Toh 507Kinh Đại Thừa Cao Quý, Đà-la-ni 'Bảo Vật Bí Mật Xá-lợi, Tinh Túy Gia Hộ của Tất Cả Như Lai'

Summary

On his way to honor a brahmin’s invitation for a midday meal, the Buddha comes
across an old stūpa that resembles a rubbish heap. Subsequently, while in conversation
with Vajrapāṇi, the Buddha reveals that the stūpa contains the doctrinal synopsis for a
dhāraṇī that embodies the essence of the blessings of innumerable buddhas. He also
explains that the stūpa is, in fact, made of precious materials and that its lowly
appearance is merely due to the lack of beings’ merit. The Buddha then extols the merit
that results from copying, reading, and worshiping this scripture, and he enumerates the
benefits that arise from placing it in stūpas and buddha images. When he pronounces the
actual dhāraṇī, the derelict old stūpa is restored to its former glory.

Acknowledgements

Translated from the Tibetan by Dylan Esler.

The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000:
Translating the Words of the Buddha.

Introduction

The Dhāraṇī for Secret Relics, often referred to
by its abbreviated Sanskrit title, Guhyadhātudhāraṇī, or sometimes also by its alternative title Karaṇḍamudrādhāraṇī, is a short sūtra that has played
a fundamental role in ritual practice throughout the Buddhist world, particularly
regarding the veneration of relics and of the stūpas that contain them.

In this sūtra, the Buddha, who is residing in Magadha, is invited for a midday
meal by a brahmin named Stainless Glow. On the way to the brahmin’s home, he comes
across an old stūpa that resembles a rubbish heap. When approached by the Buddha, the
stūpa emits rays of light, and a mysterious exclamation of praise resounds. After
paying his respects to the stūpa, the Buddha weeps and then smiles, revealing an
entire array of buddhas who likewise shed tears. When Vajrapāṇi rushes to the scene to
inquire about the reasons behind the Buddha’s weeping, the Buddha first explains that
the stūpa contains a doctrinal synopsis that is the essence of the blessings of
innumerable buddhas. Upon hearing this, many in the assembly attain various levels of
realization. Prompted by Vajrapāṇi, the Buddha enumerates the benefits of copying,
reading, and worshiping this scripture. He also points out that the derelict old stūpa
is, in fact, made of precious substances, yet it appears as a heap of rubbish because
of sentient beings’ lack of merit. He warns of a future time when sentient beings’
merit will be so depleted that the Three Jewels will no longer be present, and the
only token of the Buddha’s teaching to remain will be stūpas. This, he explains, is
the reason he and the other buddhas are weeping. The Buddha then extols the merit
involved in copying the text and placing it in stūpas and buddha statues, indicating
that the areas where these stūpas and images are located will be free from illness and
other calamities, and that the stūpas and images themselves will take on the
properties of precious substances. When the Buddha proclaims the actual dhāraṇī, the
assembled buddhas praise Śākyamuni for having brought forth a religious treasure in
the world. The sūtra concludes by proclaiming that wherever this dhāraṇī is taught, or
whenever it is placed inside a stūpa, the blessings of all the buddhas will be
present. Furthermore, as a consequence of the Buddha pronouncing the dhāraṇī, the
derelict old stūpa is restored to its former glory.

This text belongs to the genre of dhāraṇī sūtras, which began to circulate
around 500 ce. A central preoccupation of these texts is the notion
that a dhāraṇī encapsulates the blessings of all the buddhas, and that building a
stūpa and placing within it the dhāraṇī being promoted is equal to the merit of
erecting stūpas for all the buddhas. Given the centrality of this theme, it may be
helpful to briefly clarify the sense of the term dhāraṇī. The term is derived from the Sanskrit root
√dhṛ and is connected to the word
dhāraṇa, hence it is related to
notions of retaining, holding, and memory. Part of a dhāraṇī’s function is to aid in the memorization
of the Buddhist teachings. Aside from this
mnemonic function, these formulas also serve protective and soteriological
purposes. Dhāraṇīs contribute to an expanded understanding of memory and
mnemonics, where memory is not just about remembering a specific memorized formulation
of the Buddhist teachings, but also about recalling the power and blessings encoded
within the formula. The dhāraṇī can thus be seen as a code that operates on
multiple cognitive and affective levels, its polysemic nature reflecting the
interdependence of the teachings (and of reality itself) encrypted within its
syllables.

