. on esoteric buddhism in china 167
more or less the same meaning as “mi,” i.e., “secret.” The two indeed
go together to further strengthen the idea of “secret,” something
hidden or unrevealed. Thus we find the term bimizhou , i.e.,
“secret spells,” and the extended “secret divine spells” (bimi shenzhou
), which occur frequently in scriptures associated with both
esoteric Mahāyāna and Esoteric Buddhism. In contrast, the simple,
more general compound “secret spells” (bizhou ) is commonly
found in both the standard exoteric Buddhist texts as well as in Eso-
teric Buddhist scriptures.
The further connection between Esoteric Buddhism and ritual
secrets is borne out in the use of the term “secret altar” (bimitan
). Virtually all references to “altar methods” or “altar prac-
tices” (tanfa ) occurring in the Taishō and the Zokuzōkyō texts,
regardless from which period they date, indicate that such practices
took place within the contexts of esoteric Mahāyāna and Esoteric Bud-
dhism. This does not mean that all Buddhist rituals in China were
esoteric in nature, nor that they were performed by practitioners of
Esoteric Buddhism—far from it; however, it does indicate that altars
for specialized rituals and the use of special techniques were central to
this form of Buddhism. In fact, the usage of the term “secret altar” is
exclusively found in Esoteric Buddhist scriptures and in texts describ-
ing Esoteric Buddhist practices.^34
Although terms such as “secret method” or “secret teaching” (mifa
) do occur in the Esoteric Buddhist material from the Tang
period, they are more commonly found in scriptures associated with
non-esoteric types of Buddhism, such as the Faxiang, the Huayan, and
other doctrinal schools. One would think that a term such as “secret
practice” (mixing ) would occur frequently in scriptures associ-
ated with Esoteric Buddhism, but this is not the case; rather it appears
frequently in Chan texts. In the latter case, it may actually make more
sense to translate the compound as “abstruse practice.”
In order to make a clearer case, let us first establish that there is
a direct connection in terminology between Esoteric Buddhism and
the use of spells, dhāraṇīs, and mantras. This connection is revealed
in scriptures such as the Pariṇāmacakra sūtra (T. 998), where the
term “secret words” (miyan ) occurs several times, in the
(^34) Cf., e.g., T. 1092.20:385b; T. 952.19:264a; T. 1185B.20:803a; T. 1796.39:745b; etc.