What Mendicants Hold Most Dear
Toh 302
Toh 302, vol. 72 (mdo sde, sa), folios 125.a–127.a
Imprint
Translated by the Achi Translation Group under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha
First published 2022
Current version v 1.0.8 (2024)
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Table of Contents
Summary
What Mendicants Hold Most Dear contains the Buddha’s answer to a question by Upāli, the Buddha’s foremost disciple in knowledge and mastery of the Vinaya. Upāli asks the Buddha to teach about the nature, types, and obligations of mendicants and about the meaning of this term. For the benefit of the assembled mendicants and mendicants in general, the Buddha explains that their nature is restraint, their obligations consist of disciplined conduct, and their types are the genuine mendicants who abide by disciplined conduct and those who are not genuine and thus do not so abide. When one of the Buddha’s answers given in similes seems obscure, he offers further clarification upon Upāli’s request. The Buddha explains the advantages of maintaining disciplined conduct, thus urging the mendicants to treasure it, and he warns against disregarding it while wearing the mendicant’s robes.
Acknowledgements
This sūtra was translated from Tibetan by the Achi Translation Group under the guidance of Khenchen Nyima Gyaltsen from Kagyu College in Dehradun, India, who provided many detailed explanations. Konchog Tenzin (Mark Riege) served as the main translator, and Yeshe Metog (Claudia Jürgens) and Virginia Blum as the main reviewers. Meghan Howard contributed valuable research and additional review.
The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.
Introduction
What Mendicants Hold Most Dear contains the Buddha’s response to a question from Upāli. It is set in a monastery called Blooming Lotus in Śrāvastī, where Upāli supplicates the Buddha in front of a large assembly of mendicants (Skt. bhikṣu; Tib. dge slong) and asks him about the nature, types, and obligations of mendicants, as well as the meaning of the term itself. To benefit mendicants generally, the Buddha addresses Upāli’s questions by praising disciplined conduct, emphasizing its importance, and encouraging the listeners to maintain it. When one of the Buddha’s answers given in similes seems obscure, he offers further clarification upon Upāli’s request. The Buddha explains the advantages of maintaining disciplined conduct, thus urging the mendicants to treasure it, and he warns against disregarding it while wearing the mendicant’s robes.
The monk Upāli is remembered as one of the “ten close disciples” (Tib. nyan thos nye ’khor bcu) of the Buddha and foremost in his mastery of the monastic discipline, or Vinaya. Before becoming a monk, Upāli was a low-caste barber attending the Śākya princes, and he received ordination together with them. Many conversations about the Vinaya between the Buddha and Upāli are recorded in the various Vinaya collections,1 and, according to early Buddhist texts, Upāli was often consulted by others about matters of monastic discipline, even during the Buddha’s lifetime. Following the Buddha’s passing, Upāli was chosen to recite the Vinaya at the First Buddhist Council.2
Very little is known about the sūtra’s history. There do not appear to be any translations into Chinese, and no Sanskrit version is extant.3 However, as we discuss below, one verse of the sūtra is cited in a commentary in the Tengyur.4 Just as we know very little about the sūtra’s Indic origins, we know even less about the origins of the Tibetan translation. The text’s colophon is rudimentary and does not offer any information on the translator. Additionally, two Kangyur catalogs list the translator as unknown.5 In terms of the date of its translation, the sūtra is not listed in the Denkarma (ldan/lhan dkar ma) or Phangthangma (’phang thang ma) catalogs, the earliest available lists of Buddhist texts translated into Tibetan, which were prepared in the ninth century. We do, however, find a reference to the sūtra in Butön’s (1290–1364) extensive catalog of scriptures and treatises, but he does not list the translator either.6
The sūtra is included in many of the Kangyurs. For example, Resources for Kanjur and Tanjur Studies at the University of Vienna7 lists twenty-nine different Kangyurs that contain the sūtra, including representatives from all the important groups, such as the Tshalpa, Thempangma, Ladhaki/Mustang, Independent/Mixed groups, and Bhutan Kangyurs. Except for the Namgyal Kangyur—which lists it as The Noble Sūtra of Upāli’s Questions (’phags pa nye bar ’khor gyis zhus pa zhes bya ba’i mdo)—all the titles and colophons are similar. While the Sanskrit title was originally specified by Tibetans as Bhikṣuprarejusūtra, modern scholars have reconstructed it as Bhikṣupriyasūtra, possibly due to the obscure meaning of prareju.8 Our translation is based on the version of the text contained in the Degé Kangyur. When comparing the Tibetan versions in the different Kangyurs (including the Lhasa, Stok Palace, Choné, Narthang, and Lithang Kangyurs), we found only minor differences beyond questions of spelling. The text has previously been translated several times: by W. W. Rockhill in 1883, by Bhikkhu Thubten Kalsang and Bhikkhu Pāsādika in 1970, and in two recent translations into English and Spanish, respectively, which have been published on the internet.9 We are not aware of any modern research dedicated to this text.
