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43-2244: (Redirected from Amitabh ) [REDACTED] Look up Amitabha , Amitābha , or Amitabh in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. Amitabh or Amitabha or Amitav may refer to: Amitābha , an important Buddha in Buddhism Amitābha Buddha from Hancui , a statue from Hancui, China, now in the British Museum Amitabha Buddhist Centre , Singapore Amitav Acharya (born 1962), Indian-Canadian scholar and author Amitabh Aurora , Indian filmmaker Amitabh Bachchan (born 1942), Indian actor in Hindi cinema Amitabh Bagchi , Indian Maoist Amitabh Bajpai , Indian politician Amitav Banerji (born 1926), Indian judge Amitabh Bhattacharjee (born 1973), Indian actor Amitabh Bhattacharya , Indian lyricist Amitabha Bhattacharyya (1931–1992), Indian production engineer Amitabha Bose , Indian-American government official Amitabh Chandra , Indian economist Amitabha Chattopadhyay , Indian molecular biologist Amitabh Chaudhry (born 1964/65), Indian banker, CEO and MD of Axis Bank Amitabha Chowdhury , Indian journalist Amitabh Joshi (born 1965), Indian biologist Amitabh Mattoo , Indian academic Amitabh Mitra , Indian-South African poet Amitabha Ghosh (disambiguation) Amitabh Kant , Indian official Amitav Mallik , Indian technologist Amitabha Mukhopadhyay (born 1959), Indian biologist Amitabh Rajan , Indian banker Amitabh Shukla , Indian film editor Amitabh Singh , Indian space scientist Amitabha Singh , Indian cinematographer Amitabh Thakur , Indian politician Amitabh Varshney , Indian-American computer scientist Amitabha (bird) , an Eocene fossil bird See also [ edit ] All pages with titles containing Amitabha All pages with titles containing Amitabh All pages with titles containing Amitav Amit (disambiguation) , nickname from

86-703: A sutra is the Pratyutpanna Samādhi Sūtra , translated into Chinese by Lokakṣema in 179 CE, with the discovery of a Gandhari language fragment of that sutra announced in 2018. Jeff Wilson writes that over a fifth of the sutras in the Taishō Tripiṭaka reference Amitābha, but three sutras in particular have become seen as canonical in East Asian Buddhism: Amitābha is understood as the Buddha of comprehensive love. Amitābha's pure land

129-599: A compound of amita ("infinite") and āyus ("life"), and so means "he whose life is boundless". In Chinese, 阿彌陀佛 , pronounced "Ēmítuófó", is the Chinese pronunciation for the Sanskrit name of the Amitābha Buddha (Amida Buddha). The "e mi tuo" is the transliteration of the Sanskrit word "amita" which means "boundless" ( 無量 , "wuliang"). "Fo" is the Chinese word for "Buddha". In Vietnamese , Korean , and Japanese,

172-555: A detailed account of the various levels and beings in the Mahāyāna Buddhist cosmology. The sutra also contains the forty-eight vows of Amitābha to save all sentient beings. The eighteenth vow is among the most important as it forms a basic tenet of Pure Land Buddhism . This vow states that if a sentient being makes even ten recitations of the Amitābha's name ( nianfo ) they will attain certain rebirth into Amitābha's pure land. Lastly

215-647: A pure land called Sukhāvatī ( Sanskrit : "possessing happiness"). Sukhāvatī is situated in the uttermost west, beyond the bounds of our own world. By the power of his vows, Amitābha has made it possible for all who call upon him to be reborn into this land, there to undergo instruction by him in the dharma and ultimately become bodhisattvas and buddhas in their turn (the ultimate goal of Mahāyāna Buddhism). From there, these same bodhisattvas and buddhas return to our world to help yet more people while still residing in his land of Sukhāvatī , whose many virtues and joys are described. The earliest known reference to Amitābha in

258-536: Is a work of Kushan art , made during the Kushan Empire (30–375 CE), and was dedicated to "Amitābha Buddha" by a family of merchants. Gregory Schopen translates the inscription as follows: The 26th year of the Great King Huveṣka, the 2nd month, the 26th day. On this day by Nāgarakṣita, the (father) of the trader (Sax-caka), the grandson of the merchant Balakatta, the (son of Buddhapila), an image of

