Vastu-shastra (Vol. I: Hindu Science of Architecture; Vol. II: Hindu Canons of Iconography and Painting) v2.c75.s3: Section B: Buddhist Iconography

Vāstu-śāstra (Vol. I: Hindu Science of Architecture; Vol. II: Hindu Canons of Iconography and Painting) v2.c75.s3

Language: English

Section B: Buddhist Iconography

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The Religious and Philosophical Background:—Before we proceed with the salient elements of Buddhist iconography, a few words on its background, the institution of adoring the ‘Buddha’ and the consequent rise of religious and philosophical thoughts to systematise this practise in a religion which originally was averse to all such complications of theology, ritual, dogma and philosophy. The lofty ethical foundations of the prinstine Buddhism could not remain isolated. An edifice of grand superstrcture of imposing lustre shining with so many popular lights was a historical necessity. A religion divested of popular appeal can not captivate the minds of people for long. Consequently after the Buddha was gone, Buddhisim could not remain uncoloured with the side-currents of Brahmanic (more particularly the Tāntric) religious upsurages of the day, the adoration of the images (cf. Paurāṇic Dharma) and the cultivation of the Sākta practices (Cf. Tāntricism).

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The Buddhist iconography may be said to be rooted in the speculations of the Mahāyāna, especially its sub-branch what is called Mantra-yāna itself, but it was due to the Vajrayāna and its consequent philosophy of ‘Mahāsukhavāda’ that it got a fertile field for strides of development. Now to fully appreciate the rise of Vajrayāna, we have to go back to the teachings of Buddha himself. In doing so a brief historical survey of Buddhism becomes a necessity.

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‘The ethical system of Buddha was based mainly on the Sāṅkhya but profoundly modified by his own speculations. The boldness of the speculation, the grandeur of the moral idea set forth, and the strictness of discipline gave this system an attractive and engaing character’.

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With the death of Buddha things changed and dissentions crept in between the two powerful parties later on called Elders and Youngers and it was at Vaiśālī that they parted company never to be reunited and founded two distinct camps of their own.

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Those who stuck to Ethics and moral discipline were called the Theravādins and those who trifled with Ethics and discipline but stuck to metaphysical and altruistic doctrines were called the Mahāsaṅghikas. One point of difference is very marked, ‘the Youngers were all Lokottarvādins and believed in the superhuman character of Buddha. But schisms bring forth further schisms, and in the course of a century, the two parties split up into eighteen principal sects, beside a number of minor ones'—Bhattacharya.

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Without going into the details of the doctrines like Śūnyavāda and the teachings and views held by the great Buddhist scholars like Nāgārjuna and Āryadeva who propounded these abtruse philosophical ideas in the fold of Mahāyāna, it may be pointed out that the bedrock of Śūnyatā of the Mahāyānis could not satisfy their hankerings and so Maitreyanātha, after some generations after Nāgārjuna, added Vijñāna to it; and founded what developed later on, the Yogācāra system. The things did not end here. There were controversies between these two speculative doctrines of the Śūnyavāda and in the 8th century a new doctrine of Mahāsukhavāda became a historical necessity for the edification of people, to rationalise their leanings towards something tangible, something concrete and something edifying. All these doctrines were conceived in relation to the ultimate reality after ordinary Nirvāṇa. Some took it Śūnyatā, others Vijñāna and a good many Mahāsukha. It is, as already said, from the doctrine of Mahāsukha, that the Vajrayāna, a system rich in iconographical ideas, and a school fascinating to the multitude, orginated. It may however be remembered that this Vajrayāna was a school within the Mahāyāna itself and the so called two principal schools of Buddhism, the Hīnayāna and Mahāyāna really resulted in the condemnation by the latter of the two original Yānas, the Śrāvaka and the Pratyeka which the great Buddha himself had patronized. Thus there were three Yānas—Hīna (the Śrāvaka and the Pratyeka), the Mahā and the Vajra (a sub-yāna of the latter). The Mahāyāna, in its latter onslaughts again assumed two shapes, Pārmitāyāna and Mantra-yānā, the latter fully accepting the theory of Mahāsukha, dilates upon its various stages of the development in which the Śakti, the embodiment of Karuṇā plays a predominent part. It is thus nothing but a great influence of Hindu Tāntricism, another name of Śāktism.

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Advayavajra, who flourished in the 11th century, has not only a unique credit, in the opinion of Bhattacharya, the learned author of the 'Indian Buddhist Iconography', in throwing light on the distribution of the four principal schools of Buddhist philosophy namely Sarvāstivāda, (Sautrāntika), Vāhyārthabhaṅga (Vaibhāṣika), Vijñānavāda (Yogācāra) and Sūnyavāda (Mādhyamika) into the three Yānas of the Hīna, the Mahā and the Vajra, but also accredited to have composed a short treaties propounding the theory of Mahāsukha under the title, the Mahāsukhaprakāśa, a stanza from which not only characteristically explains the elements of the Doctrine but also gives the background of

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शून्यतावोधितो बीजं बीजात् बिम्बं प्रजायते ।
बिम्बे च न्यासविन्यासस्तस्मात्सर्वं प्रतीत्यजम् ॥

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i.e. from the right perception of Śūnyatā comes ‘Bīja’. From Bīja is developed the conception of an icon and from that conception comes the external representation of the icon and therefore Śri Bhattacharya rightly remarks that the entire iconography of the Buddhists proceeds from a correct understanding of the doctrine of Śūnyatā. The Tibetan yab-yum conceptions were an outcome of the dual conceptions of Śūnyatā and Karuṇā, both of which were conceived and represented, but which ultimately proved to be one and the same

