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InMahayana andVajrayana Buddhism, theFive Tathāgatas (Skt: पञ्चतथागत,pañcatathāgata; (Ch: 五方佛,Wǔfāngfó) orFive Wisdom Tathāgatas (Ch: 五智如来,Wǔzhì Rúlái), are the five cardinal male and femaleBuddhas that are inseparable co-equals,[1] although the male cardinal Buddhas are more often represented. Collectively, the male and female Buddhas are known as theFive Buddha Families (pañcabuddhakula). The five are also called theFive Great Buddhas, and theFive Jinas (Skt. for "conqueror" or "victor").
The Five Buddha Families are a common subject of Vajrayana andTibetan Buddhistmandalas and they feature prominently in variousBuddhist Tantras as the intrinsically inseparable[2][1] father and mother Buddhas. Various sources provide different names for these male and female Buddhas, though the most common names today are: In the east,Vairocana andBuddha Locana; in the southRatnasambhava andBuddha Mamaki; in the westAmitābhaPanadaravasini; in the northAmoghasiddhi andSamayatara; and in the centerAkshobhya andDhatvisvari.[3][2] They are sometimes seen as emanations and representations of the five qualities of theAdi-Buddha or "first Buddha", which is associated with theDharmakāya.[3] Some sources also include this "first Buddha" as a sixth Buddha along with the five.[3]
In Japanese Buddhism, the Five Tathagathas are the primary objects of realization and meditation inShingon Buddhism, a school of Vajrayana Buddhism founded byKūkai. InChinese Buddhism, veneration of the five Buddhas has dispersed fromChinese Esoteric Buddhism into other Chinese Buddhist traditions likeChan Buddhism andTiantai. They are regularly enshrined in many Chinese Buddhist temples, and regularly invoked in rituals such as theLiberation Rite of Water and Land and the Yoga Flaming Mouth ceremony (瑜伽焰口法會), as well as in general prayers and chants.[4][5]
They are also sometimes called the "Dhyani-buddhas", which is a term first recorded in English byBrian Houghton Hodgson, a British resident in Nepal,[6] in the early 19th century, and is unattested in any surviving traditional primary sources.[7]
The Five Wisdom Buddha families are a development of the mature Buddhist Tantras. The now standard five Buddhas first appear in theSarvatathāgatatattvasaṃgraha sutra (Compendium of Principles, c. late 7th century) andVajrasekhara Sutra.[3][8]
However, the tradition of various Buddhas corresponding to the main cardinal directions is not new to theBuddhist tantras. The idea appears inMahayana sutras like theSutra of Golden Light (c. 5th century) and theSukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra.[8] TheGolden Light for example, has a mandala withShakyamuni in the center, surrounded by Ratnaketu (south),Amitayus (west), Dundubhisvara (north) and Aksobhya (east) Buddhas.[8] This set already includes three of the main five Buddha family Buddhas found in the tantras.
Furthermore, examples of four Buddhas arranged in the four cardinal directions are found in Indian Buddhist stupas likeSanchi stupa,Udayagiri stupa, Jajpur stupa (Pushpagiri) and Dekhinath stupa (Gyaraspur). The Udayagiri stupa for example, houses Vairocana, Amitabha, Aksobhya and Ratnasambhava in the four cardinal directions of the stupa.[8]
According to Kimiaki Tanaka, this basic four cardinal directions Buddha model, combined with Vairocana Buddha from theAvatamsaka sutra, developed into the later tantric five Buddha families (which changed the other two Buddhas' names toAmoghasiddhi andRatnasambhava).[8]
Before the set of theCompendium of Principles became the most popular, there were numerous slightly different schemas with different Buddha names. TheVairocanābhisaṃbodhi Sūtra for example contains a slightly different set of Buddhas, with Samkusumitarajendra, and Ratnaketu in place ofAmoghasiddhi andRatnasambhava.[8] Similarly, theAmoghapāśakalparāja (Sovereign Ritual of Amoghapāśa) has a similar schema as theCompendium, except that Shakyamuni is at the center, not Vairocana, and furthermore Amoghasiddhi is replaced by Lokendraraja Buddha.[8]
Later Buddhist tantras adopted the basic five Buddha family schema. TheMāyājālatantra for example, adopts it wholesale. Other tantras would often modify the basic schema to suit their needs. For example, theGuhyasamaja literature places Aksobhya Buddha (or, depending on the tradition, Mañjuvajra, the tantricMañjusri Buddha) at the center of the mandala instead of Vairocana.
