The Sūtra of the Sublime Golden Light (1)
Chapter 10: The Fulfillment of Prayers on the Basis of Emptiness
Toh 555
Degé Kangyur, vol. 89 (rgyud ’bum, pa), folios 19.a–151.a
- Chödrup
Imprint
Translated by Peter Alan Roberts and team
under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha
First published 2023
Current version v 1.2.3 (2024)
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Table of Contents
Summary
The Sūtra of the Sublime Golden Light has held great importance in Buddhism for its instructions on the purification of karma. In particular, much of the sūtra is specifically addressed to monarchs and thus has been significant for rulers—not only in India but also in China, Japan, Mongolia, and elsewhere—who wished to ensure the well-being of their nations through such purification. Reciting and internalizing this sūtra is understood to be efficacious for personal purification and also for the welfare of a state and the world.
In this sūtra, the bodhisattva Ruciraketu has a dream in which a prayer of confession emanates from a shining golden drum. He relates the prayer to the Buddha, and a number of deities then vow to protect it and its adherents. The ruler’s devotion to the sūtra is emphasized as important if the nation is to benefit. Toward the end of the sūtra are two well-known narratives of the Buddha’s previous lives: the account of the physician Jalavāhana, who saves and blesses numerous fish, and that of Prince Mahāsattva, who gives his body to a hungry tigress and her cubs.
This is the longest version of The Sūtra of the Sublime Golden Light preserved in the Kangyur. It comprises thirty-one chapters and was translated into Tibetan primarily from Yijing’s Chinese translation in the early ninth century.
Acknowledgements
This sūtra was translated into English by Peter Alan Roberts. Ling Lung Chen, Wang Chipan, Xiaolong Diao, Ting Lee Ling, and H. S. Sum Cheuk Shing were consultants for the Chinese versions of the sūtra. Emily Bower was the project manager and editor. Tracy Davis was the copyeditor. With thanks to Michael Radich for sharing his research on the sūtra.
The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.
The translation of this text has been made possible through the generous sponsorship of Zhang Da Da.
Text Body
The Sublime Golden Light, the Supremely Victorious King of Sūtras
Chapter 10: The Fulfillment of Prayers on the Basis of Emptiness
Then the goddess Wish-Fulfilling Radiating Light, who was within the great assembly, was delighted and overjoyed on hearing that very profound Dharma teaching. She rose from her seat and, with her upper robe over one shoulder, knelt on her right knee, placed her palms together in homage, and said to the Bhagavat, “Bhagavat, what instruction do you give on a Dharma for the practice of meditation on the ways of profound meaning?”720
The Bhagavat then said to the noble goddess, “One should practice the Dharma of enlightenment by being based upon the Dharma realm and meditating on the Dharma conduct of sameness. How does one practice the Dharma of enlightenment by being based upon the Dharma realm and meditating on the Dharma conduct of sameness?723 In this way, the Dharma realm is taught through the five skandhas so that the Dharma realm itself is the five skandhas. However, one cannot say that it is the five skandhas and one cannot say it is not the five skandhas. Why is that? If the Dharma realm is the five skandhas, that would be the nihilist view, and if it is other than the five skandhas that would be the eternalist view. Therefore, the Dharma realm has neither of those two characteristics. It is not present in the two extremes. It cannot be viewed. It transcends being an object of view. It has no name. It is featureless. That is what is called the Dharma realm.
“Noble goddess, how is the Dharma realm taught through the five skandhas?724 It is like this: The five skandhas are not produced by causes and conditions. Why is that? If they are produced by causes and conditions, then are they produced because they have already been produced, or are they produced because they have not yet been produced? If they have already been produced, what need would there be for causes and conditions? If they are not produced, then there is no production to perceive. Why is that? [F.79.a] An unproduced phenomenon has no existence and therefore725 has no name, has no features, does not cease,726 and can have no analogy, because it has not been produced by causes and conditions.
