King Trisong Detsen is regarded as a human emanation of Vajrapani, the bodhisattva of power, his royal authority and military might serving as the worldly expression of Vajrapani's wrathful force to establish and protect the dharma in Tibet.
The Rigsum Gonpo are the three bodhisattva protectors of Tibet: Chenrezig embodies compassion, Manjushri embodies wisdom, and Vajrapani embodies power. Together they guard the Tibetan people and the dharma.
Vajrapani, the wrathful protector and wielder of the vajra, is the same bodhisattva in Indian and Tibetan Buddhist traditions — transmitted through tantric lineages and central to Vajrayana practice as the embodiment of all buddhas' power.
Vajrapani wields the vajra as protector of the Buddha and lord of all wrathful deities, his very name meaning 'Vajra in Hand,' the indestructible thunderbolt-diamond inseparable from his identity and power.
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