. esoteric buddhism and the tantras in east asia 5
upon, and capitalization of it (or not) may have ideological implica-
tions. Most authors were already using a lower case style while one in
particular, Henrik Sørensen, capitalizes Esoteric Buddhism as a way of
marking his theoretical understanding of it.^3 Unless it was the express
intent of the author to distinguish Esoteric from esoteric (as in the
case of Sørensen)—that is, because the author him/herself was mak-
ing a theoretical point by using that orthography—‘esoteric’ was the
default form used in this volume. This should not be taken, however,
to mean anything systematic on the part of all the authors, since—
as has already been mentioned—the work as a whole is intended to
represent the state of the art, including present inconsistencies in the
degree to which the subject is theorized, and disagreements between
different theoretical understandings.
There are four primary scholarly positions on the use of the terms
esoteric and tantra:
- Some scholars use esoteric Buddhism and tantra as virtually
interchangeable, generic terms covering distinctive developments
all across Buddhist Asia from the third or fourth centuries C.E.
onward. - For some the term esoteric Buddhism refers to a stream developing
in the Mahāyāna prior to and distinct from the tantras. In this defi-
nition the tantras developed in the eighth century and beyond and
are distinctively infused with imagery and practices—often seen as
antinomian—associated with the rise of the siddha movement. - For others, esoteric Buddhism, while synonymous with Buddhist
tantra, dates to no earlier than the sixth century when previously
developed elements including mantra, mandala, homa, etc., come
together in a comprehensive system accessed through abhiseka ̣ and
guarded with secrecy. - A fourth position rejects “tantra” as a useful category in pre-modern
East Asia and argues that esoteric Buddhism in China was under-
stood not as a coherent movement, school, or sect, but as a new
technological extension of the Mahāyāna.
(^3) For his discussion see Sørensen, “On Esoteric Buddhism in China: A Working
Definition,” in this volume.