The Indian Buddhist Iconography, Mainly Based on the Sadhanamala and Other Cognate Tantric Texts of Rituals c23.23

c23.23

Thirdly, the number of deities increases as objects such as the Three Jewels ; philosophical conceptions such as the Pāramitās, Bhūmis or Pratisamvits ; literature such as the Prajñāpāramitā, the Daśabhūmika Śāstra, the Dhāriṇīs and the like ; desires such as for eating, drinking, sleeping and the rest ; the directions such as the north, south, east and west ; the musical instruments such as the flute, the violin, and the drum ; and other innumerable ideas and objects, are required to be worshipped in the forms of gods and goddesses, By these and various other ways the number of deities in the Buddhist pantheon increased phenomenally.