The genre of dhāraṇī sūtras may itself be seen as part of the emergent “cult
of the book” in the Mahāyāna, which arose against the background of the historically
older and dominant cult of relics and of their receptacles, the stūpas. Eventually, sūtras and dhāraṇīs came to be placed within the
stūpas, and the dhāraṇīs themselves came to be considered (at
least in the Tibetan tradition) relics. Just
as a single bone relic is held to encapsulate the Buddha’s essence, so a dhāraṇī is
believed to contain within it the entirety of the Buddha’s doctrine. And since the Buddha can
be identified with the essence of his doctrine and with the realization of ultimate
reality itself, when a dhāraṇī is placed within a stūpa
or buddha image, it infuses the stūpa or image with the presence of the Buddha and his
doctrine.

The Sanskrit version of The Dhāraṇī for Secret
Relics does not appear to be extant. Epigraphical and archaeological
evidence, however, suggests that, like the other texts of its genre, this sūtra was
widespread in India and throughout the Buddhist world, and that it exerted a strong
influence on religious practice. The text of the dhāraṇī itself —without the surrounding narrative of the sūtra—is found on a set of
stone tablets from the ninth century recovered in Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka,
indicating that the sūtra was well known on the island at the time. The tablets seem
to have been part of a stūpa located at the Abhayagiri Stūpa in Anuradhapura. Maritime trade
routes played an important part in bringing the sūtra to East Asia.
While The Dhāraṇī for Secret Relics was well known in
China after the eighth century when Amoghavajra produced the first Chinese translation
of the sūtra, it was not until the tenth and eleventh centuries that it began to be
placed inside stūpas. Qian Chu (929–88 ce), the ruler of the
prosperous coastal Wuyue state, promoted the distribution of the sūtra as a textual
relic throughout his kingdom. For example, along with the full
narrative sūtra and a pictorial representation, the
dhāraṇī was inserted in the hollow bricks of a stūpa in Hangzhou constructed during
his reign, as well as in a stūpa from the same period in Zhejiang.
Other sūtras of the same genre, such as the Raśmivimalaviśuddhaprabhādhāraṇī (Toh 510/982),
were likewise inserted in stūpas in Korea and Japan.
Epigraphical evidence of this genre of texts has also been recovered in India itself,
as witnessed by a stone inscription from Orissa and by terracotta tablets from
Nālandā, both of which depict the Bodhigarbhālaṅkāralakṣa (Toh 509/920), a text that has also been found in Afghanistan and Indonesia. In the Tibetan
tradition, The Dhāraṇī for Secret Relics is classified as
belonging to a wider group of five dhāraṇīs—the five great dhāraṇīs (gzungs chen sde lnga)—that are frequently
placed inside stūpas throughout the Buddhist world. The other dhāraṇīs of this group are the Uṣṇīṣavijayadhāraṇī (Toh 594, Toh 595, Toh 596, Toh 597, Toh 598), the Vimaloṣṇīṣadhāraṇī (Toh 599/983),
the above-mentioned Bodhigarbhālaṅkāralakṣadhāraṇī
(Toh 509/920), and the Pratītyasamutpādahṛdaya (Toh 521/981).

The Tibetan translation of The Dhāraṇī for Secret
Relics was produced by the Indian scholar Vidyākaraprabha and the translator Tsang Devendrarakṣita, who appear to
have lived in the late eighth or early ninth century. No Dunhuang version of
the text seems to have surfaced so far. However, given its popularity
throughout Buddhist Asia, this does not necessarily mean that no copies of the text
circulated in that area. While the text is not mentioned in the Phangthangma catalog,
it is listed in the Denkarma, confirming that
by the early ninth century the text had been translated into Tibetan. Regarding the
title of the text as recorded in the Tibetan versions, it might be remarked that the
Sanskrit title in the Stok Palace Kangyur is slightly different from that found in the
Degé Kangyur edition, since it adds the word mudrā after karaṇḍa,
so that the title reads Sarvatathāgatādhiṣṭhānahṛdayaguhyadhātukaraṇḍamudrānāmadhāraṇīsūtra.
This variant is also found in several of the other editions. While this additional
word is not found in the Tibetan title of the editions that have the variant in their
Sanskrit title, it is reflected in discussions of the title found in the body of the
sūtra itself.

