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'''Mandala''' (Skt. ''maṇḍala''; Tib. ''kyilkhor''; [[Wyl.]] ''dkyil ‘khor'') — mandala can be translated literally as ‘centre and circumference‘. A mandala is generally depicted as a circle which revolves around a centre. On the simplest level, a mandala can be understood to be us, the student or practitioner, and the phenomenal world around us. The word ‘mandala’ also describes an integrated structure that is organized around a central unifying principle. | '''Mandala''' (Skt. ''maṇḍala''; Tib. [[དཀྱིལ་འཁོར་]], ''kyilkhor''; [[Wyl.]] ''dkyil ‘khor'') — mandala can be translated literally as ‘centre and circumference‘. A mandala is generally depicted as a circle which revolves around a centre. On the simplest level, a mandala can be understood to be us, the student or practitioner, and the phenomenal world around us. The word ‘mandala’ also describes an integrated structure that is organized around a central unifying principle. | ||
It also means: | It also means: | ||
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<swf width="640" height="480">http://www.rigpawiki.org/Media/Video/mandala.swf</swf> | <swf width="640" height="480">http://www.rigpawiki.org/Media/Video/mandala.swf</swf> | ||
==Alternative Translations== | |||
*Array / circle<ref>Davidson explains: ''The feudal system at the time mandated that the aspiring king be consecrated into the position of overlord by a ceremony in which he became divine by being invested in his person with a god or gods and took his place in the center of a maṇḍala of subordinate states. These subsidiary states acted as buffers encompassing the great state, which is why it was called a maṇḍala: a circle.'' See R. Davidson, ''Tibetan Renaissance, Tantric Buddhism in the Rebirth of Tibetan Culture'', Columbia University Press, 2005. Page 31. </ref> (Ronald M. Davidson) | |||
==Notes== | |||
<small><references/></small> | |||
== Further Reading == | == Further Reading == | ||
*Brauen, Martin, ''The Mandala, Sacred Circle in Tibetan Buddhism'' (Boston: Shambhala, 1997). First Published as ''Das Mandala: Der Heilige Kreis im tantrischen Buddhismus'' (Köln: DuMont, 1992) | *Brauen, Martin, ''The Mandala, Sacred Circle in Tibetan Buddhism'' (Boston: Shambhala, 1997). First Published as ''Das Mandala: Der Heilige Kreis im tantrischen Buddhismus'' (Köln: DuMont, 1992) | ||
*[[Chögyam Trungpa]], ''Orderly Chaos: The Mandala Principle'' (Boston: Shambhala, 1991/ republished in The Collected Works of Chögyam Trungpa, Volume Six, 2003) | *[[Chögyam Trungpa]], ''Orderly Chaos: The Mandala Principle'' (Boston: Shambhala, 1991/ republished in The Collected Works of Chögyam Trungpa, Volume Six, 2003) | ||
*[[Chögyam Trungpa]], ''Journey Without Goal'' (Boston: Shambhala, The Collected Works of Chögyam Trungpa, Volume Four, 2003), Chapter Three: Mandala. | |||
==External Links== | ==External Links== | ||
*3D pictures and animations of the [[Kalachakra]] mandala at the [http://www.jonangfoundation.org/kalachakra-mandala| Jonang Foundation]. | *3D pictures and animations of the [[Kalachakra]] mandala at the [http://www.jonangfoundation.org/kalachakra-mandala| Jonang Foundation]. | ||
*[http://www.himalayanart.org/pages/ | *[http://www.himalayanart.org/pages/mandalaresources/index.html Mandala Resource Page at Himalayan Art] | ||
*[http://www.himalayanart.org/search/set.cfm?setID=2093 'Mandalas: An Introduction, Painting & Sculpture' by Jeff Watt] | |||
[[Category:Key Terms]] | [[Category:Key Terms]] | ||
[[Category:Sanskrit Terms]] | |||
[[Category:Eleven Topics of Tantra]] | |||
[[Category:Vajrayana]] | |||
Latest revision as of 12:11, 22 October 2018
Mandala (Skt. maṇḍala; Tib. དཀྱིལ་འཁོར་, kyilkhor; Wyl. dkyil ‘khor) — mandala can be translated literally as ‘centre and circumference‘. A mandala is generally depicted as a circle which revolves around a centre. On the simplest level, a mandala can be understood to be us, the student or practitioner, and the phenomenal world around us. The word ‘mandala’ also describes an integrated structure that is organized around a central unifying principle.
It also means:
- the sacred environment and dwelling place of a buddha, bodhisattva or deity, together with the deities, which is visualized by the practitioner in tantric practice.
- the two dimensional representation of this environment on cloth or paper, or made of heaps of coloured sand, or three dimensional traditionally made of wood.
- an offering of the entire universe visualized as a pure land with all the inhabitants as pure beings.
See also mandala offering.
Animation
The following animation shows how a two dimensional mandala actually represents the environment, the palace, the seats and the deities. This example is based on the Rigdzin Düpa sadhana.
<swf width="640" height="480">http://www.rigpawiki.org/Media/Video/mandala.swf</swf>
Alternative Translations
- Array / circle[1] (Ronald M. Davidson)
Notes
- ↑ Davidson explains: The feudal system at the time mandated that the aspiring king be consecrated into the position of overlord by a ceremony in which he became divine by being invested in his person with a god or gods and took his place in the center of a maṇḍala of subordinate states. These subsidiary states acted as buffers encompassing the great state, which is why it was called a maṇḍala: a circle. See R. Davidson, Tibetan Renaissance, Tantric Buddhism in the Rebirth of Tibetan Culture, Columbia University Press, 2005. Page 31.
Further Reading
- Brauen, Martin, The Mandala, Sacred Circle in Tibetan Buddhism (Boston: Shambhala, 1997). First Published as Das Mandala: Der Heilige Kreis im tantrischen Buddhismus (Köln: DuMont, 1992)
- Chögyam Trungpa, Orderly Chaos: The Mandala Principle (Boston: Shambhala, 1991/ republished in The Collected Works of Chögyam Trungpa, Volume Six, 2003)
- Chögyam Trungpa, Journey Without Goal (Boston: Shambhala, The Collected Works of Chögyam Trungpa, Volume Four, 2003), Chapter Three: Mandala.
External Links
- 3D pictures and animations of the Kalachakra mandala at the Jonang Foundation.
- Mandala Resource Page at Himalayan Art
- 'Mandalas: An Introduction, Painting & Sculpture' by Jeff Watt