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རིན་པོ་ཆེ་ཏོག་གི་གཟུངས།

The Ratnaketu Dhāraṇī
Chapter 5

Ratna­ketu­dhāraṇī
འཕགས་པ་འདུས་པ་ཆེན་པོ་རིན་པོ་ཆེ་ཏོག་གི་གཟུངས་ཤེས་བྱ་བ་ཐེག་པ་ཆེན་པོའི་མདོ།
’phags pa ’dus pa chen po rin po che tog gi gzungs shes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo
The Noble Mahāyāna Sūtra “The Ratnaketu Dhāraṇī” from the Great Collection
Ārya­mahā­sannipāta­ratna­ketu­dhāraṇī­nāma­mahāyāna­sūtra

Toh 138

Degé Kangyur, vol. 56 (mdo sde, na), folios 187.b–277.b

ᴛʀᴀɴsʟᴀᴛᴇᴅ ɪɴᴛᴏ ᴛɪʙᴇᴛᴀɴ ʙʏ
  • Śilendrabodhi
  • Yeshé Dé

Imprint

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Translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee
under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha

First published 2020

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co.

Table of Contents

ti. Title
im. Imprint
co. Contents
s. Summary
ac. Acknowledgements
i. Introduction
tr. The Translation
+ 13 chapters- 13 chapters
h. Homage
1. Chapter 1
2. Chapter 2
3. Chapter 3
4. Chapter 4
5. Chapter 5
6. Chapter 6
7. Chapter 7
8. Chapter 8
9. Chapter 9
10. Chapter 10
11. Chapter 11
12. Chapter 12
13. Chapter 13
c. Colophon
+ 1 section- 1 section
· Tibetan Translators’ Colophon
ab. Abbreviations
n. Notes
b. Bibliography
+ 2 sections- 2 sections
· Primary literature (manuscripts and editions)
+ 2 sections- 2 sections
· Sanskrit
· Tibetan
· Translations and secondary literature:
g. Glossary

s.

Summary

s.­1

The Ratnaketu Dhāraṇī is one of the core texts of the Mahāsannipāta collection of Mahāyāna sūtras that dates back to the formative period of Mahāyāna Buddhism, from the first to the third century ᴄᴇ. Its rich and varied narratives, probably redacted from at least two independent works, recount significant events from the lives, past and present, of the Buddha Śākyamuni and some of his main followers and opponents, both human and nonhuman. At the center of these narratives is the climactic episode from the Buddha’s life when Māra, the personification of spiritual death, sets out to destroy the Buddha and his Dharma. The mythic confrontation between these paragons of light and darkness, and the Buddha’s eventual victory, are related in vivid detail. The main narratives are interwoven with Dharma instructions and interspersed with miraculous events. The text also exemplifies two distinctive sūtra genres, “prophecies” (vyākaraṇa) and “incantations” (dhāraṇī), as it includes, respectively, prophecies of the future attainment of buddhahood by some of the Buddha’s followers and the potent phrases that embody the Buddha’s teachings and are meant to ensure their survival and the thriving of its practitioners.


ac.

Acknowledgements

ac.­1

This translation was produced by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee under the supervision of Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche. Wiesiek Mical translated the extant parts from the Sanskrit and wrote the introduction. Timothy Hinkle compared the translation from the Sanskrit against the Tibetan translation and translated from the Tibetan the parts that are lost in the original Sanskrit.

The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.


ac.­2

The generous sponsorship of Twenty and family, which helped make the work on this translation possible, is gratefully acknowledged. They would like to dedicate their sponsorship to Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche.


i.

Introduction

i.­1

The Ratnaketu Dhāraṇī presents the dramatic events in the life of the Buddha when Māra attempts to destroy the Buddha, break up the Saṅgha, and annihilate the Dharma, a struggle from which the Buddha eventually emerges victorious. This epic confrontation is told with tremendous verve and poignancy, and features characters, dialogue, and plot twists that rank among the best in Buddhist literature. The narrative starts with its own version of the well-known story of the conversion of two of the Buddha’s most prominent early disciples, Śāriputra and Maudgalyāyana, and is soon embellished with quaint stories from the past lives of some of the characters, ranging from well-known buddha figures down to (at one time) ordinary human and nonhuman beings. The parts of the narrative that unfold on earth are centered around the city of Rājagṛha, the capital of Magadha. They provide some interesting insight into the everyday life of India at the time, with its division into secular and religious members of society, and vividly capture the experiences that Buddhist monks might have had when going on their daily alms-rounds in the city streets. This is interspersed with lively dialogue that is at once didactic and aesthetically captivating. Especially moving is the conversation that Māra has with his children, when the daughters try to console their distraught father, who bitterly despairs over the impending loss of his realm and the humiliation of seeing his minions, even his own children, desert him, with all the pathos of a broken old man and all the obduracy of a petulant child.


Text Body

The Translation
The Noble Mahāyāna Sūtra
The Ratnaketu Dhāraṇī
from the Great Collection

h.

Homage

[F.187.b] [B1]10


h.­1

Homage to the thus-gone Splendorous with the Gentle Glow of Light and Fragrance!


h.­2

Homage to the one with the melodious voice of Mahābrahmā!


h.­3

Having paid homage to him, one should employ the dhāraṇī called unharmed by the assemblies of Māra. May I accomplish the following mantra:11

h.­4

Avāme avāme amvare amvare {TK4} parikuñja naṭa naṭa puṣkaravaha jalukha khama khaya ili mili kili mili kīrtipara mudre mudramukhe svāhā! {TK5}


1.

Chapter 1

1.­1

Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was dwelling in Veṇuvana, at the Kalandakanivāpa, near the city of Rājagṛha, with a great saṅgha of a thousand monks, all of whom were noble ones. They had all exhausted defilements, were free from the afflictions, were powerful, had liberated minds, had liberated insight, were of noble birth, were great elephants,12 had done what needed to be done, had completed their mission, had cast off the burden, had achieved their own welfare, had severed the bonds that tied them to existence, had liberated their minds with genuine knowledge, and had perfected all mental powers. There was also a great saṅgha of ten thousand bodhisattvas, including [F.188.a] {TK6} the princely youth Holder of Meru’s Peak, the princely youth Varuṇamati, the princely youth Sumati, the princely youth Jayamati, the princely youth Jinamati, the princely youth Intelligent Light, the princely youth Intelligent Sky, the princely youth Intelligent Lightning, the princely youth Mañjuśrī, the princely youth Durdharṣa, the princely youth Varuṇa, the princely youth Vimala, the bodhisattva great being Maitreya, and others. Each of these ten thousand bodhisattvas had achieved acceptance, retention, and absorption. {TK7} Each possessed the wisdom that is unobscured by any phenomenon, had equal concern for all beings, had transcended all the domains of Māra, and had entered the domain of all the thus-gone ones. Each was knowledgeable, possessed great love and compassion, and was skilled in means.


2.

Chapter 2

2.­1

The daughters and sons of Māra, accompanied by their retinues, said to the Blessed One, “The extent to which the Thus-Gone One is endowed with means and wisdom is incredible! We seek, O Blessed One, the same sort of Dharma vehicle, wisdom, magical powers, compassion, means, and eloquence. What are the qualities, O Blessed One, that a person should have in order to not fall into the hands of evil companions, but instead swiftly realize unsurpassed and perfect awakening?”


3.

Chapter 3

3.­1

While the Ratnaketu dhāraṇī was being recited by the thus-gone Śākyamuni, the entire Sahā world became clearly visible, illuminated by a powerful light. The one hundred billion lords of sensual pleasure, each one a māra active in one of the one hundred billion worlds of four continents in this buddha field of Śākyamuni, became alarmed by this display of the Buddha’s power and directed their eyes toward this world of four continents. “Where is this light emanating from?” they wondered. “Surely this must be through the power of Māra, the evil one, who lives in that particular world of four continents. He is stronger, mightier, and more powerful than us.”


4.

Chapter 4

4.­1

When the four great hearers were, as described before, in the great city of Rājagṛha collecting alms, they were rudely accosted by the māra youths who urged them, “Dance, monk! Sing, monk!” When, subsequently, the great hearers, running along the street, sang their verses with lyrics that describe the path to nirvāṇa, this great earth trembled. At that moment many hundreds of thousands of gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, and mahoragas, inspired with faith in the Blessed One’s instructions,215 said this, their faces awash with tears:


5.

Chapter 5

5.­1

The millions of māras then thought, “We should adorn the gates of the city through which the Blessed One is to enter, as well as the earth surrounding them, with sublime and magnificent ornaments in the same manner as the gods, nāgas, and yakṣas have adorned the surroundings of the city.”

5.­2

With his mind, however, the Blessed One knew the thoughts of the millions of māras,[F.227.a] and he manifested a miracle such that through the twelve gates of the city, twelve blessed buddhas entered the city of Rājagṛha. The millions of māras then, while hovering in the sky, adorned the city gates, the area around them, the city walls, its trees, and the surface of the earth with magical ornaments of the māra realm, as well as countless other magnificent miraculous manifestations set in the finest and most beautiful arrangements. Some of the millions of māras transformed into guises ranging from that of Brahmā to those of great sages. {TK131} From their perch in the sky, they placed various flowers, incense, scented powders, garlands, gold, silver, jewels, and pearls on the windows, ledges, and turrets of the mansions in the city, as well as in the trees. They also cast down a rain of cloth, cotton, linen, and ornaments, played many instruments, and venerated the Blessed One with songs of praise, extolling his qualities. The Blessed One then entered Rājagṛha’s city gates, adorned as they were with a supremely extensive and elevating display made in such a novel, incredible, and miraculous fashion.

5.­3

As he entered, he touched the threshold of the city gate with the big toe of his right foot. As soon as he did so, the entire great trichiliocosm shook in six different ways. This earthquake was felt by Śakra, Brahmā, Sūrya, Candra, the world protectors, and Maheśvara, as well as all leaders of the gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, and mahoragas, and also by the gods of the earth, water, oceans, cities, [F.227.b] and countryside. It was also felt by all the men, women, {TK132} boys, and girls and all the retinues of the divine great sages up to the Unexcelled Heaven. The earthquake immediately mobilized all these majestic beings to gather at the area surrounding the city of Rājagṛha. From the ground below and the sky above, they cast flowers and incense powder, suitable to the season, toward the Blessed One.

5.­4

The Blessed One then scattered the flowers, powders, and so forth into each of the ten directions in order to venerate and honor the buddhas in all the buddha fields‍—pure as well as impure,295 empty as well as not empty‍—that are as numerous as the atoms in existence. The following verses then rang out from the flowers, powders, and ornaments in those buddha fields:

5.­5
“Quickly, wake up! Consider these things.
Act conscientiously for awakening.
Liberate all the beings
Wandering in the chasm of saṃsāra! {5.1}
5.­6
“As the time is ripe,
Give up all distractions.
Bring your past promises to mind {TK133}
And you will attain the prophecy of awakening. {5.2}
5.­7
“The lord of sages, the great sage for whom there is no anguish,
Has come to the city today to benefit beings.
He has defeated billions of māras,
So the wheel of Dharma is set to be turned. {5.3}
5.­8
“Friends! He is delighting beings in this state of peace!
He is displaying the substance of his supreme courage!
Having liberated beings from their suffering,
He will grant prophecies of awakening today! {5.4}
5.­9
“The self-arisen one has entered the city that is beyond misery.
Therefore, hasten to that buddha field!
Behold those beautiful things there
And gradually orient yourselves toward awakening!” {5.5}
5.­10

Then the bodhisattva great beings, hearers, and great hearers who were settled in mental composure in the grove of Veṇuvana gazed at the Teacher. They saw that the Blessed One was at the gate of the city of Rājagṛha, calm and collected. [F.228.a] All these bodhisattva great beings and great hearers also saw the ranks and formations {TK134} on the edges at the Blessed One’s sides.

5.­11

The sound of the verses that came from the flower and powder decorations then rang out in the buddha fields‍—pure and impure, empty and not empty‍—as numerous as the atoms existing throughout the ten directions. When the bodhisattva great beings and hearers in those buddha fields heard the sound, they thought, “How pleasing this sound is. How enjoyable, delightful, satisfying, and pleasant it is. Its great qualities are indeed worthy of praise. Now, whence have this sound and this rain of flowers and powders come?” The bodhisattva great beings and great hearers thus halted their individual virtuous activities in utter amazement.

5.­12

The blessed, thus-gone Śākyamuni then entered into an absorption called corresponding to the causes of the Buddha’s ornaments and jewelry. As soon as he entered this absorption, {TK135} an immense display appeared throughout this entire Sahā world and all the buddha fields throughout the ten directions. They all became just like the future thus-gone Samantadarśin’s buddha field, which is called Pure and Unstained. In all the buddha fields with their world systems as numerous as atoms, throughout the ten directions, that were all unconstructed296 yet marvelously adorned, the blessed, thus-gone Śākyamuni appeared‍—clearly, precisely, and brilliantly‍—entering the city gates of Rājagṛha. [F.228.b] As the bodhisattva great beings and great hearers in those buddha fields heard these sounds, they were intrigued. Gazing in all directions, they all saw the Sahā world‍—not very far away. Through the domain of the Buddha, they also saw the divine, miraculously created ornaments.

5.­13

The bodhisattva great beings and great hearers then thought, “We should go to see and examine the presence of that great assembly and the qualities of the buddha field. We should go to see, venerate, and serve the thus-gone Śākyamuni. {TK136} There we will definitely receive our prophecies of unsurpassed and perfect awakening!”

5.­14

Through the thus-gone Śākyamuni’s miraculous power, bodhisattva great beings and great hearers as numerous as the atoms in all the buddha fields throughout the ten directions then disappeared from their own buddha fields and arrived instantaneously in this Sahā world. When the countless, limitless bodhisattva great beings, who were as numerous as the atoms in all the buddha fields, arrived from each of the ten directions, they filled the earth and the sky above this buddha field entirely. Due to the power of the cause that is in accord with these bodhisattva great beings’ roots of virtue, they set out venerating the thus-gone Śākyamuni.

5.­15

In order to venerate the Blessed One, some bodhisattva great beings covered the entire buddha field {TK137} with a rain of various flowers, while others cast down showers of pearls, and so forth. In order to venerate the Blessed One, yet others cast down showers of gold, silver, beryl, [F.229.a] crystal, emerald, coral, white sandalwood, uraga sandalwood, and the powdered leaves of the palm tree, thus filling the sky. In order to venerate the Blessed One, others cast down a rain of dangling and swaying ornaments and various cloth and linens. In order to venerate the Blessed One, some held up jeweled parasols, banners, and flags. In order to venerate the Blessed One, some anointed the earth with various scents. Some tossed jeweled garlands. Some played instruments and cymbals. Some sang and danced. Some played music. Some cleansed the earth with scented water. Some bore jeweled vessels containing jewels to the Blessed One. Some {TK138} filled jeweled vessels with scented water, decorated them with flowers, fruits, and leaves, and bore them to the Blessed One. Some decorated jeweled trees with divine cloth, jewelry, flowers, and fruits and held them high.

5.­16

Some transformed themselves into the guise of Mahābrahmā and prostrated to the Blessed One with palms joined together. Standing there, they made extensive offerings in the manner just mentioned. Some transformed themselves into the guise of lions, prostrated to the Blessed One, and took their places. Drawing on the Blessed One’s miraculous power and the strength of their own roots of virtue, the beings there were able to perceive one another’s forms unimpededly with their own eyes. The Blessed One then entered the city of Rājagṛha through the transformative power of the gods of the great māra realm, as well as his own297 applications of mindfulness, right exertions, bases of supernatural power, faculties, strengths, limbs of awakening, [F.229.b] paths, and eighteen unique qualities of a buddha. {TK139} He then proceeded to a lotus that was right in the center of the road, touched the head of the flower with his right palm, and picked it up. As he plucked the lotus, it vibrated, which caused all the encircling mountains, greater encircling mountains, Mount Sumeru, the great oceans, and all the māra realms in this buddha field to shake. The celestial palaces, abodes, beds, and seats in the māra realms also shook violently. All the māra boys and girls and their retinues there were terrified and worried and said to one another, “Since our celestial palaces do not shake for no reason, perhaps Māra, our king, has passed from his domain? What if we are also to die and pass from our home? We should definitely go to see what is happening!”

5.­17

Once they saw what had happened, they thought, “If this buddha field is influenced by the five degenerations, who has then ornamented it so? Who has made it so pleasant?”

Then, as the māras and their servants were standing in that place, they saw the thus-gone Śākyamuni seated there‍—shining, {TK140} gleaming, brilliant, and adorned with the thirty-two marks of a great being. They did not recognize even a single one of the many other beings of various forms, colors, characteristics, and shapes that existed in the whole trichiliocosm, including this entire buddha field. Yet they saw each of those beings exerting themselves in venerating the Blessed One.

5.­18

It then occurred to them, “We must by all means go to see the thus-gone Śākyamuni, pay our respects to him, and ask him where our leader and his servants have gone.” {K108}298 [F.230.a]

5.­19

299The billion māras together with their retinues arrived in the presence of Blessed Śākyamuni and took their seats.300 Māra, the evil one, bowed with folded hands in the direction of the Blessed One and said:

5.­20
“Blessed One! With faith born in my mind,
I am going to take refuge in you.
Promptly release me from my chains {TK141}
And I will authentically practice the Dharma.”301 {5.6}
5.­21

The Blessed One replied:

“I never stop anyone302
From coming or leaving.
If you know the way,
You are free to go wherever you please.” {5.7}
5.­22

The evil one said:

“Whenever I try to go as I like
To my own domain,303
O Gautama, I find myself tied
With a fivefold noose!”304 {5.8}
5.­23

The Blessed One replied: {K109}

“All my concepts have ceased;
I am liberated and thus liberate beings.305
I have given up harming others
And now liberate beings from bondage.” {5.9}
5.­24

The Blessed One then looked with his buddha eye at the entire buddha field and, seeing it completely filled with beings that live on earth and in the sky, recited the following stanzas:

5.­25
“Hear now my advice, all of you, {TK142}
With a focused mind!306
Cast away all your doubts307
And then keep quiet! {5.10}
5.­26
“A fully realized Buddha, the Dharma, and the Saṅgha
Are hard to find in this world.
Hard to find are faith, sincere application,
And the practice of awakening.308 {5.11}
5.­27
“It is rare to be able to hear the Dharma
From the protector of the world himself.309
It is difficult to find the right time
To train in patience. {5.12}
5.­28
“It is rare in this world
To be able to relinquish negative conceptual thinking,310
To cultivate emptiness,311
And to tame the mind. {5.13}
5.­29
“The conduct of awakening, as I had formerly practiced,
Is difficult to find.
I will teach you therefore
How it should be fostered.312 {5.14} {TK143}
5.­30
“I will teach the greatest of paths
That dispels the mass of darkness, [F.230.b]
Connects us to awakening,
And totally liberates us from the fetters of existence.313 {5.15} {K110}
5.­31
“You should cast away the three stains314
And listen to the teacher’s instructions.
Having cast off the snare of craving,
You should cross to the other shore of the four rivers.315 {5.16}
5.­32
“You must win the threefold liberation,316
Establish yourselves in the three types of restraint,317
And then remove all of the afflictions there are
In the threefold universe. {5.17}
5.­33
“To worship the lineage of the Three Jewels
And for the sake of Dharma,
All of you gathered here should scrupulously eliminate
The ignorance of the three times that obscures the mind.318 {5.18}
5.­34
“Through the emanation of the blessings
Of the buddhas, gods, and māras,319
Obtain a pacifying acceptance
That is beyond the threefold universe. {5.19}
5.­35
320“Ordinary beings
Spoiled by the four errors,
Who conceptualize nonthings,
Are not vessels for this acceptance. {5.20}
5.­36
“When the visual faculty is attached to form, {TK144}
It obscures body, speech, and mind.
Those who are devoid of the four concentrations
Obsess over saṃsāra. {5.21}
5.­37
“Those whose learnedness illuminates the world‍—
Those who cultivate concentration‍—
Could today be liberated
From the four errors. {5.22}
5.­38
“These lords save beings
From the four rivers.
Those who gain a certain understanding of birth and death
Cross to the far shore. {5.23}
5.­39
“Fearless bodhisattvas
Endowed with four limbs
Break the bonds that bind beings to existence
By means of correct knowledge. {5.24} {K111}
5.­40
“By totally comprehending the five aggregates,
One is freed from their noose.
No longer driven into endless rebirths,
One has crossed to the far shore of the ocean of existence. {5.25}
5.­41
“You should confess your wrongdoings
In front of the buddhas
And, having abandoned all negativity,
Fearlessly reach the far shore. {5.26}
5.­42
“By repeatedly taking rebirth in existence
And coming under the influence of evil companions,
One experiences the sufferings
Of saṃsāra and conditioned phenomena. {5.27}
5.­43
“Steering clear of wicked friends {TK145}
And wrong views,
And remembering the suffering of saṃsāra,
Apply yourselves to the sublime Dharma. {5.28}
5.­44
“Drink this finest elixir. [F.231.a]
Meditate on emptiness.
From the point of view of the absolute truth,
There are no objects, no substantiality, and no characteristics. {5.29}
5.­45
“As the five sense organs are empty,
No agent can be found there.
What are merely entities characterized by thoughts
Are likewise inactive. {5.30}
5.­46
“The six sensations and six forms of craving
Arise from the six types of contact.
In the same way, you should understand
That the five sense bases arising from contact are empty. {5.31}
5.­47
“Consider how one imputes ‘thingness’
To what is naturally not a thing.
Beings unborn and unceasing‍—
Consider how insubstantial they are. {5.32}
5.­48
“All phenomena are subsumed under a single principle
And have no ‘thingness’ in any of the three times.
Those who know this will be free from fever;321
This is the unsurpassed path. {5.33}
5.­49
“Freedom is certain in these thirteen respects.
It is the cultivation of acceptance
That destroys the perceptions of beings
And liberates subjectivity.” {5.34}
5.­50

