4) Vajra, Diamond Sceptre

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>From _Foundations of Tibetan Mysticism_ by Lama Anagarika Govinda

 

Part Two: 'MANI': The Path Of Unification And Of Inner Equality

 

4

MANI AS THE DIAMOND SCEPTRE

 

Thus it happened that, though Indra (like all the other gods) became a

mere background-figure for the towering personality of the Buddha, the

symbol of Indra's power was raised from the sphere of nature and physical

forces to that of spiritual supremacy by becoming an attribute of the

Enlightened One.

In this connexion the vajra is no more a 'thunderbolt', an expression

to which many translators stubbornly cling and which would be adequate only

if one were dealing with the vajra as the emblem of the Thunder-God. In

Buddhist tradition, however, no such association persists. The vajra is

regarded as the symbol of highest spiritual power which is irresistible and

invincible. It is therefore compared to the diamond, which is capable of

cutting asunder any other substance, but which itself cannot be cut by

anything.

Likewise the properties of preciousness - nay, of supreme value - of

changelessness, purity and clarity, were further reasons why in Buddhism

the vajra was equated with the diamond. This is expressed in such terms as

'Diamond Throne' (vajrasana), for the place on which the Buddha attained

Enlightenment, 'Diamond Saw' (vajracchedika) for one of the most profound

philosophical scriptures of the Mahayana, which ends with the words: 'This

sacred exposition shall be known as Vajracchedika-Prajna-Paramita-Sutra -

because it is hard and sharp like a diamond, cutting off all arbitrary

conceptions and leading to the other shore of Enlightenment.'

Those Schools of Buddhism which placed this teaching in the centre of

their religious life and thought are therefore known under the collective

term 'Vajrayana', the 'Diamond Vehicle'. In all these terms the concept

'thunderbolt' is completely excluded, and the same is true for pali names,

like Vajiranaa (diamond-knowledge), etc.

The ideas which were associated with the term vajra by the Buddhists of

the early Vajrayana are clearly demonstrated by the Tibetan equivalent for

vajra, i.e.,'rdo-rje' (pronounced 'dorjay'): 'rdo' means 'stone', 'rje'

means 'ruler', 'master', 'lord'. The dorje, therefore, is the king of

stones, the most precious, most powerful and noble of all stones, i.e., the

diamond.

As a visible symbol the vajra takes the shape of a sceptre (the emblem

of supreme, sovereign power), and therefore it is correct to call it

'diamond sceptre'. This sceptre assumes a form corresponding to its

function. Its centre is a sphere which represents the seed or germ of the

universe in its undifferentiated form as 'bindu' (dot, zero, drop, smallest

unit). Its potential force is indicated in pictorial representations by a

spiral issuing from the centre of the sphere.

From the undifferentiated unity of the centre grow the two opposite

poles of unfoldment in form of lotus-blossoms, which represent the polarity

of all conscious existence. From this originates space, i.e., our

three-dimensional world, symbolized by the 'four quarters of the universe',

with Mount Meru as its centre or axis. This spatial unfoldment corresponds

to the spiritual differentiation of the principle of Enlightenment in form

of the five transformed constituents of consciousness and their

corresponding Dhyani-Buddhas, in whom the consciousness of Enlightenment

appears differentiated like rays of light passing through a prism.

Therefore we see that from each of the two lotus-blossoms issue five 'rays

of power' (represented by five metal ribs or spokes), which again converge

upon a point of higher unity (forming on each side a tip of the vajra),

just as in meditation all conscious forces of the Sadhaka (or adept) are

gathered in one point. And in the same way as in a mandala1 the number of

lotus petals can be raised from four to eight, by indicating the

intermediate directions - thus too the rays or spokes of the vajra,

converging upon the axis, can be raised from four to eight. In the first

case one speaks of a five-spoked (Tibetan: rtse-lna), in the latter case of

a nine-spoked (Tibetan: rtse-dgu) vajra. The centre, as in a mandala is

always included in the number. Indeed, the vajra is an abstract (i.e.,

non-figural) plastic double-mandala, the duality of which (though not

affecting the above-mentioned numbers, which are only concerned with the

common design of both sides) expresses the polarity, the relative dualism

in the structure of consciousness and world, and postulates at the same

time the 'unity of opposites', i.e., their inner relationship.

 

[1 A concentric diagram or plastic model, used for purposes of meditation,

which will be the subject of Part III (Padma).]

 

The central idea of the vajra, however, consists in the purity,

radiance and indestructibility of the Enlightenment-Consciousness

(bodhi-citta ; Tibetan: byan-chub-sems). Though the diamond is able to

produce all colours, it is colourless according to its own nature, a fact

which makes it - as we have seen in Guru Kankanapa's story - a suitable

symbol of that transcendental state of 'emptiness' (Sunyata; Tibetan:

ston-pa-nid), which is the absence of all conceptual determinations and

conditions that the Buddha described as 'the Unborn, the Unoriginated, the

Uncreated, the Unformed', because it cannot be determined by any positive

qualities, though being present always and everywhere. This is the

quintessence of the above-mentioned 'Diamond Sutra' and the foundation of

the 'Diamond Vehicle'.

The relationship between the highest and the ordinary state of

consciousness was compared by certain schools of alchemy to that between

the diamond and an ordinary piece of coal. One cannot imagine a greater

contrast, and yet both consist of the same chemical substance, namely,

carbon. This teaches symbolically the fundamental unity of all substances

and their inherent faculty of transformation.

To the alchemist who was convinced of the profound parallelism between

the material and the immaterial world, and of the uniformity of natural and

spiritual laws, this faculty of transformation had a universal meaning. It

could be applied to inorganic forms of matter as well as to organic forms

of life, and equally to the psychic forces that penetrate both.

Thus, this miraculous power of transformation went far beyond what the

crowd imagined to be the Philosopher's Stone, which was supposed to fulfil

all wishes (even stupid ones!), or the Elixir of Life, which guaranteed an

unlimited prolongation of earthly life. He who experiences this

transformation has no more desires, and the prolongation of earthly life

has no more importance for him who already lives in the deathless.

This is emphasized over and over again in the stories of the Siddhas.

Whatever is gained by way of miraculous powers loses in the moment of

attainment all interest for the adept, because he has grown beyond the

worldly aims which made the attainment of powers desirable. In this case,

as in most others, it is not the end which sanctifies the means, but the

means which sanctify the end, by transforming it into a higher aim.

-snip-

Thus the wise ones do not use the Elixir of Life to preserve the body

beyond its time, but to attain the higher life, which does not know the

fear of death. He who would utilize it only for the preservation of his

physical existence, would die from within and continue to exist merely as a

'living corpse'. In selfish hands even the Elixir of Life turns into

poison, just as truth in the mouth of a fool turns into falsehood and

virtue into bigotry in the narrow-minded.

However, he who has found the Philosopher's Stone, the radiant jewel

(mani) of the enlightened mind (bodhi-citta) within his own heart,

transforms his mortal consciousness into that of immortality, perceives the

infinite in the finite and turns Samsara into Nirvana - this is the

teaching of the Diamond Vehicle.

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[see the attachment for a double vajra (dorje).]

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