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Amitābha: Wikis




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Amitabha Buddha pictured in the Ushiku Daibutsu in Japan
Amitabha Buddha pictured in the Ushiku Daibutsu in Japan
Sanskrit:  अमिताभ Amitābha, Amitāyus
Chinese:  阿彌陀佛(T) / 阿弥陀佛(S) Pinyin: Ēmítuó Fó, Āmítuó Fó
Wade-Giles: A-mi-t’uo Fo
Japanese:  阿弥陀如来 Amida Nyorai
Tibetan:  Amitābha name.svg od dpag med
Korean:  아미타불 Amit'a Bul
Vietnamese:  A-di-đà Phật
Venerated by:  Mahayana, Vajrayana
Attributes:  Infinite Light
Shakti:  Pandara

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Amitābha (Sanskrit: अमिताभ, Amitābha (wordstem), Hindi pronunciation: [əmɪtaːbʱə]; Amitābho; Chinese: 阿彌陀佛, Ēmítuó Fó; Japanese: 阿弥陀如来, Amida Nyorai; Tibetan:འོད་དཔག་མེད།, Ö-pa-me) is a celestial buddha described in the scriptures of the Mahāyāna school of Buddhism. Amitābha is the principal buddha in the Pure Land sect, a branch of Buddhism practiced mainly in East Asia. According to these scriptures, Amitābha possesses infinite merits resulting from good deeds over countless past lives as a bodhisattva named Dharmakāra. "Amitābha" is translatable as "Infinite Light," hence Amitābha is often called "The Buddha of Infinite Light."









Amitābha in Vajrayāna Buddhism

Buddha Amitābha in Tibetan Buddhism, traditional Thanka painting


The Tibetan Panchen Lamas[6] and Shamarpas[7] are considered to be emanations of Amitābha.

He is frequently invoked in Tibet either as Buddha Amitābha - especially in the Phowa practices or as Amitāyus - especially in practices relating to longevity and preventing an untimely death.




In addition to using the mantras listed above, many Buddhist schools invoke Amitābha's name in a practice known as 'nianfo' 念佛 in Chinese and 'nembutsu' in Japanese.

Names in various languages

Statue of the Buddha Amitābha (Mongolia, 18th century CE)


The name Amitāyus (nominative form Amitāyuḥ) is also used. This is a compound of amita ("infinite") and āyus ("life"), and so means "he whose life is boundless".

In Chinese, his name is given as Ēmítuó Fó (阿彌陀佛 boundless Buddhas), where Ēmítuó is the Chinese representation of the first three syllables of either Amitābha or Amitāyus, and is Chinese for Buddha (a very early borrowing of the first syllable of the Sanskrit word).



  • Vietnamese: A-di-đà Phật
  • Korean: Amit'a Bul
  • Japanese: Amida Butsu.

In Japanese, he is also called Amida Nyorai (阿弥陀如来), meaning " the TathāgataAmitābha".

In Tibetan, Amitābha is called ' and, as Amitāyus,


This altar display at a temple in Taiwan shows Amitābha in the center, flanked by Mahāsthāmaprāpta on the viewer's right and Guānyīn on the left


When standing, Amitābha is often shown with his left arm bare and extended downward with thumb and forefinger touching, with his right hand facing outward also with thumb and forefinger touching. The meaning of this mudra is that wisdom (symbolized by the raised hand) is accessible to even the lowest beings, while the outstretched hand shows that Amitabha's compassion is directed at the lowest beings, who cannot save themselves.

When not depicted alone, Amitābha is often portrayed with two assistants: Avalokiteśvara (Guānyīn) who appears on his right and Mahāsthāmaprāpta (Dà Shì Zhì) who appears on his left.

In Tibetan Buddhism, Amitābha is red in color (red being the color of love, compassion, and emotional energy). His direction is west and so he is envisioned as the (red) setting sun. He is seen as the supreme power and energy of nature, cast on an earthly plain, accessible to all sentient beings. For this reason he is considered one of the most popular of all Dhyāni Buddhas.

His unique emblem is the lotus. He is thus associated with the attributes of the lotus: gentleness, openness, and purity.

Archeological origins

Táng Dynasty Amitābha sculpture — Hidden Stream Temple Cave, Longmen Grottoes, China





  2. ^
  3. ^ "Symbolism of the five Dhyani Buddhas".  
  4. ^
  5. ^
  7. ^ "Teachers: Shamar Rinpoche". Retrieved 2007-10-21.  

See also

External links

Meeting The Buddhas by Vessantara, published by Windhorse Publications 2003


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