While residing in the Jeta’s Grove in Śrāvastī, the Buddha explains to an assembly of monks and bodhisattvas four factors of the path that bodhisattvas must not abandon even at the cost of their lives: (1) the thought of awakening, (2) the spiritual friend, (3) tolerance and lenience (which are here counted as one), and (4) dwelling in the wilderness. The sūtra concludes with two verses in which the Buddha restates the four factors and asserts that those who do not relinquish them will attain complete awakening.
The translation was completed by Adam Pearcey under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha and edited by the 84000 editorial team.
The Noble Mahāyāna Sūtra on the Four Factors (Āryacaturdharmakanāmamahāyāna sūtra) is the third of three short sūtras with similar titles (all referring to sets of four dharmas or factors of the path). In many Kangyurs (predominantly those of Tshalpa origin, including the Degé Kangyur) these sūtras are found grouped together.
Of the other sūtras in this set, The Sūtra Teaching the Four Factors (Toh 249)1 is concerned with the four factors necessary for the practice of confession, while The Four Factors (Toh 250)2 identifies four beliefs that a wise son of a good family should not accept as true. Two further works, The Accomplishment of the Sets of Four Qualities: The Bodhisattvas’ Prātimokṣa (Toh 248)3 and The Fourfold Accomplishment (Toh 252)4 also concern themselves with “sets of four” (catuṣka, bzhi pa), thereby forming a larger group of five sūtras in the Degé Kangyur that lay out key elements of the practice of the path in discrete sets of four factors.
In the present sūtra, dharma is a flexible term used to refer to a specific set or category of four important components or factors of the path that a bodhisattva, someone who aspires to achieve the perfect awakening of a buddha, should not abandon under any circumstances. These four factors are (1) the thought of awakening, (2) the spiritual friend or companion and guide in virtue, (3) tolerance and lenience, considered here as a pair, and (4) dwelling in the wilderness, that is, in a place suitably removed from the social world of the town so as to enable spiritual practice.
The Buddha presents these four factors using this formula: “For as long as they live, bodhisattvas, great beings, should not abandon x even at the cost of their lives.” This is repeated in six successive lines, first to introduce all four factors together, then for each one in turn, and finally to refer to all four by way of recapitulation. The sūtra thus employs the rhetorical device of repetition—combining anaphora and epistrophe, repetition of the beginning and end phrases of a line—that is such a common feature of Buddhist canonical literature.
The text concludes with two stanzas, also spoken by the Buddha, that summarize the sūtra’s message and explain the benefit of maintaining the four factors. These verses present the factors in a slightly different sequence, with tolerance and lenience preceding the factor of the spiritual friend. They also exhort the wise bodhisattva to be as fearless as a lion, “the king of beasts,” while dwelling in the wilderness.
The Chinese Tripiṭaka contains two translations of the sūtra (Taishō 7725 & Taishō 7736), both by Divākara and dated to 680
There is a short commentary on this sūtra attributed to Vasubandhu and preserved in Tibetan in the Tengyur, (*Āryacaturdharmakavyākhyāna, ’phags pa chos bzhi pa’i rnam par bshad pa, Toh 3990), which we have also translated,10 as well as a slightly longer commentary on this commentary, attributed to Jñānadatta (: *Āryacaturdharmakavyākhyānaṭīkā, ’phags pa chos bzhi pa’i rgya cher bshad pa’i rgya cher ’grel pa, Toh 3990a).
Several independent treatises found within the Tengyur also make reference to this sūtra. Śāntideva’s Compendium of Training (Śikṣāsamuccaya, Toh 3940), for instance, refers to the second of the four factors when discussing the importance of the teacher.11 Prajñākaramati also cites the same line in his Commentary on the Difficult Points of the Bodhicaryāvatāra (Bodhicaryāvatārapañjikā; byang chub kyi spyod pa la ’jug pa’i dka’ ’grel, Toh 3872).12 Vimalamitra refers to the fourth factor on the importance of dwelling in the wilderness in The Meaning of the Gradual Cultivation (rim gyis ’jug pa’i sgom don, Toh 3938).13 The sūtra has also been cited in works by Tibetan authors. To give just one example, the celebrated Nyingma master Longchen Rabjam (1308–64) quotes the sūtra’s line about the importance of the spiritual friend in the eighth chapter of The White Lotus Autocommentary on the Wish-Fulfilling Treasury (yid bzhin mdzod kyi ’grel pa pad ma dkar po).14
A French translation of the sūtra by Léon Feer was first published in 1866 (and reprinted in 1883).15 Peter Skilling has included a fine English translation along with some helpful notes under the title “Four Dharmas Never to Be Abandoned” in his recent collection Questioning the Buddha: A Selection of Twenty-Five Sutras.16
The following translation was made primarily on the basis of the Degé block print with reference to the Comparative Edition (dpe bsdur ma), the Stok Palace Kangyur, IOL Tib J 69, and the commentaries ascribed to Vasubandhu and Jñānadatta.
