Oddiyana
Oddiyana (Skt. Oḍḍiyāna; Tib. ཨུ་རྒྱན་, Orgyen; Wyl. u rgyan) — often described as ‘the land of the Dakinis’, once a historical place has transformed over time into a mythical pure land in which the tantric teachings blossom and thrive. Based on its profound religious significance and mythological associations, the accounts of Uddiyana often involve a captivating combination of myth and history.[1] Almost every great Indian Buddhist master who had any significant influence on the development of tantra is associated with Uddiyana. In many cases Uddiyana is said to have been visited physically by these masters, however throughout history Buddhist masters also recounted to have visited Uddiyana in pure visions and dreams. Uddiyana thus had a deep impact on the tantric traditions of both Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike.
Name
Uḍḍiyāna in Sanskrit is referred to by various names. Besides U/Oḍḍiyāna we also find the mentions of U/Oḍḍiyāna, U/Oḍḍayana, U/Oḍiyāna, U/Oḍyāna, and Ōṭiyana.[2] To Tibetans it is known as O/Urgyen Yul (Tib. o/u rgyan yul) Urgyen (Tib. u rgyan), Odiyana (Tib. o ddi ya na) and sometimes also Oyen (Tib. o yan). The Tibetan words are an attempt to render the Sanskrit in Tibetan. Thus they convey no meaning, except for Urgyen Yul. According to Gendün Chöpel (Tib. dge 'dun chos 'phel, 1903-1951) Urgyen Yul could be translated as ‘the land or country adorned with Udumbara lotuses.’[3] Though these words look similar, the differences in spelling convey a different meaning. Thus, U/Oḍḍiyāna and U/Oḍḍayana are derived from the Sanskrit root ḍī[4] and are translated as flying or soaring.[5] U/Oḍḍiyāna in South Indian languages and in the yoga tradition refers to a belt worn by a woman either as jewelry or as a support for meditation.[6] In Hata Yoga Uḍḍīyana is a term employed referring to the abdominal area.[7] U/Oḍyāna translates as garden or royal garden. Ōṭiyana, Gendün Chöpel explains, could refer to the inhabitants known as the ‘Ōṭi tribe’.[8] Due to the many variations it is quite likely that the different names are the result of an adoption and adaption of the original name from either a dialect or another language spoken in the area.
History
With regard to the origins of the Vajrayana teachings, the tantric scriptures recount that it was King Dza of the kingdom of Zahor who first received the tantras, which landed miraculously on his palace roof. It is believed that Dza is another name for King Indrabodhi of Oddiyana. If this is the case, then the tantras began to be disseminated in Oddiyana.
The first human Dzogchen master, Garab Dorje, was born near Lake Kutra in Oddiyana. His disciple, Manjushrimitra, was Indian and received the teachings in Bodh Gaya, and the next lineage holder, Shri Singha, came from the Central Asian kingdom of Khotan, but it was in Oddiyana near Lake Dhanakosha that he passed the lineage to Vairotsana.
Padmasambhava, who was to introduce Vajrayana and Dzogchen to Tibet was miraculously born on Lake Dhanakosha and raised by the king of Oddiyana.
Many of the Dzogchen texts that were translated into Tibetan during the early period of transmission were translated from the language of Oddiyana.
Location
Most Tibetan texts simply explain that Oddiyana was a kingdom that lay to the west or northwest of India, and many Western scholars have identified it with the valley of Swat, in present-day northwestern Kashmir, in Pakistan.
However, Patrul Rinpoche gives a more precise indication of where Oddiyana was in The Words of My Perfect Teacher (Tib. Kunzang Lamé Shyalung)[9] when he describes the birthplace of Garab Dorje as being close to Lake Kutra in the region of Dhanakosha. Dhanakosha means ‘treasury of wealth’. This corresponds to a region between Chitral, Gilgit and Swat. John Reynolds suggests that “perhaps Uddiyana is actually a name of a much wider geographical area than the Swat Valley alone, one embracing parts of Pakistan, Afghanistan, and even Western Tibet (Zhang Zhung)."[10]
Professor Lokesh Chandra has also argued that Oddiyana was located in South India.[11]
Notes
- ↑ Not surprisingly then does historical facts get mixed up and altered, which makes it difficult to come to definitive conclusions regarding its background and actual location.
- ↑ Names taken from Sanderson, Alexis, “The Śaiva Exegesis of Kashmiri” in Mélanges tantriques à la mémoire d’Hélène Brunner / Tantric Studies in Memory of Hélène Brunner, (Institut français d'Indologie / École française d’Extrême-Orient, 2007), 265. Lokesh Chandra’s 'Oḍḍiyāna: A New Interpretation' in M. Aris & Aung San Suu Kyi, Tibetan Studies in Honour of Hugh Richardson, (Warminster, 1980), 75. Gendun, Chopel, Grains of Gold: Tales of a Cosmopolitan Traveler (University of Chicago Press, 2014), 117.
- ↑ ‘u’ stands for udumbara, ‘rgyan’ translates as adorned, ‘yul’ means land or country. Oral account by my Tibetan friend. Original source not located yet.
- ↑ root ḍī + prefix “ud” + nominalization “ana”
- ↑ The meanings of U/Oḍyāna, U/Oḍḍiyāna, U/Oḍḍayana were confirmed by Kashinath
- ↑ “gold or silver girdle or belt, an ornament worn by women round the waist” or a “girdle worn by yogis while in a sitting posture, so as to bind the waist and the doubled up legs together” from Lokesh Chandra’s 'Oḍḍiyāna: A New Interpretation' in M. Aris & Aung San Suu Kyi, Tibetan Studies in Honour of Hugh Richardson, (Warminster, 1980), 75.
- ↑ Uḍḍīyana bandha refers to the contraction of the abdomen into the rib cage.
- ↑ Gendun, Chopel, Grains of Gold: Tales of a Cosmopolitan Traveler (University of Chicago Press, 2014), 117.
- ↑ Patrul Rinpoche, The Words of My Perfect Teacher, Shambhala, Boston, 1998, p.339.
- ↑ Reynolds, John M., The Golden Letters, Snow Lion, Ithaca, New York, 1996, pp.211-212. www.keithdowman.net
- ↑ 'Oḍḍiyāna: A New Interpretation' in M. Aris & Aung San Suu Kyi, Tibetan Studies in Honour of Hugh Richardson, Warminster, 1980, pp. 73-78
Further Reading
- Jamgön Mipham, White Lotus, translated by the Padmakara Translation Group (Boston and London: Shambhala, 2007)—five levels of meaning of 'Orgyen'.