Tara (, ; , ), ÃÂrya TÃÂrà(Noble Tara), also known as Jetsün Dölma (Tibetan: rje btsun sgrol ma, meaning: "Venerable Mother of Liberation"), is an important female Buddha in Buddhism, especially revered in Vajrayana Buddhism and Mahayana Buddhism. She may appear as a female bodhisattva in Mahayana Buddhism. In Vajrayana Buddhism, Green Tara is a female Buddha who is a consort of Amoghasiddhi Buddha. TÃÂràis also known as a saviouress who hears the cries of beings in saá¹ÂsÃÂra and saves them from worldly and spiritual danger.
In Vajrayana, she is considered to be a Buddha, and the TÃÂràTantra describes her as "a mother who gives birth to the buddhas of the three times" who is also "beyond saá¹ÂsÃÂra and nirvÃÂá¹Âa". She is one of the most important female deities in Vajrayana and is found in sources like the Mañjuà Ârëmà «lakalpa, and the GuhyasamÃÂja Tantra. Key Indic Vajrayana texts which focus on TÃÂràinclude the Tantra Which Is the Source for All the Functions of TÃÂrÃÂ, Mother of All the Tathagatas (Skt. SarvatathÃÂgatamÃÂtá¹ÂtÃÂrÃÂvià ÂvakarmabhavanÃÂmatantra) and TÃÂrÃÂ's Fundamental Ritual Text (TÃÂrÃÂmà «lakalpa).
Both Green and White TÃÂràremain popular meditation deities or yidams in Tibetan Buddhism, and Tara is also revered in Newar Buddhism. TÃÂràis considered to have many forms or emanations, while Green Tara emanates twenty-one TÃÂrÃÂs, each with different attributesâÂÂcolors, implements, and activities such as pacifying (à ÂÃÂnti), increasing (pauá¹£á¹Âika), enthralling (vaà Âëkaraá¹Âa), and wrathful (abhicÃÂra). The Green Tara (or "blue-green", Skt. Samayatara or à ÂyÃÂmatÃÂrÃÂ) remains the most important form of the deity in Tibetan Buddhism. A practice text entitled Praises to the Twenty-One Taras is a well known text on Tara in Tibetan Buddhism and in Tibet, recited by children and adults, and is the textual source for the twenty-one forms of Green TÃÂrÃÂ.
The main TÃÂràmantra is the same for Buddhists and Hindus alike: . It is pronounced by Tibetans and Buddhists who follow the Tibetan culture as . The literal translation would be "Oá¹ O TÃÂrÃÂ, I pray O TÃÂrÃÂ, O Swift One, So Be It!"
TÃÂrà(Devanagari: ) is a feminine noun derived from the root âÂÂtá¹Â, "to cross". It is causative, and as such means "to cause to cross", i.e., "to rescue".
This is why the name is sometimes translated as "savioress" or "rescuer". For example, in Tibetan, she is known as Jetsun Drölma ( , Wylie: rje btsun sgrol ba), meaning "Venerable Saviour" which is derived from the Tibetan verb sgrol ba meaning "to save, rescue, liberate; to carry, transport, or cross; and to expel or drive away [evil]".
The name TÃÂrÃÂ may also mean "star" or "planet" (since they are celestial bodies which cross the sky and are thus literally "crossers").
Tara is also known in East Asian Buddhism. In Chinese, her name is rendered as Duoluo Pusa (, Duà Âluó Púsà), with Pusa indicating bodhisattva status. In Japanese she is . The name means "Bodhisattva who catches many" or "Bodhisattva who collects numerous [sentient beings]", derived from the characters: , "to catch, gather, collect, sift", and "many; much; a lot of; numerous".
Buddhist studies scholars generally agree that the worship of TÃÂràbegan growing in popularity in India during the 6th century. Evidence from Nalanda shows that her cult was established by the sixth century. In the earliest sources, TÃÂràis seen as the personification of Avalokiteà Âvara's compassion. She often appears as part of a triad, with Avalokiteà Âvara and BhrÃÂ¥kuá¹Âë, as can be seen in the KÃÂnherë cave 90 (sixth-century ce). Another early identifiable image of TÃÂràis found at cave 6 within the rock-cut Buddhist monastic complex of the Ellora Caves in Maharashtra (). Her worship was well established by the onset of the Pala Empire in Eastern India (8th century CE).
