The Dhāraṇī of Accomplishing the Boundless Gateways narrates the Buddha’s transmission of a dhāraṇī to a vast assembly of monks and bodhisattvas. It explains the dhāraṇī’s purpose and benefits, what qualities must be possessed in order to obtain it, and how its practice leads to the state of enlightenment.
Dakpa Gyatso completed the initial translation of the text. Barbara Hazelton revised the English translation and checked it against the Tibetan, together with Dakpa Gyatso and Rory Tasker. Khenpo Zhonu Nyima and Khenpo Tsulnam Rinpoche provided valuable comments and advice during the initial translation. Dr. Wangchuk Dorje Negi and Thinley Ram Shashni helped with the rendering of the Sanskrit dhāraṇī. Dr. Rory Lindsay offered feedback and guidance on the translation and its format. Geshe Sonam Ngodrup offered advice regarding the Tibetan vocabulary. The team benefitted tremendously from Hisao Inagaki’s 1968 translation of the text.
The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha. Nathaniel Rich edited the translation and the introduction, and Dawn Collins copyedited the text. Sameer Dhingra was in charge of the digital publication process.
The Dhāraṇī of Accomplishing the Boundless Gateways features the declaration of a dhāraṇī by the Buddha near the end of his life, three months before his parinirvāṇa. The event takes place at the Kūṭāgāraśālā, an important early monastery in the Great Forest near the city of Vaiśālī. It occurs before a large number of monks and bodhisattvas, followed by a vast assembly gathered from throughout the cosmos through the magical powers of Mahāmaudgalyāyana and Śāriputra, and an unfathomably large number of bodhisattvas gathered from buddhafields in the ten directions. The Buddha is prompted by questions from Śāriputra about the exalted attainments of bodhisattvas. He begins his reply to Śāriputra by proclaiming the dhāraṇī for which this discourse is named. This is followed by a description of how bodhisattvas cultivate recollection of the Buddha in their practice of the dhāraṇī, specifically in terms of everything they do not meditate on when they cultivate such recollection, in a style reminiscent of the Perfection of Wisdom sūtras.
The discourse proceeds with the Buddha describing to Śāriputra various sets of four things or qualities (Skt. dharma) bodhisattvas must possess in order to obtain the dhāraṇī. This serves to emphasize its rarity and power, inspiring those in the audience to seek it out and put it into practice. The Buddha then narrates an episode, countless eons ago, in which, in a previous life, the buddhas Dīpaṅkara and Amitāyus encountered and put into practice the dhāraṇī. It was at that time that the Buddha himself and all the bodhisattvas of the Fortunate Eon also first encountered it. The discourse ends with the Buddha describing the benefits that accrue to the person who practices the dhāraṇī—that “the radiance of eight yakṣas who dwell on the bodhisattva levels” will enter the practitioner’s body, and that eight bodhisattvas will keep the practitioner in mind.
The Dhāraṇī of the Boundless Gateways is found in three recensions in the Degé Kangyur—in the General Sūtra section (Toh 140), in the Action Tantra section (Toh 525), and in the Compendium of Dhāraṇīs section (Toh 914).111 According to the translators’ colophon, which is only found in Toh 914, the translation was edited and finalized by the Indian preceptor Prajñāvarman and the chief editor and translator Bandé Yeshé Dé. This would date the translation to the late eight or early ninth century, which is also supported by the text’s inclusion in both of the catalogs of translations produced during early ninth century, the Denkarma (Tib. ldan dkar ma) and Phangthangma (Tib. ’phangs thang ma).2
The present translation is based primarily on the recension found in the General Sūtra section, with reference in the notes to substantive variants found in the other two Degé Kangyur recensions and the Stok Palace recension. The Comparative Edition (dpe bsdur ma) was also consulted. Interestingly, Toh 140 and Toh 525 are essentially identical, whereas Toh 914 often differs from those two recensions. The Stok Palace recension appears to be essentially identical to Toh 914, except for the Sanskrit title given on its title page (Anantamukhanirhāradhāraṇī),3 which differs from that found in the three Degé Kangyur recensions. There are nine Chinese translations of the text in the Taishō Tripiṭaka. However, Hisao Inagaki has identified possible errors with the names of the translators and dates of the translations.4
A folio of this text in Sanskrit was introduced in the Manuscript Remains of Buddhist Literature Found in Eastern Turkistan, and another folio was recently discovered by Prof. Kazunobu Matsuda of Bukkyo University, Tokyo. This folio is the last part of the sūtra, i.e., from the end of chapter 16 through chapter 19. A commentary on this dhāraṇī text was composed by Jñānagarbha (8th century
It was at that time that the Blessed One mindfully and knowingly relinquished his life force7 with the thought, “In three months’ time the Tathāgata will attain parinirvāṇa.” Then the Blessed One said to the venerable Mahāmaudgalyāyana, “Mahāmaudgalyāyana, go and [F.290.a]gather all the monks who dwell in the chiliocosm here at the Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest.”
The venerable Mahāmaudgalyāyana replied, “I will do that, Blessed One,” and, heeding the Blessed One’s instructions, at that very moment, by his own miraculous power, he appeared at the peak of Mount Meru and proclaimed to the chiliocosm, “Whichever beings, dwelling in this world system, who are disciples of the Well-Gone One—all of you, listen to me! Today the Teacher will shower down a rain of Dharma. Those of you who wish to hear, come!”
Forty thousand monks then gathered at the Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest. Having arrived there, they saw the Blessed One, bowed their heads at his feet, circumambulated him three times, and then sat down to one side.
Then the venerable Śāriputra, through the power of the Buddha, at that very moment thought, “I must manifest the kind of miraculous power by which all the monks dwelling in the trichiliocosm—whether they are of the vehicle of the hearers, or of the vehicle of the pratyekabuddhas, or of the Great Vehicle—will be gathered at the Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest.”[F.245.b]
Then the venerable Śāriputra manifested such miraculous power and,[F.63.a] having done so, all the monks dwelling in the trichiliocosm—whether they were of the vehicle of the hearers, or of the vehicle of the pratyekabuddhas, or of the Great Vehicle—were gathered at the Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest. Having arrived there,[F.290.b] they saw the Blessed One, bowed their heads at his feet, circumambulated him three times, and then sat down to one side.
Then, at that very moment, the Blessed One said to all the bodhisattva great beings—to the bodhisattva great being Amoghadarśin, the bodhisattva great being Mañjuśrī Kumārabhūta, the bodhisattva great being Abandoning All Lower Realms, the bodhisattva great being Vanquishing the Darkness of All Sorrow, the bodhisattva great being Sarvanīvaraṇaviṣkambhin, the bodhisattva great being Jālinīprabha, the bodhisattva great being Intelligence Vanquishing the Darkness of All Places, the bodhisattva great being Avalokiteśvara, the bodhisattva great being Mahāsthāmaprāpta, the bodhisattva great being Indefatigable, the bodhisattva great being Gandhahastin,[F.246.a] the bodhisattva great being Hero, the bodhisattva great being Gaganagañja, the bodhisattva great being Amitābha, the bodhisattva great being Mati,8 the bodhisattva great being Jñānaketu, the bodhisattva great being Bhadrapāla, the bodhisattva great being Sāgaramati,[F.63.b] the bodhisattva great being Akṣayamati, the bodhisattva great being Vajragarbha, the bodhisattva great being Ākāśagarbha, the bodhisattva great being Vajrapāṇi, the bodhisattva great being Samantabhadra, the bodhisattva great being [F.291.a]Pratibhānakūṭa, and the bodhisattva great being Maitreya—“O sons of noble family, go now and gather here at the Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest all the bodhisattvas dwelling in the buddhafields of the ten directions, as numerous as the grains of sand in the River Ganges, who are in their final existence, who have only one more birth remaining, who are irreversible from progress toward enlightenment, who have attained acceptance of the fact that phenomena are unborn, or who are devoted out of faith.”
The bodhisattva great beings heeded the Blessed One’s instructions, saying, “Excellent, Blessed One, excellent!” At that very moment, they displayed such appearances and, having displayed them,9[F.246.b] inexpressibly many hundred-sextillion bodhisattvas in their final existence arrived at the Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest, and ninety hundred-sextillion bodhisattvas with only one more birth remaining, eighty hundred-sextillion bodhisattvas irreversible from progress toward enlightenment, thirty hundred-sextillion bodhisattva great beings who had attained acceptance that phenomena are unborn, and eight hundred-sextillion bodhisattva great beings who are devoted out of faith arrived at the Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest.10 Having arrived there, they saw the Blessed One, bowed their heads at his feet, circumambulated him three times, and then sat down to one side.
Then the venerable Śāriputra, having seen that great assembly of bodhisattvas,[F.64.a] at that very moment thought, “I must ask the Tathāgata, the Arhat, the Perfectly Complete Buddha for answers to questions11 about how these bodhisattva great beings dispel all doubts, quickly attain unobscured wisdom and eloquence, and hear the teachings of the Dharma from all the tathāgatas, arhats, perfectly complete buddhas, in [F.291.b]buddhafields as numerous as the grains of sand in the River Ganges; how, having heard them, they remember them, not forgetting them until they attain unsurpassable, perfectly complete enlightenment; how they obtain four purifications12 that are the practices of bodhisattva great beings—the purification of beings, the purification of the Dharma, the purification of aspirations,[F.247.a] and the purification of buddhafields; how they obtain four things that make them excellent and appealing—an appealing body, appealing speech, an appealing mind, and an appealing birth; and how they gain the four kinds of entry into the dhāraṇī gateways—entry into the dhāraṇī gateway of accomplishment by means of inexhaustible gateways, entry into the dhāraṇī gateway of skill with respect to the faculties of beings, entry into the dhāraṇī gateway of effortless skill with respect to actions and their ripening, and entry into the dhāraṇī gateway of acceptance of the profound Dharma.”
