Usnisavijaya

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A Tibetan statue of Nyamgyalma (Usnisa Vijaya) from the 19th century; Linden Museum, Stuttgart

Usnisavijaya (Skt. Uṣṇīṣavijaya; T. rnam rgyal ma རྣམ་རྒྱལ་མ་; C. 尊勝佛頂). A female deity of long-life, whose powers can prolong life and destroy the hardships of saṃsāra.[1]

This deity typically has three faces and eight arms.[2]

The Uṣṇīṣa Vijaya Dhāraṇī is a well-known dhāraṇī for long-life and healing in East Asian Buddhism, Tibetan Buddhism, and Newar Buddhism. This dhāraṇī is also known as the "Namgyalma mantra" in Tibet.

In Tibet, Usnisavijaya is one of the three principle deities of long-life, along with Amitayus and White Tara. Collectively this group is known as the "three deities of long-life" (T. tse lha nam sum). This group of three was not formulated in India but rather popularized as a Tibetan iconographic convention.[3]

Gallery

Notes

  1. ↑ 尊勝佛頂, Digital Dictionary of Buddhism (to sign in, see DDB sign-in)
  2. ↑ རྣམ་རྒྱལ་མ་, Christian-Steinert Dictionary
  3. ↑ Ushnishavijaya Main Page, Himalayan Art Resources

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