The vajra is the most important ritual implement
of Vajrayana Buddhism. In Sanskrit, the word
vajra is defined as something hard or mighty,
as in a diamond. It symbolizes an impenetrable,
immovable and indestructible state of knowledge
and enlightenment.
Our knowledge of the vajra goes back to deep
antiquity. Texts indicate that the vajra was
not always a symbol of peace and tranquility
but something very different. It first appears
in ancient India where it was the primary
weapon of the Vedic sky-god Indra, the king
of the Devas. According the Hindu Puranas,
the evil Asuras, Namuchi and Vritra removed
all of the light and moisture from the earth.
It made the land inhospitable to living beings.
Indra battled the demon gods unsuccessfully
and as a last resort called upon their supreme
god Vishnu for help.
Vishnu informed him that only a weapon that
was neither solid nor liquid could kill Namuchi
and Vritra. Vishnu had the divine carpenter
fashion Indra a marvelous weapon he could
use to vanquish the dreadful Asuras. This
new weapon, the vajra, emitted thunderbolts.
With it, Indra annihilated Namuchi and Vritra
and returned the much needed light and moisture
back to the earth. The Rigveda describes this
conflict thus.
The vajra, when used, was thrown at ones opponent.
Nitin Kumar, in his article Ritual Implements
in Tibetan Buddhism, tells us, “As a hurled
weapon the indestructible thunderbolt blazed
like a meteoric fireball across the heavens,
in a maelstrom of thunder, fire and lightning.”
Traditional images of the vajra depict it
as metal shaft with three, five or nine prongs
that emanate from lotus blossoms on either
end. Originally, according to the ancient
Indian text the Rigveda, when Indra used his
vajra it had open prongs. Buddhist legend
suggests that the Buddah himself, took the
vajra from Indra and forced its prongs closed,
thus transforming it from a destructive weapon
into a peaceful scepter.
Scholars contend that there is no relationship
between Indian, Greek, Australian, Norse and
the cosmology of the Americas. They believe
that each civilization conceived of their
gods independently and that a deeper, older,
universal tradition does not exist. If this
were the case, then the foundation of these
societies; their myths, traditions, beliefs
and iconography should be unique to them,
their location and their history. The tales
of war, intrigue and conquest that come out
of American history are vastly different from
those of England, France, India and China.
So too are the customs, traditions and the
symbols that represent the nation. Yet when
we look at a wide range of ancient and indigenous
groups a pattern of commonality exists. Myths
and symbols found in Indian readily appear
in the oral and written descriptions of other
cultures. They also appear in their artistic
images. These representations seem to transcend
time and location.
The symbol of thunder or a thunderbolt as
a tool of destruction, for example, surfaces
in many ancient civilizations. Mythology unfailingly
associates lightning with a sky god, the god
of thunder, who uses it as a weapon.
In the western world, the thunderbolt is most
readily associated with the Greek sky god
Zeus. With it, he defeated the Titans and
took control of the Greek pantheon. Myth tells
us, that Zeus freed the Cyclopes, the master
builders, who were imprisoned in the depths
of the underworld - Tartarus. In gratitude
for their release, they gave him a marvelous
weapon, the thunderbolt. In another story,
Zeus used his formidable weapon to battle
the largest and most fearsome creatures in
all of Greek mythology, the hundred-headed
serpent Typhon. Early images of Zeus depict
show him holding a rod like thunderbolt while
others show this deadly weapon with its ends
splayed into three prongs.
A vajra-like weapon also appears in Sumerian
cosmology. Its use is recorded in the Bablyonian
Epic of Creation, the Enuma Elish. A battle
between the sky god Marduk (Bel) and serpent
Tiamat is detailed on the fourth tablet of
this ancient document. The evil and powerful
Tiamat, according to the Enuma Elish, was
devising treacherous plans against Ea and
the other reigning gods. The gods were afraid
to invoke her evil wrath and search for a
solution. Ea attempts to confront Tiamat,
but instead of fighting backs down. Marduk,
his son, steps forward and volunteers to fight
the enraged serpent, on one condition… If
he is successful, he will have dominion over
the entire universe.
The gods agree and provide Marduk mighty weapons
including a bow, a mace and a net to use in
his battle against Tiamat. Images of this
epic scene show Marduk holding a three tipped
scepter in his hand (Fig. 5). Subsequent images
clearly depict this same deadly three-pronged
weapon.
The Rigveda also offers an alternative description
of the vajra. Some texts represent it as a
notched metal club with thousands of prongs.
We find this form of the vajra in numerous
other cultures. The most well known stories
that portray the vajra in its club-like form
come from Norse cosmology. They are associated
with the sky god Thor. His mighty hammer Mjölnir
was the most fearsome weapon in Norse mythology.
Images of the thunder god Thor traditionally
show him carrying his mighty hammer. Some
texts describe Mjölnir as a hammer, while
others refer to it as an ax or club.
