Journal of Indian and Buddhist Studies, Vol. 49, No. 1, December 2000 (57)

The signs of the described in Vimalaprabha - Special reference to the chapter of Aristamat-analaksana-nadiccheda-mahoddesah-

Minenori MATSUMOTO

Death (marana, mrtyu, cyuti) is one of the important topics in the . Then, the that simulate death developed on Buddhist Tantrism. Well, how were Buddhists thinking about human's death when they constructed the system of this yoga? I pay attention to description about the signs of death (arista) of the human being explained in the chapter of Aristamaranalaksana-nadiccheda-ma- hoddesah (Au) of Vimalaprabha (VP), and try to do a consideration by this paper.

The cause that a human ruins health, and the definition of the death.

Why does a human become sick? Au explains that the cause of sickness is in bad condition of the elements of the body (dhatu), and then cause of bad condition is in bad condition of the flow of purana. Moreover, explains that it is the good health that flowing intermittently (avyucchinna) through the vessel (nadi) with the wind of prana in the right and left in the body, and it is a fundamental cause of the death that this flow is interrupted (viccheda) and wind of purana flows into the central vessel (avaduti) in the body. These things are described in Au as follows "Wh en it is bitten and struck, the flow of purana of the right and left is prevented, wind flows into avaduti, and it dies." (VP I p208, 11.1015 (summary)) "Th e characteristic(laksana) whichbecomes full at 100 years of the centralvessel are the number of the human's life (jivitasamkhya)."(VP I p191, 1.10) As mentioned above, Au explains the death by wind's flowing into the central vessel, and furthermore explains that 100 years is a human's life span as a charac- teristic (laksana) of avaduti.

Signs of death

To compare the signs of death (arista) with the word of rista, Au is explaining

-984- ( 58) The signs of the death described in Virnalap•abha (M. MATSUMOTO) as follows. "[Th e death of] arista are the death of unseasonable (akala), and [the death of] rista are the death of limit (avadhi)." (VP I p191, 1.19) In Au the death is defined that it is to die before the human's life span of 100 years for the reason of something. Then, Au explains how the signs of death actually appear on the human's body to the ones by the day of the rest life, as follows.

(VP Ⅰ p213,ll.8～14) The rest 6 months life = Urine becomes vinegar. The rest 6 days life = A sound can't be heard. The rest 5 days life = A taste disappears. The rest 4 days life = A pupil desappears from the center of the eye. The rest 3 days life = The sense of smell disappears. The rest 2 days life = A limb has heat. But, the sense of touch is left. The rest 1 days life = Semen dies, and breathing stops. Next, Au explains the signs which a human being himself sees just before the death, are as follows.(VP Ⅰ p213,ll.2025)

・ It seems that my mose is like the mose of the elephamt ,and surrounding things

can t be seem clearly.

・ It can't be dyed even if palnts are daubed on the palm of the hand .

・ It seems that the sun is black , and the full moom is yellow. ・ Urine and a body get cold .

Furthermore, Au explains 8 characteristics of the death (astamptyu-laksana) at the end of the description about the death, as follows.(VP Ⅰ p214,ll.3-7)

・ A black line appears under the tongue .

・ A large quantity of thin line appears in the eyes .

・ The left -right vessel of the body trembles .

・ Cheeks tremble .

・ A vessel on the breast trembles .

・ It seems that many stars entail a spark .

・ Neck is paralyzed .

・ The limbs becomes umsteadimess .

As memtiomed, though there is some descriptiom that understanding is difficult, it

-983- The signs of the death described in Vimalaprabha (M. MATSUMOTO) (59) can be said that generally a human's state just before the death is being observed very realistically.

How is a yogin confronted against the signs of death and the death?

So far, we have seen that human's death and the signs of death are being explained in details in Au. Well, how should a yogin cope toward the analytic result of the death? Au states, as follows "Th ere is no yogin who has the ability which the moon and sun in his body are filled with by

himself." (VP Ⅰ p212,ll.2324) By the way, on another passages of Au, it is explaining that the moon is the left vessel, and the sun is the right vessel. And meaning of these passages are that the flow of the purana works with the heavenly bodies and so on together, and even a yogin can't control movement of the heavenly bodies. Therefore, it is important for yogin to know relations between the movement of the heavenly bodies and the flow of purana well. "If it seems that purusa of the shadow and so on falls down in the body or the outside, A yogin shouldknow those all as a characteristicsof the death. And by knowing, shouldmake an offering. If it can live by power of good work (punyabala),it is lucky (sobana) ! Even if it dies, it will get the effect (phala) of making an offering (dana)." (VP I p214, ll. 8-10) I want to pay attention to the latter half part about this passage specially. It is important that the way of escape from the death is only by making an offering (dana). Furthermore, this passage hints that it can't surely live by making an offering. Even here, the ability which avoids death isn't required of yogin.

Conclusion

Au is being observed in detail about the signs of human's death and the death, or the causes that a human ruins health, or the human's life span. But, it doesn't show at all about the way of avoiding death except for making an offering. As a reason, it seems reasonable to suppose that Au places knowledge about the signs of human's death and the death, on the elementary knowledge of the Yoga that simulate death.

-982- (60) The signs of the death described in Vimalaprabha (M . MATSUMOTO)

〈 Key Words〉 arista, marana, death, die, Vimalapyabha (Graduate Student, Tohoku University)

Wisdom, Compassion, and the Search for Understanding :

The Buddhist Studies Legacy of Gajin M. Nagao.

Jonathan A. Silk, editor. University of Hawaii Press, 2000. Short biography and complete bibliography of Prof. Nagao, plus 18 papers, primarily in Indian Buddhism. $38.00 lx+420pp.

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