Jiabs 9-2

THE JOURNAL
Of THE INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION Of

BUDDHIST STUDIES
CO-EDITORS-IN-CHIEF
Gregory Schopen
Indiana University
Bloomington, Indiana, USA
EDITORS
Peter N. Gregory
University of Illinois
Urbana-Champaign, Illinois, USA
Alexander W. Macdonald
Universiti de Paris X
Nanterre, France
Bardwell Smith
Carleton College
Northfield, Minnesota, USA
Roger Jackson
Fairfield University
Fairfield, Connecticut, USA
Ernst Steinkellner
University of Vienna
Wien, Austria
Jikido Takasaki
University of Tokyo
Tokyo,japan
Robert Thurman
Amherst College
Amherst, Massachusetts, USA
ASSISTANT EDITOR
Volume 9
Bruce Cameron Hall
College of William and Mary
Williamsburg, Virginia, USA
1986 Number 2
THE JOURNAL OF THE INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION
OF BUDDHIST STUDIES, INC.
This Journal is the organ of the International Association of Buddhist Studies
Inc. It is governed by the objectives of the Association and accepts scholarl;
contributions pertaining to Buddhist Studies in all the various disciplines such
as philosophy, history, religion, sociology, anthropology, art, archaeology,
psychology, textual studies, etc. The ]lABS is published twice yearly in the
summer and winter.
Manuscripts for publication (we must have two copies) and correspondence
concerning articles should be submitted to the ]lABS editorial office at the
address given below. Please refer to the guidelines for contributors to the
]lABS printed on the inside back cover of every issue. Books for review should
also be sent to the address below. The Editors cannot guarantee to publish
reviews of unsolicited books nor to return those books to the senders.
The Association and the Editors assume no responsibility for the views
expressed by the authors in the Association's Journal and other related
publications.
Andre Bareau (France)
M.N. Deshpande (India)
R. Card (USA)
B.C. Cokhale (USA)
Gregory Schopen
]lABS
clo Dept. of Religious Studies
230 Sycamore Hall
Indiana University
Bloomington, IN 47405
USA
EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD
Joseph M. Kitagawa (USA)
Jacques May (Switzerland)
Hajime Nakamura (japan)
John Rosenfield (USA)
John C. Huntington (USA) David Snellgrove (U.K.)
P.S. Jaini (USA) E. Zurcher (Netherlands)
The Editors wish to thank Ms. Rena Haggarty for her invaluable help
in the preparation of this issue.
Copyright The International Association of Buddhist Studies 1986
ISSN: 0193-600X
Indexed in Religion Index One: Periodicals, American Theological Li-
brary Association, Chicago, available online through BRS (Biblio-
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mation Services, Palo Alto, California.
Composition by Publications Division, Grote Deutsch & Co., Madison, WI 53704 ..
Printing by Thomson-Shore, Inc., Dexter, MI 48130.
CONTENTS
I. ARTICLES
1.
Signs, Memory and History: A Tantric Buddhist
Theory of Scriptural Transmission, by janet Gyatso 7
2.
Symbolism of the Buddhist Stupa, by Girard Fussman 37
3.
The Identification of dCa' rab rdo rje,
by A. W. Hanson-Barber 55
4. An Approach to Dagen's Dialectical Thinking
and Method of Instantiation, by Shohei I chimura 65
5.
A Report on Religious Activity in Central Tibet,
October, 1985,byDonaldS.Lopez,jr. and
Cyrus Stearns 101
6. A Study of the Earliest Garbha Vidhi of the
Shingon Sect, by Dale Allen Todaro 109
7. On the Sources for Sa skya Pal)<;lita's Notes on the
"bSam yas Debate," by Leonard WI van der Kuijp 147
II. BOOK REVIEWS
1. The Bodymind Experience in japanese Buddhism:
A Phenomenological Study ofKukaiandDogen,
byD.Shaner
(William Waldron) 155
2. A Catalogue of the sTog Palace Kanjur,
by Tadeusz Skorupski
(Bruce Cameron Hall) 156
3. Early Buddhism and Christianity: A Comparative Study of
the Founders' Authority, the Community, and
the Discipline, by Chai-Shin Yu
(Vijitha Rajapakse) 162
4. The Heart of Buddhist Philosophy: Diimiiga
and Dharmakirti, byAmar Singh
(Richard Hayes) 166
5. Shobogenza: Zen Essays by Dagen, translated by
Thomas Cleary
(Steven Heine) 173
6. Studies in Ch'anandHua-yen, edited by
Robert M. Gimello and Peter N. Gregory
(John Jorgensen) 177
7. The Tantric Distinction, by Jeffrey Hopkins
(Bruce Burrill) 181
Jeffrey Hopkins Replies
Bruce Burrill Replies
NOTES AND NEWS [2 items] 189
LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS 191
Signs, Memory and History:
A Tantric Buddhist
Theory of Scriptural Transmission
by Janet Gyatso
Within the broad group of Buddhist sacred scriptures loosely
characterized as the canon of the Mahayana are included, by
some, the scriptures of the Vajrayana, the tantras. These are in
turn classified into two canons by Tibetan Buddhists, the Old
(rnying ma) and the New (gsar ma), the former of which spawned
yet a further genus of scriptures called Treasures (gter ma). Not
strictly to be considered a canon, and in fact not compiled into
one collection until the late nineteenth century, the Treasures
are nonetheless accorded the same status of "word of the
Buddha" (buddhavacana) as are the classical texts of the Siltra or
Vinaya Pi takas, and sometimes even bear the hallmark introduc-
tory line "Thus have I heard at one time."l
The Treasures are texts of mystical revelation. Tibetan vi-
sionaries, particularly of the rNying rna School, have been pro-
ducing them since the tenth century A.D.2 They are in most
cases said to have been revealed to the visionary by Padmasa-
mbhava, the Indian teacher who brought Tantric Buddhism to
Tibet in the eighth century A.D.
3
According to tradition, Padma-
sambhava and others concealed in Tibet texts and other items
for future "discovery." The number of texts said to have been
found in a Treasure cache and attributed to Padmasambhava
in this way is now considerable. The Treasure cycles preserved
in the current edition of the Rin chen gter mdzod collection alone
fill 111 volumes, and there are many others published indepen-
dently.4
Although differing in content with regard to divinities, prac-
7
8 JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
tices, doctrines, and many other matters, the Treasure cycles
are structured in fairly constant patterns. Each cycle is made
up of a group of texts, the generic labels of which are somewhat
There usually.a "root text," i.e.; the Treasure scrip-
ture Itself, along wIth assoCIated commentaries, siidhanas, numer-
ous rituals and liturgies, and usually a "historical" section (10
rgyus) describing the origin of the cycle and its subsequent
lation. The historical section will often include a biography of
the Treasure's discoverer; both this narrative and the account
of the cycle's origin portray the process of scripture transmission
in quite typical ways, allowing us to make reliable generaliza-
tions.
5
The following remarks are based on my reading of a repre-
sentative sample of the major cycles, including some of the
earliest, and on the few Tibetan works that discuss the tradition
theoretically or historically.
The linkage of a Treasure with the canon of the old Tantras
is asserted most explicitly in the Treasure's own account of its
origin. Here the evolution of the Treasure is portrayed in terms
of the same paradigm by which the rNying rna School describes
the transmission of all Buddhist scriptures, and in particular
the Old Tantras. This transmission paradigm has three phases:
the Jina's Transmission of the Realized (rgyal ba'i dgongs brgyud);
the Vidyadhara's Transmission in Symbols (rig 'dzin brda brgyud);
and the Transmission into the Ears of People (gang zag snyan
khung du brgyud).6 The progression is as follows. The point of
inception, or the ultimate ground of the Buddha's teaching, is
the Transmission of the Realized. This is placed in the context
of a buddha-field, and consists in the teachings of a primordial
buddha (iidibuddha) such as Samantabhadra-with-consort. In the
second phase, that of the Symbolic Transmission, the teaching
devolves through the mediation of symbols. Here the teachers
and students are the early patriarchs of the rNying rna School,
somewhere on the scene of late Indian Tantric Buddhism. Fi-
nally, in the third phase, the Ear Transmission, there is a discur-
sive and overtly verbal conveying of the text. The classical in-
stance of the Ear Transmission is Padmasambhava's dissemina-
tion of Buddhism to King Khri srong Ide btsan and the Tibetan
royal court.
SIGNS, MEMORY AND HISTORY 9
It is during the last cited phase that three further stages of
transmission, unique to the Treasure scriptures, take place.
These concern the special measures taken by Padmasmabhava
to conceal c.ertain texts in Treasure caches until the time is right
for their revelation. First he conveys such texts in a Tantric
Empowerment Ceremony (smon lam dbang bskur, Skt. abh4eka-
pra'IJidhana?), and appoints (gtad rgya), or confers upon one of
the recipients the responsibility to discover the Treasure at a
determined time in the future. Then he utters a Prophecy of
the Revelation (bka' babs lung bstan) in the future. In the third
phase, Appointing of l)iikinzs (mkha' 'gro gtad rgya), he identifies
the protectors who will guard the Treasure during its inter-
ment.
7
Then Padmasambhava or one of his disciples, often his
consort Ye shes mtsho rgyal, commits the text to writing. Finally,
the text is buried somewhere in Tibet, in a statue or stupa, under
the ground or in a mountain, in the elements, or even, simply,
in the mind.
The story does not end here. In a second segment of the
Treasure's historical section, the account of the revelation re-
sumes, centuries later, in the biography of the visionary. Here
we are given an intimate portrayal, often in poetic and candid
lariguage, of the discoverer's personal struggles in the visionary
quest. There are the search for the requisite confidence that he
or she is indeed the appointed individual, the search for the
concealed Treasure itself, and, once it is found, there is the
search for the understanding of the content of the revelation.
Finally, the discoverer or a disciple codifies the Treasure as a
cycle of texts to be disseminated to students, and later to be
published.
Before attempting to unravel this complex accourit of scrip-
ture generation, a few remarks are in order concerning views
on the source of scripture in Buddhism as a whole. In the Pali
tradition, the word of the Buddha is what was preached by the
specific historical personality Sakyamuni Buddha (or certified
by him)8, and which was uttered during the finite period of
Sakyamuni's lifetime. Traces of the idea that scripture has an
historical source can still be found in the early Mahayanasutra,
the where it is proposed that the
disciples who preach the Prajiiiipiiramitii studied that very teach-
ing with Sakyamuni in previous lives.
9
By and large, however,
10 JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
the necessity of an historical origin of the word of the Buddha
was discarded by the As the itself asserts,
"Whatever, Venerable Sariputra, the Lord's disciples teach, all
that is known to be the Tathagata's work."l0 Here no stipulation
is made about time, place or explicit certification. The rise of
the Mahayana marks the dawning of such notions as the
"Buddha-nature," with full BuddhahoQd possible for anyone,
at any time. 11 Another claim, known best from the Lotus Sidra,
is that the Buddha remains present in the world-and therefore
would theoretically always be available as a source for authentic
scripture.
12
In any case, the Mahayana expansion of the pan-
theon of buddhas renders obsolete the necessity to ascribe a sacred
text to the historical person of Sakyamuni himself, because there
would be countless buddhas in countless realms who are CO,Il-
stantly preaching the Dharma. In short, a number of doctrinal
innovations of the Mahayana effectively demolished the old no-
tion of a closed canon and radically reoriented the generation
of the Buddhist truth to an ahistorical, atemporal dimension.
Thus, it is striking to discover that the proponents of the
Treasures, late Mahayana Vajrayanists, were not content to call
upon the timeless presence of the ubiquitous Buddha-nature
as the source of revelation. The teachings of the many Tibetan
masters who are said to have attained Buddhahood, even those
of the closely aligned Pure Vision (dag snang) tradition, would,
strictly speaking, be differentiated from the revelations of a
Treasure discoverer. 13 The distinction consists precisely in the
claim that the latter is the reincarnation of a historical person
of the eighth century who was a disciple of Padmasambhava,
and who was appointed to reveal the Treasure. The Treasure
tradition is preoccupied with pinpointing the source of scripture
in a specific historical event. It does not really matter that this
event, indeed the entire story of the introductiori of Buddhism
during Tibet's Yarlung Dynasty, was largely recast and
mythologized in the tenth to twelfth centuries, to the point
where fact in the modern scientific sense ofthe word can barely
be separated from fiction.
14
For Tibetans, regardless of educa-
tion or sophistication, Padmasambhava's sojourn in Tibet is a
constituting event of the national heritage. As an historical per-
sonage, significantly eulogized as "the second Buddha," Pad-
masambhava comes to offer the same sort of authority for the
Treasure tradition as does the historical Buddha Sakyamuni for
the Pali canon.
And so the Treasure tradition is concerned with history,
. the passage of text through a temporal progression of epochs,
in which changing circumstances of author, place and audience
are mirrored in the evolution of the text itself. For the discoverer
of Treasure, the dimension of the past is anchored in the numin-
ous moment when Buddhism was introduced into Tibet, a
Golden Age. In the present time of the discoverer, which is the
degenerate age, it is the connection to that previous period that
makes for a weightier and more authentic revelation of truth
than what is available to enlightened insight alone.
An important corollary of the emphasis on history in this
tradition is that revelation comes to be understood as memory.
This memory is diachronic, a recollection of times past, in this
case of that significant moment when the Treasure was transmit-
ted by Padmasambhava. This notion of memory can readily be
identified with the early Buddhist view that the scriptures recited
at the First Council were memorized renditions of Sakyamuni's
previously delivered sermons. There are other dimensions of
memory here, however. In the most general sense. the Treasure
tradition as a whole is seen as a commemoration of Padmasam-
bhava's dispensation, with the lineage of discoverers charac-
terized as a "reminder [lit. list that prevents forgetting] of that
teacher from Uc;lc;liyana."l,5 The Treasures are also, in a very
general way, reminders of the Dharma: it is explained that the
Tibetans, new at Buddhism, tend to forget even Avalokitesvara's
mantra; thus their memory needs to be jogged by the periodic
appearance of new Treasures. 16 Taken more individually, mem-
ory refers to the discoverer's recollection of the events of a past
lifetime. It is precisely the personal memory of being an ap-
pointed discoverer that inspires sufficient confidence to pro-
claim a visionary revelation as genuine Treasure scripture. Fur-
thermore, and most importantly, revelation itself is an act of
memory, an event of evoking, through a set of hints and codes,
the actual content of the Treasure previously received at Pad-
masambhava's Empowerment rite. As stated in the prophecy of
the discoverer 'Jigs med gling pa: "Using the essential key, which
is the six nails, the dhiirarj/i for remembering and not forgetting,
open the door to the Klang gsal dgangs pa Treasure.,,17
* * *
Having observed that the source of the Treasures is charac-
terized in terms of history and memory, I will devote the rest
of this essay to a factor that appears repeatedly in this literature,
and is thematic of that very characterization. I am referring to
the factor of semiosis in the Treasure tradition. The use of signs
seems to be intrinsic to the process of Treasure dissemination,
at virtually every step described above, be that function explicit
or implicit. In the following I will consider the principal seg-
ments of the Treasure transmission where semiosis is specifically
identified as such.
It must be noted that the Tibetan terms for the various
kinds of signs used in the Treasure literature are not always
rigorously distinguished. Drawing upon the Peircean conven-
tion that the symbol, icon, and index are the three main types
of signifiers, I will use the words "sign," "semiosis" and "signify"
in a general way to refer to the function as a whole. IS The
Tibetan brda is appropriately rendered "symbol" in the phrase
Transmission in Symbols (brda brgyud) , since here a variety of
codes, utterances, or gestures convey a message not physically
connected or iconically similar to the sign itself. brDa grol, which
translates as "breaking the code," is used in a number of contexts
in this literature. The phrase "symbolic script" (brDa yig) refers
to inscriptions that signify in several ways at once, and I will
also adopt the more general "literal signs" in discussing this
phase of the Treasure semiosis. rTags is another term often
employed here, and can safely be rendered simply as "sign,"
although it frequently has the specifically indexical function of
being connected with or pointing to the indicatum. mTshon,
which literally means pointer, has a range of senses, sometimes
in fact meaning "symbol," and sometimes referring to significa-
tion more generally. lTas here means "portent" or "omen" in
most instances, and we also come across mtshan, best translated
as "mark." Since all of these translations are contextual, I will
supply the original in parentheses whenever I am drawing a
semiological term from the Tibetan texts.
Within the general setting of Tibetan Buddhism, where
aspersions have often been cast upon the Treasures as authentic
"words of the Buddha," the Treasure signs function most overtly
as legitirnizers.
19
Even writers of the rNying rna school, the
principal holders of the Treasure lineages, stress the need to
subject any cycle to scrutiny, and cite instances of frauds and
charlatans.
2o
As I have discussed elsewhere, the primary func-
tion of the historical section of the Treasure cycle is to present
evidence-precisely in the form of signs-that the Treasure is
an authentic Buddhist scripture preached first by an iidibuddha,
later concealed in Tibet by Padmasambhava, and then actually
discovered by the predestined individual. These narratives are
thus thought to "engender confidence" (nges shes bskyes pa). The
sixteenth-century Tibetan historian dPa' bo gtsug lag phreng
ba, notably judicious in his treatment of the Treasure tradition,
affirms this function: "In general, if you investigate the Treasure
signs (gter rtags) , [you can ascertain if] the Treasure has an
authentic source. Even if not found today, the signs and name
of the discoverer and place of the Treasure should all be fairly
definitely identifiable-even if just roughly.,,21 Or as the discov-
erer 'Jigs med gling pa recalls, "Through examples one under-
stands meanings; through signs (rtags) one becomes confi-
dent.,,22
But there is a far more profound role for semiotics in the
Treasure tradition than legitimation, one that is germane to the
very process of textual transmission itself. For the rNying rna
school, semiosis is the stage next to the first in the generation
of all Buddhist scripture, not only Treasure. This stage, already
named above, is the Vidyadhara's Transmission in Symbols. But
here we must first take into account the very primary, or original
moment, the Transmission of the Realized, which is explicitly
asemioticized, i.e., deprived of all sign vehicles. The Transmis-
sion of the Realized is also, I might add, ahistorical (dus gsum
ma nges pa'i dus).23 This is important, because despite our initial
remarks about the peculiarities of Treasure transmission, the
ultimate source for these scriptures is very much in line with
the Mahayana's pervasive and timeless ground of enlighten-
ment.
Firstly, therefore, there is the asemioticized text. The Trans-
mission of the Realized is set in the buddha-field. As gTer bdag
gling pa describes it, this is "the realm of the uniformly pervasive
dharmatii from which there is no falling away, in the center of
the palace of the uncompounded dharmadhiitu, transcending
measurement.,,24 The language of nonduality is everywhere in
these descriptions. The teacher is "immersed in the equanimity
of neither light nor dark, staying without coming or going,
beginning or ending.,,25 "Taking on the guise of a body, he
teaches the Dharma. ,,26 This teaching is the "Great Speaking, in
which nothing at all is said";27 it is an "expounding by [the
Buddha him]self in his own nature, to his own retinue,,,28 where
the audience is but a manifestation of the teacher.
29
Of course
,
strict nonduality is somewhat difficult to maintain if there is
discourse. There is, in some accounts, a second, sometimes the
consort Samantabhadri, at whose behest the teaching was in-
itiated.
30
Then as the teacher devolves from the sviibhiivikakaya
and the dharmakiiya, there appear the bodily marks (sku mtshan)
and the exemplary form (dpe byad) of the sambhogakiiya.
31
But
even in the teachings of the nirmiiTj.akiiya of the Transmission
of the Realized, gTer bdag gling pa maintains that neither words
nor symbols (brda) are used. Rather, there is a "speaking without
speaking, in which the own-voice of primordial awareness ap-
pears effortlessly and spontaneously.,,32
The Symbolic Conveying of the Dharma
Although many of the descriptions of the Transmission of
the Realized have at the end of that narrative some incursion
into what we might identify as a human or a deva world,33 the
main thrust of the initial dissemination of scripture to human
disciples occurs in the second phase, that of the Transmission
in Symbols. At this point, when the self-realized Dharma is first
conveyed with some duality between teacher and student,
semiosis is the manner in which that takes place.
The semiosis of the Transmission in Symbols takes many
forms. It can even consist in the chirping of a bird, as when
Vajrasattva assumes the form of a swallow and sings to the
rNying rna patriarch dGa' rab rdo rje, "Ka la ping ka, ka la ping
ka.,,34 An exemplary narrative of the Transmission in Symbols
is found in the teacher Sri Sirhha's response to Padmasambhava's
request for "an introduction to the meaning of the Letterless
Teachings.,,35 Here we can see how the semiotic transmission
proceeds through several acts of sign production and decipher-
ing, ~ n which both verbal and non-verbal signs are employed.
SrI Sirhha's transmission is cryptic: "Within the fence of the
four elements there is a red cow,. in whose stomach there is a
crystal that radiates a five-colored light. Put your hand over the
cow's right eye, and say 'Come out of the left!'" It then becomes
Padmasambhava's task to decipher the meaning. This is effected
when he meets a woman, who points to her heart, covers her
right eye with her thumb and middle finger, peers with her left
eye into space, and freezes her gaze. Seeing this, Padmasa-
mbhava understands the Transmission in Symbols. Then he
asks the woman to "break the code" (brda grol). There follows
her verbal and discursive explication of her symbolic actions,
called "meeting with the meaning of the symbols" (brda don sprad
pa), which consists in a series of correspondences. The fence of
the four elements symbolizes (mtshon) the body, the arena for
wisdom and skillful means; pointing the finger at the heart
symbolizes the self-born buddha, which is obscured by ignorance,
in turn symbolized by the cow. The covering of the right eye
symbolizes the cessation of attachment to skillful means.
36
The
five-colored light of the crystal symbolizes the natural play of
awareness (rig pa). Gazing into space with a frozen stare sym-
bolizes the appearing of self-born primordial wisdom which
abides in limitless space; and so on. Then when Padmasambhava
returns to his teacher, Sri Sirhha uses these "symbols (brda) of
awareness to transmit the Dharma into Padmasambhava's heart."
The episode ends with Padmasambhava's exalted visions and
Buddhahood.
The Semiotic Reduction oj Scripture
The specialized mode of Treasure dissemination begins in
the next phase of the transmission paradigm, the Transmission
into the Ears of People. Here, semiosis has an even more com-
plex and finely defined function, although it remains analogous
to the basic pattern of sign presentation and deciphering that
we saw in the Transmission in Symbols, where both the intention
of the transmitter and the interpretive response of the receiver
are key.
Ironically, just when the text has entered the fully historical
and human plane, when Padmasambhava is openly teaching (at
least to his circle of students) a determinant text in a discursive
exegetical manner via the Ear Transmission, there dawns t h ~
necessity to conceal the text again. Padmasambhava has in mind
Tibet's future: adverse political and social conditions in which
the practice of Buddhism will be difficult. Inspired by a compas-
sionate teleology not unlike that which underlies the Vajrayana
as a whole, Padmasambhava identifies certain tantras whose
teachings and practices will be particularly efficacious in the
degenerate times that lie ahead. He proceeds to convey these
texts using the three stages of transmission particular to the
Treasures: the Empowerment Ceremony, the Prophecy of the
Revelation, and the Appointment of I)akinfs. Among these, the
Empowerment comes to the fore as the critical moment when
Padmasambhava selects the individual with the appointment
(gtad rgya), i.e., the responsibility and obligation to discover the
Treasure at the prophesied time in the future.
37
And it is at
this juncture that the relation between history, memory and
signs becomes clear.
One of the principal acts in the Empowerment rite is the
guru's ensconcing of a condensed form of the teaching (in this
case the Treasure) in the student's stream of consciousness. The
site of ensconcement, equated with the place where the Treasure
abides (gter gnas) , is rendered variously as "the adamantine body,
the essence of enlightenment,,,38 or "own mind abiding in its
own aspect of dharmadhatu. ,,39 Here, during the Empowerment,
the germ of the teaching is "placed in the mind as a lot for
future accomplishment.,,4o
It would seem that the reduction/ensconcement of the
Dharma conveyed in Empowerment is what facilitates the Trea-
sure mode of transmission-it allows the text to be easily pre-
served in memory over time. According to rDo grub chen Rin-
poche, the content of the Empowerment becomes an
"indestructible point of space that is the clear light of primordial
intelligence.,,41 In this form the Treasure cannot be "stolen,"
and is impervious to the vicissitudes of the "winds of karma"
during.the appointed individual's series of lifetimes before dis-
covery.42 Thus, we can say that the Treasure is transformed
into a mnemonic device of sorts. This condensed seminal teach-
ing granted in the Empowerment becomes the basis for semiosis
(mtshan bya dan gyi man ngag), that which is pointed to by the
signifying symbols (mtshan byed brda) later employed by the
diikinzs who conceallreveal the Treasure.
43
But there is also a medium that carries the semioticized
Treasure over time and induces the appointed discoverer to
remember the Treasure at the appropriate moment. This is
usually conceived of as the "yellow paper" (shag ser, also called
"paper scroll," shag dril). rDo grub chen, whose brilliant and
original essay informs the following several paragraphs, refers
mostly to this yellow paper in his discussion, but actually his
own analysis shows that there can be many other types of media,
such as the physical elements, or random mental events. How-
ever, the yellow paper is the most concrete medium; it is the
manuscript, written by Padmasambhava or a disciple, that is
physically buried; it is the Treasure substance itself. It is also
one of the few material traces whose existence is sometimes
cited as actual evidence of a Treasure discovery.44
The text inscribed on the yellow paper or other medium is
a brief and specially coded form of the Treasure. This code
corresponds to the condensed teachings granted in the Empow-
erment, although the precise nature of this correspondence is
not specified. Somehow, however, the appointed discoverer
"holds the Dharma of the previous period's yellow paper as marks
(mtshan ma), so that later, depending on that (same) yellow paper,
it is like a reminder (dran pa gsa ba) of the (full Treasure) teach-
ing.,,45
The discovery of the Treasure in its encoded form in the
subsequent life is of course the climactic revelation event. How-
ever, what is considered to be a complete revelatory transmission
(gtan pheb, lit. "definite descending") actually has more to do
with the internal state of the discoverer, when he or she can
reconstruct and understand the full Treasure scripture. Accord-
ing to rDo grub chen, the discovery of Treasure really involves
a replay of all three paradigmatic stages of scripture transmis-
sion: "The Transmission of the Realized of Padmasambhava's
realization of clear light descends in a sudden jump (thad rgal)
into the heart of the discoverer; when the symbolic letters (brda
yig) are found, there is the awakening of the propensity (viisanii)
to reveal Treasure that was established during the Empower-
ment by Padmasambhava, which constitutes the Transmission
in Symbols; and when the code written on the yellow paper is
broken, the Ear Transmission is obtained."46
Thus, just as SrI Sirilha's Symbolic Transmission was dis-
closed to Padmasambhava in stages, the semiotic Treasure reve-
lation proceeds gradually. In the first place, the discoverer is
put directly and instantaneously in mind of the Treasure in its
most basic form; then follows the presentation of its symbols in
the form of the discovered Treasure medium, and finally the
decoding. Each of the latter two steps can involve considerable
difficulty. Just to attain a clear perception of the symbolic letters
can be elusive, with the text on the yellow paper changing or
even disappearing before the discoverer's eyes. And once the
encoded text reaches "stabilization" (gtan khel) , there remains
the complex task of deciphering it, which can require months
or years of reflection.
47
It is only at the point that the encoded
text can be translated into the fully remembered Treasure scrip-
ture that rDo grub chen can properly equate a medium such
as the yellow paper with the discursive Ear Transmission.
The Encoded Treasure: Literal and Other Signs
The text inscribed on the yellow paper or other medium
has the dual role of concealing the Treasure in code, and of
revealing the Treasure by means of that same suggestive code.
rDo grub chen identifies three aspects of this encodinglremind-
ing feat of semiosis.
48
l. The first concerns the "type of letters" (yig rigs), i.e.,
the script in which the encoded Treasure is written. This is
usually some form of the "symbolic script of the qakin'is" (mkha'
'gro brda yig). There are many varieties, such as thang yig, spung
yig, bshur yig, and so on, but rDo grub chen also admits that non
qakin'i alphabets and even some of the Tibetan scripts can be
used.
49
2. The second aspect of the encoded Treasure's semiosis
concerns the means by which the discoverer breaks the cipher
of the qakin'i script and comes to "meet with" or be "introduced
to" (ngosprod) the literal encoded Treasure.
5o
Three possibilities
are listed:
2.a) There can be a manifest script that is encoded ac-
cording to a "key" (lde mig can), such that there is a one-to-one
correspondence between the symbolic script and the letters of
the Tibetan alphabet. In this case, access to the key would enable
the discoverer to read the text given on the yellow paper.
2.b) Alternately, the discoverer can perceive the encoded
Treasure text as a result of some external prompting. In this
case there does not seem to be a yellow paper as such. Rather,
the discoverer will see something in the environment, which
serves as the encoding medium, and which presents the diikini
cipher. An example given by my consultant, mKhan po dpal
ldan shes rab, is a goat nibbling grass: the discoverer sees this
visual configuration as a letter of sorts, which then brings the
encoded Treasure's textuality to mind.
51
This is labelled "cer-
tainty through circumstances" (rkyen las nges); in rDo grub chen's
words, "without (reference to) an alphabet, there is a spontane-
ous knowing (of the encoded Treasure) as a result of some sort
of circumstance in the environment involving either inanimate
objects or animate beings.,,52
2.c) Thirdly, the "face value of the letters" (yig ngo) of
the encoded Treasure text can simply become clear to the dis-
coverer, "without regard for either (an alphabet or external
circumstances)" (gnyis la mi ltos). Again, there would not seem
to be a yellow paper involved. Rather, the medium is a spontane-
ous vision or some other internal prompting, which results either
in a direct perception of the encoded Treasure text, or consists
in a gradual process, in which repetition of the internal clue or
image finally evokes a perception of the text.
3. Not only is a cipher script employed, and that script
presented in a variety of media and with a variety of modes of
correspondences to Tibetan, but thirdly, what is "set out" ('god
tshul) can be semioticized. This refers to the content of the en-
coded text, and how that relates to the content of the full Trea-
sure scripture. Again rDo grub identifies three possibilities:
3.a) In the case of 'Just an appearance" (snang tsam) ,
there will appear a single symbol, or a character or two,not
necessarily completing a phrase or even a word. We might un-
derstand this mode as a mnemonic cue of wrts; the discoverer
is given the opening letters of the Treasure, which serve to
evoke in his memory the full text.
3.b) In the second way of setting out, 'Just a support"
20
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
(rten tsam), there are two options: the memory of the full Trea-
sure may be "evoked by a section of the actual text" (dngos skul
byed) , or "evoked through a recollection" (rjes dran skul byed).
3.b.l) The first, like the appearance mode, functions as
a mnemonic cue: it consists in the presentation of the title of
the actual Treasure, or a portion of the introduction, or a history
of the. text. This brief section is like a "tiny seed that suffices to
produce a huge nigrodha tree"-it encourages the full flowing
forth of the Treasure in the discoverer's memory.
3.b.2) The second type of support consists of a statement
that causes a recollection of the full Treasure. We should note
that here, the meaning (tshig zin) of what is written on the yellow
paper is said to have determinant significance (dan rtags).53 This
meaning must be understood by the discoverer in order for the
reminding to occur, whereas in all of the previously discussed
modes, despite some ambiguity, merely the literal or phonetic
value of the text of the Treasure code may be sufficient to evoke
the memory of the literal surface of the Treasure text proper.
There are two types of evocation of recollection:
3.b.2.1) In the first case, the determinant significance of
the content of the Treasure medium is unrelated to the content
of the full Treasure. Instead, the encoded text reminds the
discoverer of the peripheral circumstances of the time and place
in the previous life when the Treasure Empowerment was re-
ceived. As rDo grub chen explains, this memory enables the
discoverer to recall the Treasure itself: "For example, on the
yellow paper it may be written, 'when the cuckoos first arrived,
the Guru and his disciples were all at Brag dmar mtsho mo
mgul. Every day in front of the canopy of the tent where they
were sitting, ducks, cranes, cuckoos and all sorts of birds
gathered and played-an extremely pleasing (sight).' Seeing
that, the (discoverer) thinks, 'At that time Guru Rinpoche gave
us disciples such and such teaching.' And then that teaching in
its entirety appears (to the discoverer).,,54
3.b.2.2) The second way in which the recollection of the
Treasure is evoked is vaguer: "In the actual contents conveyed
in the symbolic characters, there is nothing explicit about the
past, but rather it seems to be a random statement. However,
as a result of (reading that statement), it is said that (the discov-
erer) remembers how the (Treasure) was explained in the past,
and is able (to cause it to) come forth (lit., "descend," 'beb) in
just the way as it was previously.,,55 An example of this mode
offered by my consultant, mKhan po dpalldan shes rab, is a
. statement .containing the word "diamond," which reminds the
discoverer of a Treasure concerning Vajrasattva, the "Diamond
Being." In this mode, again, it is clear that the discoverer com-
prehends the meaning of the inscription in the Treasure
medium.
3.c) Finally, there is a third type of setting out, which is
not semioticized. Rather, the full Treasure text is simply "freely
put forth" (thar chags). We might note that in such a case, the
text may still be given in symbolic script, and be "introduced"
to the discoverer through a semiotic medium.
If the semiotics of the encoded Treasure were not intricate
enough, it is striking to realize that the 'process of receiving the
full revelation is not limited to the reading of the yellow paper
or other medium and the bringing forth of the full Treasure
on its basis. There are many other acts of decoding that occur
both prior and subsequent to the discovery of the Treasure. On
the posterior side, there is the further task of translating the
Treasure. As already noted, the scripture that the discoverer
retrieves from memory as prompted by the Treasure medium
may only be a literal document, i.e., something the discoverer
could recite without necessarily understanding it. Indeed, Treas-
ure texts are often said to be written in the "symbolic language
of the qiikinfs" (mkha' gro brda skad) , 56 to be distinguished from
the symbolic script of the qiikinfs discussed above. Further, after
the language is deciphered, there is an even more critical act
of decoding: in order to be able to translate the Treasure, the
discoverer must come to understand its content, its philosophy
and practices. It is said that if one attempts to render the Treas-
ure prematurely, the correct grammar, order bf concepts, and
appropriate style may be elusive.
57
Finally, the rendering also
involves the codification of the Treasure cycle into the various
ritual and doctrinal genres, the forms of which are determined
by the needs of the discoverer's own followers.
All of these acts of deciphering, translating and interpreting
are thought to require maturity and wisdom. A teacher often
advises the discoverer to wait some time before committing the
revelation to writing or making its contents known to others.
58
The discoverer typically enters a meditative retreat, prays to
Padmasambhava for inspiration, and develops spiritual insight
and agility in yoga. A necessary ingredient in the decoding of
Treasure is said to be the union in sexual yoga with a consort,
a "secret friend" (gsang grogs), or "female helper" (pho nya mo).59
This facilitates the breaking of codes (brda grol) , here a metaphor
for the loosening of the psychic knots that bind the cakras, neces-
sary for the mature rendering of the full Treasure scripture in
determinant form.
Signs Before the Signs: The Personal Signs
The active participation and spiritual development required
for the work of deciphering is just as pronounced in the period
prior to the discovery of the encoded Treasure text. The disco-
verer-to-be has a variety of experiences that seem to indicate
an impending Treasure revelation, yet there is uncertainty. The
location of the hidden Treasure, the way to reach that location,
and the method of extraction must all be determined. Instruc-
tions received in dreams, however, are cryptic, images are blurry,
and visions disappear into thin air. Most important, the young
visionary is beset by doubts that he or she might not be the
appointed discoverer. This last is critical, for without the requi-
site confidence, a Treasure cannot be found, much less de-
ciphered.
6o
The perplexity, as might be guessed by now, is resolved by
the recognition and interpretation of yet another cluster of signs.
Highly diverse in form and content, these signs have not been
systematically analyzed in the literature,61 but they are labelled
with the same semiological vocabulary that we found in the
other portions of the Treasure narrative, and they constitute a
rich dimension of the tradition's semiosis. I label this category
"personal signs" because of the special significance such config-
urations have for the discoverer's personal development.
We read of the personal signs in two genres of the Treasure
literature: the biographies of the discoverers, and the
prophecies. This is in itself of interest. The biography is written
after the events of the revelation, whereas the prophecy is sup-
posedly uttered by Padmasambhava before those events occur,
during the transmission of the Prophecy of the Revelation. The
text of the prophecy usually appears in a dream or is discovered
. as an antecedent Treasure text; its receipt and effect on the
visionary is recounted in the biography. When the prophecy is
read, what it predicts has either transpired already, such as the
discoverer's birth, identity of parents, early visions, etc.; or it
lies ahead in the future, such as the circumstances and location
of the full revelation. Those of the predictions that have already
occurred are for that very reason to be understood as signs: the
corroboration confirms that Padmasambhava's intended plan
for the Treasure discovery is now being fulfilled in the discov-
erer's own life. As for the events that have not yet occurred,
they become indicative signs. The discoverer looks for the pre-
dicted places and circumstances, and when they are recognized,
they thereby become confirming signs that encourage the
discoverer to proceed with the quest. In this way, biography
becomes a sign or confirmation of the truth of the prophecy,
and the prophecy a sign that the biography is one of an authentic
Treasure discoverer.
Not all of the factors that are taken semiotically in the dis-
coverer's life appear in the prophecy, however. Events or con-
figurations that in any case are interpreted in the Tibetan milieu
as auspicious also concatenate as confirmations of the indi-
vidual's identity as an appointed discoverer, or of the appro-
priateness of the time or place for Treasure revelation. When
contiguous with overt Treasure signs, anything that is normally
taken as a propitious portent tends to be appropriated as a
Treasure sign as well. These signs are of such wide variety that
they belie comprehensive description.
'Jigs med gling pa, pondering the significance of his own
personal signs, such as his bearing of the name Padma, and the
thirty red spots marked (mtshan) with vajras on his chest, recalls
another Treasure text that lists the three main signs (brda rtags)
of a genuine discoverer: "On the body, flesh marks at the heart,
navel, and on moles. In speech, there should be facility in teach-
ing and singing; and one should bear the name of Padmasa-
mbhava. The mind should be one-pointed and strong in remem-
bering me (Padmasambhava).,,62
In particular, the concreteness of physical marks, always
sought eagerly by Tibetans, is noted significantly on the bodies
of discoverers. The biography of Nyang ral nyi rna 'od zer reels
off numerous such marks that were visible when he was born:
"As a sign (rtags) of being of the Padma family, his flesh had a
reddish cast. . . . As a sign of possessing the qualities of an
embodiment of thetathiigatas, there was a white flesh mark in
the shape of an om in the parting of his hair .... As a sign of
having completed the five margas and the ten bhilmis, there was
a picture of an eight-spoked wheel on his foot ... ," and so on.
63
Letters or bija syllables on the body are especially favored; in
his prophecy, 'Jigs med gling pa is predicted to be recognizable
by the presence of a hya in his thumb print, and an a in the
grain of a tooth.
64
Signs not only mark the individual; equally significant is
the time, which refers both to the period of the discoverer's
lifetime as a whole, as well as to the precise moment of the
Treasure's extraction. The major prophecies, such as those in
the Padma thang yig, allude to events of national importance
such as political, military or astronomical situations that will
mark the era of the Treasure.
65
dPa' bo gtsug lag 'phreng ba
cites these cryptic references, and links them with actual histor-
ical events during the period when the specified Treasures were
revealed. For example, the prophecy states punningly that the
sign of 0 rgyan gling pa's time is that "the pig (phag) eats up
the earth (sa).,,66 And in fact, as the historian points out, Phag
mo grus pa's defeat of Sa skya (1358) did occur during 0 rgyan
gling pa's lifetime.
67
Again, Guru Jo rtse's discovery took place
when dPan chen kun bzang was executed by the Mongols
(c.1280), this event is referred to in the prophecy as "the time
when Hor pa troops arrived at Bya rag rdzong in lower
Myang.,,68 .
Signs of the time can also be local and specific. For Rig
'dzin rgod Idem can, the appearance of the star rGyal phu on
the horizon was the indication to proceed with a Treasure reve- _
lation.
69
'J a' tshon snying po's prophecy warns of the danger in
ignoring his predicted temporal signs when they appear: "There
will be an epidemic in that country. You will almost die. At the
site of the Treasure, a monastery with a school for Buddhist
studies will be flourishing. Inside a lake there will be a burning
fire that all can see during the day. When such signs (rtags
mtshan) appear, take out the Treasure! Without the temporal
signs (dus rtags), it is not permissable to take it out .... Yet if
you ignore (the signs), and the master of the Treasure flees, his
powers will dissipate.
7o
Therefore it is advisable to be cautious
in what you do.'>7l
The site of the Treasure is also recognized by signs of various
sorts. The prophecies typically liken the appearance of the place
to anthropomorphic or animal shapes, or to ritual objects. 'la'
tshon snying po is instructed to seek a "mountain shaped like
the swirl on a gtor ma for wrathful deities.'>72 Nyang ral is given
this description: "Here in your country there is a red mountain
like a lion leaping into the sky. In the four directions are four
great ministers, from the center of which the light of the shining
sun radiates, and into which the rays of the setting sun collect.
At that place is the Secret Mantra Treasure.,,73
The place where the Treasure is hidden will often be spe-
cifically pinpointed by theophanic figures or inanimate
mechanisms that direct the discoverer to the site. Such
phenomena are also taken as indicative signs by the discoverer:
Rig 'dzin rgod Idem can writes that he sighted "a sign (rtags) in
the form of a light ray, like the trunk of the kalpalatika tree, that
struck Mt. bKra bzangs.':74 When he reached that spot on the
mountain, a rainbow appeared in the sky as a sign of confirm a-
tion.
75
Another sort of confirming sign is experienced ina con-
cretely physical way. rGod Idem can, praying with his disCiples
for revelation, feels the cave in which they are sitting begin to
shake. This shocks and frightens them, but it is interpreted as
a portent (ltas) of the arrival of the Treasure's discoverer. 76
Decidedly somatic signs are predicted to accompany 'la' tshon
snying po's discovery: "When you find it without mistake, you
will experience a sudden rush ('ur). Your body will be trembling.
You will start sweating, and frightened, you will lose your mem-
ory (of mundane matters).'m According to rDo grub chen, the
feelings of rushing, heat and bliss are standard signs of the inner
experience of all discoverers at the time of revelation, an experi-
ence that is also often described in specifically yogic terms.
78
Other events of personal significance to the discoverer may
not be explicitly labelled as signs. Of particular importance are
the overt confirmations of being the reincarnation of the ap-
pointed individual. A theophanic figure of some sort, or even
an appearance of Padmasambhava himself, will address the dis-
coverer as such; 79 or there will be a written certificate (byang
bu) identifying the discoverer, a certificate that is received in
revelatory fashion at some point prior to the full revelation. so
Both the visionary figure and the certificate will also convey
specific information on the location of the Treasure and the
procedure by which to extract it. But the connotative implication
of such divine intervention is of far greater significance for the
discoverer than is the specific information conveyed, critical as
that is. In brief, all of these "miraculous appearances" (cho 'phrul)
are interpreted as evidence of Padmasambhava's active agency.
By recognizing the pattern of events as an instance of the
paradigmatic mode of Treasure transmission, the conclusion,
by a kind of abductive logic, is that a discoverer's life, and a
Treasure revelation, is in progress.
S1
This conclusion, in turn,
supplies the critical confidence for the discoverer to label his
vision and revelations as Treasure scripture.
Finally, the semiotic reading of the discoverer's life becomes
so thick that, at some level, every experience becomes a sign.
We have already noticed above the sense in which the discov-
erer's biography itself becomes a confirmation of the veracity
of Padmasambhava's prophecies. On another, more general
level, it might simply be a sign of being a Treasure discoverer
to interpret everything as a sign. 'jigs med gling pa, introducing
his own account of his Treasure revelation in terms of the Vaj-
rayana path, explains, "When one assimilates the blessings and
compassion of the buddhas into one's own discursive thought,
all appearances that are reflected in the incipient great magical
show are symbolic significations (brdar btags pa) of the circle of
pure awareness."S2
On a larger scale, the very geography of Tibet is seen as
being covered with the signs of the legacy of Padmasambhava.
To begin with, there is the widely held belief that Padmasa-
mbhava left footprints and handprints in the mountains and
rocks of Tibet; these traces are sought eagerly by the discover-
ers.
S3
More importantly, according to the Treasure tradition,
Padmasambhava transformed the entirety of Tibet into a place
for Buddhist practice, a repository of the Vajrayana; in this
view, the Treasures deposited for discovery throughout the
country are signs of Padmasanibhava's pervasive blessings and
guidance.
84
As the prophecy of Ratna gling pa states, "In each
great valley there is a great Treasure; these also are reminders
of the onefrom O-rgyan. In each minor place there is a minor
Treasure; these also are reminders of the one from O_rgyan.,,85
Ultimately, any instance of Treasure discovery is itself a
sign. For 'Jigs med gling pa, this significance is personal, as he
reflects when handed the gSol 'debs le'u bdun ma Treasure, "The
cfiikini must have given me this as a sign (brda) of my mastery
of this teaching in many past lives.,,86 But especially in the case
of a ~ r e a s u r e such as the gSol 'debs le'u bdun ma, which in varying
rescensions was revealed by a number of discoverers,87 its reve-
lation also signifies the continuing vitality of the Treasure
lineage as a whole. And that, as we have already seen, IS a
commemorative sign of Padmasambhava himself.
* * *
The Treasure .... ..discoverer's preoccupation with recognizing
signs is, of course, continuous with a general Tibetan obsession.
Propitious portents, omens, and signs of good karma (or, to use
the classical Buddhist term that is commonplace in colloquial
Tibetan to refer to a confluence of destiny and good timing, "a
fitting interdependent origination" [rten 'brel khrigs pa]) are al-
ways sought as confirmations of time, place, persons, and so
on, in undertakings ranging from a day's journey to a state
ceremony.88 However, it is clear that for the Treasure discov-
erer, signs have a dimension beyond the mere indication of a
general state of auspiciousness. Rather, what is signified is a
specific and determinant moment in history, a moment that is
constitutive of the discoverer's very destiny and being .
. Given the gravity and importance that the Treasure tradi-
tion assigns to the past historical moment, however, a critical
question arises. Why are signs necessary at all? If Padmasa-
mbhava's intention is so all-determining, why doesn't he simply
appear at the right time and hand the discoverer the manifest
Treasure cycle in its proper form? Why does the discoverer
have to wrestle with a complex series of signs in order to receive
the revelation?
The answer to these questions involves a paradoxical conclu-
sion: the very signs that point to the authoritative past also
undermine the authoritativeness of that past. The presence of
semiosis in the transmission of scripture ensures that the discov-
erer's ability as interpreter is necessary to the process. Rather
than being a passive conduit for a divine teleology, the discoverer
is called upon to exercise his or her own talents. In recognizing
bodily signs, reading the shape of landscapes and the tenor of
the times, in pondering the internal signs for a clue to scripture
hidden in memory, and certainly in undergoing the rigorous
meditative training that is always part of the discoverer's life,
the discoverer's own spiritual powers and creativity are surely
essential. Thus, despite the fact that all of these signs are ulti-
mately thought to be produced by Padmasambhava, it is pre-
cisely because the signs conceal, because they must be inter-
preted, that the Treasures can never be entirely determinant
scriptures, frozen in content and format, or truly canonical in
the classical sense.
As much as the Mahayana grounding in a pervasive, timeless
enlightenment has been set aside in the Treasure tradition, it
also remains as the very basis upon which the historical transmis-
sion can take place. This becomes clear when we consider some
of the earlier stages in the Treasure's semiosis. In the Transmis-
sion in Symbols, and also in the Treasure's reduction to code
in the Empowerment rite, what is being signified is indeed inde-
terminant and ahistorical. It is the very essence of the Buddhist
teachings, which, as we know, is no essence at all. Ultimately,
the nondual Transmission of the Realized stands as the ground
of all scriptural transmission. In some sense every revelation is
a synchronic memory of that ground. But if there were only
the ubiquitous Transmission of the Realized, and never the
introduction of duality or history, creativity and newness would
be rendered just as impossible as they are by a totally determined
revelation of an omnipotent Padmasambhava.
