• The Collection
  • The Kangyur
  • Discourses
  • General Sūtra Section

This rendering does not include the entire published text

The full text is available to download as pdf at:
https://read.84000.co/data/toh127_84000-the-king-of-samadhis-sutra.pdf

ཏིང་ངེ་འཛིན་གྱི་རྒྱལ་པོའི་མདོ།

The King of Samādhis Sūtra
The Entranceway to the Samādhi That Is Taught by Many Buddhas

Samādhi­rāja­sūtra
འཕགས་པ་ཆོས་ཐམས་ཅད་ཀྱི་རང་བཞིན་མཉམ་པ་ཉིད་རྣམ་པར་སྤྲོས་པ་ཏིང་ངེ་འཛིན་གྱི་རྒྱལ་པོ་ཞེས་བྱ་བ་ཐེག་པ་ཆེན་པོའི་མདོ།
’phags pa chos thams cad kyi rang bzhin mnyam pa nyid rnam par spros pa ting nge ’dzin gyi rgyal po zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo
The Noble Mahāyāna Sūtra “The King of Samādhis, the Revealed Equality of the Nature of All Phenomena”
Ārya­sarva­dharma­svabhāva­samatāvipañcita­samādhi­rāja­nāma­mahā­yāna­sūtra
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Toh 127

Degé Kangyur, vol. 55 (mdo sde, da), folios 1.b–170.b

Translated by Peter Alan Roberts
under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha

First published 2018
Current version v 1.45.25 (2022)
Generated by 84000 Reading Room v2.17.7

84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha is a global non-profit initiative to translate all the Buddha’s words into modern languages, and to make them available to everyone.

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co.

Table of Contents

ti. Title
im. Imprint
co. Contents
s. Summary
ac. Acknowledgements
i. Introduction
+ 4 sections- 4 sections
· History of the Sūtra
· The Contents
· The Translation
· Outline
tr. The Translation
+ 40 chapters- 40 chapters
1. The Introduction
2. Śālendrarāja
3. Praise of the Buddha’s Qualities
4. Samādhi
5. Ghoṣadatta
6. Cultivating the Samādhi
7. The Attainment of Patience
8. Buddha Abhāva­samudgata
9. The Patience of the Profound Dharma
10. The Entry into the City
11. Becoming a Keeper of the Sūtra
12. The Training According to the Samādhi
13. The Teaching of the Samādhi
14. The Buddha’s Smile
15. The Elucidation of the Buddha’s Smile
16. The Past
17. The Entranceway to the Samādhi That Is Taught by Many Buddhas
18. The Entrustment of the Samādhi
19. The Teaching of the Inconceivable Dharma of the Buddha
20. Indra­ketu­dhvaja­rāja
21. The Past
22. The Teaching on the Body
23. The Teaching on the Tathāgata’s Body
24. The Inconceivable Tathāgata
25. Engaging in Discernment
26. Rejoicing
27. The Benefits of Generosity
28. The Teaching on Correct Conduct
29. Ten Benefits
30. Tejaguṇarāja
31. Benefits
32. The Teaching on the Nature of All Phenomena
33. The Benefits of Possessing the Sūtra
34. Kṣemadatta
35. Jñānāvatī
36. Supuṣpacandra
37. Teaching the Aggregate of Correct Conduct
38. Yaśaḥprabha
39. Restraint of the Body, Speech, and Mind
40. [Untitled]
c. Colophon
ab. Abbreviations
n. Notes
b. Bibliography
+ 5 sections- 5 sections
· Tibetan Editions of the Samādhirājasūtra
· Sanskrit Editions of the Samādhirājasūtra
· Other canonical references
+ 2 sections- 2 sections
· Kangyur
· Tengyur
· Non-Canonical Tibetan Sources
· Western Publications
g. Glossary

s.

Summary

s.­1

This sūtra, much quoted in later Buddhist writings for its profound statements especially on the nature of emptiness, relates a long teaching given by the Buddha mainly in response to questions put by a young layman, Candraprabha. The samādhi that is the subject of the sūtra, in spite of its name, primarily consists of various aspects of conduct, motivation, and the understanding of emptiness; it is also a way of referring to the sūtra itself. The teaching given in the sūtra is the instruction to be dedicated to the possession and promulgation of the samādhi, and to the necessary conduct of a bodhisattva, which is exemplified by a number of accounts from the Buddha’s previous lives. Most of the teaching takes place on Vulture Peak Mountain, with an interlude recounting the Buddha’s invitation and visit to Candraprabha’s home in Rājagṛha, where he continues to teach Candraprabha before returning to Vulture Peak Mountain. In one subsequent chapter the Buddha responds to a request by Ānanda, and the text concludes with a commitment by Ānanda to maintain this teaching in the future.


ac.

Acknowledgements

ac.­1

Translated from the Tibetan, with reference to Sanskrit editions, by Peter Alan Roberts. The Chinese consultant was Ling-Lung Chen. Edited by Emily Bower and Ben Gleason.

This translation has been completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.


ac.­2

The generous donation of an anonymous donor, which helped make the work on this translation possible, is most gratefully acknowledged.


i.

Introduction

i.­1

The Samādhi­rāja­sūtra, or King of Samādhis Sūtra, is one of the earlier Mahāyāna sūtras to appear in India. It contains teachings on emptiness, bodhisattva conduct, and mendicancy, as well as tales of previous lifetimes and prophecies for the future. Its teaching on emptiness is much quoted by such Mādhyamaka masters as Candrakīrti and Śāntideva, as well as in later Buddhist literature.

History of the Sūtra

The Contents

The Translation

Outline


The Translation
The Mahāyāna Sūtra
The King of Samādhis, the Revealed Equality of the Nature of All Phenomena

1.
Chapter 1

The Introduction

[F.1.b] [B1]


1.­1

I pay homage to all the buddhas and bodhisattvas.8


1.­2

Thus have I heard at one time: The Bhagavān was residing at Vulture Peak Mountain in Rājagṛha together with a great bhikṣu saṅgha of a full hundred thousand bhikṣus, and together with eighty quintillion9 bodhisattvas,10 all of whom had one rebirth remaining, were renowned for their higher cognitions,11 and had gathered there from the worlds in the ten directions; they had complete mastery12 of the dhāraṇīs13 and sūtras; they satisfied all beings with the gift of the Dharma; they were skilled in speaking of the wisdom of the higher cognitions; they had attained the highest perfection of all the highest perfections; [F.2.a] they were skilled in the knowledge of remaining in all bodhisattva samādhis and samāpattis; they had been praised, extolled, and lauded by all the buddhas;14 they were skilled in miraculously going to all buddha realms; they were skilled in the knowledge of terrifying all māras;15 they were skilled in the correct knowledge of the nature of all phenomena; they were skilled in the knowledge of the higher and lower capabilities of all beings; they were skilled in the knowledge of accomplishing the activity of offering to all the buddhas; they were unstained by any of the worldly concerns; they had perfectly adorned bodies, speech, and minds;16 they wore the armor of great love and great compassion; they had great undiminishing diligence throughout countless eons; they roared the great lion’s roar; they could not be defeated by any opponent;17 they were sealed with nonregression; and they had received the consecration of the Dharma from all buddhas.18 They were the bodhisattva mahāsattvas Meru, Sumeru, Mahāmeru,19 Meru­śikhara­dhara,20 Meru­pradīpa­rāja, Merukūṭa, Merudhvaja, Merurāja,21 Meru­śikhara­saṁghaṭṭana­rāja,22 Merusvara, Megharāja, Dundubhisvara, Ratnapāṇi,23 Ratnākara, Ratnaketu, Ratnaśikhara, Ratnasaṁbhava, Ratnaprabhāsa, Ratnayaṣṭi, Ratna­mudrā­hasta, Ratnavyūha, Ratnajāli, Ratnaprabha, Ratnadvīpa, [F.2.b] Ratiṁkara, Dharmavyūha, Vyūharāja, Lakṣaṇa­samalaṁkṛta, Svaravyūha, Svara­viśuddhi­prabha, Ratnakūṭa, Ratnacūḍa,24 Daśa­śata­raśmihutārci,25 Jyotirasa, Candrabhānu, Saha­cittotpāda­dharma­cakra­pravartin, and Śubha­kanaka­viśuddhi­prabha, the bodhisatta mahāsattva Satatam­abhayaṁdad,26 and all the bodhisattva mahāsattvas of the Good Eon, such as the bodhisattva mahāsattva Ajita,27 and the sixty with incomparable minds,28 such as Mañjuśrī, and the sixteen good beings,29 such as Bhadrapāla,30 and the Four Mahārājas and the other Cāturmahā­rāja­kāyika devas, and so on31 up until Brahmā and the other Brahmakāyika devas. In addition there were also devas, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas, humans, and nonhumans, who were all illustrious32 and renowned as being very powerful.33


2.
Chapter 2

Śālendrarāja

2.­1

Then the Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha, “Young man, I remember that in the past, when I was practicing the conduct of a bodhisattva, I became a cakravartin. I desired this samādhi and I desired to attain quickly the highest, complete enlightenment of perfect buddhahood. For many hundred thousand quintillions172 of eons on this Vulture Peak Mountain I served, venerated, revered, honored, worshiped, and made offerings to many countless, innumerable tathāgatas, arhats, perfectly enlightened buddhas with the presentation of many hundred thousand quintillions of every kind of jewel, and various kinds of beautiful flowers, incense, perfume, garlands, ointments, powders, parasols, banners, flags, music, musical instruments, flags of victory, and precious monasteries.173


3.
Chapter 3

Praise of the Buddha’s Qualities

3.­1

Then the Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha, “Young man, therefore, if bodhisattva mahāsattvas wish to teach the buddha qualities as described by the Tathāgata, the arhat, the perfectly enlightened Buddha, without any loss of meaning or words, and for all their words to come forth as those of the Buddha, then those bodhisattva mahāsattvas, young man, [F.10.a] should, for the sake of all beings, obtain197 this samādhi, understand198 it, preserve it,199 recite it to others,200 promote it,201 proclaim it,202 chant it,203 meditate on it with unadulterated204 meditation, promulgate it,205 and make it widely known to others.206


4.
Chapter 4

Samādhi

4.­1

Then the youth Candraprabha [F.12.b] rose from his seat, removed his robe from one shoulder, and, kneeling on his right knee with palms placed together, he bowed toward the Bhagavān and made this request: “If the Bhagavān will give me an opportunity to seek answers to them, I have a few questions for the Bhagavān, the tathāgata, the arhat, the perfectly enlightened Buddha.”


5.
Chapter 5

Ghoṣadatta

5.­1

Then the Bhagavān again addressed the youth Candraprabha, saying, “Therefore, young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas who wish for this samādhi, and wish to attain quickly the highest, complete enlightenment of perfect buddhahood, should think that they are like someone whose hair and clothes are on fire, and they should cast off father, mother, [F.14.b] son, daughter, family, kinsmen, relatives, kindred, wife, and so on, as if they were fire, throw away all the pleasures of a kingdom as if they were a lump of phlegm, turn toward solitude, and depart from home.


6.
Chapter 6

Cultivating the Samādhi

6.­1

The Bhagavān now said to the youth Candraprabha,300 “Therefore, young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas who wish for this samādhi, and wish to attain quickly the highest, complete enlightenment of perfect buddhahood, should cultivate this samādhi.

6.­2

“Young man, what is the cultivation of this samādhi? [F.18.b] Young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas with a compassionate mind are dedicated to making offerings to the tathāgatas, whether living or passed into nirvāṇa, of Dharma robes, alms, seat and bedding, medicines for when ill, and of monastic utensils, and of flowers, incense, perfume, garlands, ointments, aromatic powders, clothing, parasols, banners, and flags, and of music and musical instruments. They dedicate that root of merit to the attainment of samādhi. They do not make offerings to a tathāgata with the hope for anything at all‍—not with the hope for anything they desire, nor with the hope for any enjoyment, nor with the hope for a higher existence, nor with the hope for followers‍—but do so with the Dharma in mind. They do not even, with that wish, perceive the Tathāgata as the dharmakāya, let alone perceiving him as the rūpakāya.


7.
Chapter 7

The Attainment of Patience

7.­1

Then the Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha, “Therefore, young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas who wish for this samādhi, and wish to attain quickly the highest, complete enlightenment of perfect buddhahood, should become skilled in the wisdoms of the three kinds of patience. They should know the first patience. They should know the second patience. They should know the third patience. They should become skilled in the differences between the three kinds of patience and skilled in the differences between the wisdoms of the three kinds of patience.


8.
Chapter 8

Buddha Abhāva­samudgata

8.­1

Then the Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha, “Young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas who wish for this samādhi, and wish to attain quickly the highest, complete enlightenment of perfect buddhahood, should become skilled in the wisdom of the nonexistent nature of all phenomena.

8.­2

“Young man, what is being skilled in the wisdom of the nonexistent nature of all phenomena? Bodhisattva mahāsattvas know that all phenomena have no existence, have no essence, have no attributes, have no characteristics, have no origin, have no cessation, have no words, are empty, are primordial peace, and are pure by nature.


9.
Chapter 9

The Patience of the Profound Dharma

9.­1

Then the Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha, [F.24.b] “Young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas who wish to attain quickly the highest, complete enlightenment of perfect buddhahood and liberate all beings from the ocean of existence should hear this king of samādhis, in which the equality of the nature of all phenomena is revealed, which is praised by all the buddhas and is the mother of the tathāgatas. They should obtain it, preserve it, understand it, recite it to others, promote it, proclaim it, chant it, meditate on it with unadulterated meditation, promulgate it, and make it widely known to others.


10.
Chapter 10

The Entry into the City

10.­1

The Bhagavān then said to the youth Candraprabha, “Therefore, young man, you should be someone who makes practice essential, and always trains in that way. Why is that? Young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas who make practice essential will not even find it difficult to attain the highest, complete enlightenment of perfect buddhahood, not to mention attaining this samādhi.”


11.
Chapter 11

Becoming a Keeper of the Sūtra

11.­1

The Bhagavān came to the street on which was the home of the youth Candraprabha, and soon arrived at the home of the youth Candraprabha. Once he had arrived, he sat on the seat prepared for him. The saṅgha of bodhisattvas and the saṅgha of bhikṣus also sat on the appropriate seats that had been arranged for each of them.

11.­2

Then the youth Candraprabha, knowing that the Bhagavān, the saṅgha of bodhisattvas, and the saṅgha of bhikṣus were seated, [F.39.b] himself presented and served a series of great offerings: numerous excellent foods, with hundreds of flavors to savor as they chewed, licked, sucked, and drank.


12.
Chapter 12

The Training According to the Samādhi

12.­1

“Young man, those are the qualities and benefits that bodhisattvas who know the nature of all phenomena will have. They will describe the true, excellent qualities of the tathāgatas. They will not falsely say that which is untrue about the tathāgatas. Why is that? It is because they know perfectly that nature, which is the nature through which a tathāgata comes to be.531 They know the infinite qualities of a buddha. Why is that? Young man, the qualities of a buddha are infinite, inconceivable, beyond thought. They cannot be conceived or measured. Why is that? The mind, young man, is taught to be without a nature of its own,532 to be without form.533 Young man, that nature of the mind is also the nature of the qualities of a buddha. That nature of the qualities of a buddha is also the nature of the tathāgatas, and that is the nature of all phenomena.


13.
Chapter 13

The Teaching of the Samādhi

13.­1

Then the Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha, “Therefore, young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas who wish for this samādhi, and wish to attain quickly the highest, complete enlightenment of perfect buddhahood, should be skilled in teaching this samādhi.

13.­2

“Young man, what is the teaching of this samādhi? It is the true nature of all phenomena; it is equality; it is the absence of inequality; it is devoid of notions; it is devoid of concepts; it is devoid of creation; it is devoid of arising; it is devoid of production; it is devoid of cessation; it is the termination of notions, concepts, and assumptions; it is devoid of an object for the mind; it is devoid of a focus of the mind;547 it is the termination of designations; it is the termination of concepts from analysis; it is the termination of desire, anger, and ignorance; it is without a limited or limitless focus of the mind; it is the termination of any focus of the mind; it is the knowledge of the nature of the skandhas, dhātus, and āyatanas; it is the state of accomplishing the field of activity that is the performance of the conduct of mindfulness, understanding, comprehension, conscience, and stability; it is the level of freedom from corruptions;548 it is the level of peace; it is the termination of all conceptual elaboration; it is the training of all bodhisattvas; it is the field of activity of all tathāgatas; [F.45.a] and it is the perfection of all good qualities.


14.
Chapter 14

The Buddha’s Smile

14.­1

Then the youth Candraprabha rose from his seat, removed his robe from one shoulder, and, kneeling on his right knee, [F.46.b] with palms placed together he bowed toward the Bhagavān and said to him,569 “Bhagavān, it is marvelous that the Bhagavān, the tathāgata, the arhat, the perfectly enlightened Buddha has taught the equality that is the nature of all phenomena, which is the samādhi that all bodhisattvas train in.