One of the earliest textual references to the goddess is the Mañjuà Ârë-mà «la-kalpa (âÂÂ8th centuries CE), which calls her the noble goddess who is the compassion of Avalokiteà Âvara (devëmÃÂryÃÂvalokiteà Âvarakaruá¹ÂÃÂá¹Â). This text also goes on to call her "the mother of the illustrious Prince Mañjughoá¹£a", giving her the title of a mÃÂtàdevë (mother goddess) and associates her with PrajñÃÂpÃÂramitàand PrajñÃÂpÃÂramitàDevë.
The origin of TÃÂràis unclear and remains a source of inquiry among scholars. Mallar Ghosh believes her to have originated as a form of the goddess Durga. TÃÂràis worshiped both in Buddhism as well as in Shaktism (Hinduism) as one of the ten Mahavidyas. According to Beyer, the enlightened feminine makes its first appearance in Mahayana Buddhism as PrajñÃÂpÃÂramitàDevi, the personified Perfection of Wisdom, who is also called mother of Buddhas.
Tara eventually came to be considered the "Mother of all Buddhas" by Indian tantric Buddhists, taking on this epithet from Prajñaparamita. The term mother of Buddhas usually refers to a transcendent awakened wisdom, though it also echoes the ancient Indian motif of the Mother Goddess (Devi Mata).
With the composition of the TÃÂrÃÂ-mà «la-kalpa, the main Buddhist tantra associated with the goddess and mahÃÂvidyÃÂ, TÃÂràbecame a very popular Vajrayana deity in north India. TÃÂràworship also spread to other parts of India, as well as to Nepal, Sri Lanka and Indonesia, where depictions of the deity have been discovered by archeologists. With the movement of Indian Buddhism into Tibet, the worship and practices of TÃÂràbecame incorporated into Tibetan Buddhism as well.
As the worship of TÃÂrÃÂ developed, various prayers, chants and mantras became associated with her. These came out of a felt devotional need, and from her inspiration causing spiritual masters to compose sadhanas, stotras, or tantric meditations.
Independent of whether she is classified as a deity, a Buddha, or a bodhisattva, TÃÂrÃÂ remains very popular in Tibet (and Tibetan communities in exile in Northern India), Mongolia, Nepal, Bhutan, Sikkim and is worshiped in many Buddhist communities throughout the world (though in East Asian Buddhism, Guanyin is the most popular female deity). In Tibet, Green TÃÂrÃÂ was also considered to have manifested as the Nepalese Princess (Bhrikuti), and White TÃÂrÃÂ's manifestation as the Chinese princess Kongjo (Princess Wencheng).
TÃÂrÃÂ has many origin stories which explain her origin as a bodhisattva. According to one story, TÃÂrÃÂ arose from Avalokiteshvara's compassionate tears when he wept on seeing all the suffering of all the beings in samsara. His tears turned into a lotus, out of which TÃÂrÃÂ arose.
The Indian master Sà «ryagupta explains this myth as follows:
<blockquote>What was Her origin? - Arya-Lokesvara, the Lord and Refuge of the Three Realms, Desire, Form, and Formless, which depend on the five or [in the Formless Realm] four aggregates that perish in an instant, saw that however many migrating beings he removed from samsara, they grew no fewer, and He wept. Tara sprang from the opening filaments of his face - of an utpala (blue lotus) that grew in the water of His tears.</blockquote>
Another tale begins with a young princess who lives in a different world system, millions of years in the past. Her name is Jñanachandra or Yeshe Dawa, which means "Moon of Primordial Awareness". For quite a number of aeons she makes offerings to the Buddha of that world system, whose name was Tonyo Drupa. She receives special instruction from him concerning bodhicittaâÂÂthe infinitely compassionate mental state of a bodhisattva. After doing this, some monks approach her and suggest that because of her level of attainment she should next pray to be reborn as a male to progress further.
At this point she lets the monks know in no uncertain terms that it is only "weak minded worldlings" who see gender as a barrier to attaining enlightenment. She sadly notes there have been few who wish to work for the welfare of sentient beings in a female form, though. Therefore, she resolves to always be reborn as a female bodhisattva, until samsara is no more. She then stays in a palace in a state of meditation for some ten million years, and the power of this practice releases tens of millions of beings from suffering. As a result of this, Tonyo Drupa tells her she will henceforth manifest supreme bodhi as the Goddess TÃÂrÃÂ in many world systems to come.
