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__Diatribe__
So what the hell is that bowtie, double-headed-crown-scepter, back massager looking-thing anyway?
from the "you *had* to ask" files of Jai-fellow Virgo like Hakkai-and like him can be full of lotsa useless information....
Kami-sama uses it on his enemy. It's a funky looking little thing, ne? But the question remains...what the hell is it?
Yea, you know what I am talking about...
Kami-sama's evil little weapon that inflicts great pain on others. Well, if it did not wreak a massive amount of pain, why would he bother using it?
The technical term for it is a "thunderbolt scepter." In the Tibetan language, it is known as a "dorje." In Sanskrit, it is a "vajra." This 'dorje' (I will refer to it as this as it's the most familiar to me) is actually a very important and complex symbol of Tibetan Buddhist. It is paired with a bell (Tib: drilbu, San: ghanta) Together they symbolize "means and wisdom" Their role in ceremonies and rites are indispensable.
Together the dorje and drilbu form an honorable purity... "with the truth that no force, no weapon can destroy."
They also symbolize the victory of knowledge over ignorance and over the poisons that tarnish existence.
*Thinks of Kami-sama* Interesting, that.
The dorje is held in the right hand of the practitioner-a indication of stability whereas the bell is held in the left hand as a symbol of the wisdom of impermanence. This becomes the unification of masculine (dorje) power and feminine (drilbu) energy. A unity of absolute and relative truth.
There are different kinds of dorje bringing along their different set of symbols. Kami-sama has the double dorje, so I'll focus on that.
This is also known as the intersected vajra and can be interpreted as the " Wheel of the Good Law"
*snerk*
Kami-sama's dorje is called this because of the two thunderbolts in the center. This indicates the indestructibility of the essence of all phenomena, the most thorough comprehension of the unyielding truth.
Whoa, pretty heavy, ne?
Together the dorje and drilbu are a marriage of opposites....black and white, yin and yang, sunset and sunrise, darkness and light. However, Kami-sama only takes on the masculine power of the dorje to use to his advantage. And what a bizarre and dark twist on this holy article it is!
Well, just thought you'd like to know.....
-Jai, who on her next visit to the temple, will never see the dorje quite the same.
photo and info from "Symbols of Tibetan Buddhism" It's a good read.
