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A ḍākinī ( sa, डाकिनी; ; mn, хандарма; ; alternatively 荼枳尼, ; 荼吉尼, ; or 吒枳尼, ; Japanese: 荼枳尼 / 吒枳尼 / 荼吉尼, ''dakini'') is a type of female spirit, goddess, or demon in
Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...
and
Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...
. The concept of the ḍākinī somewhat differs depending on the context and the tradition. For instance, in earlier Hindu texts and East Asian esoteric Buddhism, the term denotes a race of demonesses who ate the flesh and/or vital essence of humans. In Hindu Tantric literature, Ḍākinī is the name of a goddess often associated with one of the six chakras or the seven fundamental elements ('' dhātu'') of the human body. In Nepalese and
Tibetan Buddhism Tibetan Buddhism (also referred to as Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, Lamaism, Lamaistic Buddhism, Himalayan Buddhism, and Northern Buddhism) is the form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet and Bhutan, where it is the dominant religion. It is also in majo ...
, meanwhile, 'ḍākinī' (also wisdom ḍākinī) can refer to both what can be best described as fierce-looking female embodiments of enlightened energy and to human women with a certain amount of spiritual development, both of which can help Tantric initiates attaining enlightenment. In
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
, the ḍākinīs – held in the East Asian Buddhist tradition to have been subjugated and converted to Buddhism by the buddha
Vairocana Vairocana (also Mahāvairocana, sa, वैरोचन) is a cosmic buddha from Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism. Vairocana is often interpreted, in texts like the ''Avatamsaka Sutra'', as the dharmakāya of the historical Gautama Buddha. In East ...
under the guise of the god
Mahākāla Mahākāla is a deity common to Hinduism and Tantric Buddhism. In Buddhism, Mahākāla is regarded as the sacred '' Dharmapāla'' ("Protector of the Dharma"), while in Hinduism, Mahākāla is a fierce manifestation of the Hindu god Shiva and th ...
(
Daikokuten Daikokuten ( 大黒天) is a syncretic Japanese deity of fortune and wealth. Daikokuten originated from Mahākāla, the buddhist version of the Hindu deity Shiva, conflated with the native Shinto god Ōkuninushi. Overview Mahākāla in East As ...
in Japanese) – were eventually coalesced into a single deity called Dakiniten (荼枳尼天, 吒枳尼天, or 荼吉尼天), who, after becoming syncretized with the native agricultural
deity A deity or god is a supernatural being who is considered divine or sacred. The ''Oxford Dictionary of English'' defines deity as a god or goddess, or anything revered as divine. C. Scott Littleton defines a deity as "a being with powers greate ...
Inari Inari may refer to: Shinto * Inari Ōkami, a Shinto spirit ** Mount Inari in Japan, site of Fushimi Inari-taisha, the main Shinto shrine to Inari ** Inari Shrine, shrines to the Shinto god Inari * Inari-zushi, a type of sushi Places * Inari, ...
, became linked to fox (''
kitsune In Japanese folklore, , are foxes that possess paranormal abilities that increase as they get older and wiser. According to ''yōkai'' folklore, all foxes have the ability to shapeshift into human form. While some folktales speak of employing t ...
'') iconography associated with the latter.


Etymology

The Sanskrit term ' is related to ', "to fly", as in ' (meaning "flight"). The Tibetan ''khandroma'' (), meaning "sky-goer", may have originated from the Sanskrit ' (of the same meaning), a term from the '' Cakrasaṃvara Tantra''. The masculine form of the word is ', which is usually translated into Tibetan as '' pawo,'' "hero" (). In
Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...
, ' is transcribed mainly as 荼枳尼 (), 荼吉尼 (), or 吒枳尼 (); other less common alternative transcriptions include 陀祇尼 (''tuóqíní''), 吒祇尼 (''zhāqíní''), 吒幾爾 (''zhājǐěr''), and 拏吉尼 (''nájíní''). It is also translated as 空行母 (), a
calque In linguistics, a calque () or loan translation is a word or phrase borrowed from another language by literal word-for-word or root-for-root translation. When used as a verb, "to calque" means to borrow a word or phrase from another language wh ...
of the Tibetan term. In Japanese, these transcriptions are all read as ''dakini'' (
katakana is a Japanese syllabary, one component of the Japanese writing system along with hiragana, kanji and in some cases the Latin script (known as rōmaji). The word ''katakana'' means "fragmentary kana", as the katakana characters are derived fr ...
: ダキニ; also ダーキニー, ''dākinī'').


In Hinduism


Ḍākinīs as demonesses

In certain passages in
Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
Purāṇic literature, ḍākinīs are depicted as flesh-eating demonesses in the train of the goddess Kālī. For instance, in the '' Shiva Purāṇa'' (2.2.33),
Vīrabhadra Virabhadra (), also rendered Veerabhadra, Veerabathira, and Veerabathiran, is a fierce form of the Hindu god Shiva. He is created by the wrath of Shiva, when the deity hurls a lock of his matted hair upon the ground, upon hearing of the self- ...
and Mahākāḷī at
Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...
's command march against
Prajapati Prajapati ( sa, प्रजापति, Prajāpati, lord and protector of creation) is a Vedic deity of Hinduism. In later literature, Prajapati is identified with the creator god Brahma, but the term also connotes many different gods, depe ...
Daksha In Hinduism, Daksha (Sanskrit: दक्ष, IAST: , lit. "able, dexterous, or honest one") is one of the '' Prajapati'', the agents of creation, as well as a divine king-rishi. His iconography depicts him as a man with a stocky body and a ha ...
accompanied by the Nine Durgas and their fearsome attendants, namely "Ḍākinī, Śākinī, Bhūtas, Pramathas, Guhyakas, Kūṣmāṇḍas, Parpaṭas, Caṭakas, Brahma-Rākṣasas,
Bhairava Bhairava (Sanskrit: भैरव ) or Kala Bhairava is a Shaivite and Vajrayāna deity worshiped by Hindus and Buddhists. In Shaivism, he is a powerful manifestation, or avatar, of Shiva associated with annihilation. In Trika system ''Bhairava ...
s and Kṣetrapālas." In the '' Brahmāṇḍa Purāṇa'' (3.41.30), Paraśurāma sees ḍākinīs among Shiva's retinue ('' gaṇa'') in
Mount Kailash Mount Kailash (also Kailasa; ''Kangrinboqê'' or ''Gang Rinpoche''; Standard Tibetan, Tibetan: གངས་རིན་པོ་ཆེ; ; sa, कैलास, ), is a mountain in the Ngari Prefecture, Tibet Autonomous Region of China. It h ...
. In the ''
Bhāgavata Purāṇa The ''Bhagavata Purana'' ( sa, भागवतपुराण; ), also known as the ''Srimad Bhagavatam'', ''Srimad Bhagavata Mahapurana'' or simply ''Bhagavata'', is one of Hinduism's eighteen great Puranas (''Mahapuranas''). Composed in Sa ...
'' (10.06.27–29), after the young
Krishna Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is one ...
had killed the demoness Pūtanā, the cowherd women (''
gopi Gopi ( sa, गोपी, ) or Gopika in Hinduism are worshipped as the consorts and devotees of Krishna within the Vaishnavism and Krishnaism traditions for their unconditional love and devotion ('' Bhakti'') to god Krishna as described in the ...
s'') of
Vrindavan Vrindavan (; ), also spelt Vrindaban and Brindaban, is a historical city in the Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh, India. It is located in the Braj Bhoomi region and holds religious importance in Hinduism as Krishna spent most of his childho ...
carry out protective rites to keep him safe from future harm. At the end of the ritual, they declare:


