The evolution of Buddhist views on divination: From Original Buddhism to Esoteric Buddhism

Abstract

The Buddhist attitude toward divination changed overtime. In early Buddhism, in order to project a positive image of the religious order, to distinguish it from other religious practices, the Buddha had established a precept forbidding monks to engage in divination. However, this prohibition was not strictly enforced, and the Buddha often lumped divination together with other minor illicit conducts. With the development of Mahayana Buddhism, concepts, such as “skillful and expedient means” (upāya-kauśala, 方便善巧) removed obstacles to the secularization of Buddhism, and divination was generally accepted as a worldly means. However, opposition to divination did not disappear completely, and Mahayana Buddhism also attempted to restrain its followers from engaging in divinatory activities. With the mystification of dhāraṇī and the rise of tantric siddhis, the development of Esoteric Buddhism gradually deviated from the path of early Buddhism, and worldly mundane techniques, such as divination were accepted by tantra as symbols of its siddhis’ achievements.