“Noble goddess, it is like this: As an example, a drumbeat is dependent on wood. It is dependent on a skin, a stick, a hand, and so on. Therefore, although a drumbeat originates, the past of that which is a drumbeat is empty, its future is empty, and its present origination is empty.727 The drumbeat does not originate from the wood, it does not originate from the skin, and it does not originate from the stick or the hand. It does not originate from the three times. Therefore, it is not produced. That which is not produced does not cease. That which does not cease does not come from anywhere. That which does not come from anywhere does not go anywhere. That which does not go anywhere is not eternal. It is not nothingness. That which is neither eternal nor nothingness is not one and it is not separate.
“Why is that? If the five skandhas were one, they would not be different from the Dharma realm. If it were like that, then it would be logical that even ordinary beings would see the genuine truth and attain the nirvāṇa that has the highest genuine728 truth.729 But this is not so, and therefore it should be known that they are not one.
“If they were separate, then all the composite characteristics730 of the buddhas and bodhisattvas would include attachment so that they would not become liberated from the bondage of the kleśas and would not attain the highest, most complete enlightenment of buddhahood.
“Why is that? It is because all ārya individuals have realized the essential sameness of the composite and noncomposite,731 and therefore they are not separate from each other. [F.79.b] Thus, one should know that the five skandhas are neither existent nor nonexistent. They are neither produced by causes and conditions nor not produced by causes and conditions.
“This the āryas know, but it is not within the field of experience of others, and therefore it cannot be known through words and terminology. It has no name, no features, no cause, no condition, and no analogy and is devoid of a beginning or end.732 It is primordially, naturally empty. Therefore, the Dharma realm can be taught733 through the five skandhas.
“Noble goddess, if any noble man or noble woman who wishes to seek for the highest, most complete enlightenment seeks for it elsewhere than the ultimate and relative, that would be extremely difficult to comprehend and contemplate. The nature of the field of experience of the āryas and of ordinary beings is neither one nor different. Therefore, the conduct of enlightenment should be practiced based upon the Dharma realm without eliminating the relative and without being apart from the ultimate.”
When the Bhagavat had said that, the noble goddess was delighted and happy. She rose from her seat and, with her upper robe over one shoulder, knelt on her right knee, placed her palms together, and with a one-pointed mind bowed down her head and said to the Bhagavat, “Bhagavat, I shall train today in that practice of the true meaning of enlightenment that the Bhagavat has spoken of.”
Then the great Brahmarāja, the lord of the Sahā world realm, who was present within that vast assembly, said to the noble goddess Wish-Fulfilling Radiating Light, “This bodhisattva conduct is difficult to accomplish, so how are you going to master it today?” [F.80.a]
The noble goddess said to Brahmarāja, “O great Brahmarāja, that which the Bhagavat has taught is truly very profound, so that no ordinary being can know its meaning; it is the field of experience of āryas, and therefore it is sublime and difficult to know. If it is true and not false that I can today attain a state of bliss through relying on this Dharma,734 then may all the countless, innumerable, numberless beings in this world realm of the five degenerations become golden in color, possess the thirty-two signs, be neither male nor female, be seated upon a precious lotus, and enjoy limitless bliss. May there fall a rain of sublime, divine flowers. May music resound from divine musical instruments without their being played. And may there be a perfection of all articles of offering.”
As soon as the noble goddess had said that, all of the beings in that time of the five degenerations became golden in color with the signs of a great being, were neither male nor female, were seated upon precious lotuses, and enjoyed limitless bliss. It was just as in the palace of the Paranirmitavaśavartin deities. There were no lower existences. There were arranged rows of precious trees, and the world realm was filled with flowers from the trees735 that were made of the seven precious materials. Also, there fell a rain of divine flowers of the seven precious materials, and divine music played.
The noble goddess Wish-Fulfilling Radiating Light transformed also from having a female body to having the body of a Brahmā deva.
Then the great Brahmarāja asked the bodhisattva Wish-Fulfilling Radiating Light, “Venerable one, how did you practice bodhisattva conduct?”
The bodhisattva Wish-Fulfilling Radiating Light replied, “Great Brahmarāja, if a moon on water were to practice enlightened conduct, that is how I practiced enlightened conduct. [F.80.b] If someone in a dream were to practice enlightened conduct, that is how I practiced enlightened conduct. If a mirage were to practice enlightened conduct, that is how I practiced enlightened conduct. If a valley’s echo were to practice enlightened conduct, that is how I practiced enlightened conduct.”
