As a child Godtsangpa Gonpo Dorje (1189–1258 CE) toured villages and towns as a performance artist. Fond of music and dance, his performances were said to be so captivating that they even drew in the inhabitants of the spirit worlds against their will. At the age of sixteen, inspired by the devotional activities he witnessed during his visits to Lhasa, Godtsangpa began to study Buddhism. At the behest of a dream, he travelled to Ralung Monastery in Gyantse to study under Tsangpa Gyare (1161-1211 CE), the founder of the Drukpa Kagyu school. One of the three prominent disciples of Tsangpa Gyare, followers of Godtsangpa in turn came to be called Upper Drukpa, associated with West Tibet and the seat of Ladakh. 

This depiction of Godtsangpa conforms with early portraits from the Kargyu monastic order – shown in three-quarter profile with squarish features, Godtsangpa wears the sleeveless yellow vest and red patchwork robe. He is seated in lotus position with legs crossed on a tiered throne, the green throne back is against a torana flanked by white elephants supporting viyalas (mythical creatures that are half lion, half horse). His hands are held in the gesture of explanation (vitarka mudra).

The present portrait also shows affinity with the Sharri (Tibetan: shar ris, meaning ‘Eastern [Indian] painting’) style originating in Pala- and Sena-ruled eastern India (1050-1230 CE). This can be seen in the multicoloured border and the thicker multicoloured nimbus surrounding the central figure. See, for example, a portrait of Yazang Chöje dated to the early- to mid-13th century (Published: Jackson, Mirror of the Buddha, 2011, fig. 1.3), as well as a 13th century portrait of Four Tibetan Teachers in the Michael J. and Beata McCormick Collection (Published: Jackson, Mirror of the Buddha, 2011, fig. 2.7). Along with the present example, these portraits all feature a similar rich and vibrant palette, are edged with multicoloured borders, and surround the lamas with thick multicoloured. 

Portraits of lamas such as the present example convey the lineage and continuity of spiritual teachings that, in Tibetan Buddhism, originate from Vajradhara. In the top register, Tilopa is depicted on the left, a key figure in the Kagyu lineage and said to have received his teaching directly from Vajradhara, who is depicted beside him. Beneath Tilopa is Milarepa (1040–1123 CE) and Phagmodrupa (1110–1170 CE), both influential and root teachers of the lineage. Seated on the bottom left is Orgyenpa Rinchen Pel (1229/1230–1309 CE), a disciple of Godtsangpa.

While not all the individuals in the thangka have been identified, this portrait demonstrates the importance of such paintings in demonstrating a continuous thread of teaching, authenticating the school and its teachers as disseminating Buddhist thought that leads back to Vajradhara himself.