Iconography
The khaṭvāńga, a danda with three severed heads denoting the three kayas (the three bodies of a Buddha: the dharmakaya, sambhogakaya, and nirmanakaya), crowned by a trishula and dressed with a sash of the Himalayan Rainbow or Five Pure Lights of the Mahabhuta is a particular divine attribute of Padmasambhava and intrinsic to his iconographic representation. The iconography is utilized in various Tantric cycles by yogis as symbols to hidden meanings in transmitted practices.
Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo briefly describes his iconography as: "His two eyes are wide open in a piercing gaze. On his body he wears a white vajra undergarment and, on top of this, in layers, a red robe, a dark blue mantrayana tunic, a red monastic shawl decorated with a golden flower pattern, and a maroon cloak of silk brocade. He has one face and two hands. In his right hand, he holds a five-pronged vajra at his heart; and in his left, which rests in the gesture of equanimity, he holds a skull-cup in the centre of which is a vase of longevity filled with the nectar of deathless wisdom. Cradled in his left arm is a three-pointed khatvanga representing the consort Mandarava. On his head, he wears a five-petalled lotus hat. Wrathful and smiling, he blazes magnificently with the splendour of the major and minor marks. He is seated with his two feet in the royal posture."
Patrul Rinpoche describes it thus: "With his right hand he holds a five-pronged golden vajra at his heart. In his left hand he holds a skull-cup brimming with nectar, containing the vase of longevity that is also filled with the nectar of deathless wisdom and ornamented on top by a wish-fulfilling tree. Cradled in his left arm he holds the three-pointed khatvanga (trident) symbolizing the Princess consort (Mandarava). Its three points represent the essence, nature and compassionate energy (ngowo, rangshyin and tukjé). Below these three prongs are three severed heads, dry, fresh and rotten, symbolizing the three kayas. Nine iron rings adorning the prongs represent the nine yanas. The khatvanga is also adorned with locks of hair from dead and living mamos and dakinis, as a sign that the Master subjugated them all when he practised austerities in the Eight Great Charnel Grounds. On his head he wears a lotus hat and on his body he wears a silk cloak, Dharma robes and gown. His two feet are in the royal posture. All around him, within a lattice of five-coloured light, appear the eight vidyadharas of India, the twenty-five disciples of Tibet, the deities of the three roots, and an ocean of oath-bound protectors. Your visualization should be so vivid that your ordinary perception simply ceases automatically."
Chökyi Drakpa writes: "His complexion is white with a tinge of red and he has the youthful appearance of an eight-year old child. He is wearing the dark blue gown of a mantra practitioner, the red and yellow shawl of a monk, the maroon cloak of a king, and the red robe and secret white garments of a bodhisattva. He has one face and two hands, and he is seated in royal poise. In his right hand he holds a vajra at his heart, and in his left hand he holds a skull-cup, which contains the vase of immortality, filled with deathless wisdom nectar, in its centre. On his head he wears a five-petalled lotus hat, which has three points symbolizing the three kayas, five colours symbolizing the five kayas, a sun and moon symbolizing skilful means and wisdom, a vajra top to symbolize unshakable samadhi, and a vulture's feather to represent the realization of the highest view. Cradled in his left arm he holds the 'supreme consort', Mandarava, who arouses the wisdom of bliss and emptiness, concealed as the three-pointed khatvanga trident. The three prongs of the trident symbolize the essence, nature and compassionate energy. Three severed heads, dry, fresh and rotten, symbolize the dharmakaya, sambhogakaya and nirmanakaya. Nine iron rings represent the nine yanas and five-coloured strips of silk symbolize the five wisdoms. The khatvanga is also adorned with locks of hair from dead and living mamos and dakinis, as a sign that they have been subjugated."
There are further iconography and meanings in more advanced and secret stages.
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