264706282-Rob-Linrothe-Ruthless-Compassion-Wrathful-Deities-in-Early-Indo-Tibetan-Esoteric-Buddhist-Art.pdf

Wrathful Deities in Early Indo-Tibetan Esoteric Buddhist Art

Ruthless Compassion

Rob Linrothe

Shambhala

Shambhala Publications, Inc. Horticultural Hall joo Massachusetts Avenue Boston, Massachusetts 02115 AWpyAnimsIu

Copyright fi 1999 Rob Linrothe All rigjhfe reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means, etoctrank or mechanical including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Published in. association with Serindia Publications, UK 987654321 Printed and bound in Hong Kong through Boukbuilders Ltd. This edition is printed on add-free paper that meets the Am m on Natitmal Standards Institute Z39.48 Standard.

Distributed in the United States by Random House, Inc., and in Canada by Random House of Canada Ltd. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Fuhlj cation Data Uraothe, Robert N., 1951Kirihless compassion: wrathful deities in early Indo-Tibetan esoteric Buddhist art/Rob Linrothe pi

an.

Indikte index ISBN 1-5706^39-9 i- Gods, Buddhist — India — History, x Tantric Buddhism — India — History. 3. Sculpture, Tantric - Buddhist — Asia, 4. Emotions in art. 5. Buddhist art and symbolism. LTiHe

*999 294-5'4j^-d£2i

99-^3944 CIP

Frontispiece: Page ii left detail of 167, right 4. Pagein detail of 2.

Contents

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS AND ABBREVIATIONS

VI

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

IX

foreword

P rologue

and

Jane Casey Singer

x

I n tro ductio n 2

prologue in tro d u ctio n : d ist in c t io n s , d efin it io n s a n d term in o lo g y

19

P h a se 1 X

v a jr a p u r u sa

32

2

m a h a b a l a a n d m a n t r a n a ya

44

3

y a k sa s , g a n a s an d a yu d h a pu ru sa

49 62

4 YAMANTAKA 5 h a ya g riv a : texts 6

84

h a ya g riv a : im a g e s

7 THE LEGACY

' •

P h a se 2

14 3

8 A NEW PARADIGM 9 NEW TEXTS, NEW FUNCTIONS 10 YAMANTAKA IMAGERY 1 1 t r a ilo k y a v ija y a : texts 12

95 13 1

t r a ilo k y a v ija y a :

IMAGES

15 1 16 a 177 193 2 14

13 FIN DINGS P h a se 3 14 ESOTERIC BUDDHISM RECAST 15 HERUKA IMAGERY

220

16 HEVAJRA IMAGERY

267

17 SAMVARA IMAGERY 18 AN ICONOLOGY OF SAMVARA

276

G lo ssa r y of

29 5

306

A fterw ord

L ist

249

of

S a n s k r it Ter m s

T ibeta n T er m s

333 334

B iblio g ra ph y

335

in d ex

350

w Usd of Illustrations (IVtJKSSOTWKWtSV INPtCATFtV M l msuss u s stom. amp rmvrocRArHS am *1 rm w m M )

Black-and-white Figures 1 2 3

* 5 6

7

6

9 K»

U 12

‘3

‘5

16

*7 18 *9 2D

21 22

23 M 25

26 27

■.. '

B muLa Rjmwgin (Orissa). c*. 11th centurv,te cm Avatakiiesvara with Hayagriva, Ratnagiri (Ortssil c*. 9th century, H 193 cm Two-armed TraikikvavpavA. Achutrajpur (Otssai metalwork. ca. 10th century. a 4X1 cm. Orissa State Museum, Bhubaneswar HwuU, funerary- stupa. Ratnagiri (Orissakoa. nth centurv. figure *c 17 cm Yamamaski attending Marijusn, detail of 53 Manjusn wrth Yamintaka. Gunen (Bihar). ca qth-iath century- »c. 127 cm. Bodh Gava site museum TraikAyavaaya. Mahants compound. Bc*3h Gava (Bihar), ca. roth centurv, h: appRHL 148 cm Ywxantaka, Nalanda (Bihar), ca. 10th cere tun, »r. 20 cm, Nalanda Museum AI1S neg no 64-2 Heruka. Nalanda (Bihar), ca. nth century. k : 175 cm. Nalanda Museum Yajrapkni with attendants. Cave 6 Aorasgahad (Maharashtra), second half of tub century, ADS neg. A 20-37 Krcdha-yigfmantaka, detail of 10 Avaiokitesvara with attending kmdrungkes-naif. Cave 7 Aurangabad (Maharashtia). late nth century Yapapani/Maitreya with attending tradhtenjfctt a jia , Cave 6 Elkxa (Maharashtra), earfy 7th century Bodhbattva wrth krvd!»\

62 63 64 65

66 f*7 68 69 70 7» 72 73

74

75

76

77 78 79

80 81

82 83

84 85

86

87 88 89 90 91 92

teller 3rd Acquisitions Fund 1987.001.ll, photo courtesy of Asia Society Marijusrt with YaniAntaka, Birbhum (Ben­ gal) ca. 12th century h : 76 cm, Friedrich Hewicker collection, Hamburg (?), alter do Mallmann, £ttitle Iconographiqut sur MmljH&rl, pi. 1 Another view of 10 Hayaglva in attendance on TAra. detail of 103 same as 16 Tweh'e-armed Avalokitesvara with Hayagriva, Nalanda (Bihar), ca. 8th century, h: 147.3 cm' Nalanda Museum, AI1S neg. A 38-87 same as 25 Hayagriva, detail of 65, A11S neg. no. 294-11 same as 35 Fragment of Avalokitesvara with Haya­ griva, Ratnagiri (Orissa), ca. 9th century same as 2 Hayagriva, detail of 73 Hayagriva, detail of 74 Avalokitesvara with Hayagriva, Nalanda (Bihar), ca. 8th-9th century, h : 102 cm, Indian Museum, Calcutta Avalokitesvara with Hayagriva, Nalanda, (Bihar) ca. 9th century h : 94 cm, Indian Museum, Calcutta TAra with Hayagriva, Hilsa (Bihar), 25th year of DevapAla (r. ca. 812-850) h : 39 cm, Patna Museum Avalokitesvara with Hayagriva, Nalanda (Bihar), ca. 9th century, Indian Museum, Calcutta Hayagriva, detail of 75 Hayagriva, detail of 76 Avalokitesvara with Hayagriva, Ghosrawan (Bihar), ca. 9th century, Indian Museum, Calcutta Hayagriva, detail of 79 Tara with Ekajata and Hayagriva, Nalan­ da (Bihar), ca. 9th century, Indian Muse­ um, Calcutta Hayagriva, detail of 81 Tara with Hayagriva, Baragoan (Bihar), ca. 9th century, h : 67 cm, Indian Museum, Calcutta Hayagriva, detail of 83 Avalokitesvara with Hayagriva, Bihar, ca. 9th century, h : 96 cm, Eduard von der Heydt Collection, Rietberg Museum, Zurich, photo: Wettstein & Kauf Hayagriva, detail of 85. Eduard von der Heydt Collection, Rietberg Museum, Zurich, photo: Wettstein & Kauf Avalokitesvara with Hayagriva, Ratnagiri (Orissa), ca. 9th-ioth century, H: 243 cm Hayagriva, detail of 87 same as 72 Avalokitesvara with Hayagriva, Udnyagiri (Orissa), ca. 10th century Hayagriva, detail of 90 Hayagriva, detail of Avalokitesvara sculp­ ture, Udayagiri (Orissa), ca. >oth century,

Vli

93 94 95 96

97

98 99

100 101 102 103

104 105

106 107 108 109

110

111

112

113 114

115

116

117 118 lig 120

Patna Museum TarA with Hayagrlva, Bihar, late 9th cen­ tury, M: 81 cm, Indian Museum, Calcutta Hayagrlva, detail of 93 Hayagrlva, detail of 96 TarA with Hayagrlva, Bihar, late 9th-ioth century, h: 94 cm, Norton Simon Art Foundation, Pasadena CA no. M.1974.06.S, museum photo TSrS with Hayagriva, Kurkihar (Bihar), ca. loth century, h : 173 cm, Indian Museum, Calcutta Hayagrlva, detail of 97 Dharmacakra Avalokitesvara with Haya­ grlva, Nalanda (Bihar), late 9th-ioth cen­ tury, h : 32 cm, Nalanda Museum Hayagrlva, detail of 99 Hayagriva, Kurkihar (Bihar) metalwork ca. 10th century, h : 10 cm, Patna Museum side view of 101 Tara with Hayagriva, Bihar, early nth century, h: 82 cm, Indian Museum, Cal­ cutta same as 63 Hayagriva, fragment with Bhrikuti, Bihar, ca. lith century, h: 58.5 cm, Patna Muse­ um Hayagriva, detail of 114 Hayagriva, detail of 110 Hayagriva, detail of 109 Avalokitesvara with Hayagriva, Nalanda (Bihar), late 11th century, h : 125 cm, Nalanda Museum Avalokitesvara with Hayagnva, Rohoi (Bihar), early 12th century, h: 109 cm, Indian Museum, Calcutta Avalokitesvara with Hayagnva, Bihar or Bengal, metalwork, late nth century, The Art Institute of Chicago Avalokitesvara with Hayagriva, Bihar, late 11th century, h: 56 cm, Indian Museum, Calcutta Hayagriva, detail of 112 Avalokitesvara with Hayagriva, Nalanda (Bihar), illumination from an AstasahasrikA Prajhiparamita mansuscript, ca. 12th century, h: 7.3 cm, Asia Society, New York, Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Acquisitions Fund 1987.001.Ill, photo courtesy of Asia Society Avalokitesvara with Hayagriva, Chowrapara (Bengal, now Bangladesh), lith-iath century, h : 114 cm, Indian Museum, Calcutta Avalokitesvara with Hayagriva, Tapan (Bengal), 12th century, h: 105 cm, West Bengal State Archaeological Museum, Cal­ cutta Hayagriva, detail of 116 Bhairava, Bihar, nth-iath century, h : 45.7 cm, Patna Museum Bhairava, Jalpaigiri (Bengal), ca. 12th cen­ tury, h : 55 cm. Indian Museum, Calcutta Avalokitesvara with Hayagriva in the form of MahakAla, Bengal, nth-iath cen­

121 122

123

124 125 126 127

128

129 130 13 1 132

133 134

135

136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144

145

146 147 148 149 150 151 152

153 154

tury, ll: 20.5 cm, West Bengal State Archaeological Museum, Calcutta Avalokitesvara with Hayagriva, Rainagiri (Orissa), ca. 11th century, H: 120 cm Avalokitesvara with Hayagriva, Orissa, early 11th century, ft: 123 cm, Indian Museum, Calcutta Avalokitesvara with Hayagriva, Orissa, early nth century, Ayodhya Marie! Mandir Hayagrlva, detail of 121 Hayagriva, detail of 112 Hayagriva, detail of 123 Hayagriva, detail of Avalokitesvara sculp­ ture, Orissa, ca. 12th century, h: of entire sculpture 96 cm, Baripada Museum Hayagriva, detail of Tari sculpture, Oris­ sa, ca. 12th century, h: of entire sculpture 171 cm, Orissa State Museum. Bhubaneswar Hayagriva, detail of 11 1 same as 86 same as 102 Four-armed Avalokitesvara with Haya­ griva, Changspa (Ladakh), ca 9 « .

13 14

M alandra dates C a w 6 at Ellora to ca. 600 c* in G en Htxkfiefcl Matan-

on 179).

dra. *E Ikm : The Archaeology o f a AWmid*.” Ars Orientate i s ( iq8 s ): o p idem. UapaMmjt a MsxMa (Albany, 1993), 25. For early 7th c. dates, see. S Huntington, Art «f A noint M at, 26S; Aschwin d e Lippe. fadim

Skdoaroel Sohjptior (Amsterdam, 197S!, so; and. Malandra, "Buddhist 3

4

C a s e s at E fieea.’ 142. Other earty sculptures outside their original con­ tents are illustrated and discussed in Dm otfie, "Com passkeiate Malev-

15 16 17 18

oter«c,‘ figs. 3-tv Note the mmt depicted on the arms ot a cosmic Vairocana from Khotan iltaisb-ated in Williams. "Khotanese Painting." 109-154, fig. 1 ; and. M ario Bussagli. Central Asian Ramtiwg (New York, 1979), 55. A helpful sum m ary with line-draw ings o f the form s o f pre-Hth c. wr/nss is found in John D. LaHante. " A Pre-Pala Sculpture and its Significance for the intezrutiecia! Bodhisattva Style in A sia." Arfibus Asiac 26 (1963): 2 7 0 2 7 2 H e motes that "The open-pronged vajra does mot appear to h a w com e kite w id e usage before the 8th ceriturv . . . (before which] Y ajrap in i's v jjra is sim ple and unpronged." Ib id , 2 7 2 Also see E. Dale Saunders. M u d ra A Stasfy of Symbolic Gestures m Japanese Buddhist Sosiptimr (N ew Yarfc. i960), 184-191, esp. fig. 10 1.

5 8

The Natfocial M useum aapasitiein number is 49.118. Published b y Gotarisw ar Bhattecharya. "T h e B uddhist D eity Vajrapani," Ssft Road Art and Anfs»a>Lgy 4 (1995/96): 323-354, fig. 1 . The imscriptiam. the standard "ye i t e w beta . .

is transcribed on

ib id . 329-330. We can disregard Bhattacharya's tentative identification

19

o f the wrathful attendant as H ayagriva. The same article also includes a related, if slightly later, exam ple of Vajrapani with w rathful attendant

20

in the D avid Young collection. 7 8

See Joanna WiMiarsis. "T he Sculpture o f Mamdasoy," Archives of Asian Art XXVI (1972-73), figs. 15 -16 . These- are am ong the best preserved and most fully articulated o f a few

21

related figures from Aurangabad and Eikjra, but they can be only rep­ resentative. Other exam ples can be found in Berkson, Ceres at

Aurangabad, idem, Eftors: Concept end Style. In at least two of the Hindu caves at D icta there are attendant figures that have a distinct relation­ ship with the fcrodtia-CTgfcmarctiite Just mentioned- One b a rwrarno-Yaksa

22

or Srva-Otna attending the G oddess Ganga in C ave 2 1, also datable to

die late 6th c ,

the second b a orra-Yaksa attendant to a dvoropeda. Both

m ake the vmeyafuesla gesture. See R S . Gupte and B D. Mahajan. A/anU, EUoru and Aurmg&sd Canes (Bombay, 1962), pL 125 (right), pL 126

23 24 25

(left); and, Berkson. EUomr Concept end Style, 160-161.

6, see

Berkson, C ite s at

9

F o r the plan o f the Aurangabad C ave Aurangabad, 1S 1-

>0

T h » b not visible in the draw ing or photograph, but b confirmed in file description by Gupte and Mahajan, Ajanta, Ellora end Aurangabad, 164; and, d e lip p e , fa dam Mediaeval Sculpture, w. MaJandra discusses other evidence for pairing Avalokitesvara with Vajrapani but considers

26

Maitreya to be the better identification in Unfolding a Mandate. 99-100. Sotaro Sato also identifies the botihbattva as M aiireya in Ellora Cane Temples (Tokyo: Safari, 1977), pi. 19. C . Bhattadiarya suggests that it might be Vajrapani, not Martreya, in "The Buddhist Deity Vajrapani," 332-393. 11

27

28

Von Schroeder, however, cautions that the stupa b not an infallible marker, noting that it b not attested in the Sadhanameli or Nispan-

12

nayoggsah as a characteristic o f Maiireya. See von Schroedei, Buddhist Sculptures of Sri Lanka, 216. N ett the ca. 7th c stone krodho-vtghrumtoka attending Vajrapani illustrated k > Pratapadaya Pat, Arts of Nepal: Pert 1, Sculpture (Leiden/Kcin. 1974), p i 14; a ca. 8th c m etalwork image, idem. Sensuous Immortals (Los Angeles, 1977), no. 93; a ca. 8th c. Nepalese gilt copper

VAjrapAQi with wrathful attendant in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Pal. Arts of Nepal, Purl 1, no. Sh; and the Vajrapani with vdnwwtYiksa Vajrapurusa in an 8lh-9th c. sculpture from Patan, Ibid, pi. 182. Berkson, Cates si Aurangabad, 178-179. See Gupte and Mahajan, Ajanta, UUom and Aurangabad, 232; Malandra, "Buddhist Caves at Ellora," 300; and, Berkson, Caw’s si Aurangabad, 185 (the rwynt in the bodhisattva's left hand is clearer in the photograph

29

30

Berkson, Cares at Aurangabad, 185. See Bischoff, Maltilvla. T21.1243.209c. Compare Bischoff, Malu)l>ala, 54, 69. These three are included in a list of more than 200 of VajrapAni's ''own VkiyArAja" at the beginning of the section of the Mahjusrimulakalpa (MMX) as translated by Tianxizai (sk. DevasAnti ?) in the late 10th c. T.20-1191.8402-8413. Here I take "VajrAvudha VidyArAja" to be Vajrapurusa. It does not seem that in the MMK a single leader of VajrapAni's Vidyaraja b given prominence. Dsewhere VajrapAni is visualized along with all of his VidvarAja, "the most important of whom immediately surround him.” 1.20,1191.890a. Interestingly, the Phase Two text STTS gives Vajrayudha as the consecration name accorded to Indra (who from ancient times was given the vajra as emblem) upon his conver­ sion. See T-i8.882.373a; and, David Snellgrove, "Introduction," ed. Lokesh Chandra and David L Snellgrove, Sarva-tathdgata-lnttvasaiigraha: Facsimile reproduction of a Tenth Century Sanskrit Manuscript from Nepal (New Delhi, 1981), 49. J. Huntington makes an innovative attempt to identify' this figure as Krodhacandratilaka on the basis of the name given for VajrapAni's wrathful attendant in the MVS in "Cave Six," 5a In order to accept his identification several discrepancies, tem­ poral and iconographkr, must be ignored. See Linrothe, "Compassion­ ate Malevolence," 121-124. Hongnam Kim, "The Divine Triad," in The Story of a Painting: A Korean Buddhist Treasurefrom the Mary and Jackson Burke Foundation (New York, 1991), 2-3. John Newman, "On Recent Studies in Buddhist Architecture of Western India: A Review," Indian Journal of Buddhist Studies 1 (1989): 1 1 1 . Also see Sheila L Weiner, Ajanta: Its Place in Buddhist Art (Los Angeles, 1977), 66. John Huntington suggests that Cave 7 can be related to the vajradhiitu mandala in which sixteen of the thirty-two deities are female, even though the main shrine has an unadorned Buddha. J. Huntington, "Cave Six," 50. For the putative mandala, see Malandra, "Buddhist Caves at Ellora," 68. See Berkson, Caws at Aurangabad. 60, 201; Malandra, Unfolding a Mandala, figs. 58-61,135,242-243. Weiner, Ajanta, 68. Malandra, "Buddhist Caves at Ellora," 299. See Gregory Schopen, "Sukhavati as a Generalized Religious Goal in Sanskrit Mahayana Sutra Literature," Indo-lranian journal 19 (1977): 177-210. Both goals are stated together in a passage from the Sarvatathagattdhisthdna-sattvuvalokana-buddhaksetra-sandarsana-vyuha Sutra, a MahayAna text which Schopen states is significantly earlier than the MMK but has "proto-tantric" elements and thus can be dated to ca. 4th5th c. Ibid., 185 (note 13), 202. Luis O. Gomez, "A Mahayana Liturgy," in Buddhism in Practice, ed. Donald S. Lopez, Jr. (Princeton, 1995), 186. Gregory Schopen, "The Five Leaves of the Buddhabalidharmpritihiryavikurvimnirdesa-sOtra found at Gilgit," Journal of Indian Phi­ losophy 5 (1978): 323. Berkson, Caves at Aurangabad, 124. The same theme was popular at Durihuang. For example, see the late 10th-early 11th c. painting from Dunhuang now in the Musee Guimet illustrated in Jeannine Auboyer et al, Rarities of the Music Guimet (New York, 1975), no. 47. T9.262 (K8C 116). Thb chapter U the 24th chapter in other version*. See Hajune Nakamura, Indian Buddhism: A Survey with Bibliographical Notes (Indian Edition, Delhi, 1987), 180,183-191. See Gregory Schopen, "Two Problem* in the History of Indian Bud­ dhism: The Layman/Monk Distinction and the Doctrines of the

1 N O TES

V -' Transference 0f Merit," Studiert zur Itidolugle und Iranitiik to (1985); 26; idem, "On Monks, Nuns and 'Vulgar' Practices: The Introduction of the Image Cult Into Indian Buddhism," Artibus Asiae 49 (1988/89): 153-168. Sndlgrove broadly classifies Tantras as those relatable to Mahayana Sutras (i.e., MMK, STTS) and those with non-Buddhist associations (i.e., Hrvajra hwtra, Sariwnrodaya) in indo-Tibtian Buddhism, 147-160. To oversimplify slightly, he distinguishes them on the basis of where the text was written or circulated, either the monastery or the yogic retreat. A temporal distinction can also be made, in that those which overlap

32 33

’v

.

43

.

with Mahayana SOtras derive from the ca. 6th c. through 8th c, and those of with non-Buddhist yogic association# from the ca. 8th c. through the 12th c. lyanaga, "Recits de la Soumission," 638 (my translation from the French). S.fC. De, "Buddhist Tantric Literature of Bengal," New Indian Antiquary 1 (1938-39): 3 (note 1). Note that £antideva is the author of the Mahayana liturgical passage cited earlier m this chapter.

. Vismt with its/udimpuTusa, )th-6ih century, Someth Museum

2

Origins of the Krodha- vigh nan taka

23. Siva-Gana, Madhya Pradesh, ca. 5th century, Bharat Kala Bhavan

To understand the visible forms taken by the earliest identifiable krodhavighnantaka we must step back. Mahayana Buddhist sculpture at this period was situated within a wide horizon of religious imagery. Indian religious thought manifested a number of similar tendencies at nearly the same time in Hindu, Jain and Mahayana Buddhist art. One tendency is to personify divine attributes as dyudhapurusa. The forms applied to new iconographic categories were borrowed from the ranks of even older types. Two sources are identifiable: Siva-Gana and Yaksa. It is clear that the early krodha-vighnantaka images are closely related to these sources. Yaksa developed locally throughout a large portion of India as chthcmic nature spirits, "usually beneficent powers of wealth and fertility." They are pre- or nonAryan folk deities who were integrated grudgingly into Vedic culture. Scholars have associated the etymology of the term Yaksa with a series of meanings, includ­ ing "apparition," "opposite," "to honour" or "to worship," "to move qukkly towards," and "to glimmer.''^ In Vedic literature Yaksa are perceived as a kind of "primordial occult power, mysterious, wonderful, apparitional, worshipful and horrid and at the same time god, good or evil."^ Yaksa are invisible powers which manifest with sudden luminosity and require appeasement. A s Coomaraswamy and others have noted, their character is ambivalent, both deified and demonized. Gradually Yaksa were included as demi-gods into both orthodox Brahmanical and, by the time of Bharhut (early 1st century bce ), Buddhist contexts. At Sanchi there was already a bifurcation of Yaksa body-types: "dw arfed and grotesque" (which I refer to as the vdnituui- Yaksa) and "graceful" (zira -Yaksa).4 One strain of Yaksa became less malevolent and more mischievous, or even auspicious, like Kabera.5 Others became part of the decoration of Buddhist sites like Bharhut as partly decorative, partly auspicious fertility motifs. While the malevolent Yaksa proved formidable opponents even for the Buddha, protective benevolent Yaksa began to take on the roles of dvdrapala and Lokap&Ia.6 For the most part the Yaksa "had lost their independent status and merged in the personalities of greater cult gods such as Siva, Ganesa, the Buddha and Bodhisattvas in the Kushana and Gupta periods " 7

*6

PHASE ONE

An offshoot of tlve benevolent type of Yaksa evolves into the roly-poly dwarfish Gana. [23] Most often found as lesser companions or attendants of f>iva, they are common to Buddhist and Jain art as well. Pratapaditya Pal defines them succinctly: *

^

The w nf gana literally means "multitude" or "people " bill in Indian mythology il denotes h class of semidivine, gnomelike beings who are constant companions of Siva. Tiny are often described as composite creatures with animal heads, and although grotesque are

often delightfully humorous as well. Mythology describes them as playmates ofSkanda and

Ganesa.

name literally means "lord o f the ganas," but when their master is on the

uurpath tiny become relentlessly bellicose.9

i f . Vfarrsr aritk syudhspuntsa. Gswa,, cs. jth-Sth century. Gave .Museum

25. Detail of ayudhapurusa bekne Visnu at Deogarh, Uttar Pradesh, rnid-Mh century

This is the branch onto which many of the krodha-vighnantaka ( e.g., 1 2 , 1 4 , 1 8 and 19) were grafted. The forms of both the relatively formidable Yaksa and the less fearsome vari­ ety were later adopted to depict personifications of certain symbolic aspects of Brahmantcal and Buddhist deities. (22, 24-28] The personification of attributes seems to occur somewhat earlier in Brahxrtanical contexts than in Buddhist. One of the earliest instances in South Asia is the personification of Visnu's wheel (cakra), Cakrapurusa/0 Cakrapurusa images are found in both the vira-Yaksa and the vdmana-Yaksa form s/1 and the vinayahasta mudra is frequent for both [25, 27]. The practice of personifying implements is attested over a wide area of India. Cakra­ purusa appears with various forms of Visnu including Narasirhha; Trisulapurusa was supplied for Siva; and both were attached to Hari-Hara. Lndra and other Brahmanicai deities are accompanied by such figures since at least the early fifth centu­ ry ce , weD before the earliest krodha-vighnantaka im ages/2 The Samath, Gaya and Kashmiri Cakrapurusa [26-28], along with the first maJeayudhapurusa on the lower right of the Deogarh Visnu [25], have much in com­ mon with the Vajrapurusa figures of Aurangabad Cave 6 and the Ellora Cave 7 krodha-vighnantaka. [10-11, 13 , 17] Although their gestures and positions differ slightly, they are all much smaller than the primary deity each attends. The hair of the Cakrapurusas are versions of the "Gupta curls" we will encounter in several early krodha-vighnantaka images. The ca. fifth century Siva-Gana [23] also shares a few features with the krodha-vighnantaka [16, 18-19], notably the short but heavy vamana-Yaksa body ty pe. Other early krodha-vighnantaka images are worth noting for their resemblance to Yaksa, Gana and ayudhapurusa images (especially 31,34-35, 4 1,6 7 ,7 1 and 72). Formally the similarities are suggestive and the priority of date unassailable, so that we may take it as established that the creators of the Buddhist images drew on the earlier tradition of Yaksa, Siva-Gana and ayudhapurusa when imaging the earli­ est krodha-vighnantakaP But it was not just the idea and the form of an ayudhapurusa which Buddhists employed here. As we expand the inquiry to include Phase One Hayagriva and Yamantaka, who are personifications of dharani and not of dyudha like Vajrapurusa, we will see that all the early krodha-vighnantaka derive from these sources. In fact, Buddhist ayudhapurusa are generally confined to the early period of Phase One imagery. Their presence at the side of bodhisattva is soon supplemented by increasingly independent wrathful manifestations. It seems to have been a symp­ tom of the early period of borrowing that the idea of a personification was appro­ priated along with the established form. Borrowed forms were then extended to embody forms other than ayudhapurusa, as with Yamantaka and Hayagriva. The authors of the Mafljusrmulakalpa seem conscious of the sources of the wrathful deities, for one of the terms used to refer to the group of attendant krodha-

2 ORIGIN S OF THE KRODHA-VIGHNANTAKA

47

vighndntaka is "Vidydgana,"14 as if to transfer to Buddhism the category of diva's auspicious attendants, the Siva-Gana. ft was especially relevant for Vajrapani to have Yaksa-derived attendants, for his earliest Buddhist incarnation was as a "great yaksa/' then as a "great general of the yaksas," before becoming a bodhisattva.'5 His origins are not forgotten even in Esoteric Buddhist texts such as the M M K, which calls Vajrapani "the master of the Guhyaka, master of the Yaksa."16 It is only fitting then that he in particular should have a Yaksa-like being attending him. The identification of the krodha-vighmntaka's visual predecessors also helps to explain a puzzling feature of its history. Rather unexpectedly, the vira-Yaksa krodhavighndntaka image appears fully formed from the earliest recognized occurrences. [ n , 17] Much larger than any of the other attendant figures, including the female consorts, the posture of the Vajrapurusa figures demonstrates more strength and force than any of the other demurely poised figures in their groups. They have sev­ eral characteristics which we will find repeatedly in Phase One and Phase Two examples of krodha-vighnatitaka, including mudra, dsana, body and facial type. Right from the beginning, or as near to a beginning as we are allowed, there was no hes­ itation on the part of the artist in the manner in which to depict this new Buddhist species. The explanation of course is that the krodha-vighnantaka's doctrinal raison d’itre made it appropriate for the artist to fashion a form by drawring on the famil­ iar images of the earlier categories of Yaksa, Siva-Gana and dyudhapurusa.

