![]() ![]() Amid this assembly of hundreds of thousands of different disciples, the Blessed One was teaching the Dharma. There were also other humans and nonhuman beings, including various fantastic gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, and mahoragas, who had all gathered together. There were also the Four Great Kings, the gods of the Heaven of the Thirty-Three, such as Śakra, lord of the gods, and the gods of the Heaven Free from Strife, 6 the Heaven of Joy, the Heaven of Delighting in Emanations, and the Heaven of Making Use of Others’ Emanations, as well as a hundred thousand gods of the Brahmā realm, including Brahmā. Present also were the sixteen 5 holy beings Bhadrapāla, Ratnākara, Susārthavāha, Naradatta, Guhagupta, Varuṇadatta, Indradatta, Uttaramati, Viśeṣamati, Vardhamānamati, Amoghadarśin, Susaṃprasthita, Suvikrāntavikrāmin, Anantamati, Anikṣiptadhura, Sūryagarbha, and Dharaṇīṃdhara, along with other such beings among seventy-two thousand bodhisattvas. ![]() Among them were youthful Mañjuśrī, youthful Ratnapāṇi, youthful Ratnamudrāhasta, youthful Ratnaśrī, youthful Gaganagañja, youthful Sahacittotpādadharmacakrapravartin, youthful Jālinīprabha, youthful Vijṛmbhita, youthful Śrīgarbha, youthful Sarvasvaparityāgin, youthful Padmavyūha, youthful Siṃha, youthful Candraprabha, youthful Candraraśmiprabha, youthful Agramati, and youthful Svālaṃkāravyūha. All of them had attained recollection, had unflinching confidence, had mastered absorption, enjoyed the superknowledges, were endowed with fearless eloquence, were proficient in the teachings on the essence of all things, and had attained acceptance that phenomena are unborn. They were all clairvoyant, having the superknowledges. The Blessed One was dwelling in Veṇuvana, at the Kalandakanivāpa, near Rājagṛha, together with a large saṅgha of sixty-four thousand monks and seventy-two thousand bodhisattvas. dpe bsdur ma) and the Stok Palace manuscript. 4 This English translation was prepared based on the Tibetan translation in the Degé Kangyur in consultation with the Comparative Edition (Tib. Among the Tibetan translators, Dharmatāśīla is the best known, as he was a senior editor of several sūtra translations and one of the main editors involved in the compilation of the first authoritative Sanskrit–Tibetan dictionary, the Mahāvyutpatti. 3 In the colophon of the Tibetan translation, we find no less than three Tibetan translators listed ( Dharmatāśīla, Devendrarakṣita, and Kumārarakṣita) as well as three Indian preceptors ( Śākyaprabha, Dharmapāla, and Jinamitra). This dating may be inferred from the text’s inclusion in the Denkarma ( ldan dkar ma) imperial inventory of early Tibetan translations, which is dated to c. The Tibetan translation, which we have rendered into English here, was completed several centuries later during the early translation period of the ninth century, when most Mahāyāna sūtras were translated in Tibet. The text presents many well-known Dharma topics, including the four truths, the six perfections, and the Three Jewels, all from a Mahāyāna perspective that emphasizes the view of emptiness. As with many Mahāyāna sūtras, this text does not aim at a systematic presentation of doctrine, 1 but rather at evoking the nature and scope of awakening by means of pertinent conversations and illustrations. The bodhisattva is therefore directed to make every effort to help all beings, while realizing that ultimately there is no action, no actor, and no beneficiary. Indeed, although this sūtra stresses the importance of “donning the armor of diligence,” this practice must unfold within the context of the view of emptiness. This sūtra blends practical and theoretical strands of Mahāyāna and emphasizes how bodhisattvas should practice the Dharma-a training that transcends both the mundane and the supramundane. ![]() The teaching itself takes the form of a lively discussion between the Buddha and several bodhisattvas, such as Brahmaviśeṣacintin, Jālinīprabha, and Mañjuśrī, as well as elders, such as Śāriputra and Mahākāśyapa, and even various gods who attend the teaching. The setting for this teaching is the Veṇuvana on the outskirts of Rājagṛha, the capital city in the kingdom of Magadha. The Questions of Brahmaviśeṣacintin is an important Mahāyāna sūtra that enjoyed significant popularity in Buddhist India, China, and Tibet over the centuries. ![]()
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