A similar story is told by the 14th Dalai Lama:<blockquote>There is a true feminist movement in Buddhism that relates to the goddess TÃÂrÃÂ. Following her cultivation of bodhicitta, the bodhisattva's motivation, she looked upon the situation of those striving towards full awakening and she felt that there were too few people who attained Buddhahood as women. So she vowed, "I have developed bodhicitta as a woman. For all my lifetimes along the path I vow to be born as a woman, and in my final lifetime when I attain Buddhahood, then, too, I will be a woman.</blockquote>TÃÂrÃÂ, then, embodies certain ideals which make her attractive to women practitioners, and her emergence as a Bodhisattva can be seen as a part of Mahayana Buddhism's reaching out to women, and becoming more inclusive even in 6th-century CE India.
TÃÂrÃÂ's name literally means "star" or "planet", and therefore she is associated with navigation and travel both literally and metaphorically as spiritual crossing to the "other side" of the ocean of existence (enlightenment). Hence she is known literally as "she who saves" in Tibetan. In the 108 Names of the Holy Tara, Tara is "Leader of the caravans ..... who showeth the way to those who have lost it" and she is named as Dhruva, the Sanskrit name for the North Star. Due to her association with navigation and travel, she is thus popular as a savior and protector from danger. In modern Tibetan Buddhism, TÃÂrÃÂ is one of the most popular deities that are appealed to by laypersons and monastics alike for aid.
Tara's main form is depicted as dark green in color, which is associated with awakened activity. In Himalayan Buddhist iconography, each color is typically associated with a specific kind of activity (for example white is pacification and red is power). Because dark green is seen as a combination of all other colors, the main form of TÃÂrÃÂ, Green TÃÂrÃÂ, is considered to be the source of all beneficial activities.
Within Tibetan Buddhism, TÃÂrÃÂ appears in many forms, each tied to certain colors, symbols, and beneficial activities. As Green TÃÂrÃÂ she offers succor and protection from all the unfortunate circumstances one can encounter in the world of suffering. As White TÃÂrÃÂ she expresses maternal compassion and offers healing to beings who are hurt or wounded, either mentally or psychically. White Tara is further associated with longevity, countering illness, and purification. Red TÃÂrÃÂ meanwhile is associated with power, controlling and influencing others as well as with the transformation of desire into compassion. The manifestation of Blue TÃÂrÃÂ (Ekajati) is a ferocious female protector whose invocation destroys all obstacles.
TÃÂrÃÂ is also a forest goddess, particularly in her form as Khadiravani, "dweller in the Khadira forest" and is generally associated with plant life, flowers, acacia (khadira) trees and the wind. Because of her association with nature and plants, TÃÂrÃÂ is also known as a healing goddess (especially as White TÃÂrÃÂ) and as a goddess of nurturing quality and fertility. Her association with the wind element (vaayu) also means that she is swift in responding to calls for any aid.
According to Miranda Shaw, "Motherhood is central to the conception of Tara". Her titles include "loving mother", "supreme mother", "mother of the world", "universal mother" and "mother of all Buddhas". As such, TÃÂrÃÂ embodies many of the qualities of feminine principle. She is known as the Mother of Mercy and Compassion. She is the source, the female aspect of the universe, which gives birth to warmth, compassion and relief from bad karma as experienced by ordinary beings in cyclic existence. She engenders, nourishes, smiles at the vitality of creation, and has sympathy for all beings as a mother does for her children.
TÃÂrÃÂ is most often shown with the blue lotus or night lotus (utpala), which releases its fragrance with the appearance of the moon and therefore TÃÂrÃÂ is also associated with the moon and night.
In general, TÃÂràis especially seen as a savior who provides salvation and protection from the eight fears (aá¹£á¹Âabhaya) or eight dangers (aá¹£á¹Âaghora). This is a common theme in her iconography and she is sometimes depicted in a specific iconographical style called "Tara who protects from the eight dangers" (TÃÂrÃÂá¹£á¹ÂaghoratÃÂraá¹Âë).