Signs, after all, mediate. They are the media that convey
the Dharma of the teacher to the student. They also mediate
between the discoverer and the diachronic memory of the past,
and between the adept and the synchronic memory of ever-pres-
ent enlightenment. As the central element in a theory of sacred
scripture transmission, the presence of semiosis places the Treas-
ure tradition in a mediate position between the completely closed
SIGNS, MEMORY AND HISTORY
29
canon of the Hinayana and the completely open canon of the
Mahayana.
* * *
I would like to thank mKhan po dPalldan shes rab and mKhan
po Tshe dbang don rgyal for their erudite assistance and for
kindly discussing this essay with me at length.
NOTES
1. The principal comprehensive description of the Treasure tradition
in Tibetan is Kong sprul blo gros mtha' yas (1813-1899), Zab mo'igter dang
gter ston grub thob ji ltar byon pa'i lo rgyus mdor bsdus bkod pa rin chen baidurya'i
phreng ba (abbr. gTer mam brgya rtsa), in Rin chen gter mdzod, edited by Kong
sprul blo gros mtha' yas (Paro: Ngodrup & Sherap Drimay, 1976), vol. 1, pp.
291-759. This forms the basis for bDud Joms Jigs bral ye shes rdo rje's
(1904- ) account in the sixth chapter of his Gangs ljongs rgyal bstan yongs
rdzogs kyi phyi ma snga 'gyur rdo rje theg pa'i bstan pa rin po che ji ltar byung ba'i
. tshul dag cing gsal bar brjod pa lha dbang gyul las rgyud ba'i mga bo che'i sgra
dbyangs (abbr. rNying ma'i chos 'byung) (l{alimpong, 1967). bDud Joms Rin-
poche's text has been translated into English by Gyurme DOlje and Matthew
Kapstein, and is to be published, along with extensive notes and indices, as
The History and Fundamentals of the Nyingma School, by Wisdom Publications in
winter 1986. Parts of the sixth chapter were translated previously by Eva
Dargyay in her The Rise of Esoteric Buddhism in Tibet (Delhi: Motilal Banarsidas,
1977). An important essay on the Treasure tradition, not previously noticed
by Western scholars, is rDo grub chen Jigs med bstan pa nyi rna (1865-1926?),
Las 'jJhro gter brgyud kyi mam bshad nyung gsal ngo mtshar rgya mtsho (abbr. gTer
kyi mam bshad), in The Collected Works ofrDo Grub Chen 'jigs Med Bstan Pa Nyima
(Gangtok: Dodrup Chen Rinpoche, 1975), vol. 4, pp. 377- 447. This work
has been translated into English by Tulku Thondup, and will also be published
by Wisdom Publications in 1986, as Hidden Teachings of Tibet. I have not had
the opportunity to consult Tulku Thondup's translation for the purposes of
the present study, although I have used certain sections of rDo g r ~ b chen's
work herein. .
Among the few Western studies of the Treasure tradition and related
matters, the following are particularly noteworthy. By Anne-Marie Blondeau:
"Le IHa-'dre bKa'-thaIi," in Etudes tibitaines didiies a la memoire de Marcelle
Lalou (Paris 1971), pp. 29-126; "Analysis of the biographies of Padmasa-
mbhava according to Tibetan tradition: classification of sources," in Tibetan
Studies in Honour of Hugh Richardson, edited by Michael Aris and Aung San
Suu Kyi (Warminster: Aris & Phillips, 1980); Comptes rendus de conferences,
30
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
Annuaire de l'Ecole Pratique des Hautes-Etudes, Ve section (Paris, 1975 through
1978); and her "Le 'Decouvreur' Du Mal).i Bka'-'Bum Etait-il Bon-po?" in
Tibetan and Buddhist Studies Commemorating the 200th Anniversary of the Birth of
Alexander Csoma De Karas, edited by Louis Ligeti, (Budapest: Akademiai Kiado,
1984) pp. 77-123. Cf. also Ariane Macdonald, "Une lecture des P.T. 1286,
1287, 1038, 1047 et Essai sur la formation et l'emploi des mythes
politiques dans la religion royale de Sroll-bcan sgam-po," in Etudes tibetaines,
pp. E. Gene Smith, Introduction to Kongtrul's Encyclopaedia of Indo-
Tibetan Culture (New Delhi, 1970), pp. 1-87; Per Kvaerne, "The Canon of the
Tibetan Bonpos," Indo-Iranian Journal 16 (1974) 18-56; 96-144; Matthew
Kapstein: "Remarks on the Mal).i bka'-'bum and the cult of Avalokitesvara in
Tibet," to be published in the proceedings of the North American Tibetological
Society; Kapstein's "A dGe-lugs-pa Defense of the Gter-ma Tradition," to be
published in Buddhist Apocryphal Literature, edited by Robert Buswell and Lewis
Lancaster (Berkeley: Berkeley Buddhist Studies Series, No. 10, 1986), and
Ramon Pratz, Contributo Allo Studio Biografico Dei Primi Gter-Ston (Napoli: Is-
tituto Universitario Orientale, 1982). My own work on these topics includes
"The Internal Logic of Legitimation Within the Textual Structure of the
Tibetan Treasure Cycles," to be published in Buddhist Apocryphal Literature;
and "The Relic Text As Prophecy: Analogous Meanings of Byang(-bu), And
Its Appropriation In The Treasure Tradition" to be published in Tibet Journal
(Festschrift for Burmiok Athing), 1986.
2. Khyung po dpal dge and !Dang rna lhun rgyal are identified by
Pratz, Contributo, as belonging to the end of the tenth century.
3. The great majority of the Treasure cycles are linked to Padmasa-
mbhava; however, there are a number of other figures to whom Treasures
are also attributed, most importantly Vimalamitra (eighth century), the source
of the Bi ma snying thig cycle. The MaTfi bka' 'bum is said to be the teaching of
Srong btsan sgam po, the seventh-century king of Tibet. There are a variety
of other exceptions as well. Moreover, the Bon-po Treasures are not attributed
to Padmasambhava.
4. The Rin chen gter mdzod was compiled by Kong sprul blo gros mtha'
yas in the nineteenth century. The sTod lung mtshur phu edition has been
published in Paro by Ngodrup and Sherap Drimay, 1976. III volumes.
5. For a discussion of what I have identified as the two types of history
of Treasure, the account of the origin of the cycle and the account of the
revelation, see my "The Internal Logic of Legitimation."
6. The three transmissions are recounted in numerous works, and the
terminology used can vary considerably. For this paper I have utilized some
of the versions given in the historical sections of the Treasure cycles themselves.
A fairly extensive rendition may be had from bDud Joms Rinpoche, rNying
ma'i chos 'byung, p. 63 ff. The tradition of Nyang ral nyi rna 'od zer's (1124/36--'
119211204) bDe gshegs 'dus pa cycle divides the same transmission sequence
into five phases: rgyal ba dgongs brgyud; rig 'dzin rig pas brgyud de dkar chags la
btab pa; mkha' 'gro ma gtad rgyas brgyud de gter du ji ltar spas pa; grub thob rnal
'byor pa La brgyud de bka' rgya bkrol ba; and gang zag snyan du brgyud de bod du
byung tshul. See bDe gshegs 'dus pa'i bka' byung tshul, in Nyang ral nyi rna 'od
zer, bKa' brgyad bde gshegs 'duspa'i chos skor (Gangtok: Sonam Topgay Kazi,
1978), vol. 1, pp. 231-271. This tradition is an early instance of a general
tendency to recognize a Treasure transmission in India during the Vidyadhara
phase. The bDe gshegs 'dus pa cycle explains-the Treasure transmission in Tibet
as being devised specially for King Khri srong Ide btsan in his future incarna-
tions. See pp. 259 and 269 of the above cited work.
7. Note that the term gtad rgya is being used in two instances: the
appointing of the individual who will discoverer the Treasure in the future,
-and the appointing of the guardians of the Treasure. See rDo grub chen,
gTer kyi rnam bshad, p. 382.
8. For a recent study of the authoritative expositors of buddhavacana
and the sense of history in the Palicanon and in early Mahayana, see Graeme
MacQueen, "Inspired Speech in Early Mahayana Buddhism I," in Religion
(1981) 11:4, pp. 303-319.
9. Graeme MacQueen, "Inspired Speech in Early Mahayana Buddhism
II," in Religion (1982) 12:1, p. 52, citing Aqtasahasrikaprajnaparamitiisiltra 226---:--
229 and other passages.
10. U. Wogihara, ed., Abhisamayalamkara'loka Prajnaparamitavyakhya: The
Work of Haribhadra (Tokyo: The Toyo Bunko, 1932), p. 28: yat ki'T(tcid ayuqman
sariputra bhagavatalJ, sravaka bhiiqante desayanty upadifanty udirayanti prakafayanti
samprakasayanti sa sarvas tathagatasya puruqakaro veditavyalJ,. Translation as by
Edward Conze, The Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines and Its Verse
Summary (Bolinas: Four Seasons Foundation, 1973), p. 83.
11. Although the term "Buddha-nature" seems to have been used most
in East Asia (Ch.fo-hsin), it can be traced in early Buddhism and is a seminal
Indian Mahayana doctrine (Skt. buddhata). See entry "Buddha Nature," in
Encyclopaedia of Buddhism, edited by G.P. Malalasekera (Colombo: Department
of Cultural Affairs, 1973), vol. III. See also Edward Conze, Buddhist Thought
In India (London: George Allen & Unwin, 1962), pp. 198 and 225 ff.
12. E.g., chapter 15, vs. 3: NirvaTJ.a-bhilmim c'upadarsayami / vinayartha
sattvana vadamy upayam / na capi nirvamy ahu tasmin kale / ihaiva co dharmu
prakasayami I" edited by U. Wogihara and C.
Tsuchida (Toyko: The Sankibo Buddhist Book Store, 1958), p. 275.
13. The Pure Vision revelations also yield texts which are assigned a
status akin to sacred scripture, and the formal distinction that I am identifying
is sometimes ignored in practice. By and large, however, Pure Visions are
teachings of Dharma received spontaneously from buddhas, bodhisattvas, or, as
Kong sprul notes, birds, trees, the sky, etc. See Kong sprul blo gros mtha'
yas, gTer rnam brgya rtsa, pp. 683 and 297, where he is clear' in identifying dag -
snang as a mode distinct both from bka' ma and gter ma. A classical instance
of Pure Vision is Asariga's revelations from Maitreya.
14. With regard to the date of the development of the AvalokiteSvara
cult, in which King Srong btsan sgam po is cast as an emanation of the
bodhisattva, see Ariane Macdonald, Une Lecture; Yoshiro Imaeda, "Note pre-
liminaire sur la formule Om MaI).i Padme hum dans les manuscrits Tibetains
de Touen-houang," in Contributions aux etudes sur Touen-houang
Droz, 1979), pp. 71-6; and Matthew Kapstein, "Remarks on the MaI).i bKa'-
'bum." Anne-Marie Blondeau, in her Annuaire report of 1977-1978, traces
the connection between the Avalokitdvara cult and the legend of Padmasa-
mbhava. Our earliest reference to the life of Padmasambhava seems to be
Pelliot Tibetain 44. See F.A. Bischoff and Charles Hartman, "Padmasam-
bhava's Invention of the Phur-bu: Ms. Pelliot Tibetain 44," in Etudes Tibetaines,
pp. 11-28.
15. rDo grub chen, gTer kyi rnam bshad, p. 38l. brjed tho = mi brjed pa'i
dran tho. Gene Smith, Introduction, p. 12, translates this term alternately as
"testimony" and "sign." For the various terms I have employed for types of
memory, I am grateful to Edward Casey, whose forthcoming book Remember-
ing: A Phenomenological Study (Bloomington: University of Indiana Press, 1987),
is illuminating for the present topic.
16. gTer kyi rnam bshad, pp. 401-2.
17. Klong chen snying gi thig le'i rtogs pa brjod pa qiikki'i gsang gtam chen ma
(abbr. sNying thig rtogs brjod), p. 13, in 'jigs med gling pa (1729-1798), Klong
chen snying thig (New Delhi: Ngawang Sopa, 1973), vol. l.
18. See Umberto Eco, A Theory of Semiotics (Bloomington: Indiana Uni-
versity Press, 1976), p. 178. Symbols are arbitrarily linked with their object
(e.g., letters, which signify sounds); icons are similar to their object (e.g.,
pictographs); and indices are physically connected with their object and point
to the object as a whole (e.g., a book that represents a scholar).
19. For an example of the criticisms levelled against the Treasure scrip-
tures, see Matthew Kapstein, "A dGe-lugs-pa Defense of the Gter-ma Tradi-
tion."
20. See my "The Logic of Legitimation."
2l. dPa' bo gtsug lag 'phreng ba (1503-1565), Chos 'byung mkhas pa'i dga'
ston (Delhi: Delhi Karmapai Chodhey Gyalwae Sungrab Partun Khang, 1980),
vol. 1, p. 633.
22. 'Jigs med gling pa, sNying thig rtogs brjod p. 13, quoting sGron ma
rnam pa bkod pa.
23. Rig 'dzin rgod kyi Idem 'phru can (1337-1490), Kun bzang bgongs pa
zang thai las yid ches brgyud pa'i 10 rgyus stong thun gyi spyi chings chen mo (abbr.
dGongs pa zang thai 10 rgyus), p. 7, in his rDzogs pa chen po dgongs pa zang thaI
and Ka dag rang byung rang shar (Leh: S.W. Tashi Gangpa, 1973) (Smanrtsis
Shesrig Spendzod, vol. 60).
24. gTer bdag glingpa 'gyur med rdo rje (1646-1714), rDzogs chen a ti
zab don snying po'i lo rgyus (abbr. A ti zab don lo rgyus), p. 8, in his rDzogs pa
chen po a ti zab don snying po'i chos skor (Dehra Dun: D. G. Khochhen Trulku,
1977).
25. Ibid., p. 9.
26. Rig 'dzin rgod Idem can, dGongs pa zang thalia rgyus, p. 7.
27. gTer bdag gling pa, A ti zab don 10 rgyus, p. 10: ci yang mi gsung ba'i
gsung ba chen po.
28. dGongs pa zang thalia rgyus, p. 7.
29. Ibid., p. 8: sprul pa'i 'khor . ..
30. A ti zab don 10 rgyus, p. 9: 'gro 'ong dang skyes 'gag 'pho 'gyur med pa
bzhugs pa las gnyis su med pa'i ngo bar gnas kyaJ1-g gnyis su snang ba rgyal ba thams
cad skyed par byed pa'i yum ...
31: Ibid., pp. 13-14.
32. Ibid., p. 16.
33. dCongs pa zang thallo rgyUs, p. 11. For example, Vajrasattva's granting
of various boxes (dga'u) to the rNying rna patriarch dGa' rab rdo rje is included
in the Transmission of the Realized.
34. Ibid., p. 12.
35. Ibid., p. 15 ff.
36. According to mKhan po dPalldan shes rab, in an intervi'ew in May
1986, there is a greater tendency to be attached to upiiya, which is analogous
with the view of realism (yod pa), than to prajiiii, analogous with the view of
nihilism (med pa).
37. The importance of the Empowerment transmission is emphasized
by rDo grub chen, gTer kyi rnam bshad, p. 383.
38. sCrub thabs snying po skor lnga, p. 452, in Rin chen gter mdzod, vol. 4:
rdo rje lus byang chub snying po.
39. dPa' bo gtsug lag 'phreng ba, Chos 'byung mkhas pa'i dga' ston, p. 296:
gter gnas rang sems la chos nyid rang chas su gnas pa.
40. 'Jigs med gling pa, Klong chen snying gi thig ie las dbang gi spyi don
snying po don gsal, p. 123 and throughout, in his Klong chen snying thig, vol. 1:
... 'grub pa'i skal ba rgyud la bzhag.
41. rDo grub chen, gTer kyi rnam bshad, p: 383.
42. Ibid., p. 383.
43. Ibid., p. 383. These two phrases drawn from a somewhat more com-
plex statement by rDo grub chen concerning the three special transmissions
for Treasure.
44. See, for example, mNga' ris pan chen padma dbang rgyal rdo rje's
(1487-1582) account of his search for the actual paper of the Treasure (gter
shog dngos) of Nyang ral's bKa' brgyad bde gshegs 'dus pa cycle, which he finally
finds in Lho brag: bKa' brgyad bde gshegs 'dus pa'i 'chad thabs rnun sel nyi zla'i
'khor lo, p. 210 seq., in Nyang ral Nyi rna 'Od' zer, bKa' brgyad bde gshegs 'dus
pa'i chos skor, vol. 1. Is it just this yellow paper that is also identified as the
original "Kagye Desheg Duepa," as reproduced in Lopen Nado, "The Develop-
ment of Language in a Buddhist Kingdom," Druk Losel, iv no. 2 (August 1982),
p. 5? I am grateful to Michael Aris for bringing Lopen Nado's article to my
attention.
45. gTer kyi rnam bshad, p. 383.
46. Ibid., p. 385. Paraphrased.
47. Ibid., p. 408 seq. An extended discussion of the problems involved
is presented here.
48. Ibid., especially pp. 403-406.
49. The following scripts are listed (explanations in parentheses are
based on the comments of mKhan po dPalldan shes rab in a conversation in
February 1986): thang yig (letters with long ligatures, used in records and old
documents); spung yig (abbreviated letters); bshur yig (an old term for Tibetan
dbu can); ldem yig (cursive script); spas yig (an even more abbreviated script
than spung yig); mkhar brtsegs (letters that resemble architectural structures);
thig le'i yi ge (rounded letters); 'khyil chen and 'khyil chung (both are curved
letters). rDo grub chen also mentions styles of writing the conventional Tibetan
alphabet omitting prefixes, headletters, suffixes, etc., which are also ways of
encoding the text. gTer kyi rnam bshad, p. 404.
50. That only the literal surface of the encoded Treasure is being
(un)coded in this category is clear from rDo grub chen's closing statement for
this section: "All of the above is an analysis only of the qakin'i letters." gTer
kyi rnam bshad, p. 405.
51. Conversation, February 1986.
52. gTer kyi rnam bshad, p. 404: ka dpe med la brtan gyo'i yul rkyen nges med
la brten nas rdol thabs su shes pa.
53. gTer kyi rnam bshad, p. 405. However, as pointed out below, the
meaning is in this case unrelated to the actual content of the Treasure scripture.
54. gTer kyi rnam bshad, p. 406.
55. Ibid., p. 406.
56. gTer kyi rnam bshad, p. 406. According to rDo grub chen, this language
can only be understood by the discoverer. The encoded Treasure text may
also be written in other languages, such as Tibetan, Sanskrit, or the "language
of U<;i<;iiyana."
57. See gTer kyi rnam bshad, p. 408 seq.
59. Mentioned in many of the accounts of Treasure revelation. See gTer
kyi rnam bshad, p. 408. Referred to by 'Jigs med gling pa, sNying thig rtogs brjod,
pp. 11 and 13. I have not seen such terms applied to the male consorts of
female discoverers, however.
60. For a fuller discussion of this problem, see my "The Logic of Legiti-
mation."
61. gTer kyi rnam bshad, p. 414, merely calls them the "symbols that
are secondary to the symbolic script" (brda yig gi 'khor du gyur ba'i brda), referring
briefly to the animate and inanimate forms that function as the blessings of
qakin'is and vidyadharas, etc., which aide in the breaking of the Treasure code.
62. 'Jigs med gling pa, gSang ba chen po nyams snang gi rtogs brjod chu zla'i
gar mkhan (abbr. gSang chen rtogs brjod), p. 40, in his Klong chen snying thig, vol.
1. He is quoting Sangs rgyas gling pa's Bla ma dgongs 'dus.
63. Mi 'gym rdo rje, sPrul sku mnga' bdag chen po'i skyes rabs rnam thar dri
ma med pa'i bka' rgya can (abbr. mNga' bdag rnam thar), p. 87 ff., in Nyang ral
nyi rna 'od zer, bKa' brgyad bde gshegs 'dus pa'i chos skor, vol. 1.
64. gNadbyangthugskyisgrombup. 73,inhisKlongchensnyingthig, vol. 1.
65. See U rgyan gling pa (= 0 rgyan gling pa, b. 1323), U rgyan ghuru
padma 'byung gnas kyi skyes rabs rnam par thar pa rgyas par bkod pa padma bka'i
thang yig (Leh, 1968), chapter 92 (ff. 218b-225b).
66. dPa' bo gtsug lag 'phrengba, Chos 'byungmkhaspa'idga'ston, p. 635.
67. Ibid., p. 637. See Tsepon W.D. Shakabpa, Tibet: A Political History
(repr. New York: Potala Publishing, 1985), chapter 5.
68. Chos 'byung mkhas pa'i dga' ston, pp. 634 and 636. See Shakabpa, Tibet,
p. 69. See also Pratz, Contributo, pp. 57-61.
69. Rig 'dzin rgod kyi Idem phru can, gTer gton pa'i lo rgys, p. 28 in his
Byang gter rdzogs chen dgongs pa zang thai and Thugs sgrub skor (Sumra: Orgyan
Dorji, 1978), vol. 1.
70. According to mKhan po dPalldan shes rab, conversation May 1986,
this statement implies that the protectors would kill the delinquent discoverer.
71. Yang zab nor bu'i lde mig, pp. 20-21, in 'Ja' tshonsnying po (1585-
1656),dKonmchogspyi 'duskyichosskor (New Delhi: Topden Tshering, 1977).
. 72. Ibid., p. 16. gTor mas are the traditional Tibetan offering cakes, gen-
erally made in e"Iaborate shapes. .
73. Mi 'gyur rdo rje, mNga' bdag roam thar, p. 94.
74. Rig'dzinrgodldemcan,gTergtonpa'ilorgyus, p. 28: rtagskyi 'odzer ...
75. Ibid., p. 29.
76. Ibid., p. 29.
77. Yang zab nor bu'i lde mig, p. 18.
78. See rDo grub chen, gTer kyi roam bshad, p. 418. See also, for example,
jigs med gling pa, gSang chen rtogs brjod, p. 52.
80. See my "The Relic Text as Prophecy."
81. I am following Eco's understanding of abduction as defined by Peirce.
See Eco, A Theory, pp. 131-133. Abduction seems to be a special type of
inference in which a hypothesis about a case is based on the presentation of
a "rule" and a "result." Peirce's example was his sighting of a man in Turkey
on horseback with four men holding a canopy over his head. Hypothesizing
that this show of honour would only be given to the governor of the region,
he concludes that the man is the governor. For the Treasure discoverer there
is a similar progression of thought. For example, there is a dream of Padma-
sambhava granting his blessings; the hypothesis is then made that such a
dream would be a sign that the dreamer is a Treasure discoverer; and the
conclusion is that this dreamer is in fact a discoverer.
82. 'Jigs med gling pa, gSang chen rtogs brjog, p. 21: sangs rgyas rnams
kyi thugs rje dang byin dabs rang gi kun rtog dang 'dres nas Jug pa'i cho
'phrul chen po la snang cha'i gzugs brnyan ci yang srid pa'i phyir I de riyid
la tag pa ye shes kyi 'khor lo'i brdar btags pa stel.
83. See Ibid., pp. 23 and 27.
84. See rDo grub chen, gTer kyi roam bshad, pp. 397-8.
85. Cited by Smith, Introduction, p. 12, quoting from Kong-sprul's gTer
mam brgya rtsa, f.35v. My translation.
86. 'Jigs med gling pa, gSang chen rtogs brjod, p. 43.
87. Originally discovered by bZang po grags pa, later inherited by Rig
'dzin rgod Idem can and others.
88. See Norbu Chophel, Folk Culture ofT.ibet (Dharamsala: Library of
Tibetan Works and Archives, 1983), for a detailed description of the many
events, experiences, configurations, etc., that are interpreted as signs in Ti-
betan life, from birth to death, and beyond.
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Symbolisms of the Buddhist Stupa *
by Gerard Fussman
Prior to the seventies, the problem of the origin and symbolism
of the Buddhist stupa did not interest many scholars outside
France. As they were written in French, seminal studies on this
particular topic by oustanding scholars (Foucher 1905, Mus
1935, Benisti 1960, Bareau 1962), though often referred to,
were only known by a handful of scholars, mainly from Europe.
As a consequence the conveners of the seminar on "The Stupa,
Its Symbolism, Its Religious, Historical and Architectural Rele-
vance" (Heidelberg, July 3 to 7,1978) could write: "We felt that
though there are quite a few books, articles, and essays on the
stupa theme, they are not only very difficult to locate, scattered
as they are in journals and old publications, and for this very
reason they are perhaps unknown or forgotten, but we also felt
the need for a fresh approach to this 'core' problem of Indian
and South East Asian civilisation and art" (Dallapiccola 1980,
vii). Since then, a good deal of literature has been published on
this specific ranging from short papers or stray remarks
in various articles to the epoch-making studies by Irwin (1979
and 1980) and Roth (1980), and culminating in a 407 page book
by Snodgrass in 1985. A new international conference was even
convened on "The Buddhist Stupa in India and South-East Asia"
(Varanasi, March 22-26, 1985).
It would have been presumptuous or useless to dare write
anew on this topic were it not for the need to remind the reader
that we cannot deal with Buddhism as an unchanged whole:
history, chronology and geography have also to be taken in
consideration. The point is that the earliest stupa-which was
not necessarily Buddhist-was built c. 2500 years ago; that since
then Buddhism has spread over the whole of India and in many
37
countries abroad; that we know for sure that Buddhism was a
many-sided creed; that Buddhist speculations and metaphysics
evolved differently at different times and in different countries
so that it is likely that the symbolism of the stfjpa did not remain
the same through the ages, nor for every Buddhist sect, nor in
every country; and finally that laymen, ordinary monks, sup-
posed arhants or bodhisattvas did not necessarily view the st1lpa
in the same way.
The most recent writer on the subject, however, is freed
from this prejudice. "The symbol addresses not only the waking
consciousness but the whole man; 'symbols speak to the whole
human being and not only to the intelligence.' Symbols com-
municate their 'messages' even if the conscious mind remains
unaware of the fact. This being so, the hermeneutic of a symbolic
form such as the stupa is freed from the necessity of asking
'how many individuals in a certain society and at a given histor-
ical moment understood all the meanings and implications of
that symbol.' If the stupa can be shown to have clearly expressed
a meaning at a certain moment of its history one is justified in
supposing that the meaning inhered within its form at an earlier
epoch, even if it is not consciously perceived or explicitely af-
firmed in the writings of those who built it ... These consider-
ations are deemed sufficient to justify a non-historical and a-
temporal exegesis of the symbolism of the stupa."l Not being
a seer, I shall restrict myself to the humbler duties of the histo-
rian. I feel bound by necessity to ascertain what meaning a stilpa
had in the conscious minds of the people who commissioned it,
built it and paid homage to it in such and such a country and
at such and such a time. Prima facie, that seems to have been
the very purpose of]. Irwin; his brilliant papers (Irwin 1979 &
1980), written with much acumen and understanding, backed
by an impressive erudition, are undoubtly to be referred to by
every scholar interested in unravelling the symbolic meaning of
the Buddhist stilpa. Nevertheless, some points need to be clearly
articulated. Some of these have already been dealt with by Har-
vey (1984), mainly from Pali (Theravadin) sources; more is still
to be gained by sifting the enormous amount of data collected
by the outstanding scholars I named above. Since this data is
in the main known by most scholars perhaps I need not dwell
on it here.
THE BUDDHIST STUPA 39
1. J. Irwin's Thesis
Following Mus (1935), J. Irwin states that the early stupa
had two main components, an axial pillar rising from the
ground, and an hemispheric-shaped dome or arp4a, "egg". The
whole was a cosmo gram, i.e., a replica of the cosmic order and
a means through which that very cosmic order was imposed on
the country or on the spot where the stUpa was built. J. Irwin
goes further. He tries to show that the axial pillar was called
yupa (Skt) or Inda-kh'ila (Pali), which for him is indisputable
evidence of its cosmo gonic and religious significance. "In the
earliest stage, this pillar had not been erected simply to mark
the center of the mound: it had taken structural precedence
over the raising of the mound itself, the latter serving as an
envelope to enclose it.,,2 Moreover this axial pillar was first made
of wood. It was "none other than the Axis Mundi itself,
metaphysically identified with the World Tree and the World
Pillar as interchangeable images of the instrument used to both
separate and unite heaven and earth at the Creation ... By its
orientation to the four cardinal points, the Axis expresses the
unity of Space-Time and enables the worshipper, by perform-
ance of the rite of sunwise circumambulation (pradak4irpii-) to
identify with the rhythm of the cosmic cycle.,,3 He adds that
some stupas were metaphorically encircled by water
4
and that
that water is to be understood as the Cosmic Waters. That means
that the stupa is a "microcosm, i.e., an image of the creation of
the universe dynamically as it is articulated, accord-
ing to Irwin, in the J!.g- Veda: from the depths of the cosmic
waters arose a clod of earth to float restlessly on the surface;
after a while it expanded to become the Primordial Mound
(symbolised by the hemispheric dome (arp4a) of the stupa); then
Indra separated earth and heaven, propping up the sky with
the world axis (the pillar inside the stupa) and at the same time
"pegging" with the same pillar (Indra-kfla) the Primordial
Mound to the bottom of the Cosmic Ocean.
6
When reading Irwin's papers, and moreover when you have
the privilege of listening to him, as I have had a number of
times, you cannot fail to be immediately convinced. His is a
brilliant demonstration backed by a wealth of evidence:
scrutinizing of archaeological data, careful analysis of Vedic and
40
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
Buddhist texts, use of comparative history of religions and so
on. Everything seems to fit in--everything but chronology. At
times it is difficult to know whether the story told by J. Irwin
applies to the Buddhist stupa historically and archaeologically
known, or to much earlier mounds and representations. Indeed
J. Irwin's interest in the stupa seems to stem from the idea that
the stupa embodies much older concepts, that it is evidence for
a lost neolithic ideology which prevailed the world over; and
that whether the Buddhists, or the Buddhist elite, was aware of
it or not does not matter.
II. Some Flaws in J. Irwin's Constructs
The only piece of evidence J. Irwin could bring to support
his contention that ancient Indians believed in the cosmogony
described supra does not stem from Vedic texts. It is a construct
and, as Irwin himself repeatedly indicates, it is a quite recent
construct. It stems from analyses made by such great scholars
as Luders, Brown and Kuiper, who tried to piece the evidence
together and make sense of it. In fact you can quote many a IJ.c
to support various parts of that construct, but you will never
find the whole story so told in a connected way in a SarIJhitii, or
in a Briihma'f}a, or, later, even in an Upan4ad or in a Purii'f}a. In
fact, Brown, Kuiper and Luders were only pointing to a way of
interpreting some obscure stanzas of \<.V which are stuti only
and not detailed and connected expositions of myths. They also
knew that there were many different Indian creation myths,
and that Indra's creation myth was only one of them, possibly
the older and more important one, but nevertheless still only
one of them. Indeed, I would venture to say that there are so
many different cosmo gonic stories in Indian lore precisely be-
cause creation is not the core of Indian religions. Many Indian
texts begin with a history of creation; many Indian gods are
creators, but that is not what matters most: Indian creation
myths, possibly with the exception of the PurU0a-sukta (which is
not Irwin's cosmogonic story), are not so crucial for Indians as
the Genesis story is for Jews and Christians. Perhaps that explains
why today Jews and Christians work so hard to find in the Veda
a connected creation story. The absence of such a connected
THE BUDDHIST STUPA
41
story did not seem to bother Indians, who never tried to stick
to one and the same cosmogonic myth.
7
As a consequence there
is no proof of the correctness of the constructs proposed by
Brown, Kuiper, Liiders and Irwin: The data they use is there,
. and they use. it in a very clever way. But we cannot exclude the
possibility that they pieced together parts which belonged to
very different myths, and we have to admit that many different
creation stories were currently told at the same time. Moreover,
even if they are right, it would still remain true that "their"
creation myth soon fell into oblivion since neither Buddhists
nor Hindus continued to refer to it. Why then should it have
been remembered by stupa builders and only by them?
Buddhist textual evidence also is not strong. It has been
shown by de J ong (1982) that the occurrence of in
Divyavadana XVIII (p. 244, 11) is doubtful. Only one of the
four manuscripts reads so and the meaning of the compound
if it really occurs (and it is the only occurrence so
far known in a Buddhist text), is obscure: dvandva (yupa- and
or karmadharaya (a which is a yupa)? The only other
occurrence of yupa- in a Buddhist text dealing with stupas goes
contrary to Irwin's thesis. In Mahava'Y(lsa 28, 2, we are told that
King DutthagamaJ)i when entering the city saw a stone pillar
(szlayupa-) raised upon the place where he was to build the
Mahathupa. But, contrary to Irwin's hypothesis, this pillar was
not to be the core or the Axis of the stupa: before building the
stupa, the King had the yupa- taken away (haretva).8 This well-
known Du((hagamarpi story makes it diffidult to agree with
Paranavitana,9 who maintains that the stone pillar was an essen-
tial component of early-Sinhalese stupas. The archaeological evi-
dence is at least dubious. Even if Paranavitana and Irwin were
right in supposing that such stone pillars were embedded inside
the Sinhalese stupas, still there is nothing to be concluded from
the Pali name Sinhalese pandits gave to them when specifically
asked about them by Paranavitana: inda-khZla-, i.e., Skt. indra-
kZla-. In Pali and in Buddhist Sanskrit,lO inda-khila- no longer
has the etymological meaning of "Indra's peg"; it means only a
short post rammed deep into the ground against which the
wings of a gate are closed. II Moreover, these pandits never saw
the stone column they were asked to name by Paranavitana
actually standing inside the masonry of a stupa: they were shown
42
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
some stone post lying in the debris around some demolished
stilpa and when asked what they would call it, they simply and
exactly answered "post," i.e., inda-khila-.
Itis quite true, nevertheless, that a pillar stood inside many
stilpas. Irwin collected all the evidence he could get from exca-
vation reports. He could have added that according to a late
story told to (and by) Hiuan-tsang,12 a stilpa was made ftom
three parts: square bases, to remind us of the Buddha's clvara-;
a rounded dome, to remind us of the Buddha's alms-bowl; and
a post which is Buddha's staff, y a ~ ~ i - . But y a ~ ~ i - also has a cosmo-
graphic meaning: a y a ~ ~ i - was supposed to have stood in the
middle of the capital-towns of former cakravartins
13
and Irwin
points out that such a pillar protruded from the top of many
Amaravati stilpas and was apparently not meant to hold any
parasol (chattra-). 14
This, however, is late evidence, stemming from Andhra
Pradesh (2nd c. A.D.) only. Taken as a whole, the archaeology
is simply not conclusive. Although excavators have discovered
shafts for poles inside manystilpas, many more had none. This
is true, for example, of the very early stilpas of Vaisali: and
Piprahwa,15 of those at Sand, Bharhut, and Amaravatl, of all
the so-called votive stilpas, of the relic-boxes carved into stilpa-
shape, and especially of the big stone stilpas carved inside of
caves, as at Ghaja, Bedsa, Karla and so on. Even when the
remains of such shafts or poles have been found during excava-
tions, they very often cannot be used as evidence of a cosmic
symbolism. For instance, in most Gandharan stilpas, there was
a pole, sometimes a very big one, but it never went through all
of the masonry: a shaft was sunk in the upper part of the dome
so that the pole could be firmly set inside, but the shaft was
never dug to the ground, i.e., it was never deeper than necessary
for buttressing the pole. We may also add that if the pole, which
in most instances is needed for holding the parasols, were a
cosmic axis, and if the stilpa were an image of the world (Mus)
or of the creation of the world (Irwin), how could it stand inside
a cave, with a mountain over it, as in so many instances that we
know? And how could it have occurred that the shape of the
hemispheric dome (a'rJq,a-), made in the likeness of the celestial
vault (Mus) or the primitive mound (Irwin), came to evolve and
be surimposed, as early as Bharhut (c. 100 B.C.), on a circular
drum and later on square bases?
I need not dwell upon other suggestions made by J. Irwin.
Three late instances of covered by blue-glazed
tiles
16
do not prove that the hundreds of so
far known were meant to symbolize the Cosmic Waters; the
more so as in many instances it would have been easy to bring
water around the stupa if the builders had wanted to do so. More
puzzling is the fact that in some (not many, as Irwin says) late
(lst-2nd c. A.D.) depictions of stupas, "the axial pillar breaks out
of the summit in the actual form of a tree, with foliage resem-
bling parasols.,,17 In at least one depiction that I know,18 this
type of stupa is being honoured by niigas and niiginzs, the foliage
looks like lotus leaves, and it is quite possible that the intention
was to depict the stupa standing under water where it would
quite naturally receive the homage of niigas and niiginzs. In other
instances,19 a seven(?)-headed niiga is depicted in front of the
stupa so that the explanation could well be the same. But I must
confess it cannot hold true for the depiction of the stupa repro-
duced by Irwin (1979 p. 829, fig. 19): here the stupa is clearly
depicted standing in the open air, with birds flying around it
and without niigas. In any case, even if Irwin's explanation is
true, it is valid only for post-Christian Andhra Pradesh, not for
the whole of India.
The strongest point to make against Irwin's reconstruction,
however, is the following one. Every Indian building is supposed
to be built according to some diagram (marJ4ala-); its main axes
are determined by using a gnomon and, wherever possible,20
made according to the cardinal points, which are not four, as
in the West, but at least five, the fifth one being the direction
of the zenith. This would have. been no scandal for Indian
Buddhists, so that it is difficult to understand why they did not
acknowledge that the stupa was some sort of marJ4ala if they'
actually believed it to be so. Moreover, from the beginning, the
conceptions of the Buddha and the cakravartin are closely as-
sociated; the Buddha is mahii-puru:;a-; he is omniscient (sarva-
jna-); he is above the gods; he emits rays of light as if he were
the sun, so that it would have been quite easy for Indian Bud-
dhists to have conceived of his main monument, the stupa, as a
cosmogram. Why did they not acknowledge it if they in fact
actually believed it, or if lay-followers believed it? In short, J.
Irwin's thesis is the following: in the beginning, well before the
advent of Buddhism, the stupa was a cosmo gram or a permanent
cosmogony; Hindusforgot it; Buddhists forgot it; Jains forgot
it; or if they knew, they concealed it, why, we do not know; but
the Indian illiterate peasant stuck to that old conception so that
19th century "Hindu fakirs" knew better than archaeologists
the sanctity of such spotS.
21
We are here no longer in the realm
of history. As far as neolithic people are concerned, I am afraid
all we can tell is mere guess; as far as Indian Buddhism is
concerned, I deem it far better to stick to the facts, even if they
are not as attractive as Irwin's constructs. Let us only summarize
here some of these facts.
III. The Early Buddhist Stupa
The Buddhist literary tradition seems to imply that there
were stupas before the advent of Buddhism. In one of the earliest
and best known Buddhist sutras, the Mahii-parinirvii1Ja-sutra (c.
3rd century B.C.?), Buddha tells Ananda not to be concerned
with his body: his corpse is to be burnt and buried under a
stupa, as was done for cakravartin kings.22 Although no such
royal tomb has ever been discovered, we know for sure that
kings could be buried under a stupa as late as the 3rd c. B.C.
23
Plutarch's famous story about various cities dividing Menander's
ashes equally and erecting monuments (!!vy)!!cLa) over them
24
may be only a reflection of the war over the relics which is
supposed to have ensued after Buddha's death.25 But Strabo
XV, 54 has preserved an account ofIndian funerals, taken from
Megasthenes, which, from the context, must refer to royal fu-
nerals: "Their tombs are plain and the mounds raised over the
dead, lowly ... Attendants follow them with umbrellas.,,26 These
umbrellas point to kings or to holy people. Still in the 2nd
century B.C. the Sinhalese king Dunhagamal)i (161-137 B.C.)
raised a cetiya, i.e., a s t ~ ~ a , over the ashes of his defeated enemy,
the Tamil king Elara.
2
That does not mean that the stupa was a tomb. Indeed early
Buddhists were not overly concerned with relics. A stUpa, with
or without relics, is only a memorial. When seeing it, people
remember (anusmaranti) the Buddha and his teaching, which
induces in them a good thought (kusala-citta-), which produces
good karma (pu1Jya_).28 By building astupa and paying it homage,
one could also reap good fruits: "Devas and men produce what
is skilled when they have paid homage to the relics and the jewel
of the knowledge of the Tathagata who has attained complete
nibbiina and does not accept. And through what is skilled, they
allay and assuage the fever and the torment of the threefold
fire.,,29 Built over ashes or empty, astupa, thus, was not a proper
tomb; it was a memorial and did not differ greatly from those
chattri we see built not over Rajputs' ashes, but as cenotaphs.
3o
That is why stupa and caitya, from CIT, are quasi-synonyms.
31
Being memorials much more than tombs, even for Hindus,
stupas could be raised over anything likely to induce a good
thought, be it personal belongings of the Buddha, places where
he passed through, ashes of arhants and so on.
IV. The Sarira-stupa
There is some evidence that in early times "the construction
and worship of a stupa was the concern of laymen and not of
monks.,,32 These upasaka had gone to the Buddha for refuge,
to the Dharma for refuge, to the SaT(lgha for refuge. Everyone
knew what Dharma meant and where the SaT(lgha was to be
found. But where was the departed Buddha? It seems that the
stupa soon became, at least among lay-followers, a substitute for
the Buddha. If the Buddha had left for nirvarpa-, who (or what)
could receive puja- in lieu of Him and bring good karma to the
worshipper except for stupas? The stupa became thus a symbol
of the parinirvarpa-gone Buddha, i.e., for most people, of the
dead Buddha. The symbol would be stronger if there were inside
some corporeal relics (sarira, sarfra-dhiitu, dhiitu) of the Buddha,
and Buddhists became more and more engrossed in the search
for relics.
This change did not set in before the 2nd century B.C. The
story about Asoka dividing Buddha's relics and building 84,000
stupas over them, or the story of Sakka sending Buddha's collar-
bone to the Sinhalese king Devanarp.piyatissa, friend of Asoka,
are fictitious: nothing points to something like this in Asoka's
inscriptions, not even in the Buddhist ones. In Bharhut and
Gaya epigraphs, in Mathura, even much later in M a h a r a ~ t r a ,
donors never allude to Buddha's relics. The same holds true
for the Sane! and the Vidisa topes, built over relic boxes contain-
ing ashes and inscribed with arhants' names, where there is no
evidence of Buddha's relics nor inscriptions mentioning his sa-
rira.
33
The earliest occurrences I know of such 'a "trade in relics"
are the enshrinement of relics in the Mahathupa by
Dunhagamai).i Abhaya (161-137 B.C.),34 and especially in
numerous epigraphs recording the establishment of
corporeal relics of the Buddha where previously there were
none.
35
It is no accident that the sarira-cult is referred to in the
Kashmir Sarviistiviidin around the beginning of our
era.
36
This search for relics stems from the belief that the stupa is
the Buddha. The same idea explains the setting up of Buddha
images, around the same time, against Buddhist stupas, as
exemplified in Mathura and in Gandhara. Many Mahayana su-
tras, for instance the Saddharmapurpcf,arika, not only praise the
worship of relics deposited in stupas; they maintain that such
and such a Buddha is actually sitting inside the stupa, for instance
Prabhuta-ratna.
37
The same trend is conspicuous in the great
cave-stupas of Ajanta, Ellora and so on, carved in the 5th century
A.D., where the Buddha is depicted actually sitting both in the
forepart and inside the stupa. 38 Buddhists more concerned with
"orthodoxy," if this concept means anything in Buddhism,
explained that the stupa was indeed Buddha's body, not his
human and mortal body (catur-mahii-bhuti-kiiya-, rupa-kiiya-), but
his dharma-body. One may find in Roth (1980) texts where every
component of the stupa is attributed a dogmatic symbolism.
Thus, the first stepped terrace represents the four smr;ty-upas-
thiina-, the dome, the seven bodhy-miga-, etc.
V. Stupa and Marpcf,ala
The use of mawf,alas and yantras is very ancient in India.
The Vedic agni-cayana- is already a marpcf,ala. It is quite possible
that from the earliest times, Buddhist monks used marpcf,alas as
an aid for the kind of meditation they call bhiivanii-. After the
beginning of the Christian Era these marpcf,alas became common
occurrences. This could explain why stupas came also to be per-
ceived as structural (viistu-)marpcf,alas. We have already noticed
THE BUDDHIST STOPA 47
that stupas were usually facing the cardinal points; inside many
of them was a pillar, stemming from the ground or more often
stuck in the dome, protruding from the top and looking like a
zenithal axis even if it bore parasols. In Nepal, eyes are painted
on the harmika- and are said to represent the four loka-palas. In
SrI Lanka, over the harmika- a cylindrical devata-kotuwa, "house
of gods," is built, on which are sometimes carved the eight
Since the loka-palas dwell around Meru, the pro- .
truding part of the could be intended for Meru.
39
In the
same way Tibetan stupas are crowned by a moon and sun.
4
oBut
alongside of these facts I must point out that although we have
many descriptions of Buddhist mar]q,alas, no one text has ever
been produced, as far as I know, stating that the stupa is a
cosmogram embodying Mount Meru. This could mean that the
interpretation of the stupa as symbolizing the orderly cosmos is
not linked with the Buddhist monastic community, but with the
lay-followers and especially the royal lay-followers.
It is not by chance that evidence for the stupa as an embodi-
ment of Mount Meru comes from Nepal and Sri Lanka, i.e.,
two countries where the stupa was closely linked with the welfare
and even the existence of the country. In former times, the
Kathmandu valley was a lake; in the midst of it, the self-produced
Adi-Buddha (svayar(t-bhu-) sat on a wonderful lotus. To provide
access to him, the bodhisattva ManjusrI drew his sword and
drained the valley of its waters. Over the spot where Svayar(tbhu
was to be seen, the SantasrI, raised the
Svayar(tbhu-natha stupa, the holieststupa in Nepa1.
41
In Sri Lanka,
from Dutthagamal)i's time on, and perhaps before, Buddhist
relics and the stupa which enshrined them were the true pal-
ladium of power and magically protected the kingdom. The
citation of two instances will suffice. When Dutthagamal)i had
conquered the whole island of Lanka and had been consecrated
its sale and supreme ruler, he went out to indulge in water
sports "to observe the tradition of crowned kings." As he needed
no weapon, "in the very place where the stupa (afterwards) stood
the king's people who carried (his) spear planted the splendid
spear with the relic (mounted on/in it)" by means of which he
had won his previous victories. In the evening, when they wanted
to take it back, they could not remove it. The King was delighted
since he took it as a very good omen and "had a cetiya built
around it. That is the Marica-viai-thupa. ,,42 The same
DunhagamaI).i, before enshrining other relics in the Mahathiipa,
dedicated thrice his kingdom to them and honoured them with
his white parasol of state.
43
'
Some stupas, therefore, are directly responsible for the
emergence of the kingdom (Nepal) or its preservation (SrI
Lanka). They have a magic and protective power for the king
and his subjects. Again in the same countries, several kings tried
to equate their kingdom with the whole world by transforming
it into a replica of the cosmos, with Mount Meru at its center
and a row of deities (in Hindu kingdoms) or stUpas (in Buddhist
countries) placed in such a way that the whole country, or at
least its capital town where the king sat, was perceived as a
gigantic marJ,q,alii-. Instances of this are the whole of Hindu
Nepal;44 the four so-called Asokan stupas protecting the mostly
Buddhist town of Pat an in Nepal;45 Sigiriya in Sri Lanka, where
the marJ,q,ala- is clearly to be seen; and--outside India proper-
Angkor in Cambodia, the Borobudur vastu-marJ,q,ala- in Java
46
and the big stUpas and monasteries transforming the whole of
Tibet iGto some kind of sacred space.
