ORIGIN OF THE AVALOKITESVARA OF POTALA

ORIGIN OF THE AVALOKITESVARA OF POTALA

Lokesh Chandra New Delhi

I INTRODUCTION

Hsuan-tsang refers to Avalokite§vara on the Potala in the following words (Beal 1884:2·. 23.3): "To the east of 'th Malaya mountains is Mount Po-ta-lo-kia (Potalaka). The passes of this mountain are very dangerous, its sides are precipitous, and its valleys rugged. On tJ:ie "top of the mountain is a lake; its waters are clear as a mirror. From a hollow proceeds a great river which encircles the mountain as it flows down twenty times and then enters the southern sea. By the side of the lake is a rock-palace of the Devas. Here Avalokitesvara in coming and going takes his abode. Those who strongly desire to see this Bodhisattva do not regard their lives, but, crossing the water (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 of those who dwell below the mountain, if 'they earnestly pray and beg to behold the god, sometimes he appears as Tsz'-tsai-t'ien (ISvara-deva), sometimes under the form of a yogi (a Pamsu- pata); he addresses them_with benevolent words and then they obtain their wishes according to theii desires". Watters (1905:2.229} summarises the above passage as follows: "In the south of the country near the sea was the Mo-lo-ya (Malaya) mountain, with lofty cliffs and ridges and

Source

deep valleys and gullies, on which were sandal, camphor and other trees. To the east of this was Pu-ta-lo-ka (Putalaka) mountain with steep narrow paths over its cliffs and gorges in irregular confusion; on the top was a lake of clear water, whence issued a river which, on its way to the sea, flowed twenty times round the mountain. By the side of the lake was a stone Deva-palace frequented by Kuan-tzu-tsai P'usa. Devotees, risking life, brave water and mountain to see the P'usa, but only a-few succeed in reaching the shrine. To the people at the foot of the mountain who pray for a sight of the P usa he appears sometimes as a Pasupata Tirthika, or as Mahesvara, and consoles the suppliant with this (sia) answer"

Hsuan-tsang must have read in the Avatamsaka-sutra about the earthly paradise of Avalokitesvara: "Potalaka is on the.sea-side in the south, it has woods, and streams, and tanks, and is in fact a sort of earthly paradise. Buddha­ bhadra (A.D. 420) calls.Kuanyin's mountain Kuang-ming or 'Brilliance•·, which is usually given as the rendering for Malaya, but a later translator, S"ikshananda, transcribes the name Potalaka" {Watters 1905:2.231). Buddhabhadra's rendering Potala is "Brilliance". It refers to its etymology': Tamil pottu potti.,..J ·to light (as a fire)·, Rota pot- t,oty-) id., Kannada pottu n. '·flaming' , pottige ' flaming, flame', Tulu potta 'hot;., burning' (Burrow/Emeheau 1961:298 no. 3691). In Kannada analogous words are: flaming, 'to cause to burn with flame, to kindle, to light' pottu 'to begin to ' burn with flame, to be kindled, to catch fire, to flame',p ttu 1 l. flaming, 2. the sun, 3. time,· (Kittel 1894:1020). In ancient times tne magnificence of the temple of Avalokitesvara must have been resplendent and·dazzling to the devotees who reached it after negotiating inaccessible cliffs and ravines: a transcendence beyond forbidding barriers.

7 Kailash.

In the above passage Avalokitesvara at Potala sometimes take the form of Isvara {Siva) and sometimes that of a.Pa$upata yogin. In fact Siva was metamorph sed into Avalokite vara. This is coroborated by Nilakantha-dharani where Nilakantha Lokesvara is an a theosis of Shiva and Vishnu· (Hari-Har' a) The Nilakan. t. haka was translated into .Chinese by three ma.sters in the seventh and early eighth century: by Chih-t'ung twice during A.D. 627-649 (T. 1057a and T. 1057b = Nj. 318), by Bhagavaddharma during A.D. 650-660 and by Bodhiruci in A.D. 709

The Nilaka.n.tha-dhara.ni was translated into Chinese by Vajrabodhi1 (worked A.D. 719-741, T. 1112), twice by his disciple Amoghavajra (worked A.D. 723-774, and in the fourteenth century by Dhyanabhadra (worke, d A.D.1326- 1363, T. 1113a)•

Twelve scrolls of Nilaka Lokesvara texts in Chinese have been found at Tun-huang (Giles 1957:105-106). Manuscript 3793 of the Stein Collection of Chinese scrolls from Tun-huang adds a note at the end: 'Translated at Khotan by the sramana Bhagavad dharma of Western India'. Here West means 'South India' as we have already pointed out in our·