According to The Noble Sà «tra "TÃÂràWho Protects from the Eight Dangers" (*ÃÂryatÃÂrÃÂá¹£á¹ÂaghoratÃÂraá¹ÂëÃÂsà «tra), the eight dangers (aá¹£á¹Âaghora) are: lions, elephants, fire, snakes, robbers, waters, infectious diseases, and demons. This sutra also contains an incantation (dharani) which is chanted to invoke TÃÂrÃÂ's protection.
In Tibetan Buddhism, each of these outer dangers is also associated with an inner psychological meaning. As such, lions represent pride, wild elephants represent delusion, fires represent anger, snakes represent jealousy, bandits represent wrong views, bondage represent avarice, floods represent desire and attachment, and evil spirits and demons represent doubts.
With the development of esoteric or tantric Buddhism, two main ways of approaching Tara developed. In one, common folk and lay practitioners continued to directly appeal to her for protection and aid in worldly affairs, often chanting prayers, dharanis, or mantras to her and doing puja (worship rites). Tara's mantra and her twenty one verses of praise are widely learned and chanted by Tibetan laypersons. Tara also became a tantric deity whose secret practices and tantric sadhanas would be used by monks and yogis in order to develop her awakened qualities in themselves, ultimately leading to Buddhahood.
Another quality which Tara shares with feminine spirits (such as dakinis) is playfulness. As John Blofeld explains in Bodhisattva of Compassion, TÃÂrÃÂ is frequently depicted as a young sixteen-year-old girlish woman. She often manifests in the lives of dharma practitioners when they take themselves, or the spiritual path too seriously. There are Tibetan tales in which she laughs at self-righteousness, or plays pranks on those who lack reverence for the feminine. In Magic Dance: The Display of the Self-Nature of the Five Wisdom Dakinis, Thinley Norbu explores this as "playmind".
Applied to TÃÂrÃÂ, one could say that her playful mind can relieve ordinary minds that become rigidly serious or tightly gripped by dualistic distinctions. She takes delight in an open mind and a receptive heart, for in this openness and receptivity her blessings can naturally unfold and her energies can quicken the aspirant's spiritual development.
Tara also has her own pure land (buddhafield), called Arrayed in Turquoise Petals (Tibetan: Yurlod Kurpa or Yulokod). It is described as "Covered with manifold trees and creepers, resounding with the sound of many birds, and with murmur of waterfalls, thronged with wild beasts of many kinds; Many species of flowers grow everywhere."
According to Loppon Chandra Easton, this pure land is actually contained within Sukhavati, the pure land of Buddha Amitabha. Tara is thus associated with the Lotus Buddha family of Amitabha Buddha. Her association with Buddha Amitabha is also affirmed by Thubten Chodron, who discusses how Tara is part of Amitabha's buddha family (the Lotus family):<blockquote>Amitabha Buddha rests on Tara's crown. Buddhist deities may be divided into five "families," related to the five Dhyani Buddhas. Amitabha Buddha is the head of the family to which both Tara and Chenresig belong. For this reason Amitabha sits on her crown. Amitabha is Tara's guru, her spiritual mentor.</blockquote>Furthermore, she is also said to have a pure dwelling within Mount Potalaka, Avalokiteà Âvara's pure bodhimanda in this world.
TÃÂrÃÂ as a focus for tantric deity yoga can be traced back to the time period of Padmasambhava. There is a Red TÃÂrÃÂ practice which was given by Padmasambhava to Yeshe Tsogyal. He asked that she hide it as a treasure. It was not until the 20th century, that a great Nyingma lama, Apong Terton rediscovered it. It is said that this lama was reborn as Sakya Trizin, present head of the Sakyapa sect. A monk who had known Apong Terton succeeded in retransmitting it to Sakya Trizin, and the same monk also gave it to Chagdud Tulku Rinpoche, who released it to his western students.
Martin Willson in In Praise of TÃÂràtraces many different lineages of TÃÂràTantras, that is TÃÂràscriptures used as Tantric sadhanas. For example, a TÃÂràsadhana was revealed to Tilopa (988âÂÂ1069 CE), the human father of the Karma Kagyu. Atisa, the great translator and founder of the Kadampa school of Tibetan Buddhism, was a devotee of TÃÂrÃÂ. He composed a praise to her, and three TÃÂràSadhanas. Martin Willson's work also contains charts which show origins of her tantras in various lineages, but suffice to say that TÃÂràas a tantric practice quickly spread from around the 7th century CE onwards, and remains an important part of Vajrayana Buddhism to this day.
