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དཔུང་བཟང་གིས་ཞུས་པའི་རྒྱུད།

The Tantra of Subāhu’s Questions

Subāhu­paripṛcchā­tantra
འཕགས་པ་དཔུང་བཟང་གིས་ཞུས་པ་ཞེས་བྱ་བའི་རྒྱུད།
’phags pa dpung bzang gis zhus pa zhes bya ba’i rgyud
The Noble Tantra “Subāhu’s Questions”
Ārya­subāhu­pari­pṛcchānāma­tantra
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Toh 805

Degé Kangyur, vol. 96 (rgyud ‘bum, wa), folios 118.a–140.b

Translated by Dr. Lozang Jamspal, Kaia Fischer, and Erin Sperry of the Tibetan Classics Translators Guild of New York, under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha

First published 2022
Current version v 1.1.6 (2022)
Generated by 84000 Reading Room v2.17.7

84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha is a global non-profit initiative to translate all the Buddha’s words into modern languages, and to make them available to everyone.

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Warning: Readers are reminded that according to Vajrayāna Buddhist tradition there are restrictions and commitments concerning tantra. Practitioners who are not sure if they should read this translation are advised to consult the authorities of their lineage. The responsibility for reading this text or sharing it with others who may or may not fulfill the requirements lies in the hands of readers.

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co.

Table of Contents

ti. Title
im. Imprint
co. Contents
s. Summary
ac. Acknowledgements
i. Introduction
tr. The Translation
+ 11 chapters- 11 chapters
1. Chapter 1
2. Chapter 2
3. Chapter 3
4. Chapter 4
5. Chapter 5
6. Chapter 6
7. Chapter 7
8. Chapter 8
9. Chapter 9
10. Chapter 10
11. Chapter 11
ab. Abbreviations
n. Notes
b. Bibliography
+ 2 sections- 2 sections
· Primary Sources
· Secondary References: Indo-Tibetan
g. Glossary

s.

Summary

s.­1

The Tantra of Subāhu’s Questions is a Kriyātantra scripture that presents a series of practices and rites that can be employed in diverse Buddhist ritual contexts, rather than for a specific deity or maṇḍala. The tantra records a conversation between the Buddhist deity Vajrapāṇi and the layman Subāhu, whose questions prompt Vajrapāṇi to share a wealth of instructions on ritual practices primarily intended to bring about the accomplishment of worldly goals. The rites described in The Tantra of Subāhu’s Questions address concerns about health, spirit possession, the accumulation of wealth and prosperity, and warding off destabilizing and obstructing forces. Special attention is given to rites for animating corpses and using spirits and spirit mediums for divination purposes. Despite the generally worldly applications for the rites explained to Subāhu, Vajrapāṇi is careful to establish the Mahāyāna orientation that must frame them: the quest for complete liberation guided by ethical discipline, insight into the faults of saṃsāra, and the motivation to alleviate the suffering of other beings and assist them in reaching awakening.


ac.

Acknowledgements

ac.­1

Translated by Dr. Lozang Jamspal, Kaia Fischer, and Erin Sperry of the Tibetan Classics Translators Guild of New York.

The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.



i.

Introduction

i.­1

The Tantra of Subāhu’s Questions (henceforth Subāhu) is a record of a conversation between Vajrapāṇi and the layman Subāhu on a wide range of doctrinal, ethical, ritual, and magical topics. The text is classified as a Kriyātantra and is further categorized as a “general tantra” in the Kriyātantra section of the Kangyur. As a Kriyātantra, the text focuses on an array of ritual practices that are intended to secure physical and mental health, the acquisition of wealth, comfort, and pleasure, and freedom from hostile and disruptive supernatural forces. Because it is a general Kriyātantra, it does not focus on a single deity or ritual system, but rather contains instructions that are applicable in any ritual context explained elsewhere in the Kriyātantras. Vajrapāṇi’s teachings include a body of exoteric instructions to ensure that a practitioner of mantra, a mantrin, is properly oriented in the Mahāyāna as they carry out the elaborate esoteric rituals and transgressive rites outlined in the tantra.


The Translation
The Noble
Tantra of Subāhu’s Questions

1.

Chapter 1

[F.118.a]


1.­1

Homage to the Omniscient One.


1.­2
Subāhu paid respectful homage to the Lord of Yakṣas,18
Brilliant like a thousand suns
And deeply immersed in compassion,
Then asked him how to master the collections of vidyā and mantra.
1.­3
“I have not seen anyone on earth
Who has reached perfection through persistence
In recitation, fasting, or restrictive austerities.19
Sole Father, do austerities not serve any purpose?
1.­4
“Your Eminence, you are brilliant as sun-fire,
Supreme among those who purify and destroy evil.
If you spoke words of truth,
Why have the mantras not borne fruit?

2.

Chapter 2

2.­1
“Places of pratyekabuddhas and the sugatas’ heirs,
Those where the Victor previously lived,
Places that are pleasant and steeped in merit,
Or venerated by devas and asuras43‍—
These are the places mantrins maintaining poṣadha
Should rely on to purify themselves.
2.­2
“If such places are not to be found, there are others:
Accessible rivers, brooks, and streams,
Lakes adorned with lotuses and utpalas,
Places unfrequented by people,
Or those abundant with clean water; [F.120.a]
Places unknown to terrible grahas;
Those with fresh flowers and fruit,
Rich in medicinal plants, or thick with different trees;
Places with clean spots to sleep upon the ground,
Those free of tiger, leopard, and lion,
Or places pleasing, level, and without brambles‍—
These are places people celebrate for siddhi.
Avoid places with ravines, anthills, ash, or hair,
Rubbish, charcoal, salt deposits, or excrement.

3.

Chapter 3

3.­1
“Beset with the host of afflictions, desire and the like,
The mind itself is said to be saṃsāra.
When free of affliction, when crystalline and moon-like,66
It is declared the end of the ocean of existence.
3.­2
“In the same way that, for example, clean water
Is instantly polluted by dirt and the like,67
So too the pure, pristine mind
Is polluted by the faults of desire and the like.
3.­3
“One should select a mālā
With 108 beads of bodhi seed,68
Conch, crystal, rūdrākṣa,69 soapberry,70
Lotus seed, lead, copper, or bronze.

4.

