Mar Ngok Summer Teachings 2024: The Origins of Secret Mantra Day 4
31 July 2024
For the fourth day of the Mar Ngok Summer Teachings, the Gyalwang Karmapa greeted everyone and then announced the main topic of the day: the connection between secret mantra and Early Buddhism. During the time of Early Buddhism, there was no philosophy and practice of secret mantra of Vajrayana as we have today. But the seeds of the view and practice of Vajrayana practice originated during this time.
Since the main topic of the Mar Ngok Summer Teachings is the Origins of Secret Mantra, the Karmapa said he would first speak about the connection of secret mantra and clear realization in two different ways, generally and specifically.
The General Explanation
Most academic researchers hold that early Buddhism was a religion that follows the nature of things and follows logic. During their research, they hold there is no relation between the Buddha’s awakening to complete enlightenment and the secret mantra.
When Buddha achieved enlightenment and then turned the wheel of Dharma, there was no discussion of secret mantra, so there could not be any relation between enlightenment and secret mantra. What Buddha achieved was not through blind faith or superstition but achieved through prajñā.
The wisdom in the Buddha’s mindstream is explained to be luminous, and not darkness. For this reason, within early Buddhism, the state of buddhahood came through logic, through prajñā. It did not happen through superstition or blind faith. Since the Buddhist religion followed logic, buddhahood was achieved through logic.
In the Four Agamas, the Dharma that the Buddha manifested is described like this:
At that time, the Bhagavan spoke to the group of five monks. “When there is proper consideration of the truth of suffering, of this dharma never heard before, vision arises, wisdom arises, prajñā arises, awareness arises, and light arises. When there is proper consideration of the noble truths of the origin, the cessation of suffering, and the path of the cessation of suffering, of this dharma never heard before, vision arises, wisdom arises, prajñā arises, awareness arises, and light arises.”
When the Buddha awakened to completely perfect enlightenment, all phenomena became the object of his clear realization. When he awakened to enlightenment, his realization manifested in his mind; there was light. There were no phenomena he did not see or did not know, and this was, “light arises, luminous.” Since the entire world had the appearance of being filled with light, “vision arises, wisdom arises, prajñā arises, awareness arises, and light arises.” Because of this, there could not be any darkness of ignorance, or unknowing. Everything was filled with light. He was able to see the nature of everything exactly as it was.
When the Buddha awakened to buddhahood, what appeared to him was the experience or understanding he had. He saw that the dharma must be realized by each individual and every individual needs to clearly know for themselves. The dharma which is to be realized is the dharma that transcends time.
The truth that the Buddha saw about the nature of things from 2,500 years ago is still the same. The nature of things, of the way things are, has not changed, they are not different no matter what era. That nature of things is truth by nature. Although we cannot see what the Buddha saw, if we could see the nature of what he saw exactly as he did, then what the Buddha saw and what we would see, would be exactly the same. It’s a truth for all sentient beings, not only for the Buddha, or only for noble beings. That truth of the nature of things can be shown to everyone.
It’s only a question of whether people can realize it or not, or understand it or not. Its nature is not to be kept secret or hidden. When the Buddha saw the nature of phenomena, the nature of the dharma he saw permeates the entire world. For this reason, it is all-pervasive, it is a universal truth. It is true in all worlds, whether you are a noble individual or an ordinary individual, the actual nature stays the same. There’s nothing to keep secret. It’s not that only the Buddha saw this and no one else. There’s nothing that needs to be distinguished for different individuals.
Another way to look at this is that the dharma is something we can realize, the nature of all phenomena is something we can realize, something we can manifest. For this reason, the Dharma of early Buddhism is a religion that can be understood and known rationally. It teaches something the Buddha realized through prajñā. It is not a religion that can be realized through faith alone. We need to use intelligence and prajñā. For this reason, in early Buddhism the dharma that Buddha realized came through clear realization, knowing through prajñā.
