New History Of Tantric Lieterature In India

Author(s): J W De Jong
Publisher: J W De Jong

Page 18

J. W. de Jong.
new translation. There are also several discrepancies in the teachings of the two translations. In the new translation each of the four upaya-s is preached in four chapters, the mahāsādhana in chapters 5, 9, 17 and 13, the sadhana in chapters 4, 16, 8 and 12, the upasadhana in chapters 6, 2, 10 and 14 and the seva in chapters 7, 3, 11 and 15 (verses 25-28). In the old translation the upasadhana is preached in chapters 6, 2, 15 and 14 and the seva in chapters 7, 1, 3, 10, 11 and 5. In the old translation chapter 1 is mentioned and chapter 5 occurs twice, at the beginning and at the end. The second difference concerns the definition of the word tantra (verses 34-35). In the old translation the three divisions of the tantra into adhara, prakrti and as amharya are not considered to be upaya, hetu and phala. It divides the tantra into 'adhara, prakṛti and prabheda and these three are considered to indicate divisions in the content of the G. Finally, there is a great difference between the two translations in the treatment of the two krama-s, which do not have in the old translation the same importance as in later periods. Differences between an old and a new translation are not always due to the fact that the text used by the translators of the old translation is older than that used by the translators of the new translations. The differences between the two are sometimes caused by differences in the traditions of the schools. However, in the case of the Uttaratantra the differences between the old and the new translations are certainly due to the fact that the text used to make the old translation represents an earlier stage of development. This is shown clearly by the testimony of Bu-ston, by the terminology, by the fact that Viśvamitra quotes several tantras which were current at the time of the old translation and, finally, by the fact that the old translation gives less weight to the four upaya-s and the two krama-s which later were considered very important in anuttarayoga Tantrism.
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The next section (IV. 3) is entitled the Ākhyānatantras and the Ārya school ('Phagslugs). Among the Akhyānatantras of the G. the most important are the following four: Samdhivyakaranatantra, Vajramalatantra, Caturdevtpariprechatantra and the Vajrasamuccayatantra. To the 'Phags-lugs belong two sadhana-s, the Pindtkrtasadhana and the Pañcakrama which describe the utpatti- and sampannakrama-s. The Sanskrit text of both texts was published by de La Vallée Poussin (Études et textes tantriques. Pañcakrama. Gand-Louvain, 1896). To the 'Phags-lugs belongs also a commentary on the G. written by Candrakirti, the Pradipoddyotana of which the Sanskrit text has been preserved.
The exegetical principles of the Pradipoddyotana are called the seven alamkaran: 1. upodghata (samjña, nimitta, karty, prama, prayojana); 2. nyaya (santana, nidana, nirukti, hetu); 3. jatkotika(neyartha, nitärtha, samdhyabhasa, nasandhya,