The Tantra of the Great Ganapati - Ganesh in Tibet by Christopher Wilkinson S.U.N.Y.-libre

8/10/2019 The Tantra of the Great Ganapati - Ganesh in Tibet by Christopher Wilkinson S.U.N.Y.-libre

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Inc ludes ndex .

ISIIN 0-7914-06s6-3.

ISUN0-7e14-0657-lpbk.)

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3/46

FOREWORD

-4.

K. Naroi r t

ACKNOWLEDCMENTS

NOTEON

TRANSLITERA

ION

Contents

vl l

i x

x i

lntroduction

-Rtrlrt'r-f

L.

Ilrouttt

I

l . Cane6a: A Prokrhistoryof thc Idca and thc lcon

-A.

K.

Nnrn in

19

2.

Ctrnc6a:Myth ancl

Reality

M.

K.

Dhnwlitur 49

t

3. Caneria'sRisc

o

Promine

nce

n Sanskrit

Litcrature

Lrtdo ll.orlttr 69

4. Cancfa.rs Metaphor:

-I 'he

Mrrrlrrr/rr)uritm

-Plrt l l l is

Cnrtr lf l t5

5.

Irnages

f Canc6a

n

Jainisnr

-Mnrtt t i

Natdun

Tra'r lr i

rrcl Kortml ir i l0l

6.

The

Wivt-s

of

Clar-resa

-

LsiL'rttn't'Colrt'rr I l5

7.

"Vatapi

Ganapatit .n":Sculptural, Rret ic,

rnclMusical Tl 'xts

n

a

Hymrr

kr Caneia

Atrry

Catlirt

141

8.

Canefa

in SoutheastAsinn Art: lnclianConnections

and Incligenous

Dcvekrpme.nts

-Rtlrcrt

L. Broutrr 171

9.

'[ ' lre

Tantric

Carre'Sa: L'xts

)rcservec]

n thc l ' ibetan

Canon

Christtt1lrr Wilkitrsorr 235

CI P


4/46

10.

Gane6a n Chintr:

Methods of Transforrning

the Demonic

-Lca'ls

R.

Lancastcr

277

1l . Literarv Aspects

oi

Japtrn's

Dual-( ltrne

tr

Cult

-

Jnntt's

.

Sntrford

287

LIST

OF

CONTRIBUTORS

INDEX

34 1

T

t

I s

on

the

the

priv

acc

firs

ond

issu

ma

of s

gha

fied

I

we

ima

cles

pict

Thx

not

to t

I

wa

on

not

wer

lect


5/46

9

The

ThntricGaneSa:

exts

Preserved

n

the

Tibetan

Canon

Christopher

ilkinson

I. Introduction

and

the

Texts

a4e6a

s a dei ty

who

began

his career

n India and subsequent ly

spread his inf luence throughout Asia, including Tibet . There are

thirty texts

n the Tibetan

Buddhist canon

of

direct nterest or

the study of

Ga4eSa.

All of

these

exts were

composed

n

"lndian"

languages,

presum-

ably

sanskrit

or some

Prakrit,

and

it isperhaps

only

in their

Tibetan

trans-

lations

hat these

exts survive

today.

There

s alsoa signif icant

postcanon-

ical development

of Ganesa

n the schools

of

Tibetan

Buddhism,

and the

practices

associated

with Gane6a

as

a Buddhist

Tantricdeity survive

up

to

this

day.

The

intention of

this

article

is to present

a

representative

sampling

of

the

canonical

iterature

related

o Gane6a

n English

ranslation.

Fifteen of

the thirty

texts concerned

with Gane6a

are translated

below.

Time and

space

prevent

the translation

of all

the texts,

and the same

restrictions pre-

vent a study

of the

postcanonical

development

of Ga4e6a.

Furthermore,

I

have foregone

any

extensivecritical discussion. The historical section (sec-

tion II) on

the authors

and

translators

has been added

by

Robert L.

Brown,

primarily

from

information

supplied

by

Tim Shaw.

Otherwise,

the

trans-

lations stand

on

their own.

Hopefully,

they

will provide

a

major new

source

for scholars

working

on

Gape6a.

All

thirty

of

the canonical

exts

relating

to Gape6a

present

him

in a

Thntric

character.

There

is,

however,

no attempt

in any of

the texts

to make

claim

to any particular

classof

Tantra.

Ga4e6a

s presented

as a

deity from

whom

food,

wealth,

sex,

and supernatural

attainments

may

be received

by the

practitioner.

Ganeda's

elationship

with

Mahadeva,

better

known as

235


6/46

236

CfuistoTthcr

Wilkinson

siva,

is admitted

in some

of

the

texts,

yet

the

predominant

tendency

is

to

identify

Galesa

as

ar-r manation

of

the

Bodhisattva

Avalokitesvara.

This

may suggest

hat

an attempt

was

made

to strip

Gane6a

of

his non_-Brrddhist

treiitage'und

incorporate

him

fully

into the

Buddhist

pantheon-

It also

per-

haps

ieflects

the fendency

to

asstlciate

Avalokite6vara

and

Siva

in later

Buddhism. I t may, finally, and as evidencedby a number of essays n this

book,

indicate

that

Gapesa

was

originally

not

a

Buddhist,

Hindu,

or

Jaina

deity,

but

rather

an

Indian

deity

who was

incorpt'rratecl

qually

ntcl

all

ma -

jor

Indian

religions.

The

foll

MahaTt

na

y

kn

i

Tutyttd

5n

c

n

ru nrt,

bGtjs

ltdag

Ch

en

Tttt'

s

K

Itri ba'i

Mart

rgag

Yid bzhin

tlGntp1ntti sndhana

nrit lrs

nidhiTtrndn

itml'

Ts/ro.qs

rdng.qi

D-


7/46

s

to

his

t

also per-

n later

n

tlris

or Jaina

nto

all

nra-

n

the

or-

marker

articlc..

po'i.sNyir,q

Peking

sK u

Arrthor,

zer.

pdi gTtr

Gay-

rtj

gl

1ri sByin

Ngcs

;ur

Grult

1ta'i

tdag

,gi

The Thntric

Gsneis

237

bsGrubpa

dbul ba'i

gTersByhr

Shes ya ba.

(.Peking

#3855).

Au.

dPal Mar me mdzad bzangpo

(Sri

Diparhkarabhadra).

70.

Garyapati uhya sndhano,

sf togs

yi

bDag po gSang s'i

sGrub

flrabs.

Pekin

g

#

4560).Au. Amoghava

jra.

Tra

ns. Dipa

rhkara-

Srijnana,

Nag tsho Tshul khrims rGyal ba.

77. Me

ghaloka

aqapnti ndfuns,sPrin

kyi sGronmn Tshogs

yi

hDag

po sGrub ftabs. Peking #4562). Au. Rin chen rDo rje (Ratna-

vajra). Trans.

DiparhkaraSrijnana, Nag tsho

Tslrul

khrims

rgyal ba.

72.

>Srt

ajnn uinianrt a ganapatisadhnna,

Pal Tshogs yi bDag po

'

lur

ge s Selbs Shes va ba'i sGrub thabs.

Peking

#4563).

Au.

Indrabhuti. Trans.

Diparhkara6rijnana, rCya brTson'grus

Seng ge.

73.

Canapatisadhannmalulcskru atut,

Tshogs tli

bDag

ptt

sCruh

thnbs'khor o

Chen

po Shes

11n

a.

(Peking

#4972).

Au. Avad-

huti-pa

(Avadhttapada). Trans. Diparhkarasrijnana, Tshul

khrims rGyal ba.

14.

>Viniryaknrajn

sndhann, lGr',qs

tli rgynl ptt'i

scrult

thalts.

(Pe-

king #4973).

Au. Nag-po sPyod pa

pa. Trans.

Gayadhara,

Z laba' t

Od

zer.

15.

V

noynkara

a

sadhnna

bGe

s

kyi

rcyal ynt

scrub

1ta'i

hnbs.

Pe-

king #4976).

Au. Nag po pa.

Trans. Cayadhara,

Zlaba'i 'Od

zer.

[Readings

diffenfrom

Pc-king

#4973.1

76. Sunipunsnahadeaa

ignarajnsndhano,Shin to Mrlur ba'i

Lh a

Clrcn

7ro

Gags

yi rcyal po'i sGrub hs bs.

Peking

#49fll).

Au .

Diparhkara.

77. Suhdlu

dtz,tunnhiaighn ztishnlrn

s

sndhsun,Shin tu Myur bo'i

L,hn

Ge s Che

yt Srt ganapati6ontisadhans, Pal Tslrogs y i bDug ptt Shiba'i

scrub thabs.

Peking

#4986).

Au.

Jo

bo .

