SOME CONSIDERAT IO NS

O N A PART ICULAR VAJRA IC O NO G RA PH Y:

THE SKAMB HA, T HE YU PA , T H E BO N E S
O F DADHICA AND RELAT E D T H E M E S *
Laura Giuliano

In the reliefs of Gandhara, Vajrapani, the enigmatic Buddhas companion, displays a

vajra of original form, departing from the customary thunderbolt stylisations of the
Near-Eastern, classical and Indian worlds. It takes the form of two truncated pyra-
mids on quadrangular, hexagonal, octagonal or polygonal base, joined at the small-
er ends. Basically, it suggests the shape of an hourglass. We think that examining the
significance and values expressed by this hourglass vajra may offer a key for inter-
pretation intrinsic to the Vajrapani figure itself.
In this study we will make a searching investigation of the topic, attempting to
clarify in the light of the Vedic, Brahmanical and Buddhist texts and on the basis of
comparison of the figurative and literary evidence the origins and functions of this
vajra typology, a symbol typical of Gandharan iconography but not, as we shall see,
exclusively Gandharan.

n the course of the 20th century a number of scholars investigated the fig-
I ure of Vajrapani in the art of Gandhara that enigmatic personage whom
the reliefs show ever by the side of the Buddha, from the beginning of his re-
ligious life to the moment of the parinirvana, whose real identity continues
to elude definitive interpretation.1
Some argue that the success of the personage is to be imputed to the em-
blem of which he is the bearer, namely the vajra. Support for the idea came
from Senart (1905: 131), one of the first scholars to address the issue, while
Foucher (1918: ii, 1, 58-59) held that what mattered was not so much the
appearance shown by Vajrapani as his function as porteur du foundre, the
bearer of the vajra, the symbolic instrument of the Masters magic power.
We then have Lamotte (1966: 159), who wrote: Le secret de sa fortune et de
son apothose se trouve dans le Vajra, son insparable emblme. More re-
cently Bussagli (1984: 222) argued that in the broad meaning of the sememe
Vajrapani, it is the vajra that has absolute pre-eminence over the bearer.

* Part of this paper was presented during the Conference: Simbologia, mito, storia: Armi e battaglie in
India da Rudra al Mahatma Gandhi, Universit degli Studi di Milano, 19-20 may 2003.
1 For a history of studies on the Vajrapani see Santoro (1979: 294-302). To be added to the authors
listed in the article cited are the fine pages dedicated to interpretation of the figure written by Bussagli
(1984: 222-27) and Santoro (1991). See also the interesting hypothesis by Verardi (1988: 1545) and the in-
terpretation of Flood (1989).
104 laura giuliano [2]

Fig. 1. Relief representing the visit of Buddha and Vajrapani to an ascetic.

From Hoti Mardan Guide Mess, Peshawar, n. 2066, 2nd-3rd century AD c.
(after Lyons-Ingholt 1957: pl. 54).

In the reliefs of Gandhara the Buddhas companion displays a vajra of

original form, departing from the customary thunderbolt stylisations of the
Near-Eastern, classical and Indian worlds (Devendra 1965: 129-30; Bussagli
1984: 222). Basically, it suggests the shape of an hourglass, and we shall in fact
call it the hourglass vajra, although the term simply indicates a similarity in
shape, without implying any semantic connotation. It takes the form of two
truncated pyramids on quadrangular, hexagonal, octagonal or polygonal
base, joined at the smaller ends (Figs. 1-2) (Foucher 1905: i, 375, fig. 189;
Lyons-Ingholt 1957: 63, fig. 54; Faccenna 1962: 15, tav. xxxi; Taddei 1970:
fig. 83; Bussagli 1984: 146; Callieri & Filigenzi 2002: 178, fig. 95). Within
this fundamental typology of the weapon we find manifold variants: the ends
may be flat, follow a curve or come to a point or in the form of a pyramid or
truncated pyramid (Giuliano 1997: 119-22). Besides the geometrically well
defined examples we find others that, while following the basic hourglass
model, show lines that are not rigidly delineated, in which case the object
[3] considerations on a particular vajra iconography 105

Fig. 2. Fragment of a relief representing the Dipamkara jataka with Buddha e Vajrapani.
Butkara, Swat, 1st-2nd century AD c., Museo Nazionale dArte Orientale Giuseppe Tucci,
Roma, dep. IsIAO, inv. mnaor 1127, mai b 6579 (after Bussagli 1984: 146).

takes on a form much like a bone or club (Fig. 3) (Tarzi 1976: 381-410; San-
toro 1991: fig. 5; Giuliano 1997: 120, footnote 309, fig. 16).
Shifting the emphasis from the vajra bearer to his attribute and examin-
ing the significance and values expressed by the particular iconography of the
vajra itself may offer a key for interpretation intrinsic to the Vajrapani figure
itself.
In this study we will make a searching investigation of the topic, attempt-
ing to clarify in the light of the Vedic, Brahmanical and Buddhist texts and on
the basis of comparison of the figurative and literary evidence the origins and
functions of this vajra typology a symbol typical of Gandharan iconogra-
phy but not, as we shall see, exclusively Gandharan whose meaning has yet
to be adequately investigated.2

2 The hourglass vajra image is often traced to the club symbology, given the iconographic similar-
ity between certain Gandharan Vajrapani and the figure of Herakles (Bussagli 1984: 222, 226; Santoro
1991), or is generically associated with the myth of Dadhica, on account of the similarity this vajra some-
times shows with the shape of a bone (Bussagli 1984: 222; Banerji 1993: 39 etc.).
106 laura giuliano [4]

The generally accepted opinion is

that the hourglass vajra emerged
from figurative elaboration in the
Gandharan environment, and that
this representation of the weapon
was used only in the regions of Indi-
an-Hellenic culture (Das Gupta
1975: 14; Banerji 1993: 47); indeed,
some scholars define this type the
Gandharan vajra (La Plante 1963:
247; Das Gupta 1975: 10-ff.),3 con-
trasting it with the Indian classical
vajra (Id.), characterised by triple
ending at both top and bottom.4
Actually, the shape of the hour-
glass vajra was not a Gandharan
invention, nor can it be confined to
the regions of Indias North-West.
The fact is that this iconographic
type found its origins in a pro-
Fig. 3. Vajrapani, Tepe Shotor, foundly Indian environment. The
Afghanistan, 4th century. AD c. first representation of this vajra
(after Santoro 1991: fig. 5).
known to us is to be seen at Saci:
the weapon formed by two truncat-
ed pyramids with octagonal bases (?) and pointed protuberances at the ends
appears in the hands of Indra in the Vivantara jataka relief (Fig. 4) (Mar-
shall & Foucher n.d. (1940): ii, pl. 29), represented on the lower architrave
of the northern torana of the Great Stupa and datable during the first half
of the 1st century AD.5 The vajra iconography in Gandhara derives directly

