Tara (Buddhism)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Tara ( sa, तारा, ; bo, སྒྲོལ་མ, ), Ārya Tārā, or Shayama Tara, also known as Jetsun Dölma (Tibetan: ''rje btsun sgrol ma'') is an important figure in
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 ...
, especially revered 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 ...
. She appears as a female
bodhisattva In Buddhism, a bodhisattva ( ; sa, 𑀩𑁄𑀥𑀺𑀲𑀢𑁆𑀢𑁆𑀯 (Brahmī), translit=bodhisattva, label=Sanskrit) or bodhisatva is a person who is on the path towards bodhi ('awakening') or Buddhahood. In the Early Buddhist schools ...
in
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 ...
Buddhism, and as a female
Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a śramaṇa, 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 ...
in
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 known as the "mother of liberation", and represents the virtues of success in work and achievements. She is known as ''Duōluó Púsà'' (多羅菩薩) in
Chinese Buddhism Chinese Buddhism or Han Buddhism ( zh, s=汉传佛教, t=漢傳佛教, p=Hànchuán Fójiào) is a Chinese form of Mahayana Buddhism which has shaped Chinese culture in a wide variety of areas including art, politics, literature, philosophy, ...
, and as ''Tara Bosatsu'' (多羅菩薩) 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 ...
. Tārā is a meditation deity revered by practitioners of the Tibetan branch of
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 to develop certain inner qualities and to understand outer, inner and secret teachings such as
karuṇā ' () is generally translated as compassion or mercy and sometimes as self-compassion or spiritual longing. It is a significant spiritual concept in the Indic religions of Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, and Jainism. Buddhism is important in ...
(compassion), mettā (loving-kindness), and shunyata (emptiness). Tārā may more properly be understood as different aspects of the same quality, as bodhisattvas are often considered personifications of Buddhist methods. There is also recognition in some schools of
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 ...
of ''twenty-one Tārās''. A practice text entitled ''
Praises to the Twenty-One Taras Praises to the Twenty-One Taras is a traditional prayer in Tibetan Buddhism to the female Bodhisattva Tara ( sa, तारा, ; Tibetan སྒྲོལ་མ, Drolma) also known as Ārya Tārā, or Jetsun Dolma ( Wylie:''rje btsun sgrol ma''). I ...
'', is the most important text on Tara 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 ...
. Another key text is the ''Tantra Which is the Source for All the Functions of Tara, Mother of All the Tathagatas''. The main Tārā
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, ...
is the same for Buddhists and Hindus alike: . It is pronounced by Tibetans and Buddhists who follow the Tibetan traditions as . The literal translation would be "Oṃ O Tārā, I pray O Tārā, O Swift One, So Be It!"


