Vajra Conqueror

Translation of རྡ་རྗས་རྣམ་པར་འཇམས་པ་ཞས་བྱ་བའ་གཟངས (རྡོ་རྗེས་རྣམ་པར་འཇོམས་པ་ཞེས་བྱ་བའི་གཟུངས)

Language: English
Translators: Wiesiek Mical, Nicholas Schmidt
Extent: 82 passages, 2,574 words
Text: complete digital text
Source: 84000 · Translated by The Dharmachakra Translation Committeeunder the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating… · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 (84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha). Shown whole and unaltered, with its notes, on a…

intro 84000's introduction — 7 parts
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notes Notes — 72 parts

Text

84000's introduction

intro.1

In this concise text, Vajrapāṇi, through the power and blessings of the Buddha and all bodhisattvas, proclaims a series of powerful dhāraṇī-mantras. The text concludes with verses on the benefits of the dhāraṇī and a simple ablution ritual.

intro.2

Vajra Conqueror is a short dhāraṇī text with an illustrious history in several different Buddhist communities. The text begins with a brief narrative introduction and a sweeping statement on the qualities and function of the dhāraṇī. After a series of three dhāraṇī-mantras, the text concludes with ten verses, which first extol the benefits of the practice and finally outline a concise purification ritual. In the narrative introduction, set abstractly “in the vajra” (Skt. vajreṣu, Tib. rdo rje la), Vajrapāṇi, through the power of the Buddha Śākyamuni, reveals the dhāraṇī. The elaborations on this narrative found in the Indic commentarial tradition inform us that the dhāraṇī was revealed in order to cure the ailments afflicting King Ajātaśatru of Magadha after he had usurped the throne of his father, King Bimbisāra, and terrorized the Gangetic basin with his martial adventurism.

intro.3

The Sanskrit dhāraṇī is popular among Newar Buddhists in Nepal,¹ where it is included in a set of daily dhāraṇī practices referred to collectively as the Saptavāra (Seven Days), of which the National Archives in Kathmandu today holds more than two hundred Sanskrit witnesses.

intro.4

The fourteenth-century Tibetan Chronicles of Padma (padma bka’ thang) mentions that the dhāraṇī was first translated into Tibetan during the imperial period and was included in the Ten Royal Sūtras (Tib. rgyal po mdo bcu), the recitation of which was prescribed by Padmasambhava to the Tibetan king Trisong Detsen (Tib. khri srong lde bstan, 755–97 ce) to prolong his life. It is also traditionally placed in a subset, the “Five Royal Sūtras.”² According to the colophon of the Tibetan translation, it was translated by the Indian preceptors Jinamitra and Dānaśīla, along with the Tibetan translator Yeshé Dé. The dhāraṇī is also listed in the Denkarma (Tib. ldan kar ma) catalog of 812 ce,³ which confirms its transmission to Tibet prior to that date. During the early period of Tibetan Buddhist history, such luminaries as Padmasambhava, Vimalamitra, Buddhaguhya, and Smṛtijñānakīrti wrote commentaries on the dhāraṇī.⁴ During the later diffusion of Buddhism in Tibet (tenth to fourteenth century), many other commentaries on the dhāraṇī and its rituals were translated into Tibetan.⁵ Since that time, it has remained important to all traditions of Tibetan Buddhism down to the present day, mainly for its use as a dhāraṇī to purify and heal illnesses arising due to karmic obscurations. Major scholars of all four schools have composed commentarial and practice literature on this dhāraṇī.⁶

intro.5

This translation is based on the Degé Kangyur xylograph, while the Comparative Edition (Tib. dpe bsdur ma) and Stok Palace Kangyurs were consulted to clarify problematic readings. Within the Degé canon, the dhāraṇī is included twice: once in the Tantra section (Tib. rgyud, Toh 750), and once in the Dhāraṇī section (Tib. gzungs ’dus, Toh 949).⁷ The two versions are generally equivalent, preserving the same translation colophon and very few variant readings. This translation is also informed by the earliest and most extensive commentary, attributed to Buddhaguhya (Toh 2680), as well as the Sanskrit edition presented in Dhīḥ (2005).

intro.6

The Sanskrit retained here was compiled by comparing the Sanskrit transliteration of the Degé edition (Toh 750) with the two editions of the Sanskrit Vajra Conqueror dhāraṇī—those of Iwamoto (1937) and Dhīḥ (2005). Finally, we referred to a late Devanāgarī manuscript witness (NGMCP: E 1414/8). For assistance in interpreting and translating the Sanskrit of the dhāraṇī-mantras, we have also consulted Ju Mipham’s (’ju mi pham, 1846–1912) synthesis of the commentarial traditions of Buddhaguhya, Padmasambhava, Smṛtijñānakīrti, and Vimalamitra.⁸

intro.7

Following the Tibetan precedent of leaving the syllables of mantras (Skt. mantrapada) in transliteration and untranslated, we have reproduced the mantric syllables as they appear in the Degé Tibetan version in the translation’s main body, while noting the variants found in the consulted Sanskrit editions. Note that within Sanskrit editions, numerals following Sanskrit terms indicate a repetition of the last term. In the endnotes, following the three constituent dhāraṇī-mantras, we have included an English interpretative translation of the Sanskrit mantras as edited by Iwamoto.