Chapter 4

4.­1
“Next to be explained are the vajras
A practitioner should be sure to wield.
They can measure ten, twelve, sixteen, or eighteen finger-widths, [F.123.a]
But the best measures twenty finger-widths.
4.­2
“Gold vajras are recommended to obtain
The state of a vidyādhara, or any lands.87
Silver is the best for kingship,
While copper is for nāgas, the source of jewels.88
4.­3
“To destroy the magical devices of asura lords,
Or enter openings in the earth, use a stone vajra.
For success in all aims, a triple-alloy is best,89
While iron is used to smash guhyaka armies.

5.

Chapter 5

5.­1
“Vighnas exhaust all merit,
So that people do not succeed in mantra.
Those freed from vighnas shine,
Like the moon emerging from a cloud.
5.­2
“Just as no fruit, flower, or sprout will grow from a vase
Without soil and water, or out of season.
Sprouts, leaves, stalks, flowers, and fruit
Will grow when such conditions are present.
5.­3
“When the rites are corrupted, vowels and syllables missing,
Offerings are lacking, recitation is sloppy,
Or when vowels and syllables are added,
Mantras will not grant abundant siddhi.

6.

Chapter 6

6.­1
“As the siddhis near, the mind delights in recitation
And takes no joy in evil.
It never wavers, even when beset with severe sufferings
Such as hunger and thirst, heat, cold, wind, and weariness.
6.­2
“One is not menaced by bees, biting flies, worms, or ants,
By reptiles, centipedes, snakes, or bears,
Or by piśācas and pūtanas‍—
Not even by their shadows.
6.­3
“Mantrins’ words will be memorable, their minds keen;
They will be skilled in literature and the art of inquiry.
They will take joy in the Dharma, perceive hidden treasures,
And their bodies will be free of illness and odor.

7.

Chapter 7

7.­1
“Those hoping to sell human flesh
Should visit a charnel ground during the waning moon,
And at night, feeling no fear,
Take the calf, thigh, neck, or head
From someone killed by a wood or stone weapon,
Poison, beating, medicine, or a vighna.
7.­2
“It should be chopped into pieces
And generously placed in clean new bowls or pots.
They should mark their body with a bloody handprint
And wrap their head and neck with intestines.
7.­3
“Clothed in fresh human skin,
They should hold a pot of flesh in their left hand
And grip a bloody sword in their right,
Brandishing it aloft.

8.

Chapter 8

8.­1
“The Buddha taught the eightfold path:
Right livelihood, right action, right samādhi, right speech,232
Right effort, right intention, right attention, and right view.
A mantrin should correctly rely on each and every one.
8.­2
“Through this path one finds success in mantras,
And likewise the higher realms and liberation.233
The victors of the past and the victors’ heirs
Have gone along it to become thus-gone ones.234
8.­3
“Those who, with an insatiable mind,
Reverentially gather merit235 with body, speech, and mind
Will cultivate that path of virtue
If they embrace the true path spoken by the Sugata.

9.

Chapter 9

9.­1
“Slaying an arhat or one’s parents,
Creating discord in a harmonious saṅgha,
Or, with malicious intent,
Drawing blood from a tathāgata‍—
9.­2
“These heinous acts the Victor called
The five deeds with immediate consequences.
Deluded people who commit just one of them
Will not reach attainment in their present aggregates.257
9.­3
“Destroying a caitya, slaying a bodhisattva, [F.135.a]
Violating a woman who has exhausted her afflictions,
Killing a novice student, or coveting and then stealing
Something owned by the saṅgha, however great or small‍—

10.

Chapter 10

10.­1
“For the benefit of devas, asuras, and humans,
The Victor taught The Vidyādhara’s Basket,
Various types of vidyā and mantra
Numbering thirty million, five hundred thousand.269
10.­2
“To conquer guhyakas
And remove poverty’s misery,
I taught seventy million mantras
Along with their maṇḍalas and mudrās.
10.­3
“I have described in detail all who belong to the vajra clan:
The ten dūtīs,270 the seven vidyā kings,271
The sixty-four servants,272
My eight supreme essences,273
The powerful lords of vidyās,
Such as Amṛtakuṇḍalin and Vidyottama,274
And all who are aligned with their mantras.275

11.

Chapter 11

11.­1
“There are eight famed instructions:
Alchemy, locating treasure, entering openings in the earth,
Metallurgy, locating mines, mantra,
Mineral refinement, and the granting of immeasurable wealth.291
11.­2
“Mantra, entering openings in the earth, and alchemy‍—
These are supreme because they lead to the abandonment of evil.
The granting of wealth, locating treasure, and locating mines are middling.
Mineral refinement and metallurgy are the lesser among them.
11.­3
“People of strong mind, with zeal for the Dharma
And rich in austerities, are vessels for the first of these.292
The middling are for those in whom passion predominates,
While the inferior are for those beset with dullness.293

ab.

Abbreviations

C Choné
F Phukdrak
H Lhasa (Zhol)
J Lithang
K Peking/Kangxi
KY Peking Yongle
N Narthang
S Stok Palace
U Urga

n.