When great Brahmarāja heard that, he asked the bodhisattva Wish-Fulfilling Radiating Light, “Venerable one, based on what meaning did you say those words?”
The bodhisattva Wish-Fulfilling Radiating Light replied, “O Brahmarāja! Although there is not a single phenomenon that does not have the characteristic of the true nature, nevertheless they are created through causes and conditions.”736
“If that is so,” said Brahmarāja, “then it would be logical that childlike, ordinary beings would attain the highest, most complete enlightenment of buddhahood.”
“What are you thinking that made you say that?” asked the bodhisattva Wish-Fulfilling Radiating Light. “Do you think that ignorant individuals are separate, that wise individuals are separate, that enlightenment is separate, that nonenlightenment is separate, that liberation is separate, and that nonliberation is separate?
“Brahmarāja, phenomena are the same in that way and have no separation. This Dharma realm has no separate nature,737 and so on, up to attachment having no separate nature.738 It has no increasing or lessening.
“O Brahmarāja! It is like a conjurer, or a conjurer’s pupil, who is skilled in manifesting illusions, who at a crossroads gathers pebbles, plants, tree leaves, and so on, piles them into a heap, and who then through magic manifests herds of elephants, herds of horses, a mass of chariots and soldiers, and so on, and a heap of the seven precious materials, and various kinds of treasuries that are seen by many people. [F.81.a]
“When they are manifested, there are those beings who are stupid and ignorant, who fail to analyze it, who do not realize the source of the illusions, and so when they see and hear them, they think, ‘The herds of elephants, horses, and so on that we can see and hear are real, and anything else is a lie!’ Therefore, they don’t subsequently examine or investigate them.
“Those who are intelligent are not like that. They know what the source of illusions is, so that when they see and hear them, they think, ‘The elephants, horses, and so on that I see do not exist, but they are an optical illusion from magic.’ As they think that they are not real, they do not think that the elephants and so on and the treasuries exist. They think, ‘These are nothing but names without any reality whatsoever.’ Therefore, whatever they see or hear, they do not believe that they are real,739 and subsequently, when they analyze and contemplate them, they know perfectly that they are not real.
“In that same way, the wise realize that all phenomena have no real essence. In terms of the relative, when in their minds they pay attention to the truthfulness of the things that manifest and are described according to whatever they see and whatever they hear, they know that they are not like that, because they reveal correct meanings that are just designations.740
“Brahmarāja, childlike, ordinary beings who have not attained the world-transcending wisdom eyes of the āryas do not know the inexpressible nature of phenomena. Therefore, when they see or hear composite or noncomposite phenomena, they think, ‘This is how it truly is,’ and develop attachment; they do not know that ultimately the nature of phenomena is inexpressible. [F.81.b]
“When ārya individuals see or hear composite or noncomposite phenomena, to the extent of their power and ability they do not develop attachment, thinking, ‘These are real.’ Therefore, they think, ‘In everything there are no real composite phenomena or real noncomposite phenomena, and as they are not real, whatever composite or noncomposite characteristics I think of are just names and have no real essence whatsoever.’
“Those ārya individuals know and comprehend that, but because they wish others to understand the true meaning, they correctly741 teach it in relative terms.
“In the same way, Brahmarāja, those ārya individuals, although they have realized, through their superior knowledge and vision, the inexpressible true nature of phenomena, they teach various relative names and terms in order for others to understand composite and noncomposite phenomena in that way.”
Then Brahmarāja asked the bodhisattva Wish-Fulfilling Radiating Light, “How many beings will understand this profound true Dharma?”
“O Brahmarāja,” replied Wish-Fulfilling Radiating Light, “the phenomena of the minds and mental events of many illusory beings will understand this kind of true, profound Dharma.”
Brahmarāja said, “People who are illusory manifestations are nonexistent by nature. From where do their minds and mental events arise?”
“The beings who know that the Dharma realm is not existent and is not nonexistent will know this profound meaning,” replied Wish-Fulfilling Radiating Light.
Then Brahmarāja said to the Bhagavat, [F.82.a] “Bhagavat, this bodhisattva Wish-Fulfilling Radiating Light has inconceivably realized this profound meaning.”