TheMother Tantras (i.e. Yoginitantras), like theCakrasaṃvara Tantra, adopt the basic idea of the five family mandalas, but are more different than the Father tantras in their structure and make use of different deities, including many more femaleḍākinī deities. TheCakrasaṃvara for example, contains six main Buddhas with their own corresponding mandalas:Heruka, Vairocana, Vajrasūrya, Padmanarteśvara, Paramāśva, andVajrasattva.[9]
TheHevajratantra's mandala is even more ḍākinī centric, with a mandala focused onHevajra surrounded by eight ḍākinīs, with no obvious connection to the standard five Buddha family schema. However, some later tantric commentators to the Hevajra tantra (likeAbhayakaragupta) do indeed map these Hevajra deities to the five families. This shows that the five family schema remained an important one even in the later period of Buddhist tantra as the Yoginitantras were moving away from the standard schemas of theYoga tantras.[10]
In the tantric Buddhist literature, each of the five Buddhas have extensive qualities and features, including different directions, colors,mudrā, symbol, aspects,klesha, element; consort and spiritual son, as well as different animal vehicles (elephant, lion, peacock, harpies orgaruda, or dragon).[11]
The cardinal positions of Akshobhya and Vairocana can alter depending on specific teachings. In a classic schema, Vairocana may be seen as embodying sovereignty as the lord of the mandala and thus is at the central place of the mandala.[11] Akshobhya then may face east as the second Buddha, and embodies steadfastness. He may be seated in theVajraparyanka (also known asBhūmisparśa) pose, with the right hand on the right knee, palm turned inwardly, and middle finger touching the ground.[11][12][13] Amitābha (Japanese: Amida), embodies measurelesslight and faces west. A statue of Amitābha, when seated, has asamadhimudrā with both palms face up, on top of each other, in his lap.[11][14][15]
When these Five Buddhas are represented in mandalas of distinct Buddhist traditions, they may not always have the same colour or be related to the same direction. As mentioned, Akshobhya and Vairocana may be switched, as in the Guhyasamaja system which has Aksobhya in the center, and as in the Longchen Nyingtig tradition where Akshobhya is also in the center.[2][16]
In other cases, different Buddhas may take the center place as well depending on the teaching cycle or tantra which is being depicted.
When represented in a Vairocana mandala of the Vajradhatu, the Buddhas are arranged as follows:
| Amoghasiddhi (North) | ||
| Amitābha (West) | Vairocana (Center) | Akshobhya (East) |
| Ratnasambhava (South) |
There is an expansive number of associations with each element of the Five Buddhas mandala, so that the mandala becomes acipher andmnemonicvisual thinking instrument andconcept map; a vehicle for understanding and decoding the whole of theDharma.
In numerousVajrayana sources, each Buddha Family or Division has numerous symbols, secondary figures including bodhisattvas, protectors, etc., abilities, and aspects.[17]
Some of the main esoteric associations of each family include:[18]
| Family (Skt,Kula) | Buddha | Colour and Element | Aggretate | Klesha | Mudra | Throne | Bījasyllable | Wisdom (jñana) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buddha Family | Vairocana | White, Space | Form (or Consciousness) | Aversion (orIgnorance,ávidyā) | Teaching Mudra | Lion throne | Om | Perfectly Pure Dharma sphere Jñana |
| Vajra Family | Akṣobhya | Blue, Water | Consciousness (or Form) (rupa) | Ignorance (orAversion) | Earth-touching Mudra | Elephant throne | Hum | Mirror-like Jñana |
| Ratna (Jewel) Family | Ratnasambhava | Yellow, Earth | Feeling (vedana) | Pride (or Greed) | Giving Mudra | Horse throne | Tram | Sameness Jñana |
| Padma (Lotus) Family | Amitābha | Red, Fire | Perception (saṃjñā) | Craving | Meditation Mudra | Peacock throne | Hrih | Discriminating Jñana |
| Karma Family | Amoghasiddhi | Green, Wind | Volition (samkhara) | Envy | Fearlessness Mudra | Garuda throne | Ah | Perfect practice Jñana |
Each male Buddha is paired with a female Buddha, often called mothers, prajña, vidya, or consort. Together, each family also presides over their ownpure land or buddhafield. Although all five families abide in pure lands, it appears that onlySukhavati ofAmitābha, and to a much lesser extentAbhirati ofAkshobhya, where great masters likeVimalakirti andMilarepa are said to dwell, were popularly venerated. Some temples include all five Buddhas in their mandalas and statuary.
