ABBREVIATIONS viii
LIST OF PLATES ix
MAPS xiii
PREFACE xix
NOTES ON TRANSCRIPTION xxvi
I: ORIGINS IN INDIA
1. The Rediscovery of Indian Buddhism 1
2. Sakyamuni: Buddha of the Present World-Age 5
3. The Concepts of Samsara and Nirvana
a. The Nature of Sakyamuni's Enlightenment 11
b. The Doctrine of Nonself and the Dharma-Theory 19
c. The Relativity of Philosophical Explanations 23
4. The Preeminence of Buddhahood
a. Sakyamuni as Buddha and Man 29
b. The Cult of Relics 35
5. The Buddhist Community 39
II: LATER DEVELOPMENTS IN INDIA
1. Buddhism Becomes a Pan-Asian Religion 44
2. The Buddha Image
a. The Earliest Representations in Human Form 47
b. Can There Be More Than One Buddha at the Same Time? 52
3. Bodhisattvas
a. Their Function as Quasi-Celestial Beneficent Beings 58
b. The Career of a Bodhisattva as a Human Aspiration 61
c. An Evaluation of a Bodhisattva's Skill in Means (Upayakausalya) 66
d. Bodhisattvas in Paradise 71
e. All Buddhas and Bodhisattvas Essentially One and the Same 76
4. The Three Turnings of the Wheel of the Doctrine 79
a. The First Turning 80
b. The Second Turning 81
c. The Third Turning 94
d. The Theory of Buddha-folds 109
e. The Theory of the Buddha-embryo 111
f. The Theory of Buddha-bodies 115
III: TANTRIC BUDDHISM
1. Connections with the More Conventional Mahayana 117
2. The Vajrayana as a New and Distinct "Way" 128
3. Vajrapni (alias Vajradhara) Becomes Preeminent 134
4. Magical Formulas 141
5. The Votaries of the Tantras 144
6. Various Kinds of Tantras
a. Tantras Relatable to Mahayana Sutras 147
b. Tantras with Non-Buddhist Associations 152
7. Tantric Feasts 160
8. The Argument for Implicit Interpretations 170
9. The Importance of One's Chosen Teacher 176
10. The Later Amalgamation and Promulgation of Tantric Teachings 180
11. Buddha-Families 189
12. The Mandala 198
13. Initiations and Consecrations
a. Initiation as Distinct from "Ordination" 213
b. The "Descent" of Absolute Wisdom 220
c. The Use of Jars in Consecration Ceremonies 223
d. The Order of Consecrations in Various Classes of Tantras 228
e. The Power of Coercion 235
f. The Process of Self-Consecration 240
14. Further Consecrations
a. Interpretations of the Higher Consecrations, Scholastic, Lyrical and Ritual 243
b. Scholastic Equations in Sets of Four 247
c. The Higher Consecrations according to the Tradition of Hevajra 254
d. Consecration as a Psychophysical Process 262
e. References to Higher Consecrations in Yoga Tantras 266
f. The Problem of Textual Obscurity 270
15. Special Concepts of Tantric Yogins
a. Buddhahood as Twofold rather than Fivefold 278
b. Wisdom and Means 281
c. The Cult of the Human Body 288
d. The Coalescence of All Concepts through the Practice of Tantric Yoga 294
IV: BUDDHIST COMMUNITIES IN INDIA AND BEYOND
1. Traces of Buddhism in India
a. Continuity in Buddhist Monastic Life 305
b. The Apparent Lateness of Iconographic Representation in
Relationship with the Relevant Texts 315
2. Traces of Buddhism in Central Asia
a. The Historical Background 324
b. Khotan 331
c. Other Important Sites 343
d. The Tibetan Occupation 350
3. Buddhism in Nepal
a. The Early Period 362
b. The Later Period 375
V: THE CONVERSION OF TIBET
1. Political and Social Factors
a. The Rulers of Tibet 381
b. The Cultural Effects of Territorial Expansion 386
c. Early Situations Leading to the Later Emergence of rNying-ma-pas and Bonpos 396
d. Royal Inscriptions and Edicts 408
2. Religious Factors
a. Factions and Disputes 426
b. Varieties of Teaching 436
c. Early Tibetan Tantras 451
d. Freedom from Restraint 463
3. The Combination of Politics and Religion
a. The Rulers of Western Tibet 470
b. The Founding of Religious Orders 485
c. Final Reflections 508
PLATES 529
BIBLIOGRAPHY 617
INDEX 634
