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755-761 Tantric Prakaranas.Indd Tantric Prakaraṇas Prakaraṇas are usually short or mid-length treatises for reconstructing the intellectual landscape of on a particular aspect of doctrine and/or practice, medieval Indian Buddhism in general and esoteric either tacitly endorsing and promoting a viewpoint Buddhism in particular. or phrased in an apologetic style; in other words, An argumentative prakaraṇa is typically written they are descriptive or argumentative, essay-style in prose, but the kārikā style, fully versified form exegetical writings. While there is nothing specifi- is not unknown; some are written in mixed prose cally tantric about the term prakaraṇa itself, in the and verse. Following the age-old model, after the present article it refers to those related to esoteric topic has been pointed out, possible objections literature. These treatises do not claim to be rev- are listed and refuted employing reasoning (yukti) elation: the author is known, or there is at least and the authority of revelation and previous mas- supposed to have been a human author, even if ters (āgama), either by allusion or direct quota- authorship is frequently debated. Examples of a tion. Descriptive prakaraṇas are usually in verse, treatise being attributed to an already well-known the density of which suggests that this is mainly a figure in order to increase its prestige abound. Some mnemonic device. These do not typically follow the prakaraṇas proved to be very influential, as they are argumentative style, but almost always endorse a frequently quoted, endorsed, and debated. particular doctrinal perspective, at the expense of The boundary lines between prakaraṇas and competing views. other genres such as commentaries or ritual manu- Even if a particular prakaraṇa is not openly argu- als are not always so sharp, since works of the latter mentative, the designation is similar to the titles of type often contain argumentative excursuses, which those that are. The headings of both kinds of treatises can be seen as mini-treatises (one such example is employ terms such as tattva (reality) or a synonym a treatise embedded in the Vimalaprabhā, a com- thereof; other words commonly employed include mentary to the Kālacakratantra; Gnoli, 1997). More- nirukti (elucidation), pradīpa (lamp), nirākaraṇa over, some prakaraṇas were so prestigious and (refutation), or siddhi (proof or accomplishment). influential that later scriptural compilers took over Furthermore, not infrequently a descriptive trea- from them entire paragraphs, thus “scripturalizing” tise was followed by an argumentative commentary passages that were presumably seen as important. either by the author himself or a disciple. In cultures in which tantric literature has been can- Although quite a few prakaraṇas have survived onized (China, Tibet), there is no separate section in the original Sanskrit, some of the most impor- dedicated to prakaraṇas; instead they are found tant and influential ones can now be accessed only dispersed among other genres of exegesis, some- in Tibetan translations, many of which are of poor times affiliated to a particular cycle of scriptural quality. The individual texts discussed below are revelation. for the most part those whose original is extant, Topics can be varied. A popular theme is the sur- but exception is made in those cases where the veying of Buddhist revelation, evaluating the virtues work is too important to ignore. The survey is not of one doctrine over another, and showing how the comprehensive. tantric revelation fits into the scheme. It did not escape the attention of authors that esoteric teach- ings were of a very different type when compared to Padmavajra’s Guhyasiddhi mainstream Buddhism, and thus quite a lot of effort went into justifying not only their place but also The Guhyasiddhi of Padmavajra (The Accomplish- their superiority. However, sometimes the theme of ment of the Secret; Gsang ba grub pa; D 2217/P 5016) a treatise can be narrowly specialized, for example is very probably an 8th-century ce work. The Sanskrit the precise number of initiations (abhiṣeka) and original is available, but it is very poorly transmit- what they should consist of. For the historian these ted; the only edition thus far (Rinpoche & Dwivedi, are very precious documents, since they are crucial 1987, 5–62) should be considered a very tentative © Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2015 BEB, vol. I Also available online – www.brill 756 Tantric Prakaraṇas attempt. The work is arranged in nine chapters Sanskrit (Kawasaki, 2004, 51) but remains inacces- and it is almost entirely in verse. The Guhyasiddhi sible. More than half of the original can be recov- seeks to elucidate a number of points about what ered from two long excursuses in a still unstudied it sees as the fundamental tantric scripture, the recension of a work called the Sāramañjarī (for the Guhyasamājatantra, which is unequivocally seen as catalogue entry, see Sferra, 2008, 45). The work seeks the culmination of Buddhist revelation. The author to