DRIKUNGPA LORD JIGTEN SUMGON RATNA SHRI

1143 - 1217 ORIGINAL THANGKA EARLY 13TH CENTURY COMMEMERATING RATNA SHRIS BUDDHAHOOD FOUNDER DRIKUNG KAGYU GOLDEN ROSARY LINEAGE

A Thang ka Portrait of Bri gung rin chen dpal, Jig rten gsum mgon (1143-1217)1
Amy Heller
Affiliated with the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique

Abstract: With this thang ka one can categorically identify Jig rten mgon po, also known as Bri gung rin chen dpal or Jig rten gsum mgon (1143-1217), as the principal subject of a thang ka due to the fact that the inscription is written on the reverse of the canvas. Initially studied by the present writer prior to its inclusion in the exhibition Himalayas: An Aesthetic Adventure, the full text of the inscription, an edited transcription and translation are here published for the first time. The identification is made possible by the fact that Jig rten mgon pos name is found in the Tibetan and Sanskrit inscriptions on the reverse of the painting. The identification of this thang ka sheds light on the history and identification of contemporary bla ma portraits in mural paintings in Alchi, Ladakh. Despite the major role of Jig rten mgon po also known as Bri gung rin chen dpal and Jig rten gsum mgon (1143-1217) in Tibetan religious and political history, until this thang ka appeared from its place of hiding, surfacing on the antique market several years back, there was only one identified portrait of him, painted as part of a lineage of lamas (bla mai brgyud) painting in the interior wall, third floor of the Gsum brtsegs lha khang at Alchi. In this lineage portrait his name is inscribed as Ma bla ma pri[sic] gung ba, i.e., the Great Lama Drigungpa.2 Several bla mas of the lineage were similar in appearance, and thus one could not distinguish if there was specific iconography for Jig rten mgon po; his characteristic facial features mudr, sana, and entourage were not yet understood. Indeed, the inscription from Alchi as Ma bla ma bri gung ba might have potentially referred
1 I would like to thank Dan Martin, Christian Luczanits, Jos Cabezn, Roberto Vitali, and Ven. Mtshan zhabs rin po che of Zrich, as well as the anonymous reader, for their suggestions and criticism. 2 Roger Goepper, Clues for a Dating of the Three-Storeyed Temple (Sumtsek) in Alchi, Ladakh, Asiatische Studien 44, no. 2 (1990): 159-75; and Roger Goepper and Jaro Poncar, Alchi (London: Serindia Publications, 1996), 213.

Journal of the International Association of Tibetan Studies, no. 1 (October 2005): 1-10. www.thdl.org?id=T1222. 1550-6363/2005/1/T1222. 2005 by Amy Heller, Tibetan and Himalayan Digital Library, and International Association of Tibetan Studies. Distributed under the THDL Digital Text License.

Heller: A Thang ka Portrait of Bri gung rin chen dpal, Jig rten gsum mgon (1143-1217)

to another Bri gung pa bla ma; however, the presence of Phag mo gru pa (1110-1170) as his immediate antecedent in mural painting of the lineage of bla mas suggests that the Ma bla ma bri gung pa can be none other than Bri gung rin chen dpal. In 2003, the Rubin Collection in New York acquired a footprint thang ka (C2003.7.1) in which the lineage of lamas is centered on a bla ma, named by inscription as Bla ma chos rje rin chen dpal and Rin che[sic] bri khung pa.3 The iconography of this bla ma is very similar to the Alchi lineage painting and, once again, the position of the bla ma in the lineage and the position on the central axis directly under Phag mo gru pa are decisive in his identification as Jig rten mgon po.

Plate 1: Portrait of Jikten Gnpo Drigung Rinchenpel, pigment and gold on cotton, 70 x 50 cm., early thirteenth century. Private Collection, Zurich.

With the present thang ka (plate 1) one can categorically identify Jig rten mgon po as the principal subject of a thang ka due to the Tibetan dedication inscription on the reverse. Initially studied by the present writer prior to its inclusion in the
3

Deborah Klimburg-Salter, Lama, Yidam, Protectors, Orientations 35, no. 3 (2004): 48-53, discussing Rubin Museum of Art painting C2003.7.1, with inscriptions in figs. 1a, 1b and 1c of her article; see also http://www.himalayanart.org/image.cfm?icode=65205.

