User:Javierfv1212/sandbox

Letter A in Siddham script. In Mahayana, the letter A is often used a symbol for the formless Dharmakaya which transcends all thought and word. This is because the letter is first in the Sanskrit alphabet (and so it is like alpha) and it's also a negative prefix (like un-), and so has apophatic connotations.

The Trikāya (Sanskrit: त्रिकाय, lit. "three bodies"; Chinese: 三身; pinyin: sānshēn; Japanese pronunciation: sanjin, sanshin; Korean pronunciation: samsin; Vietnamese: tam thân, Tibetan: སྐུ་གསུམ, Wylie: sku gsum) is a fundamental Mahayana Buddhist doctrine that explains the multidimensional nature of Buddhahood. As such, the Trikāya is the basic theory of Mahayana Buddhist Buddhology (i.e. the theology of Buddhahood).

This concept posits that a Buddha has three distinct "bodies", aspects, or ways of being, each representing a different facet of enlightenment. They are the Dharmakāya (Dharma body, the ultimate reality, the true nature of all things), the Sambhogakāya (the body of self-enjoyment, a blissful divine body with infinite forms and powers) and the Nirmāṇakāya (manifestation body, the body which appears in the everyday world and presents the semblance of a human body).

Mahaparinirvana of Shakyamuni, Gandhara, 3rd or 4th century CE, gray schist

A depiction of Amitabha Buddha (with his attendant bodhisattvas Avalokitesvara and Mahasthamaprapta), often considered a Sambhoghakaya Buddha

The Trikāya doctrine explains how a Buddha can simultaneously exist in multiple realms and embody a spectrum of qualities and forms, while also seeming to appear in the world with a human body that gets old and dies (though this is merely an appearance). The doctrine's interpretations may vary across different Buddhist traditions, some theories contain extra "bodies", making it a "four body" theory and so on. However, the basic Trikāya theory remains a cornerstone of Mahayana and Vajrayana teachings, providing a comprehensive perspective on the nature of Buddhahood, Buddhist deities and the Buddhist cosmos.

Definition

The doctrine says that a Buddha has three kāyas or bodies:

1. The Dharmakāya, "Dharma body," ultimate reality, "pure being itself," Buddha nature, emptiness, akin to Nirguna Brahman, it is usually associated with names like Mahavairocana, Vajradhara and Samantabhadra; This embodies the true nature of Buddhahood itself, often described through Buddhist philosophical concepts like emptiness, Buddha nature, Dharmadhatu, and Paramartha. It is generally understood as impersonal, without concept, words or thought.
2. The Saṃbhogakāya, "Enjoyment (or Bliss) body," the divine Buddhas of the Buddha realms, akin to Saguna Brahman, it is usually associated with celestial Buddhas like Amitabha. This aspect is associated with the blissful reward of Buddhahood. It is considered a manifestation that arises as a result of fulfilling vows and commitments on the spiritual journey. The bliss body embodies the idea of reaping the benefits or rewards of spiritual practice and dwelling in sublime states of realization. It is also associated with divine pure lands (buddha-fields) which are extensions of the Saṃbhogakāya Buddhas, as well as with all the numerous emanations of the Saṃbhogakāya Buddhas.
3. The Nirmāṇakāya, "Transformation, Manifestation or Appearance Body," Buddha's human-like manifestations in imperfect worlds like ours, which appear for limited periods of time and seemingly die in paranirvana. It is usually associated with "historical" Buddha figures, like Shakyamuni Buddha. The third body, the Nirmanakaya, is referred to as the "Transformation body." Manifestation bodies allow Buddhas to interact with and teach sentient beings in a more direct and human manner. This earthly embodiment serves as a bridge between the divine and the human realm. It makes the teachings and compassion of a Buddha accessible to beings of impure realms who seek guidance from an awakened being. It also turns the wheel of Dharma in impure realms and creates a Sangha which maintains the teaching even after the Nirmāṇakāya has manifested nirvana.

Indian Buddhist history

Early Mahayana sutras like the Aṣṭasāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā (c. 1st century BCE) only taught a doctrine of two bodies. the body of Dharma and the manifestation body.

