The Secrets of the Realized Ones
Chapter 14: The Turning of the Wheel of
Dharma
Toh 47
Degé Kangyur, vol. 39 (dkon brtsegs, ka), folios 100.a.–203.a
Imprint
First published 2023
Current version v 1.0.7 (2024)
Generated by 84000 Reading Room v2.25.1
84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha is a global non-profit initiative to translate all the Buddha’s words into modern languages, and to make them available to everyone.
This work is provided under the protection of a Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND (Attribution - Non-commercial - No-derivatives) 3.0 copyright. It may be copied or printed for fair use, but only with full attribution, and not for commercial advantage or personal compensation. For full details, see the Creative Commons license.
Table of Contents
Summary
In this sūtra, the narrative largely revolves around the figures of Vajrapāṇi, the yakṣa lord and constant companion of the Buddha, and the Buddha himself. In the first half of the sūtra, Vajrapāṇi gives a series of teachings on the mysteries or secrets of the body, speech, and mind of bodhisattvas and the realized ones. In the second half of the sūtra, Vajrapāṇi describes several events in the Buddha’s life: his practice of severe asceticism, his approach to the seat of awakening, his defeat of Māra, his awakening, and his turning of the wheel of Dharma. Following this, the Buddha gives a prediction of Vajrapāṇi’s future awakening as a buddha and travels to Vajrapāṇi’s abode for a meal. Interspersed throughout the sūtra are sermons, dialogues, and marvelous tales exploring a large number of topics and featuring an extensive cast of characters, including several narratives about past lives of Vajrapāṇi, Brahmā Sahāṃpati, and the Buddha himself. The sūtra concludes with the performance of two long dhāraṇīs, one by Vajrapāṇi and one by the Buddha, for the protection and preservation of the Dharma.
Acknowledgements
Translated by David Fiordalis and the Dharmachakra Translation Committee under the supervision of Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche. A first draft was made from the Tibetan by Timothy Hinkle with the assistance of Tulku Tenzin Rigsang and others. David Fiordalis thoroughly revised the translation with close reference to the extant Sanskrit manuscript, as well as the Tibetan translation. Fiordalis also wrote the summary, introduction, annotations, and most of the glossary entries. Fiordalis would like to acknowledge Paul Harrison, who furnished him with his own digital images of the Sanskrit manuscript, and Péter-Dániel Szántó, who generously made his transcription of the manuscript available for readers.
The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha. Rory Lindsay and Nathaniel Rich edited the translation and the introduction, and Ven. Konchog Norbu copyedited the text. Martina Cotter was in charge of the digital publication process.
The translation of this text has been made possible through the generous sponsorship of Jane and Leo Tong Chen, and their family.
Text Body
The Teaching of the Mysteries and Secrets of the Realized Ones
Chapter 14: The Turning of the Wheel of Dharma
“Indeed, Śāntamati, some gods and humans thought that the conquest of the māras had immeasurable differences in this way, while some thought that Māra was not approaching in any way at all.191 Some thought the Bodhisattva was seated upon a mat of grass, while some saw the Bodhisattva seated upon a lion’s seat resting on a splendid arrangement of lotus flowers made of jewels. Some saw the Bodhisattva situated upon the surface of the earth, while some saw the Bodhisattva seated upon a lion’s seat situated in the vault of the sky. Some saw the tree of awakening as the king of trees, the sacred fig tree; some saw it as the divine Pārijāta tree; some saw it as the divine Kovidāra grove.192 Some saw the tree of awakening as entirely made of jewels. Some gods and humans saw the tree of awakening as being equal in height to a palm tree, and they saw the lion’s seat as equal to half the height of a palm tree. Some saw the tree of awakening as being equal in height to seven palm trees, and they saw the lion’s seat to be equal in height to three and a half palm trees. Some saw the tree of awakening to be eighty-four thousand leagues in height and the lion’s seat to be forty-two thousand leagues in height.