Two Chinese translations of the sūtra exist. The earlier of them, the Yiqie rulai xin mimi quanshen sheli bao qie yin toluoni
jing (切如來心祕密全身舍利寳篋印陀羅尼經; Taishō 1022a) was
made by Amoghavajra (705–74 ce), and the later, the Yiqie rulai zhengfa mimi qie yin xin tuoluoni jing
(切如來正法祕密篋印心陀羅尼經; Taishō 1023), is by Dānapāla (d.
1017). Dānapāla’s translation
does not seem to have enjoyed the same level of popularity as Amoghavajra’s, which
spread from China to Korea and Japan. Interestingly, since the Chinese translations make use of
the Chinese equivalent of the word mudrā (印) in their titles,
this suggests that the Sanskrit text on which they are based probably included the
word mudrā in the title, thus
confirming the transcription thereof found in some of the Tibetan editions.

A commentary on this dhāraṇī was written by Bodong Paṇchen Choklé Namgyal
(1376–1451). To this must be added the earlier yet more general
commentary by Jetsün Drakpa Gyaltsen (1147–1216), which is among the earliest Tibetan
expositions of the practice of inserting dhāraṇīs and relics inside stūpas.

The translation of the sūtra presented here is based on the two versions
recorded in the Degé Kangyur, one from the Action Tantra section (Toh 507) and one from the Compendium of
Dhāraṇīs section (Toh 883). These two versions correspond very closely. The
Comparative Edition (dpe bsdur ma) versions of
both texts have also been consulted, as has the version from the Stok Palace Kangyur.
As some of the personal and place names in the text do not seem to be otherwise
attested, the choice was made to render them in English rather than attempt a Sanskrit
reconstruction. The Sanskrit of the dhāraṇī has been transliterated according to the
version found in the Action Tantra section of the Degé Kangyur, though in cases of
major divergence from the version in the Compendium of Incantations section, the
variant that seemed most viable was chosen, listing the differences in the notes. A
tentative translation has also been proposed in the note following the transliterated
Sanskrit of the dhāraṇī.

The Translation

The Noble Mahāyāna Sūtra

The Dhāraṇī “The Receptacle of Secret Relics, Quintessence of

the Blessings of All the Thus-Gone Ones”

Homage to
all the buddhas and bodhisattvas!

Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was dwelling in Magadha at a pool
made of the seven precious materials in the Stainless Pleasure Grove, together with a
great congregation of bodhisattvas, a great congregation of hearers, and several tens
of millions of gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas,
humans, and nonhumans, and hundreds of thousands of local people, all of whom
surrounded and esteemed him.

Among this retinue was a great brahmin who was like a great sal tree, who was
skilled, astute, clear-minded, and handsome to behold, and who upheld the path of the
ten virtuous deeds. He was called Stainless Glow. Endowed with the virtuous mindset of
paying homage only to those who have faith in and respect for the Three Jewels, he
examined things in detail and persevered for the sake of virtue and of all sentient
beings. He had great wealth and expansive enjoyments, was affluent, and had many
possessions and abundant provisions.

The great brahmin Stainless Glow went to the Blessed One and circumambulated
him seven times, worshiping him with flowers and incense. He presented him with a very
costly robe and an expensive pearl necklace and prostrated at the Blessed One’s feet.
Sitting down before the Blessed One, he asked, “Would the Blessed One agree to be
invited, along with your retinue of bodhisattva sons, to take your midday meal at my
home?” The Blessed One considered this invitation by the great brahmin Stainless Glow
and consented by remaining silent. The great brahmin Stainless Glow knew that by
remaining silent the Blessed One had accepted his invitation, and so he promptly
returned home. When the night had passed, he arranged many foods, provisions, and
delicacies. Along with this great array of foodstuffs, he carried an auspicious
palanquin, a variety of large palanquins, flowers, and incense. With a large
entourage, cymbals, and percussion instruments, he went to the Blessed One to inform
him that the time had come.