Notes

n.­1
Dharmachakra Translation Committee, trans., The Root Manual of the Rites of Mañjuśrī, Toh 543 (84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2020).
n.­2
Dharmachakra Translation Committee, trans., The Sovereign Ritual of Amoghapāśa, Toh 686 (84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2022).
n.­3
Dharmachakra Translation Committee, trans., The Bhūta­ḍāmara Tantra, Toh 747 (84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2020).
n.­4
Note, however, that here in the tantra the name Subāhu is rendered in Tibetan as dpung bzang, while in the sūtra it is lag bzangs. In the sūtra, Subāhu only poses one question. See Dharmachakra Translation Committee, trans., The Sūtra of the Question of Subāhu, Toh 70 (84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2020).
n.­5
Derived from the name of the Brahmanical god Śiva, the term śaiva refers to the followers of Śiva and to the myriad religious systems that look to Śiva as their primary deity.
n.­6
This “shared ritual syntax” has been summarized and discussed in Goodall and Isaacson (2016). Many of the shared features they discuss are on display in the Subāhu.
n.­7
A survey of the various Śaiva schools and the literature mentioned here and below can be found in Sanderson (1988).
n.­8
For discussions of vetālas and corpse magic in Indic literature, see Dezső (2010) and Huang (2009).
n.­18
“Lord of Yakṣas” is an epithet of Vajrapāṇi.
n.­19
There is considerable variation in this line across versions of the Tib. translation, with H, N, and S closely aligned with the reading from F and Notes on the Meaning followed here: dka’ thub nges par spyad pa rnams. D has yang dag sdom pa mi bzad pa (“tedious prohibitions”).
n.­43
According to Notes on the Meaning, a place of the pratyekabuddhas is exemplified by Ṛṣipatana near Vārāṇasī; those of the sugatas’ heirs (identified as bodhisattvas) include Wutai Shan; a place where the Victor lived is exemplified by Vulture Peak; a place “suffused with merit” would include places visited by a noble being of the past; and places venerated by devas and asuras refers to those places where such divinities venerated and worshiped noble beings, or that they venerate now because of the site’s past association with noble beings.
n.­66
This translation follows F, H, N, and S in not reading a genitive particle at the end of line three.
n.­67
This translation follows F, H, N, S and Notes on the Meaning in reading rdul sogs (“dust and the like”) instead of the reading in D rdul tshogs (“a heap of dust”).
n.­68
This translation follows F, H, K, KY, and S in reading bo de tse, “bodhi seed,” the seeds of Ficus religiosa. D has pu tra dzi, which is the transliteration of the Skt. putrañjīvika. The putranjiva plant (Putranjiva roxburghii) is a native Indian species whose seeds are reported to be used in mālās such as described here.
n.­69
The seeds of Elaeocarpus sphaericus.
n.­70
Tib. lung tang; Skt. ariṣṭa. A plant of the Sapindus genus. This could alternatively be a reference to the neem tree (Azadirachta indica).
n.­87
Tib. sa rnams. This translation follows the gloss in Notes on the Meaning, which states that the phrase “obtain any lands” refers to royal sovereignty.
n.­88
The translation of the final line is conjectural.
n.­89
Notes on the Meaning says this is a mixture of gold, silver, and copper.
n.­232
This translation follows Notes on the Meaning in reading ngag where all other extant versions of the Tibetan translation read dag, which appears to be a pervasive scribal error, as the set of eight is incomplete without ngag.
n.­233
This translation follows F, H, N, S, and Notes on the Meaning in reading mtho ris thar pa thob. D omits mtho ris and instead reads thar pa myur du thob (“swiftly attain liberation”).
n.­234
This translation attempts to capture the pun of using the verbal form gshegs to describe both having “gone” (gshegs) on the eightfold path and the state of a thus-gone one (de bzhin gshegs pa) that is reached.
n.­235
This translation follows F, H, N, and S in omitting dge ba. Degé reads dge ba’i bsod nams, “virtuous merit,” which is redundant and so seems like the less plausible reading.
n.­257
In other words, in their current body and life.
n.­269
According to Notes on the Meaning, this refers to the total number of verses (śloka) in which they were taught.
n.­270
Notes on the Meaning, quoting the Vidyottama Tantra, enumerates them as: Vajramatī (rdo rje’i blo gros ma), Ghantā (dril bu ma), Kālī (nag mo), Aparājitā (gzhan gyis mi thub ma), Sundarī (mdzes ma), Vegā (shugs), thog thag (unidentified), *Satyā (conjecture: bden ma), *Suryā (conjecture: nyi ma), and *Vajradaṇḍā (rdo rje’i dbyug pa ma).
n.­271
Notes on the Meaning, quoting The Tantra of Vajrapāṇi’s Initiation, enumerates these as Susiddhi (rab tu grub pa), Mauli (dbu rgyan rtse gsum), Vajrakīlikīla (va dz+ra ki li ki la), Ratnakīlikīla, (rin chen ki li ki la), *Surūpa (conjecture: gzugs legs), *Vajrabindu (conjecture: rdo rje thigs pa), and *Vajralalita (conjecture: rdo rje’i rol pa).
n.­272
These sixty-four are not enumerated in Notes on the Meaning.
n.­273
Notes on the Meaning cites two sources here, The Rite of Mahābala and the Vidyottama Tantra, to enumerate this list of eight. There is no extant text titled The Rite of Mahābala (Tib. stobs po che ’ i cho ga zhib mo); however, the list below is found in the Mahābala­nāma­mahāyāna­sūtra (Toh 757/947: ’phags pa stobs po che zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo). The list cited in Notes on the Meaning is: Kīlikīla (ki li ki la), Dramiḍa (’gro lding), Raktāṅga (lus dmar), Vajravidāraṇa (rdo rje rnam par ’joms pa), rdo rje rgya chen (unidentified), snying po’i mchog (unidentified), sog med gtum po (unidentified), and dpal ldan zhi bar grags pa (unidentified).
n.­274
Notes on the Meaning, again quoting from The Tantra of Vajrapāṇi’s Initiation, provides the following list: Vidyottama (rig pa mchog), Kuñjarakarṇa (glang po’i rna ba), Sumbha (gnod mdzes), *Bhīma (conjecture: bsdigs su rung ba), *Hārita (conjecture: ’phrog byed), and Vajrapāśa (rdo rje’i zhags pa).
n.­275
Notes on the Meaning clarifies that this refers to the large numbers of deities that are aligned with the vidyā kings.
n.­291
Though called the “eight instructions” (brgyad po bstan pa), this list is nearly identical to the list of eight major worldly siddhis that appears in Buddhist and non-Buddhist literature. Though too lengthy to cite here, Notes on the Meaning offers an illuminating, detailed commentary on each of these eight instructions and their benefits.
n.­292
That is, those described as “supreme” in the previous verse.
n.­293
This verse employs a triad of terms drawn from Āyurveda, the classical system of Indian medicine. Here the text is equating each of the three levels of attainments mentioned in the previous verse with the three primary qualities of the mind that are core to Āyurvedic thought: clarity (sattva), passion (rajas), and dullness/torpor (tamas). Of these three, only sattva is not named explicitly, but rather is described through the qualities associated with it: strength of mind, spiritual enthusiasm, and the observance of austere religious practices. Rajas is translated by the Tib. term rdul, while tamas is directly translated with mun pa. Thus, when reading this verse it is necessary to know that the passion and dullness mentioned here are not precisely synonymous with those counted among the three poisons of Buddhist thought, but rather refer, along with clarity, to the three inherent and natural qualities of mind that collectively serve as the basic constituents of physical and mental health as articulated systematically in the literature of Āyurveda.

b.

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’phags pa dpung bzang gis zhus pa zhes bya ba’i rgyud (Ārya­subāhu­paripṛcchānāma­tantra). Toh 805, Degé Kangyur vol. 96 (rgyud, wa), folios 118.a–140.b.

