Initiated by the questions of the bodhisattva Candraprabhakumārabhūta, The Teaching on the Effulgence of Light consists of a series of teachings related to the lights emitted by awakened beings as manifestations of their spiritual achievements. Amid the display of his miraculous powers, the Buddha describes the specific qualities with which each of those lights is associated, and he repeatedly emphasizes the fact that such lights are a natural expression of the insight into the emptiness of all phenomena. The sūtra is also concerned with general themes such as the qualities required by followers of the Great Vehicle and the practice of generosity.
This text was translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee under the guidance of Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche. Benjamin Collet-Cassart translated the text from Tibetan into English and wrote the introduction. Andreas Doctor compared the draft translation with the original Tibetan and edited the text. Joie Chen subsequently compared the translation against the Chinese text (Taishō 310) and made further edits to the translation.
The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.
The generous sponsorship of 晓培, which helped make the work on this translation possible, is most gratefully acknowledged.
The Teaching on the Effulgence of Light is the eleventh among the forty-nine sūtras included in the Heap of Jewels (Ratnakūṭa) section in the Degé Kangyur. The sūtra presents a series of teachings, composed mainly in verse, that focus on the nature of the lights emitted by awakened beings. Questioned by the bodhisattva Candraprabhakumārabhūta, the Buddha reveals the specific spiritual achievements underlying his manifestation of light rays, and the way those lights manifest to ripen beings with varying spiritual inclinations. As the Buddha displays the magnificence of his miraculous powers to the assemblies in attendance, he repeatedly emphasizes the fact that the lights displayed by the buddhas spontaneously emerge from insight into the emptiness of all phenomena and from the absence of clinging to marks that results from this realization. Besides the doctrine of emptiness, which is expounded at length throughout the text, this discourse also introduces two dhāraṇīs and discusses general themes associated with the Great Vehicle, such as the qualities required to progress on the path, and the importance of the practice of generosity.
The sūtra also presents two brief accounts of previous lives of Candraprabhakumārabhūta—the primary interlocutor of the Buddha—related to past occasions on which he received similar instructions on the lights emitted by awakened beings. In these narratives, he is respectively portrayed as a devoted king who worshiped a past buddha and as a young boy who witnessed the Buddha Dīpaṅkara prophesying the future awakening of the Buddha Śākyamuni. Candraprabhakumārabhūta is often portrayed by Tibetans as a past incarnation of Gampopa (sgam po pa, 1079–1153), the famous physician who established the Kagyü (bka’ brgyud) school of Tibetan Buddhism. He is mentioned in several Great Vehicle sūtras—notably the Samādhirājasūtra1 and the Mahākaruṇāpuṇḍarīkasūtra (Toh 111)—where the Buddha narrates his past lives and makes prophecies about his future lives. Some biographers of Gampopa also cite the Heap of Jewels in this context, and one of them, Norbu Gyenpa (nor bu rgyan pa, 1589–1633), specifically mentions The Teaching on the Effulgence of Light in his biography.2
We have not been able to locate any specific citation from this discourse within the commentarial works of Indian scholars, and to our knowledge this discourse has also not received much attention in modern scholarship. The only exception to this appears to be Garma C.C. Chang’s partial translation from the Chinese in his anthology of translations from the Heap of Jewels collection.3 Only a few of the texts contained in the Heap of Jewels are extant in Sanskrit, and The Teaching on the Effulgence of Light is unfortunately not among them. The Tibetan translation, which we have here rendered into English based on the Degé block print, the Comparative Edition (dpe bsdur ma), and the Stok Palace manuscript, was completed in the early translation period and is listed in the early ninth-century Denkarma (ldan dkar ma) catalog under the alternative title The Noble Accomplishment of Light (’phags pa ’od zer bsgrub pa)4. It is also found under the same title in the Phangthangma ('phang thang ma) catalog, where it is also said to be "incomplete" (sgyur 'phro).5 However, just as with several other sūtras in the Heap of Jewels section, this text might have been translated from Chinese, rather than Sanskrit.6
The Chinese canon contains a single translation of this discourse (Taishō 310[11]),7 which was produced during the early eighth century
[F.195.b][B1]Homage to all buddhas and bodhisattvas!8
Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was residing in Rājagṛha at Vulture Peak, together with a great saṅgha of five hundred monks who had all attained great independence, eight hundred billion bodhisattva great beings with only one birth remaining and led by Maitreya, and four hundred billion bodhisattva great beings led by Mañjuśrīkumārabhūta.
