Vajrayana
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Vajrayāna (
Vajrayāna practices are connected to specific lineages in Buddhism, through the teachings of lineage holders. Others might generally refer to these texts as the
and the visualization of deities and Buddhas.According to contemporary historical scholarship, Vajrayāna practice originated in the tantric era of medieval India (c. the 5th century CE onwards). However, traditionally, the adherents and texts of Vajrayāna claim these teachings have been passed down by an unbroken lineage going back to the historical Buddha (c. the 5th century BCE) or to other mythical Buddhas and bodhisattvas (e.g. Vajrapani).[2]
According to Vajrayāna scriptures, the term Vajrayāna refers to one of three vehicles or
There are several Buddhist tantric traditions that are currently practiced, including Tibetan Buddhism, Chinese Esoteric Buddhism, Shingon Buddhism and Newar Buddhism. Historically, there were also other esoteric Buddhist traditions, such as that of maritime Southeast Asia, which are no longer practiced today.
Terminology
In India, the initial term was Mantranāya (Path of Mantras), and Mantrayāna (Mantra Vehicle).[3] Later, other terms were adopted, like Vajrayāna.
In Tibetan Buddhism practiced in the Himalayan regions of India, Nepal, and Bhutan, Buddhist Tantra is most often termed Vajrayāna (Tib. རྡོ་རྗེ་ཐེག་པ་, dorje tekpa, Wyl. rdo rje theg pa) and Secret mantra (Skt. Guhyamantra, Tib. གསང་སྔགས་, sang ngak, Wyl. gsang sngags). The vajra is a mythical weapon associated with Indra which was said to be indestructible and unbreakable (like a diamond) and extremely powerful (like thunder). Thus, the term is variously translated as Diamond Vehicle, Thunderbolt Vehicle, Indestructible Vehicle and so on.
In Japan, Buddhist esotericism is known as Mikkyō (密教, secret teachings) or by the term Shingon (a Japanese rendering of Zhēnyán), which also refers to a specific school of Shingon-shū (真言宗).
The term "Esoteric Buddhism" is first used by
History
Mahasiddhas and the tantric movement
Tantric Buddhism is associated with groups of wandering yogis called mahasiddhas in medieval India.[6] According to Robert Thurman, these tantric figures thrived during the latter half of the first millennium CE.[2] According to John Myrdhin Reynolds, the mahasiddhas date to the medieval period in North India and used methods that were radically different from those used in Buddhist monasteries, including practicing on charnel grounds.[7]
Since the practice of Tantra focuses on the transformation of poisons into wisdom, the yogic circles came together in
According to Schumann, a movement called
Ronald M. Davidson states that
Buddhist siddhas demonstrated the appropriation of an older sociological form—the independent sage/magician, who lived in a liminal zone on the borders between fields and forests. Their rites involved the conjunction of sexual practices and Buddhist mandala visualization with ritual accoutrements made from parts of the human body, so that control may be exercised over the forces hindering the natural abilities of the siddha to manipulate the cosmos at will. At their most extreme, siddhas also represented a defensive position within the Buddhist tradition, adopted and sustained for the purpose of aggressive engagement with the medieval culture of public violence. They reinforced their reputations for personal sanctity with rumors of the magical manipulation of various flavors of demonic females (dakini, yaksi, yogini), cemetery ghouls (vetala), and other things that go bump in the night. Operating on the margins of both monasteries and polite society, some adopted the behaviors associated with ghosts (preta, pisaca), not only as a religious praxis but also as an extension of their implied threats.[12]
Tantras
Many of the elements found in Buddhist tantric literature are not wholly new. Earlier
There are other Mahāyāna
Vajrayāna Buddhists developed a large corpus of texts called the
Some of the earliest of these texts,
The Guhyasamāja is a Mahayoga class of Tantra, which features forms of ritual practice considered "left-hand" (vamachara) such as the use of taboo substances like alcohol, consort practices, and charnel ground practices which evoke wrathful deities.[20] Ryujun Tajima divides the tantras into those which were "a development of Mahāyānist thought" and those "formed in a rather popular mould toward the end of the eighth century and declining into the esoterism of the left",[21] this "left esoterism" mainly refers to the Yogini tantras and later works associated with wandering yogis. This practice survives in Tibetan Buddhism, but it is rare for this to be done with an actual person. It is more common for a yogi or yogini to use an imagined consort (a buddhist tantric deity, i.e. a yidam).[22]
These later tantras such as the
According to Ronald M. Davidson, the rise of Tantric Buddhism was a response to the feudal structure of Indian society in the early medieval period (ca. 500–1200 CE) which saw kings being divinized as manifestations of gods. Likewise, tantric yogis reconfigured their practice through the metaphor of being consecrated (abhiśeka) as the overlord (rājādhirāja) of a mandala palace of divine vassals, an imperial metaphor symbolizing kingly fortresses and their political power.[24]
Relationship to Shaivism
The question of the origins of early Vajrayāna has been taken up by various scholars. David Seyfort Ruegg has suggested that Buddhist tantra employed various elements of a “pan-Indian religious substrate” which is not specifically Buddhist, Shaiva or Vaishnava.[25]
