Tantra

Tantra (T. rgyud; C. tanteluo 檀特羅). Literally, “continuum,” "without interruption," etc. The term refers to a category of texts and their related practices that began to appear in India in sometime between the fifth and eighth centuries.

Generally speaking, Buddhist tantric practices are distinguished by their use of mantras and visualizations in order to develop specific qualities or attainments. At the highest level, the goal of tantric practice is to transform the ordinary dualistic perceptions of the practitioner into a non-dual "pure perception" that recognizes the sameness of samsara and nirvana. In this process, the five poisons are transformed into the five wisdoms.

The Buddhist tantric traditions spread out from India to the rest of the Buddhist world, including China, Korea, Japan and Tibet. The tantric traditions are central to, and wholly integrated with, the Tibetan Buddhist tradition.

Early history

Origins of tantra

Gray and Overbey (2016) state:

Tantric Buddhist traditions in India drew, to varying degrees depending upon the tradition, from Hindu textual and ritual sources.

Peter Harvey states:

From the third century, sutras contained dhāraṇī, short formulas ‘preserving’ or ‘maintaining’ the Dharma and aiding its followers. The pre-Mahayana sutras also contain parittas..., or short protective chants. Building on such a basis, the practice of using mantras, or sacred words of power, was adopted from Hinduism, where they were originally used in the Vedas. These ‘mental instruments’ were used [in Hinduism] to contact gods, or as spells to gain a good harvest, health, children or even to bewitch someone. In tantric Buddhism, they also became chanted in rites to aid visualizations, in which a particular deity is conjured up out of emptiness, as a basis for developing the spiritual qualities that the being embodies.

Mahayana context

The Princeton Dictionary states:

Although scholars continue to explore the relation between the tantras and the Mahāyāna sūtras, tantric exegetes viewed the tantras, like the Mahāyāna sūtras, as being the word of the Buddha (buddhavacana) and as setting forth forms of practice consistent with the bodhisattva vow and the quest for buddhahood, albeit more quickly than by the conventional path, via what came to be referred to as the vajra vehicle (vajrayana). Thus, it was said that the Mahāyāna was divided into the pāramitānaya, the “mode of the perfections” set forth in the Mahāyāna sūtras, and the mantranaya, the “mode of the mantras” set forth in the tantras.

Peter Harvey states:

The early phase of tantric Buddhism called itself the Mantra-naya or ‘way of mantras’ (the term Mantrayana was a later coining), this being seen as a complement to the Paramita-naya, or ‘way of the perfections’, as part of Mahayana practice...

Many names of tantra

In Mahayana Buddhism, the practice of tantra is referred to by many names. Some of the most common referents are:

• mantra-naya, "way of mantra"
• mantra-yana, "vehicle of mantra" or "mantra vehicle"
• tantrayana, "vehicle of tantra"
• vajrayana, "vajra vehicle"
• mijiao (密教), "esoteric teaching"
• mìzōng (密宗), "esoteric tradition"

The term the mantranaya was used in the earliest phase of tantric Buddhism. In this phase, mantra-naya was presented as a system of Mahayana practice to complement the more commonly known Mahayana practices, which were referred to as paramita-naya ("way of the paramitas").

The term mantrayāna ("mantra vehicle") was coined later, and became common synonym for mantranaya. Mantra-yāna is sometimes paired with pāramitā-yāna ("paramita vehicle").

The term vajrayāna ("vajra vehicle") came into usage around the 10th century, and became a common term for the tantric traditions within Tibetan Buddhism.

The term tantrayāna ("tantra vehicle") is also used in Tibet, and is typically contrasted with the term sutrayana ("sutra vehicle").

The term mijiao (密教; "esoteric teaching") came into usage in China around the 10th century.

The terms mìjiao and mìzōng (密宗; "esoteric tradition") are general referents for tantra within East Asian Buddhism. The specific practice traditions are referred to by names such as zhenyan jiao (真言教; "mantra teachings"), zhenyan sheng (真言乘; mantrayana, "mantra vehicle" ), and tang-mi (唐密; "Tang esoterica").

