The Questions of Brahmadatta begins with the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin departing from Jeta’s Grove in Śrāvastī, where the Buddha is residing. Together with more than five hundred bodhisattvas, he travels to the region of Pañcāla, where King Brahmadatta requests Amoghadarśin to impart teachings to him and his citizens. The bodhisattva discusses the attributes and correct practices of a king who is a protector of the Dharma. The king requests that the bodhisattva remain in his kingdom to observe the summer vows in retreat. Sixty wicked monks already residing there treat Amoghadarśin poorly, and after three months he leaves Pañcāla and returns to the Jeta’s Grove.
King Brahmadatta later goes to see the Buddha, who explains to the king how the wicked monks behaved and the negative consequences of such actions. The Buddha then goes on to explain what a monk and others who wish to attain awakening should strive for, namely, to rid themselves of pride, anger, and jealousy. Upon hearing these instructions, King Brahmadatta expels the sixty wicked monks from his kingdom. Many beings then generate the mind of awakening, and King Brahmadatta is irreversibly set on the path of complete awakening. The Buddha smiles and radiates multicolored lights throughout the whole world. Finally, the king apologizes to Amoghadarśin and the bodhisattva forgives him.
This sūtra was translated by Khenpo Konchok Tamphel of the Ratnaśrī Translation Group. The translation was edited and introduced by Casey Kemp.
The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.
The Questions of Brahmadatta begins with the Buddha residing in Jeta’s Grove, a park that had been offered to the Buddha and his monks by the wealthy lay disciple Anāthapiṇḍada. This park was located in Śrāvastī, one of the major cities in the ancient northern Indian kingdom of Kośala and a common setting for many Buddhist sūtras. Śrāvastī is said to be where the Buddha spent the majority of his rainy-season retreats, and many of his teachings were expounded there. While the Buddha is there with his disciples, the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin departs from Jeta’s Grove together with a large retinue. Monks at this time were encouraged not only to stay in retreat but also to travel from town to town in order to educate communities about the Dharma.1 Amoghadarśin and his retinue eventually arrive at the ancient kingdom of Pañcāla. Pañcāla is listed among the sixteen great states of India during the time of the Buddha and is situated in the northwestern region between Kurū and Kośala, two other well-known Indian kingdoms.2 According to The Questions of Brahmadatta, during the time of the Buddha, Pañcāla was ruled by a king named Brahmadatta. In early Buddhist canonical sources, Brahmadatta is a common name for kings and princes of various Indian kingdoms and capitals including Benares (present-day Varanasi) and Northern Pañcāla (Uttara Pañcāla).3
When King Brahmadatta hears of Amoghadarśin’s arrival in Pañcāla, he decides to meet him to pay his respects. The bodhisattva imparts teachings on the five attributes of an anointed king of royal descent who is on the path to awakening. These five qualities are (1) possessing faith, (2) longing for the Dharma, (3) believing in the Dharma’s profundity, (4) fully upholding the teachings, and (5) making an effort to completely uphold the supreme Dharma. Amoghadarśin goes on to clarify in verse a king’s essential role as a protector of the Dharma. The king expresses humility by replying that he has all the shortcomings and none of the good qualities mentioned, confessing that he has harmed and killed others. The king and his subjects then vow to generate the mind of awakening by following the bodhisattva path, and they ask the bodhisattva to remain in Pañcāla during the rainy season retreat.
Amoghadarśin and his retinue agree to stay, and King Brahmadatta acts as their patron by providing all their material needs. However, sixty degenerate monks are already residing there. They possess negative attributes such as jealousy, pride, and resentment and do not follow the rules of the Vinaya, the Buddhist monastic code. Since they do not like the presence of Amoghadarśin and his monks, they make rude remarks and spread rumors about Amoghadarśin. Additionally, a minister of King Brahmadatta causes a rift between Amoghadarśin and the wicked monks and between the bodhisattva and King Brahmadatta. Although there is only brief mention of the minister, the sūtra repeatedly refers to the negative effect that wicked monks can have on a lay community, stating that the monks “spread such remarks by visiting the homes of brahmins and householders with little faith, who, as a result of listening, would be born and live as denizens of the great hells for eight hundred million eons.”
After three months, Amoghadarśin leaves Pañcāla and returns to Jeta’s Grove, where the Buddha is residing. King Brahmadatta, hearing that Amoghadarśin had gone to the Buddha because the sixty degenerate monks had mistreated him, goes to see the Buddha. He tells the Buddha that he feels the bodhisattva had left too soon, whereupon the Buddha explains how the monks there had behaved. The Buddha then describes the causes for lacking effort, the characteristics of jealous people, and how to recognize those who have strayed from the path to awakening. The Buddha explains how to recognize degenerate monks and how other ordained individuals should treat such monks. He warns that the consequences of the increased number of wicked monks—that is, monks who do not follow the Vinaya correctly and do not have faith in the Dharma—could lead to the destruction of the Dharma. Throughout this sūtra, the Buddha encourages monks and those who wish to attain awakening to refrain from such negative behavior; he also alludes to a king’s responsibility to expel degenerate monks for the sake of the Dharma and the future lives of his own subjects. In accord with this advice, King Brahmadatta expels the sixty degenerate monks from his kingdom, and by doing so he becomes irreversibly set on the path to awakening. Finally, King Brahmadatta apologizes to Amoghadarśin and is forgiven.
There is to our knowledge no extant Sanskrit version of this sūtra, nor are there any translations into Chinese. According to the colophon to the Tibetan translation it was translated into Tibetan by the Indian preceptors Surendrabodhi and Prajñāvarman, along with the editor and translator Yeshé Dé. The text is also recorded in the Denkarma inventory of the Tibetan imperial translations, so it would have been translated from Sanskrit into Tibetan no later than the early ninth century, as the Denkarma is thought to have been compiled in 812
[F.10.b]Homage to all buddhas and bodhisattvas.
Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was residing in Śrāvastī, in Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍada’s park, together with a great assembly of two hundred fifty thousand monks and a large number of bodhisattva great beings. All of these were bodhisattvas who were versed in extraordinary knowledge, had acquired extraordinary knowledge along with dhāraṇī, samādhi, and unimpeded dhāraṇī, and were skilled in the dhāraṇīs that accomplish the seal of infinite gateways.6 They dwelled in emptiness, they had the experience of signlessness, and they had aspirations that were not imputed. They all had reached the acceptance that phenomena are unarisen.
Then, the bodhisattva[F.11.a] Amoghadarśin, together with about five hundred bodhisattvas, prostrated at the feet of the Blessed One, circumambulated him, and departed. After traveling through several towns, they finally arrived in the region of Pañcāla. When King Brahmadatta learned of the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin’s arrival in his land, he felt pleased and happy, and he rejoiced. Overjoyed and content, he led a large following of people to the place where the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin was staying. When he arrived there, he prostrated by touching his head to the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin’s feet, then sat to one side. His many followers also prostrated by touching their heads to the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin’s feet, then sat to one side.
When he saw that King Brahmadatta and his assembled retinue and attendants were present, the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin said to him, “Great King, an anointed king of royal descent who possesses five attributes will continuously progress while traversing saṃsāra and will never take birth in unfavorable states.7 He will also meet and please thus-gone ones. When the blessed buddhas teach the Dharma, he will also master their allegorical speech. He will maintain uninterrupted mindfulness, look attractive, and not lack any sense faculty. The blessed buddhas will also speak to him with words of absolute truth; that is to say, they will demonstrate the four truths.
