Power, Politics,and the Reinvention

ofTraditionTIBET IN THE SEVENTEENTH AND

EIGHTEENTH CENTURIES

---

EDITED BY

-

BRYAN J. CUEVAS

& KURTIS R. SCHAEFFER

Universite de la Rochelle S.U.

1111111111111111111111111111111103998

POWER, POLITICS, AND THE REINVENTION OF TRADITION

BRILL'STIBETAN STUDIES

LIBRARYEDITED BY

HENKBLEZERALEX MCKAY

CHARLES RAMBLE

VOLUME 10/3

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POWER, POLITICS, ANDTHE REINVENTION OF

TRADITION

Tibet in the Seventeenth andEighteenth Centuries

C o s:

PlATS 2003: Tibetan Studies: Proceedings of the Tenth Seminarof the International Association for Tibetan Studies, Oxford, 2003.

Managing Editor: Charles Ramble.

EDITED BY

BRYANJ. CUEVAS AND KURTIS R. SCHAEFFER

URSLA ROCHELLE

BRILLLEIDEN· BOSTON

2006

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

IntroductionBryan J. CUEVAS and Kurtis R. SCHAEFFER 1

I. POWER, POLITICS, AND RELIGION

1. Benjamin BOGINRoyal Blood and Political Power: Contrasting Allegiances in the

Memoirs of Yo1mo Bstan 'dzin nor bu (1598-1644) 7

2. Marina ILLICHImperial Stooge or Emissary to the Dge lugs Throne? Rethinking

the Biographies of Chankya Rolpe Dorje 17

3. R. Trent POMPLUNIppolito Desideri, S.l on Padmasambhava's Prophecies and the

Persecution of the Rnying rna, 1717-1720 33

4. Nikolay TSYREMPILOVDge lugs pa Divided: Some Aspects of the Political Role of

Tibetan Buddhism in the Expansion of the Qing Dynasty ...... 47

5. Gray TUTTLEA Tibetan Buddhist Mission to the East: The Fifth Dalai Lama's

Journey to Beijing, 1652-1653 65

II. THE REINVENTION OF TRADITION

6. Jake DALTONRecreating the Rnying rna School: The Mdo dbang Tradition of

Smin grol gling 91

VI TABLE OF CONTENTS

7. Georgios HALKIASPure-Lands and other Visions in Seventeenth-Century Tibet: A

Gnam chos sadhana for the Pure-land Sukhavati Revealedin 1658 by Gnam chos Mi 'gyur rdo rje (1645-1667) 103

8. Derek MAHERThe Lives and Time of' Jam dbyangs bzhad pa 129

9. Guilaine MALAA Mahayanist Rewriting of the History of China by Mgon po

skyabs in the Rgya nag chos 'byung 145

10. Jann RONISBdud 'dul rdo rje (1615-1672) and Rnying rna Adaptations

to the Era of the Fifth Dalai Lama 171

11. Kurtis R. SCHAEFFERRitual, Festival and Authority under the Fifth Dalai Lama 187

12. Simon WIKHAM-SMITHBan de skya min ser min: Tshangs dbyangs rgya mtsho's

Complex, Confused, and Confusing Relationship withSde srid Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho as Portrayed in theTshangs dbyangs rgya mtsho 'i mgul glu 203

Contributors 213

INTRODUCTION

Bryan J. Cuevas and Kurtis R. Schaeffer

The twelve essays included in the present volume underscore commoninterests that have been emerging within the study of Tibetan historyover the last several years. Each essay focuses on a particular figure,institution, or literary corpus, and each makes a specialized contributionto our collective understanding of these respective topics. Yet all areconcerned, more or less explicitly, with relationships between the pastand the present evoked in Tibetan historiography, ritual literature, andBuddhist esoteric writings. For the most part, in matters of legitimationand power, whether political or religious, Tibetan historians, philoso­phers, and ritual specialists have always placed critical emphasis on thepreservation of tradition and the succession of authentic lines oftransmission. Any variation from the unbroken lineages of traditionmeant in every case that legitimate authority could never be properlyestablished. Still, there was much room for innovation, but only throughcreative strategy and the manipulation of the details of history and biog­raphy. With few exceptions, the Tibetans studied here in this volume layclaim to the venerable authority of established traditions in order topromote new or significantly re-fashioned practices, doctrines, andideologies. Most of these Tibetan figures go to great lengths to validatetheir current practices and perspectives as part of an uninterruptedancient tradition, very often reaching back to the life of SakyamuniBuddha and the founding moments of Buddhism in India and Tibet. Yetin the very act of drawing out these connections between tradition andinnovation they reveal how necessary it is to actively maintain suchpractices through deliberate and constant reference to the past.

In this tension between visions of unchanging order and the realityof local contingency we see a good example of what historian EricHobsbawm has termed 'invented tradition,' or "a set of practices,normally governed by overtly or tacitly accepted rules and of a ritual orsymbolic nature, which seek to inculcate certain values and norms ofbehavior by repetition, which automatically implies continuity with thepast."! While the contributors to this volume of essays may not have

1 Hobsbawm and Ranger 1983: 1.

2 B. CUEVAS AND K. SCHAEFFER

been influenced explicitly by the insights of Hobsbawm, they all focuson a particularly rich era of Tibetan history, the mid-seventeenth throughearly eighteenth centuries. Hobsbawm acknowledges that "there isprobably no time and place with which historians are concerned whichhas not seen the 'invention' of tradition. '" Nevertheless, Hobsbawmsuggests, "we should expect it to occur more frequently when rapidtransformations of society weakens or destroys the social patterns forwhich 'old' traditions had been designed."2 The period of theseventeenth-eighteenth century in Tibet stands as an exemplary case fortesting the relevance of the notion of invented tradition. The period ismarked by the end of civil war in central Tibet and the rise in 1642 of theFifth Dalai Lama (1617-1682) to unprecedented political prominence,resulting in the centralization of institutional authority in Lhasa and theincrease of Tibetan involvement in the territorial power struggles be­tween Mongols and Manchus throughout the early Qing empire.

A brief summary of the chapters provides some sense of theoverarching themes that characterize this pivotal period in Tibetan his­tory. Benjamin Bogin (Chapter 1) introduces the Memoirs of the thirdYol mo sprul sku Bstan 'dzin nor bu (1598-1644), paying particularattention to the issue of sectarian identity. Significantly, he shows thatthe common distinctions drawn by contemporary scholarship betweenBuddhist sectarian groups, such as the Dge lugs pa and the Bka' brgyudpa, are less important for the Tibetans actually affiliated with these'schools.' More significant, Bogin argues, are the relationships definedby family ties, geographical proximity, ordination lineage, and othersimilar social-religious group associations. Marina Illich (Chapter 2)discusses the biographical literature dedicated to Leang skya Rol pa'i rdorje (Chankya Rolpe Dorje, 1717-1786). Of particular interest to Illich isthe focus of Leang skya's biographers on the details of Qing ritualprotocol when describing the formal meetings between Tibetan Buddhistleader and Manchu imperial leader. Illich suggests that this deliberateappropriation of the logic of imperial ritual was an attempt by the Ti­betan authors to "deflect the hegemonizing strategies of the Qing byasserting a narrative of Dge lugs indispensability to the realization ofQing ambition." Trent Pomplun (Chapter 3) analyses the writings of theJesuit missionary Ippolito Desideri (1684-1733) on the prophecies ofPadmasambhava. Pomplun shows that this eighth-century visionary fromo rgyan loomed large in Desideri's interpretations of Tibetan Buddhism

2 Hobsbawm and Ranger 1983: 4.

INTRODUCTION 3

and that for this Jesuit missionary the prophecies of Padmasambhavaprovided the most credible narrative framework for making sense of theDzungar persecutions of the Rnying rna pa during the political chaos incentral Tibet in the years 1717-1720. Nikolay Tsyrempilov (Chapter 4)explores the political role of Dge lugs pa figures in the expansion of theQing dynasty. He argues that insufficient attention has been paid to therelations between the Qing emperors and the religious leaders of Tibetwho, more often than previously described, were active in supporting andpromoting Qing policies in Tibet and throughout Inner Asia. Gray Tuttle(Chapter 5) chronicles the Fifth Dalai Lama's trip to Beijing during theyears 1652-1653. On close reading of the accounts of this journey, Tuttleis able to highlight the missionary impulse in Tibetan society of thesixteenth and seventeenth centuries, leading to the broad expansion ofTibetan Buddhism into Inner and East Asia. Jake Dalton (Chapter 6)looks at how, at the tum of the eighteenth century, the two brothers ofSmin grol gling, Gter bdag gling pa (1646-1714) and Lo chen Dharmasri(1654-1717), worked to recreate the Rnying rna school, and how theSiura Empowerment (Mdo dbang) literature and ritual practices played akey role in this recreation. Dalton points out that "the identity of theRnying rna school is still defined in large part by the regular observance"of the full ritual program originally conceived and initiated by the Smingling brothers. Georgios Halkias (Chapter 7) draws attention to the un­derstudied Pure Land tradition in Tibet by focusing on the importantSukhavati sddhana of the young gter ston Gnam chos Mi 'gyur rdo rje(1645-1667). Halkias demonstrates that Mi 'gyur rdo rje's siidhana is aremarkable example of Tibetan syncretic liturgy, drawing from diversesectarian ritual sources and integrating multiple elements into a singleand effective Pure Land ritual program. Derek Maher (Chapter 8) exam­ines the successive incarnation lineage of 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa'i rdorje (1648-1722) and the 'biographical strategies' used by Dge lugs pawriters in early eighteenth-century Amdo. Maher argues that "throughthe construction of such a lineage, the doctrinal legitimacy and personalcharisma of some particular current figure can be created or fortified byappealing to the luster of previous personalities." Guilaine Mala (Chapter9) takes up the important eighteenth-century "History of Buddhism inChina," the Rgya nag chos 'byung, completed in 1736 by the Mongolscholar Mgon po skyabs (Mong. Gombojab). Mala argues that thisunique Tibetan historical work uses Indian Mahayana literature andtantric prophecies to recast the complex history of Buddhism in China

4 B. CUEVAS AND K. SCHAEFFER

through the lense of Tibetan Buddhism from a decidedly Dge lugs paperspective. Jann Ronis (Chapter 10) surveys the biography of Bdud 'dulrdo rje ( 1615-1672), an important Rnying rna pa figure active in Sde dge.Ronis emphasizes Bdud 'dul rdo rje's attempts to adapt to the changingpolitical landscape of late seventeenth-century Tibet through therevelation of texts (gter ma) and the opening of hidden lands (sbas yul).His efforts, Ronis concludes, were somewhat less-than-successful. KurtisR. Schaeffer (Chapter 11) discusses the extensive innovations in theannual ritual and festival cycle undertaken by Sde srid Sangs rgyas rgyamtsho (Sangye Gyatso, 1653-1705) during the 1690s, and uses two of hisworks, Tales of the New Year (Lo gsar 'bel gtam) and the LhasaCircumambulation Survey (Lha sa skor tshad) as entry points to thelarger project of assessing his role in and contribution to the developmentof Tibetan and Buddhist culture after the founding of the Dga' ldanGovernment in 1642. Finally, Simon Wikham-Smith (Chapter 12)analyses the songs of the Sixth Dalai Lama (1683-1706) in an effort tounderstand the relationship with his much older mentor and regent, Sdesrid Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho.

The essays in this volume offer diverse perspectives on a critical pe­riod in Tibet's history when Tibetans found themselves caught up in thetides of political turmoil and forced into the center of a much larger Cen­tral Eurasian struggle for power and territorial control between the Man­chu rulers of the Qing empire and the Mongols of the north. The Tibet­ans, speaking with multiple voices and with allegiances to varied localreligious and social groups, were compelled to make sense of theirchanging world and their place within it while still maintaining their tiesto the great traditions of Tibet's past. This collection focuses on the vari­ous ways Tibetan historians, biographers, and scholars of all sorts duringthe seventeenth and eighteenth centuries succeeded in this task of rein­venting and reinforcing their respective traditions.

ReferencesHobsbawm, E. and T. Ranger. 1983. The Invention of Tradition.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

1. POWER, POLITICS, AND RELIGION

CHAPTER ONE

ROYAL BLOOD AND POLITICAL POWER:CONTRASTING ALLEGIENCES IN THE MEMOIRS OF

YOL MO BSTAN 'DZIN NOR BU (1598-1644)

Benjamin Bogin

In the chronological schemes of Tibetan historiography (both classicaland modem), the water-horse year 1642 occupies a place of paramountimportance. The ceremony held in that year, through which dominionover Tibet was bestowed upon the Fifth Dalai Lama Ngag dbang blobzang rgya mthso by the victorious Gushri Khan, dramatically marks thedawn of the era dominated by the Dga' ldan pho brang government.Considering the unanimous agreement upon the importance of this datein the history of Tibet, it is somewhat surprising that the events of thatyear, let alone the complex social and political upheavals which precededit, have largely escaped rigorous historical investigation. The first workto designate 1642 as a year of momentous importance was the GreatFifth Dalai Lama's seminal history of Tibet, The Song of the Queen ofSpring (Spyid kyi rgyal mo 'i glu dbyangs) , composed in 1643. Theaccount of Gushri Khan's conquest of the Bsam 'grub rtse palace foundin the last chapter of that work firmly established a model that has beenfollowed by historians to the present day.

The Song of the Queen of Spring has commanded our view ofTibetan history in much the same way as the Potala commands thecityscape of Lhasa. Just as it is difficult to imagine Lhasa without themonumental palace atop Dmar po ri, it is equally challenging to imaginethe history of the early seventeenth century without relying on the FifthDalai Lama's version of events. In this paper I would like to demonstratethe potential value of biographical and autobiographical works composedprior to 1642 as tools with which historians might begin to address thischallenge. In particular, through a close reading of the Memoirs (Rang girtogs pa brjod pa) composed by Yol mo Bstan 'dzin nor bu in 1632, Iwill question the primacy afforded to sectarian affiliation in mostaccounts of the period and discuss the memoirist's distinction betweenroyal authority and political power.

8 BENJAMIN BOGIN

The final chapter of The Song of the Queen ofSpring describes thefall of Bsam 'grub rtse as the resolution of a battle between the forces ofBuddhism led by Gushri Khan (who is described as an emanation ofVajrapani) and the demonic forces led by the King of Upper Gtsang(gtsang stod rgyal po), a descendant of the treacherous usurper, Zhingshag pa Tshe brtan rdo rje. These two adversaries are further associatedwith their geographical bases of support, in Dbus and Gtsang, and withtheir respective allegiances to the sectarian traditions (chos lugs) ofRgyal ba Tsong kha pa and those of the Karma Bka' brgyud pa. Laterhistorians, such as Sum pa mkhan po Ye shes dpal 'byor, furtheremphasized the sectarian nature of the rift dividing seventeenth centuryTibet into two opposing camps. This basic structure is reflected inmodern historiography, for example, in the heading given to GiuseppeTucci's pioneering account of the period (1949: 39-46)-"'Reds' against'Yellows, '" that is, the Karma Bka' brgyud pa and their champions theKings of Gtsang versus the Dge lugs pa and their Mongolian allies.

The Memoirs of the third Yol mo sprul sku, Bstan 'dzin nor bu(1598-1644), entitled, The Sarangi with the Vajra Sound (Rdo rje sgrama'i rgyud mangs), challenge this two-toned view of the period bydescribing a world in which affiliation to a 'Red' or 'Yellow' chos lugsis just one thread of a complex web of social, religious, and politicalidentities and allegiances. The fact that the memoirs were written tenyears before the events of 1642 provides the author with a perspectivevery different from the retrospective clarity of later historians andbiographers, who saw the history of the early seventeenth century as aseries of events inevitably leading to the establishment of the Dga' ldanpho brang government. In this sense, Yol mo Bstan 'dzin nor bu'smemoirs offer a sort of last glimpse into the shadowy world of earlyseventeenth century Tibet. Furthermore, the events of Bstan 'dzin norbu's own life call into question the dichotomy of 'Reds' versus'Yellows': he was, on the one hand, a disciple of the Sixth Zhwa dmar paGar dbang chos kyi dbang phyug (1584-1630) and an active figure at thecourt of the King of Gtsang, and on the other hand, an advisor and ally ofthe Fifth Dalai Lama.

Before examining in detail a few passages from the Third Yol moba's memoirs, it will be necessary to briefly review the major events of

ROYAL BLOOD AND POLITICAL POWER 9

his life.' Bstan 'dzin nor bu was born in Kong po in 1598, son of the Jonang master Lo chen Spyan ras gzigs.? In childhood he was recognizedas the Third Y01 mo sprul sku, a lineage of reincarnations associated withthe Northern Treasures (byang gter) tradition.' and the Bya rung kha shorstupa- and Yol mo gangs ra sbas yul of Nepal.> He studied at a numberof monasteries in Gtsang and received monastic vows from the SixthZhwa dmar pa and the great Kiilacakra master, Lo chen 'Gyur med bdechen (1540-1615). At the age of nineteen, the young monk encounteredthe head of the Northern Treasures tradition, Rig 'dzin Ngag gi dbang po(1580-1639), consequently turning his attention to the study and practiceof the Northern Treasures. After the completion of his first major retreat,he gave up his dge slang vows and became a sngags pa, eventuallymarrying a princess of Gung thang. In the latter part of his life, Bstan'dzin nor bu was engaged in the discovery of treasure-texts, theperformance of rituals to avert Mongolian invasions, and theestablishment of Rdo rje brag as the institutional seat for the NorthernTreasures. This last task he completed shortly before his death bysecuring the patronage of the Fifth Dalai Lama and recognizing andenthroning Padma 'phrin las (1640-1718) as the second Rdo rje brag Rig'dzin.

One might expect that the memoirs of a relatively obscure gter stanwith close ties to both the Bsam 'grub rtse court and the ascendant Dga'ldan pho brang would shed much light on the potential conflicts arisingfrom connections with powers holding opposing sectarian allegiances. Infact, the so-called 'Reds' and the 'Yellows' are lost amidst the sheercomplexity of the relationships described by the author: those defined byties of family lineage, monastic and tantric vows, geographicalboundaries, incarnation lineages, and a host of other religious, social, andpolitical categories. The notion of affiliation with a specific doctrinalsystem that has dominated most discussions of the period hardly appearsin his autobiographical writings. The few mentions of sectarian identity

, For an overview of the lives of the first five Yol mo ba incarnations, see Ehrhard(in press). I am grateful to Dr. Ehrhard for first drawing my attention to the writings ofthe Third Y01 mo sprul sku and for his consistent encouragement throughout my research.

2 Lo chen Spyan ras gzigs 'Phrin las dbang phyug was the reincarnation of Smansding 10 tsa ba Ratnabhadra (1489-1563).

3 See Boord 1993.4 See Blondeau 1994, Dowman 1973, and Ehrhard 1990.5 See Khenpo Nyima Dondrup 2003.

10 BENJAMIN BOGIN

that one finds pale in significance when compared with the muchstronger emphasis on a plethora of other types of allegiance.

Now I would like to tum to a few examples from the memoirswhich illustrate the complexity of these intertwined allegiances bybriefly discussing Bstan 'dzin nor bu's religious education and thenfocusing on his relationships with two important secular rulers. The earlyeducation of the young sprul sku seems to have been a matter ofcontention between the regent appointed by the Second Y01 mo ba andthe boy's father. The father resisted early attempts by the regent, 0 rgyandon grub rdo rje, to take the boy off to his monastery and in his finaltestament ordered that the child be educated at Bzhad grwa tshang. Thismonastery, founded by Tsong kha pa's direct disciple, Grags pa bzangpo, included the boy's father and the father's previous incarnation, Lochen Ratnabhadra, among its former abbots.s Although both of thesemasters are generally considered as proponents of the Jo nang tradition,"Bstan 'dzin nor bu describes Bzhad grwa tshang as a monastery wherethe traditions of Sa skya, Dge lugs, Kar rna and 'Brug pa Bka' brgyudwere equally venerated and practiced.

Apart from praising the monastery's eclectic curriculum, Bstan'dzin nor bu has nothing positive to say about Bzhad grwa tshang andlaments the misery he endured at the hands of its cruel teachers andmonastic officials. He was able to escape from the monastery on anumber of occasions to study with another close associate of his father's,the Kiilacakra master Lo chen 'Gyur med bde chen at Dpal ri bo che. Ashe grew older, although still under the authority of the regent appointedby his previous incarnation, the young sprul sku seems to have felt freerto determine the course of his own education. He remembers beinginspired by a friend who had become a Sa skya rab 'byams pa anddeciding to study the Sa skya tradition. However, he soon realized thatthe preliminary stages of the 'Path and Result' (lam 'bras) practicesrequired a lot of effort and turned elsewhere. During his teenage years,he finally found his place at the Zhwa dmars Nyin byed glingmonastery, where he took dge slong vows in the Bka' brgyud tradition.After a journey to Nepal, he returned to central Tibet and completed hisformal education by participating in the annual debate festival held atNgam ring chos sde, a monastery renowned as a stronghold of the Dgelugs tradition.

6 See Sde srid Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho: 255-56.7 See, for example, Ngag dbang blo gros grags pa: 62-63.

ROYAL BLOOD AND POLITICAL POWER 11

Were we to summarize this early education along sectarian lines, wecould say that the Third Y01 mo ba, a Rnying rna sprul sku born as theson of a 10 nang father, was educated in a Sa skya/Dge lugs monasterybefore pursuing higher studies as a Bka' brgyud monk, completedthrough participation in a Dge lugs debate festival. This jumble showsthat affiliation to a specific chos lugs was highly mutable and non­exclusive. It also suggests that other forces were at play in determiningthe course of the Third Yol mo ba's education. Among these, the mostinfluential factors in the early education were the connections inheritedfrom his previous incarnation and from his father. Later, as he movedinto adolescence, his own interests and abilities, the opinions of hisfriends, and chance encounters with various teachers played more of arole in determining his course of study. This movement between variousteachers and monasteries strikes me as an important aspect of Tibetanreligious life that is often distorted by the tendency to representindividuals and institutions as belonging exclusively to a single sectariantradition. The evidence of Bstan 'dzin nor bu's autobiography suggeststhat we need to reduce our dependence upon this category and examinethe notion of chos lugs much more critically when employing it in ourinterpretations of Tibetan history.

With this in mind, I should now like to leave aside the question ofsectarian identity and discuss Bstan 'dzin nor bu's connections with twoimportant centers of secular power: the Gung thang kingdom and theBsam 'grub rtse court of the Gtsang pa sde srid. His relations with eachmay again be traced along lines of reincarnation and family lineages aswell as through his monastic vows. The Gung thang chos rgyal, Bsodnams dbang phyug, was a disciple of the Second Yol mo sprul sku,whereas the Gtsang pa sde srid was an associate of Bstan 'dzin nor bu' sfather. In the latter case, it was through his status as a disciple of theSixth Zhwa dmar pa that Bstan 'dzin nor bu was fully welcomed at thecourt of Sde srid Phun tshogs rnam rgyal and later his son, Bstan skyongdbang po. In his descriptions of these two courts, the Third Y01 mo baimplicitly draws a distinction between their sources of authority: anauthentic lineage of royal blood in the case of Gung thang and politicalpower and military might in the case of Gtsang.

First of all, there is a terminological distinction concerningdesignation. Khri Bsod nams dbang phyug, the king of Gung thang, isconsistently referred to throughout the text as mnga J bdag, mnga J risgong ma chen po, or btsad po byang chub sems dpa. J Each of these titles

12 BENJAMIN BOGIN

indicates Khri Bsod narns dbang phyug's status as a direct descendant ofthe early medieval kings. The Gtsang pa sde srid, on the other hand,despite being effusively praised, is never referred to in these terms butrather as mi dbang stobs kyi rgyal po or gtsang pa ma hd rd ja. Bstan'dzin nor bu's recollections of his youthful visits to each court furtherilluminate this division. His first encounter with Khri Bsod nams dbangphyug is described in these words:

The Sovereign Lord (mnga' bdag) had a dream in which he felt that hesaw my previous incamation coming and offering him empowerments.Then, I was received as his lama. At our first meeting, there was aformal reception. I was not able to climb onto the throne so my friendneeded to lift me up. The honor and veneration [presented to me] wentbeyond the limits of my imagination. I stayed for a while in the kingspalace. Again and again, the Sovereign Lord came to see [me]. Heshowed respect in a pure and sincere way ...8

The marriage alliance that would eventually bring the Yol mo baeven closer to the royal family of Gung thang is foreshadowed in thepassage relating his second visit to the palace:

The princess had just reached the age of eight at the time. Bdag mo srasyum [=the princess] would come to me every day, each time carrying agift such as would make a young boy happy: crystal bowls of red andgreen, a conch-shell, an excellent rosary, a damaru and so forth. Theprincess would not sit where the cushions had been arranged [for her],but [instead] was always coming to sit right next to me. She was verysweet.?

These passages convey a sense of refined elegance that contrastswith the Yol rno ba's recollections of his first visit to the Bsarn 'grub rtsepalace. There, Sde srid Phun tshogs rnam rgyal ("the powerful lord, the

8 Yol rna Bstan 'dzin nor bu: Rang gi rtogs pa brjod pa rdo rje sgra ma'i rgyudmangs, 16b6-17a2: mnga' bdag gi mnallam du sprul sku gong rna byon nas dbang phulba 'i thugs nyams byung tshod du 'dug/ de nas bla mar bzhes/ thog rna 'i mjal 'phrad/ gzhilen sogs kyi skabs/ khri la 'dzeg mi thub par zla bos skyel dgos pa dang/ rnyed bkur blo 'imtshams las sgal ba byung/ rgyal tsam rgyal po 'i khab de nyid du sdad/ mnga ' bdag nyidyang yang 'phrad par byon/ thugs [gJnang dag par byungl

9 Ibid., 17a5-b 1: learn 'di de skabs dgung 10 brgyad tsam phebs pa geig 'dug/ bdagmo sras yum nyin bzhin shel dam dmar pol ljang khu/ dung ehos/ phreng ba legs pol 71rna ru/ sogs kho bo na gzhon nu la dga' tshor yong ba'i mjal rten re bsnams nas phebskyi yod/ learn 'di bzhugs gdan bshams pa la mi gzhugs pari nga 'i tsa rang na bear nasbzhugs mkhan snying rje mo geig yodl

ROYAL BLOOD AND POLITICAL POWER 13

king of strength, whose judgment, bravery, and ability to conquer set himapart from all of his enemies"), invited him to stay and study for threemonths, promising that the court attendants would take care of all of hisneeds. Bstan 'dzin nor bu reports that during that time:

My living conditions were equal to those of the head-lamas. I stayed inthe room above the Sde sri's private chambers, called 'Lotus-light' andI felt a bit awkward... [The Sde sri,] seeing that I had a high foreheadand long earlobes, said, "Do you have designs of wheels on the palmsof your hands and the soles of your feet?" Although I looked verycarefully, I didn't have any. I did not become arrogant. 10

This passage suggests a touch of ostentation in place of the simpleelegance attributed to the Gung thang court and the Sde srid's praisecomes across as flattery in comparison with the 'sincere praise' of theGung thang chos rgyal.

In the later chapters of Bstan 'dzin nor bu's memoirs, the contrastbetween these two courts becomes increasingly stark. Phun tshogs mamrgyal conquered Gung thang in 1620 and imprisoned the Chos rgyal atShel dkar.U Both rulers died shortly after and the Gtsang pa sde srid wassucceeded by his sixteen year-old son, Bstan skyong dbang po (r. 1621­1642). Although the memoirs describe several occasions in which Bstan'dzin nor bu performed rituals at the behest of Bstan skyong dbang po,his treatment of this final Gtsang pa sde srid ranges from ambivalentdisregard to outright scorn. In one passage, Bstan 'dzin nor bu discoversthat Bstan skyong dbang po is camped nearby and ponders whether heshould meet the young ruler:

These people have crossed into excessive arrogance regarding theirfamily lineage. They are renowned for quarrelling with the Red-hat andBlack-hat emanations about [the height of their] seats. [Sde srid Bstanskyong dbang po expects all] to perform prostrations to him and raiseup piles of tea [as offerings]. He even [acts] like this to our lama! Herejoices in [the lama's] great qualities such as the power of hisblessings and magical abilities; yet, he was unable to humble himself inthe matter of the [height of the] seat and so forth ... U rgyan Rin po chedid not bow to the king. Afraid to diminish the king's merit and in

10 Ibid., 26b3-6: bdag rkyen ni dbu bla rnams dang mnyams/ sde srid rang gigzims chung thog padma 'od du sdad pas gu dog tsam byung/ ...bdag spyi bo mtho badang/ rna shal rgyas pa sogs la gzigs/ phyag mthil zhabs mthil rnams la 'khor 10 'i ri moE yod gsungs/ gzigs phyogs legs po 'dug kyang/ gtan nas med zhus/ khengs rna byas/.

II See Kah thog rig 'dzin Tshe dbang nor bu: 143--44.

14 BENJAMIN BOGIN

order to increase the teachings of the secret mantra, he did not do it. ..In general, I'm not pleased with people who act in this way. Inparticular, while being venerated as the chief lama of the Gung thangchos rgyal, I never had any problems with [the hierarchicalarrangement of] seats ... Then, I thought about what I should do. I said,"Although I don't want to meet him, I'll just go and see him for amoment." Then, I went. 12

This passage highlights the importance of protocol in interactionbetween political and religious authorities in Tibet. Bstan 'dzin nor bu'sprincipal criticism of Bstan skyong dbang po is that he behaves in amanner unwarranted by his family's status in Tibet's elaborate socialhierarchy. It seems likely to me that many of Bstan 'dzin nor bu'scontemporaries shared the feeling that the successive Gtsang pa sde sridrulers were unrightful usurpers of power begrudgingly accepted becauseof their economic and military might. Their eventual defeat by the Dga'ldan pho brang/Gushri Khan alliance seems in part to have beendetermined by this lack of royal blood. The sixteenth and seventeenthcenturies clearly saw a gradual shift of power away from the courts ofthe old aristocratic families and into the hands of the monasticinstitutions. Nevertheless, our propensity to understand Tibetan historyby defining figures and institutions primarily as affiliates of a sectariantradition has blinded us to the salience of factors such as family lineageand political power.

It is my hope that this brief reflection upon a few scattered passagesfrom the memoirs of the Third Yol mo ba demonstrates the potential forfurther research based on related literature. Schaeffer (1998: 858) hasraised the question of whether it is "possible that the distinction betweenthe historical (group/impersonal) and the biographical (individual!personal) masks as much as it reveals in the case of Tibetan literature."The two are certainly inextricably linked. Most literature in the historicalgenres (deb ther, chos 'byung, rgyal rabs) consist of excerpted and/or

12 Yol rna Bstan 'dzin nor bu: 38a6-39a2: khong rnams rigs rus kyi khengs hacang thai basi mtshan yongs grags kyi sprul pa 'i sku zhwa dmar nag la yang bzhugs gdanla brtsod/phyag la 'gyings/ja sna la rtseg/ bdag cag gi bla ma 'di la yang/ byin rlabs kyitshan kha dang/ mthu stobs sogs che ba 'i yon tan la 'gu/ bzhugs gdan sogs kyi bkur bzoschen po zhu bar ma nus nasi .. U rgyan rin po che rgyal po la phyag mi mdzad pa nigsang sngags kyi bstan pa 'i che ba dang rgyal po bsod nams 'bri bar dogs nas mi mdzadpar 'dug/ ... spyir yang 'di 'dra mdzad mkhan la dga' mo med/ lhag par yang gung thangchos kyi rgyal po 'i dbu blar bkur ba 'dis nil sa gang du yang go 'phangs la mtho khyadma byung/ ... gzhan ci rang byed bsam pa byung/ '0 na mjal 'dod rang ni mi 'dug thentsam byed zhus la mjal/.

ROYAL BLOOD AND POLITICAL POWER 15

reformulated materials from the biographical genres (rnam thar, rang girnam thar, rtogs brjod). However, there are also significant distinctionsbetween the two genres in terms of narrative structure, authorial intent,and audience. As with any historiographic enterprise, the authors ofTibet's annals and chronicles attempted to transform the dizzyingcomplexity of the past into a simplified and coherent tale. More oftenthan not, the authors of such works were also explicitly concerned withglorifying the history of the institution to which they belonged. In theworks of memoirists such as Yol mo Bstan 'dzin nor bu, far more limitedin chronological scope, the central narrative concern is with an individuallife; and the political and social events of the day merely provide thebackground. As such, these are much messier works for historians to dealwith and yet, they provide a class of information that more orthodoxhistories lack. Yol mo Bstan 'dzin nor bu's memoirs do not help toclarify a chronology of events leading to the fall of Bsam 'grub rtse, nordo they explicitly address the shifting political allegiances of the day;still, the anecdotal descriptions of his personal experiences illuminatedetails of the early seventeenth century world that otherwise wouldremain hidden behind the shadows of later histories.

Tibetan ReferencesBstan 'dzin nor bu, Yol mo ba III. (1632). Rang gi rtogs pa brjod pa rdo

rje sgra ma'i rgyud mangs, Nepal-German Manuscript PreservationProject: Reel No. £2691/4. [Also in The Autobiography andCollected Writings (Gsun thor bu) of the Third Rig- 'dzin Yol-mo-baSprul-sku Bstan- 'dzin Nor-bu. Reproduced from a manuscript setpreserved in the Library of Tibetan Works and Archives, DamchoeSangpo, Dalhousie, 1977, 63-267; and Collected Writings ofYol-moSprul-sku Bstan- 'dzin-nor-bu. Reproduced from a manuscriptcollection from the Library of Bla-ma Senge of Yol-mo, DawaLama, Delhi, 1982, 95-248.]

Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho, Fifth Dalai Lama. (1643). 1988. Bodkyi deb ther dpyid kyi rgyal mo 'i glu dbyangs. Beijing: Mi rigs Dpeskrun khang (reprint of 1957 edition).

Ngag dbang blo gros grags pa. 1983. Jo nang pa 'i chos 'byung gsal byedzla ba 'i sgron me. 'Dzam thang: n.d.

Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Sde srid. (1698). 1989. Dga' ldan chos 'byungBaidiirya ser po, Xining: Mtsho sngon zhing chen zhin hva dpetshong khang.

16 BENJAMIN BOGIN

Tshe dbang nor bu, Kah thog Rig 'dzin. (1749). 1990. Bod rje lha btsadpo 'i gdung rabs mnga' ris smad gung thang du ji ltar byung ba'itshul deb ther dvangs shel 'phrul gyi me long zhes bya ba, in Chabspel tshe brtan phun tshogs and Ldan lhun sangs rgyas chos 'phel(eds) Bod gyi 10 rgyus deb ther khag lnga. Lhasa: Bod ljongs bodyig dpe mying dpe skrun khang, 87-150.

Other ReferencesBlondeau, A.M. 1994. Bya-rung kha-shor: legende fondatrice du

bouddhisme tibetain. In P. Kvaerne (ed.) Tibetan Studies. Oslo:Institute for Comparative Research in Human Culture.

Boord, M. 1993. The Cult of the Deity Vajrakila, Tring: Institute ofBuddhist Studies.

Dowman, K. 1973. The Legend of the Great Stupa and the Life Story ofthe Lotus Born Guru. Berkeley: Tibetan Nyingma MeditationCenter.

Ehrhard, F.K. 1990. The Stilpa of Bodhnath: A Preliminary Analysis ofthe Written Sources. Ancient Nepal 120, 1-9.

-. (in press). A Forgotten Incarnation Lineage: The Yol-mo-ba sPrul­skus (16th to eighteenth centuries). In R. Prats (ed.) The Panditaand the Siddha: Tibetan Studies in the Honour of E. Gene Smith.Boston: Wisdom Publications.

Khenpo Nyima Dondrup. 2003. Sbas yul spyi dang bye brag yol mogangs ra 'i gnas yig. Kathmandu: Lusha Press.

Schaeffer, K.R. 1998. Review of D. Martin, Tibetan Histories: ABibliography of Tibetan Language Historical Works. Journal ofAsian Studies 57(3), 856-58.

Tucci, G. 1949 [1980]. Tibetan Painted Scrolls. Reprint, Kyoto: RinsenBook Co.

CHAPTER TWO

INIPERIAL STOOGE OR EMISSARYTO THE DGE LUGS THRONE?

RETHINKING THE BIOGRAPHIES OF CHANKYA ROLPE DORJE

Marina Illich

The life of Chankya Rolpe Dorje (Leang skya Rol pa'i rdo rje, 1717­1786), the famed eighteenth-century Geluk lama from eastern Amdo (Amdo), has been a subject of interest in Tibetological and Buddhologicalcircles for some time and is gaining increased attention in New QingStudies/Manchu Studies circles. To date, however, scholars from thesedisparate disciplinary backgrounds have tended to portray ChankyaRinpoche I as a mouthpiece of Manchu interests, an imperial stooge whofacilitated Qing expansion in Mongolia and Tibet.? This commonplace, I

1 Rinpoche (Tib. rin po che), literally meaning "Precious One," is an honorific titleused to address reincarnate lamas.

2 Western language sources on the life of the Second Leang skya Rinpoche, Rolpa'i Rdo rje, include, prominently: Berger 2003, Chen 1991, Everding 1998, Grupper1984, Hopkins and Wilson 1987, Kampfe 1976, Smith 1969, Wang 2000, and Zhao 1990.Chen, Smith, Wang and Zhao present Rol pa'i rdo rje (or the Leang skya incarnationlineage in general) as a figure who was decidedly pro-Qing and instrumental to the Qingsubjugation of Mongolia and Tibet. Chen, for example, describes Lcang skya as a lamawho had "cast in his lot with the Qing dynasty" and characterizes court-sponsored lamasof the Qing era as conduits through whom "the [Qing] courts exerted influence on andruled the regions of the Tibetan and Mongolian nationalities." Chen 1991: 83, 67. Smithstates that Leang skya and his biographer, Thu'u bkwan Blo bzang Chos kyi Nyi rna,"served as willing agents of Chinese imperial policy" and goes on to write that"[e]ighteenth century Tibetan history is the tale of the cunning imposition in the guise ofreligious patronage of a Chinese protectorate over Tibet. Lcang-skya Ro1-pa'i rdo-rjeplayed a noticeable role in the manipulations." Smith 1969: 2.

By contrast, Hopkins 1987 and Kampfe 1976 present Lcang skya as a mediatorwho leveraged his authority among Tibetans, Mongols and elites at the Manchu court tofulfill both Qing and Dge lugs imperatives. Berger's work further exemplifies the factthat Leang skya maintained multiple lines of allegiance by touching upon several of themanifold roles he played as a mediator and diplomat, advisor to the throne, translator,scholar, tantric adept and guru. Ultimately, however, her work reinforces the image thatLeang skya was an imperial right-hand man who "helped secure Qing control over Ti­bet." Berger 2003: 178. For his part, Grupper rejects the thesis that the Qing emperorssponsored lamas purely as a utilitarian measure to encompass Tibetan Buddhist constitu­encies. In his discussion of Kampfes study of the Second Leang skya Rinpoche, for ex-

18 MARINA ILLICH

argue, is reductive and methodologically problematic. ChankyaRinpoches biographers undoubtedly show him cooperating with theManchu throne but they also devote considerable space to illustrate thecomplex and manifold ways that he co-opted Manchu sponsorship andopenly resisted Manchu imperialism to further his own agenda:consolidating a pan-Geluk spiritual empire crowned by the Dalai Lamain Lhasa. In short, Chankya Rinpoches two primary biographies, orrnam thar, depict him as an active agent of history, rather than a passiveimperial mouthpiece.3

The glaring disparity in traditional Tibetan and academicrepresentations of Chankya Rinpoches life derives, in part, from amodem scholarly tendency to conceive of political, military andbureaucratic power as "real," and "religious" power as cross-cut withfalse consciousness. Employing a positivist and "secularist" reading ofhistory, many Western-trained academics have been quick to write offthe indigenous organization of Tibetan biographies, as well as thehistorical narratives they construct, as didactic and devotionalfabrications of "hagiographers" inhabiting a fictitious cosmology besetwith "supernatural" and "magical" imaginaries." While such readings ofTibetan historiographic texts may tell us agreat deal about ourselves, asWestern-trained academics, and the cultural legacies to which we are

ample, he writes that the "discriminatory allocation of power [by the Qing court] oversocially subordinate groups and landed property to the Dge lugs pa, in those regions un­der Manchu domination did not begin as an instrument of social control to instill Mongolsubmission to the Manchu emperor, but instead developed in accordance with traditionalTibeto-Mongol cultural standards which the Manchus acknowledged as their own."Grupper 1984: 56-7.

3 The two main Tibetan biographies of Leang skya Rol pa'i rdo rje are: Demo 1969reprinted as Thu'u bkwan 1989, and Chu bzang 1976.

4 See, for example, Vostrikov 1970: 185-190, Tucci 1949: 42 and Petech 1950: 2.While recent scholarship has shown a greater willingness to treat works of Tibetan spiri­tual biography as valid sources of history, many of these works continue to discriminatebetween Tibet's "religious" history and its geo-political history in a way that uncriticallyinvokes an Enlightenment conception of the "religious" and "secular" as discrete, if notmutually exclusive, domains. (See, for example, Rawski 1998, Crossley 1999, Berger2003 and Chia 1992.) To theorize Tibetan history in these terms is anachronistic andmethodologically troubling. The Tibetan categories of chos, the domain of the supra­worldly, and srid, the domain of worldly administration, are not cross-cultural equiva­lents to the categories of "religion" and "politics"/"temporal affairs" which developed outof the post-Enlightenment Western discourse on secularism. Unlike "religion" and "poli­tics" which refer to discrete, if not mutually opposed, realms of social action, chos andsrid refer to mutually-imbricated domains that constitute contiguous facets of a singlecosmological order.

IMPERIAL STOOGE OR ROYAL EMISSARY? 19

heir, they doom us to failure in the task of reconstructing the concerns­cosmological, soteriological and epistemological-which shaped thelives of Tibetan (or Tibetanized) historical protagonists.

Contemporary PRC scholars have also contributed substantially toour understanding of Chankya Rinpoches life. However, because theywork under the strict supervision of censor bureaus and must adhere tohistoriographic guidelines issued by the state, PRC scholars have littlechoice but to frame their discussion of eighteenth-century Tibetan historyin the anachronistic terms of contemporary People's Republic of China(P.R.C.) state discourse. By definition, their work brackets Tibet under a"minority nationality" rubric whose main ideological purpose is tocontrast a normative P.R.C. "Han" subject with a panoply of so-called"non-Han others" situated at the state's periphery. Their work narrowlyconceives of geographic Tibet as a modem-day Tibet AutonomousRegion (T.A.R.) abutted by a congeries of "Tibetan prefectures" in thesurrounding "inland" or nei di provinces of Sichuan, Qinghai, Gansu andYunnan. In short, bound by Party directives, these scholars have littlechoice but to portray Tibet as a trans-historically inalienable part ofChina in a way that profoundly obscures questions of Tibetan agency.Few of these scholars, for example, have been able to meaningfullytheorize the manifold ways that Qing-era Tibetans attempted to deflectand resist Manchu imperialism.'

In short, both PRC and Western-trained academics have consistentlydepicted Chankya Rinpoches life and Qing-era Tibet in anachronisticand discursively alien terms which obscure our ability to understand howChankya Rolpe Dorje and his contemporaries imagined themselves andthe multi -faceted roles they played as agents of history.6

5 Chen's 1991 article which is based on both Tibetan and Chinese historical ac­counts of the early Leang skya lineage is perhaps the broadest appraisal of Leang skya' slife published in contemporary China. Among other things, it notes in some detail that theLeang skya Rinpoche was apportioned a high level of state subsidy in the form of grain,money, precious metal gifts, etc. It comments on Leang skya's various roles at the courtas monk, scholar and diplomat. It further highlights several instances in which ritualguest protocol was breached in Leang skya's favor. Finally, it notes several instances inwhich the emperor deferred to Leang skya's judgment on a matter of geo-political and/orreligious significance and took action that decidedly benefited Tibetan Buddhist constitu­encies, not the Empire. Despite all of this, Chen's study tenaciously maintains that Leangskya was a mouthpiece of Qing interests who was co-opted and deployed by the court tosecure the submission of Tibetan Buddhist constituencies across the empire.

6 Unfortunately, I do not read Japanese and cannot give consideration here to Japa­nese Tibetological works. However, judging from works available in English, Japanesescholarship seems to avoid these pitfalls in conceptualizing Tibetan history.

20 MARINA ILLICH

In this paper, I will attempt a different reading of ChankyaRinpoches biographies. Briefly stated, I will approach them as counter­narrative inscriptions that self-consciously attempted to deflect Manchuimperialism by inscribing Chankya Rolpe Dorje as a paradigmatic agentof a pan-Geluk will to power." Specifically, I will argue that the lamadisciples who composed Chankya Rinpoches spiritual biographies veryself-consciously engaged the logic of Chinese imperial ritual in the waythey write about Qing imperial encounters with Tibetan lamas anddignitaries. Their focus on the minutiae of ritual protocol, I argue, doesnot reflect an arcane fascination with ceremonialism or seeminglyimpertinent detail. Rather, it reflects a self-conscious attempt to deflectthe hegemonizing strategies of the Qing by asserting a narrative of Gelukindispensability to the realization of Qing ambition. According to thisnarrative, Geluk acumen in fields as diverse as subduing physical orunseen enemies, stymieing drought and deluge, curing illness and, ofcourse, guiding their disciples to enlightenment constituted a sina quanon of Qing imperial success.

This reading of Chankya' s biographies is methodologically indebtedto the workof cultural historians James Hevia and Angela Zito.f In theirrespective studies of Chinese imperial Guest Ritual (Ch. binli) and

7 By "will to power" I do not mean simply raw power as it is conventionally con­ceived: control over the production, distribution and allocation of material and ideologi­cal resources including discourse, capital, human labor and so forth. Rather, I retain theidea of power as it was defined normatively by proponents of Tibetan Vajrayana monas­ticism themselves, namely: the power to secure stable patronage and proliferate Dge lugsinstitutions and practices (particularly monasteries) as a means to institutionalize a sys­tematic curriculum of "pacifying" the mind in order for individuals to transform them­selves from ordinary or alienated beings (Tib: so so skye bo) into holy (Tib: 'phags pa)­that is, selfless-beings. While Tibetan historical sources brim with examples of corrup­tion, sectarianism, politicking and so forth, they also provide abundant testimony to themanifold ways that lamas acted out their stated Bodhisattva objectives, in particular, bynegotiating nonviolent solutions to social confl icts even when doing so put them inharm's way. By "will to power," then, I hope to capture both definitions of power whichhistorical evidence suggests motivated Dge lugs expansion: the power to leverage requi­site material and spiritual resources to actualize an ethos of self-Iessness and social har­mony through the individual cultivation of "wisdom and compassion;" and the power toleverage the Dge lugs order into a position of control over social and ideological re­sources. To write off the former sense, as many historians do, by asserting that Tibetanlamas who deployed Buddhist rhetoric were ipso facto either cynical manipulators usingtheir status to leverage raw power, or were 'sincere believers' (and, therefore, cross-cutwith false consciousness), is both reductive and neo-colonial in its privileging of an epis­temology of the self and the cosmos that is very specifically a product of the modernWest.

S See Hevia 1989, 1993, ]994, 1995 and Zito ]995, ]997.

IMPERIAL STOOGE OR ROYAL EMISSARY? 21

Imperial audiences (Ch. chaojian) during the Qing, Hevia and Zito haveshown that imperial rituals were not symbolic expressions of other kindsof power or attempts to mime an idealized but unattainable social orderthrough the charade of posing the Emperor as a semi-divine Son ofHeaven. Rather, they argue, imperial ritual was the crucial venue throughwhich emperors instantiated themselves as universal sovereigns byencompassing a host of others within their own rulership.

As Hevia and Zito show, Qing sovereignty was organized aroundthe notion that the Emperor, or huangdi, was a "lord of lords" whomaterialized his universal and unsurpassed jurisdiction through the activeincorporation of fanwang, or lesser lords, within his imperial fold. In sodoing, he legitimated his claim to the Mandate of Heaven by producinghimself as an exemplar of imperial virtue and a paramount embodimentof "yang" power.? Hevia writes:

In Qing China, the emperor's task was to include others (often quitealien others) in imperial sovereignty. Put another way, Manchu­Chinese imperial sovereignty was possible only through the successfulencompassment of other centers of power, a kind of summation of theconstitutive powers of an emperor, who could and must include thesimilar powers of other kings within his own kingship. I 0

To actualize this idealized "yang" subject position, however, theemperor could not simply overcome others by force. He had tomanifestly include them within his projects of rulership. As Zito pointsout, "In social relations, the yang position of power and authority never

9 Briefly stated, according to classical Han social philosophy, socio-cosmic har­mony was predicated on the correct instantiation of an idealized set of social relationsbetween "yang" superiors and "yin" inferiors exemplified by the Five Bonds-relationsbetween ruler/minister, father/son, husband/wife, elder/younger brothers andfriend/friend. The "yang" side of these dyads maintained a position of superiority because"yang" subjects had the power to initiate actions which "yin" counterparts were expectedto complete. In so doing, "yang" subjects could direct their counterparts into specific,inferior subject positions and, thereby, define and delimit "yin" agency. By the sametoken, since "yang" power derived from encompassing "yin" subjects within the field ofits own subjectivity and not from exerting top-down, hegemonic power, it could be chal­lenged by unwilling "yin" subjects who failed to acquiesce in completing "yang" objec­tives. The emperor was considered to be the supreme embodiment of "yang" power and,thus, the paramount arbiter of this social dialectic. While clearly a "yin" subject vis-a-vishis ancestors and Heaven, he also stood in the highest earthly position as the world'suniversal sovereign and was thus poised to encompass, within his exemplary field ofvirtue, all his inferior but complementary "yin" subjects.

10 Hevia 1994: 186.

22 MARINA ILLICH

reigned absolute in its stability, but required its Other in a yin position tocomplete its initiatives"ll Or as Hevia puts it,

relations were contingent and provisional, requmng continuousrenegotiation and refashioning as conditions in the world changed. In apolitical situation in which lords vied with each other for supremacy,any claim that the emperor might make to supreme lordship waspredicated on his dexterous management of relations with other lords;he must include their strength without diluting it so that he could, ifnecessary, command them to assist him in the ordering of the world. 12

Imperial Guest Ritual, Hevia and Zito show, was the crucialmedium for negotiating this process. In Guest Ritual, the emperor, assuperior, initiated a sequence of rituals action, and the lesser lord, asinferior, brought (or at least was expected to bring) them to completion.In so doing, the lesser lord signaled that he had been encompassed withinthe emperor's rulership. Thus, through Guest Ritual, the Emperor couldactualize an idealized spatial and hierarchical orchestration of bodies thatvisibly manifested his "yang" power and imperial "de," or power ascosmic exemplar, and by extension the legitimacy of his claim touniversal rulc.! '

Chankya Rolpe Dorjes biographers, I argue, were keenly aware thatimperial power was constituted-and could be contested-through theperformance of ritualized audience sequences and the narrativeinscription of those encounters.t- Such a reading would explain why

II Zito 1995: 15.12 Hevia 1989: 81.13 As Hevia points out, "Sovereignty, as it was fashioned in Qing ceremonial prac­

tice, manifested the generative powers of a superior to initiate and the capacity of inferi­ors, through their actions, to bring to completion the sequence of events set in motion bythe emperor. In Chinese studies this is classically referred to as the power of the exem­plar: the extension of imperial virtue into the world. Together, superiors and inferiorsconstructed a historically specific and situation-contingent relationship between a su­preme lord (huangdi, the emperor) and a lesser lord (jan wang, a lord of the periphery).The completing capacity of an inferior is crucial in the formation of such relationships,and it resonates throughout all audience rituals." Hevia 1994: 186. In short, as he under­scores elsewhere, "[t]he overwhelming emphasis in Chinese ritual texts on the positionand disposition of bodies in ceremonial space meant that ritual actions constituted acosmo-political order in highly consequential ways." Hevia 1989: 89.

14 Indeed, as Zito states in comparing Tibetan and Chinese accounts of the FourthPanchen Lama's visit with Emperor Qianlong in 1780, "everyone present in the Chineseand Tibetan texts knew what was going on here-they were apprised of the rules of thesevarious games [of ritual protocol] in ways that the Europeans were not, as their accountsof the same events make ludicrously clear." Zito 1995: 31.

IMPERIAL STOOGE OR ROYAL EMISSARY? 23

Chankya's biographers took pains to recount the manifold ways andmany times that the emperor granted special dispensations to ChankyaRinpoche and other high-ranking lamas during imperial encounters. Letus consider the following examples:

Passage one, from the shorter biography by Chubzang Rinpoche(Chu bzang Ngag dbang thub bstan dbang phyug):

Then, when he was eight, Chankya Rinpoche went to the GoldenCapital [Beijing] by order of the Manjushri Emperor [Yongzheng].First, on an astrologically pure and auspicious day, he had an audiencewith the Manjushri Emperor in the Sandalwood Temple.I> When theyexchanged greetings, the Emperor expressed enormous delight, as if hehad found a wish-fulfilling gem. Seating [Chankya]directly besideshimself [on the throne], the Emperor offered him [to take] as hisresidence the great monastic seat of Zongzhusi, or Tashi Rabgye LingTemple, a pleasure grove filled with all the translated scriptures of theBuddha's word and the Indian commentaries, whereupon he gaveorders for it to be fully renovated immediately. 16

In his longer biography, Thukwan [Thu'u bkwan Chos kyi nyi rna]gives his readers an even more embellished account. As the emperorapproached the courtyard leading into the temple, Thukwan writes,Chankya

knelt down on one knee and offered him a statue of Amitayus made ofa gold and silver alloy together with an immaculate silk scarf. Theemperor descended from his palanquin, grabbed the tulku' s [sprul sku]hand and, pulling him up to standing, instructed the precious lama toproceed ahead of him. But [Chankya] knelt down again and insistedthat the emperor proceed first, in the manner of someone well­acquainted with the customs of imperial protocol. The Emperor lifted[Chankya] up onto his lap and invited him inside [with him] where herequested the precious tulku to be seated at the center of the cushion onhis [the emperor's] imperial throne. Seating himself on the edge of thethrone cushion, the Emperor grasped the precious lama's hand andreminisced about [Chankya's] former incarnation [the Emperor's root

15 The Sandalwood Buddha Temple, or Zhantansi, located in the northern corner ofthe Imperial City, was constructed in 1665 during the reignof Emperor Kangxi and re­stored in 1760 under the auspices of the Qianlong Emperor. Home to hundreds of monks,the temple was an active center of Tibetan Buddhist practice in the Qing imperial capitaland was named after the holy image it housed, a life-sized, antique sandalwood statue ofShakyamuni. See Naquin 2000: 342.

16 Kampfe 1976: 15b-16a.

24 MARINA ILLICH

guru]. Thereupon, he broke down into tears and appeared unable [even]to speak for some time. 17

Passage two:

As soon as Chankya Rinpoche had come out of retreat [in 1745], theGreat Brahma of the Earth [the Qianlong Emperor] requested [hismaster] to bestow the Cakrasamvara initiation upon him. For about tendays, [Chankya] had clear visions of the deities he was propitiating[who appeared] adorned in their implements as if they were directly infront of him and he received timely prophecies from them whichclearly demonstrated the sacredness of the site.

At the time of [performing] the requisite preparations to initiatethe Manjushri Emperor, the One Ordained by Heaven, into the five­deity Cakrasamvara, the Emperor threw the so shing18 and it landedplanted completely upright. When it came time to analyze the sign thatthe so shing [augured by landing this way], examining how it wasupright, [Chankya] said '[the Emperor] is a vidhyddhara,' 19 Marveloussigns were said to have appeared such as that when it came time toexamine [the emperor's] nighttime dreams, [it came out that] theEmperor had been jolted awake in his imperial quarters by the clearsound of the master [Chankya] reciting the seven-syllable mantra ofCakrasamvara [far off] in his sleeping quarters.t?

On the following day, they completed all stages of the actualinitiation. From then on, [the Emperor] held this master atop his five­Buddha clan crown. Thereafter, he never transgressed his [lama's]commands and forevermore delighted in propitiating him with the threetypes of offering [of his body, speech and mindj.U In so doing, the

17 Thu'u bkwan 1989: 88-89.18 The so shing is an instrument used in the preliminary rites of offering (Tib. sta

gon) in the five-deity Cakrasamvara initiation. In these rites, the initiate drops the soshing onto the mandala and the deity in whose direction it lands pointing is thought to bethe initiate's karmically-ordained spiritual guide and protector. The implement is called aso shing, literally meaning "tooth-stick," because it was traditionally made of the neembranch used for tooth brushing in India.

19 Vidhyddhara is a Sanskrit synonym for siddha, meaning tantric adept or Bud­dha. This miraculous landing of the so shing was considered particularly auspicious notonly because it landed upright, defying all laws of gravity, but because it landed in thecenter and thus indicated that the Emperor had a special affinity with the central Buddha,Aksobhya.

20 Kampfe 1976: 52a.21 The Buddha-clan crown is a crown depicting the five Buddha clans which is

worn by a tantric initiate during initiation ceremonies. By claiming that the Emperor heldChankya atop this crown, the author is asserting that Qianlong accepted his master asindivisible from the Buddha and regarded him as a superior to whom he was spirituallybound by oath.

IMPERIAL STOOGE OR ROYAL EMISSARY? 25

Great Protector of the Earth [the emperor] opened many doors ofprofound and auspicious [karmic] connection indicating that he wouldspontaneously fulfill his master's wishes.

Thereafter, [the Emperor] took many profound and extensiveteachings [from Chankya including] the experiential instructions on thetwo stages of the profound path of Cakrasamvara, together with thebranch teachings. Later, while Chankya was initiating [the Emperor]into the Vajrayogini tantra, an amazing sign appeared as [the master]had predicted. Just at the time of the descent of the wisdom being,22 theEmperor did such things as pull out the cushion beneath him and kneeldirectly on the floor for the duration of the initiation ceremony, therebyvisibly manifesting that he had generated unshakable faith in his lamaand had genuinely accepted him as the Vajradhara Buddha himself. 23

Passage three: In recounting the Panchen Lama's visit to theManchu court in 1780, Chubzang underscores a number of similarspecial ritual dispensations which were granted on this occasion. Amongother things, he tells us that the Panchen Lama arrived at the emperor'squarters on a yellow palanquin borne by eight men.z- Later, the Emperor"showed the [Panchen Lama] inconceivable respect" by offering him (aswell as Chankya Rinpoche) extraordinary lama head dresses emblazonedwith the Cakrasamvara mantra as well as agolden palanquin borne byfour eunuchs.s>

Similarly, when the Panchen Lama was due to arrive at the SummerImperial capital in Jehol (present day Chengde), the Emperor metdirectly with the Panchen Lama and, just as they met, the Emperorexcused him from having to kneel down and instead greeted the lama in

22 The ye shes sems pa or "wisdom being" (Skt: jhiinasattvai is the second of thethree kinds of sems pa' or "beings." The first of these, the dam tshig sems dpa' (Skt:samayasattva) or "devotee being" is the deity visualized either externally, at the crown,or as the practitioner him/herself. The jiuinasattva or "wisdom being" is a wisdom dupli­cate of the deity that is ritually invited to merge indivisibly with the practitioner (alterna­tively, with the deity icon visualized at the practitioner's crown), or with the material iconbeing consecrated. As such, the "devotee being" is like a ritual vessel into which the deityis invoked transforming his or her unenlightened mind-body into the actual deity itself.(The third being, the ting 'dzin sems dpa' (samiidhisattvai or "concentration being," isusually a seed syllable visualized at the heart representing the practitioner's inner mindessence or innate Buddha nature.)

23 Kampfe 1976: 52a-52b. Compare with Thu'u bkwan 1989: 295-96 which makesno mention of the Emperor kneeling directly on the bare floor.

24 Kampfe 1976: 11Ob.25 Kampfe 1976: 112a.

26 MARINA ILLICH

the kha btags-to-kha btags fashion. 26 The Emperor then offered thePanchen Lama a banquet to celebrate his arrival and, extendingunsurpassable respect to him and his retinue, the emperor finallyinstalled him in the Tashi Lhunpo Temple-[a grandiloquent templeproject, we should note, which the emperor commissioned exclusivelyfor the Panchen's visit to the court.]27

At their final meeting in Beij ing, Chubzang informs us, the Emperorordered the Panchen Lama to be carried in his palanquin as far as thethird level from the bottom proceeding up to Audience hall and ChankyaRinpoche as far as the second level. Chubzang then adds that "people saythat it is very hard for other high-standing dignitaries under Heaven tomerely enter this courtyard without Imperial permission, what to speakof being escorted this far up [towards the imperial chambers.]"28

Passage four: The following year, soon after the Panchen Lama hadpassed away and his death rituals had been completed, ChankyaRinpoche went to Wutai Shan with the Emperor. Once there, Chubzangtells us, the Emperor turned to Chankya Rinpoche and said, "Come sit onthe throne [with me]. We should sit together." Taking ChankyaRinpoche's hand, he added, "When I have you by my side, I'm happy."29

These passages all highlight major ritual dispensations which theEmperor allegedly granted Chankya Rinpoche and other senior

26 Traditionally, bka tags, or silk scarves, were only exchanged this way betweenindividuals of equal status.

27 Kampfe 1976: 112a-112b. Thukwan's biography informs us that when thePanchen Lama met the Emperor at Jehol (on the eve of the Emperor's 70th birthday cele­bration), he was granted the "unsurpassed privilege" [Tib. bdag rkyen bla na med pa, lit.,'unsurpassed gift'] of being carried on his palanquin, by imperial order, directly into theEmperor's imperial private chambers [Tib. gzim khang] just as had been done on everyoccasion that he met with the emperor on this visit. (Thukwan adds that Leang skya Rin­poche was carried as far as the threshold (ie: just outside) the Emperor's imperial privatechambers.) Thu'u bkwan 1989: 583. A bit further on, Thukwan explains how at one pointduring the Panchen's visit, Leang skya Rinpoche took him on a tour of the "yo mi yan"garden and explained to the Panchen Lama that other ministers were not allowed in thegarden but that the Emperor had granted the Panchen Lama a special dispensation notonly because he was a long-time proponent of the teachings in general but also becausehe had unshakable faith in the Panchen Lama and hoped for the holy lama to confer hisblessings on the site. "If we consider this [the special dispensation the Emperor has givenyou]," Leang skya Rinpoche pointed out, "it is a marvelous fruition in the present of [thejoint commitment to] the profound compassionate mind of enlightenment [bodhicitta]which you two, the lama and patron [the Emperor], initiated long ago." Thu'u bkwan1989: 584.

