Sanghyang Adi Buddha


Sanghyang Adi Buddha is a concept of God in Indonesian Buddhism. This term was used by Ashin Jinarakkhita at the time of Buddhist revival in Indonesia in the mid 20th century to reconcile the first principle of the official philosophical foundation of Indonesia, i.e. "KeTuhanan Yang Maha Esa" that requires the belief in a supreme God, with Buddhism which strictly speaking does not believe in such monotheistic God. This concept is used by the Indonesian Buddhist Council, an organization that seeks to represent all Buddhist traditions in Indonesia such as Theravada, Mahayana, and Vajrayana.
Adi Buddha is a term used in Tantric Buddhism to refer to the Primordial Buddha. The term Sanghyang Adi Buddha is agreed upon and used by the Indonesian Supreme Sangha and the Indonesian Buddhist Council as the designation for the God Almighty. This term is not found in Pāli Canon, but used in some old Indonesian Vajrayana texts such as Sanghyang Kamahayanikan.

Conception

Sang Hyang Adi Buddha refers to "the seed of Buddhahood" inside every being. In Mahayana Buddhism, Adi Buddha refers to the primordial Buddha that outlines the same Universal Dhamma. The Adi-buddha is not a monotheistic deity as in the Abrahamic traditions, but is rather the primordial nature of mind, the part of the mind that never enters samsara, and is thus the "primordial Buddha." As the Primordial Buddha never entertains conceptual ignorance or proliferation, all that arises is referred to as "self-liberated." Sogyal Rinpoche writes:
" represents the absolute, naked, sky-like primordial purity of the nature of our mind."
For the purposes of official recognition as a religion by the state, Mahabhiksu Ashin Jinarakkhita encouraged Indonesian Buddhists to present the Adi-Buddha as:
a concept of “supreme divinity” in the Dharma that would be most readily recognizable and acceptable to predominantly Muslim authorities.
Adi-Buddha is the Primordial Buddha, or Paramadi Buddha. He has some other names in other Buddhist traditions such as Adau‐Buddha, Anadi‐Buddha, Uru‐Buddha. He also called Adinatha, Svayambhulokanatha, Vajradhara, Vajrasattva, Svayambhu, or Sanghyang Adwaya. In Chinese language, Adi‐Buddha is Pen‐chu‐fu, while aramadi‐Buddha is translated as Sheng‐chu‐fu. In Tibet Dan‐pohi‐sans‐rgyas, Mchog‐gi‐dan‐pohi‐sans‐rgyas, or Thogmahi‐sans‐rgyas are all refers to "Buddha of the Buddhas", that existed since the beginning, as the first: Paramadi‐buddhoddhrta‐sri‐kalacakra‐nama‐tantraraja and Jnanasattva‐manjusryadi‐buddha‐nama‐sadhana.
Mahayana Buddhism believes that Buddha has three bodies, i.e.: "The Created Body" to teach common human being; "Body of Mutual Enjoyment" or the body of bliss or clear light; and "Truth Body" which is eternal, omnipresent, non-individual, almighty, non-dual, and self-originating. There may be many Buddhas, but only one Dharmakaya. This Dharmakaya is identical with Adi‐Buddha. The sources of this Trikaya doctrine are Avatamsaka Sutra and Mahayana‐sraddhotpada‐shastra. The last one was the work of Asvagosha, a monk who lived around the first century AD. Vetulyaka Lokottaravada School says that Sakyamuni originally was the manifestation of Adi‐Buddha in this world. Herman S. Hendro wrote:
With his power, he emanates into five Dhyani Buddhas. The Pure Land of the Adi Buddha is called Ogamin in Tibetan or Akanistha in Sanskrit.

