There are certain deities which are recognized in more than one school of Tantra. Some of them are recognized by both Buddhist Tantra and Jain Tantra, some by both Buddhist and Shaeva Tantra [Shiva Tantra], some by both Jain Tantra and Árśa [Hindu] Tantra. The number of such deities is not negligible. Originally the deity Káliká of Shákta Tantra [Shakti Tantra] was recognized by Buddhist Tantra. There is a place called Kalka near the hill town of Simla. The place has been named after the deity Káliká. There is a particular place named Kálkájii in Delhi. That area has been named after the goddess Káliká, who has a temple there. Tárá is primarily a Buddhist deity, but in Shákta Tantra also Tárá is a recognized deity.

In the Buddhist period there were four variations of the Tárá deity: (1) Bhrámarii Tárá, whose complexion was like that of a black bee; (2) Niila Sarasvatii, who was blue-complexioned; (3) Vajratárá, worshipped by the Vajrayánii Buddhists;⁽¹⁾ (4) Ugratárá, a terrible blood-thirsty deity. In those days Bhrámarii Tárá was worshipped in China, a Maháyánii Buddhist country. Niila Sarasvatii was worshipped in Tibet. Ugratárá was worshipped in eastern India, particularly in Gaod́adesh [approximately equivalent to Bengal]. When Vajrayána was popular in eastern India, the deity Vajratárá was worshipped. Each and every Tárá deity has been recognized as a deity by Shákta Tantra as well as Puranic Tantra. It is claimed that all of them are Shiva’s consorts. The Niila Sarasvatii of Tibet was later changed into the all-white Puranic deity Sarasvatii.

Another deity of the Vajrayána school is Vajrabáráhii. This deity was widely popular in the Bhulua (or Noakhali) District of Bangladesh. Even today effigies of the old Vajrabáráhi deity are sometimes recovered from the earth or from the artificial ponds of that region.

The Śod́ashii deity of Shákta Tantra has in some places been changed into the Rájarájeshvarii Devii of Puranic Tantra, in other places into Jagaddhátrii. But in certain fundamental ways all three deities Śod́ashii, Jagaddhátrii and Rájarájeshvarii are one. For instance, each of them has four hands; from the face of each deity a reddish glow is exuded; all the deities are three-eyed; then again all three have ropes, goads, bows and arrows. Here Buddhist Tantra, Shákta Tantra and Puranic [Hindu] Tantra are existing side-by-side, sometimes intermixed.

Bála ruńásamá-ujjvalá-ungábhá,
Caturbhujá trinayaná;
Tribhuvanamanolobhá pásháḿkush-sháracápa-
Dhárińii Shivá Śod́ashii rúpá Shiva bhávinii.

The complexion of Niila Sarasvatii is blue. Developing a golden colour, she became Prajiṋá Páramitá, and then becoming all white, she turned into the Puranic goddess Sarasvatii. The deity which originally had the peacock as its mount became the deity with the swan as its mount. When Maháyánii Sanskrit became transformed into laokik [comparatively recent] Sanskrit, Sarasvatii’s dhyána mantra was also changed.⁽²⁾

There is a Puranic deity called Kuvera who is still worshipped in Jain Tantra and Puranic Tantra. From kuv plus erak comes the word kuvera, meaning “one possessed of enormous wealth”.

Footnotes

(1) Author’s note: The Dalai Lama’s old name was Daláilámá Vajradhara.

(2) Editors’ note: Dhyána mantra cataloguing the attributes of Sarasvatii omitted here.