A Brief Note on the Northern Treasures of the Bon Tradition
Résumé
A Brief Note on the Northern Treasures of the Bon Tradition * Jean-Luc Achard (CNRS, CRCAO) According to sPa ston bsTan rgyal bzang po (15 th c.) and his Explanation of the Revelation, known as the Lamp Clarifying its Diffusion and Development (bsTan pa'i rnam bshad dar rgyas gsal sgron), the Bon tradition describes its Treasure system (gter ma) under five headings: the Northern Treasures (byang gter), the Southern Treasures (lho gter), the Central Treasures (dbus gter), the Treasures from Khams (khams gter), and the New Treasures (gter gsar). 1 In the present paper, I will briefly address the first category-the Northern Treasures-in a very cursory manner, as part of an ongoing project on Byang gter in general. 2 sPa ston's description of the Northern Treasures revolves around two main topics: the characteristics (mtshan nyid) of these Treasures and their actual designation (btags). However, he does not describe the specific features of this tradition but rather recalls its history and enumerates the texts that were found during the various revelations of what became the Northern Treasures.
Domaines
Sciences de l'Homme et Société
Loading...