28 Kampfe 1976: 113b. See also Thu'u bkwan 1989: 586.29 Kampfe 1976: 115b-116a. See also Thu'u bkwan 1989: 598.

IMPERIAL STOOGE OR ROYAL EMISSARY? 27

dignitaries in serious contravention of orthodox binli or Guest Ritual. AsHevia points out, according to Imperial Guest protocol: ambassadorswere not supposed to come inside the Imperial Hall, but to conduct theiraudiences from the courtyard where they were posted on the Westernperimeter. They were not supposed to koutou, or prostrate, directlybefore the emperor but outside in the courtyard. Ambassadors were notsupposed to approach the throne but to kneel at the threshold of theaudience hall. Finally, the actual presence of an embassy in the audiencehall was considered a special situation.w

According to the accounts of Chubzang and Thukwan, however, theEmperor eschewed many of these norms of ritual protocol in hismeetings with Chankya and his contemporaries. Their accounts tell usthat upon first meeting the young Chankya Rinpoche, the YongzhengEmperor not only greeted the boy in person but directly lifted him ontohis lap and then seated him in the center of the throne (while the Emperorhimself sat to the side.) In 1745, they tell us, the Qianlong Emperor notonly knelt before his guru during his initiation into the CakrasamvaraTantra, but went so far as to remove the floor cushion beneath him tokneel directly on the floor. In his 1780 audience with the Panchen Lama,they tell us, the Qianlong Emperor relieved the lama of his duty to kneel(itself a dispensation from the regular koutou) and then went so far as togreet the Lama in a traditional Tibetan kha btags-to-kha btags mannerthat traditionally signaled equal status. The Emperor further arranged tohave the lama escorted not just in a golden palanquin borne by eunuchsbut very nearly to the top level of the audience hall. (And he arranged forChankya Rinpoche to be carried almost as far.) Finally, towards the endof Chankya Rinpoches life, they tell us, the Qianlong Emperor invitedChankya Rinpoche to sit besides him on the throne (bringing thenarrative full circle?) and then openly professed his heartfelt attachmentto the lama with a display of uncontrolled emotion. These passages, weshould remember, constitute but a few examples of the specialdispensations which Chankya Rinpoche s biographers claim the Emperorgranted him and his colleagues.

Moreover, the inscription of all of these passages is explicitlycouched in the language of the mchod yon or the lama-patron idiom. Thelama-patron institution was developed from an Indian Buddhist model ofkingship which conceived of rulership as a joint project between worldlykings responsible for administering the seen world, and supra-worldly

30 Hevia 1993: 257-8.

28 MARINA lLLICH

kings-s-namely, realized Buddhist masters-responsible for mediatingbetween the seen and unseen worlds and for guiding all beings on thepath to supreme liberation. In this scheme, the patron or yon bdag Conewho gives offerings to a religious person or object")-whether king,khan, or Son of Heaven-was considered to possess mere worldlyjurisdiction whereas the lama or mchod gnas Ca person or thing to whichreligious offerings are made") was viewed as a Buddha wielding cosmicjurisdiction.U By framing their narration of events in the terms of thelama-patron discourse, Chankya Rinpoche 's narrators were activelyinscribing Chankya Rinpoche in what we might call a "yang" subjectposition vis-a-vis the Emperor and his subjects.

To be sure, in depicting the Emperor as a yon bdag or patron,Chubzang and Thukwan were claiming that he was nothing less than awheel-turning cakravartin king commanding universal worldlyjurisdiction. But in depicting Chankya Rinpoche as a mchod gnas, anenlightened master worthy of imperial worship, they weresimultaneously asserting that Chankya Rinpoche-e-and not theEmperor-commanded universal sovereignty as master of the supra­worldly realm and realized Buddha guide showing the path toenlightenment. In short, they were claiming for Chankya Rinpoche, andnot the emperor, the status of ultimate "king of kings." Visually, this wasrepresented in thankas depicting Chankya Rinpoche seated upon (or,more accurately, floating several inches above) the Emperor'scrown.

This is not to say that Chubzang and Thukwan do not also mentionthe many times that Chankya Rinpoche does kotou, that he is seated tothe west of the Emperor, as per imperial protocol, that he has to getimperial permission to leave to go home to Amdo, go on retreat and soforth. But they couch their narration of these events in triumphalistlanguage that clearly restores Chankya Rinpoches agency as anhistorical actor and casts him, and not the emperor, as paramount arbiterand overseer of cosmic events. Simply put, in lama-patron terms,Chankya Rinpoche 's koutou to the Emperor constitutes but an act ofworldly submission. The Emperor's prostration to his lama, bycomparison, signals the ultimate act of submission by emperor to hislama. Presented in these terms, it is the lama and not the Emperor whosucceeds in the final act of encompassment, incorporating the Emperor'sworldly realm and apportioning it a proper place within his own infinite,supra-worldly jurisdiction.

31 Wylie 1977: 119.

IMPERIAL STOOGE OR ROYAL EMISSARY? 29

In short, the narrative emphasis on ritual sequences that we find inthese biographies, I contend, is not arbitrary, nor does it signal some sortof "pre-modem" or sacerdotal obsession with the minutia of ceremonialprotocol. Rather, these inscriptions constitute deliberate attempts on thepart of Chankya Rinpoches historiographers to portray him as aparadigmatic tantric lama and king of kings, a master of ceremonieswhose supra-worldly jurisdiction is no match for that of an earthlysovereign.

Tibetan ReferencesChu bzang Ngag dbang Thub bstan Dbang phyug. 1976. ma 'i 'od

zer/Naran-U-Gerel. In H. R. Kampfe (ed.) Biographie des 2.Pekinger Leang skya-Qutuqtu Rol pa'i rdo rje 0717-1786),Monumenta Tibetica Historica, sec. II, vol. 1. St. Augustin: VG 1-1Wisssenschaftsverlag.

Demo, N.G. 1969. Collected Works of Th 'u bkwan B/o bzang Chos kyiNyi ma, Vol. 2 (Kha). E.G. Smith (ed.) and reproduced by N.G.Demo. New Delhi: Gedan Sungrab Minyam Gyunphei Series.

Thu'u bkwan Chos kyi Nyi rna. 1989. Leang skya Rolpa 'f Rdo Rnamthar [=The Biography of Leang skya Rol pai Rdo .Ie]. Lanzhou: Kansu 'u mi rigs dpe skrun khang.

Qing

Ph.D_

vork

Chin..

Political

Other ReferencesBawden, C.R. 1968. The Modern History ql

Frederick A. Praeger.Berger, P. 2003. Empire of Emptiness: Buddhist Art

Authority in Qing China. Honolulu: University of HawaiCammann, S. 1949-50. The Panchen Lama's visit to China

episode in Anglo-Tibetan relations. Fur EasternChen, Q. 1991. Lcang-Skya Rolpavi-Rdorje and Emperor

H. Tan (ed.) Theses on Tihl!tologv III China.Tibetology Publishing House, 67-YO

Chia, N. 1992. The Li-Fan Yuan in I C'h"lnj:-:

dissertation, Johns HopkinsCrossley, P.K. 1999. A Translucent Mirror

Imperial Ideology. Berkeley: UniversityDas, S.C. 1882. Contributions on Tibet. }ouJ'!wl

Bengal 51, 1-75.

30 MARINA ILLICH

Everding, K.H. 1998. Die Praexistenzen der ICan skya-Qutuqtus:Untersuchungen zur Konstruktion und historischen Entwicklungeiner lamaistischen Existenzenlinie. Asiatische Forschungen, vol104. Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz.

Grupper, S.M. 1984. Manchu patronage and Tibetan Buddhism duringthe first half of the Ch'ing dynasty: a review article. The Journal ofthe Tibet Society 4,47-75.

Hedin, S. 1932. Jehol: City of Emperors. E.G. Nash (trans.) London:Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner and Company.

Hevia, J.L. 1995 Cherishing Men from Afar: Qing Guest Ritual and theMacartney Embassy of1793. Durham: Duke University Press.

-1993. Lamas, Emperors and Rituals: Political Implications in QingImperial Ceremonies. Journal of the International Association ofBuddhist Studies 16(2), 243-78.

-1989. A multitude of lords: Qing court ritual and the Macartneyembassy of 1793. Late Imperial China 10(2), 72-105.

-] 994 (ed.) Sovereignty and subject: constituting relations of power inQing guest ritual. In A. Zito and T.E. Barlow (eds) Body, Subject andPower in China, 181-200. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Hopkins, J. and J. Wilson. 1987. Emptiness Yoga: The Tibetan MiddleWay. Ithaca: Snow Lion Publications.

Jachid, S. 1974. Mongolian lamaist quasi-feudalism during the period ofManchu domination. Mongolian Studies 1,27-54.

Kampfe, H.R. 1976.Ni ma 'i'od zer/Naran-U'Gerel: Biographie des 2.Pekinger Leang skya-Qutuqtu Rol pa'i rdo rje (1717-1786),Monumenta Tibetica Historica, sec. II, vol.l. St. Augustin: VGHWisssenschaftsverlag.

Martin, D. 1990. Bonpo canons and Jesuit cannons. The Tibet Journal15(2), 3-28.

Naquin, S. 2000. Peking: Temples and City Life, 1400-1900. Berkeley:University of California Press.

Petech, L. 1950. China and Tibet in the Early eighteenth Century:History of the Establishment of Chinese Protectorate in Tibet.Leiden: Brill.

Rahul, R. 1969. The role of lamas in Central Asian politics. CentralAsiatic Journal 12(3), 209-27.

Rawski, E.S. 1998. The Last Emperors: A Social History of QingImperial Institutions. Berkeley: University of California Press.

HVIPERIAL STOOGE OR ROYAL EMISSARY? 31

Rockhill, W.W. 1910. The Dalai Lamas of Lhasa and Their Relationswith the Manchu Emperors of China, 1644-1908. T'oung Pao 1 I: 1­104.

Smith, E. G. 1969. Introduction. InN,G. Demo (ed.) Collected Works ofThu 'u bkwan Blo bzang Chos kyi Nyi rna, 1-12. Delhi: GedanSungrab Minyam Gyunphel Series.

Vostrikov, A. 1. 1970. Tibetan Historical Literature. Trans. from theRussian by H. C. Gupta. Calcutta: Indian Studies: Past & Present.

Wang, X. 2000. The Qing court's Tibet connection: Leang skya Rol pa'irdo~je and the Qianlong Emperor. Harvard Journal of AsiaticStudies 60( I), 125-63.

-- i 995. Tibetan Buddhism at the Court of Qing: The Life and Work ofLeang skya Rol pa 'i rdo rje (1717-1786). Ph.D. dissertation, HarvardUniversity.

Wylie, T. V. 1977. The first Mongol conquest of Tibet reinterpreted.Harvard Journal ofAsiatic Studies 37( I), 103-33.

Zhao, Y. 1990. Chankya and the Qing court's policy towards TibetanBuddhism. Tibet Studies 2(2), 27-46.

Zito, A. 1995. The Imperial Birthday: Ritual Encounters between thePanchen Lama and the Qianlong Emperor in 1780. Paper presentedat "The State and Ritual in Asia," College of France, Paris.

CHAPTER THREE

IPPOLITO DESIDERI, S.J. ONPADMASAMBHAVA'S PROPHECIES AND THE PERSECUTION

OF THE RNYING MA, 1717-1720

R. Trent Pomplun

Among the many ancient books that are in general circulation in Tibet,two especially talk of Padmasambhava. The first is entitled Lungh-ten,or the prophecies of Urghien~this was the first book that wastranslated to me word by word after I arrived in Lhasa and began tostudy the books of this people. The other book, which I also studiedword by word, tells of the life of Urghien, his arrival in Tibet, and hisstay there. In the first book and some of the chapters of the second,there is an extensive series of prophecies in the form of a dialoguebetween the King of Tibet and Urghien, in which the latter predictsthose things that shall happen in the kingdom after many centuries havepassed.'

The Italian Jesuit Ippolito Desideri (1684-1733) is well known for hisfascinating but flawed account of the Dzungar invasion and Manchutakeover of Tibet in the early eighteenth century. According to his owntestimony, he also seems to have been the first Westerner to study theprophetic literature of the Rnying rna school of Tibetan Buddhism. WhileLuciano Petech was content to note the influence of this literature on theJesuit's views of Tibetan religion and culture, his student GiuseppeToscano, in the introduction and notes to his translation of Desideri's

! "Convien dunque sapere che tra molti libri che da antico tempo corrono nelThibet per Ie mani di tutti due specialmente son molto notabili al presente proposito. Unoe intitolato Lung-ten, cioe Profezie d'Urghien, e fu questo appunto il primo libro che micapito aile mani e che parola per parola mi feci con molta diligenza spiegare nel primomettermi a studiare i libri di quella gentilita poco dopo il mio arrivo a Lhasa. L'altro con­tiene la vita d'Urghien, la sua andata al Thibet e sua dimora in esso; e fu questo il sec­ondo libro che in quella lingua studiai, e che parimenti parola per parola mi fece moltoaccuratamente interpretare. Or in tutto quel primo libro e in alcuni capitoli del secondo, informa di dialogo tra il re del Thibet e tra Urghien, si riferisce una lunga serie di profezieda questi fatte circa Ie cose che in quel regno per lunga serie di secoli erano per sue­cedere." Petech 1944-1946, VI: 265-66. As the reader can see, I often paraphrase themissionary's longer sentences or omit his redundant phrases, but J include the full Italiantext to give one a sense of his style.

34 R. TRENT POMPLUN

Tho rangs mun sel nyi ma shar ba, demonstrated the influence of thePadma thang yig and the prophecies (lung bstan) of Padmasambhava onthe Jesuit's punctuation, vocabulary, and style.2 Indeed, when themissionary presented his first Tibetan work to Lha bzang Khan in solemnaudience on the sixth of January 1717, he compared Christian revelationto a gter mas and even compared himself to a gter ston like Moses." Ifthis work exposes the errors of Tibetan religion by means of thegenealogical criticism common to Christian missionaries like MatteoRicci and Bartholomteus Ziegenbalg.> the missionary's later texts­exemplified by the Questions Concerning Reincarnation and the View ofEmptiness Offered to the Scholars of Tibet by the Christian LamaIppolito (Mgo skar bla ma i po li do shes bya ba yis phul ba'i bod kyimkhas pa rnams la skyes pa snga ma dang stong pa nyid kyi Ita ba 'i sgones zhu ba)-follow the expository scholasticism of yig cha texts.v Thisdramatic change in style might give the impression that the missionaryabandoned Rnying rna literature in favor of Dge lugs scholasticism afterhe began his studies at Se ra monastery in the summer of 1717. It wouldbe wrong, however, to think that Desideri's turn to scholasticismrepresents a purification of the cultic or supernatural elements of eitherChristianity or Buddhism-as Toscano often implies." There is no

2 See Luciano Petech's editorial remarks in Petech 1944-46, VI: 346-49, nn. 141­63. Toscano 1981: 77-82. On Desideri's use of the gter rtags, see 157, n. 2. On his vo­cabulary, see 161, n. 15 and 209, n. 8. On his style, see 187, n. 7 and 200, n. 2. Toscanooften ascribes a specifically Rnying rna interpretation to Desideri's use of terms such asrang byung and rang grub. I find this ascription a bit forced, but Desideri's familiaritywith the vocabulary of the Padma thang yig is readily apparent.

3 Desideri 1981: 117.7.4 Desideri 1981: 89.6. 53.7-65.5 contain Desideri's rendering of the Exodus of Is­

rael. In addition to describing himself as a gter ston to rival Padmasambhava, Desideridescribes God with titles reminiscent of Avalokitesvara, such as thugs rje chen po. Cf.Desideri 1981: 6.1, 3] .1, and 66.2.

5 The standard introduction to Matteo Ricci is Spence ]984. On BartholomreusZiegenbalg, see Singh 2000.

6 The title appears to contain a misspelling. Mgo skar [=mgo dkar]. Mgo skar is ac­tually a self-conscious neologism intended to echo its homonym. Toscano's translation,'cristiano,' is borne out by the original Italian manuscript of the Tho rangs. Cf. Toscano1981: 156-57.

7 Note the following passage in Toscano 1981: 20: "Per comprendereI'atteggiamento polemico del p. Desideri nella sua prima opera ..., si deve tener presenteche il suo primo contatto con la religione tibetana non e stato con la seconda forma pilielevata, rna esclusivamente con la prima risultante dalla mescolanza del bon con il bud­dhismo tantrico." Or again, Toscano] 981: 78 (quoting Tucci] 976: 239): "II Desiderinon combatte il buddhismo in quest'opera rna la sua degenerazione, quella degenerazionedella quale il Tucci scrisse: 'La graduale disgregazione delle basi dottrinarie del bud-

IPOUTO DESIDERI, S.J. ON PADMASAMBHAVA 35

historical, philosophical, or theological reason to suppose that Desideriabandoned either his genealogical criticism of Tibetan religion or hisinterest in Tibetan prophetic literature. In fact, Padmasambhava'sprophecies continued to influence the Jesuit missionary's interpretationof the political events that wracked Tibet during the early eighteenthcentury, for he saw in them the persecution of his Rnying rna friends andhis own rivalry with Padmasambhava. Why the prophecies so fascinatedDesideri-and how he came to read them-remain something of amystery. As I hope to show, the identity of one of Desideri's friends, themysterious 'Lungar lama' from Dwags po, might offer scholars newinsights into these issues.

With the possible exception of Lha bzang Khan, no figure is soreadily analyzed in Desideri's Notizie istoriche as Padmasambhava.s Theancient sorcerer frames the missionary's journey: he is waiting when themissionary enters Tibet through the Western deserts in 1715 and risesagain when the missionary descends the Tibetan plateau in 1721. This isDesideri's account of their first meeting:

On the ninth of November 1715, we arrived at the highest point of ourjourney, indeed, the highest point that we reached in all of ourwandering. This place--a bleak desert indeed-is greatly respected andvenerated on account of a certain Urghien, who established the religionor sect that one finds in Tibet. Away from the road is a mountain ofexcessive height, quite large in circumference, its summit enveloped incloud and perpetually encased in snow and ice, which remains quitehorrible and austere, for it is most bitterly cold. Urghien lived for sometime in complete solitude and continuous contemplation in a cavecarved from the living rock of this very mountain.?

dhismo, riconoscibile gia nella sua espressione tantrica, nel Tibet e tanato avanzata dapermettere la soprevvivenza della concezioni autoctone. ",

8 Desideri devotes considerable space to retelling his story. Cf. Petech 1944-46, VI:236-272.

9 "A' 9 di Novernbre arrivammo al piu alto de' luoghi, che abbiamo passato in tuttoquesta nostro pellegrinaggio. Tal luogo (che pur'edeserto) eappresso i paesani di moltorispetto e venerazione, per riguardo a un certo Urghien, che stabili nel Thibet la religioneo setta che in esso corre. V'e quivi fuori di strada un monte streminatamente alto, moltolargo di circuito, nella sommita ricoperta dale nuvole e 'da perpetue nevi e ghiacci, e nelresto molto orrido e rigido per I'acerbissimo freddo, che in esso fa. In una spelonca, ch'efarmata di viva pietra eli questa monte, dicono che dimoro qualche tempo in un total ritiroe asprezza e in continuo contemplazioni il sopradetto Urghien." Petech 1944-46, V: 174­175. As one can see from the two passages quoted, Desideri is rarely consistent in hisphonetic transliteration of Tibetan words.

36 R. TRENT POMPLUN

This passage may seem dry enough to us today, but to Desideri' sreaders it would have fairly bristled with tension. Wind-swept desertsand lonesome mountains were common settings in Christian literature,portending epic temptations and terrible battles. Just as Matteo Ricci'sreaders would have caught the scriptural allusions when he spoke ofChina as un deserto si lontano or its people as questa remotissimagente.t» Desideri' s readers would have shivered with fear when hereferred to the Himalayas as "the very picture of desolation, horror, anddeath itself."11 A missionary of the early eighteenth century could havefound such ideas confirmed by scientists of his day, for whom it was noexaggeration to say that the very existence of mountain ranges, includingthe very range upon which Desideri confronted Padmasambhava, spokeof the most ancient sins of the human race, for it was common scientificopinion in the seventeenth century that such peaks formed only after thewaters of Noah's flood subsidcd.l- Such confrontations were also fastbecoming a dominant staple of missionary lore. Harkening to the tale ofElijah and the priests of Baal, the Catholic Church deployed its ownthaumaturges in the war for souls and took evident delight in the miraclesthey performed. 13 The Jesuit missionary is no exception in this regard: heunabashedly describes the miracles of the saints who preceded him in theAsian missions, and he treats his eighteenth-century reader to severalanecdotes calculated to instill in them the belief that the Holy Spirit stillperformed such miracles in the Church.t-

It is with such sentiments that Ippolito Desideri entered thephantasmagoria of Tibetan politics. As the Jesuit compared himself to agter ston in the court of Lha bzang Khan, he was hardly aware that the

10 Spence, p. 56.11 ." .. se fait entre des montagnes qui sont une vraye image de la tristesse, de

l'horreur, & de la mort mesmes." Letter to Ildebrando Grassi (10 April 1716) Petech1944-46, V: 34.

12 Rossi 1984.13 Discussing men such as the Augustinian Juan Bautista de Moya, Serge Gruzin­

ski says "From 1550 to 1650, from Queretaro to the bishopric of Oaxaca, from the valleyof Puebla to Michoaciin, these holy men filled the Mexican countryside with the renownof their exploits, mastered the natural elements, kept away storms, attracted rain, orderedthe clouds and plants, lit or put out fires at will, and devoted themselves to prophecy anddivination. Above all they multiplied miraculous healings before and after their death,since their relics and their bodies ... were themselves endowed with miraculous powers."Gruzinski 1993: 189. Compare the encounter between the Jesuit fathers and the magicianGuiraberu in de Montoya 1993: 99-100.

14 Desideri 1944-46: 148, 150-51, 157. Compare Desideri's Letter to FrancescoPiccolomini (21 August 1714). Desideri 1944-46: 16.

IPOLITO DESIDERI, s.r. ON PADMASAMBHAVA 37

Qoshot chieftain would soon lose "his kingdom, his family, and his verylife."15 Although it is impossible to describe the tangled politics of Lhabzang Khan's reign in such a short essay without over-simplifyingmatters, suffice to say that the Dge lugs order was divided into severalcompeting factions from A mdo, Gtsang, and Dbus, each of which withcomplex and ever-shifting alliances with Tibetan aristocrats, Mongolchieftains, and Manchu nobles.lc Between Sde srid Sangs rgyas rgyamtsho and the Qoshot Khan in central Tibet-and the Manchu Empireand the Dzungars beyond its borders-these various factions existed indelicate tension at the tum of the eighteenth century. I 7 When Lha bzangKhan's wife had the regent decapitated in the Stod lung Valley and theSixth Dalai Lama defected to the brothels of Lhasa in 1705, each of thevarious Dge lugs factions turned to its foreign benefactors, and the seedsof war were sown.If Such seeds bore fruit on the thirtieth of November1717, when the Dzungars-aided by a coalition of Dge lugs from 'Brasspungs, Se ra, and Dga' ldan monasteries-sacked Lhasa and murderedLha bzang Khan. This ramshackle coalition briefly controlled Lhasa anda few surrounding districts but was still caught between the Dge lugsfactions from A mdo and Gtsang, both pro-Manchu and both quitehostile. In an attempt to find firm footing on shaky ground, Stag rtse paand the Dzungar government began a wholesale persecution of Rnyingma and Bka' brgyud monks and laymen under the direction of Blo bzangphun tshogs, a Dzungar lama of Sgo mangs college. From November1717 to October 1720, these Dge lugs and their Dzungar allies sackedand pillaged monasteries along the Gtsang po River, reaching as far asDwags lha sgam po to the East. Although we have not yet untangled thecomplex reasons for these persecutions-I believe that they are bestunderstood in terms of family conflicts and land polity-one thing is

15 "Pili felice sarebbe stata la di lui prudenza, se all'altre qual ita cheI'accompagnavano avesse saputo accompagnare I'altra qualita tanto necessaria ne' reg­nanti, di sapere al1e volte sospettare; per mancanza di che perde il suo regno, la suafamiglia e la propria sua vita." Desideri 1944-46: 41 n.

16 Petech [1950] 1972 is still the standard work. Petech 1988 contains valuable in­sights as well, especially into Desideri's limitations as an historian.

17 Ahmad 1970 remains the primary European-language work on the relationshipof the Sde srid to the Dzungars. It must be used with extreme caution, however, untilmuch of the current research being done on the regent is published.

18 Standard accounts for these events can be found in Kun mkhyen 'Jigs meddbang po 1987: 108 tf; Blo bzang ye shes dpal bzang po 1981-85: 447 1'1'; Mdo mkharTshe ring dbang rgyal 1981: 119 1'1'; Sum pa mkhan po Ye shes dpal 'byor (Yang 1970),and Tsepon Shakabpa 1976: 482 ff.

38 R. TRENT POMPLUN

clear. The monasteries sacked were predominantly Rnying rna and Bka'brgyud institutions in Dbus, Gtsang, and Dwags po, and most notableamong these were the Rnying rna monasteries-Rnam rgyal gling, Bsamlding, Smin grol gling and Rdo rje brag-s-that had intimate ties to theFifth Dalai. While Petech sees these persecutions in racial terms-as apolicy imposed upon Tibetans by the Dzungars-Desideri believed themto result from internal Tibetan conflicts, Petech, too, seems at pains toensure that the Tibetans had little to do with the persecutions and impliesthat the Dge lugs merely allowed the pillaging of Rnying rna monasteriesas they waited for the rightful Dalai Lama to appear. The Jesuitmissionary is a more severe critic and-at least in this regard-a moreinteresting historical source. He observes, for example, that the Dge lugsdiffered in their opinions about the Rnying rna, Some Dge lugs werecontent to edit or suppress the biographies of Padmasambhava but didnot support such wholesale persecution.!? Others engaged in gratuitousiconoclasm and violently oppressed the Rnying rna, and several of themost esteemed Rnying rna lamas were deposed, banished, or murdered.Many, Desideri relates, fled with nothing and refuge in hiddencavems.s?

Fearing that his friendship with the deposed QOShOl chieftain wouldcost him his life, Ippolito Desideri fled to Dwags pO.21 While there, hebefriended a 'rosy and rotund' man he calls the 'Lungar lama.' "Weenjoyed a great friendship and close familiarity," Desideri writes, "andhe often invited me to pass two or three days in his company, and wasvery generous, offering me presents time and time again, especially greatquantities of gold."22 Sadly, the joint Tibetan-Dzungar governmentexpanded its pillaging into Gtsang and Dwags po in 1718, Awakened onenight by shouts outside his door, the Lungar lama snatched his son andhurriedly disappeared into a secret passage, Under cover of the night,they descended a steep path to the river and made a daring escape byboat. It chanced that, in their flight, they Jesuit's house andborrowed some money. "Not without compassion and tears," Desideri

19 Petech 1944-46, VI: 161-62, 273n. Here Desideri echoes debates about the biog-raphies ofPadmasambhava discussed by Blondeau 1980. Compare abo BJondeau 1987.

20 Petech 1944-46, VI: 159.21 Petech 1944-46, V: 201.22 "00. aveva egli stretto con me una grandissirna amicizia e un'intima famil­

iarita., .. Frequentemente m'invitava ad andar da lui a passer ora due cora tre giorni insua compagnia; e come era di genio molto liberale, m 'aveva piu e piu volte fatto copioseofferta, specialmente d'oro in quantita." Petech 1944-46, Vi: 159-1

IPOLITO DESIDERI, s.r. ON PADMASAMBHAVA 39

tells his reader, "I assisted the flight of the Lungar lama, who wasmiserably destitute and in great pain, so that he might escape the handsof his barbaric persecutors."23

Such escapes were all-too-common during the Dzungarpersecutions. Mi 'gyur dpal sgron rna, the daughter of the Smin grolgling abbot Gter bdag gling pa, fled the Dzungars and found refuge in thehidden valley 'Bras mo Ijongs, in present day Sikkim.e- When faced withsuch trials, Rnying rna followers like Mi 'gyur dpal sgron rna or the'Lungar lama' turned for solace to the very prophecies that Desideri readin the court of Lha bzang Khan. Although scholars in recent years havedoubted the veracity of such 'treasures' (gter rna), they provided thenarrative and ideological framework of much of Tibetan politics,especially in times of political crisis.x> While the biographies ofPadmasambhava were well-known by all the participants in this drama,special mention should be made of the mystical cartographies of hiddensanctuaries (sbas yuI) that are most often associated with the teachings ofthe 'northern treasure' (byang gter) school that flourished at Rdo rje bragunder Padma 'phrin las (1640-1718), one of the Rnying rna lamas singledout by the Dzungars for extreme persecution.zs Although such sbas yultexts differ in specific details, as a whole they describe a period of stableMongol rule, after which foreign invaders conquer Tibet and social andspiritual disintegration ensues. Desideri, working within this generalframework, saw the Mongol ascent to power, the Dzungar invasion, andthe establishment of the Manchu protectorate foretold in the prophecies.While I cannot yet say exactly which of the treasure texts the Jesuitfather may have read-beyond the dialogues contained in the Padmathang yig-it is sufficient for our purposes that he tells us that he readthem, since little ingenuity is needed to read the events of the

23 "Non senza compassione e non senza lacrime soccorsi io nella sua fuga il Lamadi Lungar, miseramente fuggitivo e con gran pena scappato dalle mani de' barbarii perse­cutori." This passage precedes Desideri's description of the lama: "Come sopra ho detto,equesti uno de' Lama che con maritati. Era egli di complessione molto grasso, di geniomolto affabile e cortese, d'ottima indole, signore d'un gran feudo, abbondante di ric­chezze, potente per la parentela di grosse e molto cospicue famiglie e universalamentemolto amato e rispetto." Petech 1944-46, VI: 161.

24 Khyung po ras pa ]984: 96.4 ff.25 For an overview of gter rna literature, see Gyatso 1996, Karmay 1988, and Aris

1989. Important studies include Gyatso 1986 and Gyatso ]993, Germano] 994, and Kap­stein 2000.

26 For my discussion of sbas yul, I depend heavily on the work of Childs 1999 andEhrhard ]999a, 1999b.

40 R. TRENT POMPLUN

seventeenth and early-eighteenth century into them.z? All of those whosuffered saw themselves in the texts. Those in Gtsang and Dwags po whohad supported Lha bzang Khan could thus see in his death the end of thestable Mongol rule that the texts prophesied. The Dzungar conquest, thereligious persecutions, and the Manchu takeover followed with equalnecessity.

Although it is difficult to say what the Jesuit thought of theprevalence of such gter ma, there is little reason to think that they wouldhave offended his own religious sensibilities. Similar religiousphenomena were by no means scarce in Christianity.zf What I find ratherfascinating is that Ippolito Desideri did not doubt the prophecies'veracity. When he first arrived in Tibet, he tells his reader, he thoughtthem ridiculous and "fit for a few good laughs." Later, when he saw theprophecies fulfilled in the wars that engulfed Tibet, the Jesuit could onlymarvel at Padmasambhava's uncanny accuracy. Witnessing theprophecies fulfilled as monasteries in Dwags po were destroyed, Desiderifelt compelled "to prostrate myself upon the earth and adore the supreme,most just, most holy and inscrutable Providence of God, and repeat thewords of the Holy Prophet David time and time again: Justus es,Domine, et rectum iudicium tuum. "29 This is not to say that Desideribelieved his rival to be privy to any special graces. The Jesuit father, likehis fellow Tuscan Dante Alighieri, knew that demons could predict thefuture, and this is precisely how he explains Padmasambhava's propheticsuccess.w Tibetan religion-and his own-remained thoroughlysupernatural to the end.

27 Pctech 1944-46, VI: 265-66.28 Augustine, in an account that would surely have been known to Desideri, tells

how Ambrose miraculously discovered the relics of Gervasius and Protasius. GiovanniNanni of Viterbo, too, 'discovered' twelve ancient texts that proved his rather ingenioustheories about the origins of the Italians. Christians commonly interpreted the politicalupheavals of the seventeenth century by recourse to the Apocalypse of John. See, forexample, the standard studies by Wilson 1969 and Toon 1970.

29 "In sol genere di si fatte cose mi giova qui iI riferire, che al puro intenderle e ri­trovarle parte scritte e parte stampate ne ' Iibri, ne' primi principj della mia dimora in quelregno, mi diedero occasione di far bcffe e di ben grasse risate, rna dipoi nel progresso deltempo m' obbligarono e mi costrinsero a inchinar millioni de volte e batter per terra river­ente la testa profondamcnte adorando la suprema, giustissima, santissima, imperscrutabileProvvidcnza di Dio, e col S. Profeta David mille emilie volte ripetendo quelle parole:Justus es Domine. et rec111117 judicium tuum." Desideri 1944-46: 265. Desideri quotesPsalm 119.137: "Righteous art thou, 0 Lord, and right are thy judgements."

30 Petech 1944-46, VI: 267.

IPOLITO DESIDERI, S.l. ON PADMASAMBHAVA 41

However much Desideri increasingly came to see the influence ofdemons in Tibetan affairs, I prefer to look for a more down-to-earthexplanation of his estimation of Padmasambhava's prophecies. I like tothink that a friendly and garrulous gter ston convinced Desideri of theirtruth, perhaps a gter ston who fled the Dzungars or opened a hiddensanctuary, perhaps even the lama from Lungar who made the daringescape through the secret passage. Perhaps Desideri' s friend is noneother than Chos rje gling pa (1682-1726), the gter ston from Klu mkhar('Lungar') in Dwags po. Until more information about Desideri's travelscomes to light, I think this feasible. Initiated into both Rnying rna andBka' brgyud lineages, Chos rje gling pa opened hidden sanctuaries inKong po and Spo bo in order to escape the Dzungarsu and had ties toLha bzang Khan.V He fits the age and, apart from details about his girthand complexion, the description of Desideri' s 'Lungar lama.' I offer thisidentification only tentatively but, if correct, it has importantramifications for how we understand Desideri's knowledge of early­eighteenth century Tibet. If Desideri knew Chos rje gling pa, we canreasonably place the young Jesuit within the ambit of some of the mostfascinating political characters of the time, most notably Mi 'gyur dpalsgron ma,33 her Dge lugs 'Rasputin' Sle lung bzhad pa'i rdo rje,34 andPho lha nas Bsod nams stobs rgyas.t> More to the point, if Chos rje glingpa is Desideri's 'Lungar lama,' he would be the most obvious source forDesideri's continued fascination with the prophecies of Padmasambhavaas well as his sympathies for those who suffered so at the hands of theDzungars. He might even be the source of other prophecies themissionary may have read,36

Desideri's belief that demonic voices guided Padmasambhava'sprophecies does not seem to have affected his friendship with Rnying rnapriests like Chos rje gling pa. While he repeatedly condemned the crueltyof the Dge lugs from central Tibet and their complicity in the Dzungarinvasion, the Jesuit consistently expressed his admiration for the pietyand virtue of the Rnying rna who remained steadfast during the

31 Gu ru Bkra' shis 1990: 415.4ff.32 Kun bzang nges don klong yangs 1976: 324.4.33 Chos rje gling pa and Mi 'gyur dpal sgron rna seem to have been in Kong po at

the same time. Cf. Khyung po ras pa 1984: 104.5.34 Sle lung Rje drung Bzhad pa'i rdo rje 1983: 12.1ff, 368ft~ and 454ff.35 Sle lung Rje drung Bzhad pa'i rdo rje. 1984: 279-359.36 Chos rje rling pa 1985.

42 R. TRENT POMPLUN

persecutions.t? He even suggested that the Dge lugs persecuted theRnying rna because ordinary Tibetans found them more inclined tovirtue.P' Desideri's confrontation, after all, was with Padmasambhava,not the Tibetans who venerated him. In fact, the Rnying rna men andwomen who resisted Stag rtse pa and the Dzungar government came toplay an important role in Desideri' s own religious and theologicalunderstanding of Tibetan culture. With the death of Lha bzang Khan, theRnying rna became his great hope for the conversion of the Tibetanpeople.

This hope, too, would be dashed. When the Jesuit returned to Lhasain 1721, the Capuchin fathers showed him the legal decision from Romegranting them exclusive rights to the mission and orders from the Jesuitgeneral Michelangelo Tamburini commanding him to leave. Had he notlost the Tibetan mission to the Capuchins, Desideri would have seeneven worse wars during the next decade. After dilapidating the Tibetangranaries and destroying the economy, the Manchu military garrison leftthe Tibetans to fight among themselves, and fight they did. The civil warof 1727-1728 would see the murder of Khang chen nas, the victory ofPho Iha nas and the Gtsang pa Dge lugs over their A mdo rivals, and theexile of the seventh Dalai Lama, whose office would remain greatlyweakened, if not powerless, until Manchu Dynasty fell in the earlytwentieth century. Before descending the Tibetan plateau, however,Ippolito Desideri paid his old friend one last visit. Recounting theirreunion years later, the loquacious Jesuit found himself at a loss forwords:

I cannot describe the tears and expressions of friendship with which thegood lama described his disgrace and deprivation, our old friendship nothaving suffering in the slightest, but being made stronger and more robust.He wished not only to return the money he had borrowed but also to giveme copious presents, but I refused to take either, which cut him to thequick with the loss that comes with the departure of a most sincerefriend.t?

37 Petech 1944-46, VI: 272.38 Petech 1944-46, VI: 158.39 "Sono inesplicabili Ie Iacrime e Ie amorevoli espressioni, con cui il buon Lama

mi fece conoscere che la disgrazie e l'assenza non solamente non avevano punto in luidiminuito l'antica amicizia, rna che pili tosto l'avevano resa pili forte e pili solida. Volevaegii non solamente restituirmi il denaro che gli avevo inviato, rna voleva aggiugnerglicopiosi donativi; rna ricusando io di ricevere ne questi ne quello, prese quindi motivi di

IPOLITO DESIDERI, s.r. ON PADMASAMBHAVA 43

Tibetan ReferencesBlo bzang ye shes dpal bzang po. 1980-85. Shiikya 'i dge slong blo bzang

ye shes kyi spyod tshul gsal bar byed pa ngor dkar can kyi phreng bain The Collected Works (gsung- 'bum) of the Second Panchen Blobzan ye ses, vol. 1. New Delhi: Bkra sis lhun po Monastery.

Chos rje rling pa. 1985. Khrag 'thung rna ha gu ru padma drag po 'i chosskor and Other Revelations. Darjeeling: Kargyud Sungrab NyamsoKhang.

Desideri, I., S.J. 1944-46. Mgo skar bla rna i po Ii do shes bya ba yis phulba'i bod kyi mkhas pa rnams la skyes pa snga rna dang stong pa nyidkyi Ita ba 'i sgo nes zhu ba. Cf. Petech 1944-46.

- 1981. Tho rangs mun sel nyi rna shar ba. Cf. Toscano 1981.Gu ru Bkra' shis. 1990. Gu bkra'i chos 'byung, Beijing: Krung goi bod

kyi shes rig dpe skrun khang.Khyung po ras pa. 1984. Rje btsun mi 'gyur dpal gyi gron ma'i rnam

thar dad pa 'i gdung sel Thimpu: The National Library of Bhutan.Kun bzang nges don klong yangs. 1976. Bod du byung ba 'i gsang sngags

snga 'gyur gyi bstan 'dzin skyes mchog rim byon gyi rnam thar norbu 'i do shal. Dalhousie: Damchoe Sangpo.

Kun mkhyen 'Jigs med dbang po. 1987. Kun mkhyen 'Jam dbyangsbzhadpa 'i rnam thar. Lanzhou: Kan suu mi rigs dpe skrun khang.

Mdo mkhar Tshe ring dbang rgyal. 1981. Dpal mi 'i dbang po 'i rtogs pabrjod 'jig rten kun tu dga' ba'i gtam shes bya ba. Lanzhou: Khronmi rigs dpe skrun khang.

Sle lung Rje drung Bzhad pa'i rdo rje. 1983. Rig pa 'dzin pa blo bzang'phrin las kyi rtogs brjod skel bzang dga' ston. In The CollectedWorks of Sle lung Rje drung Bzhad pa'i rdo rje, vol. 1. Leh: T.Sonam.

-. 1984. Mi dbang bsod nams stobs rgyas rnam grol gling du byon pa 'i10 rgyus ngo mtshar 'bum snang. In The Collected Works ofSle lungRje drung Bzhad pa 'i rdo rje, vol. 9. Leh: T. Sonam.

Sum pa mkhan po Ye shes dpal 'byor. 1970. Mtsho sngon byi 10 rgyussogs bkodpa 'i tshangs glu gsar snyan. Cf. Yang 1970.

Tsepon Shakabpa (Zhwa sgab pa Dbang phyug Ide ldan). 1976. Bod kyisrid don rgyal rabs. Kalimpong: Shakabpa House.

Other References

sentir piu al vivo la perdita che veniva a far con la mia partenza d'un suo pill sinceroamico ...." Petech 1944-46, VI: 161.

44 R. TRENT POMPLUN

Ahmad, Z. 1970. Sino-Tibetan Relations in the Seventeenth Century.Rome: Istituto Italiano per il Medio ed Estremo Oriente.

Aris, M. 1989. Hidden Treasures and Secret Lives. London: Kegan PaulInternational.

B1ondeau, A.M. 1980. Analysis of the Biographies of PadmasambhavaAccording to Tibetan Tradition: Classification of Sources. In M. Arisand A.S.S. Kyi (eds) Tibetan Studies in Honour ofHugh Richardson.Warminster: Aris and Phillips Ltd., 45-52.

-. 1987. Une polemique sur lauthenticite des Bka'-thang au 1T" siecle.In C. Beckwith (ed.) Silver on Lapis: Tibetan Literary Culture andHistory. Bloomington: The Tibet Society, 125-60.

Childs, G. 1999. Refuge and Revitalization: Hidden HimalayanSanctuaries (Sbas-yul) and the Preservation of Tibet's ImperialLineage. Acta Orientalia 60, 126-58.

Ehrhard, F.K. 1999a. The Role of 'Treasure Discoverers' and TheirWritings in the Search for Himalayan Sacred Lands. In T. Huber(ed.) Sacred Spaces and Powerful Places in Tibetan Culture.Dharamsala: Library of Tibetan Works and Archives, 227-39.

-. 1999b. Political and Ritual Aspects of the Search for HimalayanSacred Lands. In T. Huber (ed.), 240-57.

Germano, D. 1994. Architecture and Absence in the Secret TantricHistory of rDzogs Chen. Journal of the International Association ofBuddhist Studies 17, 203-335.

Gruzinski, S. 1993. The Conquest of Mexico. [La Colonisation del'imaginaire. Paris: Gallimard, 1988.] E. Corrigan (trans.).Cambridge, MA: Polity Press.

Gyatso, J. 1986. Signs, Memory, and History: A Tantric BuddhistTheory of Scriptural Transmission. Journal of the InternationalAssociation ofBuddhist Studies 9, 73-135.

-. 1993. The Logic of Legitimation in the Tibetan Treasure Tradition.History ofReligions 33, 97-134.

-. 1996. Drawn from the Tibetan Treasury: The gTer rna Literature. InJ. Cabezon and R. Jackson (eds) Tibetan Literature: Studies inGenre. Ithaca: Snow Lion Publications, 147-69.

Kapstein, M. 2000. The Tibetan Assimilation of Buddhism. New York:Oxford University Press.

Karmay, S. 1988. The Great Perfection. Leiden: Brill.

IPOLITO DESIDERI, S.l. ON PADMASAMBHAVA 45

de Montoya, S.l., A.R. 1993. The Spiritual Conquest. CJ. McNaspy,s.r. l.P. Leonard, s.r., and M.E. Palmer, SJ. (trans.) St. Louis:Institute of Jesuit Sources, 1993.

Petech, L. (ed.) 1944-46. I Missionari Italiani nel Tibet e nel Nepal.Rome: Libreria dello Stato.

-. [1950] 1972. China and Tibet in the Eighteenth Century. 2nd rev. ed.Leiden: Brill.

-. 1988. Notes on Tibetan History of the eighteenth Century. In L.Petech, Selected Papers on Asian History. Rome: Istituto Italiano peril Medio ed Estremo Oriente, 1988, 201-30.

Rossi, P. 1984. The Dark Abyss of Time: The History of the Earth andthe History ofNations from Hooke to Vico, [I segni del tempo: Storiadella terra e storia delle nazioni da Hooke a Vico, Milan:Giangiacomo Feltrinelli Editore, 1979.] L. G. Cochrane (trans.)Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Singh, B. 2000. The First Protestant Missionary in India. Oxford:University of Oxford Press.

Spence, J. 1984. The Memory Palace ofMatteo Ricci. New York: VikingPenguin.

Toon, P. (ed.) 1970. Puritans, the Millennium and the Future of Israel:Puritan Eschatology 1600 to 1660. Cambridge, MA: lames Clarke.

Toscano, G., S.l. 1981. Il T'o Rans (L 'Aurora). Rome: Istituto Italianoper il Medio ed Estremo Oriente.

Tucci, G. 1976. Le Religioni del Tibet. Rome: Edizioni Meditterrane.Wilson, J.F. 1969. Pulpit in Parliament: Puritanism during the English

Civil Wars 1640-1648. Princeton: Princeton University Press.Yang, H.C. (trans.) 1970. The Annals ofKoke nor. Bloomington: Indiana

University Press.

CHAPTER FOUR

DGE LUGS PA DIVIDED: SOME ASPECTS OFTHE POLITICAL ROLE OF TIBETAN BUDDHISM IN

THE EXPANSION OF THE QING DYNASTY

Nikolay Tsyrempilov

In the seventeenth century, Central Asia was witness to anuncompromising struggle of armies and ideologies that finally resulted inthe establishment of an empire, which had no equal in this part of theworld from the time of the great Mongol Conquest. Still, historians arefar from answering all the questions raised by those events, even if socomplicated a phenomenon could ever be completely understood bymodem people. Nevertheless, thanks to the efforts of generations ofscholars, modem historians have managed to rid themselves of a numberof myths, stereotypes and artificial simplifications that reigned in thisscientific area until recently.

Undoubtedly, one of the gravest errors related to the history of theQing Empire is "to refer to this political regime as a 'dynasty'exclusively."l Elimination of this methodological error, as well asunderstanding the obvious fact that the Qing Empire was establishedthrough the efforts of many forces and with the participation of variousnational and state formations, has opened a number of new perspectivesand directions for research. With such an approach, investigations of theevolution of relations between the rulers of the empire on the one handand various authorities controlling important regions in Central Asia onthe other are of great importance. In addition, the problem ofcontradictions inside each party is still far from being resolved; the latteris directly connected with the question of the balance between pro- andanti-Imperial forces. Possible results of the analysis of this importantproblem could contribute to a deeper understanding of the process ofestablishing this Asian empire.

Touching upon the question of the inclusion of Tibet into the sphereof direct imperial control, it is necessary to specify one more defective

1 Crossley 1997: 8.

48 NICOLAY TSYREMPILOV

position, which is peculiar to some historians. The relations whichexisted between the Qing emperors and the religious leaders of Tibet,mainly the Dalai and the Panchen Lamas, as well as other forces andopinions from among the Buddhist clergy, in some cases promoting theQing policy not only in Tibet but also in other regions of Inner Asia, areignored as if they never existed. The source base for investigations ofthis kind expands each year, allowing us to make some cautiousconclusions about existence of such forces. The present work is notaimed to prove these, as it is hardly possible at the stage Tibetan studieshas reached at this moment. My purpose is to attract experts' attention tothis problem, as its resolution, in my opinion, will facilitate the properunderstanding of the history of the establishment of the Qing Empire.

It seems that the first time the problem of the heterogeneity of thereligio-political authorities in Tibet of the nineteenth-twentieth centuriesand the conflicts between the largest Dge lugs pa monasteries and thegovernment of the Dalai Lama was considered, is in one of the works ofMelvin Goldstein. In this connection, he writes: 'Religion' (and thereligious segment), however, was not the homogeneous entity it istypically implied to be, even within the Dge lugs pa Sect, and the greatDge lugs pa monasteries were often at odds with the Dalai Lama'sgovernment.2 Having examined some characteristic cases of collisionbetween the government of Tibet and some groups of Dge lugs pamonks, the author comes to the following conclusion:

This discord, however, was typified not by conflict over the ideologythat religion must dominate in Tibet, but rather over the monks' beliefthat this meant that the interests of the monasteries should reignsupreme. The Three Seats [Dge lugs pa monasteries Sera, Dga' ldanand 'Bras spungs-N.T] thus had no qualms about challenging thegovernment when they felt their interests were at stake, for in theirview they were more important than Ganden Photrang [Dga' ldan phobrang-N.T.], the government headed by the Dalai Lamas)

It seems to be pertinent to look at the problem of variously orientedecclesiastic groups of the Dge lugs pa order through a prism of theirperception of the expansion of the Qing Empire and the correlation oftheir corresponding interests with this expansion.

2 Goldstein 1990: 231.3 Goldstein 1990: 244-45.

DGE LUGS PA DIVIDED 49

Many things have been said about the high objective value of theManchu-Mongol alliance. Indeed, it is hardly possible to deny theopinion of those historians who say: The Mongols' participation wascrucial to the success of an empire-building [the Qing-N.T.] process inwhich they were at first essential allies, gradually thereafter reduced tothe status of mere subjects, albeit privileged ones.'

It would not be an exaggeration to say that their hands had built theQing Empire. The Mongol's loyalty was primarily facilitated by theunique ability of the Qing emperors to play various roles depending oncertain circumstances. Their political flexibility, which contributed to therelative ease of their conquests, is often explained by the fact that theylacked the "strong tribal consciousness or strong historical tradition ofthe Mongols."5 They had managed to include in their empire the peoplesof so many different cultures and religions due to the quality that wasdefined by American historian Kent Guy as 'simultaneities': "One of theManchu's unique capacities was their ability simultaneously to embodycrucial elements of the political traditions of the several people overwhom they ruled."6 The Qing emperors can be easily recognized indifferent roles: a Son of Heaven and an embodiment of virtue, a re­creator of the Yuan Empire and a legal successor of Chinggis Khan,cakravartin-king and a protector of Buddha Doctrine and, at last, anemanation of bodhisattva Manjusri.? Each of these roles was effectivelyplayed in different situations for the corresponding audience. Seemingly,that very quality had made it possible to integrate into the empire twosuch antagonistic peoples as the Hans and the Mongols.

Having made the establishment of an empire their aim, the Manchushad to face two serious obstacles in Inner Asia, namely two ideologieswhich for a long time competed with the traditional Confucian worldoutlook: the Central Asian idea of the Great Khan of the Mongols andthe 'patron-patronized' conception in the form of a special kind ofrelationship between a secular governor who assumes an honorable titleof cakravartin-king, and a Lama as the latter's religious instructor. Bothconcepts used to exert a huge influence upon Mongols; both worldoutlook systems were capable of challenging Confucian political theory.In addition the two ideas were, though rather artificially, bound.

4 Mote 1999: 869.5 Lattimore 1932: 44.6 Kent 2002: 57.7 On those two last roles of the Qing Emperors see: Farquhar 1978: 5-34.

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Manchus had started resolving the first problem at the dawn of theQing Empire. Actually, the very rise of the Qing had been possiblebecause of Qongtaiji's successful usurpation of the Great Khan position.It seems that without the legitimization of the Manchu supremacy overMongols through elimination of Legden Khan and the seizure of theYuan state's seal, the rise of the new empire would hardly have beenpossible.

The key to the second problem was Tibet, namely the figure of theDalai Lama. Manchus could not but know that control over thatinstitution would provide them with big political advantages. From themoment the patron-patronized relationship between Altan Khan ofTurned and Bsod nams rgya mtsho was established, it was for the mostpart the Dalai Lama (and only secondly the Dge lugs tradition as awhole) who became a key figure in Mongol-Tibetan religious andpolitical relations. I would say that the second wave of the spread ofBuddhism among Mongols had been caused by the political needs ofMongolian society and from the very beginning had taken the form of thepatron-patronized relationship, elaborated in the Yuan era. In otherwords, in those historical circumstances the pattern of the relationpreceded the actual relationship. For all of Qing history, the relationshipsbetween Mongolian khans and the Dalai Lamas were formed by theabove-stated principle. It is important to remember, that these ties wereexclusively of individual character: the Dalai Lama and one ofMongolian khans. This and other factors, which will be discussed later,explain the rise in status of the Dalai Lamas over other Dge lugs painstitutions.

The second problem appeared to be more difficult and took muchmore time than the first. On the other hand, the controversial tendenciesthat had split the Dge lugs pa hierarchy at the time of the Fifth DalaiLama and the regent Sde srid Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, resulted in thepolitical crisis which jeopardized the integrity of the Qing Empire.

As is widely known, Dge lugs pa borrowed a 'reincarnation'phenomenon from its main political rival-Karma pa school. It sufficesto say that this method of institutionalization of authority had a numberof advantages over others. Turrell Wylie first pointed them out, havingdistinguished three fundamental features of the reincarnation idea thatmade it more effective than other types of authority in Tibet. The thirdand, as it seems, basic advantage, from those distinguished by Wylie, isthat:

DGE LUGS PA DIVIDED 51

the reoccurrence of reincarnation generation after generation wouldinevitably depersonalize the anthropomorphic 'god' it creates. Thiswould facilitate the transition from charisma of person to a charisma ofoffice: a change essential to the establishment of a hierocratic form ofgovernment that could survive as an institution regardless of thecharisma of any individual hierarch.f

A line of Dalai Lamas essentially differs from that of Karma pas, asthe Dalai Lama has never been formally recognized as the head of thetradition he originates from. The fact that many scholars of the past weresure of the opposite is an illustration of the extreme importance of thisinstitution, which, in combination with the personal charisma of somerepresentatives of this line, provided the Dalai Lamas with the highestposition in the Tibetan Buddhist world. Keeping in mind all theaforesaid, it is not so difficult to notice an asymmetry in the Tibetanauthority structure formed at the time of the Fifth Dalai Lama. Theorderliness of the Dge lugs pa internal hierarchy was broken by thedisplacement of its center. As I have noted, the Dalai Lamas have neverbeen heads of the Dge lugs pa (this office was elective, at least ideally),"the dominating Buddhist tradition in Tibet. Nevertheless, they were therecognized rulers of Tibet. That was possible due to the advantages ofthe reincarnation institution I have mentioned above. This contradiction,which was brought into the tradition by Mongols, manifested itself invarious forms of opposition only in times of strong Dalai Lamasclaiming authoritarian rule in the country. Probably, for the first time therelations between the Dalai Lama and a part of the high Dge lugs pahierarchy became strained in the middle of the seventeenth century afterthe Oirad military leader Gushri Khan granted Tibet to the Fifth DalaiLama. From that moment, the new governor of the country tookconsecutive actions directed towards the sacralization anduniversalization of the institution he represented, and absolutization ofhis authority. All this could not but put him in opposition to Dge lugs pasectarians.

It is generally accepted that the fifth representative of the DalaiLama's line was one of the greatest politicians the Tibetan state everknew. His swift rise was preconditioned by the alliance of different

8 Wylie 1978: 584.9 In some cases an abbot of the Dga' Idan monastery, a successor of Rje Tsong kha

pa as a head of the tradition, was appointed by the decree of the Dalai Lama rather thanelected by the community of the Dga' Idan monastery.

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forces, of which a strong confederation of Qoshouts and some Dge lugspa hierarchs whose interests were represented by the Dalai Lama's regentBsod nams chos 'phel, were most important. After military control overTibet was established, Gushri Khan had granted the conquered territoriesto the regent and the Dalai Lama as an offering. In that act one can see adifferentiation between the Dge lugs pa school, represented then by Bsodnams chos 'phel, and the Dalai Lama, as a figure directly connected withthe tradition, but having a special status. Z. Ahmad believes 10 that in theDge lugs pa hierarchy formed by the middle of the seventeenth century,the position of a regent was lower than that occupied by the Dalai Lamaand Gushri Khan. The individual relationship of patron-patronized,mchod-yon, which four hundred years before had been establishedbetween the 'Phags pa bla rna and Qubilai, were set in 1642 betweenthese two figures. Thus, the Great Fifth and Gushri Khan assumed thepositions of 'Phags pa bla rna and Qubilai respectively, whichsymbolized a full restoration of the ancient tradition. Presumably,Mongols associated the reconstruction of the lost relations with Tibetfirstly with the Dalai Lama and only secondarily with Dge lugs patradition. Thus, the Dalai Lama occupied a key position in the powerstructure of the country, only formally sharing it with the regent and theQoshout ruler. Having occupied the highest seat in the state, the DalaiLama became an exponent of the interests not only of his religioustradition. There was one step left for securing his position: to work out astate ideology in which the Dalai Lama would be thought of as a centralfigure. In one of her works, I 1 Ishihama Yumiko convincinglydemonstrated the process of the rise in status of the Fifth Dalai Lamaover all other institutions mainly through the dissemination of the beliefthat the bodhisattva Avalokitesvara manifests himself in eachrepresentative of the Dalai Lama line. There was an obvious purpose: theancient Tibetan belief in that Buddhist deity as a destined divineprotector of the country legitimized the absolute authority of the DalaiLamas in Tibet and provided the reason for the sacralization of the wholeinstitution. In this connection, it does not seem irrelevant to cite thefollowing:

In Tibetan historical works (chos 'byung) and 'discovered' texts (gterrna) dating from even before the establishment of the Dge lugs pa

10 Ahmad, 1970: 191.II Ishihama 1993: 38-56

DGE LUGS PA DIVIDED 53

school there are, regardless of sectarian affiliations, statementsidentifying Tibet with the land to be converted by Avalokitesvara, andboth Gnya' khri btsan po, said to have been Tibet's first king, andSrong btsan sgam po, believed to have been the first king to haveunited Tibet are described as manifestations of Avalokitesvara, Hence,for people who identified the Dalai Lama with Avalokitesvara it wouldhave been quite natural to regard him as the head of state. 12

One more quotation:

Perhaps, at this stage, one might permit oneself two comparisons.Perhaps, one might say that what was established in Tibet in 1642/45was what was established in Tudor England, and what was attempted inIndia under Akbar the Great: a national state and a national statereligion.U

As a natural result at this stage, a tension had arisen in the relationsbetween the Dalai Lama as a protector of interests of the state, and thedefenders of the interests of Dge lugs pa as a Buddhist sectpredominating in Tibet and in other parts of Central Asia. What was thereason for this tension? At what moment had the standpoints of the twoparties diverged?

It is obvious that the disagreement between certain circles of theDge lugs pa hierarchy over whether to oppose or support the Fifth DalaiLama appeared because of the attitude of the latter to other Buddhisttraditions of Tibet. It is widely known that the Dalai Lama both in hisprivate life and in state affairs also considered the opinions of somerepresentatives of Rnying ma pa and was even an adherent of their secretdoctrines. The facts proving the tension in the relationships betweensome Dge lugs pa hierarchs and the Dalai Lama on this ground can befound in the works of Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho himself. Thereare some intriguing details in the so-called "Golden manuscript," theGreat Fifth's composition containing the vivid descriptions of his secretvisions, for instance, this one:

Legs ldan rdo rje begins to perform the ceremony, but the Dalai Lamais unable to recognize its deity. Dbang po sde then performs theempowerment ceremony of the divinity Karmaguru and gives him aritual dagger (phur pa). At that moment, he feels that the Treasurer

12 Ishihama 1993: 44.13 Ahmad 1970: 143.

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Bsod nams Tab brtan 14 and other (Dge lugs pa) monks are looking athim through the window at the eastern side of the Chapel of Mahakala,giving the impression that they do not approve of his participating inthe ceremony, which is performed by the Rnying rna lamas. He thinksthat if they, the Dge lugs pa monks, criticize him, he will hit them withthe ritual dagger and rushes out, but the monks look very subdued. Hethen awakes feeling totally recovered from his illnesses. 15

Probably, this conflict was expressed most sharply in the tragedy ofGrags pa rgyal mtshan, which had far-reaching and adverseconsequences for the whole Tsong kha pa tradition. The knowncircumstances of the tragic death of this main antagonist of Ngag dbangblo bzang rgya mtsho may seem to indicate a repressive aspect to theFifth Dalai Lama's attitude towards his ideological opponents inside thetradition, although there are no wide documentary confirmations of thisfact. If, however, there were repressions on the part of the Fifth DalaiLama directed to some representatives of the Dge lugs pa hierarchies,such a tough policy could be explained by the following reasons. Theproblem has its roots not only and not so much in Ngag dbang blo bzangrgya mtsho's adherence to the secret doctrines of Rnying rna pa. Surely,this might excite irritation among Dge lugs pa purists who were, as itseems, always in abundance. The fundamental root of this disagreementwas once formulated by G. Dreyfus in one of his works devoted to theorigin of the Rdo rje shug ldan cult as follows:

The resentment against the power of the Fifth Dalai Lama wasprimarily connected to a broad and far-reaching issue, the desire ofsome of the more sectarian Ge-luk hierarchs to set up a purely Ge-lukrule. Some even seem to have argued for the suppression of the schoolsagainst which they had fought for more than a century, particularly theKar-ma Ka-gyu tradition. The Fifth seems to have realized that such arule would have had little support and would have exacerbated theInter-sectarian violence that had marred the last two centuries ofTibetan history. To avoid this, he attempted to build a state with abroader power base, state that he presented as the re-establishment ofthe early Tibetan empire. His rule was to be supported by the Ge-luktradition, but would also include groups affiliated with other religioustraditions.Jv

1-+ The same person as Bsod narns chos 'phel mentioned above.]5 Karmay 1%X: 30.16 Dreyfus 1998: 232.

