24 THE TWENTY-ONE PRAISES OF TARA, A SYNCRETISM OF SAIVISM AND BUDDHISM Dr. A. S. Altekar’s wonderful and often-moving work named The Position of Women in Hindu Civilisation from Prehistoric Times to the Present Day mentions that Tantric writers joined the cru- sade against the Sati custom. Using the Mahdnirvanatantra (X, 79-80) as authority, “They pointed out that woman was the embodiment of the Supreme Goddess, and boldly declared that if a person burnt her with her husband, he would be condemned to eternal hell.” The Buddhist Tantras also stress the sacred nature of all women, and the fourteenth of the fourteen funda- mental transgressions (mii/dpatti) of the Anuttara-yoga-tantra code is “to disparage women, who are the self-presence of Insight ‘(prajfia-svabhava)”.1 Inthe latter texts “Insight” (prajfa) isa name of the Great Mother. There is no need here to dwell upon the importance of the Mother-goddess in India or upon the antiquity of the cult.? In 1Asvaghosa’s Malapattisamgraha is not completely available in Sanskrit, as edited and translated by Sylvain Levi, Journal Asiatique (1929), 266-7. “The fragment did not go down to the fourteenth one, which, therefore, is translated here from the Tibetan version. 2Among the numerous discussions of this subject, one may refer to the treatise by Dr. Dinesh Chandra Sircar, “The Sakta Pithas,” J. R. A. S. B. Letters, XIV (1948), 1-108, especially Appendix VI, Siva and Sakti in the Orthodox Indian Pantheon, pp. 100, f.442 Buddhist Insight the West, the analytical psychologist C. G. Jung has pioneered a theory that this is an archetype in the human psyche. The worship of the Supreme Goddess under the name Tara began with the Buddhists, and subsequently Tara was admitted to the Hindu pantheon. This is recognized by Handiqui.3 The brief text which forms the basis of the present essay covers the various moods, calm and fierce, of the Goddess, and does so with a frank employment of both Saivitic and Buddhist terminology. It contains a rare use of the word sakti (female power) in appli- cation to a Buddhist goddess. Such a syncretism is also rare. Ordinarily, Buddhist works, and perhaps the same is the case with other Indian schools, disguise the influence of rival sects by adopting ideas and changing the terminology. The situation is comparable to that of a manufacturer whose product is really not different from that of a rival firm, but who maintains through packaging and advertising a distinct image in the public mind. While there are probably persons in every age who seek the under- lying unity or secret resemblance, they usually gain little appre- ciation for their efforts because these do not appear to serve sectarian interests. Yet, the unknown author of our text mana- ged to strike a winning combination. Waddell, who made a rather unsuccessful attempt to translate the verses from Tibetan,* mentions that the hymn is very popular among Lamaist people in Tibet, Sikkim, etc. The circumstances that originally caused such a text to become prominent are probably those depicted by Dutt in his essay “Buddhism in Kashmir”. Speaking of the Chinese pilgrim Hsuan Ts’ang’s (or Yuan Chwang’s) observa- tions in Kashmir in the 7th cent., Dutt writes, ‘““He saw 100 monas- teries, but the religion followed in them, he remarks, was mixed, hinting thereby that the people worshipped both Buddha and Siva.”5 The Sanskrit for the text here edited was transcribed in the third chapter of the Tibetan translation of the Sarvatathagata- 3Krishan Kanta Handiqui, Naisadhacarita of Sriharsa, Poona, 1956, 548-51. 4L. A. Waddell, “The Indian Buddhist Cult of Avalokita and his Consort Tara ‘the Saviouress,’ illustrated from the Remains in Magadha,” J.R.A.S. (1894), 71-4, 5Nalinaksha Dutt, Gilgit Manuscripts, Vol. I (Srinagar, 1939), “Buddhism: in Kashmir,” 36-7.The Twenty-one Praises of Tara, a Syncretism of Saivism and Buddhism 443 matrtaravi§vakarmabhavatantra-nama. The text was also trans- lated as a separate work in thé Kanjur collectibn, which was pre- sumably Waddell’s source. This information was found in a native Tibetan text on the Tantras by Khai Dub.