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般若菩薩

Pronunciations

Basic Meaning: Prajñā-bodhisattva

Senses:

  • Or prajñāpāramitā-bodhisattva 般若波羅蜜多菩薩. A figure in the Court of the *Vidyādhara 持明院 in the Garbhadhātu maṇḍala 胎藏界曼荼羅. The personification of Mahāvairocanaʼs wisdom. White in color, three-eyed, six-armed and wearing armor while seated on a red lotus. The first left hand holds an Indian scripture 梵篋 in front of the navel, the second has the palm facing upward placed below the navel, and the third handʼs fingers are extended with the index finger bent. The first right hand displays the mudrā of flower-holding 持華印, the second is the mudrā of bestowing fearlessness 施無畏印 placed above the right knee, and the third has the palm open with the ring-finger bent. These six arms represent the six pāramitās 波羅蜜多, and the perfection of merit and wisdom. The armor alludes to the steadfast courage of a bodhisattva who stands against Māras 惡魔, a reference to bodhicitta 菩提心. Seed syllable: jña (derived from prajñā). Mudrā: palm-leaf scripture mudrā 梵篋印. Mantra: oṃ dhīḥ śrīśrutavijaye svāhā.

    References:

    Somekawa, Eisuke, Michihiko Komine, Tenyū Koyama, Hisao Takahashi, and Takayuki Hirosawa. 1993. Mandara zuten曼荼羅図典 . Tokyo:  Daihōrinkaku.

    [Jeffrey Kotyk; source(s): Somekawa et al.]
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    [Dictionary References]

    Bulgyo sajeon 244a

    Fo Guang Dictionary 4308

    Ding Fubao {Digital Version}

    Bukkyō daijiten (Mochizuki) (v.1-6)4269b

    Bukkyō daijiten (Oda) 1439-3

    Soothill 338

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    Entry created: 2002-10-21

    Updated: 2016-05-29