History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v7.c92.199

v7.c92.199

¹⁷⁹² ओं मणितारे हुं। लक्षजापेनार्या अग्रत उपतिष्ठति। यदिच्छति तत्सर्वं ददाति। विना मण्डलकरनानॊपवासेन केवलं जापमात्रेण सिध्यति सर्वं कार्यं च साधयति। साधनमाला vol I. p. 221. आर्या here means Goddess Tārā The most famous mantra among Buddhists is 'Om Manipadme hūm' where 'manipadme' is vocative (and probably refers to Tārā deity, who has a jewel lotus). Vide Dr. F. W Thomas in JRAS for 1906 p. 464. It is often rendered as 'Hail, the jewel lotus'. While these pages were passing through the press the present author received a work called 'Foundations of Tibetan mysticism' according to the Esoteric Teachings of the Great Mantra 'Om Mani Padme Hūm' by Lama Anagarika Govinda (pub by Rider and Co London, 1959) It is impossible to deal with this work in this note He states that the Mantra 'Om' &c. is dedicated to Avalokiteśvara (a fine photographic plate of whom occurs as the Frontispiece). None who is not a confirmed Tibetan Buddhist scholar or monk will accept his interpretations of the words of the mantra On p. 27 he states that the mantra is pronounced in Tibet as 'Om Mani Peme Hūm' and that the complete formula is 'Om .. Hūm, Hrīh' (p. 230), on pp. 84 ff. he scouts the idea that tāntrism is a Hinduistic reaction taken over by later Buddhist schools He offers different esoteric meanings of the words of the mantra e g on p. 130 he says 'om is the ascent towards universality, Hūm is the descent of the states of universality into the depth of the human heart', on p. 131 'Om is the infinite, but Hūm is the infinite in the finite, the eternal in the temporal' &c., on p 230 'In the Om, we experience the *Dharmakāya* and the mystery of the universal body, in 'mani' the *Sambhogakāya*, in the Padma we experience the Nırmānakāya, in the Hūm we experience the *Vajrakāya* as synthesis of the transcendental body of the three mysteries, in the Hrih, we dedicate the totality of our transformed personality to the service of Amitābha, on p. 256 'thus Om.. Hūm embodies the happy tidings of liberation, of the love towards all living beings and of the way that leads to final realization ' The present author is constrained to say that by similar arbitrary interpretations the words of any mantra may be made to yield similar senses.