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གསུམ་པ་རྒྱལ་བའི་གསུང་རབ་གངས་རིའི་ཁྲོད་དུ་དེང་སང་ཇི་ཙམ་སྣང་བ་པར་དུ་བསྒྲུབས་པའི་བྱུང་བ་དངོས་ལེགས་པར་བཤད་པའི་ཡལ་འདབ།

The Third Well-Spoken Branch: An Exact Account of How All the Victorious One’s Teachings Extant Today in the Land of Snow Mountains Were Put into Print
Concluding Verses

ʙʏ
Tai Situ Chökyi Jungné
གསུམ་པ་རྒྱལ་བའི་གསུང་རབ་གངས་རིའི་ཁྲོད་དུ་དེང་སང་ཇི་ཙམ་སྣང་བ་པར་དུ་བསྒྲུབས་པའི་བྱུང་བ་དངོས་ལེགས་པར་བཤད་པའི་ཡལ་འདབ། སྡེ་དགེའི་བཀའ་འགྱུར་དཀར་ཆག
gsum pa rgyal ba’i gsung rab gangs ri’i khrod du deng sang ji tsam snang ba par du bsgrubs pa’i byung ba dngos legs par bshad pa’i yal ’dab/ sde dge’i bka’ ’gyur dkar chag
The Third Well-Spoken Branch: An Exact Account of How All the Victorious One’s Teachings Extant Today in the Land of Snow Mountains Were Put into Print
Chapter 3 of the Catalog of the Degé Kangyur

Toh 4568-3

Degé Kangyur, vol. 103 (lakṣmī), folios 98.a–112.a

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co.

Table of Contents

ti. Title
im. Imprint
co. Contents
s. Summary
ac. Acknowledgements
i. Introduction
tr. The Translation
+ 4 sections- 4 sections
p. Prologue
1. The History of the Patron, King Tenpa Tsering
+ 3 sections- 3 sections
1.1. 1.1 Location
1.2. 1.2 Family Lineage
1.3. 1.3 Qualities
2. The Virtuous Activity of Publishing the Victorious One’s Teachings
+ 3 sections- 3 sections
2.1. 2.1 The Time of the Production of the Kangyur
2.2. 2.2 The Manner in Which Source Texts Were Collected and Edited
+ 5 sections- 5 sections
· On the Creation of the Narthang Kangyur
· On the Creation of the Tshalpa Kangyur
· On the Creation of the Lithang Kangyur
· On the Other Editions Used for the Degé Kangyur
· On the Editing of Orthography
2.3. 2.3 The Practicalities of Printing the Kangyur
3. Concluding Verses
n. Notes
b. Bibliography
+ 2 sections- 2 sections
· Tibetan Language Sources
· Other Sources
g. Glossary

s.

Summary

s.­1

This is the third chapter of the Degé Kangyur Catalog, which describes the publication history of the Degé Kangyur. Authored by the Degé Kangyur’s main editor, Situ Paṇchen Chökyi Jungné, at the conclusion of the five-year project in 1733, it is a document rich in historical detail. First it covers the history of the Degé region and the royal family of Degé. Then it offers extensive praise for the qualities of Tenpa Tsering, the king of Degé and throne holder of Lhundrup Teng Monastery, who was the project’s main sponsor. After that is an erudite history of previous collections of translated Buddhist scriptures in Tibet since the time of the earliest translations during the Tibetan imperial period, and finally it describes the editorial process and practical challenges involved in producing a xylograph Kangyur of such quality.


ac.

Acknowledgements

ac.­1

Translated by the Subhāṣita Translation Group. The translation, along with all ancillary materials, was produced by Lowell Cook and Benjamin Ewing. Khenpo Tashi Pal, Andrew West, Alexander Berzin, and Ryan Conlon also contributed with advice and helpful comments.

ac.­2

The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha. Rory Lindsay and George Fitzherbert edited the translation and the introduction, and Ven. Konchog Norbu copyedited the text. Martina Cotter was in charge of the digital publication process.


ac.­3

The translation of this text has been made possible through the generous sponsorship of Chan Wing Fai, Lam Wai Ling, Chan Oi Yi, Chan Tung Mei, Chan Yu Ka, Chan Sui Li, Chan Ya Ho, Chan Yu Lin, Zhong Sheng Jian, and Lin Miao Jun.


i.