Present in the retinue at that time was Candraprabhakumārabhūta.9 He had been seated in the assembly, but he now rose from his seat, arranged his shawl over one shoulder,10 knelt on his right knee, and prostrated at the feet of the Blessed One. With his palms respectfully joined together, he asked, “Blessed One, which activities did the Thus-Gone One previously perform to achieve his definitive light, magnetizing light, motivating light, manifesting light, multicolored light, single-colored light, narrow light, vast light, pure light, utterly pure light, stainless light, utterly stainless light, immaculate light, gradually expanding light, bright light, utterly bright light, boundless light, utterly boundless light,[F.196.a] immeasurable light, utterly immeasurable light, unfathomable light, utterly unfathomable light, swift light, utterly swift light, nonabiding light, groundless light, blazing light, illuminating light, inspiring light, light that leads to perfection, unimpeded light, unwavering light, straight light, light that dwells within the infinite, light displaying the marks of form, light displaying the various marks of form, light displaying the immeasurable marks of form, light displaying the characteristics of blue, yellow, red, and white colors, light displaying the characteristics of violet color, light displaying the characteristics of crystalline color, light displaying the characteristics of the sky’s color,11 and other such lights? Each of those various lights is manifested mixed with light rays of five colors, and each of those blue, yellow, red, and white lights are manifested mixed with an infinite number of multicolored light rays.”
The Blessed One12 replied to Candraprabhakumārabhūta13 in verse:
Initiated by the questions of the bodhisattva Candraprabhakumārabhūta, The Teaching on the Effulgence of Light consists of a series of teachings related to the lights emitted by awakened beings as manifestations of their spiritual achievements. Amid the display of his miraculous powers, the Buddha describes the specific qualities with which each of those lights is associated, and he repeatedly emphasizes the fact that such lights are a natural expression of the insight into the emptiness of all phenomena. The sūtra is also concerned with general themes such as the qualities required by followers of the Great Vehicle and the practice of generosity.
This text was translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee under the guidance of Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche. Benjamin Collet-Cassart translated the text from Tibetan into English and wrote the introduction. Andreas Doctor compared the draft translation with the original Tibetan and edited the text. Joie Chen subsequently compared the translation against the Chinese text (Taishō 310) and made further edits to the translation.
The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.
The generous sponsorship of 晓培, which helped make the work on this translation possible, is most gratefully acknowledged.
The Teaching on the Effulgence of Light is the eleventh among the forty-nine sūtras included in the Heap of Jewels (Ratnakūṭa) section in the Degé Kangyur. The sūtra presents a series of teachings, composed mainly in verse, that focus on the nature of the lights emitted by awakened beings. Questioned by the bodhisattva Candraprabhakumārabhūta, the Buddha reveals the specific spiritual achievements underlying his manifestation of light rays, and the way those lights manifest to ripen beings with varying spiritual inclinations. As the Buddha displays the magnificence of his miraculous powers to the assemblies in attendance, he repeatedly emphasizes the fact that the lights displayed by the buddhas spontaneously emerge from insight into the emptiness of all phenomena and from the absence of clinging to marks that results from this realization. Besides the doctrine of emptiness, which is expounded at length throughout the text, this discourse also introduces two dhāraṇīs and discusses general themes associated with the Great Vehicle, such as the qualities required to progress on the path, and the importance of the practice of generosity.
