Sanskrit Mantras in the Kålacakra Sådhana
by David Reigle
While the Tibetan lotsawas of old translated even Sanskrit names in their renowned translations of the Buddhist canonical texts, they left Sanskrit mantras untranslated. This is because the power of mantras is believed to derive from their sounds, sounds that could not be altered if this power was to remain
intact. Thus we find that the mantras in the Kålacakra sådhana, like in all sådhanas, are in Sanskrit, not in Tibetan. Yet it is just here that, because of how foreign these sounds are, errors are most likely to creep in. Indeed we find that, over the centuries, the pronunciation of these sounds has altered,
and, due to unfamiliarity with the words, even the spellings have been subject to scribal errors. One of the clearest examples of altered pronunciation may be seen in the case of the famous Vajrasattva mantra, widely used on its own for purification, and found as an integral part of many sådhanas, including
most of the fuller versions of the Kålacakra sådhana. The 100-syllable Vajrasattva mantra as now pronounced may be seen in recent books on Tibetan Buddhism where it is given phonetically. From these, we see that the word Vajrasattva has become Benzar sato,
2 or Bedzra sato.
3 These transformations of its pronunciation are largely due to it being pronounced as in modern Tibetan. We see the same thing in English, where Vajrasattva is pronounced as if
it is an English word. But it is a Sanskrit word, and as such, the first syllable of Vajra should rhyme with “judge,” and the first syllable of sattva should rhyme with “hut.” If the early Tibetan translators gave such importance to preserving the Sanskrit sounds, we should make an attempt to pronounce them correctly.4 Then there is the question of meaning. The great majority of Sanskrit mantras have clear meanings that were meant to be
2 Sanskrit Mantras in the Kålacakra Sådhana understood.5 Their meanings form an important part of the sådhanas in which they are used, making what is happening there more comprehensible. For example, at the beginning of the full-length Kålacakra sådhana is this mantra:6
oµ å˙ hüµ ho˙ haµ kßa˙ praj∆ôpåyâtmaka-kåya-våk-cittaj∆ånâdhipate mama kåya-våk-citta-j∆åna-vajraµ vajrâm®tasvabhåvaµ kuru kuru skandha-dhåtv-åyatanâdikaµ ni˙svabhåvaµ svåhå
It was introduced with the phrase, “the mantra words purifying body, speech, mind, and primordial wisdom (j∆åna) are: . . .”7 Leaving aside the untranslatable syllables, the straightforward grammatical meaning of this mantra is: oµ å˙ hüµ ho˙ haµ kßa˙; O overlord of body, speech, mind, and primordial wisdom, consisting of wisdom and means! my vajra of body, speech, mind, and primordial wisdom, into the nature of vajra immortality, transform! transform! Aggregates, elements, sense-spheres, and the rest, are without inherent existence; svåhå!
This meaning would have been fully understood by the Indians who first used these mantras. But when translating the sådhanas in which they are found into Tibetan, the meaning had to be sacrificed for the sake of preserving the all-important sounds. When we know the meaning, the often seen mantra that comes shortly thereafter becomes much more comprehensible:8
oµ svabhåva-≈uddhå˙ sarva-dharmå˙ svabhåva-≈uddho ’ham
oµ; Naturally pure are all things; naturally pure am I.
It will therefore be of considerable usefulness to have English translations of the Sanskrit mantras included in the translations of the sådhanas. One can then do the prescribed meditations with greater understanding of what is occurring.
3Sanskrit Mantras in the Kålacakra Sådhana The Kålacakra sådhana that I am drawing from for the mantras discussed here is the full-length ˛rî Kålacakra Sådhana by Sådhuputra, the only known Kålacakra sådhana to survive in the original Sanskrit.9 It consists of lengthy direct extracts from the Vimala-prabhå, “Immaculate Light,”10 the great commentary on the Kålacakra Tantra written by King [[Puñ∂arîka of ˛ambhala. These were compiled and arranged by
Sådhuputra, with brief connecting paragraphs condensed from the Vimala-prabhå. So most of this Kålacakra sådhana, except the middle section that names all the deities of the Kålacakra mañ∂ala in metrical verses, is actually by Puñ∂arîka, the author of the Vimala-prabhå, rather than by Sådhuputra. As such, it
could hardly be more authoritative. Besides this, it has the advantage that it cannot be considered sectarian, since it was written in India, before the various orders of Tibetan Buddhism came into existence. It would therefore be the sådhana of choice as the most original form of the Kålacakra sådhana. The
Kålacakra sådhana has many elements in common with other Buddhist sådhanas, including a number of mantras. When we see elements in one sådhana after another, we know that these must be of basic importance. It will repay our time to try to understand these as fully as we can. Basic to all sådhanas of the
highest yoga tantra class, such as Kålacakra, are the ideas of “clear appearance” and “divine pride.” Since these sådhanas consist of the visualization of oneself as a divine being, or devatå, in a divine residence, or mañ∂ala, the “clear appearance” part is self-explanatory. One must make these
visualizations appear to the mind as clearly as possible. The “divine pride” part means that you identify so fully with the divine being or deity you are visualizing that you feel a “sense of self” (ahaµkåra) as that deity. So the idea of divine pride is literally “sense of self as the deity”
(devatâhaµkåra).11 Like almost everything else in these sådhanas, including the visualizations from seed-syllables, this is done through the use of mantras. Thus, for example, early in the ˛rî Kålacakra Sådhana we are instructed as follows: “Then [assert] the sense of self [as a divine form or deity, i.e., ‘divine pride,’ with this mantra]:”12
4 Sanskrit Mantras in the Kålacakra Sådhana
oµ sarva-tathågata-vajra-kåya-svabhåvâtmako ’ham
oµ; I consist of the nature of the vajra body of all the Tathågatas.
Again, we see that the meaning of these mantras is crucial to performing the sådhana with full consciousness of what is happening. Most of the mantras that are used to assert or affirm divine pride end with the phrase, svabhåvâtmako ’ham, “I (aham) consist of (åtmaka) the nature of (svabhåva) . . . .”
Sometimes they only end with aham, “I.” Both of these kinds may be seen at the conclusion of the “circle of protection” (rakßå-cakra) in the ˛rî Kålacakra Sådhana. All but the shorter Kålacakra sådhanas begin by generating a “circle of protection” within which the visualizations will take place. The ˛rî Kålacakra Sådhana has a very extensive circle of protection, making up nearly a third of the sådhana. At its conclusion, one commands the ten wrathful protectors to take their places in the ten directions. To do this, one must first generate the divine pride, the sense or conviction of self as the lord and commander of the wrathful protectors, with the following mantra. This is a particularly clear example:13
oµ hüµ krodhêndro ’haµ krodhånåm åj∆å-dåyaka˙ svåhå
oµ hüµ; Lord of the wrathful protectors am I, giver of commands to the wrathful protectors, svåhå!
