Difference between revisions of "Potala"
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[[File:Potala-A.jpg|thumb|250px|]] | [[File:Potala-A.jpg|thumb|250px|]] | ||
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− | [[Pilgrimage]] to [[Potala]] began in about the 1 th century CE although records are very scant. Both of the great {{Wiki|Tamil}} [[Buddhist]] {{Wiki|epics}}, the Maṇimegala and the Cilappatikāram mention [[pilgrims]] going to | + | |
+ | |||
+ | |||
+ | |||
+ | After the [[Buddha]] himself, the most revered and popular figure in [[Buddhism]] is [[Avalokiteśvara]], the [[bodhisattva of compassion]]. Since his [[appearance]] in about the 1 th century BCE, this beloved [[bodhisattva]] has been [[worshipped]] with almost unparalleled fervor by the followers of all [[schools of Buddhism]]. | ||
+ | |||
+ | Though accessible through [[prayer]] and supplication to anyone anywhere, [[Avalokiteśvara]] was believed to abide on a mountain in a remote part of [[India]] where, from its lofty and cloud-decked heights, he could, as his [[name]] suggests, ‘look out upon’ the [[world]] with [[compassion]]. This mountain was called [[Potala]] or sometimes [[Potalaka]]. | ||
+ | |||
+ | [[Pilgrimage]] to [[Potala]] began in about the 1 th century CE although records are very scant. Both of the great {{Wiki|Tamil}} [[Buddhist]] {{Wiki|epics}}, the [[Maṇimegala]] and the [[Cilappatikāram]] mention [[pilgrims]] going to [[Mount Potala]]. | ||
+ | |||
+ | The [[Mahāyānist]] poet and [[philosopher]] [[Candragomin]] went there by ship and is said to have spent his last years on the mountain. He wrote his most famous work, the Śiṣyalekha,while there and gave it to some {{Wiki|merchants}} to pass to his [[disciples]] in {{Wiki|northern India}}. | ||
+ | |||
+ | When the {{Wiki|Chinese}} [[pilgrim]] [[Hiuen Tsiang]] was in [[Nāḷandā]] in the 7th century he met a [[brahmin]] who had made a [[vow]] to {{Wiki|worship}} a statue of [[Avalokite śvara]] which was on the top of [[Potala]], a [[vow]] he had been able to fulfil. | ||
+ | |||
+ | This statue was believed to be the [[bodhisattva’s]] exact likeness. Later, [[Hiuen Tsiang]] travelled through [[south]] [[India]] and although he was unable to visit [[Potala]] himself he left this description of it based on what others had told him. | ||
+ | |||
+ | ‘To the [[east]] of the [[Malaya]] [[Mountains]] is Mount [[Potala]]. The passes on the mountain are very [[dangerous]], its sides are precipitous and its valleys rugged. On the top of the mountain is a lake, its waters as clear as a [[mirror]]. | ||
+ | |||
+ | From a grotto preceeds a great [[river]] which encircles the mountain twenty times as it flows down to the southern sea. By the side of the lake is a rock palace of the [[gods]]. Here [[Avalokiteśvara]] in coming and going takes his abode. | ||
+ | |||
+ | Those who strongly [[desire]] to see him disregarding their [[lives]] and fording the streams, climb the mountain forgetful of its difficulties and dangers. Of those who make the attempt there are very few who reach the summit. | ||
+ | |||
+ | But even if those who dwell below the mountain earnestly pray to behold the [[bodhisattva]], he appears to them sometimes as [[Iśvara]], sometimes in the [[form]] of a [[yogi]], and addresses them with {{Wiki|benevolent}} words and then they obtain their wishes according to their [[desires]].’ | ||
+ | |||
This description is clearly a blend of fact and {{Wiki|fiction}}, something about [[Potala]] that increased as time went by. Gradually the [[sacred mountain]] came to be seen as a kind of [[magical]] fairy land, a [[paradise]] where rare {{Wiki|medicinal}} herbs and exquisite [[flowers]] grew, where [[mythological]] [[animals]] frolicked and where those blessed enough to be [[reborn]] in [[Avalokiteśvara’s]] presence abided in [[bliss]]. | This description is clearly a blend of fact and {{Wiki|fiction}}, something about [[Potala]] that increased as time went by. Gradually the [[sacred mountain]] came to be seen as a kind of [[magical]] fairy land, a [[paradise]] where rare {{Wiki|medicinal}} herbs and exquisite [[flowers]] grew, where [[mythological]] [[animals]] frolicked and where those blessed enough to be [[reborn]] in [[Avalokiteśvara’s]] presence abided in [[bliss]]. | ||