The sūtra also presents two brief accounts of previous lives of Candraprabhakumārabhūta—the primary interlocutor of the Buddha—related to past occasions on which he received similar instructions on the lights emitted by awakened beings. In these narratives, he is respectively portrayed as a devoted king who worshiped a past buddha and as a young boy who witnessed the Buddha Dīpaṅkara prophesying the future awakening of the Buddha Śākyamuni. Candraprabhakumārabhūta is often portrayed by Tibetans as a past incarnation of Gampopa (sgam po pa, 1079–1153), the famous physician who established the Kagyü (bka’ brgyud) school of Tibetan Buddhism. He is mentioned in several Great Vehicle sūtras—notably the Samādhirājasūtra1 and the Mahākaruṇāpuṇḍarīkasūtra (Toh 111)—where the Buddha narrates his past lives and makes prophecies about his future lives. Some biographers of Gampopa also cite the Heap of Jewels in this context, and one of them, Norbu Gyenpa (nor bu rgyan pa, 1589–1633), specifically mentions The Teaching on the Effulgence of Light in his biography.2
We have not been able to locate any specific citation from this discourse within the commentarial works of Indian scholars, and to our knowledge this discourse has also not received much attention in modern scholarship. The only exception to this appears to be Garma C.C. Chang’s partial translation from the Chinese in his anthology of translations from the Heap of Jewels collection.3 Only a few of the texts contained in the Heap of Jewels are extant in Sanskrit, and The Teaching on the Effulgence of Light is unfortunately not among them. The Tibetan translation, which we have here rendered into English based on the Degé block print, the Comparative Edition (dpe bsdur ma), and the Stok Palace manuscript, was completed in the early translation period and is listed in the early ninth-century Denkarma (ldan dkar ma) catalog under the alternative title The Noble Accomplishment of Light (’phags pa ’od zer bsgrub pa)4. It is also found under the same title in the Phangthangma ('phang thang ma) catalog, where it is also said to be "incomplete" (sgyur 'phro).5 However, just as with several other sūtras in the Heap of Jewels section, this text might have been translated from Chinese, rather than Sanskrit.6
The Chinese canon contains a single translation of this discourse (Taishō 310[11]),7 which was produced during the early eighth century
[F.195.b][B1]Homage to all buddhas and bodhisattvas!8
Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was residing in Rājagṛha at Vulture Peak, together with a great saṅgha of five hundred monks who had all attained great independence, eight hundred billion bodhisattva great beings with only one birth remaining and led by Maitreya, and four hundred billion bodhisattva great beings led by Mañjuśrīkumārabhūta.
Present in the retinue at that time was Candraprabhakumārabhūta.9 He had been seated in the assembly, but he now rose from his seat, arranged his shawl over one shoulder,10 knelt on his right knee, and prostrated at the feet of the Blessed One. With his palms respectfully joined together, he asked, “Blessed One, which activities did the Thus-Gone One previously perform to achieve his definitive light, magnetizing light, motivating light, manifesting light, multicolored light, single-colored light, narrow light, vast light, pure light, utterly pure light, stainless light, utterly stainless light, immaculate light, gradually expanding light, bright light, utterly bright light, boundless light, utterly boundless light,[F.196.a] immeasurable light, utterly immeasurable light, unfathomable light, utterly unfathomable light, swift light, utterly swift light, nonabiding light, groundless light, blazing light, illuminating light, inspiring light, light that leads to perfection, unimpeded light, unwavering light, straight light, light that dwells within the infinite, light displaying the marks of form, light displaying the various marks of form, light displaying the immeasurable marks of form, light displaying the characteristics of blue, yellow, red, and white colors, light displaying the characteristics of violet color, light displaying the characteristics of crystalline color, light displaying the characteristics of the sky’s color,11 and other such lights? Each of those various lights is manifested mixed with light rays of five colors, and each of those blue, yellow, red, and white lights are manifested mixed with an infinite number of multicolored light rays.”
The Blessed One12 replied to Candraprabhakumārabhūta13 in verse:
See Peter Alan Roberts, trans., The King of Samādhis Sūtra (Toh 127), 2018, where he is called “the youth Candraprabha.”
The Chinese reads a little differently: 會中有一童子名為月光 (“present in the retinue was a young man named Candraprabha”).
In both Chinese and Tibetan, 空 and nam mkha’ can mean “sky” or “all-pervading space.” The Chinese term 虛空, however, is more commonly the latter, and thus the Chinese here, 虛空色相, would translate as “characteristics of the color of vast space.”
While this trope in Buddhist literature often refers to each of one’s pores, here the Tibetan reads spu khung gcig “a single pore.” This is confirmed by the Chinese, which reads 又從一毛孔，所現諸光明 (“Furthermore, many lights radiate / From a single pore”).
The Chinese adds an extra verse here: 我復有光明，名為超戲論，以讚一切智，由是故得色。 (“I have another light / Called transcending concepts; / It arose by proclaiming / All-encompassing wisdom.”)
Here the Chinese reads 以讚於無盡， 由是故得生。 (“It arose by proclaiming / The praises of inexhaustibility.”)
The Chinese reads 我復有光明， 名之為有相， 以讚於無為， 由是故得生。 (“I have another light / Called presence of marks; / It arose by proclaiming / The praises of the unconditioned.”)
Here following the Yongle, Kangxi, Lhasa, and Stok Palace srid pa (“existence”) rather than the Degé sred pa (“craving”). This is confirmed by the Chinese, which has 離諸有 (“abandon all existence”).