According to
Sanderson notes that the Vajrayāna Yogini tantras draw extensively from the material also present in Shaiva
Ronald M. Davidson meanwhile, argues that Sanderson's arguments for direct influence from Shaiva Vidyapitha texts are problematic because "the chronology of the Vidyapitha tantras is by no means so well established"[31] and that "the available evidence suggests that received Saiva tantras come into evidence sometime in the ninth to tenth centuries with their affirmation by scholars like Abhinavagupta (c. 1000 c.e.)"[32] Davidson also notes that the list of pithas or sacred places "are certainly not particularly Buddhist, nor are they uniquely Kapalika venues, despite their presence in lists employed by both traditions."[33] Davidson further adds that like the Buddhists, the Shaiva tradition was also involved in the appropriation of Hindu and non-Hindu deities, texts and traditions, an example being "village or tribal divinities like Tumburu".[34]
Davidson adds that Buddhists and Kapalikas as well as other ascetics (possibly Pasupatas) mingled and discussed their paths at various pilgrimage places and that there were conversions between the different groups. Thus he concludes:
The Buddhist-Kapalika connection is more complex than a simple process of religious imitation and textual appropriation. There can be no question that the Buddhist tantras were heavily influenced by Kapalika and other Saiva movements, but the influence was apparently mutual. Perhaps a more nuanced model would be that the various lines of transmission were locally flourishing and that in some areas they interacted, while in others they maintained concerted hostility. Thus the influence was both sustained and reciprocal, even in those places where Buddhist and Kapalika siddhas were in extreme antagonism.[35]
Davidson also argues for the influence of non-Brahmanical and outcaste
Traditional legends
According to several Buddhist tantras as well as traditional Tibetan Buddhist sources, the tantras and the Vajrayana was taught by the
Other accounts attribute the revelation of Buddhist tantras to
Philosophical background
According to
The importance of the theory of
The doctrine of
Another fundamental theory of
Those things by which evil men are bound, others turn into means and gain thereby release from the bonds of existence. By passion the world is bound, by passion too it is released, but by heretical Buddhists this practice of reversals is not known.[44]
The Hevajra further states that "one knowing the nature of poison may dispel poison with poison."[43] As Snellgrove notes, this idea is already present in Asanga's Mahayana-sutra-alamkara-karika and therefore it is possible that he was aware of Tantric techniques, including sexual yoga.[45]
According to Buddhist Tantra, there is no strict separation of the profane or
Indian Tantric Buddhist philosophers such as Buddhaguhya, Vimalamitra, Ratnākaraśānti and Abhayakaragupta continued the tradition of Buddhist philosophy and adapted it to their commentaries on the major Tantras. Abhayakaragupta's Vajravali is a key source in the theory and practice of tantric rituals. After monks such as Vajrabodhi and Śubhakarasiṃha brought Tantra to Tang China (716 to 720), tantric philosophy continued to be developed in Chinese and Japanese by thinkers such as Yi Xing and Kūkai.
Likewise in
Place within Buddhist tradition
Various classifications are possible when distinguishing Vajrayāna from the other Buddhist traditions. Vajrayāna can be seen as a third yana, next to Śrāvakayāna and Mahayana.[10] Vajrayāna can be distinguished from the Sutrayana. The Sutrayana is the method of perfecting good qualities, where the Vajrayāna is the method of taking the intended outcome of Buddhahood as the path. Vajrayāna can also be distinguished from the paramitayana. According to this schema, Indian Mahayana revealed two vehicles (yana) or methods for attaining enlightenment: the method of the perfections (Paramitayana) and the method of mantra (Mantrayana).[49]
The Paramitayana consists of the six or ten
Characteristics
Goal
The goal of spiritual practice within the Mahayana and Vajrayāna traditions is to become a
In the vehicle of Sutra Mahayana, the "path of the cause" is taken whereby a practitioner starts with his or her potential Buddha-nature and nurtures it to produce the fruit of Buddhahood. In the Vajrayāna, the "path of the fruit" is taken whereby the practitioner takes his or her innate Buddha-nature as the means of practice. The premise is that since we innately have an enlightened mind, practicing seeing the world in terms of ultimate truth can help us to attain our full Buddha-nature.
Esoteric transmission
Vajrayāna Buddhism is esoteric in the sense that the transmission of certain teachings only occurs directly from teacher to student during an
The secrecy of teachings was often protected through the use of allusive, indirect, symbolic and metaphorical language (twilight language) which required interpretation and guidance from a teacher.[52] The teachings may also be considered "self-secret", meaning that even if they were to be told directly to a person, that person would not necessarily understand the teachings without proper context. In this way, the teachings are "secret" to the minds of those who are not following the path with more than a simple sense of curiosity.[53][54]
Because of their role in giving access to the practices and guiding the student through them, the role of the Vajracharya Lama is indispensable in Vajrayāna.
Affirmation of the feminine, antinomian and taboo
Some Vajrayāna rituals traditionally included the use of certain taboo substances, such as blood, semen, alcohol and urine, as ritual offerings and sacraments, though some of these are often replaced with less taboo substances such as yogurt. Tantric feasts and initiations sometimes employed substances like human flesh as noted by Kahha's Yogaratnamala.[55]
The use of these substances is related to the
Vajrayāna rituals also include
Alex Wayman points out that the symbolic meaning of tantric sexuality is ultimately rooted in bodhicitta and the bodhisattva's quest for enlightenment is likened to a lover seeking union with the mind of the Buddha.[57] Judith Simmer-Brown notes the importance of the psycho-physical experiences arising in sexual yoga, termed "great bliss" (mahasukha): "Bliss melts the conceptual mind, heightens sensory awareness, and opens the practitioner to the naked experience of the nature of mind."[58] This tantric experience is not the same as ordinary self-gratifying sexual passion since it relies on tantric meditative methods using the illusory body and visualizations as well as the motivation for enlightenment.[59] The Hevajra tantra says:
This practice [of sexual union with a consort] is not taught for the sake of enjoyment, but for the examination of one's own thought, whether the mind is steady or waving.[60]
Feminine deities and forces are also increasingly prominent in Vajrayāna. In the Yogini tantras in particular, women and female yoginis are given high status as the embodiment of female deities such as the wild and nude Vajrayogini.[61] The Candamaharosana Tantra (viii:29–30) states:
In India, there is evidence to show that women participated in tantric practice alongside men and were also teachers, adepts and authors of tantric texts.[62]
Vows and behaviour
Practitioners of Vajrayāna need to abide by various tantric vows or pledges called
A tantric guru, or teacher is expected to keep his or her samaya vows in the same way as his students. Proper conduct is considered especially necessary for a qualified Vajrayana guru. For example, the Ornament for the Essence of Manjushrikirti states:
Distance yourself from Vajra Masters who are not keeping the three vows
who keep on with a root downfall, who are miserly with the Dharma,
and who engage in actions that should be forsaken.
Those who worship them go to hell and so on as a result.[63]
Tantra techniques
While all the Vajrayāna Buddhist traditions include all of the traditional practices used in Mahayana Buddhism such as developing bodhicitta, practicing the paramitas, and meditations, they also make use of unique tantric methods and Dzogchen meditation which are seen as more advanced. These include mantras, mandalas, mudras, deity yoga, other visualization based meditations, illusory body yogas like tummo and rituals like the goma fire ritual. Vajrayana teaches that these techniques provide faster path to Buddhahood.[64]
A central feature of tantric practice is the use of mantras, and seed syllables (
According to Indologist Alex Wayman, Buddhist esotericism is centered on what is known as "the three mysteries" or "secrets": the tantric adept affiliates his body, speech, and mind with the body, speech, and mind of a Buddha through mudra, mantras and samadhi respectively.[66] Padmavajra (c. 7th century) explains in his Tantrarthavatara Commentary, the secret Body, Speech, and Mind of the Buddhas are:[67]
- Secret of Body: Whatever form is necessary to tame the living beings.
- Secret of Speech: Speech exactly appropriate to the lineage of the creature, as in the language of the yaksas, etc.
- Secret of Mind: Knowing all things as they really are.
These elements are brought together in the practice of tantric deity yoga, which involves visualizing the deity's body and mandala, reciting the deity's mantra and gaining insight into the nature of things based on this contemplation. Advanced tantric practices such as deity yoga are taught in the context of an initiation ceremony by tantric gurus or vajracharyas (vajra-masters) to the tantric initiate, who also takes on formal commitments or vows (samaya).
Vajrayana is a system of tantric
Most Tantric Buddhists believe nirvana is achievable in a single lifetime with "vigorous study and meditation".[70]
Deity yoga
The fundamental practice of Buddhist Tantra is "
In the Unsurpassed Yoga Tantras, the most widespread tantric form in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, this method is divided into two stages, the generation stage (utpatti-krama) and the completion stage (nispanna-krama). In the generation stage, one dissolves one's reality into emptiness and meditates on the deity-mandala, resulting in identification with this divine reality. In the completion stage, the divine image along with the illusory body is applied to the realization of
This dissolution into emptiness is then followed by the visualization of the deity and re-emergence of the yogi as the deity. During the process of deity visualization, the deity is to be imaged as not solid or tangible, as "empty yet apparent", with the character of a mirage or a rainbow.[73] This visualization is to be combined with "divine pride", which is "the thought that one is oneself the deity being visualized."[74] Divine pride is different from common pride because it is based on compassion for others and on an understanding of emptiness.[75]
The Tibetologist David Germano outlines two main types of completion practice: a formless and image-less contemplation on the ultimate empty nature of the mind and various yogas that make use of the illusory body to produce energetic sensations of bliss and warmth.[76]
The illusory body yogas systems like the Six Dharmas of Naropa and the Six Yogas of Kalachakra make use of energetic schemas of human psycho-physiology composed of "energy channels" (Skt. nadi, Tib. rtsa), "winds" or currents (Skt. vayu, Tib. rlung), "drops" or charged particles (Skt. bindu, Tib. thig le) and chakras ("wheels"). These subtle energies are seen as "mounts" for consciousness, the physical component of awareness. They are engaged by various means such as pranayama (breath control) to produce blissful experiences that are then applied to the realization of ultimate reality.[77]
Other methods which are associated with the completion stage in Tibetan Buddhism include dream yoga (which relies on lucid dreaming), practices associated with the bardo (the interim state between death and rebirth), transference of consciousness (phowa) and Chöd, in which the yogi ceremonially offers their body to be eaten by tantric deities in a ritual feast.