1

Homage to all buddhas and bodhisattvas!

Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was abiding in the vajra. Through the power of the Buddha, Vajrapāṇi consecrated his entire body as vajra and entered the vajra absorption. Then, through the power of the Buddha, the blessings of all buddhas, and the blessings of all bodhisattvas, Vajrapāṇi proclaimed the vajra essence that emanated from vajra wrath. It is invulnerable,⁹ indivisible, indestructible, true, durable, stable, completely indestructible, and completely invincible. It routs all beings, expels all beings, interrupts all spells, subdues all spells, counters all activities, and routs all actions. It destroys all grahas, liberates all grahas, summons all bhūtas, and annihilates all bhūtas.

2

3

“ ⁵⁴namo ratnatrayāya | namaś caṇḍavajrapāṇaye | mahāyakṣasenāpataye | tadyathā | oṁ hara hara vajra | matha matha vajra⁵⁵ | dhuna dhuna vajra⁵⁶ | daha daha⁵⁷ vajra | paca paca vajra⁵⁸ | dhara dhara vajra⁵⁹ | dhāraya dhāraya vajra⁶⁰ | dāruṇa dāruṇa vajra⁶¹ | chinda chinda vajra⁶² | bhinda bhinda vajra⁶³ | ⁶⁴hūṁ phaṭ ||⁶⁵

“ ⁶⁶namaś caṇḍavajrakrodhāya⁶⁷ | hulu hulu⁶⁸ | tiṣṭha tiṣṭha | bandha bandha | hana hana⁶⁹ | ⁷⁰amṛte hūṁ phaṭ ||⁷¹

“Purifying all negativity
And annihilating all suffering,
This, the root of all tantras,⁷²
Is well adorned by every kind of splendor.

“All beings with declining faculties,
Those whose longevity is diminished or weakened,
Those in poverty or beset with desire,
Those whom the deities have abandoned,

“Those who are at odds with their families,
Oppressed servants and slaves,
Parties in disagreement with each other,
Those harmed by loss of wealth,

“Those who are pained by weariness and grief,
Fearful and destitute people,
Those harmed by planets, constellations, curses,
And unbearable grahas,

“And even those who have nightmares
Born from their weariness and grief—
This will cleanse them completely;
All should listen to this sacred discourse.

“Those whose minds are virtuous and pure
And who are dressed in clean clothes
Should listen to this discourse—
The profound domain of the buddhas.

“Then, through the splendor of this discourse,
Even the most unbearable diseases
Of all living beings
Will be quelled.

“Beings’ lifespans and merit will increase,
And they will be liberated from all negativity.
Gather jewels, mustard seeds, doob grass,
Gems, flawless sandalwood,

“Crystals, diamonds, and flowers,
And use water to fill a vase of proper material,
Such as gold or silver,
And wrap it in clean cloth.

“After reciting the vajra conqueror
Twenty-one or one hundred and eight times,
A king should, in this way,
Always perform ablutions.

Colophon

This text was translated, edited, and finalized by the Indian preceptors Jinamitra and Dānaśīla, along with the Tibetan translator Bandé Yeshé Dé.

Notes

notes.1

1. Bühnemann 2014.

notes.2

2. In the list of ten sūtras, this text is designated as having the function of purification or ablution (rdo rje rnam par ’joms pa khrus kyi mdo). There are several different accounts of the significance of the “Five Royal Sūtras.” One holds that each concisely summarize one of the five great sūtra collections (’bum sde lnga), of which this text is said to represent the Ratnakūṭa collection, corresponding to the body (out of body, speech, mind, qualities, and activity). According to another explanation, each is simply “royal” or sovereign in its category, which in this case is, again, that of purificatory ablution (khrus). See “bsdu sgrigs gsal bshad,” in Khomthar Jamlö 2014, vol. 1, pp. 2–4.

