Early Tibetan Documents On Phur Pa From Dunhuang (beitrage Zur Kultur- Und Geistesgeschichte Asiens)
by Cathy Cantwell /
2008 / English / PDF
6.2 MB Download
The exact circumstances of the emergence of what are now known as
the rNying ma traditions of Tibetan Buddhism remain among the least
clearly defined areas of Tibetan history for modern scholarship.
What has made the early history of rNying ma tantrism so opaque is
the dearth of reliable historical sources. In response to such
uncertainty, Cantwell and Mayer have turned to the Dunhuang cache
in search of further evidence. Their specific focus has been the
Dunhuang texts on Phur pa, many of which have never been read
before. This focus was chosen because from comparatively early
times, the Phur pa tradition developed enormously within Tibet
itself, and always remained a particularly rNying ma practice. Phur
pa's early and enduring popularity might therefore to some extent
coincide with or reflect the emergence of rNying ma as a distinct
tradition. This volume addresses an important question that has not
so far been approached: how exactly do the Dunhuang tantric texts
compare with those of the received rNying ma tradition? The authors
review, transliterate, translate, and analyse all Dunhuang texts on
Phur pa so far identified, discovering an unexpectedly close
relationship to the received tradition. There is also an essay
exploring reasons for Phur pa's popularity in post-Imperial Tibet.
Thanks to the generosity of the British Library, a CD is included
with digital images of over 100 pages of the original manuscripts.
The exact circumstances of the emergence of what are now known as
the rNying ma traditions of Tibetan Buddhism remain among the least
clearly defined areas of Tibetan history for modern scholarship.
What has made the early history of rNying ma tantrism so opaque is
the dearth of reliable historical sources. In response to such
uncertainty, Cantwell and Mayer have turned to the Dunhuang cache
in search of further evidence. Their specific focus has been the
Dunhuang texts on Phur pa, many of which have never been read
before. This focus was chosen because from comparatively early
times, the Phur pa tradition developed enormously within Tibet
itself, and always remained a particularly rNying ma practice. Phur
pa's early and enduring popularity might therefore to some extent
coincide with or reflect the emergence of rNying ma as a distinct
tradition. This volume addresses an important question that has not
so far been approached: how exactly do the Dunhuang tantric texts
compare with those of the received rNying ma tradition? The authors
review, transliterate, translate, and analyse all Dunhuang texts on
Phur pa so far identified, discovering an unexpectedly close
relationship to the received tradition. There is also an essay
exploring reasons for Phur pa's popularity in post-Imperial Tibet.
Thanks to the generosity of the British Library, a CD is included
with digital images of over 100 pages of the original manuscripts.