Later Mahayana sources introduced the Sambhogakāya, which conceptually fits between the Nirmāṇakāya (the physical manifestation of enlightenment) and the Dharmakaya. Around 300 CE, the Yogacara school systematized the prevalent ideas on the nature of the Buddha in the three-body doctrine.

In East Asian Buddhism

Various Buddhist traditions have different ideas about what the three bodies are.

Chinese Buddhism

The Three Bodies of the Buddha consists of:

• The Nirmaṇakāya, which is a physical/manifest body of a Buddha. An example would be Gautama Buddha's body.
• The Sambhogakāya, which is the reward/enjoyment body, whereby a bodhisattva completes his vows and becomes a Buddha. Amitābha, Vajrasattva and Manjushri are examples of Buddhas with the Sambhogakaya body.
• The Dharmakāya, which is the embodiment of the truth itself, and it is commonly seen as transcending the forms of physical and spiritual bodies. Vairocana Buddha is often depicted as the Dharmakāya in the Chinese Esoteric Buddhist and Huayan traditions.

As with earlier Buddhist thought, all three forms of the Buddha teach the same Dharma, but take on different forms to expound the truth.

According to Schloegl, in the Zhenzhou Linji Huizhao Chansi Yulu (which is a Chan Buddhist compilation), the Three Bodies of the Buddha are not taken as absolute. They would be "mental configurations" that "are merely names or props" and would only perform a role of light and shadow of the mind.

The Zhenzhou Linji Huizhao Chansi Yulu advises:

Do you wish to be not different from the Buddhas and patriarchs? Then just do not look for anything outside. The pure light of your own heart [i.e., 心, mind] at this instant is the Dharmakaya Buddha in your own house. The non-differentiating light of your heart at this instant is the Sambhogakaya Buddha in your own house. The non-discriminating light of your own heart at this instant is the Nirmanakaya Buddha in your own house. This trinity of the Buddha's body is none other than here before your eyes, listening to my expounding the Dharma.

Japanese Buddhism

In Tendai and Shingon of Japan, they are known as the Three Mysteries (三密, sanmitsu).

In Indo-Tibetan Buddhism

According to W.Y. Evans-Wentz, the trikaya represents the esoteric trinity (three bodies) of the Northern School of Buddhism (Mahayana). It consists of:

• Dharmakaya, the essential divine body of truth
• Sambhogakaya, the reflected divine body of glory
• Nirmanakaya, the practical divine body of incarnation

It is through these three divine bodies that One-Wisdom, the One-Mind manifests itself.

Three Vajras

The Three Vajras, namely "body, speech and mind", are a formulation within Vajrayana Buddhism and Bon that hold the full experience of the śūnyatā "emptiness" of Buddha-nature, void of all qualities (Wylie: yon tan) and marks (Wylie: mtshan dpe) and establish a sound experiential key upon the continuum of the path to enlightenment. The Three Vajras correspond to the trikaya and therefore also have correspondences to the Three Roots and other refuge formulas of Tibetan Buddhism. The Three Vajras are viewed in twilight language as a form of the Three Jewels, which imply purity of action, speech and thought.

The Three Vajras are often mentioned in Vajrayana discourse, particularly in relation to samaya, the vows undertaken between a practitioner and their guru during empowerment. The term is also used during Anuttarayoga Tantra practice.

The Three Vajras are often employed in tantric sādhanā at various stages during the visualization of the generation stage, refuge tree, guru yoga and iṣṭadevatā processes. The concept of the Three Vajras serves in the twilight language to convey polysemic meanings, aiding the practitioner to conflate and unify the mindstream of the iṣṭadevatā, the guru and the sādhaka in order for the practitioner to experience their own Buddha-nature.