26. Cakrapurusa, detail o f 22

27. Cakrapurusa, Kashmir, nietaltwrk, 6th century, Los Angeles County Museum of Art

28. AyuJluipurusa, detail of 24

2 irttntabmut! Legacy (Dayton, 1990), 16a In h is introduction to the AWsshd*-#jitnt, Bsschotf seem s to want to d is­ tinguish M ahahala from Lkeh uan a. but the tend itself uses the nam es irvierdiangealbiy. For instance, V ajrap in i recites a version o f M ahahala’s

dharani, w h ich B tsd so ff tran slates a s fo llo w s: "O m Vajrakrodha M ahahab bu m d a y ruin, p u lverize, O (you of) king hair, O lambodaw, Dcchvjsrr.akrodha totnt. phot, soate." Bischoff, Mahalula, 55 (I have translated it into English from the French, restored the Sanskrit term for “ ventre p en d an t’ and added em phasis to indicate the equivalence o f M ahihftU and Ucclsusm a). For another ifiiran i w hich sim ilarly inter­ changes the tw o nam es, see ibid ., 56-57. 6

7 8

TJS1.X243 (Nijo 1019. K BC J097). Lew is Lancaster translates the period o f resgn as 93}, instead o f the correct 983. See Lew is R. Lancaster, The Renas* Buddhist Genoa: A Dsscnptvx Catalogue (Berkeley, 1979), 377. In Tibet the kiahAsla sutrs is classified in the Vajra section o f kriya-tentra. See Ferdm atd D. L essin g and A lex VVayman, intraductkm to the Bud­ dhist Tkntric Systems, translated from hfkhas-gnib rjc's Rgyud sde spyihi m am par g zag pa rgyas par hrjod, and ed. (D elhi, 1978), 133,343. Btsehcxf. Mawehda, 3- SneD grove, Indo-Tibetan Buddhism. 443. See fe e list given in Btschoff, Aiaiiarair, 1-3. A lso see M arceBe Lalou, “ EtocuBBmts d e Toueo-H otiang: L D eux Prim es de C aravaruers Tibetam s,” Melanges dtcmis et boudiSaams 8 (1946/47); 2 17 -2 2 3 and, H.W. Bade*; "H vatanaca IV ,' Bsdkthcofthe School ofOriental end African Stud­

30

31 32 33 34 35 36

ies 10 (19 4 2). 8 9 3

9

M am riJe Lalou, 'P r ffe c e ,' in Bischoff, Meheixla, x. On the Tibetan cat­ alogu e, see idem , 'L e s Textes Bouddhiques au tem ps du rot Khri-SronLde-Bcan contribution i la Btbdiographie d u Kanjur et du Tanjux,' Journal Asetiaue 24 1 (19 53): 3 13 -3 5 3 For fee accepted date o f this cata­

37 38 39

logue, see Schopen, "V im atosnisa D haram s," 1 2 3

10 X23..1243207C; Bischoff, Msh&baia, 50, 11

B ach off, fAehahds, p i L

12

T 2 1.12 4 3 2 0 7 C

13

N ancy H ock, 'B u d d h ist ideology and the sculpture o f Rainagm , sev­ enth through thirteenth cen tu ries' (PhJD. dissertation. U niversity o f

*4

40

Cateforrua, Berkeley, 1987), 7 . H ock, “ Buddhist id e o lo g y,' 37.

15

H nd, 30.

16 17

Ibid., 3 30. Bad., 49-50,54-

18

{b id , 6 1.

19 Schopen, "T he Leaves,' 319-336. 20 H ock, 'B u d d h ist id eology',' 55. 2S Mitra, Retmgiri, 25,29-31,411-422. 22 K rishna Dev a. "Significance of Prahtya Sanuitpada-Sutia in Buddhist A rt and T hought," in Buddhist Iconography (N ew D elhi: Tibet H ouse, 1989), 42-46; and, )an Fontein, "R elics and reliquaries, texts and arte­ fa c ts,' in Function and Meaning m Buddhist Art, ed. K R v a n K ooij and H . van d er V e e » (G roningen: Egbert Torsten, 1995), 2 1-3 1, 23

H ock, 'B u d d h ist id eology," yh,

Mitra, Ruriwytri, 20.

4J 42

3 NOTES

43

44 45 46 47 48

ed. (Calcutta, 1974), 52-53. Jean Naudou, Les liouddhistes Kasmiricns Au Mayen Age (Paris, 1968), 116 (emphasis added; my translation from the French, with reference to the English translation of Naudou, Buddhists of Kasnur, 138). Snellgrove, Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, 279, Ibid., 148. Ibid., 147-160. Snellgrove, "Categories of Buddhist Tantras," 1364. Snellgrove, Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, 233. Hock quotes this last passage to a fuller degree in "Buddhist ideology," 33. Yet she questions Snell-

6l

grove's conclusion. Convinced that Ratnagiri is an exclusively or pre­ dominantly Esoteric Buddhist site, she suggests its imagery "is differ­ ent in character from sculpture at Mah&yAna sites." The example of a Mahay ana site she gives is Bodh Gaya, which she claims "lacks the iconographtcally more complex images and program found at Mantrayina sites." This is difficult to support based on the YamAntaka and Trailokyavrjaya images at the Mahants compound of Bodh Gaya.

[245] 49

Bischoff, Mahdbala, 6.

> 8- YamanUska attending M tm jum , Aycd-

hye (Orissa), ca. late loth-cariy n th centu­ ry, Auodhya Mdrici Mandir, detail of 57 i .'j'-u

: »y: v •

, V"- ..

- J v-

V ,.;1. 1 : ' v ,

4

Phase One Imagery of Yamantaka

With a nimbus bright as the solar wheel, incinerating (obstacles) like the ultimatefire of destruction, /Yamantaka} has skin the color of a dark cloud. . .k is diamond-sharp fangs protrude, his tongue flashes like lightning. Maydjdla mahdtantra

With Yamantaka, the wrathful attendant of Manjusri bodhisattva, w e are on a firmer path in terms of iconographic identification. We remain in the realm of mantranaya, Mahayana cult imagery with an admixture of Esoteric Buddhism, but we are on a path which will outlive the lifecycles of Vajrapurusa and MahabaJa. After the eighth century Vajrapurusa, as a personification of an attribute, soon drops from sight outside of Nepal in favor of personifications of dhdrani. Mahabala too seems to have been replaced in Phase Two imagery by other hypostases of Vajrapani, like Bhutadamara and Trailokyavijaya. Vajrapani becomes increasingly associated with mature Esoteric Buddhism and seems not to have inspired an enduring cult within Mahayana the w ay that Maitreya, Manjusri and Avalokitesvara did. As we have already seen, it is the hybrid of Mahayana and mantranaya which is at the root of Phase One imagery. Phase One style images of Manjusri with Yamantaka, on the other hand, continue being made into the late eleventh and twelfth centuries.1 Yamantaka grows into a mature independent image in Phase Two contexts, to be ultimately transformed during Phase Three into Vajrabhairava and Yamari.

1 The Iconography of Yamantaka as Attendant to Manjusri The identification of Yamantaka in Phase One imagery is generally dependent on the prior recognition of Martjusri, as only Yamantaka is consistently paired with Manjusri as his wrathful attendant. De Mallmann notes that Yamantaka is exclu­ sively the "assistant to bodhisattva Manjusri, of whom he is a wrathful manifesta­ tion."2 The association of the two is well documented in standard konographic compendia like the Sadhanamald and the N iffm i myogdvaft, and other literature as well. An important early text to make the connection clear is the MaAjusrtmakkalpa

(MMK). This voluminous text has been the subject of a number of studies, includ­ ing those by Maroelle Lalou and Ariane Macdonald.3 It was rendered into Chinese by the Kashmiri monk Tianxizai between 980 and 1000, who utilized sections which had already been translated by Amoghavajra in the eighth century.4 These include chapters thirty through thirty-two of the Chinese version,5 which deal specifically with the rituals of Yamantaka. Therefore we may err on the side of caution and say that by the seventh century the portions of the text with which we are concerned had a certain currency in India. The MMK is of direct relevance for Phase One imager)', because it casts the kmiha-pighmntahi, and Yamantaka in particular, as oath-bound power beings who have been converted to Buddhism. Yamantaka is unequivocally identified as Marijusri's wrathful manifestation.6 He is portrayed, however, as a being whose power is derived from sources outside of Buddhism (viz., as a Yaksa, or Yama him­ self) now harnessed to Buddhist tasks. This is probably nowhere more evident them in the dharani addressed to Yamantaka. He must be reminded of his oath of alle­ giance and reprimanded for his procrastination: Om, Khatfw khohikhsia, Conqueror of euil beings! You 1oith six heads, with four heads [sk], come, come grand slaver of Vighna! Perform, perform all the actions, cut, cu t. . . per­ form all my work! Remember uour vow! Hum, Hum! Divide, divide! . . . Why do you delay? Act on my behalf. Suahit?

One cannot help recalling here tire formal resemblance between the early krodharighndntaka images and that of earlier ayudhapurusa, Siva-Gana and other Yaksa fig­ ures. This formal "borrowing" by artists is justified by doctrinal connections between the demi-gods outside the Buddhist fold and their new role as "enforcers" who must be reminded of their vows. The MMK goes on to describe in a mythic format the relationship between Manjusri and Yamantaka in a way that lends itself to pictorialization: Manjusri placed his right hand on the top o f the head of the Krodha, and after giving homage to the Buddhas and bodhisattvas, he gave him the order to assemble all the beings by means of magical powers. . . After having drawn a circle over the King of Krodhas with his hand, he /Manjusri} dispatched him lYamantaka] to accomplish this mission. In an instant the King o f the Krodhas had gone to all regions of the world where he succeeded, thanks to his magical power, in mastering hostile beings and compelling them to enter into the circle of the Assembly9 E m p o w ered b y the gesture of Marijusri's hand over his head, Yamantaka gath­

ers together ail beings to hear the preaching of the Buddha. It would seem Yamantaka possesses magical powers of rapid flight and swift coercion. These powers are homokygized with the powers of dhdrani, of which Yamantaka is a per­ sonification.9 It is worth noting that in this instance Yamantaka is charged with a relatively minor task. Like the other Phase One krodha-vighnantaka, Yamantaka is more or less a glorified messenger-boy, a servant employed for his speed, cunning and toughness along the byways of the universe.

1 . 1 Destroyer of obstacles (vighndntaka) Besides assembling widespread beings, the MMK delineates a few other duties of Yamantaka, In the fourth chapter of the Sanskrit redaction (seventh ju an o f the Chi­ nese) he is described as "le destructeur de tous lea obstacles, sous un aspect

4 PHASE ONE IMAGERY OP YAMANTAKA

65

extremement terrifiant et cruel."10 The fourth section of the Chinese text later assesses Yamantaka's powers as follows: He has great abilities, and great power. With great cruelty, he blows up into great wrath. He can destroy all obstacles. If there are those who slander Buddhism and violently compel sentient beings, (Yamdntakaj can effectively convert them and cause them to accept Bud­ dhism. For those who hold and recite his dhdrani, performing the rite o f protection, even if there are those who slander the dhdrani and despise the Three jewels, who produce ail the evil karma, whether in heaven, on earth or below the earth, all these, lYamantakaj m il subjugate and render them obedient.

Chapter Two of the MMK states explicitly that the vighrta destroyed by Yamantaka and his dhdrani and homa rituals are varied enough to include the opposition of evil visions, malicious human acts, demons and the devas. A s is typ­ ical of Phase One texts, the MM K projects them as outward obstacles. Exterior threats of these kinds at least overtly do not share much of the inner significance taken on by obstacles later conceived as anger, egoism and lust.

1.2 Protector The MMK also establishes Yaman taka's reputation as a protector of the adept. This has both broad and specific applications. His protection applies in a broad sense to all sentient beings who practice Buddhism, particularly those at the Assem bly:13 . . . he protects all sentient beings, along unth hts countless thousands of krodha minions. Then he sends out in all four directions, up and dawn, to all places, a great howl. A il sen­ tient beings have their hearts pacified in cultivation c f the good, by this- They turn to the Three jewels and don't offend [against Buddhist morality). If the hearers (cf the great howl) want to disobey the commands of the Buddha, their heads split apart into a hundred pieces like a branch of the Arjaka tree.1J

Yamantaka's protective powers are also extended to the protection and purifi­ cation of the grounds on which the mandala is constructed, as well as to the practi­ tioner who performs rituals there. The very first task in purifying toe site is to sprinkle it with a mixture which has been sacralized by the recitation of Yamantaka's dhdrani 1008 times.14 This heralds Acalanatha's bodhi-manda purifica­ tion in the Mahdvairoama Sutra.19

1.3 Abhicdraka Manjuiri and VajrapAni also threaten recalcitrant beings with reprisals by YamAntaka. One of the chapters of the MMK, translated into Chinese in the eighth century by Amoghavajra, implies that the retaliation of Yamintaka would be fear­ some by giving an account of his effectiveness in magical exorcism, or what may be termed "black magic."16 The chapter calls itself an Mabhicdraka" text which denotes its use in the suppression and exorcism of demons.*7 Generally the abhicdraka rites involve painted images of Yamantaka. but in toe Arya-yumdntakakrodhardja . . . mahdrddhi. , . adhydya-dharma, a "Great M agic" text of which the Chi­ nese translation is also attributed to Amoghavajra. we find mention of metalwork images:

66

rtiA>E o x i f'z & r » « r r i jatr wmt

resentment against your family, who arouses the evil

jc s w j f smTiwcy hcrm -eme good men, fV n izai’s collaboration with other Indi­ an and Chinese monks an making translations at die official Song Dynasty "Cotfege for Translating the Sutras,' in Robert Hans van Gulak. Siiitont A» Essay , ^ f i w r - ^ , ^ ^ . ' i,“"?----^•4s'5>'vJ**K3T —T-^-r *.#**, . _ _ _ . . • •- ^ •• ,rr '-~*" *t±^ ' 7,. * fv v H i* t.- - k - •,v » -J. ,.rr r '' r,:«W ^ * ^ * ^ r c ^ .J*rze^ a!& •

,■»• j*-**** -c-t-e^ M',*v'V «trf '«>'■ 4* ^ %,ltr K ?V v *

-*■ * . ,J

-a.— ■ * ^ ~ )* * ~ *^* & * * .m

■ .>■ >>...■ •:.•.* ■«■ ...< .j . - . , ; , ^ , . . ^ - . ^ . er, . « • % . ; « * » . „ .

- ftfffe..

-8U0 uw*iaim i; LSaifigegjM .

^ * -* •« « .

...

...

•«!.».•• r r - c .

+ * j * tfc.« ry * ¥ t

.

- .4 t.- « » tr r ^ » i^ * f ! jH jK '..

;uui-.utte.weitdmmatef

section sot prescribes that H ayagriva be painted as a four-haaded^wa-mned deite bolding a flower. The text further specifies that the middle head should be crowned with a green-blue horse s head.3*' Some phrases in Hayaghva s multiple dterau echo Yamantaka's found in the M M K. We find the following phrases: "Devourer of wrong knowledge/' "D evour! D evour!/' "To the Horse-faced One/ "Scatter! scatter! Disperse, disperse! Devour, svaha! Great Strong One! Guide toil knowledge!"3' Hayagriva's dharanis are used for "tyin g up the Vinayaka's/ that is, destroying obstacles. Typical of Phase One texts, these obstacles are interpret­ ed as belonging to the mundane realm. Am ong the functions listed are the curing of snake bites and headaches, injuries and diseases, caused by devils; rain mak­ ing; the arousal of love; assistance in winning disputes and in making others pow­ erless, warding off a sword and vanquishing armies; and the prevention of poliutkmes rwetumae. The texts are dominated, as Phase One images are, by the mixed MahayanaEsotenc Buddhist cult of the bodhisattva. Although this section of the text is devot­ ed to Hayagnva, we are never allowed to forget the primacy of Avalokitesvara. One erf the last portions of the H ayagnva section discusses the creation of a bodhi-nmda (altar) "for the initiation to the cult of the Bodhisattva H ayagnva Avalokitesvara."3* In the middle of the altar should be an image of H ayagnva, on the eastern side should be Ekadasamukha (eleven-headed) Avalokitesvara, at the northern side the eight-armed (Amoghapasa?) Avalokitesvara, in the south the eight Naga-raja. "Then (the aspirant] should enter the bodhi-manda and do pri/a-worship. One should concentrate cm Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva. Then in the midst of worship of all the bodhisattva, siddhis (powers) will be m anifest."39 What is significant is that in this, the culminating ritual of the section, the emphasis is on Avalokitesvara in till his forms, not on Hayagriva. It is Avalokitesvara who is of central importance, even though Hayagriva is at the center of the attar In Phase One texts and images of Hayagriva, he is merely an adjunct to the great bodhisattva, Avalokitesvara, of whom he is, at best, a manifestation, or a dbdraru personification. Powers to cure, to be victorious and so on ultimately flow from Avalokitesvara, who "functioned primarily as the center of his own specific and independent cull."10 ;;y/. We are left, then, with 653 c e as the earliest date van Gulik discovered (or a Sanskrit text mentioning Hayagriva translated into Chinese- The Dharani Samgrahs hat such a well-developed notion of Hayagnva and his role that it is unlikely Hrep­ resents the earliest instance of Hayagnva's adoption into the cult erf Avalokitesvara. Rather ft provides a textual benchmark for the rime when Hayagriva's star had commenced rising. % the eighth century, H avagn va * found in both Phase One

5

h a y a g r iv a : t e x t s

91

and Phase Two texts and imagery, and he will continue to be portrayed in India until the late tw elfth century and still later outside of India. The N epalese and Tibetans in particular have preserved Hayagriva's role as attendant to Ava­ lokitesvara w ell into the twentieth century. There does not seem to be a fun­ damental shift in the iconographic structure of the Phase One Hayagriva after the twelfth century.41 Confirmation of the early sixth century as a terminus a quo for the Buddhicization of Hayagriva can be found in Gilgit manuscripts. These Buddhist Sanskrit manuscripts were discovered in 19 31 inside the vault of a stupa near Gilgit, seat of the Shahi rulers. Orthographically they belong to the sixth or seventh century.*2 Much the way it does in the Dharani Samgraha, the section on Hayagriva immedi­ ately follows the section devoted to Avalokitesvara. A short dharani text on Haya­ griva "is written (without any gap) along with the concluding tine of the previous ms," which is a text devoted to the Ekadasamukha form of Avalokitesvara.43 The Hayagriva text begins with a salutation to Avalokitesvara, and invokes the image of a horse-faced deity (Hayagriva) above the images of Lokesvara Avalokitesvara, who is flanked by Vajradhara (i.e., Vajrapani) and Avalokitesvara. The fact that the manuscript requires that Hayagriva be visualized as vadavamukha (horse-headed) testifies to his relation to the pre-Buddhist Hayagriva, who is visualized in such a way. As already discussed, no known South Asian images of the Buddhist Haya­ griva provide him with a horse's head for the main head, and images in India which actually depict him with a small horse head in his hair are, as we w ill dis­ cover, quite rare. Once again, it is Avalokitesvara who dominates the atmosphere, Hayagriva's section being only an appendix.

1.4 Hayagriva with Tara in Phase One texts Avalokitesvara in his various forms is not the only bodhisattva of higher status to whom Hayagriva is subordinated. Tara, who is both counterpart and emanation erf Avalokitesvara, is also given Hayagriva as her wrathful subordinate in a number of texts and images.44 For example, the thirteenth chapter of the Taramtilakalpa ends with a Hayagriva ritual45 The T&ra bodhisattva kalpa sutrar translated by Amoghavajra in the second half of the eighth century, also provides descriptions of Hayagriva attending Avalokitesvara, accompanied by Tara and Bhrikuti.46 The Hayagriva described is four-armed, holding an axe and lotus flower, and he makes his "fun­ damental mudni."47 The later A ry a Tdrabhattarikityd-Mmastottarasataki (Sutra on praising a hun­ dred and eight names of the holy bodhisattva Tarabhadra), translated between 982 and 1000 c e by the same Kashmiri monk who translated the large MA!K (Tiarvxizai/Devasanti), also associates Hayagriva with Tara. The text starts off with a hymn of praise, setting the scene around Tara of a typical Mahayana cult vision o f a Pure Land, with cintdmtmi trees, heavenly music, colors and scents. Then w e read: Arya TArd Bixihisattw along with a thou&tnd Vidyorapli (i.e. female VidyOnija), Krvdha MahAvidydrajas, Hayagrii'tt and the others, surrounding her. . . ■ ". '• ' It is not by accident that of all the krodtui-vighndntaka to be singled out here, it is Hayagriva who has become associated with Tara, for he attains prominence as the primary wrathful representative in the padmakuta through his regular association with the many forms of Avalokitesvara^

ja

PH A SE O N E

It is by no means my intention to suggest that the textual passages I have selected describing Hayagriva as a Phase One attendant of Avalokitesvara and Tara are complete or comprehensive. They were selected merely to give some idea of Hayagriva’s appearance, function and position in Phase One texts. With the back­ ground thus provided, we can begin tire examination of images of Hayagriva in Phase One compositions.

5 Note* to Chapter Five

1

2 3 4

5 6

7 8 9 10 11 12

13

14

15 16 17

18

19 20 21

See N.P. Joshi, "Hayagrlva in Brahmanical Iconography," journal of the Indian Society of Oriental Art ns 5 (1972-73); 36-42. The epigraph for this chapter comes from T20.1072A.155a. Van Gulik, Hayagrlva, 9-10. Ibid., 10. Also see Joshi, "Hayagrlva," 39, From the 'Treasury of Percipience" (Dgons-Gter), in Esoteric Teachings of

N O TES

93

22

T.mi093.40ic-402a.

*3

T.20.1094 (Njo 3 16 , KBC 289). In an interestin g afterw ord , th e text is said to h av e been translated in 659

ce.

T.20.i097.4288a (M an icin tan a's version ; Njo 3 1 3 , KBC 290); T20.1096.415c (Li W uchang's version; Njo 3 14 , KBC 291). M anicm tana w as a Kashm iri m onk w ho arrived in Loyang the year o f this transla­ tion. The Chinese characters for his nam e are variou sly construed into one o f the fo llo w in g Sanskrit equivalents; Ratnacinta, A d isen a,

the Tibetan Tantra: Including Seven Initiation Rituals and the Six Yogas of Ndropa, trans. Chang Chen Chi and ed. C.A. Muses (York Beach, 1982), 61.

M anicinta and Cintam ani. For his life and w ork on translation team s in

The comments by and the attitude of the editor of this volume, C.A. Muses, are unfortunate and offensive, but the translations are useful. Van Gulik, Hayagrlva, 95-96. Quoted in van Gulik, Hayagrlva, 54. For an earlier translation into French, see "Batokannon," Hobdgirin: Dictionnaire Encyciopidique du

345; and, Lokesh C handra, "T he Tnprtaka-Translator Pao-ssu-VVei

Loyang and Changan, see Forte, "T an trk M aster M amcirttana," j o t (Cintam ani)," 283-286.

25

T20.1096.415c; T20.1097.428a.