Throughout the centuries, Buddhists have turned to this sūtra for its explanation of the value of disciplined conduct. The example from the Tengyur is a citation of a verse from the sūtra in the Śīlakathāvṛtti, a commentary on Vasubandhu’s Śīlaparikathā (Sermons on Disciplined Conduct), to explain the harmful results of a loss of disciplined conduct:10
“It is explained that like branches that growFor a long time from a strong trunk,If that person has only the outer attributes for a long time,Reprehensible talk will increase,And misdeeds too will increase.”
Several Tibetan masters quote verses from the sūtra to emphasize the importance of keeping monastic discipline. For example, Jé Tsongkhapa (1357–1419) says in his Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path:11
“There are very grave consequences for you if you undertake an ethical discipline and then fail to keep it. The Sūtra Beloved of Monks (Bhikṣuprarejusūtra) says that, once you undertake a training, it will proceed in either an advantageous or disadvantageous direction:
“ ‘The ethical discipline of some leads to pleasure;The ethical discipline of others leads to pain.Those who possess ethical discipline are happy,Whereas those who break ethical discipline suffer.’“Therefore, you should also think about the drawbacks of not keeping to ethical discipline and thereby generate great respect for the training.”
Another example is the Fifth Dalai Lama, Ngawang Losang Gyatso (1617–82), who quotes a verse in his regulations for Drepung monastery:12
“If, due to a specific condition, one cannot keep the vows, it is more beneficial to give them up than to keep them hypocritically. For [the Bhikṣupriyasūtra] says:
“ ‘Rather than not abiding by the trainingWhile bearing the Well-Gone One’s victory banner,It would be better if that person were to cast off this outer appearance and remain a householderThe moment they no longer abide by the training.’ ”
The verse cited by the Fifth Dalai Lama embodies one of the sūtra’s key points—the importance of disciplined conduct, which the Buddha urges mendicants to treasure, warning them of careless discipline. The Buddha also affirms the value and benefit of monastic vows, urging those who have gone forth to protect their discipline and to hold it dear. For example, he eloquently likens discipline to an unparalleled balm, monastic robes to unparalleled garments, and disciplined conduct to supreme happiness. He says, moreover, that the merit accumulated through it brings forth the result of buddhahood.
Lastly, it should be noted that in the title and throughout the translation, we have rendered the term bhikṣu (Tib. dge slong) as “mendicant.” The Sanskrit term technically refers to a fully ordained monk, but in the plural, it may also implicitly include fully ordained nuns (Skt. bhikṣuṇī) and sometimes even practicing lay people.13 Moreover, we know that the Buddha’s disciples in Śrāvastī included nuns. He addresses them explicitly in the Bhikṣuṇīvinayavibhaṅga,14 and several Pali suttas of the Saṃyutta Nikāya also mention the presence of nuns in Śrāvastī.15 While of course we cannot know whether the sūtra’s original audience included nuns, its subject matter clearly concerns monks and nuns equally, so we felt it was desirable to render the term bhikṣu with the more inclusive “mendicant,” rather than just “monk.” This choice is also supported by the original meaning of the term bhikṣu, which, in its most literal sense, simply means “one who begs (Skt. bhikṣati) for a living.”
Text Body
The Translation
Homage to the Omniscient One.
Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was residing in the Blooming Lotus Monastery in the great city of Śrāvastī together with a retinue that consisted of a saṅgha of 12,500 mendicants. At that time, among the assembled retinue of the Blessed One, there was a noble one called Upāli, whose senses were disciplined, who was well learned, and who had profound wisdom. He was devoted to the Dharma and Vinaya excellently taught by the Blessed One, and he held them in the highest esteem. Upāli rose from his seat, draped his upper robe over one shoulder, and, kneeling on his right knee with palms joined at his heart, he smiled and supplicated the Blessed One with these words:
Thus proclaimed the Blessed One, and Upāli and the other mendicants praised what the Blessed One had said.
This completes “The Sūtra on What Mendicants Hold Most Dear.”
