Mandalas, Monarchs, and Mortuary Magic Siting The Sarvadurgatipariśodhana Tantra in

American Academy of Religion
On Mandalas, Monarchs, and Mortuary Magic: Siting the Sarvadurgatipariśodhana Tantra in

Tibet
Author(s): Zeff Bjerken
Source: Journal of the American Academy of Religion, Vol. 73, No. 3 (Sep., 2005), pp. 813-841
Published by: Oxford University Press
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On Mandalas, Monarchs,
and Mortuary Magic: Siting
the Sarvadurgatipar
Tantra in Tibet
Zeff Bjerken
Recent scholarship on Indian Buddhist esotericism identifies the indi-

vidual practitioner's pursuit of kingship and dominion as the central
defining metaphor of Tantric literature. From this perspective the
mandala is not simply a gnostic symbol of enlightenment but a model
used for the realization of a Buddhist feudal polity. This article
extends this line of argument by explaining why one Indian Buddhist
text, the SarvadurgatiparisodhanaTantra (SDPS), would play an
important role in the conversion of Tibet to Buddhism. Drawing
upon the theories of J. Z. Smith on locative religion and ritual, I argue
that the ubiquitous mandalas featured in this text serve as "maps"and
modes of emplacement that have political ramifications for an emerg-
ing Buddhist polity in Tibet. The mandalas, sovereignty symbolism,
and mortuary rites of this text also undermine the indigenous model
of divine kingship that was present in Tibet prior to the arrival of
Buddhism.
The realm of our experience is similar to a tapestry.Time is the warp

and space is the woof; the myriad patterns appearingout of warp and
woof are the metamorphosesof all things.
-Inoue Enryo (Grapard:196)
Zeff Bjerken is an associate professor in the Department of Religious Studies at the College of
Charleston,Charleston,SC 29424.
Journalof theAmericanAcademyof ReligionSeptember2005, Vol. 73, No. 3, pp. 813-841
doi:10.1093/jaarel/lfi080
@The Author 2005. Publishedby Oxford UniversityPress,on behalf of the AmericanAcademyof
Religion.All rightsreserved.For permissions,pleasee-mail:journals.permissions@oupjournals.org

814 Journalof theAmericanAcademyof Religion
SCHOLARSOF TANTRAOFTENbegintheirdiscussionof this com-

plex traditionwith an etymology,whentheynote thatthe originalSan-
skritmeaningof tantrawas"thewarpandwoof"of a fabric.Thisstoried
etymologytells us that Tantrictexts are akin to textiles,and from this
metaphorit becomesevidenthow tantracan also be characterized by
interwoventhreadsor "continuity," as the termis translatedin Tibetan
(rgyud).The Tantrictext as textiletropeoffersus a heuristicdevicefor
readingthe Sarvadurgatipari'odhana Tantra(SDPS),one of the first
BuddhistSanskritTantrastranslatedinto Tibetanduringthe eighthcen-
tury.Whatare some of the primarythemes,the strandsof threadas it
were,that run throughthis text?HereI will focuson a few prominent
featuresin the SDPS,namely,the ubiquitousmandalas,the pervasive
symbolsof royalty,the much advertisedmagicalbenefits,and the tech-
niquesforenablingthe deceasedto achievea good rebirth,a featurepro-
motedin the text'sveryname,ThePurification ofAllEvilRebirths. I have
chosento unraveltheseloopingthreadsaboutmandalas,monarchs,and
mortuarymagicbecausethey play a crucialrole in the conversionof
Tibetto Buddhism.Whatintriguesme abouttheseprominentthreadsin
the SDPSis theirvalueforBuddhistmissionaryideology,an ideologythat
soughtto displacethenativeTibetancultof divinekingship.Thereligious
andideologicalvaluesfoundin the SDPSwerevaluablefor the Buddhist
conversionprojectin Tibet,if not tailor-madefor it. Thepurposeof this
articleis to examinethe discourseaboutfuneralsandkingsin the SDPS
againstthe backdropof Tibet'sconversionto Buddhismandexplainhow
its mandalasreorderednativeconceptionsof powerandplace.
ImperialTibetduringthe lateeighthandearlyninthcenturies,when
the SDPSwas firsttranslatedinto Tibetan,was an arenafor contesting
religiousand politicalideologies.Conflictoften eruptedover the reli-
giousauthorityof thekingandthelocusof his power.EarlyBuddhistsin
Tibetfacedoppositionfromministersandpriestswho upheldthe indige-
nous cult of kingship,a traditionthat paid homageto the king as a
descendantfromheaven,a divinebeingendowedwith magicalpowers,
and a magisterialbrilliance('phrulbyin;Macdonald).Buddhistssought
to displacethe native model of kingshipwith the cakravartinideal
importedfromIndia.Theyrepresented the spreadof the Dharmaas akin
to the cakravartin'sexpansion territory,the universalsubjugationof
of
localpowersby a righteousconqueror.Theimageof the cakravartin fea-
tureda kingwho turnsthe wheel(cakra)of his empirefromits centeror
an emperorwhosechariotwheelhas rolledaroundthe perimeterof the
Indiankingdom,withoutanyobstructionfromenemies.As elsewherein
Asia,much of the earlyBuddhistmissionin Tibetwas directedat the
governingelite,with kingsin particulartargetedas potentialpromoters

Bjerken:On Mandalas,Monarchs,and MortuaryMagic 815
of the Buddha'slaw. In turn, the Dharma was presented as a means for

protectingthe state (Kapstein;Urban).
Mandalas were valuable tools in the Buddhist mission civilisatrice.
They served as a new "map"for reorganizingthe religious and political
landscape. Mandalas introduced a hierarchicalpolity centering on the
Buddhistking and expandingoutwardin concentriccircles,representing
degreesof accommodationto the not so sacredor politicallypowerful.As
we shall see, the mandalaoffers what JonathanZ. Smith calls a "locative
map"of the cosmos, an orderedgrid that "guaranteesmeaning and value
throughstructuresof congruityand conformity"(1978:292). Themandala's
social and political coordinates serve the interests of the imperial figure
and his ministers at the center. Thus it is politically conservative,as it
puts everyoneinto his properplace in a hierarchy,wherebyeach individ-
ual'spurposewas fulfilledby keeping his place.
Our investigation of the SDPS will reveal, however, that mandalas
involve much more than the static model implied by a "locativemap."
Mandalasarewell suited to assimilateor replacenativefiguresin the land-
scape, whether they are divine figures or political agents, making
the mandalaa potent weapon in the arsenalof Buddhistapologists. The
dynamic function of the mandala is celebratedin its magical ability to
transformthe social and religiousstatusof the initiatedduringthe present
and in future lives. The SDPS claims that what "takesplace" inside the
mandala may be radicallytransformative.Not only can it alter one's
karmicdestiny and achieve the goal of Buddhahoodbut also a varietyof
mundane boons (often relatedto kingship) become availableto the ini-
tiate. The tension between these ambivalentaspectsof the mandala,serv-
ing both as a staticmap and a dynamicmethod for acquiringpower,made
it a potent instrumentfor reconfiguringthe religiouslandscapeof Tibet.
Our destination lies in siting the SDPS in Tibet, but we will not be
able to catch full sight of the text's role in the Tibetans' conversion to
Buddhism.The gaps that remain between text and context can only be
bridged by historical speculation. But for now, even the analysisof this
text and its historicalcontext remains distant in time and space. Rather
than plunging directlyinto the sacredspace of the SDPS mandalas,I will
take a circuitous route toward this topic, drawing inspiration from the
Tibetanpilgrim'spracticeof circumambulatingsites ('khorba).
GUIDES TO THE MANDALA AS SACRED REPRESENTATION:

