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{{Short description|Celestial Buddha embodying emptiness}}
<em>This article is about the primordial Buddha Vairocana. For the Tibetan translator, please see [[Vairotsana]]</em>
{{about|the primordial buddha Vairocana|the Tibetan translator|Vairotsana}}
{{Infobox Buddha
| name = Vairocana
| image = File:Spring Temple Buddha 1.jpg
| caption = The [[Spring Temple Buddha]], a colossal statue of Vairocana, in [[Lushan County, Henan|Lushan County]], [[Henan]], China. It has a total height of 153 meters (502 ft), including the 25 meter (82 ft) [[lotus throne]] which the statue stands on.
| sanskrit_name = वैरोचन
<br />Vairocana
| bengali_name = {{lang|bn|বৈরোচন}}
| pali_name =
| burmese_name = ဗုဒ္ဓဘုရားရှင်
| chinese_name = 大日如來
<br/>([[Pinyin]]: ''Dàrì Rúlái'')<br/>毘盧遮那佛<br/>([[Pinyin]]: ''Pílúzhēnà Fó'')
| japanese_name = {{ruby-ja|大日如来|だいにちにょらい}}<br/>([[romaji]]: ''Dainichi Nyorai'')<br/>{{ruby-ja|毘盧遮那仏|びるしゃなぶつ}}<br/>([[romaji]]: ''Birushana Bosatsu'')
| tibetan_name = <big><big>རྣམ་པར་སྣང་མཛད་</big></big><br><small text>Wylie: rnam par snang mdzad<br>THL: Nampar Nangdze</small text>
| mongolian_name = {{MongolUnicode|ᠮᠠᠰᠢᠳᠠ<br />ᠭᠡᠢᠢᠭᠦᠯᠦᠨ<br />ᠵᠣᠬᠢᠶᠠᠭᠴᠢ}}<br />Машид гийгүүлэн зохиогч<br/>''Masida geyigülün zohiyaghci''<br/>{{MongolUnicode|ᠪᠢᠷᠦᠵᠠᠨ᠎ ᠠ᠂<br />ᠮᠠᠰᠢᠳᠠ<br />ᠭᠡᠢᠢᠭᠦᠯᠦᠨ<br />ᠵᠣᠬᠢᠶᠠᠭᠴᠢ᠂<br />ᠭᠡᠭᠡᠭᠡᠨ<br />ᠭᠡᠷᠡᠯᠲᠦ}}<br/>Бярузана, Машид Гийгүүлэн Зохиогч, Гэгээн Гэрэлт<br/>''Biruzana, Masida Geyigülün Zohiyaghci, Gegegen Gereltü''
| korean_name = 대일여래<br/>大日如來([[Revised Romanization of Korean|RR]]: ''Daeil Yeorae'')<br/>비로자나불<br/>毘盧遮那佛([[Revised Romanization of Korean|RR]]: ''Birojana Bul'')
| thai_name = พระไวโรจนพุทธะ<br/>([[Royal Thai General System of Transcription|RTGS]]: ''Phra wịrocana phuthṭha'')
| indonesian_name = Wairocana
| vietnamese_name = Đại Nhật Như Lai<br/>大日如來<br/>Tỳ Lư Xá Na<br/>毘盧遮那<br/>Tỳ Lô Giá Na Phật<br/>毗盧遮那佛
| veneration = [[Mahayana]], [[Vajrayana]]
| attributes = [[Śūnyatā]]
| shakti =
| preceded_by =
| succeeded_by =
}}'''Vairocana''' (from [[Sanskrit]]: Vi+rocana, "from the sun" or "belonging to the sun", "Solar", or "Shining") also known as '''Mahāvairocana''' (Great Vairocana) is a major [[Buddhahood|Buddha]] from [[Mahayana]] and [[Vajrayana]] Buddhism.<ref>{{Cite web |last=www.wisdomlib.org |date=2018-10-03 |title=Vairocana: 17 definitions |url=https://www.wisdomlib.org/definition/vairocana |access-date=2024-07-31 |website=www.wisdomlib.org |language=en}}</ref> Vairocana is often interpreted, in texts like the ''[[Avatamsaka Sutra]]'', as the [[Dharmakāya]]<ref>佛光大辭典增訂版隨身碟,中英佛學辭典 - "三身" (Fo Guang Great Dictionary Updated USB Version, Chinese-English Dictionary of Buddhist Studies - "Trikāya" entry)</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Birushana Buddha. SOTOZEN-NET Glossary|url=http://global.sotozen-net.or.jp/eng/library/glossary/individual.html?key=birushana_buddha|access-date=2015-09-12}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|editor1-last=Buswell|editor1-first=Robert Jr|editor2-last=Lopez|editor2-first=Donald S. Jr.|editor1-link=Robert Buswell Jr.|editor2-link=Donald S. Lopez, Jr.|title=Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism.|date=2013|publisher=Princeton University Press|location=Princeton, NJ|isbn=9780691157863|pages=949–950}}</ref> of the historical [[Gautama Buddha]].


In [[East Asian Buddhism]] ([[Chinese Buddhism|Chinese]], [[Korean Buddhism|Korean]], [[Japanese Buddhism|Japanese]] and [[Vietnamese Buddhism]]), Vairocana is also seen as the dharmakāya (the supreme [[Trikaya|buddha-body]], the body of ultimate reality), and the embodiment of the Buddhist concept of wisdom and purity.<ref name=":0" /> Mahāvairocana is often translated into East Asian languages as "Great Sun Buddha" (Chinese: 大日如來, Japanese: Dainichi Nyorai) Buddha.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Soothill |first=William Edward |last2=Hodous |first2=Lewis |title=A Dictionary of Chinese Buddhist Terms |url=https://mahajana.net/texts/soothill-hodous.html |access-date=2024-07-31 |website=mahajana.net}}</ref> In the conception of the [[Five Tathagatas|Five Jinas]] of Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism, Vairocana is at the centre and is often considered a [[Adi-Buddha|Primordial Buddha]]. In East Asian esoteric Buddhism, Mahāvairocana is considered to be a cosmic Buddha whose body is the entire universe, the [[Dharmadhatu|Dharmadhātu]].<ref name=":0" />
[[Image:TodaijiDaibutsu0224.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The Daibutsu of [[Todaiji]], a [[Kegon]] [[Buddhist]] temple in [[Nara, Nara|Nara]], [[Japan]]. A representation of Vairocana.]]
According to the [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] [[Trikaya]] doctrine, '''Vairocana''' (also '''Vairochana''' or '''Mahavairocana'''; &#22823;&#26085;&#22914;&#20358; or &#27608;&#30439;&#36974;&#37027;&#20315; [[Chinese language|Chinese]]: ''D&agrave;r&igrave; Rúlái'' or ''Pi Lu Zhe Na Fo'', [[Japanese language|Japanese]]: ''Dainichi Nyorai'') is a [[Buddha]] who is the embodiment of [[Dharmakaya]], and which therefore can be seen as the universal aspect of the historical [[Gautama Buddha]]. In the conception of the [[Five Wisdom Buddhas]], Vairocana is at the center. The Vairocana statue in [[Nara, Nara|Nara]]'s [[Todaiji]] is the largest bronze image of Vairocana Buddha in the world. The larger of the [[Buddhas of Bamiyan|monumental statues]] that were destroyed at [[Bamiyan]] in [[Afghanistan]] was also a depiction of Vairocana.