Once again we see the necessity of understanding the meaning of these mantras. Then, after commanding each of the ten wrathful protectors to their places with an individual mantra, one completes the circle of protection portion of the sådhana by asserting and affirming the divine pride or conviction of self
as the entire circle of protection, with this mantra:14
sarva-tathågata-rakßåcakra-svabhåvâtmako ’ham
I consist of the nature of the circle of protection of all the Tathågatas.
5Sanskrit Mantras in the Kålacakra Sådhana Besides clear appearance and divine pride, there are three even more universal elements of Buddhist sådhanas. These are found at the beginning of virtually all sådhanas. First is refuge, then is generating bodhicitta, and last is dissolving everything into emptiness. At that point the visualizations of the particular sådhana actually begin. For the first of these a formula is often used. It is not a mantra, but can be recited like a mantra.
It is:
buddhaµ ≈arañaµ gacchåmi dharmaµ ≈arañaµ gacchåmi sa∫ghaµ ≈arañaµ gacchåmi
I go for refuge to the Buddha (the enlightened one). I go for refuge to the dharma (the Buddhist teachings). I go for refuge to the sa∫gha (the Buddhist community).
Although “refuge” has become the accepted translation of the word ≈araña, it here has more the sense of “guidance,”15 and has also been translated as “safe direction.”16 The refuge formula cited above is so well known that it is not usually spelled out in the sådhanas, which often just instruct the
practitioner to go for refuge. They sometimes give alternative versions of the refuge formula, as is the case in the ˛rî Kålacakra Sådhana.17 For generating bodhicitta, the thought or determination to lead all living beings to enlightenment, and thereby free them from suffering, the various sådhanas
sometimes give different verses to recite.18 As with the refuge formula, the verses used for this are not mantras. Again, because it is so widely done, the sådhanas often just tell the practitioner to generate bodhicitta, without spelling out how to do this. The ˛rî Kålacakra Sådhana just tells us to recall the three roots (of virtue, or wholesome roots), the first of which is generating bodhicitta.19 Interestingly, the third of these is abandoning the sense
of I and mine. Here, the same word is used that is used in the idea of divine pride, ahaµkåra, “sense of self,” or “sense of I.” So we first abandon the sense of I in regard to our personal selves, and then affirm it in regard to the divine forms we visualize ourselves as. 6 Sanskrit Mantras in the Kålacakra Sådhana Then, to dissolve everything into emptiness in preparation for beginning the visualizations of the particular sådhana, these sådhanas frequently use the so-called emptiness mantra.20
oµ ≈ünyatå-j∆åna-vajra-svabhåvâtmako ’ham
oµ; I consist of the nature of the primordial wisdom vajra of emptiness.
We immediately recognize the characteristic phrase used for asserting and affirming divine pride. The idea here is that, even though we may in fact have only a conceptual understanding of emptiness, while doing this meditation we are to act as if we have a full and direct realization of emptiness. We are to really believe that we see everything as empty. Then we can begin the particular visualizations of our sådhana in the proper manner. But what is the
“primordial wisdom vajra”? In these texts, the word “vajra,” literally, “diamond,” refers to the ultimate nature of something. This ultimate nature, like a diamond, is “indivisible” (abhedya).21 Our body, our speech, and our mind each have an ultimate or vajra nature, which is that of a Buddha, and so does
primordial wisdom.22 Primordial wisdom is jƌna, distinguished from wisdom, prajƌ, which it includes.23 It is the pure nondual knowledge where there is no distinction between the knower and the known, because all is empty. The primordial wisdom vajra is the overall vajra that includes the other three, the body vajra, speech vajra, and mind vajra. This vajra is therefore the ultimate or vajra nature of the universe; and this is why we identify with it in
order to dissolve everything into emptiness. The vajra of primordial wisdom is described in the J∆åna-siddhi by Indra-bhüti in these beautiful verses:24 46. It is not burnt by a conflagration, nor is it made wet by water. It is not cut by a sharp weapon, even with much effort. 47. Like space, it is without
support, [all-]pervasive, and devoid of distinguishing characteristics. This is the highest truth, the unsurpassed vajra [or ultimate] primordial wisdom. 7Sanskrit Mantras in the Kålacakra Sådhana In the ˛rî Kålacakra Sådhana the emptiness mantra occurs as the first of a group of four such mantras on the
four doors of liberation, namely,
emptiness (≈ünyatå),
signlessness (animitta),
wishlessness (aprañihita),
and non-activity (anabhisaµskåra), as follows:25
oµ ≈ünyatå-j∆åna-vajra-svabhåvâtmako ’haµ || oµ animitta-j∆åna-vajra-svabhåvâtmako ’haµ || oµ aprañihita-j∆åna-vajra-svabhåvâtmako ’haµ || oµ anabhisaµskåra-j∆åna-vajra-svabhåvâtmako ’haµ ||
oµ; I consist of the nature of the primordial wisdom vajra of emptiness. oµ; I consist of the nature of the primordial wisdom vajra of signlessness. oµ; I consist of the nature of the primordial wisdom vajra of wishlessness. oµ; I consist of the nature of the primordial wisdom vajra of non-activity. Preceding the emptiness mantra the sådhanas often cite a famous verse that also affirms emptiness. Again, like the refuge formula, this is not a mantra. Rather, it is a metrical verse. These are normally chanted by Indian pandits. It goes as follows:26
abhåve bhåvanâbhåvo bhåvanå nâiva bhåvanå iti bhåvo na bhåva˙ syåd bhåvanå nôpalabhyate
When there is no existent thing, there is no meditation. Meditation, too, is not meditation. In this way an existent thing would not be an existent thing. Meditation is not [to be] found.
This verse sounds rather nonsensical. But once we know that it comes from the Guhyasamåja Tantra, where it occurs as verse 3 of chapter 2, we can check to see how it is explained in the Pradîpoddyotana commentary thereon by Candrakîrti. Here he explains it in this way:27
In the absence of all subjects, the moving and the unmoving, there is no meditation, because there is no object of meditation. “Meditation, too, is not meditation” means: The meditation [taken as] existing, too, is not meditation, because there is no meditation even without [an object of meditation]. In this way an existent thing having [both] existence and nonexistence could not be [since these are contradictory]. Therefore, neither the object of meditation, the meditator, nor meditation are [to be] found. This is the literal meaning.
