karmapa – Columbia tibetan studies

November 9, 2018

Linggu Si

Linggu Si

In 1407 the Fifth Karmapa, De bzhin gshegs pa or Helima/Halima, traveled to Linggu Si in Nanjing to perform a “mass of universal salvation” (pudu dazhai) at the request of the Ming Yongle emperor. This ceremony honored the Yongle emperor’s late father, the Hongwu emperor, and alleged mother, the Empress Ma. A handscroll of forty-nine scenes, created by the Yongle emperor’s court painters, recorded the auspicious visions and signs said to have been witnessed by all who attended the ceremony. The miraculous displays depicted include multicolored rays of light, rains of flowers, rainbows, and arhats, bodhisattvas and cranes congregating around monastery buildings. The buildings, which include the Linggu Monastery pagoda, a monastic hall that was the Karmapa’s resting place, and the Western Chapel, change position relative to one another and their surroundings in many of the scenes. Patricia Berger argues that the Karmapa’s visit to Linggu Monastery and the ensuing scrolls served to elevate the prestige and sacredness of the cleric, the monastery itself, and the imperial ancestors, as well as to shore up the legitimacy of the Yongle emperor (who, rumor had it, was not the true son of the Empress Ma). The representation of the ceremony and miracles, furthermore, links Linggu Monastery to similar images and events at Mount Wutai, and therefore “urges a utopian, unlocalized interpretation” of the bodhisattvas from Wutai Shan who “appear unbeckoned (and discreetly incognito) in the capital to prop up the Ming heavenly mandate” (Berger 160).

Source:

Berger, Patricia. 2001. “Miracles in Nanjing: An Imperial Record of the Fifth Karmapa’s Visit to the Chinese Capital.” In Cultural Intersections in Later Chinese Buddhism. Honolulu: University of Hawai’i. Pp. 145-166.

Entry by Stacey Van Vleet, 2/20/07

November 9, 2018

Karmapa Scroll

Karmapa Scroll ( Tsurphu Scroll)

The Karma-pa Scroll recorded the events that occurred during the 5th Karma-pa’s (Dezhin Shegpa) to Nanjing by invitation of the Yongle (Chengzu, r.1402-1424) emperor to perform the Mass of Universal Salvation (Pudu dazhai) at the Linggu Monastery in 1407. The 50m long silk handscroll depicted 49 scenes of miraculous signs that took place during the performance of the ritual, which were described in Chinese, Arabic, Uighur, Tibetan and Mongolian. The performance of the Mass of Universal Salvation for the deceased Hongwu emperor and his consort Empress Ma was part of the Yongle Emperor’s endeavor to first legitimize his position on the throne after usurping it from his nephew the Jianwen emperor and also to officially establish a Ming-Tibetan relationship. The scroll symbolically functioned as both a bureaucratic imperial tool as well as a religious and spiritual instrument for the ultimate fusion of universal authority supposedly mandated to the Yongle emperor. The fusion of both Buddhist and Daoist motifs and the fact that the scroll was tailored to appeal to the Chinese support the universalistic significance of the scroll as first and foremost a representation of the legitimacy of the Yongle emperor as the rightful heir to the throne. However, the scroll did not explicitly define the relationship between the Yongle emperor and the 5th Karma-pa, who rejected the proposal for formal relations with the Yongle Emperor along the same lines as that of the Yuan Emperors and the Sakya. However, the inscriptions and scenes on the scroll portrayed the Karma-pa as having attained actual Buddhahood, referring to him constantly as “rulai” (meaning, “thus come” an epithet for Buddha). Moreover, the wonders of the miraculous signs were also attributed solely to the performance of the Karma-pa beginning with the ritual of the Mass of Universal Salvation.