Then the venerable Śāriputra asked the Blessed One in detail those questions just as he remembered them, considered them, and understood them,[F.64.b] and he further asked, “Blessed One, with these questions just as I have remembered them, considered them, and understood them, please explain how the practices of these bodhisattva great beings will be purified.” [F.292.a]
The Blessed One replied to the venerable Śāriputra, “Excellent, Śāriputra, excellent! It is excellent, Śāriputra, that you have thought to ask the Tathāgata about this topic.[F.247.b] Therefore, Śāriputra, listen well and be attentive and I will explain it to you.”
The venerable Śāriputra replied to the Blessed One, “I will do that, Blessed One,”14 and he heeded the Blessed One’s instructions.
The Blessed One then said to him as follows: “Śāriputra, bodhisattva great beings who neither accept nor appropriate any phenomena should retain these mantra-words of the dhāraṇī:
tadyathā/ oṃ aṇe mahāraṇe/ akhe/ mukhe/ mukhe/ samantamukhe/ saumesa/ sauryarame/ sautiyugame/ nirugatiprabhehilehile/ kalape kelapa/ sisale/ saravati/ hilehile/ hilehile/ hilihilili/ mahāhilele/ caṇḍecapane/ caracaraṇi/ acale/ macāle/ anante/ anantemukhe/ anantagate araṇenirmalade/ nirvalane/ nirvadhanate/ dharmdhare/ nirhare/ gimeleśrīmaviśodhani/ prakṛtidhipane/ bhavavebhavane/ asaṃge asaṃge/ vihare/ damesame/ vimale/ vimalaprabhe/ saṃkarṣaṇi/ dhiredhidhirilahādhidhire/ yeṣeyaṣopati/ cale acale/ macale/ samacale/ ṭadhiṭudhasandhisthira/ asaṃge asaṃge/ vihare/ asaṃganirhare/ nirhara/ vimale/ nirhaṭaśotaniḍadhisome/ sthiresthime/ sthamavati/ mahāprabhe/ samantaprabhe/ vipulaprabhe/ vipularasmisaṃbhave/ samantamukhe/ sarvatrayavugate/ chedyayanatachedyapratibhane/ dharaṇe/ ṇiḍena/ dharmanidhanagotra/ samantabhadrai/ sarvatathāgatahṛdaya adhiṣṭhāna adhiṣṭhite svāhā15
“Śāriputra, bodhisattva great beings retaining these dhāraṇīs do not form conceits about conditioned or unconditioned phenomena.[F.292.b] They do not apprehend them, do not disparage them, do not neglect them, do not appropriate them, and do not strive for them. They do not act for the sake of obtaining them, abandoning them, meditating upon them, or increasing them. They do not change them. They do not fabricate them. They do not see any phenomena that are associated with them, nor do they see any not associated with them. They do not see the arising of phenomena, they do not seen the cessation of phenomena, they do not see past phenomena, they do not see future phenomena, they do not see present phenomena, and they do not see either the increase or the decrease of phenomena. They do not accumulate any phenomena whatsoever, nor do they diminish any. They do not label anything, and they do not make anything known. They cultivate recollection of the Buddha alone.
“Śāriputra, bodhisattva great beings [F.248.a]retaining these dhāraṇīs do not form conceits about conditioned or unconditioned phenomena . They do not apprehend them, do not disparage them, do not neglect them, do not appropriate them, and do not strive for them. They do not act for the sake of obtaining them, abandoning them, meditating upon them, or increasing them. They do not change them. They do not fabricate them. They do not see any phenomena that are associated with them, nor do they see any not associated with them. They do not see the arising of phenomena, they do not seen the cessation of phenomena, they do not see past phenomena, they do not see future phenomena, they do not see present phenomena, and they do not see either the increase or the decrease of phenomena. They do not accumulate any phenomena whatsoever, nor do they diminish any. They do not label anything, and they do not make anything known. They cultivate recollection of the Buddha alone.
[F.65.a]“Śāriputra, bodhisattva great beings retaining these dhāraṇīs do not form conceits about conditioned or unconditioned phenomena . They do not apprehend them, do not disparage them, do not neglect them, do not appropriate them, and do not strive for them. They do not act for the sake of obtaining them, abandoning them, meditating upon them, or increasing them. They do not change them. They do not fabricate them. They do not see any phenomena that are associated with them, nor do they see any not associated with them. They do not see the arising of phenomena, they do not seen the cessation of phenomena, they do not see past phenomena, they do not see future phenomena, they do not see present phenomena, and they do not see either the increase or the decrease of phenomena. They do not accumulate any phenomena whatsoever, nor do they diminish any. They do not label anything, and they do not make anything known. They cultivate recollection of the Buddha alone.
“When they meditate,20 it is not on form nor on the lack of form; it is not on the major signs nor on the lack of major signs; it is not on the secondary marks nor on the lack of secondary marks; it is not on consciousness nor on the lack of consciousness; it is not on afflictions nor on the lack of afflictions; it is not on ethical discipline nor on the lack of ethical discipline; it is not on concentration nor on the lack of concentration; it is not on wisdom nor on the lack of wisdom; it is not on liberation nor on the lack of liberation; it is not on the knowledge and vision of liberation nor on the lack of the knowledge and vision of liberation; it is not on birth nor on the lack of birth; it is not on family nor on the lack of family; it is not on clan nor on the lack of clan; it is not on retinues nor on the lack of retinues; it is not on an abode nor on the lack of an abode; it is not on attainment [F.248.b]nor on the lack of attainment; it is not on realization nor on the lack of realization; it is not on the extinction of afflictions [F.65.b]nor on the lack of the extinction of afflictions; it is not on the aggregates, the elements, or [F.293.a]the sense bases nor on the lack of the aggregates, the elements, or the sense bases; it is not on knowledge nor on the lack of knowledge; it is not on teaching the Dharma nor on not teaching the Dharma; it is not on the purification of self nor on the purification of others; it is not on the purification of beings nor on the purification of nonbeings; it is not on the benefit of self nor on the benefit of others; it is not on the Dharma nor on the Vinaya; it is not on the purification of the body nor on the purification of speech or the purification of the mind; it is not on the purification of practice nor on the purification of prior practice, the purification of later practice, or the purification of present practice; and it is not on the purification of self nor on the purification of others. This, Śāriputra, is the recollection of the Buddha called the bodhisattva great beings’ engagement in the non-grasping of any phenomena. It is the dhāraṇī called the acquisition of fearlessness about the gathering of all qualities by the accomplishment of the ultimate,21 the samādhi called fulfilling all intentions by attaining absolute certainty,22 the dhāraṇī called abiding in the unsurpassed family of the treasury of qualities, the major signs and secondary marks, by accomplishing independent knowledge of all the roots of virtue,23 and the dhāraṇī called overpowering all the māras’ works by the skill in seeking the highest.
“Śāriputra, bodhisattvas who obtain the object of this dhāraṇī of accomplishment by means of the boundless gateways are irreversible and [F.249.a]will quickly attain unsurpassable, perfectly complete enlightenment. Why is that so? Because, Śāriputra, the qualities of all the buddhas and the treasury of all attributes are certain,[F.66.a] and because all the practices of bodhisattvas are distinguished from this dhāraṇī whose practice is without apprehending.”24[F.293.b]
Then the Blessed One spoke these verses:
The Blessed One then said to the venerable Śāriputra, “Śāriputra, if bodhisattva great beings are endowed with four things, they will obtain this dhāraṇī. They are as follows: having no attachment to sense pleasures; having no envy with respect to any being; giving away all one’s possessions and being generous without regret; [F.294.b]and, day and night, rejoicing in and desiring the Dharma. Śāriputra, if bodhisattva great beings are endowed with these four things, then they will obtain this dhāraṇī.”
The Blessed One then said to the venerable Śāriputra,[F.250.a] “Śāriputra, if bodhisattva great beings are endowed with four things, they will obtain this dhāraṇī. They are as follows: having no attachment to sense pleasures; having no envy with respect to any being; giving away all one’s possessions and being generous without regret; and, day and night, rejoicing in and desiring the Dharma. Śāriputra, if bodhisattva great beings are endowed with these four things, then they will obtain this dhāraṇī.”
Then the Blessed One spoke these verses:[F.67.a]
The Blessed One then said to the venerable Śāriputra, “Śāriputra, if bodhisattva great beings are endowed with four things, they will obtain this dhāraṇī. They are as follows: having no attachment to sense pleasures; having no envy with respect to any being; giving away all one’s possessions and being generous without regret; and, day and night, rejoicing in and desiring the Dharma. Śāriputra, if bodhisattva great beings are endowed with these four things, then they will obtain this dhāraṇī.”
“Furthermore, Śāriputra, if bodhisattva great beings are endowed with four things, they will obtain this dhāraṇī. They are as follows: dwelling in the wilderness or in a solitary place; giving rise to the power of the acceptance of the profound Dharma; being without attachment to gain, respect, and praise; and remaining indifferent to all pleasing things,[F.250.b] even renouncing life and limb. Śāriputra, if bodhisattva great beings are endowed with these four things, they will obtain this dhāraṇī.”
Then the Blessed One spoke these verses:
“Furthermore, Śāriputra, if bodhisattva great beings are endowed with four things, they will obtain this dhāraṇī. They are as follows. They should comprehend the meaning of eight syllables. What are these eight syllables? They are as follows: pa34 means that one penetrates and comprehends35 the fact that ultimately all phenomena are without a self; la36 means that one penetrates and comprehends the major signs and secondary marks, and the dharma-body of the tathāgatas as the lack of major signs and secondary marks;37 ba38 means that one penetrates and comprehends the nonduality of the qualities of the childish and the qualities of the wise, just as they are; dza39 means that one penetrates and comprehends the nonarising and nonceasing of beings who are born, age, and die and who are without birth, aging, and death; ka40 means [F.251.a]that one penetrates and comprehends the ripening of karma and the non-ripening of karma;41 dha42 means that one penetrates and comprehends the emptiness, signlessness, wishlessness, and dharmadhātu of the Dharma discourse of the dhāraṇī;43 śa44 means that one penetrates and comprehends entering into the suchness of all phenomena in calm abiding and special insight and the lack of calm abiding and special insight; kṣa45 means that one penetrates and comprehends the momentariness of all phenomena, that there is no extinction because they are primordially at peace, that they are fearless,46 that they are unmoving, and that all phenomena are nirvāṇa.[F.295.b]
“Thus, to realize comprehension of the meaning of these eight syllables is the first comprehension of the meaning. Properly writing out and upholding this Dharma discourse of the dhāraṇī is the second comprehension of the meaning. To continuously recite this Dharma discourse of the dhāraṇī and to exert oneself in recollection for half of every month is the third comprehension of the meaning. Bodhisattva great beings assiduously exerting themselves for this Dharma discourse of the dhāraṇī [F.68.a]who strive to bring joy to all beings, to encourage them to uphold it, and to cause them to exult in it—this is the fourth comprehension of the meaning. Śāriputra, if bodhisattva great beings are endowed with these four things, they will obtain this dhāraṇī.”
