Newar Buddhism-Past and Present

Shinobu YAMAGUCHI (Professor, Toyo University)

1. Nepalese History and Buddhism

Nepal is a long country which reaches 885km in east and west, and
ranges193 km in north and south. It bounds on Tibet in the north, and
bounds on India in the south, east and west. The country has a
population of about 26,400,000, and it has various kinds of people such
as the Newars, the Tamangs, the Gurungs and the Sherpas, etc.. The
Kathmandu Valley where the capital city Kathmandu is situated, is the
cultural and the geographical center of Nepal. Inthe history of Nepal,
the Kathmandu Valley has played an important role culturally as well
as politically. The history of Nepal is divided into six periods as

불교학리뷰 (Critical Review for Buddhist Studies)

9권 (2011. 6) 305p~321p
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follows:
(1) The period before the Licchavi dynasty (before 5C A.D.)
(2) The period of the Licchavi dynasty (5C A.D. ~ 9C A.D.)
(3) Transitional period from the Licchavi dynasty to Malla dynasty
(10C A.D.~11C A.D.)
(4) The period of the Malla dynasty (12C A.D.~1768)
(5) The period of the Gorkha dynasty (1769~2008)
(6) Collapse of the monarchy and the Republic of Nepal (2008~)

In the period (1), the Gopåla people, the Abhiras, the Kiråtas, the
RåjpËts and so on are said to have ruled the Kathmandu valley. The
first period when the existence of Buddhism was confirmed, is the
period of the Licchavi dynasty. Under the Licchavi dynasty, the Newar
people, who have lived since old period and speak Newari language,
built their own urban culture.
All the kings who ruled the Kathmandu Valley were Hindus. But
they protected Buddhism, too. The inscription of the Licchavi period
informs that king Brisha Deva (4C -5C A.D) builta Buddhist temple in
the SwayambhË area in the northwest of Kathmandu.　
The kings of the early Licchavi period believed Hindu god Vi∑ˆu
mainly. Manadeva I (reigned 464 -505 A.D.) established the images of
Vi∑ˆu on the hilltop of Changu Narayan in the north part of
Kathmandu. The Licchavi dynasty had matrimonial relationship with
the Gupta dynasty in India. In the period, Sanskrit language was
brought into Nepal. King Aμßuvarman (reigned 605-621 A.D.), who
 Newar Buddhism-Past and Present 307

was in the Íiva cult, preserved Buddhism, too. He married his daughter
off to the Tibetan king Srong bstan sgam bo. She is said to have
brought Buddhism into Tibet with another wife from China.
In the inscription of Aμßuvarman’s period, the word ‘vajrayåna’ is
found, which suggests the spread of Buddhist Tantrism in the
Kathmandu Valley in the seventh century. At that time, in the
Kathmandu Valley, Theravåda Buddhism, Mahåyåna Buddhism, and
Tantric Buddhism coexisted.
In the latter of the ninth century, the Licchavi dynasty fell and the
Thakuri dynasty began to rule the Kathmandu valley. In that period,
Hindu Íaiva sect became powerful. On the other 　hand, Buddhism also
expanded. From the Thakuri period to the early Malla period (12-14C 　
A.D.), Buddhism spread more and at that time Buddhist Tantrism
began to play a major role.
In the end of the fourteenth century, king Jaya Sthiti Malla (reigned
1382-1395 A.D.) introduced the caste system into the society of Newar
people, who were in charge of the industries and the culture in the
Kathmandu Valley. The innovation of the caste system, which is based
on the differentiation of occupations, contributed to the reinforcement
of the social and economic relationship between cities and villages.
As a result, the Newar society and its culture made a remarkable
progress. Under the condition, Newar Buddhism was obliged to contain
the elements of Hinduism. In the place ofmonks in the monasteries, the
Vajråcåryas, who belong to the caste of married priests, began to play a
major role. At the period, two-thirds of the Newar people were Buddhists.
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Since the end of the fifteenth century in the Kathmandu Valley, three
kings ruled respective-ly three cities, namely, Kathmandu, Patan, and
Bhaktapur. In the period, many Sanskrit texts were transcribed, and the
Buddhist Tantrism became the most influential. Among the Buddhist
deities, those who belong to the Anuttarayogatantra, such as Mahåkåla,
Yogin¥, Saμvara, Bhairava and so on became popular.

