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Buddhist Deities, Buddhas, Bodhisattvas & Sacred Figures

Buddhist traditions include Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, deities, protectors, teachers and other sacred figures — categories this collection keeps distinct rather than flattening into a generic pantheon.

Avalokiteshvara

Avalokiteshvara is the bodhisattva who embodies the compassion of all buddhas, among the most universally venerated figures in Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism. In the Kathmandu Valley, Avalokiteshvara is uniquely identified with Karunamaya, embodied in the living traditions of Rato (Red) and Seto (White) Machhindranath, whose annual chariot festivals are among Nepal's most significant religious events.

Green Tara

Green Tara is one of the most widely venerated female bodhisattvas in Vajrayana Buddhism, embodying compassionate, swift action to protect beings from fear and obstacles. Regarded as a manifestation of the bodhisattva of compassion Avalokiteshvara, Tara appears in twenty-one forms, of which Green Tara and White Tara are the most widely known.

Guru Rinpoche

Guru Rinpoche, known in Sanskrit as Padmasambhava ("Lotus-Born"), is revered across the Himalayan Buddhist world as the founder of Vajrayana Buddhism in Tibet and as a "second Buddha." Traditional accounts describe him subduing obstructive spirits and establishing Buddhism throughout the Himalayas, including at Pharping near Kathmandu — one of the most significant Guru Rinpoche pilgrimage sites outside Tibet.

Manjushri

Manjushri is the bodhisattva of wisdom, depicted wielding a flaming sword said to cut through the root of ignorance. Widely venerated across Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism as patron of learning and clear insight, Manjushri also holds a distinctive place in Newar Buddhist tradition as the legendary founder of the Kathmandu Valley itself.

Medicine Buddha

The Medicine Buddha, Bhaisajyaguru ("Master of Healing"), is one of Buddhism's principal healing figures, venerated across Mahayana and Vajrayana traditions for the great vows made to relieve the physical and mental suffering of beings. His practice occupies a central place in the Tibetan and Newar Buddhist ritual traditions of the Himalayas.

Samantabhadra

Samantabhadra, in the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism, is the Adi-Buddha — the primordial, unconditioned awareness from which all buddhas and phenomena are said to arise. Depicted naked and unadorned in deep blue, without the ornaments or robes of other buddha and bodhisattva forms, Samantabhadra is a central figure of Dzogchen ("Great Perfection") teaching.

Shakyamuni Buddha

Shakyamuni Buddha, born Siddhartha Gautama, is the historical founder of Buddhism. Traditionally dated to the 5th century BCE (with scholarly estimates ranging across the 6th–4th centuries BCE), he renounced a life of princely comfort, attained enlightenment after years of ascetic and meditative practice, and taught the Four Noble Truths and Eightfold Path across northern India for the remainder of his life. His traditionally accepted birthplace, Lumbini, lies in present-day Nepal.

Historical Buddha

  • Shakyamuni Buddha

Buddhas / Primordial Figures

  • Vairocana
  • Akshobhya
  • Ratnasambhava
  • Amitabha
  • Amoghasiddhi
  • Vajradhara
  • Samantabhadra

Bodhisattvas

  • Avalokiteshvara
  • Green Tara
  • White Tara
  • Manjushri
  • Vajrapani
  • Kshitigarbha

Healing / Longevity

  • Medicine Buddha (Bhaisajyaguru)
  • Amitayus

Vajrayana Figures

  • Guru Rinpoche (Padmasambhava)
  • Vajrasattva
  • Vajrayogini

Protectors / Guardians

  • Mahakala
  • Palden Lhamo
  • Begtse
  • Hayagriva

Newar Buddhist Traditions

  • Major Newar Buddhist sacred figures
  • Kathmandu Valley manifestations