Then the Blessed One spoke these verses:
“Śāriputra, these four things are the benefits for bodhisattva great beings assiduously exerting themselves for this dhāraṇī: all the blessed buddhas of the ten directions think of them, the works of Māra do not emerge for them, their karmic obscurations will be swiftly purified, and they will swiftly attain unceasing eloquence. Śāriputra, those four things are the benefits for bodhisattva great beings who assiduously exert themselves in this dhāraṇī.”
Then [F.296.a]the Blessed One spoke this verse:
“Śāriputra, in the past—an innumerable, incredibly innumerable, exceedingly vast, immeasurable, and unfathomable number of eons ago—there appeared in the world a tathāgata, arhat, perfectly complete buddha known as Gloriously Splendid Kinglike Jewel, endowed with knowledge and conduct, well-gone, a knower of the world, a guide for those beings to be tam[F.68.b]ed, unsurpassed, a teacher of gods and humans, a buddha, and a blessed one.
“Śāriputra, when the blessed one, the tathāgata, arhat, perfectly complete buddha Gloriously Splendid Kinglike Jewel attained parinirvāṇa, there appeared [F.252.a]a wheel-turning monarch named Light Bearer, a lord of humans possessing the seven treasures. He had a son named Inconceivable Glory of Precious Qualities. At the age of sixteen, he heard the Dharma discourse of the dhāraṇī of accomplishment by means of the boundless gateways from the blessed one, the tathāgata, arhat, perfectly complete buddha Gloriously Splendid Kinglike Jewel.
“As soon as he heard the dhāraṇī, he strove to obtain it. For seventy thousand years, he was never overcome by lethargy or sleep—not even once did he delight in kingdom, wealth, or self. For seventy thousand years he never lay down on the ground on his side, and he lived in complete seclusion.
“Having heard the Dharma taught by nine hundred million buddhas [F.296.b]and having retained all of it,48 he went forth49 under the blessed one, the tathāgata, arhat, perfectly complete buddha Gloriously Splendid Kinglike Jewel himself. Ninety thousand years after going forth, he accomplished this dhāraṇī of accomplishment by means of the boundless gateways. Having accomplished it, he extensively taught it to beings. In that very life, he caused eighty hundred-sextillion beings to reach for50 unsurpassable, perfectly complete enlightenment and established them on the level of irreversibility from progress toward enlightenment. Śāriputra, in that retinue, there was a merchant’s son named Moon Crest, who heard from that Dharma-teaching monk [F.252.b]this Dharma discourse of the dhāraṇī of accomplishment by means of the boundless gateways.[F.69.a] Having heard it, he rejoiced, and through the root of virtue arisen from that instant of rejoicing, he heard the Dharma taught by nine hundred million buddhas and retained all of it. In every respect, he became supreme among those who have obtained the dhāraṇī, supreme among those who speak honorably,51 and supreme among bodhisattva great beings with unceasing eloquence. For three eons he pleased those tathāgatas, arhats, perfectly complete buddhas. Having pleased them, after the three eons had passed, he attained unsurpassable, perfectly complete enlightenment.
“Śāriputra, if you are unsure, uncertain, or doubtful, thinking that, at that time, the one who was the merchant’s son named Moon Crest was someone else, Śāriputra,[F.297.a] you should not see it that way. Why is that? Because at that time, the blessed one, the tathāgata, arhat, perfectly complete buddha Dīpaṃkara was the merchant’s son named Moon Crest.
“Śāriputra, if you are unsure, uncertain, or doubtful, thinking that, at that time, the Dharma teacher named Inconceivable Glory of Precious Qualities was someone else, Śāriputra, you should not see it that way. Why is that? Because at that time, the blessed one, the tathāgata, arhat, perfectly complete buddha Amitāyus was the Dharma-teaching monk Inconceivable Glory of Precious Qualities.[F.253.a]
“Śāriputra, at that time, I and the bodhisattva great beings of the Fortunate Eon also heard this Dharma discourse of the dhāraṇī. Having heard it I rejoiced, and through the root of virtue arisen from that instant of rejoicing, I demolished saṃsāra for forty quadrillion eons. I heard the Dharma taught by nine hundred ninety million buddhas.[F.69.b] In every respect, I became supreme among those who have obtained the dhāraṇī, supreme among those who speak honorably,52 and supreme among bodhisattva great beings with unceasing eloquence.
“Therefore, Śāriputra, bodhisattva great beings who wish to quickly attain unsurpassable, perfectly complete enlightenment should strive to rejoice in this Dharma discourse of the dhāraṇī. Why is that? Because if that will become the cause for bodhisattva great beings to attain the stage of irreversibility from progress toward unsurpassable, perfectly complete enlightenment [F.297.b]and to please the Dharma teachers, how much more will that be the case for those who write it out, who expound it, uphold it, recite it, comprehend it, properly reflect on it, and teach it extensively to others? The measure of that amount of merit cannot be known or conceived of by any being apart from the tathāgatas.”
Then the Blessed One spoke these verses:
Then the Blessed One said to the venerable Śāriputra, “Śāriputra, the radiance of eight yakṣas who dwell on the bodhisattva levels54 will enter the bodies of bodhisattva great beings who assiduously exert themselves in this dhāraṇī of accomplishment by means of the boundless gateways, and they will guard, protect, and shelter them day and night.[F.254.a] Who are these eight? They are the yakṣas Hero, Firm, Sovereign, Nārāyaṇabala, Cāritramati, Hard to Conquer, Dreadful, and the yakṣa Subāhu.
“In order for those eight yakṣa kings to come, one should bathe thoroughly, put on very clean clothes, perform walking meditation,55 and give rise to an attitude free of animosity toward any being. This Dharma discourse of the dhāraṇī should also be kept the mind, and if one does so, the eight yakṣas will quickly show their faces.
“Eight bodhisattva great beings born among the gods of the desire realm will also think of you. Who are these eight?[F.298.b] They are the bodhisattva great being Vairocana, Avabhāsakara, Light of Wisdom, Sunlight, Encourager, Fulfiller of All Intentions, Nakṣatrarāja,[F.70.b] and the bodhisattva great being Cāritramati. In order to obtain the dhāraṇī from these eight bodhisattva great beings, assiduously exert yourself. Bodhisattva great beings who strive for this dhāraṇī should make a commitment to the truth,56 be thankful, feel gratitude, desire the Dharma, delight in the Dharma, and assiduously exert themselves for the acceptance of the profound Dharma. Bodhisattva great beings who strive for the dhāraṇī should engage in freely giving to all. In this regard, if you are to give gifts even if what you have is small or lacking, what need is there to say that you should do so if you have much?”[F.254.b]
When the Blessed One gave this Dharma discourse of the dhāraṇī, as many bodhisattvas as there are grains of sand in thirty hundred-sextillion Ganges Rivers obtained this dhāraṇī of accomplishment by means of the boundless gateways, and attained irreversibility from progress toward unsurpassable, perfectly complete enlightenment. The sixty hundred-sextillion beings, gods, humans, and asuras who had not previously generated the mind of enlightenment gave rise to the mind set on unsurpassable, perfectly complete enlightenment.
Then the venerable Śāriputra asked the Blessed One, “Blessed One, what is the name of this Dharma discourse?[F.299.a] How should we remember it?”
The Blessed One said, “Śāriputra, remember this Dharma discourse as The Dhāraṇī of Accomplishment by Means of the Boundless Gateways. Remember it as Totally Exalting Bodhisattvas.57 Remember it as Destroying All the Māras. Remember it as Obtaining Total Omniscience.”
After the Blessed One spoke these words, the venerable Śāriputra, the monks, the bodhisattvas, and the world with its g[F.71.a]ods, humans, asuras, and gandharvas rejoiced and praised what the Blessed One had said.
This concludes “The Noble Dhāraṇī of Accomplishment by Means of the Boundless Gateways.”58
This was subsequently edited and finalized by the Indian preceptor Prajñāvarman and the chief editor and translator Bandé Yeshé Dé in connection with the commentary.59
The Dhāraṇī of Accomplishing the Boundless Gateways narrates the Buddha’s transmission of a dhāraṇī to a vast assembly of monks and bodhisattvas. It explains the dhāraṇī’s purpose and benefits, what qualities must be possessed in order to obtain it, and how its practice leads to the state of enlightenment.
Dakpa Gyatso completed the initial translation of the text. Barbara Hazelton revised the English translation and checked it against the Tibetan, together with Dakpa Gyatso and Rory Tasker. Khenpo Zhonu Nyima and Khenpo Tsulnam Rinpoche provided valuable comments and advice during the initial translation. Dr. Wangchuk Dorje Negi and Thinley Ram Shashni helped with the rendering of the Sanskrit dhāraṇī. Dr. Rory Lindsay offered feedback and guidance on the translation and its format. Geshe Sonam Ngodrup offered advice regarding the Tibetan vocabulary. The team benefitted tremendously from Hisao Inagaki’s 1968 translation of the text.
The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha. Nathaniel Rich edited the translation and the introduction, and Dawn Collins copyedited the text. Sameer Dhingra was in charge of the digital publication process.
