Troma Nagmo vs. Dorje Phagmo: Analyzing the Differences Between These Fierce Dakinis

If you’ve ever stood in front of a wrathful dakini statue and hesitated—Is this Troma Nagmo or Dorje Phagmo?—you’re not alone. These two figures share a common root and a strikingly similar look: the sow’s head (or snout) near the right temple, the curved “kartika” knife, the skull cup, the khatvanga staff, bone ornaments, tiger or human-skin garments, and the wild, dancing stance over a figure representing ignorance. 

This guide sets the two side-by-side. First, we’ll outline what they share (and why). Then we’ll walk through the subtle cues—color, context, posture, entourage, and lineage hints.

Who are Dorje Phagmo and Troma Nagmo?

Dorje Phagmo (Skt. Vajravārāhī; “Vajra Sow”) is one of the most widely practiced female yidams in Tibetan Buddhism. Her distinguishing attribute is the small sow’s head that appears either above or by her right temple, a sign of conquering ignorance; she usually dances, holds a flaying knife (kartika) and a skull cup, and keeps the khatvanga on her left shoulder. Authoritative descriptions from museum and scholarly sources highlight these constants.Troma Nagmo (“Fierce Black Mother”; also Krodha/Krodhakali, Krishna Krodhini) is explicitly identified in the art-historical literature as a wrathful form of Vajravarahi. In other words, she belongs to the same family as Dorje Phagmo and naturally shares the sow-head sign, bone ornaments, skull crown, chopper, and skull cup. The Himalayan Art Resources catalogue and related entries make this relationship clear. (Himalayan Art Resources)

Why the Confusion Exists between them?

These are the overlapping features trace back to their shared root: Dorje Phagmo (Vajravarahi) is the core deity, and Troma Nagmo is her wrathful manifestation. Naturally, their iconography is nearly identical.

• Sow’s head (vajra sow) near the right temple.

• Kartika (flaying knife) in the right hand.

• Kapala (skull cup) in the left hand.

• Khatvanga staff resting at the shoulder.

• Bone ornaments and skull crown.

• Dancing pose trampling ignorance.

Depiction of Troma Nagmo and Dorje Phagmo in Thangka Art

Thangka art offers some of the clearest cues for distinguishing between Troma Nagmo and Dorje Phagmo. Unlike statues, which often lose their pigments over time, thangkas preserve color, context, and symbolic detail, making them essential for practitioners, scholars, and collectors alike.

Dorje Phagmo (Vajravarahi) in Thangka

Dorje Phagmo, the Tibetan form of Vajravarahi, is most often painted in vivid red tones, radiating semi-wrathful energy. She is shown:

• Dancing gracefully on one leg over a prone figure representing ignorance.

• Holding the kartika (flaying knife) in her right hand and a kapala (skull cup) in her left.

• Bearing the tiny sow’s head by her right temple, symbolizing the transcendence of delusion.

• Wearing bone ornaments, a skull crown, and a garland of severed heads.

• Accompanied, in some thangkas, by her khatvanga staff leaning at her shoulder, representing her inseparable consort.

In thangkas, Dorje Phagmo radiates a balance of elegance and ferocity—youthful, dynamic, and full of tantric vitality.View our Unique Thangka of Dorje Phagmo:

Troma Nagmo in Thangka

Troma Nagmo (Tröma Nakmo, “Fierce Black Mother”) takes the Vajravarahi form into darker, more wrathful territory. She is usually depicted in black or deep indigo, standing or dancing in a powerful pose. Her imagery emphasizes:

• A hyper-wrathful face with fangs, bulging eyes, and flaming hair.

• Oversized kartika and a skull cup brimming with blood.

• A flayed human skin apron, skull garlands, and extra charnel ground motifs.

• Dancing on corpses, skull piles, or within flaming mandorlas, underscoring her role in cutting through ego.

• Placement in mandala contexts, such as five- or six-dakini retinues, especially in Chöd and Dudjom Tersar thangkas.

Unlike Dorje Phagmo’s dancerly grace, Troma’s thangka depictions exude raw, uncompromising ferocity, embodying the radical severing of attachment and self-clinging.Click to view This Assembly of Troma Nagmo Thangka

Depiction of Troma Nagmo and Dorje Phagmo in Gilded Statues

Gold statues, whether fully gilded or with partial fire-gilding, present the toughest challenge for identification. Since both Troma Nagmo and Dorje Phagmo share nearly identical attributes, and gilding erases the black/red color distinction, you must rely on subtle sculptural cues and context.

