Amulet box with figure of Amitayus
Derge, northeast Tibet
Silver with brass
Rose Art Museum, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts
Gift of N. L. Horch to the Riverside Museum Collection, 1971.295

The guiding deity (yidam in Tibetan), whose spirit is embodied in a work of art, is a focal point in the practice of Vajrayana or Tantric Buddhism. A lama (teacher) selects and introduces the student to his or her yidam, who is also evoked by an accompanying mantra. Together the deity and mantra safeguard the individual from internal, psychological disorders and external, physical dangers. As an aid to visual meditation, a process necessary to reach the goal of enlightenment, the guiding deity is always nearby, placed in an altar or carried in a gau (portable shrine) or tangka painting.

The devotee meditates and visualizes himself as one with the yidam, thereby directing body, speech and mind towards the goal of greater wisdom and compassion. The qualities represented by guiding deities are dormant in each person's mind. Meditation and its accompanying work of art enable these qualities to emerge.

In the gau on the Ackland altar, Amitayus (also called Amitabha), the Primordial or Cosmic Buddha of the West, is enshrined with permanent offerings in the form of the eight Buddhist emblems of good luck. The elaborate, interconnecting metalwork design on the outside contrasts with the more classical representation of the deity.