From:

The Art of Central Asia and the Indian Subcontinent

in Cross Culture Perspective,
edited by Anupa Pande, and Mandira Sharma.
New Delhi 2009
National Museum Institute-Aryan Books
International
p. 140–49 & 11 figs

17
RITUAL, INSTRUCTION AND EXPERIMENT
ESOTERIC DRAWINGS FROM DUNHUANG
CHRISTIAN LUCZANITS

Although comparatively few in number, the esoteric drawings of Dunhuang1 are quite diverse in
terms of the subjects they depict. Since comparable early esoteric material has not survived in the
Indian subcontinent, the Central Asian material has the potential to fill the gap in this regard.
However, the diversity of the drawings indicates quite a complex picture concerning their possible
function and their relation to rituals.
In a contribution to a conference on Mahåyåna Buddhism organized by the Tibet House in
autumn 2005, I had shown that some of these drawings hint towards solutions for some of the
most fundamental questions concerning the appearance of the earliest maƒŒalas and their usage
in the Buddhist context.2 Here I will analyze a number of Dunhuang drawings, partly overlapping
with those used already, in greater detail and discuss their possible functions. The consideration
of the usage of such drawings is pertinent in understanding as to how far they can be exploited to
complement our knowledge of early esoteric ritual and its communication.
The term ìesoteric drawingsî refers to drawings depicting maƒŒalas, deities, ritual implements,
etc. that are to be associated with esoteric Buddhist ritual. Among these a number of main types
can be differentiated that often also occur in combinations:
“ ritual depictions
“ maƒŒala depictions
“ maƒŒala assemblies
“ deities that are part of maƒŒala assemblies
“ diagrams, implements, gestures, etc. to be associated with maƒŒalas and their ritual.
Sarah Fraser differentiates two groups among the relevant drawings, ìdiagrams for maƒŒalas
and dhåraƒ∂î and ìpreparatory drawing for Tåntrika paintingsî or alternatively ìsketches used
in the production of silk painting with Tåntrika subjectsî and ìmonochrome drawings used in
ritual practiceî.3 However, if one takes the ritual and all its (possible) elements into account, in
particular the usage of a maƒŒala drawing in the ritual itself, it becomes clear that these two groups
cannot always be clearly differentiated as there is a considerable area of overlap. Thus, rather
than grouping the drawings by their possible functions, the following account tries to review
them from a variety of perspectives to establish the intricate relationship of the drawings to each
other and to their beautiful kin, the esoteric Buddhist paintings.

RITUAL MA°NœALA
It can be assumed from the outset that a number of the esoteric drawings preserved at Dunhuang
are in some way connected to ritual. Interestingly, some depict the ritual itself. A very clear example
for such a drawing is in the National Museum, New Delhi (Ch.00379). It shows an exorcist ritual
in front of a maƒŒala (Fig. 17.1).4 The form of the maƒŒala indicates that the ritual is of fierce nature:
in the centre is a four-bladed wheel, the gates are protected by fierce animal-headed gate-keepers,
and in the corners of the maƒŒala palace stand four armoured protectors. The deities on the four-
bladed wheel are shown in the form of their symbols and refer to the five Tathågatas of developed
esoteric Buddhism. The vase in the centre must stand for a deity of Ratnasambhavaís family since
his symbol, the jewel (triratna), is missing from the surrounding symbols that refer to the other
four families. With regard to their attributes, the armoured protectors and gate-keepers refer in
part to the standard gate-keepers of the Yoga Tantra maƒŒalas which are: Vajrå∆ku‹a, who catches
with the hook in the east, Vajrapå‹a, who uses the noose to draw into the maƒŒala in the south,
Vajraspho¢a, who binds or chains in the west, and Vajråve‹a, who fixates with vajra and bell in the
north.
While this description of the main features of the maƒŒala shows that the depiction clearly
refers to the more developed esoteric teachings organized according to the concept of five Buddha
families, it needs to be stressed that the arrangement of the deities themselves is much less
systematic than it appears at the first glance. There are numerous inconsistencies in the distribution
of the symbols and deities within the maƒŒala. For example, the symbols on the four blades of the
central wheel would have to be read anti-clockwise to be in the right succession, tempting to flip
the image horizontally or vertically. The gate-keepers with noose (på‹a) and chain should be south
and west, which fits again only if one assumes that the image is mirrored, but the vajra-holding
gate-keeper should be in the north rather than the east. However, the flaming sword held by the
gate-keeper in the proper right gate conforms to the vi‹vavajra shown on the same side since both
sword and vi‹vavajra are symbols for the karma family. Further, the position of the noose and
chain holding armoured-protectors is reversed in relation to those depicted in the gates.
If the vajra symbol is understood to represent the east, the ritual itself is shown to the west of
the maƒŒala. Directly in front of the gate sits a priest and/or monk before his ritual implements, an
emphasized vajra and a bell, and offerings represented by an incense burner and two offering
plates on three-footed stands. That the issue concerned with is some kind of sickness appears to
be indicated by the turbaned person resting on a mat with the hands on his stomach. In the corner
is a troubled demon, probably personifying the sickness, with five spikes at his limbs and (finally)
at the heart. The demon possibly represents a ritual effigy as they are still used today (Fig. 17.2).
It can be conjectured that this particular maƒŒala drawing functioned as actual ritual ground
replacing a maƒŒala drawn with chalk or sand; but despite the mixture of symbolic and figural
depictions of deities, it may well represent such a ritual maƒŒala. This can be concluded from the
comparison to a maƒŒala drawing depicted in the bottom area of a Dunhuang silk scroll in the
Musée Guimet, Paris, attributed to the 10th century (MG 17780).5 Among the ritual implements
shown between the deity assembly above and the kneeling doors at the bottom, a drawing of a
maƒŒala is laid out for the ritual on a white ground (Fig. 17.3).6 The maƒŒala has an eight-petalled