Emergence as a Buddhist deity

Within
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 ...
Tārā is regarded as a
bodhisattva In Buddhism, a bodhisattva ( ; sa, 𑀩𑁄𑀥𑀺𑀲𑀢𑁆𑀢𑁆𑀯 (Brahmī), translit=bodhisattva, label=Sanskrit) or bodhisatva is a person who is on the path towards bodhi ('awakening') or Buddhahood. In the Early Buddhist schools ...
of compassion and action. She is the female aspect of
Avalokiteśvara In Buddhism, Avalokiteśvara (Sanskrit: अवलोकितेश्वर, IPA: ) is a bodhisattva who embodies the compassion of all Buddhas. He has 108 avatars, one notable avatar being Padmapāṇi (lotus bearer). He is variably depicted, ...
and in some origin stories she comes from his tears: "Then at last Avalokiteshvara arrived at the summit of Marpori, the 'Red Hill', in Lhasa. Gazing out, he perceived that the lake on Otang, the 'Plain of Milk', resembled the Hell of Ceaseless Torment. Myriad beings were undergoing the agonies of boiling, burning, hunger, thirst, yet they never perished, sending forth hideous cries of anguish all the while. When Avalokiteshvara saw this, tears sprang to his eyes. A teardrop from his right eye fell to the plain and became the reverend
Bhrikuti Princess Bhrikuti Devi ( sa, भृकुटी, known to Tibetans as Bal-mo-bza' Khri-btsun, Bhelsa Tritsun (Nepal ), or simply, Khri bTsun ()) of Licchavi is traditionally considered to have been the first wife and queen of the earliest emperor ...
, who declared: 'Child of your lineage! As you are striving for the sake of sentient beings in the Land of Snows, intercede in their suffering, and I shall be your companion in this endeavour!' Bhrikuti was then reabsorbed into Avalokiteshvara's right eye, and was reborn in a later life as the Nepalese princess Tritsun. A teardrop from his left eye fell upon the plain and became the reverend Tara. She also declared, 'Child of your lineage! As you are striving for the sake of sentient beings in the Land of Snows, intercede in their suffering, and I shall be your companion in this endeavor!' Tārā was then reabsorbed into Avalokiteshvara's left eye." Tārā manifests in many different forms. In Tibet, these forms included Green Tārā's manifestation as the Nepalese Princess (
Bhrikuti Princess Bhrikuti Devi ( sa, भृकुटी, known to Tibetans as Bal-mo-bza' Khri-btsun, Bhelsa Tritsun (Nepal ), or simply, Khri bTsun ()) of Licchavi is traditionally considered to have been the first wife and queen of the earliest emperor ...
), and White Tārā's manifestation as the Chinese princess Kongjo (
Princess Wencheng Princess Wencheng (; ) was a member of a minor branch of the royal clan of the Tang Dynasty who married King Songtsen Gampo of the Tibetan Empire in 641. She is also known by the name Gyasa or "Chinese wife" in Tibet. Some Tibetan historians cons ...
). Tārā is also known as a saviouress, as a heavenly deity who hears the cries of beings experiencing misery in saṃsāra. Whether the Tārā figure originated as a Buddhist or Hindu goddess is unclear and remains a source of inquiry among scholars. Mallar Ghosh believes her to have originated as a form of the goddess
Durga Durga ( sa, दुर्गा, ) is a major Hindu goddess, worshipped as a principal aspect of the mother goddess Mahadevi. She is associated with protection, strength, motherhood, destruction, and wars. Durga's legend centres around c ...
in the Hindu
Puranas Purana (; sa, , '; literally meaning "ancient, old"Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature (1995 Edition), Article on Puranas, , page 915) is a vast genre of Indian literature about a wide range of topics, particularly about legends an ...
. Today, she is worshiped both in Buddhism and in
Shaktism Shaktism ( sa, शाक्त, , ) is one of several major Hindu denominations, wherein the metaphysical reality is considered metaphorically a woman and Shakti ( Mahadevi) is regarded as the supreme godhead. It includes many goddesses, al ...
(Hinduism) as one of the ten Mahavidyas. It may be true that goddesses entered Buddhism from Shaktism (i.e. the worship of local or folk goddesses prior to the more institutionalized
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 ...
which had developed by the early medieval period (i.e.
Middle kingdoms of India The middle kingdoms of India were the political entities in the Indian subcontinent from 200 BCE to 1200 CE. The period begins after the decline of the Maurya Empire and the corresponding rise of the Satavahana dynasty, starting with Simuka, ...
). According to Beyer, it would seem that the feminine principle makes its first appearance in Buddhism as the goddess who personified prajnaparamita. Tārā came to be seen as an expression of the compassion of perfected wisdom only later, with her earliest textual reference being the ''
Mañjuśrī-mūla-kalpa The ''AryaMañjuśrīmūlakalpa'' or ''Arya-Mañjuśrī-mūla-kalpa'' is a text of the Kriyā-tantra class. It is affiliated with the bodhisattva In Buddhism, a bodhisattva ( ; sa, 𑀩𑁄𑀥𑀺𑀲𑀢𑁆𑀢𑁆𑀯 (Brahmī), translit= ...
'' (c. 5th–8th centuries CE). The earliest, solidly identifiable image of Tārā is most likely that which is still found today at cave 6 within the rock-cut Buddhist monastic complex of the
Ellora Caves Ellora is a UNESCO World Heritage Site located in the Aurangabad district of Maharashtra, India. It is one of the largest rock-cut Hindu temple cave complexes in the world, with artwork dating from the period 600–1000 CE., Quote: "These 34 mo ...
in
Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...
(c. 7th century CE), with her worship being well established by the onset of the
Pala Empire The Pāla Empire (r. 750-1161 CE) was an imperial power during the post-classical period in the Indian subcontinent, which originated in the region of Bengal. It is named after its ruling dynasty, whose rulers bore names ending with the suffi ...
in
Eastern India East India is a region of India consisting of the Indian states of Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and West Bengal and also the union territory of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The region roughly corresponds to the historical region of Magadha fr ...
(8th century CE). Tārā became a very popular
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 ...
deity with the rise of Tantra in 8th-century Pala and, with the movement of Indian Buddhism into Tibet through
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 ...
, the worship and practices of Tārā became incorporated into Tibetan Buddhism as well. She eventually came to be considered the "Mother of all Buddhas", which usually refers to the enlightened wisdom of the Buddhas, while simultaneously echoing the ancient concept of the Mother Goddess in India. Independent of whether she is classified as a deity, a Buddha, or a bodhisattva, Tārā remains very popular in
Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...
(and Tibetan communities in exile in Northern India),
Mongolia Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 million, ...
,
Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...
,
Bhutan Bhutan (; dz, འབྲུག་ཡུལ་, Druk Yul ), officially the Kingdom of Bhutan,), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is situated in the Eastern Himalayas, between China in the north and India in the south. A mountainous ...
, Sikkim and is worshiped in a majority of Buddhist communities throughout the world (see also
Guanyin Guanyin () is a Bodhisattva associated with compassion. She is the East Asian representation of Avalokiteśvara ( sa, अवलोकितेश्वर) and has been adopted by other Eastern religions, including Chinese folk religion. She ...
, the female aspect of Avalokitesvara in Chinese Buddhism). Today, Green Tara and White Tara are probably the most popular representations of Tara. Green Tara (''Khadiravani'') is usually associated with protection from fear and the following eight obscurations: lions (= pride), wild elephants (= delusion/ignorance), fires (= hatred and anger), snakes (= jealousy), bandits and thieves (= wrong views, including fanatical views), bondage (= avarice and miserliness), floods (= desire and attachment), and evil spirits and demons (= deluded doubts). As one of the three deities of long life, White Tara (''Saraswati'') is associated with longevity. White Tara counteracts illness and thereby helps to bring about a long life. She embodies the motivation that is compassion and is said to be as white and radiant as the moon. File:The Buddhist Goddess Shyama Tara (Green Tara) Attended by Sita Tara (White Tara) and Bhrikuti LACMA M.84.32.1a-d.jpg, Shyama Tara (Green Tara) Attended by Sita Tara (White Tara) and Cintamani Tārā (Yellow Tara). c. 8th century. File:Tara-british.museum.jpg, Statue of Tara, Sri Lanka, 7th - 8th century File:Javanese - The Buddhist Goddess Tara - Walters 572282.jpg, ''The Buddhist Goddess Tara'', gold and silver, Central Java, Indonesia, c. 9th century. The Walters Art Museum. File:Prajnaparamita Java Front.JPG, Tara as Prajñāpāramitā, 13th century,
Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...
,
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
. File:White Tara.jpg, Sita (White) Tara by Öndör Gegeen
Zanabazar Öndör Gegeen Zanabazar, , , "High Saint Zanabazar"; 1635–1723 (born Eshidorji) was the sixteenth '' Jebtsundamba Khutuktu'' and the first ''Bogd Gegeen'' or supreme spiritual authority, of the Gelugpa (Yellow Hat) lineage of Tibetan Buddhism ...
. Mongolia, c. 17th century.


