Vajrapani & Confused Identifications
It is very easy to confuse the deities Vajrapani, Vajravidarana, Sengge Dradog, Mahakala and Yama Dharmaraja. They are all wrathful in appearance, blue in colour, one face and two hands, holding either a vajra or curved knife in the upraised right hand. Great care must be taken to see the defining characteristics of each iconographic form as well as observing the over all context of a painting. Sculptural representations are more difficult to identify without the help of an inscription or the benefit of comparison with other sculptural figures from the same set. Many of the figures from the various sets of the Ten Great Wrathful Ones can also have the general appearance of Vajrapani. When an identification is still in doubt and the obvious forms have been ruled out then the Ten Wrathful Ones should be carefully looked at.