Buddhist concept

In Udana Nikaya, Sakyamuni gave His teaching:
From the Pali language: "Athi Ajatam Adbhutam Akatam Samkhatam" or "the Unborn, Unoriginated, Uncreated, and Absolute One". The Primordial Buddha is something without ego, unpersonified, and indescribable in any form. But for there is the Absolute, the unconditioned, one can attain the freedom from wheel of life by meditating.
Sanghyang Adi Buddha is the origin of everything in the universe, but he himself is without beginning or end, self-originating, infinite, omnipotent, unconditioned, absolute, omnipresent, almighty, incomparable, and immortal. However, those words are unable to describe the true self of Sanghyang Adi Buddha. The existence of Adi Buddha demonstrates that this life is not the product of chaos, but the product of spiritual hierarchy. By the presence of Adi Buddha, this life becomes useful and be possible to attain enlightenment and Buddhahood.
Indonesian Supreme Sangha describes God in Buddhism and defines God as "the source of everything that exists": Almighty, eternal, everything in the universe are His exposition, intangible and doesn't manifest Himself.

Indonesian National Encyclopedia

describes Adi Buddha and the traditions that are used this term thus:

The Seeker's Glossary of Buddhism

The Seeker's Glossary of Buddhism gives the following definition for Adi Buddha:
"Esoteric Buddhism" is a general term used for the schools of Buddhism using mantras and mudras as a principal method of cultivation. These schools exist in the Mahayana tradition of most Asian countries. However, in practice, the term is often used synonymously with the Tantric School of Tibet.

History

The concept of Adi Buddha arose from the development of the Vajrayana which is the last stage of Mahayana Buddhism and which may have been influenced by close contact with Saivites. This development is found in Nepal and Java, while it originated from Bengal. This conception reached its full development in the literature of Kālacakra. Sir Charles Eliot on his Hinduism and Buddhism proposes that those development were the last effort of Middle East Buddhism to encounter the expansion of Islam by showed that monotheism may also be found inside Buddhism. The important and fundamental thing of this doctrine is that from this one primordial Buddha finally emanates the other Buddhas. Nevertheless, the disciples of Kālacakra are not theist in the sense of worshipping one Almighty God, but they identified the Adi Buddha differently according their own sects.
It's hard to determine when or how the concept of Ādi Buddha or Paramādi Buddha first appeared. Csoma Körösi said that the name and system associated with it are closely related to Srikāla-cakra-tantra, a tantra that may contain Saivite inspiration, which arose in the 10th or 11th century AD. But, the term Ādi Buddha had first appeared in Nāmasangiti as the epithet of Mañjusri, a sacred text which is considered earlier than the 10th century because the comment of this text is estimated to be written at least from the 7th century AD.
This concept was developed in the esoteric teaching of Tantra, though its genesis may be traced much earlier. The earliest sacred text may be Namasangiti, a work thought to date from the 7th century AD. The other sacred texts are Guna Karanda Vyuha, Svayambhu Purana, Maha Vairocanabhisambodhi Sutra, Tattvasangraha Sutra, Guhya‐samaya Sutra, and Paramadi‐buddhoddhrta‐sri‐kalacakra Sutra. The sacred text from Indonesia are Namasangiti of Candrakirti from Srivijaya and Sanghyang Kamahayanikan from the era of the reign of Mpu Sindok.

Periods of development

The development of Ādi Buddha's conception is divided into three periods.
  1. First Period, include the origin and formation into two types of systems, i.e. Madhyamika and Vijnaptivada. This period only implied the seed of Esoteric Buddhism. Various rules of religious ceremonies, paintings and statues of various Buddhas, were compiled separately, incomplete, and irregular. Suiddhikara and Subahu-pariprccha Sutras are esoteric sutras from this period; rarely has philosophical meaning and so-called dhyanottarapatalakrama.
  2. Second Period, organize and systematize the first period and added a philosophical sense. Madhyamika systematizes the rules of rituals and philosophical concepts together; Yoga only discusses the important issues philosophically. At this level, Esoteric Buddhism was the earlier development than Esoteric Hinduism and other religions. Maha-Vairocanabhisambodhi, Tattvasangraha, and Paramadi are esoteric sutras from this period.
  3. Third Period, the rise of the heterodoxy schools apart from the pure Esoteric Buddhism. Guhya-samaja is one of some of the fundamental sutras from this period.