Other practices
Another form of Vajrayana practice are certain meditative techniques associated with Mahāmudrā and Dzogchen, often termed "formless practices" or the path of self-liberation. These techniques do not rely on deity visualization per se but on direct pointing-out instruction from a master and are often seen as the most advanced and direct methods.[78]
Another distinctive feature of Tantric Buddhism is its unique and often elaborate rituals. They include pujas (worship rituals), prayer festivals, protection rituals, death rituals, tantric feasts (ganachakra), tantric initiations (abhiseka) and the goma fire ritual (common in East Asian Esotericism).
An important element in some of these rituals (particularly initiations and tantric feasts) seems to have been the practice of
The practice of ingestion of sexual fluids is mentioned by numerous tantric commentators, sometimes euphemistically referring to the penis as the "vajra" and the vagina as the "lotus". The Cakrasamvara Tantra commentator Kambala, writing about this practice, states:
The seats are well-known on earth to be spots within the lotus mandala; by abiding within it there is great bliss, the royal nature of nondual joy. Therefore the lotus seat is supreme: filled with a mixture of semen and uterine blood, one should especially kiss it, and lolling with the tongue take it up. Unite the vajra and lotus, with the rapture of drinking [this] liquor.[80]
According to David Gray, these sexual practices probably originated in a non-monastic context, but were later adopted by monastic establishments (such as
Because of its adoption by the monastic tradition, the practice of sexual yoga was slowly transformed into one which was either done with an imaginary consort visualized by the yogi instead of an actual person, or reserved to a small group of the "highest" or elite practitioners. Likewise, the drinking of sexual fluids was also reinterpreted by later commentators to refer illusory body anatomy of the perfection stage practices.[82]
Symbols and imagery
Vajrayāna uses a rich variety of symbols, terms, and images that have multiple meanings according to a complex system of
The vajra
The Sanskrit term "vajra" denoted a thunderbolt like a legendary weapon and divine attribute that was made from an adamantine, or an indestructible substance which could, therefore, pierce and penetrate any obstacle or obfuscation. It is the weapon of choice of Indra, the King of the Devas. As a secondary meaning, "vajra" symbolizes the ultimate nature of things which is described in the tantras as translucent, pure and radiant, but also indestructible and indivisible. It is also symbolic of the power of tantric methods to achieve its goals.[84]
A vajra is also a scepter-like ritual object (
Imagery and ritual in deity yoga
Representations of the deity, such as statues (
Mandalas are also sacred enclosures,
All ritual in Vajrayana practice can be seen as aiding in this process of visualization and identification. The practitioner can use various hand implements such as a vajra, bell, hand-drum (damaru) or a ritual dagger (phurba), but also ritual hand gestures (mudras) can be made, special chanting techniques can be used, and in elaborate offering rituals or initiations, many more ritual implements and tools are used, each with an elaborate symbolic meaning to create a special environment for practice. Vajrayana has thus become a major inspiration in traditional Tibetan art.
Texts
There is an extended body of texts associated with Buddhist Tantra, including the "tantras" themselves, tantric commentaries and shastras, sadhanas (liturgical texts), ritual manuals (Chinese: 儀軌; Pinyin: Yíguǐ; Rōmaji: Giki), dharanis, poems or songs (dohas), termas and so on. According to Harunaga Isaacson,
Though we do not know precisely at present just how many Indian tantric Buddhist texts survive today in the language in which they were written, their number is certainly over one thousand five hundred; I suspect indeed over two thousand. A large part of this body of texts has also been translated into Tibetan, and a smaller part into Chinese. Aside from these, there are perhaps another two thousand or more works that are known today only from such translations. We can be certain as well that many others are lost to us forever, in whatever form. Of the texts that survive a very small proportion has been published; an almost insignificant percentage has been edited or translated reliably.[89]
Vajrayāna texts exhibit a wide range of literary characteristics—usually a mix of verse and prose, almost always in a Sanskrit that "transgresses frequently against classical norms of grammar and usage," although also occasionally in various Middle Indic dialects or elegant classical Sanskrit.[89]
In Chinese
In Tibetan Buddhism, a large number of tantric works are widely studied and different schools focus on the study and practice of different cycles of texts. According to Geoffrey Samuel,
the
Dunhuang manuscripts
The Dunhuang manuscripts also contain Tibetan Tantric manuscripts. Dalton and Schaik (2007, revised) provide an excellent online catalogue listing 350 Tibetan Tantric Manuscripts] from Dunhuang in the Stein Collection of the British Library which is currently fully accessible online in discrete digitized manuscripts.[93] With the Wylie transcription of the manuscripts they are to be made discoverable online in the future.[94] These 350 texts are just a small portion of the vast cache of the Dunhuang manuscripts.