Entry by ShiQi Wu, 2/20/07

user-1541797010

November 9, 2018

Zhufopusa

Zhufopusa miaoxiang minghao jingzhou 诸佛菩萨妙相名号经咒(The Marvellous Images, Names, Sutras and Dharanis of the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas)

The Zhufopusa miaoxiang minghao jingzhou is a two-volume collection of popular Buddhist texts and illustrations of 60 divinities of the Mahayana pantheon. It was printed in Beijing in 1431, during the Xuande reign period, by a donor who, by his name, appears to have been a Chinese Buddhist monk: Xiujishanzhu, or “he who dwells in cultivating Buddhism and storing up merit.”

The texts are of Chinese format and the preface, colophons, and selected texts are printed in four scripts: Chinese, Lantsa, Tibetan, and Mongolian. Most of the sutras, dharanis, and other texts are given in Chinese only; Chinese comprises the dominant language of the work as a whole. There are several interesting details regarding the two volumes. One is that, unlike the Juyong Gate, the content of the transcriptions in four scripts are parallel, though not identical. Another is the use of Chinese phonetic transcriptions of Tibetan names, along with the Chinese version of each name. Yet another is the use of the distinctly Tibetan Buddhist “refuge in the teacher” (in addition to the usual three: Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha) at the beginning of the Sutra of the names of the thirty-five Buddhas (San shi wu fo ming jing).

The stylistic features found in the images of 60 divinities, while not exemplary in technique, are linked to the Yongle bronzes and the images found in the Yongle Kanjur, and hint at the beginnings of the later lamaist style produced in Qing China in the 17th and 18th centuries. The designs found in the Shakyamuni-Manjushri-Avalokiteshvara triad at the beginning of the 60 divinities are similar to those found in the Kharakhoto paintings, the Xixia Tripitaka, the Jisha Tripitaka, the Yongle bronzes, and the sculptures and frescoes of central and western Tibet. Such linkages reflect not only the influence of the lamaist style as established by Anige under the Yuan, but also the influence of the contemporary style in central and western Tibet, which was facilitated by the environment of exchange during that period.

According to the Chinese colophon, this collection of Buddhist texts and divinities were transmitted from De bzhin gshegs pa, the 5th Karmapa (1348-1415), to the donor. In fact, De bzhin gshegs pa is included as the only human among the sixty divinities depicted; he appears after the Buddhas and bodhisattvas, and before the female divinities. Also notable is that in a list of Tathagatas and bodhisattvas in the second volume, he is again mentioned by many different titles, but among these titles is that of the Da bao fa wang, or the Great Precious Dharma King. This is a title the Yongle emperor bestowed on him in an attempt to re-establish an alliance with the Tibetans reminiscent of the Yuan-era (but an alliance that the 5th Karmapa rejected). Furthermore, the title of Da sheng fa wang, or the Great Vehicle King of Religion, given to Kun dga’ bkra shis rgyal mtshan, also appears in this list. Kun dga’ bkra shis rgyal mtshan (1349-1425) was the abbot of Sa skya and one of the three Tibetans who was presented the title of fa wang, or Dharma King, emphasizing the special religious relationship with the Ming emperor. Kun dga’ bkra shis rgyal mtshan visited the Yongle emperor in Nanjing in 1413-14.

As part of the Yongle emperor’s attempts to renew politico-religious relations with the Tibetans, his uniquely splendid treatment given to the 5th Karmapa is thought to have precipitated increased Tibetan missions to and from China during the Yongle (1402-24) and Xuande (1426-35) periods. During the time of the printing of the Zhufopusa, there was a significant increase in the frequency and number of participants in the missions from Tibet to China, as well as permissions granted for Tibetans to reside in Beijing.

The fact that such a work was produced over two decades following De bzhin gshegs pa’s visit to Nanjing (1407-08) demonstrates the continued importance in early Ming China of the 5th Karmapa in particular and perhaps the religious alliance with Tibetans in general. The content of this work, as a transmission from the 5th Karmapa, with its nominal use of four scripts and use of Chinese phoneticization of Tibetan names and mantras, perhaps points to a marked Chinese interest in propagating the teachings of the 5th Karmapa and reflect a lasting effect of the Yongle emperor’s attempts to re-invigorate a host of political, economic and religious relationships between the Chinese and Tibetans.