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It seems obvious that the Great Fifth associated Rnying rna pa withthe imperial period of Tibetan history, as this Buddhist tradition tracesback to that time. Touching upon this question, it is hardly possible tospeak about the opposition to the institution of the Dalai Lamas on thepart of Dge lugs pa sectarians. One can see in the logic of the events ofthe sixteenth century the opposition not to the institution of the DalaiLamas in general but to the form of the state, which the Fifth Dalai Lamawas creating: a proto-national state, What exactly was unacceptable forsome of Dge lugs pa monks in such type of the state? To answer thisquestion one has to consider some peculiarities of the general politicalsituation in Central Asia of the middle of the seventeenth century.

The well-known facts of the Dge lugs pa history prove that itspolitical predominance in Tibet was achieved through the long-termstruggle with the other Buddhist sects, in particular with Karma pa. Bothsides used military-political support both within the borders of thecountry and far beyond. The decline of the Phag mo gru clan, fromwhich Dge lugs pa received a powerful backing in the sixteenth­seventeenth centuries, had forced the iatters hierarchs to seek thepatronage of the leaders of various Mongolian tribes. This step had far­reaching consequences for all of Central Asia. After almost two centuriesof fighting for survival and domination, Dge lugs pa managed to obtain awide international recognition. In addition to its political domination inCentral Tibet the Tsong kha pa followers had strong positions in Amdoas well, where a second center of the YelJow church was beingestablished, based in the large and influential monasteries such as Sku'bum, Dgon lung, Gser khog and, later, Bla brang. Furthermore, Dgelugs pa predominated over almost ail the regions inhabited by Mongols.Moreover, Manchu emperors not only recognized Dge Jugs pasdomination in Tibet, but also protected and officially patronized theYellow Church in all mentioned regions. In this way favorableconditions In the Empire for the existence and strengthening of theYellow Hat tradition were created, which would have had an effect onthe attitude of many of its followers towards the person of the Emperor.It was during that period of time when the conception of the QingEmperor as an emanation of Manjusri became 'very popular amongMongols and Tibetans. Though this conception ~;e~ms to hove never beenofficially admitted hy the interestedin the integration of the

56 NICOLAY TSYREMPILOV

Tibetan Buddhism. However, most important, apparently, was their roleas the protectors and patrons of the tradition, the monopoly of whichthey, as a matter of fact, deprived the Mongols. It is known that theybased their right to interfere with Tibetan internal affairs on that verystatus.

I suppose that I am not very wide of the truth in assuming that Dgelugs pa was considered by most of its followers to be a true and accuratetransmission of Buddha's doctrine, and thus considered its dominance asa triumph of the religion. Many followers of the Dge lugs pa traditionthought their sect's interests more important than Tibetan state interests,which is why they could consider the course pursued by the Fifth DalaiLama, of rapprochement to the other Tibetan Buddhist sects, if not as abetrayal of the Yellow church, then at least as an adverse situation for thesect. They had to watch the establishment of a kind of state, in whichDge lugs pa occupied a key position but would share it with thearistocratic clans and representatives of other Buddhist sects, that is, acountry ruled by a coalition of the yesterday's rivals. This explains thestrained relations between the Fifth Dalai Lama and some otherauthoritative Dge lugs pa lamas who resented being obliged to share theirdominating position in Tibet, which had been so difficult to obtain.

The expansion of the Empire brought this opposition to a head. Wehave already mentioned that after the unsuccessful attempts to affectMongols by means of the Dalai Lama, Qing Emperors had to undertake awhole complex of measures to weaken the Dalai Lama's spiritualhegemony in Mongolian lands and tried to establish their direct controlover this influential religious-political institution. They managed to dothis to a certain degree only after the regent's official notice on the FifthDalai Lama's death, fourteen years after it really happened. Theinstitution of the Dalai Lama was practically invulnerable while Ngagdbang blo bzang rgya mtsho was alive or at least was considered to be.The news about his death became a signal for Manchus to move torealize actively their plans. During the rule of the regent Sangs rgyasrgya mtsho, the relations between the government and somerepresentatives of the Dge lugs pa hierarchy were becoming even worse.The regent consistently adhered to the Fifth Dalai Lama's policy, being"notoriously pro-Jungar and an ally of Galdan, the Jungar leader from1676 to 1696"17. It had put him in opposition to a coalition of variousforces: firstly, the Qing Emperor who could not remain indifferent to the

17 Petech [1950] 1972: 14.

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forming anti-Imperial alliance of the Dalai Lama (in person of theregent) and the Qing's main rival in Central Asia-the Jungar Khanate;secondly, Lha bzang Khan who had as an object the restoration of theformer prestige of the Qoshout governor of Tibet, which was establishedas a result of the Gushri Khan's conquest, but later lost its originalpolitical weight; thirdly, certain circles of the high Dge lugs pa hierarchywhose position has been discussed above. The situation was aggravatedby the Sixth Dalai Lama's behavior whose way of life did not correspondto the position he occupied. The two first opponents of the regent used itas a pretext for their offensive against the regime established by theprevious Dalai Lama and supported by the regent. The regime did notmeet the interests of those parties. Anyway, both sides sought the supportof the heads of dominating Buddhist traditions. The political position ofan authoritative Dge lugs pa lama of the seventeenth-eighteenth-century'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa Ngag dbang brtson grus can serve as a strongargument in favor of the idea, that the Qing Emperor's yearning for theweakening of the Dalai Lama's authority in Tibet met with support fromsome Dge lugs pa opponents to the regime established by Ngag dbangblo bzang rgya mtsho.

In the period of 1700 on 1707 this Amdo native, one of the brilliantrepresentatives of the Yellow-Hats' exoteric and esoteric traditions, heldthe position of abbot of the Sgo mang faculty, an influential subdivisionof the 'Bras spungs monastery. This position gave him the right to be amember of the Council of the heads of the subdivisions of the threegreatest monasteries of Dbus, which was called in case of emergency. In]707, as it is known from some Tibetan historical sources, that Councilwas called to solve the problem of the Sixth Dalai Lama's visit toPeking. From one of the biographies of' Jam dbyangs bzhad pa we learnthe following:

When a Chinese envoy has brought an invitation for sku shabs Tsangsdbyangs rgya mtsho to visit China, [Lha bzang] Khan gathered theCouncil of Lamas and officials of Se ra, 'Bras spungs and Dga' ldan[monasteries] and the Upper and Lower Faculties of Tantra. It wassuggested [at the Council], that it would be better for [the Dalai Lama]to stay home. But the Venerable ['Jam dbyangs bzhad pal's words wereas follows: "If the sku shabs wouldn't be sent to China there'll benothing good to expect from the Emperor. If he would be sent, [it] willbenefit sku shabs himself, as well as the Doctrine. Then many [lamas]

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started accusing [him], saying that [he], the Sgo mang's abbot, dislikes[the Dalai Lama]."18

This episode, should be considered in the context of 'Jam dbyangsbzhad pa's other actions during those years: an expression of his loyaltyto Lha bzang whom he considered an embodiment of Tsong kha pa'sbcnediction.l? his recognition of and relations with the Puppet FifthDalai LamaI Ye shes rgya mtsho, his criticism of Tsangs dbyangs rgyamtsho and his opposition to the regime of the regent Sangs rgyas rgyamtsho. It is possible that this was the personal opinion of an authoritativehierarch, but more likely, this standpoint was shared by a number ofmonks within the Dge lugs pa community, which became more activeafter the fact of the Great Fifth's death was proclaimed.zv

What is the heart of this position? We have already discussed Dgelugs pa's relationships with the Qing emperors. Needing to clarify hisposition, 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa who at that moment represented theviewpoint of a part of the Dge lugs pa followers, preferred to support theposition of the pro-Qing forces rather than the sovereignty of the DalaiLama, having thus made it clear that for him, the sect's interests weremuch more important than the interests of the state. 'Jam dbyangs bzhadpa probably believed that if the Emperor's demands were not satisfiedthe situation could pass out of Dge lugs pa's control, which would resultin a final loss of all its achievements. In other words, in a choice betweenthe Dalai Lama as a national symbol, and the predominance of his owntradition, 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa chose the latter. This step immediatelycaused protests and disorders at the Sgo mang faculty headed by 'Jamdbyangs bzhad pa and at the 'Bras spungs monastery as a whole, whichwere finally suppressed by Qoshouts. The Fifth Dalai Lama's policy didnot find support among many members of the Yellow Hats community,since they may have believed that their tradition had already stepped

18 JZN: 61v. This episode is also mentioned in Aris 1989: 242.19 JZN: 58v.20 This viewpoint was supported by Georges Dreyfus, who writes about 'Jam dby­

angs bzhad pa as "one of the leading Ge-Iuk lamas opposing the Fifth and his third primeminister (sde srid) Sang-gye Gya-tso." See Dreyfus 1998: 233. We should also note thatsome of his disciples were much more radical in their sectarianism. One of them, Blobzang phun tshogs of Jungar origin, is known for his initiative to launch repression to­ward Rnying rna monks during the Jungar invasion 1717-1720. Kapstein 2000: 130.Seemingly, it is very likely that Blo bzang phun tshogs is responsible for the inclusion ofhis master's yig cha (manuals) in the program of Sgo mang faculty in 1716 during Lhabzang's rule. JZN: 100.

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over the borders of the state, having become a phenomenon ofinternational significance. The further spread of the tradition of Tsongkha pa's followers, that is, as they believed, of the true doctrine ofBuddha, was directly connected to the further expansion of the QingEmpire. From this viewpoint, Dge lugs pa sectarians' loyalty to andsupport of the Emperor, the main guarantor of the Yellow sect'spredominance, seems more understandable. The following episoderecorded in the biographies of the Peking Qutuqtus Leang skya Rol pa'irdo rje and Tu bkwan Chos kyi nyi rna can serve as an evidence of howgreatly Dge lugs pa sectarians feared the prospect of loss of leadership:

The seventeenth prince was named Kengse qinwang and he had greatexpertise in religious scriptures as well as a great affection for the Oldschool (Rnying rna). Through various intrigues he hoped [to destroy]the Dge lugs school, so that it would ultimately vanish. Having askedthe Emperor's [permission], he invited to Beijing from Central Tibettwo lamas: [one of] the Red Hat, [the other of] the Black Hat lineageswho were more experienced in the teachings of the Rnying rna pa thanof their own Karma-pa school. The master [Thu'u bkwan] was famedfor performing rituals for the propitiation of Dam-can chos-kyi rgyalpo, and for performing different kinds of exorcism. Anyway, soon oneof the two lamas arrived at Siling, the other-at Sinanfu. At that time inthe dreams of that master [Thu'u-bkwan], [the deity] Dam-can chos-kyirgyal po clearly appeared as the sign of the ritual having beenaccomplished. When both the lamas reached Beijing, together with thevery powerful prince they could invoke great harm on the Doctrine ofthe Mount dGe-ldan-pa [= dGe-Iugs-pa]. At that time only this lama[Thu'u bkwan] was holding in his hands the life of the dGe-Iugs-pateaching. By this action, he made glad the undaunted adherents of theMount dGe-ldan-pa.21

This episode shows the jealousy, with which Yellow Hat sectarianstreated any, even illusive threat to the dominant position of theirtradition. Probably, the memory of the gradual loss of prestige andinfluence by Sa skya monks in the late-Yuan period when Karma pahierarchs had practically supplanted them at the court of the MongolianEmperors of China was still fresh. As V.L.Uspensky says: "It may benoticed that Dge lugs pa historiographers of the eighteenth-nineteenthcenturies describing the rivalry between Sa skya pa and Karma pa at theYuan court are definitely anti-Karma pa."22 It seems Manchus

21 Uspensky 1997: 9-10.22 Uspensky 1997: 11.

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deliberately counted on this category of Dge lugs pa followers. As wasalready mentioned, the political interests of the Qing Empire agreed withDge lugs pa sectarians' political logic to a great degree. It is nocoincidence that many representatives of this tradition, including PekingCourt Lamas, came from Amdo. Being located on a cultural and ethniccrossroad, this historical area was a source of marginal persons with alow degree of national identity. It was mentioned earlier that, "bothKangxi and Qianlong favored those men who were able to bring togetherdiverse cultures; they valued such a resource and were confident it wouldserve them well."23 I have already noted that by this time the region ofAmdo had become a stronghold of Dge lugs pa tradition, and twomonasteries of this order, Sku 'bum and Bla brang, were included in thelist of the greatest monasteries of the Yellow Church. However, it isworth noting that this region also witnessed outbreaks of nationalistrebels, which involved the local clergy. The anti-Qing revolt of Blobzang bstan 'dzin of 1723, in which many Buddhist monks of Sku 'bum,Dgon lung and other Dge lugs pa monasteries of the Amdo-Kokonor areawere involved, can serve as a good example. In the Leang skyaQutuqtus>' phenomenon one can see the alliance of the Empire with Dgelugs pa sectarians. Both sides of this alliance pursued their correspondinggoals, and the fact that these goals agreed made this institution effective.The large-scaled construction of Buddhist temples and monasteries inJehol, Dolonnor and Peking, scaled translation and publishing activity inPeking, as well as thousands of lamas permanently residing in theImperial capital-all were parts of the whole plan to weaken Lhasa'sspiritual monopoly in Central Asia and draw the religious interests ofMongols to the Qing Imperial court. But, obviously, Dge lugs pa clergyalso sought to benefit from this alliance. I think that there is every reasonto consider the Qing Emperors a tool in hands of the Yellow sect forprotecting its own interests. These conclusions seem to be confirmed bythe following statement of Klaus Sagaster regarding the activity of theFirst Leang skya:

Not only Manchus considered Leang skya Qutuqtu a tool for expansionof their authority but also Qutuqtu himself used the emperor for spreadof his sect. Surely, it is hardly possible to see a certain religious­political task of Lha sa in it. It was rather an initiative and wisdom of

23 Wang 2000: 162.24 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa I had a special relations with Leang skya Qutuqtu 1 Nga

dbang blo bzang chos ldan, whom he considered one of his major spiritual instructors.

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the Qutuqtu who was able to co-ordinate the interests of the church andthe state in a very skilful way for the creation of the Inner Mongolian­Chinese area of the faith. 25

Anyone who is familiar with the history of the Peking Leang skyaQutuqtu institution cannot but notice the fact, that the emperors, inparticular Qianlong, used this institute for reducing anti-Qing tendenciesin Inner Mongolia. The imperial consciousness, which was, probably,inherent to all representatives of this line as well as to many other Dgelugs pa clergymen, by necessity excluded the tendency to separatism.Leang skya Qutuqtus effectively carried out this function in InnerMongolia down to first third of the 20th century. In the 1930s, the ForthLeang skya's opposition to the movement for the autonomy of InnerMongolia had even caused antireligious demonstrations by Mongolianstudents in Peking.26 Suppression of nationalist tendencies was anessential task of the empire, and in this, it met with the support of Dgelugs pa sectarians who could consider the Empire a guarantee of theirtradition's dominant position in the Central Asian Buddhist world.

The purpose of this article, as was determined in its introductorysection, is to draw experts' attention to the problem of Dge lugs pa'spolitical heterogeneity. Just as in Mongolia, the political concept of theYellow church in Tibet did not represent an integral phenomenon butconsisted of variously oriented and even inconsistent tendencies andideals. On the basis of some, in my opinion, characteristic and revealingepisodes recorded in the biographies of influential representatives of theDge lugs pa hierarchy I have distinguished two basic orientations,conditionally defining them as the proto-nationalist (anti-Imperial) andthe sectarian. Probably, it may be concluded that the Dge lugs pasectarians' interests agreed in general with those of the expanding QingEmpire. Both sides of this informal alliance put themselves in latent and,sometimes, open opposition to the regime established by the Fifth DalaiLama and had united their efforts for its elimination after the actual deathof Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho had been revealed. By thebeginning of the eighteenth century, the institution of the Dalai Lamashad become a significant phenomenon in Central Asia mainly through itsspecial connection with the historical-religious sentiments of Mongols.

25 Sagaster 1960: 170.26 Jagchid 1980: 103.

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Therefore, open attempts to establish Imperial control over the Dalai­lamate undertaken by Kanxi caused immediate reaction from theMongols. Finally, control was established but only after several years ofarmed opposition by the Jungar Khanate and the restoration of theinstitution through recognition of Bskal bzang rgya mtsho as the seventhDalai Lama. It is was symptomatic that the attempt at neutralization ofthe Sixth Dalai Lama, undertaken by Emperor Kanxi with the assistanceof the Qoshout governor of Tibet Lha bzang Khan, had met with thesupport of 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa I, an apparent leader of the pro­Empire representatives of the higher Yellow-sect echelon in thebeginning of the eighteenth century. The cooperation of the Qingemperors with Dge lugs pa sectarianists could be of various kinds.Probably, this alliance proved most effective in the institute of PekingLeang skya Qutuqtu. Down to the end of the first third of the 20thcentury Leang skya Qutuqtus acted as conductors of the Empire'sinterests among Mongols of Inner Mongolia, Kokonor and Amdo.

The interpretation presented in this article demands a greaternumber of factual confirmations. The problem is presented here only as ahypothesis and no more. The author, however, would consider hismodest task complete if the attention of experts is attracted to it. In anycase, whether the conclusions the author has made are correct or not, it isobvious that resolution of this problem would have considerable practicalvalue for the study of the complicated processes involved in theestablishment of the Qing Empire.

Tibetan ReferencesJZN: Dkon mchog 'jig med dbang po (1728-1791). Mkhas shing grub

pa'i dbang 'phyug kun mkhyen 'jam dbyangs bzhad pa'i rdo rje'irnam par thar pa ngo mtshar skal bzang 'jug ngog zhes bya ba.Labrang edition.

Other ReferencesAhmad, Z. 1970. Sino-Tibetan Relations in the Seventeenth Century.

Rome: Istituto Italiano per il Medio ed Estremo Oriente.Aris, M. 1989. Hidden Treasures and Secret Lives. London: Kegan Paul.Crossley, P.K. 1997. The Manchus. Cambridge, Mass.: Blackwell.Dreyfus, G. 1998. The Shuk-Den Affair: Origins of Controversy. Journal

ofthe International Association ofBuddhist Studies. 21(2),227-70.

DGE LUGS PA DIVIDED 63

Farquhar, D.M. 1978. Emperor as bodhisattva in the governance of theCh'ing Empire. Harvard Journal ofAsiatic Studies 38(1), 5-34.

Goldstein, M.C. 1990. Religious conflict in the traditional state. In L.Epstein and R.F. Sherburne (eds) Reflections on Tibetan culture.Essays in Memory of Turrell V Wylie. Lewiston, NY: E. MellenPress, 231-47.

Guy, R.K. 2002. Who were the Manchus? A Review Essay. Jouranal ofAsian Studies 61(1),154-57.

Ishihama, Y. 1993. The Dissemination of the Belief in the Dalai Lama asa manifestation of the Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara, Acta Asiatica 64,38-56.

Jagchid, S. 1980. The rise and fall of Buddhism in Inner Mongolia. InA.K. Narain (ed.) Studies in History ofBuddhism: papers presentedat the International Conference on the History of Buddhism at theUniversity of Wisconsin, Madison 1976. Delhi: B.R. Pub. Corp., 97­104.

Kapstein, M. 2000. The Tibetan assimilation of Buddhism. New York:Oxford University Press.

Karmay, S.G. 1988. Secret Visions of the Fifth Dalai Lama. The GoldManuscript in the Fournier Collection. London: SerindiaPublications.

Lattimore, O. 1932. Manchuria: Cradle of Conflict. New York: TheMacmillan Company.

Mote, F.W. 1999. Imperial China 900-1800. Cambridge, MA: HarvardUniversity Press.

Petech, L. [1950] 1972. China and Tibet in the Early EighteenthCentury. History of the establishment of Chinese protectorate inTibet. 2nd rev. ed. Leiden: Brill.

Sagaster, K. 1960. Nag dban blo bzan c'os ldan (1642-1714), Leben undHistorische bedeutung des 1. (Pekinger) ICan skya khutukhtu:dargestellt an hand seiner Mongolischen Biographie Subud Erikeund Anderer Quellen. Bonn: Rheinische Friedrich-Wi1he1ms­Universitat,

Uspensky, V.L. 1997. Prince Yunli (1697-1738). Manchu statesman andTibetan Buddhist. Tokyo: Institute for the Study of Languages andCultures of Asia and Africa.

Wang, X. 2000. The Qing court's Tibet connection: Leang skya Rol pa'irdo rje and the Qianlong Emperor. Harvard Journal of AsiaticStudies 60(1), 125-63.

64 NICOLAY TSYREMPILOV

Wylie, T.V. 1978. Reincarnation: A political innovation in TibetanBuddhism. In L.Ligeti (ed.) Proceedings of the Csoma De KarasMemorial Symposium, Budapest: Akademiai Kiado, 579-86.

CHAPTER FIVE

A TIBETAN BUDDHIST MISSION TO THE EAST:THE FIFTH DALAI LAMA'S JOURNEY TO BEIJING, 1652-1653

Gray Tuttle

While John Elliot was trying to convert New England's natives andHarvard was founded in 1635, in part as a college to instruct these nativeconverts, Jesuits were making inroads in Asia. But more successful thanthese Christian missionaries in the new and old worlds, at the same timeDge lugs pa Tibetan Buddhists spread across Inner Asia and into thecapitals (Mukden and Beijing) of East Asia with surprising success and asignificant display of imperial support. In this essay, I focus on the FifthDalai Lama's journey to Beijing in the mid-seventeenth century as awindow into the missionary impulse in Tibetan society of the sixteenthand seventeenth centuries. To emphasize the missionary nature of theexpansion of Tibetan Buddhism into Inner and East Asia, I periodicallycompare the nearly simultaneous European Catholic expansion into Asiawith that of the Dge lugs pa Tibetans.

The initial Tibetan Buddhist missions to the east were in response tothe expansion of Mongol and Manchu power into areas where TibetanBuddhists resided. On the basis of this contact with militarily powerfulneighbors, the Central Tibetan Dge lugs pa missions to the east grew outof a need to seek support for their tradition outside Central Tibet, wheretheir monasteries and sponsors were beleaguered by the ruling elite whosupported the rival Bka' rgyud pa tradition. In the mid-seventeenthcentury, Tibetan Buddhist lamas and the Qing imperial family bothsought to bolster their positions of power by seeking the support of theother. The Dge lugs pa school of Tibetan Buddhism, under siege by theruling family of Tibet until 1642, gained critical support from Mongolsacross Inner Asia, from the Turned of the Ordos to the Oirad of Koke­nor. But the support from these shifting Mongol alliances had not alwaysproved steady, so when a new power arose to the east, the Dge lugs paalso sought to reach out to the lurchen khan, who became the Qing

66 GRAY TUTTLE

emperor in this period.' Despite the obvious political importance of theserelations, I argue that the visit of the Fifth Dalai Lama to Beijing mustalso be seen in the context of missionary activity, rather than strictly as amatter of political expediency.

In this effort to extend their religious influence to far-flung courts,the Dge lugs pa tradition was engaged in mission efforts that developed,chronologically speaking, in a remarkably parallel fashion with theCatholic missions that were underway in Asia in the same period.Initially the Jesuits, by their own accounts, enjoyed great success insouthern China in the first half of the seventeenth century, convertingseveral tens of thousands in this period. However, Catholic success wasseriously curtailed by the prohibitions placed on their missionaries in theearly eighteenth century. I should also note that there were alsoremarkable differences between the Catholic and Tibetan Buddhistmissions. As Joanna Waley-Cohen has so aptly summarized the leadingCatholic mission in China, the Society of Jesus (the Jesuit order) foundedin 1540, it was "a highly militant order with the specific goal ofconverting 'infidels' overseas."?

In contrast, the Dge lugs pa Tibetan Buddhists saw their easternneighbors as communities that could take a more active and equal role incontributing to the development of their religious tradition. Afterconsolidating his power in Central Tibet in the 1640s, the Fifth DalaiLama (Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho, 1617-1682) recounted theexperiences of his two predecessors in biographical works whilepersonally seeing to the renewal and significant expansion of the extentof Dge lugs pa influence to the east. In this effort, he was helped bymany little known lamas, and a few well known ones, who had spreadTibetan Buddhism throughout Inner Asia and into northern Chineseimperial strongholds such as Wutaishan and Beijing. Through hisjourney to Beijing, the Dalai Lama was able to consolidate this footholdand reap the substantial material benefits that accompanied suchsuccessful missionary work.

For perspective on the success of this mission, a brief review ofTibetan Buddhist missionaries in East Asia and Catholic missionaries in

1 Although I will limit myself the to Dge lugs pa missions in Inner Asia and north­eastern China, the Sa skya were also very involved in this mission field at least until the1634 defeat of Ligdan Khan by the Manchus brought an end to their powerful sponsor.For details on these early missions see Heissig 1953; Grupper 1980; Kam 1994.

2 Waley-Cohen 1999: 62-64.

A TIBETAN BUDDHIST MISSION 67

Asia will illustrate the striking contemporary development of these twotraditions' efforts to spread their religion to the east. In contrast to theJesuit motives, the Tibetans did not have a centrally organized plan tomake converts, but were rather drawn into the world of the Mongol,Manchu and Chinese mission fields by these peoples' struggles forterritory and power in Inner Asia.3 Nevertheless, once drawn into thesestruggles, the Dge lugs pa consistently sought their advantage byspreading their religion. To some degree, the Catholics too were merelyriding the coattails of the extension of a struggle for territory and powerin Asia as European states built colonial trade empires. Nevertheless,converting the "heathen" was an important aspect of European colonialdiscourse at this time. For instance, in 1556 the Domincan monk Gasparda Cruz was in Canton writing of conversion opportunities in China. Thenext year the Jesuits set up a mission at the Moghul court in India.Within a decade of these developments, but far to the north in Inner Asia,half a dozen Tibetan Buddhist leaders were on their way to the camp ofKhutughtai Sechen Khung taiji (grand-nephew of the ruling Mongolhhan) to acquiesce to the promise that if they would submit to him, theMongol leader would accept their religion. Other lamas voluntarilyfollowed this lead over the years and managed to "awaken" Altan Khanto Tibetan Buddhism by 1571.4 At the same time, while the Catholicshad yet to tap the Chinese mission field, a Tibetan lama named Bsodnams rnam rgyal became an instructor at the imperial Foreign ScripturePrintery at the Ming court in Beijing.>

Aside from these isolated examples, neither the Tibetan Buddhistsnor the Catholics had yet made much headway towards the East Asianmission field, but this would soon change. In 1578, the most powerfulruler in Inner Asia, Altan Khan (1555-1581), came to meet TibetanBuddhist lamas in the Koke nor (Tib. Mtsho kha/Mtsho sngon, Ch.Qinghai) region. His meeting with the leading Dge lugs pa hierarch Bsodnams rgya mtsho (1543-1588) resulted in the exchange of titles whichlaunched the Dalai Lama incarnation series that was to play such a keyrole in the rest of Tibetan history. The next year, when Bsod nams rgyamtsho (hereafter referred to as the Third Dalai Lama) returned to Tibet,he sent a lama with Altan Khan named Stong 'khor chos rje Yon tan rgya

3 For an overview of the conversion of the Mongols, see Ahmad 1970: 85-99.4 Ahmad 1970: 87.5 Huang Hao 1993: 30.

68 GRAY TUTTLE

mtsho, the first Chahan lama, "as his representative in the Mongols'country."6

The presence of wealthy and prestigious Mongol patrons in thenortheastern was sufficient to draw the Third Dalai Lama to undertake asecond mission from Central Tibet starting in 1583. That same year,Matteo Ricci (1552-1610) opened the first Jesuit mission in China, on theisland of Macao, where the Portuguese already had a stronghold."Similarly, the Third Dalai Lama also started by consolidating histradition's hold first in territory already under Tibetan sway. Of course,unlike the European missionary, he was returning to the origins of histradition when he went to the birthplace of Tsong kha pa (1357-1419) inA mdo in 1583. There he "founded a school for the explanation of sacredtexts" at Sku 'bum, an innovation that laid the foundations for Dge lugspa training that would generate Dge lugs pa missionaries to northeastAsia for the next two centuries. In addition, by visiting "Bya k'yungbrag, Ri bo dang tig, mDso mo mkhar, where [Tsong kha pa's disciple,Shakya Ye shes] Byams c' en c' os rje had dwelt" he helped assure thatthese venerable Tibetan Buddhist monasteries would hereafter bebastions of Dge lugs pa teachiug.f

Having built these firm foundations in Macao and A mdorespectively, these yet unknowing rival traditions proceeded to extendtheir influence toward the central seat of power in East Asia, Beijing. In1585, Altan Khan's son requested that the Third Dalai Lama bring hismissionary work into the Turned Mongol territory. Eager to respond, theDalai Lama arrived at Altan Khan's capital of Koke khota (Tib. Mkharsngon, Ch. Guihaucheng) where he founded a translation school near theChinese border. The next year, the Dalai Lama extended his visit into thedomain of the Kharchin Mongols, where another school for translationwas established. In 1588, he went even farther northeast to the KhorchinMongols, north of the Liao River and east of the Khingan range, toconsecrate a temple at the invitation of their khan.? This activity seems tohave gotten the attention of the Ming court, because in 1588 the Wanliemperor invited the Third Dalai Lama to court and conferred the title ofthe Great Imperial Preceptor who Confers Initiations (Guanding tai

6 Tucci: 48-49; Rockhill 1910: 5. This lama was recognized as an incarnation ofMafijushri and was known as the first Chahan Nomenhan or the Dongkor Mafijushrfhutuketu among the Mongols.

7 Ricci 1953.S Tucci 1949: 49 (citing the Third Dalai Lama's biography).9 Heissig 1953: 29-32; cf. Tucci 1949: 49; Rockhill 1910: 5-6.

A TIBETAN BUDDHIST MISSION 69

guoshi) on him.I? The lama was planning to accept the invitation to thecapital when illness struck him down, and he died in Mongol territory.Had the Third Dalai Lama made it to the capital in Beijing, it would havebeen the first time since Shakya Ye shes' 1434 visit to Beijing that such aprominent lama would have been welcomed in China. 1I While the DalaiLama was building Tibetan Buddhist institutions in northeast Inner Asia,Matteo Ricci managed to start the first Jesuit mission in China proper inNanjing.

At the start of the seventeenth century, both Tibetan Buddhist andCatholic missions continued to extend their influence closer to theChinese capital in Beijing. The death of Altan Khan (d. 1581) and hisson (d. 1587) and the minority of the Fourth Dalai Lama (reborn in 1589as Altan Khan's nephew) temporarily halted the high level exchangesbetween Tibetans and southern Mongols. Meanwhile, Matteo Ricci madesome progress in China. In 1601, he was given permission to live inBeijing, which he did until his death in 1610. In 1603, the young Mongoland Fourth Dalai Lama, Bsod nams rgya mtsho (1543-1588) came toCentral Tibet. For the next decade, he and the Dge lugs pa supporters inCentral Tibet tried to build connections between Tibetans and theMongols. For instance, shortly after he arrived, the Third Dalai Lamasent the "re-incarnation of Chamba-gyats'o, who became known amongthe Mongols as Maitri Hutuketu" to be his representative in Kokekhota.l? At the same time, the lay patrons of the Dge lugs pa invitedMongol warriors into Tibet to aid in their struggle against the Karmafamily rulers of the western part of Central Tibet.l ' Yet these easternMongols, whether too far away, too weak or simply not committed to theDge lugs pa cause, failed to elevate or even very effectively protect theDge lugs pa establishment from their rivals. In fact, with the demise ofthe Altan Khan and the internal family feuds that followed, politicalpower shifted away from his family and its concerns became limited tothe Ordos.!"

10 This was the first time in almost a century that the Ming court had conferredsuch a title on a Tibetan lama. For details on the 1492 conferral of a similar title on Sangsrgyas rdo rje, see Huang Hao 1993: 13-14,115.

II Sperling 1983: 146-8; H. Karmay 1975: 73, 79.12 Rockhill 1910: 6.13 Ahmad 1970: 100-20, for a Sa skya source on this conflict see Tucci 1949: 54-

57.14 Elverskog 2003: 36-37. This pattern would be repeated in the Tibetan relations

with the Oirat Mongols of Koke nor, whose internal rivalries after the death of Gtitisi

70 GRAY TUTTLE

This period marked the nadir for the Dge lugs pa, as both at homeand among the southern Mongols their position was weakened. The year1616 was particularly challenging for the Dge lugs pa, as the FourthDalai Lama died, and their rivals extended their influence from Gtsanginto Dbus.t> In 1625, the Gtsang pa khan did nothing to prevent Catholicmissionaries from moving into far western Tibet. 16 Meanwhile, amongthe Mongols, the rightful heir of the Genghisid lineage through DayanKhan, Ligdan the Chakhar Khan, had asserted his dominion over thesouthern Mongols.!? Like Altan Khan before him, Ligdan Khan alsosought the support and legitimacy of Tibetan Buddhists, but he turned toSa skya monks to support him and to translate the Tibetan Buddhistcanon into Mongolian.is Ligdan Khan's dislike of the Dge lugs paultimately turned into an outright attack on these Tibetan Buddhists.I?But this persecution may ultimately have been a boon to the beleagueredtradition, as it seems that Mongol Tibetan Buddhists converted by theThird Dalai Lama to the Dge lugs pa tradition were driven farther afield,into the domain of the rising power of the Jurchen in northeast Asia.

So while Catholics had reached Tibet and the Jesuit Johann AdamSchall von Bell would soon reach Beijing, Tibetan lamas showed up atthe Jurchen court of the Jin dynasty (1616 to 1635, when the dynastictitle was changed to Qing). In the spring of 1621 Uluk Darqhan Nangsulama established the "first direct contact between Manchus andTibetans."20 Tak-sim Kam has desribed Nurghaci's reception of thislama as "fulfilling the conventional patron-priest (Tb. mchod-yon)relationship, [because] Nurghaci, as a devotee to the religion, not onlyshowed deference to him but also offered him a generous largessincluding an estate with workers." Further, Kam argued that, contrary tothe usual claims, "Nurghacis patronage of the Lama was not politically

khan "prevented them from taking an immediate or continuous interest in Tibet"(Richardson 1998: 450).

15 Tucci 1949: 55-56.16 On this early Jesuit mission to Tibet, see Wessels 1924.17 Elverskog 2003: 16.18 Gropper 1980: 109-110. His source is the anonymous seventeenth century Sira

tuquji. For another source, see also 81-83: the Altan kiirdiin mingkhan gegesutii bichigwritten by Siregetu Guoshi Dharma in 1739. It must be remembered in this context thatthe author of the text is a Dge lugs pa writing in the time of his tradition's triumph inMongolia. Nevertheless, this initial contact is mentioned without emphasis and isfollowed by a clear reference to a Sa skya monk who was prominent at Ligdan's court.

19 Yang 1970: 32-33.20 Kam 2000: 161-62.

A TIBETAN BUDDHIST MISSION 71

motivated since most of the Mongol groups such as the Uriyangqai,Ongnighud, Dorbed and Jalayid that came to submit to him werefollowers of shamanism, not Tibetan Buddhism."21 Although the lamadied within a few months of his arrival, his stupa (built in 1630 when hisdisciple urged Hongtaiji to fulfill his father's promise) revealed that themissionary impulse of the Dge lugs pa had been fulfilled by the tantricinitiation of the first of the Jurchen khans. The stupa's inscriptionrecorded that the lama "gave the abisheka or empowerment (mo-tingshou-chii to the Manchu khan [Nurhaci]."22 Sometime in the 1630s, thesecond Chahan lama, Lha mo Blo gros rgya mtsho (1610-1659) was alsoin contact with the Jurchens-who changed their ethnonym to theManchus in 1636-as he served as their envoy to Tibet before the end ofthe decade.z'

Thus, in 1639, after the Qing dynasty had been declared fromMukden but before the Manchus moved south into Beijing, Hongtaijisent lama envoys to invite the Fifth Dalai Lama to come teach Buddhismin his realm. His chief envoy was none other than the second ChahanLama Mafijushri of Koke-Khota. Hongtaiji's letter invited the DalaiLama to come "in order to propagate the growth of Buddhist Faith andbenefit all living beings." Hongtaiji sent further unrecorded oralinstructions with the lamas, but his concern that the Dharma (fa) not besuppressed, but rather be transmitted to posterity, must have been awelcome sentiment to the Dalai Lama.z- After a long period of threatsfrom various Mongol and Tibetan rulers, the tide was turning for the Dgelugs pa. From 1635, the Oirad under the leadership of Guusi Khan starteda campaign to defeat the Dge lugs pa's rivals, first in A mdo and Khams,which was not to end until 1642 when the Karma family in Gtsang wasdefeated.I> Thus, the support of another rising power in Inner Asia musthave been encouraging. The details of the embassies exchanged betweenTibet and the Manchu courts (in Mukden and later in Beijing) have beenexhaustively detailed by Z. Ahmad and more recently summarized by E.

21 Kam 2000: 167-68. For a scholar who made the claim that Kam refutes, as wellas fairly compelling evidence for the claim, see Farquhar 1978: 20-21.

22 Kam 2000: 167. It is interesting to note the inscription was only in Manchu andChinese, not Tibetan or Mongol, as one would suspect if this stupa had been erected toattract the support of Tibetan Buddhists.

23 Awang luosang jiacou 1992: 322, n. 21. Like the Fourth Dalai Lama, thereincarnation of the Third Dalai Lama's envoy to the southern Mongols was rebornamong his hosts, in this case as the son of the TUrned leader, Huoluoji.

24 Ahmad 1970: ]57.25 For details, see Ahmad 1970: 110-22.

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Sperling.zs What I wish to emphasize is the motivation articulated in theletters exchanged.

While Catholic missionaries were welcomed at the early Qing courtfor their talents in making canons to pierce the walled Chinese cities, bythis time the Tibetan Buddhists were no doubt of interest more for theirinfluence over the Manchu's critical allies, the Mongols. Thus, in 1642the Manchu emperor heartily welcomed the Dalai and Panchen Lamas'envoy, the Ilaghughsan Khutughtu, sent in response to the Qinginvitation of 1639. The letter this envoy bore spoke of glorifying theprotector of religion and making donations for the maintenance of thereligious community. The two most powerful Dge lugs pa leaders'autobiographical works articulate the centrality of the missionaryimpulse for this sending this envoy, though their focus is slightlydifferent. According to the 1661 autobiography of the first PanchenLama, Chos kyi rgyal mtshan (1569-1662), the main focus was onconverting the Qing emperor, who, unlike his father, "had not enteredthrough the door of the Buddha's teaching." According to the 1681biography of Fifth Dalai Lama, the purpose of the mission was to ask theking to be a donor (sbyin dag) to Tibetan Buddhists in his territory.s? Inresponse, at least according to Tibetan sources, the Qing emperor madethe Dge lugs pa envoy his supreme lama and showered him with gifts. 28

In the Panchen Lama's assessment, the mission was accomplished, as the"king and his retinue were established in the Teaching, with greatfaith."29 On the departure of the envoy in the summer of 1643,Hongtaiji's brothers, Ajige and Dorgon (who would soon be the Manchuleader in Beijing, as the regent of the young Shunzhi emperor) escortedthe Ilaghughsan Khutughtu out of the capital and part of his way back toLhasa. Furthermore, Hongtaiji exceeded the Dalai Lama's expectationsof becoming a sponsor of Tibetan Buddhism in his own realm by sendingsubstantial gifts to all the religious leaders of Tibet, with special presentsof silver to the two leading Dge lugs pa lamas and offerings of tea andsilver to the monastic communities. By the time the envoy returned to

26 Ahmad 1970: 157-62. Sperling 2003: 127-28.27 Ahmad 1970: 160-61. Hongtaiji was referred to simply as the "Jurchen (Tib.

Jur-chi/ Sbyorjidi King" and not by reference to the new ethnonym Manchu, the bodhi­sattva Mafijushrf or even the title "emperor" in these accounts.

28 Schmidt et al. [1829] 1961: 289. This is Schmidt's German translation of the1662 Erdeni-yin tobci by Saghang Secen.

29 Ahmad 1970: 161, citing the Panchen Lama's autobiography.

A TIBETAN BUDDHIST MISSION 73

Tibet, Dorgon had taken Beijing and Hongtaiji's young son had beenproclaimed the Shunzhi emperor there.w

Hongtaiji's last letter reached Tibet after his death, but its positivemessage was repeated several times over the coming decade: "We wishto show Our great respect for the eminent Sages (gaoxian) among theTiebtans, so We are sending envoys with the Ilakuksan Hutuketu to allalike, regardless of the colour of their robes, whether they be red oryellow, seeking everywhere for the religion of the Buddha for theprotection of the Empire." The Chahan lama also came along "to explainorally to you all that We have to say."3! Many embassies wereexchanged over the coming years, with the emperor continuing to offerinvitations to the Dalai Lama and urging other lamas to encourage him tocome to Beijing. In these intervening years, the Fifth Dalai Lama waswriting the biography of the Third Dalai Lama, which he completed in1646. Revisiting the events of his predecessor may have further inspiredhim to retrace his steps and recreate old bonds that may have weakened,especially with the Ordos and Turned Mongols. The Dalai Lama finallyaccepted the Qing imperial invitation in 1649 and set out in 1652.

What were the Dalai Lama's goals on this excursion through InnerAsia to the capital of China? The political importance of having thebacking of Asia's rising, though still not hegemonic, power must haveplayed a major role in motivating the Dalai Lama to undertake thismission at a time when his own rule of Tibet had only recently beenestablished. Yet, the missionary aspects of this voyage have often beenoverlooked, and it is to these that I now tum. For the Fifth Dalai Lamawas not single-mindedly focused on the end goal of the journey, butinstead took time along the way to preach and minister to nobility andcommoner, lay and monastic A mdo Tibetans, Mongours, Mongols, andChinese, as well as the occasional Manchu envoy from the court.Furthermore, he chose to record all of these exchanges in minute detailfor posterity in his autobiography.

On the shores of Koke nor, the Dalai Lama met with local Tibetanleaders, Manchu and Chinese representatives of the Qing court as well asthe western Ordos Mongol leader, the Jinong, and his relatives who nowresided in the vicinity of the lake. In a microcosm, this meeting containedelements of the groups that the Dalai Lama would encounter for the restof his journey. Wherever he went, the local Tibetan leadership-whether

30 Ahmad 1970: 159-61.3! Rockhi II 1910: 12-13. Emphasis added.

74 GRAY TUTTLE

lay headmen or monastic lamas-turned out to welcome him. TheMongols too were present in large numbers wherever he went. Also ofinterest, several eminent Chinese monks working for the Qing emperor(Gong gi las kas mngon par mtho ba'i Rgya ban) were among thewelcoming party on the shores of Koke nor. From Xining, Qing officialssent rice and fruit as gifts. At least one of leaders who came from Xiningbearing gifts was not a Tibetan Buddhist; the Dalai Lama asked him,"What is your god? (Lha gang yin)" and was answered, "Heaven(gnam )."32 The Manchus, typically not present in great numbers at thesemeetings, were represented by the Court for Managing the Frontiers(Lifanyuan) official Shajidhara.r' This official also seems to have beenor become an adherent of Tibetan Buddhism, as he received the Long­life Buddha initiation within a week of meeting the Dalai Lama.H

The Mongol faithful represented, by far, the most numerous andmost economically significant of the groups that the Dalai Lama wouldmeet on his mission to Beijing. In this first instance, some three thousandMongols, along with the Jinongs mother, were initiated in a tantric ritualled by the Dalai Lama. These rituals required the exchange of gifts forthe teachings and led to a tremendous transfer of wealth from theMongols to the Dalai Lama. Along with the political and religiousmotivations, the ability to attract massive donations were a significanteconomic benefit of this journey. In the Koke nor region, a total of 5396horses, 140 yak, 520 ounces (srang) of gold, 500 ounces of silver, 60rolls of silk, and other minor gifts were showered on the Dalai Lama,mostly from the Mongols.i> Mostly from Tibetans within the Great Wallthat separated Koke nor from Xining, the lama received 890 horses, 1500ounces of gold, and 103 rolls of silk, as well as porcelain, tin and silver

32 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 367; Awang luosangjiacou 1992: 303.33 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 366; Awang luosang jiacou 1992: 302,

321 n. 18. I rely on Chen's translation here to identify this official as being associatedwith the Lifanyuan, as I do not recognize a term in the Tibetan that would clearly reflectthis Qing office. Chen's annotation translates the Veritable Records of the Qing (Qing­shilu) entry that described this Lifanyuan official being sent on this mission.

34 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 369; Awang luosangjiacou 1992: 304.35 Yang Ho-chin 1994 contains lists of the gifts the Dalai Lama received en route

to Beijing, although he does not divide the gifts according to regions. I have treated theDalai Lama's first meeting with the Lifanyuan official to his crossing the Great Wall asthe Koke nor region, see Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 366-74; Awang lu­osangjiacou 1992: 302-307.

A TIBETAN BUDDHIST MISSION 75

ware.36 The Dalai Lama was then able to locally redistribute this wealthto support the building or renovation of Dge lugs pa institutions. Afterselling off some of the livestock, he also sent some of the more portablewealth back to Tibet, probably the gold and silver or light fabrics or evenwealth on the hoof.r?

What of the donations in other regions? How did they compare tothese first donations? Although the donation of horses was mostsubstantial in the Koke nor region, as the Dalai Lama moved acrossMongol inhabited regions, he continued to be given precious metals,horses, and other livestock in sometimes staggering numbers. As a pointof contrast, after crossing into Ningxia he was only given a total of fortyhorses and forty camels.rs Then, when he reached the Ordos region theMongols there gave him 1,750 horses, 100 camels, and 10,000 sheep.These Ordos Mongols were also more wealthy, or at least moregenerous, in terms of precious metals, giving the Dalai Lama a total of3,000 ounces of silver.t? The Turned Mongols gifts were more sparing interms of livestock or precious metals, but included an abundance of othergifts: 200 horses, 200 ounces of silver, 10 rolls of silk, and 10,100unspecified, but possibly manufactured, gifts.w Although it is difficult tocompare horses and sheep to precious metals without pricing informationwe currently do not have, the single greatest transfer of wealth seems tohave taken place within the context of the Qing court's reception of theDalai Lama. From his arrival at the imperially constructed temple atLake Taika through his visit to the capital in Beijing and eventual return

36 Yang Ho-chin 1994: 74-76.This region includes Sku 'bum and Pa' ras monaster­ies and encompasses some donations from Mongours and Chinese as well. Ngag dbangblo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 366-78; Awang luosang jiacou 1992: 307-310.

37 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 366-74; Awang luosang jiacou 1992:307. For instance, the fourth Stong 'khor sprul sku Mdo rgyud rgya mtsho (1621-1683)was directed by the Fifth Dalai Lama to renovate Stong 'khor monastery (now in Huan­gyuan county). Two new monasteries, Dga' ldan chos 'khor gling and Dam chos gling,built by the Bla rna btsan po (1613-1665) are mentioned, although this lama was making,and not receiving donations, see Awang luosangjiacou 1992: 321-22, n. 19-20.

38 Yang Ho-chin ]994: 76. I am calling Ningxia the region that the Dalai Lama de­scribed as Manchu territory (Man chu'i sa'i cha gtogs pa) from just past Pa' ras to theYellow River (Tib. Rma chu) crossing into the Ordos. Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho1989: 378-8]; Awang luosangjiacou ]992: 310-12.

39 Yang Ho-chin ]994: 76-79. The Ordos encompasses the area between the twocrossings of the Yellow River. Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 38] -85; Awangluosang jiacou 1992: 3] 2-15.

40 Yang Ho-chin ]994: 79-80. This region is marked again by crossing the YellowRiver and by the imperially constructed temple at Taika, north of Datong. Ngag dbangblo bzang rgya mtsho ]989: 385-88; Awang luosangjiacou 1992: 315-] 7.

76 GRAY TUTTLE

to Taika, the Dalai Lama was given 1,200 ounces of gold, 13,200 ouncesof silver, 1,455 rolls of silk, 410 horses and manufactured goods toonumerous to detail.41 Yet this last bestowal of gifts was largelyredistributed among the adherents of Buddhism, both Tibetan andotherwise, in and around the capital and in Koke khota as will bedescribed shortly.

What of the donors who gave to the Dalai Lama? How did theirnumbers break down along these regional and ethnic lines? The Mongolsare the easiest to parse, as their presence within more or less ethnicallyhomogenous communities helps distinguish them from instances ofethnic mixing, such as occurred in certain monasteries or in Beijing. InKoke nor, at least four thousand Mongols came to greet the Dalai Lama,of which three-fourths were initiated and therefore made donations.e- Inthe Ordos some twenty thousand Mongols made offerings (fourthousand, five hundred monks and nuns and the rest laity), with aboutone-third taking initiations from the Dalai Lama.s' Among the TUrned,some forty-one hundred Mongols came to see the Dalai Lama and againsome three-quarters were blessed. Only some six hundred officials madeofferings and received initiations.r- The vast majority of the people hemet in and around the capital, some twelve thousand in all, also seemedto have been Mongols, though it is clear that Tibetans, Manchus andChinese were also counted among these.t> If we are to trust the DalaiLama's figures, some forty thousand Mongols attended the Dalai Lama'stour of Inner Asia and the Qing capital. No doubt some rounding off ofnumbers occurred; nevertheless, the level of detail included in the diariesthat were used to compose the Dalai Lama's autobiography suggests thatthese numbers were fairly accurate.sv These are impressive figures andindicate the extent of the popularity of Tibetan Buddhism among theMongols. In short, the Mongol interest in Tibetan Buddhism may havebeen the single most important factor in both the Dalai Lama's decision

41 Yang Ho-chin 1994: 80-85. Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 388-415;Awang luosangjiacou 1992: 317-43.

42 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 367-69; Awang luosang jiacou 1992:303-304.

43 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 381-85; Awang luosang jiacou 1992:312-15.

44 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 385-88; Awang luosang jiacou 1992:315-17.

45 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 388-415; Awang luosang jiacou 1992:317-43.

46 Ahmad 1970: 31.

A TIBETAN BUDDHIST MISSION 77

to undertake this voyage and the Qing emperor's interest in making theinvitation. In addition to their potential military power, the Mongols werethe economic and political lynch-pin of the whole story.

Yet they are decidedly not the whole story. The Dalai Lama wasalso attentive to the populations of other communities along his route,most surprisingly the Chinese. For instance, when the Dalai Lamareached Xining (Tib. Ziling), his autobiography recorded that he freed aChinese man incarcerated for theft from the government treasury. Hisstated justification for this act was, as Yang Ho-chin summarized it, thathe "felt that the Chinese people cherished silver over their concern forothers."47 His ransom of this man apparently surprised the local people,but the Dalai Lama may have been remembering the traditions associatedwith 'Phags pa bla rna liberating Chinese prisoners from Mongolpunishment. Although the dynamic is not entirely the same, I cannot helpbut remark on the continuing role of the release of prisoners as part ofinternational diplomacy, as Tibetan political prisoners are often releasedat the urging of United States presidents, usually upon the visit of topChinese leaders to the United States. Yet, aside from this initialinteraction, the Dalai Lama did not become involved in the empire'sdomestic matters, as had 'Phags pa bla rna before him.

Instead, the Dalai Lama mostly administered to Chinese Buddhists'needs just as he did to the Mongols and Tibetans in the communitiesthrough which he passed. The picture that emerges from the DalaiLama's autobiography is one of an unprecedented level of integration ofChinese, Mongols and Tibetans at certain Tibetan Buddhist monasticlocales. For instance, when the Dalai Lama visited (or re-visited, fromhis perspective as the reincarnation of the Third Dalai Lama) Sku 'bummonastery, he taught five thousand Chinese, Tibetans, Mongours, andMongols (Tib. Rgya, Bod, Hor, Sog) from the classic Dge lugs pa text,Tsong kha pa's Great treatise on the stages of the path to enlightenment(Byang chub lam rim chen mo). Although he did not specificallydesignate those who attended this event as a monastic audience, it seemslikely that the choice of this text was influenced by the large number ofeducated monks of all these various ethnicities, who were assembled atthis institution of higher learning. Though the Fifth Dalai Lama does notspecifically mention the school started here by the Third Dalai Lama, hedoes record that he was invited to again occupy the throne built for his

47 Yang Ho-chin 1994: 108. Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya rntsho 1989: 375; Awangluosang jiacou 1992: 308.

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predecessor by Altan Khan, and he received offerings on this thronebefore preceding with his teaching. 48 In this way, the Fifth Dalai Lamaboth linked himself to this earlier mission and articulated an extension ofthe mission to the Chinese and Mongour populations as well. This maywell be one of the earliest clear references to Chinese who were not partof the imperial court attending Tibetan Buddhist events and studyingTibetan texts with famous lamas.s?

As the Dalai Lama proceeded past Xining, into areas of more mixedChinese, Tibetan and Mongour presence he continued to interact with thelocal population, which seemed to recognize his prominence and stature.The Fifth Dalai Lama first visited the reliquary of Bla chen Dgongs parab gsel, the figure associated with the revival of monastic TibetanBuddhism after the fall of the empire in the ninth century. This A mdomonk ordained a group of Tibetans who returned to Central Tibet tomaintain the monastic lineage there, unbroken by the chaos of the fall ofthe empire, thanks to the presence of this monk on the Tibetanborderlands.w In the next town, the Chinese people (Rgya mi) turned outwith banners, parasols, royal ensigns, and musical instruments, andofficials welcomed him with fruit, meat, wine, and so forth. The leaderhere, probably a Mongour, had his own monks (dge 'dun rnam, grwarigs) who made offerings at the same time as monks from Dgon lungtemple-so important in the next century as the home to the Leang skyaincarnation-made a modest donation. As a reward for the faithdisplayed by this multi-ethnic reception, the Dalai Lama blessed thiscommunity and transmitted permission for these people to recite the sixsyllable mantra associated, of course, with himself as the embodiment ofAvalokitcsvara.>!

48 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 374; Awang luosangjiacou 1992: 308.49 This would distinguish this event from any associated with the Sa skya pa or

Karma pa lamas who visited the Mongol Yuan or Chinese Ming dynastic courts. I shouldalso mention a possibly earlier instance that I have not researched in detail, also involvinga Dge lugs pa lama invited to Beijing: in 1415, at Wutaishan, "Shakya Yeshe grantedaudiences to large numbers of people, monks and laymen alike and gave teachings,initiations, and ordinations to many of them . . . . It is also worth mentioning thatMongols sought him out as well as Chinese." See Sperling 1983: 152.

50 This temple was located in Tsong kha mkar, also know as Ping'an xian, verynear the home of the present Dalai Lama. See Awang luosang jiacou 1992: 323, n. 34-35;Dorje 1996: 582.

51 This was Sgro tshang, now Ledu, which was presided over by the Sgro tshangnang so, apparently a Mongour leader: Awang luosang jiacou 1992: 308-09, 324, n. 36;Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 376. For a description of the rank of nang so,see Schram 1957: 18.

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From this point until the Dalai Lama and his entourage crossed intoNingxia, they were feted by a similar mix of locals and officials. Theexact ethnicity of local officials is difficult to ascertain, as some hadChinese sounding names (Lu'u tshan tsang, Yu'u skyi yi) or titles (Bingye, Thung ye), which might even have been Mongol or Manchu. In anycase, these officials welcomed him in what he called "Chinese fashion(Rgya lugs)," and Chinese people played musical instruments on hisapproach. In one locale, the Dalai Lama ordained just over one hundredmonastics of various ranks from area monasteries. Again it is unclearwhether these were Chinese or Tibetans, Mongols or Mongours, but theofficials there offered the Dalai Lama Chinese Buddhist-style fake meatsmade from wheat gluten and spared the lives of the chickens and pigsthat would otherwise have been used at the feast.V This suggests that avegetarian Chinese Buddhist sensibility informed this community, yetthe monks sought ordination at the hands of this Tibetan Iama.v'Moreover, the Dalai Lama conferred initiatory permission for theHayagriva (Tib. Rta mgrin, Ch. Matou mingwang) practice upon theseofficials.>' Shortly thereafter, he again taught the six syllable mantra to amixed crowd of Tibetans and Chinese and was given substantialdonations by the last Tibetan community he would pass through on hisway to Beijing. This region, known as Pa' ras (Ch. Tianzhu) also markedthe last mass ordination, again of almost one hundred monastics, until theDalai Lama reached Beijing. 55

Beyond this region, the Dalai Lama encountered respectfultreatment from Chinese monks and Buddhists in Ningxia, but he was notgiven substantial donations, nor did he give initiations until he reachedthe Ordos region, discussed above. Few of the Mongour and Tibetan

52 Yang Ho-chin 1994: 110.53 Ethnic distinctions were clearly not as rigid as one might think from earlier

Ming prohibitions on Chinese becoming Tibetan Buddhist monks (Da Ming lu, Rites, 2cited in Naquin 2000: 209). For instance, one lama, the fourth generation Stong 'khorsprul sku Mdo rgyud rgya mtsho (1621-1683) seems to have reincarnated by entering thebody of a recently deceased nineteen year old Chinese boy, probably through a processknown as transference of consciousness. He was ordained by the first Chu bzang incarna­tion Rnam rgyal 'dpal 'byor (Awang luosang jiacou 1992: 321-22 n. 19). Like the recog­nition of Mongol children in the previous generation, or the recognition of western chil­dren in the present generation, this occurrence would seem to indicate that, at least in thiscommunity, Chinese adherence to Tibetan Buddhism was strong.

54 This was Chuanglang city (Tib. Grong lang mkhar). Ngag dbang blo bzang rgyamtsho 1989: 376; Awang luosangjiacou 1992: 309; Yang Ho-chin 1994: 110.

55 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 378; Awang luosang jiacou 1992: 310;Yang Ho-chin 1994: 111.

80 GRAY TUTTLE

lamas from this region that became so important at the Qing court in thecoming generations, such as the Leang skya or Tu'u bkwan incarnationseries, can trace their lineage back to this visit from the Fifth DalaiLama; nevertheless, his presence signaled the beginning of the real riseof the Dge lugs pa to wealth and power in the region. Sponsorship ofTibetan Buddhist monasteries from the local ruling Mongols and theimperial court in Beijing no doubt contributed to this growth, but theDalai Lama's journey seems to have been the catalyst for thissponsorship.

While the Dalai Lama spared no effort to make an impression oneven the politically marginal regions of A mdo, the ultimate goal of hismission was the Qing imperial court. Yet, remarkably, the multi-ethniccommunity in A mdo was mirrored at the court, and the Dalai Lama'smission reached out to all these ethnic communities. Well after the FifthDalai Lama's death, his regent Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho (1653-1705)summarized his time in Beijing as an unmitigated success marked by adeclaration of faith in the Dge lugs pa tradition: "from the Chinese,Mongolian, and Tibetan priests, both those within the Palace and thosewithout, and from all those within the encampment, both lay andspiritual, by all of whom he [the Dalai Lama] caused the dMigs-brTse­ma (the Creed of the dGe-lugs-pa) to be recited, from each according tohis means, he received about 10,000 ounces of silver (in all). To themany Chinese, both Buddhist priests and non-Buddhists, he distributedover 5,000 ounces of silver."56 This creed of the Dge lugs pa, the Dmigsbrtse ma, concludes with a verse in which the recitor submissively makesa request at the feet of Blo bzang grags pa, better known as Tsong khapa. The regent drew this passage almost verbatim from the Dalai Lama'sown autobiography, where it is qualified by being the result of previousaspirational prayers, indicating the centrality of this event in themotivation and perception of the Dge lugs pa mission to the Qing court.The verbal and economic adherence of and exchange with the court'sChinese, Tibetan and Mongol monks (bande) and the lay and religiouscourtiers as well, marked the success of this Tibetan Buddhist mission tothe court.>?

Written evidence for this mission's motivation was not limited tothe Central Tibetan sources, as an imperial temple stele erected the yearthe Dalai Lama left for court (1652) recorded much the same motivation

56 This is from the 1698 text the Vaidurya serpo, cited in Ahmad 1970: 182.57 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 400; Awang luosangjiacou 1992: 333.

A TIBETAN BUDDHIST MISSION 81

from the Qing perspective. A Tibetan Buddhist temple built in the Yuandynasty and maintained through the Ming dynasty was repaired inconjunction with the Dalai Lama's visit. The temple, known in Chineseas the Protect the Dynasty Temple (Huguosi) was called in Tibetan theGreat Eastern School, Heaps of Good Fortune, the MonasteryConquering Completely in All Directions (Shar ba'i chos grwa chen pobkra shis lhun po phyogs thams cad las mam par rgyal ba'i gling). ThisTibetan name could hardly be more blatant in announcing the missionaryventure, but the stele also directly links this mission with the Dge lugs patradition. The temple was repaired "for the dynasty and for the people, toexpand and make nourish Buddhist affairs, [and] to spread Tsong khapa's Buddhist teachings."58 Thus, the imperial and Tibetan sources sharethe rhetoric that the impulse to spread Dge lugs pa teachings motivatedthe events of 1652-1653, which culminated in the Dalai Lama's visit toBeijing.