15.
Chapter 15

The Elucidation of the Buddha’s Smile

15.­1

At that time the Bhagavān spoke these appropriate verses to Bodhisattva Maitreya:

15.­2
“This youth, Candraprabha,
Has praised the Buddha with unequaled joy.
He described the unique superior qualities of the buddhas.
All the time he is reciting their praises.613 {1}
15.­3
“In this very city of Rājagṛha in the past
He has seen ten thousand million buddhas.
In the presence of all those jinas
He asked about this supreme samādhi of peace. {2}

16.
Chapter 16

The Past

16.­1

The Bhagavān then said to the youth Candraprabha, “Young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas thus wish to liberate all beings from all the suffering of existence. They wish to establish beings in the noble, unsurpassable bliss and joy of samādhi. Therefore they should hear this king of samādhis, the revealed equality of the nature of all phenomena, obtain it, understand it, preserve it, recite it to others, promote it, proclaim it, chant it, meditate on it with unadulterated meditation, promulgate it, and make it widely known to others.


17.
Chapter 17

The Entranceway to the Samādhi That Is Taught by Many Buddhas

17.­1

When the Bhagavān had finished speaking, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Maitreya, who was seated there, in his mind recited this verse to the Bhagavān.637

17.­2
“I am going, Tathāgata,638 to the king of mountains,
Gṛdhrakūṭa, which is always the residence of the buddhas.
When I have gone there, lamp of the world,639
I will make inconceivable offerings to you.” {i}
17.­3

The Bhagavān knew the thoughts that were in the bodhisattva mahāsattva Maitreya’s mind, and from his own mind sent this verse to the bodhisattva mahāsattva Maitreya:

17.­4
“Go, Ajita, you who have conquered the māras,640
To the king of mountains where jinas reside.
There you will quickly accomplish
A great unsurpassable benefit for beings.” {ii}
17.­5

So the bodhisattva mahāsattva Maitreya, having received in his mind that verse from the Bhagavān, paid homage to the Bhagavān in his mind and, again in his mind, circumambulated him three times. He then left the assembly and went to Gṛdhrakūṭa, the king of mountains, which has been the residence of countless buddhas, as numerous as the grains of sand in the ocean, and where there is a great caitya.

17.­6

The moment he arrived there, for the enjoyment of the Bhagavān, he magically transformed the king of mountains to become level and vast, without any tree stumps, thorns, stones, pebbles, or gravel, and with a surrounding wall made of the seven jewels. The ground was composed of countless shining sapphire jewels and was adorned by divine adornments and jewels, all of them beyond compare, and beautified by an array of innumerable, different kinds of jewels. All the area was decorated by the clothing of Tuṣita devas, [F.54.b] pervaded by the aroma of incense from a variety of censers, adorned by garlands and wreaths, scattered with various flowers; it resounded with the sound of divine music, was filled with erect and fluttering banners and flags, and over it canopies were suspended.

17.­7

In the center of this area a divine lion throne made from the seven jewels was emanated. It was draped in cloth that was not woven, and covered with divine clothing from Tuṣita that was as soft and pleasant to the touch as down. A central awning hung above, and there were two red cushions placed upon it. It was a yojana wide and a yojana high.

17.­8

Its beautiful footstool, made of Jambu River gold, transcended that of humans and devas. It was covered with a net of strings of pearls, and it was draped in divine, precious cottons.

17.­9

Strung upon the lion throne were strings of divine, precious bells from which came clear, beautiful, gentle sounds. In all directions there were great shining jewels. And there was emanated a precious, vast parasol, with a handle made of a great, precious jewel of stainless beryl.

17.­10

The bodhisattva mahāsattva Maitreya now emanated an inconceivable, adorning array of various jewels on Gṛdhrakūṭa, the king of mountains, and in its entire environs. Then, in an instant, he returned to the home of the youth Candraprabha.

17.­11

Once he was back there, in his mind he paid homage to the Bhagavān, and in his mind circumambulated him three times. He then sat on his seat.

It was said:

17.­12
He manifested the mountain as a divine, vast place
With excellent, beautiful jewel flagstones‍—
Inconceivable, divine, formed from the mind‍—
And he placed in the center a precious lion throne. {iii}
17.­13
Jinaputra Ajita also manifested
A divine, splendid parasol that emitted delightful sounds
With great shining jewels all around,
And a handle of pure, beautiful beryl. {iv}
17.­14
Maitreya, the hero, having emanated
A variety of jewels on the mountain,
And a precious seat that was a krośa in size, [F.55.a]
In one instant returned to the house.641 {v}
17.­15

Then the Bhagavān taught the Dharma to the great assembly that was like an ocean. He inspired them, he filled them with joy, and he guided them. Then he rose from his seat and departed. And with the miraculous power of a buddha he emerged through Rājagṛha’s gate of the hot springs and proceeded toward Gṛdhrakūṭa, the king of mountains. When he arrived he went to the site created by Maitreya, and having arrived there he sat upon the great lion throne that Maitreya had manifested.642

17.­16

He was encircled by the assembly of bhikṣus, and the saṅgha of bodhisattvas gazed upon him from the front. The devas, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, rishis, garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas, humans, and nonhumans paid homage to him. Within the ocean-like assembly, he taught the Dharma.

17.­17

Then the youth Candraprabha arrived together with a hundred thousand quintillion beings, and many millions of bodhisattva mahāsattvas who had come from other worlds. They were holding flowers, incense, and garlands; playing musical instruments and percussion; holding parasols, banners, and divine flags; and holding great garlands as offerings.

17.­18

In order to make this offering to the Bhagavān they left the great city of Rājagṛha through the gateway of peace,643 and went to Gṛdhrakūṭa, to the Bhagavān. They bowed down their heads to the Bhagavān’s feet, circumambulated him three times, made a great offering to him of flowers, incense, perfume, garlands, ointments, powders, clothes, food, parasols, banners, and flags, playing music and percussion, and then they sat down in one place. In order to ask about the Dharma they sat in that place with veneration and with respect while the youth Candraprabha, kneeling on his right knee, [F.55.b] with palms placed together, bowed toward the Bhagavān644 and said to him, “If the Bhagavān will give me an opportunity to seek answers to them, I have a few questions for the Bhagavān, the tathāgata, the arhat, the perfectly enlightened Buddha.”

17.­19

The Bhagavān addressed the youth Candraprabha, saying, “Young man, the Bhagavān will always give you the opportunity. Ask whatever question you wish to the Tathāgata, the arhat, the perfectly enlightened Buddha.”

17.­20

The Bhagavān having given him this opportunity, the young man Candraprabha asked, “Bhagavān, it is through possessing what qualities that bodhisattva mahāsattvas attain the samādhi, the revealed equality of the nature of all phenomena?”

The Bhagavān replied to Candraprabha, “Young man, if bodhisattva mahāsattvas possess four qualities, they will attain the samādhi, the revealed equality of the nature of all phenomena.

17.­21

“What are those four qualities? Young man, one is that bodhisattva mahāsattvas are calm, and pleasant company. They have self-restraint, and have attained a level of self-restraint such that when others abuse them or insult them, they will be patient with the abuse and the insults that are spoken, for it is their nature to have endurance; they have the view of karma, have overcome pride, and their desire is for the Dharma. Young man, if bodhisattva mahāsattvas have this first quality, they will attain this samādhi.645

17.­22

“Another, young man, is that bodhisattva mahāsattvas have correct conduct. They have pure conduct, conduct that is not impaired, conduct that is free of faults, conduct that is unshakable, conduct that is unstained, conduct that has not declined, conduct that is unattached, [F.56.a] conduct that is inviolate, conduct that is beyond conceptualization, conduct that is praised by the āryas, and conduct that is praised by the wise. Young man, if bodhisattva mahāsattvas have these two qualities, they will attain this samādhi.646

17.­23

“Another, young man, is that bodhisattva mahāsattvas are frightened of the three realms. They are terrified of them, saddened by them,647 do not value them, take no delight in them,648 and have no attachment or clinging to them.649 Because they are distressed by the three realms they are dedicated to the thought, ‘I shall deliver other beings from their suffering, to somewhere other than the three realms!’ and they thus proceed to the highest, complete enlightenment of perfect buddhahood. Young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas who have these three qualities will attain this samādhi.650

17.­24

“Moreover, young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas have faith.651 They insatiably seek the Dharma. They listen to many teachings. They have confidence. They long for the Dharma. They are devoted to the Dharma. They are not devoted to obtaining material gain or honors. They are not devoted to attaining success through knowledge. They think first of what will benefit others, and they teach and explain extensively to others the Dharma that they have received. They have no desire for material gain through their reputation. They think, ‘If these beings can hear this Dharma then they will proceed irreversibly to the highest, complete enlightenment of perfect buddhahood.’652 Young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas who have these four qualities will attain this samādhi.

17.­25

“Young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas who have these four qualities will attain the samādhi, the revealed equality of the nature of all phenomena, and they will quickly attain the highest, complete enlightenment of perfect buddhahood.

17.­26

“Young man, the samādhi has been taught through this Dharma discourse by many buddhas, has been commended by many buddhas, [F.56.b] has been explained by many buddhas, and has been praised653 by many buddhas.

17.­27

“Young man, I have entered homelessness in the presence of many buddha bhagavāns. I heard extensively from them this samādhi, the revealed equality of the nature of all phenomena. I obtained it, asked questions about it, preserved it, recited it to others, promoted it, meditated on it with unadulterated meditation, promulgated it,654 and made it widely known to others.”655

17.­28

Thereupon the Bhagavān taught extensively in verse what he had previously said about the samādhi doorway taught by many buddhas.

17.­29
“I remember countless, innumerable eons ago
There was a jina named Svarāṅgaghoṣa.
Tathāgata Svarāṅgaghoṣa
Had a lifespan of six thousand years. {1}
17.­30
“After him there was a buddha,
A supreme man named Jñāneśvara.
Jñāneśvara, highest of humans,
Had a lifespan of twelve thousand years. {2}
17.­31
“After Jñāneśvara there was a buddha,
A jina who was named Tejeśvara.
Tejeśvara, highest of humans,
Had a lifespan of sixty-seven thousand years. {3}
17.­32
“After Tejeśvara there was a buddha,
A jina who was named Matīśvara.
Matīśvara, highest of humans,
Had a lifespan of ten million years. {4}
17.­33
“After Matīśvara there was a buddha,
A jina who was named Brahmeśvara.
Brahmeśvara, highest of humans,
Had a lifespan of fourteen thousand years.656 {5}
17.­34
“After Brahmeśvara there was a buddha,
A jina who was named Agnīśvara.657
Agnīśvara, highest of humans,
Had a lifespan of seventy-six thousand years. {6}
17.­35
“After Agnīśvara there was a buddha,
A jina who was named Brahmānana.
Brahmānana, highest of humans,
Had a lifespan of seven days. {7}
17.­36
“After Brahmānana there was a buddha, [F.57.a]
A jina who was named Gaṇeśvara.
Gaṇeśvara, highest of humans,
Had a lifespan of a full ten million years.658 {8}
17.­37
“After Gaṇeśvara there was a buddha,
A jina who was named Ghoṣeśvara.
Ghoṣeśvara, highest of humans,
Had a lifespan of ninety million years. {9}
17.­38
“After Ghoṣeśvara there was a buddha,
A jina who was named Ghoṣānana.
Ghoṣānana, highest of humans,
Had a lifespan of a hundred million years. {10}
17.­39
“After Ghoṣānana there was a buddha,
A jina who was named Candrānana.
Candrānana, highest of humans,
Had a lifespan of one day.659 {11}
17.­40
“After Candrānana there was a buddha,
A jina who was named Sūryānana.
Sūryānana, highest of humans,
Had a lifespan of eighteen thousand years. {12}
17.­41
“After Sūryānana there was a buddha,
Another jina who was named Brahmānana.
Brahmānana, highest of humans, [DP.138]
Had a lifespan of twenty thousand years.660 {13}
17.­42
“After Brahmānana there was a buddha,
A jina who was named Brahmaśrava.
Brahmaśrava, highest of humans,
Had a lifespan of eighteen thousand years. {14}
17.­43
“In one eon these buddhas appeared
Among two hundred guides of the world.
Listen as I shall proclaim the names
Of these invincible tathāgatas:661 {15}
17.­44
“Anantaghoṣa and Vighuṣṭaghoṣa,
Vighuṣṭatejas and Vighuṣṭaśabda,
Svarāvighuṣṭa and Svarārcita,
Svarāṅgaśūra and Svarāṅgaśabda, {16}
17.­45
“Jñānābala and Jñānaviśeṣaga,
Jñānābhibhū and Jñānasamudgata,
Jñānārcimat and Jñānābhyudgata,
Vighuṣṭajñāna and likewise Jñānaśūra, {17}
17.­46
“Brahmābala, Brahmavasu, Subrahma,
Brahmādeva662 and similarly Brahmaghoṣa,
Brahmeśvara, Brahma­narendra­netra, [F.57.b]
Brahmasvarāṅga, Brahmadatta,663 {18}
17.­47
“Tejobala, Tejavati, Sutejas,
Tejeśvara and Tejasamudrata,
Tejovibhu and Tejaviniścita,
Tejasvarendra and Suvighuṣṭatejas, {19}
17.­48
“Bhīṣmabala, Bhīṣmamati, Subhīṣma,
Bhīṣmānana and Bhīṣmasamudgata,
Bhīṣmārci, Bhīṣmottara, and Bhīṣmaghoṣa‍—
These jinas were guides of the world. {20}
17.­49
“Gambhīraghoṣa and Śiridhāraṇa,
Viśuddha­ghoṣeśvara, Śuddhaghoṣa,664
Anantaghoṣa, Suvimuktaghoṣa,
Mārabala665 and Māravitrāsana, {21}
17.­50
“Sunetra, Śuddhānana, Netraśuddha,
Viśuddhanetra and Anantanetra,
Samantanetra and Vighuṣṭanetra,
Netrābhibhu, Netrānindita, {22}
17.­51
“Dāntottara, Dānta, Sudāntacitta,
Sudānta, Śāntendriya, Śāntamānasa,
Śāntottara, Śāntaśirin, Praśānta,
Śāntīya­pāraṃgata and Śāntiśūra, {23}
17.­52
“Sthitottara, Śānta, Sudāntacitta,
Sudānta, Śāntendriya, Śāntamānasa,
Śāntottara, Śānta­śriya­jvalanta,
Śānta, Praśānteśvara, Śāntiśūra,666 {24}
17.­53
“Gaṇendra, Gaṇamukhya, and Gaṇeśvara,
Gaṇābhibhu, Gaṇivara, Śuddhajñānin,
Mahāgaṇendra and Gaṇendraśūra,
And also Gaṇivara­pramocaka, {25}
17.­54
“Dharmadhvaja and similarly Dharmaketu,
Dharmottara, Dharma­svabhāvodgata,
Dharmabala and Sudharmaśūra,
And Svabhāva­dharmottara­niścita. {26}
17.­55
“Also there were eight hundred million with the same name
Of Svabhāva­dharmottara­niścita.
These are the guides that appeared in two eons.
I made offerings to them for the sake of enlightenment. {27}
17.­56
“Whoever hears the name of those jinas,
Svabhāva­dharmottara­niścita,
And having heard it remembers that renowned name, [F.58.a]
They will quickly attain this samādhi.” {28} [B6]
17.­57

Then the Bhagavān, through many verses, taught extensively to the youth Candraprabha the samādhi entranceway accomplished by many buddhas in the past.667

