The Yaśovatī Dhāraṇī is a collection of six dhāraṇīs that can be recited to cure and protect oneself from various illnesses, avert the influence of demonic beings, and, in one case, to revive the recently deceased.
This publication was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.
The text was translated, edited, and introduced by the 84000 translation team. Adam C. Krug produced the translation and wrote the introduction. Ryan Damron edited the translation and the introduction, and Dawn Collins copyedited the text. Martina Cotter was in charge of the digital publication process.
The Yaśovatī Dhāraṇī is a collection of six dhāraṇīs that are recited to cure and protect oneself from various illnesses, avert the influence of demonic beings, and, in one case, to revive the recently deceased. The first five dhāraṇīs open with a verse of homage to the Three Jewels and the bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara, and the sixth begins with an homage to the Three Jewels, Avalokiteśvara, and the bodhisattva Vajrapāṇi. The text does not include any introductory material concerning the occasion when it was first taught, the audience present for the teaching, or the individual who gave the teaching. It also contains no information on the identity of Yaśovatī (Tib. grags ldan ma), and it is not clear if this name refers to a goddess, to the dhāraṇī itself, or to both.
There are numerous figures in the Kangyur and Tengyur with the name Yaśovatī or with a name approximating or synonymous to Yaśovatī.1 A goddess (or goddesses) by the name grags ldan ma appears in The Root Manual of the Rites of Mañjuśrī,2 The Tantra of the Complete Enlightenment of Vairocana,3 The Root Manual for the Rites of the Blessed Noble Tārā,4 The Great Upholder of the Secret Mantra,5 The Tantra of Subhāhu’s Questions,6 and The Section on Propitiation Rituals [in The Great Tantra, Susiddhikara].7 A goddess (or goddesses) with the name grags ldan ma also appears in the Tengyur among the maṇḍala retinues of the deities Heruka and Cakrasaṃvara, as well as in Gayādhara’s Instructions on the Arising of Gnosis.8 None of the passages in the Kangyur and Tengyur that mention a goddess named grags ldan ma, however, provide any description or broader information about this goddess, or any indication that she is at all related to the Yaśovatī associated with this dhāraṇī. As a result, the identity of Yaśovatī who appears in the title of this dhāraṇī remains uncertain.
There are no extant Sanskrit witnesses of The Yaśovatī Dhāraṇī and the text does not appear to have been translated into Chinese. It is not included in either of the imperial Tibetan catalogs of translated works, and the text does not contain a translator’s colophon. Thus, there is also no clear data on when and under what circumstances this dhāraṇī was translated into Tibetan.
This translation was prepared on the basis of The Yaśovatī Dhāraṇī contained in the Degé Kangyur in both the Tantra Collection (rgyud ’bum) and the Compendium of Dhāraṇīs (gzungs ’dus)99 in consultation with the versions from the Stok Palace and the Comparative Edition (dpe bsdur ma) of the Kangyur.
namo ratnatrayāya | nama āryāvalokiteśvarāya bodhisattvāya mahāsattvāya |
tadyathā | jvare mahājvare dukhe muktisusampanne mahāsampanne sampatti mahāsampatti kase mahākase kacchajvaramuktesi svāhā ||
If one incants a cord or some water with this mantra three times, it will cure fever.
namo ratnatrayāya | nama āryāvalokiteśvarāya bodhisattvāya mahāsattvāya |
tadyathā | cili cili mili mili rakṣa rakṣa māṃ āryāvalokiteśvara svāhā ||
For all manner of grahas, one should incant a red cord or a cord spun with five-colored thread with this mantra three times while tying three knots in it, and it will pacify obstacles.
namo ratnatrayāya | nama āryāvalokiteśvarāya bodhisattvāya mahāsattvāya |
tadyathā | kili kili cili cili nigile svāhā ||
If one incants sesame oil with this mantra three times and applies it as an ointment, it will treat swelling.
namo ratnatrayāya | nama āryāvalokiteśvarāya bodhisattvāya mahāsattvāya |
tadyathā | sare sare visare visare saranāśani svāhā ||
If one recites this mantra in the ear of a dead being, they will be revived.
