Guhyasamāja and related tantras (Tengyur Section)

  • Tib.: thabs rgyud gsang 'dus skor/

First published 2010. Last updated 3rd Aug 2023.

Commentaries and liturgical works related to father tantras centered on Guhyasamaja (Toh 1784-1917)

The 135 works in this subsection (Toh 1784-1917), filling 18 volumes of the Degé Tengyur, are all related to the tantras of the Guhyasamāja cycle.

The dkar chag classifies them in terms of the several Indian commentarial schools, notably those following Nāgārjuna (and Āryadeva), and those following Jñānapāda (also known as Buddhaśrījñāna).

I. The 59 works representing those who follow Lord Nāgārjuna (mgon po klu sgrub kyi rjes su ’brang ba’i skor), also known as the tradition of the Ārya or Noble Ones (’phags lugs) include:

a) The 12 principal commentaries themselves (Toh 1784-1795).

b) The 30 liturgies, maṇḍala rituals, instructions, and so forth related to them (Toh 1796-1825); Toh 1796 and 1797, both by Nāgārjuna, are the best known works explaining the generation stage practices, while Nāgārjuna’s works Toh 1800 and 1801 (the verse and prose versions of his Bodhicittavivaraṇa) and 1802 (the Pañcakrama), and Āryadeva’s Toh 1803 (Caryāmelāpakapradīpa, a commentary on the Pañcakrama), are important texts on the perfection stage yogas.

c) The 17 commentaries on these liturgies, etc. (Toh 1826-1842).

II. The 65 works representing those who follow Master Jñānapāda (slob dpon ye shes zhabs kyi rjes su ’brang ba’i skor, the school being known as ye shes zhabs lugs; the dkar chag counts 67) include:

a) The 10 commentaries on the individual tantras (Toh 1843-1852);

b) The 13 general instructions, etc. (Toh 1853-1865);

c) The 2 commentaries on those general instructions (Toh 1867-1868);

d) The 40 liturgies, maṇḍala rituals, instructions, and so forth related to them (Toh 1869-1908).

III. The 5 works representing those who follow Master Vajrahasa and others (slob dpon rdo rje bzhad pa la sogs pa’i skor, the school being known as bzhad pa’i lugs, Toh 1909-1913). The dkar chag states that the first four were, in the past, often attributed to the Jñānapāda tradition, but are incompatible with it.

IV. The 3 works representing those who follow Bhadrapāda (bzang po zhabs kyi rjes su ’brang ba’i skor, Toh 1914-1916). The dkar chag again notes that these works were, in the past, included in the Jñānapāda tradition, but that Smṛtijñānakīrti, who translated all three and authored the first two, followed Bhadrapāda’s school.

V. The single work from Ānandagarbha’s tradition (kun dga’ snying po’i lugs, Toh 1917), a commentary on the difficult points of the tantra.