Vairocana is not to be confused with Vairocana [[Mahabali]], son of the [[asura]] [[Virochana]], a character in the ''[[Yoga Vasistha|Yoga Vasishta]]''. Vairocana Buddha is also not to be confused with another Buddha that appears in some Mahayana sources called "Rocana".
Vairocana is the central figure of many early schools of Buddhism in Japan, including esoteric [[Shingon]] Buddhism and [[Kegon]] Buddhism. The doctrine of Vairocana Buddha is based largely on the teachings of the [[Mahavairocana Sutra]]. In addition, Vairocana is often tied to the [[Huayan|Hua-Yen]] school of Buddhist philosophy that was prominent during the [[Tang Dynasty]]. [[Huayan|Hua-Yen]] Buddhism strongly emphasized the importance of [[Shunyata|Emptiness]] and ''interdependent co-arising'', so Vairocana is also associated with [[Shunyata|Emptiness]].


==Literary and historical development==
Vairocana was gradually superseded as an object of reverence by [[Amitabha|Amitabha Buddha]] in Japan, but his legacy still remains in the aforementioned [[Todaiji]] temple and its massive bronze statue.
Vairocana Buddha is first introduced in the [[Brahmajala Sutra (Mahayana)|''Brahmajala Sutra'']]:


{{quote|Now, I, Vairocana Buddha am sitting atop a lotus pedestal; On a thousand flowers surrounding me are a thousand Sakyamuni Buddhas. Each flower supports a hundred million worlds; in each world a Sakyamuni Buddha appears. All are seated beneath a Bodhi-tree, all simultaneously attain Buddhahood. All these innumerable Buddhas have Vairocana as their original body.<ref>{{cite web|title=YMBA's translation of Brahma Net Sutra |url=http://www.ymba.org/bns/bnsframe.htm |access-date=2008-12-12 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050305052346/http://www.ymba.org/bns/bnsframe.htm |archive-date=March 5, 2005 }}</ref>}}
==Doctrine==
In the [[Rigveda]] the word ‘vairocana' has the connotation of a brilliant and luminous sun. Indeed, Vairocana in [[Tibetan_language|Tibetan]] is called ‘Namnang', meaning ‘the illuminator'.


Vairocana is also mentioned in the ''[[Avatamsaka Sutra]]''; however, the doctrine of Vairocana is based largely on the teachings of the ''[[Mahavairocana Tantra]]'' (also known as the {{IAST|Mahāvairocana-abhisaṃbodhi-tantra}}) and to a lesser degree the ''[[Vajrasekhara Sutra]]'' (also known as the {{IAST|Sarvatathāgatatattvasaṃgraha}} Tantra).
Vairocana often displays the Dharmachakra [[mudra]]. Dharmachakra in [[Sanskrit]] means the '[[Wheel of Dharma]]'. This mudra symbolizes one of the most important moments in the historical life of the Buddha, the occasion when he preached to his companions the first sermon after his Enlightenment in the Deer Park at Sarnath. It thus denotes the setting into motion of the Wheel of the teaching of the [[Dharma]].


In the ''Avatamsaka Sutra'', Vairocana is described as having attained enlightenment immeasurable [[Kalpa (time)|ages]] ago and residing in a world purified by him while he was a [[bodhisattva]]. He also presides over an assembly of countless other bodhisattvas. He may be considered the celestial existence ([[saṃbhogakāya]]) of [[The Buddha|Gautama Buddha]], who came to be as Vairochana's earthly rebirth from his previous existence in [[Tushita]] heaven.<ref name=Concept>{{Cite book|last=Xing|first=Guan|title=The Concept of the Buddha: Its Evolution from Early Buddhism to the Trikāya Theory|date=2005|publisher=Psychology Press|isbn=978-0-41533-344-3|page=169-171}}</ref> Similarly, the ''Brahmajala Sutra'' also states that Shakyamuni was originally named Vairochana, regarding the former as a physical incarnation (''[[nirmāṇakāya]]'') of the latter.<ref name=Concept/>
Vairocana is an idealization of this central function of the Buddha as a teacher, without which there would have been no Buddhism, and no path to enlightenment.


Vairocana is also mentioned as an epithet of Gautama Buddha in the ''[[Samantabhadra Meditation Sutra]]'', who dwells in a place called "Always Tranquil Light".<ref name=Reeves>{{harvnb|Reeves|2008|pp=416, 452}}</ref> In the [[Shurangama Mantra|Śūraṅgama mantra]] ({{Lang-zh|c=楞嚴咒|p=Léngyán Zhòu}}) taught in the [[Śūraṅgama Sūtra|Śūraṅgama sutra]] ({{Lang-zh|c=楞嚴經|p=Léngyán Jīng|links=no}}), an especially influential [[dharani]] in the [[Chan Buddhism|Chinese Chan tradition]], Vairocana is mentioned to be the host of the Buddha Division in the centre, one of the five major divisions which dispels the vast demon armies of the five directions.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/300721049|title=The Śūraṅgama sūtra : a new translation|date=2009|publisher=Buddhist Text Translation Society|others=Hsüan Hua, Buddhist Text Translation Society|isbn=978-0-88139-962-2|location=Ukiah, Calif.|oclc=300721049}}</ref>
==Iconography==


Vairocana is the Primordial Buddha in the Chinese schools of [[Tiantai]], [[Huayan]] and [[Chinese Esoteric Buddhism|Tangmi]], also appearing in later schools including the Japanese [[Kegon]], [[Shingon]] and esoteric lineages of [[Tendai]]. In the case of Huayan and Shingon, Vairocana is the central figure.
[[Image:Nara_daibutsu.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Another image of the Daibutsu of [[Todaiji]], in [[Nara]], [[Japan]].]]
Significantly, Vairocana is said to be the sum of all the [[Five Wisdom Buddhas|Dhyani Buddhas]] and combines all their qualities. He is therefore, pure white, since white is a blend of all colors.


In [[Chinese Buddhism|Chinese]] and [[Buddhism in Japan|Japanese Buddhism]], Vairocana was gradually superseded as an object of reverence by [[Amitābha]], due in large part to the increasing popularity of [[Pure Land Buddhism]], but veneration of Vairocana still remains popular among adherents.
Indeed, his lotus seat is supported by a pair of two great lions. The lion is the king of beasts and when he roars all others fall silent. Similar is the roar of Buddha's teachings, in relation to the grandeur of which all other voices of our everyday life become insignificant and fall silent. Not surprisingly, [[meditation|meditating]] on the image of Vairocana is specifically believed to transform the delusion of ignorance into the wisdom preached by the Dharma. When [[Gautama Buddha]] turned the wheel of the Dharma, it illuminated (like a sun), the hearts of men and women darkened by ignorance.


During the initial stages of his mission in Japan, the Catholic missionary [[Francis Xavier]] was welcomed by the Shingon monks since he used ''Dainichi'', the Japanese name for Vairocana, to designate the [[Christian God]]. As Xavier learned more about the religious nuances of the word, he substituted the term ''Deusu'', which he derived from the Latin and Portuguese ''Deus''.<ref name="Ropps">[http://www.theropps.com/papers/Winter1997/FrancisXavier.htm#Dainichi%20and%20Deus Francis Xavier and the Land of the Rising Sun: Dainichi and Deus], [[Matthew Ropp]], 1997.</ref><ref name="Ellisonas">{{cite book | last = Elisonas | first = Jurgis | editor1-last = Hall | editor1-first = John Whitney | editor1-link = John Whitney Hall | editor2-last = McClain | editor2-first = James L. | title = [[The Cambridge History of Japan]] | publisher = [[Cambridge University Press]] | location = Cambridge Eng. New York | year = 1991 | isbn = 9780521223553 |chapter=7 - Christianity and the daimyo |volume=4 |page=307}}</ref>
With regard to [[Shunyata|Emptiness]], the massive size and brilliance of Vairocana statues is intended to serve as a reminder that all existence is empty, and without a permanent identity.


