The Indian Buddhist Iconography
by Benoytosh Bhattachacharyya | 1958 | 51,392 words | ISBN-10: 8173053138 | ISBN-13: 9788173053139
This page contains an iconography image of Eight Dikpalas: Vayu and represents figure 238 of the book Indian Buddhist Iconography, based on extracts of the Sadhanamala English translation. These plates and illustrations represent either photographs of sculptures or line-drawing reproductions of paintings or other representations of Buddhist artwork.
Figure 238 - Eight Dikpālas: Vāyu
Fig. 238: Vāyu
(Peiping)
The eight Dikpālas [viz., Vāyu] or the Lords of the Eight Quarters are described in the Dharmadhātuvāgīśvara-maṇḍala and other places in the Niṣpannayogāvalī. They are the Lords or rather the embodiments of the four principal directions and the four intermediate corners, and resemble the Yamāntaka group of deities of the Buddhists. Their forms are described below in the same order as they appear in the Dharmadhātuvāgīśvara-maṇḍala. Here only one typical form is given, although there are many more, even with their female counterparts.
Vāyu:
Colour: blue;
Arms: two;
Vehicle: deer;
Direction: Vāyu.
The eighth and the last deity in the series of direction gods is called Vāyu the Lord of the Vāyu corner. His form is described thus: “In the Vāyu corner there is Vāyu riding on a Deer and blue in colour. In his two hands he shows the Vātapuṭa” (empty fold).
Under Vāyudeva his statuette occurs in the Chinese collection. Fig. 238 illustrates this image.