dharani

This large manuscript is a collection of severaldhāraṇīsutras and prayers. It is numbered sequentially, but the first folio is numberedka66. The numbering runs up toka99, then fromkha1 tokha43. Some folios are missing within this sequence (see entries below). Three of the missing folios (ka14,ka29 andkha24) are to be found in the Pelliot collection in294. Folioka67 is written in a rough hand which is different from that of the other folios, and seems to have been inserted as a replacement for a lost folio. See the entry onIOL Tib J 323/1for a brief discussion of the Dunhuang version of this text.

References

dharani

This shortdhāraṇīsutra concernsMaṅjuśrīunder his epithetVajrakumāra. The text is not found in thebka' 'gyur, nor is it related to the other shortdhāraṇīsutras dedicated toMaṅjuśrīin thebka' 'gyur. It also appears to be unique among the Tibetan Dunhuang manuscripts. The text has minimal narrative setting, and contains severalvidyā-mantras (rig sngags).

prayers

This prayer appears to be unrelated to the'jam dpal la bstod pain thebstan 'gyur(3531), or the other prayers toMaṅjuśrīcollected in the same volume. It is also not the same as the only other'phags pa 'jam dpal la bstod pain the Dunhuang collections (IOL Tib J 383). There is a one folio missing between folios38and39(kha4 andkha6 in the Tibetan numbering). While drawing upon generalMahāyānaphrases, the prayer also contains some references toVajrayānaconcepts, including the fivejñānas (31r.1) and amaṇḍala(31v.2).

prayers

This prayer appears to be unrelated to thedpal shA kya thub pa'i bstod pa bcu pain thebstan 'gyur(2062). As noted by de la Vallée Poussin (383), this prayer shares verses with theMaṅjuśrīprayer inIOL Tib J 383.

prayers

This prayer address the three buddha bodies (Tib.sku gsum, Skt.trikāya): (i) theyang dag gshegs pa chos kyi sku(45r.2), (ii) thebsod nams lhun gyis grub pa'i sku(46r.3), and the (iii)bde gshegs zhi mchog sprul pa'i sku(47r.3). Ultimately all three are said to be indivisible (dbyer med) and spontaneously accomplished (lhun gyis grub). The prayer contains someVajrayānaterminology including a reference to the three secrets (46v.3 gsang ba gsum).

prayers

The last folio of this text,kha24, is missing here but can be found in the Pelliot collection (294). The prayer addresses each of the eight bodhisattvas in stanzas of sixteen lines each, in the following order: (i)Akāśagarbha(nam mkha'i snying po), (ii)Maitreya(byams pa), (iii)Avalokiteśvara(spyan ras gzigs dbang), (iv)Kṣitigarbha(sa'i snying po), (v)Samantabhadra(kun tu bzang po), (vi)Vajrapāṇi(phyags na rdo rje), (vii)Maṅjūṣrī('jam dpal gzhon nu), and (viii)Varaṇaviṣkambhin(sgrib pa rnam par sel ba).

References

prayers

This prayer addresses each of the standard set of five buddhas, beginning withVairocana, in stanzas of four verses, each stanza ending with a request to pacify (zhi byed).

prayers

As the title suggests, this is a prayer of aspiration to follow thebodhisattvapath.

prayers

A prayer on behalf of patrons and all sentient beings, as the title indicates. It does not name any specific persons, but does address the divine king(s) (61r.4 mnga' bdag lha btsan po). The main part of the prayer concerns twelve kings of gift offering (yon).

Mahāyāna treatise

A short verse treatise on the subjects of death and impermanence, the practice and results of virtue. Also briefly mentioned is the "precious birth as a human endowed with leisure" (70v.1 khom ldan myIr skye dkon ba). The text appears to be an introduction to Buddhism for Tibetans. There is a reference tomo bon(70r.4) as a kind of omen (ltas).

dharani

Thisdhāraṇīsutra is very similar to the version in thebka' 'gyur(207). The spell itself differs in that the syllablesna mo rad na trA yA yaappear at the beginning in this version (72r.2), and not in the canonical version. The text found inIOL Tib J 312/8bears the same title, but is a completely different text.

References

dharani

A shortvidyā mantraand its description.