The Shingon monk Dohan regarded the two great Buddhas, Amitābha and Vairocana, as one and the same Dharmakāya Buddha and as the true nature at the core of all beings and phenomena. There are several realizations that can accrue to the Shingon practitioner of which Dohan speaks in this connection, as James Sanford points out:
Vairocana's distinguishing emblem is the golden or solar wheel.
{{quote|[T]here is the realization that [[Amitābha|Amida]] is the Dharmakaya Buddha, Vairocana; then there is the realization that Amida as Vairocana is eternally manifest within this universe of time and space; and finally there is the innermost realization that Amida is the true nature, material and spiritual, of all beings, that he is 'the omnivalent wisdom-body, that he is the unborn, unmanifest, unchanging reality that rests quietly at the core of all phenomena".<ref>James H. Sanford, 'Breath of Life: The Esoteric Nembutsu' in ''Tantric Buddhism in East Asia'', ed. by Richard K. Payne, Wisdom Publications, Boston, 2006, p. 176</ref>}}


Helen Hardacre, writing on the ''Mahavairocana Tantra'', comments that Mahavairocana's virtues are deemed to be immanently universal within all beings: "The principle doctrine of the ''Dainichikyo'' is that all the virtues of Dainichi (Mahāvairocana) are inherent in us and in all sentient beings."<ref>Helen Hardacre, 'The Cave and the Womb World', in ''Tantric Buddhism in East Asia'' (Wisdom Publications, Boston, 2006), p. 215</ref>

According to the ''[[Buddhāvataṃsaka Sūtra]],'' the whole universe is a vast pure buddha-field which has been purified by [[Vairocana]] Buddha. This is the view of Pure Land which is found in the Chinese Huayan tradition.<ref>Prince, Tony (2014). Universal Enlightenment, An introduction to the teachings and practices of Huayen Buddhism, pp. 222-223. . Kongting Publishing Company Ltd. Taiwan.</ref> According to this view, our world is just one small part of this universal Pure Land which is named: "Ocean of worlds, whose surface and inside are decorated with an arrangement of flowers" (Sanskrit: {{Transliteration|sa|Kusumatalagarbha-vyūhālamkāra-lokadhātusamudra}}).<ref>Susumu, Otake, "Sakyamuni and Vairocana", in Gimello et al. (2012). ''Avataṃsaka Buddhism in East Asia: Huayan, Kegon, Flower Ornament Buddhism ; origins and adaptation of a visual culture'', p. 37. Asiatische Forschungen: Monographienreihe zur Geschichte, Kultur und Sprache der Völker Ost- u. Zentralasiens, Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, {{ISBN|978-3-447-06678-5}}</ref> It is also called the "Lotus Treasury World" (Chinese: {{Lang|zh|華蔵世界}}, Skt. {{Transliteration|sa|Padmagarbha-lokadhātu}}), since it is an array of billions of worlds in a lotus shape.{{cn|date=May 2024}}

In the cosmology of the ''Avatamsaka sutra,'' our world is just one of the immeasurable number of worlds in a multiverse called "Ocean of worlds, whose surface and inside are decorated with an arrangement of flowers" (Kusumatalagarbha-vyuhalamkara-lokadhatu-samudra).<ref>Susumu, Otake, "Sakyamuni and Vairocana", in Gimello at al. (2012), p. 37.</ref> The ''Avatamsaka'' states that this entire cosmos has been purified by the Buddha Vairocana through his bodhisattva practices for countless aeons, after having met countless Buddhas. The sutra also states that our world is in Vairocana's [[Pure land|buddhafield]].<ref>Susumu, Otake, "Sakyamuni and Vairocana", in Gimello at al. (2012), p. 38.</ref> Vairocana is closely associated with Shakyamuni Buddha, in some cases he is even identified with him in the ''Avatamsaka Sutra''.<ref>Susumu, Otake, "Sakyamuni and Vairocana", in Gimello at al. (2012), p. 39.</ref> Huayan generally sees Shakyamuni as an emanation body (nirmanakaya) from the ultimate Buddha [[Vairocana]] ("The Illuminator").<ref>Lin, Weiyu (2021). [https://open.library.ubc.ca/soa/cIRcle/collections/ubctheses/24/items/1.0401123 ''Exegesis-philosophy interplay <nowiki>: introduction to Fazang's (643-712) commentary on the Huayan jing (60 juans) [Skt. Avataṃsaka Sūtra; Flower garland sūtra] — the Huayan jing tanxuan ji [record of investigating the mystery of the Huayan jing]</nowiki>''.] p. 32. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Library.</ref> [[File:Hwaeomsa Gwebul (National Treasure 301).jpg|thumb|A painting of Vairocana at [[Hwaeomsa]]]]
Furthermore, Huayan thought sees the entire universe as being the very body of Vairocana, who is seen as a supreme cosmic Buddha. Vairocana is infinite, his influence and light is limitless, pervading the entire universe.<ref>Cook (1977) pp. 90-91</ref> Furthermore, Vairocana is really the ultimate principle (li), the [[Dharmakāya|Dharmakaya]], Suchness and "the substance underlying phenomenal reality".<ref name=":113">Cook (1977)'','' pp. 93-104.</ref> However, while Vairocana as ultimate principle is eternal, it also transforms and changes according to the needs and conditions of sentient beings. Furthermore, Vairocana is empty, interdependent and interfused with all phenomena in the universe.<ref name=":113" /> Thus, Vairocana is both immanent (due to its dependent and interfused character) and transcendent (as the immutable basis of all things).<ref>Cook (1977), p. 105.</ref>

According to [[Fazang]], while the nirmanakaya Shakyamuni taught the other [[Mahayana sutras]], Vairocana teaches the ''Avatamsaka Sutra'' through his ten bodies which are: the All-Beings Body, the Lands Body, the Karma Body, the Śrāvakas Body, the Pratyekabuddha Body, the Bodhisattvas Body, the Tathāgatas Body, the Wisdom Body, the Dharma Body, and the Space Body.<ref>Lin, Weiyu (2021). [https://open.library.ubc.ca/soa/cIRcle/collections/ubctheses/24/items/1.0401123 ''<nowiki>Exegesis-philosophy interplay : introduction to Fazang's (643-712) commentary on the Huayan jing (60 juans) [Skt. Avataṃsaka Sūtra; Flower garland sūtra] — the Huayan jing tanxuan ji [record of investigating the mystery of the Huayan jing]</nowiki>''.] p. 33. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Library.</ref> Fazang sees these ten bodies as encompassing all phenomena (animate and inanimate) in the "three realms", i.e. the entire universe.<ref>Lin, Weiyu (2021). [https://open.library.ubc.ca/soa/cIRcle/collections/ubctheses/24/items/1.0401123 ''Exegesis-philosophy interplay <nowiki>: introduction to Fazang's (643-712) commentary on the Huayan jing (60 juans) [Skt. Avataṃsaka Sūtra; Flower garland sūtra] — the Huayan jing tanxuan ji [record of investigating the mystery of the Huayan jing]</nowiki>''.] p. 34. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Library.</ref>

== Mantras and Dharanis ==
Numerous [[Mantra|mantras]], [[Bīja|seed syllables]] and [[Dharani|dharanis]] are associated with Vairocana Buddha.