17.­58
“After inconceivable, countless eons
Following these buddhas,
There was a buddha named Narendraghoṣa,
To whom humans and devas made offerings. {29}
17.­59
“Tathāgata Narendraghoṣa
Lived for seventy-six thousand years,
And three billion śrāvakas
Gathered for his first assembly. {30}
17.­60
“At that time he had a shining saṅgha
Of those who had the six higher cognitions, the three knowledges,
Subdued senses, great powers, great miracles,
The cessation of outflows, and who were in their last bodies. {31}
17.­61
“There was a saṅgha of bodhisattvas
Who numbered eight thousand quintillion.
They had profound understanding, fearlessness,668
Great powers, and great miracles. {32}
17.­62
“They had attained the higher cognitions, eloquence,
And they had realized emptiness in everything.
They miraculously went to millions of realms
And to even more, as numerous as the sands of the Ganges. {33}
17.­63
“They came into the presence of that jina
And addressed questions to that supreme human.
They were accomplished in the sūtras and skilled in definitions.
They were shining and moved upon the earth. {34}
17.­64
“They performed bodhisattva conduct for the benefit of beings.
They were powerful sons of the Sugata.
They performed no bad actions through desire,
And toward them even the devas developed aspirations. {35}
17.­65
“They had no longings and were detached from the realms of existence.
They were in meditation, the field of experience of remaining in dhyāna.
They had certainty in the true meaning, and were fearless.
They maintained celibacy and were free of defilement. {36}
17.­66
“They had the confident eloquence of unceasing speech.
They were skilled in the meaning of the words and the teaching of definitions.
They were the sons of the Buddha who taught everywhere,
And they perfectly possessed good karma. {37}
17.­67
“They maintained superior conduct throughout an infinity of eons; [F.58.b]
They were always praised and extolled by the guides.
They taught the words and meaning of liberation.
They had perfectly pure conduct free of kleśas. {38}
17.­68
“They were as unstained as a lotus by water.
They were liberated from the three realms, and were vigilant.
They were unstained by the eight worldly concerns.
They had pure bodies and pure actions. {39}
17.­69
“They had contentment, great power, and few desires.
They were free of grasping and were established in buddha qualities.
They were a refuge and friend for all classes of beings.
They considered practice, not words, as the essence. {40}
17.­70
“Wherever they dwelt, there they taught others.
They were adopted by all the buddhas.
They were trustworthy holders of the treasure of the jinas.
They were terrified of the entire three realms.669 {41}
17.­71
“Their minds were at peace, they always had the conduct of protectors,
And they were blessed by the guides of the world.
They taught ten thousand million sūtras,
And the buddhas praised their teachings. {42}
17.­72
“They had forsaken all worldly words.670
They aspired to emptiness and taught the ultimate.
They were like an ocean of good qualities; there was no end to their being praised.
Their learning was vast; they were wise and endowed with knowledge. {43}
17.­73
“If a young man were to recite their praises
Continuously for many millions of eons
He would have only uttered a small amount,
Like a drop of water from an ocean. {44}
17.­74
“At that time Narendraghoṣa
Taught this samādhi of peace, which is difficult to see.
This universe of a thousand million worlds
Was filled with devas and nāgas. {45}
17.­75
“When he taught this samādhi of peace
The ground shook in six ways.
Devas and humans as numerous as the Ganges sands
Became irreversible within the buddha’s wisdom. {46}
17.­76
“There was a human king, a sovereign
Named Śirībala, who was very powerful.
He had five hundred sons
Who were handsome and attractive to the sight. {47}
17.­77
“The king had a harem
Of eighty thousand million women.
The king had daughters [F.59.a]
Who numbered a full four hundred billion. {48}
17.­78
“He took the eight poṣadha vows
On the full moon day of the Kārtika month,
And with the eighty thousand million others
He came before the Lord of the World. {49}
17.­79
“The king bowed down to the feet of the supreme human
And sat down before the Jina.
The supreme human knew the king’s aspiration
And he taught this samādhi. {50}
17.­80
“When the king had heard this samādhi
He abandoned his kingdom as if it were spittle.
He renounced his beloved family and kinsmen
And entered homelessness in that jina’s teaching. {51}
17.­81
“His five hundred sons entered homelessness,
And also his harem and his daughters,
And also his other relatives,
Numbering seventy-five quintillion. {52}
17.­82
“Having entered homelessness along with his children and wives,
He kept to the station of acquiring alms food671
And steadfastly wandered in this way for eight years.
While remaining672 in wandering his life came to an end. {53}
17.­83
“His life having ended, that preeminent king,673
Being always perfectly focused on a samādhi mind,
Was reborn into a king’s family,
Appearing miraculously, unstained by a womb. {54}
17.­84
“Dṛḍhabala was his father’s name.
And his mother’s name was Mahāmatī.
As soon as he was born, the prince asked,
‘Is the Lord of the World present? {55}
17.­85
“ ‘The Lord of the World, who knows my mind,
Taught to me the samādhi of peace. [143]
It has no causal factors, is free of causal factors,
And is the one teaching for beings in existence. {56}
17.­86
“ ‘It is the seal of the nature of all phenomena.
It is the transmission of a quintillion sūtras.
It is the unsurpassable wealth of the bodhisattvas.
Does the Jina teach this samādhi? {57}
17.­87
“ ‘It is the purity of the body, the purity of speech,
The purity of the mind, and the purity of view.
It transcends all objects of the mind.
Does the Jina teach this samādhi? {58}
17.­88
“ ‘The result of this Dharma teaching is imperishable.
It is the meditation of the supreme eightfold path.
It is the sharp wisdom of the congregation of the tathāgatas. [F.59.b]
It is entering truth and constant knowledge of the Dharma.674 {59}
17.­89
“ ‘It is understanding the skandhas, the equality of the dhātus,
And the complete elimination of the āyatanas.
It is the direct perception of birthlessness.
Does the Jina teach this samādhi? {60}
17.­90
“ ‘It is discernment, the wisdom that enters peace.675
It is the knowledge of the different categories of all letters.
It is transcending focusing upon the material.
Does the Jina teach this samādhi? {61}
17.­91
“ ‘It is the comprehension of all sounds, and the attainment of joy.
It is the enjoyment of praising the sugatas.
It is the kindness and honesty that is the way of the āryas.
Does the Jina teach this samādhi? {62}
17.­92
“ ‘It is being pleasant and never frowning.
It is being friendly and gentle with a smiling face.
It is being first to speak on seeing beings.
Does the Jina teach this samādhi? {63}
17.­93
“ ‘It is being without laziness and respecting the gurus.
It is being reverential, paying homage, and being pleasant to see.
It is being content with whatever arises, and virtuous.
Does the Jina teach this samādhi? {64}
17.­94
“ ‘It is having a pure livelihood and dwelling in solitary places.676
It is maintaining the disciplines of mendicancy with no loss of mindfulness.
It is being adept in the āyatanas and in the dhātus.
Does the Jina teach this samādhi? {65}
17.­95
“ ‘It is skill in the āyatanas, and the knowledge of the higher cognitions;
It is the elimination of the kleśas, and the level of self-subjugation.
It is the termination677 of all the multitudes of mantras.678
Does the Jina teach this samādhi? {66}
17.­96
“ ‘It transcends all the states of being in existence.
It is remembering previous lives and having no doubt in the Dharma.
It is aspiring to the Dharma and seeking to hear it.
Does the Jina teach this samādhi?679 {67}
17.­97
“ ‘It is a special attainment, being always engaged in meditation.
It is the knowledge of downfalls and remaining in emancipation.680
It is the elimination of propensities through remaining in that emancipation.
Does the Jina teach this samādhi?681 {68}
17.­98
“ ‘It is the attainment of the perfection of sharp wisdom.
It is being as unwavering and unshakable as a mountain.
It is the dhāraṇī entranceway that has the characteristic of irreversibility.
Does the Jina teach this samādhi? {69}
17.­99
“ ‘It is always longing for good qualities. [F.60.a]
It is always682 avoiding bad qualities.
It is never going to the side of the kleśas.
Does the Jina teach this samādhi? {70}
17.­100
“ ‘The one who is wise in mastering683 all training,
The one who has mastered remaining in samādhi,
The one who inspires beings through knowing their thoughts
Teaches the Dharma for the supreme enlightenment of buddhahood. {71}
17.­101
“ ‘It is unique knowledge, the knowledge of births.
It is infinite knowledge, completely perfect knowledge.
It is the knowledge of the transition between all existences.
Does the Jina teach this samādhi? {72}
17.­102
“ ‘Abandoning home, aspiring to mendicancy,
Finding no joy in the three realms, having no grasping,
And rejoicing in controlling the mind:
The supreme human teaches that Dharma. {73}
17.­103
“ ‘Having no attachment for phenomena,
Always grasping the supreme Dharma,
And having a stable aspiration for the ripening of karma:
The supreme human teaches that Dharma. {74}
17.­104
“ ‘Skill in the vinaya, knowledge of the ripening of karma,
The pacification of conflict and quarrels,
Freedom from discord, the level that is free of quarrels:
The supreme human teaches that Dharma. {75}
17.­105
“ ‘Having complete patience, never having anger,
Always having skill and certainty in the Dharma,
Distinguishing between words and having the insight of wisdom:
Having developed compassion, he teaches that Dharma. {76}
17.­106
“ ‘He has taught the knowledge of the past, knowledge of the future,
The equality of the three times in the teaching of the sugatas,
And the cessation of the three aspects of an action:
That is what the Jina, the Lord of the Dharma, teaches. {77}
17.­107
“ ‘The mind’s perfect stability and one-pointedness,
The body’s perfect stability as on the level of the āryas,
And at all times guarding the conduct of a mendicant:
That is the Dharma that the sage, the preeminent human, teaches. {78}
17.­108
“ ‘A pleasing sense of modesty and self-respect,
Speaking appropriate words, knowledge of the world,
The origination of phenomena, and the nature of beings:
He teaches that Dharma of the supreme, perfect enlightenment. {79}
17.­109
“ ‘Benefiting and having a sense of modesty,
Abhorring the wickedness of the mind, [F.60.b]
Never abandoning the mendicant’s discipline, and begging for alms:
That is the Dharma that the supreme human teaches. {80}
17.­110
“ ‘Always maintaining a sense of modesty and self-respect,
Speaking reverently to the guru and rising to greet him,
Having overcome pride from the beginning:
That is what the Jina, the Lord of the Dharma, teaches. {81}
17.­111
“ ‘That which arises from the mind is the goodness of the mind;
There is wisdom’s discrimination, and thus realization,
And the region of ignorance is always avoided:
He teaches that Dharma of supreme, perfect enlightenment. {82}
17.­112
“ ‘There is understanding of the mind, the knowledge of words,
Being established in definitions, with certainty of meanings,
And all that is meaningless684 is always avoided:
That is what the Jina, the Lord of the Dharma, teaches. {83}
17.­113
“ ‘Always associating with good persons
And always avoiding bad persons,
And always being attracted to and delighting in the Jina:
That is the supreme Dharma that the Jina teaches. {84}
17.­114
“ ‘The description of designations and appellations,685
The continual avoidance of the suffering of saṃsāra,
And indifference to whether there is gain or no gain:
That is the supreme Dharma that the Jina teaches. {85}
17.­115
“ ‘There is no amazement if honors are gained,
There is equanimity when there are no honors,
And there is never pride when there are praises:
This is nature of the teaching that benefits the world. {86}
17.­116
“ ‘All abuse and disgrace is endured,
There is no association with any householder,
And there is no mingling with homeless mendicants:686
That is what the Jina, the Lord of the Dharma, teaches. {87}
17.­117
“ ‘Remaining in the Buddha’s scope of conduct,
Rejecting all that is not that conduct,
And having perfect conduct and a well-controlled mind:
That is the way of the Dharma that the Sugata teaches. {88}
17.­118
“ ‘Always rejecting the dharma of the foolish,
Rejecting all that disgraces the family of the Buddha,
Always protecting the teaching of the Buddha:
That is what the Jina, the Lord of the Dharma, teaches. {89}
17.­119
“ ‘Speaking little, pleasantly, and articulately,
Speaking good and gentle words to others,
Subjugating adversaries through the Dharma:
That is the nature of the Jina’s teaching. {90}
17.­120
“ ‘Arriving at the right time, and not the wrong time, [F.61.a]
Never depending on any ordinary being,
Not being saddened on encountering suffering:
That is the nature of the Jina’s teaching. {91}
17.­121
“ ‘When seeing the poor, bringing them wealth;
When seeing those with bad conduct, feeling compassion;
Always teaching those things that are beneficial:
That is the nature of the Jina’s teaching. {92}
17.­122
“ ‘Benefiting beings through the Dharma,
Always giving away worldly material things,
Never accumulating, never amassing:
That is the nature of the Jina’s teaching. {93}
17.­123
“ ‘Praising correct conduct and condemning bad conduct,
Being free of dishonesty and relying on those with correct conduct,
Giving away one’s possessions and not relying on wealth:
That is the nature of the Jina’s teaching. {94}
17.­124
“ ‘Providing for the guru with a higher motivation,
Doing all that he has told one to do,
Never ceasing from serving the dharmabhāṇaka:
That is the nature of the Jina’s teaching. {95}
17.­125
“ ‘Always being respectful and delighted,
Remaining continually in a peaceful view,
Always being sure of one’s past conduct:
That is the nature of the Jina’s teaching. {96}
17.­126
“ ‘Always following those with correct conduct,
With skillful methods shunning687 concepts,
Repelling identification and the characteristics of things:
That is the nature of the Jina’s teaching. {97}
17.­127
“ ‘Being skilled in the words produced within the sūtras,
Having certainty in the words that teach the truth,
The manifestation of the wisdom of liberation:
That is the nature of the Jina’s teaching. {98}
17.­128
“ ‘Speaking words that are never contradictory,
Skillful in the certainty of what is taught,688
And using words that will not be doubted:
That is the nature of the Jina’s teaching.689 {i}
17.­129
“ ‘Always relying on the Dharma of emptiness,
Maintaining fearlessly the power of correct conduct,
And applying equality through remaining in samādhi:
That is the nature of the Jina’s teaching. {99}
17.­130
“ ‘Not wishing to attain intellectual knowledge,
Keeping the mind free from hypocrisy,
And rejecting the creation of any view:
That is the nature of the Jina’s teaching. {100} [F.61.b]
17.­131
“ ‘Supreme confidence in speech and sublime retention,
The limitless radiance of wisdom,
And correct eloquence with the power of mantra:
That is the nature of the Jina’s teaching. {101}
17.­132
“ ‘Meditation on the path through this doorway of correct conduct,690
Excellent practice, instruction, and conduct,691
And teaching that follows practicing the teaching:692
That is the nature of the Jina’s teaching. {102}
17.­133
“ ‘The appropriate patience that is praised by the buddhas,
The maintenance of patience that avoids bad actions,
And eliminating ignorance by being established in knowledge:
That is the nature of the Jina’s teaching. {103}
17.­134
“ ‘The level of yoga693 that is based upon wisdom,
The mastery of yoga through entering enlightenment,
The continual reliance on good beings:
That is the nature of the Jina’s teaching. {104}
17.­135
“ ‘It is the constant avoidance of unrestrained practitioners,694
It is the level of buddhahood taught by tathāgatas,
And it is rejoiced in by all who are wise:
That is the nature of the Jina’s teaching. {105}
17.­136
“ ‘It is rejected by the foolish and ignorant.
It is not the level695 of the numerous śrāvakas,696
And it is always obtained by the bodhisattvas:
That is the nature of the Jina’s teaching. {106}
17.­137
“ ‘It is realized697 by the tathāgatas.
It is offered to and honored by the devas.
It is rejoiced in by a hundred billion Brahmās.
Is the Jina teaching this samādhi? {107}
17.­138
“ ‘Thousands of nāgas always pay homage to it,
And so do garuḍas, yakṣas, and kinnaras.
It is the supreme enlightenment taught by the Jina.
Is the Jina teaching this samādhi? {108}
17.­139
“ ‘It is always obtained by those who are wise.
It is the perfect attainment of the best, supreme wealth.
It is the supreme nonmaterial medicine of wisdom.
Is the Jina teaching this samādhi? {109}
17.­140
“ ‘It is wisdom’s treasure of unceasing eloquence.
Ten million sūtras are contained within it.
It is accurate knowledge, the complete knowledge of the three realms.
Is the Jina teaching this samādhi? {110}
17.­141
“ ‘It is a boat that crosses to the other shore,
It is a ship that crosses a great river, [F.62.a]
And it increases fame and garlands of praises
For those to whom this samādhi of peace is taught. {111}
17.­142
“ ‘Those who teach this samādhi of peace
Are praised by all the tathāgatas,
Extolled by the chiefs among humans,
And unceasingly commended by bodhisattvas. {112}
17.­143
“ ‘It is the teaching of love to end bad actions.
It is the level of compassion’s equanimity.
It is the comfort of the greatly famed ones698
For the ones to whom this samādhi is taught. {113}
17.­144
“ ‘It is the practice of the teaching of the lion’s roar.
It originates from the supreme wisdom of buddhahood.
It is the seal of the nature of all phenomena.
This is the samādhi taught by the guides. {114}
17.­145
“ ‘It brings the attainment of omniscient wisdom,
It is the conduct of those established in enlightenment,
And it also terrifies the army of the māras.
This is the samādhi of peace taught by the Jina. {115}
17.­146
“ ‘This knowledge699 is the protection that is based in the Dharma.
It is the supreme protection in the midst of enemies.
It is the subjugation of adversaries through the Dharma:
This is the samādhi of peace taught by the Jina.700 {116}
17.­147
“ ‘This is the teaching of the level of eloquence.
It is the strengths, the liberations, and likewise the powers,
And it is the eighteen unique qualities of a buddha:
That is the practice of this samādhi, this peace. {117}
17.­148
“ ‘It is seeking the ten strengths,
It is the omen of the coming of buddha wisdom,
It is the buddhadharma taught by the supreme being,
And it is the teaching that compassionately benefits the world. {118}
17.­149
“ ‘It is possessed by the sons of the buddhas.
It is the path taught for those who seek enlightenment.
It is rejoiced in by the offspring of the sugatas
When they hear this samādhi of peace that is difficult to see. {119}
17.­150
“ ‘It is the complete wisdom of buddhahood.
It is what the wise bodhisattva seeks.
One with a pure mind, clear and unblemished,701
Practices the peace of this samādhi. {120}
17.­151
“ ‘One who has a pure body like that of the jinas,
Who has the knowledge of liberation, the vision of liberation,
And who is never afflicted by the bondage of desire,
Practices this excellent samādhi. {121} [F.62.b]
17.­152
“ ‘One who is not on the level of anger and is free of ignorance,
In whom wisdom has arisen702 and who seeks liberation,703
In whom knowledge has developed and ignorance is destroyed,
Practices the peace of this samādhi. {122}
17.­153
“ ‘This samādhi of peace is taught to the meditator
For whom liberation is central, and is fulfilled by this teaching.
The one with the sight of the faultless buddhas
Practices the peace of this samādhi. {123}
17.­154
“ ‘The clairvoyance that reveals many realms,
The miraculous powers that reveal infinite buddhas,
And dhāraṇī is also not difficult to attain
For the one who practices this samādhi. {124}
17.­155
“ ‘The senses are pacified in this state of enlightenment.
There is the revelation of infinite blessings,
And subtle, vast, and pure wisdom
For the one who practices this samādhi. {125}
17.­156
“ ‘For the one who has not heard this samādhi of peace,
Practice without self-restraint will bring no realization,
And as all the words will have been subverted,
No understanding will be possible from speech. {126}
17.­157
“ ‘This is known by wise bodhisattvas
Just as taught by the Lord of Dharma.
There is faultless realization of peace
For the one who practices this samādhi. {127}
17.­158
“ ‘For the one who practices this samādhi
With diligent application, having possession of it,
Constantly serving it, and perfectly keeping it,
There will be cessation of suffering and the end of rebirth. {128}
17.­159
“ ‘It has been taught that all phenomena are birthless,
As are all the existences of beings.
Is the Jina teaching this samādhi
Of the greatly famous, supremely wise buddhas?’ {129}
17.­160
“A full eighty-eight trillion beings
Heard these verses recited by the prince,
Attained the patience that corresponded to those words,
And were established in irreversible progress toward buddha wisdom. {130}
17.­161
“Dṛḍhabala said to the prince,
‘The Lord of the World is still present.
I have a question for you, my son:
Where did you hear of this samādhi?’ {131}
17.­162
“The prince said to the king, ‘Listen! [F.63.a]
During one eon I have seen
A quintillion buddhas, honored them all,
And asked them for this samādhi of peace. {132}
17.­163
“ ‘And for another ninety-four704 eons,
And for a thousand quintillion eons,
I remember all my births wherever they were,
And I was never born from a womb. {133}
17.­164
“ ‘Then I meditated upon this samādhi.
I listened correctly to the teaching of those jinas.
Having heard it I had longing for what had been described.
Free from uncertainty I embraced enlightenment. {134}
17.­165
“ ‘I questioned whatever bhikṣus
Had understood this samādhi.
I venerated them respectfully
As if they were benefactors of the world. {135}
17.­166
“ ‘When I received even one verse from them
I practiced that teaching properly
And considered them to be teachers,
Venerating them with the respect shown to buddhas. {136}
17.­167
“ ‘Whenever someone questioned me
About my understanding of this samādhi,
Even in dreams I had no doubts
That I would become a jina, a guide of the world. {137}
17.­168
“ ‘I respectfully attended
To senior, middle, and junior bhikṣus.
With that respect my renown increased,
As did my merit, fame, and qualities.705 {138}
17.­169
“ ‘I had no desire for conflict or quarrels.
At that time, I had few desires.
Those who do bad actions are reborn in certain existences.
Those who do good actions are reborn in other existences. {139}
17.­170
“ ‘One hears unpleasant words from those
Who, without restraint, act inappropriately.
At that time I became the lord of my own actions.
The karma that is created is never lost. {140}
17.­171
“ ‘I did not at that time become absorbed in anger.
I maintained the power of patience, which is praised by the buddhas.
The guides have always praised patience;
Attaining enlightenment is not difficult for those who practice patience. {141}
17.­172
“ ‘I continually had correct conduct
And established others in correct conduct.
I always spoke the praises of correct conduct, [F.63.b]
And what I spoke at that time was praiseworthy. {142}
17.­173
“ ‘I was always speaking the praises of solitude.
I always maintained correct conduct.
I established others in the poṣadha vows
And I introduced them to enlightenment. {143}
17.­174
“ ‘I established them in celibacy,
I introduced them to the meaning of the Dharma,
And I awoke them to the path to enlightenment,
For which they had endless devotion.706 {144}
17.­175
“ ‘I remember an eon in the past
When there was the jina Svarāṅgaghoṣa.707
I took a vow in his presence
To have the power of patience at all times. {145}
17.­176
“ ‘I remained faithful to that vow
For eight hundred and forty million years.
Although Māra reviled and abused me,
My mind remained unshakable. {146}
17.­177
“ ‘Māra put me to the test,
And discovered my love and patience to be enduring.
And with faith708 he bowed down to my feet,
And I established five hundred beings on the path to supreme enlightenment. {147}
17.­178
“ ‘At all times I was free of avarice
And always praised generosity.
I became wealthy, possessing many riches
And was a benefactor in times of famine. {148}
17.­179
“ ‘I pay homage to any monks
Who possess this samādhi,
Who recite it and teach it.
They all become supreme men. {149}
17.­180
“ ‘Because of that unsurpassable karma
I saw many buddhas, many lords of the world.
I entered into homelessness in the teachings of those jinas
And I always became a wise dharmabhāṇaka. {150}
17.­181
“ ‘I was always engaged in the discipline of a mendicant.
I always remained in the solitude of forests.
I never gave the appearance of spirituality in order to obtain food.
I was content with whatever I obtained. {151}
17.­182
“ ‘At all times I was free of envy.
I had no attachment to a family.
Attachment to family causes envy.
Without envy I remained in the pleasant forests. {152}
17.­183
“ ‘At all times I had loving-kindness. [F.64.a]
When I was abused I did not become angry.
As I was always kind, the garland of fame
Of my compassion spread in the four directions. {153}
17.­184
“ ‘I was always content, with few desires.
I was dedicated to mendicancy in solitary places.
I never abandoned begging for alms.
I remained unwaveringly committed to mendicancy. {154}
17.­185
“ ‘I always had faith and belief.
I always had great belief in the Buddha’s teaching.
I obtained many benefits from having belief.
I became attractive with faultless faculties. {155}
17.­186
“ ‘I practiced whatever I taught.
I always valued practice above all else.
As I valued practice above all else,
Devas and nāgas believed in me and honored me. {156}
17.­187
“ ‘There are also numerous other qualities,
Other than these that I have described.
They should always be trained in by the wise ones
Who wish for the enlightenment of buddhahood. {157}
17.­188
“ ‘I remember the greatest number of hardships
That I practiced through numerous eons,709
So numerous710 I am unable to describe them.711
I will now go712 into the presence of the Sugata.’ {158}
17.­189
“That wise bodhisattva with sharp wisdom
At that moment attained the five higher cognitions.
Through miraculous power he came before the Jina,
Accompanied by eight hundred million beings. {159}
17.­190
“Dṛḍhabala was extremely pleased,
And, accompanied by one billion six hundred million beings,
He came into the presence of the Buddha,
Bowed down to his feet, and sat before him. {160}
17.­191
“Knowing the aspiration of that king,
The Lord of humans taught this samādhi.
When the king had heard that samādhi
He renounced his kingdom and entered homelessness. {161}
17.­192
“Homeless, he meditated on this samādhi,
And he recited it and taught it.
After sixty eons had passed
He became a jina named Padmottara. {162}
17.­193
“The one billion six hundred million beings
Who had come with the king into the presence of the Jina
Also heard this samādhi, [F.64.b]
And with the highest joy they entered homelessness. {163}
17.­194
“Homeless, they possessed this samādhi,
And recited it and taught it.
After six trillion eons had passed
They all reached supreme enlightenment in the same eon. {164}
17.­195
“They all had the name Ananta­jñānanottara.
They were buddhas to whom devas and humans made offerings.
Each of those supreme humans liberated as many beings
As there are grains of sand in the Ganges. {165}
17.­196
“I was King Śirībala.713
The practitioners of this supreme bodhisattva conduct,
Those who were my five hundred sons,
Are these guardians of the Dharma. {166}
17.­197
“The one who was my mother
Was Māyādevī714 in this time.
My four hundred billion daughters
All entered nirvāṇa.715 {166b}
17.­198
“The king who was named Dṛḍhabala,
The powerful cakravartin with many treasures,
Became King Śuddhodana716 in this age,
And has been my father in various lifetimes.717 {166c}
17.­199
“Thus have I for ten billion eons
Exercised diligence that is free of laziness.
The pure yearning for this samādhi
Brings the accomplishment of supreme enlightenment. {167}
17.­200
“Therefore, young man, those bodhisattvas
Who wish to meditate718 on this samādhi
Should exercise diligence, regardless of risks to their lives,
And always follow, young man, my example.” {168}
17.­201

