འཕགས་པ་མ་འམ་ཅའ་རྒྱལ་པ་སྡང་པས་ཞས་པ་ཞས་བྱ་བ་ཐག་པ་ཆན་པའ་མད intro.2

intro.2

The Questions of the Kinnara King Druma ¹ is a scripture that belongs to the general sūtra section of the Tibetan Kangyur. The sūtra presents a series of teachings focusing on the doctrine of emptiness and the bodhisattvas’ perfections, presented in a rich narrative framework in which Druma, the king of the kinnaras, is the protagonist. Kinnaras are mythological beings found in both Buddhist and Hindu literature, where they are portrayed as creatures half human, half animal (usually half bird). They are also usually depicted as highly skilled celestial musicians. King Druma is himself a well-known figure in canonical Sanskrit sources, where he frequently appears, albeit mostly in minor roles, offering musical worship to the Buddha. For example, King Druma appears in such a role in the Saddharmapuṇḍarīkasūtra (Toh 113)² where he is one of four kinnara kings (the other three are Mahādharma, Sudharma, and Dharmadhara) attending the Buddha’s teaching. He is also included in the Samādhirājasūtra (Toh 127)³ where he arrives with his queens to make an offering of his music to the Buddha.