notes.3

3. Denkarma F.302.b.6. See also Yoshimura 1950, and Herrmann-Pfandt 2002, no. 390.

notes.4

4. Works by these authors are among ten commentaries on the Vajravidāraṇā preserved in the Tengyur (Toh 2678–87).

notes.5

5. Toh 2907–60, 2968–71, 2973–86, 2989, 2993–94, 2996–3000, 3002–31, 3034–42, and 3044–49.

notes.6

6. Several of the most important or popular commentaries are presented in Khomthar Jamlö 2014, vol. 1.

notes.7

7. Note that there is a discrepancy among various databases for cataloging the Toh 949 version of this text within vol. 101 or 102 of the Degé Kangyur. See Toh 949, note 6 for details. This text, Toh 949, and all those contained in this same volume (gzungs ’dus, waM), are listed as being located in volume 101 of the Degé Kangyur by the Buddhist Digital Resource Center (BDRC). However, several other Kangyur databases—including the eKangyur that supplies the digital input version displayed by the 84000 Reading Room—list this work as being located in volume 102. This discrepancy is partly due to the fact that the two volumes of the gzungs ’dus section are an added supplement not mentioned in the original catalog, and also hinges on the fact that the compilers of the Tōhoku catalog placed another text—which forms a whole, very large volume—the Vimalaprabhānāmakālacakratantraṭīkā (dus ’khor ’grel bshad dri med ’od, Toh 845), before the volume 100 of the Degé Kangyur, numbering it as vol. 100, although it is almost certainly intended to come right at the end of the Degé Kangyur texts as volume 102; indeed its final fifth chapter is often carried over and wrapped in the same volume as the Kangyur dkar chags (catalog). Please note this discrepancy when using the eKangyur viewer in this translation.

notes.8

8. Mipham Gyatso 2014, pp. 443–58.

notes.9

9. “Invulnerable” (Tib. mi thub pa) is missing in all Sanskrit witnesses consulted and from all consulted witnesses of Buddhaguhya’s rin po che gsal ba. As well as in the Degé, it is present in the Choné, Lhasa, Lithang, and Kangxi Kangyurs, but absent in the Dunhuang manuscript and in the Narthang, Yongle, and Stok Palace Kangyurs.

notes.10

10. - oṁ] I.

notes.11

11. taṭa] I; traṭa] E.

notes.12

12. sphuṭu] E.

notes.13

13. ghuṇa] I.

notes.14

14. ghuṇāpaya] I.

notes.15

15. vibodhaya 2] Dh.

notes.16

16. + trasa 2 soṃtrāsaya 2] I; traśa 2 trāśaya] E.

notes.17

17. - saṃbrahmaya] I.

notes.18

18. sarvabuddhābodhini] I (“all buddhas and awakened ones”).

notes.19

19. + kuṭaya 2] I.

notes.20

20. mata] E.

notes.21

21. tatha sahanīlavajra] I; vajrāṭṭahāsanīlavajra] E.

notes.22

22. +oṃ] E, I.

notes.23

23. phalini] I; he he phu((llatr))āni] E.

notes.24

24. curu 2] I.

notes.25

25. saṃphu((++))anīghunaphu((++))] E.

notes.26

26. kuru] E; kara] I; kuru] Ib.

notes.27

27. +oṃ] Dh, I; +vajra] E.

notes.28

28. varakilikilmiṣa] Ia; Iwamoto notes that Ib omits this mantra after oṁ and reads it as °kilmiṣāya.

notes.29

29. moṭaya pramoṭanāya] I; mātanapramāṭanāya] E.

notes.30

30. cara 2 vicara 2] I; cala 2 nicala 2] E.

notes.31

31. husara 2] I; mara 2] E.

notes.32

32. vajravidāraṇāya] Dh, E, Fy, I.

notes.33

33. +oṁ] Dh, E, I.

notes.34

34. krodhavajrāya kilikilāya] I; krodhamahākilikiliāya] E; krodha krodha vajrakilikīlāya] Dh, Fy.

notes.35

35. oṃ culu 2 caṇḍāli kilikilāya] I; oṃ curu 2 candrakilikilāya] E; oṃ curu curu caṇḍakilikīlāya] Dh.

notes.36

36. +oṃ] Dh, E, I.

notes.37

37. trāśaya] E.

notes.38

38. +oṃ] Dh, E, I.

notes.39

39. dhara 2] Ib; hara 2] Dh, E.

notes.40

40. ṛddhisthiravajra] Ia; natiṣṭitavajre] E.

notes.41

41. apratihasahivajra] E.

notes.42

42. - amogha vajra | ehi vajra |] E; ehy ehi vajra] I.

notes.43

43. +oṁ] Dh, E; +aṁ] I

notes.44

44. - amukham māraya phaṭ | (“Slay so-and-so, phaṭ! ”), + mamasarvaśatrūn māraya hūṁ phaṭ svāhā |] E (“Slay all of my enemies, hūṁ phaṭ svāhā! ”).

notes.45

45. +oṃ] Dh, E.

