Olga Serbaeva describes how the Jayadrathayāmala envisaged magically discovered nidhi (treasure) as an integral part of its soteriological program. Tantric texts dedicate special chapters to the search for nidhi (treasures). The vision of hidden treasures is considered to be a siddhi (supernatural ability) that occurs after many thousand rounds of mantra repetition, and other rituals. Generally, nidhi is considered material treasures, i.e. gold, precious stones, and any other objects related to becoming wealthy. In JY, there is a strong link between nidhi and Kubera, and a particular form of Kālī, called Nidhīśvarī or Kuberajananī, from JY.4.54, once propitiated, bestows the treasures to the sādhakas. Another aspect, closer to the visionary nature of the experiences leading to finding treasures, shall allow us to bring in the JY materials on the altered states of consciousness, where the visionary switch happens in particular conditions after particular auditive and physical forerunning signs. We shall discover how nidhi fits among other consciousness-altering practices such as āveśa/svasthāveśa, khorika, prasena. The prescriptive JY shall be compared to the flowery Kathāsāritsāgara, a text recompiled by Somadeva in the late 11th century Kashmir, reusing some contemporary tantric references and materials. Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike 2.0 UK: England & Wales; http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/uk/
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Olga Serbaeva describes how the Jayadrathayāmala envisaged magically discovered nidhi (treasure) as an integral part of its soteriological program. Tantric texts dedicate special chapters to the search for nidhi (treasures). The vision of hidden treasures is considered to be a siddhi (supernatural ability) that occurs after many thousand rounds of mantra repetition, and other rituals. Generally, nidhi is considered material treasures, i.e. gold, precious stones, and any other objects related to becoming wealthy. In JY, there is a strong link between nidhi and Kubera, and a particular form of Kālī, called Nidhīśvarī or Kuberajananī, from JY.4.54, once propitiated, bestows the treasures to the sādhakas. Another aspect, closer to the visionary nature of the experiences leading to finding treasures, shall allow us to bring in the JY materials on the altered states of consciousness, where the visionary switch happens in particular conditions after particular auditive and physical forerunning signs. We shall discover how nidhi fits among other consciousness-altering practices such as āveśa/svasthāveśa, khorika, prasena. The prescriptive JY shall be compared to the flowery Kathāsāritsāgara, a text recompiled by Somadeva in the late 11th century Kashmir, reusing some contemporary tantric references and materials. Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike 2.0 UK: England & Wales; http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/uk/
Concealed Prosperity: Why People and Territorial Deities Need Treasures (Oxford Treasure Seminar Series) (Transcript)
Tibetan Graduate Studies Seminar
1 year ago
Concealed Prosperity: Why People and Territorial Deities Need Treasures (Oxford Treasure Seminar Series) (Transcript)
This talk explores the intricate cosmology of territorial deities in Tibet and related concepts of land, prosperity, and fecundity, as well as sociality and socio-political organisation This talk explores the intricate cosmology of territorial deities in Tibet and related concepts of land, prosperity, and fecundity, as well as sociality and socio-political organisation. Tibet hosts a vast number of territorial deities. The most powerful ones occupy the highest glacier-capped mountains. These divine lords guard their lands, and people, and others within. They also guard different kinds of concealed ‘treasures’ (ter, terma) – precious substances hidden within the land, such as metals (typically gold), minerals, stones, medicines, water sources, divine objects (weapons and others), special landscapes, as well as Buddhist statues, texts, and other articles. Such ‘treasures’ are conceptualised as crucial in maintaining the prosperity of the land and the very existence of its inhabitants. The land and its ‘treasures’ belonging to territorial deities hold the crucial forces of life and wellbeing (such as yang, cha, la, chü, trashi, tsé, ngödrup, pel, lungta) that people need to protect and acquire to live, produce offspring, and tackle disease. These underlying principles of Tibeto-Himalayan environmental cosmology have parallels in other cultures.
Tibetan Graduate Studies Seminar
Olga Serbaeva describes how the Jayadrathayāmala envisaged magically discovered nidhi (treasure) as an integral part of its soteriological program. Tantric texts dedicate special chapters to the search for nidhi (treasures). The vision of hidden treasures is considered to be a siddhi (supernatural ability) that occurs after many thousand rounds of mantra repetition, and other rituals. Generally, nidhi is considered material treasures, i.e. gold, precious stones, and any other objects related to becoming wealthy. In JY, there is a strong link between nidhi and Kubera, and a particular form of Kālī, called Nidhīśvarī or Kuberajananī, from JY.4.54, once propitiated, bestows the treasures to the sādhakas. Another aspect, closer to the visionary nature of the experiences leading to finding treasures, shall allow us to bring in the JY materials on the altered states of consciousness, where the visionary switch happens in particular conditions after particular auditive and physical forerunning signs. We shall discover how nidhi fits among other consciousness-altering practices such as āveśa/svasthāveśa, khorika, prasena. The prescriptive JY shall be compared to the flowery Kathāsāritsāgara, a text recompiled by Somadeva in the late 11th century Kashmir, reusing some contemporary tantric references and materials. Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike 2.0 UK: England & Wales; http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/uk/