47
It is quite understandable
that in such countries, and by people holding such beliefs, the
stupa came to be viewed as the world itself, with Mount Meru
concealed inside it and protruding from its top.48
The roots of such a conception of the stupa may be very
old. We may suppose that in the 2nd century B.C. and later,
when petty kings established the sarzra-stupas we alluded to supra,
they wanted also to protect their kingdom and their own royal
power. This very conception is the core of the well known legend
told about Asoka: he is said to have divided one part of the
Buddha's relics, to have sent them all over his kingdom, and to
have built 84,000 stupas to enshrine them, i.e., one stupa in each
part of the inhabited world,49 spreading thus the Buddhist
dharma all over the world and at the same time equating his
kingdom to the entire world. At this point we are back where
we started from: a stupa is an embodiment of many symbolic
conceptions, but the cakravartin symbolism appears to be the
maIn one.
NOTES
*Revised text of a paper originally sent to the Varanasi conference on
the Buddhist stupa.
. 1. Snodgrass 1985, p. 9, whose quotations are from Eliade.
2. Irwin 1980, p. 12.
3. Irwin 1979, p. 834.
4. Irwin 1979, pp. 828-829.
5. Irwin 1979, p. 842.
6. Irwin 1979, pp. 826-827.
7. Varenne 1982, pp. 27-31. Varenne translates into French in this
book 34 creation hymns coming from the sruti: 11 RV hymns, 5 from A V, 9
excerpts from the Briihma'TJas, and 9 from the Upan4ads. Most of them tell a
different story.
8. Mhv. 28, 2: tato puraTIJ pavisanto thilpatthiine nivesitaTIJ
passitviina siliiyupaTIJ . . . .
Mhv. 29, 2: hiiretvii hi tahiTIJ yupaTIJ thupatthiinam akhiinayi ...
De Jong 1982, p. 318. Thup., ch. 12. For a discussion of yupa as a simile in
Pali texts, see Harvey 1984, pp. 77-8l.
9. Quoted by Irwin 1979, pp. 820-824.
'10. Mahiiviistu I, 195,6.
11. See CPD s.v. and Harvey 1984 pp. 80-81.
12. S. Beal, Buddhist Records of the Western World, London, 1906, I, pp.
47-48.
13. Mahiiviistu I, 196, 15 and II, 229,12.
14. Irwin 1979, pp. 821-823.
15. As pointed out by Gupta 1980, pp. 267-268.
16. Irwin 1979, pp. 821-823.
17. Irwin 1980, p. 16.
18. Bachhofer 1929, II, PI. 129, 1.
19. Irwin 1980, PI. I, 4. Bachhofer 1929, II, PI. 124, 1-2.
20. Mountain stupas in Gandhara face East only where the topography
allows it. When looking at the plans of Sravastl and specially Sarnath one may
see that not every stupa is facing East. From the location of the stairs and of
the Asokan pillar, it appears that Sand stupa n 1 faced South, maybe West,
certainly not East.
21. Irwin 1979, pp. 807-808.
22. Discussed by Bareau 1971, p. 35.
23. For earlier instances, see Bareau 1971, note ad p. 38.
24. Plutarch, Moralia, 821 D-E. Narain 1957, p. 98.
25. On this war and its supposed historicity, see now Bareau 1971, pp.
265-288 and more precisely pp. 270-273.
26. Mac Crindle 1901, p. 57.
27. Mhv. 25,73: taTIJ deha-patitatthiine kutiigiirenajhiipayi
cetiyaTIJ tatha karesi parihiiraTIJ adiisi call
Thup., p. 87. In older literature Dutthagama1J.i is said to have reigned from
104 to 80 B.C. My revised dating comes from Bechert 1982, p. 32 n. 17,
quoting recent Sinhalese literature.
50
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
28. Bareau 1975, p. 2l. Hirakawa 1963, p. 88, n. 170. Lamotte 1958,
pp,701-705.
29, Mil., 98 (translation Horner, I, p, 137), It must be said that besides
this orthodox explanation, there is some evidence, even in P::ili texts, for more
"popular" beliefs. My colleague G. Schopen is collecting data showing that in
many instances relics were thought to be endowed with life.
30. Already noted by Foucher 1905, p. 50, n. 2.
31. Bareau 1975, p. 2l.
32. Roth 1980, pp. 183-186. Hirakawa 1963 makes too much of this
point.
33. Lamotte 1958, pp. 358-361.
34. Lamotte 1958, p. 399. Mhv., chap. XXXI. Thup., chap. 15.
35. Fussman 1980, 1982, 1984. Salomon and Schopen 1984.
36. Apratis.!hite Pr,thivi-pradese tathiigatasya sarira11J stupa11J pratisthiipayati /
aya11J ' .. brahma11J pU'T}yam prasavati / References and explanations by La Vallee
Poussin in Kosa, 4 (tome III), pp. 250-251. References to sarira!] stupa!] are
also to be found in Vinaya of MSV, Samghabhedavastu, I, p. 161 and p. 162.
37. Hirakawa 1963, pp. 85-88,
38. As pointed out by my colleague D, Srinivasan, the obvious parallel,
and perhaps the explanation, is to be sought in the so-called mukha-liriga
compared to the purely symbolic liriga.
39. Gail 1980. Harvey 1984, p. 81.
40. These Tibetan stupas may se,em to be late. However there is now a
very early (and unrecognized) Indian instance of such a stupa crowned with
a moon and sun, It is a graffitto found by my colleague Prof. Jettmar at Chilas
II, in the Upper Indus Valley, and illustrated in Dani 1983, p. 97 n 76. It is
certainly to be dated in the 1st century A.D.
4l. Levi 1905, I, pp. 331-333. Slusser 1982, p. 298.
42. Mhv., chap. XXVI (especially XXVI, 9-13). Thup., chap. 10 (transla-
tion, pp. 89-90).
43. Mhv., XXXI, 90-92. Thup., translation, p. 132-133.
44. Giitschow 1982.
45. Levi 1905, II, pp. 1-2. The legend adds that there was a fifth stupa,
which had disappeared, standing at the centre of the town. These stupas were
thus facing the five cardinal points.
46. Lokesh Chandra 1980.
47. Stein 1981, pp. 17-18. Aris 1982.
48. Further instances of ma'T}ljala symbolism in hinduized and Buddhist
southeast Asia are fully commented on by Snodgrass 1985, pp. 73-77.
49, Strong 1983, p. 117. In Suvar'T}ao a sentence is found referring to
the 84,000 kings and the 84,000 towns constituting the whole inhabited world
(p, 170,31-33 of the Tibetan text; p, 191, at the end, of the German transla-
tion).
BIBLIOGRAPHY
a) Texts
Divyavadana, edited by E.B. Cowell and R. A. Neil, Cambridge 1886.
Kosa: Louis de La Vallee Poussin, L'Abhidharmakosa de Vasubandhu, traduction
et annotations, nouvelle edition anastatique presentee par E. Lamotte,
Bruxelles 1971-1980. .
Mhv.: Mahiiva'T(lSa, edited by W. Geiger, London, Pali Text Society, 1908;
translated into English by W. Geiger, London, Pali Text Society, 1912.
Mahiivastu: Texte publie par E. Senart, Paris, Societe Asiatique, 1882-1897
(reprint, Tokyo, 1977); translated into English by J.J. Jones, London,
Pali Text Society, 1949-1956.
Mil.: Pali text edited by V. Trenckner, London, Pali Text Society, 1880; trans-
lated into English by LB. Horner, London, Pali Text Society, 1963-1964.
Suvarrtao: Suvarrtaprabhasottamasutra, Das Gold-glanz-Sidra, Ein Sanskrittext des
Mahiiyana-Buddhismus, herausgegeben von J. Nobel, Leipzig, 1937; Die
Tibetischen Ubersetzungen, herausgegeben von J. Nobel, Leiden, 1944-
1950; I-TSING's Chinesische Version und Ihre Tibetische Ubersetzung, iiber-
setz ... von J. Nobel, Leiden, 1958.
ThUp.: The Chronicle of the Thupa and the ThUpava'T(lSa, being a Translation and
Edition of Vacissarathera's ThupavarIJsa by N.A. Jayawickrama, London,
Pali Text Society, 1971.
Vinaya of MSV: The Gilgit Manuscript of the Sdnghabhedavastu, Being the 17th and
Last Section of the Vinaya of the Mulasarvastivadin, edited by R. Gnoli, 2
vol., S.O.R. XLIX, 1-2, Roma 1977 et 1978.
b) Modern authors
Aris 1979: Michael Aris, BhUtan, The Early History of a Himalayan Kingdom, Aris
& Phillips Ltd., Warminster, 1979.
Bachhofer 1929: L. Bachhofer, Die Friihindische Plastik, Leipzig, 2 vol., 1929.
Bareau 1962: A. Bareau, "La construction et Ie culte des stupa d'apres les
Vin.ayapi(aka," Bulletin de l'Jicole Frant;aise d'Extreme Orient, L, 2, 1962, pp.
229-274.
Bareau 1971: A. Bareau, Recherches sur la biographie du Buddha dans les Su-
trapi(aka et les Vinayapi(aka anciens: II, Les derniers mois, Ie parinirvarta et
les funerailles, tome II, Publications de l'Ecole Fran<;aised'Extreme-Orient,
vol. LXXVII, Paris, 1971.
Bareau 1975: A. Bareau, "Sur l'origine des piliers dits d'Asoka, des stupa et
des arbres sacres du bouddhisme primitif," Indologica Taurinensia, II
(1974), Torino 1975, pp. 9-36.
Bechert 1982: Heinz Bechert, "The Date of the Buddha Reconsidered," In-
dologica Taurinensia, X, 1982, pp. 29-36.
Benisti 1960: Mireille Benisti, "Etude sur Ie Stupa dans l'Inde Ancienne,"
. Bulletin de l'Jicole Frant;aise d'Extreme Orient, L, 1, 1960, pp. 37-116, PI.
I-XXX; see also G. Roth, "Bemerkungen zum Stupa des
52 JIABS VOL. 9 NO .. 2
Studien zur Indologie und lranistik, heft 5/6, 1980, pp. 181-194.
CPD: A Critical Pali Dictionary, begun by V. Trenckner, Copenhagen, 1924-
Dallapiccoia 1980: The Stupa, Its Religious, Historical and Architectural Signifi-
cance, edited by A.L. Dallapiccoia in collaboration with S. Zingel-Ave
Lallemant, Beitrage zur Siidasien-Forschung, Siidasien-Institut, Univer-
sitat Heidelberg, Band 55, Franz Steiner Verlag, Wiesbaden 1980.
Dani 1983: A.H. Dani, Chilas, The City of Nanga Parvat (Dyamar), Islamabad
1983.
De long 1982: ].W. De long, Review of Irwin 1980, Indo-Iranian Journal, 24,
4, Octobre 1982, pp. 316-318.
Foucher 1905: A. Foucher, L'art greco-bouddhique du Gandhiira, Paris, 1905-
1951.
Fussman 1980: G. Fussman, "Nouvelles inscriptions saka: ere d'Eucratide, ere
d'Azes, ere vikrama, ere de Bulletin de l'Ecole Franr;aise d'Extreme
Orient, LXVII, 1980, pp. 1-43.
Fussman 1982: G. Fussman, "Documents epigraphiques kouchans III: L'in-
scription de Senavarma, roi d'Odi: une nouvelle lecture," Bul-
letin de Nicole Franr;aise d'Extreme Orient, LXXI, 1982, pp. 1-46.
Fussman 1984: G. Fussman, "Nouvelles inscriptions saka II," Bulletin de l'Ecole
Franr;aise d'Extreme Orient, LXXIII, 1984, pp. 31-46, PLI-VI.
Gail 1980: A. Gail, "Cosmical Symbolism in the Spire of the Ceylon Dagoba,"
in Dallapiccola 1980, pp. 260-266.
Gupta 1980: S.P. Gupta, The Roots of Indian Art (A Detailed Study of the Formative
Period of Indian Art and Architecture: Third and Second Centuries B.C., Mau-
ryan and Late Mauryan), Delhi, B.R. Publishing Corporation, Delhi, 1980.
Giitschow 1982: N. Giitschow, Stadtraum und Ritual der newarischen Stadte im
Kathmandu-Tal. Eine architekturanthropologische Untersuchung, Kohlham-
mer Verlag, Stuttgart 1982.
Harvey 1984: Peter Harvey, "The Symbolism of the Early Stupa," Journal of
the International Association of Buddhist Studies, VII, 2, 1984, pp. 67-93.
Hirakawa 1963: A. Hirakawa, "The Rise of Mahayana Buddhism And Its
Relationship to the Worship of Stupas," Memoirs of the Toyo Bunko, 22,
Tokyo 1963, pp. 57-lO6.
Irwin 1979: ]. Irwin, "The Stupa and the Cosmic Axis: The Archaeological
Evidence," South Asian Archaeology 1977 edited by M. Taddei, Naples,
Istituto Universitario Orientale, 1979, pp. 799-846. .
Irwin 1980: ]. Irwin, "The Axial Symbolism of the Early Stupa: An Exegesis,"
Lamotte 1958: E. Lamotte, Histoire du Bouddhisme Indien, I, Des Origines a l'Ere
Saka, Bibliotheque du Museon, vol. 43, Louvain 1958.
Levi 1905: S. Levi, Le Nepal, 3 vol., Paris 1905-1908.
Lokesh Chandra 1980: Lokesh Chandra: "Borobudur: ANew Interpretation,"
Mac Crindle 1901: ].M. Mac Crindle, Ancient India as Described in Classical
Literature, Westminster 1901, reprint Amsterdam 1971.
Mus 1935: P. Mus, Barabudur, Esquisse d'un histoire du bouddhism fondee sur la
critique archiologique des textes, HanOI 1935.
THE BUDDHIST STOPA 53
Narain 1957: A.K. Narain, The Indo-Greeks, Oxford 1957.
Roth 1980: G. Roth, "Symbolism of the Buddhist Stiipa," in Dallapiccola 1980,
pp. 183-209.
Salomon & Schopen 1984: R. Salomon and G. Schopen, "The Indravarman
(Avaca) Casket Inscription Reconsidered: Further Evidence for Canon-
ical Passages in Buddhist Inscriptions," Journal of the International Associ-
ation of Buddhist Studies, VII, 1, 1984, pp. 107-123.
Snodgrass 1985: Adrian Snodgrass, The Symbolism of the Stupa, Studies on
Southeast Asia, New York, Cornell University, 1985.
Slusser 1982: M.S. Slusser, Nepal Mandala, A Cultural Study of the Kathmandu
Valley, 2 vol., Princeton University Press, 1982.
Stein 1981: R.A. Stein, La civilisation tibetaine, 2nd edition, Paris 1981.
Strong 1983: J.S. Strong, The Legend of King Asoka. A Study and Translation of
the ASokiivadiina, Princeton University Press, 1983.
Varenne 1982: J.. Varenne, Cosmogonies Vediques, Paris, Les Belles Lettres,
1982.
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The Identification of dGa' rab rdo rje
by A. W. Hanson-Barber
dGa' rab rdo rje, who was the first human to teach the
ati-yoga (T. rDzogs pa chen po) system,l and thus can be called
the human founder of the system, has, up to now, been incor-
rectly identified and given a date that is far too early.
In order to resolve these problems, we must correctly re-
Sanskritize the various names given dGa' rab rdo rje in his
hagiography. Then, by comparing these names with lists of
various lineages of transmission of the tantras, we should be
able to locate him within these lists. Finally, by assigning dates
to the siddhas that are well known, and then working backwards,
we should be able to assign a probable date to him. Therefore,
it is the intention of this paper to identify dGa' rab rdo rje
correctly and assign a date to him.
The ati-yoga system constitutes the highest phase of tantric
practice for the rNying rna school of Tibetan Buddhism. How-
ever, the system originated in India and is completely based
upon Indian Buddhist tantra.
2
It has two different branches:
ati-yoga in relation to the lower vehicles
3
and the "Great Secret
Explanation." This last is further broken into three classes: the
Mind Section (T. sems sde), the Great Expanse Section (T. glong
sde), and the Instruction Section (T. man ngag gyi sde).4 The two
branches are not mutually exclusive; indeed, they have many
points in common.
Both from a meditational aspect and a philosophical point
of view, the ati-yoga bears considerable similarity to the
mahamudra, although there are important differences.
5
The
ideal is to arrive at a state of pure awareness (T. rigpa), and,
by refinement, never to depart from this state. This can be
achieved by progressing through the three divisions mentioned
55
56
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
above. In essence, the experiences relating to these are as fol-
lows: the Mind Section relates to the experience of the mind in
its nakedness; the Great Expanse Section relates to the experi-
ence of the openness of being or emptiness (silnyatii); and the
Instruction Section relates to the stabilizing of the experience.
These three divisions are further sub-divided into many differ-
ent levels, each with its own mental outlook and with a host of
meditations to be practiced.
However, since this paper is historical and not philosophical,
the above brief introduction should suffice.
6
I. A Brief Hagiography
dGa' rab rdo rje was born in U<;l<;liyana, near the Dhanakosa
lake. His mother was Sudharma, who had become a nun. She
was the second daughter of the king of U<;l<;liyana. One evening
she had an auspicious dream, and shortly thereafter gave birth
to a son.
7
However, because she was full of fear and shame, she
placed the child on a dust heap; but even after three days the
boy was still radiant and healthy. Because of this incident, he
was given the name Ro langs bde ba.
At the age of seven, he requested of his mother that he be
allowed to enter the assembly and dispute with the pa'fJditas; she,
thinking him too young, denied his request. He persisted and
finally was granted permission. He entered upon a dispute with
five hundred pa'fJditas, and was victorious. At this time, he was
given the name dGa' rag rdo rje by his grandfather, the king,
who was delighted with the child's performance.
Later, he wandered to the places frequented by ghosts in
the mountains around U <;l<;liyana. It was here that he had a
secret realization of Vajrasattva, from whom he received the
ati-yoga teachings.
8
After his realization, he made the earth shake
seven times. Because of this, a heretic accused him of injuring
the Hindu faith, and the king and people of that area decided
to kill him. When they arrived at his retreat, however, he as-
cended to the sky and inspired great faith in them.
With the help of diikinis, he compiled an index of the entire
ati-yoga system. Finally, with the daughter of Rahula, he de-
DGA' RAB RDO RJE 57
parted for Magadha, and the Sltavana cemetery, where he exten-
sively taught the ati-yoga.
9
II. The Sanskritization of "dCa' rab rdo rje"
According to this brief hagiography, primarily abstracted
from a recent work by H.H. Dudjom Rinpoche, dCa' rab rdo
rje had another name of importance to our study, Ro langs bde
ba.
In the Peking edition of the Tibetan canon, the Sanskrit
name given for dCa' iab rdo rje is Surativajra.
IO
Professor
Guenther gives as possibilities Surativajra and Pramuditavajra. 11
Each reconstruction suffers from its author's reliance on rela-
tively late sources; in fact, the re-Sanskritization of dCa' rab rdo
rje's name is quite problematic. Das's dictionary, for instance,
lists seventeen different Sanskrit words that are translated into
Tibetan as dga' ba,12 and five different Sanskrit words that are
translated as rab.
13
This gives one eighty-five possible ways of
re-Sanskritizing the Tibetan!
It must be remembered that, for the most part, these mod-
ern sources were working from material translated under the
"new" system of translation started in Tibet at the time of Rin
chen bzang po. Since dCa' rab rdo rje is important in the rNying
rna pa tradition, and since one can already find his name men-
tioned in the earliest material translated into Tibetan, it would
make sense that his Sanskrit name was translated into Tibetan
using the old system of translation produced by Vairocana and
his contemporaries. Therefore, in looking for the correct way.
to translate dCa rab rdo rje back into Sanskrit, it seems much
wiser to look at the Mahavyutpatti,I4 a work composed during
the same time period. 15
There, the word dga' ba is synonymous withdga' bo, which
equals the Sanskrit Nanda. 16 Rab, according to the Mahavyutpatti,
can be translated into the Sanskrit prefix "adhi." 17 Das also
infers that it can act as a prefix, giving the Sanskrit su as a
possibility. IS However, here it seems that rab may be short for
rab tu, in which case, according to Das, it should equal the
Sanskrit prefix pra. 19 This also seems to be the Sanskrit preferred
by the. Mahiivyutpatti. 20 In this sense, one must understand that
pm has the meaning of "fully" or "greatly," for it is to be added
to nanda to form the adjective 'joyful," or perhaps 'joyous."
However, pra does not seem to be a preferred prefix when used
with nanda and, therefore, a different prefix with the same
general meaning is needed. This, of course, can be found in
the prefix a, thus giving the Sanskrit word ananda, a well known
Buddhist name. The Tibetan word rdo rje is re-Sanskritized as
vajra. All sources agree on this. Thus, the re-Sanskritized name
of dGa' rab rdo rje should be Anandavajra.
The name Ro langs bde ba consists of two parts: ro langs
and bde ba. The first is re-Sanskritized by Das and the Mahiivyut-
patti as vetala. 21 The Mahiivyutpatti further lists /4ema for bde ba.
22
Because of the reasons noted above, this latter would have been
the preferred translation during the period of the early transla-
tions. Therefore, for Ro langs bde ba, the Sanskrit is Vet-
a l a k ~ e m a .
III. The Dating of dCa' rab rdo rje
Three authors who have put forth a date for dGa' rab rdo
rje all agree that it was approximately 55 A.D.23 However, since
each of these authors is associated with the others, it seems likely
that they are simply following one another in this matter. None
offers a reason for this date in the works surveyed, despite the
difficulty of justifying so early a date for a "Tantric Master." It
may, therefore, be reasonable to arrive at a more acceptable
date by working backwards from a known siddha's date, following
the various pertinent lineages.
In The Life and Teachings of Vairocana,24 I have tentatively
reconstructed the Ati-Yoga lineage as follows: Vairocana and
Vimalamitra II, Sri Simha, Maiijusrlmitra II, Vimalamitra I,
unknown, Maiijusrimitra I, and dGa rab rdo rje.
25
Further, if
one uses the standard of thirty-five years between student and
teacher,26 the dates for the above can be assigned as follows:
760 A.D., 725, 690, 655, 620 and 585; thus, dGa' rab rdo rje's
date would be 550 A.D.
In the Jiianasiddhi of Indrabhiiti,27 there is a lineage given
for that line of teachings, and it is accepted in the Blue Annals. 28
DCA' RAB RDO RJE 59
The latter is most clearly identified with teachings that would,
only a short while after its "publication," be called mahamudrii.
The mahamudrii and ati-yoga have a great deal in common. This
is, of course, well known to scholars of the tantras, and will not
be discussed here. However, they also have a historic connection,
not only after the time of Kumara raja in Tibet,29 but also at
the time of their birth. This is brought out in another lineage
given in the above-mentioned work. This lineage is as follows:
. Cittavajra, Sarvajagannatha (vajra), Siddhivajra, Brahmanvajra,
Anandavajra, etc. The first thing to note here is that each of
these siddhas' names ends with the word vajra (T. rdo rje). This
may indicate a particular line of transmission where, in imitation
of the vinaya lineage, the student takes on part of the name of
his ordination master. Be this as it may, because I)ombhI Heruka
was at least in part a student of SrI who was the sister
of Indrabhuti, the date of 730 A.D. can be assigned to her. This
is further corroborated by the fact that Vimalamitra II, who
helped transmit the ati-yoga teachings to Tibet, was invited from
Indrabhuti's court to Tibet. Vimalamitra II, it is known, was
active at the same time as Vairocana, and the above-given date
is in accordance with this. Thus, for Cittavajra, the date would
be 695 A.D.; for Sarvajagannatha (vajra), 660; for Siddhivajra,
625; for Brahmanvajra, 590; and for Anandavajra, 555. Anan-
davajra, as we have seen, is another name for dCa' rab rdo rje.
There is another list that is of interest to us here. This
lineage is found in the Blue Annals and represents the early
anuyoga-tantra line.
3o
It begins with Vasudhara, the Napalese
king,31 along with Dharmabodhi;32 then Sukhaprasanna,
Sthiramati, Sakya Sirpha, Prahasti, Vajrahasa,
V Kukuraja, and Indrabodhi.
33
Their dates would
be: 800 A.D., 765, 730, 695,660, 625, 590,555, 520 and 485,
respectively.
What is to be noted in this lineage list is, of course, the
name As we have seen, this is the Sanskrit name
for Ro langs bde ba. However, the names Indrabodhi and
Kukuraja are also important in the various lines of transmission
of tantras for the r N ying rna school.
Thus, applying the same standard to lineage lists of the
Ati-yoga, the Jiiiinasiddhi and the anuyoga-tantra, one can place
dCa' rab rdo rje in the mid-sixth century. This is a time much
60
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
more appropriate for a "Tantric Master" than that given by
other authors. However, the basis for this date is that dGa' rab
rdo rje is, in fact, a Tantric author, a fact that is still to be
determined.
IV. Works Associated with dCa' rab rdo rje
There are several categories of works in which one finds
dGa' rab rdo rje's name, primarily hagiographies, commentaries
and meditational texts.
First, as was seen just above, there is at least a brief hagiog-
raphy of dGa' rab rdo rje found in some more recent sources.
These, it is presumed, are based on much older versions. One
also finds dGa' rab rdo rje's name playing a prominent role in
the hagiographies of Mafijusrimitra, Sri Sirp.ha, and Vairocana.
In the latter, not only does Vairocana have visions of dGa' rab
rdo rje, but his name is also associated with particular tantric
cycles.
34
In the second category, one can find in the Peking edition
of the Tibetan canon the following works listed: 'Phags pa 'jam
dpal gyi mtshan yang dag par brjod pa'i don gsal bar byed pa;35 bsgom
pa rgya mtsho dang mnyam pa'i rgyud kyi dka' 'grel;36 'Bras bu rin
po che dang mnyam pa'i rgyud kyi dka' 'grel;37 spyod pa nyi zla dang
mnyan pa'i rgyud kyi dka' 'grel;38 and rTa ba nam mkha' dangmnyam
pa'i rgyud dka' 'grel.
39
In the final category, there are two divisions: texts that dGa'
rab rdo rje received, and texts that originated with him. Exam-
ples of the first are: rDo rje sems dpa' nam mkha che rtsa ba'i rgyud
skyed ba me pa
40
and Jam dpal 'dus pa'i rgyud las bsdus pa rdzogs
SO.41 Examples of the latter are: Byang chub sems bchos thabs mdor
bsdus,42 gNod sbyin gyi rgyal po sgrul pa'i thabs,43 and the Tshig
gsum nad brdegs.
44
The last-mentioned is perhaps his most fa-
mous work dealing with the ati-yoga, and has commentaries on
it by Patrul Rinpoche and many others.
From reviewing the above list of works, there can be little
doubt that dGa' rab rdo rje/Anandavajra's name is well con-
nected with the tantric tradition. There is not only secondary
evidence, such as the information gained from the hagiog-
raphies of various individuals, but there is also one siidhana, a
DGA' RAE RDO RJE 61
text on the rtsa lung thig Ie practice, and numerous commentaries
on both well-known and obscure tantric practices.
V. Conclusion
We have shown that previous attempts to re-Sanskritize the
name dCa' rab rdo rje are incorrect. Instead of Surativajra or
PramuditavaJra, the name should be Anandavajra. Second, dCa'
rab rdo rje's other name, Ro lang bde ba, should be re-
Sanskritized as Further, the method of re-
Sanskritization in the preceding pages is based on the translation
into Tibetan of Sanskrit words as found in the Mahavyupatti.
This is a work that dates from the time of the early propagation
of the Dharma in Tibet. Thus, it is more reliable than re-
Sanskritizations based on sources from the second spread of the
Dharma, from which it would seem the incorrect re-Sanskritiza-
tions of these names were derived.
In arriving at a reasonable date for this Tantric author, we
have presented evidence from three different lineage lists. By
using the same standard of time between teacher and disciple,
the date of Anandavajra from the ati-yoga lineage was deter-
mined to be 550 A.D., the date of Anandavajra from the
Jiiiinasiddhi was determined to be 555 A.D., and the date of
V from the lineage of the early anuyoga tantra was
determined to be 555 A.D.
Finally, that dCa' rab rdo rje/Anandavajra was, in fact, a
tantric author is well attested by information gained from
hagiographies, commentaries on tantric practices and medita-
tional texts authored by him.
NOTES
1. The rNying rna count nine vehicles: sravaka, pratyekabuddha,
bodhisattva, kriya tantra, carya tantra, yoga tantra, mahayoga tantra, anuyoga tantra,
and ati-yoga. Because the ati-yoga does not form a separate school I have called
it a system.
2. A.W. Hanson-Barber, The Life and Teachings of Vairocana. Unpub-
lished dissertation, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1984.
3. See Rdo rje sems dpa' nam kha' che rtse ba'i rgyud skye ba med pa, chapter
1, in Vairo rgyud 'bum,vol. 1; Grub mtha 'mdzod by kLong Chen pa, Dodrupchen
Rinpoche pub., Sikkim National Press, p. 325-336; and Hanson-Barber, op.
cit., p. 102 ff. & p. 135 ff.
4. kLong Chen pa, ibid., and Hanson-Barber, p. 135 ff.
5. A comparative study of ati-yoga and Mahiimudrii is still wanting.
6. For the philosophy of the ati-yoga, see H.V. Guenther, Matrix of
Mystery (Boulder, 1984) and Kindly Bent to Ease Us (Emeryville, CA, 1975).
Also see Hanson-Barber, throughout. .
7. Crystal Mirror vol. V, pp. 182-3, reports this happened in a vision
while she was meditating; it also gives the year for this as wood-female-ox.
8. Dudjom Rinpoche told me in a conversation that dGa' rab rdo rje
had known the ati-yoga from birth.
9. Dudjom Rinpoche, Bod snga rabs pa gsang chen rnying ma'i chos a'byung
(1977), p. 119 ff.
10. Tibetan Peking Edition: see for example #4554, vol. 81.
11. Crystal Mirror, vol. III, p. 86. However, he gives no reason for these
re-Sanskritizations.
12. Sarar Chandra Das, A Tibetan English Dictionary, p. 167.
13. Ibid., pp. 1167-8.
14. Mahiivyutpqtti, Tokyo, 1915.
15. Specifically, before the time of Ral pa can.
16. Mahiivyutpatti, p. 228.
17. Ibid., p. 193.
18. Das, p. 1167.
19. Ibid., pp. 1167-8.
20. Cf., e.g., pp. 493, 886, 1536.
21. Ibid., e.g., pp. 39,41,69, 74, and 25l.
22. Ibid., pp. 413, 414.
23. Guenther Crystal Mirror, vol. III, p. 86; Eva Dargyay, The Rise of
Esoteric Buddhism in Tibet, p. 245. (This author seems to follow the dating in
the Chos 'byung by Karmapa dPa' bog tsung lag, but this is not specifically
stated) and Tarthang Tulku, Crystal Mirror, vol. V, p. 182.
24. Op. cit., p. 35 ff.
25. The reconstruction is based on the following argument: There is
sufficient evidence to suggest that there were two MafljusrImitras. (Dargyay,
p. 245 & 20ff.) Also, since Vimalamitra is said to have lived for 200 years,
there were probably two individuals with this name (not to be confused with
Vimala, the elder, mentioned in the Blue Annals p. 191-2). Since there is no
mention of any Vimalamitra studying with a teacher other than Sri Sirpha, I
have postulated an "unknown" for Vim ala I's teacher.
26. Although thirty-five years is somewhat arbitrary, there are approx-
imately thirty-three years' difference between the ages of SrI Sirpha and Vai-
rocana at their meeting,
27. Jiiiinasiddhi, in Two Vajrayana Works, ed. Benoytosh Bhattacharyya
(Baroda: Oriental Institute, 1929).
28. George N, Roerich, The Blue Annals (Delhi, 1979), p, 552.
DCA' RAB RDO RJE
63
29: The third Karmapa and Kumara raja worked at bringing together
the mahamudra and ati-yoga teachings. Kumara raja was also the teacher of
kLong Chen pa. Cf. Guenther, Kindly Bent to Ease Us, vol. 1, p. 245; and
Karma Thinley, The History of the Sixteen Karmapas of Tibet, p. 57.
30. Op. cit., p. 159 ff. .
31. This king is known only from Tibetan sources. Be is not mentioned
in Nepali sources.
32. Not to be confused with Bodhiharma.
33. This would be Indrabodhi I. See Wayman, The Yoga of the
Guhyasamaja. (New York: Samuel Weiser, 1977), pp. 89-91, 96.
34. Hanson-Barber, p. 65.
35. #2942, vol. 67.
36. #5037, vol. 87.
37. #5039, vol. 87.
38. #5038, vol. 87.
39. #5036, vol. 87.
40. The Bai1"O rGyud 'Bum, vol. I.
41. rNying ma'i rgyud 'bum, vol. 7.
42. Op. cit., vol. V.
43. Tibetan Tripitaka, Peking Edition #4554, vol. 81.
44. Author's collection (no bibliographic information).
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An Approach to Dagen's Dialectical
,Thinking and Method of Instantiation
(A Comparative Study
of Sho-bo-gen-zo-ku-ge)
by Shohei Ichimura
I. Introduction
During the 1970's, Dagen studies began to grow in North
America. This phenomenon has attracted me for some time,
partly because of the transcultural and trans-linguistic aspect of
Dagen's Zen, especially as related to the early Mahayana tradi-
tion, such as Madhyamika, and partly because of the significance'
of the trend growing in the new cultural horizon of North
America. Since Buddhism was born in India and was transmitted
to Japan by way of China, I have taken it for granted that
Buddhist religiosity transcends the cultural and linguistic differ-
ences between these countries, and, for the same reason, that
Buddhist religiosity can be at home in North America despite
its cultural and linguistic differences from the land of its birth
or lands where it has been previously transmitted. As part of a
philosophical enquiry into religion, therefore, I have attempted
in this paper to see how and why Buddhist religiosity transcends
such differences and to demonstrate this primary thesis with
reference to the insight and method of instruction of Dagen
(1200-1253), as expressed in his major work Sho-bO-gen-zo.
1
Dagen, the founding father of the Sata Zen school of Bud-
dhism in Japan, left as his magnum opus the ShO-bO-gen-zo, which
consists of ninety-two essays written over the period from im-
mediately after his return from China, in 1231, until the end
of his life. The essays deal with a variety of subjects, covering
every aspect of Dagen's thought, practical as well as theoretical.
65
66
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
Some of the essays, especially those which deal with philosophi-
cal and doctrinal subjects, contain difficult passages, and cannot
be understood in terms of the logic of ordinary discourse. I
believe that this is because such passages reflect Dagen's dialec-
tical thinking. His dialectic, however, as far as I have been able
to study it, appears to have an intrinsic affinity with that of the
Madhyamikas, who advocated dialectical negation as the sole
method of demonstration of sunyatii (emptiness). I am, of course,
not saying that Dagen himself engaged in reductio-ad-absurdum
arguments (Skt., prasmiga-viikya) like those of the Indian masters,
but I do assert that his spontaneous expression can best be
analyzed and comprehended on the basis of the "dialectical
context" out of which Nagarjuna and his followers justified the
Madhyamika approach. It is my contention that Buddhist
thinkers, whether of Indian, Chinese, or Japanese origin, have
invariably made such a dialectical context the basis of their in-
sight into and demonstration of sunyatii, and hence that it is this
dialectical context that transcends every and any form of cultural
or linguistic heritage.
2
For the sake of identifying and analyzing
this context in Dagen'S writing, I have chosen a particular essay,
entitled "Sky-flower," (ku-ge) for this paper.
II. Dagen's Instantiation in Terms of Sky-Flower
Buddhist thinkers in medieval India frequently resorted to
the image of the "sky-flower" (i.e., as part of logical
and dialectical demonstration. In ordinary logical contexts, the
"sky-flower" is used to denote figuratively anything impossible,
or simply to instantiate or exemplify a given subjective term as
empirically non-existent and thereby to disprove the validity of
the proposition that asserts it. The same image, however, con-
veys an entirely different meaning in the dialectical context.
Like the anonymous authors of the Prajiiaparamita literature,
Madhyamika dialecticians like Nagarjuna invariably resorted to
the use of metaphors, such as "magical entity" (miiyiivat) ,
"dream" (svapna), "mirage" and so forth, to demon-
strate sunyatii, i.e., the absence of self-identifying essence (nihsvabhiiva)
in every and all phenomena (bhiiva).3 Now, in the essay, "Sky-
flower," Dagen uses the image in question to embody the ulti-
DOGEN'SDIALECTICAL THINKING 67
mate insight attributed to Buddhas and Patriarchs, as well as to
exemplify the ultimate reality that manifests itself in any and
all phenomena. I believe that Dagen's usage can be meaningfully
shown to parallel that of Madhyamika dialecticians, and that his
metaphorical instantiations, such as "sky-flower," stem from that
dialectical context that transcends all forms of linguistic and
cultural differences.
There is a problem, however, with his usage, because, de-
spite his perfect accordance with the Madhyamikas in exemplify-
ing the insight into sunyata attributed to Buddhas and Patriarchs
in terms of the "sky-flower," he does not repudiate the reality
of phenomenal existence or its real occurrence. On the contrary,
he asserts the reality of phenomena and their real occurrences
in terms of a "sky-flower." This requires some explanation.
Nagarjuna and his followers articulated the insight of
sunyata invariably as twofold (1) that every phenomenon, insofar
as it is denoted by language (word or name), has nothing but a
conditioned existence based on its reciprocal dependence with
others (parasparapek!iata), and (2) hence, that it has no real es-
sence of its own (niJp-svabhava) which would identify its own
being as distinguished from others (parabhava). It is this twofold
insight to which the Madhyamikas applied "sky-flower" in order
to instantiate such an entity which is not only functionally existent
but also ultimately non-existent. Dagen also expresses the same
insight of sunyata in his essay with an unmistakable emphasis,
but his instantiation about it in terms of the "sky-flower" implies
something different in intention from that of the Madhyamikas,
which I would call an "affirmative usage."
I say that in the Buddhist tradition we have the image of the
"sky-flower." No one other than Buddhists knows this, nor does
he ever understand its (true) meaning. It is only Buddhas and
Patriarchs who alone know the way the "sky-flower" and the
"ground-flower" as well as the "world-flower" bloom and wither,
and also the way in which they become the scriptures. This is
the standard path through which one learns to become a Buddha.
Since the vehicle on which Buddhas and Patriarchs ride is this
"sky-flower," not only the world of Buddhas but also their
Dharma is the "sky-flower" in itself.
4
Whatever difference Dagen might have implied in his usage
68
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
becomes more apparent if it is compared to ordinary convention.
In the passages which immediately follow, Dagen tries to explain
his affirmative use of "sky-flower" as an instantiation for "ulti-
mate reality," and this usage especially is in'sharp contrast to
logical convention. For instance, he quotes the following passage
from scripture, but gives it an entirely different reading from
that of convention.
Sakyamuni Buddha said: It is like the case that people who suffer
from visual affliction perceive flowers in mid-air, but when the
affliction is removed, such flowers will vanish from the sky.5
The passage obviously contrasts an illusory perception with a
valid one. From the point of view of convention, it is anerrone-
ous cognition if a man with eyes afflicted by disease perceives
flowers in the sky, because a man with healthy eyes perceives
no such illusion. Dagen deliberately reverses these cases with
an emphasis on the fact that it is the former which yields true
insight, whereas the latter does not:
No scholar has ever understood the meaning of this passage.
Because he does not know sunyatii, neither does he know the
meaning of "sky-flower." Because he does not know the "sky-
flower," neither does he know who the man with afflicted eyes
is, nor does he perceive him or meet him, nor does he become
the one like him.
6
The question is twofold: (1) How can we understand his unique
reading which totally contradicts logical convention; and (2) can
we reconcile his affirmative use of "sky-flower" with that of the
Madhyamikas?
III. Dagen'S Dialectical Principle: Eigen-kuge-no-dari
The concept of ku-ge or "sky-flower" as Dagen uses it in his
essay is contrary to logical convention in a number of ways.
While he attributes the vision of sky-flowers to Buddhas and
Patriarchs, he introduces the common sense view which he
deems to belong to fools (i.e., ordinary men). People are con-
vinced, Dagen says, that the kha (or ku in Japanese) is the sky
DOGEN'S DIALECTICAL THINKING 69
where warm air hovers and where stars hang, and that the
"sky-flower" means those varigated, colorful flowers flying east
and west, up and down, like clouds in the transparent atmos-
phere. They only know that sky flowers appear and vanish in
mid-air, but they do not know how they appear from the sky.
How much less do they know the truth that they also grow from
the ground!
7
Moreover, it is a short-sighted view to think, Dagen
claims,
that "afflicted eyes" means the eyes of deluded men seeing things
in an upside-down way, that these men whose visual faculty has
already been affected by disease and become delirious, perceive
and hear about "sky-flowers" even in the transparent sky, and
hence that when such affliction is removed, they will no longer
visualize the illusory appearance of sky flowers.
8
Nor is it strictly a Buddhist view to think, he warns again,
that sky-flowers are unreal while all other flowers are real, or to
reason that flowers, by nature, should not be seen in the sky, or
to think that they now temporarily appear there though actually
they are non-existent.
9
All these statements by Dagen naturally make us wonder about
the meaning he is attributing to the use of "sky-flower."
Unexpectedly, his meaning has something to do with concrete,
actual phenomena, such as flowers blooming and withering in
nature, be they of a stalk of wild grass or of plum or pear trees,
or in the p r ~ s e n t season or past or future seasons.
IO
Dagen, in
fact, asserts the reality of "sky-flowers" by identifying them not
only with every and all flowers of the actual world but also with
those flowers of the past as well as of the future:
Perceiving the multiple colours of sky-flowers, one may measure
the endlessness of effects arising in space (or sunyata); observing
sky-flowers blooming and withering, one may fathom their sea-
sons, such as spring and autumn. The spring in which sky-flowers
bloom must be identical with the spring in which all other flowers
bloom. Just as sky-flowers are many, there are equally many
spring seasons. II
Dagen's concept of ei-gen, which literally means "afflicted
eyes," does not coincide with literal meaning either, since he
attributes such fatulties (ei-gen) to Buddhas and Patriarchs as a
corollary to his concept of ku-ge (sky-flower). He offers an argu-
ment to defend his conception that both ei':gen and ku-ge are
equally real in reference to the epistemic structure in which
both an active agent of perceving and its recipient object to be
perceived are necessarily involved. It is in this argument that
we can witness the presence of Dagen's dialectic, which he calls
the "eigen kuge no dori" (i.e., the nature of things in regard to
afflicted eyes and sky-flowers). 12 In identifying the man of visual
affliction (ei-nin) with the enlightened one, Dagen develops his
argument as follows:
One must not foolishly regard "affliction" (ei) as an illusory (false)
entity (dharma) and think that there is a real (true) one other
than this. For, such is an (inferior) view held by men of meager
capacity. If the flower perceived by the afflicted eyes is a false
entity, this subjective assertion and the asserted proposition, both
of which are based upon holding that the entity is unreal (false),
must necessarily both become (equally) false e ~ t i t i e s . If all are
equally false, there is no way to establish the true nature of
things. If there is no way to accomplish this, (even) the assertion
to the effect that the flowers perceived by afflicted eyes are false
entities cannot be made.
13
The reason that the dori to which Dagen refers is rather of
a dialectical nature than a logical one, can be detected within
the passages immediately preceding and following, in which he
specifically introduces the causality of reciprocal dependence be-
tween the afflicted eyes and the sky-flowers. Dagen suggests
that common men are not quite aware of the fact that everything
can be identified with sky-flowers, i.e., not only the four material
factors (mahii-bhuta) which make up both the active faculties
(e.g., visual organs) and recipient objects, but also the totality
of things that make up the objective world, as well as the subjec-
tive world, such as "original enlightenment," "original nature,"
and so forth. 14 Nor do they realize that not only the four material
factors but also the subjective and objective, sentient and non-
sentient, worlds are originated and sustained, depending upon
multiple psycho-physical elements (dharmas). They think only
of the causal factor by which those psycho-physical elements
arise, depending upon the external world, but cannot think of
the other way around.
15
Thus laments Dagen:
People .tend to see only the causal factor by which sky-flowers
arise, depending upon the visual affliction, but scarcely see the
truth (dari) that the visual affliction also arises, depending upon
the sky-flowers.
16
Here is the most significant parallel between Dagen and the
Madhyamikas in regard to their common insight, namely, the
causality of reciprocal interdependence be-
tween the faculty of cognition and the object cognized. It is
obvious that the nature of this causal reciprocity is the key to
an understanding of Dagen's use of the "sky-flower" as an instan-
tiation.
IV. N agarjuna 's Dialectical Principle: Reciprocity and Dual Reference
In Classical India the relationship between active faculty
(prama7J,a) and its recipient object (prameya) as crucial to every
epistemic phenomenon, became one of the central doctrinal
issues between Buddhist and non-Buddhist thinkers. In the
simplest terms, their differences can be provisionally specified
in reference to the polemics exchanged between the
Madhyamika dialecticians and the Nyaya logicians on the nature
of language and the nature of things it denotes. The
Madhyamika critique of the N aiyayika theory of prama7J,a gener-
ally represents the critical Buddhist attitude towards the gram-
matico-linguistic convention upon which the latter's system of
logic was founded. This is inferable from Vatsyayana's defense
of the validity of prama7J,a in reference to the grammatico-linguis-
tic principles such as the syntactical category (kiiraka) and the
semantic signification (samakhyanimitta) of words and sen-
tences.
17
It was Nagarjuna, in the 2nd century, who initiated
such Hindu-Buddhist polemics. In Nyayasutra (II, i, 8-11), for
instance, his dialectic, which appears in Vigrahavyavartanz, is
concisely recorded. It may be rephrased as follows:
Perception cannot be established in the past and future, because
72
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
it arises only from the contact of sensejaculty and its objective stimuli,
which is confined to the present moment. But if perception and
its object are simultaneous, since there is a fixation between cog-
nition and its object, there is no successive occurrence of cogni-
tion.
18
In defense against this critique, Vatsyayana argues in his Bha!iya
that the role of pramana need not be fixed to the present moment
as long as it is fixed to a syntactical category, such as the instru-
mental case. A musical instrument, for instance, can be a pramar],a
for producing the sound of a tune, but the sound itself can be
a pramar],a for identifying the instrument which is being played. 19
It is a function of the speaker's intention that one thing can
become a pramar],a at one time and a prameya at another time in
a different context.
Now, the point of confrontation is twofold: (1) whether
pramar],a and prameya are fixed within a given syntactical context;
and (2) whether they reciprocate their functional identities
within one and the same context. It is clear that the Madhyamikas
held that the two correlative entities are fixed within a given
context and reciprocate between themselves, just as light and
dark interact to produce illumination, and that there is an obvi-
ous categorical difference between the Madhyamika and the
Naiyayika positions. In Vigrahavyavartan'i Nagarjuna applies two
types of dialectic,20 one of which may be called the analytic
method since it is based on the Abhidharmist causal concept of
hetupratyayata. This method has as its single purpose reducing
every entity to its constituent elements and thereby making
known the nominalistic nature of every object and universal. It
is designed to repudiate the Naiyayika notion of sabda (vocal
word) postulated as possessing its self-identifying principle
(svabhava) and linguistic efficiency. The other type of dialectic
Nagarjuna applies is the reductio-ad-absurdum argument
(prasmiga-vakya), especially designed to deal with a categorically
deeper dimension than the semantic and syntactical one. Con-
sider the way communication is accomplished between two
people. Communication is nothing but a parallel occurrence of
similar cognitive processes in the minds of the two people.
Nagarjuna, as a Buddhist thinker, must have considered the
ultimate source of linguistic efficiency as residing in such a di-
mension. Thus, the difference between the Madhyamika and
DOGEN'S DIALECTICAL THINKING
73
the common-sense Naiyayka positions was (1) whether linguistic
efficiency derives from the grammatico-linguistic rules and pos-
tulates with which the Nyaya logicians aligned the nature and
function of pramarj,a; or (2) whether it derives from the more
fundamental epistemic dimension in which sense faculties and
incoming external stimuli interact in creating subsequent logico-
linguistic mental processes.
As a convention we say that the eye (pramarj,a) sees the object
(prameya) and assume that these two entities somehow establish
a contact so as to create vision. Nagarjuna demonstrates here
two points: (1) that the spatio-temporal sphere to which such
interaction is referred is no longer a logical context as Nyaya
logicians insisted, but uniquely a dialectical one; and (2) that in
that referential sphere which is dialectical, the pramarj,a and the
prameya no longer maintain their self identity but reciprocally
exchange their functions.
