About Amoghavajra

Amoghavajra was a prolific translator who became one of the most politically powerful Buddhist monks in Chinese history and is acknowledged as one of the Eight Patriarchs of the Doctrine in Shingon Buddhism. Born in Samarkand of an Indian merchant or a brahmin father and a mother of Sogdian origin, he went to China at age 10 after his father's death. In 719, he was ordained into the sangha by Vajrabodhi and became his disciple.
Garbhadhatu (Sanskrit) or Taizo-kai (jp.) - Mandala

Shingon Buddhism – The Japanese root of Esoteric Buddhism

21
Aug
2022
Dharma, Vajrayāna
Shingon Buddhism is one of the major schools of Buddhism in Japan and one of the few surviving Vajrayana lineages in East Asia, originally spread from India to China through traveling monks such as and . Known in Chinese as the Tangmi these esoteric teachings would later flourish in Japan under the auspices of a Buddhist monk named (空海), who traveled to Tang China to acquire and request transmission of the esoteric teachings. .
Read More
Tang emissaries to Sogdian King Varkhuman in Samarkand, 648–651 CE, Afrasiab murals

The most prominent Buddhist monks of the Tang dynasty

25
Jul
2022
Biography, Monks
The Tang dynasty, or Tang Empire, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD. Historians generally regard the Tang as a high point in Chinese civilization, and a golden age of cosmopolitan culture. From the outset, religion played a role in Tang politics. In his bid for power, Li Yuan had attracted a following by claiming descent from the Taoism sage Lao Tzu. People bidding for office would request the prayers of .
Read More
Fragment of the Nilaṇṭhanāmahṛdaya dhāraṇī both written in Siddhaṃ script and transliterated in Chinese characters.

Buddhist translators – from canonical corpus to progressive spirituality

24
Jul
2022
Biography, Dharma, Literature
There is no consensus among the different Buddhist traditions as to what constitutes the scriptures or a common canon in Buddhism. The general belief among Buddhists is that the canonical corpus is vast. This corpus includes the ancient Sutras organized into Nikayas or Agamas, itself the part of three basket of texts called the Tripitakas. Each Buddhist tradition has its own collection of texts, much of which is translation of ancient Pali and Sanskrit Buddhist texts of .
Read More

Interpreting Yama Dharmaraja Thangka

3
Apr
2020
Art, Himalayan Art, Thangka
is known as the protector of the cycle of . Dharmaraja is also known as Kalarupa. Yama Dharmaraja is a deity protector of the father class of . The Viability of Yama Dharmaraja In this section, we are going to learn about the Viability of the Yama Dharmaraja. After that, we will learn about the short etymological description of the word Yama Dharmaraja itself. Etymology of Yama Dharmaraja Yama Dharmaraja is also .
Read More

Buddha Vairocana – The embodiment of Dharmakaya

1
Apr
2020
Art, Himalayan Art, Thangka
is a who has also known as the embodiment of Dharmakaya and therefore can be seen as the universal aspect of the historical . In Sino-Japanese , he seems to the embodiment of the concept of shunyata or Emptiness. In the fifth Buddhism Conception of , he is at the center. His consort is . The Vairocana statue in Nara's Todai-Ji which is located in is the largest .
Read More