Swarthy Quadra Painting

A "quadra" is a protector, guide, companion in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. A "bardo" is a phase of transition during the life and death cycle usually described as dying, transitioning, and becoming (the basic phases or bardos). Here "Quadra Swarthy" is a unique personality as protector. He enjoys dressing well and has a rather confident and romantic nature. These "nature spirits" , according to the Chinese, inhabit the roots of vegitable plants. But in the Buddhist tradition one travels through these bardo stages undergoing various levels of enlightenment but always seeking full enlightenment which is a state in which subject and object no longer exist.