This study lays no claim to originality. It offers no thesis nor interpretations, but allows the Shingon texts to speak for themselves. It is solely concerned to present the theories and practices connected with the two mandalas as understood by the shingon sadhakas. It is a compendium of translations and paraphrases of materials from three primary and three secondary sources: the Mahavairocana-sutra (Dainichikyo) the vajra-sekhara sutra (Kongochokyo) Subhakarasimha’s (Zemmui’s) Dainichikyosho (“Commentary on the Mahavairocana sutra”), the Mikkyo Daijiten (“A Dictionary of Esoteric Buddhism”) the Bukkyo Daijiten (“A Dictionary of Buddhism”) and Toganoo Shoun’s Mandara no Kenkyu (“Studies in the Mandala”)
The Study has four parts:
Part: The first locates the two Mandalas in the theoretical and practical setting of Esoteric Buddhism. It discusses some of the principal features of Shingon doctrine and Ritual; it describes two important rituals as examples of esoteric Buddhist practice; it examines the Homa rituals, the performance of which is the main practice of the sect and recurrently referred to in the literature dealing with the two Mandalas; and it gives a brief description of Buddhist cosmology, necessary for an understanding of the cosmological references in the Mndalas.
Part 2: the Second part of the study looks at several general considerations concerning the two Mandalas: their transmission, the meaning of the term mandala and the relation of the two mandalas to each other.
Part 3: The third part looks at the meanings of the Matrix Mandala and its several Mansions.
Part 4: This analyses the Diamond World Mandala and its Nine Assemblies.
I thank Prof. Lokesh Chandra for his kind offer to publish this work in the Sataptaka Series. The Manuscripts is as I presented it to him, complete with faults. The responsibility for scholarly and typographical errors and for solecisms and errors of translation and understanding is entirely my own.
List of Illustrations | vii | |
Preface | xviii | |
Part 1 | Prolegomention: Esteric Doctrine and Practice | |
1 | The characteristics of the Esoteric Doctrine | 1 |
2 | The Esoteric Doctrine of Non-duality | 12 |
3 | The Three Universals and Practice | 33 |
4 | The Meditation on the Bodhimanda | 59 |
5 | The Meditation on the Body Composed of the Five forms | 77 |
6 | The Homa Rituals | 82 |
7 | The Buddhist Cosmology | 97 |
Part 2 | The Two Mandals | |
8 | The Line of Transmission of the Two Mandalas | 111 |
9 | The Word Mandala in the Mahavairocana-sutra | 120 |
10 | The Relationship of the Two Mandalas | 124 |
11 | The layout of the Two Mandalas | 142 |
Part 3. | The Matrix Mandala | |
12 | The Laying Out of the Matrix Mandala | 152 |
13 | The Subhakarasimha and Amoghavajra Interpretations of the Matrix Mandala | 171 |
14 | The Genzu Matrix Mandala | 183 |
15 | The Layers of the Mandala and the Buddha Bodies | 187 |
16 | The Layers of the Mandala and the Stages to Awakening | 193 |
17 | The Three Sections of the Matrix Mandal | 201 |
18 | The Central Dais Eight Petal Mansion | 207 |
19 | The Five Buddhas and the Four Bodhisattavas of the Central Mansion | 215 |
20 | The Universal Knowledge Mansion | 251 |
21 | The Mansion of t he Mantra Holders | 269 |
22 | The Avalokitesvara Mansion | 284 |
23 | The Vajrapani Mansion | 313 |
24 | The Sakyamuni Mansion | 335 |
25 | The Manjusri Mansion | 378 |
26 | The Sarva-nivarana-Viskambhi Mansion | 392 |
27 | The Ksitigarbha Mansion | 406 |
28 | The akasagarbha Mansion | 417 |
29 | The Susiddhi Mansion | 445 |
Part 3 | The Matrix Mandala (Cont.) | |
30 | The Mansion of the External Vajra Section | 454 |
Part 4 | The Diamond World Mandala | |
31 | The Nine Assemblies | 555 |
32 | Different Paintings of the Diamond World Mandala | 565 |
33 | The Two Revelations of the Diamond World Mandala | 570 |
34 | The Layout of the Perfected Body Assembly | 576 |
35 | The Buddhas of the Perfected Body Assembly | 590 |
36 | The Attendant Bodhisattvas: the four Paramita Bodhisattavas | 598 |
37 | The Bodhisattavas of Reciprocal Offering | 620 |
38 | The thousand Buddhas of the Bhadrakalpa | 634 |
39 | The Section of Outside the Vajras | 637 |
40 | The Samaya Assembly | 644 |
41 | The subtle Assembly | 665 |
42 | The Offerings Assembly | 674 |
43 | The Four Seals Assembly | 685 |
44 | The One Seal Assembly | 695 |
45 | The Naya Assembly | 703 |
46 | The Trailokyavijaya Assembly and the Trailokyavijaya Samaya assembly | 716 |
Appendices | ||
1 | The Fifty Two Bodhisattva Stages | 728 |
2 | Initiation | 732 |
3 | The Samaya Forms of the Five Buddhas and the Four Bodhisattvas of the Central Mansion | 735 |
4 | The Seed Syllables of the five Buddhas and Four Bodhisattvas of the Central mansion | 741 |
5 | The Mudras and Dharanis of the Five Buddhas and Four Bodhisattvas of the Central Mansion | 747 |
6 | The Kaji Enjoyment Body and the fundamental Ground Body | 763 |
Bibliography | 766 | |
Index of Names | 771 | |
General Index | 795 | |
Index of Texts Cited | 835 |
This study lays no claim to originality. It offers no thesis nor interpretations, but allows the Shingon texts to speak for themselves. It is solely concerned to present the theories and practices connected with the two mandalas as understood by the shingon sadhakas. It is a compendium of translations and paraphrases of materials from three primary and three secondary sources: the Mahavairocana-sutra (Dainichikyo) the vajra-sekhara sutra (Kongochokyo) Subhakarasimha’s (Zemmui’s) Dainichikyosho (“Commentary on the Mahavairocana sutra”), the Mikkyo Daijiten (“A Dictionary of Esoteric Buddhism”) the Bukkyo Daijiten (“A Dictionary of Buddhism”) and Toganoo Shoun’s Mandara no Kenkyu (“Studies in the Mandala”)
The Study has four parts:
Part: The first locates the two Mandalas in the theoretical and practical setting of Esoteric Buddhism. It discusses some of the principal features of Shingon doctrine and Ritual; it describes two important rituals as examples of esoteric Buddhist practice; it examines the Homa rituals, the performance of which is the main practice of the sect and recurrently referred to in the literature dealing with the two Mandalas; and it gives a brief description of Buddhist cosmology, necessary for an understanding of the cosmological references in the Mndalas.
