Datura Rituals in the Vajramahabhairava-Tantra l

Bulcsu Sikl6s

Summary
The occurrence of a plant known as da dhu ra is investigated in the pre-II th century Vajra-
mahabhairava-tantra, an Indian Buddhist tantric text existant in Tibetan translation. Intemal
evidence from the texts, and linguistic evidence, identifying da dhu ra as Datl4ra me/et is
given despite current cenainty of the New World origin of !he genus Datura.

Zusammenfassung
Die all'. da dhu ra bekannte Pflanze taucht in einem Vajramahabhairava-Tantra IlUS der Zeit
vor dem 11. l ahrhunden (ein ind isch-buddhistischer Tantratext) in einer ti betischen ObeT-
setzung auf. Die Untersuchu ng des Textes sowie die linguistische Evident weist auf, daB da
dhu ra als Datura mete! identifizien werden muB, ab wohl die landltiufige OewiBheit den Ur-
s prung def Gauung Datura in die Neue Welt verlcgt.

Schlagwikter: Indien, Tibet, Darura, Buddhismus, Ethnobotanik

Keywords: India, Tibet, Datura, Buddhism, Ethnobotany
To demonstrate the ende micity to the In- scriptions and illustrations of a wide ran-
dian Subcontinent of Datura mete!, any ge of plants in many and varied works ar-
na tive India n tex t containing conv incing gues strongly against its origin in the Old
references to D. mete! and datable to pre- World" (1991: 202). And, concerning
columbian times would be sufficient. Datura in India. they say: "Original Hin-
This paper attempts to provide formal du and Sanskrit literature has not been
evidence for the endemicity of D. mete/ available to us. LANCASTER (1965 ) re-
to the Old World firstly by presenting the cords D. mete! amongst the sacred now-
Datura riruals of the Vajramahabhairava- ers used by the Hindus. As many other
tantra having dated and localized this flowers o f undoubted American origin
text, and secondly by glancing at the e.g. Tagetes, Pofianthes, Magnolia gran-
history of the Sanskrit wo rd dhattiira 'D. diflora L. and Mirabilis are so honoured
mete!' and its descendants in modem of the rapid adoption of attractive exotic
Indian lang uages. plants" (1991: 201).
The presentation of such evidence is Such altitudes contrast with those of
only necessnry because current botanical earlier European scholars who were con-
research insists that all Datura species in vinced - as far as Datura stramonium in
the Old World are post-columbian im- Europe was concerned - of Datura's Old
ports from the New. SYMON states: World origin. The Afro..Asian origin of
"There is no convincing evidence of thei r Dalura is mentioned in LINNAEUS
(Datura's) establishment in the Old (1753). with the plant hav ing apparently
World prior to the (European) discovery already been introduced by the Romani
of America ... Datura should be removed into North Gennany in the 16th cenrury
from any list of cosmopolitan genera" (VAN DIEKEN 1971:73). 19th and early
(1991 : 142). Or again, SYMON and 20th century works retain and reinforce
HAEGI are almost as definite: "In Asia. this view. The PalIas Lexicon of 1896
as in Europe, the total absence of Datura (XJI: 396) is certain of the plant's im-
among the nu merous recognizable de- portation into the Kingdom of Hungary
72 SIKLOS

