The Arhat Gopaka with Attendants

This Tibetan thangka painting depicts the Arhat Gopaka, a shaven-headed monk in traditional robes, seated on an ornate throne in the center-right. He holds a palm-leaf manuscript in his lap and gestures with his right hand. To his left, a smaller, younger monk sits on the ground, while near the bottom left, a spotted deer rests on the grassy landscape. In the upper register, four smaller Buddha figures are seated within glowing auras, set against a background of craggy peaks and clouds. The figures are rendered in bright pigments, with the primary colors being ochre, green, and deep blue, bordered by faded silk brocade mounting.

This artwork depicts one of the Sixteen Arhats, legendary disciples of the Buddha tasked with protecting the Dharma until the arrival of the future Buddha, Maitreya. Such imagery is central to the Tibetan Buddhist tradition of 'Arhat cycles', which serve as objects of meditation and ritual invocation for the longevity of the Buddha's teachings.