It is notable that Bhagavaddharma accomplished the translation at Khotan. Nilakandi for Nilakantha in Amo­gahavajra's translation , is a Central Asian form: Uigur nominative singular ending in AMOGHVAJRA'S VERSION

The version of Amoghcivajra has been the most w..ide spread ever since it was written in the eighth century

Its popularity has not waned to this day. Suzuki (1950 :.22-23) includes its english rendering as an essential part of the Zen repertoire of sutras, "what the Zen monk reads before the Buddha in his daily service, where his thoughts move in his leisure hours" (ibid. 11):

Suzuki's Translation

DHARAN.I OF THE GREAT COMPASSIONATE ONE

Adoration to the Triple, Treasure!

Adoration to Avalokitesvara the Bodhisattva-Mahasattva who .i the great compassionate one!

Om, to che one who performs a leap beyond all fears!

Having adored him, may I enter into the heart of the blue-necked one known as the noble adorable Avalokitelvara. It means the completing of all meaning, it is pure, it is that which makes­ all beings victorious and cleanses the path of existence.

Thus: Om, the seer, the world-transcending one!.

0 Hari the Mahabodhisattva!. All, all! Defilement, defilement!, The earth, the earth! It is the heart! Do, do the work! Hold fast, hold fast! 0 great victor! Hold on, hold on! I hold on! To Indra the creator! Move, move, my defilement-free seal! Come, come! Hear, hear!

A joy springs up in me! Speak, speak!.Pirecting!

Hulu, hulu, mala, hulu, hulu, bile! Sara, sara! siri, siri! suru, suru! Je awakened, be awakened! Have awakened, have awakened! 0 merciful one, blue-necked one:

Of da ing ones, to the joyous, hail! To the successful one, hail! To the great successful one, hail! To the one who has attained mastery in the discipline hail! To the blue-necked one, hail!·

To the boar-faced one, hail!

To the one with a lion's head and face, hail! To the one who holds a weapon in his hand, hail! To the one who holds a wheel in his hand, hail! To the one who holds a lotus in his hand, hail! To the blue-necked far-causing one, hail! To the beneficient one referred to in this DharanI beginning with "namah", hail! . duration to the triple Treasure! Adoration to Avalokite,vara!

Hail!

May these [prayers] be successful! To this magical formula, hail!

Suzuki has used the Sanskrit text in Siddham script given

alongside the Chinese transcription, as the basis for his translation. The Sanskrit is corrupt beyond recognition in certain cases: dhava namo na.mkidhi her-ima. Suzuki has taken 'O Hari' from another version. Stn'WZ sai-va 'all, all', is in fact smrpa saipa 'descend descend'• Mala mala translated by Suzuki as 'defilement, defilement' should be smara 81l'laN 'bear in mind, bear in mind'• Dhiri:,:zi-mya is rendered as 'I hold on. To Indra the creator'. Its correct Sanskrit is dhZa-ini-?,aja 'O Lore of the dhar>a?Ji (namely, Nilakai]- ha Lokesva1:a)'. Vafa-Vafam prosaya is done into English as 'Speak! speak! Directing'. Its Sanskrit reconstruction is vifam vifam p'ND'J,ljsaya 'destroy every poison (of the senses)'. Ohafi1}ina. pafamana svaha is interpreted as.'of daring one, to the joyous,- hail' Its correct text would be [ dehi me] dcwsanain/pr-ahaPamarjaya 11vaha ppear [unto me]. To the over­:looking Lord, hail'. Suzuki has missed not only tfie woras of the abaranI; but also its structure. The dnarani can be divided into five parts:

1. initial salutation,

2. name of the Avalokitesvara,

3. slok enunciating merits of the hfdaya­ dhara I,

4. dharaoI commencing with the classical phrase tadyatha,

5. final salutation.

It escaped the attention of Suzuki that the third part is a ;loka.

