Hey Kapal! Bodhisattva Points to his Kapale (κεφαλή) Arputharani Sengupta The Yavanarajya Inscription on the Maghera Well Stone was found near Mathura in 1988. In the evolving new vocabulary, Yavana, likely from Ionia, means Greek, especially those from Alexandria in Egypt. The foundation stone of the Kushan Greek Kingdom (Yavanarajya) covered South Asia and parts of Chinese Central Asia. The Rabatak Inscription engraved in Tochrhian Greek on a rock was found near Surkh Kotal in Afghanistan in 1993. This is one more historical document on the Greco-Scythian Kushan dynasty that flourished alongside the Roman Empire. The Bodhisattva or the i self-sacrificing “Buddha to be” repeatedly pointing his head (Gk. Kapale) is one of the enigmatic mages of the period. It isn't easy to interpret the meaning behind the sign. This brief effort to transcribe the head pointing might lead to a greater understanding of the GrecoBuddhist funerary cult. Kapal is head, the same as Kapale (κεφαλή) in Greek. The exclamation “Hey Kapal!” in the urban dictionary is a rough way of attracting attention to one's head to express hard luck or a dead-end. In the case of Bodhisattva pointing at his head seem to indicate that his indelible destiny is written in his head or forehead.1 In essence, a man's destiny is written on the forehead of a newborn. A Tamil proverb affirms that the head is vital to a body that measures eight breadth of a hand.2 The proportion of the head is just one. Tamil Brahmi script adapted from Aramaic announced the earliest Sangam Literature. The contemporary labels on the Bharhut stupa sculpture and the “Asoka Edicts” across North India are in the unprecedented Prakrit Brahmi. The edicts identify the mysterious king as “He who loves the name of God, Beloved of God” (Devanam-Priya Priyadarsh).3 The popular Mahayana Dharani or Sutra originally written in Gandhari is from the earliest birch-bark manuscripts written in Kharosthi script derived from Aramaic. The Uṣṇiṣa Vijaya Dharaṇi Sutra translated into Sanskrit, Chinese and other languages protect the soul of 1 Eliza F. Kent, "What's Written on the Forehead Will Never Fail": Karma, Fate, and Headwriting in Indian Folktales (Asian Ethnology, Vol. 68, No. 1 (2009), pp. 1-26 (JSTOR/25614519) Published by Nanzan University, the Institute for Religion and Cultre. 2 எண் சாண் உடம் புக்கு சிரசச/ தலைசே பிரதானம் . 3 Arputharani Sengupta, Asoka edicts from a forgotten era, In Buddhist Art and Culture: Signs & Symbols (Delhi: Agam Kala Prakashan, Vol. I, 2013) pp.121-142. ‘2 vols.’ humans and even the lost animals. Incantation and inscription of the Uṣṇiṣa Sutra heals, fulfills all wishes, destroys hell, imparts endless life, and assists rebirth in the Arcadian Sukhavati, the pure land of eternal bliss. The magic of revival is affected by the image as much by the words; the enthroned Bodhisattva pointing at his head crown by a fanciful knot met the eye of the beholder who brought power through rituals and spells (0.1). 0.1 Bodhisattva pointing at his head, Schist, Gandhara, 2nd century CE 0.2 Usisa of togate Buddha, Schist, Gandhara, 2nd century CE 0.3 Usnisa, Urna on Buddha’s Kapal, Schist, Ø 18.50 cm, 22.30x12.70 cm, Gandhara, 2nd century CE British Museum (1907,1228.1) [Similar skull (H.14 cm) in Berlin Museum of Indian Ar (MIK 1 75.5)] Uṣṇiṣa is a propitious protuberance at the top of the Buddha’s cranium. The supernatural Usnisa covered with curly hair appears like an elegant chignon often encircled by a string. In some instances, the spherical top-knot rather like the domical reliquary stupa was a detachable lid protecting the relics secreted in the head of the effigy. Apart from the artfully carved Uṣṇiṣa, the immortals installed in the funerary shrines are distinguished by the disc halo and the Urna on the forehead radiating