Conclusion of the seventeenth chapter, “The Entranceway to the Samādhi That Is Taught by Many Buddhas.”719


18.
Chapter 18

The Entrustment of the Samādhi

18.­1

The Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha, “Young man, in that way know that there are four beneficial qualities possessed by bodhisattva mahāsattvas who obtain this samādhi, understand it, preserve it, recite it to others, promote it, proclaim it, chant it, and make it widely known to others.

18.­2

“What are those four beneficial qualities? They will be unsurpassable in merit, they will be undefeatable by opponents, they will have unlimited wisdom, and they will have unending confidence of speech.


19.
Chapter 19

The Teaching of the Inconceivable Dharma of the Buddha

19.­1

The Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha, “Young man, in that way bodhisattva mahāsattvas, having heard the inconceivable and measureless benefits of the qualities that come from the samādhi, the revealed equality of the nature of all phenomena, through wishing not to be fearful, wishing not to be terrified, and not to be gripped by terror, will become learned in the teaching of the inconceivable Dharma of the Buddha. Aspire to the inconceivable Dharma of the Buddha. Be wise in asking questions about the inconceivable Dharma of the Buddha. Be wise in seeking the inconceivable Dharma of the Buddha. Do not be fearful, do not be terrified, and do not be gripped by terror on hearing the inconceivable Dharma of the Buddha.” [F.67.b]


20.
Chapter 20

Indra­ketu­dhvaja­rāja

20.­1

Then the Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha, “Young man, in that way bodhisattva mahāsattvas who wish for this Dharma teaching of entering great compassion and wish to attain the highest, complete enlightenment of perfect buddhahood quickly should rely upon all roots of merit, training, qualities, and completely pure conduct.

20.­2

“Bodhisattva mahāsattvas who have few involvements, avoid bad companions, rely on kalyāṇamitras, have an inquiring nature, unrelentingly seek the Dharma, have the Dharma as their goal, desire the Dharma, delight in the Dharma, obtain the Dharma, and practice the Dharma in accord with the Dharma will, young man, develop great compassion for beings and will develop the aspiration for the highest, complete enlightenment.


21.
Chapter 21

The Past

21.­1

Then the Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha, “Therefore, young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas should entertain no misgivings about all the teachings on the root of merits, the training, and the qualities.759 They should have few involvements, avoid bad companions, rely on kalyāṇamitras, have an inquiring nature, unrelentingly seek the Dharma, have the Dharma as their goal, desire the Dharma, delight in the Dharma, obtain the Dharma, and practice the Dharma in accord with the Dharma. They should perceive every buddha and bodhisattva as the teacher. They should with joy and veneration perceive as the teacher the person from whom they hear this Dharma teaching.


22.
Chapter 22

The Teaching on the Body

22.­1

Then the Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha, “Therefore, young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas who wish for this samādhi, and wish to attain quickly the highest, complete enlightenment of perfect buddhahood, should have no attachment to their life or body. Why is that? Because, young man, beings accomplish bad actions due to attachment to their lives and bodies.783


23.
Chapter 23

The Teaching on the Tathāgata’s Body

23.­1

Then the Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha, “Therefore, young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas who wish for this samādhi, and wish to attain quickly the highest, complete enlightenment of perfect buddhahood, should not know the Tathāgata to be the rūpakāya.785 Why is that? It is because the Buddha Bhagavān manifests because of the dharmakāya and does not manifest because of the rūpakāya. [F.74.a]


24.
Chapter 24

The Inconceivable Tathāgata

24.­1

Then the Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha, [F.76.b] “Young man, aspiring bodhisattva mahāsattvas think, ‘How can I make manifest the four discernments? What are these four? They are the discernment of meaning, the discernment of phenomena, the discernment of definitions, and the discernment of eloquence. I shall manifest these four!’ On having this thought, young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas should obtain this samādhi, understand it, preserve it, recite it to others, promote it, proclaim it, chant it, meditate on it with unadulterated meditation, and make it widely known to others.


25.
Chapter 25

Engaging in Discernment

25.­1

“Young man, how do bodhisattva mahāsattvas who practice that discernment of phenomena, who view phenomena as phenomena, attain the highest, complete enlightenment?

“Young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas who practice that discernment of phenomena, who view phenomena as phenomena, do not perceive enlightenment as other than form. They do not approach enlightenment as other than form. They do not seek enlightenment as other than form. They do not attain enlightenment as other than form. They do not inspire beings to an enlightenment that is other than form. They do not see a tathāgata as other than form. They see a tathāgata in this way: ‘The Tathāgata is the fearlessness that is the nature of form.’ They do not see the tathāgata as other than form, as other than the nature of form. They do not see the nature of form as other than the tathāgata. The nature of that which is called form and that of the tathāgata are nondual. The bodhisattva mahāsattvas who see in that way are engaging in the discernment of phenomena.


26.
Chapter 26

Rejoicing

26.­1

Then the Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha, “Therefore, young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas who wish for this samādhi, and wish to attain quickly the highest, complete enlightenment of perfect buddhahood, should be skillful in methods. [F.87.a]882

26.­2

“Young man, in what way should bodhisattva mahāsattvas be skillful in methods? For that, young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas focus their minds upon all beings. Those bodhisattva mahāsattvas rejoice in whatever roots of merit and accumulations of merit all beings have. Three times every day and three times every night they rejoice in whatever roots of merit and accumulations of merit all beings have, and the roots of merit and accumulation of merit that come from their taking omniscience as the focus of their aspiration they donate to all beings.


27.
Chapter 27

The Benefits of Generosity

27.­1

Then the Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha, “Young man, as it has been said, ‘Be careful,’ you, young man, should consequently train in that way. Why is that? Because, young man, for bodhisattva mahāsattvas who are careful, the highest, complete enlightenment is not difficult to attain, let alone this samādhi.

27.­2

“Young man, in what way should bodhisattva mahāsattvas be careful? For that, young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas should have perfectly pure conduct. Young man, in what way should bodhisattva mahāsattvas have perfectly pure conduct? For that, young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas who have perfectly pure conduct, never separating from an all-knowing mind, should practice the six perfections. Listen, for I shall teach you their benefits.


28.
Chapter 28

The Teaching on Correct Conduct

28.­1

“Young man, there are ten benefits for bodhisattva mahāsattvas from perfectly pure, correct conduct. What are the ten benefits? They are: [1] they devote890 themselves to wisdom and perfect it; [2] they follow the example of the buddhas; [3] they do not criticize the wise; [4] they do not waver from their vows; [5] they maintain their practice; [6] they turn away891 from saṃsāra; [7] they are led to attain nirvāṇa;892 [8] they live without faults arising; [F.89.a] [9] they attain samādhi; and [10] they will never be poor.893


29.
Chapter 29

Ten Benefits

29.­1

“Young man, there are ten benefits for bodhisattva mahāsattvas from maintaining patience and being kind. [F.89.b] What are these ten? They are: [1] they are not burned by fire; [2] they are not slain by weapons; [3] they are not affected by poison; [4] they do not drown in water; [5] the devas protect them; [6] they attain a body adorned by the primary signs of a great being; [7] all the doorways to their rebirth in lower existences are closed; [8] it is not difficult for them to be reborn in the paradise of Brahmā; [9] they are happy day and night; and [10] their physical sensations of comfort and pleasure are never lost.


30.
Chapter 30

Tejaguṇarāja

30.­1

Then the Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha, “Therefore, young man, you should train in this way, thinking, ‘I will abandon even the pleasures of the kingship of a divine cakravartin and enter homelessness.’

30.­2

“Young man, having entered homelessness you should maintain the disciplines of mendicancy, live in solitude, and develop perfect mildness and patience.


31.
Chapter 31

Benefits

31.­1

Then the Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha, “Therefore, young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas who think, ‘I shall understand the languages of all beings and, knowing their higher or lesser capabilities, I will teach them the Dharma,’ those bodhisattva mahāsattvas should listen to the samādhi, the revealed equality of the nature of all phenomena, learn it, understand it, keep it, recite it to others, promote it, proclaim it, chant it, meditate on it with unadulterated meditation, promulgate it, and make it widely known to others.”


32.
Chapter 32

The Teaching on the Nature of All Phenomena

32.­1

Then the Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha, “Therefore, young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas who wonder, ‘How can I know the nature of all phenomena?’ should listen to this samādhi, the revealed equality of the nature of all phenomena, learn it, understand it, keep it, recite it to others, promote it, proclaim it, chant it, meditate on it with unadulterated meditation, promulgate it, and make it widely known to others.”


33.
Chapter 33

The Benefits of Possessing the Sūtra

33.­1

Then the Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha, “Therefore, young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas who wish to train in purifying1056 the great higher cognition of all phenomena should listen to the samādhi, the revealed equality of the nature of all phenomena, learn it, understand it, keep it, recite it to others, promote it, proclaim it, chant it, meditate on it with unadulterated meditation, promulgate it, and make it widely known to others.1057


34.
Chapter 34

Kṣemadatta

34.­1

Then the Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha,1161 “Young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas who wish for this samādhi, and wish to attain quickly the highest, complete enlightenment of perfect buddhahood, should abide in the absence of attributes and be dedicated to making vast offerings to a present tathāgata or to the stūpa of a tathāgata who has passed into nirvāṇa.


35.
Chapter 35

Jñānāvatī

35.­1

Then the Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha, “Young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas who wish for this samādhi, and wish to attain quickly the highest, complete enlightenment of perfect buddhahood, should plant roots of merit and apply themselves to practicing generosity through the Dharma or generosity through material things.

35.­2

“Those bodhisattva mahāsattvas should dedicate that generosity through four prayers of dedication.


36.
Chapter 36

Supuṣpacandra

36.­1

Then at that time Brother Ānanda rose from his seat, [F.125.b] removed his robe from one shoulder, and, kneeling on his right knee, with palms placed together he bowed toward the Bhagavān and made this request: “If the Bhagavān will give me an opportunity to seek answers to them, I have a few questions for the Bhagavān, the tathāgata, the arhat, the perfectly enlightened Buddha.”

