Indian Antiquary Vol 43

Author(s): Richard Carnac Temple, Devadatta Ramkrishna Bhandarkar
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 58

54
THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY
[APRIL, 1914.
sonable rain, to yield geasonable masses of cloud, seasonable loud-voiced thunder! Be near to us in all dangers. Help us to perform the duties of a follower of the Buddha during the ages!
May the contents of this [book] through the grace of] Buddha and all the Bodhisattvas be of use to gods, men, titans, (asuras) and angels (gandharvas), to ourselves and fellow beings!
Praised be the word of the Blessed One, and may its meaning become fully manifest!
The Dharani here contained is named The Noble Invincible White Umbrella-One, which issued from the diadem of the Tathagata to accomplish perfectly the great turning-away "[of Evil)."
[End of the Dharani] As a postscript there are five pages containing a further list of Indian demons and diseases and other evils for which the spell is efficacious, including the following:
Tongues of fire, itching and ulcers, emaciation, cough, difficulty of breathing, insanity, poisonous drugs, curses, fire-water, fever, death by enemies, untimely (accidental) death,
unworthy' beggary, scorpions, worms, leopards, lions, tigers, the black bear (dom), the red bear (dred), wild yak (possibly buffalo), water-devil.' It concludes with this prayer :
“Against all these evil swarms we beseech you to protect us"! Against all these may you be pleased to perform the binding spells (mantras).
O brilliantly shining one be pleased to bind evil! Be pleased to perform the vidyamantra spells against all others [counter-spells ?] !
Be pleased to fix their bounds!
Tadyatha on anale khasame . . . vaire, Some áânti, dánte visade vire, Devi-Vajradhari, Vandhani, Vajrapani phat....
May it protect us! Sváha ! Oi Vajrapani bandha Vajrapdienamama sarva dustam vinayakaru phat svdha !” Keep it near your heart !
Whoever having written this overpowering queen of magic spells (vidya-mantra) named The White Umbrella-One,' the great averter [of Evil), which issued from the diadem of the Tathagata,' on birch bark, or cloth, or on tree bark, 74 and fixes it on his body76 or on his neck or causes it to be read (then) throughout his whole life he shall not be harmed by poisons, by fire, by water, poisonous drugs, curses ... &c. &c.
(To be continued.)
74 Sin-sun or tree + bark. It is restored by the Tibetan lexicons to the Skt. vallal, which in Wilson's Sanskt. Dict. (p. 766) is defined as the bark of a tree, garment made from bark.' In the Sanskrt. soripts in Stein and Hodgson collections, the word is kalke, which Dr. Hoornle translates as paste' (loc. cit. p. 476), though he suggests it may be in error for valloa, which the Tibatan version I find shows (and as Dr. Hoernle admite) is the correct form. See text in following note.
75 Lua-du. The Sanskrit versions have kdyagate, which Dr. Hoernle has translated as paper,' but the Tibetan text indicates clearly that this should be kdya, the body, The Sanskrit text as given by Dr. Hoernle is :
bhd ja-patre ud vastra vd Kalke od kdyagate ud kanthagata od likhitud dhariyeryata. The Tibetan text with its literal translation is :
gro-ga sam, nas sam, in un i briste, 1. e., birch-bark, or cloth, or tree valka-back upon having written
lu sam mgul-dubtage sam tlog-par-byed ta, body or neck on fixed or caused to be read it