’phags pa dpung bzang gis zhus pa zhes bya ba’i rgyud (Ārya­subāhu­paripṛcchā­nāma­tantra). bka’ ’gyur (dpe bsdur ma) [Comparative Edition of the Kangyur], krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe sdur khang (The Tibetan Tripitaka Collation Bureau of the China Tibetology Research Center). 108 volumes. Beijing: krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang (China Tibetology Publishing House), 2006–9, vol. 96, pp. 434-508.

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Anonymous. ’phags pa dpung bzangs gis zhus pa’i rgyud tshig gi don bshad pa’i brjed byang bzhugs. Toh 2672, Degé Tengyur vol. 7 (rgyud ’grel, thu), folios 54.b–100.b.

Anonymous. ’phags pa dpung bzangs gis zhus pa’i rgyud kyi bsdus pa’i don dgrol ba’i brjed byang (Ārya­subāhu­pari­pṛcchā­nāma­tantra­piṇḍārthavṛtti). Toh 2673, Degé Tengyur vol. 7 (rgyud ’grel, thu), folios 100.b–116.b.

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Nāropā. Sekodeśaṭikā: Being a Commentary on the Sekoddeśa Section of the Kālacakra Tantra. Edited by Mario E. Carelli. Baroda: Oriental Institute, 1941.

Somadeva. The Kathāsaritsāgara of Somadevabhatta. Edited by Pandit Durgāprasād and Kāśīnāth Pāndurang Parab. Bombay: Pāndurang Jāwajī, 1930.

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Dharmachakra Translation Committee, trans. The Sovereign Ritual of Amoghapāśa (Toh 686). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2022.

Goodall, Dominic and Harunaga Isaacson. “On the Shared ‘Ritual Syntax’ of the Early Tantric Traditions.” In Tantric Studies: Fruits of a Franco-German Collaboration on Early Tantra. Edited by Dominic Goodall and Harunaga Isaacson, pp. 1–72. Pondicherry: Institut Français de Pondichéry, 2016.

Granoff, Phyllis. “Other People’s Rituals: Ritual Eclecticism in Early Medieval Indian Religions.” Journal of Indian Philosophy 28 (2000): 399–424.

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Meulenbeld, G. Jan. A History of Indian Medical Literature. Groningen: Egbert Forsten, 1999.

Orofino, Giacomella. “Divination with Mirrors: Observations on a Simile Found in the Kālacakra Literature.” Tibetan Studies vol. 2 (1994): 612–28.

Sanderson, Alexis. “Śaivism and the Tantric Traditions.” In The World’s Religions, edited by Stewart Sutherland, et al, 660–704. London: Routledge, 1988.

Slouber, Michael. Early Tantric Medicine: Snakebite, Mantras, and Healing in the Gāruḍa Tantras. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2017.

Smith, Frederick M. The Self Possessed: Deity and Spirit Possession in South Asian Literature and Civilization. New York: Columbia University Publications, 2006.

Vasudeva, Somadeva. “Prasenā, Prasīnā and Prasannā: The Evidence of the Niśvāsaguhya and the Tantrasadbhāva.” Cracow Indological Studies 16, Special Issue (2015): 369–90.

Vienna Buddhist Translation Studies Group, trans. Summary of Empowerment (Toh 361). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2022.


g.

Glossary

g.­1

Age of strife

  • rtsod pa’i dus
  • རྩོད་པའི་དུས།
  • kaliyuga

The last and worst of the four ages (yuga), the present age of degeneration.

1 passage contains this term:

  • 1.­39

Links to further resources:

  • 3 related glossary entries
g.­2

Agni

  • me
  • མེ།
  • Agni

The Brahmanical god of fire; also the deity who governs the southeastern direction.

3 passages contain this term:

  • 8.­37
  • 10.­23
  • n.­254

Links to further resources:

  • 10 related glossary entries
g.­3

Airāvaṇa

  • sa srung bu
  • ས་སྲུང་བུ།
  • Airāvaṇa

The name of Indra’s elephant.

2 passages contain this term:

  • 11.­50
  • n.­327

Links to further resources:

  • 8 related glossary entries
g.­7

Amṛtakuṇḍalin

  • bdud rtsi thab sbyor
  • བདུད་རྩི་ཐབ་སྦྱོར།
  • Amṛtakuṇḍalin

A vidyā king (vidyārāja) of the vajra clan.

5 passages contain this term:

  • 4.­36
  • 6.­44
  • 8.­19
  • 10.­3
  • 11.­49

Links to further resources:

  • 1 related glossary entry
g.­9

Arhat

  • dgra bcom pa
  • དགྲ་བཅོམ་པ།
  • arhat

One who has achieved the fourth and final level of attainment on the śrāvaka path, and who has attained liberation with the cessation of all mental afflictions.

4 passages contain this term:

  • 9.­1
  • n.­212
  • n.­287
  • g.­37

Links to further resources:

  • 96 related glossary entries
g.­10

Asura

  • lha min
  • ལྷ་མིན།
  • asura

A class of nonhuman beings that are engaged in a perpetual war with the gods (deva) for possession of the nectar of immortality. In Buddhist cosmology, they count as one of the six classes of beings and are tormented by their intense jealousy of the gods.

25 passages contain this term:

  • 1.­19
  • 1.­21
  • 1.­26
  • 2.­1
  • 4.­3
  • 6.­20
  • 6.­27
  • 7.­24
  • 7.­41
  • 8.­29
  • 9.­8
  • 10.­1
  • 10.­10
  • 11.­31
  • 11.­47
  • 11.­48
  • 11.­50
  • 11.­52
  • 11.­53
  • 11.­56
  • n.­29
  • n.­43
  • n.­324
  • g.­11
  • g.­27

Links to further resources:

  • 106 related glossary entries
g.­12

Austerities

  • dka’ thub
  • དཀའ་ཐུབ།
  • tapas

Harsh, often extreme practices that can include deprivation and physical mortification. Such practices are typically rejected in the Buddhist “middle way.” The term can be used in a more positive sense to refer to the hardships of practice one must endure to reach liberation.

6 passages contain this term:

  • 1.­3
  • 3.­16
  • 9.­15
  • 11.­3
  • 11.­5
  • 11.­10

Links to further resources:

  • 1 related glossary entry
g.­22

Caitya

  • mchod rten
  • མཆོད་རྟེན།
  • caitya

A shrine or other structure used as a focal point for offerings. When these contain relics of a buddha or other realized beings, they are more commonly called stūpas.