[F.60.b]Homage to all the buddhas and bodhisattvas!
Thus did I hear at one time. The Buddha was residing in Śrāvastī, in Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍada’s park, together with a great community of monks, consisting of 1,250 monks, and a great assembly of bodhisattvas. At that time, the Blessed One addressed the monks:
“Monks, for as long as they live, bodhisattvas, great beings, should not abandon four factors even at the cost of their lives. What are these four?
“Monks, for as long as they live, bodhisattvas, great beings, should not abandon the thought of awakening even at the cost of their lives.
“Monks, for as long as they live, bodhisattvas, great beings, should not abandon the spiritual friend even at the cost of their lives.
“Monks, for as long as they live, bodhisattvas, great beings, should not abandon tolerance and lenience even at the cost of their lives.17
“Monks, for as long as they live, bodhisattvas, great beings, should not abandon dwelling in the wilderness18 even at the cost of their lives.
“Monks, for as long as they live, bodhisattvas, great beings, should not abandon these four factors even at the cost of their lives.”
The Blessed One spoke these words, and once the Sugata had spoken in this way, he, the Teacher, also said the following:
When the Blessed One had said this, the monks and bodhisattvas, together with the entire assembly, rejoiced and praised the words of the Blessed One.
This concludes “The Noble Mahāyāna Sūtra on the Four Factors.”
While residing in the Jeta’s Grove in Śrāvastī, the Buddha explains to an assembly of monks and bodhisattvas four factors of the path that bodhisattvas must not abandon even at the cost of their lives: (1) the thought of awakening, (2) the spiritual friend, (3) tolerance and lenience (which are here counted as one), and (4) dwelling in the wilderness. The sūtra concludes with two verses in which the Buddha restates the four factors and asserts that those who do not relinquish them will attain complete awakening.
The translation was completed by Adam Pearcey under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha and edited by the 84000 editorial team.
The Noble Mahāyāna Sūtra on the Four Factors (Āryacaturdharmakanāmamahāyāna sūtra) is the third of three short sūtras with similar titles (all referring to sets of four dharmas or factors of the path). In many Kangyurs (predominantly those of Tshalpa origin, including the Degé Kangyur) these sūtras are found grouped together.
Of the other sūtras in this set, The Sūtra Teaching the Four Factors (Toh 249)1 is concerned with the four factors necessary for the practice of confession, while The Four Factors (Toh 250)2 identifies four beliefs that a wise son of a good family should not accept as true. Two further works, The Accomplishment of the Sets of Four Qualities: The Bodhisattvas’ Prātimokṣa (Toh 248)3 and The Fourfold Accomplishment (Toh 252)4 also concern themselves with “sets of four” (catuṣka, bzhi pa), thereby forming a larger group of five sūtras in the Degé Kangyur that lay out key elements of the practice of the path in discrete sets of four factors.
In the present sūtra, dharma is a flexible term used to refer to a specific set or category of four important components or factors of the path that a bodhisattva, someone who aspires to achieve the perfect awakening of a buddha, should not abandon under any circumstances. These four factors are (1) the thought of awakening, (2) the spiritual friend or companion and guide in virtue, (3) tolerance and lenience, considered here as a pair, and (4) dwelling in the wilderness, that is, in a place suitably removed from the social world of the town so as to enable spiritual practice.
The Buddha presents these four factors using this formula: “For as long as they live, bodhisattvas, great beings, should not abandon x even at the cost of their lives.” This is repeated in six successive lines, first to introduce all four factors together, then for each one in turn, and finally to refer to all four by way of recapitulation. The sūtra thus employs the rhetorical device of repetition—combining anaphora and epistrophe, repetition of the beginning and end phrases of a line—that is such a common feature of Buddhist canonical literature.
The text concludes with two stanzas, also spoken by the Buddha, that summarize the sūtra’s message and explain the benefit of maintaining the four factors. These verses present the factors in a slightly different sequence, with tolerance and lenience preceding the factor of the spiritual friend. They also exhort the wise bodhisattva to be as fearless as a lion, “the king of beasts,” while dwelling in the wilderness.