20 Anla

gnnapati

intaratna

sadhanol,

'Phogs

1ta

Tshogs yi bDag

po

Y d tzhi r

Nor

bu' sGr

ub hnhs.

Pe'king

#

4987).Au. Nag

po

pa.

27.

Ganapnti

guhrla sttdhanl

Tshogs t/i L,Dng o'i

gSang

bq'

sGrub

f rcbs.

Pekin

g

#

a990).

Au.

Dipa

rirka

a nana.

22.

Mahaganapati hut utrikn sktn uqiikarasndhnna,

s/ro.qsrli

bDot

1to

Chen

po Khans gsum dbAng sDud

dMur po'i

sGrub

lutbs.

Pe-

king,

#4992).

Au.

Cantapa.

Trans. dPal Vairocana

of

India,

Chos kyi

Grags

pa .


8/46

238

Christoyiru

Wilkittson

23. Krodhu

ganapati

sndhsrrtt, slro gs yi bDag po Khro bo'i

sGrult

thahs.

Peking

#a99\.

Au. gSer gling pa

(Suvarnadvipa).

24.

>Ghanspati

samaya

uhya ssdhana,

Tsftogs

yibDag po Dam

Tshig gSang a' bscr ub f/ra&s.

Pekin

g

#

a995).

Au. Canakirti.

Trans. Vairocana,Chos kyi Grags pa.

G.

Praises

stotro,

st t t t i )

25.

>

Arya gonapati

ragaaajrasaftwy(r

totrtt,

'Phags

ytaTshogs

yi

bDag

1to

Chags

pa

rDo

rjc' i Dam tshig gi bs'fLtd n.

(Peking

#4567 ) .

Au . D ipa rhka raSr i j nana .

T rans . D ipa rhka raS-

rijnana,

Tshul khrims

rGyal ba.

26.

>

Artla

ganapati

stuti,

'Phags

pa

Ts^fttrqs

yi hDag po

Ia

bsTitd a.

(Pe_king

4977).

Au. Nag po Zhabs.

27.

>

Artla ga4aputistuti,

'Phags

po Tshttgs

qi bDag

po

la bsTttd a.

(Peking

#4989).

Au.

Nag

po Zhabs.

f ldent ical

to Peking

#4977.1

28.

>Ca1apsti

stotrs,

Tshogs

kVi bDag pLt

a

bs'fttd a.

(Peking

#4991). Ar-r.Amoghavajra.

29.

>Knmeittnrs

sttttrs,'Dttd

pa'i

dbAng

phyug

gi ltsTitd a.

(Pe.king

#499i3).

Au.

Candapa.

H.

The

precious elephant ext

30.

>

Hasf rstna dlmns dcyLtpodc1o

gLarrypo

Rin ptt chc a Nor

bLang

ba'iMan

Ngng.

Peking#4971).

Au. klu grub

(Nagdrjuna).

II. A

Note on

the Authors

and Tianslators

of

the

Gane6a

Texts

Most of

the authors

and

translators of the thirty

Tibetan texts that

deal with

Gane5a

and that

are

isted above

can be identif ied. The

earliest

anong the

authors

appear

to have ived in the

eighth

and ninth centuries

a.o. These nclude

such

wri ters

as

Srr

Diparhkarabhadra

dPal

Mar me

mdzad bazng

po)

(author

of

Ganapati adhnna nridrs

nidhiyradnnann,

our

no. 9), an Indian monk who wrote some thirty-nine tantrika

treatisesan d

was active n the Bengaland

Bihar areaof lndia in the

ate

eighth

and early

ninth centur ies. rA

second

eighth-century monk,

Amoghavaj ra, whcr

wrote the

Ganayrti

sfolra translated below

(no.

28),

is

one

of

the

most fa-

mous Indian

Tantric

eachers.

He, along with his equally famous teacher,

Vajrabodhi, translated

many important Thntric texts

into

Chinese; Amo-

ghavajra

s

particularly

known for

his Chinese

translation of

the Thttrasaru-

graha 2

Another

monk on our

list with a well-known name, Nagarjuna, au-


9/46

htt ' i

sGrub

pto

Dant

tl i

(Peking

hsTitd

a.

hsTtd

pa.

o Peking

Peking

Nor

hLong

exts

ha t

earliest

enturies

M ar

me

inn,

our

nd

early

who

most

fa-

eacher,

mo-

u-

The

Thntric

Gsneia 239

thor of the precious elephant

text translated below

(no.

30),

is

probably

Arya Nagarjuna rather

than t he earlier and

even more famous Nagarjuna

who founded the Madyamika school.

Arya Nagarjuna lived in the seventh

or eighth centuries

and

was

a

student of

Saraha,

who

taught at Nalanda.

It

appears that Nagarju na's own

student, Nagabodhi,

was

the

teacher

of

Vajrabodhi

and

thus of

Amoghavajra,

mentioned above.3 t is also

possible

that with this text,

and

perhaps

others, we

are

dealing with a

later

text

that

was legit imized with the name of an earlier amous author.

The

latest dates for

the authors of

these texts

corresponds

to the

dates hey were

translated

arrd

ntroduced into'I ibet,

the

tenth arrd

elev-

enth centuries. Here again we

have authors who

are

well

known and who

often are related as eacher-pupil.

Jnanavajra

Ye

shes

Do rje), for exam-

ple,

author

of Vinayakn raha

rirmocana

no.7

translated

below), was

from

East

Bengal

and lived in

the late tenth and eleventh century.

He has nu-

merous names, as did many of

the

Thntricmonks, a

practice

due to their

receiv ing new names wi th each

master ing of a

set

of

teachings

or

doc-

trines, usually under diiferent

teachers.' '

rianavajra's

ther

uames nclude

Advaya-j na n av aira, Ad

vayava a, Ma ripa,

Mai

trigu pta,

and Avadu ti-pa.

s

Avaduti-pa

s isted

as he

author of no.

13 ot ' t

our

list,

t lre

Gn4a1tnti

ttdhnrur

mahacokra

amo,

and thus

both treatises on Gape6a

nos.

7 and

13)

are prob-

ably by the same person.

Avaclhuti-pa s associated pecif ically

with the

important Vikrama6ila

Monastery

in

Bihar and

was

a

teacher

of At iSa.o

It is

Ati6a'sname that

appearsmost

frequently

on

our l ist, both as an

autlror

and

a translator.

Atisa,

nnder

his name' Diparhkara6rijnana, is

listed

as the author of text

number 21, as both the

authclrand translator

of

text number

25,

Arya gona1urti

agnuttjra sma1tt ilitra

(translated

below),

and

as the t ranslator of

four

other

texts

(nos.

10,

11,

12

[translated

below],

and 13).?

o-bo

no.

19) s anot her natne for

him. He is also mentiorred as

bringing with him to Tibet the

longest of our translated

texts, the Moha-

ganapntiThutrn,which,

being spoken by the

Buddha, is not

given

an au-

thor's name. Ati6a's ife

is

well

documented, although

the

sources

do not

agree

in

many details. He

was born at the end

clf the tenth century to a

royal family, probably in Bengal,8and frorn boyhood proceeded to study

with a

seriesof teachers,

ult imately mastering

eachingsof various

schools

and

most areas of

Buddhist

knowledge. His

constant

movement and

search for

new teachers

and doctrines

is

typical

of the monks who wrote

the

Cane6a

exts;

perhaps

of most

nterest

was

hat AtiSa's earch ook him

to Southeast Asia to study with

acaryaDharmakirti

(Dharmapala)

of

Su-

varnadvipa. It is thought that Suvarnadvipa,

iterally

"Land

or

Island

of

Gold," a name used for

a varic'ty

of Southeast

Asian locations over a

very

long

period

of time, was

in

the

eleventh century a reference o the maritime


10/46

240

Christophu

Wilkinsott

kingdom of

Srivijaya,

located

somewhere

in Sumatra, Malaysia,

and

pen-

insular

Thailand. Ati6a studied with

Dharmakirti

for over

a decade before

returning

to Inclia around 1025when

he

became

the heacl

Qtwhnsthauira)

f

the

VikramaSila

Monastery.

Ati6a's fame

continued

to

grow,

and he was

asked

by

King

'Od-lde

of Tibet

(the

kingdom of

mNa'ris in western Tibet)

to come to his country and teach. Arriving in7042,

Ati6a worked on trans-

lating-in

collaboration

with

his

Tibetan disciple

Nag tsho Tshul khrims

rGyal

ba,

who is listed as cotranslat clr of four of the Gane6a

texts

-

San-

skrit

texts

nto

Tibetan."

We know Ati6a

translated

works of his

teacher, Dharmakrrti,r0

who,

under his name Suvanradvipa

gSer

ing

pa)-an

obvious

refererrce

o his

Southeast

Asian location-is given

as

writ ing text

number 23

on our l ist,

Krodnh

ganapati

sndharu.