When we talk of the Four Truths, the Twelve Links, the Five Aggregates, the Four Views of Selflessness, these foundational views were the many presentations of the Dharma teachings, they were the many philosophical presentations saying that we need to know the nature of things on the basis of prajñā. In early Buddhism, the dharma that the Buddha clearly realized is not connected to blind faith, or without rational basis or confused faith. It is like a light in the darkness. It has a luminous nature. It has the nature of clearly knowing, of clearly being aware. That is the general explanation.
The Specific Explanation
If we look at the specific explanations about the Buddha’s awakening, or the Buddha’s clear awareness of dharma, these are not solely based on logic, or awareness and prajñā. It did depend on it, but as emphasized in the Mahayana, the Buddha’s enlightenment, the dharma the Buddha clearly realized, is beyond words and inconceivable. It’s not something that we can explain and say, “It is this.” This is emphasized in the Mahayana teachings and is also clearly stated in the scriptures of early Buddhism.
From the first sutra in the “Long Discourses” of the Pali Five Nikāyas,: the Sutra of Brahma’s Net (Brahmajalasutta):
Bhikkhus, it is only to trifling and insignificant matters, to the minor details of mere moral virtue that a worldling would refer when speaking in praise of the Tathāgata.
When worldly people praise the Buddha, they praise how he keeps good discipline, he practices the ten virtues and so forth, but these activities of praise are insignificant because they are basically about his daily activities. They are not significant because they are not the vast activities of the Buddha. They are not the most significant activities of a Buddha. This same sutra continues:
Bhikkhus, there are other dharmas, deep, difficult to see, difficult to understand, peaceful and sublime, beyond the sphere of reasoning, subtle, comprehensible only to the wise, and which the Tathāgata, having realized for himself with direct knowledge, propounds to others; and it is concerning these that those who would rightly praise the Tathāgata would speak, in accordance with reality …
Most ordinary, worldly people think that the Buddha is important, and see going for refuge as important. However, ordinary people praise the Buddha because he doesn’t lie, he doesn’t kill, he practices the ten virtues, he is excellent and so forth. But when you think about it, for the Buddha, these are small qualities, they are not the most significant quality of his activities
In actuality, if you really wanted to offer vast praise for the Buddha, you would praise the Dharma that the Buddha realized clearly and manifested: his qualities of abandonment and realization, particularly the extremely profound qualities of realization that are deep, difficult to see, difficult to understand, peaceful, sublime, beyond the sphere of reasoning, something only the wise could realize. These are the completely perfect qualities that are worthy of being praised. Most ordinary individuals don’t know how to make these praises.
The Sutra of Brahma’s Net says:
The Dharma is deep, difficult to see, difficult to know, peaceful and sublime, beyond the sphere of reasoning…
Here the word used for “reasoning” (Pāli: takka, Skt: tarka) means someone who is examining things logically, using logical analysis and logical reasoning. The original word, tarka, is only used in logical analysis and logical reasoning. It means the clear realization of a buddha transcends the sphere of reasoning, and the sphere of logicians. It cannot be understood by speaking about it or using logic. That is why it is said that it is difficult to know, and difficult to see.
The next passage says:
The Tathagata having realized for himself, with direct knowledge….
Here the word for realization is abhiñña in Pali (Skt abhijñā) and means manifestly knowing or clearly knowing. This also includes the six clairvoyant powers e.g. the clairvoyance of miracles, of the divine eye, and so forth—the six clairvoyances. These clairvoyances, abhiñña, have the property of being secret or profound. “Secret” means hidden, something ordinary people are unable to know, it is like the hidden or secret wisdom, so they are beyond the sphere of reasoning.
The Buddha’s awakening, or clear realization, can only be manifested through profound or secret wisdom. So, the dharma the Buddha realized is difficult for ordinary people to know, difficult to see, and beyond the sphere of reasoning. Because ordinary people cannot realize it, it has a secret nature. In actuality, the buddha nature itself naturally has the profound and secret qualities.
