Bardos: A Merry-go-Round Post-Death Pre-Life Special Schmorgazborg

This site gives a concise description of the bardo thodol or states that are described in the Tibetan Book of the Dead and its title is by the same name. What first attracted me to this image are the wrathful deities that appear in these tankas. In fact, in the tanka above we see several grotesque and bizarre beings hovering around the central mandala form. Since I have been working with my simply elated Buddha for the beginning of the semester I think it would be prudent to spice things up and bring in some wrathful deities on Meanderings and Unsavory Conditions. I mean, whats so unsavory up until this point?

This site has a copyright that says:
Copyright © 2007 Near-Death Experiences & the Afterlife
Thank you "Near-Death Experience & the Afterlife" for the information and leading me to the site by "Roger," which is below!
Roger's site is titled Death, Dying and Rebirth.

This website answers some frequently asked questions about the Tibetan Book of the Dead. My favorite answer assures the reader that we do not have to go to work during a bardo state. Thats good. I don't want to work when I'm dead.

The history of the Tibetan Book of the Dead begins in the 14th century by a man named Guru Padmasambhava who wrote about the Bardo thodol. There are three main states of being after life. They are the initial death stage or bardo which is characterized with a luminescent white light. The second bardo is the supreme reality and features five colors that appear in the form of mandalas. The third bardo is characterized by a lesser brilliant light that corresponds to the six modes of existence. These bardos are opportunities to look inside ourselves to reveal ultimate truths about who we really are. If these lessons are not recognized one can, so to speak, fall behind in this progression towards being reborn.

So, let's just say that the lessons are not learned and the signs are not heeded. At this point, the spirit may continue to subvert growth by three days or eight days or as long as fourteen days. This is depicted in the unfolding of the mandala.

In sum, the monsters and very unpleasant looking beings that float around these tanks have not attained enough peace and enlightenment that enable them to return to life in human form. They are confused and lost and haunt the living world greedy and ignorant.

I would like to explore this realm and see where it takes me in my next Illustrator image.
The tanka image was found here.