The perimeter beings of the Kālacakra maṇḍala
The Kālacakra Tantra commentary, the Vimalaprabhā, tells us little about the perimeter beings of the maṇḍala. There are said to be 35,000,000 of them arranged around the palace, above the perimeter of wind. Abhayākaragupta gives some details in his Niṣpannayogāvalī, the companion text to the Vajrāvalī, naming a few of them:
The planets (such as Venus, depicted in the image right).
Dhruva – the Pole Star. A king who defeated in battle large numbers of yakṣas; blessed by Kubera and elevated to a place higher than all the planets.
Agastya (ri byi) – the star Canopus, named after a ṛiṣi of the same name (The Tibetan ri byi is a transliteration of the Sanskrit word ṛiṣi). He had crossed the Vindhya mountains and seen the star for the first time, around six to seven thousand years ago. The heliacal rising of Canopus is said to indicate the end of the rainy season in northern India and the purification of water supplies. A thousand years ago, the heliacal rising would have occured around 28 August. For seven days from the heliacal rising, water is said to possess eight special qualities: it is cool, sweet, light, soft, clear, pure, and neither upsets the stomach nor irritates the throat. Varāhamihira says of the star that it "looks like the special red tilaka-mark on the forehead of the lady-like southern direction [and] shines forth and delights the minds of men" (Pañcasiddhāntikā).
The 28 lunar mansions – the division of the ecliptic into 27 or 28 parts, similar to:
The 12 signs of the zodiac – the familar signs of the zodiac, Aries, etc.
The 16 lunar phases – the sixteen phases from new Moon up to full Moon. See also the Fifteen Nityas. The worldy protectors of the 10 [[directions] – the list as given in the third chapter of the Vimalaprabhā is: Brahma (tshangs pa), Viṣṇu (khyab 'jug), Nairṛiti (bden bral), Vāyu (rlung lha), Yama (gshin rje), Agni (me lha), Samudra (rgya mtsho), Śaṅkara (bde byed), Indra (dbang po) and Yakṣa (gnod sbyin).
Nandi (dga) – the bull that is the mount, companion and guardian of Śiva. Also considered to be a sage and teacher in his own right.
Mahākāla (nag po chen po) – the black protector.
Ghaṇṭākarṇa (dril bu'i rna ba can) – "bell-ears", a terrible rākṣasa created by Śiva. He was at first an enemy of Viṣṇu and wore bells on his ears so that he would not even hear Viṣṇu's name. Eventually achieved salvation through performing austerities (tapas, dka' thub) and became a devotee of Viṣṇu.
Hāriti ('phrog ma) – there are many variations on the story of Hāriti. According to the main Buddhist legend, she lived at the time of the Buddha with her 500 children. However, in order to feed her children, she would steal the children of others as food. Distraught parents seek the Buddha's help, and he has one of Hāriti's children kidnapped. In a terrible state at the loss of her child, she turns to the Buddha for help. He returns her child, explaining to her the suffering she has caused to others. She repents, converts to Buddhism and became the protectoress of children. She is also sometimes associated with protection from smallpox.
Bhṛiṅg (nyam chung) – a devotee of Śiva. who was cursed by Śiva's consort, Pārvatī, after he upset her. As a result, his legs became too weak to support him. In order to help him, Śiva gave him a third leg and he came to be known as the Mahāṛiṣi with three legs.
Large numbers of:
- field protectors (zhing skyong, kṣetrapāla) – originally protectors of agricultural fields, but later of land in general.
- messengers (pho nya, dūtī) – more than just messengers, also servants and functionaries of the gods.
- and siddhas (grub pa) – human practitioners.
In the Jonang tradition, these are considered to be so numerous that they are not usually represented in the maṇḍala in any specified form. However, they can be represented, and if this is done, they are placed in the outer half of the perimeter of wind – the inner half is taken up by the charnel grounds. Out of the total of 35 million beings, one would place as many as appropriate, choosing them from the normal lists, such as given below, and giving them various forms, colours and hand-emblems.
However, there are two traditions in which a specific number of these beings are represented, with, in the usual case, three of them representing a collection of beings.