Origin as a Buddhist bodhisattva

Tārā has many stories told which explain her origin as a
bodhisattva In Buddhism, a bodhisattva ( ; sa, 𑀩𑁄𑀥𑀺𑀲𑀢𑁆𑀢𑁆𑀯 (Brahmī), translit=bodhisattva, label=Sanskrit) or bodhisatva is a person who is on the path towards bodhi ('awakening') or Buddhahood. In the Early Buddhist schools ...
. In this tale there is a young
princess Princess is a regal rank and the feminine equivalent of prince (from Latin ''princeps'', meaning principal citizen). Most often, the term has been used for the consort of a prince, or for the daughter of a king or prince. Princess as a subst ...
who lives in a different world system, millions of years in the past. Her name is Jnanachandra or Yeshe Dawa, which means "Moon of Primordial Awareness". For quite a number of
aeon The word aeon , also spelled eon (in American and Australian English), originally meant "life", "vital force" or "being", "generation" or "a period of time", though it tended to be translated as "age" in the sense of "ages", "forever", "timele ...
s she makes offerings to the Buddha of that world system, whose name was Tonyo Drupa. She receives special instruction from him concerning
bodhicitta In Mahayana Buddhism, bodhicitta, ("enlightenment-mind" or "the thought of awakening"), is the mind (citta) that is aimed at awakening ( bodhi), with wisdom and compassion for the benefit of all sentient beings. Bodhicitta is the defining qua ...
- the infinitely compassionate mental state of a bodhisattva. After doing this, some monks approach her and suggest that because of her level of attainment she should next pray to be reborn as a male to progress further. At this point she lets the monks know in no uncertain terms that it is only "weak minded worldlings" who see gender as a barrier to attaining enlightenment. She sadly notes there have been few who wish to work for the welfare of sentient beings in a female form, though. Therefore, she resolves to always be reborn as a female bodhisattva, until samsara is no more. She then stays in a palace in a state of
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 ...
for some ten million years, and the power of this practice releases tens of millions of beings from suffering. As a result of this, Tonyo Drupa tells her she will henceforth manifest supreme bodhi as the Goddess Tārā in many world systems to come. With this story in mind, it is interesting to juxtapose this with a quotation from the
14th Dalai Lama The 14th Dalai Lama (spiritual name Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso, known as Tenzin Gyatso (Tibetan: བསྟན་འཛིན་རྒྱ་མཚོ་, Wylie: ''bsTan-'dzin rgya-mtsho''); né Lhamo Thondup), known as ...
about Tārā, spoken at a conference on Compassionate Action in Newport Beach, California in 1989: Tārā, then, embodies certain ideals which make her attractive to women practitioners, and her emergence as a Bodhisattva can be seen as a part of
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 ...
Buddhism's reaching out to women, and becoming more inclusive even in 6th-century CE
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
.