When through the power of the Blessed One’s merit, {TK146} his strength of fearlessness, and the influence of his merit according to his roots of virtue {K112} he chanted these verses with the unimpeded sound of his voice, his words of the maṇḍala of space were heard throughout the ten directions in worlds‍—with and without the five degenerations‍—equal in extent to the infinite grains of sand in the Gaṅgā. Immediately, infinite hundreds of thousands of millions of billions of beings in every buddha field obtained faith and undefiled joy. They proceeded irreversibly to unsurpassed and perfect awakening. Some attained absorption, acceptance, or different dhāraṇīs. Those who were gathered in this buddha field obtained the level of irreversibility when they heard the Blessed One’s words, syllables, and meaning. Infinite numbers of beings attained renunciation according to one of the three vehicles.322

5.­51

Jyotīrasa, the bodhisattva great being,323 magically created the stairs, [F.231.b] made of the seven precious gems324 and shaded with flowers, for ascending to the lotus throne and, with hands folded325 in the direction of the Blessed One, implored:

5.­52
326“O omniscient one, gaze upon the entire world
Sunk in the mire of aging and death’s agonies.
Raise the Dharma bridge
For the animate and inanimate worlds. {5.35}
5.­53
“Gaze upon your field into which have been born {TK147}
Myriads of beings with folded hands.
Distribute your Dharma gifts!
Show us your miraculous power! {5.36} {K113}
5.­54
“For those tormented by the afflictions,
Reveal the knowledge and the means!
Ascend to the peerless lotus seat, O Lord,
And rain down the rain of the Dharma. {5.37}
5.­55
327“With all the buddhas in the ten directions
And other wise sages here as your witnesses,
Leader of the victors,
Destroy the māras! {5.38}
5.­56
“Knowing that all phenomena are empty like space
And inseparable from their intrinsic nature,
Remember your past promises!
Turn the unsurpassed and sublime wheel! {5.39}
5.­57
“O lion among humans, liberate now
The beings swirling in the midst of the four rivers.
Knowing all phenomena, please liberate the world
From the ocean of the three existences. {5.40}
5.­58
“Your mind is so powerful, O Blessed One!
Please dispel the destructive stains of existence
And teach the unparalleled Dharma
To we who joyfully wish to enter the path of the well-gone ones.” {5.41}
5.­59

The Blessed One then climbed atop the lotus throne via the magically emanated staircase and took his seat at the center of the lotus. Gazing in all ten directions, the Blessed One {TK148} then addressed the evil Māra: “O Māra, evil one, you are the reason that the Dharma teaching of the Great Collection was taught here today, whereby countless infinite beings will be liberated and freed from the misery of being in the womb, as well as from aging and death. They will cross over the four rivers. [F.232.a] They will travel the peaceful path. They will realize that wisdom that is equal to space. Evil Māra, because you have set the proliferation of these beings’ roots of virtue in motion, you should rejoice! Evil Māra, you should request me to teach the Dharma. Then I shall teach the Dharma so that those in your Māra world may be able to cross the rising river.

5.­60

Then Māra, the evil one, spoke the following verse:

“If you, joyful one, have no animosity, aggression, or arrogance,
Why are you teaching the Dharma to inspire fear in us today?
If you had animosity, arrogance, and pride,
Explain liberation to me, O Lord of Sages.” {5.42}
5.­61

The Blessed One responded:

“When I was on the earth, spending ten months in the womb,
You, Māra, attempted to murder me.
At that time, I held no grudge or even the slightest animosity;
I was patient and had destroyed all animosity without exception. {5.43}
5.­62
“As soon as I was born, you caused the earth to quake
And brought down a rain of stones intended to kill me.
Then you dried up my mother’s breast milk.
You have tried to harm me in many different ways. {5.44}
5.­63
“When I was resting in absorption, you brought ten thousand damsels. {TK149}
And when I was living on alms, you cut off my access to food.
You constantly tried to give me royal dominion.
In the night when I left the palace, you created a dense darkness. {5.45}
5.­64
“At that time you and many people surrounded the city,
And through your magical powers you brought about a fierce storm and rain.
You made the ground rise up a full fathom and covered me in rocks.328
And while I was abiding in tranquility, you made a great clamor. {5.46}
5.­65
“When I was performing austerities, you sent cold winds.
When I was beside a waterfall, you sent a flood.
You unleashed lions in order to do away with me.
And at that time, you also poisoned my food. {5.47}
5.­66
“When I went before the Bodhi tree,
You brought down a rain of vajras, meteors, razors, and arrows.
And when I sat on the vajra seat for the sake of beings,
You even smeared daubs of mud on my saffron robes. {5.48} [F.232.b]
5.­67
“You also sent damsels before me.
You yourself came to murder me with your magical might.
However, you could not harm my mind even slightly.
Once I had tamed you, I attained unsurpassed awakening. {5.49}
5.­68
“Yet, you had no shame in coming here to talk,
And with your evil behavior attempting to dissuade the supreme Kāśyapa and others.
Pitilessly, you bring billions of beings to ruin.
Even now, do you still attempt to oppose and deceive me? {5.50}
5.­69
“When I was fasting
You sent a dangerous and drunken elephant to kill me.
Devadatta cast boulders down a hill toward me. {TK150}
Alas! For three months I ate horse fodder. {5.51}
5.­70
“To incite gossip, you sent alluring ladies to surround me.
You filled pits with terrible blazing embers.
You put swift-acting poison in my food.
Therefore, you, evildoer, are rotten to the core. {5.52}
5.­71
“You came here with your armies, children, and forces
Brandishing lances, swords, and arrows to kill me with.
Yet if you have failed to ruffle even one hair of mine,
What are you still doing here, so proud of yourself? {5.53}
5.­72
“Though you force these billions of māras to keep opposing me,
Trillions of beings have come here,
Filling the entire buddha field, acting as my witnesses,
To see that I have nothing but a supremely loving mind toward you. {5.54}
5.­73
“I am steeped in compassion, caring for beings.
You are so vicious, constantly trying to obstruct me.
These lords of sages, foremost among humans, are under my power,
And so in this final age, I will perform the deeds of a buddha. {5.55}
5.­74
“I engage in the benefit of beings with a totally free mind.
Even as you speak, I do not relinquish my patience.
I have no jealousy, animosity, or anger in my mind.
I constantly exert myself to protect even you. {5.56}
5.­75
“So, just as you requested and to put your mind at ease, I will explain
A nectar-like Dharma that utterly pacifies the threefold universe.
Thus all your evil activities will be put to an end. [F.233.a]
Quickly, entrust your mind to me, the protector of the world. {5.57} {TK151}
5.­76
“Though you are always intent on harming,
My heart is always loving, with the aim to liberate you.
Give up this evil attitude and arouse faith in your mind.
Before long I will prophesy your awakening.” {5.58}
5.­77

Māra, the evil one, became furious with the Blessed One. Disturbed and distressed, he wished to turn back but now noticed he was bound by a fivefold noose. He wished to cry out in fear, but was unable. Through the power of his anger, he blew out incredibly hot breath to kill the Blessed One. Yet the Blessed One transformed it into a most exquisite flower, which he then blessed so that it became a very pleasing parasol in the space directly above the crowns of the heads of all the blessed buddhas dwelling, flourishing, and teaching the Dharma in all the buddha fields throughout the ten directions. The bodhisattva great beings in each of those buddha fields asked their respective blessed buddhas, “Where have these flower parasols come from? And due to whose magical power?”

5.­78

The blessed ones answered the bodhisattva great beings, saying, “Noble children, there is a world called the Sahā world.329A thus-gone, worthy, perfect buddha called Śākyamuni made aspirations in the past to fully awaken to unsurpassed and perfect buddhahood within that buddha field, which is rife with the afflictions and the five degenerations and where he now teaches the Dharma. This thus-gone one is about to give an exposition of the dhāraṇī-seal, including its verbal formula, which is called the terminator of birth based on the essential nature of phenomena in their vajra-like indivisibility.

5.­79

“This exposition completely destroys the forces of the entire dominion of Māra and elevates all the strengths, the types of fearlessness, and the domains of a buddha. It ensures the continuity of the teachings of the buddhas and the lamp of the Three Jewels. {TK152} It activates the blessings of his diligence [F.233.b] to increase all roots of virtue. It destroys all enemies and obstructers. It pacifies the ordinary, the inauspicious, disputes, bad dreams, evil omens, famine, the mass of fears, struggle, warfare, captivity, fighting, arguments, drought, unseasonable heat and cold, storms, heat waves, sickness, and unpleasant sounds. It motivates all the gods, nāgas, yakṣas, and human and nonhuman beings. It summons and motivates the warrior caste. It engages the four castes in the service of Dharma. It sets ablaze the torch of insight and teaches a direct path. It motivates all the households, towns, cities, villages, districts, countryside, royal cities, and hinterlands. It aligns constellations, planets, nights, days, months, fortnights, and years.330 It ensures good harvests and an abundance of flowers, fruits, grains, and medicinal herbs. It accomplishes all manufacturing and business ventures and supervisory331 tasks. It pacifies all the faults of body, speech, and mind. {K114} It increases insight, mindfulness, intelligence, interest, courage, stability, patience, and eloquence. It awakens the unobstructed vision of all phenomena. It blesses the Dharma tradition with the four noble attributes. It elucidates the Great Vehicle. It nurtures bodhisattva great beings and gives comfort to them. It blesses the vajra-like minds of those at the stage of irreversibility. It makes beings realize the acceptance that phenomena are unborn.332 It establishes beings in realization consistent with {TK153} the tenth bodhisattva level. It cares for beings that require guidance. It turns the wheel [F.234.a] of Dharma. It covers all beings with great compassion. It engages them in the practice of the perfections. It establishes them on the unsurpassed path. It rains Dharma. It satisfies all beings with the essence of Dharma. It completes the fully awakened intention of the buddhas. It brings freedom from the domain of the four māras. It places beings in the expanse of nirvāṇa without any remainder of the aggregates.333

5.­80

“This exposition of the dhāraṇī-seal, including its verbal formula, which is called the terminator of birth based on the essential nature of phenomena in their vajra-like indivisibility,334 was given, blessed, and rejoiced at, upon each other’s giving it, by all the thus-gone, worthy, perfect buddhas of the past. Whatever blessed buddhas now dwell and pass their time in the ten directions, teaching the Dharma there, they all give, bless, and rejoice in each other’s offering of this exposition. In the future, whatever thus-gone, worthy, perfect buddhas will dwell in other worlds {TK154} in the ten directions, they all will also {K115} give, bless, and rejoice in each other’s offering of this exposition.”

5.­81

Hearing this, all the bodhisattva great beings who dwelled in these buddha fields asked their respective buddhas, “What is this exposition, O Blessed One, that we haven’t heard before [F.234.b] and that is a treasure trove of so many qualities, that is endowed with inconceivable qualities, that grants unobstructed vision of all phenomena,…335 and that pacifies? Please, O Blessed One, give this exposition that completely destroys the forces of the entire dominion of Māra…336 and places beings in the expanse of nirvāṇa without any remainder of the aggregates. Give it out of compassion for the world, for the benefit and happiness of many people. It will surely be in the interest of great numbers of beings, bringing benefit and happiness to gods and humans alike.”

5.­82

The blessed buddhas replied to the bodhisattvas, {TK155} “O noble children! We also are going to the Sahā world where the thus-gone, worthy, perfect buddha Śākyamuni dwells. Similarly, whatever blessed buddhas now dwell and pass their time in the ten directions in their respective worlds, they are all going along with their retinues of bodhisattvas and congregations of hearers to the Sahā world where the thus-gone, worthy, perfect buddha Śākyamuni dwells. {K116} Together with the thus-gone Śākyamuni they will give, bless, and rejoice in each other’s offering of this exposition [F.235.a] in order to benefit all beings by stopping them from committing evil acts, fully establishing them in wholesome conduct, and filling them with unsurpassed wisdom.

5.­83

“Once all these blessed buddhas have gathered today in the Sahā world along with their retinues of bodhisattvas and congregations of hearers, they will give this exposition there. So, if any of you wants to hear this exposition and to worship the blessed buddhas, as innumerable as the grains of sand in the river Gaṅgā, {TK156} who are abiding together at the same time337 in the same buddha field, and if any of you want to hear their teachings and to see the domains of all the buddhas, bodhisattvas, gods, māras, and the marvelous ornamentation of all the buddha fields, and if any of you want to see a gathering of buddhas such as has never been seen or heard of, let us now go together to the Sahā world where the thus-gone, worthy, perfect buddha Śākyamuni dwells.”

5.­84

The bodhisattva great beings replied to their respective buddhas, “If this is so, O venerable Blessed One, we shall go together with you, our thus-gone one, to the Sahā world where the thus-gone, worthy, perfect buddha Śākyamuni dwells, {K117} in order to hear this exposition that we have not heard before. [F.235.b] We shall worship there, all at the same time and on the same occasion, in the same buddha field, infinite numbers of blessed buddhas living and spending their time there. We will request them to teach us the Dharma. We will see the Sahā world adorned with the miraculous displays originating from the four bases of supernatural power, and that great gathering in a marvelous array. And if we manage to get a place in that buddha field while the dhāraṇī included in this exposition is being recited, we will be able to honor, praise, serve, and worship the buddhas and the bodhisattva great beings who have gathered there.”

5.­85

Then each of the blessed buddhas in his respective buddha field spoke to his own retinue of bodhisattva great beings and congregation of great hearers: {TK157}

“Do not be anxious, noble children, or have any doubts about whether there will be enough space available in that world to accommodate everybody. Why so? Because the blessed buddhas have an infinite ability to bring beings to maturity‍—an ability that derives from their skill in the wisdom of equality particular to their buddha fields. Because, O noble children, the thus-gone Śākyamuni has such great skillful means, he has the ability to expand space. {K118} Noble children, imagine that he is able to accommodate in a single mustard seed all the beings, who depend for existence on physical elements and sense faculties, taken together from their respective realms, even if each and every one of them were as big as Mount Meru. Each of them would have ample room for themselves and none would even arrive in one another’s field of vision. Even if the bodies of all beings were placed in a single mustard seed, they would not appear to shrink, nor would the seed appear to grow. The thus-gone Śākyamuni, noble children, is indeed endowed with such skill in means.

5.­86

“And furthermore, O noble children, whatever solidity there is in existence constitutes the earth element. The thus-gone Śākyamuni could place [F.236.a] all of it within a single particle of dust, and this particle, with all of the earth element having entered there, would not appear to expand, nor would the earth element appear to shrink. With such skill in means is the thus-gone Śākyamuni endowed.

5.­87

“Again, O noble children, anything that appears as wet constitutes the water element‍—the thus-gone Śākyamuni could place all of it on a single hair tip, {TK158} and this hair tip, with all the water element having entered there, would not appear to expand, nor would the water element appear to shrink. With such skill in means is the thus-gone Śākyamuni endowed.

5.­88

“And further, O noble children, whatever of the wind element is known to exist, the thus-gone Śākyamuni could place all of it within a single pore. This entire element of wind, {K119} even though contained within a single pore of skin, would be able to move around, provided with ample room as if within its own usual sphere of activity.

5.­89

338“Again, O noble children, anything that appears as hot constitutes the fire element. The thus-gone Śākyamuni could place anything relating to the fire element that has arisen, is arising, or will arise within a single particle of dust. Even if the entire fire element was gathered there in a single particle, it would still be able to function within that single particle, provided with ample range as if within its own usual domain.

5.­90

“And further, O noble children, whatever buddha fields there are in the ten directions, the thus-gone Śākyamuni could place all of them, together with all the beings there and the four great elements, on a single hair tip.

5.­91

“Then, in that infinitely small space, all those beings and the great elements would be able to go about their usual business and move around as if in their own usual spheres of operation, provided with sufficient space. They would not get into each other’s way, and this infinitely small space would not appear to expand, nor would they appear to shrink. With such skill in means is the thus-gone Śākyamuni endowed.

5.­92

“And further, O noble children, the thus-gone Śākyamuni can know the six sense bases, conduct, grasping, aspirations, blessings, ranges of speech, sounds, phonemes, expressions of language, actions or endeavors that involve the three predispositions,339 aggregates, analytical minds, and the range of methods for gathering accumulations of all the beings of the three times, in a single instant. {TK159} He is able to know anything at all about any being from the far reaches of the past to that which generates the rebirths in saṃsāra of any of the six kinds of beings throughout the three times, [F.236.b] as well as their deaths, births, and what occurs for each of them. He can know the extent of the particles of earth. He can know how beings pass the moments and hours throughout the three times. He can know every pore of all beings throughout the three times.340 He can know the extent of the enjoyments, behaviors, and experiences of happiness and suffering of all beings throughout the three times. The thus-gone Śākyamuni can know all this within a single instant. {K120}

5.­93

“The thus-gone Śākyamuni is able to comprehend the three times up to their farthest limit effortlessly and without ideas or concepts, because he is endowed with this kind of clairvoyant wisdom that is miraculous in character. The thus-gone Śākyamuni is endowed with such immeasurable means to bring beings to maturity through equanimity, O noble children, because of his skill in wisdom that derives from his buddha domain.”

5.­94

When these characteristics were elucidated, infinite and uncountable hundreds of thousands of bodhisattvas from the respective retinues of the thus-gone ones from all the different directions reached the perfection of insight, based on their previous aspirations.341

5.­95

This concludes the chapter on the characteristics of the Buddha, the fifth in the “Ratnaketu” section of the Great Collection of Mahāyāna sūtras. {K121} {TK160} [B6]


6.

Chapter 6

6.­1

At that time the thus-gone Akṣobhya set out from the world in the east called Abhirati in the company of an infinite number of bodhisattva great beings. Through the power and mastery of miracles particular to a buddha, he arrived instantaneously in the buddha field that includes the central world with its four continents, where the thus-gone, worthy, perfect buddha Śākyamuni was staying. Having arrived, he sat upon a lotus seat that appeared just as needed. The bodhisattva great beings [F.237.a] from his retinue also sat upon lotus seats that appeared through their own magical power.


7.

Chapter 7

7.­1

At that time, a bodhisattva great being called Discriminating Intellect was seated before the blessed, thus-gone [F.250.a] Glorious and Brilliantly Shining Jewel, not far from the blessed, thus-gone Śākyamuni. For a short time he was in the guise of Brahmā, before instantaneously appearing in the form of Māra. He likewise briefly appeared in the forms of Śakra, as well as a lord of the gods in the heavens of Making Use of Others’ Emanations, Delighting in Emanations, Tuṣita, Free from Strife, and the Four Great Kings, as well as in the form of Maheśvara, and also as a yakṣa, an asura, a garuḍa, a kinnara, a mahoraga, a rākṣasa, a preta, a piśāca, a kumbhāṇḍa, a kṣatriya, a brahmin, a vaiśya, a śūdra, a lion, an elephant, a buffalo, and myriad other species of the animal realm. Instantaneously he appeared in the form of a bird, a tree, a mountain, fruit, clothing, bedding, heavy cloth, a vase, ornaments, jewelry, medicinal herbs, and a jewel. Instantaneously he also appeared in the form of a monk, a nun, and a buddha. Instantaneously he appeared in eighty-four different colors, characteristics, shapes, and forms.


8.

Chapter 8

8.­1

At that time, the thus-gone Akṣobhya addressed the entire assembly: “Noble children, all of you śakras, brahmās, world protectors, and lords of the gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas, and so forth, as well as human and nonhuman beings, who have arrived here out of faith in the buddhas’ teaching‍—I will uplift you! It is rare to find such a congregation of the blessed buddhas, bodhisattva great beings, śakras, [F.252.a] brahmās, world protectors, and lords of the gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, and so forth, as well as human and nonhuman beings! Therefore, now that you have seen this, may those of you who are happy to sustain this sacred Dharma‍—this Dharma method‍—and propagate the lineage of the Three Jewels in the future in this buddha field each make an aspiration before the Blessed One.” {TK204}


9.

Chapter 9

9.­1

The blessed, thus-gone Śākyamuni then said, “O all you [F.258.a] blessed buddhas who have come here to this buddha field motivated by compassion to engage in discussion, please give these beings your attention. These noble children will satisfy others with clothing, food, drink, medicine, and supplies. They will use the female form to mature others for unsurpassed and perfect awakening. From the moment they developed the mind of awakening in order to mature others, they have been dedicated to emanating and providing clothing, food, drink, medicine, and supplies to fulfill their hopes‍—no matter what, why, or how these things are desired. These sublime beings will enact this great power and be able to serve beings with what is enjoyable and useful.”


10.

Chapter 10

10.­1

The thus-gone Māndāravagandharoca then addressed the thus-gone Śākyamuni, saying, “In the past, previous thus-gone ones came from their disparate buddha fields and congregated in buddha fields that were afflicted and rife with the five degenerations. They excellently blessed this sacred Dharma method. They defeated billions of māras and gazed upon all beings with the eyes of great love and compassion. They freed them from evil views, lit the lamp of insight, and laid out the peaceful path. They delivered this Dharma discourse, this exposition of the dhāraṇī-seal, including its verbal formula, which is called the terminator of birth based on the essential nature of phenomena in their vajra-like indivisibility. Thus they defeated the black faction and planted the banner of the Dharma. In the same way, right now, so many of us blessed buddhas who live and spend our time in the ten directions have assembled in this buddha field filled with the afflictions and the five degenerations out of our concern for others. We have performed acts such as excellently blessing this Dharma method and so forth, as well as planting the banner of the Dharma. However, Śākyamuni, [F.260.a] after your sun has set, who will reign supreme in this buddha field? Who will uphold this sacred Dharma? {TK230} Who will nurture these Dharma methods? Who will bring beings to maturity? Who will be included in this great assembly? Into whose hands shall I entrust this Dharma discourse?”


11.

Chapter 11

11.­1

Now the blessed, thus-gone Śākyamuni addressed Śakra, Brahmā, Virūḍhaka, Virūpākṣa, Dhṛtarāṣṭra, and Kubera:

“O sublime beings, I have fully realized unsurpassed and perfect awakening in this buddha field, which is afflicted by the five degenerations and lacking in Dharma, through my compassionate dedication to sentient beings. In order to quell the pain of beings441 thrown into the darkness of ignorance and overwhelmed by the thieves and rogues of the afflictions,442 I have conquered the faction of Māra, raised the banner of the sacred Dharma, delivered countless beings from suffering, rained showers of the sacred Dharma, and defeated ten million māras.


12.

Chapter 12

12.­1

The great general of the yakṣas, [F.271.b] Āṭavaka, in the form of the yakṣa Bhīṣaṇaka, and Saṃjñika in the form of a deer, Jñānolka in the form of a monkey, Tṛṣṇājaha in the form of a jackal,455 and Chinnasrotas in the form of an elephant‍—these five great beings‍—were sitting not too far from the thus-gone Śākyamuni and in front of the thus-gone Kauṇḍiṇyārcis. From each of their bodies a pure light radiated, suffused with fragrance. Each of these five great beings was holding in his hands a great precious gem called Starlight for the sake of worshipping the Blessed One.456


13.

Chapter 13

13.­1

At this time, all the blessed buddhas displayed the signs of rising and returning472 to their respective buddha fields. At the same moment, the beings of this entire assembly, who were on earth as well as in the sky, shuddered, and so did the entire earth. A rain of flowers poured from the sky, millions of instruments resounded in midair, and all kinds of fragrances of perfume and incense were released. As the entire buddha field filled with light, those in the assembly pressed their hands together. Then Brahmā, lord of the Sahā world, asked the thus-gone Mahācandanagandha, “How many roots of virtue, O Blessed One, will those beings accumulate who in the future uphold and preserve this Dharma discourse‍—who read it, master it, and teach it authentically and extensively to others? How many roots of virtue will those beings accumulate who set it down in writing and uphold it in writing?473 What qualities will they be rewarded with by the blessed buddhas?”


c.

Colophon

c.­1
Because of the special merit that I have accumulated when refining, with all my devotion, care, and a joyous mind,
The text of this Ratnaketu Dhāraṇī‍—the dhāraṇī that removes great fear‍—
May this entire world obtain in this very moment this Ratnaketu Dhāraṇī
Adorned with words of the Sage’s doctrine, clear in meaning, and resplendent with great qualities!

Tibetan Translators’ Colophon

c.­2

This sūtra was translated by the Indian preceptor Śilendrabodhi and the translator-editor Yeshé Dé. It was later standardized in line with the new terminological register.


ab.

Abbreviations

D Tibetan Degé edition
G Gilgit manuscript
K Kurumiya 1978 (page numbers entered in braces, e.g. {K26} denotes page 26)
TK Kurumiya 1979 (page numbers entered in braces, e.g. {TK26} denotes page 26)

n.

Notes

n.­1
Braarvig 1993.
n.­2
Kurumiya 1978.
n.­3
Denkarma, folio 297.a.4. See also Herrmann-Pfandt (2008), p. 52, no. 91.
n.­4
Phangthangma, p. 7 (with abbreviated title ’phags pa rin po che’i tog).
n.­5
Interestingly, the catalog of the Narthang Kangyur records the tradition that The Ratnaketu Dhāraṇī was first translated into Tibetan by Tönmi Sambhoṭa (thon mi sam+b+ho Ta), the legendary seventh century minister and scholar credited with the development of the Tibetan alphabet during the reign of King Songtsen Gampo (ca. 617–650). See Narthang Catalog, folio 14.a.1, and Skilling 1997, p. 89.
n.­6
Lamotte 2001, pp. 1541–42.
n.­7
This information is based on a private communiqué from Peter Skilling, who does not recall seeing the feminine form vyākaraṇī in any other sūtra.
n.­8
Toh 1-1, 1.233 et seq.; see translation in Miller et al. (2018). The Chapter on Going Forth contains a much longer and more detailed account of the story of Upatiṣya and Kaulita (Śāriputra and Maudgalyāyana), but the culmination of their story in their encounter with Aśvajit and meeting with the Buddha is related in the present text with a little more detail, including some verses of which the Vinayavastu account has much briefer equivalents. The main additional element in the story in the present version‍—the advent of Māra following that meeting with Aśvajit‍—is of course the narrative theme that ties together all the component parts of The Ratnaketu Dhāraṇī.
n.­10
The following section, up to “I must make them embrace the view of the evil one” at 1.­19, has been translated entirely from the Tib., filling a lengthy lacuna in the Skt. text.
n.­11
Because of their magical character, uncertain readings, and the extent of corruption, the Sanskrit dhāraṇī formulae in this text would be impossible to translate in full. Although some individual words and phrases are intelligible, it would be risky to attempt a coherent translation‍—the alliterations (which possibly are part of the magic), for example, would be impossible to replicate in English. These dhāraṇīs have therefore been quoted throughout the translation in the original Sanskrit, with some editorial emendments that affect mainly word divisions and orthography. These emendments by no means make the Sanskrit text correct or even consistent, and have not been reported in the critical apparatus.
n.­12
The Buddha and his hearer disciples are often compared to elephants or “great elephants” (mahānāga).
n.­215
“Instructions” is not in the Tib.
n.­295
In some classifications, our impure world is also part of a buddha field. The same may be true for other impure worlds.
n.­296
Translation tentative. Tib. rtsig pa med pa.
n.­297
What follows is the list of the thirty-seven factors of awakening.
n.­298
The Sanskrit page number is repeated, as the Skt. text resumes on the same page after a long lacuna.
n.­299
Translation from the Skt. resumes here.
n.­300
“And took their seats” has been supplied from the Tib. (Skt. lacuna).
n.­301
This line has been supplied from the Tib. (Skt. lacuna).
n.­302
“I never stop anyone” has been partially supplied from the Tib. (Skt. lacuna).
n.­303
This line has been supplied from the Tib. (Skt. lacuna).
n.­304
The phrase “fivefold noose” has been supplied from the Tib. (Skt. lacuna).
n.­305
“I am liberated and thus liberate beings” has been supplied from the Tib. (Skt. lacuna).
n.­306
This line has been supplied from the Tib. (Skt. lacuna).
n.­307
“Cast away all your doubts” has been supplied from the Tib. (Skt. lacuna).
n.­308
This line has been supplied from the Tib. (Skt. lacuna).
n.­309
This line has been supplied from the Tib. (Skt. lacuna).
n.­310
This line has been supplied from the Tib. (Skt. lacuna).
n.­311
The phrase “to cultivate emptiness” has been supplied from the Tib. (Skt. lacuna).
n.­312
Reading puṣpa˚ (“flowers”) as puṣya˚ (“to be fostered”), against the Tib. reading, which reflects puṣpa˚.
n.­313
The translation of this verse is based mainly on the Tib. because of extensive lacunae in the Skt. text.
n.­314
It is not obvious what the three stains are, but presumably hatred, desire, and ignorance.
n.­315
This line has been supplied from the Tib. (Skt. lacuna).
n.­316
The “threefold liberation” is defined differently in different Buddhist systems. Here it most likely means (1) freedom from moral depravities (āsrava), (2) from conditioned existence, and (3) from ignorance.
n.­317
The three types of restraint are the restraints of the body, speech, and mind.
n.­318
The translation of this verse is based mainly on the Tib. because of extensive lacunae in the Skt. text.
n.­319
This line has been supplied from the Tib. (Skt. lacuna).
n.­320
The translation of this and the remaining verses in this section (up to verse 34) is based mainly on the Tib. because of extensive lacunae in the Skt. text.
n.­321
Jvara (“fever”) is used here in the sense of mental anguish.
n.­322
The translation of this paragraph is partly based on the Tib. because of frequent lacunae in the Skt. text.
n.­323
The phrase “Jyotīrasa, the great bodhisattva being” has been supplied from the Tib. (Skt. lacuna).
n.­324
The phrase “made of the seven precious gems” has been supplied from the Tib. (Skt. lacuna).
n.­325
The phrase “with hands folded” has been supplied from the Tib. (Skt. lacuna).
n.­326
This and the following two verses have been translated partly based on the Tib. because of frequent lacunae in the Skt. text.
n.­327
From this point up to “the remainder of the aggregates” in chapter 7, the translation has been made entirely from the Tib., as two folios of the Skt. manuscript are missing.
n.­328
The translation here is very tentative. Tib. sa ni ’dom do ’phang tsam rdo bdag gis gang bar byas.
n.­329
The translation from the Skt. resumes at this point, but still relies heavily, in this and the next paragraphs, on the Tib. because of frequent lacunae in the Skt. text.
n.­330
In the Tib., this list reads “weeks, constellations, days, nights, months, fortnights, seasons, and years.”
n.­331
The Tib. translates adhiṣṭhāna as “blessing”; in the context of manufacture, though, this should perhaps be taken in its more literal meaning of “supervision.”
n.­332
In the Tib., this sentence seems to come after the next.
n.­333
This entire paragraph, which describes the exposition that is going to be given, could be read, in the Tib., as a description of the Buddha’s actions instead. The Skt. grammar, however, seems to preclude this interpretation.
n.­334
The next few occurrences of this phrase have been shortened to just “this exposition.”
n.­335
The passage has been abbreviated here by the Skt. scribe. The source passage has not been located.
n.­336
The passage has been abbreviated here by the Skt. scribe. The omitted part is meant to be supplied from the identical passage two paragraphs above (5.­79), starting with “completely destroys the forces” and ending with “remainder of the aggregates.”
n.­337
The Skt. seems to be saying “during the same eon.”
n.­338
In the Tib. translation, this paragraph comes before the (previous) paragraph on wind, reflecting the usual order in which the four elements are listed.
n.­339
It is unclear what these three predispositions are, but perhaps the predisposition to ignorance, greed, and hatred.
n.­340
The passage from “He is able to know anything at all about any being” (just above), up to this point has been supplied from the Tib., filling in the lacuna in the Skt. text.
n.­341
This paragraph has been translated in part from the Tib. because of the lacuna in the Skt. text.
n.­441
“In order to quell the pain of beings” has been supplied from the Tib. (Skt. lacuna).
n.­442
“Overwhelmed by the thieves and rogues of the afflictions” has been supplied from the Tib. (Skt. lacuna).
n.­455
In place of “jackal,” the Tib. reads “goat.”
n.­456
In place of “Starlight,” the Tib. reads “Firelight.”
n.­472
The reading “returning” was obtained by emending the Skt. gagana to gamana (supported by the Tib. and the Chinese).
n.­473
The passage from “who read it…” up to this point has been supplied from the Tib.; it is absent in the Skt. text.

b.

Bibliography

Primary literature (manuscripts and editions)

Sanskrit

Dutt, Nalinaksha, ed. Gilgit Manuscripts. Vols. 1–4. Delhi: Sri Satguru Publications, 1984.

Kurumiya, Yenshu, ed. Ratnaketuparivarta: Sanskrit Text. Kyoto: Heirakuji-shoten, 1978.

Ratnaketu Dhāraṇī‍—the Gilgit manuscript. National Archives of India, New Delhi.

Tibetan

’phags pa ’dus pa rin po che tog gi gzungs shes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo. Toh 138, Degé Kangyur vol. 56 (mdo sde, na), folios 187.b–277.b.

’phags pa ’dus pa rin po che tog gi gzungs shes 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 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. 56, pp. 509–734.

Kurumiya, Yenshu, ed. ’Dus Pa Chen Po Rin Po Che Tog Gi Gzungs, ’Dus Pa Chen Po Dkon Mchog Dbal Zes Bya Ba’i Gzungs: being the Tibetan translation of the Ratnaketu Parivarta. Kyoto: Heirakuji-shoten, 1979.

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.

Narthang Catalog (bka’ ’gyur dkar chag ngo mtshar bkod pa rgya mtsho’i lde mig). Narthang Kangyur vol. 102 (dkar chag), folios 1.a–124.a.

Phangthangma (dkar chag ’phang thang ma). Beijing: mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 2003.

Translations and secondary literature:

Braarvig, Jens (1993). Akṣaya­mati­nirdeśa­sūtra. Vol. 2, The Tradition of Imperishability in Buddhist Thought. Oslo: Solum Verlag, 1993.

Braarvig, Jens (1985). “Dhāraṇī and Pratibhāna: Memory and Eloquence of the Bodhisattvas.” The Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies 8, no. 1: 17–29. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan, 1985.

Herrmann-Pfandt, Adelheid. Die lHan kar ma: ein früher Katalog der ins Tibetische übersetzten buddhistischen Texte. Vienna: Verlag der österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 2008.

Lamotte, Étienne. The Treatise of the Great Virtue of Wisdom of Nāgārjuna (Mahā­prajñā­pāramitā­śāstra). Translated from the French by Karma Migme Chodron, 2001.

Mak, Bill M. “Ratnaketu-parivarta, Sūryagarbha-parivarta, and Candragarbha-parivarta of Mahā­sannipāta­sūtra (MSN): Indian Jyotiṣa through the lens of Chinese Buddhist Canon.” Paper presented at the World Sanskrit Conference, New Delhi, January 8, 2012.

Miller, Adam T. “To Feel Like We Feel: Reading the Precious Banner Sūtra as Affective Regime.” PhD dissertation. University of Chicago, 2022.

Miller, Adam T. (2013). “The Buddha Said That Buddha Said So: A Translation and Analysis of ‘Pūrvayogaparivarta’ from the Ratnaketu Dhāraṇī Sūtra.” MA thesis. University of Missouri-Columbia, 2013.

Miller, Robert, et al., trans. The Chapter on Going Forth (Pravrajyāvastu, Toh 1-1). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2018.

Negi, J. S. Bod skad daṅ Legs-sbyar gyi tshig mdzod chen mo. Tibetan-Sanskrit Dictionary. Sarnath: Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies, 1993.

Skilling, Peter. “From bKa’ bstan bcos to bKa’ ’gyur and bsTan ’gyur.” In Transmission of the Tibetan Canon: Papers Presented at a Panel of the 7th Seminar of the International Association for Tibetan Studies, Graz 1995, edited by Helmut Eimer, 87–111. Vienna: Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1997.

Ui, Hakuju. A catalogue-index of the Tibetan Buddhist canons (Bkaḥ-ḥgyur and Bstan-ḥgyur). Sendai: Tōhoku Imperial University, 1934.


g.

Glossary

Types of attestation for names and terms of the corresponding source language

AS

Attested in source text

This term is attested in a manuscript used as a source for this translation.

AO

Attested in other text

This term is attested in other manuscripts with a parallel or similar context.

AD

Attested in dictionary

This term is attested in dictionaries matching Tibetan to the corresponding language.

AA

Approximate attestation

The attestation of this name is approximate. It is based on other names where the relationship between the Tibetan and source language is attested in dictionaries or other manuscripts.

RP

Reconstruction from Tibetan phonetic rendering

This term is a reconstruction based on the Tibetan phonetic rendering of the term.

RS

Reconstruction from Tibetan semantic rendering

This term is a reconstruction based on the semantics of the Tibetan translation.

SU

Source unspecified

This term has been supplied from an unspecified source, which most often is a widely trusted dictionary.

g.­1

Abhirati

Wylie:
  • mngon par dga’ ba
Tibetan:
  • མངོན་པར་དགའ་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • abhirati

The celestial realm of the tathāgata Akṣobhya in the east.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 6.­1
g.­2

absorption

Wylie:
  • ting nge ’dzin
Tibetan:
  • ཏིང་ངེ་འཛིན།
Sanskrit:
  • samādhi

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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.

Located in 28 passages in the translation:

  • i.­8
  • 1.­1
  • 1.­52
  • 1.­55
  • 1.­73
  • 2.­27
  • 4.­65
  • 4.­74
  • 4.­117
  • 4.­131
  • 4.­147
  • 4.­151
  • 5.­12
  • 5.­50
  • 5.­63
  • 6.­16
  • 6.­20
  • 6.­33
  • 7.­3-4
  • 7.­6
  • 8.­37
  • 9.­2
  • 11.­16
  • 13.­3
  • g.­78
  • g.­162
  • g.­215
g.­3

acceptance

Wylie:
  • bzod pa
Tibetan:
  • བཟོད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • kṣānti

Intellectual and spiritual readiness to accept certain tenets, such as the nonarising of phenomena or the law of karma. Also translated here as “patience.”

Located in 32 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­1
  • 2.­12
  • 2.­18
  • 2.­27-28
  • 2.­68
  • 3.­92
  • 3.­94
  • 4.­64
  • 4.­71
  • 4.­77
  • 4.­143
  • 5.­34-35
  • 5.­49-50
  • 5.­79
  • 6.­13
  • 6.­16
  • 6.­24
  • 6.­33
  • 6.­38
  • 8.­37
  • 10.­2
  • 10.­18
  • 11.­16
  • 11.­20
  • 13.­3
  • 13.­13
  • n.­453
  • n.­479
  • g.­191
g.­6

affliction

Wylie:
  • nyon mongs
Tibetan:
  • ཉོན་མོངས།
Sanskrit:
  • kleśa

Mental and emotional traits that bind one to saṃsāra; the fundamental three are ignorance, desire, and anger. When the term refers to the fundamental three, it tends to be translated as “the afflictions.”

Located in 44 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­1
  • 1.­7-8
  • 1.­13-17
  • 1.­41
  • 2.­21
  • 2.­44
  • 3.­8
  • 3.­91
  • 4.­6
  • 4.­13
  • 4.­33
  • 4.­41
  • 4.­66
  • 4.­70
  • 4.­91
  • 4.­134
  • 4.­138
  • 5.­32
  • 5.­54
  • 5.­78
  • 6.­13
  • 6.­16
  • 6.­23
  • 6.­70
  • 6.­73
  • 8.­29
  • 10.­1
  • 10.­14
  • 11.­1
  • 11.­16-17
  • 13.­4-5
  • 13.­15
  • n.­367
  • n.­442
  • g.­86
  • g.­95
  • g.­187
g.­8

aggregate

Wylie:
  • phung po
Tibetan:
  • ཕུང་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • skandha

See “five aggregates.”

Located in 21 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­12
  • 1.­17
  • 2.­6
  • 2.­8
  • 2.­26
  • 3.­37
  • 3.­39
  • 3.­60
  • 3.­72
  • 5.­79
  • 5.­81
  • 5.­92
  • 6.­57
  • 6.­75
  • 7.­5
  • n.­88
  • n.­106
  • n.­260
  • n.­336
  • g.­89
  • g.­95
g.­12

Akṣobhya

Wylie:
  • mi ’khrugs pa
Tibetan:
  • མི་འཁྲུགས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • akṣobhya

In the Ratnaketudhāraṇī, he is one of the six “directional” tathāgatas.