Candrakîrti then goes on to explain this verse in three more ways, the first of which relates it to the three (not four) doors of liberation: emptiness, signlessness, and wishlessness. He does not discuss the fourth door of liberation, non-activity, because this one is found in Kålacakra but not in
Guhyasamåja, and his commentary is on the latter. When everything has been dissolved into emptiness, the visualizations of the sådhana proper can begin. These are done from seed-syllables, or bîja-mantras. The seed-syllable of the main Kålacakra deity is quite unusual, in that it is a “stacked” syllable rather than a single syllable. It is seven letters written in a stack, one on top of the other. These form a single conjunct consonant cluster, and with
the inherent vowel and concluding anusvåra, make the seed-syllable, hkßmlvryaµ. Obviously, such a bîja-mantra cannot be pronounced. So in the translations of the sådhanas the letters it consists of are usually written out in a string, one after the other, adding to each an inherent vowel: ha-kßa-ma-la-va-ra-
ya. This allows it to be pronounced, leaving only the question of where in this to put the anusvåra. The anusvåra in Sanskrit is a dot placed above the stacked syllable. It represents an open nasal, which is transliterated as µ, even though it does not quite have an m sound. It is sometimes written in
phoneticized Tibetan as ng, as in the seed-syllable hung, which is properly transliterated as hüµ, and rhymes with room. But the ng sound is no closer to the actual pronunciation than the m sound. It should really be somewhere in between the two, a sound that is not found in English. We will here use the
9 Sanskrit Mantras in the Kålacakra Sådhana transliteration µ. In the Tibetan texts, like in the Sanskrit texts, it is a dot placed above the stacked syllable. This syllable is often written in the sådhana translations, following the pronunciation of modern Tibetan teachers, as: haµ-kßa-ma-la-va-ra-ya,
where the µ is put after the first syllable. However, this is not allowable in Sanskrit, where the µ must be placed after the last syllable, because it is the declensional ending; so: ha-kßa-ma-la-va-ra-yaµ. As I have observed and noted elsewhere, at least some Tibetans, who have become familiar with Sanskrit
now that they are living in India, have adopted this correct pronunciation.28 When the letters that make up this stacked bîja-mantra are used independently, as they are in the Kålacakra sådhana, they must individually have a declensional ending. So Kålacakra is generated from haµ rather than ha,
and the wind mañ∂ala is generated from yaµ rather than ya. The stacked seed-syllable of Kålacakra has not only an anusvåra overhead in the form of a bindu, or dot, but also a visarga in the form of a half-moon under this dot. While the anusvåra is transliterated as µ, the visarga is transliterated as ˙. It is
a hard breathing that echoes the vowel preceding it. Thus, ho˙ is pronounced something like hoho. It is normally written in Sanskrit much like an English colon, two vertical dots that follow the letter. But in the stacked Kålacakra seed-syllable it is supposed to be represented by the half-moon overhead, under the dot.29 While six of the seven stacked letters take the anusvåra for their declensional ending when they are used independently, haµ, maµ, laµ, vaµ, raµ, yaµ, the other one takes the visarga for its declensional ending, kßa˙. These syllables, haµ, etc., should rhyme with the English word “sum.” On top of all of these is a flame, representing a tenth soundless sound (nåda), thereby making the perfect ten of the Kålacakra mantra. From emptiness emerge the bîja-mantras or seed-syllables, and from these are generated the mañ∂ala, i.e., the residence, and the deities who inhabit it. After these are
visualized, there follows a key step. The deities who you have visualized are, at this point, your thought constructions, imagined deities called “pledge beings” (samaya-sattva). You now call in the real deities,
10 Sanskrit Mantras in the Kålacakra Sådhana called “primordial wisdom beings” (j∆åna-sattva),
to merge with and vitalize the imagined deities. You do this with the mantra, ja˙ hüµ vaµ ho˙. With the sound ja˙ you “invite” (åvåhana), or “draw in” (åkarßaña) the primordial wisdom beings. For this, an implement that you as Kålacakra hold in one of your 24 hands is employed, the a∫ku≈a. An a∫ku≈a is an
elephant goad. The only thing comparable to this found in Western countries is a cattle prod. But an a∫ku≈a not only has a point at the end, like a prod, it also has a hook near this pointed end. So the elephant can either be prodded forward with the pointed end, or pulled back with the hook. The use of this
hooked goad when inviting the primordial wisdom beings makes the invitation, shall we say, more compelling. Next the invited primordial wisdom beings or real deities are caused to enter (prave≈ana) the pledge beings or imagined deities with the sound hüµ. For this, another of the implements held in your
many hands is employed, the vajra. Then they are bound (bandhana) there with the sound vaµ. For this, the rope you hold is employed. Lastly, with the sound ho˙ you cause them to be satisfied (toßaña) in their new situation. For this, your bell with its pleasing sound is employed. This four-syllable mantra, ja˙
hüµ vaµ ho˙, is used throughout Buddhist tantric practice, whenever the primordial wisdom beings are merged with the pledge beings, just as two of the above-cited mantras are used everywhere; namely, the purity mantra, oµ svabhåva-≈uddhå˙ sarva-dharmå˙ svabhåva-≈uddho ’ham, and the emptiness mantra, oµ ≈ünyatå-j∆åna-vajra-svabhåvâtmako ’ham. The four syllables, ja˙ hüµ vaµ ho˙, are all too often seen in sådhana translations as ja˙ hüµ baµ ho˙, where baµ is wrongly written for vaµ. This mistake results from how this mantra is found in the Tibetan sådhanas as transliterated from Sanskrit: dza˙ hüµ baµ ho˙.
While most translators know that the Tibetan letter dz transliterates the Sanskrit letter j, even though there is a Tibetan letter j, many do not know that the Tibetan letter b very often transliterates the Sanskrit letter v, despite the fact that there is a Tibetan letter v (or w). Thus they correctly write ja˙ for dza˙, but do not recognize that baµ is in fact vaµ.