21
Ingeniously, Nagarjuna resorts to
a metaphorical analogy of "light" and "dark." These, though
conceptually incompatible, are in convention required to be
co-present, precisely because the fact of illumination requires
contact, upon which, we say, the light of wisdom dispels the
darkness of doubt, and so forth. It is such a convention that the
Madhyamika dialectic repudiates. In Vigrahavyavartanz, espe-
cially karikas 36 through 39, Nagarjuna argues that wherever
light is, dark cannot be, nor can light be present wherever dark
abides. It follows that the two entities, though conventionally
required to be co-present, find no place to meet. In order to
escape this absurdity and ensure convention, it is necessary to
accept that light and dark are simultaneously different and yet iden-
tical, which ipso facto repudiates the concept of svabhava, hence
nif?,-svabhava or sunyata follows. It is such an empirically impos-
sible entity, i.e., simultaneously "light" and "dark," "existent"
and "non-existent," which Nagarjuna and the Madhyamikas ar-
ticulate by means of metaphorical instances such as a magical
object, a dream, the sky-flower, etc.
V. Dagen's Dialectic and Concrete Instantiation
It is a corollary assumption of this paper that Buddhist
thinkers throughout the ages relied equally upon dialectical
methods for the purpose of disclosing the aforementioned con-
74
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
text which ordinarily transcends our empirical consciousness as
shaped by the logico-linguistic forms of expression. Renowned
teachers invariably exhibited an accomplished skill to help stu-
dents acquire the insight into that deeper dimension I referred
to at the beginning of this paper as the "Dialectical Context."
The authors of the Prajfi.aparamita literature applied a
thoroughgoing negation, while Chinese thinkers, such as S e n g ~
chao as well as notable Zen masters, frequently resorted to
paradoxical expressions. As instructional methods, these forms
of dialectic exhibited a common intention, namely, to create dis-
quietude in the mind in regard to logical and linguistic convention and
thereby to induce in it the dialectical context where both empirical and
transcendental aspects of the mind come to play in unison. Such a
characteristic can also be detected in the instructional method
adopted by Dagen, and I think that his affirmative use of the
"sky-flower" as an instantiation points precisely to that charac-
teristic.
Dagen's metaphorical instantiation is not confined to the
"sky-flower," but extends to the use of other instances. For in-
stance, in the essay entitled, "Preaching Dreams within a Dream"
(mu-chu setsu-mu), he offers such instances as a "rootless tree,"a
"shadowless sunny ground,,,b and "echoless valley,"C and praises
them as "no region for men and gods as it is inaccessible to
common men's fathoming.,,22 That Dagen's instantiation has
its affinity to that of the Madhyamikas can be further confirmed
from the fact that he makes "affliction" (ei) identical not only
with "enlightenment" but also with its opposite, "delusion"; he
identifies the "afflicted faculty" (ei-gen) with the "sky-flower"
(ku-ge) , and multiple dharmas with "flowers visualized in afflic-
tion" (ei-gen). The following passage, which is clearly dialectical,
attests my point of view:
When "enlightenment" is identified with "affliction," all its co-ef-
ficient (concurrent) dharmas become the co-efficients (concur-
rents) of "affliction." When "delusion" is identified with "afflic-
tion," all its co-efficientdharmas become the co-efficients of "afflic-
tion." Consider the following awhile. When the "afflicted eye"
bears universal identity (byodo, samata) , the "sky-flower" bears
universal identity as well. When the "afflicted eye" bears no origi-
nation, the "sky-flower" bears no origination either. When mul-
tiple dharmas manifest themselves as they are in their own form,
all the flowers arisen from "afflicted vision" manifest themselves
in their own form. (This state of affairs) transcends past, present
as well as future, for it has neither beginning nor interim nor
ending. It arises in mid-air and perishes there; it arises in "afflic-
tion" and perishes in it. It arises in "flowers" and perishes in
them. And so on in all of other spaces and times.
23
Although Dagen thus depicts the state of affairs as some-
thing transcendent of space and time and something mystical
and extra-phenomenal, he does not forget to state at once that
it is also extremely concrete and actual like that belonging to
our ordinary experience, and that it is variant and multiple in
accordance with different individuals, different spiritual- attain-
ments, and at different times, such as ancient, medieval, or the
immemorial past. 24 Though people may equally perceive the
"sky-flower" on all these occasions, what is seen by them varies
in regard both to the insight of funyata (ku) and in regard to
the actuality of the "flower." Thus, continues Dagen:
One must know that sunyatii (ku) is a single stalk of grass; this
sunyatii will bloom without fail, just as flowers bloom in all kinds
of grass. In understanding this truth (doTi) , one may take it as
equivalent to understanding that the path of the Tathagata is
sunyatii and by nature flowerless, and yet it bears flowers now,
just as flowers bloom on peach and pear trees, on plum and
willow trees. (This state of affairs) may be compared to that in
which the plum tree had no flowers before but then has flowers
in the spring. As this is the case, when the time comes, flowers
are bound to bloom; this is the time of flowers; this is their
manifestation. There has never been any irregularity in the right
time for flowers to bloom.
25
Dagen's use of instantiation as shown in this passage, how-
ever, clearly conveys its uniqueness and distinction from the
Madhyamika usage, according to which instantiation never takes
the degree of concreteness and phenomenality that Dagen at-
tributes to his instantiation. For instance, Nagarjuna's instanti-
ation in Vigrahavyavartanf is totally bereft of a sense of concrete-
ness and phenomenality. Here he intended to exemplify the
way linguistic symbols, though having no real existence or effi-
ciency, still established communication, in assertion and nega-
tion, for example:
Just as a person created by maya repudiates another as equally
fabricated, or a magician may repudiate (whatever object) is
created by his magic, just so should this repudiation be consid-
ered.
26
Perhaps the following passage, taken from the Diamond Sidra of
the Prajnaparamita literature, further evidences the marked dif-
ference of Dagen's use of instantiation:
As stars, a fault of vision, as a lamp, a mock show, dew drops,
or a bubble, a dream, a lightning flash, or cloud, so should one
view what is conditioned (i.e., what is phenomenal).27
VI. Buddhist Logical Principles of Dual Instantiation
In Indian Buddhist logic the principle of instantiation was
essential to valid inference and hence crucial to efficient dem-
onstration. The principle of instantiation, which was much dis-
cussed in Buddhist logic is, however, not confined to the Bud-
dhist system. On the contrary, it is quite universal for the very
same reason that language is universal despite its variations in
form. Language is a system of symbols semantically agreed upon
for their denotation and also syntactically agreed upon for their
linkage. What is functionally essential to the use of language is
twofold: (1) the classification of the facts of experience by sym-
bols; and (2) the linkage of symbols or their meanings (me to
another, whether in logic or grammar or causation. Thus, every
language contains a vast number of classifications. Every com-
mon name expresses the recognition of a class; every word,
irrespective of whether in Japanese, Chinese, English or
Sanskrit, is the expression of some implicit classification. By the
same token, each language comprises a set of grammatical rules,
especially the system of syntactical word-order. Some contempo-
rary grammarians have finally reached a similar conception to
that of the ancient Sanskrit grammarians in regard to the latter,
i.e., that the deep sentential structure is universal irrespective
of the differences in the surface structure.
28
The principle of instantiation that determines whether the
way of classifying an object into a particular class which a given
symbol denotes is correct, as well as whether the way of linking
symbols is valid, consists of dual rules, namely, positive instantia-
tion and negative instantiation. Ancient Indian thinkers called
these two respectively anvaya and vyatireka,29 while ancient
Chinese thinkers, such as the Mohists, referred to them as the
method of agreement
d
and the method of difference
e
.
3o
In the
contemporary West, these dual rules are invoked also as essential
to the pragmatic principles of verification and falsification.
Given a fact of experience, we are ready to determine what it
is by applying a name (or predication) to it. We are obliged,
however, to compare it to something similar to which we have
applied that name in our previous experiences. In order to
determine a distant hill, over which we observe a billow of smoke,
to be probably on fire, we compare this particular case with
some other cases within our familiar experiences, such as a
kitchen, where most of us know, smoke and fire are generally
found to be co-present. This is the principle of similarity or of
positive instantiation. Simultaneously, however, we are also ob-
liged to determine if this classification is correct, and in order
to do so, we further compare it to something dissimilar which
is neither capable of combustion nor smouldering, such as an
iceberg. This is the principle of dissimilarity or of negative instan-
tiation. Thus, the dual principles of similarity and dissimilarity,
or mutually contra positive instantiations, regulate a proper flow
of inferential thoughts from a cognition: "There is smoke on
the hill" to another: "There is fire on the hill." In actual oper-
ation, a kitchen as a positive instance verifies the two related
propositional symbols, whereas a negative instance, such as an
iceberg, falsifies them. This is the necessary condition of any
rational and logical discourse, which we may call the "Logical
Context." In short, the Logical Context can be defined by means
of the dual instantiations: (1) every positive instance (sapak!ia) is
supposed to verify a given predication or proposition as "po-
sition" in regard to its subject term; and (2) every negative in-
stance (vipak!ia) is supposed to falsify the same predication or
proposition as "contraposition" in regard to the same subject
term.
In doctrinal and philosophical polemics, the method of in-
stantiation is a powerful tool to defend one's own doctrine while
refuting the opponent's. For instance, in order to refute a man's
claim that he has perceived flowers in the sky, the counter-dem-
onstration consists of three steps: First, in order to make the
man recognize a common truth that "wherever flowers grow,
there is a patch of soil," one is obliged (1) to invoke positive
instantiation in reference to "a patch of soil" in his backyard,
and thereby let him accept that flowers and a patch of soil are
co-present; and (2) to invoke negative instantiation in reference
to "some desert" where neither a patch of soil nor flowers are
supposed to be found, and thereby let him accept that "wherever
there is no soil, there no flower grows." These dual instantiations
ipso facto accomplish defense as well as refutation simultaneously.
The third remaining step is simply to question the opponent as
to whether a patch of soil is to be found in the sky, since his
negative answer will itself disprove his own claim. It is interesting
to note that there is a close parallel between the foregoing pro-
cedure and the dual operations of the Western hypothetical
syllogism, namely, modus ponendo ponens and modus ponendo tol-
lens.
31
Now, three points of reflection are in order: (1) in our
ordinary logical context "sky flower" cannot be used for any
empirical instantiation, except for asserting empirical impossibil-
ity (2) accordingly, the Madhyamika and Dagen's instantiation
is not applied to the ordinary logical context; and (3) thus, the
meaning of their instantiation must have been directed else-
where, namely, the Dialectical Context.
VII. Dialectical Context as Distinguished from Logical Context
The reason that Dagen's use of "sky-flower" as an instanti-
ation is not logical but dialectical can be clarified in reference
. to the necessary condition of Madhyamika dialectic precisely
because the dialectical context is structurally identical with the
logical context which I have just explained. The dialectical con-
text is, however, radically different in two major ways. In logic,
the dual operations of anvaya and vyatireka are clearly separated
from each other in reference to the respective classes of variables.
In dialectic, the dual operations are totally juxtaposed over one and
the same spatio-temporal sphere, the immediacy context, where the
human mind encounters nature in an instantaneous moment
and is activated to bifurcate the dual processes. Suppose we are
listening to an ongoing speech in which phonemes, words and
sentences are incessantly coming and going. Catching a series
of rapid sounds, our mind instantaneously configurates them
into a word, a series of words into a sentence, and a series of
sentences into a unified understanding. It is within this dynamic
flow of speech or thoughts that, at each moment, the dialectical
context emerges as the linkage point where two consecutive
moments are assumed to be juxtaposed. It is this same linkage
point which Nagarjuna ingeniously disclosed by juxtaposing the
pramarj,a (cognitive faculty) and the prameya (its object), or their
metaphorical counterparts, "light" and "darkness" over it as an
ultimate referential sphere.
Although Nagarjuna is not explicit about the formula of
anvaya and vyatireka in his dialectic, it is possible to detect them
from the way he manipulates propositions for inducing the
dialectical context. For the sake of making my demonstration
plain and simple, I shall utilize a set of symbolic notations. It is
generally known that the five-membered Indian syllogism can
be reduced to a three-membered formula as Dignaga himself
theorized, but Buddhist logicians seem to have considered that
even this formula can eventually be reduced to that of dual
instantiations.
32
Buddhist logicians conceptualized the inferen-
tial process as widely as possible so that it could include spontane-
ous thought movements. Given a hetu (Reason) that "the hill
'bears a billow of smoke'," Dignaga theorized that this hetu-asser-
tion in turn has already implied its concomitant assertion (sadhya,
thesis) that "the hill 'may have an outbreak of fire'," thus reveal-
ing the tendential frame of all human mentality.33 Dharmakirti
attributed ultimate efficiency exclusively to instantaneous mo-
ments alone and not to any universal, such as names
and sentential symbols.
34
Ratnakara even considered that the
inner concomitance (antarvyapti) can dispense with concrete
examples on the basis of universal momentariness
Thus, it is based on these theoretical considerations that I have
formulated the logical context in terms of dual instantiations.
Now, the positive (anvaya) and negative (vyatireka) instantiations
can be transcribed respectively as follows:
(x){P(x).Q(x)} and (y){ - Q(y)" - p(y)p6
provided that "x" and "y" respectively symbolize "similar" and
80
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
"dissimilar" instances (resp. sapak:ia and vipak:ia), and "P.Q" and
"- Q. - P" stand respectively for "position" (anvaya) and "con-
traposition" (vyatireka).
The following is a simplified translation for Karikas 36-39
of the Vigrahavyavartanf accompanied by my two supplementary
arguments in the left-hand column and their symbolic notations
based on the form ula just explained in the right-hand column: 37
KariM 36: Anvaya and Vyatireka
Where light "x" illumines itself
and others "P.Q"
Darkness "y" also obstructs
illumination from both" - Q. - P"
(x){P(x).Q(x)} . (y){ - Q(y). - P(y)}
K. 37: Anvaya only (Vyatireka negated)
Where there is light there is
no darkness;
How can light illumine anything?
(x){P(x).Q(x)}. - [(y){ - Q(y). - P(y)}]
= (x,y){P(x,y).Q(x,y)}
Supplement: Vyatireka only (Anvaya negated)
Where there is darkness there is
no light;
How can light illumine anything?
- [(x){P(x).Q(x)}] . (y){ - Q(y). - P(y)}
= (y,x){ - Q(y,x). - P(y,x)}
K. 38: Anvaya and Vyatireka
Does light illumine darkness at
its moment of arising?
No, light does not reach it
from the beginning.
(x){P(x).Q(x)} . (y){ - Q(y). - P(y)}
K. 39: Anvaya only (Vyatireka negated)
If light here illumines darkness
without reaching it,
This light illumines all the world.
(x){P(x).Q(x)} . - [(y){ - Q(y). - P(y)}]
(x, y){P(x, y. ).q (x, y)}
Supplement: Vyatireka only (Anvaya negated)
If darkness here destroys light
without reaching it,
This darkness here destroys
light in all the world.
- [(x){P(x).Q(x)}] . (y){ - Q(y). - P(y)}
=' (y,x){ - Q(y,x). - P(y,x)}
The formulas expressed in Karikas 36 and 38 may equally
be read as: Wherever light "x" illumines itself and others (which
means "P.Q"), darkness "y" also obstructs illuminations from
both (which means" - Q. - P"). It is obvious that the predica-
81
mentis created by an unexpected contradiction implied in our
logical and linguistic convention, and that this is suddenly dis-
closed in the dialectical context when two mutually contraposi-
tive entities, i.e., light and darkness, are juxtaposed over the
same sphere and moment of illumination. Since an interaction
of pramiirJ,a and prameya is an a priori condition for any form of
cognition, there is no sophistry in this dialectical context, which,
however, efficiently demonstrates the fact that our linguistic
expressions, such as "light illumines darkness," have no indepen-
dent referential objects, apart from the two entities totally iden-
tified. This empirical absence of a referential object is further
demonstrated in the subsequent Kiirikii. From Kiirikiis 37 and
39 as well as my supplements, it is logically correct to think that,
being mutually exclusive, light and darkness cannot be found
at the same space and time, and yet this leads to the absurdity
that the phenomenon of illumination is unaccounted for. Al-
though it is not detectable in linguistic expression, the symbolic
notation for these Karikiis reveals two significant insights behind
their apparent absurdity:
(1) that the affirmative formula: (x,y){P(x,y).Q(x,y)}, and the
negative one: (y,x){ - Q(y,x). - (y,x)}, are both derived from the
negation of their respective contra positions;
(2) that despite the fact that the variables "x" and "y" are identical
while at the same time different. It is this dual natured riference
which, made apparent by the juxtaposition of dual instantiations,
is the second point of difference which pertains to the Dialectical
Context.
VIII. Dagen's Instantiation as Compared to that of Bhiivaviveka's Syl-
logism
Both features of the dialectical context, as distinguished
from those of the logical context, have a natural consequence
in the manner of instantiation. Such differences can best be
analyzed in the syllogistic demonstration of sunyatii adopted by
Bhavaviveka, the forefather of the Svatantrika Madhyamika
school. Though it is in syllogistic formula, his method of demon-
stration is clearly dialectical in terms of the above two features,
and hence, it is possible to compare Dagen's method of instan-
tiation with it. In his for instance, Bhavaviveka
gives two syllogistic arguments as specimens to repudiate respec-
tively empirical (sa'Y(lskr:ta) and trans empirical (asa'Y(lskr:ta) entities
(dharmas) in regard to their real existence, and in fact, applies
the image of the "sky-flower" in the second argument as its
instantiation: 38
(phenomenal entities) are empty (sunyiiJ1) from
the transcendental point of view (paramarthatas);
because they are composite (pratyaya-bhavalj,);
like a magically created entity (mayavat).
asa'Y(lskr:ta-dharmas (transempirical entities) are unreal (asad-
bhutalj,);
because they have no origination (anutpadalj,);
like a sky-flower
A few formal peculiarities regulate these syllogisms: (1) the thesis
(pratijiia) is invariably negation; (2) it is controlled by an adverbial
term paramarthatas (from the transcendental point of view or
transempirically); and (3) it has the but no or
but no (depending upon whether one takes the
predication in terms of "emptiness" as affirmation or negation),
for, in the Madhyamika insight, there is nothing that is not
empty. These peculiarities are corollary to the "logical concomi-
tance" (vyapti) between hetu (reason) and sadhya (thesis), and are
designed to establish not only that every empirical entity (that
arises from causes and conditions as a but also every
member of the class (that empirically does not arise), is
equally "empty.,,39
Bhavaviveka, of course, invariably indicates by means of an
adverbial term paramarthatas, that his syllogism is not totally
logical but dialectical, and that though the subject term of his
proposition is empirical, its negative predication is transcenden-
tal. It is my contention that Dagen'S method of instantiation can
be seen as parallel to this state of affairs. For the sake of demon-
stration, I shall simplifyBhavaviveka's concomitance (vyapti) and
its respective instantiation as follows:
83
r--vyapti
hetu siidhya
Whatever (sa'TIJSkr:ta) is composite
Whatever (asa'TIJSk'(ta) has no origin-
ation
is empty,
is unreal,
dntanta
like a magical entity.
like a sky-flower.
The fact that the two subject terms refer to mutually contraposi-
tive classes (phenomenal and transphenomenal), and yet are
predicated by similar predicables, such as "being empty," "un-
real," "without a self-identifying principle" (nilJ,svabhiiva) , and
so forth, evidences logical violation on two accounts: (1) that
the class boundary between and is vitiated; and
(2) that the nature of both instances (miiyiivat and
is peculiarly dual, because they simultaneously instantiate every
sa11}Skr:ta and asart}skr:ta dharma as existent and real and yet also
as non-existent and unreal.
N ow, Dagen's method of instantiation can be seen as parallel
to the foregoing analysis. Along with convention, Dagen fully
knows the ordinary meaning of the "sky-flower" as an instanti-
ation for anything empirically impossible, and yet, rejecting this
usage, he emphatically asserts that common men do not know
the true meaning of it as embodying transcendental reality which
is neither obstructed by space nor by time, neither by origination
nor by cessation. He identifies the "sky-flower" not only with
those empirical flowers blooming and withering in nature in
accordance with their appointed seasons, but also with doctrinal
entities, such as enlightenment, original nature, and so on. He
deliberately violates the class boundary of "sky-flower" and
"flowers on the ground" (ji-ge) by stating:
It is the "sky-flower" that ultimately makes all flowers bloom both
in mid-air and on the ground.
40
It follows that insofar as the predication of "being empty" is
concerned, his instantiation in terms of "sky-flower" has no con-
traposition; namely, there is nothing that is not a "sky-flower"
either in mid-air, or on the ground, or in the entire world (sekai-
ge). This extensive identification of the "sky-flower" with empir-
ical as well as trans-empirical entities, which constitute the total-
ity of the universe in Buddhist thinking, is undoubtedly identical
with the Madhyamika instantiation. as formulated by
Bhavaviveka.
There still remains an unresolved question with Dagen's
method of instantiation, namely, how and why his instantiation
in terms ofthe "sky-flower" takes a singularly affirmative expres-
SIon, which puts it in marked contrast to that of the
Madhyamikas. More than once, Dagen praises the "sky-flower"
which activates the "afflicted faculty" (ei-gen) as an embodiment
of supreme truth:
It is a pity that people such as they (common men) do not know
the beginning and end of the appointed season in which the
sky-flower blooms as an embodiment of the path of Tathagatas.
For, the truth (dari) of "afflicted eyes" and "sky-flowers," which
is embodied in the path of Buddhas has never been accessible
to them. Buddhas and Tathagatas all received their seats in the
patriarchal room of transmission through practicing the path of
the "sky-flower" and realized the path and its goal. Sakyamuni
Buddha's raising a stalk of flowers and twinkling his eyes, all this
certified the fact that the truth of "afflicted eyes" and "sky-flow-
ers" was realized.
41
It is the heart of this paper to render intelligible how and why
Dagen could justify his method of instantiation such as it is
expressed in this passage by having recourse to the N agarjunian
insight of the reciprocity and juxtaposition of
anvaya and vyatireka as explained above.
IX. Dagen's Instructional Method of Instantiation as Compared to that
of the Praj'fiaparamita
Although Dagen does not present his dialectic in the man-
ner of logical refutation as the Indian masters did, his dialectical
thinking can be recognized in the way he uses the "sky-flower"
. and expresses his insight of the causal reciprocity between the
"afflicted eye" and the "sky-flower" consistently in reference to
that dialectical context upon which this paper has focused. The
Madhyamika dialectic was initially introduced by Nagarjuna as
a method of refutation, but simultaneously served as an instruc-
tional- method for realization of the ultimate insight. Dagen's
dialectic apparently bears more strongly the instructional nature
along with the age-old tradition of the Prajiiaparamita literature.
The anonymous authors of this literature earnestly advocated
the practice-of samiidhi as corollary to the insight of silnyatii, and
in some texts, inculcated the practice of samiidhi which was de-
signed to induce the vision of the sublime image of the Buddhas.
What was intended is not a mystical vision itself, but a particular
experience in which two different levels of consciousness, empir-
ical and trans-empirical, come to play in unison.
In the A4tasiihasrikii-prajiiiipiiramitii-siltra (Chaps. 30-31), for
instance, Sadaprarudita, the hero bodhisattva, is said to have
experienced an ecstatic vision of the Buddhas, but coming out
of it somehow he felt gravely distressed about the disappearance
of those Buddhas. Then a question arose in him, which, there-
after, became the primary source of his drive in his search for
ultimate insight; namely, "where did those Buddhas come from,
and where did they gO?,,42 There lies beneath this question the
dialectical context created in his consciousness. For the linkage
between the vision of the Buddhas at one moment and that of
their disappearance at another moment became the primary
concern for Sadaprarudita. In this way the dialectical context
was created in him, since conceptually there is a singular spatio-
temporal sphere of reference to which his question refers the
two incompatible phases of his experience (i.e., presence of
Buddhas and their absence).
There are two major reasons why Dagen's instructional
method is parallel to the aforementioned example. First,
throughout his essay, Dagen consistently asserts the trans-em-
pirical status of the "sky-flower" as incomparably superior to its
empirical status as generally held in convention, and toward
that end he identifies the vision of the "sky-flower" with that of
the JiPpo-butsus, i.e., the Buddhas of Ten Directions.
I say that the vision of the Jippa-butsus cannot be said to be "not
real," as it is essentially idetttical with the vision of "flowers in
the eye" (gen-chu-ge). It is "within the eye" (alone) that theJippo-
butsus reside. Unless it is within the eye, it is 'not the abode of
theJippo-butsus, "Flowers in the eye" are neither non-existent nor
existent, neither unreal nor real, but themselves are theJippo-but-
86
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
sus. This is like the case in which when one earnestly wishes to
see the Jippa-butsus, they are no longer "flowers in the eye,"
whereas when he wishes to see "flowers in the eye," they are no
longer the Jippa-butsus. 43
Thus, his tactical exhortation creates a tension in his student's
mind concerning two different meanings of the "sky-flower,"
one belonging to common men, another to the enlightened. A
passage that follows immediately further confirms Dagen's in-
structional intention:
Even though scholars of the scriptures, masters of doctrines, may
hear about the name of the "sky-flower," no one other than
Buddhas and Patriarchs would have the occasion to see and hear
a b ~ u t the vital life line of "ground flowers."44
Secondly, though Dagen's instructional method refers to con-
crete actuals to instantiate them by the "sky-flower," he does
not fail to state, along with Bhavaviveka, that the "sky-flower"
has no empirical origination and, hence, no cessation, extending
the same negation to actuals as well:
Flowers have neither originated, nor have they perished. This is
the truth (dari) , that neither have the flowers been the flowers,
nor has the sky been the sky. One must not look for a before
and after ofthe appointed time of the flowers and thereby elabo-
rate one's thought as to whether they are or they are not. Flowers
are, as it were, necessarily dyed by variegated colours, but these
colours are not confined to flowers. It is the same with appointed
times which are as variegated as blue, yellow, red, white, etc.
Spring invites flowers, and flowers invite Spring.
45
By variegated colours Dagen obviously refers to the aggregates,
the ultimate basis, where a given spatio-temporal sphere or the
dialectical context is to be configurated, and where he expresses
his causal insight of reciprocity in concrete terms: "Spring invites
flowers, flowers invite Spring." It is here also that we can read
Dagen's insight, that the "sky-flower" (ku-ge) creates the
"afflicted eye" (ei-gen) and vice versa.
The dialectical context which Nagarjuna metaphorically
demonstrated as an interaction of "light" and "darkness" re-
vealed its structure to be open to two directions: phenomenaliza-
tion and dephenomenalization. In one direction "light" and "dark-
ness" create total incompatibility,.1eading to mutual negation;
the expression naturally appears as "neither 'light' nor 'dark-
ness'" over the singular spatio-temporal sphere of juxtaposition.
In another direction, however, this bi-negation opens a new
horizon, precisely because the dialectic is double edged. The nega-
tion of the ascribed principle of existential identity (svabhiiva)
from "light" as well as "darkness" ipso facto enables both to simul-
taneously co-exist through reciprocation. The author of the
let Bodhisattva Dharmodgata,
the great teacher and mentor of Sadaprarudita, answer the lat-
ter's question with a precisely similar negation:
Oh, son of good family, those Buddhas did not come from any-
where, nor did they go anywhere. Why, because things as they
are do not move. This state of things as they are is the Tathagata.
Son of good family, nothing is born, nor coming. Nothing is
leaving nor born. This is the Tathagata. Supreme truth is neither
going nor coming. This truth is the Tathagata. Emptiness is
neither coming nor going. This emptiness is the Tathagata.
46
It is now apparent that Degen uses the image of the "sky-
flower" as an instance to exemplify that Tathagatas and Bud-
dhas, the embodiment of supreme truth, and Emptiness such
as it is expressed by negation. For the author of the Praj-
fiaparamita literature, the use of images like the "dream," "mag-
ical entity," or "sky-flower," was an instance of skill-in-means
(upaya-kauSalya) used to instantiate actuals and ideals quasunyatii
(i.e., in regard to their empty nature), but whereas Degen uses
the same skill-in-means he uses it to instantiate sunyatii qua actuals
and ideals. Like the author of the Prajfiaparamita text, Degen
does this, however, exclusively in reference to that dialectical
context in which causal reciprocity holds and hence in terms of
affirmative expression:
Therefore, I say that when the (image of) the flower created by
visual affliction (ei-gen) falls away, it is the moment when the
(truth of) the Buddhas (i.e., sunyata) is realized. The image of
the flower and its concurrents (ke-kwa) is what the (truth of) the
Buddhas (i.e., sunyata) sustains. On the basis of visual affliction
88
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
(ei), the visual faculty (gen) is activated to function and to visualize
the (image of) the "sky-flower" or to realize its function within
the (image of) the "sky-flower" (ku-ge-chu) ... No matter when
or where, once a visual faculty is activated,' there necessarily
co-exists (the objective image of) the "sky-flower" and the (image
of) the flower within the subjective vision (gen-ke). Here the flower
within the eye (gen-ke) is called the "sky-flower" (kil_ge).47
X. Dagen's Instructional Method of Instantiation as Compared to that
ofChao-Lun
Dagen's instructional method of instantiation can further
be paralleled with the paradoxical method of dialectic which
Seng-chao (374-414), one of the early Chinese Madhyamikas,
applied to create the dialectical context. His work Chao Lun
f
,
which consists of several essays, can be regarded as an authentic
specimen of Madhyamika dialectic developed by the Chinese
mind on two accounts: (1) it creates the same effect as created
by the juxtaposition of anvaya and vyatireka; and (2) it also creates
thereby the dual natured reference as instantiated by metaphorical
instances. The two passages below are chosen from among many
to show the form of his paradoxical method. The first one is
quoted from his essay "Things Do Not Move," in which the
concepts of movement and non-movement are paradoxically
matched in regard to the passage of time:
If we want to express the real
g
, we go against convention
h
. Ifwe
follow convention, we fail to express the real
i
. Because past things
did not reach the present state, people say that things change,
thinking that past things changed and hence, did not stay un-
changed. Forthe same reason, however, I say that things do not
change, thinking that past things are in the past and did not
come to the present. When people say that things are "abiding"j,
I say that they are "gone"k. When they say that things are "gone,"
I say that they are "abiding." Although "gone" and "abiding" are
different in expression, what they mean has one reference.
48
As a corollary to this juxtaposition feature of the "Dialectical
Context," I shall now quote a passage from the essay, "Whatever
Is Unreal Is Emptiness," in which the dual-natured reference is
instantiated by a metaphorical instance, in this case, by a "mag-
ically created being": .
We want to say that dharmas exi"st, but their existence is not a
real pro'quction
1
We want to say' that dharmas do not exist, but
phenomenal forms
m
are already configura ted. Phenomenal
forms cannot be said to be "identical with nothing"n, but we only
say that anything unrealo is not a real existent
p
. It follows that
the meaning of "Emptiness of Whatever Is Unreal" is thus re-
vealed. Accordingly, the PaiicavirvJati-siihasrikii-prajiiiipiiramitii-
sutra says: "Dharmas are called metaphorically 'unreal,q just as a
magically created man is. For, we cannot say that there is no
magically created man, but that such is not a real man
r
.',49
Seng-chao's awareness of the "Dialectical Context" can be con-
firmed also in his essay, "Prajiiii Is No-knowing," where he deals
with the reciprocal dependence of the knowing <pramiiTJa
S
) and
that to be known <prameya
t
). The point to be noted is that Seng-
chao tried to resolve the dualized factors of the knowing and
the known into the unconfigurated totality of the aggregates,
and that such is the basis of our phenomenally configura ted
consciousness, being simultaneously the unconfigurated trans-
cendent from it. Dagen also dealt with this state of affairs in
terms of eigen kilge no dori, but depicted the reciprocity of the
"afflicted eye" and the "sky-flower" as the insight of
the Buddhas and Patriarchs and yet also at the same time as
concrete actuals such as flowers in nature.
Aaalysing man's symbolic systems such as language, we are
aware of three different categories that are indispensable to our
thinking and epistemic processes. Linguists and philosophers
analyze these three respectively as "word," "meaning," and "ob-
ject," or "symbol," "concept," and "referent." The most crucial
is, however, the use of words or symbols itself, without which
the human mind just cannot operate. Convention holds that
the use of symbols relates subject form (i.e., concept) and object
form (i.e., referent) in terms of correspondence. Buddhist thin-
kers saw, however, that human cognition or thinking depends
rather upon the way we apply symbols than upon the way things
really are. This means that we superimpose our thought forms
onto objects by way of names and sentential symbols, while these
in turn determine only subjective images with no corresponding
objects, as such, externally. Dagen's demonstration in part points
to this same insight, but indeed, more than that. In ordinary
usage no one expects the afflicted eye (ei-gen) to yield any cor-
responding object for its visual form, because the object, such
as the "sky-flower," is only a subjective image. Nevertheless,
such cognition significantly shares a common feature with
healthy vision, namely, the use of symbols.
The author of the indi-
cates that ordinary language creates attachment because people
do not know things as they really are, whereas the man of prajna
insight creates no such attachment in himself since he knows
things as they really are.
50
Seng-chao distinguishes the prajna
faculty from the ordinary faculty of knowing by defining it as
"no-knowing"u. This means that the prajna faculty has no empir-
ical reference as required by the dual rules of anvaya and vya-
tireka. He tries to explain this transcendental faculty as (1) "only
specifying marks without an external projection of reference;"
and (2) "only mirroring, as it were, reflecting objects which are
actually not there.,,51 The tendential mind, expressed in conven-
tion as "referential" and "inferential," represents the forms of
attachment and defilement (kleSa). If the insight of silnyata is
concerned with the use of symbols or with the symbolic process
of the mind, Dagen is certainly justified in using metaphorical
instances, such as the "sky-flower," to demonstrate the insight
of silnyata qua actuals and ideals.
In dealing with the primary subject, such as Reciprocal
Causation, in parallel with Nagarjuna and Seng-chao, Dagen,
however, does not rely on the method of reductio-ad-absurdum
argument, nor does he apply the method of paradoxical asser-
tion and negation, but he spontaneously uses the method of
instantiation very efficiently and successfully. His awareness of
the Dialectical Context and his method of instantiation in terms
of the "sky-flower" and the "afflicted eye" are dearly seen in
the following passage which is to be found in the first paragraph
of his essays. Without such a criterion (i.e., the dual features of
the dialectical context), it is almost impossible to make such a
passage intelligible:
It is like the case where the spatio-temporal sphere where the
uhatsura-ge (i.e. utpala, a red lotus flower) blooms is identical with
the space and time of fire. A blazing fire, a rising flame, all this
XI.
arises (exclusively) in the space and time where and when the
uhatsura-ge blooms. If it is outside such appointed space and time,
no single spark comes forth, nor is its life possible. I say that
within a single (instantaneous) spark, hundreds and thousands
of lotus .flowers spread open not only in mid-air and on the
ground but also into the past as well as into the present. Learning'
(i.e., perceiving and listening to) the instantaneous spatio-tem-
poral sphere of fire means to learn the same space and time of
the lotus flower (uhatsura-ge). Do not miss the spatio-temporal
sphere of uhatsura-ge, but learn it. 52
In reading Dagen's essay, most difficulties result from tech-
nical terms, especially those bearing epistemic significance; for
instance, ei-gen (the eye with cataract or with affliction), ei-ge
(the flower created by visual affliction), gen-chu (literally, "in the
eye"), gen-ku (the sphere or space of the eye), gen-ke (the flower
in the eye), ku-ge-chu (within the sky-flower). The term gen-ke
is obviously identical with gen-chu-ge, and yet a question remains
as to what "the flower in the eye" is supposed to mean in contrast
to the meaning of ku-ge, since Dagen identifies them in the final
analysis. In Dagen Studies, I think that there are two possible
methods for disclosing the dialectical thinking that underlies his
expressions: (1) analysis of his language, such as sentential
forms, expressions, terms, etc.; and (2) analysis of his philosophy
or thought in parallel with Buddhist logic and dialectic. Calling
these methods respectively the "formal" and the "structural"
approaches, I believe that my attempt is in the line of the latter,
i.e., structural analysis of the Dialectical Context. This, at least, has
proved its feasibility as complementary to the former method.
NOTES
l. (V) i.e., literally, "The Storehouse for the Eyes concerning the Right
Dharma," or interpretatively "The Essentials of the True Dharma," of which
I have made D. Okubo's edition my textual basis, namely, Dagen-zenji Zen-shuw
(The Complete Works of the Zen Master Dagen), Vol. I, published by Chikuma
Shabo, Tokyo 1969 (hereafter, DZZ).
2. Cf. S. Ichimura: "Buddhist Dialectical Methods and their Structural
92
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
Identity," presented at the 31st Orientalist Congress in Tokyo; will appear in
Dr. S. V. Sohoni Felicitation Volume, JBRS issue, 1983.
3. Cf. Ichimura: "A Study on the Madhyamika Method of Refutation
and its Influence on Buddhist Logic," ]lABS, IV, 1 (1981),87-95.
4. DZZ, p. 109 (10-13) I See (X) in the attached glossary.
5. Ibid., p. 110 (3) I (Y).
6. Ibid" (4-6) I (Z); The term ku, which I render there as sunyata, means
also "sky," or "vacuous space." Dagen obviously plays on the double meanings
of the Chinese character
Z

7. Ibid., (9-11) and p. 115 (6-8) I (aa). Here, Dagen again plays on the
double meanings of ku, as he says: "People do not know even how flowers
appear from the sky." In part he obviously refers to the insight of sunyata, on
account of which even an illusory appearance of sky-flowers bears transcenden-
tal significance.
8. Ibid., p. 109 (14-17) I (ab).
9. Ibid., p. 112 (3-4) I (ae).
10. See the passage quoted below (Note 25); (ibid., p. III (12-16).
11. Ibid., p. III (19)-p. 112 (1-3) I (ad).
12. (ae); See the passage immediately following and also the passage
(Note 16).
13. Ibid., p. 110 (18-19)-p. 111 (1-2) I (af).
14. Cf. Ibid., p. 110 (12-14) I (a
g
).
15. Cf. Ibid., p. 110 (14-16) I (ah).
16. Ibid., (15-16) I (ai).
17. Cf. NBh. II, i, 15 (Nyayasutra, Kashi Sanskrit Series Vol.
43 (1942), p. 56):
pramiinam prameyam iti ca samiikhyii samiivesena varttate
samiikhyiinimittavaSiit I samiikhyiinimittam tilpalabdhasiidhanam
pramiinam upalabdhav4ayaS ca prameyam iti I
NBh. II, i, 16 (Ibid., p. 57):
tathii kiirakaSabdii nimitavaSiit samiiveiena vartanta iti I
... kiirakaSabdaS caivam pramiiTJ-am prameyam iti I sa ca kiiraka-
dharmam na hiitum arhati I
18. Nyayasutra II, i, 8-11 (Ibid. pp. 52-3):
pratyak:;iidfniim apramiinyam traikiilyasiddheIJ II 8
purvam hi pramiiTJ-asiddhau pratyak:;ot-
patM 119 paSciitsiddhau na pramiiTJ-ebhyah prameyasiddhiIJ II 10
yugapatsiddhau pratyiirthaniyatatviit kramavr:ttitviibhiivo
buddhfniim II 11
19. NBh. II, i, 15 (ibid., p. 56):
sabdiid iitodyasiddhitviit iti I yathii PaSciit siddhena sabdena
pilrvasiddham iitodyam anumiyate I siidhyam ca iitodyam, siidhanam
ca sabdah, ... I
93
20. For further discussion as to Nagarjuna's intention and method
applied in his treatise, see Ichimura: "An Analysis of Madhyamika Dialectic
in Terms of the Logical Principle of anvayavyatireka," in the forthcoming
Studies in Buddhology: Professor P. V. Bapat Felicitation Volume (Motilal Banar-
sidass: 1987).
21. Cf. Section VII here where an elucidation is given on Nagarjuna's
arguments (Karikiis 36-39) as to how and why these two points of demonstra-
tion can be reached.
22. "Sho-bo-gen-zo MuchU-setsumu," DZZ, p. 241 (11-12) / (a
j
).
23. Ibid., p. III (2-7) / (ak).
24. Cf. Ibid., p. III (8-11) / (al).
25. Ibid., p. III (12-16) / (am).
26. Vigraha., KariM 23 (Ed. by E.H. Johnston & A. Kunst, MCB (1948-
51), p. 123):
nirmitako nirmitakam mtiyiipur11.lah svamiiyayii sniaml
prat4edhayeta yadvat prat4edho 'yam tathaiva syiit II
27. Vajracchedika-prafiiaparamita-sutra, translated by E. Conze, Buddhist
Wisdom Books, Containing the Diamond Sutra and the Heart Sutra, London: Allen
& Unwin, 1958, p. 68.
28. Cf. Anil C. Sinha, "Generative Semantics and Pal)ini's Karaka,"Jour-
nal of the Oriental Institute (Baroda), XXIII, 1-2 (1973), 83-117; Kiparsky, P.,
& Staal, J.F.S.: "Syntactic and Semantic Relations in Pal)ini," Foundation of
Languages, V (1969), 83-117.
29. Cf. G. Cardona: "Anvaya and vyatireka in Indian Grammar," The
Adyar Library Bulletin, XXXI-XXXII, (1967-8), 313-352; also Ichimura: "A
Study of the Madhyamika Method of Refutation, especially of its Affinity to
that of Kathiivatthu," ]lABS, III, 1 (1978), 7-15. Here, it is verified how and
why the anvaya-vyatireka principle was already in frequent use for doctrinal
polemics as the criterion of logical argument.
30. Cf. Hu Shih, The Development of the Logical Method in Ancient China,
Shanghai: the Oriental Book Co., 1928; pp. 102--4. It is this Neo-Mohist
method of inference, with which the Indian, especially, Buddhist inferential
method, consisting of anvayavyatireka operations, can be parallelied in terms
of the pragmatic principles of verification and falsification. Also, see C.
Graham, Later Mohist Logic, Ethics, and Science, Hong Kong: the Chinese Uni-
versity Press, 1978, p. 102 and p. 130; Here, the principles of agreement and
difference are translated as "Having respects in which they are the same is
being of the same kind. Not having respects in which they are the same, is
not being of a kind."an. ao means more literally "having some thing by means
of which they are Gudged to be) the same."
31. The hypothetical syllogism based upon the antecedent "p" and the
consequent "q" has its position and contraposition respectively as "If 'p' then
'q,' but 'p,' therefore, 'q'." (modus ponendo ponens) and "If 'p' then 'q,' but '-q,'
therefore '-p'." (modus ponendo toliens). Here, the position and contraposition:
" 'p' therefore 'q' " and" '-q' therefore '-p' " can be parallelled with the anvaya
and vyatireka operations, provided that the Indian formula is concomitance
relation (vyapti) rather than conditional one.
32. Cf. A. Kunst, "The Two-membered Syllogism," Rocznik Orientalist-
yczny, XV (1939-40), 72-83. See also Note 36 here.
33. Dignaga defined the object of inferential knowledge as "a (sub-
stratum) marked by reason (hetu) which implies theses (sadhya)." Cf. Stcher-
batsky, Buddhist Logic, I, p. 280. For further reference, see Dignaga's refutation
of the Naiyayika notion regarding the object of inference, PramarJasamuccaya
II; the three karikas are quoted in Vidhyabhusana's A History of Indian Logic
(Calcutta Univ.: 1921), pp. 281-2.
34. Dharmakirti used the term arthakriyakiirin for "causal efficiency" as
exclusively pertaining to an instantaneous moment In fact, Dignaga
and Dharmaklrti equally used andparamarthasat synonymously
for designating such ultimate reality. Hence, the idea was already in Dignaga.
Cf. Stcherbatsky, op. cit., p. 557.
35. Ratnakara: Antarvyaptisamarthana, edited by Harasprasad, Bibliotheca
Indica, new series, No. '1226, (Calcutta: 1910), p. 103 (15-6):
tat tena vyaptam yat yatra dharmi71i tatra kea71ikatvaml
36. For Buddhist logicians, such as Dignaga and Dharmakrlti, real mem-
bers of a syllogism, the necessary members of the logical processes,. are only
two, the general rule or universal concomitance (vyapti) and its application to
an individual instance (dntanta). The first establishes a necessary interdepen-
dence between two terms or propositions, the second applies this general rule
to the point in guestion The definition of inferential rules (anvaya
and vyatireka) by Sankarasvamin can be transcribed into the following notation:
1. pakea-dharmatva (hetu-position)
2. sapakee sattva (position)
(general rule applied as positive)
instantiation)
3. vipakee asattva (contra position)
(general rule applied as negative
instantiation)
pea) "a" = "a hill"
"P" = "is smoky"
(x){P(x).Q(x)} & P(b).Q(b)
"b" = "a kitchen"
"Q" = "is fiery"
(y){ - Q(y). - pry)} & - Q@. -
"W' = "an iceberg"
Here both instantiations can be dispensed with for the inner concomitance
(antarvyapti internalized universal) by making the value of "x" and "y" the
instantaneous moments which ultimately underlie our mental process to reg-
ulate the tendential imputation such as "P and Q" or "P then Q."
37. This chart is duplicated from my previous articles. Cf. "An Analysis
of Madhyamika Dialectic in terms of anvaya and vyatireka," op. cit.; "A Study
on the Madhyamika Method of Refutation and its Influence on Buddhist
Logic," loco cit.
38.Sanskritized by N. Aiyaswami Shastri from the Chinese Chang-chen-
lunap; Visva-Bharati Annals, II (1949), p. 34:
tattvatah sarftsk,tiih silnyii miiyiivat pratyayabhiiviitl
asaT(lSk,tas tv asadbhilta anutpiidiih khapV4pavatl I
39. Cf. Ichimura "A New Approach to the Intra-Madhyamika Confron-
tation over the Svatantrika and Prasari.gika Methods of Refutation," jIABS,
V,2 (1982), 41-52.
40. DZZ., p. 115 (10-1) / e
q
).
41. Ibid., p. 109 (17-19)-p. 110 (1) / (ar).
42. Hsiao-p'in-pan-Jo-polomi-ching
as
, Taisho Shinshu Daizokyo (Vol. 8), p.
582a (l0-18) / (at).
43. DZZ., p. 114 (13-16) / (au).
44. Ibid., p. 114 (19)-p. 115 (1) / (av).
45. Ibid., p. 112 (6-9) / (aw).
46. Hsiao-p'in- . .. , Taisho. (8), p. 584a (21-25) / (ax).
47. DZZ., p. 114 (4-8) / (a
y
).
48. Cf. Chao-lun, Taisho. Vol. 45, p. 151a (15-16), (23-25), (28-29)-b
(1), b (3-5), and c (10-12) / (az).
49. Ibid., p. 152c (15-20) / (ba).
50. Cf. Hsiao-p'in- ... , Taisho (8), p. 584b (18-29) / (bb).
51. Chao-lun, Taisho. (45), p. 154c (2-10) / (be).
52. DZZ., p. 108 (7-11) / (bd).
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A Buddhist Leader in Ming China
The Life and Thought of Han-Shan Te-ch'ing,
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The Pennsylvania State University Press
215 Wagner Bldg. University Park, Pa. 16802
Report on Religious Activity in
Central Tibet, October 1985
by Donald S. Jr. and Cyrus R. Stearns
We led a Smithsonian Institution to Tibet in early
October 1985, visiting Lhasa, Gyantse, and Shigatse. On the
road from the airport at Gong-dkar to Lhasa, we passed prom-
inent hilltop ruins of the fortress of Gong-dkar rDzong, behind
which is the Sa-skya monastery of Gong-dkar Chos-grwa (f.