The Chinese Tripiṭaka contains two translations of the sūtra (Taishō 7725 & Taishō 7736), both by Divākara and dated to 680
There is a short commentary on this sūtra attributed to Vasubandhu and preserved in Tibetan in the Tengyur, (*Āryacaturdharmakavyākhyāna, ’phags pa chos bzhi pa’i rnam par bshad pa, Toh 3990), which we have also translated,10 as well as a slightly longer commentary on this commentary, attributed to Jñānadatta (: *Āryacaturdharmakavyākhyānaṭīkā, ’phags pa chos bzhi pa’i rgya cher bshad pa’i rgya cher ’grel pa, Toh 3990a).
Several independent treatises found within the Tengyur also make reference to this sūtra. Śāntideva’s Compendium of Training (Śikṣāsamuccaya, Toh 3940), for instance, refers to the second of the four factors when discussing the importance of the teacher.11 Prajñākaramati also cites the same line in his Commentary on the Difficult Points of the Bodhicaryāvatāra (Bodhicaryāvatārapañjikā; byang chub kyi spyod pa la ’jug pa’i dka’ ’grel, Toh 3872).12 Vimalamitra refers to the fourth factor on the importance of dwelling in the wilderness in The Meaning of the Gradual Cultivation (rim gyis ’jug pa’i sgom don, Toh 3938).13 The sūtra has also been cited in works by Tibetan authors. To give just one example, the celebrated Nyingma master Longchen Rabjam (1308–64) quotes the sūtra’s line about the importance of the spiritual friend in the eighth chapter of The White Lotus Autocommentary on the Wish-Fulfilling Treasury (yid bzhin mdzod kyi ’grel pa pad ma dkar po).14
A French translation of the sūtra by Léon Feer was first published in 1866 (and reprinted in 1883).15 Peter Skilling has included a fine English translation along with some helpful notes under the title “Four Dharmas Never to Be Abandoned” in his recent collection Questioning the Buddha: A Selection of Twenty-Five Sutras.16
The following translation was made primarily on the basis of the Degé block print with reference to the Comparative Edition (dpe bsdur ma), the Stok Palace Kangyur, IOL Tib J 69, and the commentaries ascribed to Vasubandhu and Jñānadatta.
[F.60.b]Homage to all the buddhas and bodhisattvas!
Thus did I hear at one time. The Buddha was residing in Śrāvastī, in Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍada’s park, together with a great community of monks, consisting of 1,250 monks, and a great assembly of bodhisattvas. At that time, the Blessed One addressed the monks:
“Monks, for as long as they live, bodhisattvas, great beings, should not abandon four factors even at the cost of their lives. What are these four?
“Monks, for as long as they live, bodhisattvas, great beings, should not abandon the thought of awakening even at the cost of their lives.
“Monks, for as long as they live, bodhisattvas, great beings, should not abandon the spiritual friend even at the cost of their lives.
“Monks, for as long as they live, bodhisattvas, great beings, should not abandon tolerance and lenience even at the cost of their lives.17
“Monks, for as long as they live, bodhisattvas, great beings, should not abandon dwelling in the wilderness18 even at the cost of their lives.
“Monks, for as long as they live, bodhisattvas, great beings, should not abandon these four factors even at the cost of their lives.”
The Blessed One spoke these words, and once the Sugata had spoken in this way, he, the Teacher, also said the following:
When the Blessed One had said this, the monks and bodhisattvas, together with the entire assembly, rejoiced and praised the words of the Blessed One.
This concludes “The Noble Mahāyāna Sūtra on the Four Factors.”
Pearcey, Adam. trans. (2019), The Sūtra Teaching the Four Factors, Toh 249 (84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2019).
Pearcey, Adam. trans. (2023a), The Four Factors, Toh 250 (84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2023).
Dharmachakra Translation Committee, trans., The Accomplishment of the Sets of Four Qualities: The Bodhisattvas’ Prātimokṣa, Toh 248 (84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2024).
Dharmachakra Translation Committee, trans., The Fourfold Accomplishment, Toh 252 (84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2020).
Śāntideva, 29a.4. Translations appear in Bendall & Rouse (1922), p. 43, and Goodman (2016), p. 44.
According to Jñānadatta’s commentary, tolerance (kṣanti; bzod pa) means bearing the harm done to one by others (pha rol gyi gnod pa byas pa la bzod pa), and lenience (sauratya; des pa) means refraining from harming them (pha rol la gnod pa mi byed pa).