The great brahmin Stainless Glow told the Blessed One, “O Blessed One, the
time has come. Now that it is time, would the Blessed One agree to come with me?”

The Blessed One reassured the great brahmin Stainless Glow; looking at him
and his entourage, he said, “Since all of you gathered here in this retinue will
accomplish a great purpose today, let us go!” The Blessed One then rose from his
seat. As soon as he had risen, multicolored light rays manifested from his body. The
brilliance of these rays of light illuminated all the buddha fields of the ten
directions, exhorting all the thus-gone ones. Having beheld this, the great brahmin
knew that the Blessed One was about to leave. The great brahmin Stainless Glow
worshiped him with offerings and great honor and beautified the Blessed One’s route.
The large entourage; the gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras,
and mahoragas; and Śakra, Brahmā, the protectors of the world, Maheśvara, Nārāyaṇa,
and the Four Great Kings also beautified his route.

Not far from the Blessed One’s path was a park called Pleasurable. In this
park was a great old stūpa. Derelict, overgrown with brambles, and totally
covered in grass, trees, and gravel, it resembled a heap of rubbish. When the Blessed
One approached it, the old stūpa resembling a rubbish heap blazed forth, emitting
blazing light rays of various colors. From the heap of rubbish and gravel the sound
“Excellent!” came forth. “Excellent, excellent is the Thus-Gone One, the Sage of the
Śākyas! It is a good omen that you have come here today. O great brahmin, it is
excellent that you have invited the Thus-Gone One. Today you have accomplished a great
purpose!”

The blessed Thus-Gone One then prostrated with the five points of his body in
front of the old stūpa that resembled a rubbish heap and circumambulated it three
times. He
took the robes from his own body and offered them to the old stūpa resembling a
rubbish heap. The Blessed One wept profusely and then smiled. Because of his smile,
all the thus-gone ones of the ten directions could be seen as if they were in the palm
of one’s hand. The eyes of all the thus-gone ones, too, filled with tears. All the thus-gone ones also emitted
light rays, which entered the great heap that was the old stūpa. The many assemblies
gathered there marveled and were infused with trust. The body of the great yakṣa
commander, Vajrapāṇi, trembled, and his heart pounded. Grabbing his scepter, he
swiftly went to the Blessed One. He prostrated at the Blessed One’s feet, and said to
the Blessed One, “What, O Blessed One, is the presage causing the Blessed One to weep?
What is the presage causing the Blessed One’s eyes to fill with tears? Would the
Blessed One grant me an opportunity to ask, on behalf of those in this assembly, why
this is the case?”

The Blessed One said the following to Vajrapāṇi, the great yakṣa commander: “O
Vajrapāṇi, this stūpa of the Thus-Gone One, a heap of relics, contains a doctrinal
synopsis for the stūpa of the dhāraṇī seal that is the quintessence of all the
thus-gone ones, who are as numerous as ten million times the number of sesame seeds in
a pod. O Vajrapāṇi, wherever this doctrinal synopsis resides, there are thus-gone ones
as numerous as a hundred thousand times ten million times the number of sesame seeds
in a pod, and relics of the bodily remains of the thus-gone ones too numerous to
mention. Eighty-four thousand compendiums of the doctrine reside there. Likewise,
the uṣṇīṣas and the crowns of the heads of ninety-nine times the number of thus-gone
ones who are as numerous as a hundred thousand times ten million times the number of
sesame seeds in a pod also reside there. O Vajrapāṇi, wherever this doctrinal synopsis
resides is declared to be a stūpa of a thus-gone one. O Vajrapāṇi, these are the great
beneficial qualities and the great power of this doctrinal synopsis. O Vajrapāṇi, the
beneficial qualities of this doctrinal synopsis are immense. O Vajrapāṇi, this
doctrinal synopsis consummates all auspiciousness.”