“Now, some gods and humans saw the Bodhisattva conquering Māra. Some saw only one māra. Some saw a vast army of māras. Some saw the Bodhisattva making child’s play out of defeating Māra. Some saw the bodhisattva up in the vault of the sky at the same time as he was awakening to supreme awakening while being seated upon the lion’s seat at the base of the tree of awakening. Indeed, Śāntamati, bodhisattvas have immeasurable capacity. The particular conditions and qualities of those who have gone to the supreme point of the seat of awakening have appeared in truly immeasurable ways. [F.156.b]
“What is more, Śāntamati, when the Bodhisattva had gone to the supreme point of the seat of awakening, an immeasurable, incalculable number of bodhisattvas, whose past actions were in the same category as his own, came from immeasurable, incalculable worlds throughout the ten directions, and they urged him on by uttering words to him. They said the word ‘fearlessness,’ and the word ‘security,’ and the words ‘happiness’ and ‘bliss.’ They said the words ‘haste’ and ‘speed.’ They said the word ‘bravo!’ They urged him on by uttering the words ‘success,’ ‘valor,’ ‘good man,’ ‘irreversible one,’ ‘nourishment,’ ‘auspicious,’ ‘no more pain,’ ‘no fatigue,’ ‘past motivation,’ ‘unfailing effort,’ ‘cheerfulness,’ ‘rock-solid as a vajra,’ ‘the child’s play of a good man,’ ‘benefit,’ ‘connecting with awakening in a single moment,’ ‘the knowledge of an omniscient one,’ and ‘complete awakening.’
“In this way, Śāntamati, the bodhisattvas who had gathered there from the worlds throughout the ten directions cheered on the Bodhisattva who had gone to the supreme point of the seat of awakening with thousands of different words of encouragement. They performed various forms of worship, and they extolled him with hymns of various sorts. The Bodhisattva’s past actions were done well, and thus the bodhisattvas who had gathered there from the worlds throughout the ten directions cheered on the Bodhisattva who had gone to the supreme point of the seat of awakening and they worshiped him. Nevertheless, he did not feel any affection for them, nor did he feel any anger toward the army of māras.
“Being free of affection and anger, Śāntamati, and with the wisdom that is connected with awakening in a single moment of thought,193 the Bodhisattva then awakened fully to that which should be known, to that which should be seen, to that which should be attained, to all that to which one should be fully awakened—that is, complete awakening. [F.157.a]
“Moreover, Śāntamati, when the Realized One had achieved awakening, an immeasurable and incalculable number of blessed buddhas from throughout the ten directions extended their right hands to him, and they asked him, ‘Is your body not tired?’ And they asked, ‘Have you become awakened to the tireless state?’ and, ‘Have you become awakened to the state of ease?’ ‘Have you become awakened completely to what is self-arisen?’ ‘Have you awakened to what is not hindered?’ And they asked him, ‘Have you awakened through the knowledge of sameness?’ ‘Have you awakened through omnipresent knowledge?’194 ‘Do you have as your scope what is unadulterated?’ ‘Are you wearing the armor of great compassion?’ ‘Have you made sure the lineage of the Three Jewels remains unbroken?’ And they asked him, ‘Have you gained mastery over all things?’
“In this respect, those beings whose spiritual faculties had reached maturity were aware of the activity of the realized ones, whereas those beings whose spiritual faculties were still immature were unaware of it.
“Moreover, Śāntamati, once the Realized One had attained awakening he experienced the happiness that finds pleasure in the Dharma for seven nights without closing his eyes. He also gazed at the tree of awakening without closing his eyes. Hundreds of thousands of gods also worshiped him, sang songs of praise to him, and bowed down before him. Hundreds of thousands of apsarases also worshiped him, sang songs of praise to him, and bowed down before him. When they saw the Realized One’s demeanor, they also conceived the aspiration for unsurpassable, perfect, and complete awakening.
“Moreover, Śāntamati, when the Realized One had attained awakening, the Four Great Kings approached him bearing alms bowls.195 Just as they came from this world of four continents, in the same way four billion more great kings from a billion more worlds with four continents also approached the Realized One, and they were bearing alms bowls, too. In this regard, Śāntamati, the Realized One accepted these four billion alms bowls, [F.157.b] and having accepted them he made them into a single alms bowl through the force of his empowering authority. Still, each of the great kings had the thought, ‘The Realized One has accepted my alms bowl! The Realized One will eat from my alms bowl!’ As a result of the joy and pleasure they felt at this very thought, they all became unable to be turned back from unsurpassable, perfect awakening.
