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The Goddess Sarasvati plays an important part in the Buddhist pantheon like that of in Brahmanical and Jaina. I
It appears that the Buddhists have borrowed the idea and concept of the goddess of learning from the Brahmanical pantheon. 9? However in the vajrayāna pantheon, her popularity increased. Since she was the Hindu goddess of learning, she was associated with Mañusti, the Buddhist God of transcendental wisdom and also with Prajñāpāramitā, considered to be the goddess of transcendental wisdom. Her worship is widely prevalent among the followers of Buddhism like Manjusri and Prajñāpāramitā, because she is also believed by the Buddhists
as bestowing knowledge, wisdom and memory.
Sarasvati has five different forms in Buddhist
Iconography. The sādhanamālā contains the iconographic
features of these forms wheir are stated below.
- i)
Manā sarasvati :
The Goddess is two-armed, shows the Varadamudrā
in her right hand and carries in the left the white lotus
with its stem. She is white-complexioned, extremely
compassionate, having a smiling face and wears garments
decorated with white sandal flowers. The Goddess is
conceived as twelve years old. She is always being surrounded
by four deities identical in form with herself - Prajña in front of her, Medhā to her right, Smțiti to her left, and Mati in the west. These four divinities may also accompany
other varieties of Sarasvati."
