The Mahāsūtra “The Crest Insignia” (1)
Toh 292
Degé Kangyur, vol. 71 (mdo sde, sha), folios 262.a–265.b
- Jinamitra
- Prajñāvarman
- Bandé Yeshé Dé
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Table of Contents
Summary
A group of merchants from Vaiśālī, preparing to travel to Takṣaśilā, learn that the Buddha is staying nearby at the Kūṭāgāraśālā and offer the Buddha and his monks a midday meal. The Buddha teaches them how to overcome the fears of the wilderness by recollecting the Buddha, Dharma, or Saṅgha, comparing it to how the military crest insignias of Śakra, Īśāna, and Varuṇa respectively embolden the devas in their battles against the asuras. The sūtra concludes with the Buddha offering the merchants verses of benediction for a safe journey. This is the longer of two Mahāsūtras with the same title and similar themes but adressed to different audiences.
Acknowledgements
This publication was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.
The text was translated, edited, and introduced by the 84000 translation team. Lowell Cook produced the translation and wrote the introduction. George FitzHerbert and John Canti edited the translation and the introduction, and Laura Goetz copyedited the text. Martina Cotter was in charge of the digital publication process.
Introduction
The inclusion of The Crest Insignia (1) (hereafter Dhvajāgrasūtra [1]) among the Mahāsūtras (literally “Great Sūtras”)1 reflects its status in early Buddhism as a “protective text” (known as a rakṣā by the Sarvāstivādins and Mūlasarvāstivādins and a paritta by the Theravādins). It shares the same Sanskrit title with a with a closely related Mahāsūtra that immediately follows it in the Degé Kangyur (The Crest Insignia (2), Toh 293,2 hereafter Dhvajāgrasūtra [2]). In Tibetan the titles of these two Mahāsūtras are differentiated by alternative translations of the word agra (as mchog in the present text, Toh 292, and dam pa in Toh 293), but we have translated the title in the same way in both texts based on the identical Sanskrit title Dhvajāgra. The term dhvajāgra refers to a symbol or insignia that was mounted at the end of a long pole, which was employed as a martial ensign on the battlefield in ancient India.3
Although these two Mahāsūtras describe teachings given to different audiences at different locations, they both include recensions of the same core teaching on “recollecting the Buddha” (Skt. buddhānusmṛti, Tib. sangs rgyas rjes su dran pa) as a method for dispelling fear in times of crisis. In the many iterations of the Dhvajāgrasūtra found in Pali, Sanskrit, and Chinese,4 the formula by which the Buddha is to be recollected is composed of a set of epithets that describe his qualities, traditionally said to be nine in number but with some differences between versions of the text.5 Recollecting the Buddha in this way is presented as the primary means of protecting oneself from fear and insecurity and is likened to how Śakra emboldens his army of devas with the sight of Vaijayanta, his celestial crest insignia, which fills the devas with courage as they wage war against the asuras.6 It is from this analogy that the texts take their title.
The present text, the Dhvajāgrasūtra [1], differs from the Dhvajāgrasūtra [2] in being located at Vaiśālī (rather than the Jeta Grove in Śrāvastī) and in being addressed to a group of merchants (rather than the community of monks). The Dhvajāgrasūtra [1] additionally differs in prescribing the recollection of all Three Jewels (Skt. triratna, Tib. dkon mchog gsum), rather than just of the Buddha, the other two being compared to the crest insignia of Īśāna and Varuṇa. Like the formula for recollecting the Buddha, the formulae set out here for recollecting the Dharma and the Saṅgha have been a core feature of Buddhist liturgies since the earliest times. Indeed these three formulae are also found in the Kangyur as standalone scriptures called, respectively, Buddhānusmṛti (Toh 279), Dharmānusmṛti (Toh 280), and Saṅghānusmṛti (Toh 281). The three short texts (which are often recited in a form that fuses them into a single Triratnānusmṛti text) are of unknown origin and may possibly be derived partly from the present sūtra or its parallels.