AtiSa

was

involved in translating five of the twelve Gane6a

texts

tbr

which we have translators named. A second

Indian

teacher, Gayadhara,

along with his

Tibetan

colleague,Zlaba'i

'Otl

zer, are res;)onsible or

an -

other four of the twelve

(nos.

3, 4, 74,and 15-all translated here except

15).

Gayadhara,

a contemporary of Ati6a, was active

n

the

first

half of the

e-leventh entury and visitedTibet sevc-ralimes. His collaborator,Zlaba'i

'Od

zer,

is

well

known as

the

first

translator

of the KalacskrsThntra.The

four works they

have translatc.d l l have authclrswhose names are vari.r-

t ions of

Krsna: Nag

pro

pa, Nag po zhabs,

and

Nag po sPyod pa pa. The

authors of texts

numhers 20,26,

and27 on

()ur

list have

Krsna

names

as

well;

thus, there are seven Gane6a

exts by authors with names that

are

variants

of Krs na. Some of thes e

writers are probably t lre samc.person.

Unfortunately, however, Krsna is a common Tibetan name for tantrikas

and siddhas. One

likely canciidatewould be Krsna the Elder,an

expert on

the Heva

ra

Thntraand

author

of the

Vr,qararrsmnkt ho lived in

the

ninth

century.

r

Another would be

Krsnapada,

one

of Ati5a's

eachers

and

thus

l iv ing

in

the

r- leventh

entury) wl ro, a long

wi th At isa 's T ibetan

pupi l ,

Tshul khrims rGyal ba, tran slated C;rndrakirt i's Madhyamakauatarn

2

The final two translators,Vairoczlna nd Chos kyi Grags pa, are isted

as translating

together

wo works

(nos.

22 and

24, the later

translated be-

Iow), while Vairocana

s

listeclas sole ranslator of

text

number 17.Here.,

basedon the identif icationof

the

translator

of

text number

17

as Vairocarra

of KoSala, nd assuming he

other

two Vairocanas re he same person, we

can probably iclentify

him

as

Vairoczrnarakgita,

nother contemporary of

At i6a, whose

careerparal le ls

At i6a 's n many ways. He was

constant ly

moving, studying with new teachers,and conquering new doctrines.

Only

a

part ia l review shows hi rn moving

f rom

his home in

southern

India

to

western

India, then

to

Magadha,

to

Varanasi, to Nalanda, and to Vikra-


11/46

nd

pen-

efore

of

he

was

Tibet)

San-

o

who,

o

his

c.xts

or

or

an-

e.xcept

of the

la

ba'

The

varia-

Th e

as

hat

ar e

on

ninth

hu s

pupi l ,

isted

be-

Here,

we

of

Only

c'r

Vikra-

The ThntricGqLteitt

241

ma6ila. His teachers nclude most of the famous pandits of his

time;

he

even s said to have gone to

China.' l

I

have

not mentioned all

of

the authors and translators of the

Gane6a

texts,

but

we now can draw

certain conclusions. One point

is

that there

was

a small

number of monks

and

adepts

who

introducecl the

Ga4eSa

it -

erature to Tibet. In addition, these translators and teachers were

among

the

most

famous

arrd

mportant practiticlners of Thntric

Buddhism in Tibet.

T'he

worship of Garre6a

was

cle.arly

n

accepted

aspect

of

Buddhist

teach-

ing

and

doctrine

of

the time,

and

reflects

practices at such

important In-

dian monasteries

as

Nalanda

and

VikramaSila. 'a s

well

as Tantric

teach-

ings

outside of

Indiar,as n

China

and

Southeast

Asia.

A secondpoint

that relates o the

small

number

of authors and

trans-

lators

s

that

they were often corrnected,either

in

a teacher-pupil l ineage

or in

a

parallel

process

studying with the

same

teachers.Their

desire to

study with famous

teachers

kept them in const ant peregrination,

epito-

mized

by At i6a 's r ip to Southeast

Asia

to study wi th Dharmaki r t i . We

should probably seeherea desire o meet, to actuallybe n the presenceof ,

the honored teacher.We can assumc- hat these authors knew

one anoth-

er's writ ings, and those on which they were

based,

regardlessof the dclc-

t r ine

r l r

school hey professed.

Again,

Cane6a's cceptance mong th is

most

I r ighly

learned and

sophist i fated group of preen. r inent uclc lh ist

teachershelps us

to

understand that he was

not

a god

t l f

the

periphery,

but, by the eighth

century,

was a

Buddhist

deity of importance.

III.

The

Tianslations

A.

Tbxts

from

the

bKa

'gyur

There are two t exts irr t l le

' l iailslntiotts

of thc Prtnrourtccnrc trtsbK s

'gyur).

The first

presented

here,

the

GonapntihrdorTa,

s irr the

format

of a

tradit ional

Mahaydna sutra. The

role

Ganapati

plays n this text is that of a

mediator between Br"rddhist nd

rron-Buddhist radit ions,

fbr

by using the

mnntra

contained in the text , r ron-Budclh ist

eremonie 's an be t rans-

formed into Buddhist ones.

Tlre second ext presented, he

Mahagarurpati

Thntrs, s

clearly a collectionof

various

rites

and

descriptions of

Ga4apati

and

must

be a

compilation.

The text

does not present tself

n

the format of

a tradit ional

Buddhist Thntra,ancl

t leaves

ut

such characteristic eaturcs

as tlre

"'Ihus

have once hearcl" at the be'ginning.

Being containecl n the

bKa'

gyur,

the presumed

author of both texts

s the Bucldhahimseli, and

no

translators

are menticlned.

t l

4


12/46

242

ChristoaherWilkinson

In the Indian

language:

Aryaga4apatihqdaya

In the Tibetan

language:

'Phags

pn Tshogs kyi bDag

po'i sNying

po

lln the English language:

The

Essenceof Ganapati'l

Homage

to all the

Buddhas

and Bodhisattvas

Thus have I once heard:

The BlessedOne was dwel l ing in Rajagr iha ogether wi th a great

community of 1,250monks

and

of

Bodhisattva-Mahasattvas.

t that t ime

the Blessed

One

spokc o the verrerable nanda:

"O

Ananda, the tasksof

anyone

who

comprehends

the Esse,Tcef Ga4apati-Ganeiaara ill

all

be ac-

compl ished. One's

wishes are fu l f i l led by comprehending

t ;

and every

mantrq will bring

attalnment:

"Tnfulathal

Namo

stutemahagannpatarleualnl

Ory kntakatol Msta malal Dara

darnl Vidara

uidaral

Hanahnnal Grihna grihnal

Dhaus

dhaunl

Bharyjahhanjal Starybhn tsmbhal

arybha

ambhal

M


13/46

great

im e

of

ac -

unhal

nturu

ga

go

ha n

of a

this

f ]

[o f

pa-

will

and

Tltc Tsutric

Gturyin 243

In the Tibetan

language:

Tshogs kyi bDag

po

Chen

po'i rGyud

lln

the English

language:

The

Thntra of

the Great Ganapatil

Homage

to tl-reLord of the

World

Chap

er

One

At ta ni ng Accotnpl

shments

siddhi)

Homage to

the

great, glorious

Ga4apati Place an

image of the de-

lightful, glory-endowed Gapapati

in a

four-cornered ntandala.You must

worship it for six

months.

Your fortune

in this life

will

equal the universal

monarch

(cakraaartin)

of the gods,

and you

will

acquire

great merit. Your

pleasures will equal the

gods', and

your life will be most

long. You will be

a lord of men and other

beings.

The sons of gods will

be

like

your

slaves.

Your

orders

will be heeded,

and even

nngas

will

follow them, doing the var-

ious works like slaves.

You will

have

the

pleasures of the gods, and any

pleasing hings you desire

will come

to you

[p.

200b]. An apparit ion

(nir-

nu4a)by the great godMahaganapati

s brought about by

the

forceof a dis-

ciple with the fortune to attain

accomplishments.

Upon attaining

the

su -

preme accompl ishment ,

you wi l l

obta in magical powers,

and

your

pleasureswill

increase

according

o your

desires.He is the world-benefit-

ting god of gods

whose'worship bringstrccomplishment.

Chaptcr

Titto:

ThcMatrtra of Diainc

Accortrplishment

Now

make a four-cornered

clean

nmndala n

a

secluded place. Smear

it

well with

cow dung. When

it is smooth and soft place

an image of

Can-

apat i on

the ra ised-up

middle. Spr inkle t

wi th whi te f lowers. Denude

yourself and worship

it

[while

visualizing] yourself

in the

form

of Vinay-

aka. Recite eighteen

hundred nnntras three

times daily for a six-month

aurstnka

retreat].