When we speak of the enlightenment of the Buddha, which is clear realization sometimes the word used is vidyā or ‘awareness’. The word for clear realization of a Buddha which is used here is also vidyā (Pāli: vijjā). The passage above says, “of this dharma never heard before, vision arises, wisdom arises, prajñā arises, awareness arises, and light arises…”
Here “awareness” vidyā (or vijjā), can also mean ‘knowledge’ or ‘science’, and sometimes is an area of knowledge, a field of knowledge that we study. We can talk about the ten areas of knowledge or the five areas of knowledge.
Not only that, the word vidyā is also translated as ‘awareness mantras’ We talk about secret mantras, awareness mantras, and dhārani mantras, and the term for these ‘awareness mantras’ is vidyā. When it is used in secret mantra, this term is often translated as “awareness mantra.” (Tib. rigs sngags). This is only in secret mantra.
Within the Vinaya and the texts of the Theravadan school, there are many passages where the word vidyā is used in the sense of awareness mantras, or spells, or charms. When speaking of the wisdom of clear realization or the wisdom of clear knowing, one quality it must have is an amazing nature, or a secret or hidden nature or meaning. Many passages say ordinary people cannot realize it, so it must have such meaning.
When awareness is discussed in Early Buddhism, the wisdom of clear realization is complicated because there are basically two different aspects. From one perspective, vidyā is something logical, or based on reason, and it is luminous prajñā. It is like a nature that is not hidden; something we can realize through logic and reasoning. From another perspective, it is something that cannot be realized through reasoning. So, on one hand, it is something that you can realize through logic and reasoning and at the same time it is not something you can know entirely through reason and evidence. For this reason, it cannot be said that there is absolutely no room for a commonness of awareness wisdom and secret mantra because both of these explanations are present in the scriptures of early Buddhism.
In Early Buddhism, awareness (Skt. vidyā) is not only rational knowledge; it may also be imbued with a meaning that is secret and hidden. It is difficult, hidden, and secret for ordinary people.
However, some people maintain that the Sutra of Brahma’s Net, says secret mantra is based on superstition. At that time in India, superstition, different rituals associated with superstition, and irrational divinations in astrology were widespread. There is a clear prohibition of them in the Sutra of Brahma’s Net. For this reason, they say there is no connection between a Buddha’s wisdom or awareness and the secret mantra because the practice of superstitious mantras and divinations is clearly prohibited.
The Karmapa then said:
There is something that needs to be considered. From one perspective, what is said in the Sutra of Brahma’s Net, there’s a clear rejection of superstitious mantras and irrational mantras in astrology. And so, that is true. But within the Four Agamas, there is discussion of protection mantras, words, and so forth. And so, it’s important for us to understand this. And so, actually, I will speak about this later. I won’t speak about them today. During the Buddha’s lifetime, among the public, many people became Buddhist, took refuge and believed in the Buddha, but most of those people were ignorant and deluded and lacked education, and were probably unable to practice properly the dharma that the Buddha taught. Among those followers, more than a few were superstitious. For this reason, some scholars said that within early Buddhism there must have been two different paths. There were some who followed logic, didn’t follow superstition, who really thought about the reasons, who investigated the nature, and there were those who primarily followed superstition. These were the two different groups of disciples.
It says in the Great Exposition of the Vaibhāṣika School, a famous text of the Sarvastivadan school, an Abhidharma text, that when speaking about the eight branches of the Noble Path, it teaches right speech then right livelihood, but it also speaks about right action then right speech. Why are right speech and right action mentioned separately from right livelihood? This is spoken about separately because wrong livelihoods are difficult to purify and difficult to abandon:
How is wrong livelihood difficult to purify? It is thus. Two dharmas are difficult to purify and difficult to give up, the wrong view of householders, and the wrong livelihood of monastics:
How is wrong livelihood difficult to purify? It is thus. Two dharmas are difficult to purify and difficult to give up, the wrong view of householders, and the wrong livelihood of monastics. The wisest householders take the five precepts, but when threatened by suffering, they offer incense, flowers, food, and drink of various kinds to worldly gods and pray to them. The wisest monastics take on the discipline of full ordination but because the requisites of their livelihood depend on others, when they see a patron, they pretend to behave well and put on the airs of a friend. Therefore, wrong livelihood and right livelihood are taught separately.