Ḍākinī as a goddess

Other texts meanwhile apparently use 'Ḍākinī' as the name of a goddess. In the ''Lalitopākhyāna'' ("Narrative of
he goddess He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...
Lalitā") section of the ''Brahmāṇḍa Purāṇa'', Ḍākinī is one of the deities who guards the chariot of the boar-faced goddess Daṇḍanāthā, one of Lalitā's generals. A chapter detailing the mode of worship of the goddess Kubjikā contained in the '' Agni Purāṇa'' instructs that the goddesses "Ḍākinī, Rākinī, Kākinī, Śākinī, and Yakṣiṇī should be worshipped in the six directions (coming) from the north-west." In Tantric literature, Ḍākinī the goddess is usually associated with the '' saptadhātus'' (the seven primary constituent elements of the human body) or the six chakras. The ''Kubjikāmata Tantra'' for instance enumerates seven '' yoginī'' goddesses (Kusumamālinī, Yakṣiṇī, Śaṅkhinī, Kākinī, Lākinī, Rākinī, and Ḍākinī) to whom the ritual practitioner symbolically offers his semen, bones, marrow, fat, flesh, blood and skin, respectively. A nearly identical listing of goddesses can be found in a later text belonging to the same tradition, the ''Śrīmatottara Tantra'': here, the names listed are Dākinī, Rākinī, Lākinī, Kākinī, Śākinī, Hākinī, Yākinī and Kusumā. Another chapter in the ''Kubjikāmata Tantra'' lists two sequences of six goddesses, assigned to each of the six chakras: the first denotes the creative "northern course" of the six chakras, from the '' ājñā'' down to the '' ādhāra'', while the latter – comprising Ḍākinī, Rākinī, Lākinī, Kākinī, Śākinī and Hākinī – denotes the destructive "southern course", in reverse order. Later Tantric texts such as the ''Rudrayāmala Tantra'' identify Ḍākinī, Rākinī, Lākinī, Kākinī, Śākinī and Hākinī with the six chakras, the ''dhātus'' and the five elements plus the
mind The mind is the set of faculties responsible for all mental phenomena. Often the term is also identified with the phenomena themselves. These faculties include thought, imagination, memory, will, and sensation. They are responsible for various m ...
. This work associates Ḍākinī with the ''mūlādhāra'' chakra, Rākinī with '' svādhiṣṭhāna'', Lākinī with '' maṇipūra'', Kākinī with '' anāhata'', Śākinī with '' viśuddhi'', and Hākinī with ''ājñā''. The ''Śrīmatottara Tantra'' places Kusumamāla (absent in the ''Rudrayāmala Tantra'') at the feet, while other texts place a figure named Yākinī at the level of the '' sahasrāra''.


In Buddhism


Ḍākinīs as flesh-eaters

In a chapter criticizing meat-eating in the ''
Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra The ''Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra'' (Sanskrit, "Discourse of the Descent into Laṅka" bo, ལང་ཀར་བཤེགས་པའི་མདོ་, Chinese:入楞伽經) is a prominent Mahayana Buddhist sūtra. This sūtra recounts a teachi ...
'',
Gautama Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in Lu ...
refers to dākas and ḍākinīs – described as "terrible eaters of human flesh" – as the offspring of the carnivorous King Kalmaśapada ("Spotted Feet"), who was born after a human king had mated with a lioness. In
East Asian Buddhism East Asian Buddhism or East Asian Mahayana is a collective term for the schools of Mahāyāna Buddhism that developed across East Asia which follow the Chinese Buddhist canon. These include the various forms of Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Vi ...
, the ḍākinīs are mainly known via the story of their subjugation by the wrathful deity
Mahākāla Mahākāla is a deity common to Hinduism and Tantric Buddhism. In Buddhism, Mahākāla is regarded as the sacred '' Dharmapāla'' ("Protector of the Dharma"), while in Hinduism, Mahākāla is a fierce manifestation of the Hindu god Shiva and th ...
found in a commentary on the '' Mahāvairocana Tantra'' (also known as the ''Vairocanābhisaṃbodhi Sūtra'') by the
Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...
monk
Yi Xing Yi Xing (, 683–727), born Zhang Sui (), was a Chinese astronomer, Buddhist monk, inventor, mathematician, mechanical engineer, and philosopher during the Tang dynasty. His astronomical celestial globe featured a liquid-driven escapement, the ...
. According to the story, the buddha
Vairocana Vairocana (also Mahāvairocana, sa, वैरोचन) is a cosmic buddha from Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism. Vairocana is often interpreted, in texts like the ''Avatamsaka Sutra'', as the dharmakāya of the historical Gautama Buddha. In East ...
, wishing to stop the ḍākinīs from preying on humans, took the form of Mahākāla, summoned the ḍākinīs before him, and then swallowed them all, declaring that he would release them on the condition that they cease devouring human flesh. When the ḍākinīs complained that this would lead them to starvation, Mahākāla as a concession allowed them to consume the vital essence of deceased humans known as 'human yellow' (人黄,
pinyin Hanyu Pinyin (), often shortened to just pinyin, is the official romanization system for Standard Mandarin Chinese in China, and to some extent, in Singapore and Malaysia. It is often used to teach Mandarin, normally written in Chinese for ...
: ''rénhuáng'', Japanese: ''jin'ō'' / ''ninnō'') – an elusive substance (often described as five, six, seven, or ten grains resembling grains of
millet Millets () are a highly varied group of small-seeded grasses, widely grown around the world as cereal crops or grains for fodder and human food. Most species generally referred to as millets belong to the tribe Paniceae, but some millets al ...
, dewdrops or white
jade Jade is a mineral used as jewellery or for ornaments. It is typically green, although may be yellow or white. Jade can refer to either of two different silicate minerals: nephrite (a silicate of calcium and magnesium in the amphibole group of ...
) believed to be found either inside a person's
liver The liver is a major Organ (anatomy), organ only found in vertebrates which performs many essential biological functions such as detoxification of the organism, and the Protein biosynthesis, synthesis of proteins and biochemicals necessary for ...
,
heart The heart is a muscular organ in most animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels of the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrients to the body, while carrying metabolic waste such as carbon dioxide t ...
or at the top of the head – instead, teaching them a
mantra A mantra (Pali: ''manta'') or mantram (मन्त्रम्) is a sacred utterance, a numinous sound, a syllable, word or phonemes, or group of words in Sanskrit, Pali and other languages believed by practitioners to have religious, ma ...
enabling them to know of a person's impending death six months in advance so that they could obtain it before other demons, who also coveted the substance as it conferred various magical powers to the consumer. Other texts meanwhile assign the taming of the ḍākinīs to other figures such as
Vajrapāṇi (Sanskrit; Pali: Vajirapāṇi, meaning, "Vajra in ishand") is one of the earliest-appearing bodhisattvas in Mahayana Buddhism. He is the protector and guide of Gautama Buddha and rose to symbolize the Buddha's power. Vajrapāni is also c ...
or the
Wisdom King A Wisdom King (Sanskrit: विद्याराज; IAST: ''Vidyārāja'', ) is a type of wrathful deity in East Asian Buddhism. Whereas the Sanskrit name is translated literally as "wisdom / knowledge king(s)," the term '' vidyā'' in Vajraya ...
Acala (Fudō Myōō in Japanese). Indeed, in
Japanese esoteric Buddhism Vajrayāna ( sa, वज्रयान, "thunderbolt vehicle", "diamond vehicle", or "indestructible vehicle"), along with Mantrayāna, Guhyamantrayāna, Tantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Tantric Buddhism, and Esoteric Buddhism, are names referring t ...
Acala is believed to have the power to extend the lifespan of his devotees and was thus invoked in certain life-prolonging rituals against soul-stealing demons such as ḍākinīs. Like Mahākāla, Acala is interpreted in the Japanese tradition as a wrathful avatar of Vairocana, with some texts even identifying Mahākāla as Acala's "
trace Trace may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * ''Trace'' (Son Volt album), 1995 * ''Trace'' (Died Pretty album), 1993 * Trace (band), a Dutch progressive rock band * ''The Trace'' (album) Other uses in arts and entertainment * ''Trace'' ...
" (''suijaku'') or manifestation. A dictionary compiled by the Tang dynasty monk Huilin (慧琳) titled '' The Sound and Meaning of All Sūtras'' (, pinyin: ''Yīqièjīng yīnyì'') defines ḍākinīs (荼抧尼) as demonesses who bewitch people and have sexual relationships with them.