26

See Pratapaditya Pal, "T he Iconography o f Am oghapasa L ok esvara," Part One; Oriental Art 1 2 (1966): 234-239; Part Two: Oriental Art 1 3

Bouddhisme D'Aprls les Sources Chinoises et Japcmaises; Premier Fascicule: A-Bombai, ed. Paul Demi6ville (Tokyo, 1929), 58-59. Van Gulik, Hayagrlva, 15,19.

See Przyluski, "Les Vidyaraja." Van Gulik, Siddham, 22-24; and, idem, Hayagrlva, 48-51. Van Gulik, Hayagrlva, 28. Joshi, "Hayagrlva," figs. 1,2; van Gulik, Hayagrlva, figs. 1-3. I know of only a few such images from Japan which trace back to the Taiz6 Zuzd, a scroll brought to Japan in the mid-9th c by Urchin. One appears in the KakuzenshO by Kakuzen (1143-ca. 1218 CE) and is illus­ trated in T.89.3022.832; in van Gulik, Hayagriva (frontispiece), discussed 47-48; and, in Hobogirin, 1.58, fig. 27, discussed 60. The relevant section of the Taizd Zuzd scroll of images from the garbhadhdtu mandala now in the Nara National Museum is illustrated in Nihon Bijutsu Zenshii, vol. 6; Mikkyd no Bijutsu: Toji/jingdji/Murdji, ed. Uehara Shoichi (Tokyo, 1980), 169, fig. 59; and, in Hisatoyo Ishida, Mandara no kenkyu, 2 vols. (Tokyo, 1975), 2:11, fig. 94. Another candidate is the Gana-like attendant to Tara in the same cave. See Berkson, Caves at Aurangabad, 149,137. J. Huntington identifies the the attendant figure and the bodhisattva on the other side of the vestibule in Cave 6, opposite Vajrapani [10], as Hayagriva and Avalokitesvara respectively in "Cave Six," 50. Berkson, however, identifies the bodhisattva as Manjusri. Caves at Aurangabad, 178. The attendant fig­ ure stands in a relaxed pose, holding a bowl, perhaps an offering. Unlike Vajrapurusa [io] he is not aggressive in posture or gesture, mak­ ing it difficult to identify him with certainty as a krodha-mghnd»taka. Van Gulik, Hayagrlva, 24. See Lancaster, Korean Buddhist Canon, 147, no. 427. Van Gulik, Hayagriva, 24, repeated on 56. For T.20.1092, see Lancaster, Korean Buddhist Canon, 106, no. 287 (Njo, 317). The earlier version (T.20.1095, Njo 315) does not appear in the Korean Buddlust canon. T.20.i093.399a-402b (KBC 288, Njo 312). Meisezahl, who has studied extensively the Chinese, Tibetan and Sanskrit versions of the Amoghapasa texts, lists the five Chinese translations. See R.O. Meisezahl, 'The Amoghapasahrdaya-dhArani: The Early Sanskrit Man­ uscript of the Reiunji Critically Edited and Translated," Monumenta Nipponica 17 (1962): 272. TWo errata in Meisezahl should be noted: the text number is misprinted as 1903 instead of 1093; and Meisezahl's no. 4 Is dated 602, or 600-664 for Amoghavajra, who worked in the 8th c„ not the 7 th c. The sixth translation is Bodhiruci's re-translation of 707 cb, as part of the larger AmoghapdsukalparUja. T20.1093.400a, 402a. T20.jo93.401c. See Meisezahl, "Amoghapasahrdaya-dhararu," 295-298. Meisezahl retranslates the dhdrani based on a Tibetan version found at Dunhuang, which was translated into Middle High Tibetan, not from the Sanskrit, but from the Chinese. Also see R.O. Meisezahl, 'Amoghapasa. Some Nepalese Representations and Their Vajrayanic A spects,' Monumenta Serica 26 (1967): 494-496.

{1967): 20-28; P.H. Pott. "T he A m oghapasa from Bhatgaon and its Parivara," journal of the Indian Society of Oriental Art ns; 4 (1971-72); 6365; and, Janice Leoshko, "T he A ppearance of Am oghapasa in Pala Peri­ od A rt," Studies in Buddhist Art of South Asia, ed. A JC . Naratn (N ew Delhi, 1985), 12 7 -13 5 . Asadhana p reserved in Tibet m entions that H aya­ g riv a 's fou r canine tusks sym b olize the subjugation o f the four dem ons: illness, obstacles to D harm a. Death and klesa. C hang, Esoteric Teachings, 64. Stephen B eyer has a lso studied a ritual visualization, attributed to A lisa and practiced today, which visualizes H ayag n va with four fangs. Beyer, Cult of Tara, 3 5 1.

27

T.20.1096.420b. See the helpful distinction betw een liturgical mutbv ("indicators o f the single phases of the m editation") used in rituals, and icon ©graphic mudri (which indicate " a particular essence o r quality o f the god or deity to w hom it is attributed . - . the idea of rr.udra thus being inseparable from that o f Tantric d eity") b y w hich a d eity is iden­ tified, in Erik Haarh, "Contributions to the S tu d y o f M andala and M udrik A n alysis o f Tw o Tibetan M anuscripts in the Royal Library in C openhagen ," Acta Orientalia 23 (1959k 64.

28

T20.1092.243a (mudra described 326b); ibid., 2 7 1a , 302a, 390c (mudri described 246b and 368c).

29

3°

T20.1092.266c, 269a. T20.1056.75c, 8 1b . On the Phase Tw o cult o f the Thousand-arm ed A vaT okitesvara in China, see M aria Dorothea Reis, “The Creed Compassion Dhdrani o f the Thousand-arm ed Avalokitesvara; its Scriptural Source and C ult in C h in a" (typewritten; K yoto, 19S9).

31 32

T 2 0 .n 9 1.8 3 9 a . See Przyluski, "L e s V idyaraja,’ 305-306. K .P Jayasw ai has show n that the historical sections o f the text cannot have been written before the end o f the 8th c. K.P. Jayasw al, An Imperial History of India m a Sanskrit

Text [c. 700 BC-c. 770 33

adI

(Lahore, 1934; reprinted, Patna 1988), 3.

See the discussion in M acdonald, Mahiusrimulakafpa, 1-20. Benovtosh Bhattacharyya takes the m ost extrem e (and untenable) position of dat­ ing the early stratum o f the M M K to the 2nd c. c e in his introduction to Cultyasamiijii Tantra or Tathdgataguhyaka (B.vroda, 19 3 1) , x x x v ii; G iu seppe Tucci also pushes for an earlier dating o f early Esoteric Bud­ dhist texts in " Arum ad vers iones lndicae," Journal of the Asiatic Society of

Bengal ns 26 (1930k 12 8 -132 . Snellgrove suggests Tucci’s placem ent o f the MMK in the 5th c. or earlier is plausible w ith the caveat that "on ly w hen all the more im portant tantras are better know n, can w e begin to date them w ith any certainty." Sneilgrove, “The N otion o f D ivine Kingship in Tantric B u d d h ism /2 18 . A lso see M atsunaga, “O n the Date of

the MahjusrimdSakalfV.“ 34 35

Van G ulik, Hayagriva. 62-75.

37

Van Gulik. Hayagrtta, 67. 68.

38 39

I b k i. 74. T. 19 9 0 1.8 3 ^ . C om pare van G u lik .

40

Schopen, “Suihkvatk" aoo.

41

M eisezahl has produced

Ibid., 6a.

?6 T. 19.901 837C-838*. Compare van Gulik, Kiystgrta*. 73. '

V -..

Hayagrit*. 73.

a m odel tom ographic study o f Am oghapasa

94

43

PH A SE ONE

as he appears w> late Sanskrit texts nr their Chinese and Tibetan transiabon and ocvnwtwntarrcsc The one striking anomaly of several of these later treatments is that Hayagriva appears as an rfyudhlJHirvsa: he is made to be the persxuniffcatjoo o f the mao? However. this only occurs la the special context where all the deities of a cmni-«mm seme as 86

x3i HayagrtM, fame as 102

there between the seventh and tenth centuries.2 The MahayAna sites in Sri Lanka have produced at least two Phase One images of Hayagriva with Avalokitesvara, and probably more could be turned up.3 The imagery found there is in line with the development of the Phase One krodha-viglmAntaka as examined so far, though the evidence is quite meager, underlining that the MahAyAna bodhisattva cult was not dependent on "tantric" elements like the wrathful deities. Southeast Asia would seem to be fertile hunting ground for Phase One imagery. Central Java in particular had well-documented links with Nalanda,4 the source of many of the sculptures examined above. Moreover, several Phase Two hndntaka images survive. Yet except for a few late thirteenth century sculptures originating in east Java, apparently no earlier Phase One krodhavighm/itaka images remain.5 Thai and Cambodian images of Phase One Hayagriva appear to be equally rare, despite the "place of honor" of the Avalokitesvara cult.6 Later Esoteric Buddhism penetrated the area, and several Phase Two and Three images of krodha-vighmntaka will be cited in subsequent chapters. Outside India the archaeological record of Phase One krodha-vighnantaka imagery' in general is relatively impoverished. Fortunately a few high quality exam­ ples exist from Tibet, Central Asia, western China, and Nepal, which demonstrate quite convincingly that Hayagriva as Avalokitesvara's attendant was known out­ side of India. Further, what temporal evidence they do provide works to confirm the broad outlines of the development which we have adumbrated for the Phase One krodha-vighnantaka. The earliest Phase One image of Hayagriva from outside of India of which I am aware is in a lovely painted image of a four-armed Avalokitesvara recovered by Paul Pelliot and now in the Musee Guimet. [ c o l o r p l a t e s 5-6] It may be dated to the late eighth or early ninth century.7 Because of the pasa-noose in Avalokitesvara's left hand, the bodhisattva is usually identified as Amoghapasa. He is surrounded by five graceful female attendants, with a sixth figure rather more masculine look­ ing, immediately beneath him. Hayagriva, the seventh figure, sits below and to the right of the bodhisattva. The scowling, mustachioed krodha-vighnantaka is four-armed and vdmana-Yaksa, and he holds a lotus, vajra and danda. The second left hand is held at the chest, per­ haps making the tarjarii mudrd. Most interesting is the green horse's head which emerges from the top of his head. This is only the second Hayagriva so far exam­ ined with a literal depiction of this definitive feature which figures in most textual descriptions of Hayagriva. The only documented Indian example of a Phase One Hayagriva image with a horse's head is the one accompanying Avalokitesvara in the Rietberg Museum sculpture, from around the same date. [130, 85] In fact the Rietberg example is as close as any for an Indian parallel in terms of overall body type and mood of self-contained power. One might point also to the Kurkihar metal Hayagriva for a similar posture. [131) Several Orissan examples depict Hayagriva four-armed, though none with an arrangement of dyudha identi­ cal to the Rietberg sculpture. We have seen that the danda is one of the most com­ mon of his attributes. The flower which he holds is mentioned in several descripg tions o f a Hayagriva attending AmoghapAsa in Bodhiruci's translation of 707 c b , though very few surviving Indian images seem to relate to it. Even if there is no exact Indian prototype, we can tell from Hayagriva's size relative to AmoghapAsa and to the others in the retinue that he was a deity of some standing and power. That in itself tallies well with the development we have traced, 6ince during the ninth and tenth centuries in Indian Buddhist art the Phase One Hayagriva was at his height, before the stylizations of the late tenth and eleventh centuries had set in

7 TH E LEGACY

I3 3

and after the maturation of early attempts to forge an appropriate form out of ear­ lier Yaksa and Cana imagery. Situated behind this painting are discernible Indian iconographic features. There are equally evident Indian visual conventions as well. This entrancing paint­ ing was recovered from the walled-up "library" at Dunhuang. Stylistically, howev­ er, it is not Chinese. Its fine, unmodulated lineament encloses bodies with a much stronger sensuality of soft curves and composed litheness than is found in contem­ porary Chinese paintings found at Dunhuang. Such details as the oblate (versus cir­ cular) nimbi, the wavy line composing the upper eyelid and the transparency of garments set it apart from Chinese painting conventions and link it to Indian a rt The possibility of Tibetan intermediation naturally presents itself, particularly since the painting dates from the period of the Tibetan occupation of Dunhuang, between 781 and 847 c e . However, the dearth of contemporary' Tibetan art dted above pre­ cludes precise attribution either to Tibetan artists working in Dunhuang, or for that matter, to artists working at some other site, from which it was subsequently brought to Dunhuang.9 A number of paintings were found at Dunhuang with dual Chinese and Tibetan inscriptions, along with others having Tibetan inscriptions alone.10 Still others have no inscription but are marked by a distinct non-Chinese style. Some of these have similarities with the Guimet painting, though only one is nearly as fine.11 If, as seems likely, this painting was executed by someone (of what­ ever ethnic origin) trained in the sty le most appreciated in Tibet, and if it does reflect high quality Tibetan art of the ninth century, then we can conclude that at this juncture Tibetan art was remarkably transparent, meaning it allowed the con­ temporary Indian stylistic and iconographic features to pass through it and to pre­ dominate. A final reflection on this painting. It is called a mandala by Whitfield, Kannay, Feugere and Heller. There is some justification for a loose definition of this term, in which, as here, deities are arranged in an orderly if not symmetrical fashion, with a coordinated relationship to the larger central deity. However, it is somewhat mis­ leading, since contemporaneously at Dunhuang there were mandala in the strict sense of the term, preserving an absolutely symmetrical system of arrangement of deities in the four primary and four subsidiary directions around a central deity. The strictly defined mandala reflects Phase Two and Three Esoteric Buddhist con­ cerns. Here we have not a mandala but an expanded triadic arrangement. A s such it accords perfectly well with the Phase One images of Avalokitesvara and Hayagriva which have already been examined in the context of the enduring and widespread cult of the bodhisattva Avalokitesvara. The same considerations hold for a related eight-armed eleven-headed Aval­ okitesvara recovered by Kozlov from Khara Khoto.13 Unquestionably there are Tangut stylistic characteristics, but the style derives from painting of eastern India via central Tibet. Another Phase One Hayagriva with a horse's head graces the reverse of a Bud­ dha sculpture in Changspa, near Leh in Ladakh, western Tibet {132-133) This sculpture is early enough to qualify for inclusion among the rare images surviving from first diffusion of Buddhism in Tibet. Although in abraded condition, its model in Indian sculpture is clearly pre-tenth century. On the other side is a very svelte-

132. Four-armed Avalokitesvara with Haya• griva, Changspa (Ladakh),

«• 9>h-ioth century

looking Buddha, and some of the smoothness and roundness o f form (very differ­ ent from the Kashmiri idiom which dominates the tenth century) is visible in the bodhisattva. Nevertheless, the awkwardness of the proportions and the slight stiff­ ness betray a provincial western Tibetan reinterptretation of the Indian modeL It may be placed in the ninth century, or the tenth century at the latest

1 V4

PH A SE O N E

*33 Haytagrtix detail of 132

The very tubby, large-headed Hayagriva leans on the upturned handle of a danda. He is surrounded by a backdrop, possibly of flames. Most significant is the large horse's head which emerges at the crown of his head. [133] Both heads turn inward toward the bodhisattva. In terms of the relative proportions, a comparable Indian example would be the Orissan four-armed Avalokitesvara image, [ c o l o r p la t e 4] In fact this is the kind of image which must have been the mental model for the sculptor in Ladakh. A Tibetan image of the Phase One Hayagriva is preserved in the painting of Amitayus in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.14 [ c o l o r p l a t e 7 ,134 ] Its late twelfth-century date makes it among the earliest surviving Tibetan hanging paint­ ings.15 The large Amitayus figure dominates the composition, but two standing bodhisattva form the essential triad, while monks and adoring bodhisattva form symmetrical groups to either side. In the bottom register are three bodhisattva, Av alokitesvara, Manjusri and Vajrapani at the center, while on the far proper left is perhaps the blue Vighnantaka or Acala (mainly Phase Two wrathful deities). As in the Dunhuang painting, Hayagriva is again in the bottom proper right corner. Instead of squatting, however, he stands in the active pratydlidha, like some of the images from Orissa. [92] He can be identified by the green horse's head emerging from his hair. He brandishes a long ianda or staff with his right hand and makes the tarjani mudrd with his left. All in all, it is a much more powerful and aggressive Hayagriva than most contemporary Phase One images from India. We will see that in Phase Two imagery the wrathful deities take on a much more aggressive demeanor, calling attention to themselves and their power, in contrast to the Phase One krodha-vighmntaka, who salutes the more important figure he attends. Apparently what we see here is a later Phase Two form imported into a Phase One image. This is, once again, not a mandala. It was consecrated to Amitayus by a specific Tibetan Lama, Chokyi Gyaltsen, on the occasion of his life-attainment ritu­ al.16 The ritual seems to be related to the Tara ritual of "initiation into life" designed for the prolongation of life, a ritual which Stephen Beyer has studied. Here too Amitayus is envisioned: ... he has one face, upon his two hands, held in the meditation gesture, he holds a golden flask filled with a stream of the nectar of immortal life.

Another ritual still practiced by Tibetan Buddhists describes Hayagriva in just this form, as the patron of the Lotus family over which Amitayus presides, for the pur­ pose of expelling evil spirits: ... his body colored red, having oneface and two hands, with his right hand brandishing in the sky a cudgel of khadira wood and his left hand in the threatening gesture upon his breast. His three round eyes gape and stare, his mouth bares four fangs; his eyebrmvs and beard are red-yellow, blazing like thefire at the end of time; his hair is pale yellow, bristling upward, and on his crest is a green horse head, whinnying, He is adorned with the eight great serpent-kings, his lower garment is a tiger skin, he stands with his right foot drawn in and his left stretched out, in the center of a mass of blazing fire of knowledge.

*34- Hayagriva, detail of Amitdyus thangka, Tibet, (a. 12th century. Los Angeles County Museum of Art, detail of count W A T f . 7

X

The functions of this painting of Amitayus with Hayagriva in attendance are not Esoteric Buddhist in the strict sense of the term. Long life and protection are being prayed for here, boons which fit into the realm of traditional cult Mahayana. The triadic composition also supports this reading. Hayagriva performs functions which mesh with Phase One liturgical demands, but his form is that borrowed from Phase Two contexts, which by this time were coeval in Tibet. The same is true of a painted Hayagriva in an outer chapel of the fifteenth-century Great Stupa of

7 THE LEGACY

135. Hayagriva, Tibet, copper alloy, ca. 12th century, Zimmerman Family Collection

135

Gyantse [ c o l o r p l a t e s 8-9J, and perhaps also for the twelfth-century Zimmerman metalwork [135], though here the context is lost. That this aggressive form of Haya­ griva was not a Tibetan invention will be argued in the conclusion of this chapter. Most surviving Tibetan images of Hayagriva feature the more forcefully wrathful characteristics developed in the second phase, but these are examples of Hayagriva in Tibetan Phase One contexts.’ 9 [ c o l o r p l a t e s 5-9] They serve to illustrate some of the issues of Hayagriva's image in Tibet and their complex relationship with Indian traditions. Stylistically distinct from eastern Indian art, Nepalese sculpture and painting nevertheless were strongly influenced thematically by the Buddhist centers of art in Bihar and Bengal. For our present purposes, it is important to point out that in Nepal, one also finds early wrathful attendants to bodhisattvas. Among these early images are seventh and eighth-century examples of vamana-Yaksa krodha-vighnantaka attending Vajraparti as personifications of his vajra.20 Hayagriva in particular continues to be depicted in paintings and sculptures of Amoghapasa Avalokitesvara into the sixteenth century.21 In images w hich seem to repeat a standard prototype, Hayagriva squats with one knee up. His red body is vdm ana-Yaksa, arid he wears a stylized animal skin dhoti and a snake upcnhta. His serpentine hair stands straight up behind an elaborate bejeweled crown. Atop his head is a small horse's head. His eyes are w ide, including the third one, and fangs protrude from his lips. He makes the vandana m udri with the raised right hand, saluting Avalokitesvara. This Hayagriva conforms in most of the essentials with the standardized image we found squatting and saluting Avalokitesvara in tenth, eleventh and twelfth-century Indian Hayagriva images. [136] We can assume that he originally held a small danda. Judging from the paintings, the relationship of Hayagriva to Bhrikuti in sixteenth-century' Nepal was identical to that which held sway in late period Indian Avalokitesvara images. Thus Hayagriva kneels on the level below Amoghapasa's throne, beneath Bhrikuti, who hovers at the level of the bodhisattva's torso. She is significantly larger than Hayagriva. An inscription on the sixteenth century Leiden painting published by Pott also allows us to learn something of the religious context of such images. It should come as no surprise that the references are not Esoteric Buddhist property speaking, but rather prayers for earthly benefits of long life, health and wealth. Here is the com­ plete inscription as given by Pott: Hail! In the year 652, in the month ofMagha, m the bright half, on the glh Jay, a Friday during the reign of Raja Pranamalla, the yujiUimana Bhiksusri, his wife firulaksmi, his son called Knmalasingha. and his wives Basulaksmi and Daralaksmi. having taken, this suppli­ cation at the foot of Amoghapasa Lokesi'ara, living at the temple o f Gosam-Kurmn1 Thakura in the (vihara) Mahabhuta: that he may live his Iif • without illness, with children and riches, fortune and have an uninterrupted offspring, that he may become old, and receive all the fruits predicted in the sastraC*

136. Hayagriva. detail of 116 , same as 117

Sixteenth-century Nepalese Hayagriva images validate two suppositions for us. First, they underscore the power of iconographie orthodoxy by which tty? stan­ dard Hayagriva image-type, codified in eastern India by the late tenth to eleventh centuries, could still be repeated iconicallv several hundred years later in Nepal. Second, the inscription of the Leiden painting once again confirms that such images appear in the context of the Mahay&na bodhisattva cult, which seeks intercession in earthly life, and not in the context o f Esoteric Buddhism, where the primary con­ cern is $amyaksambodhi (absolute enlightenment) in this life. The distinction is that between mundane and supramundane powers, "those concerned with protection

3

* $

PH A SE ONE

or personal benefit of one kind or another in this world, .and those concerned with the progress toward enlightenment."*3 It is necessary to distinguish the two, but not because mature Esoteric Bud­ dhism does not also involve mundane goals as part of its agenda. Certainly it does. However, Thase One images consistently admit to no other interpretation than that of a mundane orientation. Supramundane goals are singularly absent. Phase One imager)' has been confined to such a belief system wherever we have inscriptional evidence or a broader iconcgraphic context from which to judge: from the earliest recognized images at Aurangabad and Ellora, to the monastic complexes of Orissa, Bihar and Bengal, to Khara Khoto, Tibet, Java and Nepal. The evidence has been almost univocal that images of kmilia-vigfmdnlaka do not necessarily be-token Eso­ teric Buddhism, any more than do multi-armed images of Avalokitesvara or dhamm. Phase One kwdha-vighndntaka images emerged from Mahayana, and a strain of Mahay ana cult images continued to incorporate them, even as they were outgrowing their attendant status.

