The present work is an investigation of the Indo-Tibetan ritual for consecrating images, stupas, books and temples. It is based on a thorough examination of the relevant Tibetan textual material contained in Tantras, commentaries, ritual manuals and explanatory works on consecration. As rituals are meant to be performed, this textual study is combined with observations of performances and interviews with performers.

The book opens with a general discussion of certain principles of tantric rituals and the foundations of Indo-Tibetan consecration. The main part focuses on a specific performance of the ritual in a Tibetan monastery located in the Kathmandu Valley.

This volume contributes to the often neglected field of Indo-Tibetan Buddhist rituals. It is concerned with the sacred nature of objects for worship as well as with the main Buddhist tantric transformation into a chosen tantric Buddha.

Consecration of Images and Stupas in Indo-Tibetan Tantric Buddhism, Yael Bentor, Brill; Hardcover; 415 pp; $281.00

Yael Bentor, Ph.D. (1991) in Tibetan Studies, Indiana University, is a Lecturer in Tibetan Buddhism at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Her major research field is Indo-Tibetan rituals. She is author of several articles on this subject published in scholarly journals.