Arhats

The sixteen arhats are the sages of Buddhism; they are the monks who have attained enlightenment through the teachings of the Buddha, and are now freed from the cycles of suffering and rebirth. In early monastic, or Theravada Buddhism, the arhats were the major disciples of Shakyamuni and served as patriarchs of the sangha, or monastic community after the death of the Buddha. Among his numerous disciples, sixteen were chosen by the Buddha and entrusted …

…own nirvana until the time of the future Buddha, the arhats maintain the Dharma and provide a temporal link between the present time and that of the future Buddha, Maitreya (Tucci, p.555). References: Olshak, Blanche & Geshe Thupten Wangyal, Mystic Art of Ancient Tibet, New York: McGraw-Hill Publishing Company, 1973. Rhie, Marilyn & Thurman, Robert, Wisdom and Compassion: The Sacred Art of Tibet, New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1991. Tucci, Giuseppe, Tibetan Painted Scrolls, Rome: La livreria dello stato, 1949.