Five Tathagatas
Five Tathagatas
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Cloth with painting of the Buddhas
'The Dhyani Buddha Akshobhya', Tibetan thangka, late 13th century, Honolulu Museum of Art. The background consists of multiple images of the Five Buddhas.
In Vajrayana Buddhism, the Five Tathāgatas (pañcatathāgata) or Five Wisdom Tathāgatas (Chinese: 五智如来; pinyin: Wǔzhì Rúlái), the Five Great Buddhas and the Five Jinas (Sanskrit for "conqueror" or "victor"), are emanations and representations of the five qualities of the Adi-Buddha or "first Buddha" Vairocana or Vajradhara, which is associated with Dharmakaya.[1]
They are also sometimes called the "dhyani-buddhas", a term first recorded in English by the British Resident in Nepal, Brian Hodgson,[2] in the early 19th century, and is unattested in any surviving traditional primary sources.[3] These five Buddhas are a common subject of Vajrayana mandalas.
These five Buddhas feature prominently in various Buddhist Tantras and are the primary object of realization and meditation in Shingon Buddhism, a school of Vajarayana Buddhism founded in Japan by Kūkai.
Contents
1 Origin
2 Qualities
3 See also
4 References
5 Bibliography
6 External links
Origin[edit]
Vajradhatu Mandala composed of 81 buddhas, Japan, Kamakura period
The Five Wisdom Buddhas are a development of the Buddhist Tantras, and later became associated with the trikaya or "three body" theory of Buddhahood. While in the Tattvasaṃgraha Tantra there are only four Buddha families, the full Vajradhatu mandala with five Buddhas first appears in the Vajrasekhara Sutra.[4] The Vajrasekhara also mentions a sixth Buddha, Vajradhara, "a Buddha (or principle) seen as the source, in some sense, of the five Buddhas."[5]
The Five Buddhas are aspects of the dharmakaya "dharma-body", which embodies the principle of enlightenment in Buddhism.
Initially, two Buddhas appeared to represent wisdom and compassion: Akshobhya and Amitābha. A further distinction embodied the aspects of power, or activity, and the aspect of beauty, or spiritual riches. In the Golden Light Sutra, an early Mahayana text, the figures are named Dundubishvara and Ratnaketu, but over time their names changed to become Amoghasiddhi, and Ratnasambhava. The central figure came to be called Vairocana.
When these Buddhas are represented in mandalas, they may not always have the same colour or be related to the same directions. In particular, Akshobhya and Vairocana may be switched. When represented in a Vairocana mandala, the Buddhas are arranged like this:
Amoghasiddhi (North) | ||
Amitābha (West) | Vairocana (Principal deity/meditator) | Akshobhya (East) |
Ratnasambhava (South) |
Qualities[edit]
There is an expansive number of associations with each element of the mandala, so that the mandala becomes a cipher and mnemonic visual thinking instrument and concept map; a vehicle for understanding and decoding the whole of the Dharma.
Some of the associations include:
| Family/Buddha | Colour ← Element → Symbolism | Cardinality → Wisdom → Attachments → Gestures | Means → Maladaptation to Stress | Season | Wisdom |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buddha/Vairocana | white ← space → wheel | center → all accommodating → rūpa → Teaching the Dharma | Turning the Wheel of Dharma → ignorance | n/a | 法界体性智, Hokkai taishō chi: The wisdom of the essence of the dharma-realm meditation mudra.[6] |
| Karma/Amoghasiddhi | green ← air, wind → double vajra | north → all accomplishing → mental formation, concept → fearlessness | protect, destroy → envy, jealousy | autumn | 成所作智, Jōshosa chi: The wisdom of perfect practice. |
Padma/Amitābha | red ← fire → lotus | west → inquisitive → perception → meditation | magnetize, subjugate → selfishness | summer | 妙観察智, Myōkanza chi: The wisdom of observation. |
| Ratna/Ratnasambhava | gold/yellow ← earth → jewel | south → equanimous → feeling → giving | enrich, increase → pride, greed | spring | 平等性智, Byōdōshō chi: The wisdom of equanimity. |
| Vajra/Akshobhya | blue ← water → sceptre, vajra | east → nondualist → vijñāna → humility | pacify → aggression | winter | 大円鏡智, Daienkyō chi: The wisdom of reflection. |
The five Tathāgathas are protected by five Wisdom Kings, and in Japan are frequently depicted together in the Mandala of the Two Realms and are in the Shurangama Mantra revealed in the Śūraṅgama Sūtra. They each are often depicted with consorts, and preside over their own pure lands. In East Asia, the aspiration to be reborn in a pure land is the central point of Pure Land Buddhism. Although all five Buddhas have pure lands, it appears that only Sukhavati of Amitābha, and to a much lesser extent Abhirati of Akshobhya (where great masters like Vimalakirti and Milarepa are said to dwell) attracted aspirants.