The success of the mission at court could also be described in termsof the number of adherents to the Tibetan Buddhist tradition with whomthe Dalai Lama made contact once he reached imperial territory at LakeTaika and on into Beijing. He met with and taught some 12,000 people,mostly Mongols, and initiated some 1,150 monks of various ethnicities.>?For instance, about three hundred Chinese monk-retreatants (Rgya ban rikhrod pa) from Wutai shan (Tib. Ri bo rtse lnga) came to see him andwere given a Mafijushri blessing.ev Two Nepalese monks (Bal po bande),Mongol nobility, (presumably Manchu) ambans, palace literati (Phobrang gi yig mkhan), fifty bannermen of the Plain Blue Banner under theleadership of a dge bshes, and monks from the Yellow Temple (Lhakhang ser po drwa pa, built by imperial order as the Dalai Lama'sresidence in Beijing) were all given Avalokitesvara initiations by theDalai Lama.s:

Aside from this diverse group of students, the imperial family wasalso actively engaged with making offerings and receiving teachingsfrom the Dalai Lama. Many high ranking Manchu imperial family

58 Huang Hao: 12.59 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 407-15; Awang luosang jiacou 1992:

338-43.60 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 403; Awang luosangjiacou 1992: 334.61 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 394-98; Awang luosang jiacou 1992:

329-31. According to the Dalai Lama 90,000 ounces of silver was spent building thetemple, and gold leaf was used for the walls, Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989:394; Awang Iuosang jiacou 1992: 329.

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members attended to the Dalai Lama's needs, made offerings, and insome cases took initiations. The fifth son of Hongtaiji and the emperor'selder brother Shisai was the most active of the Manchu imperial familymember who interacted with the Dalai Lama. 62 For instance, he was sentin his brother's stead to greet the Dalai Lama outside the Great Wall,with some 2,000 horsemen and elaborate fanfare. 63 Later, Shisairequested and received from the Dalai Lama hand-written texts needed inChina (Rgya yul), as well as the Hayagriva, Black Mafijughosa and longlife initiations, and the eight lay vows, which caused the Dalai Lama tocomment on his faithfulness. 64

Probably the most powerful figure in the Qing court at the time ofthe Dalai Lama's visit to Beijing was the emperor's uncle and formerregent, Jirgalang (1599-1655), though his power waned as the Shunzhiemperor declared his rule in the spring of 1652 and exercised morepower throughout 1653.65 With three thousand horsemen, he rode outafter Shisai to welcome the Dalai Lama to the imperial domains, and atthe end of the Dalai Lama's stay he escorted him back to the border. 66 Ofcourse, the Dalai Lama also met with the young emperor three times andwas given rich gifts at these audiences.s? The empress dowager and oneof the Qinwang's older sisters also made offerings to the Dalai Lama. 68

Finally, the Dalai Lama performed the funeral rituals for a member of the

62 Shisai was also know as the Heshou Chengze Qinwang ("Kind prince of the firstclass") in Qing sources and Khe shing ge chin dbang (after the Manchu, gosingga and theChinese qinwang) in the Dalai Lama's biography, see Ahmad 1970: 172-73.

63 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 387; Awang luosang jiacou 1992: 317.64 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 387, 403, 407; Awang luosang jiacou

1992: 334-35, 338.65 Jirgalang was also known as both the Shu [uncle] Zheng Qingwang (Ahmad

174) and the Fuzheng Qingwang (Awang luosang jiacou 1992: 344, n. 6) in Qingsources, and the U'i jing chin dbang in the Dalai Lama's biography. He was the nephewand adopted son of Nurhaci and one of the Shunzhi emperor's regents. For details onthese men, see Liu 1989: 41, 46. In early 1651, the thirteen year old Shunzhi emperorabolished the regency after Dorgon's death, which launched a period of transition of gov­ernment as Jiralang tried to return to high position by supporting the emperor. Eventuallythe emperor felt threatened by Jiralang's growing strength and tried to assert his own rule(Hummel 1970: 216). Sometime in 1653 Jirgalang's power was drastically curtailed, ashe was "virtually excluded from the final policy-making decisions, which became theexclusive domain of the emperor (Liu 1989: 47).

66 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 392,405; Awang luosang jiacou 1992:328,336.

67 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 393-94, 397, 404; Awang luosangjiacou 1992: 318-19, 330, 335.

68 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 404, 396; Awang luosang jiacou 1992:335, 330.

A TIBETAN BUDDHIST MISSION 83

imperial family, which was accompanied by miraculous occurrences inthe sky (reminiscent of the earlier Karma pa's visit to Nanjing),»?

As before, the Dalai Lama redistributed many of these gifts amongthe local population, for the benefit of the Dge lugs pa tradition. As notedabove, he gave away five thousand ounces of silver, as well as othergifts, to Chinese monks (hwa shang) and many Chinese people ofvarious sects (chos lugs na tshogs). 70 Shortly thereafter, he gave an Amdo Tibetan from Sung chu (Ch. Songpan) named Rab byams pa 'Thrinlas material assistance and a text to overcome hindrances to establishinga temple on Wutaishan (Tib. Ri bo rste lnga)."! Finally, on his way backhome, in the Mongol city of Koke khota (Tib. Mkhar sngon) the DalaiLama gave 500 ounces of gold and 200 horses to repair monasteries builtin the time of the Third Dalai Lama and Altan Khan, which weredamaged during the reign of Ligdan Khan.Z? At around the same time,the Dalai Lama also discussed setting up a fund for hiring workers forthe renovations of the Lhasa monasteries Se ra and 'Bras spungs, so atleast part of these funds were used to benefit Central Tibet, though theworkers may have been hired closer to Beijing.r'' Likewise, the monksand monasteries in Central Tibet were richly rewarded for "performingreligious services to bless the people in China and to strengthen theirbelief in Buddhism."74

On a final note, in the mid-seventeenth century both TibetanBuddhists and European Catholics had secured a presence in the ManchuQing court and at last actually learned of one another's missionaries atthe capital. Jesuit Father Johann Adam Schall von Bell (Ch. TangRouwang, 1591-1666) was the most important of the Jesuits to haveremained in Beijing as the Ming court fled south and the Qing dynastymoved into northern China. As noted by Jonathan Spence, "Because hehad a high level of scientific skill, Dorgon appointed him to direct theImperial Bureaucracy of Astronomy."75 According to the Dalai Lama'saccount, the Manchus were also impressed with what they can only haveunderstood as his prognosticatory powers over the weather (what we

69 Yang Ho-chin 1994: 131. See Berger 2001: 145-69.70 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 405; Awang luosang jiacou 1992: 335.71 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 405; Awang luosang jiacou 1992: 335-

36.72 Yang Ho-chin 1994: 150-51.73 Yang Ho-chin 1994: 144.74 Yang Ho-chin 1994: 152.75 Spence 1990: 43.

84 GRAY TUTTLE

would now call meteorology). The Dalai Lama mentioned an instance ofthis in connection with a banquet held in his honor by the emperor'sbrother Shisai, on a winter day for which the Jesuit had made theprediction (Tib. lung bstan pa) that it would snow heavily, which it did.The Dalai Lama's text described the prognosticator as "the heterodoxastrologer of India, Thang zhi dbang (Tib. Rgya dkar gyi mu stegs pa'irtsis pa Thang zhi dbang)."76 Whether the Dalai Lama and the Jesuitpriest actually met is not clear, but this account from the outskirts ofBeijing marks a fitting point to end my comparison of the Dge lugs paTibetan Buddhist and Jesuit Catholic missions to reach the capital andcourt of the greatest empire in Asia.

The Dge lugs pa mission would see great success among the A mdoand Khams Tibetans, Mongols, Manchus, and possibly among theChinese as well (though this is less well documented) over the comingcentury and a half, especially under the Kangxi and Qianlong emperors.Qing imperial support for (and attempts to control) Dge lugs pa TibetanBuddhism, in Central Tibet, A mdo, Khams, Mongolia, and localitiessuch as Wutaishan (Tib. Ri bo rtse Inga) and Jehol led to anunprecedented expansion of Tibetan Buddhism outside the confines ofthe Tibetan cultural region. As the Qing dynasty declined in thenineteenth century and abdicated in the twentieth, Manchu support forthe Dge lugs pa mission waned and vanished, but this legacy waseventually picked up by some modem Chinese."? Meanwhile, by theearly eighteenth century, the Catholic mission, already weakened inChina by the Jesuits' association with the conquering Manchus, lost eventhe imperial support on which they counted in the seventeenth century.tfIn the end, the comparison of the Tibetan and Jesuit missions in Asia isbest made by noting their shared failure to make much impact on the

76 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 393; Awang luosang jiacou 1992: 328.Yang Ho-chin 1994; 127, 172, n. 38. Awang luosang jiacou 1992: 344 n. 7 noted that theDalai Lama described him as "of India" because did not understand about Europe, but itshould be noted that most of the Jesuits who came to China did come through the Portu­guese colony in Goa, India, which may account for the description of his origin. Possiblythe Dalai Lama even recognized something about this man and his teachings as beingsimilar to the other Catholics who were moving into Tibet from India in the decades be­fore this encounter. For more on Schall von Bell, see Spence 1969.

77 See Tuttle 2005.78 In fact, Schall von Bell was thrown into prison upon the death of his patron, the

Shunzhi emperor, in 1661, and the Jesuits did not regain imperial support until theKangxi emperor abolished the regency that dominated the court after his father's death.See Spence, 44, 71. For the later period, see Wa1ey-Cohen, 67-69.

A TIBETAN BUDDHIST MISSION 85

largest population in East Asia, the Chinese. Yet for the interveningcenturies of Manchu rule of China, the Dge lugs pa Tibetan Buddhistmission enjoyed singular success at home and abroad, due in no smallpart to the enormous prestige as well as military and financial supportderived from association with the Manchu Qing empire. Much credit forthis support must go to the Fifth Dalai Lama's visit to Beijing, as hehelped establish these relations as a central feature of seventeenth andeighteenth century Tibetan society.

Tibetan ReferencesNgag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho. 1989. Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya

mtsho 'i rnam thar Lhasa: Bod ljong mi dmangs dpe skrun khang.

Chinese ReferencesAwang luosang jiacou. 1992. Wushi Dalai lama zhuan, trans. Chen

Qingying and Ma Lianlong, Zhongguo bianjiang shi di ziliaoconggan-Xizang juan. Beijing: Zhongguo Zangxue chubanshe.

Huang Hao. 1993. Zai Beijing de Zangzu wenwu. Beijing: Minzuchubanshe.

Other ReferencesAhmad, Z. 1970. Sino-Tibetan Relations in the Seventeenth Century.

Rome: Istituto Italiano per il Medio ed Estremo Oriente.Berger, P. 2001. Miracles in Nanjing: An imperial record of the Fifth

Karmapa's visit to the Chinese capital. In Cultural Intersections inLater Chinese Buddhism. Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press.

Dorje, G. 1996. Tibet Handbook: with Bhutan. Chicago: Passport Books.Elverskog, J. 2003. The Jewel Translucent Sutra: Altan Khan and the

Mongols in the sixteenth century. Leiden: Brill.Farquhar, D.M. 1978. Emperor as bodhisattva in the governance of the

Ch'ing Empire. Harvard Journal ofAsiatic Studies 38(1), 5-34Grupper, S. 1980. The Manchu Imperial Cult of the Early Ch'ing

Dynasty: Texts and Studies on the Tantric Sanctuary of Mahakala atMukden. Ph.D. dissertation, Indiana University.

Heissig, W. 1953. A Mongolian source to the Lamaist suppression ofShamanism in the seventeenth century. Anthropos 48, 1-28, 493-536.

Hummel, A.W. (ed.) 1970. Eminent Chinese of the Ching period (1644­1912). Taipei: Ch'eng Wen Publishing; New York: Paragon BookGallery.

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Kam, T. 1994. Manchu-Tibetan Relations in the Early SeventeenthCentury: A Reapprisal. Ph.D. dissertation, Harvard University.

-. 2000. The dGe-1ugs-pa breakthrough: The Uluk Darxan NangsuLama's mission to the Manchus. Central Asiatic Journal 44(2).

Karmay, H. 1975. Early Sino-Tibetan Art. Warminster: Aris and PhillipsLtd.

Liu, A. 1989. Two rulers in one reign: Dorgon and Shun-chih 1644­1660, Faculty of Asian Studies Monographs. Canberra: AustralianNational University.

Naquin, S. 2000. Peking: Temples and City Life, 1400-1900. Berkeley:University of California Press.

Ricci, M. 1953. China in the Sixteenth Century: The Journals ofMatthewRicci: 1583-1610. L.J. Gallagher (trans.) New York: Random House.

Richardson, H. 1998. High Peaks, Pure Earth: Collected writings onTibetan history and culture. London: Serindia.

Rockhill, W.W. 1910. The Dalai lamas of Lhasa and their relations withthe Manchu emperors of China, 1644-1908. T'oung Pao 11.

Schmidt, 1.J., Ssanang Ssetsen, and Chungtaidschi. [1829] 1961.Geschichte der Ost-Mongolen und ihres Furstenhauses. The Hague:Europe Printing.

Schram, L. 1957. The Monguors of the Kansu-Tibetan border, II,Transactions of the American Philosophical Society, new ser., v. 47,pt. 1.

Spence, J. 1969. To Change China: Western Advisors in China, 1620­1960. Boston: Little, Brown and Company.

-. 1990.The Searchfor Modern China. New York: Norton.Sperling, E. 1983. Early Ming Policy Toward Tibet: an examination of

the proposition that the early Ming emperors adopted a 'Divide andRule' policy toward Tibet. Ph.D. dissertation, Indiana University.

-. 2003. Tibet's foreign relations during the epoch of the Fifth DalaiLama. In F. Pommaret (ed.) Lhasa in the seventeenth century: thecapital of the Dalai Lamas, Brill's Tibetan Studies Library 3.Leiden: Brill.

Tucci, G. 1949. Tibetan Painted Scrolls. 2 vols. Roma: Librera delloStato.

Tuttle, G. 2005. Tibetan Buddhists in the Making of Modern China.Columbia: Columbia University Press.

Waley-Cohen, J. 1999. The Sextants of Beijing: Global Currents inChinese History. New York: Norton.

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Wessels, C. 1924. Early Jesuit travellers in Central Asia 1603-1721. TheHague: Martinus Nijhoff.

Yang, H.C. (tran.) 1970. The Annals ofKoke nor. Bloomington: IndianaUniversity Press.

Yang Ho-chin. 1994. China's routes to Tibet during the early Qingdynasty: a study of travel accounts. Ph.D. dissertation, University ofWashington.

II. THE REINVENTION OF TRADITION

CHAPTER SIX

RECREATING THE RNYING MA SCHOOL:THE MDO DBANG TRADITION OF SMIN GROL GLING

Jake Dalton

In September 1691 over three hundred of the most renowned masters ofthe Rnying rna school gathered at the newly founded monastery of Smingrol gling in central Tibet. Sacramental feasts, religious dances, andelaborate ceremonies were performed over eleven days. All those presentreceived the initiations and instructions for a comprehensive new ritualsystem, one that drew together the various traditions relating to theCompendium ofIntentions Siura (Dgongs pa 'dus pa'i mdo). This eventmarked a turning point in the history of the Rnying rna school. It was theculmination of the efforts of two charismatic brothers to reshape theirtradition by unifying the scattered local lineages under the roof of largemonastic institutions. Twenty-five years later, these teachers would bedead, their monastery destroyed in a violent religious persecution. Yettoday the identity of the Rnying rna school is still defined in large part bythe regular observance of the same community rituals first performedthree hundred years ago. This paper looks at how, at the tum of theeighteenth century, Gter bdag gling pa (1646-1714) and his brother Lochen Dharmasri (1654-1717) worked to recreate the Rnying rna school,and how the Mdo dbang (or "Sutra empowerment") tradition played aparticularly key role in their project.

I. Public ritual as political strategy: The influence ofthe Dalai Lama

The seventeenth century witnessed a flurry of activity in the Mdo dbangtradition. In particular, two major efforts were undertaken to rework theentire tradition. The first was by Padma 'phrin las (1641-1717), thesecond throne-holder of Rdo rje brag monastery, while the second tookplace just across the Gtsang po river from Rdo rje brag, where in 1676Smin grol gling monastery was founded. Like Rdo rje brag, Smin grolgling received strong support from the new government of the FifthDalai Lama. Not surprisingly, the two simultaneously burgeoning

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Rnying rna centers shared much in common, yet there were significantdifferences in the approaches of their respective leaders. 'Padma 'phrinlas, who sought to establish his Rdo rje brag monastery over and againstcompeting Rnying rna pa groups, took a more exclusionary course, madenecessary by the decades of difficulties his lineal forbears hadundergone. But the approach taken by the brothers at Smin grol glingwas a wider one, seeking to unite and redefine the entire Rnying rnaschool. Ultimately both monasteries, Rdo rje brag and Smin grol gling,enjoyed considerable success, and the results of their distinct strategiescan be seen to this day in the contours of the Rnying rna school. Thustoday the Byang gter of Rdo rje brag is an exceptionally strong gter rnalineage that has remained intact since its fourteenth century inception,while the Smin grol gling tradition is less associated with anyonelineage, but rather pervades the ritual fabric of almost every majorRnying rna monastery. 1

The Smin grol gling brothers implemented their project through twointerlocking strategies: in-depth historical research and the formulationof new large-scale public rituals, with the former supporting the latter.Elaborately choreographed festivals were created, to be performed over aperiod of days before large public audiences. Smin grol gling becameknown for its elaborate dances performed by large numbers of monks,and for its grand festivals which required the resources that only a largeand wealthy monastery could supply. The popularity and the scale ofthese new rituals helped to establish the Smin grol gling tradition at thecenter of the Rnying rna school.

Gter bdag gling pa's use of public ritual mirrored the contemporaryactivities of the Fifth Dalai Lama (1617-1682) and his powerful regent,Sde srid sangs rgyas rgya mtsho (1653-1705). As Gter bdag gling palabored at Smin grol gling, the Dalai Lama was building his new Tibetanstate in Lhasa. Recent scholarship has observed that one of the principalstrategies employed by the Dalai Lama was his institution of annual

1 Rdo rje brag's unique position within the Rnying rna school is further indicatedby the fact that most monasteries today, even when relatively small, are called by theirown names, while the Rdo rje brag branch monasteries are almost invariably referred toas simply "Rdo rje brag." The same distinction can also be seen in the extant traditions ofMdo dbang; while the Kah thog and the Smin gling traditions are relatively well knownto each other, the Rdo rje brag empowerment manual, the Rgya mtsho 'jug ngogs byPadma 'phrin las, dwells in a world apart. Moreover, to my knowledge, Rdo rje brag doesnot observe the annual Gathered Great Assembly (tshogs chen 'dus pa) festival that iscommon to the other major Rnying rna monasteries.

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festivals and public rituals. Hugh Richardson, in describing the officialfestivals performed annually in Lhasa, observed:

The origin of most of the ceremonies lies in the remote past, but theyhave been rearranged and elaborated at different times, especially in theseventeenth century during the rule of the Great Fifth Dalai Lama andhis equally great regent Sangye Gyatso when they were put into whatwas very much their latest form with the clear intention of enhancingthe grandeur of the new regime ... and the prestige and stability of theposition of the Dalai Lama and the Gelukpa, Yellow Hat, church.?

The Dalai Lama's use of elaborate state ritual was typical of hislater life, and it was extended significantly by his regent, Sde srid sangsrgyas rgya mtsho.

Just as the Tibetan nation was united by the Dalai Lama's institutionof new public festivals, so too the Rnying rna school was united by thenew Smin grol gling rituals) The scale of Gter bdag gling pa and Lochen Dharrnasri's work was enormous, and although the present paperfocuses on the Mdo dbang's role in their project, many other elementswere also crucial in their own ways and should not be overlooked. Thatsaid, it is clear that the two brothers (and especially Lo chen Dharrnasri)gave particular attention to the teachings of the Bka' ma, and to the Mdodbang especially. Of Dharmasri's eighteen volume Collected Works(bka' bum), five volumes are devoted to the Sidra.

Moreover, Dharmasri was not just interested in the Sidra generally,but in its rituals in particular. This was typical of his wider project torework the Rnying rna school through its rituals. And while Dharmasridid address a variety of the Siura:s rituals-including its sddhana, its firepuja, and so forth-most of his attention went to the Siura's famousempowerment ceremony. For this reason, Dharmasri''s writings on theMdo dbang may provide an illuminating window onto the larger Smingrol gling project.

2 Richardson 1993: 7.3 It is important to recognize that the Dalai Lama's influence on Smin grol gling

was reciprocal. The ritual dances, for example, that figured prominently in many of Gterbdag gling pa's new Rnying rna festivals caught the Dalai Lama's own interest, inspiringhim to introduce similar dances to the Dge lugs school which had always shunned them.See Kohn 2001: 49-50.

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II. Excavating the foundations: Smin grol gling's historical research

The Sidra was thus a key piece of the Smin grol gling project to rebuildthe Rnying rna school through its rituals. Before composing his newritual manual, Dharmasri embarked on an extended study of the Sidra'shistory, excavating the long-buried foundations of this influentialtradition to use as the basis for his new system. In doing so, he strippedaway the layers of Rnying rna pa infighting that had accumulated overthe fifteenth, sixteenth, and seventeenth centuries, to reach a sharedhistorical basis upon which all Rnying rna pa could agree.

Dharmasris interest in history exemplifies a tum in the rhetoric ofthe Rnying rna school, a shift which continued to unfold over the twocenturies following his lifetime. Smin grol gling accomplished its reformof the Rnying rna school through a return to the ancient past. This wasone of several important ways in which the Smin grol gling project set aprecedent for the remarkable Rnying rna renaissance that was to unfoldover the following centuries. Gene Smith has pointed to "the antiquarianand archaeological interest" of late eighteenth century Rnying rna pascholars such as 'Jigs med gling pa and Tshe dbang nor bu.s The latter,Smith writes, "not content simply to repeat what he found in secondarysources considered authoritative by the Tibetan tradition, ... sought to goback to the original."5 Such a high valuation of historical researchcharacterised a number of nineteenth-century Rnying rna pa thinkers, andthis trend can be traced back to what took place at Smin grol gling in thelate seventeenth century.

Dharmasri set forth his vision of the Mdo dbang's history in an in­depth study entitled the Mdo dbang gi spyi don» The basic ritual

4 Smith 2001: 22.5 Smith 2001: 20.6 After the Mun pa 'i go cha by Gnubs chen sangs rgyas ye shes, this is by far the

most useful source for the modern historian of the Sutra tradition. That it is more of a"history" than a commentary may be confirmed by 'Jam dbyangs mkhyen brtse'i dbangpo, who seems to refer to it under the title of the History ofthe Sutra Empowerment (Mdodbang gi chos 'byung-for this reference, see 'Jam dbyangs mkhyen brtse 1989: 45). DanMartin (1997: 119) has suggested that this title might refer to another Dharrnasri historyof the Sutra empowerment that is distinct from his Mdo dbang gi spyi don. Unfortunately,I have not been able to find any such text, nor have I seen any other reference to it. Itdoes not appear in either the standard or new version of Dharmasri's Gsung 'bum, nor inany of the Bka' rna collections. Thus we should probably conclude that either it is lost orMkhyen brtse was referring to Dharmasrf's Mdo dbang gi spyi don, which does include asubstantial section on the lineage lamas (34-127) and does have an historical tone. I sus­pect the latter may be the case.

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structure of the Mdo dbang is traditionally credited to the ninth centuryIndian master, Bde ba gsal mdzad, some of whose writings have recentlyresurfaced." Unlike other tantric empowerment rituals which normallygrant initiation into a single ritual system associated with a singlevehicle, the Mdo dbang grants initiation into all of the nine vehicles ofthe Rnying rna school. Thus it is an extremely elaborate ceremony,requiring many days to perform.

At the center of the ceremony stands the root mandala for theSutra's tantric system. The so-called Tshog chen 'dus pa (or "GatheredGreat Assembly") mandala is unusual for its having nine stories, eachrepresenting one of the nine vehicles. Thus disciples can be led upwardsthrough the nine levels of the mandala as far as their abilities warrant, oreven all the way to the top, to the level of Atiyoga. In fact there havealways been two such "root mandalas," each complete with nine levels,known respectively as the "common" (thun mong) and the "uncommon"(thun min) root mandalas.

Over the centuries leading up to Dharmasris reformulation of thetradition, the empowerment ceremony had become increasingly complexthrough the addition of numerous so-called "branch mandalas.t'f Here thedisciple would be initiated into separate branch mandalas for each of thenine vehicles. Thus for the Sravaka empowerments a mandala withSakyamuni at the center would be used, for the Yoga tantraempowerments the famous Vajradhdtu mandala would be used, and soon. Then for the Mahayoga section of the ceremony, the common Tshogchen 'dus pa mandala would be used, and for Anuyoga the uncommonmandala.

Such was the complex situation inherited by Dharmasri, and hisreaction was to return to the origin. In his writings he goes to greatlengths to recover and carefully define the earliest ritual forms from the

--------- _..__._-------

7 A series of short works by the master are found appended to the 'Dus pa chen pomdo 'i sgrub khrigs bzhin dbang byang lag len (otherwise known as the Glan chog) by theearly fourteenth century master Glan ston bsod nams mgon po. The Glan chog appears involumes 61 and 62 of the i lO-volume edition of the Bka' rna rgyas pa shin tu rgyas paheld by TBRC and the British Glan ston can be roughly dated on the basis of hismeeting with Sgrol rna ba 'bra ston bsam grub rdo rje (1294-1375), a meeting that issupposed to have taken place around 1318, as can be deduced by combining two passageson 'Dus pa mdo dbang gi bla ma brgyud pa 'i rnam thar. See Padma 'phrin-las 1972:263.1 and 266.2.

8 The most significant additions were made in the late fourteenth century manual,the Rin chen phreng ba by Drnyal ba bde legs, and in the late fifteenth century Sbrangrtsi 'i chu rgyun by Rmog ston rdo rje dpal hzang po.

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writings of Bde ba gsal mdzad. By the end of his study he had exposedand reinforced the historical foundations of the entire ritual system. Hecould now be sure that the new tradition he built would stand forcenturies to come, made strong with the authority it received from hisrigorous excavations.

III. Reformatting the ritual for the general public

In terms of the actual ritual format, Dhannasri's overriding concern wasto simplify the ceremony as a whole. Towards this end, he repeatedlydistinguished between two types of potential recipients: the specialist andthe general public. In composing his new manual, Dharmasri clearly hadin mind a public performance before an unrestricted audience. Unlike theearlier manuals, Dharmasrf's was consciously crafted for a much larger,public venue, and for this reason many parts of the ceremony had to besimplified, the overall level lowered to the lowest common denominator.

As his manual proceeds through the ritual towards the higherinitiations, this tendency to simplify becomes increasingly pronounced.For example, for the initiations into the first six vehicles, Dharmasridiscards all the branch mandalas in favor of the root mandala alone.Next, the initiations for Mahayoga are granted using the common rootmandala, as usual. But then for the Anuyoga initiations, Dhannasriexplains that the same common root mandala can be used again.Previously, these Anuyoga initiations required the separate uncommonroot mandala, Now however,

When [the empowerment is] being performed for the masses, the vastmajority of them will be neither ripened [through meditation] noreducated. Therefore, thinking little harm will come of it, theconstruction of the uncommon root mandala of the Tshog chen 'duspa... does not really matter. Instead ... [for the Anuyoga initiations]. ..one can use the same mandala as for the inner [Mahayoga] initiations,namely the common root mandala."

Thus Dharmasri simplifies the ritual by using only the commonmandala for both sets of initiations, for Mahayoga and Anuyoga. He does

9 Padma 'phrin-las 1972: 243.6-244.1. tshogs sgrub dus dbang gis smin slob mimdzad pa shas che bas cung zad gnad chung bar dgongs nasi tshogs chen 'dus pa thunmong ma yin pa'i rtsa dkyil ... bzhengs ba btang snyoms su mdzad del rtsa dkyil thunmong ba nang dbang gi dkyil 'khor de nyid du ... bskur ba.

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this, he tells us, because he expected that "the vast majority" of thosereceiving the empowerment will not have attained the high level ofrealization needed to benefit from the Anuyoga initiations. Most will beattending just for the blessings, "merely for aspiration or study," hewrites elsewhere, and for this reason one may as well abbreviate theritual, even if it means less benefit for the rare expert in the crowd. Thelatter possibility prompts Dharmasri, in his section on the final Atiyogainitiations, to direct the presiding lama to separate out the select fewexperts in the crowd and grant them the highest initiations in private,after the main ceremony is over.

All of these changes to the Mdo dbang's ritual format point to thesame conclusion, that the wider Smin grol gling project sought toreformulate the Rnying rna school through large-scale publicperformances to be staged at major monastic institutions. The new Smingrol gling Mdo dbang ceremony was no longer intended simply forinitiating a disciple into the Sidra's teachings, but as a community­building event. The ceremony was now a performance foremost, and inthis sense its emphasis had shifted from the participants to the observers.How it was perceived as a public spectacle was crucial to its function.

The new Smin gling Mdo dbang system reflected this trend inanother way: Dharmasri further facilitated the grandeur of theperformance by dividing the ritual manual into numerous shorter distincttexts. Thus a separate text directed the monks on how to construct themandala, another described the ritual cards (tsakli) , another the musicalarrangements (rol rno), and so on. By delegating the ritualresponsibilities in this way, Dharmasri made possible a largerperformance that was easier to assemble. The different groups of monksonly had to master their own particular responsibilities, but whencombined, they could create a spectacle of unprecedented grandeur.

Having increased the scale and the splendor of the ceremony,Dharmasri also had to be careful not to overwhelm his audience. So atthe same time he shortened the ceremony's duration dramatically, so thatonly three days were required instead of the usual ten or more. Unlike theKah thog empowerment ceremony, for example, which packs in everydetail it can, Dharmasrr's is efficient in its grandeur.

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IV. Propogating the new tradition

Gter bdag gling pa transmitted the new ritual system on three occasions.All three were major events, with many important lamas from all overTibet in attendance. The first was at the grand festival of 1691 mentionedat the beginning of this paper. Dharmasri describes the event in thefollowing words:

Once there gathered together we who normally live at Smin-sgrol­gling-a congregation headed by [Gter bdag gling pa's] supreme son...,Padma 'gyur med rgya mtsho-together with other realized onesassembled there only temporarily such as Sprul sku tre'o, Rab 'byampa chags pa chos 'phe1, the lamas of Dpal ri gdan sa ba and Spo bo,three hundred in all. To all of us, in accordance with a [new] system inwhich the earlier and later classifications of the root and branchmandalas, those [systems] of Lha rje 'Gar, of GIang and so forth, wereall brought into a single tradition of ritual practice... [according to thatsystem,] for eleven days, from the seventh to the eighteenth ofSeptember, 1691, were bestowed the ripened and developed fulfillmentof the complete four rivers of the Compendium [of Intentions] Sutra,based on a mandala of colored powders, together with the seal ofentrustment, the flanking explanatory instructions, and the related ritualsequence of the great accomplishment. Thus signs were displayed, andthe welfare of beings was immensely and continuously enacted.I"

Gter bdag gling pa granted the Mdo dbang two other times. Neithertime is described in any detail, but Dharmasrf does list some of the moreimporant lamas who received it. The second time, the ritual wasbestowed to Gter bdag gling pa's relatives and to 'Od mchog sprul sku[Lee ston ngag dbang kun bzang rang grol], Thang 'brog sprul sku [Kunbzang legs grub], Bon lung sprul sku and so on, and the last time to [Padgling] Gsung sprul ngag dbang kun bzang rdo rje, Yon po sprul sku,Khams pa sprul sku, Rna bo gdung brgyud, Rong pa rdzogs chen sprul

10 Padma 'phrin-las 1972: 124.4-125.2. sras mchog padma 'sv« med rgya mtshosthog drangs smin grol gling 'dus tshogs sogs bdag cag gnyug mar gnas pa rnams dang/te '0 sprul pa 'i sku/ rab 'byams pa chags pa chos 'phel/ dpal ri gdan sa ba/ spo bo bla masogs glo bur lhags pa 'i don gnyer can te khyon 'dus pa sum brgya bskor la/ rtsa ba dangyan lag gi dkyil 'khor kyi dbye bsdu lha rje 'gar dang glan snga phyi sogs sgrol chen yanchadphyag len gyi srol gcig tu 'bab pa 'i lugs ltar/ rdul tshon gyi dkyil 'khor la brten pa 'i'dus pa mdo 'i chu bo bzhi rdzogs gtad rgya gdams ngag bshadpa mtha' brten dang bcaspa sgrub chen gyi las rim dang 'brei bar lcags lug khums zla 'i tshes bdun nas bco brgyadkyi bar zhag bcu gcig gi khongs su rdzogs pa smin rgyas su stsal bas mtshon bstan 'gro 'idon rlabs po che rgyun chags su mdzad.

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sku and so forth) 1 The colophon to Dharmasrr's manual adds still morenames to these, including Mdo khams go 'jo bla rna Rnam grol bzang po,Dpal bla rna ye shes, and Rdo rje mgon.

It is clear from both the length of these lists and the geographicalspread of the toponyms that Smin grol gling functioned as a font fromwhich the new Mdo dbang system spread to all comers of Tibet. Theinclusive nature of the Smin-gling Mdo dbang combined with thecharisma of its creators to draw lamas from all the Rnying rnamonasteries, old and new. These events were not simply empowerments;they were workshops, to which the major Rnying rna pa lamas of the daycame to receive and to learn the latest rituals. By the time of Gter bdaggling pa's death in 1714, his version of the Mdo dbang tradition hadbecome the standard throughout the Rnying rna school.

v. Conclusion

Smin grol gling affected a major change in the Rnying rna school. Onemight even argue that the Rnying rna school as we know it today wascreated in the late seventeenth century through the efforts of Gter bdaggling pa and Lo chen Dharmasri. United as never before, the Rnying rnaschool enjoyed lavish support from the new Dalai Lama government.During the lifetimes of the two brothers, numerous major Rnying rnamonasteries in central and eastern Tibet were founded.t? Smin grol glingchanged the face of the Rnying rna school forever, and the trends startedthere continued to unfold over the next two centuries. After Smin grolgling, the Rnying rna pa focused increasingly on their monasticinstitutions.

Three years after Gter bdag gling pa's death, tensions between theDzungar Mongols and the Chinese erupted into war. Late in the year of1717, the Dzungar Mongols invaded central Tibet, bringing with them aterrible backlash of sectarian violence. Many within the ruling Dge lugsschool had long expressed displeasure at the rising fortunes of theRnying rna school, and the Dzungars gave vent to these rumblings withthe zeal of the recently converted. The Dzungar soldiers executed Lochen Dharmasri, as well as the new Smin grol gling throne-holder,Padma 'gyur med rgya mtsho, and Padma 'phrin las. Almost overnight,

11 Padma 'phrin-las 1972: 127.1-3. Bracketed additions are culled from colophonof the Rdo rje 'i them skas: 566.6-567.1.

12 See Smith 2001: 18-20.

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decades of work at the new Rnying rna monasteries in central Tibet wasundone, as libraries were burned and temples looted.

Yet none of this could stem the flood of these masters' widerproject. Long before the Dzungar invasion, Gter bdag gling pa hadguaranteed his new rituals' expansion by convening large assemblies ofRnying rna lamas like the one in September of 1691. The ceremonies hetransmitted at these gatherings formed the ritual backbone of the newRnying rna monasteries to the east. The arrival of Smin grol gling'srituals in eastern Tibet was crucial to the future identity of the Rnying rnaschool, for it was there that they really took root, at the large newmonasteries throughout Khams and A mdo.

Tibetan ReferencesBka' ma rgyas pa shin tu rgyas pa. 110-volume edition held by TBRC

and the British Library, no publication information but becameavailable in 2000.

Dmyal ba bde legs. 2000. Rin chen phreng ba. 'Dus pa chen po mdo 'idbang chog rin chen phreng ba. In Bka' ma rgyas pa shin tu rgyaspa, vol. 63.

Glan ston bsod nams mgon po. 2000. 'Dus pa chen po mdo 'i sgrubkhrigs bzhin dbang byang lag len. In Bka' ma rgyas pa shin tu rgyaspa, vols. 61-62.

Gnubs chen sangs rgyas ye shes. 1982. Mun pa'i go chao Sangs rgyasthams cad kyi dgongs pa 'dus pa mdo 'i dka' 'grel mun pa'i go chaIde mig gsal byed rnal 'byor nyi mao In Bdud 'joms 'jigs bra1ye shesrdo rje (ed.) Rnying ma bka' ma rgyas pa. 56 vols. Kalimpong, WB.:Dubjang Lama, vols. 50-51.

'Jam dbyangs mkhyen brtse. 1989. 'Jam dbyangs mkhyen brtse'i dbangpo 'i gsung rtsom gees sgrib. Ch'engtu: Si khron Mi rigs Dpe skrunkhang.

Lo chen Dharmasri. 1975a. Rdo rje'i them skas. 'Dus pa chen po mdo 'idbang gi cho ga rdo rje'i them skas. In Lo chen gsung 'bum, vol. 11,1-569.

-- 1975b. Mdo dbang gi spyi don. 'Dus pa'i mdo dbang spyi donrgyud lung man ngag gi gnad gsal byed sgron me. In Lo chen gsung'bum, vol. 12, 1-260.

Lo chen Dharmasri. 1975. Lo chen gsung 'bum. 18 vols. Dehra Dun: D.G. Khocchen Trulku.

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Padma 'phrin-las, Rdo rje brag rigs 'dzin II. 1972. 'Dus pa mdo dbang gibla ma brgyud pa 'i rnam thar. In Bka' ma mdo dbang gi bla mabrgyud pa 'i rnam thar and Rig 'dzin ngag gi dbang po 'i rnam thar.Leh: S. W. Tashigangpa, 1-425.

-- 1982. 'Dus pa mdo 'i dbang gi cho ga khrigs su byas pa dkyil 'khorrgya mtsho 'i 'jug mngogs. In Bdud 'joms 'jigs bral ye shes rdo rje(ed.) Rnying ma bka' ma rgyas pa. 56 vols. Kalimpong, W.B.:Dubjang Lama, vols. 41-43.

Rmog ston rdo rje dpal bzang po. 2000. Sbrang rtsi'i chu rgyun. Mdodbang khams lugs su grags pa sbrang rtsi'i chu rgyun. In Bka' margyas pa shin tu rgyas pa, vols. 64-66.

Other ReferencesKohn, R.J. 2001. Lord of the Dance: The Mani Rimdu Festival in Tibet

and Nepal. Albany: State University ofNew York Press.Martin, D. 1997. Tibetan Histories: A Bibiography of Tibetan-Language

Historical Works. London: Serindia Publications.Richardson, H.E. 1993. Ceremonies of the Lhasa Year. London: Serindia

Publications.Smith, E.G. 2001. Among Tibetan Texts: History and Literature of the

Himalayan Plateau. Boston: Wisdom Publications.

BIBLlOfHEQUEUNlVERSITAlRE• A DlV'lmll):;

CHAPTER SEVEN

PURE-LANDS AND OTHER VISIONS INSEVENTEENTH-CENTURY TIBET: A GNAM CHOS SADHANA FOR

THE PURE-LAND SUKHA.VAT! REVEALED IN 1658 BYGNAM CHOS NIl 'GYUR RDO RJE (1645-1667)

Georgios Halkias

1. The Times: Visions ofthe Chos srid

There is no difference at all between this world and nirvana; betweennirvana and this world there is no difference at all. The limit of Nirvanais the limit of this world.

-s-Mulamadhyamakakarikas

During the Fifth Dalai Lama's reign, Tibet witnessed a creativerenaissance in the fields of both traditional and visionary Buddhistscholarship, art, astrology, architecture, medicine, and civil governance.'The seventeenth century is further characterized by a daring interlockingbetween the religious and secular spheres. Their intricate conjoiningforged a new national identity for the Tibetan polity which sought in theDalai Lama institution an end to fighting and a political stability that thebickering nobility had failed to provide The intertwining of Buddhistdoctrine (chos) with a dual state and ecclesiastical sharing of secularpower (srid) has been referred to as chos srid gnyis 'brei. This termcorresponds historically to a versatile system of dual governance (lugsgnyis) whose roots trace back to Tibet's Imperial Period (7th-9thcenturies). This system which persisted until Tibet's invasion by thePeople's Republic of China sought to strike an institutional balancebetween aristocratic factions and monastic institutions and betweencentralized and decentralized authority.

The 1642 pan-Tibetan victory of the Fifth Dalai Lama (1617-1682)was not without its share of craftsmanship and bloody opposition. Tibet's

1 Michael 1982; Rhie and Thurman 2000; Pommaret 2003.

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history after the tantric coronation of Gushri Khan as Dharmaraja? (chosrgyal) in 1637 by the Fifth Dalai Lama was one of protracted and deadlyconfrontations between opposing religious schools and their patrons.Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Tibet's governor from 1679 to 1703, skillfullyweaved historical events with Mahayana lineages, royal lines, and Tertongenealogies in a hagiography he composed for his visionary teacher.I Inso doing, he sanctioned the Dalai Lama's rule-by-incarnation regime ona metaphysical level by plotting a narrative that both conflated hisspiritual lineage with the cult of the 'returning' BodhisattvaAvalokitesvara while also sacralizing secular authority by tracing it back,as in the legends of the ancient kings, to a divine source.

If Buddhist narratives were deployed to grant political legitimacy tothe newly established Dge lugs sovereignty, political astuteness was alsooperative in reconfiguring the spiritual domain. The Fifth Dalai Lamarecognized PaJ) chen Blo bzang chos rgyan (1567-1662), his foremostDge lugs teacher and seat holder of the Bkra shis lhun po monastery inGtsang, as an emanation of Buddha Amitabha. The PaJ) chen's politicallyactive incarnation-line as the manifestation of Buddha Amitabha, 'chiefBuddha of the Lotus mandala,' rapidly became one of the most importantin the Dge lugs order, second only to the Dalai Lama's own incarnation­line as Avalokitesvara, the Regent in Amitabha's pure-land." In this way,

2 In his study of Indian esoteric Buddhist traditions, Davidson (2002: I 14)observes: "The evidence supports a position that is curiously both astonishing andreassuring: the Mantrayana is simultaneously the most politically involved of Buddhistforms and the variety of Buddhism most acculturated to the medieval Indian landscape.Briefly the mature synthesis of esoteric Buddhism...is that which embodies the metaphorof the practitioner becoming the overlord (rajadhirajay. In this endeavour, the candidateis coronated and provided with ritual and metaphorical access to all the various systemsthat an overlord controls: surrounded by professors of mantra, he performs activities toensure the success of his spiritual 'state.'" Ruegg (1997: 866) distinguishes three modelsto explain the 'constitutional' relationships between spiritual authority and temporalpower in Tibet: (a) the dyarchic model of Dharmaraja/Cakravartin and Officiant/SpiritualPreceptor; (b) the model of the Vajrayanist Guru and his neophyte disciple; and (c) thehierocratic and nirmanic model of the Bodhisattva-King combining in himself bothspiritual and temporal power.

J cf. Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho 1999. The Great Fifth appears prominently inreligious histories both as a visionary mystic and instigator of Tibet as a post-imperialnation. His secret visions, classified by the Rnying rna as pure-vision termas, also claimone visual encounter with a female Naga who is said to have inspired the creation of theKlu khang and its extraordinary Rdzogs chen murals (Baker 2000: 13). The Fifth DalaiLama also had visions during the joint performance of magical rites with his teacher ZurChos dbyings rang grol (1610-1657) against the Tsang royal forces (Karmay 1998: 9).

4 The Fifth Dalai Lama might have been aware that king Srong btsan sgampo washonoured by the Tang emperor Gao zong (649-683 C.E.) with the title Bao-wang meaning

PURE-LANDS AND OTHER VISIONS 105

the Dalai Lama may have seen fit to fill the political vacuum in Gtsangby establishing a powerful Dge lugs satellite whose influence andsupport could be called upon to support Dge lugs initiatives.

Structural correspondences between secular management andBuddhist soteriology are not foreign to Buddhism. Religious readings ofkingship date to the earliest texts of both Indian and Tibetan Buddhisrn."In the post-dynastic mythohistorical Rgyal rabs gsal ba'i me long(Sorensen 1994: 97-102) we read a popular national saga that beginswith Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara voicing a compassionate aspirationprayer (smon lam) to transform the demon-infested country of Tibet intohis field of conversion (zhing khams). Avalokitesvara's plea is heard byBuddha Amitabha, his spiritual father, who blesses him to incarnate inTibet as a celibate monkey. Soon after, he is seduced by an aggressivedemoness. From their intercourse, the mating of spiritual and gross­physical forms, emerges the race of the legendary Tibetan Buddhistkings and people.

This narrative co-opted the Indian cult of Avalokitesvara to providea Buddhist account for the ancestral origins of the Tibetan people. In theprocess, Avalokitesvara became the most revered symbol in the Tibetannational mythos, one which profoundly impacted the Fifth Dalai Lama'sperception of himself. As Karmay points out in his study of theMahakaruna the Lord of the World (Thugs rje chen po 'jig rten dbangphyug), a ritual cycle that records the Fifth Dalai Lama's secret visions:

Unbelievably complex as it is, in his visions the apparition of theBodhisattva in the form of Mahakaruna dominates DL's [Fifth Dalai

'precious king,' an epithet of the king of the West employed in Chinese culture forBuddha Arnitabha; cf. Beckwith 1987: 25-26. Miller (1961: 199) further speculates: "Thefirst Dalai Lama who achieved secular control ('The Great Fifth') 'recognized' or'discovered' that his tutor-and rival-was an incarnated Buddha, rather than aBodhisattva. This recognition was a typical Lamaist act, at least inferentially negating thePanchen Lama's potential claim to secular influence by very respectfully, very properlyelevating him into a strictly spiritual eminence."

5 An informative narrative of early Buddhism and kingship can be found inTambiah 1987. A Pali text, the Aggahiiasutta, foretells the" ... gradual degradation ofhuman society. At the lowest point in the process, humans are obliged to elect a GreatChosen One (Mahasamrnata) who will protect the people and their property andadminister an equitable justice in return for food ... A variety of Buddhist kings,particularly in Burma and Sri Lanka, trace their descent from Mahasammata" (cf Harris1999: 3). The proemium of Rgyal rabs gsal ba 'i me long pays homage to royal lineage ofMang pos bkur ba (Mahasammata), the first Indian king and mythical progenitor ofSakyamuni (cf. Sorensen 1994: 43, 49, 50, 52).

106 GEORGIOS HALKIAS

Lama] psyche .. .In each instance of appearance of Avalokitesvara in theform of one of his aspects, the Bodhisattva does not miss making agesture or giving guidance to DL in one way or another. These arealways concerned with the welfare of the Tibet and its people. Thephrases such as bod bde thabs, the 'means for bringing happiness to theTibetans' ...or bod kyi bstan srid, the 'religio-politics of Tibet' occurconstantly showing preoccupation in DL's mind .. .It was thereforebecause of this motivation to restore in a certain sense the formerimperial power and to re-establish Buddhism as a state religion, thatthere was a recurrence of personages of the Tibetan Empire in DL'svisions, such as the king Srong btsan sgam po and Padmasamhava.These personages cannot be dissociated from the personality of theBodhisattva in DL's visions. They had the psychic power to confer onhim prophetical instruction on how to deal with the political andreligious affairs at hand as well as with those in the years following theconstruction of the Potala Palace. 6

The conjoining of religious motifs-including Vajrayana ritualpractices, Mahayana soteriology and pure-land idealism-and politicalmotifs of 'national memory' and 'political consciousness' inseventeenth-century Tibet cannot be reduced to a thinly veiled attempt toassert secular and political agendas in the guise of religion. On thecontrary, Buddhist scholarship flourished along with the politicisation ofBuddhist ideology. This non-reductive conjoining of sacred and secularinvolved a continuous interplay of signs and their significance: in thereligious sphere through the monastic deification of incarnations, and inthe political sphere, through the implementation of a culturally embodiedBuddhist soteriology that had a profound and lasting psychological effecton its Tibetan leaders and people.

II. The Author: A Symbiosis ofMonastics and Siddhas

The child prodigy Gnam chos Mi 'gyur rdo rje, a Rnying rna siddha­cum-tenon from the area of Ngom in Khams, was born in 1645, theWood Bird year of the eleventh sexagenarian cycle (rab byung). He isattributed with the compilation of an impressive collection of TibetanBuddhist and folk-religion scriptures revealed through a series ofmystical visions. His writings constitute a cycle apocryphal termas

6 Karmay 1998: 27-28.

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known as Gnarn chos (sky-dharma)." Mi 'gyur rdo rje's instructions areoften included within the terma cycle that by and large covers literaryand ethnographic subjects containing: (i) ritual offerings (bsang, chabgtor, bum gter); (ii) funereal rites (byang chog); (iii) popularempowerments, such as, long-life (tshe dbang), health (srnan lha dbang),wealth (nor dbang); (iv) thread rituals and protective amulets (rndos,srung ba); (v) rites for propitiating protector deities (chos skyong, zhingskyong, gter srung); demons (btsan, gnod sbyin, bdud); high heavenspirits (lha); mountain gods (sporn ri, thang lha); nagas (klu) and earthspirits (sa bdag); (vi) divination and astrology (rde 'u dkar mo, spar kha,rtsis); (vii) preliminary tantric practices (sngon 'gro); (viii) tantricpractices (rmi lam, 'pho ba, gturn mo, phur ba, gcod) and commentaries(rgyud 'grel); (ix) pure-land sadhanas izhing kharns sgrub), and hundredsof meditation practices on peaceful (zhi ba) and wrathful (khro bo)deities grouped under well-known Vajrayana cycles (chos skor), such asthe Bde rnchog; Gu ru drag po; Ma ning; Sgrol rna; Phag rno; and last,but not least, (x) philosophical commentaries (khrid) belonging to theGreat Perfection (rdzogs chen) teachings of the Rnying rna school.

Sensitive to their heterodox inception, monastic factions whowished to assimilate the Gnarn chos texts and put them to ritual use wereeager to classify them according to conventional divisions and situatethem in a historical context.f In addition to the bka' rna (oral) and gter

7 In the inner biography (nang gi rnam thar) of Mi 'gyur rdo rje we read that theGnam chos is a distinct class of teachings that have arisen from the aspirations and pureminds of beings (fol. 10). They are further classified according to their main principle(ngo bo), definition (nges tshig), cause (rgyu), conditions (rkyen), and divisions (dbye ba)(fol. 13). Notable are descriptions of events (fols. 15-19) of scriptures that have fallenfrom the sky 'gnam mka ' nas glegs bam bab, ' speaking apparitions of lamas, yidams, anddakinis 'bla ma yi dam mkha' 'gro 'i tshogs zhal gzigs nas des gsung, ' disembodiedsounds 'zhal ma mthong chos kyi sgra, ' emanated letters 'sprul pa 'i yi ge, ' and sky-letters'gnam yig. ,

For an index of the Gnam chos collection (10 volumes) as preserved by Migot inthe College de France cf. Meisezahl 1981 and 1982. I am grateful to Gene Smith for hisguidance and for making an updated compilation of the Gnam chos cycle that includespages missing (Band XXXV) and three additional volumes (11, 12, 13) not included inthe Migot collection indexed by Meisezahl widely available. Volume 1] contains theinner and secret liberation-stories (rnam thar) of Mi 'gyur rdo rje; volume 12 containsRdzogs chen texts; and volume 13, written in dbu med script probably from Sde dge,contains 18 texts, mostly sddhanas.

S Anticipating a reaction from the more conservative schools, the inner biographyclassifies the Bka' gdams glegs bam as Gnam chos (fol. 18). Furthermore, examples arecited for each class of tantra tkriyd, caryd, yoga, mahdyoga, anuyoga, atiyoga) having

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rna (treasure) traditions of the Rnying rna school, there exists a visionarylineage of Buddhist teachings (dag snang gter) which cannot bedemonstrated historically to have lndic origins. According to Gyatso(1997: 96) its source is indigenously Tibetan and in order 'toaccommodate such an origin, the schools active in this movementdeveloped a three-fold system to classify Buddhist scripture that wouldallow for revelation and visionary inspiration. '9

Mi 'gyur rdo rje's numinous experiences were written down withthe support of his teacher and distant relative Karma chags med (1613­1678), the founder of the Nedo (gnas mdo) monastic lineage and prolificBka' brgyud scholar well regarded for his mastery of the old and newTantras.l" A number of celebrated literary cycles are attributed to him:the Rnam dag bde chen zhing gi smon lam (an aspiration prayer toSukhavati) and its rich philosophical commentaries that revitalized thebde ba can gi smon lam genre; the Rdzogs chen gyi khrid sangs rgyas lag

fallen from the sky. It concludes that all tantras are sky-dharma; cf. (fo1. 16): des nargyud thams cad gnam chos lags so.

9 "A Pure Vision is an experience in which the visionary meets directly with acelestial Buddha or teacher of another era who preaches a special sermon. This mayoccur in a wordly setting or in one of the Buddhist Pure Lands. Pure Visions arevariously said to occur while the visionary is in the state of meditative absorption(nyams) , in the dream state (rmi-Iam) , or in the 'reality' (dngos) of the waking state.Unlike a treasure teaching, a Pure Vision is not said to have been hidden previously.Rather, there is a presupposition which draws on the tantric idea that any advancedpractitioner with developed 'pure vision' would for that reason experience and participatein a pure world. Here 'pure' is reminiscent of 'Pure Land,' where Buddhas live andadvanced teachings are given. It should be noted that this distinction between the PureVision and the Discovered Treasure modes of transmission can collapse in usage ... lnsome cases it seems that the rubric of the Discovered Treasure denotes the revealedmaterial itself, whereas Pure Vision refers to the nature of the experience in which thatmaterial was received." (fo1. 98).

10 Karma chags med, also known as Ragasya, is considered one of the greatestscholars and tertons of the Bka' brgyud school. More than 45 volumes of worksattributed to him provide useful ethnographic material on Khams and on the Buddhistteachings and practices of the Rnying rna and Bka' brgyud schools. Dudjom Rinpoche(1991: 28) mentions an earlier attempt at a synthesis of Bka' brgyud and Rnying rnawritings by the third Karmapa Rang byung rdo rje (1284-1339) who, having received the'inner-most essence' (snying gi thig Ie) from Rig 'dzin Kumaraja (1266-1343), was thefirst to bring together these hitherto separate streams of Mahamudra and Rdzogs chen.Karma chags med is similarly known for unifying once again these distinct philosophicallineages and for being a faithful proponent of the Sukhavati cult. His philosophical workson the union of Mahamudra and Rdzogs chen along with a contemporary commentary byGyatrul Rinpoche have been translated into English by B. Alan Wallace, cf. Chagme1998 and 2000. For a brief history of the Gnas mdo lineage, see the Shes bya kun khyabmdzod, fols.16, 186, 193; also, Cuevas 2003: 153-57.

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'chang (a synthesis of Mi 'gyur rdo rje's and Ratna gling pa's termalineages); and the Thugs rje chen po 'i dmar khrid phyag rdzogs zung'jung thos ba don ldan , the author's magnum opus on the union ofMahamudra and Rdzogs chen.

According to Tibetan and Western sourccs.l! Mi 'gyur rdo rje'sspiritual ancestry, like that of many Rnying rna Tertons, is traced back tothe hegemonic Buddhist conversion of the Tibetan Empire (Gyatso 1997:145-53). The Tertons Ratna gling pa (1403-1479) and Bdud 'dul rdo rje(l6l5-l672)-the latter of whom Mi 'gyur rdo rje met in Pornetrak(Khams) at the request of Karma chags med (Gyurme 1991: 816)-hadprophesied that a Terton holding the name Rdo rje and marked by a molein his right hand, would come from Khams and be of great benefit to thepropagation of Buddhist teachings in Eastern Tibet. The recognition ofMi 'gyur rdo rje as the joint emanation of the great translator Pa gorVairocana and Shud bu dpal (both disciples of Padmasambhava)established him early on as a potential holder of Rnying rna reincarnationlineages (sku rgyud). His immediate Rnying rna predecessor was said tohave been 'Khrul zhig dbang drag rgya mtsho of the Rmog rtsa sprul skulineage (circa seventeenth century). Twenty-five subsequent emanationswere predicted to follow his premature death at the age of twenty-three in1667, none of whom has yet been identified. 12

According to the liberation-narratives written by his disciples, it didnot take long for Mi 'gyur rdo rje's tutor, Karma chags med, to realizethat the five-year old child entrusted to him was unusually bright andinclined towards reading, writing, poetry, calligraphy, as well asesotericism, which appears to have been one of his favourite subjects.Karma chags med recounts that when Mi 'gyur rdo rje reached theappropriate age and yogic mastery to take a consort, he stopped a lunar

II Information about Gnam chos Mi 'gym rdo rje (not be confused with Yong dgegter ston Mi 'gym rdo rje, 1628 to 1641?, a student of Karma chags med and importantterton of the Kam tshang Bka ' brgyud lineage), can be found in the following sources: Guru bkra shis 1990: 624-47; Kong sprul blo gros mtha' yas 1997, vol. 32; Jam dbyangrgyal mtshan 1996: 97; outer rnam thar (*Ti~tuhavajrasastra, Gnam chos, vol. 10), innerrnam thar (Gnam chos, vol. 11), secret rnam thar (Gnam chos, vol. 12); in Karma chagsmed's rnam thar (Gsung 'bum, vol. ka and ga). For Western publications, see Stein 1959;Meisezahl 1981; Schwieger 1978; Tsering 1988.

12 Guru bkra shis (1990: 629) writes that even though Stag sham nus Idan rdo rje(b. 1655) has been claimed as one of these twenty-five emanations, this is a slight error:rje 'di fa spruf pa 'i sku nyi shu rtsa fnga 'byung bar gsung ba 'i ya gyaf gcig ni II ngor klulding mkhan chen rin chen mi 'gyur rgyaf mtshan yin te II mkhan chen de nyid kyi skyebrgyud dang rnam thar fa dpyad pas shes so II yang mkhan chen de stag sham pa 'i skyeba yin zer ba ni cung zad nor ro II

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eclipse while practicing the yoga of sexual reversal, that is, holding backhis semen (khams dkar po) and forcing the vital energy to enter into(tjug) the central channel (dbu ma). 13

After completing a three-year retreat in the hermitage of Rmugssangs, the young siddha began to give teachings and empowermentsattracting a multitude of disciples. His fame soon spread across EasternTibet and he became renowned for the power of his blessings and forripening the minds of thousands of sentient beings with whom he waskarmically connected.!" Mi 'gyur rdo rje's popularity brought himrepeated invitations from religious leaders and the governors of theKhams principalities of Chab mdo and Sde dge. His transmission of theGnam chos termas was particularly venerated by one of his (and Karmachags med' s) principal students, Rig 'dzin Kun bzang shes rab (1636­1698), who consolidated most of the Gnam chos texts into onecompilation and composed commentaries on them that later became anintegral part of the monastic curriculum, religious training, andmetaphysical endorsement for the Dpal yul lineage that heinstitutionalized in 1665. 15

The successful assimilation of siddha scriptures in the monastic foldrevitalized the monastic curriculum with novel and fresh teachings,allowed for the creation of new monastic lineages, and offeredinstitutional endorsment to wandering ascetics whose local popularitywith the Tibetan population would warrant a symbiotic relationshipbetween monks and lay tantric teachers rather than an antagonisticcoexistence.

III. Sukhiivati in Tibet: A Fusion ofSidra, Tantra and Terma

During the monastic expansion of Buddhism in Tibet, landscapes andtheir native guardians were culturally and socially co-opted intomythohistorical narratives and representations drawn from Buddhist

13 Guru bkra shis 1990: 626. Tsering (1988: 49) recounts the same event withoutgoing into any details. I am grateful to Geshe Gelek Jinpa, who while conducting his ownresearch at the Oriental Institute in Oxford, has been generous with his knowledge duringthe writing of this article related to my D.Phil. thesis on Buddhist Paradises and TantricTerritories: the Gnam chos Propagation of Amitiibha 's Pure-Land in Seventeenth­centurv Tibet.

14 Guru bkra shis 1990: 625, 628.I 5 Gnam chos transmissions are also preserved by the Kah thog monastery founded

anew in 1665 by Bdud 'dul rdo rje (1615-72) and by the Karma and 'Bri gung Bka'brgyud lineages institutionalized during the early part of the twelfth century.

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soteriology and cosmology. Wild landscapes and demons were tamed('dut ba) and transformed into peaceful pure-lands inhabited by aproliferation of incarnate Bodhisattvas and guardians of faith (chosskyong). Buddhist pure-lands imported from India to Tibet readilybecame euphemisms for the timeless metaphysical destination ofdeceased lamas and accomplished Buddhist practitioners. They were alsodeployed to describe physical sites of pilgrimage, sacred mountains,hidden valleys, and the residence or hermitage of any Tibetan saint.

Of the many pure-lands imported from India into Tibet, Sukhavatihas been the subject of some scholarly attention.I" In Tibet, as in Indiaand Nepal, there is no evidence of Pure-land sectarian movements havingever existed, as for example in Japan led by Honen (1133-1212), Shinran(1173-1262), and Ippen (1239-1289).17 Kapstein (2004: 20) rightlyobserves: "It seems sure, however, that to the extent that rebirth inSukhavati was emerging as a soteriological goal for Tibetan Buddhists, itwas by no means an exclusive goal or one that was decisively preeminentin relation to other important Buddhist ends."