All your mind's

hopes will be realized.

Orl is a glorious will-being; it must be put at thebeginning of a tnln-

tra. The

accomplishment-p;ranting

etter that

is

like a

wish-fulfilling

jewel

must be put after

it in

the

row.

The

sun-like

letter

must

be read

after that.

The

first

sign of the

Tathagata, he supreme

etter,

must

be

taken up

next.

Then the first consonant

must

be

uttered. One

who

ciesires

accomplish-

ment recites lhe msntrs with

the

iewel

syllable Son

and the action syllable

l t a .

Chapter

hree Ca4oTtuti's escript

on

Ganapati

s white. He

has

he

headof an elephant.

he usk on one

side

s

broken.

His right

hand holdsa radish.

He ridesa rat

vehicle

tra-

A

,h


14/46

244 ChristopherWilkinson

hnna).Hisbody is bedecked with precious

jewels.

His head is

ornamented

with the full moon. He glows with

rays of

clear

ight. His

complexion

and

color

are

good.

He is

fat-bellied

and bedecked

with

jewels

[p.

201a].

Chaptu

Four: Propitiationof Gn4apatiwith One

Face nd FourArms

Now an expert,

holding

white

flowers, should draw an image of Gap-

apati on the day

of

Pusyn, white

with

the

head

of

an

elephant.

His

right

hand holds a radish. His left holds a precious

jewel.

He is fat-bellied,

or-

namented with every sort of

jewelry,

seated

atop a moon and a rat. Sit with

your face oward

the center

of t he rnanSala nd worship,

[visualizing]

your-

self in the image of Vinayaka.

Clwptu Fiut:

TheMudra of Gat.taytnti

Now in the proximity of

Indra, there is

the

white

Ga4apati

with an

elephant'shead. He rides a

rat. His third

eye

holds a

crescent

moon. His

right

[hands]

hold

a

radish

and a knife. His

lef t

hold

a

trident

and

a skull.

To make the

mudra of Ganapati

you

must clench the left hand with

tl 're

thumb and middle

finger

extended

hen seize he

joint

of

the middle f ing er

with the bent thumb.

ChapterSix:

ThaMantra of Mahoganapati

Ncrw to explain the mnntrs.

The

glorious Orlr s placed at the' begin-

ning. Then inscribe

the

wish-fulf i l l irtg

jewel,

the

letter of

gems.

The first

section

of

consonantsshould

be written after that. Then the

first

sign of

the Ththagata

must

be unif ied

with the eight vowels.

Imagine

the

let ter

of

the first consorrant,and

inscribe t with your rnind. The third of t he third

section should

be conjoined

with

the fourth

oi

the first. The third

of the

seventhsectionshould be subjoined to

the first of the third.

Put

the fifth of

the fourth

as

a companion to the wish-fulf i l l ing

jewel

etter.

This must

be

ornamented wi th the th i rd vowel .

Then

reci te

t

wi th the th i rc l of the

fourth.

The syllableof

realizedaccomplishmentmust be

recited

at the end.

The Lord of the World himself gives the accomplishment of this tnartrs. Al l

your wishes

will be

fulf i l led

[p.

201b].

Chnpttr Seaut:

TlrcMantra of thc Nntne

Now furthermore,

the speech h at

is

the

essence

f

attaining accom-

plishments, called

"the

rnantra

f the name that attains

every

accomplish-

ment,"

is made by put ting

Onr, the letter of glory, arrd Yam,at the begin-

ning.

Subjo in

the

syl lable

of the sun to t he wish-fu l f i l l ing

jewel

let ter .


15/46

and

Arms

of

Gan-

His

right

,

or-

i t w i t h

your-

with

an

oon.

Hi s

a

skull.

with

the

inger

the

be-gin-

The

f i rst

sign

of

e etter

of

hird

of

the

thc.

ifth

of

must

be

of the

t

he

end.

Al l

accorn-

begirr-

etter.

The Talftric

Gcuris

245

Subioin

this to the sixth

vowel. This

must be ornamented with

the bindu

nsda.

The letter of

the first sign should be

spoken next. Then the

fifth of the

fourth

should

be attached.

The

first

of

the fifth should

be written.

Then

write the

first

sign

of the

Tathagata. The syllable of

the wind element

must

then be ornamented

with the

eighth

vowel. The second

letter

of

peace

should

be announced at

the end of

it

all.

"The

mrmtrqof

the name" is the

fulf i l ler of every desire.

Chnpter

Eight

WorshipingGanopati

Now this

must be explained

as well: Extract

the perfume of

white

flowers.

Make an image of Ganapati

about tlre

size of a thumb out

of white

sandalwood,

fat -bel l iedwi th

four arms.

Do i t

carefu l ly

and

do i t wel l .

When the Great

White One

[the

sun] is

bril l iant,

lustrate

the

image with

morning

dew. Wash

it

with

a vase

that

is

clean, bright,

attractive, and fra-

grant, trnd with perfume

with

the scent of white

flowe'rs. Then

immedi-

ately offer white

flowers to

invite

[Ganapati]

to the'center of

the nnndaln.

Then

offer

a large

ltali made

of

radishes and pastries.

Make

offerings

of in-

cense,scent,

amps, and eatables.

Offer

the

lraliof

radishes,

pastries,

wa -

ter, and

the

three

whites

with the

[above

mentioned] mantrn.

Offer incense

and f lowers as

well. If done in

this way, Obstacles

will be evermore

nca-

pacitated

lp.202al.

Clupter

Ninc:

fhe

Food

t'ttr

Attnining

Accttmplishments

Now

a

"radish"

is a turnip t lrat has eight

flavors. t is

t lre

most excel-

lent

of all

foods

as

well.

I t

is

endowed

with the

eight

[sic]

supreme flavors:

bitternc'ss, ournc-ss,

stringency,

weetness,hotness,

and

salt iness.

t

is

mild ancl has the

grcatest

relish. It is thc remedy for the eight sorts of i l l-

ness. t benc.fits

hc

bile, phlegm,

and

fever;

he

blood,

pus, and indiges-

t iorr; thc.

nerves and con tagit lttsdiseases.

There is no ft lod

grown

like

it

The lips of the gods cluiver or

it It is

the

food for att aining accomplish-

ments It shotrld br.

offercd to the Lord of

Hosts. The fclodcalled

"pastry"

(nndakn)

s made from the three sweets

and the

three

grt 'rins. t, to o,

en -

slavesone with its clelicious rnell.

Make litt le balls oi

wheat paste. Churn

milk into

butter,

and makt- a

large &a/ i or

the hosts. Make nf fer ings

o

G:rnapat i

wi th but ter ,

past ry

flour, the three sweets,

and various

suitable oods

IVerse

ends].

[Make

offerings]

to Ctrrlapati

ike this: Put

Ganapati 's

rnage

n tlre

palm of

your

right hand; reciteout

loud one hundred thousarrd

ecitations

[of

the

ttnntrt l, not thirrking of ar-rythirrg

lse. I f

you

offer a

radish after

blessing

t

with the

nmntrs,your

merit in this

very l ife

will eclutrl hat of

a

)

A


16/46

246

Christtrphu

Wilkinson

universal monarch. If you

offer

white

flowers, you will not

be

defeated

by

kings

or others. Royalty,etc., wil l be

attained

[by

you]. Kings, ministers,

and others

will come under your control

[Prose

ends].

Cltn1ttcr tn

AchiauingKingship,

etc.

Now I will explain t he ceremony . Make a large imageof Ga4apati out

of the

precioussubstance

silver."

It

must hold

a

valuable

gem

in its

hand.

The large

ntandnlameasures

a

full cubit.

Scatter t with

jewels

and

white

flowers.

Reciteone hundred thou sand nnntras.

Sickness nd suffering will

thereby

be pacified.

As

a wise man procur esan

image

of Galapati made

from crystal and

sifver,

all

his worldly

suffering will be clearedaway

I

p.202b]. An irnage

of

Gapapati made

from crysta l should

be

about the

size

of a

thumb.

Recite

he

rridyamantra

alled

"seilapra"

one

hundred

thousand times; lustrate

the

crystal image; and

cln the day of

Pusrltt

oint y ourself to

tlre east, put

on

white clothes,

wash yourself, put

yclur

palms together,arnd

olicit

[Ca1a-

pat i l

wi th y our hopes.

"What

is

the Obstacle hat

harms

me? lust rate he

crysta l mage

which remains unmoving, unwaver ing atop the mirror and look to the

east. Let any

lnrapn

or

thic'ves here may be trp-rpearn

tl-remirror, then be-

come

their

identit ies."

