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ཉི་མའི་སྙིང་པོ།

The Quintessence of the Sun
The Protection

Sūryagarbha
འཕགས་པ་ཤིན་ཏུ་རྒྱས་པ་ཆེན་པོའི་སྡེ་ཉི་མའི་སྙིང་པོ་ཞེས་བྱ་བའི་མདོ།
’phags pa shin tu rgyas pa chen po’i sde nyi ma’i snying po zhes bya ba’i mdo
The Noble Very Extensive Sūtra “The Quintessence of the Sun”
Ārya­sūryagarbha­nāma­mahāvaipulya­sūtra

Toh 257

Degé Kangyur, vol. 66 (mdo sde, za), folios 91.b–245.b

ᴛʀᴀɴsʟᴀᴛᴇᴅ ɪɴᴛᴏ ᴛɪʙᴇᴛᴀɴ ʙʏ
  • Bandé Zangkyong
  • Bandé Kawa Paltsek

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

First published 2022

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co.

Table of Contents

ti. Title
im. Imprint
co. Contents
s. Summary
ac. Acknowledgements
i. Introduction
tr. The Translation
+ 12 chapters- 12 chapters
1. Protection of the Sacred Dharma
2. The Messengers
3. The Dhāraṇī Mantras
4. The Purification of Karmic Actions
5. The Protection
6. Chapter Six
7. The Presentation of the Conjunctions of the Lunar Mansions
8. Chapter Eight
9. The Recollection of the Buddha
10. The Travel to Mount Sumeru
11. The Going for Refuge of the Nāgas
12. Conclusion
c. Colophon
n. Notes
b. Bibliography
+ 3 sections- 3 sections
· Tibetan Sources
· Chinese Sources
· Secondary Sources
g. Glossary

s.

Summary

s.­1

The Quintessence of the Sun is a long and heterogeneous sūtra in eleven chapters. At the Veṇuvana in the Kalandakanivāpa on the outskirts of Rājagṛha, the Buddha Śākyamuni first explains to a great assembly the severe consequences of stealing what has been offered to monks and the importance of protecting those who abide by the Dharma. The next section tells of bodhisattvas sent from buddha realms in the four directions to bring various dhāraṇīs as a way of protecting and benefitting this world. While explaining those dhāraṇīs, the Buddha Śākyamuni presents various meditations on repulsiveness and instructions on the empty nature of phenomena. On the basis of another long narrative involving Māra and groups of nāgas, detailed teachings on astrology are also introduced, as are a number of additional dhāraṇīs and a list of sacred locations blessed by the presence of holy beings.


ac.

Acknowledgements

ac.­1

This text was translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee under the supervision of Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche. Benjamin Collet-Cassart translated the text from Tibetan into English and wrote the introduction. Andreas Doctor compared the draft translation with the original Tibetan and edited the text.

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


The generous sponsorship of Jamyang Sun and Manju Sun, which helped make the work on this translation possible, is most gratefully acknowledged.


i.

Introduction

i.­1

The Quintessence of the Sun, which belongs to the General Sūtra section of the Kangyur, is a long and heterogeneous sūtra containing eleven chapters. At the Veṇuvana in the Kalandakanivāpa on the outskirts of Rājagṛha, the Buddha Śākyamuni first explains to a great assembly the severe consequences of stealing what has been offered to monks and the importance of protecting those who abide by the Dharma. The next section tells of bodhisattvas sent from buddha realms in the four directions to bring various dhāraṇīs as a way of protecting and benefitting this world. While explaining those dhāraṇīs, the Buddha Śākyamuni presents various meditations on repulsiveness and instructions on the empty nature of phenomena. On the basis of another long narrative involving Māra and groups of nāgas, detailed teachings on astrology are also introduced, as are a number of additional dhāraṇīs and a list of sacred locations blessed by the presence of holy beings.


Text Body

The Translation
The Noble Very Extensive Sūtra
The Quintessence of the Sun

1.
Chapter One

Protection of the Sacred Dharma

[B1] [F.91.b]


1.­1

Homage to all buddhas and bodhisattvas!


Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was residing in the Veṇuvana at the Kalandakanivāpa near Rājagṛha, surrounded and attended by an innumerable, limitless, and indescribable number of bodhisattva great beings who had arrived from countless other buddha realms of the ten directions. He was also surrounded and attended by an innumerable, limitless, and indescribable number of great hearers who had gathered there from different buddha realms of the ten directions. In the same way, an innumerable, limitless, and indescribable number of other beings who had arrived there from the various buddha realms of the ten directions‍—Śakra, Lord Brahmā, the rulers of the gods, the rulers of the nāgas, the rulers of the yakṣas, the rulers of the gandharvas, the rulers of the asuras, the rulers of the garuḍas, the rulers of the kinnaras, and the rulers of the mahoragas‍—filled all the pathways on the ground and in the sky throughout the entire buddha realm of Sahā. There also arrived an innumerable and limitless number of different gods from the desire and form realms, of nāgas, yakṣas, and rākṣasas, and of asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, and mahoragas. Sitting in silence, they looked up at the Blessed One as he revealed how bodhisattva conduct quickly brings perfection and manifests like space and as he gave teachings on the mindfulness of breathing, which is the gateway to immortality, and the sublime states. [F.92.a] They filled all the pathways on the ground and in the sky throughout the entire buddha realm of Sahā.


2.
Chapter Two

The Messengers

2.­1

When the Blessed One had begun this discourse with King Bimbisāra on how to protect all those monks who abide by the Dharma, in the eastern direction, beyond countless buddha realms as numerous as the grains of sand in the Ganges, there was a world called Absence of Torment, where the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Campaka Color was residing, thriving, living well, and teaching the Dharma. In that buddha realm, the bodhisattva great being named Quintessence of the Sun’s Energy was sitting in the assembly of the blessed thus-gone Campaka Color in order to listen to the Dharma. At one point, as the bodhisattva great being Quintessence of the Sun’s Energy looked upward, he saw in the sky above that innumerable and countless bodhisattva great beings were departing from the east and proceeding toward the west. When he looked toward the west where those bodhisattva great beings were going, he saw a brilliant light. At that moment, he bowed down with his palms joined together in the direction of the Buddha Campaka Color and asked, “Respected Blessed One, I have seen in the sky above that innumerable and countless bodhisattva great beings are departing from the east and proceeding toward the west. I have also seen a brilliant light in the western direction. Why is this so?” [F.107.b]


3.
Chapter Three

The Dhāraṇī Mantras

3.­1

When King Bimbisāra saw the unprecedented sight of innumerable and limitless numbers of mahābrahmās, Śakras, Nārāyaṇas, and universal monarchs ruling over the four continents, he was utterly amazed. He stood up and went close to them. Next, together with their retinues, the bodhisattva great beings‍—the four messengers of the buddhas‍—sat down and bowed with their palms joined together in the direction of the thus-gone Śākyamuni. [F.137.a] The bodhisattva great being Quintessence of the Sun’s Energy then tossed garlands of campaka flowers in the direction of the thus-gone Śākyamuni and uttered these verses:


4.
Chapter Four

The Purification of Karmic Actions

4.­1

The Blessed One then said to the four messengers and the other bodhisattva great beings, “Noble sons, abide in this buddha realm by your individual virtues!”

4.­2

So, together with their retinues, those bodhisattva great beings sat cross-legged in their respective places. Then, those beings who had thoroughly cultivated the absorption of the dhāraṇī of acceptance entered into their respective states of absorption. From the bodies of some of those beings dwelling in equipoise radiated lights like the light emitted by oil lamps. From the bodies of some others radiated lights like the light emitted by trillions of suns and moons.


5.
Chapter Five

The Protection

5.­1

Then, together with their respective retinues, all the rulers of the gods, the rulers of the nāgas, the rulers of the yakṣas, the rulers of the asuras, the rulers of the garuḍas, the rulers of the kinnaras, the rulers of the mahoragas, the rulers of the pretas, the rulers of the piśācas, and the rulers of the pūtanas bowed with their palms joined together in the direction of the Blessed One and said, “Respected Blessed One, in all the places where monks, nuns, male and female lay practitioners, or faithful sons or daughters of noble family observe this initial practice of repulsiveness up to the absorption of cessation while contemplating the virtuous factors that have just been described, we shall regard them‍—up to the faithful daughters of noble family‍—together with their retinues as the teachers of their own respective classes. [F.178.b] We shall serve all of them through body, speech, and mind, and we shall ensure that they never lack Dharma robes, alms, bedding, medicine, and requisites. We shall liberate them from the fifteen unsettling dangers. What are those fifteen?55 We shall liberate them from the unsettling dangers related to the body. We shall liberate them from dirt, sticks, weapons, poison, stones, hostile beings, abusive beings, and faithless beings. We shall liberate them from disturbances in the elements. We shall protect those who serve them with offerings of delicious food and beverages, medicine, and requisites. We shall protect all such righteous sponsors, relatives, and benefactors from the unsettling dangers caused by diseases, enemies, bhūtas, and foes. We shall protect them from the unsettling dangers caused by poison, kings, civil war, invasion, and famine. Those are the fifteen unsettling dangers.

5.­2

“We shall regard as our own family members all present and future monks, nuns, male and female lay practitioners, and faithful sons or daughters of noble family‍—even those who merely maintain an imitation of the sacred Dharma‍—as well as those who abide by this initial practice of repulsiveness up to the absorption of cessation and who sleeplessly exert themselves during the first and last parts of the night in the endeavors that have been described before. [F.179.a] We shall regard the regions, cities, countries, mountain hamlets, towns, capitals, and solitary places where they reside as the dwelling places of our own families. We shall avert and repel those fifteen unsettling dangers. We shall regard as the dwelling place of our own families any region where even just one single person who applies effort in such virtuous deeds resides, even if that person remains there for only a single day. We shall protect and defend those persons against those fifteen unsettling dangers. We shall regard those almsgivers, benefactors, members of the kṣatriya class, brāhmaṇas, vaiśyas, śūdras, men, women, boys, and girls as members of our own groups. We shall protect and defend them against those fifteen unsettling dangers. We shall also protect and defend against these unsettling dangers those who venerate, worship, and serve others who exert themselves in such virtuous endeavors by offering them houses, temples, monastic compounds, land, Dharma robes, alms, bedding, medicine, and tools. We shall protect and defend those pregnant women who show respect to such people, ensuring that they always remain safe and free from disease and experience many intense joys. We shall also protect from and defend against those fifteen unsettling dangers anyone who supplicates with affection those who exert themselves in such genuine contemplations, [F.179.b] anyone who proclaims their names, anyone who ties the string,56 anyone who protects them, anyone who opposes nonvirtuous deeds, and anyone who incites others to engage in virtuous deeds.

