co.

Table of Contents

s.

Summary

s.­1

In The Questions of Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita, the sūtra’s interlocutor, Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita, asks the Buddha Śākyamuni whether there might be other buddhas in other realms whose names carry the power to produce awakening. The Buddha responds that there are, in fact, buddhas whose names are so efficacious that simply by remembering them, the disciple will be awakened. The Buddha then names the buddhas of the ten directions, their worlds and eons, and the specific effects that knowing each of their names will have on disciples with faith.

ac.

Acknowledgements

ac.­1

This text was translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee under the supervision of Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche. Benjamin Ewing translated the text from Tibetan into English and wrote the introduction. Andreas Doctor compared the draft translation with the original Tibetan and edited the text.

The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.

i.

Introduction

i.­1

The Questions of Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita is primarily concerned with the benefits that arise from remembering the names of various buddhas in different realms. Like many sūtras, this scripture begins with an interlocutor raising a question to the Buddha Śākyamuni. In this case it is the bodhisattva Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita, who asks whether there are buddhas whose very names carry such transformative power as to elevate the beings who hear these names to buddhahood. Śākyamuni replies that there are ten buddhas whose names hold such power. The sūtra continues with the Buddha naming and describing these buddhas and their realms, as well as declaring the specific effects that knowledge of their names ensures. The buddhas are described as residing in each of the ten directions and, while some of their names appear in other sūtras, most of them appear to be unique to this scripture, as are the names of their realms.

i.­2

The notion that a disciple can become destined for awakening merely by recalling the names of buddhas who live in other realms appears in a number of Great Vehicle sūtras. In the Tibetan Kangyur these sūtras are found scattered throughout the sūtra collections. While a number of organizing principles were employed when the editors of the Kangyur structured this collection, the texts concerned with the liberating effects of the names of various buddhas were, however, not grouped based on this subject matter but instead were dispersed throughout the sūtra collections following other editorial priorities.

i.­3

While The Questions of Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita is a member of the Ratnakūṭa collection, a slightly different version of this sūtra also appears in the general sūtra section under the title The Ten Buddhas. These two texts are identical in most respects, but in several instances the names of the various world systems, eons, and buddhas differ, sometimes in part, sometimes entirely. The summary verses, which appear after each presentation of the individual buddhas, are also, for the most part, different in the two texts. Interestingly, although both texts attest to having been translated into Tibetan by the same group of people, it appears that the inclusion of The Ten Buddhas into the canon may have occurred at a later time, since The Questions of Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita is listed in the earliest catalog of Tibetan translations, the Denkarma (ldan dkar ma), while The Ten Buddhas is not.1 Regardless of these historical uncertainties, both of these sūtras are good representatives of the genre of Great Vehicle literature in which the virtues embodied in the names of the buddhas are extolled and declared to guarantee a future awakening for all who remember them.

i.­4

The Questions of Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita is no longer extant in Sanskrit but is included in the Chinese canon.2 It was translated into Chinese sometime between 706 and 713 ᴄᴇ by Bodhiruci (d. 727), a renowned translator from South India (who is not to be confused with another famous Indian translator of the same name who was active in China two centuries earlier). This Bodhiruci is responsible for translating much of the Ratnakūṭa collection, among other texts.3 In Tibet The Questions of Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita was among the many Great Vehicle sūtras that were brought into the country in the late eighth and early ninth centuries, during the imperial period in which the majority of the sūtras in the Tibetan canon were translated. The translation is attributed to the well-known Indian scholars Prajñāvarman and Jinamitra, along with the prolific Tibetan chief editor-translator Yeshé Dé. The English translation presented here was based primarily on the Tibetan Degé edition, in consultation with the Comparative Edition (dpe bsdur ma) and the Stok Palace manuscript edition.

Text Body

The Noble Great Vehicle Sūtra
The Questions of Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita
1.

The Translation

[F.261.b]


1.­1

Homage to all buddhas and bodhisattvas. [F.262.a]


1.­2

Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was residing at Vulture Peak Mountain in Rājagṛha together with a great assembly of one thousand two hundred fifty monks and many thousands of bodhisattvas. Included in the assembly at that time was a bodhisattva great being, a Licchavi prince from the city of Vaiśālī named Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita. The bodhisattva great being Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita rose from his seat, draped his upper robe over one shoulder, and knelt with his right knee on the ground. With joined palms, he bowed toward the Blessed One and inquired, “If the Blessed One would grant me the opportunity to request instruction, I would like to ask a question of the honored, blessed, thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha.”

1.­3

The Blessed One replied to the bodhisattva great being Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita, “Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita, do ask the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha whatever you wish. Then I will address your questions and set your mind at ease.”