Worship and

consecrate his

crystal mage

of Gan-

apati

as

s f i t t ing

and

recite

one

hundred

thousand of the

i' idyns

called

"na-

gikuru:' lf you merely show this irnage

?


17/46

by

ut

il l

and

of

he

he

()n

Gan-

rra-

Re -

will

Tlrc Thntric

Gsncia 247

The

great

compassiol-rate

anapati,

being a most

compassionate n-

dividual

(atman),

protects he poor with great compassion.

Draw this great God of

Wealth

on silk or

cotton. Reveal t

on the

da y

of

Pusyn.His

estatewhose

house t resides n

will be fortunate.

Carefully

craft an image

of

Mahaganapati in

copper.

Put

it atop a

mandsln pon earth

anointed

witlr red

sandalwood. Honor it with hsndukn

flowers (pantapateshoenicca),ubies, and red flowers. Recitethe uidtlannn-

fra called

"brum."

A king's daughter wil l c ome under

your power. Divine.

maidens,

nagt girls,

humans

-

any kind of girl you want

-

daughters

of

Brahmins, wornen

as

they should be,

those with the best

of

bodies, wil l

[all]

adore you. They will follow

your orders

ike

slavegirls.

This

and lim-

it less

other

wonderful things.

Real ize

hese hings

by depending

on i rnages.

Merely

worship ing

them will fulf i l l

[your

wishes].

Or

make an image

of Canapati out of precious

ewels.

Let

t

rest upon

a

nrandsla.

You must

recite

the

uidVttcalled

"rstnosiddhi"

one

hundred

thousand times. Treasure

mines beneath

the

earth wil l be rc.vealed. ny-

thing you wish for, you will enjoy.

ClnyfgyEktt t r: TlrcMandala

of

Mnlmgntroptati

Now t he great

glorious Ganapati

s the

great wrathful one, thr.

ierce

one, hirn

having

the

l-reart

f a Buddha and thc-heaclof an animtrl.

He is

clrnamentedwith a young elephant's

iead, has hree

eyes,

our tusks, four

arms, ancl our legs. He

sits

enthrorred

on

tr arge

nngri.

His

first left

ftrancl]

lrolds

a

white

tusk.

In

the hand]

beneath

t there s

a noose.

On

the

right]

he holds

an axe and a trident. His stomachand tus ks are

dark blue. Make

this kind of

Ga4rapati

mage of bell metal

(knrlrsn)

ncl molten

brorrze

sar-

akant).

Consecrate

t

on

the day

of

Pusya.

Now seekout a spot for erecting he nsrtdnlo o

do contemplaticln ncl

propi t ia t ion. Draw

out

the nwndala

descr ibed

n

the ninth chapter.

I t

should have doors arrd portzrls. n the

center,

on

an eight-petaled otus,

Canapati stands upon theobjectdesired. The mage]must be place'd top

a

moon

seat, not being separraterom

the consort. Her

name

is Arcikari,

the adamantine

pig-facedwoman

(rdtt

c

phnggdtntg ur).

Shecarries

n

he r

hands

an

axe

and a bsnds ull of

blood,

which she feeds

to the principal

deity

(Canapati)

[Verse

endsl.

In the yellow

eastern

section

[of

the ma4lalal

sits the Lord of

the

Three Realms

holding

a radish and a knife. In the

blue southern

section

sits

the great

black ynkgaAdamantine Lips

(rdo

rje

mchu) with the face

of

Mahadeva, holding

a

staff

and

hammer.

In the red western

section sits the

red

vak.qn

ing named Lord

of Clouds

(sprin

gvibda.q)

olding a water-filled


18/46

248 ChristophuWilkinson

cloud bank and a noose. In the

green

northern

section sits the green

yakga

lord

called Abode

of

Wealth

(nor

gnas) arrying

a

club and

a

jeweled

staff.

In

the white northeastern section sits the

black

Vinayaka with an ele-

phant's head,

carrying

a

tricient

and

a

radish. In the

red southeastern sec-

tion is the black Lord

of Hungry Chosts

(yi

dagskyi

bdagpo) called Wrath

(dragpo)

arrying

an

axeand an entire skull.

In

the black southwestern sec-

tion l l luminatress of Clouds (s1trin Vi sgron ma) holds in both hands a

cloud bank with lightning bolts in it. In

the

black northwestern

section is

the

king

of

Obstacles called Remover of

Obstacles Twisted Trunk

(Log-

'drerr

sna yon, Vokratundnuinatlal


19/46

green yaksa

staff.

with

an

ele-

ec -

Wrath

sec-

hands

a

st-ction

s

Trunk

(Lo.q-

a

tri-

are

served

adma,

1ul

khor

door

rnam

thtts

and

green.

ar e

the

c'lraw-

at .

Make

i t

r-rtter.

a

corpse's

each

of

the

oi f ish

or

the

eight

are

no t

be

offr.red

the

skul l

nd yrrrlqs

must

be

at

al l .

Vru

syllable

f the

triple

uni-

The

ThntricCaneis

249

verse. They melt into

light

and are absorbed into t he original Hum. Maha-

ganapati arises

[from

the

Huryl for the sake of

living

beings. He

is

a great

terror

whose form

is

fear. His consort and

retinue

emerge

as

well.

From

the

letter Bheand

their

[respective]

names

the eight

kings and eight nngasarise

like bodhisat tvas. The k inp;s arise looking like the wra thful

one. Conjure

them forth with light: [The light] emanates out and gathers [the deities]

with a

Dzn and

a

Dza;they are drawn down with

vast hooks,

and the

rroll-

tra Hum

and Hum, thus endowing

them with efficaciousness. Then wor-

ship

and

offer

a bali,which must be augmented with the heart mantra &a/i-

gyilnnakn.

ChaptcrThirtcut: Tftc

Mantras

of tht Grt:at

Yakgas

Now

the

king of mqntros

s

counted

[by

first recitingl the vowels

and

consonants.The

f i rst

of the

fourth is

wr i t ten

af ter

that .

The f i f th

of

the

fourth is

put

in the

row.

Then

contemplate he

wish-fulf i l l ing gem

letter.

Recite

he

f irst

mark

of

the

Tathagata.

Ornament it with the

eight

vowels

[p.

20abl.

Put

together he syllablesof conjuration and the syllables

of

the

wind element with t lre second

vowel,

and

it is known

as

"The

King

of

Vic-

torious

Ones."

The secorrd owel should be con

oined

to the wish-fulf i l l ing gem syl-

lable. Then

write the

syllable

of the sun

and

the

fifth

of the fourth.

Orna-

ment thc-

etter that

is the fourthof the

second

with the fourth

vowel. Con-

jo in

the let ter that is the

f i f th

of

the th i rd t o the fourth

of

the

f i f th.

Ornament the letter that is the first of the fourth with

the

for"rrth owel.

Subfoin the syllable

of

the

wind element.

Recite he precious gem letter

and the

action letter at the end. This basic nntrtrs

of

Mahaganapati s the

real izcr

of

every wish.

The nmntrtts f the eight Yaksrrs,

Yri '

etc. ;

"h

Yai' etc.;

"Bary)'

etc. ;

"Vinayakai'

etc.;

"Bairai'

etc.;

"Hutr.r"

and

"7iii'the

eighth being,

"Hu

j'

are

grourrded art he end

with

"Phnti 'which

is the essence

f

life. The nntt ras

for the naccscome from their nan les. They slrould have C)nl at the begin-

ningl and Hum

Phnt

[at

the endl. The nnntras

of the great

kings

are the

matira called

"Bhaii

the

orre called

"Bhii 'and

the

one called

"Bhn '

Chnyttcr

ourtcerr: hc Wrathiul Mantra

The rnsrftrs

hat conjures up the

object

of proprit iation

s

Ya

and ksa

and ks and

ms and ha

and

bnirshhsi; ri and rn and

ca

with ietrunJ

nrijnnitln.

I t

must

be

reciteclmany

times.

Take hold

of

the-enemy's

effigy with the msntrss

of

the

eight tlaksns.

Then

burn the

effigy.

Then

leave he e-ffigy.

I

I

1


20/46

250 Christopher

Wilkinson

The

king of

hidden msntrasis

Yaand

kgnand

kn and Ia

ma, and

ha and

bherabhe,

eaayaksa

yama

and naga

naga,

all

[recited]

together.

The entire

mass of

enemies,

whoever

they

are,

must be

admonished

by saying

"'Ya

Ya

Ya '

Now

the secret

of secret

mantras

is Ma and

ha and bhersbhe,

yaksa,

etc.,

as above.

Then

recite

the following

$aya

cur4a

cur1a tralaya,

nagayakn-

tramaraya,

hanacakra

wice;

then say

"You,

O

so and

so, maraya

phat

phnl."