2. Present State of Newar Buddhism

The state religion of Nepal was Hinduism until 2008. Nowadays,

approximately more than 85 per cent of the Nepalese people are Hidus.
On the other hand, Buddhist occupy less than 8 per cent, which is in the
second rank. Newar people occupy about 3 per cent of the whole
population. Most of the Newars are living in the Kathmandu Valley,
and most of them believe Hinduism or Buddhism. At present, four
sorts of Buddhism exist in Nepal.
They are as follows:

1) Newar Buddhism believed by the Newar people who have lived

in the Kathmandu Valley since old time
2) Tibetan Buddhism believed by the Tibetan people who came to
Nepal from China as therefugee due to the political change in
1959 downward
3) Theravåda Buddhism which has become popular in recent years
 Newar Buddhism-Past and Present 309

with the support of Myammar and Sri Lanka

4) The Buddhism in the mountaineous lands of Nepal, which are
influenced by Tibetan Buddhism

Among those sorts of Buddhism, 4) is not in an important position.

Mainly 1), 2), and 3) arefound in the Kathmandu Valley. In 2), namely,
Tibetan Buddhism, the system of monks are comparatively well
organized. With the plenty economic support of the refugee, the monks
are in religious activity mainly at the Bodhnåth Temple in the east of
the Kathmandu city andat the SwayambhËnåth Temple.
Theravåda Buddhism in 3), was introduced into Nepal in the
twentieth century. The monastery Ónandakuthi Vihåra was built in an
area of SwayambhËnåth in 1943. This monastery is the center of the
religious activity of Theravåda Buddhism in Nepal. In India, the
NeoBuddhism introduced by Ambedkar, which is equivalent to
Theravåda Buddhism, is mainly supported by low caste people
comparatively. On the other hand, Therevåda Buddhism in the
Kathmandu Valley is mainly supported by high caste people, such as
the Vajråcåryas and the Íåkyas who belong to the highest class of
Newar Buddhist caste system. The young generation of the Vajråcåryas
and the Íåkyas including women, sometimes become monks or nuns of
Theravåda Buddhism.
Regarding the fact, some supposition can be refered. Some Newar
Buddhists think that the decline of Newar Buddhism was caused by the
factors of Anuttarayogatantra such as being married, eating meat and
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drinking liquor by Buddhist priests. And they think that Newar Buddhism
should go back to ‘the original Buddhism’ since the period of Buddha.
Recently, Newar Buddhism is losing its power. However, it has
played an important role in the religious and cultural history of the
Kathmandu Valley. Still today, the religious activities of the Buddhists
such as performing rituals are continuing to play not a little role in the
Newar society. As mentioned above, under the rule of Jaya Sthiti Malla
in the fourteenth century, the Buddhist people accepted the caste
system which they rejected before. The system still functions in the
Newar society.
The caste system of the Newar Buddhism consists of five classes.
The people of the highest rank are the Vajråcåryas and the Íåkyas.
Both of them are the groups of descendent priests. The Vajåcåryas and
the Íåkyas perform the ritual called ‘bare shigu’ which is the initiation
ceremony for Buddhist monks. Furthermore, only the Vajråcåryas take
the consecration named ‘Ócåryåbhi∑eka.’ By performing this ritual, The
Vajråcåryas are qualified as professional priests, on the other hand, the
Íåkya people are not qualified.
But nowadays, many of theVajråcåryas make livelihood as goldsmith
and silversmith, like the Íåkya people. The Vajråcåryas and the Íåkyas
often live together in the temples called ‘baha’ or ‘bahi’ and and cooperate
in various rituals.
The TËlådhars (‘those who hold a balance’), the Råjkarnikårs
(confectioner), the Kaμsakårs (goldsmith) and the Tåmrakårs
(coppersmith) belong to the second rank of Newar Buddhist castes.
 Newar Buddhism-Past and Present 311