3 Das Gupta (1975: 14, 115) argues that the Gandharan artists did not base this iconographic type on
the Indian weapon and notes the difference in shape between the vajra in Gandhara and the keraunos in
classical art, which, he holds, should have stood as direct iconographic reference for the artists of North-
Western India. He goes on to hypothesise that these artists invented the Vajrapani image and his attrib-
ute, not feeling particularly bound by any precise models in representing such subjects.
4 The three-ended vajra, rarely used in Gandhara, appears on some reliefs of Mathura, and
between the 1st and 2nd centuries AD found diffusion in the Andhra Buddhist sites of Amaravati, Nagar-
junakonda, Goli and Gummadidurru. At a later date this vajra iconography appears depicted in many
sites: at Ajanta, Ellora, Aurangabad, Nalanda, etc. (Giuliano 1997: 123-30; Banerji 1993). The three-
ended type goes through a number of variants: it can take the form of a double trident or phyto-
morphic double trident, when the spikes appear to be replaced by small slender leaves. If, on the other
hand, the base model is elaborated ornamentally the object shows the form of a double fleur-de-lis; in
some cases the ends appear to be formed by a three-petalled rosette or triple bow (Giuliano 1997: 123-
30). It is from the three-ended model that through a series of figurative elaborations the classical
Nepalese and Tibetan vajra is derived, consisting of three or more hooked claws meeting with a central
axis, set at both ends.
5 Again at Saci, a vajra much like the one described can be seen on some reliefs on the northern pil-
lar of the eastern torana (Marshall & Foucher n. d. (1940): ii, pl. 49 a-b). But here the object take on
[5] considerations on a particular vajra iconography 107

Fig. 4. Indra. Detail of the relief representing the Vivantara jataka,

Great Stupa, northen torana, Saci, first half of the 1st century. AD
(after Marshall & Foucher 1940, vol. ii, pl. 29).

from the typology developed at Saci (Giuliano 1997: 118-20).6 Moreover,

apart from the Gandharan environment, where this iconographic type
found diffusion on a singularly vast scale, the hourglass vajra was also rep-
resented on certain reliefs of Mathura in the same period (Fig. 5). Later on
we find it represented in Kamir, Bihar, Maharashtra, etc. (Ibid: figs. 58, 79;
Id. 2001: figs. 33, 39-40) and, beyond the borders of India, in Central Asia
above all (Id . 1997: 134 ff.).
It is worth stressing that although the artists of Gandhara worked in an
environment much exposed to the influence of the classical world, they made

less geometrically defined lines. The protuberances at the ends look as if rounded off. However, inter-
pretation of the image may have been misled by the state of conservation of the reliefs.
6 However, it is differentiated by elimination of the two pointed protuberances, which may be re-
placed in Gandhara by pyramid or truncated pyramid-shaped ends (Giuliano 1997: 119-20). The differ-
ence had already been noted by Foucher (1905: i, 57): [] le vajra, en tant quattribut, devient une sim-
ple masse darmes quon saisissait par le milieu, la faon des haltres. Il se montre nous sous laspect
dune sorte de double pilon, renfl aux deux extrmits, et ordinairement arrondi, parfois aussi pourvu
daretes, mais non plus de ces pointes quon lui voit encore Snchi.
108 laura giuliano [6]

no use of the western equivalent

Fig. 5. Vajra. Detail of the stele with
Buddha, Vajrapani and Padmapani,
Ahichchatra, Uttar Pradesh, years 32
of Kaniska era. Delhi, National Museum,
Acc. No.L. 55.25.
the keraunos of Zeus and Athena7
to represent the vajra, returning to
the iconography that had emerged at
Saci to depict the weapon of Indra
and Vajrapani. The choice may re-
flect the intention to take a distance
from the semantic field of the ker-
aunos. The hourglass form of the va-
jra quadrangular, hexagonal, octag-
onal or polygonal shows up in
fuller evidence a range of different
values extending beyond the offen-
sive, fulminating action.8 In fact, the
virtually universal appearance of the
hourglass vajra on the Buddhist re-
liefs of the North-West would seem
to derive from a clear, deliberate
choice of the artists for reasons of a
symbolic nature.

Vajra: yupa, axis mundi, omphalos

A few preliminary considerations
The polygonal structure of the hourglass vajra bears a certain resemblance
to the form of some isolated pillars and columns in Indian art, and the signifi-
cance of these architectural elements has rightly been put down to the con-
ception of the axis mundi (skt. skambha, from skambh- to make firm, stable) (Ir-
win 1976). One well-known example that has come under study is the pillar of
Besnagar, raised in the last quarter of the 2nd century BC by Heliodorus, am-
bassador of the Indo-Greek king Antialcida to the court of the unga Bhaga-
bhadra of Vidia. This monument is characterised by division into four sec-
tions: the lower section is octagonal, the central part shows sixteen sides, the