The Chinese reads 空無性. Depending on whether it is parsed as 空/無性 or 空無/性, it can be read as either “absence of essential nature” or “essence of emptiness,” respectively. The Chinese is more plausibly read in the latter way, since 空無 (lit. “empty and void”) is a compound often meaning the same thing as 空 (“emptiness”). The 無 here also serves a metrical function by adding an extra syllable to the line.
Here the Tibetan reads yi ge tshig ’bru spong (lit. “abandon syllables and words”). The Chinese reads 離文字. The term 文字 is a compound word that means “language,” but if parsed into two it could potentially mean “language and words” as found in the Tibetan. Here we have opted to translate it simply as “language.”
Here the Tibetan reads ’dzin rten dag spong bar ’gyur, which corresponds to the Chinese 離所依 (“will give up their reliances/that which they rely upon”).
Here the Chinese differs slightly: 一毛孔現若干光 (“From each of his pores, the Buddha emits light rays”).
Here the Chinese reads 一一寶蓋，以摩尼珠，於其網間，周匝嚴飾。 (“Each jeweled parasol / Was decorated in its lattice / And around its edges / By garlands of wish-fulfilling gems.”)
The Chinese has 是一一蓋，八十俱胝，摩尼寶珠，以為瓔珞。 (“Each of these parasols / Had eight hundred million / Wish-fulfilling gems / As its ornamentation.”)
The Chinese has 以百千偈 (“In a hundred thousand verses”). Note that the Kangxi version agrees with the Chinese, reading brgya stong rather than brgyad stong as found in the Degé and other versions.
Here the Chinese reads 爾時復有，八十俱胝，大威力天，聞是經已，心生歡喜，發菩提願，於未來世，得斯光明。 (“At that time, there were also / Eight hundred million / Gods of great majestic power / Who upon hearing this discourse / Were overcome with joy / And made the aspiration to reach awakening / And achieve this light.”)
Here the Chinese has 是時如來，知彼意樂，即授其記，當得作佛。 (“At that moment, the Thus-Gone One / Knew their thoughts / And prophesied that / They would become buddhas.”)
The Chinese is very similar but with slight differences: 爾時復有，八十俱胝，釋提桓因，並諸梵眾，聞說如是，現光經典，亦生歡喜，發菩提心，皆得授記，當來作佛。 (“At that time, there were also / Eight hundred million members / Of the retinues of Śakra / And Brahmā / Who upon hearing / This discourse that reveals the lights / Were overcome with joy / And made the aspiration to reach awakening. / All of them received prophecies / That they would become buddhas.”)
The Chinese reads a little differently here: 當知皆是佛威神，亦由文殊所加護 (“Know that this is [due to] the power of the Buddha, / And the result of Mañjuśrī’s blessings”).
chung ma bu mo. The Chinese has 婦女, which is a two-character compound that means “women” rather than “women and girls.”
Translated based on the Narthang, Kangxi, Yongle, Lhasa, and Stok Palace versions, which read mig gnas ’jig pa’i mtshan nyid. This agrees with the Chinese 若人於眼成壞相， 而常迷惑不能了. The Degé reads mi gnas ’jig pa’i mtshan nyid.
The Chinese pluralizes states of absorption here: 彼則成就諸禪定 (“Will accomplish the states of absorption”).
des ni de bzhin gshegs pa rab ston cing. The Chinese matches this curious line: 彼則顯發諸如來 (“That person will clearly reveal all the thus-gone ones”). The sense seems to be that using the wisdom of emitting light, one can reveal the thus-gone ones—and by extension their teachings—to others who previously had been ignorant of them.
The Chinese has 生死中, which literally means “in life and death” but is a general way of saying “in saṃsāra.”
The Chinese states 或施花果諸林苑 (“I sometimes gave them flowers, fruits, and various garden groves”).
Here the Chinese has 或施白象及麒麟 (“Sometimes white elephants and qilins [a type of mythical chimerical beast known also by the Japanese equivalent kirin]”).
In the Chinese this stanza reads 如是一一滿百千， 為此經故心無倦。 (“All of these numbered in the hundreds of thousands— / For the sake of this discourse my heart never tired.”)
The Chinese has 我昔為是經， 或處於生死 (“In the past, for the sake of this discourse, / Even if I was dwelling in saṃsāra”).
This reading of the Tibetan is supported by the Chinese: 哀愍於親友， 乃至諸眾生。 (“Instead, I developed sympathy for my relatives and friends, / And for all sentient beings.”)
rtag tu dus drug dag gi tshe/ sdom pa dag ni rab tu blangs. The Tibetan is ambiguous concerning the frequency of the “six times,” whereas the Chinese makes it explicit: 常於月六齋， 受持諸禁戒。 (“And always took the precepts / At the six times of the month.”)