RITUAL, INSTRUCTION AND EXPERIMENT “ 141

lotus in the central square with different symbols representing the main deities. The symbols in
the corners probably stand for a variant of the eight offering goddesses. Only the fierce gate-
keepers are represented figuratively. A garland along the outer wall and crescents at the corners
are the only decorative details of the maƒŒala.
The National Museum diagram and the Musée Guimet painting both represent the maƒŒala
together with ritual implements, offerings and an officiant who is not actively engaged in ritual.
However, the Guimet scroll painting further contains the assembly of all the main deities in
figurative and symbolic form; the symbols are distributed among the offerings, and the maƒŒala is
clearly part of the ritual implements. Further, the Guimet scroll also shows the donors who are, in
contrast to the officiant, even identified by captions. While the National Museum drawing, focusing
on the ritual alone and even hinting at its purpose, can be understood as purely instructional, the
Guimet scroll cannot. This scroll represents an early version of a full maƒŒala assembly depiction
as found at a later stage in Tibet. What is peculiar about this depiction is its combination with, and
emphasis on, ritual through the depicted implements. The details of the Guimet scroll may well
derive from an educational drawing such as the one from the National Museum, but clearly excels
it, also in aesthetic terms.
The two drawings of a ritual maƒŒala share the combination of the symbolic depiction of the
main deities with the figurative depiction of the protective deities around the central assembly,
indicating a major conceptual difference between these two types of deities in early Buddhist
Tåntrika understanding. The National Museum drawing combines the representation of a ritual
maƒŒala with an explicit depiction of the ritual itself, a combination unique among the published
examples surveyed.

MA°NœALA RITUAL
Another type of drawing obviously related to ritual practice is exemplified by the well known
diagram of the arrangement of ritual implements for the recitation of the U¶ƒ∂¶avijayadhåraƒ∂ from
the British Museum.7 Chinese captions not only indicate the content of the vessels distributed in
the cardinal direction, but also the place of the ritual master and a fire-place.8 Another version of
this diagram is found on British Library scroll Or.8210/S.2498 available online (http://idp.bl.uk/).
These drawings thus focus on the layout of the ritual ground.
I hesitate to call these diagrams a maƒŒala or altar because of its unusual multi-cornered
shape, but there are also drawings showing a proper ritual maƒŒala with an emphasis on the ritual
implements to be distributed around it on the ritual ground. The series of four maƒŒalas depicted
on P2012 from the Musée Guimet is particularly telling in this regard.9 This scroll represents the
maƒŒalas and assemblies of four different but related rituals which become increasingly fierce in
character. Despite the captions in Chinese, the depictions on the scroll are to be read left to right.
The first maƒŒala, for example, contains the symbols of the deities on the central eight-petalled
lotus, again the symbols of the four Tathågata families but now centred on Vairocana (Fig. 17.4).
Lotuses in the corners and outer squares of the maƒŒala possibly represent seats for additional
deities housed at the different levels of the maƒŒala (see below). Arrows stake out the maƒŒala
palace at corners and doors; additional vajra-stakes are placed in front of the gates; vajra-chains
covering the walls of the palaces are indicated by one vajra each below the south gates; vi‹vavajra
secure the diagonals and possibly, also represent the diamond ground the palace is built upon,10
and the crescent-shaped finials in the corners may also have protective function. On the doors we
have ritual implements, three vases ñ the one at the second gate flanked by vajra and bell ñ and a
wheel of thread at each gate,11 and an offering plate at the east gate.

