Nepali Tibetan Buddhism Wind Horse Prayer Flag Lungta Woodblock Print

According to Himalayan Art Resources (Himalayanart.org), Tibetan Buddhist prayer flags often feature images of animals alongside mantras, sutras (texts from the Buddha’s teachings) or prayers (usually for goodwill and a long life). They are meant to be fixed wherever the wind blows. They originated with the Bon religion, but are believed to have been adopted from an earlier Chinese culture. 
 
The ’wind horse’ in the center is a traditional image, in the past surrounded with four supporting animals. The Tibetan word for the ‘wind horse’ is ‘lungta’ which is now what prayer flags are called as well. They say the horse rides the wind and carries auspicious wishes and prayers to the world. It is a symbol of good fortune and positive energy.
 
This particular image was used by our mother to announce the birth of her first child in 1967 in Kathmandu, Nepal. We are a little bit suspicious of the artwork as we found nothing else like it online and the horse looks very much like she could have designed it… 
 
We have four prints, each imperfect in its own way, with uneven ink, all on the local lightweight lokta paper made from special bushes in the Himalayas. For wrinkles and folds, you can iron them out with a cloth between a low set iron and the print. 
 
Print size 6” x 6”.
 
Disclaimer: We have tried to make sure colors shown in photos are representative of the real colors of each item. We have tried to identify all imperfections in descriptions, but we may have missed some. If you are unhappy with your purchase, let us know.