Yashas and Pundarika

The sources are silent about the careers of the next six kings of Shambhala. We are told only that they reigned for one hundred years each, teaching the Dharma and protecting their land. (See the Appendix for their names.)

However, the seventh Dharma King of Shambhala, Sureshana, and his queen Vishvamata give birth to a son who was to leave his mark on the subsequent history of Shambhala. He was called Yashas “the Renowned.”

King Yashas, an emanation of Manjushri, taught the Dharma on the bodhisattva’s lion throne of Shambhala for one hundred years. Then, at the end of his reign, he knew that the time had come for the maturation of the 35 million brahman sages of Shambhala.

By the power of his five psychic powers he knew that the sages would obtain the noble path. On the full moon of Phalguna (February-March) King Yashas summoned the 35 million brahman sages, who were led by Suryaratha, to the mandala house south of Kalapa. There he gave them the following precept:

“O Suryaratha, and you other brahman sages, listen to my speech that bestows the excellence of omniscience! On this full moon of Caitra (next month) I must give the Vajrayana doctrine to you who observe the precepts of the Vedas and smrtis.a Thus, venerable sirs, separate out the brahmans belonging to the families of various other countries and show them to me.”

Because of that statement, they scrutinized the practices of the various countries: eating from skulls, eating beef and buffalo flesh, drinking liquor, committing incest with one’s mother, and so forth. When they saw that the countries’ customs were mutually contradictory, they all fell down. Thus, seeing their contradictions, King Yashas spoke:

“Here, I must enter you into this mandala house of Lord Kala- chakra and give you the worldly and transcendental initiations. Furthermore, you venerable sirs must eat, drink, and form marriage relations with the vajra family, in accordance with my command. But if you will not obey my command, venerable sirs, then quit my 960 million villages and go wherever you will!

“Otherwise, after eight hundred years have elapsed, your sons, grandsons, and so forth will engage in the barbarian Dharma and will become teachers of the barbarian Dharma in the ninety-six great lands of Shambhala and so forth. Using the mantra of the barbarian deity Vishavimla they will hack the throats of beasts with cleavers. Then they will enjoin eating the flesh of those beasts killed with the mantra of their own deity, and they will prohibit eating the flesh of beasts that die due to their own karma.

“Also, that Dharma is authoritative for you because of the statement in the smrti: ‘Beasts are emitted for sacrifice.’ There is no difference between the Vedic Dharma and the barbarian Dharma with regards to killing.

“Therefore, the sons, grandsons, and so forth of your family will see the valor of those barbarians, as well as the entrance of their devil deity into battle, and in the future, after eight hundred years have elapsed, they will become barbarians.

“Once they have joined the race of the barbarians, everyone dwelling in the 960 million villages, the four castes and so forth, will also become barbarians. For the brahman sages say: ‘Where the great person goes, that is the path.’

“Here, in the barbarian Dharma as well as in the Vedic Dharma one must kill for the sake of the deity and the ancestors, and the same is true in the Dharma of the kshatriyas. For the brahmans say: ‘Having satisfied the ancestors and the gods, there is no guilt in eating flesh,’ and likewise: ‘I see no fault in one who would do ill to a vicious beast.’

“Thus, holding the Vedic Dharma to be authoritative, they will take up the barbarian Dharma. For this reason, so that the barbarian Dharma will not enter Shambhala in the future, I give you this precept. Therefore, you venerable sirs must obey my command.”

Spoken in such a fashion, King Yashas’s speech, together with its chastising command, was like a lightning-bolt falling on the heads of the brahman sages. They said to Suryaratha: “O Suryara- tha!

Please inform the lord of the people, Yashas: ‘We will not abandon the Dharma of race that is explained in the Vedas and engage in the Dharma of initiations of the vajra family. Therefore, in accordance with your command, it is best that we go to the land of the Aryans (India), south of the Sita River and the Himalayas, north of the island of Lamka (Sri Lanka)’

Using the words of the brahman sages, Suryaratha informed the lord of the people Yashas: “O great king! Emperor! Supreme sovereign! You are fully endowed with the thirty-two major marks and the eighty minor marks of a great person! You are the ornament of the splendid Shakya family! Supremely compassionate one!