These people are also called ‘Uråy’ or ‘Udas.’ They had monopolized

the exchanges between Nepal and Tibet for a long time. Some of them
are said to be the descendents of the children between the Vajråcåryas
or the Íåkya men and Tibetan women.
The third rank is the caste of the farmers. Da∫gols and Maharjan
belong to this group. The Vyañjankårs (market garderners), the Taˆ∂ukårs
(drummer) and the Nåpits (barber), belong to the fourth rank. They
often engage in the butcher, and play a role of drummer in the festivals
and the funeral rites.
The Dya˙lå people and the Cyåμkhala˙ people belong to the groups
of the lowest rank of theNewar Buddhist caste system. Those people
engage in garbage collecting etc.. The people of that class usually
cannot be divided into Buddhists or Hindus clearly. If one calls
Buddhist priest in the funeral rite, he is considered as a Buddhist, and if
he calls Hindu Bråhmana, he is regarded as a Hindu.

3. Newar Buddhist Pantheon

As mentioned above, the Newar Buddhism has the element of the

Late Tantric Buddhism (anuttarayogatantra). The Newar Buddhist
Pantheon is the following.

(1) Tathågatas (如来)

(2) Bodhisattvas (菩薩)
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(3) Female Deities (女神)

(4) Dharmapålas (Guardian Deities of the Buddhist doctrines,
護法神)
(5) The other deities

Among the deities who belong to the first group, Pañcabuddha or

Five dhyåni Buddhas, namely, Mahåvairocana, Ak∑obhya (Fig. 1),
Ratnasambhava, Amithåbha, and Amoghasiddhi, are verypopular.
Other than these calm Buddhas, the Buddhas called ‘the secret
Buddhas,' who have fierce character are in this group. Those fierce
deities are also called Heruka (Fig. 2). Herukas have blue-black
colored bodies, embrace their consorts, hold in their hands many kinds
of weapons, such as a sword, a bow, an arrow, a trident etc., and
sometimes hold the head of Hindu god Brahmå. Those attributes are
borrowed from those of Hindu god Íiva. Herukas are considered to be

< Fig. 1 > < Fig. 2 >

 Newar Buddhism-Past and Present 313

strongly influenced by Hinduism.

To the second group of the Newar Buddhist Pantheon, Avalokiteßvara
(or lokeßvara), Mañjußr¥, and Vajrasattva (Fig. 3) etc. are belonging.
Especially, Vajrasattva is highly respected as theteacher (guru) of
Pañcabuddha as well as the guru of Vajråcårya.
The third group contains both gentle goddesses and fierce goddesses.
Tårå, Sarasvat¥, Vasudharå (Vasundharå) etc. belong to the gentle
ones. The latter group of the goddesses consists of flåkin¥s and Yogin¥s
(Fig. 4), who have supernatural powers such as flying in the sky, and
hold kart® (a knife for cutting meat) and kapåla (a skull filled with
blood) in their hands. They are often regarded as the consorts of
Herukas.
The fourth group consists of the deities who guard Dharma, the

< Fig. 3 > < Fig. 4 >

 314 불교학리뷰 vol.9

Buddhist doctrine, such as Caˆ∂amahåro∑aˆa, Mahåkåla. They have

also rather fierce characters but distinguished from Herukas mentioned
above. The fifth group contains the deities such as planets, lunar
mansions (nak∑atra), and the other deities originated from Hinduism,
such as Ganeßa, Bhairava.
In the month of Guñlå, which is considered as the most sacred month
in the Newar calender, the Buddhists visit SwayambhËnåth Temple
which is the center of Newar Buddhism, and recitethe hymn to the
Buddhist deities such as Nåmasa∫g¥ti in which bodhisattva Mañjußr¥ is
praised.