Symbols and associations

Tārā's name literally means "star" or "planet", and therefore she is associated with navigation and travel both literally and metaphorically as spiritual crossing to the 'other side' of the ocean of existence (enlightenment). Hence she is known literally as "she who saves" in Tibetan. In the ''108 Names of the Holy Tara'', Tara is 'Leader of the caravans ..... who showeth the way to those who have lost it' and she is named as ''Dhruva'', the Sanskrit name for the
North Star Polaris is a star in the northern circumpolar constellation of Ursa Minor. It is designated α Ursae Minoris ( Latinized to ''Alpha Ursae Minoris'') and is commonly called the North Star or Pole Star. With an apparent magnitude tha ...
. According to Miranda Shaw, "
Motherhood ] A mother is the female parent of a child. A woman may be considered a mother by virtue of having given birth, by raising a child who may or may not be her biological offspring, or by supplying her ovum for fertilisation in the case of gesta ...
is central to the conception of Tara". Her titles include "loving mother", "supreme mother", "mother of the world", "universal mother" and "mother of all Buddhas". She is most often shown with the blue lotus or night lotus (''utpala''), which releases its fragrance with the appearance of the moon and therefore Tārā is also associated with the moon and night. Tārā is also a forest goddess, particularly in her form as ''Khadiravani'', "dweller in the Khadira forest" and is generally associated with plant life, flowers, acacia (khadira) trees and the wind. Because of her association with nature and plants, Tārā is also known as a healing goddess (especially as White Tārā) and as a goddess of nurturing quality and fertility. Her pure land in Mount Potala is described as "Covered with manifold trees and creepers, resounding with the sound of many birds, And with murmur of waterfalls, thronged with wild beasts of many kinds; Many species of flowers grow everywhere." Her association with the wind element (vaayu) also means that she is swift in responding to calls for any aid.


