| Dhammakāyānussati-kathā | |
|---|---|
| Information | |
| Religion | Theravada Buddhism (Tai-Khmer traditions) |
| Author | Attributed to traditional oral lineages |
| Language | Pali |
| Period | c. 15th century CE (earliest recorded version) |
| Chapters | 1 (prose with verses) |
| Verses | Varies by manuscript; core text includes homage and recollection verses |
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TheDhammakāyānussati-kathā (translated as the "Verses on the Recollection of the Dhammakāya"), also known as theDhammakāya Gāthā and theDhammakāya text, is aPaliBuddhist text used inmeditation practices withinTheravada traditions of theTai-Khmer cultural region, includingThailand,Cambodia, andLaos. It focuses onDhammakāyānussati, the contemplation of theDhammakāya—described as the "Truth Body" or "Dharma Body" ofthe Buddha, visualized as a radiant, "resplendent body" essence within the practitioner. The text combines prose instructions with verses to guide visualization and recitation.[1]
Belonging to the esotericYogavacara (yoga practitioner) tradition, it is not part of thePali Canon but reflects meditative practices distinct from mainstream Theravada texts.[2] Its core components include homage to the Buddha and verses extolling theDhammakāya as a path toliberation.[1][3]
The Dhammakāyānussati-kathā likely originated in theTai-Khmer Buddhist traditions. Its earliest extant version appears on the "Brah Dhammakaya inscription," an engraved stone slab from thestupa of Wat Suea,Phitsanulok, Thailand, dated to 1549 CE. Thekathā text is used in various practices, including "consecration rites for Buddha images and stupas."[1] Scholars propose that this text genre, likely transmitted through oral tradition, is linked toYogāvacara practices found in theKhmer context and shares similarities with theVisuddhimagga'sBuddhānussati meditation.[2]
By the 18th century, and likely earlier, the text genre was circulated inThailand (Central and Northern) andCambodia, preserved in manuscripts, inscriptions, and printed texts. In theRattanakosin period, theDhammakāyānussati-kathā was part of thesuat mon plae chanting collection, which Malasart argues was compiled during the reign ofKing Rāmā I (1782–1809 CE). This text is identified as a trace of "borān" (ancient) Buddhism, associated with pre-modern meditation techniques (borān kammatthāna). Its use declined inCentral Thailand during the 5th reign (1868–1910 CE), primarily due to reforms underSupreme Patriarch Sā in 1880, which reformed the royal chanting curriculum, and the revision of Siam's Tipiṭaka in 1893. These reforms excluded texts classified as "non-canonical," which led to the removal of thepakiṇṇaka-gāthā (the section containing thedhammakāyānussati-kathā) from the new official chanting manual.[2]
In the 20th century, a modernized form ofborān kammatthāna meditation, known asvijjā dhammakāya, was popularized by the Thai monk Candasaro Sot ofWat Paknam. This practice was subsequently adopted and globally disseminated by the modernDhammakaya Movement, particularly through the Dhammakaya Foundation andWat Phra Dhammakaya (established in the 1970s), bringing it into contemporary meditation contexts. The adaptation and simplification of this method, while making it more accessible, has prompted scholarly and monastic debates. Critics, including prominent scholar-monks likePayuth Payutto and the Burmese monk Chodok Yannasittho, have questioned its orthodoxy and the alignment ofvijjā dhammakāya with traditional Theravāda teachings, while some Western scholars have proposed Tibetan tantric influence.[4]
The text consists of Pāli verses followed by a Thai translation using the traditionalyok sab method. It is identified as belonging to theDhammakāya text genre, which is associated with Buddhist rituals likebuddhābhiṣeka (image consecration). Though there are multiple variants of thiskathā, it typically begins with the traditional Pali homage:[2][3]
Namo Tassa Bhagavato Arahato Sammā-Sambuddhassa.
