The Five Buddha Family of Kalachakra Tantra

The attributes and qualities of the Five Buddha Families may seem definitive. 

Akshobhya and Vairochana frequently interchange their central and eastern positions. Most of the yoga tantras have the peaceful white form of Vairochana at their center. Whilst many of the anuttarayoga tantras have blue Akshobhya at their center.

Similarly one can deduce that blue Akshobhya associate with the delusion of anger. And white Vairochana with the delusion of ignorance. Each of the colored directional faces of deities is associated with one of the delusions. And also, with the elements and directions.

The white face of a deity symbolizes the transmutation of ignorance.

The blue or black face shows that of anger.

The red face represents passion, attachment, or desire.

The yellow face, that of pride, and the green face, that of envy or jealousy.

We have similar figures of speech in our proverbial comparisons. Like, turning 'black with anger', blushing 'red with embarrassment or lust, becoming green with envy,' 'yellow with swollen pride: a blank with ignorance.

Five Buddha and the Female Consort:

Each of the Five Buddhas is the Lord of a Family '(kula). It consists of a female consort and Bodhisattva as 'spiritual sons or sambhogakaya offspring.

1. Blue Akshobhya, as Lord of the Vajra Family, has as his female consort the goddess Mamaki. She can extinguish hatred, and as his Bodhisattva, the wrathful blue Vajrapani.

From Akshobhya descends a large pantheon of blue wrathful deities.They are described as bearing the seal or image of Akshobhya on the crown of their heads. Heruka, Hevajra, Yamari, Vajrakila, Buddhakapala and Mahiamaya are all emanations of Akshobhya.

2. White Vairochana, as Lord of the Tathagata (Buddha) Family, has Locharia. She can extinguish ignorance. She is his consort and Akashagarbha or Samantabhadra as his Bodhisattva.

From Vairochana descend many major goddesses, such as Ushnishavijaya, Marichi, Sitatapatra, and Vajravarahi.

3. Yellow Ratnasambhava is Lord of the Ratna (jewel) Family. He has as his consort Vajradhatvishvari. She can extinguish pride. And Ratnapani or Kshitigarbha as his Bodhisattva.

From Ratnasambhava descend the wealth god Jambhala. And also goddesses such as Vasudhara, and certain forms of Tara.

4. Red Amitabha is Lord of the Padma (lotus) Family. He has as his consort Pandara, 'she who can extinguish desire.' And Padmapani or Avalokiteshvara as his Bodhisattva.

From Amitabha descend the many forms of Avalokiteshvara. And deities such as Hayagriva, Kurukulla, Mahabala, and Bhrikuti.

5. Green Amoghasiddhi is Lord of the Karma (activity) Family. He has Green Tara as his consort and Vishvapani as his Bodhisattva. From Amoghasiddhi descend goddesses Khadiravani Tara, Arya Tara, Sita Tara, Mahamayuri, and Parnashavari.

Pattern of the Buddha Families

A coherent principle of emanations; the linear descent of deities is definitive and categorized. However, a far more intricate pattern of the Buddha Families emerges when we look into their historical origins. Originally there were only Three Buddha Family.

• of Ignorance (Tathagata),
• of Desire (Padma),
• and Anger (Vajra)

These correspond to the three primal poisons of ignorance, desire, and aversion. They are symbolized by the pig, cockerel, and snake depicted at the central hub of the early wheel of life painting.

This trinity was symbolically related to the trinities of the 'three gates' (body, speech, and mind). And the three directions (zenith, center, and nadir). As well as the three psychic centers (crown, throat, and heart). And to the Hindu trinity of Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva. They represent creation, preservation, and destruction. A significant vestige of the three original Buddha Families survives in the importance placed on the Three great Bodhisattva : Manjushri, Avalokiteshvara, and Vajrapani. They are collectively known as the 'Lords of the Three Families, although they are Bodhisattva and not Buddha.

• Red- yellow Manjushri's sword of wisdom cuts through the veil of ignorance. He is the Lord of the Tathagata (Buddha) Family of ignorance or delusion.
• White Avalokiteshvara's lotus represents the transmutation of passion into compassion. He is the Lord of the Padma (lotus) Family of desire or attachment.
• Black-blue Vajrapani's wrathful demeanor represents the transmutation of hatred into power or energy. He is the Lord of the Vajra Family of aversion and anger Buddhism.

Systems of Categorization:

There are systems for categorizing phenomena, qualities, and attributes. Early Mahayana Buddhism developed a threefold division. It consisted of the two Hinayana or lesser vehicle paths of the shraakus (devoted listeners) and pratyeka buddhas (solitary realizers). And the third greater path vehicle 'of the Bodhisattva or enlightened spiritual heroes '- the Mahayana. These correspond to the 'three scopes.' The aspirations of individuals on a path of the lesser, middle, and great scope of spiritual aspiration.

A similar categorization is applied to the Lords of the Three Families (kulas). It defines the Vajra family as a smaller scope. The Lotus family is the middle scope. And the Tathagata family as the highest scope.

This spiritual hierarchy is illustrated by depicting Manjushri above Avalokiteshvara and Vajrapani. The three bodhisattvas form a trinity of the Buddha's qualities of wisdom, compassion, and power. Early Vajrayana Buddhism expanded this original group of three into four, five, and finally six. Placing Vajradhara or Vajrasattva above the central position as the sixth 'over-lord' of all Five Buddha Families. The addition of the other two poisons of pride and jealousy created a five fold system. It lies in the center with four cardinal directions.

The principle of the Five Buddha Families finds its clearest expression in the layout of the geometrical mandala. In Nepal, they also assumed vivid expression in their sculptural representation at the four cardinal directions of the stupa. The fifth Buddha (Vairochana or Akshobhya) of the stupa's center is usually in the northeast inter cardinal direction.

The development of the Three Buddha Families into the Five Buddha Families may still retain some semblance of cohesion. However, the complexity is again compounded when we discover that there was not only one original group of Five Buddhas, but several.