142 “ THE ART OF CENTRAL ASIA AND THE INDIAN SUBCONTINENT

 The second maƒŒala is dominated by circular elements. Besides the eight-petalled lotus in the
centre, it has a vajra-chain and an eight-spoked flaming wheel. The two bottom crescents in the
corners are shown with vajra ends, ritual daggers flank the gate instead of the vajra-stakes in the
first maƒŒala, and offering plates are shown in cardinal and intermediary directions. MaƒŒala three
is the most explicit, since it appears to be the only one that has been completed in all details. As
such, it combines the elements noticed for the first two maƒŒalas (Fig. 17.5). The fourth maƒŒala is
the most incomplete with the outer regions being only filled in one corner (Fig. 17.6).12 Thus, the
maƒŒala depictions show both the drawing of the ritual maƒŒala with its decorative details and the
maƒŒala ritual from staking out the ground to the different offerings to be placed around it. The
instructional character of this series is further emphasized by the Chinese captions that sometimes
identify a deity in the assembly, its colour, or an element in the maƒŒala drawing.13

BODY
Each of the four maƒŒalas in series P2012 is associated with an assembly of deities, whereby the
main deities become increasingly fierce from maƒŒala to maƒŒala. As mentioned above, the Chinese
captions accompanying some of the assembly deities may contain iconographic details, but the
depiction of the deities itself, too, hints towards a didactic purpose of this scroll. For example, the
deities depicted with the fourth maƒŒala are only drawn in their outlines, but their hands and
attributes are unusually detailed and disproportionally large (Fig. 17.6). Their depiction, thus,
focuses on the hand gestures or mudrås and the implements of the deity including the position in
which they are to be held. The drawings also show the posture of the deity and indicate a five
Buddha crown when appropriate.
Further, the fourth maƒŒala has five fierce main deities performing the same mudrås on each
side. Thus, in this maƒŒala the deities of the assembly do not fit in the geometry of the maƒŒala
containing only circles of eight-spoked wheels. The same assembly of ten identical main deities is
shown on another drawing, also in the Musée Guimet (PC 4009; Fig. 17.7). On this drawing the
assembly of deities is arranged symmetrically and again there is an emphasis on gestures, attributes,
posture and the position of arms. Other parts of PC 4009 and similar drawings may be much less
clearly arranged, but the same elements are emphasized consistently, in particular the gestures.
As the maƒŒala depicts itself these assemblies appear to have double instructional content by
hinting towards the actual depiction of the deity and the ritual gesture to be performed by the
practitioner. One may thus conclude that such drawings, as the P2012 series, were meant to be
used by the trainee in esoteric ritual to learn the ritual performance, in this case the mudrås and
how the different attributes are imagined to be held.
The emphasis on the respective mudrås reminds one of the importance of the symbolic gestures
in the Vajradhåtu-ritual, where the mudrås for all deities are performed in succession. In esoteric
Buddhist understanding, the mudrås and their ritual performance stand for the body of the deity
(karmamudrå). Today, the Vajradhåtu ritual is rarely performed, but it has recently been reintroduced
in Tabo monastery in conformity with the deities represented in the Assembly Hall of the historic
main temple. I could witness the ritual during a visit in 2005 (Fig. 17.8).
The Dunhuang drawings also emphasize the attributes and how they are held. While in
some cases the way the attributes are held is rather peculiar, such as holding a bow on the arms
crossed in front of the breast or a sword held upright in the meditation gesture, others are familiar
from a Yoga Tantra context, such as the sword held at the side and a vajra-net held in both hands
in front of the body. All these elements that the drawings focus on ñ mudrå, attribute, position of
hands and posture ñ are intimately connected in Yoga Tantra ritual. While the mudrå and the
position of the hands have to be understood in relation to the attribute of the deity, the posture is

RITUAL, INSTRUCTION AND EXPERIMENT “ 143

rather dependent on the deity type (primary deity, secondary deity, gate-keeper, fierce deity,
etc.).
Stein painting 83, Ch. 00143, attributed to the late 9th century, is solely dedicated to mudrås
by showing only the hands engaged in different gestures evolving at their wrist from a ring of
lotus petals.14 Compared to the mudrås on the drawings mentioned so far, these gestures are
reproduced in great detail with every segment of the finger carefully sketched and an emphasis
on proportional relationship that cannot be explained in terms of ritual alone. Here, I think, one
can safely follow Sarah Fraserís notion that such drawings are (also?) guidelines for painters.15
The last depictions discussed show that the deity assembly is depicted outside the maƒŒala
or even independently and within the maƒŒala the deities are represented by symbols. Another
type of maƒŒala drawing shows the assembly of deities in the maƒŒala itself, although in this type
of depiction the deities are commonly executed in considerably greater detail than on P2012 and
related drawings iconographic details ñ in particular mudrås and attributes ñ remain to be stressed
and the drawings themselves retain an instructional character.
A sketch of a VajradhåtumaƒŒala of the Bibliothèques National de France (P4518.33) attributed
to the 10th century makes the instructional purpose particularly clear (Fig. 17.9).16 The drawing
shows the principal outlines of a 53-deity VajradhåtumaƒŒala in three squares with even the
attributes of the deities indicated and the position in which they are to be held. For the five
Tathågatas in the centre the animal vehicles are specified by drawing one to the left of the throne,
probably because it was feared that those drawn on the throne base cannot be recognized. The
decoration of the maƒŒala ñ such as the interlocked vajra dividing the central circle into nine fields,
the vajra-chains along the squares and the gates and the garland surrounding the whole maƒŒala
ñ is only indicated exemplarily. In addition, the colours of the quarters and some of the deities are
indicated by coloured dots applied with a brush, interestingly not following the later conventions.
Commonly, maƒŒala drawings with deities are somewhat more sophisticated, such as the
well known British Museum drawing of a Durgatipari‹odhanamaƒŒala (Stein painting 173; Ch.
00428).17 The colour indications of the Bibliothèques national de France drawing, the more
proportional depiction of the deities on this type of drawing ñ mudrås are not disproportionally
enlarged anymore ñ and the more aesthetic rendering of the drawings themselves indicate that
they served a different purpose than the P2012 series. As with the more sophisticated depictions
of the mudrås, the drawings appear to instruct painters or ritual specialists responsible for the
maƒŒala depiction about the most important details of the maƒŒala to be drawn or painted. As
such, they may also be interpreted as instructions to execute more decorative maƒŒalas such as the
Amoghapå‹a maƒŒala depicted on Musée Guimet scroll EO.3579.18