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With this a very brief introduction to the philosphical background of Buddhist iconography, let us persue it further in its evolution. That is how did this conception of Mahāsukha creep into Mahāyāna-Vajrayāna? The tackling of this question brings us to the fundamental differences of the Hīnayāna and the Mahāyāna. The pivot of distinction between them lies in the question of Nirvāṇa. The Hinayanist whether a Śrāvaka or Pratyeka always would strive for his own emancipation or Nirvāṇa, the Mahayanist on the other hand takes, just the opposite view. He stands for the emancipation of all and makes Karuṇā (Compassion) his motto. Both differ in the divinity of Buddha and his order of superiority in relation to the Dharma and Saṅgha For the former Buddha comes first and Dharma or Law and Saṅgha come next, the latter changes the order into Dharma, Buddha and Saṅgha, to whom Dharma or Prajñā is eternal and the highest object and Buddha is only Upāya or means of obtaining that knowledge, which is diffused into the masses through him. ‘This idea’, says Bhattacharya ‘bears a close resemblance to the Hindu conception of the Mantras, which are supposed to be eternal of which only a glimpse was obtained by the Vedic Ṛṣis.’ As regards the nature of Nirvāṇa there arose a baffling controversy resulting in many schools in Mahāyanism itself, the two principal schools amongst which being Yogācāras (the Vigñānavādins) and the Mādhyamikas. Buddhism, we know, was a mass religion and therefore as already pointed out that these abtruse philosophical teachings of Vijñānavāda in relation to Nirvāṇa could not become fit for easy grasp of the masses. The priest found a great deal of difficulty in making the masses understand the meaing of Nirvāṇa, to the attainment of which every Buddhist strives. Nirvāṇa, which was Śūnya, was said to be Nirātmā, that is, something in which the soul is lost :— ‘The Bodhicitta merges in Nirātmā and there remains in eternal bliss and happiness, (Mahāsukha-vāda). The word ‘Nirātma’, it may be noted, is in the feminine; the Nirātmā is therefore a Devī, in whose embrace the Boddhicitta, remains. The masses well understood the significance of Nirātmā, and the feminine aspect, an outcome of Mahāsukhavāda, in the doctrine of Nirvāṇa, gave rise to what is known as Vajrayāna'—Bhattacharya.

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In the word ‘Vajrayāna’ ‘Vajra’ is another name of Śūnya. It is so called because it can not be destroyed, can not be cut, can not be burnt (cf. the Ātman Doctrine of the great Bhagvadgītā) as laid down in Advayavajra-saṃgraha:

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दृढं सारमसौशीर्यं अच्छेद्याभेद्यलक्षणम् ।
अदाही अविनाशी च शून्यता वज्रमुच्यते ॥

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This conception of Vajra too was not of an easy comprehension for the masses and so the position of the priests, the Vajrāchāryas became very much magnified. The Dhāraṇīs were composed for the recitation of the masses to obtain merit. These Dhāraṇīs were later on shortened into mantras and Vajramantras all meaningless to the multitude; but one thing was a solace to them, it was the origination of the manifold deities from these mantras, the Vījamantras. ‘The votaries’ says Bhattacharya, ‘who could not worship their gods in accordance with the prescribed procedure (Sādhanā) were, promised by the gurus perfection only through the muttering of the mantras.’ Later on the falling upon the Tantras, their ritual and practice was a natural consequence which in the hands of these uninitiated and sophisticated priests and the public alike brought the populer Buddhism to the level of very thinly-vield ‘Kāmaśāstra’. With all their faults the Vajrayānists did contribute towards the evolution of a popular Buddhism which has left a legacy of rich, varied and extensive pantheon, on the fascinating foundation of which, Buddhist iconography and its art flourished in India especially in Tibet. The puerly Tāntric gods were invariably accompanied with their Śaktis, who in sculpture take four positions—a separate seat or the same seat or the lap of their consorts or they are in actual embrace. The more sobre amongst the Tāntrikas adopted the first three positions, while the last was the be all and end all of those who stood for thorough-going form of worship of their gods in the embrace, in union with the Śaktis, or as the Tibetans describe it in yab-yum.

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**Buddhist Pantheon.** This brings us to the Buddhist Pantheon both in the realm of art as well as in that of the literature. The rise of the Pantheon always presupposes image-worship, both aniconic and iconic. We shall have an occasion to see its representation in art in the last and so here we have to confine ourselve with the rise of the pantheon in literature and other accounts. Much of the information for reconstructing a chronological rise of the Pantheon is gathered from the accounts of the Chinese travellers like Hiuen Thsang and It-sing. We know Buddhism in its original shape, was too simple a religion to accomodate image-worship. Buddha was definitely against it. After his death, deification started first with the symbolic objects like Stūpas and Triśaraṇas, the former has been an object of adoration even just after the life-time of Buddha. Similar is the case with the three jewels, which came to be represented, later, both in symbolic and human form. Again the rise of Buddhist pantheon is synchronous with the rise of Mahāyānism and its offshoots of development. Indrabhūti’s time (cf. 700-750 A.D.) is regarded as the emergance of a full-fledged Buddhist pantheon, the germination of which no doubt goes back a few centuries earlier—vide the work of Aśvoghoṣa, Nāgārjuna and Āryadeva. The Sukhāvatī-Vyūha, or Amitāyus-Sūtra which was translated into Chinese in the 2nd century, mentions Amitābha Bodhisattva and Avalokiteśvara and in its smaller recenssion of the 4th century, Akṣobhya as a Tathāgata and Mañjuśrī as a Boddhisattva are also mentioned. In the accounts of the Chinese travellers beside these, other important names also come to light—Maitreya (Fa-Hien); Hārītī, Kṣitigarbha, Padmapāṇi, Vaiśravaṇa, Śākya Buddha, Śākya Bodhisattava, Yama along with many Buddhist saints like Aśvaghoṣa, Nāgārjuna, Asaṅga, Sumedha and others as deified Bodhisattvas and a good many previous Buddhas (Hiuen-Thsang) ; and Caturmahārājikas and several Hindu gods (It-sing).

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The next stage in the development of the pantheon starts from the works of Śāntideva of Nalanda Monastary (650. A.D) where besides new names of Gagangañja, Mañjughoṣa, Siṁha-vikrīḍita, Tantricism also began to weild its influence wnere Dhārṇis for Cuṇḍā, Trisamayarāja and Mārīcī are given.

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The third stage that is the stage of complete emergence of the pantheon begins from the times of Indrabhūti (750 A.D ), the king of Uddiyana, who made Uddiyana (Orissa) the main centre of Vajrayāna-Tantra-yāna. His work Jñānasiddhi gives probably the first account of the origin of the five Dhyānī Buddhas and their Śaktis along with a number of deities as emanating from them. Later on the conception of Ādi Buddha also originated by the first half of the 10th century at Nalanda. He was regarded as the primordial Buddha from whom the five Dhyānī Buddhas were said to have taken their origin. Homage to Ādi Buddha is conceived in shape of flame, which the priests of Nepal considered eternal, self-born and self-existent. It is said in the Svayam-bhū-purāṇa, the scripture of the Kālacakrayāna (a later development of Vajrayāna) that Ādi Buddha first manifested himself in Nepal in the shape of a flame of fire and Mañjuśrī is said to have erected a temple over it in order to preserve the flame. This temple is known as the Svayambhū Caitya.