Dakiniten in Japanese Buddhism


Emergence and development of cult

The ḍākinī imagery arrived in Japan via
Kūkai Kūkai (; 27 July 774 – 22 April 835Kūkai was born in 774, the 5th year of the Hōki era; his exact date of birth was designated as the fifteenth day of the sixth month of the Japanese lunar calendar, some 400 years later, by the Shingon sec ...
's introduction of
Tangmi Chinese Esoteric Buddhism refers to traditions of Tantra and Esoteric Buddhism that have flourished among the Chinese people. The Tantric masters Śubhakarasiṃha, Vajrabodhi and Amoghavajra, established the Esoteric Buddhist ''Zhenyan'' (, "tru ...
(East Asian esoteric Buddhism) to the country in the beginning of the 9th century (early
Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kanmu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means "peace" in Japanese. ...
) in the form of the Shingon school. The
Womb Realm In Vajrayana Buddhism, the Womb Realm ( sa, garbhakoṣadhātu, Traditional Chinese: 胎蔵界; Pinyin: ''Tāizāngjiè''; Romanji: ''taizōkai'') is the metaphysical space inhabited by the Five Compassion Buddhas. The Womb Realm is based on the ...
(''Garbhakoṣadhātu'')
Mandala A mandala ( sa, मण्डल, maṇḍala, circle, ) is a geometric configuration of symbols. In various spiritual traditions, mandalas may be employed for focusing attention of practitioners and adepts, as a spiritual guidance tool, for e ...
, one of the two main mandalas of Shingon Buddhism, depicts three ḍākinīs in the southern (right-hand side) part of the mandala's Outer Vajra section (外金剛部院, ''gekongōbu-in'') in the court of
Yama Yama (Devanagari: यम) or Yamarāja (यमराज), is a deity of death, dharma, the south direction, and the underworld who predominantly features in Hindu and Buddhist religion, belonging to an early stratum of Rigvedic Hindu deities ...
(Enmaten in Japanese), next to the Saptamātṛkās and other similar deities. The figures are half-naked and seated on circular mats next to a human corpse. One of the ḍākinīs is shown devouring a human arm and a leg; the other two hold skulls (''
kapāla A kapala (Sanskrit for "skull") is a skull cup used as a ritual implement (bowl) in both Hindu Tantra and Buddhist Tantra (Vajrayana). Especially in Tibet, they are often carved or elaborately mounted with precious metals and jewels. Etymol ...
'') in their right hands, and one holds a chopper in her left hand. All in all, the ḍākinīs represented in this mandala are more akin to the demonesses of Hindu and early Buddhist texts and iconography than the female personifications of enlightenment found in
Tibetan Buddhism Tibetan Buddhism (also referred to as Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, Lamaism, Lamaistic Buddhism, Himalayan Buddhism, and Northern Buddhism) is the form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet and Bhutan, where it is the dominant religion. It is also in majo ...
. The ḍākinīs were, as per their placement in the Womb Realm Mandala, originally revered as part of Yama's (Enmaten's) retinue, mainly figuring in rituals centered around the deity. A ḍākinī (not yet the medieval Dakiniten), depicted as a long-haired woman holding a bag, also appears in the Enmaten mandalas of the late
Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kanmu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means "peace" in Japanese. ...
as one of the god's attendants. It was after the Insei period of the late 11th to mid-12th century, during which Japan was effectively under the rule of retired ("
cloistered A cloister (from Latin ''claustrum'', "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cathedral or church, commonly against ...
") emperors, that a cult centered around the deified ḍākinī as a single goddess named 'Dakiniten' emerged independent of the Enmaten ritual. As the cult of Dakiniten flourished, its rite became famous for being particularly effective for obtaining worldly benefits and was thus especially attractive to the politically ambitious; at the same time, however, the ritual was viewed with suspicion within some circles as a dangerous, "heterodox" (外法, ''gehō'') practice due to its supposed subversive, black magical aspects. It is difficult to trace the exact origins of the Japanese Dakiniten cult. While a number of medieval texts claim the ritual's
lineage Lineage may refer to: Science * Lineage (anthropology), a group that can demonstrate its common descent from an apical ancestor or a direct line of descent from an ancestor * Lineage (evolution), a temporal sequence of individuals, populati ...
started with eminent esoteric masters such as
Amoghavajra Amoghavajra ( sa, अमोघवज्र ; , 705–774) was a prolific translator who became one of the most politically powerful Buddhist monks in Chinese history and is acknowledged as one of the Eight Patriarchs of the Doctrine in Shingon ...
or
Vajrabodhi Vajrabodhi ( sa, वज्रबोधि, , 671–741) was an Indian esoteric Buddhist monk from Kerala and teacher in Tang China. He is one of the eight patriarchs in Shingon Buddhism. He is notable for introducing Vajrayana Buddhism in the te ...
, the lineage may more plausibly be traced back to 10th century Shingon monks such as the
Jingo-ji is a Buddhist temple in Kyoto. It stands on Mount Takao to the northwest of the center of the city. The temple adheres to Shingon Buddhism. Its principal image is a statue of Bhaisajyaguru (''Yakushi Nyorai''), the Buddha of Healing or "Medicin ...
priest Kengyō (鑒教) or the
Tō-ji , also known as is a Shingon Buddhist temple in the Minami-ku ward of Kyoto, Japan. Founded in 796, it was one of the only three Buddhist temples allowed in the city at the time it became the capital of Japan. As such it has a long history, h ...
abbot Kanshuku (観宿, fl. 926–930). Although one legend claims that
Saichō was a Japanese Buddhist monk credited with founding the Tendai school of Buddhism based on the Chinese Tiantai school he was exposed to during his trip to Tang China beginning in 804. He founded the temple and headquarters of Tendai at Enryaku-j ...
, the founder of the Tendai school, brought with him Dakiniten ritual texts from China which he then buried at
Mount Hiei is a mountain to the northeast of Kyoto, lying on the border between the Kyoto and Shiga Prefectures, Japan. The temple of Enryaku-ji, the first outpost of the Japanese Tendai (Chin. Tiantai) sect of Buddhism, was founded atop Mount Hiei by S ...
, there is actually no historical proof that he or any of the other monks who went to China to study esoteric Buddhism – Kūkai, Jōgyō, Engyō,
Ennin , better known in Japan by his posthumous name, Jikaku Daishi (), was a priest of the Tendai school of Buddhism in Japan, and its third . Ennin was instrumental in expanding the Tendai Order's influence, and bringing back crucial training and re ...
, Eun,
Enchin (814–891) was a Japanese Buddhist monk who founded of the Jimon school of Tendai Buddhism and Chief Abbot of Mii-dera at the foot of Mount Hiei. After succeeding to the post of Tendai , in 873, a strong rivalry developed between his followers ...
and Shuei – brought home any such texts with them, suggesting that the Dakiniten rite developed in Japan well after their time. The rapid rise of certain notable figures to prominence, as well as their decline, have been popularly attributed to Dakiniten. A certain anecdote regarding the military leader
Taira no Kiyomori was a military leader and ''kugyō'' of the late Heian period of Japan. He established the first samurai-dominated administrative government in the history of Japan. Early life Kiyomori was born in Heian-kyō, Japan, in 1118 as the first so ...
found in the ''
Genpei Jōsuiki The , is a 48-book extended version of the ''Heike Monogatari'' (''The Tale of the Heike''). References External links at University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virgi ...
'' (one of a number of variants of the ''
Heike Monogatari is an epic account compiled prior to 1330 of the struggle between the Taira clan and Minamoto clan for control of Japan at the end of the 12th century in the Genpei War (1180–1185). Heike () refers to the Taira (), ''hei'' being the ''on'yo ...
'') claims that Kiyomori once shot an arrow at a fox during a hunt. The fox then transformed into a woman who promised to grant Kiyomori whatever he wanted in exchange for her life. Kiyomori, realizing this woman is none other than the goddess Kiko Tennō (貴狐天王, lit. "Venerable Fox
Deva Deva may refer to: Entertainment * ''Deva'' (1989 film), a 1989 Kannada film * ''Deva'' (1995 film), a 1995 Tamil film * ''Deva'' (2002 film), a 2002 Bengali film * Deva (2007 Telugu film) * ''Deva'' (2017 film), a 2017 Marathi film * Deva ...
-King," i.e. Dakiniten), spared her life. He subsequently became a devotee of the goddess, despite his awareness that the benefits obtained through the Dakiniten rite (吒天の法, ''Daten no hō'') would not be passed on to his progeny. The story thus attributes both Kiyomori's rise in power and the subsequent fall of his clan to his performance of the Dakiniten ritual. According to the
Kamakura period The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the Genpei War, which saw the struggle bet ...
work ''
Kokon Chomonjū , lit. ''A Collection of Notable Tales Old and New'', is a Kamakura-period collection of '' setsuwa''. It was compiled by and completed in 1254. The twenty volumes are divided by subject into thirty chapters: chapter 16 concerns art and painting ...
'', the late Heian period nobleman
Fujiwara no Tadazane was a Japanese noble, the son of Fujiwara no Moromichi and the grandson of Fujiwara no Morozane. He was the father of Fujiwara no Tadamichi. He built a villa, Fukedono, north of the Byōdō-in Temple in 1114. Marriage and Children * Minamoto N ...
commissioned the performance of the Dakiniten rite for seven days as he was about to be sent into exile. At the end of that period, a fox came to eat his offering, a
rice cake A rice cake may be any kind of food item made from rice that has been shaped, condensed, or otherwise combined into a single object. A wide variety of rice cakes exist in many different cultures in which rice is eaten and are particularly preval ...
. He then later had a dream in which he was visited by a beautiful young woman. When she was getting ready to leave, he grasped her hair to hold her back, at which he woke up finding himself holding a fox's tail in his hands. The next day, instead of being exiled, he was promoted to a high rank. Attributing this turn of events to Dakiniten, Tadazane in thanksgiving worshiped the fox tail as a symbol of the deity. Other people claimed to have attained positions of authority due to their devotion to Dakiniten include the monk Ningai (951–1046), the founder of the Ono branch (小野流, ''Ono-ryū'') of Shingon, and the Shingon Risshū monk Monkan (1278–1357), a close aide of
Emperor Go-Daigo Emperor Go-Daigo (後醍醐天皇 ''Go-Daigo-tennō'') (26 November 1288 – 19 September 1339) was the 96th emperor of Japan, Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'')後醍醐天皇 (96) retrieved 2013-8-28. according to the traditional order ...
whose name became linked to the infamous Tachikawa branch (''Tachikawa-ryū''). Monkan's enemies in particular painted him in a negative light by emphasizing the dubious nature of the rites he performed; one notable rival, Yūkai, accused him of "making offerings to the ḍākinīs and conjuring dragons while he is reporting to the throne." The Tendai monk Kōshū (1276–1350), in his work ''Keiran Shūyōshū'' (渓嵐拾葉集, "Collected Leaves from Hazy Valleys"), wavers in his judgment of the Dakiniten rite: on the one hand, he comments that "he who worships animals is worthy of being a master. He who worships a fox is worthy of becoming a king." On the other hand, he warns his readers about the dangers of the Dakiniten cult.


