Wisdom King

A wisdom king (Sanskrit: विद्याराज; IAST: vidyārāja, Chinese: 明王; pinyin: Míngwáng; Japanese pronunciation: Myōō) is a type of wrathful deity in East Asian Buddhism.

Whereas the Sanskrit name is translated literally as "wisdom / knowledge king(s)," the term vidyā in Vajrayana Buddhism is also specifically used to denote mantras; the term may thus also be rendered "mantra king(s)." Vidyā is translated in Chinese with the character 明 (lit. "bright, radiant", figuratively "knowledge(able), wisdom, wise"), leading to a wide array of alternative translations such as "bright king(s)" or "radiant king(s)". A similar category of fierce deities known as herukas are found in Tibetan Buddhism.

The female counterparts of wisdom kings are known as wisdom queens (Sanskrit (IAST): vidyārājñī, Chinese: 明妃, Míngfēi, Japanese: Myōhi).

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