“What are these five attributes?
“Great King, an anointed king of royal descent possesses faith. He possesses a mind that is strong in faith and is without animosity. His faith is also demonstrated to be rooted in certainty.[F.11.b] His faith should furthermore be observed in ten ways. What are these ten? They are as follows: (1) He gives without deceit. (2) He gives away all possessions completely. (3) He has no excessive pride. (4) He has exceptional clarity. (5) He does not apprehend any fault in the teachings of the noble ones. (6) He does not investigate the best, intermediate, or lesser monks for mistakes. (7) He believes in emptiness. (8) His physical actions are pure. (9) His verbal actions are pure. (10) His mental activity is pure.
“Great King, one of royal descent who possesses this first attribute and is an anointed king accomplishes these qualities just mentioned.
“Moreover, Great King, an anointed king of royal descent longs for the Dharma. He always yearns to behold the noble ones, and he insatiably seeks to hear the Dharma. Using his mind he carefully investigates the many things he has learned, and then fully realizes them through experience. Great King, a king should be understood to be endowed with the Dharma if he has ten qualities. What are these ten? They are as follows: (1) He is without concern for his body or life in his quest for the Dharma. (2) He possesses a mindset that is weary of saṃsāra. (3) He thinks that a householder’s life entails too many faults. (4) He has a mindset that is not concerned with material things. (5) He is critical toward the negative actions that stem from his previous karma, and he does not create future formations. (6) He possesses a mindset that discriminates between all that is attractive and all that is repulsive. (7) Mastering his intent, he perfects the conduct of a bodhisattva and does not privilege words. (8) He is steadfast in his commitments because he seeks wisdom. (9) He fosters awakening in his servants and retinue and completely matures them[F.12.a] continuously with the gift of the Dharma. (10) He also fulfills their material needs.
“Great King, one of royal descent who possesses this second attribute and is an anointed king accomplishes these qualities just mentioned.
“Moreover, Great King, an anointed king of royal descent believes in accepting the profound Dharma and accomplishes the samādhi of emptiness. His interest in the profundity of the Dharma should also be understood in ten ways. What are these ten? They are as follows: (1) His actions accord with his words. (2) He completes all his virtuous Dharma activities with very strong devotion and rids himself of the formations of unpleasant actions. (3) He creates pleasing formations. (4) He does not unjustly suppress individuals who possess power and riches. (5) He provides others with pleasing gifts and eliminates all that is not pleasant. (6) Thinking that all phenomena are empty, he cultivates renunciation. (7) His view is free of contrivance, thus he neither believes in the singularity of the limit of reality nor holds concepts of its multiplicity. (8) He does not use his own qualities to belittle the qualities of others. (9) He does not form definite judgments. (10) He brings those who do not practice into alignment with the inconceivable realm of phenomena.
“Great King, one of royal descent who possesses this third attribute and is an anointed king accomplishes these qualities just mentioned.
“Moreover, Great King, when an anointed king of royal descent clearly perceives the contamination that comes from the harm of living in this world, he upholds the teachings for the sake of accomplishing unsurpassed, complete, and perfect awakening. He perseveres[F.12.b] in generating the power of the six perfections and never tires of fully maturing sentient beings. Furthermore, the ways in which he upholds the teachings should be understood in ten ways. What are these ten? They are as follows: (1) He perseveres in attaining samādhi that is unimpeded by the eight worldly concerns. (2) He perseveres in seeking out the dhāraṇīs. (3) He is skilled in ascertaining so that he completely apprehends the supreme Dharma. (4) He never tires of providing various necessities to those who persevere, including clothes, food, bedding, cushions, and medicines to cure sickness. (5) He strives to encourage awakening. (6) He thinks excellent thoughts, speaks excellent words, and performs excellent deeds. (7) He is inclined towards renunciation. (8) He thinks that it is a mistake to delight in being a king. (9) He possesses a mindset that has no concern for any beautiful or pleasant forms. (10) At the very least he does not think that anything is accomplished by only craving kingship.
“Great King, one of royal descent who possesses this fourth attribute and is an anointed king accomplishes these qualities just mentioned.
“Moreover, Great King, an anointed king of royal descent follows the Dharma in guarding, protecting, and shielding those who uphold, read, and teach unsurpassed, complete, and perfect awakening, which one fully accomplishes in a hundred billion trillion incalculable eons. He likewise punishes beings who are harmful to such individuals in order to completely protect the enjoyment of this resource of Dharma. His effort to completely uphold the supreme Dharma[F.13.a] should also be understood in ten ways. What are these ten? They are as follows: (1) He accomplishes it completely. (2) He regards it as absolutely invaluable. (3) He believes in the Dharma. (4) He always acts without confusion. (5) He desires wisdom and has trust in distinctions of enlightened qualities. (6) He acts as a messenger of the Thus-Gone One. (7) He is a suitable vessel for buddhahood. (8) He holds together the lineage of the Three Jewels. (9) He causes the supreme Dharma to blaze brightly. (10) He completely matures many people.
“Great King, one of royal descent who possesses this fifth attribute and is an anointed king accomplishes these qualities just mentioned.”
After this, the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin recited the following verses:
Thereafter, King Brahmadatta said the following to the bodhisattva great being Amoghadarśin: “Amoghadarśin, apparently I have all of the shortcomings[F.14.b] but none of the good qualities. Amoghadarśin, I am contaminated with harmful pollutants. Amoghadarśin, I am strongly addicted to unjust actions. I always intensely seek out wealth and gather attendants. Consequently, my thoughts arise due to a malevolent attitude that I am incapable of removing. Besides that, I have also thrashed others with sticks and struck them with weapons. Therefore, Amoghadarśin, I did not generate the mind of awakening. I generated a malevolent attitude toward others, even in my dreams. Amoghadarśin, I shall now generate with a sincere attitude the unsurpassed, complete, and perfect mind of awakening. Amoghadarśin, if I do not train in the precepts of bodhisattvas as they are delineated, it will amount to deceiving all the blessed buddhas who dwell in the world systems of the ten directions. In order to fully accomplish unsurpassed, complete, and perfect awakening, I shall act exactly as you have spoken.”
Thereafter eighty thousand beings, following after King Brahmadatta, generated the unsurpassed, complete, and perfect mind of awakening for the first time, and they also prayed to achieve the conduct of a bodhisattva as it was expounded. Twenty thousand beings acquired the pure eye of Dharma that is flawless and without defilements with respect to all phenomena.
Then, King Brahmadatta said the following to the bodhisattva great being Amoghadarśin: “Amoghadarśin, out of your love for me and for the benefit of the people gathered here, please consent to remain here at my place to observe the summer retreat.
“Amoghadarśin, we may not meet the conditions of being a vessel,[F.15.a] we may not meet the conditions of having the scope of experience, and we may not be people of equal status to the fortunate ones. Also, since we do not see the Thus-Gone One or listen to the Dharma continuously, our accumulation of the roots of virtue may not be so large, and we may not have matured many sentient beings. Nevertheless, your presence will benefit us.”
