The chatra (from Sanskrit: छत्र, meaning "umbrella")[a] is an auspicious symbol in Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.
| Translations of Chatra | |
|---|---|
| English | Umbrella |
| Sanskrit | Chatra |
| Pali | Chatta |
| Burmese | ထီး |
| Chinese | 伞/傘, 伞盖/傘蓋 (Pinyin: sǎn, sǎn gài) |
| Japanese | 傘, 傘蓋 (Rōmaji: san/kasa, sangai) |
| Khmer | ឆ័ត្រ |
| Korean | 산(傘), 산개(傘蓋) (RR: san, sangae) |
| Tibetan | རིནཆེན་གདུགས, གདུགས་ནི།[2] (rin chen gdugs, gdugs ni) |
| Thai | ฉัตร (RTGS: chat) |
| Glossary of Buddhism | |
According to Hindu mythology, it is the emblem of Varuna, also considered an embodiment of kingship. Chatra is also a deity, yidam and ishta-devata.[citation needed] In various Dharmic traditions it is an accoutrement of chakravartin.
A number of deities are depicted with chatra, including Ganesha (especially during Ganesh Chaturthi), Revanta, Surya, and Vishnu (in his Vamana avatar). The chatra is cordoned amongst the symbols that approach universality within the numerous octavalent suites or sets of Ashtamangala, e.g., in the Digambar Jain tradition, and the Vajrayana tradition.
In Dharmic tradition iconography, traditional Tibetan medicine thangkas and Ayurvedic diagrams, the chatra is uniformly represented as the Sahasrara.
In Vajrayana Buddhism, the umbrella or parasol is included in the 'Eight Auspicious Signs' or Ashtamangala.
The chatra shares a similar symbolic value to the baldachin, refer image of Vishvakarman.
InBurmese culture, the hti is considered regalia, and also crowns Burmese pagodas.
The Royal Nine-Tiered Umbrella is one part of the royal regalia of Thailand, and appears in connection with this role in the logo of Royal Umbrella rice.[3]
![A chatra crowning Vāsudeva-Krishna on a coin of Agathocles of Bactria, c. 180 BCE.[4]](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Vasudeva_Krishna_on_a_coin_of_Agathocles_of_Bactria_circa_180_BCE.jpg)
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