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Now a word on the iconographical representation of Ādi Buddha, the highest deity of the Vajrayāna and also originator of the five Dhyāni Buddhas, may also be added here. When represented in human form he begets the name of Vajradhara and is conceived in two forms single and yab-yum. It may further be remarked that the conception of Ādi Buddha became controversial among the Vajrayānists themselves. Some considered Akṣobhya and some others of the other Dhyāni Buddhas as the Ādi Buddha and so these differences also were brought to bear upon their representations in sculptures.

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This third stage of the development of Buddhist pantheon coincides with the strides which Vajrayāna was taking on its marvellous march of progress in Mahāyana. The works like 'Aṣṭa-sāhasrika-prajñāpāramitā' bearing a large number of miniature pictures of Buddhist Tāntric deities and the compilation of the Sādhanamālā containing the dhyānas of more than 400 principal and minor deities (11th & 12th centuries) corroborate this tremendous influence of Tāntricism. The Sidhas simply made it a popular practice of the day. The four great centres or Pīṭhas, the sacred spots of Vajrayāna as mentioned in the Sadhana-mālā: are Uddiyna (Orissa), Kāmākhyā, Śirihaṭṭa and Pūrṇagiri. The Śirihaṭṭa is recognised as Śrī-Śaila cf. so many references to it in the literature—vide Pr. Vjn P. 136-8 Kāmākhya is well known. Pūrṇagiri is unidentified.

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Buddhist images two groups—general and sectarian:

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After we have purviewed in a very brief manner the religious and philosophical background of the Buddhist iconography, we are now in a better position to describe the Buddhist images. But before we do so, there is one very important point to be born in mind that from the broad Hindu point of view Buddhist images should be viewed into two distincts groups, one representing the general form of Buddhism in which Buddha figures figure prominently and there is no hierarchical development, and the other is that particular upsurge where Vajrayāna-Tantricism played a remarkable part and was not only instrumental in bringing about an exuberance in its consequent emergence of Buddhist Pantheon and iconological and iconographical conceptions and forms, but it also simply changed the very form of the prinstine character of Buddhism, a religion without a god, without an icon, without a dogma and without a philosophy.

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Accordingly let us deal first with the Lord Buddha, adopted by the tolerant Hindus as an Incarnation of the Lord Viṣṇu himself, (as promised by me at Vaiṣṇava-Pratimā-Lakṣaṇa, Chap. III p. 220). In this section of Buddhist Pratimā-lakṣaṇa, Gautama Buddha is our first adorable deity. Buddhists, the bigoted Vajrayānists could be fanatic enough to degrade him to a secondary position—vide their first homage to Ādi Buddha, Vajradhara in the imitation of the Hindu view of metaphysics and mythology. We, the detached reviewers of the broad Indian cultural currents, cannot forget him who not only gave a new religion to the world but also contributed immensely to the thought-currents of Hinduism itself of which Buddhism should be considered only a side-current like Śaivism and Vaiṣṇavism.

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Paurāṇic accounts:—(leaving the Agni and the Bhāgavata) of Buddha are not only confusing, but also in a way antogonistic—vide the Viṣṇupurāṇa which says many hard things against Buddhism and Buddhists and there are also very interesting accounts in it regarding Buddhists being naked which perhaps in the opinion of Dr. Banerjea is a confusion between the Jina of the Digambara Jainas and the Buddha of the Buddhists. It is said there that because they have discarded the authority of the Vedas which are really the real coverings of man and mankind, they are nagnas (see details in Rao). It also designates Buddha as Māyāmoha which is common in other Purāṇas as well and describes him as ‘naked with shaved head and a peacock-tail in his hand’. The Bhāgavatas taking the authority of the Bhāgavata-purāṇa came to regard him as one of the incarnations of their god, who according to them incarnated himself in the world as Māyāmoha (the Arch Deluder) to cause confusion among the Daityas by preaching false and anti-Vedic doctrines among men and thus cause their destruction.

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Iconographical Accounts:—vide Pratimā-laksanas, p. 98-99 can be relied upon from the five principal Hindu texts, the Br. Saṃhitā, the Agni and the V.D. Purāṇas, and the two Śilpa-texts, the Mānasāra and the Rūpa-maṇḍana. According to the first (B.-S.) Buddha should have the palms of his hands and the soles of his feet marked with lotus, he should be placed in form and his hair should be very short (Sunīca; a variant reading is sunīta meaning “well arranged” both readings would suit a Buddha image—Banerjea) He should be seated on a lotus-seat and should appear as the father of the whole world. The Agni calls him Śāntātmā and bestows upon him lambakarṇas (*i. e.* his lobes of ears must be made pendant) and fair complexion and enjoins his hands to be in varada and abhaya poses. The V. D. further adds some more marks. According to it the body should be covered with the kāṣāya, the yellow garb of the ascetics and on the shoulder there should be a piece of balkala (cīvara) or clothing made out of the bark of certain trees. It designates him as Dhyāni (cf. Dhyāni Buddhas in the Vajrayāna pantheon). The Rūpa-maṇḍana's description is nothing new. It simply gives him a red colour that may be taken as full of lustre. As regards the description of the Buddha-images in the Mānasāra, it is said there that these figures, which may be either erect or in the sitting posture, are placed on a throne (Siṁhāsana) and are distinguished by the Aśvattha (holy fig) tree as well as by the Kalpa-vṛkṣa (mythic wonder tree), the latter, as we have seen, is represented in connection with other divine beings as well; but the aśvattha or ficus religious is characteristic of Buddha as the Bodhi tree, under which he attained enlightenment (Bodhi), belongs to that species. Another peculiar mark as has been duly noted by the author of the Mānasāra, is uṣṇīṣa or protuberance of the skull (uṣṇīśojjvalamaukika). For the rest, the appearance of Buddha is purely human. He has a full face, a long nose, smiling eyes and elongated ears. His body is fleshy, his chest broad, his belly round and his arms long. He wears a yellow garment (Pītāmbaradhara) and his complexion is white—Acharya's version.

