thangka means A painted or embroidered linen banner, usually depicting Buddhist themes, originating in Tibet; a prayer flag. It carries an Arena rating of 1358, earned across 61 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, thangka ranks #940 of 17,130 for Most Beautiful Words, #2,298 of 17,127 for Most Vivid Words, #5,018 of 17,140 for Most Whimsical Words, #6,058 of 17,124 for Most Sublime Words.
Why “thangka” is a great word
THANGKA — [Noun] A Tibetan painted or embroidered scroll depicting Buddhist deities, mandalas, or sacred scenes, used for meditation and teaching. Borrowed from Tibetan ཐང་ཀ (thang ka, literally 'painting' or 'thing that one unrolls'). Unlike an "icon" (a general, often static sacred image) or a "mandala" (a precise geometric cosmogram), a thangka is a portable cosmology, a devotional tool meant to be unfurled and refurled in ritual practice. It is the mineral-pigment glow on silk, the coiled weight of the scroll in the hands, and the slow revelation of a deity's world—a sacred map not for a place, but for a state of mind, carried from one world to the next.
Etymology
Borrowed from Tibetan ཐང་ཀ (thang ka, literally “painting”).
noun
- A painted or embroidered linen banner, usually depicting Buddhist themes, originating in Tibet; a prayer flag.e.g.“When the talks by Lama Thubten Yeshe on Buddhist and Christian meditation were published, the text included a reproduction of a Christian icon and a Tibetan thangka.” — 1996, Gerald Christianson, Thomas M. Izbicki, editors, Nicholas of Cusa on Christ and the Church, BRILL, →ISBN, page 265:
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.
- pidan 56% match — A traditional, hand-woven Cambodian silk textile used as a ceremonial hanging, canopy, or tapestry within Buddhist temples; often four-meter-long, typically featuring figurative narratives depicting scenes from the Jataka tales. vs thangka →
- phad 52% match — A cloth or canvas scroll used for phad painting vs thangka →
- gankyil 50% match — A symbol used in Tibetan and East Asian Buddhism, composed of three swirling interconnected blades. vs thangka →
- khata 50% match — A traditional ceremonial scarf in Tengrism and Tibetan Buddhism, symbolizing purity and compassion. vs thangka →
- tibetiana 49% match — Tibetan cultural objects viewed as collectibles. vs thangka →
- tingsha 49% match — One of a pair of small cymbals bound by a strap or chain, used in prayer and rituals by Tibetan Buddhist practitioners. vs thangka →
- pichvai 49% match — An Indian temple hanging consisting of cotton cloth painted with scenes from the life of the Hindu deity Lord Krishna (always blue), and used as a backdrop for his idol; also used decoratively in homes. vs thangka →
- tapestry 49% match — A heavy woven cloth, often with decorative pictorial designs, normally hung on walls. vs thangka →