1.­4

The bodhisattva great being Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita then asked the Blessed One, “Blessed One, are there presently blessed buddhas residing alive and well in other world systems whose names, when remembered, cause noble sons and daughters [F.262.b] to swiftly and fully awaken to unexcelled and perfect buddhahood?”

1.­5

“Very good, Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita,” the Blessed One responded to the bodhisattva great being Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita, “very good! Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita, your motivation for asking this question of the Thus-Gone One is to benefit and bring happiness to many beings now and in the future. You have asked this question out of love for the world and to benefit, help, and bring happiness to bodhisattvas, gods, and humans. Very good, Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita! Therefore, Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita, listen well and pay attention. I will explain it to you.”

“Blessed One, I shall do that!” said the bodhisattva great being Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita, and he listened as the Blessed One had instructed.

1.­6

The Blessed One said, “Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita, to the east of here is a world system known as Arrayed with the Qualities of All Phenomena. There the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Array of Immense Precious Qualities Like the King of Splendor currently resides, alive and well. That eon is known as Gathering of Complete Abundance. There, the lifespan of sentient beings is immeasurable. That blessed one’s full retinue of bodhisattvas is also innumerable. When faithful noble sons and daughters remember the name of the blessed, thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Array of Immense Precious Qualities Like the King of Splendor, [F.263.a] sixty thousand eons of wandering in cyclic existence are negated.

1.­7

“From their next lives onward, they will attain the dhāraṇī called unhindered teaching. They will be provided with the eloquence of4 the blessed buddhas in a hundred million buddhafields. When they teach the Dharma, they will have no trepidation. Regarding this, it is said:

1.­8
“ ‘Those who speak this buddha’s name
Will quickly manifest these qualities.
For them, even better things will occur,
And unsurpassed awakening will not be difficult.’
1.­9

“Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita, to the south of here is a world system known as Arrayed with Precious Qualities. There, the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha King of Splendor Arrayed with the Glory of Precious Qualities currently resides, alive and well. That eon is known as Flourishing Qualities. The faithful noble sons and daughters who remember the name of the blessed, thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha King of Splendor Arrayed with the Glory of Precious Qualities will, immediately in their next lives, attain the absorption known as the sun disk’s universal illumination. They will also attain an array of the immeasurable qualities of the buddhafields. Immediately in their next lives they will attain the thirty-two marks of a great being. They will be born into the buddhafield of their aspiration prayers. Since for them only a single rebirth remains, they will fully awaken to unexcelled and perfect buddhahood. They will also achieve unceasing eloquence. Regarding this, it is said: [F.263.b]

1.­10
“ ‘Those who speak this buddha’s name
Will manifest inconceivable absorptions.
They will attain bodies endowed with the thirty-two marks,
And they will be just one rebirth away from awakening.’
1.­11

“Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita, to the west of here is a world system known as Free of All Misery and Darkness. There, the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Glorious Array of Eloquence in All Teachings currently resides, alive and well. That eon is known as Beautiful Śākya. The faithful noble sons and daughters who remember the name of the blessed, thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Glorious Array of Eloquence in All Teachings will not meet their deaths because of a blade. Furthermore, they will not meet their deaths because of poison, water, or fire, and they will have a miraculous rebirth. Immediately in their next lives they will attain the dhāraṇī called one hundred powers. Regarding this, it is said:

1.­12
“ ‘Those who speak this buddha’s name
Will not perish by fire,
Or by blade, water, or poison;
They will have only miraculous rebirths.’
1.­13

“Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita, to the north of here is a world system known as Free of Darkness and Gloom. There, the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Intelligence Arrayed with Immeasurable Eloquence currently resides, alive and well. That eon is known as Holding Great Renown. The faithful noble sons and daughters who remember the name of the blessed, thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Intelligence Arrayed with Immeasurable Eloquence [F.264.a] will please tens of billions of buddhas. They will attain the dhāraṇī called following everywhere, as well as the dhāraṇī known as inexhaustible casket, and will subsequently fully awaken to unexcelled and perfect buddhahood. They will not be born into the three lower realms. They will liberate all beings in the lower realms of whichever buddhafields they are born into as they engage in the conduct of bodhisattvas. They will never regress in their progress toward unexcelled and perfect buddhahood. Regarding this, it is said:

1.­14
“ ‘Those who speak the name of this buddha
Will have incalculable qualities
And will undoubtedly attain buddhahood.
Without a doubt, dhāraṇīs will arise for them.’
1.­15

“Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita, to the southeast of here is a world system known as Very Beautiful Array. There, the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha King of the Sound of a Thousand Thunderclaps currently resides, alive and well. That eon is known as Emergence of Qualities. The faithful noble sons and daughters who remember the name of the blessed, thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha King of the Sound of a Thousand Thunderclaps will, immediately in their next lives, attain the fourfold fearlessness, the four bases of miraculous powers, and great love, as well as great compassion. They will attain the eighteen unique qualities of the buddhas. They will attain the array of qualities just as they are in the buddhafield of the Thus-Gone One Amitāyus. Following a female birth, [F.264.b] they will be born into the body of a man. Regarding this, it is said:

1.­16
“ ‘Any bodhisattvas who remember this victor’s name
Will always attain these qualities
And inconceivably many others.
Those bodhisattvas will behold many buddhas.’
1.­17

“Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita, to the southwest of here is a world system known as Immeasurable Array. There, the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Glorious Supremely Golden Light resides, alive and well. That eon is known as Creation of All Qualities. The faithful noble sons and daughters who remember the name of the blessed, thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Glorious Supremely Golden Light please ninety million blessed buddhas just by hearing that name. They will attain the absorption known as elevating all beings to greatness. Why is it called elevating all beings to greatness? When a noble son or daughter rests in this absorption, subsequently teaches the Dharma, and attains the nature of that absorption while teaching the Dharma, it brings happiness to all beings within the world systems of a great trichiliocosm. For example, this is just like how all beings in the buddhafield of the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Manojña attain happiness together, and how all the beings in the lower realms there are freed, and how after being freed from the lower realms they attain the bodies of gods and humans and are certain to attain unexcelled and perfect buddhahood. [F.265.a] Regarding this, it is said:

1.­18
“ ‘Those who remember the name Glorious Supremely Golden Light
Will, in all lives, have no trouble becoming
Mighty lords with glorious and radiant appearances.5
Their minds will become unobstructed and limitless.’
1.­19

“Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita, to the northwest of here is a world system known as Free of Evil Deeds. There, the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha King of Splendor with Many Glorious Appearances resides, alive and well. That eon is known as Flourishing of Householders. The faithful noble sons and daughters who remember the name of the blessed, thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha King of Splendor with Many Glorious Appearances will, immediately in their next lives, attain the dhāraṇī called array of immeasurable eloquence. With little effort, they will come to possess the array of qualities of the buddhafield of the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Amitāyus. They will hear the discourses of eight hundred million buddhas and remember them. Regarding this, it is said:

1.­20
“ ‘Those who remember the glorious name of this victor
Will gain boundless life and understanding of the Dharma
In the buddhafield of Amitāyus.
With just a single rebirth remaining, they will awaken to perfect buddhahood.’
1.­21

“Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita, to the northeast of here is a world system known as Transcending All Misery. There, the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha He Who Attained Awakening after Countless Millions of Eons resides, alive and well. That eon [F.265.b] is known as Array of Eloquence. The faithful noble sons and daughters who remember the name of the blessed, thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha He Who Attained Awakening after Countless Millions of Eons will, immediately in their next lives, attain the excellent eloquence of speech endowed with the sixty qualities, and they will attain the development of roots of virtue before eight hundred million buddhas. Regarding this, it is said:

1.­22
“ ‘Endowed with the excellent sixty qualities of speech,
As well as an understanding that is perfected,
They will attain the inconceivable merit
Of worshiping eighty million victors.’
1.­23

“Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita, above here is a world system known as Splendor Arrayed with Immeasurable Qualities. There the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Array of Light Constantly Proclaiming Pure Gold and Space abides, alive and well. That eon is known as Attaining the Immeasurable. The faithful noble sons and daughters who remember the name of the blessed, thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Array of Light Constantly Proclaiming Pure Gold and Space purify an immeasurable aggregate of discipline. They also purify an immeasurable aggregate of absorption, an immeasurable aggregate of insight, an immeasurable aggregate of liberation, and an immeasurable aggregate of liberated wisdom vision. They will also progress through the levels. They will attain speech that is worthy of being accepted. [F.266.a] They will attain excellent eloquence free from hesitation. They will swiftly and fully awaken to unexcelled and perfect buddhahood. They will understand the symbols of letters and sounds. They will attain lofty castes and exalted lineages. They will attain the five superknowledges. They will remember their former lives. They will attain the eighteen unique qualities of the buddhas. Regarding this, it is said:

1.­24
“ ‘Those who remember the supreme name of this victor
Will attain perfect speech endowed with the eight aspects,
And they will never be reborn where there is no buddha.
Such individuals will awaken to buddhahood without hindrance.’
1.­25

“Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita, below here is a world system known as Delighting in Inseparability. There, the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Splendorous Light Manifesting in the Manner of All Phenomena abides, alive and well. That eon is known as Gathering of Wisdom. The faithful noble sons and daughters who remember the name of the blessed, thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Splendorous Light Manifesting in the Manner of All Phenomena will, immediately in their next lives, attain the dhāraṇī called accomplishing buddhahood. With just one rebirth remaining, they will fully awaken to unexcelled and perfect buddhahood. They will hear the Dharma teachings of ninety million buddhas, and, upon hearing them, they will remember them all. Regarding this, it is said:

1.­26
“ ‘Those who remember the name of this buddha [F.266.b]
Will hear the teachings of ninety million buddhas,
Will have just one birth remaining,
And will fully awaken to unexcelled and perfect buddhahood.’ ”
1.­27

Then the bodhisattva great being Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita, as well as the bodhisattva great being Eloquent Voice Endowed with All Precious Qualities, attained dhāraṇī. Eighty million bodhisattvas attained the level of progressing irreversibly toward unexcelled and perfect awakening, and thirty thousand gods and humans aroused the mind set upon unexcelled and perfect awakening.6

1.­28

After the Blessed One said those words, the bodhisattva great being Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita, the entire assembly, and the world with its gods, humans, asuras, and gandharvas rejoiced and praised the Buddha’s words.

1.­29

This concludes The Questions of Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita, the thirty-fourth of the one hundred thousand sections of the Dharma discourse known as The Noble Great Heap of Jewels.

c.

Colophon

c.­1

Translated, edited, and finalized by the Indian scholars Jinamitra and Prajñāvarman, as well as the chief editor-translator Bandé Yeshé Dé and others.

n.

Notes

n.­1
In the Denkarma, The Questions of Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita is included in the Ratnakūṭa section. See Denkarma, 296.a7 and Herrmann-Pfandt 2008, 33–34 (no. 58).
n.­2
Gongde bao hua fu pusa hui 功德寶花敷菩薩會 (Taishō 310 [34]). For more information on this version of the sūtra, see Lewis R. Lancaster, “K 22(34),” The Korean Buddhist Canon.
n.­3
Buswell and Lopez 2013, 133.
n.­4
Reading rnams kyi as in Yongle and Kangxi, rather than rnams kyis as in Degé.
n.­5
Translation tentative. Tibetan: de la gzi brjid dpal mdog stobs dbang po.
n.­6
The Tibetan text indicates the end of the Buddha’s speech here. However, we have tentatively marked the final verse just above as the end of the Buddha’s speech, to better fit the narrative. This anomaly and the preceding note may point to some form of manuscript corruption, either in the Tibetan transmission of this sūtra or its preceding history.
b.

Bibliography

’phags pa yon tan rin chen me tog kun tu rgyas pas zhus pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo. Toh 78, Degé Kangyur vol. 43 (dkon brtsegs, ca), folios 261.b–266.b.

’phags pa yon tan rin chen me tog kun tu rgyas pas zhus 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), 2006–2009, vol. 43, pp. 757–68.

’phags pa yon tan rin chen me tog kun tu rgyas pas zhus pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo. Stok Palace Kangyur vol. 39 (dkon brtsegs, ca), folios 432.a–439.a.

sangs rgyas bcu pa’i mdo (Daśa­buddhaka­sūtra) [Sūtra of the Ten Buddhas]. Toh 272, Degé Kangyur vol. 68 (mdo sde, ya), folios 21.b–26.b.

Buswell, Robert E., and Donald S. Lopez Jr. The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2013.

Denkarma (pho brang stod thang ldan [/ lhan] dkar gyi chos ’gyur ro cog gi dkar chag). Degé Tengyur vol. 206 (sna tshogs, jo), folios 294.b–310.a.

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

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

absorption

  • ting nge ’dzin
  • ཏིང་ངེ་འཛིན།
  • samādhi

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

In a general sense, samādhi can describe a number of different meditative states. In the Mahāyāna literature, in particular in the Prajñāpāramitā sūtras, we find extensive lists of different samādhis, numbering over one hundred.

In a more restricted sense, and when understood as a mental state, samādhi is defined as the one-pointedness of the mind (cittaikāgratā), the ability to remain on the same object over long periods of time. The Drajor Bamponyipa (sgra sbyor bam po gnyis pa) commentary on the Mahāvyutpatti explains the term samādhi as referring to the instrument through which mind and mental states “get collected,” i.e., it is by the force of samādhi that the continuum of mind and mental states becomes collected on a single point of reference without getting distracted.

g.­2

aggregate of absorption

  • ting nge ’dzin kyi phung po
  • ཏིང་ངེ་འཛིན་ཀྱི་ཕུང་པོ།
  • samādhiskandha

Second of the five pure aggregates.

g.­3

aggregate of discipline

  • tshul khrims kyi phung po
  • ཚུལ་ཁྲིམས་ཀྱི་ཕུང་པོ།
  • śīlaskandha

First of the five pure aggregates.

g.­4

aggregate of insight

  • shes rab kyi phung po
  • ཤེས་རབ་ཀྱི་ཕུང་པོ།
  • prajñāskandha

Third of the five pure aggregates.

g.­5

aggregate of liberated wisdom vision

  • rnam par grol ba’i ye shes mthong ba’i phung po
  • རྣམ་པར་གྲོལ་བའི་ཡེ་ཤེས་མཐོང་བའི་ཕུང་པོ།
  • vimukti­jñāna­darśana­skandha