36.­2

The Bhagavān addressed Brother Ānanda, saying, “That is why, Ānanda, I am seated upon this seat. Ask whatever question you wish to the Tathāgata, the arhat, the perfectly enlightened Buddha, and I shall gratify you with answers to each and every question you have asked.”


37.
Chapter 37

Teaching the Aggregate of Correct Conduct

37.­1

Then the Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha, “Therefore, young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas who wish to attain quickly the highest, complete enlightenment of perfect buddhahood should hear the samādhi, the revealed equality of the nature of all phenomena, should obtain it, study it, keep it, recite it, disseminate it, transmit it, chant it, meditate on it with unadulterated meditation, and in other ways make it widely known. They should also maintain the aggregate of correct conduct.”


38.
Chapter 38

Yaśaḥprabha

38.­1

Then the Bhagavān said to the youth Candraprabha, “Therefore, young man, bodhisattva mahāsattvas who wish for these and countless other wonderful1337 and marvelous bodhisattva qualities, and wish to attain quickly the highest, complete enlightenment of perfect buddhahood, should hear this revealed equality of the nature of all phenomena samādhi and obtain it, understand it, preserve it, recite it to others, promote it, proclaim it, chant it, meditate on it with unadulterated meditation, promulgate it,1338 and make it widely known to others. [F.146.a]


39.
Chapter 39

Restraint of the Body, Speech, and Mind

39.­1

Then the Bhagavān [F.151.a] said to the youth Candraprabha, “Therefore, young man, you should train by thinking, ‘I shall have self-control through physical restraint.’

39.­2

“Young man, what is meant by physical restraint? That which is called ‘physical restraint’ is the physical restraint through which bodhisattva mahāsattvas are free of attachment to all phenomena.


40.
Chapter 40

[Untitled]

40.­1

“Young man, what is purity of action? Seeing the three existences as being like a dream and becoming free of desire. Young man, that is purity of action.

40.­2

“Young man, what is the transcendence of the mind’s fixation on perceptions? It is knowing that the skandhas, dhātus, and āyatanas are like illusions, and renouncing them. That is the transcendence of the mind’s fixation on perceptions.


c.

Colophon

c.­1

The Indian preceptor Śrīlendrabodhi, and the chief editor Lotsawa Bandé Dharmatāśīla, translated and revised this work. It was later modified and finalized in terms of the new translation.


ab.

Abbreviations

BHS Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit.
Chinese Sixth century Chinese translation by Narendrayaśas (see introduction, i.­7).
Commentary Mañjuśrīkīrti (see bibliography).
Gilgit Sixth to seventh century Sanskrit manuscript (see introduction i.­9 and bibliography under Dutt).
Hodgson Later Nepalese Sanskrit manuscript (see introduction i.­9 and bibliography under Dutt).
Matsunami Matsunami’s Sanskrit edition (see bibliography).
Shastri Later Nepalese Sanskrit manuscript (see introduction i.­9 and bibliography under Dutt).
Vaidya Vaidya’s Sanskrit edition (see bibliography).

n.

Notes

n.­1
According to the BHS vipañcita. The Tibetan translates as rnam par spros pa.
n.­2
See Dharmachakra Translation Committee, trans., The Teaching on the Effulgence of Light, Toh 55 (84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2022).
n.­3
Toh 129, see bibliography.
n.­4
Brian Houghton Hodgson (1801–1894) was a linguist, ethnologist, naturalist, and diplomat who lived in Nepal from 1824 to 1844, becoming British Resident; among his many other activities, he studied and collected Sanskrit Buddhist texts. Haraprasad Shastri (1853–1931) was an Indian Sanskrit scholar and historian who visited Nepal several times, also collecting and publishing manuscripts. Both scholars were associated with the Asiatic Society in Kolkata. The Sanskrit edition of the sūtra published by Dutt (as one of a series centered on the Gilgit manuscripts; see bibliography) is not only based on the Gilgit manuscript, but also represents the Hodgson and Shastri manuscripts, which Dutt refers to, respectively, as manuscripts A and B.
n.­5
Vibhuticandra; dpal bde mchog gi dkyil ’khor kyi cho ga; Śrī-samvara-maṇḍala-vidhi. Toh 1511, Degé Tengyur, Vol. 22, (rgyud, zha), 322b. 308b–334a.
n.­6
The Yogacāra tradition of Asaṅga and his followers has philosophical viewpoints quite distinct from those of the Mādhyamika tradition, of which Candrakīrti was perhaps the most uncompromising proponent.
n.­7
The Tibetan of the quote is: nga ’das lo ni nyis stong na / gdong dmar yul du bstan pa ’byung / spyan ras gzigs kyi gdul byar ’gyur / de yi bstan pa’i snyigs ma la / byang chub sems dpa’ seng ge’i sgra / karma pa zhes ba ba ’byung / ting ’dzin dbang thob ’gro ba ’dul / mthong thos dran regs bde la bkod (Rinchen Palzang, p. 650).
n.­8
This line of homage, as is customary for Kangyur texts, was added by the Tibetan translators, and therefore does not appear in the Sanskrit or Chinese. The Gilgit Sanskrit manuscript has 12 initial verses, Hodgson 14 verses, and Shastri 43 verses, none of which are in the Tibetan.
n.­9
This number depends on whether niyuta is taken to mean “one million,” as in Classical Sanskrit, or “a hundred thousand million,” as is found in BHS. The Tibetan has chosen the latter meaning, translating it as khrag khrig. Therefore the resulting number in Tibetan is “ten million [times] a hundred thousand million times eighty,” i.e., eighty million million million (eighty quintillion in the American or short scale system) (bye ba khrag khrig phrag brgyad bcu, apparently translating koṭiniyutena aśityā). The translation of the commentary by Mañjuśrīkīrti, however, has khrag khrig phrag brgyad bcu: “a hundred thousand million times eighty,” which would be eight million million, i.e., eight trillion. The Vaidya Sanskrit edition has niyuta­śata­sahasrena aśītyā which would be literally “a hundred thousand million [times] a hundred [times] a thousand times eighty,” which comes to eight hundred thousand million million, i.e., eight hundred thousand trillion. However if niyuta is taken as only one million, this would be eight million million, i.e., eight trillion, which would agree with the resulting number in Mañjuśrīkīrti’s commentary. The Dutt edition of the Gilgit manuscript has aśityā ca bodhisattva-niyutaiḥ and accordingly the translation of Gómez et al. is “eighty million,” where niyuta has presumably been given the value of one million. The Chinese simply transliterates as na-yo-ta. The Chinese tradition gives numerous, widely differing explanations of what this number means.
n.­10
In the Chinese the description of the bodhisattvas and the list of names do not appear. The Chinese continues at this point with Ajita.
n.­11
According to the BHS abhi­jñābhijñātair. The Tibetan, translating both abhijña and abhijñāta as mngon par shes pa, has mngon par shes pas mngon par shes pa. However, the translation of the commentary has a preferable translation of the second abhijñāta: rab tu grags pa.
n.­12
According to the BHS gatiṃgata. The Tibetan translates as rtogs par khong du chud pa.
n.­13
According to the commentary these are not only the dhāraṇī in recited form, but comprise the four kinds of retention (dhāraṇī): the recited dhāraṇī sentences and phrases themselves, the retention of the memory of the words of all teachings given, the retention of the memory of the meaning of these teachings, and the retention of the realization gained through meditation on that meaning.
n.­14
According to the Tibetan, though the Sanskrit compound could also be interpreted to mean “who had praised, extolled, and lauded all the buddhas.”
n.­15
According to the Tibetan and the commentary. The Sanskrit could also be interpreted, as in Gómez et al., as “knowing all the terrors [that come from] the māras.”
n.­16
According to the commentary, this means “adorned by the ten good actions: three of body, four of speech, and three of mind,” or, among the primary and secondary signs of a great being: “the voice of Brahmā, and the mind’s realization of the nature of beings so that they may be guided.”
n.­17
According to most Kangyurs, the commentary, and the Sanskrit. The Degé has kyi instead of kyis.
n.­18
According to the commentary, this means the bodhisattvas are on the tenth bhūmi, as taught in the Sūtra of the Ten Bhūmis. The ten-bhūmi system does not appear in the Gilgit version or the Chinese but does in the later Sanskrit versions and the Tibetan.
n.­19
According to the Sanskrit. Absent from the Tibetan.
n.­20
According to the Tibetan lhun po’i rtse mo ’dzin and Matsunami. Vaidya: Meruśikhariṁdhara. Dutt: Meruśikharindhara.
n.­21
According to the Tibetan lhun po’i rgyal po and Matsunami. Dutt: Merugāja. Does not appear in Hodgson.
n.­22
According to the Tibetan and Matsunami. Dutt: Meruśikhare saṁghaṭṭanarājena. Hodgson: Meruśikhare saṃghaḍanagajena. Shastri: Meruśikhare saṃghaṭanagajena.
n.­23
According to the Sanskrit. Absent in the Tibetan.
n.­24
According to the Sanskrit. Absent in the Tibetan.
n.­25
According to the Tibetan (nyi ma me’i ’od ’phro can) and the Hodgson. The Tibetan takes daśaśataraśmi, “a hundred thousand rays,” as an epithet of the sun and translates it simply as nyi ma (“sun”). Gilgit and Shastri: Daśaśataraśmikṛtārci with huta (“fire,” equivalent to the Tibetan me) replaced by kṛta (“made,” “created”).
n.­26
According to the Tibetan and Hodgson. Vaidya: Satatam­abhayaṁdadāna. Dutt has both versions.
n.­27
Another name for Maitreya, the bodhisattva who will be the fifth buddha of the Good Eon.
n.­28
According to the Sanskrit anupamacitta. The Tibetan has dpe med sems dpa’, whereas one would expect dpe med sems pa. The Sūtra of the Samādhi of the Seal of the Wisdom of the Tathāgatas (see bibliography) refers to this group as sems dpa’ dpe med pa, naming two of them: Pramodyarāja (mchog tu dga’ ba’i rgyal po) and Mañjuśrī (Degé Kangyur, vol. 55, F.248.a). The Sūtra of Possessing the Roots of Goodness (see bibliography) refers to byang chub sems dpa’ dpe med pa sems pa (“bodhisattvas with incomparable minds”), with Bhadrapāla being the one that is named (Degé Kangyur, vol. 48, F.48.a). Bhadrapāla is also listed as one of a group of five hundred bodhisattvas in that sūtra (F.22.b).
n.­29
This is referencing a group of beings that is listed in the White Lotus of the Good Dharma Sūtra (Degé Kangyur, vol. 67, 2.b). In that sūtra Bhadrapāla is also listed as one of a group of fifty bodhisattvas (F.142.b).
n.­30
A bodhisattva who appears prominently in certain sūtras, such as The Samādhi of the Presence of the Buddhas, and perhaps also the merchant of that name who is the principal interlocutor in the Sūtra of the Questions of Bhadrapāla the Merchant (see bibliography).
n.­31
This refers to the standard list of god realms beginning with the lowest, that of the Four Mahārājas.
n.­32
According to the Sanskrit udārodārair, which repeats udāra. The Tibetan translates as “vast and illustrious.”
n.­33
According to the Sanskrit, which uses repetition to state that each one of them has that quality, maheśākhya­maheśākhyair. The Tibetan translates as “very powerful and renowned to be very powerful.”
n.­172
Literally, “ten million times a hundred thousand times a hundred thousand million.”
n.­173
According to the Sanskrit vihāra. Tibetan: gtsug lag khang. These are equivalents in the Mahāvyutpatti, but gtsug lag khang can also mean “temple” in Tibetan.
n.­197
From the Sanskrit udgrahītavya. Tibetan: gzung.
n.­198
From the BHS paryavāptavya. Tibetan: kun chub pa.
n.­199
From the Sanskrit dhārayitavya. Tibetan: bcang.
n.­200
From the Sanskrit vācayitavya. Tibetan: klog.
n.­201
From the Sanskrit pravartayitavya. Tibetan: rab tu gdon pa.
n.­202
From the Sanskrit uddeṣṭavya. Tibetan: lung mnod par bya.
n.­203
From the Sanskrit svādhyātavya. Tibetan: kha ton du bya.
n.­204
From the Sanskrit araṇa, which also means “passionless, sinless, without impurity.” This is regularly translated into Tibetan as nyon mongs, which is also used to translate kleśa. Gómez et al. have interpreted it as “being in solitude,” presumably from an edition with araṇya (“solitude”).
n.­205
From the Sanskrit bahulīkartavya. Tibetan: mang du bya.
n.­206
From the Sanskrit parebhyaśca vistarena saṃprakāśayitavya. Tibetan: gshan dag la yang rgya cher rab tu bstan par bya. This entire list is simplified in the Chinese to three elements: “should recite, uphold / retain, and explain it to others widely.”
n.­300
Not in the Gilgit or Chinese.
n.­531
From the Sanskrit prabhāvyate. The Tibetan appears to have translated from a manuscript with something like pravbhidyate or prabhedyate (“divide,” “categorize”).
n.­532
According to the Sanskrit, the commentary, and the Chinese. The Tibetan translates as “the nature of the mind is without form,” presumably translating from svabhāvam arūpyam as a corruption of niḥsvabhāvam arūpyam.
n.­533
The Chinese adds “and cannot be seen.”
n.­547
The Sanskrit manasikāra and the Tibetan yid la byed pa can mean, according to context, “fixed attention,” “concentration,” “focused reflection,” etc. The commentary states that the samādhi being devoid of such factors is in relation to mind and thoughts, subject and object, action and object, and so on. The negative of the term (amanasikāra, yid la mi byed pa) was later adapted into the mahāmudrā tradition.
n.­548
The BHS term raṇā is synonymous with kleśa, and both are translated into Tibetan as nyon mongs.
n.­569
Chinese: “Then the youth Candraprabha said these words to the Bhagavān.”
n.­613
The Chinese has 47 consecutive verses: the first 16 verses are in chapter 15 of the Tibetan-Sanskrit version and the remaining 31 verses are in chapter 16.
n.­637
This entire opening section about Maitreya and his miraculous activities does not appear in the Gilgit manuscript and therefore not in the Vaidya either. The Tibetan follows the version in the Hodgson manuscript.
n.­638
According to the Sanskrit, where tathāgata is clearly in the vocative and the verb “to go” is in the first-person singular.
n.­639
According to the Tibetan. Sanskrit: “Lamp of the three worlds.”
n.­640
There is a play on words here as “conquered the māras” is jitamārā, and Maitreya’s alternative name is “Ajita.”
n.­641
The first part of this chapter up to this point does not appear in the Gilgit or the Chinese.
n.­642
This sentence does not appear in the Gilgit or the Chinese.
n.­643
“Through the gateway of peace” does not appear in the Gilgit or the Chinese.
n.­644
“Kneeling on his right knee, with palms placed together, bowed toward the Bhagavān” does not appear in Gilgit or the Chinese.
n.­645
The Chinese gives the full name of the samādhi.
n.­646
The Chinese gives the full name of the samādhi.
n.­647
The Sanskrit has an additional quality at this point: “wish to leave them.”
n.­648
The Sanskrit has an additional quality at this point: “have no endurance for them.”
n.­649
Chinese: 深怖三界起驚畏心 (shen bu san jie qi jing wei xin), “they are deeply terrified of the three realms and develop a fearful mind”; 厭離三界起不染心 (yan li san jie qi bu ran xin), “they are determined to leave the three realms and develop the aspiration to be free from defilements”; 不著三界起逼惱心 (bu zhuo san jie qi bi nao xin), “they are not attached to the three realms and develop the aspiration to overcome suffering.”
n.­650
The Chinese omits part of these two sentences, apparently in error, resulting in: “If they accomplish this, they will attain this samādhi” and gives the full name of the samādhi.
n.­651
According to the Tibetan and Sanskrit. Chinese: “are widely learned.”
n.­652
According to the Tibetan. In the Sanskrit and Chinese this is phrased as a question.
n.­653
According to the Tibetan. The Sanskrit has “proved,” “tried.” The Chinese has “trained in.”
n.­654
According to the Sanskrit (Hodgson and Shastri manuscripts). Absent in the Tibetan.
n.­655
According to the Tibetan and all Sanskrit. This paragraph does not appear in the Chinese.
n.­656
According to the Sanskrit and Tibetan. The Chinese has one yi 一憶 (yi yi), which can mean 100,000, one million, or ten million in various Buddhist scriptures.
n.­657
According to the Sanskrit and most Kangyurs. The Degé has mi in error for me.
n.­658
According to the Tibetan bye ba. The Sanskrit has ṣaḍvarṣakoṭyaḥ: “sixty times ten million,” i.e., six hundred million.
n.­659
According to the Tibetan nyin zhag. The Sanskrit has rātrimdivā (“day and night”).
n.­660
According to the Tibetan. The Sanskrit has “thirty thousand years.”
n.­661
The Chinese lists twelve buddhas in twelve verses up to this point.
n.­662
According to the Tibetan. The Nepalese manuscripts appear to divide this into two names, and the Gilgit certainly does: brahmā ca devas tathā.
n.­663
According to the Tibetan. Sanskrit: Svara­brahma­datta.
n.­664
According to the Sanskrit. The Tibetan has Brahmaghoṣa (tshangs pa’i dbyangs).
n.­665
According to the Tibetan. The Sanskrit appears to be two names.
n.­666
Much of this verse repeats the names from the preceding verse, and there may have been a corruption. It is possible that they were meant to be variations of the same compounds but with a group beginning with Dānta, followed by a group beginning with Śānta. This would give: “Dāntottara, Dānta, Sudāntacitta, / Sudānta, Dāntendriya, Dāntamānasa, / Dāntottara, Dāntaśirin, Pradānta, / Dāntīyapāraṃgata and Dāntaśūra, [23] Śantottara, Śānta, Suśāntacitta, / Suśānta, Śāntendriya, Śāntamānasa, / Śāntottara, Śānta­śriya­jvalanta, / Śāntapraśānteśvara, Śāntiśūra. [24]”
n.­667
According to the Sanskrit. The Tibetan here translates parivarta as le’u (“chapter”) and omits nirhāra. This paragraph is absent in the Chinese.
n.­668
According to the Sanskrit viśārada. Tibetan: “very great fame” (grags pa shin tu che). Absent from the Chinese.
n.­669
The last line of this verse is in the next verse in the Chinese version.
n.­670
According to the Tibetan and Chinese. Sanskrit: “forsaken the world in all their words.”
n.­671
According to the Sanskrit. The Tibetan has, literally, “He renounced the earth for accomplishing food,” which differs from all Sanskrit versions. In the Tibetan rendering, nirhāra is translated as sgrub pa (“accomplish”), though its other meanings are “to extract, remove, take, acquire, accumulate, or store,” which seems more appropriate here for food; and sthapetva (“established in”) as bor ba (“renounce”). The Chinese has “remained in peace and practiced great diligence.”
n.­672
According to the BHS vasthitu. The Tibetan apparently translates as “being upright, standing” (’greng).
n.­673
Literally, “elephant-king.”
n.­674
The order of this and the previous verse is reversed in the Chinese.
n.­675
According to the Sanskrit śānti. The Tibetan has bzhi (“four”) in error for zhi (“peace”).
n.­676
The Chinese has an additional line: 於諸白法常無厭 (yu zhu bai fa chang wu yan), “never tired of engaging in virtuous actions [white dharmas].”
n.­677
The Tibetan ’chad could mean “to teach” or “to explain,” as well as “to cut through, destroy.” The latter meaning is supported by the Sanskrit uccheda and the Chinese 斷 (duan).
n.­678
Chinese: “termination of the speech (or views) of ordinary people.”
n.­679
The Chinese has an additional verse at this point concerning not violating precepts and not having attachment to families.
n.­680
According to the BHS niḥsṛti. The Tibetan translates as ’byung ba.
n.­681
This verse does not appear in the Chinese.
n.­682
According to the Sanskrit sadā. The Tibetan and Chinese use synonyms for the first and second line: the Tibetan has rtag tu and khor mo; Chinese: 常 (chang) and 恆 (heng). The third line also uses sadā but with a negative in Tibetan. The Chinese is a simple negative without the meaning “never.”
n.­683
According to the BHS gatiṃgata.
n.­684
According to the Sanskrit anartha, translated into Tibetan as gnod pa (“harm”), interpreting it to mean “non-beneficial.” The Chinese also translates as “non-beneficial.” Its other meaning has been translated here, as it appears to be more appropriate to the context.
n.­685
According to the Sanskrit. The Tibetan lists three separate elements.
n.­686
According to the Tibetan and Chinese. The Sanskrit appears to have no negative: “there is mingling with…”
n.­687
The online Vaidya has vajane in error for varjane.
n.­688
Darśī is translated into Tibetan as “seen.” The Chinese translation focuses on how the certainty is arrived at: 心境相稱詞決定 (xin jing xiang chen ci jue ding).
n.­689
This verse is absent in the Gilgit and Hodgson, but present in the Tibetan and Shastri.
n.­690
According to the Sanskrit śīla. The Tibetan has only tshul instead of tshul khrims.
n.­691
According to the Sanskrit and Tibetan. The Chinese lists all four qualities as doorways that are entered.
n.­692
According to the Sanskrit. The Tibetan makes the second and third lines into a single sentence.
n.­693
The Chinese here translates yoga as “method.”
n.­694
Sanskrit: ayuktayogin. Translated into Tibetan as mi rigs brtson pa.
n.­695
The online Vaidya has abhūbhi in error for abhūmi.
n.­696
In Chinese the order of the first two lines is reversed, and it begins, “the level of buddhahood is vast but not the level of the two [other] yānas.”
n.­697
According to the Sanskrit anubuddha and the Chinese. The Tibetan translates as rjes su ’brang (“followed”) instead of the expected khong du chud pa, or the like.
n.­698
According to the Tibetan grags pa chen po, which appears to have translated mahāyaśānām, although all Sanskrit versions have mahāśayānām (“those with great aspiration”). The Chinese translates as “those of the Mahāyāna.”
n.­699
The Tibetan adds “mantra” to make it vidyāmantra. The Chinese uses the unusual term 作明術 (zuo ming shu), literally meaning “techniques of clarifying,” which can be understood as “knowledge.”
n.­700
The Chinese has an additional verse before this one. It refers to emptiness and cessation.
n.­701
According to BHS niraṅga. Chinese: “free of kleśas.”
n.­702
Chinese: “can quickly attain wisdom.”
n.­703
According to the Sanskrit. Tibetan: “seeks bliss.”
n.­704
According to all Sanskrit versions and the Chinese. The Tibetan has “ninety-nine,” which appears to be an early scribal corruption in the Tibetan transmission.
n.­705
In the Chinese this verse is preceded by an additional verse not found in the Sanskrit or Tibetan.
n.­706
According to the Sanskrit. The Tibetan has “In which there are no extremes or desire,” where anantasaṅga was taken as being negated and saṅga as having a negative meaning. The Chinese has “So that they can see many buddhas after their lives have ended.”
n.­707
At the beginning of this chapter he is the first in the list of past buddhas related by Śākyamuni, though the Tibetan and Chinese translations of the name differ from previous translations of the name.
n.­708
According to the Sanskrit prasannacitta. The Tibetan only translates citta (“mind”).
n.­709
Chinese: “in the past” instead of “numerous eons.”
n.­710
According to the Tibetan. Sanskrit: “numerous acts of generosity.”
n.­711
Chinese: “If I were to describe them it would take a long time.”
n.­712
Chinese: “go with you.”
n.­713
The Sanskrit has, in contrast to the earlier spelling, Śīrībala.
n.­714
Buddha Śākyamuni’s mother.
n.­715
This verse is not in the Gilgit or Chinese, but is in the Tibetan and the Shastri and Hodgson manuscripts, and is mentioned in the commentary.
n.­716
Buddha Śākyamuni’s father.
n.­717
This verse is not in the Gilgit or Chinese, but is in the Tibetan and the Shastri and Hodgson manuscripts, and is referred to in the commentary.
n.­718
According to the Tibetan, and the Shastri and Hodgson manuscripts.
n.­719
Chinese: End of fascicle 4.
n.­759
According to the Tibetan, in which the verb here is gdon mi za bar bya’o. The Sanskrit of the Hodgson and Shastri manuscripts has “…should depend upon the duties and qualities of the training that is the root of all merit” (śikṣāguṇa­dharmaniśrita). They also have at this point “…should have pure conduct through depending on roots of merit…” and so on. The Gilgit manuscript chapter is composed only of the verses.
n.­783
The Chinese adds: “Therefore, bodhisattvas should know about the dharmakāya and the rūpakāya.” The rest of this chapter does not appear in the Chinese.
n.­785
This paragraph does not appear in the Chinese.
n.­882
Beginning of fascicle 6 of the Taisho ed., and fascicle 7 of the Song, Yuan, Ming, Gong, and Sheng eds.
n.­890
From the BHS anuparivārayati and according to the definition in the commentary. The Tibetan translates with the alternative meaning of “encircling” or “surrounding.” The Gilgit version has pariśodhayati (“purifies”). The Chinese translates this sentence as “They will perfect wisdom of all kinds.” 滿足一切智 (man zu yi qie zhi).
n.­891
According to the Sanskrit, the commentary, and most Kangyurs, except for the Degé which has ’byor pa in error for ’byol ba. Chinese: “They abandon all concern about life and death.” 棄捨生死 (qi she sheng si).
n.­892
Tibetan: thob par byed pa (“cause to obtain”). Sanskrit: arpayati (see Mahāvyutpatti 7428). Chinese: “They long for the joy of nirvāṇa,” 慕樂涅槃 (mu le nie pan).
n.­893
Chinese: “They will not lack faith or wealth,” 不乏信財 (bu fa xin cai).
n.­1056
According to the Tibetan byi dor bya ba yongs su sbyang ba. The Sanskrit pari­karma­dhāraya could be translated as “maintaining or gaining the preparation for.”
n.­1057
This paragraph is in a simpler form in the Gilgit and Chinese.
n.­1161
In the Gilgit manuscript, the prose is absent from this point until “Young man, in the past…” (34.­7).
n.­1337
According to the Tibetan. Sanskrit: “immeasurable.”
n.­1338
According to the Sanskrit bahulīkartavya. The Tibetan mang du bya, a regular element in this list elsewhere, is missing here.