METHODOLOGICAL EXCURSIONS
As pilgrims know, the straight line is not the customary route for
approachingsacred spaces. Unlike mountaineersof the Himalayassuch

as Mallory,who plotted a direct line of ascent to Everest'ssummit and

hoped to conquerit for no other reasonthan "becauseit's there,"Tibetans
take an entirely different approach to their sacred mountains in the
"Landof Snows."In place of a compass, pilgrimsmay be equippedwith a
guidebook (gnasyig) on their leisurelyjourney to their destination,with
numerous detours made to retracefootsteps left by saints in stone. On
my own approachto the mandalasof the SDPS, I too shall take a round-
about route and pay homage to my intellectual guides. An oblique
approachseems to be an apt method for the historian.As Smith has sug-
gested the direction of the historian'sline of argumentand even his point
of departureare both quite problematic.The philosopher or theologian
may start his linear argumentswith FirstPrinciplesor with the theologi-
cal opening, "Inthe Beginning.... "As for the historian,however,Smith
notes that
Thereis for him no realbeginning,but only the plungewhichhe takes

at some arbitrarypoint to avoid the unhappyalternativesof infinite
regressor silence.His standpointis not discovered;ratherit is erected
with no claimbeyondthat of sheersurvival.The historian'spoint of
view cannotsustainclearvision.The historian'staskis to complicate,
not to clarify.He strivesto celebratethe diversityof manners,the opac-
ityof things,the varietyof species.He is barred,thereby,frommakinga
frontalassaulton his topic.Likethepilgrim,the historianis obligatedto
approachhis subjectobliquely.He mustcircumambulate the spot sev-
eraltimes beforemakingeven the most fleetingcontact.His method,
like that of TristamShandy,Gentleman,is that of digression.(1978:
129)
In our roundaboutroutetowardthe SDPSTantrain Tibet,our first

digressiontakesus throughan imaginarycitynamedEudoxia,wherewe
will gainsomebearingon our Tibetandestination.Eudoxiawill provide
an occasionfor meditatingon religiousspaceandparticularly for think-
ing about the of
features a mandala-like The
structure. city of Eudoxia
thatwe shallexploreappearsas a site in the landscapechartedby Italo
Calvino in InvisibleCities. For those who have yet to set their minds in
thistext,I willsummarizesomeof its salientfeatures.
InvisibleCitiesfeaturestwo figuresengagedin dialogue,the young
Venetian traderMarco Polo and the aging Tartaremperor KublaiKhan.
TheKhan,rulerof a vastbut crumblingempire,feelsthathis territoryis
slippingout of his control.He searchesfor some ultimateorderto his
boundlessempire,so thathe may reallygraspand possessit. The Khan
entreatsMarcoPolo, the seasonedtravelerand consummatestoryteller,
to describe the cities that he has visited during his trading expeditions.

Polo obliges the Khan with fabulous descriptions of invisible cities; but
with these cities he charts an imaginarytopography, more plastic than
material.The Khantries to discern in these bewilderingplaces "the trac-
eryof a patternso subtleit could escapethe termites'gnawing"(Calvino:6).
What the emperor seeks in these subtle patterns is a lasting map of his
decayingempire. It is a map of sorts that is featuredin Polo's description
of Eudoxia, identified as one of the "Citiesand the Sky,"for it is seem-
ingly patternedafterthe harmonyof the celestialspheres.
Polo depicts it as a confusing city with labyrinthinestreets and dead-
end alleys, making it "easyto get lost in Eudoxia."Fortunately,a magic
carpet is preservedin the city. Its magic is found in the carpet'sdesign,
for its geometric pattern representsthe city's true form. At first glance,
there would seem to be no relationshipwhatsoeverbetween the chaotic
city and the carpet's ordered design, "laid out in symmetricalmotives
whose patternsare repeatedalong straightand circularlines, interwoven
with brilliantly colored spires, in a repetition that can be followed
throughout the whole woof." Upon closer examination, the citizen
becomes convinced that the carpet is actuallya miniatureversion of the
city, a map that faithfully corresponds to all of its places, "arranged
accordingto their true relationship,which escapes [the] eye distractedby
the bustle, the throngs, the shoving." What at first seems disorienting
about the city is merely a result of the citizen's incomplete perspective,
"butthe carpetproves that there is a point from which the city shows its
true proportions, the geometrical scheme implicit in its every, tiniest
detail."If a person loses his way in the city, but then staresat the carpet
long enough, he will recognizethe street he was looking for as one of the
carpet's colorful threads, which loops around to his destination. Thus,
dwellers in Eudoxia do not escape the implicit geometry of life; when
each confronts the carpet'ssymmetry,he superimposesthat order onto
his own image of the city. Even his own destiny can be found in the car-
pet's patterns: "each can find, concealed among the arabesques, an
answer,the story of his life, the twists of fate"(Calvino:96-97).
An oracle is consulted about the mysteriousconnection between two
such dissimilarobjects, the city and the carpet.The oracle answersthat
only one of the two objects"hasthe form the gods gave the starrysky and
the orbits in which the worlds revolve;the other is an approximatereflec-
tion, like every human creation."The augurs who interpretthe oracle's
speech argue (predictably)that the carpetwas fashionedby a divine hand
accordingto the cosmic design, and this interpretationaroused no con-
troversy among Eudoxia's inhabitants. However, in a final ironic twist
the reversepossibilityis also suggested,which underminesthe very exist-
ence of cosmic order:

Butyou could,similarly,cometo the oppositeconclusion:thatthe true

map of the universeis the city of Eudoxia,just as it is, a stain that
spreadsout shapelessly,
with crookedstreets,housesthatcrumbleone
upon the other amid clouds of dust, fires, screamsin the darkness.
(Calvino:97)
Withoutprovidinganydefinitiveanswer,Calvinoleavesus to reflect
on orderand chaosin negotiatingthe mentalcityscapeof Eudoxia.Do
we readthis storyas a Platonicparableaboutthe carpet'strueform?Or
arewe leftwith the existentialanguishof uncertainty,bereftof anyulti-
matereligiousorder?
Herewe neednot dwellon theseultimatequestions.To do so might
strandus in the confusionof Eudoxia,lost amidst"themules'braying,
the lampblackstains,the fishsmell."Instead,we shallconsiderthe allure
of the carpetas a mandala-likestructure.The most obviousparallelism
betweenthe carpetanda mandalalies in theirgeometricalform,in their
patternof circlesandsquaresin repeatingmotives.Thisabstractgeome-
try givesthe carpet-mandala a staticquality,and its "immobileorder"
canbe replicated.Thecarpet'svalueas a mapdependson its abilityto be
copiedandtransported,for how else couldone actuallylocatestreetsin
its coloredthreadswithouthavinga replicaof the carpetbeforehim?The
promiseof the carpetfor KublaiKhanlies in the possibilitythatit could
be duplicatedby Polo and transferred to the Khan'scapitalwithoutever
its
losing accuracy. After all, the citizens of Eudoxiaregardit as the pat-
ternof the universe,andviewersof it gaina perfectperspectiveon their
destiny.Not onlyis thisminiaturized universeeasyto graspconceptually,
it mayalsohavemagicalqualities,as it concentrates thepowerof the cos-
mic orderinto its design,saturatingit withmeaningandpower.Magicis,
of course,relatedto artificeandfabrication. Thecreatorsof cosmograms
suchas themandalaaretraditionally believedto gainmagicalpowerover
the object,with whichthey can manipulatereality.Whatis mysterious
about the carpetis that the very conditionsof its productionremain
unknown,muchlikethe obscureoriginsof a revelatory text.It is onlythe
augurs who interpretthe oracle's ambiguous words and assurethe city's
inhabitantsthatthe carpet'sdesignis indeeddivine.
Buthow exactlydo the carpet,the city,andthe cosmosinterconnect?
Missingin Polo'sdescriptionis any fixedreferencepoint or a centerby
whichto orientoneselfon the carpet.Althoughan Archimedean pointis
impliedby the viewer's "the
perspective, point fromwhich the cityshows
its trueproportions,"a centrallocusis neverspecifiedin thecarpet'sgeo-
metricalpatterns.Herelies the majordifferencebetweenthe carpetand
the mandala.A mandala'scenteris unmistakable, servingas the focal

point and the apex of value in a hierarchythat extends downward and

outward in emboxed squares and concentric circles to the periphery,
where marginalbeings dwell. The mandala'scenter, where the king or
buddha resides,playssuch an importantpartin making it a potent struc-
ture that we must leavebehind Eudoxia'seccentriccarpet.But before we
draw any closer to the mandalas of the SDPS, I beg the reader'sindul-
gence to pursue another diversion and follow the trackslaid by Mircea
Eliade and Smith in their theorizing about sacred space and place.
Anotherdigressionseems in order.
As is well known, Eliadeestablisheshis basic programfor the study of
religion in TheSacredand the Profane,where he privilegesthe experience
of the sacred as his starting point. Thus he begins his exploration of
humankind'sreligiousorigins in true theological form: In the Beginning
was the Sacred, manifested as a hierophany in the experience of homo
religiosus.This primordialexperienceof the Sacredis akin to the creation
of the world, for it revealsa Center,the referencepoint by which humans
can then orient themselvesin the world (Eliade:21). Once the Centerhas
been located, the religious world can be founded. All human religious
activity thereafter,in myth, in ritual, or in the construction of religious
spaces,is nothing more than a repetitionof this basic cosmogonic model.
Eliade's theory that humans' religious activity repeats the work of the
gods will sound familiarto us. For not only has this leitmotif resounded
as a monotonous refrainin Eliade'sstudies of the sacred;it also echoes
the augur'sinterpretationof the carpet as an imago mundi. Eliade'sthe-
ory of sacred space, based on the Center and cosmogony, is superim-
posed onto whateverreligious landscapehe interprets,just as Eudoxia's
citizens project the image of the carpet's ordered symmetry into their
city. But whereas the carpet seems to help the citizens wend their way
through chaotic streets,Eliade'sinterpretivestructureis not an accurate
map that adequatelychartsall the territoryof religion.
The most outspoken critic of Eliade'ssearch for the Sacredhas been
Smith, whose own theories invert this orientation. Smith dismisses the
need for a Centeras an eccentricexception in the historyof religions,and
he replacesEliade'spriorityof homoreligiosuswith homofaber.An excel-
lent exampleof his polemic appearsin To TakePlace.Smith stands Eliade
on his head when he affirms that "the language of 'center' is preemi-
nently political and only secondarilycosmological.It is a vocabularythat
stems, primarily,from archaicideologies of kingship and the royal func-
tion" (1987: 17). Put bluntly, for Smith, it is royal power that serves as
the catalyst for discourse about the center, not religious cosmology or
cosmogony. This is a strongclaim, and curiouslyit receivesverylittle tex-
tual support. By locating the center primarilyin terms of politics rather