Introduction

i.­1

Much more than just a table of contents, what is known as the Degé Kangyur Catalog1 takes up the entirety of the 103rd and final volume of the Kangyur. It is presented in five chapters. The first three give a detailed history of Indian Buddhism, its arrival in Tibet, and the production of the Degé Kangyur. The final two constitute the catalog itself, in which all the texts included in the canon are listed, and the merits of producing a Kangyur are extolled. The Catalog was written by the eighth Tai Situ Chökyi Jungné (1700–74), widely known as Situ Paṇchen, who presided over the entire project as its chief editor. Presented here is the third chapter, which concludes Situ Paṇchen’s history of Buddhism in Tibet with an account of how this Kangyur in particular was produced at the royal palace-monastery of Degé, in eastern Tibet, between the years 1729 and 1733 of the Western calendar. The chapter is presented in two parts. Part 1 presents a family history and a descriptive eulogy of the Degé Kangyur’s main initiator and sponsor, Tenpa Tsering (1678–1738), the king of Degé. Part 2 starts with a scholarly history of previous Kangyur collections in Tibet, and then gives an account of the editorial and practical challenges involved in the production of the Degé Kangyur itself.


Text Body

The Translation
The Third Well-Spoken Branch:
An Exact Account of How All the Victorious One’s Teachings Extant Today in the Land of Snow Mountains Were Put into Print

p.

Prologue

[F.98.b]


p.­1

The following stanza is in the anuṣṭubh meter, which has eight syllables per verse quarter, and it is bound by a prastāra known as pathyā, a particular viṣamavṛtta.

p.­2
jātāj jāteṣu satkāryaṃ ratnā rajāḥ sucāyanāt |
śubhradharmasamākhātam abhūn narendramerutā ||13
p.­3
Through accumulating an abundance
Of the jewel dust of great deeds across lifetimes,
The mighty mountain, the Lord of Men, has appeared,
Like a wellspring of pure Dharma. [F.99.a]
p.­4
Most rulers of men resemble drunken elephants
Intoxicated by the liquor of desires;
They needlessly destroy the very reeds
That they themselves eat.

1.
Part 1

The History of the Patron, King Tenpa Tsering

The first is discussed from three perspectives: location, family lineage, and qualities.

1.1.

1.1 Location

1.1.­1

The location in general is Tibet, the land of the north, encircled by ranges of snowy mountains. The Root Manual of the Rites of Mañjuśrī states:

1.1.­2
After the lake has receded from the Land of Snows
It will be covered by groves of sāla trees.15
1.1.­3

As stated in this prophecy, Tibet was first a lake that gradually dried up, giving way to dense forest. At one point, a monkey blessed by the Great Compassionate One arrived from the land of Potalaka. It is said that the Tibetan people are descended from his union with a cliff ogress.

1.2.

1.2 Family Lineage

1.3.

1.3 Qualities


2.
Part 2

The Virtuous Activity of Publishing the Victorious One’s Teachings

The virtuous activity of publishing the Victorious One’s teachings will be explained according to the time of production, the process of collecting and editing the manuscripts, [F.106.a] and the practicalities of printing.

2.1.

2.1 The Time of the Production of the Kangyur

2.1.­1

In general, this great Fortunate Eon is made up of three phases: the age of formation, the age of remaining, and the age of destruction. Within the age of remaining, there are twenty intermediate periods: the long decline, the long rise, and the eighteen cyclical periods between. Currently, we are in the later part of the long decline. In terms of the stages of the existence of the Sage’s teachings, which are divided into groups of three 500-year periods, we are now in the latter half.

2.2.

2.2 The Manner in Which Source Texts Were Collected and Edited

On the Creation of the Narthang Kangyur

On the Creation of the Tshalpa Kangyur

On the Creation of the Lithang Kangyur

On the Other Editions Used for the Degé Kangyur

On the Editing of Orthography

2.3.

2.3 The Practicalities of Printing the Kangyur


3.