Then, the bodhisattva great being Amoghadarśin, along with some five hundred other bodhisattvas, accepted King Brahmadatta’s request out of love for him. King Brahmadatta prepared a variety of bedding, cushions, mats, clothing, and food for the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin and his retinue of five hundred bodhisattvas. He also made various Dharma offerings to the bodhisattva great being Amoghadarśin.
At that time, there were sixty monks staying in that place. All of them were lazy, limited in their studies, full of hostile intent, and resentful when others received offerings. They claimed to be bodhisattvas themselves, but were coarse, crude bodhisattvas. They indulged their senses; they were wild, proud, and vain; they talked nonsense and were deceitful like crows. They had no regard for their next lives and no fear of karma; they enjoyed foolish talk, slept excessively, and had desire for what is not the Dharma. Their physical, verbal, and mental actions were without any restraint; they were argumentative, resented those with ethical discipline, and took no interest at all in the knowledge of others.
They did not even like to see the teacher, let alone fellow practitioners of pure conduct. Thus, they denigrated the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin in a manner that was not in accord with the Dharma.[F.15.b] Moreover, they spread such remarks by visiting the homes of brahmins and householders with little faith, who, as a result of listening, would be born and live as denizens of the great hells for eight hundred million eons. The bodhisattva Amoghadarśin did not tell this to King Brahmadatta because of his compassion for those sentient beings.
At that time, King Brahmadatta had a court priest, a brahmin named Thorough Obscurer. He caused a rift between the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin and the monks who were there, and he made rude remarks that were at odds with the Dharma. He also secretly caused a rift between King Brahmadatta and the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin. He furthermore discouraged all those who had developed extraordinary joy in the Dharma and used every possible means to plant disdain for the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin in their minds. Even when he participated in Dharma discussions, he spoke in opposition to the Dharma, thereby carrying out by every means the activities of the crude bodhisattvas.
In this regard, bodhisattvas are crude when they possess four attributes. What are these four? They are as follows: (1) They are deceitful like a crow, talk nonsense, and do not accommodate other perspectives. (2) They praise themselves and criticizes others. (3) They are obsessed with this life and have negative thoughts. (4) They aggressively sow discord. Bodhisattvas are crude when they possess these four attributes.
The bodhisattva Amoghadarśin completed the summer retreat there in both comfort and suffering, and with happiness and sadness. Why was this so? Well, someone who dwells with a lazy person tends to suffer. Thus, the bodhisattva great being Amoghadarśin observed the summer retreat, and after the three months had passed, he[F.16.a] made and completed a Dharma robe. He then left, carrying his alms bowl and Dharma robe. After passing through several kingdoms, he finally arrived at Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍada’s park, in Śrāvastī, where the Blessed One was residing. Arriving there, he touched the Blessed One’s feet with his head to pay homage and sat to one side.
King Brahmadatta later heard the news that the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin had gone directly to the Blessed One because the resident monks had mistreated him. King Brahmadatta, along with ten thousand others, thus left the region of Pañcāla for Kośala where the Blessed One was residing. Arriving there, he touched the Blessed One’s feet with his head to pay homage and sat to one side. After he sat down, King Brahmadatta said to the Blessed One, “Blessed One, the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin left my country too soon.”
The Blessed One replied, “Great King, the Thus-Gone One and the hearers of the Thus-Gone One do not share a dwelling with individuals who are jealous, make no effort whatsoever, are fond of gossip, engage in excessive foolish talk, are very poorly behaved, and do not practice. Great King, know that there are ten causes for a person's lack of effort. What are these ten? They are as follows: (1) sleeping excessively, (2) cultivating the blatant pride of thinking oneself wise, (3) praising oneself, (4) criticizing others, (5) being fond of foolish talk, (6) being fond of gossip, (7) being fond of crowds, (8) clinging strongly to wealth, (9) clinging strongly to respect, and (10) being a hypocrite.
“Great King, an individual who possesses these ten causes[F.16.b] is known as one who lacks effort.”
Then the Blessed One spoke the following verses:
“Great King, recognize the following sixteen things as characteristics of jealous people. What are these sixteen? They are as follows: (1) being deceitful like a crow, (2) talking foolishly, (3) lacking self-control, (4) being pleased when others are denounced, (5) doubting the qualities of others, (6) thinking excessively, (7) being excessively sorrowful, (8) possessing extreme mental discomfort, (9) being envious, (10) possessing a decrepit figure and complexion, (11) being overwhelmed with pride, (12) disliking monks, (13) being rude toward unexpected visitors, (14) looking for mistakes to start an argument, (15) being stingy regarding one’s residence, and (16) not attending teachings, not listening with attention but having a distracted mind, spreading rumors, and saying with contempt for the Dharma, ‘I don’t understand what was said. It is a foolish, mundane, and conventional Dharma being taught.’
“These people, who have no respect for the Vinaya and Dharma that was realized by the noble ones, are ignorant fools.
“Saying, ‘I shall attain awakening; only then shall I sit under the Bodhi tree and be respectful toward the Dharma,’ they stand outside the door and listen even when the Dharma is being taught to the monks. They think, ‘I am not willing to sit down. But, since it provides the monks with their livelihood, I will listen when there is a talk on the eight branches of awakening.9 If I listen to this, my illness will be dispelled.’[F.17.b] Thus these foolish people who chase after awakening by yearning for what is not the Dharma are like people who pluck out their eyes and then want to see. They are like those wishing to satisfy many guests after getting rid of all their wealth. They are like those wishing to follow a path after cutting off their legs. Great King, this is how these foolish people with such wishes think about awakening.
“Great King, someone who has fallen away from awakening should be understood as having the following twenty-five attributes. What are the twenty-five? They are as follows: (1) being stingy regarding their residence; (2) being stingy regarding their household; (3) being stingy with their praise; (4) being jealous; (5) having no faith; (6) being shameless; (7) being immodest; (8) being malicious; (9) being deceptive; (10) being harmful toward others; (11) behaving in a way that is self-absorbed; (12) being hypocritical; (13) being vengeful; (14) excessively accumulating wealth; (15) misinterpreting and exaggerating the teachings of the Thus-Gone One out of fear and thus (16) abandoning the Dharma; (17) not asking any questions because of excessive pride; (18) lacking remorse, even after betraying the Dharma; (19) being dislikable and having many enemies; (20) after joining the assembly, exposing someone’s faults immediately upon seeing them in an attempt to reverse others’ fondness for them; (21) scorning those who have trust in secret topics; (22) disparaging monks whether one has previously seen them or not, thinking that no one should like them; (23) disparaging in order to harm; (24) forsaking others in order to disparage them; and (25) guarding their ethical discipline motivated by the thought that failing to keep the fully ordained monk’s vows would not bring as much profit.
“Great King, such individuals will seriously drift from the teachings,[F.18.a] or they will become householders.”
Then the Blessed One spoke the following verses:
The Questions of Brahmadatta begins with the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin departing from Jeta’s Grove in Śrāvastī, where the Buddha is residing. Together with more than five hundred bodhisattvas, he travels to the region of Pañcāla, where King Brahmadatta requests Amoghadarśin to impart teachings to him and his citizens. The bodhisattva discusses the attributes and correct practices of a king who is a protector of the Dharma. The king requests that the bodhisattva remain in his kingdom to observe the summer vows in retreat. Sixty wicked monks already residing there treat Amoghadarśin poorly, and after three months he leaves Pañcāla and returns to the Jeta’s Grove.