thanreligion,Smithimpliesthatthesetwo domainsareeasilyseparated.
Yetwhenwe considermodelssuchas the mandala'scakravartin, canwe
distinguisheasilybetween"political" domainand"religious" cosmology
in understanding this figure?Thekingcertainlyoccupiesthe centerin a
mandala,but is that due to sheer power alone?Smith'setiologyfor
mythicdiscourseabout the "center"seems to me as problematicand
one-sided as Eliade'stheory and, ultimately,as difficultto support.
A morecharitableinterpretation wouldviewit as an "exaggeration in the
directionof truth"(to stealone of Smith'sfavoritephrases),a reminder
thatpoliticalideologyplaysa formativerole in the creationof symbolic
centers.This approachwill provemore fruitfulfor understanding how
mandalasoperate"onthe ground"in Tibet,in contrastto Eliade'sdepo-
liticizedcosmologicalorientation.
Smith'sdescriptionof the "locativemap"seemsbettersuitedfor the
mandala,withits centralorientation.He identifiesthe "locativemap"as
an all-encompassing microcosmicgrid,whichattemptsto eliminateany
incongruityby fixingeverythingin its properplace,relegatingthe anom-
alousto the periphery.Thelocativemapthusdemandsstrictconformity,
rulesof status
and it servesas a placeof clarificationfor the hierarchical
and powerimplicitin its organization.Politically,sucha mapis conser-
vative,as it preservesthe statusquo whilefunctioningas propaganda for
the figureatthe center.Thelocativemapservesthe interestsof thisimpe-
rial figure,who is regardedas the guardianof the cosmic and social
order,andhe is supportedby a groupof "well-organized, self-conscious
scribaleliteswho [have]a deepvestedinterestin restrictingmobilityand
valuingplace"(Smith1978:293). The priestsand scribespromotetheir
royalpatron,but theirwork also ensurestheir own elite statusas the
inscribersof the locativemap in texts,in ritualactivity,and in society.
Finally,thelocativemapis a synchronicstructurethatencouragesformal
replication,for it is basedon systematicrelationswithina hierarchy. The
name "locativemap"may seem somewhatmisleading,becauseit need
not be groundedin anyspecificlocation.Instead,it is an abstracttopog-
raphythatcanbe transported to variouskindsof socialspace,allowinga
"prescission place"(Smith1987:109).
from
Thatthelocativemapconformsto manyof thegenericfeaturesof the
mandalais certainlyno accident.Smithacknowledged the influenceof
PaulMus,GiuseppeTucci,andPaulWheatleyin the formulationof this
"map,"all of whomhavecontributedmuchto our understanding of the
mandalaas a modelingstructurein Buddhistcultures.The mandala
mapsthe cosmosin miniature,andit overcomesincongruityby creating
correspondencesbetweenmacro- and microcosm.Like the "locative
map,"the mandalais alsoa synchronicmodel,becausethe entirecosmos

is thought to be alwayspresent within it. The mandala'ssystemic struc-

ture can be replicatedso it adapts readily to various contexts and uses,
making it extremelyproductive.
MAPPING THE MANDALA'S MULTIPLE COORDINATES

Fabio Rambelli has identified five interrelated functions of the
mandala that are worth summarizing here in order to grasp the
mandala'smultiple features.Modern scholarshiphas tended to focus on
the mandalaas (1) a meditationdevice,used by yogins for the purpose of
transformingtheir body, speech, and mind to yield a different under-
standing of reality. This meditative function of the mandala overlaps
with its use as (2) a scholasticschemaand mnemonicdevice.As the cosmos
representedin miniature, the mandala presupposes rules of correlation
that can be appliedby an exegete eagerto incorporateall kinds of diverse
phenomena. For instance, the mandala'scardinalorientation can gener-
ate long lists of "quadraticequations,"setting up homologies between
the four directions,the four elements,the four colors, the four kayas,and
so on, until the quadraticequations become an index for the entire cos-
mos. This elaborationof correspondencesis modular:the all-encompass-
ing mandala can expand to include all sorts of heterogeneous elements
without ever compromisingits cohesion (Rambelli:7-8; White: 10). This
seems suited for scholastics,with their passion for systematictotalization.
But it is important to recognize how the mandala serves a didactic pur-
pose here by organizingand encapsulatingdoctrines and practices,as it
may be used to transmitesoteric knowledge. Such a featurewould make
it especially attractiveas a portable "memory palace" for missionaries
who spreadthe Dharmafrom India throughoutAsia.
Not only is the mandala manifested in the mental machinations of
yogins and scholastics,but it can also be actualizedin space, as an image,
or a shrine, or in the landscape itself. Once representedspatially, the
mandalabecomes (3) an objectof devotion,the site of offeringsto buddhas
and the focus of pilgrimagepractices.Too, the mandala can serve mun-
dane (4) magical functions. For instance, entry into a mandala was
thought to produce magicaleffects (e.g., longevity,wealth, or security)or
a mandala image might be worn on the body as an amulet to ward off
negative forces. In these examples, we see how it is a generativedevice
endowed with innumerable powers of transformation. Finally, the
mandalahas (5) an ideological functionby representingan idealizedhierar-
chy of statusand power that could be imposed on societyto form a feudal
Buddhistpolity(Davidson:131-144;Strong:306). It is theselasttwo features,
the magicaland the ideologicalfunctions,that will serveas the focus of my

analysisof the SDPS. It may be a relief to arrivefinallyat our destination

after this long methodological excursion. Equipped with the maps that
we have picked up during our circuitous approach,we can begin to chart
the topographyof this text and locate it in the historicalcontext of Tibet's
imperialperiod.
The SDPS appearstwice in the Tibetan Tripitika.Within the Tantra
section of the Tripitikathere are two differentversions in Tibetan,which
differconsiderablyin content and organization.The first Tibetanversion
of the Tantra(no. 116), translatedby a pair of Indian and Tibetantrans-
lators named Sdntigarbhaand Jayaraksitain the late eighth century, is
based on a Sanskritedition of the SDPS that is no longer extant. This
early Sanskritedition was quite differentfrom the Sanskrittext available
in the late thirteenth century that served as the basis for the second
Tibetantranslation(no. 117), translatedby anotherIndian-Tibetanteam
of translators.Although both Tibetan versions of the SDPS are arranged
in three chapters,they only overlap significantlyin the second chapter,
and they diverge considerablyin their third chapters. Here my analysis
will be limited to the first two chaptersof the earlierversion translatedin
the late eighth century (no. 116). For in these two chaptersappearmost
prominentlythe mandalas,the mortuarypractices,and the royaltyrheto-
ric, the very featuresthat I will argue made the text so valuablefor early
Buddhist missionaries in Tibet.' My method for interpretingthese two
chapterswill be to isolate certainthreadsin the text's discursivenarrative
and then establishsome connections to the socio-historicalcontext, with
the goal of explainingwhy this text would have appealedto missionaries
and the royalcourt of imperialTibet.
NARRATING THE GEOGRAPHY OF DEATH AND THE

AFTERLIFE
We will begin by rehearsingthe narrativeelements of the Tantra,for
the introductory setting (glenggzhi) will help us to grasp how this text
might serve as a locative map for its readers. At the very outset, the
Tantraintroducesus to basic cosmological themes when it tells of a god's
fate who has fallen from heaven into the hell realms.This event provides
an opportunity for the Buddha to teach how one can avoid such a fate,
TadeuszSkorupskihas compiledthe variousTibetaneditionsof the Sarvadurgatiparidodhana

Tantraandofferedan Englishtranslation of the latertext (no. 117).WhenI quoteor summarize
fromthe earliereditionof the SDPS(no. 116),I will referto the pagesof the editionpresentedby
Skorupskias TibetanTextof Version
A, 305-379.

