The history of the Kalacakra tradition
in Sambhala and India

Based on the writings of Taranatha.

Sucandra

Taranatha




The following is taken from "dpal dus kyi 'khor lo'i chos bskor gyi byung khungs nyer mkho", by Taranatha:

On the full moon of the month Caitra in the year following his enlightenment, at the great stupa of Dhanyakataka, the Buddha emanated the mandala of "The Glorious Lunar Mansions". In front of an audience of countless Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, viras, dakinis, the twelve great gods, gods, nagas, yakshas, spirits and fortunate people gathered from the 960 million villages north of the river Sita, was requested by the emanation of Vajrapani, the king Sucandra (zla ba bzang po), to teach the tantra.

He taught not just this tantra, but all tantras. Countless men and non-humans achieved the realisations of their desires. Some teachings were taken to other human realms, and the Dharma king Sucandra wrote the Tantras in textual form in his land of Sambhala. He composed the explanatory Tantra in 60,000 verses to the Mulatantra of 12,000. (Both of these are now lost.)

He had divine workers construct from jewels a mandala of Kalacakra, 400 cubits across. He taught the mantrayana to many humans and many of them achieved the highest realisation. In the second year after the teaching of the Mulatantra, having installed as regent, his son, the emanation of Kshitigarbha, Sureshvara (lha'i dbang po), he passed on.

After him came other emanations of tenth level Bodhisattvas: Sureshvara (lha dbang), Teji (gzi brjid can), Somadatta (zla bas byin), Sureshvara (lha'i dbang phyug), Vishvamurti (sna tshogs gzugs) and Sureshana (lha'i dbang ldan). They also spread the teachings as did Sucandra.

After them (a total of 7) the King Yashas (grags pa), an emanation of Manjushri, similarly taught the Dharma for a hundred years.

Yashas

As prophesied in the Mulatantra, he saw that the 35,000,000 Brahmin sages who lived in the 96 regions were fortunate, and that it was time to convert them. He understood that if they were not converted their descendants would in the future become barbarians (mleccha, a Sanskrit term for any foreigner not following Indian customs, but here specifically referring to Muslims). He also understood that if they entered the Mantra teachings, then all the people of the 96 regions would enter the Mantra path.

Having understood that the sages (Rishis) would not be converted by gentleness alone, but would have to be forced, he commanded the highest sage, Suryaratha (nyi ma'i shing rta), and questioned him about the different practices of the sages. After these were explained to him, he ordered them to abandon their different views, Hindu Siddhantas, and various practices, and enter the Vajrayana of one caste. (The Vimalaprabha gives a more detailed version of this story.)

As they were so attached to their evil views and practices they would not adopt the Vajra caste, and, giving up their own land, prepared to leave for India, driven out by this fierce command of the King. They travelled south for ten days, arriving on the tenth day at a great forest.

(The King) subdued them into a deep sleep, and instructed non-humans, without waking them, to carry them instantly into the sky and transport them to the centre of the Malaya grove, in front of the mandala that had been erected by Sucandra.

There, they were woken up, and were greatly surprised. The minister Sagaramati (rgya mtsho'i blo gros) explained the symbolism of the mandala to them, and at the request of Suryaratha and the other sages they were given the empowerment of the awareness mandala and were taught the text known as the Kalacakra Laghutantra (dus kyi 'khor lo'i rgyud kyi rgyal po bsdus rgyud) which summarises the meaning of the Mulatantra.

This text, summarised from the Mulatantra, contains 1,030 verses in sragdhara metre. As the Mulatantra is composed in anushtubh metre, measuring it in that metre it is about 3,000 verses, and so the Laghutantra is about one quarter the length of the Mulatantra.

So, on the full moon of the month of Caitra (nag pa - this is taken as the third month in the Tibetan calendar, but is considered the first in the Kalacakra calendar), the sages were given the empowerment and explanation of the tantra. One month later, on the full moon of the Vaishakha (sa ga) month, all the sages achieved the non-dual awareness-kaya.

After him (King Yashas) came the emanation of Avalokiteshvara, Pundarika. He composed the commentary on the Laghutantra, the Vimalaprabha, in 12,000 verses.

Pundarika

As in this way the sages (Rishis) having different castes were turned into the single caste of the Vajrayana, from the time of Yashas onwards, these kings were called Kalki kings, meaning of one caste.

After Pundarika came different emanations of the tenth-level Bodhisattvas:

3. Bhadra (bzang po)
4. Vijaya (rnam rgyal)
5. Sumitra (bshes gnyen bzang po)
6. Raktapani (phyag dmar)
7. Vishnugupta (khyab 'jug sbas pa)
8. Arkakirti (nyi ma grags)
9. Subhadra (shin tu bzang po)
10. Samudravijaya (rgya mtsho rnam rgyal)
11. Aja (rgyal dka')
12. Surya (nyi ma)
13. Vishvarupa (sna tshogs gzugs)
14. Shashiprabha (zla 'od)
15. Ananta (mtha' yas)
16. Mahipala (sa skyong)
17. Shripala (dpal skyong)
18. Hari (seng ge)
19. Vikram (rnam par gnon pa)
20. Mahabala (stobs po che)
21. Aniruddha (ma 'gags pa)
22. Narasimha (mi'i seng ge)
23. Maheshvara (dbang phyug chen po)
24. Anantavijaya (mtha' yas rnam rgyal)
25. Cakri ('khor lo can)

To here from King Yashas, there are twenty five. One of these kings, Vishnugupta, travelled magically to Kashmir, erected there a stone pillar, and taught the Vajrayana there for three months.