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The Buddha image as described below has an abundant sculptural representation and it is only a perverted wisdom of eminent historians and archaeologists to attribute its origin to foreigners. Man and mankind is indivisible. The Aryan race is a pointer to this great truth. Those who came to India became Indians, imbibed the indigenous culture and gave something of their own also. This intermingling is the essence of culture, the essence of the dynamic character of culture and is also characterised by the freshness of outlook, ideas and institutions. Gandhara art, which is accredited to have produced Buddha images for the first time, was no doubt flourished on the indigenous-cum-Greek inspiration, but nevertheless its setting was perfectly Indian and Buddha images therefore are cent per cent authentic representation of the iconology as elaborated below. Apart from Gandhara art in which innumerable Buddha images are illustrated, there is no dearth of Hindu sculptures representing Buddha. The Daśāvatāra reliefs throughout India include Buddha and Rao says that throughout the Chalukya and Hoysal countries Buddha is seen to have been invariably included among the ten avatāras of Viṣṇu and his image is always found wherever these avatāras are portrayed. Dhyāna attitude and Yogamudrā are the prominent traits of his representation. It may be pointed out (cf. also Jain Tīrthaṅkaras) that even educated people sometimes fail to distinguish a Buddha from a Jina, the latter also being characteristically represented in these two prominent traits, the Dhyāna attitude and the Yogamudrā. The most distinguishing features of the images of Buddha are the clothes worn in the upavīta fashion and the knot of hair on the top of the head. The Jain images are completely divested of clothing and are stark naked and are characterised by Śrīvatssa mark on the right side of the chest.

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Vajrayana Buddhist Images

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With this brief introduction to this first group of general Buddha images let us now turn towards the Vajrayāna Buddhist images. The following tabulation, of this group of images as ramified into so many divisions will be briefly adhered to in accordance to our arrangement in the Pr. Laks. pp. 277-93 as systematised from their descriptions in the Sādhana-mālā, the standard treatise of the sect.

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| l. | Buddhas, their Śaktis and Boddhisattvas and mortal Buddhas | 9. | Emanations of the five Dhyāni Buddhas |
| 2. | Mañjuśrī and his 14 forms. | 10. | „ of the four „ Buddhas |
| 3. | Avalokiteśvara and his forms | | |
| 4. | Emanations of Amitābha | 11. | Emanations of Vajrasattva |
| 5. | „ of Akṣobhya | 12. | The Pañcarakṣā Maṇḍala |
| 6. | „ of Vairocane. | 13. | The Tārās |
| 7. | „ of Amoghasiddhi. | 14. | The Independent deities: Gods and Godesses. |
| 8. | „ of Ratnasambhava | | |

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1. The first group includes firstly the five (or say six—vide Vajrasattva's inclusion also) Dhyānī Buddhas or Divine Buddhas along with their Śaktis and Bodhisattvas; secondly the mortal Buddhas along with their Śaktis and Bodhisattvas and Maitreya, the future Buddha.

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(a) (i) Dhyānī (Divine) Buddhas are.

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and they represent the first hierachy of gods in Buddhist pantheon. All other gods emanate from one or the other or five or four of them collectively and they invariably bear the effigies of their masters on their head. The first five Divine Buddhas owe their origin to the theory of the eternity of the senses according to Āryadeva—vide Pr. Laks. p. 277 (the very first verse) or to the eternity of the five Skandhas, the elements (—vide ibid). As regards the last or (the sixth) that is Vajrasattva, he is a later incorporation and is generally believed to be the priest of the five Dhyānis A more rational view would be to take the first five of them as representing the five mudrās which Lord Buddha made sacred on memorable occasions; as is evident from their representations in the art. All of them closely resemble each other, the prominent difference being the positions in which the hands are held and the vāhanas on which they ride. Both these traits signify mūdrās (cf. the writer's thesis below in which these Vāhnas are also included into the broader connotation of Mudrās—vide the Chapters on Mudrās). Every Dhyānī is always represented in a sitting posture on a full blown double lotus which attitude is known as the Dhyānāsana (cross-legged). The other attributes being bare head, curly hair, eyes half closed in meditation (dhyāna). These are dressed like a monk. As regards their allocation in the Buddhist shrine, the Stūpa (the Budhist Universe), they, except Vairocana and Vajrasttvava are generally represented on the four sides of it facing the cardinal points. Vairocana being the deity of the inner shrine often remains unrepresented but sometimes he is seen between Ratna and Amogha. Now without going into further individual details (which may be seen in the Pr Laks, p. 277 and Bhattacharya's book—'Indian Buddhist Iconography') their tabulation may be seen in an appendix to this page in which numbers from first to fifth represent Amitābha Akṣobhya, Vairocana, Amoghasiddhi and Ratnasambhava respectively:

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(ii) Devine Buddha-Saktis are also six:

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1. Vajra-dhātvīśvarī
4. Pāṇḍarā
2. Locanā
5. Ārayatārā and
3. Māmaki
6. Vajrasattvātmikā,

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and they are affiliated to the six Dhayānī Buddhas and are represented (not very widely and rarely in full form) in the Stūpa (only in their symbols or the yantras on a slab in a niche) occupying the corners intermediate between the four cardinal points. They take mostly lalitāsana on a full blown lotus with emblems of lotuses and the characteristic poses of abhaya etc. Their colours and the vāhanas partake of their consorts.

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(iii) Divine Bodhisattvas are

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1. Sāmantabhadra 3 Ratnapāṇi
5. Viśvapāni and
2. Vajrapāṇi
4. Padmapāṇi
6. Ghaṇṭāpāṇi

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and they are the functionary gods in the Buddhist pantheon. The Divine Buddhas are conceived as engaged in peaceful meditation and voluntarily restrain themselves from the act of creation, which task is assigned to their Bodhisattvas. In the Gandhara School of Sculpture there are innumerable Bodhisattva-images which fact clearly speaks of the fact that as the word ‘Bodhisattva’ in earlier times was synonymous with Saṇgha or the Holy Order, every Buddhist of the Mahāyāna Buddhism was entitled to be called a Bodhisattva. It is illustrated in the remains of the aforesaid sculpture. Buddhist philosopher-monks like Nāgārjuna, Aśvaghoṣa, Maitreyadeva, Āryadeva and the like were all represented as Bodhisattvas.