SPEECH
A number of Dunhuang drawings contain text, often written in a spiral around the central deity,
as is the case on a fragmentary Avalokite‹vara maƒŒala on silk in the collection of the British Museum
(Ch.xxii.0015).19 The deity in the centre ñ a two-armed form of the Bodhisattva Avalokite‹vara ñ is
seated on a lotus and accompanied by a donor holding an incense burner. This group is encircled
by a ring of lotus petals, a Tibetan text to be read from inside out and a chain of jewels and
pearls(?). The central square is framed by a row of vajras and flaming jewels fill the corners. Of the
two palace squares forming the outer part of the maƒŒala, only fragments are preserved.
Surprisingly, the Tibetan text around the centre ñ a protective prayer with the appropriate mantras
ñ does not refer to Avalokite‹vara, but to Mahåpratisarå and her retinue, together known as the
five protective goddesses (pa¤carak¶a).20
A similar observation can be made by comparing the maƒŒala and the texts written above
and below the Musée Guimet drawing PT 389.21 This drawing shows a maƒŒala of 33 deities around

144 “ THE ART OF CENTRAL ASIA AND THE INDIAN SUBCONTINENT

a meditating form of Vairocana on an eight-spoked wheel. On the maƒŒala itself, almost all deities
are identified and/or their mantras are given. In addition, an om is written on the breast of each
deity as a sign of consecration. The mantras make it clear that the ritual concerned serves the
release from the lower realms of rebirth. The two pieces of text at the top and bottom of the
drawing, however, are again not directly concerned with the depicted topic since the top text can
be identified as a version of the Årya-tathågato¶ƒ∂¶asitåtapatre-aparåjitå-nåma-dhåraƒ∂.22 Thus, while
the mantras written on the painting itself represent the speech form of the deities depicted, the
accompanying text is only loosely related to the depiction through the association of long life and
rebirth.
I assume that the Chinese texts associated with maƒŒala depictions show a similarly loose
relationship to the topic of the depiction itself. An example may be British Library Or.8210/S.6348
(Ch.00219), which is said to contain the Chinese text of eleven sµutras written around a fully
developed maƒŒala depiction.23
In general, one may summarise from the examples surveyed here that the usage of texts has
quite a wide range from explanatory and/or instructional texts and captions, via the actual speech
form of the deity, its mantra, to the representation of ritual texts, sådhana, or parts thereof, that
may, but not necessarily, refer to the depiction itself. Certainly this aspect merits a more detailed
study. Regardless of which type of text it is, functionally the text adds an additional level of
information. While explanatory captions are obviously instructional, the presence of mantras does
not exclude that the drawing had a function in the ritual itself. The added mantras and in particular
the accompanying texts not directly referring to the depiction hint towards a talismanic function
of the drawing. This latter interpretation is also supported by the fact that diagrams with a similar
emphasis on text have been printed for mass production, such as the diagram in the British Museum
(Ch.xliii.004) containing an eight-armed form of Avalokite‹vara and the Mahåpratisarådhåraƒ∂.24

MIND?
Are any of these drawings useful for visualization, for imagining the mind form of the deity and
its abode? This question is difficult to answer since it concerns the general issue whether imagery
is used for meditation ñ which in terms of esoteric Buddhist practice may be identified with
visualization ñ and in which case it is commonly assumed that imagery is used that way, but there
is hardly any proof for it. In fact, the few references we have on the usage of sculptures and
images consider these rather in terms of veneration while maƒŒalas appear to have their main
function in ritual.25
The most common visualization practice features an idealised reinvention of the world in
the form of a single palace on a cosmic ground that is also protected towards the sky by a vajra-
cage (vajrapa¤jara). Such a cage is commonly indicated by a vajra chain surrounding the depiction.26
In the Dunhuang drawings such a chain is commonly (also?) depicted around the central assembly.
One may wonder if the net between the two palace walls shown on a rather puzzling
Dunhuang drawing hints towards the vajra-cage. The drawing on paper referred to is again in the
British Museum and available online.27 Whatever the explanation for the net in this maƒŒala may
be, it is clear that it represents something that did not succeed. If it was meant to represent a cage,
it may have to be understood as an unsuccessful experiment on the subject. This drawing features
another puzzling element, namely, the scalloped circle between the two central circles that could
represent a garland on stakes or a valance. A similar circle is represented on maƒŒala two of P2012
(Fig. 17.10).
Another element that could be explained in terms of visualization practice is the frequent
representation of empty lotuses found on many of these maƒŒala drawings, such as British Museum

RITUAL, INSTRUCTION AND EXPERIMENT “ 145

Ch.00189 and the maƒŒalas on PC 2012. In visualization it is commonly the empty lotus that is to
be imagined first. The lotus settles the place where the deity is to be imagined and may then
sequentially be imagined as occupied by the seed syllable of the deity (b∂ja) and its bodily
representation that emerges from it. The deity, however, may also be represented by its symbol,
commonly the characteristic attribute of the deity. On PC 2012 we have both, the symbols for the
main deities and empty lotus seats in the outer sections of the maƒŒala, making it unlikely that
both stand for the deity in the same manner. The abundance of lotus blossoms on this drawing
actually reminds on the fact that blossoms may also be strewn ñ in this case rather distributed ñ on
the maƒŒala during ritual.28
None of these possible mind elements is absolutely convincing and it, therefore, has to remain
open if elements of visualization occur on the drawings at all.

EXPERIMENT
The consideration of the mind element has already shown that the Dunhuang maƒŒala drawings
contain a number of unusual elements that cannot be explained easily. Exceedingly puzzling is
the following maƒŒala drawing on silk, again in the Musée Guimet (Fig. 17.11).29 The maƒŒala is
focused on a fierce deity who is shown in the central circle in an aggressive pose directed towards
two kneeling donors. The space between this central circle and the surrounding square is filled
with Chinese text. The four successive squares of the maƒŒala around are filled with symbols,
ritual implements, deities as well as body parts on lotuses. There are no doors as such, but there
are sections set off in the cardinal directions, curiously containing seven Buddha heads each placed
on lotuses. The symbols are commonly set on lotus pedestals and sometimes arranged in larger
configurations ñ note the crossed element surrounded by four swords in the upper right corner of
Fig. 17.11. Among the deities represented in the fourth square quite a few can be identified as
Hindu and pan-Indian deities. In Fig. 17.11 we may have representations of Brahmå, Umå-
Mahe‹vara, Agni, Sµurya, a pig-headed god with sword (possibly the earth) and Gaƒe‹a, while
Hår∂t∂ with her children is represented in another section.30
From the earlier examples one may surmise that the hands and feet on lotuses stand for the
mudrås and postures to be performed by and for the deity, since this form of depiction is common
in East Asian esoteric schools of Buddhism. Equally, the attributes and/or ritual implements on
lotuses may stand for deities. As on the first maƒŒalas we looked at, symbolic representations and
figurative ones are found side by side; the figurative ones are either wrathful ñ the central deity ñ
or protective ñ the Hindu deities in the fourth square and the armoured protectors in the fifth. I
cannot judge what the text represented in the centre says, but it is obvious that this in no explanatory
note or caption. This unusual representation combines many of the elements that could be observed
on other drawings as well but in an abundance that appears to be unusual. As the more text-
centred drawings mentioned above, this depiction most likely had a talismanic function too.

TO SUM UP
Opening considerably more questions than providing answers, this survey though brief,
nevertheless provides the ground for some interesting observations. First of all, there is no
indication for any of the drawings surveyed, that they have been used in ritual itself or have been
made for a ritual. A considerable number of the drawings ñ most clearly visible on P2012 ñ have
an instructional function and there is a considerable range of instruction to be gained from the
drawings. While the simpler ones are to be associated solely with ritual practice, more detailed
depictions of mudrås and maƒŒalas may also have served as model for a ritual-specialist drawing
the maƒŒala during a ritual or a painter producing a more decorative version of the maƒŒala.

146 “ THE ART OF CENTRAL ASIA AND THE INDIAN SUBCONTINENT

 Interestingly, there is a clear functional difference between the coarse Dunhuang drawings
and the more sophisticated and decorative Dunhuang scrolls, even if they do share common
elements. An example for the latter is the Amoghapå‹å maƒŒala depicted on Musée Guimet scroll
(EO.3579) mentioned already. This famous painting is divided into three parts, an assembly of the
five Tathågatas flanked by two esoteric forms of Avalokite‹vara ñ the four-armed
Cintåmaƒicakravartin and a sixteen-armed form ñ an Amoghapå‹a maƒŒala of 17 deities, and a
depiction of the officiant and donors in the bottom part. In the maƒŒala depiction itself, only the
two offering plates to the side of the bottom offering goddess may be associated with ritual, all
other details are integrative of the maƒŒala itself.
What is most interesting about the drawings is their varying association with ritual. I think it
is important to note that in the Chinese context the maƒŒala became a fixed feature of ritual with a
distinctive platform used for it. One may imagine these platforms similar to those permanent
maƒŒalas used in Newar Buddhism. As such, the Dunhuang drawings definitely do fill a gap
concerning the evidence for early esoteric practice in India, but they neither fill it entirely nor can
their evidence be considered conclusive in all aspects.
The considerations presented here can only be regarded as preliminary, since I cannot evaluate
the drawings with Chinese captions and texts beyond the information available to me in the
secondary literature in Western languages. A full evaluation of the esoteric drawings preserved
at Dunhuang, thus, can only be done in cooperation with somebody fully versed in Chinese
language and esoteric Buddhism. I hope this will be possible in future.