As a saviouress

Tārā also embodies many of the qualities of feminine principle. She is known as the Mother of Mercy and Compassion. She is the source, the female aspect of the universe, which gives birth to warmth, compassion and relief from bad karma as experienced by ordinary beings in cyclic existence. She engenders, nourishes, smiles at the vitality of creation, and has sympathy for all beings as a mother does for her children. As Green Tārā she offers succor and protection from all the unfortunate circumstances one can encounter within the samsaric world. As White Tārā she expresses maternal compassion and offers healing to beings who are hurt or wounded, either mentally or psychically. As Red Tārā she teaches discriminating awareness about created phenomena, and how to turn raw desire into compassion and love. As Blue Tārā (
Ekajati Ekajaṭī or Ekajaṭā (Sanskrit: "One Plait Woman"; : one who has one knot of hair), also known as Māhacīnatārā,''The Alchemical Body: Siddha Traditions in Medieval India'' By David Gordon White. pg 65 is one of the 21 Taras. Ekajati is ...
) she becomes a protector in the
Nyingma Nyingma (literally 'old school') is the oldest of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. It is also often referred to as ''Ngangyur'' (, ), "order of the ancient translations". The Nyingma school is founded on the first lineages and transl ...
lineage, who expresses a ferocious, wrathful, female energy whose invocation destroys all Dharmic obstacles that engender good luck and swift spiritual awakening. Within
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 ...
, she has 21 major forms in all, each tied to a certain color and energy. And each offers some feminine attribute, of ultimate benefit to the spiritual aspirant who asks for her assistance. Another quality of feminine principle which she shares with the
dakini 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 and Bud ...
s is playfulness. As
John Blofeld John Eaton Calthorpe Blofeld (2 April 1913 – 7 June 1987) was a British writer on Asian thought and religion, especially Taoism and Chinese Buddhism. Early life Blofeld was born in London in 1913.Blofeld 2008, pg. 4 In his youth, he happened ...
expands upon in ''Bodhisattva of Compassion'', Tārā is frequently depicted as a young sixteen-year-old girlish woman. She often manifests in the lives of
dharma Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...
practitioners when they take themselves, or the spiritual path too seriously. There are Tibetan tales in which she laughs at self-righteousness, or plays pranks on those who lack reverence for the feminine. In ''Magic Dance: The Display of the Self-Nature of the Five Wisdom Dakinis'', Thinley Norbu explores this as "Playmind". Applied to Tārā one could say that her playful mind can relieve ordinary minds which become rigidly serious or tightly gripped by dualistic distinctions. She takes delight in an open mind and a receptive heart then. For in this openness and receptivity her blessings can naturally unfold and her energies can quicken the aspirants spiritual development. These qualities of feminine principle then, found an expression in Indian
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 ...
Buddhism and the emerging
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 ...
of Tibet, as the many forms of Tārā, as dakinis, as
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 ...
, and as many other local and specialized feminine divinities. As the worship of Tārā developed, various prayers, chants and mantras became associated with her. These came out of a felt devotional need, and from her inspiration causing spiritual masters to compose and set down sadhanas, or tantric meditation practices. Two ways of approach to her began to emerge. In one common folk and lay practitioners would simply directly appeal to her to ease some of the travails of worldly life. In the second, she became a Tantric deity whose practice would be used by monks or tantric yogis in order to develop her qualities in themselves, ultimately leading through her to the source of her qualities, which are Enlightenment, Enlightened Compassion, and Enlightened Mind.


As a Tantric deity

Tārā as a focus for tantric
deity yoga 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 vi ...
can be traced back to the time period 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 ...
. There is a Red Tārā practice which was given by Padmasambhava to
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 ...
. He asked that she hide it as a treasure. It was not until the 20th century, that a great Nyingma lama, Apong Terton rediscovered it. It is said that this lama was reborn as
Sakya Trizin Sakya Trizin ( "Sakya Throne-Holder") is the traditional title of the head of the Sakya school of Tibetan Buddhism.''Holy Biographies of the Great Founders of the Glorious Sakya Order'', translated by Venerable Lama Kalsang Gyaltsen, Ani Kunga C ...
, present head of the
Sakyapa The ''Sakya'' (, 'pale earth') school is one of four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism, the others being the Nyingma, Kagyu, and Gelug. It is one of the Red Hat Orders along with the Nyingma and Kagyu. Origins Virūpa, 16th century. It depict ...
sect. A monk who had known Apong Terton succeeded in retransmitting it to Sakya Trizin, and the same monk also gave it to
Chagdud Tulku Rinpoche Chagdud Tulku (, 1930–2002) was a Tibetan teacher of the Nyingma school of Vajrayana Tibetan Buddhism. He was known and respected in the West for his teachings, his melodic chanting voice, his artistry as a sculptor and painter, and his skill ...
, who released it to his western students. Martin Willson in ''In Praise of Tārā'' traces many different lineages of Tārā Tantras, that is Tārā scriptures used as Tantric sadhanas. For example, a Tārā sadhana was revealed to
Tilopa Tilopa (Prakrit; Sanskrit: Talika or Tilopadā; 988–1069) was an Indian Buddhist monk in the tantric Kagyu lineage of Tibetan Buddhism. He lived along the Ganges River, with wild ladies as a tantric practitioner and mahasiddha. He practice ...
(988–1069 CE), the human father 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, Mon ...
. Atisa, the great translator and founder of the
Kadampa 300px, Tibetan Portrait of Atiśa The Kadam school () of Tibetan Buddhism was an 11th century Buddhist tradition founded by the great Bengali master Atiśa (982-1054) and his students like Dromtön (1005–1064), a Tibetan Buddhist lay master. ...
school of Tibetan Buddhism, was a devotee of Tārā. He composed a praise to her, and three Tārā Sadhanas. Martin Willson's work also contains charts which show origins of her tantras in various lineages, but suffice to say that Tārā as a tantric practice quickly spread from around the 7th century CE onwards, and remains an important part of Vajrayana Buddhism to this day. The practices themselves usually present Tārā as a tutelary deity (thug dam,
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 ...
) which the practitioners sees as being a latent aspect of one's mind, or a manifestation in a visible form of a quality stemming from Buddha Jnana. As John Blofeld puts it in ''The Tantric Mysticism of Tibet'':