The wisest householders take the five precepts, but when threatened by suffering, they offer incense, flowers, food, and drink of various kinds to worldly gods and pray to them. The wisest monastics take on the discipline of full ordination but because the requisites of their livelihood depend on others. The main point about why wrong livelihood is difficult to abandon and purify in the world is that there are two dharmas that are difficult to give up. For householders, it is the wrong view that is difficult to purify and abandon; and for monastics, it is wrong livelihood that is difficult to purify and abandon.
For householders, it is difficult to give up wrong views. Even for a lay practitioner who knows the five precepts, if one day they have a difficulty in the household, they immediately run off to a tree deity or shrine deity and will make an offering and supplications because their minds are uncomfortable. They should have some conviction, but they immediately think they need to do something, to bring incense, flowers, and so forth, and go to the Shiva Linga and pour milk over it, and then they feel comfortable. This is because they don’t believe in karmic cause and effect, so when they encounter a difficulty their true nature shines through.
For a monastic who keeps their discipline well, since their livelihood depends on others, they still are not able to immediately get food. In the old days in India, if they didn’t receive food, they stayed hungry, so if they saw a patron they’d suddenly stand straight and become very nice and take great interest in the patron to get food; they might put on airs. But this is wrong. They shouldn’t flatter or praise people to get something from them, because implicitly they are saying, “Give me what you gave me before.” For a monastic that is a wrong livelihood.
So, for the householder, it is difficult to give up the wrong view because they do not believe in karmic cause and effect. For the monastic, since livelihood depends on others, it is difficult to give up flattery to their patrons.
Awareness Mantra and Prohibited Mantras
The Karmapa next explained the term “awareness mantra” from the Sutra of Brahma’s Net where there are prohibitions against practicing many awareness mantras
The term vidyā in Sanskrit (Pali: vijjā) and (Tib: rig pa) is translated as awareness in English. In ancient days, vidyā was understood as miraculous awareness mantras or spells. It had a particular power and it was called as the miraculous awareness or amazing mantras. There are many rituals using pacifying, expanding, magnetizing, and destroying mantras. And so the awareness mantras mean these amazing awareness mantras. They were similar to present-day science, there is a cause that produces a result.
In terms of the science for example, if hydrogen and oxygen are joined, the result is water. For that reason, we have great confidence in science, it gives a kind of power and capacity. If the causes are all present, there will be the result. In this way, the awareness mantras are similar to belief in modern science today.
In early Buddhism, vidyā had two different aspects: the vidyā Buddha accepted, and the vidyā he did not accept. The former is the one in the Buddha’s words, when he calls the ultimate wisdom by the word awareness. The second vidyā that the Buddha did not accept and prohibited, includes different awarenesses that are mentioned and prohibited in the Sutra of Brahma’s Net.
In the Sutra of Brahma’s Net, the awareness mantras that the Buddha prohibited are translated as the “debased arts” or “pointless arts” (Pali: tiracchāna-vijjā). Sometimes it is translated as “useless arts” and as “animal arts.” In the Chinese, it is primarily translated as “animal awareness mantras.” Both the Sutra of Brahma’s Net and the Sutra of the Results of the Spiritual Path include prohibitions of “debased” vidyā mantras.
The Sutra of Brahma’s Net speaks about:
… prophesying long life, prosperity etc., or the reverse, from the marks on a person’s limbs, hands, feet etc; this is basically like reading palms… divining by means of omens and signs.
The Chinese translations also say:
making auguries on the basis of thunderbolts and celestial portents; interpreting ominous dreams; telling fortunes from marks on the body, such as in olden times when the Buddha was born, there were two seers who came and looked at the marks on his body…. As soon as he was born, when they saw his body, they said, “In his future, he will either become a universal emperor, or he will become a Buddha.