NOTES AND REFERENCES

1. I am particularly grateful to Amanda Goodman who originally brought the most relevant Dunhuang
drawings to my attention and also provided me with a photocopy of PT 389 and to Michael Henss
who provided a digital image of a maƒŒala he published.
2. See Luczanits, at press.
3. Fraser, 2004, 149.
4. Klimburg-Salter, 1982, pl. 72.
5. For full representations, see Nicolas-Vandier, 1974, no. 28, and Giès and Cohen, 1996, no. 281.
6. I wonder if the unusual white ground is supposed to refer to chalk.
7. Stein painting 174, Ch. 00186, attributed 10th century; Whitfield, 1983, fig. 81; Fraser, 2004, 156, fig.
4.15.
8. I assume here that ìstove or burnerî, as translated by Fraser, 2004, 155, is meant in the sense of a ritual
fire-place.
9. Huang Yongwu, 1981, 112, 96-102.
10. In later Tibetan maƒŒalas, this vi‹vavajra ground is represented by the differently coloured prongs
flanking the doorways.
11. It is assumed that the implements missing at the south gate ñ there is a short Chinese caption instead
ñ are meant to be complemented.
12. The fourth maƒŒala is also reproduced in Fraser, 2004, 153, fig. 4.12.
13. The captions of this series are studied in detail by Amanda Goodman who also brought this drawing
to my attention.
14. Whitfield, 1983, fig. 101, and Fraser, 2004, 112, fig. 3.2.
15. Comparative depictions of mudrå become customary in East Asia to explain the iconographical details
of a deity, see Lokesh Chandra, 1986, or any volume of 1999-2005.
16. Fraser, 2004, pl. 23.
17. British Museum: 1919, 0101, 0.173 (Stein painting 173), Dunhuang Mogao (Ch. 00428), available at
http://idp.bl.uk/, attributed to the late 9th century; Whitfield, 1983, fig. 78; Klimburg-Salter, 1982, pl.
69; Fraser, 2004, 151, fig. 4.11, and Luczanits, 2006, Abb. 1.

