V AIR
OCANA -
SUTRA
ranslated into English rom
Ta-p' i-lu-che-na ch'eng-fo shen-pien chia-ch' ih ching
At!�1�;$��mf�
the Chinese version of Subhakarasiilha nd 1-hsing
(A.D.
725)
by
CHIKYO YAMAMOTO
Koyasan University, Koyasan (Japan)
NTERNAITONAL ACADEMY OF NDIAN CULTURE
nd ADITY A PRAKASHAN, NEW DELHI
�
1�?2
E5 Yo
llo
v
CONTENTS
�
age
vii
Peface
T
IN TRANSLATION
Scroll Chapter
1
1
Performing the deed of manra and dwelling in the mind of dhi
(enlightenment)
2
Accessories and manras necessary to approach the ma)�ala
13
2
(contd.)
2
27
3
The cessaion of hindrances
41
4
The depository of common manras
43
5
Accomplishments in the world
71
6
The manifestation of siddhi
72
7
The accomplishment of siddhi
83
8
The practice of ma)�alas by tning the wheel of letters
85
4
.9
The mystic mudras
91
121
10
The cycle of letters (ak�ara-cara)
126
11
The esoteric ma)�ala
12
The rite of entering the mystic ma)�ala
138
139
1�
Entering the positions of mystic ma)�ala
141
1.
The eight mystic mudras
15
Forbidden obsevances of vidyadharas
144
146
16
The rue wisdom of the acarya
17
The disposition of letters
148
150
6
18
Receiving the expedient and lening the discipline
154
19
What is prduced by the hundred letters
155
20
Effect that corresponds to the hundred letters
157
21
Accomplishing the position of the hundred letters
159
22
Recitation for attainment by the hundred letters
162
23
The manradharma of the hundred letters
163
24
Explaining the quality of dhi
14
25
The three samayas
vi
26
Explaining the
em
Tathagata
16
27
The mundane nd supra-mundane homa rites
167
28
Explanation of the amadhi of the main sacred one (honzon)
170
29
Explanaion of the formless (nirlak��a) samadhi
171
30
The mundane and supra-mundane recitaion
172
31
Enrusing in continuity
173
32(1)
The dicipline of the conduct of manras in the samaya-dhama
of the adoraion-ecitaion
175
33(2)
he incease of advantage and the protecion of pure conduct
179
34(3)
he rite of adoration
183
190
35(4)
The ule of remembance and recitaion
36(5)
The acion of the manra
195
vii
PREFACE
The Mahavaircan-abhisamdhi-vikurvit-adhi��hana-vaipulya-sura was rans
latd into Chinese by Subhakarasilha and I-hsing in A.D.725 in the Ta-fu-hsien mon
astery at Tung-tu. Its Chinese itle is:
Ta-p'i-lu-che-na-ch'eng-fo shen-pien chia-ch'ih
ching.
In Japanese pronunciation it reads:
Daibirshana-jobwsu-jimben-wji-kyo
(T848).
This title was ranslated by Nanjio as "Sura on Mahavaircana's ecoming Buddha and
the suenatural fomula called yugandhara
(?
lit. adding-holding)" (Nj 530). The terms
can now e clariied with the help of the Sansrit title preseved in the Tietan Kanjur:
ecoming Buddha jObutsu)
=
abhisamdhi
supenatural fomula (jimen)
=
vikuvita
yugandhara (lit. adding-holding) (kaji)
=
adhi��hana.
