Tibetan Buddhist Mandalas

Over at Huffpost, a great slideshow of Tibetan Buddhist mandalas shows the variations of these beautiful and transient works of religious art.

HuffPost blogger Matteo Pistono explains:

Central to the bestowing of the Kalachakra initiation is the creation of a mandala. "Mandala" literally means "center and circumference" and in the tantric context connotes a circular diagram symbolizing a universe with a deity in the center of his or her palace complete with entourage, gatekeepers, and a surrounding environment. Mandalas are painted on cloth and temple walls, created from colored sand, or fashioned from wood, stone or colored threads.