The Dhāraṇī of Accomplishing the Boundless Gateways features the declaration of a dhāraṇī by the Buddha near the end of his life, three months before his parinirvāṇa. The event takes place at the Kūṭāgāraśālā, an important early monastery in the Great Forest near the city of Vaiśālī. It occurs before a large number of monks and bodhisattvas, followed by a vast assembly gathered from throughout the cosmos through the magical powers of Mahāmaudgalyāyana and Śāriputra, and an unfathomably large number of bodhisattvas gathered from buddhafields in the ten directions. The Buddha is prompted by questions from Śāriputra about the exalted attainments of bodhisattvas. He begins his reply to Śāriputra by proclaiming the dhāraṇī for which this discourse is named. This is followed by a description of how bodhisattvas cultivate recollection of the Buddha in their practice of the dhāraṇī, specifically in terms of everything they do not meditate on when they cultivate such recollection, in a style reminiscent of the Perfection of Wisdom sūtras.
The discourse proceeds with the Buddha describing to Śāriputra various sets of four things or qualities (Skt. dharma) bodhisattvas must possess in order to obtain the dhāraṇī. This serves to emphasize its rarity and power, inspiring those in the audience to seek it out and put it into practice. The Buddha then narrates an episode, countless eons ago, in which, in a previous life, the buddhas Dīpaṅkara and Amitāyus encountered and put into practice the dhāraṇī. It was at that time that the Buddha himself and all the bodhisattvas of the Fortunate Eon also first encountered it. The discourse ends with the Buddha describing the benefits that accrue to the person who practices the dhāraṇī—that “the radiance of eight yakṣas who dwell on the bodhisattva levels” will enter the practitioner’s body, and that eight bodhisattvas will keep the practitioner in mind.
The Dhāraṇī of the Boundless Gateways is found in three recensions in the Degé Kangyur—in the General Sūtra section (Toh 140), in the Action Tantra section (Toh 525), and in the Compendium of Dhāraṇīs section (Toh 914).111 According to the translators’ colophon, which is only found in Toh 914, the translation was edited and finalized by the Indian preceptor Prajñāvarman and the chief editor and translator Bandé Yeshé Dé. This would date the translation to the late eight or early ninth century, which is also supported by the text’s inclusion in both of the catalogs of translations produced during early ninth century, the Denkarma (Tib. ldan dkar ma) and Phangthangma (Tib. ’phangs thang ma).2
The present translation is based primarily on the recension found in the General Sūtra section, with reference in the notes to substantive variants found in the other two Degé Kangyur recensions and the Stok Palace recension. The Comparative Edition (dpe bsdur ma) was also consulted. Interestingly, Toh 140 and Toh 525 are essentially identical, whereas Toh 914 often differs from those two recensions. The Stok Palace recension appears to be essentially identical to Toh 914, except for the Sanskrit title given on its title page (Anantamukhanirhāradhāraṇī),3 which differs from that found in the three Degé Kangyur recensions. There are nine Chinese translations of the text in the Taishō Tripiṭaka. However, Hisao Inagaki has identified possible errors with the names of the translators and dates of the translations.4
A folio of this text in Sanskrit was introduced in the Manuscript Remains of Buddhist Literature Found in Eastern Turkistan, and another folio was recently discovered by Prof. Kazunobu Matsuda of Bukkyo University, Tokyo. This folio is the last part of the sūtra, i.e., from the end of chapter 16 through chapter 19. A commentary on this dhāraṇī text was composed by Jñānagarbha (8th century
It was at that time that the Blessed One mindfully and knowingly relinquished his life force7 with the thought, “In three months’ time the Tathāgata will attain parinirvāṇa.” Then the Blessed One said to the venerable Mahāmaudgalyāyana, “Mahāmaudgalyāyana, go and [F.290.a]gather all the monks who dwell in the chiliocosm here at the Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest.”
The venerable Mahāmaudgalyāyana replied, “I will do that, Blessed One,” and, heeding the Blessed One’s instructions, at that very moment, by his own miraculous power, he appeared at the peak of Mount Meru and proclaimed to the chiliocosm, “Whichever beings, dwelling in this world system, who are disciples of the Well-Gone One—all of you, listen to me! Today the Teacher will shower down a rain of Dharma. Those of you who wish to hear, come!”
Forty thousand monks then gathered at the Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest. Having arrived there, they saw the Blessed One, bowed their heads at his feet, circumambulated him three times, and then sat down to one side.
Then the venerable Śāriputra, through the power of the Buddha, at that very moment thought, “I must manifest the kind of miraculous power by which all the monks dwelling in the trichiliocosm—whether they are of the vehicle of the hearers, or of the vehicle of the pratyekabuddhas, or of the Great Vehicle—will be gathered at the Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest.”[F.245.b]
Then the venerable Śāriputra manifested such miraculous power and,[F.63.a] having done so, all the monks dwelling in the trichiliocosm—whether they were of the vehicle of the hearers, or of the vehicle of the pratyekabuddhas, or of the Great Vehicle—were gathered at the Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest. Having arrived there,[F.290.b] they saw the Blessed One, bowed their heads at his feet, circumambulated him three times, and then sat down to one side.
Then, at that very moment, the Blessed One said to all the bodhisattva great beings—to the bodhisattva great being Amoghadarśin, the bodhisattva great being Mañjuśrī Kumārabhūta, the bodhisattva great being Abandoning All Lower Realms, the bodhisattva great being Vanquishing the Darkness of All Sorrow, the bodhisattva great being Sarvanīvaraṇaviṣkambhin, the bodhisattva great being Jālinīprabha, the bodhisattva great being Intelligence Vanquishing the Darkness of All Places, the bodhisattva great being Avalokiteśvara, the bodhisattva great being Mahāsthāmaprāpta, the bodhisattva great being Indefatigable, the bodhisattva great being Gandhahastin,[F.246.a] the bodhisattva great being Hero, the bodhisattva great being Gaganagañja, the bodhisattva great being Amitābha, the bodhisattva great being Mati,8 the bodhisattva great being Jñānaketu, the bodhisattva great being Bhadrapāla, the bodhisattva great being Sāgaramati,[F.63.b] the bodhisattva great being Akṣayamati, the bodhisattva great being Vajragarbha, the bodhisattva great being Ākāśagarbha, the bodhisattva great being Vajrapāṇi, the bodhisattva great being Samantabhadra, the bodhisattva great being [F.291.a]Pratibhānakūṭa, and the bodhisattva great being Maitreya—“O sons of noble family, go now and gather here at the Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest all the bodhisattvas dwelling in the buddhafields of the ten directions, as numerous as the grains of sand in the River Ganges, who are in their final existence, who have only one more birth remaining, who are irreversible from progress toward enlightenment, who have attained acceptance of the fact that phenomena are unborn, or who are devoted out of faith.”
The bodhisattva great beings heeded the Blessed One’s instructions, saying, “Excellent, Blessed One, excellent!” At that very moment, they displayed such appearances and, having displayed them,9[F.246.b] inexpressibly many hundred-sextillion bodhisattvas in their final existence arrived at the Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest, and ninety hundred-sextillion bodhisattvas with only one more birth remaining, eighty hundred-sextillion bodhisattvas irreversible from progress toward enlightenment, thirty hundred-sextillion bodhisattva great beings who had attained acceptance that phenomena are unborn, and eight hundred-sextillion bodhisattva great beings who are devoted out of faith arrived at the Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest.10 Having arrived there, they saw the Blessed One, bowed their heads at his feet, circumambulated him three times, and then sat down to one side.
Then the venerable Śāriputra, having seen that great assembly of bodhisattvas,[F.64.a] at that very moment thought, “I must ask the Tathāgata, the Arhat, the Perfectly Complete Buddha for answers to questions11 about how these bodhisattva great beings dispel all doubts, quickly attain unobscured wisdom and eloquence, and hear the teachings of the Dharma from all the tathāgatas, arhats, perfectly complete buddhas, in [F.291.b]buddhafields as numerous as the grains of sand in the River Ganges; how, having heard them, they remember them, not forgetting them until they attain unsurpassable, perfectly complete enlightenment; how they obtain four purifications12 that are the practices of bodhisattva great beings—the purification of beings, the purification of the Dharma, the purification of aspirations,[F.247.a] and the purification of buddhafields; how they obtain four things that make them excellent and appealing—an appealing body, appealing speech, an appealing mind, and an appealing birth; and how they gain the four kinds of entry into the dhāraṇī gateways—entry into the dhāraṇī gateway of accomplishment by means of inexhaustible gateways, entry into the dhāraṇī gateway of skill with respect to the faculties of beings, entry into the dhāraṇī gateway of effortless skill with respect to actions and their ripening, and entry into the dhāraṇī gateway of acceptance of the profound Dharma.”
Then the venerable Śāriputra asked the Blessed One in detail those questions just as he remembered them, considered them, and understood them,[F.64.b] and he further asked, “Blessed One, with these questions just as I have remembered them, considered them, and understood them, please explain how the practices of these bodhisattva great beings will be purified.” [F.292.a]
The Blessed One replied to the venerable Śāriputra, “Excellent, Śāriputra, excellent! It is excellent, Śāriputra, that you have thought to ask the Tathāgata about this topic.[F.247.b] Therefore, Śāriputra, listen well and be attentive and I will explain it to you.”
The venerable Śāriputra replied to the Blessed One, “I will do that, Blessed One,”14 and he heeded the Blessed One’s instructions.
