The Sūtra of the Sublime Golden Light (1)
Chapter 22: Protection and Care from Devas and Yakṣas
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 22: Protection and Care from Devas and Yakṣas
Then the Bhagavat said to the great goddess Śrī, “Any noble man or noble woman who has a trusting mind and faith and wishes to make an inconceivable, vast, and great offering of requisites to the past, future, and present buddhas, and wishes to know and realize the profound field of activity of the buddhas of the three times, whether dwelling in a town, in a market town, or on a mountain, should without doubt and single-mindedly teach extensively and promulgate this king of sūtras there. Those who listen to the Dharma should avoid distraction and be single-minded.”
Then the great goddess Śrī and the multitude of other devas, having heard the words spoken by the Bhagavat, were all overjoyed, and they all aspired to single-mindedly protect completely those who hold this king of sūtras so that they will not be afflicted by misery and will always gain happiness.
This concludes “Protection and Care from Devas and Yakṣas,” the twenty-second chapter of “The Supremely Victorious King of Sūtras, the Sublime Golden Light.”
Bibliography
Primary Sources in Tibetan and Chinese
gser ’od dam pa’ i mdo. Toh 555, Degé Kangyur vol. 89 (rgyud ’bum, pa), folios 19.a–151a.
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).
Jin guangming jin 金光明經. Taishō 663 (CBETA, SAT). (Translation of Suvarṇaprabhāsottamasūtra by Dharmakṣema, a.k.a. Tan Wuchen 曇無讖).
Jin guangming zuisheng wang jin 金光明最勝王經. Taishō 665 (CBETA, SAT). (Translation of Suvarṇaprabhāsottamasūtra by Yijing 義淨).
Secondary References—Kangyur
dkyil ’khor thams cad kyi spyi’i cho gag sang ba’i rgyud (Sarvamaṇḍalasāmānyavidhiguhyatantra). Toh 806, Degé Kangyur vol. 96 (rgyud, wa), folios 141.a–167.b.
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ral pa gyen brdzes kyi rtog pa chen po byang chub sems dpa’ chen po’i rnam par ’phrul pa le’u rab ’byams las bcom ldan ’das ma ’phags ma sgrol ma’i rtsa ba’i rtog pa zhes bya ba (Ūrdhvajaṭāmahākalpamahābodhisattvavikurvaṇapaṭalavisarā bhāgavatī āryatārāmūlakalpanāma). Toh 724, Degé Kangyur vol. 93 (rgyud, tsa), folios 205.b–311.a, and vol. 94 (rgyud, tsha), folios 1.a–200.a.
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_______. 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.
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Other References in Tibetan
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Other References in English and Other Languages
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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.