Nalandainscription

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TheNalandainscriptionisaninscriptionlocatedinNalanda,Bihar,India,andhas
beendatedto860CE.TheinscriptiontalksaboutkingDevapaladevaofBengalawho
hadgrantedtherequestofSriMaharajaofSuvarnadvipa,Balaputra,tobuilda
BuddhistmonasteryatNalanda.Balaputrawasmentionedasthesonof
Samaragrawira,grandsonofailendravamsatilaka(thejeweloftheailendrafamily)
withstylizednamerviravairimathana(theslayerofenemyhero),kingofJavathat
marriedTr,daughterofDharmasetu.[1]

Contents
WebeingrequestedbytheillustriousMaharajaBalaputradeva,thekingof
SuwarnadvipathroughamessengerIhavecausedtobebuiltamonasteryatNalanda
grantedbythisedicttowardtheincomefortheblessedLordBuddha,theabodeofall
theleadingvirtuesliketheprajnaparamita,fortheofferings,oblations,shelter,
garments,alms,beds,therequisitesofthesicklikemedicines,etc.oftheassemblyof
thevenerablebhiksusofthefourquarters(comprising)theBoddhisattwaswellversed
inthetantras,andtheeightgreatholypersonages(i.e.thearyapuggalas)forwriting
thedharmaratnasofBuddhisttextsandfortheupkeepadrepairofthemonastery
(when)damaged.
TherewasakingofYavabhumi(YavaorJava),whowastheornamentofthe
Sailendradynasty,whoselotusfeetbloomedbylustreofthejewelsintherowof
tremblingdiademsontheheadsofalltheprinces,andwhosenamewasconformable
totheillustrioustormentorofbravefoes(viravairimathana).Hisfame,incarnateas
itwerebysettingitsfootontheregionsof(white)palaces,inwhitewaterlilies,in
logusplants,conches,moon,jasmineandsnowandbeingincessantlysunginallthe
quarters,pervadedthewholeuniverse.Atthetimewhenthekingfrownedinanger,
thefortunesoftheenemiesalsobrokedownsimultaneouslywiththeirhearts.
Indeedthecrookedonesintheworldhavegotwaysofmovingwhicharevery
ingeniousinstrikingothers.Hehadason(namedSamaragravira),whopossesses
prudence,prowess,andgoodconduct,whosetwofeetfordledtoomuchwith
hundredsofdiademsofmightykings(bowingdown).Hehastheforemostwarriorin
thebattlefieldsandhisfamewasequaltothatearnedbyYudishtira,Paracara,
Bhimasena,KarnaandArjuna.Themultitudeofdustoftheearth,raisedbythefeetof
hisarmy,movinginthefieldofbattle,wasfirstblownuptotheskybythewind,
producedbythemovingontheearth(again)bytheinchor,pouredforthfromthe
cheeksoftheelephants.
Bycontinuousexistenceofwhosefametheworldwasaltogetherwithoutthedark
fortnight,justlikethefamilyofthelordofthedaityas(demons)waswithoutthe
partisanshipofKhrisna.AsPaulomiwasknowntobe(thewifeof)thelordofthe
Suras(i.e.Indra),Ratithewifeofthemindborn(Kama),thedaughterofthe

mountain(Parvati)oftheenemyofKama(i.e.Shiva),andLakshmioftheenemyof
Mura(i.e.Vishnu),soTarawasthequeenconsortofthatking,andwasthedaughter
ofthegreatrulerDharmasetuofthelunarraceandresembledTara(theBuddhist
goddessofthisname)herself.AsthesonofSuddhodana(i.e.theBuddha)the
conquerorofKamadeva,wasbornofMaya,andSkanda,whodelightedtheheartof
thehostofgods,wasbornorUmabyShiva,wasbornofherbythatkingthe
illustriousBalaputra,whowasexpertincruisingtheprideofalltherulersofthe
world,andbeforewhosefootstool(theseatwherehislotusfeetrested)thegroup
princesbowed.
WiththemindattractedbythemanifoldexcellencesofNalandaandthroughdevotion
tothesunofSuddhodana(theBuddha)andhavingrealizedthatricheswasficklelike
thewavesofamountainstream,hewhosefamewaslikethatofSanghartamitra.
ThismightpossiblymeantthathiswealthbefriendedthecauseoftheSangha.Built
there(atNalanda)amonasterywhichwastheabodeoftheassemblyofmonksof
variousgoodqualitiesandwaswhitetheseriesofstuccoedandloftydwellings.
Havingrequested,KingDevapaladevawhowasthepreceptorforinitiatinginto
widowhoodthewivesofalltheenemies,throughenvoys,veryrespectfullyandoutof
devotionandissuingacharter,(he)grantedthesefivevillageswhosepurposehad
beenmotivedaboveforthewelfareofhimself,hisparentsandtheworld.Aslongas
thereiscontinuanceoftheocean,ortheGangeshasherlimbs(thecurrentsofwater)
agitatedbytheextensiveplaitedhairofHara(Shiva),aslongastheimmovableking
ofsnakes(Shesa)lightlybearstheheavyandextensiveeartheveryday,andaslongas
the(Udaya)Easternand(Asta)Westernmountainshavetheircrestjewelsscratched
bythehoofsofthehorsesoftheSun,solongmaythismeritoriousact,settingup
virtuesovertheworld,endure.[2][verificationneeded]

