Buddhas, Bodhisattvas and Protectors

This section introduces thirty-seven Buddhas, bodhisattvas, Taras, yidams and protectors, with five introductions. Each page explains who the figure is, what they do, what people pray to them for, and how to recognize them, alongside statues and paintings from museum collections. The content mainly follows the Gelug tradition of Tibetan Buddhism.

The mantras and practices of yidams and protectors are traditionally passed on by a qualified teacher. They are not listed here.

Getting started: five introductions

Intro 1

Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, Yidams, and Protectors: What Is the Difference?

Walk into a Tibetan Buddhist monastery and you will see many figures. Some are serene, some are smiling, some glare with wide, angry eyes. They are not a crowd of unrelated "gods." They are four different kinds of identity. Once you can tell these four apart, every figure that follows becomes easy to recognize.

Intro 2

How Do You Begin Learning Buddhism?

To begin learning Buddhism, you do not need to "believe" anything first. You do not need to buy a statue or wear prayer beads first, either. The best starting point is to understand what the Buddha actually taught.

Intro 3

What Is a Mantra, and How Do You Recite One?

A mantra is a short phrase made of Sanskrit syllables. The Tibetan tradition explains it as “protecting the mind.”

Intro 4

The Gelug School and Je Tsongkhapa

Tsongkhapa (1357–1419) was the founder of the Gelug school. “Gelug” means “the virtuous way.”

Intro 5

Who Should You Meet First?

There are many bodhisattvas and protectors. You do not need to remember them all at once. Follow the order below; getting to know five of them first is enough.

Buddhas

Shakyamuni Buddha

The founder of Buddhism and the source of all its teachings; Buddhists call him the "Original Teacher."

Amitabha

The Buddha of Sukhavati (the Land of Bliss) in the west; his name means "Infinite Light."

Medicine Buddha

The Buddha who heals every illness and suffering of body and mind; his body is a deep blue, like lapis lazuli.

Amitayus

The Buddha of long life. He and Amitabha are two forms of the same Buddha.

The Eight Great Bodhisattvas

Avalokiteshvara

The embodiment of compassion; the bodhisattva who hears every cry for help in the world.

Manjushri

The embodiment of wisdom; the sword in his hand is there to cut through confusion.

Vajrapani

The embodiment of power. Vajra in hand, he sweeps away every obstacle.

Maitreya

The future Buddha. After Shakyamuni Buddha, he is the next to become a Buddha in the human world.

Kshitigarbha

"Until the hells are empty, I vow not to become a Buddha." He is the bodhisattva who goes to the places of greatest suffering to rescue those who are there.

Samantabhadra

The bodhisattva who turns aspirations into action. He stands for "great conduct", which means putting things into practice.

Sarvanivaranavishkambhin

The bodhisattva whose special work is removing "whatever is covering the mind".

Akashagarbha

The bodhisattva whose wisdom and merit are as boundless as space.

Taras, Female Buddhas and Goddesses

Green Tara

The female Buddha who is quickest to rescue. One foot is already stretched out, ready to rise and help at any moment.

White Tara

The Tara who grants long life and health. She has seven eyes on her body.

The Twenty-One Taras

Twenty-one emanations of the one Tara, each looking after one kind of difficulty.

Prajnaparamita

Wisdom itself in the form of a female Buddha, known as "the mother of all Buddhas".

Sarasvati

The goddess of wisdom, music, fine writing and eloquence, holding a lute in her arms.

Ushnishavijaya

A female Buddha who appeared from the light at the crown of the Buddha's head. Her special work is lengthening life and purifying negative karma.

Sitatapatra

The female Buddha who opens a great white parasol and keeps disasters out.

Yidams

Guhyasamaja

First among the three main yidams (meditational deities) of the Gelug school, known as the "King of Tantras."

Chakrasamvara

One of the three main yidams (meditational deities) of the Gelug school; the sacred Mount Kailash is regarded as his palace.

Yamantaka

The wrathful form of Manjushri, with the head of a water buffalo; the most widely practiced yidam (meditational deity) in the Gelug school.

Vajrasattva

The yidam (meditational deity) specially devoted to confession and purification, pure white all over.

Vajrayogini

A red female yidam (meditational deity) with her head tilted back and a skull cup raised high; a mother tantra yidam often practiced in the Gelug school.

Hayagriva

The wrathful form of Avalokiteshvara (Chenrezig), with a neighing horse's head on top of his head.

Kalachakra

The yidam (meditational deity) whose teachings explain how the universe, time and the human body correspond; the Tibetan calendar comes from his teachings.