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • 6.­1-2
  • 8.­1
  • 13.­13
  • g.­1
g.­16

applications of mindfulness

Wylie:
  • dran pa nye bar bzhag pa
Tibetan:
  • དྲན་པ་ཉེ་བར་བཞག་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • smṛtyupasthāna

See “correct applications of mindfulness.”

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 5.­16
g.­20

asura

Wylie:
  • lha ma yin
Tibetan:
  • ལྷ་མ་ཡིན།
Sanskrit:
  • asura

A class of titans or demigods.

Located in 35 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­74
  • 2.­49
  • 2.­51
  • 2.­68
  • 3.­3
  • 3.­28
  • 3.­111
  • 4.­1
  • 4.­3
  • 4.­45
  • 4.­70
  • 4.­74
  • 5.­3
  • 6.­50
  • 6.­61
  • 6.­69
  • 6.­73
  • 6.­82
  • 6.­84
  • 7.­1
  • 8.­1
  • 8.­9
  • 8.­37
  • 10.­2
  • 10.­4
  • 10.­7
  • 11.­5
  • 11.­11
  • 11.­16
  • 11.­18
  • 13.­16
  • n.­123
  • n.­150
  • n.­216
  • n.­380
g.­23

Āṭavaka

Wylie:
  • ’brog gnas
Tibetan:
  • འབྲོག་གནས།
Sanskrit:
  • āṭavaka

One of the five yakṣa generals.

Located in 11 passages in the translation:

  • i.­12
  • 12.­1-3
  • 12.­8
  • 12.­14
  • 12.­16-17
  • 12.­21-22
  • n.­467
g.­24

awakening

Wylie:
  • byang chub
Tibetan:
  • བྱང་ཆུབ།
Sanskrit:
  • bodhi

I.e., awakening to the reality of phenomena (inner and outer) as they actually are.

Located in 112 passages in the translation:

  • i.­6
  • 1.­54
  • 1.­73
  • 1.­83-84
  • 2.­1-2
  • 2.­8
  • 2.­13-21
  • 2.­47
  • 2.­51-52
  • 2.­59-64
  • 2.­66
  • 2.­68
  • 3.­69-70
  • 3.­72
  • 3.­98
  • 4.­8
  • 4.­28
  • 4.­35
  • 4.­55
  • 4.­70
  • 4.­126-127
  • 4.­134
  • 4.­136
  • 4.­142-143
  • 4.­148
  • 4.­151
  • 5.­5-6
  • 5.­8-9
  • 5.­13
  • 5.­26
  • 5.­29-30
  • 5.­50
  • 5.­67
  • 5.­76
  • 5.­79
  • 6.­17-19
  • 6.­23
  • 6.­25
  • 6.­39
  • 6.­41-42
  • 6.­72
  • 6.­75-77
  • 7.­4
  • 7.­6
  • 8.­10
  • 8.­12
  • 8.­14
  • 8.­16-17
  • 8.­20
  • 8.­27
  • 8.­31
  • 8.­36-37
  • 9.­1
  • 9.­6
  • 9.­9
  • 11.­1
  • 11.­3
  • 11.­14-16
  • 11.­22-23
  • 12.­3-7
  • 12.­13
  • 13.­3
  • 13.­5
  • n.­101
  • n.­145
  • n.­170
  • n.­193
  • n.­356
  • n.­393
  • g.­67
  • g.­77
  • g.­82
  • g.­162
  • g.­179
  • g.­201
  • g.­279
g.­26

bases of supernatural power

Wylie:
  • rdzu ’phrul gyi rkang pa
Tibetan:
  • རྫུ་འཕྲུལ་གྱི་རྐང་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • ṛddhipāda

See “four bases of supernatural power.”

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 5.­16
g.­29

Bhīṣaṇaka

Wylie:
  • ’jigs ’jigs
Tibetan:
  • འཇིགས་འཇིགས།
Sanskrit:
  • bhīṣaṇaka

One of the five yakṣa generals.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 12.­1
g.­31

black faction

Wylie:
  • nag po’i phyogs
Tibetan:
  • ནག་པོའི་ཕྱོགས།
Sanskrit:
  • kṛṣṇapakṣa

The army, divisions, or factions of Māra, the deity who personifies spiritual death; from Māra’s point of view, this is the “white faction.” Also refers to the dark fortnight of the lunar month.

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­6
  • 6.­11
  • 10.­1
  • 12.­16
  • 13.­2
  • g.­320
g.­32

blessed one

Wylie:
  • bcom ldan ’das
Tibetan:
  • བཅོམ་ལྡན་འདས།
Sanskrit:
  • bhagavat

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

In Buddhist literature, this is an epithet applied to buddhas, most often to Śākyamuni. The Sanskrit term generally means “possessing fortune,” but in specifically Buddhist contexts it implies that a buddha is in possession of six auspicious qualities (bhaga) associated with complete awakening. The Tibetan term‍—where bcom is said to refer to “subduing” the four māras, ldan to “possessing” the great qualities of buddhahood, and ’das to “going beyond” saṃsāra and nirvāṇa‍—possibly reflects the commentarial tradition where the Sanskrit bhagavat is interpreted, in addition, as “one who destroys the four māras.” This is achieved either by reading bhagavat as bhagnavat (“one who broke”), or by tracing the word bhaga to the root √bhañj (“to break”).

Located in 255 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • 1.­1
  • 1.­10
  • 1.­15
  • 1.­18
  • 1.­25-26
  • 1.­28-31
  • 1.­33-34
  • 1.­36-37
  • 1.­39-40
  • 1.­42
  • 1.­46
  • 1.­48
  • 1.­52-55
  • 1.­57-59
  • 1.­62
  • 1.­73-75
  • 1.­86-88
  • 2.­1-2
  • 2.­11-12
  • 2.­14-15
  • 2.­21
  • 2.­26
  • 2.­28-31
  • 2.­36
  • 2.­38
  • 2.­42
  • 2.­48-49
  • 2.­52-53
  • 2.­68
  • 3.­7
  • 3.­28
  • 3.­34
  • 3.­111-112
  • 3.­124
  • 3.­126
  • 4.­1
  • 4.­3-7
  • 4.­9-12
  • 4.­15-17
  • 4.­19-21
  • 4.­25
  • 4.­29
  • 4.­36-37
  • 4.­39
  • 4.­45-46
  • 4.­57-58
  • 4.­70-75
  • 4.­78
  • 4.­81-82
  • 4.­115
  • 4.­118
  • 4.­121
  • 4.­131-132
  • 4.­145-147
  • 4.­150-151
  • 5.­1-4
  • 5.­10
  • 5.­12
  • 5.­15-17
  • 5.­19-21
  • 5.­23-24
  • 5.­38
  • 5.­50-51
  • 5.­54
  • 5.­58-61
  • 5.­77-78
  • 5.­80-85
  • 6.­2
  • 6.­6-7
  • 6.­16
  • 6.­18-23
  • 6.­27-28
  • 6.­30
  • 6.­32
  • 6.­36-37
  • 6.­48
  • 6.­50-55
  • 6.­58
  • 6.­60-62
  • 6.­69
  • 6.­71-73
  • 6.­75
  • 6.­78
  • 6.­81-85
  • 7.­1-7
  • 8.­1-7
  • 8.­9
  • 8.­12
  • 8.­16-17
  • 8.­19-20
  • 8.­24
  • 8.­26
  • 8.­28
  • 8.­30
  • 8.­32
  • 8.­34
  • 8.­38
  • 9.­1-2
  • 9.­5-7
  • 10.­1
  • 10.­3-4
  • 10.­6
  • 10.­9
  • 10.­14
  • 10.­16
  • 10.­18
  • 10.­20-22
  • 10.­24
  • 10.­26
  • 11.­1-6
  • 11.­11-13
  • 11.­15-16
  • 11.­18
  • 11.­20
  • 12.­1-2
  • 12.­14
  • 12.­16
  • 12.­19
  • 12.­21
  • 13.­1-7
  • 13.­12
  • 13.­15-16
  • n.­75-76
  • n.­119
  • n.­243
  • n.­291
  • n.­378
  • n.­461
  • n.­483
g.­35

bodhisattva

Wylie:
  • byang chub sems dpa’
Tibetan:
  • བྱང་ཆུབ་སེམས་དཔའ།
Sanskrit:
  • bodhisattva

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A being who is dedicated to the cultivation and fulfilment of the altruistic intention to attain perfect buddhahood, traversing the ten bodhisattva levels (daśabhūmi, sa bcu). Bodhisattvas purposely opt to remain within cyclic existence in order to liberate all sentient beings, instead of simply seeking personal freedom from suffering. In terms of the view, they realize both the selflessness of persons and the selflessness of phenomena.

Located in 161 passages in the translation:

  • i.­6
  • 1.­1
  • 1.­18
  • 1.­52
  • 2.­11
  • 2.­14
  • 2.­16-18
  • 2.­20
  • 2.­22
  • 2.­25-28
  • 2.­34
  • 2.­66
  • 4.­68
  • 4.­131
  • 4.­150-151
  • 5.­10-15
  • 5.­39
  • 5.­51
  • 5.­77-79
  • 5.­81-85
  • 5.­94
  • 6.­1-2
  • 6.­5-6
  • 6.­9
  • 6.­16
  • 6.­27
  • 6.­32-33
  • 6.­35
  • 6.­39
  • 6.­44-45
  • 6.­48
  • 6.­50
  • 6.­60-63
  • 6.­69
  • 6.­73
  • 6.­75
  • 7.­1
  • 7.­3-4
  • 7.­6-7
  • 8.­1
  • 8.­5
  • 8.­9
  • 8.­16-17
  • 8.­22
  • 8.­24
  • 8.­26
  • 8.­28
  • 8.­30
  • 8.­32
  • 8.­34
  • 8.­36-37
  • 9.­5
  • 10.­2
  • 10.­4
  • 10.­17-18
  • 11.­2
  • 11.­5
  • 11.­12-13
  • 11.­15-16
  • 11.­18
  • 11.­20-22
  • 12.­2
  • 13.­2-4
  • 13.­7
  • n.­107
  • n.­109
  • n.­148
  • n.­323
  • n.­348
  • n.­389
  • n.­453
  • g.­4
  • g.­11
  • g.­18
  • g.­33
  • g.­53
  • g.­58
  • g.­67
  • g.­68
  • g.­70
  • g.­72
  • g.­76
  • g.­81
  • g.­111
  • g.­116
  • g.­117
  • g.­119
  • g.­121
  • g.­123
  • g.­124
  • g.­125
  • g.­128
  • g.­129
  • g.­147
  • g.­160
  • g.­163
  • g.­164
  • g.­172
  • g.­176
  • g.­189
  • g.­192
  • g.­199
  • g.­205
  • g.­215
  • g.­216
  • g.­222
  • g.­242
  • g.­247
  • g.­258
  • g.­260
  • g.­261
  • g.­262
  • g.­263
  • g.­269
  • g.­280
  • g.­286
  • g.­291
  • g.­292
  • g.­298
  • g.­302
  • g.­303
  • g.­304
  • g.­307
  • g.­310
  • g.­311
  • g.­318
g.­36

brahmā

Wylie:
  • tshangs pa
Tibetan:
  • ཚངས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • brahmā

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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).

Located in 22 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­3
  • 6.­55
  • 6.­59
  • 6.­61-63
  • 6.­66-67
  • 6.­69
  • 6.­82
  • 6.­84
  • 8.­1
  • 8.­9
  • 10.­2
  • 10.­4-7
  • 10.­17
  • 10.­19
  • 10.­21
  • n.­430
g.­37

Brahmā

Wylie:
  • tshangs pa
Tibetan:
  • ཚངས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • brahmā

One of the trinity of Hindu gods, a protagonist and ally of the Buddha; when spelled with the lower case, it denotes any god from the multiple worlds of Brahmā.

Located in 24 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­40
  • 1.­74
  • 2.­20
  • 3.­111
  • 4.­57-58
  • 4.­74
  • 5.­2-3
  • 6.­50
  • 7.­1
  • 11.­1
  • 11.­4-6
  • 13.­1-3
  • 13.­5
  • 13.­15
  • n.­429
  • g.­36
  • g.­113
  • g.­167
g.­39

Buddha

Wylie:
  • sangs rgyas
Tibetan:
  • སངས་རྒྱས།
Sanskrit:
  • buddha

A fully awakened being; when spelled with a capital letter it refers to the Buddha Śākyamuni, one of the Three Jewels.

Located in 328 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1
  • i.­5-10
  • i.­14-15
  • 1.­5
  • 1.­9-10
  • 1.­18
  • 1.­25
  • 1.­56
  • 1.­63
  • 1.­73-74
  • 1.­85-87
  • 2.­30
  • 2.­42-43
  • 2.­49
  • 2.­52
  • 2.­62
  • 2.­67
  • 2.­69
  • 3.­1
  • 3.­8
  • 3.­34
  • 3.­49
  • 3.­76
  • 3.­78-79
  • 3.­105
  • 3.­107
  • 3.­109-110
  • 3.­118
  • 3.­120
  • 3.­124
  • 3.­126
  • 4.­6
  • 4.­23
  • 4.­33
  • 4.­38
  • 4.­42
  • 4.­48
  • 4.­64
  • 4.­66
  • 4.­68-70
  • 4.­74
  • 4.­124
  • 4.­130-131
  • 4.­135-137
  • 4.­140-142
  • 4.­144
  • 4.­146-147
  • 4.­149-150
  • 5.­2
  • 5.­4
  • 5.­9
  • 5.­11-17
  • 5.­24
  • 5.­26
  • 5.­34
  • 5.­41
  • 5.­50
  • 5.­55
  • 5.­72-73
  • 5.­77-85
  • 5.­90
  • 5.­93
  • 5.­95
  • 6.­1-2
  • 6.­5-7
  • 6.­9-10
  • 6.­16
  • 6.­18-23
  • 6.­27-30
  • 6.­32
  • 6.­34
  • 6.­37
  • 6.­48
  • 6.­50-51
  • 6.­53-54
  • 6.­58
  • 6.­61-63
  • 6.­67
  • 6.­69-70
  • 6.­73
  • 6.­75-78
  • 6.­81-85
  • 7.­1
  • 7.­3-7
  • 8.­1-7
  • 8.­9
  • 8.­15-20
  • 8.­33
  • 8.­35
  • 8.­38
  • 9.­1-2
  • 9.­5-7
  • 10.­1
  • 10.­3-7
  • 10.­9
  • 10.­13-14
  • 10.­16-22
  • 10.­24
  • 10.­26
  • 11.­1-2
  • 11.­4-5
  • 11.­11-12
  • 11.­14
  • 11.­16-18
  • 11.­20-22
  • 12.­2-3
  • 12.­10
  • 12.­14-17
  • 12.­21
  • 13.­1-7
  • 13.­11
  • 13.­15
  • n.­8
  • n.­12-13
  • n.­16-17
  • n.­65
  • n.­70
  • n.­75-76
  • n.­129
  • n.­144
  • n.­149
  • n.­258
  • n.­290
  • n.­295
  • n.­333
  • n.­365
  • n.­378
  • n.­389
  • n.­391
  • n.­483
  • n.­486
  • g.­4
  • g.­11
  • g.­14
  • g.­18
  • g.­21
  • g.­32
  • g.­33
  • g.­37
  • g.­43
  • g.­56
  • g.­58
  • g.­67
  • g.­68
  • g.­70
  • g.­72
  • g.­73
  • g.­77
  • g.­81
  • g.­84
  • g.­104
  • g.­112
  • g.­115
  • g.­116
  • g.­117
  • g.­119
  • g.­120
  • g.­123
  • g.­124
  • g.­125
  • g.­128
  • g.­129
  • g.­130
  • g.­136
  • g.­138
  • g.­139
  • g.­141
  • g.­147
  • g.­149
  • g.­151
  • g.­160
  • g.­161
  • g.­163
  • g.­164
  • g.­172
  • g.­176
  • g.­177
  • g.­178
  • g.­189
  • g.­199
  • g.­201
  • g.­204
  • g.­205
  • g.­216
  • g.­227
  • g.­228
  • g.­229
  • g.­232
  • g.­235
  • g.­241
  • g.­243
  • g.­246
  • g.­247
  • g.­249
  • g.­257
  • g.­258
  • g.­261
  • g.­263
  • g.­269
  • g.­273
  • g.­279
  • g.­284
  • g.­286
  • g.­291
  • g.­298
  • g.­299
  • g.­302
  • g.­303
  • g.­304
  • g.­306
  • g.­307
  • g.­308
  • g.­310
  • g.­311
  • g.­317
  • g.­318
  • g.­319
g.­42

Candra

Wylie:
  • zla ba
Tibetan:
  • ཟླ་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • candra

The moon personified as a god.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­111
  • 5.­3
g.­45

Chinnasrotas

Wylie:
  • rgyun bcad pa
Tibetan:
  • རྒྱུན་བཅད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • chinnasrotas

One of the five yakṣa generals.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 12.­1
  • 12.­5
g.­47

concentration

Wylie:
  • bsam gtan
Tibetan:
  • བསམ་གཏན།
Sanskrit:
  • dhyāna

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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.

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • 5.­37
  • 8.­5
  • 11.­3
  • g.­92
  • g.­194
g.­48

consciousness

Wylie:
  • rnam par shes pa
Tibetan:
  • རྣམ་པར་ཤེས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • vijñāna

Fifth of the five aggregates.

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­71
  • 4.­114
  • 6.­18
  • 13.­3
  • g.­79
  • g.­85
  • g.­245
  • g.­254
g.­50

correct applications of mindfulness

Wylie:
  • yang dag pa’i dran pa nye bar bzhag pa
Tibetan:
  • ཡང་དག་པའི་དྲན་པ་ཉེ་བར་བཞག་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • samyak­smṛtyupasthāna

This refers to the four types of mindfulness: the mindfulness of the body, sensations, thought, and phenomena.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • g.­16
g.­52

Delighting in Emanations

Wylie:
  • ’phrul dga’
Tibetan:
  • འཕྲུལ་དགའ།
Sanskrit:
  • nirmāṇarati

One of the gods’ realms.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 7.­1
g.­56

Devadatta

Wylie:
  • lhas byin
Tibetan:
  • ལྷས་བྱིན།
Sanskrit:
  • devadatta

Cousin, student, and competitor with the Buddha. He is one of the main characters in the stories from the Buddha’s life.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 5.­69
g.­59

dhāraṇī

Wylie:
  • gzungs
Tibetan:
  • གཟུངས།
Sanskrit:
  • dhāraṇī

Magical spell, usually a longer one with a specific purpose. Being also the name of a literary genre, this term may refer also to the entire text of the Ratnaketudhāraṇī or a section of text dealing with a particular dhāraṇī.

Located in 89 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­5-8
  • i.­11-15
  • h.­3
  • 2.­27
  • 2.­40-47
  • 2.­49
  • 2.­51
  • 2.­53
  • 2.­60
  • 2.­68
  • 3.­1
  • 5.­50
  • 5.­84
  • 6.­15-19
  • 6.­33
  • 6.­41-48
  • 6.­50-51
  • 6.­62-63
  • 6.­78-79
  • 6.­84
  • 6.­86
  • 8.­4
  • 8.­37
  • 9.­6
  • 10.­6
  • 10.­12
  • 10.­14-15
  • 10.­19
  • 11.­5-10
  • 11.­14
  • 11.­16
  • 11.­18
  • 11.­21-22
  • 12.­11
  • 12.­16
  • 12.­19
  • 13.­3
  • 13.­5
  • c.­1
  • n.­5
  • n.­11
  • n.­16
  • n.­129-132
  • n.­390
  • n.­405
  • n.­445
  • g.­60
  • g.­62
  • g.­63
  • g.­215
g.­60

dhāraṇī-seal

Wylie:
  • gzungs kyi phyag rgya
Tibetan:
  • གཟུངས་ཀྱི་ཕྱག་རྒྱ།
Sanskrit:
  • dhāraṇīmudrā

This is another term used for dhāraṇī that is meant to convey, among other meanings, the idea that a dhāraṇī seals or stamps upon the reciter or the targeted phenomenon the nature that it embodies.

Located in 21 passages in the translation:

  • i.­8
  • 5.­78
  • 5.­80
  • 6.­13
  • 6.­28
  • 6.­30
  • 6.­32
  • 6.­36-37
  • 6.­68
  • 7.­7
  • 10.­1-2
  • 10.­21-22
  • 10.­24
  • 11.­2
  • 11.­4
  • 11.­11
  • 13.­4
  • n.­396
g.­61

Dharma

Wylie:
  • chos
Tibetan:
  • ཆོས།
Sanskrit:
  • dharma

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The term dharma conveys ten different meanings, according to Vasubandhu’s Vyākhyā­yukti. The primary meanings are as follows: the doctrine taught by the Buddha (Dharma); the ultimate reality underlying and expressed through the Buddha’s teaching (Dharma); the trainings that the Buddha’s teaching stipulates (dharmas); the various awakened qualities or attainments acquired through practicing and realizing the Buddha’s teaching (dharmas); qualities or aspects more generally, i.e., phenomena or phenomenal attributes (dharmas); and mental objects (dharmas).