This problem originated in the Indian province of Bengal, where so many of the Sanskrit tantra manuscripts that were translated into Tibetan came from. There, the Sanskrit letters b and v are not usually distinguished. The letter v is written for both, but is pronounced and transliterated as b. This may be
seen in the name of the famous Bengali poet, Rabindranath Tagore, where the first part is the Sanskrit word, ravi, meaning “sun,” not rabi. So, when these mantras were transliterated into Tibetan a thousand years ago, the letter v was transliterated as b. This fact may quickly and easily be ascertained by
checking the transliteration of book titles found in the Tibetan Buddhist canon, where we find “badzra” for “vajra,” etc. The problem of distinguishing v and b, whether as written or as pronounced, is well recognized by Bengali Sanskrit pandits such as Benoytosh Bhattacharyya (whose first name is actually
Vinayatoßa), editor of many Sanskrit Buddhist texts including the Sådhanamålå. In this collection of sådhanas he distinguishes the Sanskrit letter b from v in writing (spelling, for example, bîja rather than the incorrect vîja), and always correctly writes vaµ rather than baµ for this bîja-mantra. A fifth syllable is added to these four seed-syllables in the ˛rî Kålacakra Sådhana .30 To the bîja-mantras ja˙ hüµ vaµ ho˙ is added the syllable hî˙. With this syllable the primordial wisdom beings and the pledge beings are made to fuse or become of the “same taste” (sama-rasîk®ta, sama-rasîbhüta).31 Lovely words,
but what are these primordial wisdom beings that you are supposed to make merge with the pledge beings? What does it mean that the primordial wisdom beings are real deities as opposed to the pledge beings or imagined deities? Certainly Buddhism, like all Indian religions, accepted the existence of real
invisible beings known as devas, “shining ones,” often translated as gods. Is this what they are? It would seem not. The deities (devatå, literally, “shining one -ness, or -hood”) called primordial wisdom beings (j∆åna-sattvas) are described in the texts as the “purities” (vi≈uddhi)32 of specific
elements of our world. For example, the five Tathågatas, also called Dhyåni Buddhas, are said to be the purities of the five aggregates 12 Sanskrit Mantras in the Kålacakra Sådhana (skandha) that make up a human being. Their consorts are the purities of the great elements, earth, water,
fire, etc. The Kålacakra ˛aktis are the purities of the vital airs (pråña); and so on. As seen above, the j∆åna-vajra, or primordial wisdom vajra, is the ultimate or vajra nature of the universe, since it includes the other three vajras, symbolically called body, speech and mind. Similarly, the j∆åna-sattvas, or primordial wisdom beings, are the ultimate purities of the various things that make up the universe. Understanding what these are helps us to understand the deity called Vajra-sattva, the “diamond being,” i.e., the ultimate nature of a being. There are the imagined samaya-sattvas, or pledge
beings, the “real” j∆åna-sattvas, or primordial wisdom beings, and just plain sattvas, ordinary beings such as ourselves. Vajrasattva, as the vajra or ultimate nature of a being, is then, in a certain sense, the ultimate nature of our very selves. But this diamond-nature is that of a Buddha, so
Vajrasattva is thought of as the collective purity of the Buddhas.33 It is this that we are to call upon and identify ourselves with. This is done, as we have now come to expect, with a mantra, the 100-syllable Vajrasattva mantra, the great mantra of purification. Over the centuries, used in a land where its
language is foreign, errors have crept into this mantra, so that this great mantra of purification is itself now in need of purification. Of course, when recited with faith, this is not to say that it is not effective. But to have the effects that the Tibetan lotsawas of old tried to retain by carefully preserving its sounds, effects it had in old India where it was pronounced correctly and its meaning was accurately understood, its words must be restored to their purity. The correct spelling and meaning of this mantra are:34
oµ vajrasattva, samayam anupålaya, vajrasattvatvenôpati߆ha, d®∂ho me bhava, sutoßyo me bhava, supoßyo me bhava, anurakto me bhava, sarva-siddhim me prayaccha, sarva-karmasu ca me cittaµ ≈reya˙ ku
Oµ. Vajrasattva, keep [your] pledge. As Vajrasattva, stand near [me]. Be steadfast toward me. Be well pleased with me. Be well fulfilled on account of me. Be attached to me. Grant me all accomplishments; and in all actions make my thought beneficent, hüµ. Ha ha ha ha ho˙. O Blessed One, Diamond-nature of all the Tathågatas, do not abandon me. Be of diamond-nature, O great pledge being, å˙.
Vajrasattva is a synthesis of the five Tathågatas, or Dhyåni Buddhas, being their collective ultimate nature. The syllables “ha ha ha ha ho˙” in this mantra are their seed-syllables. Each of the five has a “family” (kula), and the Tathågata at the head of a family is depicted in the crown of each deity
in that family. Kålacakra is crowned with Vajrasattva in the first part of the Kålacakra sådhana, indicating that Kålacakra is here considered to be in
Vajrasattva’s family; i.e., that Kålacakra is an emanation of Vajrasattva. This means that for this part you as Kålacakra are also identified with Vajrasattva. In the second part, Kålacakra is crowned with Akßobhya, indicating that Kålacakra is regarded here as being in the family of the Tathågata Aksobhya. The Kålacakra sådhana in its standard form, such as in the ˛rî Kålacakra Sådhana, has four parts, not counting the circle of protection that
precedes these. The second part repeats what was done in the first part, the main difference being the deity in Kålacakra’s crown. These two parts of the sådhana involve lengthy visualizations, while the last two parts are brief. So the visualizations that are done in the first part, in which Kålacakra is crowned with Vajrasattva, and repeated in the second part, form the primary portion of the Kålacakra sådhana. The full Kålacakra sådhana includes a very
large number of mantras. These all necessarily come from the great Kålacakra commentary Vimala-prabhå, “Immaculate Light.” These mantras are more or less corrupt in all existing sådhanas, due largely to copyists’ errors. The three known Sanskrit manuscripts of the ˛rî Kålacakra Sådhana abound with clerical errors. The good news is that several older Sanskrit manuscripts of the Vimalaprabhå exist, including a highly accurate palm-leaf manuscript
14 Sanskrit Mantras in the Kålacakra Sådhana in Old Bengali script.35 This is a superb manuscript from near the time of the Tibetan translations. With these and the help of the early Tibetan translations, it is now possible to restore to full accuracy all the mantras of the Kålacakra sådhana. Since the corrected mantras can now be saved as electronic files, they no longer need to be hand copied. This is the s t
ep in which most of the errors were introduced, whether it was the copying of an earlier manuscript to a later one, the copying of a manuscript to a woodblock for carving, or the setting up of an edited text into type for printing. The sådhana in which to do this is the ˛rî Kålacakra Sådhana, because it consists mostly of direct extracts from the Vimala-prabhå, already arranged as a sådhana. Once this is done, the mantras in all Kålacakra sådhanas anywhere in use can be corrected on the basis of
those found in this sådhana.