12 passages contain this term:

  • 1.­34
  • 1.­35
  • 5.­46
  • 7.­34
  • 8.­9
  • 8.­32
  • 9.­3
  • 11.­22
  • n.­85
  • n.­162
  • n.­296
  • g.­38

Links to further resources:

  • 49 related glossary entries
g.­30

Deva

  • lha
  • ལྷ།
  • god

Cognate with the English term divine. The devas are most generically a class of divine, celestial beings who populate the narratives of Indian mythology. The term can also be used to refer to the major gods of the Brahmanical pantheon, in which case the term “god” has been used.

46 passages contain this term:

  • 1.­19
  • 1.­21
  • 1.­26
  • 1.­30
  • 1.­38
  • 2.­1
  • 2.­13
  • 4.­6
  • 4.­22
  • 5.­38
  • 6.­4
  • 6.­5
  • 6.­20
  • 6.­24
  • 6.­27
  • 7.­24
  • 7.­41
  • 8.­29
  • 8.­32
  • 8.­37
  • 9.­7
  • 9.­8
  • 9.­10
  • 10.­1
  • 10.­10
  • 11.­31
  • 11.­47
  • 11.­48
  • 11.­52
  • 11.­53
  • 11.­56
  • 11.­59
  • n.­5
  • n.­29
  • n.­43
  • n.­167
  • n.­263
  • g.­2
  • g.­10
  • g.­19
  • g.­29
  • g.­46
  • g.­49
  • g.­102
  • g.­136
  • g.­151

Links to further resources:

  • 61 related glossary entries
g.­32

Discipline

  • tshul khrims
  • ཚུལ་ཁྲིམས།
  • śīla

The cultivation of morally virtuous and disciplined conduct and the abandonment of morally undisciplined conduct of body, speech, and mind. Often the term is used in relation to the maintenance of formal vows.

16 passages contain this term:

  • s.­1
  • i.­3
  • 1.­31
  • 1.­32
  • 3.­16
  • 6.­32
  • 8.­27
  • 9.­4
  • 11.­19
  • 11.­20
  • 11.­24
  • n.­36
  • n.­65
  • n.­288
  • g.­91
  • g.­148

Links to further resources:

  • 31 related glossary entries
g.­33

Dramiḍa

  • ’gro lding ba
  • འགྲོ་ལྡིང་བ།
  • Dramiḍa

An esoteric deity associated with Vajrapāṇi, sometimes identified as a nāga king.

4 passages contain this term:

  • 4.­40
  • 5.­12
  • n.­131
  • n.­273

Links to further resources:

  • 1 related glossary entry
g.­34

Dūtī

  • pho nya mo
  • ཕོ་ཉ་མོ།
  • dūtī

A class of nonhuman female beings (masc. dūta); the name literally means “messenger,” which implies that these beings can be employed as messengers through magical rites.

2 passages contain this term:

  • 1.­24
  • 10.­3

Links to further resources:

  • 2 related glossary entries
g.­35

Eightfold path

  • yan lag brgyad lam
  • ཡན་ལག་བརྒྱད་ལམ།
  • aṣṭāṅgamārga

Right view, right thought, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration.

3 passages contain this term:

  • 2.­15
  • 8.­1
  • n.­234

Links to further resources:

  • 40 related glossary entries
g.­37

Five deeds with immediate consequences

  • mtshams med lnga po
  • མཚམས་མེད་ལྔ་པོ།
  • pañcānantarya

Five actions that bring immediate and severe consequences at death, so that the person who commits them will take rebirth in the lower realms directly after they die. The five are: patricide, matricide, killing an arhat, intentionally injuring a buddha, and causing a schism within the saṅgha.

1 passage contains this term:

  • 9.­2

Links to further resources:

  • 28 related glossary entries
g.­42

Graha

  • gdon
  • གདོན།
  • graha

A class of nonhuman beings able to enter and possess the human body. They are often explicitly associated with astrological forces, have a harmful effect on physical and mental health, and are specifically said to cause seizures and insanity. Often this term is used to broadly refer to multiple classes of beings that can affect a person’s physical and mental health.

16 passages contain this term:

  • i.­9
  • i.­14
  • 1.­22
  • 1.­30
  • 2.­2
  • 4.­42
  • 5.­17
  • 5.­18
  • 8.­29
  • 8.­36
  • 8.­37
  • 10.­19
  • 11.­34
  • 11.­47
  • 11.­50
  • 11.­51

Links to further resources:

  • 12 related glossary entries
g.­44

Guhyaka

  • gsang ba
  • གསང་བ།
  • guhyaka

A subclass of yakṣas, but often used as an alternative name for yakṣas.

6 passages contain this term:

  • 4.­3
  • 8.­16
  • 10.­2
  • 11.­47
  • 11.­49
  • 11.­53

Links to further resources:

  • 13 related glossary entries
g.­53

Kīlikīla

  • kI li kI la
  • ཀཱི་ལི་ཀཱི་ལ།
  • Kīlikīla

An esoteric deity, often included in the class of wrathful (krodha) deities.

4 passages contain this term:

  • 4.­40
  • 5.­11
  • 5.­12
  • n.­273

Links to further resources:

  • 1 related glossary entry
g.­54

Kriyātantra

  • bya ba’i rgyud
  • བྱ་བའི་རྒྱུད།
  • kriyātantra

A class of tantric scripture that generally features elaborate rites directed toward both mundane goals‍—such as health, prosperity, and protection‍—and to the ultimate goal of liberation. In this class of tantra, the practitioners do not identify themselves with the deity as in other classes of tantra, but rather seek their power, assistance, and intervention in pursuit of their goals. The Mañjuśrī­mūla­kalpa and Amoghapāśa­kalpa­rāja exemplify this class of tantra.

24 passages contain this term:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1
  • i.­2
  • i.­3
  • i.­5
  • i.­6
  • i.­7
  • i.­8
  • i.­9
  • i.­14
  • i.­17
  • n.­33
  • n.­35
  • n.­45
  • n.­109
  • n.­133
  • g.­6
  • g.­59
  • g.­89
  • g.­92
  • g.­109
  • g.­132
  • g.­142
  • g.­143

Links to further resources:

  • 2 related glossary entries
g.­58

Lord of Yakṣas

  • gnod sbyin bdag po
  • གནོད་སྦྱིན་བདག་པོ།
  • yakṣādhipati

An epithet for Vajrapāṇi, who is also referred to as the yakṣasenāpati, the “yakṣa general.”

6 passages contain this term:

  • i.­2
  • 1.­2
  • 10.­8
  • 10.­16
  • n.­18
  • g.­56
g.­60

Magical device

  • ’khrul ’khor
  • འཁྲུལ་འཁོར།
  • yantra

A magical diagram; any mechanical tool or device.