King Brahmadatta later goes to see the Buddha, who explains to the king how the wicked monks behaved and the negative consequences of such actions. The Buddha then goes on to explain what a monk and others who wish to attain awakening should strive for, namely, to rid themselves of pride, anger, and jealousy. Upon hearing these instructions, King Brahmadatta expels the sixty wicked monks from his kingdom. Many beings then generate the mind of awakening, and King Brahmadatta is irreversibly set on the path of complete awakening. The Buddha smiles and radiates multicolored lights throughout the whole world. Finally, the king apologizes to Amoghadarśin and the bodhisattva forgives him.
This sūtra was translated by Khenpo Konchok Tamphel of the Ratnaśrī Translation Group. The translation was edited and introduced by Casey Kemp.
The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.
The Questions of Brahmadatta begins with the Buddha residing in Jeta’s Grove, a park that had been offered to the Buddha and his monks by the wealthy lay disciple Anāthapiṇḍada. This park was located in Śrāvastī, one of the major cities in the ancient northern Indian kingdom of Kośala and a common setting for many Buddhist sūtras. Śrāvastī is said to be where the Buddha spent the majority of his rainy-season retreats, and many of his teachings were expounded there. While the Buddha is there with his disciples, the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin departs from Jeta’s Grove together with a large retinue. Monks at this time were encouraged not only to stay in retreat but also to travel from town to town in order to educate communities about the Dharma.1 Amoghadarśin and his retinue eventually arrive at the ancient kingdom of Pañcāla. Pañcāla is listed among the sixteen great states of India during the time of the Buddha and is situated in the northwestern region between Kurū and Kośala, two other well-known Indian kingdoms.2 According to The Questions of Brahmadatta, during the time of the Buddha, Pañcāla was ruled by a king named Brahmadatta. In early Buddhist canonical sources, Brahmadatta is a common name for kings and princes of various Indian kingdoms and capitals including Benares (present-day Varanasi) and Northern Pañcāla (Uttara Pañcāla).3
When King Brahmadatta hears of Amoghadarśin’s arrival in Pañcāla, he decides to meet him to pay his respects. The bodhisattva imparts teachings on the five attributes of an anointed king of royal descent who is on the path to awakening. These five qualities are (1) possessing faith, (2) longing for the Dharma, (3) believing in the Dharma’s profundity, (4) fully upholding the teachings, and (5) making an effort to completely uphold the supreme Dharma. Amoghadarśin goes on to clarify in verse a king’s essential role as a protector of the Dharma. The king expresses humility by replying that he has all the shortcomings and none of the good qualities mentioned, confessing that he has harmed and killed others. The king and his subjects then vow to generate the mind of awakening by following the bodhisattva path, and they ask the bodhisattva to remain in Pañcāla during the rainy season retreat.
Amoghadarśin and his retinue agree to stay, and King Brahmadatta acts as their patron by providing all their material needs. However, sixty degenerate monks are already residing there. They possess negative attributes such as jealousy, pride, and resentment and do not follow the rules of the Vinaya, the Buddhist monastic code. Since they do not like the presence of Amoghadarśin and his monks, they make rude remarks and spread rumors about Amoghadarśin. Additionally, a minister of King Brahmadatta causes a rift between Amoghadarśin and the wicked monks and between the bodhisattva and King Brahmadatta. Although there is only brief mention of the minister, the sūtra repeatedly refers to the negative effect that wicked monks can have on a lay community, stating that the monks “spread such remarks by visiting the homes of brahmins and householders with little faith, who, as a result of listening, would be born and live as denizens of the great hells for eight hundred million eons.”
After three months, Amoghadarśin leaves Pañcāla and returns to Jeta’s Grove, where the Buddha is residing. King Brahmadatta, hearing that Amoghadarśin had gone to the Buddha because the sixty degenerate monks had mistreated him, goes to see the Buddha. He tells the Buddha that he feels the bodhisattva had left too soon, whereupon the Buddha explains how the monks there had behaved. The Buddha then describes the causes for lacking effort, the characteristics of jealous people, and how to recognize those who have strayed from the path to awakening. The Buddha explains how to recognize degenerate monks and how other ordained individuals should treat such monks. He warns that the consequences of the increased number of wicked monks—that is, monks who do not follow the Vinaya correctly and do not have faith in the Dharma—could lead to the destruction of the Dharma. Throughout this sūtra, the Buddha encourages monks and those who wish to attain awakening to refrain from such negative behavior; he also alludes to a king’s responsibility to expel degenerate monks for the sake of the Dharma and the future lives of his own subjects. In accord with this advice, King Brahmadatta expels the sixty degenerate monks from his kingdom, and by doing so he becomes irreversibly set on the path to awakening. Finally, King Brahmadatta apologizes to Amoghadarśin and is forgiven.
There is to our knowledge no extant Sanskrit version of this sūtra, nor are there any translations into Chinese. According to the colophon to the Tibetan translation it was translated into Tibetan by the Indian preceptors Surendrabodhi and Prajñāvarman, along with the editor and translator Yeshé Dé. The text is also recorded in the Denkarma inventory of the Tibetan imperial translations, so it would have been translated from Sanskrit into Tibetan no later than the early ninth century, as the Denkarma is thought to have been compiled in 812
[F.10.b]Homage to all buddhas and bodhisattvas.
Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was residing in Śrāvastī, in Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍada’s park, together with a great assembly of two hundred fifty thousand monks and a large number of bodhisattva great beings. All of these were bodhisattvas who were versed in extraordinary knowledge, had acquired extraordinary knowledge along with dhāraṇī, samādhi, and unimpeded dhāraṇī, and were skilled in the dhāraṇīs that accomplish the seal of infinite gateways.6 They dwelled in emptiness, they had the experience of signlessness, and they had aspirations that were not imputed. They all had reached the acceptance that phenomena are unarisen.
Then, the bodhisattva[F.11.a] Amoghadarśin, together with about five hundred bodhisattvas, prostrated at the feet of the Blessed One, circumambulated him, and departed. After traveling through several towns, they finally arrived in the region of Pañcāla. When King Brahmadatta learned of the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin’s arrival in his land, he felt pleased and happy, and he rejoiced. Overjoyed and content, he led a large following of people to the place where the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin was staying. When he arrived there, he prostrated by touching his head to the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin’s feet, then sat to one side. His many followers also prostrated by touching their heads to the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin’s feet, then sat to one side.
When he saw that King Brahmadatta and his assembled retinue and attendants were present, the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin said to him, “Great King, an anointed king of royal descent who possesses five attributes will continuously progress while traversing saṃsāra and will never take birth in unfavorable states.7 He will also meet and please thus-gone ones. When the blessed buddhas teach the Dharma, he will also master their allegorical speech. He will maintain uninterrupted mindfulness, look attractive, and not lack any sense faculty. The blessed buddhas will also speak to him with words of absolute truth; that is to say, they will demonstrate the four truths.
“What are these five attributes?