The Sukhavati cult in Tibet claims an interesting corpus ofMahayana and Vajrayana practices. Tibetan pure-land compositions owetheir original inspiration to the Small and Large Sukhiivativyuha Sutras, I8

as well as to other Indian Mahayana siaras; such as, the Pratyutpanna-

16 See Karma Kelchog Palmo, et al. 1973; Nakamura 1963; Kajihama 1994, 1996,2002, 2003; Kapstein 2004; Schwieger 1978; and Skorupski 1994, 2001. Nakamura'sarticle is the first study of its kind to employ a philological/cultural analysis of the way inwhich the Large and Small Sukhdvativyuha-siuras have been translated into Tibetan. Heconcludes that several Indic descriptions of Sukhavati did not have Tibetan lexicalequivalents to reflect Indian cultural and landscape-inspired motifs. As a result, theTibetans translated several 'literal statements' in the siltras metaphorically, allowing for areading of Sukhavati that moved away from the supposed concreteness that its Sanskritoriginals had. This might explain, as Kapstein (2004: 40-42) noted, the ease with whichSukhavati was assimilated into tantric lore and maintained harmony with the teachings ofthe Great Perfection.

17 For Sukhavati related practices in Nepal, see Lewis 2004 and for a history ofPure-Land in India, Fujita 1996. Numerous studies exist on the development of Pure­Land Buddhism in East Asia, but this is not the place for them to be examined.

18 These sutras were translated into Tibetan during the reign (755-c.794 CE) ofemperor Khri Song Ide btsan (cf. Ldan kar edited by Lalou 1953). The third mostimportant sutra to the development and formulation of pure-land doctrine In China andJapan is the Amitdyurdhydna (Kuan-liang-shou ching), extant also in Ugrian from aChinese retranslation. However, since no Sanskrit or Tibetan version of this siura hasbeen found, it is suspected to have been a Chinese or Central Asian composition; for adetailed discussion on its authenticity, see Fujita's "Textual Origins of the Kuan-liang­shou ching" in Buswell 1990: 149-73.

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buddha-salJ1mukhavasthita-samadhi-sutra, which contains the earliestdatable reference to Amitayus and his buddha-field (buddha-ksetra).Tibet's imperial period saw the rise of a Tibetan genre of purelandliterature devoted exclusively to extolling Buddha Amitabha and hisWestern paradise called the De man (bde ba can gi smon lam) .19 Overfifty samples of this praise-type literature dating from the twelfth to thetwentieth century can be found in the first volume of the Bde smonphyogs bsgrigs.20 They include many terma texts by Rnying rna authors,as well as compositions by Bka' brgyud pa, Sa skya pa, Jo nang pa, Dgelugs pa, and Ris med pa authors. A preliminary survey of Mahayanaliterature on Sukhavati includes aspirational (smon lam) andcommentarial ('grel ba) works such as: (1) the Bde ba can gyi zhing duskye ba 'dzin pa'i smon lam zhing mchog sgo by Tsong kha pa (1357­1419); (2) the Bde ba can gyi zhing du thogs pa medpar bgrodpa 'i myurlam by the First Pan chen bla rna (1567-1662); (3) over twenty Sukhavatirelated texts in Karma chags med's and Mi 'gyur rdo rje's collections;(4) the Bde ba can gyi zhing du bgrod pa 'i myur lam gsal bar byed pa 'isgron me by the First Leang skya (1642-1714); 5) the Bde ba can gyizhing sbyong ba'i dad pa gsal bar byed pa drang sgron me by Mi phamrin po che (1864-1912), and 6) the Bde ba can gyi zhing las brtsams pa 'igtam dge ba'i 10 tog spel byed dbyar skyes sprin chen gla bo'i sgradbyangs by the third Rdo grub chen (1865-1922).21

It is not possible to say exactly when pure-land premises wereintegrated into Buddhist esotericism, but Amitabha dharani scriptures

19 During the Tibetan occupation of Dunhuang (781-848) the Tibetan cavescontinued the High Tang tradition of depictions of Arnitabha and his celestial paradise(cf. Whitefield et al 2003: 82). In his translation and study of a Tibetan Dunhuang poemto Arnitabha, Silk (1993: 12) asserts that there exist several other Dunhuag Tibetandocuments which seem to belong the same genre of text.

20 This two-volume anthology of prayers and commentaries pays tribute to theMahayana origins of the Sukhavati cult by including a De man prayer by Nagarjuna (c.150-250 CE), and sections from the Sukhiivativyiihas, the Ratnakuta, and theBhadracaryd-pranidhiinariija. Bon De-man texts and commentaries, although available,are not included in this compilation.

21 With the exception of Chags med's and Mi 'gyur rdo rje's works, the authorsand texts mentioned above have been studied by Kajihama 2003. Volume Il of the Bdesmon phyogs bsgrigs lists two additional De-man commentaries: Rdza dpal sprul 0 rgyan'jigs med's (1808-1877) philosophical commentaries on Chags med's and Tsong kha pa'sworks, and Bsod nams chos 'grub's (1826-1944) lengthy commentary on Karma chagsmed's aspiration prayer, the Bde chen zhing gi smon lam that remains popular at thepresent time. For a brief outline on Bsod nams chos 'grub's commentary and itsbackground, see Kapstein 2004: 37-39.

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appear as early as the third century with the popularity of theAnantamukha-nirhiira-dhiirmJz-sutra and its extensive commentary byJfianagarbha preserved only in Tibetan (lnagaki 1999). It appears thattwo semi-independent strands of the Arnitabha cult developed in India.When their respective practices reached Tibet, one tradition linkedAmitabha with Sukhavati funereal rituals (Skorupski 2001: 156-72),prayers and commentaries, while the strictly tantric lineages of Amitayuswere mainly utilized in alchemical rites aimed at extending longevity.VThe Tibetan tantric appreciation of Sukhavati may be the product ofterminological conflation between Amitabha's land of bliss (Skt.Sukhavdti, Tib. Bde ba can) with a Vajrayana emphasis on interiorvisualizations that may result in intense physical bliss (mahdsukkha, bdeba chen). Notable, for example, is the mind-transference technique ('phoba) to the pure-land Sukhavati which employs a visualization ofAmitabha above the fontanel cakra identified in Tantric literature as themahasukhacakra (bde chen gi 'khor 10).23 Other Vajrayana practices

22 In the Sukhdvativyuha and other Mahayana siltras, Amitayus and Arnitabha areoften used interchangably. The appelation 'Arnitabha' appeared earlier than theappelation 'Arnitayus,' see Nakamura 1987: 202. Bu ston in his History of Buddhismmakes no reference to the Sukhdvativyiihas, or any pure-land practices, but in his sectionon the biography of Nagarjuna (Obermiller 1931: 123) he mentions that the latterengaged in Arnitayus long-life practices. Walter (1980: 319) refers to two systems ofalchemical practice found in the eighth-century Rnying ma literature: "Let us first look atthe system in Padmaist literature. Our examination reveals that it is almost completelyoriented around the extraction of essences (rams) from the physical elements of theuniverse... Padmasambava delivers these teachings as a mediator for, or is to be evokedas a form of, Arnitayus. There are also several texts which mention the conjuring of eightimmortal magicians which emanate from Amitayus." Skorupski (1995: 210) comparesthe appearance of eight bodhisattvas in Karma chags med's Bde chen zhing gi smon lamwith a passage from the Bhaisajyaguru-siura, where likewise the dying are accompaniedby eight bodhisattvas. Blezer (1997: 87-88) considers the possibility that Klu'i rgyalmtshan (translator of the Large Sukhavativyiiha into Tibetan), with his party of Ska badpal brtsegs and Vimalimitra, might have brought Arnitabha and bar do thos grolpractices while searching for Rdzogs chen manuscripts. He concludes: "Amitabhadefinitely occupies a special position, see for instance the mention in the inceptive verseof the Chos hid bar do 'i gsal 'debs, but on the whole, the Bar do thos grol-texts I amfamiliar with do not strike me as so strongly centered on Amitdbha or Sukhdvati, texts on'pho ba emphatically excepted, of course."

23 There exist a number of 'pho ba techniques in the Tibetan Vajrayana corpus thatare not directly related to Arnitabha; i.e., 'pho ba of the three kayas; the Avalokitesvaratransference instructions; the 'pho ba of the Vajrayogini tantra; and others. See Mullin1997: 175-76. The fact that we find in a Bka' brgyud compilation of texts attributed toPadmasambhava (cf. Evans-Wentz [1958] 2000: 261-65) a 'pho ba sddhana that utilizesArnitayus' long-life rituals but not Sukhavati, suggests that the conflation of Sukhavatlobjectives and Amitayus' long-life rituals in seventeenth-century Bka' brgyud-Rnying

114 GEORGIOS HALKIAS

related to Sukhavati include: Amitayus long-life alchemical rites (tshesgrub); dream-yoga instructions (rmi lam rnal 'byor) for beholdingSukhavati in one's dreams and receiving religious training; cremationceremonies (ro sreg) and funereal applications employing an effigy-card(byang chog); ganapujd offerings to the Sukhavati deities (tshogsmchod); astrological charts of auspicious days to perform Amitabhasddhanas (dpe'u ris dus), and rituals for propitiating the Sukhavatiksetrapalas (zhing skyongjV'

Corresponding to the philosophy of the three-body division ofenlightenment (sku gsum) Karma chags med introduces three readings ofSukhavati analogous to the three ways of attaining the pure-land:Dharmakiiya, Sambhogakiiya, and Nirmiinakiiya 'pho ba (Skorupski2001: 145-46). Dharmakiiya 'pho ba, the ultimate transference, iseffectuated at the very subtle union of mother and child luminosities.Here Sukhavati serves as an analogy for enlightenment attained afterdeath. Sambhogakdya 'pho ba corresponds to the subtle perception of thefive certainties (nges pa lnga) by advanced Bodhisattvas, that is, certainplace (Sukhavati), certain teacher (Amitabha), certain retinue(Avalokitesvara and Vajrapani), certain time (now) and certain teachingsas needed. Nirmanakaya 'pho ba refers to emanations of pure-landsmaterialized in order to benefit beings-"

Philosophical reasoning, faith, and mysticism are integral aspects tothe interpretation and representation of Sukhavati in Tibet. Devotionalprayers, philosophical commentaries, internal tantric visualizations andmystic visions all blend to graft a unique picture of Amitabha's pure-landand elucidate the varied ways of its understanding and adulation byTibetan Buddhists. Just as we notice a scholastic zeal in elucidatingMahayana doctrine in the form of pure-land commentaries ('grel ba), wealso discern the importance of faith both in the recitation of pure-landaspirational prayers (bde smon) and in the power of tantric rituals to

rna 'pho ba texts is a later development. In lieu of a noticeable absence of relatedpractices in India or East Asia we may consider the Sukhavati 'pho ba practice as aTibetan tantric innovation.

24 The corresponding texts can be found in Karma chags med's Gsung 'bum (vol.ga andji); Mi 'gyur rdo rje's Gnam chos (vol. 1) and in the Rtsib ri spar ma (Padma chosrgyal 'khrul zhig 1978-85, vol. 21).

25 Notable are the developments from the fifteenth to the nineteenth century ofthang ka, some of which are monumental in scale, portraying pure-lands of Buddhas,Bodhisattvas and popular saints of Tibet, such as, Sukhavati, Tusita, Abhirati, Sambhala,Potalaka, Glorious-Copper Mountain, Uddiyana Dakini Paradise, etc. (Rhie and Thurman2000).

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effectuate a Sukhavati transfer (tpho ba). When Karma chags med wasasked about the efficacy of Sukhavati teachings, he allegedly replied: a

ma bde ba can du ma 'khyol na / ban rgan chags med skyag pa zos payin. 26

IV. The Text: A Gnam Chos Sadhanajor the Pure-Land Sukhdvati

Realizing the Pure Land of Sukhavati: Empowerment with OralInstruciions'l-i-is a siidhana-cum-empowerment (sgrub dang dbang laschog) revealed to Gnam chos Mi 'gyur rdo rje in a vision he had ofBuddha Amitabha and his retinue. It compresses a number of tantrictechnologies for realizing Amitabha's pure-land. It begins (folios 5b-6a)with an in-front visualization of Amitabha and his retinue arranged as ina Sukhavati thang ka: the Buddha of Infinite Light ('Od dpag med), rubyred in colour, is framed in the middle by two standing Bodhisattvas.These two young-looking Kouroi have come traditionally to representthe Buddha's strength (Vajrapani) and compassion (Avalokitesvara). Forthe purpose of this practice, they are visualized in transparent form alongwith the root deity facing one in empty space. Following the self­generation practice (bskyed rim) into a white Lokesvara born out of alotus, the practitioner invites the wisdom beings and recites the mantra ofthe deity (folio 6b). The chosen yidam is supplicated (folios 7a-7b) togrant its blessings (sbyin rlabs) for the realization of the supreme siddhi,that is, the practitioner's identification at a psycho-physiological level ofexperience with the qualities of the enlightened-mind. The siidhanaincludes a unique assortment of tantric meditations that could bepracticed independently. These are: dream-yoga (folio 6b), long-lifeextension (folio 6b), and mind-transference (folio 7a). These techniquesare introduced succinctly as part of the sddhana's progression andtherefore, presuppose prior familiarity from the side of the practitioner.At the end of our text we find instructions for consecrating the ritualinstruments utilized in the Sukhavati empowerment (folio 8b-9a). Thepith oral instructions are found in the colophon and recommend:'meditate on all places as Sukhavati.'

26 Guru bkra shis 1990: 630: "May this old monk Chags med eat shit if his motherdoesn't end up in Sukhavati."

27 The Bde chen zhing sgrub dbang las chogs zhal gdams dang bcas pa is found inthe Gnam chos (vol. I, dza, tshe sgrub).

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INDEX TITLE

Realizing the Pure Land ofSukhavati: Initiation with Oral Instructions

MANUSCRIPT TITLE

The Siidhana of the Pure-Land ofSukhdvati: from the Mind Treasury ofthe Sky-Dharma, the Cycle ofthe Profound Whispered Lineage

1. SELF-GENERATION AS A WHITE LOKESVARA AND IN-FRONT

GENERATION OF AMITABHA WITH RETINUE

[1] (Recitation of tantric refuge):

Guru deva ddkini hUfJ1

[2] (Preparations):

This is the sddhana of Amitabha. There is no requirement for a mandalaor a torma.

[3] (Visualization):

Self-manifest as a white bodhisattva on a water-flower lotus.P' In front ofyou sits Lord Amitabha in meditative equipoise on a lotus and a moonseat. His body is red with one face and two arms, holding a begging bowland wearing the robes of a monk seated cross-legged. On his right standsthe Lord of the World, white, with one face and four arms(Avalokitesvara). He is standing on a lotus and a moon seat. His twopalms are joined. In his (other) right hand he holds a rosary and in his(other) left a lotus. On his left stands the Mahasthamaprapta Vajrapaniholding a bell and standing on a lotus and moon seat. Surrounding themare Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, Sravakas, and countless Arhats.

28 A commentary to this practice by Ayang Rinpoche suggests the visualization ofa four-armed Avalokitesvara.

PURE-LANDS AND OTHER VISIONS 117

2. ACTIVATION OF THE CAKRAS AND INVITATION OF THE WISDOM­

BEINGS

Light-rays emanate from the three syllables (OlJ1 dh hUlJ1) in the threeplaces (head, throat and heartj-? of the three principle figures (Amitabha,Avalokitesvara, Vajrapanij-i-through them contemplate that they areextending an invitation to Sukhavati'"

3. THE RECITATION OF AMITABHA'S MANTRAS

Then recite these mantras as much as possible:[1] First, the extensive root mantra: om iih hUlJ1 amidheva iiyuh siddhihUlJ1.[2] Then, the medium length root mantra: OlJ1 amidheva hrih.[3] Then, the condensed root mantra: OlJ1 dh hrih svdhd.[4] Then, an even more condensed mantra: OlJ1 hrih sviihd.[5] Alternatively, the condensed root mantra: hrih sviihd.[6] Then, enumerate the even more condensed mantra: hrih until it IS

sufficient.31

[7] Then, recite a sufficient number of the mantra: OlJ1 bhriim svdhd.

This is the practice of Amitabha.

29 These three places refer to the three upper rtsa 'khor (cakras) sensitizedsimultaneously by word, colour and sound frequency (hu1J1-blue, ah-red, o1J1-white).According to tantric physiology these cakras correspond to internal body-locationslocated roughly at the heart (chos kyi 'khor fo), the throat (fongs spyod kyi 'khor fo), andthe fontanel (bde chen gi 'khor fo). The last one allows exit in the practice of 'pho ba(transference) and also serves a point of entry for the wisdom-beings (ye shes pa). Thecakra of great bliss tmahdsukhas serves as the main tantric metaphor for the realization ofthe pure-land of Sukhavati.

30 This section refers to the visualized Arnitabha, Avalokitesvara and Vajrapani,known as the pledge-beings (samayasattva, dam tshig pa), inviting the wisdom-beings(jhdnasattva, ye shes pa), that is, their enlightened-counterparts who are residing inSukhavati, to come and merge with them. The symmetrical correspondence between the'structured-imaginary' (the pledge-beings in the visualization) and the 'expansive-real'(the wisdom-beings localized in Sukhavati) is established through word, color and soundvisualized as the inseparability of the three emanating outwards as white, red and bluelight-rays. The response of the wisdom-beings is one of empowering the tantricpractitioner whose pledge to attain enlightenment merges and becomes indivisible withthe state of enlightenment represented by the ye shes pa.

31 The term bsgrangs refers to counting or enumerating, and chog pa meanssufficiency, or enough of a pre-specified number of mantra recitation is reached (i.e.,100,000 times).

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(Seal): Samaya gya gya gya. 32

4. THE PRACTICE OF DREAM-YOGA

For the practice of dream-yoga, experience day-time as a dream. At thethroat-centre visualize a red-lotus with four petals on which are arranged(the syllables) om dh hrih svdha. At the centre of the syllable hrihappears the syllable om. Then visualize in your heart-centre a red lotus­flower on top of which is the pure-land Sukhavati.P Imagine it existingvery clearly as if (you are) there. Direct your concentration like thiswhile falling asleep and in your dreams you will see the pure-land ofSukhavati. You will also directly behold Avalokitesvara, Amitabha andVajrapani.

(Seal): Samaya gya gya gya.

5. THE VISUALIZATION OF LIFE-EXTENDING AMITAYUS

After that, follow the activities of the long-life siidhana-otherwise, youdo not need to change the visualization. The begging bowl (of Arnitayus)is filled with (long-life) nectar.>' Think of it dissolving into yourself.Recite: om brhiim svahii brhum twice, or as much as you wish.

(Seal): Samaya gya gya gya.

6. TRANSFERENCE TO SUKHAvATI

After that, are the stages of powa ('pho ba). Visualize in your heart­centre a red hrih, with a long visarga. Visualize it with intensity. Fromthe syllable hrih six light-rays emanate which block the doors of rebirthfor the six kinds of beings, after which visualize the aperture of Brahma

32 These mantras are now sealed by the tantric vows of concealment. The termrgya may be as much an abbreviation of phyag rgya (mudra) where a particular handmudra is expected. as it may be derived from the verb rgya ba and used to indicate'extent' but also meaning 'area' or 'region.' More generically, if it is affixed after otherwords to indicate something which seals something else to keep the contents hidden, as ina seal on an envelope.

33 The original text renders 'bde chen' (Mahasukha) instead of 'bde can' forSukhavati, A possible reason for this conflation has been discussed before.

34 Long-life practices usually involve Arnitabha visualized in the form ofSambnogakaya Amitayus.

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on the crown of your head open. Next, visualize on the crown of yourhead Amitabha, as explained before, with his retinue of two. Meditatethat one's own consciousness, a white drop in the shape of the (syllable)hrih, is ejected into the heart-centre of Amitabha. Then, without theslightest doubt, deliver the aspiration to be reborn in Sukhavati.

(Seal): Samaya gya gya gya.

7. SUPPLICATION PRAYERS

Next follows, the stages of the supplication prayer.

[1] First, is the supplication prayer of accomplishment:E rna ho. With one-pointed devotion make supplication prayers to theextraordinary Amitabha, Avalokitesvara, and Vajrapani and the rest ofuncountable Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. (Recite): Bestow upon me thesupreme siddhi, bestow upon me the blessings to accomplish Amitabha'ssddhana.

[2] Next, is the supplication prayer for the dream-yoga practice:E rna ho. One-pointedly supplicate the extraordinary DharmakayaAmitabha, Avalokitesvara, and Vajrapani. (Recite): After travelling toSukhavati in my dreams, bless me to meet Amitabha.

[3] Next follows the empowerment supplication prayer:Lama and protector Amitabha, Lord Avalokitesvara and Vajrapani, andimmeasurable Buddhas and Bodhisattvas J make this supplication: conferupon me the tantric empowerment.

[4] (Next is the long-life supplication prayer:)E rna ho to the Perfect Buddha Amitabha, Avalokitesvara, and Vajrapaniand the limitless Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. With a mind of devotion, Jprostrate, praise and make supplication prayers. Bestow upon me thesiddhi of (long) life.

[5] Next is the transference supplication prayer:E rna ho, to the very extraordinary protector Arnitabha, Mahakarunika,and Vajrapani. Single-minded I supplicate you, bless me so that I transfermy mind-stream to the Land of Bliss.

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(Seal): Samaya. Gya gya gya.

8. THE ASPIRATION PRAYER TO SUKHAVATI

N ext follows the aspiration prayer.

Recite the following:E ma ho, splendid Buddha Amitabha of infinite light. To your right is theLord of Great Compassion and to your left the Bodhisattva, Lord ofPowerful Means, surrounded by countless Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Inthe pure-land, known as Sukhavati, there is immeasurable joy andhappiness. May I, after passing away, immediately take rebirth there inthis and in all my future lives. Having been born there may I meetAmitabha face to face and having recited this aspiration prayer may theBuddhas of the ten directions bless me to achieve this without obstacles.

(Recite the mantra for accomplishing the aspiration): tadyathapahcendriya avabhodhaniiya svdhd.

(Seal): Samaya. Gya gya gya.

9. CONSECRATION RITUAL AND EMPOWERMENT

After that take the initiation. Recite the taking of refuge in the threejewels and then hold the vase with your hand. The vase is one with thesyllable hum, it is the pure-land Sukhavati of Buddha Arnitabha. Byplacing it above the head may you have a vision of the Buddha of InfiniteLight. At this time recite the root mantra as much as you wish. Then holdthe vase (now transformed into the body of Amitabha) and recite likethis. This hum is the Conqueror Amitabha. By placing it on the crownmay you take rebirth in Sukhavati and behold face to face the Buddha ofInfinite Light. 35 Recite the root mantra as many times as you want. Then

35 These visualizations for the consecration of ritual objects and for accomplishingunion of body, speech and mind, are probably meant as instructions for the propitiatinglama. Bentor (1996: 291-92) explains: "Not only is the consecration performed within theframe of the sadhana, it is, in fact, a special application of the sadhana. Having completedthe generation process (utpatti. bskyed pa), one can apply one's powers to the generationof a receptacle as a deity (rten bskyed) through a similar method. The main componentsat the core of the consecration ritual, common to almost all consecration manuals I havebeen able to examine, are as follows: (I) Visualizing the receptacle away (mi dmigs pa),

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pick up the torma. This hUfJ1 is the Buddha of Infinite Light, surroundedby Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. By placing it on the crown may you takerebirth in Sukhavati and behold Amitabha. Recite again the root mantraas much as you want. Then take the vajra in your hand. This hUfJ1 is theprotector Amitabha, surrounded by Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Place iton the crown, having attained the empowerment of Amitabha, may youtake birth in Sukhavati. Then recite the root mantra as many times as youwish. This hUfJ1 is the Protector Arnitabha. Placing it above the crownmay you take rebirth in Sukhavati and meet Amitabha, Recite like thisthe root mantra as many times as you like.

(Seal): Samaya. Gya gya gya. Katham guhya.

COLOPHON

On the seventh day of Sa ga zla ba in the Gser 'phyang year, when Sprulsku Mi 'gyur rdo rje was thirteen years of age, in an unfathomable visionof light the size of a mountain he was graced with Amitabha and hisretinue who instructed him thus: the oral instruction thereafter is tomeditate on all places as being Sukhavati. If this (teaching) spreads to allsentient migrators, it will be suitable. If it doesn't that is all right as well.But if it spreads there will be great benefit. One does not need tomeditate on Avalokitesvara. If one does, that is fine. If one were toperform the long-life rituals, the gathering of the essence of the elements,etc, in a different way, it is all right. If one doesn't, it is fine as well.Samaya. Gya gya gya. Furthermore it is said that, in the evening onceagain he experienced Buddha Amitabha and his retinue and proclaimedthe oral instructions and the dream yoga supplication prayger.

TIBETAN TEXT

[fol. 5b] Gnam chos thugs kyi gter ka snyan brgyud zab mo'i skor lasbde chen zhing gi sgrub thabs bzhugs so II Guru deva dakini hiim II 'oddpag med pa sgrub pa ni II dkil 'khor med cing gtor rna med II me tog

always performed in conjunction with meditation on emptiness (stong pa nyid). (2)Generation of the receptacle as the dam tshig sems dpa' (samayasattva) of one's yi dam(rten bskyed). (3) Invitation of the ye shes sems dpa' (jiuinasattva} into the receptacle(spyan 'dren) and its absorption (bstim) into the dam tshig sems dpa' (dam ye gnyis sumed pa). (4) Transformation of the receptacle back into its conventional appearance of animage, stiipa, book, etc. (rten bsgyur). (5) Requesting the ye shes sems dpa' to remain inthe receptacle as long as samsara lasts (brtan bzhugs)."

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chu skyes padma'i steng II de nang rang nyid sems dpa' dkar II mdun dupadma zla gdan la II [fo1. 6a] Om II 'od dpag med mgon sku mdog dmarII zhal gcig phyag gnyis mnyam gzhag steng II ltung bzed 'dzin cing chosgos gsol II skyil mo krung gis bzhugs pa la II g.yas su 'jig rten dbangphyug dkar II zhal gcig phyag bzhi thal sbyar dang II g.yas g.yon phrengba padma 'dzin II bzhengs ba'i stabs kyi padma zlar bzhugs II g.yon duphyag rdor mthu chen thob II zhal gcig phyag gnyis sku mdog sngo IIg.yas g.yon rdo rje dril bu 'dzin II bzhengs ba'i stabs kyi padma zlarbzhugs II sangs rgyas byang chub sems dpa' dang II nyan thos dgra bcomdpag med bskor II gtso bo gsum gyi gnas gsum gyi II 'bru gsum las ni 'od'phros pasll bde ba can nas spyan drangs bsamll de nas sngags 'di cimang brjod II dang po rtsa sngags rgyas pa ni II OQ1 ah hUQ1 amidhevaayu? siddhi hUQ1 II de nas rtsa sngags 'bring bo ni 110m amidheva hri IIde nas rtsa sngags bsdus pa ni II om ah hrih svaha II de nas rtsa sngags[fo1. 6b] yang bsdus ni II OQ1 hrih svaha yang ni rtsa sngags bsdus pa ni IIhrih svaha II yangs bsdus hrih II bsgrangs chog pa yin II OQ1 brhiim svahaII bzlas pas chog II de yi 'od dpag med pa 'grub II samaya II rgya rgyargya II de nas rmi lam bzung ba ni II nyin la rmi lam yin snyam byed II denas rang gi mgrin pa ru II padma dmar po 'dba bzhi la II OQ1 ah hrihsvaha II yang bkod II hrih ni lte ba OQ1 shar byas II de nas rang gi snyingkha ru II me tog padma dmar po yi II steng du bde chen zhing khams ni IIshin tu gsal bar yod par bsam II gnyid bar de la dmigs pa gtad II rmi lambde chen zhing mthong ngo II spyan 'od phyag gi zhal yang mthong IIsamaya rgya rgya rgya II de nas tshe sgrub bya ba ni II gzhan ni dmigs pabrje mi dgos II ltung bzed tshe yi bdud rtsis bkang II de nas rang la thimpar bsam II OQ1 brhilm svaha brhilm gnyis ni II gang 'dod gcig ni bzla paschog II samaya rgya rgya rgya II de nas 'pho ba'i rim pa ni II rang githugs kar hri dmar ni II ring cha tseg [fo1. 7a] OQ1 II drag bcas par bsam IIde las hrih II drug 'phros pa yis II 'gro drug skye ba'i sgo bead nas II spyibo'i tshangs bug tar rer bsam II de nas spyi bor 'od dpag med II gong ltargtso 'khor gsum po bsgom II de nas rang gi mam shes ni II thig le dkarpo hrlh II yis mtshan II snang mtha'i thugs kar 'phos par bsam II thetshom cung zad med pa ru II bde chen skye ba'i smon lam btab II samayaII rgya rgya rgya II de nas gsol 'debs rim pa ni II dang po sgrub pa'i gsol'debs ni II e rna ho II ngo mtshar glad byung snang ba mtha' yas dang IIthugs rje chen po mthu chen thob la sogs II sangs rgyas byang sems dpagmed thams cad la II rtse gcig gus pa'i sems kyis gsol ba 'debs II bdag lamchog gi dngos grub thams cad stsol II snang ba mtha' yas 'grub parbyin gyis rlobs II rmi lam bzung pa'i gsol 'debs ni II e rna ho II chos sku

PURE-LANDS AND OTHER VISIONS 123

snang ba mtha' yas ngo mtshar can II [fo1. 7b] spyan ras gzigs dbangmthu chen thob mams la II bdag gi rtsi gcig yid kyis gsol ba 'debs II rmilam yul du bde chen zhing bsprod nas II snang ba mtha' yas mjal barbyin gyis rlobs II de nas dbang gi gsol 'debs ni II kye bla rna 'od dpagmed mgon dang II spyan ras gzigs dbang mthu chen thob II sangs rgyasbyang sems dpag med la II gsol ba 'debs so dbang bskur stsol II de nastsho yi gsol 'debs ni II e rna ho II rdzogs pa'i sangs rgyas snang ba mtha'yas dang II thugs rje chen po mthu chen thob dang ni II sangs rgyasbyang sems dpag tu med mams la II bdag gi gus pa'i sems kyis phyag'tshal bstod II gsol ba 'debs so tshe yi dngos grub stsol II de nas 'pho ba'igsol 'debs ni II e rna ho II shin tu ngo mtshar 'od dpag med mgon dang IIthugs rje chen po phyag rdor mthu chen thob bdag gi rtsi gcig yid kyisgsol ba 'debs mam shes bde chen 'pho par [fo1. 8a] O? II byin gyis rlobsII samaya II rgya rgya rgya II de nas smon lam bya ba ni II 'di skad du nibrjod par bya II e rna ho II ngo mtshar sangs rgyas snang ba mtha' yasdang II g.yas su jo bo thugs rje chen po dang g.yon du sems dpa' mthuchen thob mams pa II sangs rgyas byang sems dpag med 'khor gyis bskorII bde skyid ngo mtshar dpag tu med pa yi II bde ba can zhes bya ba' izhing khams der II bdag ni 'di nas tshe 'phos gyur rna thag II skye bagzhan gyi bar mchod pa ru II de ru skyes nas snang mtha'i zhal mthongshog II de skad bdag gis smon lam btab pa 'di II phyogs bcu'i sangs rgyasbyad sems thams cad kyis II gegs med 'grub par byin gyis brlab tu gsol IItadyatha paficendriya avabhodhanaya svaha II samaya II rgya rgya rgya IIde nas de yi dbang bskur ni II dkon mchog gsum la bdag skyabs brjod IIde nas bum pa lag tu thogs II hum 'di [fo1. 8b] ni bcom ldan snang mtha'yas II bde ba can gyi zhing khams yin II khyod kyi mgo la bzhag pa yi IIsnang ba mtha' yas zhal mthong shog II 'di ru rtsa sngags gang 'dodbrjod II de nas sku gzugs lag tu thogs II 'di skad du ni brjod pa'o II hum'di ni beom ldan snang mtha' yas II khyod kyi spyi bor bzhag pa yi II bdechen skyes nas zhal mthong shog II 'di ru rtsa sngangs gang 'dod brjod IIde nas gtor rna lag tu thogs II hum 'di ni bcom ldan snang mtha' yas IIsangs rgyas byang sems 'khor gyis bskor II khyod kyi spyi bor bzhags payi II bde chen zhing du skyes nas kyang II 'od dpag med kyi zhal mthongshog II 'dir rtsa sngags gang 'dod brjod II de nas rdo rje lag tu thogs IIhum 'di ni 'od dpag med mgon la II sangs rgyas byang sems 'khor gyisbskor II khyod kyi spyi bor bzhag pa yi II 'od dpag med mgon dbangthob nas II bde ba can du skye par shog II 'di ru rtsa sngags gang 'dodbrjod II [fol. 9a] hum 'di ni 'od dpag med mgon te II khyod kyi spyi borbzhag pa yi II bde chen zhing du skyes nas kyang II 'od dpag med kyi

124 GEORGIOS HALKIAS

zhal mthong shog II 'di ru rtsa sngangs gang 'dod brjod II gtso bos ji ltarsogs brjod II samaya II rgya rgya rgya II kha tham guhya II ces pa 'disprul sku mi 'gyur rdo rje dgung 10 bcu gsum pa gser 'phyang gi 10 sa gazla ba'i tshes bdun nyin 'od dpag med grtso 'khor gsum sku ri bo tsam IIgzi ba brjid dpag tu med pa dngos su zhal gzigs te dngos su gsungs pa'oII 'di 'i zhal gyi gdams pa ni II yul phyogs thams cad bde chen zhing dubsgom par byao II 'gro ba sems can thams cad la spel kyang rung II gangla'ang rna spel kyang rung ste spel na phan yon che II rang thugs rje chenpor bsgom mi dgos II bsgom kyang rung II 'byung ba'i bcud bsdus pasogs tshe sgrub gzhan ltar byas kyang rung II rna byas kyang rung IIsamaya II rgya rgya rgya II ces pa yang de'i dgong mo slar yang 'od dpagmed 'khor dang bcas pa zhal dngos su gzigs te zhal gdams dang rmi lambzung pa'i gsol 'debs gnyis dngos su bka' stsal pa'o II

Tibetan ReferencesGu ru bkra shis (nineteenth century). [1802-1812] 1990. Gu bkra'i chos

'byung. Beijing: Krung go'i bod kyi shes rig dpe skrun khang.Jam dbyang rgyal mtshan (1929-). 1996. Kah thog pa 'i 10 rgyus mdor

bsdus. Khreng tu'u: si khron mi rigs dpe skrun khang.Karma chags med (1613-1678). 1999. Mkhas grub karma chags med rin

po che'i gsung 'bum. Ch'engtu: Si khron zhing chen mi rigs zhib'jug su'o bod kyi rig gnas zhib 'jug khang.

Karma chags med and Bsod nams chos sgrub (1826-1844). 1994. Bdesmon phyogs bsgrigs. Ch'engtu: Si khron mi rigs dpe skrun khang.

Kong sprul bl0 gros mtha' yas (1813-1899). 1976. Rin chen gter mdzod.Paro: Ngodrub and Sherab Drimay.

Kong sprul blo gros mtha' yas (1813-1899). 1997. Shes bya kun khyabmdzod. Delhi: Shechen publications.

Mi 'gyur rdo rje (1645-1667). 1983. Gnam chos thugs kyi gter kha snganbrgyud zab mo 'i skor. Paro Kyichu: Dilgo Khyentsey Rinpoche;Bylakuppe, India: Perna Norbu Rinpoche.

Padma chos rgyal 'khrul zhig (1878/1876-1959/1958). 1978-85. Rtsib rispar mao Darjeeling: Kargyud Sungrab Nyamso Khang.

Other ReferencesBaker, I. 2000. The Dalai Lama's Secret Temple: Tantric Wall Paintings

from Tibet. London: Thames and Hudson.Beckwith, C. 1987. The Tibetan Empire in Central Asia. Princeton:

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Bentor, Y. 1996. Literature on Consecration (rab gnas). In J. Cabezonand R. Jackson (eds) Tibetan Literature, Studies in Genre. Ithaca:Snow Lion Publications: 290-312.

Blezer, H. 1997. Kar glin Zi khro: A Tantric Buddhist Concept. Leiden:CNWS Research School.

Buswell, E. R. 1990. Chinese Buddhist Apocrypha. Honolulu: Universityof Hawaii Press.

Chagme, K. [Karma chags med]. 1998. A Spacious Path to Freedom:Practical Instructions on the Union of Mahiimudra and Atiyoga.B.A. Wallace (trans.), with commentary by Gyatrul Rinpoche.Ithaca: Snow Lion Publications.

-. 2000. Naked Awareness: Practical Instruction on the Union ofMahdmudrd and Dzogchen. B.A. Wallace (trans.), with commentaryby Gyatrul Rinpoche. Ithaca: Snow Lion Publications.

Cuevas, BJ. 2003. The Hidden History of the Tibetan Book of the Dead.New York: Oxford University Press.

Davidson, R. 2002. Indian Esoteric Buddhism: a Social History of theTantric Movement. New York: Columbia University Press.

Dudjom Rinpoche and J. Y. Dorje (eds) 1991. The Nyingma School ofTibetan Buddhism, Volume One. G. Dorje with M. Kapstein (trans.)Boston: Wisdom Publications.

Evans-Wentz, W.Y. [1958] 2000. Tibetan Yoga and Secret Doctrines.Reprint, Kathmandu: Pilgrims Publishing.

Fujita, K. 1996. The Origin of the Pure Land. R. Otowa (trans.) EasternBuddhist, 29(1): 33-52.

Gyatso, J. 1997. Genre, Authorship, and Transmission in VisionaryBuddhism: The Literary Traditions of Thang-stong rGyal-po. In S.Goodman and R. Davidson (eds) Tibetan Buddhism: Reason andRevelation. Albany: State University of New York Press, 95-106.

Harris, I. 1999. Buddhism and Politics in Asia: the Textual and HistoricalRoots. In I.C. Haris (ed.) Buddhism and Politics in Twentieth­Century Asia. London: Pinter, 1-25.

Inagaki H. 1999. Amida Dharani Sidra and Jhiinagarbha 's Commentary.An annotated translation from the Tibetan of the Anantamukha­nirhara-dharani Sidra. Ryukoku Literature Series VII. Japan:Ryukoku Gakkai.

Kajihama, R. 1994. 3rd rDo Gruchen Rinpoche's Pure Land Thought (1).Journal ofIndian and Buddhist Studies, 43( 1): 492-98.

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-. 1996. 3rd rDo Gruchen Rinpoche's Pure Land Thought (II). JournalofIndian and Buddhist Studies, 44(2): 948-52.

-.2002. 3rd rDo Gruchen Rinpoche's Pure Land Thought (III). JournalofIndian and Buddhist Studies, 50(2): 984-87.

-. 2003. Chibetto no Jodo shisii no kenkyu. [=Study of Pure Land inTibet]. Kyoto: Nagatabunshodo.

Kapstein, M. 2000. The Tibetan Assimilation of Buddhism: Conversion,Contestation, and Memory. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

-. 2004. Pure Land Buddhism in Tibet? From Sukhavati to the Field ofGreat Bliss. In R. Payne and K. Tanaka (eds) Approaching the Landof Bliss: Religious Praxis in the Cult of Amitdbha. Honolulu:University of Hawaii Press, 1-16.

Karma Kelchog Palmo, Thrangu Rinpoche, and Chos Kyi Nyima Tulku.1973. The Puja to Amitabha, The Buddha of Boundless Light.Bulletin ofTibetology, X(2): 11-34.

Karmay, S. 1998. Secret Visions of the Fifth Dalai Lama. London:Serindia Publications.

-. 2002. The Rituals and their Origins in the Visionary Accounts of theFifth Dalai Lama. In H. Blezer (ed.) Religion and Secular Culture inTibet. Tibetan Studies II: Proceedings of the Ninth Seminar of theInternational Association for Tibetan Studies, Leiden 2000. Leiden:Brill, 21-40.

Lalou, M. 1953. Les Textes Bouddhiques au Temps du Roi Khri-srom­bean. Journal Asiatique 241(3): 313-53.

Lewis, T. 2004. From Generalized Goal to Tantric Subordination:Sukhavati in the Indic Buddhist Traditions of Nepal. In R. Payne andK. Tanaka (eds) Approaching the Land ofBliss: Religious Praxis inthe Cult ofAmitiibha. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 236-64.

Meisezahl, Von. R.O. 1981. gNam chos, Die Schriften des Mi 'gyur rdorje (1646-1667). Ural- Altaische Jahrbiicher, Neue Folge,Wienbaden, Harrassowitz, 1:195-226.

-. 1982. Die Schriften des Mi 'gyur rdo rje (1646-1667). Ural-AltaischeJahrbiicher, Neue Folge, Wienbaden, Harrassowitz, 2:245-272.

Miller, D. B. 1961. The Web of Tibetan Monasticism. Journal ofAsiaticStudies, 20(2): 197-203.

Mullin, G. 1997. Six Yogas of Naropa. New York: Snow LionPublications.

Nakamura, H. 1963. Gokuraku Jodo no kannen no indoteki kaimei tochibettoteki henyo, [=Studies on the Idea of Pure Land in the

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Perspective of Indian Cultural History and on the Modifications ofthe Idea by Tibetans]. Journal of Indian and Buddhist Studies,XI(2): 131-53.

-. 1987. Indian Buddhism: A Survey with Bibliographical Notes. Delhi:Motilal Banarsidass.

Obermiller, E. (trans.) 1931. History ofBuddhism (Chos 'byung) by Buston. Heidelberg:Harrassowitz.

Pommaret. F. (ed.) 2003. Lhasa in the Seventeenth Century. Leiden:Brill.

Rhie, M. and R. Thurman (eds) 1991. The Sacred Art of Tibet. London:Thames and Hudson.

Ruegg, S. D. 1997. The Preceptor-Donor (Yon Mchod) Relation inThirteenth Century Tibetan Society and Polity, its Inner AsianPrecursors and Indian Models. In H. Krasser, M.T. Much, E.Steinkellner, and H. Tauscher (eds) Proceedings of the SeventhSeminar of the International Association for Tibetan Studies, Graz1995: Wien: Verlag der Osterreichischen Academie derWissenschaffen.

Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho. 1999. Life of the Fifth Dalai Lama. Vol. IV,Part I. Z. Ahmad (trans.) Delhi: International Academy of IndianCulture.

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Sorensen, P. K. 1994. Tibetan Buddhist Historiography: The MirrorIlluminating the Royal Genealogies. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz.

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CHAPTER EIGHT

THE LIVES AND TIME OF 'JAM DBYANGS BZHAD PA

Derek Maher

Commonly, when religious movements are either new or in theascendant, their adherents seek to provide a foundation for the authoritythey claim, and they strive to legitimize the status of their founder orother significant figures. Particular strategies will vary from one religiouscontext to another and from one historical period to another. Thelegitimizing strategies used in religions run the gamut. Religious figuresare validated by way of their miraculous ability to heal the sick, throughtheir yogic prowess enabling them to fly through the air, walk throughwalls, or control their physical bodies, through their shamanic visitationsto realms beyond, through their revelation of sacred scriptures or blessedobjects, through claims to a potent allegiance-generating identity, and soforth.

In each case, strategies for establishing legitimacy are developedthat make sense in terms of, and therefore reflect, the values, ontology,and agenda of that religious context. A certain menu of possibilities, forexample, is made available to particular monotheistic religions by virtueof their adherence to the notion of a creator god who interacts with hiscreation. Shamanic traditions have certain solutions to the legitimizingproblem because their ideology makes possible transit to other levels ofexistence. The religions of India have still other possibilities available tothem because of their acceptance of the notion of reincarnation.

One of the most distinctive features of Tibetan culture is theinstitution of reincarnating lamas (sprul sku), religious figures who areregarded as taking rebirth as a lineage of identified personages. Theauthority and legitimacy of a particularly potent spiritual teacher isperpetuated even after death as his, or very rarely her.! identity passesfrom one lifetime to another. Although the concept of incarnation, theidea that living beings cycle through many lifetimes as they progresstoward spiritual release, is suggested as early as the eighth or seventh

1 Female incarnations are not entirely unknown, but they are rare indeed. TseponShakabpa (1967: 228) mentions the reincarnated Abbess Rdo rje phag mo.

130 DEREK MAHER

century H.C.E. in the Brhadiiranyaka Upanisad.s the notion ofidentifiable reincarnations did not emerge in Tibet until Buddhism wasalready a mature tradition there.

The fourteenth century was a time of great political turmoil, a factthat displeased the Mongolians, who were then the dominant politicalpower in Asia. After a period of unremitting squabbles within theTibetan family in which the regency was invested, Tibet's Mongolianpatrons grew tired of the instability and intrigues. Divisions sprang upamong the hierarchs of the Sa skya religious order that held politicalpower, and the traditional practice of succession through bloodlinesbecame untenable. Instead, the Mongols invested power in theincarnating lineage of the Karma pas. Although new and complexproblems eventually emerged in the power centers that formed aroundreincarnated lamas, advantages to the practice were quickly realized inthe form of greater social and political stability and continuity. Instead ofhaving rival siblings contending for power at the death of each patriarch,authority was transmitted from one charismatic personality to another, aperson whose spiritual credentials alone commanded respect andobedience.3 Through successive generations, the spiritual pedigree of theKarma pas, the Dalai Lamas (fa la'i bla rna), the Panchen Lamas (pal}chen bla rna), and other such reincarnated lamas legitimized them as theseat of religious and political authority.

In addition to being an agreeable arrangement for the Mongolianoverlords, the institution of reincarnation brought into existenceindigenous Tibetan constituencies that likewise had an interest inmaintaining the stability afforded by it. Often, a reincarnation wouldpossess substantial material holdings, including monasteries, religiousestates (bla brang) , annual remittances from land taxes, control overland, properties, endowments, and the like. The infrastructure required tooversee such wealth was itself quite extensive, and customarily, theattendants of one incarnated person would be responsible for locating,rearing, educating, and protecting the new reincarnation (yang srid).Often, the attendants of an important incarnation would wieldconsiderable power and influence over a period of decades between thedeath of one lama and the adulthood of the successor and even thereafter.In the case of the Dalai Lamas, there was a long period of time (1806-

2 Brhaddranyaka Upanisad, IV.3.37-4.13. See, for example, Radhakrishnan 1953:269-76.

3 Wylie 1984.

'JAM DBYANGS BZHAD PA 131

1875) during which four successive Dalai Lamas (ninth through twelfth)failed to reach the age of rnaturity.t The Regents (rgyal tshab), who ruledin their place, managed vast fortunes and conducted political affairs asthey wished during the intervening period. For all of these reasons, theinstitution of reincarnating lamas was fostered and promoted by variousfactions whose interests it served. Throughout most of Tibetan historysince the invention of the institution of reincarnations, these figures ortheir representatives have dominated the power structures through alllevels of Tibetan society-nationally, regionally, and locally.

On a regional level, the power structure of a large part of A mdo formost of the last three centuries was commanded by the reincarnatinglineage of 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa'i rdo rje ngag dbang brtson 'grus(1648-1722).5 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa was a gifted scholar whocomposed erudite and exhaustive texts on many branches of Buddhism,found fame in Central Tibet as the Abbot of Sgo mang monastery, andreturned to his home region in 1709 to found the most influentialmonastic institution in A mdo, Bla brang bkra shis 'khyil monastery.That institution served as a launching pad for the expansion of Dge lugsthroughout eastern Tibet and the vast areas of Central Asia inhabited byMongolians. He portrayed himself as the promoter of Dge lugs paorthodoxy in the face of syncretic trends from within the tradition.Additionally, he was a capable defender of the Dge lugs school that hadbeen initiated by the Tsong kha pa blo bzang grags pa (1357-1419)almost three centuries before' Jam dbyangs bzhad pa reached his prime.

The Dge lugs political ascent engineered by the Fifth Dalai Lama inthe middle of the seventeenth century (i.e., during' Jam dbyangs bzhadpa's youth) resulted in a variety of efforts to privilege Dge lugs religiousinstitutions, to redirect customary streams of patronage, to subjugate arange of cultural and religious forms under Dge lugs control or influence,to marginalize non- Dge lugs religious institutions, and to enact a degreeof orthodoxy in intellectual and spiritual life in regions under the controlof the Dalai Lama.e During his middle age, 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa

4 The Ninth Dalai Lama Lung rtogs rgya mtsho (1806-1815) died of pneumonia.The Tenth Dalai Lama Tshul khrims rgya mtsho (1816-1837) suffered ill health through­out his short life. The Eleventh Dalai Lama Mkhas grub rgya mtsho (1838-1855) died ofan unspecified illness. The Twelfth Dalai Lama 'Phrin las rgya mtsho (1856-1875) diedas a teenager, only four days after a solar eclipse.

5 For an extended biographical study of 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa, see Maher 2003.6 As early as 1642, the Fifth Dalai Lama's first Regent (Sde srid), Bsod nams chos

'phe1 personally surveyed the population (presumably in Dbu and Gtsang) and appointed

132 DEREK MAHER

became one of the most articulate defenders of the Dge lugs view. Likeother Dge lugs pa and non-Dge lugs pa exegetes, he sought to construct acoherent and internally-consistent presentation of his school'sphilosophical position. Yet straightforward philosophical argumentation,at which 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa was particularly skilled," constitutedonly one dimension of his and his followers' efforts to legitimize hisvision of Dge lugs orthodoxy. In this paper, I will examine thebiographical strategies that were also employed. These strategiesinvolved claims relating to reincarnation.

1.

Tsong kha pa formulated a new vision of Buddhism at the beginning ofthe fifteenth century, largely in reaction to what he perceived as a declinein the pure morals of an earlier age. The pious self-perception of hisfollowers is that Tsong kha pa took birth in Tibet in order to reformBuddhism by bringing an end to the illicit practices that are said to havebeen widespread then. According to some Dge lugs pas, many peoplewere then engaged in either (1) advanced tantric practices for which theywere philosophically unprepared or (2) entirely non-religious practicesthat were wrongly dressed up as religious. According to this narrative,Tsong kha pa spent his life working to rectify these perceived problemsin Tibetan Buddhism. Not only did he work to fortify ethical behavioramong his followers, but he also made efforts to purify, as he saw it, thephilosophical underpinnings of Buddhism then current. These two effortswere not unrelated for him.s

The Buddhist scriptures say that when Buddha attainedenlightenment after his long spiritual quest, the key to his new insightinto the workings of the world consisted of an epistemological correctiveto the perception of the world as it is given to our senses. He understoodthe dissonance between how things appear to the senses and to the mindand how they actually exist. The history of Buddhist philosophy is

tax officials. Representatives of the Fifth Dalai Lama undertook a more detailed re­evaluation of taxes in A mdo and Khams in 1648. See Shakabpa 1976, volume I: 428 and432-33, respectively. Translation in Maher (forthcoming).

For information on different aspects of the privileging of Dge lugs institutions, seeDreyfus 2003: 28 and 146; Maher 2003, passim; and Stearns 1999: 62 and 70-71.

7 See for example, Cozort 1998; Hopkins 1981 and 2003; Maher 2003, esp. chapter5; and Newland 1992.

8 Napper 2001.

'JAM DBYANGS BZHAD PA 133

marked by a series of competing interpretations of how to understandthis critique of reality. In some Buddhist interpretations, the basicconstituents that make up phenomena are reified and privileged as themost real. At the other extreme, some traditions posit a dramaticallyinsubstantial ontology in which it is supposed that objects external to themind do not exist and that all phenomena are merely posited by mind.

Tsong kha pa felt that his contemporaries were failing to upholdBuddhist ethics because their critique of reality was too comprehensive.Once it becomes possible to call into question even the most effervescentstatus of existence, he felt, there was no foundation upon which toground the standards of conduct he considered essential to Buddhism.Tantric practice, with its sophisticated use of visualization and theimagination of phenomena as dissolving into emptiness, onlyexaggerated the very trend Tsong kha pa saw as most dangerous. Hewanted to produce a grand synthesis of Buddhism that would rectifythese inter-related problems. His system can be seen as drawing fromthree different Indian inspirations: Candrakirti, Dignaga, and Atisha.

First, he echoed the seventh century Candrakirti in positing athoroughgoing ontological negation in which all phenomena are said tolack their own intrinsic nature or their own inherent existence. Second,despite this seeming rejection of conventional reality, Tsong kha paemployed the epistemological doctrines of Dignaga and Dharmakirti inorder to affirm what does exist. Those scholars' delineations of the typesof consciousness and their respective objects enabled Tsong kha pa todiscriminate between what Buddha asserted to be incorrect about ourcognitive experience on the one hand and what is reliable even in ourpre-enlightened state of awareness on the other. Finally, Tsong kha papatterned his systematic philosophy after the eleventh century scholarAtisha in several ways. He reemphasized the importance of monasticism.He paid close attention to the precise prohibitions involved in the severaltraditional sets of vows, insisting that his followers did the same. And hedeveloped a careful schematic structure of the range of religiouspractices so that by the time practitioners began the tantric meditationshe regarded as philosophically risky, they had developed a strongfoundation in ethics, and they had a rigorous understanding of whatreally does exist in the world. Tsong kha pa felt that this combination ofpreparations would immunize meditators from the nihilistic tendencieshe considered to be the source of the moral decline he had perceived incontemporary Tibet.

134 DEREK MAHER

Not only did' Jam dbyangs bzhad pa base his commentaries on thephilosophical priorities and values that flow from Tsong kha pa'sinterpretive system, but he and his biographers gave narrative form tothose values in constructing 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa's pre-incarnationlineage ('khrungs rabs). In general, through the construction of such alineage, the doctrinal legitimacy and personal charisma of someparticular current figure can be created or fortified by appealing to theluster of previous personalities. In 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa's case, thefame and prestige of these mythologized historical people from the pastthen reflected upon him, enhancing his reputation among the monastery'spatrons and beyond. His already impressive stature was enhanced to thepoint that he outshone Tsong kha pa, Tsong kha pa's direct disciples, andeven the exalted Dalai Lamas. This increased status then fortified thelegitimacy of the monastery and 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa's successors,including the very author of the text we will now examine.

The Birth Stories text, written by the second incarnation of 'Jamdbyangs bzhad pa, Dkon mchog 'jigs med dbang po, describes tenprevious incarnations in 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa's lineage, reaching asfar back as Buddha's time.? The collective qualities and achievements ofthese various figures constitute a catalogue of the spiritual andintellectual values of the Dge lugs school. We have some highlyaccomplished tantric meditators, a tremendously important visionary inthe historical lineage of the Dge lugs pa school, two of the mostrespected dialecticians in Indo-Tibetan intellectual history, and otherluminaries vital to the lineage of the tradition. The first figure mentionedis Vimalakirti, a famous lay patron of the Buddha himself. In aneponymous siitra, he is said to be possessed of seeringly clever wit withwhich he shows up the Buddha's closest disciples, even Mafijugosa, whoin later scriptures is construed as embodying transcendent wisdom.Buddhapalita, the reputed disciple of Nagarjuna and initiator of thePrasangika interpretation of the Madhyamika school, was identified asthe next of 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa's previous incarnations, therebyfortifying the latter's philosophical credentials. The prestige of Atisha,one of Tsong kha pa' s primary inspirations, was assimilated to ' Jamdbyangs bzhad pa by including one of his primary teachers and one ofhis foremost early followers in his pre-incarnation lineage. The teacherwas Jetari, a lesser known light in the Indian Madhyamika school of thetenth century, who was mainly renowned for his attempt to harmonize

9 Dkon mchog 'jigs med dbang po 1971.

'JAM DBYANGS BZHAD PA 135

the seeming contradictions between the Nagarjuna-Buddhapalita­Candrakirti Madhyamika view on the one hand and the Dignaga­Dharmakirti epistemology tradition on the other hand, a philosophicalquest that was later to occupy Tsong kha pa so thoroughly.

The first Tibetan identified in 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa's incarnationlineage is Po to ba rin chen gsal (1027-1105). He was renowned as oneof the "Three Cousins" who were instrumental in spreading the influenceof the Bka gdams school in the years after Atishas death.lv He was adirect disciple of 'Brom ston (1005-1064), Atishas foremost Tibetanstudent and the founder of Rwa sgreng monastery, to which 'Jamdbyangs bzhad pa made a special pilgrimage when he first went toCentral Tibet as a young man. I I Each figure in the lineage contributes tothe Second 'J am dbyangs bzhad pa' s agenda of building up hispredecessor. Below, I will focus briefly on three of his other pre­incarnations in an effort to highlight how the construction of this lineageserved as a legitimizing strategy.

II.

We have already met the first two people I will be discussing. They aretwo of the renowned Indian gurus from whom Tsong kha pa drewinspiration, Dignaga and Candrakirti. The Second 'Jam dbyangs bzhadpa reports that Dignaga was a peerless scholar among hiscontemporaries. 12 He was born into a royal lineage in South India, and heexcelled at the worldly sciences in his younger years at the court.Eventually he became learned in both Buddhist and Hindu philosophy,earning a reputation as one of the finest scholars of epistemologythroughout Indian history. Like Buddhapalita before him, he is noted forhaving had a direct vision of the face of Mafijugosa. The latter thenpromised to be Dignaga's guide until he attained the higher stages ofspiritual realization. We are told that he subsequently attained a one­pointed meditative concentration while he was residing in a cave, an

10 Roerich 1949: 73. The other two were Spyan snga ba Tshul 'khrims 'bar andPhu chung ba Gzhon nu rgya1 mtshan. Roerich (1949: 263-69) gives a different year forPo to ba's birth, 1031. The dates, 1027-1105, are from Dkon mchog 'jigs med dbang po1971.

II 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa'i rdo rje 1994: 10.112 Except where noted, the following comes from Dkon mchog 'jigs med dbang po

1971: 27.2-36.2.

136 DEREK MAHER

achievement that enabled him to compose his incisive treatises onepistemology.

The ideas of Dignaga and his most significant commentator,Dharmakirti, were critically important to the Dge lugs systematicphilosophy developed by Tsong kha pa because of their carefulelaboration of valid cognition (pramalJa, tshad ma) and epistemology ingeneral. Buddhists had already been in dialogue with Nyayas,Vaisesikas, and other non-Buddhist schools on questions of ontology andepistemology for more than 600 years by Dignaga's time. The prevailingnon- Buddhist assertion of a real, substantial, and enduring essence inbeings meant that they generally upheld a physicalistic theory ofperception and a strong realism; they asserted that universals areultimately real. Dignaga and Dharmakirti developed a systematicBuddhist reply to the Nyayas, formally articulating a representationalepistemology they take to be paradigmatic of all knowledge acquisition.For them, both conceptual and perceptual consciousnesses apprehendedtheir objects by way of a representation, a mentally-constructedgenerality iarthasdmdnya, on spyi) and a sensory aspect (akara, rnampa), respectively.

Later Tibetan interpreters of their work elaborated terminologicaldistinctions to express these insights with clarity. Tsong kha pa found ithelpful to frame his ontological view by using the terms, appearingobject (snang yul) and object of engagement ('jug yul) of a cognition. Inthe case of a direct perception tpratyaksa; mngon sum) of, for example, apot, these two refer to the same thing, the actual object being perceived,that is, the pot itself. With respect to a conceptual consciousnessikalpanii. rtog pa) conceiving of a pot, the object of engagement is theactual object, the thing being understood, that is, the pot. However, theappearing object is just the meaning generality of the object, that is, thegeneric image of pot.J:' These discriminations helped the Dge lugs pas totease apart different facets of cognitive experience so they couldarticulate what is mistaken and what is non-mistaken about it. For Tsongkha pa, it was essential to be able to say that a particular consciousness iscorrect with respect to the mere existence of an object, even though it issimultaneously in error with respect to the final nature of that object.Only this approach, he felt, would allow him to uphold the Madhyamikaschool's critique of reality without falling into the extreme of nihilisticdenial of conventional reality.

13 Dreyfus 1997: 299-304.

'JAM DBYANGS BZHAD PA

III.

137

Candrakirti (circa 600-650) is the next person listed as a pre-incarnationof 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa, and his status in the Dge lugs interpretivesystem cannot be over-emphasized. Candrakirti was born in a place insouth India called Samanta, where he studied all of the sciences duringhis youth.!" After becoming a monk, he studied the pivotal texts ofNagarjuna, The latter wrote a number of treatises critiquing what he sawas the ontologically reifying maneuvers of his Hindu and Buddhistinterlocutors. Candrakirti wrote commentaries on several of Nagarjuna'smajor works, including two massive commentaries on the latter'smasterpiece, the Fundamental Treatise on the Middle Way. 15 Despite thefact that he must be regarded as a minor figure in Indian intellectualhistory-few Indian commentaries were written on his major works­Candrakirtis interpretation is taken by Tsong kha pa and many otherTibetans to have been the most authoritative elaboration of Nagarjuna'swork.

Interestingly, in one of these commentaries, Clear Words,Candrakirti criticizes Dignaga's epistemology, objecting to hischaracterization of both valid cognition and perception.t» In hisCompendium Commentary on (Candrakirti's) "Clear Words," 'Jamdbyangs bzhad pa provides detailed commentary on that very section ofthe text. (In an ever more intricate nexus of connection between 'Jamdbyangs bzhad pa's pre-incarnations, Candrakirti defendedBuddhapalita's Prasangika interpretation from Bhavaviveka's critiqueelsewhere in that same chapter.) Another of Candrakirtis primarypresentations on the Prasangika view is his Supplement to (Ndgiirjuna's)"Fundamental Treatise, "17 which continues to be the most well-knownand most important exposition on what is regarded by many in Tibet asthe highest philosophical system. This source is so critical in the Dgelugs curriculum that many monks commit the whole of Candrakirti'sSupplement to memory-along with commentarial textbooks of theirown monastery-as preparation for their study of Nagarjuna's

14 Except where noted, the following comes from Dkon mchog 'jigs med dbang po1971: 36.2-40.5 and Khetsun Sangpo 1973: 223-33. Obermiller (1932: 134) identifies hisbirthplace as "Samaria."

15 Nagarjuna, Prajiianamamulamadhyamakakarika, P5224, Vol. 95.16 Candrakirti, MZJlamadhyamakavcettiprasannapada, P.5260, Vol. 98. For a de­

tailed review of this section, see Siderits 1981.17 Candrakirti, Madhyamakiivatara, P5261 and P5262, vol. 98

138 DEREK MAHER

Madhyamika school.tf Both Tsong kha pa and 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pawrote extensive commentaries on this text.I? clearly demonstrating theirbelief in Candrakirti' s surpassing authority in their interpretive lineage.