Forms

There are many forms of Tārā, including various popular lists of 21 different emanations of Tārā. Green Tārā, (śyāmatārā) associated with peacefulness and enlightened activity is the most depicted and the central aspect of Tārā from which others such as the 21 Tārās emanate. In her Green form, she is often also known as Khadiravaṇi-Tārā (Tārā of the acacia forest), who appeared to
Nagarjuna Nāgārjuna . 150 – c. 250 CE (disputed)was an Indian Mahāyāna Buddhist thinker, scholar-saint and philosopher. He is widely considered one of the most important Buddhist philosophers.Garfield, Jay L. (1995), ''The Fundamental Wisdom of ...
in the Khadiravani forest of
South India South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the union territo ...
and protects from the eight great fears. She is often accompanied by her two attendants Mārīcī and Ekajaṭā. Dharmachari Purna writes on the various forms of Tara: According to Sarvajnamitra she has a "universal form" (''visva-rupa''), that encompasses all living beings and deities, and which changes with the needs of each being. Other forms of Tārā include: *White Tārā, (Sitatārā) with two arms seated on a white lotus and with eyes on her hand and feet, as well as a third eye on her forehead (thus she is also known as "Seven eyed"). She is known for compassion, long life, healing and serenity. Also known as The Wish-fulfilling Wheel, or Cintachakra. *Pravīratārā, "Tārā Swift and Heroic", a Red colored form with eight arms holding bell and vajra, bow and arrow, wheel, conch, sword and noose. * Kurukullā (Rigjema) of red color and fierce aspect associated with magnetizing all good things *Black Tārā (Ugra Tārā), associated with power *Various forms of Yellow or Golden colored Tārās, sometimes associated with wealth and
prosperity Prosperity is the flourishing, thriving, good fortune and successful social status. Prosperity often produces profuse wealth including other factors which can be profusely wealthy in all degrees, such as happiness and health. Competing notion ...
including "Yellow Cintamani Tārā" ("Wish-Granting Gem Tara") holding a wish granting jewel, eight armed "Vajra Tārā" and golden "Rajasri Tārā" holding a blue lotus. * Blue Tārā (Ekajati), wrathful with many heads and arms, associated with transmutation of anger. Some authors believe her to be identical with Ugra Tārā and Ekajati. *Cintāmaṇi Tārā, a form of Tārā widely practiced at the level of
Highest Yoga Tantra 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 ...
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 of
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 ...
, portrayed as green and often conflated with Green Tārā *
Sarasvati Saraswati ( sa, सरस्वती, ) is the Hindu goddess of knowledge, music, art, speech, wisdom, and learning. She is one of the Tridevi, along with the goddesses Lakshmi and Parvati. The earliest known mention of Saraswati as a god ...
(Yangchenma), known for the arts, knowledge and wisdom *Bhṛkuṭītārā (Tronyer Chendze), "Tārā with a Frown", known for protection from spirits * Uṣṇīṣavijaya Tārā, White Tārā named "Victorious Uṣṇīṣa" with three faces and twelve arms, associated with long life *Golden Prasanna Tārā - wrathful form, with a necklace of bloody heads and sixteen arms holding an array of weapons and Tantric attributes. *
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 ...
("Wisdom Lake Queen"), the 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 ...
who brought Buddhism to Tibet, was known as an emanation of Tārā *Rigjay Lhamo, "Goddess Who Brings Forth Awareness", seated in royal posture surrounded by rainbow light. *
Sitatapatra Sitātapatra (Sanskrit: "White Parasol") is a protector against supernatural danger in Buddhism. She is venerated in both the Mahayana and Vajrayana traditions. She is also known as Usnisasitatapatra or ''Uṣṇīṣa Sitātapatra''. It is belie ...
Tārā, protector against supernatural danger Tārā's iconography such as the lotus also shows resemblance with the Hindu goddess
Lakshmi Lakshmi (; , sometimes spelled Laxmi, ), also known as Shri (, ), is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism. She is the goddess of wealth, fortune, power, beauty, fertility and prosperity, and associated with ''Maya'' ("Illusion"). Alo ...
, and at least one Tibetan liturgy evokes Lakshmi as Tārā. According to Shaw, there is a later trend of Tārā theology that began to see all other female divinities as aspects of Tārā or at least associated with her. Apart from her many emanations named Tārā of varying colors, other Mahayana female divinities that became part of Tara's theology include Janguli,
Parnasabari Parnashavari (IAST: Parṇaśabarī, sa, पर्णशबरी), also spelt as Paranasavari (Paranasabari), is a Hindu deity adopted as Buddhist deity of diseases, worship of which is believed to offer effective protection against out-breaks ...
, Cunda, Kurukulla,
Mahamayuri Mahamayuri ( sa, महामायूरी ("great peacock"), ''Kǒngquè Míngwáng'', vi, Khổng Tước Minh Vương, ja, 孔雀明王, ''Kujaku Myōō'', ko, 공작명왕 ''Gongjak Myeongwang''), or Mahāmāyūrī Vidyārājñī is a b ...
, Usnisavijaya, and Marici. Based on this principle of Tārā as the central female divinity,
Dakinis 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 and Bud ...
were also seen as emanations of her.