The Blessed One then said to him as follows: “Śāriputra, bodhisattva great beings who neither accept nor appropriate any phenomena should retain these mantra-words of the dhāraṇī:
tadyathā/ oṃ aṇe mahāraṇe/ akhe/ mukhe/ mukhe/ samantamukhe/ saumesa/ sauryarame/ sautiyugame/ nirugatiprabhehilehile/ kalape kelapa/ sisale/ saravati/ hilehile/ hilehile/ hilihilili/ mahāhilele/ caṇḍecapane/ caracaraṇi/ acale/ macāle/ anante/ anantemukhe/ anantagate araṇenirmalade/ nirvalane/ nirvadhanate/ dharmdhare/ nirhare/ gimeleśrīmaviśodhani/ prakṛtidhipane/ bhavavebhavane/ asaṃge asaṃge/ vihare/ damesame/ vimale/ vimalaprabhe/ saṃkarṣaṇi/ dhiredhidhirilahādhidhire/ yeṣeyaṣopati/ cale acale/ macale/ samacale/ ṭadhiṭudhasandhisthira/ asaṃge asaṃge/ vihare/ asaṃganirhare/ nirhara/ vimale/ nirhaṭaśotaniḍadhisome/ sthiresthime/ sthamavati/ mahāprabhe/ samantaprabhe/ vipulaprabhe/ vipularasmisaṃbhave/ samantamukhe/ sarvatrayavugate/ chedyayanatachedyapratibhane/ dharaṇe/ ṇiḍena/ dharmanidhanagotra/ samantabhadrai/ sarvatathāgatahṛdaya adhiṣṭhāna adhiṣṭhite svāhā15
“Śāriputra, bodhisattva great beings retaining these dhāraṇīs do not form conceits about conditioned or unconditioned phenomena.[F.292.b] They do not apprehend them, do not disparage them, do not neglect them, do not appropriate them, and do not strive for them. They do not act for the sake of obtaining them, abandoning them, meditating upon them, or increasing them. They do not change them. They do not fabricate them. They do not see any phenomena that are associated with them, nor do they see any not associated with them. They do not see the arising of phenomena, they do not seen the cessation of phenomena, they do not see past phenomena, they do not see future phenomena, they do not see present phenomena, and they do not see either the increase or the decrease of phenomena. They do not accumulate any phenomena whatsoever, nor do they diminish any. They do not label anything, and they do not make anything known. They cultivate recollection of the Buddha alone.
“Śāriputra, bodhisattva great beings [F.248.a]retaining these dhāraṇīs do not form conceits about conditioned or unconditioned phenomena . They do not apprehend them, do not disparage them, do not neglect them, do not appropriate them, and do not strive for them. They do not act for the sake of obtaining them, abandoning them, meditating upon them, or increasing them. They do not change them. They do not fabricate them. They do not see any phenomena that are associated with them, nor do they see any not associated with them. They do not see the arising of phenomena, they do not seen the cessation of phenomena, they do not see past phenomena, they do not see future phenomena, they do not see present phenomena, and they do not see either the increase or the decrease of phenomena. They do not accumulate any phenomena whatsoever, nor do they diminish any. They do not label anything, and they do not make anything known. They cultivate recollection of the Buddha alone.
[F.65.a]“Śāriputra, bodhisattva great beings retaining these dhāraṇīs do not form conceits about conditioned or unconditioned phenomena . They do not apprehend them, do not disparage them, do not neglect them, do not appropriate them, and do not strive for them. They do not act for the sake of obtaining them, abandoning them, meditating upon them, or increasing them. They do not change them. They do not fabricate them. They do not see any phenomena that are associated with them, nor do they see any not associated with them. They do not see the arising of phenomena, they do not seen the cessation of phenomena, they do not see past phenomena, they do not see future phenomena, they do not see present phenomena, and they do not see either the increase or the decrease of phenomena. They do not accumulate any phenomena whatsoever, nor do they diminish any. They do not label anything, and they do not make anything known. They cultivate recollection of the Buddha alone.
“When they meditate,20 it is not on form nor on the lack of form; it is not on the major signs nor on the lack of major signs; it is not on the secondary marks nor on the lack of secondary marks; it is not on consciousness nor on the lack of consciousness; it is not on afflictions nor on the lack of afflictions; it is not on ethical discipline nor on the lack of ethical discipline; it is not on concentration nor on the lack of concentration; it is not on wisdom nor on the lack of wisdom; it is not on liberation nor on the lack of liberation; it is not on the knowledge and vision of liberation nor on the lack of the knowledge and vision of liberation; it is not on birth nor on the lack of birth; it is not on family nor on the lack of family; it is not on clan nor on the lack of clan; it is not on retinues nor on the lack of retinues; it is not on an abode nor on the lack of an abode; it is not on attainment [F.248.b]nor on the lack of attainment; it is not on realization nor on the lack of realization; it is not on the extinction of afflictions [F.65.b]nor on the lack of the extinction of afflictions; it is not on the aggregates, the elements, or [F.293.a]the sense bases nor on the lack of the aggregates, the elements, or the sense bases; it is not on knowledge nor on the lack of knowledge; it is not on teaching the Dharma nor on not teaching the Dharma; it is not on the purification of self nor on the purification of others; it is not on the purification of beings nor on the purification of nonbeings; it is not on the benefit of self nor on the benefit of others; it is not on the Dharma nor on the Vinaya; it is not on the purification of the body nor on the purification of speech or the purification of the mind; it is not on the purification of practice nor on the purification of prior practice, the purification of later practice, or the purification of present practice; and it is not on the purification of self nor on the purification of others. This, Śāriputra, is the recollection of the Buddha called the bodhisattva great beings’ engagement in the non-grasping of any phenomena. It is the dhāraṇī called the acquisition of fearlessness about the gathering of all qualities by the accomplishment of the ultimate,21 the samādhi called fulfilling all intentions by attaining absolute certainty,22 the dhāraṇī called abiding in the unsurpassed family of the treasury of qualities, the major signs and secondary marks, by accomplishing independent knowledge of all the roots of virtue,23 and the dhāraṇī called overpowering all the māras’ works by the skill in seeking the highest.
“Śāriputra, bodhisattvas who obtain the object of this dhāraṇī of accomplishment by means of the boundless gateways are irreversible and [F.249.a]will quickly attain unsurpassable, perfectly complete enlightenment. Why is that so? Because, Śāriputra, the qualities of all the buddhas and the treasury of all attributes are certain,[F.66.a] and because all the practices of bodhisattvas are distinguished from this dhāraṇī whose practice is without apprehending.”24[F.293.b]
Then the Blessed One spoke these verses:
The Blessed One then said to the venerable Śāriputra, “Śāriputra, if bodhisattva great beings are endowed with four things, they will obtain this dhāraṇī. They are as follows: having no attachment to sense pleasures; having no envy with respect to any being; giving away all one’s possessions and being generous without regret; [F.294.b]and, day and night, rejoicing in and desiring the Dharma. Śāriputra, if bodhisattva great beings are endowed with these four things, then they will obtain this dhāraṇī.”
The Blessed One then said to the venerable Śāriputra,[F.250.a] “Śāriputra, if bodhisattva great beings are endowed with four things, they will obtain this dhāraṇī. They are as follows: having no attachment to sense pleasures; having no envy with respect to any being; giving away all one’s possessions and being generous without regret; and, day and night, rejoicing in and desiring the Dharma. Śāriputra, if bodhisattva great beings are endowed with these four things, then they will obtain this dhāraṇī.”
Then the Blessed One spoke these verses:[F.67.a]
The Blessed One then said to the venerable Śāriputra, “Śāriputra, if bodhisattva great beings are endowed with four things, they will obtain this dhāraṇī. They are as follows: having no attachment to sense pleasures; having no envy with respect to any being; giving away all one’s possessions and being generous without regret; and, day and night, rejoicing in and desiring the Dharma. Śāriputra, if bodhisattva great beings are endowed with these four things, then they will obtain this dhāraṇī.”
“Furthermore, Śāriputra, if bodhisattva great beings are endowed with four things, they will obtain this dhāraṇī. They are as follows: dwelling in the wilderness or in a solitary place; giving rise to the power of the acceptance of the profound Dharma; being without attachment to gain, respect, and praise; and remaining indifferent to all pleasing things,[F.250.b] even renouncing life and limb. Śāriputra, if bodhisattva great beings are endowed with these four things, they will obtain this dhāraṇī.”
Then the Blessed One spoke these verses:
“Furthermore, Śāriputra, if bodhisattva great beings are endowed with four things, they will obtain this dhāraṇī. They are as follows. They should comprehend the meaning of eight syllables. What are these eight syllables? They are as follows: pa34 means that one penetrates and comprehends35 the fact that ultimately all phenomena are without a self; la36 means that one penetrates and comprehends the major signs and secondary marks, and the dharma-body of the tathāgatas as the lack of major signs and secondary marks;37 ba38 means that one penetrates and comprehends the nonduality of the qualities of the childish and the qualities of the wise, just as they are; dza39 means that one penetrates and comprehends the nonarising and nonceasing of beings who are born, age, and die and who are without birth, aging, and death; ka40 means [F.251.a]that one penetrates and comprehends the ripening of karma and the non-ripening of karma;41 dha42 means that one penetrates and comprehends the emptiness, signlessness, wishlessness, and dharmadhātu of the Dharma discourse of the dhāraṇī;43 śa44 means that one penetrates and comprehends entering into the suchness of all phenomena in calm abiding and special insight and the lack of calm abiding and special insight; kṣa45 means that one penetrates and comprehends the momentariness of all phenomena, that there is no extinction because they are primordially at peace, that they are fearless,46 that they are unmoving, and that all phenomena are nirvāṇa.[F.295.b]
“Thus, to realize comprehension of the meaning of these eight syllables is the first comprehension of the meaning. Properly writing out and upholding this Dharma discourse of the dhāraṇī is the second comprehension of the meaning. To continuously recite this Dharma discourse of the dhāraṇī and to exert oneself in recollection for half of every month is the third comprehension of the meaning. Bodhisattva great beings assiduously exerting themselves for this Dharma discourse of the dhāraṇī [F.68.a]who strive to bring joy to all beings, to encourage them to uphold it, and to cause them to exult in it—this is the fourth comprehension of the meaning. Śāriputra, if bodhisattva great beings are endowed with these four things, they will obtain this dhāraṇī.”
Then the Blessed One spoke these verses:
“Śāriputra, these four things are the benefits for bodhisattva great beings assiduously exerting themselves for this dhāraṇī: all the blessed buddhas of the ten directions think of them, the works of Māra do not emerge for them, their karmic obscurations will be swiftly purified, and they will swiftly attain unceasing eloquence. Śāriputra, those four things are the benefits for bodhisattva great beings who assiduously exert themselves in this dhāraṇī.”