5.­3

“We shall send humans and nonhumans to oppose any human or nonhuman beings who intend to ignore the words of those persons who strive in properly contemplating such virtuous endeavors, as well as those who intend to disregard, abuse, oppose, harm, or utterly corrupt57 those persons and harbor ill will toward them. We shall not tolerate them. Those sentient beings who intend to ignore the words of those who strive in properly contemplating such virtuous endeavors and those sentient beings who intend to disregard, abuse, oppose, harm, or harbor ill will toward those persons and utterly corrupt them will experience fifteen harms. What are those fifteen? They will experience (1) the suffering of quickly becoming sick, (2) the suffering related to the loss of their wealth, (3) the suffering related to the deterioration of their possessions, (4) the suffering of their main and secondary limbs being cut off, (5) the suffering of being separated from their beloved retinues, (6) the suffering related to the decline of their power, (7) the suffering related to their dwelling places, (8) the suffering of being crushed by enemies, (9) the suffering of being constantly disturbed in their minds, (10) the suffering related to their realm, (11) the suffering related to disturbances caused by the members of the kṣatriya class, [F.180.a] (12) the suffering related to disturbances caused by thieves, (13) the suffering related to the disturbances caused by women, (14) the suffering related to the quick exhaustion of their lifespan, and (15) the suffering of death. Those sentient beings will quickly experience those harms.

5.­4

“Even if those sentient beings who intend to ignore the words of those who strive in properly contemplating in this way or who intend to disregard, abuse, oppose, harm, or harbor ill will toward those persons and utterly corrupt them take refuge in us out of fear and eagerly serve us with substances to accomplish a variety of mantras, we shall not accept such acts of service to fulfill their purposes, and we shall not give refuge to them. We shall not accomplish their activities or benefit them.

5.­5

“There will be troublemakers‍—from gods and nāgas up to kaṭapūtanas‍—who are hostile, ruthless, ungrateful, and unafraid of the afterlife. In the wilderness, in forests, in remote places, in hermitages, in charnel grounds, under trees, in monastic compounds, in temples, in houses, and along walking lanes, they will approach those persons who strive in properly contemplating such virtuous endeavors. With hostile attitudes they will have the intention to harm them. They will cause disturbances to their bodies and minds, and they will rob their vital essences. Those beings‍—from gods and nāgas up to kaṭapūtanas‍—who are hostile, ungrateful, [F.180.b] and unafraid of the afterlife will even cause disturbances to the bodies and minds of those persons’ attendants and benefactors and rob their vital essences. Barring circumstances related to previous actions, if we do not stand against, oppose, and punish each of those beings‍—from gods and nāgas up to kaṭapūtanas‍—for their crimes, we will deceive all the thus-gone ones of the three times. While circling in saṃsāra, may we in that case never become proper vessels for the domains of the hearers, the solitary buddhas, or the thus-gone ones, and may we never achieve the happiness of emancipation!”

5.­6

The Blessed One replied, “Noble sons, your commitment to make the Dharma way of all the thus-gone ones of the three times blaze and ensure that the lineage of the Three Jewels remains uninterrupted is excellent! Please do that! By doing so, you will worship and serve all the thus-gone ones of the three times. The noble sons who employ such diligence and determination to protect the well-spoken Dharma and Vinaya, as well as those who follow it and abide by the Dharma, will enjoy abundance and excellence while circling in saṃsāra. They will never experience the suffering of saṃsāra, and they will swiftly awaken to unsurpassed and perfect buddhahood. Therefore, since you feel aversion for suffering and wish for happiness, please act in that way! Your commitment to such wholesome activities is excellent!”

5.­7

At that moment, [F.181.a] the innumerable and limitless number of nonhuman bhūtas who feed on vital essences and blood said, “Respected Blessed One, we are not humans. We feed on vital essences as well as flesh and blood. We shall not harm the Thus-Gone One’s hearers. Respected Blessed One, if we were to harm the hearers who contemplate the practice of repulsiveness that the Blessed One has taught today, may we lose our composure! May we lose our ability to reach any domain of power! We shall protect such persons, and we shall protect and defend their attendants and benefactors as well. We shall also protect, defend, guard, and look after those who support the Thus-Gone One’s hearers who abide by the Dharma and contemplate the practice of repulsiveness, and those who offer them temples, lands, monastic compounds, Dharma robes, alms, bedding, and medicinal substances.”

“Excellent, delightful beings, excellent!” replied the Blessed One, “Please do that!”

5.­8

Then, the earth goddess Sthāvarā said, “Respected Blessed One, I shall provide the vitality of this vast earth to sustain the bodies of the Thus-Gone One’s hearers who abide by the Dharma and strive in the practice of repulsiveness. [F.181.b] Thereby, those who abide by the Dharma and exert themselves in such absorptions will become endowed with a majestic appearance, beautiful complexion, recollection, diligence, and insight.”

5.­9

“Great benefactress,” replied the Blessed One, “with such alms you will satisfy my children, my heart children, who are born from my mouth, who are endowed with the Dharma, and who are emanated from the Dharma. This is excellent! Through this act of great generosity, you will perfect the Great Vehicle!”

5.­10

Śrī Mahādevī then said, “Respected Blessed One, I will ensure that all almsgivers and benefactors of those who abide by the Dharma never lack merriment, wealth, grains, fruits, resources, and wealth. I will take care of those people who offer temples, grounds, lands, Dharma robes, alms, bedding, and medicinal substances in order to maintain, support, and look after those who day and night contemplate the practice of repulsiveness up to the absorption of cessation. I will make sure that they possess an abundance of tools, resources, and possessions and that they experience a bounty of physical and mental well-being, as well as happiness and pleasure. I will ensure that they never separate from those who are worthy recipients of generosity and that they always remain associated with them. I will ensure that their minds remain delighted by the Dharma, [F.182.a] that they are affectionate, that they do not fall into mistaken views, and that they remain loving, compassionate, and uncorrupted”

5.­11

“Your support of the great benefactors is excellent!” replied the Blessed One. “Your diligent determination will cause the Great Vehicle to flourish.”

5.­12

At that moment, Vajrapāṇi, the Lord of Guhyakas, said, “Respected Blessed One, thanks to the many wealthy almsgivers and benefactors who support and protect the teachings of the Blessed One while this section of The Great Assembly is being expounded, the Dharma way will blaze for a long time in this Buddha realm, and it will remain uncorrupted.”

5.­13

Then the bodhisattva great being Maitreya asked, “O Lord of Guhyakas, can space be seen to degenerate?”

“No,” replied Vajrapāṇi, “because space is devoid of dwelling and imputation.”

5.­14

Maitreya asked, “Can phenomena be seen to assemble?”

“No,”58 replied Vajrapāṇi, “because they are within the limit of reality.”

5.­15

“Can the limit of reality and space be seen as different?” asked Maitreya.

“They are indistinct,” replied Vajrapāṇi, “and therefore not different.”59

5.­16

Maitreya asked, “Are space and phenomena different?”

“Since they are within the unmoving and unborn realm of phenomena, they are devoid of difference,” replied Vajrapāṇi.

5.­17

“Noble son,” asked Maitreya, “can the distinction between conditioned and unconditioned phenomena not be seen?”

Vajrapāṇi replied, “Just as the limit of reality and suchness are indistinct, conditioned phenomena are imputations projected onto space, and they are therefore indistinct.”

5.­18

“Is it conditioned phenomena that accord with the limit of reality, [F.182.b] or is it unconditioned phenomena?” asked Maitreya.

“Since emptiness is an imputation,” replied Vajrapāṇi, “there are either conditioned or unconditioned phenomena within the limit of reality and suchness.”

5.­19

Maitreya asked, “Is there any assembly within emptiness?”

Vajrapāṇi replied, “Since it is not lasting, and since it is intrinsically empty and devoid of disintegration, the assembly of all phenomena is emptiness. Not even an entity named emptiness can be found. Noble son, the essential nature is empty of essential nature, the basis of characteristics is empty of the basis of characteristics, and the nonexistence of the basis of characteristics is also empty of the basis of characteristics. One should understand all phenomena in that same manner. Why? Because all phenomena are inexpressible and are therefore emptiness. The essential nature of all phenomena has not been created by the hearers, by the solitary buddhas, or by the thus-gone ones. One should understand that the limit of reality, suchness, and conditioned and unconditioned phenomena all have the nature of space, and therefore they are all devoid of difference‍—they are indistinct.”

5.­20

As this teaching was being given, the obscurations stemming from nonvirtuous actions committed in the past by countless sentient beings who had previously trained in the mode of emptiness were exhausted, and they attained the eye of Dharma, which is immaculate and spotless with regard to phenomena. Nine billion two hundred thousand sentient beings gave rise to the mind set on unsurpassed awakening and obtained the qualities of nonregression.

5.­21

This concludes the chapter called “The Protection,” the fifth among the eleven chapters in “The Quintessence of the Sun,” the noble Great Vehicle discourse of The Great Assembly.


6.

Chapter Six

6.­1

At that time, [F.183.a] King Bimbisāra, who felt joyful and exhilarated, exclaimed, “Respected Blessed One, this buddha realm of Sahā is filled with bodhisattva great beings who exert themselves in concentration, and it is bathed in a brilliant light that has never been seen or heard of before. This is amazing! Respected Well-Gone One, this is truly amazing! Still, besides this buddha realm and its outer mountain range, nothing else whatsoever appears. Respected Blessed One, if this entire buddha realm of Sahā is perceived due to the light of those bodhisattva great beings, what would the light emitted by the thus-gone ones who have entered into absorption be like? Might we be able to perceive the arrays of qualities of other buddha realms through the light emitted by the Thus-Gone One?”


