Article: Ganesh and His Icons in the Buddhist World
Ganapati Religious Context
Ganesh and His Icons in the Buddhist World - An Analysis of Their Origins and Methodologies
by Shinzo Shiratori (11-2024)
Question: Why and How Were Iconographies of the Hindu God Ganesh Incorporated Into Buddhist Traditions of the Himalayan Region?
Introduction:Similar to how sacred geographies like Mount Kailash are revered by both Hindus and Buddhists under different contexts, certain iconographies of the Himalayan region overlap with South Asian icons (McKay 7). One specific icon we will examine is Ganesh, an elephant-headed deity venerated in both Hindu and Buddhist traditions (Narain 7). In this essay, we will analyze the reasons and methods by which the icon of the Hindu Ganesh was adopted into a Buddhist setting. I argue that it was primarily the tantric movement during the 10th–11th centuries that enabled the re-interpretation of pre-existing Hindu icons, resulting in the creation of Buddhist texts on Ganesh, which subsequently inspired the production of sculpture, painting, and talismans using Buddhist Ganesh iconography.
Ganesh’s Hindu Origins and Iconographies:
An important reason for Ganesh's popularity in Buddhism is derived from his significance within Hindu circles, with texts referencing him as early as 1500 BCE (Danielou 292). Multiple versions of creation myths are associated with Ganesh, the most popular of which is found in the Siva Purana (Danielou 292). In this text, Ganesh is born from the dirt of Parvati, the wife of Siva, who declares him her son and installs him as her bodyguard to ensure no one enters her chambers while she bathes (Danielou 292). From his bravery, Ganesh earned the title of “remover of all obstacles” and is worshiped first before any task is undertaken (Danielou 294). He has also earned the name Ganapati, or “lord of all categories,” as he represents the unity of man (the microcosm) and the brahman (the macrocosm), with his elephant head symbolizing the brahman and his body representing humanity (Danielou 293). Additionally, he is known as the scribe of the Mahabharata, a major epic of ancient India dating to the 3rd century BCE (Danielou 292). Although his identity is not uniform and he is interpreted differently depending on the context, Ganesh nonetheless ranks as secondary to the most important Hindu deities, such as Siva and Vishnu.
“Hindu iconography is built on a code of symbols based on the assumption that there exists a natural affinity between forms and ideas” (Danielou 363). Therefore, sculptures of Ganesh were made to symbolically depict the abstract aspects of the deity. These sculptures were installed in temples as murti (materializations of the deity) and served the purpose of being worshiped. The value of murti icons do not lie in the materials but in the form of the deity, and they are destroyed when their purpose as icons can no longer be fulfilled (Danielou 364). Due to Ganesh’s popularity in Hindu thought, he is worshiped in various forms, including a range of icons with different colors, stances, and hand objects. A few examples of these icons include Bala-Ganapati, depicted with a white body and four arms; Vira Vighnesa, with a red body and sixteen arms; and Pingala-Ganapati, with a yellow body and four arms (Rao 52). A common element across all these forms is a Puranic tale explaining why a snake is included in the iconography. According to the story, the snake wraps around Ganesh’s belly because his servant, the mouse, tripped, causing Ganesh’s belly to burst open. The snake was then used as a bandage to tie the burst belly (Rao 50). As Ganesh was a prominent deity worshiped by Hindu groups before Buddhists, understanding Ganesh’s Hindu context is crucial to understanding the origins of his function and iconography within the Buddhist context.Rise of Tantra as a Decentralized Indian System of Methods:
Tantric systems are trends of creative practices originating in India that channel the naturally present divinity of the universe, common to Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain traditions (White 7). The popularity of tantric practice and its textual movement to Tibet post-10th century AD played a major role in the adoption of tantric practices, which will be discussed in detail (White 21). Without the rise of tantric practice in the Himalayas, Ganesh would not be important for Buddhist in the Himalayan region. This is because the role of Ganesh in Buddhist traditions is purely tantric; his system acts only as a method for tantric Buddhist practitioners to accomplish certain activities (Watt). Ganesh is not the only Hindu deity adopted in Buddhist tantra. Forms of Siva, Vishnu, and other gods and goddesses are also borrowed, transformed within a Buddhist context, and dispersed throughout the Himalayan region within various religious circles (Ibid). For tantric Buddhists, the Hindu origin myths concerning Ganesh’s divinity hold little significance. Instead, the tantric system of Ganesh functions as a collection of tools that provide a means to connect with one’s highest potential. This connection is achieved through external practices such as recitation, the ritualized use of substances, and internal visualizations to reveal a power that typically remains hidden (White 13). One Hindu tantric system of Ganesh in 10th-century India, called the Ucchista Ganapatya school, worships a four-armed form of Ganesh and bases its entire understanding of the cosmos around him (Sanford 313). Thus, Buddhists had a pre-existing platform of tantric instructions for Ganesh, such as magical spells, invocation rituals, and more, derived from this Hindu tantra. While Buddhist and Hindu tantric systems differ in certain contexts—such as Hindu tantra lacking Buddhist “ethical parameters”—their methodologies for attaining results remain very similar, as tantric systems are technical and not inherently secular (White 13). The Hindu identity of Ganesh is not central to Buddhist tantric practice, as Buddhists are not theists and do not regard Ganesh as the divine son of Siva and Parvati (Rao 36). Rather, the identity of Ganesh was adopted by early tantric Buddhists for its tantric elements, which are neither strictly Hindu nor Buddhist but are products of South Asian religious culture, with the inner meanings adapted to fit Buddhist teachings (Ibid).