Located in 172 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1
  • i.­14-15
  • 1.­3
  • 1.­5
  • 1.­8-9
  • 1.­14
  • 1.­16
  • 1.­24
  • 1.­30
  • 1.­51
  • 1.­68
  • 1.­73
  • 1.­87-89
  • 2.­1
  • 2.­21
  • 2.­23
  • 2.­25
  • 2.­30
  • 2.­41
  • 2.­60
  • 2.­67
  • 3.­6-7
  • 3.­28
  • 3.­40
  • 3.­49-50
  • 3.­65
  • 3.­76
  • 3.­79-82
  • 3.­84
  • 3.­90-91
  • 3.­99-100
  • 3.­107
  • 4.­2
  • 4.­6
  • 4.­12-13
  • 4.­22-24
  • 4.­28
  • 4.­34
  • 4.­36
  • 4.­38
  • 4.­40-43
  • 4.­48-51
  • 4.­57
  • 4.­59
  • 4.­70
  • 4.­77
  • 4.­85
  • 4.­101
  • 4.­104
  • 4.­134
  • 4.­139-140
  • 4.­150
  • 5.­7
  • 5.­20
  • 5.­26-27
  • 5.­33
  • 5.­43
  • 5.­52-54
  • 5.­58-60
  • 5.­75
  • 5.­77-80
  • 5.­84
  • 6.­6
  • 6.­15-16
  • 6.­19-21
  • 6.­23
  • 6.­26
  • 6.­29-30
  • 6.­32
  • 6.­41
  • 6.­43
  • 6.­46-47
  • 6.­53
  • 6.­61-62
  • 6.­67-68
  • 6.­78-79
  • 6.­81-82
  • 6.­85
  • 7.­8
  • 8.­1
  • 8.­5
  • 8.­7
  • 8.­9
  • 8.­38
  • 9.­5
  • 10.­1
  • 10.­3-5
  • 10.­7-10
  • 10.­13-16
  • 10.­18-22
  • 11.­1
  • 11.­3-5
  • 11.­11
  • 11.­13
  • 11.­16-18
  • 11.­24
  • 12.­4
  • 12.­7
  • 12.­9
  • 13.­3
  • 13.­5
  • 13.­7
  • 13.­13
  • n.­14
  • n.­29
  • n.­56
  • n.­153
  • n.­170
  • n.­178
  • n.­268
  • n.­379
  • n.­402
  • n.­404
  • n.­443
  • g.­63
  • g.­195
  • g.­273
g.­62

Dharma discourse

Wylie:
  • chos kyi rnam grangs
Tibetan:
  • ཆོས་ཀྱི་རྣམ་གྲངས།
Sanskrit:
  • dharmaparyāya

This may refer to the entire text of the Ratnaketudhāraṇī or to a section dealing with a particular dhāraṇī.

Located in 33 passages in the translation:

  • i.­13
  • 6.­28
  • 6.­30
  • 6.­32
  • 6.­68
  • 6.­78-79
  • 10.­1-2
  • 10.­4
  • 10.­8-9
  • 10.­12
  • 10.­14-15
  • 10.­18-19
  • 10.­21-22
  • 10.­24-25
  • 11.­2-3
  • 11.­11
  • 11.­15
  • 11.­18
  • 13.­1-2
  • 13.­4-6
  • 13.­8
  • 13.­15
g.­63

Dharma method

Wylie:
  • chos kyi tshul
Tibetan:
  • ཆོས་ཀྱི་ཚུལ།
Sanskrit:
  • dharmanetrī

The Skt. term, which means “way,” “method,” or “system,” could be interpreted as that which is “conducive” to the Dharma, which “leads” to the Dharma or which “guides” in accordance with the principles of the Dharma. In the Ratnaketudhāraṇī, it variously refers to individual dhāraṇīs, the sections that deal with these dhāraṇīs, or the entire text of the Ratnaketudhāraṇī.

Located in 31 passages in the translation:

  • i.­14-15
  • 4.­12
  • 6.­18
  • 6.­27
  • 6.­29-30
  • 6.­32
  • 6.­36
  • 6.­61
  • 6.­78
  • 6.­85
  • 7.­7
  • 8.­1
  • 8.­12
  • 9.­5
  • 10.­1-2
  • 10.­5-6
  • 10.­17
  • 10.­20-21
  • 10.­25-26
  • 11.­3-4
  • 11.­11
  • 13.­2
  • 13.­4
  • n.­440
g.­64

Dhṛtarāṣṭra

Wylie:
  • yul ’khor srung
Tibetan:
  • ཡུལ་འཁོར་སྲུང་།
Sanskrit:
  • dhṛtarāṣṭra

One of the Four Great Kings.

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­111
  • 6.­69
  • 11.­1
  • 11.­9
  • g.­94
g.­65

diligence

Wylie:
  • brtson ’grus
Tibetan:
  • བརྩོན་འགྲུས།
Sanskrit:
  • vīrya

The fourth of the six perfections.

Located in 14 passages in the translation:

  • 4.­70
  • 5.­79
  • 6.­23-24
  • 6.­73
  • 8.­5-6
  • 8.­9
  • 8.­18
  • 10.­10
  • 13.­13
  • g.­91
  • g.­162
  • g.­194
g.­66

discipline

Wylie:
  • tshul khrims
Tibetan:
  • ཚུལ་ཁྲིམས།
Sanskrit:
  • śīla

The second of the six perfections.

Located in 9 passages in the translation:

  • 4.­32
  • 4.­36
  • 4.­64
  • 4.­92
  • 4.­101-102
  • 8.­5
  • g.­194
  • g.­240
g.­67

Discriminating Intellect

Wylie:
  • shin tu rnam par phye ba’i blo gros
Tibetan:
  • ཤིན་ཏུ་རྣམ་པར་ཕྱེ་བའི་བློ་གྲོས།
Sanskrit:
  • —

One of the bodhisattvas who received from the Buddha a prophecy of his future awakening.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 7.­1
  • 7.­3-4
  • g.­116
g.­72

Durdharṣa

Wylie:
  • thub dka’
Tibetan:
  • ཐུབ་དཀའ།
Sanskrit:
  • durdharṣa

One of the bodhisattvas in the Buddha’s retinue; also one of the māras.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­1
  • 3.­21
g.­77

eighteen unique qualities of a buddha

Wylie:
  • sangs rgyas kyi chos ma ’dres pa bco brgyad
Tibetan:
  • སངས་རྒྱས་ཀྱི་ཆོས་མ་འདྲེས་པ་བཅོ་བརྒྱད།
Sanskrit:
  • aṣṭā­daśā­veṇika­buddha­dharma

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Eighteen special features of a buddha’s behavior, realization, activity, and wisdom that are not shared by other beings. They are generally listed as: (1) he never makes a mistake, (2) he is never boisterous, (3) he never forgets, (4) his concentration never falters, (5) he has no notion of distinctness, (6) his equanimity is not due to lack of consideration, (7) his motivation never falters, (8) his endeavor never fails, (9) his mindfulness never falters, (10) he never abandons his concentration, (11) his insight (prajñā) never decreases, (12) his liberation never fails, (13) all his physical actions are preceded and followed by wisdom (jñāna), (14) all his verbal actions are preceded and followed by wisdom, (15) all his mental actions are preceded and followed by wisdom, (16) his wisdom and vision perceive the past without attachment or hindrance, (17) his wisdom and vision perceive the future without attachment or hindrance, and (18) his wisdom and vision perceive the present without attachment or hindrance.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 5.­16
g.­79

element

Wylie:
  • khams
Tibetan:
  • ཁམས།
Sanskrit:
  • dhātu

Sphere; primary element (such as earth, water, etc.; see “six elements”); sensory “elements” that comprise six types of sense objects, six types of sense faculties, and six sense consciousnesses.

Located in 20 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­8
  • 2.­15
  • 3.­42
  • 3.­60
  • 3.­64
  • 5.­85-91
  • 6.­18
  • 6.­32
  • 6.­57
  • 10.­3
  • n.­88
  • n.­260
  • n.­338
  • n.­420
g.­80

exposition

Wylie:
  • lung bstan
Tibetan:
  • ལུང་བསྟན།
Sanskrit:
  • vyākaraṇa

A clear analysis or detailed presentation. Also translated here as “prophecy.”

Located in 19 passages in the translation:

  • i.­6
  • i.­9
  • 5.­78-84
  • 6.­28
  • 6.­30
  • 6.­32
  • 7.­7
  • 10.­1
  • 11.­2
  • 13.­5
  • n.­333-334
  • g.­201
g.­82

factors of awakening

Wylie:
  • byang chub kyi phyogs kyi chos
Tibetan:
  • བྱང་ཆུབ་ཀྱི་ཕྱོགས་ཀྱི་ཆོས།
Sanskrit:
  • bodhi­pakṣa­dharma

Traditionally there are thirty-seven factors conducive to awakening.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 6.­16
  • n.­297
g.­83

fetter

Wylie:
  • kun tu sbyor ba
Tibetan:
  • ཀུན་ཏུ་སྦྱོར་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • saṃyojana

Fetters binding one to saṃsāra; they come in groups of three (ignorance, hatred, and desire) or ten.

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­48
  • 1.­61
  • 2.­23
  • 3.­124
  • 5.­30
g.­85

five aggregates

Wylie:
  • phung po lnga
Tibetan:
  • ཕུང་པོ་ལྔ།
Sanskrit:
  • pañcaskandha

The five constituents of a living entity: form, sensation, perception, mental formations, and consciousness.

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­15
  • 5.­40
  • n.­210
  • g.­8
  • g.­48
  • g.­88
  • g.­193
  • g.­237
g.­86

five degenerations

Wylie:
  • snyigs ma lnga
Tibetan:
  • སྙིགས་མ་ལྔ།
Sanskrit:
  • pañcakaṣāya

Five signs that the later era of an eon has arrived: degenerate views, afflictions, beings, lifespan, and time.

Located in 16 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­30
  • 5.­17
  • 5.­50
  • 5.­78
  • 6.­10
  • 6.­23
  • 6.­27-28
  • 6.­78
  • 8.­7
  • 10.­1
  • 10.­5-6
  • 11.­1
  • 11.­16
  • 13.­3
g.­88

form

Wylie:
  • gzugs
Tibetan:
  • གཟུགས།
Sanskrit:
  • rūpa

First of the five aggregates.

Located in 13 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­87
  • 2.­5
  • 3.­57
  • 4.­75
  • 4.­131
  • 5.­17
  • 5.­36
  • 6.­57
  • 7.­1-2
  • n.­190
  • g.­85
  • g.­275
g.­89

formation

Wylie:
  • ’du byed
Tibetan:
  • འདུ་བྱེད།
Sanskrit:
  • saṃskāra

Predispositions; conditioning (as in “conditioned existence”) in general; also the fourth aggregate, that of volition.

Located in 9 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­72
  • 5.­92
  • 6.­57
  • 6.­70
  • n.­339
  • n.­400
  • n.­428
  • g.­85
  • g.­272
g.­90

Fortunate Eon

Wylie:
  • bskal pa bzang po
Tibetan:
  • བསྐལ་པ་བཟང་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • bhadrakalpa

The name of our current eon.

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • 8.­2
  • 8.­16
  • 12.­3-4
  • 12.­6
  • g.­139
  • g.­141
  • g.­151
g.­91

four bases of supernatural power

Wylie:
  • rdzu ’phrul gyi rkang pa bzhi
  • rdzu ’phrul gyi yul bkod pa bzhi
Tibetan:
  • རྫུ་འཕྲུལ་གྱི་རྐང་པ་བཞི།
  • རྫུ་འཕྲུལ་གྱི་ཡུལ་བཀོད་པ་བཞི།
Sanskrit:
  • caturṛddhipāda
  • caturṛddhiviṣaya

These are (1) single-pointed intention, (2) single-pointed thoughts, (3) single-pointed diligence, and (4) single-pointed investigation.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 5.­84
  • g.­26
g.­92

four concentrations

Wylie:
  • bsam gtan bzhi
Tibetan:
  • བསམ་གཏན་བཞི།
Sanskrit:
  • caturdhyāna

The four levels of meditative concentration.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 5.­36
g.­93

four errors

Wylie:
  • phyin ci log bzhi
Tibetan:
  • ཕྱིན་ཅི་ལོག་བཞི།
Sanskrit:
  • caturviparyāsa
  • caturviprayāsa

The four errors are (1) the mistaken belief in permanence, (2) in the self (ātman), (3) in the purity of that which is impure, and (4) that the suffering is pleasurable.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 5.­35
  • 5.­37
g.­94

Four Great Kings

Wylie:
  • rgyal po chen po bzhi
Tibetan:
  • རྒྱལ་པོ་ཆེན་པོ་བཞི།
Sanskrit:
  • caturmahārāja

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Four gods who live on the lower slopes (fourth level) of Mount Meru in the eponymous Heaven of the Four Great Kings (Cāturmahā­rājika, rgyal chen bzhi’i ris) and guard the four cardinal directions. Each is the leader of a nonhuman class of beings living in his realm. They are Dhṛtarāṣṭra, ruling the gandharvas in the east; Virūḍhaka, ruling over the kumbhāṇḍas in the south; Virūpākṣa, ruling the nāgas in the west; and Vaiśravaṇa (also known as Kubera) ruling the yakṣas in the north. Also referred to as Guardians of the World or World Protectors (lokapāla, ’jig rten skyong ba).

Located in 9 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­111
  • 4.­74
  • 7.­1
  • g.­64
  • g.­155
  • g.­300
  • g.­314
  • g.­315
  • g.­321
g.­95

four māras

Wylie:
  • bdud bzhi
Tibetan:
  • བདུད་བཞི།
Sanskrit:
  • cāturmāra

Personification of the four factors that keep beings in saṃsāra‍—afflictions, death, aggregates, and pride arising through meditative states.

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­73
  • 2.­59
  • 5.­79
g.­96

four noble attributes

Wylie:
  • ’phags pa’i rigs bzhi
Tibetan:
  • འཕགས་པའི་རིགས་བཞི།
Sanskrit:
  • caturāryavaṃśa

The attributes of a practitioner; the first three are garments, food, and bedding, and the fourth is the dedication to the path of liberation.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 5.­79
g.­97

four rivers

Wylie:
  • chu bo bzhi
Tibetan:
  • ཆུ་བོ་བཞི།
Sanskrit:
  • caturogha
  • caturaugha

The same as the four āsrava (“outflows” or “contaminants”), namely (1) sensual desire, (2) conditioned existence, (3) wrong views, and (4) ignorance; also refers to birth, old age, sickness, and death.

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­81
  • 4.­70
  • 5.­31
  • 5.­38
  • 5.­57
  • 5.­59
g.­100

Free from Strife

Wylie:
  • ’thab bral
Tibetan:
  • འཐབ་བྲལ།
Sanskrit:
  • yāma

One of the gods’ realms.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 7.­1
  • g.­325
g.­101

gandharva

Wylie:
  • dri za
Tibetan:
  • དྲི་ཟ།
Sanskrit:
  • gandharva

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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.”

Located in 27 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­74
  • 2.­44
  • 2.­49
  • 2.­51
  • 3.­28
  • 3.­112
  • 4.­1
  • 4.­3
  • 5.­3
  • 6.­50
  • 6.­61
  • 6.­73
  • 6.­82
  • 6.­84
  • 8.­1
  • 8.­9
  • 8.­37
  • 10.­2
  • 10.­4
  • 10.­7
  • 11.­11
  • 11.­16
  • 11.­18
  • 13.­3
  • 13.­16
  • n.­216
  • g.­94
g.­102

Gaṅgā

Wylie:
  • gang gA
Tibetan:
  • གང་གཱ།
Sanskrit:
  • gaṅgā

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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.

Located in 16 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­42
  • 1.­86
  • 4.­30
  • 5.­50
  • 5.­83
  • 6.­5
  • 6.­33
  • 6.­45
  • 6.­48
  • 7.­3
  • 8.­7
  • 8.­18
  • 8.­37
  • 12.­4
  • 13.­9-10
g.­103

garuḍa

Wylie:
  • nam mkha’ lding
Tibetan:
  • ནམ་མཁའ་ལྡིང་།
Sanskrit:
  • garuḍa

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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.

Located in 26 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­74
  • 2.­49
  • 2.­51
  • 3.­3
  • 3.­28
  • 3.­111
  • 4.­1
  • 4.­3
  • 4.­45
  • 4.­70
  • 5.­3
  • 6.­50
  • 6.­61
  • 6.­73
  • 7.­1
  • 8.­1
  • 8.­9
  • 8.­37
  • 10.­2
  • 10.­4
  • 10.­7
  • 11.­11
  • 11.­16
  • 11.­18
  • n.­123
  • n.­216
g.­104

Gautama

Wylie:
  • gau ta ma
Tibetan:
  • གཽ་ཏ་མ།
Sanskrit:
  • gautama

One of the names of the Buddha, especially during his earlier life as an ascetic.

Located in 17 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­19
  • 1.­28
  • 1.­38
  • 1.­62
  • 1.­71
  • 1.­89
  • 2.­58
  • 3.­6
  • 3.­26
  • 3.­29
  • 3.­113
  • 3.­120
  • 3.­124
  • 4.­79
  • 5.­22
  • 11.­21
  • n.­160
g.­105

generosity

Wylie:
  • sbyin pa
Tibetan:
  • སྦྱིན་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • dāna

The first of the six perfections.

Located in 11 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­49
  • 2.­3
  • 2.­35
  • 3.­89
  • 8.­3
  • 8.­5
  • 12.­13
  • n.­42
  • n.­81
  • g.­5
  • g.­194
g.­109

Glorious and Brilliantly Shining Jewel

Wylie:
  • nor bu ’od ’bar ba dpal
Tibetan:
  • ནོར་བུ་འོད་འབར་བ་དཔལ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

One of the tathāgatas.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 7.­1
g.­110

god

Wylie:
  • lha
Tibetan:
  • ལྷ།
Sanskrit:
  • deva

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

In the most general sense the devas‍—the term is cognate with the English divine‍—are a class of celestial beings who frequently appear in Buddhist texts, often at the head of the assemblies of nonhuman beings who attend and celebrate the teachings of the Buddha Śākyamuni and other buddhas and bodhisattvas. In Buddhist cosmology the devas occupy the highest of the five or six “destinies” (gati) of saṃsāra among which beings take rebirth. The devas reside in the devalokas, “heavens” that traditionally number between twenty-six and twenty-eight and are divided between the desire realm (kāmadhātu), form realm (rūpadhātu), and formless realm (ārūpyadhātu). A being attains rebirth among the devas either through meritorious deeds (in the desire realm) or the attainment of subtle meditative states (in the form and formless realms). While rebirth among the devas is considered favorable, it is ultimately a transitory state from which beings will fall when the conditions that lead to rebirth there are exhausted. Thus, rebirth in the god realms is regarded as a diversion from the spiritual path.

Located in 111 passages in the translation:

  • i.­13
  • 1.­25
  • 1.­56-57
  • 1.­74
  • 2.­27
  • 2.­30
  • 2.­32
  • 2.­44
  • 2.­49
  • 2.­51-52
  • 2.­55
  • 2.­68
  • 3.­28
  • 3.­77
  • 3.­86
  • 3.­91
  • 3.­99-100
  • 3.­103-104
  • 3.­111-112
  • 4.­1
  • 4.­3
  • 4.­20-21
  • 4.­39
  • 4.­45
  • 4.­48
  • 4.­54
  • 4.­57
  • 4.­70-73
  • 4.­75-76
  • 4.­118
  • 4.­144
  • 4.­150
  • 5.­1
  • 5.­3
  • 5.­16
  • 5.­34
  • 5.­79
  • 5.­81
  • 5.­83
  • 6.­27
  • 6.­50
  • 6.­53
  • 6.­58
  • 6.­61
  • 6.­69
  • 6.­73
  • 6.­82
  • 6.­84
  • 7.­1
  • 8.­1
  • 8.­9
  • 8.­18
  • 8.­36-37
  • 9.­5-6
  • 10.­2
  • 10.­4
  • 10.­7
  • 10.­21
  • 11.­5-6
  • 11.­11
  • 11.­16
  • 11.­18
  • 11.­20
  • 12.­12
  • 12.­21
  • 13.­3
  • 13.­5
  • 13.­16
  • n.­65
  • n.­398
  • n.­407
  • n.­431
  • n.­453
  • g.­10
  • g.­36
  • g.­37
  • g.­42
  • g.­52
  • g.­100
  • g.­113
  • g.­146
  • g.­155
  • g.­156
  • g.­167
  • g.­169
  • g.­173
  • g.­203
  • g.­217
  • g.­218
  • g.­225
  • g.­226
  • g.­265
  • g.­289
  • g.­290
  • g.­300
  • g.­305
  • g.­324
  • g.­325
g.­115

hearer

Wylie:
  • nyan thos
Tibetan:
  • ཉན་ཐོས།
Sanskrit:
  • śrāvaka

A disciple of the Buddha; in the Mahāyāna sūtras this term refers to the followers of the Hīnayāna, or the Lesser Vehicle.