When the many assemblies gathered there heard this doctrinal synopsis from the
Blessed One, with regard to phenomena, they attained the dustless and stainless eye of
the doctrine, and they were freed from the subsidiary afflictions. Some of them
attained the fruition of a stream enterer. Some obtained the fruition of a worthy one,
some the fruition of the enlightenment of a solitary buddha. Some attained the
fruition of a non-returner. Some attained the fruition of a once-returner. Some came
to abide on the bodhisattva stages. Some obtained a prophecy concerning their
enlightenment. Some came to abide on the first bodhisattva stage. Some came to abide
on the second stage, some on the third stage, some on the fourth, some on the fifth,
some on the sixth, some on the seventh, some on the eighth, some on the ninth, and some on
the tenth bodhisattva stage. Some of them completed the six perfections. The great
brahmin, too, obtained the five supercognitions, was freed from stains, and was freed
from avarice and jealousy.

The great yakṣa commander Vajrapāṇi, having beheld such a great miracle, was
filled with wonder and amazement. He asked the Blessed One, “If one obtains, O Blessed
One, such an ornament of beneficial qualities by hearing the name of this doctrinal
synopsis,
what is there to say, O Blessed One, of extensively revering and honoring it? How
might one, O Blessed One, view that aggregation of merit?”

The Blessed One responded, “Listen, Vajrapāṇi! If a son or daughter of good
family, a monk or nun, or a layman or laywoman writes down this doctrinal synopsis, they will
generate the roots of virtue and will possess an aggregation of merit equal to that of
ninety-nine times the number of thus-gone ones who are as numerous as a hundred
thousand times ten million times a hundred billion times the number of sesame seeds in
a pod. They will be cared for by those thus-gone ones.
Those who read it will come to grasp the sūtras spoken by all the thus-gone ones.
Those who hold this doctrinal synopsis are held and watched over, on a single day, by
ninety-nine times the number of the thus-gone ones of the ten directions who are as
numerous as a hundred thousand times ten million times a hundred billion times the
number of sesame seeds in a pod, and by the thus-gone, worthy, completely perfect
buddhas of each direction. Any son or daughter of a good family, or any layman or
laywoman who worships this doctrinal synopsis, who assimilates it and offers it
flowers, incense, perfumes, flower garlands, ointments, robes, decorations, and
ornaments, will be offering divine substances consisting of flowers, incense,
perfumes, flower garlands, ointments, robes, decorations, and ornaments to ninety-nine
times the number of thus-gone ones in each of the ten directions who are as numerous
as a hundred thousand times ten million times a hundred billion times the number of
sesame seeds in a pod. Such clouds of a thus-gone one’s offerings
presented before the thus-gone ones in each of the ten directions beget heaps of
qualities, which in size are like a great Mount Meru made of the seven precious
materials.”

The gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas,
humans, and nonhumans, and all those in this great gathering of sentient beings,
marveled and told one another, “This old stūpa, a heap of rubbish and gravel, has been
blessed by the Thus-Gone One and thereby displayed such a great magical miracle. Great
is its power!”

The great yakṣa commander, Vajrapāṇi, asked the Blessed One, “Who, O Blessed
One, fashioned a precious stūpa from what had become a heap of rubbish?”

The Blessed One answered, “O Vajrapāṇi, this is not a heap of rubbish, but a
great and precious stūpa made of the seven precious materials. Yet it vanished from
sight, O Vajrapāṇi, to show the maturation of the results of sentient beings’ deeds.
Stūpas containing the quintessence of the relics of the buddhas, the thus-gone ones,
are never destroyed or dispersed. How could the Thus-Gone One’s adamantine
quintessence body be dispersed? Yet when the maturation of the results of sentient
beings’ deeds appeared, the stūpa vanished from sight.

“Furthermore, Vajrapāṇi, there will be a time in the future, exceedingly
dire, when sentient beings will be engaged in evil, will be possessed of evil, and
will descend to the hells. There will be neither Buddha nor Doctrine nor Community,
and virtuous roots will not be generated. Due to these causes and conditions, the holy
doctrine will vanish from sight. That is why, Vajrapāṇi, my eyes filled with
tears, and why all the thus-gone ones too were in tears. Expositions of the holy
doctrine such as this will have vanished from sight; there will only remain stūpas of
a thus-gone one that are blessed by all the thus-gone ones.”

