The Large Sutra on Perfect Wisdom
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THE LARGE SUTRA ON PERFECT WISDOM with the divisions of the Abhisamayālaṃkāra Translated by EDWARD CONZE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESS BERKELEY, LOS ANGELES, LONDON Contents Contents 1 Abbreviations 5 Preface 7 Chapter Headings of THE PERFECTION OF WISDOM IN 18,000 LINES 11 V I 11 V II 12 V III 13 Divisions of the Abhisamayalankara 15 Introduction to Chapters 1-21 18 A 18 B 23 C 34 D 45 Outline of Chapters 1 – 21 53 TRANSLATION OF THE SUTRA 56 Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION 57 Chapter 2 THE THOUGHT OF ENLIGHTENMENT 66 Chapter 3 OBSERVATIONS 79 Chapter 4 EQUAL TO THE UNEQUALLED 112 Chapter 5 THE TONGUE 114 Chapter 6 SUBHUTI 116 Chapter 7 ENTRANCE INTO THE CERTAINTY OF SALVATION 124 Chapter 8 SRENIKA THE WANDERER 129 Chapter 9 THE SIGN 135 Chapter 10 LIKE ILLUSION 143 Chapter 11 SIMILES 149 Chapter 12 THE FORSAKING OF VIEWS 160 Chapter 13 THE SIX PERFECTIONS 163 Chapter 14 NEITHER BOUND NOR FREED 173 Chapter 15 THE CONCENTRATIONS 179 Chapter 16 ENTRANCE INTO THE DHARANI-DOORS 191 Chapter 17 THE PREPARTIONS FOR THE STAGES 203 Chapter 18 GOING FORTH ON THE STAGES 1 OF THE GREAT VEHICLE 221 Chapter 19 SURPASSING 225 Chapter 20 NONDUALITY 232 Chapter 21 SUBHUTI THE ELDER 238 Chapter 22 THE FIRST SAKRA CHAPTER 247 Chapter 23 HARD TO FATHOM 256 Chapter 24 INFINITE 259 Chapter 25 INFINITE 266 Chapter 26 GAINS 270 Chapter 27 THE SHRINE 276 Chapter 28 THE PROCLAMATION OF A BODHISATTVA’S QUALITIES 284 Chapter 29 THE HERETICS 288 Chapter 30 THE ADVANTAGES OF BEARING IN MIND AND OF REVERENCE 291 Chapter 31 ON RELICS 298 Chapter 32 THE DISTINCTION OF MERIT 309 Chapter 33 ON DEDICATION AND REJOICING 321 Chapter 34 GLORIFICATION OF THE VIRTUES OF CONSUMMATION 337 Chapter 35 THE HELLS 342 Chapter 36 THE EXPOSITION OF THE PURITY OF ALL DHARMAS 351 Chapter 37 UNSUPPORTED ANYWHERE 359 Chapter 38 WITHOUT BASIS 370 Chapter 39 THE TRADITION IN THE NORTH 376 Chapter 40 MARA 392 Chapter 41 THE ABSENCE OF MARA’S HOSTS 399 Chapter 42 SHOWING THE WORLD 408 Chapter 43 UNTHINKABLE 414 Chapter 44 THE CONGREGATION 422 Chapter 45 THE SHIP 427 Chapter 46 EXPOSITION OF THE OWN-BEING OF ALL DHARMAS 432 Chapter 47 THE DISCIPLINING OF GREED 437 Chapter 48 SETTLEMENT IN THE TRAINING OF A BODHISATTVA 441 Chapter 49 IRREVERSIBILITY 455 Chapter 50 EXPOSITION OF THE TOKENS OF IRREVERSIBILITY 464 Chapter 51 THE EXPOSITION OF SKILL IN MEANS 473 2 Chapter 52 THE FULFILLMENT OF SKILL IN THE SIX PERFECTIONS 486 Chapter 53 THE PREDICTION OF THE GANGES GODDESS 494 Chapter 54 DEMONSTRATION OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF SKILL IN MEANS 497 Chapter 55 THE EXPOSITION OF THE FORSAKING OF DISCRIMINATION 505 Chapter 56 EVEN TRAINING 524 Chapter 57 PRACTICES 531 Chapter 58 EXPOSITION OF NONDISCRIMINATION THROUGH SIMILES 537 Chapter 59 NONATTACHMENT 542 Chapter 60 ENTRUSTING 565 Chapter 61 NONEXTINCTION 575 Chapter 62 THE SUPREME ATTAINMENT 579 Chapter 63 MANY QUESTIONS CONCERNING THE DUALITY OF DHARMAS 591 Chapter 64 RIGHT EXPOSITION 613 Chapter 65 THE SKILL IN HONOURING, TENDING AND REVERING THE GOOD FRIENDS 620 Chapter 66 EXPOSITION OF SKILL IN MEANS 624 Chapter 