Located in 35 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­31
  • 2.­16
  • 2.­60
  • 2.­68
  • 3.­35
  • 3.­76
  • 3.­112
  • 4.­1
  • 4.­150
  • 5.­10-14
  • 5.­82-83
  • 5.­85
  • 6.­2
  • 6.­26
  • 6.­32
  • 6.­50
  • 6.­61-63
  • 6.­73
  • 7.­3
  • 8.­37
  • n.­12
  • n.­141
  • g.­141
  • g.­171
  • g.­206
  • g.­252
  • g.­253
  • g.­280
g.­119

Holder of Meru’s Peak

Wylie:
  • lhun po’i rtse ’dzin
Tibetan:
  • ལྷུན་པོའི་རྩེ་འཛིན།
Sanskrit:
  • —

A bodhisattva in the Buddha’s retinue.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­1
g.­122

insight

Wylie:
  • shes rab
Tibetan:
  • ཤེས་རབ།
Sanskrit:
  • prajñā

Direct gnosis without conceptuality or mental elaboration.

Located in 22 passages in the translation:

  • i.­1
  • 1.­1
  • 1.­9
  • 1.­31-32
  • 1.­41
  • 2.­3
  • 2.­24
  • 5.­79
  • 5.­94
  • 7.­3
  • 8.­5
  • 8.­7
  • 8.­18-19
  • 8.­25
  • 10.­1
  • 13.­13
  • n.­30
  • n.­82
  • g.­194
  • g.­240
g.­123

Intelligent Light

Wylie:
  • ’od kyi blo gros
Tibetan:
  • འོད་ཀྱི་བློ་གྲོས།
Sanskrit:
  • —

A bodhisattva in the Buddha’s retinue.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­1
g.­124

Intelligent Lightning

Wylie:
  • glog gi blo gros
Tibetan:
  • གློག་གི་བློ་གྲོས།
Sanskrit:
  • —

A bodhisattva in the Buddha’s retinue.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­1
g.­125

Intelligent Sky

Wylie:
  • nam mkha’i blo gros
Tibetan:
  • ནམ་མཁའི་བློ་གྲོས།
Sanskrit:
  • —

A bodhisattva in the Buddha’s retinue.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­1
g.­128

Jayamati

Wylie:
  • rgyal ba’i blo gros
Tibetan:
  • རྒྱལ་བའི་བློ་གྲོས།
Sanskrit:
  • jayamati

A bodhisattva in the Buddha’s retinue; also one of Māra’s sons.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­1
  • 1.­65
g.­129

Jinamati

Wylie:
  • —
Tibetan:
  • —
Sanskrit:
  • jinamati

A bodhisattva in the Buddha’s retinue.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­1
g.­132

Jñānolka

Wylie:
  • shes pa’i sgron ma
Tibetan:
  • ཤེས་པའི་སྒྲོན་མ།
Sanskrit:
  • jñānolka

One of the five yakṣa generals.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 12.­1
  • 12.­5
g.­134

Jyotīrasa

Wylie:
  • skar ma la dga’ ba
Tibetan:
  • སྐར་མ་ལ་དགའ་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • jyotīrasa

A sage, originally a devotee of Maheśvara.

Located in 15 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­28
  • 4.­75
  • 4.­77-78
  • 4.­118
  • 4.­131
  • 4.­145
  • 4.­147
  • 4.­150-152
  • 5.­51
  • n.­323
  • g.­81
  • g.­120
g.­138

Kalandakanivāpa

Wylie:
  • bya ka lan ta ka
Tibetan:
  • བྱ་ཀ་ལན་ཏ་ཀ
Sanskrit:
  • kalandaka­nivāpa

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A place where the Buddha often resided, within the Bamboo Park (Veṇuvana) outside Rajagṛha that had been donated to him. The name is said to have arisen when, one day, King Bimbisāra fell asleep after a romantic liaison in the Bamboo Park. While the king rested, his consort wandered off. A snake (the reincarnation of the park’s previous owner, who still resented the king’s acquisition of the park) approached with malign intentions. Through the king’s tremendous merit, a gathering of kalandaka‍—crows or other birds according to Tibetan renderings, but some Sanskrit and Pali sources suggest flying squirrels‍—miraculously appeared and began squawking. Their clamor alerted the king’s consort to the danger, who rushed back and hacked the snake to pieces, thereby saving the king’s life. King Bimbisāra then named the spot Kalandakanivāpa (“Kalandakas’ Feeding Ground”), sometimes (though not in the Vinayavastu) given as Kalandakanivāsa (“Kalandakas’ Abode”) in their honor. The story is told in the Saṃghabhedavastu (Toh 1, ch.17, Degé Kangyur vol.4, folio 77.b et seq.). For more details and other origin stories, see the 84000 Knowledge Base article Veṇuvana and Kalandakanivāpa.

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­1
  • 1.­10
  • 1.­18
g.­140

karma

Wylie:
  • las
Tibetan:
  • ལས།
Sanskrit:
  • karman

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Meaning “action” in its most basic sense, karma is an important concept in Buddhist philosophy as the cumulative force of previous physical, verbal, and mental acts, which determines present experience and will determine future existences.

Located in 60 passages in the translation:

  • i.­7-8
  • i.­14
  • 1.­7
  • 1.­13
  • 1.­15
  • 1.­21-22
  • 1.­41
  • 1.­79
  • 2.­9
  • 2.­24
  • 2.­26
  • 2.­41-43
  • 2.­55
  • 2.­58
  • 2.­67
  • 3.­71
  • 3.­75
  • 3.­98
  • 4.­48
  • 4.­119
  • 4.­142
  • 5.­88
  • 5.­92
  • 6.­24
  • 6.­46-47
  • 6.­67
  • 6.­81
  • 7.­3
  • 7.­5-6
  • 10.­10
  • 10.­13-14
  • 10.­24
  • 11.­2-4
  • 11.­11
  • 11.­18
  • 12.­14
  • 13.­5
  • n.­129
  • n.­132
  • n.­136
  • n.­192-193
  • n.­333
  • n.­371
  • n.­480
  • g.­3
  • g.­5
  • g.­77
  • g.­78
  • g.­269
  • g.­270
g.­141

Kāśyapa

Wylie:
  • ’od srung
Tibetan:
  • འོད་སྲུང་།
Sanskrit:
  • kāśyapa

One of the Buddha’s closest hearer disciples; the name of the third buddha of the Fortunate Eon.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 5.­68
  • 8.­17
g.­145

Kauṇḍiṇyārcis

Wylie:
  • kauN+Di n+ya ’od ’phro ba
Tibetan:
  • ཀཽཎྜི་ནྱ་འོད་འཕྲོ་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • kauṇḍiṇyārcis

One of the tathāgatas.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 12.­1
g.­150

kinnara

Wylie:
  • mi ’am ci
Tibetan:
  • མི་འམ་ཅི།
Sanskrit:
  • kinnara

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A class of nonhuman beings that resemble humans to the degree that their very name‍—which means “is that human?”‍—suggests some confusion as to their divine status. Kinnaras are mythological beings found in both Buddhist and Brahmanical literature, where they are portrayed as creatures half human, half animal. They are often depicted as highly skilled celestial musicians.

Located in 27 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­74
  • 2.­49
  • 2.­51
  • 3.­3
  • 3.­28
  • 3.­111
  • 4.­1
  • 4.­3
  • 4.­21
  • 4.­45
  • 4.­70
  • 5.­3
  • 6.­50
  • 6.­61
  • 6.­73
  • 7.­1
  • 8.­1
  • 8.­9
  • 8.­37
  • 10.­2
  • 10.­4
  • 10.­7
  • 11.­11
  • 11.­16
  • 11.­18
  • n.­123
  • n.­216
g.­153

kṣatriya

Wylie:
  • rgyal rigs
Tibetan:
  • རྒྱལ་རིགས།
Sanskrit:
  • kṣatriya

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The ruling caste in the traditional four-caste hierarchy of India, associated with warriors, the aristocracy, and kings.

Located in 15 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­44-45
  • 3.­111
  • 5.­79
  • 6.­24
  • 6.­27
  • 6.­67
  • 7.­1
  • 8.­37
  • 9.­6
  • 10.­24
  • 12.­7
  • 12.­10-11
  • n.­124
g.­155

Kubera

Wylie:
  • lus ngan po
Tibetan:
  • ལུས་ངན་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • kubera
  • kuvera

A god of wealth, sometimes (as in the Ratnaketudhāraṇī) identified with Vaiśravaṇa, one of the Four Great Kings.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 11.­1
  • 11.­10
g.­158

kumbhāṇḍa

Wylie:
  • grul bum
Tibetan:
  • གྲུལ་བུམ།
Sanskrit:
  • kumbhāṇḍa

A class of nonhuman beings.

Located in 10 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­74
  • 2.­49
  • 2.­51
  • 3.­28
  • 6.­74
  • 7.­1
  • 8.­9
  • 12.­11
  • 13.­3
  • g.­94
g.­162

limbs of awakening

Wylie:
  • byang chub kyi yan lag
Tibetan:
  • བྱང་ཆུབ་ཀྱི་ཡན་ལག
Sanskrit:
  • bodhyaṅga

Traditionally there are seven limbs of awakening (saptabodhyaṅga) of an awakened one‍—mindfulness, discrimination, diligence, joy, pliability, absorption, and equanimity.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­58
  • 5.­16
g.­165

Magadha

Wylie:
  • ma ga d+hA
Tibetan:
  • མ་ག་དྷཱ།
Sanskrit:
  • māgadha
  • magadha

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

An ancient Indian kingdom that lay to the south of the Ganges River in what today is the state of Bihar. Magadha was the largest of the sixteen “great states” (mahājanapada) that flourished between the sixth and third centuries ʙᴄᴇ in northern India. During the life of the Buddha Śākyamuni, it was ruled by King Bimbisāra and later by Bimbisāra's son, Ajātaśatru. Its capital was initially Rājagṛha (modern-day Rajgir) but was later moved to Pāṭaliputra (modern-day Patna). Over the centuries, with the expansion of the Magadha’s might, it became the capital of the vast Mauryan empire and seat of the great King Aśoka.

This region is home to many of the most important Buddhist sites, including Bodh Gayā, where the Buddha attained awakening; Vulture Peak (Gṛdhra­kūṭa), where the Buddha bestowed many well-known Mahāyāna sūtras; and the Buddhist university of Nālandā that flourished between the fifth and twelfth centuries ᴄᴇ, among many others.

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • i.­1
  • 3.­29
  • g.­14
  • g.­211
  • g.­306
g.­167

Mahābrahmā

Wylie:
  • tshangs pa chen po
Tibetan:
  • ཚངས་པ་ཆེན་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • mahābrahmā

The chief god in the realm of Brahmā.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 4.­119
  • 5.­16
g.­168

Mahācandanagandha

Wylie:
  • tsan dan gyi dri chen po
Tibetan:
  • ཙན་དན་གྱི་དྲི་ཆེན་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • mahā­candana­gandha

One of the tathāgatas.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 13.­1-2
g.­169

Maheśvara

Wylie:
  • dbang phyug chen po
Tibetan:
  • དབང་ཕྱུག་ཆེན་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • maheśvara

One of the forms of the god Śiva.

Located in 10 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­37
  • 1.­40
  • 3.­28
  • 3.­111
  • 4.­74
  • 5.­3
  • 6.­69
  • 6.­73
  • 7.­1
  • g.­134
g.­170

mahoraga

Wylie:
  • lto ’phye chen po
Tibetan:
  • ལྟོ་འཕྱེ་ཆེན་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • mahoraga

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Literally “great serpents,” mahoragas are supernatural beings depicted as large, subterranean beings with human torsos and heads and the lower bodies of serpents. Their movements are said to cause earthquakes, and they make up a class of subterranean geomantic spirits whose movement through the seasons and months of the year is deemed significant for construction projects.

Located in 30 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­74
  • 2.­49
  • 2.­51
  • 3.­3
  • 3.­17
  • 3.­28
  • 3.­111
  • 4.­1
  • 4.­3
  • 4.­45
  • 4.­70
  • 5.­3
  • 6.­50
  • 6.­61
  • 6.­73
  • 7.­1
  • 8.­1
  • 8.­9
  • 8.­37
  • 10.­2
  • 10.­4
  • 10.­7
  • 10.­17
  • 10.­19
  • 10.­21
  • 11.­11
  • 11.­16
  • 11.­18
  • n.­123
  • n.­216
g.­172

Maitreya

Wylie:
  • byams pa
Tibetan:
  • བྱམས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • maitreya

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The bodhisattva Maitreya is an important figure in many Buddhist traditions, where he is unanimously regarded as the buddha of the future era. He is said to currently reside in the heaven of Tuṣita, as Śākyamuni’s regent, where he awaits the proper time to take his final rebirth and become the fifth buddha in the Fortunate Eon, reestablishing the Dharma in this world after the teachings of the current buddha have disappeared. Within the Mahāyāna sūtras, Maitreya is elevated to the same status as other central bodhisattvas such as Mañjuśrī and Avalokiteśvara, and his name appears frequently in sūtras, either as the Buddha’s interlocutor or as a teacher of the Dharma. Maitreya literally means “Loving One.” He is also known as Ajita, meaning “Invincible.”

For more information on Maitreya, see, for example, the introduction to Maitreya’s Setting Out (Toh 198).

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­1
  • 2.­20
  • 2.­66
  • 10.­18
  • n.­148
g.­173

Making Use of Others’ Emanations

Wylie:
  • gzhan ’phrul dbang byed
Tibetan:
  • གཞན་འཕྲུལ་དབང་བྱེད།
Sanskrit:
  • paranirmita­vaśa­vartin

One of the gods’ realms.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 7.­1
  • g.­305
g.­174

maṇḍala

Wylie:
  • dkyil ’khor
Tibetan:
  • དཀྱིལ་འཁོར།
Sanskrit:
  • maṇḍala

Apart from the well-known meaning of a magical diagram and several other conventional meanings, this term seems to denote any magically charged area or sphere of a specific type, such as, e.g., the maṇḍala of wind, the maṇḍala of sound, etc.

Located in 10 passages in the translation:

  • i.­5
  • 5.­50
  • 6.­53-54
  • 6.­60
  • 12.­15-16
  • n.­76
  • n.­397
  • n.­469
g.­175

Māndāravagandharoca

Wylie:
  • me tog man dA ra ba’i dri mo
Tibetan:
  • མེ་ཏོག་མན་དཱ་ར་བའི་དྲི་མོ།
Sanskrit:
  • māndārava­gandha­roca

One of the tathāgatas.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 10.­1-3
  • 10.­17
g.­176

Mañjuśrī

Wylie:
  • ’jam dpal
Tibetan:
  • འཇམ་དཔལ།
Sanskrit:
  • mañjuśrī

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Mañjuśrī is one of the “eight close sons of the Buddha” and a bodhisattva who embodies wisdom. He is a major figure in the Mahāyāna sūtras, appearing often as an interlocutor of the Buddha. In his most well-known iconographic form, he is portrayed bearing the sword of wisdom in his right hand and a volume of the Prajñā­pāramitā­sūtra in his left. To his name, Mañjuśrī, meaning “Gentle and Glorious One,” is often added the epithet Kumārabhūta, “having a youthful form.” He is also called Mañjughoṣa, Mañjusvara, and Pañcaśikha.

In this text:

One of the bodhisattvas in the retinue of the Buddha.

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • i.­5
  • 1.­1
  • 2.­21-22
  • 2.­25
g.­177

Māra

Wylie:
  • bdud
Tibetan:
  • བདུད།
Sanskrit:
  • māra

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Māra, literally “death” or “maker of death,” is the name of the deva who tried to prevent the Buddha from achieving awakening, the name given to the class of beings he leads, and also an impersonal term for the destructive forces that keep beings imprisoned in saṃsāra:

(1) As a deva, Māra is said to be the principal deity in the Heaven of Making Use of Others’ Emanations (paranirmitavaśavartin), the highest paradise in the desire realm. He famously attempted to prevent the Buddha’s awakening under the Bodhi tree‍—see The Play in Full (Toh 95), 21.1‍—and later sought many times to thwart the Buddha’s activity. In the sūtras, he often also creates obstacles to the progress of śrāvakas and bodhisattvas. (2) The devas ruled over by Māra are collectively called mārakāyika or mārakāyikadevatā, the “deities of Māra’s family or class.” In general, these māras too do not wish any being to escape from saṃsāra, but can also change their ways and even end up developing faith in the Buddha, as exemplified by Sārthavāha; see The Play in Full (Toh 95), 21.14 and 21.43. (3) The term māra can also be understood as personifying four defects that prevent awakening, called (i) the divine māra (devaputra­māra), which is the distraction of pleasures; (ii) the māra of Death (mṛtyumāra), which is having one’s life interrupted; (iii) the māra of the aggregates (skandhamāra), which is identifying with the five aggregates; and (iv) the māra of the afflictions (kleśamāra), which is being under the sway of the negative emotions of desire, hatred, and ignorance.

Located in 212 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1
  • h.­3
  • 1.­1
  • 1.­17
  • 1.­19-20
  • 1.­23-24
  • 1.­26
  • 1.­28-29
  • 1.­37
  • 1.­39-40
  • 1.­43-45
  • 1.­47
  • 1.­49
  • 1.­52
  • 1.­54-55
  • 1.­58-59
  • 1.­61-63
  • 1.­65
  • 1.­67
  • 1.­70-73
  • 1.­75
  • 1.­83
  • 1.­86-92
  • 2.­1
  • 2.­27
  • 2.­33
  • 2.­35
  • 2.­51
  • 2.­55-56
  • 2.­58
  • 2.­62
  • 2.­66-68
  • 3.­1-3
  • 3.­6-7
  • 3.­10
  • 3.­12-13
  • 3.­15
  • 3.­17
  • 3.­19
  • 3.­21
  • 3.­25
  • 3.­27-28
  • 3.­30
  • 3.­32-36
  • 3.­39
  • 3.­41
  • 3.­48
  • 3.­50-51
  • 3.­63
  • 3.­65-66
  • 3.­70
  • 3.­74
  • 3.­76
  • 3.­78
  • 3.­96
  • 3.­100-101
  • 3.­104-106
  • 3.­109-113
  • 3.­116-118
  • 3.­122
  • 3.­124
  • 3.­126-127
  • 4.­1
  • 4.­5-9
  • 4.­11
  • 4.­20-21
  • 4.­24
  • 4.­54-56
  • 4.­58
  • 4.­67
  • 4.­70
  • 4.­73
  • 4.­75
  • 5.­1-2
  • 5.­7
  • 5.­16-17
  • 5.­19
  • 5.­34
  • 5.­55
  • 5.­59-61
  • 5.­72
  • 5.­77
  • 5.­79
  • 5.­81
  • 5.­83
  • 6.­11-12
  • 6.­16
  • 6.­27
  • 6.­29-30
  • 6.­32
  • 6.­37
  • 6.­53
  • 6.­61
  • 6.­67-69
  • 6.­73-79
  • 6.­84
  • 7.­1
  • 8.­2
  • 8.­4
  • 8.­7
  • 8.­9-13
  • 8.­16
  • 8.­37
  • 9.­8-9
  • 10.­1
  • 11.­1
  • 11.­12-13
  • 11.­16-18
  • 11.­20-23
  • 13.­2
  • 13.­5
  • n.­8
  • n.­19
  • n.­59
  • n.­109
  • n.­116
  • n.­136
  • n.­149
  • n.­354
  • n.­453
  • g.­7
  • g.­31
  • g.­34
  • g.­72
  • g.­87
  • g.­106
  • g.­128
  • g.­135
  • g.­148
  • g.­154
  • g.­157
  • g.­186
  • g.­233
  • g.­288
  • g.­309
  • g.­320
g.­178

Maudgalyāyana

Wylie:
  • maud gal gyi bu
Tibetan:
  • མཽད་གལ་གྱི་བུ།
Sanskrit:
  • maudgalyāyana

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

One of the principal śrāvaka disciples of the Buddha, paired with Śāriputra. He was renowned for his miraculous powers. His family clan was descended from Mudgala, hence his name Maudgalyā­yana, “the son of Mudgala’s descendants.” Respectfully referred to as Mahā­maudgalyā­yana, “Great Maudgalyāyana.”