Tantric traditions

Communities of practitioners

Gray and Overbey (2016) state:

Tantric traditions are the communities of practitioners who practice, preserve, and transmit, through both time and space, both the texts and the practices that are traditionally associated with them.

And also:

Tantric traditions in India, drew, to varying degrees depending on the tradition, from Hindu textual and ritual sources. But once these traditions were transmitted to other cultural spaces, they continued to develop by exchanges with the native traditions of these spaces, such as the Bon tradition in Tibet, Daoism in China, and the Shinto tradition in Japan.

Multiple traditions

Gray and Overbey (2016) state:

Tantric or esoteric Buddhist traditions are multiple, and also originated as multiple, distinct traditions of both text and practice. Indeed, one of the most important tropes in the history of the dissemination of tantric traditions is that of lineage, from master to disciple, the so-called guruparaṃpāra. Lineages must be distinguished from institutionalized sectarian traditions, as they often are preserved by multiple sects, which typically make claims with respect to lineage to bolster their authority. This focus on lineage is found throughout the tantric Buddhist world; originating in India, this emphasis was transmitted to Tibet and east Asia, and remains an important concern of contemporary tantric communities...

Transmission to East Asia and Southeast Asia

Gray and Overbey (2016) state:

While there are many lacunae in our understanding of the early history of tantric Buddhist traditions, available evidence points to the mid-seventh century, as the most likely point at which historically datable traditions began to take shape. The earliest known datable Tantric text is the Awakening of Mahavairocana Tantra (Mahavairocanābhisaṃbodhi-tantra) , which was composed circa the mid-seventh century, and was reportedly one of the texts collected by the Chinese pilgrim Wuxing circa 680 CE... Wuxing also commented on the emergence of a new "teaching about mantra" (zhenyan jiaofa), which was very popular during his time in India..., a fact that is confirmed by another Chinese pilgrim who journeyed in India during the late seventh century, Yijing...

There was rapid growth and dissemination of the newly emerging tantric Buddhist traditions. Within a few decades after their initial composition, early tantric traditions of text and practice were disseminated to East and Southeast Asia. This was facilitated by the active trade and diplomatic exchanges between India and China during the seventh and early eighth centuries, via overland roots through Central Asia and also maritime trade routes via southeast Asia... Likewise, there is evidence that the Sarvadurgatipariśodhana and Trailokavijaya mandalas, and, presumably their associated practice and textual traditions, were introduced to Java circa 700 CE... Moreover, the Central Asian monk Amoghavajra, who journeyed from China to India and back via the maritime route during the mid-eighth century, reported that there was a new canon of eighteen tantras, which he attempted to convey back to China, and partially translated into Chinese. This suggests that there was a very rapid production of new texts and practice traditions circa the mid-seventh through mid-eighth centuries.

Tantric traditions were established in China during the Tang dynasty, and then disseminated to Korea and Japan. While the institutionalized esoteric Buddhist school did not survive the Wuzong emperor's... infamous persecution of Buddhism in the mid-ninth century, esoteric Buddhist traditions survived in peripheral areas in China, and many elements of esoteric Buddhist practice were taken up by the "main stream" non-esoteric traditions, as well as by Daoist traditions.

Rupert Gethin states:

... a tradition of esoteric practice was introduced into China early in the eighth century by the Indians Śubhākarasimha (637–735) and Vajrabodhi (671–741) and [the Central Asian monk] Amoghavajra (705–74). The principal text was the Mahāvairocana and Vajraśekhara Sūtras, associated with the practice of the garbha-kośa-dhātu and vajra-dhātu maṅdṃalas respectively. [...] Chinese Mantrayāna or ‘True Word’ (Chen Yen) flourished only briefly, although it enjoyed a limited revival in the twentieth century, partly because of Tibetan and Japanese influence. The school was, however, early on introduced to Japan by one of the great geniuses of Japanese culture, Kūkai or Kōbō Daishi (774–835), who in 804 travelled to China in search of instruction. Shingon remains a significant school of Japanese Buddhism today.