Dakiniten and Inari

Dakiniten's cult flourished mainly via the network of
Inari Inari may refer to: Shinto * Inari Ōkami, a Shinto spirit ** Mount Inari in Japan, site of Fushimi Inari-taisha, the main Shinto shrine to Inari ** Inari Shrine, shrines to the Shinto god Inari * Inari-zushi, a type of sushi Places * Inari, ...
worship and vice versa; the former, because of her association with the fox (''
kitsune In Japanese folklore, , are foxes that possess paranormal abilities that increase as they get older and wiser. According to ''yōkai'' folklore, all foxes have the ability to shapeshift into human form. While some folktales speak of employing t ...
''), became closely linked with the latter, as foxes were seen as the messengers of the Inari deity. Dakiniten came to be identified with the native agricultural ''kami''
Ukanomitama Ukanomitama (宇迦之御魂神 – Mighty Soul of Sustenance - ''Kojiki'') (倉稲魂命 - '' Nihongi'') is a ''kami'' in classical Japanese mythology, associated with food and agriculture, often identified with Inari, the deity of rice. Name ...
, Toyouke, and
Ukemochi , commonly known as , the daughter of the Shinto deities Izanagi and Izanami, is a goddess of food in the Shinto religion of Japan. In some differing interpretations, Ukemochi is referred to as both male and female. When shown in other forms, U ...
(all of whom were themselves conflated both with the god of Inari and with each other), with her iconography probably being informed by these goddesses. A late Kamakura period text called the ''Inari-ki'' (稲荷記, "Record of Inari") links the five peaks of Mount Inari with various divinities and Buddhist figures: the eastern peak corresponds with Dakiniten, who is associated with the
Wisdom King A Wisdom King (Sanskrit: विद्याराज; IAST: ''Vidyārāja'', ) is a type of wrathful deity in East Asian Buddhism. Whereas the Sanskrit name is translated literally as "wisdom / knowledge king(s)," the term '' vidyā'' in Vajraya ...
Yamāntaka Yamāntaka ( sa, यमान्तक Yamāntaka) or Vajrabhairava (; ; ko, 대위덕명왕 ''Daewideok-myeongwang''; ja, 大威徳明王 ''Daiitoku-myōō''; mn, Эрлэгийн Жаргагчи ''Erlig-jin Jarghagchi'') is the "destroyer of ...
(Daiitoku) and the ''kami''
Amaterasu Amaterasu, also known as Amaterasu Ōmikami () or Ōhirume no Muchi no Kami (), is the goddess of the sun in Japanese mythology. One of the major deities (''kami'') of Shinto, she is also portrayed in Japan's earliest literary texts, the ''Kojik ...
, the central peak to Shinkoō (辰狐王, lit. "Dragon-Fox / Astral Fox King"; a name also applied to Dakiniten's vulpine mount who was eventually conflated with the goddess herself) and the buddha Amitabha, the western peak to
Benzaiten Benzaiten (''shinjitai'': 弁才天 or 弁財天; ''kyūjitai'': 辯才天, 辨才天, or 辨財天, lit. "goddess of eloquence"), also simply known as Benten (''shinjitai'': 弁天; ''kyūjitai'': 辯天 / 辨天), is a Japanese Buddhist god ...
and
Rāgarāja Rāgarāja ( sa, रागराज) is a deity venerated in the Esoteric and Vajrayana Buddhist traditions. He is especially revered in Chinese Esoteric Buddhism in Chinese communities as well as Shingon and Tendai in Japan. Nomenclature Rāg ...
(Aizen), the southern peak to
Trailokyavijaya Trailokyavijaya (Vajrayana, , Japanese: Gōzanze Myō-ō; Korean: Hangsamse Myeongwang) is the King of knowledge having conquered the three worlds, one of the five kings of knowledge of Buddhism. His mission is to protect the eastern part of th ...
(Gōzanze), Niu Myōjin and Hārītī (Kariteimo), and the northern peak to Acala (Fudō). When reckoned as a separate figure, the Inari deity (Inari
Myōjin Myōjin (明神 'shining deity', 'illuminating deity', or 'apparent deity') or Daimyōjin (大明神 'great shining/apparent deity') was a title historically applied to Japanese (Shinto) deities (''kami'') and, by metonymy, their shrines. The t ...
) may even be depicted among Dakiniten's retinue as an old man bearing on his shoulder a pole with sheaves of rice on each end. The assimilation of Dakiniten and Inari (or rather, Ukanomitama) can also be observed in the origin story of the Dakiniten Hall at Shinnyo-dō in Kyoto. The story relates that a monk who was a worshiper of Dakiniten had just finished reciting the 600-fascicle '' Mahāprajñāpāramitā Sūtra'' when a white fox holding a jewel ('' cintāmaṇi'') in its mouth appeared on the altar. The fox then transformed into a youth, who declared that he was the deity Ukanomitama and that his jewel grants all wishes. In popular religion, Dakiniten was also identified with a fox goddess worshiped at Mount Inari known variously as Akomachi (阿小町), Tōme (専女), or Myōbu (命婦). This deity (commonly regarded as an attendant of the god of Inari) was revered as a patron of love and matchmaking; a short liturgical text to Akomachi preserved at
Kōzan-ji , officially , is a Buddhist temple of the Omuro sect of Shingon Buddhism in Umegahata Toganōchō, Ukyō Ward, Kyoto, Japan. Kōzan-ji is also known as Kōsan-ji and Toganō-dera. The temple was founded by the Shingon scholar and monk Myōe ( ...
is titled ''Dakini no saimon'' (荼枳尼祭文). In its section on the Inari deity, the
Nanboku-chō period The Nanboku-chō period (南北朝時代, ''Nanboku-chō jidai'', "North and South court period", also known as the Northern and Southern Courts period), spanning from 1336 to 1392, was a period that occurred during the formative years of the Mur ...