Other prohibited awareness mantras included telling fortunes from various marks and features on the body:
auguries from the marks on cloth gnawed by mice; offering fire oblations; offering oblations from a ladle; offering oblations of husks, rice powder, rice grains, ghee, and oil to the gods; offering oblations from the mouth; offering from blood-sacrifices to the gods; making predictions based on the fingertips determining whether the site for a proposed house—regardless of whether it is propitious or not—
Here the Karmapa interjected, “This is similar to our present-day feng-shui” and noted that certain awareness mantras were needed for politicians, such as when mantras were needed for “making predictions for officers of state.”
Also, the Karmapa stated the following types of mantras regarding charms were prohibited:
the knowledge of charms to lay demons in a cemetery; the knowledge of charms to cure one possessed by ghosts; the knowledge of charms to be pronounced by one living in an earthen house; the snake craft; charms for poison; charms for scorpions probably, aquatic scorpions; rat charms; charms for birds; and charms for crows; foretelling the number of years that a person has to live; the knowledge of charms to give protection from arrows; reciting charms to understand the language of animals —
The Sutra of Brahma’s Net includes many types of these awareness mantras, all prohibited because they are examples of the debased arts, or the animal arts. These are recognized as debased where mantras were used to read palms, examine dreams, and look at different types of omens and auguries.
The second type of awareness mantras include fire sacrifices, fire offerings of ghee, and various other types of sacrifices. It also includes vidyā or charms (“craft”) for homes, snakes, poisons, “charms to give protection from arrows” related to war and are charms to give protection.
Moreover, the sutra lists the characteristics of weapons, possessions, the evaluation of men, women, and animals; knowledge and awareness military activities; knowledge of eclipses of the sun and moon; stars; of reconciling people, astrology, politics, knowledge of ordinary livelihood, and even including medical treatments. These are considered as pointless, and all listed as “debased arts.” This shows it did not only mean spells but also medical arts. Many of the worldly areas of knowledge are included here.
Because of this we can see that the prohibition of awareness mantras, or arts, listed in the Sutra of Brahma’s Net included not only prohibiting awareness mantras and spells but also worldly sciences, prophecies, and medical arts because vidyā also means knowledge or sciences, or the arts.
When the Mahayana teachings spread it is said in the sutras that bodhisattvas must study the five sciences and the five areas of knowledge. Here the Karmapa noted he often quotes from Maitreya, that the bodhisattvas, must train in the five sciences, and the five awarenesses, but these are all prohibited in the Sutra of Brahma’s Net.
These awareness mantras are also prohibited in different parts of the Vinaya. The Pāli Vinaya has three main parts: first, the Vibhanga, or the rules for monks and nuns; the second, the Khandhaka, with 22 chapters finer points on discipline; and the third, the Parivara, rules from various points of view.
In terms of the Tibetan tradition, this second part has seven chapters and includes the Vinaya-vastu, about the finer points of discipline. In the Pāli tradition, there are 22 different sections divided into two parts: the major and the minor. This minor part is called the Khuddakavatthu (Finer Points of Discipline). It discusses whether to study the debased arts as had happened with the Gang of Six and caused the Buddha to produce a series of monastic rules to regulate their conduct. This is similar to the finer points on discipline in the Tibetan canon.
The Gang of Six began to teach these debased sciences to others and committed an infraction. The precepts discussed are primarily about things we need to do, rather than the prohibitions in the Pratimokṣa.
In the Five-Part Vinaya (Mahīśāsaka school), bhikshus learned spells that would incapacitate others, so the Buddha prohibited them, saying that if they did, it would confuse people, and it would be an infraction. Then bhikshus learned mantras to raise the dead, and these had been prohibited, so this was an infraction. There are many instances where there were prohibitions against the bhikshus studying these areas of knowledge or animal awareness mantras. But among the 250 precepts of a bhikshu there were none against the pointless arts, or animal arts.
