Buddhist Art of Tibet: In Milarepa’s Footsteps, Symbolism and Spirituality

An insightful look at the history of Tibet and Buddhism through historical narratives and striking art from the Alain Bordier collection.

Fascinated by Buddhist art and Asian spirituality, Alain Bordier has spent more than forty years building a unique collection of religious objects from the Himalayas (Tibet, Nepal, and Bhutan). On display today at the Tibet Museum in the heart of the medieval city of Gruyeres, Switzerland, some six hundred works offer visitors the rare opportunity to discover an endangered world heritage.

This volume presents a general historic and artistic framework of Tibetan art through narratives, anecdotes, and commentary from Bordier on the different subjects and the collection itself. Beyond the artistic aspect, this work demonstrates the symbolism and spirituality that emerge from each object and offers an interpretation of the themes from a Buddhist viewpoint. The highlight of the book is the presentation of an unpublished manuscript retracing the life of Milarepa, the great eleventh-century Tibetan yogi, whose analysis provides an excellent introduction to the great Buddhist principles.