Fifth of the five pure aggregates.

g.­6

aggregate of liberation

  • rnam par grol ba’i phung po
  • རྣམ་པར་གྲོལ་བའི་ཕུང་པོ།
  • vimuktiskandha

Fourth of the five pure aggregates.

g.­7

Amitāyus

  • tshe dpag med
  • ཚེ་དཔག་མེད།
  • amitāyus

The buddha associated with longevity.

g.­8

Array of Eloquence

  • spobs pa bkod
  • སྤོབས་པ་བཀོད།
  • —

The name of an eon in which the Buddha He Who Attained Awakening after Countless Millions of Eons resides.

g.­9

Array of Immense Precious Qualities Like the King of Splendor

  • yon tan rin chen dpag tu med pa bkod pa’i gzi brjid kyi rgyal po lta bu
  • ཡོན་ཏན་རིན་ཆེན་དཔག་ཏུ་མེད་པ་བཀོད་པའི་གཟི་བརྗིད་ཀྱི་རྒྱལ་པོ་ལྟ་བུ།
  • —

The name of a buddha in the eastern direction.

g.­10

Array of Light Constantly Proclaiming Pure Gold and Space

  • gser bzang po dang nam mkha’ nges par sgrogs pa bkod pa’i ’od
  • གསེར་བཟང་པོ་དང་ནམ་མཁའ་ངེས་པར་སྒྲོགས་པ་བཀོད་པའི་འོད།
  • —

The name of a buddha in the above direction.

g.­11

Arrayed with Precious Qualities

  • yon tan rin chen bkod pa’i ’jig rten gyi khams
  • ཡོན་ཏན་རིན་ཆེན་བཀོད་པའི་འཇིག་རྟེན་གྱི་ཁམས།
  • —

The name of a world system in the southern direction.

g.­12

Arrayed with the Qualities of All Phenomena

  • chos thams cad kyi yon tan bkod pa’i ’jig rten gyi khams
  • ཆོས་ཐམས་ཅད་ཀྱི་ཡོན་ཏན་བཀོད་པའི་འཇིག་རྟེན་གྱི་ཁམས།
  • —

The name of a world system in the eastern direction.

g.­13

asura

  • lha ma yin
  • ལྷ་མ་ཡིན།
  • asura

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A type of nonhuman being whose precise status is subject to different views, but is included as one of the six classes of beings in the sixfold classification of realms of rebirth. In the Buddhist context, asuras are powerful beings said to be dominated by envy, ambition, and hostility. They are also known in the pre-Buddhist and pre-Vedic mythologies of India and Iran, and feature prominently in Vedic and post-Vedic Brahmanical mythology, as well as in the Buddhist tradition. In these traditions, asuras are often described as being engaged in interminable conflict with the devas (gods).

g.­14

Attaining the Immeasurable

  • tshad med len
  • ཚད་མེད་ལེན།
  • —

The name of an eon in which the Buddha Array of Light Constantly Proclaiming Pure Gold and Space abides.

g.­15

bases of miraculous powers

  • rdzu ’phrul gyi rkang pa
  • རྫུ་འཕྲུལ་གྱི་རྐང་པ།
  • ṛddhipāda

These are determination, discernment, diligence, and meditative concentration.

g.­16

Beautiful Śākya

  • shAkya mngon par mdzes pa
  • ཤཱཀྱ་མངོན་པར་མཛེས་པ།
  • —

The name of an eon in which the Buddha Glorious Array of Eloquence in All Teachings resides.

g.­17

Creation of All Qualities

  • chos thams cad yang dag par skyed pa
  • ཆོས་ཐམས་ཅད་ཡང་དག་པར་སྐྱེད་པ།
  • —

The name of an eon in which the Buddha Glorious Supremely Golden Light resides.

g.­18

Delighting in Inseparability

  • tha dad pa med pa nyid la dga’ ba
  • ཐ་དད་པ་མེད་པ་ཉིད་ལ་དགའ་བ།
  • —

The name of a world system in the below direction.

g.­19

dhāraṇī

  • gzungs
  • གཟུངས།
  • dhāraṇī

This term is used in various ways. For instance, it refers to the mental capacity of not forgetting, enabling one in particular to cultivate positive forces and to ward off negativity. It is also very commonly used as a term for mystical verses similar to mantras, the usage of which will grant a particular power.

g.­20

eighteen unique qualities of the buddhas

  • sangs rgyas kyi chos ma ’dres pa bco brgyad
  • སངས་རྒྱས་ཀྱི་ཆོས་མ་འདྲེས་པ་བཅོ་བརྒྱད།
  • aṣṭā­daśā­veṇika­buddha­dharma