However, there is an explicit precept that prohibits bhikkunis from studying or teaching the “debased art” themselves. This is found in the Pāli Bhikkhuni Vibhanga:,there are the downfalls for the bhikkunis and are in one of the precepts. In the 49th of the downfalls, or pacittiya rule, for bhikkunis, it describes how there is a group of twelve bhikkunis, the Gang of Twelve, and a Gang of Six bhikkunis (but not in the Tibetan). They studied “debased arts” (or “useless knowledge”) and were criticized by laypeople who had learned of this. The Buddha prohibited this practice. Similarly, the 50th rule clearly prohibits teaching “useless knowledge” to others and is included as a precept. Similar precepts are also found in the Vinaya texts for the bhikkunis, in the Chinese.
In the Four-Part Vinaya of the Dharmaguptaka school, bhikkunis studied various areas of knowledge, primarily the awareness mantras. Among them, some bhikkunis were content with little and easily satisfied, so they admonished the Gang of Six bhikkunis, asking why there was a need to study awareness mantras and criticized them. They reported the Gang of Six to the Buddha. The Buddha reprimanded the Gang of Six, saying that such behaviors were not in accordance with the spiritual way, and if these bhikkunis studied such worldly knowledge, it was a downfall.
In the Praṭimokkha of the Dharmaguptaka Vinaya, if a bhikkuni studies from a layperson it is a downfall. If they teach a layperson, it is a downfall. The Sarvāstivāda Vinaya also describes prohibitions against the various different kinds of awareness mantras. In the Mahāsāṃghika school, if bhikkunis learn or teach the awareness mantras, it is a downfall. There are 180 downfalls for the bhikkhunis. Of the 180, there are 72 that are common to the bhikkus and bhikkunis, but there are particular ones only for the bhikkunis. Among these the 34th says that learning a mantra from a layperson is a downfall.
There is a story behind this about the bhikkuni Thullananda. In the Bhikkuni Vinaya of the Mulasarvastivada school, it is the 34th unique offense for bhikkunis (150th in the Chinese Tripitaka). Even learning a short mantra is prohibited. Within the Tibetan Mūlasarvāstivāda Vinaya, the 35th downfall for bhikkunis was making a householder read a mantra.
Here the Karmapa related a story about the badly-behaved nun, Thullandanda:
When the nun, Thullananda was in Śravasti, there was a householder, a man, whom she made read a mantra. She learned a spell and made the layperson read and memorize it: “Oh householder, Sili Hili bu hili sili pu svaha.” She taught it to him two or three times. She insisted he say it repeatedly. Then the householder said, “Oh noble one, I’ve memorized it completely you don’t need to say it again. Don’t worry about it.” But she made him keep repeating it. He became angry and said, “I’m not going to study this, I’m stopping.”
Another bhikkuni who accompanied Thullananda asked her, “Noble One why are you annoying everyone so much?” Thullananda replied, “It’s just words, it’s not a problem.” She completely ignored it. The bhikkuni was completely surprised and praised Thullananda for not getting upset.
Later, the bhikkunis asked the Buddha about this. The Buddha prohibited it, declaring that bhikkunis were not allowed to teach awareness mantras to others and make them recite them.
The Original Meaning of Awareness (Vijjā)
In early Buddhism, the Pali word vijjā, (Skt vidyā) or awareness is frequently used in a negative sense as something to be prohibited, and the Pali word avijjā (Skt. avidyā) is ignorance. The awareness that is the opposite of ignorance is called enlightenment. In the Dharmaguptaka Vinaya, there are such descriptions as “ignorance ceasing and awareness arising” to illustrate what enlightenment is like, to achieve the state of a buddha, there are a few such instances. When describing realization or the awakening of a buddha, it is paññā in Pali (Skt prajña), or they use perfect enlightenment (Skt sambhodi). The word buddha means the realized one. Thus, realization is expressed with words such as prajña and enlightenment, but the word vidyā—awareness—is used less frequently, only a few times.
Awareness Meaning Spells/Charms in Early Buddhism
However, within the texts of early Buddhism, the use of the word vidyā for enlightenment is very clear. In addition to the examples given above, the Buddha had many epithets. Of the ten in Chinese, one is “the one with awareness and conduct” (vijjācaraṇa-sampanna), using the word vijjā. Moreover, the three clairvoyances of remembering past lives, divine eye, and knowing the extinction of defilements are called the “three awarenesses.” In this context the original word for “awareness” is vijjā. The awareness in “three awarenesses” are synonymous with the clairvoyances. The awareness, or vijjā, in the Dharmaguptaka tradition therefore includes just some of the qualities or properties of awareness mantra.
