Tomar, Ram Singh

English

Apollo (Cambridge)

ON THE CARYAPADAS IN TIBETAN -RAM SINGH TOMAR Of the varIOUS speCImens of Apabhramsa language the compositions of the Vajrayani Siddhas have been studied most carefully by competent scholars. In 1916 Hara Prasad Shastri published these texts and since then scholars like Prabodh Chandra Bagchi, Rahula Sankrityayana, Muhammad Shahidullah and Sukumar Sen have made contributions to this subject. Importa~lt as theseCaryapadas are for preser-ving traits of Eastern or Magadhi Apabhramsa their impor-tance is greater for study of the esoteric doctrine (Vajrayana) and scholars have thus found these compositions useful from different stand-points. As poetry the compositions are not so remarkable notwithstanding the external form. These Apabhramsa texts are however only a fraction of what the Siddhas actually wrote. Many of their works are now lost in their original forms but are fortunately preserved in Tibetan translation (Bstan-Hgyur). Rahula Sankrityayana r("translated some of the works of Sarahapada from Tibetan into Hindi. These great Siddhas, Saraha and 6thers, were held in high esteem by the Mahayanis and occupy a very high place in Tibetan tradition. Their compositions were incorporated in the Bstan-Hgyur, they were elaborately depicted in iconography (both paintings and sculptures) and Tibetan Tantric practices and rituals abound with the context of these great Siddhas. In the Tantra (rgyud) section of Bstan-Hgyur under the heading ~ll~·.q~·~~·~~Ill·.q·~~·s·.qn 11 the Caryapadas are preserved. Bagchi reproduced the Tibetan rendering of the original Caryas in the Journal oj the Department of Letters: Calcutta University 1935. Bagchi had only the Narthang edition of Bstan-Hgyur; obviously the other editions were not available to him when he revised the work in 1956 (Visva Bharati). Bagchi had thus no oppurtunity to check or compare the readings of the rather badly printed Narthang edition. Be,-ides there are some lacunas in the Narthang edition. These lacunas can now be located since other editions of Bstan-Hgyur and a photo-mechanic reprint (Japan) are avilable. 21 The author of the present article has the opportunity to consult the beaudful Sdedge prints in the collections of the Namgyal Institute of Tibetology at Gangtok. A comparison with the translations as preserved in this edition may be fruitful and some improvements in the texts or translations would suggest themselves. In Carya 7 in the penultimate line in Narthang edition is the rendering -~81 1 ~~'~'''1'1'ifI~' \ ("""-~~ 2f~'~St::'~ 11 ,,; Sdedge reads~· in place of ~'; this gives a meaning which is much nearer the original as in the original the word is ~ (near). In Carya 14 in line 2 qn: iifi~ is rendt'red as ~"J.!' (to cross) in N arthang edition while in Sdedge the reading is E!r~' meaning ~. In Carya 20 in line 5 for ~ the N arthang rendering is ~)~. meamng ~EJ"r while Sdedge reads ::Y)~' which means ~ which better suits the context. In Carya 21 in line 2 ayfi:taT ~ ~ ~ ~ is better rendered in Sdedge as .q",,·gCi.,·fl·=~r which means ..., 3JlFi ~fcr; in line 5 ~ iJRiT (~a- rrfa-) the Sdedge rendering is g~'z:r~~~~r with the meaning 'makes a hole in the wall' more reasonable. Examples may be multiplied to provide with improvements in the text or meaning. In the Narthang edilion, a portion of the commentary of Carya 12, the entire Carya 13 and a part of the Sanskrit com-mentary of the same are not found. Such gaps may perhaps be attributed to the carelessness of the carvers of Narthang blocks. The Sdedge edition furnishes US with the missing portions. The original Carya 13 (in Apabhramsa) and its Tibetan rendering (as in Sdedge edition p. 172, Vol. ~l:\,: ~.) are present-'" ed here with a translation into Sanskrit (rom the Tibdan render-ing. This, it is hoped, will indicate the great value of Tibetan translations for reading correctly the extant Apabhramsa texts on this subject. 22 CARYA 13 wr Cfi'tl'fR ~utl=i:ll4'ql~l'1l~ I ~ut 1J'f'lCf'T f<fi3J 0J0Efi mu I f<13J ~ ~ ~ ll{U I Ctfu:rr ~1i'.I' ~f1.: ifT3J ~ I ifTlfi ~'T C\'"qf if ~3JT II m '1C{ II '~ ~ f<fi3J ~ I Gfr~ CfiT3J ~ ifT3JT;jfF? II 'i:l", II rr~'I~'I ~'IT ~~ I fifG" f~ ~;n ~ II 'i:l", \I fqa{ CfioOI~1 ( ~ mw' ~ cfiT~ ~~ 'IIif" II 'q, II TIBETAN RENDERING -.....-- ::--. -.. <=" -....- c:o-......--t:\~~·=J·~~·::rC1~rS·!:lt:\·~·"St:~·~~·'r@1!:l~·~t:\ I &.::l~·"l~~·d"'·S~·~·S~· I ~6:I~i·.Q~~ 1 I ~c::·~~·~c::·~·~c::·tJ~·~C::·~fi'~ 12 1 ¢"-. _t:I' .....- "" ~ ~~'~C5'Il!~'~~"~'~'~'!lJ~'!:l@1~ fl -...::> ::.:::]~.~.~t::'.::li5~' -'~!:l~'~C::'~'.Q~ I 1 ~ "",- ~~ '1 -. ~ - eo--" ~·.::1~~·~.f-f=rI~·q'~·'N~·~~~·z:rs~ 1 1 '" ~ -1TJ 'i .t?1~' (;;' ~.~ ;grlf O-l~'l'-lr:l4'.o::: 1 1 r..;5 -'gJ...., ;0 oJ, <::::"'- -. -...-~ c::--. - .......... S':c,GT ~\5i·:'~·~·5Q., 1 1 tll§z::,'~iJT:\·~c::'it·OJaq·~'q~~'~ 23 SANSKRIT (restored from Tibetan) ~ ~ 'lilSiJlI'''W! q Iql'1l,{ I ~ .nCfiT ~ aT! ~: I fot'il~ <ii~QII~'-lI~ ~ II ~fu: CfTuT IlFIT ~ I ~ ~cft ri iJm;:r m: \I qA ~ Etif",qla (fiffi) I 'liWf~ 'i'fiFi +l141'l11~f'1 m: ~ 1\ rr=~~sfif ~;~: , f;uufct'QR ~"Il1iQ~fil: 1\ f;:re" Cfi1lT'qJ~: \l.-4d I"f1<ii1tl1"{ 'Q+ffUtli ~UTT ~rmit " NOTES L tlJ~·~~· means maiden, ~~~·.oSl~· means all eight; '...:J that is, eight maidens. In the extant version of the original the corresponding expression is arOcfi 'fm meaning having killed the eight. This however does not make any clear sense. The Tibetan translation preserves the correct meaning and thus in the original the reading should be 3fO 9pnU I The commentary in Tibetan mentions ~ ~~ft:t I '" 2. ~t:.'~'Q~' means one who has a consort while in the original the corresponding word is ~ (lady). The Tibetan translation gives the meaning that one's own body has the ladies Karuna and Shunyata. [ The Tibetan commentary makes such readings warranted since the symbolic meanings of the words maiden and consort are clearly implied as in esotc:-ric literature.] 24 

On the Caryapadas in Tibetan

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