Set of five dorje (vajra or diamond thunderbolt), Tibet, 19th - 20th centuryEach with four branches in copper alloy with brown, gold and silver patina. The vajra, a masculine principle, is the symbol of the path to be followed. It is a symmetrical object, composed of two pyramidal heads representing Mount Meru, linked in the center. These two inseparable parts are samsara (Saṃsāra) and nirvāna, and the central globe signifies emptiness (śūnyatā) where their opposition cancels out.