During the class trip to the Rubin Museum, the artifact or piece of art that stood out the most to me was the statue of the Buddha Vairochana. The aforementioned statue is said to have been the center piece of an arrangement of Vairochana dieties located on a monumental stupa at Densathil, where many other sculptures are found. After examining the sculpture, I noticed that Buddha Vairochana was molded on top of a pedestal. Carved on the bottom at both sides are two lions. I believe these lions represent power, because lions are the king of the jungle, as well as knowledge, since the lions are looking up at him, both of which, Buddha Vairochana posses. Along with the lions, the abundance of jewels that cover Vairochana indicate an immense sense of wealth and in the description of the sculpture it states that he is situated on top of a wheel. The wheel and jewels can be associated with royalty. The first impression and overall message I got when I looked at the sculpture was that Buddha Vairochana was a very powerful, intelligent, and inspiring deity.

– Brian Kong