NOTES
1. See: Willis, Janice Dean. The Diamond Light of the Eastern Dawn: A Collection of Tibetan Buddhist Meditations. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1972. “The Yoga Method of Dorje Sempa,” pp. 83-86 (Dorje Sempa is Tibetan for Vajrasattva). 2. See: Khyentse, Dilgo, Rinpoche; translated and edited by The Padmakara Translation Group. The Excellent Path to Enlightenment: Oral Teachings on the Root Text of Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo. Ithaca, New York: Snow Lion Publications, 1996. “Appendix” (the Vajrasattva mantra), pp. 103-104. 3. See: Kalu Rinpoche. The Gem Ornament of Manifold Oral Instructions, Which Benefits Each and Everyone Appropriately. San Francisco: KDK Publications, 1986. “Ngöndro: Dorje Sempa Meditation,” pp. 49-55 (Dorje Sempa is Tibetan for
Vajrasattva). 4. For correct pronunciation of Sanskrit, the vowels are the most important. The short “a” is pronounced like English “u” in the word “but.” The long “å” is pronounced like “a” in “father.” The short “i” is like in “kit.” The long “î” is pronounced “ee” as in “feet.” The short “u” is like in “put,” not like in “united.” The long “ü” is pronounced “oo”
as in “boot.” The vowel “®” is kind of like the “ri” in trip, but is trilled. The vowel “¬” is kind of like the “le” in “able.” The “e” is pronounced like English “ay” as in “day.” The “ai” is like the vowel in the word, “tie.” The “o” is like in “go.” The “au” is like the vowel in the word “cow.” For consonants, the main things are: The “c” is pronounced “ch.” The “th” and “†h” are pronounced “ta,” and aspirated. They are not like the English “th”
sound. The “≈” and “ß” are pronounced “sh.” 5. That the meanings of the mantras used in the sådhanas were meant to be understood may be seen, for example, by the statement in the Abhisamayama∆jarî of ˛ubhåkara Gupta, ed. by Samdhong Rinpoche and Vrajvallabh Dwivedi, Sarnath, Varanasi: Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies, 1993, p. 5, “having recited ‘oµ ≈ünyatå-j∆åna-vajrasvabhåvâtmako ’ham’ with recollection of the meaning” (oµ ≈ünyatåj∆åna-vajra-svabhåvâtmako ’ham ity arthânusmarañenôccårya). 6. Kålacakrabhagavatsådhanavidhi˙, p. 129. See note 9 below for full bibliographic data. 7. kåya-våk-citta-
j∆åna-vi≈odhakåni mantra-padåni bhavanti. 8. Kålacakrabhagavatsådhanavidhi˙, p. 130. See note 9 below for full bibliographic data. 9. This was published as “Kålacakrabhagavatsådhanavidhi˙ of Dharmåkara≈ånti,” in Dhî˙: Journal of Rare Buddhist Texts Research Project, Sarnath, vol. 24, 1997, pp. 127-174. But as pointed out by Yong-hyun Lee, this is actually the ˛rî Kålacakra Sådhana by Sådhuputra, found in the Tibetan Tengyur (Tohoku no. 1358; Peking no. 2075). According to the colophon in this Tibetan Tengyur translation, which is much earlier than the late Nepalese manuscripts where it is ascribed to
Dharmåkara≈ånti, it was written for Dharmåkara≈ånti, not by him. See: The Nißpannayogåvalî by Abhayåkaragupta: A New Critical Edition of the Sanskrit Text (Revised Edition), by Yong-hyun Lee, Seoul: Baegun Press, 2004, p. xii, fn. 28. I have used this sådhana since the 1980s, when I obtained microfilms of Sanskrit manuscripts of it from libraries in Nepal and Japan. 10. Although the title Vimala-prabhå has now become more widely known in its translation as “Stainless Light,” I have preferred the no less accurate “Immaculate Light.” This I have adapted from Edward Fitzgerald’s “Immaculate Lustre,” found in his English translation of Helmut Hoffmann’s book, The Religions of Tibet, 1961, pp. 129, 162.
11. For the term devatâhaµkåra, see, for example, Sådhanamålå, ed. Benoytosh Bhattacharyya, vol. 1, Baroda: Central Library, 1925; Gaekwad’s Oriental Series no. 26, p. 258. 12. Kålacakrabhagavatsådhanavidhi˙, p. 130: tato ’haµkåraµ. 13. Kålacakrabhagavatsådhanavidhi˙, p. 140. 14. Kålacakrabhagavatsådhanavidhi˙, p. 140. 15. The Buddhist Catechism, by Henry S. Olcott, 44th ed., 1915, fn. to para. 149, citing a letter from Wijesinha
Mudaliyar, “This word has been hitherto very inappropriately and erroneously rendered Refuge by European Påli scholars, and thoughtlessly so accepted by native Påli scholars. Neither Påli etymology nor Buddhistic philosophy justifies the translation. Refuge, in the sense of a fleeing back or a place of shelter, is quite foreign to true Buddhism, which insists on every man working out his own emancipation. The root Sri in Sanskrit (Sara in Påli) means to move, to go: so that Saranam would denote a moving, or he or that which goes before or with another—a Guide or Helper. I construe the passage thus: Gachchhåmi, I go, Buddham, to Buddha, Saranam, as my Guide.” 16. By Alexander Berzin, in Taking the Kalachakra Initiation, Ithaca: Snow Lion Publications, 1997, pp. 79 ff. 17. Kålacakrabhagavatsådhanavidhi˙, p. 160: buddhaµ dharma∆ ca saµghaµ bhava-bhaya-harañaµ bodhi-sîmna˙ prayåmi, “I go to the Buddha, the dharma, and the sa∫gha, removing the fears of cyclic existence, until the summit of enlightenment.” For a longer version, see: Sådhanamålå, vol. 1, pp. 29, 154, 290-291. 18. The generating of bodhicitta is often done in association with the four immeasurables: loving kindness (maitrî), compassion (karuñå),
sympathetic joy (mudita), and equanimity (upekßå). So the verse or verses recited for this may include these, as is the case in the Kålacakra Six-Session Guru Yoga by the Fourteenth Dalai Lama. 19. The three roots of virtue, or wholesome roots (ku≈ala-müla), are listed in Någårjuna’s Dharma-saµgraha, 15, as: (1) the generation of bodhicitta (bodhicittotpåda); (2) the purification of [one’s] intentions or motivations (å≈aya-vi≈uddhi); and (3) the abandoning of the sense of I and mine (ahaµkåra-mamakåra-parityåga). 20. This mantra has been called the “≈ünyatå-bodhako mantra˙,” the mantra awakening one to
emptiness; see: Sådhanamålå, vol. 1, p. 315.