The great yakṣa commander, Vajrapāṇi, then asked the Blessed One, “If, O
Blessed One, someone writes down this doctrinal synopsis and places it inside a stūpa,
what sort of virtuous roots will they produce?”

The Blessed One replied, “O Vajrapāṇi, if someone writes down this doctrinal
synopsis and places it inside a stūpa, this will become a stūpa with relics that are
the adamantine quintessence of all the thus-gone ones. It will become a stūpa blessed
by the secret quintessence of the dhāraṇī of all the thus-gone ones. It will become a
stūpa of ninety-nine times the number of thus-gone ones who are as numerous as there
are sesame seeds in a pod. It will be blessed as a stūpa of the uṣṇīṣa and the eyes of
all the thus-gone ones. If someone places it within a buddha image or inside a stūpa,
the image of the Thus-Gone One will be blessed with the nature of the seven precious
materials. The stūpa’s circular rings, connected lattices of little bells, auspicious
signs, rain gutters, and bells will be blessed with the nature of the seven precious
materials. Such persons will be blessed by all the thus-gone ones and by the power,
blessings,
truth, and pledges of this doctrinal synopsis until they arrive at the seat of
enlightenment.

“Those sentient beings who revere and honor the stūpa will certainly not
regress and they will be awakened to unsurpassed, completely perfect enlightenment.
Those
who prostrate to or circumambulate it once will be released from falling into the
Avīci hell and they will no longer turn away from unsurpassed, completely perfect
enlightenment. Areas where there are such stūpas or images will be blessed by all the
thus-gone ones. Such areas will be unaffected by hostile nāgas, frost, and hail. These
places will be unaffected by hostile or malevolent creatures and unaffected by
predators. There will be no fear of birds of prey, or of parrots, mynah birds, rats,
mongooses, biting insects, bees, ladybugs, worms, mosquitoes, or centipedes. These areas will
be unaffected by poisonous snakes, and there will be no epidemics, contagious
diseases, or disturbances. There will be no fear of yakṣas, rākṣasas, bhūtas, pretas,
piśācas, or apasmāras. These areas will be unaffected by any type of graha. They will
be unaffected by fever. Their inhabitants will be unaffected by any illness—by boils,
blisters, ulcers, fistulas, eczema, scabies, or leprosy—and by just seeing the stūpa, they
will be cleansed of all these diseases. These areas will be unaffected by the diseases
of cattle and herd animals, or by the many other kinds of illnesses that beset
animals. They will never be affected by the diseases of men, women, boys, or girls.
There will be no untimely death, and the people will never be affected by poison,
weapons,
fire, or water.

“There will be no fear of external armies, and the people will never be
affected by the fear of bad harvests. There will be no fear of the royal army, and the
Four Great Kings will continuously guard and protect these areas. The twenty-eight
yakṣa commanders, too, will continuously guard, protect, and defend these areas. The
twenty-eight constellations, the moon, the sun, and the great comets will maintain
harmony, day and night. All the nāga kings, moreover, will never steal vitality; they
will only bring down a rainfall of excellence. Even the gods will come thrice a day
from their thirty-two abodes in order to prostrate to, honor, and worship the great stūpa. All the local
deities will also come before those stūpas and images of the buddha thrice a day to
praise and circumambulate them. Even the sovereign of the gods, Śakra, along with the
goddesses and gods themselves, will always come thrice a day and night before the
stūpas or buddha images, and will prostrate to and worship them.

“All the thus-gone ones will constantly consider and bless the stūpas.
Whatever the stūpas and images are made of—whether of clay, stone, wood, silver, gold,
or copper—as soon as this doctrinal synopsis has been written down and placed inside
them, they will be blessed with the nature of the seven precious materials. All their
moldings, steps, railings, circular rings, auspicious signs,
parasols, dangling bells, pennants, and lattices of little bells will likewise take on the
nature of the seven precious materials. Everywhere in the four directions there will
be images of the Thus-Gone One. There will be precious stūpas blessed by all the
thus-gone ones, stūpas of the quintessence of their bodily remains, and places of
worship. The images and stūpas will be protected by the gods of Akaniṣṭha, who will be
committed to their worship.”