The structure of this text, particularly the version analyzed in the 1909Suat Mon Plae (DK 1909), is generally divided into three parts. The first part, termed "personification," identifies theknowledge (ñāṇa) and qualities/virtues (guṇa) of the Buddha with the physical attributes of his body. This involves comparing various aspects of theBuddha's enlightenment andvirtues to specific body parts, from head to toe, and even his robes. The second part ("glorification") comprises "verses in praise" glorifying the Buddha's resplendent body understood as thedhammakāya (Buddho ativirocati devamanussānaṃ dhammakāyena). The third section ("summarising") functions as a "summarising meditation guide," exhorting a practitioner within theyogāvacara lineage (one possessing sharp wisdom,tikkhañāṇena) to repeatedly (punappunam) recollect (anussaritabbam) thedhammakāya with the aim of attainingBuddhahood (sabbaññūbuddhabhāvam).[1]
This three-part structure is confirmed by the complete Pāli manuscript versions of the text, such as the one edited by Cœdès and analyzed by Choompolpaisal and Skilton. The first part, the "personification," is an enumerative list that, in its complete manuscript form, contains 26 to 30 items. This list systematically equatesthe Buddha's physical body parts—from his head down to his feet, as well as his robes—with specificdhamma qualities, the majority of which are specific forms ofwisdom (ñāṇa). In its 30-item form, for example, it begins by equating "omniscience" (sabbaññutañāṇa) with "the very best head", "the fourthjhāna" with "the very best forehead", and continues down to the "navel" as "knowledge ofconditioned arising", and the "belt" as "the four foundations of mindfulness". The Phitsanulok inscription itself is incomplete due to damage and preserves only the first seven items of this list.[5]
The subsequent "glorification" and "summarising meditation guide" sections are found in the concluding verses present in the manuscript versions, as the inscription's ending is lost. The glorification verse describes the Buddha who "outshines all other gods and humans", while the meditation guide contains the Pāli exhortation explicitly addressing theyogāvacara (meditation practitioner) to "repeatedly recollect" (punappunam anussaritabbam) these features to attain "the condition of the omniscient Buddha" (sabbaññubuddhabhāvam). Choompolpaisal and Skilton note that the use of these key terms,yogāvacara andsabbaññu (omniscience), "are ubiquitous inboran kammatthan contexts," explicitly linking the text to that pre-reform meditation tradition.[5]
The primary practice associated with theDhammakāya Gāthā is theDhammakāyānussati, or "Recollection of theDhammakāya". This involves the mental recollection or visualization (anussaritabbam) of thedhammakāya as described in the text, particularly its personification as the Buddha's enlightened knowledge and qualities embodied. Since thedhammakāya is presented abstractly, the practice often utilizes aBuddha image as a visual aid, considered a physical embodiment or likeness of thedhammakāya. A traditional Lanna meditation manual (KBG), which includes theGāthā, provides specific instructions: the practitioner visualizes a Buddha image in a chosen posture, clearly perceives its form and color mentally, and then stabilizes this mental image, placing it either on top of their head or in front of them as the object ofconcentration.[1]
Another method of recollection involves reciting the textual content of theDhammakāya Gāthā itself. Paratextual instructions found in Lanna and Lan Xang manuscripts suggest that the text should be remembered by heart and recited (bhāvanā, sometimes mentally) on a daily basis (punappunam interpreted in this context).[1]
The Buddha, whose head is omniscience and so on,
outshines all other gods and humans.
I pay homage to the Buddha, the guide to the world,
who consists of this body of dhammas.
The astute well-born practitioner of meditation desiring the condition
of the omniscient Buddha should repeatedly recollect (punappunam anussaritabbam)
these features of the Buddha that are his body of dhammas.
— Paratextual instructions of the Dhammakāya inscription[5]
In a more ritualistic context associated with Buddha image consecration in Lanna manuscript, the practice involves physically inscribing theDhammakāya Gāthā (often along with texts detailingthe Buddha's major and minor physical marks) onto metal plates. These inscribed plates are then typically rolled, placed inside a casket, and embedded within theBuddha statue, often near the navel, thereby physically installing thedhammakāya into the image.[1]
The stated goals of these practices are both mundane and supramundane. The text itself directs the practitioner (yogāvacara) towards the attainment ofBuddhahood (sabbaññūbuddhabhāvam). Paratexts associated with theGāthā also mention goals such as attainingNibbāna orArahatship in the future, as well assecuring worldly prosperity, happiness, and protection.[1]