and even how to rescuethose who are sufferinga bad rebirthas a hell
dweller,a hungryghost,or an animal.The Tantraopensin the grandi-
ose fashionof a Mahdydna Sltra,withthe Buddha~akyamunipresentin
the Trdyastrimia heavens,surroundedby an enormousentourageof
buddhasandbodhisattvas, allof whomworshiphim.Althoughthe scene
is set in a pleasuregrove,we soon learnthat this paradisiacal gardenis
not beyondthe reachof suffering.Even here the gods are subjectto
karmaanddeath,andtheycanfallto a horriblerebirth.
The actionbeginsdramatically with a miraculousfeat. S'kyamuni,
seatedon thethroneof Brahma,entersinto a deepstateof concentration,
duringwhichraysof lightstreamout fromthe hairtuft (urnd)between
his eyes.So brightaretheseraysof lightthatthey illuminatethe entire
universeand freeall sentientbeingsfromthe bondsof the defilements
(klesa),settingthemon the pathto enlightenment. All the divinebeings
gathered around the Buddha are awestruck by this spectacularlight
show.Indra,chiefof the gods,approaches the BlessedOneto askhow he
performedsucha wondrousactof salvation.G?kyamuni answersthathis
deedis nothingspecial,forallbuddhashaveacquiredso muchmeritthat
theycan do anythingwith theirunlimitedwisdomand magicalpowers.
So effectiveand limitlessare the methodsof the buddhasthat they are
capableof convertinganybeing(SDPS:306.3-307.2).
Indrathen inquiresabout the fate of the god Vimalamainiprabha,
who only one week earlierhad died and fallenfrom the
heavensto be rebornelsewhere.Withoutofferingany explanation for
Trdyastri.mia
whythe god haddied,S'kyamunilaunchesinto a listof the horrifichells
andrebirthsthatthis god mustendure,whichhe describesin ascending
order.Theformergod mustagonizeforthousandsof yearsin the lowest
hell realm(Avici),and then endureless severehells beforemovingup
throughtheworldof thetormentedhungryghosts,andbe rebornsubse-
quentlyas an animal.Aftertens of thousandsof yearshavepast,he will
eventuallybe rebornas a human,but he mustundergobeingreborndeaf
and dumb among the "borderpeople."Thereafterhe will be reborn
amongthoseof lowerrace,wherehe will be tormentedby plagues,lep-
rosy,hemorrhages, andboils.He willexperiencecontinualsuffering,and
he willbe a sourceof others'sufferingtoo (SDPS:307.20-35).
So upsetarethegodsuponhearingthefateof theirdivinecompanion
thattheyswoonand "falldown on theirfaces."Indramanagesto arise
and begs the BlessedOne to teachhow Vimalamaniprabha or any god
can be sparedsuch suffering.This servesas the formalrequestfor the
Buddhato revealhow they mightbe freedfrom the threebad rebirth
realms.The BlessedOne proceedsto instructall those presentin the
mantrasandthemandalathatwilleffectively eliminateanyfuturenegative

rebirth,a teaching that takes up much of the first chapter.But before he

delivershis teaching,the Buddhapromotes it with this plug. He promises
that those who hear, utter, or write down the secretspell of the SDPSand
wear it on their body will not experiencethe eight signs of death,whereas
those who enter the mandala correctly will never suffer a bad rebirth.
Furthermore,for those who have alreadypassed away to an unfortunate
rebirth, if their corpses are properly placed in the mandala and conse-
crated,they will instantlybe freed from sufferingas non-returners(phyir
mi Idogpa;SDPS:310.1-24).
Let us pause here to consider what the Tantrahas introduced so far.
The introductory setting (glenggzhi) places the reader in a moral uni-
verse, a Buddhistgeographyof the afterlife.The narrativeassumesfamil-
iaritywith the generalterrainof this geography,for it is sketchedonly in
rough form, with sentient beings inhabiting six rebirth destinies. The
most conspicuous feature of this universe is its integrated hierarchical
structure.The hierarchyfirst becomes apparentwhen the Buddhatraces
the fall of Vimalamaniprabhafrom the augustassemblyof the gods down
to Avici hell. From there he must over millennia slowly make his way in
successivelives up through the gradedhell realms,then sufferas a hungry
ghost, and then as an animal. Evenafterhe is finallyrebornas a human-
a rebirthso often celebratedin Buddhistliteratureas precious and fortu-
nate-he will be subjected to a social hierarchy.He will be reborn first
among the "borderpeople" (yul mtha' khob kyi mi, i.e., the barbarians
who know nothing about Buddhism), and then he will take rebirth
among impure people of low caste. These unfortunate human rebirths
illustrate two different hierarchicalprinciples. First, there is a center-
peripherystructure in which the center is marked by the presence of a
Buddha,the teaching of the Dharma, and the flourishingof the Sangha,
whereas the periphery is marked by their absence. Second, there is the
purity-pollutionstructurethat forms the basis of the Indian caste system.
These hierarchicalvalues are replicatedthroughout the Tantra,but they
are most rigorouslyrepeatedin the mandalas,which serve as devices that
clarifythe principles of status and power implicit in the organizationof
the cosmos.
The introduction, which sets the stage for the Buddha'sdiscourse on
mandalas, thus demonstrates a concern with mapping modes of
emplacement,with situatingbeings accordingto their status and power,
and with replacing their rebirth. S'kyamuni and other buddhas are
found at the very apex of the hierarchy,and their pure status and magical
power are honored by the gods. In fact, the Buddha'ssuperiorityover the
gods is repeatedlyemphasized,as the BuddhadisplacesBrahmsby sitting
on his throne at the very center of the divine assembly,while Indra,chief

of the gods of the Trdyastrimqa heavens,servesas his unsure interlocutor.

In addition, the gods are warned that they must not develop a sense of
false security while dwelling in their blissful heavens. The fate of
Vimalamaniprabhaproduces a sense of urgency in the gods, like a fire
and brimstone sermon. Upon hearingthe miserythat their formerfriend
must endure, the gods can only respond by falling on their faces before
the Buddha,in a reenactmentof their former divine companion's unex-
pected fall from heaven. Arising to their knees in supplication to the
Buddha,they plea to be sparedfrom a bad rebirth.
It is not difficult to imagine the appeal of these themes for Tibetans
who were just becoming acquainted with Buddhism in the eighth and
ninth centuries.The SDPS addressesthe timely topic of death's inevita-
bility, to which all beings are subject, even the gods. In line with other
Buddhist texts, our Tantra reinforces a vision of the afterlife,the doc-
trines of karmaand continual rebirth,and the hierarchicalIndian social
norms that would be novel to Tibetans.Buddhistmissionariescould use
the ominous threatof a bad rebirthwith strong effect, in orderto impress
upon potential Tibetan converts the value of the apotropaic rites, the
funerarypractices,or the magicalspells that only Buddhistadepts could
provide. Similarly,Sakyamunifirst determinesVimalamaniprabha'sdire
destiny, and then he skillfullyintroducesthe SDPS mandalasto his audi-
ence, once he has their full attention. Judging from the number of
Tibetan texts found in Dunhuang that invoke the deities and mantras
that originatein the SDPSTantra,these magicalspells that were designed
to preventa bad rebirthwere popularamong Tibetansduring the eighth
and ninth centuries.For example, there are two manuscriptsfrom Dun-
huang that preserve a short text entitled Conqueringthe ThreePoisons
(Dug gsum 'dul ba), a text which prominently features mantras taken
from the SDPS (Imaeda 1979:71-76).
Another important Buddhist missionary work, contemporaneous
with the translationof the SDPS into Tibetan, is The Storyof the Cycleof
Birthand Death (Skyeshi 'khorlo'i lo rgyus;SCBD),which survivesin nine
Dunhuang manuscripts (Imaeda 1981: 6, 83). The SCBD narratesthe
quest of a boy named Rinchen, who seeks the means to bring his
deceasedfather,a formergod, backto life. Aftertravelingfrom one spiri-
tual teacher to another without gaining the desired teaching, Rinchen
finally meets S'kyamuni, who teaches him that birth and death are the
resultof karma.Only the ritualstaught by the Buddhawill have any pos-
itive effect by purifyingpast karma.The Buddha then proceeds to teach
the young boy how to masterthe mantrasand make the properfire offer-
ings in a mandala.These teachingsare but a synopsis of the instructions
that are prescribedat greatlength within the SDPS (Imaeda 1981:73).