Transmission to Tibet

The Tibetan tradition refers to two distinct periods of transmission of Buddhist texts and practices from India to Tibet. These are referred to as the "early transmission" (snga dar) and "later transmission" (phyi dar). Tantric texts and practices were transmitted to Tibet during both of these periods.

Gray and Overbey (2016) state:

Tibetan Buddhist traditions view the seventh century as the time when Buddhism first reached Tibet, although there may have been gradual dissemination of Buddhism into the region earlier. Both the development of the Tibetan script and the first Tibetan translations of Buddhist Sanskrit texts are traditionally attributed to Thonmi Sambhota, who was sent to India for these purposes by the great king Songtsen Gampo. The translation of Buddhist scriptures began, apparently, during the late seventh century, and continued with imperial support during the eighth and ninth centuries, with most of the "early" translations made between 779–838 CE... As evidenced by imperial catalogues compiled during this period, as well as tantric manuscripts preserved at Dunhuang, all of which predate the second or "later transmission" of Buddhism to Tibet that commenced in the late 10th century, a significant amount of scriptures and ritual texts were translated into Tibetan during the imperial period. This translation activity slowed with the collapse of the Tibetan Empire in 841 CE, but accelerated in the late 10th century, when king Lha Lama Yeshe O is reported to have sent twenty-one novice monks to Kashmir to receive further training. One of them, Rinchen Zangpo, became a renowned translator, thus initiating the second or "later transmission" (phyi dar) of Buddhism to Tibet.

Tibetan Buddhists would later play important roles in the dissemination of Buddhism (and associated tantric traditions) to China and Mongolia, and eventually throughout the world, with the diaspora of Tibetan lamas in the 20th century, following the Chinese invasion and occupation of Tibet in 1950.

Tantric texts

Main article: Buddhist tantric literature

Buddhist tantric literature consists of the Indian tantras and related commentaries. The tantras were composed from the 7th century CE onwards. They are followed by later commentaries by tantrika authors.

Tantric Buddhist literature survives in various languages, including Sanskrit, Tibetan, and Chinese. Most Indian source texts were composed in Sanskrit, but numerous tantric works were also composed in other languages like Tibetan and Chinese.

An overview of tantric practice by Chogyal Namkhai Norbu

The following overview of tantra is presented by Chogyal Namkhai Norbu in his text Dzogchen: The Self-Perfected State (1996).

Principles of tantric practice

A vajra and bell (ghanta), tantric ritual objects.

Chogyal Namkhai Norbu states:

To explain the fundamental principle of tantrism we can consider the symbolism of two tantric ritual objects: the vajra and the bell, which represent, respectively, "method," the primordial state's manifestation as form; and "energy," the "emptiness" or "essence" of that which is manifest.' Vajra means "indestructible," and refers to the primordial condition of the individual, which is beyond birth and death. The bell, which represents sound, is the symbol of the energy of the primordial state. If we look at the form of the vajra, we can see that at its centre is a little sphere, from which spread out two sections, one above and one below, with five branches each. The little sphere, "thigle" (thig le) in Tibetan, symbolizes the primordial state's infinite potentiality to manifest, either as pure vision or nirvana, or as impure vision or samsara.

Impure vision is based on the five aggregates which form the individual, and the five passions which are their functions. Pure vision is the manifestation of the pure or essential aspect of the five aggregates and the five passions in the dimension of the five buddhas of the Sambhogakaya and their corresponding wisdoms. In both cases, however, the principle of the manifestation is the same: they arise from the potentiality of our primordial state. This is why the five branches of the two sections of the vajra are linked to the sphere in the centre. Samsara and nirvana are nothing other than the dualistic aspect of one single essence manifesting through energy. This energy itself is in fact inseparable from the manifestation, as is symbolized by the vajra form of the bell's handle.