301-512: Is also called Amida Nyorai ( Japanese : 阿弥陀如来 , "the Tathāgata Amitābha") . In Tibetan, Amitābha is called འོད་དཔག་མེད་ Wylie : ' od dpag med , THL : Öpakmé and in its reflex form as Amitāyus, ཚེ་དཔག་མེད་ Wylie : tshe dpag med , THL : Tsépakmé . They are iconographically distinct. When in the descending standing position, Amitābha is often shown with left arm bare and extended downward with thumb and forefinger touching, with

344-520: Is believed to have been translated into Chinese twelve times from the original Sanskrit from 147 to 713 CE. Only five translations are extant in the Chinese Buddhist canon . The five Chinese translations are (in order of translation date): Furthermore, there is a Tibetan translation, which is similar to the last two later recensions in Chinese. This is the ’Phags pa ’od dpag med kyi bkod pa (*Āryāmitābhavyūha; D 49/P 760) translated in

387-594: Is considered one of the Five Dhyani Buddhas known also as the Five Tathagatas together with Akshobhya , Amoghasiddhi , Ratnasambhava , and Vairocana . Amitābha is associated with the western direction and the skandha of saṃjñā , the aggregate of perception, or distinguishing, and the deep awareness of individuality. His co-equal is the female Buddha Pāṇḍaravāsinī . His two main disciples (the same number as Gautama Buddha ) are

430-600: Is described as being in the West, and he works for the enlightenment of all beings (represented iconographically as a blessing Buddha). The Amitayurdhyana Sutra recommends and describes at length the practice of visualising Amitābha and the Pure Land. The other two sutras do not detail visualisation practices, and have been interpreted in different ways, such as the nianfo practice of repeatedly saying Amitābha's name. Other practices developed from these sutras include practices at

473-467: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Amitabha According to the Larger Sūtra of Immeasurable Life , Amitābha was, in very ancient times and possibly in another system of worlds, a monk named Dharmākara. In some versions of the sūtra , Dharmākara is described as a former king who, having come into contact with Buddhist teachings through

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516-546: Is focused around Amitābha Buddha. In East Asian Pure Land traditions, the main religious practice is the recitation or chanting of the phrase 南無阿彌陀佛 ( Mandarin : Nāmó Ēmítuófó, Japanese: Namu Amida Butsu) which means "Homage to Amitābha Buddha". Amitābha is also known in Tibet , Mongolia , Nepal , India and other regions where Tibetan Buddhism is practiced. In the Highest Yogatantra of Tibetan Buddhism, Amitābha

559-460: Is infinite". The name Amitāyus (nominative form Amitāyuḥ ) is also used for the Sambhogakāya aspect of Amitābha, particularly associated with longevity. He is mostly depicted sitting and holding in his hands a vessel containing the nectar of immortality. In Tibetan Buddhism, Amitāyus is also one of the three deities of long life (Amitāyus, White Tara and Uṣṇīṣavijayā ). Amitāyus being

602-773: Is often translated in English as either the Sutra [on the Buddha] of Immeasurable Life , or simply the Immeasurable Life Sutra . Some scholars believe that the Longer Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra was compiled in the age of the Kushan Empire in the first and second centuries by an order of Mahīśāsaka monastics who flourished in the Gandhāra region. It is likely that the longer Sukhāvatīvyūha owed greatly to

645-465: Is the easiest way to distinguish them. Amitāyus is an emanation of Amitābha. Amitābha is the head of the Lotus family. In Vajrayana, Amitābha is the most ancient of the Five Tathagatas . He is of red color originating from the red seed syllable hrīḥ . He represents the cosmic element of "Sanjana" (name). His vehicle is the peacock. He exhibits Samadhi Mudra his two palms folded face up, one on top of

688-522: The Ajitasena Sutra , Samādhirāja Sūtra and Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra . The appearance of such literature and sculptural remains at the end of the second century suggests that the teachings on Amitābha we becoming popular in the first and second centuries CE. Furthermore, there are sculptures of Amitabha in dhyani mudras as well as bronzes of Amitābha in abhaya mudra from the Gandhara era of

