The Transmission of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī and Other Buddhist Planetary Astral Texts1 Bill M. Mak Kyoto University INTRODUCTION Among the Indic Buddhist texts that carry a conspicuous planetary theme is the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī, a short ritual text that enjoyed great popularity in North India, Central Asia, and Tibet throughout the latter half of the first millennium. Traces of the practice can still be found among the Newar Buddhists in Nepal to the present day. This paper first examines the historical transmission of this text, followed by a comparison with the astral materials found in other Buddhist and nonBuddhist sources, with the aim to understand how the cosmos was envisioned by the early Buddhist writers and what the motivation behind such astral practice was. Unlike the Babylonians and the Chinese, for whatever reason, there is very little evidence that the early Indians had any interest in the planets, as exemplified by their conspicuous absence in the Vedic corpus.2 There is also no explicit mention of the planets as astral objects in 1. The research project was supported by Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C), Project #15K01118, “Overlapping Cosmologies of Pre-Modern Asia” (2015–2017) and the Acceleration Grant for International Collaboration, Project #15KK0050 (2016–2018). A draft of this paper was presented at the panel “Buddhist Cosmology and Astral Science” (August 21, 2017) at the XVIIIth Congress of the International Association of Buddhist Studies, Toronto, Canada. I thank Ronald Davidson, Michelle McCoy, Gerd Mevissen, and Alexander von Rospatt for their copious comments and references. 2. David Pingree, Jyotiḥśāstra: Astral and Mathematical Literature (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 1981), 9–10. The lack of astronomical and astrological references to the five planets in early Indic texts such as the Vedāṅgajyotiṣa in both the Ṛc and Yajur recensions, i.e., in contrast to the Sun, Moon, and the nakṣatras, 223 224 Pacific World, 3rd ser., no. 20 (2018) the Pāli canon or any early Buddhist texts, in which only the Sun, Moon, and lunar mansions (nakṣatra) are mentioned. As I have discussed elsewhere, the overt lack of interest in anything astronomical or astrological among the early Buddhists is mainly due to the Buddha’s anti-Brahmanical stance.3 Astral science (jyotiṣa), being one of the Brahmanical sciences (ṣaḍvedāṅga), was rejected wholesale polemically despite its prevalence at large.4 This of course does not mean that the Buddha or the Buddhists themselves were completely uninterested in describing or discussing the world and the cosmos. As we shall see, the later rise of astral entities and phenomena in the Buddhist world lies precisely in the Buddhists’ own interest in describing them as part of the phenomenal world and was, moreover, in keeping with the growing interest in the astral symbolism that became an integral part of an emerging Indic tantric worldview, which became widely popular in India and beyond throughout the latter half of the first millennium.5 The appearance of planetary materials in the Buddhist corpus and in a text such as the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī may be prima facie attributed to the broader trend of Buddhist appropriation of the Brahmanical planetary lore, which had a cross-sectarian appeal throughout medieval Indian society.6 This lore was disseminated doubtless through suggests that the planets played little or no role in ancient Indian society. This, however, does not mean that the planets were unknown to the early Indians. For speculations on a few possible planetary references in the Vedas, see S.B. Dikshit, Bhāratīya Jyotish Śāstra (History of Indian Astronomy), English trans. based on Marathi version (1896), 2 vols. (New Delhi: Director General of Meteorology, 1969), 58–62. 3. Bill M. Mak, “Matching Stellar Ideas to the Stars: Remarks on the Translation of Indian Jyotiṣa in the Chinese Buddhist Canon,” in Cross-Cultural Transmission of Buddhist Texts: Theories and Practices of Translation (Hamburg: Department of Indian and Tibetan Studies, Universität Hamburg, 2016), 138–139. As Bronkhorst has pointed out, “Buddhists ceded the profession of astrologist/ astronomers/mathematician to Brahmins,” and “the absence of a Buddhist contribution to, and participation in the development of astronomy and mathematics in classical India may be partly responsible for the relative ‘peace’ enjoyed by these branches of learning.” See Johannes Bronkhorst, How the Brahmins Won (Leiden/Boston: Brill, 2016), 275, 298. 4. Mak, ibid. 5. For the variety of ways such materials are incorporated into the Buddhist texts, see ibid., 139–141. 6. See §2.1. Mak: The Transmission of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī 225 the larger jyotiṣa tradition, which was largely monopolized by the Brahmins but had reached also other segments of the society through popular rituals and worship, as exemplified by the appeasement rituals (śānti) dedicated to the nine Indian planets (navagraha). Such nonBuddhist rituals are one of the main sources of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī we now examine. The Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī has received considerable scholarly attention in recent years. Investigations have been made with regard to its manuscript tradition,7 rituals,8 and iconography.9 In this paper, my focus will be the formation and transmission of the text itself and its position within the broader tradition of planetary worship in South Asia. 1. FORMATION AND TRANSMISSION OF THE GRAHAMĀTṚKĀDHĀRAṆĪ Although the dhāraṇī as a Mahāyāna textual genre may be dated to the early centuries of the first millennium, the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī in its current form emerged relatively late.10 We know this because the early 7. G. Grönbold, “ ‘Saptavāra’ — A Dhāraṇī Collection from Nepal,” in Le Parole e i Marmi. Studi in onore di Raniero Gnoli nel suo 70° compleanno (Rome: Istituto italiano per l’Africa e l’Oriente), 369–375. Gudrun Bühnemann, “Tantric Deities in an Illustrated Dhāraṇī Manuscript from Nepal,” in Script and Image: Papers on Art and Epigraphy, ed. Adalbert J. Gail, Gerd J. R. Mevissen, and Richard Salomon (Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 2006), 29–64; “A Dhāraṇī for Each Day of the Week: The Saptavāra Tradition of the Newar Buddhists,” Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies 77, no. 1 (2014): 119–136. 8. Gudrun Bühnemann, “The Heavenly Bodies (Navagraha) in Hindu Ritual,” Sambhasa 11 (1989): 1–9. Marianna Kropf, “Rituelle Traditionen der Planetengottheiten (Navagraha) im Kathmandutal: Strukturen-PraktikenWeltbilder” (PhD thesis, University of Heidelberg, 2005). Alexander von Rospatt, “Negotiating the Passage beyond a Full Span of Life: Old Age Rituals among the Newars,” South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies 37, no. 1 (2014): 104–129. 9. Gerd Mevissen, “Die früheste Darstellung der Grahamatṛkā: Buchmalerei aus Nepal,” Indo-Asiatische Zeitschrift 8 (2004): 47–62; “Iconography of Grahamātṛkā,” in Script and Image: Papers on Art and Epigraphy (Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 2006), 65–98; “Images of Buddhist Goddesses Accompanied by Astral Deities,” in Studies in Art, Iconography, Architecture and Archaeology of India and Bangladesh, Professor Enamul Haque Felicitation Volume, ed. Gouriswar Bhattacharya et al. (New Delhi: Kaveri Books, 2007), 154–203. 10. For a discussion of dhāraṇī texts as a genre, see Ronald M. Davidson, “Studies in Dhāraṇī Literature I; Revisiting the Meaning of the Term Dhāraṇī,” Journal of Indian Philosophy 37 (2009): 97–147. Also, on the relation of evolution 226 Pacific World, 3rd ser., no. 20 (2018) Indian Buddhist works are characterized by a cosmology dominated by Sumeru and a set of astral beliefs based on lunar/nakṣatra astrology without any reference to the planets.11 Only during the first half of the first millennium did a different form of astral science gradually emerge. Characterized by the zodiac, horoscopy, and planetary worship, this new body of astral lore became a salient feature of a number of Buddhist texts within the Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna traditions. The Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī is one such text. 1.1 The Indic Origin Over one hundred items bearing a title related to the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī may be found in the Nepalese-German Manuscript Preservation Project catalogue alone. All are relatively late, with the earliest copy dated to N.S. 603 (=1492/3 CE).12 There is also a Newar tradition that emerged no later than the sixteenth century in which the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī appears within a cycle of dhāraṇīs known as the Saptavāra (literally, “seven days”).13 The popularity of this liturgical cycle doubtless contributed to the wider circulation of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī.14 The content of the text is largely consistent among the manuscripts I have examined. A shorter version bearing the same title has been identified as an excerpt of the former that focuses on the mantras.15 According to of Buddhist spells associated with specific deities, images, and rituals, see Koichi Shinohara, “Dhāraṇīs and Visions in Early Esoteric Buddhist Sources in Chinese Translation,” Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies 77, no. 1 (2014): 85–103. Under Shinohara’s classification, the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī would be a dhāraṇī without vision and soteriological benefits. 11. Mak, “Indian Jyotiṣa Literature,” 14–15. 12. Kropf, “Rituelle Traditionen der Planetengottheiten,” 163n140. 13. See footnote 7. 