When he taught the dharma the earth shook and lights were seen. He went often to the Naga palace in a Kashmiri lake and displayed many illusions such as the Nagas actually listening to the teachings. He wrote sadhanas for Vajravarahi, Ekajata and others. He was known as the "One who came from the sky".

This appears to have been around the same time as the great teachers Dignaga or Dharmakirti, were spreading the Dharma.

Raudra Cakri

At the time of the Kalki King Aja (11th), the Kalacakra went to India. Currently, the lion throne (Taranatha was writing early in the 17th century) is occupied by Shripala, and from the time of the Dharmaraja Sureshvara up to Anantavijaya, each has reigned for an equal period of 100 years.

Like the previous kings, Raudra Cakri will also teach the Dharma for 100 years, and then will fulfil his commitment to vanquish the barbarians.

Around the time that Arkakirti (8th) ascended the lion throne, in the land of Mecca the barbarian teachings spread widely, and it appears that when these teachings first reached the western part of India, that this was the time of the barbarian teacher Madhumati. From that time up to the present, these teachings have spread considerably.

However, in the future, when the area south of the River Shita has all become barbarian, the time for the barbarians' defeat will have come, and Cakri's emanated armies will overcome them them. The emanations will appear to kill the barbarians, pacifying their arrogance and having brought them to the true path, the emanations will return.

Then will start the Krida age (yuga). Cakri will have two sons, Brahma and Sureshvara. In the lineage of Sureshvara will arise very many, Kashyapa and others. They will traverse the twelve great regions, through a period of 21,600 years, suppressing the barbarian teachings and spreading the true path.

This much is well known, but as the stories of the bodhisattvas are secret and inconceivable, the arrogance of further analysis makes it difficult to be certain of any more.

How the teaching spread in India and Tibet.

Regarding the spread of these teachings in Tibet, the stories connect with many Indian traditions. Also, in Tibet there were many traditions: those of "gyi co lo tsa ba zla ba'i 'od zer", "rma dge ba'i blo gros", "'a zha rgya gar brtsegs", "khyung po chos brtson", "rwa chos rab", "rtsa mi sangs rgyas grags", etc.

Kalacakrapada the Elder

Mahakalacakrapada.

The most important was known as the tradition of the translator Dro ('bro) or the tradition of Somanatha. According to this tradition, there was in India the son of a Yamantaka yogin. He was known as Mahakalacakrapada (or, Kalcakrapada the Elder), although his real name was Manjuvajra. He was a pandita skilled in all sutras and tantras.

He was an Upasaka. He had a vision of Manjushri in which the yidam told him to travel north. This he did, and on the road he met an emanation of the Kalki king. He received empowerment and performed the profound yoga for six months, obtaining the power of miracles, and travelled to Sambhala. There he met the real Kalki king and received many tantras, of Kalacakra and so forth, and the three fold cycle of commentaries of the bodhisattvas (Kalacakra, Hevajra and Cakrasamvara).

Committing some of these to memory and taking others as texts, he returned to India. He mainly practised meditation and exhibited many miracles, such as suppressing with his gaze many Hindus. He finally passed into the rainbow body. He had about twelve students and they all became just yogins. All exhibited many signs and illusions, but, passing into the rainbow body, there was not much benefit for the tradition.

Shribhadra.

The one known as the Younger Kalacakrapada, whose real name was Shribhadra, alone spread the teachings. He was from the Vaishya caste, was an Upasaka, and was expert in all the yanas.

He possessed many supersensible cognitions, could not sink in water, and was unimpeded by walls and mountains. He gave a discourse to 500 panditas at Nalanda and impressed everyone with his speech, and all, except Vagishvarakirti and Prajnyakara bowed down to him.

He said that these teachings would spread over the whole earth, and that kings, ministers and great merchants were even developing an interest in the texts and developing dispositions (towards the teachings). If it would not come to India, where else would it go? From now on, placing all Kalacakra siddhas on one side and all siddhas of other traditions on another, the Kalacakra siddhas will be the greater in number.

Somanatha

Bodhibhadra.

The son of the lesser Kalacakrapada was known as Nalendrapa. His real name was Bodhibhadra and he was the owner of the land of Nalendra (sic). He practised all four activities but only achieved realisation of the yoga of wind. He had many students, but here, the important one is the Kashmiri pandit, Somanatha.

Somanatha.

Somanatha was very intelligent, and could memorise about sixteen verses with each breath. He studied with the teacher "The good Brahmin", and in Kashmir learned all dharmas.

Later, he travelled to the centre of the country and at Nalendra he listened to many profound Vajrayana teachings such as the Kalacakra.

In practice, he fully accomplished Pranayama and Dharana, his movements of bowel and urine ceased, and he had many powers such as being able to petrify thieves by just pointing at them.

He travelled to Tibet three times, and taught many teachings, including the Pradipodyatana (sgron gsal), the six Treatises (on Madhyamika), and the five Treatises of Asanga. In particular he widely spread the Kalacakra.

For further information on the transmission of these teachings into the Jonang tradition to which Taranatha belonged, see The Jonang Foundation website


Last updated 18th December 2005.

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