Newar Buddhism
Form of Vajrayana Buddhism practiced by the Newar people of the Kathmandu Valley, Nepal
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Although there was a vibrant regional tradition of Buddhism in the Kathmandu Valley during the first millennium, the transformation into a distinctive cultural and linguistic form of Buddhism appears to have taken place in the fifteenth century, at about the same time that similar regional forms of Indic Buddhism such as those of Kashmir and Indonesia were on the wane.
Avalokiteśvara, Nepal, 16th century CE A Vajracharya priest of Newar community
Castes
Its caste system has a non-celibate religious clergy caste formed of vajracharya (who perform rituals for others) and shakya (who perform rituals mostly within their own families). Other Buddhist Newar castes like the Urāy act as patrons. Urāy also patronise Tibetan Vajrayana, Theravadin, and even Japanese clerics.
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Textual tradition
The use of Sanskrit as a lingua sacra survives in the Newar Buddhism of Nepal, and arguably the vast majority of Sanskrit Buddhist manuscripts have been preserved by this tradition. The Newar Buddhist tradition most prominently employs Sanskrit for all ritual and study purposes, and as such is the only living Buddhist Sanskrit tradition. It is distinct for its emphasis on preserving the Sanskrit originals of many Mahayana and Vajrayana scriptures, which have otherwise been lost in India and survived only in translations in regions like Tibet and China. The Newar Buddhists have continued to copy Sanskrit manuscripts up to the present day.
The Kathmandu Valley has long been a center for Buddhist scholarship, particularly following the destruction of Indian monasteries after the 12th-century Muslim conquests. Tibetan scholars often visited to acquire texts, and local Newar Buddhists, including householder clergy (śākyabhikṣus and vajrācāryas), were proficient in Sanskrit, making it a significant language for Buddhist scholarship in the region. From the 19th century onwards, Sanskrit manuscripts from Nepal were collected and sent to academic institutions in Calcutta and Europe by figures like Brian H. Hodgson, contributing to modern Buddhist studies.
Navagrantha
Newar Buddhism has a group of nine Sanskrit Mahayana sutras called the Navagrantha, these are considered the key Mahayana sutra texts of the tradition. They are:
- Aṣṭasāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra
- Saddharma Puṇḍarīka Sūtra
- Suvarṇaprabhāsa Sūtra
- Samādhirāja Sūtra
- Gandavyūha Sūtra
- Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra
- Daśabhūmika Sūtra
- Lalitavistara Sūtra
- Tathāgataguhya (the text of this sutra was lost, and later replaced by the Guhyasamāja Tantra)
Artistic tradition
Newar Buddhism is characterized by its extensive and detailed rituals, a rich artistic tradition of Buddhist monuments and artwork like the chaitya (stupa), Baha and Bahi monastic courtyards, statues, paubha scroll paintings and mandala sand paintings, and by being a storehouse of ancient Sanskrit Buddhist texts, many of which are now only extant in Nepal.
According to the authors of Rebuilding Buddhism: The Theravada Movement in Twentieth-Century Nepal: "Today traditional Newar Buddhism is unquestionably in retreat before Theravada Buddhism." Chachā (Charyā) ritual song and dance and Gunlā Bājan music are other artistic traditions of Newar Buddhism. Although Newar Buddhism was traditionally bound to the Kathmandu Valley and its environs, there is at least one new Newar Buddhist temple in Portland, Oregon.
Outdoor festivals
A number of major street celebrations are held periodically involving processions, displays of Buddha images and services in the three cities of the Kathmandu Valley and in other parts of Nepal.
The main events are Samyak (almsgiving and display of Buddha images), Gunla (holy month marked by musical processions and display of Buddha images), Jana Baha Dyah Jatra (chariot procession in Kathmandu), Bunga Dyah Jatra (chariot processions in Lalitpur, Dolakha and Nala), and Bajrayogini Jatra (processions in Sankhu and Pharping).