Derge Kangyur/Tengyur e-text, Esukhia/Barom edition — public domain (mechanical reproduction)
The Oḍḍiyāna Tradition of Tārā (Oḍḍiyāna-tārā-krama) serves as a liturgical manual for the practice of Tārā within the Oḍḍiyāna lineage. The text provides instructions for meditative visualization and the recitation of specific mantras, accommodating various configurations of the deity's retinue, including sets of thirteen, nine, or five deities, or a focus on the principal deity alone. It commits the practitioner to a precise sequence of ritual speech, transitioning from general mantras to a specialized mantra dedicated to the torma offering. The fragment concludes by listing associated figures, including Ḍākinīs, Paṇḍitas, and Siddhas, suggesting a lineage-based transmission of the practice. By linking specific phonetic formulas to ritual actions and meditative states, the text functions as a technical guide for achieving the intended effects of the Tārā sadhana.
Provenance
About this text
A treatise detailing the stages of Tārā of Oḍḍiyāna, the Uḍḍiyānatārākrama is attributed to the Indian author Parahita. The work was translated into classical Tibetan by Saṅghabhadra and bod kyi lo tsa ba ’jam dpal sgeg ba’i rdo rje. It is preserved in the Tengyur, volume ཤ, where it is situated within the Other Wisdom Tantras collection and spans two pages. The work enacts a ritual practice centered on the meditation of the principal deity and the recitation of specific mantras, providing options for configurations of deities consisting of thirteen, nine, or five in nature. It specifically outlines phonetic formulas for general practice and the torma offering, while concluding with a lineage of transmission involving figures such as the Ḍākinī Vajradhātinī, the Siddha Vinītadeva, and the Kashmiri Paṇḍita Sambhahabhadrā. A scholar or serious reader consults this text today as a technical guide for the Tārā sadhana, utilizing it to understand the precise relationship between meditative visualization, ritual speech, and the lineage-based transmission of these specific liturgical instructions.
Sanskrit title
Uḍḍiyānatārākrama
Indian author
Parahita
Tibetan translators
Saṅghabhadra, bod kyi lo tsa ba ’jam dpal sgeg ba’i rdo rje
Cite thisAnuvāda, “The Oḍḍiyāna Tradition of Tārā” (Toh 1708), machine draft, 2026.https://naxiai.com/tibetan/works/toh1708
Summary & commentary
Significance
This text is significant for its documentation of the Oḍḍiyāna lineage's specific ritual formulas and its flexibility regarding the number of deities visualized. It provides insight into the intersection of mantra recitation and material offerings, such as the torma, within the Vajrayana tradition.
Structure
Passages
Section
Description
1-2
Introduction and Mantras
Provides the title in Sanskrit and Tibetan, instructions for deity visualization, and the specific mantras for general practice and torma offerings, ending with a list of lineage figures.
Themes
Ritual Mantra Recitation (1-2)
Deity Visualization (1)
Torma Offerings (2)
Lineage Transmission (2)
Summary, significance and provenance note generated by gemma4:31b from the translation and the catalogue record.
In the language of India: Oḍḍiyāna-tārā-krama. In the language of Tibet: The Stages of Tārā of Oḍḍiyāna. Homage to Tārā!
Whether consisting of all the deities, or thirteen, nine, or five in nature, having meditated upon the principal deity alone, one should recite these mantras:
OṂ TĀRE TUTTĀRE TURE HŪṂ PHAṬ.
OṂ SURATEŚVARĪ HŪṂ PHAṬ.
OṂ SURATA-SONTARE HŪṂ PHAṬ.
OṂ SURATA-CANDRA HŪṂ PHAṬ.
OṂ SURATA-KAMINI HŪṂ PHAṬ.
OṂ SURATA-UGRA HŪṂ PHAṬ.
OṂ SURATA-UTTAMA HŪṂ PHAṬ.
OṂ ŚIKHI HŪṂ PHAṬ.
OṂ BHIMA HŪṂ PHAṬ.
OṂ ŚIKHAṆḌI HŪṂ PHAṬ.
OṂ KĀRĀLI HŪṂ PHAṬ.
OṂ JĀṬILI HŪṂ PHAṬ.
OṂ RA-UTRI HŪṂ PHAṬ.
OṂ JAṬI HŪṂ PHAṬ.
OṂ MA-UNTRI HŪṂ PHAṬ.
OṂ BHIKAṬA HŪṂ PHAṬ.
OṂ UTTAṢAṬA HŪṂ PHAṬ.
OṂ KEREṬI HŪṂ PHAṬ.
OṂ NARTEKI HŪṂ PHAṬ.
OṂ JAḤ KAMPUCI HŪṂ PHAṬ.
OṂ HŪṂ PUKKASĪ HŪṂ PHAṬ.
OṂ MAṂ ḌOMBINĪ HŪṂ PHAṬ.
OṂ HO MATAṄGĪ HŪṂ PHAṬ.
These secret mantras should be correctly recited. In the center of the heart is the principal deity; in the crown aperture and other locations, one should meditate upon the twenty-four goddesses. The disciples will certainly be blessed by all these deities.
The Stages of Tārā of Oḍḍiyāna, the most secret of secrets, is complete. Translated by the Paṇḍita Saṃghaśrī and the translator Mañjuśrī-lalita-vajra.
OṂ TĀRE TUTTĀRE TURE HŪṂ PHAṬ. OṂ SURATEŚVARĪ HŪṂ PHAṬ, and so forth.
Oṃ aśa puca hūṃ phaṭ oṃ hūṃ, and so forth. Oṃ tāre tuttāre daha daha, paca paca, matha matha, imaṃ baliṃ gṛhṇa gṛhṇa, mama sarvakāryāṇi, svadaya svadaya, hūṃ phaṭ phaṭ svāhā. This is the mantra for the torma offering. Ḍākinī Vajradhātinī; Paṇḍita Parahita; Siddha Vinītadeva; the Kashmiri Paṇḍita Sambhahabhadrā; and the New Mañjuśrī, who [transmitted it to] Sa-phug-pa.
Translation status: Not among 84000's published translations, and not in progress there. Translations published elsewhere have not been searched for, so one may exist. (source: 84000 catalogue + registry; checked 2026-11-10).
Set in Newsreader and EB Garamond; Tibetan in Noto Serif Tibetan; Chinese in Noto Serif SC.