7 On the keraunos iconography see, for example, Daremberg Saglio (1887-1904: ii, 2,1352 ff.) The
Gandharan artists were indeed familiar with representation of the keraunos: representations of the thun-
derbolt associated with classical divinities are common above all on the coins of the Greek sovereigns
who ruled over the territories of Bactriana and North-West India between the mid-3rd century and 1st
century BC (Giuliano 1997:158-59, figs. 103-113).
8 These functions represent the most external aspect of the vajra sememe. Far from being identified
solely with a weapon or the atmospheric phenomenon of the thunderbolt, the term transcends these
meanings, standing as a multivalent object upon which converge a series of symbolic values that will in
part be dealt with in this brief treatment of the theme. For a rsum of the interpretations associated
with the term vajra in the Vedic period and for analysis of the values taken on by the term in Buddhist
literature, see Giuliano (1997: 7-91).
[7] considerations on a particular vajra iconography 109

upper part thirty-two, and the fillet below the capital is cylindrical in form.
Spagnoli (1970: 460-68) explains the significance of these divisions of the sur-
face of the pillar with an increasing number of sides as the eye moves upwards
in terms of the symbolism of the cosmic axis. In fact, the sides shaping the var-
ious sections of the monument are divisible by four, and the number alludes
to the fundamental, original division of space (Id.: p. 464). The successive di-
vision of the surface in terms of eight, sixteen and thirty-two sides probably
indicates a subsequent phase: the passage from the simple to the complex,
from unity, to which the basic quadruple division can easily return, to multi-
plicity, according to a process of differentiation that is after all at the basis of
creation (Id.: 465).
Moreover, the forms of the octagon and the sixteen- and thirty-two-sided
polygons represent the various stages of transition and connection between
the square symbol of the earth and the circle, which represents the celes-
tial sphere; such transitions are also to be seen in the space of the earths at-
mosphere, marking the various levels of progression and advancement to-
wards the divine dimension.
Thus the form of the pillar assumes precise cosmological significance. We
can cite a great many examples of isolated pillars characterised by a polygo-
nal structure, including the two pillars of Isapur (Vogel 1910-11), in the vicin-
ity of Mathura, which display a quadrangular section at the base and octago-
nal section above. In this case association with the axis conception is borne
out by an inscription displayed by one of them, which defines the two
monuments with the term yupa, the sacrificial post essentially identical with
skambha (Gonda 1954: 81) and image of the axis mundi, an essential instru-
ment for certain Vedic rites, used in the sacrifice of the Vajapeya as means to
reach the dwelling-places of the gods (Br. v, 2, 1, 9 ff.).9
The structure of the hourglass vajra probably holds similar meanings: in
fact it takes no great effort of the imagination to descry in the quadrangular
and octagonal vajra the idea of the axis and of the division of space into the
four fundamental directions, or based on multiples of the original numerical
scheme. Evidence that this figurative typology of the vajra is connected with
the idea of the cosmic pillar and concepts associated with this sphere may also
be found in a series of textual references.

Literary investigation
The value of axis attributed to the vajra emerges in full evidence when we
read certain Vedic passages: in the Rg Veda the vajra that lies in the ocean
covered by the waters, is raised to support the heavenly vault, and is associ-

9 During the rite the sacrificant and his wife rise up on the sacrificial post and symbolically ascend to
the celestial regions. On this topic see Gonda (1954: 83; 1964-65: 265-66, repr. 1975: iv, 163-64) and Kane
(1941: ii, ii, 1209).
110 laura giuliano [8]

ated with the cosmic pillar with which Indra, having slain the dragon, puts an
end to the hierogamy between heaven and earth, divides the terrestrial from
the aerial sphere, and creates an intermediate space for life:
samudr anth ayata udna vjro abhvrtah / bhranty asmai samytah purh prasravana
balm //
[] skhe visno vitarm vi kramasva dyar deh lokm vjraya viskbhe / hnava vrtrm
rincava sindhun indrasya yantu prasav vsrstah // (Rv viii, 100, 9; 12)
The Vajra now lies at the heart of the ocean surrounded by waters on all sides. (These)
continuous streams with their floods pressing forward, bring their tribute to him []
Indra speaks: Friend Visnu, stride widely afar; O Heaven, make room for the Vajra in
order that it may support you. Let us kill Vrtra and set free the rivers. Being released,
let them move on under the command of Indra (Velankar transl. 1972: 244-45).10
In the Vedic creation myth vajra represents, on the one hand, a cosmogonic
element: it is the tool that annihilates the chaotic and demoniac powers and
frees the life potential; thus the action performed by means of this weapon
establishes the conditions for the creation of a cosmos. The attribute of Indra,
raised as a pillar to divide the spheres and support the heavenly vault, even-
tually becomes a cosmologic symbol the element about which reality is or-
dered and to which it conforms.
Vajra, then, like yupa, is equivalent to skambha.11 This vajra-skambha
equivalence can also be seen in a passage of the Maitrayani Samhita (iv, 7),
where the central part of the vajra is associated with rathaksa12 the axis on
the chariot that joins and separates the two wheels whose function is
compared to that of the pillar in Rg Veda x, 89, 4.13
Moreover, in Late Vedic literature vajra is often identified with yupa (ab. ii,
1, 3; ks. xxvi, 8; Br. iii, 6, 4, 19; 23-26; iii, 7, 1, 26) the sacrificial post, axial
element par excellence. On one hand, the association of these two concepts
is based on the idea that the yupa is like a weapon that is hurled at the enemy
during the sacrifice; the erection of the sacrificial post by the performer of the
sacrifice is equivalent to hurling the vajra (Kaus. Br. x, 1); here the cosmogo-
nic value of the two elements is brought out. At the same time, the deep
meaning of the vajra yupa equivalence lies in the axial symbolism common
to the two concepts, and the sacrificer, setting the yupa in a place that repre-
sents the navel of the world, thus renews the primordial act of Indra, who,
having slain the dragon and released the cosmic waters hidden in its belly, rais-

10 Cf. the translation by Oguibenin (1973: 81, 123).

11 For this interpretation of the vajra in the Vedic world see Gonda (1954: 85, 98) and Ogibenin (1973:
81, 123) etc.
12 More often the vajra or a part of it is identified as ratha (ts. vi, 1, 3, 4 ff.), but Das Gupta (1975: 43-
44) considers the term an ellipsis of rathaksa.
13 According to Coomaraswamy (1938b: 11, repr. 1977: i, 422-23), the wheels of the chariot, which is
the cosmic vehicle, are respectively the heavens and earth. The separation between them by means of
the chariot axis, or in other words the axis mundi, gives rise to an intermediate space in which life is born.
[9] considerations on a particular vajra iconography 111