anthology '' Shintōshū'' recounts a tradition found in "a certain person's diary" which identifies the deity of the Upper Shrine (上社, ''kami no yashiro'') of Inari as the "Dragon / Astral Fox" (辰狐, ''Shinko'') Myōbu, who is said to be a
manifestation Manifestation is the act of becoming manifest, to become perceptible to the senses. Manifestation may also refer to: * Manifestation of conscience, a practice in religious orders * Manifestation of God (Baháʼí Faith), the prophets of the Bah ...
of the bodhisattva
Mañjuśrī Mañjuśrī (Sanskrit: मञ्जुश्री) is a ''bodhisattva'' associated with '' prajñā'' (wisdom) in Mahāyāna Buddhism. His name means "Gentle Glory" in Sanskrit. Mañjuśrī is also known by the fuller name of Mañjuśrīkumārab ...
. The work then further identifies this Shinko(ō) Bosatsu (辰狐(王)菩薩, "Dragon / Astral Fox (King) Bodhisattva," i.e. Dakiniten) as the incarnation of Vairocana, Mañjuśrī,
Vaiśravaṇa (Sanskrit: वैश्रवण) or (Pali; , , ja, 毘沙門天, Bishamonten, ko, 비사문천, Bisamuncheon, vi, Đa Văn Thiên Vương), is one of the Four Heavenly Kings, and is considered an important figure in Buddhism. Names The n ...
and
Cintāmaṇicakra Cintāmaṇicakra ( sa, चिन्तामणिचक्र; Chinese (Traditional): 如意輪觀音; Simplified: 如意轮观音; pinyin: ''Rúyìlún Guānyīn''; Japanese: 如意輪観音, ''Nyoirin Kannon'') is a bodhisattva and a manifest ...
(Nyoirin Kannon). The cult of Dakiniten and that of Inari became inextricably fused that the name 'Inari' was even applied to places of Dakiniten worship, such as
Toyokawa Inari , popularly known as Toyokawa Inari ('' shinjitai'': 豊川稲荷; '' kyūjitai'': 豐川稲荷), is a Sōtō Zen Buddhist temple located in the city of Toyokawa in eastern Aichi Prefecture, Japan. Although the temple's main image is that of ...
(Myōgon-ji), a
Sōtō Zen Sōtō Zen or is the largest of the three traditional sects of Zen in Japanese Buddhism (the others being Rinzai and Ōbaku). It is the Japanese line of the Chinese Cáodòng school, which was founded during the Tang dynasty by Dòngshān ...
temple in
Toyokawa is a city in the eastern part of Aichi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 183,930 in 72,949 households, and a population density of 1,141 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Toyokawa, famous for its Toyoka ...
,
Aichi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Aichi Prefecture has a population of 7,552,873 () and a geographic area of with a population density of . Aichi Prefecture borders Mie Prefecture to the west, Gifu Prefectur ...
, where the goddess known as Toyokawa Dakini Shinten (豊川吒枳尼真天) is venerated as the guardian deity (''chinju'') of the temple. Legend claims that the Dakiniten of Toyokawa originally appeared to
Kangan Giin Kangan Giin (寒巌義尹, 1217–1300) was a disciple of Dōgen and the founder of the Higo school of Sōtō Zen Buddhism. It has been claimed that his father was Emperor Go-Toba or Emperor Juntoku. He did much evangelization work in Kyūshū, w ...
(1217–1300), a disciple of
Dōgen Dōgen Zenji (道元禅師; 26 January 1200 – 22 September 1253), also known as Dōgen Kigen (道元希玄), Eihei Dōgen (永平道元), Kōso Jōyō Daishi (高祖承陽大師), or Busshō Dentō Kokushi (仏性伝東国師), was a Ja ...
(the founder of the Japanese Sōtō school), during his return from China in 1267. In the vision, he was given a mantra by Dakiniten, who vowed to become his protector. An image based on this apparition attributed to Giin, showing the goddess on a white fox and carrying rice sheaves on a pole on her right shoulder while holding a ''cintāmaṇi'' in her left hand, was eventually transmitted to Giin's sixth generation disciple, Tōkai Gieki (1412–1497), who enshrined it at the temple he founded. Another notable 'Inari' sanctuary is the
Nichiren-shū is a combination of several schools ranging from four of the original Nichiren Buddhist schools that date back to Nichiren's original disciples, and part of the fifth: Overview The school is often referred to as the ''Minobu Sect'' due to ...
temple Myōkyō-ji – popularly known as Saijō Inari ( 最上稲荷) – in
Okayama is the capital city of Okayama Prefecture in the Chūgoku region of Japan. The city was founded on June 1, 1889. , the city has an estimated population of 720,841 and a population density of 910 persons per km2. The total area is . The city is ...
,
Okayama Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Okayama Prefecture has a population of 1,906,464 (1 February 2018) and has a geographic area of 7,114 Square kilometre, km2 (2,746 sq mi). Okayama Prefectur ...
, notable for its goddess Saijōikyōō Daibosatsu (最上位経王大菩薩, lit. "Great Bodhisattva of the Supreme King of Sūtras" – a reference to the ''
Lotus Sūtra The ''Lotus Sūtra'' ( zh, 妙法蓮華經; sa, सद्धर्मपुण्डरीकसूत्रम्, translit=Saddharma Puṇḍarīka Sūtram, lit=Sūtra on the White Lotus of the True Dharma, italic=) is one of the most influ ...
''), who is portrayed as riding a white fox while bearing a pole laden with rice sheaves on her left shoulder and wielding a scythe on her right hand. This image reflects the two currents constituting the Inari tradition: the agricultural deity of Mount Inari and the esoteric Buddhist deity Dakiniten.