Located in 15 passages in the translation:

  • i.­1
  • 1.­35-37
  • 1.­53
  • 3.­41
  • 3.­48
  • 3.­50
  • 3.­76
  • n.­8
  • n.­34
  • n.­177
  • g.­143
  • g.­144
  • g.­182
g.­179

mind of awakening

Wylie:
  • byang chub kyi sems
Tibetan:
  • བྱང་ཆུབ་ཀྱི་སེམས།
Sanskrit:
  • bodhicitta

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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.

Located in 7 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­55
  • 1.­83
  • 4.­123
  • 4.­151
  • 6.­27
  • 9.­1
  • 9.­8
g.­180

Mount Meru

Wylie:
  • ri rab
Tibetan:
  • རི་རབ།
Sanskrit:
  • meru
  • sumeru

The central mountain of the universe, by the reckoning of Buddhist cosmology, identified with Mount Kailas in western Tibet.

Located in 11 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­72
  • 1.­76
  • 2.­41
  • 2.­49
  • 5.­16
  • 5.­85
  • 10.­14
  • 13.­12
  • n.­59
  • n.­225
  • g.­126
g.­184

nāga

Wylie:
  • klu
Tibetan:
  • ཀླུ།
Sanskrit:
  • nāga

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A class of nonhuman beings who live in subterranean aquatic environments, where they guard wealth and sometimes also teachings. Nāgas are associated with serpents and have a snakelike appearance. In Buddhist art and in written accounts, they are regularly portrayed as half human and half snake, and they are also said to have the ability to change into human form. Some nāgas are Dharma protectors, but they can also bring retribution if they are disturbed. They may likewise fight one another, wage war, and destroy the lands of others by causing lightning, hail, and flooding.

Located in 48 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­72
  • 1.­74
  • 2.­32
  • 2.­44
  • 2.­49
  • 2.­51
  • 3.­3
  • 3.­28
  • 3.­34
  • 4.­1
  • 4.­3
  • 4.­6
  • 4.­20
  • 4.­39
  • 4.­45
  • 4.­70
  • 4.­74
  • 4.­144
  • 5.­1
  • 5.­3
  • 5.­79
  • 6.­27
  • 6.­50
  • 6.­53
  • 6.­61
  • 6.­73
  • 6.­82
  • 6.­84
  • 8.­1
  • 8.­9
  • 8.­37
  • 9.­5-6
  • 10.­2
  • 10.­4
  • 10.­7
  • 11.­11
  • 11.­16
  • 11.­18
  • 12.­11-12
  • 12.­21
  • 13.­3
  • 13.­5
  • n.­398
  • n.­407
  • n.­431
  • g.­94
g.­187

nirvāṇa

Wylie:
  • mya ngan las ’das pa
Tibetan:
  • མྱ་ངན་ལས་འདས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • nirvāṇa

The state attained when the afflictions have been extinguished.

Located in 24 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­38
  • 1.­41-42
  • 2.­26
  • 2.­40
  • 2.­47
  • 3.­87
  • 4.­1
  • 4.­5
  • 4.­136-137
  • 5.­79
  • 5.­81
  • 6.­32
  • 6.­75
  • 7.­5
  • 11.­14
  • n.­39
  • n.­93
  • n.­106
  • g.­35
  • g.­190
  • g.­246
  • g.­252
g.­188

noble one

Wylie:
  • ’phags pa
Tibetan:
  • འཕགས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • ārya

This term in particular applies to stream enterers, once-returners, non-returners, and worthy ones.

Located in 66 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­1
  • 1.­34
  • 1.­54
  • 1.­81
  • 1.­84
  • 2.­2-6
  • 2.­12
  • 2.­16
  • 2.­22
  • 2.­26
  • 2.­30
  • 2.­34
  • 2.­40-41
  • 2.­48
  • 2.­67
  • 3.­49
  • 4.­50
  • 5.­78
  • 5.­82
  • 5.­85-90
  • 5.­92-93
  • 6.­23
  • 6.­45
  • 6.­59-60
  • 6.­72
  • 6.­78
  • 6.­84-85
  • 7.­2-4
  • 8.­1
  • 9.­1
  • 9.­6
  • 10.­4
  • 10.­8
  • 10.­13
  • 10.­21
  • 11.­4
  • 11.­11
  • 11.­13
  • 11.­16-17
  • 11.­21
  • 12.­3
  • 12.­10-11
  • 12.­14
  • 12.­16
  • 13.­3
  • n.­80
  • n.­121
  • n.­468
  • n.­470
g.­191

patience

Wylie:
  • bzod pa
Tibetan:
  • བཟོད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • kṣānti

Third of the six perfections. Also translated here as “acceptance.”

Located in 7 passages in the translation:

  • 4.­126
  • 5.­27
  • 5.­74
  • 5.­79
  • 8.­5
  • g.­3
  • g.­194
g.­193

perception

Wylie:
  • ’du shes
Tibetan:
  • འདུ་ཤེས།
Sanskrit:
  • saṃjñā

The third of the five aggregates.

Located in 7 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­14
  • 3.­45
  • 5.­49
  • 6.­20
  • 8.­5
  • g.­85
  • g.­277
g.­194

perfection

Wylie:
  • pha rol tu phyin pa
Tibetan:
  • ཕ་རོལ་ཏུ་ཕྱིན་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • pāramitā

Most of the time this term refers to any of the six perfections‍—generosity, discipline, patience, diligence, concentration, and insight.

Located in 27 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­73
  • 1.­84
  • 2.­3
  • 2.­20
  • 2.­24
  • 2.­67
  • 4.­122
  • 5.­79
  • 5.­94
  • 6.­27
  • 6.­40
  • 7.­6
  • 8.­2
  • 8.­5
  • 8.­7
  • 8.­9
  • 8.­18-19
  • n.­81-82
  • n.­184
  • n.­187
  • g.­47
  • g.­65
  • g.­66
  • g.­105
  • g.­191
g.­195

phenomenon

Wylie:
  • chos
Tibetan:
  • ཆོས།
Sanskrit:
  • dharma

Quality or phenomenon in a general sense. See entry “Dharma.”

Located in 55 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­1
  • 1.­8
  • 1.­16
  • 2.­3
  • 2.­7
  • 2.­17-19
  • 2.­21
  • 2.­24
  • 2.­26-28
  • 2.­34-35
  • 2.­68
  • 3.­59
  • 3.­68-70
  • 3.­94-95
  • 3.­98
  • 4.­123
  • 4.­127-129
  • 5.­42
  • 5.­48
  • 5.­56-57
  • 5.­78-81
  • 6.­18
  • 6.­28
  • 6.­30
  • 6.­32
  • 6.­70
  • 7.­7
  • 8.­15
  • 9.­4
  • 10.­1
  • 11.­2
  • n.­81
  • n.­106-107
  • n.­179
  • n.­193
  • n.­260
  • g.­3
  • g.­24
  • g.­50
  • g.­60
g.­196

piśāca

Wylie:
  • sha za
Tibetan:
  • ཤ་ཟ།
Sanskrit:
  • piśāca

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A class of nonhuman beings that, like several other classes of nonhuman beings, take spontaneous birth. Ranking below rākṣasas, they are less powerful and more akin to pretas. They are said to dwell in impure and perilous places, where they feed on impure things, including flesh. This could account for the name piśāca, which possibly derives from √piś, to carve or chop meat, as reflected also in the Tibetan sha za, “meat eater.” They are often described as having an unpleasant appearance, and at times they appear with animal bodies. Some possess the ability to enter the dead bodies of humans, thereby becoming so-called vetāla, to touch whom is fatal.

Located in 10 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­74
  • 2.­49
  • 2.­51
  • 3.­28
  • 6.­53
  • 6.­66
  • 6.­74
  • 7.­1
  • 8.­9
  • 8.­37
g.­200

preta

Wylie:
  • yi dags
Tibetan:
  • ཡི་དགས།
Sanskrit:
  • preta

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

One of the five or six classes of sentient beings, into which beings are born as the karmic fruition of past miserliness. As the term in Sanskrit means “the departed,” they are analogous to the ancestral spirits of Vedic tradition, the pitṛs, who starve without the offerings of descendants. It is also commonly translated as “hungry ghost” or “starving spirit,” as in the Chinese 餓鬼 e gui.

They are sometimes said to reside in the realm of Yama, but are also frequently described as roaming charnel grounds and other inhospitable or frightening places along with piśācas and other such beings. They are particularly known to suffer from great hunger and thirst and the inability to acquire sustenance. Detailed descriptions of their realm and experience, including a list of the thirty-six classes of pretas, can be found in The Application of Mindfulness of the Sacred Dharma, Toh 287, 2.­1281– 2.1482.

Located in 10 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­74
  • 2.­49
  • 2.­51
  • 2.­55
  • 3.­28
  • 7.­1
  • 8.­37
  • n.­138
  • g.­142
  • g.­274
g.­201

prophecy

Wylie:
  • lung bstan
Tibetan:
  • ལུང་བསྟན།
Sanskrit:
  • vyākaraṇa

A prophecy usually made by the Buddha or another tathāgata concerning the perfect awakening of one of their followers; a literary genre or category of works that contain such prophecies. Also translated here as “exposition.”

Located in 38 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­9
  • 1.­54
  • 2.­64
  • 4.­151
  • 5.­6
  • 5.­8
  • 5.­13
  • 6.­19
  • 8.­10
  • 8.­12
  • 8.­16-17
  • 8.­20
  • 8.­22
  • 8.­24
  • 8.­26
  • 8.­28
  • 8.­30
  • 8.­32
  • 8.­34
  • 8.­36-37
  • 8.­39
  • 11.­16
  • 12.­4
  • 12.­7
  • g.­53
  • g.­67
  • g.­76
  • g.­80
  • g.­120
  • g.­121
  • g.­222
  • g.­242
  • g.­260
  • g.­262
  • g.­292
g.­204

Pure and Unstained

Wylie:
  • rnam par dag cing rdul bsags pa med
Tibetan:
  • རྣམ་པར་དག་ཅིང་རྡུལ་བསགས་པ་མེད།
Sanskrit:
  • —

The future buddha Samantadarśin’s buddha field.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 5.­12
g.­211

Rājagṛha

Wylie:
  • rgyal po’i khab
Tibetan:
  • རྒྱལ་པོའི་ཁབ།
Sanskrit:
  • rājagṛha

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The ancient capital of Magadha prior to its relocation to Pāṭaliputra during the Mauryan dynasty, Rājagṛha is one of the most important locations in Buddhist history. The literature tells us that the Buddha and his saṅgha spent a considerable amount of time in residence in and around Rājagṛha‍—in nearby places, such as the Vulture Peak Mountain (Gṛdhrakūṭaparvata), a major site of the Mahāyāna sūtras, and the Bamboo Grove (Veṇuvana)‍—enjoying the patronage of King Bimbisāra and then of his son King Ajātaśatru. Rājagṛha is also remembered as the location where the first Buddhist monastic council was held after the Buddha Śākyamuni passed into parinirvāṇa. Now known as Rajgir and located in the modern Indian state of Bihar.

Located in 27 passages in the translation:

  • i.­1
  • 1.­1-3
  • 1.­10
  • 1.­18
  • 1.­28
  • 3.­29
  • 3.­35
  • 3.­41
  • 3.­66
  • 3.­100
  • 3.­109
  • 3.­111
  • 4.­1
  • 4.­8
  • 4.­19
  • 4.­75
  • 5.­2-3
  • 5.­10
  • 5.­12
  • 5.­16
  • n.­17
  • g.­136
  • g.­267
  • g.­306
g.­212

rākṣasa

Wylie:
  • srin po
Tibetan:
  • སྲིན་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • rākṣasa

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A class of nonhuman beings that are often, but certainly not always, considered demonic in the Buddhist tradition. They are often depicted as flesh-eating monsters who haunt frightening places and are ugly and evil-natured with a yearning for human flesh, and who additionally have miraculous powers, such as being able to change their appearance.

Located in 10 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­44
  • 4.­3
  • 4.­39
  • 4.­45
  • 4.­70
  • 6.­74
  • 7.­1
  • 10.­11
  • 12.­11
  • 13.­3
g.­215

Ratnaketu

Wylie:
  • rin po che tog
Tibetan:
  • རིན་པོ་ཆེ་ཏོག
Sanskrit:
  • ratnaketu

It occurs as the main title of the Ratnaketudhāraṇī and also as the name of the main dhāraṇī of the Ratnaketudhāraṇī. It is also used in Buddhist texts to designate a special meditative absorption, a tathāgata, and a bodhisattva. Generally, the term refers to something precious and illuminating, i.e., a guiding light.

Located in 26 passages in the translation:

  • i.­5
  • i.­7
  • i.­11
  • 1.­92
  • 2.­40
  • 2.­42-47
  • 2.­49
  • 2.­51
  • 2.­53
  • 2.­60
  • 2.­68
  • 3.­1
  • 4.­131
  • 5.­95
  • 6.­86
  • 7.­8
  • 8.­39
  • 9.­10
  • 11.­24
  • c.­1
  • n.­5
g.­218

Realm of the Thirty-Three

Wylie:
  • sum bcu rtsa gsum pa
Tibetan:
  • སུམ་བཅུ་རྩ་གསུམ་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • trayastṛṃśa

One of the gods’ realms.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­77
  • 3.­111
  • g.­225
  • g.­226
g.­220

right exertions

Wylie:
  • yang dag par spong ba
Tibetan:
  • ཡང་དག་པར་སྤོང་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • samyakprahāṇa (bhs)
  • samyakpradhāna (classical skt.)

These are four: preventing the arising of evil that has not arisen, eliminating the evil that has arisen, generating good qualities that have not arisen, and maintaining good qualities that have arisen.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 5.­16
g.­223

sage

Wylie:
  • drang srong
Tibetan:
  • དྲང་སྲོང་།
Sanskrit:
  • ṛṣi

A person, usually endowed with some superhuman powers; also a class of superhuman beings (in the latter meaning this term is used in its Sanskrit form).

Located in 61 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­14
  • 1.­41
  • 1.­51
  • 1.­56-57
  • 2.­49
  • 2.­57
  • 3.­28-29
  • 3.­49
  • 3.­80
  • 3.­102
  • 3.­108
  • 3.­110
  • 3.­112
  • 3.­123
  • 3.­125
  • 4.­11
  • 4.­13
  • 4.­16
  • 4.­25
  • 4.­41
  • 4.­54
  • 4.­74-78
  • 4.­81-82
  • 4.­118-120
  • 4.­131-132
  • 4.­145-146
  • 4.­148
  • 4.­152
  • 5.­2-3
  • 5.­7
  • 5.­55
  • 5.­60
  • 5.­73
  • 6.­8
  • 6.­10
  • 6.­32
  • 9.­8-9
  • 11.­16
  • 13.­9-10
  • 13.­12
  • c.­1
  • n.­213
  • n.­219
  • n.­246
  • g.­120
  • g.­134
  • g.­228
g.­224

Sahā world

Wylie:
  • mi mjed
Tibetan:
  • མི་མཇེད།
Sanskrit:
  • sahā

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The name for our world system, the universe of a thousand million worlds, or trichiliocosm, in which the four-continent world is located. Each trichiliocosm is ruled by a god Brahmā; thus, in this context, he bears the title of Sahāṃpati, Lord of Sahā. The world system of Sahā, or Sahālokadhātu, is also described as the buddhafield of the Buddha Śākyamuni where he teaches the Dharma to beings.

The name Sahā possibly derives from the Sanskrit √sah, “to bear, endure, or withstand.” It is often interpreted as alluding to the inhabitants of this world being able to endure the suffering they encounter. The Tibetan translation, mi mjed, follows along the same lines. It literally means “not painful,” in the sense that beings here are able to bear the suffering they experience.

Located in 15 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­49
  • 3.­1
  • 3.­3
  • 3.­120
  • 5.­12
  • 5.­14
  • 5.­78
  • 5.­82-84
  • 11.­4-5
  • 13.­1-2
  • n.­152
g.­225

śakra

Wylie:
  • brgya byin
Tibetan:
  • བརྒྱ་བྱིན།
Sanskrit:
  • śakra

Usually (when spelled with the capital letter) this is one of the names of Indra; in this case is denotes any of the ruling gods in the Realm of the Thirty-Three Gods.

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The lord of the gods in the Heaven of the Thirty-Three (trāyastriṃśa). Alternatively known as Indra, the deity that is called “lord of the gods” dwells on the summit of Mount Sumeru and wields the thunderbolt. The Tibetan translation brgya byin (meaning “one hundred sacrifices”) is based on an etymology that śakra is an abbreviation of śata-kratu, one who has performed a hundred sacrifices. Each world with a central Sumeru has a Śakra. Also known by other names such as Kauśika, Devendra, and Śacipati.

Located in 18 passages in the translation:

  • 6.­55
  • 6.­59-60
  • 6.­69
  • 6.­73
  • 6.­82
  • 6.­84
  • 8.­1
  • 8.­9
  • 10.­2
  • 10.­4-7
  • 10.­17
  • 10.­19
  • 10.­21
  • g.­244
g.­226

Śakra

Wylie:
  • brgya byin
Tibetan:
  • བརྒྱ་བྱིན།
Sanskrit:
  • śakra

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The lord of the gods in the Heaven of the Thirty-Three (trāyastriṃśa). Alternatively known as Indra, the deity that is called “lord of the gods” dwells on the summit of Mount Sumeru and wields the thunderbolt. The Tibetan translation brgya byin (meaning “one hundred sacrifices”) is based on an etymology that śakra is an abbreviation of śata-kratu, one who has performed a hundred sacrifices. Each world with a central Sumeru has a Śakra. Also known by other names such as Kauśika, Devendra, and Śacipati.

Located in 12 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­111
  • 4.­57
  • 4.­74
  • 5.­3
  • 6.­50
  • 7.­1
  • 11.­1
  • 11.­6
  • 13.­5
  • 13.­15
  • n.­429
  • g.­146
g.­227

Śākya

Wylie:
  • shAkya
Tibetan:
  • ཤཱཀྱ།
Sanskrit:
  • śākya

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Name of the ancient tribe in which the Buddha was born as a prince; their kingdom was based to the east of Kośala, in the foothills near the present-day border of India and Nepal, with Kapilavastu as its capital.

Located in 17 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­5
  • 1.­22
  • 1.­47
  • 1.­64
  • 1.­67-68
  • 1.­70
  • 1.­90
  • 2.­49
  • 3.­3
  • 3.­6
  • 3.­24
  • 3.­30-31
  • 3.­96
  • n.­159
  • g.­228
g.­228

Śākyamuni

Wylie:
  • shAkya thub pa
Tibetan:
  • ཤཱཀྱ་ཐུབ་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • śākyamuni

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

An epithet for the historical Buddha, Siddhārtha Gautama: he was a muni (“sage”) from the Śākya clan. He is counted as the fourth of the first four buddhas of the present Good Eon, the other three being Krakucchanda, Kanakamuni, and Kāśyapa. He will be followed by Maitreya, the next buddha in this eon.

Located in 79 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­2
  • i.­14
  • 2.­48-49
  • 2.­51-53
  • 2.­68
  • 3.­1
  • 5.­12-14
  • 5.­17-19
  • 5.­78
  • 5.­82-93
  • 6.­1-2
  • 6.­5-6
  • 6.­22
  • 6.­69-70
  • 6.­75
  • 6.­78
  • 6.­82
  • 6.­84
  • 7.­1-2
  • 8.­10
  • 8.­12-13
  • 8.­17
  • 8.­21-22
  • 9.­1
  • 9.­8
  • 10.­1-2
  • 11.­1
  • 11.­11-12
  • 11.­16
  • 12.­1
  • 12.­15-17
  • 13.­5
  • 13.­12
  • n.­129
  • n.­378
  • g.­39
  • g.­53
  • g.­76
  • g.­121
  • g.­130
  • g.­222
  • g.­241
  • g.­242
  • g.­243
  • g.­249
  • g.­260
  • g.­262
  • g.­284
  • g.­292
  • g.­317
g.­229

Samantadarśin

Wylie:
  • kun tu gzigs pa
Tibetan:
  • ཀུན་ཏུ་གཟིགས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • samantadarśin

A future buddha.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 5.­12
  • g.­204
g.­230

Saṃjñika

Wylie:
  • yang dag shes
Tibetan:
  • ཡང་དག་ཤེས།
Sanskrit:
  • saṃjñika

One of the five yakṣa generals.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 12.­1
  • 12.­3
g.­231

saṃsāra

Wylie:
  • ’khor ba
Tibetan:
  • འཁོར་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • saṃsāra

Conditioned existence fraught with suffering.