14. See Bühnemann, “A Dhāraṇī for Each Day of the Week,” 120. The other six are the Vasudhārā, Vajravidāraṇā, Gaṇapatihṛdayā, Uṣṇīṣvijayā, Parṇaśavarī/ Prajñāpāramitā, Mārīcī. The Grahamātṛkā was placed at the end, corresponding to Saturday. The Nepalese transmission of these dhāraṇī texts, however, is known to be rather corrupt as scribes apparently paid little attention to the actual meaning of these texts, as shown in Akira Yuyama, “An Uṣṇīṣa-Vijayā Dhāraṇī Text from Nepal,” Annual Report of the International Research Institute for Advanced Buddhology at Soka University for the Academic Year 1999 (2000). 15. Dharmarāj Bajrācārya, ed., Saptavāra Grahamātṛkā Pustakam, 2nd ed. (Yala: Dharmarāj Bajrācārya, 1998). Cited with text in Kropf, “Rituelle Traditionen Mak: The Transmission of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī 227 Tsukamoto et al., the Sanskrit manuscripts of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī may be classified under three groups: (a), (b), and (c).16 Group (a) is the most common and also most complete. Category (b) contains only the section from the dhāraṇī onward. Manuscript copies of category (c) cannot be easily classified. The editions I use here fall under group (a).17 1.2 Chinese and Tibetan Translations At least two Chinese (C1, C2) and two Tibetan translations (T1, T2) of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī are extant.18 They provide us some important clues with regard to the early formation of this text and the kind of development it might have undergone. C1: T. 1302: Zhuxingmu tuoluoni jing 諸星母陀羅尼經 (Sutra of the Dhāraṇī of the Mother of Stars), translated by Facheng 法成. Based on Dunhuang manuscripts, mid-ninth century CE.19 der Planetengottheiten,” 475–476. 16. Tsukamoto Keisho 塚本啓祥, Matsunaga Yukei 松永有慶, and Isoda Hirofumi 磯田熙文, eds., Bongo butten-no kenkyū IV - mikkyōhen 梵語仏典の研 究 IV 密教編 (Kyoto: Heirakuji 平楽寺書店, 1989), 114–115. 17. A partial transcription of the text was first published in Rajendralala Mitra, The Sanskrit Buddhist Literature of Nepal (Calcutta: Asiatic Society of Bengal, 1882), 93–95. The Sanskrit texts I consulted in my translation (appendix B) are: Āryaśrī grahamātṛkā nāma dhāraṇī (Lalitpur: Mudrakaḥ Mañjuśrī Press, Nepal saṃvat 1080 [1960 CE]); “Āryagrahamātṛkā nāma dhāraṇī,” Dhīḥ 39 (2005): 169–176, which is based on Nepal National Archive ms. 3/589, folios 148b–150a, 299b–302a. Some minor variants are noted among two editions and the manuscripts I had access to. Sanskrit dhāraṇī manuscripts are in general highly corrupt as their contents are often thought to be magical rather than exegetical. For a helpful discussion on the edition of dhāraṇī texts, see Akira, “An Uṣṇīṣa-Vijayā Dhāraṇī Text from Nepal,” 165–175. Pending a proper edition of the text, my translation is only provisional, with certainly many details upon which to improve. 18. In addition, two Tibetan manuscripts containing the same text have been reported: Stein 334 and Pelliot 410/411. See Dang Cuo 党措, “Zhuxingmu tuoluonijing de mizhou jiedu ji neirong jieshi,” 诸星母陀罗尼经的密咒解读 及内容解析, Zongjiaoxue yanjiu 宗教学研究 1 (2011): 263. 19. T. 1302 was based on two Tang manuscripts, one from the personal collection of Takakusu Junjirō and another from the British Museum Collection (T98.372b). Takakusu dated the text to the tenth year of Taizhong 太中 (=Dazhong 大中), 856 CE (T98.372b), while Misaki proposed 842 CE based on the prefatory remark on S.5010. See Misaki Ryōshū 三崎良周, “Bucchō 228 Pacific World, 3rd ser., no. 20 (2018) C2: T. 1303 Shengyaomu tuoluoni jing 聖曜母陀羅尼經 (Sutra of the Dhāraṇī of the Holy Mother of the Planets) translated by Fatian 法天, ca. 973 CE.20 T1: Toh 660: (=997), Ota 339=622, N(K) 597, C 344=627, I.630, ḥJaṅ 657=913, sTog 616. Ārya gra ha mā tṛ kā nā ma dhā ra ṇī / ḥphags ma gzaḥ rnams kyi yum shes bya baḥi gzuṅs. T2: Toh 661: (=998), Ota 340=623, N(K)598, C 345=628, I. 631, ḥJaṅ 658=914, sTog 617. Gra ha mā tṛ kā nā ma dhā ra ṇī / gzaḥ rnams kyi yum shes bya baḥi gzuṅs. The first translation, C1, though never canonized, was exceptionally popular, with over fifty Dunhuang manuscripts extant in various collections.21 It was translated in the mid-ninth century in the monastery Xiuduo si 脩多寺 in Ganzhou 甘州 by Facheng 法成, who is believed to have been active in the Hexi region (i.e., the Gansu corridor).22 Given the translator’s Tibetan connection, it has been suggested that this translation was based on a Tibetan exemplar.23 Excerpts of this translation are found also in a rather elaborate text-filled diagram (Pelliot 4519, Appendix C), currently labeled as a “Maṇḍala non-identifié.” The sonshō daranikyō-to shoshōmo daranikyō” 仏頂尊勝陀羅尼経と諸星母陀羅 尼経, in Tonkō-to chūgoku bukkyō 敦煌と中国仏教 (Tokyo: Daitō shuppansha 大東出版社, 1984), 116, 126–127. 20. On Fatian, see Nagai Masashi 永井政之 et al., “Sōkaiyō dōshakubu kunchū (10)”『宋会要』道釈部訓注 (10), Komazawa daigaku bukkyō gakubu ronshū 駒 澤大学仏教学部論集 46 (2015): 53–54. 21. Note that, however, as Michelle McCoy pointed out to me [personal communication, 2018.6.1], the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī was not the sole astral material circulating in Central Asia as Misaki suggested; see in §2.2 discussion on rivaling Buddhist astral beliefs such as the Jvāloṣṇīṣa. The samples of C1 I have examined are: Pelliot 3070, 3916, 3548, 2282, 4587; Saint Petersburg дx2191, Ф116, дx1005. One of the reasons why this text was not canonized and remained subsequently unknown in China must be due to the fact that it was translated shortly after the widespread religious persecution following the imperial edict (842 CE) of Emperor Wuzong. The peripheral regions must have been largely unaffected. 22. Misaki, “Bucchō sonshō,” 127. 23. Dang, “Zhuxingmu tuoluonijing de mizhou jiedu ji neirong jieshi,” reports, however, that none of the extant Tibetan recensions correspond exactly to C1 and thus Dang suggests that C1 could be based on yet another Tibetan recension. Mak: The Transmission of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī 229 combination of this planetary dhāraṇī with other texts suggests that it was part of a larger Buddhist ritual repertoire in a certain tradition.24 The second translation, C2, was produced by the Indian monk *Dharmadeva (Fatian 法天) sometime after his arrival in Song China in 973 CE. Both the content and the vocabulary of C1 and C2 differ significantly, suggesting that C1 was likely unknown to the translator of C2. As the translation of C2 was sponsored by the Song emperor, it was subsequently canonized in the Chinese Tripiṭakas,25 while C1 remains extracanonical. It is uncertain whether C2 circulated as widely as C1 did.26 Neither Chinese translation contains the section on the construction of shrine and maṇḍala (section D of the text, see table 1 below), which makes up a significant portion of the extant Sanskrit recension. This suggests that the extant Sanskrit recension likely underwent a process of accretion sometime after the tenth century.27 24. The texts identified in P4519 by Michel Soymié et al. include, aside from C1: (1) Foshuo suiqiu jide dazizai tuoluoni shenzhoujing 佛說隨求即得大自在陀羅尼 神咒經; (2) Shi, Guanshiyin pusa zhou 詩觀世音菩薩咒; (3) Dafoding rulai dingji baigai tuoluoni shenzhoujing 大佛頂如來頂髻陀羅尼神咒經; (4) Qi juzhi fomuxin dazhunti tuoluonijing 七俱胝佛母心大准提陀羅尼經; (5) Qingguanshiyin pusa zhou 請觀世音菩薩咒; and (6) other unidentified dhāraṇīs. See Michel Soymié et al., Catalogue des Manuscrits Chinois de Touen-houang. Fonds Pelliot Chinois de la Bibliothèque Nationale, Vol. 5. 4001-6040 (Paris: Bibliothèque nationale, 1995), 157–160. Misaki identified in P4519 the phrase “[the maṇḍala] is composed with the secret mantras of the Grahāmātṛkādhāraṇī” 用諸星母陀羅尼秘密呪 組成. See Misaki, “Bucchō sonshō,” 128. I have highlighted in the maṇḍala in red the sections containing C1 (appendix C). 25. Korean Tripiṭaka 1180.34.187(1245), Fangshan Stone Sūtras 950.26.530, Qisha ed. P106/T33. 26. The text must have been known and used ritually, as Dānapāla (Shihu 施護), a contemporary of Dharmadeva, refers to the goddess Grahamātṛkā (shengyaomu 聖曜母) along with the seven Mātrikās in his translation of the Nāmasaṃgīti, a text that was thought to be written around early to mid-eighth century. T. (1187)20.813c. 27. In this section (D), an instruction to recite the navagraha mantras to each planet 39,200 times (saptasaptāṣṭaśatam) is given. In the following section (E), a more comprehensive set of description of the navagrahapūjā is given and a similar instruction of the recitation of mantras, but only 108 times. It thus appears that the highly inflated number of the former is an interpolation. 230 Pacific World, 3rd ser., no. 20 (2018) The dates of the two Tibetan translations are unknown.28 Toh 660 and Toh 661 are reported to be similar to the Sanskrit recension (a) and C1/C2 respectively in terms of content.29 TABLE 1. Contents of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī by sections and structural variation. Section C1 C2/T2 A. Preamble ○ ○ ○ B. Dialogue between Vajrapāṇi and the Buddha ○ ○ ○ C. The mantras ○ ○ ○ D. Construction of shrine and maṇḍala - - ○ E. General instruction for planetary offerings ○ ○ ○ △ (reduced) ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ - - ○ Buddha’s planetary F. Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī mantra G. End of the Buddha’s speech H. Closing T1/Skt. 1.3 Content of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī and Variants The Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī begins with the Buddha located in the mythical city Aḍakavatī, surrounded by an assembly of supernatural beings 28. According to the colophon of T1, this Tibetan recension appears to have been edited in consultation with an unidentified Chinese recension, possibly C1. See A Comparative Analytical Catalogue of the Kanjur Division of the Tibetan Tripitaka (Kyoto: Otani Daigaku Library, 1930–1932), 114. If C1 was translated from an earlier Tibetan recension of the text, this lost Tibetan recension would date prior to the mid-eighth century. 