The Routledge Dictionary of Gods and Goddesses , Devil and Demons
(Sanskrit=immeasurable light; Chinese A-mi-t’o or O-mi-to) The most popular of the five → Dhyāni-Buddhas. He is enthroned in heaven as lord of the paradisical land of Sukhavati, entry into which is vouchsafed to all who believe in him.
His celestial direction is the west, his element is water and he is associated with the evening twilight. In iconography, he is represented as a redcoloured Buddha, both of his hands lie open in his lap in the pose of meditation. His ceremonial vehicle is a pair of peacocks, and he is symbolized by a lotus or an alms-bowl. The Amitābha cult reached China from India in the fourth—sixth centuries AD, and spread thence to Japan (→ Amida).
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