Concluding Verses

3.­1
When the great Brahmā of this land, the Ruler of Men,
Brought forth this veda through his virtuous activity,80
Emerging from his four heads of duty, prosperity, pleasures, and liberation,81
Vasudhārā was overjoyed.
3.­2
When he brought the three paths together
To form what is known as the Ganges River,
The evil deeds born from this poisonous existence
Were carried far downstream.
3.­3
He carried the infinitude of this great deed
Upon the maṇḍalas of his shoulders,
Bearing it with stability and unwavering endurance‍—
Look and see if he has the arrogance of even a snake. [F.112.b]
3.­4
All is lost in this degenerate age,
Yet out of the darkness, dawn breaks;
At the end of this age of strife,
This great shrine, unprecedented, is born.
3.­5
Amazing! The effort that accomplished this great act of generosity,
Bringing benefit and happiness to beings,
Emerged out of his courageous spirit, the Ocean of Milk,
Just like the majestic wish-fulfilling tree.
3.­6
His nature is unblemished courage; it is the indestructible vajra itself, not the frail bones of nursing infants.
His great deed is entirely virtuous; it is the true wish-fulfilling tree that satisfies all desires, not simply the kovidāra tree.
His name brings happiness to the hearts of all beings; it is the moon itself, not a poetic metaphor for the moon.
His myriad qualities have the nature of a well-crafted, jeweled necklace, not an ordinary string of pearls.
3.­7
The ocean of difficult tasks with its great waves, so hard to cross, is the abode of obstructions and fearsome water dragons.
Over the course of time, waves surge to the sky and childish beings are filled with fear and doubt.
Heroes, however, with unwavering intellect and a helmsman of skillful means and wisdom,
Will safely reach the other side, crossing upon the ferry of great perseverance.
3.­8
Though the fiercely blazing corporeal remainder assembles its armies by the millions
And showers down unbearable rains of fire, the courageous spirit of holy beings
Only flourishes all the more, without waning, like jasmine in the moonlight‍—
Look at how Māra has been defeated on this day.
3.­9

This has been the third well-spoken branch, “An Exact Account of How All the Victorious One’s Teachings Extant Today in the Land of Snow Mountains Were Put into Print.” It belongs to Vines of Jasmine Blossoming in the Youthful Moonlight to the Delight of the Wise: The Excellent History of How All the Source Texts of the Well-Gone One’s Teachings Extant in the Language of the Land of Snows Were Put into Print.


n.

Notes

n.­1
Knowledge Base Entry on the Degé Kangyur Catalog
n.­2
The Royal Genealogy of Degé (sde dge’i rgyal rabs), a history of the Degé royal family that was written nearly a century later in the 1820s by one of Tenpa Tsering’s successors, gives rather more emphasis to the Sakya affiliations of this royal family. The Royal Genealogy of Degé overlaps in many of its details with the family history given in the Catalog, but tends to be a bit more elaborate. For example, the The Royal Genealogy of Degé devotes a full seventeen folios to the life of Tenpa Tsering himself, who is presented as the fortieth generation incumbent of the royal house, and draws out his own extensive religious education, especially within the Sakya Ngor tradition. The Tibetan text is transcribed and introduced in Kolmaš 1968.
n.­3
The very turbulent political situation in central Tibet in the early eighteenth century saw a number of Qing interventions in central Tibetan politics, which raised the political profile of the Degé region. In 1721 the Qing sent an army to Lhasa to end the Dzungar occupation there, and install the Seventh Dalai Lama Kelzang Gyatso. The Seventh Dalai Lama already had good relations with Degé, having previously been granted temporary asylum there in 1714, when his life was threatened by Lhazang Khan. The further civil war in central Tibet in 1727–28, from which Pholhané emerged victorious, led to the Seventh Dalai Lama temporarily leaving Lhasa, whereupon the Qing arranged for him to have a residence built in the territory of Degé. In the context of such events, the Qing initiated an attempt to reorganize nominal imperial administration in the frontier districts of eastern Tibet. While the regions of Kham west of the Drichu River (Ch. Jinshajiang) were recognized to be under the authority of the government at Lhasa, the territories east of the Drichu were to be formally incorporated within the Qing’s imperial bureaucracy. Practical local governance over these areas, however, was to be left in the hands of what were referred to in imperial documents as “local rulers” (Ch. tuzi). Tenpa Tsering, as the ruler of the largest and most prestigious Tibetan kingdom east of the Drichu, which had recently expanded its territories to the north and east, and had favorable relations with the Seventh Dalai Lama, was granted imperial titles by the Qing and made the titular ruler of much of eastern Tibet. On the imperial titles conferred, see Tenpa Tsering’s entry at The Treasury of Lives. Also Kolmaš 1968, pp. 37–39.
n.­4
The Royal Genealogy of Degé states that he was “empowered to act as general ruler of Dokham and granted a golden seal, a hundred rolls of silk, and five thousand ‘ounces’ (Tib. srang) of silver.” The Royal Genealogy of Degé, fol. 27.a. Kolmaš 1968, pp. 118, 38.
n.­5
This is mentioned at folio 103.b, 1.3.­2.
n.­6
This is mentioned at folio 105.a, 1.3.­21.
n.­7
According to Situ Paṇchen, the Phanthangma was the first of the two catalogs and the Denkarma was produced some years later. However, there is disagreement on this issue among both traditional Tibetan scholars and modern historians, as discussed by Herrmann-Pfandt 2008. In her introductory survey of these two catalogs, Herrmann-Pfandt provides an overview of the various opinions and proposes that the most likely dating for the Phanthangma is the year 806 (pp. xxiv–xxvi) while for the Denkarma she suggests the year 812 (pp. xviii–xxii).
n.­8
Chomden Rikpai Raldri first produced a survey of translated scriptures, which has been presented with an introduction in Schaeffer and van de Kuijp 2021. In their introduction to this work, earlier canonical collation efforts in the thirteenth century are also discussed; see Schaeffer and van de Kuijp 2021, pp. 9–32. Whether such earlier efforts, before the compilation of the Old Narthang Kangyur, constituted what could be called a “Kangyur” as such remains a subject of scholarly debate. For a good general survey of the evolution of canonical collections see Harrison 1994 and Skilling 1997. For a summary treatment of the diversity of Kangyurs see Facts and Figures about the Kangyur and Tengyur.
n.­13
These two lines, presented on the chapter title page in the source text as a stanza of Sanskrit verse (with the note decribing their meter in small writing at the top of the page), are then rendered in Tibetan as the first of the five stanzas that follow.
n.­15
These lines could not be found verbatim in the Degé Kangyur edition of The Root Manual of the Rites of Mañjuśrī as quoted here, but the following lines are found: kha ba can gyi nang dag tu/ /sA la’i nags ni yang dag ’byung.
n.­80
This verse relates Tenpa Tsering and his sponsorship of this Kangyur to the Hindu deity Brahmā. According to tradition, the four foundational texts of traditional Hinduism, the Vedas, emerged from Brahmā’s four mouths.
n.­81
This is a list of the four pursuits of noble beings, or puruṣārtha. An important concept in Hinduism, these four traditionally encompass the proper goals of a human life.