light from the now absent crystal inset (0.2). The “Abominable Mystery” of the Cosmic Buddha is a myriad of elements that come together in perfect equilibrium, It is gained by “seeing” from the “knowing” of how to arouse and transmigrate the soul through magic charms and copulation. Here, the esoteric enactment of the union of deity/god-man/priest/monk and sacred consort is paramount. The victorious goddess of the Uṣṇiṣa is the Tibetan Green Tara. Tara meaning star is assisted by a constellation of Dakinis, the active Yakshis in the Kushan period. Enlightenment is attained by bringing together the regenerative Womb Realm (Grabagriha) and Diamond Realm (Vajra/Thunderbolt). The Bodhisattva’s index finger pointing at the dot (Urna) on his forehead seems to say so. Urna is the mysterious gate, the pointing finger is the piercing jade. Buddha holding lotus or perched on a lotus-like the Egyptian god Nefertum is as much a symbol of rebirth as a sign of fertility and creativity. The seated skeletal icon called the “Fasting Buddha” seems to highlight the ascetic nature of Buddhism. A distinct skin and bone skull-heads in Gandhara add another dimension to the cult (0.3). The wavy hair-bun of Usnisa rising like the stupa mound of the earth goddess contradicts the finality of the hollowed eye-sockets. The Urna or Bindu on the skull-head forks into the lightning rod stands out like the vein. The Bindu thunderbolt is the seat of goddess Binduvasini. “Bindu Mandal Vasini” is one of the names of Sri Lakshmi residing in the dot at the center of the Sri Chakra.4 The union of Shiva-Shakti represented by the Dot called Bindu establishes Srichakra at the foundation of the Buddhist reliquary stupa. Amaravati stupa in Andhra Pradesh stands on the Srichakra the same as Kalachakra layered with cosmic time. A ritual of empowerment conducted by HH the Dalai Lama activated the chakra of Amaravati on January 13, 2006.5 The major Buddhist religious event took place on Makar Sankranti when the Sun transits Capricorn and commences northward Uttarayan ascent. After centuries of neglect, the binary male and female energy of Kamakoti Mandala churned Amaravati, the goddess of immortality (0.4). Amaravati in Swarga-Loka names the immortal city of Indra Dev situated on the peak of Mount Meru called Sumeru. 0.4 Light of Wisdom Mandala, sexual union in esoteric Tantra Teachings of the Tachikawa-ryu, Japan 0.5 Sophia, the Light of Wisdom and the Orphic Prophet stele, Schist, Bukara, Gandhara, 2nd century CE Rome: Museo della Civilita / Museum of Roman Civilization (After G. Tucci) The Japanese Tachikawa-ryu founded in 1113 is an example. It drew on ideas prevalent in the esoteric Mahayana, Vajrayana, and Tantric cults (0.4). The variant of the Mystery tradition professed “Bodily Buddhahood” and practiced sexual yoga and yin-yang divination conflicting with the Pure Land Faith (Jodoshinshu) and the Secret Mystery of Mindfulness of Amida Buddha (Himitsu Nembutsu). The historic figures who taught and spread these secret religious practices during the medieval period are well-known, but the Greco-Roman initiators of the Mahayana cult at the turn of the Christian era are buried. Their faith in the ritual union of the cosmological microcosm (male) and macrocosm (female) represented as divine BOΔΔO and Sophia, the Bindu Mandal Vasini is the 380th of the thousand names recited in the Lalita Sahasranama given by the eight “jewel of speech” goddesses known as Vaag Devis (Vasini, Kameshvari, Aruna, Vimala, Jayani, Modini, Sarveshvari, and Kaulini). 5 Ramesh Susarla, Ritual of empowerment (Frontline, January 13, 2006). 