3 passages contain this term:

  • 3.­28
  • 4.­3
  • n.­84

Links to further resources:

  • 6 related glossary entries
g.­62

Mālā

  • phreng ba
  • ཕྲེང་བ།
  • mālā

A string of beads, much like a rosary, that is used to count recitations of mantra. The beads may be made from seeds, gemstones, shells, or other natural substances, which are often specifically selected for the mantra deity being recited or the intended purpose of the rite.

3 passages contain this term:

  • 3.­3
  • 5.­43
  • n.­68

Links to further resources:

  • 2 related glossary entries
g.­65

Mantra

  • gsang sngags
  • གསང་སྔགས།
  • mantra

A syllable or phrase used in esoteric rites to invoke a deity and its power for the purposes of both worldly aims and liberation.

158 passages contain this term:

  • i.­1
  • i.­5
  • i.­6
  • i.­7
  • i.­8
  • i.­13
  • i.­17
  • 1.­2
  • 1.­4
  • 1.­5
  • 1.­6
  • 1.­7
  • 1.­8
  • 1.­12
  • 1.­13
  • 1.­20
  • 1.­27
  • 1.­28
  • 2.­12
  • 3.­5
  • 4.­10
  • 4.­12
  • 4.­15
  • 4.­17
  • 4.­18
  • 4.­19
  • 4.­20
  • 4.­33
  • 4.­36
  • 4.­40
  • 4.­41
  • 5.­1
  • 5.­3
  • 5.­4
  • 5.­5
  • 5.­7
  • 5.­10
  • 5.­11
  • 5.­12
  • 5.­13
  • 5.­14
  • 5.­15
  • 5.­16
  • 5.­19
  • 5.­20
  • 5.­21
  • 5.­23
  • 5.­30
  • 5.­37
  • 5.­41
  • 6.­14
  • 6.­16
  • 6.­23
  • 6.­27
  • 6.­29
  • 6.­32
  • 6.­42
  • 6.­43
  • 6.­44
  • 6.­45
  • 6.­47
  • 7.­7
  • 7.­9
  • 7.­13
  • 7.­29
  • 7.­30
  • 7.­33
  • 7.­34
  • 7.­35
  • 7.­36
  • 7.­43
  • 7.­44
  • 7.­47
  • 7.­52
  • 8.­2
  • 8.­9
  • 8.­13
  • 8.­20
  • 8.­21
  • 8.­26
  • 8.­27
  • 8.­28
  • 9.­4
  • 9.­7
  • 9.­10
  • 9.­15
  • 9.­20
  • 9.­23
  • 10.­1
  • 10.­2
  • 10.­3
  • 10.­4
  • 10.­5
  • 10.­7
  • 10.­8
  • 10.­10
  • 10.­12
  • 10.­15
  • 10.­16
  • 10.­18
  • 10.­19
  • 10.­20
  • 10.­21
  • 10.­25
  • 10.­26
  • 11.­1
  • 11.­2
  • 11.­7
  • 11.­8
  • 11.­9
  • 11.­10
  • 11.­16
  • 11.­22
  • 11.­23
  • 11.­24
  • 11.­26
  • 11.­27
  • 11.­29
  • 11.­31
  • 11.­35
  • 11.­44
  • 11.­45
  • 11.­46
  • 11.­50
  • 11.­51
  • 11.­52
  • n.­15
  • n.­20
  • n.­21
  • n.­33
  • n.­63
  • n.­71
  • n.­114
  • n.­118
  • n.­129
  • n.­130
  • n.­142
  • n.­153
  • n.­171
  • n.­177
  • n.­182
  • n.­191
  • n.­216
  • n.­220
  • n.­221
  • n.­262
  • n.­268
  • n.­276
  • n.­294
  • n.­296
  • n.­299
  • n.­301
  • n.­309
  • g.­48
  • g.­62
  • g.­66
  • g.­104
  • g.­141

Links to further resources:

  • 10 related glossary entries
g.­66

Mantrin

  • sngags pa
  • སྔགས་པ།
  • mantrin

Literally “one who has mantra,” this term is used to refer to practitioners specifically engaged in mantra recitation and other esoteric practices.

64 passages contain this term:

  • i.­1
  • i.­3
  • i.­6
  • i.­7
  • i.­8
  • i.­9
  • i.­13
  • i.­16
  • 1.­32
  • 1.­39
  • 2.­1
  • 2.­31
  • 3.­4
  • 3.­7
  • 3.­14
  • 3.­22
  • 3.­27
  • 3.­30
  • 4.­21
  • 4.­36
  • 5.­6
  • 5.­11
  • 5.­15
  • 5.­17
  • 5.­19
  • 5.­25
  • 6.­3
  • 6.­14
  • 6.­21
  • 6.­26
  • 6.­30
  • 7.­6
  • 7.­17
  • 7.­27
  • 7.­29
  • 7.­32
  • 7.­33
  • 7.­34
  • 7.­41
  • 7.­52
  • 8.­1
  • 8.­9
  • 8.­11
  • 8.­12
  • 8.­13
  • 8.­18
  • 8.­20
  • 8.­25
  • 8.­29
  • 8.­36
  • 9.­10
  • 9.­11
  • 10.­13
  • 11.­11
  • 11.­14
  • 11.­23
  • 11.­25
  • 11.­26
  • 11.­27
  • 11.­46
  • 11.­51
  • n.­144
  • n.­220
  • n.­318

Links to further resources:

  • 1 related glossary entry
g.­70

Mudrā

  • phyag rgya
  • ཕྱག་རྒྱ།
  • mudrā

An emblem, symbol, or gesture of esoteric significance related to specific deities or ritual acts.

5 passages contain this term:

  • 10.­2
  • 10.­7
  • 10.­25
  • n.­153
  • n.­312

Links to further resources:

  • 14 related glossary entries
g.­71

Nāga

  • klu
  • ཀླུ།
  • nāga

A class of nonhuman beings that live in subterranean aquatic environments and are known to hoard wealth and esoteric teachings. Nāgas are associated with snakes and serpents, and often assume a snakelike appearance.