Chnpter

F fteen

Praising Ganapnt

Now

for another

wrathful

msntra:

Ory

uighna

phibabhrla araa

uidtlaai-

sayahr.idamataqa

hum cidu

patu

damarutaya,

onahans

Srigana

grihana,

aacn

aacs,bhrahms

bhrqhmo

bhrahmaya

hrahmaya

hum hwn phat

phat

Make an

image of

Mahavinayaka

out

of bell

metal or

copper' Con-

secrate

t and worship

it. Put an

image of your

enemy

beneath

it; make

him

the foot

mat of Ganapat i .

There

is no doubt

th is

enemy

wi l l d ie-

These

yogic

techniques

are

mentioned

on account

of

great

necessity.

Make

an image

of Ganapati

out

of sandalwood

or precious

jewels.

Perform a consecration

and

offer

up worship

[Verse

ends].

If you desire

to

stop

hail, make

images of

the

lords of

hail, the

wind god,

and the

water

god; make an image of a cloud and an image of a dragon. Then place them

beneath Ganapat i

as a seat .

magine they

are

beneath yoursel f

as wel l .

When

you recite

msntrss

ike the

one called

"hikncnndrrti ' the

hail

wil l be

stopped.

Scatter

white

mustard

see$

all around.

I f

you

want

to send

down

hail, draw

out

a ma4dalaof

water

and

clouds.

Medi tate

on

Mahaganapat i

id ing a dragon.

lmagine

him

to be

your servant.

For the secret

ritual implements

use

iron

filings, gold

filings,

and copper

filings.

Knead

them

with

rain water

and

rice flour.

Make

it into

shapes

ust

the size

of

the

hail you

want. Smear

them

with blood.

Make

seven

of

these]

and

many

[bunches

of]

seven.

Pour them

into the

skull of

a crow.

It must

be covered

with

clouds.

The

mantrs

must be written

on the

crow's

skull

three

times.

The ritual

implements

for the image

must also

be

set crut.

when

you recite

one

hundred

thousand

msntras

ike the one

called

"brunl

brwn bharigatla"

and there actually aPPear inside the crow's skull

three

or seven

or eight

hail stones,

hen carry

it to your

enemy's

and

an d

recite

he mantra;

the

hail]

wil l fall.

If it doesn't

fall,

turn the

image

of Ganapati

upside

down.

Hide it

in

the

center of

your enemy's

ocale with

its feet

up.

It is

absolutely

certain

the

hail wil l

fall.

It wil l approximate

he size

of a ktlantako

ird's

egg.

the red-

colored

testicles

of

a deer, or

a fruit;

and it will

fall for a

long time.

The crop-

destroying

msntra

s called

"Bruqrl 'I f

you

want to stop

[the

hail], you must


21/46

and

Ya

laksa,

"

rti-

ncg

him

o

hem

be

and

o

be

into

of

the

be

d

t i n

the

The

Thntric

Ganr:itt

25I

remove

the image

and crow['s skull], for hail

will

fall

every

day as long as

they remain.

You

must offer worship to the

image

of Ga4apati and recite

108

osaries

of the mantraperfectly

from

its

beginning to

its

end

on a

rosary

made

from

precious gems. Lustrate he image

and beseech

t to

remain

in

the

center

of

its tttondola

prose

ends].

These

and

limitless

other excellent things

are

the

works

of Ganapati.

Homage,

O delightful,

glorious Ganapati

Homage,

great, glorious,

peaceful, and wrathful one

The

Ganapatitantra alled

"The

Arising

of

Attainments"

is

finished.

The

Indian sageDipamkarasr i jnana

came

to

Tibet ]

carrv ing

I th is

text]

from

lndia

for

the sake

of

worldly

attainments. It was

entrusted

to

rGyal

ba'i

'byung

gnas.

This Thntra ulf i l ls

one'swishes.

B.

Iconographical

ext

The Mnhnztiniynkn

upL)pedgSs

intrtratrn ncludes not

only an icono-

graphical

account

of GaneSa, ut

a

mantric

practice o go with it.

In

the

Indian

language:

Mnhauinayaka

Rupa Upadein Ratna

In

the

Tibetan language:

bGegs bdag Chenpo'i

sKu bri ba'i Man

ngag Yid bzhin Nor

bu

lln

the

English language:

The

eutel

of

Instructions

on the Fortn

of The Great Lord of

Obstaclesl

Homage to the

gloric'rusVajradakini

Bowing

to Cakrasamvara,draw

an

icor-r

Of

the

great Lord of

Obstacles

The

msndqla f the elemental

spirits must be attained

By putting the

eight

of

fourteen

black hings

On such spe'cial

urfaces s

Cotton from the earth

of

Playful

Cover

(T.

rol

eyo.qs)

Cotton that has beenpiercedby weapons,

Cotton

whose meat has been

destroyedby insects,

Or

the

skin of an ox.

The

one

who

makes

he

picture

Possesses

he

commitments.

It must

be drawn by practitioners.

It has

four corners and four

doors.

I t is

well endowed with door

protectors.

I

a

4


22/46

Ch

istouher

W ilki

nsor

The

good qualities of all attainments abide

in

it .

It is full

of

the

five good qualities of desire.

Thinkers must draw

the ma4lala

ornamenting

it with

the

five

offer-

ings.

The center of all manddas s

encircled

with a line

And

is

most beaut i fu l .

Draw an eight-petaled

lotus.

Worship it with red flowers.

Fill it

with boli that are suitable for

worshiping,

Such as

special kinds

of perfume and incense,

[vesselsl

i l led

with

the five ambrosias,

ish, meat, and beer.

The great Wrathful

One

in

the center of this

Has one

face

and four arms.

Tl're usks on his faceare a

bit

sharp.

His wrathful mouth is smiling.

His supreme

body

is

blue and

is

a great

fright.

He

is

well ornamented with

a

rosary of

skulls.

He rides a hungry

ghost

(S.

yn'cta, .

yi

dags)

And sits upon

a

sun.

He brings fear

to

[the

heaven

of]

the

Thirty Three,

Tusita.

He h olds a garment made frorn theskin of a t iger.

He has

three eyes

and has

a fine

form.

He holds three

banners,

a flanting

uajra,

A skull,

and

a ntudra.

Likewise

hc

holds n his right and le.ft }nas

A bow

and

an

arrow-

Ortt

uajrakrota

dnki

hunl plmt.

This is

recited.

In front

of this is the great Lord of

Obstacle.s.

His l ight blazes n

great splendor.

Draw him with twelve l 'rands nd

heirrgmost fearful.

On

eight

petals

there

are eight

yrik-ias.

Draw th e great Lord

of

Obstacles

iust

as he

is .

First make the proper sort of cotton.

Then make an artist

of

divinit ies who has

he prclperhappy character

So that he will

draw

it

attractively.

Then an expert at consecration

endowed with blessings

Must perform

the

ceremony

of consecration

n

the proper way,

Using arry

equired

offering

substances hat

are

possible.

Facing

a

vast

space

Fiercely

generate

benevolence,

ompassion and

hodlticittn.

W

T

If

Y

T

T

A

I

S

I

T

posed

I

Gyi

io

C.

T

gfor

n

4e5a

bali

o

an en

Gan

able

delio

and

Bra

ftici

pre

pea


23/46

offer-

with

The

Thntric

Grurcis 253

Worship and dedication

must

be

performed

extensively.

This

is

a wish-fulfilling

jewel.

If

you continually

worship,

Your needs and desires will come

forth.

This

is

the instruction of the icon.

The mandaln

of

the elemental spirits is to be attained,

And when you do one hundred thousand recitations,

[Gaaapati]

wil l come before you

in

actuality.

Set up an

in-rage

nd worship

it .

It

is

proclaimed that then

your needs and

desires will

all

come

forth.

The

czoel

of Instructitttts tut the Form

ttf

the Greot Lord of Obstaclescorn-

posed by

the

great

master

Nag-po-pa

is finished.

It was translated

by

the

great Pandita Gayadhara and the

translator

Cy i j t r Z l aba ' i

Od

ze r .

C. TheBali Cuemonrl

The

Arya

ga4apatibali aidhi describes he

nraking

and use of a bnli

(T.

gtor mn).

This

form of offering

is

essential to

every Thntric

practice of

Ga-

4e6a. ts mportance s demonstratednt l t only by the frequent reference o

bali

offerings

n the texts dealingwith Gane6a

but

also

n

the occurrenceof

an entire text devoted o

this

offering.

In

the

India'ir language:

Ar yagan apa t ba I u dh

i

In

the

Tibetan language:

'Phags

pa Tshogs kyi

bDag

po'i gTbr

ma'i Cho

ga

lln

the

English

language:

The Bali

Ceremony of

the Noble

Ganapatil

Homage to t l-r e lorious Vajradakini

It is desirable to offer hsli, for one must

perfectly

please he noble

Ganapati.