es the cosmic pillar (Coomaraswamy 1938a (non vidi), repr. 1977: i, 403, foot-
note 65). It is, perhaps, by virtue of this equivalence that description of the
two objects tends to have certain points in common: in certain passages of
Vedic and Late Vedic literature vajra is said to have four or eight corners (catu-
rari in Rv . i, 152, 2; iv, 22, 2; astari in ab . x, 1 etc.) a characteristic also shared
by the yupa, which is described as a four or eight-cornered column (ab . ii, 1,
3; Katyay. rautas. vi, 1, 26; Kaus. Br. x, 1; Man. rautas. viii, 1, 1, 14-16; adv. Br.
vi, 4, 3; Br. iii, 6, 4, 27).14
In this context it should be noted that the terminal part of the sacrificial
post, called casala, in the case of the nirudhapaubandha rite is described hand
high, eight-cornered (as the yupa), and samsaktamadhya bent inwards in the
middle (Man. rautas. i, 8, 1, 16; van Gelder transl. 1963: 53) or madhyasan-
grhitam contracted in the middle (Katyay. rautas. vi, 1, 27; Ranade ed. and
transl. n. d.: 182) like a mortar.15
Such descriptions sort well with the vajra image depicted on the reliefs of
Saci, Gandhara, Mathura and various other sites, consisting in a kind of
double pilon (Foucher 1905: i, 57) quadrangular, octagonal or polygonal,
characterised by a tapering form at the centre that gives it the typical hour-
glass shape.
The tradition that associates the vajra with the form of the yupa is taken up
in a number of Brahmanical texts: in the Matsya Purana (255, 2) and the Brhat
Samhita (liii, 28) vajra and dvivajra are the names applied respectively to the
octagonal and sixteen-sided pillars. In the Ajitagama (xiv, 26-28), on the other
hand, the term vajrakhanda is used to indicate an octagonal pillar between
two quadrangular elements (Dagens 1984: 62).
The association between the concepts of vajra and cosmic pillar also seems
to find a place in the Buddhist world,16 where the term often appears togeth-
er with adjectives indicating stability, solidity, indestructibility and heaviness,
such as drdha, samhanana, abhedya, guru and garuka (from pali: garu)17 all
characteristics essential to the axis concept.18

14 See Kane 1941: ii, ii, 1209. On the meaning of ari as angle in connection with vajra and yupa see
Das Gupta 1975: 35 ff.
15 Out of the top portion of the three remains after making the yupa the carpenter prepares a wood-
en head piece, eight-cornered and of the lenght of the hand from the wrist to the tips of the fingers
and contracted in the middle like a mortar. This piece is called casala and is made hollow as o fit it on the
top of the yupa like a turban and the peg-like top of the yupa on which the casala is fixed should protrude
two or three angulas beyond the casala (Kane 1941: ii, ii, 1111-1112).
16 I valori-funzioni del vajra buddhista coincidono, almeno in gran parte, con i valori-funzioni as-
segnati a questo simbolo nella tradizione indiana vedica prima, brahmanica poi; valori che possono es-
sere tutti riassunti e ricondotti al concetto di axis mundi, principio cosmologico e cosmogonico, centro
ideale di emanazione e di ritorno di un universo ordinato, ampio, fertile, ricco, dominato dalla giustizia
e dal benessere, capace di generare un ordine nuovo e di mantenerlo (Santoro 1991: 298).
17 Jataka 7 (Fausboll ed. 1887: i, 134); Lalitavistara iii; vi, 1; vi, 6; xv, 21; xv, 55; xv, 72; xvii, 24; xix;
xxiii, 15; xxiii, 61 (Vaidya ed. 1958: 18, 43, 44, 147, 155, 159, 189, 202, 260, 268).
18 On the values of stability, solidity and heaviness of the vajra see Giuliano (1997: 77-80). The use of
drdha, abhedya etc. attributes in correlation with the term vajra inevitably leads to the assimilation of
112 laura giuliano [10]

Consequent upon the vajra yupa skambha association, as from the Vedic
period Indras weapon was connected with the idea of the omphalos (skt.
nabhi), or in other words the point in which the cosmic axis penetrates into
the earth navel of the world, the mythical place where heaven and earth are
separated and the cosmos comes into being. In Rg Veda ix, 72, 7 we read:
na bha prthivya dharno mah divpa m urma sndhusv antr uksitah/ndrasya vjro vrsa-
bh vibhu rasuh smo hrd pavate ca ru matsarh
The supporter of the great sky, Indras thunderbolt, the bull of abundant wealth, So-
ma, was sprinkled in the navel of the heart (Gonda 1954: 85).

The vajra-omphalos assocation again appears to be evoked in the epic texts

with the adjectival compound vajranabha, used to designate the cakra of
Visnu,19 the meaning of which has been variously rendered in a number of
interpretations, such as with a hard or adamantine nave (Begley 1973: 13),
in the navel (centre) of which is the lightning-bolt (Gonda 1954: 98),
having a hard nave (Monier Williams 1976 (vi th ed.): 913), (with a) nave
like thunder (Dutt 1954).
In any case vajranabha alludes figuratively to the linkage of two values of
fundamental importance in Indian thought. In this connection Gonda (1954:
98) explained the conceptual implications inherent in the compound thus:
the navel (place of origin, birthplace) or place of contact with life and high-
er powers contains the vajra-, the bolt instrumental in fertilizing and in pro-
moting life. He held that the place struck by the vajra-bolt, bringer of fertil-
ity and symbol of the axis mundi, is to be considered nabhi, a centre of the
world (Gonda 1964-1965: 266, repr. 1975: iv, 164).
The connection between vajra and nabhi also appears to be borne out in
the Buddhist texts. In Chapter vii of the Lalitavistara the stable, unalterable
nature of the vajra is bestowed on the land upon which the Bodhisattva takes
seven steps at the moment of birth, so that it can bear his weight. This cor-
ner of land, by virtue of taking on the nature of the vajra, thus becomes om-
phalos, the ideal centre and radial point of a universe ordered by the preach-
ing of the Law:
yada ca bodhisattvo jatamatrah sapta padani prakranto bhut asamkhyeyakalpakotinayu-
taatasahasraih sucaritacaranair mahaviryamahasthamadharmatapratilambhena tasmin
samaye daadiglokadhatusthita buddha bhagavantas tam prthvipradeam vajramayam adhi-

this with diamond. This does not clash with interpretation of the symbol as cosmic pillar, but adds new
potential to the connection. In fact, the vajra-diamond assimilation reveals a series of theoretical impli-
cations that are clarified in the tantric period: the weapon continues to be a symbol of the axis and
centre, but these values are transposed to a metaphysical and metapsychical level, and it becomes the
fundamental element upon which rests reality, Vacuity, the Absolute, impenetrable, indivisible and bril-
liant like a diamond.
19 Krsna receives from Agni the Sudarana cakra which is called vajranabha (Mbh. i, 216, 21).
[11] considerations on a particular vajra iconography 113