Conclusions If one were to chart the course of Phase One krodha-vigh nan taka imagery in eastern India between the seventh and twelfth centuries, a lop-sided bell-shaped curve would emerge. It would appear faintly from the late sixth century, rise stiffly in the eighth and ninth centuries, peak in the tenth, and begin to flatten out as it declines again in the eleventh. Such a chart would reflect both the visual and religious inter­ est retained by the krodha-vtghmntaka within the context of an enduring "dharani" Mahayana. The mantranaya practice within Mahayana featured the cult of the bodhisattva and borrow'ed both imagery and practices from Esoteric Buddhism, which in turn was deeply affected by Mahayana imagery', vocabulary and deities. Judging by the purposes for which such images were intended (e.g., longevity and rebirth in paradise), it is dear that the Phase One images of krodha-vighnantaka remain for the most part distinct from "pure" Esoteric Buddhism. The earliest Phase One krodha-vighnantaka were formally dependent on earlier images of Yaksa and Y'aksa-related demi-gods: the Gana and ayudhapurusa. A sense of ambiguity, potential malevolence and forced conversion lingers on in the krodhavighnantaka. Additionally, there w'as considerable variety in gestures and attitudes, but the vandana and vinayahasta mudra are notably frequent. Early artists were not concerned to be either consistent or specific about the individual krodha-vighnantaka deities they represented. At an early stage there was an almost generic quality to the forms (not necessarily the doctrines) of the krodha-vighnantaka, YamSntaka and Hayagriva easily substituting for one another. Middle period references to Yaksa and Yaksa-derived forms is less overt. Ori­ gins are still an active ingredient, but they are more well-integrated into the total image. The krodha-vighnantaka often seemed to capture the interest of the artist and his co-religionists at the expense of other members of the various bodhisattva entourages. The krodha-vighnimtaka build in power and aggression. Iconographic specialization among the members of the group, such as Yamantaka's buffalo or the tiny horse's head in Hayagriva'6 hair, which by this time is evident in their Phase Two incarnations, is only rarely observed. By the end of the middle period, however, there is a noticeable reduction in the number of ways in which the krodha-vighnimtaka is represented. The vinayahasta mudra drops from view. The vandana mudra and the posture of leaning on a short

*'w» vrv>-pes of texts in which the new paradigm is found. At around the same time, we find sutra literature (MV'S), philosophical PrajMparamitd litera­ ture {Adhyardlsasatikd PrajiiapSmmita), mandate and sadhana descriptions, ritual man­ uals for chanting poetic eulogies (Maiijusrmdmasamgiti), magical-rite literature (Sarvsditrgatifiarisodltana [hereafter, SDPS]), and at times puntita-like mythology in a Buddhist cloak (sections of the STTS). All used similar language, metaphors, deities and practices for a common end.14 The most important early sutra to mark the tran­ sition from Phase One to Phase Two is the Mahavairocana Sutra, featuring Mahavairocana at the center of the mandate. He preaches in response to the ques­ tions and comments of Vajrapani "at the vast palace of Vajra-dharmadhatu," to a huge celestial audience.’ 5 A similar audience, setting and group of locutors are found in the Adhyardhasaiika Prajfwparamitd and the STTS, which began to be trans­ lated into Chinese at about the same time as the MV'S, that is, at the end of the first quarter of the eighth century'.16 In the sutra named for him, Mahavairocana instructs on very heterogenous matters, which range from observations of great profundity and abstractness17 to mudra and mantra instructions, and general teachings about obtaining abhiseka ini­ tiation from a proper master. Somewhat more unified and consistent in tone and content is the STTS. Once again it is Mahavairocana who preaches before a myriad of hodhisattva and celestial beings. Both this new spokesperson and the transcendental site are substantial changes from previous sutra literature, even from the early Esoteric Buddhist texts like the MMK and the Mahabala Sutra. Generally Mahayana literature features Sakyamuni preaching in some earthly location that is historically or traditionally linked to his biography, such as Rajgir, Vaisali or Sravasti. Here instead we have texts preached by the cosmic Buddha Mahavairocana in settings which "make no claim whatsoever to historicity. . . [and are) revealed by the Lord . . . in a transcen­ dent sphere of existence."’ 8 Yet the basic samgiti format of a Buddha preaching to an audience of monks, hodhisattva and other sentient beings is maintained even as the main speaker and locale are transformed. This is significant because Phase Three literature abandons entirely the format of Phase One. Another identifying characteristic of Phase Two texts is the five Tathagata mandate with Mahavairocana at the center. Some Phase Two texts, for example the SDPS, preserve the older personalities in the introductory sections, but feature Mahavairocana at the center of the five Tathagata mandate. Primary Phase Two texts like the MV'S and the STTS rely throughout on this core emblem. The later Phase Three Esoteric Buddhist texts which feature Hevajra, Samvara and Kalacakra, tend to abandon the samgiti format for another and substitute Aksobhya, Vajrasattva or Vajradhara for Mahavairocana at the center of the five Tathagata mandate. Phase Three tnandala also tend to surround the central deity with eight female consorts, though the five Tathagata mandate does survive alongside it. Further discussion of the differences between Phase Two and Three texts and images is deferred until the next section. When and where these Phase Two texts arose is a vexed question.’ 9 They were in use in both eastern India and Kashmir in the ninth and tenth centuries, and v . . ' r

8 A NEW P A R A D IG M

I4 9

translations into C h inese began in the ea rly eighth century. On the other h an d, the sixth-century C ilg it texts do not include fiv e Tatha gata mandate or an y o f the kn ow n texts. Therefore a date o f the ea rly or m id seventh centu ry fo r the form ation of the M V S and the STTS seem s reasonable.20 The preceding m ust serve as a v e ry general introduction to the intricacies o f Phase Tw o philosophy, practices and origins, a s w ell a s a set o f its w o rk in g a ssu m p ­ tions.21 This background allo w s us to begin to exam in e the role o f the krodhavighnCmtaka w ithin the system . Focusing on a few' o f the P h ase Tw o texts w ill facilitate the exam ination. The m ost im portant o f the texts in term s o f recogn ized im pact and w id espread acceptance are the M ahdvairocam Sutra an d the ST T S. T h e tw o "fo rm the basis of Japan ese Tantric Buddhist tradition," w h ile for the Tibetans, the "ch ie f o f all Tantras o f the C a ry a Tantra class is the Mahdvairocana-ahhisambodhi__

•y-y

t a n t r a and "the fundam ental one of all the Yoga Tantras is the lattvasam graha ” T hese texts are particularly accessible because their significance w ith in the

tw o

liv ­

ing traditions has d raw n considerable attention from scholars. We w ill proceed to exam ine them for a sense of the krodha-vighnan taka and their new roles. T h is w'ill b e follo w ed b y a briefer look at som e less foundational texts to sh o w h o w w id e sp re a d w ere the ideas w e discover in the M V S and the STTS. Later on w e w ill in vestigate the specifics o f the iconography o f in d ivid u al krodfm-mghndntaka, b u t first w e m u st orient the krodha-vighnantaka w ithin the n ew p arad igm o f Ph ase Tw o.

150

PH A SE TW O

Notes to Chapter Eight i

a

3 4

5

6 7 8

9

10

11 12

See Kuhn, Sdwtojft RenVtrtiitfws The chapter epigraph comes loom Alfred Fouchet, Etude sur l'keneigrsq#iit ikmddhufue de I'inde, d'apris dcs t o t e inbirts (Paris, 1905 S. tu. The stanilaand arrangement has at center Mahavairwana; to the east Aksrihhya; the south Ratnasambhava; the west Aimtayus; and the north Amogtwssdkfiu. Names and positions sometimes vary. The M a M j w a a h S i n arrangement has at center Mahivairocarva; to the east Ratnaketv Tathagata; the south Samkusumita-raja Tath^gata; the west AmiUyus; and the north Dhva-dundubhi-meghanirghosa Tafivtgate. See Thjima, *Les Deux Grands Mandates," 65. The section epigraph is from Hermann Hesse, T v Glass fvvii Game (AJggfsfer Ludi), to re, Richard and Clara Winston (New York, 1969), 38-39. "All the mam' phenomena arising from the mind, they are ail empty like this tie. tike a magician's illusion)." (MVS) 1.18.848412. 'Despite seeking rt for mnumerable fau’pes while performing austeri­ ties, *t will not be attained. But all bodhisattva who cultivate the prac­ tices 01 Siiram will tn this very life attain it [semwtesmhrxfti].'' (MVS) T.iSAjS igfe: Yamamoto, j6 . I am indebted to the English translation of Yamamoto, it allows English readers to rapidly acquire an overall sense of the text, but the translation presents problems of interpretation beyond those of awkward English. Therefore, in most passages of the MVS included here, 1 have translated directly from the Chinese text and died both the Chinese tort and Yamamoto's translation. Also see an abstract of die MVS by Robert Duauenne, 'On Realizing Buddhahood in One's Body," Transactions of the Intematiam1 Conference of Oriemtsirits m Lqxm 26 {1981): 148-149. For deity "families" in Esoteric Buddhism, see Alex Wayman. "Totemic Beliefs in the Buddhist Tantras,' History of Religions 1.1 (1961): 81-94. Quoted in Taik6 Yamasaki, Siangan: Japanese Esoteric Buddhism, bans. Richard and Cynthia Peterson (Boston, 1988), 107. Lessrag and Way-man, Mihas-grub-rfe 5,241. In Saunders's conception the adept enters and interiorizes the iconog­ raphy of the deity, an activity that is more than "simply looking at a given statue and being aware of its symbolism." It is neither 'imagin­ ing' nor 'p assh d y receiving,' but 'a quickening of one's inner fences to concert with given cosmic forces." E Dale Saunders, "Some Tantric Techniques," to Sadies of Esoteric Buddhism and Tantrism (Koyasan, 1965), 169. The same pear* is made by Shotaro lida, who states that 'vision is never stmph' a picture or an image; it is always accompanied by strang emotion and deep understanding." Shotaro lida, "Toward a Second Look ai ’Visual Mode in Buddrast Tradition." in Facets of Buddhism (Delhi. 1991), 44. See the extended discussion of the symbolism of the five Tathagata in Giuseppe Tiled, Tar Temples of Wfesfem Tibet end Their Artistic Symbolism: The Monasteries of Spiff and Kumoar (Jndo-Ttbetice f i l l ), bans. lima Marina Vesa et al and eriL Lokesh Chandra (New Delhi, 1988), 145-159. For an importan t treatise on the definition, structure and symbolism of the Phase Two mandsda as understood by an 8th c Esoteric Buddhist master, see Eberto Lo Bue, "The Dharmamandala-Suba by Buddhagubya," to Oioitafsfl losephi Tucci Memoriae Cheats Serie Orientate Roma no. 36 (Rome 1987) x. 787-818. Buddhaguhya understood the mandate as a a r s e n ic 'royal residence" on Ml. Sumeru for the five Tathagata. Every aspect of this citadel, its domes, the gateways, their beams, posts, capitals, etc has symbolic meaning. Buddhaguhya's interpretation was directly rooted in the primary Phase Two texts. lyanaga, "Roots de U Soumission," 660-661, note 8. Alex Wayman, "Contribution* on the Symbolism of die MandalaPaiace," to Etudes Ttbetama dediees & la memehre de Marcelle Lalou {Peris, *97*% 557-566-

ImioTibelan Buddhism, 209-213, AdhynrdhasatikA PrajttitptnmitA," in Studies of Esoteric Buddhism and Tantrism (Koyasan, 1965), 1 0 1 - 1 1 5 ; idem, 'Tonbic

13

See Snellgrove,

14

See Edw ard Conze, "T he

PrajhapSram ita Texts," 10 1-10 2 , 107-108, and, Ronald M. Davidson, "T he Litany of Names of MaUjusrl: Text and Translation of the

MaflfusrinAmasamgiti," in Tantric and Twist Studies iit Honour of R..A. Stem, ed. Michel Sbickm ann (Brussels, 19 81), 1-69. This is a Phase Two text w hich states it is a section o f the MAuiijAta and w hich Davidson has show n to be derived ultim ately from the STTS. "Litany of Names of Madjusrt," 2-4. It seem s to h ave actually been better know n among Buddhists than the M M K. It w as translated into Chine.se in the 12th c. (T .18.1188) and tw ice in the early 14th c. b y a Tibetan (T .18.119 0) and a disciple o f Phagpa, w h o m ay have been a Tangut (T .18.1189). A lso see

Sarvadurgatiparisodhana. MahAvairoaina-AbkisambhodhivikurvitadhisthAna-vaipulya sittra,

Skorupski, 15

T.i 8-848.

translated b y Subhakarasim ha and Yixing ca. 724 c e . For an annotated discussion o f the Chinese bansiation and Sino-Japanese commentarial badition, see lyanaga, "R ecits d e la Soum ission,'' 649-655; Yamamoto, 1 ; and, A lex Wayman and R. Tajima,

The Enlightenment of Vairocana

(Delhi; M otilal Banarsidass, 1992). 16

For the STTS, see T .18 .8 65,866,882. The edited Sanskrit text is found in Isshi Yam ada, Sarvatalhagatatattvasamgraha (N ew Delhi, 19 8 1); and a facsim ile o f a 10th c. Sanskrit copy in Lokesh C h an dra and David L.

5nellgrove, eds., Scnva-taihdgala-tattva-sahgTaha (N ew 17

Yamam oto, 3.

18

Snellgrove,

Delhi, 1981).

Buddhist Himabya, 55. For an an alysis o f these tw o types of

texts w hich is sim ilar to m y ow n, though fram ed as the difference between "M iscellaneous Esoteric B u dd h ism " and "P u re Esotericism," see Yukei M atsunaga, "Tantric B uddhism and Shingon B u dd h ism /' The Eastern 19 20

Buddhist 2.2 (1969): 5-7.

See Linrothe, "Com passionate M alevolence," 267-270. "Tan ba texts in this sense cannot be proved to have existed before the 7th century, though som e o f the elem ents constituting the T anbas m ay h ave existed before that tim e." M oriz W intem itz, "N o te s on the Guhyasamdja-Tantra and the A g e o f the Tantras," The Indbn Historical Quarter­ ly 9 (1933): 8. Y. M atsunaga and others accept a date of the mid- 7th c. for foe MVS, and foe end o f the 7th c. for the truncated form of the STTS. See Y. M atsunaga, "Tantric B uddhism /' 1 0 - 1 1 ; idem "Indian Eso­ teric Buddhism as Studied in Ja p a n /' in Studies of Esoteric Buddhism and Tantrism (Koyasan, 1965), 235, 237. Other references for these dates are found in Charles Willemen, The Chinese Hevajratantra, 12 - 13 , notes 15 ,16 . lyanaga concludes that the terminus a quo for the STTS is the early 7th c. and its terminus ad quem is Subhakarasim ha's arrival in China, i.e., 7 16

21

ce.

lyanaga, "R6cits de la Soum ission ," 727.

M y Phase Two h as much in com m on w ith the Tibetan text classification category o f "Yoga-tantra," w hich m any scholars use to define a type of Esoteric Buddhist practice. Phase Two also largely corresponds to the type o f Esoteric Buddhism accepted in Japan and practiced as Shingon ("True W ord"), elim inating the developm ents largely creditable to Kobd Daishi, SaichO, and foe im portant m asters w orkin g in China. With this in m ind, a broader o verview and m ore detail can be derived from a num ber o f excellent studies on Esoteric Buddhism . These

Tibetan Painted Scrolls, 1:209-249; S n e llg ro v e 's Buddhist Hirtmlaya, w hich

include G iuseppe Tucd, "T he R eligious Ideas: VajrayAna," in

rem ains a trustworthy guide 35 years after its publication; his more

Indo-Tibetan Buddhism', W aym an's "Introduction to Buddhist Yoga of the Guhyasamajatantra; D asgupta's An Introduction lo Tantric Buddhism; and Yam asaki's Shingon: Jafmne.se Esoteric Buddhism,

recent

Tantrism ," in

all o f which already have been cited. 22

Japanese: M inoru, Shingon Buddhism, 18; Tibetan: Lessin g and Wayman, MIdm-grub-rje't, 2 0 5 ,2 15 .

9

New Texts, New Functions

Now it seems possible. . . to ascribe to the 'terrifying' deities a function agreeing with their actual character. In this way it becomes clear how and why their more important task is the furtherance of the believers' striving after supreme understanding, whereas their character as 'guardians of the doctrine' is relegated to the status o f a secondary explanation.

P. H. Pott, Yoga and Yantra

1 Mahavairocana-Sutra In Yixing and Subhakarasimha's 724

ce

translation of the M ahdvairoam a-Sutra

(M V S, T. 18.848), only three krodha-vighndntaka are singled out for special attention:

Acala, Trailokyavijaya and Hayagriva. Hayagriva alone is familiair from Phase One contexts. The other two seem to be new. Hayagriva is not as important in the M V S as the other two and is not mentioned as often. When he is named, it is as a mem­ ber of Avalokitesvara's parinara-entourage, along with Tara, Bhrikuti and Pandaravasini. It is clear that his earlier presence in Phase One contexts has been main­ tained but not transformed. He is described as follows: The Vidy&rdja who holds great power, he is the color o f the morning sun. adorned with a while lotus, encircled with flames. He roarsfrightfully, hisfangs protruding His talons are sharp and his hair is a lion's mane. This is Hayagriva*

Aside from this description, which contains nothing new, as well as the register of his dfuiranl and an occasional entry in lists of Avalokitesvara's entourage, very little is said about Hayagriva regarding his capacities or functions. The text devotes a markedly greater amount of attention to Acala and "Erailokyavijaya. 1 1 .1 Acala

:' '

w

■ ' • '• Acala is mentioned in conjunction with Trailokyavijaya on a number of occasions in the MVS. Several duties are assigned to both or to either of them. Nevertheless,

152

P R A S E TW O

Hrey maintain enough individual autonomy to justify treating them separately

143. Aada, eastern Indta. metalwork, ca. 11th century, author's icaifccikvtr

here, after pointing out that there is a significant overlap. The task of band/klya-sinm is usually the first step in the Esoteric Buddhist ritual procedure* The exercise secures the boundaries and purifies tire grounds where the mandala will be constructed and rituals will take place. It is an important preliminary stage which ensures that the rite will not be contaminated by impure objects and actions. It also protects the adept who is about to unleash potentially overpowering spiritual forces. Acala is called upon for this critical task of "holding ground"3 to ensure tire adept is not besieged when most vulnerable by impure outside forces, demons or Mara's hordes. Acala's power to maintain sacred ground may account for his distinctive posture in South Asian images, in which he literally puts his knee to tire ground. [143] The previous section cited passages of Phase One texts in which the krodhavighndntaka are called upon to perform duties similar to those of Acala. Phase Two texts depart significantly from the nature of Phase One by advancing the tasks out of the realm of magic into the realm of spiritual, or psychological, endeavor. More precisely, the magical and the spiritual are allowed to co-exist. The MVS offers an expressly inner interpretation of these "outer" (even if invisible) attacks of demons, impurities and obstacles. Chapter Three of tire M VS, entitled "Cessation of Hin­ drances," equates present obstacles and past actions (i.e., karm ic debt), and the role of Acala in eliminating both is set forth by Mahavairocana: Obstacles derive from one's own mind, following from past parsimonious actions. In order to rid oneself o f the causes, meditate on the bodhicitta, eliminating false distinctions aris­ ing from one’s oum thoughts. Recall and hold the thought o f enlightenment (bodhicitta), and the adept will leave behind the whole past. Often one should think of Acala Mahdsattxxi. and, making his secret mudrd, one can do away with all obstructions.4

Later in the chapter Mahavairocana makes clear that the image of Acala is called up to destroy one's own karmic obstacles by saying: Next l should explain how to pul a stop to all obstructions. Meditate on the dh&rani of great fierceness, that of Acala-Mahdbala. Reside (one's mind) in his original mandala. It is as if the adept himself was in the center or else sees this image [of Acala]. . . these obstacles will be destroyed; having been stopped they w ill not be produced?

Further on, in Chapter Eleven, "The Gidiya-secret M andala," preparing the ground for the mandala (in other words, clearing aw ay stones, gravel, bone and other detritus) is equated metaphorically with purifying the mind.6 The same ver­ bal pun on "ground" seems to be preserved in Sanskrit, Chinese and English, for the earth-ground in Sanskrit is bhUmi, while the mental-ground is citta-bhum i. Into the crucial implication of the inner nature of the m andala-ritual process, tire krodhavighndntaka are inserted.7 The inner aspect is essential to keep in mind whenever Acala, Trailokyavijaya, or any other of the Phase Two krodha-vighndntaka are mentioned. Phase Two ideolog gy always provides an inner explanation for outer actions. To visualize Acala and to perform his mudrd and dhdrani is tantamount, not just to keeping malevolent demons at bay, but to purifying one's inner state. The M VS states directly that Acala's ritual is effective in "averting all obstacles which rise out of oneself."9 This is not to say that the demons which most of us might now reject as superstitious projections are not taken to be real by practitioners. But it does demonstrate that they have another dimension, and that toe krodha-vighnantaka themselves become in this sense symbols for the elimination of the practitioner's inner obstacles to enlightenment.

9

NEW TEXTS, NEW FUNCTIONS

153

This "inner," "secret," or metaphorical meaning is not merely a modem pro­ jection. Iyanaga has focused attention on portions of the early eighth-century commentary on the M VS by Yixing, based on f»ubhakarasimha's teachings. They substantiate our appeal to interpret the actions of the krodha-vighnantaka in destroy­ ing obstacles as metaphors for the internal yogic processes employed to gain enlightenment. The following passage comments on portions of the M VS dealing with the elimination of all obstructions by Acala. The commentary describes in detail a rite in which the adept draws a picture of the obstruction inside a triangu­ lar altar. Acala is within the altar, and the practitioner visualizes his own body as that of Acala, who stamps his foot on the head of the image of the obstruction, which will then take rapid flight. If it does not, the demon will be cut off from its life-force. The commentary interprets this drama for us: There is a secret sense to this: that which is called the Obstruction, are those dharrm such as Avarice and Desire which are produced in the mind: it is these whick cause all sorts o f Obstruction to the practitioner. The Vldynraja Acala acting here is the Great M ind of Enlightenment, Omniscient Wisdom: it is necessary to realize that this M ind is a great force with a powerfulferocity; it is capable of destroyingfo r ever thefaults that remain. It cuts off [the Obstructions] fo r ever, that is, they are put to death.,£>

In other passages of the M VS, Acala is described as "the great obstacle smasher," whose dhdrani is revealed by Mahavairocana, dwelling in sarmdhi, in order to put a stop to all obstructions. Acala is relied on to eliminate stains and to protect the body. The mudrd representing Acala's wisdom sword is used to eliminate obstacles and to purify offerings. Rotating the mudrd to the right eliminates impurities, to the left removes obstacles. These aims of protection, purification and the removal of obstacles are extended in the case of Acala to the sacralization of mundane activities such as eating and bathing.11 As Jishu Oda explains: [Acala] guards and protects the practiser at all times ami bestows cm him tong life, recov­ ering from him, as offering, food that is left over. He is the god who completes the bodht of the practiser. His partaking o f the food which is left over signifies the extinction of all defilements.12

One other point is worth noting at this stage. Acala's dhdram, which are given in more than one passage of the M VS, use his alternate name, Canda Maharo&ana, "The Fierce and Greatly Wrathful One."1' This provides a significant link with the later Phase Three transformation of Acala, where he is primarily known as Candamah&rosana. In this early Phase Two text the epithet is embedded in his dhdrani and is probably descriptive rather than titular. But it will grow to signify a deity whose importance is central and at the heart of his own mandate and Esoteric Buddhist text, the Cattdamahdrosana Tantra.14 In the MVS Acala is described in the main mandate of Chapter Two: Below the Lord of Mantra [Mahdvairocana], in the nirrti (south-west) position is Acute. servant of the Tithiigata. He holds a sword of discrimination and a paste-neetse. Hts- hair fills from the top of his head onto his left shoulder. He has one eye which squints intently His auv-inspiring and wrathful body emanates flumes . He sits serenely on

a

round rock.

His forehead is marked by [frotvn} lines like wwres on the sea. but hisfintt is that o f a cumpletely filled youth; this is he who is filled with prapte.

-

‘ V. S •

• :r-:v

~...

»^

.V""'

X

^

Although we will be unable to pursue this topic further here, Chinese and Japan­ ese images of Acala resemble this description, though South Asian images {143I consistently deploy a different pose*1 ; v .

154

PHASE TWO

1.2 Trailokyavijaya

A s already mentioned, Trailokyavijaya appears together with Aeala in a number of passages of the MVS. In one place he is listed after Aeala, as an alternate choice for securing the ground (literal and metaphorical) of the mandala.'7 Another section suggests a division of responsibilities, relying on Aeala to eliminate impurities and «O protect the body, while Trailokyavijaya secures the boundaries of the mandate. Trailokyavijaya's dh&rani is also recited in order to sacralize the water used in initi­ ation and, along with Acala's, to assure purification by means of bathing.19 Anoth­ er equation with Aeala is made when Trailokyavijaya is likewise called one "who smashes the great obstacle-makers," though this may be an epithet for all members of the class.20 The standard Genzu garbhadhatu mandate of Japan, is based on a combination of three sources: the MVS, the commentary written down by Yixing according to Subhakarasimha's teaching, and oral traditions.21 In it Trailokyavijaya figures three times. He appears in the vidyddhara quarter as Vajrahumkara and Trailokyavijaya, and once in the Vajrapani quarter as Candratilaka.22 This seems to have been accu­ rately forecast in the MVS, when in the course of describing the Guhya-m andnla Mahavairocana explains that Trailokyavijaya dwells in three stations.23 However, only two of the three forms of Trailokyavijaya actually found in the mandate are spelled out in the MVS. Candratilaka is described as the form of Trailokyavijaya who accompanies Vajrapani: Below Vajrapini is the krodha Trailokyavijaya, who smashes all great obstacles, called Can­ dratilaka. Three eyes and four fangs protrude, in color he is like a summer storm cloud. Laughing out A TA TA, he is adorned with diamonds and jewels. Because he assists and protects all sentient beings, he is surrounded by uncountable beings. He has a hundred thousand hands, wielding various &yudha.~*

Twice Trailokyavijaya is described in the text, placed in the comer opposite Aeala. In both instances, Trailokyavijaya's only prominent attribute is the vajra: Next in the Vayu comer (northwest) again paint the krodha deity, so-called Trailokyavi­ jaya Awesomely surrounded byflames, with a gem-encrusted crown, holding the vajra, he is unconcerned fo r his own body and life, but only requests and receives the [Buddhist/MahOvairocana'sl teachings.25 In the northwest corner is Trailokyavijaya, who smashes the great obstacle-makers. Above there is an aura offlames. He has great power and awe-inspiring wrath like Yama. He is dark in color and is terrifying in the extreme. His hands twirl a vajra.26

1.3 The vidyadhara section of the mandala Aeala and Trailokyavijaya are placed at either end of the "mansion" of the vidyddhara in the mandate, in accord with the description given by the MVS.27 This area of the mandate is located immediately below (i.e., to the west of) the central section with the five Tathagata and is considered to be part of this central section.28 The MVS specifies here only these two krodha-vighndntaka, but instructs its readers to envision the empty space as filled with innumerable and varying vajra-holders. To represent the rest of these wisdom-holders, the standard form of the mandala transmitted to Japan adds Yamantaka and a second form of Trailokyavijaya (Vajrahumkara) along with the female bodhisattva Prajftaparamita.29 The Tibetan tradition, as represented by the

9

NEW TEXTS, NEW FUNCTIONS

I5 5

Ngor collection, follows the MVS literally by including only Acata and Trailokyavtjaya.30 According to the exegetical tradition as transcribed by Snodgrass: The (vidyttdharal mansion belongs to the Buddha section. It represents the path of the undi­ vided (mukendo), in which the passions are completely cut away and Right Wisdom is manifested; it represents Mahdvairocana's "virtue of severance" Despite the presence of dharani and mandala, Phase One qualities, most evident in the introductory section, seem to pervade the SDPS 64 Unlike the M VS and STTS, which give enlightenment pride of place, the SDPS is oriented toward mundane accomplishments: preliminary and worldly benefits. A s Skorupski explains in his preface, "The whole teaching is geared towards procuring a better rebirth for the dead and a better life for those who are living."6"1 It is as if advanced tools and meth­ ods are borrowed and retro-fitted onto an earlier text with a narrow er agenda. The seams and the joins are legible. Here it will suffice to leave the SDPS by noting that Vajrapani, particularly in the form of Trailokyavijaya, plays a prominent role in the text.66 He is at the center of a number of mamlalas, and he performs the tasks belonging to Acala and Trailokyavijaya in the MVS and the STTS. The SDPS often states that the principal defining task of the krodha-vighndntaka is to eliminate obstacles to enlightenment Some are exterior obstacles, such as the evil influences of the eight planets; others are internal obstructions, such as the sins of past lives. A more developed under­ standing of the obstacles, most clearly articulated in the At VS and STTS, is already apparent in the SDPS: obstructions are inner enemies w ho disappear with the attainment of enlightened wisdom. These two approaches to the kmiha-vighnantaka encapsulate the differences between Phase One and Phase Two ideology. In both the krodha-vighndntaka excel in their appointed tasks. ' '

•

■

■ '

