Mahakala
| Mahakala | |
|---|---|
God of Time, Maya, Creation, Destruction and Power | |
Mahākāla and companions | |
| Affiliation | Shiva |
| Abode | Śmaśāna (but varies by interpretation) |
| Weapon | Khanda, Trishula, Hammer (in Japanese depictions) |
| Consort | Parvati as Mahakali |
Mahākāla (Sanskrit: महाकाल, pronounced [mɐɦaːˈkaːlɐ]) is a deity common to Hinduism and Buddhism.
In Buddhism, Mahākāla is regarded as a Dharmapāla ("Protector of the Dharma") and a wrathful manifestation of a Buddha, while in Hinduism, Mahākāla is a fierce manifestation of the Hindu god Shiva and the consort of the goddess Mahākālī; he most prominently appears in the Kalikula sect of Shaktism.
Mahākāla appears as a protector deity in the various traditions of Vajrayana Buddhism, like Chinese Esoteric Buddhism, Shingon, and Tibetan Buddhism. He is known as Dàhēitiān and Daaih'hāktīn (大黑天) in Mandarin and Cantonese, Daeheukcheon (대흑천) in Korean, Đại Hắc Thiên in Vietnamese, and Daikokuten (大黒天) in Japanese.