tisthanti sma / yena mahaprthvi tasmin pradee navatiryata (Lalitavistara vii, Vaidya ed.
1958: 63)
Et lorsque le Bdhisattva, aussitt sa naissance, se fut avanc de sept pas, aprs avoir
obtenu, au bout du temps incommensurable de cent mille Niyoutas de Kotis de Kal-
pas, par leffett de bonnes oeuvres accomplies, dtre dou dune grande nergie et
dune grande force, par lacquisition de lessence de la loi, ce moment mme, les Bou-
dhas Bhagavats qui demeurent aux dix points de lespace de la runion des mondes,
donnrent cet endroit de la terre la nature du diamant, de sorte que la grande terre,
en cet endroit, ne fut pas boulevers (Foucaux trad. 1884: i, 80).
The same concept reappears in Chapter xix of the Lalitavistara in connection
with bodhimanda, the land in which the Tree of Enlightenment sinks its roots:
sa ca prthvipradeas trisahasramahasahasralokadhatuvajrenabhidrdhah sarobhedyavajra-
mayah samsthito bhut yatra bodhisattvo nisanno bhud bodhim abhisamboddhukamah //
(Lalitavistara xix, Vaidya ed. 1958: 202)
Et cet endroit de la terre, qui est de la substance des trois mille grands milliers de
mondes, solidifi par le diamant, resta une essence de la nature du diamant, quon ne
peut briser, l o le Bodhisattva fut assis, dsireux de se revtir de lIntelligence parfaite
et accomplie (Foucaux trad. 1884: i, 240).
Bodhimanda, which partakes of the vajra nature,20 is the navel of the world
the place in which the cosmic tree penetrates the earth, where the separation
of the spheres is accomplished, and the centre from which the universe comes
into existence. Return to the primordial state, reintegration, Enlightenment
and nirvana can come about in this mythical space: a place of separation, at
the same time it also represents the gateway, the point of contact and eter-
nal dialogue between heaven and earth, between the absolute reality and the
phenomenal world. This space, corresponding to the vajrasana, is the only
place in the cosmos that can bear the weight of the Buddha at the moment
of Enlightenment.21 The Buddhas body is heavy (guru),22 his essence is vajra,
the truth that he is about to attain to is vajra: the land that is to bear the weight
of that which has the fundamental nature of vajra must in turn be constitut-
ed of vajra. From bodhimanda, which is nabhi, the navel of the earth, the place

20 See also Lalitavistara xxiii, 61 (Vaidya ed. 1958: 268):

20 vajram iva abhedya samsthita trihsahasra
20 vajramayapadenayam sthito bodhimande/
20 iha mama tvacamamsam usyatam asthimajja
20 na ca ahu aspritva bodhi utthesya asmat //
Indestructible comme le diamant et bien stable est la runion des trois mille (mondes). Il est, par sa na-
ture de diamant, solidement tabli Bdhimanda. (Il a dit): Ici ma peau et ma chair se desscheraient
ainsi que la moelle des mes os, que, sans avoir atteint lIntelligence, je ne me lverais pas dici! (Foucaux
trad. 1884: i, 307).
21 Jataka 479 (Fausboll ed. 1887: iv, 229).
22 See Lalitavistara xv, 21 etc. (Vaidya ed. 1958: 147, 165-66). On the use of the term guru see Gonda
(1947, repr. 1975).
114 laura giuliano [12]

where the tree of Enlightenment sinks its roots, the universe is created anew,
renewed by the preaching of dharma.23 Considered from the metaphoric
point of view, the vajra-thunderbolt equivalence takes on further significance.
In fact, the thunderbolt constitutes a symbol of the axis since it joins heaven
and earth and is a sign of the descent of a divine power. In this connection
Gonda (1954: 82) argued that the vajrasana compound, generally translated as
diamond-seat, must originally have had the meaning of thunderbolt-seat.
The sense of this interpretation lies in the idea of a power that traverses the
universe by means of the axis which may appear represented by the thunder-
bolt, and which makes the place it strikes sacred.

*
So far we have sought to bring light to bear on the meanings of the hour-
glass vajra, as we call it, depicted at Saci, in Gandhara and on certain re-
liefs of Mathura: comparison of the iconographic and textual evidence re-
veals that this type is associated with values of axiality and centrality. On
one hand, this interpretation is prompted by comparisons between the form
of the hourglass vajra and the structure of certain monuments and archi-
tectural elements in Indian art which are symbolic representations of the pil-
lar of the world and of related cosmologic values. At the same time, it is al-
so borne out by the evidence of Vedic texts, which identify Indras weapon
with the cosmic pillar and, in a number of passages, describe the appearance
of the vajra as perfectly reflected in that of the yupa, an equivalent of the
axis. The interpretation of the vajra as axis and the connection it shows with
the omphalos-nabhi concept also find support in Brahmanical and Buddhist
literature.
Above all, our investigation reveals that the form of the hourglass vajra
does not represent the outcome of figurative elaboration developed in the
Gandharan environment. Contrary to widely held opinion Gandhara uses a
sign that is purely Indian. In fact, this vajra typology finds a distinct match in
the iconographic repertory of Saci. Another point that needs stressing is
that it cannot be considered a pure figurative invention, as Das Gupta (1975:
15) would have it, but seems rather to have its origins and appears to be con-
structed on the basis of certain Vedic and Late Vedic descriptions of the va-
jra and the yupa or a part of it. In fact, vajra and yupa are variously described