The sūtra begins with the merchants preparing to embark on the journey to Takṣaśilā—the capital of Gandhāra and a historic center for Indian Buddhism and transcontinental trade—when they learn that the Buddha has taken up residence nearby at the Kūṭāgāraśālā on the banks of the Monkey Pond. Taking advantage of the opportunity, they invite the Buddha and his saṅgha of monks to come to their lodgings for a midday meal. It is at this occasion that the Buddha delivers his teaching on recollecting the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Saṅgha as a way of dispelling fear at times of need. Following the prose narrative is a section in verse in which the Buddha offers the merchants some verses of benediction (Skt. svastigāthā), celebrating their generosity and blessing them for a safe journey. Several of these verses, which employ a poetic repetition of the word “perfect” (Skt. saṃpad, Tib. phun sum tshogs),7 are also found in various iterations in other canonical works.8
There is no surviving Sanskrit text for the Dhvajāgrasūtra [1], although there are extant Sanskrit fragments and a Pali version corresponding to the Dhvajāgrasūtra [2] that overlap with sections of the Dhvajāgrasūtra [1] (see the introduction to Toh 293). The Dhvajāgrasūtra [1] was translated into Chinese by the Indian monk Guṇabhadra (394–468 ᴄᴇ) between 435 and 443 and is found as no. 980 of his translation of the Saṃyuktāgama (Taishō 99, 雜阿含經).
The seven Mahāsūtras that are found together in the General Sūtra (mdo sde) section of most Kangyurs (Toh 288–94), as well as the two found in the Action Tantra (bya ba’i rgyud) section (and in the Compendium of Dhāraṇīs (gzungs ’dus) section in those Kangyurs that include such a compendium) (Toh 653/1062 and Toh 656/1061), were transmitted to Tibet as a collection and translated together by Jinamitra, Prajñāvarman, and Yeshé Dé,9 and the fact that the nine texts are listed together in both the Denkarma and Phangthangma catalogs also dates the translations to the early ninth century.10 Peter Skilling suggests that Jinamitra, who was an accomplished Vinaya master, may have specifically transmitted the Mahāsūtras for use as rakṣā protective texts for the fledging monastic community, only to be eclipsed by tantra in postimperial Tibetan Buddhism.11 Although it may have enjoyed popularity during the early period, the Dhvajāgrasūtra [1] does not appear to have been quoted or studied widely in Tibet.
The foremost study of the Dhvajāgrasūtra [1] is Peter Skilling’s two-volume The Mahāsūtras: Great Discourses of the Buddha, which has greatly informed this introduction and translation. The first mention of the sūtra in Western scholarship came in the early nineteenth century from Alexander Csoma de Kőrös in his “Analysis of the Mdo,” in which he briefly surveyed the contents of the Mahāsūtras. The Dhvajāgrasūtra [1] was only very recently translated into English, when it appeared alongside the Dhvajāgrasūtra [2] and the Pali Dhajaggasutta in Skilling 2024.
The present translation was produced based on the Degé Kangyur edition and checked against the variant readings in the Comparative Edition Kangyur and the Stok Palace Manuscript Kangyur.
Text Body
The Crest Insignia (1)
The Translation
Homage to the Three Jewels.
Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was traveling through the land of Vṛji and had arrived in Vaiśālī. He had taken up residence at the Kūṭāgāraśālā, on the banks of the Monkey Pond near Vaiśālī.
At that time, a large group of merchants from Vaiśālī was preparing for a journey to the land of Takṣaśilā in order to trade. These many merchants of Vaiśālī heard that the Blessed One was traveling through the land of Vṛji, had arrived in Vaiśālī, and had taken up residence at the Kūṭāgāraśālā on the banks of the Monkey Pond near Vaiśālī. When they heard this, they gathered in groups and banded together in bands,12 left Vaiśālī, and went to the Blessed One.
On arrival, they bowed their heads at the Blessed One’s feet and sat to one side. The Blessed One taught, instructed, encouraged, and delighted the many merchants of Vaiśālī, who were seated to one side, with a Dharma talk. Having taught, instructed, encouraged, and delighted them with a Dharma talk on various topics, the Blessed One sat in silence.
The many merchants of Vaiśālī then rose from their seats and, draping their robes over their left shoulders, bowed to the Blessed One with joined palms. “Honored One,” they addressed the Blessed One, “we are a large group of merchants from Vaiśālī preparing for a journey to the land of Takṣaśilā in order to trade goods. [F.262.b] Would the Blessed One and the saṅgha of monks agree to take their midday meal at our place tomorrow?”
The Blessed One assented to the many merchants of Vaiśālī by remaining silent. The many merchants of Vaiśālī recognized that the Blessed One had agreed by remaining silent. They praised what the Blessed One had taught and rejoiced. They bowed their heads at the Blessed One’s feet and departed from his presence.
That evening, the many merchants of Vaiśālī carefully prepared pure and wholesome food and drink. Rising early the next morning, they prepared the seating and set out the water jugs. They then extended their invitation to the Blessed One: “Honored One, the meal has been prepared, and the time has come. Please, Blessed One, know that the time has now come.”