® Using the transcribed Sanskrit, which is treated in that Tantra as a dharani, and the Tibetan translation, I made a draft edition and trans- lation. Then I compared my materials with Godefroy de Blonay’s edition of the text, based on two manuscripts, in his Matériaux pour servir a l'histoire de la déesse buddhique Tara (Paris, 1895). Of course, most of his edition is correct, but many a verse has some serious fault—which may be the reason that he did not present a translation. However, the Kanjur transcription in the Derge edition has several corruptions, and there are also a few places where this transcribed Sanskrit does not agree with the Tibetan translation. Therefore, I was glad to have de Blonay’s edition, and it proved helpful in several details. Also the edited colophon is a modification of the one in his edition. The Tibetan Tanjur collection has a number of works based on this Tara text. However, they are not true commentaries, but rather ritual works dealing with the twenty-one aspects of Tara. These are principally by the dcdryas Siryagupta and Candra- gomin. The first work by Siiryagupta is the sadhana, or iconogra- phic description for evoking the deity, for each of the twenty-one forms of Tara. This work is presumably the source of the rough descriptions given by Waddell in the same article.? It is beyond my present essay to deal with these Tanjur texts. Some of them are important in Tantric Buddhism, but they could contribute little to the type of annotations which would bring out the origi- nal syncretic intention of the text. I expect to draw out this inten- tion in annotations to my translation that follows the edited Sanskrit. aay aT THT ae Tt a artelfarfraert 1 Sarasa aT AT ASST 1141 6This work by Mkhas grub rje, has been translated from Tibetan by Dr. F. D. Lessing and myself in collaboration. It appears as Mkhas grub rje's: Fundamentals of the Buddhist Tantras, (Mouton, The Hague, 1968). TWaddell (op. cit.), 83-9.444 Buddhist Insight AA AUT RATATAT | area zA AH TASA HHT TAT aa: eerttoroortforrafaytet | aatgarmfatafarearrtrat RM aR TaaeitafararrTa CH saeorefrarrrarrgatraaa 1st! wae GaregareghcaMaTAy | aearatrranratten faraaratoreny Yl an: warreterneferarratad | TAT TTTTATRST EU are afefrnetrercrraratcte | srerrefrceraear Frese rerit nen® aA Ie warae arearefarfater | qEpcrnrararoraarateetatt tsi waa faxcrarggarenfatratat | afrartafeqaatarcear age 18 am: safeererrngerfercrartcrty | BASSATA ATA FAUAAT 14 ol AA: CATT AISA HT MTT | wae gegareaatrataataty 1194 am: fravsausegygerrenissga | SPAT ASTETATATEAT LTT 119311 AA: HOUACT TT SAAT AT TUEAT | arttenferraategrafaattatt 119311 AA: FLAATAM TTT ST TTT | qgdaagarercatarenifatt qn aa: ft qa meet arafratoitaz career HeTTT ATMA 4 I aa: safearaategaramrafete | TATA TIAA ATRSNAT. 119 S11 AAA TVITTaTA FHTTATTA AT | Tereraerewararatahst qt 81 have accepted here the reading of the Sanskrit transcription in the Kanjur against both de Blonay’s edition, sikhijvalakuldjjvale, and the Tibetan which agrees with the latter, me Abar hkhrug pa din tu hbar ma,The Twenty-one Praises of Tara, a Syncretism of Saivism and Buddhism 445- am: Gercarehorge cer | arfevrrncartaaafaaattafa 145° AH: TOTTETATT A ETTAAT | araanfearitrntag racer 198 TAT ATHAV A TAATATTS | aefesqagartfarasacarhatt R01 ana faanfaarafrantaaaatad | wedararenrTaratea TAT FT YW wraqafind eile vrenriafras | a: earreniary Beat afacaafeat: vee art aT srrecara eatery | aerrrrerts TASHA BH aftr wart aafaferaifeta: | afarngernrra asa attend aT een fat wea verse carat aa TAA arorerrdart fet feta aT Rx wesacfaardiat ronfafaararat | ariat da aeart fefaecnfratrat nen gaat wage saat ated aaa a feed: sfaeera nen qeaaaerfed radiate aacarafanfcedta wafer afad age ward | att earer HomaGE TO TARA 1. Adoration ! O Tara, the quick one (ture), the heroine, bright- eyed with twinklings; Who has sprung from the opening flower on the lotus face of the lord of the three worlds !1° 9] have taken the liberty of writing phatkarair asesa, although both the Kanjur transcription and de Blonay’s edition have phatkara asesa. The three worlds in the epic are Bhirldka, Bhuvarldka, and Svarldka, Possibly these are what Buddhism calls the Realm of Desire (kamadhdtu), Realm of Form (riipa-dhdatu), and Formless Realm (arfipadhatu). In the human body, the three worlds appear to correspond to (1) navel downwards, (2) neck down to navel, (3) head, These divisions of the body were legally recog- nized in Kautilya’s Arthasdstra, XIX, 195 (translation by R. Shamasastry,.446 Buddhist Insight 2. Adoration ! O Lady whose canopy face is full of a hundred autumn moons; Who blazes with the laughing beams of a thousand starry clusters ! 3. Adoration ! O Lady adorned with hand-held lotus colored blue and gold; Who ranges in giving, striving, austerity, peace, forbearance, and meditation !