A common basic mantra is the following:<ref>{{Cite web |title=Vairocana-Mahāvairocana mantras and seed syllables |url=http://www.visiblemantra.org/vairocana.html |access-date=2023-08-16 |website=www.visiblemantra.org}}</ref><blockquote>Oṃ Vairocana Vaṃ</blockquote>Another popular Vairocana related mantra is the [[Mantra of Light]], which is popular in Japanese Buddhism, including [[Shingon Buddhism|Shingon]]. This is:
<blockquote>Oṃ Amogha Vairocana Mahāmudrā Maṇipadma Jvala Pravartāya Hūṃ</blockquote>Another mantra associated with Vairocana is the following Shingon school mantra:<blockquote>Namo Mahāguru Vairocana Vajra (Jp: namu daishi henjō kongō 南 無 大 師 遍 照 金 剛)</blockquote>This mantra is also the mantra of [[Kūkai|Kukai]], the founder of the Shingon school.<ref name=":02">Shinjo Hinonishi; Londo William (trans.) "The Hōgō (treasure name) of Kōbō Daishi and the development of beliefs associated with it," Japanese religions. 2002, vol. 27, no1, pp. 5-18</ref> Its inner meaning is an invocation to [[Dharmakāya]] Mahāvairocana Buddha as the great universal teacher.

=== Five element mantras ===
Five syllable mantras (Japanese: ''goji shingon'') symbolize how all things in the universe (here: [[Mahābhūta|the five elements]]) are modes and emanations of Vairocana. One such mantra which is used in the [[Shingon Buddhism|Shingon]] school is:<ref>Stone, Jacqueline I. (2016). ''Right Thoughts at the Last Moment: Buddhism and Deathbed Practices in Early Medieval Japan,'' p. 499''.'' University of Hawaii Press.</ref><ref name=":3">Giebel, Rolf W.; Todaro, Dale A. (2004)''. Shingon Texts'', Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, pp. 247-248. BDK English Tripi†aka 98-I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII.</ref> <blockquote>aḥ vi ra hūṃ khaṃ</blockquote>Each syllable is correlated with earth, water, fire, air, space respectively, while Vairocana is the sixth element - consciousness ([[Vijñāna|vijñana]]). In the ''[[Vairocanābhisaṃbodhi Sūtra|Mahavairocana sutra]]'' the mantra appears as: Namaḥ samanta-buddhānām a vi ra hūṃ khaṃ. According to East Asian [[Vajrayana|mantrayana]] writers like [[Kakuban]], this mantra can lead to enlightenment.<ref name=":3" /> According to translator Dale A. Todaro, the mantra's syllables have numerous symbolic correlations aside from the five elements, including: "the Five Buddhas (Mahavairocana, Aksobhya, Ratnasambhava, Amitabha, and Amoghasiddhi respectively); the five colors yellow, white, red, black, and blue; five organs (liver, lungs, heart, kidneys, spleen); five Chinese elements (wood, metal, fire, water, earth); and so on."<ref name=":3" />

A slightly longer variation of this mantra, also found in Shingon is:<ref>{{Cite web |title=Shingon Buddhist Intl. Institute: The Daily Shingon Service |url=http://www.shingon.org/ritual/daily.html |access-date=2024-08-08 |website=www.shingon.org}}</ref><blockquote>Oṃ a vi ra hūṃ khaṃ vajra dhātu vaṃ</blockquote>This version includes another mantra associated with the [[Diamond Realm|Vajradhātu mandala.]]

There is another five element mantra of Vairocana, which is:<ref name=":1">Soothill, William Edward; Hodous, Lewis. ''A Dictionary of Chinese Buddhist Terms: With Sanskrit and English Equivalents and a Sanskrit-Pali Index'', p. 293. 1977. Motilal Banarsidass Publ.</ref><ref name=":2">Snodgrass, Adrian. ''The Matrix and Diamond World Mandalas in Shingon Buddhism'', p. 748. Aditya Prakashan, 1988</ref><ref name=":3" /> <blockquote>A vaṃ raṃ haṃ khaṃ </blockquote>An alternate version sometimes appears with a Buddha vandana (homage) as follows:<ref>{{Cite journal |last=蓮舎 |first=経史 |date=2013 |title=HASUYA Kyoshi『大日経』にみられる諸儀礼について ―「五字厳身観」と「六月念誦」― [A study of rituals in the Mahāvairocanābhisaṃbodhi-tantra] |url=https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/bukkyobunka/2013/22/2013_L112/_article/-char/ja/ |journal=佛教文化学会紀要 |volume=2013 |issue=22 |pages=L112–L132 |doi=10.5845/bukkyobunka.2013.22_L112|doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | access-date=2024-08-08 | url=https://www.buddhatoothrelictemple.org.sg/buddha-vairocana-prayer-wheel | title=Buddha Vairocana Prayer Wheel | language=en-SG | website=www.buddhatoothrelictemple.org.sg |author=<!--Not stated--> }}</ref><blockquote>Namaḥ samanta-buddhānām A vaṃ raṃ haṃ khaṃ</blockquote>"A" is the [[Bīja|seed syllable]] mantra ([[bījamantra]]) of Vairocana in the [[Womb Realm|Garbhadhatu mandala]], while "Vaṃ" is the seed syllable of Vairocana in the Vajradhātu mandala. Thus, this five element mantra contains both main seed syllables of Vairocana in the [[Chinese Esoteric Buddhism|East Asian Esoteric tradition]]. Furthermore, these two seed syllables are sometimes combined into one mantra: "A-Vaṃ".<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />

=== Dharani ===
A longer dharani associated with Vairocana is the ''Sarvadurgatiparishodana dharani'' (''Complete removal of all unfortunate rebirths''), also known as Kunrig mantra in [[Tibetan Buddhism]]. This dharani is found in the ''Sarvadurgatiparishodana tantra'' which depicts Vairocana at the center of a mandala surrounded by the [[Five Tathāgatas|other four tathagatas]]''.''<ref>Huntington, John C.; Bangdel, Dina. ''The Circle of Bliss: Buddhist Meditational Art,'' p. 106. Serindia Publications, Inc., 2003.</ref> The dharani is as follows:<ref>FPMT, 2021. ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=pghHEAAAQBAJ Ten Powerful Mantras for the Time of Death.]''</ref><ref>Baruah, Bibhuti (2000) ''Buddhist Sects and Sectarianism'', pp. 205-206. Sarup & Sons.</ref><blockquote>
OṂ namo bhagavate sarva durgati pariśodhana rājāya tathāgatāyārhate samyaksambudhāya tadyathā OṂ śodhane śodhane sarva pāpam viśodhani śuddhe viśuddhe sarvakarmāvarana viśodhani svāhā! <ref>Skorupski, Tadeusz. ''The Sarvadurgatipariśodhana Tantra: Elimination of All Evil Destinies : Sanskrit and Tibetan Texts'', Motilal Banarsidass, 1983, p. 126.</ref></blockquote>

==Statues==
With regard to [[śūnyatā]], the massive size and brilliance of Vairocana statues serve as a reminder that all conditioned existence is empty and without a permanent identity, whereas the Dharmakāya is beyond concepts.

The [[Spring Temple Buddha]] of [[Lushan County, Henan]], China, with a height of 126 meters, is the second tallest statue in the world (''see [[list of tallest statues]]'').

The [[Daibutsu]] in the [[Tōdai-ji]] in [[Nara, Nara|Nara]], Japan, is the largest bronze image of Vairocana in the world.

The larger of the [[Buddhas of Bamiyan]] in [[Afghanistan]] that were destroyed by talibans was also a depiction of Vairocana.

In [[Java]], Indonesia, the ninth-century [[Mendut]] temple near [[Borobudur]] in [[Magelang]] was dedicated to the Dhyani Buddha Vairocana. Built by the [[Shailendra dynasty]], the temple featured a three-meter tall stone statue of Vairocana, seated and performing the [[Mudra#Dharmachakra Mudrā|dharmachakra mudrā]]. The statue is flanked with statues of the bodhisattvas [[Avalokiteśvara]] and [[Vajrapani]].

==Gallery==
<gallery widths="180" heights="180">
File:Vairocana, Fengxian Temple, Longmen Grottoes (10240207654).jpg|[[Tang dynasty]] statue of Vairocana (''Dàrì Rúlái'') at [[Longmen Grottoes]], [[Luoyang]], [[Henan]], [[China]]. The statue was completed in the year 676 and is 17.14&nbsp;m high and has 2&nbsp;m long ears.
File:Dazu 2007 807.jpg|[[Southern Song Dynasty]] (1127–1279 CE) cliff carving of Vairocana (centre), with [[Manjushri]] (left), and [[Samantabhadra (Bodhisattva)|Samantabhadra]] (right) among the [[Dazu Rock Carvings]] at [[Mount Baoding Buddhist Sculptures|Mount Baoding]], [[Dazu District]], [[Chongqing]], China
File:Jinan 2009 1480.jpg|[[Ming dynasty]] statues of Vairocana (center), flanked on the far left by [[Amitābha|Amitabha]] and on the right by [[Bhaisajyaguru]]. Projecting tongues from Vairocana's throne are petals that symbolize his radiance in infinite directions.
File:Ming Vairocana statue (大日如来, Dàrì Rúlái; 毘盧遮那佛, Pílúzhēnà Fó), one of Five Tathagathas (五方佛 Wǔfāngfó) or Five Wisdom Buddhas (五智如来 Wǔzhì Rúlái), Huayan Temple (华严寺), Shanxi, China.jpg|[[Ming dynasty]] (1368–1644) statue of Vairocana in [[Huayan Temple (Datong)|Huayan Temple]] in [[Datong]], [[Shanxi]], China, one out of a set of statues of the [[Five Tathāgatas]]
File:Jin Dynasty Vairocana (大日如来, Dàrì Rúlái; 毘盧遮那佛, Pílúzhēnà Fó), one of Five Tathagathas (五方佛 Wǔfāngfó) or Five Wisdom Buddhas (五智如来 Wǔzhì Rúlái) at Shanhua Temple (善化寺), Shanxi, China.jpg|[[Jin dynasty (1115–1234)|Jin Dynasty]] (1115–1234) statue of Vairocana in [[Shanhua Temple]] in [[Datong]], [[Shanxi]], China, one out of a set of statues of the [[Five Tathāgatas]]
File:唐 青銅鎏金大日如來像-Buddha Vairocana (Dari) MET DP170158.jpg|[[Tang dynasty]] bronze statue of Vairocana. 8th century.
File:VairochanaMingCopper.jpg|[[Copper alloys|Copper alloy]] statue of Vairocana, made in [[China]] during the [[Ming dynasty]] (1368–1644). Displayed at the [[Iris & B. Gerald Cantor Center for Visual Arts|Cantor Center for Visual Arts]].
File:Ming Bronze Vairocana Buddha.jpg|[[Ming dynasty]] bronze statue of Vairocana. Displayed at the Buddhism Sculpture Gallery in Aurora Museum, [[Pudong]], [[Shanghai]].
File:Vairochana Buddha, China, Qing dynasty, 19th century AD, jade, gilt bronze, enamel, pearls, kingfisher feathers - Royal Ontario Museum - DSC03754.JPG|Statue of Vairocana, made in [[China]] during the [[Qing dynasty]]. 19th century. Made of jade, gilt bronze, enamel, pearls and kingfisher feathers. Displayed at the [[Royal Ontario Museum]].
File:001 Main Vairocana Buddha Statue (9141769268).jpg|Vairocana statue in Sam Poh Wan Futt Chi, a Chinese Buddhist temple in [[Cameron Highlands]], [[Pahang]], Malaysia
File:Vairocana, Zhusheng Temple (Hunan).jpg|Shrine to Vairocana in [[Zhusheng Temple (Hunan)|Zhusheng Temple]], [[Hunan]], China
File:Vairocana at Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum.JPG|Vairocana at [[Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum]], [[Chinatown, Singapore|Chinatown]], [[Singapore]]
File:Seated Iron Vairocana Buddha of Borimsa Temple(장흥 보림사 철조비로자나불좌상).jpg|Seated iron statue of Vairocana in [[Borimsa|Borimsa Temple]], on Gaji mountain in [[Jangheung County]], [[South Jeolla Province|South Jeolla]], South Korea
File:Bulguksageumdongbirojanabuljwasang (Seated gilt-bronze vairocana buddha statue of Bulguksa Temple).jpg|A gilt-bronze statue of Vairocana Buddha, one of the [[National Treasures of South Korea]], at [[Bulguksa]]
File:TodaijiDaibutsu0224.jpg|The Great Buddha of Tōdai-ji, at a [[Kegon]] Buddhist temple in [[Nara, Nara|Nara]], Japan
File:Buddha Mendut.jpg|Vairocana with [[Avalokitesvara]] and [[Vajrapani]]. 9th century, [[Indonesia]]
File:Sarvavid Vairochana, From a Set of the Five Jina Buddhas, based on Complete Purification of All Evil Rebirths (Sarva Durgati Parishodana Tantra) LACMA AC1994.121.1 (cropped).jpg|Multi-headed Sarvavid Vairochana, Central Tibet, circa late 13th – early 14th century
File:Tượng Đại Nhật Như Lai ở miền Bắc Việt Nam.jpg|Vairocana statue in Northern Vietnam, 19th century AD, [[Nguyễn dynasty]]
</gallery>

== See also ==
* [[Amaterasu]]
* [[Acala]]
* [[Dakini]]
* [[Ghanavyūha Sūtra]]
* [[Mantra of Light]]


== Sources ==
== Sources ==
<references/>


== Bibliography ==
''Hua-Yen Buddhism: The Jewel Net of Indra'' (Pennsylvania State University Press, December 1977) by Francis H. Cook
*Birmingham, Vessantara (2003). ''Meeting The Buddhas,'' Windhorse Publications, {{ISBN|0-904766-53-5}}.
*Cook, Francis H. (1977). ''Hua-Yen Buddhism: The Jewel Net of Indra,'' Pennsylvania State University Press.
*Cook, Francis H. (1972). 'The meaning of Vairocana in Hua-Yen Buddhism, Philosophy East and West 22 (4), 403-415
*Park, Kwangsoo (2003). [https://web.archive.org/web/20120727020558/http://ftp.buddhism.org/Publications/IABTC/Vol02_16_Kwangsoo%20Park.pdf A Comparative Study of the Concept of Dharmakaya Buddha: Vairocana in Hua-yen and Mahavairocana in Shingon Buddhism], International Journal of Buddhist Thought and Culture 2, 305-331
* {{Cite book | last = Reeves | first = Gene | title = The Lotus Sutra: A Contemporary Translation of a Buddhist Classic | publisher = Wisdom Publications | date = 2008 | location = [[Somerville, Massachusetts|Somerville]] | isbn = 978-0-86171-571-8}}