1464). We were told that the monastery had not been completely
destroyed, and that there were about thirty monks there present-
ly.l Our bus fortuitously broke down at dPal Chu -bo-ri on the
gTsang-po river, near the site of ICags-zam monastery, built by
the engineer and saint Thang-stong-rgyal-po (1361-1485). It
was the fifteenth day of the Tibetan month, a time for religious
observances, and a small group of Tibetans could be seen on
the summit of the mountain burningjuniper boughs as offerings
to the local spirits. The monastery of ICags-zam has been totally
destroyed, without a single brick remaining in place. A group
of pilgrims circumambulating the mountain told us that permis-
sion has been granted for new construction to begin on Chu-bo-
rio The iron suspension bridge erected by Thang-stong-rgyal-po
in 1444 has also been destroyed. All that remains is a pile of
stones in the middle of the river that once served as the support
for the northern end of the bridge.
2
Outside of Lhasa, we stopped briefly at sNye-thang monas-
tery, where AUsa died in 1054. The monastery, which appeared
to have been recently restored, was in good condition and con-
tained three temples. In the first was a large stiipa said to contain
certain possessions of AUsa. The second was a temple to the
twenty-one Taras, containing almost lifesize identical statues of
Tara on three tiers along three walls. They appeared to be the
101
same images photographed by Tucci.
3
The third hall contained
a small (IS") statue of Atisa that the monk in residence said had
been sculpted by Ansa himself. It appeared to be identical to
the image that appears in plate 50 of Ferrari's mK'yen brtse's
Guide to the Holy Places of Central Tibet.
4
There were also three
Buddha images, approximately fifteen feet in height, the central
figure identified by Tucci as that of Maitreya
5
and reported to
us by a monk in residence to also have been made by Ansa.
That statue was flanked by images of the Buddhas Kasyapa and
Sakyamuni. There were also standing images of the eight
Bodhisattvas. During our short time there, it was impossible to
determine how many of the statues were original and how many
have been replaced since the Cultural Revolution.
In Lhasa, a large plaza has been constructed in front of the
Jo-khang. We were able to spend considerable time on the
ground floor of the Jo-khang, and found the layout to be essen-
tially unchanged from that described by Richardson in his article,
"The Jo-khang 'Cathedral' of Lhasa.,,6 In the central hall a new
statue of Padmasambhava, some twenty feet in height, has been
erected to the left of the main statue of Maitreya. Each of the
twenty-four chapels on the ground floor was in excellent condi-
tion. The entrances to two were closed by doors of chain: the
chapel of the famous statue of the thousand-armed Avalokites-
vara in the center of the north wall of the Jo-khang and the
chapel containing the statue of J o-bo Rin-po-che. The latter was
opened for us. We were told by the monks in residence that
every single statue on the ground floor of the J o-khang, includ-
ing that of Jo-bo Rin-po-che
7
, had been destroyed during the
Cultural Revolution,with the exception of the nine statues in
what is called the Thon-mi chapel, preserved presumably be-
cause they recall the ancient link between Tibet and China. The
chapel contained statues of the three religious kings Srong-
btsan-sgam-po, Khri-srong-Ide-bstan, and Ral-pa-can, the
Chinese consort Wen-ch'eng Kungcshu, the Nepalese consort
Bhrkuti Devl, the ministers of Srong-bstan-sgam-po, mGar-
stong-bstan and Thon-mi Sam-bhota. All the other statues in
the Jo-khang have been newly made since 1979.
The market area surrounding the J 0-khang was very active,
with pilgrims from all over Tibet. Texts were offered for sale
at several stalls, mostly prayers and tantric sadhanas. However,
REPORT ON CENTRAL TIBET 103
a few 'philosophical texts were available, for the most part
elementary dGe-Iugs-pa textbooks on blo rig and rtags rigs but
also more advanced works, such as the first Dalai Lama's Tshad
ma'i rig rgyan.
'Bras-spung monastery presently shows few signs of overt
damage, but is in poor repair, unpainted and overgrown with
grass and weeds. There were very few monks to be seen, most
of them at work building roads. We were told that, except for
the elder monks, the monks work all but five days per month,
leaving little time for study. There are currently some 400 monks
at the monastery; they all use the bLo-gsal-gling assembly hall
rather than the main assembly hall of the monastery. The fa-
mous image of Maitreya in the main assembly hall is still to be
seen, as is the conch shell purportedly unearthed by Tsong-kha-
pa. The debating courtyard of bLo-gsal-gling college appeared
to have gone unused for many years.
Se-ra monastery seemed considerably more active and in
better repair. There are approximately 300 monks there, but
only 50 or so were monks before 1959. The protector's temple
at Byes College contained a remarkable array of old weapons
around the ceiling: spears, armor, helmets, and quivers of arrows
covered with what appeared to be several centuries of accumu-
lated dust. The famous statue of M a ~ u s r i .leaning toward the
window to the debating courtyard of Se-ra Byes was intact, as
were other famous images in the monastery. There were thirty
or forty young monks debating at the Byes College on the topic
of cause and effect (rgyu 'bras chung ba). We were informed by
one of the instructors that the most advanced class has now
moved on to the study of Maitreya's Abhisamayalarrtkara and is
working on the structure of the path (sa lam) and the seventy
topics (don bdun cu). This would suggest that the study of dialec-
tics (mtshan nyid) has been reinstituted in the last five years. A
monk at the Jo-khang reported with sadness thatthere is not a
single monk in Tibet who began the dge bshes curriculum after
1959 and has subsequently completed it.
The Potala appears to be have been kept in good condition,
with many of the murals recently repainted. Among the
thousands of treasures of painting and sculpture were four very
large three-dimensional mal;u;lalas of KaIacakra, Guhyasamaja,
Cakrasa:rp.vara, and Bhairava. Chicken wire has been nailed to
a height of about ten feet along those walls that contain book-
shelves, to prevent tourists from handling the texts. A catalogue
of the art contained in the Potala is much needed, but would
require several lifetimes for a single art historiarHo do properly.
8
The tantric college of rGyud-stod is active at the Ra-mo-che,
with 43 monks. It is in the process of being restored. The original
statue of Jo-bo-mi-skyod-rdo-rje at age eight, according to tra-
dition brought to Tibet by the Nepalese consort of Srong-btsan-
sgam-po, was apparently broken in half during the Cultural
Revolution and the pieces taken to Beijing. A replica was made
and put in its place. Subsequently, through the good offices of
the Panchen Lama, the original statue was located, repaired,
and reinstated. It can be seen at the Ra-mo-che, with the replica
mounted behind it. The Tantric College of Lower Lhasa (rGyud
smad) is not active; the building is being used for the printing
of the Lhasa edition of the bKa'-'gyur.
The medical college that was located at the summit oflCags-
po-ri in Lhasa is gone, with only the foundation stones remain-
ing. A large radio transmitting tower has been erected on the
summit by the Chinese. Another well-known, although less im-
portant, site in old Lhasa was the iron suspension bridge over
the sKyid-chu river, connecting Lhasa to the area of Grib on
the easternbank. Built in 1430 by Thang-stong-rgyal-po, it was
the oldest iron bridge in Tibet. We were told that it had been
washed away five years ago. A new iron cable foot bridge, cov-
ered with prayer flags, has been erected in its place and receives
constant use.
9
The journey by bus from Lhasa to Shigatse takes about
eleven hours, including a stopover in Gyantse. Several hours
south of Lhasa, we reached the summit of Campa Pass (elevation
16,000 feet), from which there is a magnificent view of the
Turquoise Lake of Yar-'brog. Along the road there were many
ruins visible on the hillsides, but it was impossible to take time
to investigate and identify any of them.
The fortress residence of the rulers of Cyantse is still intact,
at least as viewed from outside. The monastery of dPal-'khor
Chos-sde (f. 1418) at the foot of a nearby ridge as well as the
great stupa beside it suffered considerably during the Cultural
Revolution, but are being beautifully restored by Tibetans. Many
original statues and frescoes from the 15th century have survived
intact. 10
We were told by monks that the monastery had seventeen
colleges (grwa-tshang) at the time of the Chinese occupation.
Most of these were dGe-lugs-pa, although there were several
Sa-skya and. Zhwa-Iu colleges. Fifteen of the colleges were de-
stroyed in the recent past, but two remain, one of which was
identified as Sa-skya-pa. At its height, the monastery housed
1500 monks. Today there are forty. No organized program of
study is being pursued and the two remaining colleges appeared
to be closed.
The main assembly hall in the temple is vacant and n9t in
use. One of the side chapels contains a large gilded statue of
Vairocana, with the four remaining Buddhas of the five families,
crafted in terracotta, along the walls. Monks pointed to large
muslin bags in one corner, stating that they contained the frag-
ments of hands, feet, and faces from large statues that have
been destroyed. The statues which remained intact in the chapels
had been skillfully repaired.
The chapel to the rear of the main hall had a large gilded
ma.hiibodhi stiipa in the center, with statues of Maiijusrl, Av-
alokiteSvara, and the Buddhas of the past and future along the
walls. The inner circumambulation path was in use by lay people,
mostly women, children, and the elderly. The walls were graced
with large, well-executed frescoes, with paintings of the
thousand-armed Avalokitesvara and Sitatapatra framing the
main entryway. .
Another side chapel has an image of the thousand-armed
AvalokiteSvara in the center, with fine old statues along the rear
wall of the three religious kings, along with Ansa, Kha-che Pan-
chen, Padmasambhava, and KamalasIla, among others. In an
adjoining chapel there was an exquisite gilded stiipa containing
the remains of the mother of Si-tu Rab-brtan-'phags (1389-
1442), or "Great Dharma King," as the monks referred to him,
the patron founder of the monastery and the. great stiipa of
Gyantse. On the surrounding walls in this room, as in several
other chapels, there were rows of scriptures. We were told by
the monks that there were three full sets of the bKa'-'gyur and
bsTan-'gyur in the temple, all calligraphed with gold ink on
black paper.
The second floor of the main hall contains chapels, most
notably the Lam-bras lha-khang, which holds beautiful ancient
life-sized figures of the great Indian master Viriipa and teachers
in the lineage of the Lam 'bras explication of the Hevajra Tantra.
In the center of the room is a magnificent three-dimensional
Cakrasarp.vara ma:Q.<;lala of copper, gilded with gold and studded
with jewels. '
The great stiipa or sKu-'bum (f. 1427) of Gyantse stands
beside the main temple. It is still being restored and was not
fully open to us. The external portions are in good condition,
as are the chapels around the lower level that we were allowed
to enter. The frescoes appeared to be both ancient and well-pre-
served, but the lack of opportunity to examine them closely
prevented any certain conclusion as to whether they had been
restored from a damaged state. We were not able to examine
the upper stories of the stiipa. Here, as in the main temple,
pilgrims came to receive blessings.
Upon leaving Gyantse, the road crosses to the south side
of the N yang River and continues northwest to Shigatse. Outside
Gyantse, massive hill ruins can be seen, including the remains
of the fortress of Pa-rnam.
In Shigatse, the great monastery of bKra-shis-lhun-po is in
excellent condition, but the stark ruins of the great fort of
Shigatse loom on the adjoining ridge. The monastery now has
400 monks and seemed quite active, perhaps even more than
usual because of the presence of the Panchen Lama, who had
just finished giving the initiation ofVajrabhairava. He was resid-
ing in his new palace, the bDe-chen pho-brang, separate from
the monastery. Local people informed us that he had given a
public speech in Shigatse on October 1, in which he lamented
that young people have only been taught Chinese language in
school and urged Tibetan women to wear traditional dress rather
than pants, as the Chinese women do.
Within bKra-shis-lhun-po itself we saw a small group of
monks, all quite elderly, performing a tantric ritual in a chapel
and some younger monks printing prayer flags in a courtyard.
On the hill above, a large new monastery building in traditional
Tibetan architectural style was almost ready for paint. The most
spectacular temple is still that containing the immense golden
image of Maitreya, the largest statue in Tibet.
Our visit to central Tibet provided reason for both hope
and despair. The Tibetan people seem to have survived the
horrors of the Cultural Revolution with their faith intact; we
found a very real hunger for dharma among both monks and
lay people. It is also clear from the numerous new statues and
murals that Tibetan artistry and craftsmanship remain at a re-
markably high level. Two dangers seem particularly threatening
at this time, One is the dramatic increase in tourism that will
take place in central Tibet in the next five years. It is uncertain
what effect foreign tourists and the consumerism that they bring
with them will have on what remains of traditional Tibetan
culture. The second danger lies in the severe shortage of qual-
ified teachers of the Buddhadharma. A relaxation of Chinese
policy regarding the practice of Buddhism has occurred at a
time when those few lamas who have survived the last three
decades are in their seventies and eighties. Several monks urged
us to ask the lamas in exile to return to teach. It is difficult to
predict the future of Buddhism in a Tibet without the lama.
NOTES
1. See Alfonsa Ferrari, mK'yen brtse's Guide to the Holy Places oj Central
Tibet, Serie Orientale Roma XVI (Rome: Istituto Italiano per il Medio ed
Estremo Oriente, 1958), plate 32. Ferrari refers to the rdzong asa monastery.
All that now remains are the foundations and lower walls of the structure.
2. See L.A. Waddell, Lhasa and Its Mysteries (London: Dutton, 1906),
p. 315 for a picture of the ICags-zam monastery, the iron bridge, and support
in the river.
3. See Giuseppe Tucci,To Lhasa and Beyond (Rome: Istituto Poligrafico
dello Stato, 1956), photograph facing page 130.
4. Ferrari, plate 50.
5. See Giuseppe Tucci, To Lhasa and Beyond (Rome: Istituto Poligrafico
dello Stato, 1956), p. 70.
6. See Ariane Macdonald and Yoshiro Imaeda, ed., Essais sur l'art du
Tibet (Paris: J. Maisonneuve, 1977), pp. 157-188.
7. We were told, however, that portions of the original statue had been
enclosed within the new image, thereby preserving the sanctity of the image.
8. An excellent, although by no means comprehensive catalogue of the
architecture and art of the Potala has been recently published in a bilingual
Tibetan-Chinese edition entitled Pho-brang-Po-ta-la, (Rigs gnas dngos rdzas
dpe skyan khang, 1985).
9. A photograph of the old iron bridge appears in David Snellgrove
and Hugh Richardson, A Cultural History ojTibet (New York: Frederick Praeger,
1968), p. 42.
10. For a study of Gyantse and the artwork found there, see Giuseppe
Tucci, Indo Tibetica IV: Gyantse ed i suoi monasteri, 3 vol., (Rome: Reale Ac-
cademia d'Italia, 1941).
A Study of the Earliest Garbha Vidhi
of the Shingon Sect
by Dale Allen Todaro
This is an exegetical study of the Carbha
a
Vidhib,l first intro-
duced to Japan by Kiikai
2
(A.C.E. 774-835), founder of the
Japanese tantric school of Shingon Buddhism. Kiikai records
that in the sixth and seventh months of 805 he was initiated
into both the Maha-karu7!a-garbha-maha-marpJala
c
and the Vaj-
radhatu-maha-mawJalad by his master Hui-kuo
e
(A.c.E. 741-805)
of the Ch'ing-Iung temple
f
in Ch'ang-an.
3
Both these initiations
he refers to as gakuhO, g which usually means to be granted per-
mission to receive tantric initiations.
4
After these initiations he
was taught the method of contemplating the various deities in
both ma7!Qalas. Then, in the eighth month, Kiikai records that
he received a denbO
h
consecration empowering him to transmit
the practices and teachings he had been taught. He returned
to Japan in 806 and, after gaining court sanction for his activities,
began initiating followers into both the above ma7!Qalas.
5
He
thus introduced to Japan the ryobu
i
or twofold system of practice
and doctrine based on the Mahavairocana-sutra Gap:
Dainichikyoi) and the Tattvasarpgraha lineage of texts Gap.:
Kongochokyo shu
k
).6 As the term garbha indicates, this evocation
rite concerns the Maha-karu7!a-garbhodbhava-ma7!Qala (hereafter
abbreviated MKG).
7
Because of the continuing role of this garbha
vidhi in the training of Shingon adherents it is important to
clarify its literary basis, structure, purpose and content.
Ever since Kiikai's introduction of the Carbha Vidhi it has
been an integral part of the practices stipulated for all Shingon
adherents. Although there are no records that show conclusively
what if any practices were systematized by Kiikai for his follow-
ers,s by the end of the Heian period (794-1185) a fourfold set
109
of rites styled kegy{/ became and continues to be the course of
required, preliminary practices for any novice wishing to receive
the denbO consecration.
9
This fourfold set of rites includes the
Jilhachido nenju shidai
ffi
(Recitation Manual of Eighteen Rites-
an evocation rite of Cintamal)icakra A valokitesvara), Kongokai
nenju shidai
n
(Recitation Manual of the Vajradhiitu) , Taizokai neriju
shidaio (Recitation Manual of the Carbhadhiitu) and the Coma
nenju shidai
P
(Recitation Manual of the Homa).10 The word kegyo
is a translation of the Sanskrit word prayoga, meaning to join
together and practice,u Specifically, these four rites are joined
together as a single preliminary practice prior to the iiciirya
(denbO) consecration. In addition to being consecutive practices,
they are accumulative as well. The Kongokai shidai includes prac-
tices already undertaken in the prior Jilhachido shidai. The
Taisokai shidai likewise includes practices from both the Jilhachido
and Kongokai shidai. The final Coma or burnt offering rite is the
longest and contains practices from all three previous rites as
well as a central fire ceremony. This final Coma rite is meant to
remove all obstacles that would prevent one from receiving the
iiciirya consecreation, and is classified as a siintika rite (Jap.:
sokusaiq)P Despite the importance of these practices for the
Shingon school, they have yet to receive a detailed study in any
Western language.
13
In Japan descriptions of representative
examples of these vidhis have been published, but only two works
have briefly interpreted them on the basis of commentaries. 14
In addition, although the Carbha Vidhi introduced by Kiikai was
recognized for centuries to be based in large part on chuan four
and seven of the Mahiivairocana-siltra,15 ever since the publica-
tion of Ryujun Tajima's Etude sur le Mahiivairocana-sutra, 16 atten-
tion in the West has focused on chuan one of this sutra.
17
No
effort has been made to show how other chapters were influen-
tial in the Shingon school. Very recent Japanese research has
confirmed the indebtedness of Kukai's Carbha Vidhi system to
chuan four and seven of the Mahiivairocana-sutra. The results of
this research will be examined below.
1. Literary Basis of the Garbha Vidhi
The Carbha Vidhis attributed to Kukai are found in his so-
STUDY OF THE GARBHA VIDHI 111
called Collected Works or Kobo Daishi Zenshu. These are as fol-
lows: 1) Taizo bonji shidai/ copy dated 1727; 18 2) Taizo ryaku
shidai,s copy dated 1156;
19
3) Taizo furai gosan shidai, t copy dated
1024;
20
4) Sarai hOben shidai,u copy dated 1170;21 note that this
manual is attributed to Genj6
V
(tenth century) in the Nihon
Daizokyo (vol. 44)22; 5) Corin toji shidai,w copy dated 1676;23 6)
Taizo bizai shidai,x copy dated 1743;247) Bizai shidai,Ycopy dated
1170;25 8) Taizokai HUrIJ ji shidai,Zcopy dated 1743;26 also a t ~
tributed to Kanch6G6)aa (916-998) or K6gei
ab
(977-1049). No
Carbha Vidhi has been found written by Kukai. Until recently
the Shingon school traditionally regarded only those vidhis con-
tained in the first three volumes of his Collected Works as likely
but not conclusively Kiikai's works. Of the above vidhis, numbers
one through five are found in volume two while numbers six
through eight are found in volume four, making the former
historically more authoritative and influential.
After Kukai introduced the Carbha Vidhi to Japan, a succes-
sion ofTendai monks introduced four other Carbha Vidhis, which
thereafter became influential in both the Shingon and Tendai
sects.
27
These four vidhis are the 1) She ta i-kuei, ac translated by
Subha.karasirpha;28 2) Ta-p'i-lu-che-na-ching kuang-da-i-kuei, ad
also translated by Subhakarasirpha;29 3) Hsuanja-ssu i-kuei, ae
composed by Fa-chuan
af
(ninth century),30 a second generation
disciple of Hui-kuo; and 4) Ch'ing-lung i-kuei, ag also composed
by Fa-chuan.
31
The latter two vidhis of Fa-chuan are almost
identical, and were written at the Hsuan-fa and Ch'ing-lung
temples, respectively. These four vidhis are referred to collec-
tively as the Shibu giki
ah
by Japanese scholars. (Although they
will not be given here, four other works introduced by Kukai
and listed by him in his Coshoraimokuroku are related to the
Carbha Vidhi.
32
) According to Annen's Catalogue
33
Ennin (793-
864), Enchin (814-891) and Shuei introduced from China the
She ta i-kuei, Shuei introduced the Kuang-da i-kuei, Ennin intro-
duced the Hsuanja-ssu i-kuei and Enchin and Shuei both intro-
duced the Ch'ing-lung i-kuei.
Recently, in two important articles, Ueda Reij6 made a crit-
ical analysis of the Carbha Vidhis attributed to Kukai.
34
He has
made a convincing case that the Taizo furai gosan shidai, Sarai
hOb en shidai and Corin toji shidai were written by Shuei
ai
(809-884)
and/or his immediate circle of followers (for example Genj6;
the Nihon Daizokyo claims Genjo wrote the Sami hOben shidai)
because the mudriis and mantms of these vidhis show a marked
indebtedness to the two vidhis written by Fa-chiian, as well as
the Kuang-da i-kuei. This is not surprising, since Fa-chiian in-
itiated Shuei into the MKG in the Ch'ing-lung-ssu in Ch'ang-an.
Shuei was in China from 862 to 865, and later became the fifth
chief abbot of the Toji in KyotO.
35
Also, by tracing a number
of mantms and mudriis in the Taizo bonji shidai and Taizo ryaku
shidai to just the Mahi'ivairocana-sutra and its commentary the
Ta-p'i-lu-che-na ch'engju ching-shu,36 U eda argues these two vidhis
in their original form were written by Kukai. The Taizo bizai shidai,
Bizai shidai and Taizokai HUr[t ji shidai, because of a similar struc-
ture and indebtedness to the Mahiivairocana sutm and its com-
mentary, likewise were written by descendents of the same
lineage. Ueda states that even when mantms and mudriis of the
Taizo bonji shidai and Taizo ryaku shidai can be found in the Shibu
giki (and most of those he discusses are found in these vidhis),
if they are not explained in either the Mahiivairocana-sutra or
its commentary, then neither the Taizo bonji shidai or Taizo ryaku
shidai use them.
Fa-chiian's influential vidhis were written after Kukai's re-
turn to Japan, so they have no direct bearing on the vidhi system
introduced by Kukai. Of course, the vidhis of Kukai and Fa-
chiian belong to the same oral tradition and share in common
many mudriis and mantms derived from the Mahiivairocana-sutra
and/or its commentary, these being the chief but not the only
sources for the Carbha Vidhi in China. It should be noted that
while the sutm gives transliterated mantms, it does not explain
in detail how to form specific mudriis. Traditionally mudriis were
transmitted from master to disciple and they are not typically
drawn in the vidhis. On the basis of Ueda's research there can
be no doubt that the author(s?) of the Taizo bonji shidai and Taizo
ryaku shidai relied on the Mahiivairocana-sutra and its commen-
tary, although this still does not prove conclusively that Kukai
alone wrote these. It is almost certain that Hui-kuo strongly
influenced their content. Kukai states in his Coshoraimokuroku
that he learned from Hui-kuo the bonji giki of the MKG (i.e.,
the Siddham letters of the mantms and evocation rites).
I have made a detailed comparison in list form of all the
vidhis in the Collected Works of Kukai, the Collected Works of
his Disciples, etc.
37
Because there are to 350 items in
each vidhi, this list cannot be shown here. Because these vidhis
do not always explain fully the prescribed mudriis or mantras,
these could not be compared. Although mudras and mantras can
differ as detailed by G6h6,38 these differences do not mean a
change in the rite to be performed. This comparison has shown
conclusively that the structure and contents of the Taizo bonji
shidai, Taizo ryaku shidai, Taizo bizai shidai, Bizai shidai and the
Taizokai HUTIJ ji shidai are practically identical. Based on the
results of this comparison, which corroborate and compliment
Veda's findings, there can be no doubt that the above five vidhis
stem from a single source and that they represent the early vidhi
system transmitted by Kukai, as tradition maintains. This group
of five vidhis will thus be analysed in this article.
Before we examine these in more detail, a few general com-
ments should be made about the eight vidhis traditionally attrib-
uted to Kukai. A feature of almost all of these, as well as those
attributed to Kukai's disciples Jichie
aj
(786-847) and Shinga
ak
(801-79),39 is that their mantras
40
are all written in the Siddham
script,41 with about half of them including the Chinese translit-
erations. In contrast, Fa-chuan eliminated this script in his two
vidhis and substituted the Chinese transliteration of the mantras.
Geng6
11
(911-995) and G6h6 state
42
that because Kukai's Taizo
bonji shidai contains Sanskrit it is impractical and cannot be used.
They advocate, instead, the use of Fa-chuan's Ch'ing-lung i-kuei
because Fa-chuan added glosses on the meanings of the mantras.
This is the principal reason for the influence of this vidhi in
Japan. Amoghavajra also developed a systemic method for the
transliteration of the sounds of the Siddham syllables into
Chinese in his Yii-chia chin-kang-ting ching shih-tzu mu p'in. 43 De-
spite this evidence of how difficult it was for the devotees of
this tradition to use Siddham, those Carbha Vidhis still being
written today continue to use this script,44 undoubtedly because
Amoghavajra and Kukai maintained that mantras pronounced
in Siddham were more effective.
45
Needless to say, few Japanese
in the ninth century could have understood the pronounciation
or meaning of the mantras they were reciting, as Sanskrit studies
were just beginning in Japan. Kukai's work entitled Bonji shittan
jimo shakugi46,am was the first work by a Japanese on Siddham
and even he made errors in the script.
47
Another observation
to be made is that from the start there was never any question
that each Tendai or Shingon iiciirya was free to compose his
own vidhi,48 changing its length as he saw fit. The short manuals
of Jichie and Shinga
49
are good examples of how vidhis tended
to become abbreviated and suggest an adjustment to Japanese
needs.
50
Time and again in the commentaries on the Carbha
Vidhis we are told that an acarya is free to compose or practice
a vidhi as he pleases,5l in part because there never was a single
authoritative text accepted by all Shingon or Tendai practi-
tioners. Annen states that it is because Ennin studied with eight
different masters in China (whom he lists) that there are so
many different traditions about the mantras and mudriis in the
Carbha Vidhis. 52 With the growth of thetantric tradition in China
and Japan, which stipulated a close master-disciple relationship,
and because this was an oral system that in fact led to changes
in mudriis and mantras, it was inevitable that many lineages would
have arisen transmitting their own secret and preferred vidhis.
This is one reason why there was and continues to be a great
deal of factionalism in the Shingon sect. 53 Nevertheless, to what-
ever extent vidhis differ in their mudriis and mantras, there was
a common structure to all of them that was early recognized.
II. Structure of the Garbha Vidhis
This structure is described by G6h6 (1301-1362), in his
work entitled Taizokai nenju shidai yoshilki,54 as being based on
chilan seven of the Mahiivairocana-siltra.
55
Although another
Shingon monk, Shingo,an (934-1004)56 and the Tendai monk
Kakuch6
ao
(955-1034?)57 give differently worded analyses, they
too maintain the Carbha Vidhi is based on chilan seven. The
major sections of chilan seven G6h6 identifies are as follows: a)
section two of chilan seven, entitled "Increasing Benefits and
Protection and Purifying Action,,;a
p
this concerns the purifica-
tion of vows and in all vidhis involves purifying the body, robes
and the nine expedients;a
q
b) section three, entitled "Offering
Rite,,;ar this involves the three parts of visualizing the palace of
Mahavairocana (i.e., the Mahii-karu1fii-garbhodbhava-ma1f4ala) ,
beckoning all gods to enter this palace and making offerings,
as described in the vidhis; c) section four, entitled "Method of
DharaI).l Recitation,,;as this entails the two parts of perfecting
the body (i.e., beconiing one with Mahavairocana) and dhara'YJz
recitation. In the vidhis, after these evocation rites, the deities
are asked to leave the ma'YJef,ala, the palace is dissolved and the
devotee leaves the shrine or seat of meditation. at
On the basis of this structure Goho further proposes in his
Taizokai nenji shidai yoshuki a way of analysing all of the Carbha
Vidhis, although his work in particular examines the Shibu giki.
He thus identifies two initial sections named "Preliminary Expe-
dients"au and "Establishing the Altar."av These correspond to
a) above. Next comes the "Visualization of the Seat of Enlighten-
ment," corresponding to b) above. There follow sections on all
the assemblies of the MKG,aw the "tathagatakaya"ax (also corres-
ponding to b) above) and offering and recitation rites,a
y
corres-
ponding to c) above. This analysis does make it easier to analyse
the Shibu giki, although all of these are not consistent in their
placement of the tathagatakaya assembly. In contrast, the above
five Shingon vidhis all agree in placing the tathagatakaya assembly
before the assemblies of the ma'YJef,ala. Interpretations of these
differences will be given below. Although Goho's analysis is not
exclusively relied on by all Japanese scholars, 58 because of its
practicality it will be followed below in the exegesis of the struc-
ture and contents of the five Shingon vidhis.
There are two further distinctive features of the five Shin-
gon vidhis that distinguish them from Fa-chuan's manual and
those of Shuei's lineage. First, in their initial sections on purifi-
cation, they repeat the same purification rites found in the
Juhachido and Kongokai gikis, these often being prior rites in the
systematized Shido kegyo system. Second, these vidhis are unique
in taking their section on the assemblies of the MKG ma'YJef,ala
almost verbatim from chi.1an four, section nine, of the
Mahavairocana-sutra
59
entitled "Secret Mudras. "az Even in the
two longer vidhis attributed to Jichi and Shinga
60
who, as direct
disciples of Kukai would be expected to show greater conformity
to these five vidhis, there is a shared but different series of rites.
In contrast to the "Secret Mudras" section, the vidhis of Jichi and
Shinga and those of Shuei's lineage contain evocation rites for
many more deities of the mal],q,ala (especially for those of the
exterior assembly or Kongo gaibuin
aaa
) and are much longervidhis
over all.
116
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
III. Commentaries on the Garbha Vidhis
Although there are many so-called commentaries on the
Carbha Vidhis by both Shingon and Tendai moriks, very few are
of any great interpretative value. Both the Tendai
61
and Shingo
n
traditions rely on the Mahiivairocana-sutra and its commentary
the Ta-p'i-lu-che-na ch'engju ching-shu
62
for authoritative in-
terpretations. Although this article analyses the five Shingon
vidhis discussed above, none of the available Japanese commen-
taries specifically analyses these. Instead, they focus on the in-
fluential Shibu giki. Nevertheless, these will be used because they
are the only Sino-Japanese commentaries available
63
and be-
cause all vidhis share in common a core of evocation procedures
interpreted alike on the basis of the Ta-p'i-lu-che-na shu.
One of the best commentaries is Shingo's Renge Taizokai
giki kaishaku,64 which interprets Fa-chi.ian's Ch'ing-lung i-kuei.
The commentaries of Raiyu
aab
(1226-1304),65 Goho,66 and the
Tendai monk Kakucho
67
are also valuable, although they focus
on explaining the different traditions of making a single mudrii
and often neglect to interpret the contents of the vidhi discussed.
The commentaries of Ennin 68 and Annen 69 particularly become
occupied with explaining how the mudriis of the Shibu giki and
Mahiivairocana-sutra differ or are the same, and offer very little
bona fide interpretation.
7o
Due to the length of these vidhis only a few of the important
components of each section will be presented and interpreted.
These vidhis can be very tedious, especially when read without
the aid of the commentaries. My purpose in presenting the
following survey is to clarify the structure and contents of these
vidhis, these being little investigated in the West. In addition to
using Goho's proposed title headings for each section, I will also
offer my own section titles to further clarify their purpose. A
list in Chinese of the contents of a typical, early Carbha Vidhi is
given at the end of this paper.
IV. Purpose of the Garbha Vidhi
The Ta-p'i-lu-che-na shu states
71
that the assemblies of the
MKG ma7Jqaia express the tathiigata dharmadhiitu body as well as
perfed and complete enlightenment. Paraphrasing Raiyu, he
says the word garbha, or womb, symbolizes great compassion,
the means by which the mind of enlightenment (bodhicitta) is
cultivated.
72
Just as a child is born from the womb, is taught
manners and customs by its parents, and later is shown how to
perfect actions, so does this mar],qala symbolize the innate, pure
but unawakened mind of the Shingon practitioner who by means
of the Carbha Vidhi cultivates this mind and achieves enlighten-
ment. Thereafter, the devotee works to save others. In the
mythological terms of the Shingon school, because living beings
are unaware of their innate enlightenment Mahavairocana out
of compassion reveals both the Carbha Vidhi and the MKG
mar],qala so the bodhicitta of all living beings can be cultivated. 73
Gengo states that the assemblies of the mar],qala are divided into
the three families of Buddha, Vajra and Lotus
74
because it deals
with samadhi, wisdom and compassion, respectively.75 G6h6 also
correlates these three families with the three mysteries of the
body, mind and speech, respectively.76 He writes that the Vaj-
radhiitu mar],qala is concerned with practices that are for the
pleasure of the Self-oriented Dharmakaya in Bliss Oap.: Jijuyo
hasshin
aac
) while the MKG mar],qala is concerned with practices
of the Other-oriented Dharmakaya in Bliss 0 ap.: Tajuyo has-
shin
aad
) which benefit and save living beings.77 The anonymous
author of the Himitsudan toha daiajari jonenju shaki also correlates
the three families of this mar],qala with the dharmakaya (Buddha
family), sa7(lbhogakaya (Lotus family) and nirmar],akaya/ n i ~ y a n
dakaya (Vajra family).78
As described by Hakeda,79 Kukai taught that the Vajradhiitu
mar],qala represented Mahavairocana (the dharmakaya, bodhicitta)
as the Body of Wisdom while the MKG mar],qala represented
Mahavairocana as the Body of Principle.
"Kukai interpreted these two aspects of Mahavairocana as
being inseparably related and asserted that both bodies are non-
dual (richijuni). He said 'that which realizes is wisdom (chi) and
that which is to be realized is principle (ri). The names differ but
they are one in their essential nature.' "
This doctrinal interpretation of these two mar],qalas of the Shin-
gon school by Kukai derives from the unique methods of medi-
118 JIABS VOL. 9NO. 2
tation of the Vajrayana. These involve visualizing oneself in the
form of a Buddha, as exemplified below, and promise the rapid
attainment of Buddhahood.
80
As Jeffrey Hopkins writes in
clarifying this form of meditation in the Vajrayana of Tibet:
"In deity yoga, one first meditates on emptiness and then
uses that consciousness realizing emptiness-or at least an imita-
tion of it-as the basis of emanation of a Buddha. The wisdom
consciousness thus has two parts-a factor of wisdom and a factor
of method, or factors of (1) ascertainment of emptiness and (2)
appearance as an ideal being-and hence, through the practice
of deity yoga, one simultaneously accumulates the collections of
merit and wisdom, making their amassing much faster ...
The systems that have this practice are called the Vajra Ve-
hicle, because the appearance of a deity is the display of a con-
sciousness which is a fusion of wisdom understanding emptiness
and compassion seeking the welfare of others-an inseparable
union symbolized by a vajra ... ,,81
The bodhicitta has the two inseparable aspects of "that which
realizes" or "ascertainment of emptiness" and "that which is to
be realized" or "appearance as an ideal being." This practice of
"deity yoga" in the Shingon tradition helps explain why the
Carbha and Vajradhiitu rites have always been performed as a
pair in Japan. Today these vidhis are sometimes performed be-
fore the MKG and Vajradhiitu mart4alas, which are hung in the
shrine, and these two mart4alas express the two inseparable as-
pects of the bodhicitta which is perfected through "deity yoga."
V. Preliminary Expedients-Rites oj Purification
There are approximately twenty-five ritual acts in this sec-
tion, a few of which are given below. These involve cleansing
the body, prostrating before all buddhas, purifying the altar of-
ferings, summoning all buddhas to come and protect the devotee,
etc. All of these can be classified as purification rites.
Every Shido kegyo system begins with the devotee first bath-
ing or otherwise cleansing his body and robes. Upon approach-
ing the shrine one visualizes that "my body is that ofVajrasattva."
This initial visualization expresses the Shingon teaching that a
STUDY OF THE GARBHA VIDHI
119
devotee of whatever talent is essentially enlightened. The vidhi
is meant to awaken the innate bodhicitta symbolized by Vaj-
rasattva.
When purifying the three karmic actions of the body, speech
and mind one intones the mantra: Or(l, svabhava-suddha sarva-
dharma svabhava-suddho 'har(l,82 (Or(l, All natures are pure by
nautre; I am pure by nature). One contemplates that the ten
evil deeds of the three actions
83
are hereby purified. The lotus
anjali (mudra no. 1), formed with the middle fingers slightly
apart, expresses the budding mind of enlightenment, not yet
fully awakened. 84
The purification of the Buddha, Lotus and Vajra class of
deities also focuses on the purification of the body, speech and
mind respectively. The devotee imagines the deities of each
family empowering one and causing one to attain rapidly pure
actions of the body, speech and mind. The mantras of each
family are as follows: Or(l, tathagatodbhavaya svaha (Or(l, Homage
to the Tathagata-born! svaha); Or(l,padmodbhavayasvaha (Or(l, Hom-
age to the Lotus-born! svaha); Or(l, vajrodbhavaya svaha (Or(l, Hom-
age to the Vajra-born! svaha). The three mudras accompanying
these recitations (mudra nos. 2, 3, 4) are samaya, or symbolic
mudras, representing the Buddha's head, a lotus and a three-
pronged thunderbolt, respectively, and are formed during the
empowerment. The Ta-p'i-lu-che-na ShU
85
says svaha means to
exhort all the deities of the three families to protect and empower
the devotee.
When donning armour one recites Or(l, vajragni pradzptaya
svaha (Or(l, Homage to thunderbolt Agni, bursting into flames!
svaha). The devotee's body is visualized encircled by flames. Any
who would hinder the devotee in his practices are now unable
to do so. The two middle fingers of the mudrii (no. 5) represent
the flames of wisdom fanned by the wind (the two index fingers).
By realizing sunyata (the two thumbs) the four demons (defile-
ments, five aggregates, death, Lord of the Heaven of Desire)
are subdued (the two little and ring fingers pressed on by the
thumbs).
One purifies the earth with the thunderbolt anjali (mudrii
no. 6), saying rajo' pagatah sarva-dharmah (Mayall elements be
free from impurities!). This mantra is meant to purify the site
of the vidhi. The pure land of the Dharmakaya Mahavairocana
(right hand) in union with the defiled realm of living beings
(left hand) means both realms are not-two.
The above ritual actions and many more not discussed are
found in the prior Jilhachido and Kongokai rites, and are a unique
feature of the five Shingon vidhis. The following nine expedients
are found in all Carbha vidhis.
These nine expedients and their mantras are based on chuan
seven of the Mahavairocana-siltra. (The siltra does not give the
mudriis, and these vary from one vidhi to the next.) All commen-
taries equate these nine ritual acts with the nine deities in the
center of the maTJ.qala as it is drawn in Japan. 86 These are called
expedients because by the power of these nine mantras and
mudriis the perceptions (vijiiiina) are transformed and the dev-
otee realizes the five wisdoms. The correlations of the deities
and the expedients is as follows: 1) Paying Homage-Sama-
ntabhadra; 2) Expelling transgressions-Manjusrl; 3) Going for
Refuge-Avalokitesvara; 4) Offering the body-Maitreya; 5)
Generating the Mind of Enlightenment-Ratnaketu; 6) Sharing
Joy-SaITlkusumitaraja; 7) Request-Amitabha; 8) Requesting
the 9) Transfer
of Merits-Mahavairocana. Raiyu says these nine expedients are
used because the MKG is the maTJ.qala of cause while the Vaj-
radhiitu maTJ.qala is the maTJ.qala of effect. By these expedients
the five wisdoms symbolized by the five buddhas in the center
of the Vajradhatu MaTJ.qala are realized.
87
This interpretation
indicates how the two maTJ.qalas and their respective vidhis are
viewed as inseparable.
VI. Constructing the Altar-Visualizing Oneself as Vajrasattva
There are approximately fifteen ritual acts in this section,
all centered around visualizing oneself as Vajrasattva.
The devotee visualizes the syllable ma in the right eye and
the syllable ta in the left eye. These become the light of the sun
and moon. This visual;,zation facilitates seeing Vajrasattva. Ma
and ta express insight and samadhi, respectively.
The Ta-p'i-lu-che-na. shu
88
identifies the next three rites (en-
tering the Buddha's pledge; birth of the dharmadhiitu; turning
the wheel of the teaching) with the pledges of the three families
of the MKG. One is empowered here as a master of these
families. Kakuban (1095-1143) repeats this interpretation.
89
These three rites are also based on chuan seven of the
Mahiivairocana-sidra.
When doing the Buddha's pledge one recites nama}JSamanta-
buddhiiniir(l asame trisame samaye sviihii (Homage to all the buddhas!
Oh pledge, without equal, of the three equalities! sviihii).
Kakuch6 writes one here attains a tathiigata body endowed
equally with the three mysteries (the above three equalities) of
the body, speech and mind.
90
The mudrii to be formed here is
the lotus aiijali (mudrii no. 7). The four fingers of each hand
pressed together represent the as-yet-unawakened mind of man
(the eight consciousnesses), while the two extended thumbs rep-
resent the samiidhi and insight which the devotee cultivates. This
mudrii seals the five places (forehead, right and left shoulders,
chest and throat), which symbolizes perfecting the five wisdoms.
With the mudrii (no. 8) and mantra of the birth of the dhar-
madhiitu, the devotee becomes identical with the dharmadhiitu.
91
The mantra to be recited is namah samanta-buddhiiniir(l dhar-
madhiitu-svabhiivako' har(l (Homage to all the buddhas. I am the
self-nature of the dharmadhiitu). The two index fingers of this mudrii
represent generating the flame of the Buddha's knowledge. The
three fingers grasping the thumbs means the three poisons (ig-
norance, attachment and hatred) are transformed and one's
nature becomes pure like space (the thumbs mean space).
The mantra for turning the wheel of the teaching is namah
samanta-vajriirtar(l vajratmako 'har(l (Homage to all the vajras. I
consist of vajra). One visualizes one's body as Vajrasattva holding
a vajra. The mudra shows the wheel of the teaching being turned
(the two thumbs represent the hub and the other eight fingers
represent the eight spokes, i.e., the eightfold path) (mudra no. 9).
Now one visualizes the syllable rar(l, brilliant and white, on
the head. This eliminates all defilements and transgressions ac-
cumulated over 100 kalpas and enables one to attain wisdom
and blessings. The syllable rar(l represents the tathiigata's fire of
wisdom.
92
The final act of this section is called Constructing the Altar
or, the tathiigata-first mudra
93
(mudra no. 10). Shingo says that
this and the following rite of sprinkling perfumed water on the
site are the final actions taken to remove impurities in the mind
before visualizing the marJe/ala.
94
It is apparent from this in-
terpretation that all the rites in this section were performed in
order to make the devotee a suitable "shrine" for this visualiza-
tion. The devotee has now become completely purified and
abides in the samadhi of Mahavairocana, realizing the five wis-
doms. The thumb of the left hand (the devotee's consciousness)
is placed within the palm of the right hand; it is then grasped
by the four fingers of the right hand and the tip of the right
hand's thumb presses down on the tip of the left hand's thumb
(i.e., the devotee's consciousness is transformed into the five
wisdoms symbolized by the right hand's five fingers; also, the
two thumbs of both hands touching together signify taking ref-
uge in sunyata).
VII. Visualizing the Seat of Enlightenment-Visualizing the Container
World
There are approximately forty ritual acts in this section.
These rites concern establishing a proper container world (i.e.,
marJe/ala ) and the invitation of the deities to descend into the
marJe/ala.
The rite of visualizing the five cakras is derived from chuans
five and seven of the Mahavairocana-sutra. Coho states that by
this visualization the devotee's body becomes identical with
Mahavairocana.
96
There are various descriptions of this rite but
all focus on visualizing the five syllables a, vaT(l raT(l, haT(l and
khaT(l, which together are the five-syllable mantra of Mahavai-
rocana in the MKC maI).<;lala.
97
The Taizo Bonji Shidai says that
these syllables should be visualized on the moon disc in one's
own heart so as to form the body of Vajrasattva, whom even
the great Mara cannot obstruct.
Shingo says that these five syllables are the seed syllables
of the five elements behind all physical phenomena.
98
Even the
Taizo Bonji Shidai makes the same statement. However, this con-
tradicts Kukai's own statement in his Sokushin jobutsu gi (Principle
of Attaining Buddhahood with this Very Body),99 where he
identifies the five syllables a, va, ra, ha and kha as the seed
syllables of earth, water, fire, wind and space. Both Shingo and
the editor of the Taizo Bonji Shidai are thus confusing this mantra
of Mahavairocana with the seed syllables of the five elements.
The King of One Hundred Lights is taken from chuan six
of the Mahavairocana-sutra.
lOO
One recites nama'" samanta-bud-
dhiina11} a11} tHomage to all the buddhas. a11}) and forms the vajra
anjali (mudra- no. 11). The letter a11}, Kakucho says, symbolizes
the mind of enlightenment. This is to be visualized on top of
the head.
IOI
The two hands are joined together with the tips
interlocking. The mudra symbolizes the inseparable union of
the MKG marpq,ala and the Vajradhiitu marpq,ala.
The Visualization of the Container World is also based on
chuans five and seven of the Mahiivairocana-sutra, and is
explained in chuan fourteen of the Ta-p'i-lu-che-na shu. 102 The
latter says that this visualization is always performed when a
MKG marpq,ala is to be visualized. The Taizo Bonji Shidai describes
this visualization as follows:
Below (imagine) there is the syllable kha1'1), which forms the
space circle, of various colors and round in shape; above that is
the syllable ha1'1), which forms the wind circle, black in color and
crescent shaped; above that is the syllable ra1'1), which forms the
fire circle, red in color and triangular in shape; above that is the
syllable va1'1), which forms the water circle, white in color and
circular; above it is the syllable a1'1), which forms the earth circle,
yellow in color and square in shape. Above the earth circle there
is syllable ka1'1), which forms the seven concentric mountain ranges.
Above these in the sky is the syllable a which becomes
Mahavairocana. From his stomach cakra there flows out a milk
rain which falls down on the mountains. This turns into a per-
fumed ocean of eight blessings. In the midst of the ocean is the
syllable pra which changes into a Golden Tortoise. On the back
of the tortoise is the syllable hu1'1), which becomes a five-pronged
vajra. Above it is the syllable alp which becomes a great lotus.
Above the lotus are the syllables pra, SU, hu1'1)" va1'1)" etc., which
change into the King of this marvellous, high mountain (It has
eight peal<.s composed of the four gems). 103
The above obviously is one version of the Indian Buddhist
cosmos that was transplanted to China and Japan. Mount Su-
meru is the central peak surrounded by the- seven concentric
mountains. The milk rammg down is a symbol of
Mahavairocana's constant teaching. This becomes the setting of
Mahavairocana's palace and the MKG marpq,ala.
Next, the Taizo Bonji Shidai describes the mart4ala to be
visualized:
Above the Lord of Mount Sumeru there'is the syllable ah
which turns into an eight-pillared palace. Its four gates are open
and adorned with the seven precious gems. In the center of the
palace is the syllable hrih which forms an eight-petalled lotus.
On the lotus is the syllable a which turns into a stupa. This turns
into Mahavairocana. His body is endowed with the fortuitous
marks and is brilliant, being completely luminous. The four bud-
dhas and bodhisattvas and the sacred ones of the thirteen as-
semblies
104
encircle him in front and behind and are seated.
Raiyu says that the devotee should imagine the inhabitants of
this palace singing wonderful music and playing stringed instru-
ments that produce wonderful sounds.
105
A common request found next in the five Shingon vidhis is
as follows:
"I request Mahavairocana, all the tathiigatas of the countless
assemblies, the multitude of thunderbolt bodhisattvas of the two
vehicles, the omnipresent assemblies of the great palace, the
countless sages and all enlightened beings, I now, like the
Buddha, have perfected the two worlds, I have perfected my
body and established the maY!4ala; it is now variously adorned;
do not abandon your vows of compassion but do now descend.