| Buddha (Skt) | Consort | Dhyani Bodhisattva | Pure land | Bīja |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Vairocana | White Tara or Dharmadhatvishvari | Samantabhadra | central pure land Akanistha Ghanavyuha | Om |
Akshobhya | Locanā | Vajrapani | eastern pure land Abhirati | Hum |
Amitābha | Pandara [7] | Avalokiteśvara | western pure land Sukhavati | Hrih |
Ratnasaṃbhava | Mamaki [8] | Ratnapani | southern pure land Shrimat | Tram |
Amoghasiddhi | Green Tara[9][10] | Viśvapāni | northern pure land Prakuta | Ah |
See also[edit]
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- Dharma
- Dharmadhatu
- Skandha#Eighteen Dhātus
- Garbhagriha
- List of the named Buddhas
- Trikaya
- Vajra
- Vajradhatu
- Womb Realm
References[edit]
^ Williams, Wynne, Tribe; Buddhist Thought: A Complete Introduction to the Indian Tradition, page 210.
^ Bogle (1999) pp. xxxiv-xxxv
^ Saunders, E Dale, "A Note on Śakti and Dhyānibuddha," History of Religions 1 (1962): pp. 300-06.
^ Williams, Wynne, Tribe; Buddhist Thought: A Complete Introduction to the Indian Tradition, page 210.
^ Williams, Wynne, Tribe; Buddhist Thought: A Complete Introduction to the Indian Tradition, page 210.
^ Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System. (2004). JAANUS / hokkai jouin 法界定印. Available: http://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/h/hokkaijouin.htm. Last accessed 27 Nov 2013.
^ "Pandara The Shakti of Amitabha". Buddhanature.com. Retrieved 2013-06-14..mw-parser-output cite.citationfont-style:inherit.mw-parser-output qquotes:"""""""'""'".mw-parser-output code.cs1-codecolor:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-free abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-registration abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-subscription abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registrationcolor:#555.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration spanborder-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-errordisplay:none;font-size:100%.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-errorfont-size:100%.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-formatfont-size:95%.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-leftpadding-left:0.2em.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-rightpadding-right:0.2em
^ "Mamaki The Shakti of Aksobhya". Buddhanature.com. Retrieved 2013-06-14.
^ "chart of the Five Buddhas and their associations". Religionfacts.com. 2012-12-21. Retrieved 2013-06-14.
^ Symbolism of the five Dhyani Buddhas Archived March 8, 2009, at the Wayback Machine.
Bibliography[edit]
- Bogle, George; Markham, Clements Robert; and Manning, Thomas (1999) Narratives of the Mission of George Bogle to Tibet and of the Journey of Thomas Manning to Lhasa
ISBN 81-206-1366-X - Bucknell, Roderick & Stuart-Fox, Martin (1986). The Twilight Language: Explorations in Buddhist Meditation and Symbolism. Curzon Press: London.
ISBN 0-312-82540-4
External links[edit]
 | Wikimedia Commons has media related to Dhyāni Buddha. |
Five Dhyani Buddhas - chart of the Five Buddhas and their associations.
StudyBuddhism.com - The Five Buddha-Families and Five Dhyani Buddhas
Five Dhyani Buddhas - Painting of the Five Buddhas at Padmaloka.- Symbolism of the five Dhyani Buddhas
- Color Symbolism In Buddhist Art
- Mark Schumacher: Godai Nyorai (Japanese) - Five Buddha of Wisdom Five Buddha of Meditation Five Jina | Five Tathagatas
The Five Buddha Families - From Journey Without Goal: The Tantric Wisdom of the Buddha by Chögyam Trungpa, Shambhala.org (archived 2007)
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Categories:
- Buddhas
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