==External links==
==External links==
{{Commons category|Vairocana}}
* [http://libmma.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/p15324coll10/id/101557/rec/1 Sacred Visions: Early Paintings from Central Tibet], an exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art (fully available online as PDF), which contains material on Vairocana (see index)


{{Buddhism topics}}
* [http://www.exoticindiaart.com/article/dhyanibuddhas The Five Meditating Buddhas]
{{Chinese Buddhist Pantheon}}
<br>
{{Buddhist Pantheon}}


{{Authority control}}
{{buddhism2}}


[[Category:Buddhas]]
[[category:Buddhist philosophical concepts]]
[[fr:Vairocana]]
[[Category:Vairocana| ]]
[[Category:Shingon Buddhism]]
[[ja:&#22823;&#26085;&#22914;&#26469;]]
[[sv:Vairochana]]
[[Category:Vajrayana]]
[[Category:Buddhism in China]]
[[zh:毗卢遮那佛]]

Latest revision as of 07:28, 29 October 2024

This article is about the primordial buddha Vairocana. For the Tibetan translator, see Vairotsana.
Vairocana
The Spring Temple Buddha, a colossal statue of Vairocana, in Lushan County, Henan, China. It has a total height of 153 meters (502 ft), including the 25 meter (82 ft) lotus throne which the statue stands on.
Sanskritवैरोचन
Vairocana
Burmeseဗုဒ္ဓဘုရားရှင်
Chinese大日如來
(Pinyin: Dàrì Rúlái)
毘盧遮那佛
(Pinyin: Pílúzhēnà Fó)
Japanese大日如来（だいにちにょらい）
(romaji: Dainichi Nyorai)
毘盧遮那仏（びるしゃなぶつ）
(romaji: Birushana Bosatsu)
Korean대일여래
大日如來(RR: Daeil Yeorae)
비로자나불
毘盧遮那佛(RR: Birojana Bul)
Mongolianᠮᠠᠰᠢᠳᠠ
ᠭᠡᠢᠢᠭᠦᠯᠦᠨ
ᠵᠣᠬᠢᠶᠠᠭᠴᠢ
Машид гийгүүлэн зохиогч
Masida geyigülün zohiyaghci
ᠪᠢᠷᠦᠵᠠᠨ᠎ ᠠ᠂
ᠮᠠᠰᠢᠳᠠ
ᠭᠡᠢᠢᠭᠦᠯᠦᠨ
ᠵᠣᠬᠢᠶᠠᠭᠴᠢ᠂
ᠭᠡᠭᠡᠭᠡᠨ
ᠭᠡᠷᠡᠯᠲᠦ
Бярузана, Машид Гийгүүлэн Зохиогч, Гэгээн Гэрэлт
Biruzana, Masida Geyigülün Zohiyaghci, Gegegen Gereltü
Thaiพระไวโรจนพุทธะ
(RTGS: Phra wịrocana phuthṭha)
Tibetanརྣམ་པར་སྣང་མཛད་
Wylie: rnam par snang mdzad
THL: Nampar Nangdze
VietnameseĐại Nhật Như Lai
大日如來
Tỳ Lư Xá Na
毘盧遮那
Tỳ Lô Giá Na Phật
毗盧遮那佛
Information
Venerated byMahayana, Vajrayana
AttributesŚūnyatā
icon Religion portal

Vairocana (from Sanskrit: Vi+rocana, "from the sun" or "belonging to the sun", "Solar", or "Shining") also known as Mahāvairocana (Great Vairocana) is a major Buddha from Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism.[1] Vairocana is often interpreted, in texts like the Avatamsaka Sutra, as the Dharmakāya[2][3][4] of the historical Gautama Buddha.

In East Asian Buddhism (Chinese, Korean, Japanese and Vietnamese Buddhism), Vairocana is also seen as the dharmakāya (the supreme buddha-body, the body of ultimate reality), and the embodiment of the Buddhist concept of wisdom and purity.[5] Mahāvairocana is often translated into East Asian languages as "Great Sun Buddha" (Chinese: 大日如來, Japanese: Dainichi Nyorai) Buddha.[5] In the conception of the Five Jinas of Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism, Vairocana is at the centre and is often considered a Primordial Buddha. In East Asian esoteric Buddhism, Mahāvairocana is considered to be a cosmic Buddha whose body is the entire universe, the Dharmadhātu.[5]

Vairocana is not to be confused with Vairocana Mahabali, son of the asura Virochana, a character in the Yoga Vasishta. Vairocana Buddha is also not to be confused with another Buddha that appears in some Mahayana sources called "Rocana".

Literary and historical development

[edit]

Vairocana Buddha is first introduced in the Brahmajala Sutra:

Now, I, Vairocana Buddha am sitting atop a lotus pedestal; On a thousand flowers surrounding me are a thousand Sakyamuni Buddhas. Each flower supports a hundred million worlds; in each world a Sakyamuni Buddha appears. All are seated beneath a Bodhi-tree, all simultaneously attain Buddhahood. All these innumerable Buddhas have Vairocana as their original body.[6]

Vairocana is also mentioned in the Avatamsaka Sutra; however, the doctrine of Vairocana is based largely on the teachings of the Mahavairocana Tantra (also known as the Mahāvairocana-abhisaṃbodhi-tantra) and to a lesser degree the Vajrasekhara Sutra (also known as the Sarvatathāgatatattvasaṃgraha Tantra).

In the Avatamsaka Sutra, Vairocana is described as having attained enlightenment immeasurable ages ago and residing in a world purified by him while he was a bodhisattva. He also presides over an assembly of countless other bodhisattvas. He may be considered the celestial existence (saṃbhogakāya) of Gautama Buddha, who came to be as Vairochana's earthly rebirth from his previous existence in Tushita heaven.[7] Similarly, the Brahmajala Sutra also states that Shakyamuni was originally named Vairochana, regarding the former as a physical incarnation (nirmāṇakāya) of the latter.[7]

Vairocana is also mentioned as an epithet of Gautama Buddha in the Samantabhadra Meditation Sutra, who dwells in a place called "Always Tranquil Light".[8] In the Śūraṅgama mantra (Chinese: 楞嚴咒; pinyin: Léngyán Zhòu) taught in the Śūraṅgama sutra (Chinese: 楞嚴經; pinyin: Léngyán Jīng), an especially influential dharani in the Chinese Chan tradition, Vairocana is mentioned to be the host of the Buddha Division in the centre, one of the five major divisions which dispels the vast demon armies of the five directions.[9]

Vairocana is the Primordial Buddha in the Chinese schools of Tiantai, Huayan and Tangmi, also appearing in later schools including the Japanese Kegon, Shingon and esoteric lineages of Tendai. In the case of Huayan and Shingon, Vairocana is the central figure.

In Chinese and Japanese Buddhism, Vairocana was gradually superseded as an object of reverence by Amitābha, due in large part to the increasing popularity of Pure Land Buddhism, but veneration of Vairocana still remains popular among adherents.