29. Tsukamoto Keisho et al., Bongo butten-no kenkyū IV, 114. See Skt. ed. in Dhīḥ for collation of Toh 660 (not Toh 661) with the Sanskrit edition. Dang (“Zhuxingmu tuoluonijing de mizhou jiedu ji neirong jieshi,” 264), on the other hand, claims that although C1 is not directly based on T1/T2, it is much closer to all the extant Tibetan recensions than C2. Further investigation on the Tibetan recensions is required. Mak: The Transmission of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī 231 and bodhisattvas who belong to the Vajrasamaya family (one of the three buddha families in early tantric Buddhism),30 together with the nine planets and the nakṣatras. The Bodhisattva Vajrapāṇi asks the Buddha how sentient beings may be protected from the harms caused by the planets.31 The Buddha then explains the secret rites, which consist of the utterance of dhāraṇīs for each planet, the construction of a planetary maṇḍala (Sanskrit and T2 only),32 and finally the mantra of Grahamātṛkā. The instruction ends with a note concerning the time of the year when the rite should be performed and the results it will yield. The planets then rejoice and vanish.33 Beside the details of the ritual, which we shall examine further below, the text has a clear tantric orientation associated with the Vajrasamaya.34 The protagonist Vajrapāṇi is portrayed, as in a number of other tantric texts, as the transmitter of the tantric teaching. Furthermore, the text heralds the worship of Grahamātṛkā, a female deity conceived as the mother (mātṛkā) of all other male astral deities, including planets and nakṣatras. The goddess is embodied by a dhāraṇī 30. The other two are the Tathāgata family associated with Śākyamuni/ Vairocana and the Lotus family associated with Avalokiteśvara/Amitābha. The Vajra family is associated with Akṣobhya. 31. Astral entities other than the planets mentioned in the dhāraṇī include the nakṣatras, the rāśis (T1/T2), and the meteors (C1/Skt.), which are all assumed to be harmful and thus require appeasement. Von Rospatt informed me that in practice the janmanakṣatra of the yajamāna is worshipped together with the navagraha, though the janmanakṣatra may be generic and not adapted to the patron in question [personal communication, 2018.6.11]. 32. The Sanskrit recension gives additional details on each planet, including its associated direction, iconographic features, food offering, and an additional mantra at the end. This additional section concludes with a description of the inner sanctum of the shrine and the divinities of the inner doors of eight directions and the outer doors of four directions, along with the instruction on the recitation of mantras for each planet. 33. The Sanskrit recension has an additional ending with the rejoicing of all beings present, as typical in Mahāyāna sutras. Both the Sanskrit antarhita and the Chinese buxian 不現 suggest that their abrupt disappearance was due to the efficacy of the dhāraṇī. 34. Many of the names of the bodhisattvas listed in this text contain the designation vajra: Vajrasena, Vajravināya, Vajracāpahasta, Vajravikurvita, Vajrādhipati, Vajrālaṇkāra, Vajravikrama, Jotivajra, and most notably the interlocutor Vajrapāṇi. 232 Pacific World, 3rd ser., no. 20 (2018) and is closely associated with other goddesses such as Usṇīṣavijayā and Vasudhārā. Iconographically, she is generally depicted as white-complexioned, with three heads and six arms and her main pair of hands in the gesture of exposition (vyākhyānamudrā or dharmacakramudrā).35 The structural differences among the three extant versions (table 1) indicate an accretive development of the text. The dhāraṇī proper (F) is expanded, and the instruction for the construction of the maṇḍalas (D), as well as the “typical” but superfluous ending (H), appear to be later additions. The variations among the three versions suggest also some subtler changes (table 2). The oldest version, C1, is characterized by an apparently random order of the seven planets and the use of twenty-eight nakṣatras. Both are features of the “old Indian astral lore” found in the Buddhist corpus.36 The archaism of this Dunhuang translation is further illustrated by the old translation of Ketu as “comet,” rather than phonetically as Jidu 計都, which became standard in later texts.37 In the case of C2 (tenth century), while the planets still retain a random order, the number of nakṣatras was reduced to twenty-seven, a norm observed in the mainstream, non-Buddhist jyotiṣa tradition in India since as early as the sixth century CE. Finally, the late Sanskrit edition adopts both the Hellenistic planetary order and the twentyseven nakṣatras. Chronologically speaking, these variants conform to the broad trends in the Indian astral lore that are mirrored in Buddhist texts.38 Another curious variant among the three texts is the effect of the ritual expressed in terms of years. The effect of “no threat of death for 35. Mevissen, “Iconography of Grahamātṛkā,” 66, citing Kriyāsamuccaya of Jagaddarpaṇa (twelfth to thirteenth century): vāyau bhaṭṭārikā mahāvidyā sitanīlāruṇatrimukhā mūlabhujābhyā[ṃ] vyākhyānamudrā savye padmaratnachaṭā vāme pāśaśaktidharā(ḥ) ratnamukuṭinī vajraparyaṅkinī candrāsanā dviraṣṭābdā sarvālaṃkāravatī || 36. Mak, “Indian Jyotiṣa Literature,” 15. 37. In Bṛhatsaṃhitā chap. 11, Varāhamihira explained that there are various views concerning the nature of Ketus. Although as celestial objects their periodicity was not recognized by the Indians, and their size and appearance vary, ketu refers generally to the comets. Later Indian writers treat Rāhu and Ketu as a pair, considering them as two disembodied halves of the eclipsecausing asura, and astronomically, the ascending and descending lunar nodes where eclipses take place. 38. Mak, ibid. Mak: The Transmission of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī 233 nine years” in C1 suggests that the dhāraṇī acts as a protective charm for a fixed period of time,39 whereas the claim that “one lives until ninety-nine years old” in C2 and in the Sanskrit recension guarantees the longevity of person in a manner similar to the doctrine of āyurdāya (lifespan attribution by the planets) of Greco-Indian astrology (see below, §2.1). A short remark may be made regarding the day the ritual is expected to be performed. The ritual begins on the seventh day of the bright fortnight and ends on the full moon day (the fifteenth day) of the month of Kārttika, lasting therefore for a total of nine days. The full moon day of Kārttika is celebrated by Buddhists as the Pavāraṇā, the end of the three- or four-month rain retreat (varṣāvāsa), in which general rituals are traditionally forbidden.40 A numerological undertone may be detected given the recurring emphasis on the number nine—the nine planets, the protection of nine years (or in later recensions, ninety-nine years), and the nine associated Buddhist deities.41 2. PLANETARY WORSHIP IN THE GRAHAMĀTṚKĀDHĀRAṆĪ IN HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE Planetary worship may be traced back to Babylonian and Hellenistic sources, where the belief in anthropomorphic planets was part of a long astral tradition in which each of seven planets is associated with a divinity of either auspicious or inauspicious nature. During the Hellenistic period, the concept of a seven-day planetary week emerged, merging the anthropomorphic planets with concepts such as the Greek model of the geocentric universe and the Egyptian lords of the hours. This resulted in the unusual planetary weekday order beginning with 39. 至滿九年無其死畏. 40. H. Kern, Manual of Indian Buddhism (1896; repr. Motilal Banarsidass, 1989), 80–81. Étienne Lamotte, History of Indian Buddhism: From the Origins to the Śaka Era, trans. Sara Webb-Boin (Louvain-la-Neuve: Université catholique de Louvain, Institut Orientaliste, 1988), 59. 41. Incidentally, the month of Kārttika corresponds to the ninth Chinese month (C1) as explained in Xuanzang’s Datang Xiyuji T. (2087)51.875c and the second fascicle of the Xiuyao jing of Amoghavajra. T. (1299)21.0394c. While this “ninth” month could be coincidental, the date in C2 was changed instead to the “eighth month,” as the translator likely followed the Indian convention of counting Caitra as the first month of the year. Pacific World, 3rd ser., no. 20 (2018) 234 TABLE 2. Textual variants in versions of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī. Variants C1 C2 Skt. ed. Sequence of planets Sun-MoonMars-VenusJupiter-Mercury (餘星?)