History and Lineage of Textual Sources : Transmission Into the Buddhist Sector
Tantric Buddhist traditions heavily rely on interpreting tantric texts, and Ganesh is no exception. To understand how Ganesh was incorporated into the Buddhist tradition, we must first examine their textual origins. Approximately thirty texts were compiled in Indian languages, most of them in Sanskrit (Wilkinson 242). These texts were brought from India to Tibet during the tenth to eleventh centuries by well-connected translators, two of the most important being Gayadhara and Atisha from the Bengal region (Wilkinson 236). Other notable Indian translators, such as Amoghavajra of the eighth century, contributed Ganesh translations that were primarily transmitted to Indonesia, China, and then to Japan, rather than to the Himalayan plateau (Wilkinson 239). Japan still has tantric Ganesh cults with unique lineages, rituals, and iconographies, but we will not explore these in this paper. A critical event for the propagation of Ganesh in Tibet was Atisha’s translation of at least a third of the texts. He studied in Srivijaya (present-day Indonesia) to learn and collect Ganesh texts from Dharmakirti, an influential tantric practitioner of the tenth century (ibid). After gathering these texts, Atisha received an invitation from the King of Tibet to teach, which he accepted in 1042. In Tibet, he translated at least four Ganesh texts into Tibetan with his student, Nagtso Tsultrim Gyalwa (Wilkinson 240). Once completed, these texts were upheld by practitioners of Atisha’s lineage, known as the Kadampa order, which were later integrated into the practices of the three sarma schools of Tibetan Buddhism: Kagyu, Sakya, and Gelug (Adams). Thus, we can conclude that the textual transmission and lineage of Ganesh originate from India and Indonesia and continue to be upheld by leaders and practitioners of their respective traditions (ibid).The Function of These Texts:
Texts, in themselves, are just paper with words, and to derive meaning from them, they must be put to use. Let us approach these texts by dividing them into categories: Kangyur, sadhanas, praises, bali/food offerings, fire and revolting rituals, and iconography. The two texts on Ganesh in the Kangyur, the spoken words of the Buddha, approach Ganesh differently. The Aryaganapatihrdaya is a sutra/tantra text that lacks tantric iconography; it simply introduces the Ganesh mantra and lists its powers for the practitioner (Wilkinson 242). There is no meditation, deity, or other tantric elements, but the mantra of Ganesh is deemed to have supernatural powers purely through its recitation, as it comes from the Buddha (ibid).
The second text addressed is the Mahaganapati Tantra or The Tantra of the Great Ganapati. As a tantric text, the validity of Ganesh here arises from the deity itself, an emanation of the primordial Buddha Vajradhara (Wilkinson 243). Though the term “cakravartin (universal monarch) of gods” is used to refer to Ganesh, his identity here is not that of a Hindu god but a Buddhist, tantric entity, with methods incorporating words of power (mantra), hand gestures (mudra), and the creation of a miniature palace (mandala) to gain accomplishments that aid the practitioner in achieving Buddhahood (ibid). This tantra, comprising fifteen chapters, provides instructions for the practitioner to gain powers, such as achieving kingship, gaining riches through food offerings, and removing obstacles by reciting the wrathful mantra, among other practices (Wilkinson 248).