4. Rituals in Newar Buddhism

The Newar Buddhists worship Buddhas, gods and goddesses mentioned

above. In the Kathmandu Valley, you can see various rituals in temples
every day. There, pËjå (offering worship) and homa (fire ritual) are the
popular ritual acts. In Newar Buddhism, worshiping may be the most
important among religious acts.
Fig. 5 shows the offering worship (pËjå) to goddess Hår¥t¥ in front of
the Hår¥t¥ shrine at SwayambhËnåth. The priest offers flowers, insence,
lamps and so on to the goddess. Especially, the bali-offering, which
consists of boiled rice, beans, flowers and sometimes meat, is offered
to Hår¥t¥.
Maˆ∂alas are also used in the rituals. In the most rituals,
 Newar Buddhism-Past and Present 315

< Fig. 5 >

Gurumaˆ∂alapËjå is performed first. Gurumaˆ∂alapËjå is one of the

most fundamental rituals in Newar Buddhism. In this ritual, the priest
offers flowers etc. to the small circle named ‘gurumaˆ∂ala' in front of
him.Then he thinksthe circle as the Sumeru world. The Sumeru world
is also considered as the body of the priest himself. Finally, he offers
gurumaˆ∂ala as the Sumeru world to guru Vajrasattva who is
considered as the teacher of the priest. In the Kathmandu Valley,
Vajradhåtumaˆ∂ala is popular. Besides, Dharmadhåtuvåg¥ßvaramaˆ∂ala
of which Mañjußr¥ Dharmadhåtuvåg¥ßvara is situated at the center is
often found in the temples.
In the rites of passage also, the Newar Buddhists perform pËjås and
homas. In the ritual of initiation for the Buddhist monk named ‘Bare
shigu,' the priest performs a homa ritual. Vajråcåryapeople, who
belong to the caste of the priest, should be qualified as Buddhist
Tantric priests performing the ceremony called ‘Vajrayåna.' In the
ceremony, they perfom homa rituals accompanied with their wives.
After one's death, they perform the funeral rite using the
 316 불교학리뷰 vol.9

< Fig. 6 >

Durgatiparißodhanamaˆ∂ala which was refered

Sarvadurugatiparißodhanatantra compiled in India in the 8th century.
Then, from the next month of one's death till two years later, they
perform the memorial service named Piˆ∂apËjå. Piˆ∂a is the ball made
with rice powder, flour and so on. In Piˆ∂apËjå, the family member of
the deceased prepare piˆ∂as and offer them to their ancestors (Fig. 6).
In this ritual, the performer hopes that the deceased will get the
enlightenment.
As mentioned above, Piˆ∂apËjå is a kind of Buddhist ritual for
ancestors, but its procedure was borrowed from the Hindu ritual. In
Manusm®ti, which was compiled till 2C A.D., the act of offering piˆ∂as
to ancestors was already referred. Nowadays, the Hindus perform the
same kind of ritual named ‘Śråddha.'
I had a chance to observe the Śråddha ritual performed at the sacred
place named Gokarˆa on August 20, 2009. On the day, both the Hindus
and the Buddhists visited the place and bathed inthe river, then they
performed ancestor worships according to own their traditions. However,
 Newar Buddhism-Past and Present 317

both two ancestor worships are so similar that I couldn't distinguish the
Buddhist ritual from the Hindu one from their appearances.

