mahAvairochana tantra
The mahAvairochana tantra is a bauddha tantra at the very base of the yoga class of saugata tantra-s whose Sanskrit original has been lost in India. There, the cosmic buddha vairochana teaches what he terms the religion of the “foolish common folk.” (translated from the Chinese by Hodge) One can immediately see why we see this as a counter-religion.
These gods are great gods:
they bestow happiness upon all
If you respectfully make offerings to them,
you will become fortunate in all things.
They are as follows:
Īśvara and Brahma,
Viṣṇu, Śaṅkara, Rudra,
Skanda, Āditya, Candra and Varuṇa,
Kubera, Dhanada, Śakra,
Viśvakarṣa and Viśvakarman,
Yama, Kālarātrī, Nirṛti,
Loka-guru, Agni, Vinata-putra,
and likewise the goddess Umā,
the Nāga-s Padma, Tākṣaka,
Vāsuki and Śaṅkha,
Karkoṭaka, Mahāpadma,
Kuilika, Mahāhanaka,
Sadananda and Ādideva.
As well as these gods,
there are the most excellent sages,
The Vedas and their followers.
The wise person should make offerings to them!
Then when they have heard such words,
they feel great joy in their hearts,
and with reverence, they apply themselves earnestly to those gods.
The maNDala of the MVT has a section where agni is drawn surrounded by the prominent R^iShi-s each holding the veda in hand. In medieval Japan some were accused as giving more importance to religion of the veda than saugatam.
buddhaguhya
Commenting on this, buddhaguhya takes a position comparable to the bhagavad-gItA and effectively even the H religion leads to vairochana only (translation from the Chinese by Hodge).
People seek liberation through relying upon the self of ordinary foolish beings and upon the gods.
Vairocana. Regarding such gods as Iśvara and Brahmā, and so forth, generally speaking, there are two types:
those beings arising subject to karmic actions
and those that are Awareness Beings (jñāna-sattva).In this case, those gods are also teachers of the path to ordinary nirvāṇa the knowledge and attainment of the Bhagavat Vairocana, you should view gods, such as Iśvara and Brahmā, etc., as Awareness Beings emanated from the Body of Vairocana.
kAlachakra return
The kAlachakra presents a consciously unified vision. The bauddha’s were clearly returning like errant child back to the parent for help as the marUnmatta’s were bearing down.
For example, Śrī Kālacakra 3.169 and Vimalaprabhā 3.5.169 allow the Kālacakra initiate who understands reality to behave as a Buddhist, a Śaiva, a naked Paramahaṃsa, a Vaiṣṇava, a householder who has undergone brahmanical initiation, a brahman, a Kāpālika, a Jaina, an ordinary householder, a guard, a silent hermit, a madman, a Kula, a scholar, or a pupil.
Asura slant
The mahAvairochana tantra and its commentator buddhaguhya on indra and asura mantra-s. It presents the idea of indra-jAla in the context of the indra mantra. Based on the commentary on the asura mantra, one has to entertain the idea right from its inception, as a counter-religion, the bauddha-s had a slant towards the asura-s. It is notable that the shAkya-siMha named his son rAhula after the asura. Later, they adopted sumbha and niShumbha as powerful anti-rudra mantra-s.
“Then, Indra manifests with mantras various kinds of things such as parks, lakes, streams and people.”
Buddhaguhya: This shows the power of the mantra of Indra. When Indra and the gods fight with the Asura-s, they emanate countless Indra gods with mantras and deceive the Asuras, and they act with the power of illusion without being opposed anywhere. Through the power of Indra’s mantra, groves, lakes, rivers, and people are conjured up and manifested.
“Then, for example, the Asura-s manifest illusions with mantras. Or, for example, there are mantras that counteract poison and fever.”Buddhaguhya: Then, for example, the Asura-s manifest illusions with mantras: This explains the power of the mantra of the Asura-s. What is that? When the Asura-s fight with Indra and the gods, they emanate countless Asura-s. Rāhula comes from the abode of the Asura-s and takes on a body taller than the King of Mountains Sumeru, and terrifies the gods, and they manifest magical illusions with its power. These two, the power of the illusion-making mantra of the Asura-s and the power of the mantra of Indra mentioned above, are explained as the middling power.
Buddhguhya: Or, for example, there are mantras that counteract poison and fever: This explains the power of the mantras of men. What is that: With the power of those mantras, they remove all poison and such diseases as fever and so forth.
vajrification
Whereas the mahAvairochana tantra incorporates the mAtR^i-s as is into its maNDala, the sarva-tathAgata-tattva-saMgraha first makes them undergo a “vajrification” or a bauddha conversion, where they are imbued with the tAthAgata essence and are given new vajra names following a vajrAbhiSheka. Thus, by this process, they are no longer the deities worshiped by “the foolish people” but full-fledged deities of the tAthAgata pantheon. The list here encompasses a longer collection of 21 mAtR^i-s/yoginI-s in 5 kula-s.
ततस् त्रैलोक्याधिपतिः सर्वदेवीनां वज्र-रत्नाभिषेकेणाभिषिच्य, स्वचिह्नेभ्यो वज्राधिष्ठाप्य, वज्र-नामाभिषेकेणाभिषिच्य, सर्व-तथागत-सत्वार्थतायां प्रतिष्ठापयामास । तद्यथा, उमायै क्रोध-वज्राग्निः, रुक्मिण्यै वज्र-सौवर्णी, षष्ठ्यै वज्र-कौमारी, ब्रह्माण्यै वज्र-शान्तिः, इन्द्राण्यै वज्र-मुष्टिर् इत्य् एवम् आद्या वज्र-राजनिका इत्य् अभिषिक्ताः । ततो ऽन्तरीक्ष-चरीणां सर्व- मातृणाम् अनुप्रादात् । तद् यथा, अमृतायै वज्रामृता, रोहिण्यै वज्रकान्तिः, दण्डहारिण्यै दण्डवज्राग्रा, जाताहारिण्यै वज्रमेखला, इत्य् एवम् आद्या वज्रक्रोधिन्य इत्य् अभिषिक्ताः । ततः खेचरीणां सर्व-मातॄणाम् अनुप्रादात् । तद्यथा, मारण्यै वज्रविलया, अशनायै वज्राशना, वसनायै वज्रवसना, रत्यै वज्रवशा, इत्य् एवम् आद्या गणिका इत्य् अभिषिक्ताः । ततो भूचरीणां सर्व-मातॄणाम् अनुप्रादात् । तद्यथा, शिवायै वज्रदूती, वायव्यै वेगवज्रिणी, आग्नेध्यायै वज्रज्वाला, कुबेर्यै वज्रविकटा, इत्य् एवम् आद्या वज्रदूत्य इत्यभिषिक्ताः । ततः पाताल- वासिनीनां सर्व-मातॄणाम् अनुप्रादात् । वाराह्यै वज्रमुखी, चामुण्डायै वज्रकाली, छिन्ननासायै [छिन्नमस्तायै] वज्रपूतना, वारुण्यै वज्रमकरी, इत्य् एवम् आद्या वज्रचेट्य इत्य् अभिषिक्ताः ॥