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"Mahāpratisarā is one of five female protectors (Rakṣā) of Vajrayana Buddhism, who remains important in the Newar Buddhism of Nepal. In the Pañcarakṣasūtra, her dhāraṇī is said to provide protection from a variety of dangers and to bestow rebirth in heaven." (Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, entry on Mahāpratisarā). Mahāpratisarā kalpa begins with a frame setting, called the nidāna, where the Buddha sits. It then moves on to the Buddha giving an exposition on the benefits of the dhāraṇī and then the dhāraṇī itself. It is said that this particular dhāraṇī saved Yaśodharā while she was pregnant with Rāhula during a fire ordeal when her unborn son recited the Mahāpratisarādhāraṇī.
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