7.
Chapter Seven

The Presentation of the Conjunctions of the Lunar Mansions

7.­1

When the evil Māra saw all these thus-gone ones and retinues in their respective palaces present within the body of the Thus-Gone One, he became extremely unhappy. Dirt emerged from his entire body, and he began to weep out of distress. He started to run to and fro, to leave only to reappear, and to jump up, run and race around, gape, laugh, sigh, lick his mouth, close his eyes, stretch and contract his arms, [F.188.a] rest his head in his hands, and rub his throat and breast. When they saw this, all the sentient beings residing in the abode of Māra were unsettled. They became displeased and unhappy. One māra leader named Celestial Tree questioned the evil Māra with these verses:


8.

Chapter Eight

8.­1

Sāgara then said:

8.­2
“You remember past lives
Based on the placement of the lunar mansions in the sky.
Wise one, leader of the three realms,
Clear-minded one, glorious being,
8.­3
“As an example of your love and compassion,
And in accordance with your affection for everyone,
Please liberate all the nāgas from this place!
Your discipline and observances
8.­4
“Are unmatched in the three realms.
You bring satisfaction to all the nāgas.
You are the master of all sages, [F.212.b]
And you are worthy to be worshiped by the humans.

9.
Chapter Nine

The Recollection of the Buddha

9.­1

When the evil Māra saw that all the nāgas had taken refuge in the Blessed One, [F.215.a] he became exceedingly distressed and scared, and his body began to shake like the leaves of a jujube tree. Sweating, he raised his two hands and lamented:

9.­2
“The nāgas have gone for refuge.
All beings have become deluded
And placed on the path of immortality.
Look at this endless deceit!”

10.
Chapter Ten

The Travel to Mount Sumeru

10.­1

Then, the Blessed One said to the bodhisattva great being Jyotīrasa, “Noble son, tell me the message of that group of nāgas.”

With a mind devoid of afflictions, Jyotīrasa replied, “Blessed One, it is time for you to come! Blessed One, please perform your deeds!”

10.­2

The Blessed One replied, “Noble son, [F.220.a] it is time for the Thus-Gone One to reveal the inconceivable teaching on the nāgas’ karmic action‍—the teaching of purification.”


11.
Chapter Eleven

The Going for Refuge of the Nāgas

11.­1

While showering rains of flowers, precious gems, and Dharma robes, playing instruments and drums, and singing melodious songs, all the gods, nāgas, yakṣas, and asuras present there departed from the summit of Mount Sumeru together with the Blessed One. Attended by his saṅgha of hearers and surrounded by his saṅgha of bodhisattvas, the Blessed One then took a seat on the cushions that had been prepared for him at the center of the sacred site of wise sages. To worship the Blessed One, all the gods, nāgas, yakṣas, asuras, and kinnaras showered rains of various ornaments, powders, flowers, and precious gems from the sky. The nāgas also offered the Blessed One different kinds of flowers, perfumes, precious gems, silken clothes, fine fabrics, Dharma robes, and ornaments. They circumambulated him three times, prostrated to his feet, and sat in front of him to listen to the Dharma. The nāga king Sāgara then asked, “Respected Blessed One, what are the deeds through which sentient beings are born as nāgas?”


12.

Conclusion

12.­1

Then the elder Ājñātakauṇḍinya said to the Blessed One, “Blessed One, please bless the nāgas! Please make this Dharma teaching, which involves the conduct of teaching about the inconceivable karmic action, blaze for a long time!”

12.­2

The Blessed One said, “As long as the great stūpas in this four-continent world still contain beings who diligently engage in practice, this Dharma teaching will continue to be practiced on the four continents. What are those great stūpas? Here in Jambudvīpa, many past buddhas, bodhisattvas, solitary buddhas, and hearers have continuously resided at this stūpa‍—the sacred site of wise sages called Complete Support‍—and they will continue to reside here in the future. The perfect buddhas of the past have entrusted this sacred site of wise sages called Complete Support to Varuṇa, to ensure that the great teachings remain for a long time. I also entrust it to him. He will joyfully ripen those persons who abide by the Dharma and diligently engage in practice. He will also protect those donors and benefactors who strive to serve those who abide by the Dharma.”


c.

Colophon

c.­1

This was translated by the Indian preceptors Sarvajñadeva, Vidyākaraprabha, and Dharmākara and the translator Bandé Zangkyong. It was then edited and finalized by the translator-editor Bandé Kawa Paltsek.


n.

Notes

n.­1
Hoernle 1916, pp. 121–25.
n.­2
Roberts, Peter Alan. trans., The White Lotus of Compassion, Toh 112 (84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2018).
n.­3
Roberts, Peter Alan. trans., The King of Samādhis Sūtra, Toh 127 (84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2018).
n.­4
See Mahamegha Translation Team, trans. The Great Cloud (1), Toh 232.
n.­5
Denkarma, folio 297.b; note that the title in the Denkarma is ’phags pa ’dus pa chen po’i sde nyi ma’i snying po The Denkarma is dated to c. 812 ᴄᴇ. In this catalog, The Quintessence of the Sun is included among the “Miscellaneous Mahāyāna Sūtras” (theg pa chen po’i mdo sde sna tshogs) with a length of thirteen sections (bam po). See also Herrmann-Pfandt 2008, p. 46, no. 81.
n.­6
Ed. Bhikkhu Pāsādika 1989, pp. 79–82.
n.­7
Cutler 2002, pp. 231–32 and 253.
n.­8
Lévi 1905, pp. 256–58; Lévi 1904, pp. 546–47 and 565.
n.­55
Based on the following section of the text, it is unclear what those fifteen dangers are.
n.­56
We are unsure what this refers to. Tibetan: skud pa btags pa.
n.­57
Translated based on Stok: rab tu nyams pa. Degé: bar du nyams pa.
n.­58
Yongle, Kangxi, and Choné: ci yang dag pa’i mthar thug pa’i phyir mngon no (“Yes, because they are the limit of reality”).
n.­59
Stok: ’di ni tha mi dad pa nyid de/ tha mi dad pa nyid kyi mi ’dra ba’o. (“They are indistinct‍—indistinct but different.”) Degé reads ’di ni tha mi dad pa nyid de/ tha mi dad pa nyid kyi phyir mi ’dra ba’o. (“They are indistinct and therefore different.”) As we suspect that the Tibetan may be corrupt here, we have translated it as “They are indistinct and therefore not different.”

b.

Bibliography

Tibetan Sources

nyi ma’i snying po (Sūryagarbha). Toh 257, Degé Kangyur vol. 66 (mdo sde, za), folios 91.b–245.b.

nyi ma’i snying po. 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. 66, pp. 262–616.

nyi ma’i snying po. Stok Palace Kangyur vol. 63 (mdo sde, na), folios 161.b–394.b.

glang ru lung bstan pa (Gośṛṅgavyākaraṇa). Toh 357, Degé Kangyur vol. 76 (mdo sde, aH), folios 220.b–232.a. English translation in Dharmachakra Translation Committee 2021. [Full citation listed in secondary sources]

zla ba’i snying po (Candragarbha). Toh 356, Degé Kangyur vol. 76 (mdo sde, aH), folios 216.a–229.b.

snying rje pad+ma dkar po (Karuṇā­puṇḍarīka). Toh 112, Degé Kangyur vol. 50 (mdo sde, cha), folios 129.a–297.b. English translation in Roberts 2023. [Full citation listed in secondary sources]

ting nge ’dzin gyi rgyal po (Samādhirāja). Toh 127, Degé Kangyur vol. 55 (mdo sde, da), folios 1.b–170.b. English translation in Roberts 2018. [Full citation listed in secondary sources]

sprin chen po (Mahāmegha). Toh 232, Degé Kangyur vol. 64 (mdo sde, wa), folios 113.a–214.b. English translation in Mahamegha Translation Team 2022. [Full citation listed in secondary sources]

blo gros mi zad pas bstan pa (Akṣayamati­nirdeśa). Toh 175, Degé Kangyur vol. 60 (mdo sde, ma), folios 79.a–174.b. English translation in Braarvig and Welsh 2020. [Full citation listed in secondary sources]

Nāgārjuna. mdo kun las btus pa (Sūtrasamuccaya). Toh 3934, Degé Tengyur vol. 110 (dbu ma, ki), folios 148.b–215.a. See also Bhikkhu Pāsādika 1989.

Denkarma (pho brang stod thang ldan dkar gyi chos kyi ’gyur ro cog gi dkar chag). Toh 4364, Degé Tengyur vol. 206 (sna tshogs, jo), folios 294.b–310.a.

Chomden Rikpai Raltri (bcom ldan rig pa’i ral gri). bstan pa rgyas pa rgyan gyi nyi ’od. In bka’ gdams gsung ’bum phyogs bsgrigs thengs gsum pa, 1:191–266. Chengdu: si khron mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 2009. BDRC W1PD153536.

Chinese Sources

Rizang fen 日藏分. Taishō 397-14. (Translation of the Sūryagarbhasūtra by Narendrayaśas [Naliantiyeshe 那連提耶舍]).

Secondary Sources

Bhikkhu Pāsādika, ed. Nāgārjuna’s Sūtrasamuccaya: A Critical Edition of the Mdo kun las btus pa. Fontes Tibetici Havnienses 2. Copenhagen: Akademisk Forlag, 1989.

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

Braarvig, Jens, and David Welsh, trans. The Teaching of Akṣayamati (Akṣayamati­nirdeśa, Toh 175). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2020.

Cutler, Joshua W. C., ed. The Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment. Vol. 3. Translated by The Lamrim Chenmo Translation Committee. Ithaca, NY: Snow Lion, 2002.

Demiéville, Paul. Choix d’études bouddhiques. Leiden: Brill, 1973.

Dharmachakra Translation Committee, trans. The Prophecy on Mount Gośṛṅga (Gośṛṅgavyākaraṇa, Toh 357). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2021.

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

Hoernle, A. F. Rudolph. Manuscript Remains of Buddhist Literature Found in Eastern Turkestan. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1916.

Kotyk, Jeffrey Theodore. “Buddhist Astrology and Astral Magic in the Tang Dynasty.” PhD diss., Leiden University, 2017.