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Eighteen special features of a buddha’s behavior, realization, activity, and wisdom that are not shared by other beings. They are generally listed as: (1) he never makes a mistake, (2) he is never boisterous, (3) he never forgets, (4) his concentration never falters, (5) he has no notion of distinctness, (6) his equanimity is not due to lack of consideration, (7) his motivation never falters, (8) his endeavor never fails, (9) his mindfulness never falters, (10) he never abandons his concentration, (11) his insight (prajñā) never decreases, (12) his liberation never fails, (13) all his physical actions are preceded and followed by wisdom (jñāna), (14) all his verbal actions are preceded and followed by wisdom, (15) all his mental actions are preceded and followed by wisdom, (16) his wisdom and vision perceive the past without attachment or hindrance, (17) his wisdom and vision perceive the future without attachment or hindrance, and (18) his wisdom and vision perceive the present without attachment or hindrance.

g.­21

Eloquent Voice Endowed with All Precious Qualities

  • yon tan rin chen thams cad dang ldan pa’i spobs pa’i skad
  • ཡོན་ཏན་རིན་ཆེན་ཐམས་ཅད་དང་ལྡན་པའི་སྤོབས་པའི་སྐད།
  • —

A bodhisattva.

g.­22

Emergence of Qualities

  • yon tan ’byung ba
  • ཡོན་ཏན་འབྱུང་བ།
  • —

The name of an eon in which the Buddha King of the Sound of a Thousand Thunderclaps resides.

g.­23

five superknowledges

  • mngon par shes pa lnga
  • མངོན་པར་ཤེས་པ་ལྔ།
  • pañcābhijñā

Five supernatural faculties result from meditative concentration: divine sight, divine hearing, knowing others’ minds, recollecting past lives, and the ability to perform miracles.

g.­24

Flourishing of Householders

  • khyim rgyas
  • ཁྱིམ་རྒྱས།
  • —

The name of an eon in which the Buddha King of Splendor with Many Glorious Appearances resides.

g.­25

Flourishing Qualities

  • yon tan rgyas pa
  • ཡོན་ཏན་རྒྱས་པ།
  • —

The name of an eon in which the Buddha King of Splendor Arrayed with the Glory of Precious Qualities resides.

g.­26

fourfold fearlessness

  • mi ’jigs pa bzhi
  • མི་འཇིགས་པ་བཞི།
  • caturabhaya

Fearlessness in declaring that one has (1) awakened, (2) ceased all illusions, (3) taught the obstacles to awakening, and (4) shown the way to liberation.

g.­27

Free of All Misery and Darkness

  • mya ngan dang mun pa thams cad dang bral ba’i ’jig rten
  • མྱ་ངན་དང་མུན་པ་ཐམས་ཅད་དང་བྲལ་བའི་འཇིག་རྟེན།
  • —

The name of a world system in the western direction.

g.­28

Free of Darkness and Gloom

  • mun pa dang rdul dang bral ba
  • མུན་པ་དང་རྡུལ་དང་བྲལ་བ།
  • —

The name of a world system in the northern direction.

g.­29

Free of Evil Deeds

  • sdig pa dang bral ba
  • སྡིག་པ་དང་བྲལ་བ།
  • —

The name of a world system in the northwestern direction.

g.­30

gandharva

  • dri za
  • དྲི་ཟ།
  • gandharva

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A class of generally benevolent nonhuman beings who inhabit the skies, sometimes said to inhabit fantastic cities in the clouds, and more specifically to dwell on the eastern slopes of Mount Meru, where they are ruled by the Great King Dhṛtarāṣṭra. They are most renowned as celestial musicians who serve the gods. In the Abhidharma, the term is also used to refer to the mental body assumed by sentient beings during the intermediate state between death and rebirth. Gandharvas are said to live on fragrances (gandha) in the desire realm, hence the Tibetan translation dri za, meaning “scent eater.”

g.­31

Gathering of Complete Abundance

  • rgyas pa thams cad kun nas bsdus pa
  • རྒྱས་པ་ཐམས་ཅད་ཀུན་ནས་བསྡུས་པ།
  • —

The name of an eon in which the Buddha Array of Immense Precious Qualities Like the King of Splendor resides.

g.­32

Gathering of Wisdom

  • ye shes kun nas bsdus pa
  • ཡེ་ཤེས་ཀུན་ནས་བསྡུས་པ།
  • —

The name of an eon in which the Buddha Splendorous Light Manifesting in the Manner of All Phenomena resides.

g.­33

Glorious Array of Eloquence in All Teachings

  • chos thams cad la spobs pa bkod pa’i dpal
  • ཆོས་ཐམས་ཅད་ལ་སྤོབས་པ་བཀོད་པའི་དཔལ།
  • —

The name of a buddha in the western direction.

