. esoteric buddhism in sichuan 395
onwards, does not appear to have been distinct from the mainstream
Buddhist tradition as practiced there, but rather part and parcel of it.
This means that although there certainly would have been specialists
of esoteric Buddhist ritual and related practices as indicated above,
there is no solid indication that they worked outside the normal Bud-
dhist context.
Esoteric Buddhist Cults
A survey of old temple sites and locations with Buddhist sculptures
reveals that since the early eighth century cults devoted to esoteric
Buddhist forms of Avalokiteśvara were both widespread and popular
in the eastern part of Sichuan (Yizhou/Jiannan). Vairocana Buddha
in his adorned form is among the earliest esoteric Buddhist images in
Sichuan. He occurs in several sculptural locations in the central part
of the province from the late seventh century onwards, including Nan-
kan in Bazhong (cf. Sichuansheng wenwu guanliju et al. 2006,
61–63, 157–159), Qianfoyan in Guangyuan, at the temple in
Qionglai, and at Feixiange in Pujiang, to mention the more
important sites.
The cult of the thousand-armed Avalokiteśvara was extremely pop-
ular in the whole of eastern Sichuan, and virtually all the sculptural
sites feature one or more images depicting this form of Avalokiteśvara.
Likewise, Cintāmaṇicakra-Avalokiteśvara was also popular and can
be found in several locations including Nankan in Bazhong, at
Niushenyai in Jiajiang, and at Mt. Bei in Dazu. Images
of Amoghapāśa are frequent during the Five Dynasties period, but
relatively uncommon during the Tang. For some reason no images
of Ekādaśamukha have so far been identified among the sculptural
material from Sichuan.
Although Vaiśravaṇa, the Heavenly King of the North, cannot be
considered an esoteric Buddhist divinity explicitly, he was eventually
elevated as such in the course of the Tang. Not only was he lifted from
the traditional context as one of the Four Heavenly Kings, but during
the middle of the dynasty an esoteric Buddhist cult had sprung up
around his persona as the primary object of worship. The Vaiśravaṇa
cult was widespread in Sichuan during the Tang, and images of this
god can be found in most of the sculptural sites in the province.^6
(^6) This development is reflected in a series of ritual texts including the Beifang