Traditions
Other traditions like contemporary Chinese Buddhism, Japanese Zen, Korean Buddhism, and Vietnamese Buddhism also make use of esoteric (Chinese: mijiao, Japanese: mikkyo) or mantrayana methods to a lesser extent. In many Asian Mahayana Buddhist traditions, esoteric methods are used as a complement, not as the central practice. This mainly involves the recitation of mantras (like the ten small mantras) and various popular dharanis. However, certain revival movements have attempted to establish new esoteric schools in mainland East Asia such as Mantra School Bright Lineage (in China) and the South Korean Jingak Order.
There was strong connection between the
The distinction between mantrayana traditions is not always rigid. For example, the tantra sections of the Tibetan Buddhist canon of texts sometimes include material not usually thought of as tantric outside the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, such as the widely recited Heart Sutra[96] and even versions of some material found in the Pali Canon.[a]
Chinese Esoteric Buddhism
Esoteric and Tantric teachings followed the same route into northern
Zhenyan was also brought to
Today, esoteric traditions are deeply embedded in mainstream Chinese Buddhism and expressed through various rituals which make use of tantric mantra and dhāraṇī and the veneration of certain tantric deities like Cundi and Acala.[102] One example of esoteric teachings still practiced in many Chinese Buddhist monasteries is the Śūraṅgama Sūtra and the dhāraṇī revealed within it, the Śūraṅgama Mantra, which are especially influential in the Chinese Chan tradition.[103]
A recent development is known as the “tantric revival movement” (mijiao fuxing yundong 密教復興運動) which involved the revival of Chinese Esoteric schools by Chinese students of Japanese Shingon.[104] Some important figures of this revival include Wang Hongyuan 王弘願 (1876–1937), and Guru Wuguang (悟光上師 (1918–2000), both trained in Shingon and went on to spread Shingon teachings in the Chinese speaking world.[105][106] These revivalist lineages exist in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Malaysia. Though they draw mainly from Shingon teachings, they have also adopted some Tibetan Buddhist elements.[107]
Another form of esoteric Buddhism in China is the related but unique tradition of Azhaliism, which is practiced among the Bai people of China and venerates Mahakala as a major deity.[108][109]
Japanese esotericism
Shingon Buddhism
The Shingon school is found in
The primary texts of Shingon Buddhism are the
Tendai Buddhism
Although the Tendai school in China and Japan does employ some esoteric practices, these rituals came to be considered of equal importance with the exoteric teachings of the that one is innately an enlightened being, and that one can attain enlightenment within the current lifetime.
Korean milgyo
Esoteric Buddhist practices (known as milgyo, 密教) and texts arrived in
During the
There are two Esoteric Buddhist schools in modern Korea: the Chinŏn (眞言) and the Jingak Order (眞 覺). According to Henrik H. Sørensen, "they have absolutely no historical link with the Korean Buddhist tradition per se but are late constructs based in large measures on Japanese Shingon Buddhism."[111]
Vietnamese Buddhist esotericism
Vietnamese Buddhist esotericism is known as Mật giáo or Mật Tông and is a common part of Vietnamese Mahayana Buddhism (along with Pure Land practice and Thien).[112] Commonly recited esoteric texts include Uṣṇīṣavijayadhāraṇī, the Nīlakaṇṭha Dhāraṇī and the Śūraṅgama mantra. According to Quang Minh Thich "at present, it is still the norm in Vietnamese Buddhist temples, both in Vietnam and abroad, that these mantras, as elements of the Mantrayana, are recited either in their distinctive chanted sessions or in conjunction with other popular Buddhist scriptures. In function, the Vietnamese Tantric practices serve as a complement to the practices of Zen and Pure Land, not as an independent tradition."[112]
The first Vietnamese monk we know of who studied Vajrayana was Master Van Ky (c. 7th century) who received initiation in the kingdom of Srivijaya from a certain Jñanabhadra (Tri Hien) as reported by Yijing.[113] By the 12th century (under the Lý dynasty), esoteric Buddhism was widespread in Vietnam, and was especially favored by the Vô Ngôn Thông school as well as by the Vinitaruci school.[114] One famous esoteric master of this period was Từ Đạo Hạnh.[114] He brought back various texts and practices from Burma. He became famous as a powerful magician.[115] He was fond of the Mahākaruṇika Dhāraṇī.[114] He also spread esoteric teachings throughout Vietnam and liberalized their practice, making them less dependent on reincarnation lineages (similar to Tibetan tulkus).[116] Another promoter of esoteric Buddhism during this period was Sùng Phạm (1004-1078) of Phap Van pagoda who studied in India for nine years before returning to Vietnam and was the teacher of the influential esoteric master Tri Bat.[114] Phap Loa (1284-1330), a leader of the Truc Lam school, was another very influential Vietnamese esoteric master. He is known for establishing esoteric abhiseka (initiation) ceremonies as well as Huayan (Hoa Nghiêm) assemblies. He also wrote various texts on esoteric topics.[117]
Chinese Buddhist esotericism also influenced Vietnamese esotericism during the medieval period, especially the Huayan Esotericism of Daoshen's Xianmi yuantong chengfo xinyao ji (顯密圓通成佛心要集 Collection of Essentials for the Attainment of Buddhahood by Total [Inter-]Penetration of the Esoteric and the Exoteric, T1955).