I only pray that all you sages fulfill your original vows and receive
me and others so that I attain success."
There follows in these vidhis the evocation rites of the four
Guardians of the four gates, the Space net and Fire enclosure,
etc., all of which are meant to protect the mart4ala from demons
while the deities descend into it. A bell is rung (this signifies
samiidhi)106 to attract the deities, lotus seats are prepared for
them, and the following eight deities are the first to arrive.
These eight, secret mudriis are based on chiian five of the
Mahiivairocana-sutra
l07
and are explained in the Ta-p'i-Iu-che-na
shu.
108
In the latter it is stated that by means of these eight
mudriis and mantras all deities will spontaneously descend into
the mart4ala and fulfill the devotee's vows and praxis. If the
yogin then unites with these deities and dwells in their seats
magical powers (siddhi) are attained. The Ta-p'i-Iu-che-na shu
125
correlates these eight mudriis and mantras with the four buddhas
and bodhisattvas in the very center of the mar],q,ala as follows: 1)
Yamfmtaka (literally: Great majesty and virtue engendered)-
Ratnaketu . in the east; 2) Vajra Indestructible-Sa:rp.ku-
sumitaraja in the south; 3) Lotus Store-Amitabha in the west;
4) Adorned with ten thousand virtues-Divyadundubhimega-
nirgho::;a in the north; 5) All Limbs engendered--.:.Samant-
abhadra in the southeast; 6) Dharma abiding-Mafijusrl in the
southwest; 7) The Dhiirar],z of the Bhagavat-Avalokitesvara in
the northwest; 8) Promptly Empowering-Maitreya in the
northeast.109 Shingo says that by these mudriis the devotee can
abide in the body of Mahavairocanapo Two of these follow.
1) Mudra no. 12. This mudra represents ajewel; the thumbs,
index fingers and little fmgers represent radiating light. That
is, this is the wish-fulfilling gem of Mahavairocana. From this
mudra the great virtues of a tathiigata arise. Goho says that the
two ring fingers express principle while the two middle fingers
express wisdom-the two inseparable aspects of the mind of
enlightenment. III The mantra to be recited is nama!], samanta-bud-
dhiina'TIJ ra'TIJ ra!], svahii (Homage to all the buddhas! ra'TIJ ra!], svalia).
Ra'TIJ and ra!], are based on the two syllables a'TIJ and a!]" meaning
perfect enlightenment and nirvar],a, respectively. Ra is the seed
syllable of the fire element (the two middle fingers also represent
the burning flame of wisdom) and thus ra'TIJ and ra!], signify
enlightenment and nirvar],a, and are present in the fire element
from which arise the tathagata's virtues.
8) Mudra no. 13. This is the mudra of turning the Wheel of
the teaching. It is revolved in a circular motion three times
counter-clockwise and three times clockwise. The mantra here
is nama!], samanta-buddhiina'TIJ mahii-yoga-yogini yogeSvara kha'TIJ-
jarike svahii (Homage to all the buddhas! Oh yoginz of great yoga!
Oh Goddess of yoga! Oh space-born! svahii). (When the mudra
is turned counterclockwise, the right thumb is on the left thumb;
when turned clockwise, the left thumb is on the right thumb.)
Two stages of mediation have been introduced above which
should be clarified. These can be explained by referring to the
Kriya tantric tradition of Tibet whose fundamental text is the
Mahiivairocana-sutra. Previously, the entire mar],q,ala and its
deities were visualized, 112 whereas now deities begin to descend
into this mar],q,ala. In the former, the yogin visualized and iden-
tified with the samaya-sattviis (symbolic beings), i.e., the deities
the yogin has imagined, a product of the mind. Those deities
who descend into the ma1'Jq,ala are jiiiina-sattvas (knowledge be-
ings).113 These are considered celestial deities 'or buddhas, cor-
poreal manifestations of Mahavairocana, and are summoned
from the AkiiSa realm. As hinted at above, once the latter de-
scend, the symbolic being is identified with the knowledge
being114 and magical powers are obtained.
115
VIII. The Tathagatakaya Assembly-Realization of Mahiivairocana's
Virtues
This assembly is based on chilan four of the Mahiivairocana-
sidra. 116 There are three traditions concerning the place of this
assembly within the Carbha Vidhis. As explained by Gengo,117
it can be found before the visualized seat of enlightenment, as
in the HSilanja-ssu i-kuei and Sarai hoben shidai; it is also placed
after the seat of enlightenment and just before the assemblies
of the ma1'Jq,ala which are manifested below, as in the five Shingon
vidhis, the vidhis of Jichie and Shinga and the Ch'ing-Iung i-kuei;
finally, it is also placed after the ma1'Jq,ala assemblies as in the
Taiza furei gosan shidai and Corin taji shidai. Gengo says that if
this assembly is placed before the visualized seat of enlighten-
ment it signifies the adornment of the yogin's body and a neces-
sary preparation for the visualization of the container world. If
this assembly comes before the ma1'Jq,ala assemblies it expresses
the virtues of Mahavairocana (as a manifestedjiiiina-sattva). If
this assembly is found after the ma1'Jq,ala it expresses the results
of the practice. The anonymous author of the Himitsu dantohO
daiajari janenju shaki writes that if this assembly comes after the
ma1'Jq,ala it is meant only to express the origin of the ma1'Jq,ala
assemblies and not the way the vidhi is practiced. Placed before
the ma1'Jq,ala it expresses the inner realized virtues of the yogin
which are then manifested externally in the ma1'Jq,ala.
118
Regardless of these differences, it is clear that this assembly
represents the. virtues of Mahavairocana that the devotee
realizes. Shingo writes that this assembly represents
Mahavaironcana's entry into sarJ}siira, i.e., the mudriis of this as-
sembly clarify the traits of the nirmii1'Jakiiya buddha who appears
STUDY OFTHE GARBHA VIDHI 127
to teach Buddhism.
1l9
The Ta-p'i-lu-che-na shu says that the
practices of this assembly result in the complete purity of the
body and mind and the fulfillment of the yogin's vows.
120
Only a few of the nearly thirty rites of this assembly will be
presented. Coho and Kakuban classify these rites as representa-
tive of the mystery of either the body, speech or mind.
121
In
the MKG marz,dalas of Japan the deities of this assembly are
depicted in the Sakyamuni assembly.
Tathagata's (mudra no. 14); mystery of the body. The
two middle fingers stand erect. The index fingers press against
the back of the middle fingers while the thumbs press against
the base of the middle fingers. This represents a three-pronged
vajra, i.e., an The mantra to be recited is namah samanta-
buddhiina11J, hu11J, hu11J, (Homage to all the buddhas
1
hu11J, hu11J,). The
Ta-p'i-lu-che-na shu says that the two hu11J, syllables mean cause
and effect or practice and buddhahood.
Tathiigata's tongue (mudra no. 15); mystery of speech. This
is represented by the two ring fingers inserted in the palms;
these two fingers are pressed by the two thumbs. Mantra: namah
samanta-buddhanam tathiigata-jihva svahii
(Homage to all the buddhas! Tathagata's tongue! Dweller in the
true teaching! svahii).
Tathagata's mindfulness (mudra no. 16); mystery of mind.
Mantra: namah samanta-buddhana11J, tathagata-smJ:ti sattva-
hitabhyudgata gagana-samiisama svaha (Homage to all the buddhas!
Oh mindfulness of the Tathagata, creating the benefits of living
beings, equivalent to space and without equal! svahii). The two
index fingers, representing cause and effect, press down on the
two thumbs (representing space and sunyatii) , i.e., the two
obstructions of cause and effect are resolved in the realization
of sunyata. The three other erect fingers represent the virtues
of the Buddha, Lotus and Vajra families. This mudrii is also
called the Sword of Wisdom.
IX. The Twelve Assemblies of the MKG MarJe/ala in japan-Aspects
of Enlightenment
Avalokitd-
vara*

*
1
2
* The two Lotus families
East
Exterior Vajras
Manjusrl 2
Sakyamuni 2
All I knowledge
Eight petals
1
Vidyadharas 1
Akasagarbha 2
Susiddhi 2
3
1
2
The seven
assemblies
in the center
are the Buddha
family.
VajrapaI).i**
SarvanivaraI).a-

** The two Vajra families. The exterior Vajras sometimes are classified as a
Vajra family.
The numbers 1-3 indicate the rank of each assembly.
These assemblies in the five Shingon vidhis are based on
chuiin four of the Mahiivairocana-siltra.
122
In these vidhis all 414
deities depicted in the MKG marJe/ala do not have corresponding
evocation rites. In contrast to these shorter vidhis, those attri-
buted to Jichie and Shinga contain many more mudriis and man-
tras for the deities in each assembly of the MKG marJe/ala.
123
These latter two vidhis, as well as that attributed to Engyo (799-
852),124 present these assemblies in the same order as does the
Kuang-da i-kuei: 1) All knowledge; also called Buddha's mother
(Henchi
aae
); 2) Lotus family or Avalokitesvara (Rengebu
aaf
); 3)
Vajrapa1)i or Vajra family (Kongoshu
aag
); 4) Five Vidyiidharas or
jimyoaah assembly; 5) Mafljusrjaai; 6)
or jogaishoaa
j
assembly; 7) (Jizoaak); 8)Akasagarbha
(Kokuzo
aa1
); 9) Sakyamuni (Shaka
aam
); 10) Exterior Vajras (Gekon-
goaan). The five Shingon vidhis present these assemblies in the
same order as the vidhis of Fa-chiian and the She-ta i-kuei as
follows: 1) All-knowledge; 2) Avalokitesvara; 3) Mafijusri;
4) 5) 6) Akasagarbha;
7) Vajrapal)i; 8) Vidyadharas; 9) Sakyamuni; 10) Exterior Vajras.
In all these vidhis the previous section on the "eight secret
mudriis" and. the evocation rite of the "all illuminating rays of
1 00 syllables" are correlated with the nine deities of the eight-
petal assembly. Shingo and Raiyu write that in these abbreviated
vidhis the Susiddhi assembly is not delineated because it is inter-
preted as being represented by Susiddhikara Bodhisattva, aao
depicted in the Akasagarbha assembly. 125 This is how the vidhi's
account for the twelve assemblies.
Annen attempts to explain why the assemblies appear in
different orders in the vidhis.
126
When the yogin starts from the
center of the marJ,q,ala and moves outward as in the Kuang-da
i-kuei, that is, from the first rank of the marJ,q,ala (Eight petals,
All-knowledge, Avalokitesvara, Vajrapal)i and Vidyadharas) to
the second (Sakyamuni, Mafijusrl, Sarvanivaral)a-viskarpbhi,
Akasagarbha and and the third rank (Exterior Va-
jras) , this is a method of recitation beginning from the source
and moving outward towards manifestations.
aap
In contrast,
Annen and the Ta-p'i-lu-che-na-shu
127
say that a recitation begin-
ning in the outer assemblies and moving inward represents a
practice moving from a cause to an effect, i.e., this is a practice
seeking the mind of enlightenment represented by the eight-
petal assembly. Notwithstanding this "explanation," the com-
mentaries do not explain why the five Shingon vidhis proceed
in the rank order 1-2-1-2-3, and this topic needs to be further
investigated.
There are approximately 100 deities with their mudras and
mantras in the Shingon vidhis. Instead of giving examples of
these it will suffice here to state the basic concept behind the
structure of the MKG marJ,q,ala as this relates to the vidhis. As
the Ta-p'i-lu-che-na shu states, 128 due to the Tathiigata's empower-
ment the first rank of assemblies is manifested by virtue of the
Buddha's enlightenment. The second rank of great beings is
manifested due to the practice of great compassion. The third
rank appears by virtue of skillful means. Thus, in reciting the
mantras and forming the mudras of the deities in the marJ,q,ala,
the yogin cultivates compassion based on the bodhicitta and develops
skillful means to aid all living beings in attaining enlightenment. 129
X. Offerings and Dharani Recitation - Siddhis
A distinctive feature of this section in the five Shingon vidhis
is that its structure and many of its rites (there are about thirty-
five rites) are based on the Vajradhatu Vidhi system introduced
by Kiikai, and not the Mahavairocana-si1tra, although some major
rites presented below are based on the sidra. 130 The rites in this
section clearly illustrate the accomplishments of the yogin who
has successfully summoned the deities to the marJ4ala.
After all knowledge beings of the mal).Qala have been at-
tracted, drawn in, tied and subdued by the four attracting
(sar(lgraha
aaq
) deities, bringing about non-duality between the
yogin and these knowledge beings, the offerings of powdered
incense, flowers, stick incense, food and lights are offered to
them. As interpreted by the Ta-p'i-lu-che-na shu, Shingo and
Kakucho
131
, powdered incense means purity, flowers represent
all practices born from compassion, stick incense means the
ability to penetrate the dharmadhatu (i.e., in accord with each
virtue cultivated a fire of wisdom burns and the breeze of liber-
ation blows; in accord with the power of one's vows of compas-
sion one perfumes all spontaneously), food refers to the results
of one's practices, i.e., a supreme ambrosia (enlightenment) that
is beyond sar(lSara and lights refer to the yogin'S boundless wisdom
that illuminates all living beings. In some vidhis, argha water
(feet-cooling water) heads this list, making six offerings.
Kakucho says these refer to the six perfected paramitas of charity,
morality, patience, striving, samadhi and insight. 132 It is obvious
that these offerings involve both "outer" and "inner offerings,"
the latter representing the attainments of the yogin.
The next series of rites, concluding the vidhi in general, are
interpreted as the turning of the Wheel of the Teaching by the
yogin.133 When either contemplating a circle of syllables on the
body or reciting certain mantras, the devotee is really the en-
lightened Mahavairocana who is constantly teaching the esoteric
doctrine. This is the implementation of skillful means for the
enlightenment of all living beings.
The practice of the rite entitled "Lord of Twelve Mantras"
involves visualizing twelve syllables on twelve parts of the body.
Because all vidhis employ slightly different syllables, these vary-
ing schemes need not be individually interpreted. The twelve
parts of body are the head, brow, two ears, two shoulders,
chest, back (or throat), stomach, loins and two feet. The Ta-p'i-lu-
che-na shu says that by contemplating these letters on the body
the yogin becomes the Buddha Vairocana, the essence of the
dharmadhiitu, and turns the Wheel of the Teaching.
134
As de-
scribed by this commentary and Annen 135, the letters a, ii, arfJ,
and aft" meaning giving rise to the thought of enlightenment,
cultivating it, realizing enlightenment and entering Nirviir],a, are
virtues found in the Buddha, Lotus and Vajra families. These
families are represented by the letters a, sa and va, respectively.
The scheme of twelve syllables resulting from this interpretation
is as follows:
Four a's a a a7(t
alt-
Family
Buddha a a a a7(t alt-
Lotus sa sa sa sa7(t salt-
Vajra va va va va7(t valt-
When he visualizes these twelve syllables on the twelve parts of
the body, the yogin embodies the above four virtues as
in each of the three families.
136
The above set of twelve syllables is also used in the following
visualization, entitled the Three Families and Four Places." The
syllables a, sa and va, referring to the three families, are con-
templated on the top of the head and on the right and left
shoulders, respectively. The yogin thus is the Lord of the Teach-
ings of the three families. Then the syllables a, sa and va are
contemplated on the head, ii, sii and vii are contemplated on
the chest, arfJ" sarfJ" and varfJ, are visualized at the stomach and
aft" saft, and vaft, are visualized below the loins. These four groups
of syllables represent the four mar],q,alas (Great, Symbolic, Law
and Action) realized by the yogin. 137
Following this visualization, the yogin contemplates
Mahavairocana entering the body and the yogin entering
Mahavairocana (nyuga_ganyu
aar
). As explained in the Taizo bonji
shidai
138
the yogin
" ... visualizes in the mind a full moon disc with nine concentric
layers139 (these are the abodes of the nine deities - in the center
of the marJ4,ala). Above this is the syllable a. Because the syllable a
(a symbol of Mahavairocana) is fundamentally unborn and cannot
be comprehended the intrinsic nature of my mind also cannot be
comprehended; the minds of living beings also are fundamentally
unborn and cannot be comprehended; the realm of all buddhas also
is fundamentally unborn and cannot be comprehended; buddhas
and living beings are not two and are equal. For this reason I am
Mahavairocana and Mahavairocana is myself."
The devotee now recites the mantra of Mahavairocana in
the MKG manc/4ala: a vi ra hu'f!L kha'f!L. Then follows the empower-
ment of the Buddha's mother (also called Buddha's Eyes because
the five eyes, i.e., wisdoms, are perfected). This is also practiced
in the Vajradhiitu Vidhi (mudra no. 17). The two index fingers touch
the backs of the upper joints of the two middle fingers. The tips
of the two little fmgers touch one another. The two thumbs touch
the middle joints of the two middle fingers. (Various explanations
exist concerning how this mudra represents five eyes. 140) The
forehead, right and left shoulders, chest and throat are empowered
with this mudra. The mantra to be recited is: namo
O'f!L ru ru sphuru jvala siddha-locani sarvartha-siidhani svahii
(Homage to the of the Bhagavat! Orp Speak! Speak! Fill
up! Radiate! Remain! Oh, gaze of the accomplished one! Oh, one
who makes achieve all aims! svahii).
The five Shingon vidhis conclude with further recitations,
the transfer of the merits of the practice to all living beings, the
farewell to the knowledge beings and their return to the A..kasa
realm, the dissolving of the marpdala, and the departure of the
devotee from the shrine.
XI. Concluding Remarks
In this brief survey I have attempted to identify the major
components of the Garbha Vidhi system introduced to Japan by
Kflkai; The five vidhis judged to be representative of this system
are long manuals, and without some knowledge of their struc-
ture and components the rationale behind the ritual-meditation
process is otherwise difficult to understand. We have seen that
the kalpa is a composite practice. Its structure is based on chiian
seven of the Mahavairocana-sutra, and specific rites are taken
from chiians four, five and six as well. Based on the explanations
of authoritative commentaries I have labeled the major sections
ofthevidhi system as follows: 1) Rites of Purification; 2) Visualizing
Oneself as Vajrasattva; 3) Visualizing the Container World; 4)
Realization of Mahavairocana's virtues; 5) Aspects of Enlighten-
ment; 6) Siddhis. As a result of this survey, the character and
natural progression of the meditation process becomes evident ..
This process can be summarized as follows. The yogin begins
by purifying and protecting his body, speech and mind. Without
the removal of defilements, both physical and mental, the proper
environment for the visualization of deities is not established.
The yogin then visualizes Vajrasattva (another name for the
Tathagata Mahavairocana), the Lord of the three families. Next,
the yogin generates the residence of Mahavairocana (the MKG
mafJ,qala) at the summit of Mount Sumeru and visualizes
Mahavairocana and all the deities of the mafJ,qala residing in this
palace. Thus far, all visualizations have been of symbolic-beings,
i.e., these are products of the mind with which the yogin temporarily
identifies. Mount Sumeru is in the Akan4fha heaven, the highest
of the form realms, and here clearly is also a product of the mind.
Once this has been protected the knowledge-beings are
summoned and they descend into this container world. The
yogin then unites the knowledge- and symbolic-beings and attains
various powers not discussed in the manuaL Once these knowl-
edge-beings descend, the yogin's vows to attain enlightenment,
etc., can be fulfilled. Presumably the mafJ,qala is visualized in the
heaven because it is here that the knowledge-beings
are able to take on form. These knowledge-beings are offered
food, incense, etc., both of the physical and mental varieties, as
explained in the commentaries. Finally, the yogin recites dharafJ,zs.
These are recited while dwelling on the shapes of syllables vis-
ualized on different parts of the body. At the conclusion of the
ritual the same visualizations that were performed to establish
the mafJ,qala are performed again, this time with the goal of
dissolving the visualization. The protective space net, fire enclo-
sure, etc. are removed, the knowledge-beings are bid farewell
and the yogin dwells in sunyata. 141
It is obvious that all visualizations are accompanied by exter-
nal, ritual actions. These represent, but are not substitutions
for, the visualization (e.g., the mudra of "the budding mind of
enlightenment" represents the state of the mind of the yogin).
On the other hand, even when the goal of attaining enlightenment
for oneself and others is intensely generated, if this goal is pursued
without ritual contemplation, it cannot be rapidly achieved. The
Shingon tradition maintains that when the mudriis, mantras and
visualizations together are properly performed, only then can the
vidhi be successfully accomplished. The practitioners of the Shida
Kegya system also believe that one cannot really understand these
practices or their effects just by reading about them as we have
done here. The way of forming a mudra, the way of ringing a
bell, etc. have to be learned from a teacher. Of course, without
prerequisite training, visualization cannot be practiced either.
Nevertheless, it is hoped that this study has clarified the contents
and theory of the Carbha Vidhi.
MUDRAs
~
~
, ,(
~
~ ~
~
~
1 2 3 4 5 6,11
(J
~
<ZI\
!I
IT1 ~ a
J.' ~ c
{J0}
'\)
-
7 8 9 10 12 13
[f01\
~ h
' o.J,
g ~ ~
ItiJ
\:
it ~
14 15 16 17
Source: Toganoo Shoun, Himitsu Jisa no Kenkyu (Koyasan: Mikkyo
Bunka Kenkyujo, 1959), pp. 287, 322,401,404.
NOTES
Abbreviations
KDZ - Kobo Daishi Zenshu, eight vols. (Koyasan: Mikkyo Bunka Kenkyujo,
1965-67).
KDDZ - Kobo Daishi Shodeshi Zenshu, three vols. (Kyoto: Rokudai Shimposha,
1942).
T - TaishO ShinshU Daizokyo
TS - Toganoo Shoun, HimitsuJiso no Kenkyu (Koyasan: Mikkyo Bunka Ken-
kyujo, 1959).
1. The titles for these evocation rites, or vidhis a p.: giki), as illustrated
in this paper have always varied in Japan. Garbha is my translation for the
Japanese word taizo. The Mikkyo Daijiten (Kyoto: Hozokan, 1983), pp. 1489,
1492, translates taizo as both garbha and garbhakosa. Four vidhis attributed to
Kukai also use the word garbhakosa. The word taizo is found in the Chinese
translation of the Mahiivairocana-sutra (T. 18, No. 848) and until a Sanskrit
version of this scripture is found or until all references to this word in Tibeten
and Chinese commentaries are analysed the restoration of the correct Sanskrit
will be problematic.
2. Paul Groner has argued convincingly that Saicho could not have
introduced this vidhi to Japan. SaichO and the Bodhisattva Precepts (Ann Arbor:
University Microfilms International, 1981), pp. 44-72.
3. See Kukai's "Goshoraimokuroku," KDZ, Vol. 1, p. 99. Mahii-karurp'i-
garbhodhava-ma7Jrj,ala is a more technically accurate, Sanskrit restoration of the
full Chinese name Ta-pei-t'ai-ts'ang-sheng-man-t'o-lo. See Toganoo Shoun,
Mandara no Kenkyu (Koyasan: Mikkyo Bunka Kenkyujo, 1958), p. 63.
4. The Gno branch of early Shingon Buddhism interprets thesegakuhO
initiations in this way. In contrast, the Hirosawa branch. interprets Kukai's
gakuhO initiations as denbo initiations (transmission of the teaching), which
empower one as a master (iiciirya). The Hirosawa branch believes Kukai al-
together received three denbo consecrations. TS, pp. 107-09.
5. See Kukai's record (the original is in Kukai's own hand) of those
he personally initiated into the Vajradhiitu and Mahii-karu7Jii-garbha ma7Jrj,alas
at Takaosanji, the Takao kanjoki. Kobo Daishi Zenshu, Vol. 3, edited by Sofu
senyokai (Tokyo: Yoshikawa Kobunkan, 1911), p. 620ff.
6. Kukai gives in his Shingonshu shogaku kyoritsuron mokuroku (KDZ,
vol. 1, pp. 105-23) a list of the sutras, commentaries, etc. he required his
disciples to study. The list contains sixty-two sutras belonging to the Tattva-
sa'T(Lgraha lineage but only seven sutras belonging to the Mahiivairocana-sutra
lineage.
7. The classic study of this marpjala is by Ishida Hisatoyo, MandaTa no
Kenkyii, two vols. (Tokyo: Tokyo Bijutsu, 1975).
8. The Shingon denju sakuhO ascribed to Kukai (KDZ, vol. 4, p. 417)
prescribes the following set of practices: 1) Kechien kanja, (for establishing a
personal relationship with one deity); 2)Jiihachida; 3) Issonba (offering rite to
one deity); 4) Kongakai; 5) Taizakai; 6) Coma. When the court sanctioned three
Shingon nembundosha just before Kukai's death they were required to master,
among other things, an Issonba of one deity from the MKG and one deity
from the Vajradhiitu ma7J4ala, the Jiihachida rite, the Bonji shittan sho (a textbook
on the Siddham letters Kukai introduced from China but which now is lost),
etc., but not the Coma. KDZ, Vol. 5, p. 92. As Kukai's sect grew the need
arose eventually for a structured discipline. TS, p. 23ff.
9. Toganoo Shoun, Shingonshii Tokuhon (Jisshuhen), Koyasan: Koyasan
Shuppansha, 1968), pp. 90-93.
10. The Hirosawa branch of the Shingon sect, on the basis of the
Kongacha yuga gomaki attributed to Kukai, practices the Coma before the Taizakai
shidai. The Ono branch, on the basis of the Kenritsu mandara goma giki, also
attributed to Kukai, practices these four rites in the order given. TS, p. 33ff.
11. The earliest reference to these rites in Japanese as Kegya is found
in a work by Jichi (A.C. 786-847), a disciple of Kukai. Oyama Kojun, Himitsu
Bukkya Kayasan Chiiinryii no Kenkyii (Koyasan: Oyama Kojun Hoin Shoshin
Kinen Shuppankai, 1962), p. 63.
12. TS. pp. 85-88.
13. Only theJiihachida has been studied. Taisen Miyata, A Study of the
Ritual Mudra in the Shingon Tradition: A Phenomenological Study on the Eighteen
Ways of Esoteric Recitation (Jiihachida Nenju Kubi Shidai Chiiinryii) in the Kayasan
Tradition, (Rev. Taisen Miyata, 1984). The Jiihachida is based on T.no. 1005.
14. TS. The original work published in 1959 was reprinted in 1982;
Oyama Kojun, Himitsu Bukkya. See also Tanaka Kaio, Himitsu Jisa no Kaisetsu
(Tokyo: Shikanoen, 1962); "Kokuyaku Taizo Nenju Shidai," in Kokuyaku Seikya
Taikei, Tamitsu bu, Dainihan (Tokyo: Kokusho Kankokai, 1974), pp. 1-143;
Horiou M. Toki, Japanese Mudra based on Si-do-in dzou (New Delhi: Interna-
tional Academy of Indian Culture, 1973). The latter was first published in
Annales du Musee Cuimet, Tome huitieme, (Paris, 1899).
15. E.g., Goho (1306-1362) states this in this Taizakai Nenju Shidai
Yashiiki, Shingonshu Zensho (hereafter abbreviated SZ), vol. 25 (Tokyo: Shingon-
shu Zensho Kankokai Shibu, 1934), p. 444.
16. Tajima Ryujin, Etude sur Ie Mahiivairocana-sutra (Dainichikya) avec la
traduction commentee du premier chapitre (Paris: Adrien Maisonneuve, 1936). An
English translation of this work along with an annotated translation of chapter
two of the sutra by Alex Wayman will be published shortly by Motilal Banar-
sidass. .
17. E.g., William Kuno Muller, Shingon-Mysticism Subhakarasi'f[!ha and
I-hsing's Commentarry to the Mahiivairocana-sutra, Chapter One, an annotated trans-
lation (Ann Arbor: University Microfilms International, 1980); Minoru Kiyota,
"The Mahavairocana-sutra (first chapter): An annotated English Translation,"
in Daija Bukkya kara Mikkya e Katsumata Shunkya Hakase Koki Kinen Ronshu
(Tokyo: Shunjusha, 1983), pp. 17-43.
18. KDZ, Vol. 2, pp. 247-86; also called Carbha Ku (sic:ko)sa dharma.
19. KDZ, Vol. 2, pp. 291337; also called CarbhakuSa dharma.
20. KDZ, Vol. 2, pp. 342-388; also called CarbhakuSa dharma, Taizokai
shidai, Usugami shidai or Atsugami shidai.
21. KDZ, Vol. 2, pp. 396-451; also called Carbhakosa dharma or Taizo
Usugami shidai. '
22. Nihon Daizokyo, fifty-one vols. ( Tokyo: Nihon Daizokyo Hensankai,
1914-21).
23. KDZ, Vol. 2, pp. 454-481; also called Taizokai nenju shidai.
24. KDZ, Vol. 4, pp. 559-617.
25. KDZ, Vol. 4, pp. 620-663.
26. KDZ, Vol. 4, pp. 665-694; also called CarbhakuSa dharma or Taizokai
bizai shidai.
27. In the ninth century the Tendai sect also formed a Shido Kegyo
system. An example dating from 1272 is found in Horiou Toki's japanese
Mudra based on the Si-do-in-dzou.
28. T. 18, No. 850.
29. T. 18, No. 851.
30. T. 18, No. 852. See Mikkyo Daijiten (Kyoto: Hozokan, 1983), p.
2022, for a short biography.
31. T. 18, No. 853.
32. T. 18, Nos. 854, 856, 857, 859.
33. T. 55, No. 2176, p. 115c.
34. Veda Reijo, "Daishi gosaku Taizo shidai no Kosatsu (1)," Mikkyo
CakkaihO, No. 23, 1984, pp. 49-58; "Daishi gosaku Taizo shidai no Kosatsu,"
Mikkyo Bunka, no. 146, 1984, pp. 1-11.
35. See Mikkyo Daijiten, p. 850, for a short biography.
36. T. 39, No. 1796. Subhakarasiqlha's oral explanations are here re-
corded by I-hsing. I-hsing also adds his own interpretations.
37. Sixteen vidhis were compared. These included the eight traditionally
attributed to Kiikai as well as the following vidhis: Taizokai shidai (KDDZ, Vol.
1, pp. 519-575) and Taizokubishidai (KDDZ, Vol. 1, pp. 271-74), both attributed
to Jichie; the Taizo daihO shidai (KDDZ, Vol. 2, pp. 1-74) and Taizo kubi shidai
(KDDZ, Vol. 1, pp. 75-79), both attributed to Shinga, another of Kiikai's
disciples; the Taizo daishidai, attributed to Engyo (799-852) (KDDZ, VoL 3,
pp. 165-346); Yiikai's (1345-1416) Taizokai shidai (T. 78, No. 2509, p. 901f.);
Gengo's (911-955) Taizokai nenju shiki, found in TS, pp. 400-516 or Kokuyaku
Seikyo Taikei, Tomitsu bu, Vol. 2, pp. 1-144; and Iwahara Taishin's Taizokai
nenju shidai (Koyasan: Matsumoto Nishindo, 1976).
38. SZ, Vol. 25.
39. The Tq,izokai shidai (KDDZ, Vol. 1) attributed to Jichie and the Taizo
daihO shidai (KDDZ, Vol. 2) attributed to Shinga.
40. For a recent study of dhara1J,ts and mantras see Vjike Kakusho,
Darani no Sekai (Osaka: Toho shuppanshi, 1984).
41. A script that developed in the fourth and fifth centuries in India.
See Mikkyo jiten, edited by Sawa Ryuken (Kyoto: Hozokan, 1975), p. 308ff.
42. TS, pp. 71-72; SZ, Vol. 25, p. 4.
43. T. 18, No. 880.
138 JIABS VOL. 9NO. 2
44. See Iwahara Teishin's manual listed above in ft. nt. 37.
45. KDZ, voL 1, pp. 90-91, 561; R.H. va? Gulik, Siddham: An Essay on
the History of Sanskrit Studies in China and Japan, Sata-piraka series, Indo-Asian
Literature, VoL 247 (Delhi, 1980), pp. 52-3.
46. T. 84, No. 2701. This. however is not a grammar book on Sanskrit.
Kiikai interprets sunyatii in reference to the Siddham letters he lists.
47. Bonji Daikan, edited by Shuchiin Daigaku Mikkyo Gakkai (Tokyo:
Meicho fukyokai, 1983), pp. 61-81.
48. The Mikkyo Daijiten (p. 1488fO lists fifty-two different vidhis.
49. KDDZ, VoL 1, pp. 271-74; VoL 2, pp. 75-79.
50. By maintaining the most essential contents and structure of the
Carbha Vidhi the abbreviated manuals must have been considered as effective
as the longer ones. The shorter vidhis always reduce the number of evocation
rites to the deities in the MKG. There are no comparable short Carbha Vidhis
in the Taisho canon;
51. T. 75, No. 2399, p. 633c; T. 75, No. 2404, p. 806c.
52. T. 75, No. 2390 (Taizo daiha tai juki), p. 54a.
53. See Matsunaga Yiikei, Mikkyo no Rekishi (Kyoto: Heirakuji shoten,
1974), pp. 209-15,275-280, for the origins and modern ramifications of this
factionalism.
54. SZ, VoL 25, pp. 2, 444.
55. T. 18, No. 848, p. 45f.
56. T.61, No. 2232 (Renge taizokai giki kaishaku), p. 865c.
57. T. 75, No. 2404 (Taizokai shaki), p. 799b.
58. C. Takai Kankai, Mikkyo Jiso Taikei (Kyoto: Yamashiroya Bunseido,
1976), pp. 301-313; TS, pp. 70-84.
59. T. 18, No. 848, pp. 24-30. Ueda has discussed the ten mudriis which
alone differ. See his "Daishi gosaku Taizo shidai no Kosatsu (1)," pp. 54-55.
60. KDDZ, Vol. 1, pp. 519-575; VoL 2, pp. 1-74.
61. T. 75, No. 2390, p. 108c; T. 75, No. 2399, p. 633c.
62. T. 39, No. 1796.
63, There is another commentary of interest by Subhakarasirpha's Ko-
rean disciple Pul ka sa ue (Jp.: Fukashigi). See T. 39, No. 1797. This interprets
chiian seven of the Mahiivairocana-sutra.
64. T. 61, No. 2231.
65. T. 79, No. 2534; Taizo nyu risM.
66. SZ, VoL 25.
67. T. 75, No. 2398 (Taizo sammitsusha); T. 75, No. 2399 (Sammitsu sM
ryoken); T. 75, No. 2404 (Taizokai sMki).
68. T. 75, No. 2385 (Taizokai koshinki).
69. T. 75, No. 2390 (Taizokai daiMtaijuki); See also T. 75, No. 2397.
70. Also read were the following commentaries: Kakuban's (1095-1145)
Taizokai sata (T. 79, No. 2579); Gengo's Taizokai sanbu hishaku (T. 78, No.
2472) and the Himitsudan toM daiajarijonenju shoki (T. 75, No. 2405), anonym-
ous.
71. T. 39, No. 1796, p. 714a. C. T. 75, No. 2405, p. 807b.
72. 'T. 79, No. 2534, p. 145b. Raiyu himself refers to the famous passage
of the Mahiivairocana-sutra (T. No. 848, p. 1 b-c) which, in describing enlighten-
139
"Bodhicitta is the cause, . great compassion is the root and skilful
means IS the end."
73. T. 39, p. 722b.
74. analysis is given by Minoru Kiyota, Shingon Buddhism:
Theory and Practice (Los Angeles and Tokyo: Buddhist Books International
1978), pp. 83-87. '
75. T. 78, No. 2472, p. 74.
76. SZ, Vol. 25, pp. 8-9.
77. On the four forms of the dharmakaya in the Shingon school see
Y.S. Hakeda, Kilkai: Major Works translated, with an Account of his Life and a
Study of his Thought (New York and London: Columbia University Press, 1972),
p. 83. This theory is based on sutras of the TattvasaT(Lgraha lineage translated
by Amoghavajra. See Kato Shinichi, "KobO Daishi no Busshinkan no Keisei .
katei," Mikkyogaku Kenkyu, No. 10, 1978, pp. 41-49.
78. T. 75, p. 807.
79. Y.S. Hakeda, Kukai Major Works, p. 85.
80. This latter point is discussed by Kukai in his Benken mitsu nikyo ron,
KDZ, Vol. 1, pp. 474-506.
81. Jeffrey Hopkins, "Reason as the Prime Principle in Tsong Kha pa's
Delineation of Deity Yoga as the Demarcation Between Sutra and Tantra,"
Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies, Vol. 7, No.2, 1984,
pp. 100-10 1.
82. Yoshida Keiko's Kontai Ryobu Shingon Geki (Kyoto: Heirakuji shoten,
1978) and TS were referred to for an understanding of the Siddham mantras
in these vidhis. All translations are my own.
83. Killing, stealing, adultery, lying, immoral language, slander, equivo-
cation, coveting and false views.
84. The pictures of the mudras were taken from TS. There are often
two or three variations for one mudra. Those depicted are meant to be repre-
sentative only. The interpretation for these mudras was based on Oyama
Kojun's Himitsu Bukkyo. Although he does not acknowledge it, Oyama bases
his interpretations on standard commentaries. For example, his explanations
of the mudras in the section entitled "Preliminary Expedients" are based on
Raiyu's Kongokai hotsu-e sho (T. 79, No. 2533); Kozen's (1120-1203) Kongokai
sho, SZ, Vol. 24, pp. 62-204; Donjaku's (1674-1742) Kongokai shidai shiki, SZ,
Vol. 24, pp. 205-372, etc. A key to the meaning of the fingers of each hand
can be found in Mikkyo Jiten, p. 347, Taizo Zuzo VIII, T. No. 3168, pp. 298-99,
and Dale E. Saunders' Mudra: A Study of Symbolic Gestures in Japanese Buddhist
Sculpture (Princeton University Press, 1985), p. 32.
85. T. 39, p. 714.
86. See Minoru Kiyota, ShingonBuddhism, pp. 83-89. Cf.MikkyoDaijiten,
pp.349-50.
87. T. 79, No. 2534, p. 147.
88. T. 39, p. 675c.
89. T. 79, No. 2519.
90. T. 75, No. 2404, pp. 799-800; Cf. T. 79, No. 2534, p. 14b; T. 75,
No. 2385, p. lb.
91. T. 39, p. 715a; T. 75, No. 2385, p. 2b.
92. T. 75, 2385, p. 3b; T. 75, No. 2404, p. 800b.
93. SZ, Vol. 25, p. 73; TS, p. 415. Also called Chi ken in, Mudra of the
Knowledge fist. Cf. Saunders, Mudra, p. 102ff.
94. T. 61, No. 2232, p. 571; Cf. T. 79, No. 2519, p. 33.
95. T. No. 848, p. 30ff, 47ff.
96. SZ, Vol. 25, p. 81; Cf. T. 75, No. 2399, p. 635a.
97. Mikkyo Daijiten, p. 600b.
98. T. 61, No. 2231, p. 573.
99. KDZ, Vol. 1, p. 509.
100. T. No. 848, p. 40a.
101. T. 75, No. 2404, p. 801a.
102. Cf. T. 79, No. 2534, p. 150a; T. 18, p. 48a.
103. KDZ, Vol. 2, p. 252. This is quoted as an example of this visualiza-
tion in the early vidhis of the Shingon school.
104. Although the Mahavairocana-sutra and its commentary discuss thir-
teen assemblies, the MKGma1l4ala as it is drawn in Japan has twelve assemblies.
See Toganoo Shoun, Mandara no Kenkyu, p. 102. When the four Vidyadharas
of the Susiddhi Assembly are separately drawn, they become the thirteenth
assembly.
105. T. 79, No. 2534, p. 150.
106. T. 61, No. 2231, p. 572b.
107. T. No. 848, pp. 36c-37b.
108. T. 39, pp. 750-51.
109. This explanation is repeated by all the major commentaries.
110. T. 61, No. 2221, p. 583c.
Ill. SZ, Vol. 25, p. 130.
112. Raiyu further explains this. T. 79, No. 2534, p. 150.
113. T. 18, No. 869 (The Chin-kang-ting-ching yu-ch'ieh shih-pa-hue chih
kuei), p. 284c, 1.22, also refers to the deities of the Vajradhiitu Ma1l4ala as
knowledge-beings. Kukai also calls them knowledge-beings in T. 61, No. 2221,
p. 21 (Kongochokyo kaidai), while quoting from T. 18, No. 869.
114. Donjaku describes this process in reference to the Vajradhiitu Vidhi.
See his Kongocho daikyo shiki (T. 61, No. 2225, p. 337cff.).
115. Cf. F.D. Lessing and A. Wayman, Introduction to the Buddhist Tantric
Systems (Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1978), pp. 163-203,235.
116. T. 18, No. 848, pp. 24-26.
117. T. 78, No. 2472, p. 120. Cf. TS, pp. 498-99.
118. T. 75, No. 2405, p. 807.
119. T. 61, No. 2231, p. 574.
120. T. 39, p. 714b.
121. T. 79, No. 2519, p. 34; TS, p. 497.
122. T. 18, pp. 26c-30.
123. KDDZ, Vol. 1, pp. 519-75; Vol. 2, pp. 1-74.
124. KDDZ, Vol. 3, pp. 163-346.
125. T. 61, No. 2231, p. 586b; T. 79, No. 2534, p. 162.
126. T. 75, No. 2390, p. 1l0ff.
127. T. 39, p. 610b. -(
STUDY OF THE GARBHA. VIDHI 141
128. T. 39, p. 610b.
129. The meaning of the assemblies of the ma'TJ4ala and the deities is
discussed by Hatta Yukio, "Mandara no Sekei," Gendai Mikkyo Koza, Vol. 5
(Tokyo: Daito shuppansha, 1977), pp. 14 7 Cf. Alex Wayman, "Symbolism
of the MaI).dala Palace," The Buddhist Tantras: Light on Indo-Tibetan Esotericism
(New York: Samuel Weiser, 1973), pp. 82-109.
130. Raiyu points this out in his commentary. T. 79, No. 2534, p. 172c.
Those rites based on the Kongokai shidai (See KDZ, Vol. 2, p. 232ff.) include
the various offerings discussed in this article, the stanza of three powers, (also
found in the Mahiivairocana-sutra), empowerment of Buddha's mother, the
entrance of Mahavairocana into the yogin and vice-versa (J p.: nyuga-ganyu), etc.
131. T. 39, p. 654c-660c; T. 61, p. 578c; T. 75, p. 64l.
132. T. 75, p. 805. Cf. Alex Wayman, "Offering Materials and Their
Meaning," The Buddhist Tantras, pp. 71-8l.
133. T. 75, No. 2405, p. 808; T. 75, No. 2404, p. 805.
134. T. 39, pp. 629b, 631c, 724c. Kukai and the Buddhist tradition in
Japan did not differentiate between Mahavairocana and Vairocana. Mikkyo
Daij"iten, p. 1583, top.
135. T. 39, pp. 722a-723a; T. 75, No. 2390, pp. 93a-97a.
136. The Taizo bonji shidai states that the yogin should visualize a1!Z on
the top of the head and on the right ear, a/f on the brow, kha1!Z on the left
ear, sa1!Z on the right shoulder and sa/f on the left, ha1!Z on the throat, half on
the chest, ra1!Z at the stomach, ra/f at the loins, va1!Z at the right foot and va/f
at the left foot. This scheme is based on T. 18, No. 848, chilan 5. See Yoshida
Keiko, Kontai Ryobu Shingon Geki, p. 592ff.
137. T. 39, p. 724c.
138. KDZ, Vol. 2, p. 285.
139. There are various traditions concerning this visualization. TS, p.
513; SZ, Vol. 25, p. 506-507.
140. Oyama Kojun, Himitsu Bukkyo, p. 200.
Kanji
a.

c.
d
.c- Gail til ... @ :>f
. 1. I""" '1/' I' ':;r A'. ,flJ.
e.
f. RMi!
g. '1-:;l.
h. -it. 3,
i. r.ti
j .
k. /otf.lll
1. 120'1J
Contents of the TaizRai HiJ:n:t ji Shidai
avo
aw.
ax.
ay.
az.
aaa.
aab.
aac.
aad.
aae.
aaf.
aag.
aah.

3(t: 3'- Fl f
1i
'11f !=JJ
'1: fiJi W"f,f3 IJi
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it. " ,
;&i 1D .{t.. fE
;tl' ,
1: liiJlJ}
rt BJ'I
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aaJ. r:r:iI f3f
aak. :rt, ;g.
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aao
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aap.
aaq. @ 10
aar. A jt;; ;n; 1\
This vidhi (see KDZ, vol. 4, pp. 665-695) is considered to be representative
of the early Garbha vidhi system introduced to Japan by Kiikai. Below, the
sections of this vidhis as outlined in this study are delineated. Due to the length
of such a vidhi, the use of these section headings is essential for a clear under-
standing of the meditation process. Those rites discussed in this study are
marked with an asterisk.
Rites of Purification
1.11 MIll'

3. oct Pi,]:.! HUr(l *
4.
5. i+t
STUDYOFTHEGARBHA VIDHI 143
11. tlD"#
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Visualizing Oneself
as Vajrasattva
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Realization of
Mahavairocana's virtues
144
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Assemblies of
MKG Mal).<;lala
Aspects of Enlighten-
ment Rengebuin
119. ff,W-lt
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
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130 ..
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134. P%
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142. :rc;i
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Kokuzoin
148. ; '? #.\m

150.
151.
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Kongoshuin
153. fiti{i]lJ
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156. f1 IV:
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159. !! lie 0f
160.
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162f ;1iB
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164. f:f/J [of}
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JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
247.
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262.
On the Sources for Sa skya PaI)cjita's Notes
on the Bsam yas Debate
by Leonard W.J. van der Kuijp
In an earlier issue of this journal, R. Jackson (1982: 89-99)
published a translation of, and a commentary on, Sa skya
Pal).c;lita's (1182-1251) account of the well-known, if still histor-
ically questionable, Sino-Indian controversies in eighth century
Tibet. His paper was based on a passage that occurs in Sa pal).'s
Thub pa'i dgongs pa rab tu gsal ba (TGRG), a work which he
completed towards the end of his life.
1
This passage is found
in the section in which he discusses the status and the reach
and range of discriminative awareness (prafna), the sixth trans-
cending function (paramita). In his survey, Sa pal). takes the
opportunity to assail certain Bka' brgyud pa doctrines known
under the generic name of the "white panacea" (dkar po chig
thub) that are preeminently associated with the writings of Zhang
g.yu brag pa brtson 'grus grags pa (1123-1193).2 Sa pal). links
the doctrine of the "white panacea" with the quietistic teachings
of the Chinese Buddhists active in early Tibet which, as he
painstakingly indicates, were already discredited by the alleged
outcome of the "debate" between KamalaSlla and his Chinese
counterpart.
On the basis of the primary sources available to him, R.
Jackson has attempted to show that Sa pal)., perhaps wilfully,
employed "history as polemic" in order to criticise the "white
panacea" of his immediate predecessors (and contemporaries)
and that, moreover, he " ... was the first Tibetan scholar to 'use'
Hva shang Mahayana in this way, and ... perhaps the most
egregious ... ". However, in the light of a corpus of texts, appar-
ently unavailable to R. Jackson at the time of his writing, these
conclusions stand in need of an about-face revision. As I shall
try to show as briefly and briskly as possible, these sources tell
147
us quite a different story, decisively exculpate Sa pal) from those
. charges, and render R. Jackson'S inferences untenable.