+ 4. Adoration ! O Lady of boundless movement in the victory of the Tathagata’s usnisa; Who is frequented by the Victor’s Sons who have attained every single Perfection !12 5. Adoration ! O Lady who fills the quarters, intermediate direc- tions, and space with the sounds of Tuttare and Him; Who presses down the seven worlds with Thy steps and is able to summon all 13 p. 219). As will be demonstrated more specifically by verse 12, Tara is the sacred Gaiga which flows from Siva’s matted hair. She is the Ganga in hea- ven, or the Milky Way. According to Indian legend, once Tara, understood as an asterism, was carried away from her husband Brhaspati by Soma or the Moon. When she was recovered after a war, she gave birth to Budha, or the planet Mercury, and confessed that the latter was fathered by Soma, not by Brhaspati. UWith Saivitic flavor, austerity and peace here substitute for morality (Sila). The Sanskrit word titiksa substitutes for ksdnti, both meaning “for- bearance”. Thus, she who ranges in giving, etc. is the Perfection of Insight (prajfidparamita). She ranges in the first five Perfections of the Victor’s Sons, namely, in Giving, Morality, Forbearance, Striving, and Meditation. In Mahayana Buddhism, she is regarded as the Mother of the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. 12She is Usnisavijaya, born from the characteristic (laksana) of the Great Person (mahdpurusa) called the usnisa. This is represented in Buddhist images as a spiral hairlock of the Kapardin type on the head of the Tathagata, one who “has come the same way” or “understood the same” as the former Bud- dhas. This characteristic reminds us of Rudra, of whom Sir R. G. Bhandar- kar writes in “Vaisnavism, Saivism, and Minor Religious Systems,” p. 147 : “He is called [in the Satarudriya] Kapardin, or the wearer of matted hair, which epithet is probably due to his being regarded as identical with Agni, or fire, the fumes of which look like matted hair.” The Victor’s Sons are the Bodhi- sattvas. They unite the sixth Perfection, that of Insight, with the first five, giving, etc. (verse 3). Hence, she (Prajfia or Usnisavijaya) is frequented by them, 18Regarding the seven worlds, E. Washburn Hopkins, “Mythological“The Twenty-one Praises of Tara, a Syncretism of Saivism and Buddhism 447 6. Adoration ! O Lady worshipped by Indra, the Fire God, Brahma, the Maruts, and Visvesvara; Placed above all by the elementary spirits, vampires, songster spirits, attendants of Siva, and secret folk ! 7. Adoration ! O Lady who defeats with the sounds of Trat and Phat the magical diagrams of others, While Thy left foot is placed forward and Thy right retrac- ted, and Thy wild glance blazes like fire "4 8. Adoration ! O thou quick one, most-fearful Lady, who des- troys the heroes of the Maras; Who slays all the enemy by contracting the brows of Thy lotus face 116 9, Adoration ! O thou adorned with the heart’s “thumb” marked by the seal of the Three Jewels; The distraught Lady whose own beams in bundles adorn all the directional wheels.1¢ Aspects of Trees and Mountains in the Great Epic,” J.A.O.S. Vol. 30 (1909), 373, says : “In the Puranas, e.g. VP. 2.7. 1 f., there is fully developed the idea of the planetary spheres (not Dvipas) which go by the names Mahar- loka, Janaloka, Tapaloka, and Satyaldka, superadded upon the older Bhir- ldka and Svarloka or Svargaldka (these are epic) with the intermediate bhuvas as Bhuvarléka.” 14Here we recall the legend that a glance from Siva’s third eye reduced Kama to ashes and that such a glance destroys the gods and all created things at the ends of certain aeons. In any case, the verse is emphasizing fire in its destructive sense. The second ritual work by Siryagupta (No. 1686 in the Tohoku Kanjur-Tanjur Catalogue), contains for each of the twenty-one Taras the rite (vidhi) constituting a karmdrga. In the case of the seventh Tara, the rite is called Gori du kpho ba (Sanskrit tirddhva-srétas), “‘going upwards in the stream”, Stiryagupta mentions here (Derge Tanjur, Rgyud hegrel, Sa, 13a-5) : / hchi bdag bdud ni gzom pahi phyir/hgro ba rnams la srog sbyin zin / “So as to defeat the Death Mara (mrtyu-mdra), (she) gives life force (prana) to the living beings.” 15There are four Maras in Mahayana Buddhism. Their names are usually given as Skandha-mara, Klega-mara, Mrtyu-mara, and Devaputra-mara, I have explained the word mara to mean “death” (understood metaphorically) in my essay “Studies in Yama and Méra, “Indo-Iranian Journal, Vol. UL (1959), Nr. 2, 113. 