The Chinese has 或蒔於華果， 不令人剪伐， 普施諸眾生， 隨意皆充足。 (“I sometimes planted flowers and trees, / Not allowing anyone to cut them, / But gave them all to sentient beings, / Satisfying all their wishes.”)
The Chinese reads 若有諸比丘， 為求無上智， 能以淨信心， 演說此經典， 是人及方所， 一切皆了知。 (“If there are monks / Who in the pursuit of unsurpassed wisdom / Can with faithful hearts / Teach this discourse, / I will know all / Such people as well as their location.”)
The Chinese has 月光汝當知， 諸佛神通力， 若人意清淨， 或有不清淨， 乃至於信解， 一切皆了知。 (“Candraprabha, you should know that / The miraculous powers of the buddhas / Fully know all those / Who have pure intentions / And those who have impure ones, / As well as those who have faith.”)
phan yon mchog ni thob par ’gyur. The Chinese has 當得於勝利 (“will gain victory”). 勝利 as a compound simply means “victory.” It only means “supreme benefit” if one takes 勝 and 利 separately.
The Chinese has 譬如明智人， 善能用於火， 成熟種種味， 不為火所燒。 (“As an analogy, an intelligent person / Can skillfully handle fire, / To produce various flavors / And not be burned by the fire.”) Note that after this verse, the Chinese adds another verse that is not found in the Tibetan: 若諸愚癡人， 無有善方便， 將火置於掌， 便為火所燒。 (“But an ignorant fool / Who does not possess skillful means / Would put the fire in their palm / And thus be burned by the fire.”)
The Chinese reads 若求最勝行， 當學於此經， 供養諸如來， 得實智方便。 (“Those who seek the supreme conduct / Ought to study this discourse / And make offerings to the thus-gone ones— / Thus they achieve genuine wisdom and skillful means.”)
The text only lists seventy-six types of accumulation. It is not apparent how one might get eighty items from the Chinese list either.
Here following the Yongle and Kangxi versions, which read gzugs rather than gzungs as is found in the Degé and other versions. This reading is supported by the Chinese, which reads 求無盡色 (“pursuing inexhaustible form”).
Translated based on the Kangxi, Yongle, and Stok Palace versions, which read ’phangs pa med pa. The Degé reads phongs pa med pa. The Chinese agrees with the Kangxi, Yongle, and Stok Palace reading: 不惜身命 (“not cherishing one’s body and life”).
The Chinese has 明見因果相續輪迴 (“clearly perceiving cyclic existence as the continuation of causes and results”).
The Chinese has 所謂能成諸佛如來無礙解脫 (“accomplishing the unimpeded liberation of the buddhas and thus-gone ones”).
Here the Chinese reads 能成諸佛如來無礙解脫 (“that can properly accomplish the unimpeded liberation of the buddhas and thus-gone ones”).
The Chinese seems to take this and the previous item together: 發菩提心勇猛精進 (“giving rise to the mind set on awakening with fierce diligence”).
One of the three gateways to liberation.
One of the three gateways to liberation.
In a general sense, samādhi can describe a number of different meditative states. In the Mahāyāna literature, in particular in the Prajñāpāramitā sūtras, we find extensive lists of different samādhis, numbering over one hundred.
In a more restricted sense, and when understood as a mental state, samādhi is defined as the one-pointedness of the mind (cittaikāgratā), the ability to remain on the same object over long periods of time. The Drajor Bamponyipa (sgra sbyor bam po gnyis pa) commentary on the Mahāvyutpatti explains the term samādhi as referring to the instrument through which mind and mental states “get collected,” i.e., it is by the force of samādhi that the continuum of mind and mental states becomes collected on a single point of reference without getting distracted.
The essentially pure nature of mind is obscured and afflicted by various psychological defilements, which destroy the mind’s peace and composure and lead to unwholesome deeds of body, speech, and mind, acting as causes for continued existence in saṃsāra. Included among them are the primary afflictions of desire (rāga), anger (dveṣa), and ignorance (avidyā). It is said that there are eighty-four thousand of these negative mental qualities, for which the eighty-four thousand categories of the Buddha’s teachings serve as the antidote.