Some modern teachers and organizations focus specifically on Vietnamese esoteric Buddhism. Thích Viên Đức (1932-1980) was one important modern promoter of Esoteric Buddhism. He is known for translating a collection of Esoteric Buddhist texts, contributing to the dissemination of Esoteric Buddhism in Vietnam. Thích Viên Đức promoted esoteric Buddhist teachings as the fastest path to enlightenment. He established numerous communities in southern Vietnam and was also known as a healer. He also met with Tibetan lamas and Japanese Buddhists.[118] Another modern Vietnamese esoteric organization is Mat Giao Friendship Association who publishes Phước Triệu's Quintessence of Esoteric Buddhism (2004). Esoteric practices are also currently associated with the Thầy Temple in Greater Hanoi. Vietnamese esotericism can also be quite sycretic, borrowing from Chinese, Japanese and Tibetan Buddhism.
Indo-Tibetan Buddhism
Part of a series on |
Tibetan Buddhism |
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Vajrayāna Buddhism was initially established in
This tradition practices and studies a set of tantric texts and commentaries associated with the more "left hand" (.
In the pre-modern era, Tibetan Buddhism spread outside of Tibet primarily due to the influence of the
The Tibetan Buddhist tradition is today found in Tibet,
Bengali Buddhism
Although, Bengal was once a thriving centre of Vajrayana and
Nepalese Newar Buddhism
Newar Buddhism is practiced by
Indonesian Esoteric Buddhism
Indonesian Esoteric Buddhism refers to the traditions of Esoteric Buddhism found in the Indonesian islands of Java and Sumatra before the rise and dominance of Islam in the region (13–16th centuries). The Buddhist empire of Srivijaya (650 CE–1377 CE) was a major center of Esoteric Buddhist learning which drew Chinese monks such as Yijing and Indian scholars like Atiśa.[122] The temple complex at Borobudur in central Java, built by the Shailendra dynasty also reflects strong Tantric or at least proto-tantric influences, particularly of the cult of Vairocana.[123][124]
Indonesian Esoteric Buddhism may have also reached the Philippines, possibly establishing the first form of Buddhism in the Philippines. The few Buddhist artifacts that have been found in the islands reflect the iconography of Srivijaya's Vajrayana.[125]
Related traditions
Some traditions are related to Vajrayana, but are not to be seen as "Vajrayana" or "Mantrayana" proper. Vajrayana here referring to the Buddhist tradition based on the tantric literature of North Indian Mahayana, the
. However, these related traditions may have been influenced by Vajrayana proper and have borrowed practices from Vajrayana schools.Shugendō
Shugendō was founded in 7th-century Japan by the ascetic En no Gyōja, based on the Queen's Peacocks Sutra. With its origins in the solitary hijiri back in the 7th century, Shugendō evolved as a sort of amalgamation between Esoteric Buddhism, Shinto and several other religious influences including Taoism. Buddhism and Shinto were amalgamated in the shinbutsu shūgō, and Kūkai's syncretic religion held wide sway up until the end of the Edo period, coexisting with Shinto elements within Shugendō[126]
In 1613 during the Edo period, the
Southern Esoteric Buddhism
"Southern Esoteric Buddhism" or Borān kammaṭṭhāna ('ancient practices') is a term for esoteric forms of Buddhism from
Southern Esoteric Buddhism is a unique Southeast Asian development based on
Southern Esoteric Buddhism declined after the rise of Southeast Asian Buddhist modernism. However, esoteric Buddhist practices remain in some contemporary South East Asian traditions, including the Thai Dhammakaya tradition, the Burmese Weizza tradition and in rural Cambodian Buddhism.
Academic study difficulties
Serious Vajrayana academic study in the Western world is in early stages due to the following obstacles:[130]
- Although a large number of Tantric scriptures are extant, they have not been formally ordered or systematized.
- Due to the esoteric initiatory nature of the tradition, many practitioners will not divulge information or sources of their information.
- As with many different subjects, it must be studied in context and with a long history spanning many different cultures.
- Ritual, as well as doctrine, need to be investigated.