21. The word “vajra” is regularly defined as “indivisible” (abhedya) in the Buddhist tantric literature. For example, Advaya-vajra cites this definition from the Hevajra Tantra (1.1.4) in his Sekatånvaya-saµgraha or Sekatåtparyasaµgraha, with the words: abhedyam vajram iti hevajre. See: Advayavajrasaµgraha,
ed. Haraprasad Shastri, Baroda: Oriental Institute, 1927; Gaekwad’s Oriental Series no. 40, p. 37. This was reedited in: “Advayavajrasaµgraha—New Critical Edition and Japanese Translation,” ed. Mikkyo-Seiten Kenkyukai (Study Group for the Buddhist Tantric Texts), Part 2, Annual of the Institute for Comprehensive Studies of Buddhism, Taisho University, no. 11, March 1989, p. 231 (114). 22. These four vajras are described in the Kålacakra texts. See,
for example, Vimalaprabhå†îkå, vol. 1, ed. Jagannatha Upadhyaya, Sarnath, Varanasi: Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies, 1986, p. 45. They are discussed by Vesna Wallace in The Inner Kålacakratantra: A Buddhist Tantric View of the Individual, New York: Oxford University Press, 2001, pp. 156-159. 23. Translators are always faced with the question of how to deal with closely related words such as j∆åna and praj∆å. The translation “wisdom” for praj∆å
has become widely accepted, as in the “perfection of wisdom” (praj∆å-påramitå), although a few translators use “insight” for it instead. But what, then, do we do with j∆åna, which also means wisdom. Here there is no general consensus among translators. Some prefer “knowledge,” its basic meaning in common Sanskrit. But in Buddhism it is a technical term, as was recognized by the early Tibetan translators, and shown by their rendering of it as ye ≈es. In this
word, ≈es translates the Sanskrit root j∆å, “to know,” qualified by ye, meaning primordial or pristine, or exalted or sublime. Thus, it was understood to mean not just knowledge, but pristine or sublime knowledge; and modern translators often add these qualifying words. Many translators (including myself) prefer “wisdom” over “knowledge” for j∆åna, even though “know” is linguistically cognate with “j∆å.” In English, you can have knowledge of how to make
gunpowder, or how to pick a lock, for example, but this would not be considered wisdom. Some translators have adopted the also linguistically cognate “gnosis” for j∆åna. This word, however, is little used in English, being primarily a technical term of the now defunct Gnostic sects, and few people know what it means without looking it up in the dictionary. By contrast, j∆åna is
widely used in Sanskrit, and even as a technical term in Buddhism it still retains its well-known meaning of knowledge. Other words that have been used to translate j∆åna are “cognition” and “awareness,” with or without qualifying words such as pristine, and also “intuition.” All of these provide helpful insights into the meaning of j∆åna, but in my opinion unduly restrict its meaning more to aspects of knowledge or wisdom rather than providing the central idea itself. Therefore, to distinguish j∆åna from praj∆å, as the Tibetan translators always did, and which has proven so helpful over the last thousand years, I have chosen “primordial wisdom” for j∆åna. I note that Alan Wallace uses this in his translation of Gen Lamrimpa’s book, Transcending Time: The
Kålacakra Six-Session Guru Yoga, Boston: Wisdom Publications, 1999. 24. The J∆åna-siddhi was published in Two Vajrayåna Works, ed. Benoytosh Bhattacharyya, Baroda: Oriental Institute, 1929; Gaekwad’s Oriental Series no. 44, where these two verses occur on p. 36: dahyate nâgni-skandhena plåvyate na jalena ca | bhidyate nahi ≈astreña tîkßñenâpi prayatnata˙ || 46 || aprati߆haµ yathâkå≈aµ vyåpi lakßaña-varjitam | idaµ tat paramaµ tattvaµ vajra-j∆ånam anuttaram ||
47 || Even though this Sanskrit edition has been available for more than 75 years, there still seems to be no English translation of it. The first of these verses is reminiscent of Bhagavad-gîtå 2.23: “Weapons do not cut this; fire does not burn it. Water does not wet it; nor does wind dry it.” 25. Kålacakrabhagavatsådhanavidhi˙, p. 161. 26. This is found in the Kålacakrabhagavatsådhanavidhi˙, p. 161. It there comes from the Vimala-prabhå commentary,
chapter 4, verse 5. See: Vimalaprabhå†îkå, vol. 2, ed. Vrajavallabh Dwivedi, et al., Sarnath, Varanasi: Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies, 1994, p. 153. But it ultimately comes from the Guhyasamåja Tantra, chap. 2, verse 3. Its Tibetan translation in the Vimala-prabhå, Derge and Cone eds., with variants from the Narthang and Peking eds. in brackets, is: dngos po med la bsgom [[[sgom]]] pa med sgom pa sgom pa nyid ma yin de ltar dngos po dngos min pas [[[mi ’gyur]]] sgom pa dmigs su med pa’o 27. This is in: Guhyasamåjatantrapradîpodyotana†îkå-ßa†ko†ivyåkhyå, ed. Chintaharan Chakravarti, Patna: Kashi Prasad Jayaswal Research Institute, 1984; Tibetan Sanskrit Works Series no. 25, p. 31. The text found in this edition differs somewhat from the Tibetan translation. My translation is of the Sanskrit, but I have had to correct it in three places with the help of the Tibetan. These are given in brackets below. The two longer bracketed phrases in my translation are based on the differing Tibetan text, which is also given below in full. sthira-bala-[cala]-sarva-padårthånåm abhåve sati
bhåvanåyå abhåva˙ bhåvyâbhåvåt | bhåvanå nâiva bhåvanêti | yâpi sato [satî] bhåvanå så na bhåvanå, vinâpi bhåvanåyå [a]vidyamånatvåt iti | itthaµ bhåvâbhåva-yukto yo bhåva˙ sa na syåt | tasmåd bhåvyo bhåvako bhåvanå nôpalabhyate | akßarârtha˙ | brtan pa dang g.yo ba’i dngos po thams cad kyi ngo bo nyid ni med pa yin na ni sgom pa med pa ste bsgom par bya ba med pa’i phyir ro | bsgom par bya ba bsgom pa min | zhes bya ba ni | gang yod par bsgom pa de yang bsgom pa ma yin te | bsgom par bya ba dang bral bas yod pa ma yin pas so | de ltar zhes pa ni dngos po med pa dang dngos po yod par ’dod pa dang ldan
pa gang yin pa de ni dngos po med pa nyid de phyogs gnyi ga dang ’gal lo | de bas na bsgom par bya ba dang sgom pa po dang bsgom pa dmigs su med pa ste yi ge’i don to | 28. “On Kålacakra Sådhana and Social Responsibility,” the International Kalachakra Network website, at: http://kalachakranet.org/ text_david_reigle_kalacakra_sadhana_social.html: “The founder and former longtime Director of the Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies is Samdhong Rinpoche, currently Prime Minister of the Tibetan Government-in-Exile. Although I knew that Tibetans studying there had to learn Sanskrit pronunciation, it was still a pleasant surprise to me to hear Samdhong Rinpoche pronounce the Kalacakra heart mantra in the Sanskrit fashion. He did this during a break in
our 1997 discussions on his ideas of how to have a nonviolent society. When he pronounced the nasal after the last syllable, as is required in Sanskrit, rather than after the first syllable, as is the current practice among Tibetan Lamas, I expressed my surprise. He replied that of course he followed the Sanskrit pronunciation. Why wouldn’t he when the original is now available?” 29. Vimalaprabhå†îkå, vol. 1, p. 56: visargo ardha-candrâkåro, “visarga is in the form of a half-moon.” 30. Kålacakrabhagavatsådhanavidhi˙, p. 165.