advocate, defend, and harmonize the fundamen- advocates a complete, unapologetically antinomian tally tantric practice of visualizing oneself as a deity spiritual programme for practitioners of varying with Yogācāra Buddhism. abilities and accomplishments based on that scrip- ture, beginning with the service of a guru, receiving initiation followed by diligent meditative practice, Works of the Ārya School sexual yoga beginning with a real woman and cul- minating with a visualized internal consort, and The so-called Ārya school is one of the two most various kinds of post-initiatory observance (caryā). influential traditions of Guhyasamājatantra exege- One such passage (ch. 8, esp. v. 12) betrays intimate sis. While the fundamental text of this group, the familiarity with rival Śaiva cults (Tanemura, 2008, Pañcakrama (The Five Stages; Rim pa lnga pa; D 1802/ 55–58; Sanderson, 2009, 144–145). P 2667) deals almost exclusively with practice (a comprehensive study, edition, and French trans- lation can be found in Tomabechi, 2006), the Sūtaka Indrabhūti’s Jñānasiddhi or Sūtakamelāpaka (The Integration of Sūtras, Tantras, and Kalpas; Spyod pa bsdus pa’i sgron ma; The Jñānasiddhi (Accomplishment of [Nondual] D 1803/P 2668), better known under the otherwise Gnosis; ed. Bhattacharyya, 1929, 31–100; Rinpoche unattested title as the *Caryāmelāpakapradīpa of & Dwivedi, 1987, 89–158; Ye shes grub pa; D 2219/ deutero-Āryadeva (most likely early 9th cent. ce) P 3063) is confessedly a practical manual, but it is also deals with doctrinal matters, advocating a grad- much more than that, as the author frequently ual path of tantric practice as the culmination of digresses into supportive philosophical discussions, Mahāyāna in the form of a conversation between mas- such as the Yogācāra controversy of sākāra and ter and disciple (edited and translated into English nirākāra (i.e. whether or not the perceiving mind in Wedemeyer, 2007). The Cittaviśuddhiprakaraṇa “takes the form” of the perceived object). The work, (A Treatise on the Purification of Mind; Sems kyi which is structured in 20 chapters, is no doubt early, sgrib pa rnam par sbyong ba zhes bya ba’i rab tu byed perhaps from the 9th century ce. Unfortunately, it is pa; D 1804/P 2669) of presumably the same, tantric also rather badly transmitted (de Jong, 1998) in rela- Āryadeva is a defense of antinomian practice and an tively late paper manuscripts. Just like Padmavajra, attempt to show that in spite of all appearances, such Indrabhūti promotes a unambiguously transgres- a path is in perfect harmony with Mahāyāna philos- sive spiritual programme: the practitioner is free to ophy (the latest edition and study, greatly in need do anything provided that he maintains meditative of revision, is Varghese, 2008; for another transla- identity with the deity. The work is imbued with the tion, see Wedemeyer, 1999, 357–382). Attributed to spirit and diction of the Sarvabuddhasamāyogaḍā­ the same author, the Svādhiṣṭhānakramaprabheda kinījālaśaṃvara, a scripture the author also fre- (An Elucidation of the Stages of Self-empowerment; quently quotes and refers to (Sanderson, 2009, Bdag byin gyis brlab pa’i rim par rnam par dbye ba; 155–156, 163). D 1805/P 2670) is another work on self-identification with the deity; it is deeply influenced by the Sarva­ buddhasamāyogaḍākinījālaśaṃvara. It has been Jñānapāda’s Ātmasādhanāvatāra edited (Pandey, 1997, 169–194) and translated into English in C.K. Wedemeyer, 1999, 383–391. Perhaps one of the earliest argumentative prakaraṇas of late tantric Buddhism is to be found among the works of Jñānapāda or *Buddhaśrījñāna (late Śāntarakṣita’s Tattvasiddhi 8th-early 9th cent. ce). His Ātmasādhanāvatāra (An Introduction to Accomplishment in the Body; The most widely known prakaraṇa is perhaps the Bdag sgrub pa la ’jug pa; D 1860/P 2723) is extant in Tattvasiddhi (A Proof of Reality; De kho na nyid grub Tantric Prakaraṇas 757 pa; D 3708/P 4531) attributed to Śāntarakṣita. Both on account of the mentioned adaptation, precede the Tibetan tradition and some modern scholars the end of the 10th century. (e.g. Mishra, 1985–1986, 123–124) maintain that this author is the same as the first abbot of Bsam yas and the author of the Tattvasaṃgraha, a philosophi- *Tripiṭakamalla’s *Nayatrayapradīpa cal work. However, it is much more likely that the author is a deutero-Śāntarakṣita, perhaps from the The *Nayatrayapradīpa (A Lamp [to Elucidate the 9th century ce and not the 8th. The only complete Respective Superiority of] the Three Ways; Tshul edition of the Sanskrit text thus far is a draft by gsum gyi sgron ma; D 3707/P 4530) is a lengthy K.N. Mishra, which remains unpublished but avail- and sophisticated work now available only in able since 1986. A complete edition by T. Tomabechi Tibetan. The author’s name has been transmitted incorporating the readings of a palm-leaf manu- and tentatively reconstructed in a variety of ways script found in China is forthcoming (announced (*Tripiṭakamala, *Tripiṭakamāla, *Tripiṭakakamala) in Steinkellner, 2008, 291).
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