RITUAL, INSTRUCTION AND EXPERIMENT “ 147

 18. Nicolas-Vandier, 1974, no. 104; Klimburg-Salter, 1982, pl. 61; Giès, 1994, I, 99; Giès and Cohen, 1996,
no. 284, and Fraser, 2004, pl. 22.
19. See British Museum: 1919, 0101, 0.18, Dunhuang Mogao (Ch.xxii.0015) available at
http://idp.bl.uk/; Whitfield, 1983, I, fig. 50.
20. The text begins in the east, underneath the central figure:
{1} bcom ldan ëdas ma ëphags pa spyan ras gzigs dbang la phyag ëtshal lo// bcom ldan ëdas ma ëphags
pa so sor ëbrang ma chen mo la phyag ëtshal lo/ {2} ëphags paíi thugs rjeíi by˘n gyi rlabskyis// an lha
skyes la bsrung zhing rgyin gyis brlabsu gsol// bcom ldan ëdas ma glang po che ëi lta stang skyis gzigs
ma thams cad {3} du kun nas phyogs thams cad bcing x dang/ rdo rjeíi zhags pas bcing bas/ bdag ëjigs
pa chen po brgyad las bsbal du gsol// va jra jva la vi shud dha/ x ra ka ra/ dr x x ntu ri/ bha ga va ti/
{4} ga rbha vati ga rbha va ti/ ga rbha vi sho dha ni/ ku kshi sam pu ra ni/ jva la jva la/ tsa la tsa la/
jva la ni// lhaí˘ chus kun tu char dbab du gsol// a mri ta var sha ni/ de va ta/ a va ta ra ƒi// bde bar
gshegs paíi gsung rab bdud rtsi mcho x x sku dang ldan ba//lha skyes la dbang {5} bskur du gsol//
ëthab pa dang/ thab mo dang/ rtsod pa dang/ ëgye rba dang/ rmyi lam ngan pa dang/ ltam ngan pa
dang/bkra my˘ shis pa dang/ sdig pa thams cad rnam par sbyong ba/ gnod sbyin dang/ srin po
dang/ klu thams cad ëjom ba/ x x x x s ëjigs skrag pa/ lha skyes ëjigs {6} pa thams cad dang/ gnod pa
thams cad dang/ nad ëgo ba thams cad dang/ nad thams cad las thams cad du rtag par bsrung du
gsol/ bsrung du gsol// va la va la/ va la va ti ja ya ja ya// om a mri te/ a mri ta x ce ba ra x x x xu da
bhe huíum pha¢ pha¢ svå hå// a mri {7} ta/ vi lo ki ni/ ga rba sang rak kar ni/ a kar sha ni huíum
huíum pha¢ svå hå// µo√ vi ma le jay wa re/ a mri te huíum huíum pha¢ pha¢ svå hå// µom bha ra bha
ra/ sam cha ra sam cha ra/ in dr˘ ya vi sho dha ni huíum huíum pha¢ pha¢ ru ru tsa le svå hå// µom ma
ƒi bhir x x x hum pha¢ pha¢ svå hå//
The numbers in brackets indicate the line, ˘ a reversed i-vowel sign (gi gu log), underline an uncertain
but likely reading, x the loss or illegibility of a letter or letter-cluster.
I do not intend to evaluate the text critically, but some observations are certainly interesting. In the
first line, spyan ras gzigs dbang is obviously an epithet of Mahåpratisarå. In general, the text and
mantras refer to different purifications and the overcoming of all kinds of mental and physical miseries
as well as the effects of dangerous lower beings such as yak¶a, råk¶asa and någa. The mantras at the end
refer to all five goddesses (cf. Willson and Brauen, 2000, no. 429).
21. Again, I owe the knowledge of this maƒŒala to Amanda Goodman who also provided me with
photocopies of the drawing large enough to decipher its inscriptions to a large extent.
22. Compare the text of a Dunhuang manuscript in the India Office Library (IOL Tib J 364) available on
http://idp.bl.uk/ and identified by Jacob Dalton and Sam van Schaik.
23. For a majority of the deities depicted within the maƒŒala also the names or their mantras are given;
Fraser, 2004, 155, fig. 4,14.
24. See, e.g. British Museum, Stein painting 249, Ch.xliii.004; woodblock print on paper; Whitfield, 1983,
fig. 151; and Fraser, 2004, fig. 4.16.
25. The question of the function of images and artistic decoration in a Buddhist context is extremely
interesting and probably needs to be reconsidered at a grand scale. As Gregory Schopen has pointed
out, in the Mµulasarvåstivådavinaya are even statements that indicate that a monastery or temple may
only have been painted to attract lay followers and pilgrims, because there is no immediate use for
imagery in the practice of the monks (see Schopen, 2004). On the other end of the spectrum Robert
Sharf has drawn into question that visual imagery and maƒŒala depictions have been used for
visualization in Shingon Buddhism (Sharf, 2001). For Tibetan Buddhism, too, the actual function of
imagery in esoteric practice needs to be reviewed.
26. Other forms of depictions hinting towards the vajrapa¤jara are rare. A late 13th or 14th century
Vajrayogin∂ thangka, likely excavated or found in the main temple of Tholing monastery in West Tibet,
may indicate such a case by the white dots surrounding the field of the main deity and the valance
motive above (see Lee-Kalisch, 2006, cat. no. 58).
27. British Museum: 1919, 0101, 0.172 (Stein painting 172), Dunhuang Mogao (Ch. 00189) available on
http://idp.bl.uk/, attributed to the late 9th century; Whitfield, 1983, figs. 79, 80, Fraser, 2004, pls. 24
and 154, fig. 4.13.