31. Vimalaprabhå†îkå 4.53, vol. 2, p. 181: evaµ pa∆ca-prakåraµ ja˙-kåreñâk®ß†am, hüµ-kåreña pravi߆am, vaµkåreña baddham, ho˙-kåreña toßitam, hî˙-kåreña sama-rasîk®taµ | vajrâ∫ku≈ena vajreña vajra-på≈ena vajra-ghañ†ayå vajra-dañ∂enêti | evaµ j∆åna-cakraµ saµpüjya pürvavat samaya-cakraµ samarasîbhütaµ bhåvayed iti niyama˙ | See also: Vimalaprabhå†îkå 3.79, vol. 2, pp. 78-79. 32. Kålacakra Sådhana and Social Responsibility, by David Reigle, Santa Fe:
Spirit of the Sun Publications, 1996, pp. 42-43: “The primary sources on this are, of course, the Kålacakra Tantra and the Vimalaprabhå commentary. The symbolism is generally introduced in the commentary by the words, ‘Now the purification of . . . is stated’ (idånîµ . . . vi≈uddhir ucyate). Much of it is given in the latter part of the third section (udde≈a) of the fourth chapter (pa†ala) of the Vimalaprabhå, ‘Generation of the Life and the Deities’ (pråña-devatå-utpåda), verses 95-109. Other references include chapter three, verses 52-55, 160-164, 167-168, etc.” 33. See: The Tantric Path of Purification: The
Yoga Method of Heruka Vajrasattva, Lama Thubten Yeshe, Boston: Wisdom Publications, 1995, pp. 141-142 (2nd ed., 2004, with new title: Becoming Vajrasattva: The Tantric Path of Purification): “Who is Heruka Vajrasattva? We consider him to be a manifestation of the unity of fully developed male and female energy, the complete purity of the state of enlightenment. Out of their great compassion and limitless love, the buddhas and bodhisattvas have manifested their collected purity in the archetypal image of Vajrasattva so that we can identify ourselves with him. We have to understand that the qualities of
Vajrasattva are already within us. But our realizations, method, and wisdom are limited. They have to be developed through identification with the limitless, pure energy of the archetype.” 34. This is from my unfinished article, “The Vajrasattva Mantra: Sanskrit Edition and English Translation,” for which I have utilized many Sanskrit and Tibetan sources. For example, I have noted eight occurrences of the Vajrasattva mantra in the Sådhanamålå, and these occur seven times in the two old palm-leaf Sanskrit manuscripts that were reproduced in facsimile by Gudrun Bühnemann in the Wiener Studien zur
Tibetologie und Buddhismuskunde, vol. 32, 1994. One of
the manuscripts came from Bu-ston’s ¸a lu Monastery in Tibet. These same Sådhanamålå occurrences of this mantra are found fourteen times in the Tibetan Tengyur, and in four Tengyur editions. So a fair number of sources have been checked to establish the correct form of this mantra. The most common error in modern books is taking the second occurrence of Vajrasattva as a vocative; that is, as addressing Vajrasattva twice. In fact, this word is
Vajrasattvatvena, having the -tva suffix, and declined in the third or instrumental case. This declined suffix, literally “by being,” means “as being”; thus, “as Vajrasattva.” Even though mantras are not normally translated into Tibetan, a few translations were made, and these confirm this word, giving: rdo rje sems dpa’ nyid, where the nyid translates the Sanskrit suffix -tva. There are many other errors in modern English translations of this mantra, which translations should be compared with the one given here. 35. This manuscript is found in the library of the Asiatic Society, Calcutta, where it is
no. 10766. The usefulness of this manuscript may be seen by the following. [[Abhayåkara-gupta[[ in his Nißpannayogåvalî gives the Kålacakra heart mantra or seed-syllable (h®d-bîja). It is given as hüµ in the 1949 edition by Benoytosh Bhattacharyya, published in the Gaekwad’s Oriental Series, no. 109, from Baroda, p. 93. For more than half a century, this was the only edition. Then in the 2004 new critical edition by Yong-hyun Lee (see note 9 above) it is given as hraµ instead (p. 113). The editor adopted this reading on the basis of the printed edition of the Vimalaprabhå†îkå and only a single old palm-leaf
manuscript, as against several other later manuscripts and even the two Tibetan translations of the Nißpannayogåvalî. In a footnote on p. xv he notes that, “There is a possibility that the editor of the VP misread the reading of the most excellent manuscript Ca.” This refers to the variant readings given in the Vimalaprabhå†îkå, vol. 2, p. 80, where the manuscript designated Ca, the Calcutta manuscript in Old Bengali script that we are discussing, is listed as reading hüµ rather than hraµ. In fact, this most excellent manuscript reads hraµ, as I have verified from a microfilm of it in my possession. Thus, it
confirms that the true [[Kålacakra] heart mantra]] or seed-syllable (h®d-bîja) is hraµ, despite the large number of later sources giving it as hüµ. [Note, November 2010: This is an error. The correct seed-syllable is in fact hüµ (or huµ), not hraµ. See the following for details.]
Correction Regarding the Kålacakra Heart Seed-syllable:
Abhayåkara-gupta in his Nißpanna-yogåvalî describes 26 Buddhist tantric mañ∂alas for visualization in meditation, of which Kålacakra is the 26th. He tries to give the heart seed-syllable (h®d-bîja) for the primary deity of each of the 26 mañ∂alas. For Kålacakra, he gives this as hüµ (long u), as found in
almost all known Sanskrit manuscripts and Tibetan blockprints. Benoytosh Bhattacharyya’s 1949 printed Sanskrit edition of this text, based on three Sanskrit manuscripts, also gives it as hüµ (long u) in accordance with them. Then in 2004 a new critical edition of the Nißpannayogåvalî was published, based on more and older Sanskrit manuscripts, and also several Tibetan blockprints. The editor, Yong-hyun Lee, calls attention to the problem of the heart
seed-syllables, especially in regard to Kålacakra, in his Introduction, p. xv: Probably the most formidable textual problem of the NPY [Nißpannayogåvalî] is restoring the correct seed-syllables and heart-mantras which are prescribed mostly at the end of each chapter of the NPY. A satisfactory resolution of this problem seems at first sight to depend on their identification in the
tantras related to the NPY. Even the use of all available Sanskrit MSS and the Tibetan translations would not help us without this work. There are, however, two problems for this identification: First, it is not easy to find them in the tantras; second, there is no guarantee they are the correct seed-syllables and heart-mantras, unless the tantras have been critically edited. Moreover, even though we have critically edited Sanskrit texts, some seedsyllables and heart-mantras may be disputed; the seed-syllable of Kålacakra seems to be one of the best examples, i.e. hraµ versus hüµ.