The SDPS and SCBD share more than a concern with transforming
the deceased by means of mantras and mandalas,for they both present
stories that feature the death of a god. The death of a god motif was a
common missionary strategy used to subvert the cult of local deities
found in pre-Buddhist traditions. This strategyinvolved subordinating
the minor "mundanegods" ('jigsrtenpa'i lha), who were not free from
samsara,to the supra-mundanedeities and buddhas ('jigsrtenlas 'daspa'i
iha), who are liberatedfrom the cycle. When the gods of the
heavens fall on their faces before the Buddha,this act demonstratestheir
Trayastrirn.a
subordination to Sdkyamuni,their superior savior, with no small dra-
matic flair.
ADVERTISEMENTS FOR THE SDPS TEXT AS ROYAL

PROPAGANDA
Another feature of the SDPS that illustrates how it might serve as
Buddhist propagandaare the numerous advertisementsmade through-
out the text that celebrateits efficacy.Each chapterof the work follows a
set pattern: before the Buddha introduces a new topic, whether ritual
instructionsor descriptionsof mandalas,he heraldsthem with an adver-
tisement. After presentinghis teachings,these advertisementsare reiter-
ated, followed by effusive praise from the gods, who testify to the truth
and efficacy of the Buddha's teachings. The overwhelming majority of
these advertisementspromise some form of magicalsuccess in the world
(laukika siddhi) rather than the supermundane goal of enlightenment
(lokottarasiddhi).This emphasisis in reversalof the prioritiesoften found
by modern western commentators on Tantra, who tend to underscore
the transcendent goal of Buddhahood and only grudgingly accept the
worldly benefits. For instance,the text mentions the purpose of perform-
ing the fierce rites, such as destroying or mutilating one's enemies,
attractingprettyyoung girls,bewitchingarmies,or producingrain.
In terms of the central topic of the SDPS, the text claims that those
who enter the mandalawill be liberatedfrom all evil destinies, and they
will be reborn in the heavenly realms. That they will eventually attain
enlightenment is added almost as an afterthought;what the text makes
most appealing is how one may avoid the suffering associated with
unfortunate rebirths, such as disease, famine, or a premature death.
These concrete goals were certainly one of the selling features of the
SDPS and Tantric Buddhism in general. It was precisely these kinds of
magical, wonder-working characteristicsof the Buddhist thaumaturge
that appealedto the generalpopulace.The advertisementscan be read as
an affirmationthat the TantricBuddhismof the SDPScan compete quite

successfully on the ground of Tibet's autochthonous traditions, in

defendingagainstdemons and conferringother magicalpowers.
It would be a mistake, however, to interpretthe missionarymessage
of the SDPSas a popularizedconcession for the ordinarylayperson.If the
text targetsa specific audience it would be the elite classes,especiallythe
ministersand the kings as I will arguebelow. Although the rhetoricof the
advertisementsmight make the SDPS seem appealing to anyone, its
actual practicesare wrappedin a veil of secrecy,describedin ambiguous
language that refers ellipticallyto secret consecrations.The text always
assumes that the reader is familiar with its esoteric terminology. The
modern scholarmust rememberthat the SDPSwas never intended for an
English audience of nonbelieversand that its secret charactermade the
commentaries and guru mandatory,thereby safeguardingtheir power.
Thus the text's air of secrecyis deliberatelyexclusivistic,limiting its com-
prehensibilityto the initiated elite. The novice must accept a Buddhist
teacheras a preceptoras the prerequisitefor gaining entry into this elite
group.
When the Buddhafinallyrespondsto Indra'squeryabout the rites for
the purificationof evil rebirths,his description is remarkablycondensed
and cryptic. First, the Buddha states quite simply that there is nothing
difficult about liberating beings from hell and purifying their sins. All
that is requiredis for the Tantricadept to draw a mandalain the proper
fashion, then place a symbolic representationof the sinner in the man-
dala's center, consecrate it, and-voil'!--all his sins will be purified.
There at the center of the divine palacehe will be freed from hell or from
whereverhe suffers.Moreover,he is assuredrebirthinto the abode of the
gods where he will have easy access to the Buddha's teaching and gain
enlightenmentin due course (SDPS:319.18-30). With this rousing pre-
view, the Buddha then proceeds to elaborate on how to perform the
tantricrites that will benefit anyone who is reborninto a lower realm.
MORTUARY MAGIC: REPLACING THE SINNER'S REBIRTH

The practitionerfirstrequiresa substituterepresentationof the bene-
ficiary,which may involve forming an effigy of the deceased, or inscrib-
ing the deceased's name on a card (tsag ii). The symbolic substitute is
placed in the mandala that has been carefully constructed in advance.
The effigy or name card is consecratedby the Tantric master when he
utters mantrasand performsthe requisitemtidras,which are never spec-
ified in the Tantra(althoughthe Indian and Tibetancommentariesoften
list them in detail). The officiant writes the secret spell of the buddha
assigned to his family on the heart of the effigy or in the center of the

828 Journalof theAmerican
Academy
ofReligion
name card.Then, while conceiving the sinner/buddhaas one in his mind,

he places the effigy in a stupa, where family members and friends can
honor him. The Tantricritualistrecitesthe name of the deceasedand the
secret spell of the buddha thousandsof time to purify the sinner'skarmic
effects. This practice is said to free the sinner from hell or as an animal
and lead directlyto a divine rebirth(SDPS:319.32-320.5).
If the body of the deceased is available,then the Tantricofficiantwill
cremate the corpse in a homa sacrifice seven days after death has
occurred. Before the cremation the corpse is cleansed with consecrated
water and milk, purified with incense and perfume, wrapped in a clean
cloth, and decoratedwith flowers.The Tantricyogin then writes the syl-
lables of the mandala'smantra on a card and touches the card at various
points on the body while reciting the mantra. Placing the corpse in the
center of the hearth, the yogin performs the homa rite. He envisages
Agni, the consumer of the fire offerings,and Vajrapainiin wrathfulform
as Trailokyavijaya("Conqueror of the Three [Evil] Rebirths").They
serve as the divine recipient and the agent for transformingthe deceased
person's karmic condition. What apparentlyeffects the purification of
the deceased is the invitation of this wrathful buddha, with noose and
dagger in hand, to stomp fiercely on the sins of the deceased. Once the
corpse has been burned, the ashes and bone particlesare gathered,mixed
with pure substances, and formed into a statue or a stipa. When this
statue smiles, or the stupa blazes with light, or another auspicious sign
appears,then the purificationrite is thought to have been effective.If an
auspicious sign does not appear,it must be due to the great karmic debt
that the deceased has incurred. So the officiant recites more mantrasor
repeatsthe sacrificeuntil a sacredsign appears(SDPS:321.7-322.42).
We can discern certain homologies underlyingthese mandala-based
mortuary rites. On the one hand, a homology is formed between the
deceased and his effigy/name card/image,which serves as his symbolic
substitute; on the other hand, a homology is established between the
stfpa, the hearth, and the buddha's palatial residence, all of which are
modeled on the mandala.The key moment in these rites occurswhen the
symbolic substituteis placed in the center of the stupa/hearth/palace,and
the officiant consecrates it, thereby merging the buddha's and the sin-
ner's identities. Their identities merge again during the visualization
exercise of the ritual officiant and during the officiant'srepeatedrecita-
tion of the sinner's name in alternation with the spell of the buddha.
Once properly placed in the mandala, the sinner's moral state is modi-
fied: the sinner gains entry to the heavenlyrealmof the gods.
Here we see a series of rites that enable a sinner to be purified and
replaced into the realm of the gods. After the SDPS describesa locative

map in its introductorynarrative,where everybeing is situatedaccording

to his karmic condition, we are told in what follows that an individual's
karma is not fixed, that his destiny is never determined. For the text
promises rites that can transform his karmic trajectory. These rites
require a mediator, a Tantric specialist,who can magically manipulate
appearancesand the destiny of others because of his own identification
with the Buddha,whom he visualizeshimself as being during the course
of the rites. The ritual specialist becomes the Buddha's incarnate pres-
ence, the agent of consecration in the purification of the deceased per-
son's sins. Ultimately, the transformativeforce of these rites is only
availableto one who has access to a properly trained ritual specialist.
Only those elite practitionerswho have the knowledgeand power gained
from Tantric consecrationcan perform these rites for the benefit of the
"worstof sinners."The uninitiated would no doubt be disappointed or
lost when tryingto make sense of the text alone and practicethese rituals
independently.
I have lingered over the descriptionsof the SDPS death rites because
this work serves as the locus classicusfor subsequent Tibetan Buddhist
mortuaryrites.The mortuaryritesbased on the SDPSseem to be some of
the oldest Buddhist practices. Many Tibetan funerarytraditions follow
the basic structureoutlined in the SDPS,and they often use the spells and
invocationsthat firstappearin this Tantra(Imaeda1979:71-76; Skorupski:
xxix). The death practicesprescribedin the SDPSwould have come into
conflict with the indigenous Tibetan funerarycult of the deceasedkings,
which constituteda form of royalancestorworship.
One of the earliestworks of Tibetanhistoriography,The Testamentof
Dba':TheRoyalNarrativeConcerningtheBringingof Buddha'sDoctrineto
Tibet(Dba' bzhed),mentions the importanceof the SDPS in the conver-
sion of the court to Buddhism.This narrativeconcludeswith the death of
king Tri Songdetsen, whereupon a debate arises among the ministers
over whetherBon or Buddhistfuneralrites should be performedfor him.
One ministerdefends the continuation of Bon funerarytraditionson the
grounds that Tibet's imperial authority was supported by the cult of
divine kingship maintained by Bon priests. A pro-Buddhist minister
refutes this claim by pointing out that all of the regional rulers who
followed Bon funeral practices were incorporated into the expanding
Tibetan empire. This minister implies that Buddhism provides more
tools for imperialexpansionthandoes Bon,for it offersa moreeffectiveform
of magicalpower and more divine protectors(Wangduand Diemberger:
101-103). The minister concludes that Buddhistfuneralsare superiorto
ancient Bon practices. His argument proves persuasive, as the king's
funeral was performed according to Buddhist custom. The text then

