The Threefold Invocation Ritual invokes all the deities of the threefold world that have “entered the path of compassion” and are “held by the hook of the vidyāmantra” to gather, pay heed to the person reciting this text (or the person for whom it is recited), and bear witness to the proclamation of that person’s commitment to the Buddhist teachings. A profound aspiration to practice ten aspects of a bodhisattva’s activity is then followed by a dedication and a prayer for the teachings.
Translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee under the supervision of Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche. The translation was produced by Adam Krug and edited by Ryan Damron.
The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.
The Compendium of Dhāraṇīs (gzungs ’dus) opens with the present work, The Threefold Invocation Ritual. A very large majority of the 250 texts in this two-volume section appended to the Degé Kangyur are simply duplicates of texts in other sections, but this is one of the dozen or so that are unique to the compendium.1 Nevertheless, it is present in all Kangyurs of predominantly Tshalpa (tshal pa) lineage, being included in the Tantra sections of those that do not have a separate section of dhāraṇī. Kangyurs of the Thempangma lineage do not include this work at all.
The Tōhoku catalog (the standard reference for the Degé Kangyur) appears to have grouped two texts together under the catalog number Toh 846, despite the fact that the Degé Kangyur (as well as other Tshalpa Kangyurs) marks these as independent works with their own titles. Of the handful of witnesses for this text that have survived among the Pelliot Dunhuang manuscripts, preserved in the Bibliothèque Nationale de Paris, the manuscripts that Marcelle Lalou presented in her 1938 study, edition, and French translation confirm that these two sections of Toh 846 are in fact independent works, respectively entitled The Threefold Ritual (rgyud gsum pa) and An Invocation of the Great Deities and Nāgas (lha klu chen po rnams spyan dran pa).2 The confusion over whether or not these two texts should be catalogued as a single work might have derived from the fact that the initial title in the Kangyur versions is a combination of parts of the two titles of these older versions of the text. The version in all Tshalpa Kangyurs of the present text, The Threefold Invocation Ritual, also adds a passage of aspiration in prose from the Lokottaraparivarta, chapter 44 of the Buddhāvataṃsakasūtra,3 and a concluding set of verses that are not included in the Dunhuang witnesses.
The Threefold Invocation Ritual does not appear in either the Denkarma or Phangthangma royal Tibetan catalogues of works translated in the early period. It also does not appear to have been translated into Chinese at any point. Its opening line does not contain an original Indic title, and it is possible that this text is Tibetan in origin. Most of the subject matter of the invocation, however, is unmistakably Indian. The text begins by calling upon the great kings and guardians of the cardinal and ordinal directions, zenith, and nadir. The text then calls upon the attendants of Śiva and the deity Jambhala and his four treasures (Padma, Mahāpadma, Śaṅkha, and Mahāśaṅkha), follows with a list of sixteen yakṣa generals, and concludes by calling upon a number of nāga kings, rākṣasīs, and goddesses. This pantheon of worldly deities is invoked in the first part of the text to bear witness to the person who is reciting the liturgy (or the person for whom the liturgy is being recited). A short aspiration prayer in prose follows that confirms that person’s commitment to the bodhisattva path in the presence of all who have gathered as witnesses. The aspiration (1.22) is an extract from the Lokottaraparivarta, and details ten essential practices a bodhisattva should undertake, setting out each practice as a contrasting but complementary pair of attitudes drawn respectively from relative and ultimate perspectives. This is followed by a short set of instructions on the power of the Buddhist teachings that employs the cosmogonic myth from the Purāṇas, the churning of the ocean of milk, encoding elements of the myth with a broader Buddhist significance.
The names of all the deities invoked in this text have been rendered in Sanskrit whenever possible. The Sanskrit names and classifications for these deities have been derived by triangulating between the Negi Tibetan–Sanskrit dictionary, Edgerton’s Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Dictionary, Monier-Williams’ Sanskrit-English dictionary, and the Sanskrit of the Mahāmāyūrīvidyārājñī. The reader will notice that a number of familiar names from Sanskrit epic and Purāṇa literature appear among lists of yakṣa generals, nāga kings, rākṣasīs, and goddesses in this text. As is the case in other dhāraṇī texts, it is likely that their role as worldly deities in this work supercedes their characterizations in the Sanskrit epics and Purāṇas. This phenomenon is also observed in the Mahāmāyūrī, where the goddesses Mārīcī and Kālī, for instance, are listed as rākṣasīs. Similarly, several figures such as Daśagrīva, Vibhīṣaṇa, Meghanāda, Sugrīva, and Hanuman who are known from the Rāmāyaṇa appear here as yakṣa generals and nāga kings.
