Mahāyoga treatise

A commentary on a version of thelha klu chen po rnams spyan drang ba("Invitation for the Great Gods and Nāgas"), also known as theRgyud gsum pa(470), of which there are numerous copies in the Dunhuang collections. The commentary frames the root text within a narrative, a story of the origin of the tantras that weaves together Buddhist, Hindu, and pre-Buddhist Tibetan religious systems. The story begins with a prince who takes ordination and, after meditating, gains accomplishment. He then subjugates the demons and, gathering the various worldly gods, teaches the tantras. This basic story is told both at the beginning of the text and at the end (13v.2). In between, the vast majority of the work is filled with discussions of the deities who gathered to receive the tantric teachings and their relationships. The principal Buddhist deities in the story areVairocana,Vajrasattva,Heruka, and the demonicRudra. In addition, many Hindu deities are mentioned, and there is a brief discussion of thethe'u rangspirits (see4r.1-4v.1). The latter appear in a section in which the three worlds of Indian mythology (khecara,bhūcara,nāgaloka) seem to be likened to the three worlds of pre-Buddhist Tibetan mythology (gnam bar 'og).

The long sections on the deities are structured around a series of passages from the root text, interspersed with commentary. These pasages are drawn from a version of the root text resembling that found in an incomplete form inIOL Tib J 406/2, Vf.3v-4rand in complete form in. This root text matches the first half of the canonical version, but the latter continues for a further two folio sides (compare470: 2b.2-). Several alternative versions of the root text are found in the Pelliot collection. Note, however, that there is some variation between them. In particular, some lack the opening lines, and in this regard they resemble a second canonical version (found at471). The position of these two canonical texts (470and471) within the canon seems to preserve the role they played in earlier times, when theRgyud gsum painvitations were usually found at the beginning ofdhāraṇīcollections, as is evident from the relevant Dunhuang manuscripts (see, for example,IOL Tib J 316/1).

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