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The Author of the Hor-chos-̲hbyuṅAuthor(s): G. M. RoerichReviewed work(s):Source: Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, No. 2 (Dec., 1946),pp. 192-196Published by: Cambridge University PressStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/25222109 .

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The Author of the Hor-chos-hbyun

By G. M. ROERICH

GHUTH, when translating the Hor-chos-hbyun (Geschichte des

. Buddhismus in derMongolei, i, Strassburg, 1892), attributed

this chronicle to hJigs-med nam-mkhah, a high incarnate bLa-ma

of the great bLa-bran bKra-sis-hkhyil monastery in the AmdoProvince of North-Eastem Tibet. For over fifty years this attribu

tion remained unchallenged, notwithstanding the fact that it is

based on a wrong translation of the Tibetan text of the closing

paragraphsof the chronicle. An attentive perusal of the Tibetan

text shows that hJigs-med nam-mkhah, whose short biography

is givenon p. 225 of the Tibetan text of the Hor-chos-hbyun (ed.

G.Huth),

and on

p.356 of Huth's translation

(Geschichtedes

Buddhismus in derMongolei, ii, 1896), was not the author of the

chronicle, but the inspirer of the work which was carried out at

hJigs-med nam-mkhah's command by Gu-sri (j|| f5|j kuo-shih or

State Preceptor) dKah-bcu Su-dhi (&uddhi) A-yu-warta (Ayurvarta),

also known by the name of dbYans-can sGeg-pahi blo-gros hJigsmed Rig-pahi rdo-rje. The author of the chronicle met with hJigsmed nam-mkhah during the latter's visit to the Barun Turned

principality in Eastern Mongolia (see Hor-chos-hbyun, pp. 227-8).This hJigs-med nam-mkhah, better known by his title of Zam-tsha

sku-zabs rin-po-che, was one of the"

Four Golden Pillars"

of

bLa-bran in Amdo.1 Soon after a.d. 1803 (chu-phag lo, Water

Hog year) hJigs-med nam-mkhah was appointed to the abbot's

chair (chos-khri)of the Yung Ho Kung ($? %\\ ) monastery in

Peking. Later he was nominated tamaya lama (tha-ma-ka bla-ma)

of Dolon-nur (mTsho-bdun) in Chakhar (E. Mongolia).2

The circumstances which accompanied the compilation of the

chronicle will be clear from the following translation of pp. 284-5

of the Hor-chos-hbyun (ed. Huth):?

Hor-chos-hbyun, Tibetan text, pp. 284-5 :?

Chen-po Hor-gyi yul-du Dam-pahi Chos ji-ltar-byun-bahi tshul

1 The other three are Hor-tshan gser-khri, Gun-than gser-khri and sDe-pa-tshan.2

Hor-chos-hbyun, p. 227 (of the Tibetan text).

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THE AUTHOR OF THE HOR-CHOS-HBYUN 193

bsad-pa bsTan-pa rin-po-che gsal-bar-byed-pahi sgron-ma zes-bya

ba-hdi-ni / yons-rdzogs bstan-pahi mnah-bdag khri-chen mchog

sprul Zam-tsha sku-zabs rin-po-che rigs-kun-khyab-bdag rDo-rje

hchanchen-po hJigs-med

nam-mkhahi zal-sna-nas de-iiid ran-rehi

Thu-med sog-gi bstan-pahi sbyin-bdag chen-po Pehi-se no-yon-gyi

dgon-par gdan-hdren zus-pa ltarphebs-pahi

skabs-sunos-kyis

mjal-bar / rJe-fiid-kyi zal-nas khyod-kyis Hor-yul-du rgyal-rabs

dan rGyal-bahi bstan-pa ji-ltar dar-tshul-gyi rnam-gzag Bod-kyi

yi-ge dan Sog-pohi yi-ge gnis-kas rtsoms-sig-pahi gsun-gi me-tog

spyi-bor lhun-ba-la / nos-kyis de-dag-gi khuns rtsad-gcod dkah-bas

mi-thub-pa-hdra zus-par / thub-mod hbri-dgos ces-pahi gsun

lci-ba Ian gnis gnan-ba dan-du blans-te / don-gyi slad-du mtshan-nas

smos-te Pan-chen thams-cad mkhyen-pa bLo-bzan dpal-ldan

ye-ses dban-pohi zal-sha-nas dan / hJam-dbyans chos-kyi rgyal-po

rJe-btsun dKon-mchog hJigs-med dban-po yab-sras-kyi zabs-rdul

spyi-bohi rgyan-du hdzin-pahi btsun-gzugs-kyi na-ba Gu-sri

dkah-bcu Su-dhi A-yu wartaham min-gzandbYans-can

sGeg-pahiblo-gros hJig-med Rig-pahi rdo-rje hbod-pas / Hor-gyi rgyal-rabs

rnams-ni Hwo-thog-thahi se-chen hwon Thahi-cihi sku-tsha Se-chen

Sa-snan thahi-cis mdzad-pahi rGyal-brgyud-kyi gtam Me-tog-gi

tshoms mthon-ba don-ldan sogs Hor-gyi yig-cha-rnams-la gzir

bzag / bsTan-pa rin-po-che rgyas-par-mdzad-pahi skyes-mchog

rnams-kyi rnam-par-thar-pani

Bod-kyi mkhas-grub-dam-pa

rnams-kyis mdzad-pahi Legs-bsad-dag-las

sin-tu nun-bar bsdus-te/

rab-byun bcu-bzi-pahi legs-sbyar-gyi skad-du Pra-ma-di / bSil

ldan-gyi ljons-su Myos-ldan / Ma-ha-tsi-nahi yul-du Gyi-mahu

ies-pahi sa-yos lohi khrums zla-bahi dkar-phyogs-kyi dGah-ba

gsum-pahi nin bKra-sis dGah-ldan bsad-sgrub-ghn-du rdzogs-par

sbyar-bahi yi-ge-pa ni Gu-sri bLo-bzafi legs-bsad dar-rgyas dan

Gu-sri Legs-bsad chos-hdzin gnis-kyis bgyis-pa hdis-kyan bsTan-pa

rin-po-che phyogs-duskun-tu dar-zin

rgyas-la yun-rin-du gnas-pa

dan / skye-hgro mthah-dag-la phan-pa rgya-chen-po hbyun-bar

gyur-cig /"

This Account of the Origin of the Holy Doctrine (Dam-pahi

chos) in the country of Great Mongolia (Chen-po Hor-gyi yul),

called the'Lamp illuminating the Precious Doctrine of the Jina

'

(rGyal-bahi bstan-pa rin-po-che gsal-bar-byed-pahi sgron-ma?

this is the real title of the chronicle. Hor-chos-hbyun is a sub-title

marked on the pages of the original xylograph) / was compiled inthe following circumstances /: When the Lord of the Entire

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194 THE AUTHOR OF THE HOR-CHOS-HBYUN

Doctrine (yons-rdzogs bstan-pahi mnah-bdag), Khri-chen,1 the

excellent manifestation (mchog-sprul), the Precious Lord Zam-tsha,2

the Lord pervading (khyab-bdag) all the (five) families (rigs, kula)of (divine beings),3 the great Vajradhara, His Holiness hJigs-med

nam-mkhah came on invitation to the monastery of the Pehi-se

no-yon (beyise noyan?title of the Turned prince), the great alms

giver (sbyin-bdag) of the Doctrine of our Thu-med (Turned) prin

cipality,4 I presented myself (before him) and the Lord (rJe)

himself said tome :'You should compile in the Tibetan and Mongol

languages a detailed account (rnam-gzag) of the Royal Lineage

(rGyal-rabs) of Mongolia, and of the spread of the Doctrine of the

Jina.' The flowers of his words having fallen on my head, I respect

fully remarked :'that it would seem to be impossible for me to

do it, because of the difficulty of investigating the origins.' (The

Lord) having stressed twice :'You can do it! Do write it!

'

I accepted (his) command. I, named Gu-sri (kuo-shih) dkah-bcu 5

Su-dhi(Suddhi) A-yu-warta (Ayurvarta),

also calleddbYafis-can

sGeg-pahi blo-gros hJig-med Rig-pahi rdo-rje, a humble priest

(btsun gzugs-kyi na-ba), keepingas head ornament the dust of the

feet of the great maha-pandita (pan-chen), the All-knowing (Thamscad mkhyen-pa) His Holiness bLo-bzan dPal-ldan Ye-ses dban-po

(the Third Pan-chen bLa-ma of bKra-sis lhun-po, a.d. 1740-1780),whose name I (dare) to mention in this connection (the Pan-chen

bLo-bzan dPal-ldan Ye-ses was the upadhyaya of the author,hence the latter's reluctance to mention his name), and hJam

dbyans Chos-kyi rgyal-porJe-btsun dKon-mchog h Jigs-med dban-po

(the second hJam-dbyans bzad-pa of bKra-sis-hkhyil, 1728-1791),father and son (i.e. Teacher and disciple), have based (my account)of the Royal Lineage (rGyal-rabs) of Mongolia on

Mongol written

sources, such as the'Story of the Royal Line

'(rGyal-brgyud-kyi

gtam) compiled by Se-chen Sa-snan thahi-ci (Secin Sanarj /~

Sayan/tayiji/^ -^ t'ai-tzii/), the great grandson of Hwo-thogthahi Se-chen Hwon-thahi-ci (Qutuytai Secin qurjtayiji/|?| jfc ^

1This is the title of the abbot of the dGe-ldan monastery in dbUs (Central

Tibet); the previous incarnation of hJigs-med nam-mkhah was as abbot of

dGe-ldan.*See Hor-chos-hbyun, i, p. 225; ii, p. 336 (translation).

2Zam-tsha, n. of a

locality in Amdo.* 3

Vajra-kula, Ratna-kula, Padma-kula, Karma-kula, and Buddha-kula.4 The Tibetan sog translates regularly the Mongol quiiyun, principality.5 A learned degree conferred on monks who have successfully passed the examina

tion inphilosophy or mtshan-fiid..

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THE AUTHOR OF THE HOR-CHOS-HBYUN 195

huang t'ai-tzii/) of the Ordos, b. 1540-d. 1586),1 the'Bunch of

Flowers worthy to be seen'

(the Me-tog-gi tshoms mthon-ba don

ldan is the yayiqamsiy-a iijegdekiii ceceg-iin comurliy sastir quoted

by Sayarj Secin. See p. 298 (Mongol text) and p. 299 (translation)

of I. J. Schmidt's edition) and others. As regards the Biographies

(rnam-thar) of Saints (skyes-mchog, parama-purusa), who had

spread the Precious Doctrine, I have made a short summary of the

writings of Tibetan scholars and saints. (The text of the present

work) was copied at the (monastery) of bKra-sis dGe-ldan bsad

grub-glin by two expert copyists (yi-ge-pa) Gu~sri bLo-bzan Legsbsad Dar-rgyas and Gu-sri Legs-bsad Chos-hdzin, on the day of

the third dGah-ba (the 11th day) of the bright half of the Moon of

the month of Bhadrapada (Khrums, the 8th month of the Tibetan

year) of the year Earth-Hare (sa-yos?a.d. 1819) called Gyi-mahu

(S ?P chi-mao) in the country of Ma-ha-tsi-na (Mahacma, China),

Pra-ma-di (Pramathin) in the Sanskrit language (Legs-sbyar-kyi

skad)and

Myos-ldanin the Himavat

(bSil-ldan,i.e.

Tibet,of the

XlVth Cycle prab-byun). May this cause the Precious Doctrine

to spread towards all quarters, may it last for along time, and

may great benefit arise for all living beings."The author of the chronicle hJig-med Rig-pahi rdo-rje seems to

have been the well-known Thu-med lo-tsa-ba whose incarnation

still exists among the Incarnate Lamas of bLa-bran in Amdo

(my thanks are due to the Rev. dGe-hdun Chos-hphel, of bLa-bran

bKra-sis-hkhyil, for this suggestion).His work is a

compilation based on earlier Tibetan chronicles,such as the Deb-ther snon-po by hGos lo-tsa-ba gZon-nu-dpal

(compiled in a.d. 1476), the bKra-sis-hkhyil-gyi gDan-rabs or"

Lineage of the Abbots of bKra-sis-hkhyil"

by dPal-man Pandita

(a contemporary of the Second hJam-dbyans bzad-pa), and on

some of the larger historical compilations of the eighteenth to

nineteenth centuries, such as the rGya-nag chos-hbyun composed

by Gun mGon-po-skyabs (sKad-bzi smra-bahi dge-bsnen mGon-po

skyabs?a well-known Mongol scholar and contemporary of the

Emperor Ch'ien-lung), and the Grub-mthah thams-cad-kyi khuns

dan hdod-tshul ston-pa Legs-bsad &el-gyi me-lon compiled in

1 A. Mostaert: Ordosica. Bull, of the Catholic University, Peking, No. 9

(November, 1934), pp. 60 ff. This is the chronicle

published

and translatedbyI. J. Schmidt under the title of " Geschichte der Ost Mongolen ", St. Petersburg,

1829.

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196 THE AUTHOR OF THE HOR-CHOS-HBYUN

a.d. 18011 by Thu-kwan bLo-bzan Chos-kyi ni-ma (1737-1802).

Several pages of the Hor-chos-hbyun are completely borrowed from

the last named work. In the absence of translations of other Mongol

and Tibetan chronicles and historical compilations the work of

hJig-med Rig-pahi rdo-rje remains our chief source of information

on the history of Buddhism inMongolia.

1And not in a.d. 1742 as stated by Ligeti in his Rapport Preliminaire d'un

voyage d'exploration faiten Mongolie Chinoise, 1928-1931, Budapest, 1933, p. 57.

There exist three editions of this important work : the first at dGon-lun Byams

pa-glin, the second at sDe-dge dgon-chen, and the third at Lha-sa.