Origin of tantric teachings as pure vision of realized beings

Kālacakra deity with consort Visvamata

The Tantras are teachings based on the knowledge and application of energy. Their origin is not to be found in the oral teachings of a master, as is the case with the Sutras taught by the Buddha, but stems from the manifestation in pure vision of a realized being. A pure manifestation arises through the energy of the elements in their subtle and luminous aspect, while our karmic vision is based on their gross or material aspect. To receive this type of transmission, it is therefore necessary to have the capacity to perceive the subtle dimension of light.

The essence of the elements is light, or colour, but this is not a matter of material colours, visible to everyone. We perceive only the colours linked to karmic vision. When these are reabsorbed into the subtle dimension of light, it is for us as if they had disappeared. But a realized being, who has purified his or her karma, and has reintegrated the material manifestation into the pure dimension of the elements, spontaneously manifests his or her wisdom through colour and light. To have contact with this pure dimension one needs to develop one's innate clarity to the highest degree, and to purify the obstacles of karma and of ignorance.

To explain the origins of the Tantras, we can take the example of one of the most well known, the Kalachakra Tantra, which is considered to have been transmitted by Buddha Shakyamuni. It is clear, however, that it could not have been transmitted by the Buddha in his physical aspect, because the Kalachakra divinity is represented as being in union with his consort, a form known as "yab-yum," while the Buddha himself was a monk. This shows how the transmission of a tantra does not come about through a contact of an ordinary nature, but through the pure dimension of transformation, perceivable only by those individuals who have sufficient capacity.

What do we mean by "transformation"? We are referring to the potentiality a realized being has to manifest infinite forms in the Sambhogakaya, which forms are related to the type of beings who will perceive the transmission. At this point it is necessary to have a clear understanding of what the Sambhogakaya dimension is. Sambhogakaya, in Sanskrit, means "body" or "dimension" of wealth, the wealth being the infinite potentiality of manifestations of wisdom. This potentiality is comparable to that of a mirror at the centre of the universe which reflects all the different types of beings. Sambhogakaya manifestations are beyond time and beyond the limits of the material dimension, and their arising does not depend on there being any intention on the part of a realized being. What this means is that the manifestation of the Kalachakra divinity was not something created by the Buddha at a given moment of historical time, but is something that always existed, because the Sambhogakaya dimension is beyond time. Those who received transmission of it, through the pure perception of a manifestation of the Buddha, explained it in words and symbols, thus giving rise to the Kalachakra.

Vizualization of the mandala

A mandala for the deity Manjushri.

The visual representation of a manifestation of transformation is called a mandala, which is one of the fundamental elements of the practice of tantra. The mandala could be said to be like a photograph taken at the moment of the pure manifestation of the divinity. At the center of every mandala one finds the central divinity, who represents the primordial condition of existence, corresponding to the element of space. At the four cardinal points, represented by the colours of the other four elements, there will be the same number of forms of divinities, symbolizing the functions of wisdom which arise as the four actions.

The divinity of a mandala will not always have a human appearance, but sometimes will have one or more animal heads and a corresponding number of arms and legs. This has been interpreted by many scholars as a symbolic way of representing the principles of the tantra in question. But such considerations are, in fact, only of relative and partial importance. The truth is that all manifestations of divinities arise from the Sambhogakaya dimension and since, as we have already explained, the Sambhogakaya is like a mirror, it reflects every type of being that appears to it. Thus, the so-called "Art of Tibetan Tantra" could really be seen as a kind of evidence that there do exist different types of beings all over the universe.

Let's take as an example the iconographic representation of the dakini Singhamukha, who has a lion's head on a woman's body. The dakinis, are, in general, a class of beings with a feminine appearance, who are manifestations of energy. Singhamukha is a Sambhogakaya form of dakini. Her name, in Sanskrit, means "lion faced," because her face is similar to a lion's, in particular to that of the mythical snow lion of Tibet. For the lack of any other way to say what she is like, the convention arose that this dakini has a lion's face. But one cannot exclude the possibility that what is really represented is a type of being we don't know about.