Transcription 1: Siddham script of Chinese Tripitaka

The text as written in Siddham script in the Chinese Tripitaka {T. 1113b, 20.498-501) is transcribed below:

Name Ratna-trayaya

1. Name arya avalokitesvaraya, bodhisatvaya mahasatvaya mahakarunikaya.

2. Om sarva-rabhya-sudhana dasya I).amosk:rta imo aryavaruki-tesivaram dhava name narakidhi.

3. Heri'ma vadhasamel sarva ath-adu subha•m /ajeyam sarva bhutanama va-gama-vadudu2//

4. Tadyatha /

Om/ Avaloka3 lokatekarate/ ehya mahabodhisatva sarva

sarva/ mala mala mama hrdayam/ kuru kuru karma/ dhuru dhuru vajayate maha aJayate/ dhara dhara dhirini-raya cala-bala mama vamara-muktele, ehe-ehe/

cinda cinda/ ariam pracali/ va a-va am7 prasaya/ huru huru mara huru_

huru/ sara sara siri siri suru suru/ bodhiya bodhiya bodhaya bodhaya/ maitriya Narakindi dha i ina pa amana

svaha/ siddhaya svaha/ mahasiddhaya svaha/ siddhayo

gesvakaraya svaha/ Narakindi svaha/

Maranara sva- ha- / sirasam• ha-10mukh-aya sv-ah-a/

pamahasiddhaya11 svaha/ cakrasiddhay1a2 svaha/ padma-

kastaya svaha/ Narakindi vagaraya svaha/ mabari sankaya svaha.

5. Namo raratna ·trayaya/ Namo arya avarokitesvaraya buo.h.svaha//

The above text can be corrected by a comparison with the version of Chih-t'ung {worked A.O. 627-649); which we find in the Ming edition of the Chinese Tripitaka. All the•Sanskrit texts occurring in the Ming Tripitaka . were collected together by Rol-pat-i-rdo-rje and his assistants in 8+2 volumes of -f:he quadrilingual collection of dhara:tiis which bears the Chinese title: .lu chih man 1um m3ng-ku hsi - fan ho-pi ta-tsang ch'uan chou (edited by the author in 22 volumes under the title Sanskrit Texts fr-om the Imper-i.aZ Palace ac Peking., abbreviated to STP). The prime.objective of the redactors of the quadrilingual dhara I­ collection was to restore the Sanskrit text to its appropriate accuracy with the help of Tibetan texts. It proved to be a remarkable effort at textual reconstruction undertaken as early as the first half of the 18th century-

Transcription 2: Reconstructed Sanskrit Text

Here below is the reconstituted Sanskrit text with variant readings from STP. 5.1290-6.1304 which have been used for remendations:

Namo Ratna-trayaya Nama arya avalokitesvaraya bodhisattvaya mahasattvaya mahakarunikaya/ Orn/ sarva-bhaya- odhanaya tasya namaskftVa imu ltryava­ avalokitesvara tava name Nilakantha/ hrdayam vartayi yami1 sarvar a-sadhanam subham/ ajeyam sarva-bhutanam phava-marga-visodhak2a/m/ Tadyatha/ Om/ A- loka- dhipati 3 loka- tikra- nta/ e"hy-[ehi] maha-bodhisattva

sarpa-sarpa/ smara/smara hrdayam/ kuru-kuru karma/dhuru-dhuru vijayate mahavijayate/ dhar -dhara dharini­ raja5/ cala-cala mama vimala-murtte6, ehi-ehi/ chind - chinda/ .arsa pracali/ vi.sam-vi.sam7 pra.na aya/ hulu-hulu smara hulu-hulu/ ifara-sara siri-siri suru-suru/ bodhiya­ bodhiya bodhaya-bodhaya/ maitriya Nilakantha [dehi me] darsanam Prahariyamil}iya svaha/ siddhiya svihi/ mahisiddhiya svihi/ siddhayogi,variya svihi/ Nilakanthiya svaha/ var-aha-mukha-ya9 sva nara.simha-mukha-yal sv-aha-/ gada-hastaya svaha/ cakra-hastaya hastaya svaha/ svaha/ padma­

Nilakantha-pandaraya Namo ratna-trayaya/ svaha/ Mahatali-Sa karaya svaha, Narna arya avalokite varaya bodhisattvaya svaha/ ,

Notes to both Transcriptions

1. STP. hridayam vartayisami.

2. STP. has the correct text. du.du occurs elsewhere too as an expletive to slur over lacunae when words were forgotten.

3. STP. A.Zoka-adhipati: this reminds us a Buddhabhadra

(A.D. 420) who renders Potalaka the mountain of Avalokitesvara as Kuang-ming "Brilliance". The Avalokitesvara of Potalaka was Alok Adhipati or the Lord o Effulgence, and this phrase points to the fact that Nilakantha Lokesvara and the Avalokitesvara of Potala are identical

