The Indian Buddhist Iconography, Mainly Based on the Sadhanamala and Other Cognate Tantric Texts of Rituals c16.t10: 9. Mahāpratyaṅgirā

The Indian Buddhist Iconography, Mainly Based on the Sādhanamālā and Other Cognate Tāntric Texts of Rituals c16.t10

Language: English

9. Mahāpratyaṅgirā

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One short Sādhana only is assigned in the Sādhanamālā to Mahapratyaṅgirā. The Dhyāna describing her form is as follows :

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“Mahāpratyaṅgirā kṛṣṇā ṣaḍbhujaikamukhā khaḍgāṅkuśavaradadakṣiṇahastā raktapadmatriśūla-hṛdayasthasapāśatarjanīyuktavāmahastā Hūmbījā Akṣobhyamukuṭā sarvālaṅkāravatī rūpayauvanasampannā”.

“Mahāpratyaṅgirā is blue in colour, six-armed, and one-faced. She shows in her three right hands the sword, the goad, and the Varada mudrā, and in her three left hands she holds the Tarjanī with the noose against the chest, the red lotus and the trident ; she originates from the syllable “Hūṃ”, bears the image of Akṣobhya on her crown, is decked in all sorts of ornaments, and is young and beautiful.

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Figs. 144 and 145 illustrate two Nepalese drawings of the goddess Mahāpratyaṅgirā. They conform to the description given in the Sādhanā. The ivory image from Nepal (Fig 146) with innumerable heads is also worshipped as Mahāpratyaṅgirā. This goddess is found also in China ¹.

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¹ Clark : TLP II, pp. 200, 289.

Cites (1)

Sādhanamālā — Sanskrit