-SaturnRāhu-Ketu(長 尾星) Jupiter-MarsVenus-MercurySaturn-MoonSun-Rāhu-Ketu Sun-Moon-MarsMercury-JupiterVenus-Saturn-RāhuKetu Number of nakṣatras 28 27 27 Expected result No threat of death for 9 years One obtains longevity up to the age of 99 years No threat of death for 99 years Dates of worship from the seventh day of the bright fortnight of the ninth month until full moon day from the seventh day of the eighth month until full moon day from the seventh [tithi] of the bright fortnight of Kārttika until full moon day the Day of Saturn, i.e., Saturday, a unique means of time reckoning that became widespread during late antiquity. By no later than the fourth century CE, the beginning of the week was shifted to the day of the Sun, resulting in the conventional weekday order that became standard across Eurasia from the middle of the first millennium onward.42 The Indian navagraha is an adaptation of this conventional planetary order, with the inclusion of two additional pseudoplanets, Rāhu and Ketu. This Indian variety of planetary lore may thus be considered a late and indigenous development of the pan-Eurasian astral lore. 2.1 Planetary Worship in Historical Indic Sources The idea of a malefic entity known as graha (literally, “seizer”), a term by which planets are later generally referred to, first appears in the 42. Bill M. Mak, “The First Two Chapters of Mīnarāja’s Vṛddhayavanajātaka,” Zinbun 48 (2018): 9. Mak: The Transmission of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī 235 Atharvaveda some centuries before the Common Era.43 As nine anthropomorphic planets, the grahas appeared quite late, most likely first in the śānti rites described in texts such as the Yājñavalkyasmṛti and the Vaikhānasagṛhyasūtra, both dated to the fourth or fifth century CE.44 In particular, the Yājñavalkyasmṛti is recognized as the model for all later planetary śānti rites, which are still current across the Indian subcontinent.45 The text of Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī appears to have adopted some Brahmanical materials, as indicated by at least one parallel halfverse found in the Jaiminigṛhyasūtra.46 Navagraha images in architecture (in particular, temple lintels) are attested from the beginning of the seventh century in North India and from the eleventh century in South India.47 Planetary deities are widely depicted as either independent cult icons or as subsidiary deities accompanying goddesses, as attested in stone images of Śaiva, Vaiṣṇava, and Śākta (Jaina origin) and in Buddhist paintings from Nepal and Tibet.48 43. Atharvaveda (Śaunaka recension, ed. Vishva Bandhu), 19.9.10. Cited and translated in Michio Yano, “Planet Worship in Ancient India,” in Studies in the History of the Exact Sciences in Honor of David Pingree (Leiden and Boston: Brill, 2004), 332–333. 44. Adalbert Gail, “Planets and Pseudoplanets in Indian Literature and Art with Special Reference to Nepal,” East and West 30, no. 1/4 (1980): 138. David Pingree, “Indian Planetary Images and the Tradition of Astral Magic,” Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes 52 (1989): 4. Also, Yano, “Planet Worship,” 341. 45. Yājñavalkyasmṛti 1.293–306, Vaikhānasasmārtasūtra 4.14, Baudhāyanagṛhyaśeṣasūtra 1.17, Matsya-purāṇa 93. A popular variety of the navagraha-pūjā would involve the recitation of mantras (japa) for each of the nine planets, the creation of a maṇḍala with colored grains representing each of the nine planets (or their weapons) in various shapes, and the offering of a variety of substances to them. Such pūjā is generally occasioned by an important life event (saṃskāra), such as the upanayana ceremony, marriage, and birthday. See P. V. Kane, History of Dharmaśāstra, vol. 5, part 2 (Pune: Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, 1962), 749–751. See also Bühnemann, “The Heavenly Bodies,” 1ff., and note 61 below on the Newar old age ritual. 46. See Appendix B, note 5. I thank Ronald Davidson for the references. 47. See Gail, “Planets and Pseudoplanets,” 140. 48. See Gerd J. R. Mevissen, “Ladies and Planets: Images of Female Deities Accompanied by Graha Figures,” in South Asian Archaeology 2001: Proceedings of the 16th International Conference of the EASAA, Held in Collège de France, Paris, 2–6 July 2001 (München: Wilhelm Fink Verlag, 2005), 579–588. 236 Pacific World, 3rd ser., no. 20 (2018) An important underlying assumption of these planetary śānti rituals is that the planets are closely tied to the lifespan and physical wellbeing of humans.49 The idea that grahas could be a source of ailments is noted in the fourth century Suśrutasaṃhitā and other Āyurvedic works, where the grahas (from the root √grah, “to grab”) appear as supernatural “seizers” who possess people and cause mental diseases.50 A variant of this idea, known as āyurdāya or “allocation of lifespan,” is found in the early Greco-Indian astrological literature and is exemplified by horoscopic works (horā or jātaka) such as the Vṛddhayavanajātaka, Yavanajātaka, and Bṛhajjātaka.51 According to this theory, the lifespan of individuals may be computed based on the life-allotment of each planet determined by various astronomical configurations.52 In such a manner, the planets are conceived in concrete terms as the agents of human existence. 49. For a broad discussion of planetary iconography and worship, see Pingree, “Indian Planetary Images”; and Yano, “Planet Worship.” See also Stephen Markel, “The Imagery and Iconographic Development of the Indian Planetary Deities Rahu and Ketu,” South Asian Studies 6 (1990): 9–26; and by the same author, Origins of the Indian Planetary Deities (Lewiston, NY: Edwin Mellen Press, 1995). 50. In most cases, grahas refer broadly to the malefic deities and not exclusively to the planets as discussed in Michio Yano, “Medicine and Divination in India,” East Asian Science, Technology, and Medicine 24 (2005): 46–48; and Bühnemann, “Tantric Deities,” 53–54. For example, the Suśrutasaṃhitā gives a list of eight classes of grahas: devagraha, asuragraha, gandharvagraha, yakṣagraha, pitṛgraha, bhujaṅgagraha, rakṣasgraha, and piśācagraha, presented as both benefic and malefic deities who affect the patient on a specific tithis and are to be propitiated with japa, homa, and pūjā offerings particular to the graha (Suśrutasaṃhitā 6.60.1–56). 51. Despite the foreign Hellenistic elements in these works, as far as the Indian planetary iconography is concerned, it does not appear to have come from any known Greek tradition. See Pingree, “Indian Planetary Images,” 2. 52. David Pingree, The Yavanajātaka of Sphujidhvaja, 2 vols. (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1978), II:335ff. Accordingly, the human lifespan is a sum of periods (daśās) and sub-periods (antardaśās) governed by each planet. A period of time is deducted from the full lifespan due to factors such as inauspicious aspects and alignments. The topic of Āyurdāya and the associated theory of daśā and antardaśā are dealt with in chaps. 5–7, Vṛddhayavanajātaka of Mīnarāja (Pingree ed.); chaps. 37–41, Yavanajātaka of Sphujidhvaja (Pingree ed.); and chaps. 6–8, Bṛhajjātaka of Varāhamihira. Mak: The Transmission of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī 237 Although the precise descriptions and roles of the grahas vary from text to text, some observations may be made through a comparison of the common elements such as color and direction in our three groups of texts (appendix A), namely, the (i) Brahmaṇic navagraha śāntipūjā; (ii) Greco-Indian horā/jātaka; and (iii) Buddhist Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī. Firstly, while certain assignments may be accounted for by natural reasons such as the redness of Mars and the easterly rising of the Sun, by and large they are arbitrary. Secondly, most planets are strongly associated with a particular direction, suggesting an underlying scheme of astrological character. The theory of the “lords of triplicities” given in the Greco-Indian jātaka texts is a plausible source (table 3).53 The concepts of zodiacal signs, triplicities, and planetary lordship are of Greco-Babylonian origin. However, the source of this particular Greco-Indian scheme (table 3) has not been identified.54 Nonetheless, the importance of this scheme lies in the fact that it serves as the basis from which the subsequent Indian planetary lore developed. As the number of grahas varies from seven to eight or nine, and the directions from eight to nine, the original scheme could be adapted in a variety of ways, resulting in the variations we observe in our comparison.55 The Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī, while preserving some elements of this older scheme, introduces a new logic to the assignment based on the later 53. Yavanajātaka 1.66–67 in Yavanajātaka of Sphujidhvaja, ed. D. Pingree, 2 vols., Harvard Oriental Series, Vol. 48 (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1978); Vṛddhayavanajātaka 1.20 in Vṛddhayavanajātaka, ed. D. Pingree, 2 vols., Gaekward’s Oriental Series, nos. 162 and 163 (Baroda: Oriental Institute, 1976); Bṛhajjātakam 1.11 in Bṛhajjātakam: Bhaṭṭotpalīya-saṃskṛta-vivṛtyā Vilasitam, ed. Sītārāma Jhā, first published in 1944 (Varanasi: Ṭhākuprasāda, 1973). 54. Pingree, The Yavanajātaka of Sphujidhvaja, II:226. 55. In the case of the Brahmanic navagrahapūjā, the nine planets are fitted into the eight directions by placing the Sun in the center. East or pūrva, which means “front” also, is customarily represented at the top. Venus, Mars, Saturn, and Jupiter follow the “Lord of Triplicity” scheme and are assigned to the cardinal directions: E, S, W, N. The positions of the remaining planets Moon, Rāhu, Ketu, and Mercury are difficult to explain but are in any case assigned to the intercardinal directions. Rāhu, which originally played no role in early planetary divination, was likely invoked to fill the eight directions with the seven planets. Thus Vṛddhayavanajātaka 2.11 assigns the eight planets to the eight directions starting from the east. See Mak, “The First Two Chapters of Mīnarāja’s Vṛddhayavanajātaka,” 27–28. While there are differences among the different schemes as shown in Appendix A, Rāhu remains in the SW in Pacific World, 3rd ser., no. 20 (2018) 238 standard planetary weekday order. To begin, by placing the Sun in the center, and Mars and Jupiter to South and North respectively, it bears a certain resemblance to its Brahmanic counterpart (fig. 1a).56 The precise order, however, was created by assigning Moon, Mars, Mercury, and Jupiter in the four cardinal directions starting from the east, and the remaining four planets Venus, Saturn, Rāhu, and Ketu in the four intercardinal directions starting from the northeast (fig. 1b).57 Additional TABLE 3. Lords of triplicities in Greco-Indian jātaka texts. Triplicity Signs Planetary lord(s) Direction First Aries, Leo, Sagittarius Sun, Venus East Second Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn Mars South Third Gemini, Libra, Aquarius Moon, Saturn West Fourth Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces Jupiter, Mercury North practically all schemes where it is found (except Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī due to the schematization as explained below). 