IOverview
Vajrayana is the form of Buddhism that uses mantra, mudra and mandala visualisation as tools of practice. Vajra means the indestructible, an image for the awakened nature of mind.
Vajrayana regards itself as part of Mahayana. Its ideal is still the bodhisattva who works for all beings. What sets it apart is method: texts called tantras, empowerment rituals that grant permission to practise, and the central role of the teacher.
Outsiders mostly know it as Tibetan Buddhism, but esoteric Buddhism also flourished in Tang China and lives on in Japan as Shingon. There is no reliable figure for the number of Vajrayana followers worldwide.
IIOrigins and History
Buddhist tantras appeared in India around the 6th to 8th centuries and were taught at great monastic universities such as Nalanda and Vikramashila. As Buddhism declined in India in the 12th and 13th centuries, Tibet became the main keeper of this literature, translated into Tibetan in the two collections known as the Kangyur and Tengyur.
- 8th centuryTang esoteric BuddhismSubhakarasimha, Vajrabodhi and Amoghavajra translate esoteric texts in Chang'an.
- c. 779Samye MonasteryKing Trisong Detsen invites Shantarakshita and Padmasambhava and builds Tibet's first monastery. The Nyingma school traces itself to this period.
- 816Kukai founds Mount KoyaAfter studying esoteric Buddhism in Chang'an, Kukai establishes Shingon in Japan.
- 1042Atisha arrives in TibetThis opens the second diffusion. The Kadam, Sakya and Kagyu schools arise in the 11th century.
- 1409Tsongkhapa founds GandenThe start of the Gelug school, known for monastic discipline and scholarship.
- 1578The title Dalai LamaThe Mongol ruler Altan Khan confers the title on Sonam Gyatso, counted as the third Dalai Lama.
- 1959The exile communityThe 14th Dalai Lama leaves for India. Many monasteries are rebuilt in India, Nepal and later the West.
IIITeachings and Distinctive Features
Vajrayana presents itself as the swift path within Mahayana. In its own teaching, a practitioner grounded in renunciation, compassion and emptiness can use body, speech and mind, through mudra, mantra and visualisation, to achieve transformation within a single lifetime.
- The teacher: the lama transmits the teaching and confers empowerment. Without empowerment one does not practise the tantric methods.
- Recognised reincarnations: a tulku is identified as the rebirth of an earlier master. The Dalai Lama and Karmapa lines are the best known.
- Highest practices: Great Perfection, or Dzogchen, in the Nyingma school, and Great Seal, or Mahamudra, in the Kagyu school.
- A graded path: Tsongkhapa's Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path is the core text of the Gelug school.
Many people call every Tibetan monk a lama. In fact lama means teacher, a title for someone qualified to teach. An ordinary monk is not necessarily a lama, and some lamas are married lay practitioners, especially in the Nyingma school.
IVPractice, Ritual and Daily Life
Newcomers usually begin with the preliminary practices called ngöndro: prostrations, purification mantra, mandala offerings and guru yoga. Only then do they receive empowerments and take up deity practice.
In lay life, Tibetans circle stupas and monasteries, turn prayer wheels and hang prayer flags printed with scripture in the wind. The six syllable mantra Om mani padme hum, associated with Avalokitesvara, is the most familiar of all.
Great monasteries such as Sera, Drepung and Ganden function as universities, with years of formal philosophical debate leading to the Geshe degree. In Japan, Shingon priests perform the goma fire ritual, and Mount Koya is a major pilgrimage site.