23 In the Buddhist world the old connotations of cosmogonic and cosmologic are reinterpreted in a
psychogonic and psychological sense. The images of the vajrasana and bodhi tree express values essen-
tially referable to an inner reality. Enlightenment is an event that is accomplished in the space of con-
sciousness. Bodhimanda, which is the only point in the universe in which reintegration in the state can be
achieved, only apparently has a geographic location, its real location being psychic and universal. In this
respect it was pointed out by Coomaraswamy (1938b: 9, repr. 1977: i, 421) that the position of the Axis
of the Universe is a universal and not a local position: the navel of the earth is within you. See fur-
ther on this topic Coomaraswamy (1935: 53).
[13] considerations on a particular vajra iconography 115

as having four or eight corners (caturari, astari). Moreover, the terminal part
of the sacrificial post (casala), is defined in some passages as hand high, hav-
ing an octagonal shape and bent inwards in the middle (samsaktamadhya) or
contracted in the middle (madhyasangrhita).
These characteristics appear to be reproduced in the figure of the hour-
glass vajra, which shows the form of a double quadrangular, octagonal or
polygonal pillar, more or less tapering at the centre.
In short, the object depicted on the reliefs of Saci, Gandhara and Mathu-
ra represents the vajra in the capacity of yupa it is a sort of yupa or portable
axis mundi, the means by which the sacrifice can be performed. Here by sac-
rifice we mean that inner sacrifice implying the quest for a centre a vajrasana
in the depths of consciousness, and that has as conclusive rite self-immola-
tion at the pillar or bodhi tree which sinks its roots into that centre.24

The bone vajra and fire symbolism

Supposing the meanings we have so far inferred for the hourglass vajra ef-
fectively to apply, the choice of the Gandharan artists not to use the keraunos
iconography for the image of the weapon but rather to draw upon Indian re-
ligious and figurative tradition would seem to be motivated by the intention
of representing the vajra as axis. We find an iconographic variant of the
hourglass type in the vajra displaying a form much like a bone (Fig. 3)
above all in Gandhara which prompts further interpretation and extends the
cosmological significant of the sign. For this typology, too, the artists of the
North-West draw upon the Indian mythological repertory. In fact, the bone
vajra most likely alludes to the legend of Dadhica, known to us in various
versions in Indian Puranic and epic literature (Mbh. iii, 98, 5 ff.; xii, 285; xii,
344; Bh. Pur. vi, 10 ff.). In the account given in the Vanaparva (Mbh iii. 98. 5 ff.)
we read that, having resolved to kill Vrtra, the gods make their way to the rsi
Dadhica, whose body shone and blazed with the tejas accumulated during his
formidable ascesis, and asked him to make a gift of his bones to them, that
they might use them to forge the weapon destined to defeat Vrtra. The prel-
ude to the account given in the epic can be found as early as Rg Veda i, 84, 13-

24 During the nirudhapaubandha rite the animal to be sacrificed was bound to the yupa. The sacrifi-
cial victim, as is made quite clear in the Brahmana (Aitar. Br. ii, 11), is a substitute for or representative of
the sacrificant (Coomaraswamy 1978: 192). In some Brahmana, Aranyaka and Upanisad, the ritual act is
interiorised; during ascesis the physiological and psychic functions substitute the offerings and objects
used during the rite, and the spiritual practice becomes equivalent to formal sacrifice. The idea is that he
who performs the interior sacrifice is sacrificing his own self to the pillar of the world which is the sym-
bol of the brahman (av x, 7, 8) (Eliade 1954: 117-18). This tendency to ritual interiorization is not foreign
to Buddhism: the Buddha proclaimed that he followed the old way (Sam. Nik. ii, 106), declaring that he
did not heap up wood for the sacrifice, but lit a flame within himself, heart as hearth, the subdued self
as burning flame (Sam. Nik. i, 169), with evident reference to the teaching of the Aranyaka where the in-
ner agnihotra is described as a substitute for the Vedic sacrifice. On the inner sacrifice see also
Coomaraswamy 1978.
116 laura giuliano [14]

14, where, by means of the bones of Dadhica here known by the name of
Dadhyac, son of Atharvan, a fire priest Indra defeats ninety enemies nine
times (Bosch 1961:139-40).25
The myth suggests that vajra and the ascetics bones are closely related. We
also find the same kind of equivalence in the Buddhist texts. In the chapter vi
of the Lalitavistara, for example, the joints (samdhi) of the six-tusked elephant
that enters Mayas breast at the moment of conception are said to be as steady
as the vajra:
himarajatanibha ca sadvisanah
sucarana carubhujah suraktairsah/
udaram upagato gajapradhano
lalitagatir drdhavajragatrasamdhih //
(Lalitavistara vi, 1, Vaidya ed., 1958: 43).
Un lphant blanc comme la neige et largent, six dfenses, aux beaux pieds, la
trompe superbe, la tte bien rouge est entr dans mon sein; le plus beau des lphants,
la dmarche gracieuse, aux jointures du corps fermes comme le diamant (Foucaux
trad. 1884: i, 56).26
Thus representation of the bone vajra alludes to the connection between
the weapon and the bones of the ascetic and of exceptional beings an idea
amply documented in Indian religious tradition traces of which are also to be
found in the earliest texts.
What, then, does this connection signify?
Only a weapon that by virtue of its intrinsic nature possessed the energy,
heat and luminosity emanating from a powerful tapas could destroy Vrtra.
The legend of Dadhica reveals to us indirectly that the vajra was forged from
the bones of the sage on account of the great quantity of tejas that he had ac-
quired during a long period of ascesis. In fact, according to a Brahmanical be-
lief the tejas accumulated in a holy mans body performing rigorous tapas was
concentrated especially in the vajra-substance of his bones (Bosch 1961: 151).
The reasons for this conception can be traced back to the doctrine formu-
lated in the Chandogya Upanisad, which has it that, of the three elements pres-
ent in the human body (earth, water, fire), the fire (tejas) is manifested in the
bones (Id.: 139):
tejo itam tredha vidhiyate / tasya yah sthavistho dhatus tad asthi bhavati yo madhyamah sa
majja yo nisthah sa vak // (Ch. Up. vi, 5, 1-3)
Absorb, le tejas se rpartit en trois: les lments les plus grossiers deviennent os; les
elements moyens deviennent moelle; les plus subtils, parole (Senart ed. et trad.
1930: 82).

