The Indian Buddhist Iconography, Mainly Based on the Sadhanamala and Other Cognate Tantric Texts of Rituals c15.t7: (iv) Sixteen-Armed
The Indian Buddhist Iconography, Mainly Based on the Sādhanamālā and Other Cognate Tāntric Texts of Rituals c15.t7
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(iv) Sixteen-Armed
c15.t7.1
Colour—Blue Faces—Eight Arms—Sixteen Prajñā—Nairātmā Legs—Four
c15.t7.2
The fourth type of Hevajra according to Hevajra Maṇḍala is sixteen-armed and is alike in appearance with the three other forms described before. The difference lies in his having eight faces and four legs; with his four legs he tramples upon four Hindu gods instead of standing upon a corpse as in the three others. His form is described rather elaborately in the Maṇḍala in question as under:
c15.t7.3
‘Caturtho Hevajraḥ ṣoḍaśabhujo Akṣobhyamudrito Nairātmāsamāpannaḥ. Kintvasya catvāro mārāḥ prāguktaśavasthāne. Tatra Skandhamāro rūpato Brahmā pitaḥ, Kleśamāro Viṣṇuḥ kṛṣṇo, Mṛtyumāro Maheśvaraḥ śubhro, Devaputramāro Śakraḥ gauraḥ. Tesu Bhagavān dvābhyāṃ Ardhaparyaṅkavān aparābhyāṃ Ālīḍhastha iti catuścaraṇaḥ kṛṣṇo......aṣṭāsyaḥ. Mukhantu mūlaṃ kṛṣṇaṃ hasat savyaṃ śuklam, vāmaṃ raktam, ūrdhvaṃ vikaṭadaṃṣṭraṃ śeṣāṇi kṛṣṇāni. Dakṣiṇa-bhujeṣu vajraṃ khaḍgaṃ bāṇaṃ cakraṃ caṣakaṃ triśūlaṃ-aṅkuśaṃ ca; vāmeṣu ghaṇṭām, padmam, dhanur-uḍyatakhaṭvāṅgam, kapālam, tarjanīpāśaṃ ca.” (NSP, pp. 14-15).
c15.t7.4
“Hevajra of the fourth class is sixteen-armed and bears on his crown the effigy of the Dhyāni Buddha Akṣobhya. He embraces his Śakti Nairātmā. Instead of the corpse under his legs as aforesaid, he has four Māras under his four legs. The first is Skandha Māra in the form of Brahmā of yellow colour, the second is Kleśa Māra in the form of Viṣṇu of blue colour, the third is Mṛtyu Māra in the form of Maheśvara of white colour, and the fourth is Devaputra Māra in the form of Śakra of white colour. On them the four-legged god stands with two legs arranged in Ardhaparyaṅka and two others in Ālīḍha. He is blue in colour and has eight faces. The principal face is blue, the right has a smile and is white, the left is red, the fourth is on the top of his head with distorted teeth. All other faces are blue in colour. In the right hands he carries 1. the Vajra, 2. the sword, 3. the arrow, 4. the discus, 5. the wine-glass, 6. the staff, 7. the Triśūla, and 8. the goad. In the left hands the holds 1. the bell, 2. the lotus, 3. the bow, 4. the raised Khaṭvāṅga, 5. the skull-cup, 6. the jewel, 7. the raised index finger and 8. the noose...”.
c15.t7.5
Hevajra is popular in Tibet¹ and China².
c15.t7.6
¹ Getty: GNB, 142, 143. A Tibetan image is illustrated in Gorden: ITL, p. 83.
c15.t7.7
² TLP, II, p. 236.
Cites (1)
- Niṣpannayogāvalī — Abhayākaragupta, Sanskrit