Introduction

i.1The Dhāraṇī for a Caitya Perfectly Constructed with Complete Knowledge is a dhāraṇī text that teaches detailed preparations for the construction of caityas (mchod rten), specifically the preparation of small caityas from clay, one form of tsha-tsha as they are commonly known in Tibet. The main dhāraṇī to be recited while crafting these small caityas is called the vimaloṣṇīṣa (“stainless uṣṇīṣa”) dhāraṇī, and is famed for its use in consecration and inauguration rituals. The vimaloṣṇīṣa dhāraṇī has a long history in India, as evidenced by its discovery on birch bark fragments from Gilgit dating to the seventh century as well as by its inclusion in numerous small caityas and seals discovered at Bodh Gayā that date between the eighth and eleventh centuries and in caityas and dhāraṇī seals found at Nālandā, Ratnagiri, Paharpur, and Udayagiri. In addition, its discovery on clay seals as far as Indonesia and manuscript fragments found at Dunhuang suggest that the fame of this dhāraṇī extended well beyond India.

i.2There are two dhāraṇī texts in the Kangyur that have been (and still are today) the principal works employed in Tibetan rites for the consecration and inauguration caityas and stūpas. They are known as the “two stainless ones,” The Radiance of the Stainless Uṣṇīṣa (Raśmivimaloṣṇīṣa­prabhāsa, Toh 599) and The Dhāraṇī of Pure Stainless Light (Raśmivimalaviśuddha­prabhā­nāma­dhāraṇī, Toh 510). It is the first of these that is considered the main canonical text introducing and featuring the vimaloṣṇīṣa dhāraṇī. It relates the narrative of how the dhāraṇī, emanated from the Buddha’s uṣṇīṣa, was first taught when a Trāyastriṃśa god was about to die and fall to the lower realms. The Buddha explains how it should be placed in caityas with a series of offerings and recitations in order to prolong life and purify the karmic causes of lower rebirth. The vimaloṣṇīṣa dhāraṇī is also counted as one of the “five great dhāraṇīs” (gzung chen sde lnga) used in consecration rituals in Tibet.

i.3The present text, although it contains its own, different narrative, is in some ways a more practice oriented manual, detailing the use of the same dhāraṇī specifically for the preparation of minature caityas, and can perhaps be seen as a derivative work of The Radiance of the Stainless Uṣṇīṣa itself. Nevertheless, in contrast to the primary title given at the beginning of the text, the colophon to The Dhāraṇī for a Caitya names it simply The Vimaloṣṇīṣa Dhāraṇī. The exact wording of the dhāraṇī itself in this text differs slightly from the version in The Radiance of the Stainless Uṣṇīṣa.

i.4The Dhāraṇī for a Caitya begins with Vajradhara residing in a celestial caitya whose structure will be mirrored in the caitya maṇḍala taught later in the text. From this seat, he emits rays of light from his uṣṇīṣa and heart center to bless the universe and all the beings in it, filling the sky with images of dharmakāya caityas. Moved by this powerful display, Vajrapāṇi and the other bodhisattvas in attendance ask Vajradhara for instruction on the vimaloṣṇīṣa dhāraṇī used to bless caityas. Vajradhara acquiesces, proceeding to teach the dhāraṇī along with variations to be used in specific scenarios. He then lauds the benefits of using the dhāraṇī when constructing caityas in general.

i.5Following this more general discourse on the use of the vimaloṣṇīṣa dhāraṇī, Vajradhara offers a series of instructions on making a maṇḍala of miniature caityas, beginning with the identification and purification of the site from which clay will be excavated and the preparation of the site where the caityas will be made. Once these preliminary steps are taught, Vajradhara describes the procedure for making the caityas, including the softening of the clay with a mallet, the forming of the individual balls of clay, the preparation of the caitya molds, the process of inserting or impressing the dhāraṇī and other mantra syllables into the clay balls, and the casting of the caityas. Each of these steps is accompanied by a mantra recitation and a visualization sequence.

i.6Once the process of making the caityas has been explained, Vajradhara teaches his audience how to decorate the caityas, how to arrange them into the maṇḍala pattern, and how to arrange the entire ritual site in preparation for the main consecration rite. The primary maṇḍala described consists of five caityas: a central caitya surrounded by four caityas in each cardinal direction. Vajradhara repeatedly notes that this rite can be performed on any number of caityas‍—a hundred, a thousand, or even more.

