104 henrik h. sørensen
translated by Vajrabodhi. Amoghavajra later produced a translation
of the Saptabuddhaka^39 in which Ākāśagarbha figures prominently.
Further rituals involving him appeared in the Da Xukongzang pusa
niansong fa (Method for Invoking the Great
Ākāśagarbha Bodhisattva).^40 The two Ākāśagarbha scriptures trans-
lated during the Northern Song are later and slightly extended vari-
ants of the Tang texts.^41
Mañjuśrī is the embodiment of transcendental wisdom and a
major bodhisattva in Mahāyāna Buddhism. As is the case with
Avalokiteśvara, the cult of Mañjuśrī focuses on a variety of forms, of
which only some are directly connected with Esoteric Buddhism. In
the mid-Tang dynasty Amoghavajra translated and compiled an entire
cycle of Mañjuśrī-related scriptures, many of which were based on the
Vajraśekhara (figure 7).^42
He also played a major role in promoting the cult of this bodhisat-
tva at Mt. Wutai.^43 One of the important forms is the Thousand-armed
Mañjuśrī, a purely Esoteric Buddhist creation, which is also found
among the wall paintings in the Mogao Caves at Dunhuang.^44 Early in
the history of Chinese Buddhism, Mt. Wutai in northern Shanxi prov-
ince became identified as the holy abode of Mañjuśrī. For centuries
this group of mountains has been the primary focus of his cult, where
both exoteric and the Esoteric Buddhist forms of Mañjuśrī, including
those associated with Tibetan Tantrism, were fused into a single cult
after the Yuan dynasty.
Vidyārājas, Mahākrodhas, and Other Protectors of Esoteric Buddhism
A wide variety of spirits and demon-protectors inhabit the Esoteric
Buddhist pantheon. These figures originally developed from the
multitude of malevolent spirits of the Hindu pantheon, the yakṣas and
rakṣāsas that were believed to dwell in the wilderness and occasionally
invade the human world. Over time, these demons were harnessed
and brought under the control of Buddhism and reappeared in this
(^39) T. 1333.
(^40) T. 1146.
(^41) Cf. T. 1147–1148.
(^42) Cf. T. 1171–1172, T. 1171–1177A.
(^43) See Orzech, “Esoteric Buddhism in the Tang,” and Lehnert, “Amoghavajra,” in
this volume.
(^44) See T. 1178AB.