This article is about the singular deity called Brahma who is the ruler of Brahma world. For Class of deities or realm in Buddhist mythology, see
Brahmā (Buddhism).
This article is about Deity Brahma in Buddhist View.. For Brahma in Hindu View, see
Brahma.
Mahābrahmā (Tibetan: tshangs pa chen po; Chinese/Japanese: 大梵天 Daibonten; Sinhala: මහා බ්රහ්ම; Thai: มหาพรหฺมฺา), sometimes only called Brahma, is the ruler of the Brahma World (Brahmaloka) in the
Buddhist cosmology. He is considered the protector of Buddhist teachings (Pali: Dhammapala; Sanskrit: Dharmapala). Mahabrahma is generally represented in Buddhist culture as a god with four faces and four arms like other Brahmas, and variants of him are found in different Buddhist cultures.[1] The Mahābrahmā, or the Great Brahma, is mentioned in
Digha Nikaya as the being who dwells in the upper heaven; a Buddhist student can join him for one kalpa (eon, Brahma-year in Buddhism) after successfully entering the first
jhana in the form realm of Buddhist practice.[2]
Mahabrahma with other notable brahmas are revered by Buddhists around the world. One can find statues of Mahabrahma in many Buddhist temples. Various temples like
Erawan Shrine in Thailand are dedicated to Mahabrahma.
Buddhism is a religion which does not include the belief in a
creator deity, or any eternal divine personal being.[3][4][5] Buddhism assumes that the universe has no ultimate beginning to it, and thus sees no need for a creator God.
Buddhist texts posits that deities such as Mahabrahma are misconstrued to be a creator.[6] During the
Vivartakalpa, a deity from
Abhassara plane was reborn in the
Mahabrahma plane, as many living beings forget about their past life, this too happened with the Mahabrahma, and being unaware of the above planes of existence, he felt alone. He longed for the presence of others. After some time, many other deities from the above planes were also reborn in those brahma planes, as his ministers and companions.[7] Seeing this happen, he falsely believed himself to be their creator. This belief, states the Buddhist texts, was then shared by other deities. Eventually, however one of the deities died and was reborn as a human. Through meditation, he got the power to remember his previous life.[6] He went on to teach what he remembered from his previous life in the lower heaven, that Mahabrahma was the creator of the universe. This teaching led to the widespread human belief in a creator god, according to the
Pali Canon.[6]
Mahabrahma is called as Phra Phrom (
Thai: พระพรหม; from
Sanskrit/
Pali:
Brahmā, ब्रह्मा) in
Thailand. In Thai culture, he is regarded as the deity of good fortune and protection. As early as the 1980s, the popularity of the
Erawan cult of Phra Phrom from its inceptions in Thailand spread, accompanied by faithful reproduction of the structure of the shrine and the image, among overseas Buddhists in other countries of
Southeast Asia (
Singapore,
Indonesia and
Malaysia), in
Taiwan, and in
China. A statue of Phra Phrom can also be found on the ground of the
Government House of Thailand.