namo ratnatrayāya | nama āryāvalokiteśvarāya bodisattvāya mahāsattvāya |
tadyathā |nisire nisire kalanimire kalaricirī[F.147.a] vacile svāhā ||
For goiters, any illness of the throat, illnesses of the tongue,10 and all manner of grahas, incant some clay with this mantra three times, apply it as an ointment, and it will help.
namo ratnatrayāna | nama āryāvalokiteśvarāya vajrapāṇidhyam oṁ oṁ krāraprabhave bhagavati buddhe pratibuddhe śuddhe śāntikiri hana hana[F.225.a] mama pāpam11 daha daha mama pāpadaṃ paca paca mama pāpakaṃ | oṁ oḍe grasa grasa riteḍe riteḍe śāntīṃ12 karīya svāhā | śubhakarīya svāhā | kṣemakarīya svāhā ||
When one has contracted a disease, the disease will be cured by reciting this mantra while bathing. If one takes medicine that has been incanted with this mantra, the illness will be cured. If one eats food that has been incanted with this mantra, one will not be harmed by poison. For those who are possessed by any kind of bhūtagraha, one should take a thread spun by a young girl, incant it with the mantra twenty-one times, and tie it to them. They will then be released.
This concludes “The Yaśovatī Dhāraṇī.”
The Yaśovatī Dhāraṇī is a collection of six dhāraṇīs that can be recited to cure and protect oneself from various illnesses, avert the influence of demonic beings, and, in one case, to revive the recently deceased.
This publication was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.
The text was translated, edited, and introduced by the 84000 translation team. Adam C. Krug produced the translation and wrote the introduction. Ryan Damron edited the translation and the introduction, and Dawn Collins copyedited the text. Martina Cotter was in charge of the digital publication process.
The Yaśovatī Dhāraṇī is a collection of six dhāraṇīs that are recited to cure and protect oneself from various illnesses, avert the influence of demonic beings, and, in one case, to revive the recently deceased. The first five dhāraṇīs open with a verse of homage to the Three Jewels and the bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara, and the sixth begins with an homage to the Three Jewels, Avalokiteśvara, and the bodhisattva Vajrapāṇi. The text does not include any introductory material concerning the occasion when it was first taught, the audience present for the teaching, or the individual who gave the teaching. It also contains no information on the identity of Yaśovatī (Tib. grags ldan ma), and it is not clear if this name refers to a goddess, to the dhāraṇī itself, or to both.
There are numerous figures in the Kangyur and Tengyur with the name Yaśovatī or with a name approximating or synonymous to Yaśovatī.1 A goddess (or goddesses) by the name grags ldan ma appears in The Root Manual of the Rites of Mañjuśrī,2 The Tantra of the Complete Enlightenment of Vairocana,3 The Root Manual for the Rites of the Blessed Noble Tārā,4 The Great Upholder of the Secret Mantra,5 The Tantra of Subhāhu’s Questions,6 and The Section on Propitiation Rituals [in The Great Tantra, Susiddhikara].7 A goddess (or goddesses) with the name grags ldan ma also appears in the Tengyur among the maṇḍala retinues of the deities Heruka and Cakrasaṃvara, as well as in Gayādhara’s Instructions on the Arising of Gnosis.8 None of the passages in the Kangyur and Tengyur that mention a goddess named grags ldan ma, however, provide any description or broader information about this goddess, or any indication that she is at all related to the Yaśovatī associated with this dhāraṇī. As a result, the identity of Yaśovatī who appears in the title of this dhāraṇī remains uncertain.
There are no extant Sanskrit witnesses of The Yaśovatī Dhāraṇī and the text does not appear to have been translated into Chinese. It is not included in either of the imperial Tibetan catalogs of translated works, and the text does not contain a translator’s colophon. Thus, there is also no clear data on when and under what circumstances this dhāraṇī was translated into Tibetan.