Gelug and Sakya traditions
The main tradition of this is used in the Gelug and Sakya schools, and originally comes from Buton, given in his work dpal dus kyi 'khor lo'i phyi'i khor yug gi lha 'god tshul. This includes eighty-eight deities represented around the border between the fire and wind perimeters, eleven between each of the wheels of the pracaṇḍā goddesses. These are normally represented by their seeds, although many maṇḍalas in which these deities are depicted also show their forms. When the seeds are drawn, this is nearly always done in old Rañjana (decorative/ornamental) script, as in the images given below. (These are taken from a maṇḍala painted under the direction of Ven. Jhado Rinpoche. Image courtesy of Ricky Swaczy, Northern Shambhala, Italy)
The following list is based on the original work by Buton, the Kālacakra sādhana by Kalzang Gyatso, the 7th Dalai Lama (bcom ldan 'das dpal dus kyi 'khor lo'i sku gsung thugs yongs su rdzogs pa'i dkyil 'khor gyi sgrub thabs mkhas grub zhal lung), a text on the arrangement of deities in the maṇḍala by Thubten Gyatso, the 13th Dalai Lama (bcom ldan 'das dang po'i sangs rgyas dpal dus kyi 'khor lo'i sku gsung thugs yongs su rdzogs pa'i rdul tshon gyi dkyil 'khor 'dri skabs lha tshogs rnams 'god tshul gsal bar bkod pa 'khri shing yongs 'du'i dga, and also a Sakya text by Jamyang Loter Wangpo (dpal dus kyi 'khor lo'i dkyil 'khor gyi cho ga spangs rtogs kyi yon tan kun nas 'byung ba). There are many minor variations between these texts (and painted maṇḍalas), and the majority of the seeds are intended to be the initial letters of the Sanskrit names of the deities concerned (although nearly all of the names are only given in Tibetan). Most of the inconsistencies in these texts in this respect have been resolved, although a couple still remain. In this list, and the one further down used in the Karma-Kagyu tradition, question marks indicate lingering uncertainties. The lunar mansions are indicated by LM. The list starts from the east, and continues clockwise:
Between east and south-east:
1. | iṃ | yellow | Indra (dbang po) |
2. | caṃ | black | Candra, Moon (zla ba) |
3. | reṃ | light yellow | Revatī (LM) (nam gru) |
4. | uṃ | yellow | Uttarabhādrapāda (LM) (khrums smad) |
5. | mīṃ | red | Mīna, Pisces (nya) |
6. | sūṃ | black | Sūrya, Sun (nyi ma) |
7. | aṃ | red | Agni (me lha) |
8. | dūṃ | green | Dūtī (pho nya mo) |
9. | pūṃ | green | Pūrvabhādrapāda (LM)| (khrums stod) |
10. | śaṃ | yellow | Śatabhṛiṣā (LM) (mon gru) |
11. | kuṃ | black | Kumbha, Aquarius (bum pa) |
Between south-east and south:
1. | aṃ | green | Sixth lunar day (tshes drug) |
2. | e | black | Seventh lunar day (tshes bdun) |
3. | ar | red | Eighth lunar day (tshes brgyad) |
4. | o | white | Ninth lunar day (tshes dgu) |
5. | al | yellow | Tenth lunar day (tshes bcu) |
6. | dhaṃ | black ? | Dhaniṣṭhā (LM) (mon gre) |
7. | aṃ | light blue | Abhijit (LM) (byi bzhin) |
8. | śraṃ | light yellow | Śravaṇa (LM) (gro bzhin) |
9. | maṃ | green | Makara, Capricorn (chu srin) |
10. | kṣeṃ | green | Kṣetrapāla (zhing skyong) |
11. | aṃ | blue | Agastya, Canopus (ri byi) |
Between south and south-west:
1. | yaṃ | red | Yama (gshin rje) |
2. | buṃ | red | Budha, Mercury (lhag pa) |
3. | uṃ | white | Uttarāṣāḍhā (LM) (chu smad) |
4. | pūṃ | black | Pūrvāṣāḍhā (LM) (chu stod) |
5. | mūṃ | yellow | Mūla (LM) (snrubs) |
6. | dham | green | Dhanu, Sagittarius (gzhu) |
7. | hāṃ | yellow | Hārītī ('phrog ma) |