67 MORALITY 626 Chapter 68 GROWTH 627 Chapter 69 EXPOSITION OF THE PATH-DEVELOPMENT 628 Chapter 70 THE EXPOSITION OF THE CONSUMMATION OF THE TRAINING IN GRADUAL ACTIVITY 640 Chapter 71 THE NATURE OF DHARMAS IS SIGNLESS AND CANNOT BE APPREHENDED 649 Chapter 72 EXPOSITION OF MARKLESSNESS 660 Chapter 73 THE PERFECTION OF THE IMPERISHABLE CONSUMMATION OF THE MARKS AND MINOR CHARACTERISTICS 669 Chapter 74 THE EXPOSITION OF THE SAMENESS OF ALL DHARMAS 690 Chapter 75 THE EXPOSITION OF IMPERTURBABILITY 699 Chapter 76 THE ARMOUR (PUT ON) FOR THE SAKE OF MATURING BEINGS 710 Chapter 77 THE COGNITION OF THE PERFECT PURITY OF THE BUDDHA-FIELD 720 Chapter 78 SKILL IN MEANS IN THE PURIFICATION OF THE BUDDHA-FIELD 727 3 Chapter 79 THE EXPOSITON OF THE NONEXISTENCE OF OWN-BEING 735 Chapter 80 THE ABSENCE OF (ALL) DEFILEMENT AND PURIFICATION 740 Chapter 81 BEING JOINED TO ULTIMATE REALITY 744 Chapter 82 THE EXPOSITION OF THE UNALTERABLE NATURE OF DHARMA 751 Chapter 83 THE MANIFESTATION OF A BODHISATTVA’S TRAINING 754 Appendix I VIII. THE REUNION WITH THE DHARMA-BODY 765 Appendix II 769 Numerical Lists 779 Index of Terms 789 4 Abbreviations A : Aṣṭasāhasrika Prajñāpāramitā, ed. R. Mitra, 1888 AA : Abhisaṃayālaṅkara AAA : Abhisaṃayālaṅkarāloka, ed. U. Wogihara, 1932-1935 Ad : Aṣṭadasasāhasrika Prajñāpāramitā AdT : Tibetan translation of Ad AK : Abhidharmakośa, trad. de la Vallee-Poussin A.N. : Anguttara Nikāya Asl : Atthasālini Cpd : Compendium of Philosophy, trsl. S. Z. Aung and Mrs. Rhys Davids, 1910 CPD : Critical Pali Dictionary DaBhu : Daśabhūmika Dhs : Dhammasaṇganī Divy : Divyavadāna D.N. : Digha Nikāya DR : Dezhung Rinpoche E : Edgerton, Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Dictionary H : Haribhadra (=AAA) JAOS : Journal of the American Oriental Society J. As. : Journal Asiatique JRAS : Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society Ku : Kumārajīva Lal. V. : Lalita Vistāra Madhy-v-t : Madhyāntavibhāgaṭīka Mhv : Mahāvastu Mhvy : Mahāvyutpatti M. N. : Majjhima Nikāya Mpp-s : Mahāprajñāpāramitā Śāstra = Nag MsL : Ms of P, Cambridge Add 1629 MsT : Ms of P, Tokyo, No. 234 in Matsunami’s Catalogue MW : Monier Williams Nag : Nagarjuna, Ta chih tu lun, trsl. E. Lamotte, 1944-1970, Mpp-s Nar : Narthang Kanjur ND : New Delhi Ms of Large P.P. = Gilgit manuscript (Ob)(ermiller) : Analysis of the AA, 1933-1943 5 P : Pañcavimśatisāhasrika Prajñāpāramitā PDc : Pali-English Dictionary P.P. : Perfection of Wisdom PT : Tibetan translation of P Pts : Patisambhidāmagga PTS Dict or PDc : Pali-English Dictionary R : Rgs Rgs : Ratnagunasaṃcayagāthā S : Satasāhasrika Prajñāpāramitā Sapt : Saptasātika Prajñāpāramitā SaPu : Saddharmapuṇdarīka Si : Sikśasamuccāya Siddhi : La Siddhi, trad. L. de la Valle Poussin, 1929-1930 S. N. : Samyutta Nikāya Sn : Sutta Nipāta Sten Kernow : The two first chapters of the Dasasāhasrika Prajñāpāramitā, Oslo, 1941 Suv : Suvikrāntavikrāmiparipricha Prajñāpāramitā T : Taisho Issaikyo Ta : ch. 83 in Narthang III 130a7-147a6 Tb : other text of ch. 83 To : Tohoku Catalogue Vbh : Vibhanga V. M. : Vishuddhimagga, ed. Mrs. Rhy Davids or ed. Kosambi 6 Preface The translation of pages 37 to 430 (abhisamayas I-IV) normally follows the version in 25,000 lines