Introduction

i.1The Dhāraṇī of Glorious Mahākāla opens at the Vajra Seat under the Bodhi tree in Bodhgayā shortly after the Buddha Śākyamuni has defeated Māra and his demonic horde and attained awakening. As Śākyamuni sits under the Bodhi tree, Mahākāla approaches him, prostrates at his feet, sits to one side, and offers to give him a vidyā , or “spell,” as a gift. Mahākāla then pronounces his vidyā and tells Śākyamuni that it can be used to prevent diseases and ward off potentially harmful spirit beings. The text then concludes with Mahākāla’s promise to Śākyamuni to act as a guardian of temples and maṇḍalas and to protect the Three Jewels.

i.1《光耀大黑天陀羅尼》在菩提伽耶的金剛座下菩提樹下開始，背景是佛陀釋迦牟尼剛剛戰勝了魔羅及其惡魔軍隊並證得覺悟。當釋迦牟尼坐在菩提樹下時，大黑天來到他面前，在他腳下頂禮，坐在一旁，並主動獻上一部明咒或「咒語」作為禮物。大黑天隨後誦念了他的明咒，並告訴釋迦牟尼這個明咒可以用來預防疾病和驅除可能有害的靈性眾生。文本最後以大黑天對釋迦牟尼的承諾結束，他承諾將作為寺廟和壇城的守護者，並保護三寶。

i.2A Sanskrit version of this text has yet to come to light, and it does not appear as an independent work in the Chinese canon. It also does not appear in the Denkarma or Phangthangma royal Tibetan catalogs of translated works. The text lacks a translators’ colophon, so the historical circumstances surrounding its transmission into Tibet remain unclear.

i.2這部經文的梵文版本至今未曾面世，在漢文大藏經中也未以獨立著作的形式出現。它在藏傳佛教的《登噶目錄》和《龐唐目錄》這兩部皇家翻譯目錄中也沒有記載。該經文缺少譯者的跋文，因此它傳入藏地的歷史背景仍然不明確。

i.3This English translation is based on the recensions found in the Tantra Collection (Toh 668) and the Compendium of Dhāraṇīs (Toh 1085) in the Degé Kangyur, in consultation the Comparative Edition of the Kangyur (dpe bsdur ma) and the Stok Palace Kangyur.

i.3本英文翻譯以德格版《甘珠爾》中《密續集》（Toh 668）和《陀羅尼集》（Toh 1085）的版本為基礎，並參考了《甘珠爾對勘版》（dpe bsdur ma）和斯托克宮《甘珠爾》。