8. | maṃ | red | Maṅgala, Mars (mig dmar) |
9. | naiṃ | black | Nairṛiti (bden bral) |
10. | jyeṃ | yellow | Jyeṣṭha (LM) (snron) |
11. | bṛiṃ | black | Bṛiścaka, Scorpio (sdig pa) |
Between south-west and west:
1. | aṃ | green | Anurādhā (LM) (lha mtshams) |
2. | aṃ | blue | Sixteenth phase (cha bcu drug pa) |
3. | naṃ | black | Nandi, Nandikeśvara (dgaa (nag po chen po) |
5. | ghaṃ | black | Ghaṇṭākarṇa (dril bu'i rna ba can) |
6. | bhṛiṃ | black | Bhṛiṅgi (bhriṃ gi ṇe) |
7. | biṃ | black | Viśākhā (LM) (sa ga) |
8. | śvāṃ | yellow | Svātī (LM) (sa ri) |
9. | tuṃ | red | Tulā, Libra (srang) |
10. | piṃ | blue | Viṣṇu (khyab 'jug) |
11. | kāṃ | blue | Kālāgni (dus me) |
Between west and north-west:
1. | vaṃ | white | Varuṇa]] (chu lha) |
2. | keṃ | yellow | Ketu, comet (du ba mjug ring) |
3. | siṃ | black | Siddha (grub pa) |
4. | ciṃ | green | Citrā (LM) (nag pa) |
5. | haṃ | white | Hastā (LM) (me bzhi) |
6. | uṃ | green | Uttaraphalgunī (LM) (dbo) |
7. | kaṃ | white | Kanyā, Virgo (bu mo) |
8. | vāṃ | black | Vāyu (rlung lha) |
9. | śaṃ | yellow | Śani, Saturn (spen pa) |
10. | pūṃ | yellow-green | Pūrvaphalgunī (LM) (bre) |
11. | siṃ | golden-yellow | Siṃha, Leo (seng ge) |
Between north-west and north:
1. | maṃ | yellow | Maghā (LM) (mchu) |
2. | ha | green | Eleventh lunar day (tshes bcu gcig) |
3. | ya | black | Twelfth lunar day (tshes bcu gnyis) |
4. | ra | red | Thirteenth lunar day (tshes bcu gsum) |
5. | va | white | Fourteenth lunar day (tshes bcu bzhi) |
6. | la | yellow | Fifteenth lunar day (tshes bco lnga) |
7. | dhruṃ | green | Dhruva, Pole star (brtan pa) |
8. | aṃ | white | #REDIRECTAśleṣā (LM) (skag) |
9. | puṃ | light blue | Puṣya (LM) (rgyal) |
10. | kaṃ | blue | Karkaṭa, Cancer (karka ṭa) |
11. | yaṃ | yellow | Yakṣa (gnod sbyin) |
Between north and north-east:
1. | śuṃ | white | Śukra, Venus (pa sangs) |
2. | puṃ | yellow | Punarvasu (LM) (nabs so) |
3. | āṃ | yellow | Ārdrā (LM) (lag) |
4. | miṃ | blue | Mithuna, Gemini ('khrig pa) |
5. | bṛiṃ | white | Bṛihaspati, Jupiter (phur pa) |
6. | iṃ | white | Rudra (drag po) |
7. | mṛiṃ | black | Mṛigaśiras (LM) (mgo) |
8. | roṃ | light red | Rohiṇī (LM) (snar ma) |
9. | bṛiṃ | yellow | Vṛiṣa, Taurus (glang) |
10. | bhūṃ | green | Bhūta ('byung po pho) |
11. | bhūṃ | green | Bhūtā ('byung po mo) |
Between north-east and east:
1. | a | green | First lunar day (tshes gcig) |
2. | i | black | Second lunar day (tshes gnyis) |
3. | ṛi | red | Third lunar day (tshes gsum) |
4. | u | white | Fourth lunar day (tshes bzhi) |
5. | ḷi | yellow | Fifth lunar day (tshes lnga) |
6. | kṛiṃ | light blue | Kṛittikā (LM) (smin drug) |
7. | bhaṃ | green, yellow-green? | Bharaṇī (LM) (bra nye) |
8. | aṃ | white | Aśvinī (LM) (tha skar) |
9. | meṃ | white | Meṣa, Aries (lug) |
10. | rāṃ | green | Rāhu (sgra gcan) |
11. | braṃ | green | Brahma (tshangs pa) |
Buton explains much of his reasoning behind this arrangement. The planets are arranged in directions similar to those in which they are located in the Kālacakra protective sphere meditation. (They also closely match the positions they are given in the Vajrāvalī.) The signs of the zodiac and the lunar mansions are placed around the perimeter in positions relative to their positions around the ecliptic, with the beginning of the ecliptic positioned in the east. This means that the first sign from the east in an anti-clockwise direction is Aries, the next Taurus, and so on. The lunar mansions are arranged similarly.
