[INDOLOGY] Lomasa rsi in a Himachali mahatmya?

[Matthew Kapstein]

Dear Westin,

I don't see any evidence for this being "often" mentioned. The source appears to be a 1902 article on the Triloknath temple in HP: J. Ph. Vpgel, Triloknath.” JASB 71,1: 35-41.

A brief Google search shows a number of articles on Triloknath in the 120 years since Vogel wrote on it - I would suggest looking there. I don't have the Vogel article, but the relevant passage is quoted in Francke's Antiquities of Indian Tibet and it is clear that Vogel himself never saw the MahAtmya in question - he states that he was told of it by Brahmans visiting Rewalsar. This makes me a bit suspicious - a standard response to an inquisitive stranger who wants to know more about a pilgrimage site is "you'll have to look in the MahAtmya".....

Matthew T. Kapstein
Professor emeritus
Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, PSL Research University, Paris

Associate
The University of Chicago Divinity School

https://ephe.academia.edu/MatthewKapstein

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On Sunday, December 17th, 2023 at 3:39 AM, Westin Harris via INDOLOGY <indology at list.indology.info> wrote:

> Greetings Indologists,
>
> A friend off list asked me to post this question.
>
> Studies of Tibetan Buddhist pilgrimage practices in the Western Himalayas (from Vogel to Huber, etc.) often mention a local Sanskrit mahatmya (perhaps associated with Rewalsar?) containing stories of Lomasa Rsi said to resemble popular narratives of Guru Padmasambhava. However, I have not been able to identify the name of this mahatmya.
>
> Does anyone know the name of this mahatmya?
>
> Thank you.
>
> (Sorry for lack of diacritics; I’m on a cell phone.)
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Westin Harris
> Ph.D. Candidate
> Study of Religion
> University of California, Davis
> https://religions.ucdavis.edu/people/westin-harris
>
> 2021 Dissertation Fellow,
> The Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation Program in Buddhist Studies
>
> Sarva Mangalam.
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