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and structural aspects; for a detailed introduction to the history of
tantric Buddhism, its symbolism and doctrine, Snellgrove (1987) may
be recommended to the readers. The following explanations serve a
hermeneutical purpose—namely to give the reader an idea of what
our sources are talking about. Therefore, I think it might be suf cient
to present an idealised, normative picture balanced by sociological or
historic-critical investigations.
Tantrayna, Vajrayna and Mantrayna are used synonymously in
Tibetan Buddhist literature. Commonly, Tibetan authors understand
these terms as denoting a distinct type of religious practice within the
framework of Mahyna Buddhism. The envisaged goal of spiritual
development is that of Mahyna: the state of a fully awakened Buddha.
However, whereas it is believed that by “ordinary” Mahyna practice,
as laid down in the stras, a bodhisattva (a living being aspiring for enlight-
enment) needs a minimum of three “countless world-cycles” to reach
the goal, tantric teachings are believed to provide special methods (thabs,
Skt. upya) to become a Buddha within only one lifetime (at minimum).
This “short-cut to enlightenment” is taught in a special class of Buddhist
texts: the tantras (Tib. rgyud, the synonymous designation sngags [mantras]
is also usual). Thus, Tibetans usually classify Mahyna teachings and
practices as being either sutric, i.e., “ordinary” Mahynistic, or tantric.
Most tantras—like the stras—are believed to have been revealed by the
historical Buddha kyamuni. Although, evidently, tantras were studied
and practiced in the great monasteries of India contemporary to the
“later spread”, their typical social setting appears to have been groups
of free-roving yogins outside the monastic environment. These groups
were organised as exclusive circles centred around a Guru—the Sanskrit
equivalent for Tibetan Lama (bla-ma)—who instructs his disciples in
the teachings he (or she), in turn, had once learned from his (or her)
own master. In this way, group identity was produced by af liation to
transmission lineages de ned by speci c interpretations of tantric texts,
symbols and artefacts as well as practical instructions on meditative and
ritual techniques passed on from master to pupil. Important tantric
masters of the past are often referred to by the epithet (mah)siddha
(“[great] perfected one”, Tib. grub [chen]).
Tantric methods have to be kept secret. They are open only to adepts
deemed worthy (i.e., spiritually advanced enough) by the Guru. An
adept is introduced to a tantric system by a series of initiations, called
dbang-skur (“empowerments”) by the Tibetans.