56. For a sample of the Brahmanical, possibly Śaiva, maṇḍala, see Gerd Mevissen, “Sūrya-Candramaṇḍalas in the Art of Nepal,” in Interaction between Brahmanical and Buddhist Art (New Delhi: D.K. Printworld, 2004), 128, S16. Note, however, the description should read instead: “Starting with Candra on a goose at 1.30, the sequence continues with Maṅgala on a ram at 3 o’clock, then moves to the opposite with Budha on a lion at 10.30, continues anti-clockwise with Bṛhaspati on an elephant at 9 o’clock and then clockwise again to Śukra on a horse at 12 o’clock, then runs down vertically to Śani on a tortoise at 6 o’clock, continues anti-clockwise with Rāhu on a lion-like animal at 4.30, and ends with Ketu on a mṛga at 7.30.” 57. The main factor that accounts for the various assignments of planetary direction appears to be the importance of certain planets in a particular system. In other words, planets considered important are placed at the center or the east. For a discussion on the possible rationales behind the assignment of planetary direction in various jyotiṣa texts, see Pingree, The Yavanajātaka of Sphujidhvaja, II:223–227. Mak: The Transmission of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī 239 Buddhist elements are introduced in the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī; these include the image of a bhikṣu for Mars58 and the placement of the eight tantric Buddhist divinities and the Four Heavenly Kings (caturmahārāja) in the inner59 and outer gates in the maṇḍala. The maṇḍala of the navagraha (in some cases, also the nakṣatras and caturmahārājas) described in the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī is noted in a number of Tibetan cloth paintings dated from the fifteenth century.60 Elements of this text are adopted in some Nepalese Buddhist rituals, in particular wherever planetary pūjās are prescribed.61 While the text of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī was widely circulated in Nepal as part of the Saptavāra cycle of dhāraṇīs sometime prior to the sixteenth century, rituals involving Grahamātṛkā and the seven mātṛkā could be as old as the eighth century as we have shown earlier. The varieties of ritual practices involving Grahamātṛkā and the navagrahamaṇḍala—as in the “Negotiating the Passage beyond a Full Span of Life” for the use of navagraha-maṇḍala in the Newar old-age ritual known as the jyā jaṃko, 58. The Buddhist assignment of Mars is unexpected, since Mars is always considered malefic. It may be noted that the generally inauspicious kāpālika (a Śaiva ascetic) and cāṇḍala are assigned to Rāhu (NW) and Ketu (NE) respectively as one may expect due to the malefic characters of the two grahas. 59. That is, in the inner gates, Buddha (E), Vajrapāṇi (S), Lokanātha (W), Mañjuśrī (N), Grahāḥ (NE), Rāśinakṣatrāṇi (SE), Upadrava (SE), Mahāvidyā (SW); that of the caturmahārājas in the outer gates is conventional. 60. See Mevissen, “Images of Buddhist Goddesses,” 170–174, 188 C-I-6, specimens 63, 65, 66, 67. Note the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī scheme is only one variety (C-I-6) and can by no means be considered the norm. Further clues may be gleaned from the Tangut Grahamātṛkā documents currently under investigation by Wei Wen 魏文, Xie Haoyu 謝皓月 and Kirill Solonin, as mentioned in Michelle Malina McCoy, “Astral Visuality in the Chinese and Inner Asian Cult of Tejaprabhā Buddha, ca. 900–1300 AD” (PhD diss., University of California, Berkeley, 2017), 105. 61. Note the references to Grahamātṛkā in a Nepalese Buddhist ritual manual, in Todd T. Lewis, “A Modern Guide for Mahāyāna Life-Cycle Rites: The Nepāl Jana Jīvan Kriyā Paddhati,” Indo-Iranian Journal 37 (1994): 10, 29, passim. Kropf, “Rituelle Traditionen der Planetengottheiten,” 207, describes the recitation of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī by Newar Vajrācāryas as “eine Variante eines grahamaṇḍala.” 240 Pacific World, 3rd ser., no. 20 (2018) (1a) Yājñavalkyasmṛti maṇḍala (1b) Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī maṇḍala FIGURE 1. Maṇḍala schemata of Yājñavalkyasmṛti (left) and Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī (right). or the offering to the Goddess Grahamātṛkā (grahamātṛkābali) in birthday rituals—are sometimes thought to be a local innovation.62 The earlier history of the Grahamātṛkā worship and the use of the navagrahamaṇḍala in Central Asia is somewhat uncertain. The maṇḍala of P4519 appears to be a rare specimen of Buddhist astral worship connected to the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī, though the iconography has not been deciphered.63 Given that the early date of the Chinese translation (C1) (mid-ninth century), the Buddhist variety of the navagraha ritual 62. On the Newar old age ritual jyā jaṃko, see von Rospatt, “Negotiating the Passage beyond a Full Span of Life,” 104. On the grahamātṛkā-bali at birthday rituals, see Kropf, “Rituelle Traditionen der Planetengottheiten,” 240, 252– 253, 343. The idea of Nepalese innovation in the Grahamātṛkā worship appears to be supported by the large amount of iconographic variants which deviate from descriptions given in texts such as the Kriyāsamuccaya of Jagaddarpaṇa (fl. late twelfth to mid-thirteenth century). See Mevissen, “Iconography of Grahamātṛkā,” 74–75. 63. If what Misaki identified in Pelliot 4519 is correct (see above), the maṇḍala of the “Maṇḍala non identifié” could be somehow related to the schema described in the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī. However, I am unable to identify with certainty any astral elements in terms of the iconography. See Soymié et al., Catalogue, 157–158 for a preliminary identification of the images, which include the Vairocana in the middle, surrounded by eight unidentified deities Mak: The Transmission of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī 241 of ultimately Northern Indian or possibly Central Asian origin is certainly not a local phenomenon limited to the Newar Buddhists, but had instead a wide circulation within the larger Indian cultural sphere. 2.2 Varieties of Planetary Worship in Other Buddhist Sources As far as the astral lore in the Central and East Asian Buddhist traditions is concerned, there are at least two varieties of planetary worship distinct from that of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī. Furthermore, a variety of navagraha worship that has no extant counterpart in India had widespread circulation in Burma and Cambodia and was adopted by the Thai Buddhists, who subsequently turned it into a distinct form of Buddhist navagraha practice that is widely popular today. The first variety of Buddhist planetary lore is exemplified by the Jvāloṣṇīṣa (*Tejaprabha) complex of texts.64 In the astral apotroin the ringed petals, a set of sixteen haloed bodhisattvas, and another set of sixteen divinities accompanied by the eight auspicious objects. 64. The earliest extant attestation to the Jvāloṣṇīṣa (*Tejaprahba) is the eighth-century Chinese translation Foshuo chishengguang daweide xiaozai jixiang tuoluonijing 佛說熾盛光大威德消災吉祥陀羅尼經 (T. 963) by Amoghavajra. Nanjio (1010) reconstructed the Sanskrit title as *Buddhabhāṣitatejaprabhāmahā balaguṇāpadvināśaśrīdhāraṇīsūtra, with the feminine form tejaprahbā modifying the dhāraṇī; similarly, Nanjio (1009) translated foding chishengguang rulai 佛頂 熾盛光如來 in the title of the text (T. 964) as *Uṣṇīṣatejaprabhatathāgata, with the masculine form tejaprabha modifying the Tathāgata. Scholars since then have followed, referring to the tutelary figure as *Tejaprabha/*Tejaprabhā. However, to my knowledge this Sanskrit expression is not attested anywhere (and is not to be confused with Tejoṣṇīṣa as one of the eight Uṣṇīṣa deities). Common and central to T. 963 and T. 964 is the dhāraṇī (reconstructed as: namaḥ samantabuddhānām apratihataśāsanānām | tadyathā | oṃ kha kha khāhi khāhi | hum hum | jvala jvala | prajvala prajvala | tiṣṭha tiṣṭha | ṣṭri ṣṭri | sphaṭ sphaṭ | śāntikaśriya svāhā). The same dhāraṇī (with minor variants) is found in the Mañjuśrīmūlakalpa (Shastri ed.), followed by the description: “This is called the Jvāloṣṇīṣa, the mantra empowered by the Buddha” (eṣa buddhādhyuṣito mantraḥ jvāloṣṇīṣeti prakīrtitaḥ). The Song Chinese translation of this passage gives the name of this mantra as 大佛頂熾盛光 Dafoding chishengguang. T. 1191, 20.883c. Similar observation was made in Liao Yang 廖旸, “Ming Zhihuasi ben ‘Foshuo jinlun foding daweide chishengguang rulai tuoluonijing’ tuxiang yanjiu” 明代《金轮佛顶大威德炽盛光如来陀罗尼经》 探索——汉藏文化交流的一侧面, Zangxue xuekan 藏学学刊 3 (2014): 184–185. Thus, considering both the content of the dhāraṇī as well as the references 242 Pacific World, 3rd ser., no. 20 (2018) paic rites described in these texts, which are distinct from that of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī, the navagraha together with other astral entities such as the nakṣatras and the rāśis are all considered potentially malefic forces, represented as the retinue of the Tathāgata Jvāloṣṇīṣa.65 The Jvāloṣṇīṣa maṇḍala,66 along with other esoteric rituals, is mentioned also in the Qiyao rangzai jue 七曜攘災決 (T. 1308), an early ninth century compilation of astral materials related to the rituals, iconography, and astronomical computations of the navagraha.67 This text is particularly noted for the Sogdian names of the seven planets and its unusual iconography of the navagraha. Such elements are distinctly non-Buddhist and non-Indic and are likely of Central Asian or Iranian origin, though their transmission remains unclear.68 This extracanonical text ultimately reached Japan, where it became one of the textual sources of the Japanese Buddhist planetary lore.69 from the Mañjuśrīmūlakalpa, the Sanskrit title of T. 963 / T. 964 should contain jvala/jvāla/jvalat (pr. part. of √jval). In the Dashengmiao jixiang pusa shuo chuzai jiaoling falun 大聖妙吉祥菩薩說除災教令法輪 (T. 966), a closely related text where the same dhāraṇī is again found, the description of the magical ritual reveals a close connection between the dhāraṇī and the broader Uṣṇīṣavijayā practices, characterized by the bīja letter bhrūṃ, and a retinue of astral deities surrounding the anthropomorphic form of an effulgent Cakravartin Buddha 熾盛光佛頂輪王, or in a more abstract form, the effulgent Uṣṇīṣa. Pending further research, I would refer to this family of texts as “Jvāloṣṇīṣa” instead of “Tejaprabha.” 