Have mercy on those engaged in the Dharma of their own family! Since by all means we must obey your command, we will not engage in the initiations of the vajra family; it is best that, in accordance with your command, we go to the land of the Aryans south of the Sita River, between the Himalayas and the island of Lamka.”

Then, because of Suryaratha’s speech, King Yashas said: “Venerable sirs, quickly leave the land of Shambhala! In this way all the sentient beings dwelling in the 960 million villages north of the Sita River will completely abandon the non-virtuous karmic paths of killing and so forth. Then, by the blessing of Lord Kalachakra, they will obtain the path of right gnosis.” In accordance with King Yashas’ command, all those brahman sages left the village of Kalapa. On the tenth day they entered into a forest.

Through the power of his five psychic powers, King Yashas knew that they had entered into the forest. He knew that should the brahman sages go to the land of the Aryans, all the sentient beings dwelling in the 960 million villages would have disastrous thoughts. The kshatriyas and other people would think: “Here, the reason the sages left is that the path spoken of in the Vajrayana is not the path of right gnosis.

For this reason those sages have completely abandoned their own place, from fear of the splendid King Yashas. Taking their households, they have gone to the land of the Aryans. They all strive for liberation.” Thinking this way the sentient beings would obtain ill fortune because their minds would become unsuitable vessels for the profound and extensive Dharma.

Thus, knowing the dispositions of the individual minds of all people, the lord of the people, Yashas became absorbed in the samadhi named “Stupefier of All the Families of Vishnu, Brahma, and Rudra.” By means of that samadhi, and by the power of the deity’s blessing, all the sages in the forest became stupefied. Aborigines and so forth dwelling in that forest bound all the sages, brought them back to the great mandala house, and threw them before the feet of the lord of the people, Yashas.

Awakening, they saw the lord of the people, Yashas, the mandala house, and the sandalwood pleasure grove. When they saw these things they were astonished, and said this: “Oh! This is very strange! Who brought us from the great forest back to the mandala house while we were unconscious?”

King Yashas’ minister, Sagaramati, an emanation body, heard this speech of the brahman sages and said: “O Suryaratha and you other brahman sages, do not be astonished! This King Yashas is not parochial. He is a great, enraged bodhisattva who has appeared due to the blessing of the Buddha in order to take care of you. Therefore, go to his feet for refuge and request initiation into the path that achieves the worldly and transcendental siddhis in the King of Tantra—the Adibuddha!

Then, due to Sagaramati’s speech and the blessing of the Buddha, Suryaratha and the other brahman sages were awakened, and said this: “Well said! Well said, Sagaramati! Your speech has awakened our minds. Therefore, now we will go for refuge to the Three Jewels and request initiation into the path that achieves the worldly and transcendental siddhis, in the King of Tantra—Kalachakra, so that all sentient beings may obtain true, complete buddhahood in this very life.”

Having said that, the sages called to Suryaratha, king of the brahman family: “O Suryaratha! You are a single book that contains the texts of the Vedas and so forth! Your heart grasps that which is to be demonstrated in all the worldly and transcendental treatises! Thus, request King Yashas with our words of request! We too will go for refuge, preceeding it with a mandala, and then all of us will request instruction.”

Then, in accordance with the speech of the brahman sages, Suryaratha made a mandala of flowers formed from jewels and gold. He scattered handfuls of jeweled flowers before the feet of the lord of the people, Yashas. Placing their knees on the ground and their hands on top of their heads, Suryaratha and the brahman sages bowed to the feet of Yashas. Then Suryaratha planted his right kneecap on the earth, set his cupped hands at his forehead, and requested the lord of the people, Yashas for instruction:

“Please teach the King of Tantra—the Adibuddha! In it the Bhagavan explained that even those who created the five sins of immediate retribution10 may obtain buddhahood in this very life. He explained that they will obtain the mahamudra that is governed by the supreme unchanging bliss of Bhagavan Vajradhara. Please redact this twelve thousand verse Adibuddha that the Tathagata taught to King Suchandra by making the text shorter, and compose a short Adibuddha, King of Tantra. Then, please teach it to the brahman sages.”