He places the sixteen lunar phases in groups according to their classifications: the first group of five associated with tamas are placed towards the east, the second group associated with rajas in the south, and the third group associated with sattva in the north. The sixteenth is in the west. He states that he has placed the phases associated with the elements of space and awareness in positions that are compatible with the positions of similarly classified deities in the mind palacae. However, his comments do not quite match the actual placing of those deities, and there seems to be at least one mistake in the current version of this little text. He also mentions that deities such as Viṣṇu are placed in positions similar to those they occupy in the body palace.
Karma Kagyu tradition
The placing of the deities in the other main tradition is not explained in this way. This tradition is the one coming from the translator Tsami, passing through the Karma Kagyu school. In this method, instead of 88 deities around the perimeter, there are 112, 14 between each of the wheels of pracaṇḍā goddesses in the charnel grounds.
A somewhat similar logic has been applied to the placing of these deities as with Buton's method. The planets are certainly arranged similarly, but the zodiac signs and lunar mansions are placed more according to their categorization as deities, and placed in the appropriate directions.
Between east and south-east:
1: | kṣeṃ | black | Kṣetrapāla, Land-protector (zhing skyong) |
2: | puṃ | yellow | Punarvasu (LM) (nabs so) |
3: | khaṃ | black | khadga, sword realization, (ral gri grub pa) |
4: | bṛiṃ | black | Bṛiścaka, Scorpio (sdig pa'i khyim) |
5: | e | black | Seventh lunar day (tshes bdun) |
6: | uṃ | green | Uttaraphalgunī (LM) (dbo) |
7: | haṃ | white | Hastā (LM) (me bzhi) |
8: | sūṃ | black | Sūrya, Sun (nyi ma) |
9: | saṃ | black | Vāyukṛitsna, Totality of wind (zad par rlung) |
10: | ciṃ | green | Citrā (LM) (nag pa) |
11: | ya | black | Twelfth lunar day (tshes bcu gnyis) |
12: | śvāṃ | orange | Svātī (LM) (sa ri) |
13: | aṃ | black | realization of inexhaustible treasure (gter grub pa) |
14: | bāṃ | black | Vāyu (rlung lha) |
Between south-east and south:
1: | kṣeṃ | black | Kṣetrapāla, Land-protector (zhing skyong) |
2: | naṃ | black | Nandi (dgaa (nag po chen po) |
4: | a | green | Sixth lunar day (tshes drug) |
5: | dhaṃ | green | Dhanu, Sagitarrius (gzhu khyim) |
6: | dhruṃ | green | Dhruva, Polaris, Pole star (brtan pa) |
7: | rāṃ | green | Rāhu (sgra gcan) |
8: | ṛi | red | Third lunar day (tshes gsum) |
9: | kṛiṃ | blue | Kṛittikā (LM) (smin drug) |
10: | puṃ | blue | Puṣya (LM) (rgyal) |
11: | mīṃ | red | Mīna, Pisces (nya) |
12: | saṃ | red | Tejaḥkṛitsna, Totality of fire (zad par me) |
13: | yaṃ | red | Yama (gshin rje) |
14: | buṃ | red | Budha, Mercury (lhag pa) |