b.

Bibliography

Tibetan Language Sources

gsum pa/ rgyal ba’i gsung rab gangs ri’i khrod du deng sang ji tsam snang ba par du bsgrubs pa’i byung ba dngos legs par bshad pa’i yal ’dab/. Toh 4568-3, Degé Kangyur vol. 103 (dkar chag, lakṣmī), folios 98.a–112.a.

gsum pa/ rgyal ba’i gsung rab gangs ri’i khrod du deng sang ji tsam snang ba par du bsgrubs pa’i byung ba dngos legs par bshad pa’i yal ’dab. 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. 105, pp. 215–45.

Mahāvyutpatti with sGra sbyor bam po gñis pa. Bibliotheca Polyglotta, University of Oslo. Input by Jens Braarvig and Fredrik Liland, 2010. Last accessed September 21, 2023.

Losang Thrinlé (blo bzang ’phrin las). dung dkar tshig mdzod chen mo. Beijing: krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrung khang, 2002.

Ngawang Lobsang Gyatso (ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho). gsung ’bum/ ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho. 28 vols. Beijing: krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang, 2009.

Tamdrin, Sampai Dondrup, Topden, Dondrup, Namsé, and Dorjé Khar (rta mgrin, bsam pa’i don grub, stobs ldan, don grub, rnam sras, and rdo rje-mkhar). bod kyi rtsom rig lo rgyus. Lhasa: bod ljongs mi dmangs dpe skrun khang, 2009.

Tsuklak Trengwa (gtsug lag ’phreng ba). chos ’byung mkhas pa’i dga’ ston. 2 vols. Beijing: mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 1986.

Other Sources

Almogi, Orna. “The Old sNar thang Tibetan Buddhist Canon Revisited, with Special Reference to dBus pa blo gsal’s bsTan ’gyur Catalogue.” Revue d’Etudes Tibétaines 58 (2021): 165–207.

Berzin, Alexander. “The Tibetan Calendar.” Accessed December 3, 2020.

Cabezón, José Ignacio, trans. The Just King: The Tibetan Buddhist Classic on Leading an Ethical Life. Boulder: Snow Lion, 2017.

Chaix, Rémi. “Construction Work and Wages at the Dergé Printing House in the Eighteenth Century.” Cross-Currents: East Asian History and Culture Review 19 (2016): 48–70.

