Five Female Buddha Mantras and Stories
Counterparts to the Five Dhyani Buddhas
The female buddhas are generally less well known than their male counterparts. However, the masculine buddhas all have feminine consorts with their own characteristics and mantras. When taken together, the masculine and feminine forms are a balanced whole.
This article includes the five female buddhas associated with the Five Dhyani buddhas: Pandavarasini (counterpart of Amitabha), Locana (counterpart of Akshobhya), Mamaki (counterpart of Ratnasanbhava), Tara (counterpart of Amoghasiddhi) and Akasadhatesvari (counterpart of Vairocana).
Pandavarasini: Queen of the Lotus
Pandavarsini is the consort of Amitabha, one of the Five Dhyani Buddhas. The five Dhyani Buddhas are said to have existed since the beginning of time. They represent or symbolize divine principles or forces. They are self-born. The word dhyani is derived from the Sanskrit dhyana meaning “meditation.” The Dhyani Buddhas are also called Jinas, meaning Victors or Conquerors.
Pandaravarsini’s name means the White Robed One. This suggests that she is vested with purity. Pandaravarsini’s mantra is “Om Padmadevi Pushpadevi Pam Svaha.” Padma means a lotus flower and devi means a goddess or queen. Pushpa also means a flower. This mantra honors Pandaravasini as the goddess of the lotus and of flowers.
Mantra for the Female Buddha Pandavarasini
Characteristics of Pandavarasini*
Color: Red
Element: Fire
Symbol: Lotus
Direction: West
Mudra: Devotion
Seed Syllable: PAM
Overcomes: Craving
Function: Attracting
Wisdom: Discrimination
Consort: Amitabha
Animal: Phoenix
Name: White-Robed One
*My resource for the female Buddha characteristics in this article and a treasure trove for more information is the book The Five Female Buddhas by Vessantra (Tony McMahon). Vessantra is also the author of Female Deities in Buddhism.
Locana: Buddha of Mirror-Like Wisdom
Locana (sometimes spelled Lochana) is a female Buddha who is the feminine counterpart of Akshobya, one of the five Dhyani Buddhas. Her name means “The One with the Eye,” or the “Clear Visioned One.” She is associated with pure awareness, she represents the pure, simple, direct awareness of things as they are.
Locana’s mantra is “Om Vajra Locana Lom Svaha.” Vajra means a thunderbolt or mystical weapon. Lom is the seed syllable for Locana. Seed syllables are the fundamental essence of a being or vibration. Learn more in the article One Word Mantras.
Mantra for the Female Buddha Locana
Characteristics of Locana
Color: Blue
Element: Water
Symbol: Vajra
Direction: East
Mudra: Supreme Giving
Seed Syllable: LOM
Overcomes: Hatred
Function: Destroying
Wisdom: Mirror-like
Consort: Akshobhya
Animal: Polar Bear
Name: Clear Vision One
Female Buddha Mamaki: Mine-Maker
Mamaki is the female Buddha who is the consort of Ratnasambhava, one of the Five Dyhani Buddhas. Ratne means jewel. Suratne means a good or virtuous jewel. Mung (or mam) is the seed syllable of Mamaki. Her name means “mine-maker”, or she who makes everything her own.
Lyrics for this mantra to Mamaki:
Mamaki, Mamaki, Buddha Mama (2x)
Om Ratne Suratne Mung Svaha (2x)
Buddha Mama Mamaki Buddha Mama (2x) Lyrics:
Mantra for Mamaki
Characteristics of the Female Buddha Mamaki
Color: Yellow
Element: Water
Symbol: Jewel
Direction: South
Mudra: Earth-Touching
Seed Syllable: MAM
Overcomes: Pride
Function: Increasing
Wisdom: Sameness
Consort: Ratnasambhava
Animal: Camel
Name: Mine-maker
Tara: Female Buddha Savioress
Tara is a Buddhist deity known as the goddess of liberation. In the Tibetan pantheon of deities, Tara is the consort of the Dhyani Buddha Amogasiddhi. Tara means “star.” The word-name Tara is variously interpreted as Shining Star, Liberator, Savior, or One Who Ferries Across. Tara is the most powerful female deity in the Buddhist pantheon.