Lévi, Sylvain (1904). “Notes chinoises sur l’Inde: IV. Le pays de Kharoṣṭra et l’écriture kharoṣṭrī.” Bulletin de l’Ecole française d’Extrême-Orient 4 (1904): 543–79.

Lévi, Sylvain (1905). “Notes chinoises sur l’Inde: V. Quelques documents sur le bouddhisme indien dans l’Asie centrale (première partie).” Bulletin de l’Ecole française d’Extrême-Orient 5 (1905): 253–305.

Mahamegha Translation Team (2022), trans. The Great Cloud (1) (Mahāmegha, Toh 232). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2018.

Mak, Bill M. “Indian Jyotiṣa through the Lens of Chinese Buddhist Canon.” Journal of Oriental Studies 48, no. 1 (June 2015): 1–19.

Martin, Dan. Unearthing Bon Treasures: Life and Contested Legacy of a Tibetan Scripture Revealer, with a General Bibliography of Bon. Brill’s Tibetan Studies Library 1. Leiden: Brill, 2001. 

Nakamura, Hajime. Indian Buddhism: A Survey with Biographical Notes. Intercultural Research Institute Monograph Series 9. Tokyo: KUFS Publication, 1980.

Nattier, Jan. Once Upon a Future Time: Studies in a Buddhist Prophecy of Decline. Berkeley: Asian Humanities Press, 1991.

Roberts, Peter Alan, trans. The King of Samādhis Sūtra (Samādhi­rājasūtra, Toh 127). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2018.

Roberts, Peter Alan, trans. (2023). The White Lotus of Compassion (Karuṇā­puṇḍarīka­nāma­mahā­yāna­sūtra), Toh 112. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2023.

Silk, Jonathan A. Managing Monks: Administrators and Administrative Roles in Indian Buddhist Monasticism. New York: Oxford University Press, 2008.


g.

Glossary

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

AS

Attested in source text

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

AO

Attested in other text

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

AD

Attested in dictionary

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

AA

Approximate attestation

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

RP

Reconstruction from Tibetan phonetic rendering

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

RS

Reconstruction from Tibetan semantic rendering

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

SU

Source unspecified

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

g.­1

Absence of Heat

Wylie:
  • ma dros pa
Tibetan:
  • མ་དྲོས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

A buddha realm located in the eastern direction during the time of the Buddha Śākyamuni. Also called Absence of Torment.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­7
  • g.­3
g.­2

absence of marks

Wylie:
  • mtshan ma med pa
Tibetan:
  • མཚན་མ་མེད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • animitta

The absence of the conceptual identification of perceptions, knowing that the true nature has no attributes, such as color or shape. One of the three gateways of liberation.

Located in 10 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­14
  • 4.­51
  • 4.­75
  • 4.­104
  • 4.­115
  • 4.­117-118
  • 7.­47
  • g.­62
  • g.­266
g.­3

Absence of Torment

Wylie:
  • yongs su gdung ba med pa
Tibetan:
  • ཡོངས་སུ་གདུང་བ་མེད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

A buddha realm located in the eastern direction during the time of the Buddha Śākyamuni. Also called Absence of Heat.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­1
  • 2.­9
  • n.­39
  • g.­1
g.­4

absence of wishes

Wylie:
  • smon pa med pa
Tibetan:
  • སྨོན་པ་མེད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • apraṇihita

The absence of any conceptual goal that one is focused upon achieving, knowing that all composite phenomena create suffering. One of the three gateways of liberation.

Located in 17 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­53
  • 2.­55-56
  • 3.­37
  • 3.­39
  • 4.­65-66
  • 4.­73
  • 4.­76
  • 4.­87
  • 4.­104-106
  • 4.­118
  • 4.­121
  • g.­62
  • g.­266
g.­5

absorption

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

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

In a general sense, samādhi can describe a number of different meditative states. In the Mahāyāna literature, in particular in the Prajñāpāramitā sūtras, we find extensive lists of different samādhis, numbering over one hundred.

In a more restricted sense, and when understood as a mental state, samādhi is defined as the one-pointedness of the mind (cittaikāgratā), the ability to remain on the same object over long periods of time. The Drajor Bamponyipa (sgra sbyor bam po gnyis pa) commentary on the Mahāvyutpatti explains the term samādhi as referring to the instrument through which mind and mental states “get collected,” i.e., it is by the force of samādhi that the continuum of mind and mental states becomes collected on a single point of reference without getting distracted.

Located in 53 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­28-29
  • 2.­4-5
  • 2.­14
  • 2.­29
  • 2.­34
  • 2.­49
  • 2.­70
  • 2.­73
  • 2.­76-77
  • 2.­79
  • 4.­2
  • 4.­26-27
  • 4.­32
  • 4.­34-35
  • 4.­37
  • 4.­44-45
  • 4.­51
  • 4.­62
  • 4.­96
  • 4.­121
  • 4.­124
  • 5.­1-2
  • 5.­8
  • 5.­10
  • 6.­1
  • 6.­5-6
  • 6.­17
  • 6.­25
  • 7.­39
  • 7.­53
  • 8.­34
  • 9.­22-23
  • 9.­27
  • 9.­29-30
  • 10.­34
  • 12.­33
  • 12.­38
  • 12.­40
  • 12.­42
  • 12.­57
  • g.­80
  • g.­241
  • g.­242
g.­11

Ājñātakauṇḍinya

Wylie:
  • kun shes kau Di n+ya
Tibetan:
  • ཀུན་ཤེས་ཀཽ་ཌི་ནྱ།
Sanskrit:
  • ājñāta­kauṇḍinya

Another name for Kauṇḍinya. As he was the first to understand the Buddha Śākyamuni’s teaching on the four truths of the noble ones, he received the name Ājñātakauṇḍinya (Kauṇḍinya Who Understood).

Located in 15 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­30
  • 4.­3-5
  • 4.­7-8
  • 4.­23
  • 4.­51
  • 4.­79
  • 4.­85
  • 4.­87
  • 6.­4
  • 10.­32
  • 11.­25
  • 12.­1
g.­18

asura

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

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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).

Located in 40 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­1
  • 1.­28
  • 1.­33
  • 2.­7
  • 2.­12
  • 2.­15
  • 2.­28
  • 2.­32
  • 2.­36
  • 2.­64
  • 2.­79
  • 2.­84
  • 2.­90
  • 3.­8
  • 3.­50
  • 3.­52
  • 3.­58
  • 4.­48
  • 4.­50
  • 4.­105
  • 4.­107-108
  • 4.­118-119
  • 4.­122-123
  • 5.­1
  • 6.­12
  • 6.­18
  • 7.­39
  • 10.­11-12
  • 10.­24-25
  • 11.­1
  • 12.­36-37
  • 12.­40
  • 12.­58
  • 12.­69
g.­19

attendant

Wylie:
  • zhal ta pa
Tibetan:
  • ཞལ་ཏ་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • vaiyāpṛtyakara

A monk in charge of providing for monastery residents and visitors. One of several official administrative or managerial positions at a monastery.

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­37
  • 1.­48
  • 1.­74
  • 5.­5
  • 5.­7
g.­24

bhūta

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

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • 5.­1
  • 5.­7
  • 8.­16
  • 8.­19
  • 9.­28
  • 12.­38
g.­25

Bimbisāra

Wylie:
  • gzugs can snying po
Tibetan:
  • གཟུགས་ཅན་སྙིང་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • bimbisāra

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The king of Magadha and a great patron of the Buddha. His birth coincided with the Buddha’s, and his father, King Mahāpadma, named him “Essence of Gold” after mistakenly attributing the brilliant light that marked the Buddha’s birth to the birth of his son by Queen Bimbī (“Goldie”). Accounts of Bimbisāra’s youth and life can be found in The Chapter on Going Forth (Toh 1-1, Pravrajyāvastu).

King Śreṇya Bimbisāra first met with the Buddha early on, when the latter was the wandering mendicant known as Gautama. Impressed by his conduct, Bimbisāra offered to take Gautama into his court, but Gautama refused, and Bimbisāra wished him success in his quest for awakening and asked him to visit his palace after he had achieved his goal. One account of this episode can be found in the sixteenth chapter of The Play in Full (Toh 95, Lalitavistara). There are other accounts where the two meet earlier on in childhood; several episodes can be found, for example, in The Hundred Deeds (Toh 340, Karmaśataka). Later, after the Buddha’s awakening, Bimbisāra became one of his most famous patrons and donated to the saṅgha the Bamboo Grove, Veṇuvana, at the outskirts of the capital of Magadha, Rājagṛha, where he built residences for the monks. Bimbisāra was imprisoned and killed by his own son, the prince Ajātaśatru, who, influenced by Devadatta, sought to usurp his father’s throne.

Located in 18 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­42
  • 1.­45
  • 1.­47
  • 1.­50
  • 1.­53-54
  • 1.­56
  • 1.­62
  • 1.­65
  • 1.­69
  • 1.­74
  • 2.­1
  • 2.­22
  • 2.­51
  • 2.­72
  • 3.­1
  • 6.­1
  • 6.­3
g.­32

Brahmā

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

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A high-ranking deity presiding over a divine world; he is also considered to be the lord of the Sahā world (our universe). Though not considered a creator god in Buddhism, Brahmā occupies an important place as one of two gods (the other being Indra/Śakra) said to have first exhorted the Buddha Śākyamuni to teach the Dharma. The particular heavens found in the form realm over which Brahmā rules are often some of the most sought-after realms of higher rebirth in Buddhist literature. Since there are many universes or world systems, there are also multiple Brahmās presiding over them. His most frequent epithets are “Lord of the Sahā World” (sahāṃpati) and Great Brahmā (mahābrahman).

Located in 21 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­1
  • 1.­30
  • 2.­12
  • 2.­28
  • 2.­31
  • 4.­33
  • 4.­118
  • 6.­18
  • 7.­95-96
  • 7.­99
  • 9.­27
  • 10.­4
  • 10.­24-25
  • 10.­27
  • 10.­31
  • 10.­33
  • 12.­66-67
  • g.­167
g.­33

brāhmaṇa

Wylie:
  • bram ze
Tibetan:
  • བྲམ་ཟེ།
Sanskrit:
  • brāhmaṇa

The highest of the four classes in the Indian caste system, it is most closely associated with religious vocations.