Cüppers, Christoph, Leonard W. J. van der Kuijp, and Ulrich Pagel. Handbook of Tibetan Iconometry: A Guide to the Arts of the 17th Century. Leiden: Brill, 2012.

Frye, Stanley. Nagarjuna’s A Drop of Nourishment for People and its commentary The Jewel Ornament. Dharamsala: Library of Tibetan Works & Archives, 1994.

Geshe Sopa Lundhup, José Ignacio Cabezón, and Roger R. Jackson. Tibetan Literature: Studies in Genre: Essays in Honor of Geshe Lhundup Sopa. Ithaca: Snow Lion, 1996.

Gyilung Tashi Gyatso and Gyilung Thugchok Dorji. The Treasure of the Ancestral Clans of Tibet. Translated by Yeshi Dhondup. Dharamsala: Library of Tibetan Works and Archives, 2009.

Gyurme Dorje, trans. The Treasury of Knowledge Book Six, Parts One and Two: Indo-Tibetan Classical Learning and Buddhist Phenomenology. Boston: Snow Lion Publications, 2012.

Harrison, Paul (1996). “A Brief History of the Tibetan bKa’ ’gyur.” In Tibetan Literature: Studies in Genre, edited by José Ignacio Cabezón and Roger R. Jackson, 70–94. Ithaca: Snow Lion, 1996.

Harrison, Paul (1994). “In Search of the Source of the Tibetan Kanjur: A Reconnaissance Report.” In Tibetan Studies: Proceedings of the 6th Seminar of the International Association for Tibetan Studies, Fagernes 1992, edited by Per Kvaerne, Vol. 1: 295–317. Oslo: The Institute for Comparative Research in Human Culture, 1994.

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

Jampa Samten Shastri and Jeremy Russell. “Notes on the Lithang Edition of the Tibetan bKa’-’gyur.” The Tibet Journal vol. 12, no. 3 (Autumn 1987): 17–40.

Jamyang Khyentse Chökyi Lodrö. “Genealogy of the Dharma Kings of Derge.” Translated by Adam Pearcey. Lotsawa House, 2020.

Kolmaš, Josef. A Genealogy of the Kings of Derge: Sde-dge’i rgyal rabs. Tibetan Text Edited with Historical Introduction by Josef Kolmaš. Prague: Academia Publishing House of the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences, 1968.

Martin, Dan. “The Highland Vinaya Lineage.” In Tibet After Empire: Culture, Society and Religion Between 850–1000: Proceedings of the Seminar Held in Lumbini, Nepal, March 2011, edited by Christoph Cüppers, Robert Mayer, and Michael Walter, 239–65. Lumbini: Lumbini International Research Institute, 2013.

Nāgārjuna, Sa-skya Paṇḍi-ta. Elegant Sayings. Emeryville CA: Dharma Publishing, 1977.

Ngawang Tsepag. “Traditional Cataloguing & Classification of Tibetan Literature.” The Tibet Journal, vol. 30, no. 2 (2005): 49–60.

Petech, Luciano. China and Tibet in the Early XVIIIth Century. Second, Revised Edition. Leiden: Brill, 1972.

Ribur Ngawang Gyatso, et al. “A Short History of Tibetan Script.” The Tibet Journal vol. 9, no. 2 (1984): 28–30.

Roerich, George, trans. The Blue Annals: Parts I and II. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publisher, 2016.

Ruegg, David Seyfort. “The Temporal and the Spiritual and the So-Called Patron-Client Relation in the Governance of Inner Asia and Tibet.” In Patronage as Politics in South Asia, edited by Anastasia Piliavsky, 67–79. Delhi: Cambridge University Press, 2014.

Schaeffer, Kurtis R. The Culture of the Book in Tibet. New York, NY: Columbia Univ. Press, 2014.

Schaeffer, Kurtis R., et al., eds. Sources of Tibetan Tradition. New York: Columbia University Press, 2013.

Schaeffer, Kurtis R. and Leonard W.J. van der Kuijp. An Early Tibetan Survey of Buddhist Literature: The bstan pa rgyas pa rgyan gyi nyi ’od of Bcom ldan ral gri. Harvard Oriental Series 64. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2009.

Scherrer-Schaub, Cristina, “Enacting Words: A Diplomatic Analysis of the Imperial Decrees (bkas bcad) and their Application in the sGra sbyor bam po gñis pa Tradition”, JIABS 25/1-2 (2002): 263–340.

