Notes

n.1Mahamegha Translation Group, trans., The Great Cloud (1) (Mahāmegha), Toh 232 (84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2022).

n.2ldan dkar ma, folio 299.a. See also Herrmann-Pfandt 2008, pp. 193–94.

n.3These are noted in Herrmann-Pfandt 2008, p. 193.

n.4Bendall 1880 and Moriguchi 1980. We have also consulted a parallel passage in the manuscript of the Mahāpratyaṅgīrā Mahāvidyārājñī dhāraṇī (British Library, ref. EAP676/16/2).

n.5Translated based on the Sanskrit śrī­­maṇi­­ratna­­garbha­mahā­megha­maṇḍala­kūṭāgāra. The Tibetan could be rendered as “a palace made of a great multitude of śrīgarbha jewel clouds.”

n.6Here the Sanskrit gives the name Mahāmaṇicūḍa (“Great Jewel Crest”), which appears at this position in the list of nāgas at 1.­57.

n.7Here the Sanskrit gives the name Śrīmat (“Fortunate” or “Eminent”), the Tibetan presumably reading śrīmati.

n.8Here the Sanskrit gives the name Ābhāsa (“Light”).

n.9Here the Sanskrit adds the name Mahākṣemaṃkara.

n.10Here the Tibetan gives the name Great Scent or Great Stain (dri ma chen po), presumably reading mahābala as mahāmala.

n.11The Sanskrit gives the name Phaluḍa, the meaning of which is not clear.

n.12Here the Sanskrit gives the name Hastikarṇa (“Elephant’s Ear”).

n.13Following the Sanskrit. The Tibetan gives the name chu stobs (“Water Power”), perhaps reading udakambala.

n.14The Tibetan gives the name gser mdog sgra (“Golden Voice”), presumably a corruption of gser mdog skra (“Golden Hair”), which would match the Sanskrit.

n.15Following the Sanskrit, which means “Cow’s Head.” The Tibet reads bla glang mgo (“Elephant Head”), presumably reading gajaśīrṣa.

n.16Here the Sanskrit gives the name Masaka (“Mosquito”).

n.17Following the Sanskrit. The Tibetan reads ngang pa’i gzi brjid, perhaps reading haṃsa (“duck” or “goose”) for saṃha (saṃhata meaning “solid” or “compact”).

n.18Here the Sanskrit gives the name Jaradratha, which should perhaps be emended to the more plausible Jayadratha, which accords with the Tibetan.

n.19Here the Sanskrit give the name Vidhura, which is equally plausible.

n.20Here the Sanskrit gives the name Mahācaṇḍa (“Very Fierce”).

n.21The Sanskrit repeats Mahāmeghāmbuda (“Great Water-Giving Cloud”) here.

n.22Here the Sanskrit gives the name Kakuba, which is puzzling. Kakubha means something like “Space Region” or “Sky Quarter” but could also suggest a nāga who lives in a kakubha tree.

n.23Here the Sanskrit has been emended from Meghasphūdita.

n.24Following the Sanskrit (“Crow’s Cawing”). The meaning of the Tibetan gser ngad can is not clear.

n.25Here the Sanskrit gives the name Vidyunnada (“Sound of Lightning”).

n.26Here the Sanskrit gives the name Vikaṭa (“Monstrous,” implying an unusual or frightening appearance due to size or unusual body features).

n.27Here the Sanskrit reads, “Headed by these, the most prominent among all nāga kings” (pramukhaiḥ sarva­mahā­nāga­rāja­pūrvaṃ­gamaiś).

n.28The Sanskrit adds “garlands” (dāma).

n.29The Sanskrit adds “trumpets” (tūrya).

n.30The Sanskrit either omits this item (Tib. sil snyan) or combines it with the next (Skt. tāḍāvacāra).

n.31The Sanskrit has “jeweled tassels” (ratnadāma).

n.32The Sanskrit adds here “with murmuring and rumbling sounds, with gusts of wind, with loud sounds, making pleasing sounds of Dharma…” (garjanto guḍu­guḍāyamāna mahāvātāṃ pravāyanto mahā­nādaṃ nadanto ramaṇīyamś ca dharma­nādaṃ nadantaḥ).

n.33The phrase “we make offerings” is added for clarification.

n.34The word “blue” is added for clarification.

n.35“We will fill the sky with emanations of” has been added here and below.

n.36The Sanskrit repeats here “the great lord of the nāgas in the trichiliocosm” (tri­sāhasra­mahā­sāhasriko mahā­nāgādhipatiḥ).

