Samantabhadra

Who he is

Samantabhadra's name in Sanskrit is Samantabhadra, meaning "Universally Good". In Tibetan he is called Kuntu Zangpo. He is one of the Eight Great Bodhisattvas.

Manjushri stands for wisdom, and Samantabhadra stands for vows and action. The two often stand to the left and right of Shakyamuni Buddha: one is in charge of seeing clearly, the other of doing.

In the Nyingma school of Tibet there is also a figure with the same name, the primordial Buddha Samantabhadra. He is a deep blue Buddha with no clothing or ornaments, and he is not the same as the bodhisattva Samantabhadra described here.

What he does

He stands for "action" and "aspiration": once a vow is made, it is carried out, one thing at a time.

What people pray to him for

Traditionally, people pray to Samantabhadra for:

• Keeping the vows they have made, all the way to the end
• Truly living by what they have learned
• A bigger heart when making offerings and dedicating merit

Mantra

You can recite his name: Namo Samantabhadra Bodhisattva.

At the end of ceremonies in all the schools of Tibet, the verses of the "Aspiration of Samantabhadra" are often recited once. This is one of the most widely used dedication prayers.

Story: The Ten Great Vows

At the end of the Avatamsaka Sutra, Samantabhadra sets out ten great vows, known as the "ten great kings of vows":

1. Paying homage to all the Buddhas
2. Praising the Tathagatas
3. Making abundant offerings
4. Confessing karmic obscurations
5. Rejoicing in merit
6. Requesting the turning of the Dharma wheel
7. Requesting the Buddhas to remain in the world
8. Always following the Buddhas in learning
9. Always accommodating living beings
10. Dedicating all merit universally

These ten later became the basic framework of practice in Mahayana Buddhism. The "seven-limb offering" done every day in Tibetan Buddhism comes from these ten vows.

How to recognize him

• In China: riding a white elephant with six tusks
• In Tibet: dressed as a bodhisattva, holding a lotus or a jewel
• The Eight Great Bodhisattvas often appear as a group on either side of a Buddha; you tell them apart by what they hold in their hands