b.

Bibliography

Tibetan Editions of the Samādhirājasūtra

chos thams cad kyi rang bzhin mnyam pa nyid rnam spros pa ting nge ’dzin gyi rgyal po’i mdo (Sarva­dharma­svabhāva­samatāvipañcita­samādhirāja­sūtra). Toh 127, Degé Kangyur vol. 55 (mdo sde, da), folios 1.a–175.b.

‍—‍—‍—. bka’ ’gyur (dpe bsdur ma) [Comparative Edition of the Kangyur], krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe sdur khang (The Tibetan Tripitaka Collation Bureau of the China Tibetology Research Center). 108 volumes. Beijing: krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang (China Tibetology Publishing House), 2006–2009, vol. 55, pp. 3–411.

‍—‍—‍—. Lhasa Kangyur (lha sa bka’ ’gyur) vol. 55 (mdo sde, ta), folios 1.b–269.b.

‍—‍—‍—. Narthang Kangyur (snar thang bka’ ’gyur) vol. 55 (mdo sde, ta), folios 1.b–273.b.

‍—‍—‍—. Shelkar Drima Kangyur (shel mkhar bris ma bka’ ’gyur) vol. 54 (mdo sde, ja), folios 157.a–436.a.

‍—‍—‍—. Stok Palace Kangyur (stog pho brang bris ma bka’ ’gyur) vol. 58 (mdo sde, ja), folios 145.a–405.a.

‍—‍—‍—. Urga Kangyur vol. 55 (mdo sde, da), 1.b–170.a.

Sanskrit Editions of the Samādhirājasūtra

Dutt, Nalinaksha. Gilgit Manuscripts Vol. II, part I. Calcutta: J. C. Sarkhel, 1941. [This Sanskrit edition in three volumes is based on the Gilgit manuscript but also includes and represents the two Nepalese manuscripts of Hodgson and Shastri, see Introduction i.­9 and n.­4.

‍—‍—‍—. Gilgit Manuscripts Vol. II, part II. Calcutta: J. C. Sarkhel, 1953.

‍—‍—‍—. Gilgit Manuscripts Vol. II, part III. Calcutta: J. C. Sarkhel, 1954.

Matsunami, Seiren (ed.). “Bonbun Gattō Zanma kyō.”.in TDKK [Memoirs of Taisho University, Department of Buddhism and Literature] vol. 60 (1975), pp. 188–244.

‍—‍—‍—. “Bonbun Gattō Zanma kyō.” in TDKK [Memoirs of Taisho University, Department of Buddhism and Literature] vol. 61 (1975), 761–796.

Vaidya, P. L., ed. Samādhirājsūtra. Darbhanga, India: The Mithila Institute of Post-Graduate Studies and Research in Sanskrit Learning, 1961.

Other canonical references

Kangyur

da ltar gyi sangs rgyas mngon sum du bzhugs pa’i ting nge ’dzin gyi mdo (Pratyutpanna-buddha-samukhāsthita-samādhi-sūtra) [The Sūtra, The Samādhi of Being in the Presence of the Buddhas of the Present]. Toh 133, Degé Kangyur vol. 56 (mdo sde, na), folios 1.a–70.b.

dam pa’i chos pad ma dkar po’i mdo (Saddharma­puṇḍarīka-sūtra) [The Sūtra of the White Lotus of the Good Dharma]. Toh 113, Degé Kangyur vol. 67 (mdo sde, ja), folios 1.a–180.b. English translation in Roberts 2018.

de bzhin gshegs pa’i ye shes kyi phyag rgya’i ting nge ’dzin gyi mdo (Tathāgata-jñāna-mudrā-samādhi-sūtra) [The Sūtra of the Samādhi of the Seal of the Wisdom of the Tathāgatas]. Toh 131, Degé Kangyur vol. 55 (mdo sde, da), folios 230.b–253.b. English translation in Dharmachakra Translation Committee 2020b.

dge ba’i rtsa ba yongs su ’dzin pa’i mdo (Kuśala-mūla-saparigraha-sūtra) [The Sūtra of Possessing the Roots of Goodness]. Toh 101, Degé Kangyur vol. 48 (mdo sde, nga), folios 1.a–227.b. English translation in Dharmachakra Translation Committee 2020c.

de bzhin gshegs pa thams cad kyi sku gsung thugs kyi gsang chen gsang ba ’dus pa zhe bya ba brtag pa’i rgyal po chen po (Sarva-tathāgata-kāyavākcitta-rahasyo guhyasamāja-nāma-mahā-kalparāja) [The Great King Entitled the Union of the Great Secrets: the Secret of the Body, Speech, and Mind of all the Tathāgatas]. Also known as the Tathāgata­guhyaka Sūtra [The Sūtra of the Secret of the Tathāgatas] and the Guhysamaja-tantra. Toh 442, Degé Kangyur vol. 81 (rgyud, ca), folios 90.a–157.b.

gser ’od dam pa mdo sde’i dbang po’i rgyal po’i mdo (Suvarṇa-prabhāsottama-sūtrendrarāja-sūtra) [The Sūtra of the King Who Is the Lord of Sūtras: The Supreme Golden Light]. Toh 556, Degé Kangyur vol. 89 (rgyud, pa), folios 151.b–273.a.

lang kar gshegs pa’i mdo (Laṅkāvatāra-sūtra) [Entry into Laṅka Sūtra]. Toh 107, Degé Kangyur vol. 49 (mdo sde, ca), folios 56.a–191.b.

sangs rgyas rjes su dran pa (Buddhānusmṛti) [Being Mindful of the Buddha]. Toh 279, Degé Kangyur vol. 68 (mdo sde, ya), folios 55.a-55.b.

rab tu zhi ba rnam par nges pa’i cho ’phrul gyi ting nge ’dzin gyi mdo (Praśanta-viniścaya-prāthihārya-samādhi-sūtra) [The Sūtra of the Absorption of the Miraculous Ascertainment of Peace]. Toh 129, Degé Kangyur vol. 55 (mdo sde, da), folios 174.b–210.b. English translation in Dharmachakra Translation Committee 2020.

rgya cher rol pa’i mdo (Lalitavistara-sūtra) [The Play in Full]. Toh 95, Degé Kangyur vol. 46 (mdo sde, kha), folios 1.b–216.b. English translation in Dharmachakra Translation Committee 2013.

sa bcu pa’i mdo (Daśabhūmika-sūtra) [The Sūtra of the Ten Bhūmis]. Chapter 31 of the Avataṃsaka, Toh 44. Degé Kangyur vol. 36 (phal chen, kha), folios 166.a–283.a. English translation in Roberts 2021b.

sdong po bkod pa (Gaṇḍavyūha) [The Stem Array]. Chapter 45 of the Avataṃsaka, Toh 44-45. Degé Kangyur vols. 37 and 38 (phal chen, ga-a), folios ga 274.b–363.a. English Translation in Roberts 2021a.

shes rab pha rol tu phyin pa brgyad stong pa (Aṣṭa-sāhasrikā-prajñāpāramitā-sūtra) [The Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines]. Toh 12, Degé Kangyur vol. 33 (brgyad stong pa, ka), folios 1.b–286.a.

’od dpag med kyi bkod pa’i mdo (Amitābha­vyūha­sūtra) [The Array of Amitābha]. Also known as The Longer Sukhāvatīsūtra. Toh 49, Degé Kangyur vol. 39 (dkon brtsegs, ka), folios 237.b-270.a.

’od zer kun du bkye pa’i bstan pa’i mdo (Raśmi­samantamukta­nirdeśa­sūtra) [The Teaching on the Effulgence of Light]. Toh 55, Degé Kangur vol. 40 (dkon brtsegs, kha), folios 195.a–255.b.

tshong dpon bzang skyong gyis zhus pa’i mdo (Bhadrapāla-śreṣṭhi-paripṛccha-sūtra) [The Sūtra of the Questions of Bhadrapāla the Merchant]. Toh 83, Degé Kangyur vol. 44 (dkon brtsegs, cha), folios 71.a–94.b.

yang dag par spyod pa’i tshul nam mkha’i mdog gis ’dul ba’i bzod pa’i mdo (Saṃyagacārya-vṛtta-gagana-varṇa-vinaya-kṣānti-sūtra) [The Sūtra on Patience with the Discipline Through Practicing in a Way that is Like The Colour of the Sky]. Toh 263, Degé Kangyur vol. 67 (mdo sde ’a), folios 90.a–209.b.

Tengyur

Candrakīrti. dbu ma la ’jug pa (Madhyamakāvatāra) [Entering the Middle Way]. Toh 3861, Degé Tengyur vol. 102 (dbu ma ’a), folios 201.b–219.a.

