Derge Kangyur/Tengyur e-text, Esukhia/Barom edition — public domain (mechanical reproduction)
The provided fragment of The Kapālika View on the Activities of Compassion serves as the introductory section of a text attributed to a Kapālika perspective within the Tantric tradition. The text begins by establishing its identity through bilingual titles in Sanskrit and Tibetan, identifying itself as a treatise on the view of compassionate activities. It opens with a formal invocation and homage to the deity Cakrasaṃvara, described in celestial imagery with a golden handle and parasol, followed by a call to Vajraḍākinī and the son of the Ḍākinī Dhari. Based on this opening, the work commits the reader to a framework of Vajrayāna practice where the theoretical 'view' of compassion is inextricably linked to the invocation of specific deities and the lineage of the Ḍākinīs. The text is structured to transition from formal ritual homage to the exposition of a specific philosophical or practical viewpoint regarding the nature of compassion.
Provenance
About this text
A treatise on the view of compassionate activities, the Karuṇācaryākapāladṛṣṭi belongs to the tradition of the General Unexcelled Yoga Tantra Works. The work is attributed to the Indian author Sarabhakha. Preserved in the classical Tibetan period, the text appears in the Tengyur, volume ཟི, under the Tibetan title snying rje spyod pa thod pa'i lta ba, where it extends to one page. The record does not name the translators. In its opening, the work enacts a ritual invocation, beginning with homage to the deity Cakrasaṃvara and a call to Vajraḍākinī and the son of the Ḍākinī Dhari, suggesting that the yogi's intentions are fulfilled through such kindness. A scholar or serious reader consults this text today to examine the intersection of the theoretical view of compassion with the specific deity invocations and Ḍākinī lineages characteristic of the Vajrayāna framework.
Cite thisAnuvāda, “The Kapālika View on the Activities of Compassion” (Toh 2436), machine draft, 2026.https://naxiai.com/tibetan/works/toh2436
Summary & commentary
Significance
This work is significant as it represents the intersection of Kapālika influence and Buddhist Tantra, specifically within the Cakrasaṃvara cycle. For the modern reader, it illustrates the ritualized nature of Tibetan Buddhist treatises, where philosophical arguments are preceded by deity invocation to establish the spiritual authority of the text.
Structure
Passages
Section
Description
1
Introduction
Contains the Sanskrit and Tibetan titles, an homage to Cakrasaṃvara, and an invocation of Vajraḍākinī and the son of the Ḍākinī Dhari.
Themes
Ritual Invocation (1)
Compassion (Karuṇā) (1)
Summary, significance and provenance note generated by gemma4:31b from the translation and the catalogue record.
AnuvādaThe Kapālika View on the Activities of Compassion·
In the language of India: Karuṇākapālacaryādṛṣṭi-nāma. In the language of Tibet: Snying rje spyod pa thod pa’i lta ba zhes bya ba. Homage to the glorious Cakrasaṃvara!
With a golden handle in the sky,
Holding a parasol above his head, he dwells.
Vajraḍākinī, please come!
O son of the Ḍākinī Dhari!
Why is that? Because through her kindness,
The yogi’s intention is fulfilled.
Holding the bowl of emptiness in his hand,
Filled with the fluid of skillful means,
He dwells having reached the Buddha-fields.
The bonds of the three realms are severed at the root;
He is constantly guarded by the eight Ḍākinīs.
The ten gates are sealed with a seal;
Dhārika speaks thus:
"Though it pervades all, if its characteristic
Is not conceptualized by even one,
How could I possibly teach it?"
O son of the Ḍākinī Dhari!
Why is that? Because through her,
One’s intentions will be fulfilled like a wish-fulfilling jewel.
This concludes "The View of the Practice of Compassion and the Skull," composed by the master Sarvakṣa and transmitted from the master Dhārikapa.
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.