First, f i l l

a perfect

vesselmade

of precit 'rus

ewels

with

such eat-

ables

and

drinkables

of perfect

color, aste, and

scent

as

husked

rice,

dan-

delion, the three whites, the three sweets,

white

pastries,

adishes,

beef,

and grapes, lren place

t

before

you.

Sit on a comfor table mat, and then contemplate

he

four abodes

of

Brahma, go

for

refuge

o

the

three'

jewels],

and generate he supreme Bod-

hicitta.Then mec-lita te n

the

self lessness

f

all dharnns.

Think

that

from a Bhum

appears]

r

spacious

and vast vesselmade

of

precious

ewels,

nside of which

Ithere

appearsf a Khanl rom which

[ap-

pearsl food

of

a

hundrecl

f lavors which fi l ls

[ the

vessel] to overflowing.

a

h


24/46

254

ChristopherWilktnson

Bless t with the three thusnesses

(T.

de nyid

gsum)

and

"Om

Aksromukham

saruadhnrmanarpdyanutpananatunt ryt

A Hum Phat

Saahal'

Then

concentrate

on

the seed

syllable n

your

own heart. The light

of

this summons the noble Ganapati of

Wisdom.

Then

visualize

him in front

[of

you].

Then

show

the

nrudra.

Make

offerings

with

"Ory

nnma utel Namah

gnhnasatayel

dam

bali

kh{l

khakhahi khnhisaahai'and think that by this he enjoys

[the

offering] unto

satisfaction and then

is pleased.

Then

say

these words:

I

of fer wi thout any grasping

Such attractions of

the

ten directions' gods and

men

As frui ts,

medicine,

ewels,

Pastries, adishes,

beef,

Grapes, wine, husked rice, and dandelions.

You,

O

Protector, eat these things

Through

your

total love

of

me

For I

beg you

to be pleased

And

make

it so that

all

my works come to fruition

Make it so that obstructions are well pacified

Then

praise

him perfect ly with words

of

praise. Then recite as many

rosariesof

root mantros

nd

spells

as you are able.

Then

you must pray for

the object

of your

desire.

\

Then request the

Wisdom

One

(T.

t1c hcs

pa) to depart. Thoroughly

dedicate the roots of

merit

that

have been

accumulated and

recite the

one

hundred

syllable

mo

ntral.

The Bali

Ccrcmonrl

f tha NoblcCnnnpsf

[by

which]

the great

master

found supreme attainment, composed

by

Nag-po

zhabs

(Krsnapada),

s

finished.

Translated

by the

Pa4dita

Gayadhara and

the translator

Gyi

Jo

Zla

ba'i 'Od zer.

D. TheFireCuemonies

The

Vinayakn

homnaidhi prabhasana nd the An lt ganapatihomouitlhi

are

highly

cryptic texts

related to the use

of Gane6a

for fire

offerings

(S.

homq,T. spyan sreg).

There

are

no available

commentaries on the texts to

assist n their interpretation

and

translation. A study of

Gane6a

n this role

using these exts

s

certainly necessary,

ut must

await

future

attention.

E. Ganeia san

Eail Demon

The Vinayakn

graha nirmocana

descrlbes how the practitioner can

es-

cape

the sorrows caused

by the evil

demon Vinayaka.

No

iconographical


25/46

of

ont

khr

unto

many

one

s

Zla

airlhi

to

role

es-

'flrc

ThntricGnneia

255

description of

the demon is present n

the

text,

and it is not

possible

o

be

completely

certain that the

demon in question

is

truly Gane6a; yet the

name he

shares

with Cape6a

s of sufficient

value to warrant inclusion

of

the

text in this article.

f

it

is GaneSa hat

is

being

referred o

here,

the

de -

tailed description

of the harm

he

causes

s highly

interesting

or an

insight

into Cane6a's ole as a dernonic ord.

In the

Indian language:

Vinayaka

graha nirmo cana

In the

Tibetan language:

Log'dren gyi

gDon /as Nges par TIur pa

lln

the

English language:

Freedom

from

Vinnuakal

Homage to

the glorious

Vajrapa4i

One

who desires

freedom

from

the Vindyaka

demon

(T.

.qdon)

f

the

world must , to begin

with, know t he signs.

If smells come

out

of

a body of

common family,

when one

is wearirrgbaclclothing,

when one has

for

fbod

the

leftoversof

others,

when

one is a

woman or a child,

when

one

is

ex -

creting or urinating, whc'n one s abiding nakedly, or on the fifth and four-

teentl-r ays of the

waning

m()on

or

on the nL'w

moon it starts.The signs of

it start ing are

groaning, smoke,

one'swealth being squandered,

one

is

no t

attractive

o others,

if one is a

man

one

does not

find

a woman,

if

one is

a

woman one does

not f ind a

man, if 8ne does businessclne

ails, one

is

no t

born in a p;orlcl

and, or even

if one finds a wom


26/46

256 Clristopher

Wilkinstttr

Sadhanns

re here translated:

(1)

he Garwpat i adhnna sridrs

nidhipradn,

2)

the

Srt ujna

tiniuttrtaganpati sddhans,

3)

the Vinoyakt-raja

satlhana,

a)

the

Sri gonnpotiidrttiscrdhsrut,

nd

(5)

the Carppnti sonut/oguhrp

sndlunn.

In t he Indian

language:

Ganapoti sadhans

daridira nidhiprada nama

In

the

Tibetan language:

Tshogs bdag gi bsGrub pa dbul ba'i gTer sBqin Shesbus ba

lln

the English language:

The Prwititttion of

Ganapnti

that

Giaes the

Tieasure

of

thc Poorl

The pract i t ioner possessing he commitments

(S.

Snt rrnya,T.

ant

fslrir;)who desires

o e.rttainhe

enjoyment

of thc' ull gift of all desired pur-

poses

lrrough the works

of

Ganapati makes

a round nrm.tdda

hat is

very

evern,

ike

the

facc

of a

mirror, in a mentally satisfying building. Make

it

of

bltre color,

ust

two cubits irr size, and irr the blrrediagrarn inside it

[put]

the main syllablc's

n

a circle,

and

inside

them write

the Essertcc

f Gonnpati

with golcl.Then draw the mage of Ganapati on

blue cotton

anclconsecrate

it. The.n oll up

a

variety

of

silks

anclput the'm nside.

Inside

the heart of a

monkey

[put ]

gold

-

which

comes

from the

eirrth, as

malnyprecious

ewcls

as you

find,

arrd as

mally

kincls of nreat as

you f ind; ant l p lace i t on top of t he matrdsln.Fasten a rope made of

wrapped-up elephant

hai r and nrorrkey ra i r .

Clear ly

medi tate that the

boclyctrlor and

nurdri

of Canapati

are upon

lthis

nmndrilol.

Establishyourself n thc priq[er f being

Vidarana,

then

recite

"Nunro

rntnttrntl it l trlOn Ca Sualull"

r

t lrousancl

housands

Itimesl

witlror"rt eing

distracted bv ot hers,

ancl think that Ganapat i gives you e njoyments rtc-

cording t l

your

desi r t ' .

On the eighth of

the w. rx ing

I rnoonl

or

t l re e ighth

of the

w,ani rrg

ImoonJ

of fer

an

ext remclv

f ine

Canapat i l ra l i

hat

has

var ious k inds

of

meat, butter, darrdeliorr, rrd

varirlusworrclerful astes; nd

pray

for

the ob-

ject

of

your

desire.

t

is

not

pr()per hat

uthers sec his.

'l-1rc

Propititttittn tf

Canplti tlnt Ciucs lrt"lit'ttsurt'of thc Poor, omposed

by Dipamkerrabl-radr.r

T.

Mar me nrDz.rcl

>Zang

po) and aclvicc

or

those

who clesire

wealth

ar.rd ood,

is f inished.

In the

Indian language:

Sn Alna Viniasrta Ganapati

Sadhanam

In th e Tibetan language:

dPal

Tshogs

kvi

bDag po

'lur

bgegs Sel

bo Shes

bya ba'i sGrub

thabs

IIn

the English language:

Clearing the

Obstscles of

Entanglement:

The

Method of Practice

for

thc

Glorious Gannpatil


27/46

a,

2)

4)

the

. t lonr

pur-

s very

t o f

t

[put]

f Gtunpnti

from

th e

meat as

made of

hat thc '

"Nunut

bcing

.tc-

wanir.rg

kinds

of

or the ob-

omposed

or those'

habs

for

the

"l'|rc'Iitntric

Gnrrcsn 257

Homage to the ClreatCompassionateOne

Paying reverent

hclmage o the manifestation

Of

he who cont inually

holds

All sentient beings

with ecluanimouscompassion,

Canapati,

I wil l explain the secret

method of practice.