The great yakṣa commander, Vajrapāṇi, then asked the Blessed One, “How, O Blessed One, did this doctrinal synopsis come to have
such distinctive qualities?”

The Blessed One replied, “The quintessence of the blessings of all the
thus-gone ones is this dhāraṇī that is the seal of the receptacle of secret relics. It
is, therefore, O Vajrapāṇi, this power that instills it with blessings of such
distinctive qualities.”

“Would the Blessed One please teach the doctrinal synopsis of the dhāraṇī that
is the seal of the precious receptacle?” asked the vajra holder.

“Listen, Vajrapāṇi!” answered the Blessed One. “This is the doctrinal synopsis
of the dhāraṇī that is the seal of the receptacle of relics, for the thus-gone ones of
the past, present, and future, for all the blessed buddhas who have attained
complete nirvāṇa and the three bodies of the thus-gone one—the body
of reality, the body of enjoyment, and the body of emanation—throughout all three
times:

“namastraiyadhvikānāṃ  | sarvatathāgatānāṃ | oṁ bhu vibhavān vare vacaṭau  | culu
culu | dhara dhara  |
sarvatathāgatā | dhātudhare | padmagarbhe | jayavare | acale | smara tathāgata |
dharmacakra | pravartana | vajrabodhimaṇḍa alaṃkāra | alaṃkṛte |
sarvatathāgata | adhiṣṭhite | bodhaya bodhaya | bodhani bodhani | budhya
buddhya  | saṁbodhani saṁbodhaya | cala cala | calantu
sarva āvaraṇāni | sarvapāpaṁ vigate | huru huru | sarvaśoka vigate |
sarvatathāgatahṛdaya | vajriṇi | sambhava sambhava | sarvatathāgataguhye |
dhāraṇimudre | buddhe | subuddhe  | sarvatathāgata adhiṣṭhite |
dhātugarbhe svāhā | samaya adhiṣṭhite svāhā | sarvatathāgatahṛdaya | dhātumudre
svāhā | supratiṣṭhita stūpe tathāgata adhiṣṭhite | hūṁ hūṁ svāhā | oṁ
sarvatathāgata uṣṇīṣadhātumudrāṇi sarvatathāgata
dharmadhātu vibhūṣita adhiṣṭhite huru huru | hūṁ hūṁ svāhā”

As soon as the Blessed One had uttered this dhāraṇī that is the seal of the
receptacle of relics, from each of the ten directions came ninety-nine times the
number of thus-gone ones who are as numerous as a hundred thousand times ten million
times a hundred billion times the number of sesame seeds in a pod. They said to the
Blessed One, the Sage of the Śākyas, “For the sake of sentient beings, the Sage of the
Śākyas has placed this doctrinal synopsis, a treasure of the doctrine, in this world
and has blessed this stūpa that is the quintessence of relics. This is excellent,
excellent!” Thus was the pledge and blessing of all the thus-gone ones.

Wherever this dhāraṇī that is the seal of relics is taught, or wherever it is
placed inside a stūpa or image, the thus-gone ones, all as one, will follow it
continuously and remain there. It will always be infused with the blessings of the
thus-gone ones. As soon as the dhāraṇī had been pronounced, the old stūpa that
resembled a rubbish heap was restored as a stūpa having the nature of the seven
precious materials, along with its moldings, symmetrical features, circular rings, and
auspicious signs.

When the Blessed One had rejoiced and spoken thus, the great bodhisattva hero
Vajrapāṇi, along with the world of gods and humans—the gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas,
garuḍas, kinnaras, and mahoragas—rejoiced in and praised the words of the Blessed
One.

Colophon

Notes

Bibliography

Tibetan Source Texts

Tibetan Imperial Catalogs

Tibetan Commentaries

Secondary Literature

centipede

ulcer

dangling bell

Stainless Glow

Jetsün Drakpa Gyaltsen

Bodong Paṇchen Choklé Namgyal

Stainless Pleasure Grove

Pleasurable