Part 2: the Second part of the study looks at several general considerations concerning the two Mandalas: their transmission, the meaning of the term mandala and the relation of the two mandalas to each other.
Part 3: The third part looks at the meanings of the Matrix Mandala and its several Mansions.
Part 4: This analyses the Diamond World Mandala and its Nine Assemblies.
I thank Prof. Lokesh Chandra for his kind offer to publish this work in the Sataptaka Series. The Manuscripts is as I presented it to him, complete with faults. The responsibility for scholarly and typographical errors and for solecisms and errors of translation and understanding is entirely my own.
List of Illustrations | vii | |
Preface | xviii | |
Part 1 | Prolegomention: Esteric Doctrine and Practice | |
1 | The characteristics of the Esoteric Doctrine | 1 |
2 | The Esoteric Doctrine of Non-duality | 12 |
3 | The Three Universals and Practice | 33 |
4 | The Meditation on the Bodhimanda | 59 |
5 | The Meditation on the Body Composed of the Five forms | 77 |
6 | The Homa Rituals | 82 |
7 | The Buddhist Cosmology | 97 |
Part 2 | The Two Mandals | |
8 | The Line of Transmission of the Two Mandalas | 111 |
9 | The Word Mandala in the Mahavairocana-sutra | 120 |
10 | The Relationship of the Two Mandalas | 124 |
11 | The layout of the Two Mandalas | 142 |
Part 3. | The Matrix Mandala | |
12 | The Laying Out of the Matrix Mandala | 152 |
13 | The Subhakarasimha and Amoghavajra Interpretations of the Matrix Mandala | 171 |
14 | The Genzu Matrix Mandala | 183 |
15 | The Layers of the Mandala and the Buddha Bodies | 187 |
16 | The Layers of the Mandala and the Stages to Awakening | 193 |
17 | The Three Sections of the Matrix Mandal | 201 |
18 | The Central Dais Eight Petal Mansion | 207 |
19 | The Five Buddhas and the Four Bodhisattavas of the Central Mansion | 215 |
20 | The Universal Knowledge Mansion | 251 |
21 | The Mansion of t he Mantra Holders | 269 |
22 | The Avalokitesvara Mansion | 284 |
23 | The Vajrapani Mansion | 313 |
24 | The Sakyamuni Mansion | 335 |
25 | The Manjusri Mansion | 378 |
26 | The Sarva-nivarana-Viskambhi Mansion | 392 |
27 | The Ksitigarbha Mansion | 406 |
28 | The akasagarbha Mansion | 417 |
29 | The Susiddhi Mansion | 445 |
Part 3 | The Matrix Mandala (Cont.) | |
30 | The Mansion of the External Vajra Section | 454 |
Part 4 | The Diamond World Mandala | |
31 | The Nine Assemblies | 555 |
32 | Different Paintings of the Diamond World Mandala | 565 |
33 | The Two Revelations of the Diamond World Mandala | 570 |
34 | The Layout of the Perfected Body Assembly | 576 |
35 | The Buddhas of the Perfected Body Assembly | 590 |
36 | The Attendant Bodhisattvas: the four Paramita Bodhisattavas | 598 |
37 | The Bodhisattavas of Reciprocal Offering | 620 |
38 | The thousand Buddhas of the Bhadrakalpa | 634 |
39 | The Section of Outside the Vajras | 637 |
40 | The Samaya Assembly | 644 |
41 | The subtle Assembly | 665 |
42 | The Offerings Assembly | 674 |
43 | The Four Seals Assembly | 685 |
44 | The One Seal Assembly | 695 |
45 | The Naya Assembly | 703 |
46 | The Trailokyavijaya Assembly and the Trailokyavijaya Samaya assembly | 716 |
Appendices | ||
1 | The Fifty Two Bodhisattva Stages | 728 |
2 | Initiation | 732 |
3 | The Samaya Forms of the Five Buddhas and the Four Bodhisattvas of the Central Mansion | 735 |
4 | The Seed Syllables of the five Buddhas and Four Bodhisattvas of the Central mansion | 741 |
5 | The Mudras and Dharanis of the Five Buddhas and Four Bodhisattvas of the Central Mansion | 747 |
6 | The Kaji Enjoyment Body and the fundamental Ground Body | 763 |
Bibliography | 766 | |
Index of Names | 771 | |
General Index | 795 | |
Index of Texts Cited | 835 |