Then [F.296.a]the Blessed One spoke this verse:
“Śāriputra, in the past—an innumerable, incredibly innumerable, exceedingly vast, immeasurable, and unfathomable number of eons ago—there appeared in the world a tathāgata, arhat, perfectly complete buddha known as Gloriously Splendid Kinglike Jewel, endowed with knowledge and conduct, well-gone, a knower of the world, a guide for those beings to be tam[F.68.b]ed, unsurpassed, a teacher of gods and humans, a buddha, and a blessed one.
“Śāriputra, when the blessed one, the tathāgata, arhat, perfectly complete buddha Gloriously Splendid Kinglike Jewel attained parinirvāṇa, there appeared [F.252.a]a wheel-turning monarch named Light Bearer, a lord of humans possessing the seven treasures. He had a son named Inconceivable Glory of Precious Qualities. At the age of sixteen, he heard the Dharma discourse of the dhāraṇī of accomplishment by means of the boundless gateways from the blessed one, the tathāgata, arhat, perfectly complete buddha Gloriously Splendid Kinglike Jewel.
“As soon as he heard the dhāraṇī, he strove to obtain it. For seventy thousand years, he was never overcome by lethargy or sleep—not even once did he delight in kingdom, wealth, or self. For seventy thousand years he never lay down on the ground on his side, and he lived in complete seclusion.
“Having heard the Dharma taught by nine hundred million buddhas [F.296.b]and having retained all of it,48 he went forth49 under the blessed one, the tathāgata, arhat, perfectly complete buddha Gloriously Splendid Kinglike Jewel himself. Ninety thousand years after going forth, he accomplished this dhāraṇī of accomplishment by means of the boundless gateways. Having accomplished it, he extensively taught it to beings. In that very life, he caused eighty hundred-sextillion beings to reach for50 unsurpassable, perfectly complete enlightenment and established them on the level of irreversibility from progress toward enlightenment. Śāriputra, in that retinue, there was a merchant’s son named Moon Crest, who heard from that Dharma-teaching monk [F.252.b]this Dharma discourse of the dhāraṇī of accomplishment by means of the boundless gateways.[F.69.a] Having heard it, he rejoiced, and through the root of virtue arisen from that instant of rejoicing, he heard the Dharma taught by nine hundred million buddhas and retained all of it. In every respect, he became supreme among those who have obtained the dhāraṇī, supreme among those who speak honorably,51 and supreme among bodhisattva great beings with unceasing eloquence. For three eons he pleased those tathāgatas, arhats, perfectly complete buddhas. Having pleased them, after the three eons had passed, he attained unsurpassable, perfectly complete enlightenment.
“Śāriputra, if you are unsure, uncertain, or doubtful, thinking that, at that time, the one who was the merchant’s son named Moon Crest was someone else, Śāriputra,[F.297.a] you should not see it that way. Why is that? Because at that time, the blessed one, the tathāgata, arhat, perfectly complete buddha Dīpaṃkara was the merchant’s son named Moon Crest.
“Śāriputra, if you are unsure, uncertain, or doubtful, thinking that, at that time, the Dharma teacher named Inconceivable Glory of Precious Qualities was someone else, Śāriputra, you should not see it that way. Why is that? Because at that time, the blessed one, the tathāgata, arhat, perfectly complete buddha Amitāyus was the Dharma-teaching monk Inconceivable Glory of Precious Qualities.[F.253.a]
“Śāriputra, at that time, I and the bodhisattva great beings of the Fortunate Eon also heard this Dharma discourse of the dhāraṇī. Having heard it I rejoiced, and through the root of virtue arisen from that instant of rejoicing, I demolished saṃsāra for forty quadrillion eons. I heard the Dharma taught by nine hundred ninety million buddhas.[F.69.b] In every respect, I became supreme among those who have obtained the dhāraṇī, supreme among those who speak honorably,52 and supreme among bodhisattva great beings with unceasing eloquence.
“Therefore, Śāriputra, bodhisattva great beings who wish to quickly attain unsurpassable, perfectly complete enlightenment should strive to rejoice in this Dharma discourse of the dhāraṇī. Why is that? Because if that will become the cause for bodhisattva great beings to attain the stage of irreversibility from progress toward unsurpassable, perfectly complete enlightenment [F.297.b]and to please the Dharma teachers, how much more will that be the case for those who write it out, who expound it, uphold it, recite it, comprehend it, properly reflect on it, and teach it extensively to others? The measure of that amount of merit cannot be known or conceived of by any being apart from the tathāgatas.”
Then the Blessed One spoke these verses:
Then the Blessed One said to the venerable Śāriputra, “Śāriputra, the radiance of eight yakṣas who dwell on the bodhisattva levels54 will enter the bodies of bodhisattva great beings who assiduously exert themselves in this dhāraṇī of accomplishment by means of the boundless gateways, and they will guard, protect, and shelter them day and night.[F.254.a] Who are these eight? They are the yakṣas Hero, Firm, Sovereign, Nārāyaṇabala, Cāritramati, Hard to Conquer, Dreadful, and the yakṣa Subāhu.
“In order for those eight yakṣa kings to come, one should bathe thoroughly, put on very clean clothes, perform walking meditation,55 and give rise to an attitude free of animosity toward any being. This Dharma discourse of the dhāraṇī should also be kept the mind, and if one does so, the eight yakṣas will quickly show their faces.
“Eight bodhisattva great beings born among the gods of the desire realm will also think of you. Who are these eight?[F.298.b] They are the bodhisattva great being Vairocana, Avabhāsakara, Light of Wisdom, Sunlight, Encourager, Fulfiller of All Intentions, Nakṣatrarāja,[F.70.b] and the bodhisattva great being Cāritramati. In order to obtain the dhāraṇī from these eight bodhisattva great beings, assiduously exert yourself. Bodhisattva great beings who strive for this dhāraṇī should make a commitment to the truth,56 be thankful, feel gratitude, desire the Dharma, delight in the Dharma, and assiduously exert themselves for the acceptance of the profound Dharma. Bodhisattva great beings who strive for the dhāraṇī should engage in freely giving to all. In this regard, if you are to give gifts even if what you have is small or lacking, what need is there to say that you should do so if you have much?”[F.254.b]
When the Blessed One gave this Dharma discourse of the dhāraṇī, as many bodhisattvas as there are grains of sand in thirty hundred-sextillion Ganges Rivers obtained this dhāraṇī of accomplishment by means of the boundless gateways, and attained irreversibility from progress toward unsurpassable, perfectly complete enlightenment. The sixty hundred-sextillion beings, gods, humans, and asuras who had not previously generated the mind of enlightenment gave rise to the mind set on unsurpassable, perfectly complete enlightenment.
Then the venerable Śāriputra asked the Blessed One, “Blessed One, what is the name of this Dharma discourse?[F.299.a] How should we remember it?”
The Blessed One said, “Śāriputra, remember this Dharma discourse as The Dhāraṇī of Accomplishment by Means of the Boundless Gateways. Remember it as Totally Exalting Bodhisattvas.57 Remember it as Destroying All the Māras. Remember it as Obtaining Total Omniscience.”
After the Blessed One spoke these words, the venerable Śāriputra, the monks, the bodhisattvas, and the world with its g[F.71.a]ods, humans, asuras, and gandharvas rejoiced and praised what the Blessed One had said.
This concludes “The Noble Dhāraṇī of Accomplishment by Means of the Boundless Gateways.”58
This was subsequently edited and finalized by the Indian preceptor Prajñāvarman and the chief editor and translator Bandé Yeshé Dé in connection with the commentary.59
This text, Toh 914, and all those contained in this same volume (gzungs ’dus, e), are listed as being located in volume 100 of the Degé Kangyur by the Buddhist Digital Resource Center (BDRC). However, several other Kangyur databases—including the eKangyur that supplies the digital input version displayed by the 84000 Reading Room—list this work as being located in volume 101. This discrepancy is partly due to the fact that the two volumes of the gzungs ’dus section are an added supplement not mentioned in the original catalog, and also hinges on the fact that the compilers of the Tōhoku catalog placed another text—which forms a whole, very large volume—the Vimalaprabhānāmakālacakratantraṭīkā (dus ’khor ’grel bshad dri med ’od, Toh 845), before the volume 100 of the Degé Kangyur, numbering it as vol. 100, although it is almost certainly intended to come right at the end of the Degé Kangyur texts as volume 102; indeed its final fifth chapter is often carried over and wrapped in the same volume as the Kangyur dkar chags (catalog). Please note this discrepancy when using the eKangyur viewer in this translation.
Note that the Tibetan sgrub pa can render both the Sanskrit sādhana (here sādhaka), found in the three Degé Kangyur recensions, and the Sanskrit nirhāra, found in the Stok Palace recension. It is not presently clear if there were separate Sanskrit recensions with different titles or if one or both Sanskrit titles are back-translations from Tibetan.
For a discussion of these issues, see Hisao Inagaki, Amida Dhāraṇī Sūtra and Jñānagarbha’s Commentary: An Annotated Translation from Tibetan of the Anantamukha-Nirhāra-Dhāraṇī Sūtra and Ṭīkā, p. 4.
In the Toh 525 version of the text there is a slight discrepancy in the folio numbering between the 1737 par phud printings and the late (post par phud) printings of the Degé Kangyur. Although the discrepancy is irrelevant here, further details concerning this may be found in n.5 of the Toh 525 version of this text.
In the Toh 525 version of the text there is a slight discrepancy in the folio numbering between the 1737 par phud printings and the late (post par phud) printings of the Degé Kangyur. Although the discrepancy is irrelevant here, further details concerning this may be found in n.5 of the Toh 525 version of this text.
The folio references of the Degé Kangyur appearing in the Tibetan source and compare view of this publication (or which are shown inline in the PDF and ePub versions) refer to the post par phud printing of the Degé. Note that, as described in the bibliographical reference on the title page, there is a 17-page discrepancy in volume 88 (rgyud ’bum, na) of the Degé Kangyur between the 1737 par phud printings and the late (post par phud) printings. This is due to an extra work, Bodhimaṇḍasyālaṃkāralakṣadhāraṇī (Toh 508, byang chub snying po’i rgyan ’bum gyi gzungs), being added as the second text in the volume.
