ON THE CONCEPT OF SAHAJAthe disadvantage of wholly obliterating the etymological meaning of the word,
and is a very wide term covering all sorts of rites. The best translation would
therefore seem to be "consecration" since there is explicit analogy with the rite
of royal consecration, for which the term abhi~eka is likewise used^16 • The term
"coronation", however, must be rejected as stressing the associations between
initiation and royal dominion to the exclusion of all other associations^17 •
The consecrations to be conferred on the neophyte may be divided into two
groups, the minor or preparatory consecrations, and the major or final ones, in ST
styled "transcendent" (lokottara). We shall deal first with the minor consecrations.
The actual proceedings of the preliminary consecrations are described in
detail in ST, and a resume is given by Carelli (p. 32-33)^18. We are thus dis-
pensed from going over the same ground here.
For our purposes it will be sufficient to note that the consecrations take place
inside the mandala, representing the sacred world which the neophyte is now
entering, and that they consist, among other things, of a series of aspersions and
recitations of mantras performed by the preceptor (guru) of the aspirant (si~ya),
thereby purifying him and elevating him in body, speech, and mind to that
adamantine plane which constitutes the necessary basis for the subsequent major
consecrations. The preliminary consecrations thus combine to form a rite de
passage, a movement from one mode of being to another. Nevertheless, it is
important to point out that even before they are performed, the aspirant is identi-
fied with a divine being: a deity, in the case of ST Vajrapani, is invoked and
thereupon believed to take possession of the neophyte who sings and dances in
the manner appropriate to the deity^19 • It would be beside our purpose to discuss
whether this rite (krodhave~a, lit. "entrance of the fierce deity") represents a
genuine, as opposed to a merely simulated, state of possession, and to what extent
it may - in psychological terms -be held to contribute to, or be involved with,
the subsequent attainment of mystical insight2°; what is significant, is the fact that
the neophyte is from the very outset regarded as a being enjoying divine status.
The texts which I have consulted enumerate the minor consecrations as five,
six, or seven, as shown in Fig. I. -It would be futile to embark upon a lengthy
discussion of the divergencies illustrated in Fig. I. However, a few observations
may nevertheless be in order. Except for one text (VA), in which Water is pre-
ceded by Flower-Garland, the initial consecration is that of Water, followed by
Diadem. It seems reasonable that Fillet, which is given by ST and DVP as the
fourth, but not mentioned in the other texts, is simply a specialization of the pre-
ceding Diadem. The same two texts likewise stand isolated in combining Vajra
and Bell in one consecration, whereas the other texts list them as third and fourth
(VA as fourth and fifth) respectively. For Vajra and Bell, CMT instead has
Sword and Noose. ST then inserts the Consecration of the Vajra-Vow, (in DVP
styled Own-Lord), so that the following consecration, that of the Name, comes
as fifth in AVS, JTT, FBT, HSP, and CMT, and as sixth in VA, ST, and DVP.
The final consecration would seem to be properly styled Master, as is explicity
done in AVS and FBT; JTT calls it Irreversible, which according to FBT,