28 passages contain this term:

  • i.­9
  • 1.­26
  • 1.­30
  • 4.­2
  • 4.­7
  • 4.­22
  • 5.­17
  • 5.­41
  • 6.­41
  • 7.­21
  • 8.­16
  • 8.­37
  • 10.­19
  • 10.­24
  • 11.­31
  • 11.­33
  • 11.­34
  • 11.­35
  • 11.­47
  • 11.­53
  • n.­37
  • n.­109
  • n.­131
  • n.­146
  • n.­160
  • n.­312
  • g.­33
  • g.­40

Links to further resources:

  • 91 related glossary entries
g.­86

Piśāca

  • sha za
  • ཤ་ཟ།
  • piśāca

A class of nonhuman beings traditionally associated with the consumption of meat and flesh, alcohol, and other impure or taboo substances, especially when those substances are in the form of refuse, human waste, and carrion. They are said to live in forests, mountains, and other wild places, or near charnel grounds and sites where refuse is deposited, sites that are typically on the margins of society. Piśācas are generally considered threatening, and are closely associated with the transmission of disease. 

12 passages contain this term:

  • i.­9
  • 1.­19
  • 3.­28
  • 4.­6
  • 6.­2
  • 6.­30
  • 6.­41
  • 10.­19
  • 11.­47
  • n.­27
  • n.­109
  • n.­199

Links to further resources:

  • 30 related glossary entries
g.­89

Poṣadha

  • gso sbyong
  • གསོ་སྦྱོང་།
  • poṣadha

While this term most often refers to the fortnightly ceremony during which monastics gather to recite the prātimokṣa vows and confess faults and breaches, in the Kriyātantras and other esoteric texts, the term is used in the more general sense of a prescriptive ritual fast and period of abstinence that precedes the performance of many rites. This typically lasts between one and three days, and is to be performed by any practitioner, lay or monastic.

4 passages contain this term:

  • 2.­1
  • 2.­6
  • 6.­6
  • 7.­34

Links to further resources:

  • 15 related glossary entries
g.­95

Pūtana

  • srul po
  • སྲུལ་པོ།
  • pūtana

A class of nonhuman beings specifically associated with illness and danger to children.

2 passages contain this term:

  • i.­9
  • 6.­2

Links to further resources:

  • 11 related glossary entries
g.­98

Raktāṅga

  • lus dmar po
  • ལུས་དམར་པོ།
  • Raktāṅga

An esoteric deity, sometimes counted as a king of vidyās (vidyārāja).

2 passages contain this term:

  • 4.­40
  • n.­273

Links to further resources:

  • 1 related glossary entry
g.­103

Samādhi

  • ting ’dzin
  • ting nge ’dzin
  • ཏིང་འཛིན།
  • ཏིང་ངེ་འཛིན།
  • samādhi

A deep, immersive state of meditation.

2 passages contain this term:

  • 5.­33
  • 8.­1

Links to further resources:

  • 76 related glossary entries
g.­105

Saṃsāra

  • ’khor ba
  • འཁོར་བ།
  • saṃsāra

A state of involuntary existence conditioned by afflicted mental states and the imprint of past actions, characterized by suffering in a cycle of life, death, and rebirth within different realms of being.

3 passages contain this term:

  • s.­1
  • 3.­1
  • g.­29

Links to further resources:

  • 30 related glossary entries
g.­106

Saṅgha

  • dge ’dun
  • དགེ་འདུན།
  • saṅgha

Though the term is most often used for the monastic community, it can be applied to any of the four Buddhist communities‍—monks, nuns, laymen, and laywomen‍—as well as the community of bodhisattvas.

8 passages contain this term:

  • 3.­30
  • 9.­1
  • 9.­3
  • 9.­10
  • 10.­14
  • n.­65
  • g.­37
  • g.­38

Links to further resources:

  • 32 related glossary entries
g.­111

Siddhi

  • dngos grub
  • དངོས་གྲུབ།
  • siddhi

An attainment that is the goal of a ritual or meditative practice; specifically, a supernatural power or ability.

45 passages contain this term:

  • i.­7
  • i.­12
  • 1.­36
  • 2.­2
  • 2.­5
  • 2.­7
  • 4.­12
  • 4.­13
  • 5.­3
  • 5.­4
  • 5.­6
  • 5.­9
  • 5.­19
  • 5.­23
  • 5.­34
  • 5.­37
  • 6.­1
  • 6.­5
  • 6.­25
  • 6.­26
  • 6.­45
  • 6.­46
  • 6.­47
  • 7.­33
  • 7.­45
  • 7.­52
  • 8.­22
  • 8.­23
  • 8.­38
  • 9.­4
  • 9.­7
  • 9.­10
  • 9.­20
  • 10.­13
  • 10.­15
  • 10.­26
  • 11.­8
  • 11.­11
  • 11.­22
  • n.­107
  • n.­155
  • n.­192
  • n.­193
  • n.­291
  • n.­302

Links to further resources:

  • 14 related glossary entries
g.­115

Subāhu

  • dpung bzang
  • དཔུང་བཟང་།
  • Subāhu

The main interlocutor for the Subāhu­paripṛcchā Tantra.

24 passages contain this term:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1
  • i.­4
  • i.­5
  • i.­12
  • i.­17
  • 1.­2
  • 1.­40
  • 2.­34
  • 3.­31
  • 4.­43
  • 5.­50
  • 6.­7
  • 6.­8
  • 6.­48
  • 7.­53
  • 8.­39
  • 9.­24
  • 10.­27
  • 11.­59
  • 11.­60
  • 11.­61
  • 11.­62
  • n.­4
g.­117

Sugata

  • bde bar gshegs pa
  • བདེ་བར་གཤེགས་པ།
  • Sugata

An epithet of the buddhas meaning “well-gone one.”

17 passages contain this term:

  • 1.­10
  • 1.­13
  • 1.­33
  • 1.­34
  • 2.­1
  • 2.­11
  • 2.­24
  • 3.­30
  • 6.­7
  • 6.­8
  • 6.­15
  • 8.­3
  • 9.­17
  • 9.­18
  • 10.­12
  • 10.­17
  • n.­43

Links to further resources:

  • 60 related glossary entries
g.­122

Tathāgata

  • de bzhin gshegs pa
  • དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པ།
  • tathāgata

A frequently used synonym for a buddha. The expression is interpreted in different ways, but in general it implies one who has arrived at the realization of the ultimate state.

5 passages contain this term:

  • i.­2
  • 9.­1
  • 9.­4
  • 11.­31
  • n.­279

Links to further resources:

  • 100 related glossary entries
g.­124

The Tantra of Vajrapāṇi’s Initiation

  • phyag na rdo rje dbang dbang bskur ba’i rgyud
  • ཕྱག་ན་རྡོ་རྗེ་དབང་དབང་བསྐུར་བའི་རྒྱུད།
  • Vajra­pāṇyabhiṣekatantra

Toh 496. An important tantra of the Kriyā class.

