By Jit Majumdar
- wheel of union
- wheel of perfect bliss; supreme bliss of the wheel
- a meditational deity or iśţa-deva of the Anuttara Tantra (Highest Yoga) class of Vajrayāna Buddhism. Also called Heruka, and regarded as a manifestation of Buddha Śākyamuņi, symbolizing enlightenment through the blissful union of compassion (himself) and wisdom (his consort). He is typically depicted standing upright in the pratyālīdha (left leg forward) posture, with the female deity Kālarātri and the male deity Bhairava, who represent nirvāņa (salvation) and sańsāra (life) respectively – symbolizing the transcendence of these two extremes. He is depicted with a dark blue complexion, three eyes, four faces, an intense expression, and twelve arms holding various ritual objects, wearing a garland of human skulls, a crown featuring 16 spires, embracing his consort Vajravārāhī in the yuganaddha or yab-yum position;
- a Vajrayāna Tantric text about the same deity, also known as Śrīherukābhidhāna and Laghusamvara, and as Korlo Demchog Gyud, khor lo sdom pa or bde mchog gi rgyud in Tibetan, composed in northern India in the late 8th / early 9th century, and is one of the most important texts of the Mother Tantra categories of texts.