i.7After detailing these steps and their respective mantras and visualization sequences, Vajradhara proceeds to the final instructions on the main consecration rite. The practitioner, identifying themselves as Vajradhara, blesses the individual parts of the ritual site and maṇḍala through mantra recitation and visualization, makes offerings to the maṇḍala of caityas, and meditatively invokes the blessings of the five tathāgatas and the five families for each of the individual caityas. After completing this elaborate sequence, the practitioner is directed to recite the vimaloṣṇīṣa dhāraṇī for as long as they can.

i.8Vajradhara concludes his discourse by identifying the challenges a practitioner may face in performing such a complex rite, offering remedies and encouragement and extolling the benefits that come from practicing it completely and correctly.

i.9There is no known Sanskrit witness of The Dhāraṇī for a Caitya, nor does it appear to have been translated into Chinese. Lacking an Indic witness, little is known about its circulation and use in India. As noted above, the vimaloṣṇīṣa dhāraṇī, the core dhāraṇī employed in this text, enjoyed widespread fame in India and beyond, likely because it was transmitted in scriptures and ritual manuals such as this one. Nonetheless, there is no further information on or versions of The Dhāraṇī for a Caitya beyond its Tibetan translation.

i.10There is also little known about the provenance of the Tibetan translation of The Dhāraṇī for a Caitya. Among the numerous versions of the translation included in the Kangyur and other scriptural collections, none include a translator’s colophon that would provide information on its translators or the time and place in which it was translated. The text is not included in the imperial-period catalogs under its main title, but the Phangthangma (’phang thang ma) catalog does list a series of texts related to the vimaloṣṇīṣa dhāraṇī that cannot be correlated with extant Tibetan translations. Among them we find The Dhāraṇī-Mantra of the Radiant Stainless Uṣṇīṣa Together with Its Rite (’phags pa gtsug tor dri ma med par snang ba’i gzungs sngags cho ga dang bcas pa), which as the title indicates concerns the vimaloṣṇīṣa dhāraṇī in combination with ritual instructions for its use. Although this is more likely to be a reference to The Radiance of the Stainless Uṣṇīṣa (Toh 599) as mentioned above, it may possibly refer instead to The Dhāraṇī for a Caitya under a different title, as this text does describe an elaborate ritual that employs the vimaloṣṇīṣa dhāraṇī. If that were the case, it would indicate that The Dhāraṇī for a Caitya was translated prior to the Tibetan empire’s collapse in 843. As noted above, The Dhāraṇī for a Caitya appears to be known by multiple titles, yet another of which might be the title found in the Phangthangma. The colophon of the text translated below identifies it as The Vimaloṣṇīṣa Dhāraṇī, and both the Phukdrak (phug brag) and Lang do (lang mdo) Kangyurs provide the alternate Sanskrit title Vimaloṣṇīṣa­sarva­caitya­nāma­dhāraṇī, which can be tentatively translated as The Dhāraṇī Called the Stainless Uṣṇīṣa for All Caityas.

i.11The Dhāraṇī for a Caitya is also found in two paracanonical collections: The Extensive Collection of Early Translations of Canonical Scripture of the Nyingma (rnying ma) tradition and The Collection of Maṇḍala Rituals from Old and New Exemplars at Palpung of the Kagyü (bka’ brgyud) school. In both cases the Tibetan translation bears the same title as that found in the majority of Kangyurs, shes pas thams cad mthar phyin par grub pa’i mchod rten zhes bya ba’i gzungs.

i.12As is often the case with dhāraṇī literature, The Dhāraṇī for a Caitya is preserved in two locations in the Degé Kangyur. Toh 601 is found among the Kriyātantras in the Tantra section (rgyud ’bum), while Toh 884 is located in the Collection of Dhāraṇīs (gzungs ’dus). Apart from a few scribal variations, these two versions are identical.

i.13The Degé versions of the Tibetan translation serve as the primary witnesses for this translation. The versions found in the Stok Palace (stog pho brang) and Phukdrak Kangyurs were also consulted closely, as were the annotations reported in the Comparative Edition (dpe bsdur ma) of the Degé Kangyur. Additionally, the version preserved in The Extensive Collection of Early Translations of the Nyingma tradition was studied as a representation of the text from a paracanonical source. No substantive differences were found among these numerous witnesses.

i.14The dhāraṇīs used in this text have been preserved as cited in the Degé witness, with only minor emendations to correct obvious orthographic errors. An important exception is the main dhāraṇī, the vimaloṣṇīṣa dhāraṇī, for which we have Sanskrit witnesses. There are, naturally, some differences between the dhāraṇī as reported in the different Sanskrit sources and the Degé witness. Thus, when possible and warranted, the Degé has been emended to align with the Sanskrit witnesses when the latter preserve the clearer reading.