This translation was prepared on the basis of The Yaśovatī Dhāraṇī contained in the Degé Kangyur in both the Tantra Collection (rgyud ’bum) and the Compendium of Dhāraṇīs (gzungs ’dus)99 in consultation with the versions from the Stok Palace and the Comparative Edition (dpe bsdur ma) of the Kangyur.
namo ratnatrayāya | nama āryāvalokiteśvarāya bodhisattvāya mahāsattvāya |
tadyathā | jvare mahājvare dukhe muktisusampanne mahāsampanne sampatti mahāsampatti kase mahākase kacchajvaramuktesi svāhā ||
If one incants a cord or some water with this mantra three times, it will cure fever.
namo ratnatrayāya | nama āryāvalokiteśvarāya bodhisattvāya mahāsattvāya |
tadyathā | cili cili mili mili rakṣa rakṣa māṃ āryāvalokiteśvara svāhā ||
For all manner of grahas, one should incant a red cord or a cord spun with five-colored thread with this mantra three times while tying three knots in it, and it will pacify obstacles.
namo ratnatrayāya | nama āryāvalokiteśvarāya bodhisattvāya mahāsattvāya |
tadyathā | kili kili cili cili nigile svāhā ||
If one incants sesame oil with this mantra three times and applies it as an ointment, it will treat swelling.
namo ratnatrayāya | nama āryāvalokiteśvarāya bodhisattvāya mahāsattvāya |
tadyathā | sare sare visare visare saranāśani svāhā ||
If one recites this mantra in the ear of a dead being, they will be revived.
namo ratnatrayāya | nama āryāvalokiteśvarāya bodisattvāya mahāsattvāya |
tadyathā |nisire nisire kalanimire kalaricirī[F.147.a] vacile svāhā ||
For goiters, any illness of the throat, illnesses of the tongue,10 and all manner of grahas, incant some clay with this mantra three times, apply it as an ointment, and it will help.
namo ratnatrayāna | nama āryāvalokiteśvarāya vajrapāṇidhyam oṁ oṁ krāraprabhave bhagavati buddhe pratibuddhe śuddhe śāntikiri hana hana[F.225.a] mama pāpam11 daha daha mama pāpadaṃ paca paca mama pāpakaṃ | oṁ oḍe grasa grasa riteḍe riteḍe śāntīṃ12 karīya svāhā | śubhakarīya svāhā | kṣemakarīya svāhā ||
When one has contracted a disease, the disease will be cured by reciting this mantra while bathing. If one takes medicine that has been incanted with this mantra, the illness will be cured. If one eats food that has been incanted with this mantra, one will not be harmed by poison. For those who are possessed by any kind of bhūtagraha, one should take a thread spun by a young girl, incant it with the mantra twenty-one times, and tie it to them. They will then be released.
This concludes “The Yaśovatī Dhāraṇī.”
In The Good Eon, the buddhas Dhārmika, Ajitagaṇa, Suvayas, Maṇicandra, Arthamati, and Siṃhabala all have mothers named “Endowed with Fame”. See The Good Eon, (Bhadrakalpika, Toh 94), 2.B.68; 2.B.723; 2.B.771; 2.B.807; 2.B.1022; 2.B.1079. A goddess named grags ldan ma appears in The Play in Full as a protector of the southern quadrant, but in this case the underlying Sanskrit appears to be Yaśamatī, a synonym for Yaśovatī. See The Play in Full (Lalitavistara, Toh 95), 24.144. A woman named grags ldan ma also appears as the wife of the general Siṁha (Tib. seng ge) in The Hundred Exemplary Tales, Beginning with That of Pūrṇa, Toh 343, who demonstrates her great devotion and is prophesied to become a completely perfect buddha named rin chen ldan after perfecting the bodhisattva path for three countless eons. See gang po la sogs pa’i rtogs pa brjod pa brgya ba (Pūrṇapramukhāvadānaśataka), Toh 343, Degé Kangyur vol. 75 (mdo sde, am), folios 5.a–7.b. Edgerton also suggests that the name Yaśovatī functions as a synonym for the bodhisattva Siddhārtha’s wife. See Edgerton 1953, p. 445.
A goddess with the name grags ldan ma is associated here with the goddess Bhṛkuṭī. See rnam par snang mdzad mngon par rdzogs par byang chub pa’i rgyud (Vairocanābhisambodhitantra), Toh 494, Degé Kangyur vol. 86 (rgyud, tha), folio 234.b.
The first two of these references are reproduced from the opening chapter of The Root Manual of the Rites of Mañjuśrī, so this note only mentions the latter two instances, which are unique to The Root Manual of the Rites of the Blessed Noble Tārā. See ral pa rgyen brdses kyi rtog pa chen po (Ūrdhvajaṭamahākalpamahābodhisattvavikurvāṇapaṭalavistarād bhagavatyāryatārāmūlakalpanāma), Toh 724, Degé Kangyur vol. 94 (rgyud ’bum, tsha), folios 151.a and 151.b.