“Moreover, Śāntamati, once the Realized One had attained awakening, the merchants Trapuṣa and Bhallika,196 and another sixty thousand gods, approached the Realized One carrying his first meal, and gave it to him. They had made the prior vow, ‘We will be the first to provide the Realized One with a meal.’ Once they had provided the Realized One with his first meal, they became unable to be turned back from unsurpassable, perfect awakening as a result of the joy and pleasure they felt at this very act.
“Indeed, Śāntamati, when he had gone to the supreme point of the seat of awakening, the Bodhisattva worked for the benefit of beings even before he had achieved the knowledge of an omniscient one, and once he had achieved awakening, the Realized One worked for the benefit of beings even before he turned the wheel of the Dharma, and he did so to a great extent. It isn’t that he only did so from the time when he first conceived the aspiration for awakening until he reached the seat of awakening. In this way, too, Śāntamati, one should understand that by the very act of being seated for awakening—just by that very act—a bodhisattva works for the benefit of immeasurable beings.
“Moreover, Śāntamati, when the Realized One had attained awakening, Brahmā Śikhin vanished from the Brahmā world and, accompanied and preceded by six million eight hundred thousand gods from the Heaven of Brahmā’s Assembly, he appeared right in front of the Blessed One. He bowed his head at the feet of the Blessed One and walked around him seven times, keeping him on the right, and entreated the Blessed One, ‘Teach the Dharma, Blessed One, so that the wheel of Dharma may be set in motion! Teach the Dharma, Sublime One! There are beings who are worthy recipients of the Dharma. They will understand the Dharma taught by the Realized One!’ [F.158.a] He did this, too, as a result of the vow he made in the past at the time when he was the son of King Dhṛtarāṣṭra: ‘I will entreat all the realized ones who attain awakening in the Fortunate Eon to turn the wheel of Dharma.’
“Now, Śāntamati, if one were to think that Brahmā Śikhin was the only one who entreated the Realized One to turn the wheel of Dharma, and no one else did too, then one should not see it in that way. The reason is that just as Brahmā Śikhin entreated him, the Realized One was likewise being entreated by one billion other brahmās. One billion śakras and one billion bodhisattvas were also entreating the Blessed One to turn the wheel of Dharma.
“When the Blessed One had settled upon the place where he would turn the wheel of Dharma, Brahmā Śikhin prepared the lion’s seat for the Blessed One at the Deer Park at Sage Landing in Vārāṇasī. It was forty-two thousand leagues tall, endowed with the finest of all features, multicolored, and beautiful to behold as it rested upon the surface of the earth. Just as Brahmā Śikhin prepared a lion’s seat for the Realized One, lion’s seats were likewise prepared for the Realized One by one billion other brahmās, one billion śakras, and one hundred billion bodhisattvas along with their retinues. They were also multicolored, beautiful to behold, and endowed with the finest of all features.
“Now, Śāntamati, the Blessed One went to the Deer Park at Sage Landing in the great city of Vārāṇasī, and once he had arrived there he made it appear that he sat down upon every single one of those lion’s seats. In this regard, each and every one of the śakras, brahmās, lokapālas, and bodhisattvas thought, [F.158.b] ‘The Realized One is seated upon my lion’s seat! Seated upon my lion’s seat, he will set the wheel of Dharma in motion!’ As a result of the joy and pleasure they felt at this very thought, they all became unable to be turned back from unsurpassable, perfect awakening.
“As soon as the Blessed One sat upon those lion’s seats, at that precise moment infinite and limitless worlds throughout the ten directions trembled and were pervaded by a great light. Now, at that moment the Blessed One settled into a state of meditative concentration known as infinite range. As soon as the Blessed One had settled into that meditative concentration of infinite range, at that precise moment the worlds throughout this cosmos of a billion worlds became level like the palm of one’s hand, and the beings in the hell realms, the animal realms, the realms of Yama, the human realms, and the god realms throughout the cosmos of a billion worlds were all transfixed in bliss. Not a single being was troubled by passion, hatred, or ignorance, nor were they troubled by any of the afflictions. Their minds were filled with love for one another, and they thought of one other as their mothers and fathers.
