Maya devi Mandala Thangka

Beautiful Handpainted Thangka of Maya Devi Mandala.

Maya Devi is mother of Gautama Buddha. This mandala depicts the lives of Mayadevi and her son Buddha.

Mandala literally means a circle . The tibetan word for madala is Kyilkhor , which means “centre and surrounding environment .” In simple terms it is a circle used as a visual aid for concentration and introversive meditation . Meditating using a mandala leads to the attainment of insights and it helps to increase one’s level of concentration . It also helps to activate forces within oneself which culminates into “Siddhi ” or super – natural forces .

Queen Maya of Sakya (Mayadevi) was the birth mother of the historical Gautama Buddha, Siddhartha of the Gautama gotra, and sister of Mahāpajāpatī Gotamī the first Buddhist nun ordained by the Buddha. "Maya" means "illusion" or "enchantment" in Sanskrit and Pāli. Māyā is also called Mahāmāyā ("Great Māyā") and Māyādevī ("Queen, literally a female-deva, 'goddess,' Māyā"). In Tibetan, she is called Gyutrulma. Queen Mayadevi was born in Devadaha kingdom of Nepal.Māyā married king Śuddhodana, the ruler of the Śākya clan of Kapilvastu.

Queen Maya Devi is often seen standing in front of a tree holding its branch, this is the posture of how she gave birth to Buddha. some also believe that Buddha took birth from the armpits of Queen Mayadevi. also when she is presented in the description of Buddha life story, She is seen sleep in her royal bed Dreaming of a white elephant(transportation Lord Indra, King of Heaven).