g.­34

Glorious Supremely Golden Light

  • gser mchog ’od dpal
  • གསེར་མཆོག་འོད་དཔལ།
  • —

The name of a buddha in the southwestern direction.

g.­35

great trichiliocosm

  • stong gsum gyi stong chen po
  • སྟོང་གསུམ་གྱི་སྟོང་ཆེན་པོ།
  • tri­sāhasra­mahā­sāhasra­lokadhātu

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The largest universe described in Buddhist cosmology. This term, in Abhidharma cosmology, refers to 1,000³ world systems, i.e., 1,000 “dichiliocosms” or “two thousand great thousand world realms” (dvi­sāhasra­mahā­sāhasra­lokadhātu), which are in turn made up of 1,000 first-order world systems, each with its own Mount Sumeru, continents, sun and moon, etc.

g.­36

Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita

  • yon tan rin chen me tog kun tu rgyas pa
  • ཡོན་ཏན་རིན་ཆེན་མེ་ཏོག་ཀུན་ཏུ་རྒྱས་པ།
  • guṇa­ratna­saṅkusumita

The bodhisattva who requests this teaching.

g.­37

He Who Attained Awakening after Countless Millions of Eons

  • bskal pa bye ba grangs med par byang chub yang dag par bsgrubs pa
  • བསྐལ་པ་བྱེ་བ་གྲངས་མེད་པར་བྱང་ཆུབ་ཡང་དག་པར་བསྒྲུབས་པ།
  • —

The name of a buddha in the northeastern direction.

g.­38

Holding Great Renown

  • grags pa chen po ’dzin pa
  • གྲགས་པ་ཆེན་པོ་འཛིན་པ།
  • —

The name of an eon in which the Buddha Intelligence Arrayed with Immeasurable Eloquence resides.

g.­39

Immeasurable Array

  • bkod pa dpag tu med pa
  • བཀོད་པ་དཔག་ཏུ་མེད་པ།
  • —

The name of a world system in the southwestern direction.

g.­40

Intelligence Arrayed with Immeasurable Eloquence

  • spobs pa dpag med bkod pa yang dag par spyod pa’i blo
  • སྤོབས་པ་དཔག་མེད་བཀོད་པ་ཡང་དག་པར་སྤྱོད་པའི་བློ།
  • —

The name of a buddha in the northern direction.

g.­41

Jinamitra

  • dzi na mi tra
  • ཛི་ན་མི་ཏྲ།
  • jinamitra

An Indian Kashmiri paṇḍita who was resident in Tibet during the late eighth and early ninth centuries. He worked with multiple Tibetan translators on the translation of several sūtras.

g.­42

King of Splendor Arrayed with the Glory of Precious Qualities

  • yon tan rin chen dpal bkod pa’i gzi brjid kyi rgyal po lta bu
  • ཡོན་ཏན་རིན་ཆེན་དཔལ་བཀོད་པའི་གཟི་བརྗིད་ཀྱི་རྒྱལ་པོ་ལྟ་བུ།
  • —

The name of a buddha in the southern direction.

g.­43

King of Splendor with Many Glorious Appearances

  • gzi brjid kyi rgyal po rnam mang dpal snang
  • གཟི་བརྗིད་ཀྱི་རྒྱལ་པོ་རྣམ་མང་དཔལ་སྣང་།
  • —

The name of a buddha in the northwestern direction.

g.­44

King of the Sound of a Thousand Thunderclaps

  • brug stong bgrags pa’i sgra skad kyi rgyal po
  • བྲུག་སྟོང་བགྲགས་པའི་སྒྲ་སྐད་ཀྱི་རྒྱལ་པོ།
  • —

The name of a buddha in the southeastern direction.

g.­45

Licchavi

  • lid tsa byi
  • ལིད་ཙ་བྱི།
  • licchavi

An ancient republican state, located in northern India.

g.­46

Manojña

  • yid ’ong
  • ཡིད་འོང་།
  • manojña

The name of a buddha mentioned in the teaching.

g.­47

Prajñāvarman

  • pra dz+nya bar ma
  • པྲ་ཛྙ་བར་མ།
  • prajñāvarman

A Bengali Buddhist writer who lived during the reigns of King Gopāla I of Bengal (750–75 ᴄᴇ) and King Trisong Detsen of Tibet (775–97 ᴄᴇ), under whose auspices he came to Tibet. He contributed to the translation of seventy-seven Buddhist works from Sanskrit into Tibetan and is the author of three commentaries preserved in the Tengyur.