This translation is based on the version of The Threefold Invocation Ritual found at the opening of the Compendium of Dhāraṇīs section in the Degé Kangyur in consultation with the text as it appears in the Comparative Edition (dpe bsdur ma) of the Kangyur. The prose section that is derived from the Lokottaraparivarta was checked against the Tibetan translation of that text from the A Multitude of Buddhas (phal chen) section of the Degé Kangyur, and also against Śikṣānanda’s Chinese.
Approach,9 children of the Victors! Knowing that10 we and all beings are already beyond suffering and thus not fearing that sentient beings will fail to transcend it, may we still insatiably cultivate the accumulations of merit and wisdom. May we know that things are intrinsically conditioned, yet not dismiss their characteristics. May we not reject the form body of a buddha, yet attain freedom from all attachment. May we be free from attachment to all phenomena, yet seek the wisdom that knows everything. May we completely purify all phenomena as buddha realms without depending on others, yet understand the space-like characteristic of buddha realms. May we never weary of bringing beings to maturity, yet never abandon the characteristics of lacking self-identity. May we magically display supernatural powers, yet never waver from the sphere of reality. May we not stop setting our mind on enlightenment, yet may omniscient wisdom arise in us. May we satisfy all beings by turning the wheel of the Dharma, yet not pass beyond the inexpressible nature of reality. May we[F.3.a] demonstrate the magical emanations and blessings of a tathāgata, without nevertheless discarding the body of a bodhisattva, and yet in all the perceptions of beings may we appear and then display the great parinirvāṇa. Children of the Victors, uphold these aspects of the teachings and practice these obverse and direct ways of engaging in practice.11 These ten teachings are the most excellent activity of a buddha. Children of the Victor, these are the awakened activity of a bodhisattva. The spontaneous activity of the bodhisattvas is independent of others and is the perfect attainment of unsurpassed awakening.12
This concludes “The Threefold [Invocation] Ritual.”14
The Threefold Invocation Ritual invokes all the deities of the threefold world that have “entered the path of compassion” and are “held by the hook of the vidyāmantra” to gather, pay heed to the person reciting this text (or the person for whom it is recited), and bear witness to the proclamation of that person’s commitment to the Buddhist teachings. A profound aspiration to practice ten aspects of a bodhisattva’s activity is then followed by a dedication and a prayer for the teachings.
Translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee under the supervision of Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche. The translation was produced by Adam Krug and edited by Ryan Damron.
The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.
The Compendium of Dhāraṇīs (gzungs ’dus) opens with the present work, The Threefold Invocation Ritual. A very large majority of the 250 texts in this two-volume section appended to the Degé Kangyur are simply duplicates of texts in other sections, but this is one of the dozen or so that are unique to the compendium.1 Nevertheless, it is present in all Kangyurs of predominantly Tshalpa (tshal pa) lineage, being included in the Tantra sections of those that do not have a separate section of dhāraṇī. Kangyurs of the Thempangma lineage do not include this work at all.
The Tōhoku catalog (the standard reference for the Degé Kangyur) appears to have grouped two texts together under the catalog number Toh 846, despite the fact that the Degé Kangyur (as well as other Tshalpa Kangyurs) marks these as independent works with their own titles. Of the handful of witnesses for this text that have survived among the Pelliot Dunhuang manuscripts, preserved in the Bibliothèque Nationale de Paris, the manuscripts that Marcelle Lalou presented in her 1938 study, edition, and French translation confirm that these two sections of Toh 846 are in fact independent works, respectively entitled The Threefold Ritual (rgyud gsum pa) and An Invocation of the Great Deities and Nāgas (lha klu chen po rnams spyan dran pa).2 The confusion over whether or not these two texts should be catalogued as a single work might have derived from the fact that the initial title in the Kangyur versions is a combination of parts of the two titles of these older versions of the text. The version in all Tshalpa Kangyurs of the present text, The Threefold Invocation Ritual, also adds a passage of aspiration in prose from the Lokottaraparivarta, chapter 44 of the Buddhāvataṃsakasūtra,3 and a concluding set of verses that are not included in the Dunhuang witnesses.
