Tigers
the male and female tigers of the Aro gTér lineage
The male and female tigers represent the enlightened quality of fierce playfulness – rolpa’i trö (rol pa’i khro). Here the sense of utter seriousness pervades the common idea of playfulness with a resultant dynamism which Ngak’chang Rinpoche describes as ‘savage aplomb’. The quality of ‘protection’ here relates to the texture of one’s life as a tantric practitioner. One is willing to take risks and willing to be alive to the fullest extent in every situation. The male tiger protects us from our comfort-seeking, and the tigress protects us from our neurotic sensitivity. The image of the tiger is highly prevalent within the Aro gTér lineage, and all the lineage Lamas are portrayed as sitting on tiger skins or riding tigers. In this thangka the tigers are clearly roaring, but also they are evidently highly amused. The sense of humour in the painting in obvious. Humour is an important characteristic of both the male and female tigers.
