Chapter 5a - Author colophon

[Full title: Author colophon (Chandra 969; Chengdu 1271; Roerich 1091).]

Resting on the golden foundation (gser gyi sa gzhi) of the blessing of the Great Merciful One (Avalokiteśvara),

Surrounded by majestic snow mountains,

Where eternal streams of monks flow from the Anavatapta (ma dros pa) Lake of Morality,

Which had removed the heat of defilement and is filled with jewels of preaching and meditation,

Where the Mount Aśvamukha^[1] of scholars is sounding the mighty blast of the Doctrine,

Where lies the source of all goodness,

This Land of Snows (Tibet), similar to a great ocean, deserves to be praised by scholars.

The story of the Immaculate Precious Doctrine of the Jina, handed down from Holy Men to Holy Men,

I have thread on a string of letters, in order that they may be seen by people endowed with the eye of Wisdom.

By virtue of this, may all living beings drink the nectar of the Doctrine of the Jina!

May the eternal deeds of the Jewel of the All-Knowing, the Treasury of all Merits, enter into them!

As an image of the Buddha, even if made of stone, wood or clay, ought to be an object of devotion,

Even so, the Doctrine, which had become a mere shadow, because of the Iron Age, ought to be worshipped by all living beings.^[2]

May this cause the Precious Doctrine of the Jina to spread by every means, in all directions, and may it live long!

This History of the spread of the Doctrine and that of the preachers in Tibet was compiled by the monk gzhon nu dpal, the preacher, in the year Earth Male Dog (sa pho khyi 1478 A.D.), the 850th year since the birth of the religious king srong btsan sgam po^[3] in the (monastery) of chos rdzong, the Abode of Happiness, where natural amṛta flows near to the grove of dpal kun tu bzang op.^[4]

Salutation to the Three Jewels!
Of those things which spring from a cause
the cause has been told by the Tathāgata;
And their suppression likewise
the great śramaṇa has revealed.

(Ye dharmā hetuprabhavā hetun teṣān Tathāgato hy avadat/
teṣāñca yo nirodho evaṃvādī mahāśramaṇaḥ//
Śubhaṃ astu sarvajagataṃ)

May the Whole World be happy! Oṃ svasti.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

n. of an iron range (R).

[2]:

this verse is evidently a paraphrase of the well-known second verse of Nagarjuna’s Suhrllekha:' "As an image of the Sugata, even if only made of wood, is honoured by the wise, so also my poem, even if humble, is worthy to be listened to, based on the exposition of the Good Law" Tg. phrin yig, No. 4182;translated by H. Wenzel in the JPTS, 1886, pp. 2-32 (R).

[3]:

here again 'gos lo tsa ba considers the year 629 A.D. to be the year of srong btsan sgam po’s birth (R).

[4]:

Samantabhadra (R).