Another example of this kind of thing is the wrathful divinity Yamantaka, who is represented as having the head of a buffalo. He is considered to be the Sambhogakaya manifestation of the Bodhisattva Manjushri, a manifestation received by a class of beings called the "Yama," whose particular characteristic is in fact that of having a head similar to a buffalo's.

The manifestation of the Sambhogakaya comes about through three factors: sound, light, and rays. Sound is the first stage of the manifestation of energy, which, in the dimension of manifestation, is perceived as mantra. This type of mantra, called the "Natural Sound of the Vajra" since it arises spontaneously, is used in practice to integrate the visualization (of the mandala of the divinity) with the function of one's own energy. Light, the second stage of manifestation, is the visible aspect of energy, energy still in a phase prior to its assuming any specific form. And then, thirdly, through the rays manifest all the infinite forms and colours of the mandala of the divinity. Every individual potentially possesses these three aspects of manifestation.

There is a tantric saying which goes, "One applies the fruit like the path," because the dimension of the mandala - a manifestation of realization or the fruit - becomes the path for the disciple's realization through the oral and symbolic transmission given by a master. Many texts state that various tantras were originally transmitted to Indian mahasiddhas who were going to the country of Oddiyana and who, while still on the way there, received transmission by means of visions. Oddiyana, which was the original source of both the Tantras and Dzogchen, and was the native country of masters such as Garab Dorje and Padmasambhava, is sometimes called "The Land of the Dakinis," a phrase used to indicate the concentration, in a specific place, of these manifestations of the energy of the universe.

The realized masters who "imported" the Tantras into the human world from various dimensions, transmitted the pure dimension of transformation through representations of the mandala. This transmission takes place every time a master confers the initiation of a tantra on a disciple.

During the initiation the master describes the image of the mandala to be visualized, and in particular the divinity into which one has to transform oneself. Then, himself visualizing the dimension of the transformation, he confers the empowerment for the practice, transmitting the natural sound of the mantra specific to the divinity. After the disciple has received the initiation and has thus had his or her first experience of transformation into pure vision, he or she is then ready to apply this as the path, through visualization and through the recitation of mantra. By these means the practitioner of Tantra tries to transform ordinary impure vision into the pure vision of the mandala of the divinity. All tantras are based on the principle of transformation, working with the knowledge of how energy functions. The very meaning of the word tantra-"continuation"-refers to the nature of the energy of the primordial state, which manifests without interruption.

Development and perfection stages

The practice of tantra has two phases: the development stage (bskyed rim), and the "perfectioning" stage (rdzogs rim). The first phase consists of the gradual visualization of the mandala, beginning with the seed syllable of the principal divinity, and the syllables of the four elements. When the imaginary creation of the mandala is complete, whilst maintaining the visualization of oneself transformed into the form of the central divinity, one recites the mantra. In this phase one works a great deal with the imaginative faculty of the mind, trying to develop to the maximum one's capacity to visualize. The second phase, the "perfectioning" stage, focuses on the visualization of the internal mandala of the chakra and the nadi, and on concentration on the syllables of the mantra, which turns without interruption around the central seed syllable. At the end of the session of practice, both the external and the internal mandalas are integrated into the dimension of the body, voice, and mind of the practitioner. The final result of the practice is that pure vision manifests without depending any longer on the visualization, becoming part of one's natural clarity. Thus, one realizes the total state of reintegration of pure vision with impure vision, the Mahamudra, the "great symbol" in which samsara and nirvana are indissolubly united.

This method of practice, based on gradual transformation, is to be found in the Mahayoga tradition of the Nyingmapa school and in the Anuttara Tantra tradition of all the other schools. But there also exists a Tantric method based on instantaneous, nongradual visualization, which is found only in the Anuyoga tradition. The principle of this Anuyoga method is that since, in the primordial state of every individual, the mandala and the divinity are self perfected from the very beginning, elaborate gradual visualizations are not necessary. Therefore, all that is required in this method is the immediate presence of the dimension of the mandala, manifested in an instant. Furthermore, this practice is principally based on the perfectioning stage of visualization. In the Anuyoga, the state of total reintegration that results from successful practice is not called Mahamudra, but "Dzogchen." This shows that the principle of self-perfectedness that is the basis of this method is the same as that in the Dzogchen teachings, although the actual path is different.