65. T. 963, 19.337–338; T. 964, 19.338–339. 66. A specimen with the central bīja letter bhrūṃ and surrounding navagaha, twelve rāśis and twenty-eight nakṣatras, together with a kanbun description is found in the thirteenth century compilation Ashabashō 阿娑縛抄. See discussion in Takeda Kazuaki 武田和昭, Seimandara-no kenkyū 星曼荼羅の研 究 (Tokyo: Hōzōkan, 1995), 34–37. 67. That is, despite its title referring only to the seven planets, or qiyao. T. 1397, 21.427b. 68. See Bill M. Mak, “The Transmission of Buddhist Astral Science from India to East Asia: The Central Asian Connection,” Historia Scientiarum 24, no. 2 (2015): 66–68. Recently, Jeffrey Kotyk provided some creative suggestions to account for the purported Iranian elements in Tang Chinese astral materials. A proper investigation of the Persian astral lore with all the original sources remains a desideratum. 69. Ibid. Also, Yano Michio 矢野道雄, Mikkyō senseijutsu 密教占星術, rev. ed. (Tokyo: Tōyō Shoin, 2013), 165–187. For English translation, see Michio Yano, Mak: The Transmission of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī 243 A second variety of planetary lore practiced by some Central and East Asian Buddhists involves eleven planets instead of nine. In this system, two additional pseudoplanets, Ziqi 紫氣 and Yuebei 月孛, are introduced in addition to the navagraha. This system appears to be associated with the astral treatises Yusi jing 聿斯經 and Futian li 符天 曆, which were in circulation in Central Asia and the Chinese frontier, though no original materials have so far been completely identified.70 The Buddhist astral pantheon including the eleven planets appears to be an appropriation of such system and is represented iconographically in a handful of Buddhist scrolls and cave paintings associated also with the Jvāloṣṇīṣa cult, which spread beyond China after the Tang period to other parts of Asia, including most notably the Tangut territory.71 This Buddhist eleven-planet system was transmitted to as far as Korea and Japan, although the navagraha system remains largely the standard.72 The eleven-planet system was eventually adopted widely by the Chinese, where a Taoist variety of planetary worship is still practiced, and the eleven-planet system is featured in the traditional trans. by Bill M. Mak, Esoteric Buddhist Astrology – The Japanese Sukuyōdō School of Indian Astrology (New Delhi: Aditya Prakashan, 2019), 122–142. 70. The scanty references are discussed in Bill M. Mak, “Yusi Jing — A Treatise of ‘Western’ Astral Science in Chinese and Its Versified Version Xitian yusi jing,” SCIAMVS 15 (2014): 106–107, 124n94. 71. For an overview of the Jvāloṣṇīṣa cult in East Asia, see Henrik Sørensen, “Astrology and the Worship of the Planets in Esoteric Buddhism of the Tang,” in Esoteric Buddhism and the Tantras in East Asia (Leiden, Boston: Brill, 2011), 239–241; also in the same volume, “Esoteric Buddhism under the Liao,” 463– 464. For the Tangut Jvāloṣṇīṣa materials largely overlooked in Sørensen’s work, see Kira Samosyuk, “The Planet Cult in the Tangut State of Xi Xia: The Khara Khoto Collection, State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg,” Silk Road Art and Archaeology 5 (1997/98): 353–376. In recent years, Liao Yang and Michelle McCoy have produced a number of enlightening works on the Central Asian transmission of the Jvāloṣṇīṣa. See Liao Yang 廖旸, “Chishengguangfo goutu zhong xingyao de yanbian” 熾盛光佛構圖中星曜的演變, Dunhuang yanjiu敦 煌研究 2004/4 (2004): 71–79; also, McCoy, “Astral Visuality in the Chinese and Inner Asian Cult of Tejaprabhā Buddha.” 72. For a discussion of the rare eleven-planetary pantheon in Korea and Japan, see Takeda, Seimandara-no kenkyū, 116–123. See also Su Jiaying 蘇佳瑩, “Nihon-ni okeru shijōkōbutsu zuzō–no kōsatsu” 日本における熾盛光仏図像 の考察,” Kobe Review of Art History 11 (2011): 109–136. 244 Pacific World, 3rd ser., no. 20 (2018) Chinese divination and also almanac even today.73 The popularity of these non-Indic varieties of planetary lore certainly rivals the Indic Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī, despite their resemblance, and may be one of the reasons why the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī never gained popularity in East Asia. An opposite trend may be observed in Southeast Asia, where Buddhist planetary practices underwent further development during the course of their interaction with rivaling systems of astral beliefs. Sometime during the second half of the first millennium, the Brahmanic variety of grahapūjā was introduced to Southeast Asia, and a variety of planetary worship and practices emerged as attested in historical Mon/Burmese and Khmer sources.74 The Khmer navagraha pantheon resembles its Indian counterparts but with some iconographical traits unique to its own. After the thirteenth century, the Thais adopted the navagrahapūjā. By the nineteenth century, the navagrahapūjā was turned into a Buddhist practice in which the seven planets and the seven planetary weekdays became associated with the seven buddhas and the seven stations of the Buddha after his enlightenment. CONCLUSION The Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī is among the few Sanskrit Buddhist texts that connect closely and conspicuously to their Brahmanical counterparts, namely, the navagrahapūjā described in the smārta literature. Its popularity in Central Asia in the ninth and tenth centuries and in Tibet and Nepal subsequently point to its northern origin. The interest in planets 73. See Bill M. Mak, “Gudai zhongguo yu riben de yiyu tianxue: Qiyaori yu tiangongtu xingzhnshu” 古代中國與日本的“異域天學: 七曜日與天宮圖星 占術, in Zhongyin guanxi yanjiu de shiye yu qianjing 中印关系研究的视野与前 景 (Shanghai: Fudan daxue, 2016), 147–150. Also, by the same author, “Astral Science of the East Syriac Christians in China during the Late First Millennium AD,” Mediterranean Archaeology and Archaeometry 16, no. 4 (2016): 90. 74. The widely popular aṣṭagraha worship in Burmese Buddhist temples and navagraha worship in Khmer/Thai Buddhist temples are currently under investigation as part of the research project “A New Paradigm for the Study of Southeast Asian Continental Religions” 東南アジア大陸部宗教研究の新 パラダイムの構築, led by PI Kataoka Tatsuki of Kyoto University, supported by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research (Scientific Research [A]). #16H01895 2016-2020. See Bill M. Mak, “Planetary Worship in Burmese and Thai Buddhism” (forthcoming). Mak: The Transmission of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī 245 and planetary worship in late Mahāyāna and Esoteric Buddhism should be understood in connection with the rise of a new cosmological thinking throughout the first millennium, namely, that human existence is intimately connected to all cosmic phenomena and that human welfare can be secured through the knowledge and practice of esoteric astral worship. Despite the Buddha’s antithetical view toward the Brahmanical astral lore, later Buddhists generally adopted such knowledge and practice, giving them a Buddhist guise, and interpreting them as a form of Buddhist upāya. The Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī is one such attempt. Its success can be seen in its continuing use in Nepal even today, but perhaps less so elsewhere due to the rivaling systems propagated by both non-Buddhists and Buddhists alike. YS, VSS, BG, MP GRAHA COLOR DIR. YJ 1.123–136 / 1.66-67 IMAGE/ COLOR DIR. VYJ 2.1–11 IMAGE (SPECIFIC COLOR) Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī BJ 2.5 DIR. COLOR DIR. IIMAGE/ COLOR DIR. center gold-bodied man E reddish (red) E copper E red Sun god MOON white SE white youth W - (white) NW white NW white brahman E MARS red S red-bodied man clothed in red S red-bodied (red) S very red S red bhikṣu S NE dark-bodied man clothed in green (pālāśa) N - (yellow) N yellow/ green (harita) N brahmacārī in yellow W N yellowclad (yellow) NE yellow NE guru shining in color of molten gold N MERCURY yellow (blue VSS) center JUPITER yellow N yellowbodied man clothed in white VENUS white E silver-bodied youth E - (white) SE brightcolored SE milk-colored white cow SE SATURN black W man clothed in black W black (black) W black W black mendicant (kṣapaṇaka) SW RĀHU black SW - - - SW kāpālika with lapis lazuli (ājavartanibha) NW KETU smokecolored NW - - - SW - - - - smoke-colored NE cāṇḍala BG = Baudhāyanagṛhyaśeṣasūtra 1.17, ed. Sastri (Mysore, 1920); BJ = Bṛhajjātakam: Bhaṭṭotpalīya-saṃskṛta-vivṛtyā Vilasitam, ed. Sītārāma Jhā, orig. pub. 1944 (Varanasi: Ṭhākuprasāda, 1973); MP = Matsyapurāṇa 93 (Poona, 1981); VSS = Vaikhānasa-Smārtasūtra: Vaikhānasasmārtasūtram, ed. W. Caland (Calcutta: Asiatic Society of Bengal, 1927); VYJ = Vṛddhayavanajātaka, ed. by D. Pingree, 2 vols., Gaekward’s Oriental Series, nos. 162 and 163 (Baroda: Oriental Institute, 1976); YJ = Yavanajātaka of Sphujidhvaja, ed. D. Pingree, 2 vols., Harvard Oriental Series, Vol. 48. (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1978); YS = Yājñavalkyasmṛti 1.293–306, ed. Āpṭe (Puṇe 1903–1904). Appendix A Comparison of Planetary Colors and Directions red SUN Mak: The Transmission of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī 247 Appendix B The Mother of Planets (Grahamātṛkā) Dhāraṇī [Provisional English translation from Sanskrit recensions]75 THE DHĀRAṆĪ CALLED THE MOTHER OF PLANETS [A. Preamble] Oṃ! Homage to the blessed noble Mother of Planets! Thus I have heard. At a time the Blessed One was living in the great city Aḍakavatī,76 on his Lion Throne blessed by the blessing of the adornment and arrangement of the great Vajra Vows (vajrasamaya). He was praised by the countless gods, nāgas, yakṣas, demons, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas, āpasmāras,77 Sun, Moon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, Saturn, Rāhu, Ketu, and so on,78 and the twenty-eight nakṣatras and so on,79 together with countless thousands of bodhisattvas. 