Sadhanas

Sadhanas in which Tārā is 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 ...
(meditational deity) can be extensive or quite brief. Most all of them include some introductory praises or homages to invoke her presence and prayers of taking refuge. Then her
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, ...
is recited, followed by a visualization of her, perhaps more mantra, then the visualization is dissolved, followed by a dedication of the merit from doing the practice. Additionally there may be extra prayers of aspirations, and a long life prayer for the Lama who originated the practice. Many of the Tārā sadhanas are seen as beginning practices within the world of
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 ...
, however what is taking place during the visualization of the deity actually invokes some of the most sublime teachings of all Buddhism. In this case during the creation phase of Tārā as a yidam, she is seen as having as much reality as any other phenomena apprehended through the mind. By reciting her mantra and visualizing her form in front, or on the head of the adept, one is opening to her energies of compassion and wisdom. After a period of time the practitioner shares in some of these qualities, becomes imbued with her being and all it represents. At the same time all of this is seen as coming out of Emptiness and having a translucent quality like a rainbow. Then many times there is a visualization of oneself as Tārā. One simultaneously becomes inseparable from all her good qualities while at the same time realizing the emptiness of the visualization of oneself as 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 ...
and also the emptiness of one's ordinary self. This occurs in the completion stage of the practice. One dissolves the created deity form and at the same time also realizes how much of what we call the "self" is a creation of the mind, and has no long term substantial inherent existence. This part of the practice then is preparing the practitioner to be able to confront the dissolution of one's self at death and ultimately be able to approach through various stages of meditation upon emptiness, the realization of Ultimate Truth as a vast display of
Emptiness Emptiness as a human condition is a sense of generalized boredom, social alienation and apathy. Feelings of emptiness often accompany dysthymia, depression (mood), depression, loneliness, anhedonia, wiktionary:despair, despair, or other mental/em ...
and Luminosity. At the same time the recitation of the mantra has been invoking Tārā's energy through its
Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
seed syllables and this purifies and activates certain energy centers of the body (
chakras Chakras (, ; sa , text=चक्र , translit=cakra , translit-std=IAST , lit=wheel, circle; pi, cakka) are various focal points used in a variety of ancient meditation practices, collectively denominated as Tantra, or the esoteric or ...
). This also untangles knots of psychic energy which have hindered the practitioner from developing a Vajra body, which is necessary to be able to progress to more advanced practices and deeper stages of realization. Therefore, even in a simple Tārā sadhana a plethora of outer, inner, and secret events is taking place and there are now many works such as ''Deity Yoga'', compiled by the present Dalai Lama, which explores all the ramifications of working with a
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 ...
in Tantric practices. The end results of doing such Tārā practices are many. For one thing it reduces the forces of delusion in the forms of negative karma, sickness, afflictions of kleshas, and other obstacles and obscurations. The mantra helps generate Bodhicitta within the heart of the practitioner and purifies the psychic channels (
nadis ( sa, नाडी, lit=tube, pipe, nerve, blood vessel, pulse) is a term for the channels through which, in traditional Indian medicine and spiritual theory, the energies such as prana of the physical body, the subtle body and the causal body ...
) within the body allowing a more natural expression of generosity and compassion to flow from the heart center. Through experiencing Tārā's perfected form one acknowledges one's own perfected form, that is one's intrinsic Buddha nature, which is usually covered over by obscurations and clinging to dualistic
phenomena A phenomenon ( : phenomena) is an observable event. The term came into its modern philosophical usage through Immanuel Kant, who contrasted it with the noumenon, which ''cannot'' be directly observed. Kant was heavily influenced by Gottfried W ...
as being inherently real and permanent. The practice then weans one away from a coarse understanding of Reality, allowing one to get in touch with inner qualities similar to those of a bodhisattva, and prepares one's inner self to embrace finer spiritual energies, which can lead to more subtle and profound realizations of the Emptiness of phenomena and self. As Chagdud Tulku Rinpoche, in his ''Introduction to the Red Tārā Sadhana'', notes of his lineage: "Tārā is the flawless expression of the inseparability of emptiness, awareness and compassion. Just as you use a mirror to see your face, Tārā
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 ...
is a means of seeing the true face of your mind, devoid of any trace of delusion". There are several preparations to be done before practising the Sadhana. To perform a correct execution the practitioner must be prepared and take on the proper disposition. The preparations may be grouped as "internal" and "external". Both are necessary to achieve the required concentration. File:Tara statue near Kulu.jpg, Tara statue near
Kullu Kullu is a municipal council town that serves as the administrative headquarters of the Kullu district of the states and union territories of India, Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. It is located on the banks of the Beas River in the Kullu Va ...
,
Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; ; "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen mountain states and is characterized by an extreme landscape featuring several peaks ...
, India. File:Ratnagiri ei3-40.jpg, Medititating Tara,
Ratnagiri, Odisha Ratnagiri (Odia: ରତ୍ନଗିରି, meaning "hill of jewels") is the site of a ruined mahavihara, once the major Buddhist monastery in modern Odisha, India. It is located on a hill in between the Brahmani and Birupa rivers in Jajpur distr ...
, India, 8th century File:White Tara statue manor place 291107.jpg, White Tara statue in a
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, Mon ...
dharma centre A Dharma Centre (Sanskrit) or Dhamma Centre (Pali) is a non-monastic Buddhist centre in a community. According to the Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition, the function of these centres is to preserve and spread the teachings ...