VOrganisation and Distribution
Each school has its own network of monasteries and its own leadership. The Gelug school is formally headed by the Ganden Tripa, although the Dalai Lama is its most widely known figure. The Sakya school has the Sakya Trizin and the Karma Kagyu has the Karmapa. The Nyingma historically had no single head. In Japan, Shingon is divided into several branches, the largest being Koyasan Shingon.
| Place | Figure | Source and year |
|---|---|---|
| China | About 3,800 Tibetan Buddhist monasteries | Chinese government white paper, 2018 |
| Mongolia | 87.1 percent of those with a religion identify as Buddhist | Mongolia's 2020 census, cited in the US State Department religious freedom report for 2022 |
| Worldwide | No reliable figure | Pew in 2012 gave no separate share for Vajrayana |
VIIn Vietnam
There is no separate Vajrayana lineage within the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha. Esoteric elements nonetheless run deep in Mahayana temples. The daily liturgy includes the Great Compassion mantra, the Ten Short Mantras and the Surangama mantra. The evening food offering for hungry spirits and the larger rites for wandering souls follow the Yoga Flaming Mouth liturgy, which has roots in Tang esoteric Buddhism.
The Thien Uyen Tap Anh, a collection of Vietnamese Zen biographies, records Ly dynasty masters such as Tu Dao Hanh, Khong Lo and Giac Hai who were famed for mantra and wonder working. Scholars read these accounts as evidence of esoteric practice in Vietnamese Buddhism of that era. Tibetan schools have no significant organised community in Vietnam.
VIISymbol of the Branch
Vajra
Vajra, Tạng rdo rje
VIIISub-branches
- Nyingma
- Sakya
- Kagyu
- Gelug
- Jonang
- Japanese Shingon
IXOther Branches of Buddhism
Mahayana BuddhismMahāyāna 大乘, the Great VehicleThe largest branch, centred on the bodhisattva ideal of liberating oneself and others.
Theravada BuddhismTheravāda, the teaching of the eldersThe second largest branch.Vajrayana BuddhismVajrayāna, Tibetan rdo rje theg pa, also Mantrayana or Esoteric BuddhismThe branch that uses mantra, mudra and mandala visualisation, with a strong role for the teacher.
Pure Land Buddhism淨土宗, also called the Lotus School 蓮宗, Japanese JōdoA Mahayana school centred on reciting the name of Amitabha Buddha for rebirth in the Pure Land.
Chan and Zen Buddhism禪 Chan, Japanese Zen, Korean Seon, Vietnamese Thiền, from Sanskrit dhyānaA Mahayana school that points directly to the mind rather than relying on scripture.
Khmer Theravada Buddhism in VietnamTheravāda of the Khmer of southern VietnamThe Theravada tradition of the Khmer people in the Mekong Delta.Uses the common symbol of the pathKhất Sĩ BuddhismĐạo Phật Khất Sĩ Việt Nam, Vietnamese Mendicant BuddhismA Vietnamese lineage founded in the South by Patriarch Minh Đăng Quang around 1944 to 1946.Uses the common symbol of the pathVietnamese (Kinh) TheravadaTheravāda among the Kinh, formerly called Original BuddhismThe Theravada lineage among ethnic Vietnamese, begun at Bửu Quang temple in Thủ Đức in 1938 by monks including Hộ Tông (Vansarakkhita), Thiện Luật, Bửu Chơn and Huệ Nghiêm.Uses the common symbol of the pathXSources
The library cross-checks the sources below. Where they disagree, the page gives both.
?Quick Questions
Are Vajrayana and esoteric Buddhism the same
Broadly, yes. Esoteric Buddhism is the general term for Buddhism that uses mantra, mudra and visualisation. Vajrayana usually names the fully developed Indian form that passed to Tibet, while Shingon is the Japanese form.
What are the four main schools of Tibetan Buddhism
Nyingma, the oldest, which traces itself to Padmasambhava. Sakya and Kagyu, which arose in the 11th century. Gelug, founded by Tsongkhapa in the early 15th century. The smaller Jonang school also survives.
Is the Dalai Lama the head of all Tibetan Buddhism
No. The Dalai Lama belongs to the Gelug school and is revered by many Tibetans, but each school has its own leaders. Formally, the Gelug school is headed by the Ganden Tripa.
Do Vietnamese temples practise esoteric Buddhism
Yes, though not as a separate school. The Great Compassion mantra, the Surangama mantra and the food offering rite for spirits are the esoteric part of the Mahayana temple routine.