Mahāpratisarā (Ch: 大随求菩薩;

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 ...

: ''Dàsuíqiú''; Jp: ''Daizuigu'') is a female Buddhist deity 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 ...

and

Vajrayana 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 ...

Buddhism. She is sometimes presented as the consort of Vairocana or as an emanation of

Ratnasambhava Ratnasambhava ( sa, रत्नसम्भव, lit. "Jewel-Born") is one of the Five Dhyani Buddhas (or "Five Meditation Buddhas") of Mahayana and Vajrayana or Tantric Buddhism. Ratnasambhava's mandalas and mantras focus on developing equanimity ...

Buddha.Bhattacharyya Benoytosh (1924).
The Indian Buddhist Iconography Mainly Based on the Sādhanamālā and Other Cognate Tāntric Texts of Rituals
', pp. 116-117. Oxford University Press. Mahāpratisarā is the main deity of the fivefold

Pañcarakṣā ''Pañcarakṣā'' means "Five Protectors", and it is the title of a Buddhist text in Sanskrit. It is an early work in the ''dhāraṇī Dharanis (IAST: ), also known as ''Parittas'', are Buddhist chants, mnemonic codes, incantations, or recit ...

set of protector deities and thus she is often shown surrounded by the other four protector goddesses. In the Indian Tantric Buddhist ''Sadhanamala'', she is depicted as yellow in complexion, with three faces with three eyes each, ten arms, carrying various implements and weapons. In East Asian Esoteric Buddhism, this deity is found in the Garbhadhatu Mandala and is associated with protection. She is invoked through her mantra which is believed to fulfill the wishes of sentient beings, especially in eliminating defilement and averting calamities. In Japan, Mahāpratisarā was popular during the

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. ...

. She is sometimes depicted with a yellow body and eight arms, though the iconography varies. There are various texts associated with Mahāpratisarā in the East Asian Buddhist canon, including two

dharani Dharanis (IAST: ), also known as ''Parittas'', are Buddhist chants, mnemonic codes, incantations, or recitations, usually the mantras consisting of Sanskrit or Pali phrases. Believed to be protective and with powers to generate merit for the Bud ...

sutras and two ritual manuals. Several Japanese Buddhist temples contain images of this deity, including

Kanshin-ji is a Buddhist temple located in the Teramoto neighborhood of the city of Kawachinagano, Osaka Prefecture, in the Kansai region of Japan. It is one of the head temples of the Kōyasan Shingon-shū branch of Shingon Buddhism. The temple has s ...

Kiyomizu-dera is a Buddhist temple located in eastern Kyoto, Japan. The temple is part of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto (Kyoto, Uji and Otsu Cities) UNESCO World Heritage site. History Kiyomizu-dera was founded in the early Heian period. By 77 ...

and

Ishite-ji is a Shingon temple in Matsuyama, Ehime Prefecture, Japan. It is Temple 51 on the Shikoku 88 temple pilgrimage. Its name means Stone Hand Temple (石手寺). Seven of its structures have been designated National Treasures or Important Cultu ...

Notes

Bodhisattvas {{Buddhism-stub