4. STP. 1294 line 1 smrara hridayan.

5. STP. 12 95 1 ine 2 d:harenad!'isfvara.

6. STP. 1295 line 3 vimaZarmirte.

7. STP. 1298 line 1 dve.sa-vis.a-vinasanam ' moha-vi.sa-viniisanam.

8. STP. 1300 line 2 dado.hi me darsana-k'ronasa darsanam/ praharayamana svaha 9. STP 1300 line 4 pamhamukhaya. 10. STP. 1301 line 1 narasihamukh Jya. 11. STP. 1301 line 2 vajrahastaya. In the Siddham of the Chinese text it is pama which can equally well be gada. The dhara9I refers to Varaha and Narasimha, the two incarnations of Vis..nu. The attr butes that follow should also pertain to Vi!}9u: mace ad.a)., discus

' &akMJ. lotus t,atinaJ and .. condh , . tn this iight pama has to be emended to ' gaaa and not tc, fkl3N. 12. STP. 1302 lines 3-4 a . :Jikha.-labda­ ni.bodht:maya sv;,,;. The samkha 'conch! . ·la lllissing in our text.

13-.

Hsuan-tsang says that Avalokitesvara: at P.o't.a!laka sdne times appears as a yogin smeared with ashes. The word pandm-aya is an allusion to this attribute

Translation of Reconstructed Sanskrit Text ,,,, i Adoration the Triple Gem

1. Adoration the noble Avalokitesvara, bodhisattva, mahasattva, th Great Compassionate One.

2. Om. Having paid adoration to O1:1e who:Dispels all Fears ·· o noble .Ava.pkiteshvara·, to You adora:tion, o NItakantha

3. I shall enunciate the 'heart! dtiara.nlwhiehensu. res all purposes, is. pure and.. invincible for all beings, 'and which purifies the path> of existence . 4. Thus: om. Lord of ffulgence;. the World-Transcending One Come, come, great bodhisattva, descend, deseend. Bear in mind my heart c.ihara.nl. Do do the work. Hold f. aat,· oh_Victor, oh Great Victor. Hold on, hold: ·on, oh Lord of the Dharal)I. Move, move oh my itnma'Ctilate•image, come come. Destroy every poison·: Quick, bear in mind, quick, quick.. Descend, descend, descend descend, descend descend. Being enlightened, being enlightened enlighten me, enlighten me. Oh merciful Nilakantha appear unto me. To You who eyes us, hail. To the Great Siddha hail. To the Great Siddha in Yoga hail. To Nilakal}- ha hail. To·. the Boar-faced One hail. To One with the Face of. Narasimha ,. hail.· To One who bears the mace in His harid, hail.' T0 the Holder of cakra in His hand:, hail. To One who Sports- a Lotus in His· hand, hail. To Nilak.an.t.ha smeared [with ashes], hail. To the mighty Sankara hail.

5. Adoration to the Triple Gem. Adoration to the nobie Avalokitesvara bodhisattva, hail.

III CHIH-T'UNG'S VERSION

Now we shall take Up Rol-pa!1i-rdo-·rje's reconstruction (STP. 5.1290-6.1304) of.. , the Nilakantha a as transcribed by Chih tung during A.D. 627-649 (Nj. 318, T. 1057b}. This version is different and, longer than that of Amoghavajra. The words ehi hare Oiare is the vocqtive of Hari) and ehi hara are of crucial importance, as they are certain indications that the Potala image was a·syncretic icon of Hari (Vi u) and Hara

(Siva)• Hari hara Lokesvara is one. of the 108 forms of Avalokitesvara in the Macchandar Vahal at Kathmandu in Nepal (Bhattacharyya 1958:429 no. 84). The following characteristics allude to Har1: padma-hasta, VaJra-hasta, cakrayudha.dha.ra, sankha­ sabdanir>ghosana. These are the attributes held in the four hands of Vihsnu, except vajra which replaces gadli. He· has the faces of two incarnations of Vi :tiu: Var>aha-mukha, MahaVar>aha-mukha, Namsimha- mukha, Maha.Narasimha-mukha. He has the prowess of Narayarayana­ bala-iupaJ. He is Hara-Hari (Ham-hare, vocative) and ,Mahapadma-nabha which is an epithet of Vi l)U and also one of his 24 aspects fcatul'Vinisati-muti, Liebert 1976:204). He is standing on a lotus padma-sthita). The very title of,,the dharani refers·to Nilakantha, which is an epithet of Siva. He is invoked as Hara (ehi ff_aro). His diadem is his black matted locks ( kr>lJM- a -muku ). He is the Immutable Lord (niscaresvara = Sthan.u or Stha.nvl:vam, an epithet of Siva) wears black erpent as the sacred thread fkr1!1J<l-Bazrpa-1q>ta-yajnopavita). _ He is the Destroyer of the three cities ( Tripura Dahanam, an epithet of the violent manifestation of Siva, ·He· holds the dreadful poison. fvi(}adha.ra)

that he.swa1low d .on .its emergence from the churning of the ocean of milk that threatened the world with destruction fnaha-halahaia.:..vi(JaJ and in consequence destroys the sinister poisons of passion ga), envy avel!aJ, and delusion (moha). The mahappahasya of the dharal},i refers to the­ fury of His laughter, which is unique to Him. Siddha-yogiswara is again an epithet of Shiva.

