The present painting depicts the peaceful and wrathful deities of the Bardo, the Tibetan conception of the state between death and rebirth, arranged in a mandala. There are many different Bardo traditions within Tibetan Buddhism, with no established precedent for depicting the transitory state. but some, including the present work, conceive of the deities in a mandala-like composition to convey the phenomena experienced between life and death. Compare the overall composition of the present work with a similar painting sold at Christie's New York, 13 September 2011, lot 416 for $8,125.