The Five Tathāgathas are protected by fiveWisdom Kings calledVidyārājas, and in China and Japan they are frequently depicted together in theMandala of the Two Realms. In theShurangama Mantra revealed in theŚūraṅgama Sūtra, an especially influentialdharani in theChinese Chan tradition, the Five Tathāgathas are mentioned as the hosts of the five divisions which control the vast armies of the five directions.[19]
In an early Indian Yoga Tantra of the Five Families, the five prajña consorts or five mothers (Tib. ཡུམ་ལྔ་, Wyl.yum lnga), the associated bodhisattvas and their pure lands that correspond to the Five Tathagatas are:[18][20][16][21]
| Buddha (Skt) | Wisdom Consort (prajña) | Bodhisattva | Vidyārāja protector[22] | Pure land and direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vairocana | Ākāśadhātvīśvarī, also known as Vajradhātvisharī, Buddhaḍākinī or Sparśavajrī | Vajraparamita orVajrasattva | Acala | Akaniṣṭha-Ghanavyūha (Center) |
| Akṣobhya | Locanā, also known as Buddhalocanā, Tathāgatalocanā | Vajrapani orSamantabhadra | Trailokyavijaya | Abhirati (East) |
| Amitābha | Paṇḍāravāsinī, also known as Sitavāsinī | Avalokiteśvara | Yamāntaka | Sukhāvatī (West) |
| Ratnasaṃbhava | Māmakī | Mañjusri,Ratnapani | Kuṇḍali | Śrīmat (South) |
| Amoghasiddhi | Tara, Samayatārā | Maitreya, orViśvapāni | Vajrayakṣa | Karmaprasiddhi[23] orPrakuṭā [es] (North) |
Other tantras and commentaries provide alternative families and listings of the male and female Buddha pairings. In some systems, like theGuhyasamāja Tantra, Akṣobhya appears at the center of the mandala, with Sparśavajrī as consort.[16] Sometimes Tara may appear as associated with the Lotus family, since one tradition states that she was born of Avalokitesvara.
Each female Buddha also has their own mantra, for example Pāṇḍaravāsinī's mantra in theMañjuśrīmūlakalpa (ch 37) is:[24]
Oṁ kaṭe vikaṭe nikaṭe kaṭaṅkaṭe kaṭavikaṭakaṭaṅkaṭe svāhā
Buddhalocanā's mantra in the Mañjuśrīmūlakalpa (found in chapter 37) is:[24]
oṁ ru ru sphuru jvala tiṣṭha siddhalocane sarvārthasādhani svāhā
According to theGuhyasamājatantra, each Buddha family is also assigned a specific mantra:[17]
The Five Buddhas may also be seen as aspects of theDharmakāya or "dharma-body", which reflect all apparent phenomena.[2] TheVajrasekhara Sutra also mentions a sixth Buddha,Vajradhara, "a Buddha (or principle) seen as the source, in some sense, of the five Buddhas."[3] This idea later developed into a tantric idea of theAdi-Buddha, which generally came to be seen as the ground of all the Five Buddhas, as theDharmakāya itself, the ultimate reality which spontaneously manifests the Five Buddha families. Different Buddhist traditions understand and name their highest Buddha in various ways. In theNyingma school, the highest Buddhas are known as Samantabhadra and Samantabhadri. InShingon Buddhism, it is Mahavairocana. In JapanesePure Land Buddhism, they understand all Buddhas as manifestations ofAmitābha.[25]
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