− | Of course, to {{Wiki|worship}} [[Avalokiteśvara]] was the main [[reason]] to go there, but some went for quite different [[reasons]]. For example, the lay man Santivarman, whose dates are difficult to determine, made three trips to [[Potala]] and although the account of his journeys is filled with [[miracles]], it seems to be based on fact. His first journey was purely for worshipping [[Avalokiteśvara]] and interestingly he is said to have made his way with the help of a guide [[book]]. Another visit was made at the request of the [[monks]] at [[Vārāṇasī]] who wanted him to ask [[Avalokiteśvara]] about difficulties in a particular text. On another occasion he was sent by [[King]] Subhasāra to beseech the [[bodhisattva]] to free his [[realm]] from a plague. | + | Of course, to {{Wiki|worship}} [[Avalokiteśvara]] was the main [[reason]] to go there, but some went for quite different [[reasons]]. |
− | [[Pilgrimage]] to [[Potala]], probably never very extensive, petered out long before [[Buddhism’s]] [[disappearance]] in [[India]]. [[Avalokiteśvara’s]] ability to appear anywhere meant that {{Wiki|undertaking}} the long [[dangerous]] journey to [[Potala]] was simply unnecessary. The [[Tibetan]] [[teacher]] Man-luns-po claims to have gone to | + | |
+ | For example, the lay man [[Santivarman]], whose dates are difficult to determine, made three trips to [[Potala]] and although the account of his journeys is filled with [[miracles]], it seems to be based on fact. | ||
+ | |||
+ | His first journey was purely for worshipping [[Avalokiteśvara]] and interestingly he is said to have made his way with the help of a guide [[book]]. | ||
+ | |||
+ | Another visit was made at the request of the [[monks]] at [[Vārāṇasī]] who wanted him to ask [[Avalokiteśvara]] about difficulties in a particular text. On another occasion he was sent by [[King]] [[Subhasāra]] to beseech the [[bodhisattva]] to free his [[realm]] from a plague. | ||
+ | |||
+ | |||
+ | [[Pilgrimage]] to [[Potala]], probably never very extensive, petered out long before [[Buddhism’s]] [[disappearance]] in [[India]]. [[Avalokiteśvara’s]] ability to appear anywhere meant that {{Wiki|undertaking}} the long [[dangerous]] journey to [[Potala]] was simply unnecessary. | ||
+ | |||
+ | The [[Tibetan]] [[teacher]] [[Man-luns-po]] claims to have gone to [[Mount Potala]] in the 14th century and the account of his journey is detailed enough to suggest that he really did. | ||
+ | |||
+ | If this is correct, he must be the last [[pilgrim]] we know of to have visited the [[sacred mountain]]. | ||
+ | |||
+ | |||
+ | The origins of the [[name]] [[Potala]] are obscure. It is probably a Sanskritization of the {{Wiki|Tamil}} potiy + il, meaning ‘[[the place of Buddhists]],’ potiy being the {{Wiki|Tamil}} of [[bodhi]]. | ||
+ | |||
+ | In [[ancient]] times [[potiyil]] was the common {{Wiki|Tamil}} [[word]] for a [[Buddhist temple]] or [[shrine]]. Although Potala’s whereabouts is almost completely unknown to contemporary [[Buddhists]], the mountain has never actually been ‘lost.’ | ||
+ | |||
+ | Rather, it seems that for at least the last thousand years [[Buddhists]] have not bothered about its location. | ||
+ | |||
+ | Called [[Potikai]] today, the [[sacred mountain]] is situated on the border between the [[south]] [[Indian]] states of {{Wiki|Kerala}} and [[Tamil Nadu]] and at 2726 meters is the [[highest]] peak in the Tinnevelly Range. | ||
+ | |||
+ | Since the 10th century [[Chinese Buddhists]] have come to believe that [[Mount Potala]] is in their [[own]] country. | ||
− | + | A rocky [[island]] now called {{Wiki|Putuo Shan}} off the coast of [[Wikipedia:Zhejiang|Zhejiang]] Province, is popularly believed to be the real [[Potala]] and is now considered one of the [[four sacred mountains]] of [[Chinese Buddhism]]. | |
− | + | Since the 15 th century the [[Dalai Lāmas]] of [[Tibet]] have been looked upon as [[incarnations]] of [[Avalokiteśvara]] and appropriately enough, their residence, called the [[Potala Palace]], is on a steep-sided hill. | |
{{R}} | {{R}} | ||
[http://www.buddhisma2z.com/content.php?id=317 www.buddhisma2z.com] | [http://www.buddhisma2z.com/content.php?id=317 www.buddhisma2z.com] | ||
[[Category:Buddhist Terms]] | [[Category:Buddhist Terms]] | ||
+ | [[Category:Potala]] |
Latest revision as of 10:03, 16 December 2015
After the Buddha himself, the most revered and popular figure in Buddhism is Avalokiteśvara, the bodhisattva of compassion. Since his appearance in about the 1 th century BCE, this beloved bodhisattva has been worshipped with almost unparalleled fervor by the followers of all schools of Buddhism.