The practices themselves usually present TÃÂrÃÂ as a tutelary deity (thug dam, yidam) which the practitioners sees as being a latent aspect of one's mind, or a manifestation in a visible form of a quality stemming from Buddha Jnana. As John Blofeld puts it in The Tantric Mysticism of Tibet:
The various systems of Vajrayana TÃÂràpractice contain numerous mantras for Tara. Technically speaking, a TÃÂràmantra is termed a "vidyÃÂ" (the proper term for a mantra of a female deity). The main vidyàmantra of TÃÂràis: Oá¹ tÃÂre tuttÃÂre ture svÃÂhÃÂ. This is the most popularly recited mantra of the deity and is her root (mula) mantra. TÃÂre tuttÃÂre ture is in the vocative case. TÃÂre is the basic name of the deity ("O Tara"). TuttÃÂre (prefixed by ud-) refers to Tara as "the one who helps [beings] to cross" the ocean of saá¹ÂsÃÂra, and who "pulls [them] up" (ut-tÃÂrÃÂ). TurÃÂ, the third epithet, means "swift".
Many TÃÂràmantras build off this base vidyàmantra by adding various mantric words which activate different functions of the deity, such as pacification or subjugation. As Beyer notes, one way to do this is to add a phrase like "sarva ____ à ÂÃÂntiá¹Âkuru" (pacify all ____ ) in between ture and svÃÂhÃÂ. Different terms may be inserted into the blank here, depending on what activity is required, such as grahÃÂn (evil spirits), vighnÃÂn (hindering demons), vyÃÂdhën (diseases), upadravÃÂn (injuries), akÃÂlamá¹Âtyà «n (untimely deaths), duḥsvapnÃÂn (bad dreams), cittÃÂkulÃÂni (confusions), à Âatrà «n (enemies), bhayopadravÃÂn (terrors and injuries), duá¹£ká¹ÂtÃÂni (evil deeds). Thus, for example, if one wanted to pacify evil spirits, one could recite: Oá¹ tÃÂre tuttÃÂre ture sarva grahÃÂn à ÂÃÂntiá¹Âkuru svÃÂhÃÂ.
Other appendixes may be added to the mantra in the same manner. For example, sarvapÃÂpaá¹ ÃÂvaraá¹Âa vià Âuddhe (cleanse all evil and obscurations), or dhanaá¹ me dehi (give me wealth). Other extensions of the basic vidyàmantra include a common mantra for wrathful forms of TÃÂrÃÂ: Oá¹ tÃÂre tuttÃÂre ture hà «á¹ phaá¹Â, and a common mantra for White TÃÂràused to increase lifespan is: Oá¹ tÃÂre tuttÃÂre ture mama ayuḥ punya jñÃÂnàpuà Âtiá¹ kuru svÃÂhÃÂ.
Tara's seed mantra (bijamantra) is tÃÂá¹Â. This seed syllable is often visualized in Tara sadhanas (meditative rites. spiritual practices). This seed syllable may also appear in longer TÃÂràmantras. For example, there is a common Red TÃÂràmantra which goes: Oá¹ tÃÂre tÃÂá¹ svÃÂhÃÂ.
Some traditions also contain a mantra for each of the twenty one TÃÂrÃÂs, which are used to invoke a specific activity of Tara, like Atià Âa's lineage of Tara practice, which is one of the most popular systems in Tibetan Buddhism. The main source for this system is Atià Âa Dëpaá¹Âkaraà ÂrëjñÃÂna's (982âÂÂ1054 CE) SÃÂdhana of the Twenty-One TÃÂrÃÂs (sgrol ma nyi shu rtsa gcig gi sgrub thabs).
Thus, in Atià Âa's tradition, the mantra of Swift and Heroic TÃÂrà(used for subduing enemies and hindrances) is Oá¹ tÃÂre tuttÃÂre ture vÃÂà Âaá¹ kuru svÃÂhÃÂ, the mantra of White TÃÂrà(for healing and longevity): Oá¹ tÃÂre tuttÃÂre ture à ÂÃÂntiá¹ kuru svÃÂhàand the mantra of Golden Tara (for increasing and wealth): Oá¹ tÃÂre tuttÃÂre ture puá¹£á¹ÂëṠkuru svÃÂhÃÂ.