“Great King, an anointed king of royal descent possesses faith. He possesses a mind that is strong in faith and is without animosity. His faith is also demonstrated to be rooted in certainty.[F.11.b] His faith should furthermore be observed in ten ways. What are these ten? They are as follows: (1) He gives without deceit. (2) He gives away all possessions completely. (3) He has no excessive pride. (4) He has exceptional clarity. (5) He does not apprehend any fault in the teachings of the noble ones. (6) He does not investigate the best, intermediate, or lesser monks for mistakes. (7) He believes in emptiness. (8) His physical actions are pure. (9) His verbal actions are pure. (10) His mental activity is pure.
“Great King, one of royal descent who possesses this first attribute and is an anointed king accomplishes these qualities just mentioned.
“Moreover, Great King, an anointed king of royal descent longs for the Dharma. He always yearns to behold the noble ones, and he insatiably seeks to hear the Dharma. Using his mind he carefully investigates the many things he has learned, and then fully realizes them through experience. Great King, a king should be understood to be endowed with the Dharma if he has ten qualities. What are these ten? They are as follows: (1) He is without concern for his body or life in his quest for the Dharma. (2) He possesses a mindset that is weary of saṃsāra. (3) He thinks that a householder’s life entails too many faults. (4) He has a mindset that is not concerned with material things. (5) He is critical toward the negative actions that stem from his previous karma, and he does not create future formations. (6) He possesses a mindset that discriminates between all that is attractive and all that is repulsive. (7) Mastering his intent, he perfects the conduct of a bodhisattva and does not privilege words. (8) He is steadfast in his commitments because he seeks wisdom. (9) He fosters awakening in his servants and retinue and completely matures them[F.12.a] continuously with the gift of the Dharma. (10) He also fulfills their material needs.
“Great King, one of royal descent who possesses this second attribute and is an anointed king accomplishes these qualities just mentioned.
“Moreover, Great King, an anointed king of royal descent believes in accepting the profound Dharma and accomplishes the samādhi of emptiness. His interest in the profundity of the Dharma should also be understood in ten ways. What are these ten? They are as follows: (1) His actions accord with his words. (2) He completes all his virtuous Dharma activities with very strong devotion and rids himself of the formations of unpleasant actions. (3) He creates pleasing formations. (4) He does not unjustly suppress individuals who possess power and riches. (5) He provides others with pleasing gifts and eliminates all that is not pleasant. (6) Thinking that all phenomena are empty, he cultivates renunciation. (7) His view is free of contrivance, thus he neither believes in the singularity of the limit of reality nor holds concepts of its multiplicity. (8) He does not use his own qualities to belittle the qualities of others. (9) He does not form definite judgments. (10) He brings those who do not practice into alignment with the inconceivable realm of phenomena.
“Great King, one of royal descent who possesses this third attribute and is an anointed king accomplishes these qualities just mentioned.
“Moreover, Great King, when an anointed king of royal descent clearly perceives the contamination that comes from the harm of living in this world, he upholds the teachings for the sake of accomplishing unsurpassed, complete, and perfect awakening. He perseveres[F.12.b] in generating the power of the six perfections and never tires of fully maturing sentient beings. Furthermore, the ways in which he upholds the teachings should be understood in ten ways. What are these ten? They are as follows: (1) He perseveres in attaining samādhi that is unimpeded by the eight worldly concerns. (2) He perseveres in seeking out the dhāraṇīs. (3) He is skilled in ascertaining so that he completely apprehends the supreme Dharma. (4) He never tires of providing various necessities to those who persevere, including clothes, food, bedding, cushions, and medicines to cure sickness. (5) He strives to encourage awakening. (6) He thinks excellent thoughts, speaks excellent words, and performs excellent deeds. (7) He is inclined towards renunciation. (8) He thinks that it is a mistake to delight in being a king. (9) He possesses a mindset that has no concern for any beautiful or pleasant forms. (10) At the very least he does not think that anything is accomplished by only craving kingship.
“Great King, one of royal descent who possesses this fourth attribute and is an anointed king accomplishes these qualities just mentioned.
“Moreover, Great King, an anointed king of royal descent follows the Dharma in guarding, protecting, and shielding those who uphold, read, and teach unsurpassed, complete, and perfect awakening, which one fully accomplishes in a hundred billion trillion incalculable eons. He likewise punishes beings who are harmful to such individuals in order to completely protect the enjoyment of this resource of Dharma. His effort to completely uphold the supreme Dharma[F.13.a] should also be understood in ten ways. What are these ten? They are as follows: (1) He accomplishes it completely. (2) He regards it as absolutely invaluable. (3) He believes in the Dharma. (4) He always acts without confusion. (5) He desires wisdom and has trust in distinctions of enlightened qualities. (6) He acts as a messenger of the Thus-Gone One. (7) He is a suitable vessel for buddhahood. (8) He holds together the lineage of the Three Jewels. (9) He causes the supreme Dharma to blaze brightly. (10) He completely matures many people.
“Great King, one of royal descent who possesses this fifth attribute and is an anointed king accomplishes these qualities just mentioned.”
After this, the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin recited the following verses:
Thereafter, King Brahmadatta said the following to the bodhisattva great being Amoghadarśin: “Amoghadarśin, apparently I have all of the shortcomings[F.14.b] but none of the good qualities. Amoghadarśin, I am contaminated with harmful pollutants. Amoghadarśin, I am strongly addicted to unjust actions. I always intensely seek out wealth and gather attendants. Consequently, my thoughts arise due to a malevolent attitude that I am incapable of removing. Besides that, I have also thrashed others with sticks and struck them with weapons. Therefore, Amoghadarśin, I did not generate the mind of awakening. I generated a malevolent attitude toward others, even in my dreams. Amoghadarśin, I shall now generate with a sincere attitude the unsurpassed, complete, and perfect mind of awakening. Amoghadarśin, if I do not train in the precepts of bodhisattvas as they are delineated, it will amount to deceiving all the blessed buddhas who dwell in the world systems of the ten directions. In order to fully accomplish unsurpassed, complete, and perfect awakening, I shall act exactly as you have spoken.”
Thereafter eighty thousand beings, following after King Brahmadatta, generated the unsurpassed, complete, and perfect mind of awakening for the first time, and they also prayed to achieve the conduct of a bodhisattva as it was expounded. Twenty thousand beings acquired the pure eye of Dharma that is flawless and without defilements with respect to all phenomena.
Then, King Brahmadatta said the following to the bodhisattva great being Amoghadarśin: “Amoghadarśin, out of your love for me and for the benefit of the people gathered here, please consent to remain here at my place to observe the summer retreat.
“Amoghadarśin, we may not meet the conditions of being a vessel,[F.15.a] we may not meet the conditions of having the scope of experience, and we may not be people of equal status to the fortunate ones. Also, since we do not see the Thus-Gone One or listen to the Dharma continuously, our accumulation of the roots of virtue may not be so large, and we may not have matured many sentient beings. Nevertheless, your presence will benefit us.”
Then, the bodhisattva great being Amoghadarśin, along with some five hundred other bodhisattvas, accepted King Brahmadatta’s request out of love for him. King Brahmadatta prepared a variety of bedding, cushions, mats, clothing, and food for the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin and his retinue of five hundred bodhisattvas. He also made various Dharma offerings to the bodhisattva great being Amoghadarśin.
