Vajradhara (Sanskrit: वज्रधर. (Also, the name of Indra, because 'Vajra' means diamond, as well as the thunderbolt, anything hard more generally) Tibetan: རྡོ་རྗེ་འཆང། rdo rje 'chang (Dorje Chang); zh, t=金剛總持, p=Jīngāng zǒng chí; Javanese: Kabajradharan; Japanese: 持金剛仏; English: Diamond-holder; Vietnamese: Kim Cang Tổng Trì) is the ultimate primordial

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 L ...

, or

Adi-Buddha In Vajrayana Buddhism, the Ādi-Buddha () is the "First Buddha" or the "Primordial Buddha". Another common term for this figure is Dharmakāya Buddha. The term emerges in tantric Buddhist literature, most prominently in the Kalachakra.Buswel ...

, according to the

Sakya 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 depic ...

Gelug 240px, The 14th Dalai Lama (center), the most influential figure of the contemporary Gelug tradition, at the 2003 Bodhgaya (India). The Gelug (, also Geluk; "virtuous")Kay, David N. (2007). ''Tibetan and Zen Buddhism in Britain: Transplantati ...

and Kagyu schools 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 ...

. In the evolution of Indian Buddhism, Buddha Vajradhara gradually displaced Samantabhadra, who is the 'Primordial Buddha' 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 ...

, or 'Ancient School.' However, the two are metaphysically equivalent. Achieving the 'state of Vajradhara' is synonymous with complete realisation. According to the Kagyu lineage, Buddhā Vajradhara is the primordial Buddha, the Dharmakaya Buddha. He is depicted as dark blue in color, expressing the quintessence 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 ...

itself and representing the essence of the historical Buddha's realization of enlightenment. As such, Buddha Vajradhara is thought to be the supreme

essence Essence ( la, essentia) is a polysemic term, used in philosophy and theology as a designation for the property or set of properties that make an entity or substance what it fundamentally is, and which it has by necessity, and without which it ...

of all (male) Buddhas (his name means "Ruler of the Vajra Beings"); It is the Tantric form of

Sakyamuni 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 ...

which is called Vajradhara.

Tantras Tantras ("''doctrine''" or "''framework''" or "''system''" ) refers to numerous and varied scriptures pertaining to any of several esoteric traditions rooted in Hindu and Buddhist philosophy. The religious culture of the Tantras is essentially ...

are texts specific to Tantrism and are believed to have been originally taught by the Tantric form of Sakyamuni called Buddha Vajradhara. He is an expression of Buddhahood itself in both single and yabyum form. Buddha Vajradhara is considered to be the prime Buddha of the Father tantras (tib. pha-rgyud) such as Guhyasamaja, Yamantaka, and so on From the primordial Buddha Vajradhara/Samantabhadra Buddha /Dorje Chang were manifested the Five Wisdom Buddhas (Dhyani Buddhas): *

Akshobhya Akshobhya ( sa, अक्षोभ्य, ''Akṣobhya'', "Immovable One"; ) is one of the Five Wisdom Buddhas, a product of the Adibuddha, who represents consciousness as an aspect of reality. By convention he is located in the east of the ...

* Amoghasiddhi * Amitabha * Ratnasambhava *

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 ...

Buddha Vajradhara and the Wisdom Buddhas are often subjects of

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 ...

. Buddha Vajradhara and Samantabhadra Buddha are cognate deities in Tibetan Buddhist

cosmology Cosmology () is a branch of physics and metaphysics dealing with the nature of the universe. The term ''cosmology'' was first used in English in 1656 in Thomas Blount's ''Glossographia'', and in 1731 taken up in Latin by German philosopher ...

with different names, attributes, appearances and iconography. Both are Dharmakaya Buddhas, that is primordial Buddhas: Samantabhadra is unadorned, that is depicted without any attributes; conversely, Buddha Vajradhara is often adorned and bears attributes, which is generally the iconographic representation of a Sambhogakaya Buddha. Both Buddha Vajradhara and Samantabhadra are generally depicted in yab-yum unity with their respective consorts and are primordial Buddhas, embodying void and ultimate emptiness.

Dharmakaya as part of the Trikaya

The Trikaya doctrine (

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 ...

, literally "Three bodies or personalities"; 三身 Chinese: ''Sānshēn'',

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

: ''sanjin'') is an important Buddhist teaching both on the nature of reality, and what a Buddha is. By the 4th century CE, the Trikaya Doctrine had assumed the form that we now know. Briefly, the doctrine says that a Buddha has three ''kayas'' or ''bodies'': the '' nirmanakaya'' or ''created body'' which manifests in time and space; the '' sambhogakaya'' or ''body of mutual enjoyment'' which is an archetypal manifestation; and the '' Dharmakaya'' or ''reality body'' which embodies the very principle of enlightenment and knows no limits or boundaries.Welwood, John (2000). ''The Play of the Mind: Form, Emptiness, and Beyond''. Source: http://www.purifymind.com/PlayMind.htm (accessed: Saturday January 13, 2007) In the view of Anuyoga, the '

Mindstream Mindstream (''citta-santāna'') in Buddhist philosophy is the moment-to-moment continuum (Sanskrit: ''saṃtāna'') of sense impressions and mental phenomena, which is also described as continuing from one life to another. Definition ' (Sanskri ...

' (Sanskrit: ''citta santana'') is the 'continuity' (Sanskrit: ''santana''; Wylie: ''rgyud'') that links the Trikaya. The Trikaya, as a triune, is symbolised by the

Gankyil The Gankyil (, Lhasa ) or "wheel of joy" ( sa, ānanda-cakra) is a symbol and ritual tool used in Tibetan and East Asian Buddhism. It is composed of three (sometimes two or four) swirling and interconnected blades. The traditional spinning direc ...

Literature

' Shining Relics of Enlightened Body' () is numbered amongst the '

Seventeen Tantras The ''Seventeen Tantras of the Esoteric Instruction Series'' () or the ''Seventeen tantras of the Ancients'' (''rnying-ma'i rgyud bcu-bdun'') are an important collection of tantras in the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism. They comprise the c ...

Menngagde In Tibetan Buddhism and Bon, Menngagde (, sa, upadeśavarga), is the name of one of three scriptural and lineage divisions within Dzogchen (''Great Perfection'' ). Dzogchen is itself the pinnacle of the ninefold division of practice according ...

' () within Dzogchen discourse and is part of the textual support for the

Vima Nyingtik Vima Nyingthig (), "Seminal Heart of Vimalamitra", in Tibetan Buddhism is one of the two "seminal heart" () collections of the menngagde cycle Dzogchen, the other one being "Seminal Heart of the Dakini" (''mkha' 'gro snying thig''). Traditionally ...

. In the Dzogchen tantric text rendered in English as "Shining Relics" (), an enlightened personality entitled Buddha Vajradhara and a Dakini whose name may be rendered into English as "Clear mind" engage in discourse and dialogue which is a common convention in such esoteric Buddhist literature and tantric literature in general.Martin, Dan (1994). 'Pearls from Bones: Relics, Chortens, Tertons and the Signs of Saintly Death in Tibet'. ''Numen'', Vol. 41, No. 3. (Sep., 1994), p.274.

Notes

Link

The Essential Songs of Milarepa / VI. Songs About Vajra Love 46. Answer to Dakini Tzerimardo rje chos (vajradharma) ( b. )
The Tibetan Buddhist Resource Center Nonsectarian movement

Sutra

{{Indian Philosophy Buddhas Gelug Sakya Kagyu

Dharmakaya as part of the Trikaya

Literature

See also

Notes

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