“It is like that. It is like that,” replied the Bhagavat. “Brahmarāja, it is just as you have said. The bodhisattva Wish-Fulfilling Radiating Light has taught it, and you have developed the aspiration to meditate on and train in the patience that is because of the birthlessness of phenomena.”742
Then the great Brahmarāja, along with a great entourage of Brahmās, rose together from their seats, and with their robes over one shoulder and with palms together in veneration, they bowed down their heads to the bodhisattva Wish-Fulfilling Radiating Light’s feet. They said, “This is very rare and marvelous!743 On this day we have met this great being and have heard the true Dharma.”
Then the Bhagavat said to Brahmarāja, “In the future, this Wish-Fulfilling Radiating Light will become a tathāgata, an arhat, a samyaksaṃbuddha, one with wisdom and virtuous conduct,744 a sugata, a knower of the world, an unsurpassable being, a guide who tames beings, a teacher of devas and humans, a buddha, a bhagavat, by the name of Essence of the Glorious Blazing Jewel.”
When this chapter was taught, three hundred million745 bodhisattvas attained irreversibility from the highest, most complete enlightenment. Eight hundred million devas and countless, innumerable kings, ministers, and ordinary people became free of dust and attained pure, stainless Dharma eyes.
At that time, in that vast assembly, five million746 bhikṣus, who were irreversible747 from the practice of bodhisattva conduct and from the aspiration to enlightenment and had heard the Dharma teaching of the bodhisattva Wish-Fulfilling Radiating Light, all became stable and perfected supreme, inconceivable prayers. [F.82.b] They developed the aspiration for enlightenment, and each one took off their robes and offered them to the bodhisattva and developed the aspiration of supreme diligence. They made this prayer: “We dedicate all the good roots we have accumulated to irreversibility from the highest, most complete enlightenment.”
“Brahmarāja, through that merit, this multitude of bhikṣus will practice exactly what they have been taught, and after ninety great eons have passed, they will comprehend and understand it so that they will truly emerge from saṃsāra.”
The Bhagavat then prophesied to that multitude of bhikṣus, “Bhikṣus, after thirty asaṃkhyeya eons have passed, you will all attain complete buddhahood during an eon by the name of Difficult to Conquer King of Radiance in a realm by the name of Vimalaprabhā. You will all attain the highest, most complete enlightenment of buddhahood simultaneously, and you will all have the same name—King Who Is Ornamented by the Arrangement of Prayers—and you will possess ten features.
“Brahmarāja, whoever listens to and possesses this extremely wonderful sūtra—The Sublime Golden Light—will possess majestic power.
“If someone without method were to practice the six perfections for many hundreds of thousands of great eons, and a noble man or noble woman were to write out this Sūtra of the Sublime Golden Light and every half-month one-pointedly read and recited it, the previous accumulation of merit would not be even a hundredth of this accumulation of merit. It would not come close to being any number, analogy, or cause of it. [F.83.a]
“Therefore, Brahmarāja, today I will give you instruction. I teach that you should maintain mindfulness and teach it widely to others.
“Why is that? In the past, when I was practicing the path of a bodhisattva, just as a warrior entering battle dedicates life and body to it, in the same way I promulgated, kept, read, recited, and correctly748 taught others this sublime, supreme king of sūtras.
“Brahmarāja, when a cakravartin is in the world, his seven jewels do not cease to exist, but if the king’s life comes to end, the seven jewels will vanish and cease.
“Brahmarāja, in that same way, when this Supremely Victorious King of Sūtras, the Sublime Golden Light is in the world, the unsurpassable, precious Dharma will not cease. If this sūtra ceases to exist, then the Dharma will cease in that region. Therefore, one should, with a one-pointed mind, listen to, obtain, read, and recite this king of sūtras and teach it to others and encourage them to write it out while practicing the perfection of diligence—being completely diligent without concern for life or body. This is supreme among all merits, and therefore my pupils similarly should diligently train in meditation on its practice.”