The full text of Ghih-t\' ung reads:

IV CONCLUSIONS

1. Nilakantha Lokesvara arid Potalaka Avalokitesvara are both an epiphany of Hari-Hara. In all probability the two are identical.

2. The epithet Atokatikranta 'He who transcends Effulgence' supports the hypothesis that Nilakantha is the Loke,vara dt Potalaka. .Potalaka is rendered into Chinese by Buddhabhadra, as "Brilliance" (atoka).

3. Nilaka.n.tha Lokeivara has the attributes of Siva nd. at the end of the dharani he is lauded as one who holds the four implements carried by Vi u in his four hands: ankh.a, chakra, gada and padma. It reminds one of the syncretism of Hari­ Hara images.

4. The Dalai Lamas, the Rulers of Tibet, a e reincarnations of the Avalokitesvara who resides on the Potala. The palace of the Dalai Lamas at Lhasa is in fact designated Potala. The aspect of Avalokiteshvara as the Sovereign Head of State, stems.from Vishnu. A King on earth is an incarnation of Vi.s.nu.

S. The image at Potalaka symbolised thP- syncretism of Siva and vi, u, and in its later development when Buddhism became dominant it became Avalokite vara·. An important fact for the convergence of saivism, Vai 1:avism and Buddhism. A spot once sanctified remained sacrosanct, while externars underwent change.

6. The text of the dharani in Chih-t'ung's version is longer and has crucial·details: k.J: r;a-sarpa-laita-yajnopav?{a.ya svaha /vama-kandha-deha-sthita-7<.rffia.iinaya sitaha / ( STP. 6. 130 2-3) •

So also other versions preserve variations of consequence. A detailed study of all the Chinese translations of the along with their descriptive text in Chinese giving directions for its use, is essential to trace the impregnation of Buddhism by aiva/Vai oava elements and the emergence of syncretic trends in the Tantras. The dates of the Chinese translations can help to define the chronology of philosophical development in India.

7. Nilakandi in Amoghavajra version is an Uigur form, which he must have employed by force of habit. This tiny but subtle and crucial nuance is decisive in confirming the view that he hailea from Samarkand.

LITERATURE CITED

Beal 1884 Samuel Beal, Si-yu-ki, Buddhist Records of the Jestem fl>P'td, transl. from the Chinese of Hiuen-Tsi ng {A.O. 629), London (Trubner.& Co.). Bhattacharyya 1958 Benoytosh Bhattacharyya,The Indian Buddhist Iconography calcutta {Firma K.L. Mukhopadhyay). Burrow, Emeneau 1961 T. Burrow and M.B. Emeneau, A Dravidian Etymological Dictionary, Oxford (Clarendon Press).

Giles 1957 Lionel Giles, Descriptive Catalogue of the Chinese Manus<Jnpts from Tunhuang in the British Museum, London{The Trustees of_ the British Museum}. Kittel 1894

F. Kittel, .4 Kannada-English Dictionary, Mangalore (Basel Mission Book & Tract Depository). Liebert 1976

Gosta Liebert, Iconographia Dictionary of t'fw Indian Religious, Hinduism - Buddhism - Jainism, Leiden {E.J. Brill). Lokesh Chandra 1977

Lokesh Chandra, Sanskrit texts transcribed in the Chinese Tripitaka, VishvP.sharan and Indological Journal 15 (1977): 249-264, Hoshiarpur.

Lokesh Chandra, Sanskrit Texts from the Imperial Palace at Peking, Parts 1-22, New Delhi 1968--1977 (International Academy of Indian Culture). Suzuki 1950

D.T. Suzuki, Manual of Zen Buddhism, London (Rider). Watters 1905 Thomas Watters, On Yuan Chwang 's Travels ir. Inp,ia, edited afte1: his death, by T.W. Rhys Davids and S.w: Bushell, London (Royal Asiatic Society).

APPENDIX

AMOGHAVAJRA TRANSLITERATION, from the Taisho edition of the Chinese Tripi aka (it excludes the Chinese text). AMOGHAVAJRA!\.1 S TR.(NS LITERATI ON from the Taisho edition of the Chinese Tripitaka