Tara exists as a goddess in many other traditions and countries, including Hinduism, Polynesian mythology, Druidism, Finland (Tar, Woman of Wisdom), Roman mythology (Terra, Earth Mother), and South America (the goddess Tarahumara). Tara is one of the most important deities in Tibet, Nepal and Mongolia. her Tibetan name is Drolma, meaning “she who sees.”
The Forms of Tara
There are 21 major forms of Tara, sometimes associated with colors. The Taras are a set of Bodhisattvas with varying qualities. Some of the more well-known are the following:
Green Tara: embodies compassion
Red Tara: a fierce goddess who magnetizes all good things
Black Tara: associated with power
Yellow Tara: associated with wealth and prosperity
Blue Tara: transmutation of anger
Tara is a Bodhisattva of compassion in action who manifests in female form. This mantra is called the Green Tara Mantra, a traditional Buddhist chant. The central part of Tara’s mantra is a loving play on her name. The variations of her name represent three progressive stages of salvation.
Tāre represents salvation from mundane dangers and suffering. Tuttāre represents deliverance into the spiritual path conceived in terms of individual salvation. Lastly, Ture represents the culmination of the spiritual path in terms of deliverance into the altruistic path of universal salvation – the Bodhisattva path.
A Story of Tara
Tara is said to have been born out of the tears of compassion of Avalokitesvara. As he wept, a lake formed. A lotus sprang up. When the lotus opened, the goddess Tara emerged. in one story, Tara existed as a young princess named Yeshe Dawa, which means “wise moon.”
Yeshe Dawa had achieved great results in her spritual practice. A monk suggested that she pray to be born as a man in order to make further progress. At that, Yeshe replied that she vowed to be born as a woman in every lifetime. She also vowed to attain Buddhahood as a woman.
After this declaration, Yeshe enetered a state of uninterrupted meditation for ten million years. This allowed her to manifest supreme enlightenment in many world systems. One of those world systems is ours. In our world system, she manifests as Tara.
Mantra to Tara
Characteristics of the Female Buddha Tara
Chant to Akasa Dhatvisvara, the consort of Vairochana. Her name means “the sovereign lady of the sphere of infinite space.” She holds a blooming lotus in each hand and is associated with the symbols of the dharmacakra (the wheel of dharma) and the vajra-bell (lightning bell).
Color: Green
Element: Air
Symbol: Crossed Vajra
Direction: Center
Mudra: Ringing Vajra Bell
Seed Syllable: TAM
Overcomes: Envy & Fear
Function: All Functions
Wisdom: All Phenomena
Consort: Amoghasiddhi
Animal: Lioness
Name: Shining Star
Akasadhatesvari: Sovereign Lady
Akasadhatvisvara is the female buddha who is the consort of Vairochana. Her name means “the sovereign lady of the sphere of infinite space.” She holds a blooming lotus in each hand and is associated with the symbols of the dharma cakra (the wheel of dharma) and the vajra-bell (lightning bell).
In mandalas of the five dhayani buddhas and their consorts, Akasadhatesvari sits in the center of the mandala. Thus, she embodies and harmonizes the qualities of all of the female buddhas as well as their male counterparts. She is said to ride a lion. This may be a reference to the “lion’s roar” which is a the proclamation of the truth of the Buddha’s teaching.
Mantra for Akasadhatesvari
Color: White
Element: Space
Symbol: Wheel of Dharma
Direction: Center
Mudra: Turning Wheel
Seed Syllable: AM
Overcomes: Ignorance
Function: Pacifying
Wisdom: Truth
Consort: Vairocana
Animal: Lioness
Name: Sovereign Lady
Author Kathleen Karlsen
Kathleen Karlsen is a musician, artist, writer and speaker. She is the author of two books (Flower Symbols and Vocal Medicine) and over 200 articles. Kathleen, her husband Andrew and their five children live in Bozeman, Montana. More about Kathleen Karlsen.
Female Buddha Article Summary
This article features the five female buddhas that are the counterparts to the Five Dhyani Buddhas. Each of these female buddhas have their own seed syllables, symbols, and other characteristics. The articles provides a description of these Buddhist deities with sound tracks as examples of mantras to each of them.
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