Manjushri from Rig Sum Gonpo (Lords of the Three Families), view 2, collected by Sven Hedin in
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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 Mañjuśrīkumārabhūta (),Keown, Damien (editor) with Hodge, Stephen; Jones, Charles; Tinti, Paola (2003). ''A Dictionary of Buddhism.'' Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. p.172. literally "Mañjuśrī, Still a Youth" or, less literally, "Prince Mañjuśrī". Another name of Mañjuśrī is Mañjughoṣa. It is claimed that Nurhaci, the founder of what would become the Qing dynasty of
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
, named his tribe Man (满) after Manjushri.


In Mahāyāna Buddhism

Scholars have identified Mañjuśrī as the oldest and most significant bodhisattva in Mahāyāna literature. Mañjuśrī is first referred to in early
Mahāyāna sūtras The Mahāyāna sūtras are a broad genre of Buddhist scriptures (''sūtra'') that are accepted as canonical and as ''buddhavacana'' ("Buddha word") in Mahāyāna Buddhism. They are largely preserved in the Chinese Buddhist canon, the Tibetan B ...
such as the
Prajñāpāramitā 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 ...
''sūtra''s and through this association, very early in the tradition he came to symbolize the embodiment of ''prajñā'' (transcendent wisdom). The '' Lotus Sutra'' assigns him a
pure land A pure land is the celestial realm of a buddha or bodhisattva in Mahayana Buddhism. The term "pure land" is particular to East Asian Buddhism () and related traditions; in Sanskrit the equivalent concept is called a buddha-field (Sanskrit ). Th ...
called ''Vimala'', which according to the ''
Avatamsaka Sutra The ' (IAST, sa, 𑀅𑀯𑀢𑀁𑀲𑀓 𑀲𑀽𑀢𑁆𑀭) or ''Buddhāvataṃsaka-nāma-mahā­vaipulya-sūtra (The Mahāvaipulya Sūtra named “Buddhāvataṃsaka”)'' is one of the most influential Mahāyāna sutras of East Asian B ...
'' is located in the East. His pure land is predicted to be one of the two best pure lands in all of existence in all the past, present, and future. When he attains Buddhahood his name will be Universal Sight. In the ''Lotus Sūtra'', Mañjuśrī also leads the Nagaraja's daughter to enlightenment. He also figures in the '' Vimalakīrti Sūtra'' in a debate with Vimalakīrti where he is presented as an Arhat who represents the wisdom of the Theravada tradition. An example of a wisdom teaching of Mañjuśrī can be found in the ''Saptaśatikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra'' ( Taishō Tripiṭaka 232). This ''sūtra'' contains a dialogue between Mañjuśrī and the Buddha on the One Samādhi (Skt. ''Ekavyūha Samādhi'').
Sheng-yen Sheng Yen (), born Zhang Baokang (), (January 22, 1931 – February 3, 2009) was a Taiwanese Buddhist monk, religious scholar, and writer. He was one of the mainstream teachers of Chan Buddhism. He was a 57th generational dharma heir of Lin ...
renders the following teaching of Mañjuśrī, for entering ''samādhi'' naturally through transcendent wisdom:


Vajrayāna Buddhism

Within
Vajrayāna 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, Mañjuśrī is a meditational deity and considered a fully enlightened Buddha. In Shingon Buddhism, he is one of the Thirteen Buddhas to whom disciples devote themselves. He figures extensively in many esoteric texts such as the '' Mañjuśrīmūlakalpa'' and the ''
Mañjuśrīnāmasamgīti The ''Mañjuśrī-Nāma-Saṃgīti'' () (hereafter, ''Nama-samgiti'') is considered amongst the most advanced teachings given by the Shakyamuni Buddha. It represents the pinnacle of all Shakyamuni Buddha's teachings, being a tantra of the nondual ...
''. His consort in some traditions is Saraswati. The ''Mañjuśrīmūlakalpa'', which later came to classified under Kriyātantra, states that ''mantra''s taught in the
Śaiva Shaivism (; sa, शैवसम्प्रदायः, Śaivasampradāyaḥ) is one of the major Hindu traditions, which worships Shiva as the Supreme Being. One of the largest Hindu denominations, it incorporates many sub-traditions rangin ...
, Garuḍa, and
Vaiṣṇava Vaishnavism ( sa, वैष्णवसम्प्रदायः, Vaiṣṇavasampradāyaḥ) is one of the major Hindu denominations along with Shaivism, Shaktism, and Smartism. It is also called Vishnuism since it considers Vishnu as the ...
''tantra''s will be effective if applied by Buddhists since they were all taught originally by Mañjuśrī.