Schneider, Johannes. “A Buddhist Perspective of the Buddhavatara.” Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute 96 (2015): 77-93. Accessed September 29, 2020. doi:10.2307/26858223.

Skilling, Peter. “From bKa’ bstan bcos to bKa’ ’gyur and bsTan ’gyur.” In Transmission of the Tibetan Canon, edited by Helmut Eimer, 87–111. Vienna: Austrian Academy of Sciences Press, 1997.

Smith, Ellis G, and Kurtis R. Schaeffer. Among Tibetan Texts: History and Literature of the Himalayan Plateau. Boston: Wisdom Publications, 2002.

Snellgrove, David. Indo-Tibetan Buddhism: Indian Buddhists and Their Tibetan Successors. Vol. II. Boston: Shambhala, 1987.

Sonam Dorje. “The Tenth Derge King, Tenpa Tsering.” The Treasury of Lives, accessed May 30, 2020.

Sonam Gyaltsen (bsod nams rgyal mtshan). The Mirror Illuminating the Royal Genealogies: An Annotated Translation of the XIVth Century Tibetan Chronicle: rGyal-rabs gsal-ba’i me-long. Translated by Per K. Sørenson. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 1994.

Tucci, Giuseppe. The Tombs of Tibetan Kings. Rome: Is. M. E. O., 1950.

van Schaik, Sam (2011). Tibet: A History. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2011.

van Schaik, Sam (2013). “Ruler of the East, or Eastern Capital: What Lies behind the Name Tong Kun?” In Studies in Chinese Manuscripts: From the Warring States to the Twentieth Century, edited by Imre Galambos, 211–223. Budapest: Eötvös Loránd University, 2013.

Vetturnini, Gianpaolo. “The bKa’ gdams pa School of Tibetan Buddhism.” PhD diss, SOAS, 2007. http://himalaya.socanth.cam.ac.uk/collections/rarebooks/dow 349 nloads/Gianpaolo_Vetturini_PhD.pdf (revised 2013).


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

A Nga

Wylie:
  • a snga
Tibetan:
  • ཨ་སྔ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

The third Degé king, Pönchen A Nga (mid-fifteenth to early sixteenth century), was the head of the house of Degé in its thirty-third generation. He had two sons (though here it mentions seven), of whom the elder, Joden Namkha Lhunsang, took monastic vows and the younger, Yangyal Pal, took over the Degé kingdom. For more on his life see his entry at The Treasury of Lives.

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • 1.2.­9
  • g.­95
  • g.­116
g.­2

Ācārya Bodhisattva

Wylie:
  • A tsAr+ya bo d+hi sa twa
Tibetan:
  • ཨཱ་ཙཱརྱ་བོ་དྷི་ས་ཏྭ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

Also known by his Sanskrit name, Śāntarakṣita (725–88), he was a Bengali monk and scholar and the first abbot at Samyé monastery. He was one of the most important figures in the establishment of Buddhism in Tibet.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 2.2.­5
g.­3

Ācārya Jinamitra

Wylie:
  • A tsArya dzi na mi tra
Tibetan:
  • ཨཱ་ཙཱརྱ་ཛི་ན་མི་ཏྲ།
Sanskrit:
  • ācāryo jinamitraḥ

A Kashmiri paṇḍita who was invited to Tibet during the late eighth and early ninth centuries. He worked with several Tibetan translators on the translation of a number of sūtras.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 2.2.­4
g.­44

Degé

Wylie:
  • sde dge
Tibetan:
  • སྡེ་དགེ
Sanskrit:
  • —

The name of a kingdom in eastern Tibet. Its name literally means “happiness and goodness.”

Located in 64 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1-8
  • i.­11-12
  • i.­15-16
  • 1.2.­7
  • 1.2.­10
  • 2.2.­16
  • 2.2.­24
  • n.­2-3
  • n.­9
  • n.­15
  • n.­24
  • n.­27
  • n.­31-32
  • n.­35
  • n.­38
  • n.­40
  • n.­43
  • n.­70
  • g.­1
  • g.­14
  • g.­55
  • g.­59
  • g.­81
  • g.­95
  • g.­102
  • g.­104
  • g.­106
  • g.­116
  • g.­133
  • g.­134
  • g.­144
  • g.­147
  • g.­151
  • g.­152
  • g.­153
  • g.­156
  • g.­177
  • g.­178
  • g.­184
  • g.­187
  • g.­199
  • g.­200
  • g.­207
  • g.­232
  • g.­245
  • g.­255
  • g.­265
  • g.­267
  • g.­300
  • g.­340
  • g.­343
  • g.­346
g.­74