'

l t *0

PHASE TWO

Notes to Chapter Nine

Ibid. T. 18848 23b; Yamamoto, 88. 17 T. 18.848.7b; Yamamoto, 22. 28 Snodgrass, Matrix and Diamond World, 165, 201-206. Normally wandalas Configure west at the trip. The mandala based on the MV'S, however, places west at the bottom. This is true in Japan as well as in Tibet. For instance, west is at the bottom in the 122-deity "Abhisambodhi Vairocana mandahi" that is part of a set of 139 paintings made in the 19th c. at Ngor monastery in Tibet. It closely follows the text's description, more so than the Japanese version, which reflects tlve impact of exegetica) literature. See Ngor Thar rise mkhan po, Tibetan Maintains: The Ngor Collection, 2. vols. (Tokyo. 1983), no- 20. 29 See Tajima, "Les Deux Grands Mandaias," 84-86; Snodgrass, Matrix and Diamond Wtrld, 269-283. The personified PrajnapSramita is a "wisdom holder" (ridyidhan), but not a vulva rajhi or a krodha-vighnitntaka like the other members of this section. Edward Conze, "The Iconography of the Prajnaparamita,” in Thirty Years of Buddhist Studies, Selected Essays (Columbia, 1968), 258-260. 30 Ngor Thar rise mkhan po, Tibetan Mandaias. no. 20. 31 Snodgrass, Matrix and Diamond World, 269-270. 32 Snellgrove, "Introduction," 6. Snellgrove renders it as the "Symposium of Truth of All the Buddhas," in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, 120. 33 Snellgrove, “ Introduction," 9. 34 See the discussion in lyanaga, "R6cits de la Soumission," 638, note 2, 647-648. In Amoghavajra's important text explaining the 18 Mayajala assemblies (i.e., 18 separate texts) of the Vajrasekhara (T.18.869), he states that the STTS formed the first of them. It is sometimes conjec­ tured that the Vajrasekhara of 100,000 verses never actually existed. Ibid., 647. For a contrary opinion, see Kenneth W. Eastman, "The Eigh­ teen Tantras of the Tattvasamgraha/Mayajala," (Summary Report), Transactions of the International Conference of Orientalists in Japan 26 (1981): 95-96. Eastman identifies the texts with a Tibetan Nyingma col­ lection known as the "Eighteen Tantras of the Mayajala Class." 35 T. 18.882. For this and the earlier partial versions, see the biblio­ graphic commentary in lyanaga, "Recits de la Soumission," 638 note 2, 656 -657. 36 lyanaga, "Recits de la Soumission," 657. DanapSla's full translation of the STTS was among the texts sent to Japan in 1073 by Jojin. 37 Lessing and VVayman, Mkhas-grub-rje's, 145. For an example of short relating to the STTS translated by Amoghavajra, see T.21.1209 (Njo 1389 KBC 1380), the title of which Lokesh Chandra has reconstructed as fol­ lows; "Trailokyavijaya-sadhana-vidhi-atiguhya-dvara from the Vajrasekhara-tantra." For Amoghavajra's summary, see T.18.869; Bunyiu Nanjto, A Catalogue of the Buddhist Tripitaka, urith additions and correc­ tions by Lokesh Chandra (New Delhi, 1980), 21 no., 1389; Tajima, "Les Deux Grands Mandaias," 145-149; and, lyanaga, "Recits de la Soumis­ sion," 659-664. 38 lyanaga, "Recits de la Soumission," 705-706. 39 Zhiyuan Fabao kanlong zong lu, fasc. 6, fol. 3b, after Njo 1017, 224. There are variations. For instance, certain verses in the Sanskrit are translated as prose. See Shinten Sakai and Shindo Shiraishi, "Two slokas in the Sanskrit Text of Tattva-sarhgraha-tantra, Chapter of (VidyAraja) Trailokyavijaya, with a Commentary and Indices," Indogaku bukkyognku kertkyti VJ1.2 (1959); 722-728. There are also small discrepancies due to the Chinese official translation methods. Sakai and Shiraishi note of one such passage, "this is a libera) translation refined by [Danapala'sJ collaborators, as it is usual in the Chinese translation by Imperial Order." Ibid., 727. Kiyota compares the Chinese translations and a San­ skrit manuscript discovered by Tucci and finds there is genera) agree­ ment with only minor variations and errors. Jakuun Kiyota, "KongochokyO no Bon-Kan taishO ni tshuite" (Comparison between the San­ skrit and Chinese texts of the Tattvasamgraha), Indogaku bukkyOgaku kenkyU 4, no. t (1956k 89-92. For a discussion and some exam ples, see JCW. L*jn, "Studies in Later Buddhist Iconography" Bijdragen Tot de Tad-, Land- en Volkenkunde van Nederlandsch-lndie 120 (1964): 331-332. 25

26

n T.tS.&t§-7a; Yamamoto, ai. The epigraph for thts section is from P. H. Pott Yqje and hantra; Their lahembttiM and their S^mfkmce for Indian Arv’fearefovji, bans-. Rodney Needham (The Hague. 1966), 140 a See Snodgrass. Matrix and Diamond IforM, 60-66. 154-155. 3 T.iS-S^S sa;T k m w M ^ tti. 4 T .iS ^ & itb ; Yamamoto, 41, 5 T i &.&}$.13 c Yamamoto, 41. 6 Snodgrass quotes YTvfog/fkibhakarasiihha’s commentate’ on the At VS to the effect that *pebbtes, for example, represent the false tenet that a self exists and lack o f forth in the Right Dhaima.” Snodgrass, Matrix and Diamond fforid. 155. 7 T. 1&S4S 32b; Yamamoto, L2^-i3'le * * * * s o n o g ra p h y a s those o f

Alchi and Sumda, but the paintings at Mangyu have not fared as welL Above the village is a line of chdrten or stupa. The one closest to the village is a chdrten which one can enter. Inside on the upper walls leading to a ceiling with a lantern roof are exquisite paintings in much better condition than the ones in the main monastery of the village. In terms of delicacy, modeling and detail they rival the best painting of the Dukhang, if not the Sumtsek of Alchi. They are obviouslydone in the same tradition as Alchi. The robes of the Buddhas and the dhotis of the bodhisattva exhibit finely-rendered “ Sassanian" style textile patterns with inters locking geometric designs and repeated medallions containing griffins, as found too in the Sumtsek. There is also a similar treatment of faces and bodies. The center of each wall has stucco sculptures above the ground level which are late replacements. To either side of each sculpture is a vertical rectangular panel containing mural paintings. On the entrance wall a standing Mahjusri is on one side and a standing Prajfiaparamita is on the other; opposite five entrance wall there

174

PHASE TWO

is a standing eleven-headed Avalokitesvara and a standing green T«irA. The two other walls contain six images of Tathagata and two of the krodha-vighndnlaka YamAntaka and Hayagriva. There are two images of MahAvairocana, one as an unadorned Sakyamuni seated above the adorned Ak?obhya, and the other as an adorned Sarvavid MahAvairocana, seated above Amoghasiddhi. Hayagriva stands above the seated Amitayus, and finally YamAntaka stands above Ratnasambhava. [153I Yamantaka is konographically identical to the Sumtsek YamAntaka [co lo r p l a t e 1 0 ] and to the other western Tibetan YamAntaka discussed so far. It is necessary briefly to point out a few pertinent aspects of the Mangyu stupa. The four types of deities depicted on the walls, Buddha, bodhisattva, female deity and kroJIia-vighnantaka, form a kind of truncated five Tathagata mandala, disman­ tled and reassembled to fit the special physical requirements of the site. Typically the fully-formed Phase Two krodha-vighndntaka is shown as an independent image but fit into a larger composition. He is not placed in particular association with the bodhisattva he accompanied in Phase One images; at Mangyu, Yamantaka in fact abuts the eleven-headed Avalokitesvara, and Hayagriva is next to Prajnaparamita. The wrathful deities are placed in direct relationship with the five Tathagata, who form the nuclear structure of the Phase Two paradigm. It should not pass without comment that the two krodha-vighniintaka are placed above the Buddha with whom they are paired, at the same level as the two forms of MahAvairocana (nirmanakaya Sakyamuni and dharmakaya Sarvavid). This is another graphic indication of the increased status of the Phase Two krodha-vighndntaka compared to their Phase One counterparts.

6 4 The western Tibetan Yamantaka type More so than the eastern Indian or East Asian Yamantaka, the western Tibetan Yamantaka images are remarkably uniform. There is little or no variation in attrib­ utes, vamma-Yaksa body-type, posture, or fire number and arrangement of heads. The main detectable difference when comparing the Sumtsek and Mangyu Yamantaka images [c o l o r p l a t e 1 0 , 153I is that in the former the buffalo faces to Y'amantaka's proper right and in the latter to his left, a discrepancy which probably has little significance. (In most of the Indian images, the buffalo faces to his left, but in the Bodh Gaya image, to the right.) The uniformity of western Tibetan images is not affected by major differences in scale or context The large semi-independent images in the Sumtsek and the Mangyu chorten are identical to small images inside the mandala at Sumda and in the Dukhang at Alchi. It is possible to attribute the near uniformity to the dominance of a single Kashmiri-influenced painting tradition in western Tibet, operating at nearby sites within' a limited period of time. By cemfMCBSMiw screwing, images m easterns fcidas ir e tmmdhsesMy more oaratd. A maaribtr o f daaMKteiriiJtiks hswe earned over te& tfr* earDy weHltra TSbetafl Yamantaka type, n o b b ly the buffalo and co m intent number of -fix heads, arms and legs. At the same tune in eastern India there seems to be a minor alternate tradition of eight arms, represented by the Nepalese manuscript [152] and the Kuruma sculpture. [150] The sword and tarjani mudrd are shared by all eastern Indian exam­ ples, but only file Nepalese painting, approximately contemporary with western Tibetan images, includes the bow and arrow as well. The painted Yamantaka is beardless too, though the arrangement of the heads differs from the sculpture. One oouki say that the later the eastern Indian image, the closer it matches specific < k S s a k « ffc e T a « » h p e

t o YAMANTAKA IMAGERY

I75

It must be recalled, however, that stylistic and iconographic evidence points to Kashmir and not to eastern India as the immediate source for the western Tibetan images. Rinchen Zangpo brought the Sarvavid Mahavairocana mandate cycles in particular, and Phase Two Esoteric Buddhism in general, back with him from Kash­ mir in the eleventh century. But if Goepper is right that Kashmiri artists played an important role in the creation of the Alchi paintings, then w e must presume the continued survival of these traditions in Kashmir for at least a century more. The western Tibetan Yamantaka are the latest images in South Asia to survive in the full context of a Phase Two cycle. Eastern Indian Esoteric Buddhism by this time had embraced its third phase and was struggling against the invasion of the Muslim army of Bhaktiar Khalji. Kashmir avoided Muslim occupation for another century, but as far as Buddhism is concerned, the twelfth wras the beginning of "les si^cles de declin."*2 What should we expect to see in later central Tibetan images of Yamantaka? A full understanding of the situation in central Tibet will have to wait upon an explo­ ration of the third phase of Esoteric Buddhism in eastern India. By the time Esoteric Buddhism was securely transplanted to Tibet, sometime during the thirteenth or fourteenth century, all three phases had emerged in eastern India, and so were imported together into Tibet from eastern India and from NepaL Phase Two forms of Yamantaka survive alongside the more important Phase Three forms, such as Yamantaka-Vajrabhairava and Yamari. Phase Two krodha-vighrmntaka are not accorded as high a status as the Phase Three forms. In the Great Stupa of Gyantse, for example, the Phase Two Yamantaka finds a place in a set of wrathful protectors of the ten directions, along with Trailokyavijava and Vighnanfcaka, [ c o l o r p l a t e s 1 1 - 1 2 ] They are painted in a vestibule on the fourth level, below the upper harmika, where the Phase Three Vajrabhairava is found,*3 Images of Phase Two Yamantaka continue to be made in Tibet through the twentieth century. They are included tn Phase Three mandate o f RaJdayamari, or even made as the central figures o f undependent images!,*4 f have confined the present study to the earlier stage* o f Tibetan representation o f krodha-pighnantaka, since they are most closely bed to their Indian prototypes. No doubt later Tibetan Yamantaka images are deserving of a more detailed study. We have now followed the career of a krodha-vighnantaka who appears early in Phase One and then is redefined in Phase Two. We have seen that Yamantaka is of considerable importance as a Phase Two deity in South Asia. Other Phase Two deities, however, are equally, if not more important Acala and Bhutadamara are deserving of more attention than w e can afford here. The remainder of this section will take up a previously unseen deity, who is closely identified with Phase Two ideology: Trailofcyavijaya.

176

PHASE TWO 17

Note* to Chapter Te*»

1

2

3

4

5 6 7

8

9

10

11

12 13 14

T18.Sa1.3S3b (N$o iota; KBC 1210k This text was translated by Dharmibhadra between oSy-goo cr. Titled the Mayimia tantra dasakr.rchc rviya-iw wahfculul dhyatu lafw svfra, it is a ritual and an "explanatory" text tor the AtlwljJli SU titm tn (T.18.S90). which also names Yamintika first in its list (T iSAxvtooaV The epigraph for this d w p w ocwrws riven )ean Prxytuski. T e Bouddhisme Tantrique i Bali, d'apres one pubficatiori recente," fostmoJ Asaefiqw 258 (1931k i6t, Tao.n8fi.Sito-b; T-jaivSgtoia-toib, T90.1 igaSaSa-b. See the English translation erf verses to-7 1 an Davidson, "Litany of Xomcs of Mahjusrt," 26-27, For a tasoavsting account erf the Mahabodhi temples history since the 27th c and the activities of the Mahants to preserve their control in the 20th c , see Dtpak K. Barua. Bteidha Cam Tempir. Its Htstorv, 2nd ed, (Buddha Gaya, 1981k. 72-129, Francis Buchanan and R_ NT Martin, The History. Antiquities, Topography, and Statistics of Eastern India (London, >938), pi. IX.9; Rajendraiala Xfitra. Buddha Gays: The Gnat Buddhist Temple, the Hermitage of Sdkya M an (Calcutta 1S78; reprint, Delhi, 1972), pL XXX fig, 4. In both draw­ ers- the backdrop appears unbroken and the sword is whole, and the piece is located ait die Mahanfe compound. R. Mrtra identified the image as "apparently that erf a Bhairava, a class of demoniacal atten­ dants of Mahadeva." Ssddha Gays, 139. An unattributed. scathing review of Nfitra's work is found m the Indian Antiquary 9 (1890): 113116,142-144. TzL.1214.74c. Compare Duquenne. "Daiitoku Mybo," 662. Ti8.h».=arfa and T. 18891.58 j i x . both translated by the Kashmiri monk Dharrnabhadra, who received this name in 9S7. iarao? Leoshko, "Buddhist Sculptures from Bodhgaya," in Bodhgaya. the site of ndipttenmerd, ed .). Leoshko (Bombay, 1988), 50; idem, 'Pilgrim­ age and the evidence erf Bodhgaya's images” m Function and Meaning in Buddmst Art, ed. K R. van Kooijj and H. van der Veere (Groningen: Egbert Forsien. 1995), 43-57. "1 know of no other image been Bihar or Bengal depicting this particu­ lar farm.” Such images "seldom appeared anywhere in Bihar and Ben­ gal." Leoshko, "Buddhist Sculptures fawn Bodhgaya," 5 a

18

19 20 21

22 23 24

25

Nafcanda Museum no. 00015.

Fee Nganjuk, see Jan Footeia, Toe Scxlptm of bsiomsat (S ew York, 10901,223-253; Lofcesh Chandra. "Identmcatuxi of the V *vuk B o n zes' and "The Bronze-find of Nafiprfu" m Cukotrai Hortc m of kata Vbiuroe IN' (S ew D e b t Aditya Prakashan. 1995), 97-133. For t o o and Tsaparang, see Trim, Sent! and taowaar, and. idem. The Temples of Yiesterm Tbet amt t x s Arkshc Sywaafisac Tsaparmg fkido-Tixtica lllj) , trails l e a M a n s Vt-sci. ed. Lofcesh Chandra (Sew De&d, 1969). ASL Aarcunf Report 1920-21, 39,38 no. 17; fhrananda Sastri, Salanda and its Eprgrepkdc Material, Memoirs of the Anchaeciiogjca! Survey of India no. 66 {De&«. 1942), 1 1 8 Also discussed in Debjani Paid, TIte Art of Mf a r f t Deeretapmmt of Buddhist Sculpture ad 600-1200 (Sew Delhi, 1993), where it is dated "no later than the 11th century " Leoshko, "Buddhist Sculptures from Bodhgaya," 50. AU5 Negative no. 6v j . These mdnde the Tiadokyavsava (163464} from Bodh Gaya, the M a r l soafptore in the field between Vitanda and die adiacem village of Sargaem: «e#od* fcmdk tfre demtiims itmto beiCMwamg 'Buddhiste. Viwra produces (the heretical uvula*a exf the Buddha, w ho beguiles the demons from worship o f Java. They mo longer slaughter animals for the requisite sacrifices. After various provocations, £iva is induced to destroy tlie demons, using

11

INTRODUCTION TO TRAILOKYAVIJAYA

l8 l

an arrow of which "Visnu was made the point, Soma the head, and Agni the shaft of the arrow. Earth was the chariot."12 With Brahma as charioteer, 6iva shoots the fire-arrow, engulfing Tripura with flames and driving the dt?mons from the three worlds, fsiva then chooses a boon a# a reward: "Let me be overlord of the animals."’ 5 In an eighth-century stone carv­ ing [155), Siva-Tripurantaka is six-armed, and he stands in aluiha as he shoots an arrow at the triple cities which are stacked like boxes, one on fop of the other. One city seems to come tumbling down. The four-headed Brahma can be identified as the charioteer.

155 Tripurantaka, Pattadakal (Karnataka), ca. 8th century, National Museum, New Delhi

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The myth can be interpreted in a number of ways. On one level, the myth reminds Hindus that Siva is the ultimate destroyer of the Three Worlds. In this case, Siva as Lord of the Universe and on behalf of the other gods slays the demons, whose leaders were Pride, Anger, Shameful Behavior and Delusion, all dwelling in man. The flaming arrow Siva aims is homologized with the upasad rites performed with Agni as agent.’ 4 In this sense, the "unlawful and unruly elements of life" are being brought undeT control through the socializing power of Vedic ritual, and Tripurantaka is the "manifestation of the god's power utilized to uproot those who violate the established order of life."’ 5 It is difficult precisely to locate the temporal origin of these myths. Goswami places the earliest Tripurantaka images between the sixth and seventh centuries, but he proposes, "the story of the destruction of the Tripuras by Siva dates back to the period of the Brahmanas." Doniger suggests certain Vaishnavite elements enfolded into the myths, such as Visnu as Buddha-avatara, who first deludes the demons and then manifests Kalki-avatara to destroy them, "pre­ suppose a political situation in the pre-Gupta period (pre­ cisely when the myth of the Buddha avaiura first appears), when orthodox Brahmins were fighting a desperate battle of tw'o fronts, against foreign invaders and a thriving Bud­ dhist community at home."’ ' It is not unreasonable to assume that by the seventh century, when the 5TTS was being created, the Tripurantaka myth was already estab­ lished. The parallels between the names Trailokyavijaya ("Con­ queror of the Three Worlds") and Tripurantaka ("Destroyer of the Three {Demon] Cities") should be cleat Other formal and iconographic parallels exist between Trailokyavijaya and Siva. Trailokyavijaya invariably holds the bow and arrow and stands in pratydlupia, two elements of the ca. eighth-century Tripurantaka image from Pattadakal.*11 [155] Most tellingly, Trailokyavijaya stands on Mahesvara-Siva, Lord of the Uni­ verse, as if to supplant the Shaivite rituals with Buddhist meth­ ods of enlightenment in destroying the demons of Pride, Anger and Delusion. Moreover, he demonizes Siva himself. Given the rterraefe* o4 Esoteric BudkSsnrw, inner

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P H A SE TW O

Trailokyavijaya? There is another strong indication given by the text that this is exactly what they did. At tire start of die second part of the STTS, which begins with the sixth chap­ ter; Mahavairocana has descended from Akanistha heaven to preach on the summit of Sumeru. He enters a satu&ihi called the sarvatath&gata mahdkrodha vajra-samaya vajra-adhisihdna samadhi (the All-Tathagata Great Wrathful tw/ra-pledge vajraempowerment samMhi) and pronounces Trailokyavijaya's secret dharani: Om Sumbha, Nisumbha hum grhtul grhna hum grlntafyaya hunt anaya ho bhagavan vajra

hum phot.19 (Om SumWw, Nisumbha! hum., seize, seize, hum, go and seize! Make them come, O Vajra Bfioganan hum phot.)

Besides continuity with the kinds of commands and tasks given to Phase One krodha-ihghnantaka discussed in a previous chapter, what is remarkable here are the names Sumbha and Nisumbha. These names are so closely associated with Trailokyavijaya that he is sometimes known as the "6umbharaja" or "Sumbha Yldyaraja."20 But the pair has an earlier and more primary referent Sumbha and Nisumbha are two mighty demons, enemies of the gods, who were ultimately defeated by Devi-Parvati, the consort of Siva, also known as Durga.*1 The story of Sumbha and his younger brother Nisumbha is recounted in the Deui-Mahdtmya, which w as incorporated into the Mdrkandeya Parana before the seventh century. The Dern-Mdhdtmya remained a popular text, and because it was sometimes illustrated, depictions of Parvati slaying Sumbha and Nisumbha sur22 vive. Having driven off all the gods who sing the praises of Parvati in order to win her over, Sumbha and Nisumbha receive reports of the beauty of Devi's emanation Kausiki. Kausiki replies to the demon-brothers' offers of marriage by vowing to marry only him who wins her in combat When Sumbha's demon lieutenants are killed off in preliminary skirmishes, he sends two extraordinary demons, Chanda and Munda, to fight the goddess. From her forehead Kali emerges with a sword and a noose. Kali attacks and beheads Chanda and Munda and is rewarded by Parvati with the new name Chamunda. Now Sumbha and Nisumbha lead their demon army themselves, ignoring a message carried by Siva to release the gods and return their property. On the side of the demons is Raktabija ("Red seed"), who had won a boon that from any drop of blood which fell from a wound another demon would spring. The demons' defeat is conclusive when Kali/Chamunda drinks up Raktabija's blood before it falls to earth. Soon Kumbha and Nisumbha are also killed. Trailokyavijaya's dharani reprises this myth, but for what reason, and in what w ay? With Siva and his consort underfoot, Trailokyavijaya is hardly taking the side of the gods. Instead he calls on these demon-enemies of diva's consort to compel Mahesvara to appear, however unwilling he m ay be, just the way Phase One bodhisattva call on their attendant krodha-vighnantaka for similar tasks. In the S IT S , the two myths of Tripurantaka and Devi are inverted, their victories reversed. The winners of the Hindu myths are the very ones who are trampled down, while the demons seem to be defended. lyanaga thus calls Trailokyavijaya a Buddhist "Iravesthsem ent" of Sumbha, w ho is subjugated by Siva's consort23 We may take it as established then that the account of Trailokyavijaya's subju­ gation of Mahesvara in the STTS is conditioned to a certain extent by earlier Hindu

11

INTRODUCTION TO TRAILOKYAVTJAYA

183

Puranic and Shaivite elements. Before we can fully understand the significance of this, we need to examine more material. Let us turn now to a summary of the account found in the STTS.

3 Conquering Mahesvara in the STTS The drama of Mahesvara's forced surrender to Trailokyavijaya is recounted most fully in the second section of the STTS. Sanskrit, Tibetan and Chinese versions of this account have been studied and at least partially translated or summarized in western languages by a number of scholars.24 The primary account, in the STTS, was not translated into Chinese until between 10 12 and 1015, while the Tibetan ver­ sion was translated by Rinchen Zangpo (958-1055 c e ), assisted by Sraddhakaravarma.25 However, in the eighth century a somewhat truncated but still extensive and completely faithful account was given by Amoghavajra in his "Synopsis of the Eighteen Assemblies of the V a jra se k h a ra A related version, containing a few more details, also explicitly bases itself on the Vajrasekhara and is found in Amoghavajra's ritual for longevity.27 The main action takes up several dense pages of Chinese text, and is too long to translate literally here. The passage itself has attracted several scholars for its considerable literary and dramatic interest, but other summarizations have some­ times omitted the most interesting passages for our purposes. What follows is a combined detailed summary and translation.

3.1. The drama of Mahesvara's submission: pride before a fall Invited by all the Tathagata to bring forth his own kula, Vajrap&m declines, because he is disturbed by Mahesvara and his evil cohorts: "If all the Tathagata are unable to subjugate them, how can I control them?"29 Mahavatrocana's entry into samtuthi transports the Buddhist entourage to Sumeru, where more samodhi are achieved. Mahdvairocana produces from his heart the wrathful form of Vajrapani (Trailokya­ vijaya) by means of mantra and dhdranl. "His eyebrows tremble with rage, with a frowning face, and protruding fangs, he has a great kredka appearance. He holds the vajra, artkusa-hook, sharp sword, pitsia-noose and other &yudha.”^ ° Vajra paniTrailokyavijaya then utters the first of the two stanzas given at the start of this chap­ ter and the second after entering Mahavairocana's heart.31 Upon VajrapaniTrailokyavijaya’s emergence, Mahavairocana utters the "hook" dhdroni, which assembles all the beings of the world around Sumeru, VajrapAni-Trailokyavijaya fingers his vajra and tells the assembly that because they are now in the presence of the five Tathagata, they should act in accordance with his orders. Mahesvara snaps, "What are you ordering me to d o?"32 Vajrapani replies that he should take refuge in the Three jewels, which w ill result in w is­ dom's wisdom. Mahesvara puffs himself up and manifests his wrathful form, saying: Y ew , V ajm pO nL a re (m e re ly ] K in g o f th e G re a t Y a kp t. i am th e p aram o u n t L a rd o f th e T h re e W o rld s. I cre a te o r d e s tro y a ll classes o f b e in g s. I am s e lf e x is te n t, d e v a ttd e m m a h id e va (th e g n a t g o d o f g a d s}. A n d y e t y o u o rd e r m e to a c t as ja w , a Ydkpa K in g ,

w h

tld v d k ? * *

Vajra pAni-Trailokyavijaya, still fingering his vajra, calls him a wicked being who causes much harm and orders him quickly to enter the mandala and obey the ... •i

184

rH A S E TW O

teachings. Mahesvara turns to Mahavairocana and asks how it is possible that this "great gentleman" sees lit to command him. Mahavairocana tells Mahesvara that he ought to listen lest he provoke VajrapAni-Trailokyavijaya's angry form. "Don't make his vajra emit light! It will consume the Triloka!"34 Mahesvara laughs wickedly and manifests his own evil form, bringing forth his legions. He says, "Vajrapani, I am the only Master of the Three Worlds. You should act on the basis of my teachings!" Vajrapani-Trailokyavijaya fingers his vajra and gently laughs. "You stinking demon,35 you eat the charred flesh of cremated corpses, your bed and clothes are disgusting remains," he replies. "Acting like this, how will you receive my teachings?" Mahesvara assumes his Mahakrodha (Great Wrathful) form and says, "So it's like this, is it? I ll act according to my own inclinations." Vajrapani-Trailokyavijaya appeals to Mahavairocana: Bhagavan, this Great Mahesvara relies on his own knowledge and pouvr, his high position matching his pride in himself. He won't submit to the teachings of the pure dluirnia of all the Tatkigata. Hou> can I let him get away with this?