Kleśa is also commonly translated as “negative emotions,” “disturbing emotions,” and so on. The Pāli kilesa, Middle Indic kileśa, and Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit kleśa all primarily mean “stain” or “defilement.” The translation “affliction” is a secondary development that derives from the more general (non-Buddhist) classical understanding of √kliś (“to harm,“ “to afflict”). Both meanings are noted by Buddhist commentators.
Five collections of similar phenomena under which all compounded dharmas may be included: form, feeling, perception, formation, and consciousness. On the individual level the five aggregates refer to the basis upon which the mistaken idea of a self is projected.
The first monk that the Buddha Śākyamuni recognized as having understood his teachings.
A major śrāvaka disciple and personal attendant of the Buddha Śākyamuni during the last twenty-five years of his life. He was a cousin of the Buddha (according to the Mahāvastu, he was a son of Śuklodana, one of the brothers of King Śuddhodana, which means he was a brother of Devadatta; other sources say he was a son of Amṛtodana, another brother of King Śuddhodana, which means he would have been a brother of Aniruddha).
Ānanda, having always been in the Buddha’s presence, is said to have memorized all the teachings he heard and is celebrated for having recited all the Buddha’s teachings by memory at the first council of the Buddhist saṅgha, thus preserving the teachings after the Buddha’s parinirvāṇa. The phrase “Thus did I hear at one time,” found at the beginning of the sūtras, usually stands for his recitation of the teachings. He became a patriarch after the passing of Mahākāśyapa.
A king of the nāgas.
Four types of mindfulness that regard the body, feelings, the mind, and dharmas.
A type of nonhuman being whose precise status is subject to different views, but is included as one of the six classes of beings in the sixfold classification of realms of rebirth. In the Buddhist context, asuras are powerful beings said to be dominated by envy, ambition, and hostility. They are also known in the pre-Buddhist and pre-Vedic mythologies of India and Iran, and feature prominently in Vedic and post-Vedic Brahmanical mythology, as well as in the Buddhist tradition. In these traditions, asuras are often described as being engaged in interminable conflict with the devas (gods).
Determination, discernment, diligence, and concentration.
A high-ranking deity presiding over a divine world; he is also considered to be the lord of the Sahā world (our universe). Though not considered a creator god in Buddhism, Brahmā occupies an important place as one of two gods (the other being Indra/Śakra) said to have first exhorted the Buddha Śākyamuni to teach the Dharma. The particular heavens found in the form realm over which Brahmā rules are often some of the most sought-after realms of higher rebirth in Buddhist literature. Since there are many universes or world systems, there are also multiple Brahmās presiding over them. His most frequent epithets are “Lord of the Sahā World” (sahāṃpati) and Great Brahmā (mahābrahman).
First god realm of form, it is the lowest of the three heavens that make up the first dhyāna heaven in the form realm.
A bodhisattva, the principal interlocutor of the Buddha in The Teaching on the Effulgence of Light.
Dhyāna is defined as one-pointed abiding in an undistracted state of mind, free from afflicted mental states. Four states of dhyāna are identified as being conducive to birth within the form realm. In the context of the Mahāyāna, it is the fifth of the six perfections. It is commonly translated as “concentration,” “meditative concentration,” and so on.
A king of the past.
The term dhāraṇī has the sense of something that “holds” or “retains,” and so it can refer to the special capacity of practitioners to memorize and recall detailed teachings. It can also refer to a verbal expression of the teachings—an incantation, spell, or mnemonic formula—that distills and “holds” essential points of the Dharma and is used by practitioners to attain mundane and supramundane goals. The same term is also used to denote texts that contain such formulas.
One of the Four Great Kings, he presides over the eastern quarter and rules over the gandharvas.
A buddha who preceded Śākyamuni and prophesied his awakening.
Correct view, intention, speech, actions, livelihood, effort, mindfulness, and concentration.
In the context of Buddhist philosophy, one way to describe experience in terms of eighteen elements (eye, form, and eye consciousness; ear, sound, and ear consciousness; nose, smell, and nose consciousness; tongue, taste, and tongue consciousness; body, touch, and body consciousness; and mind, mental phenomena, and mind consciousness).
This also refers to the elements of the world, which can be enumerated as four, five, or six. The four elements are earth, water, fire, and air. A fifth, space, is often added, and the sixth is consciousness.
