# वज्र
## Sanskrit
### Alternative forms

* ৱজ্ৰ (Assamese script)
* ᬯᬚ᭄ᬭ (Balinese script)
* বজ্র (Bengali script)
* 𑰪𑰕𑰿𑰨 (Bhaiksuki script)
* 𑀯𑀚𑁆𑀭 (Brahmi script)
* ဝဇြ (Burmese script)
* વજ્ર (Gujarati script)
* ਵਜ੍ਰ (Gurmukhi script)
* 𑌵𑌜𑍍𑌰 (Grantha script)
* ꦮꦗꦿ (Javanese script)
* 𑂫𑂔𑂹𑂩 (Kaithi script)
* ವಜ್ರ (Kannada script)
* វជ្រ (Khmer script)
* ວຊ຺ຣ (Lao script)
* വജ്ര (Malayalam script)
* ᠸᠠᡯᡵᠠ (Manchu script)
* 𑘪𑘕𑘿𑘨 (Modi script)
* ᠸᠠᠽᠷᠠ᠋ (Mongolian script)
* 𑧊𑦵𑧠𑧈 (Nandinagari script)
* 𑐰𑐖𑑂𑐬 (Newa script)
* ଵଜ୍ର (Odia script)
* ꢮꢙ꣄ꢬ (Saurashtra script)
* 𑆮𑆘𑇀𑆫 (Sharada script)
* 𑖪𑖕𑖿𑖨 (Siddham script)
* වජ්‍ර (Sinhalese script)
* 𑩾𑩣 𑪙𑩼 (Soyombo script)
* 𑚦𑚑𑚶𑚤 (Takri script)
* வஜ்ர (Tamil script)
* వజ్ర (Telugu script)
* วชฺร (Thai script)
* ཝ་ཛྲ (Tibetan script)
* 𑒫𑒖𑓂𑒩 (Tirhuta script)
* 𑨭𑨥𑩇𑨫 (Zanabazar Square script)

### Etymology

From Proto-Indo-Aryan *wáȷ́ras, from Proto-Indo-Iranian *wáȷ́ras, from Proto-Indo-European *weǵ- (“strong, lively”). Cognate with Avestan 𐬬𐬀𐬰𐬭𐬀 (vazra, “mace; main weapon of Mithra”), Persian گرز (“club, mace”). Compare also Old Armenian վարզ (varz, “mace”), an Iranian borrowing.

### Pronunciation

* (Vedic) IPA: /ʋɐ́d͡ʑ.ɾɐ/
* (Classical Sanskrit) IPA: /ʋɐd͡ʑ.ɾɐ/

### Noun

वज्र • (vájra) stem, m (root वज्)
* (also n) "the hard or mighty one", a thunderbolt
** especially that of Indra, said to have been formed out of the bones of the rishi दधीच (dadhīca) or दधीचि (dadhīci), and shaped like a circular discus, or in later times regarded as having the form of two transverse bolts crossing each other thus x
*** c. 1700 BCE – 1200 BCE, Ṛgveda 1.55.1:दि॒वश्चि॑दस्य वरि॒मा वि प॑प्रथ॒ इन्द्रं॒ न म॒ह्ना पृ॑थि॒वी च॒न प्रति॑। भी॒मस्तुवि॑ष्माञ्चर्ष॒णिभ्य॑ आत॒पः शिशी॑ते॒ वज्रं॒ तेज॑से॒ न वंस॑गः॥diváścidasya varimā́ ví papratha índraṃ ná mahnā́ pṛthivī́ caná práti. bhīmástúviṣmāñcarṣaṇíbhya ātapáḥ śíśīte vájraṃ téjase ná váṃsagaḥ.His expansion spreads out even beyond heaven; not even the earth is the counterpart to Indra in greatness. Fearsome and mighty, a scorching firebrand for the settled domains, he hones his vajra, like a buffalo its horn, to be piercingly sharp.
** sometimes also applied to similar weapons used by various gods or superhuman beings, or to any mythical weapon destructive of spells or charms, also to मन्यु (manyu, “wrath”), RV. or [with अपाम् (apām)] to a jet of water AV. etc.
** also applied to a thunderbolt in general, or to the lightning evolved from the centrifugal energy of the circular thunderbolt of Indra when launched at a foe
** in Northern Buddhist countries, it is shaped like a dumbbell and called Dorje (MWB. 201, 322 etc.; RV. etc.)
* a diamond (thought to be as hard as the thunderbolt or of the same substance with it), (ShaḍvBr., Mn., MBh. etc.)
* a kind of talc (L.)
* a kind of penance (feeding for a month on only barley prepared with cow's urine) (L.)
* sour gruel (W.)
* a form of military array (Mn., MBh., etc.) (compare वज्रव्यूह (vajra-vyūha))
* a kind of column or pillar (VarBṛS.)
* a particular form of the moon (ib.)
* a particular एकाह (ekāha) (Vait.)
* a kind of hard mortar or cement (कल्क (kalka)) (VarBṛS.) (compare वज्रलेप (vajra-lepa))
* name of the 15th of the 27 yogas or astronomical divisions of time (ib.)
* a particular soma ceremony (ShaḍvBr.)
* Euphorbia antiquorum and another species (L.)
* Astera (L.)
* name of a mountain (R.)
* name of an asura (Vīrac.)
* name of a son of अनिरुद्ध (aniruddha) (MBh., Hariv., Pur.)
* name of a son of विश्वामित्र (viśvāmitra) (MBh.)
* name of a son of Manu Sāvarṇa (Hariv.)
* (Jainism) of one of the 10 dala-pūrvins (L.)
* name of a rishi (VarBṛS.) (compare वात्स्य (vātsya))
* name of a minister of नरेन्द्रादित्य (narendrāditya) (Rājat.)
* name of a son of भूति (bhūti) (ib.)
* name of a heretical king (Buddh.)