Then the great Brahmarāja, the innumerable Brahmā entourage, Śakra, the Four Mahārājas, and the yakṣas rose from their seats. With their robes over one shoulder, kneeling on their right knees, and with palms together in veneration, they said to the Bhagavat, [F.83.b] “Bhagavat, we will protect and spread this Supremely Victorious King of Sūtras, the Sublime Golden Light and protect anyone who teaches it. If there is an obstacle, we will eliminate it and cause those teachers to have many virtues, have good color and strength and unimpeded eloquence, make their bodies and minds carefree, and also make their audiences experience happiness. If there is famine, adverse enemies, or harm from nonhumans in the land where they dwell, we and our entourages of devas will protect them and increase the enjoyment of happiness for the people and prevent there being any sudden harm. That is the power that we and our entourages of devas have. If anyone makes an offering to this sūtra, we will honor them and make offerings to them, considering them to be no different from the Buddha.”
Then the Bhagavat said to great Brahmarāja, the Brahmā entourage, and so on, until the Four Mahārājas, the yakṣas, and so on, “Excellent, excellent! You have heard the wonderful, profound Dharma, and through guarding and protecting this sublime, supreme king of sūtras and those who hold the sūtra, you will attain endless superior merit, and you will quickly attain the highest, most complete enlightenment of perfect buddhahood.”
Then Brahmarāja and the others, having heard what the Bhagavat said, were overjoyed and placed it above their heads.
This concludes “The Fulfillment of Prayers on the Basis of Emptiness,” the tenth chapter of “The Supremely Victorious King of Sūtras, the Sublime Golden Light.” [F.84.a]
Bibliography
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gser ’od dam pa mdo sde’i dbang po’i rgyal po zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo (Suvarṇaprabhāsottamasūtrendrarājanāmamahāyānasūtra). Toh 556, Degé Kangyur vol. 89 (rgyud ’bum, pa), folios 151.b–273.a. English translation The Sūtra of the Sublime Golden Light (2) 2024.
gser ’od dam pa mdo sde’i dbang po’i rgyal po zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo (Suvarṇaprabhāsottamasūtrendrarājanāmamahāyānasūtra). Toh 557, Degé Kangyur vol. 90 (rgyud ’bum, pha), folios 1.a–62.a. English translation The Sūtra of the Sublime Golden Light (3) 2024.
Hebu jin guangming 合部金光明經. Taishō 664 (CBETA, SAT). (Translation of Suvarṇaprabhāsottamasūtra by Bao Gui 寶貴).
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Ekādaśanirghoṣa. rdo rje ’chang chen po’i lam gyi rim pa’i man ngag bdud rtsi gsang ba (Mahāvajradharapathakramopadeśāmṛtaguhya). Toh 1823, Degé Tengyur vol. 35 (rgyud, ngi), folios 267.b–278.a.
Haribhadra. shes rab kyi pha rol tu phyin pa brgyad stong pa’i bshad pa mngon par rtogs pa’i rgyan gyi snang ba (Aṣṭasāhasrikāprajñāpāramitāvyākhyānābhisamayālaṃkārāloka). Toh 3791, Degé Tengyur vol. 85 (sher phyin, cha), folios 1.a–341.a.
Kāmadhenu. ngan song thams cad yongs su sbyong ba gzi brjid kyi rgyal po zhes bya ba cho ga zhib mo’i rgyal po chen po’i rgya cher ’grel pa (Sarvadurgatipariśodhanatejorājanāmamahākalparājaṭīkā). Toh 2625, Degé Tengyur vol. 666 (rgyud, cu), folios 231.a–341.a.
Mañjuśrīkīrti. ’jam dpal gyi mtshan yang dag par brjod pa’i rgya cher bshad pa (Mañjuśrīnāmasaṃgītiṭīkā). Toh 2534, Degé Tengyur vol. 63 (gyud, khu), folios 115.b–301.a.
Paltsek (dpal brtsegs). gsung rab rin po che’i gtam rgyud dang shA kya’i rabs rgyud. Toh 4357, Degé Tengyur vol. 306 (sna tshogs, co), folios 239.a–377.a.
_______. pho brang stod thang lhan dkar gyi chos ’gyur ro cog gi dkar chag (Buddhavacanasūcilipi). Toh 4364, Degé Tengyur vol. 308 (sna tshogs, jo), folios 294.b–310.a.