That morning, the Blessed One donned his lower garment and upper robe and took up his alms bowl. Surrounded by a group of monks at the head of the saṅgha of monks, he proceeded to the dining hall of the many merchants of Vaiśālī. When he arrived, he sat on the seat that had been prepared for him amid the gathering of monks. The many merchants of Vaiśālī then bowed their heads at the Blessed One’s feet and sat to one side. The Blessed One gave the following teaching to the many merchants of Vaiśālī, who were seated to one side.
“Merchants, when you are in the wilderness and you feel fear, trepidation, or terror, at that time, you should recollect me through my aspects:
“The Blessed One is a thus-gone one, a worthy one, [F.263.a] a perfectly and completely awakened one, a learned and virtuous one, a well-gone one, a knower of the world, an unsurpassed13 leader of those to be trained, a teacher of devas and humans, an awakened one, and a blessed one.
“Merchants, if at that time you recollect me through my aspects, then whatever fear, trepidation, or terror you are experiencing will subside.
“The Dharma of the Blessed One has been well spoken, it is to be seen for oneself, it is free from ailments, it is timeless, it is a guide,14 it is there in plain sight, and it is to be experienced by the wise for themselves.
“Merchants, if at that time you recollect the Dharma through15 these aspects, then whatever fear, trepidation, or terror you are experiencing will subside.
“The Saṅgha of śrāvakas of the Blessed One practice well, they practice in the proper way, they practice with integrity, they practice in the right way, they practice the Dharma as befits the Dharma, and they act in accordance with the Dharma. In the Saṅgha there are those who practice to realize the result of stream entry. In the Saṅgha there are stream enterers. In the Saṅgha there are those who practice to realize the result of once-returners. In the Saṅgha there are once-returners. In the Saṅgha there are those who practice to realize the result of non-returners. In the Saṅgha there are non-returners. In the Saṅgha there are those who practice to realize the result of arhathood. In the Saṅgha there are arhats. [F.263.b] These are the four pairs, the eight types of persons. The Blessed One’s Saṅgha of śrāvakas is replete16 with discipline, replete with samādhi, replete with wisdom, replete with liberation, and replete with the knowledge and vision of liberation. They are fully worthy of offerings, they are completely worthy of offerings, they are worthy of respect with joined palms, they are worthy of homage. They are the unsurpassed field of merit, the rightful recipients of the offerings of the world.
“Merchants, if at that time you recollect the Saṅgha through these aspects, then whatever fear, trepidation, or terror you are experiencing will subside.
“Previously, merchants, when a battle between the devas and the asuras was about to break out, Śakra, the lord of the devas, called out to the devas of the Heaven of the Thirty-Three: ‘Friends, when you go into the battle between the devas and the asuras, if you feel any fear, trepidation, or terror, you should at that time recall my crest insignia Vaijayanta. If at that time you recollect my crest insignia Vaijayanta, then whatever fear, trepidation, or terror you are experiencing will subside.
“ ‘If you cannot recollect my crest insignia, then recollect the crest insignia of the deva Īśāna. If at that time you recollect the crest insignia of the deva Īśāna, then whatever fear, trepidation, or terror you are experiencing will subside.
“ ‘If you cannot recollect the crest insignia of the deva Īśāna, then recollect the crest insignia of the deva Varuṇa. [F.264.a] If at that time you recollect the crest insignia of the deva Varuṇa, then whatever fear, trepidation, or terror you are experiencing will subside.
“In the same way, merchants, when you are in the wilderness and feel fear, trepidation, or terror, at that time, you should recollect me through my aspects:
“The Blessed One is a thus-gone one, a worthy one, a perfectly and completely awakened one, a learned and virtuous one, a well-gone one, a knower of the world, an unsurpassed leader of those to be trained, a teacher of devas and humans, an awakened one, and a blessed one.
“Merchants, if at that time you recollect me through my aspects, whatever fear, trepidation, or terror you are experiencing will subside.
“The Dharma of the Blessed One has been well spoken, it is to be seen for oneself, it is free from ailments, it is timeless, it is a guide, it is there in plain sight, and it is to be experienced by the wise for themselves.
“Merchants, if at that time you recollect the Dharma through its aspects, whatever fear, trepidation, or terror you are experiencing will subside.
