Ratnasambhava, the buddha who presides over the southern direction, is one of the Buddhas of the Five Families, each associated with a cardinal direction. This painting is no doubt from a set of five, each depicting one of these buddhas. Ratnasambhava represents the jewel family. His identifying characteristics include his yellow body, his hand gesture of giving, and his horse vehicle, shown peeking out from either end of his lotus throne. This buddha and his jewel family are associated with wealth; five forms of the wealth deity Jambhala are shown along the bottom of the painting.
Early Tibetan paintings are strictly organised, with each figure rendered at a size and given a placement that reflects his or her relative importance. Ratnasambhava is the subject of the painting and is therefore the largest figure, placed at the centre. He is richly bejewelled, with all of his jewellery raised and gilded — typical of Tibetan paintings of this subject and period. The bold colour scheme, strong shading, and abundance of decorative detail set this work apart from earlier examples of the theme.