148 “ THE ART OF CENTRAL ASIA AND THE INDIAN SUBCONTINENT

 28. See e.g. the short description in Meisezahl, 1962, pp. 299-300.
29. For the full depiction see Giès, 1994, I, 50.
30. A similar experimental maƒŒala in a New York private collection is said to have been found at the
tomb site of Dulan. It is said to depict ìa monk-donor, the All-knowing Gelong Lodrö (Tibetan
inscription), kneeling in front of a central vajra-holding crowned bodhisattva in a royal Tibetan robe.î
Henss, 2006, 109 and fig. 7. Sadly, neither the published picture nor the digital image Henss kindly
provided to me does allow to discern any details beyond the basic composition, the deity and the
donor on the central lotus, a Tibetan text spiraling around it, two squares with deities, one square with
four doors and symbols and an outer vajra-border. The deities represented also appear to be protectors
of the Hindu pantheon.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Chandra, Lokesh, A Ninth Century Scroll of the Vajradhåtu MaƒŒala, ›ata-Pi¢aka Series, 343, Aditya Prakashan,
New Delhi, 1986.
óó, Dictionary of Buddhist Iconography, 15 vols., ›ata-Pi¢aka Series, Vols. 601-616, Aditya Prakashan, New
Delhi, 1999-2005.
Fraser, Sarah E., Performing the Visual: The Practice of Buddhist Wall Painting in China and Central Asia, 618-960,
Stanford University Press, Stanford, 2004.
Giès, Jacques, Les arts de líAsie centrale: La collection Paul Pelliot du musée national des arts asiatiques ñ Guimet, 2
vols., Réunion des Musées Nationaux, Paris, 1994.
Giès, Jacques and Monique Cohen (eds.), Sérinde, Terre de Bouddha: Dix siècles díart sur la Route de la Soie,
Éditions de la Réunion des Musées Nationaux, Paris, 1996.
Henss, Michael, ìA Rejoinder to Amy Hellerís Book Review of Andreas Gruschkeís The Cultural Monuments
of Tibetís Outer Provincesî, Vols. I and II, 2001, The Tibet Journal 3 (2004): 101-02 (available in early
2006), and some more reviewing on the same authorís Cultural Monuments of Tibetís Outer Provinces,
Kham, Vols. I and II, Bangkok, 2004, The Tibet Journal 31 (2): 103-11.
Huang, Yongwu (ed.), Dunhuang bao zang (Tun-huang manuscripts), 140 vols., Taibei, 1981, Xinwenfeng chuban
gongsi; 29 cm.
Klimburg-Salter, Deborah E., The Silk Route and the Diamond Path: Esoteric Buddhist Art on the Trans-Himalayan
Trade Routes, UCLA Art Council, Los Angeles, 1982.
Lee-Kalisch, Jeong-hee (ed.), Tibet ñ Klöster öffnen ihre Schatzkammern, Essen, Kulturstiftung Ruhr, Villa Hügel,
2006.
Luczanits, Christian, ìMandala: Form, Funktion und Bedeutungî, in Jeong-hee Lee-Kalisch (ed.), Tibet ñ
Klöster öffnen ihre Schatzkammern, Essen, Kulturstiftung Ruhr Essen, Villa Hügel, 2006, pp. 71-79.
óó (at press), ìOn the Earliest Mandalas in a Buddhist Contextî, Proceedings of the International Conference
on Mahayana: Philosophy and Art, 2-5 November, 2005, New Delhi, Tibet House, New Delhi.
Meisezahl, R.O., ìThe Amoghapå‹ahædaya-dhåraƒ∂î, Monumenta Nipponica XVII (1-4), (1962): 265-328.
Nicolas-Vandier, N., Bannières et Peintures de Touen-Houang conservées au Musée Guimet (Mission Paul Pelliot
XIV [catalogue descriptif], Mission Paul Pelliot XV [planches]), dir. de Louis Hambis, 2 vols, Paris, 1974.
Schopen, Gregory, ìArt, Beauty, and the Business of Running a Buddhist Monastery in Early Northwest
Indiaî, in Gregory Schopen (ed.), Buddhist Monks and Business Matters. Still More Papers on Monastic
Buddhism in India, University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu, 2004, pp. 19-44.
Sharf, Robert H., ìVisualization and Mandala in Shingon Buddhismî, in Robert H. Sharf and Elizabeth
Horton Sharf (eds.), Living Images: Japanese Buddhist Icons in Context, Asian Religions and Cultures
Series, Stanford University Press, Stanford, 2001, pp. 151-97.
Whitfield, Roderick, The Art of Central Asia. The Stein Collection in the British Museum, 3 vols.
(2, Paintings from Dunhuang), Kodansha International, Tµokyµo, 1983.
Willson, Martin and Martin Brauen (eds.), Deities of Tibetan Buddhism. The Zürich Paintings of the Icons
Worthwhile to See Bris sku mtho∆ ba don ldan, Wisdom Publication, 2000.

RITUAL, INSTRUCTION AND EXPERIMENT “ 149

Fig. 17.1. MaƒŒala and ritual drawing, Dunhuang, Ch.00379, H. 42.8 x 30.1 cm,
(courtesy: National Museum, New Delhi).
Fig. 17.2. Effigy of dough used in Tibetan Buddhist ritual, Lamayuru, Ladakh, 2003 (photo: C. Luczanits, CL03 32a, 23).

Fig. 17.3. Ritual maƒŒala among ritual implements and offerings, Dunhuang, detail of the scroll Musée Guimet MG
17.780 (photo: C. Luczanits, 2003).
Fig. 17.4. First maƒŒala, Musée Guimet, PC 2012 Fig. 17.5. Third maƒŒala, Musée Guimet, PC 2012
(after Dunhuang bao zang 112, 101-102). (after Dunhuang bao zang 112, 99-100).

Fig. 17.6. Fourth maƒŒala with assembly, Musée Guimet, PC 2012 (after Dunhuang bao zang 112, 96-97).

Fig. 17.7. Assembly of maƒŒala deities, Musée Guimet, PC 4009 Fig. 17.9. Drawing of a Vajradhåtu maƒŒala
(after Dunhuang bao zang 132, 477b). with colour indications, Bibliothèques
National de France, P4518.33 (after Fraser
2004: pl. 23).
Fig. 17.8. Monks likely performing the mudrå
of the goddess Vajranætyå (rDo-rje-gar-ma)
during the Vajradhåtu ritual, Main Temple,
Tabo Monastery (photo: C. Luczanits, 2005,
D3574).

Fig. 17.10. Second maƒŒala, Musée Guimet, PC 2012,

(after Dunhuang bao zang 112, 100).

Fig. 17.11. Detail of a maƒŒala drawing,

Musée Guimet (after Giés 1994: I, 50).