Cundī

Cundī appears in Mahāyāna sutra literature as a buddha‑mother whose dhāraṇī the Buddha pronounces and authorizes for recitation. Texts cited in the tradition include the Saptakoṭibuddhamātṛ Cundī Dhāraṇī Sūtra and a work commonly titled Buddha Pronounces the Sutra of the Great Cundī Dharani, which frame the formula as a scripturally sanctioned method: practitioners (monastics and laity) who uphold and recite the dhāraṇī are promised concrete soteriological rewards, including the expunging of grave sins if the dhāraṇī is recited in large prescribed numbers (for example, a sutra passage promises that recitation 800,000 times will expunge sins accumulated over innumerable kalpas). The corpus thus situates Cundī as an Indian‑origin Mahāyāna devotional and ritual figure assimilated into Chinese liturgical practice.

The supplied sources identify Cundī as a female buddha‑mother figure and emphasize ritual/iconic elements associated with her cult rather than a fixed physical description. Chinese practice prescribes a specific mudra performed while reciting the Cundī dhāraṇī and sometimes uses a circular mirror as a ritual implement. Beyond these devotional traits and the general characterization as a mother‑deity in sutra titles, the provided materials do not supply a consistent, detailed iconographic account.

Across the attested literature and devotional materials Cundī is credited with several efficacious functions: purification of negative karma and expiation of sins; protection from evil forces; and support for spiritual progress that can hasten attainment of buddhahood. Sutra texts and ritual manuals present the dhāraṇī as having quantifiable efficacy (e.g., promises tied to numbers of recitations such as 800,000 repetitions producing complete expiation of certain grave sins). Ritual performance typically combines the dhāraṇī with a prescribed mudra and the ritual context of temple, monastic, or retreat practice.