Samantabhadra (Kuntu Zangpo, Tib.) is the name for two non-material figures in Buddhism: the bodhisattva of traditional Buddhism and the Buddha of Tibetan Buddhism.
Samantabhadra Buddha is the adi-Buddha or primordial Buddha of the Nyimgma Lineage. He is equivalent to Vajradhara of the New Translation Schools of Kagyu, Sakya, and Gelugpa.
I’ve always visualized Kuntu Zangpo Buddha solitary. He does have a consort, who hangs out with him sometimes. Samantabhadri. He tends to be dark blue, and in contrast to his ‘alter-ego’ Vajradhara, he appears completely naked. This represents the utter exposedness and simplicity of fully awakened wisdom. It has no extras, no complexity, no agenda. It simply is.
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Table of Contents
Samantabhadra Summary
There are two aspects of Samantabhadra to consider:
- Samantabhadra as a Bodhisattva (Mahayana Buddhism)
- Kuntu Zangpo as a Buddha (Tibetan Buddhism)
Samantabhadra as a Bodhisattva (Mahayana Buddhism)
| Property | Description |
|---|---|
| Central Concept | Samantabhadra Bodhisattva |
| Context | Mahayana Buddhism |
| Related Concepts | Bodhisattva, Amitabha Buddha (Pure Land), Ten Great Vows, Paramitas (perfections) |
| Explanation | Samantabhadra embodies the ideal of universal virtue, compassion, and the active pursuit of enlightenment for the benefit of all beings. |
| Depiction | Peaceful male figure riding a white elephant with six tusks, holding a lotus or wish-fulfilling jewel. |
| Significance | Represents the Bodhisattva path, emphasizing action and practice alongside wisdom. The Ten Great Vows attributed to him outline the Bodhisattva ideal. |
| Additional Notes | Seen as a central figure in Mahayana traditions, particularly Pure Land Buddhism where he is a companion to Amitabha Buddha. |
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Samantabhadra as a Buddha (Tibetan Buddhism)
| Property | Description |
|---|---|
| Central Concept | Samantabhadra Buddha |
| Context | Tibetan Vajrayana Buddhism |
| Related Concepts | Adi-Buddha, Kāya (three bodies of a Buddha), Kunjed Gyalpo Tantra |
| Explanation | A distinct concept in Tibetan Buddhism, seen as a Primordial Buddha or embodiment of ultimate reality. |
| Depiction | Varies, sometimes depicted as a dark blue nude figure. |
| Significance | Represents the dharmakaya (truth body) and the source of all enlightened beings. Understanding Samantabhadra is crucial in some Vajrayana practices. |
| Additional Notes | This concept of Samantabhadra is distinct from the Bodhisattva figure in Mahayana Buddhism. It’s important to differentiate between these two aspects based on the context. |
In Conclusion:
Kuntu Zangpo holds a multifaceted role in Buddhism. Mahayana Buddhists revere him as a Bodhisattva, while Tibetan Vajrayana recognizes him as a Buddha representing ultimate reality. Understanding this duality is key to appreciating the rich tapestry of Buddhist traditions.
Samantabhadra in Tibetan
The Tibetan script for Samantabhadra depends on whether you’re referring to him as a Bodhisattva (Mahayana context) or a Buddha (Tibetan Vajrayana context).
Here’s the breakdown:
- Kuntu Zangpo as a Bodhisattva (Mahayana): ཀུན་ཏུ་བཟང་པོ (Kun tu bzang po)
- Kuntu Zangpo as a Buddha (Tibetan Vajrayana): ཀུན་སྟངས་རྒྱས་པོ (Kun stang rgyas po)
Here’s a deeper explanation:
- ཀུན་ཏུ་བཟང་པོ (Kun tu bzang po): This is the more common transliteration for Kuntu Zangpo as a Bodhisattva. It literally translates to “universal goodness” or “all good.”
- ཀུན་ (Kun) – universal, all
- ཏུ་ (tu) – towards, reaching
- བཟང་ (bzang) – good, excellent
- པོ (po) – masculine suffix
- ཀུན་སྟངས་རྒྱས་པོ (Kun stang rgyas po): This transliteration is used specifically in Tibetan Vajrayana for him as a Buddha. It translates to “the universally expansive enlightened one.”
- ཀུན་ (Kun) – universal, all
- སྟངས་ (stang) – expansive, pervading
- རྒྱས་ (rgyas) – enlightened
- པོ (po) – masculine suffix
It’s important to note that due to the complex nature of Tibetan script and pronunciation, these romanizations may not perfectly capture the exact sounds. If you need the pronunciation for specific use, consider consulting a resource on spoken Tibetan.
Samantabhadra in Sanskrit
Samantabhadra is written in Sanskrit as:
समन्तभद्र (Samantabhadra)
Here’s a breakdown of the word:
- समन्त (Samanta) – universal, all
- भद्र (Bhadra) – worthy, good, excellent
Therefore, Samantabhadra literally translates to “Universal Worthy” or “All Good” in Sanskrit.
May all beings be happy
May all beings be peaceful
May all beings be safe
May all beings awaken to the light of their true nature
May all beings be free