The Threefold Invocation Ritual does not appear in either the Denkarma or Phangthangma royal Tibetan catalogues of works translated in the early period. It also does not appear to have been translated into Chinese at any point. Its opening line does not contain an original Indic title, and it is possible that this text is Tibetan in origin. Most of the subject matter of the invocation, however, is unmistakably Indian. The text begins by calling upon the great kings and guardians of the cardinal and ordinal directions, zenith, and nadir. The text then calls upon the attendants of Śiva and the deity Jambhala and his four treasures (Padma, Mahāpadma, Śaṅkha, and Mahāśaṅkha), follows with a list of sixteen yakṣa generals, and concludes by calling upon a number of nāga kings, rākṣasīs, and goddesses. This pantheon of worldly deities is invoked in the first part of the text to bear witness to the person who is reciting the liturgy (or the person for whom the liturgy is being recited). A short aspiration prayer in prose follows that confirms that person’s commitment to the bodhisattva path in the presence of all who have gathered as witnesses. The aspiration (1.22) is an extract from the Lokottaraparivarta, and details ten essential practices a bodhisattva should undertake, setting out each practice as a contrasting but complementary pair of attitudes drawn respectively from relative and ultimate perspectives. This is followed by a short set of instructions on the power of the Buddhist teachings that employs the cosmogonic myth from the Purāṇas, the churning of the ocean of milk, encoding elements of the myth with a broader Buddhist significance.
The names of all the deities invoked in this text have been rendered in Sanskrit whenever possible. The Sanskrit names and classifications for these deities have been derived by triangulating between the Negi Tibetan–Sanskrit dictionary, Edgerton’s Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Dictionary, Monier-Williams’ Sanskrit-English dictionary, and the Sanskrit of the Mahāmāyūrīvidyārājñī. The reader will notice that a number of familiar names from Sanskrit epic and Purāṇa literature appear among lists of yakṣa generals, nāga kings, rākṣasīs, and goddesses in this text. As is the case in other dhāraṇī texts, it is likely that their role as worldly deities in this work supercedes their characterizations in the Sanskrit epics and Purāṇas. This phenomenon is also observed in the Mahāmāyūrī, where the goddesses Mārīcī and Kālī, for instance, are listed as rākṣasīs. Similarly, several figures such as Daśagrīva, Vibhīṣaṇa, Meghanāda, Sugrīva, and Hanuman who are known from the Rāmāyaṇa appear here as yakṣa generals and nāga kings.
This translation is based on the version of The Threefold Invocation Ritual found at the opening of the Compendium of Dhāraṇīs section in the Degé Kangyur in consultation with the text as it appears in the Comparative Edition (dpe bsdur ma) of the Kangyur. The prose section that is derived from the Lokottaraparivarta was checked against the Tibetan translation of that text from the A Multitude of Buddhas (phal chen) section of the Degé Kangyur, and also against Śikṣānanda’s Chinese.