See legs par grub par byed pa’i rgyud chen po las sgrub pa’i thabs rim par phye ba (Susiddhikaramahātantrasādhanopāyikapaṭala), Toh 807, Degé Kangyur vol. 96 (rgyud ’bum, wa), folio 218.a.
See Divākaracandra, dpal he ru ka ’byung ba zhes bya ba’i dkyil ’khor gyi cho ga (Śrīherukabhūtanāmamaṇḍalavidhi), Toh 1261, Degé Tengyur vol. 9 (rgyud, nya), folio 288.a; Kambalapāda, dpal ’khor lo sdom pa’i dka’ ’grel sgrub pa’i thabs kyi gleng gzhi zhes bya ba (Sādhananidānaśrīcakrasaṁvaranāmapañjikā), Toh 1401, Degé Tengyur vol. 16 (rgyud, ba), folio 50.b; Devagupta, dpal ’khor lo sdom pa’i sgrub thabs gnas thams cad rgya cher ’grel pa (Śrīcakrasaṃvarasādhanasarvaśālānāmaṭikā), Toh 1407, Degé Tengyur vol. 17 (rgyud, ma), folio 123.a; and Gayādhara, ye shes ’byung ba’i man ngag (Jñānodayopadeśa), Toh 1514, Degé Tengyur vol. 22 (rgyud, sha), folio 372.b.
This text, Toh 992, and all those contained in this same volume (gzungs ’dus), are listed as being located in volume 101 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 102. 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 volume 100 of the Degé Kangyur, 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.
Toh 732 and Toh 992 read lce kyi ba na ba; S reads lce’i kyi ba na ba. This translation is tentative. The meaning of lce kyi ba na ba is obscure.
This transliteration follows C, F, J, K, and Y: pA pa m. Toh 732 and Toh 992 read pa pa maM.
One of the “eight close sons of the Buddha,” he is also known as the bodhisattva who embodies compassion. In certain tantras, he is also the lord of the three families, where he embodies the compassion of the buddhas. In Tibet, he attained great significance as a special protector of Tibet, and in China, in female form, as Guanyin, the most important bodhisattva in all of East Asia.
A general term for classes of spirits and demonic beings who possess humans and cause illnesses.
The term dhāraṇī has the sense of something that “holds” or “retains,” and so it can refer to the special capacity of practitioners to memorize and recall detailed teachings. It can also refer to a verbal expression of the teachings—an incantation, spell, or mnemonic formula—that distills and “holds” essential points of the Dharma and is used by practitioners to attain mundane and supramundane goals. The same term is also used to denote texts that contain such formulas.
A class of demonic being.
The Buddha, Dharma, and Saṅgha—the three objects of Buddhist refuge. In the Tibetan rendering, “the three rare and supreme ones.”
Vajrapāṇi means “Wielder of the Vajra.” In the Pali canon, he appears as a yakṣa guardian in the retinue of the Buddha. In the Mahāyāna scriptures he is a bodhisattva and one of the “eight close sons of the Buddha.” In the tantras, he is also regarded as an important Buddhist deity and instrumental in the transmission of tantric scriptures.
“Renowned.” The title of this text containing multiple dhāraṇīs. This name may refer to a goddess, to the dhāraṇī itself, or to both. See i.2.
’phags pa grags ldan ma’i gzungs (Āryayaśovatīdhāraṇī). Toh 732, Degé Kangyur vol. 94 (rgyud ’bum, tsha), folios 224.b–225.a.
’phags pa grags ldan ma’i gzungs (Āryayaśovatīdhāraṇī). Toh 992, Degé Kangyur vol. 101 (gzungs ’dus, waM), folios 146.b–147.a.
’phags pa grags ldan ma’i gzungs. 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), 2006–9, vol. 94, pp. 603–6.
’phags pa grags ldan ma’i gzungs. 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), 2006–9, vol. 98, pp. 466–68.
’phags pa grags ldan ma’i gzungs. Stok Palace Kangyur vol. 107 (rgyud, ma), folios 127.b–128.b.