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The Buddhist religious texts say that the duty of the Divine Bodhisattvas is to do the work of a Mortal Buddha during the period between the disappearance of one Buddha and the coming of the next. ‘Thus’ says Bhattacharya—vide I. B I. p. 8: ‘Gautama Buddha has disappeared and at least 4000 years after his disappearance Maitreya Buddha who is now in the Tuṣita Heaven, would decend to earth. During he interval Padmapāṇi Bodhisattva or Avalokiteśvara is doing the duties of a Mortal Buddha and thus he will continue so long as the Bhadrakalpa or the cycle of Admitābha continues.’

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As regards their iconographical traits they take both standing and sitting attitudes on a full blown lotus and usually as holding in each hand a long stem of the same plant on which is placed the crest of his Dhyāni. Each is covered by a robe, the upper part is covered by a scarf. The hair is cut short, on the head is a jewelled tiara which bears in the centre the effigy of that Buddha to whom the Boddhisattva owes its existence’—Bhattacharya. A characteristic illustration representing them in bronze, hails from the UVahal at Patan in Nepal.

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**(b) Mortal Buddhas :—**are conceived on the pattern of the Hindu Incarnations. We know only one Mortal Buddha. Both the Mahayānis and the Hinayānis on the other hand conceive many of them and also conceive a Mortal Buddha possessing a good number of auspicious marks (32 major and 80 minor ones) along with a number of mental qualities—10 Balas, 18 Āveṇika Dharmas and 4 Vaiśāradyas. Their list according to the Hinayana is 24 and the Mahayanis are confused about their Mortal Buddhas known as Tathāgatas. Among them 7 are well known and are tabulated as here under along with their Śaktis and Sattvas:

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*N. B.* Only three names are familiar—Śākyasiṁha, his wife Yaśodharā and his favourite disciple Ānanda and so are historical, others may be treated as Paurāṇic (if not legendry).

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(c) Maitreya, the future Buddha—though not yet born, he is represented alright (cf. Gandhara Sculpture and a colossal image at Uddiyana). He is at present passing the life of a Bodhisattva in Tuṣitā heaven and would descend to the earth full 4000 years after the disappearance of Gautama Buddha for the deliverance of all sentient beings.

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2. Mañjuśrī—and his manifold forms represent the second group of Buddhist icons. His accounts are both historical and legendary; though the latter may also be regarded as significantly real. His place in the pantheon is of a very high order, one of the greatest Bodhisattavas and he is conceived in various forms. He is specially glorified in the Svambhūpurāṇa, especially in relation, as hinted below, to the Ādi Buddha and his sacred Svayambhū-kṣetra in Nepal. He is conspicuous either by his early representations or the early references in the literature. His name occurs for the first time in Sukhāvatī Vyūha. According to the Svayambhūpurāṇa Mañjuśrī belonged to China and was a great saint. One day receiving a divine intimation that the Self-born Lord, Ādi-Buddha has manifested himself in the form of a flame of fire on a lotus rising from the lake Kālihrada in Nepal, he forthwith started for the place to pay his homage. He was also accompanied by a large number of his disciples, his two wives and king Dharmākara of China. When he reached his destination, he experienced difficulty in approaching the god, so he cleft asunder, with his sword the barrier-hill and the opening was made from where water rushed through it leaving a vast stretch of dry land behind to make a path accessible to the Lord. That dry land is the Nepal valley and that Bhāgmatī is still called Kot-bar or sword-cut. Mañjuśrī then got a temple erected there for the enshrinement of the Flame and himself also began to live there on a hillock where he also got a monastry built to house his disciples. This monastry came to be known as Mañjupattana. King Darmākara was made king of Nepal by him. Having accomplished all this, he returned home and soon obtained the divine form of a Bodhisattva leaving his mundane body behind.

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Mañjuśrī's position in the pantheon is unique in regard to his independent existence. It is not only controversial, but also dubious if he can be regarded as an emanation from Dhyānis as a rule. Being a historical personage he was regarded as a Bodhisattva in the same way as Aśvaghoṣa or Nāgārjuna; hence his affiliation was not so easy to propound. Nevertheless some considered him to be an emanation of Amitābho, others of Akṣobhya, still others of the group of the five D. Buddhas.

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As regards his iconography Bhattacharya says:—"Ordinarily Mañjuśrī carries the Sword and the Book in his right and left hands. In representations we sometimes find these two symbols placed on lotuses. He is accompanied sometimes by Yamāri, or by his Śakti alone; sometimes by Sudhanukumāra and Yamari and sometimes again by the four divinities, Jālinīkumāra also called Suryyaprabha, Candraprabha, Keśinī and Upakeśinī. Though the last four are required to be present with Arapacana, they are found represented in other places also."

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His 14 forms:—are tabulated as hereunder and the other details of iconography may be gathered from the Pr. Laks. p. 278-9; also writer's Pratimā-Vijñāna p. 301 :

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3. Avalokiteśvra:—is the most popular god of the Mahāyānis. He is famous as a Bodhisattva and is said to have emanated from the Dhyani, Amitābha and his Śakti, Pāṇḍarā. As his master, Amitabha is the presiding deity of the present Bhadrakalpa, Avalokiteśvara is assigned the work between the period of the disappearance, of the Mortal Buddha Śākyasiṃha and the advent of the future Buddha, Maitreya. He is famous for his unbounded and universal Karuṇā and has refused Nirvāṇa, till he sees all the sentient and insentient beings emancipated. This universal Karuṇā of this great Bodhisattvahas found a universal love for him among the Buddhists all over the world. He is characterised as the best of the Sangha, the Jewel of the Buddhist Church or Saṅgharatna.

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Avalokiteśvara according to the popularity noted below is characterised by one hundred and eight forms, a tabulation of which is given in my Pratimā-Vijñāna. p. 312. 'The Macchandar Vahal, one of the numerous Vihāras in Kathmandu has paintings in many colours of one hundred and eight variations of this Bodhisattva on wooden panels surrounding the temple on three sides. The paintings appear to be at least two hundred years old, and they bear inscriptions in old Newāri, giving their respective names". The Sādhanamālā gives altogether 31 Sādhanās which describe him in a variety of forms under the name of Avalokiteśvara or Lokeśvara. Among these varieties the following 15 are more prominent. All except the last of these varieties bear the figure of the Dhyāni Amitābha on the crown as Lokeśvara is his emanation; the 15th, Vajradharma is said to bear the figure of the five Dhyānīs. The details of their respective attributes may be seen in my Pr. Vijñāna p. 302-3; and Pr. Laks. p. 280-82; for the exigencies of the space only their tabulation will suffice here:

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Fifteen Forms of Lokesvara:—

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*N.B.* (i) Padmanarteśvara (6) has got 3 rūpas—see details in I.B.I. p. 41-45 and Pr.Vijn. p. 303-4; Raktālokeśvara also has 2 rūpas, ibid.