2 passages contain this term:

  • n.­271
  • n.­274
g.­130

Utpala

  • ut+pal a
  • ཨུཏྤལ་ཨ།
  • utpala

A water lily, often confused with a type of lotus.

3 passages contain this term:

  • 2.­2
  • 5.­43
  • 7.­20

Links to further resources:

  • 11 related glossary entries
g.­132

Vajra clan

  • rdo rje’i rigs
  • རྡོ་རྗེའི་རིགས།
  • vajrakula

One of the three, four, or five clans into which esoteric Buddhist deities are organized. In Kriyātantra literature, the head of this clan is Vajrapāṇi.

10 passages contain this term:

  • i.­2
  • 1.­14
  • 1.­24
  • 1.­25
  • 10.­3
  • 10.­11
  • n.­104
  • n.­276
  • g.­7
  • g.­134

Links to further resources:

  • 4 related glossary entries
g.­134

Vajrapāṇi

  • phyag na rdo rje
  • ཕྱག་ན་རྡོ་རྗེ།
  • Vajrapāṇi

First appearing in Buddhist literature as a yakṣa bodyguard of the Buddha Śākyamuni, Vajrapāṇi evolved into one of the primary transmitters of tantric scriptures, and is regarded as the head of the vajra clan (vajrakula) of esoteric Buddhism.

24 passages contain this term:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1
  • i.­2
  • i.­5
  • i.­10
  • i.­13
  • i.­17
  • 8.­18
  • 10.­15
  • 11.­59
  • n.­15
  • n.­18
  • n.­22
  • n.­104
  • n.­131
  • n.­143
  • n.­276
  • n.­331
  • n.­333
  • n.­334
  • g.­33
  • g.­58
  • g.­132
  • g.­135

Links to further resources:

  • 37 related glossary entries
g.­135

Vajravidāraṇa

  • rdo rje rnam ’joms
  • རྡོ་རྗེ་རྣམ་འཇོམས།
  • Vajravidāraṇa

A form of Vajrapāṇi widely employed in esoteric rites.

2 passages contain this term:

  • i.­2
  • n.­273

Links to further resources:

  • 1 related glossary entry
g.­140

Victor

  • rgyal ba
  • རྒྱལ་བ།
  • jina

A common epithet of the buddhas, and also used among the Jains, whose name is derived from the term jina.

25 passages contain this term:

  • 1.­6
  • 1.­32
  • 2.­1
  • 2.­4
  • 2.­19
  • 2.­23
  • 3.­17
  • 4.­9
  • 5.­34
  • 5.­46
  • 7.­34
  • 8.­2
  • 8.­12
  • 9.­2
  • 9.­17
  • 9.­18
  • 9.­20
  • 9.­21
  • 10.­1
  • 10.­10
  • 10.­14
  • 11.­24
  • 11.­31
  • n.­43
  • n.­162

Links to further resources:

  • 14 related glossary entries
g.­141

Vidyā

  • rig pa
  • རིག་པ།
  • vidyā

A term that at once refers to a type of mantra or dhāraṇī and to the deity it invokes, thereby reflecting their inseparability. A vidyā is typically applied to female deities, and is often, but not exclusively, used for worldly goals in esoteric ritual. In worldly contexts a vidyā is similar to a “spell.”

36 passages contain this term:

  • i.­8
  • 1.­2
  • 1.­6
  • 1.­20
  • 1.­24
  • 1.­25
  • 1.­28
  • 4.­13
  • 4.­23
  • 4.­24
  • 7.­6
  • 7.­33
  • 7.­44
  • 9.­10
  • 10.­1
  • 10.­3
  • 10.­4
  • 10.­6
  • 10.­7
  • 11.­35
  • 11.­49
  • 11.­51
  • 11.­56
  • n.­114
  • n.­275
  • g.­7
  • g.­15
  • g.­36
  • g.­41
  • g.­69
  • g.­84
  • g.­98
  • g.­120
  • g.­121
  • g.­142
  • g.­155

Links to further resources:

  • 18 related glossary entries
g.­142

Vidyādhara

  • rig ’dzin
  • རིག་འཛིན།
  • vidyādhara

A class of nonhuman beings that are famous for wielding (dhara) spells (vidyā). Loosely understood as “sorcerers,” these magical beings are frequently petitioned through dhāraṇī and Kriyātantra ritual to grant magical powers to the supplicant. The later Buddhist tradition, playing on the dual valences of vidyā as “spell” and “knowledge,” began to apply this term to realized figures in the Buddhist pantheon.

2 passages contain this term:

  • 4.­2
  • 11.­53

Links to further resources:

  • 20 related glossary entries
g.­144

Vidyādhara’s Basket

  • rig ’dzin sde snod
  • རིག་འཛིན་སྡེ་སྣོད།
  • Vidyādhara­piṭaka

A compendium of esoteric ritual manuals, now lost. There may never have been a single text with this title, or the title may refer to a mythical source text from which extant ritual manuals were transmitted.

1 passage contains this term:

  • 10.­1
g.­145

Vidyottama Tantra

  • rig pa’i mchog
  • རིག་པའི་མཆོག
  • Vidyottama

The full title of this text as preserved in the Tibetan canon is the Vidyottamamahā­tantra (Toh 746), which can be translated as The Great Tantra: The Supreme Vidyā. This lengthy tantra of the Kriyā class appears to be a compendium of diverse rites arranged as a single collection.

6 passages contain this term:

  • 1.­23
  • n.­113
  • n.­127
  • n.­196
  • n.­270
  • n.­273
g.­146

Vighna

  • bgegs
  • བགེགས།
  • vighna

Similar to vināyakas, the term vighna refers to a broad class of nonhuman beings that create obstacles and problems for spiritual practitioners specifically, and all people in general.

23 passages contain this term:

  • i.­9
  • i.­14
  • 1.­30
  • 4.­13
  • 4.­14
  • 4.­21
  • 4.­25
  • 4.­26
  • 4.­27
  • 4.­28
  • 4.­32
  • 4.­36
  • 4.­41
  • 4.­42
  • 5.­1
  • 6.­22
  • 6.­42
  • 6.­43
  • 6.­44
  • 7.­1
  • g.­43
  • g.­78
  • g.­149

Links to further resources:

  • 7 related glossary entries
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