by the Romani - all the way from India. suggested for this text based on the
In 1929 P. GRAEBNER thought the known dates of the compiler Buston
plants originated in Central Asia or .( 1290-1364), though doubtless the text is
Southem Russia (1929: 133) , which view much earlier. The dates of the revealer of
harmonizes well with the idea of its im- the text. the pandit Lalitavajra. are much
portation into India by the Aryans. less cenain, though the Tibetan historian
These views may well be mistaken in Taranatha writing in 1608 (CHATIO-
the case of D. stramonium w~ich does PADYAYA 1970: 242) considered him a
seem to be genuinely American, while contemporary of the dialectitian Qharrna-
the status of D. merel in the South-east kini (flc. 650--700). A date of c. 600 is
Europe is open to question. In defence of accepted for the beginnings of Tantric
HAEGI and SYMONI it has to be written literature in India, so the emer-
conceded that a non-native genus natural- gence of the Vbt. can be dated to som-
ized in Europe shortly afler Columbus ' etime between the widely separated pair
discovery of the New World would seem of dates 650-1200.
to be a prime candidate for American im~ The area of origin of the Vbt. accor-
port status, but perhaps the coincidence ding to its own colophon (148r 3 ; trans-
of simultaneous importation of a Datura lated in SIKLOS 1990:123) and accor-
species from India by the Romani can be ding to the history of Taranatha (CHAT-
of the same exotic genus entering Europe TOPADYAYA 1970: 244) is the land of
at the same time from opposite points of Urgyan, the Tibetan equivalent of the
the compass 2 . Sanskrit toponym OQQiyana wh ich is
usually identified with the present-day
Datura in the Vajramahabhairava-tantra Swat district of nonhem Pakistan. A
South Indian location for 099iyiina has
Datura metel. unter the name dhattlira, 4
also been suggested , btlt either way the
has been known in India for centuries.
Vbt. remains an essentially typical Indian
There are references to it in the Amara-
tantric work.
kosa (100.78), Yatsyayana's Kamasurra
The Vbt. deals with the rituah of the
(VII. 1.24 and 2.42) and the Matsyapu-
wrathful Buffalo-headed deity Vajrabhai-
raQ3 (95.24; cf. BANERJI 1980: 38), and
rava (a manifestation of the Buddhist
doubtless also in many more texts. The
Bodhisattva Marijusrl). Notable amongst
Vajramahabhairava-tantra rituals given in
these many and varied rituals are a set of
this paper are particularly useful as they
five, three from the 2nd chapter and two
comprise ~onnecled rituals (rather than
from the 4th. These all contain references
just brief references) involving dhattiira
to a plant known in the Tibetan text as
in typical magical uses.
da dhu ra. These references foJlow:
The Sri-vajramahabhairava-tantra (a
Vbt.) is an Indian Buddhist tantric ritual
A. Vht. ii. 136 r.
text of which we possess versions des-
cended from a pre- 13th century Tibetan Tibetan lext:
translation of a lost Sanskrit (or Sans- ji ltar gsad par 'dad pa'i sngags pas du r
kritized Prakrit) origina!. The Sanskrit khrod kyi ras la I dug dang I khrag dang I
version was known 10 the compiler of the lan tshwa dang I ske tshe dang I nim ba
Tibetan collection in which the Tibetan dang I dha du ra'i kh u ba yis rdo rje 'jigs
translation of the Vbt. is included, hence byed chen po'i 'khor 10 le tshe beu drug
a latest possible date of c.1300 can be pa bya rog chen po'i sgro nse'; smyu gu
Datura Rituals in ltIe Vajramahabhh"aviiI-Tantra 73

'am J mi'j rus pa'j smyll gus gcer bu skra la J de'j thal ba blangs la yi ge beu pa'i
bshig pas kha Ihor bhas te / ma he'i sngags bzlas nas bud med dang skyes pa
gdong gi sbyor bas bri bar bya'o 11 me gnyis kyi bar du thal ba bzhag na I de
gnyis kyi dbus su bsgrub bya 'i ming dang skad cig gis 'byed par byed doll
beas par gzhag la de yi ge beu pas bskor
zhing hum brgyad bri 11 zur mams su phat Translation: Also, for the rite of separat-
kyi yi ge mams bri 11 bdag nyid tsha ba'i ion , he puts together the wings of a crow
mar gyis Ius byugs la / thod pa gnyis Icyi and an owl and the hair of a brahmin an
dbus su 'khrul 'khor fab ru beug la sgyed an outcaste and kindles a fire of Dalura
bu gsum gyi steng dll bzhag nas dur wood. Burning these items in this smoke-
khrod kyi mgal pas me rab tu spar te / less fire he takes the ashes and. if he puts
rkang pa g.yon pas mnan la yi ge beu pa'i the ashes in between a woman and a man
sngags bzlas so 11 de yis skad cig gis the after reciting the ten-syllable mantra.
tshom med par 'chi'o /1 they will instantly be separated.

Translation: C. Vbt. ii. 138 v.

