The Buddhas

By Victor M Fontane

Adi-BuddhaThe Ādi-Buddha is the First Buddha or the Primordial Buddha. Another common term for this figure is Dharmakāya Buddha. Vajradhara, the main Ādibuddha.The term emerges in tantric Buddhist literature, most prominently in the Kalachakra. "Ādi" means "first", such that the Ādibuddha was the first to attain Buddhahood. "Ādi" can also mean "primordial", not referring to a person but to an innate wisdom that is present in all sentient beings.

In Indo-Tibetan Buddism, the term Ādibuddha is often used to describe the Buddha Samantabhadra (in Nyingma, not to be confused with the boddhisattva Samantabhadra), Vajradhara or Kalachakra (in the Sarma schools).

There was also a tradition in India which saw Mañjuśri as the Ādibuddha, as exemplified by Vilāsavajra's commentary to the Mañjuśrïnāmasamgïti. Vilāsavajra states in his commentary:

The gnosis-being Mañjuśrī is not the boddhisattva who is the master of the ten stages (bhumi). Rather, he is the non-dual gnosis (advayajñāna), the perfection of wisdom (prajñāpāramitā) itself.Five Tathāgatas, Dhyani-buddhas

In Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism, the Five Tathāgatas (Skt: पञ्चतथागत, pañcatathāgata; (Ch: 五方佛, Wǔfāngfó) or Five Wisdom Tathāgatas (Ch: 五智如来, Wǔzhì Rúlái), are the five cardinal male and female Buddhas that are inseparable co-equals, although the male cardinal Buddhas are more often represented. Collectively, the male and female Buddhas are known as the Five Buddha Families (pañcabuddhakula). The five are also called the Five Great Buddhas, and the Five Jinas (Skt. for "conqueror" or "victor").

The Five Buddha Families are a common subject of Vajrayana and Tibetan Buddhist mandalas and they feature prominently in various Buddhist Tantras as the intrinsically inseparable father and mother Buddhas. Various sources provide different names for these male and female Buddhas, though the most common names today are: In the east, Vairocana and Buddha Locana; in the south Ratnasambhava and Buddha Mamaki; in the west. Amitābha Panadaravasini; in the north Amoghasiddhi and Samayatara; and in the center Akshobhya and Dhatvisvari. They are sometimes seen as emanations and representations of the five qualities of the Adi-Buddha or "first Buddha", which is associated with the Darmakāya. Some sources also include this "first Buddha" as a sixth Buddha along with the five.