n.37The Sanskrit repeats here “the great lord nāgas in the trichiliocosm” (tri­sāhasra­mahā­sāhasriko mahā­nāgādhipatiḥ).

n.38Here the Sanskrit reads “how can one eliminate all the sufferings specific to nāgas of all the nāgas and send, with joy and happiness, abundant rains to the continent of Jambudvīpa, time after time?” (sarvanāgānāṃ sarvanāgaduḥkāni pratipraśraṃbhyeyuḥ praharṣitāḥ sukhasamanvitāśceha jambudvipe kālānukālaṃ varṣadhāra utsṛjeyuḥ).

n.39The Sanskrit repeats here “the great lord nāgas in the trichiliocosm” (tri­sāhasra­mahā­sāhasriko mahā­nāgādhipatiḥ).

n.40Based on the Tibetan transcript, on Bendall’s and Moriguchi’s editions of the Sanskrit text, and on the parallel passage in the manuscript of the Mahāpratyaṅgīrā Mahāvidyārājñī, this dhāraṇī could be conjecturally reconstructed as dharaṇidhāraṇi uttāraṇi sampratiṣṭhite vijayavarṇasatyapratijñāsahā jñānavati utpādani vināśani abhiśecani abhivyāhāra śubhāvati jīmūta ehi kavārāṇi vaha hara kleśān dhuna pāpaṃ śodhaya mārgān nirīhikadharmatā-śuddhāloka-vitimirarājasa-duḥkhaśamana-sarvabuddhāvalokana-adhiṣṭhite prajñājñānābhe svāhā. This could be rendered into English as “O maintainer of the earth, O savioress who stands firm. You appear [in the garb of] victory. With your courage, you are true to your promises. O possessor of gnosis! You are the creator and you are the destroyer. You who release showers, please make your [thunderous] sound. O beautiful cloud, please come, bring forth the lotuses, remove afflictive emotions, destroy what is evil, and clear up the paths. You who are empowered by the gaze of all the buddhas‍—the gaze that removes suffering with its pure light of the effortless dharmatā, free from the darkness of passion‍—you who shine with the light of insight-gnosis, svāhā!”

n.41The beginning of this paragraph is omitted in the Sanskrit.

n.42In the Sanskrit this clause reads “…who are a multitude of clouds of shining banners of gnosis, who swiftly bring on prosperity…”

n.43“Nāga paternal lines” (klu'i cho rigs) is omitted in the Sanskrit.

n.44The Sanskrit simply has “dhāraṇī mantra.”

n.45The Sanskrit simply has “dhāraṇī mantra.”

n.46The Sanskrit adds here “stop all killing of all sentient beings” (sarvasattvānaṃ sarvaghātanāḥ … nivāraya).

n.47The Sanskrit add “prevent beings’ pain” (satva … pīḍāḥ … nivāraya).

n.48Based on the Tibetan transcript and Bendall’s partial edition (only the first couple of lines) of the Sanskrit text and on the parallel passage in the manuscript of the Mahāpratyaṅgīrā Mahāvidyārājñī, this dhāraṇī could be conjecturally reconstructed as mahā­jñānāvabhāsani śrī­tejo­lakṣmi ḍṛḍha­vikrama­vajra­saṁhatane paramavirāja­nirmala­guṇa­ketu­sūrya­prabhe vimalāṅgayaṣṭi bhara bhara sambhara sambhara dudumbu hana hana mahāprabhe vibhūta­mahā­maho ʼndhakāre prajñāgra­śuddhe paripūrṇa­maitri maitri­viraṇa­skandha­maitrāmbudhare jala jala jala jala jalāmbudhare bodhyaṅga­kusume daśa­bale catur­vaiśāradye aṣṭā­daśāveṇika­buddha­dharme śubhamati puṇya­rāśi śukla­dharma­samanvite gambhīre virajase vimale viśeṣa­prāpte nirāsrava­dharme sarva­lokajyaiṣṭha­jyeṣṭha­parapravare anuttare asaṇge dhara dhara dhiri dhiri dhuru dhuru śāntamate śāntavege cara cara cara cara ciri ciri curu curu parama­buddhānumate mahā­prajñā­pāramite svāhā. This dhāraṇī seems to be addressing a cloud filled with lightning, identified, because of its splendor, first with the goddess Lakṣmī and then with Prājñāpāramitā. It could be rendered into English as “O Lakṣmī of brilliant splendor, you shine with the light of great gnosis. Your thunderclaps steadily roll on. You are a supremely bright banner of qualities, as dazzling as the sun. Endowed with stainless wand-like limbs, maintain, maintain! Provide, provide! Make thundering sounds! Strike, strike! Intensely bright, you manifest your great power in the midst of darkness. Purified by your sharp insight, you are completely filled with love. O loving receptacle of water, you are the shoulder supporting the sounds of love. Water, water, water, water, O receptacle of water, you are the flower of the limbs of awakening. You are endowed with the ten powers, the four confidences, and the eighteen unique qualities of a buddha. With a sublime mind, you are a heap of merit, richly endowed with virtuous qualities. You are profound, stainless, and immaculate. You have attained excellence, and your dharmas are free from karmic inflows (āsrava). You are preeminent among those who are the most excellent among the excellent. You are the unsurpassed one free from attachment. Hold, hold! Be firm, be firm! Be unswerving, be unswerving! Your mind is peaceful and you quell agitation. Act, act! Ciri ciri curu curu! O great perfection of wisdom, beloved by the supreme Buddha, svāhā!”

