Karandavyuha Sutra
by Mithun Howladar | 2018 | 73,554 words
This page relates “Historical Importance of Mantra in Tibet” of the Karandavyuha Sutra (analytical study): an important 4th century Sutra extolling the virtues and powers of Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara. The Karandavyuhasutra also introduces the mantra “Om mani padme hum” into the Buddhist Sutra tradition.
Part 2 - Historical Importance of Mantra in Tibet
Among the historians in Tibet Sum pa mkhan po ye shes dpal ' byor (1704 - 1788 A. D.), the author of Dpag bsam ljon bzang mentions that the
Oṃ Maṇi Padme Hūṃ mantra was accepted by the Tibetans and was advocated by the Tibetan ruler Srong btsan sgam po (died 650 A. D.).[1] The mantra, according to the historian, was the core of Buddhism in Tibet and since then it is said to have brought prosperity to Tibet. The text reads thus.
De' i tshe bka' chems ka khol du rgya gar gyi slob dpon ku
sar dang bram ze shang kar, dang bal po'i slob dpon thil
man dzu dang rgya nag gi hwa shan maha ya na de ba
che ba sogs byon zer te de dag la brten nas thon mi sogs kyis mod
dge bcu dpang skong za ma tog dkon mchog sprin sogs chos
mang po bsgyur ba ni bod du dam chos bsgyur ba'i thog ma 'o ||(Dpag bsam ljon bzang. P. No. 169.1 - 4)
This means—"The Royal will (ka khol ma) of the period mentions that several scholars including Ācārya Kushara, Brahman Śaṇkara, Nepalese Ācārya Shīla-Mañju and Chinese Hwa Shan, a monk of Mahāyāna went to Tibet. In their association Thon mi Sam bhona translated ten sacred texts which contained the Kāraṇḍyavyūya Sūtra (za ma tog bkod pa'i mdo)".[2]
The above Royal will may appear historically to be a statement of exaggeration. But Sum pa mkhan po ye shes dpal ' byor was probably reasonable to insert that writing as a Tibetan historian.
When Buddhism arrived in Tibet, according to Sum pa mkhan po ye shes dpal ' byor, there had been a confederate estate at Yar klungs[3] (presently identified in the north -east of Lhasa on the northern bank of the Gtsang po river, the Tibetan name of Brahmaputra). Gtsang po means 'sacred '.[4] The history of the Yar rlung dynasty is narrated by Harrah in detail. Sum pa mkhan po also narrates about the six early tribes who had been in Tibet. Those were Se, Rmu, Ldong, Stong, Gra, Bru.[5] 18 Moreover, the Indians, the Chinese and the Hor peoples also assembled there. According to a Tibetan legend Gnya' khri btsan po is the first king of Tibet. Gnya' khri btsan po means a powerful one who was carried by shoulders.[6] The legend shows that the primitive idea of kingship was based on the divine theory of the early formation of a consolidated jurisdiction for administration control. The man chosen by the heaven was regarded as a ruler.
The ruler Srong btsan sgam po' s father Gnyam btsan,[7] was the first to be able to control the local tribes and gained pristine jurisdiction in Central Tibet (dbus gtsang). His worthy son expanded[8] his paternal estate and conquered Central Asia in the north of his kingdom, some portion of north -west China in the east and Nepal in the south. According to the then prevalent custom, two princesses of the defeated rulers became queens of Srong btsan sgam po. Those queens requested the king to spread Buddhism in Tibet.[9] In between Gnya 'khri btsan po (c. 5th Century A. D.) and Srong btsan sgam po (c. 7th Century A. D.) a ruler named Lha tho tho ri gnyan btsan (c. 6th Century A. D.) is said to have received some Buddhist texts.
Those three texts were:[10] Za ma tog gi sting po yig drug lung; Spang bkong phyag rgya ma; Mtha' pa'i skon phon. It is also believed that some portions of the Vinaya texts were in his possession but he could not make out the meaning. Srong btsan sgam po is believed to be the incarnation of Avalokiteśvara (spyan ras gziqs) and among his two queens, Chinese princess was called blue Tārā (Sgrl ma sngon po) and Nepali princess was called white Tārā (Sgrol ma dkaro).[11] The king had a dream and was advised to translate the Ārya Kāraṇḍyavyūha in Tibetan as the Bu ston Rin chen grub (1290 - 1364 A. D.) recorded.
The word Oṃ Maṇi Padme Hūṃ is the mantra in propitiation of Avalokiteśvara and is mentioned in the Kāraṇḍyavyūha. It is evident that the introduction of Buddhism with Oṃ Maṇi Padme Hūṃ opened a new horizon in the Tibetan culture. The six -syllabled mantra Oṃ Maṇi Padme Hūṃ is found generally in Tibetan monasteries;like Nyingma (rnying ma) pa,[12] Kagyu (bka ' brgyud) pa,[13] Sakya (sa skya) pa,[14] or Gelu (dge lugs) pa.[15] Many Maṇi -walls,[16] Maṇi -wheels[17] (Mani 'khor lo), are found as soon as one enters an Indo -Tibetan (Bhotia) locality in the Himalayas, such as in Bhutan, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Bhotia -Mahal in Uttar Pradesh, Lahul, Spiti in Himachal Pradesh, Ladakh in Jammu Kashmir and Baltistan (now in Pakistan occupied Kashmir). It makes us more inquisitive about the six -syllabled symbolic mantra.