25 The relationship between the vajra and bones in general finds further confirmation if we recall the
Vedic epithet of the vajra: ataparvan (of 100 articulations) (R v. i, 80, 6; viii, 6, 6; viii, 76, 2; viii, 89, 3
etc.). On this subject see Das Gupta (1975: 28-30).
26 See also Lalitavistara vi, 6, Vaidya ed., 1958: 44.
[15] considerations on a particular vajra iconography 117

In the myth of Dadhica, then, the close connection between vajra and the
ascetics bones alludes indirectly to the concepts of vajra, tapas and tejas. In
fact, the bones of ascetics and sages are endowed with vajra nature, in that
the ardour and heat generated during the period of austerity flow into
them.
In the Buddhist texts the comparison between the vajra and the Buddhas
joints takes on the same meaning expressed in the epic account. The sense of
the bone vajra nexus emerges clearly from a passage in the Gao Seng Zhuan
(Shih transl. 1968: 24-25),27 which tells of a relic of the Buddha which sends
out a five-coloured light harder than metal, that cannot be consumed by fire
nor broken to pieces by the vajra; placed on the anvil, it like the vajra forged
by Tvastr remains intact under the hammer blows.
These characteristics allude to the vajra nature of the Buddhas bones.
Thus, from the mythological viewpoint, they show close equivalence with
the bones of Dadhica used to create Indras weapon (Bosch 1961: 150-151).
In many passages of early Indian literature we find more direct references
to the fiery characteristics of the bone vajra. And indeed the connection the
symbol has with fire appears hardly surprising if we recall what a powerful
part the thunderbolt image played in the vajra image, dating back to the Vedic
period. In Rg Veda we find mention of the capacity of the vajra to burn (ni
jurv -) the danava (i, 129, 1; ii, 11, 10; vi, 18, 10).28 The same function is also at-
tributed to aman and vadha two terms used as synonyms for vajra in Vedic
literature (Rv ii, 30, 5; vii, 104, 4).29
The vajra-fire-heat nexus enwrapped in the myth of Dadhica finds further
expression in many passages of Brahmanical literature. In Mahabharata v, 9,
21 the vajra is said to seem like fire, and to burn a three-headed creature. In
Vayu Purana i, 5 and ii, 8 we find described the process through which the vajra
is constructed every night with the particles of water thrown out by the
Brahmans as they recite the gayatri: this vajra burns the giants who try to
devour the sun (Mani 1975: 822). Finally, Matsya Purana xi, 29 contains an

27 Text drawn up during the Liang dynasty, between 502 and 557 AD.
28 On the functional identity between vajra and tapas in the Vedic world, see Ogibenin (1973: 110). The
relationship between vajra, fire and heat finds confirmation in various other respects if we recall that in
the Rg Veda the term tejas (from tij-: to sharpen) takes on the meaning of sharpening and is associated
with objects that are said to be sharpened like vajra, in fact, or pointed like rnga (horn), etc.
(Magnone 1993: 3). The vajra is said to be tejasa (sharpened) (R v. i, 55, 1; viii, 76, 9), tigma (sharpened)
(R v. i, 130, 4; vii, 18, 18) atateja (of a hundred blades) ( vs . i, 24; Br. i, 2, 4, 6). It was only subsequently
that the term tejas went on to indicate a powerful energy through the association with fire and heat,
which came about in virtue of the image of flames pointed like swords: Thus it appears from the
rigvedic evidence that is through the medium of the blade-like or horn-like shape of the flames that te-
jas is brought into connection with fiery ardour, whereas it is through the medium of the peculiar readi-
ness and efficacy of a sharpened instrument that tejas is thought of as a kind of energy qualifying for
powerful and incisive action (Magnone 1993: 3). Some reflections on the meaning of tejas are also to be
found in Coomaraswamy (1942 (non vidi), repr. 1977: ii, 161-62).
29 For the aman -vajra, vadha-vajra equivalences, see Das Gupta (1975: 18-21).
118 laura giuliano [16]

account of the story of Vivakarma forging the cakra, triula and vajra with
particles of the sun.
As for the Buddhist texts, we find numerous references to the blazing
aspect of the vajra. In the Culasaccakasutta of the Majjhimanikaya (xxxv)
(Trenckner, Chalmers & Rhys Davids eds. 1888-1925: i, 231), containing
an account of the meeting between the Sublime and the young Saccaka
Niganthaputta, the weapon is defined with a series of adjectives aditta,
sampajjalita, sajotibhuta indicative of luminosity and heat:
Byakarohi dani Aggivessana, na dani te tunhibhavassa kalo. Yo koci Aggivessana Tatha-
gatena yava tatiyam sahadhammikam paham puttho na byakaroti etthevassa
sattadha muddha phalatiti.Tena kho pana samayena vajirapani yakkho ayasam vajiram
adaya adittam sampajjalitam sajotibhutam Saccakassa Niganthaputtassa upari ve-
hasam thito hoti: sacayam Saccako Niganthaputto Bhagavata yava tatiyam sahadham-
mikam paham puttho na byakarissati etthevassa sattadha muddham phalessamiti.
Answer now, Aggivessana, now is not the time for you to become silent. Whoever, Ag-
givessana, on being asked a legitimate question up to the third time by the Tathagata
does not answer, verily his skull splits into seven pieces.
Now at that time the yakkha Thunderbolt-bearer, taking his iron thunderbold which
was aglow, ablaze, on fire, came to stand above the ground over Saccaka, the son of
Jains, and said: If this Saccaka, the son of Jains, does not answer when he is asked a
legitimate question up to the third time by the Lord, verily I will make his skull split
into seven pieces. (Horner transl. 1954-59: i, 285).
In the Ambatthasutta of the Dighanikaya (iii, 21), which recounts an episode
very much like the one set forth in the Majjhimanikaya, we find the same
adjectives applied to ayokuta (ayakuta), a compound used in some cases as
synonym of vajra (Giuliano 1997: 58). The vajra is also said to be pradipta and
jvalamanu in Lalitavistara xv, 61 e 65 (Vaidya ed. 1958: 158). Similarly, in the
Chinese translation of the Dharmapadavadana30 we read:
Alors le Bhagavat disparut de son pavillon avec la rapidit de lclair et, montant dans
les airs, il lana de grands rayons. Il disparut de lEst pour apparatre lOuest, et il en
fut de mme dans les quatre directions [] Purana Kayapa, tout dsorient, baissait
la tte de honte et nosait pas lever les yeux. Alors Vajrapani, le Malla, leva son vajra-
kuta au sommet duquel sortait du feu et en menaa Kayapa (Lamotte 1966: 123).
The bone vajra image, representing a variant of the hourglass type char-
acterised by more delicate, less sharply defined lines, thus brings out the fiery
characteristics of the symbol a concept recurrent in the Vedic, Brahmanical
and Buddhist literature. However, this perception of this image can be re-
ceived and understood only by those familiar with the story of Dadhica and
the conceptual implications of the bone vajra nexus. In the art of Gandhara,
and in Indian art in general, the fiery nature of the vajra finds no more spe-
30 Fa kiu pi king (Fa ju pi jing), T 211, k.3, p. 598 c 1-599 a 16 cit. by Lamotte 1966: 122, footnote 5.
[17] considerations on a particular vajra iconography 119

