Toh 762 — The Dhāraṇī of the Iron Beak [2]
Lohatuṇḍadhāraṇī
The Noble Dhāraṇī of the Iron Beak [2]
F.53.a Homage to all buddhas and bodhisattvas.
Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was traveling through the land of Magadha when he arrived at a mango grove. At that mango grove, he took up residence in the Indra’s Rock Cave on Vaidehaka Mountain. F.53.b Śakra the lord of the devas then appeared before the Blessed One. He bowed his head at the Blessed One’s feet, sat to one side, and then Śakra the lord of the devas spoke to the Blessed One as follows.
“Blessed One, the asuras are truly the long-time adversaries of the devas. With regard to it, Blessed One, please bestow a teaching on recollection.[1] Please give a teaching that will serve as a method for the bhikṣus, bhikṣuṇīs, śrāmaṇeras, śrāmaṇerīs, upāsakas, and upāsikās among the gatherings of human beings in the world of Jambudvīpa, the realm of Śākyamuni, to protect the sacred Dharma from destruction.”
The Blessed One told Śakra the lord of the devas, “Lord of the devas, uphold the dhāraṇī of the iron beak. It instills terror in everyone and smites the asuras with five-pointed[2] thunderbolts. It alleviates the world of infectious diseases and brings peace to the whole world. It neutralizes all poisons and stops all weapons. It paralyzes all legless, two-legged, and four-legged beings and defeats all adversaries. It destroys asuras, garuḍas, daityas, piśācas, apasmāras, unmādas, and malevolent beings. It brings peace from all conflicts, wars, discord, and scandals. This is the noble iron beak. I will recite the vidyāmantra of the iron beak dhāraṇī of freedom from all danger:
tadyātha | vagacani śuti śumali gaśaśa śatata virati huyu huyu riti svāhā |
“Scatter black mustard seeds[3] on the ocean. It will rain as you wish. If one chants this countless tens of trillions[4] of times on a small stake at a place where nāgas are found and plants the stake at that nāga site, F.54.a hail and thunderbolts will come crashing down as you desire.
sarvanāgānām apavīrya descend | nāga śara śara descend | nāga rakṣa descend | raci sri vajra hūṃ phaṭ |
“This wrathful dhāraṇī of the iron beak that averts the adversaries of the country, brings down five-pointed thunderbolts that blaze with fire, and overpowers every lord of the devas will bewilder the asuras, keep the fourfold assembly safe, and protect the teachings of the Great Vehicle against enemies.”
After the Blessed One had spoken, Śakra the lord of the devas rejoiced and praised what the Blessed One had taught.
This concludes “The Noble Dhāraṇī of the Iron Beak [2].”Notes
It is possible that dran pa (“recollection”) should be emended to drag pa (“wrathful”), which would accord with the latter half of the text and with Toh 761. Nevertheless, we did not find such a variant attested in any of the consulted editions which would support this reading and, thus, we have translated as it appears in the text. Alternatively to the above translation, one may also translate this passage as “Blessed One, please bestow a teaching to keep in mind.”
backThe translation of smad lnga is tentative. This line would appear to be the only place where the term appears in the Kangyur. The term smad lnga also appears in the Pawo Tsuklak Trengwa’s A Feast for Scholars (mkhas pa’i dga’ ston) in a similar context of making thunderbolts shower down upon one’s enemies.
backThe meaning of ’bar li ti is uncertain. We have rendered it as “black mustard seeds,” given the parallels with Toh 761.
backReading the addition of sa ya (“million”) from H, N, and S.
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