75. This provisional translation is based on the two editions published by Mudrakaḥ Mañjuśrī (1960; hereafter [M]) and in Dhīḥ (2005; hereafter [Dh]), with occasional references to Toyo Bunko Sanskrit manuscript no.16-B<7> [T]. See main article, footnote 17 for references. Variants from Sanskrit recensions are indicated by * in the translation, and variants from the two Chinese translations C1 and C2 are given in the footnotes. Pending a proper edition of the text, only significant variants are indicated. 76. M. Monier-Williams, A Sanskrit-English Dictionary (Oxford: Clarendon, 1899): “A fabulous palace on Meru.” C1 曠野大聚落; C2 阿拏迦嚩帝大城. For Vajrapāṇi in Aḍakavatī, see also Haribhadra’s Abhisamayālaṅkārālokā (U. Wogihara, ed., Abhisamayālaṅkārālokā Prajñāpāramitāvyākhyā: The Work of Haribhadra, 2 vols. [Tōkyō: The Tōyō Bunkō, 1932–1935], 5). 77. A rare character in Buddhist texts. In Śaiva literature, a “demon-dwarf, symbol of ignorance and forgetfulness, crushed under Śiva’s right foot in his cosmic dance” (A Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, ed. Klaus K. Klostermaier [Oxford: OneWorld, 1998]). 78. Chinese translations give different orders of planets. C1: Sun, Moon, Mars, Venus, Saturn, Mercury (餘星?), Jupiter, Rāhu, and Ketu (長尾星). C2: Jupiter, Mars, Venus, Mercury, Saturn, Moon, Sun, Rāhu, Ketu. 79. C1: 28 lunar mansions. C2: 27 lunar mansions. 248 Pacific World, 3rd ser., no. 20 (2018) [B. Dialogue between Vajrapāṇi and the Buddha] Thus, [the Buddha was surrounded] by the Bodhisattva, the Great Being, who is called Vajrapāṇi, and by Vajracaṇḍa, Vajrasena, Vajravināyaka, Vajracāpahasta, Vajravikurvita, Vajrādhipati, Vajrālaṅkāra, Vajravikrama, Jyotivajra, Avalokiteśvara, Samantabhadra, Samantāvalokiteśvara, Lokaśrī, Padmaketu, Ratnaketu, Vikasitavaktra, Padmagarbha, Padmanetra, Mañjuśrī, and Maitreya. In such a way, the Blessed One surrounded by thousands of the foremost bodhisattvas, the Great Beings, gave his teaching at the front. In a manner that is good at the beginning, good in the middle, and good at the end, with good meaning and good expressions, complete, full, completely purified and pure, he elucidated on the chaste conduct (brahmacarya). He preached the teaching called the Great Awe-Inspiring Ornament of the Wish-Fulfilling Gem (cintāmaṇimahāvyūhālaṅkāra). Then Vajrapāṇi the Bodhisattva, the Great Being, looked at the assembly and rose from the seat. With his spiritual power and blessing, he circumambulated clockwise the Blessed One countless hundreds of thousands of times. He then bowed, sat in the front with dignity, crossed his legs, and bent [his knees] in the līlā pose. With his palms folded in the Vajrāñjali form, settling his mind, he spoke to the Blessed One. “Oh Blessed One! The planets, whose forms may be fierce or mild, terrible or benign, cruel or kind, afflict the sentient beings. They take away the lives of some. They bring about calamities to some. They snatch the life-energy of some. They destroy the material belongings of some. They make some long-lived beings short-lived. In such a way, they brought calamities unto all sentient beings. Oh Blessed One! Please teach [us] that Dharma teaching by which all sentient beings will be protected against all the calamities.” The Blessed One answered, “Excellent! Excellent! Oh Vajrapāṇi, you have a compassionate mind for the benefit, well-being, and happiness of all sentient beings. You ask the Tathāgata, the Perfectly Enlightened One, the most hidden secret of the greatest secrets of all. Listen well and carefully. I will tell you the most hidden secret of the greatest secrets of all, the celestial worship, the rite (argham), the prayer (jāpam), and the fire oblation (dhūpam) for the fierce-looking planets, whose faces are cruel and most terrifying.” [Buddha uttered the following three ślokas:]* Mak: The Transmission of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī 249 yathānuvarṇabhedena80 yathā tuṣyanti te grahāḥ | pūjitāḥ pratipūjyante nirdahante ’vamānitāḥ81 ||1||* The planets are propitiated with their respective colors and traits; those who worship [them] are worshiped in return, and those who insult them are destroyed.82 devāś cāpy83 caiva kinnarāś ca mahoragāḥ |* yakṣāś ca rākṣasāś caiva mānuṣāś caivāmānuṣāḥ ||2|| Also the gods, the asuras, kinnaras, mahoragas, yakṣas, rākṣasas, human and non-human,… śamayanti ca kruddhāṃś84 ca mahānugrahatejasā85 |* pūjāṃ teṣāṃ pravakṣāmi mantrāṃś cāpi yathākramam ||3|| [they] pacify the cruel [planets] with the most benign splendor. I will explain the pūjā and the mantras for them one after another. [C. The Buddha’s Planetary Mantras] Then, Śākyamuni, the Blessed One, the Perfectly Enlightened One, released a ray of searing light (raśmijvālam) called “Play of Compassion” (karuṇāvikrīḍitam) from his heart and made it enter into the heads of the planets. At that moment, all the planets from the Sun and so on stood up and worshipped the Blessed One, Śākyamuni, the Tathāgata, the Arhat, the Perfectly Enlightened One, with all the celestial worship. Having bowed and fallen on their knees, they placed their folded hands in front of them and spoke to the Blessed One: “We are favored by the Blessed One, the Tathāgata, the Arhat, the Perfectly Enlightened One! Oh Blessed One, please teach [us] the Dharma teaching by which we may protect the Dharma preachers who have gathered together. [By that Dharma which] we may protect them, guard them, pacify them, bless them, remove the sticks, remove the swords, neutralize the poison, removing the poison, 80. yathānuvarṇabhedena]Dh, yathānukramavarṇabhedena sarveṣāṃ MT. 81. ’vamānitāḥ]emend., yamānitāḥ T, yamānitaḥ Dh, yamārikā M. 82. Pāda cd are nearly identical to a verse on navagrahaśānti found in the Jaiminigṛhyasūtra (Caland ed.) 2.9: grahā gāvo narendrāś ca brāhmaṇāś ca viśeṣataḥ | pūjitāḥ pūjayanty ete nirdahanty avamānitāḥ || I thank Ronald Davidson for pointing out to me this parallel, as well as others such as Śāṅkhāyanagṛhyasūtra 2.16.4 and Matsyapurāṇa 93.80. 83. deva[ścā]pyasurāś]Dh, devāpyasurāś T, debatācāpsurāś M. 84. kruddhāṃś]emend., kruddhāś Σ. 85. mahānugrahatejasā]MT, mahānugras ca tejasā Dh. 250 Pacific World, 3rd ser., no. 20 (2018) secure the boundaries (sīmābandham86), and secure the magical spells (dhāraṇībandham).” Then the Blessed One, the Tathāgata, the Arhat, the Perfectly Enlightened One, uttered the Worship-Mantras for the planets. (1) Oṃ, to the Cloud-Fire (megholkāya),87 svāhā! (2) Oṃ, to the CoolRayed One (śītāṃśave),88 svāhā! (3) Oṃ, to the Red-Limbed Prince (raktāṅgakumārāya),89 svāhā! (4) Oṃ, to Mercury, svāhā! (5) Oṃ, to Jupiter, svāhā! (6) Oṃ, to the greatest among the asuras (asurottamāya),90 svāhā! (7) Oṃ, to the Black-Colored One,91 svāhā! (8) Oṃ, to Rāhu,92 svāhā! [9] Oṃ, to the Ketu-Star, svāhā! [D. Construction of Shrine and Maṇḍala] “O Vajrapāṇi! These are the Heart-Mantras of the Nine Planets that are efficacious upon utterance. In the fragrant maṇḍalaka, one should visualize (cintayet) the cardinal directions and sub-cardinal directions in proper sequence. [In the maṇḍalaka], which has a lotus (padma) in the middle, one should make a box (kūṭāgara) measuring twelve aṅgulas on each of four sides, with four doors each decorated with an arch, and with a circle [within the box].93 “[Sun:] In the middle of the [circle], in a fragrant maṇḍalaka made of saffron, one may visualize a statue of the Sun god in red color above a white water lily, holding in his two arms a white water lily in the form of tāpasa, with the brilliance equal to tens of thousands of millions suns, having a garland of rays in vermilion. One should offer to it milk as food and Olibanum resin (kunduru) as incense. Oṃ! [Obeisance] to the Cloud-Fire. Svāhā! “[Moon:] In the eastern direction above a red water lily in a fragrant maṇḍalaka made of mustard seeds (priyaṅgu), the Moon should be known as a Brahman, white-colored, furnished with matted hair, 86. simabandhaṃ]MT, simabandhanaṃ Dh 87. That is, the Sun. 88. That is, the Moon. 89. That is, Mars. 90. That is, Venus. 91. That is, Saturn. 92. C1 阿蜜多畢哩耶 amitapriya, C2 阿沒里(二合)多鉢里(二合) 夜野 aṃrtapriyāya. 