Abhasvaras

Abhasvaras (Sanskrit: आभास्वर, romanized: Ābhāsvara) is a term used in Buddhism to refer to a heaven and in Hinduism to refer to a class of deities.

Buddhism

In Buddhism, Abhasvaras is the name of a heaven. The words roots are Sanskrit (from "a" near to, towards + the verbal root "bhas" to shine upon, illuminate).^{[citation needed]}

Hinduism

In Hinduism, abhasvaras refers to a class of deities featured in the Puranas. They are 64 in number,^[1] and described to be personifications of mental qualities, serving as the sovereigns of all varieties of spiritual and physical enlightenment.^[2] The twelve primary abhasvaras are:^[3]

• Ātmā
• Jñātā
• Dama
• Dānta
• Śānti
• Jñāna
• Sama
• Tapas
• Kāma
• Krodha
• Mada
• Moha

The abhasvaras are referred to as one of the nine gana deities: adityas, visvedevas, vasus, tushitas, abhasvaras, anilas, maharajikas, sadhyas, and the rudras. They are stated to be the attendants of deities such as Shiva, Ganesha, and Vayu, dwelling on Gaṇaparvata, located on Kailasha.^[4]

References

1. Werner, Karel (2005-08-11). A Popular Dictionary of Hinduism. Routledge. p. 29. ISBN 978-1-135-79752-2.
2. Dalal, Roshen (2014-04-18). Hinduism: An Alphabetical Guide. Penguin UK. p. 103. ISBN 978-81-8475-277-9.
3. Danielou, Alain (2017-01-01). The Myths and Gods of India: The Classic Work on Hindu Polytheism. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 303. ISBN 978-81-208-3638-9.
4. Walker, Benjamin (2019-04-09). Hindu World: An Encyclopedic Survey of Hinduism. In Two Volumes. Volume I A-L. Routledge. p. 397. ISBN 978-0-429-62465-0.