Essay: Sukhavati Comparison (Mahayana & Vajrayana)

☰

MENU

Sukhavati Pure Land

Sukhavati Comparison

A Comparison of the Descriptive Differences Between Sukhavati of Mahayana Buddhism and Vajrayana Buddhism

With regard to artistic depictions of the Sukhavati pure land of Amitabha Buddha the Mahayana and Vajrayana traditions have some differences. Tantric Buddhism, primarily found in the Vajrayana tradition practiced in Tibet, the Himalayan regions and some other parts of East Asia, and Mahayana Buddhism, widely practiced in East Asia, have distinct characteristics in their approach to Buddhism, which are reflected in how they display and characterize Sukhavati, the Pure Land of Amitabha Buddha, otherwise known as the Western Paradise.

In Mahayana Buddhism, particularly within the Pure Land sect of China, Korea and Japan, the iconography of Sukhavati is quite specific and the descriptions are based on the Sukhāvatī­vyūha and the Essence of Sukhāvatī sutras. The Buddha Amitabha, who rules the Pure Land, is often depicted sitting or standing in a serene landscape, accompanied by the bodhisattvas Avalokiteshvara and Mahasthamaprapta. This triumvirate, sometimes known as the Western Trinity, is a key feature of Sukhavati iconography. The land itself is represented as a paradise, filled with lotus blossoms, trees of gemstones, musical sounds from the environment, and other beautiful elements.

Mahayana Buddhists, particularly those of the Pure Land tradition, aspire to be reborn in Sukhavati through faith and devotion to Amitabha. Therefore, the iconography is centered around this theme, with depictions of devotees being received into the Pure Land born from flower blossoms in a large lotus pond in front of the Buddha Amitabha. These birthing depictions are often included in artwork, both painting and sculpture. Sukhavati is presented as a literal place, a paradise to be reborn into.

In contrast, the Tantric (or Vajrayana) approach to Sukhavati can be somewhat different. While the Pure Land and Amitabha Buddha are still important, there is less emphasis on literal rebirth into Sukhavati and more on the transformation of the mind to perceive the pure nature of all phenomena. Sukhavati, in this context, is often seen more symbolically, representing the enlightened state of mind. Although, it is still common for many less educated Buddhist Tantric practitioners to aspire to be reborn in Sukhavati.

Vajrayana iconography often has complex symbolic representations. Amitabha is sometimes presented in union with his consort (usually Pāṇḍaravāsinī). In the Nyingma tradition there may also be the inclusion of dakas, dakinis, and protectors, which can be essential elements of Tibetan Buddhist art. The Eight Great Bodhisattvas often accompany Amitabha, including Manjushri, Vajrapani, Avalokiteshvara and Maitreya, the four most famous of the eight. The art is filled with vibrant colors and rich symbolism, reflecting the Tantric practices that utilize complex visualizations.

Overall, both traditions share a reverence for Amitabha Buddha and the pure land of Sukhavati, but they differ in how they interpret and portray them. Mahayana (especially Pure Land Buddhism) sees Sukhavati as a literal place of rebirth, while Vajrayana views it more symbolically as representing the enlightened mind. These interpretations are reflected in their respective iconographies.

Shinzo Shiratori, 6-2023

---

Source Texts:

Lotsawa House: Amitabha Texts

84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha

Toh 115. The Display of the Pure Land of Sukhāvatī. Sukhāvatī­vyūha, ’phags pa bde ba can gyi bkod pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha

Toh 677/864. The Incantation of Amitābha. སྣང་མཐའི་གཟུངས་སྔགས། · snang mtha'i gzungs sngags.
amitābhadhāraṇīmantra.

Toh 678/867. Calling Amitābha to Mind. སྣང་མཐའ་རྗེས་སུ་དྲན་པ། · snang mtha' rjes su dran pa.

Toh 679/851. The Dhāraṇī Praising the Qualities of the Immeasurable One. ཡོན་ཏན་བསྔགས་པ་དཔག་ཏུ་མེད་པའི་གཟུངས། · yon tan bsngags pa dpag tu med pa’i gzungs. Aparimita­guṇānuśāṁsa­dhāraṇī.

Toh 680/889. Essence of Sukhāvatī. བདེ་ལྡན་གྱི་སྙིང་པོ། · bde ldan gyi snying po.

(The images below are only a selection of examples from the links above).