“Kūṭāgāraśālā” (“hall with an upper chamber”) is typically rendered by the Tibetan khang pa brtsegs pa’i gnas, but here the Tibetan is khang pa brtsegs pa’i khang bzangs (“mansion with an upper chamber”).
“Life force” renders the Tibetan tshe’i ’du byed (Skt. āyuḥsaṃskāra). The narrative trope of the Buddha mindfully relinquishing his life force three months before his parinirvāṇa is featured elsewhere in Buddhist literature. See, for example, the Pali Mahāparinibbāna Sutta, the sixteenth sutta of the Dīgha Nikāya.
“Displayed such appearances” renders the Tibetan ltas de lta bu byas. This translation is tentative.
In Toh 914 and Stok these numbers are much larger. For example, the first number is given as bye ba khrag khrig brgya stong brjod du med pa’i brjod du med pa bye ba khrag khrig phrag ’bum dag in Toh 914 (bye ba khrag khrig brgya stong brjod du med pa’i brjod du med pa bye ba khrag khrig’bum dag in Stok). The numbers in Toh 914 and Stok agree except for that given for irreversible bodhisattvas (in Toh 914, bye ba khrag khrig brgya ’bum phrag stong phrag brgyad cu, and in Stok, bye ba khrag khrig ’bum phrag brgyad cu).
Commentary by Jñānagarbha: “purification because they purify with the realization of non-substantiality, the anātman of sentient beings and so forth” (Inagaki, p. 56).
“Aspirations” renders the Tibetan smon lam.
This follows Toh 140 and Toh 525, which read bcom ldan ’das de bzhin no zhes gsol te, while Toh 914 and Stok read bcom ldan ’das de ltar ’tshal lo/ de bzhin no zhes gsol te. The Tib. de ltar ’tshal could be translated in the same way that de bzhin no has been.
The dhāraṇī has been transliterated exactly as it appears in Toh 140. The dhāraṇī in Toh 525 is identical except for the following: gimeleśrīmaviśodhani reads gimileśrīmaviśodhani; ṇiḍena reads ṇiṭane. The dhāraṇī in Toh 914 appears as follows: tadyathā oṃ aṇe aṇe aṇe / mukhe mukhe mukhe / samantamukhe jyotisaume satye satyārāme / sautiyukte / nirukte / nirukteprabhe / hilihili / kalape / kalape sisāre / sāravati / buddhavati / hilihili / hilehilehilehile / hilihili / hilile / mahāhilile / hiletuṇḍe / caṇḍecaṇḍe / carācarāṇe / acale macale / anante anantagate / anantamukhe / araṇe / nirmale / nirbhavane / nirvarttane / nirdānte / dharmadhare / nihāranihāra / vimaleviṣodhane / śīlaviśodhane / prakṛti/ dīpane / bhavane / bhavavibhavane / asaṃge / asaṃgavihare / dame / śame / vimale / vimalaprabhe / samākarṣaṇe / dhire / dhidhire / mahādhidhire / yaśoyaśovati / cale / acale / macale / samacale / ḍiḍhasandhisusthire / asaṃge / asaṃgavihare / asaṃganirhara / nirharavimale / nirharaviśodhane / ḍiḍhasome / sthiresthāmasthāmavati / mahāprabhe / samantaprabhe / vipulaprabhe / vipularaśmisaṃbhavesamantamukhe / sarvatrānugate / anācchedyepritibhane / dhāraṇinidhāne / dharmaṇidhāne / dharmanidhānagotre / samantabhadre / sarvatathāgatahṛdaya adhiṣṭhāna ādhiṣṭhite svāhā. Stok is closer to Toh 914 but not at all identical.
Toh 140 and Toh 525 read smon par mi byed (“do not aspire”). Toh 914 reads dmod par mi byed, while Stok reads smod par mi byed, both of which have the same meaning. The reading in Toh 914 and Stok has been adopted here. The commentary by Jñānagarbha also has smod pa.
“Do not neglect them” renders the Tibetan btang snyoms su mi byed.
Toh 914 and Stok read ’dzin par mi byed rather than len par mi byed, which does not constitute a substantive difference in meaning. Toh 914 and Stok also read rtsom par mi byed rather than brtson par mi byed, which also does not constitute a substantive difference in meaning.
This sentence renders the Tibetan mtshungs par ldan pa’i chos rnams kyang mi mthong/ ldan pa ma yin pa rnams kyang mi mthong ngo.
In Toh 140 and Toh 525, the reading is don dam pa bsgrub par chos thams cad yang dag par ’du ba la mi ’jigs pa thob pa. In Toh 914 and Stok, the reading is don dam pa sgrub [Stok: bsgrub] pas chos thams cad yang dag par ’du ba la mi ’jigs pa thob pa. “By the accomplishment of the ultimate” follows the reading in Toh 914 and Stok.
This renders the Tibetan gcig tu nges pa thob pas bsam pa thams cad yongs su rdzogs par byed pa zhes bya ba’i ting nge ’dzin. The only variant is in Toh 914, which reads gcig tu nges par thob pa (“absolute attainment”).
In Toh 140 and Toh 525, reading is dge ba’i rtsa ba thams cad gzhan la rag ma lus pa’i ye shes bsgrubs pas/ chos kyi gter mtshan dang dpe byad bzang po’i rigs zil gyis mi non par gnas pa. In the Toh 914 and Stok, the reading is dge ba’i rtsa ba thams cad gzhan la rag ma las pa’i ye shes sgrub pas chos kyi gter mtshan dang dpe byad bzang po’i rigs zil gyis mi non pa. The latter, then, is simply the unsurpassed family rather than abiding in the unsurpassed family, but the Tibetan gzhan la rag ma lus pa in Toh 140 and Toh 525 is clearly a mistake or corruption, so gzhan la rag ma las pa has been adopted from Toh 914 and Stok.
This renders the Tibetan dmigs pa med pa’i spyod pa dang ldan pa’i gzungs ’di nyid las byang chub sems dpa’i spyod pa thams cad rab tu dbye bar ’gyur ba’i phyir. The readings of the final clause in Toh 914 and Stok are both different. In Toh 914, the reading is byang chub sems dpa’i spyod pa thams cad kyi bye brag chod pa’i phyir, which appears to be in error and is possibly a corruption of the reading in Stok, which is byang chub sems dpa’i spyod pa thams cad kyi bye brag mchog yin pa’i phyir. The full reading in Stok might be rendered “because in this dhāraṇī whose practice is without apprehending there is the supreme feature of all the practices of bodhisattvas.”
Toh 140 and Toh 525 read de nas byang chub thob par ’gyur, while Toh 914 and Stok read des na byang chub thob par ’gyur. The latter reading has been followed here.
Toh 140 and Toh 525 read gzungs ’dir rab tu bzung byas na (’dir is likely a scribal corruption), while Toh 914 and Stok read gzungs ’di rab tu bzung byas na. The latter reading has been followed here.
Toh 140 and Toh 525 read don dang tshig ’bru bskyod, while Toh 914 and Stok read don dang tshig ’brus bskyod. The latter reading has been followed here.
Tib. gang dag chos kyi mchog ’gyur ba/ rlabs chen gzungs kyi sgo rnams te/ gang zhig mdo ’di ’dzin de la/ thams cad rtag tu mngon du ’gyur. This translation is tentative.
“Attend upon them directly” renders the Tibetan lag pa de la nye bar ’jog pa (where lag pa literally means “hand(s)”). However, this translation is tentative. The Tibetan might be rendered more literally by “will be close at hand.”
This follows the reading in Toh 914 and Stok, which is ji ltar mdo sde bstan ’di la/ gzungs ni so sor nges pa bzhin. In Toh 140 and Toh 525, it reads ji ltar mdo sde ’dzin de la/ gzungs ’di so sor nges pa bzhin.
This verse renders the Tibetan sangs rgyas zhing ni rnam dag dang/ nyan thos phun sum tshogs pa dang/ ’od dang mtshan kyang rnam dag pa/ mdo sde ’dis ni byed par ’gyur. The referent of ’od dang mtshan is not entirely clear, and it might be that both the second and third lines qualify “buddhafields” just as “purity” in the first line does.
These three lines render the Tibetan bsam bya sems par mi bsam ste/ bsam bya min pa’ang mi bsam mo/ soms shig ’gal bar ma sems shig. This translation is tentative.
This renders the Tibetan sems can gang dag kha cig rtsod ’gyur ba/ de yi gzhi rtsa yongs su ’dzin pa ste. This translation is tentative.
This renders the Tibetan mtshan dang dpe byad bzang po dang/ mtshan dang dpe byad bzang po med par de bzhin gshegs pa’i chos kyi sku la ’jug pa khong du chud pa. This translation is tentative.
This follows the reading in Toh 140 and Toh 525, which is las kyi rnam par smin pa dang/ las kyi rnam par smin pa med pa. In Toh 914 and Stok, the reading is las dang rnam par smin pa dang/ las dang rnam par smin pa med pa (“actions and their ripening, and the lack of actions and their ripening”).
This follows the reading in Toh 914 and Stok, which is gzungs kyi chos kyi rnam grangs kyi stong pa nyid dang/ mtshan ma med pa dang/ smon pa med pa dang/ chos kyi dbyings la ’jug pa khong du chud pa. The reading in Toh 140 and Toh 515 is gzungs kyi chos kyi rnam grangs stong pa nyid dang/ mtshan ma med pa dang/ smon pa med pa dang/ chos kyi dbyings la ’jug pa khong du chud pa.
This is the reading in Toh 140, Toh 525, and Toh 914. The reading in Stok is “without disintegration” (’jig pa med pa).
