Hevajra Nairatmya

Hevajra is a protective meditational deity in Vajrayana Buddhist tantric practice. Encircled by flames, Hevajra here appears in union with his consort Nairatmya. Vajrayana Buddhism uses imagery of sexual union to communicate the merging of compassion (male) and wisdom (female) that results in awakening. Blue-skinned Hevajra's eight heads look in all directions and he has sixteen arms. His eight right hands hold skull cups containing animals, while his eight left hands hold deities representing the worldly elements of earth, water, air and fire, alongside the moon, the sun, and the gods of death and wealth.