“The Saṅgha of śrāvakas of the Blessed One practices well; they practice in the proper way, they practice with integrity, they practice in the right way, they practice the Dharma as befits the Dharma, and they act in accordance with the Dharma. In the Saṅgha there are those who practice to realize the result of stream entry. In the Saṅgha there are stream enterers. [F.264.b] In the Saṅgha there are those who practice to realize the result of once-returners. In the Saṅgha there are once-returners. In the Saṅgha there are those who practice in order to realize the result of non-returners. In the Saṅgha there are non-returners. In the Saṅgha there are those who practice in order to realize the result of arhathood. In the Saṅgha there are arhats. These are the four pairs, the eight types of persons. The Blessed One’s Saṅgha of śrāvakas is replete with discipline, replete with samādhi, replete with wisdom, replete with liberation, and replete with the knowledge and vision of liberation. They are fully worthy of offerings, they are completely worthy of offerings, they are worthy of respect with joined palms, they are worthy of homage. They are the unsurpassed field of merit, the rightful recipients of the offerings of the world.
“Merchants, if at that time you recollect the Saṅgha through its aspects, whatever fear, trepidation, or terror you are experiencing will subside.”
Seeing that the Buddha and the saṅgha of monks were comfortably seated, the many merchants of Vaiśālī then graciously served them from their own hands the pure and wholesome foods and drinks and ensured they were satisfied. In various ways, they graciously served them from their own hands the pure and wholesome foods and drinks and ensured their satisfaction, and the Blessed One partook of the midday meal. When the many merchants of Vaiśālī saw that he had placed his alms bowl down and concealed his hands, they spread out low seats and sat before the Blessed One to listen to the Dharma. [F.265.a]
The Blessed One rejoiced with delight at the generosity of the many merchants of Vaiśālī.
The Blessed One taught, instructed, encouraged, and delighted the many merchants of Vaiśālī with this Dharma talk. Having taught, instructed, encouraged, and delighted them with this Dharma talk on various topics, the Blessed One rose from his seat and departed.
This concludes the Mahāsūtra “The Crest Insignia.”
Colophon
Translated, edited, and finalized by the Indian preceptors Jinamitra and Prajñāvarman, the translator-editor Bandé Yeshé Dé, and others.
Notes
Bibliography
mdo chen po rgyal mtshan mchog (Dhvajāgramahāsūtra) [1]. Toh 292, Degé Kangyur vol. 71 (mdo sde, sha), folios 262.a–265.b.
mdo chen po rgyal mtshan mchog. 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), 2006–9, vol. 71, pp. 699–707.
mdo rgyal mtshan mchog. Stok Palace Kangyur vol. 72 (mdo sde, zha), folios 359.b–364.b.
mdo chen po rgyal mtshan dam pa (Dhvajāgramahāsūtra) [2]. Toh 293, Degé Kangyur vol. 71 (mdo sde, sha), folios 265.b–267.a. English translation The Mahāsūtra “The Crest Insignia” (2) 2024.
rgya cher rol pa (Lalitavistara). Toh 95, Degé Kangyur vol. 46 (mdo sde, kha), folios 1.b–216.b. English translation The Play in Full 2013.
yangs pa’i grong khyer du ’jug pa’i mdo chen po (Vaiśālīpraveśamahāsūtra). Toh 312, Degé Kangyur vol. 72 (mdo sde, sa), folios 157.b–161.b. English translation The Mahāsūtra “On Entering the City of Vaiśālī” 2020.
rig sngags kyi rgyal mo rma bya chen mo (Mahāmāyūrīvidyārājñī). Toh 559, Degé Kangyur vol. 90 (rgyud, pha), folios 87.b–117.a. English translation The Queen of Incantations: The Great Peahen 2023.
Asaṅga (attr.). sangs rgyas rjes su dran pa’i grel pa (Buddhānusmṛtivṛtti). Toh 3982, Degé Tengyur vol. 113 (mdo sde, ngi), folios 11.b–15.a.
Denkarma (pho brang stod thang ldan[/lhan] dkar gyi chos ’gyur ro cog gi dkar chag). Degé Tengyur, vol. 206 (sna tshogs, jo), folios 294.b–310.a.
84000. The Application of Mindfulness of the Sacred Dharma (Saddharmasmṛtyupasthāna, dam pa’i chos dran pa nye bar gzhag pa, Toh 287). Translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee. Online publication, 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2021.
————. The Mahāsūtra “On Entering the City of Vaiśālī” (Vaiśālīpraveśamahāsūtra, yangs pa’i grong khyer du ’jug pa’i mdo chen po, Toh 312). Translated by the Bhaiṣajyavastu Translation Team. Online publication, 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2020.