Located in 25 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­41
  • 1.­43-44
  • 1.­48
  • 1.­61
  • 1.­63
  • 1.­67-70
  • 1.­72-73
  • 2.­7
  • 2.­12
  • 2.­15
  • 2.­28
  • 2.­31
  • 3.­52
  • 4.­48
  • 4.­105
  • 4.­119
  • 5.­2
  • 9.­21
  • 10.­33
  • 11.­20
g.­37

buddha realm

Wylie:
  • sangs rgyas kyi zhing
Tibetan:
  • སངས་རྒྱས་ཀྱི་ཞིང་།
Sanskrit:
  • buddhakṣetra

Roughly a synonym for “universe,” although Buddhist cosmology contains many universes of different types and dimensions. “Buddha realm” indicates, in regard to any type of universe, that it is the field of influence of a particular buddha.

Located in 114 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1
  • 1.­1-2
  • 1.­16
  • 1.­27-28
  • 1.­30-33
  • 1.­35
  • 1.­38
  • 1.­49
  • 1.­70
  • 1.­73
  • 2.­1-5
  • 2.­9-12
  • 2.­17
  • 2.­22-23
  • 2.­26-28
  • 2.­31
  • 2.­36-37
  • 2.­51-52
  • 2.­55-57
  • 2.­64-66
  • 2.­69
  • 2.­72-77
  • 2.­87
  • 2.­90-91
  • 2.­94-95
  • 2.­97
  • 3.­7-8
  • 3.­10
  • 3.­22
  • 3.­25
  • 3.­37
  • 3.­40
  • 3.­52
  • 3.­54
  • 4.­1
  • 4.­3
  • 4.­13
  • 4.­15
  • 4.­77
  • 4.­112
  • 4.­121
  • 4.­123
  • 5.­12
  • 6.­1
  • 6.­6
  • 6.­12-13
  • 6.­18
  • 6.­25
  • 7.­38-39
  • 7.­57
  • 8.­32
  • 9.­21-23
  • 10.­23-26
  • 10.­32
  • 10.­34
  • 12.­27
  • 12.­31
  • 12.­36
  • 12.­56-57
  • 12.­69
  • n.­36
  • n.­39
  • n.­44
  • g.­1
  • g.­3
  • g.­12
  • g.­22
  • g.­66
  • g.­93
  • g.­106
  • g.­174
  • g.­175
  • g.­183
  • g.­210
  • g.­285
  • g.­296
g.­38

Campaka Color

Wylie:
  • tsam pa ka’i mdog
Tibetan:
  • ཙམ་པ་ཀའི་མདོག
Sanskrit:
  • —

A buddha residing in the eastern direction at the time of the Buddha Śākyamuni.

Located in 16 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­1-2
  • 2.­9
  • 2.­11-12
  • 2.­14
  • 2.­20-22
  • 3.­7-8
  • 3.­10-11
  • 3.­14
  • 4.­33
  • 4.­47
g.­40

Celestial Tree

Wylie:
  • nam mkha’i shing
Tibetan:
  • ནམ་མཁའི་ཤིང་།
Sanskrit:
  • —

Name of a mercenary demon.

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • 7.­1
  • 7.­8
  • 7.­12
  • 7.­16
  • 7.­22
  • 7.­24
g.­45

Complete Support

Wylie:
  • kun rten
Tibetan:
  • ཀུན་རྟེན།
Sanskrit:
  • —

A holy site blessed by the presence of sages.

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • 7.­29
  • 12.­2-3
g.­47

concentration

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

The fifth of the six perfections. Generally one of the synonyms for meditation, referring to a state of mental stability. The specific four concentrations are four successively subtler states of meditation that are said to lead to rebirth into the corresponding four levels of the form realm.

Located in 44 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­30
  • 1.­33
  • 1.­35
  • 2.­3-5
  • 2.­10
  • 2.­15
  • 2.­34
  • 2.­64
  • 2.­75-76
  • 2.­79
  • 3.­3
  • 3.­10
  • 3.­25
  • 3.­40
  • 3.­54
  • 4.­13
  • 4.­70
  • 4.­76
  • 4.­82
  • 4.­84
  • 4.­95-97
  • 4.­121
  • 6.­1
  • 6.­6
  • 7.­17
  • 8.­11
  • 8.­20
  • 9.­22
  • 10.­18
  • 11.­49
  • 12.­32
  • 12.­37
  • 12.­56
  • g.­55
  • g.­56
  • g.­65
  • g.­81
  • g.­236
  • g.­243
g.­49

Dharmākara

Wylie:
  • d+harmA ka ra
Tibetan:
  • དྷརྨཱ་ཀ་ར།
Sanskrit:
  • dharmākara

Butön includes the Kashmiri abbot Dharmākara in his list of ninety-three paṇḍitas invited to Tibet to assist in the translation of the Buddhist scriptures. Tāranātha dates Dharmākara to the rule of *Vanapāla, son of Dharmapāla. With Paltsek, he translated two of Kalyāṇamitra’s works on Vinaya, the Vinaya­praśnakārikā (’dul ba dri ba’i tshig le’ur byas pa, Toh 4134) and the Vinaya­praśnaṭīkā (’dul ba dri ba rgya cher ’grel pa, Toh 4135).

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • c.­1
g.­59

element

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

One way of describing experience and the world in terms of eighteen elements (eye and form, ear and sound, nose and smell, tongue and taste, body and physical objects, and mind and mental phenomena, to which the six consciousnesses are added). Also refers here to the “four great elements.”

Located in 15 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­23
  • 2.­6
  • 2.­78-79
  • 2.­84
  • 3.­52
  • 4.­47
  • 4.­104
  • 4.­114
  • 4.­119
  • 5.­1
  • 7.­50
  • 8.­32
  • 11.­25
  • 12.­49
g.­62

emptiness

Wylie:
  • stong pa nyid
Tibetan:
  • སྟོང་པ་ཉིད།
Sanskrit:
  • śūnyatā

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Emptiness denotes the ultimate nature of reality, the total absence of inherent existence and self-identity with respect to all phenomena. According to this view, all things and events are devoid of any independent, intrinsic reality that constitutes their essence. Nothing can be said to exist independent of the complex network of factors that gives rise to its origination, nor are phenomena independent of the cognitive processes and mental constructs that make up the conventional framework within which their identity and existence are posited. When all levels of conceptualization dissolve and when all forms of dichotomizing tendencies are quelled through deliberate meditative deconstruction of conceptual elaborations, the ultimate nature of reality will finally become manifest. It is the first of the three gateways to liberation.

Located in 30 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­60
  • 2.­24
  • 2.­26-27
  • 3.­22
  • 3.­24
  • 3.­26
  • 3.­41
  • 4.­26-27
  • 4.­30
  • 4.­53-54
  • 4.­58-61
  • 4.­63-64
  • 4.­73
  • 4.­76
  • 4.­104
  • 4.­118
  • 4.­121
  • 5.­18-20
  • 8.­32
  • 9.­9
  • g.­266
g.­65

equipoise

Wylie:
  • mnyam par bzhag pa
  • mnyam par gzhag pa
Tibetan:
  • མཉམ་པར་བཞག་པ།
  • མཉམ་པར་གཞག་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • samāhita
  • samāpatti

A state of mental equipoise derived from deep concentration.

Located in 7 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­30
  • 1.­59
  • 4.­2
  • 4.­69
  • 4.­71
  • 4.­104
  • 6.­25
g.­81

four concentrations

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

The four levels of concentration related to the form realm.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 9.­27
  • g.­47
g.­83

four great elements

Wylie:
  • ’byung ba chen po bzhi
Tibetan:
  • འབྱུང་བ་ཆེན་པོ་བཞི།
Sanskrit:
  • caturmahābhūta

Earth, water, fire, and wind.

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • 4.­17
  • 4.­36
  • 4.­57
  • 4.­113
  • g.­59
  • g.­110
g.­88

four truths of the noble ones

Wylie:
  • ’phags pa’i bden pa bzhi
Tibetan:
  • འཕགས་པའི་བདེན་པ་བཞི།
Sanskrit:
  • caturāryasatya

The Buddha’s first teaching, which explains suffering, the origin of suffering, the cessation of suffering, and the path to the cessation of suffering.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 4.­76
  • g.­11
g.­95

gandharva

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

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A class of generally benevolent nonhuman beings who inhabit the skies, sometimes said to inhabit fantastic cities in the clouds, and more specifically to dwell on the eastern slopes of Mount Meru, where they are ruled by the Great King Dhṛtarāṣṭra. They are most renowned as celestial musicians who serve the gods. In the Abhidharma, the term is also used to refer to the mental body assumed by sentient beings during the intermediate state between death and rebirth. Gandharvas are said to live on fragrances (gandha) in the desire realm, hence the Tibetan translation dri za, meaning “scent eater.”

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­1
  • 6.­12
  • 10.­24
  • 12.­69
g.­96

Ganges

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

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The Gaṅgā, or Ganges in English, is considered to be the most sacred river of India, particularly within the Hindu tradition. It starts in the Himalayas, flows through the northern plains of India, bathing the holy city of Vārāṇasī, and meets the sea at the Bay of Bengal, in Bangladesh. In the sūtras, however, this river is mostly mentioned not for its sacredness but for its abundant sands‍—noticeable still today on its many sandy banks and at its delta‍—which serve as a common metaphor for infinitely large numbers.

According to Buddhist cosmology, as explained in the Abhidharmakośa, it is one of the four rivers that flow from Lake Anavatapta and cross the southern continent of Jambudvīpa‍—the known human world or more specifically the Indian subcontinent.