Buddhist tantric practice is categorized as secret practice; this is to avoid misinformed people from harmfully misusing the practices. A method to keep this secrecy is that tantric initiation is required from a master before any instructions can be received about the actual practice. During the initiation procedure in the highest class of tantra (such as the Kalachakra), students must take the tantric vows which commit them to such secrecy.[131] "Explaining general tantra theory in a scholarly manner, not sufficient for practice, is likewise not a root downfall. Nevertheless, it weakens the effectiveness of our tantric practice."[132]
Terminology
The terminology associated with Vajrayana Buddhism can be confusing. Most of the terms originated in the
In the Vajrayana tradition, now preserved mainly in Tibetan lineages, it has long been recognized that certain important teachings are expressed in a form of secret symbolic language known as saṃdhyā-bhāṣā, 'Twilight Language'. Mudrās and mantras, maṇḍalas and
The term Tantric Buddhism was not one originally used by those who practiced it. As scholar Isabelle Onians explains:
"Tantric Buddhism" [...] is not the transcription of a native term, but a rather modern coinage, if not totally occidental. For the equivalent Sanskrit tāntrika is found, but not in Buddhist texts. Tāntrika is a term denoting someone who follows the teachings of scriptures known as Tantras, but only in
Saivism, not Buddhism [...] Tantric Buddhism is a name for a phenomenon which calls itself, in Sanskrit, Mantranaya, Vajrayāna, Mantrayāna or Mantramahāyāna (and apparently never Tantrayāna). Its practitioners are known as mantrins, yogis, or sādhakas. Thus, our use of the anglicised adjective “Tantric” for the Buddhist religion taught in Tantras is not native to the tradition, but is a borrowed term which serves its purpose.[134]
See also
- Buddhism in Bhutan
- Buddhism in Nepal
- Buddhism in Russia
- Buddhism in the Maldives
- Eastern esotericism
- Malaysian Vajrayana
References
Notes
- ^ Skilling 1998, p. 78, speaks of the tantra divisions of some editions of the Kangyur as including Sravakayana, Mahayana and Vajrayana texts.
Citations
- ^ Buswell 2004, pp. 875–876.
- ^ a b Gray 2007, pp. ix–x.
- ^ Payne 2006, p. 6.
- ^ Lü 2017, pp. 72–82.
- ^ Orzech 2006.
- ^ Ray 2000, p. [page needed].
- ^ Reynolds 2007.
- ^ Snellgrove 1987, p. 168.
- ^ Schumann 1974, p. 163.
- ^ a b c Kitagawa 2002, p. 80.
- ^ Dowman 1985, Introduction.
- ^ Davidson 2002, pp. 228, 234.
- ^ Snellgrove 1987, p. 122.
- ^ Williams, Tribe & Wynne 2012, p. 225.
- ^ Osto 2009.
- ^ Snellgrove 1987, p. 147.
- ^ a b Williams, Tribe & Wynne 2012, pp. 205–206.
- ^ Williams, Tribe & Wynne 2012, p. 210.
- ^ Wayman 2008, p. 19.
- ^ Williams, Tribe & Wynne 2012, p. 212.
- ^ Tajima 1992, p. [page needed].
- ^ Mullin & Tsongkhapa 2005, p. 70.
- ^ Schumann 1974.
- ^ Davidson 2002, p. [page needed].
- ^ Davidson 2002, p. 171.
- ^ Sanderson 2009, p. 124.
- ^ Sanderson 2009, pp. 129–131.
- ^ Sanderson, A. (1994). "Buddhism into the Year 2000". Vajrayāna: Origin and function. Dhammakaya Foundation. pp. 87–102.
- ^ Sanderson 2009, pp. 144–145.
- ^ Huber 2008, pp. 94–95.
- ^ Davidson 2002, p. 204.
- ^ Davidson 2002, p. 206.
- ^ Davidson 2002, p. 207.
- ^ Davidson 2002, p. 214.
- ^ Davidson 2002, p. 217.
- ^ Davidson 2002, pp. 228, 231.
- ^ Verrill 2012, Ch. 7: Origin of Guhyamantra.
- ^ Palden Sherab Rinpoche 1992.
- ^ Wayman 2008, p. 3.
- ^ Beyer 1973, p. 69.
- ^ Snellgrove 1987, p. 125.
- ^ Wayman 1977, p. 56.
- ^ a b Williams, Tribe & Wynne 2012, p. 202.
- ^ Snellgrove 1987, pp. 125–126.
- ^ Snellgrove 1987, p. 126.
- ^ Duckworth 2015, p. 100.
- ^ Rongzom Chözang & Köppl 2008, ch. 4.
- ^ Wayman 2008, p. 5.
- ^ a b c d e Buswell 2004, p. 875.
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- ^ a b c Williams, Tribe & Wynne 2012, p. 236.
- ^ Williams, Tribe & Wynne 2012, p. 237.
- ^ Wayman 2008, p. 39.
- ^ Simmer-Brown 2002, p. 217.
- ^ Simmer-Brown 2002, pp. 217–219.
- ^ Simmer-Brown 2002, p. 219.
- ^ a b Williams, Tribe & Wynne 2012, pp. 98, 240.