Dakiniten and the imperial enthronement ceremony

From the Middle Ages up until the
Meiji period The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...
, the enthronement ceremony of the
Japanese emperor The Emperor of Japan is the monarch and the head of the Imperial Family of Japan. Under the Constitution of Japan, he is defined as the symbol of the Japanese state and the unity of the Japanese people, and his position is derived from "the w ...
featured Buddhist elements. One such ritual performed during the emperor's accession was the ''sokui kanjō'' (即位灌頂, " Abhiṣeka of Enthronement"), in which various mudras and mantras were ritually transmitted to and performed by the new emperor. The central deity (''honzon'') in this rite was Dakiniten, who is considered to be both the incarnation of the buddha Vairocana (Dainichi Nyorai) and the 'origin' (''honji'') of the sun goddess Amaterasu, the mythical ancestor of the imperial line; indeed, the emperor, upon ascending the
throne A throne is the seat of state of a potentate or dignitary, especially the seat occupied by a sovereign on state occasions; or the seat occupied by a pope or bishop on ceremonial occasions. "Throne" in an abstract sense can also refer to the monar ...
, was said to have formed the 'wisdom fist' mudra associated with Vairocana in the
Diamond Realm In Vajrayana Buddhism, the Diamond Realm (Skt. वज्रधातु ''vajradhātu'', Traditional Chinese: 金剛界; Pinyin: ''Jīngāngjiè''; Romaji: ''Kongōkai'') is a metaphysical space inhabited by the Five Tathagatas. The Diamond Real ...
while reciting Dakiniten's mantra. A text from 1324, the ''Bikisho'' (鼻帰書, "Record of Returning to Origins"), also reports that when the ritual was performed in the imperial palace, two fox figurines – one gold and one silver – were placed to the left and right of the altar, and the new ruler was consecrated through an aspersion with water from "the four oceans." A medieval text stresses the rite's importance thus: "If he does not receive this ritual, the ruler's power is light and it cannot hold the four oceans. This is why this ritual is not limited to the king; monks of the various temples and profanes, too, when they perform it, can obtain a high rank and be perfectly free." The origins of ''sokui kanjō'' are shrouded in mystery; one tradition claims that a disciple of Ningai, Seison (成尊, 1012–1074), first conducted it during the accession of
Emperor Go-Sanjō was the 71st emperor of Japan, Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 陽成天皇 (71)/ref> according to the traditional order of succession. Go-Sanjō's reign spanned the years from 1068 through 1073. This 11th century sovereign was named ...
in 1068. Performance of the rite, however, eventually became the prerogative of
Fujiwara Fujiwara (, written: 藤原 lit. "''Wisteria'' field") is a Japanese surname. (In English conversation it is likely to be rendered as .) Notable people with the surname include: ; Families * The Fujiwara clan and its members ** Fujiwara no Kamatari ...
regents A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...
, who transmitted the mantras to the new emperor during the ceremony. Indeed, a medieval legend justifies this custom by claiming that it started with the founding ancestor of the Fujiwara clan, Nakatomi (Fujiwara) no Kamatari, who was abducted in his youth by a she-fox (an avatar of Amaterasu). The fox taught Kamatari the enthronement rites and gave him a sickle (''kama'') with which he defeated his enemy
Soga no Iruka Soga may refer to: People * Soga clan, a Japanese clan of the Yamato period * Soga clan (Sagami Province), a Japanese clan * Soga people, of the Busoga kingdom in present-day Uganda * Machiko Soga, Japanese voice actress * Soga Tokimune, Jap ...
. One text even identifies Kamatari and Daten (Dakiniten) as manifestations of Amaterasu. The connection between the fox, Dakiniten, and Amaterasu can also be seen in the ''Keiran Shūyōshū'', which features the following retelling of the myth of Amaterasu's hiding: Commenting on the ''sokui kanjō'', Bernard Faure writes: "under the name "Fox King," Dakiniten became a manifestation of the sun goddess Amaterasu, with whom the new emperor united during the enthronement ritual. ..The Buddhist ritual allowed the ruler to symbolically cross over the limits separating the human and animal realms to harness the wild and properly superhuman energy of the "infrahuman" world, so as to gain full control of the human sphere." Another type of secret enthronement ritual centered on Dakiniten took place on the Outer Shrine of Ise (''Gekū'') and was performed every morning and evening by the shrine's young female attendants or ''kora'' (子良 or 狐良 – 狐 being the character for 'fox') when they presented their daily offerings to the deity. There are two traditions related to its origins, one claiming that it goes back to Amaterasu herself through her priestess Yamatohime, the other that it originated with Kūkai. In this way, the ''kora'', and through them Amaterasu, came to be identified with Dakiniten. According to the ''Bikisho'': "Based on this ncient practice of worshiping animals with special powersat these seshrines, the shrine maidens (''kora'') perform the Ritual of the Astral Fox after presenting divine food. Its meaning is to show that the promise made in ancient times has not been forgotten. Therefore, the emperors, who are the descendants of the great deity
f Ise F, or f, is the sixth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ef'' (pronounced ), and the plural is ''efs''. His ...
are initiated in this method as part of their enthronement."


Dakiniten and foxes

Although Dakini-ten was said to be a powerful Buddhist deity, the images and stories surrounding it in Japan in both medieval and modern times are drawn from local ''
kitsune In Japanese folklore, , are foxes that possess paranormal abilities that increase as they get older and wiser. According to ''yōkai'' folklore, all foxes have the ability to shapeshift into human form. While some folktales speak of employing t ...
'' mythology. The modern folk belief, often printed in Japanese books about religion, is that the fox image was a substitute for the
Indian jackal The Indian jackal (''Canis aureus indicus''), also known as the Himalayan jackal is a subspecies of golden jackal native to Pakistan, India, Bhutan, Burma and Nepal. Its karyotype is quite different (2N=78; NF=84) from that of its Eurasian and Af ...
, but the black jackal and other black animals are associated with Kali. In the early modern period, the ḍākinī rite devolved into various spells called Dakini-ten,
Atago Gongen is a Japanese ''kami'' believed to be the local avatar ('' Gongen'') of Buddhist bodhisattva Jizō. The cult originated in Shugendō practices on Mount Atago in Kyoto, and Atago Gongen is worshiped as a protector against fire. There are some ni ...
. Those who felt wronged in their village could go to a corrupt
yamabushi are Japanese mountain ascetic hermits. They are generally part of the syncretic religion, which includes Tantric Buddhist, Shinto, and Japanese Taoist elements. Their origins can be traced back to the solitary Yama-bito and some (saints or ho ...
who practiced black magic, and get him to trap a ''kitsune'' and cause it to possess a third party. Reports of possession became especially common in the Edo and Meiji periods. For details, see ''
kitsunetsuki In Japanese folklore, , are foxes that possess paranormal abilities that increase as they get older and wiser. According to ''yōkai'' folklore, all foxes have the ability to shapeshift into human form. While some folktales speak of employing t ...
''.


Mantra

The ''Mahāvairocana Tantra'' assigns the following
mantra A mantra (Pali: ''manta'') or mantram (मन्त्रम्) is a sacred utterance, a numinous sound, a syllable, word or phonemes, or group of words in Sanskrit, Pali and other languages believed by practitioners to have religious, ma ...
to the ḍākinīs: The following mantra meanwhile is associated with Toyokawa Inari and is said to have been revealed by Dakiniten to Kangan Giin: This mantra is traditionally interpreted as meaning: "When this spell is chanted, the faith in me reaches everywhere, and by the true power of the
Buddhist precepts Buddhist ethics are traditionally based on what Buddhists view as the enlightened perspective of the Buddha. The term for ethics or morality used in Buddhism is ''Śīla'' or ''sīla'' (Pāli). ''Śīla'' in Buddhism is one of three sections of ...
, evil and misfortune will be abolished and luck and wisdom attained; suffering removed and comfort achieved, and pain transformed into delight."