During the Mahayana period, when the sutras were viewed as having the nature of awareness mantras, this word “awareness” was used. In the Heart Sutra, it reads, “The mantra of transcendent prajñā the mantra of great awareness, the unsurpassed mantra, the mantra equal to the unequaled, the mantra that pacifies all suffering….” The mantra of great awareness is the mahā-vidyā-mantra, where vidyā is awareness itself, and vidyā and mantra are combined to be awareness mantras. Moreover, the transcendent prajñā is also said to be a great awareness mantra. If one recites and memorizes it, it is said to dispel all suffering.
In the third “Stupa Chapter” and the fourth “Awareness Mantra Chapter,” of the Chinese 8000 Line Sutra, as well as the Tibetan Prajñāpāramitā in 8000 Lines, both texts say that prajñāpāramitā is a great awareness mantra. Memorizing even a single phrase or a single line from the Prajñāpāramitā Sutras has the benefit of preventing harm from poisonous snakes. It also says the Four Great Kings will always protect those who practice it, even if they enter the fray of battle, they will be neither killed nor injured. So, practicing the Prajñāpāramitā Sutras as an awareness mantra has great benefits.
The ninth fascicle of the Prajñāpāramitā in 100,000 Lines says, “The transcendent prajñā is a great awareness mantra. It is the unexcelled mantra, the mantra equal to the unequaled.” The Great Treatise on Prajñāpāramitā Commentary said to be written by Nāgārjuna (but it is not available in the Tibetan) says in the eighth fascicle, “Among all awareness mantras, transcendent prajñā is the greatest.” This is a summary of awareness mantras in the Mahayana.
When the teachings of secret mantra spread, presentations such as the “King of Awareness,” the vidyā-rājan, became extremely important. We can understand that the properties and the nature of a mantra, and the awareness that came from it were present from the very beginning. The seeds of it, the critical points of it were present from the time of early Buddhism.
A Summary of Awareness Mantras
- In early Buddhism, the Buddha did prohibit using awareness (or awareness mantra) as spells, but he also called the ultimate wisdom awareness.
- “Awareness” has different meanings:
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- In the Buddha’s words, awareness can mean the ultimate wisdom, the highest wisdom. This is called awareness.
- In general, awareness can mean field of knowledge or science.
- In the Mahayana, the meaning of “awareness” expanded. It also means the five sciences that bodhisattvas must study, it speaks about the sutras that have mantric properties. We often hear of “the mantra of great awareness.”
- In the secret mantra, awareness can mean knowledge related to awareness mantras and ancient sciences in ancient days.
- The awareness mantra of the fields of science were very similar, and like the areas of knowledge. The areas of medicine and substances of mantras were like the science of that time. For example, if you get sick, you must take medicine. If you get better, then you believe it. Mantras and medicine were considered the same. People believed that the mantras helped.
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- Continuity and development: as Buddhism spread, the concept of awareness also broadened, but its core meaning remained the Buddha’s own individual awareness. It is what he manifested through his own prajñā, the realization in his own experience and there was no change in that.
- In brief, the presentation of awareness takes different forms in different Buddhist traditions, but they all arise from the way the Buddha presented his wisdom. Its continual development shows the relation between the developments in Buddhist philosophy and the different Buddhist traditions. Buddhism was able to adapt to different cultures and eras while the core philosophy remained unchanged and stable.
Buddhism remains living, and this shows that its potential capacity had no real change in the core philosophy of Buddhism. If you think of this term, vidyā, fundamentally, there’s awareness; vidyā also means the wisdom of the Buddha, the individual awareness of the Buddha. This is the same in the Śravaka vehicle, is understood this way in the Mahayana, and is also understood the same way in the Vajrayana.
