President - Mr. Neelam Sanjiva Reddy. Image Source - here.

How has being a thangka painter helped you in your monastic life and understanding of the buddhist religion?

Thangka paintings are based on a deep study of the Buddhist scriptures. Every aspect of the Thangka - the colours, the position, the background, the foreground, the scenery, the dieties and every other aspect of the Thangka is derived from the scriptures. It is really a concise visualization of the scriptures and helps others understand and perceive the concepts in the scriptures from the Thangka as well.

What are some nuances of the Thangka art form that may not be understood by the current generation or by others?

There are many different Dharmic practices in Buddhism. Each Dharmic practice has its own visualization of Buddhism. There is a very strong connection between a Thangka painting and the scripture it depicts.

Today many young Thangka painters find it interesting to add or change the details from what the scriptures provide. These are really mistakes and not the correct visualizations of the scriptures and hence to be discouraged. This impacts not only their paintings but also their Dharmic practice.

As a magazine that covers Indian Culture, we find that we all have different definitions and understandings of it. What do you see as Indian Culture? How would you define Indian Culture to anyone? Is it possible to put it into words?

To me, the fact that all Dharma practitioners - Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists, everyone - can live harmoniously in India is reflective of our culture. I wish all other countries would also follow us and have a similar outlook and understanding so that the world can live in peace and harmony.

What can Buddhism offer to a multi-faith and diverse country like India, including nonbelievers?

Compassion is the most fundamental teaching of Buddhism. If anything can unite people, it is compassion. We should avoid provoking others and causing disharmony among people. Even people who do not believe in any cause or religion should follow this much to be compassionate. This and not carrying any form of jealousy are crucial for us all to live a happy and peaceful life. These are the fundamental teachings of Buddhism that I believe can help us all.

What do you believe is the primary purpose of Art in today's world? How do specialized art forms such as Thangka stay relevant in such changing times?

In the modern world, most people keep art for ambience and decoration. Thangka art and its philosophy is really to bring peace. For those who may be religious, they may commission particular paintings that may bring peace to the entire family or for other good beliefs. One thing that I have done is to include a mantra inside the paintings. Normally written in gold, these mantras also make the paintings more sacred. Some of these Thangka paintings are kept in shrines, too, for everyone's benefit.

What goes into the process of making a Thangka painting?

The first step is to create a canvas which I do myself. This is then coated with a special gum to make it ready for painting. However, the original brushes were made from animal hairs. I disapprove of killing them, so I make my own brushes by gathering and selecting the right hair that falls off my white pet cat. As to the painting itself, I consult with the monks to ensure that I start the painting on a good date after praising God. At the start, I also pray that this Thangka will be helpful and bring peace to the person who has commissioned it. People commission it for special reasons or occasions, such as a prayer event being conducted or the setting up of a Dharma centre.

Different Thangka's take a different amount of time depending on various factors. For a single-figure Thangka, time is dependent on fine shading and the gold designs it involves. In the multi-figure Thangka, the time is heavily spent on fine-tuning the small figures.

Are art forms such as Thangka at risk of being lost to future generations? What can we do to help preserve them?

It has been my conscious and continuous effort to teach Thangka to the next generation so that we can preserve it for many future generations to come.

However, the problem today is that the younger generation is unwilling to commit to the process of learning, which requires significant time and hard work. Instead, students, today do not have the patience and are only studying for a brief period and are keener to sell whatever they can paint instead of staying the course and mastering the art form. This requires endurance and commitment.

And further, these students study only part of the tradition and create / commission Thangka paintings with mistakes. This is something that makes me very sad - that they cannot visualize the scriptures properly and end up creating paintings that do not bring out the true essence. Though they do so with economic compulsions, it leaves me worried about this. Paintings such as the Wheel of Life, which speak about Nirvana, need the care to avoid such mistakes. Such mistakes also continue to propagate without proper guidance from masters as students tend to copy from other erroneous paintings. This does not help the Dharmic practices.

It is very rare to find a good and committed student. In all these years, I have had very few such students. Out of them, one of my students has won the national award too, but such commitment and dedication to learning are very rare in the younger generation.

His studio with his work desk and two of his paintings.

What is your advice to students?

My advice to students is to be diligent in their practice and to read and interpret the text so as to avoid mistakes. To ensure they dedicate themselves fully to learning the art without mistakes.

That and to not copy.