Pramuditākaravarman. gsang ba ’dus pa rgyud kyi rgyal po’i bshad pa zla ba’i ’od zer (Guhyasamājatantrarājaṭīkācandraprabhā). Toh 1852, Degé Tengyur vol. 41 (rgyud, thi), folios 120.a–313.a.
Sahajalalita. kun nas sgor ’jug pa’i ’od zer gtsug tor dri ma med par snang ba de bzhin gshegs pa thams cad kyi snying po dang dam tshig la rnam par blta ba zhes bya ba’i gzungs kyi rnam par bshad pa (Samantamukhapraveśaraśmivimaloṣṇīṣaprabhāsasarvatathāgatahṛdayasamayavilokitanāmadhāraṇīvṛtti). Toh 2688, Degé Tengyur vol. 71 (rgyud, thu), folios 269.a–320.b.
Śāntideva. bslab pa kun las btus pa (Śikṣāsamuccaya). Toh 3940, Degé Tengyur vol. 111 (dbu ma, khi), folios 3.a–194.b.
Sthiramati. rgyan dam pa sna tshogs rim par phye ba bkod pa (Paramālaṃkāraviśvapaṭalavyūha). Toh 2661, Degé Tengyur vol. 68 (rgyud, ju), folios 317.a–339.a.
Vairocanarakṣita. bslab pa me tog snye ma (Śikṣākusumamañjarī). Toh 3943, Degé Tengyur vol. 213 (dbu ma, khi), folios 196.a–217.a.
Various authors. bye brag tu rtogs par byed pa [chen po] (Mahāvyutpatti*). Toh 4346, Degé Tengyur vol. 306 (sna tshogs, co), folios 1.a–131.a.
Various authors. sgra sbyor bam po gnyis pa. Toh 4347, Degé Tengyur vol. 306 (sna tshogs, co), folios 131.b–160.a.
Vinayadatta. sgyu ’phrul chen mo’i dkyil ’khor gyi cho ga bla ma’i zhal snga’i man ngag (Gurūpadeśanāmamahāmāyāmaṇḍalopāyikā). Toh 1645, Degé Tengyur vol. 25 (rgyud, ya), folios 290.a–309.a.
Vitapāda. gsang ba ’dus pa’i dkyil ’khor gyi sgrub pa’i thabs rnam par bshad pa (Guhyasamājamaṇḍalopāyikāṭīkā). Toh 1873, Degé Tengyur vol. 43 (rgyud, ni), folios 178.b–219.a.
Wönch’ük (Wen tsheg). dgongs pa zab mo nges par ’grel pa’i mdo rgya cher ’grel pa (Gambhīrasaṁdhinirmocanasūtraṭīkā). Toh 4016, Degé Tengyur vol. 220 (mdo ’grel, ti), folios 1.b–291.a; vol. 221 (mdo ’grel, thi), folios 1.b–272.a; and vol. 222 (mdo ’grel, di), folios 1.b–175.a.
Yeshe Dé (ye shes sde). lang kar gshegs pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo’i ’grel pa de bzhin gshegs pa’i snying po’i rgyan (Laṅkāvatāranāmamahāyānasūtravṛttitathāgatahṛdayālaṃkāra), Toh 4019, Degé Tengyur vol. 224 (mdo ’grel, pi), folios 1.a–310.a.
Other References in Tibetan
Kalzang Dolma. (skal bzang sgrol ma). lo tsA ba ’gos chos grub dang khong gi ’gyur rtsom mdo mdzangs blun gyi lo tsA’i thabs rtsal skor la dpyad pa. In krung go’i bod kyi shes rig, vol. 77, pp. 31–53. Beijing: krung go’i bod kyi shes rig dus deb khang, 2007.
Lotsawa Gö Chödrup (lo tsā ba ’gos chos grub). In gangs ljongs skad gnyis smra ba du ma’i ’gyur byang blo gsal dga’ skyed, pp. 17–18. Xining: kan lho bod rigs rang skyong khul rtsom sgyur cu’u, 1983.
Ngawang Lobsang Choden (nga dbang blo bzang chos ldan). ’phags pa gser ’od dam pa mdo sde’i dbang po’i rgyal po’i ’don thabs cho ga (A Rite That is a Method for Reciting the Noble Sūtra of the Sublime Golden Light), s.n. s.l. n.d.