Sadhanas are meditation and ritual instructions derived from the tantra, where Ganesh is used as a tantric deity by practitioners who received the necessary instructions and empowerments, practicing for prolonged periods or through repeated actions until a certain result is achieved. As Ganesh comes from the Siva Purana, he is identified as an emanation of Avalokitesvara, the Buddhist deity of compassion (Wilkinson 262). Thus, in most sadhanas, Ganesh is approached as a quick and effective form of Avalokitesvara, focusing on the gathering of material wealth.
Praises differ from sadhanas as they do not contain meditative instructions. No formal training is necessary to approach these texts, allowing commoners to worship the Buddhist Ganesh, with repeated references to Avalokitesvara (Wilkinson 265). Food offerings, fire rituals, and revolting rituals are additional practices derived from the tantra, enhancing the effect of these practices for the practitioner (Wilkinson 253). The text on iconography, titled Mahavinayaka Rupa Upadesa Ratna, describes the iconography of Maharakta Ganapati, a red, power form of Ganesh that is made into images for tantric rites and other purposes (ibid).
Iconography in Action, Images of Ganesh Within the Buddhist Sector:
Just as pars (wood-block prints) at Tengboche Monastery implemented iconography, many Buddhist sculptures and paintings in the Himalayan region incorporate Ganesh’s iconography (Zangpu 49). An interesting representation is a 16th-century Ngor-style painting of MahaRakta Ganapati (Image 1), now belonging to the Rubin Museum of Art (Watt, 2011). Nepali artists were commissioned by Ngor Monastery in Tibet, indicating that a text detailing the iconography must have been available in their language at that time (ibid). Due to the tantric nature of this painting, it would have been kept as a private image of the deity as a visual aid for performing the sadhana or worshiped for rituals.Another important painting of Ganesh (Image 2) includes him as a central figure in a painting depicting the life story of Chogyal Phagpa (Watt). Chogyal Phagpa, an influential 12th-century Sakya scholar, introduced Buddhism to the Mongol rulers of the Yuan period; thus, the painting suggests a meaningful relationship between Maharakta Ganapati, Chogyal Phagpa and the Sakya school, deity symbolizing Phagpa and the lineage’s power (Townsend).
Another example of iconography in action is a dynamic sculpture of MahaRakta Ganapati adorned with jewels and gold (Image 3), which suggests a Buddhist adaptation of murti worship (Watt). Its function as a ritual object is described in the texts mentioned above.
In addition to sculptures and paintings, yantra diagram talismans incorporating the icon of Maharakta Ganapati are introduced in a text called the Maharakta Ganapati Be'u bum, a collection of magic-related talismans and instructions concerning Maharakta Ganapati (Watt, 2001). Talismans (Image 4) are worn by practitioners to ward off obstacles and attract desired effects (ibid). Icons like these illustrate the interaction between the textual subject of Ganesh and the people of the Himalayan region. Icons brought Ganesh’s textual identity to life. These examples provide practical evidence for Ganesh’s relevance within the Buddhist communities of the Himalayas, which if traced back originates from tantric texts, which were based on Ganesh's Hindu origins.
Conclusion:
If tantra had not flourished, Ganesh would not have had the possibility of becoming a Buddhist deity, as only tantra allowed for Ganesh to serve as a vessel for Buddhist practice. There are many other deities within the tantric Buddhist system, such as Sarasvati, Lakshmi, Mahakali, and Vajrabhairava, whose roots were transformed into a Buddhist form through the tantric movement, which borrowed and innovated existing models of practice from Shaiva, Vaishnava, and other Hindu Tantric traditions (Watt). That said, Ganesh’s importance as a Hindu divinity must not be overlooked, as it shaped Ganesh’s Buddhist icons and context as an emanation of Avalokitesvara, wealth deity, etc.
Now that the process of iconographic transfusion between tantra is understood, it is worthwhile to analyze the social, political, and religious roles icons play in tantric interfaith sectors of the Himalayas, such as the Kathmandu Valley. For example, many sacred sites in Kathmandu feature icons of Bhairava, which are worshiped by both Hindus and Buddhists. How do the two religions share an icon, and under what contexts does this sharing occur? This issue, of course, extends far beyond the Kathmandu Valley, but the valley serves as an excellent starting point, with many active sites condensed within it, making it a significant region for study.
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