Iconographic imagery in the Indo-Tibetan BuddhistTantric (i.e., Vajraya–na) tradition is replete with polymorphic sym-bolic forms. Tantric texts themselves are multivalent, addressing as-tronomy, astrology, cosmology, history, embryology, physiology,pharmacology, alchemy, botany, philosophy, and sexuality. The S ́ri–Ka–lacakra, a medieval Indo-Tibetan manuscript of great import, de-scribes ritual visualization sequences in which practitioners visualizeelaborate manidiala designs and deified yab-yum (father-mother) con-sort couples. The Ka–lacakra system is the preeminent conduit for theglobalization of Tibetan Buddhism, and contemporary enactmentsof its initiation ceremony incorporate a variety of aesthetic genres,including sand manidiala construction and ritual dance.
