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The Hevajra Tantra: A Critical Study. Part 1, Introduction and Translation

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In this groundbreaking work, the author presents a full translation of, and commentary on, the Hevajra tantra, providing not only deep insight into arguably the most important surviving tantric Buddhist text but also placing the entire corpus of such works into a more accurate context.
      Snellgrove presents the Hevajra tantra, and tantric texts of this class, not as degenerate products of a faith at the time in terminal decline in India—as has often beeb claimed by puritanical scholars—but rather as a wholly legitimate expression of esoteric ritual and meditative practice developed as a natural evolution within the madhyamaka tradition.
      While based primarily on Nepalese manuscript editions of the text, Snellgrove makes extensive reference to the Tibetan translation as well as to extant Indian commentaries. The first half of the work comprises an introduction and the actual translation with detailed annotations, while the second consists of the Romanized original Sanskrit and Tibetan texts and an extensive glossary. (Source: Back Cover)

Citation	Snellgrove, D. L., trans. The Hevajra Tantra: A Critical Study. Part 1, Introduction and Translation. London Oriental Series 6, pt. 1. London: Oxford University Press, 1976.

ContentsSources

• PREFACEvii
• BIBLIOGRAPHYxiii

• INTRODUCTION
• I. Apologetic1
• II. Origins11
• III. Subject-matter19
• IV. Observations39

• TRANSLATION
• PART I
  • Chapter i. The Body of Hevajra47
  • Chapter ii. Mantras50
  • Chapter iii. Hevajra and his Troupe56
  • Chapter iv. Self-consecration59
  • Chapter v. Reality60
  • Chapter vi. The Performance63
  • Chapter vii. Secret Signs66
  • Chapter viii. The Troupe of Yoginīs73
  • Chapter ix. The Spherès of Purification78
  • Chapter x. Consecration81
  • Chapter xi. The Four Gazes84

• PART II
  • Chapter i. Consecrations and Oblations88
  • Chapter ii. The Certainty of Success89
  • Chapter iii. The Basis of all Tantras94
  • Chapter iv. Answers to Various Questions100
  • Chapter v. The Manifestation of Hevajra109
  • Chapter vi. The Making of a Painting114
  • Chapter vii. Books and Feasting115
  • Chapter viii. Subjugating116
  • Chapter ix. Mantras116
  • Chapter x. On Reciting Mantras118
  • Chapter xi. The Five Families118
  • Chapter xii. The Four Consecrations119

• • RESUME OF CONTENTS121
  • DIAGRAMS126
  • GLOSSARY OF SPECIAL TERMS131
  • INDEX143

1. The critical editions of the source texts for this translation can be found in the second volume, The Hevajra Tantra: A Critical Study. Part 2, Sanskrit and Tibetan Texts.
2. For general info see: Columbia AIBS
3. For Derge Kangyur version see: kye'i rdo rje zhes bya ba rgyud kyi rgyal po. In bka' 'gyur (sde dge par phud), Vol. 80:1-26. Delhi: delhi karmapae chodhey gyalwae sungrab partun khang, 1976-1979.

tantra - Tantra, when juxtaposed with Sūtra, generally refers to the scriptures and texts which discuss esoteric topics. While the term is used to refer to texts on other topics, it is mostly used to refer to the genre of scriptures and texts on themes and topics associated with Vajrayāna Buddhism. Skt. तन्त्र Tib. རྒྱུད། Ch. 密宗

Go to the page with the definition of 'Tantra'

tantra - Tantra, when juxtaposed with Sūtra, generally refers to the scriptures and texts which discuss esoteric topics. While the term is used to refer to texts on other topics, it is mostly used to refer to the genre of scriptures and texts on themes and topics associated with Vajrayāna Buddhism. Skt. तन्त्र Tib. རྒྱུད། Ch. 密宗

Go to the page with the definition of 'Tantra'

tantra - Tantra, when juxtaposed with Sūtra, generally refers to the scriptures and texts which discuss esoteric topics. While the term is used to refer to texts on other topics, it is mostly used to refer to the genre of scriptures and texts on themes and topics associated with Vajrayāna Buddhism. Skt. तन्त्र Tib. རྒྱུད། Ch. 密宗

Go to the page with the definition of 'tantra'

tantra - Tantra, when juxtaposed with Sūtra, generally refers to the scriptures and texts which discuss esoteric topics. While the term is used to refer to texts on other topics, it is mostly used to refer to the genre of scriptures and texts on themes and topics associated with Vajrayāna Buddhism. Skt. तन्त्र Tib. རྒྱུད། Ch. 密宗

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Madhyamaka - Along with Yogācāra, it is one of the two major philosophical schools of Mahāyāna Buddhism. Founded by Nāgārjuna around the second century CE, it is rooted in the Prajñāpāramitā Sūtras, though its initial exposition was presented in Nāgārjuna's Mūlamadhyamakakārikā. Skt. मध्यमक Tib. དབུ་མ་ Ch. 中觀見

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