Fig. 6. Mural representing a seated Buddha surrounded by monks, brahmans,

lay worshippers and Vajrapani, Cave of the Painters, Ming Oi, Kizil, vi century AD. c.
(after Grundwedel 1920: ii 18, fig. 23).

cific expression, but more precise indication of this characteristic of the sign
does appear in certain Central-Asian paintings of Kizil, as in the case of the
images in the Cave of the Painters (Figs. 6-7) (Grundwedel 1912: 151, 155,
abb. 344, 353; 1920: abb. 23-24), where the hourglass vajra is represented amid
flames. The scene most likely evokes an episode similar to those described in
the Culasaccakasutta and the Ambatthasutta: in fact, the Vajrapani is depicted
holding a flaming vajra over the head of a personage who is conversing with
the Buddha, as related in those sections of Buddhist literature.
One question that remains to address is the type of relationship that asso-
ciates the bone vajra image with the pillar vajra nexus previously considered.
The fiery aspect, manifested allegorically by the Gandharan representa-
tions of the bone vajra and, more clearly in Central Asia, with depictions of
the hourglass vajra shooting out tongues of fire, is in fact not unconnected
from the idea of axis associated with this element, and indeed it completes
the cosmological meanings of the pillar vajra nexus, for the cosmic pillar is
often pictured blazing, shining and aflame, being the element that transmits
light to the spheres (Coomaraswamy 1938a (non vidi), repr. 1977: i, 387-88),
120 laura giuliano [18]

Fig. 7. Mural representing a seated Buddha surrounded by monks, lay worshippers

and Vajrapani, Cave of the Painters, Ming Oi, Kizil, vi century AD c.
(after Grundwedel 1920: ii 18, fig. 24).

and in Vedic literature it is identified with Agni (Id . 1935: 65, footnote 15; 1945:
469-70). It will be remembered that the figurative Buddhist tradition of Ama-
ravati and Nagarjunakonda represents the axis mundi as a flaming pillar,
which is the symbol of the Buddha himself (Verardi 1988: 1538), while in the
iva world the idea materialises in the image of the jyotirlinga, the linga of
light and flames rising as a column of inexhaustible fire.

Conclusions
The hourglass vajra takes on different semantic modulations that can all be
taken to refer to one fundamental concept. The literary and figurative refer-
ences lead us to believe that this type is associated with values of axiality and
centrality, while the polygonal form alludes to the division of space and the
original differentiation that is at the basis of creation itself. It is the yupa raised
for the performance of that inner sacrifice that takes place in the space of con-
sciousness.
[19] considerations on a particular vajra iconography 121

Fig. 8. Relief with Buddhas parinirvana showing a weeping Vajrapani abandoning

the vajra on the ground, 2nd-4th century AD c., Victoria and Albert Museum, London,
inv. n. I.S. 7-1948 (after Ackermann 1975: pl. lii).

The figurative variant on the hourglass vajra theme the bone vajra,
extends and explicates these meanings, alluding to the pillar endowed with
the nature of fire, energy and light an image recurrent in Buddhist iconog-
raphy and symbol of the Buddha himself.
Ultimately, this vajra is a sign of the centrality of the Buddha. This may
explain why the weeping Vajrapani abandons his attribute on the ground on
certain Gandharan reliefs representing the scene of the parinirvana, like the
fragment conserved in the Victoria & Albert Museum (Fig. 8) (Rosenfield
1967: fig. 85; Ackermann 1975: 123-24, pl. lii; Kurita 1988: i, iv, 234, fig. iii).
The Buddha is identified with the cosmic pillar: the vajra abandoned on the
ground is a vague echo of the Master lying on his side; at the level of earthly
existence, with his death the pillar is felled, as it were: the historical Buddha
can no longer represent the link between the samsaric world and the reality
of Enlightenment. What remains are his doctrine and his example.
Actually, in the Buddhist reliefs this weapon is not so much an attribute of
Vajrapani as the vajra of wisdom that the Buddha always takes with him. In
Chapters xiii and xiv of the Lalitavistara (Vaidya ed. 1958: 131, 309) Siddhartha
122 laura giuliano [20]

and the Tathagata are in fact respectively called janavaravajradrdhapraharana

and janabalavajradharin. That the vajra is a weapon ever at the Buddhas
disposal emerges clearly in a passage of the Divyavadana: here the Master has
as attribute aani, a term generally applied as a synonym of vajra, with which
he severs family ties:
[] bhavantah ramanah gautamah ksuraanim patayann aneka aputrika apatika ca kur-
vann agacchati / (Divyavadana ix, Cowell & Neil eds. 1886: 126).
Le ramana Gutama savance, frappant avec le tranchant de la foudre, et privant les
pres de leurs enfants, et les femmes de leurs maris (Burnouf 1876: 169).31
In this sense the figure of Vajrapani merely represents a functional support to
the symbol he bears: nest pas, proprement parler un personnage; cest
comme on dit en langage de thtre unmploi (Foucher 1905: i, 60).
Indeed, I would go as far as suggesting the possibility that the personage
was perceived, at least in an early phase of Gandharan art, as a sort of per-
sonification of the vajra itself,32 with his appearance further explicating the
values and significance of the symbol.
Thus we see the scope for research opening up before us, and we can only
hope that others will direct their efforts along these lines.
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Abbreviations
ab . = Aitareya Brahmana
av . = Atharva Veda
Bh. Pur. = Bhagavata Purana
Ch.Up. = Chandogya Upanisad
Katyay. rautas. = Katyayana rautasutra
Kaus.B. = Kausitaki Brahmana
KS. = Kathaka Samhita
Man. raut. = Manava rautasutra
Mbh. = Mahabharata
ms . = Maitrayani Samhita
Rv . = Rg Veda
adv. Br. = advima Brahmana
Br. = atapatha Brahmana
Sam. Nik. = Samyutta Nikaya
ts . = Taittiriya Samhita