Related terma teachings

Terma teachings are "hidden teachings" said to have been left by
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 ...
(8th century) and others for the benefit of future generations.
Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo (, 1820–1892), also known by his tertön title, Pema Ösel Dongak Lingpa, was a renowned teacher, scholar and tertön of 19th-century Tibet. He was a leading figure in the Rimé movement. Having seen how the Gelug instit ...
discovered Phagme Nyingthig (Tib. spelling: 'chi med 'phags ma'i snying thig, Innermost Essence teachings of the Immortal Bodhisattva rya Tārā/nowiki>). Earlier in the 19th century, according to a biography, Nyala Pema Dündul received a Hidden Treasure, Tārā Teaching and Nyingthig (Tib. nying thig) from his uncle Kunsang Dudjom (Tib. kun bzang bdud 'joms). It is not clear from the source whether the terma teaching and the nyingthig teachings refer to the same text or two different texts.


See also

*
Nairatmya Nairātmyā or Dagmema () is a female buddha, the consort of Hevajra in the Hevajra-tantra. The name means "ego-less woman". References See also * Nairatmya - Concept in Buddhism * Sitatapatra * Narodakini *Saraswati *Queen Maya *Hariti *Ya ...
*
Praises to the Twenty-One Taras Praises to the Twenty-One Taras is a traditional prayer in Tibetan Buddhism to the female Bodhisattva Tara ( sa, तारा, ; Tibetan སྒྲོལ་མ, Drolma) also known as Ārya Tārā, or Jetsun Dolma ( Wylie:''rje btsun sgrol ma''). I ...
*
Golden Tara __NOTOC__ The Agusan image (commonly referred to in the Philippines as the Golden Tara in allusion to its supposed, but disputed, identity as an image of a Buddhist Tara (Buddhism), Tara) is a , 21-karat gold statuette, found in 1917 on the bank ...
, Mahayana Buddhist deity's statue discovered in Philippines *
Tara (Devi) In Hinduism, the goddess Tara ( sa, तारा, ) is the second of the Dasa (ten) Mahavidyas or "''Great Wisdom goddesses''", and is a form of Adishakti, the tantric manifestation of Parvati. Her most famous centre of worship is the templ ...


References


Citations


Works cited

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


External links


21 Taras at Tara Mandala
* {{Authority control Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattvas Buddhas Buddhist goddesses Newar Tutelary goddesses Wisdom goddesses Yidams