Showing posts with label hevajra. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hevajra. Show all posts

Sep 21, 2008

Yoginī first struggle and first defeat ;-)

It seems Ratnākaraśānti is a difficult author and his verses are much more sophisticated than I imagined in the beginning. In the mean while H. I. commented my previous post and generously took time to offer us the translation of the opening verse of Bhramahara nāma Hevajrasādhana. Oh, btw, H. I. offered also the title translation so:

The practice of Hevajra called the removal of error.

Here is H. I.'s comment:
The opening verse of benediction could perhaps be translated something like this:

May the wild dance of Heruka [i.e. Hevajra]
remove [all] dangers for you; [the wild dance]
in which the oceans are tossed up by the impetus of the earth, which is
made to bend down by the weight of [Hevajra's 4] feet; in which
a sound is emitted by [Hevajra's 8] faces, which resemble
the clouds at [the time of] universal destruction; and in
which the connection of the mountain-peaks is destroyed by
the wind from the forest of [Hevajra's 16] arms.

The slightly odd expression in the fourth quarter may be in part an echo of a verse in Kālidāsa's Meghadūta.

The word bhrama in the title of the text means 'error' rather than 'wandering'.

I am not quite certain that this text is the best place to start. If you do decide to try to read it now, perhaps I should point out that a commentary on the first part of this sādhana can be found in: Harunaga Isaacson: First Yoga: A commentary on the ādiyoga section of Ratnākaraśānti’s Bhramahara (Studies in Ratnākaraśānti’s tantric works IV). In: B. Kellner, H. Krasser, H. Lasic, M. T. Much, H. Tauscher (eds.): Pramāṇakīrtiḥ. Papers dedicated to Ernst Steinkellner on the occasion of his 70th birthday. Part 1. Wien: Arbeitskreis für Tibetische und Buddhistische Studien, Universität Wien, 2007. Wiener Studien zur Tibetologie und Buddhismuskunde 70.1. pp. 285–314.

Now, following the above advice, I'll step back from Ratnākaraśānti’s texts and try to find some easier Yoginī texts (at least till I'll get into possession of the above mentioned work of professor Harunaga Isaacson).

Sep 17, 2008

Yoginī struggle (I)

I finally decided regarding the segment of Sanskrit literature I'll focus in the following months to be Yoginī tantras and related writings, namely commentaries, sādhana-s, dhāraṇī-s etc. I made this decision hoping that I'll get the help of some of the most advised scholars in the field, prof. H.I., I.S., S.D.V. and P.D.Sz.

The first attempt I made is to read Bhramahara nāma Hevajrasādhana by whose text is available on CTS website thanks to professor H. Isaacson.

The title means: "The practice of Hevajra named the removal of wandering".
padabharanamitorvīvegavikṣiptasindhu pralayaghanasamānair ānanair muktanādam|
Expanding it I get:
pada-bhara-namita-urvī-vega-vikṣipta-sindhu ......
feet/word-burden-bent-the wide one-agitated-river
The wide and agitated river bent by burden of words with the mouth like the army of universal dissolution uttered the sound(nāda).

Is this correct? I have no idea. I hope someone will help me.

Now the second phrase:
bhujavanapavanāstaprasthabandhaṃ girīṇāṃ bhavatu bhayaharaṃ vas tāṇḍavaṃ herukasya||
Here the same problem the long compound at the beginning. Is this an attribute for tāṇḍavaṃ? Let's see what are the parts of it:
bhuja-vana-pavana-asta-prastha-bandhaṃ
hand/trunk/coil-wood/abundance/distant-wind-...
I really need help on this. The phrase (?) continues :
...bhavatu bhayaharaṃ vas tāṇḍavaṃ herukasya||
This I took as a benediction:
may the frantic dance of Heruka remove your fear!

Again I'm waiting for some help. :-((

Feb 24, 2008

Two more ślokas from Hevajra Tantra

The sanskrit text:
yena yena hi badhyante jantavo raudrakarmaṇā |

sopāyena tu tenaiva mucyante bhavabandhanāt ||

rāgeṇa badhyate loko rāgeṇaiva vimucyate |
viparītabhāvanā hyeṣā na jñātā buddhatīrthakaiḥ ||
(he. ta. II.2.50-51)

yena
=I. sg. by which;
hi= certainly;
badhyante=ps.3. pl. are bound;
jantavaḥ=N. pl. living beings;
raudrakarmaṇā=I. sg. by terrible magic rite;
sopāyena=I. sg. by being accompanied;
tu=but;
tena=I.sg. by that;
eva=very;
muncyante=ps. 3. pl are freed;
bhavabandhanāt=Ab. sg. from the binding of existence;

rāgeṇa=I.sg. by passion;
badhyate=ps. 3. sg=is tied;
lokaḥ=the world;
rāgeṇa=I.sg. by passion;
eva=aug.;
vimucyate=ps. 3. sg is freed;
viparītabhāvanā=N.f.sg. reversed/inverted producing/causality;
hi=indeed;
eṣā=N.f.sg. that;
na=not;
jñātā=N.f.sg known;
buddhatīrthakaiḥ=I. pl. "tantraphobic" Buddhists.

Few notes here. I initially translated buddhatīrthaka by "non Buddhists" because I found in the dictionary "MW - an adherent or head of any other than one's own creed Buddh. Jain." as a meaning for tīrthika. I had some doubts from the very start but I had to translate it one way or the other. Now, thanks to Mr. Iain Sinclair who took some time to comment on this issue on his blog, I adopted the current translation.

The english translation:
50.
By terrible magical act by which certainly
the living beings are bound

accompanied by the that very [act]
they are freed from the binding of the existence.

51.
By passion the world is tied,
by passion also it is freed.

This inverted causality
is not known b
y "tantraphobic" Buddhists.

Feb 22, 2008

Hevajra tantra śloka

ekārākṛti yaddivyaṃ madhyevaṃkāra bhūṣitam |
ālayaḥ sarvasaukhyānāṃ buddharatnakaraṇḍakam ||
(he.ta. II.3.4)

ekārākṛti=N. sg. the shape of the letter "e";
yad=N.sg. which;
divyaṃ=N. sg. celestial, divine;
madhye
=L. sg. in the center;
vaṃkāra=the sillable vaṃ;
bhūṣitam=N. adorned;
ālayaḥ=N. sg. dwelling, house;
sarvasaukhyānāṃ
=G.pl.of all enjoyments;
buddha-ratna-karaṇḍakam=N. sg. the basket of Buddha jewels;

Here is mine translation of this sanskrit verse:

The divine shape of the letter "e",
which is in the center [and] adorned by "vaṃ" sillable
is the dwelling of all enjoynments,
the basket of Buddha jewels.