Approach,9 children of the Victors! Knowing that10 we and all beings are already beyond suffering and thus not fearing that sentient beings will fail to transcend it, may we still insatiably cultivate the accumulations of merit and wisdom. May we know that things are intrinsically conditioned, yet not dismiss their characteristics. May we not reject the form body of a buddha, yet attain freedom from all attachment. May we be free from attachment to all phenomena, yet seek the wisdom that knows everything. May we completely purify all phenomena as buddha realms without depending on others, yet understand the space-like characteristic of buddha realms. May we never weary of bringing beings to maturity, yet never abandon the characteristics of lacking self-identity. May we magically display supernatural powers, yet never waver from the sphere of reality. May we not stop setting our mind on enlightenment, yet may omniscient wisdom arise in us. May we satisfy all beings by turning the wheel of the Dharma, yet not pass beyond the inexpressible nature of reality. May we[F.3.a] demonstrate the magical emanations and blessings of a tathāgata, without nevertheless discarding the body of a bodhisattva, and yet in all the perceptions of beings may we appear and then display the great parinirvāṇa. Children of the Victors, uphold these aspects of the teachings and practice these obverse and direct ways of engaging in practice.11 These ten teachings are the most excellent activity of a buddha. Children of the Victor, these are the awakened activity of a bodhisattva. The spontaneous activity of the bodhisattvas is independent of others and is the perfect attainment of unsurpassed awakening.12
This concludes “The Threefold [Invocation] Ritual.”14
The present text, and all those contained in this same volume (gzungs ’dus, e), are listed as being located in volume 100 of the Degé Kangyur by the Buddhist Digital Resource Center (BDRC). However, several other Kangyur databases—including the eKangyur that supplies the digital input version displayed by the 84000 Reading Room—list this work as being located in volume 101. This discrepancy is partly due to the fact that the two volumes of the gzungs ’dus section are an added supplement not mentioned in the original catalog, and also hinges on the fact that the compilers of the Tōhoku catalog placed another text—which forms a whole, very large volume—the Vimalaprabhānāmakālacakratantraṭīkā (dus ’khor ’grel bshad dri med ’od, Toh 845), before the present volume, numbering it as vol. 100, although it is almost certainly intended to come right at the end of the Degé Kangyur texts as volume 102; indeed its final fifth chapter is often carried over and wrapped in the same volume as the Kangyur dkar chags (catalog). Please note this discrepancy when using the eKangyur viewer in this translation.
See Lalou, “Notes de mythologie.” The reader should also note that the titles of these texts in the Kangyur differ from the titles in Lalou’s Dunhuang witnesses. Lalou’s first Dunhuang witness entitled The Threefold Ritual (rgyud gsum pa) corresponds to the first twenty-one stanzas in the present translation, and does not include either the passage (1.22) added from the Lokottaraparivarta (Toh 44-44), or the verses that follow (1.23–1.28). Lalou’s second Dunhuang witness, entitled An Invocation of the Great Deities and Nāgas (lha klu chen po rnams spyan dran pa) corresponds to the text that appears next in the Degé Kangyur, with the title The Threefold Ritual (rgyud gsum pa), which 84000 and other databases have designated Toh 846a.
gdon la ’jebs. The translation of this term remains tentative. An alternate translation that adheres closely to the meaning that the term ’jebs pa bears in Tibetan might indicate that this is either a collective noun or a proper name and translate as “Pleasing to the Grahas.” This name does not have any Sanskrit equivalent of which we are currently aware. The Negi dictionary notes that the Tibetan ’jebs pa translates the Sanskrit prācuryam (“multitude,” “abundance,” “plenty”) in the Mahāyānasūtrālaṅkāra. I have attempted to integrate this reading of ’jebs pa into the translation “hosts of grahas,” based on the assumption that the Tibetan reading may have read an incorrect grammatical particle into the original compound.
Possibly also “Śrīdevi.” We have gone with Śrīmati here because this yakṣiṇī is witnessed in the Mahāmāyūrī.
gzha’ gzung yun gyi chu srid ’thob ’gyur na/. The la bdun particle na at the end of this line might also be read as a conditional, though that reading seems unlikely.
The first text in Marcelle Lalou’s edition of the Dunhuang manuscripts for the rgyud gsum pa ends here with the final line of this stanza, and does not contain the full invocation that we see in the Kangyur versions of this text. See Lalou, “Notes de mythologie,” 132.
This line begins a passage quoted from the Lokottaraparivarta, chapter forty-four of the Buddhāvataṃsakasūtra (Toh 44-44). See ’phags pa sangs rgyas phal po che zhes bya ba shin tu rgyas pa chen po’i mdo, Degé Kangyur vol. 37 (phal chen, ga), ff. 248.a.5–248.b.5. The pairing of phrases that is implied in the mention of “obverse and direct ways” toward the end of the passage, and is necessary to end up with the “ten teachings,” is not entirely obvious from the Tibetan but has been aided here by consulting the Chinese of the Buddhāvataṃsaka.