Sources:

Heather Karmay, Early Sino-Tibetan Art. Aris and Phillips. 1975: 55-99.
Elliot Sperling. 1980. The 5th Karma-pa and some aspects of the relationship between Tibet and the early Ming. In Tibetan Studies in honour of High Richardson: Proceedings of the International Seminar of Tibetan Studies, Oxford 1979. Warminster: Aris & Philips Ltd. 280-290.
Jonathan A. Silk. 1996. Notes on the History of the Yongle Kanjur. In Suhrllekhah: Festgabe für Helmut Eimer. Swisttal-Odendorf: Indica et Tiebtica Verlag.

Entry by Eveline S. Yang, 2/20/07

November 9, 2018

Dpal ldan bkra shis

Dpal ldan bkra shis (Palden Tashi)

Dpal ldan bkra shis (Chinese – Bandan zhashi, 1376-14–?) was a significant figure in Ming imperial interactions with Tibet through patronage of Tibetan Buddhism. He was a key participant in Beijing’s Buddhist activities during his tenure there, and was influential in the National Buddhist Registry (Senglusi). By way of example of his work in Beijing, Dpal ldan bkra shis is recorded to have translated Tibetan Buddhist texts into Chinese, acted as translator for the Fifth Karmapa, and ordained Ming officials. Under imperial order, the Huguosi temple was rebuilt as his personal residence in 1435 and a portrait statue of him was installed in perpetuity. Additionally, he was one of three clerics acknowledged in Fahaisi temple inscriptions as having played a critical role in the founding of this imperially sponsored Beijing temple. Fahaisi is located on Mt Cuiwei in the Shijingshan district of Beijing and bears typical marks of both Chinese and Tibetan iconography, making it useful for art historical investigations of “Sino-Tibetan” aesthetics. Dpal ldan bkra shis was given the title Jingjue ciji daguoshi or “Purely Enlightened Compassionately Helpful Great State Preceptor.”

Outside Beijing Dpal ldan bkra shis was instrumental in the construction and management of two imperially sponsored provincially located temples that served notably strategic political functions as well as religious ones. These were Qutansi in Qinghai (founded 1392), where he was abbot, and Lhun grub bde chen gling in Gansu, which he founded. Qutansi was originally a Bka’ brgyud temple with close ties to the Sa skya until Dge lugs pas became dominant there in the mid-16th century. It is located at the border of the Northwest Ming frontier and the Eastern edge of Amdo and its abbots were key figures in the Ming imperial courts’ interactions with Tibet. As the seat of the Xining Prefectural Buddhist Registry (Xining Senggangsi) Qutansi’s abbots had jurisdiction over 13 other temples and their estates. The Yongle emperor named Dpal ldan bkra shis abbot in 1408. Artistically, the temple’s exterior is distinctively Chinese, while the interior shows more Tibetan influence in terms of iconography and style.

Dpal ldan bkra shis founded Lhun grub bde chen gling (Longzhu deqinglin, formerly Da Chongjiaosi) in Minzhou, Gansu in 1428. Like the temples mentioned above, this temple exhibits objects and images of both Chinese and Tibetan styles. Dpal ldan bkra shis’s biography records that the imperial patronage of the project included the appointment of two high ministers, one hundred civil officials, 200 district officials, 1, 100 artisans, and 25,000 military corvee laborers. Thus it seems to have been the site of major imperial interest and attention, apparently due in large part to its strategic location.

Dpal ldan bkra shis’s fundamental involvement in these three temples is a key indicator of his role in the Ming imperial courts’ interfacing with Tibet/Tibetan Buddhism.