A most significant source for the Tibetan phyi dar perception
of the "Bsam yas debate", which has thus far escaped the atten-
tion of scholarly scrutiny, is the monumental Chos 'byung me tog
snying po'i sbrang rtsi'i bcud or Mnga' bdag Nyan gi chos 'byung
written by the Rnying ma pa scholar and "teacher of treasures"
(gter ston) Nyang ral nyi-ma['i] 'od-zer (1124-1192 or 1136-
1204).3 Two slightly different manuscripts of this text, Manu-
script A and Manuscript B, were published in the "supportive
volumes" (rgyab chos) Five and Six of the Rin chen gter mdzod
collection in 1979 in Paro, Bhutan. Another cursive dbu med
manuscript of the same, housed at the Deutsche Staatsbib-
liothek, Berlin, was published this year (1985) by R. Meisezahl
in a facsimile edition. Based on a comparison of these three
manuscripts, Meisezahl (1985: 14) came to the conclusion that:
"Wer sie (the Berlin manuscript) benutzt, kann auf die in Bhutan
publizierten Manuskripte "A" und "B" unbedenklich verzichten,
falls nicht eine kritische Edition erwiinscht ist." Turning to the
useful table of contents compiled by L.S. Dagyab of Bonn Uni-
versity, we find that Nyang ral has devoted some fifteen folia
to the "Bsam yas debate" (Meisezahl 1985: fols. 425-440). The
very close, at times virtually literal correspondence between the
wording of Nyang ral's account and the various notices in several
of Sapal)'s texts can only lead one to conclude that either Sa
pal) made use of Nyang ral's Chos 'byung, or that both derive
their information from a third, as of yet unknown, earlier source.
In order to show the degree of correspondence, I reproduce
first a small segment of the account found in Sa pal)'s "open
letter", his Skyes bu dam pa rnams la spring ba'i yi ge, SSBB 5, pp.
331/4/6-332/1/1 :
rgya nag mkhan po na re ! 'khor bar skye ba'i rgyu
rang ngo rang gis ma shes pas Zan! rang ngo rang gis
shes na 'tshang rgya I de'i phyir sems ngo 'phrod na
dkar po chig thub yin / ... zer nas /
Apart from the preamble of this passage, "The Chinese abbot,
alleging 4 ... ," Nyang ral (Meisezahl 1985: fo1. 425, Tafel 287)
reads virtually the same:
THE "BSAMYASDEBATE"
'khor bar skye ba'i rgyu / rang ngo rang gi ma shes
pas lan / rang ngo shes nas rtogs na sangs rgya / de'i
phyir sems ngo 'phrod dgos / de ngo shes na dkar po
chig thub yin /
In the TGRG p. 24/44/6 we have:
... rgya nag gi dge slong na re / tshig la snying po
med tha snyad kyi chos kyis 'tshang mi rgya sems
rtogs na dkar po chig thub yin zer /
149
And, on p. 25/3/6 Sa pal) refers to some "later scholarly 'dge ba'i
bshes gnyen rnams'" who alleged that:
... sems ngo 'phrod pas sangs rgya bar 'dod pa dkar po
chig thub du 'gro ba'i rgyu mtshan de yin gsung /
Each of these three texts, after having outlined the salIent fea-
tures of the Chinese doctrine, then proceed to give a listing of
five works which the Chinese abbot and/or monk had written.
To some extent these have been identified in Karmay (1975: 153)
and Kimura (1981: 186-187). Striking is the number of "buzz-
words" used in these characterisations; such terms as rang ngo,
sems ngo 'phrod, and rtogs are "loaded" with specific connotations
found especially in the Rnying rna pa rdzogs chen tradition as
well as in certain mahamudra teachings of the Dwags po Bka'
brgyud pa schools and sects. Also noteworthy is the linkage
effected between the "white panacea" and the teachings of the
Chinese, a linkage first found in Nyang ral's text. As far as I
am aware, the expression "dkar po chig thub" is only to be met
with in the Tibetan medical literature and in early Dwags po
Bka' brgyud pa texts. As for the former, modern dictionaries
indicate it to denote renshen (ginseng), or the root of the Panax
ginseng.
5
This seems to reflect a later development of the seman-
tic range of this expression, for the Rgyud bzhi counts it among
the "unmeltable 'stones'" and it is commented upon as such by
Sde srid Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho in his famous Vaictilrya sngon
pO.6 Other Tibetan materia medica texts provide different iden-
tifications
7
and the great forerunner of the Zur-tradition of
Tibetan medicine, Mnyam nyid rdo rje (1439-1475) has even
150
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
written a "history" (lo rgyus) of the dkar po chig thub in his cele-
brated Bye ba ring bsrel (Leh, 1975, 1977).8 Interestingly, Mnyam
nyid rdo rje connects the dkar po chig thub drug with the otherwise
unknown Nepalese physicial Haka, suggesting thereby that its
origin should be sought in Nepal. As far as I am aware, Nepal
is not traditionally associated with the production of Panax gin-
seng; the other species of Panax known to me is the Panax
quinquefolius found in North America. It seems therefore that,
broadly speaking, we will have to distinguish between at least
two possible referents of "dkar po chig thub," an Indo-Nepali-
Tibetan one and a Sino-Tibetan one.
9
As I already mentioned, "dkar po chig thub" is found among
the early writings of the Dwags po Bka' brgyud pa masters. Both
Sgam po pa bsod nams rin chen (1079-1153)10 and Zhang g.yu.
brag pa II make use of it when illustrating their mahamudra
theories. Particularly in Sgam po pa's .oeuvre, medical terminol-
ogy is often resorted to when he describes certain doctrinal
positions in a metaphoric way. An excellent topic for future
research would be a study of such medical metaphors in light
of the fact the Sgam po pa, alias Dwags po lha rje, was a physician
of some repute.
Besides these terminological parallels between Nyang ral's
account and the TGRG passage, there is also other evidence
which, if it does not point to a direct dependence of Sa pal) on
the former, at least does not rule out the existence of an even
earlier common source. In both texts (TGRG p. 25/2/2-3 and
Meisezahl 1985: fo1. 432 a-b) reports that KamalaSlla argued
against the validity of these illustrations as well as against the
substance of the Chinese argument, alleging that "not only is
your example false, but the substance (of your argument) is also
erroneous." (khyed kyi dpe nor bar ma zad / don yang 'khrul te .. ).
The exact wording is also reproduced in the TGRG p. 25/2/4-5.
These and similar instances, which could be multiplied ad in-
finitum, leave no doubt that Sa pal) was simply transmitting a
received tradition and that he was by no means its originator.
Of course, Nyang ral does not connect the dkarpo chig thub
notion of the Chinese with his Dwags po Bka' brgyud pa contem-
poraries as Sa pal) has done. This would, however, not appear
illegitimate since the Dwags po Bka' brgyud pa did make use of it.
Sa pal) lists his sources for his account of the "Bsam yas
THE "BSAM VAS DEBATE" 151
debate" at TGRG p. 25/3/6-4/2.12 There he refers to "another
testament," the Rgyal bzhed, Dba' bzhed (sic), and the 'Ba'-bzhed
(siC).13 Van der Kuijp (1985a: appendix, originally submitted
. in 1982) has dealt with the various quotations of the Sba bshed
in the later. Tibetan historical literature, and there seems little
point in reproducing those findings here. Suffice it to say that
the newly discovered cursive sba bzhed manuscript as edited in
Mgon po rgyal mtshan (1980: 72-75) contains a verbatim ac-
count of Sa pal)'s TGRG which is prefixed by the statement
"Furthermore, according to one tradition" (yang lugs gcig la).
Abbreviated versions of this account (and explicitly cited from
the "Sba bzhed") are also found in Spos khang pa rin chen rgyal
mtshan's Sdom pa gsurri gyi rab tu dbye ba'i gzhung lugs legs par
bshad pa, Vol. 2 (Thimphu, 1979), p. 295 which was completed
in 1423 (water-female-hare), and in Dpa' bo gtsug lag's Mkhas
pa'i dga' ston. This would seem to indicate that the association
of dkar po chig thub with the Chinese goes back to pre-phyi dar
Tibetan literature, and that there just might be some substance
to Sa pal)'s linkage of some of the Dwags po Bka' brgyud-pa
doctrines with those promulgated by the Chinese in eighth cen-
tury Tibet. In this connection, it will be essential to try and
ascertain the exact referents of "dkar po chig thub" as one cannot
of course a priori exclude the good possibility that it was the
terminological ambiguity of "dkar po chig thub" which led to Sa
pal)'s association. It may thus very well turn out that the referent
of the "dkar po chig thub" used by the Dwags po Bka' brgyud pa
was quite different from that of the Chinese.
BIBLIOGRAPHIC ABBREVIATIONS
Dargyay, E. (1979), The Rise of Esoteric Buddhism in Tibet, New Delhi: Motilal
Banarsidass.
Dung dkar blo bzang 'phrin las (1981), Deb ther dmar po, Ed. comm., Beijing:
People's Publishing House.
Jackson, D. (1983), "Notes on Two Early Printed Editions of Sa-skya-pa
Works", The Tibet Journal 8 (2), pp. 3-24.
Jackson, D. (1983a), "Commentaries on the Writings of Sa-skya PaI).c;lita: A
Bibliographic Sketch", The Tibetan Journal 8 (3), pp. 3-23.
Jackson, R. (1982), "Sa-skya paI).c;lita's Account of the bSam yas Debate: History
as Polemic", The Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies
5 (2), pp. 89-99.
Karmay, S. (1975), "A Discussion on the Doctrinal Position of Rdzogs-chen from
the 10th to the 13th Centuries", journal asiatique 263 (1), pp. 147-156.
Kimura, R. (1981), "Le dhyana chinois au tibet ancien", journal asiatique, 269
(1), pp. 181-192.
van der Kuijp, L.W.]. (1985), "Some Recently Recovered .Sa-skya-pa Texts,
A Preliminary Report" ,] oumal of the Nepal Research Centre 7, p p. 87-94.
van derKuijp, L.W.]. (l985a), "Miscellanea to a Recent Contribution on I to
the Bsam-yas Debate", Kailash 10 (?).
Meisezahl, R. (1985), Die Grosse Geschichte des tibetischen Buddhismus nach alter
Tradition, Sankt Augustin: VGH Wissenschaftsverlag .
. Mgon po rgyal mtshan (1980), ed. Sba bzhed, Beijing: People's Publishing
House.
Roerich, G. (1979), The Blue Annals, New Delhi: -Motilal Banarsidass.
SSBB Sa skya bka' 'bum, Sde dge edition, compo Bsod nams rgya mtsho, 15
Vols., Tokyo: The Toyo Bunko, 1968-69.
TGRB Sa skya Pal).Oita Kun dga' rgyal mtshan, Thub pa'i dgongs pa rab tu gsal
ba, SSBB 5, pp. Iff.
Tshe tan Zhabs drung (1982), Bstan rtsis kun las btus pa, Xining: Qinghai
People's Publishing House.
NOTES
l. For the available prints of, and commentaries to, this text, see D.
Jackson (1983:6-7) and (1983a: 4-5); for an additional commentary and a
cursive dbu med manuscript, see van der Kuijp (1985: 88-89).
2. On him and his life, see Dung dkar BIo bzang' phrin las (1981: 126
ff., 445 ff.), where he gives the alternative birth-date of 1122. He also mentions
that Tshal pa kun dga' rdo rje (1309-1364) had written his biography, but
that it was not available to him. See, furthermore, Roerich (1979: 711-715)
and 'Gos 10 tsa-ba's Deb ther sngon po, Smad cha, Chengdu: Sechuan People's
Publishing House, 1985, pp. 832-836.
3. I am inclined to accept the latter dates as several of his biographies
associate him with Sakyasrlbhadra who, having come to Tibet in 1204, appar-
ently took part in the ceremonies for Nyang ral's funeral; see Dargyay
(1979:101).
4. Despite recent reports to the contrary, I think it necessary to em-
phasize that Sa pal). never associates Hwa shang Mahayana with the actual
"debates". A complete listing of references to Sa Pal).'s notes on Chinese Bud-
dhism and Buddhists is provided in van der Kuijp (1985a:note 16).
5. See, for instance, the Rgya bod ming mdzod, Lanzhou: Gansu People's
Publishing House, 1979, p. 23. It is, however, not listed in Y.N. Roerich's
Tibetan-Russian-English Dictionary with Sanskrit Parallels, Issue 1, Moscow:
Nauka Publishers, 1983, p. 95.
6. See his Gso ba rig pa'i bstan bcos sman bla'i dgongs rgyan rgyud bzhi'i
gsal byed vaiq:urya sngon mallika, Stod cha, Lhasa: Tibetan People's Publishing
House, 1982 (Sde dge edition), p. 255. This passage consists of his comment
THE "BSAM YAS DEBATE"
153
to the Rgyud bzhi, Bshad rgyud, chapter twenty, Lhasa: Tibetan People's Publish-
ing House, 1982 (Sde dge edition), p. 67: dkar po sbal rgyab dkar po chig thub
dang II smug po chig thub la sogs de dang 'dra II. A garbled (?) version of these
two lines is found in Yuthok's Treatise on Tibetan Medicine, ed. L. Chandra, New
Delhi, 1968, p. 290 in the Ming don brda sprod roam lnga which omits dkar po
chig thub! The verse of the Rgyud bzhi is reproduced in Dil dmar dge bshes
bstan 'dzin phun tshogs' Bdud rtsi sman gyi roam dbye ngo bo nus pa ming rgyas
par bshad pa dri med shel phreng, Leh, 1983, p. 75. He glosses dkar po chig thub
by "a white spear-head" (dkar po mdung rtse). According to Tshe tan zhabs
drung (1982:276), Dil dmar dge bshes completed this work in 1840.
7. See, for instance, the recent Gso rig snying bsdus skya rengs gsar pa,
Lhasa: Tibetan People's Publishing House, 1974, pp. 194-195 and Dil dmar
dge bshes' text (see above note 6) pp. 257-258. Note too that 'Jam dpal rdo
rje in An Illustrated Tibeto-Mongolian Materia Medica of A.yurveda, ed. L. Chandra,
New Delhi, 1971, p. 146 also lists dkar po chig thub under the heading of
"potion" (thang sman) and remarks on the difficulty of establishing its precise
identification. This should be a matter of concern as he evinces a thorough
knowledge of the traditional repertoire of Chinese drugs.
8. This work is, however, not available to me. The information given
here is based on a chapter of this text which enjoyed separate circulation in
the mountainous regions of northern Nepal. It bears the title of Sman dkar
gyi lo rgyus .... Zur mkhar ba'i khyad chos, consists of two folia, and was filmed
by my friend Chr. Clippers of the Nepal-German Manuscript Preservation
Project.
9. An admittedly cursory perusal of several Dunhuang manuscripts
dealing with medicine has thus far not yielded the term dkar po chig thub.
10. See, for instance, the Rje phag mo gru pa'i dris lan in The Collected
Works of Sgam po pa bsod nams rin chen, Vol. 1, New Delhi, 1975, p. 472.
11. It occurs in his highly provocative Phyag rgya chen po'i lam mchog
mthar thug in the Gdams ngag mdzod, ed. Kong sprul blo gros mtha' yas, Vol.
V, New Delhi, 1971, p. 769. Later Sa skya pa scholarship has identified this
text as one of the sources for Sa skya Pal).Q.ita's critical remarks in his Sdom
gsum rab dbye.
12. Jackson (1982:93) has omitted the 'Ba bzhed (sic) from his translation.
The TGRG p. 25/4/1 reads: .. .'dir yi ge mangs pas ma bris te I which Jackson
renders as " ... (but) since I have already detailed much of this, I will write
no more." I think this should be understood somewhat differently. In this
passage, Sa pal). comments on several other sources for the aftermath of the
"debate" and declines to reproduce their readings. Hence, I understand this
statement to mean: " ... since it would get too wordy here (in my account), I
have not written (about them in detail)."
13. The Skyes bu dam pa roams la spring ba'i yi ge, SSBB 5, p. 33211/4 adds
"chronicles" (lo rgyus roams) to his list of sources for his version of the "debate",
and provides better readings for the three Bzhed-s: Rgyal bzhed, Dpa' bzhed (sic),
and 'Bangs bzhed.
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II. REVIEWS
The Bodymind Experience in Japanese Buddhism. A Phenomenological
Study of Kukai and Dagen, by David Shaner. Albany: State Univer-
sity of N ew York, 1985.
Comparative philosophy offers an author one of the most
promising and, at the same time, potentially perilous tasks. It
provides unique possibilities for insight and cross-cultural under-
standing, or alternatively, it may result in gross misrepresentation
or facile reductive comparisons. David Shaner in The Bodymind
Experience in Japanese Buddhism (one of the State University of
New York's Buddhist Series) carefully threads his way through
the comparative enterprise, while explicitly acknowledging its
methodological limitations. In this work the author is concerned
not so much with a strictly comparative study as such, as with
the hermeneutical possibilities that the phenomenological tradi-
tion has to offer for a study of two of the most outstanding
Japanese Buddhist thinkers, Kukai and Dogen.
The author begins with a fairly lengthy discussion of
phenomenology, emphasizing its applicability for comparative
philosophy. Phenomenology is particularly appropriate, accord-
ing to Shaner, because it is a methodology of "description exclu-
sively oriented towards introspection 'upon the axioms of the
experiential process" which is common to all mankind.
Phenomenology attempts to examine the structure of experience
that gives rise to and exists a priori to the noesis! noema, mind!
body split. Shaner then proceeds to outline a phenomenological
description of the experience of "bodymind" as it is "primordially
given" without any thetic positing whatsoever. Body and mind
are seen "to share an organismic process in which they are mutu-
ally dependent" because "phenomenologically speaking, one can
never experience an independent mind or body."
It is Shaner's contention that this is similar in structure to
the paradigmatic state of enlightenment articulated by both
Kukai and Dogen throughout their work. Kukai expressed the
non-duality of body! mind in the phrase "enlightenment in this
very body," and based his teachings for attaining it on practices
that focused on sensual phenomena, such as marfqala, mantra,
and mudra, in order to aid the practitioner to gain an awareness
of immediate experience free from discursive thought. Dagen
155
taught that to attain understanding one must "cast off (the con-
cepts of) body and mind" and centered his teaching on the inces-
sant practice of 'just sitting," which he considered the very activity
of enlightenment itself, free even from the concept of "attaining
enlightenment." In Shaner's interpretation, it is the experience
of "bodymind" free from thetic positing based on the noesis /
noematic split that characterizes both Kiikai's and Dogen's de-
scription of the enlightened mode of awareness. This strongly
parallels the phenomenological analysis.
Thus phenomenology provides a powerful hermeneutical
tool for us to gain an appreciation of these Japanese Buddhist
thinkers. It also transposes their philosophies directly into the
framework of current discussions of the "mind-body problem."
This is of particular relevance now, the author suggests, because
the antimony ... [is] irresolvable unless the Platonic
or Cartesian assumptions about 'what is mind' and 'what is body'
are reconsidered."
The main shortcoming of this work lies with phenomenology
itself. Shaner takes great pains to qualify HusserI's exaggerated
truth-claims for phenomenology and to explicate his own presup-
positions, but it often seems that we are then left with little more
than an "appropriate" hermeneutical strategy, since the whole
of the study lies "within the limits of the phenomenological
epochi" outside of any attempt at evaluating its ultimate validity.
But then, this is a problem that the phenomenologists' and their
critics have thrashed out in greater detail elsewhere.
By applying phenomenology hermeneutically the author is
able to skillfully explicate often tradition-bound concepts and
doctrines and extract vital and (contemporaneously) relevant
meaning from them. If it is any measure of success, his work
prompts one to return to the original texts themselves (a la Hus-
serI's cry "to the things themselves") to reread them in a new,
and perhaps brighter, light.
William Waldron
A Catalogue of the sTog Palace Kanjur, by Tadeusz Skorupski. Bib-
liographia Philologica Buddhica, Series Maior, IV. Tokyo: The
International Institute for Buddhist Studies, 1985. xxvi + 367 pp.
Tadeusz Skorupski teaches in the School of Oriental and
African Studies, University of London. His previous publications
REVIEWS 157
include The SarvadurgatipariSodhana Tantra (Sanskrit and Tibetan
texts with English translation, 1983) and The Cultural Heritage of
Ladakh (with D.L. Snellgrove, 2 volumes, 1977, 1980). The pres-
ent work describes a manuscript set of the Tibetan Kanjur pre-
served ip the Tog (or sTog) Palace near Leh, Ladakh (cited in
this review as the Tog MS). More precisely, it catalogues a photo-
offset reproduction: The Tog Palace Manuscript of the Tibetan Kan-
jur, published by C. Namgyal Tarusergar (Leh, Ladakh: Sherig
Dpemzod, 1975-1980) in 109 unbound Tibetan-style volumes
(not including the dkar chag, or Tibetan table of contents, pub-
lished separately). These 109 volumes contain 811 separate texts.
This reproduction can be found, for example, in the libraries of
the University of Wisconsin (Madison) and Indiana University
(Bloomington), and is available in microfiche from the Institute
for Advanced Studies of World Religions (Stony Brook, New
York).
Skorupski's introduction discusses the Tog MS, its contents
and possible origin, the Leh reproduction, and the organization
of the catalogue. The catalogue itself describes the 811 texts,
which are arranged in twelve sections and by volume numbers.
Each main entry gives a text number, the Tibetan title, the
Sanskrit title (given for all but 113 texts) or Chinese title (given
for 4 texts), le'u or bam po subdivisions if known, the text's col-
ophon if it has one, and the folio, side, and line on which the
text begins and ends. Five indexes (Tibetan and Sanskrit titles,
and Tibetan, Sanskrit, and Chinese names of translators) refer
back to the text numbers. The title indexes also give cross-refer-
ences (by text number) to the Derge, Peking, and Ulan Bator
Kanjurs. Skorupski used three main sources for this catalogue:
the dkar chag mentioned above, the Leh reproduction itself (in
which each volume begins with a table of contents), and an inde-
pendent dkar chag, contained in the collected works of Jaya
PaI).Qita, describing the older Them spangs ma Manuscript Kanjur
from which the Tog MS may ultimately derive. The historical
importance of the Tog MS merits a lengthy comment.
The Kanjur (Bka' 'gyur) and Tanjur (Bstan 'gyur) , the col-
lected Tibetan translations of Indian Buddhist sutras and siistras,
are, along with the Piili and Chinese Tripitakas, our most impor-
tantso4rces for the Buddhist Canon. Beginning with the Yung-Io
Kanjur: (1410), numerous blockprint or xylographic editions of
the Tibetan Canon have been printed in China and at various
places in Tibet and Mongolia. Many of these are represented in
Western collections, in modern printed or microform reproduc-
tions, and in catalogues. The (Ch'ing Dynasty) Peking editions
are well known through the Japanese reprint and the Otani
Catalogue; the DergeKanjur and Tanjur through the Tahoku
catalogue and the Nyingma and Rumtek reprints. The Narthang
and Cone editions also include both Kanjur and Tanjur; the
Narthang Kanjur and Cone Tanjur are available in microfiche.
Lithang, Urga, and Lhasa editions of the Kanjur alone are now
attested by exemplars and dkar chags. Other xylographs are now
known only from references. Ideally anyone editing a Tibetan
canonical text should use all available testimonia. The number
of research tools to assist such work is steadily increasing.
Beside these xylographic printed editions, the Tibetan Kan-
jur also survives in complete manuscript sets. The Kanjur must
have existed as a manuscript collection before being printed, but
the importance of surviving MSS as evidence for this Ur-Kanjur
is only now becoming clear. Early 20th century Western scholars
knew only two MS Kanjurs: the Berlin MS (formerly in the Royal
Library, now in the Staatsbibliothek Preussische Kulturbesitz)
and the London MS (in the British Museum). As it happens, the
Berlin MS closely resembles the printed Peking editions, and the
true position of the London MS was not understood until recently
(see especially Helmut Eimer in Zentralasiatische Studien 15, 1981).
Other MS Kanjurs are now known. The manuscript preserved
at the Tayo Bunko in Tokyo was described by Kojun Saito (in
Japanese) in Taisho Daigaku Kenkyu Kiyo 63 (1977). Geza Bethlen-
falvy has published A Hand-list of the Ulan Bator Manuscript of the
Kanjur Rgyal-rtse Them Spans-ma (Budapest: Akademiai Kiad6,
1982). Finally, there is the Tog MS, its published reproduction,
and the present catalogue. It now seems that the London, Tokyo,
Ulan Bator, and Tog MSS form a separate recension of the
Kanjur and a separate body of textual evidence. The history and
inter-relationships of the various Kanjurs is being clarified, partly
in the introductions to catalogues and handlists, partly in articles
(especially recent works by Helmut Eimer and Yo shiro Imaeda).
Skorupski's introduction contributes to this discussion.
Skorupski presents evidence for the history and contents of
the Tog MS, and speculates about its position among the various
Kanjurs, particularly the manuscript versions. The Tog MS was
copied from a Bhutanese MS, being completed before or shortly
after the death of King Nyi rna Rnam rgyal of Ladakh (reigned
1691-1729). No direct evidence is known for the nature and
antecedents of this Bhutanese original. Skorupski cites Eimer's
suggestion that the Tog MS belongs to the recension stemming
from the Them spangs ma MS Kanjur, preserved in the Dpal 'khor
chos sde at Gyangtse (Rgyal rtse) in Central Tibet. Although the
REVIEWS 159
chronological evidence for this Gyantse MS is contradictory, in-
dicating either the 14th or the early 15th century, it may preserve
a version of the Kanjur predating the oldest known printed edi-
tion (1410). The Them spangs ma redaction survives in presumed
copies (the Tokyo, Ulan Bator, and, possibly, London MSS), and
in Jaya PaI)Qita's description of its contents. It is not clear whether
the original MS survives in Tibet. According to Skorupski the
Tog MS differs, in structure and contents, from all other Kanjur
editions, but is closest in both regards to this Them spangs ma
recension. After considering the few differences between the
Tog MS and the Them spangs ma tradition, Skorupski endorses
the suggestion that the Bhutanese source of the Tog MS was
based on the Them spangs ma Kanjur.
Merely comparing the number of volumes in different Kan-
jurs signifies little; a different number of volumes may contain
the same texts, while the same number of volumes contains dif-
ferent texts. Kanjurs can be compared by their arrangement into
sections, the arrangement of texts within sections, and the vari-
ation in their readings. The last criterion is beyond the scope of
a catalogue; the first two, though not conclusive, can be persua-
sive in combination. The Tog MS differs from other Them spangs
ma representatives in the overall order of its sections. Skorupski
explains this by the attempt in the Tog MS dkar chag to relate
the sections of the canon to a theory of different proclamations
of the Buddha's teaching. However, the order of sections in the
Ur-Kanjur has not been established. Kanjur editions differ widely
in this regard, as may be seen from the examples listed in the
following table. Kanjurs contain some or all of the following
sections: Vinaya (A), Prajnaparamita in 100,000 (B), 25,000 (C),
18,000 (D), 10,000 (E), and 8,000 (F) Stanzas, Short Pra-
jnaparamita Texts (G), Avamtamsaka (H), Ratnakuta (I), Miscel-
laneous Sutras 0), MahaparinirvaI)a Sutra (K), Tantra (L), Old
Tantras (M), Kalacakra Commentary (N), and DharaI)l Collection
(0). Sections lacking in particular editions mayor may not be
included in other sections.
Tog Palace MS:
Ulan Bator MS:
London (Eimer):
Narthang Kanjur:
Lhasa Kanjur:
Derge (Tohoku):
Cone Kanjur:
Peking (Otani):
A, B, H, I, C, D, E, F, G,j, K,L.
A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I,j, K, M, L.
L,j, K, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, A
A, B, C, D, E, F, H, I,j, K, L.
A, B, C, F, D, E, G, I, H,j, K, L.
A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I,j, K, L, M, N, O.
L,j, B, C, F, G, D, E, I, H, A.
L, B, C, D, E, F, G, I, H,j, A.
e watermark
The Tog MS also differs in its arrangement of texts within
the Vinaya and Tantra sections. For the Vinaya the Tog MS
follows the order of the printed Kanjurs against that of the Them
spangs mao It seems as if the first five Tantra texts of the Them
spangs ma have been moved in the Tog MS, so that its Tantra
section begins with the Laghusamvara Tantra. Skorupski relates
this to the preference for that Tantra by the 'Brug pa Dkar brgyud
pa sect of Bhutan and Ladakh. Otherwise, the Tog MS closely
agrees with the Tokyo and Ulan Bator MSS. According to
Bethlenfalvy (1982) the Ulan Bator MS contains 834 texts to the
811 of the Tog MS. This discrepancy largely disappears when
we note that the Tog MS lacks the "Old Tantra" section, which
contains 19 texts in the Ulan Bator Kanjur.
These MSS together differ from the printed Kanjurs, not
only in sectional arrangement, but also in containing texts lacking
elsewhere. Skorupski lists 15 texts absent in the Peking and Derge
canons, and 12 texts which are found in the Tanjur in the Derge
and Peking editions. The Tog MS places these 12 among the
Miscellaneous Sutras. They are of various types, including a stotra
(Tog MS no. 44), several avadanas (nos. 310, 311, 319), and three
abhidharma texts: the Karma-, Loka-, and Kara7!a-prajnapti (nos.
286, 313, 316). All four editions of the Tanjur place these last
three texts at the beginning of the Abhidharma section of the
Sutra Commentaries, before Vasubandhu's Abhidharma-kosa-
kiirika. They seem to be the only pre-Vasubandhu Abhidharma
texts known in Tibetan, and the only Abhidharma texts ever
found in Kanjurs. If the MSS preserve a tradition predating the
printed Kanjurs, this shows an earlier stage in the process of
classifying texts into the "Buddha's Word" and the siistras of his
Indian successors. Further study is needed of other points of
agreement in arrangement and readings between the Tog MS
and the Them spangs ma tradition, against the other Kanjurs. This
will help to clarify the history of the Kanjur and its recensions.
These and other fascinating peculiarities of the Tog MS now
lie open to our scrutiny, thanks to Dr. Skorupski's excellent
catalogue. I have only two criticisms. Skorupski has "normalized"
the spelling of Tibetan and Sanskrit text titles, giving what he
considers important variants in footnotes. This normalization is
necessary to allow cross-reference to other editions; Sanskrit titles
especially are often quite garbled in Tibetan transcription. How-
ever, it would have been useful to give as well all the actual
readings of the Tog MS, since even simple misspellings can be
textual evidence for relationships between editions.
REVIEWS
161
A more serious problem is the lack of a comparative table
of Kanjurs by text number. Such a table is included, for example,
in Bethlenfalvy (1982) giving text numbers of the Ulan Bator
MS, in order, in the first column, with corresponding text num-
bers for six other editions in successive columns. Such a table
reveals a great deal of information at a glance. Skorupski does
give cross-references, by text number, to the Derge and Peking
editions, but these are given (twice) in the two title indexes. This
format is very cumbersome if, for example, one wants to see
whether a string of texts occurs together and in the same order
in various editions. If not summarized in a table, these cross-ref-
erences should have been given under the main entry for each
text. Space saved in the indexes could be better employed to
include variant titles.
These criticisms are minor, detracting little from the value
of this catalogue, which is otherwise easy to use, well organized,
and clearly printed. Specialists in the history of the Kanjur will
appreciate the historical information in the introduction. Any
scholar interested in using the printed or microfiche reproduc-
tions of the Tog Palace Kanjur should welcome this catalogue,
which makes the 109 volumes and 811 texts ofthe Tog MS really
accessible for the first time. We can all join Dr. Skorupski in the
hope, expressed in his introduction, that he will do further work
on this Kanjur. The catalogue itself should encourage textual
and comparative studies of specific texts.
Reliable and usable catalogues and bibliographies are indis-
pensable research tools for Buddhist Studies. Dr. Akira Yuyama,
Director of the International Institute for Buddhist Studies (for-
merly the Reiyukai Library), merits the gratitude of Bud-
dhologists for giving us many such tools through his own publi-
cations and by publishing works of other scholars in the Institute's
Bibliographia Philologica Buddhica. The Tibetan Canon is particu-
larly well represented in this series. Most of these publications
are available for the cost of the postage. A list of titles can be
obtained from the International Institute of Buddhist Studies,
5-3-23 Toranomon, Minato-ku, Tokyo 105, Japan.
Bruce Cameron Hall
162
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
Early Buddhism and Christianity: A Comparative Study of the Founders'
Authority, the Community, and the Discipline, by Chai-Shin Yu. Delhi:
Motilal Banarsidass, 1981. xv + 241 pp.
The comparative study of Buddhism and Christianity pre-
sented in this work revolves around some considerations that are
deemed to be of special relevance in understanding their charac-
ter as "two of the greatest and most influential of world religions."
Doctrinal matters have been the major focus of many a previous
endeavour in the scholarly juxtaposition of Buddhism and Chris-
tianity. This study, which seeks instead to examine the authority
of the founders, their respective communities and the discipline
enforced within them during their early formative stages (cover-
ing, that is, a period of about a century from the demise of the
Buddha and Christ) is in some ways novel in scope, and offers
much that should interest Buddhist scholars and comparativists
alike. Indeed, it is Yu's belief that Early Buddhism and Christianity
may not only contribute to a better understanding of the three
specific topics examined, but that in so doing it will also help
explain the continuing vitality and success of the two religions .
. The main contents of this book are arranged in three parts:
the first two parts are separate examinations of early Buddhism
and early Christianity in relation to the study's focal concerns;
the third part is a brief retrospective review of the similarities
and differences exhibited by the two traditions. Yu displays here
a good grasp of the positions taken by these very different reli-
gions, clarifying their basic assumptions and emphases with the
help of the classic nomenclatures adopted in their respective
scriptural writings (especially those rooted in the Buddhist Vinaya
texts in the original Pali and the later Chinese redactions on the
one hand, and the Greek versions of the Christian Gospels and
Epistles on the other). His comparison itself is rather brief, and,
as we shall see shortly, it has other limitations as well. Still, con-
sidered overall, the scholarly resources brought to bear on this
complex inquiry (which include a notable use of modern Japanese
expository literature on Buddhism) are rather impressive. Its
conclusions might indeed help students of Buddhism in particu-
lar recognize how their tradition stands vis a vis another tradition
as religion rather than as mere philosophy.
The body of Yu's investigation yields a rich array of clarifi-
cations and insights regarding early Buddhism, early Christianity
and their relationship to one another as viewed from a com-
parativist perspective. Buddhism, significantly, receives most at-
tention (pp. 1-127), and the discussion here could even be viewed
REVIEWS
163
as a compressed exposition of the Buddha's authority and role
within the samgha and the disciplinary structures that sustained
the early Buddhist community. Some of the points made at this
level are noteworthy. The Buddha's authority is traced to his
realization and the proclamation of the Dhamma; and he is rep-
resented as having a virtual "ruling" function within the samgha.
Though the Buddha was thus the "king of the Dhamma," his
authority, it is argued, was never personal or absolute; for most
practical purposes religious discipline (sila-vinaya) was the basis
of the unity and the integrity of the samgha. Indeed, Yu rightly
underscores the importance of the latter factor, and dwells at
some length on the character and scope of this discipline, which
in sustaining the samgha has finally helped to preserve and diffuse
the Buddha's Dhamma. Srla is identified as the ethics of Buddhist
culture, vinaya the mores of communal living elaborated as an
explicit body of rules (pii(imokkha) encompassing prescriptions and
prohibitions. It is interesting to observe that democratic values-
equality, individual liberty and decision making procedures through
voting-were upheld within the salvation-oriented society of monks
and nuns; and Yu makes several references to places in the Vinaya
Pi(aka where these admirable characteristics come to light (pp. 78,
80, 85). Though doctrinal matters receive only "secondary consid-
eration" here, Yu has on occasion insightfully highlighted the way
in which doctrine impinged on communal life: the Buddhist stress
on the "Middle Path," for example, was in his view a basis for
avoiding partisanship and promoting cooperation. All in all, the
Buddha, Dhamma and samgha emerge as interrelated cardinal influ-
ences that together shaped Buddhism into a religion and finally
made it a belief system of world scope.
With a shift in focus to early Christianity, the basic emphases
of the book change. Jesus proclaimed himself as God incarnate
in fulfillment of scriptural prophecies; and his authority, Yu
points out, was the ultimate mandate for the existence of the
Christian Church. Though Jesus' immediate disciples were wit-
ness to his miracles and the resurrection, his messianic mission
and authority as Christ had to be accepted on faith, not reason.
And the Christian ecclesial community in turn is represented as
a response to God's saving act through Christ: Paul, it is observed,
indeed viewed the Church as the "Body of Christ" (p. 171). Chris-
tian unity was finally sustained by a common recognition of Christ
as Savior; and since this recognition was deemed to be a trans-
forming experience, Yu sees it as a basis of moral discipline
within Christianity. Still, drawing attention especially to the Gos-
pel of St. Matthew and Paul's Epistles, he has rightly noted that
Christianity too affords scripturally elaborated norms of conduct.
The concern for communal discipline evident in early Christian-
ity sometimes parallels Buddhism's stress onsZla-vinaya, but there
are differences as well, and these together with other, larger
issues that arise in comparing the two faiths are addressed in the
third and concluding part of the book.
Here, Yu identifies Buddhism and Christianity as "two great
missionary world religions, taking their origin from two of the
greatest figures in world history, with many parallel ideas of
ethics, communitarian structure and life style, ideas that manifest
striking similarities in secondary characteristics, although in the
primary ones they would appear to be vastly different" (p. 195).
Some of the more prominent similarities and differences that
are brought to light in the course of the comparison presented
at this level are noteworthy. As regards the founders' authority,
the two religions are held to be similar in that both the Buddha
and Christ were kings" who led communities of disciples
and proclaimed "saving" messages that later assumed the status
of universal religions. These communities in turn played equally
crucial roles in preserving and diffusing the respective messages
of their founders; and they were, moreover, held together by
disciplinary rules that reflected the soteriological orientation so
much in evidence in both early Buddhism and early Christianity.
However, the differences that separate these two religions, ac-
cording to Yu, are equally, if not more, striking. The authority
ascribed to the Buddha and Christ had different roots: the au-
thority of the former stemmed from the timeless Dhamma which
he only realized and proclaimed, while that of the latter is trace-
able to the believer's faith in him as the Son of God. The Buddhist
samgha was mainly united through the dhamma-vinaya, with the
Buddha playing the role of omniscient guide and preceptor; the
Christian Church, in contrast, viewed Christ as the ground of its
unity. Finally, with respect to discipline itself, the Buddhist
samgha, as a monastic community, was organized (and indeed
functioned) on the basis of a well elaborated code encompassing
prescriptions, prohibitions and procedures for enforcing discip-
line and settling disputes. Little of this, strictly speaking, is paral-
leled in early Christianity, where discipline, finally, had its fons
et origo in the faith-oriented commitment to God in Christ and
continuing guidance through the Holy Spirit.
This book as a whole can be said to further Buddhist-Chris-
tian dialogue, and, as already indicated, its discussions also serve
to illuminate certain issues that are important for the understand-
ing of Buddhism as a religion. However, a critical reader is likely
REVIEWS
165
some .deficiencies (both methodological and otherwise)
In. Early Buddhzsm and Christianity. For one thing, insights stem-
from behaviora! sC.iences could have been usefully
apph.e? to clanfy the orgamzatIOnal features of the religious com-
mumtIes .that developed under the inspiration of these two reli-
gions. Some aspects of their discipline (especially the prohibi-
tions) appear to invite psychological comment, while the proce-
dures for conflict resolution laid down in the Buddhist vinaya
perhaps deserve closer scrutiny because of the democratic spirit
that they tend to manifest. There also appears to be a shortcoming
in Yu's treatment of Christianity. He fails to come to grips in a
serious way with the trinitarian view of God, though this doctrine
is important to an understanding of the spiritual underpinnings
of the early Church. His actual comparison, on the other hand,
is rather brief and overly compressed, and the criss-crossing con-
vergences and divergences that tend to be brought to light at
this level are sometimes not carefully sorted out. Indeed, on
occasion, the differentiations are drawn onthe basis of consider-
ations that hardly could be called edifying-the Buddha and the
samgha, for example, are represented as not partaking of the divine,
and nirvana is depicted as a goal that could be contrasted with heaven.
Naive or rathel' awkward judgements of this nature might perhaps
have been avoided through a deeper awareness of the distinction
between the "homologues" and the "analogues" that come to the
fore in juxtaposing religions (Cf. Gustav Mensching, Structures and
Patterns of Religion, 1978). In any event, there is one less overt (yet
interesting) area of contact between Buddhism and Christianity
that is largely overlooked here, faith: though it was certainly not
as crucial to Buddhism as it was to Christianity, still,some dimen-
sion of faith might have entered into the disciples' attitude
towards the Buddha, and its nature no doubt deserves some
probing. It would be well to remark in conclusion, however, that
these various shortcomings do not seriously undermine the value
of Yu's inquiry, which, to repeat, has much to offer to the student
of Buddhism, the comparativist and all those who seek to further
Buddhist-Christian dialogue.
Vijitha Rajapakse
The Heart of Buddhist Philosophy: Dinniiga and Dharmak'irti, by Amar.
Singh. New Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal; 1984. xvi + 168 pp.
Appendices, glossary, bibliography and indices.
The purpose of the work under review is to demonstrate
that two of the key figures in the history of Indian Buddhist
philosophy, Diimaga and Dharmakirti, were members of .the
Sautrantika school rather than of the Vijnanavada or any other
Mahayana school. In evaluating any treatise setting out to defend
such an hypothesis, it is important to take into consideration the
following three issues: 1) To what extent would certainty concern-
ing scholastic affiliation of these two philosophers affect our in-
terpretation of their wo:r:ks? 2) To what extent is it possible to
decide the matter of scholastic affiliation given the evidence now
available? 3) How well does the treatise being examined marshall
evidence for the conclusion that it advances? Let us examine
each of these issues in turn.
Would knowing for certain that Dirinaga and Dharmakirti
belonged to any given school influence our interpretation of
their works? Dr. Singh clearly answers this question strongly
affirmatively, stating (p. 16) that if his thesis is correct "then the
history of the Buddhist Indian philosophy from 5th century on-
ward has to be re-written." But before agreeing that the scholastic
affIliation of Dirinaga and Dharmakirti is a matter of such radical
importan<:e, we must ask exactly what it means to say that a giv.en
philosopher belongs to a particular school. In the context of
Indian Buddhism does scholastic affIliation imply that the
philosopher so affIliated held unswervingly to a given set of well-
defined sectarian dogmas, or does it imply merely that he tended
to adhere to certain intellectual trends? Is saying that Dirinaga
was a Sautrantika, in other words, analogous to saying that some-
one is,for example, a Roman Catholic of the Cistercian Order?
Or is it more analogous to saying that someone is part of the
humanist movement? Insofar as there were rigidly defined sects
within Indian Buddhism, these sects tended to be defined accord-
ing to the body of vinaya rules under which their members were
ordained. Knowing the set of vinaya rules to which Dirinaga was
bound might be interesting in itself, but it would hardly shed
any light on his investigations into epistemology or indeed into
any subject matter other than vinaya itself. And so I assume that
far more illuminating than knowing a thinker's sectarian mem-
bership would be some determination of the relatively loosely
defined intellectual movement to which the thinker belonged.
REVIEWS
167
But here we must proceed most cautiously. For, despite the ef-
forts of later Indian and Tibetan academics to classify Buddhist
doctrines into a highly artificial schema of four schools-two
Hinayana and two Mahayana-with well-defined dogmatic boun-
daries, IQ.dian philosophical schools were constantly evolving.
Particularly in the highly creative period to which Vasubandhu,
Dinnaga and Dharmak"irti belonged, it can practically be said
that each of the men whose works survive down to the present
day was a school unto himself. The differences between Dinnaga
and Dharmak"irti are so many as to make their common member-
ship in a single "school" a very abstract membership indeed, one
based on little more than the fact that both philosophers ad-
dressed approximately the same set of issues. Like any other
abstraction or generalization, the matter of the "school" of Va-
subandhu, Dinnaga and Dharmakirti will inevitably fail to apply
perfectly to any particular member of the shcool or to any par-
ticular text that is deemed to represent the school. In short,
knowing to which school of thought Dinnaga belonged is only
of very limited value in helping us understand what, for example,
he had in mind when he used the term To settle a
problem of how to interpret a specific passage or how to construe
a particular technical term, we must set stereotypes aside al-
together and engage in the very complex task of textual analysis.
And so, supposing that Singh can in some sense prove that
Dinnaga was a Sautrantika rather than a Yogacara, a reasonable
response would be: "So what?"
Can one prove scholastic affiliation? Clearly, if schools are
fluid intellectual trends rather than sects with fixed dogmatic
boundaries, the task of assigning someone to a school is relatively
arbitrary. Even deciding whether an author was a Mahayanist
not is not an easy matter in the absence of some such reliable
criterion as explicit references to texts that only a Mahayanist
would cite as authority. That KamalaSlla is a Mahayanist is easy
to determine, because he makes explicit issue of the fact and he
cites sutras that non-Mahayanists presumably rejected as spurious.
But Dinnaga and Dharmak"irti do not citesutras at all as authority.
What, if any, sutras they read while not writing works on logic
must be regarded as a matter of almost pure conjecture, for it
is a dearly held doctrine of the Buddhist epistemologists that
sutras do not have an authority independent of reason anyway.
As can be seen from all that I have said up to here, I am at
the outset rather dubious about both the significance and the
possibility of anyone's establishing Dinnaga's and Dharmakirti's
168 JIARS VOL. 9 NO.2
scholastic affiliations. Let me nevertheless make an assessment
of Singh's particular arguments. His arguments are, unfortu-
nately, rather chaotically presented and leave the reader confused
as to what is being said and towards what end. But f6cussing on
Singh's treatment of one or two issues may be of value in giving
some indication of the overall value of his work.
The central argument of Singh's first chapter, "The Sau-
trantika Tradition," can be epitomized as follows. Since "Diimaga
is the follower, commentator and defender of. Vasubandhu's
philosophical standpoint" and "Dharmakrrti is the follower, com-
mentator, and defender of Diimaga," if one can determine Va-
subandhu's school one will know the school of Diimaga and
Dharmakrrti as well (pp. 45-46). If any of these three thinkers
had changed his philosophical loyalties during his lifetime, or if
there has been a failure of a disciple to be consistent with the
views of his master, the Brahmanical critics would have been
unlikely to "overlook" such a weak point of an opponent, i.e., .
his inconsistency (p. 33). Therefore, Singh argues, we can be
fairly sure that Vasubandhu, Diimaga and Dharmakrrtiall held
unswervingly to the same philosophical conclusions. Working on
this supposition, Singh devotes most of his first chapter to deter-
mining the philosophical affiliations of Vasubandhu. His point
of departure is Erich Frauwallner's now well-known and widely
accepted theory that there were two Vasubandhus, but, as we
shall see, Singh's account of Frauwallner's two-Vasubandhu
hypothesis is somewhat garbled.
According to Singh, Frauwallner "in 1951 put forward a
thesis that there were two famous philosophers by the name of
Vasubandhu. One was the Vijiianavadin Vasubandhu, Asarpga's
brother, and the other was the Sautrantika Vasubandhu who
remained Sautrantika till death." This thesis was attacked by P.S.
Jaini in 1957 and Alex Wayman in 1961 and updated by Schmidt-
hausen in 1967. All of these scholarly advances, says Singh, then
led Frauwallner to amend his thesis in 1969, stating in this new
version that the Sautrantika Vasubandhu also converted to Vijiia-
navada and wrote the Vijiiaptimatratasiddhi. Singh, convinced that
Frauwallner's 1951 thesis had been correct in the first place (p.
37 and p. 42), sets out to criticize those scholars who putatively
led Frauwallner to change his views for the worse. Before looking
at some of those arguments, however, let me set the record
straight on the development of Frauwallner's two-Vasubandhu
theory. In 1951 Frauwallner did indeed argue that the elder
Vasubandhu was Asailga's brother and composed a number of
REVIEWS
169
key Mahayana works, including a commentary to Maitreyanatha's
Madhyiintavibhiiga, the Dasabhumikasiistra and others. And in that
same work Frauwallner did indeed argue that the younger Va-
subandhu wrote the Abhidharmakosa. But Frauwallner did not
commit himself to saying that Vasubandhu II died a Sautrantika.
In fact, he said that he was not yet in a position to decide whether
the Vijnanavada-oriented Vijiiaptimiitratiisiddhi was written by the
elder or the younger Vasubandhu.
1
In 1956 (not 1969), before
the two-Vasubandhu theory had been criticized by the scholars
that Singh mentions and tries to refute, Frauwallner stated the
opinion that the younger Vasubandhu had composed the
Vijiiaptimiitratasiddhi.
2
In 1957 he added three logical works to
the list of Vasubandhu II's writing.