Iconography

Mañjuśrī is depicted as a male bodhisattva wielding a flaming sword in his right hand, representing the realization of transcendent wisdom which cuts down ignorance and duality. The scripture supported by the padma (lotus) held in his left hand is a ''Prajñāpāramitā sūtra'', representing his attainment of ultimate realization from the blossoming of wisdom. Mañjuśrī is often depicted as riding on a blue
lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphi ...
or sitting on the skin of a lion. This represents the use of wisdom to tame the mind, which is compared to riding or subduing a ferocious lion. In Chinese and Japanese Buddhist art, Mañjuśrī's sword is sometimes replaced with a '' ruyi'' scepter, especially in representations of his ''
Vimalakirti Sutra The ''Vimalakīrti Nirdeśa'' (Devanagari: विमलकीर्तिनिर्देश) (sometimes referred to as the ''Vimalakīrti Sūtra'' or ''Vimalakīrti Nirdeśa Sūtra'') is a Buddhist text which centers on a lay Buddhist meditat ...
'' discussion with the layman Vimalakirti. According to Berthold Laufer, the first Chinese representation of a ''ruyi'' was in an 8th-century Mañjuśrī painting by
Wu Daozi Wu Daozi (c. 685–758 CE or c. 689–759 CE), also known as Daoxuan and Wu Tao Tzu, was a Chinese painter of the Tang dynasty. The British art historian Michael Sullivan considers him one of "the masters of the seventh century,"Chinese Buddhism, the other three being
Kṣitigarbha Kṣitigarbha ( sa, क्षितिगर्भ, , bo, ས་ཡི་སྙིང་པོ་ Wylie: ''sa yi snying po'') is a bodhisattva primarily revered in East Asian Buddhism and usually depicted as a Buddhist monk. His name may be tr ...
, Avalokiteśvara, and
Samantabhadra Samantabhadra (Lit. "All Good", or "Always Auspicious") may refer to: * Samantabhadra (Bodhisattva), a bodhisattva in Mahayana Buddhism associated with practice and meditation * ''Samantabhadra'' (Tibetan: ''Kuntu Zangpo''), the name of a Buddha, ...
. In China, he is often paired with Samantabhadra. In Tibetan Buddhism, Mañjuśrī is sometimes depicted in a trinity with Avalokiteśvara and Vajrapāṇi.


Mantras

A mantra commonly associated with Mañjuśrī is the following:Buswell, Robert. Lopez, Donald. ''The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism.'' 2013. p. 527 :''oṃ arapacana dhīḥ'' The Arapacana is a
syllabary In the linguistic study of written languages, a syllabary is a set of written symbols that represent the syllables or (more frequently) moras which make up words. A symbol in a syllabary, called a syllabogram, typically represents an (optiona ...
consisting of forty-two letters, and is named after the first five letters: ''a, ra, pa, ca, na''.Buswell, Robert. Lopez, Donald. ''The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism.'' 2013. p. 61 This syllabary was most widely used for the Gāndhārī language with the Kharoṣṭhī script but also appears in some Sanskrit texts. The syllabary features in Mahāyāna texts such as the longer ''
Prajñāpāramitā 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 ...
'' texts, the '' Gaṇḍavyūha Sūtra'', the ''
Lalitavistara Sūtra The ''Lalitavistara Sūtra'' is a Sanskrit Mahayana sutras, Mahayana Buddhist sutra that tells the story of Gautama Buddha from the time of his descent from Tushita until his first sermon in the Deer Park at Sarnath near Varanasi. The term ''La ...
'', the '' Avataṃsaka Sūtra'', the ''
Dharmaguptaka The Dharmaguptaka (Sanskrit: धर्मगुप्तक; ) are one of the eighteen or twenty early Buddhist schools, depending on the source. They are said to have originated from another sect, the Mahīśāsakas. The Dharmaguptakas had a p ...
Vinaya The Vinaya (Pali & Sanskrit: विनय) is the division of the Buddhist canon ('' Tripitaka'') containing the rules and procedures that govern the Buddhist Sangha (community of like-minded ''sramanas''). Three parallel Vinaya traditions remai ...
'', and the '' Mūlasarvāstivāda Vinaya''. In some of these texts, the Arapacana syllabary serves as a mnemonic for important Mahāyāna concepts. Due to its association with him, ''Arapacana'' may even serve as an alternate name for Mañjuśrī. The ''Sutra on Perfect Wisdom'' (Conze 1975) defines the significance of each syllable thus: # ''A'' is a door to the insight that all dharmas are unproduced from the very beginning (''ādya-anutpannatvād''). # ''RA'' is a door to the insight that all dharmas are without dirt (''rajas''). # ''PA'' is a door to the insight that all dharmas have been expounded in the ultimate sense (''paramārtha''). # ''CA'' is a door to the insight that the decrease (''cyavana'') or rebirth of any dharma cannot be apprehended, because all dharmas do not decrease, nor are they reborn. # ''NA'' is a door to the insight that the names (i.e. ''nāma'') of all dharmas have vanished; the essential nature behind names cannot be gained or lost. Tibetan pronunciation is slightly different and so the Tibetan characters read: ' (). In Tibetan tradition, this mantra is believed to enhance wisdom and improve one's skills in debating, memory, writing, and other literary abilities. "" is the seed syllable of the mantra and is chanted with greater emphasis and also repeated a number of times as a decrescendo.


