Toh 770The Extant Practice of Jambhalajalendra

The Practice Scripture of Jambhalajalendra

Context

The Jambhalajalendrayathālabdhakalpa (Toh 770) is found in the Northern canon and is a precious practice text of the Mahāyāna and Tibetan Vajrayāna tradition. Jambhala (Tib: Dzambala) is the protective deity of wealth and prosperity in Buddhism, widely venerated throughout Tibet, Mongolia, and Mahāyāna Buddhist countries. This scripture was composed to guide practitioners who wish to benefit from the protection of this bodhisattva or deity.

The title “The Practice of Jambhalajalendra” reveals that this is a practical guide to the methods, rituals, and recitations connected with the activity of Jambhala. In the Vajrayāna context, such practice scriptures (kalpa) provide important details concerning presiding deities (yidam), ways of supplication, and skillful means for developing virtue and overcoming obstacles.

Main Content

This scripture focuses on presenting methods of practice related to Jambhalajalendra, a special manifestation of Jambhala, the deity symbolizing the abundance of material and spiritual wealth. Rather than treating wealth as a preparation for greed, Vajrayāna Buddhism recognizes that prosperity can be a favorable condition for practice and for teaching sentient beings.

The scripture may include the typical elements of a Vajrayāna kalpa: first, the philosophical foundation concerning the Buddha-nature of Jambhala; second, preparatory rites such as the purification of body and mind; third, mantras (dhāraṇī) and recitations with transformative power; and finally, visualization practices (sādhana) for uniting the practitioner’s mind with the deity’s enlightened nature.

In the Tibetan tradition, practice with deities such as Jambhala is not worship of gods outside the Buddhadharma, but rather a skillful means of the Buddha to help disciples transform greed, anger, and delusion into roots of virtue.