3
In 1961 he reiterated his
opinion that Vasubandhu II had written the Abhidharmakosa and
"in his old age had completely changed over to Mahayana" and
written both the Virnsatikii and the TririzSikii- Vijiiaptimiitratiisiddhi.
4
In other words, Singh is incorrect in saying that "Frauwallner
has altered his previous thesis for one which seems less satisfac-
tory" (p. 37), for Frauwallner never did express the thesis that
Singh attributes to him as his first. The only alteration in
Frauwallner's account was from being undecided to being de-
cided on the authorship of the Vijiiaptimiitratasiddhi and the logical
works. Singh's carelessness with secondary sources, exemplified
here in his treatment of Frauwallner, occurs frequently in his
book.
Singh is also careless in his translation of Sanskrit. To give
one example, he offers are the Vaitulika people
who do not follow reason (yukti) and the scriptures, but are arro-
gant regarding their logic (sophistry)," (p. 25) as a translation
for tadanye viidino na yuktyiigamii-
bhidhiiyinah, tarkiibhimiiniis teo Through a serious misconstrual of
the syntax of the sentence, Singh fails to arrive at a more correct
translation, which might be: "Other theorists, namely the
(or Sautrantikas), Vaitulikas and Personalists (Pud-
galavadins), do not invoke reason and scripture; they have a high
regard for speculation."
And equally careless IS Singh's formulation of argument.
For example, in the context of trying to explain away the tradic
tional attribution of several Mahayana works to Diimaga, namely
the PrajiiiipiiramitiipirvJiirtha and Yogiivatiira, Singh argues that
the language of the former "clearly reveals the fact that this is
not the work of the logician Diimaga or any other logician. It is
apparently a work by a poet who does not know anything about
170 nABS VOL. 9 NO.2
.J
logic or epistemology" (p. 35). Moreover, the Prajiiii-
piiramitiipin,rf,iirtha is full of Mahayana terminology that is not to
be found in the Pramii7}asamuccaya (p. 34). Therefore, Singh con-
cludes, these two Mahayana works cannot have been 'written by
the author of Pramii7}asamuccaya. If the suppositions behind this
argument were granted, of course, we should also have to con-
clude that Diimaga's Pramii7}asamuccaya, in which there are virtu-
ally no references to abhidharma terminology, could not have
been composed by the author of the Abhidharmakosamarmad'ipa,
which is virtually free of the technical terminology of pramii7}a.
But this would thoroughly undermine Singh's entire thesis that
Diimaga must belong to Vasubandhu's school on the grounds
that Diimaga wrote a commentary to Abhidharmakosa.
In his second chapter Singh examines the views of a number
of modern scholars on the scholastic affiliation of Diimaga and
Dharmaklrti. The arguments of Stcherbatsky, Malvania, N.C.
Shah, Vetter, C.D. Sharma, Satkari Mukerjee, Sailk:rtyayana, Das-
gupta and Warder are reviewed and criticized. Since there have
been so many conflicting conclusions reached, all apparently
based on an examination of the available evidence, it is clear that
if a definitive answer is to be found to the question of which
school the Buddhist logicians followed, that answer must be based
either on new evidence heretofore unavailable to modern schol-
ars or on a masterfully careful and impartial investigation of all
available evidence. Singh provides us with no new evidence on
this whole matter, but rather tries to reexamine all the evidence
considered by other scholars and to show that it points ineluctably
to the conclusion that both Diilnaga and Dharmaklrti were un-
swervingly Sautrantika in t h e ~ r commitments. Prima facie this
seems like a Quixotic task, since everyone, whether they conclude
that Diilnaga and Dharmaklrti are Sautrantikas or Vijfianavadins,
concedes that these philosophers founded a new movement, gen-
erally called nyiiyiinusiirin (based on reasoning) to contrast it with
iigamiinusiirin (based on scripture). And so if Dharmaklrti is a
Sautrantika, he is in any case far from being an uncritical con-
tinuator of the early Sautrantikas or Dar.'!tantikas whose views
are outlined in the Pali Kathiivatthu or in the fragments of works
by Kumaralata, et al., whose views are discussed, sometimes favor-
ably and sometimes unfavorably, in the Abhidharmakosa. The very
topics upon which those pre-Diilnaga Sautrantikas expressed dis-
tinctive views are not topics that come up in Diilnaga's
Pramiir]asamuccaya or in the works of Dharmaklrti. As for post-
Dharmaklrti accounts of Sautrantika views, when they conform
to the positions argued by Diilnaga or Dharmaklrti, the confor-
REVIEWS
171
mity is due to the simple fact that the authors of those accounts
took DharmakYrti as the paradigmatic Nyayanusrin Sautrantika.
But other authQrs took DharmakYrti as the paradigmatic
Nyayanusarin Vijiianavadin. So whom should we believe: Vaca-
Udayana and others who refer to Dharmaklrti as a
Sautrantika, or VinHadeva, Manorathanandin and others who
refer to Dharmakirti as a Vijiianavadin? To side with either with-
out compelling reasons seems arbitrary, and a more productive
approach might be to begin with the acknowledgment that
Diilllaga is just Diilllaga and that he is approaching a new set of
issues with a relatively fresh mind, while Dharmakirti is an ingeni-
ous thinker who builds a significantly new edifice upon the foun-
dations of Diilllaga's work. But rather than taking the approach
just outlined, Singh tries to show why Vacaspatimisra is to be
believed while VinItadeva and Manorathanandin are guilty of
distorting the facts. For example on pp. 76-77 Singh says:
Vacaspati categorically called Diimaga and Dharmakirti Sautrantikas.
When Diimaga and Dharmakirti called themselves Y ogacara Vijiianava-
dins is not to be traced in any of their writings, Some Vijiianavadin com-
mentators have created this confusion. Why does Vacaspati present them
as opponents of Y ogacara? Nowhere have they expressed "their own opin-
ion" of belonging to Yogacara. There is no internal evidence, either in
the work of Diimaga or of Dharmakirti, that they have called themselves
Y ogacarins or Sautrantika-Y ogacara.
Singh does not explain, however, why the absence of Dhar-
mak"irti's saying explicitly "1 ,am. a Vijiianavadin" shows more
conclusively that he was not a Vijiianavadin than the absence of
his saying "1 am a Sautrantika" would show that he was not a
Sautrantika. Perhaps the absence of explicit self-identification
shows simply that DharmakTrti himself did not regard his schol-
astic affiliation as relevant to what he had to say. The effort to
place all Buddhist philosophers into the rather flat architectonic
of two Hinayana and two Mahayana schools was, after all, the
concern of academics who lived several centuries after Dharma- ,
k"irti's time, and it may be quite anachronistic to treat the issue
as a concern of Dharmaklrti himself. And so the testimony of
such later academics as Vacaspati, Udayana, Parthasarathi and
numerous Tibetan authorities, all of whom were heavily influ-
enced by the artificial four-school schema, should be treated with
this possible anachronicity in mind. Above all, both Diilllaga and
Dharmak"irti should be allowed to speak for themselves as to their
scholastic predilections. Being allowed to do so, they both, as
Singh himself acknowledges, remain silent.
172
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
In summary, the specialist in Buddhist epistemological
theory is unlikely .to find new insights into that theory in Singh's
book. Nor is the beginner in this area likely to be able to use the
book as a reliable guide through the secondary literature on the
subject, for the author is far too ready to sacrifice accuracy in
order to make every scrap of evidence appear to work towards
his conclusion. So convinced is Singh of his conclusion at the
outset that one can scarcely imagine his admitting that any fact
serves as counterevidence to it, the result being that the book is
more a polemical tract than a work of scientific scholarship. If
the book succeeds in anything it is to show, albeit inadvertantly,
the bankruptcy of treating the philosophers under discussion as
spokesmen of doctrinaire schools rather than treating the schools
as heuristic categories into which individuals, who differ consid-
erably from one another, can provisionally be placed for
pedagogical purposes.
Finally, there is a false claim about the author himself that
should be rectified. He is identified on the title page as the holder
of a Ph.D. from the University of Toronto, and the dustjacket
specifies that the Toronto Ph.D. was awarded in 1978. No Ph.D.
has ever been awarded by the University of Toronto to Amar
Singh, who in 1979 underwent his last unsuccessful attempt (after
previous failures) to defend the dissertation on which the book
now being reviewed was based.
Richard P. Hayes
NOTES
1. Erich Frauwaliner, On the Date of the Buddhist Master of the Law Vasubandhu.
(Rome: Istituto Italiano per il Medio ed Estremo Oriente, 1951), p. 56.
2. Erich Frauwallner, Die Philosophie des Buddhismus (Berlin: Akademie-Ver-
lag, 1958, c. 1956), p. 351. Frauwallner writes: "Ausserdem sind unter dem
Namen Vasubandhu zwei kleinere Werke erhalten, die beide den Namen
Vijnaptimatratasiddhi/:I ... fiihren, eines in zwanzig Versen (Virpsatika), das an-
dere in dreissig (Trirpsika). Die aussere Uberlieferung lasst keine Entscheidung
ZU, ob diese beiden Werke von Vasubandhu, dem Bruder Asangas stammen,
oder von Vasubandhu dem Jiingeren, dem Verfasser des Abhidharmakosa/:I.
Meiner Ansicht nach ist Vasubandhu der Jilngere ihr Verfasser, doch kann diese
schwierige Frage hier nicht weiter erortert werden, ... [Trirhsika) gilt als das
letzte Werk Vasubandhus, der gestorben sein soli, bevor es ihm moglich war,
den beabsichtigen kommentar zu schreiben. Es enthalt eine Dogmatik der Yogac-
ara-Lehre in Knappster Form."
3. Erich Frauwallner, "Vasubandhu's Vadavidhi/:I." Wiener Zeitschriftfilr die
Kunde Sild- und Ostasiens 1:104-146. See pp. 104-105.
4. Erich Frauwallner, "Landmarks in the history of Indian logic." Wiener
Zeitschriftfilrdie Kunde Sild- und Ostasiens 5: 125-148. See especially pp. 131-132.
REVIEWS
173
Shobogenza: Zer: by Dagen, translated by Thomas Cleary.
Honolulu: Umversity of Hawaii Press, 1986. vii + 123 pp.
This volume presents the translation of thirteen fascicles of
Dagen's masterw?rk an introductory essay on Dagen's use
of language and ItS relatIOn to meditation in light of traditional
Zen practice, as well as prefatory comments (and in sorpe cases,
annotations) to each fascicle. Cleary is one of the most noted and
prolific translators of Zen and Far Eastern Buddhist texts; his
previous publications include works by Dagen and the Sata sect.
In this case, the material presented has become increasingly
familiar. All of the fascicles have appeared in English at least
once, some of them two or more times, and particularly important
and famous pieces such as "Genjakaan" and "Uji" are available
in a half-dozen versions. Yet, Dagen's creative but idiosyncratic
Sino-J apanese writing is generally recognized as being so complex
and multi-dimensional in its interweaving of novel approaches
to traditional Buddhist doctrine that there will continue to remain
room for some time for new interpretations if they are faithful
to the text and supported by classical and modern Japanese schol-
arship. So, an important question in evaluating this volume is,
What does Cleary'S approach to translation and broad back-
ground in Mahayana and Zen contribute to the subtle and pro-
found philosophical maze of the Shabagenza?
According to the introductory material (in the Foreward,
Introduction and jacket notes), there are three main rationales
for this translation: first, it attempts to preserve "the form as
well as content, on, the premise that both are functional parts of
the original design, which is arresting and demands close atten-
tion" (p. 20); second, its commentary and notes help make "acces-
sible to a wider audience a Zen classic once considered to be the
private preserve of Sata monks and Buddhologists ... including
readers from various fields in the sciences and humanities" Uack-
et); and third, it has "selected [fascicles] for their emphasis on
perennial issues in Buddhist learning and action." (Foreward)
The last of these points is probably the strongest. Cleary
uses his considerable expertise in Chinese Buddhist texts to il-
luminate the development and forms of expression of Dagen
Zen. His references in the introduction to other Zen writings,
such as those by Gyazan and Wanshi, underscore the influence
of Chinese thought on Dagen without losing sight of the unique-
ness of Dagen's approach. Cleary convincingly argues that "a
great deal of Dagen's writings for contemplation in Shobogenzo
would fall into the general category of complex Man, and can
be used with great effect in aiding the mind in the practice of
fluid integration of multiple perspectives" (p. 8). In some cases,
the connections may be overstated. For example, the interpreta-
tion of the elusive opening paragraph of "Genjakaari" in terms
of the traditional Chinese Sata doctrine of "five stages" (goi)
could be valid, but it does not account for Dagen's explicit criti-
cism of the goi standpoint in certain sections of the ShObi5genzo.
Yet, Cleary's work may help initiate further research into rela-
tively unexplored territory and reverse the tendency to interpret
Dagen in light of his mentor, Ju-ching, while overlooking other
significant Chinese influences.
The rationale concerning form in addition to the content
of the original material, however, is somewhat problematic. Since
the Shobogenzo is written in a conventional prose form-and not
in an unusual or unexpected poetic or calligraphic form (al-
though it contains references to Zen poems as well as a poetic
quality in its composition)-the question of capturing "form"
would not seem to present an issue for the translator. What
Cleary basically means by form is that "passages and phrases
which the original text keeps in Chinese, as well as certain tech-
nical terms which seem to stand out for emphasis, have been
italicized in the English." (p. 20) The practice of highlighting the
Chinese references is valuable, since Dagen's writing frequently
consists of reinterpretations or rewritings of early Chinese
sources. But most translations, at least the careful ones, do set
the references off by quotation marks or indentation. Perhaps
Cleary is more thorough than some because he italicizes each
word from a source passage that is mentioned in Dagen's com-
mentary. The real difficulty in this issue arises from the fact that
both the Chinese references and the technical terms are high-
lighted in exactly the same way. In the original text, these so-
called technical terms are never identified as such. Thus, doing
so here entirely reflects the translator's own judgments, which
are not explained and are also not a matter of the text's form.
In addition, this practice is not always followed consistently. Many
of the important doctrines, such as shinjin-datsuraku (casting off
or shedding body-mind) and kikan (pivotal working), are not
italicized; some that are, including kyoryaku (passage), are not
explained in the commentary. Perhaps a comprehensive glossary
would have been a more effective means of indicating the special
concepts in Dagen's thought.
Thus, the key question remains, How does the translation
fare in terms of content? This is generally a thorough and accu-
REVIEWS
175
:ate jOb: which is often quite successful in conveying the full
of Dagen's highly suggestive writing. Several of the
translations, such as and "Kuge," are particularly
noteworthy for capturmg the tone and essence of Dagen's
thought. In other cases, however, the translation is not as metic-
ulous or as certain as one might hope. An examination of the
crucial "Genjakaan" fasicle (pp. 32-35), which appears first in
most Japanese editions, reveals a number of problems. First, the
translation seems too literal in the phrase, "enlightenment on
top of enlightenment," by which Dagen means "enlightenment
beyond enlightenment" or "self-surpassing enlightenment." In
a related context, Cleary translates the term (ja orue) as "progress
(or transcendence)" (p. 30). On the other hand, the rendering
of the central doctrine of ju-hOi as "normative state" (which is
not italicized) appears to take too much liberty. Dagen's term,
which is usually translated more literally as "abiding dharma-pos-
ition" (Cleary's rendering in "Dji") refers to the concrete manifes-
tation of the interpenetrating currents of life and death, akin to
Nishida's logic of place (basha) of absolute nothingness. "Normative
state" not only loses the temporal significance underlying the spatial
metaphor, but seems to overlook the point that the type of
philosophical perspective articulated by Dagen is descriptive of the
ontological condition of reality as it is, rather than offering an
axiological recommendation for how things should be.
While the problem in the above points may be a lack of
familiarity with the standard Japanese commentaries, another
difficulty is the awkward rendering of Dagen's philosophical writ-
ing. For example, the final sentence in the well-known passage
in "Genjakaan" concerning the relation between self-forgetful-
ness and the casting off of body-mind is translated as: "There is
ceasing the traces of enlightenment, which causes one to forever
leave the traces of enlightenment which is cessation." (p. 32) This
version seems to carry a threefold redundancy: ceasing the traces
causes one to leave the traces which is an act of ceasing. In
Dagen's writing, however, the two clauses build upon and en-
hance one another as well as the metaphor of shedding. Thus,
an alternative version would be: It [casting off body-mind] is the
cessation of the traces of enlightenment, and this traceless en-
lightenment is perpetually renewed."
Another example of awkward or misleading translation is
in the title of several fascicles. For instance, "Genjakaan" is ren-
dered as "Issue at Hand," which may be an interesting but con-
troversial attempt to capture in contemporary idiom Dagen's
176
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
unique sense of spontaneity. As Cleary explains, genjokoan means
the "manifestation" or "present actuality" of the Zen kOan. But
it does not seem likely that the phrase "issue at hand" will clarify
for the reader that actuality should not be understood in the
ordinary sense of "ready-made" or simply "in front of me."
Rather, genjokOan suggests. the primordial realization of the prior-
ity and immediacy of here-and-now experience without the im-
pediments of presupposition and conceptualization. The prob-
lem with Cleary's rendering in the title is reflected by the fact
that he translates genjo as "manifestation" or "actualization" when
it is used in the body of the fascicles. Similarly, "Zenki" translated
as "The Whole Works" may not convey the unity of the totality
(zen) and dynamism (ki) of unobstructed and interpenetrating
temporal reality suggested by the original terms. One case in
which Cleary's approach does seem effective is the translation of
"Immo" (Skt., tatM) as "Such." By leaving off the substantive
suffix in "suchness," which most translations use, he illuminates
Dagen's expression of concrete experience without abstraction.
The rationale concerning the book's appeal to non-specialists
in the sciences and humanities is also questionable. Certainly
Dagen's thought can and should continue to be explored in terms
of disciplines such as psychology, philosophy and aesthetics for
its views on time, nature, language, ethics, etc., in addition to
religious attainment. However, these issues are not directly ad-
dressed in the introduction or commentary. Nor do the fascicles
selected necessarily reflect an interest in interdisciplinary
dialogue. For example, the philosophical and literary richness
of "Bussha," and "Muchu-setsumu" are not
included, while several of the fascicles that are focus almost ex-
clusively on meditative realization. In this context, the title is
rather misleading since this volume contains only a small portion
of the entire ShObOgenzo Oapanese editions range from 75 to 95
fascicles), with no mention of how the fascicles were selected or
put in sequence in relation to the original complete work.
In summary, this is a handy and generally reliable translation
if used with some caution, but it probably only accomplishes part
of the goals it sets.
Steven Heine
REVIEWS
177
Studies in Ch'an and Hua-yan, edited by Robert M. Gimello and
Peter N. Gregory.The Kuroda Institute: Studies in East Asian
Buddhism No. l. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1983.
This book of five articles introduces new research on Ch'an
and Hua-yen Buddhism by expanding upon Japanese and
French research.
The first two articles describe Chinese Ch'an in Tibet.
Jeffrey Broughton, "Early Ch'an Schools in Tibet," is a sum-
mary of research on the Ch'an from Szechwan that influenced
Tibet in the 750s to 780s A.D. The Ching-chung Ch'an of the
Korean monk Mu-sang (Wu-hsiang) was the first to reach Tibet.
It was soon followed by the competing Ch'an of the Pao-t'ang
"school" ofWu-chu. Therefore when the Nothern Ch'an master
Mo-ho-yen arrived in Tibet, he had to compromise with Pao-t'ang
doctrine and adopt some of its pseudo-history in order to gain
a hearing among the Ch'an followers he was asked to represent.
There is also some discussion of a third Ch'an lineage in
Tibet, a Pure Land-style Ch'an. (For further details see
Tsukamoto Zenryu, Ti5chuki no Ji5dokyi5, Kyoto, 1976.) The article
concludes with hints for further research which may reveal the
contribution Ch'an made to the rDzogs-chen "school" which pre-
serves many Ch'an works in Tibetan translation.
Translations from the Li-tai fa-pao chi and Tsung-mi's Yiian-
chiieh ching ta-shu ch'ao illustrate the history and doctrines of
Szechwan Ch'an, and translations from Tibetan texts are used
to outline the early history of Ch'an in Tibet. Luis O. Gomez, in
"The Direct and the Gradual Approaches of Zen Master
Mahayana: Fragments of the Teachings of Mo-ho-yen," edits
and translates the sayings and works preserved in Tibetan in
scattered fragments of the Ch'an master Mo-ho-yen, who took
part in a dispute between Chinese Ch'an teachers and Indian
Madhyamika teachers in Tibet in the last half of the eighth cen-
tury. An attempt is made to reconstruct the original texts and
sort them into five genres. Not all the fragments attributed to
Mo-ho-yen are included, but this is the most comprehensive work
to date.
In the analysis of the texts, the author suggests that Mo-ho-
yen's doctrinal position was that of an extreme non-dualist who
thought practice came after enlightenment. Consequently Mo-
ho-yen denied the value of means to that enlightenment, yet he
still had to allow for a means for people of lesser abilities. This
admission probably gave his opponents grounds for criticism.
178
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
There is a glossary of Tibetan terms and their Chinese equi-
valents based on a comparison of the fragments in Tibetan with
the Chinese of the Tun-wu Ta-sheng cheng-li chueh which depicts
Mo-ho-yen's side of the dispute (for which it may have been
profitable to consult Hasebe Koichi's edition from the Pelliot and
Stein Chinese manuscripts, the "Toban Bukkyo to Zen", Aichiga-
kuin Daigaku bungakubu kiyo no. 1). Gomez in fact suggests that
terminological ambiguity was one source of misunderstanding
between the Chinese and Indian parties. Recently R.A. Stein has
begun work on the Tibetan translations of Chinese and Indian
vocabulary ("Tibetica Antiqua", BEFEO 72, 1983) which sheds
more light on the subject. For example, lun and mdo (Gomez p.
87, notes 23 and 39), or gzhung and gzhun (Gomez p. 140) are
interpreted slightly differently by Stein (pp. 175-6 and p. 179
respectively) .
John McRae, in "The Ox-head School of Chinese Ch'an
Buddhism," shows that the Ox-head (Niu-t'ou) "school" did not
claim an independent lineage beginning from Fajung, a sup-
posed pupil of Tao-hsin, the so-called fourth Ch'an patriarch,
until after Shen-hui formulated the notion of a patriarchal
lineage in the early eighth century. This they did to connect
themselves with the increasingly popular Ch'an movement. The
Ox-head even claimed to be a different and yet superior lineage
because they transcended the dispute between Northern and
Southern Ch'an initiated by Shen-hui. The early members
claimed for the lineage could not have been a succession of master
and disciples. They were contemporaries who lived in the same
area of south China, and they practiced a meditation influenced
by San-Iun doctrine rather than Ch'an.
McRae analyses Ox-head doctrine primarily through the
Chueh-kuan lun which he suggests has some parallels with the
Platform Sutra in its use of thesis, antithesis and synthesis. He
agrees with Yanagida Seizan's theory that the Platform Sutra was
compiled by the Ox-head "school". However, it also contains
elements of Shen-hui's doctrine and the pseudo-history of Hui-
neng which the Chueh-kuan lun does not.
Biographies are given for all prominent members of the
lineage, especially those who in later times forged the lineage.
This is a thought-provoking article, but it does have some
mInor errors:
p. 236 note 1: Shao-shih is the name of a mountain, not a cave.
p. 239 note 16: Fa-jung and Ching-chueh were probably not of
related clans as Fajung was from Jun-chou in Kiangsu and
REVIEWS
179
Ching-chueh was a member of the capital territory Wei clan.
p. 188: WasJu-hai an "ordained student" ofHsuan-su? Hsuan-su
died on 21st Dec. 752, but Ju-hai only became a monk in
North China in 755 after having served in the civil service
in Ch'eng-tu. There is no evidence that earlier he was in
the lower Yangtze region where Hsuan-su was. The Ma-su
referred to in the stele may not refer to Hsuan-su.
p. 193: The Emperor who invited Fa-ch'in to court in 789 must
be Te-tsung, for Tai-tsung died in 780. Fa-ch'in did not die
in 792, but on 13th Feb. 793.
The final two articles deal with the practical aspects of Hua-
yen.
Peter N. Gregory's "The Teaching of Men and Gods: The
Doctrinal and Social Basis of Lay Buddhist Practice in the Hua-
yen Tradition" concerns the adoption of a preparatory, karmic
moralism, made up of the five Buddhist precepts for the laity,
as the lowest level of Buddhist teaching by the Ch'an and Hua-yen
master Tsung-mi (780-841) in his Yuan-jen {un (Inquiry into the
Origin of Man). By practising these precepts it was claimed one
could be reborn as a man or a god. Originating in the Northern
Wei forgery of c. 460 A.D., the T'i-wei Po-li ching, the teaching
of men and gods was a co-ordination of the five Buddhist precepts
with Chinese cosmology and the five Confucian virtues. Tsung-
mi instead co-ordinated these precepts and virtues with the
Buddhist cosmology of the states of rebirth.
Tsung-mi gave Confucianism and Taoism a provisional
status as paths leading to morality, but only Buddhism contained
the ultimate teaching that leads to Buddhahood. So while Tsung-
mi was more syncretic and less partisan than his Hua-yen pred-
ecessors in that he adopted Confucianism into his scheme, he
also criticised Confucianism and Taoism by saying that their ideas
of Heaven, Tao, tzu-jan and yuan-ch'i could not account for the
origins of evil, or provide an "ontological" basis for morality,
both of which Buddhism did by means of the doctrines of causa-
tion and karma.
Tsung-mi was attempting to blunt the Confucian and Taoist
attacks on Buddhism by shifting the grounds of the dispute from
partisan social and racist polemics to a philosophical debate. His
inclusion of Confucian values was also a response to the growth
of lay Hua-yen Buddhist societies in his time. The history and
background to these societies is outlined and the relevant section
from the Yuan-jen lun is translated.
Robert M. Gimello, in "Li T'ung-hsuan and the Practical
Dimension ofHua-yen," attempts to take Hua-yen studies beyond
its traditional "sectarian" confines by showing that the obscure
and "unorthodox" Hua-yen layman Li T'ung-hsuan (653-730)
probably had more influence on non-Hua-yen thinkers than the
mainstream Hua-yen philosophers.
At first Li was known only in Shansi as a miracle-worker,
but by the Sung dynasty his ideas were used widely by Lin-chi
lineage Ch'an monks, and as a result his works spread to Korea
and Japan where they were used by such important figures as
Pojo Chinul (1158-1210) and Koben (Myoe Shonen, 1173-1232).
The Korean Son (Ch'an) monk Chinul used Li's idea that
the initial arisal of faith is the sudden understanding of one's
own inherent buddhahood which is the culmination of the stages
of the bodhisattva. This faith then is the practical equivalent of
the potential for buddhahood. Chinul, who was trying to har-
monize the contending Hua-yen and Ch'an of Korea, found Li's
concern with the path of spiritual cultivation useful in his en-
deavour.
Koben, aJapanese Shingon monk, found Li's explanation that
the light emitted by the Buddha Vairocana would induce faith in
the contemplator an aid in interpreting his own visionary experi-
ences as well as in explaining the Shingon Mantra of the Buddha's
Radiance. Using these authorities, Koben created the Samadhi of
the Buddha's Radiance, asserting that it was effective in the Period
of the Termination of the Dharma even for beginners.
These monks thought that Li T'ung-hsuan had made the
abstruse doctrines of Hua-yen available to ordinary practitioners
by providing simpler and more experiential methods of practice
for entering the ineffable state Hua-yen theory tried to describe.
For Chinul and Li T'ung-hsuan's thought see also Hee-Sung
Keel, Chinul: The Founder of the Korean Son Tradition (Harvard Ph.D.
1977, published Berkeley 1984); Shim Jae-ryong, The Philosophical
Foundation of Korean Zen Buddhism: The Interpretation of Son and Kyo
by Chinul (Univ. of Hawaii Ph.D. 1979, published T'aegaksa, Seoul,
1981) p. 22 ff.; and Sung Bae Park, Buddhist Faith and Sudden
Enlightenment (SUNY Press, Albany 1983) chapter 15.
John Jorgensen
REVIEWS 181
The Tantric Distinction: An Introduction to Tibetan Buddhism, by
Jeffrey Hopkins, edited by Anne C. Klein. London: Wisdom
Publications, 1984. pp. 176. Glossary. Softcover $8.95.
Over the past several years, Jeffrey Hopkins has given us a
small library of excellent scholarly expositions and translations
of works of the dGe lugs pa Prasangika Madhyamika school of
Tibetan Buddhism. This latest effort is a popular work based on
a series of lectures explaining the tenets of that school. Not being
a scholarly work in that it lacks the scholarly apparatus of foot-
notes and references, it is by Hopkins' allowance, a "personalized
account" of a scholar who is also a practitioner.
The first part of the book is a variation of the classical pre-
sentations of impermanence, salllsara, and nirvaI)a. Hopkins
gives us a fresh and novel look at these subjects, though the
language throughout the book is at times tortured, needing more
extensive editing. The second part gives a neat overview of much
of his other work. In many ways it could be looked upon as a
Reader's Digest version of his other works, for he nicely condenses
into these few pages much of what he exposes at length elsewhere.
This work could be seen as a primer of dGe-Iugs-pa thought and
so could be profitably read. We are, however, confronted with
a serious dilemma that may face all scholar-practitioners. Hop-
kins' scholarly works can clearly be seen as being expository-that
is, he objectively puts forth the traditional views as they are tra-
ditionally held. Can, however, a Western scholar attempting to
write from totally within a tradition, as Hopkins does here, bal-
ance his personal commitment to the tradition with the more
objective dictates of a scholarly approach? There seems to be no
simple answer to this question. Though Hopkins' method raises
this issue, he shows no cognizance of it in this book.
Reading this book brings the issue strongly to the fore. This
becomes painfully evident when Hopkins attempts to set forth
the background (chap. 8) for the Consequence, Prasangika
school. Here 'we might expect to find conflict between the schol-
arly approach and that of the practitioner; however, it seems a
choice has already been made. Hopkins states, "Buddha is said
to have taught doctrines on which both the Low Vehicle and the
Great Vehicle tenet systems are based" (p. 85). In the context of
what follows the "is said" is not the expression of somebody else's
opinion; it is an expression of what Hopkins regards as fact.
Hopkins goes on to state, "But he [the Buddha] did give teachings
on which the four tenet systems rely, and these remained intact
until about forty years after his death. At that time the Great
Vehicle teaching went underground or, as some say, to the coun-
try of the gods, dragons (naga), and so forth .... Nagarjuna
brough the Great Vehicle teaching back to India, using books
from the land of the Nagas" (p. 85).1 In other words, Hopkins
holds the view that the Buddha did in fact teach the Great Vehicle
in some form that would be recognizably distinct from the
"Hinayana." Hopkins offers no elaboration, nor is any alternate
history provided, nor does it seem likely that Hopkins is restating
Conze's evolutionary statement: "There is in Buddhism really
no innovation, but what seems so is in fact a subtle adaptation
of pre-existing ideas.,,2 This traditional history is the only history
Hopkins gives as the only explanation for the way things are in
Buddhism, and it is, by the standards of historical-critical
methodology, nothing more than a pious fiction.
If Hopkins' ignoring the hard won results of historical
studies is a problem, his strident polemical stance is no less so,
particularly since this is a book for a general or non-scholarly
audience. We shall let Hopkins speak here. (Please note this is
only a very small sampling, and no injustice has been done to
context.) Footnoting the first mention of the Low Vehicle, he
states that Low Vehicle is an appropriate description of these
non-Mahayana schools, and he goes on to state that it is possible
to fall from the Great Vehicle by being born in Sri Lanka "where
Low Vehicle Buddhism is widespread" (p. 90). "This means that
according to the Consequence [Prasangika] School the Low Veh-
icle schools do not even know how to present a path of liberation
because the Low Vehicle tenet systems incorrectly describe the
method for becoming a Foe Destroyer [arhat]. In this sense the
Consequence School is exclusive. In another sense, however, it
is inclusive because it teaches that all the great Foe Destroyers
of the past [Anand a, Sariputra, etc.?] cognized the same most
subtle emptiness that the Consequence School describes" (p. 111).
"The Buddha described by Low Vehicle tenet systems is not a
Buddha at all according to the Consequence School, for he is
depicted as cognizing a very coarse type of emptiness. Such a
being has not even attained liberation from cyclic'existence .... "
(p. 123). Finally, we face these rhetorical questions: "If you love
people and wish to help them and understand the compatibility
of emptiness and appearance, why would you seek your own
liberation from cyclic existence? In other words, why would any-
one be a Low Vehicle practitioner" (p. 161)?
REVIEWS 183
In reading this book, it is apparent, though not always clearly
so, that we have here two Low Vehicles: The non-Mahayanist
Low Vehicle schools and the Low Vehicle of the Mahayana, par-
ticularly of the Consequence school. The latter are those who do
not or cannot develop bodhicitta, but who realize the Consequence
school emptiness. Their situation is bad enough, but it is the
former group that is in real trouble. These unfortunates, among
whom Hopkins counts the modern Theravadins, are so bootless
they "do not even know how to present a path of liberation,"
and, following a bogus Buddha, they are incapable of any genuine
attainment. Hopkins can, in all likelihood, point to one or another
exegetical source for most, if not all, of his statements, but why
put forward this polemic? It is highly doubtful that his polemic
helps the general reader understand Buddhism, which is Hop-
kins' stated purpose. There are, after all, modern Tibetan ex-
positors of their -tradition, such as Geshe Rabten, who rarely
resort in their writings to such extended and vociferous polemics
as those that are so painfully present in Hopkins' book. There
is no pressing need to take a polemical stance, and given the
present state of knowledge, there is no reason not to put the
Tibetan, or any Buddhist, polemical tradition into a historical
perspective. There is, however, no attempt in this book at genuine
historical contextualization, and thus there is nothing to prevent
this work from being dismissed as a divisive and polemical secta-
rian tract. This is unfortunate, given the quality of Hopkins'
expository works and his undoubted philological learning. There
is no reason that the needs of the practitioner cannot be served
by scholarship, and there is no need for the scholar-practitioner
to do an injustice to the store of historical, philological, or
philosophical knowledge that is available.
Bruce Burrill
NOTES
1. This is a reiteration of an exposition already given in Hopkins'
Meditation on Emptiness; it is based on the traditional doctrinal history,
Jam-yang-shay-ba's Great Exposition of Tenets. London: Wisdom Publica-
tions, 1983. p. 358.
2. Edward Conze, Thirty Years of Buddhist Studies (Oxford: Bruno
Cassirer, 1967) p. 75.
184
JIARS VOL. 9 NO.2
Jeffrey Hopkins Replies:
My scholarly roots are to be found in classes with the an-
thropologist Clyde Kluckhohn and the psychologist Henry Mur-
ray (Social Sciences 4) and the literary critics Reuben Brower
and Richard Poirier (Humanities 6) at Harvard in 1958. Kluck
hohn and Murray opened me to cultural relativism and
psycholanalysis and Brower and Poirier opened me to what was
then the New Criticism, a capacity to step into the setting of
literature as if in a common social situation. All four professors
were very person-oriented, appreciating the significance of
human response and human meaning.
I admit to sometimes taking too much for granted these
perspectives of cultural relativism (though not of the nihilistic
variety-I am almost over that!) and emphasis on personal mean-
ing. I have sometimes been surprised to find that, when I speak
from within a system, a few people think that I have assumed
that system. I understand the tension that such a voice creates
because in my senior year at college T.R.V. Murti gave a course
on the classical Indian systems of philosophy (which I audited),
and we in the class were struck with his ability to move from
system to system describing each in such a vivid way that we felt
it was his own. A considerable way into the course, we often
conjectured, before class, about what system was his, some people
trying to force the matter one way or another. His method of
exposition caused us to take more seriously each system, and the
tension of wondering what he himself thought brought energy
to the classroom.
In this particular case, however, it should be clear from the
preface of The Tantric Distinction that I wrote the book not as a
Buddhist but as someone attempting, by making it more personal,
to give a glimpse of a system of another culture as a living
phenomenon. The account is "personalized" not in the sense
that everything said in it is a matter of my own belief (though it
does contain personal anecdote) but in the sense that what are
often taken as merely dry abstractions are treated as of human
relevance. In the preface, I make reference to Wilfred Cantwell
Smith's description of a movement in inter-cultural dialogue to
the point where "we all" are talking with each other about "us."
As I say:
This progression means not that we necessarily adopt another
culture but that we arrive at the point where it can be seen as a
configuration of our human spirit.
REVIEWS
185
I include within this rubric not just the more socially salutary
features of other cultures, such as techniques for developing
compassion, but also the most unsalutary, such as the attitudes
that gave rise to murderous Nazism. I feel that it is important,
no matter how hard it may at first seem, to view even these as
configurations of our human spirit, something that my human
spirit could manifest under conducive circumstances. (As Jung
said, most theory is subjective confession, and thus the theory
that I am advancing here may be just a confession of the fluctu-
ations of my own spirit!) The cultural determinist may find it
hard to take such an open and playful attitude toward "others'"
cultures, but such serious play, essential to philosophy and
mathematics, is also helpful in religious and theological studies.
As Mr. Burrill himself points out, the specific section on the
history of Great Vehicle teachings that he sees as evincing my
own convictions is ,prefaced by a distancing "is said," since I find
it difficult to put on the hat of even prete riding to hold that
Sakyamuni Buddha said everything that traditional histories say
he did. I, of course, either accept the contemporary critical his-
torical scholarship on such matters or have a hunch that it pres-
ents what is more likely the case, given the tendency in these
traditions to reform history in order to make sectarian points in
even more ingenious ways than we do (e.g., kLong chen rab
'byams, who in many ways is to the rNying ma order of Tibetan
Buddhism what Tsong kha pa is to dGe lugs pa, is said by at
least one dGe lugs pa lama to have become a dGe lugs pa in his
very next lifetime!)
Must one say "it is said" at the beginning of every sentence
on traditional history or on positions of Indian sages? It is as-
sumed.
My prime interest is in telling a story; remember my literary
roots. I do recognize that some persons do not bring the same
perspective to my work as I do, and thus it may be necessary to
make my position, especially on historical matters, clearer. At
the University of Virginia after a lecture on traditional cosmology,
a student asked, "Do you really believe the world is flat?"! I have
wondered what made him vulnerable even to consider that I
might think such.
The second part of the book is explicitly concerned with
following out the implications of the differentiation between the
sutra vehicle and the tantra vehicle set forth by the late fourteenth
and early fifteenth century scholar, Tsong kha pa. That this
section is presenting Tsong kha pa's opinion (1) is clear from
the sources given on the part title page, (2) is announced in the
186
JIABS VOL. 9 NO.2
first paragraph, and (3) is structurally obvious throughout the
entire section from my use of a list of thirty-one points drawn
from Tsong kha pa's exposition of the topic.
Tsong kha pa's argument revolves around understanding
that Prasangika-Madhyamika, as he interprets it, presents the
only valid view through realization and cultivation of which cyclic
existence can be overcome. He argues, explicitly and in detail in
several of his works, why this is philosophically so, drawing out
the consequence that liberation from cyclic existence cannot be
attained through the views of the other schools of tenets. It may
turn out that the real drama here is to be found in the sociological
need for group distinctiveness, couched in this case in philosoph-
ical exclusivity, but we cannot pass off the entire argument until
we investigate its many issues.
His arguments that liberation from cyclic existence cannot
be achieved without the view as described in Prasangika-
Madhyamika apply to philosophical positions of the Theravada
school, which posit selflessness only with respect to persons and
not with respect to other phenomena; thus, it would have to be
said that from Tsong kha pa's point of view liberation could not
be attained merely through realization and cultivation of the
selflessness set forth by the Theravada school. Tsong kha pa
makes many claims to having delineated a view of emptiness in
Prasangika-Madhyamika that not only differs in its profundity
and power from that of other schools but also differs from its
interpretation by other great masters in Tibet. For anyone in-
terested in exploring philosophical and theological claims and
for anyone interested in an accurate portrayal of Tsong kha pa's
estimation of the emptiness of inherent existence, it is necessary
to delineate this exclusivity.
Mr. Burrill, in the interests of sectarian harmony within
Buddhism, feels that the presentation of these distinctions is
necessarily polemical, and he would have me by-pass the issue.
He advises that, instead, I should follow the example of certain
contemporary dGe lugs pa scholars who, in his experience, do
not present Tsong kha pa's exclusivistic claims. Not only would
such skirting of central issues do an injustice to the history of
dGe lugs pa philosophical discourse but also I would have to
forsake my own philosophical interests in exploring Tsong kha
pa's claims, for I would have to reduce a presentation of dGe
lugs pa views on emptiness to something to which all contempo-
rary Buddhist orders could agree. To do what he suggests would,
for me, amount to intellectual dishonesty.
REVIEWS 187
Mr. Burrill seems to assume that J am a dGe lugs pa Bud-
dhist. Let me merely say that when, about ten years ago, a Western
monk told me that during the ordination ceremony the Dalai
Lama advised the Westerners becoming monks not to think of
themselves as dGe lugs pas, I was struck with a sense of amaze-
ment at what it might mean for a Westerner to be a dGe lugs
pal Such a possibility had never even occurred to me. It, there-
fore, is at once amusing and bewildering to be accused of being
a dGe lugs pa polemicist.
If _Buddhist and Christian scholars can meet in theological
encounters, explaining their different philosophies and benefit-
ting from it, I would think that philosophically oriented Bud-
dhists could benefit from exchanging views on the nature of
cyclic existence, the means to overcome its root, and so forth,
without having to hide from or paste over the implications of
exclusivity. As long as the attitude of the participants is to probe
the structure and implications of their systems within the spirit
of homo ludens, inter-sectarian harmony should be improved,
especially since so many Buddhists call for investigation and
analysis and not mere adherence to dogma. Central to my method
is the development of an attitude of vigorous play with the con-
cepts of a system within an attitude of suspended judgement.
Bruce Burrill Replies:
Hopkins' response clarifies what he vaguely stated in his
preface, but it does not change my criticism of his book. He is
correct in pointing out that it is a powerful didactic method to
speak in the voice of the system one is expositing, but without
an objective reference, how do we distinguish the statements of
one who, for didactic reasons, speaks as a dogmatist from the
statements of one who is a dogmatist? Would not the effect of
these statements be the same? Other than his vague statement
in his preface, there is no sens"e in this book of a stepping back
from the material to give us an objective reference. The last line
of Hopkins' response about vigorously playing with concepts
"within an attitude of suspended judgement" is quite telling. The
suspended judgement is not the suspension of the judgements
the dogmatist may make of a competing system, for Hopkins
plays that role well; it is the historical and philosophical judge-
ment of the scholar that is suspended. Let us not forget that this
work is not-meant for the scholar who would have the background
for this; rather, this book, published by a sectarian press, is di-
rected to Joe and Jane Dharma from the local Tibetan center
who view Hopkins-rightly or wrongly-as a Buddhist and a
Buddhist scholar, and they are probably not going to know that
what Hopkins states, for example, about the Theravada school
is at best problematic. These readers are given what amounts to
sectarian editorializing that goes far beyond the straightforward
exposition of his scholarly works. Maybe it is only in the sense
of "play" that the Hopkins' statements are presented, but that is
where the book fails, for we are not given the tools for distinguish-
ing between the one playing at being a dogmatist and the one
who is a dogmatist. If one is directing a book to a general audi-
ence, then why continue the MahayanalHlnayana debate without
giving the reader the tools for some sort of unbiased judgement?
Hopkins is not being asked to ignore Tsong ka pa's exclusivity,
but to contextualize it historically and philosophically. I have to
end by saying that my sympathies are with Hopkins' student:
"Do you, Professor Hopkins, really think the world is flat?"
IV. NOTES AND NEWS
Tibetan Text Processing System
A new Tibetan text processing system has been developed
for creating reproduction-quality Tibetan typesetting with an
IBM-PC or compatible computer and certain dot matrix printers.
The Tibetan characters were fashioned after models taken from
a wood block edition of the Buddhist Sutras printed in Lhasa,
Tibet. Roman and italic fonts with a complete set of Sanskrit
diacritical marks are also supplied and may be interspersed with
the Tibetan. The program and manual are available for a nominal
charge. For more information and a list of Tibetan-English bi-
lingual publications contact:
Mahayana Sutra and- Tantra Press
216A West Second Street
Howell, New Jersey 07731
U.S.A
189
International Buddhist Directory. A Wisdom Reference Book. Lon-
don: Wisdom Publications, 1985. 120 pp., softcover. $8.95.
All of us in Buddhist Studies have at least once' answered
the phone to find on the other end of the line a question we
have difficulty answering: "Will you please give me a list of the
names of the universities in your country which offer degrees in
Buddhist Studies, and a list of all the centers or groups involved
with Buddhism." (I wish the questions would be so clearly worded,
and the distinction between a university offering a degree and
a religious center would be understood!)
We still will have to send our callers on long treasure hunts
to compile their own lists of universities that offer degrees in
Buddhist Studies, (the reference books in the libraries are hope-
less), but Wisdom Publications has taken a great step in providing
us a book that offers the information on centers and groups
throughout the world involved in Buddhism. This little directory
lists 1800 Buddhist centers in sixty-three countries. It is divided
into two parts: Part One gives information, confirmed as correct
at the end of 1984, about the name, address, phone number,
Buddhist tradition, and many other facts concerning 500 centers.
Part Two gives unconfirmed addresses and any information that
the editors were able to glean for some 1300 centers.
Although the only category in this directory is Centers, the
publishers hope to expand future editions to include as many
activities as possible: artists, bookshops, computer services,
filmmakers, journals, libraries, newspapers, printers, publishers,
schools, typesetters, etc. I hope that our lABS membership is
kept informed, so that efforts can be strengthened instead of
duplicated. (l am thinking offhand ofthe efforts by Bruce Burrill,
Jamie Hubbard, Alan Sponberg, Richard Gard, John Carter,
Robert Miller, etc., just in the area of computers). If this project
can be kept coordinated, and the common goal of service can be
remembered, I have great hope for it. Maybe soon we will be
able to answer those phone calls happily, knowing that someone
has taken the trouble to put together a solid reference book that
is accurate and answers the academically mixed questions we in
the field are constantly asked to answer.
Rena Haggarty
Mr. Bruce Burrill
Dept. of S. Asian Studies
1244 Van HiseHall
University of Wisconsin
Madison, WI 53706
Prof. Janet Gyatso
Institute for the Advanced
Studies of World Religions
Melville Memorial Library,
5th Floor
SUNY at Stony Brook
Stony Brook, NY 11794
Prof. Gerard Fussman
Clois de Vanneaux
1, rue de Bouvreuils
67100 Strasbourg
FRANCE
Prof. Bruce Cameron Hall
Religion Department
College of William and Mary
Williamsburg, VA 23185
Ms. Rena Haggarty
1244 Van Hise Hall
Madison, WI 53706
A.W. Hanson-Barber
3975 Pleasant View Drive
Middleton, WI 53562
Prof. Richard Hayes
Religious Studies
University of Toronto
Mississauga, Ontario
CANADA L5L lC6
Prof. Steven Heine
Religious Studies Dept.
Villanova University
Villanova, PA 19085
CONTRIB UTORS
191
Prof. Jeffrey Hopkins
Dept. of Religious Studies
Cocke Hall
University of Virginia
Charlottesville, VA 22134
Prof. Shohei Ichimura
5236 22nd, N.E. #2
Seattle, WA 98105
Prof. John Jorgensen
Dept. of Oriental Languages
University of California at
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA 90024
Prof. Donald S. Lopez, Jr.
Dept. of Religion
Middlebury College
Middlebury, VT 05753
Dr. Vijitha Rajapakse
35950 Timberlane Dr.
Solon, OH 44139
Mr. Cyrus Stearns
Dept. of Asian Languages
and Literature
DS-21
University of Washington
Seattle, W A 98195
Dr. Dale Allen Todaro
30-86 49th Street
Long Island City, NY 11103
Prof. Leonard W.J. van der Kuijp
Institute fur Indische Philologie
und Kunstgeschichte
Konigen-Luise-Strasse 34a
D-I000Berlin 33
WEST GERMANY
Mr. William Waldron
1244 Van Hise Hall
Madison, WI 53706

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