    The evolution of the Ādi Buddha's concept

Theravadan canonic texts sources

n canonic texts mentions that Sakyamuni Buddha enter the Nibbana at the age of 80 years. However, it also explains that if He wanted, He could live as human for a kalpa. In the nibbana, His knowledge is beyond that of human and gods, under the condition which cannot be explained, and beyond the ability of mind, but it is not a nothingness.

Ancient doctrines

Since the ancient times, there is a belief that Buddha is still alive although He is unseen. According to de La Vallee Pussin :
Some doctrines which support this contention are:
  1. Lokottaravada : Sakyamuni did not appear as a human in the world, but gave his image to represent Himself.
  2. Mahavastu and Suvanaprabhasa: in the beginningless past, Sakyamuni achieved Buddhahood; his appearance on the earthe, his entry to Nirvana, and so on are merely a display of Nirmanakaya.
  3. Vibhajjavadin: Sakyamuni entered the sa-upadisesa-Nibbana when becoming a Buddha. The residue is the body without an "active soul", that constantly alive and talk.
As time goes by, an idea evolved from it that Shakyamuni Buddha is one of a series of Buddhas that form an infinite series, extends indefinitely, backward to the past and forward into the future. Many of these Buddhas are not born on this earth, but in various worlds which are referred as the "Buddha's Pure Land". However, in Sūtrālankara, the doctrine of Ādi Buddha is completely rejected, because no one can become a Buddha without sambhara, i.e. the merit and wisdom, which can only be obtained from a previous Buddha. Therefore, there can not be the first Buddha.

Statements of esoteric sutras

Mahā-Vairochanābhisambodhi Sutra states that Buddha's liveliness comes from the body, speech, and mind. The Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are the manifestation of every innumerable virtues of Mahā-Vairochana-tathāgata that is the king of the universe. Chapter of Mahā-virasamādi describes Mahā-Vairochana-tathāgata as follows:
The term "those who self-awaken" is used later as another name of Adi Buddha and has an important meaning. In Buddhaguhya, the comment on Mahā-Vairochanā Sutra, the meaning of Ādi Buddha is described as follows:
Tatvasangraha Sutra which is included in the sutras from the end of pure Esoteric Buddhism period, the third mysteries which were mentioned in the Mahā-Vairochanābhisambodhi Sutra had evolved, i.e. mahā mandala, samaya mandala, dharma mandala, and karma mandala. Each is represented by the mudrā as mahā mudrā, samaya mudrā, dharma mudrā, and karma mudrā. It says:
By comparing Mahā-Vairochanābhisambodhi Sutra and Tatvasangraha Sutra, it can be seen the first classifies and amalgamates various deities from first period of Esoteric Buddhism, while the later explains that the thirty six deities were derived from Vajradhātu-tathāgata Buddha.
In the later period, Namasangiti mentioned that Vajrasattva is the Adi Buddha. The reason why the name Manjushri instead of Vajrasattva was being used, because Manjushri is the manifestation of true enlightenment body of Samantabhadra. In the same comment, Adi Buddha was referred as the "Buddha with no beginning and no end. The Ādi Buddha is formless and invisible."

The belief in Indonesia

Since the time of Sailendra and Medang Kingdom, Indonesian Buddhists have the same belief in the existence of the Adi-Buddha as the Buddhists in Tibet, Nepal, and the northern schools. Nepalese uses the term Adinata which means "main protector"; and Swayambhulokanatta which means "the unborn protector of the universe". The Tibetan familiar with terms such as Vajradhara, and the symbolism of Borobudur's mandala stupa, provided evidence that the Buddhism embraced by Indonesian people since the days of Srivijaya, Ancient Mataram, Sailendra, and Majapahit is the Buddhism which honors the Primordial Buddha.
Some Indonesian sacred texts which contains the name of Sanghyang Adi Buddha are:

1. Guna Karanda Vyuha Text

2. Sanghyang Kamahayanikan Text
Herman S. Hendro in his paper mentioned:

Modern Indonesia

Since Indonesian independence in 1945, the founders of this new state had agreed on a proposed ideology as a national foundation for uniting all ethnicities, religions, and races, i.e. Pancasila as the basic foundation of the state and nationhood. The first precept of Pancasila is "Belief in the Almighty Godliness". The majority of Indonesian people mistranslated the sanskrit "Esa" -Almighty - as "Eka" -One. This misconceptions makes some factions questioning the doctrine of Buddhism whether it acknowledges the Belief in God Almighty or not.
Following the attempted coup of Communist Party of Indonesia's in 1965, Indonesian Government rejects and prohibits the development of all views that correspond to communism or atheism. Consequently, there was some doubt within the Indonesian Government at the time whether Buddhism can be accepted as an official religion. Ashin Jinarakkhita proposed the name of Sanghyang Adi Buddha as the God of Buddhist teachings. He sought confirmation for this uniquely Indonesian version of Buddhism in ancient Javanese texts, and even the shape of the Buddhist temple complex at Borobudur in Jawa Tengah Province. It was submitted to the Minister of Religious Affairs, and the government eventually accepted Buddhism as a state religion in 1978, as stated in GBHN of 1978, Presidential Decree No. 30 of 1978, and the Form Letter of Indonesian Department of the Interior No.477/74054/1978.

Controversy

The use of Sanghyang Adi Buddha as a name for a supreme God is controversial among Indonesian Buddhists to the present day. The reason is that the concept of Sanghyang Adi Buddha, which only exists in Tantrayana/ Vajrayana traditions, is not a god in the sense of a personal god of the monotheistic religions. The use of the name of Sanghyang Adi Buddha as a personal god, is the product of a compromise with political reality, and is contrary to the teachings of Buddhism. Because of this political compromise, Indonesian Buddhism differs from mainstream Buddhism. This controversy also extends to Very Venerable Ashin Jinarakkhita as the originator of the term Sanghyang Adi Buddha as a god in Buddhism.
While the State seemed to be easily satisfied with Ashin Jinarakkhita's assurance, questions came from their fellow Buddhists and, later, also his primary disciples who were on the same boat with him in the beginning. Since then, debates, disintegration, and splits could not be avoided within Buddhist organizations. The strongest opposition was coming from the Theravādan members, and it seemed to happen partly because of the influence of the Thai Buddhist’s purification movement started in the nineteenth century by King Mongkut as later on many Thai bhikkhus coming to Indonesia. Though there were also Buddhist monks coming from Sri Lanka, such as Bhikkhu Narada Thera and Mahasi Sayadaw and his group, they only came a few times during these early years.
In the same year when the controversy was erupting, the Indonesian Directorate General Guidance of Hindu-Buddhism issued a resolution on all schools/ traditions of Buddhism that they should believe in the presence of an Almighty God, and while each of this sects may give different names to Him, He is essentially the same entity. This resolution became indirectly a government imposition of the doctrine of Oneness of God on all schools/ traditions of Buddhism. Any schools/ traditions that do not believe in the existence of One God would be dissolved. This happened to the Mahayana school/ tradition of the monk Sun Karma Chandra which was dissolved on July 21, 1978.
Nowadays, the term of Sanghyang Adi Buddha only used mostly by Indonesian Buddhayana Council and Indonesian Supreme Sangha. Some schools treat the concept indifferently, while the others simply refuse and consider the idea as heresy, and only a fraction supports it fully or partially.

Usage

Religious usage

Salutation

Sanghyang Adi Buddha is used in greeting especially by Indonesian Buddhayana Council, i.e. Namo Sanghyang Adi Buddhaya. This salutation was popularized by the late Venerable Mahawiku Dharma-aji Uggadhammo, one of the five first disciples of Ashin Jinarakkhita, whose ordained as the first Indonesian Buddhist monks after the independence of Indonesia.
The complete salutation which is commonly used as a greeting in the books' preface, letters, or meeting is:

Vandana

The tribute to Sanghyang Adi Buddha is often included in the vandana section of ritual books.

1.VANDANA

2.VANDANA

Politic

Indonesian Government Regulation Number 21/1975 about the vow of the civil bureaucrat, arranges the vow for the Buddhist bureaucrat by mentions "Demi Sanghyang Adi Buddha" in the beginning of the vow.

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