As the foremost scholar of his time, Candrakirti became the Abbotof Nalanda monastery in eastern India. We are told that although therewere many great scholars at Nalanda, none of them could beat the non­Buddhist panditas in debate. Candrakirti, however, was able to triumphover them through the great force of his intellect. He was not beyondusing yogic powers as well. During one debate, he is credited withproving to his opponent that appearances are deceptive through thecompelling demonstration of milking a cow depicted in a wall painting.

It is evident that the formulators of 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa's pre­incarnation lineage hoped to portray him as a highly authoritative voicein the interpretation of the Madhyamika school. There is some questionamong Dge lugs pa scholars as to whether Candrakirti or Buddhapalitashould be regarded as the real founder of the Prasangika school. In agesture of completeness, then, the formulators of 'Jam dbyangs bzhadpa's pre-incarnation lineage included both of them. Be that as it may,there is no question in Tibet that Candrakirti was the preferred interpreterof that viewpoint. Represented by Dignaga and Candrakirti, then, wehave the two principal doctrines that would animate Tsong kha pa'spresentation of Buddhism, Candrakirti's ontological critique ofphenomena and Dignaga's articulation of the valid means of knowledge.

IV

The final figure we will discuss among 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa's pre­incarnations is Dbu rna pa brtson 'grus seng ge (b. fourteenth century), afigure of tremendous importance in the life story of Tsong kha pahimself. 2o Lama Dbu rna pa, as he is commonly known, was a famousmeditator and adept from eastern Tibet who, like the founder of the Dgelugs school, wandered far and wide across Tibet seeking religiousteachings from a variety of teachers. It was in this context that he metTsong kha pa when the two men were still quite young. Lama Dbu rna pa

18 Klein 1994: 10.19 Tsong kha pa's text, Dbu rna la 'jug pa 'i rgya cher bshadpa dgongs pa rab gsal

(P6143, vol. 154), provides the general meaning (spyi don) of the root text. 'Jam dbyangsbzhad pa 1973 is a decisive analysis commentary imtha' dpyod).

20 Except where noted, the following comes from Dkon mchog 'jigs med dbang po1971: 52.2-57.1.

'JAM DBYANGS BZHAD PA 139

was more of a visionary than a scholar-monk, and he turned out to be theconduit through which Tsong kha pa received a variety of teachings fromMafijugosa.z! Lama Dbu rna pa had maintained a strong faith inMafijugosa ever since he was very young, and the murmuring sound ofhis mantra, "Om a rab a tsa na dhih," could be heard even within Dburna pa' s childhood home.

We are told that when Lama Dbu rna pa heard teachings on thepractice of Mafijugosa, he strove assiduously, experiencing manyappearances of his body and speech, and he was able to manifest a visionof Maiijugosa at will. For many years, Lama Dbu rna pa lived at Gsangphu monastery where he worked diligently at his spiritual practice andhis studies. Weare told that many marvelous things, such as theappearance of deities, arose by virtue of his close relationship with histutelary deity. Eventually, he traveled to Dbu for advanced training.Tsong kha pa was then living in that region, and the two men initiallymet through their mutual students. They served as one another's teacheron different occasions. Soon after meeting, they studied Candrakirti' scommentaries together. Tsong kha pa would pose questions on the text,and Lama Dbu rna pa would then transmit the queries to Mafijugosa inhis visions. The responses would be conveyed back to Tsong kha pathrough Lama Dbu rna pa. The two monks studied many different topicsacross the breadth of Buddhist philosophy in this fashion. Over time,Tsong kha pa bestowed various teachings on Lama Dbu rna pa, and thelatter initiated Tsong kha pa into the tantric practice of Mafijugosa. Whenthey entered into retreat at Dga' ba gdong near Lhasa, Tsong kha pa hadhis own direct visions of Mafijugosa, and soon thereafter, Tsong kha pawas finally able to gain direct realization of emptiness, the final nature ofreality.Z?

The inclusion of Lama Dbu rna pa in 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa'slineage is of great significance. First of all, it establishes a powerful linkbetween 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa and Tsong kha pa. It helps hisbiographers impute profound insight to 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa sinceonly such a wise person could serve as a teacher to the founder of theDge lugs school, the man known as the Second Buddha. Additionally, itenhances 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa's standing as an interpreter of Tsongkha pa's systematic philosophy since it simultaneously portrays him as adirect disciple of the Master. Moreover, the personal achievements of

21 Roerich 1949: 1048-49.22 Thurman 1982: 14-17.

140 DEREK MAHER

Lama Dbu rna pa add to 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa's credentials, for theLama was far more of an adept than a scholar. As a mystically-orientedmeditating adept prone to visions and direct access to transcendent states,he offers a balance to the more scholastic orientation of many of theother people in 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa's lineage.

v.

The list of characteristics attributable to the ten Indian and Tibetanscholars and yogis collectively capture just about every quality that isadmirable in Tibetan culture. Two of them are to be admired for theirexceedingly fine mastery of tantra. Lama Dbu rna pa is an intuitive,yogic figure who transcends the emphasis on reason that predominateswithin Dge lugs pa. There is the highly accomplished institutionalhierarch in Legs pa rgyel mtsen (1375-1450), who was the Fourth ThroneHolder of Ganden. There is Po to ba who seems to combine Legs pa'sorganizational efficiency with Lama Dbu rna pa's quasi-magical potency.Then we have a string of philosopher-monks from India, includingBuddhapalita, Dignaga, Candrakirti.e- and Jetari. Finally, there isVimalakirti, the clever lay benefactor who exemplifies Mahayana idealsby combining wisdom with compassionate activism. In addition toembodying Tibetan values, these people symbolize the intellectual andhistorical sources of the Dge lugs pa tradition. The lineage bridges thedivide between the scholar and the ecstatic visionary and brings togetherthe creative theoreticians of the Madhyamika school and valid cognitiontheories so vital to Tsong kha pa and the unique Dge lugs viewpoint.This lineage illuminates the biography of 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa bycollecting together the transcendent attributes of his predecessors,reflecting their charisma onto him.

'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa's pre-incarnation lineage-first formulatedby Dkon mchog 'jigs med dbang po, the subsequent incarnation of 'Jamdbyangs bzhad pa, but likely inspired in part by the oral traditionstemming from 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa himself-was intended toemploy these connections as a tribute to his own fine character, to certifythe authenticity of what he taught, and to legitimize his own future

23 For Dge lugs pa, Candrakirti, in addition to being a vital source on exoteric top­ics, is also credited with providing inspiration and guidance in tantric matters as well.Contemporary scholars hold that there were two Candrakirtis, the scholar we have beendiscussing and a later tantric figure. On the latter, see Davidson 2002: 253-57.

'JAM DBYANGS BZHAD PA 141

incarnations and the institutions that depended upon them. Thesemaneuvers helped to foster stability on the frontier-a notinconsequential matter in turbulent eighteenth century eastern Tibet­and instilled confidence in Bla brang monastery's patrons. To this extent,the endeavor can only be regarded as a success. Along with the four greatDge lugs pa monasteries of Dbu gtsang.z- Bla brang monastery was oneof the largest in the world, housing as many as five thousand monks. Itslarge size and notable stability over the centuries were maintained partlythrough the reverence local supporters felt toward the variousincarnations of 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa; the charisma of the originalfigure, conveyed across generations, continued to inspire patronageamong the laity and scholastic excellence among the monks.

VI.

Even into the twenty-first century, Bla brang monastery continues to playan important cultural role in the region.z> Despite great turmoil in 1958when Tibetans resisted Chinese reforms and again during the CulturalRevolution (especially between 1966-1968), official Chinese policy nowpermits Bla brang to maintain a population of monks who are activelyengaged in traditional studies. More than 6,000 monasteries weredestroyed throughout Tibet during the Chinese suppression; in theaftermath, Bla brang has bounced back more than most other largeTibetan monasteries, and it is still one of the most dynamic monasteriesin the region under Chinese rule.26 Meanwhile, the current Sixth'Jamdbyangs bzhad pa (b. 1948), continues to inspire Tibetans even thoughhe is not a monk and does not display the great learning of hispredecessors. This is evidenced, for example, by the fact that Sgo mang

24 The "four great Dge lugs pa monasteries of Central Tibet" are Dga' Idan, 'Brasspungs, and Se ra Monasteries in the Lhasa area, and Bkra shis hlun po monastery inShigatse.

25 For a detailed account of religious life at Bla brang monastery during recentyears, see the anthropological study by Makley 1999.

26 Makley 1999: 140-41. I have been told there were six or seven hundred monksat Bla brang in the 1990's. This is far below the level of 3000 monks living there in the1940's (20-25% of traditional numbers). 'Bras spungs monastery, near Lhasa, has a simi­lar number of official monks and even more who are unofficial. However, this number isproportionally much lower than is the case at Bla brang when compared to 'Bras spungs'straditional population of 7700 or the actual 1959 population of 10,000 (7-10%). Goldstein1998: 45.

142 DEREK MAHER

monastery, which has been re-established in exile in southern India,prominently features his photograph on fund-raising literature.

In their efforts to legitimize 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa, his followershave not only constructed his lineage of pre-incarnations, but they havealso cast him in a prominent role in at least one future-lookingeschatological prophecy. According to this tradition, in the year 2425, agreat war will erupt from the land of Sambhala during which barbarousforces will be defeated forever. Thereafter, no other significant religioustraditions will remain. 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa, we are told, will be thechief general of those Buddhist armies.t?

Dkon mchog 'jigs med dbang po, and others involved in theseefforts, managed to build up the image of 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa to theextent that he outshone even Tsong kha pa and his direct disciples. Eventhough there is an explicit deference to figures of the past in Tibetanculture, the legitimizing maneuvers we have explored in this paperdemonstrate how that deference could also be employed to glorify a laterfigure. Out of their intense loyalty to 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa and theirfervent desire to legitimize him, his followers elaborated his prestigeuntil he outshone all others. By appropriating to him the identities of somany of the pivotal authorities from the past, they, in essence, construedhim as the author of the entire Dge lugs school.

Tibetan ReferencesDkon mchog 'jigs med dbang po. 1971. Chos kyi rje kun mkhyen 'jam

dbyangs bzhad pa 'i rdo rje'i rnam par thar pa dod pa dang ldan padag la gtam du bya ba ngo mtshar gangga 'i chu rgyun. In CollectedWorks ofDkon-mchog- 'jigs-med-dbang-po, the Second 'Jam-dbans­bzad-pa of La-bran liKra-sis- 'khyil, vol. 2, 1-73. New Delhi: Nga­wang Gelek Demo.

'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa'i rdo rje. 1973. Dbu ma la 'jug pa'i mtha' dpyodlung rigs gter mdzod zab don kun gsal skal bzang 'jug ngogs. In Col­lected Works of 'Jam-dbans-bzad-pa, vol. 9. Delhi: Ngawang GelekDemo.

-. 1994. Rje btsun 'jam dbyangs bzhad pa 'i rdo rje'i rnam par bka'rtsom tshigs bead mao In Collected Works of 'Jam dbyangs bzhadpa,vol. 1. Mundgod: Gomang edition

27 The date of the war is given in Tenzin Gyatso and Hopkins 1989: 65. Theprophecy concerning 'Jam dbyangs bzhad pa's generalship is mentioned in Hopkins2002: 7.

'JAM DBYANGS BZHAD PA 143

Khetsun Sangpo (Mkhas btsun bzang po). 1973. Biographical Dictionaryof Tibet and Tibetan Buddhism. Dharamsala: Library of TibetanWorks and Archives.

Shakabpa (Zhwa sgab pa Dbang phyug Ide Idan). 1976. Bod kyi srid donrgyal rabs. Kalimpong: Shakabpa House.

Tsong kha pa. Dbu ma la 'jug pa 'i rgya cher bshad pa dgongs pa rabgsal. P6143, vol. 154.

Other ReferencesCozort, D. 1998. Unique Tenets of the Middle Way Consequence School.

Ithaca, NY: Snow Lion Publications.Davidson, R. 2002. Indian Esoteric Buddhism: a Social History of the

Tantric Movement. New York: Columbia University Press.Dreyfus, G. 1997. Recognizing Reality: Dharmakirti's Philosophy and

Its Tibetan Interpretations. Albany: State University ofNew York.-. 2003. The Sound of Two Hands Clapping: The Education of a

Tibetan Buddhist Monk. Berkeley: University of California Press.Goldstein, M.C. 1998. The Revival of Monastic Life in Drepung Mon­

astery. In M. Goldstein and M. Kapstein (eds) Buddhism in Contem­porary Tibet: Religious Revival and Cultural Identity. Berkeley:University of California Press, 15-52.

Hopkins, J. 1981. Meditation on Emptiness. London: Wisdom Publica­tions.

-. 2002. Reflections on Reality: Dynamic Responses to Dzong-ka-pa's"The Essence of Eloquence, " Part II. Berkeley: University of Cali­fornia Press.

-.2003. Maps ofthe Profound. Ithaca, NY: Snow Lion Publications.Klein, A. 1994. Path to the Middle: Oral Mddhyamika Philosophy in

Tibet. Albany: State University ofNew York Press.Maher, D. 2003. Knowledge and Authority in Tibetan Middle Way

Schools of Buddhism: A Study of the Gelukba (dge lugs pa) Episte­mology of Jamyang Shayba ('jam dbyangs bzhadpa) in its HistoricalContext. Ph.D. dissertation, University of Virginia.

- (forthcoming). One Hundred Thousand Moons: An Advanced Politi­cal History ofTibet.

Makley, C. 1999. Embodying the Sacred: Gender and Monastic Revitali­zation in China's Tibet. Ph.D. dissertation, University of Michigan.

Napper, E. 2001. Ethics as the Basis of a Tantric Tradition: Tsong kha paand the Founding of the dGe lugs Order in Tibet. In G. Newland

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(ed.) Changing Minds: Contributions to the Study of Buddhism andTibet in Honor ofJeffrey Hopkins. Ithaca, NY: Snow Lion Publica­tions.

Newland, G. 1992. The Two Truths in the Miidhyamika Philosophy oftheGe-luk-ba Order of Tibetan Buddhism. Ithaca, NY: Snow Lion Pub­lications.

Obermiller, E. (trans.) 1931. History of Buddhism (Chos 'byung) by Buston. Heidelberg:Harrassowitz.

Radhakrishnan, S. 1953. The Principal Upanisads. London: George Al­len and Unwin.

Roerich, G. 1949 [1976]. The Blue Annals. Reprint, New Delhi: MotilalBanarsidass.

Siderits, M. 1981. The Madhyamaka Critique of Epistemology: Part II.Journal ofIndian Philosophy 9: 121-60.

Shakabpa, T. 1967. Tibet: A Political History. New Haven, CT: YaleUniversity Press.

Steams. C. 1999. The Buddha from Dolpo: A Study of the Life andThought of the Tibetan Master Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen. Albany:State University of New York Press.

Tenzin Gyatso and J. Hopkins. 1989. The Kiilacakra Tantra: Rite ofInitiation for the Stage of Generation. 2nd rev. edition. London:Wisdom Publications.

Thurman, R.A.F. 1982. Life and Teachings of Tsong Khapa. Dharam­sala: Library of Tibetan Works and Archives.

Wylie, T. 1984. Reincarnation: A Political Innovation in TibetanBuddhism. In L. Ligeti (ed.) Proceedings of the Csoma de KorosMemorial Symposium Held at Matrafiired, Hungary, 24-30September 1976. Budapest: Akademiai Kiado, 579-86.

CHAPTER NINE

A MAHAYANIST REWRITING OF THE HISTORY OF CHINA BYMGON PO SKYABS IN THE RGYA NAG CHOS 'BYUNG

Guilaine Mala

For specific reasons linked to the political circumstances of his time, theEighteenth-century Mongol scholar Mgon po skyabs (Mong. Gombojab;Ch. Gongbu zhabu), who was one of the best polyglots of his time, wasasked to write, in Tibetan, a history of Buddhism in China. \ Hecompleted it in 1736 under the abridged title Rgya nag chos 'byung, Thischronicle is unique in historical literature written in Tibetan, because it isthe only work that is entirely devoted to the history, both religious andpolitical, of China. However, it could as well have been entitled orsubtitled "The Cryptic History of Tibetan Buddhism in China" becausethat really is what Mgon po skyabs intended to write and what he wasasked to do. The instigator of such a special writing, to whom he refers inhis Preface (p. 3) as "the holy supreme guide" ('dren mchog dam pa) wasnot the Manchu Emperor Qianlong (1711-99, r.1736-96), as we are firstinclined to believe, but, as indicated in the colophon (263-64), the"incarnation of Pandi ta Zhi re thu ka shi'u chos rje," or in Mongolian

1 Note: Transliterations of Chinese and Japanese names are listed in the Appendixwith their corresponding characters.

Mgon po skyabs (c. 1690-17507) was native of Ojtimlicin (easternmost part ofInner Mongolia, near the Shilin ghol region). The Ujumucin Banner, having large grazingareas and many herds, was the richest of all the Banners of Inner Mongolia according tothe standards of a nomadic society, and therefore its prince was a most influential man (asdescribed in Hyer and Jagchid: 133). Mgon po skyabs, who was related to the ManchuCourt by marital alliance, was appointed head of the Tibetan school (Xi fan xue) inBeijing, and was responsible for Tibetan studies and translations of Tibetan and Mongoltexts. He was reputed to have mastered four languages (see Mgon po skyabs 1983: 265:skad bzhi smra ba 'i dge bsnyen rlung khams ba Mgon po skyabs). L.c. Puckovskij in theintroduction to his edition of the Mongolian history of the Golden Horde, Ganga yinuruskhal, written in 1725 by Mgon po skyabs, did not include Sanskrit among them (seePuckovski 1960: 8), while E. Gene Smith did mention it in his introduction to TheAutobiography and Diaries of Si tu Pal) chen (Smith 1968: 8, n. 12). However,considering the nature of his work and translations, it is more probable that in addition toMongolian, his native language, he came to master as well Tibetan, Sanskrit, Chinese andManchu. On his work, see De long 1968.

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Siretu (variant: Siregetu) Giisi corji, a famous sixteenth-centurytranslator from Koke qota (Tib. Mkhar sngon, Inner Mongolia).2 SiregetiiGilsi corji accompanied the Third Dalai Lama during his mission toMongolia. He remained in Koke qota for many years, where hetranslated many important Buddhist texts into Mongolian. His exactdates are not known, but his activities as a translator took place between1587 and 1618. According to the Mongol author, Altan-Orgil, the ThirdDalai Lama invited the Pandit to sit on his throne (Mong. sirege) afterhim and to become his representative (hence his title Siregetu), After thePandit's death, an incarnation lineage of Siregetu Khutugtu wasestablished in Koke qota. It is his fifth reincarnation who lived during c.1713-51 and consequently it is the fifth reincarnation to whom Mgon poskyabs refers in his chronicle. His discovery was reported to the ChiefAdministrative Lama of Koke qota in 1713 and in 1727, the youngSiregetu Khutugtu was introduced to the Emperor Yongzheng, whoordered him to come and reside outside the city walls of Beijing in orderto study under the guidance of a good lama. In 1734, he was appointedby imperial order the Chief Administrative Lama of Koke qota (Mong.jasag un terigiin blam a or jasag da blam a).3 Therefore, as Mgon poskyabs wrote his Rgya nag chos 'byung in 1736, it appears that SiregetuKhutugtu made his request soon after coming into office, and hismotivation can be explained as the result of his education in Beijing.However, their combined initiative was not an isolated act for Mgon poskyabs sent to Tibet a copy of his chronicle for revision, corrections andcriticism by the great Karma pa scholar Si tu Chos kyi 'byung gnas(1700-1774).4 Moreover, Kah thog Tshe dbang nor bu (1698-1755), whowas the Si tu's close friend and who converted him to the proscribedgzhan stong doctrine of the Jo nang pa order, sent in 1747 a letter from

2 The Mongolian word "Siregetu," which is the classical form of "Siretu," is theequivalent of the Tibetan word khri pa, "throne" (see Mgon po skyabs 1983: 263, 1.8). Asfor the Mongolian title Gusi, which renders the Chinese "Guoshi" (State Preceptor), itdoes not mean in this case that this Pandit was a State Preceptor, but as the Ulanbatoracademician Y. Rinchen (1974: 95) explained, the honorific title Gusi, borrowed from theChinese "Guoshi," appeared in Mongolian during the Yuan dynasty and was applied towell-educated scholars, who had mastered the two classical languages of Sanskrit andTibetan. Later, an epithet Tal-a ayalyu-tu 'Two-sounds-possessor,' meaning'Possessor ofsounds of Sanskrit and Tibetan tongues' was added to Gusi.

3 See Altan-Orgil 1981: 98, 100-10 I. I am indebted to Dr. Vladimir L. Uspenskywho kindly communicated these references and information to me. May he find here theexpression of my gratitude for his corrections and suggestions. For further details, seeUspensky 1985, which I unfortunately could not consult.

4 See Mgon po skyabs 1983, colophon: 266.

A MAHAYANIST REWRITING OF THE HISTORY OF CHINA 147

Lhasa to Mgon po skyabs in Beijing to question some points made in hischronicle, which obviously excited a great interest among Tibetanscholars.5

The Rgya nag chos 'byung illustrates the Mongolian supremeachievement in mastering Tibetan Mahayana Buddhism in its latestphase, so much so that its author intended to be the spokesman for allupholders of the dOe lugs pa tradition. Although appearing to be lessrenowned than the chapter on China written in 1748 by Sum pa mkhanpo ye shes dpal 'byor (1704-1788) in his Dpag bsam ljon bzang (TheWish-fulfilling Tree), in reality, Mgon po skyabs' chronicle was theoriginal source and its influence has been very strong on later Mongoland Tibetan historians.v In particular, the famous eastern Tibetandoxographer, Thu'u bkwan Blo bzang chos kyi nyi rna (1737-1802),made numerous borrowings from it in the chapter on Chinese religions,which is contained in his Grub mtha' shel gyi me long (The CrystalMirror of Doxographies) written in 1801-02.7 But at the same time, heseems to distance himself from some of Mgon po skyabs' interpretations,whilst referring several times to his mentor, Leang skya Rol pa'i rdo rje(1717-1786), who was the State Preceptor (Guoshi) at the ImperialCourt, and a close friend and advisor of the Emperor Qianlong.

1. The Contents ofthe Rgya nag chos 'byung

The full title of Mgon po skyabs' chronicle is Rgya nag gi yul du dampa'i chos dar tshul gtso bor bshadpa blo gsal kun tu dga' ba'i rna rgyan(The Delightful Earring of Clear Understanding, which explainsprincipally how the Holy Dharma spread in the Country of China). Onthe back of the last page of the modem Sichuan edition (or Sde dgeedition, Ch'engtu 1983), the title is rendered as Hanqu Fojiao yuanliu ji.This title is not to be found in Chinese Buddhist dictionaries and nomodem Chinese translation seems to exist or to be available.f

5 This letter is preserved under the title Rgya nag tu gung mgon po skyabs fa dri bamdzad pa (Questions asked to the Duke Mgon po skyabs [working] in China) in Tshedbang nor bu 1973, vol. I: 723-32 (see Martin 1997: 125; also Smith 1968: 8).

6 See Sum pa Mkhan po 1959: 61-133.7 See the chapter on Chinese religions in Thu'u bkwan (1989, chap. 3: 391-446),

entitled Ma hd tsi na 'i yul du rig byed dang grub mtha' byung tshul, "History of [Confu­cian] Learning and [other] Doctrinal Tenets in the Country of Great China." This sectioncorresponds to chapters ten and eleven of the Lhasa Zhol edition.

8 Martin (1997: I25)-a work that is already a classic in Tibetology-noted that itwas also published under the 'cover title' Sngon gyi gtam me tog gi phreng ba, a title

148 OUILAINE MALA

The Rgya nag ehos 'byung comprises a preface ('go brjod) , threemain chapters (sa bead) and a colophon (mjug byang). To summarize thecontent of the three main parts:

[1] The first chapter is entitled "Spyir rgya nag po 'i yul gyi rtendang brten pa 'i bkod pa dang 10 rgyus rags rim tsam brjod pa" (3-61). Itis devoted to the cosmological and physical geography of China(qualified as supports of the country, rten) , and the history of its royalgenealogies (designated as brten pa, the supported or entrusted by thecountry) from the time of the kings of the highest antiquity, who arepresented as historical figures, until the end of the Ming dynasty (1368­1644).

It is significant that Mgon po skyabs opens his first chapter byevoking the creation of the universe, not according to the cosmogony ofthe Abhidarmakosa but of the Kiilacakra-tantra, the "Glorious Tantra ofthe Wheel of Time," which is qualified as the "King of All Tantras"(Rgyud thams cad kyi rgyal po dpal dus kyi 'khor 10 'i rgyud). ThisBuddhist Tantra of the Highest Yoga Tantra class (Tibetan TripitakaPeking edition, vol. 1, no. 4), represents a syncretic knowledgecharacterized by the incorporation of many elements from Saivism andVaisnavism.9 It appears to be one of the two authoritative tantras for hiswork-the other being the Maiijusri-mula-tantra-s-eaui discreetlyencompasses the whole of his demonstration.

[2] The second chapter is entitled "dus gang dag la bstan 'dzin gyiskyes bu su dag byung ba ehe long smos pa" (62-175). It is described asdealing with the history of Buddhism in China through the succintbiographies of the successive upholders of the Teaching. However, it isnot a straight classical presentation of the history of Chinese Buddhismfrom the Zhou dynasty to the Ming dynasty, but rather a synthetic essayof syncretic inspiration on various Chinese systems of thought, whichalthough apparently treating in an egalitarian way non-Buddhist andBuddhist religions, integrates non-Buddhist tenets into the all­encompassing Mahayanist view.

[3] The third chapter is entitled "de dag gis rim pa ltar spel ba'idngos gzhi ehos kyi ming gi rnam grangs bstan pa" (176-258). It is a

referring firstly to Ne'u Pandita's chronicle of 1283 (see Martin 1997: 46, no. 61 and130) and evoking a garland of concealed flowers of the past. There also exists a II O-fol.woodblock print of the Lhasa Zhol edition of 1946 in the R.A. Stein Collection of theMusee Ouimet in Paris.

9 See Banerjee 1999.

A MAHAYANIST REWRITING OF THE HISTORY OF CHINA 149

descriptive catalogue of the dharma texts which were written or diffusedin succession by these doctrine-holders. Significantly, this last chapter ismainly the abridged Tibetan translation of the Zhiyuan Fabao kantongzonglu, a catalogue which was compiled during the Yuan dynasty in1285-87 by Qing Jixiang, a Chinese monk who worked in Peking with'Phags pa (Basiba, 1239-80). This catalogue, which is the result of Sino­Tibetan collaboration, is a comparative catalogue of the Chinese andTibetan Tripitakas, in which differences between the two are pointed out.This catalogue is preserved in Taisho (=T.) vol. 99, no. 25 (in Taibeiedition, 1973, Fabao zongmulu, vol. 2, 179-238). It is indeed thiscatalogue, which Thu'u bkwan and Sum pa mkhan po both describe intheir respective section on Buddhism, and it is clear that interest andfame for it were revived under the Qing dynasty.Iv The preface to thiscatalogue was written by Qubilai himself, who states that as the EmperorShizu Huangdi, he is also the emanation body of all the buddhas of thepast, manifested to help all sentient beings to reach emancipation. I I Thissentence is an important part of the underlying thread of Mgon poskyabs' demonstration, as developed below.

II. The main differences between the Rgya nag chos 'byung and theearlier chapters on China written in Tibetan

(A) The history of China does not begin with the Zhou dynasty but withFuxi.

Now if we examine, on the one hand, the best known earlier Buddhistchronicles including a chapter on China, such as the Rgyal rabs gsal ba'ime long (1328), Deb ther dmar po (1346), Rgya Bod yig tshang (1434),Deb ther sngon po (1476-78), Deb ther dmar po gsar ma (1538), Chos'byung mkhas pa 'i dga' ston (1545-65), we can see that they all begin thehistory of the royal genealogies of China with "the first emperor of Chinanamed Ci'u" (rendering Zhou). This is because their authors follow awell-known Chinese tradition based on forged texts which assign theBuddha's birth to the wood-tiger (jia-yin) year (Tib. shing pho stag 10,wood-male-tiger year), that is the 24th year of the reign of Zhaowang ofthe Western Zhou dynasty, i.e. l029 B.C.E. according to the traditional

10 See Sum pa Mkhan po 1959, III: 132; Thu'u bkwan 1989: 425.11 See in Taibei edition 1973, Fabao zongmulu vol. 2, no. 25, Preface (Xu) p. 179:

20: Wo Shizu Huangdi. Ji gu Fo shixian zhi yingshen yeo

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chronology.l? And that is why the history of China really begins withthis dynasty, which is particularly meaningful for these Buddhisthistorians.

On the other hand, when we examine later chronicles such as theRgya nag chos 'byung, the Dpag bsam ljon bzang, the Grub mtha' shelgyi me long and other texts derived from these three sources, we find thattheir history of China goes back much further in time, to the highestantiquity, the epoch of the mythical heroes, the founders of civilisation.These later sources identically begin their history of China with hPhu si(Fuxi: access to the throne: 2952 B.C.E. according to the traditionalchronology), who is said to be the first king of China and the inventor ofwriting and astrology born from the eight trigrams (bagua, Tib. sparkha).13

Therefore, it turns out that, among the various chapters on Chinawhich are written in Tibetan, we must distinguish two types of accountof the history of China, the first beginning from the time of the Zhoudynasty, and the second, from the time of Fuxi. The sources whichbelong to the second type of account, like the Rgya nag chos 'byung, notonly have in common the fact that they identically begin the history withFuxi, they also deal with other Chinese religions and share the samesyncretic view of the main doctrines prevailing in China, that isConfucianism, Taoism and Buddhism, which are named collectively the"Three Teachings" (Sanjiao, Tib. bstan pa gsum).

(B) A distorted use of a sixth-century egalitarian metaphor: "Buddhism issimilar to the sun, Taoism to the moon, and Confucianism to the stars"

12 This is the case in chronicles such as: (1) the Rgyal rabs gsal ba'i me long(1328), by Sa skya pa Bla rna dam pa bSod nams rgyal mtshan (1312-75), translated inSorensen 1994: 77-84; (2) the Red Annals, Deb ther dmar po, also known as Hu Ian debgter/ther (1346), by 'Tshal pa Kun dga' rdo rje, Beijing edition 1981, chapter four: 11­12; (3) Rgya bod yig tshang (1434), by Dpal 'byor bzang po, Ch'engtu edition 1985: 99,101; (4) the Blue Annals, Deb thersngonpo (1476-78) by 'Gos 10 gzhon nu dpal (1392­1481), who quoted the Deb dmar, Ch'engtu edition 1987, I: 73-81, translated in Roerich[1949] 1976: 47-57; (5) the New Red Annals, Deb ther dmar po gsar ma (1538), by thePanchen Bsod nams grags pa, translated in Tucci 1971: 175; (6) the Scholars' Feast,Chos 'byung mkhas pa'i dga' ston (1545-65) by Dpa' bo gtsug lag phreng ba, Beijingedition 1986, vol. 2: 1389, etc.

13 It is interesting to point out that according to the Yijing, Fuxi not only inventedwriting, he also invented the knotted strings (somewhat evoking the Bon po ju thig).Moreover, according to the Shanhaijing (ch. 18), Fuxi was one of the celestial kings whocould climb up the standing tree, which links heaven to earth (this tree, mu, is not withoutevoking: the dmu cord (dmu thag), up which the first kings of Tibet ascended to heaven.

A MAHAYANIST REWRITING OF THE HISTORY OF CHINA 151

Mgon po skyabs, Sum pa Mkhan po and Thu'u bkwan all compare theThree Teachings to the "Three Luminaries" (Sanguang), i.e. respectivelyConfucianism to the stars, Taoism to the moon and Buddhism to the sun.Our Mongol and Tibetan authors did not invent this metaphor, theyborrowed it from Li Shiqian (523-88), a Chinese Buddhist layman fromthe Sui dynasty, whose argumentation in favour of the egalitarian view ofthe three doctrines passes for one of the most ancient in China.

Since the second type of account seems to have originated from theRgya nag chos 'byung, which is the earliest of these three texts, the studyof this chronicle is important and reveals the reasons why the later typeof account came into existence. It also reveals that the two commondenominators, the apparent syncretic view of the Three Teachings andthe statement that the first king of China was Fuxi, are linked. It is theidentification of the nature of the sources used by Mgon po skyabs­Chinese Buddhist sources of apparent syncretic inspiration-which givesthe key for several reasons. Firstly, it is in this kind of literature that wecan find the transmission of Li Shiqian's metaphor in favour of the unityof the Three Teachings in a number of sources from the seventh centuryto the sixteenth.t-'

For example, in the Fozu tongji which was compiled in 1269 by themonk Zhipan, it is written:

Li Shiqian was a man who had a deep interest in Buddhist learning andhad also mastered the abstruse conversations (xuantans.i> [During one

14 His argumentation is to be found at least in the following sources: (I ) Suishu byWei Zheng (580-643) and others, Zhonghua shuju edition, Beijing 1973, 77. 1754:3-4;(2) Beishi by Li Yanshou (before 601 to after 675 A.D.), Zhonghua shuju edition, Beijing1974,33.1234:12; (3) Sanjiao pingxin fun, "Treatise [viewing] the Three Teachings witha Balanced Mind," written by Liu Mi (thirteenth century),T. 2117, A. 781 cI6-17; (4)Fayun zhiliie, "A Concise Record on the Fate of the Law," part of Fozu tongji or "AGeneral Record on the Patriarchs of Buddhism" (1269), by Zhipan (actif. 1258-1269), T.2035,39.360 a 13; 44. 405 b24-25; 54.472 aI6-17; (5) [Lidai biannian] Shishi tongjian,"Complete Guide (Universal Mirror) Chronicling the Sakya clan through the Ages"(1270), by Benjue, in Dai Nihon zokuzokyo, vol. 131, 6. 436ro bIO-l1; (6) Fozu !idaitongzai, "A General Record of the Patriarchs of Buddhism through the Ages' (133J), byNianchang (d. 1341), T. 2036, 10.559 b28; (7) [Lichao]Shishi zijian, "Well-documentedGuide (Mirror) by Periods of the Sakya clan" (1336), by Xizhong, in Dai Nihon zokuzo­kyo, vol. 132, 7.73ro 15; (8) Shishijigu liie, "Outline of the Ancient Records of the Sakyaclan" (1354), by Jue'an, T. 2037,2. 808 b13; (9) Sanjiao huibian yaoliie or "Compen­dium on the Three Teachings" by Lin Zhaoen (1517-1598), a great syncretist of the Mingdynasty (1368-1644), in Linzi quanji, XI: 1.1a.

15 The term xuantan or "Mysterious Conversations," a special form of philosophi­cal converse combining Neo-Taoist ideas with Confucian and Buddhist

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of these conversations], there was a guest who asked about the meritsof the Three Teachings. Li Shiqian said: "Buddhism is [similar to] thesun, Taoism is [similar to] the moon, and Confucianism is [similar to]the five planets."16 The people of that period regarded this as the bestof arguments (Li Shiqian yahao Foxue jian shan xuantan. You ke wensanjiao youlie. Li Shiqian yue. Fa ri yeo Dao yue yeo Ru wuxing yeo Shiyiwei zhi lun; in T. 2035, 39. 360 a12-14, and 54. 472 a16-17).

After having examined these various sources, it appears that theauthor of the Rgya nag chos 'byung did not borrow this comparisondirectly from Li Shiqian's biography, which can be found in the officialannals, Suishu (chap. 77) and Beishi (chap. 33), but from later ChineseBuddhist compilations from the Song and Yuan dynasties. TheseBuddhist compilers were forced to adopt a syncretic varnish in defenceof the dharma in order to challenge anti-Buddhist polemics. Having tocompete with Taoism or alternatively with Confucianism, whoseinfluence could not possibly be denied, some of them used Li Shiqian'simagery but in a distorted way: they did not put the accent upon theindispensability of each of the three luminaries, but upon the relativeradiance of the three celestial sources. By doing so, they developed theargument of the "hierarchy of values" (youlie, lit. "superiority andinferiority") in the light emitted by the three luminaries, in order todemonstrate the superiority of Buddhism. This point of view is already tobe found in a great treatise of conciliation of the Three Teachings, whichis preserved in T. 2117, the Sanjiao pingxin lun (Treatise [viewing] theThree Teachings with a Balanced Mind), which was written by Liu Mi, aChinese scholar and a Buddhist layman, who lived on from the SouthernSong dynasty into the Yuan dynasty (around the years 1278-80). It isalso clearly expressed by the Buddhist monk Nianchang (d.1341) in theFozu lidai tongzai, where he added a personal comment on Li Shiqian'sargumentation in favour of the harmonization of the Three Teachings(see T. 2036,10.559 c1-7).

The same process is adopted by Mgon po skyabs when he states inthe Rgya nag chos 'byung (p. 66.13-67.1):

Therefore, the Teaching which truly illuminates the basic nature ofsamsara, and the subtlety of the causal conditions and karmic fruit, and

originally used for the Neo- Taoist conversations, but later was also applied to the ab­struse (xuan) conversations of the Buddhists.

16 The five planets are Jupiter, Mars, Saturn, Venus and Mercury.

A MAHAYANIST REWRITING OF THE HISTORY OF CHINA 153

the exposition of the three vehicles of the path.l? and the instructionsconcerning the great means (thabs, Skt. upiiyav, and the profound oralinstructions (man ngag, Skt. upadesas, and the resultant three kaya-s(dharmakaya, sambhogakdya, nirmiinakdyai and the five wisdoms.Ifand so forth. [This teaching] is only the precious doctrine (gsung rab,Skt. pravacana) of the Jina. Consequently, as a metaphoric lampclarifying the meaning of the real nature of things (gnas lugs), it is theteaching of the Jina which has the characteristics of the victorious sun,[and this statement] is based on a verifiable description made by[Chinese] scholars [according to which] "The Confucian tradition(Bzhu lugs) is similar to the stars, the Bon tradition (Bon lugs, i.e.Taoism) is similar to the moon, [and] the Buddhist tradition (Chos lugs)is similar to the sun."19

Although in the Shishi tongjian and in the Shishi zijian, as well as inall Buddhist chronicles and treatises mentioned above, the metaphor ofthe Sanjiao/Sanguang is always attributed to Li Shiqian, Mgon poskyabs, in this passage, uses the plural mkhas rnams, "scholars,"suggesting that other Chinese Buddhists appropriated Li Shiqian'smetaphor and used it as their own. Such is probably the case for we canfind the proof of this appropriation at least in one very important Yuansource for Mgon po skyabs, the [Zhiyuan] Bianwei lu, a treatise that wascompiled in 1291 by Xiangmai, a monk of the Chan school who tookpart in the disputations with the Taoists which ended in 1281 with theImperial order to bum all forged Taoist texts. Although Xiangmai, in histreatise recording the debate on the doubtful authenticity of the Taoist

17 The three vehicles (Skt. triydnai are the Hearer vehicle (Tib. nyan thos kyi thegpa, Skt. sravakayiinai. the Solitary Realizer vehicle (rang rgyal gyi theg pa, pratyeka­buddhayanat and the Greater vehicle (theg chen gyi theg pa, mahayana) or Bodhisatt­vaydna.

18 The five types of wisdom (Tib. ye shes lnga, Skt. paiicajiidnai are: [I] mirror­like wisdom (me long Ita bu 'i ye shes, darsajiuinai, [2] wisdom of equality (mnyam nyidye shes, samatajiuinai, [3] wisdom of discrimination (sor rtogs ye shes,pratyaveksandjiuinas, [4] wisdom of accomplishment (bya sgrub ye shes,krtydnusthiinajiidnai, and [5] wisdom of reality (chos dbyings ye shes, dharmadhdtu­jnana) (see Tsepak Rigzin, Tibetan-English Dictionary ofBuddhist Terminology, 384).

19 Transcription of this passage: de Ita na yang gzhi 'khor ba 'i ngo bo dang / rgyurkyen las 'bras kyi phra zhib dang / lam theg pa gsum gyi rnam bzhag dang / thabs rgyache ba 'i gdams pa dang / zab mo 'i man ngag dang / 'bras bu sku gsum dang ye shes lngala sogs pa ches gsal por bstan pa ni rgyal ba 'i gsung rab rin po che kho na yin pas gnaslugs kyi don gsal bar byed pa 'i sgron dper / bzhu lugs skar ma Ita bu / bon lugs zla ba Itabu / chos lugs nyi ma Ita bu '0 / zhes tshad thub kyi mkhas rnams gleng bar brten rgyalbstan la rgyal ba nyi ma 'i mtshan yang chags so /

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scriptures, aimed to harmonize the Three Teachings, his reconcilingapproach with the Taoists is not convincing:

[The Three Teachings] are complementary like the surface and liningof a garment, reflecting one another like the rays of the sun, the moon,and the stars, and supporting one another like the three legs of a tripod.But there is a difference in some degree. The Taoists believe in textswhich are forged. Their aim is to establish a superstructure embracingpast and present and superseding both Confucianism and Buddhism (T.2116,2. 763a:17-20).20

But is Mgon po skyabs' attitude more convincing when he states (p.68.2-5):

Nowadays, that which has become supreme of the ocean of allknowledgeIncluding the Excellent Teachings of interpretive and definitivemeanings (drang nges don, Skt. neyartha/nitarthay and their branches(yan lag)[Which was taught] in this country by the Lord [Matijusri] through hisskill in means and compassion,Is [contained within] the Three [Teachings], Buddhism (Ban), Taoism(Bon) and Confucianism (Bzhu), which are known to be [respectively]similar to the sun, the moon and the stars.s!

In the same way, Thu'u bkwan opens his chapter on Chinesereligions, by stating that Taoism and Confucianism were also plannedand spread in China out of compassion by the Jinas, as part of theiractivities ('phrin las).22 In the Rgya nag chos 'byung, which is devoted tothe history of China as the special sphere of conversion of Mafijusri,prime importance is indeed given to Mafijusri, a bodhisattva of thehighest enlightenment attained by combining compassion (karwJii),means of approach (upiiya) , and wisdom tprajiui), Mafijusri(Wenshushili, lit. "Sweet [Spiritual] Glory"), also named Manjughosa(Miaoyin, lit. "Sweet Voice"), is the ultimate idealization of the qualityof wisdom, and as such has become the patron of the Dge lugs pas whorevere him as a Buddha.

20 See Liu Ts'un-yan Berling 1982: 502.21 Transcription of this passage: yul 'dir rje btsun thabs mkhas thugs rje yis / / legs

gsungs drang nges don dang yan lag beas / / da Ita rig gnas rgya mtsho 'i mehog gyurgang / / ban bon bzhu gsum nyi zla skar 'drar grags / zhes so /

22 See Thu'u bkwan 1989: 391.

A MAHAYANIST REWRITING OF THE HISTORY OF CHINA 155

III. The Mahayanist concepts ofNirmal)akaya and upaya had beenalready exploited and applied to the kings ofantiquity and to the sages of

the past in Chinese Buddhist syncretic literature

Moreover, it is also in this kind of Buddhist literature of apparentsyncretic inspiration that the concept of nirmdnakdya, "transformationbody" (huashen, Tib. sprul pa 'i sku), doubled with and explained by thatof updyakausalya, "skill-in-salvific means" (shan[nengJ fangbian, Tib.thabs la mkhas pa), was exploited and applied to the kings of the highestantiquity and to all the sages of the past.

As a result of the various Mahayana speculations about theBuddha's nature, Chinese Buddhists had made good use of the conceptof transformation body of a buddha who has the power to assume anyform required by the milieu to be converted in order to propagateteachings adapted to the ability of his listeners. The buddhas deliberatelyhold back some of the highest tenets of the doctrine and only disclose arelative truth to reach the understanding of those who cannot yetapproach the formless True Body idharmakdyai of buddhahood.Subsequently, from the third century, Chinese Buddhists came quitelogically to regard the Sages of Chinese history and prehistory asmanifestations of the Buddha or as avatdra-s of bodhisattvas,23 This ideawas developed in various later Buddhist apocrypha when the intenserivalry between Buddhism and Taoism gave rise to a form of mutualreligious borrowing, which can been defined as "defensive syncretism."In particular, the Buddhists had to take over the Taoist theory of"Conversion of Barbarians" (huahu), according to which Laozi, afterdisappearing in the west, went to India, where he converted the"Barbarians" into Buddhists. This legendary journey of Laozi iselaborated in the [Laozi]huahujing (The Scripture of Laozi convertingthe Barbarians), an apocryphal text dating from the end of the fourthcentury or beginning of the fifth century and which may have circulated

23 This idea was already expressed in the Taizi ruiying benqi jing, one of the earli­est extant Chinese biographies of the Buddha which was translated in 222-229 C.E. by theIndo-scythian updsaka Zhi Qian: "When he came to transform himself, he manifestedhimself in accordance with [the exigencies of] the times, sometimes as a saintly emperor,sometimes as the ancestor of the Forest of Literati (Rulin zhi zong), or as the Taoist Na­tional Teacher (guoshi daoshi); everywhere he manifested his innumerable transforma­tions." (Ji qi bianhua. Sui shi er xian. Huo wei shengdi. Huo zuo rulin zhi zong.Guoshidaoshi. Zaisuo xianhua. Buke chengji; see T. 185, A. 473 b 9-11; ZUrcher 1959: 309,313;435,n.104).

156 GUILAINE MALA

in several versions.e! This famous forged text remained at the centre ofnumerous debates between Taoists and Buddhists-the Taoists using itto prove their superiority over the followers of Buddhism-until the timeof the Yuan dynasty, when the Sa skya Abbot and Imperial Preceptor'Phags pa (1235-80) put an end to this controversy in China ('Phags parecalled this event in the postface written by himself, which is appendedto the [LichaojShishi zijian, a chronicle in twelve chapters covering thehistory of Chinese Buddhism since the time of Fuxi to the reign of theEmperor Shundi (r. 1333-1367) of the Yuan dynasty),25

To refute their Taoist opponents' charge that the Buddha was only amanifestation of Laozi, Buddhist apologists reversed the arguments andbegan, in their tum, to forge sutras to demonstrate that in fact it wasLaozi who was a manifestation of the Buddha or a disciple of a westernsaint expressly identified with the Buddha, namely Mahakasyapa, Fromthe end of the fourth century onward, they developed the theory of"Three Buddhist Saints" (Sansheng) going to the east in several Buddhistapocrypha such as the Qingjing faxing jing (Sutra of the Practice of PureDharma), which have not survived but which are quoted in sixth- andseventh-century Buddhist literature,26 Authors of other Buddhistapocrypha applied the same method to mythical sovereigns of the mostdistant past. Thus another forged work entitled Xumi tujing (Siltra onSumeru Mount with Illustrations), as well as the Xumi siyu jing (Surra ofthe four Regions of Sumeru Mount), assert that the BodhisattvaBaoyingsheng (Baoyingsheng Pusa) transformed himself into Fuxi.s?Moreover, in a Niepanjing (Skt. Nirvana-siurai, it was stated that whatall Chinese classical texts whatsoever really teach is the Buddhadharma(Fofa), and more than that, that the Three Sovereigns, the Five Emperors,the Three Kings [i.e. the most ancient Chinese kings], as well asConfucius, Laozi and Zhou Zhuang were all transformation bodies of

24 On the Laozi huahu jing (T. 2139), see ZUrcher 1959: 37, 280; chapter six:"'The Conversion of the Barbarians:' the early history of a Buddho- Taoist conflict," 288­93,320; Ch'en 1972: 50-51,184,422-25.

25 See Dai Nihon zokuziikyo, vol. 132, p. 121 ro.:1-2. On 'Phags pa in China, seePetech 1983: 183-88. On the Buddho- Taoist debate, see Imaeda 1974.

26 See ZUrcher 1959: 304, 311-17.27 ZUrcher (1959: 318-19) explained that this cryptic name was a free rendering of

Avalokitesvara (in which the Sanskrit name is read as Avalokitasvara, "survey-sound").These Buddhist apocrypha link the appearance of Fuxi, as well as that of Nugua, bothbodhisattvas sent by Amitabha, to an Indian Buddhist theory concerning the evolution ofthe world at the beginning of a new cosmic period. They subsequently manage to forge anew syncretic Sino-Indian theory of Buddhist cosmogony.

A MAHAYANIST REWRITING OF THE HISTORY OF CHINA 157

bodhisattvas (pusa huashen). The author of this Chinese translation ofthe Nirvana-sutra had finally managed not only to reduce Confucianismand Taoism to disguised Buddhist teachings, but also to appropriate thewhole of ancient Chinese culture.Pf

This is exactly what Mgon po skyabs is going to do. However, inthe context of the Rgya nag chos 'byung, all sages of the Chinese past arepresented as emanations tnirmdnakdyas of Mafijusri, a bodhisattva of thetenth bhiimi and the body of wisdom (jnanakaya) of all the buddhas, asclearly expressed in the Mahjusrindmasamgiti, where he is raised as akind of adibuddha, a figure well developed in the all-unifying LordKalacakra.29

How does Mgon po skyabs build up his setting? Benefiting greatlyfrom the Chinese Buddhists' experience, he, in his tum, makes a skilfullusage of the methods elaborated by them, but at the same time, he goesmuch further by referring to a genuine Buddhist text, which allows himto "Lamaicise" Chinese Buddhism from its origin.

IV. Dbyig gi snying, (Skt. Hiranyagarbha, Ch. Jintai), the first king ofChina according to the Mafijusri-mula-tantra

To demonstrate the Buddhist predestination of China under the specialprotection of Mafijusri, Mgon po skyabs breaks totally with the Chinesetraditional accounts by grafting on a Buddhist prophecy from the Arya­Maiijusri-miila-tantra (Xrya Mafijusri Root Tantraj.t?

(Rgya nag chos 'byung, 8.14-9.16):

28 The same argumentation is to be found in an apologetic treatise which was writ­ten at the beginning of the Tang dynasty by a Buddhist monk named Minggai (exactdates unknown), the Jue dui Fu Yi fei Fofa sengshi, refuting once and for all the TaoistFu Vi's attempt to do away with Buddhism and the community of Buddhist monks (seeGuang Hongmingji by Daoxuan (596-667), T. 2103,12. 174a-175a; Kubota 1931: 340­41). Under the reign of the first Tang Emperor, Gaozu, and during the Tang dynasty,many discussions about the Three Teachings (Sanjiao tanlun) were conducted (See LuoXianglin 1963: 159-73, 173-76.). In 621, the Taoist Fu Yi (554-639) presented an anti­Buddhist memorial in eleven points, the Jiansheng sita sengni yi guoli minshi shiyi tiao,asking to reduce the number of monasteries and pagodas, monks and nuns in order tofurther the interests of the State.

29 See Lamotte 1960. Davidson 1983: 1-6; Ruegg 1964: 89.30 Although standing midway between the Mahayana siaras and the tantras , the

Sanskrit text, Mahjusri-mula-kalpa, dated to the middle of the eighth century, is pre­sented in its colophon as a Vaipulyasutra, but having gone through continuous transfor­mation and growth, by the eleventh century, it had acquired the characteristics of a tantraand was classified by the Tibetan translators as a kriyatantra (see Matsunaga 1985).

158 GUILAINE MALA

In the Mahjusri-mula-tantra, it is written:"In the whole of China, relied upon [by all],[There will be] a king named Dbyig gi snying (Hiranyagarbha)[He will have] a great territorial division (sde chen )31 and greatstrength,And many ministers (lit. instructors),And a vast number of supporters.The Barbarians (KIa 10)will bow to him and he will be all-victorious.He will give prime importance to the Buddhist Doctrine.[In his country, the power of] the mantra of the bodhisattva (lit.mahatma) [having the nature of] Kumara [Gzhon nu]Will be fully accomplished.The eight-syllable king of spell (rig pa, Skt. vidyiiy?Which is charged with a great magical power,Will be renowned as a Great Warrior (dpa' bo che, Skt. mahdvirai.[China] will be a pilgrimage place of perfection.There, the minds of immature beingsWill make prayers for the sake of the State.By the mere thought of this [mantra], anyone will be certainTo become a buddha.For the sake of the monarchy (mi bdag rgyal thabs) itself,Its time [of efficacy] will not be short.The mere thought [of it] will bringThe supreme gift, [the] unsurpassable [siddhi].If all the sacred precepts are bestowed[Through this mantra] to Brahma and to all gods,Needless to say that [they will also be bestowed] to evil and commondeitiesAnd to the human world.[This King] will live one hundred and fifty years.He will depart into the region of the gods of great fameThis King of Dharma will graduallyAttain holy enlightenment.He will swiftly accomplishIn his country, this vidyii [mantra]Which was entirely expounded by KumaraNo other mantra will ever [bring such accomplishment].The bodhisattva, the Great HeroMaiijughosa, [radiating] a great light

And directly perceived, in this pure country

31 Skt. mahiisena, meaning lit."who has a great army" (N. Stchoupak, L. Nitti, L.Renou, Dietionnaire Sanskrit-Francais, Paris 1980: 559 b).

32 This refers to the mantra of Mafijusri, O1J1 a ra pa ea na dhih. On Arapacana,which represents the esoteric alphabet of the early Mahayana, see Davidson 1983: 22, n.63.

A MAHAYANIST REWRITING OF THE HISTORY OF CHINA 159

Is to abide in the form of a young boy.In this holy buddha-field of accomplishment,Men will become fully accomplished."33

This Buddhist prophecy concerning the appearance in China of auniversal monarch named Hiranyagarbha (lit."Golden Embryo" or"Golden Egg"),34 is to be found in the chapter on the propheciesconcerning the kings (Riijavydkarana-parivartas, which is contained inthe chapter 36 of the Tibetan translation of the Mahjusri-mida-tantramade in the first half of the eleventh century by Sakya blo gros andKurnarakalasa (Tibetan Tripitaka Peking edition, vol. 6, no. 162, 260­4.1-7). But this chapter is diplomatically missing in the Chinesetranslation, which was made under the Song dynasty by the Kashmirimonk Tian Xizai (Skt. Devasanti": ob. 1000).35

This prophecy on the "Chinese" King Hiranyagarbha was wellknown in Tibetan literature, having been mentioned by Bu ston in hisChos 'byung, Dpa' bo gtsug lag phreng ba in his Chos 'byung Mkhaspa'i dga' stan, and used by the Sde srid Sangs rgyas Rgya mtsho in his

33 Transcription of this passage: 'jam dpal rtsa rgyud las / / rgya yul kun la brtenpa yi / / rgyal po dbyig gi snying zhes bya / / sde chen stobs kyang che ba dang / / slobdpon rgya che nyid dang ni / / skye bo rtsa lag rab tu mang / / kla klos btud dang rnampar rgyal / / ston pa 'i bstan pa de gtso byed / / gzhon nu bdag nyid chen po nyid / / de yisngags ni rab bsgrubs pa / / mthu ni chen po dang ldan pa'i / / rig pa 'i rgyal po yi gebrgyad / / dpa' bo che zhes rnam par grags / / phun sum tshogs pa 'i gnas chen yin / / deyi byis pa 'i blo yis ni / / rgyal srid phyir ni rab smon byas / / gang gis dran pa tsam gyisni / / sangs rgyas nyid du nges 'gyur ba / / mi bdag rgyal thabs nyid kyi phyir / / de nibskal pa mi nyung 'gyur / / mchog gi sbyin pa bla na med / / bsam pa tsam gyis thob panyid / / tshangs sogs lha rnams thams cad la / / ma Ius lung ni stsol byed na / / lha nganphal pa dag dang ni / / mi yi 'jig rten smos ci dgos / /10 ni brgya dang lnga bcur 'tsho / /grags chen lha yi gnas su 'gro / / chos kyi bdag nyid de mthar gyis / / byang chub dam pa'thob par 'gyur / / gzhon nus yongs su bshad pa yi / / rig pa 'di ni de yul du / / de ni myurdu 'grub 'gyur gyis / / rig pa gzhan ni nam yang min / / byang chub sems dpa' dpa' boche / / 'jam pa 'i dbyangs ni 'od chen po / / mngon sum de yi yul dag na / / byis pa 'i gzugskyis bzhugs pa yin / / grub pa 'i zhing mchog dam pa la / / mi ni yongs su sgrub par 'gyur/ zhes.:

34 The name Hiranyagarbha is linked to various speculations about the creation ofthe universe (see Gonda 1974: 39-54). Later, it became a title of Lha tshangs pa, that isBrahma (see Bod rgya tshig mdzod chen mo, 1956a) or any deity associated with thecreation of the world. However, all Indian gods who were assimilated in the Buddhistpantheon became only mundane gods, secondary devas, or equal to bodhisattvas (seeRuegg 1964: 83-88, and Regamey 1971). Thus the combined name Brahrna­Hiranyagarbha (Tshangs pa Dbyig gi snying pa) is to be found in the list of the mundanegods (liiukika-devas) of the Mahdvyutpatti (edition Sakaki, no. 3115,221).

35 See the Dafangguang pusazang Wenshushili genben yigui jing, which is pre­served in T. 1191.

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Vaidurya dkar po, the three authors having not put into question theidentification of the country named Ci-na in the Sanskrit text withChina)6

Therefore, Mgon po skyabs did not innovate, he merely used it as itwas interpreted in the earlier Tibetan translations but he extends theconsequent meaning of it to the maximum by identifying Hiranyagarbhawith the mythical sovereign Fuxi, whom he presents as a historicalfigure.

V. Royal genealogies: a Buddhicised conception ofChinese rulers

At the beginning of his history of the royal genealogies of China, Mgonpo skyabs (p. 11) explains that the identification of Hiranyagarbha withFuxi is quite logical because the latter is said to be the first of the "ThreeSovereigns" (hu 'ang gsum, sanhuang), the "Five Emperors" (dhz lnga,wudi), and the "Three Kings" (dbang gsum, sanwang), and therefore themost ancient king of China, and also because Fuxi is said to have hadapproximately the same life-span. Mgon po skyabs indicates that as thereare various lists of the sanhuang and wudi, he follows "the statement ofKhung An-kwa" (Khung an kwa 'i bzhed pa), because it is the mostwidespread tradition (p. 12). This expression designates the preface tothe commentary on the Shujing, that is the Shangshu guwen (The Bookof Historical Documents in Ancient Script), which is traditionallyattributed to Kong Anguo (c.156-c.74 B.C.E.), a descendant of Confucius,but which is a forgery dating from the middle of the third century or thebeginning of the fourth ccntury.r? In Chinese history, the introduction ofthe Three Sovereigns before the Five Emperors is linked to the evolutionof the theory of Yin-Yang and Five Elements correspondences (Yin- Yangwuxing shuo), a theory of spatio-temporal correspondences providing acomplete explanation of the universe, which was perfected at the end ofthe first century B.C.E. and according to which the Five Elements or

36 On the exploitation by the Chinese authors of the Avatamsaka-siitra literature ofthe elaborate confusion between Ci-na (originally designating a region located in thenorthwest of India) and Zhina or China, see Lamotte 1960: 3, 54-86. Mgon po skyabs(1983: 10), in his turn, will exploit the deliberate transfer into China of Mafijusrf's resi­dence on a Five-Peaked Mount by translating into Tibetan the Chinese version of otherprophecies from the Avatamsaka-sutra.

37 This was demonstrated by Paul Pelliot (1916).

A MAHAYANIST REWRITING OF THE HISTORY OF CHINA 161

phases succeed one another by producing one another.sf Although Mgonpo skyabs follows this tradition, he gives (p. 12) a distorted interpretationof it to incorporate the Chinese theory within the frame of the Kdlacakra­tantra by creating a new correspondence matching the Indian Elements.He had previously managed to transform all Chinese kings intoDharmarajas from the very beginning of Chinese history firstly by givinga Buddhicised definition (6-7) of the supreme rulers of the earliest agesof China, referring for that to ancients texts such as the Ku 'an tsi'i yigcha (The Writings of Ku'an tsi), designating the Guanzi, an earlypolitico-philosophical work attributed to Master Guan or Guan Zhong (d.645 B.C.E.), a famous minister of Duke Huan of Qi (685-643 B.C.E.), onechief Ba or Hegemon of the Spring and Autumn period.r?

However, the Buddhist slant of the explanations provided by Mgonpo skyabs shows that he does not refer directly to the Guanzi or theShangshu guwen, but rather to the commentaries written on them inBuddhist treatises refuting anti-Buddhist polemics-v and later ChineseBuddhist compilations, modelled on historical annals, which begin withFuxi. These Buddhist compilations of syncretic inspiration, or moreprecisely bearing a religious syncretic veneer for a proselytizing purpose,abound in all sorts of arguments quoted from earlier treatises. Inparticular, discussions in accordance with the Guanzi on the potentialitiesand the functions of the four different kinds of ancient rulers(Sovereigns, Emperors, Kings, and Lord Protectors) are to be found inthe Shishiji guliie (see T. 2037, 1.742 b-e).

Moreover, after having related the historical tradition concerningsuccessively the Three Sovereigns (sanhuang) , the Five Emperors(wudi) , the Three Kings (sanwang) , and the Five Hegemons or Lord

38 The principle of this quinary cycle is the element wood, which produces fire, fireproduces earth, which produces metal, metal produces water, which again produceswood. In this system of correspondences, it was held that each dynasty had reigned byvirtue of one of the Five Elements. The conception of the origin of history issued fromthis theory which begins with the element wood, is associated with Fuxi. This theory wasexpounded for the first time by Liu Xiang (79-8 S.C.E.) and his son Liu Xin (c. 46 S.C.E.­

C.E. 23) according to Ban Gu (32-92), the author of the Qianhanshu (Zhonghua shujuedition, Beijing 1975,j. 25 B, 1270-1271).