18The Three Jewels are of course the Buddha, his Doctrine (dharma), and the Order (samgha). The “seal” (mudra) of these jewels is their symbolic representation, perhaps as discussed by Tarapada Bhattacharyya, The Cult of Brahma (Patna, 1957), 168. The dharma jewel is usually represented by a wheel (cakra). The heart’s thumb is presumably the heart’s Jiriga, understood to be erect. .448 Buddhist Insight: 10. Adoration ! O Lady whose garland is tossed about the dia- dem as you swell with delight; Who domineers the world of Mara with the laughing, mock- ing sound Tuttare ! 11. Adoration ! O Lady able to summon the multitudes of all the Local Genii; Who liberates all in distress with Thy Him of shaking con- tracted brows ! 12. Adoration ! O blazing Lady of the diadem ornament with the plumed crescent; Who is the constancy of radiant beams from Amitabha’s mass of braided hair !17 13. Adoration ! O Lady who lives amidst the garland blazing like the fire at the aeon’s end; Who overcomes the enemy circle delighted in the circular band of right foot forward and left drawn back !"8 14, Adoration ! O Lady who strikes with the palm of her hand and pounds with her feet the surface of the earth; 1Cf. Naisadhacarita, XXII, 142 (translated by Handiqui, op. cit., p. 352): “The sixteenth part of the moon is called a digit, but only fifteen digits round off the moon, growing from the new moon to the full moon night. Was then the remaining digit, which had no lunar day allotted to it, taken out of the moon, and made an ornament for Siva ? And, in its place, do I see in the moon a dark cavity, namely, the lunar spot ?” Jitendra Nath Banerjea, The Development of Hindu Iconography (Calcutta, 1956), p. 486, discusses the Gangadharamirti of Siva : “Siva releases Ganga pent up in his matted locks by stretching a coil of his jafas with his back right hand, while caressing with his front right hand his principal consort Uma....” The Buddha Ami- tabha, whose name means “infinite light,” here substitutes for Siva. In Tantric Buddhism, Amitabha is the progenitor of the Lotus Clan(padma-kula), of which Avalokitesvara is the master, and the red-colored Tara is the Mother. The latter, by reason of white dress, is also known as Pandard, and is often described as being “16-yeared”. 18The Sanskrit for “circular band”, dbaddha (or is it dbandha 2), is here translated into Tibetan by kun nas bskor, “completely circumambulating”. The Sanskrit expression is a substitution for the raksa-cakra (“protective circle”), which is the name of the rite for the thirteenth Tara in the work by Siryagupta used above (note 14). In this rite, it is customary for the hicro- phants in the cardinal directions to adopt the egoity and posture of an appro- priate wrathful deity (krédha). Thereby, an inner circular region is freed from inimical elements, and the mandala may be drawn. It is not clear why the outer enemy circle should be delighted. Perhaps a type of hypnotic fascination is involved.The Twenty-one Praises of Tard, a Syncretism of Saivism and Buddhism 449 Who shatters the seven underworlds with the Him made by her contracted brows !!9 15. Adoration ! Lady of Calm, Lady of Virtue, Lady of Peace, who ranges in the quiescent Nirvana; Who is attended by the sounds Svaha and Om, who destroys the great sin ! 16. Adoration ! Lady who crushes the bodies of the enemy deli- ghted in the circular band; Who is manifested from the Hiim of the magical formula consisting in the arrangement of ten syllables !20 17. Adoration ! O Lady seeded with the appearance of the Him syllable, who strikes with the feet of Ture, Shaking Meru, Mandara, Kailasa and the three worlds !’#! 18. Adoration ! O Lady who stays in the hand aspected by a divine lake and marked by a deer; Who dispels all poison with a twice-uttered Tara and the sound Phat !22 19The seven underworlds (paréla) are of course, in order: Atala, Vitala, Sutala, Patdla, Mahatala, Rasatala, Talatala. Cf. Fausta Nowotny, Eine durch Miniaturen erlauterte Doctrina mystica aus Srinagar (S-Gravenhage, 1958), 30-1. In the same work (p. 21), we read : saptapatélamayi prthvi, “Earth consists of seven underworlds”. 