Kritik am Buch „The Shadow Of The Dalai Lama ... - Neues von Shi De

The Shadow of the Dalai Lama – Part II – 6. Regicide as Lamaism’s myth of origin and the ritual
sacrifice of Tibet
© Victor & Victoria Trimondi
6. REGICIDE AS LAMAISM’S MYTH OF ORIGIN
AND THE RITUAL SACRIFICE OF TIBET
In the first part of our study we described the “tantric female sacrifice” as the central cultic mystery of
Tibetan Buddhism. To recap, in the sacrifice feminine energies (gynergy) are absorbed in the interests
of the androcentric power ambitions of a yogi. The general principle behind this “energy theft”,
namely to increase one’s own energy field via the life force of an opponent, is common to all ancient
societies. In very “primitive” tribal cultures this “transfer” of life energy was taken literally and one
fed upon his slaughtered enemies. The idea that the sacrificer benefited from the strengths and
abilities of his sacrifice was a widely distributed topos in the ancient culture of Tibet as well. It
applied not just to the sexual magic practices of Tantrism but rather controlled the entire social
system. As we shall see, Lamaism sacrificed the Tibetan kingship out of such an ancient way of
seeing things, so as to appropriate its energies and legitimate its own worldly power.
Ritual regicide in the history of Tibet and the Tibetan “scapegoat”
The kings of the Tibetan Yarlung dynasty (from the 7th to the start of the 9th centuries C.E.) derived
their authority from a divine origin. This was not at all Buddhist and was only reinterpreted as such
after the fact. What counted as the proof of their Buddhist origin was a “secret text” (mani kabum)
first “discovered” by an eager monk 500 years later in the 12 th century. In it the three most significant
Yarlung rulers were identified as emanations of Bodhisattvas: Songtsen Gampo (617–650) as an
incarnation of Avalokiteshvara, Trisong Detsen (742–803) as an embodiment of Manjushri, and
Ralpachan (815–838) as one of Vajrapani. Their original, pre-Buddhist myth of origin, in which they
were descended from an old race of gods from the heavenly region, was thereby forgotten. From now
on in a Lamaist interpretation of history, the kings represented the Buddhist law on earth as
dharmarajas ("law kings”).
Thanks to older, in part contemporary, documents (from the 8th century) from the caves of Dunhuang,
we know that the historical reality was more complex. The Yarlung rulers lived and governed less as
strict Buddhists, rather they played the various religious currents in their country off against one
another in order to bolster their own power. Sometimes they encouraged the Bon belief, sometimes
the immigrant Indian yogis, sometimes the Chinese Chan Buddhists, and sometimes their old
shamanist magic priests. Of the various rites and teachings they only took on those which squared
with their interests. For example, Songtsen Gampo, the alleged incarnation of Avalokiteshvara,
permitted human and animal sacrifices at the ratification of contracts and his own burial as was usual
in the Bon tradition but strictly condemned by the Buddhists.
Alone the penultimate king of the dynasty, Ralpachan, can be regarded as a convicted, even fanatical
adherent of Buddhism. This is apparent from, among other things, the text of a law he enacted, which