Mahavairocana produces another dhdrani, which again mentions Nisumbha (Om Nisumbha vajra hum phaP6) and Vajrapani-Trailokyavijaya speaks his own hrdaya {hum). At this all the gods are thrown into great suffering and they appeal to Vajrapani. Mahesvara falls to the ground, loses consciousness and is about to die. Mahavairocana tells Vajrapani not to let them die. Vajrapani commands Mahesvara and the others to take refuge in the Three Jewels and obey orders. Mahesvara asks, "If I take refuge in the Three Jewels, whose orders will I have to take? That's my question." Mahavairocana tells him: Tou should now knew that this li.e., Vajrapani-Trailokyavijaya] is the Supreme Lord of All Tathagata, the Father of A ll Tathagata, who performs the w ill o f A ll Tathagata, the highest son of A ll Tathagata, the all-virtuous Samantabhadra Vajrapani Mahasattva Bodhisattva. In order to transform all sentient beings he has received the Mahakrodharaja abliiseka-consecrafion. Why? This is because of you and yours who are so evil not even all the Tathagata can tranquilize you. Because o f this Vajrapani commands all evil beings to be transformed and established in the samaya.

Mahesvara replies to Mahavairocana Buddha, "Bhagavan, I can't hold on to my life any longer. I'm willing to receive your teachings. If it's you who teaches me, I will accept and obey." The Buddha tells him, "If you can take refuge in Vajrapani he can truly save you. And only he can save you."37 The assembled gods plead in unison with Vajrapani to save them. Vajrapani again threatens to incinerate them with the flame of the vajra if they don't accept the teachings and revert to harming sentient beings. He defends his threat as in accordance with the will of all the Tathagata. Setting Mahesvara aside, he consoles all the other deva, and by means of a dhdrani fills them with such joy that their hair stands on end. They are finally able to stand up on their own. Mahavairocana asks Vajrapani why Mahesvara has not stood with the others, b he dead? Vajrapani speaks the mantra of restoring life, vajrayuh 38 Mahesvara wants to arise, but he exhausts his strength in the unsuccessful attempt. He asks Mahavairocana, "Bhagavan, who is my master now?" The Buddha answers, "It is not L It is by Vajrapani that you are to be taught. Are you now unwilling to be taught and act as you should?" Mahesvara answers, "Bhagavan, if you are not my master, who will be able to protect all (of us] evil beings?" Mahavairocana replies, "Vajrapani can, bid not I."

11 IN TRO D U CTIO N TO TRAILOKYAVI/AYA

185

"How can this be?" Mahesvara asks. The Buddha says, "Because Vajrapani is the Supreme Lord of Al) Tathagata." Mahesvara pleads, "I don't understand what the Buddha means. The [five) Tathagata Buddha are masters of the Triloka. So how can you say Vajrapani is Supreme? I just really don't understand."-59 At this point Vajrap3ni-Trailokyavijaya once again steps In and admonishes Mahesvara, "You evil being! Why don't you obey my instructions?" Mahesvara, hearing Vajrapani speak to him this way, once again produces his angry, fierce appearance and swears, "I'd rather die - never will I accept youT teachings!" Vajrapani-Trailokyavijaya manifests the Supreme Angry form and utters the dharani: Om ptidakarsana vajra hum.40 Mahavairocana lifts his foot and from it there comes a krodha-vighnantaka who encircles him, all in flames, frowning, with pro­ truding teeth and a large terrifying head. He places himself before Mahavairocana and asks for instructions. Then Vajrapani-Trailokyavijaya, in order to purify Mahes­ vara, recites this dharani: Om padakarsakarsaya sarva-vajra-dha. . . vajra hum.41 At the sound of the dhdrani, Mahesvara and L'madeva fall flat on their backs, their feet high in the air, exposing their disgusting nakedness. AH the onlookers laugh at the spectacle. Summoned by the krodha deity who had emerged from the foot, all the gods stand at attention before Vajrapani-Trailokyavijaya. He asks Mahavairocana, "Bhagavan, these incredibly evil Raja and Rani, how should they be stopped?"42 Mahavairocana pronounces another dharani as Vajrapani-Trailokyavijaya tram­ ples Mahesvara with his left foot and steps on Umadeva's breasts with his right. He speaks another dharani, which compels Mahesvara to clench his hands into one thousand fists and strike his thousand faces. Outside the pavilion where the spec­ tacle takes place, the assembled deva cry with one great voice, "Today our Lord Mahesvara has been conquered by Vajrapani!"

3.2, The drama of Mahesvara's submission: resurrection Out of his great compassion for Mahesvara, Mahavairocana speaks the dharani of the goodness of all the Buddhas, drawing Mahesvara immediately into samadhi, where his pain eases. Contact with Vajrapani-Trailokyavi java's foot then confers upon Mahesvara peerless powers, marvelous consecrations, samadhi. the ability to expound and other extraordinary boons. Having fully entered the gate of samadhi, Mahesvara's body emerges from beneath Vajrapani's foot. Far past the earth, tra­ versing as many worlds as thirty-two times the number of sands of the Ganges river, Mahesvara arrives at a world called BhasmAcchanna (Shelter of Ashes), where he is reborn as the Buddha Tathagata Bhasmesvara-nirghosa (Soundless Lord of Ashes).4* Mahesvara then reappears at Sumeru and exclaims in a verse his new respect and understanding of the peerless Buddhist wisdom. The Chinese apparently varies here from the Sanskrit, for while the first part of the verse agrees with the translation given by Snellgrove, the second part is com­ pletely different. Here we follow Snellgrove's translation tor Mahesvara’s speech: Oho! the peerless wirdom of all the Buddha*! foiling at the feet o f a +ik?a, one t» e>tub~ Indu’d m nirtsim!44

■rt

Vajrapani-Trailokyavijaya then brings all the gods, including Mahesvara and Uma, into the mandala of all the Tathagata‘s Vajra Pledge, and instructs them in the mudra, dharani and the vows they must pledge. They all receive new “ Vajra** names.45 Thus is Vajrapani's mandala formed.

The pictorial Trailokyavijaya mandate is described further on in the chapter.46 It is to resemble the i>ajradluitu mandate, which is detailed in the first section of the STTS. We will pass over all the instructions for creating the mandate and isolate the description of the central deity: In the center paint Mahdsattm, that is, Vfo/ra/xlrii. He is on a great blue lotus. He appears grandly as Vapnah&mkdra.*7 His fangs protrude, he is wry fierce and angry, and with an angry yet gleeful kugh and eyes. He holds up a vajra, marvelous in appearance. He has fiery hair and a nimbus of light. His lefifbot is lifted in an awe-inspiring stride, trampling a 12 on Mahesima. His right foot should be painted this way, planted on UmadevVs breasts.

3.3. The drama of Mahesvara's submission: findings From this account in the STTS four important points of relevance to the investiga­ tion of the position and function of w'rathful deities in Phase Two Esoteric Bud­ dhism may be drawn: 1) the glorification of Trailokyavijaya in the text; 2) the nature and character of Mahesvara's resistance; 3) M ahesvara's rebirth; and 4) the question of Vajrapani-Trailokyavijaya's iconographic image. In terms of Vajrapani-Trailokyavijaya's status in the text, there is an interesting tension between highest and lowest. On the one hand, Mahesvara derides him as a mere Yaksaraja. This accurately reflects Vajrapani's historical antecedents in con­ siderably earlier Buddhist literature and art. In the context of the STTS it is an out­ right insult On the other hand, Mahavairocana calls him the Lord of all the Tathagata, both their father and their eldest son. Mahesvara, with us, asks, "How can this be?" Mahavairocana is not given a chance to directly answer this question, for at this point Vajrapani-Trailokyavijaya conveniently interrupts the conversation with another threat So w e too are left without an explicit doctrinal justification for the paramount functional distinction of a "low ly Yaksa" and krodha-vighnantaka. Mahavairocana is allowed to reiterate that Trailokyavijaya is specially commis­ sioned and equipped to perform those necessary tasks the Tathagata cannot per­ form with only peaceful means. Nevertheless, Vajrapani-Trailokyavijaya is extraordi­ narily esteemed. This degree of prominence would be unthinkable in a Phase One Esoteric Buddhist context Even in its Phase Two context it is somewhat contrarily presented; after all, Vajrapani-Trailokyavijaya himself says he merely executes the Taihagata's orders. It is only in Phase Three contexts where the krodha-vighndnlaka fully realize their position of unambivalent dominance. To compound the ambiguity of Vajrapani-Trailokyavijaya's position, Mahesvara reacts immediatedly and vociferously against taking orders. He consistently resents being ordered by anyone, but particularly by someone he considers his infe­ rior. He is willing to submit to Mahavairocana, but to obey Vajrapani-Trailokya­ vijaya is beneath his exalted position. The authors have framed his reactions as an archetypal instance of arrogance, pride and egoism. "I am the Lord of the Three Worlds, yet you presume to order me?" The text explicitly mentions his pride when Vajrapani-Trailokyavijaya comments to Mahavairocana that Mahesvara's pride matches his high position ~ high in deed, having reached the over lordship of the highest h e a w s m the w o d o f forme A s far a* the teat is ermoamsd, b&J&iefovnafit cwneuMh of ftis wrorsgM pode. H e amarrihalt im marijhfual iiam and legions not oHflexjvely but at a response to what he considers an insult to his dignity. His tenacity is admirable. Crippled and exhausted, unable to get up, he grimly vows, "I'd rather die" than submit to force. It is true that the text makes reference to his evil behavior outside

11 IN TRO D U CTIO N TO TRAILOKYAVIJAYA

18 7

the theater of the described action. Vajrapani-Trailokyavijaya calls him an eater of cremated human flesh, an inhabitant of cemeteries who dresses in shrouds and ornaments himself with bits of bone. This is a clear reference to Shaivite sacrifices and customs,49 But these trespasses Mahavairocana would have been willing to for­ give at the start had Mahesvara peacefully submitted. It was his intransigence, fed by ego, which required the intervention of Vajrapani'Trailokyavijaya, The punishment that is inflicted on Mahesvara just before he undergoes death and rebirth is another indication that the authors of the text intended to highlight pride, arrogance and self-centeredness as the principal obstacles in Mahesvara'* behavior. He and his consort are made to suffer what the prideful fear most: humil­ iation. They are thrown on their backs, legs in the air, their nakedness revealed. In this degraded state, they are the objects of derision for their former minions and the entire assembly. Only then, in his "dark night of the soul," is Mahesvara's elemen­ tal visvartipa form revealed repentant. One thousand fists batter one thousand faces as Mahesvara surrenders. From a close reading of the text and an analysis of its themes, it is obvious that pride, disgrace and redemptive transformation are the essence of the drama. Else­ where I have discussed previous interpretations of Trailokyavijaya's humiliation of Mahesvara, which focus on sectarian rivalry between Hinduism and Buddhism.50 The present reading does not preclude these interpretations. I believe, however, that it is not Siva, or Shaivism, bearing the insult but at worst the pride lodged in the ontological position of "Lord of the Universe." Mahesvara is chosen primarily for his intelligibility as a symbol of pride, not for sectarian reasons. We should also note that Mahesvara is not destroyed but transformed. Ivanaga has researched in detail the role of Mahesvara in Esoteric Buddhist texts. He finds that as the Master of the Three Worlds Mahesvara is still within the mundane plane but the closest of all beings to the Supramundane. A s such he is the "Souverain dans lTnscience."51 Through contact, however unwilling, with VajrapaniTrailokyavijaya's foot, he is reborn as a Tathagata in another workl, re-enters a transformed body, is renamed and newly consecrated in wisdom. He pledges to be benevolent to sentient beings and to subdue evil ones. We see then that the humiliation of Mahesvara is not malicious but productive, The object is not to eliminate his characteristic pride, but to transform it, to harness it and bring it to bear on Esoteric Buddhist ambitions. In the practice 0/ Esoteric Buddhism there are two kinds of pride, one based on ignorance and one on w is­ dom. As a result of what is known in Tibet as "deity Yoga" Tsongkhapa instructs, "one should increasingly gain the ability to cut off one's ordinary ego through (1) [visualizing] the vivid appearance of the deity, and (a) [taking on] the ego of the deity."52 The "special ego" is generated through identification with the deity. Kaygrubjay explains it with this example: Then, muttering “ Vb/rasattva," one imagines in back o f Vatroama a sun halo: and mut­ tering "Vajrasattva samayos tvam ahum" CO Vairasattva, yr>M the symbol am I'K one brings about the pride' (garvo) in oneself that oneself and the Knowledge Being are non-

duoi*5*

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it s&ftj&fwl, this' fa 3fc>a w a y .

hogget m She elevated, fa«t

eggS* based puldfa

a fails*1©* jgpfettMt sfa fc i& c a d a# fat*

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position he previously occupied. This essentially mystic process of transfonnadtion, using venom (humiliation) as a antidote to poison (pride), occurs time and again in Esoteric Buddhist texts. We

i8 S

PHASE TWO

cannot hope to understand it but merely to take notice of it here.54 Based on his analysis of episodes in which forms of Siva are trampled, R. A. Stein concludes: CoRtreirment a ce qu'on a souvent dit, /os divinites indiennes ne sont pas simplement plaoees a un nmg inffrkur pour marquer la superiority du bouddhisinc. Ce qui inUresse Jos tantastes, e'est la consubstantialik du "mal" (etc.) of du “b ie nd u "tnondttin” of du “supramondmn,"' ou la transmutation de I’un en l’autre.^ Finally, w e must account for Trailokyavijaya's iconographic descriptions in the text. They are not as explicit as one might wish. At the very beginning of the sec­ ond section devoted to Trailokyavijaya, we find the following description: His eyebrows tremble with rage, with afrowning face, and protrudingfangs, he has a great bvdha appearance. He holds the vajra, ahkusa-hook, sharp sword, ptisa-noose and other ovutiha. Besides generalized wrathfulness, the passage tells us that he must be more than four-armed, since four dyudha are specified and others are mentioned but left unspecified. We are told more than once that Vajrapani-Trailokyavijaya's left foot tramples Mahesvara and his right foot tramples on Umadeva, or more precisely, on her breasts. In tire passage describing tire mandala, the pratydlidha posture seems to be implied. Otherwise only the vajra is mentioned. This is not a thorough or detailed description of Trailokyavijaya, and the SDPS is not much more forthcom­ ing. Generally it says of the mandala painter, "In the center he draws the Lord Vajrapani having the form of Trailokyavijaya."56 in the M VS Trailokyavijaya, Vajrahumkara and Trailokyavijaya-Candratilaka are also variously described, though usually they are said to hold the vajra. Apparently at the time these texts were composed, around the seventh century, the iconography of Trailokyavijaya was not yet firmly established. Fortunately, there are a number of other texts, some translated in the eighth century before the majority of surviving bronze, stone and painted images were made, which give a fuller treatment to Trailokyavijaya's visual appearance. It is to them that we now turn.

4 Iconographic Information from Other Texts The Vajrdyuh dhdrani adhyaya kalpa (T.20.1133, H34A,B) also contains an account of Mahesvara's submission to Trailokyavijaya. Though the text is credited to Amoghavajra, iyanaga accepts its three recensions more generally as belonging to the "school of Amoghavajra."7' However, it seems likely that we can rely on its attribution to Amoghavajra himself, since the title appears in a list of more than seventy of his translations included in a memorial sent to the emperor Daizong on his birthday in 771 c e requesting that they be entered into the imperial catalogue.58 Thus the work was translated around mid1, fee the Eliora Kjalasa image of Tripurimtaka, Stella Kramrisch, Manifestations of Sint (Philadelphia, 1981), no. 40; and, Goswami, "Ugra-MilrUs of Siva," figs. 1-7. 19 T. 18.882.37»b*c. I follow lyanaga'a reconstruction of the Sanskrit

yb T 1*66x3716 ! have M W e d thw im ek rd m lusts,

14*, hmdr grove ludo-Tihetm BoMtutm, 137; Soeiignwe, "toKBodkrcrv .w /, 41, mui, lyanaga, "Ruat* de U s&m m iem ," 679

37 38

T.18-884jjric. T. 18.884371c. This Life-restoring mositm is at the center at Amoghav*. jr*'» ritual mentioned above. (See Note 27.)

- aiium." Ti&SSva.jTaa. Sanskrit after Tueci, StejM, 144 T.iSSSa. 372b. Bad. Sanskrit after T acd SftM , 145, and, kanaka. "Recits de la soundsskin.’' 675 Snettgrove Has "BhasHiAcrhatra (Umbrella ot Ashes)" f»Av Tahctan Saidtesw, i 38. Snrflgrove. Ink* Tihetns fWwStiisw.i tS Hcvwnrt a similar gdtha is spo­ ken by M*Ses\ ara during a retelling of the events (as part of Chapter « detailing the Traik>kAa\T>iva-eitb-a-)irMnJi»i cycle). T1S.S8i.jS9c T.1SSS2. 3720-373*.

* Ifl TO

'fl *S

i

t

V^rahumkara is the standard epithet of Trailokyavijava, and many tents use the two mterehangeabfy. Sec Snodgrass. Alirtrii and Diamond VHtaU.275-237. T .i& iSz 1176c. This appears fin /-character verse format, but I have translated it as prose. For an example of corpse rituals performed in a cremation ground, see David \ . ILorenzen, Tfte kirC Jiaj and KJd&muiha. Tax* Lost Soivrte Stefs (New Delhi, 1972); 63. For the use of ashes and hones as ornaments, see foul., 2-3. Lmrothf- "Beyond Sectarianism," 17 -25. tvanasa "Recife de la smnniasiarv." 741. See aho harvaga Nobumi, Tfatozaften,* HS & t’ix 6 419636 713-7163. As translated by Beyer. Cafe afTirs, 77. leasing and Waymao. M*»ie-jra»-rirs, 243 "A s a washerman makes a dirty doth dean with some matter which itself is dirty, as a man infected with poison is sometimes cured of it by person itself or as some water accidentally gone into ones ears is taken oat by the help of seme additional water itself, so, the writer wants to assert one can get rid of rage and fasma by those ritges and fames them­ selves, which become the cause of bondage only when they are resort­ ed to by the loofah, but not by the wise in whose case they are actual­ ly the cause of emandpaborL" Prabhubhai Patel, "CittavisuddhiprakaaranaiR of Aryadeva," Imiron Historical Quarterly 9 (1933): 720. 55 R A Stein, "Prafaemes de tnythologie," 46. 56 Sfiorapsii, Samadurgxtrparisadhana, 55 (err-phasts in originai). For simi­ lar passages, see icwL, 59, note 52. 60. Vajra-varmaris commentary menix r s an unusual 4-anned form of "Jnanadeva Trailokyavijaya" in a hems ntuafe white, holding a a r s , noose and lotus and making toryim mstdro, he tramples an the sins of the person performing the ritual, find. %4_ note A . 57 T jc i.1133 is attributed to Yajrabodhi and Amoghavajra, while T.3X1134A, B are attributed to Amoghavapa akme. lyanaga, "Recife de la sotHEtasaon." 664, note 22. lyanaga takes a very critical attitude toward fe»e integrity of Amoghavajra as translator- (He is far from alone in fens; Michel Stockmann considers that 'most of the seventy-five-odd taerbrk teds attributed to Amoghavajra as translator" are not transla­ tions, "but rather works composed in China, and directly in Chinese."

Michel Stockmann, "Heralds of Maitivva," unpublished paper at the Princeton Conference on Maitreva Studies 1- 3 May 1983, 2a.) lyanaga suggests that "apart from a tew texts of tnibhakarasimha of which the authenticity seems assured, many of the 'translations' of Vajrabodhi, and the immense maturity of those of Amoghavajra were composed in China---- In general it is the translations dating to the second half of the Tang (from the time of Amoghavajra) which arc the most doubtful." Ibid, 640-641. Nevertheless, lyanaga relies on these very texts for most of his analysis. It may well be that many of the ritual texts were com­ piled in China, but the more closely they are compared to texts and archaeological remains from eastern India, Southeast Asia and the Himalayan region, the more convincing they become as evidence that Amoghavajra was deeply learned in "authentic" Sanskrit traditions. 38 This memorial is included in the Duizongchao zeng sitting dabian 2)1eng gvarigzhi sanzang heshang biaozhi fi (T.52.2120), a collection of memorials and their responses of Amoghavajra assembled at the end of the 8th c. by his disciple Yuanzhao. The memorial is translated in Orlando, "Tantoc Buddhist Patriarch Amoghavajra," 67-71. The list of titles is nof translated there, but is found in T.52.2120.8393-8403. The Vajriyuh dhSntni adhyaya kalpa is found at T.52.2120.839b. 59 T20.1133.575b; 1134A 576a; 1134B.577C (emphasis added). 60 T.i9-98i.4iib-c. This text is accepted by Mochizuki as having been translated by Yixing. Mochizuki Shinto with Tsukamoto Zenryii, Buiryo danlen, 4th ed. (Tokyo 1958-1(^3) 11129c. 61 T. 19994 This fail fe probably the ritual f a t on the Sutra o f Benerxient Kbs>5, which appears in Aroogfiavajra'a memorial list of 771 c t, though in the hst the title has been shortened. T52.2120.840a. 62 T-19992.514IK. 63 T-21.1209 (Njo 1389, KBC 1380). T.21.1210 is another short ritual text on Trailokyavijaya. also credited to Amoghavajra. It is found only in Japan and is an abhiedraka text with many fiiima rituals for various purposes. It may be a Japanese compilation. 64 Nanjio, Catalogue, 21, no. 1389. 65 Kukai, KobO daishi zenshii, 7 vols. (Kyoto, 1965), 1: 81. 66 T.21.1209.39c. This and following passages are expressed in 5-character verse form, but I have rendered them in prose. 67 T 2 1.120940b. 68 T-2i -1209.41a. 69 lyanaga, "Kedts de la soumission," 725-727, note 5 .1 find it remarkable that this truly teamed scholar, for whom I have the profoundest respect, did not use the iconographic evidence of descriptions con­ tained in the text he studied so well. 70 T i S .^ 2 -3 ^ c. Debate Mitra gives other examples of Vapahunrifaara used as an epithet ot Trailokyavijaya in Achutrafpur, 90. 7 1 Both are given in truncated form in B. Bhattacharyya, Indian Buddhist Iconography, 181-182, 184-185. For a slightly fuller Sanskrit text and French translation, see Foucher, ttude sur Viconographie Bnuddhique, 5860. 72 B. Bhattacharyya, Indian Buddhist Iconography, 385.

1 2

Trailokyavijaya: Images

Trailokyavijaya is one of the premier Phase Two krodha-vighnantaka, and a number of eastern Indian Trailokyavijaya images bear examination. The images furnish strong evidence for the status of the krodha-vighnantaka as independent of Buddha or bodhisattva in the second phase of Esoteric Buddhism. In terms of both size and expression, several axe by any standard extremely powerful images. Their skillful execution reflects the care and attention elicited by Trailokyavijaya's importance Representations of Trailokyavijaya are consistently rim-Yaksa, the type that con­ veys the heroic tasks of the warrior perhaps better than the vdmana-Yaksa type, w hich was retained mainly for reformulated Phase One krodha-vighnantaka such as Yamantaka and Hayagnva. If eastern Indian Trailokyavijaya images are consistently of the vira-Yaksa body-type, they can otherwise be split into two types: two-armed and eight­ armed. The earliest surviving eastern Indian Trailokyavijaya image happens to be two-armed, but around the tenth century both types are found contemporane­ ously. If we endorse a commonsense model of simplicity evolving into complexi­ ty, it is tempting to imagine that the two-armed form of VajrapSni-Trailokyavijya was succeeded first by a related four-armed form, known as Bhutadamara,1 and finally by the eight-armed Trailokyavijaya. But too few images have survived to demonstrate this or any other developmental scenario. Textual evidence suggests both two-armed and eight-armed forms, equally represent Traiflokyavqajra-

Vsgahargikara, and there » no afosoiaite proof tfast one developed esrfoer than afar other.

1 Two-armed stone Trailokyavijaya from Nalanda A stone sculpture from Nalanda conforms to all identified Trailokyavijaya images in that he is vira-Yaksa. [156] He stands in a rather angular pratyUhdha, making his principal m udri in front of his chest, little fingers intertwined In his crown are three tiny images of seated Tathagata in dhyana m udri. H is other adornments indude upper arm bands, bracelets, a jeweled girdle, necklace, earrings and an

J 2 TRAILO KYAVIJAYA IM AG ES

I9 5

upavita. His scarf winds around his arm and shoulder in a complicated manner, ending in swallow-tails, Trailokyavijaya stands on Mahesvara and Umadeva, as the texts describe, Mahesvara-Siva is two-armed and twisted around ignominiously, with his buttock* in the air, recalling the 57TS account of his humiliation. Trailokyavijaya's right foot is placed on Lima's breasts. She rests on top of Mahesvara's left leg. Unlike Trailokyavijaya, Mahesvara has an incised third eye. Though deeply cut and nearly free-standing, Trailokyavijaya stands against a backdrop on which there are nine spurts of flame. The flame motifs are suggestive of passages in some of the texts already cited. For instance, the Vajrdyuh dharani adhydya kalpa describes Trailokyavijaya as emitting almost blinding light, and in the S 7TS the light from his vajra is capable of consuming the Triloka in flames. At the top of the backdrop, just to the proper right of Trailokyavijaya'* crown, is an obscured Sanskrit letter, On the rounded back of the highly polished black stone is a legible donative inscription.2 The piece was discovered at Nalanda Monastery Site lA , The date i* a matter of conjecture. Saraswati published thi* image as "Bihar (?) c. 11th century."3 The sculpture indeed originated in Bihar, where Nalanda is located, but an eleventh century date is far too late. In fact, one of the most stylistically comparable works is the eighth-century Phase One master­ piece depicting Hayagriva attending Avalokitesvara, also from Nalanda. [157J Despite the vast disparity in scale, the two sculptures share several stylistic ele­ ments. The shape of Trailokyavijaya's backdrop, for instance, echoes those of the seated Buddha at the upper register of the Avalokitesvara piece. Also comparable are the heavy, bulging eyes, the sensual mouths and the U-shaped indentations on the knees. The form of the garment-end between Trailokyavijaya's legs resembles the diagonal trails of fabric gathered at Avalokitesvara'* proper left side, Trailokyavijaya's eyebrows are connected by the same hooked semi-circle over the bridge of the nrwe a* are Avalokitesvara'*, and Umadeva wear* the narrow breastband thA found on later image* but promtnenit on some of the female figure* in the

157. Twelve-armed Avalokitesvara with Haya%rma, Nalanda (Bihar), ca. 8lh century, Nalanda Museum, same as 65

larger sculpture. The much larger scale and greater artistic mastery of the Aval­ okitesvara image make the ornamental details of the Trailokyavijaya seem cruder, but the two crowns and the medallions on the necklaces are generally related. There is also a similar treatment to the garment folds in the scarves, though Trailokyavijaya's has a stepped wedge-shaped fold, more deeply cut and less regular. On the basis of these similarities, the Nalanda Trailokyavijaya {156] may be placed in the late eighth or ninth century. As such it is probably the earliest extant Trailokyavijaya image from eastern India.

2 TIn? M irn trajpu r Traik%imjirya In J une of ty b ) , at a village called Achutrajpur on the outskirts of banpwr, south of Puri in southeastern Orissa, the grounds around a high school were being leveled. A gold-plated water-pot was uncovered, and then, two days later, a Urge hoard of metal images was found inside three earthen pots. Seventy-five of the ninety-five metal images recovered from the site are Buddhist, and an additional twenty metal stupas were also found. The remaining metal figures are lain, Hindu or undeter­ mined. These Buddhist sculptures and a few stone fragments with Buddhist inscriptions testify that the site was most likely a Buddhist monastery. Brick walls were found, hut » redter fe»pm enm the school built them in the she ha* -

196

PHASE TWO

not been excavated. Based on her on-site inspection within a month of the discovery, Mitra suggests that the hoard "might have been stored in one of the cells of the monastery."4 One of the largest metalwork images (47.1 cms. in height) was found alongside the earthen pots. It depicts the two-armed Trailokyavijaya, making his name-sake muirA while also grasping a vajra and bell in the two hands. [158] Shyam Sundar Pattnaik implies that based on paleographic evidence the date of this piece falls between the ninth and tenth centuries. Debala Mitra sug­ gests it "m ay perhaps be dated in the second half of the tenth century a d ."5 A date of ca. tenth century is accept­ ed here. Trailokyavijaya has a high crown in which appear four of the five Tathagata Buddha (Amitabha is rendered invisible by the backdrop). Trailokyavijaya wears a fear­ some grimace, his fangs projecting out of his mouth, with furrowed brow and bulging silver-inlaid eyes. The pupils are notched as if once inlaid. He stands in an exaggerated pratyalidha against a circular backdrop bor­ dered by small flames that enclose larger flame motifs, recalling the Nalanda backdrop. Underfoot we find an eight-armed Mahesvara and a four-armed Umadeva.

iy S Tjv-armed TmHohfar^eya, Ackutmjpur tOrissa), meiaknort. ce. 10th century, Orissa Slate Museum, Bfruhanessar, same as 3

159. Tnpuranlaka, some as 155

This is the most elaborate version of Mahesvara in known images of Trailokyavijaya and is deserving of close attention here. The naked Mahesvara lies on his back. There are a cobra and a crescent moon in his hair, two attributes characteris­ tic of forms of Siva. Two more distinctive attributes of Siva are his third eye (Trailokyavijaya has none) and garland of skulls. His nakedness and gestures poignantly convey the message of humiliation and subjugation found in the STTS text His arms are spread out, palms up, as if to surrender. One pair of Umadeva's arms are similarly arranged, but her second right hand touches Trailokyavijaya's foot almost tenderly. The gesture is found consistently on Trailokyavijaya images of both eastern India and Japan. On the platform beside her are a sword and trisula, while scattered about Mahesvara are a pasa-noose, arrow's, a bow with a broken string, a bell, another trisula, a damaru-d rum between his feet and a sword or hatch­ et at his back. These dyudha are all proper to Siva m various forms. The bow and arrows par­ ticularly remind us in this context of Tripurarrtaka {139*, but they rem ind us as weft o f the description of the dmdha held by the eight-armed Trailokyavijaya as given in the Amoghavajra text mentioned above.6 The bow and arrow, the pasa and the sword aD correspond lo the text’s catalogue. Only the damaru and the trisula are not taken up by Trailokyavijaya, but w e will discover that images o f the krodhavighn&ntaka sometimes include at least the trisula. It is almost as if we have here a visual depiction of an eight-armed Mahesvara surrendering his weapons (or, more to the point, his powers) to Trailokyavijaya. Having conquered the eight-armed 6iva, Trailokyavijaya is about to be transformed into his eight-armed form, which enable him to pick up the weapons and wield them for Buddhist purposes. We other images have provided Additional

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left hand and

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fematfik 3tar bft himd ***** m ter iaw> ft ta $ w « u * r &ui m ti*tikt***» b u >iw \t$ $ i a two^wauai 7raiioky*vysy* trampfes m

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while in the Nalanda brortte (i6o| and the Bodh G aya stone sculpture fi6 * L *0 eight-armed Traiiokyavijaya tramples a iw M im e d M sitesywi^V .

v. :?p : h. Hardly tw enty^ ve miles northwest bf Budh Gaya, where iheTtoUc&ys^gay*-: now in the Matante compound stands, thereia a 5iv* sculpture whkh foow rt viau*," ally the intertwined kunugraphy of Trailoky*vij#y* and Siva already hinted at in

12 THAI LOHYAV 1JAVA IMAC 14

163. Detail of 162

iO l

the texts discussed. This is a fine Andhakarimuxti-Siva sculpture set up on the porch of the Konch Mandir.14 [165-166] The overall form-feeling and the details of jewelry, ornamentation and ayudha indicate a more than generic similarity. This manifestation of Siva closely resembles not only the Siva-Mahesvara under Trailokyavijaya's left foot, but in many ways Trailokyavijaya himself. A few decorative details along with formal values establish the common style of the two. The precise form of the broad necklace, the narrower garland, the upper arm bands and the sword (shape, hilt, decoration) are roughly identical. The neck­ lace, in fact, corresponds exactly to that worn by the trampled Mahesvara. (163-164, 166] So too the distinctive earrings, adorning both Trailokyavijaya and Mahesvara in the Mahants compound sculpture (163-164] and Siva in Konch village. (166] diva's hairdo in both instances is the same, though in the Buddhist sculpture (163} it is beginning to unfurl. The thrust of three-dimensionality from the flat backdrop in both sculptures is revealing of a similar origin, as are the proportions of the main figures in relation to the backdrops and the feeling of internalized languid power. Perhaps most telling is the splayed outlay of bell-tipped belt-ends dangling from a central volute between the thighs of both the Konch Siva and the Mahants com­ pound Trailokyavijaya. Many more details and technical features could be pointed out, including an approximately equal size, but there b already enough to conclude they were made at about the same time (ca. tenth century) and that they come from the same immediate milieu, if not from the same workshop. Those bom into that milieu would be able to rexogm/e f*v# underneath Trailokyavijaya's foot. !>fot only would the hair, jewelry and costume appear simi­ lar, but also the one visible ayudha which Mahesvara carries in his right hand, the damia. (163,166] They might also pause at the main figure of Trailokyavijiaya (161] and wonder for a moment at its similarity to Andhakarimurti. [166] Both are eightarmed, both hold a sword in the upper right hand, their poses are mirror-images (alhiha and praty&Ildha) and both trample demons* Where Siva-Andhakarimurti wears a vanatttald studded with skulls, Trailokyavijaya wears one made up of plaques of the Buddha. The wheel which Trailokyavijiaya holds in the upper left hand t* also identified with Ardhakarimurti, though it does not appear in the Konch rmagifc.** Finally, a*already dto*u*a*>d, the bow and arrow whkf* Tradokyaripaya bo&b m left and rsght hand* are cfowdy ,**w*k»*nd wi& another

202

PHASE TWO

164. Imbbangeua, dried of 162

A blaze of refractions betw een the two myths of Andhakarimurti's defeat of the demon Andhaka and Trailokyavijaya's subjugation of Mahesvara flash between the two images. Andhakarimurti carries a skull cup to catch every drop of Andha­ ka's blood before it spawns another Andhaka. The wrathful female, Yogesvari (located above the head of the demon on Andhakarimurti's left in 166), must drink up the blood from the skull cup before Andhaka can be defeated. The necessity is mimcired in the Devi-btehalmya when Kalaratri must drink up the blood of Sumbha's warrior, Raktabija. Sumbha, it will be recalled, has now become Trailokyavijaya's minion and features in his dharani. Moroever, Andhaka is described in terms which remind us of those used for Mahesvara in the STTS. Goswami describes him thus: [A n d h aka] th e m vm cib le ru le r th oro u gh ly en jo y ed the th ree w o rld s, w h ich in creased his arrogance an d b lin d ed him b y p rid e. IB y lu s tin g a fter S iv a 's co n so rtJ h e u n k n o w in gly in v ite d his o w n d estru ctio n .

. . . S iv a defeated h im , p ierc ed h is h eart a n d tra n sfix ed him

w ith h is trid e n i. H e w as then h eld aloft in the sky lik e a ban n er staff. T h e A su ra k in g , how ­ ever, d id not d ie even a fter th is. H e p ra ised S iv a an d w as m ade the ch iefta in o f the S iva g a m s.

16

This sounds strikingly like the STTS account, which tells of Mahesvara, blind­ ed by pride and finally conquered by Trailokyavijaya'9 vajra (in a sense, the Bud­ dhist equivalent of the tridula), but even then not exterminated. He flies through the universe, is reborn as a Tath^gata, returns to the assembly singing the virtues of Trailokyavijaya and becomes one of the chief protectors of beings. The main adap­ tation b that m the Buddhist version, Tra&okyanripMr* ha* taken over the roie of Sira, arid Seva j* assigned a roie a* the fn n h o l of pride and jgjsurance. Visually the paraBek move in the same direction o f multiple identity and inversion: Mahesvara tramples, and is trampled by Trailokyavijaya, and both seem to be forms of Siva. In Buddhist terms, this means both dompteur and dvmpti are forms of the deluded, contingent self, before and after enlightenment. The Mahants compound Trailokyavijaya is a visible expression of the inner process of self-trans­ formation. It is not an image of a "go d " meant to inspire prostration and worship

1 2 TRAfLO KYA V JJA YA IM A G ES

165. Andhakarimurti, detail o f 16 6

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of its powers, but a symbol of the processes of purification ana regeneration under­ taken by Phase Two Esoteric Buddhist practitioners. In order to embody these processes graphically, the artists seem to have con­ sciously refered to Shaivite imagery. We must postulate the priority of Siva imagery since Buddhist texts and sculptures refer to Shaivite forms, and not vice versa. Images such as the Mahants compound Trailokyavijaya were intended for an audi­ ence of initiated practitioners. These observer-participants would have been famil­ iar with £umbha and Nisumbha. They could understand the connotation of the name Trailokyavijaya, and they would recognize Siva in Trailokyavijaya a* much as in Mahesvara underfoot lawiographk reference* to Shaivite imagery, and even to specific image* of Siva, are the visual counterpart* of the cross-referenced layer­ ing of myth* in the text*. By creating an image of Trailokyavijaya which emanated a shadow image of Siva in the mind* of the viewers, the artist* transcended sectar­ ian animosity. For it is a transformed echo image of Siva who tramples Mahesvard underfoot. The net effect is a subtle and tightly packed symbolic form.17 This is the product of a highly sophisticated art form, integrating artistic con­ ventions with intellectual, emotional and deep psychological insights directed to Buddhist purposes. The Bodh Gaya Trailokyavijaya is in this regard one of the most powerful and successful images of eastern Indian Esoteric Buddhism. Through its relations with other images, myths and texts, the deep structure of Trailokyavijaya is revealed. Though derived immediately from the Mahants com­ pound image, this interpretation may he extended to the other Trailokyavijaya images which survive and, to the extent that if is applicable, to Phase T w okrtMth* snbmfttais) to general

5 Stone Trailokyavijaya fra&menl from Nalaruia . We can apply the insight gained from the study of the texts and of the Bodh Gaya Trailokyavijaya to a stone fragment recovered at Nalaruia and still in the site museum there. 1167-169) It is also datable to the ca. tenth century. The sculpture is

12 TKAILOKYAVIJAYA IMAGES

205

presumably a product of the Nalanda school, distinct from the Gaya/Bodh Gaya works found at the Mahants compound and in Konch. However, all three belong to the same regional style. The upper half of the sculpture has not been recovered. The lower half itself was recovered in at least two pieces. A photograph taken prior to repair shows it lacking a triangular wedge demarcated by Trailokyavijaya's proper left leg. The piece has now been reattached. Only Trailokyavijaya's lower right hand is visible, plucking an arrow out of a quiver [167], just as in the Mahants compound sculpture, [t&zl Another visible dyudha, the vajra-tipped p et&ntatefy 3 0 4 1M + Drikstasht, traits. Snellgrove in Conze et M, LW JfcJ Torts Through Ike Ages, 22b, no. 19. Snellgrove. "Categotics o f Buddhist Tantras,” 1378-1379. The Adrawasxfidfc. for instance, instructs; "The A&tntrin (one who practices MmtnKsnkl [sic]) should always glorify himself with the contempla­ tion of the Tsttcm, by means of excreta, urine, seed etc,, and the nasal discharge." Shendge. AdcmmsdiMi, B. Bhattacharyya. GttfryesamdjH Tontra. »ii. George. Cendamakimana Tsntrs, 75. See the discussion of tfas incident in Chattnpadhyaya, Attsa. 134-137. Discussed in Saudou. Bouddlustrs fUsetrrrtens. 72. Rcfoerto VrtaS, T ie Kingdoms o f Gu.gr PuJtrwig According to m Sgaris i j a d n l s hr G u gf mUmmcirm SgagJheng grogs.pe (Dharamsala. 1996), l i i and the disruss»ao.zi4-23i. 237-239 The issue is also discussed in Rcnajd ML Etixidson, ".Atria's A Lamp for £f«r Path to Awakening.' in Bud­ dhism m Proctkx. ed. Donald &. Lopez, Jr. (Princeton. 1995), 290-301. See Miranda Shaw, Pas-donate Enlightenmen t VVcwsea m Tantric Buddhism (Prinaetort Prmceton L n h u s t y Press, 1994). Shaw has exposed the blind androcentrean of many writers 00 Esoteric Buddhism. She argues aw»vi»ringly, if somewhat over-emphaticaliy, that w omen par­ ticipated fully in the composition and the utilization of Esoteric Bud­ dhist texts, in the present context, it is not surprising that she finds most of ter material in what are called here Phase Three texts, such as the CMT, ST and drib. For another view of these issues, see Addhsd FfarrrrarevPfandh'VabTrimiconography end the Rofeof WbmenmTIbetmTkTfrk: Budctxsm.' Tfef fourni 22 ft (1997): 12-34. George, Candamdmrosana Tantra, 81-85. Tsuda, " A Critical Tantrism,' 208,213-215. George, Gmdaws®iarasr»sa Tantra, 82, VHL29-30. Notably Vlanibhadra. MekhaU. Kanaichala and Laksmaikaradevi. See fames B. Robmsorv Buddha s Lions: The Lines cf the Eighty-four SaidHa (Berieier, 1979J. See the fascinating correlation between Kanakhate, Laksnwiatraden, Mekhala and Vapav arabr and inner yoga in Elisabeth Anne Benard, OannsmaSdi Toe Asrful Buddhist and Hindu Tantric Goddess, (Deft*, 1994}. Besades authorship at the Adrwse-srddhi, LaksaunLaradevi (ca. 9th c.) is credited with passing on the teachings to Ldavajra, a male vatracurya, who wrote on the GST and Taman texts. See Benoytosh Bhattacharyya, An httroducbm to Buddhist Esoterism (New Delhi, 1931), 78-78; and, Shendge, Adoryonddhi. to-is. Shendge expected a female perspective from this work, "but in reality all ter teachings in no way differ from those preached by the male practkanfs of the doctrine." Ibid., 1 1. Dofashnha, bans. SneEgrove in Conze et al, Buddhist Texts Through the Ages. 237, no. 94-95. 'Goddess Varafn who represents Pnsjrri is spoken of as of the nature of knowledge, whereas, god Heruka representing Upaya is spoken of as the know able, and the AoxSods-mondoJa (the Qrcie of perfect purification; is formes! b r die combination o f both Bus knowledge and of the knowaaie." Dasgwpca. httroditaiim to Tantnt buddhem. if. Also, Jote %?iacm CaoezOB, " i 4tdter Mfcituai, tafots Lewe Gaadw-Baiedl imagery aa Vutsunasa Hasdsutt Tjw m p C" tat ikudlfadi, Snuiditiy and Gemdur, ad. find %saoB>C«wtasB. fAhanjr. SUW£. Wf&a d b tra f S*e3ew»e-. Mem** Tbion*. Kzytry. Wtoewwff. Cadiyaeamdtgtmrtnt, *94, h**gpw «. imtti-'ftxiart Buddhan . 2A0 Aisc, see die diacuaejoo on 278-188.

81

82 83 84 85 86

87

88 89

90

91 92 93

Knowledge of these practices is attributed to otliers as well. For instance, the ca. 7th c. logician Dharmakirti, author of the PrantMm’arltika, b sup­ posed to have advocated or known of Buddhist practices which "contra­ dict dharma such as cruelty, stealing, sexual intercourse and so forth." Davidson, '"Litany of Names of Mafijusn'," 8, note 21. Davidson sagely adds, "The precise significance, however, of this passage is unclear." R.A. Stein, "Nouveaux problems* du tantrisme sino-japonais," Annuurrr Ju College de France 75 (1975); 481-4R8. Ttu* sexual rites performed by the Tachikawa sect in Japan claim authority from Amoghavajra and Yixing, but the practices seem to owe as much to Daoist, shamanist and Japanese folk beliefs as lo Esoteric Buddhism of either the Phase Two or Phase Three variety. See James H. Sanford, "The Abominable Tachikawa Skull Ritual," Monumenla Nipponica 46 (1991); 1-20; and, Michel Strickmann, Mnrttras et mandarins: Le houddhisme tanlrique en Chine (Paris, 1996). FL Hunter, "Five Secrets mandate," in Function and Meaning in Buddhist Art, ed. K.R. van Kooij and H. van der Veere (Groningen: Egbert Forsten, 1995), m - 1 2 4 Snellgrove, "Introduction," 63. Lo Bue, " Diuirmamaridala-Sutra by Buddhaguhya/' 789. Ibid., 789, 796,799,80 j . George, CandamahiTOiana Tantra. try. Astley-Kristensen also mounts evidence for the explicitly sexual inter­ pretation of the Phase Two ArhyardhaiatikdpraihdpOrantiti Sutra m Japanese Shingcm. That is certainly how the 20th c scholars he follows understand i t and he traces the belief back to Amoghavajra. But there sexual references are metaphorical: "Surata [exquisite bliss] is like die mistaken bliss of Nara and Nari." Astley-Kristensen, The Rishukyd, 89. Guenther presses for a symbolic interpretation of sexual imagery in Phase Three texts, turning the discussion immediately to a philosophi­ cal level whenever sexuality as "aesthetic experience" appears, without denying the literal interpretation. "The unmistakably erotic language must not deceive us. A s embodied beings we use symbols derived from the phenomenal world and from fundamental, human experience. Man's sexuality is but one among the many 'expressions' of his Being and of what is 'expressed' in the body which is mind as well." Guen­ ther, Tantric View of Life, 69. Snellgrove, Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, 127-128. Already by 1933 Wintemitz had criticized Sylvain Levi's use of Asariga's verse as "an allusion to 'mystic couples of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas which are of such importance m Tantrism'." Wintemitz, "Notes on the Guhyasamata-Tantra,'’ 7-8. Stendge argues all suggestive passages are veiled references to inner yoga. Shendge, "Moon and her Reflection," 89-107. Shendge believes the language was "deliberately inaccessible except to the initiate," which may or may not imply a unique ability’ on the part of Shendge to pierce this screen, perhaps due to initiation. Shendge seems intent on clearing medieval India of charges that "very' grave and unhealthy" practices were performed. "It is doubtful if any society should allow such a cult within itself, knowing fully well its moral and ethical implications, and therefore we should first examine if our understanding of this system is correct at alL" Ibid., 91. See Snellgrove, Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, 262-264. See Kvjeme, Buddhist Tantric Songs; and, Nilratan Sen, ed., Caryagttikosa: Facsimile Edition (Simla, 1977). B. Bhattacharyya, Guhyasamaja Tantra, Kii.

94 George, Clmdamaharobana Jdnirg, 77, Vi. 182-3. 95

ibid,, 79. Sumter setitimunti, are expressed i»y (Lrtknmuil'.i'tradev.i: Tlu1 facMMwr ad muntra duuxCS wA fed! .Itihgwtf atbuiit .ntyvttiiwg, .and etemlct Ifcurif. rhuai jdirruuttita* temiwiF ss jpl^’tually pxvwml moutil rhrnim Dh« pwste»wu « f miuotm sftivilii nor worry aticnW) whatever i» .ippmachatilinw rnsa-approaebairie,. neither about eatables and mre»-eatable* nor atimir drinkable* m non-drinkables. . . , He- should! not feel disgusr tor * woman born in any caste as she « Bhagavatt Prajfta (Blessed Gnosis}, who has assumed a physical body in thui conventional world.”

14

96 97 98 99

100 101 102

103 104 105

106

107

108

Shendge, Advayasiddhi, 29. Sec Tsuda, Saritvarodaya-tantra, 70 71. Tucci, Tsaparang, 20. For the Phase Two conception of bodhicilla, particu­ larly as understood in japan bawd on the MVS, see Minoru, Bodhicilla. K v*nw , Buddhist Tantric Songs, 30-31, This brief summation is based on a number of sources. Details can be found in the HT, the ST (esp. Chapter* 5 and 7), and in Bharati, Tantric Tradition-, Shashibhusan Dasgupta, Obscure Religious Cults, 3rd ed. (Cal­ cutta, 1969), 87-109; Vidya Dehejia, Yogin I Cull and Temples: A Tantric Tra­ dition (New Delhi, 1986), 11-64; Kvacme, Buddhist Tantric Songs, 30-36; Pott, Yoga and Yantra, 1-50; Shendge, "Moon and her Reflection," 93-104; Ray, "Mandala Symbolism," 297-311; Tsuda, "Critical Tantrism," 213214; Snellgrove, Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, 288-294; idem, "Categories of Buddhist Tantras," 1371-1378; Tucci, Tibetan Painted Scrolls, 241-245; Kalff, "Abhidhanottara-Tantra." Shendge calls this form of yoga "nadiyoga," or Candali-yoga, and argues that the philosophical and ritual aspects of Phase Three can only be interpreted in the light of this. Snell­ grove argues once again that tills type of yoga had been part of Mahayina Buddhism much earlier and, because it is a practice and not a theory, it was not discussed in text*. Even if thi* is *0, Phase Three texts are markedly different from those of earlier Esoteric or exoteric Buddhism in mentioning the topic openly, See Snellgrove, Hevajra Tantra, 105-106, rfl.jv.48ff.; Willemen, Chinese Hevajratantra, 97-99; Tsuda, Samvarodaya-tantra, 49-50, 6 j . Tsuda, Samvarodaya-tantra, 69-70. Also see Kalff, "AbhidhanottaraTantra," 97-107,157-160, 228 -231. See Snellgrove, Hevajra Tantra, 68-70, i;I.vii.io-l8; Willemen, Chinese Hevajratantra, 60-61; Tsuda, Samvarodaya-tantra, Chapter 7 and 60-62; idem, "A Critical Tantrism," 174-175,215-219. Tucci, Tsaparang, 42. Also see the discussion on the "twenty-four viras and the cosmic man," 38-44. Snellgrove, Hevajra Tantra, 66-72,1 rl.vii. A number of identical signs are given in the ST. Tsuda, Samvarodaya Tantra, 269. See Tsuda, "Critical Tantrism," 172-176; Dehejia, Yogitti Cult, 11-64; Snellgrove, Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, 160-170; Dasgupta, Obscure Religious Cults; Kalff, "Abhidhanottara-Tantra," 153-252. Shendge, "Moon and Her Reflection/^-102. Guenther is more circum­ spect, refuting "the impression .. . that orgies and Tantrism in some way or other belonged together," by differentiating "orgies as outgrowth of sexuality and sexual relationship as a means of self-growth." Guenther, Tantric View of life, 97. For a list of cemeteries, see Tsuda, Sanwarodaya-tantra, 292, XVII. 36-37, Tucci, Tsaparang, 50-54,180-181; Dawa-Samdup. Shnchakrasambhara, 91* 92; and, Pott, "The Sacred Cemeteries of Nepal," Chapter IV of Yoga ami Yantra, 76-101. Also see Richard MeisezahJ, "L'ttude iconograpfuqu* des huit Cimetieres d'apres le traite Smasanavidhi de Luyi," in Cent und Ikonographie des Vajrayina-Buddhtsmus: Hommage i Marte-Therese de Mallmann (St. Augustin, 1980), 3-123. See Per Kvaeme, "On the Concept of Sahaja in Indian Buddhist Tantric Literature," Temenos 1 1 (1975): 88-135; Snellgrove, "Divine Kingship," 204-218; idem, Buddhist Himalaya, 68-80; idem, Indo-Tibetan Buildhism, 213277 idem, "Categories of Buddhist Tantras," 1369-1371; Tsuda, Saihvarodaya-Tantra, 294-299, XVIII, idem, "Critical Tantrism," 212-215; George, Cundanui>ulro

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sum*..... tetai’iis', at»thwowito plette aggregaw ofaillthtt tlithagatw*'. ,/ la u iw . "Critical' fimteismi" serf Tire The sixth' Buddha, » called Vigranattva uv the MT

• C-^cty Museum of Art

mtitodiof h n t t

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with Ikru lw ^ i r v r H t n U in a *tx tow-arm

Another form is three-headed and four-armed, and carries the vajra and gtonfd in the right and left hands respectively; the consort is again absent 47 One major variation between this sculpture and die standard form of Heruka m that he » standing W instead o f one. This too is easily accommoda ted is described in the HT. There we read that Hev spe­ rm, tramples the four Mat* underfoot4* In another ■ ■ '

PHASE THREE section of the HT, "the four-armed form [of Hevajra-Heruka] symbolizes the destruction of Hie four Maras." In explaining the characteristics of Nairatmya, Hevajra-Heruka's consort who holds a knife, a skull and the khatvdhga, the HT explains that from the skull, "one drinks the blood of the Four Maras.''49 What are the four Maras, so closely bound up with Heruka's iconography? Representative of the fourfold obstacles to enlightenment, Hiey include Skandamdra (the obstacle of the aggregated constituent elements of existence), Klesam&ra (the obstacle of ego­ istic entanglements), Mrtyumara (the obstacle of death) and Devaputramara (the obstacle of rebirth in tlie form of gods).50 According to a commentary of the HT translated by Snellgrove, the four Maras are personified as Brahmanical gods: Skandamara is Brahma (god of creation), Klesamara is a Yaksa, Mrtyumara is Yama (god of death) and Devaputramara is Indra.5’ These four personified obstacles to enlightenment are surely intended by the four figures under Heruka’s foot. [189] He dances ecstatically over their prostrate forms, celebrating his victory and that of the yogin, who "embraces" the avadhutl symbolized by the khatvdhga, over the threefold world.