Other Atià Âa tradition TÃÂràmantras require one to insert a specific name into it. For example, the mantra of TÃÂràwho utters hà «á¹ allows you to influence or seduce a person, and thus is structured as follows: Oá¹ tÃÂre tuttÃÂre ture [name of person] ÃÂkará¹£aya hrë svÃÂhÃÂ.
There are various prayers, odes (stotras) and dharanis associated with Tara. The most famous is certainly the Praise to Tara in Twenty One Verses (NamastÃÂraikaviá¹Âà Âatistotra) which is found in numerous sources, including in the Tara Tantra (Tohoku no. 726), which calls the prayer a dhÃÂraá¹Âë. This prayer is recited daily by many monastics and laypersons of the Himalayan Vajrayana traditions. There are numerous commentaries to this praise, including three commentaries attributed to Sà «ryagupta.
One popular short prayer or dhÃÂraá¹Âë is often found coupled together with the Praise to Tara in Twenty One Verses. This is called the "praise rooted in mantra" since it contains the basic Tara mantra. This is also a popular prayer in Vajrayana Buddhism. This prayer is:
<blockquote>namas tÃÂre ture vëre tuttÃÂre bhayanÃÂà Âini ture sarvÃÂrthade tÃÂre svÃÂhàkÃÂre namoâÂÂstute <br> Om! Homage! O TARE, Swift One, Heroine! TUTTARE who eliminates fears! TURE, the Saviouress granting all benefits! Sound of SVAHA, worshipped and praised!</blockquote>An esoteric sà «tra titled TÃÂràWho Protects from the Eight Dangers (*TÃÂrÃÂá¹£á¹ÂaghoratÃÂraá¹Âë) teaches the following dharani which can be recited as an aid to liberation:<blockquote>oá¹Â, bodhisattva great lady, goddess, please protect us!
oá¹ nama ÃÂryÃÂvalokiteà ÂvarÃÂya bodhisattvÃÂya mahÃÂÃÂsattvÃÂya mahÃÂÃÂkÃÂruá¹ÂikÃÂya | tadyathà|
oá¹ tÃÂre tuttÃÂre ture sarvaduá¹£á¹ÂÃÂn praduá¹£á¹ÂÃÂn mama ká¹Âte jambhaya stambhaya mohaya bandhaya hà «á¹ hà «á¹ hà «á¹ phaá¹ phaá¹ phaá¹ svÃÂhà|
nama ÃÂryÃÂvalobhayànaràbodhisattvàmahÃÂÃÂsattvÃÂni adhiá¹£á¹ÂhÃÂnÃÂdhiá¹£á¹Âhite mama sarvakarmÃÂvaraá¹Âa svabhÃÂvaÃÂà Âuddhe vià Âuddhe à Âodhaya vià Âodhaya hà «á¹ phaá¹ svÃÂhà|</blockquote>Another TÃÂràdhÃÂraá¹Âë is found in The Hundred and Eight Names of the Goddess TÃÂrà(TÃÂrÃÂÃÂdevëÃÂnÃÂmÃÂá¹£á¹Âaà Âataka). This text also contains a set of verses that give one hundred and eight epithets of the deity.
Sadhanas in which TÃÂrÃÂ is the yidam (meditational deity) can be extensive or quite brief. Most all of them include some introductory praises or homages to invoke her presence and prayers of taking refuge. Then her mantra is recited, followed by a visualization of her, perhaps more mantra, then the visualization is dissolved, followed by a dedication of the merit from doing the practice. Additionally there may be extra prayers of aspirations, and a long life prayer for the Lama who originated the practice. Many of the TÃÂrÃÂ sadhanas are seen as beginning practices within the world of Vajrayana Buddhism, however what is taking place during the visualization of the deity actually invokes some of the most sublime teachings of all Buddhism.
