Hats, More About Hats!

Hats are fascinating, hats are costume, hats are religious insignia. If you can recognize the different types of Tibetan and Himalayan religious hats then you're way ahead of the game and ahead of the rest of the pack. And yes, when you start talking about hats then it is competitive. It can even be slightly sectarian. It wasn't until I traveled to Mongolia that I fully understood the truth about the valid use of the terms Yellow Hat and Red Hat. Terms I had generally been avoiding all my life. Anyway, to the point. Here is a link to a wonderful and informative article on Tibetan religious hats. The article in Pdf format is specifically about Pandita hats. Coiffe de Pandit by Etienne Bock.

Also see the HAR Hats Outline Pages. They have not been updated since posting in December 2007. Since then David Jackson has included a discussion about Karma Kagyu (Kamtsang) hats in his latest publication: Patron and Painter, Situ Panchen and the Revival of the Encampment Style. Rubin Museum of Art, 2009.

--- Jeff Watt

Google Alert: "Himalayan Art Resources"

Hats: Who's who in the world of hats?

Hats are actually a big deal in religion and art. In art they help us to identify particular people, hierarchy and religious traditions. They also help us track hats in different paintings and sculpture over time (art history) and help to determine the age of particular works of art, and why, because hats change over time. More importantly hats are fun, weird and sometimes strange. What about the black hat of the Karmapas supposedly made from the hair of one hundred thousand Dakinis? What's a Dakini?

There is also the raven topped crown of the king of Bhutan. This hat is based on a religious hat used in fearsome protection rituals. How did it end up on the head of a king in a kingdom that still exists? How many Himalayan kingdoms are left?

Hats are interesting and each has a story about how it came about, why it has a certain colour and shape, and who can and who can't wear the hat. It is very much a staus thing. The hat in the image on the left is the special hat of the Mindroling hierarchs and in this case worn by Terdag Lingpa Gyurme Dorje in a very rare Tibetan portrait painting.

Look to Hats of the Himalayas for an overview of the different hats and the traditions to which they belong. This is just a preliminary look and a lot more work needs to be done. What is very important to remember is that hats are one of the most important iconographic keys in the study, identification and recognition of Himalayan and Tibetan teachers. Hats, who knew!