Located in 27 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­31
  • 1.­33
  • 1.­35
  • 1.­69
  • 2.­1-2
  • 2.­9
  • 2.­29-30
  • 2.­35
  • 2.­52
  • 2.­55
  • 2.­63
  • 2.­73-74
  • 2.­87
  • 3.­7
  • 3.­37
  • 3.­41
  • 3.­45
  • 3.­52
  • 6.­6
  • 6.­12-13
  • 6.­17
  • 6.­25
  • 8.­32
g.­97

garuḍa

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

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

In Indian mythology, the garuḍa is an eagle-like bird that is regarded as the king of all birds, normally depicted with a sharp, owl-like beak, often holding a snake, and with large and powerful wings. They are traditionally enemies of the nāgas. In the Vedas, they are said to have brought nectar from the heavens to earth. Garuḍa can also be used as a proper name for a king of such creatures.

Located in 30 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­1
  • 1.­28
  • 1.­33
  • 2.­7
  • 2.­12
  • 2.­32
  • 2.­36
  • 2.­57
  • 2.­78
  • 2.­84
  • 3.­52
  • 3.­58
  • 4.­48
  • 4.­50
  • 4.­105
  • 4.­107-108
  • 4.­118-119
  • 4.­122-123
  • 5.­1
  • 6.­12
  • 7.­39
  • 8.­28
  • 10.­24
  • 12.­36
  • 12.­40
  • 12.­58
  • 12.­69
g.­119

Heaven of the Thirty-Three

Wylie:
  • sum cu rtsa gsum pa
Tibetan:
  • སུམ་ཅུ་རྩ་གསུམ་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • trāyastriṃśa

The second-lowest heaven of the desire realm located above Mount Meru and reigned over by Indra, otherwise known as Śakra, and thirty-two other gods.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 12.­14
  • g.­224
g.­137

Jambudvīpa

Wylie:
  • ’dzam bu’i gling
Tibetan:
  • འཛམ་བུའི་གླིང་།
Sanskrit:
  • jambudvīpa

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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.

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • 7.­30
  • 7.­40
  • 9.­13
  • 12.­2
  • 12.­15
  • g.­190
g.­138

Jyotīrasa

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

Name of a sage.

Located in 18 passages in the translation:

  • 7.­67-73
  • 7.­84
  • 7.­105
  • 8.­6
  • 8.­31-35
  • 9.­12
  • 9.­21
  • 10.­1
g.­139

Kalandakanivāpa

Wylie:
  • ka lan da ka gnas
Tibetan:
  • ཀ་ལན་ད་ཀ་གནས།
Sanskrit:
  • kalandakanivāpa

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1
  • 1.­1
g.­145

kaṭapūtana

Wylie:
  • lus srul po
Tibetan:
  • ལུས་སྲུལ་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • kaṭapūtana

Ugly spirits with rotting bodies.

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­77-78
  • 3.­58
  • 5.­5
  • 7.­39
g.­146

Kauṇḍinya

Wylie:
  • kau Di n+ya
Tibetan:
  • ཀཽ་ཌི་ནྱ།
Sanskrit:
  • kauṇḍinya

The first monk that the Buddha Śākyamuni recognized as having understood his teachings.

Located in 44 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­30
  • 4.­5-6
  • 4.­8-9
  • 4.­11
  • 4.­13-14
  • 4.­22
  • 4.­28
  • 4.­52-57
  • 4.­65-67
  • 4.­73
  • 4.­79
  • 4.­85-86
  • 4.­88-95
  • 4.­97-98
  • 4.­100-105
  • 6.­4
  • 10.­32
  • 11.­25
  • 11.­90
  • g.­11
g.­148

Kawa Paltsek

Wylie:
  • dpal brtsegs
Tibetan:
  • དཔལ་བརྩེགས།
Sanskrit:
  • —

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Paltsek (eighth to early ninth century), from the village of Kawa north of Lhasa, was one of Tibet’s preeminent translators. He was one of the first seven Tibetans to be ordained by Śāntarakṣita and is counted as one of Guru Rinpoché’s twenty-five close disciples. In a famous verse by Ngok Lotsawa Loden Sherab, Kawa Paltsek is named along with Chokro Lui Gyaltsen and Zhang (or Nanam) Yeshé Dé as part of a group of translators whose skills were surpassed only by Vairotsana.

He translated works from a wide variety of genres, including sūtra, śāstra, vinaya, and tantra, and was an author himself. Paltsek was also one of the most important editors of the early period, one of nine translators installed by Tri Songdetsen (r. 755–797/800) to supervise the translation of the Tripiṭaka and help catalog translated works for the first two of three imperial catalogs, the Denkarma (ldan kar ma) and the Samyé Chimpuma (bsam yas mchims phu ma). In the colophons of his works, he is often known as Paltsek Rakṣita (rak+Shi ta).

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • c.­1
g.­151

kinnara

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

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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

Located in 29 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­1
  • 1.­28
  • 1.­33
  • 2.­7
  • 2.­12
  • 2.­32
  • 2.­36
  • 2.­78
  • 2.­84
  • 3.­52
  • 4.­48
  • 4.­50
  • 4.­105
  • 4.­107-108
  • 4.­118-119
  • 4.­122-123
  • 5.­1
  • 6.­12
  • 7.­39
  • 7.­73
  • 10.­24
  • 11.­1
  • 12.­36
  • 12.­40
  • 12.­58
  • 12.­69
g.­155

kṣatriya

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

The second highest of the four classes in the Indian caste system, it is associated with warriors, the aristocracy, and kings.

Located in 30 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­41
  • 1.­43-48
  • 1.­50-51
  • 1.­55-56
  • 1.­58
  • 1.­63
  • 1.­67-70
  • 1.­72-73
  • 2.­7
  • 2.­12
  • 2.­15
  • 2.­28
  • 2.­31
  • 3.­52
  • 4.­48
  • 4.­105
  • 4.­119
  • 5.­2-3
g.­162

limit of reality

Wylie:
  • yang dag pa’i mtha’
Tibetan:
  • ཡང་དག་པའི་མཐའ།
Sanskrit:
  • bhūtakoṭi

A synonym for ultimate reality.

Located in 10 passages in the translation:

  • 4.­22
  • 5.­14-15
  • 5.­17-19
  • 8.­32
  • 12.­52
  • 12.­55
  • n.­58
g.­166

Magadha

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

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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

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

Located in 7 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­22
  • 2.­72
  • 7.­40
  • 8.­26
  • 12.­18
  • g.­25
  • g.­212
g.­167

mahābrahmā

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

Beings from the third heaven of the realm of form, meaning “great Brahmā.”

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­3
  • 1.­12
  • 2.­21-22
  • 3.­1
  • 7.­65
  • 9.­30
  • g.­104
g.­171

mahoraga

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

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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

Located in 26 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­1-2
  • 1.­28
  • 1.­33
  • 2.­7
  • 2.­32
  • 2.­78
  • 2.­84
  • 3.­52
  • 3.­58
  • 4.­48
  • 4.­50
  • 4.­105
  • 4.­107-108
  • 4.­118-119
  • 4.­122-123
  • 5.­1
  • 6.­12
  • 7.­39
  • 10.­24
  • 12.­36
  • 12.­58
  • 12.­69
g.­172

Maitreya

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

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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

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

Located in 12 passages in the translation:

  • 5.­13-19
  • 11.­9
  • 11.­59-60
  • 12.­34
  • g.­117
g.­176

Māra

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

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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

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

Located in 91 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1
  • 1.­33
  • 1.­35
  • 1.­64
  • 1.­67
  • 2.­2
  • 2.­7
  • 2.­9
  • 2.­14
  • 2.­17
  • 2.­23
  • 2.­52
  • 2.­55
  • 2.­74
  • 2.­79
  • 2.­84
  • 2.­87
  • 2.­92
  • 2.­94
  • 3.­2
  • 3.­7-8
  • 3.­17
  • 3.­22
  • 3.­33
  • 3.­37
  • 3.­52
  • 4.­48
  • 4.­105
  • 4.­119
  • 7.­1
  • 7.­3
  • 7.­7-8
  • 7.­10
  • 7.­12
  • 7.­14
  • 7.­17
  • 7.­20
  • 7.­24
  • 7.­27-28
  • 7.­32-33
  • 7.­35
  • 7.­37
  • 7.­40-41
  • 7.­43
  • 7.­48-49
  • 7.­53-54
  • 7.­61
  • 7.­63-64
  • 8.­23
  • 8.­29
  • 8.­31
  • 8.­34
  • 9.­1
  • 9.­3
  • 9.­6
  • 9.­9
  • 9.­12-16
  • 9.­20
  • 9.­30
  • 10.­15
  • 10.­23-25
  • 12.­36-37
  • 12.­40
  • 12.­42-43
  • 12.­46-49
  • 12.­56
  • 12.­58
  • 12.­69
  • g.­86
  • g.­90
  • g.­217
g.­182

Mount Sumeru

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

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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.

Located in 29 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­15
  • 6.­6
  • 7.­29
  • 7.­31
  • 7.­50
  • 10.­3-4
  • 10.­10-14
  • 10.­22-26
  • 10.­28-29
  • 10.­32
  • 10.­40
  • 11.­1
  • 11.­81
  • 12.­14
  • g.­84
  • g.­107
  • g.­181
  • g.­208
  • g.­223
g.­188

nāga

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

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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

