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大黑天

Pronunciations

Basic Meaning: Mahākāla

Senses:

  • (Mahākāla-deva; Tib. Nag po chen po) An important Tantric dharmapāla, considered to be a fully enlightened buddha. He is the Buddhist form of the Hindu god Śiva, taken into the Buddhist pantheon at the beginning of the second millennium C.E. As a dharmapāla, he provides protection from negative elements. Thus, despite his exalted status, Mahākāla is seen placed above temple doors, alongside and even below lesser deities. The Chinese pilgrim Yixing 一行 (671–695) reported seeing Mahākāla so placed in Indian temples, holding a bag of gold, which indicates that Mahākāla has long been associated with Kubera, the god of wealth. Mahākāla is largely a Tibetan and Mongolian deity, never having gained wide popularity in China. The Japanese form is likely to have entered from Mongolia, where he was introduced by the third Dalai Lama in the sixteenth century. In Tibetan iconography Mahākāla is often seen in a triumvirate with Mañjuśrī and Avalokitêśvara 觀音. The Tibetan pantheon includes over seventy forms of the god, both of Indic and Tibetan innovations. Among these some are considered world-transcendent, some worldly deities. His most commonly represented form is the six-handed ṣad-bhuja 六臂 Mahākāla. Reference=[Mikkyō Daijiten, 1453c]. Transliterated as 摩訶迦羅. [Henry Adams]
  • The great black deva 大黑神. Two interpretations are given. The esoteric cult describes the deva as the masculine form of Kālī, i.e. Durgā, the wife of Śiva; with one face and eight arms, or three faces and six arms, a necklace of skulls, etc. He is worshipped as giving warlike power, and fierceness; said also to be an incarnation of Vairocana for the purpose of destroying the demons; and is described as 大時 the 'great time' (-keeper), which seems to indicate Vairocana, the sun. The exoteric cult interprets him as a beneficent deva, a Pluto, or god of wealth. Consequently he is represented in two forms, by the one school as a fierce deva, by the other as a kindly happy deva. He is shown as one of the eight fierce guardians with a trident, generally blue-black but sometimes white; he may have two elephants underfoot. Six arms and hands hold jewel, skull cup, chopper, drum, trident, elephant-goad. He is the tutelary god of Mongolian Buddhism. Six forms of Mahākāla are noted: (1) 比丘大黑 A black-faced disciple of the Buddha, said to be the Buddha as Mahādeva in a previous incarnation, now guardian of the refectory. (2) 摩訶迦羅大黑女 Kālī, the wife of Śiva. (3) 王子迦羅大黑 The son of Śiva. (4) 眞陀大黑 Cintāmaṇi, with the talismanic pearl, symbol of bestowing fortune. (5) 夜叉大黑 Subduer of demons. (6) 摩迦羅大黑 Mahākāla, who carries a bag on his back and holds a hammer in his right hand. J. Daikoku; M. Yeke-gara; T. Nag-po c'en-po. [Charles Muller; source(s): Soothill, Hirakawa]
  • 〔首楞嚴經 T 945.19.134a18〕 [Charles Muller]
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    [Dictionary References]

    Bukkyō jiten (Ui) 694

    Bulgyo sajeon 165a

    Bussho kaisetsu daijiten (Ono) ⑦244b

    Bukkyō daijiten (Mochizuki) (v.1-6)3216c,1914c,4739a, (v.9-10)497a,1052c

    Bukkyō daijiten (Oda) 1132-1

    Fo Guang Dictionary 870

    Ding Fubao

    (Soothill's) Dictionary of Chinese Buddhist Terms 97

    Copyright provisions

    The rights to textual segments (nodes) of the DDB are owned by the author indicated in the brackets next to each segment. For rights regarding the compilation as a whole, please contact Charles Muller. Please do not reproduce without permission. And please do not copy into Wikipedia without proper citation!

    Entry created: 2001-09-08

    Updated: 2017-03-30