n.49This paragraph is omitted in Bendall’s edition of the Sanskrit.

n.50Sara sara means “move, move!” Here, and all the way up to and including the paragraph at 1.­47, only the first pair of the Sanskrit words is translatable. The subsequent two pairs are added for alliterative effect. Thus, in the phrase sara sara siri siri suru suru, only sara sara has a meaning. Siri siri and suru suru are alliterative variations of sara sara with (presumably) the same meaning.

n.51Java java means “Be quick, be quick!”

n.52Cara cara means “Act, act!”

n.53Vara vara means “Surround, surround!”

n.54Bhara bhara means “Maintain, maintain!”

n.55The meaning of ghaḍa ghaḍa could not be determined. It possibly means “Cover, cover!” or “Spread over, spread over!”

n.56Taṭa taṭa means “Rumble, rumble!”

n.57Kala kala means “Murmur, murmur!”

n.58The meaning of rala rala could not be determined.

n.59The meaning of ghama ghama could not be determined.

n.60The meaning of nara nara could not be determined.

n.61The meaning of gaṭa gaṭa could not be determined.

n.62The meaning of śara śara could not be determined.

n.63Ghara ghara means “Sprinkle, sprinkle!” whereas the remaining words, apart from ghiriṇi ghiriṇi, which means “O sprinkler, sprinkler!” are just alliterative variations of ghara ghara.

n.64In the parallel passage of the Mahāpratyaṅgīrā Mahāvidyārājñī, the preceding is not a list of independent names of goddesses, as it appear to be in the Tibetan, but all are epithets of one and the same deity, who is addressed in the vocative. The dhāraṇī would thus begin “O swift flowing one, the bearer of great clouds…” Here we have followed the Tibetan, as it presents divergences in this and other ways from the Sanskrit passage.

n.65After amending pravarśa vignan to pramarda vighnān, the part daha daha … svāhā could be translated as “strike, strike, burn, burn, cook, cook, seize, seize, crush, crush, grind, grind the obstacle makers! So commands Maitreya, svāhā!”

n.66In the Sanskrit text in the parallel passage in the manuscript of the Mahāpratyaṅgīrā Mahāvidyārājñī, this line is an unbroken continuation of the same dhāraṇī that starts with buddhe buddhe. It reads in Sanskrit sarvavarṣavighnaviṣkambhiye svāhā, which phrase should be appended after śāntamānase at the end of the previous paragraph. However, since the this passage is translated in the Tibet text, we have accordingly translated it into English here. According to the Sanskrit, this dhāraṇī could be conjecturally reconstructed as buddhe buddhe bubuddhe subuddhe hara pāpaṃ sarva­sattvānām adhitiṣṭha puṇyaṃ sarva­buddhānāṃ dhariṇi­dhare śubhamate guṇāgraprāpaṇe mahā­jñānolke śukla­dharme satya­pratijñā mahāyānādhyuṣite loka­jyeṣṭha­bhagavati buddha­maitre āpūraya sarva­kṣetrāṇi śukleśvetāmbāre pāṇḍaravāsini dhudhure dhudhuru śama śama śāntamānase sarva­varṣa­vighna­viṣkambhiye. The dhāraṇī seems to be addressing a cloud that is bright with lightning and identified with the goddess Pāṇḍaravāsinī, the consort of Amitābha. It could be translated as “O realized one, utterly and profoundly realized! Remove what is evil and bless (invest?) all beings with the merit of all the buddhas. O maintainer (sustainer?) of the earth with a pure mind, you have attained the very best of qualities. O firebrand (meteor?) of great gnosis, your dharmas are white. You are true to your promises. You are a receptacle for the Great Vehicle. You are the most exalted lady(?) ( bhagavatī ) in the world. O rumbling one, make your rumbling sounds! Pacify, pacify, O tranquil-minded one who clears away all hindrances to rainfall.”