Located in 248 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1
  • 1.­1
  • 1.­28
  • 1.­33
  • 1.­35
  • 2.­3-4
  • 2.­6-7
  • 2.­9
  • 2.­12
  • 2.­15
  • 2.­24
  • 2.­26
  • 2.­28-29
  • 2.­32
  • 2.­53
  • 2.­55
  • 2.­57-59
  • 2.­70
  • 2.­75
  • 2.­78-79
  • 2.­81
  • 2.­87
  • 2.­95
  • 3.­2
  • 3.­7-8
  • 3.­22
  • 3.­37
  • 3.­52
  • 4.­48
  • 4.­50
  • 4.­107-108
  • 4.­118
  • 4.­122-123
  • 5.­1
  • 5.­5
  • 6.­5
  • 6.­12
  • 6.­18
  • 7.­17-19
  • 7.­21
  • 7.­23
  • 7.­27-32
  • 7.­34
  • 7.­36
  • 7.­38-39
  • 7.­55
  • 7.­58
  • 7.­61-62
  • 7.­65
  • 7.­68-73
  • 7.­76
  • 7.­78
  • 7.­85
  • 7.­97
  • 7.­105
  • 8.­3-6
  • 8.­16
  • 8.­19
  • 8.­30-31
  • 8.­33-34
  • 9.­1-2
  • 9.­12-13
  • 9.­18
  • 10.­1-2
  • 10.­13
  • 10.­16-17
  • 10.­19-21
  • 10.­23-24
  • 10.­28-30
  • 10.­35-39
  • 11.­1-10
  • 11.­16
  • 11.­18
  • 11.­23
  • 11.­26-27
  • 11.­34-35
  • 11.­38
  • 11.­47
  • 11.­50
  • 11.­52
  • 11.­55
  • 11.­57
  • 11.­61-64
  • 11.­67-72
  • 11.­75-76
  • 11.­89
  • 11.­91
  • 12.­1
  • 12.­3-26
  • 12.­28
  • 12.­31-32
  • 12.­34-37
  • 12.­40-42
  • 12.­56
  • 12.­58-60
  • 12.­62
  • 12.­64
  • 12.­68-69
  • g.­6
  • g.­10
  • g.­13
  • g.­14
  • g.­20
  • g.­21
  • g.­27
  • g.­28
  • g.­29
  • g.­30
  • g.­36
  • g.­44
  • g.­48
  • g.­57
  • g.­58
  • g.­60
  • g.­63
  • g.­64
  • g.­71
  • g.­92
  • g.­97
  • g.­100
  • g.­101
  • g.­102
  • g.­103
  • g.­111
  • g.­112
  • g.­114
  • g.­128
  • g.­131
  • g.­133
  • g.­135
  • g.­142
  • g.­154
  • g.­163
  • g.­164
  • g.­179
  • g.­184
  • g.­185
  • g.­186
  • g.­189
  • g.­195
  • g.­201
  • g.­215
  • g.­221
  • g.­227
  • g.­251
  • g.­252
  • g.­258
  • g.­259
  • g.­262
  • g.­274
  • g.­279
  • g.­288
  • g.­290
  • g.­300
g.­191

Nārāyaṇa

Wylie:
  • sred med kyi bu
Tibetan:
  • སྲེད་མེད་ཀྱི་བུ།
Sanskrit:
  • nārāyaṇa

An alternate name for Viṣṇu (khyab ’jug).

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­28
  • 2.­71-72
  • 3.­1
  • 6.­18
  • 9.­27
g.­200

piśāca

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

A class of nonhumans said to dwell in impure and perilous places, where they feed on impure things, including flesh.

Located in 12 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­78
  • 3.­58
  • 4.­50
  • 4.­107
  • 4.­122-123
  • 5.­1
  • 7.­39
  • 11.­23
  • 12.­41
  • 12.­58
  • 12.­69
g.­202

preta

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

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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

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

Located in 33 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­38
  • 1.­49
  • 2.­12
  • 2.­78
  • 3.­58
  • 4.­17
  • 4.­50
  • 4.­89
  • 4.­92
  • 4.­107
  • 4.­122-123
  • 5.­1
  • 7.­39
  • 8.­13
  • 11.­2-4
  • 11.­6-7
  • 11.­23
  • 11.­46
  • 11.­48
  • 11.­50
  • 11.­52
  • 11.­55
  • 11.­61
  • 12.­41
  • 12.­58
  • 12.­69
  • g.­53
  • g.­268
  • g.­302
g.­209

pūtana

Wylie:
  • srul po
Tibetan:
  • སྲུལ་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • pūtana

A class of disease-causing spirits associated with cemeteries and dead bodies.

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­78
  • 2.­94
  • 3.­58
  • 4.­123-124
  • 5.­1
  • 7.­39
  • 12.­69
g.­210

Quintessence of the Sun’s Energy

Wylie:
  • nyi ma’i shugs kyi snying po
Tibetan:
  • ཉི་མའི་ཤུགས་ཀྱི་སྙིང་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

A bodhisattva residing in a buddha realm in the eastern direction at the time of the Buddha Śākyamuni.

Located in 14 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­1-2
  • 2.­10-11
  • 2.­14
  • 2.­18
  • 2.­20
  • 2.­22
  • 3.­1
  • 3.­11-12
  • 4.­33
  • 4.­47
  • 4.­51
g.­212

Rājagṛha

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

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1
  • 1.­1
  • g.­292
g.­213

rākṣasa

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

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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

Located in 10 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­1
  • 1.­28
  • 2.­78
  • 4.­50
  • 4.­107
  • 12.­40-41
  • 12.­58
  • 12.­69
  • g.­214
g.­221

Sāgara

Wylie:
  • rgya mtsho
Tibetan:
  • རྒྱ་མཚོ།
Sanskrit:
  • sāgara

A nāga king.

Located in 14 passages in the translation:

  • 7.­30
  • 7.­65
  • 8.­1
  • 8.­33
  • 10.­17
  • 10.­28
  • 10.­35
  • 11.­1
  • 11.­4
  • 11.­9
  • 12.­13
  • 12.­59
  • 12.­61
  • 12.­63
g.­222

sage

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

An ancient Indian spiritual title, especially for divinely inspired individuals credited with creating the foundations for all Indian culture.

Located in 115 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­9-10
  • 1.­67
  • 2.­15
  • 3.­5
  • 3.­18
  • 3.­21
  • 3.­35
  • 4.­51
  • 7.­25
  • 7.­29-32
  • 7.­38
  • 7.­55
  • 7.­67-69
  • 7.­71-74
  • 7.­77
  • 7.­84
  • 7.­94
  • 7.­97-98
  • 7.­100
  • 7.­104-105
  • 8.­4
  • 8.­6-9
  • 8.­11
  • 8.­27
  • 8.­30-33
  • 8.­35
  • 9.­7
  • 9.­12
  • 10.­13
  • 10.­18
  • 10.­21
  • 10.­23-25
  • 10.­28
  • 10.­31
  • 11.­1
  • 11.­70
  • 12.­2-3
  • 12.­5
  • 12.­7-33
  • 12.­36-37
  • 12.­42
  • g.­23
  • g.­35
  • g.­39
  • g.­45
  • g.­46
  • g.­61
  • g.­67
  • g.­68
  • g.­89
  • g.­127
  • g.­138
  • g.­160
  • g.­161
  • g.­165
  • g.­204
  • g.­205
  • g.­207
  • g.­211
  • g.­220
  • g.­239
  • g.­247
  • g.­248
  • g.­264
  • g.­277
  • g.­280
  • g.­282
  • g.­289
g.­223

Sahā

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

This present universe of ours, usually referring to the whole trichiliocosm but at times only to our own world with its four continents surrounding Mount Sumeru. Sahā means “endurance,” as beings here have to endure suffering.

Located in 66 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­1-2
  • 1.­27
  • 1.­30-31
  • 1.­33
  • 1.­35
  • 2.­2-6
  • 2.­9-11
  • 2.­17
  • 2.­22-24
  • 2.­26-27
  • 2.­40
  • 2.­48
  • 2.­51-53
  • 2.­55-57
  • 2.­65-66
  • 2.­69-70
  • 2.­72
  • 2.­74-77
  • 2.­87
  • 2.­91
  • 2.­94-95
  • 2.­97
  • 3.­10
  • 3.­25
  • 3.­40
  • 3.­54
  • 4.­3
  • 4.­15
  • 4.­121
  • 6.­1
  • 6.­6
  • 6.­12-13
  • 6.­18
  • 6.­25
  • 9.­22
  • 10.­4
  • 10.­23-24
  • 10.­27
  • 10.­31-32
  • 10.­34
  • 12.­56
  • g.­32
g.­224

Śakra

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

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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

Located in 27 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­1-2
  • 1.­30
  • 2.­12
  • 2.­28
  • 2.­31
  • 2.­50-51
  • 3.­1
  • 4.­118
  • 6.­18
  • 7.­65
  • 7.­95-96
  • 7.­99
  • 9.­27
  • 10.­9
  • 10.­17
  • 10.­23-25
  • 10.­27
  • 10.­30
  • 12.­66-67
  • g.­119
  • g.­147
g.­226

Śākyamuni

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

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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

Located in 89 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1
  • 2.­2-4
  • 2.­6
  • 2.­9
  • 2.­11
  • 2.­13
  • 2.­20-24
  • 2.­26
  • 2.­40
  • 2.­49
  • 2.­51-53
  • 2.­55
  • 2.­65
  • 2.­67
  • 2.­69-70
  • 2.­72
  • 2.­74-75
  • 2.­87
  • 2.­95
  • 2.­97
  • 3.­1
  • 3.­15
  • 3.­25
  • 3.­30-31
  • 3.­40
  • 3.­45
  • 3.­54
  • 3.­60
  • 6.­12-13
  • 6.­16-18
  • 6.­25
  • 7.­38
  • 12.­57
  • g.­1
  • g.­3
  • g.­11
  • g.­12
  • g.­22
  • g.­25
  • g.­38
  • g.­50
  • g.­66
  • g.­93
  • g.­98
  • g.­99
  • g.­105
  • g.­106
  • g.­132
  • g.­139
  • g.­140
  • g.­144
  • g.­146
  • g.­150
  • g.­153
  • g.­166
  • g.­168
  • g.­172
  • g.­173
  • g.­174
  • g.­175
  • g.­178
  • g.­210
  • g.­219
  • g.­225
  • g.­229
  • g.­231
  • g.­234
  • g.­254
  • g.­256
  • g.­280
  • g.­283
  • g.­287
  • g.­292
  • g.­299
g.­236

six perfections

Wylie:
  • pha rol tu phyin pa drug
Tibetan:
  • ཕ་རོལ་ཏུ་ཕྱིན་པ་དྲུག
Sanskrit:
  • ṣaṭpāramitā

The trainings of the bodhisattva path: generosity, discipline, patience, diligence, concentration, and insight.

Located in 10 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­3
  • 2.­78
  • 2.­84
  • 7.­48
  • 8.­32
  • 9.­22
  • 11.­2
  • 12.­36
  • g.­47
  • g.­199
g.­238

solitary buddha

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

Someone who has attained liberation without relying on a teacher in their final lifetime and as a result of progress in previous lives but, unlike a buddha, does not have the accumulated merit and motivation to teach others. Like śrāvaka (“hearer”), this term is also used to denote Buddhists who do not follow the Mahāyāna.

