252 Notes to Mr. B. H. Hodgson's Sketch of Buddhism. 



i?at«/rf/ifl! philosophers : and the mooted point with them is, what energy creates? an 

 energy intrinsic in some archetypal state of matter, or ea;trinsic ? The old Bauddha 

 philosophers seem to have insisted that there is no suflBcient evidence of immaterial 

 entity. But, what is truly remarkable, some of them, at least, have united with that 

 dogma a belief in moial and intellectual operations ; nor is there one tenet so diagnostic 

 of Buddhism as that which insists that man i.i capable of extending his moral and intel- 

 lectual/acuities to infinity. True it is, as Mr. Colebrooke has remarked, that the 

 Hindu philosophy recognizes this dogma — coldly recognizes it, and that is all: 

 whereas, the Bauddhas have pursued it into its most extravagant consequences, and 

 made it the corner-stone of their faith and practice. (See note 29.) 



(19) I have not yet found that these Dhyani Bauddhas of the Theistic school do any 

 thing. They seem to be mere personifications, according to a Theistic theory, of the active 

 and intellectual powers of nature— and hence are called Punch Bhuta, Punch Indriya, 

 and Panch A'yatan A'kur. 



It may seem contrary to this notion of the quiescence of the five Dhyani Buddhiis, 

 that, according at least to some Nipal works, each of them has a Sahti. Vairochana's 

 is Vajra-Dhateshwi.ri ; Akshobhya's, L6chana ; Ratna Sambhava's, Mumukhi ; 

 Amitabha's, Pmulard ; Amogha Siddha's, Tara.* But I apprehend that tliese Buddlia- 

 sahties are peculiar to Nlpal; and though I have found their names, I have not found 

 that they do any thing. 



There is indeed a secret and filthy system of Buddhas and Buddha-Sakties, in which 

 the ladies act a conspicuous part; and iiccording to which, A'di-Buddha is styled 

 Yogambara; and Adi-Dhakma, Jnim-Eshtvarl. But this system has only been 

 recently revealed to me, and I cannot say more of it at present. 



(20) According to the Aishivariltas : the Swab/mrikas sa)-, into Ahiish and Shunyatd ; 

 the Prdjnihas, into A'di Piiajna. The Swabhuvika doctrine of Shunyatd is the darkest 

 corner of their metaphysical labyrinth. It cannot mean strictly nothingness, since 

 there are seven degrees of Shunyutd, whereof the first is Akdsh : and Alu'ish is so far 

 from being deemed nothingness that it is again and again said to be the only real 

 substance. Language sinks under the expression of the Bauddha abstractions ; and by 

 their Shioiyata I understand sometimes the place, and sometimes the fijrm, in which the 

 infinitely attenuated elements of all things exist in their state of separation from the 

 palpable system of nature. 



N.B. The images of all the seven great Mdnushi Buddhas, referred to in the answer to 

 the 7th question, are exactly similar to that of Sa'kya Sinha,-!" the seventh of them. This 

 image very nearly resembles that of Akshobhya, the second Dhydni Buddha. The dif- 

 ferenpes are found only in the supporters, and in the cognizances {chinas.) When 

 coloured there is a more remarkable diagnosis, Akshobhya being blue, and Sa'kya and 

 the other six Munushis yellow. 



(21) The Sambhu Puruna says, manifested in Nipai in the form of flame {Jyoti rupa). 



* See Plate IV, fig. o, *, c, d, e. \ See Plate IV. fig. /. 