The Tietan ranslation was done by Silendradhi and Dpal-brtsegs under the title:
Rnam-par-snan-mdzad-chen-po miwn-par-rdzogs-par-byan-chub-pa rnam-par-sprul-pa
byin-gyis-rlob-pa sin-tu-rgyas-pa mdo-sde�i dban-po�i rgyal-po zhes-bya-ba�i chos-kyi
rnam-gralis,
a ranslation of the original Sanskrit title: Mahavaircan-abhisamdhi
vikuvit-adhi��ana-vaipulya-surendraraja nama dhrna-paryaya. In the Chinese text
certain passages echo the word surendra-raja. It is noteworthy that the Enlightenment
of Vaircana is abhisamdhi with the preix
abhi-
n
the sense of intensifying the action
implied
n
the basic word dhi. It denotes the highest enlightenment, that is, a more
evolved concept of dhi. Abhisamdhi is specifically applied to Vaircana of the
carya-tanras. He is the Abhisamdhi-Vaircana, in conradistinction to the Vajradhatu
Vaircana. The
·
reconsruction of the Chinese
Hung-kuang-hsien-yao-p'u-tifo
as
Vaircanabhisamdhi by Walter Eugene Clrk
(Two Lamaistic Pantheons
1937:ll.150/
5M5) has to e corected to Abhisamdhi-Vaircana. In the Sino-Japanese radition the
new ten Garbhadhatu-V aircana was coined for him.
Though fragments of the Sua were ranslated in Europe as erly as 1723, no
complete ranslation has een attempted o far.
n
1936 R. Tajima ranslated its first
chapter
n
his
Etue sur /e Maiivairocana-sutra (Dainichiyo)
and gave a resume of the
whole text. rof. Chikyo Yamamoto has taken courage of pesenting an English ns
laion of the complete Chinese text of the Sura, comprising 36 chapters
(hon)
in seven
scolls
(kwan).
The first 31 chapters represent the original work, and the last 5 chapters
viti
in the eventh scroll re the
kyobo
'rites of offering', which has also een ranslated
earlier by Vajradhi as the
Daibirshal-yoyaku nenjuyo f 899
in vol.18). he
seventh scoll is indeed an apendix to the original Sira. Prof. Yamamoto has followd
the Chinese text as given in the Taisho edition (848: 18.1-54). He has utilised the
following Japanese anslaions of the Sira:
Kokuyaku Issaikyo, the Chinese Tripi�a in Japanee, published by Daito-Shup
pansha, the ecion of eoteric Buddhism I, Dibirushana-jobutsu-jimen-kaji-kyo, by
RyTjo Kambayashi, pp. 1-162.
Kokuyaku Issaikyo; secion of comentaries 14, Showa 56, Daibirushna
jobutsu-:y-sho, fascicules 1-10, by Ryijo Kambayashi.
Kokuyaku Issaikyo, secion of commentries 15, fascicules ll-20, by Seiii
Nasu.
Dainichi-ky-sho 'commentary on the Mahavaircana-sira', compiled by
Shunkyo Katsumata, published by the ofice of the Buzanha, Shingon sect.
R. Tajima,
E
tude sur le Mahivairocail-sutra (Dainichiyo), avec Ia traduction
comentee du premier chapitre, 1936.
The word
wan
is vriously ranslated as volume or chapter. Tajima ranslates it
as volume.
n
fact, the
31 hon
are the chapters of the original Sansit text nd the
wan
are the scolls of paper on which the Chinese ranslaion was written. A
wan
representd
a moe or less standard length of a roll of paper which was adjusted to the measue of
the original chapters.
f
a chapter ecame to long it was caried over into the next roll:
thus the second chapter of this STra is coninued into the second scroll:
Scroll
Chapters
Taisho
1
1
2
p.l
(25
columns)
2
p.9
(25
columns)
3
5
8
p.l7
(21
columns)
9
p.24
(18
columns)
5
10
17
p.
3
0
(26
columns)
6
18
-
3
1
p.39
(18
columns)
32
- 36
p.45
(
3
0
columns)
The long chapter 9 is coveed by scoll 4 whose length had theefore to e reducd.
Lkewise coll
6
which contains chapters 18-31 is shoter. Scroll 7 was lengthened to
cover all the ive chapters
32-36
of the apendix. Thus the variation in the length of the
scolls.
2
4