At that time, there were sixty monks staying in that place. All of them were lazy, limited in their studies, full of hostile intent, and resentful when others received offerings. They claimed to be bodhisattvas themselves, but were coarse, crude bodhisattvas. They indulged their senses; they were wild, proud, and vain; they talked nonsense and were deceitful like crows. They had no regard for their next lives and no fear of karma; they enjoyed foolish talk, slept excessively, and had desire for what is not the Dharma. Their physical, verbal, and mental actions were without any restraint; they were argumentative, resented those with ethical discipline, and took no interest at all in the knowledge of others.
They did not even like to see the teacher, let alone fellow practitioners of pure conduct. Thus, they denigrated the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin in a manner that was not in accord with the Dharma.[F.15.b] Moreover, they spread such remarks by visiting the homes of brahmins and householders with little faith, who, as a result of listening, would be born and live as denizens of the great hells for eight hundred million eons. The bodhisattva Amoghadarśin did not tell this to King Brahmadatta because of his compassion for those sentient beings.
At that time, King Brahmadatta had a court priest, a brahmin named Thorough Obscurer. He caused a rift between the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin and the monks who were there, and he made rude remarks that were at odds with the Dharma. He also secretly caused a rift between King Brahmadatta and the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin. He furthermore discouraged all those who had developed extraordinary joy in the Dharma and used every possible means to plant disdain for the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin in their minds. Even when he participated in Dharma discussions, he spoke in opposition to the Dharma, thereby carrying out by every means the activities of the crude bodhisattvas.
In this regard, bodhisattvas are crude when they possess four attributes. What are these four? They are as follows: (1) They are deceitful like a crow, talk nonsense, and do not accommodate other perspectives. (2) They praise themselves and criticizes others. (3) They are obsessed with this life and have negative thoughts. (4) They aggressively sow discord. Bodhisattvas are crude when they possess these four attributes.
The bodhisattva Amoghadarśin completed the summer retreat there in both comfort and suffering, and with happiness and sadness. Why was this so? Well, someone who dwells with a lazy person tends to suffer. Thus, the bodhisattva great being Amoghadarśin observed the summer retreat, and after the three months had passed, he[F.16.a] made and completed a Dharma robe. He then left, carrying his alms bowl and Dharma robe. After passing through several kingdoms, he finally arrived at Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍada’s park, in Śrāvastī, where the Blessed One was residing. Arriving there, he touched the Blessed One’s feet with his head to pay homage and sat to one side.
King Brahmadatta later heard the news that the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin had gone directly to the Blessed One because the resident monks had mistreated him. King Brahmadatta, along with ten thousand others, thus left the region of Pañcāla for Kośala where the Blessed One was residing. Arriving there, he touched the Blessed One’s feet with his head to pay homage and sat to one side. After he sat down, King Brahmadatta said to the Blessed One, “Blessed One, the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin left my country too soon.”
The Blessed One replied, “Great King, the Thus-Gone One and the hearers of the Thus-Gone One do not share a dwelling with individuals who are jealous, make no effort whatsoever, are fond of gossip, engage in excessive foolish talk, are very poorly behaved, and do not practice. Great King, know that there are ten causes for a person's lack of effort. What are these ten? They are as follows: (1) sleeping excessively, (2) cultivating the blatant pride of thinking oneself wise, (3) praising oneself, (4) criticizing others, (5) being fond of foolish talk, (6) being fond of gossip, (7) being fond of crowds, (8) clinging strongly to wealth, (9) clinging strongly to respect, and (10) being a hypocrite.
“Great King, an individual who possesses these ten causes[F.16.b] is known as one who lacks effort.”
Then the Blessed One spoke the following verses:
“Great King, recognize the following sixteen things as characteristics of jealous people. What are these sixteen? They are as follows: (1) being deceitful like a crow, (2) talking foolishly, (3) lacking self-control, (4) being pleased when others are denounced, (5) doubting the qualities of others, (6) thinking excessively, (7) being excessively sorrowful, (8) possessing extreme mental discomfort, (9) being envious, (10) possessing a decrepit figure and complexion, (11) being overwhelmed with pride, (12) disliking monks, (13) being rude toward unexpected visitors, (14) looking for mistakes to start an argument, (15) being stingy regarding one’s residence, and (16) not attending teachings, not listening with attention but having a distracted mind, spreading rumors, and saying with contempt for the Dharma, ‘I don’t understand what was said. It is a foolish, mundane, and conventional Dharma being taught.’
“These people, who have no respect for the Vinaya and Dharma that was realized by the noble ones, are ignorant fools.
“Saying, ‘I shall attain awakening; only then shall I sit under the Bodhi tree and be respectful toward the Dharma,’ they stand outside the door and listen even when the Dharma is being taught to the monks. They think, ‘I am not willing to sit down. But, since it provides the monks with their livelihood, I will listen when there is a talk on the eight branches of awakening.9 If I listen to this, my illness will be dispelled.’[F.17.b] Thus these foolish people who chase after awakening by yearning for what is not the Dharma are like people who pluck out their eyes and then want to see. They are like those wishing to satisfy many guests after getting rid of all their wealth. They are like those wishing to follow a path after cutting off their legs. Great King, this is how these foolish people with such wishes think about awakening.
“Great King, someone who has fallen away from awakening should be understood as having the following twenty-five attributes. What are the twenty-five? They are as follows: (1) being stingy regarding their residence; (2) being stingy regarding their household; (3) being stingy with their praise; (4) being jealous; (5) having no faith; (6) being shameless; (7) being immodest; (8) being malicious; (9) being deceptive; (10) being harmful toward others; (11) behaving in a way that is self-absorbed; (12) being hypocritical; (13) being vengeful; (14) excessively accumulating wealth; (15) misinterpreting and exaggerating the teachings of the Thus-Gone One out of fear and thus (16) abandoning the Dharma; (17) not asking any questions because of excessive pride; (18) lacking remorse, even after betraying the Dharma; (19) being dislikable and having many enemies; (20) after joining the assembly, exposing someone’s faults immediately upon seeing them in an attempt to reverse others’ fondness for them; (21) scorning those who have trust in secret topics; (22) disparaging monks whether one has previously seen them or not, thinking that no one should like them; (23) disparaging in order to harm; (24) forsaking others in order to disparage them; and (25) guarding their ethical discipline motivated by the thought that failing to keep the fully ordained monk’s vows would not bring as much profit.
“Great King, such individuals will seriously drift from the teachings,[F.18.a] or they will become householders.”
Then the Blessed One spoke the following verses:
Traveling from town to town was a common spiritual practice for ascetics and renunciants in India at the time of the Buddha. The Buddha most likely utilized this practice both to encourage the monks to practice nonattachment and to spread his doctrine. See Wijayaratna 1990, pp. 18–20.
See Muluposathasutta, AN 3.70 in the Aṅguttaranikāya, English translation by Thanissaro Bhikkhu 1997. All sixteen states are listed as follows: Aṅgā, Vajjī, Mallā, Cetī, Vaṁsā, Kurū, Pañcāla, Macchā, Sūrasenā, Assakā, Avantī, Gandhārā, Kambojā, Magadhā, Kāsī, and Kośala.
In early Buddhist accounts, a King Brahmadatta of North Pañcāla (Uttara Pañcāla) is mentioned in various Jātaka stories, including the Gaṇḍatindu Jātaka and the Brahmadatta Jātaka. For a full list of references to the various Brahmadattas found in early Buddhist canonical literature, see Malalasekera 1938, pp. 332–34.