Ḍākinīs ''(Khandroma)'' in Tibetan Buddhism

Although ḍākinī figures appear in
Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...
and
Bon ''Bon'', also spelled Bön () and also known as Yungdrung Bon (, "eternal Bon"), is a Tibetan religious tradition with many similarities to Tibetan Buddhism and also many unique features.Samuel 2012, pp. 220-221. Bon initially developed in t ...
, ḍākinīs occur most notably in
Vajrayana Buddhism Vajrayāna ( sa, वज्रयान, "thunderbolt vehicle", "diamond vehicle", or "indestructible vehicle"), along with Mantrayāna, Guhyamantrayāna, Tantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Tantric Buddhism, and Esoteric Buddhism, are names referring t ...
and especially
Tibetan Buddhism Tibetan Buddhism (also referred to as Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, Lamaism, Lamaistic Buddhism, Himalayan Buddhism, and Northern Buddhism) is the form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet and Bhutan, where it is the dominant religion. It is also in majo ...
. The khandroma, generally of volatile or wrathful temperament, acts somewhat as spiritual
muse In ancient Greek religion and mythology, the Muses ( grc, Μοῦσαι, Moûsai, el, Μούσες, Múses) are the inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge embodied in the ...
for spiritual practice. Dakinis are energetic beings in female form, evocative of the movement of energy in space. In this context, the sky or space indicates
śūnyatā ''Śūnyatā'' ( sa, शून्यता, śūnyatā; pi, suññatā; ), translated most often as ''emptiness'', ''vacuity'', and sometimes ''voidness'', is an Indian philosophical concept. Within Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism and other p ...
, the insubstantiality of all phenomena, which is, at the same time, the pure potentiality for all possible manifestations. The ḍākinī appears in a Vajrayana formulation of the Buddhist refuge formula known as the
Three Roots In Buddhism, the Three Jewels, Triple Gem, or Three Refuges are the supports in which a Buddhist takes refuge by means of a prayer or recitation at the beginning of the day or of a practice session. These Three Jewels are: * The Buddha, the f ...
. Sometimes she appears as the
dharmapala A ''dharmapāla'' (, , ja, 達磨波羅, 護法善神, 護法神, 諸天善神, 諸天鬼神, 諸天善神諸大眷屬) is a type of wrathful god in Buddhism. The name means "''dharma'' protector" in Sanskrit, and the ''dharmapālas'' are als ...
, alongside a
guru Guru ( sa, गुरु, IAST: ''guru;'' Pali'': garu'') is a Sanskrit term for a "mentor, guide, expert, or master" of certain knowledge or field. In pan-Indian traditions, a guru is more than a teacher: traditionally, the guru is a reverentia ...
and
yidam ''Yidam'' is a type of deity associated with tantric or Vajrayana Buddhism said to be manifestations of Buddhahood or enlightened mind. During personal meditation (''sādhana'') practice, the yogi identifies their own form, attributes and mi ...
. An archetypal ḍākinī in Tibetan Buddhism is
Yeshe Tsogyal Yeshe Tsogyal (c. 757 or 777 – 817 CE) , also known as "Victorious Ocean of Knowledge", " Knowledge Lake Empress" (, ཡེ་ཤེས་མཚོ་རྒྱལ), or by her Sanskrit name ''Jñānasāgara'' "Knowledge Ocean", or by her clan n ...
, consort of
Padmasambhava Padmasambhava ("Born from a Lotus"), also known as Guru Rinpoche (Precious Guru) and the Lotus from Oḍḍiyāna, was a tantric Buddhist Vajra master from India who may have taught Vajrayana in Tibet (circa 8th – 9th centuries)... According ...
.


Classes of ḍākinī

Judith Simmer-Brown Judith Simmer-Brown is a Distinguished Professor of Contemplative and Religious Studies Emerita at Naropa University. She has expertise in Tibetan Buddhism, Women and Buddhism, Buddhist-Christian dialogue, Western Buddhism and Contemplative Educ ...
, based on teachings she received from Tibetan
lama Lama (; "chief") is a title for a teacher of the Dharma in Tibetan Buddhism. The name is similar to the Sanskrit term ''guru'', meaning "heavy one", endowed with qualities the student will eventually embody. The Tibetan word "lama" means "hi ...
s, identifies four main classes of ḍākinī. These follow the
twilight language Twilight language is a rendering of the Sanskrit term ' (written also ', ', '; , THL ''gongpé ké'') or of their modern Indic equivalents (especially in Bengali, Odia, Assamese, Maithili, Hindi, Nepali, Braj Bhasha and Khariboli). As popula ...
tradition of
esoteric Buddhism Vajrayāna ( sa, वज्रयान, "thunderbolt vehicle", "diamond vehicle", or "indestructible vehicle"), along with Mantrayāna, Guhyamantrayāna, Tantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Tantric Buddhism, and Esoteric Buddhism, are names referring t ...
in referring to secret, inner, outer and outer-outer classes of ḍākinīs. # The secret class of ḍākinī is
prajnaparamita A Tibetan painting with a Prajñāpāramitā sūtra at the center of the mandala Prajñāpāramitā ( sa, प्रज्ञापारमिता) means "the Perfection of Wisdom" or "Transcendental Knowledge" in Mahāyāna and Theravāda B ...
(Tibetan ''yum chenmo''), the empty nature of reality according to
Mahayana ''Mahāyāna'' (; "Great Vehicle") is a term for a broad group of Buddhist traditions, texts, philosophies, and practices. Mahāyāna Buddhism developed in India (c. 1st century BCE onwards) and is considered one of the three main existing bra ...
doctrine. # The inner class of ḍākinī is the ḍākinī of the
mandala A mandala ( sa, मण्डल, maṇḍala, circle, ) is a geometric configuration of symbols. In various spiritual traditions, mandalas may be employed for focusing attention of practitioners and adepts, as a spiritual guidance tool, for e ...
, a meditational deity (Tibetan:''yidam'') and fully enlightened Buddha who helps the practitioner recognise their own Buddhahood. # The outer ḍākinī is the physical form of the ḍākinī, attained through
completion stage The fundamental practice of Vajrayana and Tibetan tantra is deity yoga (''devatayoga''), meditation on a chosen deity or "cherished divinity" (Skt. ''Iṣṭa-devatā,'' Tib. ''yidam''), which involves the recitation of mantras, prayers and v ...
tantra practices such as the
Six Yogas of Naropa The Six Dharmas of Nāropa (, Skt. ''ṣaḍdharma'', "Naro's six doctrines" or "six teachings"), are a set of advanced Tibetan Buddhist tantric practices compiled by the Indian mahasiddhas Tilopa and Nāropa (1016-1100 CE) and passed on to th ...
that work with the subtle winds of the subtle body so that the practitioner's body is compatible with an enlightened mind. # The outer-outer ḍākinī is a ḍākinī in human form. She is a
yogini A yogini (Sanskrit: योगिनी, IAST: ) is a female master practitioner of tantra and yoga, as well as a formal term of respect for female Hindu or Buddhist spiritual teachers in Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia and Greater Tibet. The ...
in her own right but may also be a
karmamudrā Karmamudrā (Sanskrit; "action seal," Tibetan: ''las-kyi phyag-rgya''; commonly misspelled as: kāmamudrā or "desire seal") is a Vajrayana Buddhist technique which makes use of sexual union with a physical or visualized consort as well as the ...
, or consort, of a
yogi A yogi is a practitioner of Yoga, including a sannyasin or practitioner of meditation in Indian religions.A. K. Banerjea (2014), ''Philosophy of Gorakhnath with Goraksha-Vacana-Sangraha'', Motilal Banarsidass, , pp. xxiii, 297-299, 331 Th ...
or
mahasiddha Mahasiddha (Sanskrit: ''mahāsiddha'' "great adept; ) is a term for someone who embodies and cultivates the " siddhi of perfection". A siddha is an individual who, through the practice of sādhanā, attains the realization of siddhis, psychic ...
. Dakinis can also be classified according to the
Trikaya The Trikāya doctrine ( sa, त्रिकाय, lit. "three bodies"; , ) is a Mahayana Buddhist teaching on both the nature of reality and the nature of Buddhahood. The doctrine says that Buddha has three ''kāyas'' or ''bodies'', the '' Dharm ...
, or three bodies of
buddhahood In Buddhism, Buddha (; Pali, Sanskrit: 𑀩𑀼𑀤𑁆𑀥, बुद्ध), "awakened one", is a title for those who are awake, and have attained nirvana and Buddhahood through their own efforts and insight, without a teacher to point out ...
. # The
Dharmakāya The ''dharmakāya'' ( sa, धर्म काय, "truth body" or "reality body", zh, t=法身, p=fǎshēn, ) is one of the three bodies ('' trikāya'') of a buddha in Mahāyāna Buddhism. The ''dharmakāya'' constitutes the unmanifested, "incon ...
ḍākinī, which is Samantabhadrī, represents the
dharmadhatu Dharmadhatu (Sanskrit) is the 'dimension', 'realm' or 'sphere' (dhātu) of the Dharma or Absolute Reality. Definition In Mahayana Buddhism, dharmadhātu ( bo, chos kyi dbyings; ) means "realm of phenomena", "realm of truth", and of the noumen ...
where all phenomena appear. # The Sambhogakāya ḍākinīs are the
yidam ''Yidam'' is a type of deity associated with tantric or Vajrayana Buddhism said to be manifestations of Buddhahood or enlightened mind. During personal meditation (''sādhana'') practice, the yogi identifies their own form, attributes and mi ...
s used as meditational deities for tantric practice. # The Nirmanakāya ḍākinīs are human women born with special potentialities; these are realized yoginis, consorts of gurus, or even all women in general as they may be classified into the Five Buddha Families.


