VAJRAPĀṆI. "As for Vajrapāṇi … I confess to finding him by far the most interesting divine being throughout the whole history of Buddhism, for he has a personal history and considerable personal character." David Snellgrove's words were published in his magnum opus, Indo-Tibetan Buddhism (p. 134) in 1987, the year of this encyclopedia's first edition. Only now has Vajrapāṇi (Tib., Phyag na rdo rje [Chagna dorje]) gained his own independent entry. His promotion in the secondary literature echoes his unparalleled rise within the history of Indian and Tibetan Buddhism (with successes also in Central Asian, Chinese, Southeast Asian, and Japanese Buddhisms). From a half-tamed spirit who became the Buddha's constant companion, this protean shape-shifter graduates first into a bodhisattva and then into a deity before transcending everything as the primordial Ādibuddha, Vajradhara. However, Vajrapāṇi's progress extends backwards too, before...