Journal of the International Association of Tibetan Studies 1 (October 2005)

exhibition Himalayas: An Aesthetic Adventure, the full text of the inscription and its translation are here published for the first time.4 The identification is made possible by the fact that his name is found in the Tibetan and Sanskrit inscriptions on the reverse of the painting. The inscriptions are dedication prayers longer than the habitual consecration verses consisting of the ye dharma prayer and the well-known brief passage from the Vinaya, the latter an excerpt from the Pratimoka Stra discussing patience or forbearance as the highest austerity. The name used for Jig rten mgon po in the inscription is the Sanskrit ratnar, which is a literal translation of Rin chen dpal, the initiation name he received from Phag mo gru pa.5 Jig rten mgon po is shown flanked by two standing bodhisattvas, to show that he has achieved the rank of Buddha. Moreover, he is seated inside a rainbow arch, signifying the ja lus, the rainbow body of ultimate perfection of the teachings, manifested by accomplished masters at the time of their death. This means that the portrait represents him after his death.6 It is customary for close disciples to commission thang ka or statue portraits of their deceased guru for the ritual commemoration of the one-year anniversary of the death of the bla ma. According to carbon-14 analysis of a small fragment of the canvas, it is to be dated to the early thirteenth century. These factors lead me to think that this painting is a commemorative portrait which was made shortly after the death of Bri gung chos rje rin chen dpal in 1217. As such, this painting and its dedicatory inscriptions may be quite significant in terms of religious history and art history. The portrait iconography of Bri gung pa rin chen dpal in this thang ka is as follows: he is shown as a bla ma, his head in three-quarter view, receding hairline, plump face, no beard, dharmacakra mudr, seated in vajraparyanka sana seated in meditation (Tib. rdo rje skyil krung, Skt. dhynsana) inside a throne flanked by two standing bodhisattvas; thus he is spiritually identified as a Buddha. In this particular portrait, the emblem ratna is emphasized by its position on a textile immediately beneath the lotus petals of the throne cushions. This information may shed light on the identification of several other mural paintings and thang kas. The identical iconography is found in a mural painting
Pratapaditya Pal, with contributions by A. Heller, O. von Hinuber, and G. Vajracharya, Himalayas: An Aesthetic Adventure (Chicago and Berkeley: Art Institute of Chicago and University of California Press, 2003), plate 132; Amy Heller, The Tibetan Inscriptions: Dedications, History, and Prayers, in Pal, Himalayas: An Aesthetic Adventure, 291-92.
5 Khenpo Knchog Gyaltsen, trans., The Great Kagyu Masters: The Golden Lineage Treasury (Ithaca: Snow Lion, 1990), 240. Ratnar as an appellation for Bri gung rin chen dpal is attested to in Bri gung pa rin chen dpals collected works, and it is confirmed in an oral communication from G.yu sgra, the present head of the Bri gung bka brgyud pa in Nepal, who states that he was known under this name among certain groups of disciples even in his own lifetime. 6 Many years ago, Ynten Gyatso, former Tibetan assistant at the cole Pratique des Hautes tudes, discussed in lectures the differentiation of the single or double line halo surrounding Buddha and bla ma portraits and the multiple rings of the multi-color arch which adorn certain bla mas. The luminous quality of enlightened beings is, by painterly convention, represented as a single or double halo. According to Ynten Gyatso, this multi-color arch distinguishes the rainbow body, i.e., the vision of a rainbow mandorla manifest to special disciples after the death of their teacher, such as described in the hagiographies of many bla mas and teachers. Although this observation has been confirmed by a painter in Nepal and other Tibetan teachers, I have not identified a textual source for this differentiation. 4

Heller: A Thang ka Portrait of Bri gung rin chen dpal, Jig rten gsum mgon (1143-1217)

in a mchod rten at Alchi (plate 2). There is no inscription to identify the bla ma portrayed. Local tradition and Alchi monks identify the bla ma as Rin chen bzang po (958-1055), as was already explained to Snellgrove ca. 1975.7

Mural painting of Rinchen Zangpo in the small chten of Alchi (photograph by Christian Luczanits, courtesy of the Western Himalayan Archive Vienna).

On the basis of the identical iconography of Bri gung rin chen dpal in the inscribed and dated thang ka and of the bla ma in the Alchi mchod rten, and because of the historical importance of the Bri gung pa at Alchi in the early thirteenth century, it is my hypothesis that this mural painting at Alchi also represents Bri gung rin chen dpal. Another mural painting, also at Alchi, inside the Great Stpa, is also said to represent Rin chen bzang po, portrayed as an enthroned bla ma in dharmacakra mudr, although not flanked by two bodhisattvas.8 This may also represent Bri gung rin chen dpal. The similarity in names (Rin chen dpal, Rin chen bzang po) and lack of inscription, the local bla mas very indistinct memory of Bri gung patronage in the thirteenth century, and their strong memory of the inaccurate but very prestigious tradition of Rin chen bzang po as founder of Alchi have led them to transpose the identification of Rin chen dpal and Rin chen bzang po.

David Snellgrove and Tadeusz Skorupski, The Cultural Heritage of Ladakh (Warminster: Aris and Phillips, 1980), 2: 111; see also Christian Luczanits, On an Unusual Painting Style in Ladakh, in The Inner Asian International Style 12th-14th Centuries, ed. D. Klimburg-Salter and E. Allinger (Vienna: Verlag der sterreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1998), 151-69, figure 1; and Christian Luczanits, Art Historical Aspects of Dating Tibetan Art, in Dating Tibetan Art, ed. I. Kreide-Damani (Wiesbaden: Dr. Ludwig Reichert Verlag, 2003), 25-58, plate 3.
8

R. Goepper, The Great Stupa at Alchi, Artibus Asiae 53, nos. 1 and 2 (1993): 111-143, figure

14.

Journal of the International Association of Tibetan Studies 1 (October 2005)

Two other thang kas may now also be tentatively identified as Jig rten mgon po due to the identical iconography of the portrayal of the bla ma, although these thang kas are lacking inscriptions.9 In both cases, there is also an emphasis on the emblem of the ratna. The thang ka in the Pritzker collection has the ratna on the textile beneath the throne, while the other bla ma still has his hands in a teaching mudr but clasps a thin gold stem from which the ratna emerges, positioned against his heart.10 Let us now examine the photograph of the inscription (plate 3) which is written on the reverse of the commemorative thang ka of Bri gung rin chen dpal (plate 1). The reading of the inscription is very difficult due to red ink with pale letters in several spaces which interrupt the words. The ornamental handling of some letters (such as rje at the beginning of line sixteen) is rather unusual, as is also the elongated proportion and stylization of the ya btags ligature of many words. In addition, throughout the inscription there are aureola which are the residue of bird droppings which were removed during restoration. Thus one may deduce that the painting was exposed to the elements for an indefinite period of time.

9 Steven M. Kossak and Jane Casey Singer, Sacred Visions, Early Paintings from Central Tibet (New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1998), plate 17; and Amy Heller, Tibetan Art: Tracing the Development of Spiritual Ideals and Art in Tibet, 600-2000 A.D. (Milano: Jaca Book, 1999), plate 62. 10 In private research for the owner of the thang ka, Heather Stoddard initially identified this portrait as Zhang ston chos kyi bla ma (unpublished notes 1993). However in Heller, Tibetan Art, plate 62, although recognizing Stoddards earlier research, I gave the opinion that there was not yet sufficient evidence to identify the bla ma portrayed. Even now, this identification remains tentative, due to numerous characteristics which can be shared by bla ma portraits (see inter alia Jane Casey Singer, Taklung Painting, in Tibetan Art: Towards a Definition of Style, ed. Jane Casey Singer and Philip Denwood (London: Laurence King Publishing, 1997), 52-67; and Kossak and Casey Singer, Sacred Visions.

Heller: A Thang ka Portrait of Bri gung rin chen dpal, Jig rten gsum mgon (1143-1217)

Inscriptions on the reverse of the portrait of Jikten Gnpo Drigung Rinchenpel, pigment and gold on cotton, 70 x 50 cm., early thirteenth century. Private collection, Zrich.

The inscription is written inside the outline of a stpa. In the tiered finial of the stpa (lines 1-12), I could only decipher the large letters om ah hum at the center of several lines of script. The smaller letters appear to be syllables of mantra, and I have transcribed what I saw on the painting using ultraviolet light and in magnified scans on the computer screen, but the reading of the smaller letters in the upper sections still remains uncertain. On the whole, the script is darker and clearer in the lower sections of the stpa. The key expression is the repetition in lines 16-17 in the main body (bum pa) of the stpa: om ratna guru ratnasri sku, om body of Rin chen dpal, the precious teacher (bla ma rin po che). This is followed by the Pratimoka verses. In 1990, studying Tibetan consecration verses on another thang ka, Jos Cabezn identified the main excerpt (lines 21-24) as being from

Journal of the International Association of Tibetan Studies 1 (October 2005)

the Pratimoka.11 When this inscription was first studied, the main excerpt was identified but the source of the other verses remained unknown to me. Subsequently, thanks to Christian Luczanits and Mtshan zhabs rin po che of Zrich, I was informed that several other verses of the Pratimoka were also apparent in this inscription. A search has revealed that these verses are to be found at the conclusion of both the Bhiku and Bhiku Prtimoka Stras (Dge slong gi so sor thar pai mdo and Dge slong mai so sor thar pai mdo).12 In the inscription the scribe copied the next three verses, then omitted one full quatrain, as of line 33. He resumed his quotation with the concluding quatrain of the entire Bhikui Prtimoka Stra: Not to do any evil, to practice virtue perfectly, to completely subdue ones mind, this is the teaching of the Buddhas. The scribe next wrote the ye dharma verses, the mantra for the three great protectors (rigs gsum mgon po), viz., aakar Avalokitevara, Vgivara Majur, and Vajrapi, concluding with vows for great joy and pure spiritual accomplishments for many eons. There is no donor name. After the edited transcription of the inscription, the translation to the relevant verses is given following Charles Prebishs translations of the Prtimoka.13
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 om ah hum om a (?) ta te su -- gra -u ghu --- gu dza la sar ba . tha ta hum byo a bu ta badzra trig: rna -- -a ti lo tha khrod bha badzra tra .. .. .. .. rate.. na . bro pa ratna guru.. .. .. tsi badzra sva .. ..byar ma ma te dnya: om ah badzra nyid la. / om a . rba na po ba ya ra bhrar .. .. .. .. .. .. a rje rin po che badzra tsha .. .. .. .. /om rat na ghu ru rat na shri sku/ .. om ra tna ghu ru rat ..(na) shri sku/ om a kha sa rat na dnyana badzra girti .. bla ma rin po che grags pa.. .. .. .. .. .. tar pa tha. ma ..na ..su..ma ..bzod pa dka thub dam pa bzod pa ni mya ngan das pa mchog ces pa sangs rgyas gsung rab tu byung ba gzhan la gnod pa dang gzhan la tshe ba .. .. .. .. dge sbyor (ma yin no)/ mig ldan gro bar (sic) yod pa

Susan Huntington and John Huntington, Leaves of the Bodhi Tree (Dayton: Dayton Art Institute, 1990), 332.
12 We cite Prebishs translation of the verses from the Bhiku Prtimoka below. It is interesting that whereas in the Bhiku Prtimoka the stanzas continue after verse 8 for several more verses, in the Bhiku Prtimoka they conclude as they do in the inscription precisely with verse 8. See the Dge slong ma so so thar pai mdo, in Sde dge bka gyur (Berkeley: Dharma Publishing, 1981), vol. 3, 290.

11

Charles S. Prebish, Buddhist Monastic Discipline: The Sanskrit Prtimoka Stras of the Mahsaghikas and Mlasarvstivdins (Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1975), 110-11; I am indebted to Jos Cabezn for this reference.

13

Heller: A Thang ka Portrait of Bri gung rin chen dpal, Jig rten gsum mgon (1143-1217)

yis/ nyams bdag ji bzhin du mkhas pa tshe bai jig rten dir/ (lacunae: sdig pa dag ni yongs su spang)/ skur pa myi gdab gnod myi bya/ so sor thar 26 pa ang bsdam par bya/ zas kyi tshod kyang rig par 27 bya bas mtha gnas su gnas par bya/ lhag mai sems la yang 28 dag sbyor/ di ni sangs rgyas bstan pa yin/ ji ltar bu dab me tog las 29 kha dog dri la mi gnod par/ khu ba bzhibs nas phur ba ltar / de bzhin 30 thub pa grong du rgyu// bdag gis rigs dang mi rigs la brtag 31 par bya ste gzhan rnams kyi myi mthun pa dang gzhan rnams kyi byas 32 dang ma byas rnams la min/ lhag pai sems la bag bya ste/ thub pai 33 thub (recte: bslab) gzhi rnams la spyod (recte: bslab)/ sdig pa ci yang mi bya ste (recte: sdig pa thams cad mi bya ste)/ dge ba phun sum tshogs par spyad/ (recte: byas) rang gi sems ni/ 34 yongs su gdul la/ di ni sangs rgyas bstan pa yin/ ye dharma he tu pra bha ba he tun te an 35 ta tha ga to ha ya ba te an tsa yo ni ro dha ye ba dza ti ma ha a ma a/ ye sva ha // 36 om a a i i u u ri ri li li e e o o a a om ma ni pad me hum 37 om bagi shvari hum om badzra pa ni hum skal pa du mar sgrubs gyur pai las dag pao/// yi dam lhai bkra shis shog// 25