In Buddhist cultures


In China

Mañjuśrī is known in China as ''Wenshu'' ().
Mount Wutai Mount Wutai, also known by its Chinese name Wutaishan and as is a sacred Buddhist site at the headwaters of the Qingshui in Shanxi Province, China. Its central area is surrounded by a cluster of flat-topped peaks roughly corresponding to the c ...
in
Shanxi Shanxi (; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-lev ...
, one of the four Sacred Mountains of China, is considered by Chinese Buddhists to be his bodhimaṇḍa. He was said to bestow spectacular visionary experiences to those on selected mountain peaks and caves there. In Mount Wutai's Foguang Temple, the Manjusri Hall to the right of its main hall was recognized to have been built in 1137 during the Jin dynasty. The hall was thoroughly studied, mapped and first photographed by early twentieth-century Chinese architects Liang Sicheng and Lin Huiyin. These made it a popular place of pilgrimage, but patriarchs including Linji Yixuan and Yunmen Wenyan declared the mountain off limits. Mount Wutai was also associated with the East Mountain Teaching. Mañjuśrī has been associated with Mount Wutai since ancient times. Paul Williams writes: According to official histories from the Qing dynasty, Nurhaci, a military leader of the Jurchens of Northeast China and founder of what became the Qing dynasty, named his tribe after Mañjuśrī as the Manchus. The true origin of the name Manchu is disputed. Monk
Hanshan Hanshan may refer to: *Hanshan (poet) (寒山), a figure associated with a collection of poems from the Tang Dynasty *Hanshan Deqing (憨山德清), a Buddhist monk from the Chinese Ming Dynasty *''Mountain Cry'' (), 2015 Chinese film PR China * ...
(寒山) is widely considered to be a metaphorical manifestation of Mañjuśrī. He is known for having co-written the following famous poem about reincarnation with monk Shide: In Tibetan Buddhism, Mañjuśrī manifests in a number of different Tantric forms. Yamāntaka (meaning 'terminator of Yama i.e. Death') is the
wrathful Anger, also known as wrath or rage, is an intense emotional state involving a strong uncomfortable and non-cooperative response to a perceived provocation, hurt or threat. A person experiencing anger will often experience physical effects, su ...
manifestation of Mañjuśrī, popular within the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism. Other variations upon his traditional form as Mañjuśrī include Namasangiti, Arapacana Manjushri, etc. In Tibetan Buddhism, Mañjuśrī is also an '' yidam''.


In Nepal

According to
Swayambhu Purana Swayambhu Purana or ''Svayambhū Purāṇa'' (Devanagari: स्वयम्भू पुराण) is a Buddhist scripture about the origin and development of Kathmandu valley. Swayambhu Purana gives details of all the Buddhas who came to Kathmandu ...
, the
Kathmandu Valley The Kathmandu Valley ( ne, काठमाडौं उपत्यका; also known as the Nepal Valley or Nepa Valley ( ne, नेपाः उपत्यका, Nepal Bhasa: 𑐣𑐾𑐥𑐵𑑅 𑐐𑐵𑑅, नेपाः गाः)), ...
was once a lake. It is believed that Mañjuśrī came on a pilgrimage from his earthly abode-
Wutaishan Mount Wutai, also known by its Chinese name Wutaishan and as is a sacred Buddhist site at the headwaters of the Qingshui in Shanxi Province, China. Its central area is surrounded by a cluster of flat-topped peaks roughly corresponding to the c ...
(five-peaked mountain) in China. He saw a lotus flower in the center of the lake, which emitted brilliant radiance. He cut a gorge at Chovar with his flaming sword to allow the lake to drain. The place where the lotus flower settled became the great Swayambhunath Stupa, and the valley thus became habitable.