In this case during the creation phase of TÃÂrÃÂ as a yidam, she is seen as having as much reality as any other phenomena apprehended through the mind. By reciting her mantra and visualizing her form in front, or on the head of the adept, one is opening to her energies of compassion and wisdom. After a period of time the practitioner shares in some of these qualities, becomes imbued with her being and all it represents. At the same time all of this is seen as coming out of Emptiness and having a translucent quality like a rainbow. Then many times there is a visualization of oneself as TÃÂrÃÂ. One simultaneously becomes inseparable from all her good qualities while at the same time realizing the emptiness of the visualization of oneself as the yidam and also the emptiness of one's ordinary self.
This occurs in the completion stage of the practice. One dissolves the created deity form and at the same time also realizes how much of what we call the "self" is a creation of the mind, and has no long term substantial inherent existence. This part of the practice then is preparing the practitioner to be able to confront the dissolution of one's self at death and ultimately be able to approach through various stages of meditation upon emptiness, the realization of Ultimate Truth as a vast display of Emptiness and Luminosity. At the same time the recitation of the mantra has been invoking TÃÂrÃÂ's energy through its Sanskrit seed syllables and this purifies and activates certain energy centers of the body (chakras). This also untangles knots of psychic energy which have hindered the practitioner from developing a Vajra body, which is necessary to be able to progress to more advanced practices and deeper stages of realization.
Therefore, even in a simple TÃÂrÃÂ sadhana a plethora of outer, inner, and secret events is taking place and there are now many works such as Deity Yoga, compiled by the present Dalai Lama, which explores all the ramifications of working with a yidam in Tantric practices.
The end results of doing such TÃÂrÃÂ practices are many. For one thing it reduces the forces of delusion in the forms of negative karma, sickness, afflictions of kleshas, and other obstacles and obscurations.
The mantra helps generate Bodhicitta within the heart of the practitioner and purifies the psychic channels (nadis) within the body allowing a more natural expression of generosity and compassion to flow from the heart center. Through experiencing TÃÂrÃÂ's perfected form one acknowledges one's own perfected form, that is one's intrinsic Buddha nature, which is usually covered over by obscurations and clinging to dualistic phenomena as being inherently real and permanent.
The practice then weans one away from a coarse understanding of Reality, allowing one to get in touch with inner qualities similar to those of a bodhisattva, and prepares one's inner self to embrace finer spiritual energies, which can lead to more subtle and profound realizations of the Emptiness of phenomena and self.
As Chagdud Tulku Rinpoche, in his Introduction to the Red TÃÂrÃÂ Sadhana, notes of his lineage: "TÃÂrÃÂ is the flawless expression of the inseparability of emptiness, awareness and compassion. Just as you use a mirror to see your face, TÃÂrÃÂ meditation is a means of seeing the true face of your mind, devoid of any trace of delusion".
There are several preparations to be done before practising the Sadhana. To perform a correct execution the practitioner must be prepared and take on the proper disposition. The preparations may be grouped as "internal" and "external". Both are necessary to achieve the required concentration.
Terma teachings are "hidden teachings" said to have been left by Padmasambhava (8th century) and others for the benefit of future generations. Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo discovered Phagme Nyingthig (Tib. spelling: 'chi med 'phags ma'i snying thig, Innermost Essence teachings of the Immortal Bodhisattva <nowiki>[Arya TÃÂrÃÂ]</nowiki>).
Earlier in the 19th century, according to a biography, Nyala Pema Dündul received a Hidden Treasure, TÃÂràTeaching and Nyingthig (Tib. nying thig) from his uncle Kunsang Dudjom (Tib. kun bzang bdud 'joms). It is not clear from the source whether the terma teaching and the nyingthig teachings refer to the same text or two different texts.
There are many forms of TÃÂrÃÂ, including various popular lists of 21 different forms or emanations of TÃÂrÃÂ. "Green TÃÂrÃÂ" (Skt. à ÂyÃÂmatÃÂrÃÂ), who is associated with peacefulness and enlightened activity, is the most depicted form of the goddess in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism. This is generally considered TÃÂrÃÂ's main form, out of which the other twenty one forms arise. One common variation of Green TÃÂràis known as Khadiravaá¹Âi-TÃÂrà(TÃÂràof the acacia forest) and appears in a forest with flowers in her hair while accompanied by her two attendants MÃÂrëcë and Ekajaá¹ÂÃÂ.
