Our Offering to You: Teachings on Sūtra

The last thing we want to do is make translations that are objects of reverence but are not used. We must use our translations in study and practice.

These words, spoken by Dzogchen Pönlop Rinpoche at the 2009 conference that birthed 84000, have remained with us to date. The guiding principle of our dedicated translators and editors focuses on giving vast swathes of the global population the ability to read the Buddha’s words for themselves, in their own time, and to examine, question, and study them at will.

Of course, in today’s day and age, we often find ourselves too busy to give ourselves enough time to do this. That, or we simply lack the discipline in the face of so many modern distractions.

Many of you will know that we at 84000 have been creating a rich assortment of integrated comprehension tools for readers in our online Reading Room, that we hope will make these ancient texts more engaging for readers.  But, this year we wanted to go a step further.

This summer, we added an exciting new resource for our friends and supporters: Teachings on Sūtra.

Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche teaching the sūtra, ‘The Questions of Maitrēya’ at Sujata Village, near Bodhgaya (India)

On occasion, 84000 has even been fortunate enough to receive words from contemporary teachers of the Buddhadharma that have been inspired by, or are in response to, the publication of a specific sūtra translation. As we receive these precious words of wisdom, we wanted to create a space in which to be able to share these video and audio recordings, as well as – in some cases – transcripts with you.

The Kangyur alone contains over 1,000 texts. 84000 is working hard to produce accurate and accessible translations of these texts. So it is with great joy that we hear of teachers of the Buddhadharma teaching from the sūtras and using our publications as guide material for their audiences.

As you listen to these contemporary masters expound on these ancient texts, we hope you will take the opportunity to download the translation, read long, and study the sūtra. We hope you find this compilation of contemporary teachings on the sūtras beneficial to your study and practice. This page is our offering to you.

People must understand the tremendous need and the value of having access to the original teachings and that they are not something in volumes and volumes up there in the shrine that you supplicate and prostrate to and make homages to, but they are something that you can read, you can understand and you can contemplate upon. That’s really bringing the Buddha into a living moment.

– H.E. Mindrolling Jetsun Khandro Rinpoche


Posted: 27 Nov 2019