93. Pelliot 4519 (Appendix C) may have a similar construction, i.e., an eightpetaled lotus shape embedded within a circle and layers of outer squares. Mak: The Transmission of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī 251 diadem, and flowers, carrying a rosary, the sacred thread, and a red lotus. He should be offered ghee and cooked rice as food, pine resin (śrīvāsa) as incense. Oṃ! Obeisance to the power of the Moon elixir, to the Cool-Ray. Svāhā! “[Mars:] In the southern direction above a light-colored water lily in a fragrant maṇḍalaka made of sandalwood (candana), [one should visualize] Mars in the form of a monk, red-colored, who has a jeweled crown, has a spear in his left [hand], and shows a varada [gesture] with his right [hand]. His food is milk, or he should be worshiped with beans (māṣa). His incense is gugul (guggula). Oṃ! Obeisance to the red Mars, the prince with splendor, to Mars. Svāha! “[Mercury:] In the western direction above a red lotus, in a fragrant maṇḍalaka made of black aloeswood (agaru), Mercury should be a Brahman student (brahmacārī), yellow in color with red beard, carrying a rosary, the sacred thread, and a water pot. His food is fish, mung beans, and spicy grain dish (kṛsara). The incense is myrrh (gandharasaḥ). Oṃ! Obeisance to the yellow-colored Son of the King, to Mercury. Svāhā! “[Jupiter:] In the northern direction above a white water lily, in a fragrant maṇḍalaka made of deodar cedar (devadāru), Jupiter [should be in the form of] a wandering mendicant (parivrājaka), shining with the color of molten gold, red-bearded, holding a rosary, the sacred thread, and a water pot. Yogurt, cooked rice, or milk should be offered to him, and incense of honey and ghee (madhughṛta). Oṃ! Obeisance to the redcolored sacred precept (nigama), to the one whose abode is enjoyment (bhogāspada). Svāhā! “[Venus:] In the southeastern direction above a red lotus, in a fragrant maṇḍalaka made of sandalwood, Venus [should be in the form of] a Brahman student, holding a noose and a hatchet (pāśapaaśu), clad in milk-color, carrying matted locks, a diadem, a rosary, the sacred thread, and a water pot. Milk should be offered to him as food and camphor (karpūra) as incense. Oṃ! Obeisance to the overlord Venus, the Chief of the Asuras. O śuddhaviraha! Svāha! “[Saturn:] In the southwestern direction above a white lotus, in a fragrant maṇḍalaka made of blue sandalwood, Saturn should be known as a black mendicant (kṣapaṇaka) carrying a cobra’s hood, with yellow matted locks, a diadem, and a beard, holding a rosary, the sacred thread, and a staff (khikhirika94).* Spicy grain dish (kṛṣara) should be offered to 94. khikhirikā]M, kṣikṣirikā Dh 252 Pacific World, 3rd ser., no. 20 (2018) him as food. The incense is myrrh (gandharasa). Oṃ! Obeisance to the One appearing in blue color, the black Saturn. Svāhā! “[Rāhu:] In the northwestern direction above the red lotus, in a fragrant maṇḍalaka made of tagara wood, Rāhu [should be seen as] a Śaiva ascetic (kāpālika), in the color of lapis lazuli (rājāvarta), his body in half, his eyes dreadful to the Sun-chariot, having terrifying fangs, with his brow-twisted forehead, located in the middle of five-colored clouds with the hand-gestures (abhinaya) of the Moon, the Sun, and water lilies. Beans and flesh should be offered to him as food, or sesame or sesame rice gruel. The incense is bilva leaves. Oṃ! Rāhu, the uglyfaced, one feeding on blood. Homage to the one who has the appearance of bee-liked collyrium, one who relishes ambrosia. Svāhā! “[Ketu:] In the northeastern direction above a red lotus, in a fragrant maṇḍalaka made of fenugreek (spṛkkā), there should be a wretched (cāṇḍāla) Ketu. He is smoke-colored, with palms folded, and has the form of a nāga holding its own tail. One should offer him sweetmeat made with ghee as food. The incense is Vateria resin (sajjarasaḥ > sarjarasaḥ). Oṃ! Homage to the one who appears in smoke color, to the Ketu-Star. Svāhā! “[Divinities of the inner doors of the eight directions and the outer doors of the four directions:] At the eastern door of the maṇḍala [there should be] the Buddha, the Blessed One. At the southern door, Vajrapāṇi. At the western door, Lokanātha. At the northern door, Prince Mañjuśrī. At the northeastern corner, all the planets. At the southeastern corner, all the zodiacal signs and nakṣatras. At the southwestern corner, all the upadravas. At the northwestern corner, the Noble Mahāvidyā, who is white with three faces in dark red, with two hands holding a jeweled parasol with an Exposition Mudra on the right, a noose-holder on the left. She is seated in the vajra pose with a jeweled diadem, sitting on a Moon Throne, with the appearance of a sixteen-year-old girl, decorated with all kinds of ornaments. “At the outer eastern door Dhṛtarāṣṭra is worshipped with yoghurt. In the south Viruḍhaka is worshipped with yoghurt and beans. In the west, Virūpākṣa is worshipped with milk. In the north, Kubera is worshipped with yoghurt and beans, and with cinnabar smeared on his head. In such an order should the pūjā with flowers and so on be done. Lamps should be offered to each. Having filled the conch shell with ghee and honey, and having cast the five jewels, the offering should be Mak: The Transmission of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī 253 given. A scarf (mukhapaṭa95) should be given to all. Thus are the colors, the arm [objects], the seats, mudra, and signs [for all the planets]. “Oṃ! Homage to all the tathāgatas, who fulfill all wishes. O the totally perfected devotee,96 svāhā! One should thus pray to each [deity] with the mantra of the Three Jewels, to each of them the mantra 39,200 (saptasaptāṣṭaśatam) times. Thus after being worshipped, all the planets of varied appearance give great rewards and produce also good fortune. [E. General Instruction of Planetary Offering] “O Vajrapāṇi! These are the Heart-Mantras of the Nine Planets which are efficacious upon utterance. Having made in such sequence a fragrant maṇḍala of the size of twelve aṅgulas, [the Heart-Mantras] should be worshipped in the middle of the maṇḍala. After making the offering with vessels made of copper, clay, silver, and so on,97 one should recite the mantra a hundred and eight times for each [planet]. O Vajrapāṇi! Furthermore, afterward, the mantra formulae of the dhāraṇī called the Mother of Planets should be uttered seven times. Then, the Sun and other [planets] will make guard and protection [for the devotees]. They will get rid of poverty and suffering. They will turn a consumed life into a long life. “Furthermore, O Vajrapāṇi, for those monks, nuns, male and female lay Buddhists, or other classes of sentient beings, if the words are uttered into their ears, they will not die an untimely death. Furthermore, O Vajrapāṇi, if a Dharma preacher worships the planets in the middle of the maṇḍala and utters [the mantras] seven times daily, all the planets will fulfill his wishes by all means. They will remove poverty from his family.” [F. Grahamātṛkā Dhāraṇī Mantra] Then the Blessed One Śākyamuni, the Tathāgata, uttered the phrases of the dhāraṇī mantra called the Mother of Planets: 95. mukhapaṭo]Dh, mukhapyato M 96. sarvaparipūrṇābhakti]M, sarvathā bhaktine Dh 97. C1 或瓦或銅金銀等, in clay, or in copper, gold, silver, etc.; C2 或瓦或銅金 銀等器. 254 Pacific World, 3rd ser., no. 20 (2018) oṁ namo ratnatrayāya | oṁ namo buddhāya | oṁ namo dharmāya | oṁ namaḥ saṃghāya | oṁ namo vajradharāya | oṁ namaḥ padmadharāya | oṁ namaḥ kumārāya | oṁ namaḥ sarvagrahāṇāṃ | oṁ namaḥ sarvāśāparipūrakāṇām | oṁ namaḥ nakṣatrāṇām | oṁ namo dvādaśarāśīnām | oṁ namaḥ sarvopadravāṇām | tadyathā | oṁ buddhe 2 śuddhe 2 vajre 2 padme 2 sara 2 prasara 2 smara 2 krīḍa 2 krīḍaya 2 mara 2 māraya 2 mardaya 2 stambha 2 stambhaya 2 ghaṭa 2 ghāṭaya 2 mama sarvasattvānāñ ca vighnān chinda chinda bhinda 2 sarvavighnān nāśanaṃ kuru 2 mama saparivārasya sarvasattvānāñca kāryaṃ kṣepaya 2 mama sarvasattvānāñca sarvanakṣatragrahapīḍān nivāraya 2 bhagavati śriyaṃ kuru mahāmāyā prasādhaya sarvaduṣṭānnāśaya sarvapāpāni mama saparivārasya sarvasattvānāñca rakṣa 2 vajre 2 caṇḍe 2 caṇḍini 2 nuru 2 musu 2 mumu 2 muñca 2 havā have ugre ugratare pūraya bhagavati manorathaṃ mama sarvaparivārasya sarvasattvānāñ ca sa rvatathāgatādhiṣṭhānādhiṣṭhite svāhā | oṁ svāhā | hūṃ svāhā | hrīḥ svāhā | dhūḥ svāhā | dhīḥ svāhā | oṁ ādityāya svāhā | oṁ somāya svāhā | oṁ dharaṇīsutāya svāhā | oṁ budhāya svāhā | oṁ bṛhaspataye svāhā | oṁ śukrāya svāhā | oṁ śaniścarāya svāhā | oṁ rāhave svāhā | oṁ ketave svāhā | oṁ buddhāya svāhā | oṁ vajrapāṇaye svāhā | oṁ padmadharāya svāhā | oṁ kumārāya svāhā | oṁ sarvagrahāṇāṃ svāhā | oṁ sarvanakṣatrāṇāṃ svāhā | oṁ sarvopadravāṇāṃ svāhā | oṁ dvādaśarāśīnāṃ svāhā | oṁ sarvavidye huṃ 2 phaṭ svāhā | [G. End of Buddha’s Speech] “O, Vajrapāṇi! These mantra formulae of the dhāraṇī called the Mother of Planets are efficacious upon utterance. O, Vajrapāṇi! They should be uttered seven times daily starting from the seventh [tithi] of the bright fortnight of the month of Kārttika,98 while observing the fast (upoṣadhika) until the fourteenth [tithi], he should worship the planets and the nakṣatras in the middle of the maṇḍala and chant the [mantra formulae] seven times daily. Then on the Full Moon day, one should perform the pūjā and let the [mantra formulae] be uttered. 98. C1 has the seventh day of the ninth month in the white pakṣa 九月白月七 日, following a Sino-Indian month-conversion convention identical to that of the original version of Amoghavajra’s Xiuyao jing as transmitted in Japan. C2 has the seventh day of the eighth month 八月七日. In the Song version, Fatian counted the months in the Indian manner starting from Caitra. In all cases, the month begins with the New Moon, hence following the amāntya system. Mak: The Transmission of the Grahamātṛkādhāraṇī 255 “For this person, there will be no threat of death for ninety-nine years.99 There will be no threat of the harm caused by the fall of meteor, by the planets and nakṣatras. Life after life one will have the remembrance of his past life. All the planets will grant him the best wish.” Then all the planets said: “Wonderful, Blessed One.” They bowed and disappeared. [H. Closing] Thus said the Blessed One. The monks, the bodhisattvas, the Great Beings, the assembly, and the world with the gods, humans, asuras, garuḍas, and gandharvas, were delighted, and they rejoiced at the speech of the Blessed One. 99. Skt.: tasya navanavativarṣāṇi mṛtyubhayaṃ na bhaviṣyati. C1 has a much shorter scope of only nine years 至滿九年無其死畏. C2 is closer to the extant Sanskrit recensions, explaining that one would live until ninety-nine years old 彼人得長壽至九十九歳. 256 Pacific World, 3rd ser., no. 20 (2018) Appendixā Cṛ ā ā ṇī Pelliot 4519: “Maṇḍala non-identifié” Citations from C1 highlighted in red. From Michel Soymié et al., Catalogue des Manuscrits Chinois de Touen-houang. Fonds Pelliot Chinois ṇḍ de la Bibliothèque Nationale, Vol. 5. 4001–6040 (Paris: Bibliothèque nationale, 1995), 157–160. Source: gallica.bnf.fr / Département des Manuscrits.