Another popular form is White TÃÂrà(SitatÃÂrÃÂ), often shown with two arms seated on a white lotus and with eyes on her hand and feet, as well as a third eye on her forehead (thus she is also known as "Seven eyed"). She is known for compassion, long life, healing, and serenity. Red forms of TÃÂràare also quite common, and their main activity is power and enthrallment or magnetizing (Skt. vaà Âëkaraá¹Âa, the "power to control and subjugate").
TÃÂrÃÂ is generally considered to have many forms, all of which are various adaptations to the needs of all living beings. According to Dharmachari Purna:
There are numerous lists of "twenty one TÃÂrÃÂs" found in Tibetan Buddhism, a tradition which is found in the Indic sources as well, beginning with the tantric The Praise in Twenty-one Homages (Skt. NamastÃÂraikaviá¹Âà Âatistotraguá¹Âahitasahita, in full: The Praise to Tara with Twenty-One Verses of Homage, and the Excellent Benefits of Reciting the Praise, Derge no. 438). Indian authors like Sà «ryagupta (a.k.a. Ravigupta, c. 7thâÂÂ8th century), Candragomin and Atisha also wrote texts discussing "twenty one TÃÂrÃÂs" and the TÃÂràlineages of these figures are still found in Tibetan Buddhism. Another different list is found in the Indian Sadhanamala.
These Indian lineages have lists which contain different forms of TÃÂrÃÂ. There are also other Tibetan lineages with different lists of twenty one forms of TÃÂrÃÂ, including that of Longchenpa, Jigme Lingpa and Choggyur Lingpa.
Recently the practice of Violet Tara has been revealed by Peter Mt. Shasta in his book, I AM Violet Tara, Books l & ll
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The TÃÂrÃÂ Tantra contains a mandala of nine TÃÂrÃÂs, each one is a different color, but all are depicted as young women covered in jewels, with earrings and ornaments. The nine TÃÂrÃÂs are:
Sà «ryagupta was a devotee of TÃÂràand wrote at least five commentaries on the Praise in Twenty-One Homages. His explanation of various forms of TÃÂràis the earliest one in the Indian tradition. In his tradition, which has been widely studied by scholars, each form of the goddess has different attributes, color and activity (such as pacifying, magnetizing, longevity, subduing enemies, etc).
Each form of TÃÂràalso goes by slightly different names. The Sà «ryagupta list of TÃÂrÃÂs actually contains twenty two forms, with one main or central deity, which is Green TÃÂrÃÂ, Khadiravaá¹Âë, who is blue-green, and the twenty one TÃÂrÃÂs. The order of the list below follows Sà «ryagupta's commentary:
One notable form of TÃÂràis the dark Ugra TÃÂrà(Ferocious or Terrible Tara) also known as MahÃÂcënakrama TÃÂrà(Tib: gya nag gi rim pa drol ma, Tara in the Tradition of Greater China). This form of TÃÂràis notable because it was later imported into Hindu tantra from Buddhist sources like the Sadhanamala and the Sadhanasamuccaya. This Hindu Tara remains an important deity in Hindu Shakta traditions, where she is one of the ten MahÃÂvidyàgoddesses.
Ferocious TÃÂràis dark / black (nëla) with one face and four arms. She stands on a corpse, and holds a sword, a cutter (kartri), a blue lotus and a skullcup. She sports a single knot of hair with Aksobhya Buddha on her head.
Iconographically, Ferocious Tara is almost identical to one form of another goddess, Ekajaá¹Âà(also known as Ekajaá¹Âë or Blue Tara). As such, some authors identify the two forms.
According to Shaw, there is a later trend of TÃÂrÃÂ buddhology that began to see all other female divinities as aspects or emanations of TÃÂrÃÂ or at least as being associated with her. Apart from her many emanations named TÃÂrÃÂ of varying colors, other Mahayana female divinities that became associated with mother Tara include: Janguli, Parnashabari, Cunda, Kurukulla, Mahamayuri, Saraswati, Vasudhara, Usnisavijaya, and Marici. Based on the principle of TÃÂrÃÂ as the central female Buddha, all other devis and dakinis were thus seen as emanations of her.
Other forms or emanations of TÃÂrÃÂ include:
TÃÂrÃÂ's iconography such as the lotus also shows resemblance with the Hindu goddess Lakshmi, and at least one Tibetan liturgy evokes Lakshmi as TÃÂrÃÂ.