Located in 33 passages in the translation:

  • i.­7
  • 1.­5
  • 1.­17
  • 1.­23
  • 1.­41
  • 1.­49
  • 1.­60
  • 1.­79
  • 2.­23
  • 2.­58
  • 3.­46
  • 3.­49
  • 3.­54
  • 3.­87
  • 4.­50
  • 4.­67
  • 4.­77
  • 5.­5
  • 5.­36
  • 5.­42-43
  • 5.­92
  • 6.­75
  • 10.­3
  • 10.­13
  • n.­42
  • n.­93
  • n.­428
  • g.­6
  • g.­55
  • g.­83
  • g.­95
  • g.­110
g.­232

saṅgha

Wylie:
  • dge ’dun
Tibetan:
  • དགེ་འདུན།
Sanskrit:
  • saṅgha

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Though often specifically reserved for the monastic community, this term can be applied to any of the four Buddhist communities‍—monks, nuns, laymen, and laywomen‍—as well as to identify the different groups of practitioners, like the community of bodhisattvas or the community of śrāvakas. It is also the third of the Three Jewels (triratna) of Buddhism: the Buddha, the Teaching, and the Community.

Located in 12 passages in the translation:

  • i.­1
  • 1.­1
  • 1.­10
  • 1.­18
  • 1.­73
  • 3.­28
  • 3.­49
  • 5.­26
  • 6.­8
  • n.­17
  • g.­84
  • g.­273
g.­235

Śāriputra

Wylie:
  • shA ri’i bu
Tibetan:
  • ཤཱ་རིའི་བུ།
Sanskrit:
  • śāriputra

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

One of the principal śrāvaka disciples of the Buddha, he was renowned for his discipline and for having been praised by the Buddha as foremost of the wise (often paired with Maudgalyā­yana, who was praised as foremost in the capacity for miraculous powers). His father, Tiṣya, to honor Śāriputra’s mother, Śārikā, named him Śāradvatīputra, or, in its contracted form, Śāriputra, meaning “Śārikā’s Son.”

Located in 17 passages in the translation:

  • i.­1
  • 1.­34
  • 1.­36-37
  • 1.­53
  • 3.­35-36
  • 3.­39-40
  • 3.­76
  • n.­8
  • n.­34
  • n.­164
  • n.­177
  • g.­234
  • g.­285
  • g.­293
g.­237

sensation

Wylie:
  • tshor ba
Tibetan:
  • ཚོར་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • vedanā
  • vedayita (bhs)

There are three types of sensation‍—pleasant, unpleasant, and neutral; they constitute the second of the five aggregates.

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­7
  • 3.­43
  • 3.­69
  • 3.­71
  • 5.­46
  • g.­50
  • g.­85
  • g.­276
g.­238

sense bases

Wylie:
  • skye mched
Tibetan:
  • སྐྱེ་མཆེད།
Sanskrit:
  • āyatana

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

These can be listed as twelve or as six sense sources (sometimes also called sense fields, bases of cognition, or simply āyatanas).

In the context of epistemology, it is one way of describing experience and the world in terms of twelve sense sources, which can be divided into inner and outer sense sources, namely: (1–2) eye and form, (3–4) ear and sound, (5–6) nose and odor, (7–8) tongue and taste, (9–10) body and touch, (11–12) mind and mental phenomena.

In the context of the twelve links of dependent origination, only six sense sources are mentioned, and they are the inner sense sources (identical to the six faculties) of eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind.

Located in 11 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­8
  • 2.­15
  • 3.­36
  • 4.­28
  • 5.­46
  • 5.­92
  • 6.­16
  • 6.­32
  • 6.­57
  • n.­88
  • n.­260
g.­245

six elements

Wylie:
  • khams drug
Tibetan:
  • ཁམས་དྲུག
Sanskrit:
  • ṣaḍdhātu

The usual four‍—earth, water, fire, and air‍—plus space and consciousness.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • g.­79
g.­246

solitary buddha

Wylie:
  • rang sangs rgyas
Tibetan:
  • རང་སངས་རྒྱས།
Sanskrit:
  • pratyekabuddha

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Literally, “buddha for oneself” or “solitary realizer.” Someone who, in his or her last life, attains awakening entirely through their own contemplation, without relying on a teacher. Unlike the awakening of a fully realized buddha (samyaksambuddha), the accomplishment of a pratyeka­buddha is not regarded as final or ultimate. They attain realization of the nature of dependent origination, the selflessness of the person, and a partial realization of the selflessness of phenomena, by observing the suchness of all that arises through interdependence. This is the result of progress in previous lives but, unlike a buddha, they do not have the necessary merit, compassion or motivation to teach others. They are named as “rhinoceros-like” (khaḍgaviṣāṇakalpa) for their preference for staying in solitude or as “congregators” (vargacārin) when their preference is to stay among peers.

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­16
  • 2.­60
  • 2.­68
  • 4.­150
  • 7.­3
  • 8.­37
  • n.­141
  • g.­280
g.­248

spirit

Wylie:
  • ’byung po
Tibetan:
  • འབྱུང་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • bhūta

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

This term in its broadest sense can refer to any being, whether human, animal, or nonhuman. However, it is often used to refer to a specific class of nonhuman beings, especially when bhūtas are mentioned alongside rākṣasas, piśācas, or pretas. In common with these other kinds of nonhumans, bhūtas are usually depicted with unattractive and misshapen bodies. Like several other classes of nonhuman beings, bhūtas take spontaneous birth. As their leader is traditionally regarded to be Rudra-Śiva (also known by the name Bhūta), with whom they haunt dangerous and wild places, bhūtas are especially prominent in Śaivism, where large sections of certain tantras concentrate on them.

Located in 14 passages in the translation:

  • 6.­27
  • 6.­66-67
  • 9.­6
  • 12.­11-12
  • 12.­14
  • 12.­16
  • 12.­19
  • 12.­21
  • n.­381
  • n.­464
  • g.­196
  • g.­200
g.­250

Splendorous with the Gentle Glow of Light and Fragrance

Wylie:
  • ’od zhi spos snang dpal
Tibetan:
  • འོད་ཞི་སྤོས་སྣང་དཔལ།
Sanskrit:
  • jyotiḥ­saumya­gandhāvabhāsa­śrī

The name of a tathāgata.

Located in 15 passages in the translation:

  • h.­1
  • 2.­30-31
  • 2.­34
  • 2.­36
  • 2.­40
  • 2.­48
  • 2.­53-55
  • 2.­60-61
  • 2.­65
  • 2.­67
  • n.­129
g.­256

śūdra

Wylie:
  • dmangs rigs
Tibetan:
  • དམངས་རིགས།
Sanskrit:
  • śūdra

The laborer caste in the fourfold division of the society.

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • 6.­27
  • 7.­1
  • 8.­37
  • 9.­6
  • 12.­7
  • 12.­10
g.­258

Sumati

Wylie:
  • bzang po’i blo gros
Tibetan:
  • བཟང་པོའི་བློ་གྲོས།
Sanskrit:
  • sumati

A bodhisattva in the Buddha’s retinue.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­1
g.­265

Sūrya

Wylie:
  • nyi ma
Tibetan:
  • ཉི་མ།
Sanskrit:
  • sūrya

The sun personified as a god.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­111
  • 5.­3
g.­273

Three Jewels

Wylie:
  • dkon mchog gsum
Tibetan:
  • དཀོན་མཆོག་གསུམ།
Sanskrit:
  • triratna

The Buddha, Dharma, and Saṅgha‍—the three objects of Buddhist refuge.

Located in 25 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­59
  • 3.­64
  • 5.­33
  • 5.­79
  • 6.­18-19
  • 6.­27
  • 6.­29
  • 6.­32
  • 6.­37
  • 8.­1
  • 8.­35
  • 10.­3
  • 10.­26
  • 11.­2-3
  • 11.­13
  • 11.­16-17
  • 12.­9
  • 13.­5
  • n.­386
  • n.­458
  • g.­39
  • g.­232
g.­280

three vehicles

Wylie:
  • theg pa gsum
Tibetan:
  • ཐེག་པ་གསུམ།
Sanskrit:
  • triyāna

In the context of the sūtras, the three vehicles are the Hearer, Solitary Buddha, and Bodhisattva Vehicles.

Located in 10 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­14-15
  • 2.­30
  • 2.­65
  • 5.­50
  • 7.­3
  • 7.­5
  • 11.­16
  • 12.­4
  • 12.­8
g.­283

threefold universe

Wylie:
  • ’jig rten gsum
Tibetan:
  • འཇིག་རྟེན་གསུམ།
Sanskrit:
  • traidhātuka
  • trailokya

The threefold universe is comprised of the realms of desire, form, and formlessness.

Located in 24 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­51
  • 1.­69
  • 2.­6
  • 2.­15
  • 2.­17
  • 2.­26
  • 3.­9
  • 3.­13
  • 3.­16
  • 3.­94
  • 3.­104
  • 3.­109
  • 4.­16
  • 4.­25
  • 4.­37-38
  • 4.­149
  • 5.­32
  • 5.­34
  • 5.­75
  • 11.­17
  • n.­88
  • g.­55
  • g.­281
g.­284

thus-gone one

Wylie:
  • de bzhin gshegs pa
Tibetan:
  • དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • tathāgata

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A frequently used synonym for buddha. According to different explanations, it can be read as tathā-gata, literally meaning “one who has thus gone,” or as tathā-āgata, “one who has thus come.” Gata, though literally meaning “gone,” is a past passive participle used to describe a state or condition of existence. Tatha­(tā), often rendered as “suchness” or “thusness,” is the quality or condition of things as they really are, which cannot be conveyed in conceptual, dualistic terms. Therefore, this epithet is interpreted in different ways, but in general it implies one who has departed in the wake of the buddhas of the past, or one who has manifested the supreme awakening dependent on the reality that does not abide in the two extremes of existence and quiescence. It is also often used as a specific epithet of the Buddha Śākyamuni.

Located in 155 passages in the translation:

  • h.­1
  • 1.­1
  • 1.­10
  • 1.­18
  • 1.­25-26
  • 1.­62
  • 2.­1
  • 2.­24
  • 2.­30-31
  • 2.­34
  • 2.­36
  • 2.­40
  • 2.­42-43
  • 2.­48-49
  • 2.­51-55
  • 2.­60-61
  • 2.­65
  • 2.­67-68
  • 3.­1
  • 3.­7
  • 4.­27
  • 4.­128-129
  • 4.­150
  • 5.­12-14
  • 5.­17-18
  • 5.­78
  • 5.­80
  • 5.­82-94
  • 6.­1-6
  • 6.­20
  • 6.­22
  • 6.­28
  • 6.­55-60
  • 6.­69-70
  • 6.­75
  • 6.­78
  • 6.­81
  • 6.­84
  • 7.­1-2
  • 7.­5
  • 8.­1
  • 8.­6-7
  • 8.­10
  • 8.­12-13
  • 8.­16-17
  • 8.­21-22
  • 9.­1
  • 9.­5
  • 9.­8
  • 10.­1-3
  • 10.­5
  • 10.­17-18
  • 11.­1
  • 11.­3
  • 11.­11-12
  • 11.­16-17
  • 11.­22
  • 12.­1
  • 12.­3
  • 12.­6
  • 12.­15-17
  • 13.­1-2
  • 13.­5
  • 13.­8-9
  • 13.­11-14
  • n.­23
  • n.­103
  • n.­129
  • n.­135
  • n.­143
  • n.­226
  • g.­1
  • g.­12
  • g.­13
  • g.­32
  • g.­68
  • g.­71
  • g.­81
  • g.­107
  • g.­109
  • g.­117
  • g.­131
  • g.­137
  • g.­145
  • g.­159
  • g.­164
  • g.­168
  • g.­175
  • g.­201
  • g.­213
  • g.­214
  • g.­215
  • g.­243
  • g.­250
  • g.­299
  • g.­307
  • g.­308
  • g.­312
  • g.­313
  • g.­317
  • g.­322
g.­288

Tṛṣṇājaha

Wylie:
  • sred spong
Tibetan:
  • སྲེད་སྤོང་།
Sanskrit:
  • tṛṣṇājaha

One of the māras; also one of the five yakṣa generals.

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­17
  • 12.­1
  • 12.­5
g.­289

Tuṣita

Wylie:
  • dga’ ldan
Tibetan:
  • དགའ་ལྡན།
Sanskrit:
  • tuṣita

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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).

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­111
  • 7.­1
g.­290

Unexcelled Heaven

Wylie:
  • ’og min
Tibetan:
  • འོག་མིན།
Sanskrit:
  • lacuna

One of the gods’ realms.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 5.­3
g.­300

Vaiśravaṇa

Wylie:
  • rnam thos kyi bu
Tibetan:
  • རྣམ་ཐོས་ཀྱི་བུ།
Sanskrit:
  • vaiśravaṇa

One of the Four Great Kings; a god of wealth.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­111
  • 6.­69
  • g.­94
  • g.­155
g.­301

vaiśya

Wylie:
  • rje’u rigs
Tibetan:
  • རྗེའུ་རིགས།
Sanskrit:
  • vaiśya

The merchant caste in the fourfold division of the society.

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • 6.­27
  • 7.­1
  • 8.­37
  • 9.­6
  • 12.­7
  • 12.­10
g.­303

Varuṇa

Wylie:
  • chu lha
Tibetan:
  • ཆུ་ལྷ།
Sanskrit:
  • varuṇa

A bodhisattva in the Buddha’s retinue.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­1
g.­304

Varuṇamati

Wylie:
  • chu lha’i blo gros
Tibetan:
  • ཆུ་ལྷའི་བློ་གྲོས།
Sanskrit:
  • varuṇamati

A bodhisattva in the Buddha’s retinue.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­1
g.­306

Veṇuvana

Wylie:
  • ’od ma’i tshal
Tibetan:
  • འོད་མའི་ཚལ།
Sanskrit:
  • veṇuvana

“Bamboo Grove,” a garden in Rājagṛha and a favorite residence of the Buddha and his disciples. It was situated on land donated by King Bimbisāra of Magadha and was the first of several landholdings donated to the Buddhist community during the time of the Buddha.

Located in 9 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­1
  • 1.­10
  • 1.­18
  • 1.­52
  • 4.­9
  • 5.­10
  • g.­73
  • g.­138
  • g.­197
g.­308

victorious one

Wylie:
  • rgyal ba
Tibetan:
  • རྒྱལ་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • jina

One of the epithets applied to a buddha or a tathāgata.

Located in 14 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­60
  • 3.­75
  • 4.­2
  • 4.­43
  • 5.­55
  • 6.­35
  • 8.­21
  • 8.­23
  • 8.­25
  • 8.­29
  • 8.­31
  • 11.­11
  • 11.­16-17
g.­311

Vimala

Wylie:
  • dri med
Tibetan:
  • དྲི་མེད།
Sanskrit:
  • vimala

A bodhisattva in the Buddha’s retinue.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­1
g.­314

Virūḍhaka

Wylie:
  • ’phags skyes po
Tibetan:
  • འཕགས་སྐྱེས་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • virūḍhaka
  • virūḍha

One of the Four Great Kings.

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­111
  • 6.­69
  • 11.­1
  • 11.­7
  • g.­94
g.­315

Virūpākṣa

Wylie:
  • mig mi bzang
Tibetan:
  • མིག་མི་བཟང་།
Sanskrit:
  • virūpākṣa

One of the Four Great Kings.

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­111
  • 6.­69
  • 11.­1
  • 11.­8
  • g.­94
g.­318

Voice of Mahābrahmā

Wylie:
  • tshangs pa chen po dbyangs dang ldan pa
Tibetan:
  • ཚངས་པ་ཆེན་པོ་དབྱངས་དང་ལྡན་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

A bodhisattva in the Buddha’s retinue.

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • h.­2
  • 6.­69-71
  • 6.­78
  • 6.­82-83
  • 6.­85
g.­319

well-gone one

Wylie:
  • bde bar gshegs pa
Tibetan:
  • བདེ་བར་གཤེགས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • sugata

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

One of the standard epithets of the buddhas. A recurrent explanation offers three different meanings for su- that are meant to show the special qualities of “accomplishment of one’s own purpose” (svārthasampad) for a complete buddha. Thus, the Sugata is “well” gone, as in the expression su-rūpa (“having a good form”); he is gone “in a way that he shall not come back,” as in the expression su-naṣṭa-jvara (“a fever that has utterly gone”); and he has gone “without any remainder” as in the expression su-pūrṇa-ghaṭa (“a pot that is completely full”). According to Buddhaghoṣa, the term means that the way the Buddha went (Skt. gata) is good (Skt. su) and where he went (Skt. gata) is good (Skt. su).

Located in 20 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­30
  • 2.­38
  • 3.­86
  • 3.­89
  • 3.­103
  • 3.­105
  • 3.­125
  • 4.­13-14
  • 4.­22
  • 4.­40
  • 4.­146
  • 4.­150
  • 5.­58
  • 6.­21
  • 8.­14
  • 8.­27
  • 8.­33
  • 8.­35
  • 11.­15
g.­320

white faction

Wylie:
  • dkar po’i phyogs
Tibetan:
  • དཀར་པོའི་ཕྱོགས།
Sanskrit:
  • śuklapakṣa

All good beings together (as opposed to the black faction of Māra); from Māra’s point of view, this is the “black faction.” The bright fortnight of the lunar month.

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­6
  • 6.­41
  • 12.­9
  • 12.­16
  • g.­31
g.­321

world protectors

Wylie:
  • ’jig rten skyong ba bzhi
Tibetan:
  • འཇིག་རྟེན་སྐྱོང་བ་བཞི།
Sanskrit:
  • catvāro lokapālā

See “Four Great Kings.”

Located in 15 passages in the translation:

  • 4.­57
  • 5.­3
  • 6.­50
  • 6.­73
  • 6.­82
  • 6.­84
  • 8.­1
  • 8.­9
  • 10.­2
  • 10.­4
  • 10.­6-7
  • 13.­5
  • 13.­15
  • n.­430
g.­322

worthy one

Wylie:
  • dgra bcom pa
Tibetan:
  • དགྲ་བཅོམ་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • arhat

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

According to Buddhist tradition, one who is worthy of worship (pūjām arhati), or one who has conquered the enemies, the mental afflictions (kleśa-ari-hata-vat), and reached liberation from the cycle of rebirth and suffering. It is the fourth and highest of the four fruits attainable by śrāvakas. Also used as an epithet of the Buddha.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • n.­348
  • g.­188
g.­323

yakṣa

Wylie:
  • gnod sbyin
Tibetan:
  • གནོད་སྦྱིན།
Sanskrit:
  • yakṣa

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A class of nonhuman beings who inhabit forests, mountainous areas, and other natural spaces, or serve as guardians of villages and towns, and may be propitiated for health, wealth, protection, and other boons, or controlled through magic. According to tradition, their homeland is in the north, where they live under the rule of the Great King Vaiśravaṇa.

Several members of this class have been deified as gods of wealth (these include the just-mentioned Vaiśravaṇa) or as bodhisattva generals of yakṣa armies, and have entered the Buddhist pantheon in a variety of forms, including, in tantric Buddhism, those of wrathful deities.

Located in 66 passages in the translation:

  • i.­12
  • 1.­72
  • 1.­74
  • 2.­44
  • 2.­49
  • 2.­51
  • 3.­3
  • 3.­28
  • 4.­1
  • 4.­3
  • 4.­39
  • 4.­45
  • 4.­70
  • 4.­144
  • 5.­1
  • 5.­3
  • 5.­79
  • 6.­27
  • 6.­50
  • 6.­61
  • 6.­68
  • 6.­73-74
  • 6.­77
  • 6.­82
  • 6.­84
  • 7.­1
  • 8.­1
  • 8.­9
  • 8.­37
  • 9.­6
  • 10.­2
  • 10.­4
  • 10.­7
  • 10.­11
  • 11.­11
  • 11.­16
  • 11.­18
  • 12.­1-2
  • 12.­4-12
  • 12.­14
  • 12.­16-17
  • 12.­19
  • 12.­21
  • 13.­3
  • 13.­5
  • n.­380
  • n.­460
  • n.­467
  • g.­23
  • g.­29
  • g.­45
  • g.­94
  • g.­132
  • g.­230
  • g.­288
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    84000. The Ratnaketu Dhāraṇī (Ratna­ketu­dhāraṇī, rin po che tog gi gzungs, Toh 138). Translated by Dharmachakra Translation Committee. Online publication. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2025. https://84000.co/translation/toh138/UT22084-056-006-chapter-5.Copy
    84000. The Ratnaketu Dhāraṇī (Ratna­ketu­dhāraṇī, rin po che tog gi gzungs, Toh 138). Translated by Dharmachakra Translation Committee, online publication, 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2025, 84000.co/translation/toh138/UT22084-056-006-chapter-5.Copy
    84000. (2025) The Ratnaketu Dhāraṇī (Ratna­ketu­dhāraṇī, rin po che tog gi gzungs, Toh 138). (Dharmachakra Translation Committee, Trans.). Online publication. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha. https://84000.co/translation/toh138/UT22084-056-006-chapter-5.Copy

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