Yidam

Tib., yi-dam

The personal deity (male or female) of a practitioner, embodying her or his potential nature once it is awakened; chosen and visualized according to one's psychologial makeup. There are six types of yidam, with the defining attributes of a given deity depending on a) gender and b) the three qualities defined as gentle, semi-fierce or fierce.

male: signifies awakened energy, skillful means, and bliss
female: signifies compassion, emptiness, and profound cognition (or wisdom)
gentle: stimulates the gentle aspects of a student and awaken his or her openness
semi-fierce: represents the energy that finds expression in both passion and anger
fierce: symbolizes the dynamic energy of true anger, cutting through all superficial compassion and learned disbelief in oneself and one's intrinsic buddha-nature

Each possible mixture of gender and quality has a collective, typological name

	gentle	semi-fierce	fierce (wrathful)
female Skt. Tib. individual examples	Bhagavati bhagavati bcom-ldan-'das-ma	Dakini, Khadroma dakini mKha'-'Gro-ma Vajra Yogini	Dakini, Khadroma dakini mKha'-'Gro-ma Sarvabuddhadakini Simhamukha, Simhavaktra Vajravarahi
male Skt. Tib. individual examples	Bhagavat bhagavat bcom-ldan-'das	Daka daka dpa'-bo (hero, warrior) Hevajra	Heruka heruka khrag-'thung (blood-drinker) Chakrasamvara Chandamaharosana Hayagriva