During the initial stages of his mission in Japan, the Catholic missionary Francis Xavier was welcomed by the Shingon monks since he used Dainichi, the Japanese name for Vairocana, to designate the Christian God. As Xavier learned more about the religious nuances of the word, he substituted the term Deusu, which he derived from the Latin and Portuguese Deus.[10][11]

The Shingon monk Dohan regarded the two great Buddhas, Amitābha and Vairocana, as one and the same Dharmakāya Buddha and as the true nature at the core of all beings and phenomena. There are several realizations that can accrue to the Shingon practitioner of which Dohan speaks in this connection, as James Sanford points out:

[T]here is the realization that Amida is the Dharmakaya Buddha, Vairocana; then there is the realization that Amida as Vairocana is eternally manifest within this universe of time and space; and finally there is the innermost realization that Amida is the true nature, material and spiritual, of all beings, that he is 'the omnivalent wisdom-body, that he is the unborn, unmanifest, unchanging reality that rests quietly at the core of all phenomena".[12]

Helen Hardacre, writing on the Mahavairocana Tantra, comments that Mahavairocana's virtues are deemed to be immanently universal within all beings: "The principle doctrine of the Dainichikyo is that all the virtues of Dainichi (Mahāvairocana) are inherent in us and in all sentient beings."[13]

According to the Buddhāvataṃsaka Sūtra, the whole universe is a vast pure buddha-field which has been purified by Vairocana Buddha. This is the view of Pure Land which is found in the Chinese Huayan tradition.[14] According to this view, our world is just one small part of this universal Pure Land which is named: "Ocean of worlds, whose surface and inside are decorated with an arrangement of flowers" (Sanskrit: Kusumatalagarbha-vyūhālamkāra-lokadhātusamudra).[15] It is also called the "Lotus Treasury World" (Chinese: 華蔵世界, Skt. Padmagarbha-lokadhātu), since it is an array of billions of worlds in a lotus shape.[citation needed]

In the cosmology of the Avatamsaka sutra, our world is just one of the immeasurable number of worlds in a multiverse called "Ocean of worlds, whose surface and inside are decorated with an arrangement of flowers" (Kusumatalagarbha-vyuhalamkara-lokadhatu-samudra).[16] The Avatamsaka states that this entire cosmos has been purified by the Buddha Vairocana through his bodhisattva practices for countless aeons, after having met countless Buddhas. The sutra also states that our world is in Vairocana's buddhafield.[17] Vairocana is closely associated with Shakyamuni Buddha, in some cases he is even identified with him in the Avatamsaka Sutra.[18] Huayan generally sees Shakyamuni as an emanation body (nirmanakaya) from the ultimate Buddha Vairocana ("The Illuminator").[19]

A painting of Vairocana at Hwaeomsa

Furthermore, Huayan thought sees the entire universe as being the very body of Vairocana, who is seen as a supreme cosmic Buddha. Vairocana is infinite, his influence and light is limitless, pervading the entire universe.[20] Furthermore, Vairocana is really the ultimate principle (li), the Dharmakaya, Suchness and "the substance underlying phenomenal reality".[21] However, while Vairocana as ultimate principle is eternal, it also transforms and changes according to the needs and conditions of sentient beings. Furthermore, Vairocana is empty, interdependent and interfused with all phenomena in the universe.[21] Thus, Vairocana is both immanent (due to its dependent and interfused character) and transcendent (as the immutable basis of all things).[22]

According to Fazang, while the nirmanakaya Shakyamuni taught the other Mahayana sutras, Vairocana teaches the Avatamsaka Sutra through his ten bodies which are: the All-Beings Body, the Lands Body, the Karma Body, the Śrāvakas Body, the Pratyekabuddha Body, the Bodhisattvas Body, the Tathāgatas Body, the Wisdom Body, the Dharma Body, and the Space Body.[23] Fazang sees these ten bodies as encompassing all phenomena (animate and inanimate) in the "three realms", i.e. the entire universe.[24]

Mantras and Dharanis

[edit]

Numerous mantras, seed syllables and dharanis are associated with Vairocana Buddha.

A common basic mantra is the following:[25]

Oṃ Vairocana Vaṃ

Another popular Vairocana related mantra is the Mantra of Light, which is popular in Japanese Buddhism, including Shingon. This is:

Oṃ Amogha Vairocana Mahāmudrā Maṇipadma Jvala Pravartāya Hūṃ

Another mantra associated with Vairocana is the following Shingon school mantra:

Namo Mahāguru Vairocana Vajra (Jp: namu daishi henjō kongō 南 無 大 師 遍 照 金 剛)

This mantra is also the mantra of Kukai, the founder of the Shingon school.[26] Its inner meaning is an invocation to Dharmakāya Mahāvairocana Buddha as the great universal teacher.

Five element mantras

[edit]

Five syllable mantras (Japanese: goji shingon) symbolize how all things in the universe (here: the five elements) are modes and emanations of Vairocana. One such mantra which is used in the Shingon school is:[27][28]

aḥ vi ra hūṃ khaṃ

Each syllable is correlated with earth, water, fire, air, space respectively, while Vairocana is the sixth element - consciousness (vijñana). In the Mahavairocana sutra the mantra appears as: Namaḥ samanta-buddhānām a vi ra hūṃ khaṃ. According to East Asian mantrayana writers like Kakuban, this mantra can lead to enlightenment.[28] According to translator Dale A. Todaro, the mantra's syllables have numerous symbolic correlations aside from the five elements, including: "the Five Buddhas (Mahavairocana, Aksobhya, Ratnasambhava, Amitabha, and Amoghasiddhi respectively); the five colors yellow, white, red, black, and blue; five organs (liver, lungs, heart, kidneys, spleen); five Chinese elements (wood, metal, fire, water, earth); and so on."[28] A slightly longer variation of this mantra, also found in Shingon is:[29]

Oṃ a vi ra hūṃ khaṃ vajra dhātu vaṃ

This version includes another mantra associated with the Vajradhātu mandala. There is another five element mantra of Vairocana, which is:[30][31][28]

A vaṃ raṃ haṃ khaṃ

An alternate version sometimes appears with a Buddha vandana (homage) as follows:[32][33]

Namaḥ samanta-buddhānām A vaṃ raṃ haṃ khaṃ

"A" is the seed syllable mantra (bījamantra) of Vairocana in the Garbhadhatu mandala, while "Vaṃ" is the seed syllable of Vairocana in the Vajradhātu mandala. Thus, this five element mantra contains both main seed syllables of Vairocana in the East Asian Esoteric tradition. Furthermore, these two seed syllables are sometimes combined into one mantra: "A-Vaṃ".[30][31]

Dharani

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A longer dharani associated with Vairocana is the Sarvadurgatiparishodana dharani (Complete removal of all unfortunate rebirths), also known as Kunrig mantra in Tibetan Buddhism. This dharani is found in the Sarvadurgatiparishodana tantra which depicts Vairocana at the center of a mandala surrounded by the other four tathagatas.[34] The dharani is as follows:[35][36]

OṂ namo bhagavate sarva durgati pariśodhana rājāya tathāgatāyārhate samyaksambudhāya tadyathā OṂ śodhane śodhane sarva pāpam viśodhani śuddhe viśuddhe sarvakarmāvarana viśodhani svāhā! [37]

Statues

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With regard to śūnyatā, the massive size and brilliance of Vairocana statues serve as a reminder that all conditioned existence is empty and without a permanent identity, whereas the Dharmakāya is beyond concepts.

The Spring Temple Buddha of Lushan County, Henan, China, with a height of 126 meters, is the second tallest statue in the world (see list of tallest statues).