While the text here in the Degé Kangyur reads mya ngan las ’das par bgyis la, the equivalent phrase in the Degé text of the Lokottaraparivarta reads mya ngan las ’das par shes par gyis la.
lha yi rgyal srid dbu rmog btsan par bsngo/. The phrase dbu rmog btsan pa appears in imperial era Tibetan inscriptions and Dunhuang documents as one of a number of terms that are used to describe a ruler’s sovereign power, and these materials suggest that it should be understood as a martial metaphor for the territory over which a ruler has sovereignty. An alternate translation of this line might hold the phrases lha yi rgyal srid and dbu rmog btsan pa in apposition and translate as, “I dedicate this to the kingdom of the gods, the mighty helmet.”
The concluding statement includes only the shorter form of the title rgyud gsum pa, also used for the following text.
One of the eight guardians of the directions, Agni guards the southeast quarter.
Name of a nāga king.
Name of a yakṣa general.
As one of the three primary deities of the Hindu pantheon, in the Purāṇic cosmogony Brahmā is said to issue the four Vedas (Ṛg, Yajus, Sāma, and Athārva) from his four mouths, from which the entirety of creation unfolds. In Buddhist traditions, Brahmā is said to be a worldly deity who exists at the zenith of cyclic existence. He is thus added to the list of the eight guardians of the directions as the guardian of the zenith. In most narratives of the life of the Buddha, Brahmā is said to appear together with Śakra to request that the Buddha Śākyamuni teach the Dharma.
Name of a nāga king; also a name for Rāvaṇa, the primary adversary of Rāma in the Rāmāyaṇa.
One of the great kings of the four cardinal directions, Dhṛtarāṣṭra guards the eastern quarter of the heavens.
A goddess; another name for Pārvatī, the wife of Śiva.
A goddess.
The eight elephants corresponding to the eight cardinal and ordinal directions and the eight world protectors.
Name of a nāga king. Also known as Gaganasvara.
Gaṇapati, or Ganeśa, is the lord of the gaṇas, a class of demigods usually associated with the god Śiva. In the Purāṇic traditions Gaṇapati is portrayed as the elephant-headed son of Śiva and Pārvatī.
A river goddess.
In Indian mythology, the garuḍa is an eagle-like bird that is regarded as the king of all birds, normally depicted with a sharp, owl-like beak, often holding a snake, and with large and powerful wings. They are traditionally enemies of the nāgas. In the Vedas, they are said to have brought nectar from the heavens to earth. Garuḍa can also be used as a proper name for a king of such creatures.
A goddess; a rākṣasī in the Mahāmāyūrīvidyārājñī (Toh 559).
The name of a worldly deity who is identified variously as an attendant of Skanda, an attendant of Śiva, a piśāca attendant of Kubera, and a rākṣasa.
Deities associated with the planets.
A goddess.
Name of a yakṣa general in the Mahāmāyūrīvidyārājñī (Toh 559).
Name of a nāga king; a monkey god; Rāma’s companion and devotee in the Rāmāyaṇa.
A yakṣiṇī; a rākṣasī in the Mahāmāyūrīvidyārājñī (Toh 559).
The translation of this term remains tentative but is read here as a potential translation of the Sanskrit compound *grahaprācurya in which the Tibetan has employed an incorrect grammatical particle. An alternate translation that favors the meaning that the term ’jebs pa bears in Tibetan and the Tibetan reading of the compound indicates that this could be either a collective noun or a proper name that translates as “Pleasing to the Grahas.”
One of the eight guardians of the directions, Indra guards the eastern quarter.
One of the eight guardians of the directions, Īśāna guards the northeast quarter.
A yakṣa king associated with wealth and often identified with Kubera/Vaiśravaṇa.
Name of a yakṣa general; a son of Kubera.
A goddess; a rākṣasī in the Mahāmāyūrīvidyārājñī (Toh 559); one of Durgā’s attendants.
Kārttikeya (alt. Skanda) is the son of Śiva and Pārvatī. Like Gaṇapati, Kārttikeya is said to lead the gaṇas in battle against demonic beings and is considered a god of war.
A class of nonhuman beings that resemble humans to the degree that their very name—which means “is that human?”—suggests some confusion as to their divine status. Kinnaras are mythological beings found in both Buddhist and Brahmanical literature, where they are portrayed as creatures half human, half animal. They are often depicted as highly skilled celestial musicians.