First set up an image of Canapati.

[Draw]

the

Noble One on a

horsehide

or f ine

cotton

With a body

color hat

is

white l ike snow.

He has

three f;rces, ix arms, and four legs.

The faces

are an elephant's,a rat's, and a morrkey's.

In his right hands

are a radish, a

jewel,

and a

sword.

His left

Iholds]

a pastry, a skull full of beer, and

an axe.

His rig ht leg is

stre.tched ut, his left drawn in.

The other two

flegsl

are crossed n a good bent-knee

posit ion.

Beneath him the goddess ' leasure

Woman

(dGar

.:to),

Who has

the faceof a monkey,

Must

sink

irr

about

half

of the Noble

One's secrr.t.

As foot supports

she

h;rs

wo goddesses.

Jewels all from this consort 'smouth.

They fall into vessels

Tir emove he

practit ioner'spoverty and fulf i l l his hopes.

Tl-ris

must be drawn under the

great

stars.

[Drawl

with

lqi

?rrrlqon tht

fo; ;

sidesof it

TitdtlothoINarnoh

tutt'uttr.to1utiI sttn ktttnI Mnt\danmdtlsI

Rsdds nddolDaln tlilml

Grihrn grihnnl Bhnnjo tlnfijal l',lotrtsh

tutcl

Gtr.tusurtiLtrucuttttvl

ttnhnlOry

A

blrunl rsttitutbuklnrfirrct, lwrs

Iilr snn goc hn Hnhntlu Mth fi m ks

o ut oprlv nnryt, Ku

u

kurul Curu curtt l Murrunurul l" lontttt t rrrt rt

t, i lull

Write

it many times and increasc t.

IJehinclt

you

must

writc the krng spell.

For

the consecration,put before

the

drawirrgl

A white nrst.tdslt ith eightpetals.

Thcn

on sandalwood hat has

been e.rnointed ith water

Arrange

white f lowers n

separatcbunches.

Worship

the Noble One with beer, adish,

pastry, husked grain,

dan-

delion,

etc.

J'hen make

yourself

[ inkr]

a trrtelarycieity

And recite

his ttmtrtrn.

Om Cnrn

Gnrm1nti rnnn ntrttt iddlt i l

Co go gn

go

S/rS,/

gttgo Ga.taTtntit dhal

)

4


28/46

258

ChristoPhuWilkinson

Apply

this

to

the

sign

of

the

number'.

You

will

gain

attainment

in one

month'

Then,

to

worshiP

the

image,

Wrap

a

human

lbg

in

the

middle

of

a

piece

of silk'

And

inserting

it

[into

the

vessel]

with

your

hand

in the

early

morn-

irg,

Offer a hali:

O4t

Gam

Ganapati

stnn

siddhil

Ca

ga ga

ga

8a

ga

g qa.t.

Ga4apnti

uahil

Om

Gam

Ganapati

bslittt

akhtthi

hshil

You

must

offer

this

with

the

nnntra

of

seven

[syllables]'

Then

make

praises

using

this

msntrLt:

Ory

Ga4apat'i

atns

ratns

ratnn

siddhi

nutma

ttdlw

rodhsl

Goaopotii

Ga

ga

ga

ga

ga

ga

gn

ga

kn[a

knta

satthttl

Ganapati

ratnn

pustiknio

itqti

nistct

unhnl

Ganapati

iddhi

taiitu

ur u

rota

r;to

suahal

Gannpsti

ntsns

baugata

rihna

grihrta

suahnl .

Your

mental

aspirations

will

be

completed

By

reciting

this

108

imes'

Afterueaching

the

state

of

a

universal

monarch

You will find wealth without effort'

You

will

attain

this

without

the

necessity

of

making

a profit'

For

this

reason

you

must

strive

to

loffetl

bali

By

the

merit

of

composing

this

meth.od

of

practice

ortn"Nobleonewhoc|earsdtvayal l theobstaclesofentanglement

May

I have

power

over

the

wealth

of

the

world

And

obtain

the

unexcelled

esult '

Themethodofpract ic ingtheNobleGanapat ica| |ed.Clear ingtheob-

stacles

f

EntanglcmrJf

o-po'"d

by

the

great

master

Indrabodhi

is

fin-

ished.

I t was t rans l a t edby t heg t ea t p t ud i t aD ipa r . nka ra6 r i j nanaand t he

translator

Gya

brTson'grus

Seng

ge

at

Yam

bu

Gar

ta

ri '

In

the

Indian

language:

Vlnayaknna

Raia

Sadhanary

In

the

Tibetan

language:

bGegs

kyi

rGYaI

Po'i

sGrub

thabs

lln

the

English

language:

The

Methoit

of

Practice

of

the

King

of

Obstaclesl

Homage

to

the

glorious

Vajradakini

T hem ed i t a t o rs " t r i ves t omakegood inaw i t ch ' s (S ' m a t ykn 'T ' m am o)

house

or

a

delightful

place

by

concentratinp;

on

an

icon'

The

intelligent

one


29/46

morn-

Oh-

in -

the.

mtt)

one

TheThntric

Garleia

259

begins

by

making offerings

so that

the

dancer

(T.

gar

n*hnn)

will always

remain bound.

The glorious Ga4apati

abides with

his right leg

stretched

forth.

IIis

red

body

color flames

with red light and

trembles in redness. He has one

face. He has

three eyes. His elephant

head holds the crown ornament

of

braided hair

(T.

ral

pn).

His tusks are sharp.

He is short in

stature, but fat

and

bulky.

His stomach

s twisting and

large. He is extremely

fearsome. He

is ornamented with every

ornament.

He has twelve

hands.

The first on

the

right

holds an axe, the second

a staff,

the

third

a bow, the fourth a

khat-

zumka,

he

fifth an

iron

hook, and

the sixth a skull

full

of

blood. The first

on

the left holds a uajra,

he second a sword,

the

third

a skull

full

of great

things, the fourth a small

radish, the

fifth a trident, and the sixth a

roped

spear. He

sits

on the throne

of a sun and

red lotus.

Ory gah

gaft siddhi

siddhi

saruaarthn me prnsadhn

rum hum

nh ah

suaha.

This is the_invoking mantra.

Om Ah GaftHu4t

Saaha. his is the recit ing

mnntro.

You

will gain

attainment by one

hundred thousand

[recitations],

an d

thereafter

works will be perfectly

initiated.

Make a circle, reciting

the whole

fmantra]

at one time. If

fortunate

matra practitioners see t, they

witl

delight.

Ycruwill receive p;reathomage

at

the door of the king, and

all

your

enemies

will be frightened.

All

Obsta-

cles

will be exorcised.The

fruit ion of all your

desireswill b e granted.

This

will come to

passwithout any doubt at all.

This ceremony

s

true practiceiWitches

are the supreme

gainers

of

attainment

The

MethLtd

f

Practice

t'

he

Glorious

King of Obsfaclcs omposed by

the

master Nag po sPyod pa,

who found

the

austerit ies

of attainment,

is f in-

ished.

This was translated

bv the PanditaGayadhara

and the tr anslator Gvi

io

Zlaba'i 'Od

zer.

Mangalar.n.

s"i:;:;:;o;:;,,:::;:,q;;",*

In the

Tibetan

language:

dPal Tshogskyi bDag po Shi ba'i sGrub thabs

lln

the

English

language:

Thc

Practice

Method of the

Peaceful,

Glorious Ga4spatil

Homage tcl he Lord of the Wcrrld Avalokite6vara

First

anoint a four-cornered

mandalnwith the five

things

from

a cow

in a secluded and at tractive place. Sprinkle

it

with

medicine and

good-

A

h


30/46


31/46

Set

flour

Each

mage

or a

to

.

top

here

an ele-

axe. n his

e

is

orna-

hrone of

a

hen

clffer-

Om

brunt

will

wil l

nd

yor"r

will

s ix-month

person

ret reat ] ,

men,

t.

i t and

s

Thc

Thntric

Ga4ast

267

Give

the practitioner

the

rulership

of

the

King

of Gods

From

that

individual

of

extreme

compassion

Comes

the greatly

compassionate

great

Ga4apati

Protect

the poor

with

great

compassion

I myself,

through

faith,

praise

in

homage

You,

great

God

of

Wealth

The glory-endowed

great Ga4aPati

Uas

wnlie

body-colttr

and

the

head

of

an elephant'

In

his

right

hand

he holds

a

radish'

In

his left

he holds

a wish-fulfilling

gem'

In

his lower

[hands]

he holds

an axe

and

a

Klwta

Documents

The Tantra of the Great Ganapati - Ganesh in Tibet by Christopher Wilkinson S.U.N.Y.-libre