concludes that thereafterin Tibet "the funeralswere celebratedfollow-

ing the Ngan song sbyong rgyud, and on the basis of the mandala of
Buddha Vairocana."2The text mentioned here is an abbreviated title
for the SDPS. This passage supports what we know about the changes
in the funeral rites during the late imperial period. In the ninth century
and thereafter Buddhist ritual specialists acquired the special preroga-
tive of performing funerals for all levels of society. As elsewherein Asia,
Buddhist monks and ritual specialists gained a monopoly in Tibet over
the practices and institutions that dealt with death, and the SDPS
would have played a role in undermining the native Tibetan cult of
divine kings.3
The SDPSwas certainlythe object of study by Rinchen zangpo (958-
1055), a Tantricscholarwho playeda crucialrole in the disseminationof
Buddhism during the eleventh century. In the earliest extant biography
of Rinchen zangpo, he is said to have consecratedmany SDPS mandalas
on the occasion of his mother'sdeath.4Moreover,this scholaris reported
to have performedthe funeraryrites of the SDPS for the king of western
Tibet, Yeshe O (Ye shes'od), his royalsponsor. This tells us that the SDPS
came to play an important role in the life and deaths of two key figures
responsiblefor the "rebirth"of Buddhism in Tibet. But there is an irony
too in Rinchen zangpo's performanceof the SDPS funeraryrite for the
benefit of his royal benefactor. Although Yeshe 0 was an impassioned
sponsor of MahdydnaBuddhism,he was not supportiveof Tantrain gen-
eral. His hostility toward Tantra is evident in his decree of a royal ordi-
nance (bka' shog). There he excoriated the mispractice of Tantra by
"village masters,"whose sins included their denial of karma and their
claim that the effects of actions may be deflected. Yeshe 0 warned that
those who follow such heretical practiceswill suffer a rebirth in one of
2
SeeWangduandDiemberger: 105andDba'bzhed(26a2-3l1b6)forthefullaccountof thedebate
betweenthepro-Bonandpro-Buddhist ministers.Thisappendixis filledwitharchaicTibetanterms
and titlesthatreflectTibetandynasticsources,makingit veryold in its contentand diction.Per
Sorensonaffirmsthat"thereis littledoubtthatit mustbe datedto the9thcentury." SeeSorenson's
prefaceto theDba'bzhedinWangduandDiemberger: xv.
'Therearemanuscripts fromDunhuang(e.g.,PelliotTibetaine239,972) thatpresentBuddhist
mortuaryritualsfor helpingthoserebornin unfortunatecircumstances. Theseritualinstructions
alsocritiqueancientTibetanpractices(identifiedas the "blackfuneralrites"of Bon),evenas they
incorporate archaicelementsof Tibetanorigin.SeeStein:160-175andKarmay1983.
4 Seethebiography of Rinchenbzangpo by Dpalye shesthatappears in Snellgrove
andSkorupski:
92. Rinchenbzangpo is creditedwithtranslatingtheSarvadurgatipariiodhanamandalasachanopayikd
and the Sarvadurgatiparisodhanapretahomavidhi, both of whichare commentaries on the SDPS
Tantra.

the three evil realms.5PerhapsRinchen zangpo performedthe mortuary

rites to ensure that Yeshe 0 would avoid an evil rebirthfor proscribing
legitimateTantrictexts-like the SDPS-during his lifetime.
RITUALS THAT SERVE SOVEREIGNS AND RECTIFY

REGICIDE
That this Tantrais concerned with rectifyingthe lives of sinful kings
becomes apparentin the second chapterof the SDPS.At the beginning of
this chapter we return via a narrativeflashbackto the events that had
impelled Vimalamainiprabha into the lowest hell realm. While the first
chapter featured Buddha S'kyamuni, who had explained what had hap-
pened to the god, here it is the BuddhaVajrapdniwho explains why the
young god had to endure such suffering. Curiously, this narrativeonly
appears in the eighth-centuryedition of the SDPSTantra.6
Vajrapdniexplainsthat Vimalamaniprabha'sfall into hell was the rip-
ening of karmicseeds sown in his previouslife, when he had been born a
prince. Burning with desire to become king, the prince assassinatedhis
own fatherand mother and assumed the throne all to himself. One day
while hunting in a forest, the young king came upon a lone hermit. The
king asked the hermit how he could endure such hardship.The hermit
replied that his self-imposed sufferingwas hardly anything in compari-
son to the burden he had undertakenas a bodhisattva.The hermit con-
tinued that even that suffering was insignificant in comparison to the
painful experiencesone must endure in hell, after one sins from desire
for worldly power. The hermit's speech struck fear in the king's heart,
and he immediatelyaskedto take refugein the Three Jewels.Upon hear-
ing the sage'steachings,the king repentedfor killinghis parents;but then
he died suddenly, like a lamp snuffed out by the wind. As the karmic
effect of his last good deed of repentance,the king was reborn in heaven
as Vimalamaniprabha.Therehe experiencedjoy, only to have it all disap-
pear when he abruptly fell into hell for the sin of regicide against his
s See Karmay1980: 150-162. Yeshe 0 notes that earlierkings of Tibet had "prohibitedthe false
religion [the AnuttarayogaTantras]in accordancewith the Word of the Buddha,"and yet he adds
that "hereticalTantraspretendingto be Buddhist,are also spreadin Tibet [today],"and he identifies
how they have brought harm to the kingdom. Although he does not mention the SDPS explicitly,he
criticizesmortuarypracticessimilarto what is found in the SDPS, including the homa ritualsand the
use of a corpse to attain mundane powers.
6 SDPS:332.24-335.7. Why this story that explains the karmic reasons for the god's fall into hell
was omitted in the laterversionof the SDPS remainsmysteriousto me. What is noteworthyis that it
serves as the narrativesetting for the second chapter, and it is integral to framing the chapter's
discourseabout kingship.

father. But thanks to Indra who had performed the rites on his behalf,
Vimalamaniprabhawas restoredto heaven.
In the style of a Jdtaka'sconclusion, Vajrapdnithen reveals to his
audience the real identities of the figures in the story: the forest hermit
was of course none other than S'kyamuni, while the assassinatedking
had been Indrahimself. All of the gods who heardthis story were thrilled
to learn about the righteous reasons for the trials and tribulations of
Vimalamaniprabha.They then formally asked Vajrapdnito teach them
how to benefit those with short lives and limited fortunes. For the
remainderof the chapterVajrapdniproceedsto describea seriesof man-
dalas and the mundane boons that one gains upon being initiated into
them. In effect, Vajrapdniteaches how one can transformthese powerful
gods into servantsand become a king on earth through the mediation of
a buddha or cakravartin.Let us pause brieflyto consider the possible his-
torical impact of this chapter's discourse on kingship and regicide in
Tibet.
The story of Vimalamaniprabha'sprevious life, and particularlyhis
act of regicide against his own father, may well have reminded Tibetan
readersof their own kings during the imperial period. Regicideappears
to have been a common practiceagainstthe kings living then. In his mag-
isterialstudy of Tibetan kingship ErikHaarh claims that regicidewas an
establishedinstitution in the lives of the last eleven kings of this dynasty
(Haarh:328). Haarh arguesthat regicidewas necessitatedby the method
of succession used during this period, when the king was succeeded as
soon as his son reachedmaturity,usually at the age of thirteen (or when
he was old enough to "mastera horse," as Tibetan texts put it). These
kings were regardedas the continually reborn essence of Tibet's divine
ancestor,who was reincarnatedin each prince at the age of thirteen.The
royal ancestor spirit remained incarnated in him until his son reached
the age of maturityand ascendedthe throne as the next link in the ances-
tral incarnation. From the logic of quick succession Haarh derives the
theory that the early kings usurped each other by murder, and they
reignedfor the period duringwhich they were at the peak of their mascu-
line divine potency, only to be killed themselveswhen their sons reached
maturity. If this theory of the Tibetan kings' method of succession is
accurateand regicide was practiced,then it would have proved a major
challenge to the first Buddhist missionariesin Tibet. These missionaries
certainlysought to underminethe indigenous cult of divine kingshipand
to convert the Tibetan kings to Buddhism in order to receive their
patronage. The message related by the forest sage (?Skyamuni) to the
king (Vimalamaniprabha)in the second chapterwould have appealedto
Tibetan kings. For those kings who were persuadedof their fate in hell