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*N.B.* (ii) Further a notice of the Hindu gods conceived as Vāhanas (cf. 7) is remarkable for the perverted and zealous iconolatry of the Buddhists.

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4. Emanations of Amitābha:—are the 4th group of Buddhist icons as classified ahead. These include both gods and goddesses: the former are only two in number: 1. Mahābala and 2 Saptaśatika Hayagrīva both of which are unrepresented in sculpture and the latter are comprised of the following goddesses:

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1. Kurkullā:—(i) Śuklā (ii) Tarodbhavā (iii) Oddiyāna and Aṣṭabhujā, the last of which is charrcterised by a maṇḍala of 12 surrounding divinities

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2. Bhrkuti and 3. Mahasitavati—amongst these Kurukullā is the most important and popular goddess to whose worship no less than 14 Sādhanās are devoted in the S.M. Mahasitavati is also known as one of the Pancarakṣās or the five Great Protectoresses. Sri Bhattacharya remarks that none of these goddesses are found represented in sculpture and bronze, though paintings are exceptions.

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Thus the total number of gods and goddesses as emanating from the Dhyānī Amitābha are 18 gods (14 forms of Avalokiteśvara, two forms of Mañjuśrī and these two) and the three goddesses, all twenty one

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5. **Emanations of Akṣobhya :—**are plentiful and are consisted of gods as well as goddesses. Among the Dhyāni Buddhas he has the largest emanations, because he is the earliest to enter into the pantheon. His blue colour is taken to represent his terrific nature and so it is associated with the terrible deities in the S. M. and with the gruesome rites in the Tantra. Sri Bhattacharya says “The deities emanating from this Dhyāni Buddha have generally the blue colour and they are usually terrible both in appearance and in deeds. Excepting perhaps Jambhāla all other male emanations of Akṣobhya have terrible appearance with distorted face, bare fangs, three eyes, protruding tongue, garland of heads and skulls, the tiger-skin and ornament of the snakes.”

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(A) **Gods:—**Let us begin first with gods, which are seven as tabulated here under (see details of iconography Pr. Vijn. p. 305; Pr. Laks. p. 283-86):

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*N.B. Heruka* has 3 forms—Dvibhuja, Trailokyakṣepa and Caturbhuja; *Vajradaka* also has 3 rupas—Samvara, Saptākṣara and Mahāmāyā and *Yamari* principally of two forms—Rakta and Kṛṣṇa, his latter form being varied again into three (cf. I.B.I. p. 71-73).

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(B) **Goddesses :—**emanating from this Dhyāni are not all terrific in nature, some of them like Prajñāpāramitā, Vasudhārā and Mahāmantrānusāriṇī are of generally peaceful forms. No less than 11 goddesses (for details of iconography see Pr. Vijn p. 306. Pr. Laks. p. 386-88) emanate from Akṣobhya and they are:

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*N. B* *Jāṅgulī* has three entirety different forms—two with one face, four arms and one with three faces and six arms. *Ekajaṭā* too has four different varieties, the fourth variety of whinh is known as *Vidyujjālakarālī*, who is said to have originted from the sweat of Buddha; *Prajñāpāramita* is also characterised by two forms under Śitaprajñāpā- ramitā and Pīta-Prajñāpāramitā and *Dhvajagrakeyūra* similarly also takes two forms.

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**6. Emanations of Vairocana:**—are all feminine. We know Vairocana is the lord of the sanctum of the temples and so all his emanating goddess reside therein. Among the five goddesses emanating from this Dhyāni, Mārīcī is the most important and popular and who is believed by some as the consort of Vairocana. Without going into the details (which may be seen in Pr. vijn. p. 306-7; Pr. Laks. p. 288-9) these five goddesses along with their sub-forms are :

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| 1. Mārīc (i) Aśokakāntā (ii) Ārya-Mārīcī (iii) Mārīci-picuvā (iv) Ubhayavarāhānanā | (v) Daśabhujasita M. (vi) Vajradhātvīśvarī M. 2. Uṣṇīṣavijayā 3. Śitātapatrā 4. Mahāsāhasrapra- | mardinī 5. Vajravārāhi—3 forms 4th is Āryavajravā- rāhi |

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**7. Emanations of Amoghasiddhi :**—like those of Vairocana are also entirely feminine in character. Among the seven goddesses (cf. Pr. Laks. p. 289 and Pr. Vijn. p. 307 for details) tabulated hereunder, Parṇaśavr is repeated (cf. Em. of Aks.),

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| 1. Khadiravanī Tārā 2. Vaśyatārā 3. Sadbhuja-sitatārā | 4. Dhanada Tārā 5. Parṇaśavarī 6. Mahāmāyūrī | 7. Vajraśrṇkhalā *N. B.* Taras so common. |

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**8. Emanations of Ratnasambhava**—are very few as he is comparatively a late arrival in the pantheon. In the Sādhanamālā only two male and two female deities are affiliated to this Dhyānī Buddha. The two male deities which have been affiliated to Ratna-sambhava are Jambhāla and Ucchūṣma-Jambhāla, the latter being regarded as a terrific form of the former.

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*Jambhāla* was known long before the Dhyānī Buddhas were ushered into existence. Jambhāla like Kuber was connected with wealth and is said to distribute gems and riches to his devotees and so for such a deity who could have been better fitted than Ratnasambhava ‘born of jewels’ to become his sire. Now the characteristic features of Jambhāla (here in this emanation cf. his another emanation from Akṣobhya) are firstly that he carries the mongoose (the receptacle of all gems and jewels) in his right hand and the citron in the left and secondly he is associated with Yakṣas (who are also connected with wealth, being the guardian of treasures and the attendants of Kubera the Hindu god of wealth). He is represented single as well as in yab-yum, in the latter he is accompanied with Vasudhārā, his consort and so when represented in this union he sits on the moon under which is the double lotus of eight petals, which in their turn are occupied by the eight Yakṣas—Maṇibhadra, Pūrṇabhadra, Dhanada, Vaiśravaṇa, Kelimālī Civi-kuṇḍalī, Sukhendra and Carendra and they in their turn are also in conjugation with their Yakṣiṇīs—Citrakālī, Dattā, Sudattā, Āryā, Subhadrā, Guptā, Devī and Sarasvatī, all of them partaking the appearance after Vasudhārā.