Between south and south-west:
1: | kṣeṃ | red | Kṣetrapāla, Land-protector (zhing skyong) |
2: | maṃ | yellow | Maghā (LM) (mchu) |
3: | pāṃ | red | Pādukā, running realization (rkang mgyogs) |
4: | tuṃ | red | Tulā, Libra (srang khyim) |
5: | ar | red | Eighth lunar day (tshes brgyad) |
6: | pūṃ | yellow-green | Pūrvaphalgunī (LM) (bre, gre) |
7: | biṃ | black | Viśākhā (LM) (sa ga) |
8: | maṃ | red | Maṅgala, Mars (mig dmar) |
9: | saṃ | red | Tejaḥkṛitsna, Totality of fire (zad par me) |
10: | pūṃ | green | Pūrvabhādrapāda (LM) (khrums stod) |
11: | ra | red | Thirteenth lunar day (tshes bcu gsum) |
12: | bhaṃ | green | Bharaṇī (LM) (bra nye) |
13: | roṃ | red | Rocana, invisibility realization ? |
14: | aṃ | red | Agni (me lha) |
Between south-west and west:
1: | kṣeṃ | red | Kṣetrapāla, Land-protector (zhing skyong) |
2: | ghaṃ | black | Ghaṇṭākarṇa (dril bu'i rna ba can) |
3: | ḍāṃ | green | Ḍākinī (mkha' 'gro) |
4: | ha | green | Eleventh lunar day (tshes bcu gcig) |
5: | kaṃ | blue | Karkaṭa, Cancer (karkaṭa) |
6: | biṃ | blue | Viṣṇu (khyab 'jug) |
7: | saṃ | blue | Śūnyakṛitsna, Totality of emptiness (zad par stong pa) |
8: | ḷi | yellow | Fifth lunar day (tshes lnga) |
9: | āṃ | yellow | Ārdrā (LM) (lag) |
10: | aṃ | white | Aśleṣā (LM) (skag) |
11: | bṛiṃ | yellow | Vṛiṣa, Taurus (glang khyim) |
12: | saṃ | yellow | Pṛithvīkṛitsna, Totality of earth (zad par sa) |
13: | iṃ | yellow | Indra (dbang po) |
14: | keṃ | yellow | Ketu, comet (du ba mjug rings) |
Between west and north-west:
1: | kṣeṃ | yellow Kṣetrapāla, Land-protector (zhing skyong) |
2: | mūṃ | yellow Mūla (LM) (snrubs) |
3: | aṃ | yellow Eye-medicine realization (mig sman) |
4: | siṃ | yellow Siṃha, Leo (seng ge'i khyim) |
5: | al | yellow Tenth lunar day (tshes bcu) |
6: | pūṃ | black Pūrvāṣāḍhā (LM) (chu stod) |
7: | śaṃ | yellow Śatabhṛiṣā (LM) (mon gru) |
8: | śaṃ | yellow Śani, Saturn (spen pa) |
9: | saṃ | yellow Pṛithvīkṛitsna, Totality of Earth (zad par sa) |
10: | uṃ | yellow Uttarabhādrapāda (LM) (khrums smad) |
11: | la | yellow Fifteenth lunar day (tshes bco lnga) |
12: | reṃ | light yellow Revatī (LM) (nam gru) |
13: | guṃ | yellow Pill realization (ril bu grub) |
14: | yaṃ | yellow Yakṣa (gnod sbyin) |
Between north-west and north:
1: | kṣeṃ | yellow | Kṣetrapāla, Land-protector (zhing skyong) |
2: | bhṛiṃ | yellow | Bhṛiṅgi (bhṛiṅgi ṇi) |
3: | hāṃ | yellow | Hārītī ('phrog ma) |
4: | aṃ | blue | Sixteenth phase (tshes bcu drug) |
5: | miṃ | blue | Mithuna, Gemini ('khrig pa) |
6: | aṃ | blue | Agastya, Canopus (ri byi) |
7: | kāṃ | blue | Kālāgni (dus me) |
8: | u | white | Fourth lunar day (tshes bzhi) |
9: | roṃ | red | Rohiṇī (LM) (snar ma) |
10: | aṃ | green | Anurādhā (LM) (lha mtshams) |
11: | meṃ | white | Meṣa, Aries (lug) |
12: | saṃ | white | Toyakṛitsna, Totality of water (zad par chu) |