#### Declension

* ¹Vedic

#### Derived terms

* वज्रपाणि (vajrapāṇi)
* वज्रसत्त्व (vajrasattva)
* वज्रयान (vajrayāna)
* वज्रयोगिनी (vajrayoginī)
* वज्राङ्गबलि (vajrāṅgabali)

### Noun

वज्र • (vájra) stem, n
* denunciation in strong language (compared to thunder) (R., Sāh., Pratāp.) (compare वाक्यवज्र (vākya-vajra) and वाग्वज्र (vāg-vajra))
* a kind of hard iron or steel (L.)
* a particular posture in sitting (Cat.) (compare वज्रासन (vajrā*sana))
* name of a particular configurations of the planets and stars (in which favourable planets are situated in the 1st and 7th houses and unfavourable in the 4th and 10th) (VarBṛS.)
* myrobalan (L.)
* the blossom of the sesamum or of any plant called vajra (L.)
* vetiver, Chrysopogon zizanioides, formerly Andropogon muricatus (L.)
* = बालक (bālaka), a child, pupil (L.)

#### Declension

* ¹Vedic

### Adjective

वज्र • (vájra)
* adamantine, hard, impenetrable (W.)
* shaped like a kind of cross (compare above ), forked, zigzag (ib.)

#### Declension

* ¹Vedic
* ¹Vedic
* ²Brāhmaṇas
* ¹Vedic

### Descendants

* → Prakrit: 𑀯𑁃𑀭 (vaira)
* → Bengali: বজ্র (bôjrô) (learned)
* → English: vajra
* → Hindi: वज्र (vajra) (learned)
* → Japanese: 伐折羅, 伐闍羅, 跋折羅, 縛日羅 (basara)
* → Old Khmer: bejra
** → Khmer: ពេជ្រ (pɨc), ពេជ្ (péch)
** → Thai: เพชร (pét)
* → Kannada: ವಜ್ರ (vajra) (learned)
* → Old Javanese: bajra, braja
** → Javanese: ꦧꦿꦗ (braja) (learned)
* → Lao: ເພັດ (phet)
* → Malayalam: വജ്രം (vajraṁ), വൈരം (vairaṁ)
* → Odia: ବଜ୍ର (båjrå) (learned)
* → Pali: vajira
** → Burmese: စိန် (cin)
*** → Shan: ၸိင်ႇ (tsìng)
** → Thai: วิเชียร (wí-chiian)
* → Tamil: வைரம் (vairam)
* → Telugu: వజ్రము (vajramu)
* → Tibetan: བཇྲ (bjra, “benza”)

### References

* Monier Williams (1899) “वज्र”, in A Sanskrit–English Dictionary, […], new edition, Oxford: At the Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 0913.