More fascinating stuff (but from the Chinese sources) about the
impact of this monk Dharmarak$hita (also know as Serlingpa in
Tibetan) on tibetan buddhism, and his disciple Atisha, who brought
the Javanese mind on boddhicitta to a greater understanding by the
Mahayana school. How and why the Javanese never wrote down
their understanding of the mind as the Buddhists did is fascinating...
but I am not sure if the chinese sources got this point right??

It is a question only few people pose: how would Tibet look

like today without Atisha?
Most likely Buddhism would have vanished from the hearts of the

Tibetan people, monks would not have known what and how to
teach, monasteries would have lost their purpose. There would have
been no teaching of the Lam Rim, as the gradual path to
enlightenment is called, there would be no understanding of
Bodhichitta ( enlightened mind) as the gate to the truth, no
preservation of so many holy scripts, which were lost in India, but
saved in Tibet and later spread around the globe. Tsongkapa would
have had no basis for his great reforms and the founding of the
Gelug sect with a Dalai Lama as its head. There would be no driving
force, who over the last decades has brought Atisha's message to
the rest of the world.
From India Atisha had come to Tibet. One thousand years later,
Atisha comes from Tibet to the world. Atisha meditation centers,
many led by Tibetan monks are opening up all over the West and
East and in memory of him, some groups even use the name of
Serlingpa, whom Atisha called one of his greatest teachers.
Who was Atisha? Who was Serlingpa? Both were born towards the
end of 10th century.
Serlingpa was an offspring of the Srivijaya Dynasty, which had its
roots in the Island of Java, but moved its seat to the Island of
Sumatra and influenced for centuries the culture and religion of
large parts of Southeastasia. Serlingpa's Sanskrit name was
Dharmakirtisri.
In his time, Serlingpa seems to have been the most revered scholar
in the Buddhist world. Even Chinese and Indians respected his
monastery near the city of Palembang as the leading center of
Buddhist learing.
One of the reasons for Serlingpa's outstanding reputation was his
clear and comprehensive knowledge of Buddha's teachings,
especially of the path to Bodhichitta, the path to the enlightened
mind. The concept and teachings of Bodhichitta was not Serlingpa's
invention as nothing that was ever taught by the holy men was ever
invented by them. What they taught was and is eternal. For
Serlingpa the practise of Bodhichitta was natural. He did not have to
learn it. Bodhichitta is the core of the Javanese soul and is
there ever since the people of Java came to this earth.
Buddha had talked about Bodhichitta and later the great Buddhist
scholar Nagarjuna put it in writing. That was about 700 years before
Serlingpa. What Serlingpa did was to cleanse the various teachings
of Bodhichitta, which existed at that time, from confusing
interpretations and made it easy for people to understand. Easy
though it may have been in those days when people lived close with
nature. Nowadays, when Materialism is over whelming the human
mind, the path to Bodhichitta, the practise of loving kindness and

compassion seems much more difficult.

Atisha was the second son of the Ruler in what today is the border
area between India and Bangladesh. It is said, that during Atisha's
birth in 982 many wondrous things happened such as a shower of
blue Lotus-flowers descending on his mothers lap. His parents
named him Chandragharba, the "Essence of the Moon". In the
Buddhist tradition, the sun stands for wisdom and the moon for the
means to achieve this wisdom. In all his later teachings Atisha
reminded his followers again and again to never separate the two,
since every human being is given the means to achieve wisdom. But
if people use the means in order to fulfil the desires of their senses,
wisdom is unattainable. People will not be able to follow the path to
inner liberation. They will remain in the endless cycle of rebirth.
Already as a small child, Atisha started to preach. Monks from the
famous Vikramasila Monastery, which was close to his parents
palace, guided his spiritual development. At the age of 20, Atisha
was ordained and given the name Dipamkara Srijnana. He hardly
could have gotten a more challenging name, since this was the
name of the first Buddha, who was long before Siddharta Gautama.
Buddha Dipamkara, so it is said, was the invisible spiritual guide for
Siddharta to achieve enlightenment and become the historical
Buddha, known as Buddha Sakyamuni. Much later, during his time in
Tibet, Dipamkara Srijnana was being called Atisha.
Atisha was an eager student. He studied the scripts of all the
Buddhist schools, not taking side with any one. After all, there had
been only one Buddha Sakyamuni and if one wanted to follow him
one would have to walk his path. Only then could one hope to enter
the gate to Nirvana and unite with the Creator of All, the Only and
Almighty One. As Atisha discovered, reaching Nirvana was not
to separate oneself from the world, but to use the
Enlightenment to work with loving kindness and compassion
for the benefit of all. For Atisha there was no separation of
Buddha's teachings into Hinayana (the small wagon of the
younger Buddha ) and Mahayana ( the big wagon of the
older Buddha ).
After Atisha had studied with all the famous teachers of India, he
was told, that there is only one left, who could still teach him more.
This was Serlingpa, who himself had been in India before. Together
with 125 disciples and traders Atisha set out for Sumatra. 13 months
later he arrived. Atisha was about 30 years old.
There was so much to learn and see that Atisha stayed with
Serlingpa for 12 years. According to research in Indonesia, Atisha
seems to have also visited the Island of Java, where Serlingpa's
ancestors had built many holy places such as the world famous

Stupa Borobudur, the temple complex Prambanan, the Tara Temple

Kalasan und Boko Palace, which Javanese people consider the cradle
of their philosophy.
Boko, a hill top temple and palace complex goes back to the 5th or
6th century. It was the seat of Panangkaran, the Great Wise Man of
Java. The kings of the Sailendra-Dynasty are known to have built
Borobodur, but Panangkaran was its conceptor. Panangkaran first
gave the design for the Tara Temple in Kalasan and then for
Borobodur.
For Atisha, the visits to Boko and Borobodur must have felt like
homecoming. Each of those holy places has its own explanation and
messages, set in their architectural layout and structures and reliefs
of stone. Each of those places contains the knowledge, that Atisha
had learned from scripts. While circumambulating and walking up to
the top of the Stupa of Borobudur, Atisha found all there is in the
Universe, all knowledge about heaven and earth and the path to the
ultimate truth, to the Oneness of All. Also, there was the Tara
Temple. Tara had been to Panangkaran, what Tara had been to
Atisha. The Buddhist deity had been Atishas guardian and guide
ever since he was a child. It was her, who advised him not to get
married, to become a monk and practise the Dharma. And it was
her, who guided him in his decision to go to Tibet.
Atisha came to understand, that Serlinpas version of Buddhism
seemed nearly identical with the Javanese philosophy striving to
control desires in order to achieve an enlightened mind. But while
Buddha `s teachings were eventually written down, Javas
philosophic path remains unwritten up to today. People must
feel their Inner when they discover themselves. They can
not it by using word. Words are the product of the mind
and here lies the root of all problems mankind has ever had
and is having today. The intellectual mind wants to reason,
to interpret and to know better than the hidden "mind" of
the soul.
When Atisha left to return to India, Serlingpa gave him six of his
scripts. These scripts contain the essence of Buddha's teachings.
Laymen would not have to study all the Sutras and Tantras, in which
Buddha explained the human nature and how to free themselves
from rebirth. Since Atisha was well versed in the Sutras and Tantras,
he understood, that Serlingpas scripts were like a key for all, who
wanted to open their inner doors. Wherever Atisha went, those 6
scripts were always with him.
.
Back in India, Atisha was made the head of his former school, the
monastery of Vikramasila. One day, a group of Tibetan monks came
to see him. They had been sent by Jangchub ?, the King of western

Tibet, to plead with Atisha to come to Tibet and save Buddhism from
extinction.
Atisha hesitated. There was so much to do in India, where Buddha's
message needed to be revived as well. But after Atisha was told,
that Jangchub ?`s oncle, King Yeshe ?, had sacrificed his life to make
Atisha come, Atisha felt, Tibet was his destiny. He went, spent one
year in Nepal and arrived at the country of the Snow Lion at the age
of about sixty.
Murals in many Tibetan monasteries recall, how Atisha was received
by Jangchub ?, all the monks and people with greatest honours and
open hearts. Jangchub ? wanted nothing more than to bring his
people back to the spiritual path. So he asked Atisha to compose a
short, precise and practical guide on how to practice the Dharma.
Everyone should be able to understand. Only then, so said the King,
could Buddhism be revived. That was, what Atisha had been
prepared for by Serlingpa. Atisha compressed Serlingpa`s
Scripts into what is read by people all over the world up to
today: The Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment
(Bodhipathapradipa), a guiding text of 68 verses only. Once
again Atisha lived up his name of Dipamkara, which means:
the Lighter of the Lamp.
For Atisha it may not have been easy to cope with the high altitude
of an average of 4000 Meters, the cold winters and the travelling
over far distances, mainly by horse, boat and foot. But he braved
the harshness of nature with his inner powers and his love for the
people, he visited many holy places on the mountains and in the
valleys, he wrote essays and taught, prayed in caves, had Stupas
built, blessed existing monasteries and encouraged the
establishment of new ones. Most of all, he cleared up the
religious confusion and united the schools of Buddhism as
well the teachings of Sutra and Tantra into one and the
same. There was no more Hinayana or Mahayana. There was
the teaching of loving kindness and compassion, which leads
to Wisdom, to Bodhichitta, the enlightened mind. Atisha
became the beloved "Dorje Pandit Atisha", "the Precious Lord" , the
savior of the Dharma in the hearts of the people.
After many years of travelling, Atisha spent a longer time in the
caves of Drak Yerpa, a mountainous area in the eastern
surroundings of Lhasa and finally settled at a small monastery called
Njetang, half an hour drive west from Lhasa. Here his throne can still
be seen as well as his selfmade statue and a small stupa, containing
his personal belongings next to another Stupa of his favorite disciple
Dromt? Atisha died in Njetang in 1054 at the age of 72.
Almost one thousand years have passed. Many Tibetan monasteries

honor Atisha with statues, murals or Tankas, often together with

Dromt?npa and Serlingpa. But what do the monks know of Atisha or
Serlingpa? Yes, they say, Atisha was a great Lama and Serlingpa was
his teacher. Atisha was the one, who preached the need to tame the
mind , practise Compassion, treat all people as parents and always
be grateful to them. Older monks still tell the story, how Yeshe ? and
Janchub ? did everything to make Atisha come to Tibet and that
Atisha is seen as the father of all, who adhere to Tibetan Buddhism.
Older monks also know, that there seems to be a spiritual
and geographic North-South Line between the Indonesian
Stupa of Borobudur and the Tibetan Kumbum Stupa in
Gyantse. Both are built on a very similar Mandala, both are
manifestations of the universal compassion and truth,
though the Kumbum Stupa was built about 900 years after
Borobodur and 400 years after Atisha. Younger monks,
however, know hardly more than Atisha's name though they all
speak of compassion as the leading theme in their life. But spiritual
and intellectual depths is missing. And as in the days before Atisha,
there are various sects and only a few monks, who can read the
original holy scripts in Sanskrit language. At least there is the Gelug
sect, which was founded in the 15th century by Tsongkapa, after he
had a vision of Atisha.
Is another Atisha needed to once again cleanse and unite the
teachings and the believers as well? As an old men said, everything
has its time and if the right time has come, a wise man will appear
and open scripts, which have not been destroyed, but hidden for
future use. Is this time coming? Some of those scripts are the ones
of Serlingpa. Two of them seem to have been found and are kept in
safekeeping in Lhasa's holy mountain place, the Potala Palace.
Another sign of changing times is the rehabilitation of the LamaTemple Yonghegong in Beijing. There a whole Pavillion is being
dedicated to the fathers of the Gelug sect, showing among others
the statues of Serlingpa, Atisha, Dromt?npa and Tsongkapa.