Fortunate Eon

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

The Fortunate Eon is our current eon. It is termed such because it formed out of an ocean that had a thousand-petaled lotus flower, signaling that one thousand buddhas would appear in succession during this time.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.3.­2
  • 2.1.­1
g.­93

Great Compassionate One

Wylie:
  • thugs rje chen po
Tibetan:
  • ཐུགས་རྗེ་ཆེན་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • mahākāruṇika

An epithet for Avalokiteśvara, the bodhisattva of compassion and patron deity of Tibet.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.1.­3
  • 1.1.­9
g.­131

kovidāra

Wylie:
  • ko bi da ra
Tibetan:
  • ཀོ་བི་ད་ར།
Sanskrit:
  • kovidāra

A tree that is said to have been grown in the heavens, possibly Bauhinia variegata.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 3.­6
g.­146

Land of Snows

Wylie:
  • gangs can
Tibetan:
  • གངས་ཅན།
Sanskrit:
  • —

A common way of referring to greater Tibet.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 1.1.­2
  • 1.1.­12
  • 2.2.­2
  • g.­37
g.­151

Lhundrup Teng

Wylie:
  • lhun grub steng
Tibetan:
  • ལྷུན་གྲུབ་སྟེང་།
Sanskrit:
  • —

Lhundrup Teng is a monastery in Degé, also known as Degé Gonchen. It houses the renowned Degé printing house established by Tenpa Tsering. Originally a royal palace and temple, from the seventeenth century Lhundrup Teng became closely associated with the Ngor branch of the Sakya tradition. Until the mid-nineteenth century the kings of Degé were also often, as in the case of Tenpa Tsering, the throne holders (khri chen) or abbots of Lhundrup Teng.

Located in 18 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­2-5
  • 1.1.­20
  • 1.2.­8
  • 1.2.­10
  • 1.2.­13
  • 1.3.­10
  • 2.3.­3
  • n.­51
  • g.­104
  • g.­135
  • g.­201
  • g.­232
  • g.­255
  • g.­267
g.­156

Lord of Men

Wylie:
  • mi’i dbang po
Tibetan:
  • མིའི་དབང་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

An epithet used in the Catalog to refer to Tenpa Tsering, the tenth Degé king and sponsor of the Degé Kangyur.

Located in 9 passages in the translation:

  • p.­3
  • p.­8
  • 1.2.­1
  • 1.2.­14
  • 1.3.­22-59
  • 2.1.­4
  • 2.2.­18
  • 2.3.­4
g.­163

Māra

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

The demon who assailed Śākyamuni prior to his awakening; any demonic force; the personification of conceptual and emotional obstacles.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 2.1.­8
  • 3.­8
g.­179

Ocean of Milk

Wylie:
  • ’o mtsho
Tibetan:
  • འོ་མཚོ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

The Ocean of Milk is the fifth of seven oceans in Hindu cosmology. According to that tradition, the divine wish-fulfilling tree emerged when the Ocean of Milk was churned by the gods in their quest for the elixir of immortality.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 3.­5
g.­191

pathyā

Wylie:
  • kha sgo phan pa
Tibetan:
  • ཁ་སྒོ་ཕན་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • pathyā

In metrics, pathyā refers to the “normal,” as opposed to the “extended” (vipula), variety of anuṣṭubh.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­1
g.­202

Potalaka

Wylie:
  • yul gru ’dzin
Tibetan:
  • ཡུལ་གྲུ་འཛིན།
Sanskrit:
  • potalaka

Potalaka is the pure land of Avalokiteśvara.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.1.­3
g.­205

prastāra

Wylie:
  • prsta+a ra
  • ’god tshul
Tibetan:
  • པརསྟྸ་ར།
  • འགོད་ཚུལ།
Sanskrit:
  • prastāra

A fixed arrangement of short and long syllables. See Jamgön Kongtrul Lodrö Tayé and Gyurme Dorje, pp. 367–78.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­1
g.­222

Sage

Wylie:
  • thub pa
Tibetan:
  • ཐུབ་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

An epithet for the Buddha.