The Daibutsu in the Tōdai-ji in Nara, Japan, is the largest bronze image of Vairocana in the world.

The larger of the Buddhas of Bamiyan in Afghanistan that were destroyed by talibans was also a depiction of Vairocana.

In Java, Indonesia, the ninth-century Mendut temple near Borobudur in Magelang was dedicated to the Dhyani Buddha Vairocana. Built by the Shailendra dynasty, the temple featured a three-meter tall stone statue of Vairocana, seated and performing the dharmachakra mudrā. The statue is flanked with statues of the bodhisattvas Avalokiteśvara and Vajrapani.

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See also

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Sources

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  1. ^ www.wisdomlib.org (2018-10-03). "Vairocana: 17 definitions". www.wisdomlib.org. Retrieved 2024-07-31.
  2. ^ 佛光大辭典增訂版隨身碟,中英佛學辭典 - "三身" (Fo Guang Great Dictionary Updated USB Version, Chinese-English Dictionary of Buddhist Studies - "Trikāya" entry)
  3. ^ "Birushana Buddha. SOTOZEN-NET Glossary". Retrieved 2015-09-12.
  4. ^ Buswell, Robert Jr; Lopez, Donald S. Jr., eds. (2013). Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. pp. 949–950. ISBN 9780691157863.
  5. ^ a b c Soothill, William Edward; Hodous, Lewis. "A Dictionary of Chinese Buddhist Terms". mahajana.net. Retrieved 2024-07-31.
  6. ^ "YMBA's translation of Brahma Net Sutra". Archived from the original on March 5, 2005. Retrieved 2008-12-12.
  7. ^ a b Xing, Guan (2005). The Concept of the Buddha: Its Evolution from Early Buddhism to the Trikāya Theory. Psychology Press. p. 169-171. ISBN 978-0-41533-344-3.
  8. ^ Reeves 2008, pp. 416, 452
  9. ^ The Śūraṅgama sūtra : a new translation. Hsüan Hua, Buddhist Text Translation Society. Ukiah, Calif.: Buddhist Text Translation Society. 2009. ISBN 978-0-88139-962-2. OCLC 300721049.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  10. ^ Francis Xavier and the Land of the Rising Sun: Dainichi and Deus, Matthew Ropp, 1997.
  11. ^ Elisonas, Jurgis (1991). "7 - Christianity and the daimyo". In Hall, John Whitney; McClain, James L. (eds.). The Cambridge History of Japan. Vol. 4. Cambridge Eng. New York: Cambridge University Press. p. 307. ISBN 9780521223553.
  12. ^ James H. Sanford, 'Breath of Life: The Esoteric Nembutsu' in Tantric Buddhism in East Asia, ed. by Richard K. Payne, Wisdom Publications, Boston, 2006, p. 176
  13. ^ Helen Hardacre, 'The Cave and the Womb World', in Tantric Buddhism in East Asia (Wisdom Publications, Boston, 2006), p. 215
  14. ^ Prince, Tony (2014). Universal Enlightenment, An introduction to the teachings and practices of Huayen Buddhism, pp. 222-223. . Kongting Publishing Company Ltd. Taiwan.
  15. ^ Susumu, Otake, "Sakyamuni and Vairocana", in Gimello et al. (2012). Avataṃsaka Buddhism in East Asia: Huayan, Kegon, Flower Ornament Buddhism ; origins and adaptation of a visual culture, p. 37. Asiatische Forschungen: Monographienreihe zur Geschichte, Kultur und Sprache der Völker Ost- u. Zentralasiens, Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, ISBN 978-3-447-06678-5
  16. ^ Susumu, Otake, "Sakyamuni and Vairocana", in Gimello at al. (2012), p. 37.
  17. ^ Susumu, Otake, "Sakyamuni and Vairocana", in Gimello at al. (2012), p. 38.
  18. ^ Susumu, Otake, "Sakyamuni and Vairocana", in Gimello at al. (2012), p. 39.
  19. ^ Lin, Weiyu (2021). Exegesis-philosophy interplay : introduction to Fazang's (643-712) commentary on the Huayan jing (60 juans) [Skt. Avataṃsaka Sūtra; Flower garland sūtra] — the Huayan jing tanxuan ji [record of investigating the mystery of the Huayan jing]. p. 32. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Library.
  20. ^ Cook (1977) pp. 90-91
  21. ^ a b Cook (1977), pp. 93-104.
  22. ^ Cook (1977), p. 105.
  23. ^ Lin, Weiyu (2021). Exegesis-philosophy interplay : introduction to Fazang's (643-712) commentary on the Huayan jing (60 juans) [Skt. Avataṃsaka Sūtra; Flower garland sūtra] — the Huayan jing tanxuan ji [record of investigating the mystery of the Huayan jing]. p. 33. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Library.
  24. ^ Lin, Weiyu (2021). Exegesis-philosophy interplay : introduction to Fazang's (643-712) commentary on the Huayan jing (60 juans) [Skt. Avataṃsaka Sūtra; Flower garland sūtra] — the Huayan jing tanxuan ji [record of investigating the mystery of the Huayan jing]. p. 34. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Library.
  25. ^ "Vairocana-Mahāvairocana mantras and seed syllables". www.visiblemantra.org. Retrieved 2023-08-16.
  26. ^ Shinjo Hinonishi; Londo William (trans.) "The Hōgō (treasure name) of Kōbō Daishi and the development of beliefs associated with it," Japanese religions. 2002, vol. 27, no1, pp. 5-18
  27. ^ Stone, Jacqueline I. (2016). Right Thoughts at the Last Moment: Buddhism and Deathbed Practices in Early Medieval Japan, p. 499. University of Hawaii Press.
  28. ^ a b c d Giebel, Rolf W.; Todaro, Dale A. (2004). Shingon Texts, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, pp. 247-248. BDK English Tripi†aka 98-I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII.
  29. ^ "Shingon Buddhist Intl. Institute: The Daily Shingon Service". www.shingon.org. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
  30. ^ a b Soothill, William Edward; Hodous, Lewis. A Dictionary of Chinese Buddhist Terms: With Sanskrit and English Equivalents and a Sanskrit-Pali Index, p. 293. 1977. Motilal Banarsidass Publ.
  31. ^ a b Snodgrass, Adrian. The Matrix and Diamond World Mandalas in Shingon Buddhism, p. 748. Aditya Prakashan, 1988
  32. ^ 蓮舎, 経史 (2013). "HASUYA Kyoshi『大日経』にみられる諸儀礼について ―「五字厳身観」と「六月念誦」― [A study of rituals in the Mahāvairocanābhisaṃbodhi-tantra]". 佛教文化学会紀要. 2013 (22): L112–L132. doi:10.5845/bukkyobunka.2013.22_L112.
  33. ^ "Buddha Vairocana Prayer Wheel". www.buddhatoothrelictemple.org.sg. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
  34. ^ Huntington, John C.; Bangdel, Dina. The Circle of Bliss: Buddhist Meditational Art, p. 106. Serindia Publications, Inc., 2003.
  35. ^ FPMT, 2021. Ten Powerful Mantras for the Time of Death.
  36. ^ Baruah, Bibhuti (2000) Buddhist Sects and Sectarianism, pp. 205-206. Sarup & Sons.
  37. ^ Skorupski, Tadeusz. The Sarvadurgatipariśodhana Tantra: Elimination of All Evil Destinies : Sanskrit and Tibetan Texts, Motilal Banarsidass, 1983, p. 126.

Bibliography

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