———. The Mahāsūtra “The Crest Insignia” (2) (Dhvajāgramahāsūtra, mdo chen po rgyal mtshan dam pa, Toh 293). Translated by Adam T. Miller. Online publication, 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2024.
———. The Play in Full (Lalitavistara, rgya cher rol pa, Toh 95). Translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee. Online publication, 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2013.
———. The Queen of Incantations: The Great Peahen (Mahāmāyūrīvidyārājñī, rig sngags kyi rgyal mo rma bya chen mo, Toh 559. Translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee. Online publication, 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2023.
———. “Mahāsūtras.” Online Knowledge Base. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2024.
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Csoma de Kőrös, Alexander. “Analysis of the Mdo.” Asiatic Researches 20 (1836): 426–28.
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Skilling, Peter (1994–97). Mahāsūtras: Great Discourses of the Buddha. 2 vols. Oxford: Pali Text Society, 1994–97.
———(2024). Buddha’s Words for Tough Times: An Anthology. New York: Wisdom Publications, 2024.
Zhao, Wen. “The Conception of Seeing the Buddha and Buddha Embodiments in Early Prajñāpāramitā Literature.” PhD diss., Ludwig Maximilian University, 2018.
Glossary
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Attested in source text
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Attested in other text
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Attested in dictionary
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Approximate attestation
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Reconstruction from Tibetan phonetic rendering
This term is a reconstruction based on the Tibetan phonetic rendering of the term.
Reconstruction from Tibetan semantic rendering
This term is a reconstruction based on the semantics of the Tibetan translation.
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blessed one
- bcom ldan ’das
- བཅོམ་ལྡན་འདས།
- bhagavat
crest insignia
- rgyal mtshan mchog
- རྒྱལ་མཚན་མཆོག
- dhvajāgra
eight types of persons
- skyes bu gang zag brgyad
- སྐྱེས་བུ་གང་ཟག་བརྒྱད།
- aṣṭapuruṣapudgala
four pairs
- skyes bu zung bzhi
- སྐྱེས་བུ་ཟུང་བཞི།
- catuḥpuruṣayuga
Heaven of the Thirty-Three
- sum cu rtsa gsum pa
- སུམ་ཅུ་རྩ་གསུམ་པ།
- trāyastriṃśa AO
knowledge and vision of liberation
- rnam par grol ba’i ye shes mthong ba
- རྣམ་པར་གྲོལ་བའི་ཡེ་ཤེས་མཐོང་བ།
- vimuktijñānadarśana AO
Kūṭāgāraśālā
- khang pa brtsegs pa’i gnas
- ཁང་པ་བརྩེགས་པའི་གནས།
- kūṭāgāraśālā AD
learned and virtuous one
- rig pa dang zhabs su ldan pa
- རིག་པ་དང་ཞབས་སུ་ལྡན་པ།
- vidyācaraṇasampanna AO
perfectly and completely awakened one
- yang dag par rdzogs pa’i sangs rgyas
- ཡང་དག་པར་རྫོགས་པའི་སངས་རྒྱས།
- samyaksaṃbuddha AO
result of non-returners
- phyir mi ’ong ba’i ’bras bu
- ཕྱིར་མི་འོང་བའི་འབྲས་བུ།
- anāgāmiphala AO
result of once-returners
- lan cig phyir ’ong ba’i ’bras bu
- ལན་ཅིག་ཕྱིར་འོང་བའི་འབྲས་བུ།
- sakṛdāgāmiphala AO
result of stream entry
- rgyun du zhugs pa’i ’bras bu
- རྒྱུན་དུ་ཞུགས་པའི་འབྲས་བུ།
- srotaāpattiphala AO
teacher of devas and humans
- lha dang mi rnams kyi ston pa
- ལྷ་དང་མི་རྣམས་ཀྱི་སྟོན་པ།
- devamanuṣyaśāstṛ AO
unsurpassed leader of those to be trained
- skyes bu gdul bya’i kha lo sgyur ba bla na med pa
- སྐྱེས་བུ་གདུལ་བྱའི་ཁ་ལོ་སྒྱུར་བ་བླ་ན་མེད་པ།
- anuttaraḥ puruṣadamyasārathi AO
Vaijayanta
- rnam par rgyal byed
- རྣམ་པར་རྒྱལ་བྱེད།
- vaijayanta
well-gone one
- bde bar gshegs pa
- བདེ་བར་གཤེགས་པ།
- sugata
Yeshé Dé
- ye shes sde
- ཡེ་ཤེས་སྡེ།
- —