When it comes to bronzes, gilt statues, and repoussé figures, identifying Troma Nagmo and Dorje Phagmo becomes far more challenging than in thangkas. That’s because color—the easiest tell in paintings—often fades or is absent altogether on old sculptures. What remains are form, expression, and symbolic cues carved into the metal.

Dorje Phagmo (Vajravarahi) in Gilded Form

• Expression: Fierce but graceful—semi-wrathful with fangs, yet youthful and dancerly.

• Body language: Lithe, dynamic pose, balanced on one leg over a corpse (the dancer’s energy is key).

• Attributes:

  • Kartika and kapala present but usually elegant, proportionate.

  • Khatvanga staff often beautifully detailed, signaling consort symbolism.

• Impression: Even under gold, Dorje Phagmo statues tend to feel lighter, elegant, and refined.

Troma Nagmo in Gilded Form

• Expression: More wrathful—wide, bulging eyes, gaping fangs, and often a more terrifying facial structure.

• Body language: Still in a dancing stance, but the proportions can appear heavier, grounded, more brutal than graceful.

• Attributes:

  • Oversized kartika, skull cup overflowing.

  • Human-skin apron, skull piles, and other charnel motifs emphasized even in gold.

• Color cues lost: Black lacquer traces (if any) might be hidden under gilding or long gone, so wrath details carry more weight.

• Impression: Heavier, harsher, and uncompromising—wrath amplified even in gleaming gold.

Special Clues for Gold Statues: Major Points to Notice

1. Wrath level and mood: This is the clearest distinction—semi-wrathful grace (Dorje Phagmo) vs. hyper-wrathful ferocity (Troma).

2. Detailing of ornaments: Troma’s human-skin apron and charnel imagery are often carved or chased in extra detail, even under gold.

3. Base and entourage: Multi-figure compositions, or retinue bases → more likely Troma. Solitary, elegant figures → more likely Dorje Phagmo.

4. Inscriptions: Many gilded ritual statues have Tibetan inscriptions under the base (kirtimukha panels, mantras, deity names). If it reads “Krodhakali” or “Tröma Nakmo,” that’s decisive.

Tracing the Lineage: Using Tradition to Distinguish Troma Nagmo from Dorje Phagmo

When identifying a statue, knowing which lineage or practice cycle it comes from can often tell you more than iconography alone. Both Troma Nagmo and Dorje Phagmo are rooted in Vajravarahi, but their prominence differs across traditions.

Troma Nagmo

• Role in Dudjom Tersar: Troma Nagmo is central to the Dudjom Tersar revelations of Dudjom Rinpoche (1904–1987). Here, she is not just a yidam but the heart of an entire sadhana cycle, where her wrathful black form is invoked to cut through ego and clinging.

• Chöd Practice: Troma is a primary dakini in Chöd (the practice of “cutting through” the ego by offering one’s body in visualization). Chöd thangkas and ritual sets often feature Troma in mandala arrangements with retinue dakinis.

• Wrathful Emphasis: Because of her role in these cycles, statues and ritual sculptures made for Nyingma or Chöd contexts lean into her extreme wrathful imagery—bulging eyes, flayed-skin aprons, black pigment traces.

Dorje Phagmo (Vajravarahi)

• Kagyu Core Deity: Dorje Phagmo is one of the main meditation deities in the Kagyu tradition, particularly in the Cakrasaṃvara tantric cycle. She is seen as the root dakini, embodying the essence of Vajrayogini.

• Samding Dorje Phagmo: Beyond her role as a deity, “Dorje Phagmo” is also the name of Tibet’s highest female tulku lineage, based at Samding Monastery. These incarnations are regarded as emanations of Vajravarahi. Statues of the human tulku abbess show a robed lama with black hat, not the wrathful dakini form, so they should not be confused with deity bronzes.

• Semi-Wrathful Depiction: Statues of Dorje Phagmo/Vajravarahi in Kagyu and Sakya contexts emphasize her as a semi-wrathful red dancer—graceful yet fierce—without the overcharged charnel details of Troma.

If you know a statue’s provenance (for example, whether it comes from a Dudjom practice center or a Kagyu Cakrasaṃvara set), you can often resolve ambiguity:

• Dudjom/Chöd origin → Troma Nagmo.

• Kagyu/Samding origin → Dorje Phagmo.

This context acts as a “second layer of evidence” alongside iconographic study, especially in the case of gilded statues, where visual cues alone may be too subtle.

To Conclude, here is the table that clearly states the differences between Troma Nagmo and Dorje Phagmo: