Page 13 - Wrathful Images
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THE HISTORICAL AND


                                      RITUAL CONTEXT




                                           歷史源流與密法傳承






                         uring the Mongol Yuan period (1279–1368), Tibetan Buddhist hierarchs played an active role
                         in the imperial courts of China. Chogyel Phakpa Lodro Gyeltsen (1235–1280), a figure from
                  Dthe Sakya tradition, served as Kublai Khan’s (r. 1264–1294) imperial preceptor during this
                   time. Prior to Chogyel Phakpa, lesser-known Mongol leaders such as Ariq Boke (r.1259-1264), and
                   Hulagu Khan (r.1256-1265) had already introduced Tibetan Buddhist preceptor-officiants to their
                   courts. However, it was during Chogyel Phakpa’s period that the Newar artist Anige (memorialized in
                   a sculptural portrait at the Miaoying Temple in Beijing which can be seen today) was brought to China.
                   Anige catalyzed the development of a Nepalo-Chinese style, influencing Vajrayana Buddhist sculpture
                   in China through contemporary times.

                   Moreover, the early Ming court assigned great importance to Kapaladhara Hevajra due to a tradition rooted
                   in the Yuan era. During the Yuan period, Mongol emperors underwent initiation in the Hevajra Tantra as a
                   means of conferring spiritual legitimacy to their imperial authority. The Yongle Emperor (r.1403–1424), for
                   instance, spiritually endorsed this tradition, perhaps for political legitimization. Such is exemplified by an
                   incredible textile depicting Kapaladhara Hevajra with an inscription on its verso that provides the whole
                   lineage of transmission (Tib. gyud-yig) of the empowerment (Tib. wang), tracing it from the primordial
                   Buddha Vajradhara (Tib. Dorje-chang) through Indian mahasiddhas (Tib. drub-chen) and Tibetan masters,
                   culminating in the Yongle Emperor himself  (fig. 1); included in the exhibition Faith and Empire:Art and
                   Politics in Tibetan Buddhism, Rubin Museum of Art, New York, 2019, cat. no. 6.4.





                   元時期（1279-1368年），藏傳佛教高僧於中土宮廷頗              明初，宮廷尊奉喜金剛，其源頭可溯至元代。蒙古帝
                   有作為。薩迦派法王八思巴（1235-1280年）被忽必               皇奉持喜金剛密續，以宗教正統證天子威權。永樂帝
                   烈（1264-1294年在位）奉為上師；忽必烈之前，雖有              （1403-1424年在位）亦奉此法，以立綱紀。可見一織
                   阿里不哥（1259-1264年在位）、旭烈兀（1256-1265          繡喜金剛唐卡，殊勝非凡，背面文字記有法脈傳承始
                   年在位）等汗召藏傳佛教大德於朝中任國師，然內瓦                   末，由原始佛金剛總持經印度大成就者及西藏上師傳
                   爾僧匠阿尼哥（今北京妙應寺塑有其像）於八思巴時                   至永樂帝（圖一），展於《Faith and Empire: Art and
                   期方來中土，後對漢地密宗造像融合尼泊爾風格影                    Politics in Tibetan Buddhism》，魯賓藝術博物館，
                   響深遠。                                      紐約，2019年，編號6.4。















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