“Moreover, as soon as the Blessed One settled into the meditative concentration of infinite range, at that precise moment immeasurable and incalculable bodhisattvas from throughout the ten directions came to hear the Dharma from the Blessed One. At the same time, all the mighty and distinguished gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas, humans, and superhuman beings throughout the cosmos of a billion worlds also drew near to the Blessed One to hear the Dharma from the Blessed One. Indeed, Śāntamati, at that moment there was not a single spot of ground here in this cosmos of a billion worlds, not even one so small in size as the very tip of a hair from a horse’s tail, [F.159.a] that was not occupied by mighty and distinguished beings there to hear to the Dharma from the Blessed One.
“At that point, knowing that a great assembly was gathered there, the Blessed One emerged, mindful and alert, from that state of meditative concentration. Emerging from that state, he looked upon the entire world with the eye of a realized one, directed by great compassion, and he turned the wheel of the Dharma that had not been turned before for ascetics and brahmins as well as for anyone in this world who is in accord with the Dharma. Moreover, Śāntamati, the Realized One turned the wheel of Dharma in such a way that all beings were satisfied according to their own thoughts and motivations, and so that the beings gathered in the assembly understood the declaration of the Dharma to be speaking to each of them personally. When the Blessed One turned the wheel of Dharma, immeasurable and incalculable bodhisattvas came from throughout the ten directions to hear it, and thousands upon millions upon billions of gods formed a great gathering of deities from the desire realm and the form realm.
“In this respect, Śāntamati, when the Blessed One pronounced the statement, ‘Kauṇḍinya, the eye is impermanent,’ the beings there who could be trained by the word suffering heard ‘the eye is suffering.’ Those who could be trained by no self heard ‘the eye is not self.’ Those who could be trained by emptiness heard ‘the eye is empty.’ Those who could be trained by calm heard ‘the eye is calmed.’ Those who could be trained by withdrawal heard ‘the eye is withdrawn.’197 Those who could be trained by groundlessness heard ‘the eye is groundless.’198 Those who could be trained by baselessness heard ‘the eye is baseless.’
“Those who could be trained by illusion heard ‘the eye is like an illusion.’ Those who could be trained by dream heard ‘the eye is like a dream.’ Those who could be trained by moon reflected in water heard ‘the eye is like the moon reflected in water.’199 Those who could be trained by mirror image heard ‘the eye is like a mirror image.’ Those who could be trained by echo heard ‘the eye is like an echo.’ [F.159.b] Those who could be trained by thus characterized by emptiness, groundlessness, desirelessness, being unconditioned, not being born, and not arising heard ‘the eye is characterized by emptiness, groundlessness, desirelessness, being unconditioned, not being born, and not arising.’
“Those who could be trained by dependent arising heard ‘the eye is dependently arisen,’ and they also heard, ‘As is the case with the eye, so, too, the other senses up to and including the mind are dependently arisen.’200 They heard, ‘In the same way, the objects of sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch, as well as mental objects are empty.’
“Some heard about the impermanence of the aggregates, some about the impermanence of the elements, and some about the impermanence of the sense spheres.201 Some heard about the impermanence of the aggregates, but not about the impermanence of the elements. Some heard about the impermanence of the elements, but not about the impermanence of the aggregates.202
“Some were liberated by the word suffering. Some were liberated by the word origin. Some were liberated by the word cessation. Some were liberated by the word path.
“Some heard a talk about the applications of mindfulness. Some heard a talk about the right efforts. Some heard a talk about the foundations for superhuman power. Some heard a talk about the spiritual faculties. Some heard a talk about the powers. Some heard a talk about the constitutive factors of awakening. Some heard a talk about the path. Some heard a talk about calm abiding. Some heard a talk about deep insight. Some heard a talk about causal dependence. Some heard a talk connected to the disciples. Some heard a talk connected to the Vehicle of the Solitary Buddhas. Some heard a talk connected to the Great Vehicle. [F.160.a]
“Indeed, Śāntamati, the Realized One turned the wheel of Dharma in such a way that all beings were satisfied according to their own thoughts and motivations. Indeed, Śāntamati, not even the monk Śāriputra would be able to calculate the benefit done for beings when the Realized One turned the wheel of Dharma, even if he were to spend one hundred years working on the calculation of the benefit for those beings. What more could be said by other beings?”