Source:
Debreczeny, Karl. “Sino-Tibetan Artistic Synthesis in Ming Dynasty Temples at the Core and the Periphery”

Entry by Dominique Townsend

user-1541796311

November 9, 2018

The Fifth Karmapa

The Fifth Karmapa

The Fifth Karma-pa, (1384~1415), De-Bzhin gShegs-pa or Helima (Halima) (Chin.: 哈立麻), is the reincarnated head of the Black –Hat (Zwa-nag) Karmapas. The fifth Karma-pa was invited by Yongle emperor (Zhu Di, 朱棣) of the Ming dynasty in 1407, to perform a mass of universal salvation (pudu dazhai) at Linggu Monastery in honor of the Yongle emperor’s late father, the Hongwu emperor, and his late putative mother, the Empress Ma. The Fifth Karma-pa received a title “Rulai dabao fawang xitian dashan zizai fo” (Chin.:如來大寳法王西天大善自在佛; Tathagata, Great and Precious Dharma King, Great Goodness of the Western Heaven, Self-Abiding Buddha) during his stay in Nanjing.

What is worth noting is that the title “dabao fawang” (Chin.: 大寳法王) was initially bestowed by Mongol’s Yuan court to Phags-pa (1235-1280), a member of the Sakya sect of Buddhism. That two distinct figures who represent two sectarian traditions in Tibet received the same imperial title from Yuan and Ming dynasty respectively suggests that the title “dabao fawang” was an emblem of importance of Tibetan Buddhism for both Yuan and Ming dynasties in terms of legitimacy. The Yongle emperor’s uncertain origin and his usurping the power made it necessary for him to employ Tibetan Buddhism (then, called Buddhism without any qualifications) for the purpose of legitimacy. Sources from both Tibetan and Chinese sides glorify, or rather, apotheosize the Fifth Karma-pa and his visit. The Fifth Karma-pa, at a matter of fact, was destined to perform the magical powers from the Tibetan’s perspective, because he was the fifth exponent of a lineage of lamas especially noted for their ecstatic visions and magical powers. A silk handscroll that was first kept in Tsurphu Monastery and transferred to Norbulingkha in Lhasa afterwards illustrates the Fifth Karma-pa’s visit to Nanjing. By adding glory to the emperor and the Fifth Karma-pa, the surreal, magical signs that were described in historical records in both China and Tibet were translated into a non-Buddhist idiom and made to serve the legitimation of imperial power.

However, it would be oversimplified to suggest that the Fifth Karma-pa’s visit to Nanking, the capital of Ming dynasty and Mt. Wutai afterwards was merely a religious activity. During the early Ming dynasty, the Ming government might have been trying to obtain horses in Khams, fighting Tibetan tribes in A-mdo and drawing support from Tibetan Buddhism in a hope of legitimizing the newly usurped throne (in the case of Yongle emperor, particularly.) These aspects of the visit of The Fifth Karma-pa and the role of Tibetan Buddhism in early Ming dynasty deserve more attention.

Sources:
Berger, Patricia, Miracles in Nanjing: An Imperial Record of the Fifth Karmapa’s Visit to the Chinese Capital, Cultural Intersections in Later Chinese Buddhism, UH.P. 200
Sperling, Elliot, The 5th Karma-pa and Some Aspects of the Relationship Between Tibet and Early Ming, Tibetan Studies in honor of High Richardson: Proceedings of the International Seminar of Tibetan Studies, Oxford 1979, Warminster: Aris & Phillips Ltd. & Did the Early Ming Emperors Attempt to Implement A “Divide and Rule” Policy in Tibet?, Contributions on Tibetan Language, History and Culture, Wien, 1983 & Si-tu Chos-kyi rgyal-mtshan and the Ming Court, Lungta 13, Winter 2000
Silk, Jonathan A, Notes on the History of the Yongle Kanjur, Suhrllekhah: Festgabe für Helmut Eimer. Swisttal-Odendorf: Indica et Tiebtica Verlag, 1996

Entry by Lan Wu, 2/18/ 07

user-1541796316