Yamantaka

Yamantaka (Tib.: གཤིན་རྗེ་གཤེད་ gShin rje gshed; well. Vajrabhairava, Tib. rdo rje རྡོ་རྗེ་འཇིགས་བྱེད་ ' jigs byed ) is a buffalo -headed, wrathful yidam anuttarayoga tantra of Tibetan Buddhism. Besides Chakrasamvara and Guhyasamaja he is the main meditation deity of the Gelug School, but is also seen in the Sakya school as the main yidam. Both schools see him as the wrathful aspect of the Wisdom Buddha Manjushri. In the other schools ( Nyingma and Kagyu ) it is, however, rather as Dharmaschützer.

The Yamantaka Tantra is one of the so-called Father Tantras, which are geared for practitioners with anger as Hauptstörgefühl, in contrast to the mother tantras in which it is attachment and the non- dual tantras, where it is confusion.

Yamantaka is regarded as the conqueror of Yama, hence its name Yama ( God of Death ) - Antaka ( conqueror ).

It can be shown individually or with his consort Vajravetali. Along with his partner, he is shown in a 13 -Deity Mandala.

Yamantaka is one of the so-called Eight Great Heruka deities ( blood drinkers ), Hayagriva, Guhyasamaja, Hevajra, Vajrakilaya, Yamantaka, Chakrasamvara, Amrita and Mamo.

Origins

All textual sources go back to the Indian students of the Nalanda University Lalitavajra whose main yidam Manjushri was ( 10th century ). One day he had a vision of Manjushri, who told him that he should in the country Oddiyana go to the Tantras of Yamantaka to receive. So he went there and met the Wisdom Dakini Vajravetali that the various Yamantaka Tantra handed him along with other dakinis. But do not let him take the texts, but allowed him to take the only thing he could remember in the short time.

Gelug

Tsongkhapa, the founder of the Gelug School, stressed and spread the practice of Yamantaka. So she was beside Chakrasamvara and Guhyasamaja the main practice in the tantric colleges and universities in the Gelugpa monastic. Even today it is still considered as a main practice for monks and laymen alike. The essential practice texts were written by Tsongkhapa ( for the 13 -Deity practice) and Pabongka ( for Yamantaka as a single figure ). Important historical comments submitted by Tri Gyaltsen Senghe (for the single shape) and Lhundrup Pandita ( for the 13 -Deity practice).