. esoteric buddhism under the chosn 647
The Kwanseŭm posal yŏnghŏm yakch’o
(Abbreviated Text on the Divine Response of the Bodhisattva Avalo-
kiteśvara)^63 is an important text of the Avalokiteśvara cult and features
an illustrated, cartoon-like version of the dhāraṇī of the Nīlakaṇthaka ̣
sūtra (T. 1059, etc.), the chief scripture on the worship of the thou-
sand-armed, thousand-eyed Avalokiteśvara.^64 Here the sentences of
the dhāraṇī have been broken down into separate parts, one for each
of the fifty manifestations of the bodhisattva. Each part of the spell is
given in trilingual text (Chinese, Han’gul, and Sanskrit) together with
an explanation of the meaning (figure 5).^65
The cult of Ṣaḍaksaravidyā ̣ was introduced to Korea during the late
Koryŏ and some aspects of the related practices would appear to have
been at least partly influenced by Tibetan Buddhism.^66 During the
Chosŏn the primary Chinese sources on this cult underwent consid-
erable modification, resulting in works such as the Sŏng Kwanjachae
kusu yukcha sŏnjŏng (Holy Avalokiteśvara
Cultivation of the Meditation on the Six-Character [Mantra])^67 and the
Yukcha tae myŏngwang tarani kyŏng (Scripture
of the Six-Character Great Vidyārāja-dhāraṇī)^68 written in bilingual
(^63) The edition used here was printed in 1728 (sixth year of Yongzheng) at the
Pohyŏn Temple in Mt. Myŏhyang. Songgwang Temple Library, no.
- An older version printed at Kamnŏ Temple in 1712 also exists. A large,
printed sheet featuring the illustrated dhāraṇī can also be found. See Institute for
Korean Buddhist Studies 1978, pl. 35. 64
See Sørensen, “Central Divinities in the Esoteric Buddhist Pantheon in China,”
in this volume. 65
The original sūtra does refer to many gods and protectors being “activated”
through the use of its powerful dhāraṇī, but it does not give any iconographic instruc-
tions (see T. 1060, 108bc). T. 1064 is an illustrated text of the Nīlakaṇṭhaka-dhāraṇī
attributed to Amoghavajra based on a Japanese version dated 1801. It has illustra-
tions of Avalokitśvara’s forty-two hands, and while it has a near-identical text as the
Kwanseŭm posal yŏnghŏm yakch’o, it does not provide the images of the bodhisattva’s
manifestations. Cf. T. 1060.20:116b–117a. Note that a late Chinese equivalent exists
in a rather fanciful version, similar to the Korean text. 66
For a discussion of the Ṣaḍakṣaravidyā in the context of Chosŏn Buddhism, see
Kim 1986, 551–608. 67
Neither author nor compiler is given. However, the earliest edition of this text,
possibly a private print of the Ṣaḍakṣaravidyā, is said to have been made in 1560. (Cf.
Kim 1986, 16ab).
(^68) This work was edited and augmented by Pak Sŏnmuk (fl. nineteenth cen-
tury), a Buddhist layman from Tongun together with Yi Sŏkkyu (n.d.),
both of whom were members of the Kamno Buddhist association. The ver-
sion used here is a wood block edition from the collection of the Kyujanggak Library
at Seoul National University, no. 1730/16. It is dated 1908. It features a completely