Though accessible through prayer and supplication to anyone anywhere, Avalokiteśvara was believed to abide on a mountain in a remote part of India where, from its lofty and cloud-decked heights, he could, as his name suggests, ‘look out upon’ the world with compassion. This mountain was called Potala or sometimes Potalaka.
Pilgrimage to Potala began in about the 1 th century CE although records are very scant. Both of the great Tamil Buddhist epics, the Maṇimegala and the Cilappatikāram mention pilgrims going to Mount Potala.
The Mahāyānist poet and philosopher Candragomin went there by ship and is said to have spent his last years on the mountain. He wrote his most famous work, the Śiṣyalekha,while there and gave it to some merchants to pass to his disciples in northern India.
When the Chinese pilgrim Hiuen Tsiang was in Nāḷandā in the 7th century he met a brahmin who had made a vow to worship a statue of Avalokite śvara which was on the top of Potala, a vow he had been able to fulfil.
This statue was believed to be the bodhisattva’s exact likeness. Later, Hiuen Tsiang travelled through south India and although he was unable to visit Potala himself he left this description of it based on what others had told him.
‘To the east of the Malaya Mountains is Mount Potala. The passes on the mountain are very dangerous, its sides are precipitous and its valleys rugged. On the top of the mountain is a lake, its waters as clear as a mirror.
From a grotto preceeds a great river which encircles the mountain twenty times as it flows down to the southern sea. By the side of the lake is a rock palace of the gods. Here Avalokiteśvara in coming and going takes his abode.
Those who strongly desire to see him disregarding their lives and fording the streams, climb the mountain forgetful of its difficulties and dangers. Of those who make the attempt there are very few who reach the summit.
But even if those who dwell below the mountain earnestly pray to behold the bodhisattva, he appears to them sometimes as Iśvara, sometimes in the form of a yogi, and addresses them with benevolent words and then they obtain their wishes according to their desires.’
This description is clearly a blend of fact and fiction, something about Potala that increased as time went by. Gradually the sacred mountain came to be seen as a kind of magical fairy land, a paradise where rare medicinal herbs and exquisite flowers grew, where mythological animals frolicked and where those blessed enough to be reborn in Avalokiteśvara’s presence abided in bliss.
Of course, to worship Avalokiteśvara was the main reason to go there, but some went for quite different reasons.
For example, the lay man Santivarman, whose dates are difficult to determine, made three trips to Potala and although the account of his journeys is filled with miracles, it seems to be based on fact.
His first journey was purely for worshipping Avalokiteśvara and interestingly he is said to have made his way with the help of a guide book.
Another visit was made at the request of the monks at Vārāṇasī who wanted him to ask Avalokiteśvara about difficulties in a particular text. On another occasion he was sent by King Subhasāra to beseech the bodhisattva to free his realm from a plague.
Pilgrimage to Potala, probably never very extensive, petered out long before Buddhism’s disappearance in India. Avalokiteśvara’s ability to appear anywhere meant that undertaking the long dangerous journey to Potala was simply unnecessary.
The Tibetan teacher Man-luns-po claims to have gone to Mount Potala in the 14th century and the account of his journey is detailed enough to suggest that he really did.
If this is correct, he must be the last pilgrim we know of to have visited the sacred mountain.
The origins of the name Potala are obscure. It is probably a Sanskritization of the Tamil potiy + il, meaning ‘the place of Buddhists,’ potiy being the Tamil of bodhi.
In ancient times potiyil was the common Tamil word for a Buddhist temple or shrine. Although Potala’s whereabouts is almost completely unknown to contemporary Buddhists, the mountain has never actually been ‘lost.’
Rather, it seems that for at least the last thousand years Buddhists have not bothered about its location.
Called Potikai today, the sacred mountain is situated on the border between the south Indian states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu and at 2726 meters is the highest peak in the Tinnevelly Range.
Since the 10th century Chinese Buddhists have come to believe that Mount Potala is in their own country.
A rocky island now called Putuo Shan off the coast of Zhejiang Province, is popularly believed to be the real Potala and is now considered one of the four sacred mountains of Chinese Buddhism.
Since the 15 th century the Dalai Lāmas of Tibet have been looked upon as incarnations of Avalokiteśvara and appropriately enough, their residence, called the Potala Palace, is on a steep-sided hill.