Pema Karpo (pad ma dkar po). gser ’od dam pa nas gsungs pa’i bshags pa. In The Collected Works of Kun-mkhyen padma dkar po, vol. 9 (ta), pp. 519–24. Darjeeling: kargyu sungrab nyamso khang, 1973–74.
Other References in English and Other Languages
Bagchi, S., ed. Suvarṇaprabhāsasūtram. Darbhanga: The Mithila Institute, 1967. Digital Sanskrit Buddhist Canon.
Banerjee, Radha. Suvarṇaprabhāsottamasūtra. London: British Library, 2006. http://idp.bl.uk/downloads/GoldenLight.pdf.
Buswell Jr., Robert E., and Donald Lopez Jr. The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism. Princeton University Press, 2014.
Di, Guan. “The Sanskrit Fragments Preserved in Arthur M. Sackler Museum of Peking University.” Annual Report of the Research Institute for Advanced Buddhology at Soka University for the Academic Year 2013, vol. XVII (Tokyo Soka University, 2014): 109–18.
Lewis, Todd T. “Contributions to the Study of Popular Buddhism: The Newar Buddhist Festival of Guṃlā Dharma.” Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies 16, no. 2 (Winter 1993): 309–54.
Nanjio Bunyiu, Idzumi Hokei. The Suvarṇaprabhāsa Sūtra: A Mahāyāna Text Called “The Golden Splendour.” Kyoto: The Eastern Buddhist Society, 1931.
Nobel, Johannes (1937). Suvarṇabhāsottamasūtra. Das Goldglanz-Sūtra: ein Sanskrit text des Mahāyāna-Buddhismus. Nach den Handschriften und mit Hilfe der tibetischen und chinesischen Übertragungen, Leipzig: Harrassowitz.
_______(1944). Suvarṇabhāsottamasūtra. Das Goldglanz-Sūtra: ein Sanskrit text des Mahāyāna-Buddhismus. Die Tibetischen Überstzungen mit einem Wörterbuch. Leiden: E. J. Brill.
_______(1944, 1950). Suvarṇabhāsottamasūtra. Das Goldglanz-Sūtra: ein Sanskrit text des Mahāyāna-Buddhismus. Die Tibetischen Überstzungen mit einem Wörterbuch. 2 vols. Leiden: E. J. Brill.
Radich, Michael (2014). “On the Sources, Style and Authorship of Chapters of the Synoptic Suvarṇaprabhasa-sūtra T644 Ascribed to Paramārtha (Part 1).” Annual Report of the Research Institute for Advanced Buddhology at Soka University for the Academic Year 2013, vol. XVII: 207–44. Tokyo Soka University.
______ (2016). “Tibetan Evidence for the Sources of Chapters of the Synoptic Suvarṇa-prabhāsottama-sūtra T 664 A Ascribed to Paramārtha.” Buddhist Studies Review 32.2 (2015): 245–70. Sheffield, UK: Equinox Publishing.
Tanaka, Kimiaki. An Illustrated History of the Mandala From Its Genesis to the Kālacakratantra. Somerville, MA: Wisdom Publications, 2018.
Tyomkin, E. N. “Unique Sanskrit Fragments of ‘The Sūtra of Golden Light’ in the Manuscript Collection of the St. Petersburg Branch of the Institute of Oriental Studies.” In Manuscripta Orientalia vol. 1, no. 1 (July 1995): 29–38. St. Petersburg: Russian Academy of Sciences.
Yuyama, Akira. “The Golden Light in Central Asia.” In Annual Report of the International Research Institute for Advanced Buddhology at Soka University for the Academic Year 2003 (Tokyo: Soka University, 2004) 3–32.
Translations
Emmerick, R. E. The Sūtra of Golden Light. Oxford: The Pali Text Society, 2004.
Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition (FPMT). Sutra of Golden Light, 21-Chapter.
Nobel, Johannes. Suvarṇaprabhāsottamasūtra, Das Goldglanz-Sutra, ein Sanskrittext des Mahayana Buddhismus. I-Tsing’s chinesische Version und ihre Übersetzung. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1958.