‍—‍—‍—. dbu ma rtsa ba’i ’grel pa tshig gsal ba (Mūla­madhyamaka­vṛtti­prasanna­padā) [Clear Words: A Commentary on the Root Middle Way]. Toh 3860, Degé Tengyur vol. 102 (dbu ma, ’a), folios 1.a–200.a.

Dārika. ’khor lo sdom pa’i dkyil ’khor gyi cho ga de kho na nyid la ’jug pa (Cakra­saṁvara­maṇḍala­vidhi­tattvāvatāra) [Entering the Truth: A Maṇḍala Rite of Cakrasamvara]. Toh 1430, Degé Tengyur vol. 20 (rgyud ’grel, wa), folios 203.b–219.b.

Kamalaśīla. sgom pa’i rim pa (Bhāvanākrama) [Stages of Meditation]. Toh 3915, 3916, and 3917, Degé Tengyur vol. 110 (dbu ma, ki), folios 22.a–41.b, 41.a–55.b, and 55.b–68.b.

Mañjuśrīkīrti. ’phags pa chos thams cad kyi rang bzhin mnyam pa nyid rnam spros pa ting nge ’dzin gyi rgyal po zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo’i ’grel pa grags pa’i phreng ba zhes bya ba (Ārya-sarva-dharma-svabhāva-samatā-vipañcita-samādhi-rāja-nāma-mahāyāna-sūtra-ṭika-kīrti-mālā-nāma) [The Garland of Fame: A Commentary on The Mahāyāna Sūtra Entitled The King of Samādhis: The Revealed Equality of the Nature of All Phenomena]. Toh 4010, Degé Tengyur vol. 117 (mdo ’grel, nyi), folios 1.b–163.b.

‍—‍—‍—. Idem, in bstan ’gyur (dpe bsdur ma) [Comparative Edition of the Tengyur], krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe sdur khang (The Tibetan Tripitaka Collation Bureau of the China Tibetology Research Center). 120 volumes. Beijing: krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang (China Tibetology Publishing House), 1994–2008, vol. 117 (mdo ’grel, nyi), 752–1181.

Prajñākaramati. byang chub kyi spyod pa la ’jug pa’i dka’ ’grel (Bodhi­sattva­caryāvatāra­pañjikā) [Commentary on Difficult Points in Entering the Conduct of the Bodhisattvas]. Toh 3872, Degé Tengyur vol. 105 (dbu ma, la), folios 41.b–288.a.

Śāntideva. byang chub sems dpa’i spyod pa la ’jug pa (Bodhi­sattva­caryāvatāra) [Entering the Conduct of the Bodhisattvas]. Toh 3871, Degé Tengyur vol. 105 (dbu ma, la), folios 1.a–40.a.

‍—‍—‍—. bslab pa kun las btus pa (Śikṣasamuccaya) [Compendium of Training]. Toh 3939, Degé Tengyur vol. 111 (dbu ma, khi), folios 3.a–194.b.

Non-Canonical Tibetan Sources

Gampopa (sgam po pa bsod nams rin chen). dam chos yid bzhin nor bu thar pa rin po che’i rgyan. Kathmandu: Gam-po-pa Library, 2003.

Pekar Sangpo (pad dkar bzang po). bstan pa spyi’i rgyas byed las mdo sde spyi’i rnam bzhag bka’ bsdu ba bzhi pa zhes bya ba’i bstan bcos. Beijing: mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 2006.

Rinchen Palzang (rin chen dpal bzang). mtshur phu dgon gyi dkar chag kun gsal me long. Beijing: mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 1995.

Tsongkhapa (tsong kha pa). lam rim chen mo. In rje tsong kha pa chen po’i gsung ’bum vol. 8, Zi ling: mtsho sngon mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 1999.

Western Publications

Bailey, D. R. Shackleton. The Śatapañcāśatka of Mātṛceta. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1951.

Cüppers, Cristoph. The IXth Chapter of the Samādhirājasūtra: A Text-Critical Contribution to the Study of Mahāyāna Sūtras. Stuttgart: Franz Steiner Verlag, 1990.

Dharmachakra Translation Committee, trans. (2013). The Play in Full (Lalita­vistara, Toh 95). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.

‍—‍—‍—, trans. (2020a). The Absorption of the Miraculous Ascertainment of Peace (Praśānta­viniścaya­prātihārya­samādhi, Toh 129). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.

‍—‍—‍—, trans. (2020b). The Absorption of the Thus-Gone One’s Wisdom Seal (Tathāgata­jñāna­mudrā­samādhi, Toh 131). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.

‍—‍—‍—, trans. (2020c). Upholding the Roots of Virtue (Kuśala­mūla­saṃparigraha, Toh 101). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.

‍—‍—‍—, trans. (2022). The Teaching on the Effulgence of Light (Raśmisamanta­mukta­nirdeśa, Toh 55). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.

Dimitrov, Dragomir. “Two Female Bodhisattvas in Flesh and Blood,” in Aspects of the Female in Indian Culture. Marburg: Indica et Tibetica, 2004, pp. 3–30.

Gómez, Luis O. and Silk, Jonathan A. Studies in the Literature of the Great Vehicle: Three Mahāyāna Buddhist Texts. Ann Arbor: Collegiate Institute for the Study of Buddhist Literature and Center for South and Southeast Asian Studies, The University of Michigan, 1989.

Leslie, Julia. “A Bird Bereaved: The Identity and Significance of Valmiki’s Krauñcha,” in Journal of Indian Philosophy 26.5 (1998): 455–87.

Régamey, Konstanty. Philosophy in the Samādhirājasūtra. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1990.

Roberts, Peter Alan, trans. (2018). The White Lotus of the Good Dharma (Saddharma­puṇḍarīka, Toh 113). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.

‍—‍—‍—, trans. (2021a) The Stem Array (Gaṇḍavyūha, Toh 44-45). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.

‍—‍—‍—, trans. (2021b). The Ten Bhūmis (Daśabhūmika, Toh 44-31). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.

Rockwell, John Jr. Samādhi and Patient Acceptance: Four Chapters of the Samādhirāja-sūtra, Translated from the Sanskrit and Tibetan. M.A. thesis, Naropa Institute, Boulder, Colorado, 1980.

Skilton, Andrew. “Dating the Samādhirāja Sūtra,” In Journal of Indian Philosophy 27: 635–52. Netherlands: Kluwer Academic Publishers, 1999.

Tatz, Mark. “Revelation in Mādhyamika Buddhism: Chapter Eleven of the Samādhirāja-sūtra (On Mastering the Sūtra).” Translated from the Tibetan with commentary. University of Washington, 1972.

Thrangu Rinpoche. King of Samadhi: Commentaries on the Samadhi Raja Sutra and the Song of Lodrö Thaye. Hong Kong, Boudhnath & Århus: Rangjung Yeshe Publications, 1994.


g.

Glossary

g.­1

Ābhāsvara

  • —
  • —
  • Ābhāsvara

The highest of the three paradises that are the second dhyāna paradises in the form realm.

1 passage contains this term:

  • 10.­121

Links to further resources:

  • 25 related glossary entries
g.­2

Abhāva

  • dngos po med pa las byung
  • dngos po med pa las byung ba
  • དངོས་པོ་མེད་པ་ལས་བྱུང་།
  • དངོས་པོ་མེད་པ་ལས་བྱུང་བ།
  • Abhāva
  • Abhāva­samudgata

A buddha countless eons in the past.

1 passage contains this term:

  • 8.­22
g.­3

Abhirati

  • mngon par dga’ ba
  • མངོན་པར་དགའ་བ།
  • Abhirati

The realm of Buddha Akṣobhya, beyond countless buddha realms in the eastern direction.

5 passages contain this term:

  • 11.­74
  • 37.­2
  • n.­529
  • n.­1431
  • g.­14

Links to further resources:

  • 17 related glossary entries
g.­5

Absence of attributes

  • mtshan ma ma mchis pa
  • mtshan ma med pa
  • མཚན་མ་མ་མཆིས་པ།
  • མཚན་མ་མེད་པ།
  • animitta

The absence of the conceptual identification of perceptions. Knowing that the true nature has no attributes, such as color, shape, etc. One of the three doorways to liberation.

19 passages contain this term:

  • 1.­45
  • 4.­23
  • 14.­86
  • 23.­3
  • 30.­23
  • 33.­20
  • 33.­269
  • 34.­1
  • 34.­2
  • 34.­5
  • 36.­109
  • 39.­6
  • 39.­25
  • 39.­26
  • 39.­96
  • 39.­128
  • 39.­144
  • g.­132
  • g.­145

Links to further resources:

  • 36 related glossary entries
g.­9

Aggregate of correct conduct

  • tshul khrims kyi phung po
  • ཚུལ་ཁྲིམས་ཀྱི་ཕུང་པོ།
  • —

One of the five undefiled aggregates (zag med kyi phung po lnga), the others being the aggregates of concentration (samādhi), discriminative awareness (prajñā), liberation (vimukti), and insight of the primordial wisdom of liberation (vimukti­jñāna­darśana).

8 passages contain this term:

  • i.­74
  • 1.­14
  • 1.­17
  • 33.­2
  • 33.­295
  • 37.­1
  • 37.­2
  • n.­1060

Links to further resources:

  • 5 related glossary entries
g.­10

Agnīśvara

  • me yi dbang phyug
  • མེ་ཡི་དབང་ཕྱུག
  • Agnīśvara

2 passages contain this term:

  • 17.­34
  • 17.­35
g.­12

Ajita

  • mi pham pa
  • མི་ཕམ་པ།
  • Ajita

The other name of Maitreya (or Maitraka), the bodhisattva who will be the fifth buddha of the Good Eon.

9 passages contain this term:

  • 1.­2
  • 10.­58
  • 15.­5
  • 17.­4
  • 17.­13
  • 34.­63
  • n.­10
  • n.­640
  • g.­259

Links to further resources:

  • 8 related glossary entries
g.­21

Ānanda

  • kun dga’ bo
  • ཀུན་དགའ་བོ།
  • Ānanda

Buddha Śākyamuni’s cousin, who was his attendant for the last twenty years of his life. He was the subject of criticism and opposition from the monastic community after the Buddha’s passing, but eventually succeeded to the position of the patriarch of Buddhism in India after the passing of the first patriarch, Mahākaśyapa.

27 passages contain this term:

  • s.­1
  • i.­5
  • i.­73
  • i.­78
  • 2.­20
  • 10.­64
  • 36.­1
  • 36.­2
  • 36.­3
  • 36.­4
  • 36.­5
  • 36.­6
  • 36.­7
  • 36.­8
  • 36.­9
  • 36.­11
  • 36.­13
  • 36.­15
  • 36.­16
  • 36.­136
  • 36.­140
  • 36.­141
  • 36.­221
  • 40.­156
  • 40.­157
  • 40.­158
  • n.­1313

Links to further resources:

  • 78 related glossary entries
g.­23

Anantaghoṣa

  • mtha’ yas dbyangs
  • མཐའ་ཡས་དབྱངས།
  • Anantaghoṣa

The name of two separate buddhas from whom Śākyamuni received the Samādhirāja in previous lifetimes.

2 passages contain this term:

  • 17.­44
  • 17.­49
g.­24

Ananta­jñānanottara

  • ye shes bla ma mtha’ yas pa
  • ཡེ་ཤེས་བླ་མ་མཐའ་ཡས་པ།
  • Ananta­jñānanottara

2 passages contain this term:

  • i.­52
  • 17.­195
g.­25

Anantanetra

  • mtha’ yas spyan
  • མཐའ་ཡས་སྤྱན།
  • Anantanetra

1 passage contains this term:

  • 17.­50
g.­33

Arhat

  • dgra bcom pa
  • དགྲ་བཅོམ་པ།
  • arhat

Used both as an epithet of the Buddha and to mean the final accomplishment of early Buddhism, or the Hīnayāna.

53 passages contain this term:

  • 1.­6
  • 2.­1
  • 2.­3
  • 3.­1
  • 3.­3
  • 3.­5
  • 4.­1
  • 4.­2
  • 5.­4
  • 5.­5
  • 5.­6
  • 5.­8
  • 5.­9
  • 5.­10
  • 5.­11
  • 5.­12
  • 5.­13
  • 5.­17
  • 5.­29
  • 5.­31
  • 5.­32
  • 5.­34
  • 5.­36
  • 5.­40
  • 8.­11
  • 8.­15
  • 8.­16
  • 8.­17
  • 9.­2
  • 9.­7
  • 14.­1
  • 17.­18
  • 17.­19
  • 18.­33
  • 18.­35
  • 19.­9
  • 34.­7
  • 34.­8
  • 35.­9
  • 36.­1
  • 36.­2
  • 36.­9
  • 36.­10
  • 36.­11
  • 39.­12
  • 39.­13
  • 39.­15
  • 39.­20
  • 40.­152
  • g.­55
  • g.­73
  • g.­225
  • g.­495

Links to further resources:

  • 96 related glossary entries
g.­40

Asura

  • lha ma yin
  • ལྷ་མ་ཡིན།
  • asura

The asuras, sometimes called the demi-gods or titans, are the enemies of the devas, fighting with them for supremacy. They are powerful beings who live around Mount Sumeru, and are usually classified as belonging to the higher realms.

34 passages contain this term:

  • 1.­2
  • 2.­32
  • 7.­21
  • 10.­23
  • 10.­31
  • 10.­37
  • 10.­42
  • 10.­51
  • 10.­68
  • 10.­104
  • 10.­107
  • 10.­130
  • 10.­160
  • 10.­161
  • 11.­46
  • 11.­64
  • 14.­36
  • 14.­41
  • 17.­16
  • 31.­9
  • 34.­14
  • 34.­22
  • 36.­65
  • 36.­187
  • 36.­208
  • 38.­17
  • 40.­158
  • n.­452
  • g.­50
  • g.­303
  • g.­349
  • g.­393
  • g.­511
  • g.­518

Links to further resources:

  • 106 related glossary entries
g.­48

Āyatana

  • skye mched
  • སྐྱེ་མཆེད།
  • āyatana

Sometimes translated “sense-fields” or “bases of cognition,” the term usually refers to the six sense faculties and their corresponding objects, i.e. the first twelve of the eighteen dhātu. Along with skandha and dhātu, one of the three major categories in the taxonomy of phenomena in the sūtra literature.

15 passages contain this term:

  • 1.­27
  • 1.­29
  • 3.­4
  • 4.­5
  • 13.­2
  • 17.­89
  • 17.­94
  • 17.­95
  • 40.­2
  • 40.­5
  • 40.­22
  • 40.­44
  • n.­262
  • g.­124
  • g.­417

Links to further resources:

  • 58 related glossary entries
g.­51

Bandé

  • ban de
  • བན་དེ།
  • (vanda)

A term of respect for Buddhist monks: bandé in Tibet and Nepal, bhante in the Pali tradition. A middle-Indic word, it is said to be derived from vande, the BHS vocative form of the Sanskrit vanda, meaning praiseworthy or venerable, although bhante is said to be a contraction of the vocative bhadante, derived from a respectful salutation.

1 passage contains this term:

  • c.­1

Links to further resources:

  • 2 related glossary entries
g.­54

Bhadrapāla

  • bzang skyong
  • བཟང་སྐྱོང་།
  • Bhadrapāla

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Head of the “sixteen excellent men” (ṣoḍaśasatpuruṣa), a group of householder bodhisattvas present in the audience of many sūtras. He appears prominently in certain sūtras, such as The Samādhi of the Presence of the Buddhas (Pratyutpannabuddha­saṃmukhāvasthita­samādhisūtra, Toh 133) and is perhaps also the merchant of the same name who is the principal interlocutor in The Questions of Bhadrapāla the Merchant (Toh 83).

3 passages contain this term:

  • 1.­2
  • n.­28
  • n.­29

Links to further resources:

  • 22 related glossary entries
g.­57

Bhikṣu

  • dge slong
  • དགེ་སློང་།
  • bhikṣu

Fully ordained Buddhist monk.

