Thokcha

Thokcha (Tibetan: ཐོག་ལྕགས, Wylie: thog lcags ;[2] also alternatively Tibetan: གནམ་ལྕགས, Wylie: gnam lcags [3]) are tektites and meteorites which are often high in iron content.[4] The usage of meteoric iron is common in the history of ferrous metallurgy. Historically, thokchas were held in esteem for sacred metallurgical fabrication of weapons, musical instruments and sacred tools, such as phurba. Their inclusion as an auspicious addition in the metallurgical fabrication of sacred objects cast of Panchaloha is documented. The term has also come to denote ancient metal objects which serve as amulets made from thokcha. They are traditionally held to be endowed with magic and protective power and are comparable to Tibetan Dzi beads.

"Thunderbolt iron" redirects here. For other uses, see Meteoric iron.
Tibetan thokcha in the shape of a small arch. It may originally have been a tool serving for opening knots in leather straps which secured pack animal loads.[1]

Beer (1999: p. 234) holds that:

"Meteoric iron or 'sky-iron' (Tib. gnam lcags) is the supreme substance for forging the physical representation of the vajra or other iron weapons, since it has already been tempered by the celestial gods in its passage across the heavens. The indivisibility of form and emptiness is a perfect metaphor for the image of a meteorite or 'stone fallen from the sky', manifesting out of the voidness of space as a shooting star or fireball, and depositing a chunk of fused 'sky iron' on the earth below. Many vajras held by deities as weapons are described as being forged from meteorite iron, and Tibet, with its high altitude, thin atmosphere and desolate landscape, received an abundance of meteorite fragments. Tibetan vajras were often cast from meteorite iron, and as an act of sympathetic magic a piece of the meteoric iron was often returned to its original site."[5]

Age

Thokchas can be separated into two groups, the first group comprising objects of pre-Buddhist period (from about 1000 BC until 900 AD), the second group belonging to the Buddhist period (after 7th century AD), the two periods slightly overlapping. Some of the earliest thokchas may be related to the Tibetan Zhang zhung culture.

Types of thokchas
Tibetan thokcha
Tibetan thokcha, showing crouching lion in centre

Thokchas are metal objects which can have a length of about 2–15 centimetres (0.79–5.91 in). Originally, they can had a practical use such as part of horse harnesses, or as buckles, fibulae or arrow heads. They can also serve as adornment for clothes or objects of daily use like lighters and purses.

Thokchas can represent mythological and real animals or deities from Tibet's Bön or Buddhist religion. Many are of a more abstract form and the meaning of these pieces remains uncertain.

The word thokcha is composed of two words, thog meaning above, first, or thunderbolt; and lcags, meaning iron or metal. The meaning of thokcha can be expressed as "first or original iron" or "thunderbolt iron." The popular belief is that thokchas are formed naturally or magically when a thunderbolt strikes the earth. According to other beliefs, thokchas are composed of meteoritical metal and found by chance or under the ground by a lucky person. However, most thokchas were intentionally designed as amulets and are made of a copper alloy.[6]

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See also

Notes
  1. Weihreter, Hans: thog-lcags. Geheimnisvolle Amulette Tibets. PDF-Dokument, Edition Kyung, Augsburg, 2002
  2. Bellezza, John Vincent (March, 1999). Thogchags: The Ancient Amulets of Tibet. Source: (accessed: Wednesday April 14, 2010)
  3. Dharma Dictionary (December, 2005). 'gnam lcags'. Source: (accessed: Thursday April 15, 2010)
  4. Bellezza, John Vincent (2005, 2008). Spirit-mediums, sacred mountains, and related Bon textual traditions in upper Tibet: calling down the gods. Volume 8 of Brill's Tibetan studies library. Brill. NB: 2005 original from University of Michigan, digitized October 2, 2008. ISBN 90-04-14388-2, ISBN 978-90-04-14388-3
  5. Beer, Robert (1999). The Encyclopedia of Tibetan Symbols and Motifs (Hardcover). Shambhala. ISBN 1-57062-416-X, ISBN 978-1-57062-416-2. Source: (accessed: Thursday April 15, 2010), p.234
  6. Bellezza, John:http://www.asianart.com/articles/thogchags/index.html

References
  • Anninos, Toni: Tokches – Images of Change in Early Buddhist Tibet. In: Orientations, October 1998, p. 93sqq.
  • Anninos, Toni: The Ancient Amuletts of Tibet - Thokcha. The Max Maxwell Collection, San Francisco, 2000.
  • Bellezza, John Vincent: "thog lcags" The Tibet Journal, vol. 19 (1), Dharamsala, 1994, p. 92-97.
  • Bellezza, John Vincent: "Thogchags:Talismans of Tibet". Arts of Asia, vol. 28, no. 3, May–June, 1998, p. 44-64.
  • John, Gudrun: Tibetische Amulette aus Himmelseisen - Das Geheimnis der Toktschaks. VML-Verlag, Raden/Westf., 2006.
  • Lin, Tung-Kuang, Antique Tibetan Thogchags and Seals. The Art of Tibet, Taipei, 2003.
  • Weihreter, Hans: thog-lcags. Geheimnisvolle Amulette Tibets. PDF-Dokument, Edition Kyung, Augsburg, 2002.
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