Dīpankara Buddha

Dīpankara Buddha
Ascetic Sumedha and Dipankara Buddha
Sanskrit	Dīpaṃkara
Pāli	Dīpaṃkara
Burmese	ဒီပင်္ကရာ ([dìpɪ̀ɴkəɹà])
Chinese	燃燈佛 (Hanyu Pinyin: Rándēng Fó)
Japanese	燃燈仏 (ねんとうぶつ)
Korean	Hangul: 연등불; RR: Yeondeungbul
Mongolian	ᠵᠣᠯᠠ ᠢᠢᠨ ᠵᠥᠬᠢᠶᠠᠭᠴᠢ᠂ ᠳᠢᠸᠠᠩ᠋ᠭᠠᠷ; Зулын Зохиогч, Дивангар; Zula yin Zohiyagci, Divangar
Thai	พระทีปังกรพุทธเจ้า
Tibetan	mar me mdzad
Vietnamese	Nhiên Đăng Phật
Information
Venerated by	Theravada, Mahayana, Vajrayana
Attributes	Causer of Light
Preceded by	Saraṇaṅkara
Succeeded by	Koṇḍañña

Dīpankara (Sanskrit and Pali Dīpaṃkara, "Lamp bearer") is one of the Buddhas of the past. He is said to have lived on Earth one hundred thousand years ago.

Theoretically, the number of Buddhas having existed is enormous and they are often collectively known under the name of "Thousand Buddhas". Each was responsible for a life cycle. According to some Buddhist traditions, Dīpankara was a Buddha who reached enlightenment eons prior to Gautama Buddha, the historical Buddha.

Generally, Buddhists believe that there has been a succession of many Buddhas in the distant past and that many more will appear in the future; Dīpankara, then, would be one of numerous previous Buddhas, while Gautama was the most recent, and Maitreya will be the next Buddha in the future.

Chinese Buddhism tends to honor Dīpankara as one of many Buddhas of the past. Dīpankara, Gautama, and Maitreya are "the Buddhas of Three Times".

Dīpankara is generally represented as a sitting Buddha, but his depictions as a standing Buddha are common in China, Thailand, and Nepal; with the right hand he generally forms a protection mudra (abhaya mudra), and often he forms it with both hands.

Dīpankara is rarely depicted alone; one of the Buddhas of Bamiyan, destroyed by the Taliban government in Afghanistan in 2001, was said to portray Dīpankara. Statues of Dīpankara can also be found in the Longmen and Yungang Grottoes in China.

He is generally depicted with two bodhisattvas, Manjusri and Vajrapani (common in Java) or Avalokiteśvara and Vajrapani (common in Sri Lanka); or with the Buddhas who come after him, Gautama and Maitreya.