King Yashas was pleased by the request of Suryaratha and the sages. On the full moon of Caitra he initiated the sages in the great Kalachakra mandala south of Kalapa. As the sages requested, Yashas taught them an abridgement of the Paramadibuddha. On the full moon of the following month, Vaisakha (April-May), the sages attained the supreme siddhi of mahamudra The abridged tantra (laghutantra) that Yashas taught the sages is called the Sri Kalacakra, and it is our basic tantra for the Kalachakra system."

Yashas later taught the sages an addendum to the Sri Kalacakra entitled Sri Kalacakratantrottara Tantrahrdayanama (Peking #5). The Tantrahrdayam contains, among other things, some fascinating and obscure prophecies. Yashas also taught the sages an extremely abbreviated form of the Sri Kalacakra from the point of view of vajrayoga. This text, the Kalacakralaghutantrarajahrdaya Nama, is only extant in the Lhasa edition of the Tibetan Kanjur (#373). Another text redacted by Yashas is the Sri Kalacakranama Tantragarbha (Peking *6). This text is a condensation of the Parama- dibuddha’s sadangayoga sadhana.

All four of the preceding texts are mainly composed of the speech of the Buddha, (buddhavacanam). Yashas was primarily the redactor of these texts; only in a derivative sense was he the teacher of them.

However, two treatises independently authored by Yashas have come down to us: the Pradarsanumatoddesapariksa nama (Peking *4610), and the Triyogahrdayaprakasa nama (Peking *2087). With the all-important exception of the Sri Kalacakra, none of the texts listed above are known to have survived in the original Sanskrit.

Yashas’s conversion of the brahman sages was to have an important impact on the subsequent history of Shambhala. By combining all the castes of Shambhala into one vajra family, Yashas became Kalki, the lineage king of Shambhala. The Buddha had prophesied this in the Paramadibuddha-.

vagmi vajrakule yena tena vajrakuli yasah/ caturvarnaikakalkena kalki brahmakulena nail “Vagmi Yashas, possessing the vajra family, will become Kalki by making the four castes into a single clan, (kalkah), within the vajra family, not by making them into a brahman family”

By becoming Kalki, Yashas ensured that Shambhala will remain outside the range of the barbarian depredations. In particular, he ensured that his descendant Kalki, Raudra Chakri, and the armies of Shambhala will perform their role at the end of the current Age of Strife, the Kaliyuga.

Yashas and his queen Tara had a son named Pundarika, who was an emanation of Avalokiteshvara. In accordance with a prophecy made by the Buddha in the Paramadibuddha, Yashas appointed Pundarika as the second Kalki and ordered him to write a commentary on the Sri Kalacakra-, then Yashas passed away. Kalki Pundarika followed his father’s command and wrote the Vimalaprabha.

This huge commentary (together with the Sri Kalacakra) is our basic textual source for the Kalachakra system as a whole. We are very fortunate that the Vimalaprabha, like the Sri Kalacakra, survives in the original Sanskrit.

Two other works by Kalki Pundarika have also come down to us. The Kalacakratantragarbha vrtti vimalaprabha nama (Peking *4608) is a short but important commentary on the Tantragarbha (Peking *6), mentioned above. Pundarika’s Sri Paramarthaseva (Peking *2065) is an independent composition, entirely in verse, that is mainly concerned with ethics and yoga. Fragments of the Paramarthaseva exist in Sanskrit. The rule of the Kalkis subsequent to Pundarika seems to have been fairly uneventful. At any rate the literature has little to say about their activities.