=Daka

= In some instances, the terms ''ḍāka'' and ''ḍākinī'' have been used for practitioners of tantric yoga themselves. In other instances, just ''ḍākinī'' was used for female practitioners, while male practitioners were just known as ''yogi''.
Padmasambhava Padmasambhava ("Born from a Lotus"), also known as Guru Rinpoche (Precious Guru) and the Lotus from Oḍḍiyāna, was a tantric Buddhist Vajra master from India who may have taught Vajrayana in Tibet (circa 8th – 9th centuries)... According ...
was known as a yogi and
Yeshe Tsogyal Yeshe Tsogyal (c. 757 or 777 – 817 CE) , also known as "Victorious Ocean of Knowledge", " Knowledge Lake Empress" (, ཡེ་ཤེས་མཚོ་རྒྱལ), or by her Sanskrit name ''Jñānasāgara'' "Knowledge Ocean", or by her clan n ...
, a Tibetan princess, yogini and consort of Padmasambhava, as a ḍākinī. The scholar Miranda Shaw stated that "In Sanskrit there is only one word, Dakini. There are only female Dakinis... there is no male Dakini. It is an impossibility and a contradiction in terms." On the other hand,
Pratapaditya Pal Pratapaditya Pal is an Indian scholar of Southeast Asian and Himalayan art and culture, specializing particularly in the history of art of India, Nepal and Tibet. He has served as a curator of South Asian art at several prominent US museums incl ...
stated, "both ''dakas'' and ''dakinis'' occur frequently in Tibetan literature, though the latter predominate." Whereas
Jan Willis Janice Dean Willis, or Jan Willis (born 1948) is Professor of Religion at Wesleyan University, where she has taught since 1977; and the author of books on Tibetan Buddhism. She has been called influential by ''Time Magazine'', ''Newsweek'' (cover ...
in the chapter ''Ḑākinī; Some Comments on Its Nature and Meaning'' points out that "'she' is ''not'' 'female'. Though the ''ḍākinī'' assuredly most often appears in female form... this is but one of the ''myriad'' of ways Absolute Insight chooses to make manifest its facticity." Tibetan Lamas trained in the
Gelug file:DalaiLama0054 tiny.jpg, 240px, 14th Dalai Lama, The 14th Dalai Lama (center), the most influential figure of the contemporary Gelug tradition, at the 2003 Kalachakra ceremony, Bodh Gaya, Bodhgaya (India). The Gelug (, also Geluk; "virtuous ...
school, such as
Sermey Khensur Lobsang Tharchin Sermey Khensur Lobsang Tharchin Rinpoche (1921– 1 December 2004) was a scholar of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism. He was born in Lhasa Lhasa (; Lhasa dialect: ; bo, text=ལྷ་ས, translation=Place of Gods) is the urban center o ...
, and those of the
Karma Kagyu Karma Kagyu (), or Kamtsang Kagyu (), is a widely practiced and probably the second-largest lineage within the Kagyu school, one of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The lineage has long-standing monasteries in Tibet, China, Russia, ...
school such as
Khenpo Karthar Rinpoche Khenpo Karma Tharchin Rinpoche (3 February 1924 – 6 October 2019), widely known by his abbreviated name Khenpo Karthar Rinpoche, was a senior lama of the Karma Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism. Before his death he served as abbot of Karma ...
, write freely of "dakas and dakinis".
Thubten Yeshe Thubten Yeshe (1935–1984) was a Tibetan lama who, while exiled in Nepal, co-founded Kopan Monastery (1969) and the Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition (1975). He followed the Gelug tradition, and was considered unconventio ...
clarifies their meaning: "what are dakas and dakinis? Simply speaking they are males and females who possess advanced experiences of tantric transformation and control and are therefore able to increase the blissful wisdom of a highly qualified practitioner."


In Anuttarayoga Tantra

Being associated with energy in all its functions, ḍākinīs are linked with the revelation of the
Anuttarayoga Tantra Classes of Tantra in Tibetan Buddhism refers to the categorization of Tantras (Buddhism), Buddhist tantric scriptures in Tibetan Buddhism, Indo-Tibetan Buddhism. Tibetan Buddhism inherited numerous tantras and forms of Tantra, tantric practice from ...
s, which represent the path of transformation, whereby the energy of negative emotions or '' kleshas'', called poisons, is transformed into the luminous energy of enlightened awareness yielding the most profound experience of
clear light Clear Light was an American psychedelic rock band that was formed in Los Angeles, California in 1966. The group released one studio album, '' Clear Light''. It had moderate national success before the group disbanded. History In 1966, The Brain ...
.
Thubten Yeshe Thubten Yeshe (1935–1984) was a Tibetan lama who, while exiled in Nepal, co-founded Kopan Monastery (1969) and the Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition (1975). He followed the Gelug tradition, and was considered unconventio ...
explains:


In Dzogchen

When considered as a stage on the Vajrayana Path, the ḍākinī is the final stages: the first is the guru, which corresponds to the initial realization of the true condition of reality, as this is introduced by the guru in the
empowerment Empowerment is the degree of autonomy and self-determination in people and in communities. This enables them to represent their interests in a responsible and self-determined way, acting on their own authority. It is the process of becoming strong ...
, if the disciple obtains what the
Inner Tantras Classes of Tantra in Tibetan Buddhism refers to the categorization of Buddhist tantric scriptures in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism. Tibetan Buddhism inherited numerous tantras and forms of tantric practice from medieval Indian Buddhist Tantra. There were ...
call peyi yeshe () or the clarity of shunyata. The second is the
devata ''Devata'' (pl: ''devatas'', meaning 'the gods') (Devanagari: देवता; Khmer: ទេវតា (''tevoda''); Thai: เทวดา (''tevada''); Javanese, Balinese, Sundanese, Malay: ''dewata''; Batak languages: ''debata'' (Toba) ...
, which corresponds to the
meditation Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique – such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity – to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally cal ...
insofar as the devata is the method used for developing the state discovered in the initial realization of the true condition of reality. The third stage is the ḍākinī insofar as the ḍākinī is the source of the activities based on the realization of the guru and the meditation of the devata. In
Dzogchen Dzogchen (, "Great Perfection" or "Great Completion"), also known as ''atiyoga'' ( utmost yoga), is a tradition of teachings in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism and Yungdrung Bon aimed at discovering and continuing in the ultimate ground of existence. ...
these three correspond to tawa (''lta ba''), gompa (''sgom pa'') and chöpa (''spyod pa''): the first is the direct vision of the true nature of reality rather than an intellectual view of reality, as is the case with the term in other vehicles; the second is the continuity of this vision in sessions of meditation; and the third is the continuity of this vision in everyday activities. As a tantric practice, imperfections are used to make the vision uninterrupted. As the Base, the ḍākinīs are the energies of life; as the Path, they are the activities of advanced practitioners; as the Fruit, they are the actionless activities of realized Masters.


See also

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References


Notes


Citations


Works cited

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Further reading

* * * * *


External links


Dakini
on khandro.net * {{Authority control Buddhist deities Demons in Hinduism Female legendary creatures Fox deities Hindu tantric deities Tantric practices Tibetan Buddhist deities Tibetan Buddhist practices Yidams