731-605: The Buddhabhadra / Saṅghavarman translation which became the standard in Chinese Buddhism. The Dilun scholar Jingying Huiyuan (淨影慧遠, J. Jōyō Eon) wrote the earliest extant Chinese commentary to the Sutra of Immeasurable Life. Jizang (549-623) of the Sanlun school, also wrote an early commentary on this sutra . In Japan, the 12th-century Pure Land scholar Hōnen wrote four separate commentaries on

774-738: The Lokottaravāda sect as well for its compilation, and in this sūtra there are many elements in common with the Mahāvastu . The earliest of the Chinese translations show traces of having been translated from the Gāndhārī language , a prakrit used in the Northwest. It is also known that manuscripts in the Kharoṣṭhī script existed in China during this period. Traditionally the Longer Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra

817-566: The Longer Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra, is one of the two Indian Mahayana sutras which describe the pure land of Amitābha (also known as Amitāyus, "Measureless Life"). Together with the Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra , this text is highly influential in East Asian Buddhism. It is one of the three central scriptures of East Asian Pure Land Buddhism , and is widely revered and chanted by Pure Land Buddhists throughout Asia. The title

860-640: The Shamarpas are considered to be emanations of Amitābha. In Shingon Buddhism , Amitābha is seen as one of the thirteen Buddhas to whom practitioners can pay homage. Shingon, like Tibetan Buddhism, also uses special devotional mantras for Amitābha, though the mantras used differ. Amitābha is also one of the Buddhas featured in the Womb Realm Mandala used in Shingon practices , and sits to

903-593: The bodhisattvas Vajrapani and Avalokiteśvara , the former to his left and the latter to his right. In Tibetan Buddhism , there exist a number of famous prayers for taking rebirth in Sukhāvatī ( Dewachen ). One of these was written by Je Tsongkhapa , on the request of Manjushri . Amitābha is primarily invoked in Tibet during the phowa practices, or invoked as Amitāyus – especially in practices relating to longevity and preventing an untimely death. The Panchen Lamas and

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946-694: The 9th century by Jinamitra , Dānaśīla, and Ye shes sde . In addition to the translations, the Sūtra is also extant in Sanskrit , surviving in a late Nepalese manuscript. The Sanskrit has been directly translated into English by F. Max Mueller . It is a "late recension" type similar to the Tibetan edition. There are also several fragments of another version in Sanskrit, along with fragments of Uighur, Khotanese, and Xixia translations. According to Luis O. Gomez, there are some significant differences between

989-672: The Blessed One, the Buddha Amitābha was set up for the worship of all buddhas. Through this root of merit (may) all living things (obtain) the unexcelled knowledge of a buddha. Another early epigraphic mention of Amitabha (c. 610 CE) is found in Patan (Lalitpur) . It is a verse which states: I praise Amitabha, the best, dispeller of illusion by the light of great prajña . The light, victor who lives in Sukhavati with Lokesvara ,

1032-661: The Great Buddha of Kamakura ( 鎌倉大仏 ) at Kōtoku-in or the exposition mudrā, while the earth-touching mudrā (right hand pointed downward over the right leg, palm inward) is reserved for a seated Gautama Buddha alone. He can also be seen holding a lotus in his hands while displaying the meditation mudrā. There is a difference between Amitāyus and Amitābha. Amitāyus—the Buddha of Infinite Life—and Amitābha—the Buddha of Infinite Light—are essentially identical, being reflective images of one another. Sutras in which Gautama Buddha expounds

1075-708: The Indian male given name Amida (disambiguation) , Japanese transliteration Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Amitabha . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Amitabha_(disambiguation)&oldid=1220754361 " Categories : Disambiguation pages Disambiguation pages with given-name-holder lists Indian masculine given names Sanskrit-language names Hidden categories: Short description

1118-481: The Sanskrit and the Chinese edition of Buddhabhadra / Saṅghavarman . Gomez writes: the order of the narrative and the argument deviate, sometimes only on minor points, sometimes in major ways; differences in content occur throughout, and range from a regrouping and rearrangement of important themes (in the content and structure of the verse portions, for instance, and in the vows), to significant omissions and additions. The parallels, however, are more and stronger than

1161-402: The buddha Lokeśvararāja , renounced his throne. He then resolved to become a Buddha and to create a buddhakṣetra (literally "buddha-field", often called a "Pureland" or "Buddha Land": a realm existing in the primordial universe outside of ordinary reality, produced by a buddha's merit) possessed of many perfections. These resolutions were expressed in his forty-eight vows , which set out