He is with his students outside the Handicraft centre. Along with the then-governor of Sikkim, Homi J H Talyarkhan.

How do your balance your commercial interests as an artist against being true to the art form? Is there a trade-off to be made?

I should say that I am very poor in that aspect - appreciating the economics and commercializing the artwork. I am not money-minded if I can put it that way. Often I end up pricing my Thangkas lower than what it costs to create them. Thankfully my wife has been my pillar of support in managing these aspects of my life.

But as an artist, one also needs to understand the art's business / economic aspects. If one needs to have a stable life, one needs to have some idea about these aspects.

What drew you to wood carving, and do you feel your two interests fuel each other?

I found that what the Buddhists were designing and making was not very good; not very pleasing to the eye. It also did not reflect the Buddhist culture. The colour combinations and the designs were very sharp to the eye. I felt that I could design this better and hence took an interest in it and started designing.

However, I soon realized that I was not doing justice to my Thangka painting, and many commissioned pieces were getting delayed, and this affected me. So, I decided to focus only on my painting.

Do you like other art forms or painting styles, and if so, what kind appeal to you?

I appreciate all types of art forms. However, my upbringing and subsequent focus have been purely on Thangka. But I do appreciate all art forms.

Does art help shape artists' thoughts, character and societal outlook? What are your views on this?

What I really care about is that my paintings or my artwork should help others by bringing peace and happiness to them. On a personal front, my focus every day is that I should be happy and do things in a Dharmic way to ensure that my future births are also positively impacted. Doing the right dharma and doing it in a proper way is important. My focus is on art, and I believe art can help everyone in this direction.

As a Thangka painter, what are some things you have uncovered about spirituality?

For any spiritual practice or Nirvana, you need a good Guru or teacher who can guide you towards that path. This is true in Buddhism, and in other religions, too, I believe. It is most important to have a teacher who can ensure you are focused on the Dharmic path.

One thing I have come to understand is the power of prayer to repent for your sins or to keep one away from committing sins. It is important for one to pray for the sins they have committed and to ensure that they are happy in their future births as well.

Bhavachakra (Wheel of life) painting by him.

What does the wheel of life signify?

1. The pig, rooster & snake in the hub of the wheel symbolize that the three poisons of ignorance, attachment and aversion give rise to positive and negative actions; these actions and their result are called karma.

2. The 2nd layer represents karma.

3. The 3rd represents the six realms of samsara.

4. The 4th represents the twelve links of dependent origination.

5. The fierce figure holding the wheel represents impermanence. It is also Yama, the god of death.

6. The moon above the wheel represents liberation from samsara or cyclic existence.

7. The Buddha pointing to the white circle indicates that liberation is possible. Source - Wikipedia

What similarities do you find, if any, between practitioners of different spiritual practices? Like some go deep into music, dance, painting, and meditation. Do you see any similarities?

Compassion is eventually, I believe, the heart of all these different practices. People eventually want to help others and bring peace to others through their work - be it painting, music, dance or any other thing.

One should also be compassionate towards animals. In Buddhism, this is an important aspect, where one believes being compassionate towards animals helps them in their rebirth, as an animal is one of the realms of birth. Overall, being compassionate to all life is important, and I believe it is at the root of all spiritualities.

Can you share a contradiction in your values that took you long to resolve and any advice for young adults on how they can approach a contradiction?

I can't think of any specific contradictions in values per se. However, I have had several misfortunes, accidents and troubles in my life and in my interactions with people. If I have learnt anything from all of those, it is that one needs to have faith and strengthen the mind to overcome difficulties and carry on with their good work and their life.

Which painting do you like the most from your body of work? Can you tell us a bit about the story it shares?

I have several. But one that is most favourite is a Refugee Tree Thangka painting that I did in 1982, right after I won the national award. It is something that is close to my heart.

One of his favourite Thangka paintings.

What does the Padma Shri award - and the other recognitions - mean to you, and what, if any, goals do you have for the future?

Every achievement and award is an excellent shot of enthusiasm and motivation to continue doing my work and help others and teach the art form. Though I am in my 70s, I still have a long way to go and have the energy. There are some very important paintings that are there in the scriptures but have not been commissioned yet or have incorrect visualizations that need to be corrected to provide the right perspective for future generations. For example - Rigzing Chokshing - and many others that I have to work on. These awards fuel more of that urge.

Also, these awards bring recognition to the Thangka art form and make everyone aware of it, its beauty and its value!