g.­48

Rājagṛha

  • rgyal po’i khab
  • རྒྱལ་པོའི་ཁབ།
  • rājagṛha

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The ancient capital of Magadha prior to its relocation to Pāṭaliputra during the Mauryan dynasty, Rājagṛha is one of the most important locations in Buddhist history. The literature tells us that the Buddha and his saṅgha spent a considerable amount of time in residence in and around Rājagṛha‍—in nearby places, such as the Vulture Peak Mountain (Gṛdhrakūṭaparvata), a major site of the Mahāyāna sūtras, and the Bamboo Grove (Veṇuvana)‍—enjoying the patronage of King Bimbisāra and then of his son King Ajātaśatru. Rājagṛha is also remembered as the location where the first Buddhist monastic council was held after the Buddha Śākyamuni passed into parinirvāṇa. Now known as Rajgir and located in the modern Indian state of Bihar.

g.­49

speech endowed with the eight aspects

  • yan lag brgyad dbyangs
  • ཡན་ལག་བརྒྱད་དབྱངས།
  • —

The eight qualities of a buddha’s voice are variously presented. According to the Pāli Mahāgovindasutta (Dīghanikāya 19) a buddha’s voice is fluent, intelligible, sweet, audible, sustained, distinct, deep, and resonant.

g.­50

Splendor Arrayed with Immeasurable Qualities

  • yon tan dpag tu med pa bkod pa’i gzi brjid
  • ཡོན་ཏན་དཔག་ཏུ་མེད་པ་བཀོད་པའི་གཟི་བརྗིད།
  • —

The name of a world system in the above direction.

g.­51

Splendorous Light Manifesting in the Manner of All Phenomena

  • chos thams cad kyi tshul la rnam par ’phrul pa’i gzi brjid kyi ’od
  • ཆོས་ཐམས་ཅད་ཀྱི་ཚུལ་ལ་རྣམ་པར་འཕྲུལ་པའི་གཟི་བརྗིད་ཀྱི་འོད།
  • —

The name of a buddha in the below direction.

g.­52

the sun disk’s universal illumination

  • nyi ma’i dkyil ’khor gyi mtha’ snang
  • ཉི་མའི་དཀྱིལ་འཁོར་གྱི་མཐའ་སྣང་།
  • —

The name of an absorption.

g.­53

Transcending All Misery

  • mya ngan thams cad las rgal ba
  • མྱ་ངན་ཐམས་ཅད་ལས་རྒལ་བ།
  • —

The name of a world system in the northeastern direction.

g.­54

Vaiśālī

  • yangs pa can
  • ཡངས་པ་ཅན།
  • vaiśālī

The ancient capital of the Licchavi state. The Buddha visited this city several times during his lifetime.

g.­55

Very Beautiful Array

  • shin tu mdzes pa’i bkod pa
  • ཤིན་ཏུ་མཛེས་པའི་བཀོད་པ།
  • —

The name of a world system in the southeastern direction.

g.­56

Vulture Peak Mountain

  • bya rgod phung po’i ri
  • བྱ་རྒོད་ཕུང་པོའི་རི།
  • gṛdhra­kūṭa­parvata

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The Gṛdhra­kūṭa, literally Vulture Peak, was a hill located in the kingdom of Magadha, in the vicinity of the ancient city of Rājagṛha (modern-day Rajgir, in the state of Bihar, India), where the Buddha bestowed many sūtras, especially the Great Vehicle teachings, such as the Prajñāpāramitā sūtras. It continues to be a sacred pilgrimage site for Buddhists to this day.

g.­57

Yeshé Dé

  • ye shes sde
  • ཡེ་ཤེས་སྡེ།
  • —

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Yeshé Dé (late eighth to early ninth century) was the most prolific translator of sūtras into Tibetan. Altogether he is credited with the translation of more than one hundred sixty sūtra translations and more than one hundred additional translations, mostly on tantric topics. In spite of Yeshé Dé’s great importance for the propagation of Buddhism in Tibet during the imperial era, only a few biographical details about this figure are known. Later sources describe him as a student of the Indian teacher Padmasambhava, and he is also credited with teaching both sūtra and tantra widely to students of his own. He was also known as Nanam Yeshé Dé, from the Nanam (sna nam) clan.

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84000. The Questions of Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita (Guṇa­ratna­saṅkusumita­paripṛcchā, yon tan rin chen me tog kun tu rgyas pas zhus pa, Toh 78). Translated by Dharmachakra Translation Committee. Online publication. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2023. https://84000.co/translation/toh78.Copy
84000. The Questions of Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita (Guṇa­ratna­saṅkusumita­paripṛcchā, yon tan rin chen me tog kun tu rgyas pas zhus pa, Toh 78). Translated by Dharmachakra Translation Committee, online publication, 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2023, 84000.co/translation/toh78.Copy
84000. (2023) The Questions of Guṇaratnasaṅkusumita (Guṇa­ratna­saṅkusumita­paripṛcchā, yon tan rin chen me tog kun tu rgyas pas zhus pa, Toh 78). (Dharmachakra Translation Committee, Trans.). Online publication. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha. https://84000.co/translation/toh78.Copy
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