notes.46

46. °vajrāṇām] E; namaḥ samantavajrāṇām |] Dh.

notes.47

47. sarvabalamāvartrāya mahāvale kaṭava tatare] E.

notes.48

48. °maye] Dh.

notes.49

49. maṭā ulamāḍe prativajramahāvimalena] E; ma hA ba la / bi ga / ra Na / ra Na] IOL Tib J 416c.3.4.

notes.50

50. - daha daha] E.

notes.51

51. tini (1x)] E.

notes.52

52. - bandha bandha] E.

notes.53

53. “Homage to the Three Jewels! Homage to fierce Vajrapāṇi, the great commander of yakṣas! This is it: oṁ, cut, cut! Sever, sever! Break, break! Shatter, shatter! Spin, spin! Wind up, wind up! Awaken, awken all beings! Fully awaken, fully awaken them! Confuse, confuse! Bewilder, bewilder! All buddhas and awakened ones, smash, smash, demolish, demolish all enemies! Cut, cut, sever, sever all essence mantras, vajra vajra! Burst asunder, vajra! Divide vajra vajra! Enact, vajra vajra! Move, vajra vajra! Churn, vajra vajra! To Blue Vajra Bellowing Laughter, the exalted vajra, svāhā! oṁ phalini phalini, grhṇa grhṇa, enact enact! mili mili curu curu, enact, enact! To Victorious Vajra, svāhā! oṁ, to *Vajrakilikilmiṣa, svāhā! oṁ, *divide, divide! Enact, enact! Howl, howl! Grind! To the grinder, svāhā! oṁ, go, go! Roam, roam! husara husara (Fx: hara hara/ sara sara, for ‘seize, seize! Attack, attack!’) Slay! To Vajra Conqueror, svāhā! oṁ, cut, cut! Break, break! To Great Kilikila, svāhā! oṃ, restrain, restrain, to fierce Vajrakilikila, svāhā! oṃ culu culu Caṇḍāli, to Kilikila, svāhā! oṃ, make them tremble! To Kilikila, svāhā! oṁ, seize, seize! To Vajra Bearer, svāhā! oṁ attack, attack! To Vajra Smasher, svāhā! O Stable Miracle Vajra, Stable Hearing Vajra, Steadfast Vajra, Great Vajra, indestructible Vajra, Efficacious Vajra, come, come quickly vajra, to Vajra, svāhā! oṁ *dhara dhara dhiri dhiri dhuru dhuru huṃ huṃ phaṭ phaṭ svāhā! oṁ, homage to [the enactor of all the power] of the ever-awakened ones, oṁ Great Powerful One, divide! O Swiftly Moving One, O Unmoving, killer of the maṇḍala, Superior Vajra, he who was worshiped by Great Agitator (*mahāvegaraṇapūjite) blaze, blaze, ṭi ṭi ṭi ṭi ṭi. O burn, burn them, Vajra Splendorous One, tiri tiri, bind, bind! O Great Powerful Vajra, Vajra Blazing Noose, svāhā!”

notes.54

54. +oṁ] Dh, I.

notes.55

55. vajra matha 2] I.

notes.56

56. vajra dhuru 2] I; dhana] E.

notes.57

57. hara] E.

notes.58

58. - daha daha vajra | paca paca vajra] I; -paca paca vajra] E.

notes.59

59. vajra dhara 2] I.

notes.60

60. vajradharāya 2] I.

notes.61

61. vajraripuna] I.

notes.62

62. vajra cchinda 2] I.

notes.63

63. vajra bhinda 2] I.

notes.64

64. +vajra] I.

notes.65

65. “Homage to the Three Jewels! Homage to Fierce Vajrapāṇi, the great commander of yakṣas! This is it: oṁ, seize, seize, vajra! Crush, crush, vajra! Roar, roar, vajra! Burn, burn, vajra! Cook, cook, vajra! Hold, hold, vajra! Bind, bind, vajra! Clutch, clutch, vajra! Cut, cut, vajra! Break, break, vajra hūṁ phaṭ! oṃ, Homage to fierce Vajrapāṇi, the great Wrathful One! huru huru vajra bind, seize, seize! O Deathless One, hūṁ phaṭ svāhā!”

notes.66

66. +oṃ] Dh, E, I.

notes.67

67. namaś caṇḍavajrapānāye mahāvajrakrodhāya huṁ phulu 2] E; namaś caṇḍavajrapāṇaye] I.

notes.68

68. hulu hulu. Monier-Williams defines this as an exclamation of joy. Edgerton directs the reader to phuluphulu, the sound made by the hordes of Māra. Mipham’s commentary glosses tshur drangs for “to pull towards,” or drag tu khug for “to violently summon.”

Vajra Conqueror

Contents

Text

84000's introduction

Notes