unless they patronized Buddhist monks to perform their funeraryrites,

the SDPSwould have been especiallygermane.7
The sovereigntysymbolism that pervadesthe first chapteris found in
the second chaptertoo. The most prominent feature of the many man-
dalas that are elaboratedthere is the promise of worldlysuccess for those
who are properlyinitiated;and worldlysuccess is most often measuredin
terms of a monarch's ability to protect and extend his sovereignty. Of
course, the SDPS is hardly unique among Tantras in its preoccupation
with kingship or with the cakravartinideal that posits a parallelbetween
territorialdominion and buddhahood. One finds these themes in many
Buddhist tantras, such as the Manijusrimulakalpa,an early Sanskrit
Tantra translatedinto Tibetan. One might object, then, that the sover-
eignty symbolismin the SDPSis standardtantricfare. Or one might view
the claimsto sovereigntyin the SDPSas yet anotherexampleof the gran-
diose hyperboleso characteristicof Tantras.But we should not dismiss
its magic as merelya "symbolic"literaryfeatureor as an effect of the fan-
tastic imaginationcultivatedin Tantrictexts. Forto do so ignores the fact
that many Tibetanswould regardthe magicaleffectsof these mandalasas
real. Indeed, "literal"readings of Tantric texts were not uncommon in
earlyTibet. This we know from those Tibetanwriterswho lament the lit-
eralists' naive misunderstandingand mispractice of Tantra during the
earlydisseminationof Buddhism,much as king Yeshe O did.
For the remainderof the chapterVajrapdnidescribesa long series of
mandalasbeginningwith his own, followed by the mandalasbelonging to
the FourGreatKingsof the cardinaldirections.It is claimedthat by draw-
ing the mandalaof the FourGreatKingsand performingthe consecration,
"not being a king [the initiated] becomes a king, being a king [the initi-
ated] becomes a great one" (SDPS:340.19-20). The Four Kings then pay
an oath of obeisance to their lord Vajradhara,who sits at the center of
their mandala:
Asforus,the FourGreatKings,wewillalwaysprotectthatkingtogether
with his retinueand servants,his whole kingdomand cities.We will
destroyhostilekingdomsand those who are wickedto him. We will
removethe fear of death, diseases,famine,plaguesand calamities.
(SDPS:340.25-32)
I could multiply examplesof the sovereigntysymbolism found in this

chapter, but I will mimic the move often made by Tibetan writers and
SThereare a number of Dunhuang Tibetan documents that serve to proselytize the Buddhist
cosmological-ethicalframeworkof karmaand See Kapstein:34, 44-46.
sar.msra.

express my fear of prolixity (tshig mang bas dogspa). There is one final
example of royaltyrhetoricused to characterizethe SDPS text as a whole
that deservesour attention. It readssomewhat like a commercialmessage
from a sponsor. After Vajrapdnihas finished his long discourse on the
various mandalas, the gods in the audience praise his teaching as the
the "royalwork"or "royalcomposition."
kalpa-raija,
One who writesthis Kalpa-rijaor has it writtenfor the benefit,good,
happinessof livingbeingsrebornin evilplaces,we gods... willprotect
thatson or daughterof (our)lineagelikeour own subjects.... We will
extend the sovereigntyof that king or his son or his ministerwho
expoundsthe mantrasin accordancewith their invocations.We will
promotehis sovereignty, protecthis country,provinces,peopleandsub-
his
jects, crops and the rest.We will providewealthandgrainin abun-
dance; grant women, men, sons and daughters;bestow property,
sustenance,provisions,andpeace.... Wewillrecognizethe rankof that
greatbeingby servitudeor withfilialsubmission.(SDPS:356.9-23)
Here we see in a passagetypicalof the Mahdyinacult of the book that
the text itself is describedas an exemplarof royalwork. Those who write
or copy it, or those who have it copied, will become like powerfulkings,
to whom the various gods pledge willing submission as their servants.
There is something fitting, if not self-serving,about the glorification
of the SDPS text as "royalwork" when we consider how this text was
itself translatedand reproducedinto Tibetan. As mentioned earlier,the
text was first translatedin the late eighth century by the Indian pandit
Sdntigarbhaand by the Tibetan Jayaraksita.Both of these translator
monks participatedin the consecration of Samye monastery under the
reign ofTri Songdetsen,the king who firstdeclaredBuddhismthe official
religion of Tibet in 791.8 Moreover, the SDPS text itself is listed in the
Denkar palace catalogue (Dkar chag Idan dkar ma), a catalogueof sanc-
tioned translations assembled during Tri Songdetsen's reign. That the
SDPS was officially sanctioned by its placement in this cataloguemeans
that a royal committee would have appointed the translators.The trans-
lation of the SDPSwas revisedbefore 836 by anotherwell-knownTibetan
8See introduction(SDPS:xxiv).Skorupski of the SDPStoward

datesthe translation
Skorupski's
the end of the eighthcenturyand notesthatit wasrevised"sometimebefore863"[sic];thislatter
date must be a mistake,since the revisorRinchenchok(Rin chen mchog)died shortlyafterhis
patronRalpajen (Ralpacan)in 836.Snellgrovealsomistakenlyattributes to Rinchen
thetranslation
mchog,with the assistanceof ?dntigarbha whichis contradictedby the actual
and Jayaraksita,
colophon:rgyagargyimkhanposaintigarbha dang/bodkyilo tsababandejayaraksitasbsgyurcingzus/
&caryarinchenmchoggisskadgsarbcadkyisbcosnasgtanlaphabbo/.SeeSnellgrove: 454,alson129.

monk-translator,Ma Rinchenchok.This monk was one of the first seven

monks to be ordained at Samye,and he was appointed by king Ralpajen
(r. 815-835) to revise and systematizethe translationof Buddhist texts
into Tibetan. The translation and revision of the SDPS thus occurred
under the patronage of Tibet's two most ardent Buddhist kings, Tri
Songdetsen and Ralpajen.The text's royalty rhetoric could only have
helped it achievein Tibet what it claimed itself to be in Sanskrit,namely,
a "royalwork or composition."
After plodding through such detailed descriptions of these multiple
mandalas,one may dareto ask, why are there so many?What ideological
purpose is served by their ability to replicate and multiply?The man-
dala's symmetricalshape is significant in that it is based on systematic
hierarchicalrelations that emerge from its cardinalorientation. Within
the mandalathere are differentseats or offices whose value is determined
by this cardinal orientation and their distance from the center. Which
particulardeity occupies what seat or office is less importantthan the seat
or office itself and its hierarchicalrelation to other offices-the deities
and buddhas are interchangeable.Like the locative map described by
Smith, the mandalais an abstracttopographythat can be imposed upon
various kinds of social space, enabling it to be cut out of one place and
stamped, cookie-cutter style, onto another space. The mandalais there-
fore both a prescriptivemodel and a mold. Often non-Buddhist images
and deities are forced into this mold. One of the mandala'smissionary
purposes is to encompass local deities and subordinate them to the
buddha.This featureis obvious in the second chapterof the SDPS,where
most of the deities described are minor Indian deities made to serve a
Buddhistpurpose by becoming servantsto the centralbuddha. The Four
GreatKings,the EightGreatPlanets,or the Nine Bhairavas-all were once
"foreign"to the Buddhistpantheon, but here they are all peripheralpro-
tectors. To illustratehow mandalas move and modify foreign spaces, I
shall now reviewsome well-known narrativesabout Tibet'sconversionto
Buddhism.
MANDALAS ON THE MOVE IN THE MISSION

CIVILISATRICE:MOLDS OR MODULAR?
The theme of domesticating the non-Buddhist "outsider"(phyi pa)
into a Buddhist"insider"(nangpa) plays a major role in Tibetan narra-
tives of conversion.These dramaticnarrativesexpressin potent language
how Tibet and its native chthonic spirits were dominated, subdued, and
converted into Dharma protectors. All these actions served the higher
goal of "civilizing"the indigenous forcesto Buddhism.The Tibetanterm

used to describe this process of transformationis 'dul ba, a verb with a

broad semantic field, extending from "to tame, to subdue, to conquer;to
cultivate, waste land; to civilize, a nation; to educate, to discipline, to
punish."This term sums up many of the centralthemes that relateto the
Buddhist quest for culturaland religious hegemony, a project described
in the rhetoricof "cultivation"and "domestication"(Samuel:217-222).
In consideringthe role of the mandalain Tibetanconversion dramas,
it is crucial to understand how territorywas expropriatedfrom indige-
nous powers. These narrativesfeature siddhas who transform the wild
Tibetan landscape into something recognizably Buddhist, bound by
principles of rational order and centered on the power of a Buddhist
ruler. The mandala serves this purpose admirably,being a symmetrical
structure that could be imposed onto the native landscape, reducing it
from an unbounded mass to an ordered arrayof neatly contained resi-
dences, fit for buddhas and kings. The taming of the landscape into a
bounded grid served to reorder the native Tibetan sense of line and
space. The earliest Buddhist monuments were constructed with the
mandala structure as their blueprint. The mandala became a site for
sacred places wrested away from native powers and replaced by a
Buddhist hierarch presiding at the center, whereas indigenous deities
were relegatedto the periphery,as guardiansof this rectangulargrid of
civilization. Here the mandala serves to integrate Buddhist and non-
Buddhisttraditions.
Before Buddhist missionaries could sow the seeds of karma in the
Land of Snows, the Tibetan landscape, so saturatedby obstructivelocal
spirits and demons, had first to be clearedby clerics and then fenced in
with mandalas.What the subjugationnarrativeseffect is a displacement
of popular local spirits for the purpose of creating a Buddhist utopian
space.9Tibet's native soil is regardedas animate and even hostile, and it
must be "tamed"and "conquered"by kings and thaumaturges,who con-
struct "supports"for the Dharma (mchodrten,i.e., stiipas).When a man-
dala is placed over an indigenous power place what results might be
called a "palimpsestuouslandscape."Buddhistmissionariesseemed bent
on creatingthese palimpsests,which do not blot out native figuresin the
landscapein the name of emptiness, but they lay an alternativemandala
texturationover the power places. It is the very flexibilityof the mandala
9 There are numerous subjugation narrativesthat are well known in Tibet, but the three most
frequentlymentioned are the subjugationof the Srinmo Demoness, the subjugationof Maheivara
(or Rudra/Bhairava),and the subjugation of 'Jigs byed by Heruka. See Gyatso; Huber: 41-42;
Davidson: 150-152.