- ^ Williams, Tribe & Wynne 2012, pp. 198, 242.
- ^ Tsongkhapa 2005, p. 46.
- ^ Hopkins, Jeffrey; Tantric Techniques, 2008, pp 220, 251
- ^ a b Gray 2007, p. 132.
- ^ Wayman 1977, p. 63.
- ^ Wayman 2008, p. 36.
- ^ Ray 2001, p. 178.
- ^ Williams, Tribe & Wynne 2012, pp. 223–224.
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- ^ Powers 2007, p. 273.
- ^ Gray 2007, pp. 73–74.
- ^ Garson 2004, p. 45.
- ^ Ray 2001, pp. 112–113.
- ^ Gray 2007, pp. 108–118.
- ^ Gray 2007, p. 118..
- ^ Gray 2007, p. 126.
- ^ Gray 2007, pp. 121, 127.
- ^ Wayman 1977, p. 62.
- ^ Williams, Tribe & Wynne 2012, p. 217.
- ^ Williams, Tribe & Wynne 2012, p. 219.
- ^ Garson 2004, p. 42.
- ^ Wayman 2008, p. 83.
- ^ Ray 2001, p. 130.
- ^ a b Isaacson 1998.
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- ^ Green 2015, p. 120.
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- ^ Sharf, Robert (2001) Coming to Terms With Chinese Buddhism: A Reading of the Treasure Store Treatise: p. 268
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- ^ a b Thich 2007, p. 51.
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- ^ a b c d Tai Tu 2008, pp. 98–99.
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- ^ Fontein, Jan. Entering the Dharmadhātu: A Study of the <Gandavyūha Reliefs of Borobudur, page 233.
- ^ Laszlo Legeza, "Tantric Elements in Pre-Hispanic Gold Art," Arts of Asia, 1988, 4:129-133.
- ^ Miyake, Hitoshi. Shugendo in History. pp45–52.
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- ^ Akira 1993, p. 9.
- ^ "Information for Beginners". kalachakranet.org. Archived from the original on 2022-10-06. Retrieved 2022-10-06.
- ^ "Common Root Tantric Vows". studybuddhism.com. Archived from the original on 2022-10-06. Retrieved 2022-10-06.
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- Tsongkhapa (2005). Tantric Ethics: An Explanation of the Precepts for Buddhist Vajrayana Practice. Translated by Gareth Sparham. Wisdom Publications. ISBN 0-86171-290-0.
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Further reading
- Arnold, Edward A., ed. (2009). As Long As Space Endures: Essays on the Kalacakra Tantra in Honor of H.H. the Dalai Lama. Snow Lion Publications. ISBN 978-1-55939-303-4.
- Banerji, S. C. (1977). Tantra in Bengal: A Study in Its Origin, Development and Influence. Manohar. ISBN 978-81-85425-63-4.
- ISBN 978-0-86171-312-7.
- Kongtrul, Jamgon; Guarisco, Elio; McLeod, Ingrid (2004). Systems of Buddhist Tantra:The Indestructible Way of Secret Mantra. The Treasury of Knowledge (book 6 part 4). Ithaca: Snow Lion. ISBN 978-1-55939-210-5.
- Kongtrul, Jamgon; Harding, Sarah (2007). Esoteric Instructions: A Detailed Presentation of the Process of Meditation in Vajrayana. The Treasury of Knowledge (book 8 part 4). Ithaca, NY: Snow Lion Publications. ISBN 978-1-55939-284-6.
- Kongtrul, Jamgon; Guarisco, Elio; McLeod, Ingrid (2008). The Elements of Tantric Practice:A General Exposition of the Process of Meditation in the Indestructible Way of Secret Mantra. The Treasury of Knowledge (book 8 part 3). Ithaca: Snow Lion. ISBN 978-1-55939-305-8.
- Kongtrul, Jamgon; ISBN 978-1-55939-360-7.
- Panchen, Ngari; Dudjom Rinpoche (1996). Perfect Conduct: Ascertaining the Three Vows. Wisdom Publications. ISBN 0-86171-083-5.
- Patrul Rinpoche (1994). Brown, Kerry; Sharma, Sima (eds.). The Words of My Perfect Teacher. Translated by the Padmakara Translation Group. San Francisco, California: HarperCollinsPublishers. ISBN 978-0-06-066449-7.
- Snelling, John (1987). The Buddhist Handbook: A Complete Guide to Buddhist Teaching and Practice. London: Century Paperbacks. ISBN 978-0-7126-1554-9.
- Wedemeyer, Christian K., ed. (2007). Āryadeva's Lamp that Integrates the Practices (Caryāmelāpakapradīpa): The Gradual Path of Vajrayāna Buddhism according to the Esoteric Community Noble Tradition. New York: American Institute of Buddhist Studies at Columbia University. ISBN 978-0-9753734-5-3.
External links
- Media related to Vajrayana at Wikimedia Commons
- An Introduction to Vajrayana
- What is Vajrayana Buddhism?