Nyang ral's codification of rNying ma literature and ritual. A study of Tibetan sources for the formation of Tibetan Buddhism (10th to 12th.).

• Applicant: Professorin Dr. Carmen Meinert
• Subject Area: Asian Studies
• Term: from 2016 to 2020
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 321318377

The 12th century marked a watershed in the formation of Tibetan religion, from which emerged its forms familiar to us today. There were three major developments: (i) a comprehensive reformulation of the earliest Buddhist traditions introduced from India three centuries previously by the Tibetan Emperors (ii) a comprehensive recreation of the indigenous non-Buddhist Bon religion (iii) the creation of new Buddhist traditions based on further translations from India. All three developments were historically significant, and can be seen as different aspects of the same regenerative process, as Tibet emerged from the long chaos following the collapse of its Empire. The principal actors of each development were often closely related, with some individuals contributing significantly to more than one. This project focuses on the first, the comprehensive reformulation of Tibet's earliest Buddhist tradition, introduced from India in the 8th and 9th centuries. Known as Nyingma (rNying ma), its special characteristics included a commitment to adapting Indian tantrism to Tibetan narratives and culture, and an open scriptural canon, to which new additions were repeatedly made through revelation and inspired rediscovery. Among the most notable legacies of Nyingma to the rest of Tibetan Buddhism were its system of hereditary religious authority, still widespread across Tibetan Buddhism, and its major deity Dorje Phurpa (rdo rje phur pa), still practised by most other traditions. What made the 12th century reformulation of Nyingma so unique was its dependence on the activities of one extraordinary person: Nyang ral Nyi ma'i 'od zer (1124-1192). In his 13 volume magnum opus Kagye Deshek Dupa (bKa' brgyad bde gshegs 'dus pa), he codified Nyingma tantrism in a template still followed today. In addition, he wrote history and hagiography, cementing the Nyingma narrative traditions. Only after him and his Kabje Deshek Dupa can onetalk of a full-fledged Nyingma tradition. Although utterly seminal, Kagye Deshek Dupa remains unstudied by modern scholarship. Our project intends to begin to remedy the situation. The collection is too big for a single project, so we will focus on one section: its 250 pages on Dorje Phurpa, the major Nyingma deity. Our choice is also guided by our previous study of most other sources for early Dorje Phurpa, Cantwell and Mayer having published three monographs on the topic. Most importantly, they recently discovered amongst archaeologically recovered 10th century texts from Dunhuang, the undoubted source material from which Nyang ral constructed a key section of his Dorje Phurpa codification. In brief, our objective is to understand, philologically, historically, sociologically, ideologically, and doctrinally, Nyang ral's reconstruction of Dorje Phurpa out of earlier materials, and the repercussions of his legacy for later generations of Tibetans.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants