Professional Documents
Culture Documents
WIENER STUDIEN
ZUR TIBETOLOGIE UND BUDDHISMUSKUNDE
HERAUSGEGEBEN VON
ERNST STEINKELLNER
HEFT 25
W I E N 1990
DIVINITY SECULARIZED
WIEN 1990
zu b e z i e h e n v o n :
A r b e i t s k r e i s für T i b e t i s c h e und B u d d h i s t i s c h e S t u d i e n
Maria T h e r e s i e n - S t r a ß e 3 / 4 / 2 6 , A - 1 0 9 0 Wien, A u s t r i a
Contents
Preface 7
Introduction 9
The Editions of Tshahs-dbyahs rgya-mtsho'i mgul-glu 33
The Critical Edition of Tshahs-dbyahs rgya-mtsho'i mgul-glu 43
Appendices
Rig-'dzin Tshahs-dbyahs rgya-mtsho'i gsuh-mgur , 285
Apparatus Criticus and Explanatory Notes to
Rig-'dzin Tshahs-dbyahs rgya-mtsho'i gsuh-mgur 341
Bibliography 451
PREFACE
Per K $0rensen
Copenhagen
I n t r o d u c t i o n
Since the first appearance to a Western public of the songs (mgul glu, mgur
glu, gsun mgur) ascribed to the Sixth Dalai Lama Blo-bzan Rin-chen Tkhans-
dbyans rgya-mtsho (A.D. 1683-1706), published by Sarat Chandra Das in
1915 in an Appendix to his Introduction to the Grammar of the Tibetan Lan-
guage, this remarkable corpus of poems has not only attracted the interest
of scholars of Tibetan history and literature but h a s also wielded a titillating
influence on the imagination of any reader who happened to embark upon
a study of this ghostlike figure and the crucial period in the history of Tibet
in which he lived. The reason for this sustained attention and never-dying
fascination is not difficult to find. His story holds all the elements of a tale.
Hardly any other figure in the entire Tibetan history is more shrouded in
mystery than the Sixth Dalai Lama. His short, but eventful life was utterly
entangled in conceit and constraint and his unprecedented rebellion and em-
barrassing conduct, which eventually cut his h u m a n life dramatically short,
would in the end all conduce to mould him into a legendary figure. The main
source for our sympathetic romanticization about his figure rests with the
famous poems of his, and if proved genuine, they remain well-nigh the only
testimony we possess to draw a picture, however faint, of the inner conflicts
and sentiments which dictated his actions and decisions. But genuine or not,
these celebrated and intriguing poems are for several reasons of compelling
importance.
Despite the numerous attempts to study and to translate the poems t h a t
so far have seen the light of the day, 1 no satisfactory and conclusive result
1. Occasionally the translators have edited the text and provided us with a translation. Com-
plete translations (chronologically): Yu Daoquan (with Zhao Yuanren), 1930, Love Songs
of the Sixth Dalai Lama Tshangs-dbyangs rgya-mtsho; Academia Sinica, The National Re-
search Institute of History and Philology Monograph Series, No. 5, Peiping; Al. David-Neel,
1952, Textes Tibétains Inédits, Paris, pp. 83-96 (reprint, Les Grands Classiques, Pygmalion,
Paris 1977); M.H. Duncan, 1961, Love Songs and Proverbs of Tibet, Mitre Press, London,
pp. 119-135; N. Simonsson, 1970, "Den Sjätte Dalai Lama", Litteraturens Klassiker, 16;
Orientalisk Diktning, Stockholm, pp. 175-84; K. Dhondrup, 1981, Songs of the Sixth Dalai
Lama, LTWA, Dharamsala; M. Tatz, 1981, "Songs of the Sixth Dalai Lama", The Tibet
Journal VI, (4), pp. 13-31; G.W. Houston, 1982, Wings of the White Crane. Poems of the
10
has yet been yielded. No doubt, the inborn intricacy of the poems remained
all along a serious impediment to a proper understanding and assessment
of them. A fully fledged inquiry into the songs' popular origin, into their
unfeigned poetical style and into the idiomatic language in which this corpus
is couched h a s therefore become imperative.
The present study shall be seen as an attempt to meet this long-felt
desideratum. My point of departure will be a careful and detailed study
of this corpus and an attempt to assess the literary and poetical qualities
of the songs' lyrics (gzas tshig). In particular, I have deemed it important
to produce as much textual documentation as possible in order to provide
a broader basis for our understanding of these essential folksongs. I have
searched through the tremendously rich storehouse of proverbs and folk-
songs which the Tibetans fortunately possess, with the single aim to trace
songs either identical with or parallel to the songs under consideration here.
Further, I have attempted to find pertinent textual passages and other cog-
nate song traditions in both the canonical and the autochthonous Tibetan
literature which—it is my hope—might shed renewed light not only upon
the songs' popular idiom, its vernacular or upon semantic peculiarities, b u t
also cast new light upon the cultural and historical setting behind the songs.
It goes without saying t h a t such a thorough philological and historical
investigation is hinged upon a solid and reliable critical edition. In the light
of new material in my possession, I have likewise deemed it necessary in the
present study to expand a previously published edition 2 into a new critical
edition, based upon all available editions. My new critical edition will this
time hopefully prove exhaustive, as I have availed myself of eleven editions
published in recent years.
Tshangs dbyangs rgya mtsho (1683-1706), Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi; L.S. Savitsky, 1983,
Can'jan Dzamco: Pesni, Prijatnye dlja slucha; (Idz. teksta, perevod s tibetskogo, issled.
i komm.), Moskva; Ph. van Heurck, 1984, Chants attribués à Tsangyang Gyatso, Contri-
bution à la littérature tibétaine, Opuscula Tibetana 16, Rikon/ZH; B. Vilgrain, 1986, La
Raison de l'oiseau; Poèmes de Tshanyang Gyatso, Sixième Dalaï Lama; Les Immémoriaux,
Fata Morgana, Paris; D. M. Back, 1986, Liebeslieder des VI. Dalai Lama; Aus dem Tibetis-
chen übersetzt, mit Anmerkungen und einem Nachwort versehen; Verlag Wolf Mersch,
Freiburg; P. K. S0rensen, 1986, Pâ Kserlighedens Vmger i Himmelhavet. Den Sjette Dalai
Lamas hemmelige kaerlighedsdigte; Janus, K0benhavn.
In addition to the above translations in Western languages we can avail ourselves with up
to ten translations into Chinese. Among the most prominent we should mention (complete):
Yu Daoquan, 1930 (cf. supra); Liu Xinu, *Kângdao Yuèkân', 1939, Vol. 1, no. 6; Wang
Yinuan, Xïzàng Duanshïjt, 1958; Wang Yinuan, Cängyäng Jiäcud qinggè, Qinghai Nat.
PubL House, 1980 (cf. ed. E); Zhuang Jing, Cängyäng Jiäcud qinggè ji mîzhuàn, Nat.
Publ. House, Beijing, 1981 (cf. ed. H). The above translations may be found reproduced
in Huang Hao & Wu Biyun (ed.), 1982, Cängyäng Jiäcuö ji qi qmggë yanjiü, Tibet Nat.
Publ. House, Lhasa; pp. 274-285, 286-300, 310-329, 348-380. In addition, the latter book
is also provided with partial or supplementary translations of songs ascribed to Tshans-
dbyans rgya-mtsho by Chinese scholars, such as by Li Jiaju, Zeng Jian and Sulang Jiacuo
& Zhou Liangpei. Consensus prevails among the Chinese scholars that the translation by
Wang Yinuan is the best made into Chinese; cf. Li Ming, 1988, p. 54.
2. Cf. Indo-Iranian Journal, 31 (4), 1988, pp. 253-298.
11
richly accessible to the scholars, and with the steadily increasing publica-
tions efforts in India and in Tibet proper, much new material, especially
contemporary texts, have come to light.
Our brief survey shall in the main be chronological, inasmuch as a ty-
pological approach will not always do as a demarcating yardstick. Terms
such as glu and mgur (usually the honorific for glu) and later gias, the
most commonly used terms for a song or a ballad, are employed r a t h e r in-
discriminately, as none of the terms can neither be assigned to a specific
type of song nor to a specific period of time. Moreover, the transmission of
poetry and song-poems embedded in the canonical and epical literature is
almost invariably written in a uniform, homogeneous fashion, t h a t makes
it virtually impossible to distinguish the material along stylistic and purely
genre-typological criteria.
The D y n a s t i c P e r i o d
Almost all literary documents dating back from the oldest period contain
versified material in some form. The Dun-huang material, our oldest con-
temporary text data, but also later historical sources holding older strata
of literary evidence, will attest to the popularity of expressing historical
events and narratives in a versified poetical form and diction. 5 The material
abounds in written and oral poems (nag thog gi snan hag) of sorts, hymns,
odes, prayers as well as traditional songs (glu, mchid), not to speak of apho-
ristic (e.g. the Maxims (éags) of the Sum-pa Mother (ma)), divinatory (mo)
or enigmatic (Ide'u) songs t h a t at one and the same time were couched in
a simple and an arcane language replete with archaism and onomatopoetic
phrases.
The characteristic dearth of fixed schemes of rhyme and alliteration in
the Tibetan poetical and metrical tradition, evident not only in this early
period but also later, was in this period fully compensated by such euphonic
devices as assonance, a condensed rhythm and, not infrequently, a doubling
and trebling of syllables t h a t carried no lexical meaning, but used such ono-
matopoetic phrases for euphonic and descriptive reasons. The main division
was mostly, but not exclusively, strophic with a dominant dipodic metre,
where each verse-line (tshig rkan) evinced a hexa-syllabic (tsheg khyim drug
Idan) structure made up by two dactylic feet. But we also find verse-lines
with an uneven (tsheg bar do mi mnam pa) structure, mostly from three to
nine syllables and samples with other rhythmic patterns.
Almost as a rule all even-length verses were six-syllabic. The most salient
feature of the even-length poetry of the early period was the regular oc-
5. See foremost R. Stein, Recherches sur l'épopée et le barde au Tibet, chap. DC, pp. 485-533;
R. Stein, The Tibetan Civilization, pp. 252-281; F. W. Thomas, Ancient Folk-Literature from
North-Eastern Tibet, pp. 107-108,118-129,143-149; Don-grub-rgyal, mGwr-glu'i lo-rgyus>
pp. 42-130, where a number of textual extracts hailing from the dynastic period are quoted.
13
The Post-Dynastic P e r i o d
It is common knowledge 8 t h a t in almost all treatises and works translated
into canonical Tibetan from Sanskrit and Chinese the four-lined (tshig rkan
bii) iso-syllabic stanza or strophe (the Tibetan éloka) became the fixed norm
in versification (tshigs bead). The most prevalent metrical form was the
hepta-syllabic in the s/oAa-quatrains, but lines in eight, nine, eleven, and
in some sophisticated cases of kävya even up to twenty-one syllables, would
also regularly be found. But the single most important feature was the
change from the dactylic rhythm of the dynastic period to a trochaic one, a
rhythmic form of folk origin which appeared to be much more in conformity
with the n a t u r e of the Tibetan language. It will be recalled t h a t the basic
bricks of the Tibetan language mainly consist of a bi-syllabic unit made up
by a stem and a particle or, phrased differently, made up by a semantically
strong syllable followed by a semantically weaker syllable. In this trochaic
foot the first syllable is always strong and accented (arsis) and the second,
whether a particle or a proper stem itself, is weak and unaccented (thesis).
The metrical syntagm or division by way of units of trochaic feet (tsheg bar
cha) was going to wield an overwhelming influence both on the contemporary
but also on all later verse and song traditions in Tibet.
This pattern quickly became the most dominant form and was invariably
found in most of the classical and canonical versified literature. The Tibetan
translation of the popular aphoristic and proverbial literature (subhäsita,
legs bead),9 predominantly rendered in seven-syllable (tsheg bar bdun maï
tshigs bead) and nine-syllable metre (tsheg bar dgu ma'i tshigs bead), con-
6. Cf. R. Stein, The Tibetan Civilization, p. 253 et seq.; Don-grub-rgyal, ibid., p. 131.
7. For text-samples cf. e.g. J. Bacot, F.W. Thomas and Ch. Toussaint, Documents de Tùuen-
houng Relatifs à l'Histoire du Tibet, pp. 107,1.18-108,1.21, tr. R. Stein, ibid., pp. 255-58;
Don-grub-rgyal, ibid., pp. 51, 54, 59-60, 65-67, 75, 78-79, 82-S5, 92, 95-96, 102-104,
110-115, 124-126.
8. Cf. e.g. M. Hahn, Jnânasrïmitras Vrttamälästuti, pp. 56-73; Dun-dkar Blo-bzan 'phrin-las,
sNan-hag la 'jug-tshul tshig-rgyan rig-pa'i sgo-'byed, p. 26ff.
9. Cf. J.E. Bosson, 1969, A Treasury of Aphoristic Jewels. For a good survey of Tibetan
subhäsita-MteratuTe, cf. L. Sternbach, 1981, "Indian Wisdom and its Spread beyond India",
JAOS', 101, pp. 124-25; T. Malanova, 1984, "On The Sanskrit Subhäsita-Literature in
Tibet*, Tibetan and Buddhist Studies, Vol. 2, (éd. L. Ligeti), Akadémiai Kiadö, pp. 141-
151.
14
sisted of three (resp. four) and a half feet. In other words, the quatrains were
made up by three (resp. four) trochaic feet (tsheg bar cha gsum) followed by
a catalectic (often accented) half foot (tsheg bar y a gcig). But other patterns
were cherished too in the classical literature, such as e.g. even-numbered
eight-syllable strophes (tsheg bar brgyad maï tshigs bead) t h a t either con-
sist of an initial metrically weak (unaccented) syllable (ya gcig), followed by
the above three and a half trochaic feet (cha gsum dan ya gcig) or the line
may first consist of a three-syllable dactylic foot, followed by regular trochaic
feet.
With the pivotal translation of Dandin's Kävyädarsa into Tibetan, initially
translated in parts by Sa-skya Pandita (A.D. 1182-1251) and subsequently
in full by Öon-lo rDo-rje rgyal-mtshan during the time of Thags-pa Bla-ma
Blo-gros rgyal-mtshan (A.D. 1235-1280), the way was paved for the Tibetan
adaptation of the more sophisticated and refined rules of Indian Kunstdich-
tung (kävya, snan nag) and metrics (chandah, sdeb sbyor). It evidently gave
rise to a burgeoning number of translations as well as native compositions in
complex prosody and poetry, an influence which was used to the full within
learned circles, leaving a lasting imprint on subsequent secular and religious
poetry, though only to a limited degree.
Although this versified kind of moralistic precepts mentioned above was
not intended to be sung, the steady flow of writings and manuals of this sort,
the popularity of which gained a firm footing in the wake of the writings of
Sa-skya Pandita and his school, exerted a tremendous influence on the later
folksong tradition by supplying it with a storehouse of proverbs and worldly
adages. A brief perusal of the Tibetan song tradition will attest to this.
The transition in the metrical structure was, as said, not only observable
in the canonical literature from the sha dar to the phyi dar period, but first
and formost detectable in the secular and folk literature such as it is evident
in the huge Ge-sar Epic.
Religious Songs
Mi-la ras-pa (A.D. 1040-1123), 10 without comparison Tibet's most gifted poet,
came to stand as the foremost exponent of the folk-inspired religious poetry
t h a t found expression in an oral and written song tradition from the tenth
and eleventh century and onwards. His poems are essentially folksongs and
his song tradition can in form and, to some extent also, in content doubtlessly
trail its origin and roots further back in time, b u t with the post-dynastic Bud-
dhist monopolization of the literary and, for all we know, poetical medium in
Tibet, the prevailing popular lyrical and oral songster tradition found ways
to express its voice through these song traditions.
10. For a convenient survey of this poet-saints' vita and his poetic opera, cf. Don-grub-rgyal,
mGur-glu'i lo-rgyus, pp. 138-189; The compilation (bsgrigs byed) of both the rNam-thar
and the mGur-'bum is credited gTsan-smyon He-ru-ka (A.D. 1452-1507), the Madman from
gTsan alias Sans-rgyas rgyal-mtshan.
15
The new prosodie and metric departure mentioned above came into full
blossom in his songs imgur)}1 Equally important, in his lyrics we should
first of all appreciate a strong use of figures of speech, a panorama of char-
acteristic images, similes and epithets which he draw partly from a genuine
Tibetan storehouse of symbols in particular from the Tibetan nature, partly
from standard symbols and epithets taken over from the rich Indian Bud-
dhist symbolic world, by then to a large extent already integrated into the
mind of many Tibetan poets. Further, we shall also see in his poetry and
in his stylistic techniques the use of antithesis and parallelism, a pattern
already known from the dynastic period, but perhaps refined here under in-
fluence of the above-mentioned aphoristic literature 12 translated from San-
skrit.
The single most decisive incitement in his song-lyrics, no doubt an ori-
entation which was later refined in the tradition he initiated, and which
moreover gave rise and name to a whole genre, was the inspiration he de-
rived from the mahäsiddha tradition of the Indian yogins, with which Mi-
la ras-pa and his bKa'-brgyud-pa lineage of Tibetan Tantric adepts consid-
ered themselves spiritually affiliated in direct line. To Mi-la ras-pa esoteric
instructions {éal gdams), yogic-meditative teachings and revelations were
transmitted from his teacher Mar-pa Chos kyi Blo-gros (A.D. 1012-1097)
of lHo-brag and further back from the Indian yogin-saints Näropa (A.D.
956-1040) and Tilopa. The spiritual dohä and caryä songs, 13 themselves of
folk origin, were composed by the Tantric siddhas of India where they had
turned out to be an apt medium to propagate their doctrines, coating and
veiling the esoteric message in allusive phrases and in an enigmatic lan-
guage (samdhyäbhäsä, dgons pa'i skad), rich in imagery and replete with
double entendre and homonymous puns. The Tibetan translations of these
collections of mystic songs gave in turn their Tibetan confrères inspiration
to a new way of expressing their religious experience and awareness (nams
len, nams rtogs), their meditative realization (sgrub pa) and their esoteric
instructions Hal gdams). But the scope of the songs went further than that.
Not infrequently the religious topics expressed took form of prayers and
requests (gsol ba 'debs) addressed to one's teacher or took form of an admon-
ishion (bskul ba) urging someone, usually disciples, to study and practise
the Dharma.
The tradition quickly gained a firm footing in Tibet not only in the spiritual
transmission-lineages of the bKa'-brgyud-pas but also within other denomi-
nations. These popular songs were commonly known as rdo rje'i glu or mgur
ma (vajragïti), but the genre had also other designations, such as rdo rjegsan
baï glu, mkha' 'gro maï mgur, mal Vbyorpa'i] mgur, the songs of the dâkinî
11. Cf. e.g. R. Stein, Recherches sur l'épopée et le barde au Tibet, pp. 501-508; R. Stein, The
Tibetan Civilization, pp. 259-262.
12. Cf. R. Stein, Recherches, pp. 486-498.
13. Cf. e.g. P. Kvaerne, An Antology of Buddhist Tantric Songs.
16
(the mystic consort), the yogin's song, or just religious songs, chos glu. An
oft-quoted antology of songs, known under the short title bKa'-brgyud mgur-
rntsho, "An Ocean of [Spiritual] Songs of the bKa'-brgyud [Lineage]", attests
to the popularity of compositing, reading and listening to these allusive and
mystical songs in Tibet. 14 A large number of adepts and renowned mystics,
but also traditional monk-scholars took recourse to express their religious
joy and praise, their devotion and their realization and raptures in similar
mgur mc-s, suffice it to mention e.g. the madman-yogin and poetic saint
'Brug-pa Kun-legs (A.D. 1455-1529), 15 but also eminent figures such as IV.
'Brug-pa chen-po, Kun-mkhyen Padma dkar-po (A.D. 1527-1592), the Sev-
enth Dalai Lama bsKal-bzan rgya-mtsho (A.D. 1708-1757) and ICah-skya
rol-pa'i rdo-rje (A.D. 1717-1786). 16
Another treasury-house rich in versified poetical material of sundry sorts
and to a large extent also originating from the medieval period is the large
bulk of mainly narrative song-poems transmitted within the huge Gesar
Saga. 17 Despite some good preliminary remarks by R. Stein, R. Kaschewsky
14. Full title mChog gi dnos-grub mhon-du byed-pa'i myur-lam bka'-brgyud bla-ma-rnams k
rdo-rje'i mgur-dbyans ye-ses char-'bebs rah-grol Ihun-grub bde-chen rab-'bar nes-don r
mtsho'i snin-po; Ed. Rumtek Ial-142a4; ed. dPal-spuns lal-87bl. The text contains the
selection of songs ascribed to e.g. Tilopa, Mar-pa, Mi-la ras-pa, sGam-po-pa etc. For a
convenient English translation, cf. Ch. Trungpa (ed.), The Rain of Wisdom, Shambhala
1980.
15. Cf. R. Stein, 1972, Vie et Chants de 'Brug-pa Kun-legs, G.P. Maisonneuve et Larose, Paris;
R. Stein, 1973, "Le Texte Tibétain de 'Brug-pa Kun-legs", Zentralasiatische Studien, 7, Otto
Harrassowitz, pp. 9-220. K. Dowman & Sonam Paljor, 1980, The Divine Madman: The
Sublime Life and Songs of Drukpa Kunley, Rider, London; A. Kretschmar, 1981, 'Brug-
pa Kun-legs: Das Wundersame Lebens eines verrückten Heiligen, Sankt Augustin, VGH
Wissenschaftsverlag.
16. Cf. Don-grub-rgyal, mGur-glu'i lo-rgyus, pp. 190—195. A translation of songs by the Seventh
Dalai Lama has been made by Glenn Mullin.
17. The research into the huge Gesar epical tradition is making good progress. In recent years
a substantial number of contributions has emerged. R. Stein made the pioneering studies,
first and foremost in his (1956) L'épopée tibétaine de Gesar and his bulky (1959) Recherches
sur l'épopée et le barde au Tibet. Aside form the massive works by R. Stein, other scholars
in Europe and abroad have made important studies. In Germany R. Kaschewsky and Pema
Tsering(1972, 1979, 1981-82, 1985, 1987) have done some enlightening detail-studies on
the literary style and epic motives as well as on some mythological and historical aspects
of the epos; the prolific Mongolist W. Heissig (1978, 1982-83, 1985, 1987) has also in
this field rendered scholarship indispensable service, here by making detailed spade-work
on the Mongolian Fassung of Gesar; S. Hermanns (1987-88), finally, has researched into
the West-Tibetan (purely oral) version, continuing the preliminary works of A.H. Francke
(1905-1941) in this field. M. Helffer (1977) has studied the literary and musical aspects. In
India Mr. Tashi Tsering (bRra-éis Tshe-rin, LTWA, Dharamsala) has taken a keen interest
in this tradition and also from G. Samuel (Newcastle, Australia), who is currently engaged
in anthropological and socio-cultural studies on the Gesar epic and its place in the East-
Tibetan society, can we look forward to publications in the future. Most notable perhaps
is the efforts demonstrated by the Tibetan and Han-Chinese scholars in PRC to promote
what we may now aptly call Gesariana, a new field of its own right within Tibetology.
A large amount of studies and text-editing has been published and research-groups of
anthropologists and literary historians have been set up in all major centres of Tibetology
17
and P. Tsering 18 on the literary motifs and popular symbols handed down
in some of these narrative songs, a full inquiry is still an eagerly awaited
desideratum. What can be said now is t h a t the dominant trochaic orientation
of Tibetan metrics in the post-dynastic period is also faithfully found in full
use in the Gesar narrative song tradition. Turning to the rich symbolic world
in the epic lyrics, we similarly find in many places a clear thematic and
stylistic cognation between the Gesar Epos and e.g. the folk-inspired songs
of Mi-la ras-pa in the use of motifs, epithets and metaphors. Evidently, they
both draw from a common repository of similes and symbols.
Tibetan Folksongs
Glu
The designation glu is the most common term for folksongs throughout Tibet
and is applicable to a variety of special sub-types of songs. But the term is
in particular used in mDo-smad, i.e. Khams of East-Tibet as the prevailing
term for songs of folk origin. It is marked by a metrical diversity, as it may
have a strophic structure of four lines, the most common form, but verse-
lines {tshig rkaft) may be found ranging from two to six lines, where each
line carries from five to nine syllables (tsheg bar). Usually the verses appear
in sets of three. 2 3 The texts (glu tshig) of glu-songs are sung or recited in
connection with major festivals and ceremonies (rgyun srol gyi dus chert)
such as in connection with public religious gatherings (chos glu\24 nuptial
ceremonies (gnen sgrigs byed, i.e. bag ston glu)9 at sportive horse-racing (rta
rgyugs), dancing (zlos gar), picnic (skyid skyid gton sa) or at occasions such
as public or private entertainment (rol rtsed) and parties where e.g. drinking
songs (chart glu) are sung etc.
Glu s a g s
As a pendant to the Central Tibetan tshig rgyag type of repartee song, this
East Tibetan glu éags type of song is an extremely popular form of alternate
sarcastic songs aiming at teasing (glu éags rgyag pa) a counterpart with
words, often traded in regular song competition on wits, as e.g. a mating
banter between the two sexes or as a bout of social criticism. These songs
evince a metrical structure identical to the cognate glu of which it may also
be considered a sub-type. 25
22. Some of these terms are of a recent origin, and evidently reflect an attempt at formalizing
and systematizing the data available. Concerning the data published in the PRC, the
Tibetan material is clearly compiled under some influence from or in corroboration with
Chinese scholars. A usable introduction to the folksongs is given in Bod-rigs kyi dmans-gzas
gces-bsdus, pp. 1-23.
23. Cf. mGur-glu'i lo-rgyus, pp. 21-23; sDe-dge'i dmans-glu, pp. 55ff.; Bod kyi dmans-glu snan-
dban gso-ba'i bdud-rtsi, pp. 1-701 passim. This huge work supplies us with over 1500
poems and songs of the glu type, many in East Tibetan idiom.
24. The term chos glu must here be clearly distinguished from mgur ma, although a termino-
logical overlappping is evident, as the term chos glu is found in many colophons when in
fact the text contains mgur ma songs. mGur ma specifically refers to the text-written spir-
itual songs of the Mi-la ras-pa tradition, being recited and sung exclusively by the monks
of the religious community. The chos glu refers to songs of folk origin and style, being sung
by lay people at religious ceremonies and at public festivals. They may have a religious
content and be devotional, but the topics are mostly secular and worldly, and express not
seldom exchange of greetings and good wishes (bkra sis pa). Cf. also the West Tibetan
tradition, N.T. Shakspo, 1985, p. 99-100.
25. Cf. for samples mGur-glu'i lo-rgyus, p. 22-23; Bod kyi dmans-glu snan-dban gso-ba'i bdud-
rtsi, pp. 441-672.
19
La gzas
The mountain songs or rather 'pass-songs' (la gzas)26 are also designated ri
glu. This East Tibetan type is in fact the form used for what we may call
love songs. The lyrics is exclusively devoted the usual themes of love be-
tween man and woman. The lyrics is full of amorous sentiments exchanged
between lovers (rogs 'grogs pa), on mutual harmony (ze rnthun pa), on rec-
ollection of the lover (rogs dran pa) as well as theme on lovelornness when
being separated (kha bral ha) etc. The metrical structure resembles the glu
above. 27
gZas
Turning to the dBus and gTsan provinces or Central Tibet proper, by far
the most prevalent type found is the song type denoted g£as,28 in common
parlance occasionally also glu gzas. This type is extemely popular. The
songs ascribed to the Sixth Dalai Lama, the subject under study in his book,
belong to this type. A song labelled gzas is almost uniformly strophic, mostly
being a quatrain (tshig rkan bei), though verses (tshigs bead) in two, six and
rarely eight lines are found also. The metrical structure of the song-lines is
iso-syllabic (tsheg bar do mnam), consisting exclusively of six-syllabic (tsheg
bar drug dan Idan, tsheg khyim drug daft Idan) lines (tshig rkah). When
scanned (gcodpa), read or recited (klogpa, 'don pa), the line should therefore
be read in pairs (zuh du, mnam du, lhan du) of three bi-syllabic (tsheg bar
gfiis) units (tsheg bar cha gsum), i.e. consisting of three trochaic feet. 29 For
example, to take a song ascribed to the Sixth Dalai Lama, no. 53:
26. Cf. sDe-dgeï dmaiïs-glu, p. 3ff.; Bod kyi la-gzas gzon-nu 'gugs-pa'i Icags-kyu, passim. This
collection of la-gzas couched in the colloquial A-mdo idiom (phal skad) contains over one
thousand verses. The la-gzas type may be compared to the type called mgur mo (to be
distinguished from mgur ma), likewise a type of alternate or antiphonal song between
prospective connubial candidates; cf. M. Causemann, Tibetische Lieder, pp. 51-74. In either
cases the singing of such songs with a love theme in the presence of old people is deemed
inappropriate. Interestingly, the term la gzas may in fact be of recent date and moreover
probably not Tibetan, as it may simply reflect the Chinese shângë genre, the ^Mountain
Songs' which similarly are witty and rustic love songs; cf. the collection compiled by the
Ming folklorist Feng Menglong (A.D. 1590-ca. 1646) in C. Tölpermann, Shan-ko von Feng
Meng-lung, Münchener Ostasiatische Studien, 9.
27. Cf. mGur-glu'i lo-rgyus, pp. 23-24; sDe-dge'i dmans glu, p. 3.
28. A steady flurry of collections oîgzas emàglu gzas songs has appeared in recent years, cf.
the bibliography. Most conveniently, the collection compiled by Namkhai Norbu Dewang
and G. Tucci may be consulted, as they conveniently supply the reader with the lyrics
transcribed, a translation and an appendix where the songs are interpretated; cf. N. Norbu,
1967, Musical Tradition of the Tibetan People, Serie Orientale Roma XXXVI, pp. 205-338;
G. Tucci, 1949, 1966, Tibetan Folksongs from the District ofGyantse, Artibus Asiae, passim.
As it may appear from Norbu's collection and e.g. from the collection sDe-dgeï dmahs-glu,
pp. 89-116, the six-syllable gzas type is in vogue in Khams too, but its dominance of the
folksong tradition and its provenance is found in Central Tibet.
29. Cf. mGur-glu'i lo-rgyus, p. 200; sNan-hag la 'jug-tshul tshig-rgyan rig-pa'i sgo-'byed, pp. 27
29
20
sr
°d la byarns pa htsal bas
ha man po bob byuh \
daft ma gsan mi 'dug
j zabs rjes gans la biag yod \
The outcome of the three-footed line is a rhythmic and melodious sequence,
which is very suitable to be sung and danced to. The gias type is to a large
extent folkdance songs. A number of tunes or melodies (dbyahs) exists to
which each gzas type of song can be sung. 30 In Lhasa we find a rich musical
dance and song tradition, going hundreds of years back, which is known
through the terms nan ma and stodgias,31 a tradition which uses six-syllable
gias types of songs, among them also the lyrics of the Sixth Dalai Lama.
The lyrics {gias tshig), like the glu type above, may cover all aspects of
life. Turning to the origin of the gias, we must assume t h a t it reaches at
least four or five hundred years back. 32 The etymology of gias is clearly
affiliated with biad pa, "to laugh", "to smile" (= dgad, gad mo), i.e. "to joke"
and "to amuse". It is obviously associated with pantomime of some sort. In
a passage in a biography of 'Brug pa Kun-legs of the fifteenth century, it is
related how the saint at one festival sang (gias 'then) and danced (éon byed).
The song was a six-syllable song. 33 Although the instance related goes back
to 'Brug-pa Kun-legs, the biography, it should be noted, was written in A.D.
1786. In the Biography of Prince Nor-bzan, a popular drama play, written
around the turn of the seventeenth century, we also find a number of typical
six-syllable gias songs included in the text.
Tshig rgyag
A surprisingly large number of the gias songs mentioned above belongs to
a particular type of repartee songs called tshig rgyag, lit. "to hit (or strike
with) words", 34 in full tshig rgyaggi gias. It is tremendously popular in Cen-
30. Cf. N. Norbu, ibid., pp. 338-347. 3
31. Cf. G. Samuel, 1976, "Songs of Lhasa , Etknomusicology, XX, pp. 407,449; G. Samuel, 1986,
"Music of Lhasa Minstrels", in Zlos-gar, pp. 13-19; Ni-sgrol, 1983, "lHa-sa'i stod-gzas kyi
éabs-bror dbye-éib byas-pa", Bod-ljohs glu-gar, no. 3, pp. 24-27; Éol-khan dar-rgyas, 1985,
"Glu-gar gyi rgya-mtsho", Ses-bya'i zegs-ma, no. 24, pp. 28-46; Éol-khan dar-rgyas, 1987,
"sTod-g£as dan nan-ma'i g£as kyi byun-ba mdo-tsam brjod-pa", Bod rig-paï gros-mol tskogs
'di'i ched-rtsom gces-bsdus, pp. 429—449.
32. Cf. also Li Xueqin, 1986, "Qiantân "xié" tï qmggë jî qî yuânyuân", Qïnghâi Minzû Xuéyuàn
Xuébào, no. 11 (4), pp. 88-89; Wen Chen, 1987, ""Xié" tï mïngë tànyuân", Xïzàng Minzû
Xuéyuàn Xuébào, 1987, no. 1, pp. 39-42.
33. Cf. R. Stein, 1972, pp. 287-288; R. Stein, 1973, fol. 112b. It is interesting to note that the
glu song 'is taken' (glu len pa, glu blahs pa), as if a concrete entity is involved, the gzas
song 'is send out' or 'delivered* (gzas gtoh ba, gzas btah ba, gzas 'then pa) indicating that
gzas has something to do with music.
34. Cf. first and foremost J. Snyder, 1968, Tshig-kyag: A Tibetan Alternate Song Competition;
J. Snyder, 1972, "Some Popular Songs of Tibet", Malahat Review 21, pp. 21-35; J. Van
Manen, 1921, "Three Repartee Songs", JASB, n.s. XVII (4), pp. 287-318. Cf. the various
samples of folksongs compiled by mKhas-btsun bzan-po, 1974, in his book gTam-dpe sna-
21
tral Tibet, but has its typological correlate in the West-Tibetan tshig glu35
and the East-Tibetan glu éags mentioned above. By nature it is, as said, a
kind of repartee song, replete with sardonic hints and quips which aim at
teasing, criticizing (mtshah 'dru ba) or verbally capping (tshig gis dgagpa)36
an opponent. It has in fact given rise to veritable song-contests in which
two alternating parties trade epigrammatic and allusive songs. These often
good-natured contests on words are aiming at outwitting the other party,
where the party offering the last song, leaving the other party or person(s)
at their wits' end, has won the competition. This tradition clearly has differ-
ent but related roots and can boast great antiquity in Tibet. 37 The alternate
or antiphonal song tradition (skorgzas) between two parties is old and diver-
sified. One form is e.g. witnessed in the tradition of staging veritable com-
petitions between villages during certain festivals, as the reported songfest
contest between Gun-than and Grib. 38 Or the songs may find expression
in the courting ceremonies between men and women. Another refinement
of this tradition of witty and rhetorical songs we can notice in the popular
street songs of Lhasa. These sarcastic {tshig zur rgyag, khrel dgod zur za)
and pun-ridden caricature ballads have for long survived as a sort of public
commentary or social bout, doubtless engendered in default of any other apt
means in Tibet of expressing social resentment, public ridicule, etc. 39 More
relevant, the songs of the Sixth Dalai Lama as well as the huge collection of
songs contained in Rig-'dzin Tshahs-dbyahs rgya-mtsho'i gsun-mgur are to a
large extent to be defined as tshig rgyag gi gias, rich as they are in metaphors
and puns and moreover not infrequently couched in polite language, a sure
sign of sarcasm by Tibetan standard. Another term for this kind of lapidary
song is gdans thun gzas,40 'short voice songs', i.e. brief narrative songs.
tshogs dan gzas-tshig kha-sas, collected under the headings 'songs of amusement arousing
mutual laughter' {bead gad sloh res byed pa'i dga* rtsed kyi glu gzas) and 'repartee songs'
(gzas sags rgyag pa), pp. 107-114; *banter songs between boys and girls' (bu dan bu mo'i
glu sags) and further 'repartee songs' (tshig rgyag gam rgyag glu), pp. 114—132, 133—143.
35. Cf. N.T. Shakspo, 1985, "Ladakhi Folk Songs", Soundings in Tibetan Civilization, p. 102.
36. Cf. e.g. mGur-glu'i lo-rgyus, p. 21; J. Snyder, 1972, pp. 20-21.
37. Competitive songs expressing criticism, often in form of questions and responses and in
form of riddles, are documented already in the Dun-huang chronicles; cf. e.g. J. Bacot (et
al.), 1940, Documents de Touen-Houang Relatifs a l'Histoire de Tibet, pp. 104, 118-20, 134-
5, 161-67; J. Snyder, 1972, pp. 21-23. Cf. also R. Stein, 1959, p. 442, who refers to a skor
gzas (to be distinguished from the thematically related sgor gzas) in form of question and
response (gtoh Ian) between a group of men (pho sog) and women (mo sog), here it clearly
refers to a mating banter between prospective connubial candidates.
38. Cf. J. Snyder, 1972, pp. 23-24.
39. Cf. J. Snyder, 1972, p. 24; M. Goldstein, 1982, "Lhasa Street Songs: Political and Social
Satire in Traditional Tibet", The Tibet Journal, VII (1-2), pp. 56-66; for many modern
street-songs composed in the gzas style of six-syllabic quatrains; cf. M. Goldstein, 1988, A
History of Modern Tibet, pp. 63, 93, 120, 154, 184, 209-11, 313, 337, 348-49, 375, 376-77,
446-49, 467-S8, 495, 515-16, 520;
40. Cf. Yu Daoquan, 1930, pp. 37-38.
22
sGor g z a s
Another type of the alternate or antiphonal song is the sgor gzas and the
gral gias which designate 'circle songs' and Vow songs', a tradition which is
intimately associated with dance and music. 4 1 During festivals and feasts
the singers are arranged in circles or in rows of singers, where each singer
consecutively would take the lead or each row of singers alternate with an-
other line of singers, be it male or female. The content of these songs may, as
always, cover many aspects, b u t most regularly they contain pronouncement
of good wishes and auspicious remarks, when they are not amorous in char-
acter. Another kind of row song, to be sure, is the traditional working chants
employed during construction-work (a rgyag) or harvesting, when they are
most commonly sung by girls. 42 But courtship and mating remains the key
incitement behind the majority of these song tournaments. Strictly within
the group of entertainment songs, displaying a structure identical with the
ordinary gzas, we should not overlook the popular chah gzas.43
Aside from these major types of songs we should also mention the type
gzas chert, the 'great song* which not only have another metrical structure,
but more regularly designates formal songs of celebration to be sung during
festivals. The ka gias, 'alphabetical songs', is yet another cherished type of
entertainment song 44 to test the wits and skill of the singer, where each new
line initiates with a new letter in the alphabet.
What makes the songs (mgul glu, mgur glu, gsun mgur)45 ascribed to the
Sixth Dalai Lama quite exceptional is partly their allegedly controversial
41. These types of songs are well-known all over Asia; cf. M. Granet, 1932, Festivals and Songs
of Ancient China, p. 138ff., 207ff.
42. For the lyrics (gzas tshig) of the sgor gzas and related working songs (e.g. bzo zin 'brog
gsum gyi las rtsol byed), cf. e.g. gZas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, pp. 23ff.
43. For a good essay of the Cenral Tibetan type of 'drinking song* and its cultural background,
cf. bKra-éis dpal-ldan, "gTsan-ron gi chan-gzas", Bod kyi rtsom-rig sgyu-rtsal, 1983 (2),
pp. 74-77.
44. This playful and witty type of acrostic composition (ka phreh gi rgyan), akin to the Indian
aksaramälä and varnamälä poem, was a stylistic contrivance of great popularity among
Tibetan scholar-poets in their written poems. Formally it is a kind of figure of speech
(rgyan, alamkära) and evinces a variety of forms, cf. mGur-glu'i lo-rgyus, pp. 253-270.
45. The terminological vacillation is quite symptomatic for the uncertainty in denning the
corpus of songs. The terms mgul, i.e. neck (ske) or throat (mgrin pa), and mgur, which in
itself also means a neck or throat, are merely honorifics embellishing the ordinary term glu.
The term gsun mgur is again a respectful honorific added by later compilers of his songs.
These terms, along with the general content of the songs, have been part of a prolonged
discussion among Chinese scholars as to whether this corpus of songs can be called genuine
'love songs' (mdza} gzas, fdod [pa'i] gzas) or not. Cf. e.g. Xiao Diyan, sBran-char, 1987 (3),
pp. 55-56; sBrah-char, 1988 (3), p. 91; Li Ming, 1988, p. 49. The discussion appears to be
somewhat moot if not academic, as this coinage is only relevant to the modern reader and
lacks any foundation in the tradition itself.
23
content, partly the very attribution of the authorship to the high incarnate
God-king in Central Asia itself. The questions are closely related and should
not be dealt with separately.
The question of the Sixth Dalai Lama and his poems have been the subject
of a burgeoning number of studies in recent years, aside from the numerous
translations. 4 6 In the People's Republic of China the interest in these ques-
tions has turned into a 'new wave' (rba rlabsgsarpa) of research, attracting
a very large number of scholars. This h a s paved the way for a large number
of research papers, a flurry of scholarly activities, it appears, only surpassed
by the massive publication efforts in the studies on Gesar. It is still a 'hot
topic' (rè diànf1 among Chinese scholars.
Two works in particular provide a convenient summary of the research
conducted in the People's Republic of China. In 1982 Huang Hao and Wu
Biyun issued in Lhasa a bulky book entitled Tshahs-dbyahs rgya-mtsho and
his Love-songs: A Study,48 in which the compilers rendered anew a num-
ber of previously published text-editions of the songs (e.g. Das, Yu Dao-
quan, Zhuang Jing). They also supplied the book with a number of old
Chinese translations and reissued a number of smaller articles (in Chinese)
on Tshans-dbyans rgya-mtsho and his songs which until then had emerged.
Another good survey article is offered by Li Ming in his "A summarized Ex-
position of Research conducted in Recent Years in regard to Tshans-dbyans
rgya-mtsho and his Love-songs", 49 a sort of status report in which he sum-
marily enumerates the results and opinions expressed in a number of pa-
pers. The discussion in China tends to focus on two sets of questions. The
first discusses the possible pedigree (mi rigs) or nationality of Tshans-dbyans
rgya-mtsho, his creed (dad pa) and the year of his death ('das Zo),50 the other
46. Cf. note 1 supra. Aside from the pioneering endeavour by Yu Daoquan (1930), the most
penetrating studies so far on the songs have been offered by Savitsky (1983), van Heurck
(1984) and S0rensen (1988). Aris' (1988) recent study on the historical background is
indispensable.
47. Cf. rGyal-mo *Brug-pa, 1987, p. 98; Li Ming, 1988, p. 47. This overwhelming interest—and
to some extent also the legitimacy—among Chinese scholars to carry out research on the
Sixth Dalai Lama is no doubt also politically motivated. The human sentiments voiced in
Tshans-dbyans rgya-mtsho's alleged lyrics and the mundane aspects of his life would clearly
demonstrate the human and mortal nature behind his exalted figure. In the eyes of the
Chinese this would in some sense conduce to de-apotheosize, so to say, the very institution
of the Dalai Lama.
The contributions by the Chinese researchers often exhibit a general lack of methodology
not to say a regrettable reluctance or ignorance of availing themselves with pertinent Ti-
betan sources, even when these sources are readily at hand. This situation, it must be said,
applies less to the papers produced by Tibetan scholars such as the studies of Dun-dkar
and Chab-spel.
48. Cängyäng Jiäcuoji qi qinggë yânjiu, pp. 1-560.
49. "Jinniân Cängyäng Jiäcuö jf ql qinggë yanjiü zôngshù", Xîzàng Minzü Xuéyuàn Xuébào,
1988 (1-2), pp. 47-54.
50. Cf. Li Ming, 1988, pp. 47-49;
24
58. Cf. Thams-cad mkhyen-pa Nag-dban chos-grags dpal-bzah-po'i rnam-par thar-pa phul-
bywi-ba'i mdzad-pa bzan-po'i gtam-snan lha'i tambu-ra'i rgyud kyi sgra-dbyans, publ. in
Gedan Sungrab Minyam Gyunphel Series, vol. XVII and by Zhuang Jing 1981a (Tib. text)
and 1981b (Chin. tr.).
59. Cf. p. Klafkowski, 1979; Damdinsureng, 1981; Yu Naichang, 1982, pp. 90-93; Jia Lasen,
1984; Dor-£i gDon-drug söems-blo, 1984; Guo Weiping, 1985; rGyal-mo 'Brug-pa, 1987; Li
Ming, 1988, pp. 48-49; Aris, 1988, pp. 167ff.
60. Don-grub tshe-rin, 1984, "Rig-'dzin Tshans-dbyans rgya-mtsho'i lo-rgyus-skor gyi rnog-glen
'ga'-la dpyad-pa gans-sen dgyes-pa'i gtam", Nub-byan mi-rigs slob-grva chen-moï rig-gzun
dus-deb 1984 (1), pp. 98-101. Cf. also rGyal-mo 'Brug-pa, 1987, pp. 96-97.
61. Cf. pp. 167ff.
62. Cf. foremost Mao Jizu, 1979; Huang Hao & Wu Biyun, 1982; Li Ming, 1988, pp. 49-51.
63. Cf. the numerous discussions in Huang Hao & Wu Biyun, 1982.
64. Cf. "Cângyâng Jiäcuö qi rén qi shT, Xïzàng Minzû Xuéyuàn Xuébào 1985 (1), pp. 44-51;
"Tshans-dbyans rgya-mtsho'i mgur-glu'i gsar-'grel", sBran-char, 1987, (3), pp. 90-95; 1987
(4), pp. 55-57; 1988 (1), pp. 64-70; 1988 (2), pp. 61-72; 1988 (3), pp. 47-56. Cf. also the
discussion under note 7 in the next section.
65. Cf. Chab-spel, 1987, pp. 300ff.
66. Cf. uu
"Qiantân "xié" tï qinggë jï qî yuânyuân", pp. 83-89.
67. Cf. Xié" tï mîngê tànyuân", pp. 3&-42.
26
su 'god pa) or, for that matter, by means of veiling (gab pa) the meaning and
sense of its subject matter (brjod bya'i don) in various degrees. 75 This popu-
lar poetical device, commonly known to the Tibetans as dpe don mtshuhs pa
(or dpe don 'brel chags), i.e. "to illustrate a concrete object or a statement by
way of a simile", is widely used in all fields of literature. But the strophic
subhäsita and niti literature and the rich poetical and epic [folkjsong tradi-
tion are in particular replete with this allusive figure of speech. The pattern
of antithesis or parallelism is, as said, most regularly employed in order
to illustrate, compare, contrast or in order to enforce a concrete object or a
statement. Moreover, these similes or allusions—in the main drawn from
nature or society—may arbitrarily be presented either in the first couplet
or the first two lines of the stanza (tshig rkah sha ma gnis) or they may
be found presented in the second couplet or the two last lines of the stanza
(tshig rkah phyi ma or mtha' ma gnis).
Like other folksongs, the songs ascribed to Tshans-dbyans rgya-mtsho
make use of both means of expression. Almost all the songs or quatrains
in the corpus consist of what is commonly designated single, self-contained
stanzas (muktaka, grol 6a). 76 About 36 out of the 66 songs, or half the collec-
tion, employ the means of couching its subject matter or message by way of
concrete and predominantly non-figurative statements (rah biin brjod pa),
viz. nos. 6,12-14, 16-19, 21-24, 26-29, 31-34, 42-45, 47, 49-51, 53-56, 58,
61, 63, 66. But as it shall emerge from our detailed discussion in the sequel,
a number of these apparently factual poems, aside from being taken at their
face value, may turn out to be quite allusive.
The rest, amounting to 30 songs, employ, aside from or instead of concrete
statements, partial or full similes, allusions, epithets and metaphors. In fact,
the pithy structure of the four-line strophe in itself appeared to entail a heavy
dependence on imagery. The alleged author often draws from a repository
pertaining to the symbolic world of the Tibetans, and uses a number of
images already well-known. Reading the songs furnish us with a wonderful
tool that will enable us to look into many sides of the mentality and cultural
history of the Tibetans.
In the poems we encounter a series of terms and synonyms for a lover
and a mistress (byamspa, snih thub, chuh 'dris, mdzahs ma, tshoh 'dus bu
mo) reflecting that the corpus' overall leitmotif is love. In fact, the theme of
love is quite dominant in the collection. Among the allusive poems we have
samples where the girl's face is likened to the moon or the moon carries
association of a prospective nocturnal tête-à-tête, i.e. nos. 1, 41-42, 44, 7 7 a
three components, aside from the subject compared or qualified (i.e. signification, khyadgzi,
sbyargzi, dpe can), the image or property qualifying or illustrating the subject (significans,
khyad chos, sbyar chos, dpe) and,finally,the common property characterizing and qualifying
this nexus {tertium comparationis, mtshuns chos). Tb provide an example: The (reciprocal)
simile between the girl's face and the moon. The girl's face is the signification (dpe can), the
disk of the (full)moon is the significans (dpe) and their mutual brightness (gsal ba) is the
tertium comparationis. In many cases, however, the similes found in the corpus of songs
ascribed to the Sixth Dalai Lama not always meet the requirements needed to constitute
a full simile.
78. Cf. e.g. mGur-glu'i lo-rgyus, pp. 271ff. Among the human sentiments and forms of manifes-
tation one, inter alia, usually distinguishes between a haughty attitude (sgeg pa'i nams),
a heroic (dpa' ba), an ironic (bead gad), a joyous (dga* ba), a wrathful (khro ba), a gloomy
(skyo ba) and an optimistic (re ba dan bcas pa) mood.
79. A large number of the songs ascribed to the Sixth Dalai Lama, in particular those marked
with an impersonal stamp, may well be interpretated and are in fact employed as facetious
and epigrammatic repartee songs; cf. J. Snyder, 1972, p. 22.
30
the cri-de-cœur of the poet depicting the heart's yearning and desire, e.g.
nos. 1, 3, 5-6, 15—18, 31-32; frustration over the lover's infidelity, cf. nos. 10,
26, 35-36; the desperation and emasculating effect of jealousy, cf. nos. 26,
32; the bitterness accruing from the dearth of discretion, cf. nos. 29, 38, 50,
52; on the other hand, we have brave samples of true ingenuousness and
intrepidity in a society fraught with intolerance and prejudice, cf. nos. 53—
54, 61, the resigned acceptance of karmanis inexorable course, cf. nos. 2, 7,
28, 30, 53 and a perpetual crisis of identity: the ghastly dilemma of being
torn between two poles, on one side the instinct of love and desire versus
the toilsome burden of a religious calling, i.e. nos. 15, 18-19, 25, 34.
In my eyes it hardly serves any purpose, aside from the above thematic
analysis, to attempt to read a deeper structure into this quite heterogenous
corpus of songs couched, as it is, in both an universal as well as a personal
strain. Nonetheless, the following set of songs may tentatively be read as
contextual companion pieces evincing a thematic unity of sorts: nos. 3-4,
13-14, 15-16, 21-23, 24-25, 30-33, 35-37, 41-44, 52-58.
A decidedly new track in our interpretations is our attempt to understand
a number of the poems to convey veiled allusions to matters political. Prom
the very outset though, we must stipulate t h a t this hermeneutical attempt of
ours should remain a tentative one. Nevertheless, we have reason to believe
t h a t the love theme in not a few incidences may be an euphemistic para-
phrase for an eagerness after appropriating the power to which he was justly
entitled. Our allegation t h a t the lyrics to some extent may voice the alleged
poet's frustrations with the Regent Sans-rgyas rgya-mtsho (A.D. 1653-1705),
the guardian of the young incarnate and the actual ruler of Tibet with whom
Tshans-dbyans rgya-mtsho had a relationship fraught with ambivalenae, is
hinged upon our knowledge of how deeply anguished the young incarnate
felt in his dealings with the cynical and complacent Regent. In addition,
this assumption of ours is also nurtured by our general knowledge of the al-
lusive character of the gzas form of song, the type in which the song-poems
of the Sixth Dalai Lama are couched, much akin to the pun-ridden political
street ballads of Lhasa. Perhaps, this line of argumentation and the ques-
tion of a more political interpretation of the songs may ultimately be related
to the overall question of the authenticity of the songs.
The source of his frustration hailed in the main from the ceaseless skir-
mishes he had with the Regent, who wilfully kept a firm grip on the reins
of power by demonstrating a notorious reluctance to share it with the young
ruler. 80 Most directly, the song nos. 8 and 39 carry a veiled but nonetheless
80. Cf. Aris, 1988, pp. 122ff. M. Aris must be thanked for having provided us with the hitherto
best exposition of the background and nature of the relationship between these figures. In
particular, we are beholden to him for having taking pains to attempt to elicit some co-
herent historical data out of the practically incomprehensible biography of the Sixth Dalai
Lama composed by the Regent, a life-story couched in a high-flown panegyric language so
replete with obscure and oblique circumlocutions that it is virtually impossible to follow thé
31
clear allusion to the double-dealing Regent. The Sixth Dalai Lama was, it
must be recalled, the product of the Regent, who skilfully employed various
stratagems in order to achieve his main objectives: To conceal the demise
of the Great Fifth Dalai Lama (1617-1682) and to stage, likewise clandes-
tinely, the search for the new incarnation keeping the prospective candidate
in semi-confinement for twelve full years in mTsho-sna in Mon-yul until 1697
before he found it opportune, or rather was forced in the wake of a steadily
increasing suspiction, to divulge the closely guarded secret and to install on
the throne in the Potala the new Dalai Lama, by now a young man who had
grown progressively cynical about the office he was going to assume and the
elevated institution upon which it was founded. In the years ahead, until
his violent death in 1705, the Regent got his ways in all matters pertaining
to the affairs of state and government reducing the young incarnate ruler to
something of a puppet.
Authenticity
The final and most intriguing question to pose in relation to the songs of
the Sixth Dalai Lama is the question of authenticity. Does the corpus re-
flect the lyrical apophthegma of a young incarnate ruler or, equally likely
it transpires, witty fabrications, akin to the aforementioned street songs of
Lhasa, by the Tibetan people or by some professional minstrels or anony-
mous songsters ? Unfortunately, we do not possess any cogent yardstick
which may enable us to assess beyond reasonable doubt whether the songs
do originate from him or not. Kloh-rdol bla-ma at the end of the eighteenth
century mentions 8 1 the existence of songs (mgur ma) among the writings
composed by the Sixth Dalai Lama. This may tally with the oldest edition
of the songs, i.e. éd. B, cf. infra, which from the style of the carving appears
to have originated in the later part of the eighteenth century. 82 Another
faint reference to the existence of secular songs may be had from the words
allegedly expressed by the Sixth Dalai Lama himself, when in A.D. 1706 he
fell sick in northern Tibet en route to the Chinese capital. At one occasion
he spoke to his major-domo Nag-dban dpal-'bar: "Don't lose the scrolls con-
taining my unfinished writings. You m u s t return them to me later." This
could be a sign t h a t he would now die, which indeed he did before long, and
that he soon would be reborn, but it may also be a reference to his famous
songs. 83
chain of events recorded in this vita. It pertains to some of the most difficult pieces of auto-
biographical literature ever produced in Tibet. Incidentally, this work is completely cleared
of any reference, however faint, to the young God-king's allegedly libidinous character.
81. Cf. vol. ra, p. 451, of his gSun-'hum.
82. Cf. M. Aris, 1988, pp. 240-241, n. 136.
83. Cf. M. Aris, 1988, op. cit., p. 166.
32
As it will hopefully emerge from the present study, the songs ascribed to
Tshans-dbyans rgya-mtsho are deeply rooted in the Tibetan popular folksong
tradition. Almost every theme and episode emerging in the songs, not to say
the outer form of the songs and its compositional aspects, are found to occur
in a number of other folksongs. Here they carry the same symbolic value
and, not infrequently, thus provide us with further information about the
content. All this would clearly lend weight to the contention that the songs
are the anonymous lyrical product of the people of the street, composed in
order to commemmorate a truly remarkable figure loved by the people for
his bold rebellion against the establishment and his human qualities. All
along we cannot exclude the possibility that the songs of the Sixth Dalai
Lama may have constituted the source of inspiration for the entire Tibetan
folksong tradition.
A major source of inspiration for the corpus of songs, moreover, may turn
out to be found in the popular story and drama-play of Prince Nor-bzan. 84
More or less tangible allusions to this folk-inspired drama-play may be found
scattered throughout the lyrics ascribed to the Sixth Dalai Lama. Whether
this would speak in favour of ascribing the authorship of the corpus to him
is difficult to ascertain.
An equally delicate issue would be our attempt to disentangle an original
kernel—if any—of this heterogenous corpus, since, as said, our dearth of
solid knowledge of the cycle's textual history, its constitution and its general
dissemination is regrettably scarce. It will serve no purpose even to venture
to restore the textus receptus in any order and succession, aside from the one
already given.
In fine, weighting the pros and cons on a scale pan, the songs in the nature
and form point to an anonymous provenance.
Searching for one possible clue, the key to the riddle may well be buried
in the following song.
Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas, p. 108, no. 2:
o f
T s h a n s - d b y a n s r g y a - m t s h o ' i
m g u l - g l u
of 237 lines (i.e. stanza-lines due to Yu Daoquan's arrangement). In the booklet the text
is arranged into 119 lines by perpendicular strokes (sad). In actual fact, it consists of
118 twelve-syllabic hemistiches and of one six-syllabic quarter. Yu Daoquan's booklet is a
wood-cut print totally identical with the Leningrad-kept sin par gauged from the sample
reproduced in Huang Hao & Wu Biyun's book, pp. 28, 99. In other words, as in case of the
two Leningrad versions of ed. B and the manuscript of the gSuh-mgur collection reproduced
in the Appendix to the present study, these editions did not consist of proper quatrains,
where each quarter consists of six syllables, but each song was rendered by two hemistiches,
each counting twelve syllables. Thus, verse no. 1 is rendered i sar phyogs ri bo'i rise nas
dkar gsal zla ba sar byuh I I ma skyes a ma'i zal ras yid la 'khor 'khor byas byun I etc.
2. Both texts survive in the Tibetan Fond of the Leningrad Institute of Oriental Studies.
Both editions, similar to the booklet employed by Yu Daoquan, cf. previous note, render
the complete song cycle by way of 119 (resp. 118) twelve-syllabic hemistiches or verse-lines,
an arrangement often used by the Tibetans. The two texts are, with a few exceptions,
identical. The bris ma is almost certainly an apographical caique upon the âin par, but
the copying has evidently produced a number of obvious scribal blunders. The xylographie
print, in a booklet form, probably went into circulation around the turn of the century, as
Chab-spel Tshe-brtan phun-tshogs, op. cit., 1987, p. 307, draws our attention to the fact,
that a number of people from the old generation in Lhasa still have a personal memory of
the existence and wide distribution of a woodcut booklet, a special edition of the love songs,
which was published by some public printers in Lhasa and which could be purchased freely
everywhere in the book-bazars (Ihagpar du de sna "mgul glu'i" gzas tshigched bsgrigs byas
pa zig Iha sa}i par pa spyi pas sin par du brkos pa'i dpe chuh dpe khrom gan sar bton te
rgya khyab man tshogs kyi rah 'dod Itar no sgrub byed pa sogs ni da Ita'i rgan rabs tsho'i
mig mthoh lag zin gyi don dhos sig yin). In the opinion of Mr. Tashi Tshering, LTWA,
Dharamsala, however, this undated ed. of B, judged from the style of the block carving,
should even be dated to the later half of the eighteenth century; cf. M. Aris, 1988, p. 157,
n. 136. Possibly so, as this would tally perfectly with the crucial note given by the eminent
polyhistor Klon-rdol bla-ma Nag-dban blo-bzan (A.D. 1719-1794/95), who in vol. ra of
his gSuh-}bum (p. 451 of the ed. by Ven. Dalama) mentions among the penned products
of the Sixth Dalai Lama the existence of a mgur ma. The term mgur ma, to be true,
designates technically religious songs, a genre which differs markedly from the popular
gzas type both in content and form. If we therefore were to assume any factual identity or
correspondance between this MS of songs faintly referred to by Klon-rdol and the present
woodcut booklet, the term mgur may simply just be a honorific (ze sa) employed by Klon-
35
contrived by him from the collation of various sources. Besides employing the book of Yu
Daoquan, i.e. eds. B with A, his main source is the edition compiled and issued in 1978
by the Documentation Office pertaining to the Cultural Bureau in TAR QGzàng Zizhiqü
Wénhuàjû Zïliàoshi, Bod ran-skyon-ljohs kyi rig-gnas-cu'i dpyad-géiï yig-rigs-khan, Lhasa).
According to Wang Yinuan, op. cit. pp. 3 and 8, this edition contains 66 songs, and is titled
Tshans-dbyans rgya-mtsho'i mgur-glu (based upon a manuscript or a xylographie print ?).
Further, 62 song-poems of this version, it is maintained, accord with the recension by Yu
Daoquan. Wang Yinuan's edition of the 66 songs appears to be rendered meticulously faith-
ful, abstaining from any attempt at emending the text. Finally, Wang Yinuan has supplied
his book with eight song-poems culled from the book Bod kyi glu-gzas (Nationalities Publ.
House, Beijing, 1959), which, incidentally, contains 25 songs from Tshans-dbyans rgya-
mtsho'i mgur-glu; cf. L. S. Savitsky, Can'jan Dzamco, pp. 67-68. In fact, among Chinese
scholars, consensus prevails that the best translation into Chinese of the song-poems, of
which there now circulate about ten translations (five or six according to Don-grub-rgyal),
is the one committed by Wang Yinuan; cf. Li Ming, Xïzàng Minzû Xuéyuàn Xuébào, 1988
(1-2), p. 54; Don-grub-rgyal, mGur-glu'i lo-rgyus dan khyad-chosf p. 196. Ail 74 songs in
the book by Wang Yinuan,finally,have been reproduced by Huang Hao and and Wu Biyun
in their book, Cängyäng Jiäcuö ji qi qinggê yanjiü, 1982, pp. 123-147, and by Kun-bzan
Thob-rgyal and Mani rdo-rje in Folk-songs from Bhutan {'Brug gi glu-deb\ Thimphu, 1985,
pp. 311-22.
6. Besides the Tibetan edition of 124 song-poems and the Secret Biography of Tshans-dbyans
rgya-mtsho, Zhuang Jing has also made a Chinese translation of this Tibetan book:
Cängyäng Jïacuo qinggê ji mïzhuàn, (Nationalities Publ. House, Beijing 1981).
7. Incidentally, on p. 24, n. 1 of his book, Zhuang Jing refers e.g. to an alternate reading
in no. 65d (= no. 66d of our crit. ed.) drawn from a xyl. print (sin par) of the song cycle;
37
cf. note 2 supra for the plausible identification between this edition and ed. B, despite,
apparently, a discordance as to the number of song-poems. Xiao Diyan has published a
new detailed commentary to Tshahs-dbyahs rgya-mtsho'i mgur-glu in his article-series,
"Tshans-dbyans rgya-mtsho'i mgur-glu gsar-'grel", sBrah-char, 1987 (3), pp. 90-95; 1987
(4), pp. 55-57; 1988 (1), pp. 64-70; 1988 (2), pp. 61-72 and 1988 (3), pp. 47-56 (Qinghai
Nationalities Publ. House, Xining). This edition and commentary has previously appeared
in the magazine sPah-rgyan me-tog, Lhasa. His edition contains 67 songs (the 66 songs
of our crit. ed. minus no. 47, and two songs (= nos. 24 and 30 of the gSun-mgur Coll., cf.
the Appendix)), thus minutely following, apart from a few minor variant readings where he
seems to follow Wang Yinuan's ed. E, Zhuang «ling's numbering and readings as reproduced
in the latter's book. For this reason the edition of Xiao Diyan has not been included as a
separate edition in our conspectus of editions critically edited. This detailed study of Xiao
Diyan, along with another minor essay from his hand ("Cängyäng Jïacuô qf rén qï shf,
Xïzàng Minzû Xuéyuàn Xuébào, 1985 (1), pp. 44-51), represent, not surprisingly some may
add, an entirely new and unconventional approach to the interpretation of these tricky
songs. His overall point d'appui is that the songs are not "love songs" Qndza' glu, mdza'
gzas, 'dod gzas) at all, but must be conceived, he adduces, op. cit. 1987 (3), pp. 91-2;
1988 (3) pp. 55-6, as political (chab srid) lyrics (snan rtsom) expressing the happiness and
sorrow accruing from Tshans-dbyans rgya-mtsho's involuntary involvement in politics. In
other words, far from being just "unfounded literary fabrications and hearsay" (khuns lun
Tried pa'i gtam fchal), he contends that the songs are "poetical songs telling about the lot in
his life" (las dban brjod pa'i mgur glu snan rtsom) that provided an outlet for his feelings
and his personal conceptions regarding his position, his situation, his origin, his fights, his
difficulties as well as his joys and sorrows.
Although we certainly cannot and shall not disagree with this and although all his inter-
pretations neither prove irrelevant nor impertinent, they are, in my opinion, in principle
beset with a serious drawback. Xiao Diyan evidently attempts—exclusively—to read a po-
litical message into each and every single poem. By using a fixed, preconceived political
scheme for his understanding of the songs and by his headstrong and absurd neglect of the
songs' immediate language as a poetic outlet for amorous sentiments vented by a truly sen-
sual spirit, his interpretations and his conclusions dramatically deprive the songs of their
very raison d'etre, simply by overlooking the obvious fact that the songs are first and last
plain outbursts of love and sorrow. In Xiao Diyan's eyes, the amorous diction and romantic
setting become the poetic and figurative dress which the poet employed to cover what was
really on his mind: the personal experiences ensuing from the agonizing political strife for
power. Conceding, naturally, that a large number of the poems are truly allusive or may be
construed thus, merely a brief perusal of the nature of the numerous political and sardonic
street songs and repartee (tshig rgyag) songs will attests to this, there is no cogent reason
to assume that the Sixth Dalai Lama's plausible political and personal anguish, his hopes
and even his victories, whatever, should have been paraphrased in an amatory imagery and
in a sensual language throughout. By pursuing his somewhat stereotyped and speculative
approach to the songs, Xiao Diyan therefore only manages to force a 'fixed interpretation'
into a political and historical context into which a given poem should be read and properly
conceived. Having settled the context into which his reading of a given poem fits, it goes
without saying that it poses no problem for him to proceed with dating the actual composi-
tion of the individual song-poem in question. However, a number of his interpretations are
quite thought-provoking and his considerations have duly been incorporated in our study.
8. Zhuang Jing adduces in his introduction, 1981a, op. cit. p. 2, that this collection, which he
38
wrongly calls Tshans-dbyans rgya-mtsho'i mgul-glu, numbers well over 360 songs, when,
in fact, it contains 459 in all according to my numbering.
9. Vilgrain provides us, for the first time in the West, with a translation of the 124 songs
published by Zhuang Jing in his book from 1981.
10. These 54 samples clearly betray the vernacular nature of the song's lyrics, not infrequently
deviating from the standard reading of them.
39
Conspectus
On the following two pages are given a conspectus of the critical editions.
Numeral concordance of the 54 song-poems between the critical edition (lacking nos. 5,
32-33, 40-1, 44, 48, 51, 53-54, 56, 66) and the gSun-mgur collection (in parentheses):
no. 1 (no. 2) no. 16 (no. 19) no. 30 (no. 28) no. 50 (no. 23/4)
no. 2 (no. 3) no. 17 (no. 20) no. 31 (no. 29) no. 52 (no. 272)
no. 3 (no. 7) no. 18 (no. 21) no. 34 (no. 43) no. 55 (no. 48)
no. 4 (no. 8) no. 19 (no. 34) no. 35 (no. 67/8) no. 57 (no. 342)
no. 6 (no. 9) no. 20 (no. 45) no. 36 (no. 72) no. 58 (no. 94)
no. 7 (no. 10) no. 21 (no. 37) no. 37 (no. 75) no. 59 (no. 129)
no. 8 (no. 11) no. 22 (no. 38) no. 38 (no. 97) no. 60 (no. 457)
no. 9 (no. 12) no. 23 (no. 39) no. 39 (no. 99) no. 61 (no. 450)
no. 10 (no. 13) no. 24 (no. 40) no. 42 (no. 456) no. 62 (no. 453)
no. 11 (no. 14) no. 25 (no. 41) no. 43 (no. 457) no. 63 (no. 455)
no. 12 (no. 15) no. 26 (no. 50) no. 45 (no. 100) no. 64 (no. 458)
no. 13 (no. 16) no. 27 (no. 47) no. 46 (no. 1) no. 65 (no. 459)
no. 14 (no. 17) no. 28 (no. 25) no. 47 (no. 6)
no. 15 (no. 18) no. 29 (no. 27) no. 49 (no. 69)
40
A B C D E F G H i J K
1 * * * * * * * * # * *
2 * * * * * * * * * * *
3 * * * * * * * * * *
4 * * * * * * * * * *
5 * * * * * * * * *
6 * * * * * * * * * *
7 * * * * * * * * * * *
8 * * * * * * * * * *
9 * * * * * * * * *
10 * * * * * * * * * * *
11 * * * * * * *
12 * * * * * * * * * *
13 * * * * * * * * * * *
14 * * * * * * * * * * *
15 * * * * * * * * * * *
16 * * * * * * * * * * *
17 * * * * * * * * *
18 * * * * * * * * * * *
19 * * * * * * * * * * *
20 * * * * * * * * * * *
21 * * * * * * * * *
22 * * * * * * * * * * *
23 * * * * * * * * * *
24 * * * * * * * * *
25 * * * * * * *
26 * * * * * *
27 * * * * * * * * * * *
28 * * * * * * *
29 * * * * * * *
30 * * * * * * * * * * *
31 * * * * * * * * *
32 * * * * * * * * * *
33 * * * * * * * * *
41
A B C D E F G H I J K
34 * * # * * * * * * * *
35 * * * * * * * * * * *
36 * * * * * * * * * *
37 * * * * * * * * * * *
38 * * * * * * * * * * *
39 * * * * * * * * * *
40 * * * * * * * * * *
41 * * * * * * * * * * *
42 * * * * * * * * * *
43 * * * * * * * * * * *
44 * * * *
45 * * * * * * * * *
46 * * * * * * * * * *
47 * * * * *
48 * * * * * * * * * *
49 * * * * * * * * * * *
50 * * * * * * * * * * *
51 * * * * * * * * * *
52 * * * * * * * * * * *
53 * * * * * * * * * *
54 * * * * * * * * * *
55 * * * * * * * * * *
56 * * * * * * * * * *
57 * * * * * * * * * * *
58 * * * * * * * * * *
59 * * * * * * *
60 * * * * * *
61 * * * * * * *
62 * * * * * *
63 * * * * * * *
64 * * * * * * *
65 * * * * * * *
66 * * * * *
T h e C r i t i c a l E d i t i o n
o f
T s h a n s - d b y a n s r g y a - m t s h o ' i
m g u l - g l u
44
la bo'i ABCEFGHIJK : bo D;
Id yid la 'khor 'khor byas byun ABCDEFGHIJ : dran Ion la 'dug
la The notion of the eastern mountain and the eastern direction is a cher-
ished theme, cf. e.g. Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, pp. 117-Î19, Bod kyi dßa'-gzas
II, pp. 62-63, Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas, p. 81, no. 2-82, no. 3, gZas-tshig
phyogs-bsdus, p. 152, no. 5 and gSuh-mgur, nos. 89, 359-60 for addi-
tional samples oîgias echoing this picture; notable is the opposition of
the eastern direction (ear phyogs), often in conjunction with a moun-
tain, versus the western ditto (nub phyogs), originally indicating the
sun's ecliptic, from its ascent or rise ('char, sar; note, of course, the
deliberate word-play on ear) in the east and to its descent (nub) in the
west. However, in this as in most cases, the moon is at play:
lb dkar gsal zla ba here denotes the bright, white moon in full beam (cf.,
incidentally, also C. jiâojié yuèliàng, rendered by Wang Yinuan, 1980,
p. 1; Zhuang Jing, 1981b, p. 11). Most frequently the white-beaming
moon alludes to the fullmoon (zla ba fia gan, bco lha'i zla ba), cf. e.g.
nos. 41, 44 infra, gSun-mgur, nos. 219, 253, gaining the full brightness
during the ascending note (yar ho) of the crescent moon (dkar phyogs,
suklapaksa; white, moreover, indicates purity and innocence, cf. also
no. 20a). Symbolically, the moon disc (zla'i dkyil 'khor, candramandala)
is a favourite epitheton ornans, metaphor and stock simile (dpe, gzugs
can, upamä, rüpaka) for the face (bzin ras, zal ras, gdoh) of a fair
damsel (dga' ma, mdzes ma, käntä), often a youthful beauty of sixteen
years of age (na tshod bcu druggi Ian tsho): the moon-faced girl (zla zal
(mdzes) ma, candra- (or indu0-) vadanâ, -°mukhî, -°abhavakträ, etc.) is
an oft-occurring epithet in Indian as well as Tibetan popular lyrics and
45
poetry. In fact, the relation between the fullmoon and a female's beauti-
ful countenance is a so-called reciprocal comparison (ubhayopamâ, up-
ameyopamä); throughout all Indian and Tibetan poetical treatises, the
parallel between the moon and the face of a damsel is commonplace as
topic (sbyar-gii), cf. e.g. Duh-dkar blo-bzan 'phrin-las, sNan-hag la 'jug-
tshul tshig-rgyan rig-pa'i sgo-'byed, p. 214ff. and 'Jam-dbyans grags-
pa, "sNan-'grel yan-gsal snan-mdzod las don-rgyan so-lna'i tshig-'grel",
sBran-char 1986 (3) and 1987 (4) pp. 58-61, who both, in order to illus-
trate a figure of speech, the dpe'i gzugs can (upamärüpaka), and sbyar
ba'i dpe readily employ the simile (dpe, upama) of the disc of the full-
moon (fia yohs su gah ba'i zla ba'i dkyil 'khor) to illustrate (dpe can,
upameya) a white, serene face (dkar iih dvans pa'i biin ras). Further,
the terms zla ba and zla mo carry the meaning of a 'partner', 'friend' or
more regularly spouse, lover and mistress.
Samples of gias containing the 'clear, white [fulljmoon' and the face
are legion indeed, suffice it to quote, first of all, Norbu, Musical Tradi-
tion I, no. 1 = Bod kyi dga'-gias I, no. 119, no. 5 = gTam-dpe, p. 122 =
Bod kyi dga'-gias II, p. 62, no. 6 = Bod kyi glu-gias, p. 139 (cum van
lect):
| ear son ear nas éar ba'i \
j ear gyi dkar gsal zla ba \
I ear nas nub la ma phebs \
| dguh gi dkyil la biugs dan \
Cf. similarly, gZas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 132, no. 6; further, to illus-
trate the identity of the face and the fullmoon, cf. e.g. Bod kyi glu-gias,
p. 105, no. 2: chuft 'dris byams pa'i ial ras \\ zla gcig tag ma bco Ina;
Bod kyi glu-gias, p. 65, no. 2: ial ras ma chags zal ras chags \\ ial ras
dkar gsal zla ba chags |; Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas, p. 81, no. 2: êarphyogs
ri bo'i rtse nas \\ bco lha'i zla ba ear byuh; ibid., p. 69, no. 1: ial ras
bco lha'i zla ba; gÉas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 106, no. 2: khyed ial zla
ba dkar po; Bod kyi dga'-gias II, p. 7, nos. 5-6: dkar gsal zla ba'i biin
bzah; gSuh-mgur, no. 79: dkarpo'i sgor sgor; Cf. also analogously, Bod
kyi dga'-gias I, p. 119, no. 3 = Glu-chuh sna-tshogs, p. 3; Norbu, Musical
Tradition, I, no. 5; //, nos. 30, 34; TV, no. 12; Neither the 'first quality'
nor the 'second quality' beer (or 'the first and second round' of beer) had
any intoxicating effect, another poem announces, but drinking the 'full
white face' (evidently a pun on 'cupful' (dkar yol gan)) offered by his
long-acquainted beloved, makes the poet drunk, cf. Bod kyi dga'-gias I,
p. 37, no. 2 = "Bod kyi dmahs-gzas", Bod kyi rtsom-rig sgyu-rtsal 1980
(1), p. 83 = Wang Yinuan, 1980, no. 70:
term he settles for jiäo niâng. Cf. also Yu Daoquan, 1930, p. 44 and
Wang Yinuan, 1980, p. 1, wèijià shaonü, an 'unmarried woman'; Ph.
van Heurck, 1984, pp. 61-2: 'adorée'; Vilgrain, 1986, p. 33 'femme pas
encore femme'.
A pertinent clue to the unravelling of this idiom may be had from
the story (mam thar) of Prince Nor-bzan, a textual tradition and a
drama-play which has been a major source of inspiration to the Sixth
Dalai Lama as it shall emerge from the detailed dissection of this song-
corpus in the sequel; cf. no. 30 infra et passim for details. At different
instances in the story (rnam-thar, pp. 186,199-200; 'khrab-gzuh, p. 54),
the Princess Yid-'phrog-ma (i.e. Manoharä), herself of supernatural ori-
gin, is addressed e.g. by the mother (yum chert mo) of Nor-bzan in the
following terms:"...You who has not been begotten [by me,] the mother"
(khyod nid ma skyes a ma...), contrary to Nor-bzan who h a s been born
to [the mother] herself (skyes pa'i nor bzah); Yid-'phrog-ma, answering
later, similarly addresses the mother[-in-law] accordingly: "Aside from
you, the mother who has not begotten [me,] the girl, there is no place
else within the close range of hearing and seeing in whom I can place
any hope" (bu mo ma skyes a ma khyod min pa \\ mthon thos fie ba'i
sa na re gnas med) etc. In this light, perhaps deriving the idiom from
the setting above, we should thus conceive ma skyes a ma as a kenning
for a young maiden (bu mo ma skyes a ma). By Tibetan standard a
ma, similar to ma skyes a ma, is in fact a sort of pet name t h a t often
denotes a girl, cf. gSun-mgur, nos. 225-6. Cf. e.g. also Bod kyi dga'-gias
II, no. p. 9, no. 6 = gZas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 166, no. 2 where a pun
is presented and where the face of [the beautiful girl, i.e.] ma skyes a
ma is extolled to be more handsome than the mask of the chos-rgyal
[an allusion to a statue of Chos-rgyal Sroh-btsan sgam-po]:
| skyes pa'i skyes khan nan la \
| ma skyes a ma bsdad bzag
j ma skyes a ma'i ial ras \
| chos rgyal 'bag las rdzig pa |
Xiao Diyan, sBrah-char, 1987 (3), p. 93, when commenting upon song
no. 1 in our collection, which he oddly takes to be the key-song in the
entire collection, opts for reading this phrase to mean 'a mother prospec-
tive of giving birth [to a child] [at some point] in the future' ('byun 'gyur
sku skye rgyu'i a ma) rather t h a n to mean a young maiden (gion nu
ma)\ He even contends, without supplying any sources, t h a t the phrase
was originally invented or coined by the God-king himself, adducing
moreover t h a t the phrase in question, when read in conjunction with
dkar gsal zla ba, would imply (sugs su bstan) the occasional visibility
and invisibility of the moon during its ascending and descending note
Cphel 'grib).
48
Finally, we may, par contre, quote a gias which blatantly opposes the
concept of 'the beloved's face' with 'the face of one's own mother', in
the first case the memory is a vivid and dream-haunting experience,
whereas this is not so in the latter case; cf. Bod-rigs kyi glu-gias, p. 33,
no. 2:
| chun 'dris byams pa'i ial ras \
j rmi lam nan la éar byuh \
| ha tsho'i a maï zal ras \
j de 'dra dran pa ma myon \
Id The theme of the repeated occurence of the round fullmoon which re-
sulted in a haunted memory of the beloved, is also treated in another
gias\ cf. Bod kyi glu-géas, p. 101, no. 1:
| gcig kyah mthoh dus dran byun \
| gnis kyah mthoh dus dran byun \
j bco lha'i zla ba éar dus \
j khyed sems yid la 'khor byun \
2a The tender green sprouts {Ijan gzon = Ijah pa or Ijan bu gzon pa).
2b The stalky trusses (phon Icog; phon po = chun po; Icag, 'stick', is an
equally plausible or better reading, perhaps due to the rule of vowel-
harmony in Lhasan Tibetan changed into Icog ?) of straw (sog ma, whe-
ther barley-straw (nas sog) or wheat-straw (gro sog)); cf. also Savitsky,
1983, p. 144, n. 8. The rhetorical contrast or antithesis of the young
sprouts versus the full-fledged or high-borne straw is effectfully rein-
forced by yet another contrast: the last year (na nih) versus this year
(da lo). For another sample of this latter contrast, cf. e.g. Bod kyi
glu-gias, p. 110, no. 2. This simile drawn from nature is employed to
illustrate:
2c The aging process of the ephemeral human body of young men (pho
gion, = pho gion nu), which is eventually bound to become worn-out
and bent. The term pho gion, a young man, may here refer to himself,
as is the case in nos. 15c and 16c infra.
2d The body of a young man is even (the reading las kyah equally plausible)
viewed to be more taut (gyoh ba, = gyoh po = mkhregs po, stiff, cf. e.g.
also C. wänqü as rendered by Zhuang Jing, 1981b, p. 11) and elastic
than the spring of a good bow. The bow made from bamboo in the South
50
(i.e. rTs[v]a-ri and lHo-ron) is considered the best, cf. e.g. Tucci, Tibetan
Folk Songs, 1949, pp. 34 and 70, n. I l l ; ibid., p. 34 and 53, n. 112: The
good bamboo (snug, smyug, smyu gu bzah) is brought (spyan drafts pa)
from the innermost valleys of lHo-roh (= Bhutan); cf. also C. Bell, Tibet,
Past and Present, p. 38. The staff from the middle part (skyed pa) is
made into a bow for a young archer. Cf. also Norbu, Musical Tradition
III, no. 55. Bamboo originating from the south is praised already in the
annals of Dun-huang; cf. a song (glu) in the chronicle, PT 250, ed. J.
Bacot (et al), Documents de Touen-Houng, 1940, p. 108,1. 15-20.
The alternative reading has the bow made from the horn of the yak or
goat (rva co). From a purely poetical and metaphorical point of view (rva
co may more aptly convey the idea of inflexibility and transience than
Iho giu), this reading may be preferable or, at least, equally feasible.
Cf. also gSun-mgur, no. 393: the bow coiled like the horn of the wild
goat (gzu mo ra rgod 'khyil ba); cf. the Gesar Epic, III, fol. 105b, ed. R.
Stein, 1956, p. 346.
over, would find support in the picture provided of the full-blown, erect
stalks of straw, the full-fledged result of maturity rising from the stage
of young sprouts.
52
3a The term sems son = sems éor invariably means 'fallen in love'; près.
sems pa 'gro. Cf. e.g. gSuh-mgur, no. 341 and also nos. 6, 16, 19 infra.
The person (mi de) here evidently refers to a young girl (gzon nu ma),
or rather the poet's beloved (chun 'dris, snih thub, byams pa).
3b The term mdun ma (but also 'dun ma): companion, betrothed, confi-
dante and thus wife or spouse in the standard phrase gtan gyi mdun
ma, eternal, i.e. a lifelong spouse. Cf. also no. 32 infra and gSuh-mgur,
nos. 33, 44; Das' diet. p. 685; the Gesar Epic, II, fol. 58a: tshe gtan
gyi mdun ma, ed. R. Stein, 1956, p. 258; The term probably hails from
the fact that the bride was placed at the foremost seat (mdun) at the
weeding ceremony, cf. also M. Duncan, Love Songs and Proverbs of Ti-
bet, 1961, p. 119, n. 387. Moreover, gtan gyi 'dun ma may designate a
'great wish or objective, which is hoped to be realized subsequently (rjes
su 'grub par re ba'i don chen)\ cf. dPe-chos rna-ba'i bdud-rtsi, p. 148;
an equivoque may then well be concealed here.
3c The idea of depicting a girl, or, as here, one's beloved in the form of a
precious stone, like the beloved considered an object of perpetual (gtan)
value, is much cherished, cf. e.g. next song and no. 31 infra. A general
epithet for a young girl (bu mo gzon nu ma) is nor Idan ma (ratnavatî).
Likewise, the popular belief that Näga kings reside in huge jewel-laden
palaces deep below in the oceans is well attested, cf. the textual refer-
ences to this theme from Buddhist sources assembled by van Heurck,
1984, p. 64, no. 2 and J. Ph. Vogel, Indian Serpent Lore, London 1926.
53
Notable also is the fact that a common synonym or kenning for the
ocean is a 'mine of jewel' (rin chert 'byun gnas, ratnâkara).
3d The attempt to acquire jewels from the ocean is a theme which is legion
in Tibetan popular lyrics. Suffice it to refer to e.g. Bod kyi dga'-géas
J, p. 28, no. 6-p. 29, no. 1; Glu-chun sna-tshogs, p. 36; Bod kyi glu-
gias> p. 115, no. 1; Cf. also Bod-rigs kyi glu-géas, p. 99, no. 3 and, worth
quoting here for its propinquity to the present stanza, ibid., p. 87, no. 3:
| sems la yod pa'i chun 'dris \
I ha yi gtan grogs byun na \
j mtsho snin skyes pa'i nor bu \
j Ion thabs na ran byed chog
Cf. also a similar sample (a repartee song (tshig rgyag)) given by
Snyder, 1972, pp. 31-32.
4a snin thub, cf. also nos. 30, 33, 55 infra et passim, = snin sdug, cf. e.g.
gSuh-mgur nos. 32, 91, 110, 131, 139-140; Bod kyi dga'-gzas II, p. 58,
no. 2, Bod kyi glu-gias, p. 88, no. 2 et passim, = snin grogs, cf. e.g.
gSuh-mgur, no. 431, Bod kyi dga'-gias II, p. 57, no. 1 et passim; the
rnam-thar of Prince Nor-bzaii, p. 59 (cf. no. 30 infra) = snin mthun,
cf. e.g. Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas, p. 34, no. 4, = 'grogs thub, cf. e.g. Bod
kyi la-gzas, pp. 30, 45, 69, 326 etc. : an inamorata, sweetheart, lover,
heart-throb, fiancée, bosom friend etc.; cf. also van Heurck, 1986, p. 65,
*bien-aimée', 'mignonne'; D. Back, 1986, p. 15, 'Liebchen'; Zhuang Jing,
1981b, p. 12, jiâo niâng "a tender girl"; lam bu, a path; 'gro zor, = 'gro
ba'i zor, = lam zor, from zor la, = sbyor la, which may best be rendered
adverbially: "incidentally", "at random", "casually", "by chance" etc.;
viz. "the sweetheart t h a t was casually encountered on the path."
4c The gyu chuh gru dkar, or rather the gyu chuh drug dkar, although
small the drug dkar or white-shaded turquoise is considered particu-
larly valuable, cf. below.
The turquoise (gyu, Skt. peroja, M. ugiu, C. söng shi) is frequently
denoted the king of precious stones (rdo'i rgyal po, rin chen rgyal po)
in Tibet and as a costly stone (nor bu, rin chen) it is often employed as
a symbol for a dear girl. A variety of sorts are found, cf. e.g. eel-goh
55
gyu rnih gsum | bar gyu gnis \ gyu gsar gsum dan brgyad du
dbye ba yin \ gyu snih gsum ni \ sho iih dkar la bkrag mdans
ehe la mun par yah mthoh ba de la drug dkar dan | sho ein dmar
mdans ehe la snum pa drug dmar \ de gnis zil gyis gnon pa drug
dkar las cuh sho ba la gyu spyah zer te sman la 'di gsum mchog
tu nus pa che'o \ \ bar gyu gnis ni \ drug dkar 'dra la de las bkrag
chuh zih 'o kha can gyu shon \ drug dmar las cuh gsar la mdans
zan pa bar dmar te 'di gnis nus pa 'brih ba'o \ \ gyu gsar ni rigs
dbyibs ma hes pa gsar nams can ni rgya gyu ste gyu ba'u yah
zer | éin tu gsar pa shon ne 'dra la rdo sra mkhregs dkar goh
'dra ba 'byar ba'i 'brum pa can gyu ro dan \ kha dog ian pa ser
kha dbyibs gsar rnih ma hes pa la drug se ies nan pa'o |
Now, in the light of the above, the drug dkar thus evidently means
that one-sixth of the turquoise, as adduced by Das also, diet. op. cit.,
p. 655, is tinged with a white hue, rather than we should attempt to
see here a reference to any hexagonal aspect. Oddly enough, almost
56
all current translators of this song render the gyu chun drug dkar as
an inferior stone, an opinion evidently prompted by the adj. chun and
moreover corroborated, in all likelihood, by the idea of a casual venue
Cgro zor) which one can rid oneself of again. Quite to the contrary, in my
opinion, this stone, as adduced above and further corroborated below,
is considered valuable and precious; in the context of our poem, the
adj. chun thus more likely connotes the sense of 'delicacy*, 'petiteness',
'fineness' or perhaps rather *exquisiteness\ Here it should also be noted
that although the meeting was a hapchance, it is not necessarily seen as
an isolated date, since to the poet she had already attained the status of
being an inamorata and sweetheart {shin thub), a girl with a pale tint
and white complexion (indicative of innocence) and moreover endowed
with a sweet-perfumed body.
The gyu chun drug dkar occurs in a chain of song-poems, in which it
precisely symbolizes the properties indicated above. As a symbol and
object of covetousness, we may refer to two songs quoted by Norbu,
Musical Tradition /, no. 38 and III, no. 17, also cited in my article
"Tibetan Love Lyrics", IIJ, vol. 31 (4), p. 265; Cf. also Bod kyi dga'-gias
/, p. 124, no. 1 = gTam-dpe, p. 119 (cum van led.) where it is seen as
a token of prospective betrothal and pledge (cf. also no. 26 infra):
| bsam pa'i gyu chun gru dkar \
j mgo la sgron mkhan med pas \
j ma bsam nag chun skra lor \
j dkar po'i dbu dkar sgron byuiï \
Cf. also Bod kyi dga'-gzas /, p. 128, no. 3 = Bod kyi dga'-gzas / / , p. 66,
no. 1 = gÉas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 120, no. 1, where it, in the garb
of the poet's (amorous) sentiment, is helplessly drawn (a pun on sems
pa....éor, "to fall in love", cf. no. 6 infra) towards his beautiful beloved,
untamed by the bridle of a (love-haunted) memory:
| sems pa gyu chun gru dkar \
j dran ses srab kyis ma 'thul |
j mdzes ma khyod kyi phyogs la \
j rah dbah med par éor son \
Cf. also no. 17 infra.
To demonstrate further the exclusive air surrounding a druglgru dkar
turquoise we may cite a poem which relates about the finding of a
turquoise, and incapable of assessing its quality, the gurus and the
Three Precious Gems (triratna) residing in space above are solemnly
propitiated to make the wish come true—let the turquoise be a gru
dkarl Phrased differently, let the girl be the chosen one!; cf. Bod kyi
dga'-gias II, p. 56, no. 5 = gÉas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 114, no. 5:
| gyu gcig rhed ni rhed byuh \
57
4d The abandonment of the turquoise alias the girl is in the light of the
above evidently seen as a painful act governed by necessity rather than
free will, occasioned moreover by someone in his entourage, who is
unwilling to compromise with his liaisons (cf. in particular nos. 8 and
39 infra). The present corpus of songs actually provides other samples
of involuntary, tormenting lovelornness.
• On the factual level (dhos su bstan, dnos gnas) therefore, this stanza
is a plain love song (mdza* gzas, 'dod gias) depicting a precious, petite,
sweet-scented damsel, the poet's choise and inamorata, whom, the poet
blatantly deplores, he is involuntarily forced to forsake. Identifying the
poet with the young ruler Tshans-dbyans rgya-mtsho, we may say that
this is a dear consequence of his high position which dictates him the
conduct of an ideal monk in vowed celibacy.
On a metaphorical level, however, reshuffling the content (nan don,
brjod don) of the stanza, we may further envisage the entire song-poem,
not only as a plain outburst of forsaken love by an apparent "transgres-
sor of decorum" and profligate (tshul min spyod nan byed mkhan), but
also as an ill-concealed 'self-portrait' (rah tshul ran gis brjod pa). In
this construction the girl in the poem would be a hidden allusion to
himself, the victim of a political encroachment. Precious and minor as
he was (= gyu chuh drug dkar, = rin chen or rin po ehe; chuh, drug
= Sixth Dalai Lama), the contingent circumstances behind his secret
discovery, a convenient (and random ?) set-up contrived by the Regent
to secure a water-tight alibi if news of the Fifth Dalai Lama's untimely
demise should leak, as well as the misgivings expressed prior to the fi-
nal approval of him as the legitimate successor of the Fifth Dalai Lama
would perfectly account not only for the depiction of him as a "precious
jewel (= cintämani, yid bun nor bu, = the Dalai Lama) casually found
on the road"—affectionately endeared (snih thub) by all Tibetans alike,
the cynosure of all. It would also explain the ensuing abandonment
(skyur ba = spyugs pa) of him as the true God-king by lHa-bzan Qan
and by parts of the religious establishment. Xiao Diyan, sBran-char,
1987 (3) pp. 94-5, arguing somewhat along the same line in his com-
mentary, proceeds a step further by contending that the poem is a clear
sample of the contempt (brnas bcos) and the encroachment ignod 'tshe)
directed against him by others, in particular lHa-bzan Qan, but also by
the Regent.
59
5c A salient aspect regularly associated with the peach tree and, in par-
ticular, its fruit in Tibetan love lyrics is, as in the present poem, its
unattainableness. A girl or a lover being unattainable or a love affair
proving to be impracticable—whether for reasons of unrequited love,
plain lovelornness or enforced by social taboos—this predicament is al-
most invariably depicted by a peach out of the hands' reach atop a tree.
Cf. foremost Norbu's Coll II, no. 32 = Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 17, no. 1
= gtas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 89, no. 5 = Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas, p. 96,
no. 1 (cum van lect,) and Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 17, no. 3 = Glu-chun
sna-tshogs, p. 6-7, where the poet respectively expresses his pious hope
for a windfall, respectively his resigned or woeful indifference, the girl
is too high-minded anyway:
| kham sdon mtho ru drags nas \
j lag pas brnab sa ma red \
j 'bras bus thugs bsam bzes nas \
I pan khebs nan la babs sog
For further references to kham bu and kham sdon, cf. Bod kyi dga'-
gias I, p. 16, nos. 1-6; p. 17, nos. 1-3; p. 29, nos. 4-5; p. 80, no. 3; Bod
kyi dga'-gias II, p. 11, nos. 5-6; p. 12, no. 2 = Snyder, 1972, p. 33 (a
tshig rgyag type of song); Bod-rigs kyi glu-gias, p. 6, no. 3; p. 96, no. 1;
Bod kyi glu-gias, p. 79, no. 2; p. 83, no. 1; p. 86, no. 1; p. 157, no. 1 and
p. 158, no. 2;gZas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 94, no. 2; p. 107, no. 3; p. 137,
no. 1; p. 148, no. 4; 149, no. 1; Glu-chuh sna-tshogs, pp. 6-7, p. 20;
gTam-dpe, pp. 114, 131; Norbu's Coll. II, nos. 6 and 32; "dMans-gzas
khag-gcig", Ni-gÉon, (1), p. 40; "gZon-nu 'od-sde dan bu-mo sa-mtsho-
ma", in Bod-ljohs dbus-gtsan-khul gyi dmahs-khrod gtam-rgyud, p. 41;
gSuh-mgur, nos. 35, 64, 207-208. Cf. M. Duncan, Love Songs, pp. 13,
45-6, 75, 96 et passim, where it e.g. is stated that to eat a peach in
Tibet denotes mating; Further, see e.g. M. Granet, Festivals and Songs
of Ancient China, London 1932, pp. 19-21 and C.A.S. Williams, Outlines
of Chinese Symbolism, 1931, pp. 276-77 for the importance of the peach
as a symbol in China.
the daughter of the high-ranking Regent, who, it was said, even encour-
aged the liaison; cf. H. Hoffmann in the Introduction to Houston, 1982,
p. XVII. Read metaphorically, however, the terms {rain tshig) 'daughter'
(sras mo, ze sa for bu mo) of a high political dignitary and a 'peach fruit'
(kha[m][s] 'bras) may no less arguably be a euphemism (dod tshig) for
the 'dual religious and secular (chos srid zuh 'brel) power (srid dbaftf
with which the institution of the Dalai Lama was invested. Identifying
the 'powerful governor' with the ambitious and power-seeking Regent
(cf. e.g. gSun-mgur, no. 409), his 'daughter' may well depict the Re-
gent's dearly won and absolutely exercised power over Tibet. Although
the Sixth Dalai Lama repeatedly professed his ambivalent misgivings,
first and foremost testified in his alleged lyrics, concerning the appropri-
ation of absolute power over Tibet to which he was eventually entitled,
this poem may nevertheless be seen as an ill-veiled, albeit well-nigh
forlorn, plaint launched by a dismal God-king against the omnipotent
and complacent Regent, who continued to exercise a firm grip on the
reins of government, in spite of the fact that the God-king considered
himself fully mature (smin pa) to 'reap the fruits of power'. As with
love, his call for real power proved unrequited.
64
6a sems pa sor, to lose ('chor, éor) one's heart or sentiment, the most
appropriate equivalent to our phrase 'to fall in love', cf. also no. 62
infra, = sems [pa] 'gro or sems [pa] son, nos. 3, 16-7, 19, 23. Meriting
special attention is the adverbial complement phar [la], i.e. thither or
yonder. Often read together with the adverbial correlate tshur [la], i.e.
hither. In this connection the phrase sems pa phar éor tshur éor thus
indicates mutual love, or 'to fall in love with one another'. To illustrate
this, we may quote a similar poem which relates about mutual love.
Although it did not involve physical love, the loving couple nevertheless
had gloomily to resign themselves to physical weariness, the fatiguing
effect accruing from baseless and unfounded gossip; cf. Bod kyi dga'-
gias I, p. 129, no. 4 = gTam-dpe, p. 116-7:
| sems pa phar éor tshur sor \
j lus po 'dres po med na \
j don med mi kha bsnams nas \
| sku than mnel rogs yin pa \
Worth quoting also for its illustration of the unquenchable vigour of
mutual love is a poem which equates such passion with a wildfire let
loose on the meadow. Even the headwaters flowing from the pass above
would hardly be able to extinguish it; cf. Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas, p. 88,
no. 1:
| sems pa phar éor tshur éor \
65
6b gnid thebs gcog (pf. bcagls]) = gnid thabs gcog or chog. The phrase thebs
bcag or chag is lexically somewhat cumbrously glossed as bed spyod
rgyur go chod tsam iig tu gyurpa'i nan non. More readily it means 'to
miss the opportunity or chance', here of sleep at night. To cite another
sample on the dramatic effect of lovelornness, sleeplessness, we may
quote a poem, classed as a tshig rgyag or repartee type of song, which
relates about the typical symptoms when struck by the pangs of love:
66
loss of appetite when beholding the little bird (the girl) in the willow-
grove and insomnia during the nuit blanche when she roams about in
his mind, cf. Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 35, no. 2 = gTam-dpe, p. 121-22 =
Snyder, 1972, pp. 33-34:
| lean glih miggils] mthoh dus |
| zas la za 'dod ma byuh \
j byis chuh yid la 'khor byuh \
j mtshan mo'i ghid thebs chag byuh \
Cf. also gSuh-mgur, no. 127. In 6b gi and gis are interchangeable.
Cf. also Duncan, 1961, p. 40. The haunted image of a girl, cf. no. 33
infra.
6c Note the antithesis or rhetorical contrast in hin mo vs. mtshan mo (note
the female gender), cf. similarly gSuh-mgur, no. 382 and Bod kyi glu-
gias, p. 113, no. 2 (a folksong from IHa-rtse), which states t h a t during
the day the sun is in command, the night is in command of the moon,
whereas when it comes to offering the body and the mind of the girl,
the power is entirely in her hands:
| hin mo hi ma'i dbah red \
j mtshan mo zla ba'i dbah red \
j lus sems sbyin pa gtoh bar \
I bu mo rah gi dbah red \
D. Back in his translation, op. cit., p. 143, anm. 6, presents shin as an
alternative reading to hin, reading thus shin mo, which allegedly should
mean 'the tender one* or 'the delicate woman', although unattested in
any diet. I am unable to see which edition warrants this reading. In
the light of the above antithesis the reading is unquestionably hin.
6d yid than chad = yi[d] than chad, = sems skyo or zum pa, despondency,
sorrow or discouragement. For the auxiliary verb rogs yin pa which
means 'be conducive to', 'aiding to', 'providing the means of etc., cf.
similarly the poem in Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 129, no. 4 = gTam-dpe,
p. 116-17 quoted supra; cf. also gSuh-mgur, no. 44.
Regent proved abortive. Not only did the poet's daily fight for power
prove luckless—being, as it was, out of his arm's grip—but equally frus-
trating, the nights were spent in restless and embittered insomnia.
Dis spirited by his dismal predicament, in which the God-king, our sur-
mised poet, found himself haplessly embroiled while posing merely as
an inane figure-head or puppet at the Regent's mercy, the enervating
dispute between the wilful Regent and the rivalling Qosot Khan would
eventually wore him out. This theme is taken up in other poems in
the sequel. This latter interpretation is partly followed by Xiao Diyan,
sBran-char, 1987 (4), p. 55 and by M. Tatz, The Tibet Journal, 1984, VI
(4), p. 28, n. 6, also.
68
byed pa, madhukara); 'the honey-drinker' (sbran rtsi 'thuh ba, mad-
hupâyin) etc.; The Tibetans distinguish in their traditional lore between
two types of bees: gser sbran, the yellow or golden bee, also denoted the
pad sbran bun ba and gser chun bun ba, cf. "dMans-gzas", Ni-gion, 1983
(2) p. 89; Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 134, no. 1; Bod-rigs kyi glu-gias, p. 61,
no. 2; gSun-mgur, nos. 30, 58, 179; Duncan, 1961, p. 42. Another type
is denoted the turquoise-blue bee (gyu sbran): cf. e.g. no. 15 infra, Bod
kyi dga'-gias I, p. 20, no. 2; p. 73, no. 4; p. 97, no. 6 = Bod kyi dga'-gias
II, p. 51, no. 1; p. 98, no. 1 = Glu-chuh sna-tshogs, p. 28; Glu-chuh sna-
tshogs, pp. 9, 13; cf. also G. Tucci, Tibetan Folk Songs from the district
ofGyantse, 1949, pp. 31, 62; and Tibetan Folk Songs from Gyantse and
Western Tibet, p. 47, no. 72; Norbu's Coll I, no. 18; gSun-mgur, no. 437
mentions a 'dam sbran, which probably alludes to the fact that the lotus
is born in mud ('dam skyes, pahkaja).
The act of courtship between the bee and the flower used to depict
a loving couple is commonplace in Tibetan lyrical tradition, as it is
worldwide. The bee circles Çkhor)—as an act of courting—the flower
in order to collect (gcog) honey (sbran rtsi) from the anther (ze'u 'bru).
Worth quoting is e.g. the following poem which provides us with such a
portrayal, in which the disclosing flower paves the way for an invitation
to the gyu sbran to indulge in honey, much the same as the exitement
auguring within the poet when meeting the beloved, cf. Bod kyi dga'-
gias I, p. 95, no. 5;
| me tog ze'u 'bru rgyas nas \
j gyu sbran sbran rtsi gsog gis \
| chun 'dris khyod dan mjal nas \
| stod la shin rluh gsog gis \
Coming amiss one another is also a theme treated in these poems,
when e.g. the flower bloomed too early and the 'golden bee' emerged
too late, after all, when there is no common ground for a unity—as the
course oî karman would have its way we may add, the loving couple too
had no cause to lament; cf. e.g. Bod-rigs kyi glu-gias, p. 61, no 1:
| me tog ear bar sha son \
| gser sbran bob par phyis son \
j gcig sems gcig la med na \
j ha rah skyo rgyu mi 'dug
Cf. similarly gSun-mgur, nos. 61, 110; cf. also Dun-dkar, sNan-hag la
'jug-tshul tshig-rgyan rig-pa'i sgo-'byed, pp. 220-22 for a poetical sample
of the flower and the bee.
7c The term las 'phro is basically a Buddhist notion which means 'the
continuation or progress of karmic causality*, not infrequently occuring
70
with the complement tshe snort, sku tshe and skal Idan added. Its
lexical equivalent is las skal, i.e. Täte', 'destiny* and 'karmic prospect'
in general. Cf. e.g. Wang Yinuan 1980, p. 7 C. yuan; Zhuang Jing,
1981b, p. 13 C. yuânfèn, i.e. 'lot' and Täte'. In this sense, the term not
infrequently implies a good-fated course (cf. e.g. Das' diet. p. 1212).
It occurs in a variety of constructions and phrases which testify to its
wide use, Small wonder we may add, when we recall the paramount im-
portance of karman (las, 'phrin las) or causation (las 'bras, rgyu 'bras),
a concept and notion which penetrates all levels of Tibetan thinking;
for a fuller discussion of causation and the various terms employed in
Tibet, cf., above all, the studies by L. Epstein, e.g. his "Blood and Thun-
der: Theories of Causation in Tibet", Tibet Society Bulletin IX, 1975
pp. 40-45; Causation in Tibetan Religion, Ph.D. Diss., 1977, Univ. of
Washington; and D. Lichter & L. Epstein, "Irony in Tibetan Notions of
the Good Life", Karma: An Antropological Inquiry, Univ. of California
Press, 1983, pp. 233-260.
As it will emerge from the subsequent samples of poems, when
phrased positively (and mostly conceived as an adj.) las 'phro is most
often read as las 'phro yodpa (-yinpa, here predicative) and las 'phro
can meaning 'endowed with luck' i.e. 'lucky', 'fortunate', 'blessed', cf.
e.g. gSun-mgur, nos. 130, 224, 274 (speaks about las 'khor baï tshe
snon las 'phro yin pa, 'a karmically retributory fate of former lives'),
nos. 429 and 443 (the last speaks of las 'phro en (= phran) tsam yod pa,
'possessing a little luck'); Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 7, no 2; p. 21, no. 6;
p. 30, no. 3; Bod kyi dga'-gias II, p. 25, no. 3; Bod kyi glu-gias, p. 113;
p. 4 1 , no. 6; p. 48, no. 3; p. 97, no. 2; Bod kyi glu-gias, p. 155, no. 1;
gZas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 113, no. 2; p. 162, no. 7; a special sDe-dge
? form is las 'bras yod pa, cf. sDe-dgeï dmahs-glu, p. 96, no. 3, b u t see
also ibid., p. 102, no. 2; finally, we may encounter the phrase las 'phro
ma zad, 'non-exhausted fate' = 'lucky', cf. Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 85,
no. 5. The terms las 'phro yod pa and las 'phro can are thus often
synonymous with las la bskos pa (var. reading las la bkod pa, cf. e.g.
gTam-dpe, p. 141), i.e. 'fate-chosen' or Tate-elected' or 'lot-bestowed', =
' l u c k / , 'fortunate', cf. Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 123, no. 1 and gZas-tshig
phyogs-bsdus, p. 166, no. 5; further, we have las 'phro 'dug, similar to
las 'phro yod pa, cf. Bod kyi glu-gias, p. 168, no. 2; Turning to construc-
tions carrying a negative load, the most regular phrases encountered
are las 'phro med pa and las 'phro zad pa, which invariably carry the
sense 'ill-fated', 'ill-boding', 'hapless' or just 'unfortunate' etc., cf. e.g.
gSun-mgur, nos. 110, 209, 312 and 313; Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 36, no. 4
= gtas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 101, no. 6; p. 86, no. 2; p. 125, no. 6; Bod
kyi dga'-gzas II, p. 23, no. 2; Further, gSun-mgur, no. 412 speaks about
a las 'phro tan pa, a 'weak or feeble fate' = 'ill-fated'; sDe-dge'i dmah-
glu, p. 110, no.2, as above, speaks about las 'bras med) Bod kyi dga'-gias
71
/, p. 65, no. 5 has las 'phro mi 'dug; gSun-mgur, no. 326 provides us
with an interesting synonym to las 'phro med pa, i.e. tshogs ma bsags
pa, about a lover/love (byams pa) who/which 'lacks the accumulation (of
merit)', a clear reference to the Buddhist notion of punya-sambhära, in
other words love is a forlorn hope; finally, we may refer to the synonym
las dman, 'low-fated', cf. Bod-ljons dbus-gtsah-khul gyi dmahs-khrod
gtam-rgyud, p. 43.
A number of allusive phrases containing this key idiom merits special
attention. Worth quoting is e.g. an adage which vividly accentuates the
inescapable impact of karmarCs working: you may possibly find a means
of saving your skin when hundreds of arrows are threatening you, but
once you have been ensnared by the lasso of karman, there is no room
for escape; cf. Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 65, no. 3:
| mda' brgyas srog la bsdigs kyan \
j bros pa'i thabs sig yod kyan \
j las 'phro'i zags pas bcihs dus \
I thar pa'i go skabs mi 'dug
Cf. similarly Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 115, no. 1 = gTam-dpe, p. 120
{cum var. lect), which relates t h a t when 'you are pursued by the karmic
destiny of love (byams pa las 'phros ded dus) there is no time (to see)
whether it will turn out good or bad (yag fies blta Ion mi 'dug)\ Cf.
also Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 81 no. 4 = Bod kyi dga'-gzas II, p. 4 1 , no. 6
quoted above (s.v. the crit. ed. 6a) and Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 96, no. 4
= gTam-dpe, p. 122 t h a t relate about the Toiot of fate being tied' (las
'phro'i mdud pa thebs (or skyon)). Bod kyi glu-gias, p. 143, no. 2 talks
about an inane project when 'the lock of karmic prospect' (las 'gro'i (:
'phro'i) sgo Icags) is there, but the key is lacking. Likewise, when you
want to catch a beautiful fish (fia mo, a girl) all you need is 'the hook of
(good) fate' (las 'phro'i Icags kyu) to be successful, cf. Bod kyi dga'-gzas
I, p. 30, no. 6; cf. further Bod kyi dga'-gias I, pp. 114, nos. 3, 5 and
p. 130, no. 1; Stein, 1972, p. 412, n. 4.
• This terse, allusive poem on the transient nature of life and on kar-
man's inexorable course is couched in a resigned, yet meekly compliant
and non-fatalistic tone. By presenting in the first couplet of the stanza
the simile (dpe) of the doomed course of flowers' blossoming, the topic
(brjod bya) illustrated (dpe can) in the last couplet is love (byams pa).
Recalling the irrevocable course of nature's seasonal alternations, the
poet stoically faces the ditto prospective of his love affair. There is no
reason to lament (skyo ba = smre nag) the extinction of love as it is
well-nigh predestined.
72
8a The term rtsi thog means according to the def. in the diet.: The seeds or
the fruits of grass and green plants etc. (rts[u]a dan lo tog sno Idum sogs
kyi 'bras bu'am sa bon). In actual fact rtsi thog simply denotes grass
and green plants. The Chinese scholars aptly renders it as grass (cäo),
but Zhuang Jing, 1981b, p. 13 translates it as C. llnllncäo, cold grass,
whereas Wang Yinuan, 1980, p. 8, by rendering rtsi thog with Cjîjïcào,
evidently sees it as a specific plant, the Achnatherum splendens, the
Feather or needle grasses of the Stipa species of the fam. Gramineae!
By the term ba mo is meant hoarfrost = bad, often employed (as Skt.
tusära) as a sign of transience (anityata). It indicates the white drops
(zil pa dkar po), the frozen ice-drops or minute ice crystals, emerging
atop plants and cold surfaces. Its synonyms (mam grans, paryäya) are
"the heaven's vapour" (nam mkha'i Hans), "water particles" (rdul gyi
chu) and "heaven's dew-drops" (mkha'i zil pa). When the hoar-frost (ba
mo) of autumn strikes, another allusive gias declares, the young man (o
lo; cf. nos. 55, 61 infra) is eager to see what will happen to the splendour
of the meadow-flower that blossomed during the three summer-months;
cf. Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 90, no. 1:
| dbyar gsum span gi me tog
I mtshar po de fdra yod na \
| ston ka'i ba mo phog dus \
I o los Had mo bltas chog
74
8b The term skya ser rlun evidently indicates the light-gray or pale-yellow
(skya ser = mdog dkar ser9 i.e. 'desert-coloured') northern (from Byan-
thari) wind during autumn and winter. The correct reading is appar-
ently an open question, as skyi ser, rkyah ser and even skye[n] ser (cf.
Das' diet. 108b; R. Stein, L'épopée tibétaine de Gesar, 1956, p. 390; R.
Stein, Recherches sur l'épopée et le barde au Tibet, 1959, p. 495) are
attested to. In Mi-la ras-pa'i mgur-'bum, a passage reads: byan skyi
(~ skye[n]) ser gyi rlun po ma [b]rgyab na \ Iho tsan dan gyi sin nags
'gul mi yon, "when the pale-yellow wind does not blow from the north,
the sandal trees in the south do not move"; cf. the mGur-'bum (ed.
Peking), fol. 15a, 123b, 213b; The term is also attested in the huge
Ge-sar Epic, cf. the ed. by R. Stein, 1956, HI, fol. 32a, 59a, 64b, 70b;
cf. also A.H. Prancke, "The Ladakhi pre-buddhist Marriage Ritual", In-
dian Antiquary, XXX, 1901, p. 139. Stein considers this idiom to be an
archaic epithet hailing from the Tibetan people's idiomatic storehouse,
and refers also to 'Brug-pa Kun-legs' biography, where the term rkyan
ser rlun po is found (R. Stein, 1972, p. 495; R. Stein, 1973, fol. 164a),
which he renders as l e vent, cet hémione à robe jaune'. This rendition
is not unfounded as rkyah ser in fact is attested in the dictionary, refer-
ring to the colour (spu mdog can) of mules and horses (rkyan [po], wild
ass, Equus hemionus Pall.; R. Stein, ibid., p. 537), here a colour with
a predominantly yellow tint. However, the form [s]kyi ser is attested
as early as the time of Khri-sron Ide-btsan; cf. Tucci, Minor Buddhist
Texts, II, p. 135.
Whatever the orthographically correct form, an equivoque is at play,
as the poet here provides us with a ill-concealed pun, since the term
skya ser (often also ser skya; = skya btsun, cf. Stein, 1972, p. 218; Stein,
1973, fol. 82a) traditionally refers to the two main groups, the laity
(white-dressed, skya, i.e. mi skya, khyim pa) and the clergy (yellow-
robed monks, ser mo ba, grva pa). With this double entendre in the
poem the poet wants to depict a person, who in the guise of a frost-
bound northern wind forcibly or physically barred him from any illicit
womanizing. As expressed in poem no. 39 infra a putative but likely
guess would be the Regent Sans-rgyas rgya-mtsho, who in reality was
in charge of both the temporal and the religious affairs of Tibet. Posing
therefore as a lay-person (mi skya) in the garb of a prelate (grva pa)
75
exposed him to the poet's ridicule and sarcasm (khrel dgod zur za).
Cf. also gSun-mgur, no. 53, where the Regent likewise is ridiculed for
vesting himself with a monk's robes (na bza' grva chas bies\ chos gos
snam sbyar) without having taken any vows (sdom med). Here the
embittered complaint and criticism (skyon brjod pa, sun 'byin gnah ba)
is directed against the Regent for acting as the barrier in person ('bral
rntshams byed mkhan, 'brel mtshams good mkhan), the separator of two
lovers, in the garb of a freezing cold northern wind, carrying along frost
and hail, the foremost enemies of a flower and a bee.
Another, almost identical, gzas signals t h a t the emergence of hoar-
frost on green plants should be taken as a true sign of the impending
advent of hail and (winter) storms—the season which definitely marks
the split between the bee and the flower, cf. Bod-rigs kyi glu-gias, p. 64,
no. 4
| rtsi thog ba mo béag na \
| rluh dan ser ba'i rtags red \
| me tog gser sbran ned gnis \
I bye rgyu'i dus la khad son \
Worth quoting also is a poem conveying the picture of the flower, the
bee and the unwanted autumn wind, cf. Norbu's Coll. TV, no. 9:
| span rgyan gyu lo 'dra ba'i \
I dbyar skyes me tog med kyi |
I ston ser lhag[s] pas khyer dus \
j gyu sbran sems pa skyo son \
Cf. also Duncan, 1961, p. 109 and Tucci, 1966, v. 51, p. 32. Again
in the Gesar Epos it is mentioned how the hailstorm from the north
destroys the clouds in the south; cf. R. Kaschewsky, "Vergleiche als
Stilmittel im Gesar-Epos", 1985, p. 607.
8d 'brel mtshams gcod mkhan is equally plausible.
• Similar to the previous poem this terse dictum is first and foremost a
dismal poem on the transient and ephemeral nature of life. On the fig-
urative level, however, it should be conceived as an embittered epigram
and a sardonic gibe (bstih tshig) portraying, in the eyes of the poet,
a hypocrite (tshul 'chos mkhan) and a sham, viz. the sDe-srid, who
blatantly and self-imposingly donned himself in monkish dress while
as a mi skya he would overtly indulge in improper adulteous activities
(mhon sum 'dzem bag med pa'i gnah tshul). At the same time the self-
same Regent would repeatedly rebuke (skyon 'dogs man po byed) the
young God-king for his amorous deportment. Cf. e.g. Chab-spel, 1987,
pp. 301-303 for the double life of the Regent. Xiao Diyan, sBmh-char,
76
To illustrate the fondness with which the Tibetans regard the geese,
we may cite S. Hedin, the Swedish explorer, who in his book Trans-
Himalaya (II, 1909, p. 362) relates such a story. When Tubges, the
huntsman of the expedition, had shot a gander, Oang Gye, the son of the
governor of Saka dzong, came to complain to him. He was quite over-
come at this brutal murder, and could not conceive how a man could be
so heartless and cruel. Sven Hedin tried to excuse it by remarking t h a t
they were dependent for their livelihood on what the country yielded.
The Tibetans answered: "But in this district you have plenty of sheep".
When Sven Hedin asked him whether it was not just as wrong to kill
sheep and eat their flesh, Oang Gye replied:
The excellent Oang Gye was quite inconsolable. We might shoot an-
telopes, wild sheep, and partridges as much as ever, if only we left the
wild geese in peace. I had heard in the Lob country similar tales of the
sorrow of the swans when their union was dissolved by death. It was
moving to witness Oang Gye's tenderness and great sympathy for the
wild geese, and I felt the deepest respect for him. Many a noble and
sensitive h e a r t beats in the cold and desolate valleys of Tibet.
Another reference worth quoting is taken from the birth-place of the
Sixth Dalai Lama, mTsho-sna in Mon-yul, described by G. Sheriff, the
noted plant-explorer, who travelled through the area about fifty years
ago, cf. H.R. Fletcher, A Quest of Flowers, pp. 85-86: Although an icy
blast swept the bleak uplands and snow covered the ground, Tsona was
awakening from its winter sleep and spring was in the air.
no. 65 infra), cf. e.g. C. Bell, The Religion of Tibet, 1931, p. 138-9; F.
Spencer Chapman writes in his Lhasa, The Holy City, pp. 162-5:
For an illustration of a group of ducks etc. on the idyllic lake, cf. The
Potala Palace of Tibet, 1982, pp. 14-15.
A legion of gias are therefore dedicated this beloved theme of the
lake and the enamoured goose. For instance, one gias relates about
the crane (khrun khrun), which, despite its long legs, has no means
of measuring the depth of the lake (cf. also no. 49 infra), whereas the
gander or the drake, despite a gloomy mood, may well measure the
depth (= acquire the confidence, affection) of the lake (= the girl); cf.
Bod kyi dga'-gias II, p. 15, no. 3:
| khrun khrun rkan pa rift yah \
j mtsho mo'i gtih tshod mi Ion \
I ser by a hah pa skyo yah \
| mtsho mo'i gtih tshod Ion yon \
Another gzas describes the sovereign master (= husband, bdagpo) of
the lake (= the beloved female), senseless indeed would it be for other
birds (? rivals) to circle (= woo) her, cf. Bod-rigs kyi glu-gias, p. 63,
no. 4:
| mtsho mo 'di yi bdag po \
j by a gcig hah pa ser po \
| bya rigs sna mi[n] sna tshogs \
| don med bskor ba ma gtoh \
Cf. ibid., p. 18, no. 3; worth quoting also is a gzas from lHa-rtse, in
which the loving couple compares their karman with that of the goose:
Although the only nourishment to subsist on (bza', note the pun on
bza' with bza' mi, = khyo éug, husband and wife, i.e. a couple and with
bza' ma, bza9 zla mo, wife) is what can be had from the marsh, they
nevertheless agree upon indulging conjointly in eating and drinking (=
marry), cf. Bod kyi glu-gias, p. 97, no. 2:
| ha nid gfiis po'i las 'di \
j hah pa ser po'i las red j
I bza9 rgyu 'dam las med kyah \
j mnarn bza' mnam 'thuh ius chog
82
Cf. Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 125, no. 1 for a slightly different poem.
Cf. also gSun-mgur, nos. 116, 178, 250, 317; Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 30,
no. 6; p. 40, no. 4; p. 47, nos. 3 and 6; Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas, p. 18, no. 1;
p. 19, no. 1; p. 50, no. 1; p. 53, no. 1 and p. 101, no. 2;gTam-dpe, p. 129;
Norbu's Coll I, no. 46; //, no. 14.
9c The theme of the icy, frozen intermezzo (dar kha chags, 'grigs, bsgrigs,
dar gyis bskor) covering the surface of the lake—a barrier which pre-
vents the goose from settling on the lake—is particularly popular when
either one-sided love or an unwelcome interference from a third part is
depicted. Other poems couched in the same vein as the present poem
relate e.g. about the goose travelling from afar mindful of the lake, but
only to be "cold-shouldered" by her. Love is a forlorn hope; cf. Bod kyi
dga'-gias I, p. 31, no. 1 = gTam-dpe, p. 114:
| nan pas mtsho mo bsam nas \
| sa thag 'gyahs nas y oh yah \
j mtsho mos hah pa ma bsam \
j mtsho mtha' dar gyis bskor Mag
Cf. similarly Bod kyi glu-gzas, p. 138, identical Bod kyi dga'-gias II,
p. 20, no. 5 = gZas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 110, no. 2; Bod kyi dga'-gzas
I, p. 102, no. 4 = gTam-dpe, p. 115 further relates about the enthusiasm
besetting the goose when spotting the icefree waters but when frozen
waters are encountered, resignation sets in and abandonment follows:
| mtsho la dar kha med na \
j [g]ser bya los kyah babs 'dra \
j mtsho mo'i dar kha mthoh dus \
| kho thag gtih nos chod son \
Another gzas depicts a gander which perpetually courts or wooes a
lake contemplating to secure a life-long partner and companion, but
facing the ice-white surface of the lake the poor bird recognized its
proposal for mating had been met with a downright rejection. The
gander had to turn its back to the lake; cf. Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas, p. 18,
no. 3:
| hah pa mtsho la 'khor 'khor |
| tshe gcig gtan grogs byed bsam \
j mtsho la dar dkar chags nas \
| hah pa bios rgyab btah byuh \
Cf. similar ibid., p. 19, no. 1 also gSuh-mgur, nos. 124-125. Dun-
can, 1961, pp. 24-5. Finally we may quote a poem, which analogous to
the wording and context of the present poem, depicts the icy interfer-
ence (the advent of a third person), despite the fact that requited love
prevailed, cf. Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas, p. 18, no. 4:
83
• This sullen poem, which similar to the two previous poems, draws
its imagery from nature, is first and foremost a song on luckless love
chanted by a frustrated lover. While it is near at hand to interpretate
it as yet a trite example of unrequited love and lovelornness by an
enamoured and lovesick poet, we could with equal justification read
the frozen barrier of love not as an wilful act on the side of the lake
unwilling to repay the gander's proposal, but just as well read it as the
irrevocable karrnic effect of nature, the advent of winter or perhaps the
deliberate interference by a third party or a third person who would
not compromise with the poet's buoyant disposition.
Xiao Diyan, sBrah-char, 1987 (4), p. 56, who in his historical reading
saw the onerous dispute between the young God-king and the Regent or
the Qosot chief lHa-bzan Khan as the poet's overall leitmotif behind the
composition of the entire corpus of songs, seeks also here an expression
of this on-going strife. The gander is here the metaphorical guise for
the God-king and the lake illustrates the very bone of contention and
the object of his craving: the seat of dual power, religious and temporal.
When finally he did assume the power, more in name than in actual fact
though, he nevertheless soon realized, Xiao contends, the full impact
of being the central figure of the political drama; the icy and frozen
barrier of power can only depict the numerous pangs, physical as well
as mental, which struck him in this period of chaos and discord.
84
10
10a gru éan rta mgo, the wooden barge furnished with a horse figure-head.
For an ill., cf. Spencer Chapman, Lhasa, The Holy City, opp. p. 58;
D. Snellgrove & H. Richardson, A Cultural History of Tibet, p. 168; P.
Aufschnaiter, Sein Leben in Tibet, 1983, p. 136; for a drawing, cf. R.
Stein, La Civilisation Tibétaine, p. 232; as already pointed out by D.
Back, 1986, p. 144, n. 10, the horse is often used symbolically as a
Vehicle': Besides a riding animal, the idea of a horse is employed in the
term for a car or waggon, éih rta, a 'wood-horse', as here in the term rta
mgo can, 'endowed with a horse-head' a boat; in the word for a prayer-
flag riding in the wind, rluh rta, a 'wind horse' and even in the word
dbyahs rta or hag rta, the 'horse of melody and voice', where the 'horse'
represents the tune of the songs, cf. R. Stein, Tibetan Civilization, p. 273
and the Gesar Epic, ed. Stein, 1956, index s.v. hag rta.
For the various synonyms of a ferry boat (gru san), cf. gSuh-mgur,
ad no. 231 in the Appendix. The barge or boat with a horse figure-head
occurs in a few poems. gSuh-mgur, no. 231, q.v., describes how this
figure-head is hoisted high on the long straight neck, being decorated
with fluttering prayer-banners. These auspicious banners signal that
there is no reason to despair, destiny has allotted the poet a romantic
tryst. Similarly, another poem tells how this horse-headed boat's mind
(contrary to the inanimate (sems pa med) barge in the present poem)
is directed at riding the blue waters, en route the poet has his karman-
fated female lover in his mind, not her parents, cf. Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas,
p. 10, no. 1:
| gru éan rta mgo'i bio de \
85
envisaged to be on the brink of setting off from the shore and be sailing
backwards (accounting for the poet always being granted a backward
glance). But more likely it simply means that his boat will always
return back to him, when it has fulfilled its mission. Looking back
evidently implies that a lover ultimately will come back, so when his
infidel and fickle (= a gsar can ma, cf. no. 35 infra) lover evidently did
not turn around to signal "we will meet again", or did not vouchsafe
him even a farewell glance, their love is irrevocably forlorn. For lOd,
cf. also gSuh-mgur, no. 392.
11
11a tshon 'dus bu mo, the girl of the marketplace, a common girl, often of a
dubious stamp; cf. gSuh-mgur, nos. 51 and 76 where this type of bazar-
girl (tshon 'dus a Ice dman éar9 cf. also gSuh-mgur, no. 4) are perpetually
surrounded by numerous wooers, a girl to whom one should never be
plighted, as she projects all kinds of promises to everyone. A whimsical
and volatile type of girl (a gsar can, cf. no. 35 infra), a promiscuous
paramour always tailed by a plethora of male-lovers, and a figure to be
distinguished from one's exclusive inamorata, a true girl more precious
t h a n precious gold, cf. Glu-chuh sna-tshogs, p. 33:
| tshon 'dus chen po'i dkyil du \
j byams pa brgya ston 'dzoms bzag
j sems la babs pa'i byams pa \
j rin chen gser las dkon pa \
l i b tshig gsum dam bca'i mdud pa, the knot of a three-worded pledge,
the three words of love. Usually this knot of plighted love-declaration
dictates a firm and never-failing observance, cf. Bod kyi dga'-gias I,
p. 52, no. 6 = Glu-chuh sna-tshogs, p. 20:
| snih grogs khyed dan ha gnis \
j tshig gsum dam bca'i mdud pa \
| nam yah Ihod pa med pa'i \
| thugs bsam brtan po bées éig
88
Confer also the following poem which parallels the knot of white silk
with the lover's heart-knot, the first may be undone, and yet one can
manage, whereas the latter may erode, the lovers still remain inex-
orably entangled with one another, ibid., p. 10, no. 1:
| dkar po dar gyi mdud pa \
j héig na thub sa 'dug ste \
j na gnis snih gi mdud pa \
j béigs kyan iig sa ma red \
This poem is corroborated by a nomadic story entitled "Treueschwur",
a story collected and translated by M. Causemann, Füchse des Mor-
gens. Eine tibetische Nomandenfrau erzählt, Düsseldorf 1986, p. 37,
and brought to our attention by D. Back, 1986, p. 144. In this story
it is told that tying a knot should symbolize that the lovers' plight re-
mains firm and indissoluble. Initially the vowed fidelity is confirmed
through tying a knot in silk. The knot they are making must never be
untied, even when the silk knot were to break asunder.
Further reference: Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 84, no. 3: zal nas tshig
gsum gsuhs dan; gTam-dpe, p. 127 relates about a song of sorrow on
three words (skyo glu tshig gsum btah ba); gSuh-mgur, no. 24 relates
about the intimate declaration in three words (tshiggsum sningtam, cf.
no. 29 infra); cf. also Bod kyi glu-gzas, p. 117, no. 1; gZas-tshig phyogs-
bsdus, p. 171, no. 2; Bod kyi la-gzas, pp. 32, 43-5, 52, 56, 59, 61, 66,
69, 71-2, 278, 282, 287, 298-9 (seven and eight-syllabic songs). When
the three-worded heart-plight is given by a casual lover or a young girl,
it cannot be trusted, as Duncan adduces, cf. his Love Songs, p. 87. We
may also refer to the story of Nor-bzan; cf. 'khrab-géuh, p. 28. In the
Gesar Epic we find lovers tied together by the knot of plight (mna3 yi
mdud pa can); cf. Il, fol. 37b, ed. R. Stein, 1956, p. 242.
We may perhaps in this poem find a faint albeit symbolic allusion to
the three words dkon mchog gsum which make up the Tibetan word for
Triratna. In a religious song from 'Brug-pa Kun-legs' biography (Stein,
1972, p. 220; 1973, fol. 83a) we similarly find an unbroken pledge of
taking refuge consisting of "three words" (tshig gsum skyabs fgro mi
gcog dam bca' yin).
l i e khra bo'i sbrul, a spotted or a striped (khra khra, khra mo) snake, cf.
also Zhuang Jing, 1981b, p. 14, Wang Ymuan, 1980, p. 11, C. huä she
(The Pentaglot Diet., p. 4346, khra bo, C. hua), a variegated or a 'spot-
ted snake'; mdud pa rgyablrgyag,skyon, 'thebsl'debs, to 'tie a knot' and
mdud pa bsiglzig, bkrol/grol, to 'untie or undo a knot'; the idea behind
this simile is that the snake is commonly known to make a knot on its
own body when it coils (sbrul 'khril ba) and it is also common knowledge
that it undoes the knot again. This illustration reflects a Tibetan say-
ing: "the knot on a snake is untied [by] the snake [itself]" (sbrul mdud
89
• With this witty adage the poet attempts to illustrate that a liaison
with a fickle lover is destined to be short-lived, the tenability and trust-
worthiness of a plighted promise given by a casual paramour would
prove just as futile or inane as the attempt to find a coiled snake per-
manently knot-tied. Further, the message of the poem unmistakably
carries the stamp of transience, as life itself love is evanescent and ac-
cidental. Were the poem susceptible to deeper associations, the volatile
damsel of the marketplace could then arguably be an ill-veiled allusion
to the whimsical Regent. The young God-king^s rapport with him, as is
known, ran occasionally the whole gamut of emotions. As a mésalliance
between two ineligible matches, the knot of their hard-proven allegiance
would eventually share the same fate. Prompted by forces beyond their
control, 'their Gordian knot' of shared political power would be cut all
by itself, turning the God-king, our surmised poet, into a self-imposed
and elevated isolation that followed in the wake of his professed ro-
manticism and by the turn of events forced the Regent onto a track
of political and military collision with the Mongols. Tragically, within
a few years both figures would have been removed from the political
scene.
Xiao Diyan, sBrah-char, 1987 (4), p. 57, prosecuting the latter line
of argumentation, reads this poem exclusively as a veiled reference to
the nature of the relationship between the God-king and the Regent.
He alleges that the poem purports that all contentions and problems
(gnad don) between them would be solved all by themselves, just as a
90
knot-tied snake would undo itself. He further contends that the poem
implicitly purports that his hostile conflict with the Qosot chief would
remain indissoluble.
91
12
12a chuh 'dris byams pa: a lover (byams pa) with whom one has been ac-
quainted ('dris) since childhood (chuh; chuh 'dris: lo na chuh dus nas
phan tshun 'dris): An acquaintance, betrothal, confidante and friend.
chuh 'dris, cf. e.g. no. 29 infra, Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 49, nos. 1, 3-6;
p. 50, nos. 1-6; p. 93, no. 5; Bod kyi dga'-gzasll, p. 27, no. 4, p. 28; no. 3;
p. 29, no. 2; p. 47, no. 1; p. 58, no. 1; Bod kyi glu-gzas, p. 105, no. 2;
p. 106, no. 1; p. 114, no. 2 and p. 139, no. 1; gSuh-mgur, nos. 30, 67,
70, 95, 122, 139, 415; gTam-dpe, pp. 109, 128, Bod kyi la-gzas, pp. 100,
110-1, 113,160, 168, 170-1, 178-9, 202, 277, 284, 290 etc.;Tucci, 1949,
pp. 30, 62 = chuh 'grul, cf. Norbu's Coll. Ill, nos. 51-2, 59 etc. = chuh
'grogs, cf. e.g. gSuh-mgur, no. 410 = chuh lg]rogs or lg]rogs chuh, a stan-
dard term occuring in Bod kyi la-gzas, passim almost a 100 times = shar
'dris byams pa, cf. gSuh-mgur, no. 59; sDe-dge'i dmahs-glu, passim; Li
Xueqin, 1986, p. 83.
Worth quoting are the following poems t h a t aptly illustrate the term.
In one gzas it is admonished not to denote the girl a chuh 'dris byams
pa, there has been no acquaintance since childhood and one-night of
intimacy does not make the girl a chuh 'dris, cf. Bod kyi glu-gias, p. 9 1 ,
no. 2:
92
12b The willow tree (lean ma, M. uda; C. Hü; Salicaeae), any of the genus
(rigs) Salix. A vigorous deciduous tree with lance-shaped leaves. Ac-
cording to éel-goh éel-phreh, pp. 249-50, three varities are found: ri
lean 'byar pa, a mountain willow, also called lean chen, the 'big willow',
the Salix alba or regalis ? the rgya lean phra mo, a tiny (shrubby)
type of willow and lastly the kluh lean skyed ma, a type growing in the
valleys. A legion oîgias on the lean ma testifies to this tree's popularity
in Tibet, suffice it to refer to e.g. Norbu's Coll. I, no. 4 1 ; III, nos. 25-27;
93
Bod kyi dga'-gias I, pp. 36, nos. 1-37, no. 1; Bod kyi dga'-gias II, p. 24,
nos. 1-3; gSun-mgur, passim; Duncan, 1961, pp. 25, 51, 53, 77, 92; W.
Eberhard, Lexikon chinesischer Symbole, 1983, pp. 299-300.
Usually the willow-grove and the thrush are used to provide a favour-
ite simile of love and mating; cf. no. 64 infra,
12c lean srun [6a], the 'caretaker of the willow5 appears to be an old office
in vogue in pre-1800 Tibet, a sort of official or dignitary (zal no, note,
incidentally, this nominal synonymic compound, consisting of two words
for 'face', the first being honorific and the other ordinary, cf. similarly
no. 14 infra, gsuh skad, khrel giun), in casu it may be rendered by our
'mister' or 'sir', here a person in charge of the forestry, cf. L. Petech,
Aristocracy and Government in Tibet, SOR XLV, p. 12, n. 2; a jo: gcen
po'am jo jo, elder brother or good brother; cf. also Tucci, 1966, p. 39,
n. 1.
Lhasa, often known as the city of poplars (sbyar pa, dbyar pa) and
willows (lean ma), provides a perfect setting for this poem. In the many
gardens iglih kha) and pleasure-groves (skyed mos tshal) in and around
the city and in particular in Nor-bu glin-kha and on the island behind
the Potala are many willows found growing, cf. F. Spencer Chapman,
Lhasa, The Holy City, p. 164-5 and C. Bell, The People of Tibet, p. 8 0 - 1 ,
where the function of a caretaker is mentioned. In love poetry willow
groves (lean glin) are favourite h a u n t s for lovers' venues, cf. no. 64 infra.
12d rdo ga rgyab is an equally plausible reading. Throwing stones ('ur rdo
rgyaglb or skyon pa) is karmically considered a highly improper and
unwholesome act. It usually alludes to the affairs of an intermeddler.
An oft-quoted poem depicts a tiny bird sitting in between the leaves of
a tree, a sign of requited love prevailing between the bird and the tree
(cf. also no. 62 infra), admonishing everyone not to throw stones, i.e.
not to disturb the séance, cf. Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 74, no. 4 = Bod kyi
glu-gzas, p. 67, no. 2 = "dMaris-gzas khag-geig", Ni-gion, 1983 (3), p. 63
= Tucci, Tibetan Folk Songs, 1949, v. 52 (p. 31, 64) = ibid., 1966, v. 52
(cum van lect). In the present case the caretaker is admonished not
to throw stones at the prayer-flag, thereby disturbing and eventually
destroying the good luck of the girl.
• The poem clearly conveys the poet's earnest wish to demonstrate his
love. By hoisting high the prayer-flag which carries airwards his aus-
picious prayers for her unalterated prosperity and happiness, the poet
evidently seeks requited love. The caretaker of the banner-bedecked
willow tree, a gardening official plausibly employed in the household
of the God-king's private parks, is solemnly requested not to interfere
in his love affair. Even, we should evidently anticipate t h a t the per-
sonage in question already had a lurking suspicion about the poet's Jeu
94
13
13a On the theme of dispatching small letter (yi ge) or letters (yig) being
written down, cf. e.g. two gias quoted in sDe-dge'i dmans-glu, p. 102,
no. 3 and p. 104, no. 2; "Bod kyi dmans-gzas", Bod kyi rtsom-rig sgyu-
rtsal 1980 (1), p. 83; cf. also a sample quoted in "'Dod-gzas khag-brgyad",
Ni-gzon, 1983 (1), p. 70, in which the small black heart letters (i.e.
amorous thoughts) effortlessly (i.e. unavoidably) came across (passed
between them) when the poet suddenly recalled the smiling counte-
nance of his lover:
| byams pa'i 'dzum Idan zal ras \
j glo bur yid la dran dus \
I sems pa'i yi ge nag chuh \
I dbah med phred la sor son \
13b The phrase chu daft thig (or thigs) pas, properly means water and drops,
but should be conceived as waterdrops. The reading 'jig has been retain-
ed, in spite of the fact t h a t the reading béigls] seems more appropriate,
as the aux. verb son is employed as a past tense particle, and then
most often entailing the main verb in the past tense also. A oft-quoted
gias provides us with a plausible clue as to how the letters may be
erased. Contrary to our present poem, once the words of love or the
love letters between the poet and his long-acquainted sweetheart have
been imprinted on rocks three years of pouring rain could not erase
96
• Unravelling the meaning (go don) of this poem probably points in two
directions. Literally, it clearly depicts the indelible imprint or rather
ineffaceable impression left behind in the memory of a lovesick person,
pensées amoureuses, as is known, die hard. Exchanging love letters,
printed, written or sealed, whatever, physical declarations are perpetu-
ally susceptible to decay and oblivion. Not to mention t h a t dispatched
letters may forcibly be prevented from reaching its destination. Not so
97
14
14a The little, black seal (the'u = the 'u = the[l] bu, = the mo, thel rise,
tham ka, dam phrug, a signet, a seal or stamp). Note the opposition:
rgyab (ordinary, phal skad) in 14a and skyon (honorific, ze sa) in 14d:
To imprint or stamp (a seal). 14a brgyab is an equally feasible reading,
the past tense may even be preferable, viz. the stamp Tiaving been
sealed'.
14b Note, similarly, the synonymic compound gsun skad consisting of a hon-
orific (gsun, verbal) and ordinary (skad, nominal) term; cf. also Bod kyi
glu-gzas, p. 48, no. 3. Here mi ses should be understood as "not able to',
cf. e.g. Das' diet. p. 1243, who cites a phrase like gan ées, "to one's best
ability" hailing from the sense "to the best of one's knowledge" etc. So
the little black seal is incapable of human utterance. Whereas this line
is couched in honorific terms, a corresponding line in no. 26, purporting
exactly the same sense, is phrased in ordinary terms: skad cha smrals]
ni mi ées.
14c khrel [dan] gzuh, = bag yod, 'dzem bag, ho tsha, Skt. apaträpya, i.e.
modesty, bashfulness, decorum, candour and even shame; van Heurck,
1984, p. 78 cites a def.: ya rabs bag yod kyi spyod pa, 'discreet, whole-
some deeds'; cf. also no. 10 supra, no. 26 infra; gSuh-mgur, nos. 50, 96,
413ij and 414ab.
15
15a The hollyhock (ha lo\ Skt. süryakänta', Cjlnkuihuä; Altheae or rather
Alcea rosea or chinensis), the garden hollyhock (Idum ra'i nan gi me
tog, cf. e.g. gSun-mgur, no. 259) of the Mallow family (Malvaceae). A
free-flowering and sun-loving plant with profusely showy funnel-shaped
flowers. By the Tibetans it is indistinguishable from the true mallow
(Malva), hollyhock mallow (Malva altea) or the rose mallow (Hibiscus)
of which three genera (rigs) are found: leant pa—pho Icam, also called
mdog Idan and ha lo me tog; mo /cam—also called rgya Icam, the Chi-
nese mallow or hibiscus and ma nin Icam, or bod Icam, the Tibetan
mallow or Hibiscus, identical with Skt. süryakänta (ni dga*), the sun-
loving plant with enormously showy though transient and short-lived
flowers; cf. Éel-gon éel-phren, pp. 275-76 and Bod-ljons rgyun-spyod
kruh-dbyVi sman-rigs, pp. 396-400; for a slightly different arrangement
of the Icam pa spp., cf. gSo-rig skor gyi rgyun-mkho gal-che-ba bdam-
bsgrigs, pp. 391-2. This garden plant is often used in ceremonies as a
flowery votive gift because of its spectacular showy flower clusters. One
gias emphasizes its short bloom, as it is transient or, as said, a flower of
a duration of three-summer-months only, contrary to the dull-coloured
saffron flower, which stays in bloom all year; Bod kyi dga'-gzas II, p. 71,
no. 2:
| ha lo bkra mdans ehe yan \
| dbyar zla gsum gyi me tog
j gur gum kha dog skyo yan \
| dbyar dgun Hag par yod do \
101
• This and the following poem are companion pieces. The theme of
the flower and the bee is reintroduced. The hollyhock is a humble
and ordinary flower, and yet it is a suitable objet d'offrande. The poet
evidently declares his readiness to follow his beloved everywhere, a girl,
103
16
16a For sems son bu mo or byams pa, the girl or beloved in whom some-
one has fallen in love, cf. no. 3a supra. Note the opposition in 16a of
béugs (honorific) and 16c sdod (ordinary): the person addressing an-
other person employs the honorific term, whereas the ordinary term is
exclusively reserved the person speaking; b u t see also no. 54, where a
third person obviously is involved, who portrays the God-king.
16b For this construction, cf. 15b; the terms dam pa'i chos (Skt. Saddharma)
and lha chos are synonyms, both designating the Buddhist religion. In
this couplet a girl, the poet's inamorata, no doubt is depicted, t h a t h a s
embraced a religious life. This would clearly imply t h a t she has thereby
renounced the world and become a nun (btsun ma, a ni), as van Heurck
rightly points out, op. cit., p. 82.
16c For pho gion, cf. also no. 2c supra.
16d ri khrod 'grimls], to seek or prepare for a hermit's mountain retreat,
cf. no. 24 infra; gSuh-mgur, nos. 22, 46, 146; thai fgro, also thai 'byuh
[du] 'gro: thogs med du 'gro or ma brtags pa'i 'gro starts, to go straight
away or to go readily forth without reflexion. Less probably, 'gro should
here be taken as the auxiliary verb 'gro, indicating the probability or
possibility of the verbal action, similar to yin (resp. min) 'gro, 'maybe,
perhaps' cf. e.g. Norbu, Musical Tradition of the Tibetan People, index,
s.v. 'gro. The reason is that we have the phrase thai son, the pf. tense
105
of thai 'gro; cf. no. 61, gSuh-mgur, no. 162; an equally plausible reading
is thegls] 'gro.
The entire poem has a conspicuous parallel in gSuh-mgur, no. 415, in
which the girl responds to a similar situation, only here she has been
abandoned by the male lover:
| chuh 'dris byams pa mi bzugs \
j ha nid [b]skyur nas phebs na \
j bu mo ha yah mi sdod \
| dam paï chos la btah 'gro
17
17a A renowned {mtshan ldan, *nâmin) lama or a lama endued with aus-
picious marks (mtshan Idan, Haksanavat). For mtshan ldan gyi bla
ma cf. e.g. 'Brug-pa Kun-legs' biography (Stein, 1973, fol. 120b). The
alternative adj. tshad ldan (*pramänika), i.e. authoritative or learned,
is equally feasible; cf. e.g. the story of Nor-bzan, rnam-thar, p. 212. It is
a term which evidently hails from the concept designating the Buddha,
i.e. pramäJiabhüta, 'embodying the means of valid knowledge', cf. e.g.
Dignäga, Pramänasamuccaya, 1.1, tr. M. Hattori, On Perception, Har-
vard Oriental Series 47, 1968. pp. 73-75; Wang Yinuan, 1980, p. 17,
renders this adj. into C. dé gäo, 'with high-morals' and Zhuang Jing,
1981b, p. 16, C. dé dào, 'truthful, principled'; D. Back, 1986, p. 4 1 ,
'fähigen', but van Heurck, 1984, p. 83, 'saint'; Vilgrain, 1986, p. 38
'plus excellent'. For the importance of a good, competent and authori-
tative teacher (äcärya, slob dpon; guru, bla ma) authorized to bestow
upon the pupil or the disciple (éiksya, slob ma) both lun and dban, cf. G.
Tucci & W. Heissig, Die Religionen Tibets und der Mongolei, 1970, p. 60;
sGam-po-pa, Thar-rgyan, tr. H.V. Guenther, chap. Ill; K. Dowman, Sky
Dancer, 1982, p. 200, n. 4.
17c We have settled for the reading sems pa 'gor, 'his thoughts dwell on'
or 'his mind lingers about' (aimlessly) in the presence of the teacher.
Equally plausible is the reading sems pa skor, 'to make the thoughts go
around or revolve'.
17d The words sems pa of 17c and éor of 17d combined means 'the thought
or the mind escaped or fled [in the direction of the lover]'. But sems
pa éor more readily means 'to fall in love', cf. no. 6 supra, so a pun is
at play. Earning our attention also is the colloquial form of ed. K lahs
soft, which is a particular South Tibetan colloquial idiom t h a t may be
glossed with the literal forms phyin son, ear soft, chags son, 'appeared,
emerged, went 5 etc. Cf. similarly, gSun-mgur, nos. 33, 90, 124-5, 129,
136, 215, 221, 255, 315.
Worth reiterating is a gzas already cited, which poignantly captures
the dilemma which our poet is faced with in the present poem. In
the following poem the poet's mind, likened to a delicate drug/gru dkar
turquoise (cf. no. 4 supra), helplessly fled (semspa ...éor, "to fall in love")
towards his pretty damsel, unable to be controlled by (i.e. held back by)
the reins of memory or even sense, we may add; cf. Bod kyi dga'~g£as I,
128, no. 3 = Bod kyi dga'-géas II, p. 66, no. 1 = gZas-tshigphyogs-bsdus,
p. 120, no. 1:
| sems pa gyu chuh gru dkar \
I dran ées srab kyis ma thul \
j mdzes ma khyed kyi phyogs la \
| rah dbah med par sor son |
Finally, we may quote a gias which parallels our poem (compare line
c with 17c in ed. D) in t h a t the poet here requests being granted the
(teaching revealing the) ultimate reality (chos nid, dharmatä) in the
presence of a Brag-dkar bla-ma. Despite attempts to keep a curb on
his thoughts, it was all of no avail, all his attention wandered along
towards his beloved, cf. Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas, p. 63, no. 2:
| brag dkar bla ma'i druh du \
j chos nid zu bar phyin pa |
j sems pa bkag kyan mi thub |
j byams pa3i phyogs la éor son \
• This and the following poem form a contextual unity, in which a re-
ligious note is struck. These poems take another stand from the two
previous poems. In the two previous pieces, love became a catalyst t h a t
paved the way for a religious engagement. In the following two poems
the tables are turned. The ambivalent vacillation between the poet's
strong yearning for love and his equally strong religious obligations is
108
18
18a The alt. reading bsgoms pa in 18a+c is equally plausible. The term
[b]sgom[s] pa'i should here be conceived as a verbal adj, viz. as a
past or present participle, the lama's face 'meditated upon' or, retain-
ing the reading [b]sgom[s] pa, construe it as a gerund, being short for
*[b]sgom[s] pa na, 'while meditating upon' etc. Here the term sgom pa
(Skt. bhävanä) means 'cultivating or refining mentally* or to 'realize qua
mental visualization'. In general, however, the term is translated by
the neutral term meditation. M. Tatz, The Tibet Journal, VI (4), 1981,
pp. 28—29, adduces t h a t this poem provides testimony of the fact t h a t
Tshans-dbyaiis rgya-mtsho employed yogic visualization techniques ap-
pertaining to tantric guru-yoga practices.
18c As mentioned above, ma [b]sgom[s] is an equally plausible reading. It
should thus probably be construed as *ma [b]sgom[s]pa na, 'when/while
not meditating upon' or even 'without meditation'.
Further, we may notice the strikingly identical construction, as al-
ready observed by van Heurck, 1984, p. 84, between poem no. led and
18cd(ofed. CG):
| ma skyes a ma'i ial ras \
| yid la 'khor 'khor éar byuh \
18d The term va le va le, which is also seen written val le val le, is a strik-
ing example of a typical quadrisyllabic word formation of which Tibetan
(Lhasa dialect) is so replete; cf. Zhang Liansheng, ' T h e Phonetic Struc-
ture of ABCB Type Words in Modern Lhasa Tibetan", Soundings in
Tibetan Civilization, pp. 20-34. The form va le va le, which lexically is
glossed with gsal le, [sems la] lam lam du [ear tshul], viz. 'clearly visi-
ble, (emerging) distinctly (in the mind)', is retained here as the original
reading. It can be designated an open-syllabic ABAB word type accord-
ing to the above word formation. According to the prevailing principles
of this type of word formation, however, the alternative readings va le
vu (or better vo) le would seem to be a preferable reading, as the open-
syllabic ABCB type with the syllables A and C being alliterative (with a
vowel shift from a to o) and the syllable D being a repetition of B is the
type t h a t by far outnumbers the other forms. This is corroborated by
the entry in Bod-rgya éan-shyar gyi lha-saï skad-tshig-mdzod, p. 815:
va le vol le.
• The topic (brjod don) of the previous poem is reiterated in this con-
crete piece of a love poem (mdza' gzas). It offers a blatant example
of the ineluctable impact t h a t a love-sick mind may wield. The poet's
mind is replete with the memory and yearning for the beloved, to such
an extent t h a t it eventually thwarts further spiritual pursuits. Read
politically, the poem purports the God-king's determination to abstain
from upholding his high religious position (mtho rim gyi go gnas), in
other words to sacrifice one of his two positions in his dual rulership
(chos srid gnis Idan). By thus seeking temporal matters exclusively,
Xiao Diyan, ibid., p. 68, reads this poem as an expression, in the usual
euphemistic way, of the poet's wish to demonstrate his solidarity with
his guardian, the Regent of Tibet.
Ill
19
19a sems pa 'gro = sems pa son, sor, to "fall in love", cf. nos. 3, 6 supra. The
iterative indicates the continuous process of the verbal action. 19a 'di
la evidently refers to the beloved (byams pa). Observe also the shift
from present tense in 19a to past tense in 19b.
19b Cf. similarly 15b and 16b evincing an identical wording.
19c Tb obtain Buddhahood within one lifetime and one single body is re-
served those following the course of Mantrayâna, the Esoteric Vehicle.
19c nid la, = kho na, merely. To be a h u m a n being is an unique and
singular chance for attaining the status of Buddha, cf. sGam-po-pa,
Thar-rgyan, chap. II.
19d To attain Buddhahood or to become a Buddha.
• This love-poem resembles the kind of witty repartee songs (glu éags,
gias éags, tshig rgyag) or adages (legs bead) which are much cherish-
ed in Tibetan lyrical and popular tradition. Most typically, this genre
consists in presenting in the last distich or couplet a paradoxical or
even absurd statement which makes sense or prove practicable only
if another, often equally absurd statement or conditional premise, pre-
sented in the first couplet or distich, itself is feasible; cf. e.g. gSuh-mgur,
nos. 115-120, esp. no. 119.
Analogous examples of this type of song as an expression of whole-
hearted yearning and engagement appear to be popular. Cf. e.g. Tucci,
Tibetan Folk Songs, 1949, 13, 24, 52; 1966, pp. 18, 27, 44 and, as here,
p. 52, where a poem is quoted t h a t evinces a similar pattern: If the
112
austere efforts that are constantly applied to this (i.e. a certain task),
similarly were applied to practising the Holy Law (saddharma), then,
no doubt, one would attain Buddhahood within this very existence and
this very body:
| dka' ba 'di la spyod spyod \
j dam pa'i chos la spyad na \
| tshe gcig lus gcig 'di la \
j sans rgyas thob pa thag chod \
Cf. also van Heurck, 1984, p. 87. Slightly rephrased, mKhas-btsun
bzan-po (gTam-dpe, p. 107) has similarly furnished us with zgzas which
is also patterned upon our poem. Here it is maintained that anyone who
applied just as much effort to the Holy Law as he ceaselessly applied to
a certain (task), then the person in question wWld this time certainly
take the lead on the path of Sâkyamuni:
| las mo 'di la sbyans sbyahs \
j dam pa'i chos la sbyans na \
I da tshod êàkya thub pa'i \
j lam sne zin pa yod do \
This chant again signals the positive prospects of a religious pursuit,
as the accessibility of practising religion is here measured against his
romantic attachment, an act boding well for his prospective engagement
in spiritual ends.
113
20
20a éel ABCDEFGHI : ear JK; gans ACDEFK : gvafis G : sgan BHIJ;
chu ABCDEFGHIK : chuh J;
20b bdud ACDEFGHIJK : 'dud B; rje'i ACDE : rje BFGHIJK;
20c gyi CEFGHIJ : gyis ABDK;
20d mkha' ACDEFGHIJK : mkhan B;
20e ma ABCDEFGHIJ : nas K; btun ACEFHIJ : gtuh K : bstun B :
'thuh DG;
20f myon ACDEFGHJK : myan BI;
20a The term dag pa éel ri, its recondite meaning and its possible identifi-
cation as a proper toponym h a s been part and parcel of the consider-
able complexity that h a s marred this intriguing poem. As the minute
scrutiny in the sequel will amply prove, the poem with its particular im-
agery lays bare a wide panorama of cultural, alchemical-occult, magico-
religious and partly historical ingredients which altogether make up a
poem of baffling intricacy. Since its first appearance the poem h a s been
considered not only the key stanza in the entire song cycle but h a s also
constituted a minor conundrum to all interpretators, whose understand-
ing were baffled by its well-nigh arcane wording. The poem eventually
prompted the writing of two stimulating essays exclusively dedicated
the unravelling of this six-syllabic verse-poem. The essay by D. M.
114
Back, "Zu Einem Gedicht des VI. Dalai Lama", ZDMG, 135 (2), 1985,
pp. 319-329, initially opened ajar the door to a broader understand-
ing of the poem, an understanding which was subsequently somewhat
expanded by the present author in his critical edition, "Tibetan Love
Lyrics'1, IIJ, 31 (4), 1988, pp. 253-298, but the wäll in our understand-
ing first really broke with the almost-definitive essay by Dan Martin
(originally conceived as a clarifying rejoinder to the article by Back),
"For Love or Religion ? Another Look at a 'Lové Song* by the Sixth
Dalai Lama", ZDMG, 138 (2), 1988, pp. 349-363, in which D. Martin
provided us with the final clues by managing to trace and to identify
one of the key names in the poem, the holy mountain Dag-pa sel-ri,
located, it turned out, in the rTs[v]a-ri area of south-eastern Tibet.
By thus tracing this most astonishing topographical sanctuary in the
sacred territory of rTs[v]a-ri and by associating it with the 'supreme
herb' (rts[v]a mchog, rts[v]a goh) klu bdud rdo rje, a grass herb endued
with supernormal and magical-occult properties, the poem finally seems
to unfold its many layers of association. This fortunate link between
Dag-pa sel-ri and the herb klubdud rdorje, incidentally, was unwittingly
hinted at by Nebesky-Wojkowitz, cf. my article in IIJ, 31 (1988) pp. 2 7 3 -
4. Nevertheless, our subsequent exposé shall first and foremost be read
pari passu with D. Martin's essay, inasmuch as it will be relying heavily
on a number of his striking findings.
Dag-pa sel-ri, or Pure Crystal Mountain, is located in the very heart
of the heart (gnas kyi sninpo las snih por gyur pa) of the Tsä-ri-tra area,
i.e. rTs[v]a-ri, the area of'Herbal Mountains', in south-eastern Tibet on
the upper reaches of the Subansiri river (rTs[v]a-chu) that eventually
empties into the Brahmaputra (gTsan-po) river further below in Assam,
lying to the north-east of lHo-'brug (Bhutan), lHo-kha and lHo-Mon, to
the south of Dvags-po and Koh-po districts, to the west of Padma-bkod,
another Tiidden treasury land' (sbas yul) and sacred region, and abuts
southwards on Kameng of present-day Arunachal Pradesh. Moreover,
Dag-pa sel-ri, the central Massif in the rTs[v]a-ri region, towers the air
less than 100 miles in distance from Tshans-dbyans rgya-mtsho's na-
tive birth-place La-'og yul-gsum of the mTsho-sna region. The rTs[v]a-ri
area is replete with sanctuaries and is a veritable terra sacra being reck-
oned as one of the major pilgrimage sites or circumambulation routes
in Tibet, including par excellence the most important pilgrimage in Ti-
bet, the rTs[v]a ri ron bskor and rTs[v]a ri rin Tdior, the latter being
the 'Lengthy rTs[v]a-ri Pilgrimage', a month-long sanctuary circumam-
bulation that until 1950 was officially arranged and led by the Tibetan
government taking place at twelve-yearly intervals (each monkey year).
Moreover, rTs[v]a-ri has also been a place reckoned by the Indians as
one of the twenty-four power-places of the Mother Tantras. Cf. A. Lamb,
The McMahon Line, vol. II, pp. 321-3, 537; Nebesky Wojkowitz, Ora-
115
116
des and Demons of Tibet, pp. 222, 406; G. Combe, A Mbetan on Tibet,
p. 127; T. Wylie, The Geography of Tibet, S.O.R. XXV, pp. 94-6; Shak-
abpa, Tibet—A Political History, p. 82; K. Dowman, The Power Places
of Central Tibet, p. 263; H. Fletcher, A Quest of Flowers, pp. 86-100; L.
Petech, Aristocracy and Government in Tibet, pp. 2 6 , 1 0 2 , 1 2 0 , 1 2 5 , 1 3 1 ,
158, 196-98 and 221; E. De Rossi Filibeck, Two Tibetan Guide Books
to Ti se and La phyi, Monumenta Tibetica Historica, Abt. 1 (Band
4), pp. 123, 125-6, 153, 155, 173; for further réf. cf. D. Martin, ibid.,
pp. 349-50.
That the rTs[v]a-ri territory is a herbal and botanical storehouse and
a veritable pilgrim's sanctuary (gnas chen) is amply attested by sundry
sources: Cf. e.g. Harold R. Fletcher's detailed biography of the botan-
ical explorers F. Ludlow and G. Sherriff, A Quest of Flowers, which
presents us with a vivid description of the area (chap. Ill: "To Tkari, A
Tibetan Sanctuary" pp. 77ff.). But a number of indigenous guidebooks
brought to our attention by D. Martin also provide ample information.
The first of these is by the omniscient polyhistor (kun mkhyen), the
Fourth 'Brug-chen Padma dkar-po (A.D. 1527-1592), gNas-chen Tsa-
ri-tra'i ho-mtshar snan-ba pad~dkar legs-bsad; in Padma dkar-po: Col-
lected Works (gSuh-'bum), vol. 4 (na cha), pp. 207-274 (abbr. NCHTSR);
The second is by the Eighth 'Brug-chen Kun-gzigs chos kyi snan-ba,
alias dKar-brgyud bstan-pa'i rgyal-mtshan 'gyur-med yons-grub dam-
chos ni-ma (A.D. 1768-1822), rTsa-ri gnas-bsad rgyas-par bsad-pa'i le'u,
reproduced in Rare Tibetan Texts from Nepal, vol. 4, pp. 1-59 (abbr.
TSRNÉ); for details and further text references to another work by the
latter author, cf. D. Martin, ibid., p. 350, n. 6-7. For maps of the area
indicating Dag-pa sel-ri, cf. Fletcher, ibid., p. 87,101, 111, 223. Further
references to this sanctuary are provided e.g. by the biography of the
Sixth 'Brug-chen Mi-pham dbaii-po (A.D. 1641-1717), cf. below, and
still further texts may emerge when the writings of the Fifth 'Brug-
chen dPag-bsam dban-po (A.D. 1593—1641) and the Second Pan-chen
bla-ma have been scrutinized thoroughly. Dag-pa sel-ri is repeatedly
mentioned in these texts and at places subjected to a detailed descrip-
tion. Padma dkar-po, for instance, alludes first briefly to Dag-pa sel-ri
in NCHTSR, pp. 214.3 and 6, 216.1 before presenting us with the fol-
lowing interesting passage, citing inter alia a statement by the seventh
century Tibetan king Sron-btsan sgam-po; NCHTSR, p. 220.1-5:
... de'i ho mtshar gyi bkodpa ni |
phyi yul snan la ear ba'i tshul mdo dan mthun la \ khyad par
du 'phags pa sprul pa'i chos rgyal sroh btsan sgam pos | phyi
gya'ri padma'i mu khyud Itar 'khor ba'i nan \\ tsa ri ri rab ban
rim gsum pa'i tshul du chags sift \ gsah ba dag pa sel gyi gahs
ri bum pa'i tshul du Ihun chags pa \ de bas ran byun Ihun gyis
grub pa'i byin rlabs kyi mchod rten chen po ies bka' stsal ba Itar
gnas
de yah tsä ri tra ye ses kyi 'khor lo 'di'i gnas kyi snih po las snih
porgyur pa \ dag pa éel gyi ri bo chos sku'i mchod sdoh chenpo
'di nid \ phyi Itar na gahs ri tsitta'i dbyibs can | nan dag pa Uta
tshogs kyi gial med khan chen po mchod rten bkra éis sgo mans
kyi mam par rah byun Ihun grub tu bzugs pa \ rgyal bas rgyud
sde nas bstan ein \ slob dpon chen po padma 'byun gnas dan \
bi ma la \ skyob pa 'jig rten mgon po sogs grub thob mams kyis
gsuhs pa mdor bsdus te brjod na \ rmah gii klu'i yul na spros
kyi mtsho yid du 'oh ba'i dbus na \ padma'i gdan la rin po che'i
120
rigs bsam gyis mi khyab pas brgyan pa | rin po ehe man éel las
grub pa'i mchod rten boom Idan 'das byams pafi 'dorn dgu brgya
pa re phyogs phyogs su snah ba \ sen ge'i khri dan \ ban rim bii
la ba gam dan gdon can re | gdoh can re la rin po che'i mchod
sdon brgyad brgya \ ban rim re la sgo Ms ston drug brgya \ bum
pa bre dan chos 'khor bcu gsum | gdugs dan rin po che'i tog gis
spras pa'i tshul du biugs par \ bre dan stod kyi char bka' brgyud
bla ma \ ba gam dan gdon chen la sans rgyas byah sems \ bum
nan dan ban rim goh ma mams la bcom Idan 'das dpal 'khor
lo sdom pa \ gsah ba 'dus pa \ dgyes pa'i rdo rje \ dus kyi 'khor
lo la sogs pa bla med pha ma'i rgyud sde'i dkyil khor \ ban rim
'og ma mams la \ bya rgyud spyod rgyud \ mal 'byor rgyud nas
bead pa'i dkyil 'khor \ sen ge'i khri la dpal mgon po sogs chos
skyon bsrun ma mams dan \ rgyal chen sde bzi \ nor lha gter
bdag gi tshogs biugs pa ste \ mdor na rgyud sde nas bead pa'i
dkyil 'khor thams cad kyi 'char gii rah byuh gi mchod rten chen
por ial gzigs te \ skyob pa rin po ehe 'i ial nas \
ces sogs
etc.
For the various architectural terms, cf. Gega Lama, Principles of Ti-
betan Art, vol. II, pp. 76-83; G. Tucci, Indo-Tibetica I, pp. 113-133. A
pilgrimage to rTsva-ri is recommended in a gzas, which relates about
the beloved, who is without a father and a mother; Bod-rigs kyi glu-
géas, p. 5 1 , no. 3:
| byams paï pha ni mi 'dug
| byams pa'i ma ni mi 'dug
| byams pa pha med ma med \
j rtsva ri gnas bskor e fgro
Cf. also the reference to Dag-pa sel-ri in Gahs-ljons dbus-gtsah gnas-
bskor lam-yig nor-bu zla-éel gyi se-mo-do by Kah-thog Si-tu Chos kyi
rgya-mtsho (1880-1925), p. 362 (fol. 181b4). Finally, a Visit' to TM-ri
gCig-car is included in the 'post-mortem' pilgrimage of the Sixth Dalai
Lama where he witnessed the singing of vajragïti-s and dances per-
formed by dâkinï-s; cf. the gSah-ba'i rnam-thar (Chinese ed., pp. 8 8 -
89).
For the term g[v]ahs, the glacier and its water (chu), cf. e.g. Bod kyi
dga'-gias I, p. 21, nos. 4-6, p. 22, nos. 1-2 and 83, no. 2; Ûel-goh éel-
phreh, p. 468-9, describes what kind of glacier water is considered best
as drinking water (btuh chu) the whiteness of the glacier snow and the
pureness of its water often indicates innocence and a pure heart, cf.
Norbu's Coll III, no. 7 (tr.) and D.M. Back, ZDMG, 135 (2), p. 322-3.
20b When it comes to the identification of klu bdud rdo rje, the supreme herb
(rts[v]a mchog), we are on solid ground. It is a genus of the herbal plant
Codonopsis, i.e. the Bonnet Bell-flower of the fam. Campanulaceae, the
Bell-flowers. But let us scrutinize the minutiae.
. Amidst a lengthy description (NCHTSR, 228.3-231.6) of [g]Cig-car, a
small village in rTs[v]a-ri, lying on the northern side of Dag-pa sel-ri,
Padma dkar-po eventually relates about a white rock (NCHSR, 230.2ff.)
resembling a pitched tent of white silk atop the mountain-summit:
deï ear hos na boh ha nag po'i gle ma cig yod pa deï gseb na
dhos grub kyi rdzas yod pa \ klu bdud nag po ies bya ba \ dgun
zla gsum rtsa'i gseb na gnas te \ pri ta sa 'dzin ies bya ba \ dpyid
123
zla gsum lo ma ru gnas pa sho 'od Idan ies hya ba \dbyar zla
gsum me tog tu gnas te \ kunda bde skyed ces bya ba | ston zla
gsum 'bras bur gnas pa \ sindha sa 'bru zes bya ba \ deï rtsa ba
la phug 'dra'o \\ lo ma padma 'dra ba \ me tog dril bu 'dra ba \
nan na rdo rje'i rgya gram yodpa \ kha dog shonpo la smugpo'i
thig le yod pa \ 'bras bu bra bo 'dra ba zur gsum yod pa \ tshigs
refis su skyespa \ ear gyigahs mthoh ba \ me tog kha ni ma'i rjes
su 'bran ba \ nub mo smig rgyu'i me 'byin pa \ lag pa reg na za
zih 'tshig par 'gyur ba \ chu'i nah du beug na sva rih gi yod pas
sho chu khôl zes bya \ ri dvags kyis brdzis na \ de'i dri byun bas
ser béar éar 'byun ba \ sno 'byun ba 'khrugs byed ces kyah bya'o
11 dans pa rta rna tsam iig 'thul lo \ \ de la lha ma y in sde brgyad
la sogs pa der ne mi nus so \ \ lag pa bkab na tsha 'ur 'ur 'on ho
11 kha ba babs na rdo tshan la kha ba babs pa bzin bzu nus pa \
grog spur dan 'bu sbrah thams cad phyir spuhs de 'chi \ bead na
thar nu Itar zo Itug gi 'oh ho \\ de lia bu'i rdzas de Ion na mdze
nag tho lum la son pa yah \ 'di khoh du son ba tsam gyis gsos so
11 dri tshor ba tsam gyis kyah klu 'bros \ ro myahs pa tsam gyis
klu brgyal 'gro || Ito ru son ba tsam gyis klu 'chi nus so \\ rtsa
ba | lo ma | me tog \ 'bras su bzi ka tshah na \ lus sbrul Ikogs pa
brjes pa bzin du dkar 'thul le 'gro \ tshe'i rig 'dzin thob par nus
so || lus sih bal gyi 'dab ma Itar dkar \ nam mkha' la bya Itar
'phur nus \ chu la mi byed \ 'byun bii'i nad las thar \ thams cad
dbah du 'du \ thun mon gi dhos grub sna tshogs 'byun \ mehog
gi dhos grub myur du thob bo \\ zes dan sprul pa'i rgyal po sroh
btsan sgam pos \
zes pa'o
On the eastern hillside [of this stony boulder] is a patch of
black aconite (boh ha nag po, the baneful Monkshood, Aconi-
tum chinense, napellus, Linn, or longipedicellantum of the fam.
Ranunculaceae; cf. e.g. Éel-goh sel-phreh, p. 308; D. Martin,
ibid,, p. 352, n. 25). Amidst these is a substance of supernor-
mal property (siddhi, dhos grub) called "the black näga-demon"
(klu bdud nag po). In the three winter months it stays in the
[stage of) roots and is called pri ta sa 'dzin (i.e. 'bri [r]ta sa
'dzin, prob, the Knotweed, Polygonum aviculare Linn, or vaccini-
ifolium of the fam. Polygonaceae; cf. éel-goh sel-phreh, pp. 3 8 0 -
1; Fletcher, ibid., pp. 349, 354). In the three spring months
it stays in the [stage of] leaves and is called the "The Lightful
One" (sho 'od Idan [rgyal pd\\ i.e. rtag [tu] hu, the Sundew, the
124
In this last quotation the reference to the dew-drops (zil pa) are con-
spicuous and telling, since it adequately reflects the very wording of our
poem.
Finally, 'Dzam-glih rgyas-bsad by bTsan-po Nomonhan 'Jam-dpal chos
kyi bstan-'dzin 'phrin-las (written A.D. 1820) contains some brief refer-
ences to rTs[v]a-ri, Dag-pa sel-ri and klu bdud rdo rje, cf. (Wylie's ed.)
73b7ff, 74a3-4, 74b4 and a passage worth quoting, 74b2:
probably clarify this issue. But the texts do not allow for any confusion.
Klu bdud rdo rje is simply, as most Tibetan herbals such as gYu-thog
dgohs-rgyan, Sel-goh sel-phren etc. will corroborate, the common name
(spyi min) of the two genera of codonopsis, the white and the black
type (klu bdud dkar nag). So when klu bdud nag po is mentioned it
invariably means the klu bdud rdo rje nag po.
As described in most Tibetan pharmacopoeia and herbals the klu
bdud rdo rje is a genus (rigs) of about 20 species of a herbal plant (rtsva
Idum, sno Idum), as well as the common name of a herbal medicine (sho
sman) extracted from it. As a drug it is considered a highly tonic and
efficient antidote (gnen po byed pa) or remedy in eliminating various
diseases inflicted, according to Tibetan medical science (gso ba rig pa),
by various kinds of malignant spirits and chthonic type of supernatu-
rals. This includes leprosy (mdze nad), a disease said to be caused by
the terrifying Jiâga-demons, klu[-hdud]; epilepsy (gza' nad), an illness
caused by the malevolent planetary deities; rheumatism-arthrisis ('bam
grum bu) and gout (dreg nad), equally caused by the various genii loci
(sa bdag) and spirits (klu gnen etc.), but first and foremost efficient to-
wards lymphatic diseases (chu ser, a term which, however, covers more
than just the lymph) such as the virulent lymphangitis (? chu ser nag
po, an illness in which the symptoms (nad rtags) reveal itself in the
blackening of the skin, itching (za phrug lah ba), loss of hair and in
grave cases may turn into leprosy).
Usually lHo-brag Rin-chen (or Ratna) glin-pa (A.D. 1403-1479) is
cited for providing its etymology: It is called klu bdud because it over-
comes these spirits and creatures causing these illnesses and it is call-
ed rdo rje, since it is precious as a diamond (pha lam). Precious and
potential it is, endowed with extraordinary magical properties, as we
can adduce from the above quotations from the rTs[v]a-ri guidebooks of
Padma dkar-po and Kun-bzan chos kyi snan-ba.
128
As a herbal plant, klu bdud rdo rje is identical with the Bonnet
Bell-flower (Codonopsis), also called Asian Bell (German: Glockenheide,
Windenglocke), a sub-species pertaining, as said, to the fam. Campan-
ulaceae. Codonopsis, or 'bell-resembling' ('dril bu 'dra ba), is a grass
plant (sno Idum), a native of Asia from the Himalayas to Japan, being
both annual as well as perennial. It is also called ko ne or ko ne in
Tibetan.
The Tibetans distinguish between two sorts:
B. The black klu bdud rdo rje nag po (C. chöu dàngshên, no
generic name, merely a translation of the Tibetan). The plant
prefers to take root below the trees on the shady slopes of the
mountains (srib kyi ein phran gseb). The leaves are like above
shaped like an arrow-head. The stalks are long, dark and re-
semble an iron thread (Icags skud). The flowers are bell-shaped
('dril bu fdra ba) and nodding (thur du bub pa), the anthers re-
semble the point of a vajra. The inner colour of the flower is
patterned like the wrinkled surface of the human brain (klad
pa'i rtsa ris can) and like the lighter genus above it is mal-
odorous. The flowers are said to be black, but in fact they are
elephant-gray or ash-gray (thai [d]kar glan chen), the same (or
another sub-genus?) is said to be a mixture of yellow and black,
i.e. reddish-brown (kham skya), sorrel or maroon. The question
of its colours is an issue of dispute even among experts. It may
thus tentatively be identified with codonopsis convolvulaceae, ti-
betica or ovata (fl. pale-blue or China-blue, tinged with yellow)
129
General confusion of the exact identification of the klu bdud rdo rje
[nagpo ?] mentioned in our poem thus prevails. In the Chinese transla-
tions, dictionaries and herbals this plant is rendered variously: Its pop-
ular and non-scientific name is given as lingdàng zi or dangling zi, so
Yu Daoquan, Wang Ymuan, Zhuang Jing etc., an identification hailing,
probably, from 'Jam-dpal rdo-rje's An Illustrated Tibeto-Mongolian Ma-
teria Medica, p. 201; To add to the confusion, The Pentaglot Dictionary,
p. 4778 renders klu bdud rdo rje with CJïngdàihuâ and ko na (= ko ne
?) with göunahuä. Most regularly it is scientifically identified with the
dängshen, i.e. the codonopsis. Specifically the klu bdud rdo rje is ren-
dered as gäoshän dängshen, the alpine codonopsis, a non-generic name,
though. This should allegedly be the Chinese name for codonopsis ner-
vosa (Chipp) Nannf. To add to the confusion, a later tradition even
speaks about a supreme and a inferior type: klu bdud rdo rje mchogpa
and dman pa (or zan pa), a distinction unwarranted, it appears, by the
earlier botanical and medical tradition in Tibet. The inferior or feeble
type is sometimes by the Chinese identified with (nân) shâshên, which
130
they further identities with the Adenophora stricta, the straight Lady-
bell or with the Platycodon grandiflorum, the Balloon flower, all of the
fam. Campanulaceae.
In fine, with fair certainty we should conclude t h a t the root in ques-
tion and the herb to be identified in the poem, the klu bdud rdo rje
mchog pa, most probably is the codonopsis convolvulaceae, var. forestii
or the codonopsis ovata. For its wide distribution in this part of the
Himalayas, cf. e.g. H. Fletcher, A Quest of Flowers, pp. 342, 354-5, 362.
In China too the medical-therapeutical and herbal use of the roots of
Codonopsis has a long history, cf. e.g. the great herbal pharmacopoeia
Bëncào Gângmù (A Detailed Outline of the Materia Medica) by the
Ming physician Li Shizhen (A.D. 1517-1593), where it is described how
the root of the dängshen is tonic to spleen and lungs, being stomachic.
Like the medically cognate rènshên, i.e. Ginseng (Panax Ginseng; fam.
Araliaceae), which it often substitutes, the dängshen is highly tonifying
and stimulating in case of energy deficiency, lack of appetite and, what
may be of some importance in the present connection, considered an
aphrodisiac which promotes secretion of sexual hormones in men and
women, though this property is not knowingly acknowledged in the
Tibetan tradition.
Cf. gSo-ba rig-pa'i tshig-mdzod gYu-thog dgohs-rgyan, s.v. klu bdud
rdo-rje; Éel-goh sel-phreh, pp. 366-67; 'Jam-dpal rdo-rje, An Illustrated
Tibeto-Mongolian Materia Medica, p. 201; gSo-rig-skor gyi rgyun-mkho
gal-che-ba bdam-bsgrigs, p. 394; F. Meyer, Gso-ba Rig-pa—Le système
médical tibétain, p. 173; T. Clifford, Tibetan Buddhist Medicine and
Psychiatry, 1984, pp. 77-78; H. Fletcher, A Quest of Flowers, pas-
sim; Nebesky-Wojkowitz, Oracles and Demons of Tibet, p. 222; P. K.
S0rensen, IIJ, 31 (4), pp. 272-4;
20c phabls] rgyun: phab[s] rtsi, i.e. the barm or the ferment (phab[s]) carrier
(rgyun), a yeast starter {chah rtsi) employed in making beer or alcohol.
As said by D. Martin, op. cit., p. 354-5, this word's metaphorical usage
is attested to in tantric, alchemical and in other religious contexts, cf. J.
Ardussi, "Brewing and Drinking the Beer of Enlightenment in Tibetan
Buddhism", JAOS, 97 (1977) pp. 115-124. Now, phab[s] rgyun and its
synonym phabls] rta carry associations of more than just alcoholic (and
alchemical-medical) barm but is intimitely entangled with a particular
relic tradition in Tibet. This is also corroborated by one lexical defini-
tion, cf. L.S. Dagyab's diet.: the yeast vehicle (phabls] rta) is the potency
or carrier of the quintessence of beer or blessing-bestowing objects etc.
(byin Hen dan chah la sogs kyi sfiih po'i rgyun nam nus pa).
The term bdud rtsi, on one hand, means ambrosia, the God's nectar.
On the other hand, it also denotes the devil's drink, elixir and in this
capacity the term bdud rtsi is a standard honorific for chah or beer in
131
Tibet, cf. Ardussi, ibid., passim and recently N.T. Shakspo, "Ladaki Folk
Songs", in Soundings in Tibetan Civilization, p. 103, and a term of trite
occurence in almost all Tibetan drinking songs and chants (chah gias,
khruh gzas). But this difficult verse has more than just an ordinary
allusion to the fabrication of alcohol.
More generally, we here find allusions to a yogic-esoteric practice in
use among the tantric adepts of, in particular, the rNin-ma-pas and the
siddha-tradition within the bKa'-brgyud-pas. The practice known as
bdud rtsi sman sgrub aims at consecrating and subsequently transub-
stantiating a medical/herbal substance (sman rdzas) into an universal
medicament. This panacea then will eventually ensure the adept spir-
itual liberation whenever he partook of it (myoh grol). The process is
allegedly enforced through meditation and the recitation of mantras
whereby their magical properties and potentials are infused (i.e. em-
powered, byin rlabs) into these medical substances which in turn be-
come so-called sacred medicine (chos sman), cf. R. Prats, Contributo
Allo Studio Biografico dei Primi gTer-ston, pp. 79-81. To which we may
also quote G. Tucci (from Tucci & Heissig) in Die Religionen Tibets und
der Mongolei, pp. 140-1:
Die (acht Arten) Heilkräuter können auch mit dem tibetischen
Bier (chah) vermengt werden, und zwar in jenen Zeremonien,
die "Mystische Verwirklichungen mit Hilfe der Heilkräuter"
(sman sgrub) oder "Heilige ambrosische Heilkräuter" (bdud rtsi
chos sman) oder auch einfach "Befreiung durch Genuß" (myoh
grol) heißen. Dies bedeutet, daß der Gebrauch Rausch und
Verzückung bewirkender Substanzen nicht ausgeslossen war;
diese Zustände galten als Vorboten des erstrebten excessus men-
tis. Aus den erwähnten Ingredientien werden pillen (ril bu)
oder auch ambrosische Pillen (bdud rtsi ril bu) gedreht; über
deren Erzeugungweise liegt eine ganze Literatur vor; sie wur-
den während des Konsekrationsaktes (dbah) eingenommen oder
auch, im Hinblick auf die ihnen entströmende Wirkungskraft,
bei Krankheit und im Todeskampf. Nicht selten wurden die
Heilkräuter durch chah und das "Blut" durch Tee ersetzt.
More specifically, keeping the above alchemical-occult scenario in
mind, the line yields a wider frame of reference. Following D. Martin's
findings, phab[s] rgyun, as alluded above, carries a specific meaning:
the carrier (rgyun, i.e. flow, current = rta, the vehicle) of the essence of
blessing-bestowing objects (byin rten).
In his guide to O-rgyan-glin (his O-rgyan-glih rten brten-pa gsar-
bskrun hes-gsah zuh-'jug bsgrub-pa'i 'dus-sde tshugs-pa'i dkar-chag
'khor-baïrgya-mtshosgrol-haïgru-chen, composed A.D. 1701; ed. Thim-
phu 1979), his ancestral monastery just two miles below rTa-dban in
132
Mon-yul, a work allegedly (but quite doubtfully, cf. Aris, 1988, p. 153)
written by the Sixth Dalai Lama under his secret name (gsah mtshan)
Blo-bzafi 'Jig-rten dban-phyug dpal-'bar, the termphabls] rgyun is found
on p. 171 in a list of relics: "the barm of five meats and five elixirs (bdud
rtsi) combined"; cf. Martin, ibid., p. 355, no. 47.
As amply demonstrated by Martin, ibid., pp. 358-63, a salient fea-
ture of the Tibetan guidebook (dkar chag, gnas y ig etc.) literature (of
which the Sixth Dalai Lama, as alluded above, obviously had an exem-
plar made, while, actually, it was written by some 'ghost-writer' in the
Regent's service), is the cult of relics (rih bsrel, sku gduh, éarïra) and
of consecrated and sacred substances (dam rdzas). Kun-gzigs chos kyi
snan-ba, in a shorter guidebook in his gSun-'bum (vol. 2, pp. 169-194;
cf. Martin, ibid., p. 350, n. 7), carries pertinent testimony to this fact.
On p. 175 (cf. similarly Martin, ibid., p. 359) in this guidebook the text
runs:
Here the barm vehicle (phabls] rta), like the synonymous phabls]
rgyun, denotes the vehicle or inert medium, or rather the catalytic agent
(sman 'ded byed kyi btuh ba, sman Igyi] rta), with which the medically
active ingredients are administered. Employing the analogy of the yeast
starter for making beer, it is evident that we are here dealing with a
sacred-occult tradition where, as stated by Martin, ibid., p. 359, n. 72
and alluded to above, this herbal plant becomes a constitutent part, in
a medical-therapheutic and alchemical context, of a sacred item which
eventually secures the partaker supernatural powers.
The final setting of this kind of "blessing bestowing objects" (byin rten)
is provided by yet another text from a small guidebook by Kun-gzigs
chos kyi snan-ba, entitled Dam-rdzas myoh-grol chen-po 'ja'-'od ril-bu'i
133
de yan rgyal ba rnams thabs la mkhas sin thugs rje ches bas \
'gro ba mams so so'i skal ba dan 'tshams pa'i 'dul thabs \ sku
gsuh thugs yon tan 'phrin las kyi bye brag sprul pa sna tshogs
kyis 'dul ba'i mdzad 'phrin rgya mtsho ston biin pa ste \ dper
na | mgo daft yan lag dban po sa khrag sogs Itos med du sbyin
nas smon lam mtshams sbyor gyi thugs rje dpag med kyi 'gro
la phan bde stsol ba \\ bdag cag gi ston pa'i skyes rabs su 'byuh
ba biin dan || thun mon ma y in pa'i rgyud sde'i phyogsl s]u'ah j
rgyal ba nid kyis \
| ces sogs rgyud man por dam tshigl g]i ril bu bsten ein sgrub
dgos par gsuh \ de yah mtshon bya don gyi bdud rtsi \ mtshon
byed Hags kyi bdud rtsi sogs yin lugs ées pas dam tshigl g]i
bdud rtsi'i rdzas bsten na phan yon khyad par ba thob ein \ de
bas na rtsa brgyad yan lag ston sbyargyi rdzas sman dan \ rgya
bod grub brfies dam pa man po'i byin rlabs kyi rdzas mam dag
rnams bsags nas tshul biin sgrub pa'i dban du byas nas \ gsar
ma'i bdud rtsi ril bu daft \ rnih lugs kyi bdud rtsi chos sman
du grags pa rnams gii gcig par gsuns \ de las 'dir kun mkhyen
'brug pa'i dam rdzas mchog gyur 'ja' 'od ril bu ies pa 'di rgyal
dban kun mkhyen padma dkar po dan | rgyal dban dpag bsam
dban po gnis kyis gtso bor sgrub par mdzad pa 'di'i phab rtar
byin rlabs ji biugs kyi dban du byas na rdzas kyi gtso bo gnas
mchog tsä ri tra nas mkha' 'gro'i dhos grub kyi rdzas rtsa mchog
klu bdud rdo rje ies bya ba \ chos kyi rgyal po sroh btsan dan \
slob dpon padmas lam yig sogs nas rdzas kyi nus pas dhos grub
phral du 'grub pa sogs nus mthu can du gsuns pa de biin 'khrul
med du spyan drahs par mdzad de gtso bo de la bsten ein \ de'i
steh du rdzogs pa'i sans rgyas 'od sruhs kyi rih bsrel | ...
de liar hdud rtsïi chu de la gdams nag dan Idan pas nub gcig
'thuhs pa tsam gyis lus rdo rje'i sku thob nas gyun druh gi tshe
'thob.
Further, the "Sixth Dalai Lama's" own guide to O-rgyan-glin, cf. above,
even alludes to the "water of medicinal elixir" (bdud rtsi sman gyi chu);
cf. D. Martin, ibid., p. 305.
The term dam rdzas myoh grol also occurs in a 'das log text, cf. L.
Epstein, "On the History and Psychology of the 'Das-log", The Tibet
Journal, vol. VII (4), 1982, p. 55.
20d Ye ses mkha' 'gro ma, the jnànadâkinï, the Wisdom Enchantress(es) or
'Sky-going Fairies'. In conformity with the previous elements which
make up the unique setting for our poem, it is small wonder t h a t
these spiritual acolytes, here embodying beer-serving maidens, are also
found to take up a prominent role in connection with the sanctuaries of
rTs[v]a-ri.
As D. Martin, ibid., pp. 355-56, h a s deftly pointed out the jnänadäki
ra-s have been associated with the Dharmakâya medium of the Bud-
dhist trikäya theory, a doctrinal association prevalent already from the
12-13th century in bKa'-brgyud-pa texts, but undoubtedly of older ori-
gin. As a mystic consort of the tutelary deity of the bKa'-brgyud-pa
Order Cakrasamvara ('Khor-lo sdom-pa), also denoted Sambara (bDe-
mchog) or Heruka, the jnànadâkinï embodies the Vajravârahï (rDo-rje
phag-mo), the Diamond Sow or the Sow-Headed Goddess. Even a brief
perusal of the above-quoted guidebooks to rTs[v]a-ri will convince us of
the paramount importance t h a t Vajravârahï and the dakinî-s hold in
this area. Padma dkar-po's NCHTSR, for instance, states 209.1-2 t h a t
rTs[v]a-ri "is indistinguishable from Srî Cakrasambara himself" (dpal
bde mchog 'khor lo nid dan gnis su byar med pa); further on 224.6-
225.1 is stated t h a t rTs[v]a-ri houses "the palace of Siî Cakrasamvara,
the court of Vajravârahï and the city of the Heroes (däka) and the
jnänadäkinl-s (dpal 'khor lo sdom pa'i pho bran \ rdo rjephag mo'i 'dun
sa | dpa' bo dan \ ye ses kyi mkha' 'gro ma mams kyi groh khyer); on
225.3-4 it is denoted "the music place of the Dharmakayajnanadakim-s
(chos sku ye ées kyi mkha' 'gro ma rnams kyi rol mo mdzad sa). Near or
136
hailing from the hand of Abhayâkaragupta (TTPE no. 2489; ff. 186b5-
189a7> entitled Jnànadâkinïsâdhanam (Ye-ées mkha'-'groï sgrub-thabs):
dpal rdo rje rnal 'byor ma la phyag ïshal lo \
gah don sna tshogs sku 'dzin pa'i \
lha mo ye ées mkha' 'gro ma |
bdud rtsïi dga' ston gyis 'gro rnams |
ku mud can biin dga9 'gyur cig
'dir ni rdo rje 'dzin pa'i sku |
bsam y as rdo rje rnal 'byor ma \
bla na med pa'i gnas thob phyir \
bsten by a rdo rje phag mo'o \
Homage to the Glorious Vajrayoginî.
[01 Goddess Jnânadâkinï,
Who assumes protean garbs for whatever purpose,
May sentient beings rejoice like a pond of water-lillies
By [being granted your] elixir feast!
Here, in order to obtain the insurpassable position
Of Vajrayoginî, the inconceivable
Bodily form of a Vajraholder;
The [deity] to rely on is Vajravârâhï.
Cf. also Snellgrove, Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, pp. 152-160.
Note also the followinggias in which the famed pilgrimage to rTk[v]a-
ri area is mentioned and how the bamboo growing on the upper slopes
may be broken during the peregrination. In spite of that there is no
reason for rDo-rje phag-mo (Vajravârâhï) to punish him, the poor poet
exclaims; Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 99, no. 5:
| rtsa ri'i rise na bskor yod \
j snug ma roh nas bead yod j
j na la rdo rje phag mos \
j bka' chad gnah don mi 'dug
The genial idea of associating the jnänadäkim or the ye ées mkha'
'gro ma with the functioning of a beer-maiden or a liquor-girl (chart ma
: chah 'tshoh ma) is also attested in the popular Tibetan folksongs, cf.
Duncan, 1961, p. 113, and we should have all the reason to suspect
that the locus classicus of this linking probably hails from the present
stanza. For a description of the functioning of beer girls in Tibet, where
they customarily ply the guests attenting the parties and festivals with
a steady flow of beer and liquor or "the offer beer, the auspicious elixir"
(bkra éis bdud rtsi'i mchod chah), cf. Bod kyi glu-gias, p. 52, no. 1; p. 66,
no. 1; p. 73, no. 1 and pp. 117, no. 1 and 118); cf. Spencer Chapman,
1938, pp. 111-14; bKra-éis dpal-ldan, "gTsaù-ron gi chah-g£asw, in Bod
138
kyi rtsom-rig sgyu-rtsal, 1983 (2), pp. 75ff. No doubt, in the traditional
Tibetan society the functioning of the chart ma, b u t also a ma chart ma,
cf. nos. 28 and 34 infra and gnas mo, no. 61 infra, covered not only
the enterprises of a land-lady and a female inn-keeper, but also t h a t of
a hostess, a courtezan, a mistress and a prostitute, cf. Duncan, ibid.,
pp. 96, 136-142.
Further, the association of the dâkinï-s with the idea of 'nectar' and
the idea of a beer-girl may find a parallel in the yogic-tantric tradition.
Here the adept's experience of the highest bliss (mahäsükha) is seen to
result from the suffusion of the body by 'nectar'. Hevajra Tantra, f. ex.,
deals exclusively with the Dance of the yogini, here = dâkinî: mkha'
'gro ma'i gar. The dâkinî is in tantric Buddhism more or less synonym-
ous with the yogini, the female adept in the ritual. Being moreover
often couched in the enigmatic language (samdhyäbhäsä, dgohs pa'i
skad), the yogini in the tantric ritual is depicted in the garb of a phys-
ical woman—not infrequently in the most despised social class (dombï,
candâlï, éundinï etc.); cf. P. Kvaerne, An Antology of Buddhist Thntric
Songs, pp. 43, 81-86; Snellgrove, Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, pp. 158-9; A
salient example of the yogini in the garb of a liquor-girl or a wine-seller
(éundinï, chah ma), here interpretated to symbolise the avadhüti or
the central psychic nerve (nâdï) in the yogin's own body, may be culled
from the Caryàgîti 3, cf. Kvaerne, ibid., pp. 81-86; In fact, the reason
for choosing inter alia a liquor girl, i.e. a colloquial idiom and imagery
is, to quote the novel definition formulated by P. Kvaerne, ibid., p. 60:
20e dam tshig gtsah ma, "a pure commitment" refers to more than j u s t
the tantric vows (sdom pa, samaya). It more readily alludes to the
special relation between the guru and the disciple, cf. D. Martin, ibid.,
p. 358, who inter alia refers to the detailed treatment of the tantric dam
tshig by the Sixth Dalai Lama in guidebook to O-rgyan-glin ascribed
to him (pp. 192-200); But as the examples provided e.g. by Sod kyi
dga'-gias I, p. 25, nos. 2-3 and p. 35, no. 1, tell us, the dam tshig
may also encompass, besides of course the paramount religious and
ritual commitments, the special relation of trust, plighted promise and
engagement t h a t prevails between connubial partners. The religious
as well as the more mundane aspect of mutual trust is also reflected
in the two lexical def.: chos phyogs kyi khas len dam hca' ma nams pa
and 'jig rten gyi mdza' bées bio fie phan tshun dbar 'khon 'gras ma iugs
pa. Cf. also Snellgrove, Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, pp. 165-6, 220. For
the occurence of dam tshig in connection with bdud rtsi, cf. above.
20f nan son gsum: the three lower or inferior states of existence (durgati,
apäya) in samsara: 1. Hell (dmyal ba, naraka); 2. Hungry Ghosts
(yi dvags, prêta); 3. Animals (dud 'gro, tiryak). Damnation and evil
destinies (durgati) are given special attention in a tantric context and
the elimination of them is the topic of a whole text, the Sarvadurgati-
pariéodhana Tantra, cf. the critial edition and the translation by T.
Skorupski, Delhi 1983. Cf. also the two passages quoted from the Sixth
Dalai Lama's putative guidebook to O-rgyan-glin (pp. 216-7) cited by
Martin, ibid., p. 358. Meriting repetition is the passage found in bTsan-
po Nomonhan's 'Dzam-glih rgyas-bsad cited above (Wylie ed., pp. 36, 95)
in which it is implicitly stated t h a t everyone going to rTs[v]a-ri (and en-
joys the klu bdud rdo r/e-mixed elixir water) is freed from the cycle of
transmigration and evil destinies.
The concept of avoiding the experience or the tasting of the sufferings
(duhkha, sdug bshal) of durgati is treated in other songs as well, cf. e.g.
Bod kyi dga'-gias II, p. 35, no. 3, in which it is related how, with the
arrival of moksa and with the contemplation on it, suchlike infernal
(warm-cold) sufferings are brought to an end:
| da ni thar pa slebs son |
j thar pa'i bsam gtan thob son |
| tsha graft nan son gsum sogs \
j sdug bshal myoh dgos mi 'dug
Improperly destilled chah and abuse of alcohol, however, leads anyone
who indulges in such a brew straight to durgati] cf. éel-goh éel-phreh,
p. 466; In fact, the entire wording of verse 20f appears to have entered
the current Tibetan vernacular as an idiom somewhat like our phrase:
Gesundheit! or Prosit! Witness e.g. Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 48, no. 5,
140
chah ni fies pa kun gyi rtsa ba yin \ rts[v]a mchog zil ba tsam
yah span bar by a \\
Beer is the root of all evil. Even as [little as] a dew-drop [of
beer] on a 'supreme grass' must be given up.
21
21a The term rluh rta or 'wind horse' usually h a s the meaning fortune or
luck and is traditionally symbolized by a horse being drawn or im-
printed on a prayer-flag (rlun dar, dar Icog), b u t rluh rta alone h a s
also come to denote a prayer-flag in itself. In fact, rluh rta is a cau-
sal concept quite apart from the karmic ones. Contrary to bsod nams
(Skt. punya), which usually designates the stored-up, cumulative kar-
mic merits of an individual soul's career, rluh rta represents the state or
condition of a person's worldly luck. Where bsod nams in the traditio-
nal Buddhist sense is increased by dge ba (Skt. kuéala), or wholesome
and virtuous deeds, rluh rta, by contrast, is enhanced, improved or rai-
sed by sku rim. Therefore rluh rta is said to be either high (yar) and
high-going (yar 'gro) or low (mar) and low-going (mar 'gro)—unlike bsod
nams which either can be quantitatively accumulated (bsags pa) or be
exhausted and dried up (zadpa, [b]skam pa). Clearly, as L. Epstein has
deftly pointed out, op. cit., p. 240, this idiom is visibly related to the
physical forms things assume, such as when petty flags and paper she-
ets imprinted with auspicious prayers and mystical formulae are hoped
to fly high and to flutter airways from trees, houses and other topmost
points such as mountain passes. Unlike bsod nams too, rluh rta can
moreover be forecast yearly and undergo cyclic alternations. In sum,
it may summerize all the events and prospects of a particular career
144
22
22a Ipags and pags are interchangable. For 22a cf. also gSun-mgur, no. 32;
so dkar specifically, as van Heurck already adduces, op. cit., 1984, p. 92,
designates a four-year old mdzo or mdzo mo. Here of course it is a
poetic expression of a girl's shimmering beauty. The word 'dzum mdahs
designates a smiling or a laughing attitute (gad mo dgod pa'i flams); cf.
also no. 25 supra; gSuh-mgur, no. 414.
22b The word bzugs gral ordinarily signifies a row (gral) of seated people or
the position (go rim) which each guest occupies according to rang and
precedence at e.g. a party or a ceremony. More specifically the term
designates a row of people attending a party, be it a drinking party or a
more ceremonious feast; cf. "gTsari-ron gi chan-gzas", in Bod kyi rtsom-
rig sgyu-rtsal, 1983 (2), pp. 74-77 and 97, passim; "lHa-sa'i chan-gzas",
in sBrah-char, 1984 (3), p. 40; gSuh-mgur, passim.
The conditional na has been retained as the most adequate reading
in the light of the parallel constructions in nos. 5, 15-16, 19 infra etc.,
but nas and the concessive \k~\yan are equally plausible.
Note moreover the opposition, already observed by van Heurck, 1984,
p. 92, between the general, impersonal look of the poet in 22ab versus
the specific, personal leer launched by the girl:
147
22c The term mig zur or zur mig, i.e. 'eye-corner' denotes a leer, a sideway
glance or a sidelook (Skt. katäksa) i.e. a coquettish way of looking (chags
paï flams, sgeg chos kyis Ita tshul) or to ogle furtively, and is often an
attribute of a woman (bud med). It is found in the phrase mig zur ma or
zur mig ma, denoting a female ogler, a poetic term for a seductive and
languishing woman; cf. also \Jam-dbyans grags-pa, "sNan-'grel yah-gsal
snaii-mdzod-las don-rgyan so-lna'i tshig-'grel", in sBran-char, 1987 (4),
p. 64; the adj. phra mo, the 'tiny' or 'slim' eyes would certainly seem to
be an acceptable reading, or at least feasible, but khra mo is probably
the best reading as it is attested e.g. in the phrase khra chun mig (or
spyan), 'small, glittering or luminous eyes', C. liàngjîngjïng de yànjing;
cf. gSun-mgur, nos. 175, 413-4. For the 'small variegated eyes' or the
lustrous pupils, cf. also the Gesar Epic in R. Stein, 1956, p. 390; It
is tempting, only less likely, here to see a reference to the small eyes
of a falcon or the magpie (skya kha khra chun, khra mo); cf. Bod kyi
dga'-gzas I, p. 86, no. 3 and p. 87, no. 3.
23
23a For the phrase sems la son, "to fall in love", cf. nos. 3 and 6 supra.
23b 'grogs 'dris is a so-called synonymic verbal compound offering the sense
of 'associating*, 'acquainting* or 'mating oneself with someone', here in
the sense of connubial companionship.
23c min pa like the synonym ma gtogs pa h a s the meaning of 'except', 'be-
sides' or 'apart from'.
A song with a slightly different wording is included in the collection
compiled by Norbu, a song which appears to be something like a collo-
quial pendant to our poem from which it has possibly sought inspiration;
after the poet had become completely infatuated with the girl even the
nights became brighter t h a n the days, urging the loving couple (in uni-
son ? her or him) to declare their life-long inseparability; Norbu's Coll.
TV, no. 14:
| ha can sems la son nas \
| mtshan nam nin las dkar son \
| 'chi bral bya rgyu ma gtogs \
j gson bral 'jog gi min no \
In fact, this declaration of a life-long plight is often used in connec-
tion with nuptial engagements (mna' b£ag), when (the bride, or both
149
• The present poem may be taken as a companion piece to the two pre-
ceding poems. The conventional message of the poem is quite clear:
His strong infatuation with the girl urged him to address her asking
his inamorata whether she would become his sweetheart for life. Love
appeared to be reciprocal as she assured him of her life-long faithful-
ness. This harmonious situation has perhaps, we may imagine, evolved
out of their initial introduction as related in the two previous poems.
We may further ask whether the poet here, as elsewhere—cf. e.g. no. 30
infra, has found inspiration in the happy love-story of Prince Nor-bzan
and the Goddess Yid-'phrog lha-mo, the loving couple who initially went
through many obstacles before they finally were united ?
This 'happy love-story' which expresses the declared unity of a loving
couple is evidently open for further interpretations, once we could pro-
duce a valid and cogent identification of the lovers, the leading actors
in the poem. The poem may be an allegorical portrayal of the unity of
the Regent and the God-king. Xiao Diyan, sBran-char, 1988 (1), p. 70,
on the other hand envisages here a veiled portrayal of the Regent and
the Qosot chief who deftly contrived to conceal their virtual double-
dealing: Behind the facade of unity and harmony they were actually
machinating towards one another.
150
24
25
25a sbran bu, cf. nos. 7 and 8 supra, perhaps it here denotes a fly, cf. sim-
ilarly D. Back, 1986, p. 57. The word net (rgya) evidently alludes to a
spider's web or cob-web (sdom gyi dra ba, dra rgya, 'chin rgya, sdom
thag), cf. also Zhuang Jing, 1981b, p. 18, C. zhüsl.
25b The area Kon-po is a district east or south-east of Lhasa. The term
bio sna generally designates ideas, speculations and fancies (bio yi sna
dan por 'char ba'i mam Hog). Cf. also gSuh-mgur, nos. 132-3, 183. In
these examples the sense of a vacillating and a fickle mind is clearly
implied. The lines 25ab have been reversed in ed. E, an equally feasible
sequence.
25c The term 'three days' dag gsum) according to the Tibetans commonly
denotes the border-line where a relationship turns from being a casual
and random one to become one of intimacy, cf. gSuh-mgur, no. 227. It
usually appears as a complement to a girl or a woman to designate the
relatively brief nature of their liaison, cf. e.g. Bod kyi dga'-gzas / , p. 64,
no. 6; p. 88, no. 4; p. 122, no. 5; Cf. e.g. ibid., p. 20, no. 1 = gTam-dpe,
p. 129 = Tucci, Tibetan Folk Songs v. 13 (p. 22, 48), where the poet
ironically rejoins the girl, t h a t both of them, each in their own way, are
right; where he (for her) is a three-days casual lover, she (or for her he)
is b u t a life-long acquaintance or consort (tshe gan gtan grogs), cf. also
the next poem:
| khyed ni khyed rah bden pa |
| khyed ra'i tshe gan gtan grogs |
154
I ha ni ha rah bden pa \
j ha ra'i zag gsum snih sdug
Another gias similarly stipulates the distinctive difference between a
three-night date and a life-long friend; cf. ibid., p. 85, no. 3 = gTam-dpe,
p. 130:
| bu mo zag gsum snih sdug
I byuh dan ma byuh mi 'dug
j tshe gah gtan grogs gnah rgyu'i \
I dbu mna' bies rogs gnah dan \
The equation of'three days' or 'three nights' and intimacy is expressed
in another gzas, where nocturnal activities, i.e. bodily intimacy is asso-
ciated with a three-day acquaintance; cf. Glu-chuh sna-tshogs, p. 7:
| chu tshod bcu gnis brduh son \
j nam phyed ma red ma gsuh |
j khyed dan zag gsum gsibs nas \
j sku lus ma 'dres ma gsuh |
25d phugs yul denotes future objectives and ends. The question remains
whether phugs yul lha chos should be conceived as a kind of dvandva,
i.e. as a paratactic compound or as a subordinate compound. It can
be conceived as 'the future and the Holy Law', but e.g. Zhuang Jing,
1981b, p. 19 has understood it as 'Buddhism in the future'. Both inter-
pretations are feasible.
• Ordinarily the poem unfolds its own little story about a young lad
from Kon-po whose dreams and infatuations are imprisoned like a bee
or a fly caught in a web. In this portrayal of a young man or a stripling
(himself ?), the morally undermining effects of a casual acquaintance
and the intimate association with a lover are stipulated. The intimacy of
three whole nights gave rise to deep remorse and thoughtfulness. More
important, his random love-affair was conducive to renewed serenity:
It stimulated his recollection and his religious interest. His fickle mind
and his juvenile confusion was replaced by a single future objective: To
dedicate his life to religion. As such, the poem again talks about the
poet being trapped between love and religion.
The poem naturally offers another symbolic meaning (go don) beyond
the literal one. Identifying again the young lad of Kon-po with the
God-king and replacing the spider's web with the entanglement and
intrigues of the complex political imbroglios, an enduring and devas-
tating maelstrom of conflicts in which he was inextricably embroiled,
the poem perhaps relates about his genuine yearning for the possibility
to practise religion after having been intimately wedded to, or rather
155
embedded into, the more doubtful sides of temporal affairs for a period
(?) of three years.
156
26
26a The term gtan grogs designates 'eternal friend' but may also regularly
denote a wife or a spouse. In fact, the term grogs po, often also writ-
ten (at least pronounced) rogs pa, cf. e.g. Bod kyi la-gzas, passim, i.e. a
'friend', is the most common euphemism for a lover within the Tibetan
cultural sphere, cf. N. E. Levine, "Perspectives on Love: Morality and
Affect in Nyinba Interpersonal Relationships", in Culture and Morality:
Essays in Honour of Chr. von Führer-Heimendorf, pp. lllff. The term
gtan grogs appears in Tibetan lyrical tradition with a number of com-
plements; cf. e.g. the gias cited under 25c, which talks about a 'life-long
eternal friend' {tshe gan gtan grogs). Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 25, no. 2
relates about the undesirability {snih ma bro) of a gtan grogs who is
bereft of shame and plighted commitment {khrel dan dam tshig med
pa), which is compared to riding a horse t h a t lacks both sattle and
reins; Being an 'eternal friend' should not always be taking literally,
cf. e.g. ibid., p. 64, no. 6 which relates about the 'three days beauty'
{zag gsum mdzes pa) of a gtan grogs, i.e. the 'eternal friend' might be
quite a casual date; so also the previous poem. Cf. also the gias cited
under 12a supra and its various synonyms. For additional gias on gtan
grogs, cf. gSun-mgur, nos. 51, 370; Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 35, no. 1;
p. 53, no. 2; p. 70, no. 2; p. 75, no. 5, p. 85, nos. 3 and 6; p. 88, no. 4 (=
gTam-dpe, p. 137) and p. 127, no. 2; Bod kyi glu-gzas, p. 152, no. 1. The
story of Prince Nor-bzan; cf. rnam-thar} p. 58; 'khrab-giun, pp. 33-34;
It evidently refers to a lifelong companion, i.e. one's husband or wife or
157
rather here one's prospective ditto; cf. also Zhuang Jing, 1981b, p. 19,
C. zhôngshên de bànlu.
26b Cf. similarly no. 10 supra; gSun-mgur, no. 414. The terms khrel med
(Ski. anapaträpya) and ho tsha med pa (ahrikya) are Buddhism terms
listed e.g. among the saptapancäsaddosäh of Ratnâvalî V, 3-33;
26c The gtsug gyu is a turquoise fastened to the head-dress of a beloved.
M. Duncan, 1961, p. 110, n. 346 and C. Bell, The People of Tibet,
p. 180, mention a turquoise as a token of pledge and betrothal prior
to a marriage. In connection with marriage, it is custom t h a t when the
bride's arriving party and the groom's welcoming party meet in the tents
just prior to the marriage, the bride is offered a welcome turquoise. A
turquoise is offered to the bride and auspicious verses are recited which
eulogize it as a symbol of youth, elixir of life, love and joy. It is offered
to the bride's head for increased blessings and good omens; cf. e.g. T.
Skorupski & C. Cech, "Major Tibetan Life Cycle Events—Birth and
Marriage Ceremonies", Kailash, vol. XI, nr. 1-2, 1984, pp. 19-20. One
kind of turquoise is usually given to the prospective mate as a pré-
nuptial emblem two or three years ahead of a marriage and another
kind of turquoise is put on the top of the bride's head-dress, as noted
above, on the day of the weeding. Cf. ahogSun-mgur, no. 133; Bod kyi
dga'-gias /, p. 127, no. 4, provides a sample where the fastening of a
little turquoise on the head of one's inamorata is admonished:
• Conventionally, in this poem the poet gives vent to his lurking jeal-
ousy concerning his beloved's fidelity. After having inserted the plighted
token of fidelity and betrothal in her hair-dress, the poet found reason
to entertain some apprehensions about his beloved's lack of loyalty and
devotion. For reasons unknown to us, he truly feared t h a t love is not
being repaid by her. Clearly, the poem is couched in a frustrated and
embittered, and yet in a resigned and non-fatalistic note, as if an under-
lying sense of desperation and bitterness, the never-failing concomitant
of jealousy and lovelornness, is discernible. As it emerges from song
158
27
27a Cf. 22a for a similar wording andgSun-mgur, no. 32. The reading bstan
is equally feasible, the pf. tense perhaps even being better. The reading.
phyogs h a s been retained as it is understood to be short for phyogs su,
i.e. 'concerning* 'as to', 'regarding' or as here 'in respect to' or 'in view
of etc.; cf. e.g. nos. 40, 43 infra; gSun-mgur, nos. 95, 176; Equally
plausible is the homonymie reading chog, like éd. F kyah conveying a
slightly concessive sense; cf. also gSun-mgur, nos. 3 2 , 1 7 1 , 211, 279-80.
27b Gauged from the overall consensus of the recensions, the reading bio
khrid would appear to be the 'correct reading 7 . The phrase denotes
mental refinement, or mental guidance (= sems gso, sems sgyur). Evi-
dently, as ed. E suggests and as the identical song quoted in Norbu's
Coll. (i.e. TV, no. 15) corroborates, the proper reading is bio V\brid, i.e.
mental delusion or, as here, seduction and mental captivation is actu-
ally meant by the poet. However, bio khrid has been retained to be
the actually intended reading, partly because of the obvious equivocal
implications involved, but also because the girl in question quite pro-
bably is depicted to 'teach' the male lover 'a lesson' in love. The sense of
emotional seduction or mind-captivation (= yid 'phrog, cf. no. 30 infra)
is also understood by Wang Yinuan, 1980, p. 28, C. hunling göudiaö, 'to
snatch away the soul' = to entice or seduce; Zhuang Jing, 1981b, p. 19,
hûnér gôupào, 'to run off with the soul' = to seduce.
160
27c The term Tiot flesh' (éa tsha) denotes affection and attachment of an
emotional nature. Cf. also gSuh-mgur, no. 74; Bod-rigs kyi glu-gias,
p. 31, no. 1.
27d Pray, plight your troth!, cf. similarly Bod kyi dga'-gzas /, p. 85, no. 3.
Usually, such promises (dbu mna' bzes) are given in relation to mar-
riage, but may also pertain to everyday verbal agreements (ial hies, cf.
e.g. no. 44 infra).
Witness the following gias, akin to the present poem, which relates
about a girl unable to tender the poet a smiling gaze when they met
amidst a crowd of people. It prompted the rejected lover to beg the girl
to solemnly plight eternal fidelity, if her heart verily harbours affection
for him, Bod-rigs kyi glu-géas, p. 58, no. 3:
| mi tshogs man po'i nan la \
| bdag la 'dzum 'dzum ma gnah \
I éa tsha snih la yod na \
| dbu mna' bzes rogs gnah dan \
• The present poem is a love poem ('dod gzas) in which the poet ex-
presses his fervent wish that the charming and beautiful woman is
intend not only on physical enticement, but first and foremost to what
extent she would be harbouring genuine affection and sentiments of
love towards him. The tone in the poem would seem to imply some
misgivings as to the successful outcome of the love affair. Deeming
the girl's sightly and prepossessing appearance, the poet is not quite
sanguine that the girl will stay faithful and fidel.
Attempting a plausible metaphorical interpretation, if any, would re-
quire a suitable identification of the personage portrayed behind the
figure of the young, seductive girl. Applying again here his ambivalent
guardian and complacent Regent Sans-rgyas rgya-mtsho, the thorough-
going character in the entire song cycle, aside of course from the poet
himself, and the foremost important figure in the Sixth Dalai Lama's
life and career, the poem, similar to the previous one, would signal
his pronounced misgivings at the prospect of being involved in politics.
The poet may here be fearing to lose his political chastity so to say, for
which reason, we have grounds to think, he tries to evade being men-
tally guided/enticed into figuring as a puppet in the power struggle.
Naturally, the poet is urged to call for a fair and dignified treatment by
his mighty and strict guardian.
Xiao Diyan, sBrah-char, 1988 (2), p. 62, here envisages a disguised
portrayal of the two competing fractions (sog kha gnis po, phyogs gnis
ka), headed by the Regent and the Qosot chief respectively. Allegedly,
they should here solemnly commit themselves to genuine reconciliation.
161
This agreement (chins), Xiao Diyan further adduces, should for the God-
king be seen as a touchstone (iib béer) for the extent of respect (brtsi
bkur zu) which the Qosot chief would pay to him and a touchstone for
whether the Regent would grant him any real political authority (srid
dbah rtsis sprod) or not.
162
28
28a For the term snih thub, sweetheart, heart-throb, cf. no. 4 supra. The
phrase bya rdo lam 'phrad is a favourite four-syllabic saying or idiom
(gtarn dpe) illustrating contingency and random encounter (= stes dban
du 'phrad). More precisely the simile (dpe) describes how rare a ca-
sual and haphazard encounter may take place: When throwing a stone
it should by chance hit a bird on the ground! Cf. also no. 30 infra;
Zhuang Jing, 1981b, p. 19, e.g. has C. xièhdu, 'an unexpected meet-
ing*; Wang Yinuan, 1980, p. 29, aptly cites a Chinese four-character
ditto maxim which conveys the same meaning: C. ping shul xiâng féng,
'(of strangers) to meet by chance like patches of drifting duckweed'; cf.
also gSun-mgur, no. 251 and the story of Nor-bzan ('khrab-gzun, p. 31)
where a different simile is used: (When Yid-'phrog-ma was caught with
a lasso) she fell to the ground like a bird being hit by a stone (bya la
rdo phog pa bzin sa la Ihuh).
28b a ma chah ma, Madam the wine-seller; cf. G. Tucci, Tibetan Folk Songs,
1949, pp. 34 and 70, n. 112; ibid., 1966, p. 53, n. 113; This Inn-keeper
may often be a courtezan herself or, as here, a match-making lady, cf.
the song reproduced by Duncan, 1961, p. 96; For the important role and
function of a chan ma, cf. bKra-sis dpal-ldan, "gTsan-ron gi chan-gzas",
in Bod kyi rtsom-rig sgyu-rtsal, 1983 (2), pp. 75ff. Cf. also nos. 20 supra,
34 and 61 infra; gSuh-mgur, no. 261; Bod kyi dgay-gias I, p. 15, no. 5;
Bod-rig kyi glu-gzas, p. 22, no. 2 emphasizes the indispensability of a
gnas tshah a ma for the enjoyment of well-tasting beer:
| chart cig éim mhar 'dzoms pa \
163
28d The words 'tsho sky oh is a synonymic compound consisting of two verbs,
which mean to provide ignan) 'the livelihood', or 'the subsistence' for
rearing or sustaining a child.
• Clearly, the poem tells its own story about the possible dire fruits of
the risky jeu interdite of two lovers. The ineluctable karmic retribution
of extramarital intimacy is here anticipated to bear fruit: the birth of
a child. Rather, perhaps, than actually anticipating this outcome of
his acknowledged adultery, the poet probably signals to the lady Inn-
keeper and the putative brothel mistress, the accomplice concerting the
fatal tryst with a random lover, t h a t she must take her share of the
guilt and defray the factual costs hailing from the amorous assigna-
tion. Is the poet here trying to abscond his just retribution ? Or is he
merely voicing—facing a blatant outcry of slander—-his inability openly
to acknowledge his indiscreet vice, a flagrant breach on decorum and
morality for the person in question, the Sixth Dalai Lama, the alleged
epitome of virtue? The poem would appear to be liable to more construc-
tions, relative to the interpretation of the figures behind the sweetheart,
the wine-seller and what may be disguised behind the retribution of the
ill-fated liaison. Xiao Diyan, sBrah-char, 1988 (2), pp. 62-3, not sur-
prisingly, dismantles in his interpretation the simile of the contingent
encounter and sees in the bird a self-portrayal of the poet, in the stone
a symbol of the Qosot chief and then interprétâtes the sweetheart as
164
29
29a The term snin gtam, like the synonym in line 4, gsah gtam, carries
the sense of intimate or confidential talk (= chags tshig, 'dod gtam)
and such heart language or discours amoureux are an euphemism for
love-making; cf. e.g. M. Tatz, The Tibet Journal, IV (4), p. 29, n. 27
quoting Snyder, Tshig kyag. Often snin gtam [bead I sod pa], the word
of love, is complemented by tshig gsum, the 'three words of love', cf.
no. 11 supra and no. 40 infra; gSun-mgur, nos. 24, 70, 114, 312, 326;
Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 12, no. 1; p. 105, no. 4; p. 106, no. 1; p. 119,
no. 2; p. 122, no. 5; Bod kyi glu-gias, p. 78, no. 1; Bod-rigs kyi glu-gias,
p. 3 1 , nos. 3-4; p. 58, no. 4. Cf. finally no. 30 infra. Cf. also the story
of Prince Nor-bzan: 'khrab-gzun, pp. 17, 59, 67.
29b chun 'dris byams pa, cf. no. 12 supra.
29c The stag (éva pho) here symbolizes a wooer or a suitor, somewhat like
our *buck', literally as well as figuratively. Cf. e.g. gSun-mgur, nos. 51,
77, where this kind of suitor is depicted to pursue girls.
29d The term gsan gtam is synonymous with snin gtam, cf. supra.
30
King Nor-can (or Nor-chen; Dhana) lived once upon a time in the
Northern Kingdom lNa-ldan[-pa] (also mNa'-ldan, sNags-ldan,
Paficäla). His rule was in accordance with the law and the coun-
try was rich and prosperous because of the wise counsel given
by a serpent spirit Nâga (klu). In a Southern Kingdom INa-ldan
(also Rigs-ldan[-pa]; Pancâla), on the contrary, a king ruled in
discordance with law, so that in his coutry was ridden by famine
and drought. Once the king of the southern kingdom Sag-pa
gzon-nu sent a magician (shags pa) sBrul-nag-'dzin to the north-
ern kingdom to catch the nâga, A hunter (rhon pa) named sPan-
legs 'dzin-pa (also sPan-leb byin-pa, Phalaka) succoured and
saved the Näga-king mlkho-mo klu-rgyal from the impending
danger. As a token of gratitude the hunter received a precious
magic lasso Cthe effective lasso', don yod zags pa, nor bu don
yod zags pa, amoghapâêa) with which he caught the Goddess
Yid-'phrog lha-mo (the 'Mind-Captivating Goddess', a heavenly
fairy (mi'am ci mo, kinnarl), also Yîd-'phrog-ma, Manoharä). Ad-
vised by a hermit (draft sron, rsi) named bsTan-'dzin bzan-po,
the hunter was urged to offer her as a gift to Prince Nor-[bu]
bzan[-po] (Sudhana), the son of King Nor-chen (Dhana) who
in turn eventually married her. The couple lived happily, but
soon the prince's 500 concubines and courtezans grew jealous of
the new-comer, the cynosure of all eyes. Assisted by the court-
sorcerer (mchod gnas, a mchod, sgyu ma mkhan) Ha-ri, they
schemed in concert to put Yid-'phrog lha-mo to death after the
sorcerer had persuaded the old king to send the prince far away
to participate in a war. Moved by piety, the old queen, mother
to the prince, felt sympathy for the young kinnarï-Goddess and
helped her to escape the impending danger, and—being of a su-
169
Scrutinizing the canonical tales, the story (rnam-thar) and the opera
script ('khrab giuh) of Nor-bu bzan-po, it becomes evident that this
play may have had a major impact on Tshans-dbyans rgya-mtsho, pro-
vided again that the present song cycle is positively ascribable to the
young God-king. How are we otherwise to account for the occurence
of a striking number of words, phrases, dialogues and incidences in
the play, which, albeit employed disparately, would be seen to have in-
spired the young God-king throughout the present song collection. This
alleged inspiration is naturally not, aside from the present poem, a di-
rect one, but may, as said, arguably account for the poet's wide use of a
number of idioms, phrases, themes and episodes, which we have found
embedded in the poems. Aside again, of course, from the present poem
and from a number of scattered references to be found in the different
songs, we may briefly add from the life story and the play: rnam-thar
(Dharamsala ed.), pp. 70-87, 103-05; 'khrab gzuh, pp. 22-297: When
the hunter is offered a precious object (nor bu, mani) as a token of grat-
itude, it causes him some difficulties when trying to evaluate (nor [bu]
flams mdzad) which type is the most appropriate; this may be alluded
to in the following poem no. 31; rnam-thar, p. 89ff, 112ff; 'khrab giun,
pp. 25, 33-34, 37: when the brave hunter (stobs Idan mon pa), urged
by the hermit, realized that his caste was too low (rigs nan, a hunter
is a slaughter of living creatures) to have Yid-'phrog, herself of divine
origin, for wife (gtan grogs, grogs), he finally conceded to tender her
to Prince Nor-bzari, comparing the girl to a precious head-ornament
(gtsug rgyan nor bu'i do éal); this may be alluded to in poem no. 26
supra; rnam-thar, p. 163; 'khrab-gzuh, pp. 29, 59: It is related e.g. how
the Princess' face (zal ras) is comparable to the bright and beaming
fullmoon (dkar gsal bco lha'i zla ba ear ba), a clear echo of song no. 1
supra; rnam-thar, passim mention e.g. the terms tshig gsum, snin gtam
and éa tsha'i snin gtam; similar terms occur in the poems nos. 11, 27,
29; 'khrab gzuh, p. 31: When describing how he with the magical lasso
(don yod zags pa) caught Yid-'phrog, he explains that she, having been
seized by the lasso, fell to the ground like a bird having been hit by a
stone (bya la rdo phog pa biin sa la Ihun); this simile, though some-
what different in the wording, may faintly be hinted at in song no. 28;
170
rnam-thar, pp. 160-61, 214; 'khrab giuh, p. 42 briefly relates about the
old king, the father of king Nor-bzan, and how he went to his court
sorcerer (bla mchod) to have him interpretate (mo cha (= phyva) eu)
some bad omens and portents in his dreams; the wording may faintly
be alluded to in song no. 33; rnam-thar, pp. 174—175, 'khrab gzuh, p. 20,
60: The enemies of the Buddhist teachings (sans rgyas bstan pa'i dgra
bo) are briefly mentioned, cf. the poems nos. 39, 45; 'khrab giuh, p. 54
talks about a mda' mo tsha bo which lands on the girl, cf. song no. 59;
rnam-thar, p. 227; 'khrab giuh, pp. 53-54 quotes a dpe which describes
how a thrush is treathened by a hawk in a willow grove to illustrate
how Yid-'phrog herself is surrounded by a host of concubines and court
concubines who colluded to put her to death:
| lean glin 'di tsho rgya khra hor pa yis bskor yod
j byi'u 'jol mo kho la 'gro sa e 'dug blta yon \
and
lean glin 'di tsho rgya [= skya] khra hor pa yis bskor byun
'jol mo mi sdod spen ma'i nags gseb la chas 'gro
This simile and this setting is clearly employed in song no. 62 in-
fra. Sources: A. von Schiefner, Tibetan Tales derived from Indian
Sources, tr. into English by W.R.S. Ralston (Broadway Translations),
London, 1882, pp. 44-74; The Mahävastu, II, pp. 91-111; Chavannes,
Cinq cents contes et apologues, (no. 80) IV, p. 133ff; S. Ch. Das &
H. M. Vidyäbhüsana (eds.), Bodhisattvävadänakalpalatä, 2 vols., Bibl.
Indica (pallava 64), 1888-1913; H.W. Bailey, ' T h e Sudhana poem of
rddhiprabhäva", BSOAS, XXIX, 1966, pp. 506-532; P. S. Jaini, "The
Story of Sudhana and Manoharä. An Analysis of the texts and the
Borobudur Reliefs", BSOAS, XXIX, 1966, pp. 533-558; D. Schlingloff,
"Prince Sudhana and the Rinnan", Indologica Taurinensia, I, 1973,
pp. 155-67; J a m p a Losang Panglung, Erzählstoffe des Mülasarvästi-
väda-Vmaya Analysiert auf Grund der Tibetischen Übersetzung, Stu-
dia Philologica Buddhica, Monograph Series III, pp. 39-40; Waddell,
Lamaism, pp. 551-13; R. Stein, Recherches sur l'épopée et le barde au
Tibet, pp. 38, 296-97; Damdinsureng, "The Sixth Dalai Lama", The
Tibet Journal, VI (4), 1981, pp. 32-36; Wang Yao, "Tibetan Operatic
Themes", in Soundings in Tibetan Civilization, pp. 86-96; Wang Yao,
Tales from Tibetan Opera, pp. 42-72.
For the term snin thub, heart-throb, sweetheart, inamorata, etc., cf.
no. 4 supra.
The hypocorism or soubriquet Yid-'phrog lha-mo or Yid-'phrog-ma,
playing the role of an ingénue in the drama, is apparently a name
which has gone down in Tibetan folksong tradition as a sort of genre
designation, cf. Duncan, 1961, pp. 92-8; The name is a much-cherished
171
figure in various songs taking their inspiration from the plot. gÉas-
tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 147, no. 1, e.g. relates how a turquoise[-coloured]
ladder is required when someone wants to ascend a mountain of gold.
Similarly, the magical rope don yod iags pa is required when someone
[or the hunter] wanted to seize Yid-'phrog lha-mo:
I gser gyi ri la 'dzegs par \
| gyu yi skas 'dzegs dgos kyi \
j yid 'phrog lha mo 'dzin par \
| don yod tags pa dgos kyi \
Oft-occuring synonymic variants for Yid-'phrog lha-mo are Yid-'phrog
dban-mo or Yid-'dzin dban-mo, Yîd-ldan lha-mo, cf. e.g. gSuh-mgur,
nos. 63, 89, 418, 436, where these names throughout designate a young
girl. Another gzas admonishes a girl, called Yid-'phrog dban-mo, not to
be too gloomy, if she waits patiently, a time for a rendezvous is certain
to come. Here the poem is inspired by the drama play where Yid-'phrog
lha-mo had to wait so long for her prince; Bod-rigs kyi glu-gias, p. 5 1 ,
no. 4:
| bu mo yid 'phrog dbah mo \
| bsam pa sdug sdug mi dgos \
j ga le ga le gyis dan \
j thug pa'i dus gcig ear yon \
Cf. also Norbu's Coll III, no. 66.
30b The reading ran gis and rgyal bus in 30d also are the literary forms,
which have been retained here as the proper orthographical readings.
However, the reading ha ras as also rgya lu in 30d are the colloquial
forms which should be considered equally 'correct' as they more ad-
equately reflect the oral tradition which lies behind the song cycle.
Moreover, the forms ha ra and rgya lu are found in the 'khrab giuh,
respectively on p. 34 and p. 8.
30c The story (rnam-thar, pp. 197, 281) and the script ('khrab-gzuh, p. 38)
to Prince Nor-bzan repeatedly designates him by the metonyms dbah
chen mi yi dpon po and mi dpon, the all-mighty lord of men.
The term mi dpon designated in pre-revolutionary Tibet an adminis-
trative official, most likely the magistrate; cf. e.g. L. Petech, Aristocracy
and Government in Tibet, p. 238. Like in song no. 5 supra, we are prob-
ably not dealing with a specific title, but a general designation t h a t
describes an influential person.
30d As already noted above, the form rgya lu may seem preferable; rgya lu
is the oral or spoken form of rgyal bu, the literary and orthographically
correct form. It should be noted, though, t h a t the form rgya lu has
172
• This poem is a companion piece to the next poems. This and following
three song poems, nos. 30-33 in all, may constitute a logical unity. They
all share a common thematic element: the abrupt loss of one's beloved,
a lovelornness which wound up with a crisis. Moreover, as pointed out
infra, they would also seem to share a common source of inspiration,
however brief the allusion may be, namely sundry scenes borrowed from
the popular story and drama play Chos-rgyal Nor-bzan. This theater-
inspired poem accentuates the young God-king's dilemma. The poem
relates about an abduction or a plain robbery of a girl by a rival lover or
a rival wooer, its plot, as said, borrowed from this well-known Tibetan
operatic play. As the text (rnam-thar, 'khrab gzun) to this play details,
the hunter generously conceded to present the divine Yid-'phrog-ma to
Prince Nor-bzan. Due to his profession the hunter recognized that he
was an ineligible match to the godly, albeit nubile, princess. Identify-
ing himself with the galant and unselfish hunter, the losing part in the
drama as it turned out, and by letting Nor-bzan forcibly deprive him
of his beloved, the poet has perhaps given the story an ironic turn: the
abduction was never willingly acknowledged by the poet. By employing
a pun in the word 'phrog in this epigrammatic poem, the idea of an
abduction is enforced, an act perpetrated, in the poet's eyes, by a per-
sonage endued with considerable power, a challeging suitor or a rival
whose power is more than a match for Tshans-dbyans rgya-mtsho, him-
self seriously hampered in the cockfight by his high position. Clearly
two figures pose as obvious candidates to play the role of Nor-bzan: The
Regent and the Qosot chief lHa-bzan Qan (note, incidentally, in case of
the latter the sharing of the element bzah; a similar device may be ob-
served in song no. 39 infra). The Regent, this complex figure who was
a brilliant scholar and a sly politician, is known to have had a noto-
rious and unmitigated addiction to adultery and womanizing. He led
a promiscuous life, besides the two nobility lady-consorts attended by
him, i.e. the bdag mo of 'Chi-med dga'-tshal and of dPal-rab khan-gsar,
there was no lady from Lhasa or from the provinces that the Regent did
not take up with; cf. Shakabpa, Bod kyi srid-don rgyal-rabs /, p. 488;
Chab-spel, 1987, pp. 301-2, Richardson, 1980, p. 343. If we find the Re-
gent depicted behind the powerful Prince, and there is all good reason
to assume that, wilfully interferring in the young God-king's private
affairs, then we may possibly see the abduction as a prohibitive step,
or, as adduced below, as a deliberate political step devised by the Re-
gent in order firmly to set bounds for the young man. Conducive to an
identification of the Regent, it is worth noting that gSun-mgur, no. 409,
173
31
31a The term nor bu often also designates a girl, cf. nos. 1, 3-4 supra; gSuh-
mgur, no. 235. The readings la and lag are both plausible.
31b The term nor [bu] hams ma chod carries the meaning: 'unable to eval-
uate or assess a precious object or a jewel'. The phrase nor hams chod
pa or mdzad pa, thus means to Appreciate or pay heed to the value of
something costly'. Cf. song no. 30 supra.
31d The Tibetan idiom shin rluh stod [la] 'tshah, b u t also shin rluh sloh/lahs
pa carries the sense of'anger (khoh khro, khro ba) (or rarely) melancholy
surging upwards [within a person]'; cf. e.g. dPe-chos rna-ba'i bdud-rtsi,
p. 146 which glosses shin rluh stod 'tshah with khoh khro ches cher
lahs pa, an 'increase in rage or temper'; In Tibetan, when the 'wind
raises' (rluh lahs pa) it means t h a t exitement and temper is going up;
adding the complement shin to rluh, the l i e a r t wind', further qualifies
the idiom by acquiring a mental or emotional bent, i.e. melancholy, etc.
The rluh alludes either to the psychic channels (väyu), as known in the
yogic tradition, or to the breath (dbugs) in the body; The diet, defines
the term rluh 'tshah by the phrase dbugs stod la 'tshah, 'the respiration
went upwards, i.e. increased in intensity, or, phrased differently, it char-
acterizes someone who 'gets hot-tempered or ill-tempered'; stod 'tshah,
moreover, is glossed with tshabs chen lahs: 'to get excited'. The sense of
this idiom is e.g. illustrated in a gzas which relates about the desire to
acquire a blue lotus flower t h a t is found growing on the topmost point
of a boulder: If you try to fetch it, you will find it beyond reach. Leaving
175
than the overall plot. In the drama play the nor bu, the costly object
in question refers to the magical lasso (nor bu don yod iags pa), with
which the Mind-Captivating Goddess was eventually captured.
The poem mourns a deprivation or a rejection, which the poet would
appear to have brought upon himself. Belatedly, he realized the irre-
vocable loss he incurred upon himself, when he failed to pay adequate
heed to the valuable object, a girl of choice, while it was safely in his
possession. Lovelorn and suffering from the pangs of love, the poet has
couched his heart's bereavement in a resignedly gloomy note.
Like above, we may also take another departure: the jewel may depict
the much-coveted political power, for which a historical interpretation is
required. Once in possession of the final temporal authority would then
logically imply that the previous embodiment, the Great Fifth Dalai
Lama (1617-1682 A.D.), once exerted full authority over the lamaist
state. Being deprived of the power in the present embodiment {yah
srid), the Sixth, losing it to another figure, signals that the wily Re-
gent, who all along vied complacently for power, opportunely usurped
the reins of power during the interregnum already stage-managed by
himself. And subsequently, when the young God-king assumed the age
of majority, the Regent demonstrated a conspicuous reluctance to relin-
quish his hard-won and long-acquainted grip of power.
If authentical, it is in fact a strike of genius, that Tshans-dbyans rgya-
mtsho so deftly has employed the drama of Nor-bzan story to illustrate
the political drama of his personal life. His jealousy, his unbridled
impatience, and his frustration with a life in confinement set in scene by
a Regent, who himself led a hypocritical double life, all find expression
in these poems, in which the poet signally voices his defeat.
177
32
32a For the term hyams pa, cf. nos. 7 and 12 supra. Observe the antithesis
ran vs. gzan in 32ab. For 32a cf. gSuh-mgur, no. 136.
32b For the term mdun ma, cf. no. 3 supra.
32c This line would seem to juxtapose two non-technical terms for diseases
t h a t are almost synonymous: khog nad and sems gcoh. The term sems
Ipa'i] gcoh designates an unbearable mental suffering of a chronic na-
ture (sems nan du mi bzod pa'i sdug bshal Hag tu gnas pa) according
to the lexical definition; i.e. mental consumption or endogenous depres-
sion. Being almost synonymous (khog nad (khog [pa] = khoh = sems)
and khoh nad = khoh gcoh) and despite the fact t h a t the majority of
recensions endorses the reading khog nad, I prefer the reading khoh
nan, here conceived as a complement to sems gcoh or understood in the
sense 'from the innermost part' or 'in the bowels'. Cf. also no. 66 infra.
32d Depression, from whatever cause it may arise, may consume or emaci-
ate the body. Technically, it seems to refer to tuberculosis of some sort,
but, as Duncan, op. cit., p. 126, n. 418, rightly points out, it is pro-
bably a sort of washed-out condition t h a t affects a lover, when he found
himself rejected or when love is unrequited. The lack of appetite or
lassitude, which are often concomitants of a dejected heart, will further
cause bodily consumption.
Witness agtas describing an amowr-inflicted depression or consump-
tion—the ensuing body colour may be so conspicuous t h a t it claims our
178
attention; cf. Bod kyi dga'-gias J, p. 128, no. 5 = Bod kyi dga'-gias II,
p. 67, no. 3:
| sems gcoh byams pas beug pa'i |
j lus po'i mdog la gzigs dan \
| lus la na tsha med pa'i \
j rgas lugs 'di la gzigs dan \
• The present poem may arguably pursue the theme already introduced
in the previous two poems. The pangs of love and the bereavement of
Yid-'phrog lha-mo, we may imagine, inflict upon the hunter a mental
and physical emaciation. Read more generally, the poem continues to
tell the dramatic story of [a] vanished love[r]. Whether the abandoned
poet can ascribe his woeful appearance to self-inflicted reprobation by
his byams pa, whether it is caused by her voluntary elopement, by
unrequited love or may result from an involuntary abandonment on
the side of the poet, who himself was forced to take this step by his
high and delicate position that dictated him the ideal deportment of
a vowed monk in secluded celibacy, his wizened health was the forfeit
he dearly paid for his liaison[s]. As a poetical device, we know, the
means of exaggeration is here employed to strengthen his point; what
is meant, in all likelihood, is that the poor poet was just sick of love.
Yet, this piece of lyrical cri-de-cœur is found to be couched in a concrete
tone.
If a figurative layer is susceptible of being gleaned from this poem, a
departure in interpretation would, in my eyes, hardly deviate from the
one employed in the previous lyrical pieces: The beloved girl (byams pa)
is an euphemism for the dual power (chos srid gnis Idan, lugs gnis), a
relation to which resembles the poet's ambivalent rapport to his beloved,
with whom, we may already have seen, he had a bond of attachment
regularly alternating with one of detachment. In the present case there
is no mixed feelings, however, the political power which [once ?] was
dearly appreciated or assessed, at least prior to its actual seizure, the
poet now found wedded to another (the sDe-srid) powerful figure. Re-
duced to a puppet, the void he furiously felt had a damaging impact on
his mood and his body.
179
33
33a For the term snin thub, cf. nos. 4, 28, 30 supra. For 33a, cf. also gSuh-
mgur, no. 83; The loss of the girl by stealth (rku) clearly alludes to the
'phrog or abduct(ing) act in song no. 30 supra,
33b For the terms mo phyva, mo or lot-divination and rtsis, astrology or cal-
culation, cf. Nebesky-Wojkowitz, Oracles and Demons of Tibet, pp. 455fF.;
For the requirement of mo or lot, luh or permission and rtsis, astrolog-
ical calculation (of the compatibility of their birth data between two
prospective lovers) in connection with Tibetan marriage tradition, cf.
T. Skorupski & C. Cech, "Major Tibetan Life Cycle Events—Birth and
Marriage Ceremonies", Kailash, vol. XI (1984), nr. 1-2, p. 26. Although
in a different context, see the reference to mo phy[v]a in the story of
Nor-bzan, cf. ad no. 30 supra,
33c Some previous translators and commentators, e.g. Houston, Richards
and van Heurck, have understood the phrase dun sems to stand for
a 'conch (dun dkar)-white heart' = sincerity, candidness etc., thus also
Das' Diet. p. 629; The application of the conch may here possibly hail
from one of the four classes which women are divided into according to
the Indian Ars amandi, the 'conch-type of woman' (éahkhinï, dun can
ma); cf. e.g. S. Lienhard, Ratirahasya, Geheimnisse der Liebeskunst,
p. 34. The reading dun sems would seem to find further support in
lexical entries such as dun ne ba = sems brtse dun he ba; dun dun
= sems brtse, which all carry the sense of love and affection. How-
ever, the correct form is invariably gduh sems = brtse sems, byams brtse
180
from gdun ba, which means 'to love' (or a noun, love), 'to desire' (or
desire), 'to be passionate' (or passion), etc., but may also mean the op-
posite, 'yearning', 'pain', 'grief, 'pangs'. The adjective [gldun sems can
ma, applied to a woman, therefore indicates an "affectionate", "loving",
"good-hearted" or, perhaps preferable here, "passionate" woman. Cf.
gSun-mgur, nos. 88, 142.
33d For 33cd cf. e.g. gSuh-mgur, no. 142. The haunted memory (of a girl)
in the dreams, does it entail sleepless nights ?, cf. analogously nos. 1
and 6 supra.
• The poem prosecutes the theme dealt with in the three previous
pieces. The involuntary abduction of his beloved-—is t h a t a self-excused
cover-up for a flat refusal by the girl ?—has here prompted the poet
to seek help from the soothsayers (mo mkhan, mo pa) to assist him,
through divinatory forecasts and prognostication, in acquiring know-
ledge about the lost girl's whereabouts and to forecast his own chances
of any future assignations with her. His urge to involve divinatory cal-
culation is strongly felt, as images and recollections of the girl h a u n t
him in his dreams. Similar to the previous samples, this poem is also
written in a meekly unfatalistic tone, as if the poet from the outset had
come to terms with the ineluctable and impartial workings of karman.
In line with the three previous poems, the veiled topic which contin-
ues to vex the mind of the sorely tried poet is most likely also here the
political and official power (srid dban), still euphemistically coated as
an inamorata and a girl, t h a t unlawfully had been stolen or abducted by
the Regent. By calling in the assistance of astrologers and soothsayers
the poet has added the story an ironic bent: The Regent himself was,
inter alia, the putative (albeit questionable, cf. E. Gene Smith, 1970,
pp. 18-19) author of several major astrological works, e.g. the Vai-dürya
dkar-po. Here evidently the poet attempts to interpret or to gain fore-
knowledge about omens and foreboding signs (lias) which emerge in his
dreams (rmi lam).
181
34
34a The girl referred to in 34ab probably alludes to the chart ma in no. 20
and/or the gnas mo in no. 61.
34b For 34b, cf. Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 105, no. 6 = gTam-dpe, p. 148, no. 1.
34c Here there is a word play on skyabs gnas, refugium, haven or asylum
with the Buddhist concept of refuge (éarana, skyabs), the Triple Gem,
Trisarana. Cf. gSuh-mgur, nos. 420 and 437. Also note the pun on
gtanlbrtanlbstan.
34d The demonstrative pronomen 'di here refers to the bu mo, in whom the
poet seeks refuge.
no. 61 infra, we may also there have an allusion to the triple refuges,
as the three tiny steps, described in no. 61, would signal the three steps
in seeking refuge. Clearly, his amorous pursuit is here paralleled with
a religious pursuit.
Reading a deeper level into the poem is optional. In the light of the
above overt hint to the Buddhist refuges and provided a valid identifica-
tion of the girl in the poem should prove feasible, an allusive reading is
possible. Recalling the fact that his yearning for love and the struggle
for his rightful claim for power constituted the two foremost important,
and mutually incongruous, objectives in his life, it is tempting, and ev-
idently appropriate, to see in the girl a trite euphemism for the poet's
quest for the dual-sided political power. This reading is equally en-
dorsed by Xiao Diyan, sBran-char, 1988 (2), pp. 64-5. In which case
the poem should be read as an unswerving dedication to this quest for
power. But this reading still exposes some unaccountable loose ends.
Perhaps the girl of the tavern, a mine of endless revelry and consolation
to the poet, is just employed to portray an ever-present alternative to
his religious refuge.
183
35
I bu mo a m a r m a skyes |
| k h a m bu'i sin la skyes sam |
j a gsar zad pa k h a m bu'i |
j me tog de las mgyogs pa |
35a It should be noted t h a t this song is made up by nos. 68a and 67bcd in
recension K The term 'not born to a mother' (a mar ma skyes) does not
signal t h a t the girl is of a non-human origin, cf. above, b u t t h a t the girl
is so indecent and abnormal, the poet contends, as if she adheres to a
non-human race; cf. similarly next poem. Cf. also no. 1 supra.
35b The reading las is equally plausible. The peach (kham bu), cf. no. 5
supra.
35c The idiom a gsar zad pa, 'the enthusiasm for [a] new [thing] has ex-
hausted [to be replaced by a new enthusiasm etc. ad infinitum]', is
a phrase frequently employed in Tibetan to denote the fickleness, the
volatility and the whims, the fiigacity or the levity (a gsar can pa) of a
person, in the main, but not exclusively, a property applicable to women.
Apparently, in its Tibetan garb, it reflects the dictum of Horace varium
et mutabile semper femina.
The Tibetan popular lyrical tradition can supply us with a number of
samples which testifies to the use of this idiom. gSuh-mgur, no. 32, for
instance, illustrates a sweetheart's fickleness, or her constant change,
with the sere leaves of a flower. Bod kyi dga'-g&as / , p. 75, no. 5 =
Glu-chuh sna-tshogs, p. 4 provides us with a pejorative portrayal of a
volatile lover. Although she is pretty, there is no chance (nan, or danger,
nen) t h a t she will ever become a life-long companion. It is similar with
184
a meadow flower, it may be handsome, but it will only blossom for one
single day:
| span gi me tog mdzes kyah \
j zag geig sad kyi 'og red \
j a gsar chuh 'dris mdzes kyah \
j gtan grogs nan sa mi 'dug
Cf. further ibid., p. 49, no. 5; p. 100, no. 6; Bod kyi dga'-gias II,
p. 29, no. 2 = gZas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 117, no. 4; Bod kyi glu-gias,
p. 153, no. 1; sDe-dge'i dmahs-glu, p. 110, no.2; Norbu's Coll III, no. 52;
Snyder, Tshig kyag, nos. 67 & 69, mentioned by Tatz, The Tibet Journal,
VI (4), 1981, p. 29, no. 33. This idiom on the chopping and changing
nature of a female is e.g. aptly rendered into Chinese by a well-known
four-character idiom zhâosân mùsi, 'morning three, evening four', cf.
Zhuang Jing, 1981b, p. 22.
35d The variant reading las kyah is equally feasible. On the same theme,
cf. also gSuh-mgur, nos. 4, 61.
• This and the following two poems are companion pieces. A poem on
the frustration over a beloved's infidelity and whimsical nature. Fur-
ther, it is a poem on the transient nature of human existence. Her
behaviour is of such a nature that the poet voices, poetically speaking,
some doubts as to her true provenance. By comparing the evanescence
of her every whim with the ditto withering (yal ba) of flowers growing
on the peach tree (itself a symbol of love, cf. no. 5 supra), the poet aptly
portrays his unfulfilled and unrequited yearning for love. The buoyant
girl may not be human. Quite prosaically, the poet here clearly refers to
a girl in flesh and blood, but it may be worth noting t h a t when read as a
companion piece to the former stanza, her questionable h u m a n extrac-
tion could be a reference to the supernatural däkinl, already introduced
in no. 20 supra. The poem nevertheless carries a tone of surprise and
disappointment.
Expecting an allusive message in this poem is again hinged upon an
identification of the key figure in his lyrics, the girl, the source of hap-
piness and sorrow in the poet's life. This trite figure would appear to
proffer more than one interpretation. Most readily, this light-hearted
and capricious damsel is a perfect euphemism for the vicissitudes {'pho
'gyur) and the vexing imbroglios t h a t engulfed his well-nigh ill-starred
struggle for power. Inconceivably, the centrifugal force of politics in
which the poet found himself incarcerated, accelerated the political sit-
uation to change quicker, the poet could find every reason to say, than
any deciduous phase in nature.
Equally feasible is a construction where we replace the girl with the
fickle Regent.
185
36
36a For the term chun 'dris byams pa, the long-acquainted lover; cf. no. 12
supra.
36b The wolf (spyah ki, Skt. îhâmrga, vrka; M. cino-a; C. lang; Canis lupus),
a large predatory mammal t h a t resembles the related dog. The Tibetan
ri khyi, the 'mountain dog* or the 'wild dog' is a kenning for the wolf.
Cf. e.g. the Gesar Epic, III, fol. 36a, 64b, ed. R. Stein, 1956.
The conjunctive and interrogative particle (tshig phrad) namf here
used rhetorically, is a specific poetical figure, t h a t technically is denoted
rab rtog sgra, and is a form of the rab Hog gi rgyan, the poetical figure
of imagination, cf. Dun-dkar, sNan-hag la 'jug-tshul tshig-rgyan rig-pa9i
sgo-'byed, pp. 334-338.
36c The idiom sa 'dris lpags 'dris, 'to get acquainted with/accustomed to
flesh and skin' clearly conceals a pun. Line 36c reads: Though the
wolf (like the girl) came to be acquainted with/accustomed to (wolf: fed,
tamed, cf. no. 48 infra) the flesh and the skin [of the poet] (wolf: fodder;
the girl: to know somebody intimately). The variant readings bring this
equivocal sense forth: the almost-homophonic variants 'dres and 'brel,
in addition to the correct 'dris—correct because of the corresponding
in 36a, connote the same, and intentionally so. But these verbs
186
are probably far to strong likely to have been used by the poet. The
explicit phrase for bodily intimacy is sku lus 'dres pa and lus po 'brel;
cf. gSuh-mgur, no. 341; Bod kyi dga'-gzas /, p. 14, no. 2; p. 22, no. 6;
p. 56, no. 6. Cf. also Norbu's Coll I, no. 40: the flesh (éa) and bone (rus
pa) of the girl as a sign of intimacy.
The damsel's wolfish appetite for intimacy and for corporeal acquain-
tance, however short-lived it may be, is here deftly illustrated by the
behaviour of a lone wolf, a redoubtable and fierce h u n t e r ceaselessly
questing for a prey to devour. Having satiated herself with the prey,
meat, hide and all, the Canis lupus, faithful to its nature, immediately
withdraws to its protective seclusion in the mountains. The volatile
girl in the wolf's clothing displays a similar conduct: Indulging her-
self in short-lived affairs, emotionally and amorously devouring her
paramour—flesh and bones, she sets off, true to her capricious nature,
with a new lover. Wang Yinuan, for instance, when translating this
idiom into Chinese, proceeds a step further and opines t h a t this idiom
connotes 'falling in love and living together'; cf. 1980, p. 37, C. xiângài
tôngjû; cf. similarly, Zhuang Jing, 1981b, p. 22, who renders the line
'already a married couple or conjugal companions', C. luânchôu. This
rendering is probably suggested in order to enforce the contrast drawn
up in the poem, but the contrast is one which should hail from intimacy
not from matrimony. This idiom thus exclusively connotes the sense of
bodily intimacy.
The variant readingpags is equally plausible; the reading spag shows
a garbled orthography.
36d The variant reading éor for yar is equally plausible.
© The poem speaks about a blatant rejection. It aptly voices the poet's
frustration over his long-acquainted beloved's infidelity. The lupine girl,
a vixen of sorts in disguise, proved whimsical and unreliable. Despite
the fact t h a t the poet submitted himself wholeheartedly to the wilful
girl skin and all, she eventually rejoined by abandoning him.
As said, it should be read along with the previous and the subsequent
poem.
In conjunction with the above poem, a deeper sense in this poem is
hinged upon an identification of the wolfish girl. One or two solutions—
again tentative—leap to the fore: The wilful girl, in the guise of a greedy
wolf, may make up a befitting depiction of the fierce and rapacious
aspects t h a t characterize the brute political struggle he was faced with.
Or, it may simply illustrate the ambitious and shifty Regent, i.e. his
greed for power and his unpredictability Xiao Diyan, sBran-char, 1988
(2), p. 66-7, here sees the Qosot chief lHa-bzan Qan depicted as well
as the troublesome, dismal situation t h a t characterized the struggle
187
between the two fractions headed by the Regent and the Mongolian
Lord.
188
37
I r t a rgod ri la rgyab pa |
| rni daii zags pas zin gyis |
| byams pa no log rgyab pa |
| m t h u no zin pa mi 'dug
37a The terms rta rgod or rta pho denote the wild horse and the stallion. For
rta rgod, cf. e.g. A-M. Blondeau, Matériaux pour l'Étude de l'Hippologie
et de l'Hippiatrie Tibétaines, pp. 198-200. The lyrical Tibetan tradition
abounds in samples on horses, among which a number quite often per-
petuates the impression of the restive wild horse or the proud stallion
in solitary freedom defying docile reins. Nevertheless, the simile of the
wild horse or stallion being caught, is here employed to strengthen the
simile of the rebellious lover that defies control.
Meriting attention are two gias which share some features with the
present poem. In the first the simile is provided saying t h a t a stallion is
always known to return to the owner if it is let loose in the mountains.
Not so with a rebellious beloved, if she turns her back on someone,
rumours "more than the hair on one's body" are bound to follow in her
wake; Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas, p. 36, no. 1:
| rta pho ri la sor na \
| 'khor ba'i dus gcig yod grags \
j byams pas no log brgyab na \
| bead rgyu spu las man byun \
189
Similarly, gTam-dpe, p. 137 relates about a wild horse, which has also
been set free high in the mountains; when it h a s been caught by trap
and by lasso, it turns out as a docile stallion:
| rta rgod ri yar rgyab son \
j lean ra'i tshe rin mchog skyid \
| rni daft zags pa[s] bsnams nas \
j rta pho zin pa phebs sog
For additional songs on rta p[h]o, rta rgod and rgod ma, cf. Bod kyi
dga'-gzas I, pp. 54, no. 1-58, no. 3; p. 77, no. 5; Bod kyi dga'-gzas II,
pp. 33, no. 1-^32, no. 5; Bod-rigs kyi glu-gias, pp. 35, no. 1-36, no. 4,
p. 102, nos. 3-4, p. 104, no. 1; cf. also no. 40 infra. 37a, the var. read.
yar rgyab pa is equally plausible.
37b The snare or the trap: rni and sfii are variationes orthographicae and
therefore interchangable. G. E. Combe, A Tibetan on Tibet, op. cit.,
p. 114, provides a description of the way the wild horse is caught by the
Tibetan nomads:
Cf. also van Heurck, 1984, p. 105. Note moreover the assonant word
play on rgyab pa in 37b and 37d, a rhyming phenomenon frequently
employed in the Tibetan gias tradition.
37c Tb turn the back on someone (no log rgyab pa), like mgo log, means 'to
rebel', 'oppose' or 'defy' any command.
37d The term m t h u here denotes 'magical power'; cf. e.g. Tucci, Die Religio-
nen Tibets under der Mongolei, pp. 187, 232, 234, 246. Cf. also Wang
Yinuan, 1980, p. 38, C. shénli; Zhuang Jing, 1981b, p. 22, shéntong
fâshù.
Here the sense is conveyed t h a t the rebellious and refractory girl re-
sists having her face (no = bio, mind) caught (zin) even through magical
means (mthu, here = mthus, mthu yis). Phrased differently, the girl re-
sisted or opposed any enduring relation, she was fickle and capricious
(= a gsar can), a theme already touched upon in the two previous po-
ems. Note also the use of no in 37c and 37d, which in both cases denote
t h a t there was no facial contact, a gesture which, similar to the refusal
190
to give a backward glance, cf. no. 10 supra, would carry the sense of a
rejection. The variant reading thugs no zin pa = thugs no[s] 'dzin pa
would mean something between to 'identify' or 'recognize' and to 'catch
the heart'. In other words, here: "not to recognize or being accepted" or
"her heart defied being captured". Without disqualifying a priori this
latter reading, it appears to be less feasible as an original reading.
• In the present poem, which in the first distich or couplet (tshig rkan
sna ma gnis) contains the simile (dpe) employed to illustrate, or as here
to contrast the collateral statement (don, dpe can) presented in the last
distich (tshig rkan phyi ma gnis), the theme of the wilful and whimsi-
cal girl is reiterated. To underpin his message of the girl's rejection of
him, the poet provides an antithesis in which the girl's noncompliance
is contrasted with the taming of an unruly wild horse, a project which
is eventually bound to succeed. But the recalcitrant lover of his defies
all attempts at being bound to the poet's station, even when the poet,
in his propitiatory endeavour, applied the casting of magical spells and
charms (mthu gton ba, mthu 'debs pa, snags). These spells and incan-
tations, when it is not the question of some forceful wonder-working
of black art as described for instance in the life-story of Mi-la ras-pa,
are regularly used to coerce respectively to supplicate some fierce and
redoubtable deities. By using this hyperbolic image, indicating that the
girl surpassed these deities in averting submittance, the love-sick poet
manages to voice the extent of his dejection over lost love.
The girl is perhaps allegorically depicting, similar to the previous
two poems, a figure or an event in the poet's life which was well-nigh
beyond his control. The poem would seem to relate about his long-
sought appropriation of power. Whether the lover (byams pa) depicts
the notion of power itself or she impersonates the Regent, who 'usurped'
(no log, lit. 'revolted') the power or who had the throne (khri) divested
of any real meaning—when not doing so formally then by removing any
executive power from it, the poet in dispair took recourse to magic as
an appropriate rejoinder. But calling in even curses and imprecations
hoping to have some punishment visit the usurping culprit, the bitter
message of the poem tells us that his endeavour was a forlorn hope
as the reins or the seat of real power continued to remain beyond his
resumption.
191
38
38a The rendering 'kept tryst' is a free translation of the absolutive bsdebs
nas, 'having combined or united'.
38b The carnivorous vulture (rgod po, by a rgod; Skt. bhâsa, grdhra; M. yolo,
sablar; C. zào diäö) is a bird of prey; often it is confounded with the bya
rgyal rgod po, the eagle (go ba), the king of the birds; cf. Stein, 1959,
p. 365 et passim, where it is even equated with the garuda (khyun), the
fabulous phoenix. Now, by the term garuda is quite often in Indian lit-
erature meant the 'Golden Eagle' (Aquila chrysaetos) or the 'Himalayan
Griffon Vulture' (Gyps himalayensis). With the rgodpo the reference is
clearly to the vulture (fam. Aegypiidae. Cathartidae), be it the white-
backed Bengal vulture (Gyps bengalensis; Skt. bhâsa, éakuni) or the
Long-billed vulture (Gyps indicus; Skt. grdhra, éakuni). The fierce rep-
utation this raptorial and predatory species has earned world-wide, is
only partly applicable to the Tibetan concept of this bird. The bird
of 'wildness' (rgod), as is known, plays its own role in the Tibetan fu-
neral 'open-air' rites, popularly known as the 'sky-burial', where they
are summoned ('bod) to devour the corpses (ro za ba) of the deceased.
Cf. e.g. Nebesky-Wojkowitz, Oracles and Demons of Tibet, p. 488. Its
epithets are the 'space-circler' (mkha' la 'khor), 'souring high in the air'
(nam 'phah spyod byed), the 'long-flyer' (rin fphur) and the 'wind-walker'
(rlun spyod). But the special carnivorous function as a 'heavenly scav-
enger' t h a t perpetually lurks for a prey, remains the hallmark of this
192
bird. Cf. also the samples of gias on this bird in Bod kyi dga'-gias I,
p. 24, nos. 4 - 5 . Cf. also Norbu's Coll I, no. 45; / / , no. 10. Cf. Dave,
Birds in Sanskrit Literature, pp. 188-197.
In the poetical tradition two species of the vulture regularly occur.
One tradition speaks about the Lord of the Birds (bya rje), the 'white-
plain vulture' than dkar rgodpo; cf. Norbu's Coll. II, no. 21; / / / , nos. 32,
62; it occurs also in the Gesar cycle, cf. Pema Tsering, 1979, p. 173.
Another tradition introduces the vulture lha rgyal tshe rin, cf. gSun-
mgur, no. 365; Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 93, no. 1 = gZas-tshig phyogs-
bsdus, p. 126, no. 2.
More importantly, the perching of a vulture on a high rock (brag stod)
is often employed as a simile of conjugal relation and mating (bza' mi
sdeb); cf. e.g. the story (rnam-thar) of Prince Nor-bzah, p. 196 and no. 9
supra.
The phrase gzan byuh, as gzan po byas in 38d, carries etymologically
the sense of consumation, devouring, but are mostly employed in a
figurative sense: gzan pa (verb), 'to harm', 'to torment', 'to wear out' (=
gnod pa, mnar ba); gzan po (adj.), 'to be harmful', 'tormenting 7 , 'cruel',
'worn-out', etc. The threadbareness may be physical as well as mental,
as here in 38b: 'to abrade the plumage' or, as in 38d, 'to fret on one's
nerves' or 'to fray one to the bone'. A gzas, Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 107,
no. 1, for instance, contains the phrase siïih la gzan pa, 'to devour the
heart' or 'to rend the heart apart', which here means 'to cause mental
anguish and real distress'. Cf. similarly 'Brug-pa Kun-legs' biography
(Stein, 1972, pp. 257-59; 1973, fol. 99b-100b) where the phrases snih
la gzan and sems la gzan occur repeatedly.
38c The adj. gyo can (Skt. éâthya, vita) and rdzu bag can (Skt. dambhin),
denote some personages t h a t are characterized by dishonesty, deceit-
fulness, pretense or are endued with crafty intrigues. Cf. also no. 55
infra.
38d Cf. 38b. Here "to cause or make (byas) the poet [feel] worn-out [or
down-broken]."
mating (bza* mi sdeb). When the gale intermeddled in the idyllic sce-
nario and swept the rocky place bare, the victim was the vulture. But
the poem's embittered quibble is more likely of a political nature. The
poem may even call for a tentative historical interpretation. The wear
and tear of his physical and mental constitution, caused by being inces-
santly embroiled in the enervating political skirmishes and imbroglios,
eventually earned him a dejected heart. The person(s) plotting deceit
and fraud in the poet's dramatic life would most readily be played by the
Regent and his colluding coterie. They had perpetrated his long anony-
mous semi-confinement at mTsho-sna in Southern Tibet from A.D. 1685
to 1697, shrouded in secrecy. Moreover, they had contrived to keep the
former yah srid's demise in the dark for an even longer period. Being
duly installed on the throne in the Potala, the Regent nevertheless con-
tinued on behalf of the legitimate God-king to keep a firm grip on the
reins of power by various crafty means. Dispossessed of any genuine
authority, the poet, greatly disillusioned (thugs la phog thug chert po
byun), here finds an appropriate, even sardonic outlet for his depressive
(yi mug) and sullen mood (ie skyo ba'i bsam pa iig skyes pa). Chab-spel
too, 1987, pp. 296-97, 300-1, commenting on this poem, reads the poem
accordingly. He also attempts to identify the intriguing and deceitful
circle of lay nobilities in the sDe-srid's pay: mDa'-dpon dGa'-chags-pa,
Dar-byun-nas, Druri-yig bsTan-'dzin dban-po, A-pho INa-'dzoms. What
Chab-spel has in mind by mentioning these figures merits considera-
tion. The present song may possibly allude to a certain historical event
known from the young ruler's life: The above mentioned sons of the no-
bility constituted the group of attendants that the Regent appointed to
"look after" the unexperienced young God-king. Fearing that Tshans-
dbyans rgya-mtsho would come to know the ways of the world from
people not sanctioned by the officious Regent, the latter at one point
decided to do away (med pa bcos) with a nobleman called [mJThar-
rgyas-nas, who it was thought wielded some unwholesome influence on
the God-king. The above group of officials, complying with the Regent's
behest, plotted to eliminate him while he was returning from archery
one evening. But the attempt failed because the Dalai Lama and his
corterie of trusted friend had occasionally assumed the habit of exchang-
ing cloth. Out of confusion, the servant to [m]Thar-rgyas-nas therefore
fell victim to the assassins' knifes. When the mistake subsequently was
realized, [m]Thar-rgyas-nas in turn was stuck too, but apparently sur-
vived. Tshans-dbyaiis rgya-mtsho decided in haste to reveal the culprits
and, aided by an oracle, the above plotters were identified and later all
met their death by execusion. Cf. Shakabpa, Tibet: A Political History,
pp. 129-130; Bod kyi srid-don rgyal-rabs /, pp. 477-80, 495; Chab-spel,
1987, pp. 296-97; Aris, Hidden Treasures and Secret Lives, pp. 160-61.
Does the poem allude to this event ? And again, would the poem, aside
194
39
39b The variationes orthographicae se ra, ser ra and ser ba for hail are all
equally feasible. Note moreover the obvious assonant word play on ser
(yellow), sad (frost) and ser/se[r] ra (hail) in 39abc, as they are pro-
nounced almost alike in Lhasa-Tibetan. I would not attempt to see any
allusion to Sera Monastery here. For a brief essay on the nature and
colour of clouds (sprin) according to Tibetan belief and the appropriate
apotropaic rites executed to avoid the emergence of hail (ser) etc.; cf.
Nebesky-Wojkowitz, Oracles and Demons of Tibet, pp. 476-480.
39d The enemy of the Buddhist teaching or Buddha's teaching. Worth not-
ing here may be the occurence of this same wording in the story (mam-
197
thar, pp. 174-75) and script play ('khrab giuh, pp. 20, 60) of the drama-
play of Prince Nor-bzah, cf. no. 30 supra. Naturally, this is out of con-
text with the present poem, but it may represent one of the sources of
inspiration. Cf. also no. 45 infra.
40
I sa de k h a zu gtiii Tdiyags |
j r t a pho gton sa m a red |
j gsar 'grogs byams pa'i phyogs su |
j sniii gtam béad sa ma red |
40a For the structure of the idiom kha zu gtih 'khyags, '[with] the surface
slippery (zu = 'dred sla ba), but a hard-frozen or solid-frozen bottom',
s.v. 39a. The phrase has entered the Tibetan vocabulary as a dpe chos.
dPe-chos ma-ba'i bdud-rtsi, p. 29, commenting upon an identical idiom,
kha zu zabs 'khyags, cites a stanza from a text Gru (= Dru)-gu go-rdzoh
phab-pa (a section from the Gesar Epic), which similarly provides the
comparison with a stallion racing on a plain with a shaky and boggy
ground to illustrate t h a t an invasion is a risky or a forlorn enterprise:
| than chert kha zu zabs 'khyags la \
j rta phos ban kha nom sa med \
\ rdzon btsan dmag gi rdzig rdzig la \
j bod glih bgrod 'grim phod sa med \
Phrased differently, the idiom indicates t h a t any enterprise is like
"skating on thin ice".
40b The stallion (rta pho), cf. no. 37 supra. For additional samples ofgzas
on rta pho, cf. the ref. under 37a. Worth quoting is a gias, which,
while not a caique upon the present poem then possibly inspired by
it, analogously deprecates intimacy with a casually met lover ('a three-
days guest', cf. no. 25 supra), just as the hilly ridges and valleys are no
place to race a stallion; Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 122, no. 5:
| sa de sgan sgah géohs géon \
200
41
41a The moon of the fifteenth day of the month, the day (or the night) of
the fullmoon (bco lna'i zla ba, ha gan [zla ba], zla gcig tag ma bco Ina,
Skt. paurnamäsi, pürnamäsa, pürnimä, paurnaml, etc.) is a universal
symbol of love and romance—worldwide. In Indian love lore, as, for
instance, detailed in Kokkoka's Ratirahasya (Section II), the importance
of the moonphases in relation to the Liebesumgang is stipulated. But in
general the fullmoon wields a strong amorous magnetism. In China too,
the moon is a symbol of auspicious and prospective love; cf. e.g. no. 252
in the folksong coll. Shän Ge by the Ming author Feng Menglong (ed.
and tr. by Töpelmann, Münchener Ostasiatische Studien, vol. 9).
The fullmoon as a symbol in Tibetan Ars amatoria is no less impor-
tant. As we have already seen in song no. 1, the fullmoon is probably
the most widely used epitheton ornans and symbol for a girl's face (bu
mo bco lna'i zla ba). They are in fact reciprocal symbols.
We may initially quote a gias on the heart's yearning, a song quite
similar to no. 1. supra. Here the first glances may just stimulate a
recollection (of the moon = the girl's face), but when the moon of the
fifteenth became visible, the girl is perpetually making circles in (i.e.
haunting) the poet's mind; Bod kyi glu-gias, p. 101, no. 1:
| gcig kyah mthoh dus dran byun \
j gnis kyah mthoh dus dran byun \
I bco lna'i zla ba éar dus \
| khyed sems yid la 'khor byun \
202
77, no. 34 = Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 118, no. 3 = gTam-dpe, p. 123, no. 1
= Bod kyi glu-gias, p. 140, no. 2 (cum var. led):
| éar nas zla ba éar byun \
I dkar po'i sgor sgor éar byun \
j ri bon bio Idan ses rab \
j ma bsam yul nas mjal byun \
For a similar poem, cf. Duncan, 1961, p. 81. A 'sharp-witted white
hare' (bio gsal ri boh dkar lu) also occurs in the Glih Gesar Epic, al-
though it remains to be determined whether it is associated with the
moon or not; cf. Pema Tsering, 1979, p. 173. In the Subhäsitaratnanidhi
by Sa-skya Pandita we also have a legs bead on a shrewd hare (ri boh
bio Idan), cf. no! 87, ed. J.E. Bosson, 1969, p. 218. In fact, the crafty
hare is well-known to the Tibetans from animal fables, cf. R. Stein,
Tibetan Civilization, p. 269.
Not directly pertinent to the moon-related hare is an epigrammatic
(fshig rgyag) gzas, cf. Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 116, no. 5 = gTam-dpe,
p. 134-5 = Van Manen, 'Three Tibetan Repartee Songs", 1921, pp. 310,
318, no. 13, and to be supplemented by a well-known punning saying
(no. 150) provided by mKhas-btsun bzan-po in his book. It purports
how a man (or a woman, gias\ bu mo ri bon 'dra mo) (in his/her en-
deavour) may be likened to a hare, inasmuch as its 'tail' (= the end, =
i.e. the result or succès), always dearly required, fails to materialize (i.e.
'the tail remains short'), whereas the ears, not deemed necessary, will
always remain long (gtam dpe: mi rah by as kyah ri boh 'dra bo \ dgos
rgyu'i mjug ma med pa'i mi dgos am Icog rih po). Phrased differently,
lacking a good result in one's enterprise, one may end up crestfallen,
that is to use an English idiom, end up "walking off with a flea in the
ear". Cf. also Duncan, 1961, p. 149 and Snyder, 1972, p. 29.
More important, a gzas associates the moon-hare with a lover. The
poet's (male or female) own amorous sentiment has here appeared in the
garb of the kunda-fiower. Here the flower acknowledged how thoroughly
mistaken it was, inasmuch it never expected that the 'moon-hare' could
have [another] lover (shin grogs). A poem on unfaithfulness. Here
is of course an allusion to the white water-lily (Nymphoea esculenta;
kunda = kumuda), the white esculent lotus which expands its petals
during night (mtshan mo zla ba ear tshe 'dab ma kha byed) and which
closes them during daytime (hin mo hi ma ear tshe me tog kha zum
pa). It is thus the friend of the moonfhare] (candra = ku mud ghen,
kumudabandhu, 'friend of the lotus'); among its synonym we find the
'night-blossomer' (mtshan mo bead, râtrihâsa) etc. Couched differently,
the poet here admonishes the beloved to stay fidel; cf. Bod kyi dga'-gias
II, p. 56, no. 1:
| rah sems kun da'i me tog
207
• The poems nos. 41-44, one way or another, all share one feature in
common: the moon. The present piece is an allusive poem which voices
the poet's, or the God-king's frustration over unfulfilled or fleeting love.
What our poet here purports is that his assignation with his beloved
appeared quite promising, apparently (yin pa 'dra ba 'dug), the tryst
did take place on the great day under the auspicious and propitious
full-moon, but alas, our poem seems to exclaim, the hare in the moon is
not in sight. Its contour has vanished/is vanishing from their eyes. The
outcome and the prospect of their love affair was consequently bound to
prove fatal. The message of the poem is quite general. It strongly bears
the stamp of transience, the Buddhist concept of impermanence which
208
figure in the drama and the key to a happy outcome, his own person,
here deftly symbolized as a moon-hare, is in the course of the strife
inflicted with some "deadly" blows. In other words, the poet herewith
expresses that he is the inevitable victim of the political struggle for
power. Or, alternatively, would it just mean that the poet is "deadly"
worn-out, frustrated beyond recovery ? We have already seen, no. 32
supra, that our sensitive poet was dramatically emaciated by the pangs
of love. Should we take the "expiration of the life of the hare" liter-
ally, the poem may indeed express an unusual presentiment of his own
fatal end that befell him within short. If we still retain this symbolic
interpretation, this dismal poem would more likely lend weight to the
contention that the poem (posthumously of course) must have been com-
posed in order to account for the dramatic and pitiful death of this truly
contentious personality.
210
42
42a The Tibetans follow a lunar calender, so the term zla ba may mean both
'moon' and 'month'. There is therefore a play on zla ba in this poem: In
42abd it denotes month, b u t in 42abc as well, it could be read as moon.
On the use of phar and tshur, cf. no. 6 supra.
42b rtin ma'i zla ba = zla ba rjes ma; the following or next month (or moon),
cf. above.
42c The auspicious white moon, i.e. the white or clear note (dkar cha, gsal
cha) of the month, cf. below, prospective of a tryst; cf. a poem cited in
Duncan, 1961, p. 88 and in Norbu's Coll. II, no. 34 quoted above and
/ / , no. 35 almost identical with the present poem. The present poem is
also cited in Bod kyi glu-gzas, p. 163^4 as a gzas allegedly originating
from lHa-sa. The alternative reading po in 42c is equally plausible;
42cd then could be understood as "the auspicious white moon will come
and meet [me] at the start of the [approaching] month".
42d The Tibetan month, like the Indian ditto, falls into two halves: The
light half (dkar phyogs, zla stod, phyogs sha ma, stod cha, gah phyogs;
éuklapaksa, pürvapaksa) or the period of the crescent moon (yar ho)
and the dark half (nag phyogs, zla smad, phyogs phyi ma, smar cha;
krsnapaksa, aparapaksa) or period of decrescent moon (mar ho). The
last day of each half has no distinct mark, but t h a t of the light half,
on which the sun and the moon are in opposition, is called "day of the
fullmoon" (bco lhafi zla ba, na gah; paumamäsi, pürnamä, pürnimä; cf.
211
previous poem), that of the dark half, on which the sun and the moon
are in conjunction, is styled "day of the new moon" ignam gan; dared).
Further, the month commences with the light half. Cf. e.g. gSun-mgur,
no. 280, where the two halves of the moon/month are employed to il-
lustrate the first (tshe stod) and the last half (tshe smad) of human
existence.
43
43a The King of Mountains, Meru, or Sumeru (ri rab, ri rgyal lhun po),
the axis mundi of the universe in Buddhist cosmology and cosmog-
raphy; cf. canonical literature (ägama, luh): Abhidharmakosabhâsya
by Vasubandhu, chap. Ill (lokanirdesa, 'jig rten bstan pa): III ad 48,
50, 60, 73; TTPE No. 5591, GU 166a8fF.; Lokaprajnaptisâstra ascribed
to Maudgalyäyana. TTPE 5587, KHU 67a8ff.; non-canonical scrip-
ture: èes-bya rab-gsal by 'Phags-pa Bla-ma Blo-gros rgyal-mtshan (A.D.
1235-1280, written A.D. 1278); chap. I (sNod kyi 'jig-rten bsad-pa): ed.
SSKB Pa, pod dan po 3bIff.; W. Kirfel, Die Kosmographie der Inder,
pp. 15-16, 182.
Beside the macrocosmic Sumeru, this mythical mountain is also em-
ployed in a more microcosmic context. In yogic Buddhist terminology,
merudanda may signify the spinal column of a meditating yogin. And
in Tan trie texts, such as the Caryâgîti, a collection of Buddhist mystic
songs, its imagery employs 'the peak of Meru {merusikharaj as a term
for the mähasukhaeakra, the psychic centre of 'Great Bliss' located in
the head of the yogin. This term again may refer to the 'Absolute Truth'
or the 'Clear Light'; cf. P. Kvaerne, An Anthology of Buddhist Tantric
Songs, pp. 31-32, 48.
For additional gzas on Sumeru, cf. gSun-mgur, no. 361, "Bod-rigs kyi
dmans-gzas", in Bod kyi rtsom-rig sgyu-rtsal, vol. 1 (1981), p. 32.
43b For parallel samples of the phrase ma 'gyur brtan par Mugs dan, here
conceived as an periphrastic construction with an imperative, cf. e.g.
213
gSuh-mgur, nos. 102, 222, 275, 329. Note, incidentally, that a stock
synonym for a mountain (ri, giri) is the 'immobile' (mi gyo, acala). The
immobility (mi sgul ba) of Mt. Meru is also employed to illustrate
the firmness (brtan pa) of a Magnanimous Being (bdag nid chen po,
mahätman), cf. e.g. Sa-skya Pandita's Subhäsitaratnanidhi, no. 144.
43c The sun and the moon, similar to Mt. Meru above, are two epithets fre-
quently employed in the Buddhist tantric terminology for the two main
veins (nâdî, rtsa ba) or 'psychic channels' which diffuse throughout the
body. The sun and the moon respectively signify the right igyas) chan-
nel denoted rasanä, ro ma, and the left (gyon) channel known as lalanä,
rkyah ma. These two veins express the duality or dichotomy which con-
stitutes the foundation underpinning the world of phenomena. A whole
set of concepts is furthermore associated with these two symbolic fig-
ures: the moon is related to Wisdom iprajna), night, woman, Lotus;
whereas the sun is associated with Means (upâya), day, man, Vajra.
Returning to the general concept in yogic thought, the perception of the
above subject-object duality, symbolically carried by the two veins, it
is eventually eliminated or abolished in the central vein the avadûtï,
dbu ma rtsa ba; cf. Kvaerne, ibid.; Snellgrove, TheHevajra Tantra / - / / ,
pp. 25-29, 36-7; I.i.13-14;
In the Tibetan gzas tradition, we may quote a song, which introduces
the pair sun and moon. Like two relatives or kinsmen (spun gnis) they
decide to make their ecliptics rightwards (clockwise) round the world;
in other words, if the two lovers harmonized their activities, they could
live happy together; cf. sDe-dge'i dmahs-glu, p. 106, no. 2 = Norbu's
Coll III, no. 22:
| khyed rah zla ba fdra gi
| ha rah ni ma fdra gi
I hed rah ni zla spun gnis \
I 'dzam glih gyas skor rgyag 'gro
Another gzas furnishes us with an interesting key to an interpretation
of our poem. In this poem, it is the poet's beloved who is depicted as
Sumeru, the central figure in the universe as well as in the poet's life.
She is admonished to remain firm and content—that it to say brazen
and happy! Himself, in the guise of the sun illuminating the entire
universe, declares that he will circle Sumeru and then return. A poem
on courtship with promises of undivided loyalty; Bod-rigs kyi glu-gias,
p. 31, no. 2:
| chuh 'dris ri rgyal Ihun po \
j ma 'gyur bde mo biugs rogs \
j 'dzam glih gsal ba'i ni mas \
| ri rgyal bskor nas sleb[s] yon \
214
44
44a 6 a A B C G I J : / ? o E F H ;
44b gos ABCFGHI : dgos EJ;
44d cig kyah CG : gcig kyah F I J : gcig yah BEH : cig yah A;
44a The third day of the bright half {dkar phyogs, suklapaksa), the ascend-
ing note (zla stod, yar ho) or the first quarter of the new moon (gnam
gah, darsa) is called rgyal ba. However, zla ba dkar ba may also denote
the moonlight, which is here dressed all in white (synonym for serenity,
innocence). Compare a song quoted in Duncan, 1961, p. 104, where
the moonlight of the third day, i.e. the pale quarter moon or the wax-
ing crescent of the third day h a s no luster compared to the auspicious,
bright fullmoon of the fifteenth.
Another gzas similarly compares the relative moonlight of the third
with the full-beaming fullmoon. Here the poet declares t h a t although
he does not have the luster (gsal cha, dkar 'od) of the fullmoon, he is
nevertheless capable of illuminating his own body which resembles the
moon's waxing crescent of the third day. More concretely this means
t h a t the poet frankly concedes t h a t he is no great person, he is not
lustrous like the "fullmoon", b u t in spite of being lustrous like the moon
of the first quarter only, the poet openly assures his beloved t h a t he is
a fit choice for her and t h a t he is quite able to take care of her; Bod-rigs
kyi glu-gzas, p. 2 1 , no. 4 = Bod kyi glu-gzas, p. 126, no. 2 = "Bod-rigs
kyi dmaris-gzas", Bod kyi rtsom-rig sgyu-rtsal 1981 (2), p. 31 (cum van
lect: a: 'dra ba'i : bzin du; b: gsal cha...med kyah : dkar 'od...med de;
c: 'dra ba'i : bzin gyi):
| bco lha'i zla ba 'dra ba'i \
j gsal cha ha la med kyah |
I tshes gsum zla ba 'dra ba'i \
| rah lus rah gis gsal chog
216
Mi-la ras-pa, for instance, employs the moon of the third day (tshes
gsum zla ba) as a dpe of transience {mi rtag pa), because, as he says,
when it has occured, it will inevitably become 'old' (rgas), i.e. the moon
will wax Cphel) and wane {'bri) continously; cf. his mGur-'bum, ed. sDe-
dge, fol. 169ab; mGur-glu'i lo-rgyus, pp. 173, 175.
44b I understand the phrase dkargos nan nas chodsoh, lit. "decided/settled/
agreed [to be in] a white garb completely" to mean "beting] dressed fully
in white". What is meant by this euphemism is that the poet found the
amount of luster emitted by the moon of the first quarter or by the moon
of waxing crescent to be quite enough for him, at this point, at least.
Phrased differently, the girl is found to be acceptable to the poet.
44c The fullmoon, the fifteenth day of the month, cf. no. 41 supra.
44d A little pun is concealed in £al [bzes]...gnah, which of course means to
make a promise (of a tryst similar to the one during fullmoon), but also,
literally taken, to give the face (of the fullmoon = to show the face of
the beloved).
45
45b The figure dam can rdo rje chos skyon is in all probability identical with
the Protector of the Law (dharmapäla, chos skyon) rDo-rje [Grags-ldan],
' T h e Renowned Immutable One" the vow-bound (dam can) medium of
the Tibetan gNas-chun State Oracle and the Dalai Lama's own guardian
deity; cf. e.g. Nebesky-Wojkowitz, Oracles and Demons of Tibet, pp. 9 4 -
133; for a detailed description of the relationship between this medium
and the Dalai Lama institution, cf. J.F. Avedon, In Exile From the Land
of Snows, 191-217; cf. also M. Aris, Hidden Treasures and Secret Lives,
p. 139, 165. Another conjecture, less plausible only, is to identify this
figure with the oath-bound Protector of the Law (dam can chos skyon) or
Worldly Guardian ('jig rtenpa'i srun ma) rDo-rje legs-pa, a deity mostly
depicted riding on a lion (sen ion)\ cf. similarly Nebesky-Wojkowitz,
ibid., pp. 154-9.
45c For mthu, cf. no. 37 supra. For the magical power and great apotropaic
strength attributed to this medium, cf. the ref. above.
45d Evidently, reference is here to the submission, suppression and expul-
sion (dgra bgegs bsgral ba) by rites of exorcism and apotropaic means
of malignant forces and demons hostile to Buddhism during the Great
sMon-lam chen-mo festival. The suppression of the fiendish forces en-
tailed the active participation of the State Medium or Oracle King (gsuh
gi rgyal po) as it is also termed. Usually these ceremonies took place at
the turn of an old year and the beginning of a new. Also, at all points
of utmost emergency and open threats to the Tibetan State, such as
an impending military invasion by a foreign country, the State Oracle
would similarly be consulted.
Obviously, the present poem has lend inspiration to other songs. Two
gzas, at least, appear to be nothing but a caique upon the present poem.
In the first the godhead invoked is a dam can chos skyon sruh ma
also, only here identified with sa bcu'i dbah phyug chen po; on this
Dharmapâla, a Tibetan version of the Indian Mahesvara, cf. Nebesky-
Wojkowitz, ibid., p. 94; another identification is Maitreya, the future
Buddha (rje btsun Byams-pa) or it may generally denote any bodhisattva
who has reached the tenth bhümi; in the next poem, evincing an iden-
tical text, the goddess invoked is Ma-gcig dpal gyi lha-mo; on this key
goddess, cf. ibid., p. 24ff.; cf. Bod kyi dga'-gzas II, p. 64, nos. 2 - 3 .
The wording bstan pa'i dgra bo sgrol is also found, though naturally
within another context, in the story (rnam-thar, p. 174-75) and script-
play ('khrab giuh, pp. 20, 60) of Prince Nor-bzan. Cf. no. 39 supra.
Etymologically the verb sgrol carries the sense of 'liberating' and 'res-
cuing*, but we have also reason, within a tantric, apotropaic context,
to apply the sense of 'elimination' when the foe (dgra bo) in question
is in opposition to the Buddhist Law. In fact, under the entry sgrol ba
in the dictionaries, this lexeme is listed to hold three def. 1. "liberate"
219
{thar bar byed pa); 2. "eliminate" (gsod par byed pa) and 3. "expel,
drive off" (rin du skrod pa, 'bud par byed pa). In casu, the latter defi-
nition should perhaps be chosen to fit the context best. Cf. e.g. Zhuang
Jing, 1981b, p. 25, C. xiaomiè, "wipe out", "exterminate". Van Heurck's
reading sgyal, 1984, p. 114, alledgedly found in Das 1 version, a reading
followed by D. Back, 1986, p. 148 also, is a simple misreading. Das' ed.
clearly has sgral.
46
46a The cuckoo (khu byug; Skt. câtaka, kokila; M. köyege; C. dùjuan, bùgu;
Cuculus canorus) is a much-cherished figure in Tibetan popular lyrics.
Various types and species are attested to, cf. The Pentaglot Diet., pp.
4165-66. Most commonly it is welcomed as the ^harbinger of spring'
(dpyid kyi pho na, Skt. vasantadüta) or the 'queen of spring* (dpyid kyi
rgyal mo). In ancient Indian poetics the cuckoo's cooing is considered an
instigator (uddïpanabhava) of amorous yearning. And its vocal warble
is generally lauded. Thus, the cuckoo is denoted the 'sweet-voiced one'
(dbyahs snan, dbyahs snan sgrog; Skt. sughosa, madhughosa) and the
'godly warbler' (lha'i glu mkhan). The cuckoo is regularly praised as
a divine or a royal bird (lha bya, bya rje\ cf. also the Gesar Epic; R.
Stein, 1956, index, pp. 393, 395) and as such generally designated the
turquoise-coloured or emeral cuckoo (khu byug shon mo, gyu bya snon
mo).
It leaves Central Tibet in autumn and winter to migrate to the warm-
er sylvan valleys of Mon-yul. In the spring and early summer it makes
its reappearance in Lhasa. A theme, as we shall see, treated in many
poems. One gias e.g., relates how the Mon-cuckoo's cooing fills the air
when the third spring month arrives; of course it is the cuckoo t h a t
offers its sweet voice which enhances the fertility of all t h a t grows;
Bod-rigs kyi dmahs-gias, p. 205:
221
The term Mon in Tibetan has a long and complex history; cf. foremost,
M. Aris, Bhutan—The Early History, pp. 101-3; M. Aris, "Notes on the
History of the Monyul Corridor" in Tibetan Studies in Honour of Hugh
Richardson, 1980, pp. 10-11 but also R. Stein, Recherches sur l'épopée et
le barde au Tibet, pp. 186-7. In ancient times, Mon-yul and specifically
IHo-Mon refered to the area which today has emerged as Bhutan CBrug-
yul). In contrast, the term Mon has today more vaguely come to denote
cis-Himalayas covering the whole area from Sherpaland of East Nepal
through Assam to Nagaland.
46b gnam lo is the honorific for lo, or year in general. It may also be glossed
with season (narn zla, nam dus), as indicated by the variant readings.
The 'earth juice or moisture' (sa bcud) = fertility. Cf. also gSun-mgur,
no. 112.
• The present piece is a love poem but also a poem on the transient
nature of life, as love itself is an ephemeral and fleeting thing. The mi-
grant cuckoo, which abandons its winter-habitat in Mon only to return
to Central Tibet to herald spring's arrival, is employed in this simile
to illustrate why romance and its pleasant concomitants, the physical
and mental tranquility and content befell the loving couple. While the
poem explicitly heralds that the season of love has arrived, the poem
in the same breath implicitly releases echoes which tell that any love
affair is doomed.
223
47
47a skye 'gro, the worldling or the world of living beings, mi rtag 'chi ba,
impermanence and death. Cf. e.g. gSun-mgur, nos. 264, 418. 'Brug-
pa Kun-legs' biography (Stein, 1972, p. 306; 1973, fol. 121a). A good
and detailed instruction (khrid) on the impermanence of empirical and
h u m a n existence is given in Kun-bzah hla-ma'i zal-lun, fol. 2 8 a l - 4 6 a 3 .
47c spyan grun, clever, prudent, wise (= mdzans pa, ées rab can, bio mon
po)\ 'dzoms [pa], to possess, be complete or being qualitatively per-
fected (tshan), here of sagacity and prudence. For the term 'dzoms;
cf. Tucci, 1966, pp. 61-2. The idiom spyan grun 'dzoms pa or 'dzoms
po is an adj. which means 'clever and wise'; often rendered into C. as
jlngming qiânghàn and côngming jïzhi,"sagacious and intelligent" or
"quick-witted"; cf. also Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 77, no. 5, where this adj.
is applied to a stallion (rta pho).
For the verbal use of mdog kha [po], 'to seem', 'to prêtent as if, to
appear like'; cf. e.g. Goldstein, Tibetan-English Dictionary of Modern
Tibetan, s.v. mdog. Cf. also dPe-chos rna-ba'i bdud-rtsi, p. 128 which
cites an idiom [ehe] mdog khapo and cites the samples mi mkhas mkhas
mdog and mi ehe ehe mdog bstan: 'to give an air of prudence and impor-
tance when in fact they are neither sagacious nor big*. Observe also the
phrase yod mdog kha po = med btin du yod khul byed pa, 'to pretend
to be present when in fact it is absent'. This idiom occurs in a range of
224
poems, cf. Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 34, nos. 5-6; p. 5 1 , no. 3; p. 52, no. 4;
p. 64, no. 4; Bod kyi glu-gias, p. 91, no. 1; gTam-dpe, p. 136.
47d The reading Ikug pa and Ikugs pa are both feasible.
48
49
49a On the verb 'dris, cf. nos. 36, 48 supra, note the pun on 'dris and the
assonant bris in 49c. The variant readings 'dres and 'brel more directly
connote the sense of ^bodily union' and 'intercourse'. But as such, the
variants are far too strong words likely to have been employed by the
poet, although, of course, a pun is evidently intended, since the verbs
'dres, 'dris and 'brel in Lhasan Tibetan are approximate homophones.
The variant readings are amply attested to: lus po 'brel son, cf. e.g.
gSun-mgur, no. 341; éa 'jam lus po 'dres son, lus po 'dres po, cf. gTam-
dpe, p. 124; Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 129, no. 4. The girl's soft body, cf.
similarly no. 55 infra.
49b The reading gden tshod, the 'extent of confidence' or 'the measure of
certainty', is here the correct reading, b u t the homophonous reading
gtih tshod, the 'measure of depth' or just 'depth' is also attested to. Cf.
e.g. an allegorical gzas in which the crane must give up measuring the
depth of a lake, although it is endowed with long legs. The golden
Brahmany duck, by contrast, although deep in the doldrums, is capable
of fathoming the lake (= the girl; cf. no. 9 supra); cf. Bod kyi dga'-gias
II, p. 15, no. 3:
| khruh khruh rkah pa rih yah \
| mtsho mo'i gtin tshod mi Ion \
228
• A poem on frustrated love. The poet voices the extent of his dejection
over unfulfilled love and over lack of dedication. Despite his intimate
knowledge of her tender body, he cannot adequately fathom her loy-
alty and fidelity. He may master the art of astrology and divination—
enabling him to prognosticate the chain of events ahead of time. But
the recalcitrant lover of his defies all attempt a t being measured or
related to. The poem evinces a pattern similar to nos. 36-37 supra.
It may be suggested t h a t the indocile girl is allegorically depicting
the poet's abortive attempt to appropriate power. Or, equally in a figu-
rative sense, she may impersonate the unpredictable Regent. Whether
illustrating the political power or the Regent in person, the ingratiating
but elusive girl remains beyond the control of the young poet.
229
50
50a sdebs sa, rendezvous or tryst; the alt. reading bde sdug, 'happiness-
sorrow', i.e. welfare, a fairly modern phrase, often glossed with gnas
starts, living condition, is out of question as original reading.
50b lHo-ron and Mon-yul: these terms designate the oldest names for Bhu-
tan and is still in use in literary works today. For these terms, cf.
no. 46 supra. For 50b, cf. gSuh-mgur, no. 84. Equally feasible is the
reading Iho roh mun pa'i nags gseb, 'a dark forest deep in IHo-ron' with
a deliberate pun of mun paJmon pa. For additional poems on IHo-ron
and lHo-Mon, cf. Bod kyi dga'-gias / , p. 107, no. 3; p. 123, n. 4; gTam-
dpe, p. 138, gSuh-mgur, nos. 121, 294.
230
50c The talking (smra mkhan) or voluble (éod mkhas) parrot, cf. nos. 60, 64
infra; gSun-mgur, nos. 83, 117, 422, 441; Norbu's Coll TV, no. l;gTam-
dpe, p. 135. Cf. also the Central Tibetan tale called "The Talking Parrot"
(smra mkhan ne tso), which relates a story about a cunning parrot; cf.
Bod-ljons dbus-gtsah-khul gyi dmahs-khrod gtam-rgyud, pp. 135-47.
The parrot, aside from its conspicuous colours, is first and foremost
renown for its skill to imitate human speech. But talk, usually in the
garb of gossip and slander, can be the cause of h a r m and evil. The
talking parrot can therefore, as is the case in the present poem, be a
risky contact, which, as a legs bead by Sa-skya Pandita proposes, is best
kept in a cage (gzeb); cf. Subhäsitaratnanidhi no. 228, ed. J.E. Bosson,
1969, p. 249.
50e The colloquial phrase o ées = los ses: "Certainly you know!" Another,
equally plausible understanding of o ses is 'please!' (= sku mkhyen), "be
kind" or "pray" (= gnan rogs gnan). Cf. also gSuh-mgur, no. 327. Does
o ées have anything to do with the colloquial expression dba9 bzes ?
50f Here gsan kha, 'secret mouth or voice' = gsah gtam, no. 29 supra. In
the valley or at the corners (mdo la), i.e. in public, openly. The alt.
readings are equally plausible.
51
51a mi tshogs mthug (~ 'thug) [po], the dense populace or the dense crowd
of people. Cf. analogously the expression luh pa der sdod mkhan mi
tshogs mthug (~ 'thug) po 'dug, 'a dense crowd of people h a s settled in
this valley*; nevertheless, Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, is populous.
51b Thyon[s] rgyas, the name of a valley and a river, an affluent or a side-
valley of the Yar-kluns Valley and river, the cradle of Central Tibetan
civilization and the key site of its imperial past. The Yar-kluns Valley
is probably the most fertile valley t h a t runs into the Brahmaputra or
gTsan-po artery from the south. The 'Phyoh[s]-rgyas (or 'Phyin-ba) Val-
ley itself has its ancient citadel at 'Phyin-ba sTag-rtse, the residence of
the early Tibetan kings, prior to Chos-rgyal Sron-btsan sgam-po shifted
it to Lhasa as can be documented from the Dun-huang chronicles. First
and foremost the imposing burial mound of this king, the Ban-so dmar-
po, the 'Red Tomb', is located there. The Great Fifth Dalai Lama (1617-
1682) was born in the 'Phyin-ba sTag-rtse rdzon. Cf. H. Hoffmann, Die
Gräber der tibetischen Könige im Distrikt 'P'yons-rgyas, 1950, G. Tucci,
Tb Lhasa and Beyond, pp. 139-142; id., The Tombs of the Tibetan Kings,
pp. 31-32; A. Ferrari, mKyen brtse's Guide to the Holy Places of Central
Tibet, pp. 52-3, 56, 130-131; K Dowman, The Power-Places of Central
232
51c The girl belonging (ha la yod pa) to the poet, his 'amour ou amie d'en-
fance' (chun 'dris), cf. no. 12. The alt. reading dgos pa is equally plau-
sible.
51d The term gzun designates the core or the middle part (= mthil, cf. no. 60
infra; dkyil, dbus) of a place.
our poem, told to C. Bell by a Tibetan friend of his and cited in his book
The Religion of Tibet, op. cit., pp. 141-2:
The sixth Dalai Lama had the power of assuming several forms.
His own body used to be in the Potala, while a secondary body
used to roam about, drink wine, and keep women.
Quoting the verse about 'Little Intimate*9 in Chung-gye, he con-
tinued: The girl mentioned was a goddess who would have borne
a son to the Dalai Lama. This son would have grown up to be a
famous king, ruling over three thousand countries. The people
of Tibet would have enjoyed great power and prosperity during
his reign, but for this very reason they would have lost their
religion.
Tibet with three thousand nations as its vassals would have be-
come the most powerful country in the world. The conquest of
these nations would have entailed many wars, the taking of very
many lives. Herein would have been great sinfulness and slack-
ening of religion. And, becoming powerful and prosperous, the
Tibetans would thereby also have slackened in their religion, as
is the custom among powerful and prosperous people. Therefore
the king was not born.
If anything, this story is telling example of the myth that grew out of
the Sixth Dalai Lama's popular repute, while at the same time it aptly
demonstrates the never-failing resourcefulness, hyperbolic to be true,
of the Tibetan mind.
And yet, the working of symbols and images is as powerful in Tibet as
it is everywhere. Would the poem yield a figurative or an allegorical im-
port further ? His longing, or cri de cœur, for the 'good (= morally trust-
worthy, fair) people' of 'Phyoii[s]-rgyas could certainly be an ill-veiled
allusion to the cradle of the former rulers of the Tibetan nation, situated
in the heart (giuh, paronomasia on 'government' igiun)) of 'Phyonts]-
rgyas Valley and, perhaps, an overt hint to the birth-place (and thus
the person) of the Great Fifth Dalai Lama. Hereby the young God-king
scornfully reproached the Regent, who, we already know, demonstrated
a conspicious lack of compliance to grant the young God-king access
to the execution of real power or to share the reins of government with
him. He thus skilfully managed to call our attention to the pre-eminent
figures of sovereignty in Tibet's glorious imperial past, while he simul-
taneously alludes to his own previous embodiment, who in his own time
was the legitimate and absolute ruler of the dual power. The childhood
acquaintance and inamorata is therefore also here a metaphor igzugs
can) for the object of his yearning, i.e. *his natural claim to be wed-
ded to real authority*, as its rightful incumbent the execution of power
lawfully belongs to him (fia la yod pa).
234
52
52a The old dog denoted the 'Bearded One' (rgya bo); equally plausible is the
orthorgaphical variant rgya'u, which represents the oral form or, less
likely, some diminuitive form. Here we shall evidently envisage an old,
goat-bearded, shrewd dog. The term khyi rgan clearly denotes an aged
dog (khyi lo Ion pa), b u t 'old dog' is also Tibetan slang, a derogative,
explicative word similar to our 'pig7 (phag pa, this sense, incidentally,
is also used in Tibet, cf. Bod kyi glu-gzas, p. 92, no. 1 = Duncan, 1961,
p. 64); cf. Goldstein, Tibetan English Dictionary, q.v. khyi rgan): i.e. 'a
son of a bitch', a 'scoundrel' (cf. C. hùnzhàng). It is thus an abusive
word (nan tshig, tshig rtsub) employed to scold or revile other people
(gian la gée ba). The term rgya bo designates either 'a person (or a
dog) growing hair along the confines of the cheek (or the jaw)' ('gram
pa'i mthar spu skyes pa'i mi) or simply designates 'one endowed with
beard' (rgya bo = og tshom can). Cf. also Zhuang Jing, 1981b, p. 27,
who correctly renders it into C. huxü mänsäi, (a dog with) 'the chin full
of beard'. Some translators such as Yu Daoquan and D. Back assume
t h a t zer ba is a corruption for ser ba, 'yellow', b u t no recension readily
warrants this conjecture. More interesting is the reading in edition K
mig bzi, the 'four-eyed' old dog, but the phrase khyi mig bzi (cf, the
literal rendering C. siyângou; The Pentagloi Diet., Ill, p. 4305) actually
denotes 'a dog endowed with two hairy soots of a yellow hue above its
eyes' (mig gnis kyi thod du spu mdog ser po'i thig le gnis yod pa'i khyi; cf.
235
clandestine liaisons outside the Potala. It gave rise to the many tall
tales about the young God-king's numerous mistresses in the 'yellow
mansions' (khan ser), brothels and taverns, cf. ad gSun-mgur, no. 321,
located in Zol below his winter-palace. In this allusive poem the poet,
vexed with the lack of privacy, besought his old watch-dog, ever on the
alert and more shrewd than any watchful guardian, not to betray his
nightly excursions with its howling. In fact, this 'Bearded One' vividly
illustrates an old private attendant of his, who was furnished with a
goatee of some sort. The reference to the 'old dog* should clearly be
taken in a pejorative sense and depict a person in whom the poet ap-
prehends a slackened loyalty. Here is probably a reference to a private
chamberlain (gzim dpon rgya bo, gsol dpon rgya bo) in the young God-
king's retinue, who was well aware of his illicit affairs, but who, we can
adduce, the poet had suspected to be reporting his every doings back to
the Regent. He is therefore earnestly admonished to pledge silence. His
fear of a waning loyalty within his circles is expressed in other poems
too, cf. nos. 29, 38, 50 supra.
Chab-spel, 1987, pp. 302-3, sees this and the following poem as fur-
nishing us with concrete episodes in the young ruler's life which accord
with historical facts (lo rgyus kyi byun ba dnos dan mthun pa). It clearly
demonstrates with what secrecy (Ikog Ikog sud sud nah) the poet had
to cover his amorous affairs when operating under the rules of such a
strict and tight society (spyi tshogs lam lugs kyi bsdams éugs 'og) as the
Tibetan. In the eyes of Chab-spel this only lends weight to the authen-
ticity of the lyrics. Xiao Diyan, sBran-char, 1988 (3), p. 47, par contre,
curtly contends t h a t the poem relates about a secret envoy (pho na) of
the Regent.
237
53
53a In some of the recensions (ABCFIJ) song nos. 53 and 54 are made up
by the following sequence no. 53: 53ab + 54ab and no. 54: 54cd +
53cd. Quite probable, this sequence ultimately hails from the scribal
concoction of this sequence in ed. AB. The dusk and twilight is the time
for love affairs. Cf. the previous poem and e.g. gSun-mgur, no. 406, in
which is related that when the sun had set and shrouded the valley in
dark, the poet's nocturnal h a u n t was the little quarter of the mistress
or the tavern hostess ignas mo; cf. no. 61 infra).
53b The alt. reading kha ba man po is equally plausible.
53c The colloquial phrase vb. (pf. tense) + dan + neg. vb. (pf. tense) + mi
'dug, conveys the sense of: "There is neither vb. nor not vb.", t h a t is:
'Whether vb. or not vb., it mattered little" or "who cares whether vb.
or not vb."; a legion of samples could be cited to this effect. Suffice it
to mention: no. 65 infra: 'jigs daft mi 'jigs mi 'dug; Bod kyi dga'-gzas
I, p. 8, no. 4 (-gTam-dpe, p. 141): byas dan ma byas mi 'dug; p. 57,
no. 5: btags dan ma btags mi 'dug; p. 83, no. 3: bsam dan ma bsam mi
'dug; p. 85, no. 3: byun dan ma byun mi 'dug; p. 98, no. 4 (=gTam-dpe,
p. 134); cf. also gSuh-mgur, no. 319: btah dan ma btah mi 'dug; p. 101,
no. 4; cf. also gSun-mgur, no. 187: ear dan ma ear mi 'dug; p. 118:
phyid dan ma phyid mi 'dug; p. 127, nos. 5-6: phyes dan ma phye[s] mi
'dug and rgyab dan ma rgyab mi 'dug;gSuh-mgur, nos. 167, 424: gnan
dan ma gnan mi 'dug and mtho dan mi mtho mi 'dug.
238
54
I po ta la r u bzugs dus |
j rig 'dzin tshans dbyans rgya mtsho |
j lha sa zol du sdod dus |
j 'chai po dvans bzan dban po |
54a Note the contrast between the use of the honorofic verb (biugs) in the
first distich versus the ordinary form (sdod) in the last distich. When
referring to the Dalai Lama directly, the honorific is employed, when
referring to the alter ego of the same (?) person, the ordinary form is
used.
The Potala, known locally as Teak', rTse, or 'Peak Palace', rTse pho-
brari, the imposing palace and mammoth piece of architecture towering
high in the Lhasa Valley, was built upon the site, the Red Hill, dMar-po-
ri, of a former palace raised in the 7th century (637 A.D.) by Chos-rgyal
Sron-btsan sgam-po. It towers 117 metres in height and 400 metres
in width, the Potala comprises halls, chapels, shrines, mchod Hen and
libraries in 13 storeys. The artitectural style of the Potala is a combina-
tion of Tibetan and Chinese features, but it clearly commands a unique
Tibetan appearance. The actual construction of the palace began in
1645 A.D. during the rule of the Great Fifth and the whole edifice was
first finished by adding to the basic White Palace, Pho-bran dkar-po, the
central Red Palace, Pho-bran dmar-po, at the end of the 17th century.
For over 300 years it has been the residence of successive Dalai Lamas.
For a convenient pictorial account of the Potala Palace, cf. The Potala
Palace of Tibet; Dowman, The Power-places of Central Tibet, pp. 51-58.
54b The term rig 'dzin, besides being a proper Tibetan name for a person, is
originally known from early Buddhism: The 'Upholder of Science' (Skt.
vidyâdhara\ P. vijjadhara), the science of magical spells. A collection
240
54d The term 'chalpo designates more freely a libertine, voluptuary, woman-
chaser, womanizer or debauchee, etymologically it denotes a fornicator,
a person with a strong bent for promiscuity. Cf. similarly Wang Yinuan,
1980, p. 56 and Zhuang Jing, 1981b, p. 28, C. làngzï, a wastrel. In a
modern sense it would probably denote a 'dandy* of sorts. In a g i a s the
poet makes the observation t h a t male and female fornicators seem to
abound everywhere, but the poet entreats the parents not to fly into a
rage assuring them t h a t he will "take care" (= marry) the girl; cf. e.g.
Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 38, no. 3 = gTam-dpe, p. 132 (cum van led.):
| 'chal po 'chal mo zer ba |
| rgyal khams yoh[s ?] la yod 'dm \
j yah yum bka' bkyon ma gnah \
| bu mor 'gro starts zus chog
The pet name or soubriquet of the young God-king, Dvans-bzan dban-
po evidently means, when taken individually, 'clear', *brave' and 'potent*.
The adj. compound dvahs bzah appears etymologically to hail from or is,
as corroborated by the gias cited infra, at least punned upon dvans sah
or dvans sin [ne] or dvans gtsan, i.e. 'clear', 'transparent', 'not turbid' (=
rhog pa med pa) or 'immaculate' (fies skyon daft bral ba). It is an adj.
usually qualifying water, knowledge and people. But dvans bzah, in
colloquial language, carries the adjectival sense liandsome' (male) and
*beautiful' (female). Read together, it should properly be rendered as
the 'Handsome and Potent One'. This flattering hypokorisma allotted
to the young God-king has evidently lent inspiration to a number of
gzas, not infrequently cited in various contexts. In an allusive gzas a
girl is advised not to shake drops [of rain] from the trunk of the willow
(cf. no. 12 supra), when she has a whole fountain or a spring, 'clear,
excellent and abundant' (dvans bzah dbah po), right in front of her door.
Phrased differently, the girl had easy access to love (= water) in her own
place, the lover 'Handsome and Potent' is readily at hand; why, then,
settle for less or seek petty love elsewhere ? cf. Bod kyi dga'-gias I,
p. 39, no. 3 = Bod kyi glu-gzas, p. 89, no. 2 = gTam-dpe, p. 130 (cum
van lect):
| chu mig dvans bzah dbah po \
| ran gi sgo rtsar bzag nas \
I mi yi rgya lean sdoh po'i |
j zil pa dkrugs pa ma gnah \
This poem is also proverbially rendered in prose in mKhas-btsun
bzan-po's gTam-dpe, no. 248:
chu mig dvans bzah Idan pa rah gi sgor rtsar biag nas mi éih
rgya lean sdoh po'i zil par re ba byas pa red.
244
Similarly, another gias describes how the girl, here in the garb of
a mdzo mo named bsTan-'dzin dban-mo, could not satiate herself with
just one mouthful of water (= love), when reaching the ever so clear
water in the well or the river, also here depicting a reservoir of love,
a male lover with the cognomen Dvaris-bzan dban-po; cf. Bod kyi dga'-
géas I, n. 41, no. 3 = gZas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 140, no. 4 = Bod kyi
glu-géas, p. 155, no. 2 (cum var. led.: chu mo for chu mig\ dvans sin for
dvans bzan; mdzopho bstan 'dzin rogpo for mdzo mo bstan 'dzin dban
mo):
| chu mig dvans bzan dban po \
j dvans dan dvans po 'dug ste \
j mdzo mo bstan 'dzin dban mo \
j kha [g]cig noms sa ma red \
• The poem dramatically depicts the poet's alleged double life. In the
Potala, our protagonist poses as a living god, a head of state for the dGe-
lugs-pa sect and yet invested with the rftin-ma-pa-styled denomination
rig 'dzin, a reminiscence of his paternal provenance. When his alter
ego, his true self ?, par contre assumed the role of a romantic figure,
he would, as the two previous poems convince us, under a different
mask slink out of his irksome fetters as a living incarnate, and seek
female consolation in the near-by taverns and public houses, where the
womanizing dandy would answer the popular cognomen "Handsome
and Potent".
It is no doubt the collection's most conspicuous poem. This ingenuous
epigram vividly introduces the two personalities, or the dual personal-
ity, hidden in the same man when it thus captures the two faces of our
protagonist. Importantly, to endorse uncritically t h a t this poem in par-
ticular should be reflecting the ipsissima verba of our remarkable per-
sonality is, admittedly, an insurmountable challenge to our credulity.
The form the parallel and direct presentation of the protagonist as-
sumes, along with the slightly ironical and frank wording in which the
poem is couched and the use of honorific about himself (cf. also no. 56
infra), altogether suggest t h a t we are here most probably dealing with a
sympathetic depiction of him, a popular song composed in the memory,
and, with the course of time, in the name ? of the Sixth Dalai Lama,
Being brief and poignant, the poem displays a clear and direct affinity
to the Tibetan caricature songs and street ballads.
245
55
55a The soft flesh or body (sa 'jam), cf. no. 49 supra. The var. reading nal
sa is equally plausible. Ed. H nal gzan, a blanket, is hardly valid as
original reading.
55b A fiancée (snin thub), cf. no. 4 supra. For the adj. [g]duh sems can ma,
a 'passionate' or 'loving* girl; cf. no. 33 supra.
55c The term o lo denotes a child, boy, a young man or a stripling (byis
pa spyi'i min, phrug, bu, pho gzon). A term employed widely in the
traditional vernacular, as can be documented by its plentiful use; cf.
no. 61 infra; Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 63, no. 6; p. 66, no. 1 = gTam-dpe,
125; Bod kyi dga'-gzas II, p. 16, no. 5; p. 90, no. 1; p. 136, no. 4; Bod kyi
glu-gias, pp. 61-2 (nine-syllabic stanzas); p. 112; Bod-rigs kyi glu-gias,
p. 7, no. 2; p. 11, no. 4; p. 14, no. 2; p. 65, no. 2; p. 97, no. 3; gTam-dpe,
p. 128; p. 129; pp. 131; gÉas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 163, no. 5; gSuh-
mgur, nos. 122, 162, 197, 227, 251, 340, 404, 448. The reading rgyu nor
is preferable: Riches, values or possessions, Zhuang Jing, 1981b, p. 28,
C. döngxi, things, without rejecting the var. read, dge nor, the most
worthy possession: The precious virtue.
55d The phrase gyo sgyu bead pa, 'to talk deceitfully', 'to lie' or 'to delude';
min 'gro, 'perhaps', 'maybe' etc. For the auxiliary verb 'gro, cf. 16, 24
supra.
246
56
56b dbu lean, 'pigtail' or *braid\ The term dbu lean is lexically glossed as
dbu skra bslas ma, i.e. braided (lhas ma, lhad ma) hair. That Tshans-
dbyans rgya-mtsho had his hair grown long after his renunciation is
part of the vivid portrayal of him given by T.W. Shakabpa, Bod kyi srid-
don rgyal-rabs I, pp. 477-79, who primarily bases himself on the diary
of Sle-lun. In interpretating the poem, it may equally well be t h a t here
is reference to the braided hair of the girl, cf. below and gSun-mgur,
nos. 204, 206.
56c The idioms ga le phebs, Tare weir directed to someone leaving and ga
le biugs, 'remain weir addressed to the one staying, are the ordinary
valedictory salutations employed by the Tibetans. It should be noted
t h a t the conspicuous dearth of personal pronouns in literary Tibetan
also here shall refrain us from identifying adequately who is address-
ing who and to distinguish who is male and who is female (pho mo dbye
248
dka' ba). Naturally, we must assume t h a t the poem, aside from its
neutral or impersonal formulation, allows for a more person-oriented
interpretation. And the use of honorifics may supply a clue. Two pos-
sible solutions shall present itself. The interpretation offered above is
to be preferred and appears contextually to be the most appropriate
reading. Only it shall here indicate t h a t when the male lover, here sur-
mised to be Tshans-dbyans rgya-mtsho, the alleged poet, is speaking,
here in direct quotation, gsun[s] (but note the alt. read, zer in 56d), the
honorifical form (ie sa) of the verb is employed. But this is contrary to
ordinary usage where even high-ranking persons, the pontiff Tshans-
dbyans rgya-mtsho included, would use non-honorific forms exclusively
when describing own acts, even when formulated so neutral as here,
such as the present speech act. Shifting pronouns in our interpretation
then, it would mean t h a t when the male person is speaking in 56c+e,
the ordinary form byas pa is used and when the girl is described in
56a+b and is responding in 56d+f, the honorifics bzes (ze sa for gyon
or len, 'to wear' or 'to put on') and gsun[s] are employed. This is an
interpretation, moreover, which is corroborated by a number of songs
such as nos. 15, 16, 23 supra, where the poet consistently employs the
ordinary form Cgro, sdod) about himself, but the honorific form (phebs,
béugs, gsuns) when respectfully rendering the acts of others. In this
light the latter reading is the most appropriate: The girl is depicted
leaving the male lover. She put on her hat, her pigtail swinging care-
lessly and freely down her back. He bid her goodbye and she answers
his salutation. He responds t h a t the parting will cause sadness. Con-
soling him, she assures him of an early reunion. This reading would
also give credence to the assertion t h a t the poem actually stems from
the young ruler's hand. Are we after all, for (con)textual reasons, nev-
ertheless opting for the original interpretation, this shall then only add
weight to the contention t h a t the poem, or perhaps the poems ?, was
composed, not by Tshans-dbyans rgya-mtsho, but precisely by anyone
else. The use of the respectful terms in 56a+d+f when describing the
acts of Tshans-dbyans rgya-mtsho would then precisely betray that the
poem was the fabrication of a third person, composed in order to por-
tray the young high-ranking ruler. It should also be recalled t h a t by
Tibetan standard the usage of polite language and the high honorific
often is a sure sign of sarcasm on the part of the speaker, in particular
within the popular lyrical tradition; cf. e.g. Snyder, 1972, pp. 27, 33.
For 56cd, cf. gTam-dpe, pp. 126-27; ga le and ga 1er are both feasible.
Qan. In the light of the poem which follows, this assertion cannot be
disqualified.
251
57
57a The crane {bya khrun khrun; Skt. kr[a]unca, sârasa; M. tojuruu; C. he)
is a bird of migration symbolizing longevity (tshe rih, C. shou), happi-
ness and martial fidelity. It usually lives for more than half a century
and the bird mates for life. Cranes are strong fliers and once airborne,
the common crane is capable of migrating e.g. from Siberia across the
Himalayas cruising at an altitude exceeding 30.000 feet, the normal
altitude of commercial airliners. As an aquatic bird the crane, as said,
is praised for its extraordinary attachment to its mate.
The bird in question is probably the White Crane of Central Asia,
also known as the (Great) White Sibirian Crane (khrun khrun dkar
po/mo; Skt. [mahä]kr[a]unca; puskaräh[a]va; koyastika; C. xiânhè (cf.
The Pentaglot Dictionary, III, p. 4115 = the red-crowned crane); Grus
leucogeranus, Pall.). It is purely white throughout except for the wing-
quills which are black. A fact, incidentally, which has given rise to a
well-known maxim (dpe chos) "Although the crane is white, its quills are
black" (khrun khrun dkar yah giug rtse nag, a simile used to illustrate
that nothing is completely flawless). It breeds in Siberia and visits India
in autumn and winter in small flocks. In spring it leaves India again.
It is closely related to the Japanese Crane, the Red-crowned Crane (J.
tanchö; Grus japonensis), equally a love symbol in Japan, where it is a
favourite motive for artists.
252
Everybody who has visited Lhasa have observed or written about the
cranes flying in migration over the capital. Further, van Heurck, 1984,
p. 126, refers to Tucci, Indo-Tibetica III, planche LII and p. 93 for a
depiction of a white crane carrying on its back a divinity named 'Bebs-
ma. Cf. K. N. Dave, Birds in Sanskrit Literature, pp. 309-324, esp. 3 1 9 -
20; S. C. Bannerjee, Flora and Fauna in Sanskrit Literature, p. 168; P.
Thieme, "Kranich und Reiher im Sanskrit", Studien zur Indologie und
Iranistik, 1, 1975, p. 8; W. Eberhard, Lexikon chinesischer Symbole,
1983, p. 163-64; G. Debon, Chinesische Dichtung, 1989, p. 88.
The Tibetan term khrun khruh for the crane hails from the ono-
matopoetikon kruh krun, which to the Tibetans reflects the call of the
cranes; cf. M. Balk, "Indische Etymologien in einem tibetischen Kom-
mentar", Vicitrakuéumânjali, pp. 8-9.
Here we should probably emend bya de to bya rje, the Lord of Birds,
in the light of a gias quoted by Norbu, where the white female-crane—
likewise considered a go-between or a messenger between two lovers—is
beseeched to take along the poet's missive of love. In a distant cloud,
a misty southern cloud, the poet envisaged to encounter the face of his
beloved; cf. Norbu's Coll. Ill, no. 45:
| Iho sprin smu gu'i nan nas \
j byams paï ial ras mjal byuh \
j bya rje khrun khrun dkar mo \
j 'phrin iig skyel rogs gnah daft \
Cf. also Bod kyi glu-gias, p. 92, no. 1 = Duncan, 1961, p. 64, the
motive of which is the migration of the crane.
57b gêog rtsal, the strength or the ability and faculty of the wings, i.e. to fly.
The conjunctive particle dan in final position often occurs in connection
with the imperative (skul tshig); cf. equally nos. 14-15, 43, 45, 64; M.
Hahn, Lehrbuch der Klassischen Tibetischen Schriftsprache, pp. 66-67.
The reading gyor dan is therefore the orthographically correct form,
yet the slightly incorrect gyar dan (= gyar rogs) has been retained here,
not only because of the overriding near-consensus (eds. DE gyor dan
here seems to be orthographical emendations contrived by Mao Jizu
and Wang Yinuan), but because we may see gyar dan as an attempt at
vowel harmony or vowel alliteration, a prevailing feature characterizing
Lhasa Tibetan.
In a poem which similarly proffers a portrayal of the white crane
being solicited to lent out her wings' faculty, the poet wishes that he
could fly to the whereabouts of his long-acquainted beloved; cf. sDe-
dge'i amans-glu, p. 92, no. 2:
| bya de khrun khrun dkar mo \
j géog rtsal na la gyar dan \
253
the conqueror of the vicissitudes of life and death, he will make his
reappearance in the form of a new incarnation. The poet consoles his
beloved, the figure to whom the poem is dedicated, by reassuring her of
his hasty return.
Regrettably, it turns out that not even this pithy and Tüstorical'
apopémptikon dedicated the celebrated incarnate ruler, a poem which
in itself is one of the song cycle's key verses found to be copiously quoted
in most modern studies on this period of Tibetan history, finds any echo
in the Tibetan literature of the eighteenth and the nineteenth century
to substantiate its claim for authenticity. Its popularity, however, is
attested by the fact that it is registrated as one of the most cherished
samples of nan ma songs; cf. G. Samuel, 1976, pp. 418, 444.
255
58
58a The realm of Hell (naraka, dmyal ba), the infernal and vicious states of
samsara, the world of Yama (Yamaloka, gSin-rje), according to Buddhist
cosmology, consists of sixteen hells (sodasa narakah, dmyal ba bcu drug
po), eight hot and eight cold:
1. Samjïva, Yan sos. 1. Arbuda, Chu bur can.
2. Kälasütra, Thig nag. 2. Nirarbuda, Chu bur
rdol ba.
3. Samghäta, bsDus 3. Atata, So tham t h a m
'joms. pa.
4. Raurava, Nu 'bod. 4. Hahava, A chu zer
ba.
5. Mahäraurava, Nu 5. Huhuva, Kyi hud zer
TDod chen po. ba.
6. Täpana, Tsha ba. 6. Utpala, Ut pal ltar
gas pa.
7. Pratâpana, Rab tu 7. Padma, Padma ltar
tsha ba. gas pa.
8. Avici, mNar med. 8. Mahâpadma, Padma
ltar gas pa chen po.
To this should be added sixteen supplementary hells (utsada, lhag
pa), often also called neighbouring tortures (fie 'khor ba), a group of
four at each cardinal point of Avici:
1. Kuküla, Me ma mur.
2. Kunapa, Ro myags.
256
• As if making a full circle with the previous seven poems this stanza
forms the ending of a natural sequence. Small wonder t h a t the poem
in many recensions actually closes up the song collection too.
Following on from the latter poem the poet is here depicted attempt-
ing in nuce to sum up his life. Within Buddhism any mortal faces
post-mortem the court of Yama in the underworld. An inevitable en-
counter in which the quantitative and qualitative amount of any mor-
tal's wholesome and unwholesome deeds are duly evaluated. This fatal
scale pan has in this infernal purgatory taken the form of a mirror of
257
karman (las kyi me Ion). The poet here summarily concludes that he
has been met with no righteousness in his brief, but stormful and trou-
blesome life. Destined from infancy to elevate to the highest position
in his country as the embodiment of a living god, raised in utmost se-
crecy and under closely guarded surveillance allowing for no freedom
to move at will and personally kept completely in the dark about the
Schicksal awaiting him, and finally—under dramatic circumstances—
finding himself transferred to his incumbent duties on the throne as
the incarnate ruler of the Tibetan country that moreover merely should
turn out to be an office of a marionette empty of any real power, it
can hardly surprise anyone that this innocent young puppet ruler grew
completely cynical about this involuntary role. From the beginning to
its untimely and tragic end, his very life was a skilfully staged mise en
scène, choreographed by an intelligent and wilful Regent with national
and personal ambitions.
With the benefit of hindsight, the dispositions and political tactics
then contrived by the Regent may well be appreciated with some le-
nience, if not in some respects they may even be labelled statesmanlike
and visionary when narrow-mindedly seen with contemporary eyes. But
seen through the eyes of the victim, Tsharis-dbyans rgya-mtsho soon
found himself entangled in cynical deceit and falsehoods. He eventu-
ally revolted and decided boldly to shape a life according to his own
head. The testimonia of which we have in the lyrical utterances under
consideration in the present study.
In sum, the young incarnate ruler verily had all the reason in the
world to deem his present life a failure, although, paradoxically speak-
ing, the outer form human existence assumes is self-inflicted, being
shaped and predestined precisely by one's own deeds. Nevertheless,
the poet found himself bereft of his fair share of luck and thus unjustly
treated. Consequently, he entreats Yama to look upon him in mercy and
perhaps grant him some lenience when the total sum of his actions, also
the amorous ones, is duly evaluated.
Xiao Diyan, sBraii-char, 1988 (3), pp. 50-51, sees in this poem two
possible interpretations. He contends that the last distich or couplet
voices the poet's sentiments, his sorrow over the killing of the Regent.
A poem in which the poet expresses his consolation (mya nan eu). It
should thus be understood as a veiled criticism (skyon 'dzugs gnah ba)
launched against the perpetrator lHa-bzan Qan. Alternatively, Xiao
further argues, the poem may have been composed during his last days
at the small lake of Kunga Nor en route to the Chinese capital. It may
reflect Tshaiis-dbyaris rgya-mtsho's bold words voiced when his own
death was approaching. Not unconvincingly, Xiao suggests that Yama,
the Dharmarâja of inferno, may be a reference to the Chinese emperor
igoh ma) Kangxi. By addressing a petition of lenience to the Emperor,
258
59
59b The point of the arrow (mde'u, mdel rise) is usually made of iron (Icags).
59c The long-acquainted beloved (chun 'dris byams pa), cf. no. 12 supra.
260
59d The term seras nid more concretely means 'the mind or the thought
itself. Here we shall equate mentality with sentiments and feelings
and eventually with the heart (= thugs, bsam pa = sfiih).
• A love poem. Employing the simile with the shaft of love which,
once released, hits its mark with unfailing precision, the poet similarly
yearns for the target of his love, his inamorata known to him since
childhood. Aside from womanizing, archery (phyag mda' gnah ba) was
a favourite occupation for Tshans-dbyans rgya-mtsho. His accuracy and
mastery of both fields would here seem well attested.
As in previous cases, a number of unknown quantities still rule out
our possibility to impose upon this poem any figurative sense. This does
not baffle Xiao Diyan, who, sBran-char, 1988 (3), p. 51, reads this poem
in conjunction with the previous one. The topic of the poem is allegedly
the killing of the Regent by the Qosot Qan. The beloved girl, known to
the poet from childhood, is also here an epitheton ornans for the Regent,
the poet's guardian and ambivalent 'friend' since his childhood. Pensive
of his guardian, Xiao argues, the poet's thoughts helplessly follow in the
wake of the deceased sDe-srid. A poem commemorating the Regent.
261
60
60a The peacock (rma bya; Skt. mayüra, sikhin, varhin; M. toyus; C. köng-
que; Pavo cristacus, L.), the large gallinaceous peafowl. The peacock is
a stock figure in Tibetan popular lyrical tradition. According to the Ti-
betans this bird originates from the Indian subcontinent. It h a s given
rise to a specific theme in this country's lyrical (gias tshig) tradition
denoted 'East India" (rgya gar ear), including also a nan ma type of
song cf. infra, usually sung by girls, and in which the peacock oc-
cupies a central role; cf. Bod kyi dga'-gzas J, p. 28, nos. 3-6; p. 30,
no. 2; p. 67, no. 5; Bod kyi dga'-géas II, p. 22, no. 2; gÉas-tshig phyogs-
bsdus, p. 29; pp. 114-115; a legion of synonyms and tales attest to this
bird's popularity. To the peacock is attributed the particular endow-
ment or habit of eating snakes, also poisonous snakes, and partaking
of poisonous leaves (dug gi lo ma) in the capacity of which, aside from
its peerless beauty and symbol of longevity (tshe rin rma bya), it is
an object of esteem and is employed in various apotropaic rites. Suf-
fice it here to refer to the celebrated Mahämäyüridhäranl (rMa-bya
chen-mo'i gzuhs); cf. J.L. Panglung, "Zwei Beschwörungsformeln gegen
Schlangenbiss im Mülasarvästivädin-Vinaya und ihr Fortleben in der
Mahämäyurividyärajnf, 1980, pp. 66-71. Further gzas on the peacock:
Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 101, nos. 1-2; Bod kyi glu-gias, p. 132; Bod-rigs
kyiglu-gias, p. 4 1 , no. l;gSuh-mgur, nos. 295, 394, 426; cf. also Sa-skya
Pandita's Subhâsitaratnanidhi, nos. 44, 109, 152, 274.
A celebrated nan ma song is worth quoting. Here it is related how
crowds of peacocks gather on a mountain in eastern India, but among
them there is only one peacock, whose feathers or quills are suitable for
a governor. It should here be noted t h a t the shimmering tail-feathers
262
See also the poem lauding the beauty of the peacock by 'Brug-pa Kun-
legs (tr. A. Kretschmar, 1981, p. 91), cited by D. Back, 1896, p. 150.
Where Koii-po, as said, is the fortress (i.e. favourite h a u n t or home-
land) of the parrot and India the fortress of the peacock, then, another
stanza proclaims, by contrast, who would ever bother to talk about the
market price of the domestic rooster; Bod kyi dga'-gzas II, p. 8, no. 2:
| koh po ne tso'i rdzoh red \
I rSya Sar rma bya'i rdzoh red \
| khyim by a de pho tsha lu \
| than gzi sod pa ma gnah \
60c The pattern of the present poem, i.e. introducing the theme of a union
and a tryst between two disparate entities, here two birds of distinct
origin, meeting ('dzoms sa) in a third place, here Lhasa, is taken over
by a number of songs. In one gzas (the tail-feather of) the peacock of
eastern India and the (fine) Kasmirian saffron (flower), despite different
provenance, meet in the auspicious vase; cf. Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 18,
no. 3:
the centre of the holiest sanctuaries and the foremost place of pilgrim-
age in Tibet, namely the Jo-khan Cathedral housing the most important
shrine in Tibet. Further, the residence of the Dalai Lama in the Potala
is also located there. Finally, Lhasa is known for its three circumambu-
lation routes (nan bskor, bar bskor andphyi bskor) which concentrically
encircle the Jo-khan temple.
The epithet dharmacakra is thus a metonym designating Lhasa. It
is found in numerous colophons in the Tibetan canonicaLscriptures. Cf.
also the "Secret Biography" of the Sixth Dalai Lama (ed. Beijing, p. 88:
lha Idan chos 'khor dpal gyi lha sa); cf. also a song occuring in 'Brug-
pa Kun-legs' biography (tr. and text, cf. Stein, 1972, p. 184; 1973, fol.
67b; Dowman, 1980, p. 49). gSun-mgur, nos. 138, 140, 409; gZas-tshig
phyogs-bsdus, p. 129, no. 2; Norbu's Coll. /, no. 51.
61
I mi tshos na la lab pa |
j dgons su dag pa khag theg
j o lo'i gom gsum phra mo |
j gnas mo'i n a n la thai son |
61a The talking {lab pa) of people (mi tsho), i.e. gossip and rumours, or
'people's mouth* (mi kha); a note on the nature and impact of mi kha in
traditional Tibetan society, cf. L. Epstein, "Irony in Tibetan Notions of
the Good Life", Karma: An Antropological Inquiry, 1983, p. 251.
61b dgons su dag pa, i.e. dgons [su] d[v]ag[s] pa zu, to *beg pardon', 'to
excuse'; khag theg: 'to carry the burden', i.e. 'to take the responsibility',
'to take the blame' etc. Thus, together it reads: '[I] readily beg pardon',
or '[I] acknowledge [the rumours] and beg pardon'. Cf. also gSun-mgur,
no. 450.
61c For the term o lo, cf. no. 55 supra. The three tiny steps (gom pa gsum)
may here yield an allusion to the triple refuges (trisaranagamana,
skyabs gsum du 'gro ba), i.e. Triratna. Meriting attention is a gias,
where three steps brought the poet to the king's (the girl's parents ?)
garden, where the (autumn) flower [b]skal bzan me tog (a variant of the
sundew, called 'od Idan or rtag hu in Tibetan or the marigold flower
(genus Tagetes) ? It is more likely to be identified with Chrysante-
mum Indicum; cf. gSo-rig skorgyi rgyun-mkho gal-che-ba bdam bsgrigs,
p. 390), which is on the poet's mind, is admonished to blossom. In other
words, the girl is requested to requite the poet's love; cf. Bod kyi dga'-
gias I, p. 24, no. 3 = "Bod kyi dmaris-gzas", Bod kyi rtsom-rig sgyu-rtsal,
1980 (1), p. 82:
| gom gsum phar la spos pas \
I Tgyal po'i Idum rvar slebs son \
j sems pa'i skal bzan me tog
| ial kha phye rogs gnah dan \
267
61d The quarter of the tavern-lady (gnas mo), often just the madam {chart
ma) of a public house (chah khan, chart 'tshoft ma'i khyim) but also a
brothel (smad 'tshoft ma'i khan). A whole genre, according to Duncan,
1961, pp. 136-42, is denoted hostess or mistress (gnas mo) songs. Cf.
Bod kyi dga'-gzas /, p. 71, no. 6; gSuh-mgur, nos. 352-53, 406. For thai
sohf cf. no. 16 supra and gSuh-mgur, no. 162.
62
62a The willow {lean ma), cf. no. 12 supra. The term byi'u designates
vaguely any smaller bird, without implying any specific species (cf. e.g.
The Pentaglot Diet, III, pp. 4166-4208 for a variety of byil'u] [chun]).
Yet, more specifically it may denote the sparrow (byi'u; Skt. kalavinka,
asvaka; M. boru bilzuuxai, kitaruu, biljigür; C. que) or a cognate species,
the little dull singing bird of the genus Passer, fam. Ploceidae. Perhaps
the willow-sparrow (byi'u lean lo; C. liuyèquè; ibid., p. 4208) or the
willow-warbler (Phylloscopus tibetanus)•••?; cf. Fletscher, 1975, p. 100;
Concrete specification of byi'u is probably nugatory, as the simile is so
general and universal: The image of the small bird (quite commonly
also the thrush, cf. no. 64 infra, warbling sweetly) in the willow-tree
or in the willow-grove (lean glin), an apt and romantic portrayal of a
sweet girl or of a loving couple, is much-cherished in the Tibetan popu-
lar lyrical tradition. The samples are truly legion. The following song
e.g. relates how the little bird, here symbolically impersonating the 'Dia-
m a n t Sow' (rDo-rje phag-mo, Vajravârahï), is admonished not to lift her
sweet warble and thereby betray their love-nest. The [girl's ubiquitous]
parents are bound to intercept the chanson d'amour; cf. Bod-rigs kyi
glu-gias, p. 21, no.3:
| lean ma'i lean rise mgo la \
j byi'u chun rdo rje phag mo \
| gsuh skad shan po ma gtoh \
j yab yum gftis kyis go yon | /
A poem, cited as a so-called repartee or epigrammatic composition
(tshig rgyag), tells the story how the poet or the male lover, when he
269
caught sight of the willow-grove, was without any desire for food (eu-
phemism for love-making). The little bird kept haunting his mind (or
memory) so t h a t sleep at night was severely hampered (cf. no. 6 supra);
phrased differently, during daytime, when the poet, or the lover, beheld
the girl, he had no desire for an affair. But when the night sets in,
the recollection of the girl causes him insomnia; cf. Bod kyi dga'-gias I,
p. 35, no. 2 = Snyder, 1972, pp. 33-34:
Yet another poem signals t h a t love will make its appearance again.
Love may die temporarily. So will the willow defoliate when autumn
makes its merciless advent. The little bird is nevertheless pleaded not
to be distressed (cf. no. 7 supra). The month of spring will make its
consoling entry again, prospective of a new amorous encounter between
the two lovers: the bird and the willow tree; cf. Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 35,
no. 3 = Glu-chun sna-tshogs, p. 25:
Cf. further Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 35, no. 4 = Reader III, p. 30-31;
p. 36, no. 6; p. 37, no. 1 = Bod kyi glu-gias, p. 85, no. 1 = Bod-rigs
kyi glu-gias, p. 100, no. 1 = gTam-dpe, p. 116 (cum van lect); p. 86,
nos. 4+5; Bod kyi dga'-gias II, p. 24, no. 2; p. 46, no. 2; Bod kyi glu-gias,
p. 124, no. 1; p. 161, no. 1; Bod-rigs kyi glu-gias, p. 20, nos. 1+4; p. 2 1 ,
no. 3; p. 75, no. 4 and p. 100, no. 2; gÉas-tshigphyogs-bsdus, p. 89, no. 3;
p. 124, no. 5; p. 139, no. 7; gTam-dpe, p. 138; gSun-mgur, no. 318, 330.
For the phrase "to fall in love" (sems [pa] éor, lit. "lost one's heart"),
cf. nos. 3, 6 supra.
62d The skya khra hor pa is a bird of prey of sorts. There are numerous
species containing the word khra (cf. The Pentaglot Diet., Ill, pp. 4 1 2 6 -
4156, where, however, in a number of cases the term khra in reality
is an adj. khra bo/mo, denoting t h a t the bird in question is variegated
or piebald) illustrating various species of falcons or a hawks, some of
which, no doubt, are purely imaginary. The skya khra or khra skya is
probably the diurnal sparrow-hawk (= bya khra; Skt. éyena; M. kirjui,
qaröajai; C. quèyïng; Assipiter nisus) or a species of falcon. This bird
preys on smaller birds such as pidgeons etc. and rabbits. The metonym
270
hor pa, frequently added to skya khra, denotes that the Tibetans con-
sider it of Mongolian origin, although this epithet has come to denote a
hawk itself. Cf. Nebesky-Wojkowitz, 1975, p. 376: bya khra 'or pa.
The skya khra hor pa, the monstrous bird of prey, is used as the
scare image par excellence when a bogey is sought for, disturbing the
idyllic and romantic scenario of the bird in the willow-grove. Cf. e.g.
the following poem, a caique upon the present poem, where the hideous
(sdig can) hawk is no menace when only the willow and the bird stay
united in love; Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas, p. 53, no.2 = Bod-rigs kyi dmahs-
gzas gces-bsdus, p. 257:
Another poem, cited inter alia as a punning type of song (tshig rgyag),
describes how the the little bird in the willow tree sat chanting (to the
praise of the saviouress) Tara. Onto the scene came the black-eyed
hawk (skya kha, here probably not magpie (Pica caudata) as generally
conceived, but confusingly = bya khra, hor pa = skya khra, cf. Bod-rgya
tshig-mdzod chen-mo, pp. 136, 1855) to investigate the matter; cf. Bod
kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 87, no. 3 = Bod kyi dga'-gzas II, p. 46, no. 5 = Snyder,
1972, pp. 25-26:
The simile of the dreadful and menacing hawk or falcon can also be
found in the story (rnam-thar, p. 227; 'khrab-gzuh, p. 54) of Prince Nor-
bzan (cf. no. 30 supra). At one episode, the mother of Prince Nor-bzaii
employs the simile of this lurking bird that threatens the thrush in the
willow-grove (a symbol of mating; cf. no. 64 infra) by surrounding the
grove so that the thrush is forced to leave (seeking protection) in the
brushwood of the tamarisk. Here this dpe is used to illlustrate how Yid-
'phrog in the palace similarly is surrounded by five hundred (jealous)
junior queens or concubines, forcing her to break up (and seek safety)
in her godly abode:
| lean glih 'di tsho rgya (= skya) khra hor pa yis bskor byuh \
| 'jol mo mi sdod spen ma'i nags gseb la chas 3gro
| pho bran 'di tsho btsun mo lha brgya yis bskor byuh \
| yid 'phrog mi sdod Ijon pa'i lha yul la chas 'gro
271
For sky a khra horpa, cf. gSun-mgur, no. 338 and in particular no. 53.
Cf. also Bod kyi la-gias gion-nu 'gugs-pa'i Icags-kyu, pp. 283-4 for a
song (glu, seven syllabic) relating about a small bird being caught by
khra hor ha. In the Gesar epic too, the conch-white falcon (dun khra
horpa) is mentioned, cf. Pema Tsering, 1979, p. 170; K. N. Dave, Birds
in Sanskrit Literature, pp. 215-242.
63
63d The verse also reads "we have stood up to so much", i.e. to have had
one's fill. The verb zu ba holds many meanings, besides the ordinary
sense of 'to say1, 'to ask' or 'to [be] call[ed]', it is also the honorific (ie
sa) of verbs such as 'to pour' or 'to offer' (blug pa), 'to take' (len pa) or
'to do' (byed pa).
63c By the term rtih ma (i.e. phyi ma, rjes ma) is here meant the following
or the subsequent year (san lo).
63d Note here, as already observed by van Heurck, 1984, p. 132, the syn-
onymic or tautological compound mjal 'dzomls], which in English may
be rendered as 'a meeting' or 'to meet', i.e. a noun, an infinitive or a ver-
bal substantive, and which is made up by two terms, the first ordinary,
the last honorific; cf. e.g. gSuh-mgur, nos. 170, 275, 438. A meeting,
incidentally, which will be allotted by karman; for a similar compound,
cf. nos. 14, 56 supra.
64
poem no. 50 supra, the poet is here seen to exhort a personage of du-
bious stamp in his entourage or in his service (sku 'khor, gyogpo)—the
voluble parrot in the poem—which is being urged to keep the liaison in
the dark.
Xiao Diyan, sBran-char, 1988 (3), p. 53, contrives a somewhat more
airy historical interpretation. The parrot obviously portrays an atten-
dant or envoy of sorts, ever susceptible of divulging discrete matters.
He reads the sister thrush as a picture of the poet himself and the
'sweet warble' should allegedly "be vented in order to rectify the wrong
accusations (of his debauchery and illegitimacy) launched by others"
igzan gyis ma fies khalg] gyogs la dag sel byed ched du gsuns pa) [sicl].
277
65
65a The term klu bdud is a term for a certain group of highly fierce (dregs
pa) and powerful (btsan po) demons and malignant creatures, which
cause various diseases, such as, aside from those mentioned ad no. 20,
dropsy, vomiting of blood, cancerous abcesses, consumptions; cf. Nebe-
sky-Wojkowitz, Oracles and Demons of Tibet, pp. 285ff.
These chiefly chthonic serpents or Tiäga-affiliated spirits not only re-
side underwater in lakes, seas and subterranean wells, but also take
up residence in trees, cf. e.g. C. Bell, The Religion of Tibet, p. 37. This
is evidently the case in this song.
Meriting citation is a celebrated and oft-quoted gias, which is even
reckoned as a punning tshig gias type of song. The poet here caught
sight of a peach fruit (kham bu\ var. read, se 'bru or pomegranate)
which aroused a desire in him to eat the delicious fruit (i.e. to make love
with the girl, cf. no. 5 supra). But the poet entertained some misgivings
as to how dreadful the 'red demon (klu btsan)' (lurking) behind (the tree)
was. The latter is of course a circumlocution for the girl's parents; cf.
Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 124, no. 3 = Bod kyi dga'-gias II, p. 12, no. 3 and
p. 65, no. 4 = Bod kyi glu-gias, p. 79, no. 2 = gÉas-tshig phyogs-bsdus,
p. 107, no. 1 = Snyder, 1972, p. 33 (cum var. lect):
| kham sdoh ya la bltas na \
| kham bu za snih fdod pa \
j rgyab kyi klu btsan dmar po |
j ied po gain] 'dra mi ses |
Another géas lauds the long-acquainted beloved as truly divine,
whereas her parents, par contre, virtually are demonic; the poet pleads
that no misfortune or obstruction will be caused by 'the gods and the
278
appears to have taken shape during the erection of the Potala at the
time of the Great Fifth Dalai Lama, when earth for the edifice was dug
up. The klu-khah and its pleasant surroundings are usually envisaged
as the foremost playground for the Sixth Dalai Lama.
Most likely however, the klu bdud refers to the spirit residing over
and in the apple-tree.
65b For this kind of construction: vb. + dan + neg. vb. + mi 'dug; cf. no. 53
supra.
65c Note the contrast and antithesis between rgyab in 65a and mdun in
65c. The sweet (ka ra; lit. 'sugar') apple (ku su) cognate, according to
the Tibetans, to the peach (kham bu); cf. èel-gon éel-phren, pp. 211-12.
On ku eu depicting a girl, cf. gSuh-mgur, nos. 171 and 191.
65d To pluck fruits Çbras bu 'thogs pa) or apples denotes mating. Cf. no. 5
supra and e.g. gSuh-mgur, no. 379.
66
66a The reading chog pa in 66a+c is evidently the correct form, a reading
confirmed by the different quotes of this poem. This modal or auxiliary
use of the verb chog [pa], lit. "to be allowed", "to be sufficient" etc., is
widely applied. In this capacity of modifying a verbal action, here not
to see (ma mthon) and not to get intimate (ma 'dris), it connotes the
sense of "it is permissible...", "it is better...", "it is advisable..." etc. The
variant homonymous reading in ed. BE, the adj. mchog pa., i.e. "[it
is] best" etc., cannot a priori be disqualified, as this homonym fits the
sense and the context well. The reading chog ga, the oral or 'garbled'
rendering of chog pa, is equally plausible.
66b sems pa éor, "to fall in love"; cf. nos. 3 and 6 supra. The phrase don
mi 'dug modifying a verbal action, here of falling in love (sems pa éor)
and of becoming depressed (sems gcon yon) rendered parallel in verses
66b+d to dan po[r], gfiis pair] and chog pa in 66a+c, connotes the sense
of "there is no meaning...", "there is no sense or chance..." , or, more
colloquially "one can evade altogether...". Note furthermore the pun on
sems in verse b and d; the verse has its parallel in Bod kyi dga'-gias II,
no. 59, no. 5; Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas, p. 31, no. 3 and p. 59, no. 1.
66c The verb 'dris connotes the sense of both emotional and corporeal ac-
quaintance and intimacy and it is intimately associated with the concept
of love and mating; cf. the common expression chuh 'dris, q.v. no. 12
and also nos. 23, 36, 48 supra.
66d The term sems gcoh means 'mental consumption', or rather depression;
cf. no. 32 supra. The verse is read differently in the various versions,
281
e.g. sems gcon yon...; sems gcon [b]éugs...; sems gcon beug..., all grosso
modo conveying the same sense.
The poem is e.g. cited as a traditional (and anonymous) folksong in
Bod kyi glu-géas, p. 120, no. 1 and in the story "gZon-nu 'od-sde dan bu-
mo sa-mtsho-ma" in Bod-ljons dbus-gtsan-khul gyi dmahs-khrod gtam-
rgyud, p. 41.
Meriting quotation is another poem, which, despite a slight bent in
the sense, roughly voices a similar vacillation as to engaging oneself
in a love affair. At the first sight merely, familarity and intimacy [is
easily attained with a damsel] of captivating delight. [But alas,] at the
second [thought] a closer acquaintance is inadvisable, [lovelorn] sorrow
is certain to ensue; cf. "Bod kyi dmans-gzas", Bod kyi rtsom-rig sgyu-
rtsal, 1980 (1), p. 82:
| dan po mthoh ba tsam gyis \
j yid 'oh 'phrogpa'i mdza' grogs \
| gnis pa gsib rgyu ma byuh \
j sems pa ha can skyo byuh \
Though the theme differs and the structure is clearly far from identi-
cal, the following gzas nevertheless earns being cited for its similarity:
At first the yellow flower of the mustard may be full of splendour; [but
alas,] when subsequently the hand clutches at the flower, there is barely
more than a handful to fetch; cf. Bod kyi glu-gias, p. 120, no. 2:
| dan po bkrag mdahs ehe ba \
j pad khalh] ser po'i me tog
j gnis pa lag tu len dus \
j spar mo gah las mi 'dug
| zes manga la'i sgras dge bar byas nas | om svasti | dper na
[I]
[H]
[HI]
[299] | po ta la yi rgyab ri |
| lean [g]seb sar la 'khyil son |
| fii ma'i tshod gyi go mdzod |
j rdo rje'i glih de dran byuh |
[349] | chu mo ga le ga le |
I na mo'i bio sna srih[s] dan |
I na mo'i bio sna bsrin na |
j lus sems bde la 'god son |
zes gsuiis so I punye dzä na bdag gi min kyan | 'dir bzun nas brjod pa
ces gsuns so || dge legs kyi dpal yon mhon par mtho ba'i rgyur gyur cig
[C 16a2]
[IV]
[446] | xx xx xx xx xx xx |
| XX XX XX XX XX XX |
I [D l a l ] lcags kyi lham chun gyon nas
j sprad sprad pa e gtoii |
337
a n d
E x p l a n a t o r y N o t e s
t o
R i g - ' d z i n T s h a n s - d b y a n s
r g y a - m t s h o ' i g s u n - m g u r
The d o c u m e n t
This remarkable document, perhaps the only one existing, is, as already
adduced by Zhuang Jing, 1981b, p. 6 and in his "Cängyäng Jïacuo chùtàn"
in Huang Hua & Wu Biyun (eds.), 1982, p. 64, a MS (dbu can) kept in the
Library pertaining to the Tibetan Language Section of the Central Academy
of National Minorities (Zhöngyäng Minzû Xuéyuàn) in Beijing, PRO. The
book is in a miserable condition and gives a rough and worn-out impression.
Regrettably the various parts, which constitute the book, as already said by
Zhuang Jing, do not fit properly together.
From a preliminary inspection of the photo-copies of the book in my pos-
session—direct access to the source material, naturally, would prove second
to none—we may, faute de mieux, come up with the following data: The book
(dpe cha) in question is a MS (bris ma) hand-written in dbu can letters on
rough paper and gauged from the general condition of the book hardly older
than the turn of the century. It appears to be a so-called top-stitched or top-
sewn (dpe deb: dpe cha mgo (~ 'go) 'tshem (~ btsems) ma) and page-folded
(Iteb 'go) type of book. The photocopies of the book at my disposal consist of
four separate sections (I(A), II(B), III(C), IV(D)), which for some reason have
been sewn or stitched together. Unfortunately, this seems to have taken
place quite recently, perhaps when the mauscript was purchased for the
342
library or after the book once may have fallen to pieces and subsequently
been subjected to repair of some sort. Whatever, the handwriting in all
sections is evidently the same, the songs being compiled and penned down
by the same (anonymous person, bSod-nams ye-ses ? cf. nn. 405-6), but, as
said, for reasons unknown to us, the separate sections and even pages do
no dovetail (con)textually. Most clearly we may refer to section I and II (cf.
no. 155 infra), where no. 155ab do not read well with no. 155cd, whereas our
attempt to combine section I and section IV, viz. no. 155ab and no. 446cd
will prove successful, as they make up a well-read quatrain, a poem found
in other collections also. The same situation holds true when section II and
III are joined together. To make matters even worse, the turn from one page
to another evinces occasionally similar incidences of misfit combinations.
Suffice it to refer to the page-turn from B l i b to 12a (cf. no. 270c infra). The
pagination (indicated in the left margin) of the distinct sections are moreover
not the same:
Section I A Ial-15b5, pagination by numbers
Section II B Ial-12b6, pagination by letters
Section III C lal—16a2, pagination by numbers
Section IV D lal—Ibl, pagination by number
In between the sections and at the end of the last section are often page-
long scraps of handwriting, mostly in dbu med, either impertinent to the
songs or nonsensial fragments of some writing exercise. The full page size
of the book is 26.5 x 8.4 cm and the size of the written area of e.g. p. A 2a is
22.1 x 6.1 cm, with five to six lines of text per page, recto (a) and verso (b).
Until either more information can be acquired concerning the provenance of
the MS or a first-hand inspection of the text is permitted, I have deemed
it advisable to abstain from any editorial dissection or any reshuffling of
the pages and the sections in my present edition of the collection, however
tempting this may be, and instead in the notes restricted myself to call
the reader's attention to the most problematic areas. Consequently, I have
slavishly followed the arrangement and the pagination of the MS. The poems
are throughout the manuscript rendered by way of 12-syllabic hemistiches.
Similar to the booklet from Lhasa, cf. ed. B, a traditional stanza is also
here rendered by two twelve-syllable verse-lines, each line being grouped by
perpendicular strokes (sad). In my edition of the entire text, it most be noted,
I have deliberately changed each of these long lines into two six-syllable lines
framed by ni éad, as has been the case with ed. B too, when Yu Daoquan
edited his version. In my new arrangement of the text the quatrains, not
surprisingly, are by far the most common type of stanza. But quite a number
of poems have been grouped into six lines and one has even been read to hold
eight lines. It goes without saying that this strophic division of mine is liable
to alterations and at places may be grouped in another fashion.
Moreover, it should also be noted that I have inserted orthographically
343
clarifying square brackets [ ] into the text (except the 54 stanzas in this
document hailing from the critical edition dealt with separately) whenever
it proved graphically practicable, adding within these the letters needed in
accordance with standard orthography, although I am fully aware of the ver-
nacular and oral nature of the entire collection. Further, whenever [a] syl-
lable[s] is called for to meet the required number of syllables in a verse-line,
I have added, also within square brackets, my textual suggestion. These
proposals, it must be stipulated, should merely be considered as prelimi-
nary and tentative solutions, other attempts may prove equally suitable or
perhaps even better. Finally, actual change of letters and words, when de-
manded by orthography or for lexical considerations, as well as suggested
alternation of terms and phrases required for a proper understanding of the
context, have all been duly noted in the Apparatus.
The colloquial and idiomatic nature of the language found in the Rig-
'dzin Tshahs-dbyahs rgya-mtshoï gsuh-mgur, the unsophisticated strophic
structure employed and the rich imagery and rustic lyrics in which the songs
and the aphorisms are couched altogether point to their popular provenance.
This observation, to be substantiated fully in the notes subjoined the songs,
also finds support in the themes and subject-matter dealt with in the songs.
Yet the songs and the poems are in no way easy to read or understand, whe-
ther in their literary or in their figurative sense, although quite a number of
the songs in the collection can be identified with other well-known folksongs
and street-songs.
Introductory p o e m s
In this set of three initial stanzas (tshigs bead gsum Idan) the alleged com-
piler of the present collection of songs, *Punyajfiâna, cf. ad nos. 406-7 in-
fra, has penned the obligatory mchod par brjod pa, the proemical saluta-
tion, and the rtsom par dam bca' ha, the composition pledge, which in casu
rather should be conceived as a resolution to compile (sgrig pa), expressing
the subject-matter (brjod bya'i don), and, not infrequently—only not here—
identifying himself.
In the first stanza (tshigs bead sha ma) of these poems, which are all
couched in a highly poetic and artistic diction bristling with ordinary as well
as more technical poetical figures of speech (don rgyan, arthälamkära) such
as epitheton ornans, metaphors (mnon brjod, gzugs can, rüpaka), factual
expression (ran biin brjod pa, svabhâvokti), allusions and various kinds of
similes (dpe) etc., the figure to which salutation is paid is ikhans-dbyaAs
rgya-mtsho, the protagonist and surmised original composer of the entire
collection. Borrowing its setting from a Hindu cosmogonical genesis and
couched entirely metaphorically in which our protagonist (dpe can) is de-
picted in the garb of the sun (dpe), we encounter here a number of partial
or full-fledged synonyms: For the sun (hi ma) we may adduce the "lotus
344
[Hail to] the Mighty Lord of the Sky and the Earth, [the Regent
Sans-rgyas rgya-mtsho, who reigns] independent of others
Fully propagating [upon] the "sea-clothed" [earth] the Doctrine of
Blo-bzan grags-pa [i.e. Tson-kha-pa], the Second Buddha,
Most surpremely safeguarding [the country, people and the religion]
by blazing forth meritorious deeds most profusely.
The collection
4 A poem on the deciduous effect of nature and love. 4a thu lu[d] : thu
lu or thu lu lu = thur du babs pa, nodding, i.e. a black flower withering
and collapsing; Interestingly, Das obviously refers in his diet. p. 577
to this verse quoting a song, which he numbers no. 3 - no. 4 in this
collection—and which apparently is gleaned from a work denoted rGyal-
ba Tshahs-dbyahs rgya-mtsho'i mgul-glu. Since this verse is found to be
untracable in any other collection, aside from the present one, it would
suggest that Das may have had access to a MS identical to the present
one. 4d smart or dman; dman ear bu mo, i.e. bud med dar ma, a young
(unmarried) woman; a parallel to stag ear, i.e. skyespa dar ma, a young
(unmarried) man; dman éar, cf. also nos. 31, 42, 51-2, 76-77, 80, 112
and 139 infra. Looking at the withering black flower, the poet realized
that once upon a time, of course, the old lady had also been a young
beauty.
5 A poem on the ephemeral nature of life. The sundry doings of human
life, the poet declares, are (just as unreal and meaningless) as an image
or reflection in water, a stock simile (usually the drstänta: A moon in
the water ([u]dakacandra))9 acknowledged in Buddhist philosophy to
illustrate the illusory nature of life. The poet admonishes everyone to
behold the outward appearances of the apparently inexhaustible flow
of reflections, which, like an ever-running film strip, steadily delude
people into believing in its reality.
22 A poem on faithfulness and devotion, cf. the critical edition nos. 1 5 -
16; 22a 'gris : 'dris, chun 'dris byams pa, one's beloved, an acquain-
tance since childhood, q.v. the crit. éd. nos. 12, 29, 36, 59; 22b thad
: thegis], honorific (ie sa) for 'gro ba, to go or travel, due to the pre-
vailing homonymous nature of Lhasan Tibetan, thad and thegis] are
pronounced almost alike, cf. e.g. also nos. 146, 300, 324, 406, 421-2,
437 infra. 22c sa gah sa gii, whatever land and estate, all his prop-
erty, but an equally plausible reading would be sa khan sagii\ 22d chos
rgyags la 'but, to grant provisions to the Dharma, i.e. to sponsor reli-
gion. If his beloved sought retreat in a mountain hermitage, the young
poet, left behind, apparently resolves to follow suit, initially granting
all his material possessions to religion. In fact, this poem could be un-
derstood in two ways: Beside the above obvious interpretation, as an
expression of true love and devotion, the poet instinctively knows that
the girl will not go through with her plans to leave him (i.e. to seek a
religious life in a hermitage), so he can safely proffer his generous offer
of sponsoring her.
24 A poem on clandestine dating; 24a béos : éod, bead; for the secret talk in
three words, cf. the crit. éd. nos. 11, 29. Identical with no. 66 in Zhuang
346
Jing, Beijing 1981; 24b sbug skyogis], the innermost, crooked (= k{K]yog
po) part of the willow grove or park (lean ra = lean ma'i glih kha) found
in the grassland (ne'u gsih = ne than, span than), only here it designates
a secret corner of the park; 24c rtogs : gtogs. The thrush ('jol mo) of
the willow garden, a stock symbol, cf. the crit. ed. no. 64, is the only
witness to their clandestine venue for love declarations. Stanza no. 23
and 24cd resemble no. 50 in the crit. ed., where the thrush is replaced
with the parrot.
26 A poem on lovers' meeting and parting. 26a iag gcig brkyans pa, lasting
for one day1, i.e. somewhat like 'a one-night stand'; 26b 'ja' ba : mdza'
ha, i.e. love, affection; cf. similarly, J.E. Bosson, 1969, p. 343, n. 258.
Twilight is the time for love, dawn the time for separation; cf. also
no. 382 infra.
30 A poem on the ephemeral nature of love, depicting the resigned accep-
tance of love's doomed course through the irrevocably deciduous stages
of the flowers' blossoming and fading, cf. the crit. éd. nos. 2, 7; 30a ear
is correct, but perhaps equally plausible is bzad, blossom[ed], also con-
jectured by Zhuang Jing, Beijing 1981, who quotes it in his collection
as no. 67; 30c [g]ser byuh (= chun, cf. also IMK 58) bun ba, the little
honeybee or bumblebee, cf. also 'dMans-gzas', Ni-gzon, 1983 (2), p. 89,
no. 3. Blossoming flowers eventually fade, likewise having acquainted
himself with her, his love[r] eventually grows old, the poet and the little
bee, resepectively, had resignedly come to terms with just that (fate) (de
khas).
31 Affection and passion is the rope dragging (V]then) the cycle of migration
(samsara), constituting the bondage of ephemeral existence—it should
be recalled that passion ('dod chags, râga) is one of the root poisons
of samsâric existence. In this poem the poet is apparently embroiled
in a dilemma: If his passion was greatly aroused, he would only be
dragging himself into the mud of samsâric existence, a sorely bad thing
in a religious sense. Alternatively, if he did not show (any affection) the
young woman (dman ear bu mo, cf. no. 4 supra) would accuse him of
lacking the selfsame.
32 A poem on the deciduous stages of nature and love. The poet here
depicts his fickle beloved (cf. the crit. ed. no. 35) as withering flowers.
Although she allures him with her natural charm, it is all lost on him.
Like the faded flower, his love has also extinguished, and with the power
of love no more around, the poet finds no more enjoyment. Included in
the collection of Zhuang Jing as no. 68.
33 For mdun ma, cf. the crit. ed. no. 3, a prospective spouse chosen by
his parents was unavoidable, the poet bewrays, nevertheless, his own
small thoughts sought his beloved, his favourite choice.
347
35 Peach fruits dropping or hanging in clusters (nil nil); 35d rdzag rdzag
(= rdzag rdzog, rdzag do, 'dzagger from 'dzagspa, i.e. to leak or drip all
over, cf. also no. 400), is equally an example of onomatopoeia conveying
the sense of abundance here of gossip and stories of all kinds (gtam
gsum mi kha). For a discussion on the nature of mi kha in traditional
Tibetan society, cf. D. Lichter sind L. Epstein, "Irony in Tibetan Notions
of the Good Life", Karma: An Antropological Inquiry, 1983, p. 251.
In this allusive poem, the poet is barred from enjoying the clusters of
tempting peach fruits. This aptly illustrates the poet's dilemma, dat-
ing ill-fit or ineligible paramours only gave vent to a flood of defaming
rumours. Cf. similarly, Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 17, no. 2:
| kham bu za rgyu med pas |
j kham sdon 'bras bus yog yog
j byams pa rned rgyu med pa'i \
j khams gsum mi khas yog yog
36 The redbreasted rooster or cock (bya pho tsha lu, i.e. khyim bya de pho
mtsha' lu (or mtshal lu) offers (gnan) its crowing to wake up the poet at
dawn the following morning after last night's carousing which allowed
him to fall asleep at the shoulder of the mistress. For this bird, cf. also
Bod kyi dga'-gzas II, p. 8. no. 2; Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas, p. 103, no. 3;
Bod-rigs kyi dmans-gzas gces-bsdus, p. 138-39.
42 A poem lauding the sensual pleasures ('dod yon, kämaguna) of the
ephemeral human existence. 42a skye 'bras, i.e. lus po, gzugs or rigs
brgyud, the young girl (dman ear) with a handsome body, or of fine de-
scent and family, cf. no. 74. The poem is quoted by Zhuang Jing, no. 85.
A life where pleasures even exceed the assuming of a divine body in the
hereafter.
44 A poem on lovelornness. In this poem the poet bewrays his lot, were
he, with death faced to abandon not only life, but also to part with his
spouse, then the only companion for the poet's thoughts (sems pa, =
mam ses, cf. no. 62 infra, but also = love) haunting him on his pre-
cipitous journey on the intermediate stages in the hereafter would be
love-lost despondency.
46 The term ba tshan, cf. also nos. 54 and 57, poses a problem. Zhuang
Jing, Beijing 1981, quoting it as no. 69, reconstructs it as phar tshur
(which he, incidentally, renders into C. as gèngjiâ, i.e. "all the more"!),
i.e. mutual (Jbrtse [g]duh, i.e. affection), which at first glance would seem
a happy construction. Far more likely, though, would be the reading:
bar nshahs (pf. tshans) [byed pa, rgyag pa], i.e. to tamper, meddle, to
press in between. Another meaning of this idiom is to be "officious", "in-
gratiating", the term here conceived as an adjective. In this sense the
348
term seems to belong to the colloquial vernacular (yul skad). Most often
it denotes a third person who meddles in other people's affairs. By read-
ing all three instances, however, where ba[r] tshan occurs, respectively
as ba[r] tshan brtse [g]duh ehe, ba[r] tshan brtse ïg]duh med pa and
ba[r] tshan can ma, it becomes evident that it may connote something
slightly indiscreet and wanton, here in her amorous behaviour (= ho
tsha med pa, bag med)—apparently not necessarily interpretated neg-
atively. The etymology is nevertheless still not satisfactorily accounted
for. In any case, the term refers to a girl or a lover, in this poem forcing
the poet to postpone his immediate plans for seeking solitary retreat in
the mountains, evidently detained by the beloved's beauty and by the
arousal of her ingratiating affection.
49 In this poem the five objects of sensual pleasures ('dod pa'i yon tan
Ina, paneakämaguna), which arise from the senses, are accumulated
from greed, hatred and avarice. But in reality they are of an illusory
nature (sgyu ma, mayo). The very moment the poet met his beloved he
was capable of undoing the knot of hedonism and materialism. In this
poem the precious object was presented to the girl as a gift. Quoted by
Zhuang Jing as no. 86.
51 The stag, é[v]a pho, i.e. the wooing buck, suitor, cf. no. 29 in the crit.
ed., here in incessant courtship. The (debauched) girls of the market-
place, cf. also the crit. ed. no. 11, no. 4 supra, and no. 76 infra, is not to
be plighted with (dbu sna : dbu mna*) and thus never made an eligible
match as an eternal friend (gtan grogs, i.e. a life-long spouse, cf. the
crit. ed. no. 26). This tshig rgyag type of repartee song could be sung
or recited by a woman or a man. When sung by a man, he signals that
the girl is the market-place type on account of the swarm of wooers
tailing her constantly. When the poem is sung by a woman, the man is
depicted as a fickle wooing stag, constantly chasing after cheap girls.
52 Although the dman ear nourished high hopes of getting intimate with
the poet (drin : 'dris or better brin, to be saleable ?, worthy of purchase,
= coveted), washed her face in milk, and even showed prudence (mkhas)
in cooking up tall tales about her being without husband previously
(snon chad), the acid and noisome odour of this leprous (dze : mdze)
person soon disclosed her dubious stamp, leaving the poet nonplussed,
asking how on earth iga tsug, South Tibetan for coll. ga 'dra) she could
ever get such a smell (equally plausible is the reading rdzab dri, a
sewage smell).
53 The protagonists of this little sullen (thugs ma ran pa'i mam 'gyur) yet
sarcastic quip (bstih tshig) or story {zur za'i gtam) is sDe-srid Saiis-
rgyas rgya-mtsho and, in the garb of a Mongolian hawk praying on the
poet (the God-king, here depicted as pho rog nag chuh, the little black
349
crow), we should evidently see the Qosot chief lHa-bzan Qan, compare
also song no. 62 of our critical edition. As described in the crit. ed.
nos. 8 and 39, the poet verbally poked fun at the Regent's hypocricy,
who boastfully {kha bas : kha rbad = kha éob) donned himself in re-
ligious robes without having taken any vows, even outwitting in this
respect other monks. The poet professed his innocense of any charge
of transgressing decorum, yet ill-felt rumours prevailed. The Mongol
Chief, lHa-bzan Qan, symbolizing the Mongolian hawk, on the contrary,
together with the Regent perpetrated (sundry deeds, such as adultery),
yet, the poet gloomily intimates, without arousing any ill-boding gossip
' from the people or the religious circles. To accentuate his point, the
poet refers to the crow vs. the hawk. In Tibetan folklore, as well as in
world-wide popular creed (incidentally, a Tibetan Law Book on Ordeals,
in fact classifies types such as thiefs and brigands to be incompetent
to be sworn in, and to be comparable to 'small black crows'; cf. R.O.
Meisezahl, "Die Ordalien im Tibetischen Recht", Zentralasiatische Stu-
dien, 20, 1987, p. 229), the crow living in or near humanly inhabited
areas, is always an easy target when a scapegoat is called for, being
blamed for stealing small items or sundry other misdeeds, whereas the
real culprit, the hawk or the falcon, living in remote areas inaccessible
to living beings, and perpetually praying on domestic animals etc., usu-
ally is beyond reproach. 53cdef has been included in the anthology of
Zhuang Jing, as no. 87, as a quatrain. Cf. also Chab-spel, 1987, p. 302,
who quotes this four-lined stanza.
54 rtsig sa : rtsig zal, thin (srab) wall-plaster, i.e. "the walls are thin"; 54b
chad las : 'phyals] lad (= 'phya ka, 'phya smod, lad mo rgyag pa), to
mock, ridicule, deride and jeer. Read dgospa or rgodpa, wild, malicious
laughter. 54c ba tshan can ma, cf. no. 46 supra; 54d hu zug rgyag, to
scream, yell or even to howl (= nur ba, har sgra sgrog) almost like a
dog. In this poem couched in a frank diction the poet literally urged
his wanton girl friend to stifle her cries (in the act of love-making ?),
the walls have ears, a behaviour courting derision since it occasions the
village mob to mock the couple.
55 Craving for thirst (skom 'dodpa can ma), i.e. a passionate, racy girl. 55d
dpyad : spyad, to use, employ and enjoy, here evidently a euphemism
for sexual indulgence, of which the passionate girl seems unsatiable,
just as a drought-striken plain is not satiated by small drizzles of rain.
56 Here dpyad : spyad; mdzad : 'dzad; 56f m a sos sky id pa : gnas zos sky id
pa or better gnas bzod bde po (or bde ba), = sems bde, contentment, for
similar instances, here conceived as an adj., cf. e.g. the songs nos. 199,
309, 390, 393 and 409 infra, Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 30, no. 2; p. 50,
no. 5, i.e. gnan sos or snah sos bde ba, and all requiring the reading
350
gnas bzod bde po, a colloquial phrase carrying the meaning of a happy,
contended, peaceful ('tshe ba med pa) or tranquil (kha khu sim po) life.
Here the loving couple would, were they in the garb of a yogin and
a yoginl indulging in lustful, carnal desire, be brought onto the path
of companionship in this very existence and the subsequent existence
would ensure them a contended life.
57 Cf. nos. 46 and 54 for ba[r] tshah, here used sarcastically, characterizing
his sweet-heart as an unmanufactured (ma biens, i.e. self-originated
(rah byuh), supernatural) godly statue or image. The image behind is
that the beloved, besides being passionless, to the poet is like a godly
statue, cold, distant and emotionless, not fabricated by sculptors. To
be depicted as a statue usually indicates beauty, even natural beauty,
which is also the case here, was it not to be conceived in an ironic sense.
This point is brought forth in the last two lines (rkan pa phyi ma) where
she is seen to be tantamount to a superb horse (rta mchog, aévaratna,
the mythological super horse endowed with divine properties), which
only here, once purchased, proved a poor, almost vicious bargain as the
horse is unable to canter and pace. Included in Zhuang Jing?s coll. as
no. 122.
58 The subject (khyad gzi) of this poem is the bumblebee ([g]ser chuh bun
ba, cf. also no. 30 supra). The span rgyan is usually denoted a specific
herbal plant (sho sman, rtsva rigs, cf. Éel-goii éel-phreh, pp. 333-4,
Bod-ljohs rgyun-spyod kruh-dbyi'i sman-rigs, pp. 264-6, 307-8 and ill.
145-46 and 176-7) or a certain meadow flower (Gentiana algida, Pall.)
also called the flower of autumn (ston ka'i me tog) by the Tibetans, cf.
also no. 130 infra, only not in this case—here it just characterizes the
bee as a grassy ornament atop the grass-leaved meadow, being urged to
show patience or not to be quick-tempered (bio sna... bsrin), the season
of flowers (i.e. love-making) is still lingering.
59 A boyhood or childhood acquaintance (shar 'dris = chuh 'dris), cf. the
crit. ed. no. 12; 'chi bdag bsrihs ba : phyi thag [bs]rih ba, Diet. def.
phyi thag : a gsar med pa'i 'grogs yun rih ba, a long-enduring, not
capricious relationship, cf. also nos. 66, 95 infra. So, the poet is here
soliciting the girl, his beloved, in his eyes a goddess and the highest
Näga-Queen, to enter into a long-termed relationship of faithfulness
and mutual devotion.
60 Cf. the crit. ed. no. 5 for kha 'bras; 60b stag ma ein, the Rhododendron,
prob. Rhododendron campylocarpum Hook; cf. èel-goh éel-phreh, p. 226.
It is growing in the shade, the leaves, to retain the simile, are they also
poisonous ? Or is it a corruption for stag pa sin, the birch tree (Betula
utilis) ? Hardly. Perhaps it is the poet's extraordinary fondness that
accounts for the fact that the poisonous effect of his beautiful sweet-
351
heart's vile thoughts proved inefficient, i.e. neither beneficial nor vi-
cious ?
61 In this telling poem on love's deciduous or temporary nature, containing
the stock figures of the flower and bee for a loving couple, the underlying
motive is the poet's frustration over his fickle lover (= a gsar can), cf.
the crit. ed. no. 35, the flower blossoms and fades early and late, forcing
the bee to circle in daylong courtship. With this terse simile the poet
tells us that unless (rtog : gtogs) he had bound (or fastened = zin)
her firmly through (the embrace of tender) love the duration of their
intimacy would prove too (rah dragls]) short-lived.
64 Couched somewhat in the same vein as song no. 5 of our crit. ed., the
poet is perpetually brooding over the girl, here in the garb of a young
bird, but the governor, her father, being very powerful, leaves the girl
helpless and the couple at their wits' end. The governor, an allusion to
the sDe-srid Sans-rgyas rgya-mtsho ? The wording dban btsan, mighty
and powerful, is precisely the exact predicate applied to the Regent in
The Secret Biography (gSah-ba'i rnam-thar) of the Sixth Dalai Lama
(Chinese ed. p. 62); cf. also no. 125 infra and Chab-spel, 1987, p. 301.
65 Here nä ga ge sar, the nägakesara; It is probably the Mesua roxburghii
or ferrea, Linn.; it is also denoted glan po'i ge sar or puspe nä ga by the
Tibetans, which probably is cobra's saffron, a kind of saffron extracted
from a flower's corolla. Here it denotes a kind of flower stemming from
a medicinal tree plant {ein sman me tog). In this specific context its
taste (ro, rasa) is astringent (bska ba, kasäya), after digestion as a drug
it is cooling and is particularly useful against pneumonia (glo tshad),
hepatitis (mchin tshad) and "heart fever" (snih tshad). Padma ge sar,
padmakeéara, probably just refers to the filament (skra), i.e. the pistil
(ze ba) of the lotus flower; it is also considered a kind of sin sman me
tog with a astringent and bitter (kha, tikta) taste, but neutral (snoms)
after digestion, and it is efficient towards snih tshad. The important
medicinal treatise Sel-gon éel-phreh, pp. 224-5, states that according to
the earlier tradition of medical experts a specific species denoted "the
triple Gesar" (ge sar sum Idan) existed, i.e. a so-called inner, outer and
occasionally a middle one: phyi padma ge sar, nan nä ga ge sar (vice
versa in our poem), bar utpala ge sar, all coming from Mon yul. This
distinctive use of an opposing pair (phyilnan) is here paralleled with
another similar opposition, surface versus centre or heart (kha/snih),
q.v. our critical edition no. 39. Cf. also the previous poem.
66 A poem sung by a girl. Here mdzad : mdzod, i.e. an imperative is
equally plausible just as in 66d gyug should be understood as gyugs
dahl; 66c bu mos : bo mo'i; 'chi bdag bsrin : phyi thag [bs]rin, to prolong
the relationship; cf. also no. 59 supra and 95 infra; 66d sprel biugs :
sprel giug (or giu gu), a monkey tail. The monkey's tail is usually short,
here indicating that the relationship may prove short-lived. When the
beloved is entreated 'not to shake the monkey's tail!', it indicates that
one wishes that their love may last for more than just a brief period. In
this poem two architectural features are moreover mentioned, the base
pillar (ka ba), straight and firm, upholding any edifice, and the arch
pillar (ka giu), a sort of curved arch pillar between the vertical base
pillar (ka ba) and the horisontal cross beams (gdun ma). The poem thus
mirrors the lover in the garb of the pillar, claiming that it/he has been
straight, i.e. honest and trustworthy pleading the partner, the ka giu,
not to turn or stay crooked = unfair, fickle and infidel; cf. also no. 210
353
infra and the saying ka thog gduh biag, quoted in dPe-chos rna-ba'i
bdud-rtsi, p. 1, as an example of unswerving fairness and fidelity. On
ka ba and gduh ma, cf. also Bod-rigs kyi glu-gias, p. 1. no. 1.
67 Cf. the critical edition no. 35.
68 Cf. the previous poem.
70 A poem on the soberness of religious guidance contrasted with the noto-
rious lack of trustworthiness applied to the beloved's confidential words,
rendering any venue meaningless. 70d bêod : êod, bead; cf. our crit. ed.
no. 29. This poem figures in Zhuang «ling's collection as no. 123.
71 Again a poem depicting the poet's frustration. His attempt to reach his
beloved's innermost nature proved a forlorn hope. Using the simile of
the fish—one may note the female gender, na mo = an alluring girl—
which is caught however deep the water (indicating love, note, again,
the female gender) may be, the poet forcefully makes his point, i.e. his
frustration over unrequited love, the girl is superficially (kha) white,
i.e. brazen, but in her depth igtih) black, i.e. whimsical, infidel. Cf. the
crit. éd. nos. 39-40 for similar use of the opposite pair. For additional
samples of the fish and the water, cf. e.g. Bod kyi dga'-gias I, pp. 39-48,
51; Bod kyi dga'-gias II, pp. 24-28, 30. Zhuang Jing has included this
poem in his collection as no. 88.
73 Retribution {la yog : la \g]yogs) more precisely designates an action di-
rected towards others and not infrequently of an improper or malicious
character albeit not necessarily, yet ripened by oneself. In a sense the
term overlaps karman in meaning, but la [g]yogs has another breadth of
reference than karmic causation in general. This term, as does karman,
does not operate according to moral principle. Ignoring e.g. a good ad-
vice is what really defines la Iglyogs. Cf. the telling samples of la \g\yogs
provided by D. Lichter and L. Epstein in "Irony in Tibetan Notions of a
Good Life", Karma: An Antropological Inquiry, 1983, p. 254-257. Thus
perhaps a suitable equivalent would be hybris, as the def. in the diet,
runs: gzan la tshul min gyi by a ba by as pa'i nan 'bras ran thog smin
pa. In the present case, the betrothal ceremony was out of the parents'
control, never sanctioned by the parents but orchestrated by the wilful
daugther herself. Should the plighted alliance be dissolved in this life,
it is the parents' la lg]yogs, i.e. it is their hybristic retributive revenge
which is to be blamed. To be sung by a girl. For la ïg]yog, cf. also
no. 153 infra and the poem cited under note 306 infra. Cf. also Bod kyi
dga'-gzas I, p. 75, no. 2.
74 The mango tree (a mra, Skt. ämra), Mangifera indica; 74c skye 'bras,
is a euphemism for the body, mainly a female body, only here it equally
likely denotes her extraction or stamp (= rigs rus, rigs rgyud), the outer
354
form uncoveted (mi bsam) by the poet, whereas affection and passion
itself overflows his mind. This is paralleled with the mango tree being
of a subacid (here mi zim) genus or species, contrary to its fruit being
juicy aromatic. Phrased differently, in the poem sung by a male the
poet gives preference to the girl's devotion to him over the physical
attachment.
76 Cf. our crit. ed. no. 11, and no. 51 supra, the girl from the market place,
a casual lover, which is often even considered a prostitute or debauchee
(smad tshon ma, 'chal mo etc.), mistress or courtesan, is, as this poem
affirms, not to be trusted: This sort of casual lover is capable of issuing
(sundry) projections, of a verbal or a physical character, here promises
(zal gdan, var. readings with var. etymology, ial [gitan, dan, brtan to
numerous lovers). The poet is here quite sarcastic.
77 The bees are swarming (zi dir dgu dir, "to be full of", "teeming with",
evidently being onomatopoeic words) about one flower; 77d ear pho :
éva pho, (wooing) stags, cf. the crit. ed. no. 29, crowding or congesting
(Vltshah rgyag éig sig = 'tshan kha sig sig) around one single girl.
78 Here zad zad = ma zad bar du, i.e. until the water from the water mill
stops flowing. The water mill ground (thag, pf. of 'thag pa) the rtsam
pa irrespective whether it is good or bad, as long as the water keeps
flowing; likewise with the girl, until the age prohibits, she will seek
lovers, good or bad. Like the previous poem, this poem is yet a trite
sample of love's inscrutable and irrevocable course.
79 The barrel of the horse (rus tshug : rus tshugs = lus kyi rus pa'i dbyibs);
79b spu bead : spu dpyad, i.e. a part of rta dpyad = rta'i gzugs dby-
ibs sam mtshan hid la brtag pa'i thabs, a method of investigating the
characteristics or the bodily constitution of a horse, here the quality
of its hair or mane, to which special importance igtso) is attached; 79c
rus tshigls] : rus tshugs; rus tshigs, any joint, but here preferably rus
tshugs. Employing the simile of a horse connoisseur, to whom the qual-
ity of the mane has priority to the barrel, so also for the poet, the body
of the beloved is given less attention than her "white round" (dkar po'i
sgor sgor), like the moon dish, cf. our crit. ed. no. 1, a stock euphemism
for the face. A poem with a parallel pattern to no. 74. For the technical
terms, cf. A-M. Blondeau, Matériaux pour l'Étude de l'Hippologie et de
l'Hippiatrie Tibétaines, Paris 1972, s.v. index.
80 The delicate, white-shaded turquoise, gyu chuh gru dkar, cf. the crit.
ed. no. 4; 80b skyoh : rkyon; 80c dmar : dman, cf. no. 4 supra; 80d tshan
r a
gy g &g &g> cf. no. 77 supra. The young damsel is here likened to this
white-shaded turquoise, and when offered for sale, a rain of arms are
stretched to make their bid, just as wooers congest to court a handsome
girl.
355
and the beloved is enforced, as no one can even separate them. Also
cited by Zhuang Jing, no. 93.
92 The poet and the beloved spoke with one another (smos : smros, better
smras ? or perhaps mois], by mo-divination ?); 92b sbol bas, = ? [h]sre[s]
ba, to mix, to compare, i.e. the birth data of the loving couple; or = 'bor
bas = babs bas, i.e. here = mo 'babf 'debs, to cast the dice, to divine, to
make divination on a magical, astrological chart (gab rise); 92c bdun
zur, i.e. (diet.) byi ba sogs kyi lo skor bcu gnis pa ran gi bdun pa gait
yin de ni bdun zur te dper na byi baï bdun zur rta dan rta'i bdun zur
byi ba yin pa bain. In Tibetan astrology each of the animal elements
of the twelve year-cycle has another animal elements with which they
pair negatively in an astrological sense, such one is the seventh animal
element when counting from each respective element. They are in op-
position ('gal zla, dgra zla), contrary to other combinations which may
stay in a harmonious relation (mthun zla). So when the loving couple
tries their luck in divination, the astrological advice proved ominous,
their liaison was a most inelegible one, forcing them to perform rituals
and carry out religious service in order to set the chance of their love
right.
According to Tibetan nubtial tradition the family of the groom initially
sends a messenger to the house of a girl to ask for the year of the girl's
birth. Once this is ascertained, a visit is paid by the astrologer to deter-
mine, through mo, whether the birth-dates of the boy and the girl form,
as alluded above, a good astrological combination and have a chance of
forming a reasonable successful marriage life. The requirements for as-
certaining whether a young couple is compatible, are mo, luh and rtsis;
cf. T. Skorupski & K Cech, "Major Tibetan Life Cycle Events—Birth
and Marriage Ceremonies", Kailash Vol. 11 (1-2), pp. 18-20.
93 The pigeon, 'un khu : 'ah gu (dbus skad), mug gu (khams skad) = phug
ron, a bird belonging to the family of Columbidae; rdzas : 'dzad, zad,
to [be] destroyed], minted]; 93b iim mi : ii mi, the cat (iim bu, ium
bu, byi la, li li (khams skad)), the carnivorous mammal, Felis catus.
The pigeon is world-wide known for its droppings (ordure, Ici ba, brun)
left behind in humanly inhabited areas. A Tibetan synonym (mih gi
mam grans) for this bird is actually rgya phibs gnas 'cha', "nesting in
the Chinese pagoda-styled temple roofs". The cat, which incidentally
is known to discharge or secretly hid its own ordure (bsah ba sbas pa,
güdhavarcas), may even wind up taking the rap. So, don't catch the cat
in the trap (sni, rni), the care-taker of the temple is admonished, it is
innocent. With this simile the poet demonstrates his reluctance to be
pinned by slander (mi kha) accusing him for something of which he is
innocent.
95 The term ho sruh both means to save the face, i.e. protect the reputation
358
103 The poet further pleads forgiveness should any mistakes, impure vi-
sions etc. occur like water-bubbles to his eyes.
104 The white lion (sen chert dkar mo, sen ge dkar mo) roaming about in
the crystal-white glacier-mountains, cf. also gÉas-tshig phyogs-bsdus,
p. 169, no. 5; 104c ro bcud, nutriment, nutritious; ran grag : ran
drag[s], = ha can, too much, very much, exceedingly. This intriquing
poem, which somewhat resembles the most crucial poem in the entire
song cycle, i.e. no. 20 of our crit. ed., contains a number of unknown or
unidentified figures which baffle a more comprehensive understanding
of its hidden meaning (sbas don). The figure who here symbolizes the
White Lioness, roaming about in the crystal-white mountains of Tibet,
seems difficult to identify, besides noting t h a t this animal generally is
conceived as a national symbol. The White Lion with the turquoise-
coloured Mane (sen ge dkar mo gyu ral pa can) is common-place in e.g.
the Gesar Epic and Tibetan folklore tradition, and this deity of the white
glacier is invoked in Ladakhi nubtial songs; cf. e.g. Tucci, Tibetan Folk-
songs, 1949, p. 77. Obviously, in this context the White Lioness may be
identified with the poet's chosen one, his beloved, and the milk, need-
less to say, nutritious, i.e. potent, as this life-giving liquid is, represents
her or their love and affection, or, construed differently, may symbolize
some esoteric yogic upadesa-s or teachings. Nay, this philtrum is so
potent, the poet here must confess, t h a t he cannot possibly control (ma
chun, i.e. understand) it (i.e. the teaching ?) in his goblet (snod, or here
= the receptacle, his body, or, again further, may we sense yet another
layer of association provided by the terms bcud and snod, resp. repre-
senting the Buddhist notions, on the macrocosmic level, of the animate
and inanimate receptacle of the world (i.e. rasa, bhavana) ?). Cf. also
Duncan, 1961, p. 78; Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 21, no. 4.
105 Here gnas gsum, i.e. mtho ris, bde 'gro gsum (sugati), the three higher
or superior states of existence in samsara: Gods (deva, lha), demigods
(asura, lha ma yin) and h u m a n beings (manusya, mi). Nevertheless—
continuing the above argumentation—be it love or the earnest wish for
some secret teachings, it irresistibly overflows the poet, and to atone
his escapades or to beg pardon for his lack of understanding, he must
360
propitiate and beg pardon in front of the Mother, symbolizing, inter alia,
in Vajrayânic nomenclature, unoriginatedness (skye med nid, ajätatva)
and may thus be short for the female adept (yoginï, mal 'byor ma) and
in front of a Jnänadäkini pleading them to look upon him in mercy!
Incidentally, a Tibetan saying goes, whoever wants to come to grips
with milking a lion, must display fortitude. Futher, a gzas from sDe-
dge may be worth quoting, sDe-dge'i dmans-glu, p. I l l , no. 3:
| dkar yol bkra éis rtags brgyad \
j nan la sen ge'i 'o ma \
j 'dren sa chuh 'dris ma gtogs \
j de min gian la mi 'dren \
106 Couched in equivocal phrases this poem alludes to, it transpires, Pan-
chen Lama, who is characterized by being a paragon embodying (all)
virtuous qualities, by an ocean replete with costly jewels and by being
like a sanctuary (caitya, stüpa), but although moved by the wind i.e. a
victim of slander, we may adduce, sown by others, the poet is unwilling
to join the defamating mob.
107 The three next poems (nos. 107-109) are similarly couched in a Bud-
dhist diction, which hint at the transcendental reality behind the phe-
nomenal world. J u s t like butterfat is full of, i.e. veiled by milk, sim-
ilarly the Esoteric tradition is the real form of True Buddhism. If
one's comprehension is obscured by ignorance {ma rig, avidya), the
poet professed, you are heartily pardoned! Cf. e.g. Nägärjuna's Dhar-
madhätustava (TTPE no. 2010 (Vol. 46), fol. 73a7-77b8), which elabo-
rates on the points indicated in these poems.
108 Analogously, although one's own mind, like the nature of space, (in real-
ity, yah dag tu, tattvatah, etc.) never undergoes any intrinsic transfor-
mation (108bd 'gyur mdog : 'gyur Idog), yet (conventionally, kun rdzob
tu, samvrtitah, etc.) (numerous) transformations are displayed in form
of mental manifestations, all stirred up and congesting like clouds per-
force of one's mental afflictions (non morts, klesa).
109 Within the domain (gocara) of the six kinds of sense consciousnesses
(tshogs drug dbah po'i spyod yul, sadindriyavijnänakäya), one may dis-
cern, moreover, through discriminating insight (ses rab, prajhâ), the
pure from the impure visions and mental defilements. So, the poet
concludes, draw the line between the mundane and the supramundane
world (samsara and nirvana, 'khor 'das gyes mtshams). Phrased dif-
ferently, once the poet or someone would acquire the discriminating
insight, which is capable of discerning properly between the pure and
the impure, between the conventional truth (kun rdzob kyi bden pa)
and the ultimate truth (don dam pa'i bden pa), he is able not only
361
111 The meadow turns yellow, i.e. is wilting, only to be renounced by the
bee, just as a man growing older, eventually will be rejected by his
sweet-heart. A song by a boy. Worth noting, perhaps, is the term lah[s]
son, a verbal form regularly occuring in this coll. cf. e.g. nos. 1 and 20,
125 and 129 etc., which is a South Tibetan colloquialism for chags son
and phyin son, etc. meaning "rose", "appeared", "emerged", "turned up"
etc.
112 The season's fertility (nam zla sa bcud), cf. also the crit. ed. no. 46;
112a dros son, when the fertility is heated up, so to say, when spring
culminates, it is time to plow, and the young bull makes its sound, 112b
nur sgra, the grunt of a young bull. Observing these signs of vernal
giddiness, the poet here recalls the songs of sorrow by the the heated
playful (bde drod rgyas pa'i) young damsels (dman éar, cf. no. 4 supra).
Construed differently, instead of dros son, you may read bros son = yal
son, the season of spring having elapsed. It is a theme reiterated in the
following song.
113 In the desolated valley, high above, our young poet's song rings dis-
tinctly (lhah lhah). The medium repaying his song with a song is, like
an echo, (the whistling sound generated from the resonance in) the hol-
low cavities (sbub[s] stoh) of grass blades.
114 A poem on lovelornness and unrequited love. To yell or scream (ku gcig
rgyab, = ku sgra, ku co, ki rgyag/b pa; 114c phar la, i.e. to the girl, cf.
the crit. ed. nos. 6, 29; 114d gros mgo (or 'go) 'don, to display initiative,
to commence talking, i.e. when the poet confided his intimate feelings
362
to the girl, there was no person responding, like no echo to his yelling.
A song to be sung by both sexes.
115 This and the following five poems or repartee songs (tshig rgyag), nos.
115-120, couched, evidently, in an ironic tone and composed by pre-
senting in the last couplet or distich a paradoxical, well-nigh inane
statement which hits the point only if yet another, equally absurd state-
ment or conditional premise, presented in the first couplet or distich, is
feasible. Such terse, self-contradictory points are much cherished not
only in India, but also in Tibet, where they usually found expression in
the vivid epigrams of the subhäsita-s, gtam dpe-s or tshig rgyag songs.
When they moreover were phrased in a universal vein, they rarely call
for any comment. 115a dkrus nas : hkrus or 'khrus bas or nas. Were
mental defilements to be purified merely by washing the body, then cer-
tainly the golden-eyed fish in the water would (easily) attain liberation.
Cf. similarly, Duncan, 1961, p. 25.
116 The saffron-coloured (hur smrig mdog) robe (na bza*) of an ordained
monk; 116a bsgyur ba'i is plausible, but so also bsgyur bas; 116c the
golden bird, the goose, cf. the crit. ed. no. 9; 116d 'gro ba 'dren, to
guide the beings, i.e. to lead to liberation. The poem is included by
Zhuang Jing in his anthology as no. 97. If anyone would become a
monk merely by changing into saffron-coloured robes, then the golden-
plumaged goose, eo ipso, would be able to work for the welfare of the
worldlings. Chab-spel Tshe-brtan phun-tshogs in his article ""Tshans-
dbyans rgya-mtsho'i mgul-glu" dan *brel-ba yod-pa'i lo-rgyus kyi don-
dnos 'ga'-zig brjod-pa", obviously quoting this poem from Zhuang «ling's
book, even contends, op. cit., p. 300, that this poem, among others,
should provide fact-based testimonies (gzu dpan) relevant to certain
historical incidences. This poem should clearly broach the God-king's
own hard-won conclusion ([bs]sdom[s] tshig) not to wear the monkish
robes (chos gos snam sbyar) any longer. The necessity for the God-
king to accentuate the absurdity of merely donning the yellow robes
to become an altruistic bla ma, irrespective of whether the person in
question is actually believing or not, should evidently be seen, it is
alleged, as an inevitable reaction to the inundating flow of appeals and
petitions which attempted to pursuade him not to change into the dress
of the lay-man (skya chas), when in A.D. 1702, in the presence of the
Fifth Pan-chen bla-ma, he eventually renounced his religious vows.
Worth quoting in this connection is another gzas purporting the same
absurd message, Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas, p. 77, no. 2:
| lus la ser po rnnabs tshad |
| 'gro ba 'dren mkhan yin na \
| by a gcig nan pa ser pos \
363
alpine pasture (span ri) and the forested, slate mountains igya' ri) and
denoted a divine bird by the Tibetans, cf. also Das' diet. p. 230, and
nos. 271, 306 and 313 and 381 infra; Bod kyi d^a'-gzas /, p. 26, no. 4;
p. 49, no. 2; 68, no. 4; 75, nos. 1-2; 77, no. 3 = gZas-tshig phyogs-bsdus,
p. 126, no. 5; p. 82, no. 6 = gZas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 95, no. 2; Bod
kyi dga'-gias II, p. 21, no. 6, p. 37, no. 2; Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas, p. 39,
no. 2; Bod kyi glu-gias, p. 145, no. 2; Norbu's Coll. Ill, no. 3. It is a
species belonging to the family Tetraonidae.
124 This and the following poem evince an identical pattern, only differing
in content, the first provides a natural, universal setting, the second
provides a personal. For this stock figure of the male lover and his
beloved in the garb of the goose and the lake, cf. the crit. ed. no. 9,
unthinkable indeed is the separation between these two, were it not for
nature's icy intermezzo, occasioning the poor bird involuntarily to take
to his wings.
125 Similar with the unity of the loving couple, they see no other alternative
but to separate, this time the intermeddler is the powerful minister,
presumably sDe-srid Sans-rgyas rgya-mtsho, cf. our crit. ed. no. 8.
126 This and the following poem are connected, evincing an identical struc-
ture, although with different contents. In the first stanza, couched in
a natural setting, two parallel similes are provided which eventually
strike the point in the ensuing poem. Seeing (his beloved) is here pre-
vented by the pass-road, wherefore the big (i.e. endless) road becomes
the enemy of seeing; similarly, when travelling (to his beloved) arrival is
thwarted by the river, wherefore (the crossing of) the big water becomes
the enemy of travelling. Cf. similarly, Duncan, 1961, p. 23.
127 The distant homeland, pursuing the argumentation in the previous
poem, becomes the foe of body (travelling) and mind (seeing); when
the beloved has gone abroad, bound for home, the poet is deprived of
his nightly sleep (thebls] Icog : thebs bcog, chag, cf. the crit. ed. no. 6).
The poems signal the lovelornness infesting the poet, a state of affair
which is either occasioned by an intermeddler or, simply, by the actual
distance, parting him from his beloved. Cf. similarly, Bod kyi glu-gzas,
p. 74, no. 2.
128 An allusive poem. Water is flowing constantly (éad sadf = ear ear)
downwards. 128a = 440a; If it flowed reversely, the poet would rejoice.
Similarly, the Tiappy willow-grove' (lean glih smug skyid, a proper to-
ponym ?) below, were it only the pha gzis, the estate paternally hered-
itary, here it is tantamount to the poet's home-land, he would feel real
contented.
130 The "meadow ornament" (span rgyan), the Gentians, an autumnal
flower (called ston ka'i me tog) growing among grass, of which three
365
species usually are found, the white (dkar po), blue {snort po) and the
black (nagpo), i.e. the Gentiana algida, Pall., Gentiana uniflora, Georgi
(or filistyla, Balf.) and Gentiana grandiflora, Laxm. of the fam. Gen-
tianaceae; cf. Das' diet. p. 797; èel-goh éel-phreft, pp. 333-4; Bod-ljons
rgyun-spyod kruh-dbyi'i smart-rigs, pp. 264-6, 307-8; Rastertija Tibet-
skol Meditsiny, p. 58; Bod kyi glu-gzas, p. 34, no. 1, p. 134, no. 2; gZas-
tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 94, no.2. Note the deliberate word-play on the
homonymous 'brel and 'bral, with opposing meanings!
131 The agony or anxiety (sems nod) when concerned with how to cross
the broad river; 131b gnan pas : mnart pas, the boatman or ferry-
man; sel or bsal; 131c su gas (colloquial) : su yis. In this poem on
lovelornness, the grief over the demise of one's beloved is depicted to
be beyond consolation; to strike the point it is here paralleled with the
agony besetting a traveller when trying to cross a broad river, help as
near at hand, the boatman can always cure the agony. This poem is
included by Zhuang Jing, no. 99.
132 Cf. nos. 83, 117, 441 for a ba : a bar, = a bo (coll. a'u) a sort of pet
name, usually for a child (Lhasa dialect), here sweet little, or cutie. A
tree may have one root, b u t it carries 360 top branches. The poet's little
beloved, similarly, is teeming with a plethora (lit. 2500) of ideas, i.e.
she is highly whimsical and volatile, and thus unreliable.
133 The precious betrothal turquoise of the mother (a maï sdiggyu) is by the
poet intended to be fastened to the girl's head, likewise in an intended
act of betrothal and plight, only the turquoise belongs to the mother
and it would be a sinful act indeed to use this particular one; gyu chuft,
cf. the crit. ed. no. 4, and as a token of betrothal prior to the marriage,
cf. the crit. ed. no. 26. The girl, however, was so replete with ideas,
cf. e.g. the previous song, i.e. she was vacillating in her wishes and
obviously so fickle ( = a gsar can) t h a t the poet was reluctant (nos (=
snih) ma 'dod, cf. also no. 183 infra for snih 'dod (from snih nas 'dod,
cf. e.g. no. 279 infra), and also Bod kyi glu-gzas, p. 79, no. 2 = 'Bod kyi
dmans-gzas' Bod kyi rtsom-rig sgyu-rtsal, 1980 (1) p. 99 (cum van led,),
to fasten ('dogs) it to her headdress and the engagement thus came to
naught all by itself. Mr. Tashi Tshering calls in question the equation
between nos ma 'dod and snift ma 'dod, and suggests the foil, reading
nos ma dod (dod, to 'replace'), i.e. "not worthy of...", a colloquial phrase
close in meaning to chog ma chog.
134 When calamities sweep the country the whole year (spyi lo\ or better
emend to: spyi la, the entire country ?), then worries and anxieties
(sems khral, sems khrel (of all kinds)) are bound to turn up all by it-
self (khag khyag, = khalg] theg pa, i.e. to take the responsibility, to
guarantee, to provide security. In a colloquial sense as a modal adverb:
366
139 The simile depicts the vicissitudes of nature's deflowering, and the poet
is thus here seen to profess that the sweet-heart (the flower in the sim-
ile) likewise should want such a fickle, casual destiny, only, as dictated
by society, the girl saw no way b u t to perform like the foliage ('dab
ma) of the plant, i.e. to stay perennial (or even evergreen, i.e. never to
367
defoliate, which means for the girl to be steady (= brtan pa) and fidel,
contrary to the withering, evanescent flower of a capricious love (= a
gsar can ma).
140 A similar picture of love's contingency, his dispassionate lover is roam-
ing about in Lhasa, the highest dharmacakra centre in Tibet, cf. note
138 supra. As the saying goes, the girls of Lhasa are regarded as un-
faithful.
141 In this simile presented in the first distich of the poem the girl is likened
to a star, rising high in the east, but, as most songs bewail, her 'story*
escaped the poet, i.e. she will merely remain a casual date to him,
because when the husband (bdag po, i.e. the owner) of her (bdag [po]
yod, "who has a husband") arrived on the scene, the poet was forced to
bid his secret lover farewell (a le thas (: thegls], = phebs) sig)\
142 As mentioned in song no. 1 of the crit. ed., the girl, here a passionate
one, h a u n t s the poet's dreams, to such an extent t h a t a recollection of
her, i.e. here residua or engrams (bag chags, väsanä) even flow along
onto the precipitous post-mortem pathway of the bar do planes.
143 To stake for tying (stodphur rgyab : rtodphur rgyab/rgyag, to peg); The
poet is pegged or staked, so to say, to samsara by his lingering mental
impressions, mental pictures of his lover, we may presume. The only
instrument likely to cut this bondage of affection is religious instruction
(upadeéa) provided by the guru.
144 This poem seems somewhat corrupt. 144ab the way the visions and
impressions of this existence take, i.e. delusion (rmons pa) and deriva-
tion Çkhrul pa), and the constant flow of the lover's song of grief; 144c
khams ga makes no obvious sense, and should perhaps be emended to
khams na; 144d moreover counts eight syllables, perhaps due to a sort
of dittography by the scribe, by mistake writing khams gsum twice per-
haps due to an eye-skip to the line below, and then interrupting the
process after having written g[a]. In this context a plausible, and more
readable, construe for the last couplet then would run:
| khams gsum skyo cig skyo na \
| 'khor ba 'di la skyo ba \
145 This poem (four lines) and the following one (six lines), belong together
and should be read as one, to such an extent t h a t the first poem may
equally well consist of six lines, were we to change the word 'dra bas in
146b into 'dra ba. They express the poet's reflections on the illusory and
dream-like nature of an amorous life, and his vacillation as to embrace
a religious life. 145a mdahs gsum : mdah sum, last night (mdan nub);
After having slept together the whole of last night, not even a trace
368
of their having been there remains in the morning; 145d chag[s] sgo,
disaster, calamity; rus tshogs : rigs tshogs, sundry kinds of delusions of
disaster. An arguably better construe for this line could be to see here
a reference to the three basic poisons or afflictions (dug or non mohs
gsum): passion ('dod chags, räga), hatred (£e sdah, dvesa) and delusion
(gti mug, rrnonspa, moha).
146 The poem, closing the above, relates about the poet's vacillation between
love and religion. In the end he poses the rhetorical question, to be re-
joined in the affirmative obviously, whether he should embrace religion
by heading (thad : thegls], cf. no. 22 supra) for the supreme abode, the
solitary retreat in the mountains, once he had renounced his yearning
after the flowery, wondrous (self-originated, svayambhü) flesh of his fair
damsel (kântâ) knowing that, when hampering the above-mentioned
emotional forces in this very life, love making etc. is rendered utterly
senseless and intrinsically unreal being tantamount to illusion, or as
stated, nothing but a last-night dream.
147 This and the following three poems strike a religious note. Here the poet
finds solace in religion (lha chos, here denoting Buddhism in general),
which should be experienced or practiced in presently and in the future.
If that is the case, the sun's ray of happiness would rise and cover one's
entire life.
148 Two poems with a religious content. Food and drink are objects of
desire Cdod yul), indicating that it is transcient and ultimately un-
founded. Here the five sensual pleasures arising from the five objects of
sense ('dodpa'i yon tan Ina, pancakämaguna) are refered to. If anyone
should come to taste the supreme flavor of ambrosia of the unsullied
(anäsrava) rigs (: rigVdzin, the vidyädhara, then you need not know
of the (conventional) happiness accruing from demented (myos : smyos)
sullied (säsrava) senses (indriya).
149 The inexhaustible perpetual bliss involves mental equipoise (samäpatti)
here of the four kinds of joy (priti: dga' ba, mchog dga\ khyad dga9
and lhan skyes dga7). It is unsullied, and, further, it is a fundament
for practicing equanimity (upeksd) aiming at abolishing hatred towards
enemies and (excessive) affection towards one's own relatives.
150 An allusive and religious poem, employing a simile with a natural set-
ting. Were the innumerable number of trainees (v[a]ineyas), in the garb
of bees (rkan drug, satcarana, hexapod), to partake of the ever-flowing
sweet honey, the quintessence of meaning, once the flower of bodhi had
gained life, a bodhi all-beneficial to one's mind (ran sems, should it be
altered to ran gian ?) this flower garden would be transformed into
pleasant or bustling religious dance (chos gar bsgyur).
369
151 A plain poem of the so-called single-stanza type (grol ba, muktaka),
i.e. a detached, self-contained stanza, containing a full simile which
evokes a natural setting; the contrast between the upper part (phu)
of a valley (lun pa) replete with water-shedding glacier-mountains and
the lower part (mdaO sown with small cultivated fields here frames the
poet's wish and yearning for love, symbolized by the soil being drought-
stricken. This occasions him to entreat the glacier-mountains (which
whiteness, incidentally, symbolizes purity and amorous fidelity) to pour
water in order to quench his insatiable thirst for love.
152 The sandalwood tree, Santalum album, Linn., exuding a refined scent.
Four species are found: white, yellow, red, and dark maroon, cf. Éel-
gon éel'phreii, pp. 229-234. In this poem the idea of avoiding to climb
down here probably means t h a t the beloved couple should not leave one
another. Quite the opposite, the ascent, i.e. their union is even set in
scene by karman, the irrevocable retribution of former lives.
154 Likewise a poem carrying a similar natural setting with a stallion which
depicts the poet's unbridled wish to challenge other rivals to woo a
common paramour probably; 154b and 154d stod thag : rtod thag rgyab,
tethering and 'grol, to loose the tether. If the poem is intended as a self-
portrait, then the God-king's restricted movement, dictated by tradition
and etiquette, is here likened to the tethering of a stallion. ,
155 Section I and II do not dovetail. 155a loggi : logs kyi; 155b sdigpa ra tsa
: sdig pa rva tsâ, also denoted sdig pa rva can, rva nag, the stinging,
venomous (dug can) scorpion (Scorpionida; an arachnid, vrécika), cf.
also Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 100, no. 1; syn. dur bas 9chi, "immediate
death", mar gyis nams byed, "eliminated by ghee" and lus mi sdug,
"hideous body", an animal dwelling in the dry sand, above sea level. If
we try to read these two distiches together, we may then tentatively
read a poem containing a full simile, which apparently depicts someone
(the poet ?), here in the guise of a poisonous creature, captured shunning
a low or depraved situation, i.e. aloofed the 'troubled water' of scandals
and rumours. A highly doubtful construction. However, we may quote
a stanza which admonishes anyone to take on boots and to kick out the
370
creature; cf. Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 9., no. 5 = gTam-dpe, p. 113 (cum
var. led.):
| dkar po bye rna'i dkyil gyi
| nag po'i sdig pa ra dza |
j Icags kyi lham chun gyon nas \
| bskrad bskrad gtoh la phebs éig
Cf. similarly, G.Tucci, Tibetan Folksongs, 1949, pp. 21, 47 = Norbu's
Coll. I, no. 28 (cf. also /, no. 28); more interesting, and clearly indicative
of the somewhat garbled compilation of the present collection of songs,
is the fact t h a t 155ab (of sect. I) and 446cd (of sect. IV) constitute a
poem quite identical with the above poem. In other words, these two
sections would apparently dovetail.
156 Here kha rag : kha rog bsdad, to remain silent; 156d counts seven
syllables, wherefore either ru or la is redundant. A poem expressing
the young man's pious (and amorous) sentiments, and his eagerness to
burst into a song of happiness.
157 mas dan (makes no sense) : me tog; rdzoh rdzon, full of, teeming with
or replete with (not attested in the diet.) flowers, i.e. me tog ha to, cf.
no. 15 of the crit. ed. and no. 259 infra, the garden flower (Idum ra
me tog) hollyhock. 157c don ni dam pa, i.e. ultimate truth (bden pa,
paramârtha-satya). A picturesque poem with a religious note.
158 The statue of the National Palladium or Chief Protectress (bsrun ma :
sruh ma) Ma-gcig dPal[-ldan] lha[-mo] cf. song no. 138 supra, erected
and installed beneath the guilded copper pagoda-like roof, evidently
here of the Jo-khan in lHa-sa, cf. p. 31 of Z. J. Taring's IHa-sa gtsug-
lag-khah gi sa-bkra dan dkar-chag.
159 Here bdag gi ga nas : bdag gis gain] nas; 159b yon yon : yon yod. Irre-
spective of whence he came, the poet maintains, he came to entertain
the guests (bzugs gral, row of seated people, here = mgron po); 159c
dkrug ein ius = dkrug éin rgyab, i.e. to stir up, incite, instigate fights,
or cause trouble; 159d dog mi, probably wrong, the reading dogs pa
seems better.
160 Here dar chog : dar chags, cf. the crit. ed. no. 9; the fish, na mo,
here portraying the girl, making its movements Ckhyug so : 'khyugs
bzo) and agitating like a seductive damsel; Cf. also Bod kyi dga'-gzas I,
p. 50, no. 4; p. 51, no. 3. The picture provided purports a relaxed, calm
situation, where everything is at ease.
161 Here gi : gis; rtogs : gtogs; 161cd perhaps a better reading would be:
I bkaf skyon gnah ba gnah na \
371
apparently a species of the sundew, q.v. no. 310 infra. But it may
here just be a poetic name of the girl who originates from the North-
ern interiors. The poet entreats the girl not to look upon the grassy
meadow, here representing his behaviour and he begs earnestly for the
season's end (nam mjug, here = ston ka'i mjug, the end of autumn) to
be postponed for awhile. The colour-shift of the grass, from green to
withering yellow during autumn, signals fickleness, or, on the personal
level, infidelity. Cf. also Duncan, 1961, p. 55.
166 The leaves of the poplar (sbyar lo or dbyar to), a genus (Populus) of the
willow family, here personifying the male lover; khroh khrob : khrog
khrog, = hrog hrog, (onomatopoeia) the rustling of great leaves; 166b
snug lo, the leaves of reed (snug ma, smyug ma), here personifying the
female lover; sil sil, (onomatopoeia), the hissing sound of small leaves.
The Queen of Season (Nam-zla'i rgyal-mo, or better Dus (-bzi'i) lha-mo)
will determine when the leaves of the poplar will be shed, t h a t is, when
love will be doomed. The Queen in question is slbn-ka'i rgyal-mo, the
Queen of Autumn, cf. Nebesky-Wojkowitz, Oracles and Demons of Tibet,
pp. 25, 30, 270.
167 The Tibetan cymbal (sil snan), a precious instrument, producing sweet
sounds; the 'yak's tail' (rha yab, cämara) is usually regarded and em-
ployed as a drumstick (= rha dbyug, rha gyog), the controller in music,
which strikes the beat. Alternatively, it may just be a fan. Be it what
it may, "whether its waist is undulating, i.e. vibrating (khyoh khyoh :
k[y]oh k\y]oh gnah) or not, it was of little avail". Evidently, in this poem
sung or recited by a male, we should see the male lover in the guise of
the cymbal, here depicting the orchestration in general, offering sweet-
sounding music, and, further, we may envisage a paramour in the garb
of the yak's tail, be it interpretated as the drum-stick or the fan, making
its alluring movements. But of no avail, the poet has already another
lover, the poem would seem to purport, to whom he remains faithful.
168 Alcohol and beverage ('khruh bzes : khruh gzas, (khruh, ze sa and origi-
nally a gTsari idiom for chah) i.e. to drink (rgyag); The poet confides that
he would have to abstain from drinking the beer of the white moon (i.e.
at the beginning of the month prospective of romance and marriage)
(accompanied by singing and dancing); 168c snem chuh, = sems chuh,
the humble little frog would then only be crushed to death under the
stamping feet, the frog (sbal pa) is probably here referring to himself.
When the powerful leaders, who never care for the welfare of ordinary
people, convened, small people could be thoroughly quenched,
169 In between (sprag na : phrag na, = bar na) the minds (of the loving
couple) a silk-thread finds no means of being inserted, whereas white
glacier-mountains block the way between (their) bodies. In this por-
373
trayal the poet, while bewraying his intimate mental indivisibility with
his beloved, he bewails his physical separation from her.
170 An entirely metaphorical poem. The water-stream (chu mo) here sym-
bolizes the girl or love, cf. for additional samples, Bod kyi dga'-gias I,
pp. 44-^7; 102, no. 3; Bod kyi dga'-gzas II, pp. 24-28; Since the course
of the stream from the uppermost part (ka mgo or rather rka 'go) of the
irrigation canal (yur ba, yur po conveying the life (here = love)-giving
water) is invariable (i.e. faithful love) and long, the water will definitely
(khag khyag) reach its destination, the field din kha), which, we may
presume, portrays the happy union of the loving couple; cf. especially
Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 40, no. 5:
| chu mo ska 'go ya nas \
I mi 'gyur gtan du bzugs na \
j zih chun ska thag rih yah \
j mjal ba'i dus geig los yon \
Cf. similarly, Duncan, 1961, p. 34.
171 A walnut (star k[h]a, Juglans regia) of the family Juglandaceae, the
edible n u t susceptible of being cracked; the peach (kham bu, Prunus
persica), its edible fruit susceptible of being sucked on or chewed on
mainly; 171c sku su : ku eu, apple; rho thog : sho thog (or tog), unripe,
premature apples of this year caused a sour taste in the teeth (rtsed
po, = rtsed ma, the malic acid of unripe apples corroding the teeth and
which creates an unpleasant taste). Evidently the poet is here faced
with choosing between different lovers, his relation with his favourite
beloved, here symbolized by the apple, proved to be too premature. Cf.
also no. 191 infra and the crit. ed. no. 65. The poem is included by
Zhuang Jing in his collection, no. 124.
172 A poem on the poet's vacillation between love and religion. 172ac Idem :
'dems (= 'dam pa, 'doms pa), to choose, to pick out; 172bc 'dud : mdud;
mdud 'dzin, the 'knot-holder' joining together the ends of the rosary
Cphren ba). In the poem the poet is depicted to abstain from choosing
any of the hundred (beads of) the rosary (all indicating casual lovers),
and instead prefers to choose the 'knot-holder' (usually made of precious
metals and here representing his preciously 'chosen one'). He is at his
wits' end when confronted with a rosary (symbolizing his religious life)
lacking this joint (i.e. love).
173 A poem striking the same tone as the previous one. 173b yin bead
(: sas) kha ba, approx. like colloquial yin gyi red pa, "as a matter of
fact". No matter whatever (ga tsug byas, cf. also no. 52 supra) he tries
to control his mind, he is ready to burst into a song, since, as a matter
of fact, it is now in conformity with the youthful behaviour! Evidently,
374
in this poem the poet depicts his predicament of being caught up in his
youthful bodily attire, bent on a convivial life,—or perhaps it readily
accounts for his merry disposition, while at the same time his thoughts
are expected to be preoccupied with other (i.e. religious) ends.
174 The poem depicts the poet as not being insane, b u t only faking madness
i.e. as an intoxicated person or a drunkard (smyo ru 'jug mkhan, = y id
smyos su 'jug pa); 174b sban ma: also called glum ro or chah snigs,
the beer sediment, the left-over (fermented) grain after beer has been
destilled (chah btsags rjes kyi 'bru snigs, chah rtsi 'bru rlon); sbah chu,
i.e. alcohol, cf. e.g. C. Bell, The People of Tibet, p. 241. If someone is to
take the rap (or be reprimanded, bka' skyon gnah), the alcohol is the
culprit.
175 This is an adage (legs bead) type of a short poem on the conquest or
the taming of nescience (ma rig, avidyä, moha), t h a t certainly (khag
khyag, cf. nos. 153, 360, 445) will come about, once one is endowed with
the right armour of mentality 175a phra chuh or better khra chuh,
underneath the luminous eyes, cf. also nos. 413-14 infra. 175b gti mug
sgo rial, somewhat like gti mug ro rial (= ma rig le lo nal dga' can), cf.
e.g. dPe-chos rna-ba'i hdud-rtsi, p. 150, indicating the relaxed, lazy and
unconscious sleep of ignorance (ma rig), lit. sgo nal rgyag indicates to
"sleep (near) the door", i.e. when just about falling into deep sleep, or
sleep just under one's eyes. A natural, relaxed rest and a sleep easily
to be woken from.
176 A saying or r a t h e r a repartee song (tshig rgyag) extolling the wits of a
donkey. In respect to purity or clarity of mind, the donkey is quicker
t h a n the horse; Before the horse has been sattled, the donkey is already
beyond reach, far ahead on the road, having crossed the mountain pass
(la mo thebs). Cf. also Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 56, no. 1. The poem is
included by Zhuang Jing in his collection as no. 101.
177 The poplar (sbyar pa or dbyar pa) in Klu-sbug glin-ka. This garden or
park is formerly the great plain (than) or part of the marshy stretch
Cdam) (a part of it also called bzugs-khri glin-kha) located just south
of the Potala Palace in Lhasa. After 1950 the area h a s acquired an
urban character. In pre-revolutionary Tibet, on the 22th day of the
first Tibetan month, incidentally, a festival (being a part of the Great
Monlam Festivals) took place called "the Preparation of the Camp of
Klu-sbug" (klu sbug sgar sgrig), cf. C. Bell, The People of Tibet, p. 273-5;
Thub-bstan saris-rgyas, Bod kyi dus-ston, pp. 17-19; Kun-dga', "lHa-sa'i
snar-srol dus-ston gtso-che'i rigs rags-tsam no-sprod byas-pa", Bod-ljohs
zib-'jug, 1985 (4), pp. 83-84; cf. also C. Nakane, Map of Lhasa, drawn by
Z. Taring, University of Tokyo Press. The poplar growing in this park is
apparently considered to be exquisitely beautiful and lushly auspicious,
375
a haven for a tryst underneath its crown: although its interior is rotten
(i.e. the girl is basically not trustworthy, cf. also no. 340 infra), its leaves
nevertheless stay evergreen, a sign of a fickle, non-committed, but yet
viable love.
178 A poem conveying a portrayal of the loving couple in the garb of a
gander and a lakelet respectively, cf. the crit. ed. no. 9. The bird arrives
from the north looking for his beloved, a lake, the gander's favourite
haunt. A-ma mtsho-sman rgyal-mo, is here evidently referring to a
specific class of aboriginal Tibetan deities, the sMan goddesses, among
which we find e.g. the mTsho-sman rgyal-mo, the "Queen of the Lake
Spirits", cf. Nebesky-Wojkowitz, Oracles and Demons of Tibet, pp. 1 9 8 -
202, 225, 339 and Aris, Hidden Treasures and Secret Lives, p. 115;
Here evidently, this mysterious Queen may be a poetical epithet for a
damsel, cf. also nos. 250, 317, and 452 infra. But employing a word-
play on 'mother' the poet, in the gander's attire, pleas for a prospective
mating, appealing therefore to the motherly instincts, i.e. to refrain
from making the goslings unhappy.
179 In this poem the loving couple is portrayed respectively in the shape of
a yellow or golden lotus bee (madhukära), whose thoughts and feelings
remain inscrutable, respectively in the garb of a flower tree carrying
thriving leaves, and whose mind is simply replete with the wish of the
early arrival of a refreshing (bsil ma, cf. also nos. 402, 413, 439) drizzle
(sbran char, i.e. a rain of honey, i.e. love). The poem is included by
Zhuang Jing in his collection as no. 102.
180 The poplar (sbyar pa or dbyar pa) endowed with a neat appearance;
the willow tree (lean ma) with a crown (mgo) and trunk (lus) matching
(chom pa : 'choms pa, = 'cham pa) (harmoniously with one another).
The girl, maybe in the garb of a little bird, cf. crit. ed. no. 62, has fallen
in love with the so-called rgyal lean, identical with the lean ma in 180b
?, cf. also no. 183 infra. Nevertheless, it should probably be emended
to rgya lean, the 'Chinese (?) Willow', cf. Éel-goh sel-phreh, pp. 249-50
and the crit. ed. s.v. no. 12, describing three types of willow, ri lean
dbyar pa, rgya lean phra mo and kluh lean skyed ma), the leaves of
which stay perennial, i.e. its season's end is postponed, thus indicating
long-lasting love to prevail. For additional gias on rgya lean, dbyar pa
and lean ma, cf. also Bod kyi dgaf-gzas I, p. 29, no. 5; p. 36, no. 1; p. 53,
no. 5; Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas, p. 13, no. 2, p. 53, no. 3; Bod kyi glu-gzas,
p. 158, no. 2.
181 The square willow-garden of the Governor (dpon po, in this coll. ob-
viously referring to Saris-rgyas rgya-mtsho, cf. e.g. no. 409) is here
portrayed as an ideal h a u n t or tryst for a tête-à-tête, t h a t makes it
irresistible for the poet to go there (lit. "he could not deny t h a t he
376
was not going there"). But it is not without its costs to date the gover-
nor's daughter (we may presume, cf. also the crit. ed. no. 5 and no. 64
supra), the thorns and thistles pierce his fingers. 181c sla (star gsar
skyes pa, i.e. newly born again, is a tempting reading, but hardly ad-
missible) : gla, the gla ba tsher ma, also gla tshar, a thorny poisonous
shrub, also denoted star bu, Hippophae rhamnoides, Linn, of the fam.
Elaegnaceae, the Sea buckthorn (sallow thorn). Cf. Éel-gon éel-phren,
p. 213; Bod'ljons rgyun-spyod kruh-dbyïi sman-rigs, pp. 484-486; Ras-
tenija Tibetskol Meditsiny, p. 52; H. Fletcher, A Quest of Flowers, p. 179;
cf. equally gZas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 164, no. 8:
| dug ein gla ba'i tsher ma \
I mdzu gu'i snih la zug son \
| kha nas a tsha ma thon \
j zen pa gtih nas log son \
Cf. also Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 66, no.2.
182 If it is possible (to do it), the poem proclaims, then do it! If it is not
possible, then leave it as it is! The poet assures us t h a t the friend
(accompaning the Sixth Dalai Lama ?) is not the sort forced upon him
by the powerful governor (sDe-srid Sans-rgyas rgya-mtsho ?); herewith
is evidently indicated t h a t this friend is reliable and will keep the God-
king's alleged affairs in the dark.
183 The 'royal willow* {rgyal lean), cf. no. 180, = rgya lean. The combina-
tion bio sna (not snah) man nas...+...vb. + nos (= snih) ma fdod, means
"not wanting (or feeling like) doing vb. when somebody is vacillating";
However, cf. also no. 133.
184 The poet only contemplates to crack the walnut of love or of endearment,
or rather true love is like cracking a walnut. 184a Icog leog : gcog gcog;
184b rtog : gtogs; 184d a better construe is yi dvags dri za ma red. The
insects are according to the Tibetans supposed to be incarnations of the
prêtas and the smell-eaters (gandharva), semi-gods and creatures. The
poet assures his beloved of his more serious intentions, aiming only
at serious, hard-earned love (cracking the walnut), and therefore could
not settle for less, i.e. like being a small creature indulging in ordinary,
non-committal flirts (dpe: the fickle ghosts, or insects chasing after the
scent [of easy love]).
185 A poem similarly underlining the poet's sincerity. In the parallel cou-
plets, he aptly declares t h a t form and size (i.e. social position and rank)
is secondary to substance and nature (i.e. h u m a n quality and charac-
ter); 185b ri dpyad, to examine and check the right proportions of the
mountains. Cf. analogously, Bod kyi dga'-gzas II, p. 57, no. 6:
| ri mgo mtho la ma bltas \
377
186 The poet draws a white (indicating purity of heart, sincerity) line, like
a éih mkhan during work, hoping t h a t his frank and faithful approach,
the measure of the white line, would not come amiss. 186bc thiggu, i.e.
thig skud, a line or thi gu, a small or thin line (or rope, thag pa).
187 The importance attached to a prospective tryst with the beloved during
full moon is stipulated in this poem. Nothing matters, the poet declares,
except the emergence of the the moon of the fifteenth, the great day;
Who then would care for the emergence of the half moon of the twentieth
day ? When you know what is best, why settle for less!
188 In the MS this poem, as is seen, is distorted and contains only three
lines:
| kha la padma 'dab brgyad \
j sa la bab pa'i sbran char \
j bdud rtsi yin na dga' ba \
When tentatively restored, 189ab would read: The eight-spoken cakra
in space and the eight-leafed lotus on earth are two of the eight auspi-
cious emblems (astamangala, bkra éis rtags brgyad). This construction
is corroborated e.g. by gtas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 92, no. 5 = Reader
III, p. 86:
| gnam la 'khor lo rtsibs brgyad \
| sa la padma 'dab brgyad \
| bar snah bkra éis rtags brgyad |
j dga' skyid 'dzoms pa'i zih sa \
In fact, the first line, whether restored as above or not, does not
construe well with the two last lines. The reason for this is clearly
because the page shift in the manuscript. Behind the original reading
is hidden two poems.
189 A satirical poem. There is no difference whatsoever (189d gah yah is
to be preferred to [de] ni) between the clerical (chos, dharma) and the
temporal-secular ('jig Hen, loka) world, i.e. between religion and state,
since (i.e. except, min pa, = ma gtogs pa) what is needed to change the
hue Cgyur Idog, 'gyur mdog of the monk's robes) is (merely) a basket full
of red plant dye. The poem, perhaps in the usual ironic manner, hints
at the fact, t h a t behind the apparent difference in terms of outward
r a n k and position, people are often quite the same. 189a dmar rtsod
: dmar btsod, i.e. tshos, red colour, dye or madder extracted from a
378
grass plant (diet, bod snam la rgyag byed kyi tshos, 'a dye for colouring
Tibetan woolen cloth); bio ma : slo ma, a small basket.
190 Here mgo la : sgan la, i.e. in addition to, upon; 190b éih béag pa :
sin [de] éa pa, i.e. êiméapà (the tree Dalbergia Sissoo, the Asoka tree)
(and in some dictionaries (doubtfully ?) identified with the foil, tree)
denoted a ga ru also, i.e. agaru or aguru, the light (lei med), evergreen
fragrant Indian Aloe tree (Aquilaria agallocha), cf. éel-goh sel-phren,
p. 235; S.C. Banerjee, Flora and Fauna in Sanskrit Literature, pp. 26
and 75-6; The black aleowood is especially sacred and considered to
contain occult properties, i.e. its scent is used to drive away evil or
demonic spirits. Mr. Tashi Tshering objects to identifying sin béag pa
with the Aloe tree; brdzahs, here "to stuff in", "to load upon", "to add
onto" (= 'jug pa) the fire; 190c bya thabs : ja thab, an earthen vessel
(khog ma) for boiling tea; 190d chags : chag, i.e. although it is such a
tea pot, it is unable to stand (= bzod mi thub) the heat and is bound to
break into pieces.
191 If the arrow (mda' mo, note the word-play on the female, cf. the crit.
ed. no. 59), one of two things (yab gcig : ya gcig, gzu daft mda! mo
belonging together), which was launched, hits (its target) the sweet
apple (ku eu la, better ku éur to retain six syllables), then good-bye to
the (empty) colourful/striped quiver! Here the poet is faced with the
delicate problem of choosing between two lovers, since once his arrow
hit the new beloved (the sweet apple), he is forced, at the same time (i.e.
meanwhile, or as a substitute, de sul, = de'i rih la) to bid the old lover
good-bye (the quiver holding b u t one arrow). 191c stag don khra mo,
the colourful/striped (khra mo, = khra khra, or phra mo: fine, delicate)
tiger skin quiver (stag don, i.e. stag Ipags las bzos pa'i mda' don, cf.
also nos. 262, 375, 405), may here similarly symbolize another girl.
192 Tobacco (tha mi kha : tha ma kha) is together with alcohol the con-
stituents of a happy life, i.e. luxurious stimulants. 192c gu li ? a kind
of gold ? or a place name in Tibet ? To live a life without rtsam pa,
Tibet's stable diary, would be fatal, whereas the stimulants are dispens-
able items.
193 A metaphorical poem. The first two verses seem somewhat corrupt, a
better construction would probably read:
| gnam de kha mdog shon mo \
| gos chen Icags nag 'og nas \
(gi is deleted): "[In] the blue sky, underneath the iron-black (Icags nag,
actually dark-blue) clouds (gos chen = mkha' gos can, i.e. sprin, but
here also brocade dress)"; 193cd sgo tshigs rgyal mo : dgu tshigs skya
mo, the grayish 'heavenly belt (gnam kyi ska (or ske or sked) rags)'
379
here of a golden colour, denoting the Milky Way or a galaxy, also called
the "mouth steam of the Yaksa" (gnod sbyin kha rlahs); spam pa =
legs pa, mdzes pa, mtshar ba, beautiful, nice, fine. In this poignant
poem, clearly, the poet compares the beauty of the girl, all donned in
a darkblue brocade phyu pa embellished with a gold belt (= chah ma),
with the scenario of the sky, extolling her brilliance to surpass even the
magnificent bounded (foamy and smoke-coloured) ring belt or nebula
(but, as said, more likely representing the Milky Way), to be observed
especially during wintertime underneath the starlit vault at nighttime.
194 The phrase Ita ha gyah 'dzin poses a problem. Literally it renders "up-
holding an outlook of prosperity (gyah)", an interpretation which does
not readily make any sense. It hardly tallies with nor refers to the
Buddhist term Ita ha mchog 'dzin or drstiparâmaréa, cf. Abhidharma-
samuccaya, p. 7; Abhidharmakosabhäsya, ad V. 6. I shall finally call
attention to the phrase me tog y an 'dzin, an epithet for a kind of deli-
cious (and flower-perfumed; cf. also no. 310 ?) Chinese tea (rgyaja), a
kenning occuring repeatedly in the Gesar Epic; cf. I, fol. 17a; II, 62a-b
(ed. R. Stein, 1956). But this construction is weakened by a parallel
phrase in no. 243 infra, where Ita ha gyah 'dzin most likely refers to
a stimulant to be smoked. From the present context, corroborated by
no. 243 infra, it evidently alludes to a kind of Chinese pipe or tobacco,
and the phrase Ita ha gyah 'dzin is thus probably a euphemism indicat-
ing the stoic and upperish posture of a Chinese smoker. Neither were
the boiled tea nor the brewed chah to be partaken of. Please bring
(instead) the Chinese pipe, a present from the Chinese emperor! The
deeper message in this poem still escapes me.
195 Amber (spos éel), of a transparent yellow or golden hue, [g]ser kha
d[v]ah[s] ba; 195b studded or spangled with red spots and imbued with
the colour of an ornament of white pearls; It is moreover gilted or worn
(around her neck) to been seen clearly.
196 The stars in the east, the Pleiades (smin drug; Skt. krttikâ; M. meàid
odun; C. mâotôu) the third mansion; cf. R.A. Miller, JAOS, vol. 108 (1),
pp. 1-25; cf. also nos. 265, 267-268 and 344 infra. The six or seven
daughters of Atlas and Pleione, sisters of the Hyades. This cluster of
stars in the constellation Taurus was admonished to come (yar dpe :
yarphebs, but see similarly no. 267: an ideal example) and take a seat!
In other words, make yourselves visible! These stars usually symbolize,
as here, girls and damsels. Cf. Das' diet pp. 316 and 991, where the
stars in this constellation are viewed as or embodiments of nymphs
and goddesses. Cf. also Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 69, no. 5; p. 99, no. 1;
Bod kyi dga'-gias II, p. 18, no. 1; p. 38, no. 4 and p. 52, no. 2; gtas-
tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 154, nos. 5-6; Bod-rigs kyi glu-gias, p. 4 1 , no. 2;
380
sDe-dge'i dmans-glu, p. 107, no. 2; Duncan, 1961, pp. 27, 62. In this
poem or song, which is recited or sung by a male, the stars (= girls) are
entreated to indulge in negotiations (i.e. on engagements), once they are
independent (for the girls: independent or free from the parents). The
Pleiades stars are usually visible the whole year (except april-june), for
which reason they wield a strong symbolic imagery on the Tibetans.
197 The rgya glitt is a reed oboe (oblong, tubular, sbubs ma) and a musi-
cal instrument (rol cha) used in religious ceremonies, here perpetually
sounding in a pleasant way. The young lad's voice (gdahs) was not able
to keep on to the end, i.e. he could not sustain the note and not compete
with the instrument in auditory excellence. Now, let's see whether he,
at least, can buzz like the bees constantly circulating around the hive.
For 197d, cf. also no. 317 infra.
198 A poem on carousal and revelry. The word 'or pa would most readily
be identified with 'bor, quantity, i.e. "bring lots of chahV\ However,
the etymology points in another direction: 'or pa is colloq. for 'ol ka,
a wooden gutter carrying rain-water from the roof of a house (= chu
'gro'i rka); "So bring (huge quantities of beer in a quantity similar to
water floating from) the wooden gutter!" Again: "Bring a lot of beer!"
The tavern-woman's butter lamp is consumed; 198c rgyal-chen dpag-
bsam, the planet Venus (pa sans, éukra), the big star visible at dusk
and, as here, at early dawn (srod dan tho rafts mthoh thub pa'i skar
chen), but, the poet assures us, there is no fear of roaming in complete
darkness, this wish-granting star, the Great Victorious One has arrived
high upon the heaven's firmament. When the Madam, the Inn-keeper's
lamp burned down, the poet had to take recourse to the nature's own
light, provided him by this bright star.
199 For the great day, the fifteenth day of the month, the day of the full
moon, cf. our crit. ed. no. 4 1 ; 199c gnah sos : gnas bzod bdepo, cf. song,
no. 57 supra; 199d the senses will develop (yar bskyeld], = goh 'phel).
The poem is found almost identical in Bod kyi dga'-gzas II, p. 55, no. 4
= gZas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 146, no. 4.
200 A poem on archery extolling the bow igiu ma) and the arrow (mda*
mo); The bow must be of an exquisite white colour and when bent the
bow must at the same time be supple and flexible (gnen 'khyoh : rnnen
gyoh, or kyoh); When shot off, the flying arrow should be decorated with
vermilion-coloured feathers stemming from the vulture. See Nebesky-
Wojkowitz, Oracles and Demons of Tibet, p. 365. Cf. analogously e.g.
Glu-chuh sna-tshogs, p. 4:
| gzu ma tshur la ma bkug
| mda' mo phar la ma btan \
381
201 Amidst a large crowd of ascetics (i.e. yogins) the poet heard the har-
monious voice of the religious conch instrument. The poet, enthused
by this entirely religious setting, was completely "infatuated with the
assembly-tea" of the congregation; The assembly-tea, i.e. the tea reg-
ularly being drunk at the assemblage of many monks is here j u s t a
euphemism for this gathering of monks and thus indicates the poet's
recollection of religious life and the wish to embrace religion. Cf. also
G. Tucci & W. Heissig, Die Religionen Tibets und der Mongolei, p. 160.
202 For réf., cf. no. 199; At the evening of the great day, the full moon of
the fifteenth, a day prospective of mating, the poet, we may surmise,
initially went (to Jo-khan) to pay his respect to the statue of (Ma-gcig)
dPal-ldan lha-mo, where he met his dear girl (a Ice bu mo), who shed
the "tears of honey-rain" without reason or in vain {don med [du], or
even for a different reason). For the poet and the girl, named (mih can)
Punye, i.e. *bSod-nams, nothing b u t sorrow prevailed.
203 His parents, to whom he is much beholden, and who sojourn in their dis-
t a n t homeland, are not present. Although (the parents) are not present,
there is no reason to feel gloomy as the poet has somebody who is better
than his mother, i.e. his beloved, who is already well beyond the moun-
tain pass, on his way to him. This poem is included in Zhuang Jingfs
anthology as no. 103.
204 Here gyis : gyi. The little bird, named bsKal-bzan sgrol-nia, is proba-
bly here the cuckoo (khu byug snon mo), cf. no. 122 supra and no. 396
infra or the thrush ('jol mo), cf. e.g. no. 438 infra, nesting in the plea-
sance of 'Phyoïï-rgyas (is 'Phyoris rgyas dga' spro, the name of a noble
family ?); although the willow tree shed its leaves (lean lo = lean ma'i
lo ma)(usually a sign of unrequited love) the bird will raise its sweet
warble. The bird, here embodying the female (or alternatively male)
lover, rose its sweet voice. It evidently occasioned the tree to charm
Çkhyug so : 'khyugls] bzo, making its swift, seductive movements, cf.
also no. 160 supra) the poet. Note here the double entendre in the
phrase lean lo skyur, which both means "the willow shed its leaves"
and "to remove (shed) the braided hair (of a girl)", i.e. to tonsure and
to become a nun. So although she became a nun, she would still make
her seductive movements.
205 The bDe-skyid-gliri family (also called Ram-pa khan-gsar) in lHo-ron be-
longs to the Tibetan aristocracy (sku drag, sgerpa), cf. L. Petech, Aris-
tocracy and Government in Tibet (1728-1959), pp. 19, 69, 110; H.R.H.
Prince Peter of Greece and Denmark, The Aristocracy of Central Tibet,
382
made of clay) will find no time, i.e. no chance. The water symbolizes the
stream of love, so love will here prove to be unrequited. The potential
recipient of the water is evidently the flower, i.e. his beloved, and the
bucket the poet himself.
210 In this poem, j u s t as in poem no. 66 supra, two architectural features
are employed, the base pillar (ka ba), symbolizing the male and up-
holding the edifice of love and matrimony, and the cross beam igduh
ma), symbolizing the female, roofing and framing the edifice of the love
construction. Here the poet functions as the base pillar and his beloved
is asked to be the cross beam. If, the poet declared, I do not mess up
things (lit. "do not change"), then there is no fear that she will change!
That is, become infidel. An equally plausible reading would suggest:
| ka ba ma 'gyur [zus chog] \
j gduh ma 'gyur [yon] dogs mi 'dug
(The deletion of yon is optional, but in order to retain six syllables
preferable). There is a word-play, incidentally, on 'gyur dogs, 'doubts
as to change' with 'gyur mdog/ldog, 'to transform*. Whereas the poet
ascertains t h a t he will stay firm, i.e. fidel and trustworthy, there still
remain in his eyes doubts as to whether the girl will be fickle or not.
Sung or recited by a male.
211 The poet here solicits the girl not to nourish wrong or false (ma nor
ba) thoughts (bsam pa'i byed chog : bsam pa'i byed phyogs) about him.
Drawing his simile from nature, his serenity even amounted to assure
her t h a t their relation is as close as the natural connection (gal te mgo
'brel : gal ta mgo 'brel or sbrel) between the pass and the valley. The
idiom used in this simile to underpin the connection between the pass
and the valley is the word gal ta mgo sbrel. It is a kind of bag container
(blug[s] snod) usually containing provisions such as flour (rgyags phye)
and often made of coarse goat's hair (sackcloth material, re Ide, re ba,
sbre bo). Moreover, it consists of two sacks which are hung around the
neck of a mule hanging loosely down on each side of its head. Employed
here to indicate the prospective tête-à-tête of the loving couple, despite
being apart, this idiom is more generally employed as simile to indicate
true intimacy. 2 l i d la is redundant.
212 The Juniper (lha sin éug pa), the sacred tree, often referring invari-
ously to different species, most often referring to the Himalayan Juniper
(genus Juniperus, here prob, the Juniperus recurva, but also pseudos-
abina and excelsa), the evergreen shrub or tree of the cypress and the
pine family (Cupressaceae, Pinaceae), a coniferous tree; the epithet lha
sin reflects Skt. devadäru, the sacred tree, referring to the closely re-
lated Cedrus deodara, the Himalayan Cedar, Pinar deodara, Roxb., Ce-
drus libani Barrel. When the juniper berries are burned they exude
384
213 Here rtog : gtogs; The prayer-flag (dar Icog) with a victorious banner
atop counting nine auspicious colours, or consisting of five basic colours
and the foil, emblems: ni ma, zla ba, padma and ral gri, nine in all.
The poet, initially, is but contemplating to hoist high the prayer-flag on
the house or on the tree, but the poet hesitated, why, he ponders, should
he h a n g up a flag consisting of one or two full square (kha gan kha do,
= 'phred gzuh, dkyus zen, vertically and horizontally of equal (mnam
pa) length, cf. also no. 428) of cotton linen ? A poem on unrequited love,
perhaps.
214 A mixture of snow and rain igahs ma char, also kha ma char, = kha ba
dan char pa 'dres ma), i.e. sleet. The sleet falling at the border-line of
the meadow stretch (span) and the vegetation-free, alpine stretch (gyaO
high up in the mountains. The poet's 'meadow-ornament' flower (cf.
no. 130 supra), here symbolizing his beloved, is going to be eliminated
(chu zos : chud zos, or bzos, gzon) by the sleet following in the wake of
autumn's arrival.
215 Here lar [nas] = gtin nas, basically, truly, actually. 215ab Since the poet
fell in love (sems dpa' (: pa) dkar (replacable with dga*), cf. e.g. no. 234
infra) years and months had passed, i.e. the poet h a s been in love for a
long time, only the poet still had not had a tryst with his beloved. For
215d, cf. also no. 196d.
385
216 The Lord of the Seven Horses, i.e. rta bdun bdagpo, saptâéveévara, an
epithet of the sun, whose chariot is said to be drawn by seven horses
symbolizing the seven days of the week. Were the girl to accept the Sun
as (her owner) i.e. husband, then, the poet carols, it would mentally and
physically just suit Cphrod pa = nus pa, mthun pa, 'os pa) him, young
person. Obviously, the young poet's girl friend is planning to marry
another man. Being compared to the Lord of the Seven Horses, he is
clearly in a high position.
217 The poet owned up to not adhering to a lineage of powerful magicians
or exorcists (snags pa), in Tibet usually committed to weather control
etc., hence often called 'weather-men'. Still, the poet assures us, he is
nevertheless karmically disposed to hinder hail up in the mountainous
ravines (thus preventing the hail to strike inhabited areas in the valley
below); 217d for the construction vb. + biin pa'i 'phros yin, meaning
something like "[it] is at the time or consequence (here prob, colloq. for
las 'phro, cf. crit. ed. no. 7) of doing vb." (vb. près, part.), cf. e.g. also
song nos. 248, 351 infra.
218 This song should be read in conjunction with the previous one. 218a
'phos kha : phod k[h]a, the dress (kha gyon gyi gos) worn (bzes pa) by
the snags pa, here of the black h a t (for ill. cf. Tucci & Heissig, Die Re-
ligionen Tibets und der Mongolei, p. 142-3), often used on stage, i.e. at
religious ceremonies and dances Ccham gos); 218b "Oh my (a re), what
a frightful appearance this figure made!" When black clouds gathered
menacingly in the sky above, he vanished (gya[r] son), or fell into the
visible ignah : snah) omens or signs. When the shags pa intends to stop
e.g. the rain, he must meditatively concentrate upon this phenomenon,
and his vision is directed towards the has nan. Here, ironically, the
shags pa made a dreadful appearance, but in reality, when clouds actu-
ally gathered, i.e. when problems appeared, he vanished like a coward.
219 The face of the white, bright moon, a stock epithet for a damsel, cf. crit.
ed. no. 1, here outmatching all other girls. Note also here the word-
play on zla ba with zla in 'gran zla (syn. 'gran do, 'gran ya), meaning
a peer, a match, an equal, most freq. employed in the negative, i.e.
nonpareil, matchless or peerless, as well as in the word zla bo, meaning
partner, friend, companion etc. This favourite damsel of the poet is
here likened to an (all-consuming) ocean beckoning to (signalling, i.e.
attracting) young lovers.
220 An allusive poem. From the corner of her eye, the poem tells us, the
girl shot (sideway glances at the boy) in form of small arrows (of love,
nag or myagphran mda' mo, 'tiny notch, arrows'; cf. the Gesar Epic, ed.
R. Stein, 1956, index, p. 392) signalling her cri-de-cœur or her heart's
yearning. They penetrated (the target), i.e. the high pasture of the
386
221 When fall heralded its arrival with the eighth month, the body-colour of
nature turned yellow. The season of blossoming (i.e. love and mating,
cf. e.g. the crit. ed. no. 7) subsided, to such an extent that although
you applied glue (sprin : spyiri) to the (otherwise profusely growing and
hardy) leaves of the poplar (sbyar pa or dbyar pa) they would not stick
to the stalks, the season of romance was irrevocably doomed. 221d A
better reading would give: 'byar ba skal ba mi 'dug,
222 This poem is, as it transpires, read to have 6 lines, b u t two lines may
well be missing, in which case, then, they should be applied to the first
two lines (222ab) and thereby form a separate verse-poem. The monas-
teries of Se-ra and 'Bras-spuns are earnestly supplicated to remain firm
and constant! When passing through Ron-chen and Ron-chun (proba-
bly place-names in gTsan, otherwise large or small gorges and valleys),
the poet conceded, his obstracles and difficulties surpass those of oth-
ers. When finally meeting his guru, the Pan-chen bla-ma, his parents
were on his mind. The picture behind this poem, it appears, perhaps
tells us t h a t for the poet to turn a lay-man (or into a lay-man's dress,
sku sky a chas su bsgyur ba) is not an easy task, thus admonishing the
novices to stay monk. It further allows for a historical reconstruction,
since in 1702, the young God-king went into the presence of the Fifth
Panchen Lama at bKra-sis lhun-po and renounced his religious vows,
cf. also Chab-spel, 1987, p. 300. This poem thus, couched in a frank,
yet gloomy diction, relates about his fair wishes t h a t the (three) pillars
of the Yellow Sect, i.e. Se-ra, 'Bras-spuns (incl. here also dGa'-ldan) (se
'bras dga' gsum), may remain prosperously intact (a sign of rependence
or vacillating conscience ?), a farewell or parting salute t h a t escaped
the poet prior to his crucial journey to bKra-sis lhun-po, an onerous
and daring task to undertake indeed, evoking concern for the where-
abouts of his parents and, equally likely, memories of his childhood.
223 The mandala, or microcosmic diagram, of the eight great Näga-s, klu
brgyad dkyil 'khor, a group of supernatural water-spirits or Serpent
Protectors, often associated with the legendary eight great cemeteries,
cf. Nebesky-Wojkowitz, Oracles and Demons of Tibet, p. 265, Das' diet,
p. 45. When erecting houses etc. one perpetually supplicates and makes
invocation to the dei loci such as the näga-s. If, despite placating these
creatures in an apotropaic and propitiatory endeavour by drawing this
diagram, they still exhibit a fiendish and ferocious attitude, to remain
indifferent then is no alternative. Recourse must be taken to eliminate
387
the creatures physically, i.e. by digging and turning up the soil and
rocks (sa sko (: rko) rdo slog btaii gton).
224 The lCags-p[h]o-ri of dBus, the Iron or Medical Hill in Lhasa, located
to the south of the Potala, was formerly the site of the famous medical
college, the sMan-rtsis-khari. It is often conceived as the estate (pha
gzis, a hereditary estate, patrilineally transmitted, from which a noble
family usually took its name. Often more loosely = pha yul, homeland)
of Than-ston rgyal-po (A.D. 1385 -1464), a renowned rNin-ma-pa as-
cetic (grub thob) and Treasury-finder (gter ston), considered, inter alia,
as Tibet's iron bridge builder par excellence and, incidentally, the fa-
ther of the Tibetan drama tradition; cf. e.g. J a n e t Gyatso, "Thang-stong
rGyal-po, Father of the Tibetan Drama Tradition: The Bodhisattva as
Artist", in Zlos-gar (ed. J a m y a n g Norbu) pp. 91-104; R.A. Stein, 1959,
pp. 513ff. The poet concedes ignorance as to which girl actually h a s the
good fortune (las 'phro, cf. crit. ed. no. 7, = skal ba, cf. no. 232 infra,
i.e. is destined to have a tryst with him), admonishing the lucky one
(or merely the first the best ?) to put up the ladder (climbing stairs,
skad rdza : skas 'dzeg, b u t also reversely 'dzeg skas, 'dzeg Hen) and
ascend! In this poem the romance-destined beloved is urged to climb
the stairs either to lCags-p[h]o-ri, in order to secure an eye-view of her
beloved, the young God-king on the roof of the Potala, or, simply, ad-
monished to fetch the ladder and climb the very walls of the Potala
itself. Construed differently, the lCags-p[h]o-ri may here depict the girl
and Than-ston rgyal-po may embody the God-king, who, following this
interpretation, once owned or possessed 'the girl' (the estate), but now
proclaims: Anyone who wants her go and take her!
225 The herbal grass plant (sno sman, rtsva rigs) sug pa, the Saponaria
vaccaria or, more correctly, the Vaccaria pyramidata Medic, of the fam.
Dianthus of the Caryophyllaceae, employed, inter alia, in Tibet as a
detergent (dag byed) and a soap substitute being, as it is, saponin-rich.
Hence its English name soapwort or bouncing bet. According to the
Tibetans, two species are found: a species denoted lug sug, sheep sug,
with large, white roots, leaves and stalks and ra sug, a goat sug, with
small, black ditto; cf. Sel-gon sel-phren, pp. 317-8; Bod-ljohs rgyun-
spyod krun-dbyi'i sman-rigs, pp. 487-9, ill. 305. A countless amount of
sug pa was pulled out and collected from the right side of the mountain;
the sug pa was used to wash off the taunting slander of the poet and
the damsel (ma skyes a ma, cf. the crit. ed. no. 1); 225a log : logs; 225b
Ikog : bkog (from 'gogpa, = 'don pa, or rko ba) to pull up, dig out; 225d
gton, is plausible, an equally plausible reading would suggest chog, cf.
Zhuang «ling's reading of this poem in his collection, no. 106.
226 Analogously and in conjunction with the previous verse poem, the poet
also plucked (rtog : gtog) a mixture ('dres ma) of spa éug, a collective
388
term for spa ma éugpa, spa ma is often called éugpa tsher ma can, prob,
the Juniperus squamata or chinensis, often also identified with Sabina
recurva, a low-growing and shrubby (tons chuh, dense and rounded),
prickly (tsher ma can), (silver-)blue or bluish-green foliaged variety of
the Juniper; cf. also Sel-goh êel-phreh, p. 228; the juniper itself (cf.
note 212 supra). The spa êug was collected, the poet tells us, from
the left side (log : logs) of the mountain. These shrubs were employed
as incense and burned in honour of the gods soliciting them (and in
particular dPal-ldan lha-mo, cf. note 138 supra) to concert marriage
(gnen sgrig) between the loving couple. For additional gzas on spa ma,
cf. Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 74, nos. 3-4; Bod kyi dga'-géas II, p. 39, no. 5
= gtas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, pp. 99-100, no. 7. Zhuang Jing has also
included this poem in his collection, no. 107.
227 The fortification in question, the castle of the btsan po, a local demon,
or of the srun ma, the local protective deity, is probably the Potala,
a rdzoh btsan, the impenetrable stronghold; cf. the next songs and
Nebesky-Wojkowitz, Oracles and Demons of Tibet, pp. 166-176. The
young stripling (o to) thus declared that he didn't say t h a t he wouldn't
remain (in the Potala), only he just wanted to beg for temporary leave
of absence ('khor zag, = dgohs pa zu) driven by his mindfulness of his
'mother', a perfect cover-up, or, rather, a stock euphemism for a girl,
here a three-night-date. In other words, the God-king does not mind
staying in the Potala, but a three days leave of absence is indispens-
able. On three days and a ma, cf. the crit. ed. no. 25 and e.g. Bod kyi
dga'-gzas I, p. 64, no. 6; p. 87, no. 2; p. 88, no. 4 and p. 122, no. 5.
228 The willow was not broken asunder or violated and the thrush ('jol ma
: 'jol mo) was not scared away, i.e. requited love prevailed, cf. crit. ed.
no. 62. The tiny Serpent Temple under the northern escarpment is
located on a circular island in the lakelet below the Potala, q.v. the
crit. ed. no. 65. In other words, although someone tried to break the
willow asunder, I, the poet conceded, did not perpetrate it. In a like
manner, although someone tried to disturb or frighten the thrush e.g.
by throwing stones at it, again the poet, as said, was not the culprit.
The God-king is thus not indulging in any liaisons. However, what is
certain, the poet maintains, he has the power, i.e. the right, to attend a
spectacular show (bltas mo blta : Had mo Ha) staged there. The show
before his eyes is, we of course may surmise, 'the game of love' between
the willows and the birds staged on his island. 228d yon : yod. The
poem is included by Zhuang Jing, no. 108.
229 A poem lauding the Dalai Lama, the protector of the Tibetan coun-
try. The 'fire-crystal or the sun-stone' (me eel, süryakäntamani) and
the 'water-crystal or the moon-stone' (chu éel, candrakäntamani) are of
389
232 The small sorrel deers (é[v]a ba smug chuh, cf. also Bod kyi dga'-géas I,
p. 75, no. 1) paced around on the left slopes (log : logs) of the mountain
(below the Potala ?). Ignorant as to which (hunter) has the good luck
or is destined to catch any of them (i.e. to love and mate the girl), the
poet admonishes the lucky one to erect a stony staircase or stone stair
(rdo thebs : rdo them) and to ascend! In other words, go and catch her!
233 In the azure-blue sky the moon appeared, dazzling even more white
(dkar ga : dkar ba) than the conch shell. Analogously, in the midst
of the row of seated guests, i.e. at party time, the tea pot shone more
clear (dvahs, transparent) t h a n crystal. Apparently the tea-pot h a d
been filled with chah. As is known, chah is more pellucid (i.e. liquid)
than crystal.
234 Since the two of us, the loving couple, had fallen in love (semspa dkar,
white thoughts usually indicate a pious attitude, but equally often they
express amorous sentiments) no time has passed (i.e. year and month
had not elapsed, 234b yah is redundant). But alas! Soon after deep
repentance or grief Cgyod) for his yearning (= ten pa log, aversion)
haunted the poet, to such an extent t h a t it 'reached the ninth storey'
(thog so dgu thog, thog so, colloq. for thog sa, thog rtsegls], floor). In
other words: Reached the level of utter disgust or repulse. 234d delete
la; Finally, one may also suggest—from the context—to delete ma in
234b, to retain a reading similar to song no. 215 supra, i.e. a long time
390
has passed). Whatever, the dividing line between love and hate is thin
indeed!
235 Cf. similarly no. 141 supra. When the sun or the moon emerge in the
sky, no one knows the 'story* of the stars, i.e. there is no talk about
the stars, being either completely or partially invisible since the sun
and the moon are so dominant. Similarly, the poem tells us, when the
owner (i.e. the husband) met with his wealth (nor, precious object, in
casu = a wife or spouse, cf. crit. éd. nos. 3, 4 and 31), then there is no
'story* about 'objects' (dnos po, 'minor things' or entities, prob, here =
casual lovers) i.e. no secret affairs.
236 When the animal emerges from (among) the eastern mountains, it was
thought to be a deer (a portrait of a pretty girl, cf. also no. 232 supra).
Only, when the creature reached the western mountains, it turned out
to be a leg-broken antelope (rgo ba : dgo ba, Procapra picticaudata,
Hodgson, here an ugly girl). Included by Zhuang Jing, no. 110.
237 The big, yellow flat felt h a t ('hog [r]do or 'bog tho; the term is of Mongo-
lian origin: bogdo, "precious") usually worn by the previous lay officials
of the Tibetan government (srid gzun gi las tshan skya bo) and the
aristocrats, cf. also C. Bell, The People of Tibet, pp. 20-21, The per-
sonage wearing this h a t appears to resemble the lightning (thog) in the
sky, cf. also nos. 309, 412 infra. As sudden as thunderbolts are hurled
down (thog rgyag, gnam Icags Ihuh ba) or thunderclaps are created,
these officials and aristocrats, like magicians (cf. nos. 217-18 supra),
are capable of inflicting sundry punishments upon ordinary people, so
beware of this type of person, "no one knows where the lightning (i.e.
punishment) will strike", so enemies should beware, they may strike
any time!
240 The path of love is thornful and toilsome indeed. In this poem the poet
is determined to stay with (the girl) for three days (cf. also no. 227 and
the crit. ed. no. 25), despite the fact t h a t the chos skyon (dharmapäla) is
frightful and dreadful. Here evidently, the chos skyon is a euphemism
for the parents of the girl. Cf. analogously the crit. ed. no. 65. Although
the route leading to the beloved (or her heart) is likened to the narrow,
precipitous path of bar do (cf. also nos. 62, 142), the poet is neverthe-
less resolved, still retaining the simile of the dramatic events of the bar
do, to breach through to her by fighting his way through the great per-
ils facing him after having equipped himself (rtags : btags, fastening
around the waist) with the paraphernalia of a warrior whenever enter-
. ing the battle-field {'khor gsum : mtshon cha : arrow (mda3), sword (gri)
and spear (mduh)).
241 In line with the above poem, the poet here likewise portrays his un-
swerving and fervent wish to live a life devoted to love: Here apparently
two men are wooing the same girl depicted as the sweet-smelling juniper
tree (used as incense, cf. no. 212 supra); should he die, well let him die
and let the axe break if it must break (chags...chags : chag...chag). At
any cost, the poet openly proclaim t h a t even at the risk of dying or even
at the risk that the axe should break, he will have the girl and will not
allow (his rival) to smell the juniper (i.e. to let him have her). 241c
counts seven syll., la is redundant.
242 A poem conceived in the same vein as the previous one. Should people
spread rumours about him, well let them! Should the dogs bark, well let
them (lit.: "Should the dogs eat, let them eat", i.e. here to howl, which
again might betray his nightly excursions and escapades)! Even, (along)
the route which he frequented {'grul rgyun, leading to his paramours) he
had fastened (dam : bsdams) the mouth of the beggars (spran = spran
po, likewise to bar them from revealing anything). Why ? Because
from now on, he has decided to discontinue his illicit traffic. So he
couldn't care less! Incidentally, one may even suggest, purely from a
logical point of view, to emend 242d good rgyu yin no to gcod rgyu med
do, i.e. "no way would he stop" dating his secret lovers. Stubbornly, he
would henceforth all the more pursue female relationships. Further, we
may perhaps read another level of association into the poem: Behind
the ill-natured slander and defaming designs we may envisage, aside
from any spiteful opinio vulgus, some complacent slanderers among the
nobility or the ecclesiastics, who were unable to compromise with the
poet's ill-earned reign and buoyant disposition. Again, in the garb of the
all-devouring dogs which harassed him or prey on him with their bark-
ing, we may, aside from the above detractors, perhaps see the Chinese
and the Mongols portrayed, who like bloodhounds ceaselessly vied for
supremacy over Tibet, fidgeting along its threshold, impatiently seeking
392
245 A mountain pass (la mo); la rdzas, a stone cairn (rdo'i tshom bu) at
the summit of passed often profusively decorated with prayer-flags, of-
ten the same as la rtse, cf. A.M. Macdonald, "Note sur les Megalithes
393
tibétains", JA, 1953, pp. 68. 245b spahpo : dpahpo, witness. The poet
thus took these two topographical features as witness, i.e as checkpoints
or marks. 245c the superb horse (rta mchog, aêvaratna) often associ-
ated with the mythological horse of Indra, Balähaka (T. rTa'i rgyal po
can (= spyan) ées); synonyms: legs 'gro, "fine pacer", Huh gi géog pa
can, "endowed with the feathers of the wind", Huh las rgyal, "wind-
conquerer", mam par dul, "completely tamed", rigs Idan, "the noble
breed" and gyi lift, ace. to Das' diet. p. 235, the name of a good breed of
horses from Amdo, where twelve different breeds are found; A-M. Blon-
deau, Matériaux pour l'Étude de l'Hippologie, pp. 157, 160, 164; Pema
Tsering, 1979, p. 177; 245c a li : gyi lift ? The superbly bred horse,
which moves swiftly, and which is of a reddish gray hue (or reddish
green (sfton dmar); but The Pentaglot Diet, III, p. 4340: gro dmar, C.
shèxiâng qîng; musk-colour; ibid., p. 4319: gyi lin gro dmar; C. lùër, 'a
green-eared horse' (a special breed of horse ?); p. 4322: gyi lin rta mchog;
C. lai yuânliù) cf. also no. 434 infra. Phrasing this poem rhetorically,
the poet, by identifying himself in the garb of a strong horse, submits
himself here either to a test in horse-racing, convinced, evidently, t h a t
he will pass. Or here we may see this as a call for a competition between
two rivals.
246 A plain romantic poem couched in a traditional setting of a willow grove
and the thrush, the girl, which offers her sweet warble, cf. crit. ed.
no. 64: Here the lover is aware of the density (tshags mthug pa) of
the willow grove, and their long-lasting acquaintance, having lasted for
about five years (lo mo = lo) now, h a s for his part passed by listening
to her enchanting song. Phrased differently, the poet cannot have her,
although he has tried for five years, his failure probably to be ascribed
to the intervention of the girl's parents.
247 This and the following poem seem to be somewhat corrupt in the MS.
In my reading, there only seems to be three verses in this poem oddly
enough followed by a line, in a secunda manus (mchan), added in the
margin of the MS reading: sluh gi lha mo [d]kar mo, an apparently
nonsensical phrase when read with the three other lines. The walnuts
and peaches are found in bounteous measures ('bol ba, = 'bol po, abun-
dance) in the poet's monasterial estate (dgon géis); so, "don't shake the
trees in the willow grove!" Here the walnuts and the peaches refer to
different type of girls (walnuts, as is known, is hard to crack, and may
thus indicate a 'difficult' girl, whereas the peach type girl evidently is
a smooth and tender-natured girl, cf. below). Thus the poet indulges in
the company of various types of women, of which there are plenty in
his estate. Only the poem admonishes him not to 'shake' the tree in the
willow grove, i.e. not to seek another girl, a tree which we, incidentally,
know never carries any fruit. One may thus surmise t h a t it is a forlorn
394
hope. Or perhaps even the girl in question may be the enigmatic Sluh
(: Klun ?) IHa-mo dkar-mo, a goddess and a brtan ma ?—the identity
of which remains unsolved. For additional gzas conveying the picture
of the kham bu and star k[h]a, cf. e.g. Bod kyi dga'-gzas II, p. 34, no. 2:
| star kha bzas pa'i star skogs \
j rta ra'i nan la gyugs yod \
j kham bu bzas pa'i kham tshig
| gyugs sa med par bsdad yod \
gZas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 170, no. 1:
| star khaï nan shin iim byuh \
j kham huï phyi pags zim byuh \
| ein tog a mra'i 'bras bu \
| phyi nah gfiis ka Um byuh \
Cf. analogously, Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 60, no. 1.
248 This poem is likewise corrupt, the MS merely reads:
| dan po lo yag Ijah pa \
| byas bzin pa'i 'phros yin \
In fact, it appears to be beyond emendation. The reason is evidently
t h a t the page here is turning so t h a t the first two lines evidently are
missing. Nevertheless, in our suggested reconstruction these two lines
now constitute the first and the last line of the quatrain, but the two
lines should as said most probably be read in sequence. 248ab, cf.
analogously crit. ed. no. 2, where Ijah pa indicates the green sprouts,
which are planted prior to the produce of a good harvest (lo [t[h]og] yag),
and when ripened (smin pa), the grass eventually turns into stalks of
hay. Hence our tentative construction. The perspective of a love affair,
the poet foresees, is dependent upon their doings, cf. no. 217 supra for
this construction. Nevertheless, a proper reading and reconstruction of
this poem is hardly plausible.
249 This poem is apparently intended to depict lHa-bzan Qan. To the exter-
nal world this figure behaves as if he is 'the Mongolian uncle', i.e. acting
as if he is an uncle to the poet, and yet internally he is troublesome (sba
ri sbi ri, lit. 'unclear', just as when being befogged by alcohol, ra bzi ba,
or being unconscious, brgyal ba) i.e. unpredictable, unreliable and hence
dangerous. For this type of quadrisyllabic word formation, cf. Zhang
Liansheng, ' T h e Phonetic Structure of ABCB Type Words in Modern
Lhasa Tibetan", in Soundings in Tibetan Civilization, pp. 20-34. The
poet's scepticism is here expressed by way of the well-known fact that
the Mongols (sog po) are often so numerous, being dispersed into many
395
clans etc., t h a t linguistic and hence factual dissensions among them are
often believed to prevail.
250 A strong symbolic poem. Cf. the poems nos. 178, 317 and 452 for
the term mTsho-sman rgyal-mo, the Protectress or Goddess of the lake
which here personifies the girl; cf. the crit. ed. no. 9 for the goose and
the lake. 250b brgyal, to swoon, (alt. reading brkyal, to swim). Even if
the lake should cry, and the hamsa, the golden duck (here symbolizing,
in our reading, another man, rival or even the husband) is swooning,
regardless of that, the poet promised, he would not let the mtsho smart
rgyal mo, his beloved, behind, b u t is going to take her along.
251 He did not set off to seek his beloved, the poet confided, carrying along
a tea-pot (filled with) beer, i.e. to ask formally for her hand. The young
lad's girlfriend is a casual date, who (su gas, coll. for su yis) then can
say what ? In other words, the poet is evidently indulging in an illicit
liaison, which predictably aroused widespread rumours. To placate any
ill-boding hostility he openly questions who can object to his woman-
izing, since he has not transgressed the formal rules of courtship and
marriage. The poet explicitly states t h a t he did not bring along beer
to be partaken of when dating her. Here is of course a reference to the
so-called slon chart, the Pegging beer' i.e. the beer given to the party,
the bridegroom's party, when it arrives to ask for the girl's hand; cf. e.g.
C. Bell, The People of Tibet, p. 179-180; By stressing t h a t his beloved
is a random encounter (bya rdo lam 'phrad, cf. the crit. ed. no. 28) the
poet thus cannot be the butt of society's slander and maligning.
252 A poem equally depicting some people's flagrant opposition to the poet's
inept liaisons. He fairly declares his sovereign right to choose his
own beloved, being unaffected by people's finger-pointing directives and
guidance (mdzub mo re stort : mdzub mos ri stort) in matters of love.
He personally knows the whereabouts of his favourite beloved.
253 The clear, white moon (dkar gsal zla ba), a stock epithet for a fair
damsel, cf. the crit. ed. no. 1. In this poem the moon, as usual, sym-
bolizes the girl, whereas the male lover is symbolized by the sun. As
is known, each night the actual time (i.e. here distance, rgyan rgyah)
of the moon's shining is shifting, wherefore the poet admonishes the
girl not to avail herself (mi ées, lit. 'not to know') of the method (lugs)
of changing distance, i.e. not to show a different attitude towards the
poet. The poet, on the contrary, would allow himself to act (btaft stort
: btan gtoh) just like the sun, thus ensuring the fertility of the world
to increase (phebs, to come, which is plausible, but 'phel is an equally
feasible reading; cf. the crit. ed. no. 46). If this does not signal that the
girl would become pregnant, it, a t least, indicates t h a t their love will
prevail and grow.
396
254 Here bltas : Has; 254b blta : Ha; 254d dog : dogs pa. People came not
only just to 'watch the show* in the temple, for which cf. e.g. no. 228
supra; but, too, there was no fear t h a t they h a d come there to ask for
blessings from the golden statue. Replacing the people with the girl and
the golden statue with the poet, the poem thus tells the story of the girl
who willingly attended the show, i.e. paid the poet a visit, only she did
not want to have any affair with him. Note the possibly conscious word-
play on dogs pa mi 'dug: 1. "No doubt t h a t (people, the girl)" came to
ask for the blessings; 2. "No fear (i.e. no way) t h a t (people, the girl)"
came to ask for the blessings. In casu, no doubt, the latter reading is
the one to be preferred.
255 One single stem carrying three hundred and sixty tree tops or branches.
Moreover, each top was pointing in each distinct direction. This poem
perhaps allows for different interpretations. It may either signal that
the poet is seen to uphold and entertain quite a number of different
lovers (= rtse mo, word-play on mo), each with their distinct stamp,
or it may simply depict t h a t Tibet (= rtsa ba of a trunk (sdoh po)) is
obviously governed by a huge number of local leaders (= rtse mo), each
ruling their respective district. A policy which prevents Tibet from
remaining united, being vulnerable to external invasion.
256 A poem welcoming love and merriment. A ladder or stairs (skad 'dza' :
skas 'dzeg), cf. also no. 224 supra. Why shouldn't we, the poet proclaims,
climb up the stairs, once the main door is open ? Why shouldn't we, the
poet equally proclaims, drink beer, once the guests have convened ?
257 Kon-la, also called Kori-po Bar-la (or perhaps rather Koh-po Nar-la; cf.
also no. 424 infra), designates a pass (la mo) in the Koh-po province,
more precisely between present-day Mal-gro gun-dkar rdzori and Koh-
po rGya-mda' rdzon. But some confusion still prevails as to its precise
location; cf. e.g. the maps reproduced in H. Fletcher, A Quest of Flow-
ers, pp. 101, 108, 156, 161: Kong-bo Nga-la is a pass located between
D[v]ags-yul and Koh-yul, a pass on a spur running down to the gTsan-
po river, on the southern bank of this river. Is is more commonly known
as the border pass (mtshams ri) between dBus and Koh-po provinces,
known, we are here moreover told, to be the only passable route when
proceeding to the east. Everyone wanting to proceed (bear) to Dar-rtse-
mdo would have to travel through this pass. 257b grags pa : drag pa.
For Dar-rtse-mdo, the well-known trade junction in Eastern Tibet, cf.
e.g. E. Teichman, Travels of a Consular Officer in Eastern Tibet, pp. 20,
59. Interpretated metaphorically, the poet perhaps signals with this
poem t h a t the girl's (here = Dar-rtse-mdo, or perhaps the beloved so-
journs in this place ?) parents (= the pass) are quite strict, but (it is/they
are) yet the only passable way to the girl's heart. For Dar-rtse-mdo, cf.
397
258 To be in love (with a girl) who has an owner, i.e. a husband, is to the
poet like making a beckoning gesture with the arm when having no
arm. 258d pad skor, = phyag rgya, mudrä, note here the association of
m u d r ä to represent the female counterpart (yoginî) in yogic Tantrism;
lag sdum : lag rdum, a mutilated, maimed arm, here armless. The
term pad skor may moreover designate a fancy in one's mind which
you would like to realize, but is unable to do. Evidently the poet h a s
fallen in love or is contemplating having an affair with a lady married
or promised away. Love is a forlorn hope, as the poet is dban med, i.e.
at his wits' end. 258abc dun dun : [g]dun \g]duh, passim; 258b dpal
bya'i kyi[s] [sicl], corrupt, and as yet beyond emendation, but probably
better : pad byïu lags kyils] ?, a bird of some kind, as yet unidentified.
259 The hollyhock (ha loï me tog), cf. the crit. ed. no. 15 and no. 157 supra.
This garden-flower is so ordinary t h a t it is not worthy of being the sub-
ject of any talk or praise. Were something to be said or were laud to be
expressed, it should be addressed to the span rgyan, cf. no. 130 supra,
the 'meadow ornament'. To the Tibetans the ha lo'i me tog is a culti-
vated garden flower, and being man-made, the girl, which the flower
in this poem depicts, is thus considered married. The span rgyan, on
the contrary, is a wild-growing flower, and this girl is thus not married.
Hence, she is to be preferred.
260 In this little poignant poem the poet is suffering from the intoxicating
and stimulating (myos pa) effects ofchan. He frankly states that he is
not to be blamed for excessive carousing, we may presume, the alcohol,
the poet declares, is the culprit (cf. also no. 161 supra). On top ofthat,
the effect (nus pas) of the 'wild elephant' (glah chen smyon pa) certainly
didn't put him off, i.e. he kept on doing things under the influence of this
strong stimulant. (If, incidentally, nus pas in 260c is altered to nus pa,
the meaning would be t h a t he is determined to rid himself of the effect
of glan chen smyon pa). The 'wild, demented or rogue elephant', aside
from being an epithet for beer and for the second stage in drunkenness
(ra ro gfiispa), cf. Das' diet. p. 1161, éel-goh sel-phreh, p. 466, is in fact
a grass herb (sho sman), better known under its general name than
phrom or Ian than rtse, i.e. dhustûra and dhattüra, the species datura,
Datura metel, Linn, or fastuosa, Linn., (Rastenija Tibetskol Meditsiny,
398
notwithstanding, identifies it, op. cit., p. 67, with a genus of the fam.
Phytolaccaceae, the pokeweed or pokeberry) the Trumpet flowers, or the
Angel's trumpet, a strong-scented or rank-smelling herb of the night-
shade family, Solanaceae. It contains atropine (also denoted daturine),
an alkaloid. This can be used as an antidote against morphine or vice
versa. It is an excellent drug, employed e.g. by ophthalmologists. The
Tibetans distinguish between three types, all toxic: dkar po gahs than
phrom, khra bo rgya than phrom (or gya' than phrom) and nag po rdza
than phrom (or dug than phrom). Among these the first one, the white-
flowered genus is also called va ta, dkar po chig thub, glah chen smyon
pa and 'dod snah dgu 'gyur. Its fruits, when powdered, is especially ef-
ficient towards helminthiasis (srin (bu) nad, srin gsod, ghen nadf glah
thahs), hydrocele and pestilential diseases (gag Ihog). Moreover, like-
wise in a detoxified and triturated form, it may more generally be used
as a tonic and invigorating stimulant (lus stobs skyed). Using chah as
vehicle it can yield a strong kick. But most often it has for generations
been employed as a sedative. Perhaps, glah chen smyon pa may be iden-
tified with Datura medel, Linn., fastuosa, Linn, or Datura stramonium,
i.e. jimsonwood or thorn-apple. According to Kämasütra of Vätsyäyana,
one becomes unconscious as a result of eating its fruit, cf. S.C. Banerjee,
Flora and Fauna in Sanskrit Literature, pp. 38-39. The most notable
or rather infamous incidence, perhaps, was the administration of this
pain-killing substance or anaesthetic (dope) to Lun-sar, when this lay
official was blinded in Lhasa on the 20. May 1934, by having his eyes
removed as punishment for having tried to modernize and reform Ti-
bet; cf. Goldstein, A History of Modern Tibet, pp. 208-209, where it is
called glah chen mho (sicl = smyoin]) chu ('the water that makes an
elephant go mad'); in the present poem either the actual administra-
tion of this stimulant is referred to, or the effect of beer is likened to it.
Cf. also èel-goh sel-phreh, pp. 268-70; V.B. Dash, Formulary of Tibetan
Medicine, pp. 149, 212, 236; Nebesky-Wojkowitz, Oracles and Demons
of Tibet, pp. 346, 489.
261 For the title nan so, a lay official dealing with domestic affairs, cf. L.
Petech, Aristocracy and Government in Tibet, p. 237; Here the poet
concedes t h a t a nan so (of his ?) named sKyabs-gnas rdo-rje was un-
reliable, (lit. "(with a discipline as lax) as a paper-made prayer-flag7'
(fluttering in the wind) or "(floating everywhere in the air) as a paper
prayer-flag" i.e. easy to convince and manipulate. When Mr. IHag-pa's
mother argues (with sKyabs-gnas rdo-rje) it is like (dro : 'dra) (taking)
the stimulant glah chen smyon pa; cf. the previous poem.
262 A poem portraying an archer, the poet himself? 262a stag don, a quiver
for arrows made (bzos) from tiger's skin (stag Ipags), cf. no. 191, but
plausibly here just designating any quiver, mda! don, cf. also Das' diet.
399
p. 547. This quiver is fastened or hanging (rtags : htags) from his right
side, worn and decorated with red eagle feathers (im]tshal rgod sgro, cf.
also no. 200 supra). On his left side he wore, probably at the waist of the
gown (cf. C. Bell, The People of Tibet, p. 239, ill. Bod-rgya tshig-mdzod
chen-mo, smad-cha), a sewn case for a (wooden) bowl (pho éug : phor
subis]; phor pa, drinking cup (= can ne)) into which was stuffed (rdzan :
brdzans) a golden-coloured Dvags-po cup (dvags can serpo, = dvags po'i
can ne serpo). Cf. also no. 401 infra. For this kind of bowl, cf. Veronika
Ronge, "Gedrechselte Holzgefäße aus Tibet", Zentralasiatische Studien,
(17), 1984, p. 201.
263 A somewhat corrupt stanza since 263b and 263d respectively lacks one
and two syllables. Our emendation is, as always, tentative and optional.
Nevertheless, travelling at our own will (sems dpa9: sems pa, i.e. bsam
pa), the poet alleged, is relative to one's own idea and views. Here
the poet's particular or extraordinary wish is to proceed to the square
willow garden (to have a tryst with his beloved).
264 Singing a few songs should cause no fear whatsoever. Should one have
any cause for alarm, there is all the reason to apprehend the transient
and mortal nature of h u m a n existence; cf. e.g. the crit. ed. no. 47.
265 Although the sky is full of stars no one has the likeness of the Pleiades
(cf. also nos. 196, 267-68 and 344). Similarly, although the world is re-
plete with people, nothing can be compared to the guests seated in rows
and attending the party. J u s t as the Pleiades are always constituting
a firm unity of six stars, protocol commands t h a t the guests invited to
the party are occupying reserved seats according to a strict system of
r a n k and position. For a similar poem, cf. Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas, p. 4 1 ,
no. 2 and Duncan, 1961, p. 27 (almost identical).
266 An allusive poem. Tb work without any trace, i.e. without any reaction,
appreciation or without any gratefulness (byas pa rjes med pa = ho so
med pa). Having thus planted the hay grass (sog rtsva, = sog ma'i rtsva;
note, incidentally, that it is homonymous with srog rtsa, the 'root or vein
of life' or of samsäric existence, which again is synonymous with srog
sin) of Tibet, the mdzo-cattle (khyuh dkar, = gnag phyugs mdzo, the
herd of male mdzo) was sent to collect (i.e. eat) the (ordinary) mountain
grass, This poem naturally calls for more interpretations, as the figures
may be identified differently. Identifying the poet, the alleged God-king
?, with the hay grass of Tibet and the animals with the people, the poem
may signal t h a t although the Tiay grass of Tibet' h a d been planted, i.e.
the Sixth Dalai Lama had been installed on the golden throne (gserkhri)
in the Potala, the people was, most ungratefully, sent to the mountains
to carry ordinary grass. Expressed differently, the people was made
to disbelieve in him. A clue perhaps to the false Sixth Dalai Lama,
400
21A The poet here admitted t h a t he did not jump (van chon : bah mchoh
('gros or rgyag)) into the summer field in a springlike fit of juvenile play-
fulness. When the harvest is ready to be ripened, the grass standing
full-blown, no one is supposed to trespass the field. In other words, with
this simile the poet adduced t h a t he did not have any affair or liaison.
The reason: Owing to his good fate, the poet contends, the cumulative
effects and the karmic retribution of former existences.
275 The golden vase is here evidently personifying the beloved, who is ad-
monished to stay firm and solid, i.e. to be brazen and fidel. Being
confident t h a t this admonition will prove true, the poet predicts that
karman will allot him a rendez-vous with this girl, even if it should
involve t h a t he had to traverse snow-barred passes and valleys (rluh :
\k\luh) to reach her. Here is perhaps also an allusion to the well-known
dictum and image t h a t the peacock's feather, sgro mdohs, and the ku éû
grass have a tryst in the golden vase, cf. analogously Bod kyi dga'-gzas
/, p. 18, no. 6 = Glu-chuh sna-tshogs, p. 23.
276 The poem has retained six syllables, although the last two lines do not
fit all too well with the rest. Don't get up too early in the morning, lest
you would like to eat an early (rhas : shas) lunch ([d]guh tshigls]). The
guests assembled here in circular rows resemble diamonds (pha lam)
and although (the guests ? are all) small-sized, the order (phyag rgya,
lit. 'seal', gesture, here = rim pa ?, succession of the guests) will not be
delusive. The arrangement will be perfectly correct and proper. But the
message of the poem (go don) is still gibberish and yet not satisfactorily
accounted for.
277 A poem on lovelornness. 277a khri bdug : khri gdugs, 'throne-canopy*,
i.e. the sun (ni ma). It circulates the four continents (caturdvïpa, glin
bzi, i.e. everywhere), making its circuit and returns every single day
(ni ma). Analogously, and yet contrarily, the poet bewails, there is no
chance t h a t his beloved, whom he is longing so much for, ever will come
back to him. 277c pa la should replaced with par. Zhuang Jing has
403
included this poem in his anthology, no. 112, who needlessly emended
re to ri in 277b and reads 277d: ri la 'khor dus mi 'dug.
278 Couched in the same diction and read in conjunction with the previous
poem, the poet here questions whether his beloved will ever r e t u r n
{'khor) now t h a t there h a s been so much waiting {sgugs sgugs : sgug
sgug or bsgugs bsgugs); cf. analogously Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 25, no. 4.
If now, the poet readily acknowledged, he may have to admit {zer na
= zer bar phyin na) t h a t she won't turn up, then embarrassment and
shame came to his face. More precisely shame came to the gullet or
front neck (og Itoh = og doh, = mid pa, mgrin pa) and the chin (og
ma, = Ikog ma, ma le, upper front-neck). Here is an allusion to the
popular gesture indicating sadness: In a waiting posture both hands
are placed under each side of the chin thereby making the countenance
look cheerless and gloomy.
279 Again a garbled poem. According to the MS we may at first sight con-
clude t h a t it consists of six lines, but the text-parts of section II and
III do not dovetail. Most likely then, the first four lines constitute a
separate stanza, and 279e and the three first syllables of 279f, i.e. dri
kha gzan, constitute the initial part of another stanza. Finally, the be-
ginning of section III, i.e. bar phebs sig, constitutes the termination of
yet another poem. Consequently, no. 279 cannot be read as one poem.
Nevertheless, 279a-d tentatively reads: If it is a water-stream {chu mo),
one may lead {bcud : bcus, to bring or to irrigate) it. If it is an arrow
{mdaf mo) one may shoot it off (note the word play on mo in both cases,
alluding thus to a female). But faced with a heartily passionate lover,
the poet acknowledged, he finds himself at his wits' end (i.e. totally
helpless, bya thebs : bya thabs).
280 The white moon (shines, providing enough light), at the beginning of
the month, and, alternatively, at the end of the month you may (have
to) lit the butter lamp. Analogously, in the first p a r t of your life, you are
united with your (protecting and tender) parents, but in the last part
of your life you are all on your own (two feet, rah mgo ston, plausible,
perhaps more correctly: ran mgo 'don); when independent and self-
sufficient {ran 'go ran gi 'don : ran mgo ran gis 'don), there is no fear
t h a t you may plunge into the mire of samsara {samsârapahka).
281 The guests seated here (at the glamorous party) in a circular row re-
semble a silk thread. A big coral {byi ru or byu ru, vidruma) weighing
about one and a half ounce (ca. 40 gram; nag gah spor do). This is two
weighting measures {'jal tshad, 'degs) in use in old Tibet, nag gah (or na
ga gah, one full nag, approx. = srah gah, one ounce = 28.349 gram; 20
nag = 1 khal) and spor do (= two spor, spor bii = hag gah, i.e. approx. a
half hag = ca. 14 gram), thus in all two and a half ounce of corals. But,
404
as the poem continued, (the silk thread) could not (pro)claim to be the
owner (of the coral). Expressed more simply, in this allusive poem de-
picting a rope of pearls, the girl (the coral) is saying to the the poet/the
man (the silk thread): I don't want you! A blatant refusal.
282 The guests (mgron po) assembled in circular rows (resemble) the crop
of (white) rice ('bras lo = 'bras gyi lo tog ?). The phrase 'bras lo is still
not satisfactorily explained. The guests enjoy a celebration during a
festival (cf. equally no. 287 infra) and resemble a white stûpa or caitya
of white crystal. The poet felt t h a t the more he circled—one circumam-
bulation, two circumambulations—the more he felt to circulate, at least
three times more he wanted to circumambulate (lit. "without three cir-
cumambulations, he would not go aside"). Paralleling the stüpa in a
religious sense with the party in a secular sense, to circumambulate
(note the word-play on skor/sgor), is thus here to be likened with his
participation in the party. Couching this festival party in a religious
setting and terms, the poet laid bare not only his convivial disposition,
where he eagerly sought to attend parties several times, but at the same
time also unravels his ambivalent attitude, being torn between these
two forceful poles in his life. Cf. also no. 394.
283 A beer-song (chah gias) or a repartee song (tshig rgyag), or both ? The
cultivation and practicing (bsnen pa) of habits, inclinations or dispo-
sitions (bag chags, väsanä, residua) in the childhood, the poet frankly
conceded, accounts for having spent his youthful days drinking beer. Af-
ter his death, the poet professed, his body's dry bones would therefore
be useful (nan pa, = phan pa, run ba) as yeast.
284 No matter how deep you went inside China (rgya gas (? rgya yi[s]),
or the old (gas : rgas) Chinese ?), all you would get (yod rgyu9 yod
rgu, or even yon rgyu is possible) was tea. Similarly, although the
thoughts (sems dpas : sems pas) went to the Dharma (i.e. was absorbed
in meditation), he had no other recollection but of the sweet lotus tree
(pad sdohy here is evidently an allusion to a girl carrying the name
Padma).
285 The emerald cuckoo coming from Mon-yul, here depicts the girl, cf.
no. 122 supra and the crit. ed. no. 46. The poet exhorts her to warble
her dulcet tune in the multifarious willow grove; 285c counts seven
syllables, in which case du most likely would be dispensable. This
poem readily reflects his longing for the girlfriend of his homeland, his
acquaintance since boyhood.
286 At dawn when the moon and the stars convene is called skyo kha =
skyor kha, a venue up in the sky where they not always meet, i.e.
rarely meet. If now the assemblage should take place just once, the
405
poet further declared, please let the meeting last for the whole night
(mtshan : mtshan gan, mtshan gcig, mtshan mo). 286c la is redundant.
286d gtan ston : gtan gton, cf. e.g. no. 253 and the next poem.
287 The circular row of seated guests (celebrating the (all-white)) rice crop
of the year (? or the name of a place ?, cf. also no. 282 supra), looks
like a white silk curtain. He decided, when the time had come, t h a t
he would (gtan ston : gtan (or btah) gtoh) roll up completely the row
of seated guests in Chinese paper. When the party was over, the poet
would tidy everything up nice and clean.
288 In the upland alpine valley the soil of the grass meadow h a s changed
(the colour) (bltas son, reading feasible, = gyur son). In the lowland
valley the leaves of the tree had been shed. With the coming of the
fall, the time has come for the leaves and the turnip, the two, to part;
288c kyis : kyi; again a poem on &armcm-destined lovelornness, here
prompted by the relentless alternations of the seasons, nature's autum-
nal and wintry intermezzo. Who in real life is the heartless separator
of the poet and his beloved is purely conjectural, but most likely in case
of the God-king the officious Regent, see e.g. the crit. ed. no. 8.
289 Without interruption, day and night (nin bead mtshan bead : nin êad
mtshan éad). The water stream (or flood, a symbol of love, cf. e.g. no. 170
supra), what (gain] la) is the hurry (rih ba : rihspa) ? Equally, the poet
readily confided, he, being a male, must hasten (rih : rihs, = rihs stabs)
back to his happy homeland too!
290 At the border between the high-alpine slopes and the low-alpine
meadow-clad slopes igya9 dan span = gyay ri dan span ri, but see also
no. 214 supra, and no. 381 infra), the poet went to look for (i.e. collect
or pluck, gtog pa, cf. no. 226 supra) ba lu (also bal bu, the leaves of
the da li[s], i.e. from talâéâ, the shrub or trees of the species Rhodo-
dendron adamsii, Rehd. or Rhododendron aff. cephalanthum, Franch.;
cf. Éel-gon éel-phreh, pp. 225-6, 228); the bark and the leaves of this
arborescent plant is used as incense (bsahs). Unable to trace any of
these leaves, the poet instead contrived to locate the sacred tree, the
juniper or cedar (éug pa), another excellent plant for incense, cf. note
212 supra. The poem probably illustrates the poet's vacillating search
for a favourite lover between two fragrant choices.
291 On the opposite (pha[r]) mountain the fragrant sandal tree (was found
growing). On the mountain on this side the (equally fragrant) sacred
tree, juniper (is found growing). If the scent is sweet they may simply
(ran) smell one another. A poem on requited love evidently. A slightly
better reading for 29 led would run:
| dri kha iim na phar tshur (~ phan tshun) \
406
However, cf. e.g. Bod kyi dga'-gzas II, p. 41, no. 4 = gÉas-tshigphyogs-
bsdus, p. 105, no. 4:
I pha rgyud tsan dan sdon po \
| ma rgyud lha éih sug pa \
| ha ran sran ma'i me tog
j chuh grogs lo gsum kham bu \
Cf. similarly, Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 28, no. 2. For similar poems of
requited love (phan tshun sems éor, phar éor tshur éor) cf. gTam-dpe,
p. 139; Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 129, no. 4=gTam-dpe, pp. 116-7, quoted
and discussed ad the crit. ed. no. 6.
292 This party (bzugs gral, lit. assembled rows of guests) was arranged
Cgrigls] : bsgrigs), being accompanied by songs and dances and set up
in a happy atmosphere. This coincided with the thrush's offering its
sweet warble from among the trees in the willow garden down below;
cf the crit. ed. no. 64.
293 When, the poet professsed, he reached the age of twenty-five, he reached
a dangerous period in his life (dgun keg, also dguh skag, or skeg, = lo'i
bar chad). To ward off or to atone these life-threatening perils, he
exhorts his parents to burn incense to the gods from a high mountain
top. According to Tibetan belief, a dangerous period occurs in a person's
life each twelfth year (from the age of thirteen and henceforth).
294 The poet has for a long time been pleased and happy. In the gTsan
province are Ron-chen and Ron-chun (probably place names, otherwise:
large and small valleys) found. Ron-chen is hot and Ron-chun is narrow
(i.e. not easily passable); mTsho-sna (the Sixth Dalai Lama's birthplace
in Mon-yul), where the climate is moderate, is situated right in the
middle of pleasant forests. In this simile the poet is longing for his
home land, Mon-yul, situated amidst pleasant forests offering an ideal
temperature. His goal is evidently his birth place and the travel thither
through gTsan throws many obstracles in his way.
295 The golden male and female ducks/geese (gser gyi bya, nan pa, cf. e.g.
the crit. ed. no. 9), where are they flying (phu êud : phur eus) ? The pea-
cock coming from East India, cf. the crit. ed. no. 60, has come to show off
the splendour of its feather dress, its crest of plumes (lit. sgro mdons,
i.e. sgro thig, rma bya'i sgro'i mig, Skt. varhacandraka, varhanetra, the
ocellated spot, cf. also no. 426). In this poem the poet is evidently iden-
tifying himself with a shimmering peacock t h a t outmatches all other
birds, perhaps other rivals ? in beauty.
407
298 This and the following poem should be read in conjunction. The good ar-
row was shot and it struck down everywhere. The sundry stories (gtam
gsum) and the popular renown (khas grags, it is tempting and even fea-
sible to read mkhas grags, cf. e.g. no. 205 supra) (of the poet, we may
presume, being a good archer) are displayed (lit. 'kept') in Go-mdzod
rdo-rje'i glih. Another equally feasible reading instead of gtam gsum
khas grags would be stoh gsum skad grags, i.e. famed in the Three-
Thousand Worlds, an allusion to the Abhidharmic concept of a Trichilio-
Megachiliocosm, Trisähasramahäsähasralokadhätu, sToh gsum gyi stoh
chen po'i 'jig rten gyi khams or even khams gsum [m]khas/skad grags, cf.
analogously, Bod kyi dga'gias I, p. 17, no. 2; i.e. in the entire universe.
This go mdzod is the famous armoury located in Zol just below the
front (mdun) of the Potala. Phrased differently, the poet, the surmised
God-king, is conceived to be quite a famous archer.
299 The rear mountain of the Potala has entrenched itself around ICaii-
[g]seb-sar. The colour (tshod : tshon, tshos, here = 'od zer, rays, or
408
300 The poet here proclaims that his master is a god and his servant a
demonic btsan. Facing threatening enemies, he encouraged the master
and the servants, the god and the btsan, to unite urging them: Shall
we go and conquer them (e thad : e theg[s], or e 'thad, here = e thub, it
is possible to conquer or to tame them) ?.
301 An allusive poem which baffles a proper interpretation. The poet pro-
claims that he could handle it, i.e. he is declaring that he could prepare
the good-quality (spu bya : spus cha = spus ka, prob, not spusja, quality
tea) (Chinese) black tea. Now, this time, the poet continued, he has
come to prepare, i.e. to deal with the boiling blue (Mongolian) Tieaven
tea' (gnam ja). Consequently, his beloved is scared, the village dog is
crying (dgra : sgra zug). We may read this poem historically: The poet
(= Tibet or the Tibetan people ?) claims that he has (previously) dealt
with the Chinese, exquisite but always tricky. Now, the poet further
points out, he is confronted with handling the boiling (= furious) blue
409
all-white (i.e. if their attitude turned friendly towards the Dalai Lama
and Tibet), then the peaceful relations prevailing would enable Tibet
to exist complacently. 305c read por instead of po la. Cf. analogously,
gÉas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 107, no. 6; Duncan, 1961, p. 54:
| ear phyogs sprin bzah dkar po \
j 'jam po'i bal la phyin na \
j ran seras dkar ba'i mi la \
j gos sne re re bzo chog
306 The sacred bird, the grouse, cf. nos. 123, 271 supra and nos. 313, 381
infra, partaking of small black pebbles is here seen to impersonate the
poet, the God-king. The poet signals in this poem t h a t the sheep need
not worry for its grass. The poet probably wants to indicate t h a t he
leads a simple and poor life lacking any inordinate cupidity to vie for
power (= grass) with the Chinese. Interpretated more prosaically, the
poet has already a girl friend. Cf. similarly Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 75,
no. 2:
| span stod lha bya goh mo \
j Uo la rde'u bzas yod \
I ha la dkar mo nas kyi \
| la \g]yog[s] rgyag don mi 'dug
307 The Sky (here an allusion to the Mongols due to the paramount import
of tengri in their belief ?) is pealing and crashing with thunder (sgog
sgog sdig sdig, onomatopaeia; or : sgrog sgrog Idig Idig) please don't
give way (to these sounds)! {ma gnah rogs dan e go, cf. also nos. 373
and 376). The few drops of rain (char rkah, = char zil, rdul, thigs)
falling had just begun. Or rather, it h a s just started (tshar nas mi 'dug)
to rain. This probably means t h a t the worst things are yet to come.
Retaining the picture of the Mongols, their yelling and screaming are
followed by their ravage.
308 The optimistic, care-free (snah skyid = snan ba skyid po, = bag yahs,
bio bde, etc.; a word-play is at hand as sNaii-skyid could equally be a
proper name) mother's daughter (a ma bu mo may also denote a young
girl) is mischievous or vengeful (sgal ral ma, colloq. idiom (yul shod) =
nan 'khreb, nan éed sgal ral, more precisely "to shun doing what is one's
duty under the pretext (khag 'dogs) of an achen back"; lit. "a worn-out
(broken, or achen) back (sgal ral, also rgal [h]ral, 'dral))'\ Only, the poet
continued, albeit her 'optimism', no one is there to aid her by supplying
(spros : sprod) her with a walking stick (mkhar rgyug : khar rgyug)
when Tier back was worn out', i.e. when she herself maliciously dodged
her duties. Note of course the word-play in 308bc.
411
309 A golden ear-ring (gser skon, here properly to be read as gser skon ma)
which was not fasten by the (girl's ?) mother. In other words, the
mother (of the beautiful girl) would not give her consent. The brass
ear-ring (rag skon, i.e. here = rag skon rna) was not in the poet's mind,
the ordinary girl was of no interest to the poet compared to the exquisite
girl out of reach for him. Underneath the big yellow, flat felt hat, cf.
also no. 237 supra, the poet felt quite content (gnah sos bde ha : gnas
bzod bde po, cf. no. 56 supra) all by himself. The poet or young man
settled with his 'official life'.
310 The yellow flower dbyafis 'dzin; besides personifying a girl or simply
rendering the proper name of a certain girl the flower most likely refers
to the yellow flower otherwise known as 'jam dbyahs rtag hu, a species of
an officinal herb (sho sman) rtag [tu] hu, 'perpetually weeping', a name
allegedly given on account of the fact t h a t dew always emerges from
it. It is otherwise known as 'od Idan, bdud rtsi 'od Idan and bcud Idan
rgyalpo. It is to be identified with Sundew of the fam. Droseraceae, the
bog-inhabiting insectivorous herb, having viscid glands on the leaves.
Different genera are found according to the Tibetans, all with different
colours of flower. The dominant species carries yellow flowers. These
different shades of colours have given rise to the poetical denomination
of the rtag hu or sundew: 'jam dbyahs me tog, the Manjughosa flower;
spyan ras gzigs me tog, the Avalokitesvara flower; phyag rdor me tog,
the Vajrapani flower, etc.; cf. Sel-goh sel-phreh, pp. 371-72; 'Jam-dpal
rdo-rje, An Illustrated Tibeto-Mongolian Materia Medica on Ayurveda,
p. 191; gSo-rig-skor gyi rgyun-mkho gal-che-ba bdam-bsgrigs, pp. 3 9 0 -
394; Bod-ljohs rgyun-spyod kruh-dbyVi sman-rigs, pp. 489-90; Cf. also
Bod kyi dga'-gzas II, p. 16, no. 3:
| dga' Idan dbah po'i ri la |
| 'jam dbyahs serpo'i me tog
| me tog 'khruhs sas 'khyogs ni \
j 'jam glih 'od kyis khyab son \
Cf. also gZas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 168, no. 6:
| dga' Idan dbah bskur ri la \
I 'jam dbyahs serpo'i me tog
| rise mo lha la phul yod \
| rtsa ba rah gis har yod \
In the present poem the yellow flower is said to grow on the hollow
(or barren) midst of a rocky mountain side (khog rdo : khog stoh). The
poet proclaims t h a t the girl was not afraid of him, nor was he afraid of
her. Love is not a forlorn hope. Cf. also no. 194 supra for the curious
kenning me tog yah 'dzin = a (flower-perfumed ?) kind Chinese tea (rgya
ja).
412
311 Albeit in opposition to one another (skrag na : phrag na, i.e. bar na)
they were bound to mate {'gal 'dzoms, or 'gal 'brel). 311a hid rah = tied
rah ? or is it identical with non-CWT nye rang, i.e. = bdag, I ?; cf. L.W.J.
van der Kuijp, 1986, p. 36. It is more likely a syllabic metathesis for
rah nid f the two of us. In this poem, the poet is apparently compelled to
accept the hands of a daughter of a high-ranking governor. If, the poet
then declared, the girl would love him (tshur), his amorous sentiments
would equally seek h e r iphar). On requited love, cf. also the c r i t ed.
no. 6. Were their love to be full of smiles, then the couple would remain
on a par (mham 'jagls] or sham 'jags, = thugs, sems 'jags) with one
another.
812 A love poem on unrequited love. The stallion r a n too early (rhas : shas)
and the reins were drawn too late (to bring the horse to a halt). His
dire-fated and ill-starred beloved, analogously, h a d apparently rushed
to divulge (béos : éod, bead) their intimate talks. Cf. also the crit. ed.
no. 29. With this poem the poet presumably signals t h a t the situation
was out of his control, it was too late to intervene, and from other
songs the inevitable and devastating consequence was rumours (mi kha)
boding ill for their liaison. The same pattern as no. 110 supra. The poem
is included in Zhuang Jing's anthology, no. 70. Cf. similarly gZas-tshig
phyogs-bsdus, p. 110, n. 4:
the bird, cf. the crit. ed. no. 62. A similar poem is quoted by Mr. Tashi
Tshering in Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 36, no. 6 = gÉas-tshig phyogs-bsdus,
p. 108, no. 3 = (sic!) p. 130, no. 2 = Bod kyi glu-gias, p. 98, no. 2 with
var. read. e.g. yom yom for khyom khyom, i.e. tottering; klad khrag for
kladpa, i.e. the little bird became paralysed. Cf. similarly Bod-rigs kyi
glu-gias, p. 20, no. 4 = Duncan, 1961, p. 28 and further samples ad the
crit. ed. no. 62.
319 If someone said, the poet professed, t h a t the feelings of his and other
people {mi sems) proved incompatible, then it is of no avail or would
make no sense indeed to be concerned with serving other people. The
poet here makes his point t h a t unless the girl shows some affection for
him, he would requite her in kind.
320 The new monastic residence (bla bran gsar pa), more regular and
straight than an arrow shot, cf. no. 297 supra, is probably here a refer-
ence to Pho-brah gsar-pa, cf. no. 43 of the map drawn Zasak J. Taring,
Map of Lhasa, to dGa'-ldan khan-gsar, abutting Ra-mo-che gTsug-lag-
khan and Tshe-dpag lha-khan in Central Lhasa or may refer to any of
the residences in Lhasa housing monk-officials. It may then well be
a reference to the 'Bla-ma's Mansion', the Treasury of Lhasa city, cf.
no. 347 infra. The edifice may well have been erected and occupied
by the Regent Sans-rgyas rgya-mtsho as his countenance is hovering
above, being clearly visible. In other words, the Regent is ubiquitously
supervising the God-king's every doings. Cf. Norbu's Coll. I, nos. 21-22;
Snyder, 1972, pp. 27-28; C. Bell, The Religion of Tibet, p. 141 and ill.
opp. page.
321 Tribulus terrestris, Linn, (bze ma : gze ma, passim), Skt. goksura,
ksuraka, gokanta, 'cow's hoof, 'cow's thorn' or bhûkanta, sa'i tsher ma,
'earth's thorn', a genus (rigs) of the family Zygophyllaceae, chiefly an
annual tropical, officinal steppe-herb or grass-herb (than sman, rtsva
rigs), i.e. a spiny (tsher ma) and shrubby weed, known as caltrop,
puncture-vine or puncture-weed. In Tibet it is commonly called gze
ma ra mgo, the goat-horned puncture-weed; two varieties are distin-
guished: ra gze (a thorny genus) and lug gze (a thornless genus). It
is growing on the low-lying wide expanses (rgya sod) of a desert (bye
ma) or of a steppe (than); Its prostrate pinnate leaves are low-creeping
and ground-covering, with small, hardly visible flowers of a white and
predominantly yellow hue (dkar ser, serpo, note below a possible word-
play on these two colours in the poem!) succeeded by spike-studded
haws shaped as a goat's horn. Its hardy and spiny nature has given
rise to its var. synonyms: rgya mtsho'i mtha9 can, nu byed ma, chu med
skyes, mtha' rned dka\ reg par dka' and reg by a nan; cf. e.g. Éel-gon éel-
phren, p. 274; Bod-ljohs rgyun-spyod kruh-dbyïi sman-rigs7 pp. 534-6;
415
right torn down. Traditionally the khan ser, in former times amount-
ing to an appreciable number, was a special privilege (dmigs bsal gyi
thob than) allotted for having been graced by the presence, if only for
a single night, of either rGyal-ba Rin-po-che or Pan-chen Rin-po-che,
hence the colour of the Yellow Church. Nevertheless, far from being
religious residences occasionally occupied by these dignitaries the ma-
jority of the Lhasa khan ser was ordinary town-people's living quarters.
What is more, according to an inveterate popular belief prevalent, as
stated previously, for several generations among the common people a
number of these khan ser was so characterized, as Chab-spel puts it,
since they served as 'public houses' (khrun bzes gnah sa) and 'residen-
tial houses for overnight accomodation kept by clandestine paramours'
(gsan grogs bsten nas mtshan gzim gnah myon ba'i khan) frequented by
the young Tshaiis-dbyahs rgya-mtsho. Even, from an inquiry carried
out among the old generation of Lhasa inhabitants the recollection was
still vivid t h a t Khari-ser lho-ma of Thal-phun-sgan and lHo bKra-sis
khari-gsar (cf. supra) each had been furnished with a small brick seat
(sa khri) which in former times allegedly should have been the throne
(bzugs khri) of Tshans-dbyans rgya-mtsho, to which effect they could
even supply with a street or folk song (dmahs gzas) which relates about
the young (o lo) God-kingfs nocturnal escapade at bKra-sis khan-gsar
in Zol. As a consequence 'the City Court and Prison' (sNari-rtse-sag, cf.
no. 9 in the Lay Out Plan of gTsug-lag-khan; no. 17 in Map of Lhasa)
pilloried him with a circular wooden cangue (= sgogon) around his neck;
in other words, parading him through the city with (leg shackles and)
neck cangue here purports t h a t he became the target of severe rebuke
and defaming slander (for an ill., cf. Goldstein, A History of Modern
Tibet, p. 109):
| bkra éis (~ bsam grub) khan gsar nan du \
| dgoh geig khrun mal brgyab pas \
j o lor snan rise sag nas \
| ske la Iba sgor gyogs byuh \
Cf. Chab-spel Tshe-brtan phun-tshogs, ""Tshans-dbyans rgya-mtsho'i
mgul-glu" dan 'brel-ba yod-pa'i lo-rgyus kyi don-dnos 'ga'-zig brjod-pa",
in Bod rig-pa'i gros-mol tshogs-'duï ched-rtsom gces-bsdus, pp. SOS-
SOT; Shakabpa, Bod kyi srid-don rgyal-rabs I, p. 478 and his Tibet—A
Political History, p. 131.
Some of the oft-frequented places sought by Tshans-dbyans rgya-
mtsho were thus the houses belonging to his allegedly numerous par-
amours in Lhasa and Éol. This vivid picture is here drawn in which the
poet professed t h a t the place studded with 'yellow houses' is likened to
a veritable thorny plain (62e : gze than, word play on gze[r], painful,
ached) thoroughly strewn with this prickly weed. Only here, the present
417
322 The pass named rGod-mkhar la-mo is more correctly rendered rGod-
dkar (or bkag)-la; cf. also nos. 164 and 326; rGod-dkar-la is a famous
pass between bDe-chen of sTag-rtse rdzori and bSam-yas of Gra-nan
rdzoh, in other words the pass linking Lhasa with bSam-yas. Cf.
mKhyen-brtse's Guide to the Holy Places of Central Tibet, pp. 43-44,
nn. 111-119; K. Dowman, The Power-places of Central Tibet, p. 216ff.
and the map of sKyid-chu Valley in Map of Lhasa, drawn by Zasak J.
Taring. Our poet is here on his way to his beloved, but alas the continu-
ous ascent was severely hampered halfway up. Midway up (rked, sked
la) the pass he encountered the clear (? dan : dvahs, probably better to
retain dan la, = rdzih bu, a little pool of melting water) headwaters {chu
sna) of the melting glacier-water. This last information, corroborated
by the mentioning in no. 164 of trees growing there, makes one wonder
whether the pass is identical with the famous IHa-sa - bSam-yas pass,
as this pass is utterly barren, sandy and desolate, a place where you
hardly would find neither tree nor meet glacier water. Cf. also Bod kyi
dga'-gzas I, p. 80, no. 2; Norbu's Coll I, no. 22. The poem is included
in Zhuang «ling's anthology, no. 71, where he renders 322d d[v]an[s] la
as the name of a pass Dangla, op. cil, p. 33.
323 Visiting the Jo-khaii in Lhasa the poet wished to pay his respects—
an attempt which apparently courted failure—by fastening a ceremoni-
ous prayer-flag—a scarf of yellow silk satin with red spots of Chinese
418
manufacture (sman rtse : man tse/tsi; cf. B. Lauf er, Loan-Words in Ti-
betan, p. 522, n. 280, C. mânzi)—onto the Mysterious Sacred (Queen or
Bearded) Goat (bn]duh rise r[v]a ma rgya[l] mo). A statue of this goat
is found on the ground-floor in the inner gtsah khan (gandhaküti) of
Jo-khan, the innermost part of gTsug-lag-khan, cf. Shakabpa, IHa-ldan
rva-sa 'phrul-snan gtsug-lag-khan gi dkar-chag {Guide to the Central
Temple of Lhasa), Kalimpong 1982, p. 56: o than gi mtsho bsub skabs
ra la sa bskyal ba'i ra mo rgya'u'i gzugs brnan sku 'phel mar grags pa;
p. 129, no. 45 r a m a rgya mo; Zasak J. Taring, IHa-sa gtsug-lag-khan gi
sa-bkra dan dkar-chag9 New Delhi 1984, p. 17, no. 96; The Fifth Dalai
Lama, IHa-ldan sprul-ba'i gtsug-lag-khan gi dkar-chag sel-dkar me-loh,
fol. I l a 3 , where this figure is mentioned as chos rgyal gyi dus ra ma
rgya mo. This idol was evidently erected in tribute to the well-known,
prominent role the goats played when erecting Ra-sa 'Phrul-snan (i.e.
Jo-khan) in the seventh century during the time of Chos-rgyal Srori-
btsan sgam-po.
324 rGod-mkhar (: dkar) la-mo, cf. nos. 164 and 322; If the pass, which
here evidently is conceived to be difficult to cross, would turn all white
(i.e. covered by snow-fall ?), like Chinese paper, then, the poet declared,
why not roll (the pass together) like Chinese paper and let us go (thad
: thegls], cf. nos. 146, 300, 422) and see the Governor ? The Chinese
paper usually being used as official paper in documents etc., this poem
perhaps purports that this pass perpetually hampered the people's trav-
elling to such an extent t h a t they went to the government to lodge a
complaint.
325 Equally a metaphorical poem. The poet is apparently here depicted
entreating his guardian the Regent, to be less strict in his supervision.
The poet is here likening himself with an excellent stallion of mdo ba
breed (: 'do ba, a horse of excellent breed, cf. e.g. Blondeau, Matériaux
pour VÉtude de l'Hippologie, pp. 157, 160, 164; cf. the Gesar Epic, ed.
R. Stein, 1956, index, p. 366-67; Pema Tsering, 1979, p. 177: three
types of 'do ba horses, Gesar's godly horses), here exhorting (its master
or owner) to abstain from leading him in succession (mu khrid, = mu
mthud khrid) for grassing. Far better, the poet candidly implored, were
it if he simply confined himself—as a sort of shepard (rdzi bo)—to his
usual large-scaled watch (rgya mtshos : rgyalspar] 'tshos, (Zhuang Jing,
incidentally, emends it to (the less probable) rgyan 'tshos, réf. cf. below;
but note the word-play on the name of the Regent, cf. similarly also
the crit. ed. no. 39 and 302 supra) over (gyis : gyi) the herd of sheep,
which here may refer to the Regent's subjects, the ordinary people. The
unremitting surveillance, we may surmise, is here seen to fret on his
nerves. The poem has been included in *he anthology of Zhuang Jing,
no. 114.
419
326 A poem on unrequited love. The sky is full of stars just as the t r u n k
of the poet is full of thoughts. In other words, the thoughts of love
h a u n t the poet's mind. All the more distressing even, the ill-starred
(tshogs ma bsags pa, no accumulation of merit and knowledge (punya-
and jnäna-sambhära), here = las 'phro zad pa, cf. the crit. ed. no. 7)
lover would not divulge (béos : sod, bead) her secrets to him. In other
words, the girl was indecisive and thus a love affair was a forlorn hope.
For 326ab, cf. no. 265 supra and for 326cd, cf. the crit. ed. no. 29.
327 To wear boots (lham gog : lham khog) poked with holes in the soles
(mthil rdol : mthil [b]rtol) only causes pain (tsha, na tsha) in his tiny
feet. Here the poet literally compares the aching pangs of love acquired
from his liaisons with the pain accruing from wearing worn-out boots.
He therefore entreats the troublesome boots ( = girl(s)) of his: pray, be
kind (a ses : o ses, cf. also the crit. ed. no. 50) give my lower legs (nar
gdon, = rkan gdoh, the shin-bone) a chance to warm in the sun {'de or
Ide; ni ma Ide ba = ni ma[r] sro ba)\ Colloquially it renders: Give me a
break!
328 If, perforce of karmic retaliation, the poet is united with an ordinary
girl, here evidently symbolized in the garb of a poplar tree (sbyar pa
or dbyar pa), then you may always cut it down with an axe (rta : sta
gri), i.e. one may always break the connection to the girl. Instead of
me (éul du) let us now see, the forsaken poplar-girl adduced, whether
you can make the exquisite sandalwood tree, here indicating a lover of
fine stock, spring forth or not! In other words, whether he could really
live with the new girl after having left the other. Phrased rhetorically
the girl was fairly sanguine as to the male lover's immediate return. A
better construction for 328cd would read:
| sbyar pa bkogpa'i éul du \
j tsandan e 'khruhs blta'o \
329 A poem on the expectations and prospects of true, requited love. Having
planted the roots the poet arrived to see how the fruit had matured: The
temple, here paralleling his beloved, is earnestly besought to remain
firm and unswerving! According to an informant, a lha-khan denoted
Zabs-brtan lha-khan should be found in the Potala.
330 A poem on requited love. Cf. the crit. ed. no. 62 for a similar poem on
the love between a little bird and the willow Here the poet earnestly
implored someone—the ubiquitously officious Regent ? or, more pro-
saically, perhaps her parents—to abstain from cutting down the tree
during this year, while the season of love was still lingering.
331 Fearing (dog : dogs) the pillar should change (i.e. sway), the poet estab-
lished the pillar-base (ka gdan = ka Hen) solidly upon stones. Similarly,
420
fearing that his beloved should change her mind (i.e. turn fickle and
whimsical), the poet assured the girl that he had set up a good man
(i.e. a trustworthy man, a best man ?) as witness (span por : dpahpor),
who, we may presume, could testify to any plighted troth professed by
her.
332 The black Chinese quality (spu : spus) tea; cf. also no. 301 supra, "Re-
main in peace!" bidding thus goodbye, it was abandoned. The poet too,
in the garb of golden tea, would not stay, but would return to the middle
of A-mdo. Reading the poem in that way, the meaning is not entirely
clear. Perhaps due to homophony we should read 332a: bya de nagpo'i
spu bya, the black-feathered bird: So I bid you goodbye, you black bird.
I, golden bird (gser bya, = hamsa, nan pa, duck/goose), won't stay too,
but immediately return to the inner part of A-mdo.
333 dGe-'phel dbu-rtse, also called Ri-bo dGe-'phel where the renowned her-
mitage, dGe-'phel ri-khrod, is located, is the mountain towering behind
the 'Bras-spuiis monastery, cf. e.g. mKhyen-brtse's Guide to the Holy
Places of Central Tibet, p. 42, nn. 102-3; Wylie, The Geography of Tibet,
p. 83;K. Dowman, The Power-places of Central Tibet, p. 72. Cf. also Bod
kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 14, no. 3 = Bod kyi dga'-gzas II, p. 10, no. 6 {cum van
led.), which relates about the purchasing of fragrant twigs for whatever
paltry sum one may possess and then proceed to this favourite place for
lay celebration and burning bsahs to be offered for the mountain gods;
Should there be any money left, they could be used at the picnic at
Dan-*bag glin-kha:
| kha gah kha gan bsdus te \
j dge 'phel ri la 'gro bzag
I de las lhag ga by un na \
j dan 'bag glin khar 'gro bzag
The summit is said to be one of the most auspicious peaks around
Lhasa. Above the summit of this holy mountain countless stars (=
images of girls) emerged. The girl, whoever it may be, fated to mate
him is admonished to bring along ('khyer sog : khyer sog) solid words
(tshig gi rdo kha, i.e. essential (snih po, rtsa ba)) of their prospective
conjugal inseparability (lit. "a mixture of water and milk"). This last
idiom (Skt. ksïranîra) is a well-known allusion to a proverbial belief
originally of Indian provenance (cf. e.g. Mahäbhärata, Ädiparvan 74,
91). Here it is believed that the goose {hah pa, Skt. hamsa, but also
the the tortoise, rus sbal, Skt. kürma, kacchapa, cf. no. 91 supra) is
capable of separating milk out of a mixture with water, an endowment
which, incidentally, is purely imaginary, cf. e.g. Vogel, The Goose in
Indian Literature and Art, p. 6. This has given rise to a stock idiom in
Tibet, such as chu 'o 'drespa, chu daft 'o ma 'dres fdres, cf. e.g. dPe-chos
421
Juniper or cedar tree, cf. no. 212, to strike root on the dry rock. This
cryptic poem may proffer more interpretations. Most immediately, the
poem perhaps depicts the existence of an extraordinary damsel, whose
beauty baffles nature and sense, whereas the sight of a willow in the
water indicates that an ordinary girl is—just commonplace. Or, is the
poem here intimating t h a t for men to chase girls are commonplace, but
for a monk to do so is a rare sight indeed ? The poem is cited also in
Bod kyi dga'-gzas, I, p. 36, no. 3 = gZas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 91, no. 4
= Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas, p. 101, no. 1 = Reader III, p. 73 (cum var. lect):
| lean ma chu dan skyes par \
| ya rah mtshan rgyu mi 'dug
j de las skam po'i brag la \
j lha éin éug pa skyes yon \
Cf. analogously gÉas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 170, no. 4 - 5 :
| lean ma e skye bsam nas \
j chu mig rtsa bar btsug pas \
j lean ma skye rgyu bzag nas \
j chu mo skam rtsa tshugs son \
338 A poem on requited love, cf. also nos. 318, 330. In connection with the
the Mongol hawk, cf. no. 53 supra and the crit. ed. no. 62. For 338c cf.
no. 56 supra.
339 An adage. You simply cannot measure or judge the depth (tshod thin
(: thig) of the muddy (snog : [r]nog) river when attempting to cross
(sgal : brgal) it. 339cd do not read well: If you merely ('ba' £ig) seek
a corner-stone of love (zur rdo nid 'tshol) ? A reading which still needs
some consideration.
340 Here Idem : 'dems or 'dams; rgyal lean, probably better rgya lean, cf.
no. 180 and 183 supra. Among one hundred trees the rgya[l] lean was
selected. But alas, the poem bewails, its interior proved to be rotten
(the girl was fickle and deceptive, a prostitute ?), a fact, which hitherto
had gone unnoticed by the stripling; cf. no. 177 supra. The poem is
included in Zhuang Jingfs anthology, no. 72 and in Bod kyi dga'-gias I,
p. 36, no. 1 where it reads:
lean ma brgya'i dkyil la \
rgya lean sku gzugs Idem pa
423
341 The poet concedes t h a t physical love-making was practiced with the girl
prior to falling in love (sems son, cf. the crit. ed. no. 6). Only, the poet
continues, this act is even more regrettable than striking a bad bargain
(tshon fies rgyab pa, = tshoh la gyoh phog pa, i.e. to suffer a commercial
loss, often by cheat) in the Lhasa bazar. A Tibetan saying goes: tshon
fies lha sa'i khrom la rgyab, 'gyod pa byah than la skyes, when you
effect a bad bargain in the Lhasa bazar, remorse will inevitably catch
up with you on the Northern Plateau (i.e. outside town when it is too
. late to regret).
343 The pleasant, low-lying grassy meadow slopes (span géohs) at summer-
time provides the occasion for the sweet warble of the sacred bird, the
grouse (lha bya goh mo, cf. no. 123), to be heard. Beautiful "Meadow-
Ornament" is an exquisite flower, cf. no. 214 supra, when do you con-
template to spring forth and bloom! The poet yearns impatiently for a
summer-love.
344 The Pleiades, cf. nos. 267-268, usually symbolizing goddesses and
daughters of the Guardian-Kings of the World, are so brave and skil-
ful, the poem here relates, t h a t they scudded (gtah : btah) their course
right through the middle (géuh géagls], = dkyil du géag, cf. similarly
Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 99, no. 1 = Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 52, no. 2) of
space like a sword. The Tisyâ-star, the eighth constellation, solitary
and single-handed, in contrast, is capable of circulating the confines of
the (entire) space and return. In this poem the Pleiades probably al-
lude to the Chinese and the Mongols, often a trite laughing-stock and a
butt of derision in this collection, who apparently may pave their intru-
sive routes everywhere. Compared to the God-king, here symbolized by
the Tisyä asterism (rgyal, word-play on the name of the Dalai Lama,
rGyal-ba Rin-po-che) evidently, they fall short of him, since he is well-
nigh omni-present, proceeding at will and, we may add, may manifest
himself in protean garbs. Cf. similarly Bod-rigs kyi glu-gias, p. 61, no. 3
and p. 62, no. 1:
smin drug pha tsho ehe nas \
gnam dkyil gzuh gsags btan son \
ha ran bco lha'i zla ba \
mun pa gsal nas log 'gro
smin drug pha tsho ehe nas |
gnam dkyil gzuh gsags btan son \
zla ba mi geig rta geig
'dzarn glih bskor ra rgyab 'gro
424
345 This poem displays some scribal blunders here clearly involving cases of
metathesis. 345b rgya ras and 345d *o ma should change place; 345b-d
stoh : gtoh: 345cd lad lad : bslas bslas; 345b 'o ma khol khol btan gton;
345d rgya ras bslas bslas btan gton; if people say t h a t what was not
boiling actually is boiling, then let the milk boil over; if they say t h a t
what was not weaved also is weaved, then let it be weaved like Chi-
nese cotton (i.e. ordinary cotton). Yet another reading, though entirely
hypothetical, is feasible for 345cd. Instead of lad lad or bslas bslas one
may construe [g]lebs [g]lebs, 'to make flat' like a bread, assuming rgya
ras to be a distortion for some kind of a bread, as yet not identified.
This simile, nevertheless, quite clearly unravels the poet's embittered
frustration. If, on groundless basis, the poet is accused of something
he h a s not committed, thereby becoming the scoff of rumours and of
people's gossip, he plainly responded t h a t he would then certainly hold
nothing back.
346 Again an epigrammatic poem. First you add (rgyab or rgyag), we may
add, the salt (tsh[v]a) which ^holds' Cdzin) the taste. Subsequently, you
add ginger (sga, i.e. sga skya, Iga smug) for the good aromatic taste
(of the dish). Only, the poet admonished, don't overdo the seasoning,
lest you should want the wooden ladle (rgyag : skya ba = sin rgyug)
in the head! Dissatisfied guests for dinner may respond harshly! As a
kind of rejoinder to the previous poem, excesses are here pictured as a
dangerous entertainment.
347 In this poem which we have retained to consist in full of six pädas, we,
again, have a distorted text. Here the first two lines do not read well
with the remaining four lines, which thus constitute an independent
stanza. Two poems are plausibly concealed, in which case two päda-s
of the first stanza are missing. The reason for the lack of two lines is, as
usual, the shift of the folio in the MS. In the first distorted poem (347a
counts seven syllables, la being redundant) it is related that the size of a
high mountain is not high enough to be called a head mountain (ri bo =
ri mgo ?). Cf. no. 359 infra for a possible solution to the missing distich.
The following full quatrain depicts the clerk or the secretary (druh y ig)
of the former Central Tibetan Governemnt (srid gzuh), being either a
rtse druh (the ecclesiastic clerk or official) or a éod druh (or druh 'khor)
(the noble lay clerk or official), here from the State Treasury (bla bran),
i.e. the Bla-bran phyag-mdzod, located in the premises adjoining the
Jo-khan, where precious stones and other state properties were kept.
Here the clerk is fastening his pen to the wall (rgyah : gyaii, for ill. cf.
C. Bell, Tibet, Past and Present, pp. 204-5 and his The Religion of Tibet,
pp. 175-177). It is enough to hold the ink-bottle (snam bu : snag bum),
the poem relates, without actually writing. The poem probably depicts
a secretary who is not equal to his task—a true clerk should have his
425
pen ready behind his ear and not fixed to the wall.
348 Here bdagpo : dvagspo, the district in Southern Tibet. You are Dvags-
po ICan-ra and I am Myah-stod (Nan-stod, i.e. Upper Nan in gTsah
where e.g. rGyal-rtse is located) ICan-ra. The name ICan-ra I here take
to refer to the name of a noble family and not, which admittedly is
equally plausible, indicating a willow-grove (lean ra = lean (ma'i) glih
(kha)). The noble family ICan-ra is better known under the name sNan-
dkar, cf. H.R.H. Prince Peter, The Aristocracy of Central Tibet, nos. 25,
126; L. Petech, Aristocracy and Government in Tibet, pp. 203-5. In this
case would it refer to two branches of the same family ? Nevertheless,
apart from having high esteem of one another, no one would step aside
when meeting on the road. This allusive poem evidently speaks about
the rivalry between two parties, a member of each wooing the same girl
?
349 The river is flowing slowly, fish (fia mo, passim in this collection sym-
bolizing a girl or a damsel) be patient! If the fish is patient and not
quick-tempered (bio sna bsrih), body and mind would rest ('god : 'khod)
in content. The poem is included by Zhuang Jing in his collection,
no. 73.
350 The water current (= a picture of love or the girl) is flowing from the
top of the canal (ka or rka) and the headwater is led by me, the poet
professed. The end of the water stream won't be allowed to flow at
its own will. Phrased differently, the poet declared t h a t their amorous
mise-en-scène was initiated and conducted by him and t h a t to the very
end (of their affair and their lives), he would not allow her to go wild.
He would be in full control of the love affair. Cf. analogously no. 170
supra and Norbu's Coll. HI, nos. 28-29.
351 A poem on chah. The poet conceded that he is in the middle of drinking
beer (the construction vb. + bzin pa'i 'phros y in, cf. also nos. 217, 248
supra): The beer, whether of first (quality, i.e. strong, i.e. chu dan po
brgyab pa'i chart, *beer produced from first quality water' or *beer pro-
duced from the first water running through when distilling is the best')
or of secondary (quality, i.e. weaker, chu gnis pa brgyab pa'i chah or
d[v]ah[s] gnis, 'second purity*, the second quality beer is the beer when
extra water has been added). Another interpretation of 35 l a b would
read: To be in the middle of drinking the first and the second round of
beer. The person is nevertheless proving to himself and others t h a t he
is good at drinking. Whatever, it is the criterion (or sign) of not getting
dizzy in the head (= ra bzi ba, intoxicated). For additional gzas on chah,
cf. e.g. Bod kyi dga-gzas I, p. 37, nos. 2-6. Worth quoting here is no. 2
(= Wang, 1980, no. 70, p. 73) where the the poet is neither intoxicated
by the first class (or round of) beer nor the second class (ditto) beer, b u t
426
the 'full(-moon)' white face of his beloved (cf. the crit. ed. no. 1) offered
to him made him drunk:
| chart 'di dan pos ma bzi |
| chart 'di gnis pas ma bzi \
| chuh 'dris byams pas Eus pa'i \
j zal dkar gan gis bzi soft \
352 A poem depicting the life in a tavern. The butter lamp fasten to the
side of the pillar inside the tavern had two sizes: 'arrow-size and 'spear-
size'. Although the little 'arrow-size' butter lamp had extinguished, the
bigger 'spear-size' butter lamp is (always) ready to be lit. Obviously a
poem in which the poet is depicted wishing to prolong his visit at the
tavern. Possibly one may suggest an improved reading of 352cd:
| mda' tshad zad kyah gan yon \
j mdun tshad spar chog yod do \
353 The white silk curtain (yol ma, better yol ba) inside the tavern or the
brothel was not drawn or displayed (lit. 'not spread') in full. In other
words, we may surmise, the bar was open and serving was offered.
The following picture is not entirely clear: The guests or the customers
have "not developed any deer's horn on their (fore)head". Does this
enigmatic statement indicate t h a t nothing prevented them from enter-
ing, everyone is welcome ? Equally likely, we may prefigure t h a t some
violent activity had taken place and that this may be an exclamation of
wonder signalling t h a t everything is now in order.
354 Thinking t h a t the stallion can race, the donkey did not race itself. Oth-
erwise, it would only fall into the holes of the square lattice net-work
(rva mig, re'u mig, lit. 'kid's eye', = dra mig) of the Rva-mgo Bridge
(in Lhasa ?, as yet unlocated). Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 56, no. 1 = gZas-
tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 9 1 , no. 3 = Reader III, p. 67 proffers an almost
identical poem with interesting variants, here referring to the gYu-thog
Bridge in Lhasa:
| rta pho rgyugs kyis bsam nas \
| boh bu rgyugs pa ma gnah (~ gnah na) \
j boh bu gyu thog zam pa'i \
j zam mig nan la 'tshud son \
As a pendant to this poem, the same collection, op. cit., 108, no. 2
= gZas-tshig phyogs-hsdus, p. 138, no. 4 = Snyder, 1972, p. 34 (here a
tshig rgyag type of repartee song; different interpretations are gived),
contains a poem, which states t h a t the donkey after all is faster than
the stallion, when pacing over the gYu-thog Bridge, only the donkey is
_ 427
not fast, as it probably has developed severe back sores (sgal rma tsha
ba yin 'gro).
355 The six lines of this poem, which we provisionally have retained, per-
haps originally conceal two stanzas, in which case two tshig rkah (ab
or cd) are lacking, to be combined with the present 355ab: Atop the
vegetation-barren meadow mountain the teethless mdzo mo is let loose.
This apparently means t h a t neither the boy (= the mountain) nor the
girl (= mdzo mo) were fond of one another. 355cdef: The thrush named
sKyid-skyid Bu-Tthrid, "Happy Child-Rear", cf. also no. 422, residing
in the square willow-grove, was far too mean or gloomy (snag : gnag),
wherefore it lost love and affection. 357cdef, which as said constitutes
a stanza in itself, is included by Zhuang Jing, no. 74. The latter has
replaced 355f 'chor with the synonymous yal.
356 Contemplating the necessity to erect a chinese-styled pagoda-roof, the
poet initially laid a foundation of gold; whether it should become bril-
liant or not was solely in the hands of the Nepalese (i.e. Newari) crafts-
men. An allusion to the erection of the roof in Jo-khan.
357 A poem on unrequited love. Drops of rain dripping down (sig sig, cf.
also no. 77), it stopped when it reached half way down (rked = sked) the
pass, i.e. it never reached the bottom of the valley. Couldn't you have
mercy with the young green sprouts growing below the sun (ni maï
khrod nas = ni ma'i 'og nas) ? The sun shone mercilessly. Expressed
differently: Someone, a lover, came to see the poet or fell in love with
him, only just as they were about to meet, or to realize their love, they
were barred from meeting. The target of his petitions, perhaps here in
the garb of the sun: the Regent ?
358 If, the poem maintained, you pretended (kha khyer, = khag fdogs) to act
untamed like other (gzan tsho; ? géan 'tsho, i.e. herding other stallions)
stallions, a strong bridle would be put on the horse, only letting (ston :
gton) it be whipped by a soft whip.
359 Again a poem which we have decided to render as six lines in accordance
with the MS. But most probably the first two lines appear to be a part
of a separate poem: The glorious mountain in the eastern direction,
who cares whether it is high or not! A possible clue to the riddle could
be to combine 347ab with 359ab into a full quatrain. Recalling the
distorted condition of the MS, where the pages do not always dovetail
meaningfully in a textual sense, we moreover here observe t h a t 359ab
terminate a page whereas 347ab initiate a new page. The following
full quatrain relates about the pine tree (than sin) which is so high
t h a t its shadow did not reach the ground. Underneath the flat h a t the
most pleasant kind of cool shadow is found. A song of contentment
428
the rtags brgyad ma, the one inscribed with the eight auspicious em-
blems, the srid ii bde skyid, the type expressing the prosperity and
happiness of samsara and nirvana, the nin mo bde legs, the lucky day
type and the tshe lha ma, the type depicting Amitâyus, the Long-life
Deity. The 'Lucky Day7 type usually contains a êloka, inscribed with
sewn or weaved letters, running:
| nin mo bde legs mtshan bde legs \
j ni ma'i gun yah bde legs ein \
j hin mtshan kun tu bde legs pa \
j dkon mchog gsum gyi bde legs éog
Cf. also the Gesar Epic, I, fol. 17a; II, 4b; III 65a, 88b; ed. R. Stein,
1956.
365 The vulture called lHa-rgyal tshe-riri (a poetical name) perched on the
side of the mountain Brag-ri rdo-rje. This may just be a poetical allu-
sion, the adamantine rocky mountain, or, equally plausible, it may be
a proper place-name, cf. e.g. Wylie, The Geography of Tibet, p. 26, 183;
mKhyen-brtse's Guide to the Holy Places of Central Tibet, p. 5, 43, 103
or Dowman, The Power-places of Central Tibet, pp. 73-79. The vulture,
magnificent as it is, need not soar the sky ([g]nam 'phah gcod (: spyod)),
it is enough (yon gis) merely to show off its top feathers. A common ep-
ithet for a vulture is \g]nam 'phah gcod (: spyod) byed, 'moving in the
sky* and Huh spyod, 'wind-walker'. For the vulture lHa-rgyal tshe-rih
cf. Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 93, no. 1 = gZas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 126,
no. 2; Norbu's Coll II, no. 10.
366 The poet is here depicted as being unwilling to show impartiality or
neutrality to anyone in matters of loving and caring. Instead, he urged
anyone to stretch out his legs and relax at the spot where the sun
reached. The sun too, irrespective of place and person, will impartially
shine down.
367 "Four base-pillars and eight cross-beams" (ka bzi gduh brgyad, i.e. ka
ba bzi dan gduh ma brgyad), usually denotes a house or small room,
khah mig, khan chuh or gzim chuh; Cf. Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 105,
no. 6 = gTam-dpe, p. 148, no. 1; Cf. also Bod kyi glu-gzas, p. 66, no. 1;
Goldstein, A History of Modern Tibet, p. 350, n. 82. A lot of youngsters
{bion : gion) crammed the place. We youngsters, the poem related,
have placed our faith in the All-knowing (i.e. rGyal-ba Rin-po-che). If
the poet is identical with the alleged God-king the object of veneration
is Pan-chen Rin-po-che.
368 An equivocal poem on the poet's vacillation between love and religion.
The variegated (khra mo, alt. read, phra mo, small) circumambulation-
circuit (skor lam: glih skor, bar skor and nan skor) of Lhasa is a con-
430
a white, are found—the white genus having thorns, the bark silver-
coloured and the core light-yellow, with yellow flowers and red berries.
The black variety has black bark, its leaves and stems small and fl.
mostly yellow; cf. èel-goh éel-phreh, pp. 247-8; Bod-ljons rgyun-spyod
krun-dbyi'i sman-rigs, pp. 165-167; Rastenija Tibetskoï Meditsiny, p. 76
oddly identifies it with Phellodendron amurese of the fam. Rutaceae,
the Amur cork tree! Cf. also S.C. Banerjee, Flora and Fauna in Sanskrit
Literature, p. 38.
374 The phrase na khra gion khra poses a problem. Most probably it ren-
ders a natural image, which we may tentatively interpretate as na kha
gion kha, i.e. a young green mead. Alternatively, one may also suggest
the reading na phra gion phra, though unattested in an dictionary, it
purports the meaning of young age, = lo na chuh. Opting for the first
interpretation, it reads: The tree of the pleasance (skyid or skyed rnos
tshal) is more supple (snem pa : mnen pa, b u t pa is redundant) than
the young green meadow. Agitated by the wind, which was uncalled
for, their waists certainly vibrated in a swaying manner (Idem Idem, =
Idem Idem Icug Icug, i.e. in a coquettish and youthful charming way,
= sgeg flams ston pa, gion nams mdzes). This depiction of the gentle
swaying of trees is a clear allusion to the handsome girls (mdzes ma)
with their swaying waist (sked or rked pa). A traditional euphemism
for a pretty girl (mdzes ma, bud med mchog) is a girl with a slender or
beautiful hip (sked phra ma, sked legs ma, sujaghana) and even, ideally,
a hipless girl (sked med ma).
375 In this poem, which has been construed to consist of six lines, other
constructions are plausible, cf. infra. The poet professed t h a t his feel-
ings are immaculately pure, i.e. pious and honest as a white scarf. The
male lover herewith declared t h a t he h a s been faithful, wherefore he
curiously asks her to whom the girl would give the all-white (white
scarf-embellished) bow which she is waving, i.e. who she would choose
to mate. The beloved, the fine little arrow (stag don, lit. 'quiver made
of tiger skin, cf. nos. 191, 262 supra, only here = mda' mo, arrow, = the
girl) should be safely inserted in the quiver (don pa). Phrased differ-
ently, take good care of your lover, love her/him for good! This poem,
as usual, is susceptible to more interpretations. An arrow is frequently
used as an auspicious instrument in the mating or marriage ceremony.
When girls choose a prospective man a bow is used, whereas a man
uses an arrow. A celebrated incidence of the latter case is provided by
e.g. chap. XIII of rGyal-rabs gsal-ba'i me-lon, which relates about the
final identification of the Chinese Princess Koii-jo by Minister mGar
using an arrow. Zhuang J i n g has equally plausible read no. 375cdef as
a single stanza which he has included in his collection, no. 117.
376 The rustling (éog éog) of the leaves of the poplar (sbyarpa or dbyarpa),
432
please do not make this sound! The walnut trunk igdon : sdon) from
my homeland, the poet bewails, is perpetually haunting his memory,
no. 371d = no. 376d. Here he evidently exhorts a girl to abstain from
provoking him—the poet has decided to remain faithful to his distant,
native sweet-heart.
377 There are quite a number of rulers (sa la dbah ba) in the Snow-capped
Country of Tibet. The codifier of the religious laws is King Sron-btsan
sgam-po (d. A.D. 649/50). The religion-based (dasakusala, dge ba bcu)
laws in question is the so-called mi chos gtsan ma bcu drug, the sixteen
pure popular laws. This poem draws an overt parallel between this
famous codifier and unifier of Tibet, prior to whose reign many vied to
power, and, we may assume, the Fifth Dalai Lama (A.D. 1617—1682)
who, besides gaining paramouncy over Tibet, similarly codified a set of
laws (zal Ice); cf. e.g. R. 0 . Meisezahl, "Die Handschriften in den City of
Liverpool Museums (I)", Zentralasiatische Studien, 7 (1973), pp. 2 2 1 -
261.
378 Underneath the cooling shadow of the trunk of sandalwood tree, exud-
ing, we know, a delicious scent and not infrequently itself represent-
ing a girl (but see next poem), the knot of his heart's love, which was
previously not bound, alas, had been made tight. Evidently, in these
pleasant surroundings the poet submitted himself to love.
379 The trunk of the sandalwood tree, surrounded by 'flesh-eating' (piéâca)
Tieavenly fairies' (dâkinï-s)—aside from (rtogs : gtogs) its agreeable
scent, there was no fruit (= girl, or love) to be plucked! The éa za mkha'
'gro ma is a special group of heavenly fairies, often grouped together
with ye ées mkha' 'gro ma and 'jig rten mkha' 'gro ma. We may here
imagine t h a t the carnivorous and malignant dâkinîs either embody a
*bad girl' or, more likely, the mother of the girl, only the poet, apart from
the delicate fragrance, could not get hold of the delicious fruit (a girl of
choise). She was eagerly safeguarded by her mother; cf. song no. 65 in
the crit. ed.
380 The golden statue, denoted "Meaningful to Behold", mThori-ba don-
ldan, is a standard euphemism for a statue, the best known reliquary,
which in fact is a golden stüpa, carrying this title is the sanctum sancto-
rum of dGa'-ldan. This statue is lifted up by eight great lions. Further,
the poem professed, it was offered to the sku tabs (cf. no. 297 supra),
which is grosso modo tantamount to our Minister or someone rendering
governmental service (éabs pad), in order to enhance his firm seat in
rule (bstan : brtan; alt. tabs brtan, a religious (long-life) prayer service,
or zabs rten, the base of governmental service), i.e. to grant him a long
life in power. The golden stüpa mentioned above, if the identification
is warranted, enshrines the relics of Tson-kha-pa; cf. Ferrari, mKhyen-
433
brtse's Guide to the Holy Places of Central Tibet, p. 108; Dowman, The
Power-Places of Central Tibet, p. 100.
381 Cf. no. 290 infra for ba lu; the term su lu is often added to ba lu,
but may also figure as an independent plant, as yet unidentified. In
plentiful of this plant or these plants grew at the border between the
alpine vegetation-free mountain stretch (gya7) and the meadow (span).
The grouse, cf. no. 123 supra, is not tempted to settle in the square
willow-grove.
382 A poem on selfishness. My beloved! The poet exclaims—she resem-
bles a flower of the walnut tree (star kha or star ka/ga). During day
it is out of his eye's sight, and at night it is out of his arm's grip, cf.
the crit. ed. no. 6. The poem is quite ironic, the walnut does not carry
any flower (but actually see Bod-ljons rgyun-spyod kruh-dbyVi sman-
rigs, pp. 592-594), if so then only during night (cf. below), this simile
probably corresponds to the drstänta of the son of a barren woman
(vandhyätanaya, mo géant gyi bu), a stock simile for a(n) (onto)logical
impossibility in Buddhist writings. The idea of the flowers of the walnut
tree and the clandestine liaisons being a nocturnal affair, i.e. t h a t blos-
somming/love only emerges at dusk and is doomed to vanish by dawn,
is equally^ brought to the fore in a gias in Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 33,
no. 4 = gZas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 129, no. 4:
384 No clouds in the sky, yet, .the poem professed, on ground a blizzard
raged. There is no anxiety or fear here (? in the Potala), please, the
poet solicits, care for others (thugs Icags gnan : thugs ca[g] gnah, =
bdag sprod, gees spras). This poem should perhaps be interpretated ac-
cordingly: No threatening clouds have gathered in the sky above Tibet,
but, beware, keep a stern outlook for others, the invading Mongols or
the Chinese! The poem is included in the collection of Zhuang Jing,
no. 118.
434
385 The golden statue was not manufactured by being hammered in gold,
but by casting or moulding {lugs su blugs) here in the Nepalese tradition
or by Nepalese sculptors {bal po'i : bal pos). The guests seated (géugs :
bzugs) in rows at the party how come they could have bodies of ordinary
men, but godly faces ? An ironic poem ridiculing self-importance. The
so-called 'golden statue' was in reality not hand-manufactured in gold
but was a cast made from ordinary bronze {li ma) or copper {zans). Like-
wise with the self-conceited guests seated at the festival. Though they
posed their supernatural and godly countenances, they were merely
endued with human and mortal bodies! Behind the shimmering and
exalted vesture they were just flesh and blood. 385d, cf. no. 52f.
386 The hue of the high-lying meadow has changed and below in the valleys
the trees have shed its leaves: A sure sign heralding t h a t autumn has
arrived. The poet is obviously elated at the prospective t h a t the swal-
low, his heart's fancy, remains behind (in dBus and Byan-than) instead
of (or in replacement of ?) the cuckoo, cf. the crit, ed. no. 46, which
migrates southward to the warmer climate in the valleys of Mon-yul
during winter. Autumn's deciduous imprint h a s been left on nature's
garb, the season of love has come to an end, yet, the poet is neverthe-
less consoled in the dismal situation: The prospect of love is not quite
extinct, the swallow is still around. When spring comes the khug r t a
always precedes the khu byug. In other words, the k h u g r t a is consid-
ered a forerunner of the khu byug*s arrival. Alternatively, when the fall
heralds its coming the khu byug precedes the khug rta when migrat-
ing. The swallow or sparrow {khug rta, also 'dag byi'u, 'dab khra, Skt.
divoka, cätaka), any of a swift, long-winged, passerine bird, fam. Hirun-
dinidae, the Cuculus melanofeucus; synonyms, e.g. char sdod, "settler
in rain", char dga', "rejoicer at rain" (said to subsist on rain-drops),
sprin la slon and sprin 'degs, "lifting high in the cloud". 386d la : ba,
cf. no. 188d supra. Cf. also S.C. Banerjee, Flora and Fauna in Sanskrit
Literature, p. 163; The poem is included in the anthology of Zhuang
Jing, no. 75.
387 The birth-place {skyels] sa) (of the girl ?) is 'On-stod zin-kha, a horse-
trade market to the east of the Jo-khan in Lhasa, cf. the Map of the
Central Part of Lhasa, no. 109 in Taring's Map of Lhasa, here rendered
as Wongta shingga. A place, the poem flatly apprises, where there is
noting but {la : las) dirty waste {nan skyug, 'awful vomitting 5 things).
Her (or its) self-esteem or pride is nevertheless even higher than the
topmost point of the prayerflag-pole dGa'-ldan dar-smyon, more com-
monly known as the dGa'-ldan dar-chen, the tall pole for prayer-flags
towering high right behind the Jo-khan abutting the trade market, cf.
no. 89 in the above-mentioned map and no. 15 in the Lay Out Plan of
gTsug-lag-khan in IHa-sa gTsug-lag-khah gi sa-bkra dan dkar-chag.
435
388 A poem carrying eight lines, where perhaps two four-lined stanzas
would be expected. A poem on merriment (dga' dga' spro spro). The
guests assembled here in seated circular rows a t the party (cf. e.g. also
no. 281 supra)y please rejoice and be happy! If you, when the oppor-
tunity for a merry time is offered, don't rejoice, then, evidently, there
won't come a single person saying:"! am happy". Human existence is
like a pastural stretch of grass, you really don't know when igan du,
= where, to what, here = ga dus) it will disappear. Told differently,
have a good time when or if the occasion rises. Merry-making often
materializes spontaneously, life is ephemeral, so, the poem overtly pro-
mulgated, do not entertain any misgivings about impromptu revelry.
388d, cf. analogously no. 319b.
889 It is not befitting ('grig 'grig or khrig khrig, perhaps even better to
read [b]sgrigs [b]sgrigs, i.e. the cattle is not assembling) t h a t the grass
meadows are replete with catties (nor, norphyugs). Someone urged him
to lead forth a cow by putting on a halter (mthur mgo rgyab). In this
poem the cattle herd (khyu) will merely grass on the pasture a short
time—life is ephemeral—the poet t h u s seems admonished hurriedly to
seek out a beloved amongst a number of girls, whilst the chance is there.
390 The poet here professes t h a t he did (iu y in) find a place to grow poplar
in the valley (géun) of Glan-than, located at the foot of sGo-la in T h a n -
yul, north of Lhasa, cf. Dowman, The Power-Places of Central Tibet,
pp. 83-84. The poplar (sbyar pa or dbyar pa) here depicts a girl, who
evidently descended from here. The leaves of the poplar tree, whatever
suits you, spring forth and be relaxed (gnan sos... bde : gnas bzod bde
po, cf. no. 57 supra). The poet is apparently having a date with a girl
from Glan-thah, with whom he could feel at ease.
391 Why should the stag be staying without j u s t crossing the mountain pass
into another valley ? Here is no grass on the mountain and no water
in the valley. There is nothing to subsist on (= love) in these slopes,
the stag is advised to seek other grazing ground, meaning t h a t the poet
should seek another lover. This famous poem with an univeral appeal is
also found incorporated in other collections, e.g. Bod-rigs kyi glu-gias,
p. 108, no. 4 (cum van led.) and Bod-rigs kyi dmahs-gias gces-bsdus,
p. 143.
392 Circumambulation (bskor ba : skor ba) was repented around the caitya,
erected at the three-way junction (lam po sum mdo 'gag, = lam khag
gsum mdo), a stüpa inscribed with the six-syllabic formula Om mani
padme hum. Out of reverence, retreat was performed by looking back-
wards at the stüpa. Beneath this religious act of circumambulation we
should evidently envisage a veiled act of love and dating. The para-
dox and bewilderment haunting the person, who is torn between love
436
394 Going to the east of India, he assumed (re)birth as a peacock, cf. the
crit. ed. no. 60, only the poet dared not (mi bzog) (eat) the soft, yet
poisonous leaves. Read lo ma instead of lo mas; if lo mas is retained,
the poem purports that the baneful leaves cannot leave him alone. As
is known, the peacocks usually partake of poisonous leaves, cf. no. 426.
As subsistence Ctsho ba), e.g., it partakes of leaves of the hemlock,
btsan dugf i.e. Conium maculatum or aconite, Aconitum heterophyllum,
Skt. ativisä, bon ha, of which four genera (rigs) are found; three are
employed officinally and the fourth is particularly baneful, bon na nag
po, Aconitum napellus, Linn, or Aconitum balfourii also called bdud
rtsi lo ma, = btsan dug, growing in lHo Mon-ron, cf. Éel-goh sel-phreh,
pp. 306-308, Rastenija Tibetskoî Meditsiny, p. 72 and Bhagwan Dash,
Formulary of Tibetan Medicine, passim; S.C. Banerjee, Flora and Fauna
in Sanskrit Literature, p. 32. This poem perhaps attempts to depict the
poet, who, though tempted perhaps, after all did not brave to partake
of the soft, yet poisonous treat. For once he was no peacock and the
perspective of indulging in a baneful treat, i.e. to enjoy the company of
women, a dangerous undertaking indeed, was at times apparently too
tall an order for him.
395 Unless (ma rtogs : ma gtogs), indeed, for the happy presence (yod
[rah] grags pa : drag pa) of (cooling) clouds protecting them against
the blasting frost (sad, = gran nad, i.e. perdition), the growth of the
small green sprouts would certainly (read ni or rah in 395d) be endan-
gered by the exposure directly to the (warm, pitiless) rays of the sun.
437
399 It was neither tiger skin nor leopard skin; take a look at t h a t person,
the poet urges, how he holds the incense (bowl) (spos (phor) khyer)
(in the procession wearing in reality only) a (cheap) goat (ras : rva)
skin turned inside out! An ironic quip ridiculing a self-important figure
evidently. Is the poem yet a trite sample which proffers a well-concealed
plaint against the Regent ? This dignitary blatantly donned himself in
a costume, tailored or fabricated, it turned out, from a low-quality goat
skin. Are the tiger skin and the leopard skin allusions to China and
Mongolia respectively ? On tiger and leopard skin, cf. Bod kyi dga'-gzas
I, p. 59, no. 5; Duncan, 1961, p. 88.
400 A slightly ribald poem couched in vernacular idioms. The poem would
seem to depict a girl desperately in love. The water (i.e. urine (chu, dri
chu)) of the young girl (a Ice bu mo) is dripping constantly (rdza rdzar :
rdzag rdzog, 'dzag ger, cf. also no. 35 supra) like pearls (mu tig) (falling
drop-wise). While trying to retain (cum cum pa'i : hcum hcum pa yi
?) (her water) the girl (approached the man literally) bursting with her
officious, ingratiating (? zan zan zum zum ma, lit. "sneaking privily
like a cat") charm.
401 The cup (mchod can = mchodpa'i can ne, = phor pa) is a wooden drink-
ing cup from Dvags po (d[v]ag[s] [po'i] can [ne'i] ser po, cf. no. 262
supra); 401b yod yod pa'i pa'i [sicl] : yod yod yod pa'i\ scribal dittogra-
phy due to shift of page. The poet has his everyday drinking cup, but,
the poem urged, at the same time, please don't forget the little cup (=
spen phor, the term spen rdzab indicates t h a t the type of wood, spen
ma, grows in mud or in the mire). The spen phor, cup or little bowl, is
made or carved from the root of the spen ma, a species of the tamarisk,
Tamarix, a genus of chiefly desert shrubs and trees with small perfect
white flowers in dense racemes or profuse clusters and masses, akin
to the elegant, desert-growing bayberry or myrtle Com bu, Myricaria
bracteata, Royle of the fam. Myricaceae and Tamaricaceae). The Ti-
betans distinguish between two genera of spen ma: spen dkar, with
white fl. and spen nag, with yellow fl., cf. èel-goh éel-phren, pp. 226,
228-9; Bod'ljons rgyun-spyod kruh-dbyi'i sman-rigs, pp. 102-104; Ras-
tenija Tibetskoï Meditsiny, pp. 75, 80;
402 A poem on requited love. The new cooling clouds (sil sil : bsil bsil, bsil
byed, "the cooler" = sprin pa), which congest like wringled or rippled
waves (chu ris éig sig, cf. also Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 47, nos. 2-3), have
passed beyond the pass and disappeared. Pray, be good to lead the
flower growing on the good soil to freedom. The flower (= the girl) is
entreating the rain-heavy clouds (= the male lover) to come back and
shed some life (= love)-giving water.
403 A golden rail-fenced staircase (sgrom skad : sgrom skas, i.e. framed
439
like a box) was erected inside or leading to the great place, the Potala.
This kind of staircase is often fairly large and in three rows; for an
ill., cf. The Potala Palace of Tibet, p. 24, showing the sgrom skas-type
of staircase leading onto the Eastern Terrace of bDe-dbyans-sar (also
denoted bDe-yaris gsum-skas, cf. Chab-spel, 1987, p. 301, women were
prohibited admittance beyond this point) in the Potala—the middle row
in the staircase was exclusively reserved His Holiness. Here the girl is
nevertheless admonished to bring along an auspicious welcome scarf,
climb the stairs and go and see the rGyal-dbari, (* Jinendra) i.e. the
Dalai Lama.
404 From the top of the Red Palace of the Potala a golden rgya glin is
sounded; Pray, look in grace upon us, young men (or: Young Man (= the
Godking) look upon us) and our joyous mood (dga' sad : dga' ba'i gsis
or dga'tshad)\ Cf. similarly, Duncan, 1961, p. 47.
405 A poem exuding the pleasure of an amorous mind. The mind, the poem
relates, remains more content than an arrow, cf. nos. 297 and 409,
(safely) disposed in the (protective) quiver (made) of tiger (skin), cf.
nos. 191, 262. In 405cd another idiomatic simile is introduced, in which
the mind, when obviously bent on love, is even more accomplished or
fulfilled than a crop of sundry grains ('bru sna (tshogs)) producing a
bountiful harvest (lo chu legs pa : lo (tog dan char) chu legs pa, lit. "a
good crop and a good rain", or : lo phyugs legs pa, lit. "a good harvest
and a healthy cattle", or "good farming and herdmanship").
406 The sun has set (thad : thegis], cf. no. 22 supra) beyond the mountain
pass and the shadow stroke (i.e. darkened) the valley (Huh : \k\lun). As
the legend goes and this popular poem corroborates, when evening fell,
he would habitually and surreptitiously slink away under the cover of
twilight to seek out his nightly haven, the little quarter of a mistress;
cf. the crit. éd. nos. 53, 61.
Between no. 406 and no. 407 the MS states t h a t my name, i.e. the
compiler's ?, is *Punyedzäna (= Punyajnäna), the Sanskritized nom de
plume of the compiler—in Tibetan bSod-nams ye-ses.
407 A poem expressing a mangala. The white conch shell wounded to the
right (dun dkar gyas 'khyil, daksinâvrttaéankha) h a s auspiciously its
coil reverted rightly. It is one of the eight auspicious emblems and
auspicious objects (astamahgala, bkra sis rtags brgyad, bkra sis rdzas
brgyad) of Buddhism also called bkra sis dun, and is believed to embody
altruism (lhag bsam, adhyâéaya) solemnly employed to announce the
Holy Law. Pray, the poem entreats, let its sound echo distantly to wield
its influence (lit. conquer) (in) the three-realm universe.
408 The Indian cotton linen, saffron-dyed, of a beautiful lustre, excellent
and all-captivating, was offered as a votive gift to placate and show
440
409 Lhasa, the glorious centre of Dharmacakra, cf. the crit. ed. no. 60, is
located in 'the sea* {rgya mtsho); here reigns Sans-rgyas rgya-mtsho,
the dPon-po who suppresses (i.e. controls and supervises) the 'sea'. We
servants (tabs spyi zu : iabs phyi eu mkhan) remain more content
than an arrow (snan sos : gnas bzod, cf. nos. 56, 297 and 405; ba,
to retain six syll., is redundant). The word-play on rgya mtsho here
alludes to the now subterranean lake, the Plain of Milk Co [ma'i] than)
upon which Lhasa, but first Jo-khah, was built. This became possible
when the marshy lake of 'O-than was drained and filled up to erect
Ra-sa 'Phrul-snan in the Vllth. century, cf. e.g. rGyal-rabs gsal-ba'i me-
lon, chap. XIII. Moreover, the 'ocean' being suppressed (i.e. supervised,
controlled) probably also alludes to the Dalai Lama, whose name always
carries the epithet rgya-mtsho (dalai).
410 The talking bird, the parrot from the province of Kon-yul or Kori-po. His
beautiful beloved, descending also from Kon-yul, is she in good health
? The poet inquired this parrot bird, which here symbolizes a Kon-
po friend who apparently knows about the girl's whereabout and her
constitution.
his selection of poems plausibly makes no. 413ij and no. 414ab into a
separate quatrain quoting it as no. 78.
414 Eternal friend, the poet intimates, behold how modest and brazen you
are! When the time for departing drew near the poet was seen off by
the tiny, shimmering eyes of his beloved. Always—day and night—she
confided in him, all white teeth and smiles, would she think of him in
a cheerful manner. Zhuang Jing has included 414cdef as a separate
quatrain in his coll. no. 79. He moreover equally plausibly proposes ha
instead of de in 414b.
415 A parallel poem to no. 16 of the crit. ed. Here the female lover expresses
her resolution to seek refuge in the religion, when abandoned by a lover
for religion.
416 This and the following poem should be read conjointly. He went to
mChim[s]-phu (of) bSam-yas for meditative retreat, at the great moun-
tain hermitage (ri khrod), cf. Dowman, The Power Places of Central
Tibet, pp. 226-228; Ferrari, mKhyen-brtse's Guide to the Holy Places of
Central Tibet, pp. 45, 115-116. His beloved, the bright girl of good fam-
ily, cf. the crit. ed. no. 2 1 , arrived to supply him with provisions (rgyags,
i.e. food and drink) for meditations. Note the word-play on sgrub pa
rgyag, enter meditation and sgrub rgyags Çbul), to supply provision for
meditative realisation.
417 The great mountain hermitage of Brag-dmar sKed-tshan (or Ke'u-tshan,
"store-house", = ri khrod) is the most significant of the caves of bSam-
yas mChims-phu; cf. e.g. Dowman, ibid., p. 226, 2 3 0 - 1 ; Tucci, 7b Lhasa
and Beyond, p. 327; Ferrari, ibid., pp. 45, 116. This Red Rock Retreat
or Cave is a chief sanctuary of Guru Rinpoche. Who cares whether it is
located high above or not (cf. also no. 424), the poem declares, if people
have a profound (stin : gtih) faith, please come and pay (the meditating
poet) a visit.
418 Ruins (rgyan rol : gyan rol, i.e. gyah [h]rul). Take a look downwards (mi
: ma) at the ruins of lHun-grub-sgan in the eastern direction, a ridge,
as yet unidentified. Death, symbolizing the transcient nature of h u m a n
existence, grew nearer and nearer. My mind-captivating mistress (Yid
'dzin dban mo, cf. the crit. ed. no. 30)—pray do not let her die! A
poem on the ephemeral nature of h u m a n existence, a central doctrine
in Buddhism, which is unconditionally endorsed. When it affects the
chosen one, however, frustation and dispair h a u n t s the poet.
419 IHa-ri and bDud-ri are two mountains, which, as yet, are still not iden-
tified beyond reasonable doubt. The IHa-ri is is not a hill-top cairn
(Icogs : Icog mgo, = la rdzas, la rtse), whereas bDud-ri is. The poet's
beautiful damsel and beloved is not visible, when looking from Lhasa,
443
420 The statue of Buddha denoted "the Passionless Lotus" (ma chagspadma;
read Padmapani (Phyag [na] padma ?) erected in the Upper Meditation
Cell of the Potala; cf. Dowman, The Power Places of Central Tibet, p. 56;
the 'Phags-pa lha-khari, it was previously the upper storey of the Chos-
rgyal Sroii-btsan sgam-po's meditation cave and considered the oldest
lha-khah in the palace. We placate you, be our perpetual refuge in this
and all succeeding existences.
421 Bird, emerald cuckoo (cf. the crit. ed. no. 46), when will you depart (thad
: theg[s], cf. no. 22 supra) for Mon-yul ? The poet should like to have
forwarded three messages or missives to his beautiful heart-throb. The
cuckoo is here acting as a go-between for the two lovers. The poem is
incorporated in the collection of Zhuang Jing, no. 80.
422 The thrush named sKyid-skyid Bu-Tchrid, "Happy Child-Rear", cf. also
no. 355, which resided in the square willow-grove adhering to (the estate
of) the gYu-thog noble family (sku drag). The gYu-thog noble family in
pre-revolutionary Tibet was ayah-gzis family (descending from the Xth.
Dalai Lama), cf. no. 6 in H.R.H. Prince Peter, The Aristocracy of Central
Tibet; L. Petech, Aristocracy and Government in Tibet, pp. 28-32. By
joining him, the thrush proposed to the parrot, should they depart (thad
: thegis], cf. no. 22 supra) eastwards to Kori-yul ? This poem too is
included in the collection of Zhuang Jing, no. 81.
423 The little bird named O-rgyan dpal-'dzoms residing in the willow-grove
adhering to (the estate of) the Grum-pa (more correctly Bhrum-pa) noble
house (sku drag, sger pa). On the noble family Grum-pa, cf. no. 57 in
the Map of Lhasa, drawn by Taring and no. 196 (where it is rendered
Bhrum-pa or Bhrum-pa in H.R.H. Prince Peter, ibid., no. 196; L. Petech,
ibid., pp. 124—127). This family descends from Dvags-po, cf. L. Petech,
op. cit., p. 124. Thus, a little bird, i.e. a handsome girl (the daughter)
of this noble house is even sweeter or more delicious than the grapes
(rgun 'brum, Vitis vinifera, L., cf. Sel-goiï éel-phreh, pp. 213-14, i.e. wine
grapes, usually sweet, but with a slightly acid taste, = a less attractive,
even acidulated girl ? Note the homonymous word-play on 'brum with
the house's name) growing in bSad-sgrub-glin in Dvags-po province, In
fact, éel-goh éel-phreh adduces, loc. cit., p. 214, t h a t of the six genera
(rigs) of the rgun 'brum, the species descending from Dvags-po is of a
greenish hue and generally of an inferior quality. The Dvags po graphes,
incidentally, we used to make sacramental wine in the 17th century by
the Jesuit missionaries, cf. R. Stein, Tibetan Civilization, p. 25.
444
424 Kori-po Nar (or Bar)-la, this pass, cf. no. 257 supra, who cares whether
it is situated high or not! Mindful of his beloved, the stallion (= the
poet) can pace and pace, i.e. go everywhere. Amor vincit omnia. The
poem is included in the anthology of Zhuang Jing, no. 82.
425 Likewise a simple poem on love. Girl from Kori-yul, do not dispair! If I
am alive and in good health, fate is certain to allot us a meeting!
426 The shimmeringly beautiful crest of plumes and wing coverts (sgro
radons mtshar, i.e. sgro thig, the ocellated spot, cf. also no. 295 supra)
the peacock owed this to poison (cf. no. 394 supra). In default of poi-
sonous leaves (dug gi lo {ma)) this year (lo) the peacock died from star-
vation (hogs ris : Itogs gris, lit. "[by] the knife of hunger"). In this
hidden portrait of the young God-king, it is the "poison", i.e. the jew in-
terdits of his clandestine liaisons and his inveterate epicurean appetite,
t h a t provided the indispensable nourishment responsible for bringing
into full bloom his on-going, youthful peacockish courtship. When the
"forbidden fruits" and his amorous sustenance ceased to exist, it well-
nigh ensued, as his life story would fully corroborate, a fatal blow to
the young man. Cf. Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas, p. 5 2 - 3 ; Bod kyi dga'-géas II,
p. 16, no. 5 = gZas-tshig phyogs-bsdus, p. 161, no. 6.
427 Why, the poem declared, did you set up the bridge, when (pa'i : pas) you
don't know the course of the water (= love, cf. e.g. nos. 170, 239, 279).
Better (bas or 6a) than t h a t would be to construct a stone gangway (?
stepping stones across the river), lit. a pavement (rdo theg, = rdo stegs,
= rdo bcal), which would increase the good fortune, i.e. "pave the way",
so to say, for a prospective tryst.
428 The cotton linen, measuring one or two full squares, cf. also no. 213
supra, bought in the Lhasa-bazar. I shall offer it as a prayer-flag to
enhance the luck (of prospective love inter alia, cf. the crit. ed. no. 21)
of a young man.
429 The hen-thrush named bSkal-bzan bde-gsal residing in the willow-grove
of Brag-mda' (: sGrags-mda' ?, cf. Dowman, The Power Places of Central
Tibet, pp. 207, 212, 215). It raised its sweet warble of love (or endear-
ment), prospective of a successful outcome due to the k a r m a of former
lives.
430 On the sandy plain of Nam-sod (located in lHo-kha), the poet came
carrying beer and teapot (bya : ja), i.e. beer instead of tea in the teapot;
cf. also nos. 235, 253 supra. Though a long distance had to be covered,
the recollection (of her) filled his mind; 430d, cf. 372d and 376d.
431 The great god Yar-lha éam-po, cf. Nebesky-Wojkowitz, Oracle and
Demons of Tibet, pp. 202^4, 221, 223; Ferrari, mKhyen-brtse's Guide
445
to the Holy Places of Central Tibet, pp. 50, 126. It is one of the chief
mountain-gods, a sacred mountain in the Yar-kluns Valley. Look at its
prowess! Water oblation (yon chab = mchod yon) should be offered to
the (statue) of Jo-mo sGrol-ma at Khra-'brug Monastery; cf. G. Tucci,
7b Lhasa and Beyond, p. 136, Ferrari, ibid., p. 11, 49-50, 125; Dow-
man, The Power-places of Central Tibet, pp. 173, 177-79. This poem
is a reference to well-known statue of sGrol-ma Éal-zas-ma, Tara, the
Consumer of Offerings. Does the Yar-lha sam-po and sGrol-ma here
depict the poet and his beloved ?
432 From the village of 'Phyons-rgyas, cf. also no. 411, the bird, the hoopoe
(= the girl) showed its kindness. On the rear side of T h e glin-kha (i.e.
? 'Phel-rgyas-glin, cf. Wylie, The Geography of Tibet, pp. 64-65, 130)
the poet will let (thon : gtoh) (the route) be marked (tshad : mtshan)
(to commemorate her kindness). The hoopoe (phu (~ pu) sud, pu pu
khu éud, Skt. kanaka), any of several Old World non-passerine birds
(fam. Upupidae) having a slender decurved bill and feathery tuft (sgro
lcog); syn. sgro'i gtsugphud can, "having a feathered Crest", mchu rin,
"long-beaked", 'dri ha'i 'dab chags, "the malodorous fowl". Among the
Tibetans it is called 'the secretary' (druh yig) of birds, because of the
feathery tuft's resemblance to a pencil; cf. also sdug ro pu pu khu éud,
Bod kyi dga'-gzas I, p. 15, no. 6 = Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas, p. 74, no. 1;
a Ice pu pu khu éud, Bod kyi dga'-gias I, p. 112, no. 6 = gZas-tshig
phyogs-bsdus, p. 135, no. 6; Glu-chun sna-tshogs, p. 7.
433 Girl, dPal-'dzom[s] tshe-rih, I bid you farewell! 433b, cf. nos. 190d and
332b. Godly incense of white thoughts (sems dpa' : sems pa, i.e. love)
Mr. Lag (lag lags) will certainly do (i.e. burn) it; Lag-lags, or Mr. Lag, is
supposed to be the popular name of the official Weather-maker (snags
pa) engaged by the Tibetan Government. On the latter cf. Nebesky-
Wojkowitz, Oracles and Demons of Tibet, pp. 467-480. Incense, usually
juniper or cedar burned to placate the gods, is also burned as a gesture
of good wishes or, as here, for a safe journey, cf. similarly also no. 89
supra.
434 The superb horse of a reddish-gray hue, cf. no. 245. Although it should
become highly exhausted (sku las, = dka' las (khalg] po), nal dub), it
swiftly reached the place to which it was seeking. The male-lover, de-
spite every thinkable obstacles, will seek the beloved. Amor vincit om-
nia.
435 The young girl of the Noble House (sku drag, sgerpa) rNam-[sras]-gliii,
cf. no. 126 in H.R.H. Prince Peter, The Aristocracy of Central Tibet; C.
Bell, The Religion of Tibet, p. 177; Map of Tibet, no. 103. The poet
wished her to remain in good health! i.e. to bid her farewell. Sure, he
446
would contain the two hypostatized lovers. Do not dispair! (read mdzod
instead of mdzad in 440d ?). Included in the collection of Zhuang Jing,
no. 119, who identifies the bya de rgyal smart ka ra with the cuckoo,
the harbinger of spring (C. bàochûn de dùjuâri)\
441 The far-reaching fame of (rgyan grags, Skt. kroéa, hearing or calling
distance, b u t here renown; an equally plausible reading, so also con-
strued by Zhuang Jing, would be rgyan hkrag, strikingly beautiful, cf.
also Bod kyi dga'-gzas /, p. 12, no. 4) the white water-lily (ku mud, Skt.
kumuda) has spread over the whole (ci : spyi) world. When the stalk
of the lotus pistil has generated its fruits separately, the poet confides,
having himself assumed the form of a little parrot, cf. also nos. 83, 117,
t h a t he would come and give consolation. Who embodies the water-lily
resp. the lotus pistil is difficult to determine. The poem is included in
the anthology of Zhuang Jing, no. 121.
442 Almost identical with the crit. ed. no. 60, cf. also infra no. 447. The
only difference is the first line. Here is mentioning of the cuckoo from
inner Mon-yul, cf. the crit. ed. no. 46.
443 Certainly, the poem declares, there is still some (en tsam : phran tsam)
karmic prospects, accumulated from previous existences, cf. the crit. ed.
no. 7, for him to unite with his beloved: the girl Bu- ? khrid dPal-'dzoms,
their thoughts will unite as one.
444 Here 444b-d sems dpa' : sems pa\ A simple poem on requited love ad-
monishing the beloved not to think of him when he is far apart (444a
should properly pleonastically be rendered as sa thag rift nas (thug pa)
med par, i.e. when not (meeting) since being distantly apart), but in-
stead to rejoice when they are united in the thoughts!
445 The good-fated, cf. the crit. ed. no. 7, i.e. the lucky stag (= himself)
reappeared after having reached the top of the pass. The hunter, of
course (ran khag khyag, cf. also nos. 153,175, 360), would still be having
an upper hand. In other words, the stag may well be caught by the
hunter. 449d pa is redundant.
446 The last portion (section IV), commencing abruptly with these two lines,
consists mostly of poems, which are found included in the critical edi-
tion. A striking example of the concocted and garbled compilation of
the present collection is here demonstrated, when we combine 446cd
with no. 155ab, q.v.
448 Finger-rings (mdzub rgyud : mdzub brgyus) are worn (mchod, = gsol,
bzes) on each finger of the people. The young man is wearing a little,
white archery-ring (éa krad, = krad 'khor, cf. no. 393), there is none
better or more beautiful (than this one worn by the poet), i.e. it is quite
good. 448c la is redundant.
448
449 Although carrying almost the same wording as the crit. ed. no. 4 1 ,
the poem purports something different. The poem is couched in a col-
loquial diction. 449b y in grogs pa : y in drag pa i.e. all because, the
poet declared, it is the moon of the fifteenth (i.e. full moon), the great
day. Phrased more concretely, only because you are the girl's parents or
guardian (here = full moon) (she will be "spared"), otherwise (ma gtogs),
the poet continued, the girl (= the hare, ri bon) would already "be done
for" (tshe zad, lit. "the life is exhausted", i.e. she would be "fixed" or
rather "deflowered", here evidently not in a fatal sense, but she would
not have been "spared" his seduction).
450 Here 450ab seem identical with the crit. ed. no. 61. People are gossiping
about the poet. He readily beg pardon: frankly speaking, his paramours
outnumber the amount of bees buzzing over the lake.
451 The spring of water (i.e. melting water) emerging from the high moun-
tain top h a s become half-clear (lit. "the remainder of the clear water
has become dirty (snog pa : rnog pa))", i.e. increasingly dirty. The poet
therefore declared t h a t it would be better to leave the muddy water
without taking it, as water for tea should be pure. Cf. analogously,
Bod-rigs kyi glu-gzas, p. 25, no. 3.
452 If the water (= love) in the river is turbulent, let it! If the fish (usually
= the girl, here ordinary damsels) is bouncing high in the water, well,
let it! The poet would not forsake the mTsho-sman rgyal-mo, cf. nos
178, 250, 317, here symbolizing a favourite girl, but would let (stoh :
gtoh) her be his close friend and companion for life. This poem is also
included in the anthology of Zhuang Jing, no. 120.
454 An allusive poem. Before (actually) getting muddy (snog : rnog, passim)
the water (behaved as if it was plain muddy). If perchance, the poet
blatantly declared, someone similarly were to exercise suchlike inflam-
atory words (snog (: rnog) skad, = dkrog gtam} or = skad cha rnog po,
unclear, false talk, rumours, etc.), the poet assured t h a t in the wake of
such muddling, he would see to t h a t the water would become irrevocably
muddy! (lit. "make the clear water muddy beyond extrication" (dvans
sin [he] 'byed rgyu med pa). Couched more plainly, if someone were to
cause trouble, like e.g. spreading defaming and scoffing rumours, then
the detractors have only seen the beginning.
B i b l i o g r a p h y
Western S o u r c e s
29*
452
Mimaki, Katsumi, 1988, "A Tibetan Index to the Pentaglot Dictionary from
the Qing Dynasty", Tibetan Studies, (eds. Uebach & Panglung), München,
pp. 279-291.
Mullin, Glenn H., 1982, Songs of Spiritual Change. Gyalwa Kalzang Gya-
ts'o, the Seventh Dalai Lama. Gabriel/Snow Lion, Ithaca, NY.
Nakane, Chie (ed.), 1984, Map of Lhasa. Drawn by Z.J. Taring, Institute of
Oriental Culture, The University of Tokyo Press.
Nanda, Neeru, 1982, Tawang. The Land of Mon. Vikas Publ. House, PVT.
Ltd. Delhi.
Nebesky-Wojkowitz, René de, 1956, Oracles and Demons of Tibet. The Cult
and Iconography of the Tibetan Protective Deities. Mouton, The Hague.
Nebesky-Wojkowitz, René de, 1976, Tibetan Religious Dances. Mouton, The
Hague.
Norbu, Jamyang (ed.), 1986, Zlos-gar. Performing Traditions in Tibet, LTWA,
Dharamsala.
Norbu, Namkhai D., 1967, Musical Tradition of the Tibetan People, Serie
Orientale Roma, XXXVI, IsMEO, Roma, pp. 205-338.
Ortega y Gasset, Jose, 1957, On Love, (tr. T. Talbot), Meridan Books, New
York.
Panglung, Jampa Losang, 1980, "Zwei Beschwörungsformeln gegen Schlang-
enbiß im Mülasarvästivädin-Vinaya und ihr Fortleben in der Mahämäjü-
rividyäratni", Heilen und Schenken. Festschrift für Günther Klinge zum
70. Geburtstag. Asiatische Forschungen 71, Otto Harrassowitz, Wies-
baden, pp. 66-71.
Panglung, J a m p a Losang, 1981, Die Erzählstoffe des Mülasarvästiväda-
Vinaya. Analysiert aufgrund der Tibetischen Übersetzung, Studia Philo-
logica Buddhica. Monograph Series IV. The Reiyukai Library, Tokyo.
Panglung, Jampa Losang, 1988, "Die metrischen Berichte über die Grabmä-
ler der tibetischen Könige", Tibetan Studies, München, pp. 321-368.
Petech, Luciano, 1950, China and Tibet in the Early Eighteenth Century.
The History of the Establishment of the Chinese Protectorate in Tibet.
T'oung Pao Monograph Series 1; 2nd ed. 1972, J.E. Brill, Leiden.
Petech, Luciano, 1973, Aristocracy and Government in Tibet1728-1959, Se-
rie Orientale Roma, XLV, IsMEO, Roma. Peter, HRH Prince, of Greece
and Denmark, 1954, The Aristocracy of Central Tibet, Kalimpong.
Pimpaneau, Jacques, 1977, Chanteurs, Conteurs, Bateleurs, Littérature orale
et Spectacles populaires en Chine, Paris.
458
Van der Kuijp, L. W. J., 1986, "Studies in the Life and Thought of mkhas-
grub-rje IV: Mkhas-grub-rje on Regionalism and Dialects", Berliner In-
dologische Studien, Band 2, pp. 23-50.
Van Manen, Johan, 1921, "Three Repartee Songs", JASB, n.s. XVII, no. 4,
pp. 287-318.
Verkerdy, 1952, "Some Remarks on Tibetan Prosody", Ada On Hung., II,
2 - 3 , pp. 221-234.
Vilgrain, B., 1986, La Raison de l'oiseau. Poème de Tshanyang Gyatsho,
Sixième Dalai Lama, Les Immémoriaux, Fata Morgana, Paris.
Vogel, J. P., 1962, The Goose in the Indian Literature and Art, Mémoires of
the Kern Institute, no. 11, E.J. Brill, Leiden.
Von Schiefner, A., 1882, Tibetan Tales from Indian Sources, tr. into English
by W.R.S. Ralston, London.
Waddell, L. Austine, 1895, The Buddhism of Tibet or Lamaism, London.
Wang Yao, 1985, "Tibetan Operatic Themes", Soundings in Tibetan Civiliza-
tion, Manohar Publ., Delhi, pp. 86-96.
Wang Yao, 1986, Tales from Tibetan Opera, New World Press, Beijing.
Werner, E. T. Chalmers, 1922, Myths and Legends of China, London.
Werner, E. T. Chalmers, 1961, A Dictionary of Chinese Mythology, The J u -
lian Press, New York.
Williams, C.A.S., 1931, Outlines of Chinese Symbolism, Peiping.
Wylie, Turrell V, 1962, The Geography of Tibet according to the 'Dzam-gling-
rgyas-bshad. Serie Orientale Roma, XXV, IsMEO, Roma.
Yamaguchi, Zuihö, 1971, Catalogue of the Toyo Bunko Collection of Tibetan
Works on History, The Toyo Bunko, Tokyo.
Tibetan Sources
Kun-bzan thob-rgyal & Mani rdo-rje, 1985, 'Brug kyi glu-deb (Folksongs
from Bhutan), Thimphu.
Kun-gzigs Chos kyi snari-ba, rTlsa-ri gnas-bsad rgyas-par bsad-pa'i le'u (Coll.
Works, vol. 4) pp. 15-73, Rewalsar 1985.
Klofi-rdol bla-ma Nag-dban blo-bzan, bKa'-gdams-pa daft dge-lugs-pa bla-
ma rags-rim gyi gsuh-'bum mtshan-tho (Vol. ra of gSuh-'bum), ed. Ven.
Dalama, Myssoorie, n.d., pp. 390-490.
bKra-sis dpal-ldan, 1983, "gTsah-ron gi chan-gzas", Bod kyi rtsom-rig sgyu-
rtsal 1983 (2), pp. 74-77.
bKra-sis tshe-rin (comp.), 1986, Bod kyi dga'-gzas sos-ka'i tshor-ba (deb dan-
po) [abbr. Bod kyi dga'-gias / ] , Bod kyi dpe-mdzod-khan (LTWA), Dharam-
sala.
sKal-bzarï bkra-éis & Blo-bzaft phun-tshogs, 1988, "gNen-sgrig gi gzas-tshig
gsar-pa", Gaiis-dkar ri-bo, 1988 (2), pp. 78-79.
mKhas-btsun bzan-po, 1974, gTam-dpe sna-tshogs dan gzas-tshig khag-bcas
[abbr. gTam-dpe], Bod kyi dpe-mdzod-khan (LTWA), Dharamsala.
dGe-rgyas-pa bsTan-'dzin rdo-rje, 1985, "sDe-srid Sans-rgyas rgya-mtsho'i
byun-ba don-bsdus ran-bzin gson-por smras-pa'i gtam", Bod-ljohs £ib-'jug
1985 (2), pp. 31-44.
rGyal-mo T3rug-pa, 1987, "rGyal-ba Tshans-dbyaiis rgya-mtshor dpyad-pa",
Bod-ljohs zib-'jug 1987 (4), pp. 84-101.
Chab-spel Tshe-brtan phun-tshogs, 1982, "IHa-sa gtsug-lag-khan gi lo-rgyus
rags-bsad", Bod-ljohs zib-'jug 1982 (1), pp. 10-44.
Chab-spel Tshe-brtan phun-tshogs, 1987, " 'Tshans-dbyans rgya-mtsho'i
mgul-glu' dan ^brel-ba yod-pa'i lo-rgyus kyi don-dhos 'ga'-zig brjod-pa",
Bod-rig-pa'i gros-mol tshogs-'du'i ched-rtsom gces-bsdus, (ed. Krun-go lho-
nub mi-rigs zib-'jug rig-tshogs bod rig-pa'i gnas-tshogs kyi rtsom-sgrig
tshogs-chun), Bod-ljons mi-dmans dpe-skrun-khan, Lhasa, pp. 283-315.
Chos-grags, 1985, sDe-dge'i dmahs-glu, Szechuan National. Publ. House,
Chengdu.
Ni-sgrol, 1983, "IHa-sa'i stod-gzas kyi zabs-bror dbye-zib byas-pa", Bod-ljohs
glu-gar 1983 (2), pp. 24-27.
rTa-mgrin, 1987, "dPe-rgyan la curi-zad dpyad-pa", Bod-ljohs zib-'jug 1987
(4), pp. 61-67.
Dar-rgyas No-mon-han lHun-grub dar-rgyas, Thams-cad mkhyen-pa Nag-
dbah chos-grags dpal-bzah-po'i rnam-par thar-pa phul-du byuh-ba'i
mdzad-pa bzah-po'i gtam-snan lha'i tambu-ra'i rgyud kyi sgra-dbyahs,
463
Chinese S o u r c e s