1204-627: The destroyer of the fear arising in the world, bearer of the lotus, and Mahasthamaprapta , the affectionate-hearted one. Regarding textual evidence, the earliest Buddhist sutra mentioning Amitābha is the translation into Chinese of the Pratyutpanna Samādhi Sūtra (般舟三昧經; Bozhōu Sānmèi Jīng ) by the Kushan monk Lokakṣema around 180. This text has been dated to between the 1st century BCE and 2nd century CE by modern buddhologists. Other early Mahayana texts mentioning Amitabha include

1247-590: The divergences, so that our understanding of one version may still benefit from our reading of the other. Two long passages in Sanghavarman's version have no correspondence in the Sanskrit (or, for that matter, in the Tibetan) versions. These passages are probably "interpolations," but we have no way of knowing for certain today where and when they were added to the text. There are over twenty commentaries on this sutra written in China, Korea and Japan, all based on

1290-631: The first century, suggesting the popularity of Amitābha during that time. One of the last prayer busts of Amitābha can be found in the trademark black stone of the Pala Empire (c. 750–1161 CE), which was the last Buddhist empire of India. Infinite Life Sutra The Amitāyus Sutra ( Sanskrit ), simplified Chinese : 佛说无量壽經 ; traditional Chinese : 佛說無量壽經 ; pinyin : Fóshuōwúliàngshòujīng ; Sutra of Immeasurable Life Spoken by Buddha ; Vietnamese : Phật Thuyết Kinh Vô Lượng Thọ; Japanese: Taisho Tripitaka no. 360) also known as

1333-477: The glories of Sukhavati, the Pure Lands, speak of the presiding Buddha sometimes as Amitābha and sometimes as Amitāyus. When depicted as Amitāyus he is depicted in fine clothes and jewels and as Amitābha in simple monk's clothing. They are also simply known as Amida in the Chinese and Japanese tradition. The image of the gold colored statue in the article is of Amitāyus as he is wearing a five-pointed crown, which

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1376-566: The moment of death, call upon him. This openness and acceptance of all kinds of people has made belief in pure lands one of the major influences in Mahāyāna Buddhism. Pure Land Buddhism seems to have first become popular in Gandhara , from where it spread to China infused with Taoists and Confucian philosophy before spreading to Central and East Asia . The sutra goes on to explain that Amitābha, after accumulating great merit over countless lives, finally achieved buddhahood and created

1419-480: The other, lying on his lap. The lotus is his sign. When represented on the stupa, he always faces toward west. He is worshiped thinking that one can have salvation. The first known epigraphic evidence for Amitābha is the bottom part of a statue found in Govindnagar, Pakistan and now located at Government Museum, Mathura . The statue is dated to "the 26th year of the reign of Huviṣka " i.e., 104 CE. It

1462-499: The right and Mahāsthāmaprāpta on the left. This iconography is known as an Amitabha triad , and is especially common in Chinese , Japanese , and Korean art . Amitābha is said to display 84,000 auspicious and distinguishing marks reflecting his many virtues. Amitābha can often be distinguished by his mudrā : Amitābha is often depicted, when shown seated, displaying the meditation mudrā (thumbs touching and fingers together as in

1505-425: The right hand facing outward also with thumb and forefinger touching. The meaning of this mudra is that wisdom (symbolized by the raised hand) is accessible to even the lowest beings, while the outstretched hand shows that Amitābha's compassion is directed at the lowest beings, who cannot save themselves. When not depicted alone, Amitābha is often portrayed with two assistant bodhisattvas, usually Avalokiteśvara on

1548-499: The same Chinese characters used for Amitābha are used to represent his name, though they are pronounced slightly differently: In addition to transliteration, the name Amitābha has also been translated into Chinese using characters which, taken together, convey the meaning "Infinite Light": 無量光 (Wúliàngguāng). In the same fashion, the name Amitāyus ("Infinite Life") has been translated as 無量壽 (Wúliàngshòu). These translated names are not, however, very commonly used. In Japanese, Amitābha