’phags pa grags ldan ma’i gzungs. Phukdrak Kangyur vol. 117 (rgyud, dza), folios 249.a–250.b.
dpal ’khor lo sdom pa’i sgrub thabs gnas thams cad rgya cher ’grel pa (Śrīcakrasaṃvarasādhanasarvaśālānāmaṭikā). Toh 1407, Degé Tengyur vol. 17 (rgyud, ma), folios 69.a–156.b.
dpal he ru ka ’byung ba zhes bya ba’i dkyil ’khor gyi cho ga (Śrīherukabhūtanāmamaṇḍalavidhi). Toh 1261, Degé Tengyur vol. 9 (rgyud, nya), folios 286.a–329.b.
gang po la sogs pa’i rtogs pa brjod pa brgya ba (Pūrṇapramukhāvadānaśataka). Toh 343, Degé Kangyur vol. 75 (mdo sde, am), folios 1.a–286.b.
legs par grub par byed pa’i rgyud chen po las sgrub pa’i thabs rim par phye ba (Susiddhikaramahātantrasādhanopāyikapaṭala). Toh 807, Degé Kangyur vol. 96 (rgyud ’bum, wa), folios 168.a–222.b.
ral pa rgyen brdses kyi rtog pa chen po (Ūrdhvajaṭamahākalpamahābodhisattvavikurvāṇapaṭalavistarād bhagavatyāryatārāmūlakalpanāma). Toh. 724, Degé Kangyur vol. 93 and 94 (rgyud ’bum, tsa and tsha), folios 205.b–311.a; and 1.b–200.a.
rnam par snang mdzad mngon par rdzogs par byang chub pa’i rgyud (Vairocanābhisambodhitantra). Toh 494, Degé Kangyur vol. 86 (rgyud, tha), folios 151.b–260.a.
84000. The Good Eon (Bhadrakalpika, skal pa bzang po, Toh 94). Translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee. Online publication. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2022.
84000. Great Upholder of the Secret Mantra (Mahāmantrādhārinī, gsang sngags chen po rjes su ’dzin pa, Toh 563). Translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee. Online publication. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2016.
84000. The Play in Full (Lalitavistara, rgya cher rol pa, Toh 95). Translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee. Online publication. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2013.
84000. The Root Manual of the Rites of Mañjuśrī (Mañjuśrīmūlakalpa, ’jam dpal gyi rtsa ba’i rgyud, Toh 543). Translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee. Online publication. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2020.
84000. The Tantra of Subāhu’s Questions (Subāhuparipṛcchātantra, dpung bzang gis zhus pa’i rgyud, Toh 805). Translated by Dr. Lozang Jamspal. Online publication. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2020.
The Buddhist Canons Research Database. American Institute of Buddhist Studies and Columbia University Center for Buddhist Studies, Accessed April 7, 2023. http://databases.aibs.columbia.edu.
Edgerton, Franklin. Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Grammar and Dictionary. Vol 1. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1953.
Gayādhara. ye shes ’byung ba’i man ngag (Jñānodayopadeśa). Toh 1514, Degé Tengyur vol. 22 (rgyud, sha), folios 363.b–374.b.
Kambalapāda. dpal ’khor lo sdom pa’i dka’ ’grel sgrub pa’i thabs kyi gleng gzhi zhes bya ba (Sādhananidānaśrīcakrasaṁvaranāmapañjikā). Toh 1401, Degé Tengyur vol. 16 (rgyud, ba), folios 1.b–78.a.
Lancaster, Lewis R. The Korean Buddhist Canon: A Descriptive Catalogue. Accessed April 10, 2023.
Monier-Williams, Monier. A Sanskrit–English Dictionary: Etymologically and Philologically Arranged with Special Reference to Cognate Indo-European Languages. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 2005.
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, 1993–2005.
Resources for Kanjur & Tenjur Studies, Universität Wien. Accessed April 7, 2023.
Tulku, Tarthang. The Nyingma edition of the sDe-dge bKa’-’gyur and bsTan-’gyur Research Catalogue and Bibliography vol. 2. Oakland, CA: Dharma Publishing, 1981.
C Choné (co ne)
F Phukdrak (phug brag bris ma)
H Lhasa (lha sa / zhol)
J Lithang (li thang)
K Kanxi (kang shi)
N Narthang (snar thang)
S Stok Palace (stog pho ’brang)
U Urga (phyi sog khu re)
Y Yongle (g.yong lo)
