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Bought this Buddha in Nepal 20 years ago. The size 12x7 cm. question how old is this Buddha. And the characters on the back, is that Sanskrit. Can that be translated? Wil Hugers

buddha

Wil - Nice statue. It is very difficult to date Nepal and Tibetan statuary from pictures, as similar tools and techniques have been used to carve them for centuries. Also, the "industry" of creating old looking carvings for tourist trade in Nepal is immense and employs great craftsmen.
From the picture of the base, it appears to be a stone carving -a dark soapstone perhaps? It has great natural looking wear, bit a softer stone can be intentionally aged that way.
The basic form is like that of the dhyani buddha Akshobhya or Ratnasambava, the embodiment of one of the 5 types of realization or awakening.
The characters I believe to be the old Tibetan script form often used on sacred objects and is probably the mantra of the particular buddha image through which we might identify it.
I am a very unaccomplished student of that script, but if you send me a better picture of the entire script (Maybe 2 - one from the start and one from the end) I will do my best or find someone else who has more knowledge of it.

Nels .I also think it is a soapstone. The front looks to me hard stone in color. But the backside looks soapstone to me. I hope you can do something whit the photos. Greetings Wil Hugers

I believe it is the mantra Om Mani Padme Hung in the Ranjana or Lantsa Script commonly used for decoration or texts translated from sanskrit in Tibet, Nepal and India.
Om Mani Padme Hung is the most common mantra used in Tibet specifically for Chenrezig. Seeing the mantra on stone is said to remove Karma and lead to eventual enlightenment
Attached is a picture of a multi language Mani Stone. The Lantsa Script is the second bar from the top. The vertical script to the left of the center buddha image is similar as well.
A link to different mani stone scripts from which this image came is below

Nels thanks for your help with translating the mantra.OM MANI PADME HUM.I found a lot of information on the net. Thanks again. HAIL THE JEWEL IN THE LOTUS. Wil hugers

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