Coming from the concept of Vajyarana that " Everything " is Voidness, and thus in Vajrayana monks not only work with concepts of " Good "; but they also work with concepts of " Evil ".

In India, Buddhist monasteries gradually developed into centres of learning where philosophical principles were developed and debated ; this tradition is currently preserved by monastic universities of Vajrayana Buddhists, as well as religious schools and universities founded by religious orders across the Buddhist world.

Padmasambhava, The Lotus Born, was a sage guru from Oḍḍiyāna who is said to have transmitted Vajrayana Buddhism to Bhutan and Tibet and neighbouring countries in the 8th century

Vajrayana ( Devanagari: वज ् रय ा न ; Oriya: ବଜ ୍ ରଯ ା ନ, Tibetan: ར ྡོ་ ར ྗེ་ ཐ ེ ག ་ པ ་, rdo rje theg pa ; Mongolian: Очирт хөлгөн, Ochirt Hölgön, Chinese: 密宗, mì zōng ) is also known as Tantric Buddhism, Tantrayāna, Mantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Esoteric Buddhism and the Diamond Vehicle.

Vajrayana is a complex and multifaceted system of Buddhist thought and practice which evolved over several centuries.

A distinctive feature of Vajrayana Buddhism is the use of rituals, which are Skillful Means ( Upaya ).

The literature of Vajrayana is absent from the oldest Buddhist literature of the Pali Canon and the Agamas.

The basic position of Vajrayana is still the same as the early Buddhist position of not-self: there is nothing which is eternal.

Nalanda University in eastern India became a center for the development of Vajrayana theory, although it is likely that the university followed, rather than led, the early Tantric movement.

Vajrayana is firmly grounded in Mahayana-philosophy, especially Madhyamaka.

Vajrayana subscribes to the two truths doctrine of conventional and ultimate truths, which is present in all Buddhist tenet systems.

The two truths doctrine is a central concept in the Vajrayana path of practice and is the philosophical basis for its methods.

The goal of spiritual practice within the Mahayana and Vajrayana traditions is to become a Bodhisattva ( i. e. attainment of a state in which one will subsequently become a Buddha -- after some further reincarnation ), whereas the goal for Theravada practice is specific to become an arahant ( i. e. attain enlightenment with no intention of returning, not even as a Buddha ).

In the Vajrayana the " path of the fruit " is taken whereby the practitioner takes his or her innate Buddha-nature as the means of practice.

Experiencing ultimate truth is said to be the purpose of all the various tantric techniques practiced in the Vajrayana.

As with the Mahayana, motivation is a vital component of Vajrayana practice.

The Bodhisattva-path is an integral part of the Vajrayana, which teaches that all practices are to be undertaken with the motivation to achieve Buddhahood for the benefit of all sentient beings.

The distinctive feature of Vajrayana Buddhism is ritual, which is used as a substitute or alternative for the earlier abstract meditations.

The Vajrayana is based on the concept of " skilful means " ( Sanskrit: upaya ) as formulated in Mahayana Buddhism.

Vajrayana Buddhism is esoteric, in the sense that the transmission of certain teachings only occurs directly from teacher to student during an initiation or empowerment and cannot be simply learned from a book.

# Marpa ( 1012 – 1097 ), the first Tibetan in the lineage, who translated the Vajrayana and Mahamudra texts into Old Tibetan

So the Vajrayana is sometimes rendered in English as " The Adamantine Vehicle " or " The Diamond Vehicle ".

In Vajrayana Buddhism, the Diamond Realm ( Skt.

Vajrayana can also be seen as the third of the three " turnings of the wheel of dharma ":

Vajrayana can be distinguished from the Sutrayana.

According to the Vajrayana tradition, at certain times the bodymind is in a very subtle state which can be used by advanced practitioners to transform the mindstream.

All ritual in Vajrayana practice can be seen as aiding in this process of visualization and identification.

Inducing or otherwise causing an abortion is regarded as a serious matter in the monastic rules followed by both Theravada and Vajrayana monks ; monks can be expelled for assisting a woman in procuring an abortion.

In the Vajrayana, a more liberal definition of Sangha can include all practitioners who are actively using the Buddha's teachings to benefit themselves and / or others.

In Hindu Tantra, as well as Buddhist Tantra ( or Vajrayana ), materials and colors of the beads can relate to a specific practice.

This deity can also be understood as a Yidam, or ' meditation Buddha ' for Vajrayana practice

Vajrayana techniques incorporate many visualizations / imaginations during meditation, and most of the elaborate tantric art can be seen as aids to these visualizations ; from representations of meditational deities ( yidams ) to mandalas and all kinds of ritual implements.

In Vajrayana, practitioners ( sadhakas ) can visualize the refuge tree, and to aid this interior viewing, the refuge tree is typically depicted on scroll paintings ( thangka ) or murals.

It is often done once or more times a day and can vary amongst the Theravada, Mahayana, and Vajrayana sects.

This deity can also be understood as a Yidam, or ' meditation Buddha ' for Vajrayana practice.

Vajrayana techniques incorporate many visualizations / imaginations during meditation, and most of the elaborate tantric art can be seen as aids to these visualizations ; from representations of meditational deities ( yidams ) to mandalas and all kinds of ritual implements.

In this Vajrayana version, the monster Rahu steals the amrit and is blasted by Vajrapani's thunderbolt.

More specifically, Tibetan Buddhism contains Tantric Buddhism, also known as Vajrayana Buddhism for its common symbolism of the vajra, the diamond thunderbolt ( known in Tibetan as the dorje ).

Tibetan Buddhism contains Tantric Buddhism, also known as Vajrayana Buddhism for its common symbolism of the vajra, the diamond thunderbolt ( known in Tibetan as the dorje ).

More specifically, Tibetan Buddhism is a subset of Tantric Buddhism, also known as Vajrayana Buddhism for its common symbolism of the vajra, the diamond thunderbolt ( known in Tibetan as the dorje ).

Refuge in the Dharma, in the Vajrayana, tradition includes reference not only to the words of the Buddha, but to the living experience of realization and teachings of fully realized practitioners.

In the Pañcakrama tantric tradition ascribed to ( the Vajrayana ) Nagarjuna, ānāpānasmṛti counting breaths is said to be sufficient to provoke an experience of vipaśyanā ( although it occurs in the context of " formal tantric practice of the completion stage in highest yogatantra ").