The master builders, the dwarfs, in the depths
of the earth, made Mjölnir. As a weapon,
it could level mountains. It goes on to state
that if aimed it at anything; it would never
miss its target. It informs us that in addition
to never missing its target, it would always
find its way back to the hand of its owner.
Thor used his mighty hammer to battle his
deadliest foe, the giant serpent Jörmungandr.
In these tales, the Midgard Serpent is not
killed. It would not be until near the end
of the world that Thor will clash with Midgard
Serpent the final time.
In Slavic mythology we learn of the evil serpent
Veles who ascends from the underworld and
steals something of value to the sky god Perun.
Perun, using lightning bolts, would vanquish
Veles back to his underground realm annually.
His deadly axe, like Thor’s mighty hammer
was used to subdue evil and overcome the iniquitous
serpent Veles. It too would return to his
hand after being thrown.
In Irish mythology, the magical weapon of
the hero of Ulster Cúchulainn is the Gae
Bolga or lightning spear. Cúchulainn fights
and kills his childhood friend and foster
brother, Ferdia with this magical weapon.
The Gae Bolga is described as a dart or spear,
which separates into multiple barbs when entering
the body, causing fatal wounds. It was next
to impossible to withdraw once it had impaled
the body. The Irish Book of Leinster describes
the devastating effects of the Gae Bolga as
such:
In China, the legend of Hua-hu Tiao Devours
Yang Chien describes a magical spike carried
by Huang T'ien Hua which sounds remarkably
similar to Indra’s vajra.
The Chin-kang, deprived of their magical weapons,
began to lose heart. To complete their discomfiture,
Huang T'ien Hua brought to the attack a matchless
magical weapon. This was a spike 7 1/2 inches
long, enclosed in a silk sheath, and called
'Heart-piercer.' It projected so strong a
ray of light that eyes were blinded by it.
Huang T'ien Hua, hard pressed by Mo-li Ch'ing,
drew the mysterious spike from its sheath,
and hurled it at his adversary. It entered
his neck, and with a deep groan the giant
fell dead. - Myths & Legends of China – E.
T. C. Werner
Finding myths, with similar storylines, and
their corresponding images in relatively close
geographic areas, while interesting, does
not fully support the universality of the
gods. When we uncover similar narratives and
corresponding imagery, in remote regions of
the world, this concept takes on a more serious
tone. Myths of a vajra-like weapon are found
all over the world. In Australia, the sky
gods, the Wati Kutjara brothers, wield a magical
boomerang, Wo-mur-rang or club. Boomerangs
are known for their ability, once thrown,
to return to their owner. Legend states that
their father Kidili attempted to rape some
of the first women. Throwing their wo-mur-rang,
they castrated their father where he disappeared
into a water hole.
In the new world we encounter a similar deadly
lightning weapon used by the sky gods. In
the Aztec culture there is the god Huitzilopochtli.
Huitzilopochtli, with his weapon Xiuhcoatl,
“the fire serpent”, killed his sister
Coyolxauhqui soon after he was born. The Mayan
rain deity Chaac and the later Aztec Tlaloc
are both are depicted carrying their lightning
axe (Fig. 7). Sometimes they are depicted
holding snakes, which represent lightning
bolts, which they would hurl from the mountaintops
where they made their retreat. In Peru, we
find the god Illapa who is described as a
man wielding a club in his left hand and a
sling in his right.
A variation of the lightning motif is the
concept of the thunderstone. It is believed
that thunderstones fall from the sky when
the gods are battling each other. This idea
is widely held throughout Africa. The Yoruba
of southwestern Nigera, for example, believe
their axe carrying storm god Shange creates
thunder and lightning and casts "thunderstones"
down to earth. The elders of this culture
would search wherever lightning struck for
these magical stones.
The thunder-producing weapon, the vajra, is
only one example of the enormous number of
commonalities found in myth, legend, culture
and iconography around the world. Similarities
exist throughout Greek, Sumerian, Norse, Aztec
and Australian and American cosmology. These
parallels include the gods, their lives and
their amazing weapons. They also include the
laws and customs that govern our lives - the
very fabric of society.
The universality of symbolism found around
the world implies something else. Weapons,
like the vajra, were not born from the imagination
of man. They did not come into being as part
of a cultures evolution. They were real. They
were tangible. Someone somewhere in our remote
past saw it and documented it. It is only
through an actual encounter with a marvelous
weapon that emitted thunder that a clear and
specific portrayal of it could be made.
Likewise, if tools like the vajra are genuine
then we are forced to accept that the gods
who wielded these weapons were factual individuals
as well. This newfound knowledge would open
the door to a revolutionary new understanding
of who we are. It would challenge the basis
of our society and could cause us to reevaluate
not only our place in the universe, but everything
we hold to be true.