While this teaching was being given on the Blessed One’s turning of the wheel of Dharma, and the child’s play he made of the severe ascetic practices, the journey to the seat of awakening, the conquest of Māra, the splendid array, and the lion’s roar, eighty-four thousand beings conceived the aspiration for unsurpassable and perfect awakening, and immeasurable beings were brought to maturity by means of the three vehicles.203
Bibliography
Primary Source Texts
’phags pa de bzhin gshegs pa’i gsang ba bsam gyis mi khyab pa bstan pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo (Āryatathāgatācintyaguhyanirdeśanāmamahāyānasūtra). Toh 47, Degé Kangyur vol. 39 (dkon brtsegs, ka), folios 100.a–203.a.
’phags pa de bzhin gshegs pa’i gsang ba bsam gyis mi khyab pa bstan pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo. bka’ ’gyur (dpe bsdur ma) [Comparative Edition of the Kangyur], krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe sdur khang (The Tibetan Tripitaka Collation Bureau of the China Tibetology Research Center). 108 volumes. Beijing: krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang (China Tibetology Publishing House), 2006–9, vol. 39, pp. 289–542.
*Tathāgataguhyanirdeśasūtra. Manuscript G10765. The Asiatic Society, Kolkata. [For an unpublished transcription of this manuscript, see Szántó 2021.]
Editions, Translations, and Other Sources
Alter, Robert. The Art of Biblical Narrative. New York: Basic Books, 2011. First published 1981.
Anesaki, Masaharu. “Docetism (Buddhist).” In The Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethics, vol. 4, edited by James Hastings et al., 835–40. Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1911.
Bendall, Cecil (1883). Catalogue of the Buddhist Sanskrit Manuscripts in the University Library, Cambridge. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
———, ed. (1902). Çikshāsamuccaya: A Compendium of Buddhistic Teaching. Bibliotheca Buddhica I. St. Petersburg: Académie Impériale des Sciences.
Bendall, Cecil, and W. H. D. Rouse, trans. Śikṣā Samuccaya. London: John Murray, 1922.
Bodhi, Bhikkhu (1978). “The Meaning of the Word ‘Tathāgata’ According to the Pāli Commentaries: Text and Introductory Essay.” Pali Buddhist Review 3.2: 65–83.
———, trans. (2000). The Connected Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of the Saṃyutta Nikāya. Boston: Wisdom.
———, trans. (2012). The Numerical Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of the Aṅguttara Nikāya. Boston: Wisdom.
Bodhi, Bhikkhu, and Bhikkhu Ñāṇamoli, trans. The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of the Majjhima Nikāya. Boston: Wisdom, 1995.
Buswell, Robert E., Jr., and Donald S. Lopez, Jr., eds. The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2014.
Cowell, Edward B. and Robert Alexander Neil, eds. The Divyāvadāna: A Collection of Early Buddhist Legends. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1886.
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.
Dharmachakra Translation Committee, trans. The Play in Full (Lalitavistara, Toh 95). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2013.
Edgerton, Franklin. Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit English Dictionary. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1953.
Gómez, Luis, and Paul Harrison, trans. Vimalakīrtinirdeśa: The Teaching of Vimalakīrti. Berkeley, CA: Mangalam, 2022.
Goodman, Charles. The Training Anthology of Śāntideva. London: Oxford University Press, 2016.
Hamano, Tetsunori 滨野哲敬. 如來秘密経の佛陀觀 [The Conception of the Buddha in the Nyoraihimitsu-kyō]. Indogaku Bukkyōgaku Kenkyū 印度學 佛教學 研究第 38.1 (1987): 42–46.
Herrmann-Pfandt, Adelheid. Die lHan kar ma: ein früher Katalog der ins Tibetische übersetzten buddhistischen Texte. Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 2008.