In Indonesia

In eighth century Java during the Mataram Kingdom, Mañjuśrī was a prominent deity revered by the
Sailendra dynasty The Shailendra dynasty (, derived from Sanskrit combined words ''Śaila'' and ''Indra'', meaning "King of the Mountain", also spelled Sailendra, Syailendra or Selendra) was the name of a notable Indianised dynasty that emerged in 8th-century ...
, patrons of Mahayana Buddhism. The Kelurak inscription (782) and Manjusrigrha inscription (792) mentioned about the construction of a grand Prasada named ''Vajrāsana Mañjuśrīgṛha'' (Vajra House of Mañjuśrī) identified today as Sewu temple, located just 800 meters north of the Prambanan. Sewu is the second largest Buddhist temple in Central Java after Borobudur. The depiction of Mañjuśrī in Sailendra art is similar to those of the Pala Empire style of
Nalanda Nalanda (, ) was a renowned ''mahavihara'' (Buddhist monastic university) in ancient Magadha (modern-day Bihar), India.Bihar. Mañjuśrī was portrayed as a youthful handsome man with the palm of his hands tattooed with the image of a flower. His right hand is facing down with an open palm while his left-hand holds an ''utpala'' (blue lotus). He also uses the necklace made of tiger canine teeth.


In other traditions

In Hindu tradition, Manjushri has been depicted as emanation of Shiva.


Gallery

WLA ima Manjusri.jpg, Mañjuśrī figure brandishing sword of wisdom in Nepal Astasahasrika Prajnaparamita Manjusri Bodhisattva.jpeg, Palm leaf manuscript painting of Mañjuśrī.
Nalanda Nalanda (, ) was a renowned ''mahavihara'' (Buddhist monastic university) in ancient Magadha (modern-day Bihar), India.Bihar, India COLLECTIE TROPENMUSEUM Zilveren Manjusri beeld afkomstig uit Ngemplak Semongan TMnr 10016132.jpg, Silver figure of Mañjuśrī holding a long-stemmed lotus. Central Java, Indonesia He Chaozong 1.JPG, Blanc de Chine figure of Mañjuśrī holding a '' ruyi'' scepter. China, 17th century Manjusri Chua Quan Am.jpg, Mañjuśrī on lion with
cintamani Cintāmaṇi (Sanskrit; Devanagari: चिंतामणि; Chinese language, Chinese: 如意寶珠; Pinyin: ''Rúyì bǎozhū''; Japanese Romanization of Japanese, Romaji: ''Nyoihōju; Tamil language, Tamil:சிந்தாமணி''), also ...
.
Quan Âm Pagoda, Ho Chi Minh City Quan Am Temple is a Chinese-style Buddhist temple located on Lao Tu Street in Cho Lon, District 5, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Founded in the 19th century, it is dedicated to Guanyin ( vi, Quan Âm), the Chinese goddess of mercy and the Chi ...
Monju crossing the sea.jpg, Mañjuśrī crossing the sea. Japan Manjushri at Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum.JPG, Manjushri at Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum, Singapore Bodhisattva Manjushri seated in lalitasana, from China, Jin Dynasty, 12th century CE. British Museum.jpg, Bodhisattva Manjushri seated in lalitasana, from China, Jin Dynasty, 12th century CE. British Museum Manjusri, God of Wisdom.jpg, Drawing of Mañjuśrī, Bodhisattva of Wisdom


See also

*
Mañjuśrīmitra Mañjuśrīmitra (d. 740 CE) () was an Indian Buddhist scholar. He became the main student of Garab Dorje and a teacher of Dzogchen. Nomenclature and etymology Mañjuśrī-mitra was his ordination-name—before ordination he was named " Siddhi-gar ...
* Manjusri Monastery *
Washing the Elephant ''Washing the Elephant'' (, literally sweeping the elephant; English variants: "sweeping", and "white" or "sacred" elephant) is a subject in Chinese Buddhist painting, showing a group of men washing a white elephant with brushes, under the supe ...


References


Citations


Sources

*


Further reading

Harrison, Paul M. (2000)
Mañjuśrī and the Cult of the Celestial Bodhisattvas
Chung-Hwa Buddhist Journal 13, 157-193


External links


Page dedicated to the Manjusri mantra, with several audio versions.
{{Authority control Bodhisattvas Yidams