When one has really and truly obtained the capacity of transformation, one can activate it in one's daily behaviour through transforming the passions into wisdoms. Three principal passions are spoken of in Buddhism: anger, attachment, and mental obscuration - called the "three poisons" because they are the cause of [rebirth]. In tantrism it is considered that these poisons can be transformed into wisdom through three specific methods of transformation: through transforming oneself into the wrathful form of the divinity to overcome anger, into the joyous form to overcome attachment, and into the peaceful form to overcome mental obscuration. Training in the practice of transformation with these forms of the divinity, the practitioner is able to succeed in overcoming the passions, transforming them into their corresponding wisdoms.

Relation to the paramita-yana

As stated previously, the tantric traditions of Mahayana Buddhism distinguish between the paramitayana ("vehicle of perfections") and the tantrayana ("vehicle of tantra"). From the tantric point of view, the vehicle of tantra is the superior vehicle which allows one to attain buddhahood more quickly.

However, the tantric traditions in Buddhism are inclusive of the practice of the paramitas. In particular, the generation of compassion and wisdom is a necessary basis for tantric practices such as deity yoga. For example, Patrul Rinpoche states:

These two factors [compassion and wisdom] are what transform the development stage into the path of the Great Vehicle. Any development stage that does not have these two, in contrast, is no different than that of the non-Buddhists.

This compassion and wisdom is developed through the practice of the six paramitas. Compassion is developed by practicing the first five paramitas (dāna, śīla, kṣānti, vīrya, and dhyāna). Wisdom is developed through the practice of the sixth paramita (prajna-paramita).

The superiority of tantrayana over the paramitayana is discussed in commentaries such as Tsongkhapa's The Great Exposition of Secret Mantra (T. sngags rim chen mo). Jeffrey Hopkins summarizes Tsongkhapa's views on this topic as follows:

• Sūtra and Mantra Great Vehicle do not differ in terms of the goal, the state being sought, since both seek the highest enlightenment of a Buddha, but there is a difference in the means of progress, again not in wisdom but in method.
• Within method, Sūtra and Mantra Great Vehicle differ not in the basis or motivation, the altruistic intention to become enlightened, nor in having the perfections [paramitas] as deeds, but in the additional technique of deity yoga. A deity is a supramundane being who himself or herself is a manifestation of compassion and wisdom. Thus, in the special practice of deity yoga one joins one’s own body, speech, mind, and activities with the exalted body, speech, mind, and activities of a supramundane being, manifesting on the path a similitude of the state of the effect.

Sources

• Buswell, Robert E.; Lopez, Donald S. (2014), The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, Princeton University 
• Chogyal Namkhai Norbu (1996), Clemente, Adriano, ed., Dzogchen: The Self-Perfected State, Snow Lion Publications 
• Gethin, Rupert (1998), Foundations of Buddhism, Oxford University Press 
• Gray, David B.; Overbey, Ryan Richard (2016), Tantric Traditions in Transmission and Translation, Oxford University Press . (Previews: Google Books, Amazon)
• Harvey, Peter (2013), An Introduction to Buddhism (Second ed.), Cambridge University Press 
• Jigme Lingpa; Patrul Rinpoche; Getse Mahapandita (2006), Deity, Mantra, and Wisdom: Development Stage Meditation in Tibetan Buddhist Tantra, translated by Dharmachakra Translation Committee, Ithaca, NY: Snow Lion Publications 
• Tsongkhapa; Dalai Lama (2016), The Great Exposition of Secret Mantra, Volume I: Tantra in Tibet, translated by Hopkins, Jeffrey, Shambhala Publications 
• van Schaik, Sam (2011), Tibet. A History, New Haven & London: Yale University Press