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • p.­6
  • 2.1.­1
  • g.­166
g.­224

Sakya

Wylie:
  • sa skya
Tibetan:
  • ས་སྐྱ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

One of the four main schools of Tibetan Buddhism, taking its name from Sakya monastery in southern central Tibet.

Located in 19 passages in the translation:

  • i.­4
  • i.­11
  • i.­15
  • 2.2.­13
  • n.­2
  • g.­61
  • g.­71
  • g.­102
  • g.­111
  • g.­132
  • g.­135
  • g.­151
  • g.­190
  • g.­225
  • g.­226
  • g.­249
  • g.­293
  • g.­330
  • g.­347
g.­267

Tenpa Tsering

Wylie:
  • bstan pa tshe ring
Tibetan:
  • བསྟན་པ་ཚེ་རིང་།
Sanskrit:
  • —

Tenpa Tsering (1678–1738) was both the king of Degé and the hereditary throne holder at Lhundrup Teng Monastery. He initiated and sponsored the production of the Degé Kangyur and the founding of the Degé printing house. For more on his life see his entry at The Treasury of Lives.

Located in 31 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1-2
  • i.­4-5
  • i.­7-8
  • i.­13
  • p.­8
  • 1.2.­1
  • 1.2.­14-37
  • 1.3.­3
  • 1.3.­23
  • 2.1.­4
  • n.­2-3
  • n.­14
  • n.­40
  • n.­43
  • n.­50-51
  • n.­80
  • g.­102
  • g.­106
  • g.­151
  • g.­156
  • g.­187
  • g.­265
  • g.­319
  • g.­345
g.­287

The Praise Surpassing Even That of the Gods

Wylie:
  • lha las phul byung gi bstod ’grel
Tibetan:
  • ལྷ་ལས་ཕུལ་བྱུང་གི་བསྟོད་འགྲེལ།
Sanskrit:
  • devātiśayastotra

The Devātiśayastotra (Toh 1112) by Śaṃkarasvāmin (ca. sixth century) is a eulogy to the Buddha that describes him as superior to all other gods of the Hindu pantheon in an almost polemical manner. Translated into Tibetan around the end of the eighth or beginning of the ninth century. The commentary to this work was composed by Prajñāvarman.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.1.­3
g.­333

Vasudhārā

Wylie:
  • nor ’dzin dpal mo
Tibetan:
  • ནོར་འཛིན་དཔལ་མོ།
Sanskrit:
  • vasudhārā

Goddess of riches, Earth personified; she is invoked for the fulfillment of wishes.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 3.­1
g.­338

viṣamavṛtta

Wylie:
  • mi mnyam pa’i bri t+ta so
Tibetan:
  • མི་མཉམ་པའི་བྲི་ཏྟ་སོ།
Sanskrit:
  • viṣamavṛtta

A type of meter with a fixed sequence of short and long syllables that varies in each quarter. Many scholars regard anuṣṭubh as an example of such meter.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­1
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    84000. The Third Well-Spoken Branch: An Exact Account of How All the Victorious One’s Teachings Extant Today in the Land of Snow Mountains Were Put into Print (gsum pa rgyal ba’i gsung rab gangs ri’i khrod du deng sang ji tsam snang ba par du bsgrubs pa’i byung ba dngos legs par bshad pa’i yal ’dab, Toh 4568-3). Translated by Subhāṣita Translation Group. Online publication. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2025. https://84000.co/translation/toh4568-3/UT22084-103-004-section-3.Copy
    84000. The Third Well-Spoken Branch: An Exact Account of How All the Victorious One’s Teachings Extant Today in the Land of Snow Mountains Were Put into Print (gsum pa rgyal ba’i gsung rab gangs ri’i khrod du deng sang ji tsam snang ba par du bsgrubs pa’i byung ba dngos legs par bshad pa’i yal ’dab, Toh 4568-3). Translated by Subhāṣita Translation Group, online publication, 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2025, 84000.co/translation/toh4568-3/UT22084-103-004-section-3.Copy
    84000. (2025) The Third Well-Spoken Branch: An Exact Account of How All the Victorious One’s Teachings Extant Today in the Land of Snow Mountains Were Put into Print (gsum pa rgyal ba’i gsung rab gangs ri’i khrod du deng sang ji tsam snang ba par du bsgrubs pa’i byung ba dngos legs par bshad pa’i yal ’dab, Toh 4568-3). (Subhāṣita Translation Group, Trans.). Online publication. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha. https://84000.co/translation/toh4568-3/UT22084-103-004-section-3.Copy

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