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).
Hinduism
In Hinduism, abhasvaras refers to a class of deities featured in the Puranas. They are 64 in number, and described to be personifications of mental qualities, serving as the sovereigns of all varieties of spiritual and physical enlightenment. The twelve primary abhasvaras are:
- 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.
References
- Werner, Karel (2005-08-11). A Popular Dictionary of Hinduism. Routledge. p. 29. ISBN 978-1-135-79752-2.
- Dalal, Roshen (2014-04-18). Hinduism: An Alphabetical Guide. Penguin UK. p. 103. ISBN 978-81-8475-277-9.
- 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.
- 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.