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The Shadow of the Dalai Lama – Part I – 2. Tantric Buddhism
© Victor & Victoria Trimondi
2. TANTRIC BUDDHISM
The fourth and final phase of Buddhism entered the world stage in the third century C.E. at the
earliest. It is known as Tantrayana, Vajrayana or Mantrayana: the “Tantra Vehicle”, the “Diamond
Path” or the “Way of the Magic Formulas”. The teachings of Vajrayana are recorded in the holy
writings, known as tantras. These are secret occult doctrines, which — according to legend — had
already been composed by Buddha Shakyamuni, but the time was not deemed ripe for them to be
revealed to the believers until a thousand years after his death.
It is true that Vajrayana basically adheres to the ideas of Mahayana Buddhism, in particular the
doctrine of the emptiness of all appearances and the precept of compassion for all suffering beings,
but the tantric temporarily countermands the high moral demands of the “Great Vehicle” with a
radical “amoral” behavioral inversion. To achieve enlightenment in this lifetime he seizes upon
methods which invert the classic Buddhist values into their direct opposites.
Tantrism designates itself the highest level of the entire edifice of Buddhist teachings and establishes
a hierarchical relation to both previous phases of Buddhism, whereby the lowest level is occupied by
Hinayana and the middle level by Mahayana. The holy men of the various schools are ranked
accordingly. At the base rules the Arhat, then comes the Bodhisattva, and all are reigned over by the
Maha Siddha, the tantric Grand Master. All three stages of Buddhism currently exist alongside one
another as autonomous religious systems.
In the eighth century C.E., with the support of the Tibetan dynasty of the time, Indian monks
introduced Vajrayana into Tibet, and since then it has defined the religion of the “Land of Snows”.
Although many elements of the indigenous culture were integrated into the religious milieu of Tantric
Buddhism, this was never the case with the basic texts. All of these originated in India. They can be
found, together with commentaries upon them, in two canonical collections, the Kanjur (a thirteenthcentury
translation of the words of Buddha) and the Tanjur (a translation of the doctrinal texts from
the fourteenth century). Ritual writings first recorded in Tibet are not considered part of the official
canon. (This, however, does not mean that they were not put to practical use.)
The explosion of sexuality: Vajrayana Buddhism
All tantras are structurally similar; they all include the transformation of erotic love into spiritual and
worldly power. [1] The essence of the entire doctrine is, however, encapsulated in the so-called
Kalachakra Tantra, or “Time Tantra”, the analysis of which is our central objective. It differs from
the remaining tantra teachings in both its power-political intentions and its eschatological visions. It is
— we would like to hypothesize in advance — the instrument of a complicated metapolitics which
attempts to influence world events via the use of symbols and rites rather than the tools of realpolitik.
The “Time Tantra” is the particular secret doctrine which primarily determines the ritual existence of