The passage is found in the concluding verses of the Mlasarvstivdins Prtimoka Stra. In the translation by Charles S. Prebish (111) the passage reads:
1. Enduring patience is the highest austerity, nirvana is the highest, say the Buddhas; for he who harms others is not a monk, he who violates others is not a ramaa. 2. Just as one endowed with sight, in exerting effort, [should avoid] misconduct; so the wise man should avoid the evils in the world of men. 3. Not censuring [others], not harming others, and restraint according to the Prtimoka; moderation in eating, secluded dwelling, and union with adhicitta; this is the Teaching of the Buddhas. 4. As a bee, not agitating the scent or color of a flower flies away, taking [only] the nectar; so should a sage enter a village. 5. [One should not contemplate] the faults of others, or what is done and not done by others; but one should contemplate the same difficulties concerning oneself. 8. Not to do any evil, to attain good, to completely subdue ones own mind; this is the Teaching of the Buddhas.

Journal of the International Association of Tibetan Studies 1 (October 2005)

Bibliography
Dge slong ma so so thar pai mdo. In Sde dge bka gyur (Berkeley: Dharma Publishing, 1981), vol. 3. Goepper, Roger. Clues for a Dating of the Three-Storeyed Temple (Sumtsek) in Alchi, Ladakh. Asiatische Studien 44, no. 2 (1990): 159-75. . The Great Stupa at Alchi. Artibus Asiae 53, nos. 1 and 2 (1993): 111-43. Goepper, Roger and Jaro Poncar. Alchi. London: Serindia Publications, 1996. Heller, Amy. Tibetan Art: Tracing the Development of Spiritual Ideals and Art in Tibet, 600-2000 A.D. Milano: Jaca Book, 1999. . The Tibetan Inscriptions: Dedications, History, and Prayers. In Himalayas: An Aesthetic Adventure, by Pratapaditya Pal, 286-97. Chicago and Berkeley: Art Institute of Chicago and University of California Press, 2003. Huntington, Susan and John Huntington. Leaves of the Bodhi Tree. Dayton: Dayton Art Institute, 1990. Khenpo Knchog Gyaltsen, trans. The Great Kagyu Masters: The Golden Lineage Treasury. Ithaca: Snow Lion, 1990. Klimburg-Salter, Deborah. Lama, Yidam, Protectors. Orientations 35, no. 3 (2004): 48-53. Kossak, Steven M. and Jane Casey Singer. Sacred Visions, Early Paintings from Central Tibet. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1998. Liu, Kuo-wei. Jig rten mgon po and the Single Intention (Dgongs gcig): His View on Bodhisattva Vow and Its Influence on Medieval Tibetan Buddhism. Ann Arbor, MI: University Microfilms, 2002. Luczanits, Christian. On an Unusual Painting Style in Ladakh. In The Inner Asian International Style 12th-14th Centuries, edited by D. Klimburg-Salter and E. Allinger, 151-69. Vienna: Verlag der terreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1998. . Art Historical Aspects of Dating Tibetan Art. In Dating Tibetan Art, edited by I. Kreide-Damani, 25-38. Wiesbaden: Dr. Ludwig Reichert Verlag, 2003. Pal, Pratapaditya. Himalayas: An Aesthetic Adventure. Chicago and Berkeley: Art Institute of Chicago and University of California Press, 2003. Prebish, Charles S. Buddhist Monastic Discipline: The Sanskrit Prtimoka Stras of the Mahsaghikas and Mlasarvstivdins. Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1975.

Heller: A Thang ka Portrait of Bri gung rin chen dpal, Jig rten gsum mgon (1143-1217)

10

Singer, Jane Casey. Taklung Painting. In Tibetan Art: Towards a Definition of Style, edited by Jane Casey Singer and Philip Denwood, 52-67. London: Laurence King Publishing, 1997. Snellgrove, David and Tadeusz Skorupski. The Cultural Heritage of Ladakh. Warminster: Aris and Phillips, 1980.