39 In fact, the Guanzi is a composite treatise of politics and economics which con­sists of disparate essays dating approximatively from the fourth to the second centuryS.C.E. See Rickett 1993.

40 See for example the name of Kong Anguo linked to speculations on the spirituallegacy of the Three Sovereigns and the Five Emperors in the Bianzhenglun (On the Dis­cussion of the Correct, T. 2110, 2. 502 b) written by the monk Falin (572-640) of theTang dynasty, and in Xiangmai's [Zhiyuan] Bianwei lu (T. 2116, 2. 757c 9-10).

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Protectors (wuba) of the Chunqiu period (722-481 B.C.E.), Mgon poskyabs puts an end to all Chinese speculations of the past on ancientrulers by substituting for them another theory aiming to expound theBuddhist ideal of statecraft. At the same time, he manages to remainfaithful to Confucius' criterion of excellence by explaining that the goodtradition of Yao and Shun (Yo'u Zhun gyi ring lugs bzang po), theConfucian models of good rulers, was a guarantee of the longevity of theState because it bestows love and compassion, apparent blessings andkindness upon all beings (see 23, 30).

VI. The politico-religious idea ofthe ideal king, the Cakravartin King,according to the Siitra of Veracious Prophecies (Bden smra lung bstan

pa'i mdo)

(Rgya nag chos 'byung, 31.12-18)

Thus, in the "Sutra of Veracious Prophecies" (Bden smra lung bstanpa'i mda), it is written: "There are four kinds of kings, [1] the universalking (cakravartin-riijai, [2] the great king (mahii-riija), [3] the king ofa fortified territory (katta-riija) and [4] the petty king (miiwjalika-riija).For the universal kings, treatises are not necessary because all wishes(bzhed don) come into existence through the power of their own merits.[But] great kings and others must rely on treatises on the art of rulingwhich were written by great r$is.41

As Mgon po skyabs indicates in the following chapter of hischronicle (p. 62), the Den smra lung bstan pa 'i mdo is another name forthe Byang chub sems dpa 'i spyod yul rnam par 'phrul pa bstan pa 'i mdo,which is the Tibetan translation of the Bodhisattva-gocaropiiya­visayavikurvdna-nirdesa (Peking edition 813). As he mentions in histhird chapter (199: 18-200.2), there exist two Chinese translations of it.The first, in three chapters, which was made by Gunabhadra (394-468),is preserved in T. 271 and has a strong link with theMahdbherihdrakaparivarta (Dafagu jing, T. 270), in which advice isgiven to kings to become good Dharmarajas, The second, in ten chapters,

41 Transcription of this passage: de yang bden smra lung bstan pa 'i mdo las / rgyalpo rnam pa bzhi ste / 'khor los sgyur ba'i rgyal po dang / rgyal po chen po dang / khamskyi rgyal po dang / rgyal phran no / de la 'khor los sgyur ba'i rgyal po la ni bstan bcosmi dgos la bzhed don thams cad rang gi bsod nams kyi mthu las 'byung bas so / rgyal pochen po la sogs pa rnams ni nges par drang srong chen po dag gis byas pa 'i srid srungpa 'i bstan bcos la brten dgos / zhes gsungs pa dang ...

A MAHAYANIST REWRITING OF THE HISTORY OF CHINA 163

was made under the Northern Wei dynasty (Bei Wei: 386-534) byBodhiruci (T. 272). The passage mentioned above is to be found in thethird chapter, entitled Wanglun pin, of the translation by Bodhiruci (seeT. 272, 3.330 a 23).

Mgon po skyabs could have also chosen another Mahayanist siltra,such as the Dasacakraksitigarbha-siura (T. 410, 411; Peking 905) toexpound the Buddhist theory of ideal statecraft and organization ofsociety, but this siitra in particular suits his demonstration better becauseit also illustrates Mafijusri's extraordinary powers of adapting teaching tothe capacity of his hearers (upayakausalyay.v:

Mgon po skyabs presents this classification of kings as a gradualregression of Buddhist achievement, the highest kind of king being themodel of the Indian cakravartin-riija, who rules successfully accordingto the Law of the Buddha.O Mgon po skyabs indeed applies this theorynot only to the rulers of the past, but to all Emperors of the history ofChina, from the "Shining One," Taihao/Fuxi, to Qianlong, the ManchuEmperor of his own lifetime. It goes without saying that the Emperors ofthe Yuan dynasty as well as those of the Qing dynasty are stressed asCakravartin kings (see 56, 59), the latter being also perceived asbodhisattva Emperors, emanations of Mafijusrl. Being so, they act tospread wisdom and knowledge of which they are the repository, througheducation and welfare.

In his section on the brief history of the Yuan dynasty, a crucialepoch for Mongol historians, Mgon po skyabs recalled that Qubilai wasnicknamed "Yao-Shun Junior" (Yo 'u Zhun chung ngu) by Chinese

42 It relates the story of the conversion by the Bodhisattva of an influential oppo­nent of Sakyamuni in the city of Vaisali. For that, Mafijusrf created 500 tirthika-s as hisdisciples to infiltrate the circle of followers of a reputed Jainist Master, Mahasatya­nirgrantha-putra (Dasazhe niqian zi). Pretending to be listening to the latter's heterodoxteaching (waidao) and constantly praising it, Mafijusrf gradually introduced comparisonswith the Buddha's doctrine so that he was finally able to preach openly. As a result, theJainist Master himself and all his tirthika followers were converted to Buddhism.

43 In a way, Mgon po skyabs' politico-religious view is closer to that of the Neo­Confucian Shao Yong (1011-1077), strongly influenced by Buddhism, who presented aclassification of government according to four categories of descending quality: [1] thatof the Sovereign (huang), [2] of the Emperor (di), [3] of the King (wang), and [4] of theLord-Protector or Tyrant (bo or ba), the period of the Three Sovereigns being seen as theworld's golden age: "He who (in his government) employs the principle of non-activity(wuwei) is a sovereign; who employs kindliness and good faith is an emperor; who em­ploys justice and correctness is a king; (government) below that of the tyrant is one ofbarbarians, and that below the barbarians is one of beasts" (see Fung Yu-lan 1952, vol. 2:474-75, ch. II, sect. 2, vi; and 710).

164 GUILAINE MALA

people (see Rgya nag chos 'byung, 52). This nickname, being thecomposite name of the two Confucian models of virtuous reign, suggestsa continuity with the wisdom of the Chinese rulers of the past andtherefore establishes a bridge between the two Laws (Tib. khrims gnyis,lugs gnyis) , the mundane Law tshijian fa) or temporal law, and thesupramundane Law tchushijian fa) or atemporal and spiritual Law,which translates the nature of the buddhas. Yet, the combination of thegood laws of the temporal realm and the dharma is precisely what the"Surra of Veracious Prophecies" (T. 272) really expounds, and that isalso the religio-political ideal of statecraft adopted by Qubilai which theQing Emperors in their turn very carefully and genuinely fostered.

In conclusion, we have in this paper an example of the use of aTantric prophecy and non- Tantric arguments made by an eighteenth­century Mongol historian to transform and reinterprete the history ofChina in the light of his own Buddhist beliefs. Although clearly inspiredby Chinese Buddhists of the past, Mgon po skyabs successfully managesto integrate the whole of his demonstration within Indo-Buddhistdoctrinal patterns. His chronicle, filled with numerous prophecies, is areflection of his own conception of history, which is the verification andrealization of the Buddha's prophecies. Mgon po skyabs' Rgya nag chos'byung became and remains the reference par excellence for Mongolhistorians.

Tibetan ReferencesMgon po skyabs. 1983. Rgya nag chos 'byung. Ch'eng-tu: Si khron mi

rigs dpe skrun khang.Sum pa Mkhan po. 1959. Dpag bsam ljon bzang. In Lokesh Chandra

(ed.), Dpag bsam-ljon-bzan ofSum-pa-mkhan-po Ye-ses-dpal-hbyor,Part III: containing a history of Buddhism in China and Mongolia,preceded by the Re 'u-mig or chronological tables, with a Forewordby G. Tucci and a preface by L. Petech. Sata-pitaka vol. 8, Bhota­pitaka vol. 3, New Delhi: International Academy of Indian Culture.

Thu'u bkwan Blo bzang chos kyi nyi rna. 1989. Thu 'u-bkwan grubmtha '. Lanzhou: Kan su'u mi rigs dpe skrun khang.

Tshe dbang nor bu, Kah-thog Rig-'dzin. 1973. Selected Writings ofKah­thog Rig- 'dzin Tshe-dbang-nor-bu. Darjeeling: Kargyud SungrabNyamso Khang.

A MAHAYANIST REWRITING OF THE HISTORY OF CHINA 165

Mongolian ReferencesAltan-Orgil 1981. Koke qota-yin siim-e keyid (Temples of Koke qota).

Koke qota, obur Mongol-tin arad-un keblel-iin kuriy-e. InnerMongolian People's Publishing House.

Other ReferencesBanerjee, B. 1999. The Kalacakra School: The Latest Phase of

Buddhism. In N.N. Bhattacharyya and A. Ghosh (eds) TantricBuddhism: Centennial Tribute to Dr. Benoytosh Bhattacharyya. NewDelhi: Manohar, 263-267.

Ch'en, K. 1972. Buddhism in China: A Historical Survey. Princeton:Princeton University Press.

Davidson, R. 1983. The Litany of Names of Mafijusri: Text andTranslation of the Mafijusrinll atnasamgiti. In M. Strickman (ed.)Tantric and Taoist Studies in Honour of R.A. Stein, vol. I. Paris:Institut BeIge des Hautes Etudes Chinoises, 1-69.

De long, r.w. 1968. CR de S. Bira, 0 "Zolotoj knige" S. Damdina,"Studia historica Instituti historiae Academiae scientiarumreipublicae populi Mongoli," Tomus VI, part I. T'oung Pao 54: 173­89.

Fung Yu-Ian. 1952. A History of Chinese Philosophy. D. Bodde (trans.)Princeton: Princeton University Press.

Gonda, J. 1974. Background and Variants of the HiranyagarbhaConception. In Studies in Indo-Asian Art and Culture, vol. 3. Sata­pitaka Series, vol. 209. New Delhi: International Academy of IndianCulture, 39-54.

Hyer P. and S. Jagchid. 1983. A Mongolian Living Buddha: Biography ofthe Kanjurwa Khutughtu. Albany: State University of New York.

Imaeda, Y. 1974. Pa-ku-pa 'Phags-pa zo Doshi cho-fukuketsu ni tsuite.Toyo gakuho 56: 41-48.

Kubota, R. 1931. Shina Judobutsu sankyo shiron. Tokyo.Lamotte, E. 1960. Mafijusri. T'oung Pao 48: 1-96.Liu Ts'un-yan and J. Berling. 1982. The 'Three Teachings' in the

Mongol-Yuan Period. In Hok-Iam Chan and W.T. de Bary (eds.)Yuan Thought: Chinese Thought and Religion Under the Mongols.New York: Columbia University Press.

Luo Xianglin. 1963. Tangdai wenhua shi. Taibei.Martin, D. 1997. Tibetan Histories: A Bibiography of Tibetan-Language

Historical Works. London: Serindia Publications.

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Matsunaga, Y. 1985. On the Date of the Mafijusrfmulakalpa. In M.Strickman (ed.) Tantric and Taoist Studies in Honour of R.A. Stein,vol. 3. Paris: Institut Belge des Hautes Etudes Chinoises, 882-94.

Pelliot, P. 1916. Le Chou king en caracteres ancients et le Chang chouche wen (planches XX-XXVI). In Memoires concernant L 'AsieOrientale. Inde, Asie Centrale, ExtrD erne-Orient, vol. II. Paris, 123­177.

Petech, L. 1983. Tibetan Relations with Sung China and with theMongols. In M. Rossabi (ed.) China among Equals: The MiddleKingdom and its Neighbors, 10th-14th Centuries. Berkeley:University of California Press.

Puckovski, L.C. (ed.) 1960. Ganga yin uruskhal. Moscow.Regamey, C. 1971. Motifs vichnouites et sivaites dans Ie Kiirandavyuha.

In Etudes tibetaines dediees if la memoire de Marcelle Lalou. Paris:Adrien-Maisonneuve, 411-417.

Rickett, W.A. 1993. Kuan tzu. In M. Loewe (ed.) Early Chinese Texts: ABibliographical Guide. Berkeley: University of California Press,244-51.

Rinchen, Y. 1974. Sanskrit in Mongolia. In P. Ratnam (ed.) Studies inIndo-Asian Art and Culture, vol. 3, Sata-pitaka Series: Indo-AsianLiteratures, vol. 209: New Delhi: International Academy of IndianCulture.

Roerich, G. [1949] 1976. The Blue Annals. Reprint, New Delhi: MotilalBanarsidass.

Ruegg, D.S. 1964. Sur les rapports entre le Bouddhisme et Ie 'substratreligieux' indien et tibetain. Journal Asiatique 252: 77-96.

Smith, E.G. 1968. Introduction. In Lokesh Chandra (ed.) TheAutobiography and Diaries ofSi tu Pan chen. Sata-pitaka Series, vol.77. New Delhi: International Academy of Indian Culture.

Sorensen, P. K. 1994. Tibetan Buddhist Historiography: The MirrorIlluminating the Royal Genealogies. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz.

Tucci, G. 1971. Deb ther dmar po gsar ma: Tibetan Chronicles by bSodnams grags pa, vol. 1. Serie Orientale Roma 24. Rome: IstitutoItaliano per il Medio ed Estremo Oriente.

Uspensky, V.L. 1985. Gombojab's works. monument of eighteenth­century Mongolian historiography. Cotchinienia Guna Gombojabakak pamiatnik Mongolskoi istoriographii XVIII v. Leningrad.

Zurcher, E. 1959. The Buddhist conquest ofChina. 2 vols. Leiden: Brill.

A MAHAYANIST REWRITING OF THE HISTORY OF CHINA 167

Appendix

List of Chinese and Japanese names, expressions and quotations arrangedin alphabetical order

Ba Bbagua I\i~

Baoyingsheng Pusa JlHiif:.g:«iBasiba IU!U, var. fg ,E!t fg

Beishi :it3E.Bei Wei :itRBenjue *_Bianzhenglun ~ IE~chushijian fa l±11!t rs,)!.Dafagujing *:5i;.it~

Dafangguang pusazang Wenshushili genben yigui j ing*:15..:.g: «ii!)(9* gill ~IJm*.lJL~

Dai Nihon zokuziikyii *: B*kli!~ (Supplement to the Canon ofKyoto), Kyoto, 1905-1912.

Dasazhe niqian zi *:«i~'@~TFabao zongmulu 5i;.KkI§ ~Falin 5!.~

Fayun zhilue 5!.~~~Fofa {~5i;.

Fozu lidai tongzai {~m~1~~~Fozu tongji {~mkJt~2Fuxi 1;IC1lFu Yi 1!~Gongbu zhabu I1fJ~1fJ

Guan Zhong ~{~

Guanzi ~TGuang Hongmingji "~b.B~~Guoshi ~gill

Hanqu Fojiao yuanliuji 5)(1X{~~)J:5M.i.c

huahu 11j~

huashen 11j~

Imaeda Yoshiro ~ *t IE fl~ "Pa-ku-pa 'Phags-pa zo Doshi cho­fukuketsu ni tsuite" r I'\? 1'\ 'Phags-pam: 1I~±~1jUidl L: J l.,\'r J

168 GUILAINE MALA

Ji qi bianhia. Sui shi er xian. Huo wei shengdi. Huo zuo rulin zhi zong.Guoshii daoshi. Zaisuo xianhua. Buke chengji&;!t~1ljo ~B~rmlJio 9,\Z~~~o 9,\ZfF~#2.*o ~ ~iPJi± 0

1±PIT lJi1lj 0 l' OJfi~2jia-yin Ef3:i:Jiansheng sita sengni yi guoli minshi shiyi tiao

)JIOC~*~~~tot~fU~$+-f~

Jintai ~niiJue 'an JlWJue dui Fu Yi fei Foja sengshi 5Rt11!~JM1~)!1~$Kong Anguo 1L~~Kubota Ry60n R~ffi"m Shina Judobutsu sankyo shiron

3iJjl~~Ji1~=~~~

[Laozi]huahujing ~ r1lj~~Li Shiqian *±~Li Shiqian yahoa Foxue jian shan xuantan. You ke wen sanjiao youlie. Li

Shiqian yue. Fo ri yeo Dao yue yeo Ru wuxing yeo Shi yiwei zhi fun.*±~5J1t9T1~~*~~Wio w~r[]~=~fI~o *±~Elo1~ EH:P,o Ji,FI tP,o ~Ii~tP,o B~j..::J.~~~o

[Lichao] Shishi zijian J!i!~~.ali&[Lidai bianniant Shishi tongjian J!i!1~~~~.a~&Li Yanshou *~~Lin Zhaoen ~*~~ ..1gI,Linzi quanji#r~~Liu Mi IIJ~

Luo Xianglin .~~*,Tangdai wenhua shi ~1~3t1lj~Miaoyin tLjiifMinggai B}Iamu*Nianchang ~'*Niepanjing )~~~Pusa huashen ~Ki1lj~

Qi~

Qianhanshu "M"5'l~

Qianlong ~I!I:

Qing Jixiang ~1§'t¥

Qingjing faxing jing 5W5¥$ff~Sanguang = 7Csanhuang =~

A MAHAYANIST REWRITING OF THE HISTORY OF CHINA 169

Sanjiao =~Sanjiao huibian yaoliie =~'tWW~omSanjiao pingxin lun =~SJZ-/~\~

Sanjiao tanlun =~~~Sansheng =~sanwang =.3:.Shanhaijing ~ 5fij~

shan[neng]fangbian ~~~h1fShangshu guwen ri1iJ ii""i!i" "$I:..Shao Yong 'R~~

shijian fa t!t rs, 5!Shishi jigu lite "a~""i!i" omSuishu ~ii

Taisho = Taisho Shinshii Daizokyo *lEwr1~*it~(Buddhist Canon ofthe Taisho Era), Tokyo, 1924-32.

Taizi ruiying benqi jing *TJiffiHl*~~

Tian Xizai 7C J~Ui1

waidao 9~~Wanglun pin .3:.~~Wei Zheng a~Wenshushili a~"$I:..9*giP~O

Wo Shizu Huangdi. Ji gu Fo Shixian zhi yingshen ye~t!tm~*o HP""i!i"1~~JJiZHl~m

wudi n*Xiangmai t¥i1IXifan xue iffi)i~

Xizhong ~1~xuantan ~~Xumi siyu jing ~.[gt~~Xumi tujing ~.III~Yijing ~~Yin-Yang wuxing shuo ~~j1n~T~

youlie fi~Zhina 3ZJJBZhipan ~§Zhi Qian 3Z~[Zhiyuan] Bianwei lu ~j(J~$~~Zhiyuan Fabao kantong zonglu ~jC)!Jf.~.~Zhou fflI

CHAPTER TEN

BDUD 'DUL RDO RJE (1615-1672) AND RNYING MAADAPTATIONS TO THE ERA OF THE FIFTH DALAI LAMA

Jann Ronis

The Rnying rna school was the locus for one of the most striking andprofound cultural transformations that occurred during the era of theFifth Dalai Lama. Between the middle of the seventeenth century and theDzungar invasions of 1718, the Rnying rna school was marked by therise of several large monasteries, the staging of large-scale rituals thatattracted a trans-regional audience of Rnying rna lamas, and thereawakening of a long dormant tradition of seminary (bshad grwa)education based on the exegesis of canonical tantras.' This constellationof three innovations in Rnying rna institutional life2 was developed atSmin grol gling monastery of southern Tibet, founded in 1670 but notthriving until the tum of the eighteenth century. Smin grol gling'sinstitutional model of monastic discipline, the ritual arts, and the study oftantric commentarial literature was emulated in Eastern Tibet and has

I Dalton (2002, esp. chapters four and five) discusses the founding of Smin grolgling monastery and the creative and laborious work behind the redaction of the liturgiesfor these rituals. Dalton (2002: 204) writes that these developments constituted a "reshap­ing" and "redefinition" of the Rnying rna school. I completely agree, and suggest onemore item to the inventory. Alongside the Rnying rna community-building rituals shouldbe included seminary studies of Rnying rna canonical tantras and exoteric subjects. Themajor early figures in the academic element of the recreation of Rnying rna during the eraof the Fifth Dalai Lama are Lo chen Dharmasri (1654-1717) and 0 rgyan chos kyi gragspa (b. 1676). Both the ritual and tantric exegetical facets of this reshaping of the schoolare based largely in the Rnying rna Bka' ma (canonical tantras and their liturgical andexegetical corollaries), not the Treasures (gter ma).

2 Kah thog monastery, founded in Khams in 1159 but largely defunct by the rise ofSmin grol gling, also implemented the traditional rules of monastic discipline, and putinto practice a vigorous ritual and study program based on the Bka' mao It was therefore alikely model for Smin grol gling. One significant difference between the two institutionsis that the religious ethos at Kah thog was characterized by an ambivalence towardsTreasures, whereas Smin grol gling monastery was founded by a Treasure revealer andpromoted a liturgy that embraced both the Bka' ma and the Treasures. Smin grol gling'sgreat synthesis of the two is encapsulated in their 'Dod jo bum bzang (cf. Gter bdag glingpa 1972).

172 JAN RONIS

characterized much of the Rnying rna tradition until the present.3However, during the early decades of the Fifth Dalai Lama's reign,adapting to and exploiting the new social order was by no means anintuitive or painless process for Rnying rna lamas. The biographical andhistorical materials from and about the 1640s and 50s, in fact, narratemany episodes in which dynamic Rnying rna lamas misread the newcircumstances and missed opportunities for adaptation to the changedpolitical and religious situations. This essay is a case study of oneindividual in such turbulent episodes, focusing on a controversial Rnyingrna figure, gter ston Bdud 'dul rdo rje (1615-1672; his dates correspondclosely with the Fifth Dalai Lama's, 1617-1682).

In this work of microhistory I will highlight the incidents fromBdud 'dul's life story that illuminate broader dynamics of Rnying rnainstitutional life during this pivotal age, with an emphasis on hisreactions to the rapidly evolving circumstances and the missteps andoversights that occurred along the way.! I intend for this study tocompliment the essays in this volume that focus on the great intellectualand institutional developments of the mature period of the era of the FifthDalai Lama. My main source materials are Bdud 'dul's officialBiography, written by one of his direct disciples; the Fifth Dalai Lama'sAutobiography, edited and published soon after his passing; and the Gubkra chos 'byung, an early nineteenth-century Rnying rna history. Thisline of research entails extracting Bdud 'dul from the saintly 'hiddenvalleys' of hagiographical representations and focusing on the more'worldly' aspects of his life as lived in dramatically new religious andpolitical arenas. I doing so I may represent him as less than a saint, butcertainly much more sympathetically than some of his Tibetan detractorshave. As Carl Bielefeldt (1985: 47) says about his critical portrayal ofZen master Dagen, "whether or not, once [his life is analyzed accordingto secular social history], we shall see him as less of a man for it, weshall at least begin to see him as a man."

3 Smin grol gling's influence on the Rnying rna monasteries in Khams did not be­come fully expressed until the nineteenth century, but that in the meantime they wereindebted to Smin grol gling in many ways.

4 However, I will strive to avoid overdetermining Bdud 'dul as an emblematic type,and acknowledge his idiosyncracies as such.

BDUD'DULRDORJE

I. Bdud 'dul Rdo rje's early years

173

Bdud 'dul Rdo rje was born in 1615 (shing yos)5 in Dngul phu, very nearthe capital of Sde dge. In his youth he was ordained as a novice monkand given the ordination name Kun dga' bsod nams chos 'phags.» Hispreceptor was the 'great perfected one' (grub chen) of Sde dge, andmember of the thirty-seventh generation of the Sde dge royal family,Kun dga' rgya mtsho.? His recognition as a 'perfected one' is evidencedby the fact that he officiated over all stages of the renovation andconsecration of the Sde dge state monastery Lhun grub steng in themiddle of the seventeenth century. 8 His charismatic and visionaryqualities were likely attractive to Bdud 'dul, who seems to have emulatedthem later in life. Kun dga' rgya mtsho's brother was 'Byams pa phuntshogs (d. 1667), the founder of Lhun grub steng monastery.? At somepoint during his early days at Lhun grub steng, Bdud 'dul rdo rje metwith a Rnying rna lama from Kah thog monastery. Bdud 'dul then leftLhun grub steng to follow him to the vibrant and nearby Rmug sangsreligious center (dgon pa) for Rnying rna training. to This lama's name is

5 Dudjom Rinpoche (1991: 813) and the Bod rgya tshig mdzod chen mo (1993:3263) say that he was born in shing yos (1615), whereas Kun bzangs padma blo ldan(1997: 12.3); Gu ru bkra shis (1990: 566), and 'Jam dbyangs rgyal mtshan (1996: 86) arein agreement that he was born in me yos (1627). There is a consensus among the texts,though, about how old he was when he died and the year he died, e.g., age 58 in chu byi(1672). This affords us with a basis from which to select between the two different datesoffered for his birth. The date of shing yos (1615), found in the former two sources, isclearly the most reasonable option.

6 Kun bzangs padma blo Idan 1997: 12.5-13.1.7 Kun dga' rgya mtsho was an ecumenical lama and studied under several eminent

Sa skya and Rnying rna lamas. The Sde dge rgyal rabs (in Kolmas 1968: 90-91) gives thefollowing list of "tutors" (yongs 'dzin): Sa skya masters 'Jam dbyangs bsod nams dbangpo (1559-1621), Rtse gdong gi bdag chen Kun dga' bsod nams Ihun grub, Sgar chenMthu stobs dbang phyug, E warn pa shar chen 'Byams pa kun dga' bkra shis (1558­1603), and Spyan snga kun dga' don grub; and Rnying rna masters Rig 'dzin 'Ja tshonsnying po (1585-1656), Byang pa Bkra shis stobs rgyal (ca. 1550-1603), 'Khrul zhigDbang drag rgya mtsho (Mi 'gyur rdo rje was said to be his reincarnation), and others.

8 Sde dge dgon chen: 22-23. Lhun grub steng was initially founded in the fifteenthcentury by Thang stong rgyal po (ca. 1361-1485). For its first two centuries of existencethe institution is best described as a temple rather than monastery.

9 One of the foundational principles of this state monastery was that the abbacywas to be held by the senior son of the king (Kolmas 1968: 34).

10 Rmug sangs (variously labeled a dgon pa, ri khrod, and sgrub gnas) is locatednear Opal yul monastery in cultural Sde dge. It was a hub of Rnying rna and Bka' brgyudvisionary movements in the seventeenth centuries. The most renowned lamas associatedwith the center during this time were Karma chags med (1613-1678), Gnam chos Mi

174 JAN RONIS

variously written as Gu ru seng ha, Bya btang Tra ya sing ha, 'Dren padkon mchog rgyal mtshan, A rdo dkon mchog seng ge, and 'Dren paDkon mchog seng ge. 11

In his early twenties Bdud 'dul traveled to Dbus and Gtsang, takingthe southerly route through Kong po. In Kong po he studied rdzogs chenwith Grub thob Gter ston Bkra shis tshe brten of Lcags sde.t? After anunstated amount of time Bdud 'dul continued his travels, going as farwest as Sa skya before turning back.t ' He returned to Kong po, and inBang ri met the Bka' brgyud-friendly Treasure (gter rna) revealer 'la'tshon snying po (1585-1656).14 This famous treasure revealer orderedhim to go to Spo bo l5-a heavily forested area of southeast Tibet, andlong a stronghold of treasure activity-to await a prophecy regarding hisdestined Treasure revelations. Bdud 'dul's Treasure discovery careercommenced a few years later when he was twenty-eight years-old, andcontinued in one form or another until his death at age fifty-eight.

His corpus of textual Treasures is comprised of four major cycles.tvWhile meditating at G.yu mtsho rin chen brag in Spo bo at age 28 (app.1642), Bdud 'dul obtained the registry (kha byang) for his first treasurecycle, the Dam chos dgongs pa yongs 'dus. The actual excavation of theDam chos dgongs pa yongs 'dus cycle took place one or two years later,also in Spo bo, and involved the participation of his first consort Lhagcig Padma skyid and attendant 0 rgyan rgya mtsho. Soon after, Bdud'dul revealed his second Treasure cycle, the Dam chos sprul sku snyingthig, As will be illustrated later in the paper, it proved to be verycontroversial later in his life.i? The Dam chos sprul sku snying thig was

'gyur rdo rje (1645-1667), and Kun bzang shes rab (1636-1698). The latter went on tofound Dpal yul monastery in 1665.

11 Sources for these names are, respectively: Kun bzangs padma blo Idan 1997:13.2,13.4; Gu ru bkra shis 1990: 567; 'Jam dbyangs rgyal mtshan 1996: 83, 86.

12 Kun bzangs padma blo Idan 1997: 13.4. 'Jam dbyangs rgyal mtshan (1996: 87)calls him Nyang po Bkra shis tshe brten.

13 Kun bzangs padma blo Idan 1997: 13.6-14.1.14 Gu ru bkra shis (1990: 518) notes that Bkra shis Tshe brten and' Ja' tshon sny­

ing po were treasure masters (chos bdag) of each other's Treasures. 'Ja' tshon snying po,of course, was also a teacher of Bdud 'dul's first teacher, Kun dga' rgya mtsho.

15 The standard spelling of this toponym is Spo bo, yet a widely used variant of thename is Spu boo Spu bo is the name of a local zhi bdag (0 rgyan 1986: 1-2). Bdud 'dul'sBiography consistently uses this variant spelling.

16 My source for the next two paragraphs is Bdud 'dul's Biography, esp. the chap­ter on his Treasure revelation (Kun bzangs padma blo Idan 1997: 21.6-47.4).

17 It was also highly regarded in some later Rnying rna circles and several titlesfrom it were included in the Rin chen gter mdzod.

BDUD 'DUL RDO RJE 175

found in Tsha ba sgro brag, in the highlands south of Drag g.yab betweenthe Mekong and Salween Rivers (Rdza chu and Ngom chu, respectively).On this expedition Bdud 'dul was accompanied by "seven or eight"disciples. Among them was his new consort, Dpon mo Bsod nams skyidlas. She too was the daughter of a local chief, and they had three childrentogether (two sons and a daughter). Only a portion of the Dam chosdgongs pa yongs 'dus was transcribed immediately after its discovery.The rest of it was committed to writing only later, and at the behest of amonk visiting them from Dbus.lf

The third of Bdud 'dul's four major cycles of textual Treasures isthe Zab don gsang ba snying thig. He discovered it in Spu ri dwagsrdzong phug, which would appear to be somewhat to the west of Spo booThe fourth and final major cycle of Treasures that Bdud 'dul rdo rjediscovered during his very productive thirties was excavated in Spu rishel gyi yang sgrom. It is called the Tshe yang phur gsum and is focusedon the triad on Amitayus, Heruka, and Vajrakila. The author of theBiography writes that the Fifth Dalai Lama was notified that he was theTreasure master (chos bdag) of this cyclc.!? The Fifth Dalai Lama wasapparently interested in this prospect and implored Bdud 'dul totranscribe the Treasure. The Tshe yang phur gsum was transcribed sevenyears later. It is unclear when during these intervening seven years theFifth Dalai Lama was contacted about his appointment as the TreasureRevealer, nor the context of how such contact took place. We will returnlater in the paper to the Dalai Lama's own account of his reception of theTreasures and his evaluation of Bdud 'dul rdo rje.

By the time of his fourth series of Treasures, Bdud 'dul's fame hadspread to his home region of Sde dge. Sometime in his late thirties hewas honored with an invitation to Sde dge from his old teacher, Kun dga'rgya mtsho, and the monastic hierarch Byams pa phun tshogs.w In 1656,at the age of forty-two, Bdud 'dul made a triumphant return to Khams,traveling far and wide around Sde dge. In terms of his participation in thebroader pan-Tibetan religious world, the move to Sde dge was certainlythe greatest professional advancement so far for Bdud 'dul. His presencein Sde dge was interpreted by the court as fulfilling a prophecy to benefitthe religious and secular spheres of that society.>' The government even

18 Kun bzangs padma blo Idan 1997: 27.1-27.2.19 Kun bzangs padma blo Idan 1997: 30.4-30.5.20 Kun bzangs padma blo Idan 1997: ]5.6-16.2.21 Gu ru bkra shis 1990: 567.

176 JAN RONIS

sponsored the construction of a temple bearing his name-Bdud 'dul lhakhang-in which rituals were to be performed by Bdud 'dul for thebenefit and protection of the state. 22

The Sde dge court's embrace of Bdud 'dul harkens back to theactivities surrounding Thang stong rgyal po (ca. 1361-1485) during hiseventful tenure at the Sde dge court in the middle of the fifteenth century.Thang stong played a crucial role in the migration of the capital to itspresent location and the founding of a state temple in Sde dge (Kolmas1968: 31-32, 88-89). This period of a close partnership between king andTreasure revealer was the last period of intense growth and regionalpower for Sde dge prior to the mid-seventeenth century. It is myconjecture that the royal powers in Sde dge initially saw Bdud 'dul as anew Thang stong-like figure with whom they wanted to join forces inrealizing a political and cultural renaissance within the kingdom. Thismust be the time period Cuevas (2003: 187) was referring to when hedescribed Bdud 'dul "a lama of impressive stature in eastern Tibet."23However, shortly after this high point Bdud 'dul would become personanon grata in Sde dge.

II. Hostile Welcome in Sde dge

The political situations in Sde dge encountered by these two powerfulTreasure revealers share a similar trajectory of regional strength andexpansionistic agendas. Unfortunately for Bdud 'dul, though, the localreligious culture had changed significantly by his time. Whereas Thangstongfounded Lhun grub steng temple, Bdud 'dul had to negotiate powerand prestige with Lhun grub steng's newly established monasticadministration and population. During Thang stong's time Sde dge

22 Gu ru bkra shis 1990: 567.23 Even after the breakdown in Sde dge, Bdud 'dul did remain an "imposing fig­

ure" among Rnying rna lamas in eastern Tibet. Evidence for this is found in the four­teenth chapter of Mi 'gyur rdo rje's Outer Biography, composed by Karma chags med(1984: 325.2-355.2). This chapter is a polemical piece that attempts to verify that Mi'gyur rdo rje is an authentic Treasure revealer. After leaving Sde dge Bdud 'dul came tothe Nang chen and spent time as a teacher of Mi 'gyur rdo rje, living in close proximity tohim. Although Bdud 'dul's tutelage was important to Mi 'gyur rdo rje while he was try­ing to establish himself as a great Treasure revealer, there was an unintended conse­quence to their relationship. Because Bdud 'dul was already considered a great Treasurerevealer, his presence near Mi 'gyur rdo rje acted to preclude Mi 'gyur rdo rje's status assuch. Mi 'gyur rdo rje also encountered other objections to his status as a sprul sku andTreasure revealer, which the chapter also proceeds to counter.

BDUD 'DUL RDO RJE 177

operated out of a Buddhist model of government in which power andlegitimacy derived from the king's relationship to a (frequently non­monastic) charismatic saint such as a Treasure revealer. In contrast,during Bdud 'dul's time the royal family shifted it's model ofgovernment to one in which legitimacy and virtue accrued to the rulerlargely through being a major donor to the monastic community.Granted, Treasure revealers and monks do not embody essentiallyopposed modalities of ethics and rituals. To be sure, these two types ofreligious specialists were brought together in complimentary ways afterBdud 'dul's stay in Sde dge. Some degree of competition seems to beinevitable between them, however. Treasure revealers desiring tocollaborate with the civil and religious administration would have to finddiplomatic and creative ways to fit in to the power structures.

The changes in Buddhist models of governance employed in Sdedge reflect, and are outgrowths of, changes in the political organizationof the kingdom during the same time period. While Bdud 'dul wasoccupied with his vocation as a Treasure discoverer in SoutheasternTibet and other parts of Khams in the l640-50s, Sde dge had been thebeneficiary of the same international forces that brought the Fifth DalaiLama to power in Lhasa. In the prelude to the Dalai Lama's ownirrevocable ascendancy in 1642, the Gushri Khan's (b. 1582) armyactively pursued military targets in Khams. Sde dge seems to have beensingled out from among its neighbors by Gushri Khan to be one of themain regional powers in eastern Tibet. Stein summarizes thesedevelopments as follows (1972: 82-83), in 1637 Gushri Khan "firstcrushed the principality of Beri, in Kham [actually, Dkar mdzas], andthen came to the aid of Derge, which was by now enlarging itself at theexpense of Ling [in the north]."

The increased complexity of Sde dge's geo-politics andinternational relations necessitated a restructuring of the government.Prior to Kun dga' rgya mtsho and Byams pa phun tshogs' generation (thethirty-sixth in the Sde dge royal line), the king was master of both thecivil administration and the state temple (Kolmas 1968: 34). Thedramatic growth of Sde dge resulting from Gushri Khan's militarysupport on the eve of the era of the Fifth Dalai Lama led to a plannedbifurcation of the government into secular and religious spheres, with theformer controlled by the king and the latter centered at Lhun grub stengand controlled by a male of the royal family (Kolmas 1968: 34).Although even the head monastic authorities of Sde dge wanted Bdud

178 JAN RONIS

'dul to come to the kingdom and found a temple, clearly something morethan just a temple was needed. To adapt a Chinese proverb 24 to thesituation at hand, a small kingdom can be expanded through the spiritualsupport generated by a temple run by a magnetic lama, but once enlargedthe kingdom cannot be governed by such. Without innovating thetraditional forms he was familiar with in Spo bo, Bdud 'dul was destinedto run into strong competition and resistance. As has already beenalluded to, Bdud 'dul did encounter serious problems at the court fromthe monks and their supporters.

Soon after arriving in Sde dge, Bdud 'dul had a major falling outwith the authorities and he left the region, never to return. This occurredwithin two or three years of his 1656 arrival.z> Gu ru bkra shis (1990:752) gives the fullest picture of the breakdown. In a section on Kah thogmonastery he writes: "The connections between the Sde dge sa dbangchen po [U rgyan bkra shis?] and Rig 'dzin Bdud 'dul Rdo rje werederailed by the perverted rituals and (libelous) reports to authorities bymany ill-intentioned people such as lama Sangs rgyas dpal bzang."26 Thetext goes on to mention that this "regretful" tum of events occurredduring the abbacy of Kun dga' phun tshogs, the first abbot of Lhun grubsteng (752). Elsewhere the same text states, "There was a prophesy thatsaid if the connections between the great king of Sde dge and theTreasure revealer (Bdud 'dul rdo rje) go well, the majority of Khams will

24 The proverb says, "Empires can be won on horseback but cannot be governedfrom there."

25 None of the sources say how long Bdud 'dul stayed in Sde dge. An approximatelength of time can be determined, though, by correlating the date of arrival as attested toin his Biography with mention of his meetings with Mi 'gyur Rdo rje in the latter's OuterBiography (Karma chags med 1983). As mentioned above, Bdud 'dul arrived in Sde dgein 1656. This was approximately 15 years after the Sde dge royal family had been giventhe military support of Gushri Khan (at the request of the Great Fifth) to expand its do­minion in the area. I propose that the problems between him and his Sakya enemies wereacute within 2 years of his arrival in 1656 and that he must have left the area by 1659 atthe latest, but probably in 1658. Bdud 'dul and Mi 'gyur rdo rje became very close inNangchen and it is clear that they spent more than a few months together. Mi 'gyur rdorje went into a three-year retreat with Karma Chags-med in 1660, and it is thus safe toassume that Bdud 'dulleft Sde dge at least a year before then.

26 Gu ru bkra shis 1990, 752: de yang sde dge sa dbang chen pol rig 'dzin bdud'dul rdo rje gnyis/ bla ma sangs rgyas dpal bzang sogs mi bsrun pa 'i blo can mang pozhig gis log sgrub dang snyan phra la brten rten 'brei gzhan dbang du gyur pa. There is alama Sangs rgyas dpal bzang among the 39th generation of the Sde dge royal family, buthe had probably not even been born while Bdud 'dul was in Sde dge. Nonetheless, thelama Sangs rgyas dpal bzang mentioned in this passage was obviously of some stature inthe state church.

BDUD 'DUL RDO RIE 179

come under the control of Sde dge. Yet because the connections werederailed, the great king's religious policies suffered slightly."27 Sothoroughly was Bdud 'dul vilified, in fact, that he was written out of theSde dge rgyal rabs, the early nineteenth-century state-sponsored royalgenealogy.28 This text passes over Bdud 'dul's generation, going directlyfrom 'Ja' tshon snying po to Klong gsal snying po (1625-1692); in otherwords, from Bdud 'dul's teacher to his disciple (Kolmas 1968: 91).

What was the basis for this conflict between the two parties, Bdud'dul and the Sde dge state church? I contend that this happened in largemeasure because he failed to make himself institutionally relevant, whichleft him open to attack from the monks. Given that he had been living inmuch smaller communities (based in Spo bo) for the preceding decades,perhaps a lack of political refinement and diplomatic skill on Bdud 'dul' spart contributed to his rapid downfall. Nevertheless personalidiosyncrasies were not the sole cause for the friction between him andthe monks and their supporters in Sde dge. Rather, Bdud 'dul, theconsummate lay tantrist with numerous wives and children, had theunenviable job of trying to work as a team with a new monastery thatwas busy solidifying its role in government and society. As wassuggested above, Sde dge had outgrown the old model of governance inwhich a lama similar to Bdud 'dul was the chief ritualist for the court.The onus was thus on Bdud 'dul to adapt to the changed circumstancesby innovating a new type of institution that could better address theneeds of the government. In other words, his lha khang was no longer asufficient basis for assisting the "great king's religious policies" (sadbang chen po 'i bstan jus). If Bdud 'dul was to fully realize thisprophesy then something more was demanded of him. It would seemthen, that Bdud 'dul did not adapt quickly enough and therefore, beingmore numerous and closely connected to the court, as well as moreconsonant with the broader religio-political paradigm ushered in by theFifth Dalai Lama and favored by the Mongolians, the monks gained theupper hand and drove Bdud 'dul out of Sde dge.

27 Gu ru bkra shis 1990, 568: sde dge sa dbang chen po dang gter chen 'di gnyisrten 'brei legs lam du gyur na mdo smad phal cher sde dge'i mnga' »s tu 'du ba'i lungbstan yod kyang/ rten 'brei gzhan dbang du gyur pas sa dbang chen po 'i bstan jus lacung zad gnod.

28 This text was composed by Byams pa kun dga' sangs rgyas bstan pa (b. 1786) ofthe forty-third generation of the Sde dge royal family. This text is edited and introducedin Kolmas 1968.

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Support for my claim that Bdud 'dul faced significant sectarian­driven resistance in Sde dge can be found in the historical accounts aboutthe relationship between Bdud 'dul's main student and subsequent abbotsof Lhun grub steng. Klong gsal snying po was Bdud 'dul's most famousdisciple and a Treasure revealer in his own right. Gu ru bkra shis (1990:752-53) reports that the Lhun grub steng abbot Sangs rgyas bstan pa(brother of Kun dga' phun tshogs) sent high-level envoys (bang mi skutshab sags) to Klong gsal snying po to apologize for Bdud 'dul'smistreatment in Sde dge and to invite Klong gsal to come and continuethe work of his (presumably now deceased) master. An indignant Klonggsal initially refused. After some time Klong gsal was instructed bydakinis to go and thereby accepted an appointment as the king's chaplainidbu'i mchod gnas), which he carried out without incident. Monastic vs.Treasure revealer, or Rnying rna vs. Sa skya, conflicts at the Sde dgecourt did continue to occasionally flare up in subsequent times. Thedebacle with Bdud 'dul was not, therefore, an isolated event and a patternof monastic vs. Treasure revealer hostility can be perceived for much ofsubsequent Sde dge cultural history. The most notorious of later conflictswas the murderous "open civil rebellion" of the late eighteenth centurythat erupted in response to the regent's lavish patronage of 'Jigs-medgling-pa (1730-98; Smith 2001: 25).

Klong gsal also went to Kah thog monastery, but unlike Bdud 'dulhe spent a sustained period of time rebuilding it with state funds.s? At itsfounding in the middle of the twelfth century Kah thog "Yas a disciplinedmonastery and maintained a thriving study program for approximatelythree centuries, yet had fallen into serious disrepair by the seventeenthcentury. Klong gsal perceived an opportunity at Kah thog and was ableto help the monastery be reborn into a lay community centered on hisTreasures. De dge was pleased with the revival of this cultural andeconomic institution, Klong gsal benefited from having a prestigioushome for his tradition, and sentient beings were served. If Bdud 'dul haddone something similar then he would not have run into serious troublein Sde dge, even if he did have some personality issues. The sponsorshipof large, new Rnying rna dgon pa by the court actually continuedunabated through the end of the seventeenth century. About the sametime as Klong gsal's tenure at Kah thog, Dpal yul was built (1665) in thenext valley over, then Rdzogs chen dgon pa in 1685. These threemonasteries became vital to the broader monasticisation of Rnying rna

29 'Jam dbyangs rgyal mtshan 1996: 89.

BDUD 'DUL RDO RJE 181

traditions over the next two centuries in central and Eastern Tibet. Onewonders if Bdud 'dul simply failed to see that his paltry renovationefforts at Kah thog could have been, with more effort, on the vanguard ofan emerging trend in Sde dge religious culture.

111. Prophesies and Miscalculations Regarding the Fifth Dalai Lama

The previous problem was bound up with institutional issues, especiallyinnovation and sectarian competition. The problem to be covered in thissection is also about a problem faced by lamas that were active on thecusp of the Dalai Lama's ascension to power and the social changes thatensued from it. It is about the initial reactions to his ascension and howto reconcile with him if you had previously opposed his regime, as Bdud'dul had. Coincidentally, or not, Bdud 'dul's Treasure discovery careerbegan within months of the Fifth Dalai Lama's ascendancy (i.e., histwenty-eighth year in approximately 1642). The tension and liminalquality of the time may even have contributed to Bdud 'dul's visionaryexperiences. What is certain, though, is that in his early Treasures Bdud'dul made critical comments about the Fifth Dalai Lama's regime andmourned the Karma pa's dcfeat.w

Prophesies purportedly spoken by Padmasambhava in the eighthcentury were the medium through which Bdud 'dul voiced hisdenunciation of current events)! Bdud 'dul may have felt emboldened tocriticize the Dalai Lama because he did not think that his new regimewould endure. After six or seven years, though, Bdud 'dul had a changeof heart about the new government-perhaps because he realized thatthey were going to maintain their grasp on power-and desired to worktogether with the new regime. Rather than merely desisting fromcriticizing the Dalai Lama in all of his later Treasures, Bdud 'dul insteadmade a blatant about face on the matter and began to praise the DalaiLama and denigrate the Karma pa. The Dalai Lama became aware of this

30 Bdud 'dul usually had good relations with Bka' brgyud lamas. His teacher 'Ja'tshon snying po was a tantric preceptor of the tenth Karma pa. After leaving Sde dgeBdud 'dul became close with Karma chags med, who was closely connected with theKarma Bka' brgyud school.

31 Treasure cycles usually include a title, narrated by Padmasambhava, that de­scribes in graphic detail natural and military catastrophies that will beset Tibet in thefuture, and which the Treasures will respond to. Janet Gyatso (1998: 151) writes, "TheTreasure prophesies often describe the wars and political upheavals of such moments [ofrevelation], their traumas somehow to be alleviated by the new religious practices intro­duced by the Treasure scripture."

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duplicity and his public condemnations of Bdud 'dul all but closed thedoors of the central Tibetan centers of power to Bdud 'dul.

In an entry dated to the year 165832 (sa khyi) the Great Fifth notes inhis Autobiography that, at an earlier date, the De mo hu thog thu sentBdud 'dul' s second Treasure cycle, Dam chos sprul sku snying thig, toDe mo' s nephew Dbon po)3 It would seem that this transaction was anact of intelligence gathering about 'the resistance.' De mo asked theDalai Lama whether its origins were legitimate or not (khungs btsun mibtsun) and he responded that these treasures "are nothing to get veryexcited about" (ha cang gi ya mtshan rgyu mi 'dug). The Dalai Lamawas curious about passages in the prophecies (lung bstan) section of thisTreasure cycle that seemed to sympathize with several of the DalaiLama's archrivals and criticize the Dge lugs pas. In his autobiography hecites directly from the Sprul sku snying thig's Lung bstan 'od kyi drwaba:

A Treasure master (chos bdag) of the ultra secret root will appear asfollows: ...(at a time when) the commitments have degenerated to theirlowest point, the nine classes (of demons) will create conditions suchthat the one with the famous name Karma wanders the nation. May thisprotector of the Land of Snows be appointed (with the throne)! "34

Neither was it lost on the Fifth Dalai Lama that the prophecies alsoeulogize two other adversaries of his, Sa skya Bdag chen Mthu stobsDbang phyug (b. 1588) and 'Brug pa gdung brgyud Ngag dbang mamrgyal (1594-1651). The Great Fifth also cites from a prophecy of Bdud'dul's that condemns Tsong kha pa.35

Subsequent to seeing these early Treasure texts of Bdud 'dul's,Bdud 'dul himself sent the Dalai Lama a copy of his Tshe yang phurgsum, notifying the Dalai Lama that he was its Treasure master. Theprophesies section of this cycle reflect Bdud 'dul' s reversal of opinion

32 This is likely the year that Bdud 'dulleft Sde dge.33 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 514.34 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 514: lung bstan gyi 'od grar/ yang

gsang rtsa ba'i chos bdag 'di ltar 'byung: mchog dbyangs rnam sprul gangs can mtsho:'dzam gling lha mi kun gyi rgyan gyur pa: dam nyams mthil phyin sde dgus rkyen byasnas: ming snyan karma'i mtshan can rgyal khams myul: gangs can mgon po de la gtadrgya gyis. The version of this passage found in Bdud 'dul rdo rje's Lung bstan 'od gyidrwa ba (Bdud 'dul rdo rje, vol. 3: 350.5-351.2) is nearly identical.

35 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 520.6-521.1. Again, the text is almostverbatim with the original passage in Bdud 'dul's Lung bstan 'od gyi drwa ba (Bdud 'dulrdo rje, vol. 3: 330.4-330.6).

BDUD 'DUL RDO RJE 183

about the Fifth Dalai Lama. In now lauding the Dalai Lama and turninghis back on the Karma pas, Bdud 'dul was apparently trying to ingratiatehimself to the new ruler of Tibet and his court. The Dalai Lama was adiscerning judge of character and an astute textual scholar, and theseinconsistencies were not lost on him. The Dalai Lama thus dismissivelymentions that Bdud 'dul claims him to be the treasure master of thiscycle,36 without even an explicit rejection of the notion.t? He closes thesection on Bdud 'dul by saying, "Because of the contradictions I becameconvinced from the depths of my heart he is a hypocritical fabricator oftreasures. "38

This episode contains an element of tragic irony. The Dalai Lamadid reconcile with the Karma pa camp sometime between 1653 and1658)9 Bdud 'dul's Biography says that the Tshe yang phur gsum wastranscribed when Bdud 'dul was approximately 38 years old, in about1653. At this time Bdud 'dul was apparently still unaware that the DalaiLama was interested in a settlement with the Karma pa. One wonders ifwaiting a few years would have tempered the "hypocritical" tone of theprophesies Bdud 'dul composed for the Dalai Lama's consumption. Inperiods of rapid political and social change it is extremely difficult toanticipate what is coming next and to accurately perceive theimplications of emerging trends.

36 Kun bzangs padma blo ldan 1997: 30.4-30.5.37 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 515.38 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 1989: 515: zog po gter rdzus mkhan du nges

shes gting nas 'drongs teo This humiliating portrayal of Bdud 'dul was now part of thepublic record (published in the 1690s), and some Rnying rna historians actually acknowl­edged the controversy. Gu ru bkra shis (1990: 569) says "rten 'brei 'ga' zhig gi bab lasphebs par ma shar bas kun mkhyen Inga pa rin po che thugs cung zad ma rangs pa'igsung sgros rnam thar du yod. " He then goes on to downplay the problem by saying thatsome dignitaries in Central Tibet still wished to be in contact with Bdud 'dul. [n his Norbu'i do shal, Kun bzang nges don klong yangs (1976: 300.2-300.4) also acknowledgesthe problem, but is more apologetic. The author at first downplays the issue by merelysaying that there were "various inconclusive anecdotes" (ngag rgyun ma nges sna tshogs)about Bdud 'dul, but then goes on to give the volume letter of the Dalai Lama's Autobi­ography in which this episode is covered. Understandably, 'Jam mgon Kong sprul's Gterston brgya rtsa paints Bdud 'dul in a very inspiring light and completely ignores theproblem.

39 The reconciliation was brokered by Tshur phu's Rgyal tshab rin po che. Becausethe Karma pa was deep in the frontier territories of Yunnan at the time, the actual meet­ing between the Karma pa and the Fifth Dalai Lama did not occur until 1674 (Richardson1998: ch. 50).

184 JAN RONIS

IV Bdud 'dul's Latter Years and Conclusion

What became of the lamas who did not adapt to the new social andcultural matrices that emerged out of the mid-century political changes inKham and Central Tibet? In Bdud 'dul' s case, after being shut out of Sdedge and Lhasa he returned to his old haunts, to the mandala in which helearned his trade and was best suited; namely, small-scale politicalentities in rural and wilderness areas. He thus lived out the rest of his lifein southeastern Tibet, primarily Spo bo and Padma bkod (in Kong po). Inthis stage of his vocation he dramatically reduced his discovery of textualtreasures, but redoubled efforts at opening hidden valleys.w

The most well known of the hidden valleys Bdud 'dul worked inwas Padma bkod. Franz-Karl Erhard writes, "The seventeenth centurywas ... the particular period in which the sacred site of Gnas Padma-bkodwas systematically visited by treasure discoverers of the Rnying-rna-paschool." But why was this a time of such intensive activity? Based onwhat we have seen of the vicissitudes of Bdud 'dul's life, it can beconcluded that at least some of the lamas that were exploring andinhabiting hidden valleys in Southern and Southeastern Tibet in theseventeenth century were there as exiles. They were not spiritualrefugees fleeing the incursion of politics into their communities, butreligious leaders who had tried to get ahead in regional centers of powerand were unsuccessful.

In many ways Bdud 'dul rdo rje is quite a sympathetic character.The lost opportunities in Sde dge and Lhasa-the result of both historicalaccident and political naIvete-limited his horizons and did not allowhim to fully express his ambitions and creativity. He died early, at agefifty-eight, in contravention of a well known prophesy that he was to goto Smar khams and live until age eighty-three. There likely were manyother lamas that also had a difficult time adjusting to the new social andreligious circumstances in Kham and Central Tibet that ensued from the

40 In this stage of his life Bdud 'dul did continue to discover Treasure texts. Afterhis return to Spo bo, though, the Biography reports that his son acted as his surrogaterevealer (spyan tshah). This task involved taking the "yel1ow scrolls" (shag ser) discov­ered by his father and developing them into texts ready for liturgical use by Bdud 'dul'sspiritual community. The Biography (Kun bzangs padma blo Idan 1997: 34.5, 36.6) indi­cates that Rgyal sras acted in this manner on more than one occasion. Some "yel1owscrolls," though, never were transcribed, and stil1 others were assigned to Rgyal sras buttheir transcription was stil1 outstanding even after Bdud 'dul's death (Kun bzangs padmablo Idan 1997: 37.4, 50.5).

BDUD 'DUL RDO RJE 185

Great Fifth's rise to power. As I have shown above, the problems theyfaced were increased sectarian conflict in which 'old-fashioned' Rnyingrna Treasure revealers are caught off guard and slow to adapt, as well assuffering long-term banishment from the Dalai Lama's court for offensescommitted very early on in his rise to power. More research remains tobe pursued on the early years of this epochal age of Tibetan politics,society, and religion. One of the most pressing gaps in our knowledgeabout this time period concerns the political and ideological dynamicsinvolved in the explosive growth in Khams of large Rnying rna dgonpa-some of which were monastic, others lay dominated-in the lastthird of the seventeenth century.

Tibetan ReferencesBdud 'dul rdo rje, Spo bo gter ston (1615-1672). 1997. Collected

revelations and writings of Spo bo Gter ston Bdud 'dul rdo rje ofKab thog. 12 vol.

Kun bzangs padma blo ldan, Stags ras pa (seventeenth century). Rig'dzin grub pa'i dbang phyug bdud 'dul rdo rje'i rnam thar gter'byung mdor bsdus pa dad pa 'i mchod stong. In Bdud 'dul rdo rje1997, vol 10, 1-54.

Gter bdag gling pa (1646-1714) et al. 1972. Sgrub thabs 'dod 'jo bumbzan : a collection ofNyingmapa sadhanas. New Delhi: B. JamyangNorbu.

Gu ru bkra shis (eighteenth century.). 1990. Bstan pa'i snying po gsangchen snga 'gyur nges don zab mo chos kyi byung ba gsal bar byedpa'i legs bshad mkhas pa dga' byed ngo mtshar gtam gyi rol mtsho.Beijing: krung go'i bod kyi shes rig dpe skrun khang.

'Jam dbyangs rgyal mtshan (1929-2001). 1996. Rgyal ba Kah thog pa 'i10 rgyus mdor bsdus. Ch'engtu: Si khron mi rigs dpe skrun khang.

Karma chags med (1613-1678). 1983. Mi 'gyur rdo rje'i rnam thar (Fulltitle: Sprul sku mi 'gyur rdo rje 'i phyi 'i rnam thar kun khyab snyanpa'i 'brug sgra) In Collection des tresors / reveles par Gnam-chosMi- 'gyur-rdo-rje. 13 vol. Bylakuppe, Mysore, India: Perna NorbuRinpoche.

Kun bzang nges don klong yangs. 1976. Bod du byung ba 'i gsang sngagssnga 'gyur gyi bstan 'dzin skyes mchog rim byon gyi rnam thar norbu 'i do shal: a concise history of the Nyingmapa tradition ofTibetanBuddhism. Dalhousie: Damchos Sangpo

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Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho, Fifth Dalai Lama. (1617-1682). 1989.Za hor gyi ban de Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 'i 'di snan'khrul ba'i rol rtsed rtogs brjod kyi tshul du bkod pa du ku la'i gosbza. 3 vol. Lhasa: Bod ljongs mi dmangs dpe skrun khang.

o rgyan et al. 1986. Spo bo'i 10 rgyus [=Spo bo rdzong 10 rgyus cha legssgrig tsho chung gis bsgrigs.] Lhasa: Bod-ljongs mi-dmangs dpe­skrun-khang.

Sde dge rgyal rabs [=Dpal sa skyong sde dge chos kyi rgyal po riim byongyi rnam thar dge legs nor bu 'i phreng ba 'dod dgu rab 'phel]. InKolmas 1968.

Other ReferencesBielefeldt, C. 1985. Recarving the Dragon: History and Dogma in the

Study of Dagen. In W. La Fleur (ed.) Dagen Studies. Honolulu:University of Hawaii Press, 21-53.

Cuevas, B.J. 2003. The Hidden History of the Tibetan Book of the Dead.New York: Oxford University Press.

Dalton, J.P. 2002. The Uses of the Dgongs pa 'dus pa'i mdo in theDevelopment of the Rnying-ma School of Tibetan Buddhism. Ph.D.dissertation, University of Michigan.

Dudjom Rinpoche and J. Y. Dorje (eds) 1991. The Nyingma School ofTibetan Buddhism, Volume One. G. Dorje with M. Kapstein (trans.)Boston: Wisdom Publications.

Gyatso, J. 1998. Apparitions ofthe Self: The Secret Autobiographies ofaTibetan Visionary. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

Kolmas, J. 1968. A Genealogy of the Kings of Derge: Sde-dge'i Rgyal­rabs. Tibetan text edited with historical introduction. Prague:Publishing House of the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences.

Richardson, H. 1998. High Peaks, Pure Earth: Collected Writings onTibetan History and Culture. M. Aris (ed.) London: SerindiaPublications.

Smith, E.G. 2001. Among Tibetan Texts: History and Literature of theHimalayan Plateau. Boston: Wisdom Publications.

Stein, R.A. 1972. Tibetan Civilization. Stanford, CA: Stanford UniversityPress.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

RITUAL, FESTIVAL AND AUTHORITY UNDERTHE FIFTH DALAI LAMA

Kurtis R. Schaeffer

On April 14th of 1695 the desiccated body of the Fifth Dalai Lama wasremoved from the wooden box in which it had been placed twelve yearsearlier on April 8th 1682, the day after his death.! Wrapped in silk andcotton, packed with cinnamon, saffron, camphor, and salts, his body hadmummified since during these years. It was now time to install it in thesixty- foot tall golden reliquary housed within the recently completed RedPalace of the Potala.2 Known as the Single Ornament of the World, thestilpa was to form an essential part of both ritual and political life withinthe Potala, around Lhasa, and throughout Tibet. At least this is whatSangye Gyatso worked toward when he began a major series of writingsdedicated to ensuring the Fifth Dalai Lama and his remains just such aplace.

Sangye Gyatso (1653-1705), the fifth and most important regent ofthe Tibetan government founded in 1642 under the Fifth Dalai Lama,was a prolific writer during his twenty-four years as ruler. He wasperhaps the most influential writer on secular arts and sciences that Tibetproduced up to the seventeenth century, and most likely since. From hisearly 1681 work on governance to his 1703 history of medicine, hetouched on subjects as varied as language arts, building techniques, thepolitics of ritual, funeral rites, astrological and calendrical theories,methods of healing, and rules for court servants.