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As regards *Ucchuşm-Jambhāla*, ‘he stands in Pratyālīḍha attitude with his left leg stretched forward on the forehead of Kubera while the right tramples upon his two legs. He has a terrible appearance with protruding belly, bare fangs and the ornaments of snakes. He holds the kapāla full of blood, against his breast and looks eagerly towards it with his three eyes’. ‘A unique image has been described by Rai Bahadur Daya Ram Sahni in the Museum Catalogue under No. B (e) 1. In terms of the Sādhana the image should bear on its crown either the image of Akṣobhya or of Ratnasambhava, but neither of them is to be found. It is Amitābha, who is there. We cannot, however, reject the identification on this ground only: for dressed in celestial garments and ornaments, the Hindu God, Kubera, lying flat on the ground, is pressed down by the two heavy legs of Ucchūṣma and vomits out all the jewels he had in his stomach’—Bhattacharya.

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Goddess—emanating from Ratnasambhava are *Mahā-pratisarā* (who is also the first of the Pañcarakṣṣā group) and *Vasudhārā*, the consort of Jambhāla.

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**9.** **Emanations of the Five Dhyānī Buddhas**—bear the images of only Vairocana, Amitābha Akṣobhya, Ratnasambhava and Amoghasiddhi on the crown (leaving Vajrasattva out, who is a later interpolation).

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Gods—Besides several forms of Mañjuśrī and one form of Avalokiteśvara, two gods only are said to emanate from a combination of the five Dhyānī Buddhas. The first is *Jambhāla* (also regarded as an emanation of either, Akṣobhya, or Vajrasattva), and the second is *Mahakālā.*’

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Jambhala—may be left out and let us concentrate on Mahākāla, whose epithet of ‘pañcabuddhakrīṭinam’ signifies his sires alright. ‘He may have one face with two, four, or six arms, or eight faces with sixteen arms. He is one of the many terrible deities described in the Sādhanamālā with ornaments of snakes, canine teeth, protruding belly and garments of tiger-skin’. Images of Mahākāla abound in Nepal, the birth-place of Tāntric-Buddhist images. In variation of his arms, he has four varieties two-armed, four-armed, six-armed and sixteenarmed; in the last of which Mahākāla should be surrounded by seven goddesses, three in the three cardinal points, (fourth being occupied by himself) and the other four in the four corners (see details in I. B. I. p. 121-222.

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Goddesses—emanating from a combination of the five Dhyānīs are:
1. Vajratārā 2. Sitatārā, 3. Prajñāpārmitā and Kurukullā. The first has a mandal constituted by eight goddesses occupying the four cardinal points and the four corners. (see ibid 124), along with the guardians guardingher gate. The third one i. e. Kurukala is called here Māyājālakrama.

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10. Emonations of Four D. Buddhas—only one Vajratārā.

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11. Emanations of Vajrasattva—are also insightficant—only one god and one goddess, the former being represented by Jambhāla (cf. his varied associations) and the latter by Cuṇḍā.

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12. Pañcarakṣā Maṇḍala—is consituted by Mahāpratisarā, Mahāsāhasrapramardinī, Mahāmantrānusāriṇī, Mahāmāyūrī and Mahāsitavatī and are called Pañcarakṣā deities. Originally they are affiliated to the five Dhyānīs and when worshipped in the Maṇḍala their forms differ to same extent. These deities are very popular with Mahāyānists as every monk keeps a copy of the Pañcarakṣā manuscript. Except Mahāsāhasrapramardini, all the remaining four are peaceful in apperaance, and the order of the Maṇḍala is as follows: the middle goes to Mahāpratisarā, who is sarva-śuklā; to her east should be Mahāsāhasrapramardinī who is blue in complexion; to her right i e. south is Mahāmāyūrī who is yellow in complexion; to her west is Mahāmantrānusāriṇī who is also of white complexion and lastly to the north is Mahāsitavatī who has green complexion.

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13. Taras—the Tāntric goodesses play a prominent part also in the Buddhist pantheon. They are classified firstly as ordinary Tārās and extraordinary ones, basis being the colour of all the varieties they asume. The former group is consisted of *Green Tārās* and *White Tārās* and the latter (i. e extraordinary) is composed of *Green, White, yellow, Blue* and *Red Taras*. Let us tabulate all these seven groups:

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| | **I Ordinary Tārās.** | 5. | Caturbhuja Sitatārā |
| **(i)** | **Green Variety.** | 6. | Saḍbhujā ,, |
| 1. | Khadiravanī | 7. | Viśvamātā ,, |
| 2. | & 3. Vaśya andĀrya | 8. | Kurukullā |
| 4. | Mahattarī and | 9. | Jāṅgulī |
| 5. | Varada | **(iii)** | **Yellow variety.** |
| **(ii)** | **White Variety.** | 10. | Vajratārā |
| 6. | Aṣṭamahābhaya and | 11. | Jāṅgulī |
| 7. | Mṛtyuvañcanā | 12. | Parṇaśavarī |
| | **II Extraordinary Tārās** | 13. | Bhṛukuṭī |
| **(i)** | **Green Variety** | 14 | Prasanna |
| 1. | Durgottāriṇī | **(iv)** | **Blue Variety.** |
| 2. | Dharada | 15. | Ekajaṭā |
| 3. | Jāṅgulī | 16. | Mahācīna |
| 4. | Parṇaśavarī | **(v)** | **Red Variety** |
| **(ii)** | **White Variety.** | 17. | Kurkulla, |

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**14. Independent Deities—are** (cf. the classification of the 14 groups of Buddhist images) the last group comprising both gods and goddesses. It may be said here that these independent deities are so called because they are independent of the sires and how can Hindu gods, like Gaṇapati, Sarasvatī etc, be assigned to a peculiar siredom of the Dhyānis? Bhattacarya says: ‘In the Sādhanamālā there are six male gods who could not be assigned to their sires. This number is increased by one if we include Paramāśva, another form of Hayagrīva without crest, who emanates from either Amitābhā or Akṣobhya. Not knowing to whom Paramāśva may be assigned he is dealt with under the independent deities. If we add Namasaṅgīti from Dharamakoṣasaṃgraha of Amṛtānanda, the number rises to eight.’ Accordingly the following gods in the Buddhist Iconography are known as independent ones:

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(a) Gods
1. Gaṇapati
2. Vighnāntaka
3. Vajrāhuṅkāra
4. Bhūtaḍāmara
5. Vajrajvālānalārka
6. Trailokyavijaya
7. Parmāśva and
8. Nāmāsaṅgīti

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*N. B.*—*Bighnāntaka* is closely associated with three other gods, *Padmāntaka*, *Yamāntaka* and *Prajñāntaka*, who are generally represented as guardian of the gates in Maṇḍalas. Vighnāntaka is represneted in various forms. The name is significant as the word “Vighna” or “obstacle” refers to the Hindu god, Gaṇeśa. Accordingly he tramples the prostrate figure of Gaṇeśa under his feet. As to the origin of this god there runs a Nepalese legend ‘that at a certain time an Odiyāna Paṇḍit wās performing certain Tāntric rites on the bank of Bāghmatī river near Kāṭhamāṇḍu in order to obtain a particular siddhi (perfection). Gaṇśa, it is said, being strongly opposed to the idea, began throwing dangerous obstacles in the way of the performance of the rite. The Odiyana Pandit without seeing any succour invoked the god Vighnāntaka, the destroyer of all obstacles and lo! Vighnāntaka instantly appeared in a terrible and fierce form, armed with many destructive weapons. He gave a hot chase to Gaṇeśa, who was by this time, flying in terror, and in no time overcame the latter.’

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Goddesses:
1. Sarasvatī
(i) Mahāsarasvatī
(ii) Vajravīṇā
(iii) Vajraśāradā
(iv) Āryasarasvatī
(v) Vajrasarasvatī
2. Aparājitā
3. Vajragāndhārī
4. Vajrayoginī
5. Gṛhamātṛkā
6. Gaṇapatihṛdayā and
7. Vajravidāriṇi *N. B. Sarasvatī* a Hindu goddess has been modified here by the Buddhists under so many forms. Aparājitā also being one of the popular Śaivī Devīs, has become here a very interesting Buddhist goddess. She tramples upon Gaṇśa and one of her hands is raised in the attitude of dealing a slap and her parasol, according to the Sādhanā is held by important Hindu gods. Here end all the 14 groups of Buddhist icons, let us now take up their iconology.

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The Secret Iconology—A good many noted Mahāyānists were great scholars. They were not only great philosophers but also Paṇḍits of the day. Their leanings towards Tāntricism simply made Mahāyāna immortal. Tāntricism in its pure form is the sublimest of philosophy, loftiest of metahysics and the strictest of discipline. But when it became the property of the common men, it got degenerated. A word therefore is needed to be said on this high philosophy or the Vajrayāna view of the Vajrayāna-Buddhist images. All their gods are symbolic. A deep spiritual significance is attached to the colour, the weapons and āsanas. ‘For instance in Śāntikavidhi or propitiatory rite the god will take the white or yellow colour, in Pauṣṭikavidhi or protective rite the yellow colour, in Vaśyavidhi or bewitching and Ākarṣaṇa or the rite of forcible attraction, the yellow, green or red colour, and in Ucāṭana (destruction of dwelling houses) and Mārana (destruction of enemies), the god will be generally blue. ‘The āsanas have like-wise a spiritual significance: The Vajraparyaṅka attitude signifies meditation, the Ardharyauka and Lalitāsana signify serenity, the Alīḍha heroism, the Pratyālīḍha destruction and loathsomeness, and the dancing attitude in Ardhaparayaṅka signifies wrath and horror.’

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The conception of yab-yum in its prinstine form is simply very lofty. It has been very ably worked out by Śri Bhattacharya—vide I. B. I.p. 163-67, and I am taking liberty to reproduce its some portions here to bring home to my readers the real genesis of Buddhist iconography: ‘The Tibetan yab means the honourable father, and yum the honourable mother. Therefore the word yab-yum means the honourable father in the company of the honourable mother. A yab-yum image has a deep spiritual significance. It signifies that the god, the embodiment of Śūnya represents perfection having attained Śūnya (Karuṇā) and therefore the highest stage of Nirvāṇa.” Accordingly the conception of Śūnya in Vajrayāna took the concrete shape of a god and a goddess—vide its representation in Heruk and Nairātmā “The god Heruka, the embodiment of Śūnya, carrying weapons, the embodiments of Bodhicitta also of the nature of Śūnya is embraced by Nairātmā, whose essence is also Śūnya, carrying weapons also of the nature of Śūnya. Thus void with void commingles. This is the highest state—the Anupādhiśeṣa Nirvāṇa." "The yab-yum figures representing Śūnya in the form of Heruka in the embrace of Śunya in the form of Nairātmā, were held up before the masses as ideals, and they readily attracted them and helped them in their conception of a bright and definite spiritual prospect." "The perfected Bodhicitta in the embrace of Śūnya or Nairātmā as represented in yab-yum figures is likened by Saraha as salt and water. As salt can not be taken out from water, so the two yab-yum figures are eternally united into one. This is what the Buddhists call "Advaya" where all conception of a duality ceases. This is Heruka represented as single." Bddhists of the Vajrayāna considered Śūnya as the Ultimate Reality, and they believed that the host of gods and goddesses including the Dhyānī Buddhas are Śūnya in essence". "The whole of the Buddhist Tantric literature is full with ideas of this kind; for instance in Advayavajra we find—"The divinities are manifestations which are naturally non-existent. Whenever there is manifestation; it must be Śūnya in essence:"

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Linked texts (20)

Agnipurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit
Bhāgavatapurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit
Mānasāra — Sanskrit
Sādhanamālā — Sanskrit
Bṛhatsaṃhitā — Varāhamihira, Sanskrit
Svayambhūpurāṇa — Sanskrit
Viṣṇudharmottarapurāṇa — Sanskrit
Aṣṭasāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā — Sanskrit
Jñānasiddhi — Indrabhūti, Sanskrit
Advayavajrasaṃgraha — Maitrīpa, Sanskrit
Viṣṇupurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit
Bhagavadgītā — Vyāsa, Sanskrit
Sādhana — Sanskrit
Sukhāvatīvyūha (larger) — Sanskrit
Mahāsukhaprakāśa — Sanskrit
Nālandā
Sāñcī
Bharhut
Ajanta
Rūpamaṇḍana — Maṇḍana, Sanskrit