Dwelling in the wilderness is also one of the twelve ascetic practices (dhūtaguṇa). Note that related to (and sometimes conflated with) the Sanskrit araṇya in the compound araṇyavāsa—attested for dgon pa la gnas pa not in this text but in the Sanskrit of the Rāṣṭrapālaparipṛcchā (Toh 62)—is another term, araṇa, in the compound araṇavihāra, of which the Tibetan rendering is nyon mongs pa med par gnas pa (Mvy 6366), with the more “inner” meaning of “dwelling free of afflicted mental states.” See Edgerton s.v. araṇya and araṇya.
The translation here follows the Degé and IOL Tib J 69 editions, which have sems skyed cig. The Stok Palace Kangyur version reads sems dpa’ cig.
An ideal lifestyle for a practitioner, described as dwelling in a place suitably removed from the social world of the town as to enable spiritual practice. See also n.18.
The term can be understood to mean “great courageous one” or "great hero,” or (from the Sanskrit) simply “great being,” and is almost always found as an epithet of “bodhisattva.” The qualification “great” in this term, according to the majority of canonical definitions, focuses on the generic greatness common to all bodhisattvas, i.e., the greatness implicit in the bodhisattva vow itself in terms of outlook, aspiration, number of beings to be benefited, potential or eventual accomplishments, and so forth. In this sense the mahā- (“great”) is close in its connotations to the mahā- in “Mahāyāna.” While individual bodhisattvas described as mahāsattva may in many cases also be “great” in terms of their level of realization, this is largely coincidental, and in the canonical texts the epithet is not restricted to bodhisattvas at any particular point in their career. Indeed, in a few cases even bodhisattvas whose path has taken a wrong direction are still described as bodhisattva mahāsattva.
Later commentarial writings do nevertheless define the term—variably—in terms of bodhisattvas having attained a particular level (bhūmi) or realization. The most common qualifying criteria mentioned are attaining the path of seeing, attaining irreversibility (according to its various definitions), or attaining the seventh bhūmi.
One of the first Buddhist monasteries, located in a park outside Śrāvastī, the capital of the ancient kingdom of Kośala in northern India. This park was originally owned by Prince Jeta, hence the name Jetavana, meaning Jeta’s grove. The wealthy merchant Anāthapiṇḍada, wishing to offer it to the Buddha, sought to buy it from him, but the prince, not wishing to sell, said he would only do so if Anāthapiṇḍada covered the entire property with gold coins. Anāthapiṇḍada agreed, and managed to cover all of the park except the entrance, hence the name Anāthapiṇḍadasyārāmaḥ, meaning Anāthapiṇḍada’s park. The place is usually referred to in the sūtras as “Jetavana, Anāthapiṇḍada’s park,” and according to the Saṃghabhedavastu the Buddha used Prince Jeta’s name in first place because that was Prince Jeta’s own unspoken wish while Anāthapiṇḍada was offering the park. Inspired by the occasion and the Buddha’s use of his name, Prince Jeta then offered the rest of the property and had an entrance gate built. The Buddha specifically instructed those who recite the sūtras to use Prince Jeta’s name in first place to commemorate the mutual effort of both benefactors.
Anāthapiṇḍada built residences for the monks, to house them during the monsoon season, thus creating the first Buddhist monastery. It was one of the Buddha’s main residences, where he spent around nineteen rainy season retreats, and it was therefore the setting for many of the Buddha’s discourses and events. According to the travel accounts of Chinese monks, it was still in use as a Buddhist monastery in the early fifth century ᴄᴇ, but by the sixth century it had been reduced to ruins.
Gentleness, especially in one’s thoughts and behavior toward others; the absence of any desire for retaliation. Often paired with “tolerance.”
The teacher or guide upon the spiritual path.
During the life of the Buddha, Śrāvastī was the capital city of the powerful kingdom of Kośala, ruled by King Prasenajit, who became a follower and patron of the Buddha. It was also the hometown of Anāthapiṇḍada, the wealthy patron who first invited the Buddha there, and then offered him a park known as Jetavana, Prince Jeta’s Grove, which became one of the first Buddhist monasteries. The Buddha is said to have spent about twenty-five rainy seasons with his disciples in Śrāvastī, thus it is named as the setting of numerous events and teachings. It is located in present-day Uttar Pradesh in northern India.
In the general Mahāyāna teachings the mind of awakening (bodhicitta) is the intention to attain the complete awakening of a perfect buddha for the sake of all beings. On the level of absolute truth, the mind of awakening is the realization of the awakened state itself.
