It has been reported that a Sanskrit Ms. of the Guhyasamājatantra written on bark (shing shun) existed in Padma-rmad-byung-gi-gtsug-lag-khang. See Gangs-ri-ba Chos-dbyings-rdo-rje, mNga’ ris skor gsum gyi sngon byung lo rgyus = Gangs ljongs bod kyi nub ngos mnga’ ris skor gsum gyi sngon byung lo rgyus ’chi med rnga sgra. Lhasa: Bod ljongs mi dmangs dpe skrun khang, 1996, p. 266.23–267.1: dpal gsang ba bsdus pa’i po ti rgya gar gyi shing shun la bris pa rgya yig tu yod pa gcig bzhugs so ||.
The expression yum sras bco brgyad is employed here (i.e. instead of the usual yum sras bcu bdun).
Just imagine, a lovely Kashmiri birchbark (gro-ga?? if that's what shing-shun means here) manuscript of the Sangwa Düpa in Sanskrit! Wouldn't that be something. But I guess this quote comes from the biography of the great Lotsawa Rinchen Zangpo, so not so much chance of it surviving the 9 or so centuries since it's last mention, is there? You think it may have been a copy he brought back with him from Kashmir, or the one that he used as basis for his translation?
ReplyDeleteYes, it is from a biography of the great translator Ratnabhadra. Taking the MS (and another thugs rten and rku rten) out of the temple is said to bring misfortune.
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