Hidas, Gergely. Powers of Protection: The Buddhist Tradition of Spells in the Dhāraṇīvsaṃgraha Collections. Beyond Boundaries 9. Berlin: de Gruyter, 2021.
Hopkins, Edward Washburn. Epic Mythology. Strassburg: K. J. Trübner, 1915.
Ikuma, Hiromitsu 伊久間洋光 (2013). 『如来秘密経』の梵文写本について [On the Sanskrit Manuscript of the Nyoraihimitsu-kyō]. 印度學 佛教學 研究第 Indogaku Bukkyōgaku Kenkyū 61.2: 171–79.
———(2018). “Lalitavistara と『如来秘密経』の仏伝の対応関係” [On the Correspondence of the Lalitavistara with the Buddha’s Biography in the Nyoraihimitsu-kyō]. 印度學 佛教學 研究第 Indogaku Bukkyōgaku Kenkyū 67.1: 126–30.
———(2020).『如来秘密経』梵文写本における地名と民族名のリスト: 『大毘婆沙論』における並行説話との比較 [A List of the Place and Ethnic Names in the Sanskrit Manuscript of the Nyoraihimitsu-kyō: A Comparison with the Parallel Narrative in the *Abhidharma-mahāvibhāṣā]. 印度學 佛教學 研究第 Indogaku Bukkyōgaku Kenkyū 68.2: 101–5.
Jamspal, Lozang, et al., trans. The Universal Vehicle Discourse Literature (Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra). New York: American Institute of Buddhist Studies, 2004.
Jones, J. J., trans. The Mahāvastu, Vol. 2. Sacred Books of the Buddhists. London: Pali Text Society, 1976.
Lalou, Marcel. Inventaire des manuscrits tibétains de Touen-houang: conservés à la Bibliothèque nationale (Fond Pelliot tibétain). Vol. 3. Paris: Librairie d’Amérique et d’Orient, 1961.
Lamotte, Étienne (1966). “Vajrapāṇi en Inde.” In Mélanges de Sinologie offerts à Monsieur Paul Demiéville, 113–59. Paris: Presses Universitaires de France.
———(1970). Le Traité de la Grande Vertu de Sagesse de Nāgārjuna (Mahāprajñāpāramitopadeśa). Tome III: Chapitres XXXI-XLII. Louvain-la-neuve: Institute Orientaliste de la Université Catholique de Louvain.
———(1976). Le Traité de la Grande Vertu de Sagesse de Nāgārjuna (Mahāprajñāpāramitopadeśa). Tome IV: Chapitres XLII(suite)-XLVIII. Louvain-la-neuve: Institute Orientaliste de la Université Catholique de Louvain.
———(1981). Le Traité de la Grande Vertu de Sagesse de Nāgārjuna (Mahāprajñāpāramitopadeśa). Tome I: Chapitres I-XV. Louvain-la-neuve: Institute Orientaliste de la Université Catholique de Louvain.
———, trans. (1987). L’Enseignment de Vimalakīrti. Louvain-la-neuve: Institute Orientaliste de la Université Catholique de Louvain.
La Vallée Poussin, Louis de, ed. Mūlamadhyamakakārikās (Mādhyamikasūtras) de Nāgārjuna avec la Prasannapadā Commentaire de Candrakīrti. Bibliotheca Buddhica 4. St. Petersburg: Académie Impériale des Sciences, 1903.
Liland, Fredrik et al. Bodhisatvapiṭaka: A Critical Edition. Sanskrit Texts from the Tibetan Autonomous Region (STTAR). Vienna: Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften, forthcoming.
Lévi, Sylvain, ed. Mahāyāna-Sūtrālaṃkāra: Exposé de la Doctrine de Grand Vehicule. Paris: Librairie Honoré Champion, 1907.
Lewis, Todd. Popular Buddhist Texts from Nepal: Narratives and Rituals of Newar Buddhism. Albany: State University of New York Press, 2000.
Malalasekera, G. P. Dictionary of Pāli Proper Names. Vol. 1. London: John Murray, 1937.
Nanjio, Bunyiu, ed. The Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra. Kyoto: Otani University Press, 1923.
Norwegian Institute of Palaeography and Historical Philology, trans. The Collected Teachings on the Bodhisatva (Toh 56). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2023.