Notes
Bibliography
Primary Sources
dge slong la rab tu gces pa’i mdo (Bhikṣuprarejusūtra). Toh 302, Degé Kangyur vol. 72 (mdo sde, sa), folios 125.a–127.a.
dge slong la rab tu gces pa’i mdo (Bhikṣuprarejusūtra). 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. 72, pp. 337–41.
dge slong la rab tu gces pa'i mdo. Stok Palace Kangyur vol. 54 (mdo sde, ga), folios 357.a–358.b.
dge slong ma’i ’dul ba rnam par ’byed pa (Bhikṣuṇīvinayavibhaṅga). Toh 5, Degé Kangyur vol. 9 (’dul ba, ta), folios 25.b–328.a.
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’dul ba gzhung bla ma (Vinayottaragrantha). Toh 7, Degé Kangyur vol. 12 (’dul ba, na), folios 1.b–92.a.
’dul ba gzhung dam pa (Vinayottaragrantha). Toh 7a, Degé Kangyur vol. 12–13 (’dul ba, na–pa), folios 92.b (na)–313.a (pa).
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Hahn, Michael, and Naoki Saito. “Vasubandhus Mahnrede über die Sittlichkeit mit dem Kommentar des Prakāśakīrti.” In Pāsādikadānaṃ: Festschrift für Bhikkhu Pāsādika, edited by Martin Straube et al, 177–204. Marburg: Indica et Tibetica Verlag, 2009.
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Kalsang, Bhikkhu Thubten, and Bhikkhu Pāsādika. Bhikshu-Prateju-Sutra: The Discourse Named “The Bhikshu’s Predilection.” Bangkok: Visakha Puja, Annual Publication of the Buddhist Association of Thailand, 1970.
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Mohr, Thea, and Jampa Tshedroen, ed. Dignity and Discipline: Reviving Full Ordination for Buddhist Nuns. Boston: Wisdom Publications, 2010.
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Glossary
Types of attestation for names and terms of the corresponding source language
Attested in source text
This term is attested in a manuscript used as a source for this translation.
Attested in other text
This term is attested in other manuscripts with a parallel or similar context.
Attested in dictionary
This term is attested in dictionaries matching Tibetan to the corresponding language.
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.
Reconstruction from Tibetan phonetic rendering
This term is a reconstruction based on the Tibetan phonetic rendering of the term.
Reconstruction from Tibetan semantic rendering
This term is a reconstruction based on the semantics of the Tibetan translation.
Source unspecified
This term has been supplied from an unspecified source, which most often is a widely trusted dictionary.
ascetic discipline
- brtul zhugs
- བརྟུལ་ཞུགས།
- vrata
blessed one
- bcom ldan ’das
- བཅོམ་ལྡན་འདས།
- bhagavat
Blooming Lotus
- pad ma rgyas pa
- པད་མ་རྒྱས་པ།
- —
derivation
- skad byings
- སྐད་བྱིངས།
- dhātvartha
- dhātu
disciplined conduct
- tshul khrims
- ཚུལ་ཁྲིམས།
- śīla
five accompanying implements
- ’khor lnga
- འཁོར་ལྔ།
- —
four root downfalls
- rtsa ba bzhi
- རྩ་བ་བཞི།
- —
life pillar
- srog shing
- སྲོག་ཤིང་།
- yaṣṭi
mendicant
- dge slong
- དགེ་སློང་།
- bhikṣu
noble one
- ’phags pa
- འཕགས་པ།
- ārya
omniscient one
- thams cad mkhyen pa
- ཐམས་ཅད་མཁྱེན་པ།
- sarvajña
overly sour liquids
- skyur rtsi
- སྐྱུར་རྩི།
- nāgaraṅga
rice pudding
- ’bras chan
- འབྲས་ཆན།
- odana
sage
- thub pa
- ཐུབ་པ།
- muni
saṃsāra
- ’khor ba
- འཁོར་བ།
- saṃsāra
Śrāvastī
- mnyan yod
- མཉན་ཡོད།
- śrāvastī
three main robes
- gtso bo gsum
- གཙོ་བོ་གསུམ།
- —
Upāli
- nye bar ’khor
- ཉེ་བར་འཁོར།
- upāli
Vinaya
- ’dul ba
- འདུལ་བ།
- vinaya
well-gone one
- bde bar gshegs pa
- བདེ་བར་གཤེགས་པ།
- sugata
Well-Gone One’s victory banner
- bde bar gshegs pa’i rgyal mtshan
- བདེ་བར་གཤེགས་པའི་རྒྱལ་མཚན།
- sugatadhvaja