203 passages contain this term:

  • i.­23
  • i.­24
  • i.­36
  • i.­40
  • i.­43
  • i.­44
  • i.­51
  • i.­52
  • i.­53
  • i.­56
  • i.­60
  • i.­65
  • i.­73
  • i.­74
  • i.­75
  • i.­76
  • 1.­2
  • 1.­62
  • 3.­27
  • 5.­9
  • 5.­10
  • 5.­11
  • 5.­12
  • 5.­13
  • 9.­7
  • 10.­13
  • 10.­15
  • 10.­42
  • 10.­51
  • 11.­1
  • 11.­2
  • 11.­3
  • 16.­5
  • 16.­8
  • 16.­10
  • 16.­12
  • 16.­35
  • 17.­16
  • 17.­165
  • 17.­168
  • 18.­31
  • 18.­45
  • 18.­51
  • 20.­18
  • 20.­19
  • 21.­14
  • 21.­16
  • 21.­24
  • 21.­26
  • 21.­29
  • 21.­37
  • 25.­30
  • 30.­7
  • 30.­40
  • 30.­119
  • 34.­44
  • 34.­52
  • 34.­55
  • 34.­56
  • 34.­62
  • 34.­64
  • 35.­8
  • 35.­12
  • 35.­14
  • 35.­15
  • 35.­16
  • 35.­17
  • 35.­18
  • 35.­19
  • 35.­21
  • 35.­22
  • 35.­23
  • 35.­24
  • 35.­25
  • 35.­30
  • 35.­33
  • 35.­34
  • 35.­36
  • 35.­39
  • 35.­41
  • 35.­43
  • 35.­53
  • 35.­59
  • 35.­60
  • 35.­68
  • 35.­72
  • 35.­78
  • 36.­14
  • 36.­18
  • 36.­45
  • 36.­46
  • 36.­47
  • 36.­48
  • 36.­51
  • 36.­52
  • 36.­53
  • 36.­54
  • 36.­55
  • 36.­57
  • 36.­59
  • 36.­60
  • 36.­63
  • 36.­66
  • 36.­67
  • 36.­68
  • 36.­69
  • 36.­70
  • 36.­71
  • 36.­72
  • 36.­73
  • 36.­74
  • 36.­75
  • 36.­76
  • 36.­77
  • 36.­80
  • 36.­81
  • 36.­83
  • 36.­84
  • 36.­85
  • 36.­86
  • 36.­87
  • 36.­88
  • 36.­89
  • 36.­90
  • 36.­91
  • 36.­92
  • 36.­93
  • 36.­95
  • 36.­96
  • 36.­98
  • 36.­101
  • 36.­106
  • 36.­107
  • 36.­108
  • 36.­112
  • 36.­143
  • 36.­148
  • 36.­150
  • 36.­151
  • 36.­152
  • 36.­153
  • 36.­154
  • 36.­156
  • 36.­157
  • 36.­170
  • 36.­174
  • 36.­175
  • 36.­193
  • 36.­194
  • 36.­195
  • 36.­205
  • 36.­210
  • 36.­211
  • 36.­212
  • 36.­213
  • 36.­214
  • 37.­4
  • 37.­32
  • 37.­33
  • 37.­43
  • 38.­17
  • 38.­50
  • 38.­51
  • 38.­53
  • 38.­54
  • 38.­55
  • 38.­56
  • 38.­57
  • 38.­58
  • 38.­59
  • 38.­60
  • 38.­61
  • 38.­63
  • 38.­64
  • 38.­65
  • 38.­66
  • 38.­67
  • 38.­69
  • 38.­71
  • 38.­72
  • 38.­75
  • 38.­79
  • 38.­80
  • 38.­81
  • 39.­58
  • 40.­158
  • n.­171
  • n.­237
  • n.­238
  • n.­239
  • n.­241
  • n.­475
  • n.­492
  • n.­774
  • n.­1165
  • n.­1189
  • n.­1236
  • n.­1237
  • n.­1240
  • n.­1305
  • n.­1351
  • g.­170
  • g.­319

Links to further resources:

  • 44 related glossary entries
g.­59

Bhīṣmabala

  • ’jigs btsan stobs
  • འཇིགས་བཙན་སྟོབས།
  • Bhīṣmabala

1 passage contains this term:

  • 17.­48
g.­60

Bhīṣmaghoṣa

  • ’jigs pa’i dbyangs
  • འཇིགས་པའི་དབྱངས།
  • Bhīṣmaghoṣa

1 passage contains this term:

  • 17.­48
g.­61

Bhīṣmamati

  • ’jigs btsan blo gros
  • འཇིགས་བཙན་བློ་གྲོས།
  • Bhīṣmamati

1 passage contains this term:

  • 17.­48
g.­62

Bhīṣmānana

  • ’jigs zhal
  • འཇིགས་ཞལ།
  • Bhīṣmānana

1 passage contains this term:

  • 17.­48
g.­63

Bhīṣmārci

  • ’jigs btsan ’od ’phro
  • འཇིགས་བཙན་འོད་འཕྲོ།
  • Bhīṣmārci

1 passage contains this term:

  • 17.­48
g.­64

Bhīṣmasamudgata

  • ’jigs btsan ’phags
  • འཇིགས་བཙན་འཕགས།
  • Bhīṣmasamudgata

1 passage contains this term:

  • 17.­48
g.­65

Bhīṣmottara

  • ’jigs pa’i bla ma
  • ’jigs mchog
  • འཇིགས་པའི་བླ་མ།
  • འཇིགས་མཆོག
  • Bhīṣmottara

The name of both a previous life of Buddha Śākyamuni as a king (translated as ’jigs pa’i bla ma) and the name of one of the buddhas (translated as ’jigs mchog) that Śākyamuni received the samādhi teaching from in a previous life.

3 passages contain this term:

  • i.­37
  • 2.­12
  • 17.­48
g.­67

Bhūmi

  • sa
  • ས།
  • bhūmi

Literally “grounds” in which qualities grow, and also it means “levels.” Bhūmi refers specifically to levels of enlightenment, especially the ten levels of the enlightened bodhisattvas. Also translated here as “level.”

20 passages contain this term:

  • i.­29
  • 30.­122
  • 31.­12
  • 32.­27
  • 36.­184
  • n.­18
  • n.­549
  • n.­1091
  • n.­1451
  • g.­90
  • g.­102
  • g.­127
  • g.­175
  • g.­241
  • g.­263
  • g.­330
  • g.­331
  • g.­412
  • g.­424
  • g.­498

Links to further resources:

  • 25 related glossary entries
g.­73

Bodhisattva

  • byang chub sems dpa’
  • བྱང་ཆུབ་སེམས་དཔའ།
  • bodhisattva
  • buddhaputra

A person who is dedicated not merely to attaining liberation through attaining the state of an arhat, but to becoming a buddha. A name created from the Sanskritization of the middle-Indic bodhisatto, the Sanskrit equivalent of which was bodhisakta, “one who is fixed on enlightenment.”

562 passages contain this term:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1
  • i.­4
  • i.­19
  • i.­24
  • i.­28
  • i.­29
  • i.­30
  • i.­36
  • i.­41
  • i.­42
  • i.­43
  • i.­45
  • i.­47
  • i.­48
  • i.­52
  • i.­53
  • i.­59
  • i.­61
  • i.­62
  • i.­64
  • i.­67
  • i.­69
  • i.­70
  • i.­71
  • i.­72
  • i.­73
  • i.­74
  • i.­75
  • 1.­1
  • 1.­2
  • 1.­20
  • 1.­21
  • 1.­22
  • 1.­25
  • 1.­26
  • 1.­49
  • 1.­50
  • 1.­52
  • 1.­54
  • 1.­55
  • 2.­1
  • 2.­3
  • 2.­5
  • 2.­8
  • 2.­22
  • 2.­27
  • 3.­1
  • 3.­2
  • 3.­4
  • 3.­5
  • 3.­38
  • 4.­19
  • 4.­22
  • 4.­31
  • 5.­1
  • 5.­2
  • 5.­5
  • 5.­9
  • 5.­10
  • 5.­11
  • 5.­12
  • 5.­37
  • 5.­42
  • 6.­1
  • 6.­2
  • 6.­6
  • 6.­9
  • 6.­13
  • 6.­18
  • 6.­19
  • 6.­27
  • 7.­1
  • 7.­2
  • 7.­3
  • 7.­13
  • 7.­21
  • 7.­22
  • 7.­23
  • 7.­24
  • 7.­27
  • 7.­30
  • 7.­31
  • 7.­39
  • 8.­1
  • 8.­2
  • 8.­3
  • 8.­4
  • 8.­18
  • 9.­1
  • 9.­5
  • 9.­6
  • 9.­7
  • 10.­1
  • 10.­2
  • 10.­7
  • 10.­9
  • 10.­13
  • 10.­15
  • 10.­38
  • 10.­41
  • 10.­42
  • 10.­51
  • 11.­1
  • 11.­2
  • 11.­3
  • 11.­12
  • 11.­19
  • 11.­22
  • 11.­24
  • 11.­25
  • 11.­27
  • 11.­35
  • 11.­41
  • 11.­42
  • 11.­43
  • 11.­48
  • 11.­51
  • 11.­75
  • 12.­1
  • 12.­2
  • 12.­4
  • 13.­1
  • 13.­2
  • 13.­3
  • 13.­16
  • 13.­18
  • 13.­24
  • 13.­25
  • 13.­30
  • 13.­31
  • 14.­1
  • 14.­55
  • 14.­71
  • 14.­72
  • 14.­73
  • 15.­1
  • 15.­4
  • 16.­1
  • 16.­3
  • 16.­10
  • 16.­21
  • 16.­25
  • 17.­1
  • 17.­3
  • 17.­5
  • 17.­10
  • 17.­16
  • 17.­17
  • 17.­20
  • 17.­21
  • 17.­22
  • 17.­23
  • 17.­24
  • 17.­25
  • 17.­61
  • 17.­64
  • 17.­86
  • 17.­136
  • 17.­142
  • 17.­150
  • 17.­157
  • 17.­189
  • 17.­196
  • 17.­200
  • 18.­1
  • 18.­3
  • 18.­5
  • 18.­8
  • 18.­40
  • 18.­52
  • 19.­1
  • 19.­2
  • 19.­3
  • 19.­5
  • 19.­7
  • 20.­1
  • 20.­2
  • 20.­3
  • 20.­4
  • 20.­5
  • 20.­6
  • 20.­7
  • 20.­15
  • 21.­1
  • 21.­2
  • 22.­1
  • 22.­2
  • 23.­1
  • 23.­2
  • 24.­1
  • 24.­5
  • 24.­6
  • 24.­7
  • 24.­8
  • 24.­9
  • 24.­10
  • 24.­11
  • 24.­12
  • 24.­13
  • 24.­14
  • 24.­15
  • 24.­16
  • 24.­17
  • 24.­18
  • 24.­19
  • 24.­20
  • 24.­21
  • 24.­22
  • 24.­23
  • 24.­24
  • 24.­25
  • 24.­26
  • 24.­27
  • 24.­28
  • 24.­29
  • 24.­30
  • 24.­31
  • 24.­32
  • 24.­33
  • 24.­34
  • 24.­35
  • 24.­36
  • 24.­37
  • 24.­38
  • 24.­39
  • 24.­40
  • 24.­41
  • 24.­42
  • 24.­43
  • 24.­44
  • 24.­45
  • 24.­46
  • 24.­47
  • 24.­48
  • 24.­49
  • 24.­50
  • 24.­51
  • 24.­52
  • 24.­53
  • 24.­54
  • 24.­55
  • 24.­56
  • 24.­57
  • 24.­58
  • 24.­59
  • 24.­60
  • 24.­61
  • 24.­62
  • 24.­63
  • 24.­74
  • 24.­77
  • 25.­1
  • 25.­2
  • 25.­38
  • 26.­1
  • 26.­2
  • 26.­3
  • 26.­5
  • 26.­8
  • 27.­1
  • 27.­2
  • 27.­3
  • 27.­4
  • 28.­1
  • 28.­2
  • 29.­1
  • 29.­2
  • 29.­9
  • 29.­10
  • 29.­14
  • 29.­15
  • 29.­20
  • 29.­21
  • 29.­22
  • 29.­26
  • 29.­30
  • 29.­31
  • 29.­41
  • 29.­42
  • 29.­50
  • 29.­51
  • 29.­61
  • 29.­62
  • 29.­69
  • 29.­73
  • 29.­74
  • 29.­84
  • 29.­85
  • 29.­86
  • 29.­94
  • 29.­95
  • 29.­102
  • 29.­103
  • 29.­104
  • 29.­105
  • 29.­106
  • 29.­107
  • 30.­47
  • 30.­48
  • 31.­1
  • 31.­2
  • 32.­1
  • 33.­1
  • 33.­3
  • 33.­19
  • 33.­23
  • 33.­48
  • 33.­51
  • 33.­52
  • 33.­83
  • 33.­86
  • 33.­96
  • 33.­120
  • 33.­123
  • 33.­160
  • 33.­166
  • 33.­168
  • 33.­178
  • 33.­190
  • 33.­195
  • 33.­208
  • 33.­209
  • 33.­211
  • 33.­215
  • 33.­217
  • 33.­218
  • 33.­220
  • 33.­222
  • 33.­224
  • 33.­231
  • 33.­236
  • 33.­245
  • 33.­247
  • 33.­258
  • 33.­261
  • 33.­278
  • 33.­280
  • 33.­281
  • 33.­282
  • 33.­283
  • 33.­287
  • 33.­295
  • 33.­296
  • 34.­1
  • 34.­2
  • 34.­4
  • 34.­5
  • 34.­10
  • 34.­11
  • 34.­12
  • 34.­13
  • 34.­14
  • 34.­15
  • 34.­16
  • 34.­17
  • 34.­20
  • 34.­21
  • 34.­23
  • 34.­24
  • 34.­63
  • 35.­1
  • 35.­2
  • 35.­7
  • 35.­8
  • 35.­63
  • 35.­67
  • 35.­70
  • 36.­4
  • 36.­6
  • 36.­7
  • 36.­8
  • 36.­14
  • 36.­15
  • 36.­16
  • 36.­17
  • 36.­18
  • 36.­20
  • 36.­32
  • 36.­33
  • 36.­102
  • 36.­117
  • 36.­118
  • 36.­119
  • 36.­121
  • 36.­122
  • 36.­123
  • 36.­128
  • 36.­134
  • 36.­136
  • 36.­140
  • 36.­142
  • 36.­188
  • 36.­219
  • 36.­221
  • 36.­222
  • 37.­1
  • 37.­2
  • 37.­6
  • 37.­7
  • 37.­9
  • 37.­10
  • 37.­15
  • 37.­17
  • 37.­31
  • 37.­43
  • 37.­46
  • 37.­47
  • 37.­49
  • 37.­50
  • 38.­1
  • 38.­65
  • 39.­2
  • 39.­3
  • 39.­4
  • 39.­5
  • 39.­6
  • 39.­7
  • 39.­8
  • 39.­9
  • 39.­10
  • 39.­11
  • 39.­13
  • 39.­45
  • 39.­60
  • 39.­62
  • 39.­63
  • 39.­64
  • 39.­65
  • 39.­68
  • 39.­69
  • 39.­71
  • 39.­72
  • 39.­73
  • 39.­75
  • 39.­79
  • 39.­82
  • 39.­83
  • 39.­85
  • 39.­91
  • 39.­92
  • 39.­93
  • 39.­94
  • 39.­95
  • 39.­96
  • 39.­97
  • 39.­98
  • 39.­99
  • 39.­100
  • 39.­101
  • 39.­102
  • 39.­103
  • 39.­116
  • 39.­117
  • 39.­120
  • 39.­121
  • 39.­122
  • 39.­123
  • 39.­124
  • 39.­125
  • 39.­126
  • 39.­127
  • 39.­128
  • 39.­129
  • 39.­130
  • 39.­131
  • 39.­132
  • 39.­133
  • 39.­134
  • 39.­136
  • 40.­21
  • 40.­28
  • 40.­30
  • 40.­63
  • 40.­106
  • 40.­110
  • 40.­114
  • 40.­122
  • 40.­126
  • n.­9
  • n.­10
  • n.­18
  • n.­27
  • n.­28
  • n.­29
  • n.­30
  • n.­81
  • n.­159
  • n.­160
  • n.­162
  • n.­182
  • n.­193
  • n.­231
  • n.­304
  • n.­313
  • n.­324
  • n.­330
  • n.­339
  • n.­340
  • n.­341
  • n.­342
  • n.­343
  • n.­430
  • n.­600
  • n.­783
  • n.­871
  • n.­889
  • n.­915
  • n.­1017
  • n.­1018
  • n.­1019
  • n.­1020
  • n.­1021
  • n.­1022
  • n.­1023
  • n.­1024
  • n.­1025
  • n.­1026
  • n.­1098
  • n.­1118
  • n.­1193
  • n.­1251
  • n.­1293
  • n.­1320
  • n.­1423
  • n.­1451
  • g.­12
  • g.­19
  • g.­45
  • g.­67
  • g.­90
  • g.­102
  • g.­127
  • g.­138
  • g.­139
  • g.­158
  • g.­175
  • g.­182
  • g.­198
  • g.­237
  • g.­252
  • g.­256
  • g.­259
  • g.­263
  • g.­265
  • g.­266
  • g.­282
  • g.­285
  • g.­321
  • g.­330
  • g.­331
  • g.­334
  • g.­356
  • g.­359
  • g.­412
  • g.­419
  • g.­424
  • g.­428
  • g.­449
  • g.­485
  • g.­498
  • g.­531

Links to further resources:

  • 33 related glossary entries
g.­74

Brahmā

  • tshangs pa
  • ཚངས་པ།
  • Brahmā

The personification of the universal force of Brahman, the deity in the form realm, who was, during the Buddha’s time, considered in India to be the supreme deity and creator of the universe.

28 passages contain this term:

  • 1.­2
  • 1.­50
  • 8.­13
  • 10.­54
  • 10.­68
  • 10.­103
  • 10.­122
  • 14.­41
  • 14.­42
  • 14.­82
  • 14.­96
  • 17.­137
  • 23.­32
  • 29.­1
  • 29.­5
  • 29.­7
  • 30.­114
  • 31.­10
  • 36.­54
  • 39.­65
  • 39.­69
  • 40.­112
  • n.­16
  • n.­149
  • n.­480
  • n.­662
  • g.­79
  • g.­86

Links to further resources:

  • 125 related glossary entries
g.­75

Brahmābala

  • tshangs pa’i stobs
  • ཚངས་པའི་སྟོབས།
  • Brahmābala

1 passage contains this term:

  • 17.­46
g.­76

Brahmadatta

  • tshangs pa byin
  • ཚངས་པ་བྱིན།
  • Brahmadatta
  • Svara­brahma­datta

A monk who was a previous incarnation of Buddha Dīpaṃkara.

5 passages contain this term:

  • i.­51
  • 16.­5
  • 16.­6