10. STŪPAS AND RELICS IN ESOTERIC BUDDHISM
Charles D. Orzech and Henrik H. SørensenIntroduction
The veneration of relics (śarīra, Ch. ) occupy a special place in
Buddhism, as it does in many religious traditions. In early Buddhism,
the cremated remains of Śākyamuni, and later of important monks,
were placed in tower-like structures variously referred to as stūpas
(Ch. ta ), caityas, or dagobas. These monuments were understood
both as physical manifestations of the Buddha’s body and as symbols
of his Dharma or teaching. In the centuries following the parinirvāṇa
of Śākyamuni, the erection and worship of these monuments became
part of mainstream Buddhist practice.^1
Buddhist traditions distinguish different types of relics. There are
relics that are assumed to be the corporal remnants (śarīrika-ceityaṃ;
Ch. or ) of the Buddha or of an eminent follower or monk;
there are objects that bear the traces of the Buddha’s activities or
“objects of use” (pāribhogika-ceityaṃ), usually items such as his bowl
or robe; temples or symbols tied to the specific place where the activ-
ity took place (such as the bodhi tree at Bodhgaya or images of the
Buddha’s footprints in stone, such as those found at Gandhara, Ama-
ravati, and elsewhere); and there are “reminders” (uddeśika-ceityaṃ)
or objects thought to be imbued with special significance, particu-
larly images.^2 Objects of use quite frequently included the Buddha’s
Dharma—his pronouncements in scripture and dhāraṇī—and in East
(^1) See Thūpavamsa (1971). Trainor 1997 summarizes the current scholarly debates
on early Buddhist relic and stūpa worship. See esp. pp. 45–65. Strong 2004 is the most
thorough treatment of the topic. Finally, Trainor and Germano 2004 collects seven
essays produced for the Relic Seminar of the American Academy of Religion.
(^2) See Huntington 1990, 405. A version of this taxonomy first appears in the Kālinga-
bodhi Jātaka. See Trainor 1997, 26 n. 33. Ruppert 2000, 5 has a good discussion of
this taxonomy and its sources but note that he has reversed the terms pāribhogika and
uddeśika. For an analysis Buddhist relics as well as their role in modern scholarship
see Sharf 1999, 75–99.