It has been suggested that in all of these areas Sangye Gyatso soughtto assert control in various areas of public religious and intellectual life.Two of Sangye Gyatso's writings from the mid-1690s serve well as entrypoints to the larger project of assessing his role in and contribution to the

1 Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Mchod, p. 247.9. Sangs rgya rgya mtsho, Drin ... bzhi pa,ff. 160b-161a; Ahmad 1998: 275; Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Pur, foJ. 16a.2. For a recentsketch of the Fifth Dalai Lama's life and works, see Schaeffer 2005. For a more detailedstudy of the Fifth Dalai Lama's remains, see Schaeffer forthcoming.

2 See Meyer 1987 and Chayet 2003 for general surveys of the Potala'sconstruction.

188 KURTIS R. SCHAEFFER

development of Tibetan and Buddhist culture after the founding of theGanden Government in 1642. In Tales for the New Year Sangye Gyatsoargues that the New Year is an appropriate time to commemorate theDalai Lama. In the Lhasa Circumambulation Survey, he prescribes fixedroutes for circumambulating the Fifth Dalai Lama's stupa, the Potala,and even Lhasa itself. I would like to propose that, while the statedpurpose of the the Lhasa Survey may have been to establish newpilgrimage routes, the primary effect of this and other related writingswas to establish the legitimate authority of the Ganden Government'srule over Tibet. The principle means employed in these writings to dothis were the memorialization of the Fifth Dalai Lama and the re­formation of classical Buddhist traditions of practice and myth in a newTibetan context. The principle object symbolizing this authority was noless than the Fifth Dalai Lama's reliquary.

Sangye Gyatso's literary activities between 1693 and 1701 werealmost entirely concerned with the Fifth Dalai Lama's life, his death, andhis legacy. It is truly impressive just how much writing the regentdevoted to to extolling the greatness of his master, the GandenGovernment, and the Gandenpa School. In all he devoted more thanseven thousand pages to extolling the Fifth Dalai Lama from a variety ofperspectives.3 Sangye Gyatso's writing efforts during these few yearswere not random, but almost certainly connected with the 1695installation of the Fifth Dalai Lama's remains in the great stupa, thecompletion of the Potala's Red Palace in which the stiipa was housed,and the enthronement of the Sixth Dalai Lama in 1697.

1. Sangye Gyatso 's Tales for the New Year

Sangye Gyatso wrote Tales for the New Year, a minor part of this largebody of work, at the request of two close contemporaries in the Potalacourt who wanted teachings glorifying the Fifth Dalai Lama.s He

3 See the Appendix for a discussion of Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho's writings about theFifth Dalai Lama.

4 Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Rgyal, fol. 46a. See also Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho,Drin ...drug pa, fol. 204a.6. The colophon states that this work was composed in 1694.Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Rgyal, fol. 46b: phan pa 'i ched nag po 'gro shes su bkod pa 'itshig nyung la 'bel gtam smra ba'i don gyi Ide mig 'di ni / gzhung lugs mgrin lam 'degspar ngag skyon du mas gnang bar gyur na 'ang / sor rtser len pa'i spobs pa gzengs sumtho ba sa (int. omitted) ra (int. omitted}? ming can gyis rab nyi'i dngos po 'i 10 (1694)dbyu gu zla ba'i dmar cha'i bzang po gsum pa nyi ma me bzhi'i 'grub sbyor nas nyinphyed gsum du grub par sam shog ci rigs par sug bris su bgyis pa sho las du 'bebs mi

RITUAL, FESTIVAL, AND AUTHORITY 189

organizes his presentation of his master within the common rubric of thefive perfections: 1. place, 2. teacher, 3. retinue, 4. time, and 5. teaching.'These teachings on the five perfections are all characterized as "tales"conducive to liberation to be contemplated at the New Year. Such taleswere performed by Sangye Gyatso's associates at New Year's festivalsin the Potala throughout the 1690s, and it is possible that SangyeGyatso's work was a sort of handbook for such performances.«

In an entertaining bit of commentarial flourish, Sangye Gyatsobegins with perhaps the most recognizable phrase in Buddhist literature,"Thus at one time did I hear this speech." He breaks this phrase, which(ideally at least) begins all sutras and tantras, into five components, eachcorresponding to one of the five excellences. "This speech" ('di skad) isthe excellent teaching, "I" or "by me" (bdag gis) is the excellent retinue,"heard" (thos pa) refers to the excellent teacher, and "one time" (dusgcig) is of course the excellent time. Finally, the locative particle "at"(na) connotes the excellent place.?

In the case of the Fifth Dalai Lama the five perfections, and byextension the first words of every sutra, refer to the following: Theperfect place is the Pota1a palace, and in particular the Dalai Lama'sstupa within the Potala. This place Sangye Gyatso likens to the site of theBuddha's enlightenment, Vajrasana, which it has in fact surpassed as thegreatest Buddhist land since the Turks brought an end to the tradition inIndia. The perfect teacher is the Fifth Dalai Lama himself, who has beenprophesied in countless treasure texts as the embodiment ofAvalokitesvara. Because of his close connection with the Fifth DalaiLama, Sangye Gyatso also includes himself in the category of perfectteacher. He assures the reader that, like the Fifth Dalai Lama, the youngregent was also prophesied to be the ruler of Tibet in treasure texts, anotion, incidentally, which goes back at least to 1679, when the FifthDalai Lama referred to just such a prophecy in his public decree

phaf cher cha dkar ba pad ma bsod nams kyis bgyis pa sar ba jag a ta II II There are,however, reasons to suspect that it was completed after this.

5 Phun sum tshogs pa fnga. There is no topical outline in the text, as is the casewith many of Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho's writings. The structure of the work is as follows:Opening verses Ib-2b.2; Introduction 2b.2-8a.5; I. Perfect Place (gnas) 8a.5-21b.l ; 2.Teacher (ston pa) 21b.I-34a.2; 3. Assembly (zhu ba po 'am 'khor) 34a.2-35b.6; 4. Time(dus) 35b.6-40a.4; 5. Teaching (chos) 40a.4-45a.6; Concluding verses 45a.6-b.5;Colophon 45b.5-46a (incomplete: missing 46b).

6 Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Drin ... fnga pa, fo1. 313b.6; Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho,Drin ...drugpa, ff. Ib.4, 41a.3; 76a.3; 204b.4, etc.

7 Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Rgyaf, fo1. 8a.

190 KURTIS R. SCHAEFFER

appointing Sangye Gyatso as regent. 8 The perfect retinue is Gushri Khan(1582-1655), the "dharma king" under whom all ranks of governmentwere said to be happy. Finally, the perfect teachings are of course thecollected written works of the Fifth Dalai Lama and Sangye Gyatso, aswell as the public teachings and ceremonies held by the Dalai Lama,including his twenty-two yearly performances as master of the GreatPrayer Festival.

The perfect time is the era of the Fifth Dalai Lama, and in particularthe Wood-hog year (1695) in which his remains were placed in theSingle Ornament Stupa. Here Sangye Gyatso discusses the varioustraditions of establishing the start of the New Year.? According to aseries of elaborate calculations only mentioned in the present work butdeveloped in other works, the advent of the new year at the beginning ofthe lunar calendar coincides with certain principal events in the life of theBuddha as well as both Tsongkhapa and the Fifth Dalai Lama. It istherefore an auspicious occasion on which to celebrate the reign of theGanden Government through festivals around the Potala.iv In morepractical terms, Sangye Gyatso notes that since people are alreadyassembled around Lhasa for New Year it is a convenient occasion togather people together at the Potala.U He concludes the work with aseries of quotes illustrating the unbroken tradition of New Yearcelebrations among the Gandenpa hierarchs.

II. The Lhasa Circumambulation Survey

Like Tales for the New Year, the Lhasa Circumambulation Survey of1697-the second work under consideration here-was also composed atthe request of a specific audience, in this case three people who wereeither guests or members of the Potala court, including the caretaker ofthe Fifth Dalai Lama's stupa.t? The central purpose of the work was to

8 See Richardson 1998: 445.9 Anonymous, Bod, entry 240 (6]), lists seven different dates upon which the New

Year is said to begin.10 Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Rgyal, fol. 43b.II Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Rgyal, fol. 40a.12 Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Mchod sdong 'dzam gling rgyan gcig gtso bor, fol.

110a-b: mchod sdong chen po 'i dkon gnyer sgo mangs rab 'byams pa ngag dbang darrgyas / smad rams blo bzang sbyin pa gnyis dang / stod lung rgya legs pa rta mgrindbang phyug [11Ob] gis 'bad pa chen pos skor tshad dgos tshul gyi bskul ma byung bas ISgo mang Rab 'byams pa Ngag dbang dar rgyas and Smad rams Bl0 bzang sbyin pa areboth mentioned at Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Kha skong, v. 3, fol. 229b3. See Sangs rgyas

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fix select circumambulation routes in Lhasa. This Sangye Gyatsoaccomplishes in about five pages toward the end of the work. For fullyone hundred pages before this, however, he mounts a case for thesupreme importance of the Fifth Dalai Lama's stiipa. Just as theBuddha's seat of enlightenment lay at the center of the cardinaldirections in India, so does the Single Ornament Stiipa lie at the center ofTibet. As in Tales of the New Year, Sangye Gyatso employs a set ofthemes under which to extol the greatness of the stupa. In the LhasaCircumambulation Survey, however, he creates his own set of thirteenexcellent qualities, including location, time, craftsmen, constructionmaterials, reliquary contents, consecration ceremonies, and patronage.t?In contrast to the five perfections, Sangye Gyatso explicitely states thatthis larger scheme, while based upon scriptural authorities, was his owncreation-an unusual claim in an otherwise conservative literarytradition. 14 These thirteen excellent qualities in fact form the basis of hiscatalog of the Single Ornament Stiipa, where each topic is extensivelydetailed.

In the later part of the Lhasa Circumambulation Survey the benefitsof circumambulating both temples and cities are spelled out in the fullrange of authoritative sources, from sutras to tantras to recent treasuretexts. Sangye Gyatso cites the travel guide of Atisa, to note but oneexample, in which Atisa claims that he obtained spiritual boons bycircumambulating the great cities of India, and that fromcircumambulating the temple of Khasarpani he was cured ofelephantiasis. I 5

The actual work of surveying circumambulation routes wasconducted by five people.ts who must have provided Sangye Gyatsowith the data to compile the survey. The survey presents exact

rgya mtsho, Kha skong, v. 3, fo1. 273vA, for a Rgya yag pa Rta mgrin dbang phyug. Seealso Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Drin ...drug pa, fo1. 327b.5.

13 Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Rgyal: 1. gnas, 37a.3-40bA; 2. bsam pa, 40bA-41a.3;3. dus, 41a.3-41b.6; 4. bzo bo, 41b.6-42b.1; 5. bkod, [297] 42b.1-43a.5; 6. rten gyi ngobo, 43a.5-47b.2; 7. rgyu, 47b.2-48a.6; 8. gees pa 'i yan lag eho ga, 48a.6-49a.2; 9. rabgnas, 49a.2-49bA; 10. mehodpa, 49bA-59a.2; 11. yon bdag, 59a.3-61 bA; 12. 'phrin las,61bA-62b.2; 13. phan yon, 62b.2.

14 Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Mehod sdong 'dzam gling rgyan geig gtsug, p. 1063.15 Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Mehod sdong 'dzam gling rgyan gcig gtso bor, f.

101a.I.16 Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Rgyal f. 100a: Cha dkar ba Padma bsod nams; Lha sa

ba Opal 'byor rgya mtsho; Rgya gsar sgang Okon mchog; Lcags grad pa Bsod nams rabbrtan; Zhol gzhi ka ba Padma tshe brtan.

192 KURTIS R. SCHAEFFER

measurements for walking routes around a number of places in Lhasa,beginning with the Potala, which had only recently achieved the shapeknown today with the addition of the Red Palace. 17 According to SangyeGyatso there was no special tradition of walking around the Red Hillupon which the Potala now stood. The new route, he advocated, was torun from the western Zhol gate through the stupa at the entrance ofLhasa, and continue clockwise around Red Hill and the Potala to easternZhol gate. A single circuit around the hill was surveyed at 1032 armspans, or approximately one mile, though this may be a bit longer duringthe rainy season when muddy.If

Next Sangye Gyatso prescribes circuits in the chapel housing theDalai Lama's stupa as well as in adjacent chapels in the Red Palace. Theprinciple circumambulation route is, of course, around the Fifth DalaiLama's stupa itself. Four chapels on the ground floor of the Red Palaceare provided with circuit measurements: the Trungrab Lhakhang with itsstatue of Shakyamuni, the Lamrim Lhakhang and its central image ofTsongkhapa, the Rigdzin Lhakhang housing a statue of Padmasambhava,and the Dalai Lama's chapel as a whole.l?

From the Potala he moves to the central part of Lhasa and prescribescircuit measurements for several temples, including Ramocheand theJokhang. Lastly, Sangye Gyatso addresses the total length of theLingkhor circuit around Lhasa, including Ramoche, Meru, ZhideTratsang, Marpori, and Chakpori, which he claims comes to a total

17 The full skor tshad occurs at Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Rgyal, ff. IOOa.I-1 03a.l.A number of skor tshad works were composed in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries,particularly in Amdo, Khams, and Mongolia. Dharmabhadra, Dkar, pp. 524.6-526.4,contains a general discussion of skor tshad. His three-fold presentation follows a generalpattern found in many skor tshad texts: "There are three specific points regarding the thecircumambulation of holy receptacles: the measurement of what is to becircumambulated, instruction on how to circumambulate, and the benefits of havingcircumambulated" [Dharmabhadra, Dkar, pp. 524.6-525.2: da ni de Ita bu'i rten khyadpar can rnams la bskor bar bya la la gsum / bskor ba bya ba'i tshad / skor ba byed tshulgyi man ngag (I) bskor (525) ba byas pa 'i phan yon ni 1]. Very often the skor tshad iscombined with a 10 rgyus (sometimes dkar chag) or brief history of the place underdiscussion. See also Dkon mchog bstan pa'i sgron me, Gsung; Blo bzang bskal bzangrgya mtsho, Bde; Bstan pa rab rgyas, Se, pp. 222-229, and Lhun grub chos 'phel, Rwa,pp. 179-184, esp. 179.15-183.1 0 which follows Bstan pa rab rgyas, Se; Rol pa'i rdo rje,Tsan (Note that the translation of skor tshad in this title as "authentic" in Berger 2003:227, n. 80 should be ammended to "circumambulation survey").

18 Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Rgyal, fol, 100a.19 Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Rgyal, fol. 100b.

RITUAL, FESTIVAL, AND AUTHORITY 193

length of 4523 arm spans, or roughly four-to-five miles. In all, heprovides measurements for almost twenty different circuits.z?

III. Sangye Gyatso and the Invention ofTradition

What can we make of these two instances of writing-one concernedwith time, the other concerned with place, yet both overwhelminglyconcerned with the Fifth Dalai Lama? At the beginning of this essay Isuggested that the majority of Sangye Gyatso's writings in the mid-1690srepresent various efforts to argue for the supreme and just rule of theGanden Govemment.s! The actual processes by which this may havebeen achieved have yet to be theorized or studied in a historical fashionto any great degree. Nevertheless, the two works considered here offerminor but revealing evidence of this effort, presenting two differentarguments for the central place of the Fifth Dalai Lama's stiipa in lateseventeenth century Tibetan religious and political life. According toSangye Gyatso, the festivities of the New Year celebrate not only theDalai Lama but also the beneficent rule of the Ganden Government,under which Tibet will experience plentiful harvests, protection fromdisease, and good relations with demons and deities.z-' The stupa was noless than the single ornament of the world, the principle point around

20 The precise relational meaning of the principle terms in Sangs rgyas rgyamtsho's measurements, ri skor and mtha' skor, has eluded my understanding. The termmtha' skor, "circumfrence," seems straightforward and is used in most, if not all of theskor tshad texts composed after Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho's time. However, he employs theterm ri skor-which one might expect to mean "circumambulating a mountain"-in atechnical sense when he provides measurements. His measurements of the 'Dzam glingrgyan gcig itself provides a typical example: gser gdung rin po che 'dzam gling rgyangcig thog zo lnga pa 'i sa 'dzin mtha' skor la gzhal bya gong bzhin gyi mtho brgya dangbzhi bcu sor bzhir 'bum ther 'sr» bar ri skor chig stong bdun brgya / [Sangs rgyas rgyamtsho, Mchod sdong 'dzam gling rgyan gcig gtso bor, fol. 1OOb.I]. I have not found thisuse of ri skor in any of the other skor tshad texts I have perused. This and many otherissues of interpretation are compounded by the fact that the single witness of the Lha saskor tshad to which I have access is plagued with numerous orthographic errors. I hope toreturn to this issue at a later date. Another instance of the two terms occurs at Sangs rgyasrgya mtsho, Thams, pp. 60-61: de nas rong dogs nyams dang lam skya shar yod pa zhigla sku zhabs rin po che sku 'gan sbyar gos ther gser ma de zlum khyer gyis mnabs chibsla chibs te phebs par ri mtha' skor sogs ljon shing gi rigs kyang yod snyam pa khang pabgogs nyams can rdo skas shar du gtad pa zhig gi nang mi tshang des spyan [61] 'drenzhus khul gyi rdo skas la phyag 'then ban gzugs bongs che ba gos dmar gyi lding sloggyon pa smug 'dzi ri ba zhig gis byas!

21 Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Rgyal, fol. 44b.22 Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Rgyal, fol. 44b.

194 KURTIS R. SCHAEFFER

which the major rites of the Potala would be arranged, a secondVajrasana.

As the center of a developing set of ceremonial rites, the DalaiLama's stupa also symbolized a hierarchic relationship developingbetween the Gandenpa School and other schools. For while the GandenGovernment converted monasteries throughout central and western TibetSangye Gyatso had the relics of past masters brought to the Potala to beplaced in the Single Ornament Stiipa. Just as philosophical positions arearranged hierarchically in a treatise on tenets, the relics of other school'smasters, including those taken from such places as Rinpung, weresubsumed within the greater structure of the Dalai Lama' stilpa, bothphysically and symbolically.23

One rhetorical method routinely used by Sangye Gyatso to argue forthe preeminence of the Gandenpa has to do the relationship between thepast and the present, or between tradition and innovation. In both of theseworks Sangye Gyatso considered himself to be initiating new customs, ashe tells us on several occasions. Yet he also took great pains to link thesenew examples of religious activity with classically dictated ritual forms.Indeed, quotations from sutras and other canonical works form up to halfof any given work by Sangye Gyatso. The Dalai Lama died just like theBuddha, Sangye Gyatso tells us, and yet everything from the way inwhich the Dalai Lama's remains were preserved to the rituals ofcommemoration were clearly and self-consciously contemporaryinnovations that needed to be persuasively argued for.

In this tension between visions of a timeless order and the realia oflocal contingency we see a good example of what historian EricHobsbawm has termed "invented tradition," or "a set of practices,normally governed by overtly or tacitly accepted rules and of a ritual orsymbolic nature, which seek to inculcate certain values and norms ofbehavior by repetition, which automatically implies continuity with thepast."24 In these two works we see Sangye Gyatso explicitly combiningestablished traditions claiming venerable authority with new rites andceremonies. Both here and elsewhere Sangye Gyatso is eager to showthat the New Year's festivities are part of an unbroken ancienttradition.s> In the Lhasa Circumambulation Survey he presents a brief

23 Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Mchod sdong 'dzam gling rgyan gcig gtsug, p. 581.24 Hobsbawm 1992: 1.25 See the recurring mention at Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Drin ...drug pa, ff. 1b.5,

79b.3, 138a.1.

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history of festivals in Tibet, providing scriptural citations attesting to theproper Buddhist character of festivals as well as a justification ofmonastic participation in such activities,26 Associating such solemnceremonial rites as the mourning of the Dalai Lama and the moreboisterous seasonal festivities of the New Year also entailed reconcilingapparent contradictions between such phenomena as popular music anddance with monastic decorum.s? Elsewhere he goes to great lengths toshow that the Fifth Dalai Lama's remains were cared for in just the samemanner as those of the Buddha--despite the obvious point that in thestandard hagiographies the Buddha was cremated, while the Dalai Lamawas mummified. Yet in the very act of drawing these connectionsbetween tradition and innovation he reveals how necessary it was toactively maintain such calendrical and memorial rites and throughpersuasive writings and the establishment of new ceremonies. The effectof such histories-be they of festivals, the New Year, or the death of theBuddha--was precisely to authorize his own innovations centering onthe Potala.

The invention of tradition in Sangye Gyatso's writings most likelycontinues a project begun by the Fifth Dalai Lama,28 The two worksbriefly considered here share much in common with the Fifth DalaiLama's own Guidelines for the Great Prayer Festival ofLhasa, the firstsection of which is a history of the festival's development.v? Indeed, thesame rhetoric can be seen in writings from the earliest years of the DalaiLama's rule in the 1640s, for even then his life was cast in terms of itscontinuity with major events of both the Buddha's life story and theTibetan imperial past. Writing in 1646, an early biographer of the FifthDalai Lama states that the foundation for the Potala was first laid on theBuddha's birth and death day in 1645. During this auspicious event theDalai Lama's patron, Gushri Khan, beheld a great temple in the sky over

26 Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Mchod sdong 'dzam gling rgyan gcig gtso bor, fo!. 50a.27 Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Mchod sdong 'dzam gling rgyan gcig gtso bor, fo!. 51a.28 This process certainly goes back to the imperial period, as Kapstein 2000:

chapters 1-4 has shown. Kapstein's suggestion that "when it is conversion of a nation thatis at issue, the gradual transformation of cosmological frameworks, of ritual, intellectual,and bureaucratic practices, and of the historical and mythic narratives through which thenational identity is constituted are among the key themes to which we must attend"[Kapstein 2000: 65], is certainly applicable to the present example, even if we are notspeaking strictly of conversion in the case of the Fifth Dalai Lama.

29 Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho, Lha.

196 KURTIS R. SCHAEFFER

the area, a vision that was in tum verified by the prophetic words of thatmost famous king of dharma, Songtsen Gampo.t?

Little did this biographer know that fifty years later the DalaiLama's remains would inhabit the center of a massive fortress of dharma,or that the identification of the Dalai Lama with both the bodhisattva ofcompassion and the Buddha himself would find its greatest elaboration inthe writings of the Dalai Lama's successor to power. In his 1698 historyof the Gandenpa school we thus find Sangye Gyatso describing thecentral government of Tibet as "the integration of religious and secularways and the magnificent root of all benefit and joy for every being.." Hegoes on to make an explicit connection between government andbodhisattva by applying a passage from Santideva's Guide to theBodhisattva's Way of Life to the Ganden Government itself: "The onlycure for the suffering of beings, the source of all pleasure." Just asSangye Gyatso sought to systematize administrative roles within theGanden Government in his early work of 1681, so did he seek to createsystems of ritual in Lhasa in the service of government, systemsmoreover sanctioned by the greatest authorities of Indian Buddhistliterature. By the end of the 1690s the Ganden Government as heraldedin Sangye Gyatso' s writings had become no less than the enlightenedcaretaker of Tibet, benefactor of the arts and sciences, powered,empowered, and authorized by the golden stiipa containing themummified body of the Fifth Dalai Lama at its center.

Appendix: Writings of Sangye Gyatso

The collected writings of Sangye Gyatso were printed at the printinghouse below the Potala, and the blocks were kept at Drepung monasteryuntil they were destroyed in 1949. Most of these works were printed atthe Ganden Puntsokling (Dga' ldan phun tshogs gling) Printery in Zholunder the Potala (See Anonymous, Gangs, 181-84). We now haveapproximately ninety percent of his writings. Nevertheless, a number ofSangye Gyatso's works relevant to the present project are currentlyunavailable in published form or in the collection of E. Gene Smith at theTibetan Buddhist Resource Center (TBRC).

Missing works include: homage prayers to his previous lives('Khrungs rabs rnam thar gsol 'debs kyi 'grel pa mu tig chun po, ff. 79);the guide to the Great Offering Ceremony (Tshogs mchod bca' sgrigs, ff.

30 'Jam dbyangs dbang rgyal rdo rje, Rgyal, fol. 125b.

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99 [Most likely composed in 1693; see Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho,Drin ...drug pa, f. 136a.3]); a Prajfiaparamita commentary (Sher mdo 'i'gres rkang 'jam mgon tsong kha pa'i dgongs rgyan, ff. 71), and(perhaps most importantly for this study) a book of guidelines for theeducation of the Sixth Dalai Lama. The account of the Fifth DalaiLama's transference of consciousness to the Sixth Dalai Lama (Lnga padrug par 'phos pa'i gtam rna ba'i bcud len, ff. 110), is available inseveral public collections, including the University of Washington.

Several comments can be made about the chronology of SangyeGyatso's works. In 1693 he wrote a commentary on verses detailing theprevious lives of the Fifth Dalai Lama (Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho,Drin ...drug pa, f. 132a; Anonymous, Gangs.). It was most likely in 1693that he composed the Regulations for the Great Offering Ceremony, aguidebook for the annual commemoration of the Fifth Dalai Lamainstituted by Sangye Gyatso himself 1694 and performed into thetwentieth century during the later part of the second Tibetan month. Seethe 99 folio work listed in Bka, , p. 626: tshogs mchod chen ma'i bca'sgrig mchod sbyin mi zad la dgu bcu go dgu I. See also Lange (1976).See Tsepak Rigzin 1993,21-22.

In the early part of 1695 he completed his brief biography of theDalai Lama (Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Drin ...drug pa, f. 208b.3). In 1695he also wrote his Tales for the New Year, as well as an account of theFifth Dalai Lama's transference of consciousness to the sixth (Sangsrgyas rgya mtsho, Drin ...drug pa, f. 339a; but compare Sangs rgyas rgyamtsho, Thams, 323-24).

In 1696 he completed the massive account of building the DalaiLama's stiipa as well as the three-volume continuation of the DalaiLama's autobiography. In 1697 he composed a short work on the FifthDalai Lama's remains, in which he argued that preserving the body ofthe Dalai Lama whole within a stupa was warranted by classicalBuddhist tradition despite the fact that the Buddha's body was cremated(Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Pur). In this year he also composed the LhasaCircumambulation Survey. He also began the Sngon 'gro lha'i rnga chenin 1697, a work that E. Gene Smith describes as "guidelines for how theDalai Lama should be educated (personal communication 10/21/02) (SeeSangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Thams, 364.). In 1698 he completed the YellowBeryl, his history of the Gandenpa School, on which he had worked forSIX years.

198 KURTIS R. SCHAEFFER

Finally in 1701 we find him finishing one of his last works, thebiography of the Sixth Dalai Lama, a work that is better seen as acontinuation of the biographical writings on the Fifth Dalai Lama. Thedating of all these works requires further detailing; the following is arough chronology of writings (totaling some 3640 printed folios)composed by Sangye Gyatso from 1693 to 1701 pertaining to the FifthDalai Lama:

1693: Verse and commentary on the previous lives of the Fifth DalaiLama. 79 folios. 'Khrungs rabs rnam thar gsol 'debs kyi 'grel pa mutig chun po. Unavailable.

1693: Regulations for the annual Great Offering Ceremony to the FifthDalai Lama. 99 folios. Mchod sbyin nam mkha' mdzod kyi rgyunbtsugs pa'i tshogs mchod bca' bsgrigs 'byung khungs mdo rgyudshar ri nas drangs pa 'i byang chen nyi ma 'i dkyil 'khor. Unavailable.

1694: Tales for the New Year. 46 folios. Rgyal khab chen po 'i dga' stongyi dus dam pa'i chos las brtsams pa'i 'bel gtam gyi Ide mig skalbzang mgrin rgyan rna bar kun dga' ster ba 'i bdud rtsi.

1695: Verse-biography of the Dalai Lama. 194 folios. Drin can rtsa ba'ibla ma ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 'i thun mong phyi 'i mdzadpa rnam thar don bsdus gyur pa dbyangs can 'phang 'gro 'i rgyudlas drangs pa rab snyan gzhan gsos kyi glu. Blockprint available atTBRC.

1695: Account of the Fifth Dalai Lama's transference of consciousnessto the Sixth. 110 folios. Pad dkar 'dzin pa ngur smrig gar rol lngapa sdom brtson rgyal po 'i tshul 'chang ba drug par 'phos pa 'i gtamrna ba'i bcud len yid kyi kun dga. ' Available at University ofWashington.

1696: Account of building and installation the Dalai Lama's stilpa. 767folios. Mchod sdong 'dzam gling rgyan gcig rten gtsug lag khangdang bcas pa'i dkar chag thar gling rgya mtshor bgrod pa 'i rdurdzings byin rlabs kyi bang mdzod.

1696: Lhasa Circumambulation Survey. 111 folios. Mchod sdong 'dzamgling rgyan gcig gtso bor gyur pa 'i lha sa ra mo che rigs gsum bla ridang bcas pa spyi bye brag gi skor tshad byang chen bgrod pa 'imyur lam.

1696: Three-volume continuation of the Dalai Lama's autobiography.1081 folios. Drin can rtsa ba'i bla ma ngag dbang blo bzang rgyamtsho 'i thun mong phyi 'i rnam thar du k,u la 'i gos bzang glegs bam

RITUAL, FESTIVAL, AND AUTHORITY 199

gsum pa'i 'phros bzhi ba; glegs bam bzhi pa'i 'phros lnga pa; glegsbam lnga pa'i 'phros drug pa.

1697: Account of the Fifth Dalai Lama's remains. 19 folios. Pur tshwame 'dzin ma'i dkar chag dad pa'i sa bon gyis bskyed pa'i byin rlabsro bda. ' Blockprint available at TBRC.

1697: Guidelines for the education of the Sixth Dalai Lama. 201 folios.'Gro kun dad pa'i zhing sar bden don chos char 'bebs pa'i sngon'gro 'i gtam lha'i rnga chen. Unavailable.

1698: Yellow Beryl history of the Gandenpa school. 419 folios. Dpalmnyam med ri bo dga' ldan pa'i bstan pa zhwa ser cod pan 'changba'i ring lugs chos thams cad kyi rtsa ba gsal bar byed pa baiduryaser po 'i me long.

1701: Biography of the Sixth Dalai Lama. 514 folios. Thams cad mkhyenpa drug pa blo bzang rin chen tshangs dbyangs rgya mtsha'i thunmong phyi'i rnam par thar pa du kuu la'i 'phro 'thud rab gsal gsergyi snye ma glegs bam dang po.

Tibetan ReferencesDkon mchog bstan pa'i sgron me (1762-1823). Gsung thor bu las rten

gsum dkar chag dang skor tshad kyi rim pa phyogs bkod pa. pp. 162­191, v. 10, in: The Collected works of Gun-than Dkon-mchog-bstan­pa'i sgron-me. New Delhi: Ngawang GelekDemo, 1972-1979.

Ngag dbang blo bzang, Klang rdol Bla rna (1719-1794). Bka' gdams padang dge lugs pa'i bla ma rags rim gyi gsum 'bum dkar chag. Klongrdol ngag dbang blo bzang gi gsum 'bum. Bod ljongs bod yig dpemying dpe skrun khang, Lhasa. 1991. vol. 2,495-638.

Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho, Dalai Lama V (1617-1682). Lha ldansmon lam chen mo 'i gral 'dzin bca yig. Bod kyi snga rabs khrimssrol yig cha bdams bsgrigs. Bod ljongs spyi tshogs tshan rig khang gibod yig dpe mying dpe skrun khang, Lhasa. 1989. Gangs can rigmdzod 7. 324-345.

'Jam dbyangs dbang rgyal rdo rje, Smon 'gro ba (seventeenth c.). Rgyaldbang thams cad mkhyen pa ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 'imtshan thos pa'i yid la bdud rtsir byed pa'i rnam thar mthong badon ldan mchog tu dga' ba'i sgra dbyangs sarga gsum pa. CulturalPalace of Nationalities, Beijing, no. 00255. 126 folios.

Bstan pa rab rgyas, Khri chen (1759-1815). Se ra theg chen gling girgyab ri'i che brjod gnas yig dang / rwa sgreng sbyang chos yer pa

200 KURTIS R. SCHAEFFER

sogs kyi skor tshad. Bod kyi gnas yig bdams bsgrigs. Bod ljongs bodyig dpe mying dpe skrun khang, Lhasa. 1995.219-236.

Dharmabhadra, Dngul chu (1772-1851). Dkar chag dang skor tshad kyirim pa phyogs gcig tu bsgrigs pa. Collected works (gsun 'bum) ofDnul-chu Dharmabhadra. Tibet House, New Delhi 1973-1981. v. 4,517-577.

Blo bzang bskal bzang rgya mtsho, Ta'a la'i bla rna 7 (1708-1757). Bdebar gshegs pa 'i sku gsung thugs rten sogs kyi skor tshad kyi rim paphyogs bsdebs byang chen rgya mtshor bgrod pa 'i shing rta. In TheCollected Works (Gsun 'bum) of the Seventh Dalai Lama Blo-bzan­bksal-bzan-rgya-mtsho, Dodrup Sangye, Gangtok. 1976. vol. 3, 163­249.

Rol pa'i rdo rje, Leang skya (1717-1786). Tsan danjo bo 'i 10 rgyus skortshad phan yon mdor bsdus rin po che'i 'phreng ba. Gsung 'bum,vol. 7, ff. 10.

Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, Sde srid (1653-1705). Rgyal khab chen po'idga' ston gyi dus dam pa'i chos las brtsams pa'i 'bel gtam gyi Idemig skal bzang mgrin rgyan rna bar kun dga' ster ba'i bdud rtsi. ff.46. comp. 1694. Incomplete manuscript copy kept at TBRC, NewYork [W8821]. Nepal National Archives (NNA), L30/32-L3111, ff.46.

__. Mchod sdong 'dzam gling rgyan gcig rten gtsug lag khang dangbcas pa'i dkar chag thar gling rgya mtshor bgrod ba'i gru rdzingsbyin rlabs kyi bang mdzod. Bod ljongs mi rigs dpe skrung khang,Beijing. 1990.

__. Mchod sdong 'dzam gling rgyan gcig gtso bor gyur pa 'i lha sa ramo che rigs gsum bla ri dang bcas pa spyi bye brag gi skor tshadbyang chen bgrodpa 'i myur lam. ff. 111. Copy at TBRC.

__. Thams cad mkhyen pa drug ba blo bzang rin chen tshangsdbyangs rgya mtsho 'i thun mong phyi 'i rnam par thar pa du ku la'i'phro 'thud rab gsal gser gyi snye ma. Tshe ring phun tshogs, Ed.Bod ljongs mi dmangs dpe skrun khang, Lha sa. 1989.

__. Drin can rtsa ba'i bla ma ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 'ithun mong phyi 'i rnam thar du k,u la'i gos bzang glegs bam gsumpa'i 'phros bzhi ba. ff. 360. Zhol blockprint at TBRC.

__. Drin can rtsa ba'i bla ma ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 'ithun mong phyi'i rnam thar du k,u la'i gos bzang glegs bam bzhipa'i 'phros lnga pa. ff. 338. Zhol blockprint at TBRC.

RITUAL, FESTIVAL, AND AUTHORITY 201

__. Drin can rtsa ba'i bla ma ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho 'ithun mong phyi 'i rnam thar du k,u la'i gos bzang glegs bam lngapa'i 'phros drug pa. ff. 383. Zhol blockprint at TBRC.

__. Dpal mnyam med ri bo dga' ldan pa 'i bstan pa zhwa ser cod pan'chang ba'i ring lugs chos thams cad kyi rtsa ba gsal bar byed pa 'ibai urya ser po 'i me long. Krung go bod kyi shes rigs dpe skrunkhKhg, Beijing. 1989.

__. Pur tshwa me 'dzin ma'i dkar chag dad pa 'i sa bon gyis bskyedpa 'i byin rlabs ro bda. 'ff. 19. Copy at TBRC.

Lhun grub chos 'phel. Rwa sgreng dgon pa 'i dkar chag. Si khron mi rigsdpe skrun khang, Chengdu. 1994.

Anyonymous. Gangs can gyi ljongs su bka' dang bstan bcos sogs kyiglegs bam spar gzhi ji ltar yod pa rnams nas dkar chag spar thogphyogs tsam du bkod pa phan bde 'i pad tshal 'byed pa 'i nyin byed.Three Dkar Chag's. Ngawang Gelek Demo, New Delhi. 1970. 169­243.

Anonymous. Bod rgya skar rtsis rig pa 'i tshig mdzod. Si khron mi rigsdpe skrun khang, Chengdu. 1987.

Anonymous. Zhwa ser bstan pa 'i sgron me rje tsong kha pa chen posgtsos skyes chen dam pa rim byon gi gsum 'bum dkar chag phyogsgcig tu bsgrigs pa 'i dri med zla shel gtsang ma 'i me long. Bod ljongsmi dmangs dpe skrun khang, Lha sa. 1990. pp. 261-264.

Other ReferencesAhmad, Z. 1998. Sans-rGyas rGya-mTSHo: Life of the Fifth Dalai

Lama, Volume IV, Part 1. New Delhi: International Academy ofIndian Culture.

Berger, P. 2003. Empire of Emptiness: Buddhist Art and PoliticalAuthority in Qing China. Honolulu: University ofHawai'i Press.

Chayet, A. 2003. The Potala, Symbol of the Power of the Dalai Lamas.In Francoise Pommaret, (ed.), Lhasa in the Seventeenth Century: TheCapitol ofthe Dalai Lamas. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 39-52.

Hobsbawm, E. 1992. Introduction: Inventing Traditions. In EricHobsbawm and Terrence Ranger (eds.) The Invention of Tradition.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1-14.

Ishihama, Y. 1993. On the Dissemination of the Belief in the Dalai Lamaas a Manifestation of the Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara. Acta Asiatica64: 38-56.

BIBLlOfHEQUEUNlVERSITAIRELA ROCHELLE

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Kapstein, M. T. 2000. The Tibetan Assimilation of Buddhism:Conversion, Contestation, and Memory. New York: OxfordUniversity Press.

Lange, K. 1976. Die Werke des Regenten Sans rgyas rgya me '0 (1653­1705): Eine philologisch-historische Studie zum tibetischsprachigenSchriftum. Berlin: Akademie-Verlag.

Meyer, F. 1987. The Pota1a Palace of the Dalai Lamas in Lhasa.Orientations 18(7): 14-33.

Richardson, H. 1998. The Fifth Dalai Lama's Decree Appointing Sangs­rgyas-rgya-mtsho as Regent. In M. Aris (ed.) High Peaks, PureEarth: Collected Writings on Tibetan History and Culture. London:Serindia Publications, London, 440-461.

Schaeffer, K. R. 2005. The Fifth Dalai Lama Ngawang Lopsang Gyatso.In Martin Brauen (ed.) The Dalai Lamas: A Visual History. Chicago:Serindia Publications, 65-91, 280-281.

Schaeffer, K. R. forthcoming. Salt and the Sovereignty of the DalaiLama, circa 1697. In Jinhua Chen (ed.) festschrift in honor of KoichiShinohara.

Tsepak R. 1993. Festivals of Tibet. Dharamsala: Library of TibetanWorks and Archives.

CHAPTER TWELVE

BAN DE SKYA MIN SER MIN:TSHANGS DBYANGS RGYA MTSHO'S COMPLEX, CONFUSED

AND CONFUSING RELATIONSHIP WITHSDE SRID SANGS RGYAS RGYA MTSHO AS PORTRAYED IN

THE TSHANGS DBYANGS RGYA MTSHO'I MGUL GLU

Simon Wickham-Smith

It is hard to know quite where to start. Whilst we know that the SixthDalai Lama existed-at least between 1683 and 1706-and whilst wehave a temple guide which is almost certainly his work, the text forwhich he is most famous, the Tshangs dbyangs rgya mtsho 'i mgul glu,may not be by him at all, or it may-more likely-be a hotchpotch ofpoems from his pen and from the pens of those who would be hisimitators.

But we have to start somewhere. And since we cannot be certainabout the provenance of any of these poems, let us forget for a momentabout historical truth. In its stead, we can look upon Tshangs dbyangsrgya mtsho as the myth which he has, subsequent to either or both of hisbodily deaths, become, and in which his power lies. After all, he left noteachings, he left no prayers, he left no commentaries: his legacy is theinterpenetration of the linear and the lateral-of history andmythopoesis: this is the moment at which the signified and thesignifier-the physical form and the narrative-become one in theconsciousness of the society through which he passed; again and again,he returns in a different (in this case, poetic) form, a manifestationthrough which perception is turned towards (or maybe into) themetaphysical and, thus, we experience not only the emotions-of love,of rejection, of dejection, of treachery, of being overwhelmed byresponsibility, by the touch of life itself-which he himself felt but alsowe feel their resonance within ourselves.

So these are his teachings, perhaps, for us. And, although I don'there want to concentrate upon his religious and spiritual position, thetowering and hopelessly, frustratingly complex figure of the regent isnonetheless centerstage, so it behoves us to acknowledge the

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multidimensional position which both the Dalai Lama and his regent heldin the religio-political world of Central Asia at the tum of theseventeenth century.

It could be said, of course, that it is precisely the multidimensionalnature of this relationship which lies at the heart of the mgul glu. At leastone commentator, the Chinese scholar Xiao Diyan, has seen the entiretext as an exposition of the political triangle played out between Tshangsdbyangs rgya mtsho, Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho and the Lhazang Qan and,although his interpretation seems occasionally to be somewhat contrived,it's nonetheless clear that the text does indeed illustrate not only Tsangdbyang rgya mtsho's emotional response to, but also his profound andprofoundly cynical understanding of, his political position.

Throughout the mgul glu, both people and animals are portrayed asbeing untrustworthy, fickle, likely to spill the beans and tell that whichshould not be told. Throughout his life, Tshangs dbyangs rgya mtsho wastreated as a political pawn, a person to be manoevered through andaround situations rather than one who might take these situations andaffect them himself. His relationship with Sangs rgyas rgya mtshohovered always on the knife-edge of apposite action: how much did hefeel himself able to confide in the regent, the person who had raised him,who had taught him so much, but who seemed so reluctant to withdrawand allow him his rightful position as head of state? And it is clearlypolitical, rather than spiritual, power with which the regent is concerned:after all, it was he who had found Tshangs dbyangs rgya mtsho in Mon,it was he who had identified the child as the rebirth of the Great Fifth, hisown beloved patron, lama and spiritual friend-there is no way in whichthe regent could doubt, either within his heart or within the hierarchy, thevalidity of the Dalai Lama's religious status or spiritual power.

Before looking at the poems, we should first consider precisely whatit is we are doing. For, just as there is no clear indication in the mgul gluof a single author, there are no clear pointers to aid identification of anyother characters. As with any literary detective work, all we can do isguess at the author's meaning through contextualised analysis. And ofcourse, contextualised analysis for one person might be vague conjecturefor another. In this context, though, we do know quite a bit about theRegent's personality and writings, from which we can elicit certaininterpretations.

We can broadly divide the Regent's sphere of influence into itspublic and private aspects, although the two would undoubtedly have

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interlaced at certain points. To read the poems in this way might alsohelp us to focus on the fact that they were probably written for Tshangsdbyangs rgya rntshos personal pleasure as much as for publicconsumption, with all its concomitant sociopolitical implications.

The way in which Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho conducted his life lefthim open to mockery. The title of this paper-bande skya min ser min­refers directly to his inability to decide whether he was layman or monk;in the mgul glu, the couplet of which this is the first line refers to such aperson as an enemy of the Buddha's teaching. This may be a seriousaccusation or it may be simply an affectionate prod in the ribs, butnonetheless it points out the Regent's arrogance, indecisiveness andinfidelity.

This particular verse also points to the strength of the regent'spower. The first couplet tells of the cloud, yellow outside and blackwithin, as being a source for frost and hail. The three or four poems inthis grouping tell about natural phenomena with dramatic effects: therock and wind (the Qan and the Regent perhaps) attack the vulture'splumage, while the stallion is carelessly let loose upon slippery ground­all three poems suggest Tshangs dbyangs rgya mtsho ' s frustration at themanipulative hands of the Regent. Indeed, the melting surface (kha zhu)clearly indicates the uncertainty of water, the way in which it distorts andtransforms the appearance of things.

Just as the natural world is used as an analog for the Regent'snegative qualities, it's also used to illustrate his positive qualities. One ofthe most poignant poems in the mgul glu is one which can be interpretedboth with public and private import. If, with Xiao Diyan, we understandthe Regent as represented by the thousand-petalled hollyhock, then it'spossible to read this poem as a request for protection, that the youngDalai Lama, the turquiose bee, be taken into the temple amidst thehollyhock's bloom.

This is particularly interesting because it illustrates perhaps howTshangs dbyangs rgya mtsho perceives himself in relation to his regent.He either feels himself to be truly inferior, or else simply so in the eyesof society: nonetheless, the fact that the beautiful turquoise bee feels theneed to hide within the long blossoming hollyhock suggests maybe thatthe intellectual and social brilliance of the regent is both overwhelmingand, occasionally, very useful to the young lama. There is similarevidence of the poet's shyness elsewhere in the text (for instance whenhe catches sight of a girl's brilliant smile at a party) and I tend to feel that

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he is presenting us with a slightly devious self-portrait-as someone whowants protection from himself or from the power which he wields. Afterall, again and again he comments on the power struggle between himselfand the Regent and between the Qan and the Regent, but he never reallyacknowledges the fact that he is the Dalai Lama: from what we know ofhis wilful nature, this strikes me as rather a false humility-particularlywhen we read the poem in which he confidently describes himself asboth rig 'dzin and'chal po, Knowledge Holder and Letcher.

Already we are beginning to see another aspect, far deeper and morecomplex, to this relationship. In political terms, Sangs rgyas rgya mtshohad effectively run Tibet since the Great Fifth died in 1682. One wouldimagine that, throughout his childhood and early adolescence, Tshangsdbyangs rgya mtsho would have looked to the older man, not only forspiritual teaching and emotional succour but also to show the way inwhich he should conduct himself as Dalai Lama. It appears, from theRegent's own account of the child's upbringing, that an attempt wasmade to replicate the intellectual hothouse in which he himself had beenschooled by his teacher, the Great Fifth, and one would assume that theidea of an unbroken lineage would have spurred the older man to put aconsiderable amount of pressure-not always benign-upon theyounger. We can only wonder at how, as he grew to manhood, the DalaiLama might have come to perceive his mentor: it seems most likely tome that he would have seen his Regent as that most irritating of people,someone he could neither live with nor without. And I would guess thatthe Regent would have recognised these confusing and powerfulemotions and used them to his own advantage.

For this reason, it should come as no surprise that Sangs rgyas rgyamtsho encouraged the relationship between his daughter and the DalaiLama-a relationship which presumably either developed or becameknown following Tshangs dbyangs rgya mtshos disrobing in early 1702.Through his daughter, he perhaps hoped to control the young man'swilfulness and thereby bring some peace to the state as much as tohimself.

This brings us to a term which is significant throughout the mgulglu. Chung 'dris refers to a person whom one has known since childhoodand it seems unlikely that a girl other than the Regent's daughter wouldfit such a role: in the secretive, monastic setting in which Tsang­sdbyangs rgya mtsho had been raised, it would surely have been odd foranother, random girl to have spent much time with this closeted monk.

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So what are we to make of the poem in which prayer-flags are tiedto a willow for the poet's sweetheart, his chung 'dris byams pa? Maybethe willow is the poet, the guardian of the willow the Regent. So thepoet's request that the guardian shouldn't throw stones at the tree is verytelling. Was the Regent in fact so determined to prejudice therelationship that he would damage it with such force, or is Tshangsdbyangs rgya mtsho misreading the situation? It could be, of course, thatthe Regent perceived that the situation warranted a circumspection whichthe lama was too unsubtle to grant, that it was still consideredinappropriate for the Dalai Lama to behave like the layman he in factwas: this would suggest that, by throwing stones, by creating problems inthe relationship, things might be hushed up.

If this is so, we're again seeing a pragmatic side to the Regentwhich a cursory reading of the poems might not reveal. This is the man,after all, who managed to conceal the Great Fifth's death for fifteenyears, bribing and cajoling a hapless monk from the Rnam rgyal grwatshang into impersonating the dead ruler and convincing all those whoneeded convincing that the Dalai Lama was in fact in an enclosed retreat.It is not then beyond possibility that, far from doing deliberate damage toTshangs dbyangs rgya mtsho' s relationship, the Regent was in fact tryingto cover all his bases, to protect the relationship, to protect the authorityof the Dalai Lama and to protect, maybe most of all, himself fromcriticism.

To read all the poems in which Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho is accusedof being fickle and untrustworthy as a misunderstanding of a fallible mandoing his best in a difficult situation, though, brings to my mind theparental line, "I'm only doing it for your own good." At worst, it'semotionally abusive, at best it's disrespectful and condescending; but, ofcourse, the problem is that the parent frequently believes that he or she isin fact doing the best for the child and I get the impression, both that thisis the case with the Regent and that Tshangs dbyangs rgya mtshorecognises this to be the case.

Many of the poems in the mgul glu can be read along these lines. Iagree with Per Sorensen's suggestion that the Regent can be read both asthe Dharmapala Rdo rje grags ldan and the enemy of the Dharma againstwhom the Dharmapala is invoked. When the poet says to theDharmapala, "if you possess magical power" (mthu dang nus pa yod na),his lack of conviction is palpable and the Regent's ultimate vulnerabilityis laid open to criticism. Maybe it is this very vulnerability which makes

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Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho an (unwitting) enemy of the Buddha's teaching,it's potentially a very powerful indictment of the Dalai Lama's entirepolitical and personal situation and a scathing attack on the person of theRegent. But, if we do choose to read the poem as being more than aprayer to Rdo rje grags ldan, an identification of the Dharmapala with theRegent means that the Dalai Lama is using-maybe out of genuinerespect as much as convention-honorific language to address him. Andthis honorific language-bzhugs, skyong, sgroI-conveys not onlyrespect but also the implication of transcendence, as though the Regent'sposition, and therefore his actions, were somehow taking place outsidequotidien reality.

So maybe this poem reveals a deeper understanding of the Regent'sbehavior than might at first seem possible. Elsewhere, after all, we mightcare to read him as a peacock, as a lover, as the sun (to the Qan's moon)and as an eternal friend. Moreover, given the deep affection whichTshangs dbyangs rgya mtsho and he evidently had for one another, it isunsurprising that, in certain specific circumstances, his tone of addressrises into the spiritually charged honorific.

As we focus down upon the one-to-one emotional rawness of therelationship between these two men, we need to remember that theposition in which they found themselves was not easily escapable. Theimage of the knotted snake presents us with a knot and with its self­effected unknotting, suggesting that a relationship (and here the market­girl, the tshong 'dus bu mo, is linked with the Regent) can only properlybe resolved from within. The three words spoken by the poet and the girlhere indicate a firm declaration of love and of course this love might wellbe other than romantic: the implication is that nothing can come betweenthe two people, that they are destined to work out their relationship intheir own way. And for people who can't live with, or without, the other,this resolution is a painful and traumatic process.

The image of lovers as a parallel for the relationship between theRegent and the poet-lama is clearly highly potent. Lovers have anintimacy which covers the gamut of emotion, from anger and hatred tothe closest and most private love. And, of course, the topos of romanticlove conceals a certain amount of power play and infantilism: so manyclassic love-songs use the word "baby" (and I for one have translated theword byams pa in this way from time to time), we most of us refer to ourpartners (at least when unmarried) as girl- or boyfriend and we often hearhow someone has 'stolen' someone else's lover.

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It is possible throughout the mgul glu to equate the lover-thebyams pa and the chung- dris-with Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho although itshould again be pointed out that this could refer to the Regent's daughterand, through her, to the Regent himself. That the lover is frequentlydescribed as fickle and inconsistent should come as no surprise, since theprincipal character trait of Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho appears to have beenan inability as much to decide a path for himself as it to decide upon amistress. In one poem, the lover is described as gtan grogs, an eternalfriend: this is a frequent term of affection for a spouse, a particularlypoignant image perhaps for this infuriating man to whom Tshangsdbyangs rgya mtsho owed so much and from whose grasp he could neverbe truly free. If we read the turquoise placed in the poet's hair as the poethimself, we can see that whereas Tshangs dbyangs rgya mtsho is simplya figurehead, kept silent and impotent out of the way, the Regent is freeto act with impunity-brazen and unfaithful in the words of the text,khrel dang ngo tsha med-and to do just as he wants.

We see a similar idea played out in another poem. The lover is lyingon the poet's bed, her alluring body tender and soft: he asks her whethershe's come to weave a web of lies and thus steal the young man's mostvaluable treasure. This is significant considering the position of the DalaiLama-is this treasure the political power which Sangs rgyas rgya mtshodesires to such an extent that he is willing to spin deceit throughout thehigher echelons of Lhasa society? Or maybe this is a reference to theattempted assassination of the Dalai Lama's closest friend and confidant,Thar rgyas nas, which cost the lama the ability fully to trust the Regentever agam.

Finally in this section, we should make mention of the literarytheme which appears in a number of the poems, namely the references toTshe ring dbang dus' contemporary verse drama Chos rgyal nor bzang,based on thejataka story Sudhana.

Although we can never be completely certain, it seems clear to methat Tsang-sdbyangs rgya mtsho reads himself as the hunter Spang legs'dzin pa, while Nor bzang himself represents the Regent. That thegoddess caught by the hunter but subsequently acquired by the princeshould be called Yid 'phrog lha mo, the Mind-Stealing Goddess, is astroke of ironic genius in the hands of the poet. After all, as PerSorensen, points out, we can see this character as representing the dualpower embodied in the sprul sku of the Dalai Lama but wrested (or,rather, withheld) from him by the Regent. But this is a mind-stealing

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goddess, it deprives one of one's mind: the obsession which canaccompany romantic (and, let's face it, erotic) love has a parallel in theobsession for temporal power-a binary which found it's naturalexpression in the person of Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho.

But we could equally read the stolen mind as that of Tshangsdbyangs rgya mtsho. It wouldn't be unreasonable to see the portrayal ofthe Regent (and the Qan) in the mgul glu as evidence of his obsessionwith fulfilling his perceived destiny at the head of the Tibetan people; thefact that the Regent did refuse to give up the reins of power meanssimply that the Dalai Lama never practically took over government­nonetheless, he clearly had the support of his people and hadconsiderable religious status in his society, so it could equally be claimedthat he was the one who lost his mind to the goddess of power. This is anunusual reading, but one which I think restores balance to the situation­he was clearly quite bitter towards the Regent for many things but itseems adversely to have affected the mental and emotional balance ofboth men.

In conclusion, then, we can see that there is nothing in the text ofthe Tshangs dbyangs rgya mtsho 'i mgul glu that makes definitivereference to Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho. Indeed, the fact that we can't besure whether this is the work of the Sixth Dalai Lama means that allanalysis has to be highly speculative and open to complete dismissal.

For this reason, however, the text is a blank slate. Xiao Diyan'srather tortured attempt to squeeze pretty much every poem into thetriangular box of Regent, Qan and Lama proves how it is possible to readthe poems as a commentary on any aspect of the political, religious,intellectual or societal situation at the tum of the seventeenth century.

I, no more than anyone else, can be certain neither of this text'sprovenance nor of its import. My choice is to suspend judgment and playwith the possibilities. If we accept, for the moment, that this is the workof Tshangs dbyangs rgya mtsho, it would be unlikely that he wouldchoose not to comment, in one way or another, on the situation whichinformed his life and his emotions. Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho was as closeto him, if not closer, than his own family and gave him probably as muchgrief, if not more, than any member of our own families do. In Tibetanpoetry, the nature of the gzhas form is to comment on the world withoutand within; the etymology of the word gzhas is almost certainlyconnected with bzhad pa, the main verb concerned with smiling,laughing or amusement in general-so we can see, not only how such

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texts could point the finger of fun at temporal power but equally howthey can tum the finger back on the poet himself.

The suggestions I have made regarding the Regent's place in themgul glu indicate to me the extent of ambiguity which characterised hisrelationship with the Dalai Lama. A meddlesome-though highly sexedand highly sexy-lover; the wind and rain which grinds down rocks anddeprives birds of their plumage; the eponymous noble hero of a popularverse drama who uses his power to steal an alluring goddess from herlover: all these and more give us a confusing, and thus tantalising,glimpse of the politics and emotions at work in the newly-built Potalabetween the Dalai Lama's enthronement in 1697 and the death of theRegent in 1703.

It seems fair to allow Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho the final word. Whenreading the mgul glu it's possible to misrepresent this flawed but brilliantcharacter, to think of him simply as a wannabe monastic with a rovingeye, as a political manipulator to rival Niccolo Macchiavelli. But heclearly had genuine love for Tshangs dbyangs rgya mtsho and I'll closewith his description of his meeting with the Dalai Lama at Mnye thangjust before the enthronement of 1697: "Those who were holding onto hismount said later that when Rinpoche caught sight of me, he smiledthrough tear-soaked eyes. He looked shining and elegant, sitting thereupon his horse and, having not seen him for some time, I becameovercome with emotion and the tears coursed uncontrollably down myface."

ReferencesAris, M. 1989. Hidden Treasures and Secret Lives. London: Kegan Paul

International.Sorensen, P. K. 1990. Divinity Secularized: An Inquiry into the Nature

and Form of the Songs Ascribed to the Sixth Dalai Lama. WienerStudien zur Tibetologie und Buddhismuskunde, vol. 25. Vienna:Arbeitkreis fur Tibetische und Buddhistische Studien UniversitatWien

CONTRIBUTORS

Benjamin Bogin, Ph.D. (2005), University of Michigan, is currently aMellon Postoctoral Fellow at the University of California, Berkeley. HisPh.D. dissertation is entitled The Life of Yol mo Bstan 'dzin nor bu: Acritical edition, translation, and study of the memoirs of a seventeenth­century Tibetan Buddhist lama. He is presently engaged in research onthe artistic, literary, and ritual traditions surrounding the Tibetan Bud­dhist pure land known as the Glorious Copper-Colored Mountain.

Bryan J. Cuevas, Ph.D. (2000) in History of Religions and Tibetan Stud­ies, University of Virginia, is Associate Professor of Buddhist and Ti­betan Studies at Florida State University. He is the author of The HiddenHistory ofthe Tibetan Book ofthe Dead (Oxford UP, 2003) and co-editorof The Buddhist Dead: Practices, Discourses, Representations (KurodaInstitute/University of Hawai'i Press, 2007)

Jacob P. Dalton, Ph.D. (2002), University of Michigan, teaches in theDepartment of Religious Studies at Yale University. He is currentlyworking on several book length projects, including Liberating Demons:Violence in the Foundations of Tibetan Buddhism, a book exploring thetheme of tantric violence and sacrifice in early Tibetan myth, ritual andhistory, and A Ritual History of Tantric Buddhism, on the early develop­ment of tantric ritual in India as seen through the lens of the Dunhuangmanuscripts.

Georgios T. Halkias, D.Phil. (2006) in Himalayan Buddhism and TibetanStudies, University of Oxford, is a Junior Research Fellow at WolfsonCollege. Current research interests include: East and Central Asian Re­ligions, comparative philosophy of religion, and Vajrayana Buddhism.

Marina A. Illich, Ph.D. (2006) in History of Religion and Indo-TibetanStudies, Columbia University, is a scholar-in-residence at the Helen Gra­ham Park Foundation in Miami Shores, Florida, where she is archiving acollection of Indo-Tibetan materials.

Derek F. Maher, Ph.D. (2003) in History of Religions and Tibetan Stud­ies, University of Virginia, is Assistant Professor of Buddhist Studies andCo-Director of Religious Studies at East Carolina University. He is cur-

214 CONTRIBUTORS

rently completing his annotated translation of Tsepon Shakabpa's OneHundred Thousand Moons: An Advanced Political History ofTibet.

Guilaine Mala is now completing a D.Phil thesis entitled "Perception ofChinese Religions in Eighteenth-century Tibet: A Study of Thu'u­bkwan's 'Grub-mtha' shel-gyi me-long' and Related Tibetan Works",University of Oxford, Faculty of Oriental Studies.

Trent Pomplun, Ph.D. (2002) in Theology and Culture, University ofVirginia, is Assistant Professor of Early Modem Theology at LoyolaCollege in Maryland. He is currently at work on a manuscript on IppolitoDesideri, the Jesuit missionary and adventurer who lived in Tibet duringthe early eighteenth century.

Jann Ronis is a graduate student in History of Religion and Tibetan Stud­ies at the University of Virginia. His dissertation research is on the sev­enteenth and eighteenth-century history of Sde dge. He also works withthe Tibetan and Himalayan Digital Library and at present is the co­manager of its Monasteries Project.

Kurtis R. Schaeffer, Ph.D. (2000), Harvard University, is Associate Pro­fessor in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of Vir­ginia. He is the author of Himalayan Hermitess: The Life of a TibetanBuddhist Nun (Oxford UP, 2004) and Dreaming the Great Brahmin: Ti­betan Traditions ofthe Buddhist Poet-Saint Saraha (Oxford UP, 2005).

Nikolay Tsyrempilov, PhD. (2001) in History and Tibetan studies, SaintPetersburg Branch of the Institute of Oriental Studies of Russian Acad­emy of Sciences, is Research Fellow of the Institute of Tibetan, Mongo­lian and Buddhist Studies (IMBTS) of Siberian Branch of Russian Acad­emy of Sciences (Ulan-Ude city, Republic of Buryatia, RussianFederation) and Curator of Tibetan and Mongolian Collections of theIMBTS. He is the compiler of Annotated catalogue of the collection ofMongolian manuscripts and xylographs of the Institute of Mongolian,Tibetan and Buddhist studies ofSiberian Branch ofRussian Academy ofSciences (Tohoku University Press, Sendai, 2004).

Gray Tuttle, Ph.D. (2002) in Inner Asian and Altaic Studies, HarvardUniversity, is Leila Hadley Luce Assistant Professor of Modem Tibetan­Studies in the East Asian Languages Cultures Department, Columbia

CONTRIBUTORS 215

University. He is author of Tibetan Buddhists in the Making of ModernChina (Columbia UP, 2005).

Simon Wickham-Smith researches the life and poetry of the Sixth DalaiLama, Tsangyang Gyatso.