Pāsādika, Bhikkhu, trans. (1978a). “The Sūtrasamuccaya—An English Translation from the Tibetan Version of the Sanskrit Original (I).” Linh-Son publication d’études bouddhiques 2: 19–30.
———, trans. (1978b). “The Sūtrasamuccaya—Nāgārjuna’s Anthology of (Quotations from) Discourses: English Translation (III).” Linh-Son publication d’études bouddhiques 4: 26–33.
———, trans. (1981). “The Sūtrasamuccaya—Nāgārjuna’s Anthology of (Quotations from) Discourses: English Translation (XIII).” Linh-Son publication d’études bouddhiques 14: 20–33.
Phangthangma (dkar chag ’phang thang ma). Beijing: mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 2003.
Radich, Michael. The Mahāparinirvāṇa-mahāsūtra and the Emergence of Tathāgatagarbha Doctrine. Hamburg: Hamburg University Press, 2015.
Shāstri, Hara Prasad. A Descriptive Catalogue of Sanskrit Manuscripts in Government Collection under the care of The Asiatic Society of Bengal. Vol. 1, Buddhist Manuscripts. Calcutta: Baptist Mission Press, 1917.
Shaw, Sarah. The Art of Listening: A Guide to the Early Teachings of Buddhism. Boulder, CO: Shambhala, 2021.
Shingan, Shaku. The Secrets of the Tathāgata: A Mahāyāna Sūtra. Kamakura: Shaku Shingan, 2021.
Silk, Jonathan A. “Serious Play: Recent Scholarship on the Lalitavistara.” Indo-Iranian Journal 65 (2022): 267-301.
Study Group on Buddhist Sanskrit Literature, ed. Vimalakīrtinirdeśa: Transliterated Sanskrit Text Collated with Tibetan and Chinese Translation. Tokyo: Taisho University Press, 2005.
Suzuki, Daisetz Teitaro, trans. The Lankavatara Sutra: A Mahayana Text. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1932.
Szántó, Péter-Dániel. *Tathāgatācintyaguhyanirdeśasūtra: A formatted diplomatic transcript of the Sanskrit ms (The Asiatic Society, Kolkata, G10765). Version 1.0. 2021.
Thurman, Robert A. F., trans. The Teaching of Vimalakīrti (Vimalakīrtinirdeśa, Toh 176). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2017.
Tucci, Giuseppe, ed. Minor Buddhist Texts, Part III: Third Bhāvanākrama. Serie Orientale Roma XLIII. Roma: Instituto Italiano per il Medio ed Estremo Oriente, 1971.
Tuladhar-Douglas, Will. Remaking Buddhism for Medieval Nepal. London: Routledge, 2014.
Vaidya, P. L., ed. Lalitavistara. 2nd Edition. Darbhanga: Mithila Institute, 1987.
Walshe, Maurice, trans. The Long Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of the Dīgha Nikāya. Boston: Wisdom, 1995.
Wang, Junqi, Meifang Zhang, Xiaofang Lü, Xin Song, Kawa Sherab Sangpo, and Dazhen. “A Preliminary Study on a Newly Discovered Sanskrit manuscript of Nāgārjuna’s Sūtrasamuccaya*.” Journal of Buddhist Studies 17 (2020): 59–88.
Watanabe, Shōgo. “Pañcaviṃśatisāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā—VII Ekakṣaṇâbhisamayâdhikāraḥ (1).” Tōyō Daigaku Daigakuin Kiyō 27 (1990): 136–117.
Winternitz, Maurice. A History of Indian Literature, Vol II: Buddhist Literature and Jaina Literature. Calcutta: Calcutta University Press, 1933.
Zacchetti, Stefano. The Da zhidu lun 大智度論 (*Mahāprajñāpāramitopadeśa) and the History of the Larger Prajñāpāramitā. Hamburg: Numata Center for Buddhist Studies, 2021.
Zin, Monika. “Vajrapāṇi in the Narrative Reliefs.” In Migration, Trade and Peoples, Part 2: Gandharan Art, edited by Christine Fröhlich, 73–88. London: The British Academy, 2009.