4 Gnostic source of skill, power, and wisdom. Their sacred union creates the perfect bliss of Nirvana (0.5). Several scholars struggle to establish the heretic nature of Tachikawa-ryu. In particular, the Tachikawa Skull Ritual is taken to be transgressive. Juho Yojinshu of about 1270 CE reveals the strange aspects of “becoming a buddha in this very body” through rituals using a human skull. The skull could be that of an ascetic, a seer, a king, a shogun, a minister, an elder, a father, and a mother, or it could be an undefinable “Thousand Cranium” skull or a “Dharmadhatu” skull encompassing the entire material universe. The Tachikawa Skull Ritual convoyed by incantations and rites is performed over a pile of skulls. The procedures, from selection, preparation, and taking the skull to its final installation and resurrection, varies.6 Kapalika meaning “Skull-men” is associated with Shaivism and Tantric practices. The Kapalika traditionally carry a skull-topped trident and worship the fierce Bhairava form of Shiva. The Kapalikas drink from a skull and carry a skull as an alms bowl holding cinerary ash, which they smeared on their body. Hsuan Tsang 602 – 664) traveling in the northwest frontiers of India observed naked ascetics who cover themselves with ashes. The 2000 years old history of Kapaleeshwara Temple (Isvar-deity/Shiva) in Chennai, the capital of Tamil Nadu, is linked to the Santhome Cathedral Basilica at the nearby seashore holding the sacred relics of St. Thomas. 0.6 Revered Bodhisattva pointing head, Schist, Gandhara, 2nd century CE 0.7 Cone Skull, Amarna Project Antiquity, Egypt (Photo Werner Forman, 2009) 0.8 Perfumed beeswax head-cone of attendants, New Kingdom Egypt tomb paintings, 1550–1292 BCE 0.9 Enthroned Bodhisattva pointing head, Terracotta, H. 83 cm, Hadda, Afghanistan, 2nd-3rd century CE Dallas Museum of Art A tiny tapered flask shaped like the crown of Upper Egypt is tucked into the turban of the Bodhisattva elaborated by various other symbols (0.6). The secret vial repeated time and again on the cockade is rather like the Egyptian perfumed cone placed on the elite female’s head represented in the New Kingdom Egypt tomb painting. Head-cones made of beeswax rather like fragrant hair gel were found on the skull of two women buried about 3,300 years ago at Amarna in Egypt. The discovery in a non-elite cemetery suggests the fertility function of a dancer-musician/priestess in the Pharaonic cult. The head cones are worn by attractive females rewarded by a king and at the 6 James H. Sanford, The Abominable Tachikawa Skull Ritual (Monumenta Nipponica, Vol. 46, No. 1 (Spring, 1991) pp. 1-20 (JSTOR/ 2385144) Published by Sophia University banquet with performing artists and others performing their appointed tasks in the afterlife. The females wearing head-cones in the presence of the divine king appear in funerary art spanning nearly 1500 years from the early New Kingdom to the Ptolemaic period (1550 BCE –30 BCE), which brings us to the very beginning of the Greco-Buddhist funerary cut in South Asia. The mandala is the tantric symbol of royal power, the seat of the Son of Heaven (0.6). The superposition of the lion-throne known as Simhasan links the Bodhisattva with a wide range of goddesses (0.7). The “galactic polity” model of the king and his female deity presiding from the Simhasan mandala establishes sovereignty. The paired lions on the pedestal of the Buddha is a hieroglyphic sign for the horizon. The horizon of the day after night “looking forward and behind” in the form of twin lions is called Aker in ancient Egypt. The twin lions also represent the deity named Duaj (Yesterday) and Sefer (Tomorrow). It is this notion that the togate Buddha in the image of an emperor mirrors the heaven on earth. The myth of the "exemplary center" or “navel” is the hemispherical reliquary stupa that brings the union of the male and female to the altar of the earth fertile goddess recognized by the cornucopia escorted into an idealized New Elysium.