5. The relationship between Buddhism and Hinduism in

the Kathmandu Valley

The example of the ancestor worship mentioned above shows the

close relationship between Buddhism and Hinduism in the Kathmandu
Valley. Other than the rituals, we can see the other examples which
show their relationship. There is a Hindu temple named Kumari
Chowk in the old city of Kathmandu, where a girl called Kumari lives.
A girl who is 4-5 years old is selected for Kumari. The Nepalese term
‘kumari' which derived from Sanskrit means ‘a virgin', and Kumari in
Kathmandu is considered as a living goddess who is identified with
Hindu goddess Durgå.
In the Hindu festival called Indra Jåtra, even the kings groveled
before her, because the successive kings were all Hindus and Kumari
was also regarded as the goddess of the royal family named Taleju, as
well as goddess Durgå. And Kumari was selected from the family of
Íåkya which is the caste of the Newar Buddhist monks. I mean that the
Hindu living goddess Kumari was always selected from the Buddhist
family. What does it mean?
I already told that all the kings in the Kathmandu Valley were
Hindus. Due to this fact, there might be the pressure for the Buddhist
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people, and they may have displeasure for the conditon of the society.
Therefore, there must have been a way to relieve the discontent of the
Buddhist people. The existence of Kumari might have played a role of
the diffusion of the negative energy of the Buddhists. The Buddhists
might have been satisfied seeing the scene that the Hindu king bowed
respectfully to the small living goddess who was from the Buddhist
family.
There is a Hindu temple named Íobhåbhagavat¥. Íobhåbhagavat¥ is
the goddess who is identified with Durgå. In the precinct of the temple,
there is a stËpa. And behind the main temple, another old Buddhist
stËpa can be found (Fig. 7). This Hindu temple seems to have been a
Buddhist temple before, and sometime it has been changed into the
temple of the Hindu goddess.
We often find li∫ga-yoni shaped stËpas in the kathmandu Valley
(Fig. 8). The li∫ga-yoni is the image of phallus (li∫ga) and the female

< Fig. 7 > < Fig. 8 >

 Newar Buddhism-Past and Present 319

sexual organ (yoni) which is regarded as Hindu godŚiva and his wife
Pårvatī. In Fig. 8, the stËpa was standing on the yoni. The stËpa seems
to represent the li∫ga. Here, the stËpa, which is the symbol of nirvåˆa
or Buddha himself, has the shape of the important symbol of Hindu
god Śiva . Thus, we can find the connection between Buddhism and
Hinduism in the Kathmandu Valley.

6. The future of Newar Buddhism

In 1769, Prithvi Narayan Shah established the Shah Dynasty, and

integrated Nepal. That dynasty, unlike the other past ones, sometimes
pressured the Buddhist people. In 1990, the movement of democratization
began and the Buddhists as well as the Hindus were involved in the
disturbance. In the due time, Nepal produced the new power of
ideology. It is the Maoists (The Communist Party of China denies the
connection with the Nepalese Maoists). The Maoistswon the poverty
over to their side. They fought a guerilla war with the slogan of the
abolition of discrimination based on the caste system, and the abolition
of Hinduism as a national religion.
In 2008, the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified-Maoist) won the
selection and became the government party. They disestablished the
kingship, and Nepal became the republic. However, the prime minister
from the Maoist party resigned in 2009, and the Unified-Maoist
seceded from the ruling party. The situation of Nepalese society
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remains unstable.
Maoists attacked the conservative traditional system of Nepal,
because they thought that the traditional thought and culture are the
main cause of discriminations in the society. For example, They set fire
to the Sanskrit manuscripts. Such the fact that the communist power
destroyed the traditional culture, can be found at various areas in Asia,
like the Cultural Revolution in China and the war in Cambodia.
Fortunately, Newar Buddhism still has not got a catastrophic damage.
But the Buddhists as the minority in the Nepalese society are facing the
difficulty in maintaning their own cultural tradition due to the economic
problem. For example, The Buddhist temples cannot be well maintained.
The Nepal government decided the year 2011 as ‘the year of visit
Nepal' and is planning the invitation of the tourists. In 2009, I visited
Cambodia, where so many tourists came to see the relics of Angkor.
The Buddhist temple where many people were killed by the Khmer
Rouge in the civil war was fully reconstructed. In Cambodia, I felt the
guts of the people who are reorganizing their own state, getting over
the war.
Nepal does not have the large-scale relics like Angkor in Cambodia.
But it has preserved its cultural tradition for a long time. Newar
Buddhism shows us the living Buddhist tradition, which originally
came from India and transformed into its particular form with the
element of Newar local tradition. Such a Buddhist tradition, as well as
Hindu, has much possibility of attracting foreigners. Nowadays, a
college for teaching Buddhist thought and culture was newly built by
 Newar Buddhism-Past and Present 321

the Newar Buddhists in the city of Patan which is located next to

Kathmandu. The social effect of this kind of action by the Newar
Buddhists themselves must be the key to the future of Newar
Buddhism.

<note> Fig. 1-8 were photographed by Shinobu Yamaguchi, from

2000 to 2010.