Oṃ Vajrapāṇi Hūṃ / Om Vajrapani Hum
Vajrapani doesn’t, to many newcomers to Buddhism, look very Buddhist in any respect. He’s a Bodhisattva who represents the power of the enlightened thoughts, and his mantra additionally symbolizes that high quality.
Vajrapani is pictured dancing wildly inside a halo of flames, which signify transformation.
He holds a vajra (thunderbolt) in his proper hand, which emphasizes the ability to chop via the darkness of delusion. Vajrapani appears wrathful, however as a illustration of the enlightened thoughts, he’s fully free from hatred.
Vajrapani’s mantra is solely his title, which suggests “wielder of the thunderbolt”, framed between the magical syllables Om and Hūṃ. This mantra helps us to achieve entry to the irrepressible power that Vajrapani symbolizes. A familiarity with Vajrapani does, in fact, assist right here, though the sound of the mantra is itself relatively energetic.
Vajrapani Mantra Recordings
Click on under to hearken to an audio recording of the Vajrapani mantra, chanted by Bodhipaksa:
Pronunciation notes:
- a is pronounced as u in reduce
- ā is sort of a in father
- j is tough, like j in decide
- ū is lengthy, like oo in e book
- ṃ in hūṃ is pronounced ng, as in lengthy
The Bodhisattva Vajrapāni (with out diacritics: Vajrapani)
Vajrapani is a member, together with Avalokiteshvara and Manjushri, of the trinity of Bodhisattvas often known as the Three Household Protectors. The Buddha household of which Vajrapani is the protector is the Vajra (thunderbolt) household, which incorporates Akshobya (the lord of the Vajra household) and Yamantaka.
Vajrapani (Holder of the Thunderbolt) represents the power of the enlightened thoughts, and power that breaks via delusion. He dances wildly inside a halo of flames, which signify the transformative energy of Awakening. He holds a vajra (thunderbolt) in his proper hand, which emphasizes the ability to chop via the darkness of delusion.
Non-Buddhists (and Theravadin Buddhists) seeing Vajrapani for the primary time could surprise how such a wrathful-looking determine may presumably match with the peaceable associations they’ve with the Buddhist custom, though such figures are literally quite common within the Mahayana and Vajrayana traditions.
After all it’s not likely doable adequately to signify the qualities of Enlightenment in any picture, and so even the peaceable types of Buddhas and bodhisattvas are to some extent deceptive.
Enlightened beings don’t, in actuality, sit round all day on lotuses smiling serenely. The Buddha himself was fearlessly lively in participating with the opposite non secular figures and philosophers of his day. His fearless way of living is maybe characterised largely clearly by his encounter with Angulimala, who was an notorious bandit who killed his victims and added a finger from every to the garland he wore round his neck (his title means “Garland of Fingers”). Though warned to avoid this harmful determine, the Buddha insisted on going into the forest to confront Angulimala, who transformed to Buddhism, grew to become a monk, and ultimately grew to become Enlightened.
Subsequently, it’s simply as acceptable to signify an Enlightened being as dancing wildly, bare and fearless.
One other manner of trying on the obvious fierceness of Vajrapani and different “wrathful” figures is to think about what a Buddha appears like from the viewpoint of that a part of ourselves that doesn’t wish to change. We could, at some stage, wish to meditate, to dwell ethically, and so forth, however different components of us are profoundly threatened by the potential of change.
Our habits can kind a type of “sub-personality” that may attempt to hijack our lives. In any case, habits of denial, craving, and aversion face extinction if we proceed to follow the trail of mindfulness and compassion, so it’s not stunning that they generally put up a protest. From the viewpoint of these highly effective and but primitive components of ourselves, Enlightenment, relatively than trying enticing, appears to be threatening and demonic.
Due to this twin nature, Vajrapani has his peaceable kinds as nicely, and early depictions of him, whereas muscular and athletic, are nothing just like the wild determine depicted above.
Vajrapani’s origins
Vajrapani has his origins within the Pali canon, as a Yaksha, or nature spirit. On this story, within the Digha Nikaya, a Brahmin (priestly) youth named Ambattha, is to begin with impolite to the Buddha, believing him to be of a decrease social caste, after which refuses to reply a query the Buddha — who’s unfailingly well mannered within the encounter — places to him about his ancestry.
After Ambattha refuses to reply the query twice, the Buddha reminds him that there’s a conventional perception that in the event you refuse to reply the query of an enlightened one thrice, your head will break up in seven items. After all this by no means occurs, however “Vajirapani” (the Pali type of his title) seems, able to make good on the traditional prophecy. Ambattha is in fact terrified and promptly solutions the Buddha’s query.
Vajrapani additionally has his mythic roots in Indra, the Indian thunder god. He’s thus related to Zeus and Jupiter, who, together with Indra, are all variants of the identical thunderbolt-wielding sky-deity. (“Dyaus” is Sanskrit for “sky,” and Indra is also referred to as “Indra Dyaus.” “Zeus” is the Greek type of Dyaus. Jupiter is “Dyaus-piter” or “sky father.”)
The earliest depictions of Vajrapani, as we famous above, will not be notably wrathful. On this picture, from the second century, each the Buddha (seated) and Vajrapani (standing) are sculpted in basic Greek fashion. Vajrapani right here is proven as a strong muscular determine defending the Buddha, and his iconography is basically that of Herakles (Hercules). The traits he shares with the later kind are the vajra (thunderbolt), his highly effective body, and his semi-nakedness, which is typical of a Greek athlete.
In later kinds, as Vajrapani turns into extra other-worldly, he’s proven as being darkish blue in coloration. He maybe borrows this coloration from Akshobhya, the pinnacle of the Vajra Household. However that is additionally the colour of a thunder cloud.
He represents the ability, power, and fearlessness of the Buddhas. He stands in (or relatively is caught in) the warrior pose that will probably be acquainted to those that follow Hatha Yoga. In his outstretched proper hand he wields a vajra, and his left hand holds a lasso with which to bind demons.
Vajrapani wears a loin-cloth round his hips. The fabric is constructed from the pores and skin of a tiger. He’s adorned with the five-pointed Bodhisattva crown, however the crown bears 5 skulls. He has a necklace hanging to his stomach, however he additionally has a snake round his neck. Snakes and dragons are related to clouds and rain, becoming in with Vajrapani’s origins as a god of thunder.
Vajrapani has a bulging third eye within the middle of his brow. Simply as Ambattha’s hairs stood on finish when he encountered Vajirapani, so the bodhisattva’s hair flies wildly within the air.
Though Vajrapani and different comparable figures are sometimes described as “wrathful” it’s essential to comprehend that they don’t signify bizarre anger, however merely the ability and fearlessness of the woke up thoughts. There is no such thing as a place in Buddhist follow for “righteous anger,” and regardless of his look Vajrapani is a profoundly compassionate determine.
