Ushnisha Sitatapatra (उष्णीष सितातपत्र/सितातपतत्रा)

Sanskrit. ‘White Umbrella (of the) Turban’. Name of a ferocious, wrathful, multi-armed goddess worshipped in Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism, who emerged from the Buddha's ushnisha, i.e. the protuberance on his head (fig.), which is one of the signs of his Enlightenment and literally translates as ‘turban’, in order to fight the asuras (demons), who had planned an attack on the Buddha and the devis (gods), when the latter were gathered in the Tavatimsa Heaven to listen to the Buddha's elucidation of a sutra. When attacked, Ushnisha Sitatapatra emanated from the Buddha's protuberance and consequently pulverized the entire army of demons with a single blow of her weapon, and thus became the protector against supernatural dangers. Her attribute, by which she became known, is a white umbrella or parasol, known in Sanskrit as Sitatapatra. Her name, i.e. White Umbrella [of the] Turban, is perhaps best understood to mean ‘[the one with] the white umbrella, [who emerged from] the ushnisha’. She is sometimes regarded as the counterpart of Avalokitesvara, the bodhisatva of compassion. 回