1591-1205: The sutra shows the Buddha discoursing at length to the future buddha, Maitreya , describing the various forms of evil that Maitreya must avoid to achieve his goal of becoming a buddha as well as other admonitions and advice. A Peace Bell with an enclosure was constructed in the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park on September 20, 1964. Among its inscriptions is a Sanskrit quote from Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra: सचि मि उपगतस्य बोधिमण्डं, दश-दिशि प्रव्रजि नाम-धेयु क्षिप्रं. saci mi upagatasya bodhi-maṇḍaṃ, daśa-diśi pravraji nāma-dheyu kṣipraṃ. पृथु बहव अनन्त-बुद्ध-क्षेत्रां, म अहु सिया बल-प्राप्तु लोकनाथ. ṛthu bahava ananta-buddha-kṣetrāṃ, ma ahu siyā bala-prāptu lokanātha. [2] विपुल-प्रभ अतुल्य-नन्त नाथा, दिशि विदिशि स्फुरि सर्व-बुद्ध-क्षेत्रां, vipula-prabhā atulya-nanta nāthā, diśi vidiśi sphuri sarvabuddha-kṣetrāṃ, राग प्रशमि सर्व-दोष-मोहां, नरक-गतिस्मि प्रशामि धूम-केतुम्. rāga praśāmi [praśamiya] sarva-doṣa-mohāṃ, naraka-gatismi praśāmi dhūma-ketum. [5] The English translation (Müller, Max, trans. 1894, pp. 23–24, verses 2 and 5): "If there should not be for me such

1634-473: The sutra. In the Longer Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra , the Buddha begins by describing to his attendant Ānanda a past life of the Buddha Amitābha . He states that in a past life, Amitābha was once a king who renounced his kingdom and became a bodhisattva monk named Dharmākara ("Dharma Storehouse"). Under the guidance of the buddha Lokeśvararāja ("World Sovereign King"), innumerable buddha-lands throughout

1677-485: The ten directions were revealed to him. After meditating for five eons as a bodhisattva, he then made a great series of vows to save all sentient beings , and through his great merit, created the realm of Sukhāvatī ("Ultimate Bliss"). This land of Sukhāvatī would later come to be known as a pure land (Ch. 淨土) in Chinese translation. The sutra describes in great detail Sukhāvatī and its inhabitants, and how they are able to attain rebirth there. The text also provides

1720-480: The time of death, such as visualising Amitābha in the heaven (sun) over their head (Western horizon), think his name as a mantra, and leaving the body as a soul through the acupuncture point Bai Hui (百會). East Asian Buddhist traditions commonly invoke Amitābha's name in a practice known as nianfo ( 念佛 ) in Chinese and nembutsu in Japanese. This is the central practice of East Asian Pure Land Buddhism which

1763-794: The type of Pureland Dharmākara aspired to create, the conditions under which beings might be born into that world, and what kind of beings they would be when reborn there. In the versions of the sutra widely known in China, Vietnam, Korea and Japan, Dharmākara's eighteenth vow was that any being in any universe desiring to be reborn into Amitābha's pure land ( Chinese : 淨土 ; pinyin : jìngtǔ ; Japanese pronunciation : jōdo ; Korean : 정토 ; romaja : jeongto ; Vietnamese : tịnh độ ) and calling upon his name with sincerity, even as few as ten times will be guaranteed rebirth there. His nineteenth vow promises that he, together with his bodhisattvas and other blessed Buddhists, will appear before those who, at

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1806-403: The underlying Indic form: oṃ amṛta-teje hara hūṃ . The proper form of Amitābha's name in Sanskrit is Amitābha , masculine, and the nominative singular is Amitābhaḥ . This is a compound of the Sanskrit words amita ("without bound, infinite") and ābhā ("light, splendor"). Consequently, the name is to be interpreted as "he who possesses light without bound, he whose splendor

1849-566: The west, which is where the Pure Land of Amitābha is said to dwell. Amitābha is the center of a number of mantras in Vajrayana practices. The Sanskrit form of the mantra of Amitābha is oṃ amitābha hrīḥ ). An alternative Tibetan mantra is Om ami dewa hri (Sanskrit: oṃ amideva hrīḥ ). Amitabha's main mantra in Shingon Buddhism is Om amirita teizei kara um (Japanese: オン・アミリタ・テイゼイ・カラ・ウン ), which represents

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