The Metropolitan Museum's Heruka Twenty palm leaves of the Asiasahasrika PrajhapdramM from eastern India were acquired in 1985 and 1986 by the Metropolitan Museum in New York.52 The Muse­ um considers the palm leaves to date from the twelfth century and to have possi­ bly originated in Bihar. Most of the illustrations are of stupa and bodhisattva, but three are of krodhavigltndntaka, and one of these seems to be a form of Heruka. [190] The dark-blue Heruka stands in the dancing ardhaparyankasana, embracing his four-armed lighter blue consort. Heruka is three- (or four-) headed and four-armed. He holds the khatvanga in the lower left hand, and raises the right in the gesture typical of the standard Heruka. Whatever attributes were held in the hand are not discernible, nor can his dais be made out. His vanamdla is quite clear, however, as is the flaming background. This image of Heruka has much in common with a four-armed form of Heva­ jra-Heruka described in the Sddhanamdla. Bhattacharyya summarizes the latter as follows: I Hevajra-HerukaJ is four-armed and is embraced by his Sakti Isic] who is identical with him m all respects. Hevajral-Heruka] carries in his four hands the blue Vajra, the sword, the Khatvanga and the jewel. The Khatvanga does not however hang from his shoulder but is carried in one o f his h ands^

*90. Heruka with consort, pointing on palm leaf, Bihar (?), ca. jz lh century. Metropolitan Museum o f Art, New York

The khatvanga is indeed held in one of the hands, but the other attributes are not cleat. His consort, who should resemble him, also has four arms, and she mirrors his gestures and posture. The description does not specify how many heads Heva­ jra-Heruka is to have, though generally three heads are matched with six or more arms. Nevertheless, there seem to be sufficient similarities to justify our identifica­ tion of the painted image as Hevajra-Heruka.

1 5 HERUKA IMAGERY

263

3 Pre~14th Century Heruka Images Outside of Eastern India Phase Three Esoteric Buddhist imagery spread from eastern India to other parts of India, to Kashmir,54 and also to Nepal and Tibet. It did not find a direct way from India to China or Japan. China did receive Phase Three texts in the tenth and eleventh centuries, but they had little influence beyond the walls of the translation bureau sponsored by the court. Eventually Phase Three imagery was brought to China through the Tibetans, but we cannot follow these later forms here. Instead we will mention briefly one example in each of three regions which at a relatively early period were introduced to Heruka imagery. Amaravati, on the Krishna river in Andhra Pradesh, the province south of Orissa, is best known for its early (ca. second century c e ) Buddhist a rt That it "remained a flourishing Buddhist centre" from the third century b c e through the thirteenth century c e , however, "is attested to by a large number of inscriptions found at the site itself."55 In the digging season of 1958-59 a few later stone images, described as "slabs" in relatively low relief, were discovered at Amaravati. Includ­ ed were several late images of Mai treya, Tara, a wrathful female and Heruka. The statue of Heruka is a rather crude piece but is relatively complete. The icono-graphy corresponds to the standard image of eastern India (177-187) in most particu­ lars: the right hand grasps the vajra and is raised above the head, the skull-cup is held at the chest in the left hand, the khatvdhga is cradled by the left arm, and the deity poses in the dancing ardhaparyanktisana. The date of this piece is difficult to determine, but anytime between the eleventh and thirteenth centuries is possible. The standard Heruka form was spread in many directions, and the south, with its maritime links to Southeast Asia, may have contributed to the spread of Phase Three to Indonesia, where w e turn for our next example. In north central Sumatra, the brick temple of Bahai U at Padang La was was dedicated to Heruka. A large stone sculpture of Heruka was found in the central chamber. Although it was broken into pieces and the facial features obliterated, it is still identifiable as closely following the standard two-armed form. Inscriptions were found at the site from 1245 and 1372 c e , though construction of shrines at the site seems to have begun in the eleventh or twelfth century'.56 A date of the ca. thir­ teenth century seems suitable few the Heruka. There are certain features which reflect a cultural inclination toward a more dance-like posture, but overall, the Sumatran allegiance to eastern Indian Phase Three models can hardly be doubted. It helps confirm the temporal dominance of Phase Three imagery’ during the thir­ teenth century.

4 Heruka Imagery: Conclusions Our examination of surviving images supports Heruka's exalted station in Phase Three Esoteric Buddhism. Five large-scale images including the Sumatran example were likely to have been the central images of shrines. U 78 ,1 7 5 ,18 6 ,18S) In addi­ tion, smaller images in stone and metal were relatively plentiful Painted images appear in significant numbers, and no doubt a more thorough search in manuscript collections will reveal many more. The variety of su e and format suggests that Heruka images fulfilled the types of functions which earlier we found for Trailokyavijaya and his Phase Two peers. They provided the principal images to shrines and private altars and were integrated into three dimensional mandaia.

It should be acknowledged that we have ignored many images which belong within the orbit of Heruka iconography. Because it w as our intention to be repre­ sentative and not comprehensive, we have left out of the discussion works which seem to be variants of Heruka.5, Nor have we followed Heruka into Nepal or Tibet. Finally, we have neglected the man)' independent images of Heruka's consorts from the same eleventh to twelfth century period. Besides occurring in some of the same manuscripts in which one finds Heruka images, sculptures of his consorts (and related female krodha-vighnAntaka) are found throughout eastern India. These include Nairatmya sculptures in the West Bengal State Archaeological Museum (no. 04.8), the Indian Museum of Calcutta (no. 5608), Asutosh Museum (no. SC406.5072) and Bodh Gaya Museum (no. 23); a Sarvabuddhadakini in the Patna Museum (no. A 10540), a Vajravarahi in the Eilenberg collection, and a yogini in the Musee Guimet (no. M.A.652). Outside of India, to mention just a few of the most extraordinary examples, a striking Nairatmya painting in a Tibeto-Chinese style is dated by Chinese inscription to 1479 CE br the Boston Museum of Fine Arts; Sven Hedin found an ivory image of Nairatmya in Khotan; and numerous yogini are pre­ served in the National Museum and in private collections in Bangkok.58 The surviving visual evidence is significant collectively in ways other than quantity, size and quality. Notably, all Heruka images fall between tire late tenth and the twelfth centuries. By contrast, Phase Two krodha-vighnantaka imagery is concentrated in the ninth and tenth centuries, with a few later examples. This alone suggests that Phase Three imagery developed after the maturation of Phase Two. Additionally, we can see that Phase Three imagery eventually replaced that of Phase Two in the very sites where both were espoused, the monastic centers of east­ ern India. Our examinations of the imagery of Hevajra and Samvara will support this preliminary conclusion based on our examination of Heruka images.

15 Notes to Chapter Fifteen 1

2

3

4

5

6

7

Jean Przyluski believes that just as Bhairava derives from bhlru (dread­ ful, terrible), so trio the name Heruka may have derived from bhlru and from hhlruka (timid), which became *bheruka in middle Indian. Further, he holds that this is an instance in which an antonym was used as the appclation of a wrathful deity. Jean Przyluski, "Heruka-Sambara," Palski Biulciyn Orientalistyczny 1 (1937): 42-45. Recently John Newman has made an interesting argument that forms of Hevajra and Samvara appear together in a 12th c. eastern Indian manuscript as part of a coherent program of iconography which repre­ sents both utpatti krama and samparma kranrn modes of Phase Three practice. John Newman, "Vajrayana Deities in an Illustrated Indian Manuscript of the Aslasdhasrikd-prajfidpilrnmitt," Journal of the Inter­ national Association of Buddhist Studies 13, no. 2 (1990): 117-132. Snellgrove, Buddhist Hinwlaya, 205; van Kooij, "Some Iconographicai Data," 161-170. Also see de Mallmann, Introduction a I'iconographie, 182186. Lokesh Chandra recognizes this distinction in his preface to Tucd, Tsaparang, xv-xvi. Van Kooij also acknowledges the typological and indi­ vidual aspects of Heruka in "Some Iconographicai Data," 162. See B. Bhattacharyya, Indian Buddhist Iconography, 155-156; idem, NispannayogOvali, 40-41; idem, "Iconography of Heruka," Indian Culture 2 (1935): 23-35; ar|d, K. Krishna Murthy, Iconography of Buddhist Deity Heruka (Delhi, 1988). Tire Heruka mandala, "far from being schematic groupings of divinities . . . appear to be forms of real flesh and blood. The central figure of the circle is the yogin himself, whose intention must be to partake of the nature of Heruka." Snellgrove, Buddhist Himalaya, 206. Snellgrove, Hevajra Tantra, 63, i:I.vi.2-6; Willemen, Chinese Hevajratantra,

55Snellgrove, Hevajra Tantra, 64, i:I.vi.«-i3; Willemen, Chinese Hevajra­ tantra, 56-57. According to the Abhidh&noltara-Tanlra, the khatvdhga is the devatimurtih (which Kalff translates as "embodiment of the godhead"), while the sound of the daniaru is prajhi ("insight"). Kalff, "Abhidhanottara-Tantra,"2i5 (Sanskrit version, 327). 9 See R. A. Stein, "Les objets rituels de transmutation dans le tantrisme tibetain," Annuaire du College de France 77 (1977): 488-495. 10 Van Kooij, "Some Iconographicai Data," 163. 1 1 D. Mitra, Ratnagiri, 438,443, pi. CCCXXXVI.B. 12 Hock, "Buddhist ideology," 156; Donaldson, "Buddhist Sculpture of Orissa," 369. Compare the hair with 116 and 118. 13 Benoytosh Bhattacharyya, "Iconography of Heruka," Indian Culture 2 (1935); 24. 14 B. Bhattacharyya, Indian Buddhist Iconography, 156. 15 Snellgrove, Hevajra Tantra, 1:59. 16 Ibid., 1:101-102. Also see 1:5 7 ,7 3 ,114 ,115 . 17 Tsuda, "Critical Tantrism," 173. 18 Hock, "Buddhist ideology," 156. 19 Ibid., 152, n. 64. Hock lists stiipa 49,124 and 65 on 156 (the last is a mis­ take for 64, correctly listed on 152). See Mireille Benisti, Contribution Fttude du Stupa Bouddhique Indien: Les Stupa Mineurs de Bodh-Gaya el de Ratnagiri, Publications de l.'tcole Francaise d'Extreme-Orient, no. 125 (Pans, 1981), 115 -117 , fig. 138, which corresponds to Mitra'» no. 64. but offers no possible date.) Also see Donaldson, "Buddhist Sculpture o4 Orissa," j6. kfiwa, Rainagtri, izri, 32:3, 3 # On (hes* Hxpa. wfurfe awe- properly "funnijwy'* an«# NM 'to ftv r,* m v Crtgovy Sufcopem, amd hmiUksttt bit*#,* CaifesW Pips** m She AuhtHiulogy. i jugtttfuiy jttid lets* of MvW*!*K m M r* (Hon­ olulu; Cauveinudy H owwt, >997), *au. 3UJ D Mitra, Ratnagiri, z8 21 D. Mitra, Achutratpitr, 85-86, fig. 77. 22 Donaldson, "Buddhist Sculpture uf O rissa,' 370; D- Mitre, Athuttajpur,

24 25 26 27

28 29

30 31

32

33

8

By 33

See Sahu, Buddhism in Orissa, 208; R.P. Mohapatra, ArcA*uk*gy in Orissa

34 35 36

37 38

39

40

41 42

NOTES 265

(Sites and Monuments), 2 vote. (Delhi, 1986), 2:21; and, Donaldson, "Bud­ dhist Sculpture of Orissa," 370, Donaldson identifies this image with one now in the Sambalpur University Museum. Sahu, Buitdhism in Orissa, 221, Snellgrove, Hevajra Tantra, 51,1:1,11,7, Ibid., 59, i.U n .iy tfr, Willemen, Chinese Hevajratantra, 49. Snellgrove, Hroajra Tantra, 58, iJ.iii.io. Also see Kanha's commentary on "BhOcart." Ibid., 55, note 1 (no. vii); Willemen, Chinese Hevajratantra, 48. The other yogini and their attributes are Gaur) (moon), Chaurt (sun), Vetali (wafer), Ghasmari (medicament), Savan (amnt) and CandaH (damaru-drum), .1 The exception may be Mahakala, who seems to have had a different history than Hayagriva, Yamantaka and Trailokyavijaya. See VS. Agarwala, A Guide to S&rn&th, 3rd ed. (New Delhi, 1980); Krish­ na Kumar, "A Circular Cantva-Grha at Samath," journal of the Indien Society of Oriental Art ns 11 (1980): 63-70; J.H. Marshall and Sten Konow, "Samath," ASI Annual Report 1906 -7 (Calcutta, 1909k 81-85; idem, "Excavations at Samath, 1908,” Archaeological Survey of India. Annual Report 1907-8 (Calcutta, 1911k 43-54; and, D. Mitra, Buddhist Monu­ ments, 66-69. Hiram W. Woodward, Jr, "Queen Kumiradevi and Twelfth-Century Samath," journal ef the Indian Society of Oriental Art ns 12/13 (l5#*-®3k 9-to. Samath AST Museum, no. B(e)a (ht 60 cm). See Daya Ram Sahm, Cata­ logue of the Museum of Archaeology at Samdth (Calcutta. 1914), 135-136, pi. XVa; also illustrated in Agarwala, Samath, pL X B. "An unfinished figure of Siva dancing on a demon lying full length on the base." No. 19 '■ '< & * ■/• A •vf-f-vs?-— te.W

Memoir*. r,» Pa! ard k!.-«n p. fca#*. huJ.iUt.4 b o * i f e w i i w , vs cait.j* g« v ./•)7 Fk^akihVai and fJxsn , ' An Piiasrr-il--d W^nu-cn^. ' pi V i -sc; man, "Vnr.3y.sna Oe=:tr«s,' i ya, )>pp»?r. jA irr. A»? ejc-t >.•»« d< f fiv r M u w t, tfi-jcs 19 Fr.» a r y f i ith £■■«.v- « , f **•»•«• stnan! .IWMavAra grshwas’:*: iy. hes -•

t rm iT t t a lln l — x s ll> -K

.iO-iiSe. Cusntse, -tcl no- i. -tb^-ZStv. 'vill.3S-2S#. 3r a e s i a m g . r*iww«»Vqka. tig. 191, It is,il.%»

T~ ItT

-e ..- U H -v ‘Is

‘H

tuiuutt: temetamxi -‘—ifj.'.-s—w

C .X V •Te-artC*- '■ >72-374ASI, Annual Report 1434-33, 8 0 ,111, pi. XXfV.c; D Mitra, "Sambara in the Patna Museum/ 46. IX M itu, "Siwnteiwa vo the- P*?n» Monawm," 46

2) ®>w3L 24 KutlW, " AW 25 26 27

28

ay

yi

31 32 33 34

35 36 37 38 39

40

Iwntra." iki-iby her y«fw tjth c w d teneaforehr udensdied an tVv and ^ww.wrivy* m Pd. Art It was ofoxife-d as a ifoetam knave ot )

Three Ewrterk Buddbnm, the tuperimprmtUm of Saqivara onto the im/ig* of &rva involve* level* o f symbolism we cannot hope to explicate but only to recognize?. A passage in Taranatha's seventeenth-century description of the life of the Mahaskfdha Krishnacdrya documents the sectarian rivalry between Indian followers of Samvara and Siva. The conflict is resolved with the determination that "Mahesvara and the goddess Uma had been transformed into Sri Heruka [i.e., Samvara}, who had indeed crushed them/'24 I am not qualified to assert that the living tradition of Tibetan scholarship and religious practice has never sustained a sectarian-rivalry interpretation of the Buddhist Samvara'* humiliation of the Hindu Bhairava. However, in an admit­ tedly token attempt to compare my outsider'* finding* with contemporary insid­ ers' understanding, I took my questions lo a Tibetan scholar fn DfiarmasalU, oo m June ry/>, / had the good fortune to interview tier impmssrvHy learned and e«|oah ly kind Tibetan f.ama, Kirti Twrokwp pj/ipocha,** He explained that bernvara holding the elephant skin represents overcoming the mind's grasprngness and the tenacious belief in the reality o f things. 6iva underfoot is by no means to be thought of as a figure dragged in from another religion to be humiliated. Both Samvara and Siva are to be recognized as enlightened beings. Bewilderment and attachment, the basis of transmigration, must be overcome through wisdom and upciya. Wisdom is represented by Samvara's right leg (trampling on the female) and upaya (compassionate means) by the left leg, which together overcome great desire, ignorance and attachment. The discussion then turned to the relationship of Trailokyavijaya and Samvara. After consulting texts, the Kinpoche concluded that though the names are different, Traiiokyavijay* and Samvara carry the same meaning. In has interpretation, detrir* like Im UM yevtye)* *** f** aspirants with capw iiy, w hile dein** like mf* for &*/** *4 Utoeb**, V # tw o ty f* * *4 •f*#*** *t* n*4 **n*Ur** few'mg dtrveiofed * 4«&y, one after t f* farver>wsry #o and Tram* turn of the Mh AH India Cm fetm t, Patna, ftec, iy y i il'nfM , 349-37v, end idem, "Buddhist lAibas in IhruUs (attb," Priceedings and Trannatkm of the Fifth All Itidt/m (Jriental Omfermc.e tLahore, u/ryiy ttfj-w JS lr seem* that his point#, which vnforhinrtety are embedded in a dearly prefadicial presentation, have been largely ignored, ft may be time for a special­ ist in eastern Indian art to reconsider this topic. Goswami, "Ugra-Mturtis of £iva," 107-108. Note the ca. 10th c. oveT-Iifesize GajasuramUrti from Puri now in the Indian Museum, Calcutta, no. A241278/^ 3363; and Chola 9th c. Cajasuramdrti in the Cleveland Museum published! in Kramrach, Manifestations of S i m , no. 39. Also see Gayatri Akhouri, Sarown m Ancient Bihar (Patna, 1988), 170-171.; Goswami, "Ugra-Murtis of $iva," 108-109; and the ca. nth c AndhakasuramOrti in the Bharat Kala Bha­ van, Benares, no. 172. Kalff, "AbhKlhJnottara-Tantra," 125,140. Ibid., 73. Ibid. Also see the discussion on ibid., 67-76. Translated in Dawa-lwmdup, Shmhaknuambhdra Tantm, 1-68, with the section pertinent to our discussion on 21-29. A revised translation at in Sneilgrove, iruto-7ibetan Buddhism, 154-155. For the confirmed attribu­ tion to Phagpa, see David Reigle, "New Preface, 1984/ in Kasj DawaSamdup, Shrichokrosamkhara Tentra: A Buddha! Tartlra, reprint ed (Tal­ ent, 1984), i-iiL Snellgrove, Indo-Tibetan Buddhism. 154. Goswami, "Ugra-MOrtis of Siva," 115-118. Herbert V. Guenther and Chogyam Trungpa, The Dawn of Tantra f Berke­ ley. 1974)- 8David Templeman, trans., Tiramtha's Life of Krsnac&ryajKanha (Dharamsala, 1989), 36. I am indebted to the Gareth Spariwn foe sharing his deep knowledge of the Tibetan language, Tibetan Buddhist texts and scholars; for arranging meetings with several Tibetan scholars; and foe acting a* interpreter for my unusual and specify? questions. Kalff, "Abhidhanottara-Turtra," 143. Snellgrove, Indo-Tibeton Buddhism, 125 (emphasis added). S m i;12J

Afterword

1 Historical Models o f Esoteric Buddhism This study of wrathful deities in Esoteric Buddhist art has been necessarily also a history of Esoteric R uddhhm teeth To understand the wrathful deities, one must view their plats in Esoteric Buddhism. In a circular manner, however, the study of the irodka-rnghnaniaka has proved to be an instrument by which a certain meaning­ ful order may be imposed upon a heterogenous mix of historical materials (archaeo­ logical, artistic and textual) and living traditions, which shape our views of the movement as a whole. The study graphically demonstrates the growing impor­ tance of the krodha-vighnantaka in Esoteric Buddhism. The wrathful deity theme acts as an instructive yardstick for measuring change in doctrinal development. In the context of the study of Esoteric Buddhism, the scrutiny of Esoteric Bud­ dhism under the light cast by the krodha-vighnantaka theme has been productive mainly because the wrathful deities have not been utilized to this extent in previ­ ous studies. Without doubt this study has benefited tremendously from prior schol­ arship, some of which concerns individual wrathful deities. Ja p a n e s e secondary sources have admittedIv beer® andegufcuzadj, str.d there is no» ejyseafcUMr that! the aesdia dr cro p r-g d f Laaj A&asn E*6Saatic ibaddfoitari w ill dUeirfy and *r»osrtd fee arcier»^idieag o f fe e wsuatk© an Tibet and India at. well, le t hue attempt yielded ife fe a t mam))' because the trans-cult oral field at it is most broad­ ly conceived has been left fallow for so long. Then- have, of course, been other more learned and in some ways more inclusive models of the development of Esoteric Buddhism. The primary studies are oriented much more toward philosophical doctrines gleaned from texts with debatable degrees o f intelligibility. Such scholarship has been keyed fundamentally to texts. Systems for classifying texts are accepted almost axiomatically as developmental models for Esoteric Buddhism itself. The present study lias tried to widen the focus beyond texts to incorporate s segment *tf the visible opiew iions o f ideas, including ih w e whido m ay or m ay m il have hues .afforded .rntportaner in written as well. d&iwft set m Sint fogging; a w a£ trench a* aa archaeological’ sitifc TUt#- atitr i» ttv (*n»aali

AmnwoKo 307 the stratigraphy of successive stages of development. Until the entire site is uncov­ ered there is no way of knowing whether the trench is representative. Once dug, however, the findings may be calibrated with other trenches repeatedly sunk, as it were, into the library of the site. It is thus necessary to compare the stratigraphy of my narrow trench with the results of analyses made using different criteria.

i«i Comparison with $n ellgiw e'* Model and the Relationship between Mahayana and Early Esoteric Buddhism Krodha-vighnantakxi image# resolve into three stage*, each of which can be tied to broader developments in Esoteric Buddhism, Bow do these stages compare with other models? One attempt at broad classification is found in the works of David Snellgrove, on which I have relied heavily. Better than anyone, Snell grove fulfills the commonly shared intention of modem scholarship to approach the subject of conflicting Esoteric Buddhist texts from an historical viewpoint.1 A historical approach is in contradistinction to scholars working within the tradition, who regard all such texts as timeless expressions of truth and consequently arrange them on the basis of Buddhistic function, or correlate them to the various abilities of aspirants along a scale of graduated value, Snellgrove divides Esoteric Buddhist texts into those which correspond in outlook and practice to Mahayana Buddhism and those which present a distinct attitude;* The classification I have proposed m Phase Ot*e, comprised o f wrathful tk itm as attendants to todhi&atty#, closdy dovetail-s with Sneflgrovea mixed Mahayana-E-waeric Buddhwm and confirm* few judgement that there » considerable overlap during the earliest era of Esoteric Bud­ dhism. The point is of some importance. As was discussed in Section One, there is presently a tendency among some scholars to separate Mahayana from Esoteric Buddhism at an early stage and also to project the origins of Esoteric Buddhism back to a very early date. Mahayana Buddhism, into which the krodha-wghnAntaka were first bom, may be characterized as a religion focusing on the accumulation of merit through acts done for the benefit of all sentient beings. The Lotus Sutra recommends the propa­ gation of itself and the creation of images of the Buddha as the most effective means to develop a fund of merit. In ritual practice this involves the offering of flowers, lamps, incense and the "seven treasures''^ to the Buddhas, bodhisattva and them images. Devotion is considered to serve Buddhist ends. Abhayarmtra, a monk t4 fee late fWhi ttvm ty, ir# example, "caused So be made fee at leas# three ttoddh# jhgBW** a* wd m &