co.

Table of Contents

s.

Summary

s.­1

This text presents two dhāraṇīs for the retention of The Perfection of Wisdom Sūtra in One Hundred Thousand Lines.

ac.

Acknowledgements

ac.­1

This publication was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.

ac.­2

The text was translated, edited, and introduced by the 84000 translation team. Paul G. Hackett produced the translation and wrote the introduction. Rory Lindsay edited the translation and the introduction, and Dawn Collins copyedited the text. Sameer Dhingra was in charge of the digital publication process.

i.

Introduction

i.­1

This text presents two dhāraṇīs1 for the retention of The Perfection of Wisdom Sūtra in One Hundred Thousand Lines.2 The first of these dhāraṇīs does not appear to be contained in any canonical tantra, although it is shared in common with The Dhāraṇī of “The Perfection of Wisdom in One Hundred Thousand Lines”.3 Regarding the second dhāraṇī, a mantra closely resembling it is found in The Ornament for the Vajra Essence Tantra.4 In addition, this dhāraṇī text is reproduced in its entirety in Abhayākāragupta’s Main Path to Awakening.5

i.­2

This translation of the text into English relied primarily on the Degé recension while making reference to variant readings in other recensions as noted in the Comparative Edition (dpe bsdur ma) and validated in the source texts‍—notably Narthang.6 No previous translation of this text into a language outside the Tibetan sphere of influence is known. Meisezahl (1957) provides a diplomatic edition of the dhāraṇī found in the Linden Museum Tibetan collection, where it is accompanied by a third dhāraṇī.

Text Body

The Dhāraṇī for Retaining the Perfection of Wisdom in a Hundred Thousand Lines
1.

The Translation

[F.203.b]


1.­1

Homage to the Bhagavatī, the Perfection of Wisdom.


1.­2

tadyathā | oṃ munidharme saṃgrahadharme vimuktidharme sadā anugrahadharme vaiśravaṇa parivartata | dharme sarvakārya paripramāṇadharme samatāparivartanadharme svāhā |7

1.­3

oṃ prajñā śruti smṛti vijaye dhīḥ dhāraṇīye svāhā |8

1.­4

9By taking up this dhāraṇī, one will retain The Perfection of Wisdom in a Hundred Thousand Lines.

1.­5

This completes “The Dhāraṇī for Retaining the Perfection of Wisdom in a Hundred Thousand Lines.”

n.

Notes

n.­1
Of the four types of dhāraṇīs described by the fourth-century scholar-yogi Asaṅga‍—Dharma dhāraṇīs (dharmadhāraṇī; chos kyi gzungs), meaning dhāraṇīs (arthadhāraṇī; don gyi gzungs), mantra dhāraṇīs (mantradhāraṇī; gsang sngags kyi gzungs), and bodhisattva patience dhāraṇīs (bodhisattva­kṣāntilābhāya­dhāraṇī; byang chub sems dpa’ bzod pa ’thob par byed pa’i gzungs)‍—this text falls into the category of dharmadhāraṇīs, which enable one to retain knowledge of words‍—Dharma teachings‍—that have been heard. Cf. Grounds of Bodhisattvas (Bodhisattva­bhūmi; byang chub sems dpa’i sa; Toh 4037, folio 144.a). A discussion of various classifications of dhāraṇīs is given in Pagel 2007.
n.­2
No Sanskrit title is provided for this text, and its title is given on the basis of the Tibetan alone. See The Perfection of Wisdom in One Hundred Thousand Lines (Toh 8).
n.­3
Ārya­prajñāpāramitā­śatasahasrā­dhāraṇī; ’phags pa shes rab kyi pha rol tu phyin pa stong phrag brgya pa’i gzungs. Toh 576.
n.­4
oṃ prajñā svāhā | oṃ śruti smṛti vijaye svāhā. Vajra­maṇḍālamkāra; Toh 490, folio 54.a.
n.­5
Bodhipaddhati; byang chub kyi gzhung lam zhes bya ba; Toh 3766, folio 120.b.
n.­6

Note that there is a discrepancy among various databases for cataloging the Toh 939 version of this text within vol. 100 or 101 of the Degé Kangyur. See Toh 939, n.­6, for details.

n.­7
This dhāraṇī is difficult to translate but can be tentatively rendered into English as follows: “It is thus: oṃ. O Vaiśravaṇa, turn the wheel of the Dharma of the Sage, the Dharma of summation, the Dharma of liberation, and the Dharma of constant benefit. This is the Dharma of complete activity, the Dharma beyond all measure, the Dharma of protecting all equally. May auspiciousness abound.”
n.­8
This dhāraṇī translates as “oṃ. To the wisdom that is heard, contemplated, and victorious. dhiḥ. To that which is to be upheld. May auspiciousness abound.”
n.­9
In Meisezahl’s manuscript, there is an additional dhāraṇī, which reads oṃ prajñāpāramitā bala svāhā.
b.

Bibliography

shes rab kyi pha rol tu phyin pa stong phrag brgya pa gzung bar ’gyur ba’i gzungs. Toh 583, Degé Kangyur vol. 90 (rgyud, pha), folio 204.a.

shes rab kyi pha rol tu phyin pa stong phrag brgya pa gzung bar ’gyur ba’i gzungs. Toh 939, Degé Kangyur vol. 100 (gzungs ’dus, e), folio 282.a.

pha rol tu phyin pa bcu thob par ’gyur ba’i gzungs (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. 90, pp. 661–62.

Meisezahl, Richard O. “Die tibetischen Handschriften und Drucke des Linden-Museums in Stuttgart.” Tribus 7 (1957): 1–166, 101–2 (item 71 566, Nr. 2).

Pagel, Ulrich. Mapping the Path: Vajrapadas in Mahāyāna Literature. Tokyo: The International Institute for Buddhist Studies, 2007.

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

dhāraṇī

  • gzungs
  • གཟུངས།
  • dhāraṇī AS

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The term dhāraṇī has the sense of something that “holds” or “retains,” and so it can refer to the special capacity of practitioners to memorize and recall detailed teachings. It can also refer to a verbal expression of the teachings‍—an incantation, spell, or mnemonic formula‍—that distills and “holds” essential points of the Dharma and is used by practitioners to attain mundane and supramundane goals. The same term is also used to denote texts that contain such formulas.

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84000. The Dhāraṇī for Retaining the Perfection of Wisdom in a Hundred Thousand Lines (shes rab kyi pha rol tu phyin pa stong phrag brgya pa gzung bar ’gyur ba’i gzungs, Toh 583). Translated by 84000 Associate Translators. Online publication. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2025. https://84000.co/translation/toh583.Copy
84000. The Dhāraṇī for Retaining the Perfection of Wisdom in a Hundred Thousand Lines (shes rab kyi pha rol tu phyin pa stong phrag brgya pa gzung bar ’gyur ba’i gzungs, Toh 583). Translated by 84000 Associate Translators, online publication, 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2025, 84000.co/translation/toh583.Copy
84000. (2025) The Dhāraṇī for Retaining the Perfection of Wisdom in a Hundred Thousand Lines (shes rab kyi pha rol tu phyin pa stong phrag brgya pa gzung bar ’gyur ba’i gzungs, Toh 583). (84000 Associate Translators, Trans.). Online publication. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha. https://84000.co/translation/toh583.Copy
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