The manuin who desires to kill should, in
union with the Buffalo-head~d One (- the Tibetan text: I1 de nas sngags pas smyo
deity Vajrabhairava), naked, with dis- bar bya bar 'dod na dha du ra'j 'bras bu
hevelled hair and facing south, draw the blangs la 1 sha chen dang Ihan cig tu
sixteen-section wheel of Vajramahabhai - shing srin gyis zos pa'i phye ma dang
rava (- Vajrabhairava) on a shroud in ve- bsres nas bza' ba dang brung ha la ni
nom, blood, salt, black mustard. nimba sbyin no 11 sngags kyang bz1as pa bya ste
(Azadirachla indica) and Dafllra juice I de skad cig gis smyo bar 'gyur zhing
using a pen made from a raven feather or zhag bdun gyis 'chi'o //
from human bonc. When he has placed it
in between two fires along with the name Translation: Then, if the mantrin wants to
of the victim of the rite, he surrounds it drive someone insane. he takes Datura
with the ten syllables and writes eight fruit and, mixing it with human flesh and
HOryls. In the corners the syllable PHAT WOml-eaten sawdust. offers it in food or
is to be written. Anointing himself with drink. He recites the mantra and that per-
wann butter he places this magical devi- son will instantly go insane and then die
ce within two crania. When he has placed within seven days.
it above three hearths, he shou ld kindle a
fire with cremation wood . Then he D. Vbt. IV. 144 r
tramples it with his left foot and recites
Tibetan text:
the ten syllable mantra. By this means the
de nas nor nor ma yin par bya bar 'dod no.
victim will doubtless die instantly.
11 ras bal gyi me la dha du ra'i 'bras bu
dang beas par mlShan mo yi ge beu pa' i
B. Vbt. ii . 137 v.
sngags brgya nsa brgyad sbyin sreg byas
Tibetan text: no. shin tu chud zos par 'gyor roll
IIgzhan yang dbye ba'i rab tu sbyor ba ni
bya rog dang 'ug pa'i gshog pa dang I Translation: Then if. wanting to rum
bram ze dang glum po mams kyi skra wealth into poverty, he perfOmlS a hun-
gcig ty byas la J dha dll ra'i shing la me dred and eight buml offerings at night in
rab tu sbar te 1 dll ba med pa'i mes bsregs a fire of cotton using Datura fruit, (that
 S IKlOS
"
wealth) will indeed become trifli ng. Datura mete!, is given as the usual equi-
valent in the dictionaries (MONIER-
E. Vb!. iv. 144 v. WILLlAMS 1899: APTE 1959). and
while other solanaceous plants are
TIbetan text: de nas bya rog gi tshoog possible confusion species. the identifica-
dang 'bras kyi phub ma dang lhan cig (u tion is well-established in the standard
dha du rn ' i shing gis me rah tu sbar nas I sources (with other distinct Sanskrit na-
yi ge beu pa 'i sngags gang gi ming dang mes serving for other commen Solana-
bcas par nam phyed na sby;n sreg byas n:l ceae).
I ny; ma bdun gyis skrod par 'gyor ro 11 The basic Sanskrit term dhalfi"ira- has
descendants in many Indian languages. in
Translation: all of which it means primarily D. mete/.
Then, i f he performs burnt offerings at These words have been placed in six
midnight with a crow' nest and rice husks phonetic categories by TURNER (1966:
using the ten syll able mantra along with 6714),
the victim 's name after kindling the fire
in Dafllra wood, (the victim). will be dri- I. Prakrit dhatn"ira- 4
ven away within seven days. ~i!):l-dard ddtfiro- m.
Kashmi ri daw,. m.
The Idenllflcatlon of da dhll Ta Sindhi . dhdtuTO- m.
Pan}abi dha rimi
The plant do dhu ra occurs onl y in these dharuro
Kumauni
passages in the Vbf. Whilst passage A Gangol dha rur
might be the mosl interesting for students dhaturo
Nepilli
of magic. passage C is more signifi cant Assamese dhdrurt'J.
for those wishing to identify do dhu Ta Qriya dhiitura
on the basis of its described effects after Hindi dhatiir, +a m.
ingestion. A member of the Solanaceae . (hence also
cenain ly suggests itse lf as a su itable can- dhatiirij a m.
didate. but through lack of any physical 'poisoner')
description of the plant the quoted passa- Mfirwdfl dhaturo
ges can at best only suggest the identifi- Gujarali dhariir ' •
cation of da dhu ra as Datura m~ul on dhdt- m.
the basis of toxic effects common to
other indian Solanaceae. Nonetheless the 2. Maithili
Vbt. occurrences alleast provide a rough-
ly datable (and defi nite ly pre-Columbian) 3. Assamese dhiiturii
record of the word da dhu ra on thc basis BengalilOriya dhuturt'J.
o f which the linguistic evidence can be Hindi dhutlira m.
investigatcd. This evidence leads in- Marntpi dhurrt'J.,
escapably to the conclusion that it is in- dhotrt'J. m.
deed Dalura mtld which is referred to in 4. Bengali dhurhura
Vbt . Mailhii1 dhurhur
The written Tibetan word do dhu ra
(met with in aspirated versions dha du ra 5. Oriya dudurii
and da dhu ra) is a transliteration of the
Sanskrit dhaltura. White thorn-apple. 6. Prakrit
Datura Rituals in the \lajramahabhaiTtwa Tantra 75