There is a text in the Kangyur that goes by this name: Dhāraṇī That Accomplishes the Seal of Infinite Gateways (Anantamukhasādhakanāmadhāraṇī,’phags pa sgo mtha’ yas pa sgrub pa zhes bya ba’i gzungs), Toh 140, Degé Kangyur vol. 56 (mdo sde na), folios 289.b–299.a.
Tib. mi khom pa; Skt. akṣaṇa. This refers to being born into circumstances in which one is unable to practice the Dharma properly, specifically to eight possible states of existence: as a hell being, hungry ghost, animal, long-lived god, or barbarian, possessing wrong views, living in a time without buddhas, and having impaired faculties.
The two analogies here are idiomatic and challenging to capture in translation. The crux of the first analogy is that the water left in a vessel is not fresh, and so would be considered unfit for drinking. The second analogy is based in Buddhist proscriptions against misusing the offerings of the faithful. The consequences of doing so are considered spiritually deadly, and likened to swallowing chunks of iron.
Tib. brgyad sde’i byang chub kyi yan lag: the eight branches of awakening refers to the eightfold path, which includes (1) right view (Tib. yang dag pa’i lta ba; Skt. samyagdṛṣṭi), (2) right thought (Tib. yang dag pa’i rtog pa; Skt. samyaksaṅkalpa), (3) right speech (Tib. yang dag pa’i ngag; Skt. samyagvak), (4) right action (Tib. yang dag pa’i las kyi mtha’; Skt. samyakkarmānta), (5) right livelihood (Tib. yang dag pa’i ’tsho ba; Skt. samyagājīva), (6) right effort (Tib. yang dag pa’i rtsol ba; Skt. samyagvyāyāma), (7) right mindfulness (Tib. yang dag pa’i dran pa; Skt. samyaksmṛti), and (8) right samādhi (Tib. yang dag pa’i ting nge ’dzin; Skt. samyaksamādhi).
We follow the Kangxi, Yongle, and Stok versions of the translation in reading brtas/rtas instead of ltas as attested in the Degé version.
The analogy being made here in unclear. In Buddhist scripture, the castor-oil tree (Skt. eraṇḍa) is sometimes listed along with the plantain tree as something that lacks an essential core. Alternatively, because of its foul smell it is compared negatively to the pleasant-smelling sandalwood tree.
Speech that is allusive, indirect, or contains undisclosed meaning and therefore requires further interpretation.
Celestial buddha of infinite life, another name for the Buddha Amitābha.
A bodhisattva. The name of one of the thirty-five confessional buddhas.
A wealthy merchant in the town of Śrāvastī, famous for his generosity to the poor, who became a patron of the Buddha Śākyamuni. He bought Prince Jeta’s Grove (Skt. Jetavana), to be the Buddha’s first monastery, a place where the monks could stay during the monsoon.
Inauguration through sprinkling water on the head; a custom used for anointing kings in ancient India.
A type of nonhuman being whose precise status is subject to different views, but is included as one of the six classes of beings in the sixfold classification of realms of rebirth. In the Buddhist context, asuras are powerful beings said to be dominated by envy, ambition, and hostility. They are also known in the pre-Buddhist and pre-Vedic mythologies of India and Iran, and feature prominently in Vedic and post-Vedic Brahmanical mythology, as well as in the Buddhist tradition. In these traditions, asuras are often described as being engaged in interminable conflict with the devas (gods).
The pride of showing off. It is one of seven types of pride, which include (1) pride (Tib. nga rgyal; Skt. māna), (2) excessive pride (Tib. lhag pa’i nga rgyal; Skt. adhimāna), (3) outrageous pride (Tib. nga rgyal las kyang nga rgyal; Skt. mānātimāna), (4) egoistic pride (Tib. nga’o snyam pa’i nga rgyal; Skt. asmimāna), (5) blatant pride (Tib. mngon pa’i nga rgyal; Skt. abhimāna), (6) pride of feeling inferior (Tib. cung zad snyam pa’i nga rgyal; Skt. ūnamāna), and (7) unfounded pride (Tib. log pa’i nga rgyal; Skt. mithyāmāna).
King of Pañcāla. A name for a number of different kings who appear in Buddhist scripture.
An incantation, spell, or mnemonic formula that distills essential points of the Dharma and is used by practitioners to attain mundane and supramundane goals. It also refers to the capacity to grasp or remember the words and meanings of the Dharma without forgetting them. A function of mindfulness and wisdom.
Gain (Tib. rnyed pa; Skt. lābha) and loss (Tib. ma rnyed pa; Skt. alābha), fame (Tib. snyan pa; Skt. yaśas) and lack of fame (Tib. ma snyan pa; Skt. ayaśas), praise (Tib. bstod pa; Skt. praśaṃsā) and blame (Tib. smad pa; Skt. nindā), pleasure (Tib. bde ba; Skt. sukha), and sorrow (Tib. sdug bsngal; Skt. duḥkha).
The pride of overestimating one’s accomplishments. It is one of seven types of pride, which include (1) pride (Tib. nga rgyal; Skt. māna), (2) excessive pride (Tib. lhag pa’i nga rgyal; Skt. adhimāna), (3) outrageous pride (Tib. nga rgyal las kyang nga rgyal; Skt. mānātimāna), (4) egoistic pride (Tib. nga’o snyam pa’i nga rgyal; Skt. asmimāna), (5) blatant pride (Tib. mngon pa’i nga rgyal; Skt. abhimāna), (6) pride of feeling inferior (Tib. cung zad snyam pa’i nga rgyal; Skt. ūnamāna), and (7) unfounded pride (Tib. log pa’i nga rgyal; Skt. mithyāmāna).
Supernatural knowledge or powers, including the ability to remember past lives.
The head, arms, and legs.
Volitional construction or mental fabrication that leads to the accumulation of karma.
The four truths the Buddha realized at his enlightenment: the truth of suffering, the truth of the origin of suffering, the truth of the cessation of suffering, and the truth of the path.
A class of generally benevolent nonhuman beings who inhabit the skies, sometimes said to inhabit fantastic cities in the clouds, and more specifically to dwell on the eastern slopes of Mount Meru, where they are ruled by the Great King Dhṛtarāṣṭra. They are most renowned as celestial musicians who serve the gods. In the Abhidharma, the term is also used to refer to the mental body assumed by sentient beings during the intermediate state between death and rebirth. Gandharvas are said to live on fragrances (gandha) in the desire realm, hence the Tibetan translation dri za, meaning “scent eater.”
The Gaṅgā, or Ganges in English, is considered to be the most sacred river of India, particularly within the Hindu tradition. It starts in the Himalayas, flows through the northern plains of India, bathing the holy city of Vārāṇasī, and meets the sea at the Bay of Bengal, in Bangladesh. In the sūtras, however, this river is mostly mentioned not for its sacredness but for its abundant sands—noticeable still today on its many sandy banks and at its delta—which serve as a common metaphor for infinitely large numbers.
According to Buddhist cosmology, as explained in the Abhidharmakośa, it is one of the four rivers that flow from Lake Anavatapta and cross the southern continent of Jambudvīpa—the known human world or more specifically the Indian subcontinent.
