. esoteric buddhism under the liao 461
Huayan school, but also that he was an adept in the use of mantras and
dhāraṇīs. The text makes specific mention of the Mahācundī-dhāraṇī,
the Miezui tuoluoni ( dhāraṇī for destroying evil), the
Uṣṇīṣavijayā-dhāraṇī, and the Ekāksaroṣ ṇ̣īṣacakrarāja-dhāraṇī.^30 This
shows that Xuanzhao’s interests in ritual practices went well beyond
the usual repertoire expected of a follower of Huayan Buddhism.
Another source mentions how Dharma Master Huayan
(fl. early twelfth century) “discoursed on the Avataṃsaka, the Bodhisat-
tva Precepts and the secret texts of Cundī on a daily basis.”^31 This
trend is also evident in an inscription found on the funerary stūpa of
Ven. Chanhui (1010–1070), a master of Buddhist doctrines
who specialized in the Dasheng qixin lun (Treatise on
the Awakening of Faith in the Mahāyāna) among other texts;^32 the
inscription mentions how he chanted the great compassion heart spell
(Nīlakaṇṭhaka-dhāraṇī) every day.^33
On the level of material culture, the Huayan/Esoteric Buddhism
rapprochement also becomes evident in the Esoteric Buddhist iconog-
raphy produced by the Khitans, which reflects a crossover between
Zhenyan iconography from the Tang combined with imagery inspired
by the Avataṃsaka sūtra and related scriptures. One example of this
is the printed frontispiece of the Da faju tuoluoni jing
(Scripture on the Great Dharma Torch Dhāraṇī)^34 found inside a
buddha image kept in the large wooden pagoda in Ying county.^35
In this case, Vairocana is depicted flanked by Mañjuśrī and Samant-
abhadra in accordance with Huayan tradition, but his hands form the
vajramustī-mudrā/vajra-mudrā characteristic of the Zhenyan tradi-
tion of Esoteric Buddhism.^36
Stūpas, Pagodas, Dhāraṇī Pillars, and Funerary Practices
Practices concerning the empowerment of pagodas and stūpas under
the Liao were not always based on Esoteric Buddhist beliefs but could
(^30) Cf. QLW, p. 293.
(^31) QLW, p. 280.
(^32) T. 1667.
(^33) QLW, p. 207. See also p. 287.
(^34) T. 1340.
(^35) See Zhongguo lishi bowuguan and Shanxi sheng wenwuju, ed. 1991.
(^36) Cf. Zhongguo lishi bowuguan and Shanxi sheng wenwuju, ed. 1991, pl. 7; 28, 39.
See also Chaoyang Beita kaogu kancha-dui, comp. 1992.