It is immediately apparent that the 3. identify the original Sanskrit dhalflira

consistency with which the word is pre- bearing in mind that distinct names for
served in the meaning of D. metel in an other common solanaceous species exist
major Prakrlt-based (and thus Sanskrit- in Sanskrit.
based) Indian languages makes a transfer
in meaning from an indigenous Sola- All three tasks are probably impossible.
naceous (or any other) plant 10 a sup- an impossibility which can lead only 10
posed post-Columbian import very un- one conclusion - D. metel was present in
likely indeed. Sanskrit dhatlura simply India prior to European contaCI with the
must mean the same as its many des- New World. Any such conclusion ne-
cendants listed above. The distance in cessitates the revision o f current botani-
space and lime which ~parales cal opinion regarding the origins of lhe
languages such as Gujarati and Assamese genus Datura in general and the species
also positions the word dhatliira clearly D. metel, D.ferox and D. leschenhaulti in
in the vocabulary of ancestral Prakrit dia- particu lar.
lects which precede any seaborne con-
laelS mediated by Europeans with the
New World. The word also seems to be Notes
original Aryan and not a loan from Dra- I This paper is one of the results of a year 's stu-
vidian, this having been observed in 1891 dy trip to India on a Leverhulme Trust Study
by DYMOCK, WARDEN and HOOPER Abroad Studentship. The author wishes 10 thank
(ll: 585) who consequently also thought the struslces of the l..everhulme Trust for making
that D. metel might be an import from th.is and related research possible.
Centra Asia~. 2 Extra research, both botanical and linguistic, is
nceded 10 shed light upon the complex situation
Conclusion in Europe, and especially upon the !;Iramoniumi
melel duo in Eastern Europe and West Asia.
There may be other evidence which
3 Rdercnces are to the Peking Btockprint oflhe
could be adduced in support of Old
Tibetan Bka,gyur (catalogue: Vi 1934) and 10
World Darura 6 but any position arguing
SIK.UJS 1990.
for the endemicilY to the Americas of the
Datura genus in general, and the species 4 Lokesh CHANDRA has argued for a Soulh In·
dian location fOI O~9iyana (19SQ).
D. mete! in particular, must be insecure
purely on the basis of the above rituals. 5 It might be worth checking (earlier) Central
The Indian lex ical evidence also means Asian e tymologi es for D. metel, Ihough precise·
that any botanist wishing to argue against ly locating the home of D. me/I!! is not necessary
for argui ng against its American origin. In later
the endemicity of Datura in India needs
eras theoretical knowl edge of the ritual and
10: toxic uses of Datura spread to the Lamaist lands
of Cenual Asia since TIbetan, Mongolian and
I. disprove the well-established equation Manchu translations of the Vbt. all exist, and ii
of Skt. dhattura to Datura (and there by is possible - thollgh not proven - that Datura
contradict all lexical sources). seeds could have been tr:J ded thrOllghout the La·
2. explain the improbable switch in maist world just as many other Indian ritual
plants were.
meaning from a SkI. word (lhaflura not
meaning Da/ura to words based on the 6Datura mt/~ I, regarded as nativ e to the Ame ri-
Sanskrit dhauura in modem Indian ver- cas, has never been found in a 'native' wild stat~
naculars meaning Datura. there. The iSSll e of the lack. of a wild type for D.
76 SIKLOS

mtltl in the Americas is avoided by calling the

plant "emnl ially I colltc: lion of cuh ivan",
the$e cuilivars supposedly cri,inaling in pre-Co-
lumbian America rather than in Europe (SY·
MON and HAECI 1991 : 20:5),

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