which has been adjusted to conform to the divisions of the Abhisamayālamkāra.1 In some passages of chapters 1-21 I have, however, translated the version in 100,000 lines,2 or adopted readings of the version in 18,000,3 and of those various Chinese translations which seemed to represent an older or more intelligible text. For chapters 22-54 also I have generally followed the revised Pañcavimśatisāhasrika.4 But portions of the original, unadjusted version in 25,000 lines,5 as well as the version in 18,000,6 which are preserved in Gilgit and Central Asian manuscripts of the sixth or seventh centuries, are the basis of pages 229-239 (P), 339-362 (P), 363-367 (Ad) and 369-395 (Ad) of this translation, and I have followed them in those passages which occur in Ms. Stein Ch. 0079a,7 although I have noted all the variants of P insofar as they affect the divisions of the AA. Pages 431-643 (abhisamayas V to VIII, chapters 55-82) translated the Gilgit manuscript of the version in 18,000 lines, and I here simply reproduce, with the kind permission of Prof. G. Tucci, my translation as it first appeared in Serie Orientale Rome (1962 and 1974), though I have, where necessary, rearranged the sequence of the text to make it correspond to the divisions of the Abhisamayālamkāra. In the eighth abhisamaya, VIII 1-3 and VIII 5, 2, 5-21, this correspondence breaks down altogether and I have therefore given the relevant text from P in pages 653-656 as an Appendix. Finally, chapter 83, Maitreya’s Chapter, is missing in the 1 For the Bibliography see no. 2A of my The Prajñāpāramitā Literature (= PP), 1960, p. 42. 2 Āatasāhasrikā prajñāpāramitā, ed. P. Ghosha, 1902-1913; and Ms. Cambridge Add. 1630. 3 Aṣtādaśasāhasrikā prajñāpāramitā. 4 i.e. for pages 203-228, 240-338, 367-370, 396-414. 5 PP no. 2, p. 40. 6 PP no. 3, p. 45. 7 PP p. 46, i.e. at P 216a-217a, 223a-224a, 226b-228a, 241A-B, 242B-243A, 250b-251a, 256b-257a, 271a-272a, 294a-297a, 302b-304b, 305b-306a, 347, 357a-361b, 363a-364b, 367a-b, 381a-383a, 406b-407b, 408b-409b. Also Sten Know’s Ms (PP p. 45) for P 221 and P 313. 7 Gilgit Ms, but is preserved in the Tibetan Ad (To. no. 3790), which corresponds almost literally to the Sanskrit text of P 578a-583b, which I have edited in 1968 in Mélange d’Indianisme à la mémoire de L. Renou, pp. 233-242. To philological purists unacquainted with the particular problems of the Prajñāpāramitā, my procedure must appear questionable, and they will insist that I should keep the different recensions rigidly apart. There has, for instance, been some criticism of my superimposing the chapter headings of Ad on the text of P, which has no such headings. What motivated me was the belief that this exceptionally difficult text can be studied much more easily if broken up into relatively short and manageable chapters, and I chose those of Ad because Ad alone, in its Tibetan version, gives all the headings, whereas Ś and the unrevised P normally only number the chapters and given the headings just occasionally.8 If there were even the slightest hope that each of the chief version, i.e. S, P and Ad, might be translated in the foreseeable future, I would have stuck strictly to P. As it is, there is no such hope.