A term meaning acceptance, forbearance, or patience. As the third of the six perfections, patience is classified into three kinds: the capacity to tolerate abuse from sentient beings, to tolerate the hardships of the path to buddhahood, and to tolerate the profound nature of reality. As a term referring to a bodhisattva’s realization, dharmakṣānti (chos la bzod pa) can refer to the ways one becomes “receptive” to the nature of Dharma, and it can be an abbreviation of anutpattikadharmakṣānti, “forbearance for the unborn nature, or nonproduction, of dharmas.”
’phags pa chos bzhi pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo (Āryacaturdharmakanāmamahāyānasūtra). Toh 251, Degé Kangyur vol. 66 (mdo sde, za), folios 60.b–61.a.
’phags pa chos bzhi pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo. 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 Tripiṭaka 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. 66, pp. 169–70.
’phags pa chos bzhi pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo. Stok Palace Kangyur vol. 65 (stog pho brang bris ma bka’ ’gyur), folios 417.a–418.a.
dkar chag ’phang thang ma. Beijing: mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 2003.
pho brang stod thang ldan dkar gyi chos kyi ’gyur ro cog gi dkar chag [Denkarma]. Toh 4364, Degé Tengyur vol. 206 (sna tshogs, jo), folios 294.b–310.a.
Jñānadatta. ’phags pa chos bzhi pa’i rgya cher bshad pa’i rgya cher ’grel pa (*Āryacaturdharmakavyākhyānaṭīkā). Toh 3990a, Degé Tengyur vol. 113 (mdo ’grel, ngi), folios 67.a–71.b.
Longchen Rabjam (klong chen rab ’byams). yid bzhin mdzod kyi ’grel pa pad ma dkar po stod cha in kun mkhyen klong chen rab ’byams kyi gsung ’bum. 26 vols. Beijing: krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang, 2009. Vol. 13: 68–467. BDRC W1KG4884.
Prajñākaramati. byang chub kyi spyod pa la ’jug pa’i dka’ ’grel (Bodhicaryāvatārapañjikā) Toh 3872, Degé Tengyur vol. 105 (dbu ma, la), folios 41.b–288.a.
Śāntideva. bslab pa kun las btus pa (Śikṣāsamuccaya). Toh 3940, Degé Tengyur vol. 111 (dbu ma, khi), folios 3.a–194.b.
Vasubandhu. ’phags pa chos bzhi pa’i rnam par bshad pa (*Āryacaturdharmakavyākhyāna). Toh 3990, Degé Tengyur vol. 113 (mdo ’grel, ngi), folios 66.a–66.b.
Vimalamitra. rim gyis ’jug pa’i sgom don. Toh 3938, Degé Tengyur vol. 110 (dbu ma, ki), folios 340.b–358.a.
IOL Tib J 69. British Library, London. Accessed through The International Dunhuang Project: The Silk Road Online.
Bendall, Cecil and W.H.D. Rouse, trans. Śikshā-Samuccaya: A Compendium of Buddhist Doctrine Compiled by Śāntideva. London: John Murray, 1922.
Dharmachakra Translation Committee, trans. (2020). The Fourfold Accomplishment (Catuṣkanirhāra, Toh 252). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2020.
Dharmachakra Translation Committee, trans. (2024). The Accomplishment of the Sets of Four Qualities: The Bodhisattvas’ Prātimokṣa (Bodhisattvaprātimokṣacatuṣkanirhāra, Toh 248). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2024.
Feer, Henri Léon. “Le Sūtra des Quatre Préceptes.” Journal Asiatique, sér. 6, tome 8 (1866): 269–357.
Goodman, Charles. The Training Anthology of Śāntideva: A Translation of the Śikṣā-samuccaya. New York: Oxford University Press, 2016.
Herrmann-Pfandt, Adelheid. Die lHan kar ma: ein früher Katalog der ins Tibetische übersetzten buddhistischen Texte. Wien: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 2008.
Pearcey, Adam, trans. (2019). The Sūtra Teaching the Four Factors (Caturdharmanirdeśasūtra, Toh 249). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2019.
Pearcey, Adam, trans. (2023a). The Four Factors (Caturdharmakasūtra, Toh 250). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2023.
Pearcey, Adam, trans. (2023b). An Explanation of The Noble Sūtra on the Four Factors (*Āryacaturdharmakavyākhyāna, Toh 3990). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2023.
Skilling, Peter. Questioning the Buddha: A Selection of Twenty-Five Sutras. Somerville, MA: Wisdom Publications, 2021.