13: | saṃ | white | Varuṇa]]) (rgya mtsho) |
14: | śuṃ | white | Śukra, Venus (pa sangs) |
Between north and north-east:
1: | kṣeṃ | white | Kṣetrapāla, Land-protector (zhing skyong) |
2: | jyeṃ | yellow | Jyaṣṭha (LM) (snron) |
3: | aṃ | white | Nectar realization ('bras grub) |
4: | kaṃ | white | Kanyā, Virgo (bu mo) |
5: | o | white | Ninth lunar day (tshes dgu) |
6: | uṃ | white | Uttarāṣāḍhā (LM) (chu smad) |
7: | aṃ | blue | Abhijit (LM) (byi bzhin) |
8: | bṛiṃ | white | Bṛihaspati, Jupiter (phur bu) |
9: | saṃ | white | Toyakṛitsna, Totality of water (zad par chu) |
10: | śraṃ | light yellow | Śravaṇa (LM) (gro bzhin) |
11: | va | white | Fourteenth lunar day (tshes bcu bzhi) |
12: | dhaṃ | black | Dhaniṣṭhā (LM) (mon gre) |
13: | raṃ | white | Alchemical realization (bcud len) |
14: | iṃ | white | Rudra (drag po, dbang phyug) |
Between north-east and east:
1: | kṣeṃ | white | Kṣetrapāla, Land-protector (zhing skyong) |
2: | dūṃ | green | Dūta, Messenger (pho nya) (original text: hūṃ ?} |
3: | dūṃ ? | green | Dūtī, Messenger, female (pho nya mo, texts: duṃ, dūṃ) |
4: | a | green | First lunar day (tshes gcig) |
5: | maṃ | green | Makara, Capricorn (chu srin) |
6: | braṃ | green | Brahma (tshangs pa) |
7: | saṃ | green | Śūnyakṛitsna, Totality of emptiness (zad par stong pa) |
8: | i | black | Second lunar day (tshes gnyis) |
9: | aṃ | white | Aśvinī (LM) (tha skar) |
10: | mṛiṃ | black | Mṛigaśiras (LM) (mgo) |
11: | kuṃ | black | Kumbha, Aquarius (bum pa) |
12: | saṃ ? | black | Vāyukṛitsna, Totality of wind (zad par rlung) |
13: | naiṃ | black | Nairṛiti (bden bral) |
14: | caṃ | black | Candra, Moon (zla ba) |
The above list is compiled from just two texts: one, the sādhanā text by the 8th Karmapa, Mikyo Dorje (bcom ldan 'das dpal dus kyi 'khor lo'i sgrub dkyil phan bde kun stsol) and the other on maṇḍala drawing by the 14th Karmapa, Thegchok Dorje (rgyud sde rgya mtsho'i dkyil 'khor gyi thig rtsa dang dri bya tshon gyi dbye ba sogs go bder bkod pa). Unfortunately, both of these give incomplete lists. The first gives seed characters and deity descriptions, but only gives their approximate positioning and leaves out three deities; the second gives a full list with clear positions, but no seeds or colours, and truncates some of the names so that they read the same. For the ten kṛitsna deities of the elements, Mikyo Dorje only lists four pairs, and Thegchok Dorje only identifies the element for one of the ten – all the others are just given as kṛitsna (zad par). Mikyo Dorje also leaves out Ḍākinī. For these reasons there are some assumptions in the above list, notably with the seed and colour of Ḍākinī and the positions of most of the kṛitsna. At the time of writing, no third text that might clarify these assumptions and confirm other details has become available.
E. Henning