One of the great kings of the four directions, Kubera guards the northern quarter of the heavens. Also known as Vaiśravaṇa.
Name of a yakṣa general.
A class of dwarf beings subordinate to Virūḍhaka, one of the Four Great Kings, associated with the southern direction. The name uses a play on the word aṇḍa, which means “egg” but is also a euphemism for a testicle. Thus, they are often depicted as having testicles as big as pots (from kumbha, or “pot”).
—
Listed as the great yakṣa general of Rājagṛha in the Mahāmāyūrīvidyārājñī (Toh 559).
Mahākāla (“the great black one”) is both a name for one of the god Śiva’s wrathful manifestations and an important Buddhist protector deity. The Mahābhārata and Harivaṁśa list Mahākāla as one of Śiva’s attendants.
A goddess; one of Durgā’s attendants.
Name of a yakṣa general.
“The great lotus.” One of the four great treasures and the being who presides over it.
“The great conch shell.” One of the four great treasures and the being who presides over it.
Name of a nāga king.
Name of a yakṣa general; brother of Pūrṇabhadra in the Mahāmāyūrīvidyārājñī (Toh 559).
A goddess; a rākṣasī in the Mahāmāyūrīvidyārājñī (Toh 559).
Name of a nāga king; name of Rāvaṇa’s son in the Rāmāyaṇa.
A martial metaphor for the territory that falls under the rule of a particular king.
See also n.13.
One of the eight guardians of the directions, Nairṛta guards the southwest quarter. Also known as Nirṛti.
Deities associated with the stars.
Name of a nāga king.
Nandi is the bull attendant of Śiva and the guardian of Śiva’s realm in Kailāsa. He is commonly depicted at Śaiva temples as a bull positioned outside of the main gate of the temple gazing in upon Śiva’s liṅga with utter devotion.
“The lotus.” One of the four great treasures and the being who presides over it.
Name of a yakṣa general in the Mahāmāyūrīvidyārājñī (Toh 559).
Name of a nāga king.
Name of a yakṣa general in the Mahāmāyūrīvidyārājñī (Toh 559).
’phags pa sangs rgyas phal po che zhes bya ba shin tu rgyas pa chen po’i mdo (Buddhāvataṃsakasūtra). Toh 44, vol. 35–38 (phal chen, ka–a), folios 1.a–396.a.
spyan ’dren rgyud gsum pa. Toh 846, Degé Kangyur vol. 100 (gzungs ’dus, e), folios 1.b–3.b.
spyan ’dren rgyud gsum pa. bka’ ’gyur (dpe bsdur ma) [Comparative Edition of the Kangyur], krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe sdur khang (The Tibetan Tripitaka Collation Bureau of the China Tibetology Research Center). 108 volumes. Beijing: krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang (China Tibetology Publishing House), 2006–2009, vol. 97, pp. 3–9.
Bendall, C. “The Mahāmegha Sūtra,” Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society (1880), 286–311.
Edgerton, Franklin. Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Grammar and Dictionary. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 2004.
Kapstein, Matthew. The Tibetans. Malden: Blackwell Publishing, 2006.
Lalou, Marcelle. “Notes de mythologie bouddhique.” Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies 3 no. 2 (July 1938): 128–36.
Monier-Williams, Monier. A Sanskrit-English Dictionary: Etymologically and Philologically Arranged with Special Reference to Cognate Indo-European Languages. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 2005.
“Mahamayurividyarajni (Mmvr).” Input by Klaus Wille based on Takubo, Shūyo, ed. Ārya-Mahā-Māyūrī-Vidyā-Rājñī. Tokyo: Sankibo, 1972. Göttingen Register of Electronic Texts in Indian Languages (GRETIL). Accessed May 23, 2018. http://gretil.sub.uni-goettingen.de/gretil/1_sanskr/4_rellit/buddh/mmayuvru.htm.
Negi, J.S. Tibetan-Sanskrit Dictionary (bod skad dang legs sbyar gyi tshig mdzod chen mo). 16 vols. Sarnath: Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies, 1993.