n.67In the parallel passage in the manuscript of the Mahāpratyaṅgīrā Mahāvidyārājñī, this line is an unbroken continuation of the same dhāraṇī that starts with nāge nāge. Since this dhāraṇī is more corrupt than the previous ones, the reconstruction that follows is tentative. It is not completely clear whether the deity being addressed is female or male. Based on the Tibetan transcript and the parallel passage in the manuscript of the Mahāpratyaṅgīrā Mahāvidyārājñī, this dhāraṇī could be conjecturally reconstructed as nāge nāge mahānāge ghoramānase nāga­hṛdaya­dhūmākule ugraroṣaṇe pracaṇḍa­tejoviṣāgre āśīviśe atighore kṛṣṇa­piṇgale cañcale lala­jihve mahā­phaṇakare kāla­pāśe raudra­vāśini ḍuḍumbe mahā­ghane ghana­śikhini kaṇa kaṇa gaṇa gaṇa mahā­gaṇagaṇe para para piri piri puru puru visphūrjane bhuru bhuru mahā­bhoge maṇi­dhare phiri phiri phuru phuru phara phara varṣa varṣa jalāmbudhare śambhu śambhu varaṭutame dhuddhu dhuddhumbe megha­prabhe megha­vāhine ḍhaka ḍhaka ḍhaka ḍhuḍhumbe ghanaghana­śikhini kana kana gaṇa gaṇa mahā­nāgagaṇe †nirātraṇya­vajra­dakāri† mahā­nāgādhipatnīye ghuma ghuma ghuma pāyasike jāṅgāri­bhujaṃgame vikaṭasaṅkate ghora­visphūrjani vijṛmbhante āvāhayāmi sarva­nāgagaṇān sarva­buddhādhiṣṭhāna-sarva­tryadhvaga­tathāgata­satyena mahā­maitramatinā pravarṣatha jambudvīpe svāhā . It could be translated, somewhat freely given the Sanskrit uncertainties, as “O nāga, nāga, great nāga with a vehement disposition! The essence of nāgas, surrounded by smoke and fiercely enraged! Your supreme venom has terrible potency. O supremely dreadful āśīviṣa snake, black and yellow, with a swaying [body], a quivering tongue, and a great hood! You [resemble] a black noose. You howl wildly and make thunderous sounds. O heavy cloud, with a streak of light amidst the dark, kaṇa kaṇa gaṇa gaṇa! You have many hosts of followers, para para piri piri puru puru! O thundering one, bhuru bhuru! You with the mighty coils and hood, adorned with a jewel, phiri phiri phuru phuru phara phara! Send rain, send rain, O receptacle of water! O kind one, kind one, the best †ṭutamā†! Make thunderous dhuddhu sounds, O thundering one! O cloud-colored bringer of clouds, ḍhaka ḍhaka ḍhaka! Make your thunderous ḍhuḍhu sounds. O heavy cloud, with a streak of light amidst the dark, kana kana gaṇa gaṇa! You with a great retinue of nāgas, †nirātraṇyavajradakāri†! O great lady-ruler of nāgas, ghuma ghuma ghuma. You are fond of milk, O slitherer in the jungle! With your huge form, you are pose a great danger. O terrible thunderer with a gaping mouth! I am summoning all the nāga hosts. By the blessing of all the buddhas, by the verity of all the tathāgatas of the three times, by their loving thoughts, do send rain in Jambudvīpa, svāhā!”

n.68“Homage to all the buddhas! May the words of the mantra be effective!”

n.69The Tibetan does not specify what is counted in this number, and although the intended meaning may possibly be chapters, we have taken it as referring to ślokas, “text units” consisting of thirty-two syllables, the same number found in anuṣṭubh verse, even though some parts of the sūtra are in prose‍—hence “lines” and not “verses” or “stanzas.” This is analogous to the numbers that identify the Perfection of Wisdom sūtras (also mostly in prose) according to their length.