that enables it to adapt so easily to different arenas. The cookie-cutter

mold image suggested above seems too rigid to describe the mandala's
modularability (Strong:309-312).
Padmasambhavais the most famous conqueror of non-Buddhist
forces in Tibet, and he plays a central role in Buddhist conversion
narratives. In his quest to convert local power places into utopian
Buddhist spaces, he seems to repress (but not erase) the memory of
those places and substitute new Buddhist myths for them. His subju-
gation of indigenous gods and demons is best known in connection
with the consecration of the first monastery of Samye. There is a
Tibetan ritual dance ('cham) still performed today by monks dressed
in costumes representing the protectors of religion that reenacts
Padmasambhava'sprimal dance of demonic submission. The dance
also marks out the great mandala upon which Samye monastery was
built. What interests us here is how the mandala becomes enacted in
dynamic movement.
First, the earth has to be inspected for signs of suitability, and a
request is made to the non-human owners of the land (sa bdag) for per-
mission to use the ground as a mandalasite. Next, any hindering spirits
are ruthlessly removed, captured with hooks, bound by chains, and
finally nailed with ritual daggers.This is what has been called "a man-
dala in action" or a "dynamicmandala"(Schrempf:106). As a dynamic
form of space creation it reinforces a point made by Smith that a reli-
gious environment is created out of human action, out of the labor of
homo faber, not by the hierophany of homo religiosus.The dancer's
movement createstime and space, and the mandalathat is outlined is a
means of takingcontrol over a place. This is an active means of transfor-
mation, during which demons are stamped into the ground. We are
reminded of the role that Trailokyavijayaplays in the rites for the
deceased describedin the first chapter of the SDPS. The mandala-based
dance becomes a form of magical manipulation, transforming the
Tibetan landscapeinto a pure place. It would be mistaken to regardthe
mandala merely as a static locative map when so much of its appeal
depends on its dynamic potential.
The dynamism or modular quality of the mandala can be spatial,
when it serves as a site for converting "outsiders"to "insiders."But its
modularitycan also be temporal,when the mandalaovercomes barriers
of the past and present and enables participantsto project themselves
into the future and realize Buddhahood. I will conclude with one final
feature of the mandala, less violent and more utopian than those just
described.To arriveat this particularfeature,we will leave Tibet behind
and return to where we began. Let us come full circle, like the Tibetan

pilgrim performinghis circumambulation,and revisitthe InvisibleCities

of Calvino.
At the very conclusion of Polo's tour of so many fantastic cities, we
find Kublai Khan considering an atlas that he owns. It is an atlas in
which are gathered the maps of all invisible cities, an all-inclusive
emblem of places, patterns, and worlds, reminiscent of the SDPS text
itself. The atlas is magical in its detail and, finally, in its prophetic abil-
ity, describing cities not yet found: utopias and anti-utopias, archetypal
cities. For the atlas has these qualities: it reveals the form of cities that
do not yet have a form or a name. It also contains the maps of cities
that menace in nightmares and maledictions: Babylon, Brave New
World (and no doubt Avici too).
The GreatKhan asks his guide, Marco Polo, to tell him how to reach
one of the utopias. Polo replies that the journey to such a place is "dis-
continuous in space and time, now scattered,now more condensed,"but
he adds nonetheless "you must not believe the search for it can stop."
Leafing through the atlas pages of the anti-utopias, the Khan grows
depressed-he fearsthat the infernalcities may be pulling us downward,
in ever-narrowingcircles. Now comes the climax of this subtle but pow-
erful book. Polo replies:
Theinfernoof thelivingis not somethingthatwillbe;if thereis one,it is

whatis alreadyhere,the infernowherewe live everyday,thatwe form
by beingtogether.Therearetwo waysto escapesufferingit. Thefirstis
easyfor many:acceptthe infernoandbecomesucha partof it thatyou
canno longersee it. Thesecondis riskyanddemandsconstantvigilance
and apprehension: seek and learnto recognizewho and what,in the
midstof the inferno,arenot inferno,thenmakethemendure,givethem
space.(Calvino:165)
Among other things, this is what the mandalasof the Purificationof

All Evil Rebirthsoffer. Mandalas play a central role in the imaginative
world construction of esoteric Buddhism.Like the carpetin Eudoxia,.or
the atlas owned by the Khan in InvisibleCities,the mandalasof the SDPS
promised TibetanBuddhistconvertscontrol over their own destiny,even
as they requirethe faithful to fear new infernos and pursue new utopias
in the Buddhist geographyof the afterlife.For those Tibetans concerned
about their life in the present, mandalascreate an idealized space in the
midst of a chaotic and impermanentworld. Whatever is placed within
them-whether religious offerings to stimulate all the senses, sanctified
bodies, an ever-expandingpantheon,or even an entire city or kingdom-
can be made pure and endure.

OnMandalas,
Bjerken: andMortuary
Monarchs, Magic 839
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American Academy of Religion

On Mandalas, Monarchs, and Mortuary Magic: Siting the Sarvadurgatipariśodhana Tantra in

This content downloaded from 195.34.79.20 on Fri, 13 Jun 2014 08:28:40 AM

Recent scholarship on Indian Buddhist esotericism identifies the indi-

The realm of our experience is similar to a tapestry.Time is the warp

-Inoue Enryo (Grapard:196)

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SCHOLARSOF TANTRAOFTENbegintheirdiscussionof this com-

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of the Buddha'slaw. In turn, the Dharma was presented as a means for

GUIDES TO THE MANDALA AS SACRED REPRESENTATION:

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as Mallory,who plotted a direct line of ascent to Everest'ssummit and

Thereis for him no realbeginning,but only the plungewhichhe takes

In our roundaboutroutetowardthe SDPSTantrain Tibet,our first

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This content downloaded from 195.34.79.20 on Fri, 13 Jun 2014 08:28:40 AM

Butyou could,similarly,cometo the oppositeconclusion:thatthe true

This content downloaded from 195.34.79.20 on Fri, 13 Jun 2014 08:28:40 AM

point and the apex of value in a hierarchythat extends downward and

This content downloaded from 195.34.79.20 on Fri, 13 Jun 2014 08:28:40 AM

This content downloaded from 195.34.79.20 on Fri, 13 Jun 2014 08:28:40 AM

is thought to be alwayspresent within it. The mandala'ssystemic struc-

MAPPING THE MANDALA'S MULTIPLE COORDINATES

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analysisof the SDPS. It may be a relief to arrivefinallyat our destination

NARRATING THE GEOGRAPHY OF DEATH AND THE

TadeuszSkorupskihas compiledthe variousTibetaneditionsof the Sarvadurgatiparidodhana

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rebirth,a teaching that takes up much of the first chapter.But before he

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of the gods of the Trdyastrimqa heavens,servesas his unsure interlocutor.

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ADVERTISEMENTS FOR THE SDPS TEXT AS ROYAL

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successfully on the ground of Tibet's autochthonous traditions, in

MORTUARY MAGIC: REPLACING THE SINNER'S REBIRTH

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name card.Then, while conceiving the sinner/buddhaas one in his mind,

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map in its introductorynarrative,where everybeing is situatedaccording

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concludes that thereafterin Tibet "the funeralswere celebratedfollow-

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the three evil realms.5PerhapsRinchen zangpo performedthe mortuary

RITUALS THAT SERVE SOVEREIGNS AND RECTIFY

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unless they patronized Buddhist monks to perform their funeraryrites,

I could multiply examplesof the sovereigntysymbolism found in this

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8See introduction(SDPS:xxiv).Skorupski of the SDPStoward

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monk-translator,Ma Rinchenchok.This monk was one of the first seven

MANDALAS ON THE MOVE IN THE MISSION

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used to describe this process of transformationis 'dul ba, a verb with a

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that enables it to adapt so easily to different arenas. The cookie-cutter

This content downloaded from 195.34.79.20 on Fri, 13 Jun 2014 08:28:40 AM

pilgrim performinghis circumambulation,and revisitthe InvisibleCities