212 IX. DAILY LIFE AND ROUTINE. "He who eats Lamas' food Wants iron jaws."-Tibetan Proverb.1 LTHOUGH the Lamas are enslaved in the bonds of ritual they are not all gloomy ascetics, wrapped up in contemplation, but most can be as blithe as their lay brothers. Their heavy round of observances, however, often lies wearily upon them, as may be seen from the frequent interruptions in the ordinary Lama's saintly flow of rhetoric to yawn, or take part in some passing conversation on mundane matters. The daily routine of a Lama differs somewhat according to whether he is living in a monastery, or as a village priest apart from his cloister, or as a hermit. As with occidental friars, a considerable proportion of Lāmas have trades and handicrafts, labouring diligently in the field, farm, and in the lower valleys in the forest. But scarcely ever is he a mendicant monk, like his prototype the Indian Bhikshu of old. The routine in the convents of the established church is seen at its best in the Grand Lama's private monastery or chapel-royal of Nam-gyal, on mount Potala, near Lhasa, and I am indebted to one of the monks MENDICANT LAMA.3 1 dkor zas sa-la Ichag-gi gram-pa dyos. 2 After Giorgi. of that monastery for the following detailed account of the practice followed there. ROUTINE IN A MONASTERY OF THE ESTABLISHED CHURCH. Immediately on waking, the monk must rise from his couch, even though it be midnight, and bow thrice before the altar in his cell, saying, with full and distinct enunciation: "O Guide of great pity! hear me! O merciful Guide! Enable me to keep the two hundred and fifty-three rules, including abstinence from singing, dancing, and music, and thoughts of worldly wealth, eating luxuriously, or taking that which has not been given," etc., etc. Then follows this prayer 2: "O Buddhas and Bodhisats of the ten directions, hear my humble prayer. I am a pureminded monk, and my earnest desire is to devote myself towards benefiting the animals; and having consecrated my body and wealth to virtue, I vow that my chief aim will be to benefit all living things." Then is repeated seven times the following mantra from the Sūtra on "the wheel-blessing for the animal universe": "Om! Sambhara, Sammahā jaba hūm!" Followed also seven times by this extract from bharabi manaskar mahā jaba hum! Om! Smara Smarabi manaskara Norbu-rgyas-pahi-gzhal-med-k'an: “Om! ruci ramini pravartya hūm!" This is followed by "Om! Khrecara ganaya hri hri svaha!" -a spell which if the monk thrice repeats and spits on the sole of his foot, all the animals which die under his feet during that day will be born as gods in the paradise of Indra (Jupiter). Having done this worship, the monk may retire again to sleep if the night is not far advanced. If, however, the dawn is near he must not sleep but employ the interval in repeating several mantras or forms of prayer (smon-lam) until the bell rings for the first assembly. The first assembly, or matin, called "the early gathering" (snatsogs), is held before sunrise. The great bell goes and awakens everyone hitherto slumbering, and it is soon followed by the great conch-shell trumpet-call, on which signal the monks adjust their 1 I have translated by "monk" the word dge-slon, which is literally "the virtuous beggar," corresponding to the Indian Buddhist word Bhikshu, or mendicant. dress and go outside their cell or dormitory to the lavatory stoneflag or pavement (rdo-bchal) for ablution. Standing on these stones, and before washing, each monk chants the following mantra, and mentally conceives that all his sins, as well as the impurities of his body, are being washed away: "Om! argham tsargham bimanase! utsusma mahā krodh humphat!” Then with water brought in copper vessels, and with a pinch of saline earth as soap, they perform ablutions usually of a very partial kind. After ablution each monk repeats, rosary in hand, the mantra of his favourite deity (usually Mañjuṣṛī or Tārā), or his tutelary fiend, as many times as possible. On the second blast of the conch-shell, about fifteen minutes after the first, all the fully-ordained monks bow down before the door of the temple, while the novices bow upon the outer paved court. All then enter the temple and take their places according to their grade, the most junior being nearest the door; and during the ingress the provost-marshal stands rod in hand beside the door. The monks seat themselves in rows, each on his own mat, crosslegged in Buddha-fashion, and taking care not to allow his feet to project, or his upper vestments to touch the mat. They sit in solemn silence, facing straight to the front. The slightest breach of these rules is promptly punished by the rod of the provostmarshal, or in the case of the novices by the clerical sacristan. At the third blast of the conch-trumpet the following services are chanted : Invoking the blessing of eloquence; the refuge-formula; TsonK'apa's ritual of lha-brgya-ma. After which tea is served, but before it is drunk the presiding Lama says a grace in which all join. LAMAIST GRACES BEFORE MEAT. The Lamas always say grace before food or drink. Most of these graces are curiously blended with demonolatry, though they always are pervaded by universal charity and other truly Buddhist principles. 1 This earth is called sug-pa, but the higher Lāmas use soap: "The Lama minister of the Grand Lama,” says Sarat's narrative, “formerly used to wash his holiness's head with water and sug-pa powder, but now he uses a cake of P's transparent soap." And they throw some light on the later Mahayana ritual of Indian Buddhism, from which they are alleged to have been borrowed. Before drinking, the Lamas, like the Romans, pour out some of the beverage as a libation to their Lares, and other gods. A common grace before drinking tea (which is served out eight or ten times daily at the temples and cathedrals-the service being interrupted for this temporal refreshment) is : "We humbly beseech thee! that we and our relatives throughout all our life-cycles, may never be separated from the three holy ones! May the blessing of the trinity enter into this drink!" [Then, here sprinkling a few drops on the ground with the tips of the "To all the dread locality, demons of this country, we offer this good Chinese tea! Let us obtain our wishes! And may the doctrines of Buddha be extended!" The grace before food of the established church, the purest of all the Lamaist sects, is as follows: "This luscious food of a hundred tempting tastes, is here reverently offered by us-the animal beings-to the Jinas (the Dhyani Buddhas) and their princely sons (celestial Bodhisattvas). May rich blessings overspread this food! Om-Ah Hūm! "It is offered to the Lama-Om Guru vajra naividya-ah Hūm! "It is offered to all the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas-Om sarva Buddha Bodhisattva vajra naividya-ah Hūm! "It is offered to the tutelaries, witches, and defensores fidei-Om Deva Dakini Sri dharmapāla saparivāra vajra naividya-ah Hūm! "One piece (is offered) to the powerful demon-ford (dban-bahi-'byun-po ; Skt., Bhutesvara)-Om-Agra-Pinda-ashi bhya svahā! "One piece to hprog-ma-Om-Harite 3-svahā! "One piece to the five hundred brothers or sisters'-Om Harite maha-vajrayakshini hara-hara sarva papi-mokshi svahā! "This food, of little virtue, is offered compassionately and without anger or pride, or as a return for past favours; but solely in the hope that we-all the animal beings-may become holy and attain the rank of the most perfect Buddhahood." When any flesh-meat is in the diet, then the following grace is repeated seven times in order to cleanse from the sin of slaughter and of eating flesh: "Om abira khe-ca-ra Hum!" And by the efficacy of this spell, the animal, whose flesh is eaten, will be reborn in heaven. The following grace is for the special benefit of the donors of provisions, tea, etc., to the monastery, and it is repeated before the monks partake of food so gifted: "Salutation to the all-victorious Tathagata Arhat. The most perfect Buddha. The fiery and most illuminating king of precious light! Namo! Samantaprabhā-rāgāya Tathāgataya Arhate samayak-Buddhāya Namo Mañjusriye. Kumāra-Bhutaya Bodhisattvaya maha-sattvaya! Tadyathā! Om 1 Z'al-zas. 2 Yidam mK'ah-gro ch'os-skyon. 3 This is the celebrated man-eating Yakshini fiendess, with the 500 children, whose youngest and most beloved son, Pingala, was hid away by Buddha (or, as some Lāmas say, by his chief disciple, Maudgalyayana) in his begging-bowl until she promised to cease cannibalism, and accept the Buddhist doctrine as detailed in the Ratnakuta Sūtra. See also the Japanese version of this legend, footnote p. 99. The Lāmas assert that Buddha also promised Hariti that the monks of his order would hereafter feed both herself and her sons: hence their introduction into this grace; and each Lāma daily leaves on his plate a handful of his food expressly for these demons, and these leavings are ceremoniously gathered and thrown down outside the monastery gate to these pretas and other starveling demons. The children of the above Hariti. |