རྡོ་རྗེ། | Glossary of Terms

The word vajra refers to the “thunderbolt,” the indestructible and irresistible weapon that first appears in Indian literature in the hand of the Vedic deity Indra. The word vajra is also used for “diamond.”

The word vajra refers to the “thunderbolt,” the indestructible and irresistible weapon that first appears in Indian literature in the hand of the Vedic deity Indra. According to context it may also mean “diamond.”

There are two meanings, not always easy to disambiguate in practice: (1) a type of cudgel or mace, wielded by Vajrapāṇi, whose name literally means “The One with the Vajra in his Hand,” as well as the thunderbolt, the mythical weapon of Indra, and a stylized ritual object used in Buddhist ritual; (2) adamant, the hard and unbreakable substance out of which the weapon is said to be made.

The term stands for indestructibility and perfect stability. According to Indian mythology, the vajra is the all-powerful god Indra’s weapon, likened to a thunderbolt, which made him invincible. It also relates to the diamond, which is the hardest physical material.

The word vajra refers to the “thunderbolt,” the indestructible and irresistible weapon that first appears in Indian literature in the hand of the Vedic deity Indra. As a symbol of indestructibility and great power it is used in the Kāraṇḍavyūha to describe the qualities of the maṇi mantra.

The term stands for indestructibility and perfect stability. According to Indian mythology, the vajra is the all-powerful god Indra’s weapon, likened to a thunderbolt, which made him invincible. It also relates to the diamond which is the hardest physical substance.

The term stands for indestructibility and perfect stability. According to Indian mythology, the vajra is the all-powerful god Indra’s weapon, likened to a thunderbolt, which made him invincible. It also relates to a substance called vajra, which is the hardest physical material.

Thirty-fifth of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.

An impenetrable substance, used both as a reference to diamond and in particular to the thunderbolt held by the god Indra; also denotes indestructibility.

A substance that is immutable and indestructible. The thunderbolt, weapon of the god Indra.

The term stands for indestructibility and perfect stability. According to Indian mythology, the vajra is the god Indra’s weapon, which made him invincible. According to the Purāṇas, the vajra was made of the bones of the sage Dadhichi, who gave up his life, so that the gods could defeat the asuras.

The term stands for indestructibility and perfect stability. According to Indian mythology, the vajra is the all-powerful god Indra’s weapon, likened to a thunderbolt, which makes him invincible. It also relates to the diamond which is the hardest physical material.

The term can refer to both a diamond and a thunderbolt.

The term stands for indestructibility and perfect stability. According to Indian mythology, the vajra is the all-powerful god Indra’s weapon, likened to a thunderbolt, which made him invincible. It also relates to the diamond which is the hardest physical material.

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Diamond; thunderbolt; scepter used in tantric rituals; non-duality; male sexual organ.

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A ritual sceptre; thunderbot; a diamond; a general term denoting an indestructible non-dual state.

A polyvalent term that in its most basic sense indicates indestructibility and thus can mean “diamond, “thunderbolt,” etc. The term often refers to the distinctive ritual scepter used in Vajrayāna practice. When prefixed to a name it refers to the esoteric identity of the figure.

Diamond or thunderbolt; a metaphor for anything indestructible; a scepter-like ritual object.

See “vajra.”

Also translated here as “vajra” and “thunderbolt.”

The word vajra refers to the “thunderbolt,” the indestructible and irresistible weapon that first appears in Indian literature in the hand of the Vedic deity Indra. The word vajra is also used for “diamond.”

Also translated here as “vajra” and “diamond.”