Amitabha Buddha Thangka Painting

One of the most important of the five cosmic figures of Himalayan Esoteric Buddhism is Amitabha, also called Amitayus Buddha. Amitabha Buddha has manifested as the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara and the historical Buddha Gotama. Amitabha has great spiritual significance as the head of the Padma family, one of the Five Directional Buddhas.

Amida in Japanese, Amita in Korean, A-di-da in Vietnamese, Am-mi-to in Chinese, and Amideva in Tibetan chants are some of the names used to refer to Amitabha in different cultures. In observance of his divine presence, his followers commemorate his birth on the seventeenth day of the eleventh lunar month.