20In Tantric-Buddhism, a vidya is a manifestation in female form, or the. magical thoughts, utterances, and gestures which produce that manifestation, Hence the word is translated here “magical formula”. The ten syllables are in a sadhana of Tara translated by B. Bhattacharyya in The Indian Buddhist Iconography (Calcutta, 1958), p. 23: Om Tara Tuttare Ture Svaha; “This. is the lord of all Mantras, is endowed with great powers, and is saluted, worshipped and revered by the Tathdgatas.” When the verse speaks of the Him of the magical formula, it is not clear whether it refers to the entire set of ten syllables as a Him, or intends the middle term, Tare Tuttdre Ture, to constitute a Him. The latter case may be the intention of the next verse. 21She is seeded in the sequence depicted by the Advayavajrasamgraha (edited by Haraprasad Shastri), p. 50, line 7 : sdnyatabodhito bijam bijad bimbam prajayate. “From the realization of voidness proceeds the germ- syllable; from the germ-syllable, the image of the deity.” 22"Marked by a deer” signifies the moon. Together with “a divine lake”, this is the “moon in the water”. The reference is presumably to the level. hand gesture (saméhita-mudré) which symbolizes the samdahita-citta or equi- poised mind that sees things as they really are. Therefore, the poison that is dispelled may be understood—besides the external poisons—as psychological poison. Buddhism speaks of the three poisons—hatred (dvesa), lust (raga), and delusion (dha). In connection with the mention of poison here, fever’450 Buddhist Insight 19. Adoration ! O Lady visited by the superintendent of the host of gods as well as by the gods and the horse-headed men; Who destroys quarrel and bad dreams with the delightful winding of the circular band ! Adoration ! O Lady of bright light in (both) eyes that are filled with the sun and moon; Who dispels the terrible fever by a twice-uttered Hara and the sound Tuttare ! 21. Adoration ! O Lady endowed with the Power (Sakti) of Siva to dispose the state of the Third; Who destroys the host of possessing spirits, vampires, and secret folk ! Most excellent Lady ! O quick one !28 22. With clear cognition and full of reverence toward the goddess, one should recite this Praise, which is both the basic mantra and twenty-one adorations. 23. At dusk or rising at daybreak he should remember (this Praise), which grants complete fearlessness, dispels all sin, destroys every evil fate.%4 24, He would be initiated speedily by seven myriads of Buddhas. Arriving at greatness herein, he would proceed in the end to the rank of a Buddha. 25. If he has eaten or drunk a terrible poison, stationary or locomotive, he dispels it as soon as he remembers (this Praise).25 20. in verse 20 and fire elsewhere, one should note that of the Atharva-veda Sir Bhandarkar (op. cit., p. 148) mentions, “Rudra is implored not to bring on consumption, poison, and celestial fire (XI, 2, 26).” The deity in whose domi- nion the particular misfortune lies, is naturally the one who can avert that misfortune. Hence, Tara (“the Savioress”), as the power (Sakti) of Siva, can save one from those dangers. 23The third one of the Hindu triad is Siva. The relation between Siva and Sakti has been well described by S. K. Das in Sakti or Divine Power (Calcutta, 1934), for example, p. 75, “‘In reply to this Bhairava asserts that Saktiis nothing but His own self (Svaripa) in the aspect of ‘one who fashions, sustains and withdraws the world’ Bhairava is of course all three—Brahma, Visnu, Siva.” The present verse refers only to Siva. Hence, Tara is the destructive self or ability of Siva, who withdraws the world. 24In Buddhism the three evil fates or destinies (durgati) are of animals (tiryagyénika), ghosts (preta), and hell-beings (naraka). 25The two kinds of external poison of classical Indian medicine are meant. For example, poison of plants is the stationary type; poison of snakes ist’‘The Twenty-one Praises of Tara, a Syncretism of Saivism and Buddhism 451 26. By repeating it twice, thrice or seven times, he removes the great pains, pains of seizure, fever, and poison, of even other sentient beings. 27. Desiring sons, he obtains sons. Desiring wealth, he obtains wealth. He achieves all his desires and is not frustrated by obstacles. Completed and ended is the Praise Consisting of Twenty-one Adorations of Her Lordship, Tara, the Goddess, together with the merit and benefit, expressed by the Samyaksambuddha. Hail, Tara ! locomotive type. I have pointed out a third external category, created poison, for example that made from quicksilver or from amrta, in my little essay in honor of Leonardo Olschki, “The Concept of Poison in Buddhism,” Oriens, Vol. X (1957), 107-109,