The Sanskrit term śrāvaka, and the Tibetan nyan thos, both derived from the verb “to hear,” are usually defined as “those who hear the teaching from the Buddha and make it heard to others.” Primarily this refers to those disciples of the Buddha who aspire to attain the state of an arhat seeking their own liberation and nirvāṇa. They are the practitioners of the first turning of the wheel of the Dharma on the four noble truths, who realize the suffering inherent in saṃsāra and focus on understanding that there is no independent self. By conquering afflicted mental states (kleśa), they liberate themselves, attaining first the stage of stream enterers at the path of seeing, followed by the stage of once-returners who will be reborn only one more time, and then the stage of non-returners who will no longer be reborn into the desire realm. The final goal is to become an arhat. These four stages are also known as the “four results of spiritual practice.”
The name of the southern continent in Buddhist cosmology, which can signify either the known human world, or more specifically the Indian subcontinent, literally “the jambu island/continent.” Jambu is the name used for a range of plum-like fruits from trees belonging to the genus Szygium, particularly Szygium jambos and Szygium cumini, and it has commonly been rendered “rose apple,” although “black plum” may be a less misleading term. Among various explanations given for the continent being so named, one (in the Abhidharmakośa) is that a jambu tree grows in its northern mountains beside Lake Anavatapta, mythically considered the source of the four great rivers of India, and that the continent is therefore named from the tree or the fruit. Jambudvīpa has the Vajrāsana at its center and is the only continent upon which buddhas attain awakening.
See “Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍada’s Park.”
One of the first Buddhist monasteries, located in a park outside Śrāvastī, the capital of the ancient kingdom of Kośala in northern India. This park was originally owned by Prince Jeta, hence the name Jetavana, meaning Jeta’s grove. The wealthy merchant Anāthapiṇḍada, wishing to offer it to the Buddha, sought to buy it from him, but the prince, not wishing to sell, said he would only do so if Anāthapiṇḍada covered the entire property with gold coins. Anāthapiṇḍada agreed, and managed to cover all of the park except the entrance, hence the name Anāthapiṇḍadasyārāmaḥ, meaning Anāthapiṇḍada’s park. The place is usually referred to in the sūtras as “Jetavana, Anāthapiṇḍada’s park,” and according to the Saṃghabhedavastu the Buddha used Prince Jeta’s name in first place because that was Prince Jeta’s own unspoken wish while Anāthapiṇḍada was offering the park. Inspired by the occasion and the Buddha’s use of his name, Prince Jeta then offered the rest of the property and had an entrance gate built. The Buddha specifically instructed those who recite the sūtras to use Prince Jeta’s name in first place to commemorate the mutual effort of both benefactors.
Anāthapiṇḍada built residences for the monks, to house them during the monsoon season, thus creating the first Buddhist monastery. It was one of the Buddha’s main residences, where he spent around nineteen rainy season retreats, and it was therefore the setting for many of the Buddha’s discourses and events. According to the travel accounts of Chinese monks, it was still in use as a Buddhist monastery in the early fifth century ᴄᴇ, but by the sixth century it had been reduced to ruins.
A buddha.
A future buddha.
An ancient Indian kingdom, in present day Uttar Pradesh. Śrāvastī was its capital.
The absolute limit or extent of reality. The term is most often used as a synonym for the ultimate state.
A monk living in the world system in which the Dharma of the Buddha Jñānaprabhā proliferated.
According to ancient Buddhist cosmology, this is the great mountain forming the axis of the universe. At its summit is Sudarśana, home of Śakra and his thirty-two gods, and on its flanks live the asuras. The mount has four sides facing the cardinal directions, each of which is made of a different precious stone. Surrounding it are several mountain ranges and the great ocean where the four principal island continents lie: in the south, Jambudvīpa (our world); in the west, Godānīya; in the north, Uttarakuru; and in the east, Pūrvavideha. Above it are the abodes of the desire realm gods. It is variously referred to as Meru, Mount Meru, Sumeru, and Mount Sumeru.
One of the major North Indian kingdoms in the Buddha's time, it was located to the west of the kingdom of Kośala and east of Kuru.
Indian paṇḍita and translator.
The real nature, true quality, or condition of things. Throughout Buddhist discourse this term is used in two distinct ways. In one, it designates the relative nature that is either the essential characteristic of a specific phenomenon, such as the heat of fire and the moisture of water, or the defining feature of a specific term or category. The other very important and widespread way it is used is to designate the ultimate nature of all phenomena, which cannot be conveyed in conceptual, dualistic terms and is often synonymous with emptiness or the absence of intrinsic existence.
A synonym for emptiness or the ultimate nature of things. This term is interpreted variously—given the many connotations of dharma/chos—as the sphere, element, or nature of phenomena, reality, or truth.
The fortnightly ceremony during which ordained monks and nuns gather to recite the prātimokṣa vows and confess faults and breaches. The term is also sometimes used in reference to the taking of eight vows by a layperson for just one day, a full-moon or new-moon day.
The ruling caste in the traditional four-caste hierarchy of India, associated with warriors, the aristocracy, and kings.
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.
As defined in the Bodhisattvabhūmi, this is a bodhisattva’s determined, deeply informed enthusiasm for the Buddhist teachings that is grounded in faith and careful study of the Dharma.
Practices of the bodhisattva path: generosity (Tib. sbyin pa; Skt. dāna), discipline (Tib. tshul khrims; Skt. śīla), patience (Tib. bzod pa; Skt. kṣānti), diligence (Tib. brtson ’grus; Skt. vīrya), concentration (Tib. bsam gtan; Skt. dhyāna), and wisdom (Tib. shes rab; Skt. prajñā).
The capital of the ancient Indian kingdom of Kośala, where the Buddha spent many summers and gave numerous teachings. The city was ruled by King Prasenajit, who makes frequent appearances in the sūtras. It is also the site of Jeta’s Grove, which was gifted to the Buddha by his patron Anāthapiṇḍada.
The Buddha Amitābha’s buddha field known as the Land of Bliss.
One of the Indian teachers invited to Tibet in the time of Emperor Ralpachan (early ninth century).
The court priest of King Brahmadatta of Pañcāla.
The Buddha, Dharma, and Saṅgha.
Higher kind of dhāraṇī that involves remembering every syllable of teachings heard. This kind of dhāraṇī can only be possessed by advanced bodhisattvas.
A town in time and world system of the Buddha Jñānaprabha.
The heaven of Brahmā, usually located just above the desire realm (kāmadhātu) as one of the first levels of the form realm (rūpadhātu) and equated with the state that one achieves in the first meditative absorption (dhyāna).
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.
The longest unit of distance in classical India. The lack of a uniform standard for the smaller units means that there is no precise equivalent, especially as its theoretical length tended to increase over time. Therefore it can mean between four and ten miles.
’phags pa tshangs pas byin gyis zhus pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo (Āryabrahmadattaparipṛcchānāmamahāyānasūtra). Toh 159, Degé Kangyur vol. 59 (mdo sde, ba), folios 10.b–22.b.
’phags pa tshangs pas byin gyis zhus pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo. bka’ ’gyur (dpe bsdur ma) [Comparative Edition of the Kangyur], krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe sdur khang (The Tibetan 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), 2006–2009, vol. 59, pp. 28–56.
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Mahāvyutpatti (bye brag tu rtogs par byed pa chen po). Degé Tengyur vol. 204 (sna tshogs, co), folios 1.b–131.a.
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