582 henrik h. sørensen
and lengthy dhāraṇī sūtra. Although only a preface without much
direct reference to Esoteric Buddhist practices, it nevertheless indi-
cates that the scripture itself and the rites it teaches were in vogue in
Silla towards the end of the seventh century.
Next we have the significant commentary Kŭmgwang myŏngch’wi
sŭngwang kyŏngsŏ (Commentary on the
Suvarṇaprabhāsa Sūtra; HPC vol. 2, 181b–232a) by Sŭngjang
(n.d.) (HPIS 163a). This commentary is interesting for what its author
has to say about the Esoteric Buddhist elements that the sūtra contains,
that is, its three dhāraṇī chapters, the lore surrounding the divine pro-
tection of the realm (including the cult of the Four Heavenly Kings),
and the two chapters on the rakṣasa-demons who render protection.
Incidentally, this text also mentions the Mahāmāyūrī-vidyārājñī sūtra,^22
a major Esoteric Buddhist scripture, in its chapter on how to summon
the twenty-eight classes of great rakṣa generals (cf. T. 985.19:227b).
The reference to the Mahāmāyūrī-vidyārājñī, with its copious register
of names of demons and spirits, could indicate that the beliefs and
practices surrounding the invocations of various classes of demons for
protection, as taught in this scripture, was in vogue among Korean
Buddhists by the time Sŭngjang wrote his commentary.^23
Finally there is the Yaksa ponwŏn kyŏng kochŏk
(Record of the Old Methods [Pertaining to] the Sūtra of the Original
Vows of Bhaisajyaguru; ̣ HPC vol. 3, 409b–418b) by T’aehyŏn
(fl. eighth century) (HPIS 66b–67a). This text, which is not a commen-
tary in the traditional sense, features such Esoteric Buddhist elements
as the worship of the twelve spirit generals, each of which represents
one of the animals in the zodiac.^24 A discussion of the powerful spells
(^22) In principle the commentary could refer to any of the early versions of the
Mahāmāyūrī-vidyārājñī such as T. 988 or 984, but Sŭngjang is more likely to have
made use of Yijing’s (635–713) translation from the early eighth century, i.e.,
T. vol. 19, no. 985. For a study of the early versions of the Mahāmāyūrī sūtra, see
Sørensen 2006b. 23
We also have reference to a text called the Kŭmgwangmyŏng ch’wisŭng wang
kyŏng yakch’an (An Outline of the Survaṇaprābhasa Sūtra),
attributed to Kyŏnghŭng (n.d.). This work is no longer extant, but is mentioned
in both 24 T. 2184.55:1107b and T. 2183.55:1153b.
The worship of these spirits of the zodiac was relatively common under the early
Unified Silla, and images of them, carved in low relief on stone, have been found on
stūpa and pagoda foundations. In the earliest representations, these images have been
depicted as human figures with animal heads, and only later are they depicted as
fully human, but with the zodiac-animal symbols in their caps or headgear. For Silla
examples, see Kyŏngju Pangmulgwan 1989, pls. 140–143, 309–314. A discussion of the