Emptiness denotes the ultimate nature of reality, the total absence of inherent existence and self-identity with respect to all phenomena. According to this view, all things and events are devoid of any independent, intrinsic reality that constitutes their essence. Nothing can be said to exist independent of the complex network of factors that gives rise to its origination, nor are phenomena independent of the cognitive processes and mental constructs that make up the conventional framework within which their identity and existence are posited. When all levels of conceptualization dissolve and when all forms of dichotomizing tendencies are quelled through deliberate meditative deconstruction of conceptual elaborations, the ultimate nature of reality will finally become manifest. It is the first of the three gateways to liberation.
A buddha of the past.
Four types of exertion of abandoning existing negative mind states, abandoning the production of such states, giving rise to virtuous mind states that are not yet produced, and letting those states continue.
Mindfulness, discrimination, diligence, joy, ease, absorption, and equanimity.
Four unique types of confidence possessed by a buddha, these are enumerated in a variety of ways.
Four levels of concentration conducive to birth within the form realm.
The four correct and unhindered discriminating knowledges of the doctrine or Dharma, of meaning, of language, and of brilliance or eloquence. These are the essential means by which the buddhas impart their teachings.
Generosity, kind words, meaningful actions, and practicing what one preaches.
Monks, nuns, and male and female lay practitioners.
The Buddha’s first teaching, which explains suffering, the origin of suffering, the cessation of suffering, and the path to the cessation of suffering.
A king of the nāgas.
A class of generally benevolent nonhuman beings who inhabit the skies, sometimes said to inhabit fantastic cities in the clouds, and more specifically to dwell on the eastern slopes of Mount Meru, where they are ruled by the Great King Dhṛtarāṣṭra. They are most renowned as celestial musicians who serve the gods. In the Abhidharma, the term is also used to refer to the mental body assumed by sentient beings during the intermediate state between death and rebirth. Gandharvas are said to live on fragrances (gandha) in the desire realm, hence the Tibetan translation dri za, meaning “scent eater.”
The Gaṅgā, or Ganges in English, is considered to be the most sacred river of India, particularly within the Hindu tradition. It starts in the Himalayas, flows through the northern plains of India, bathing the holy city of Vārāṇasī, and meets the sea at the Bay of Bengal, in Bangladesh. In the sūtras, however, this river is mostly mentioned not for its sacredness but for its abundant sands—noticeable still today on its many sandy banks and at its delta—which serve as a common metaphor for infinitely large numbers.
According to Buddhist cosmology, as explained in the Abhidharmakośa, it is one of the four rivers that flow from Lake Anavatapta and cross the southern continent of Jambudvīpa—the known human world or more specifically the Indian subcontinent.
In Indian mythology, the garuḍa is an eagle-like bird that is regarded as the king of all birds, normally depicted with a sharp, owl-like beak, often holding a snake, and with large and powerful wings. They are traditionally enemies of the nāgas. In the Vedas, they are said to have brought nectar from the heavens to earth. Garuḍa can also be used as a proper name for a king of such creatures.
The Sanskrit term śrāvaka, and the Tibetan nyan thos, both derived from the verb “to hear,” are usually defined as “those who hear the teaching from the Buddha and make it heard to others.” Primarily this refers to those disciples of the Buddha who aspire to attain the state of an arhat seeking their own liberation and nirvāṇa. They are the practitioners of the first turning of the wheel of the Dharma on the four noble truths, who realize the suffering inherent in saṃsāra and focus on understanding that there is no independent self. By conquering afflicted mental states (kleśa), they liberate themselves, attaining first the stage of stream enterers at the path of seeing, followed by the stage of once-returners who will be reborn only one more time, and then the stage of non-returners who will no longer be reborn into the desire realm. The final goal is to become an arhat. These four stages are also known as the “four results of spiritual practice.”
One of the six heavens of the desire realm.
One of the six heavens of the desire realm.
Tuṣita (or sometimes Saṃtuṣita), literally “Joyous” or “Contented,” is one of the six heavens of the desire realm (kāmadhātu). In standard classifications, such as the one in the Abhidharmakośa, it is ranked as the fourth of the six counting from below. This god realm is where all future buddhas are said to dwell before taking on their final rebirth prior to awakening. There, the Buddha Śākyamuni lived his preceding life as the bodhisattva Śvetaketu. When departing to take birth in this world, he appointed the bodhisattva Maitreya, who will be the next buddha of this eon, as his Dharma regent in Tuṣita. For an account of the Buddha’s previous life in Tuṣita, see The Play in Full (Toh 95), 2.12, and for an account of Maitreya’s birth in Tuṣita and a description of this realm, see The Sūtra on Maitreya’s Birth in the Heaven of Joy, (Toh 199).
One of the six heavens of the desire realm.
