图文互证:论汉文摩尼教文献所见“电光佛”“电光王佛”为光明少女

On the"Thunderbolt Buddha"and"Thunderbolt Queen Buddha"as the Virgin of Light in Han Manichaean Literature

“电光佛”“电光王佛”所指为光明少女当是无可置疑的,无论是敦煌还是霞浦、屏南发现之摩尼教文献,并无一处文字指向电光(王)佛为所谓大明尊或电那勿者。电光(王)佛(光明少女)绝不仅仅是诱惑暗魔的工具神,而是能兴云致雨、擒捉魔首的闪电神,后更有干预冥判、裁判灵魂之大能。她从未因华情之“不允”而在中原摩尼教中销声匿迹,却因其悲悯之怀最终跻身摩尼教“三佛”之列。

The identification of the"Thunderbolt(Queen)Buddha"as the Virgin of Light is beyond dispute.Whether it is the Manichaean documents found in Dunhuang,Xiapu,or Pingnan,there is no literature that designates the Thunderbolt(Queen)Buddha as the so-called Great Honored One or the Elect of God.The Thunderbolt Buddha(Virgin of Light)was not merely a deity used as a tool to lure evil spirits;she also embodied a deity of lightning capable to summon clouds and rain,having the power of capturing demon leaders,and later even possessing the power of intervening in the underworld to judge the souls of the departed and decide their fate.She never disappeared from the Manichaean teachings in the Central Plains due to Chinese"disapproval",and ultimately joined the ranks of the"Three Buddhas"in Manichaeism because of her compassionate nature.