Toh 914 and Stok read “Having heard the Dharma taught by nine hundred million buddhas he practiced it and retained all of it, and having practiced it…”
This renders the Tibetan tshig btsun pa, which is the reading in Toh 140 and Toh 525. In Toh 914 and Stok, the reading is tshig btsun pa dang gzungs su gzung ba’i tshig dang ldan pa. The Tibetan gzungs su gzung ba’i tshig might be rendered “whose speech is memorable/remembered,” in particular if this is a variant or corruption of gzungs su bzung ba’i tshig.
This is the reading in Toh 140 and Toh 525. In Toh 914, it reads tshig btsun pa gzung ba’i tshig dang ldan pa, and in Stok it reads tshig btsun pa bzung ba’i tshig dang ldan pa. The variant might be rendered “who speak honorably and who speak comprehensibly.”
This renders the Tibetan sngon tshe tshe rabs ’od zer mtha’ yas gyur (Toh 140 and Toh 525). In Toh 914 and Stok the reading is sngon gyi tshe rabs ’od zer mtha’ yas gyur. This reference is unclear, in particular since the name of the merchant’s son given above was Moon Crest.
Toh 140 and Toh 525 read gangs la gnas pa’i gnod sbyin brgyad po, which literally means “eight yakṣas who dwell in the snow.” If that is indeed the reading, presumably gangs (“snow”) is short for gangs ri, literally "snow mountains" and, in that case, is likely a reference to the Himalayas. There are no variants recorded in the Comparative Edition, and this also appears to be the reading in Stok. The Degé blockprint of Toh 914 also appears to read gangs, but the Comparative Edition version reads gang sa, which is the reading we have adopted here. It is possible – and perhaps even likely – that in the other recensions a scribal corruption crept in, since all it would take for gang sa to become gangs is for the tsheg to drop out.
This renders the Tibetan ’chag sar ’gro ba, but the translation is tentative. This might simply be “go for a walk,” or more literally “walk on the walking-path,” but this seems out of place in this context.
“Totally Exalting Bodhisattvas” renders the Tibetan byang chub sems dpa’ gcig tu nges par mngon par ’phags par byed pa.
Toh 914 reads ’phags pa sgo mtha’ yas pas sgrub pa’i gzungs zhes bya ba’i mdo rdzogs so (“This concludes The Sūtra ‘The Noble Dhāraṇī of Accomplishment by Means of the Boundless Gateways’”).
A bodhisattva present in the audience for this discourse.
The essentially pure nature of mind is obscured and afflicted by various psychological defilements, which destroy the mind’s peace and composure and lead to unwholesome deeds of body, speech, and mind, acting as causes for continued existence in saṃsāra. Included among them are the primary afflictions of desire (rāga), anger (dveṣa), and ignorance (avidyā). It is said that there are eighty-four thousand of these negative mental qualities, for which the eighty-four thousand categories of the Buddha’s teachings serve as the antidote.
The five aggregates that make up phenomenal existence are form, feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness. On the individual level the five aggregates refer to the basis onto which the mistaken idea of a self is projected.
A bodhisattva present in the audience for this discourse.
A bodhisattva present in the audience for this discourse.
A bodhisattva present in the audience for this discourse.
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.
One of a group of eight bodhisattvas.
One of the “eight close sons of the Buddha,” he is also known as the bodhisattva who embodies compassion. In certain tantras, he is also the lord of the three families, where he embodies the compassion of the buddhas. In Tibet, he attained great significance as a special protector of Tibet, and in China, in female form, as Guanyin, the most important bodhisattva in all of East Asia.
Yeshé Dé (late eighth to early ninth century) was the most prolific translator of sūtras into Tibetan. Altogether he is credited with the translation of more than one hundred sixty sūtra translations and more than one hundred additional translations, mostly on tantric topics. In spite of Yeshé Dé’s great importance for the propagation of Buddhism in Tibet during the imperial era, only a few biographical details about this figure are known. Later sources describe him as a student of the Indian teacher Padmasambhava, and he is also credited with teaching both sūtra and tantra widely to students of his own. He was also known as Nanam Yeshé Dé, from the Nanam (sna nam) clan.
A bodhisattva present in the audience for this discourse.
A pure realm manifested by a buddha in which beings may follow the path to awakening without fear of falling into lower realms. In many sources it is said to be brought to manifestation through a buddha or bodhisattva’s merit and aspiration.
A term for a general style and state of Buddhist meditation in which one focuses the mind and abides in a state of calm, as implied by the Tibetan translation of the term. Associated with the states of meditation, concentration, and absorption, and the achievement of supernormal faculties, as well as awakening itself. Often presented as part of a pair of meditation techniques, with the other technique being “deep insight” (Skt. vipaśyanā, Tib. lhag mthong).
The name of both a bodhisattva and a yakṣa in this sūtra.
In Buddhist cosmology, a universe that itself contains a thousand world systems, each made up of its own Mount Meru, four continents, sun, moon, and god realms.
The term dhāraṇī has the sense of something that “holds” or “retains,” and so it can refer to the special capacity of practitioners to memorize and recall detailed teachings. It can also refer to a verbal expression of the teachings—an incantation, spell, or mnemonic formula—that distills and “holds” essential points of the Dharma and is used by practitioners to attain mundane and supramundane goals. The same term is also used to denote texts that contain such formulas.
Speaker or reciter of scriptures. In early Buddhism a section of the saṅgha would consist of bhāṇakas, who, particularly before the teachings were written down and were only transmitted orally, were a key factor in the preservation of the teachings. Various groups of dharmabhāṇakas specialized in memorizing and reciting a certain set of sūtras or vinaya.
A synonym for emptiness, the ultimate reality, or the ultimate nature of things. This term is interpreted variously due to the many different meanings of dharma as element, phenomena, reality, truth, and/or the teaching.
A previous buddha who gave Śākyamuni the prophecy of his buddhahood. In depictions of the buddhas of the three times, he represents the buddhas of the past, while Śākyamuni represents the present, Maitreya the future.
A yakṣa.
In the context of Buddhist philosophy, one way to describe experience in terms of eighteen elements (eye, form, and eye consciousness; ear, sound, and ear consciousness; nose, smell, and nose consciousness; tongue, taste, and tongue consciousness; body, touch, and body consciousness; and mind, mental phenomena, and mind consciousness).
This also refers to the elements of the world, which can be enumerated as four, five, or six. The four elements are earth, water, fire, and air. A fifth, space, is often added, and the sixth is consciousness.
The Tibetan, like the Sanskrit, literally means “confidence” or “courage,” but in the Buddhist sūtras it refers specifically to inspired speech, to being perfectly eloquent in expressing the Dharma.
One of a group of eight bodhisattvas.
A cosmic period of time, sometimes equivalent to the time when a world system appears, exists, and disappears. According to the traditional Abhidharma understanding of cyclical time, a great eon (mahākalpa) is divided into eighty lesser eons. In the course of one great eon, the universe takes form and later disappears. During the first twenty of the lesser eons, the universe is in the process of creation and expansion; during the next twenty it remains; during the third twenty, it is in the process of destruction; and during the last quarter of the cycle, it remains in a state of empty stasis. A fortunate, or good, eon (bhadrakalpa) refers to any eon in which more than one buddha appears.
Morally virtuous or disciplined conduct and the abandonment of morally undisciplined conduct of body, speech, and mind. In a general sense, moral discipline is the cause for rebirth in higher, more favorable states, but it is also foundational to Buddhist practice as one of the three trainings (triśikṣā) and one of the six perfections of a bodhisattva. Often rendered as “ethics,” “discipline,” and “morality.”
A yakṣa.
One of a group of eight bodhisattvas.
A bodhisattva present in the audience for this discourse.
A bodhisattva present in the audience for this discourse.
Name of a previous buddha.
The great forest (mahāvana) was the location of Kūṭāgāraśālā, where the Buddha and his community often stayed when visiting the great city of Vaiśālī.
A yakṣa.
A name held by two figures in the sūtra: a bodhisattva present in the audience for this discourse and a yakṣa.
The name of the buddha Amitāyus in a previous life when he was the son of a king named Light Bearer who went forth and became a Dharma teacher.
A bodhisattva present in the audience for this discourse.
A bodhisattva present in the audience for this discourse.
A bodhisattva present in the audience for this discourse.
A bodhisattva present in the audience for this discourse.
An important early monastery outside the city of Vaiśālī where the Buddha often stayed. The name Kūṭāgāraśālā means “hall with an upper chamber.” It refers to a temple with one ground-floor room and at least one additional upper room within its structure.
Name of a wheel-turning monarch at the time of the buddha Gloriously Splendid Kinglike Jewel.
One of a group of eight bodhisattvas.
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.”
A bodhisattva great being. Along with Avalokiteśvara, he is one of the two main bodhisattvas in the realm of Sukhāvatī.
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).
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.
A bodhisattva present in the audience for this discourse.
The name of the buddha Dīpaṃkara in a previous life, when he was a merchant’s son.
sgo mtha’ yas pas sgrub pa zhes bya ba’i gzungs (Anantamukhasādhakanāmadhāraṇī). Toh 140, Degé Kangyur vol. 56 (mdo sde, na), folios 289.b–299.a.
sgo mtha’ yas pas bsgrub pa zhes bya ba’i gzungs (Anantamukhasādhakanāmadhāraṇī). Toh 525, Degé Kangyur vol. 88 (rgyud ’bum, na), folios 45.a–54.a.
sgo mtha’ yas pas sgrub pa zhes bya ba’i gzungs (Anantamukhasādhakanāmadhāraṇī). Toh 914, Degé Kangyur vol. 100 (gzungs ’dus, e), folios 244.b–254.b.
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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. 97, pp. 732–54.
sgo mtha’ yas pas sgrub pa zhes bya ba’i gzungs. Stok Palace Kangyur vol. 102 (rgyud, da), folios 47.a–60.a.
Herrmann-Pfandt, Adelheid. Die lHan kar ma: ein früher Katalog der ins Tibetische übersetzten buddhistischen Texte. Wien: Verlag der österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 2008.
Hoernle, A. F. Rudolf. Manuscript Remains of Buddhist Literature Found in Eastern Turkistan: Facsimiles with Transcripts, Translations and Notes. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1916.
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