One of the heavens of Buddhist cosmology, lowest among the six heavens of the desire realm (kāmadhātu, ’dod khams). Dwelling place of the Four Great Kings (caturmahārāja, rgyal chen bzhi), traditionally located on a terrace of Sumeru, just below the Heaven of the Thirty-Three. Each cardinal direction is ruled by one of the Four Great Kings and inhabited by a different class of nonhuman beings as their subjects: in the east, Dhṛtarāṣṭra rules the gandharvas; in the south, Virūḍhaka rules the kumbhāṇḍas; in the west, Virūpākṣa rules the nāgas; and in the north, Vaiśravaṇa rules the yakṣas.
One of the six heavens of the desire realm.
One of the eight hot hells.
A type of extrasensory perception gained through spiritual practice, in the Buddhist presentation consisting of five types: (1) miraculous abilities, (2) divine eye, (3) divine ear, (4) knowledge of others’ minds, and (5) recollection of past lives.
The name of the southern continent in Buddhist cosmology, which can signify either the known human world, or more specifically the Indian subcontinent, literally “the jambu island/continent.” Jambu is the name used for a range of plum-like fruits from trees belonging to the genus Szygium, particularly Szygium jambos and Szygium cumini, and it has commonly been rendered “rose apple,” although “black plum” may be a less misleading term. Among various explanations given for the continent being so named, one (in the Abhidharmakośa) is that a jambu tree grows in its northern mountains beside Lake Anavatapta, mythically considered the source of the four great rivers of India, and that the continent is therefore named from the tree or the fruit. Jambudvīpa has the Vajrāsana at its center and is the only continent upon which buddhas attain awakening.
One of the principal disciples of the Buddha Śākyamuni.
One of the principal disciples of the Buddha Śākyamuni.
A class of malevolent nonhuman beings who are often identified as the source of illness.
’od zer kun du bkye ba bstan pa (Raśmisamantamuktanirdeśa). Toh 55, Degé Kangyur vol. 40 (dkon brtsegs, kha), folios 195.b–255.b.
’od zer kun du bkye ba bstan pa. 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. 40, pp. 554–702.
’phags pa ’od zer bsgrub pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo. Stok 11.11, Stok Palace Kangyur vol. 36 (dkon brtsegs, kha), folios 289.a–379.a.
snying rje chen po pad+ma dkar po (Mahākaruṇāpuṇḍarīka). Toh 111, Degé Kangyur vol. 50 (mdo sde, cha), folios 56.a–128.b.
ting nge ’dzin gyi rgyal po’i mdo (Samādhirājasūtra). Toh 127, Degé Kangyur vol. 55 (mdo sde, da), folios 1.b–170.b. English translation in Roberts 2018.
Chang, Garma C. C. A Treasury of Mahāyāna Sūtras: Selections from the Mahāratnakūta Sūtra. University Park: The Pennsylvania State University Press, 1983.
Chuxian guangming hui 出現光明會. Taishō 310(11). (Translation of Raśmisamantamuktanirdeśa by Bodhiruci).
Denkarma (pho brang stod thang ldan dkar gyi chos kyi ’gyur ro cog gi dkar chag). Toh 4364, Degé Tengyur vol. 206 (sna tshogs, jo), folios 294.b–310.a.
Herrmann-Pfandt, Adelheid. Die lHan kar ma: ein früher Katalog der ins Tibetische übersetzten buddhistischen Texte. Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 2008.
Hirakawa, Akira, ed. 佛教漢梵大辭典 [Buddhist Chinese–Sanskrit dictionary]. Tokyo: The Reiyukai, 1997.
《中華佛教百科全書》 Zhonghua Fojiao Baike Quanshu [Chinese Buddhist encyclopedia]. Tainan: 中華佛教百科文獻基金會 [The Chinese Buddhist Encyclopaedic Resources Foundation], 1994.
Phangthangma (dkar chag ʼphang thang ma). Beijing: mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 2003.
Robert, Peter Alan, trans. The King of Samādhis Sūtra (Samādhirājasūtra, Toh 127). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2018.
Trungram Gyatrul Rinpoche Sherpa. “Gampopa, the Monk and the Yogi: His Life and Teachings.” PhD diss., Harvard University, 2004.
Silk, Jonathan. “Chinese Sūtras in Tibetan Translation: A Preliminary Survey.” Annual Report of The International Research Institute for Advanced Buddhology at Soka University for the Academic Year 2019, vol. XXII, 227–46. Tokyo, 2020.