Footnotes and references:
[1]:
Tibet and its History: Hugh E. Richardson. Shambhala, Boston and London, 1984, 2 nd edition. pp. 28 -42.
[2]:
The life of the Buddha and the early history of his order. (Derived from Tibetan works in the Bkah 'gyur and Bstan 'gyur), Tr. by W. Woodville Rockhill, Asian Education Services, New Delhi, 1992.
[3]:
The yar lung dynasty in Tibet-Harrah (William).
[4]:
Gtsang po: any river, but usually a large one; esp. the great river of Tibet flowing through the heart of Tibet from west to east and called the yeru Tsang po. This river entered Assam as the Dihong where it presently joins the Brahmaputra just below Sadiya. "Rising from the eastern range of Kailas (gngs te se) and receiving the waters of the streams coming from Byang, Nags, Tshangs, it flows eastward past lhar -tse and phun tsho Ling and then being joined by several tributaries such as Skyid chu, Myang chu and others on Chokha yar lung, Kongbu etc., it enters the mountain gorges in a southernly direction" (Dsam). A Tibetan English Dictionary by Rai (Bahadur)Sarat Chandra Das, Book Faith India, Delhi, Reprint, 1995.
[5]:
Deb ther sngon po (The Blue Annals). (Part I and II) George N. Roerich, Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi, Second ed. 1976.
[6]:
The yar lung dynasty in Tibet -Harrah. William. Gos lo tsa ba Gzon nu dpal (1392 - 1481 A. D.) refers to the first king who was khri btsan po ' od lde.
[7]:
A comparative chronology of the Btsn rulers in Tibet from Gzon nu dpal's Deb ther snong po (The Blue Annals).
[8]:
Deb ther sngon po (The Blue Annals). (Part 1) George N. Roerich. Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi, Second Edition, 1976, pp. IX -XI.
[10]:
Gjhon nu dpal omits phags pa za bkod pa mdo. He reads Tsinta ma ni' i gzungs and Spang bkong phyag rgya ma (Kānjur, mdo, sde No. 267).
[11]:
Tibbot (in Bengali) by Prof. S. K. Pathak. Calcutta, 1966, pp. 36.
[12]:
Nying ma (rnying ma) pa: Literally means belonging to the Old tantra. Padma Sambhaba (Padma 'byung gnas) went to Tibet in the eight century during the rule of Khri srong lde btsan. He initiated the Bsam Yas monastery in 750 A. D. After him the old tantra flourished and a separate lineage developed in Tibet in which esoteric meditation was primarily achieved.
[13]:
Kagyu (bka 'brgyud) Pa: Kagyu pa followed the interpretation of the Buddha's teachings in the line of Naro pa (9th cent. A.D.), the famous Siddhāchārya of India. Marpa locha -ba used to visit his eminent teacher and in due course a new school in Tibet was formed and it was known as bka 'brgyud pa which literally means lineage (bka 'brgyud) of commandments.
[14]:
Sakya (sa skya) pa: Sakya is the name of a place in Tibet. A separate lineage developed among a section of the Buddhist monks in Tibet who follow the Buddha's teaching the mārga phala i. e. lam 'bras the basic interpretation of the Buddhist text by Biru -pa (10th cent A. D.). The Sakya teachers became prominent for two reasons; (i) Chinese Mongol emperor Kublai Khan praised Sakya Pandit as his spiritual teacher for his scholarship. Thereby the Sakya monastery was then empowered to collect revenue of a certain portion in Tibet. (ii)Buddhism spread in Mongolia by 'Phags pa lama, a nephew of Sakya Pandita kun dga, mgyal mtshan (12th cent. A. D.).
[15]:
Gelu (dge lugs) pa: Atisa Dipankara went to Tibet (c. 1042 A. D.) and devoted his life to spread Buddhism. A lineage was established named Kadam-pa (the advice of the Commandment). Later on, the Kadam teachers strictly followed a new perspective of monastic discipline. Tsong kha pa (1357-1419 A.D.) reformed the Kadam approaches in Tibetan Buddhism and established a separate lineage in Tibetan Buddhism named Gelu -pa in which monastic life is the primary concern. Inspite of diverse approaches in Tibetan Buddhism from the eight century to the fifteenth century, the mantra ritual of six -lettered Oṃ Maṇi Padme Hūṃ was of primary importance.
[16]:
Maṇi Walls: A Wall is generally constructed at the entrance of the village or monastery on which the six -syllabled mantra Oṃ Maṇi Padme Hūṃ is inscribed.
[17]:
Maṇi Wheels (Maṇi 'khor lo): The Tibetan Buddhists hold that whirling of the maṇi wheel has some eco -spiritual effect. They are usually constructed of wood and are inscribed with the mantra Oṃ Maṇi Padme Hūṃ. Surely every Buddhist monastery holds several Maṇi Wheels at the instance. A devout visitor is habituated to move them by uttering the mantra. Sometimes a small wheel inscribed with Oṃ Maṇi Padme Hūṃ is moved by the Buddhist during leisure time by uttering the mantra.