Ritual Implements and Sacrificial Objects
(en.tibet.cn)
Updated: 2005-08-22 14:43

Gold and silver Dharma Wheels inlaid with gems (Qing Dynasty: 43.5 cm high and 22.5 cm wide).

Most Tibetan Buddhist ritual implements and sacrificial objects were cast in gold, silver or copper, in addition to those made of wood, bone, stone, shells, cloth, silks and brocade. They constitute an important part of the treasure house of Tibetan Buddhism.

Dazzling Variety

A sutra hall of a monastery in Tibet is a combination of various religious arts. However, sacrificial objects used to enshrine the Triratna (Three Treasures) are divided into different groups:

Ten sacrificial objects, including minor objects composed of cypress branches and flour, decorative objects, victorious umbrella and sutra streamer.

Sacrificial objects used for ceremonies, which refers to musical instruments such as the waist drum, pipa (plucked string instrument with a fretted fingerboard), bell, suona horn and white conch shell.

Sacrificial objects on the sacrificial tables include water bottle, monk’s hat and teapot.

Other sacrificial objects include bronze lamps, gold lanterns, decorative objects, and treasure wheals, treasure bottles, shin bone horn, diamond clubs and monks’ hats.

Investigation shows some of the sacrificial objects came from ancient India. One example is the diamond clubs, a kind of weapon in ancient India adopted by Tantric Buddhism in Tibet as a kind of religious object.

Shinbone horn was adopted mainly because of the following story: A famous Indian hermit woke up in the small hours in his home in a celestial burial ground. Feeling sorry for the dead, he made a flute out of a piece of shinbone that was available there.

Bronze Objects of the 7th Century

With economic development and the flourishing of Tibetan Buddhism, by the 7th century, Tibetan artisans were good enough to make bronze or alloy dagobas, bronze lamps and sacrificial water cups.

By the mid-8th century, Tubo King Trisong Detsan sent his envoys to Kashmir and India to greet Santideva and Padmasambhava to lecture on Tantric doctrines in Tibet and Samye Monastery was erected for this purpose. Sacrificial objects then used to pay homage to the statues of Buddha include diamond bells, diamond clubs and articles used by sorcerers to dispel hail.

Conch the Yuan Emperor Bestowed on Pagba

From the 10th to the 13th centuries, Buddhism regained favor among Tibetans after earlier setbacks. More than 20 sects appeared, including Nyingma, Gedain, Gagyu, Sagyua, Xalhu and Gelug Sects.

During the period, monastic building and Buddhist arts developed apace, and many kinds of ritual implements were created. The most important was a conch that the Yuan Emperor Kublai Khan granted to Pagba.

Monks’ hats, tea pots and incense burners, made in imperials palaces, found their way into Sagya, Xalhu and other famous monasteries in Tibet. In order to greet Atisha, who came from India to Tibet to give lectures, the king of the Guge Kingdom had a brass long horn cast for the ceremony.

The Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) managed to strengthen its rule over Tibet. One of the measures taken was to make large quantities of religious art objects much needed in Tibet. This served to promote development the religious art in the region.

Statues of Buddha From the Qing Dynasty

Monastic buildings and Buddhist arts reached their prime after the 17th century, with palace-like halls, beautiful gardens, elegantly carved holy stupas, life-like statues of Buddha, ritual musical instruments, frescoes and tangka painting scrolls.

During the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), the imperial court worshipped Tibetan Buddhism. During the reign of Emperor Qianlong, large numbers of statues of Buddha and ritual musical instruments were brought to the court as tributes. They are still found in the Palace Museum today.

Reciprocally, the Qing court made Buddhist ritual objects and presented them to Tibet. In the Potala Palace and Norbu Lingka (summer palace of the Dalai Lama), visitors can find porcelain monk hat pots and china bottles. Most of the ritual musical instruments and sacrificial objects collected by the Palace Museum belong to treasures collected by the palaces of various generations of the Dalai Lama.

Four Kinds of Ritual Musical Instruments

Mandala: In the ancient time, Tantric followers often built a clay altar in the shape of a circle or square to block invading evil spirits. Standing atop the altar, they invited the Past, Present and Future Buddha’s to participate in their ritual work, and drew portraits of these Buddha’s on the altar. Gradually, the Mandala came into being.

The Mandala is one of the sacrificial objects extensively used and serving as the place wherein various kinds of Buddha’s reside. Offering sacrifice to the Mandala originally meant paying homage to the Buddha, Buddhist doctrine and monks.

The two Mandalas collected by the Palace Museum fall into the same category: one, a gold piece hollow inside, is of five layers composed of auspicious treasures and other patterns; and the other, with a silver base and top, is pierced together with red corals.

Dharma Wheels: Worshipping such wheels is intended to bring everlasting spiritual blessings. Often seen Dharma Wheels include Wheels With Eight Spokes and Wheel With 1,000 Spokes. In Tibetan Buddhism, they are taken as symbols of objects held in the hands of Songtsan Gambo and the 5th Dalai Lama. They look similar in their outside shape.

Five Lotus Petals Buddha Hat: It symbolizes the treasure hat of Five-Wisdom Tathagata, in the shape of five lotus petals, each inlaid with a sword, lotus flower, diamond club, treasure wheel, and flames.

Garbala Alms Bowl: This is a religious object used for practice by the highest level of Yoga. The skull used to make it was usually taken from an eminent deceased monk according to his will. The one collected by the Palace Museum was finely cast, with a gold top and a tripod-like base. The gold lid is adorned with lotus flower petals, and the mouth of the bowl is inlaid with turquoise and gems.

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