‘Ku’ is the honorific word for ‘body’ in Tibetan and describes the image or likeness of deities, teachers and religious authorities who embody Buddha-nature. Ku are seen as paintings, sculptures, carvings, votive photographs, manuscript illustrations and other forms of material religion. Ku which have been consecrated – and which often contain or are treated as analogous to body relics of the Buddha – are considered the highest priority for care and are generally placed above texts and other forms of material culture in storage or display. Ku can refer to human-fabricated and consecrated figures like metal statues or thang ka (hanging scrolls) but also to recognisable images of deities, etc. that are self-arisen in natural objects or surfaces. Practitioners often interact with ku by giving them offerings of incense, money, water or butter, or by touching them with their hands or foreheads. Maintaining ku as complete figures is a priority for treatment, e.g. restoring lost iconographic details and body parts, and their faces are often repainted or re-gilded as an offering made by patrons.
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