The Cult of Tara

WORSHIP 5
THE EARLIER SPREAD OF THE LAW
A further and historically more important tradition relates the
actual introduction of Tara's cult into Tibet to the Nepalese princess
Tr'itsiin, daughter of Arpiuvarman and wife of the first great
Tibetan king Songtsen gampo (617-650, according to the calculation
of Roerich). 5
It is claimed in the various chronicles that this princess
brought with her, among other images, a sandalwood statue of
Tara, which was placed in the Temple of Miraculous Manifestation
Fig. 2. Songtsen gampo with Tr'itsiin (left) and Wen-ch'eng kungchu
(right); note the national costumes. From an iconographic sketch
by Tendzin yongdu.