Located in 22 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­52
  • 2.­12
  • 2.­36
  • 2.­79
  • 4.­52
  • 4.­96
  • 4.­115
  • 4.­117
  • 4.­121
  • 5.­5
  • 5.­19
  • 6.­5
  • 6.­13
  • 6.­18
  • 6.­25
  • 12.­2
  • 12.­27
  • 12.­31
  • n.­21
  • g.­42
  • g.­273
  • g.­291
g.­246

Śrī Mahādevī

Wylie:
  • dpal lha mo chen mo
Tibetan:
  • དཔལ་ལྷ་མོ་ཆེན་མོ།
Sanskrit:
  • śrī mahādevī

“Glorious Great Goddess.” This is also a widespread name in Hindu contexts; it is, for example, an epithet of Śiva’s consort, but this name could refer to a number of different figures.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 5.­10
  • 12.­66
g.­249

Sthāvarā

Wylie:
  • brtan ma
Tibetan:
  • བརྟན་མ།
Sanskrit:
  • sthāvarā

An earth goddess.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 5.­8
  • 12.­66
g.­253

sublime states

Wylie:
  • tshangs pa’i gnas
Tibetan:
  • ཚངས་པའི་གནས།
Sanskrit:
  • brahmavihāra

The four qualities of limitless love, compassion, joy, and equanimity.

Located in 20 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­1
  • 1.­5
  • 2.­2
  • 2.­23
  • 2.­52
  • 2.­65-66
  • 2.­74
  • 2.­82
  • 2.­92
  • 3.­55
  • 3.­60
  • 7.­48
  • 7.­70
  • 8.­32
  • 9.­21-23
  • 9.­27
  • 10.­33
g.­255

śūdra

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

The fourth and lowest of the classes in the Indian caste system, it generally encompasses the laboring class.

Located in 23 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­41
  • 1.­43-48
  • 1.­67-70
  • 1.­72-73
  • 2.­7
  • 2.­15
  • 2.­31
  • 3.­8
  • 3.­52
  • 4.­48
  • 4.­105
  • 4.­119
  • 5.­2
  • 7.­66
g.­266

three gateways of liberation

Wylie:
  • rnam par thar pa’i sgo gsum
Tibetan:
  • རྣམ་པར་ཐར་པའི་སྒོ་གསུམ།
Sanskrit:
  • trivimokṣadvāra

Emptiness, absence of marks, and absence of wishes.

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • 4.­72
  • 11.­90
  • g.­2
  • g.­4
  • g.­62
g.­267

Three Jewels

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

The Buddha, Dharma, and Saṅgha.

Located in 36 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­28
  • 1.­33
  • 1.­35
  • 1.­39
  • 1.­67
  • 1.­72-73
  • 2.­2
  • 2.­7
  • 2.­14
  • 2.­23
  • 2.­29
  • 2.­52
  • 2.­65-67
  • 2.­74
  • 2.­84
  • 3.­8
  • 3.­18
  • 3.­26
  • 3.­52
  • 3.­58
  • 3.­60
  • 4.­48
  • 4.­105
  • 4.­109
  • 4.­119
  • 4.­123
  • 5.­6
  • 6.­5
  • 8.­6
  • 8.­32
  • 11.­76-77
  • 11.­89
g.­270

three realms

Wylie:
  • srid pa gsum
  • srid pa gsum po
  • khams gsum
  • khams gsum pa
Tibetan:
  • སྲིད་པ་གསུམ།
  • སྲིད་པ་གསུམ་པོ།
  • ཁམས་གསུམ།
  • ཁམས་གསུམ་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • tribhava
  • tridhātu

The desire realm, form realm, and formless realm.

Located in 17 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­5
  • 1.­30
  • 2.­14
  • 3.­30
  • 4.­25
  • 4.­33
  • 4.­51
  • 4.­61
  • 4.­72
  • 4.­76
  • 4.­98
  • 8.­2
  • 8.­4
  • 8.­11
  • 8.­16
  • 8.­30
  • n.­51
g.­278

universal monarch

Wylie:
  • ’khor los sgyur ba
  • ’khor los sgyur ba’i rgyal po
Tibetan:
  • འཁོར་ལོས་སྒྱུར་བ།
  • འཁོར་ལོས་སྒྱུར་བའི་རྒྱལ་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • cakravartin

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

An ideal monarch or emperor who, as the result of the merit accumulated in previous lifetimes, rules over a vast realm in accordance with the Dharma. Such a monarch is called a cakravartin because he bears a wheel (cakra) that rolls (vartate) across the earth, bringing all lands and kingdoms under his power. The cakravartin conquers his territory without causing harm, and his activity causes beings to enter the path of wholesome actions. According to Vasubandhu’s Abhidharmakośa, just as with the buddhas, only one cakravartin appears in a world system at any given time. They are likewise endowed with the thirty-two major marks of a great being (mahāpuruṣalakṣaṇa), but a cakravartin’s marks are outshined by those of a buddha. They possess seven precious objects: the wheel, the elephant, the horse, the wish-fulfilling gem, the queen, the general, and the minister. An illustrative passage about the cakravartin and his possessions can be found in The Play in Full (Toh 95), 3.3–3.13.

Vasubandhu lists four types of cakravartins: (1) the cakravartin with a golden wheel (suvarṇacakravartin) rules over four continents and is invited by lesser kings to be their ruler; (2) the cakravartin with a silver wheel (rūpyacakravartin) rules over three continents and his opponents submit to him as he approaches; (3) the cakravartin with a copper wheel (tāmracakravartin) rules over two continents and his opponents submit themselves after preparing for battle; and (4) the cakravartin with an iron wheel (ayaścakravartin) rules over one continent and his opponents submit themselves after brandishing weapons.

Located in 9 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­28
  • 2.­96-97
  • 3.­1
  • 6.­18
  • 6.­25
  • 9.­27
  • 11.­5
  • g.­265
g.­284

vaiśya

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

The second lowest of the four classes in the Indian caste system, it generally includes the merchants and farmers.

Located in 19 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­41
  • 1.­43-44
  • 1.­48
  • 1.­67-70
  • 1.­72-73
  • 2.­7
  • 2.­15
  • 2.­31
  • 3.­8
  • 3.­52
  • 4.­48
  • 4.­105
  • 4.­119
  • 5.­2
g.­286

Vajrapāṇi

Wylie:
  • lag na rdo rje
Tibetan:
  • ལག་ན་རྡོ་རྗེ།
Sanskrit:
  • vajrapāṇi

An important bodhisattva, “Wielder of the Vajra,” whose compassion is to manifest in a terrific form to protect the practitioners of the Dharma from harmful influences.

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • 5.­12-19
g.­288

Varuṇa

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

A nāga king.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 12.­2-3
g.­292

Veṇuvana

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

A forest monastery north of Rājagṛha where the Buddha Śākyamuni spent several monsoon retreats and delivered many Great Vehicle teachings.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1
  • 1.­1
  • g.­139
g.­297

Vidyākaraprabha

Wylie:
  • bid+yA ka ra pra b+ha
Tibetan:
  • བིདྱཱ་ཀ་ར་པྲ་བྷ།
Sanskrit:
  • vidyākara­prabha

According to Nyangral Nyima Öser’s history, Ralpachen invited the Indian abbot Vidyākaraprabha to Tibet along with Jinamitra, Surendrabodhi, and Dānaśīla in the first part of the ninth century. Vidyākaraprabha was the author of the Madhyamaka­nayasāra­samāsa­prakaraṇa, a work in the Yogācāra-Madhyamaka school pioneered by Śāntarakṣita, translated into Tibetan with Paltsek under the name dbu ma’i lugs kyi snying po mdor bsdus pa’i rab tu byed pa (Toh 3893). He worked with Paltsek on numerous other translations on topics as diverse as the Sphuṭārthā commentary to the Abhisamayālaṅkāra, an extract from the Vimuktimārga, and the early Vidyottamamahātantra.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • c.­1
g.­301

well-gone one

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

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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

Located in 10 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­45
  • 1.­47
  • 1.­57
  • 1.­69
  • 4.­5
  • 4.­87
  • 6.­1
  • 11.­4
  • 11.­50
  • 11.­66
g.­303

worthy one

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

Used both as an epithet of buddhas and to refer to the final accomplishment of the śrāvaka path.

Located in 37 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­74
  • 2.­1-2
  • 2.­23
  • 2.­30
  • 2.­36
  • 2.­52
  • 2.­55
  • 2.­64
  • 2.­69
  • 2.­73-74
  • 2.­87
  • 3.­7
  • 3.­15
  • 3.­30
  • 3.­45
  • 3.­52
  • 3.­60
  • 4.­3
  • 4.­6
  • 4.­14
  • 4.­38-39
  • 4.­41
  • 4.­43-45
  • 4.­52
  • 4.­72
  • 4.­77
  • 4.­84
  • 4.­104
  • 8.­30
  • 11.­6
  • 11.­9
  • 11.­60
g.­304

yakṣa

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

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

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

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

Located in 58 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­1
  • 1.­28
  • 1.­33
  • 1.­35
  • 2.­7
  • 2.­15
  • 2.­28
  • 2.­32
  • 2.­36
  • 2.­77-79
  • 2.­84
  • 2.­94
  • 3.­8
  • 3.­17
  • 3.­52
  • 3.­58
  • 4.­11
  • 4.­48
  • 4.­50
  • 4.­105
  • 4.­107-108
  • 4.­118-119
  • 4.­122-123
  • 5.­1
  • 6.­5
  • 6.­12
  • 6.­18
  • 7.­38-39
  • 7.­70
  • 7.­73
  • 7.­97
  • 8.­5
  • 8.­16
  • 10.­19
  • 10.­23-24
  • 10.­34
  • 11.­1
  • 11.­23
  • 12.­29-31
  • 12.­33-34
  • 12.­36-37
  • 12.­40-41
  • 12.­58
  • 12.­66
  • 12.­69
  • g.­70
g.­306

Zangkyong

Wylie:
  • bzang skyong
Tibetan:
  • བཟང་སྐྱོང་།
Sanskrit:
  • —

Tibetan translator of the ninth century.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • c.­1
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