Here Yong-hyun Lee adds a footnote:
I would prefer hraµ to hüµ, following the critical edition of the Vimalaprabhå (VP II) and the oldest Sanskrit MS of the NPY. See verse 82 of the third chapter of the KCT (VP II 80, 14 & 22). . . .
23Sanskrit Mantras in the Kålacakra Sådhana
There is a possibility that the editor of the VP misread the reading of the most excellent manuscript Ca. On hraµ, the seedsyllable of Kålacakra, see also Tanaka 1994: 60.
“Tanaka 1994” is a book in Japanese, titled Haippamikkyo kålacakratantra, published in Osaka by Tøhøshuppan. I do not know what K. Tanaka says about hraµ in this book. Yong-hyun Lee did indeed accept hraµ as the correct reading for the Kålacakra heart seed-syllable (h®d-bîja) in his critical edition of the
Nißpannayogåvalî, where it is given on p. 113. He there says in a footnote that this was emended in accordance with N 1, an abbreviation for what is by far the oldest and best Sanskrit manuscript we have of the Nißpannayogåvalî, and that Bh, N 2, K, KT, N 3, N 4, S, and T all have hüµ (long u). These are abbreviations for the other Sanskrit manuscripts and Tibetan blockprints that he used. Then he refers us to “verse 82 of the third chapter of the KCT (VP
II 80, 14 & 22) in which hraµ is found.” When Yong-hyun Lee kindly sent me a copy of his book, I did check the reading of “the most excellent manuscript Ca,” i.e., the very old palm-leaf manuscript of the Vimala-prabhå preserved at the library of the Asiatic Society in Calcutta, which I have a microfilm of. Dr. Lee was right in saying that “There is a possibility that the editor of the VP misread the reading” of this manuscript, on verse 82 of chapter three.
Contrary to the footnote to “hraµ” in line 22 on p. 80 of vol. II of the printed edition of the Vimalaprabhå, saying that manuscript Ca has “hüµ," this manuscript in fact has “hraµ” there. At this point, having little leisure to check this any further, I accepted that Yong-hyun Lee’s adoption of hraµ as the Kålacakra heart seed-syllable was correct. This led to my statement in the last backnote of my article in As Long as Space Endures, p. 315, that now
needs to be corrected. On Aug. 3, 2010, Edward Henning emailed me, questioning my statement given there. He wrote: I wonder why you consider the “hraµ” on p. 80 to be the seed? It is certainly the basis of the second or third most important mantra for Kålacakra, but I do not see why it should be called the seed.
In the couple of lines following the sentence that concerns “hraµ,” we are told that the seed of Vi≈vamåtå is “phreµ,” that the mantra of both deities together is “hkßmlvryaµ” and that the awareness-seed for the generation of Kålacakra himself is “huµ” (as is so often the case, the Tibetan has a short huµ
and the Sanskrit a long one). Are you suggesting perhaps that “hraµ” is the seed for both deities together? Also, on p. 59-21, we have “huµ” identified as the seed (sa bon, bîja) of Kålacakra, and as the character which is to be drawn in the centre of the mañ∂ala. No separate one is given for the consort here. Also, during the sådhana (p. 177-25), after Kålacakra and the retinue dissolve into a ball of light, when requested by the goddesses to reappear, the ball of light changes into a “huµ” and then a vajra. Surely, that is exactly what we mean by a seed? (Again, for these two, most Sanskrit ms. have long, Tibetan has short.)
In answer to the first question that Edward raised, I relied on Abhayåkara-gupta in Yong-hyun Lee’s critical edition of his Nißpannayogåvalî when calling
hraµ the Kålacakra heart seed-syllable (h®d-bîja), thinking that Abhayåkara-gupta had a much wider knowledge of Kålacakra than I do. But I, too, had wondered why this was not more clear in the Vimala-prabhå. Edward’s questions led me to then look more carefully at the hraµ in verse 82 of chapter 3 of
the Kålacakra Tantra and the Vimala-prabhå commentary thereon. At the time I received Yong-hyun Lee’s edition, I did not have time to thoroughly look into what he wrote therein, but only checked the reading of the Calcutta manuscript of the Vimala-prabhå at the place he referred to. Looking later, I see that
the hraµ refers to the six mantras that are placed on the six “limbs” (a∫ga) starting with the heart, also found on p. 33, lines 12-14, all beginning with “hr.” Further, the Vimala-prabhå commentary on the next verse calls the six “hr” syllables the upah®daya, not the h®daya or heart mantra. It is possible that Dr. Lee (and K. Tanaka?) did not realize that. So hraµ would not be the Kålacakra heart seed-syllable.
The following verse, chapter 3, verse 83, as Edward said, tells us that hüµ is the awareness or wisdom (j∆åna) seed-syllable of Kålacakra. This agrees with the other reference he gave, to p. 59, line 21 (verse 57), where the hüµ syllable is the seed of Kålacakra. These provide strong evidence in favor of the
hüµ (long u) reading found in almost all of the known Nißpanna-yogåvalî manuscripts. The hüµ (long u) reading is also found in all the Tibetan editions cited and reported by Yong-hyun Lee, four of which I was able to check myself (the Tibetan translation of the Nißpanna-yogåvalî made by ˛åkya-≈rî-bhadra found in the Peking, Narthang, Derge, and Co-ne editions of the Tengyur). In the absence of support for hraµ from the Kålacakra Tantra and Vimala-prabhå,
the only remaining source for this is what is described as being by far the oldest and most correct Sanskrit manuscript of the Nißpanna-yogåvalî. This manuscript had been reproduced in the 1991 book, Nißpannayogåvalî: Two Sanskrit Manuscripts from Nepal. But I did not have it, and I waited for three months to try to see it. Then, since the evidence against hraµ was already quite sufficient, I decided that I should not wait any longer to post the
correction. So I contacted Edward to let him know and to get his permission to quote him, and the next day I received from him not only his permission but also a scan of the folio in question! As I suspected might be the case, this good old palm-leaf manuscript actually has huµ (short u) for this syllable, not hraµ. In old Newari script, the short u is hard to distinguish from the subjoined r. The difference is often minute, and it is very easy to misread
these. With the lack of support from this last remaining source, the case for hraµ as the Kålacakra heart seed-syllable has evaporated. We no longer have to use the qualifying word “almost.” We can now say that Abhayåkara-gupta in all known Sanskrit manuscripts and Tibetan blockprints of his Nißpanna-
yogåvalî gives hüµ as the Kålacakra heart seed-syllable (h®d-bîja). The only question now remaining is whether it is huµ (short u) or hüµ (long u). This old Sanskrit manuscript is our sole Nißpannayogåvalî witness for huµ (short u), as even the Tibetan translations of this text all have hüµ (long u). But this is another question for another time.