Speaking for the Nyingma tradition, Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche perceives an identity and relationship between Buddha-nature, dharmadhatu, dharmakāya, rigpa and the Three Vajras:

Dharmadhātu is adorned with Dharmakāya, which is endowed with Dharmadhātu Wisdom. This is a brief but very profound statement, because "Dharmadhātu" also refers to Sugatagarbha or Buddha-Nature. Buddha- Nature is all-encompassing... This Buddha-Nature is present just as the shining sun is present in the sky. It is indivisible from the Three Vajras [i.e. the Buddha's Body, Speech and Mind] of the awakened state, which do not perish or change.

Robert Beer (2003: p. 186) states:

The trinity of body, speech, and mind are known as the three gates, three receptacles or three vajras, and correspond to the western religious concept of righteous thought (mind), word (speech), and deed (body). The three vajras also correspond to the three kayas, with the aspect of body located at the crown (nirmanakaya), the aspect of speech at the throat (sambhogakaya), and the aspect of mind at the heart (dharmakaya)."

The bīja corresponding to the Three Vajras are: a white om (enlightened body), a red ah (enlightened speech) and a blue hum (enlightened mind).

Simmer-Brown (2001: p. 334) asserts that:

When informed by tantric views of embodiment, the physical body is understood as a sacred maṇḍala (Wylie: lus kyi dkyil).

This explicates the semiotic rationale for the nomenclature of the somatic discipline called trul khor.

The triple continua of body-voice-mind are intimately related to the Dzogchen doctrine of "sound, light and rays" (Wylie: sgra 'od zer gsum) as a passage of the rgyud bu chung bcu gnyis kyi don bstan pa ('The Teaching on the Meaning of the Twelve Child Tantras') rendered into English by Rossi (1999: p. 65) states (Tibetan provided for probity):

From the Basis (of) all, empty (and) without cause, sound, the dynamic potential of the Dimension, arises. From the Awareness, empty (and) without cause, light, the dynamic potential (of) Primordial Wisdom, appears. From the inseparability, empty (and) without cause, rays, the dynamic potential of the Essence, appear. When sound, light and rays are taken (as) instrumental causes (that) ignorance (turns into) the delusion of body, speech (and) mind; the result (is) wandering in the circle (of) the three spheres.

ཀུན་གཞི་སྟོང་པ་རྒྱུ་མེད་ལས། སྒྲ་ནི་དབྱིངས་ཀྱི་རྩལ་དུ་ཤར། རིག་པ་སྟོང་པ་རྒྱུ་མེད་ལས། འོད་ནི་ཡེ་ཤེས་རྩལ་དུ་ཤར། དབྱེར་མེད་སྟོང་པ་རྒྱུ་མེདླས། ཟེར་ནི་ཐིག་ལེའི་རྩལ་དུ་ཤར། སྒྲ་འོད་ཟེར་གསུམ་རྐྱེན་བྱས་ནས། མ་རྟོགས་ལུས་ངག་ཡིད་དུ་འཁྲུལ། བྲས་བུ་ཁམས་གསུམ་འཁོར་བར་འཁྱམས༎

Barron et al. (1994, 2002: p. 159), renders from Tibetan into English, a terma "pure vision" (Wylie: dag snang) of Sri Singha by Dudjom Lingpa that describes the Dzogchen state of 'formal meditative equipoise' (Tibetan: nyam-par zhag-pa) which is the indivisible fulfillment of vipaśyanā and śamatha, Sri Singha states:

Just as water, which exists in a naturally free-flowing state, freezes into ice under the influence of a cold wind, so the ground of being exists in a naturally free state, with the entire spectrum of samsara established solely by the influence of perceiving in terms of identity.
Understanding this fundamental nature, you give up the three kinds of physical activity--good, bad, and neutral--and sit like a corpse in a charnal ground, with nothing needing to be done. You likewise give up the three kinds of verbal activity, remaining like a mute, as well as the three kinds of mental activity, resting without contrivance like the autumn sky free of the three polluting conditions.

Buddha-bodies

Vajrayana sometimes refers to a fourth body called the svābhāvikakāya (Tibetan: ངོ་བོ་ཉིད་ཀྱི་སྐུ, Wylie: ngo bo nyid kyi sku) "essential body", and to a fifth body, called the mahāsūkhakāya (Wylie: bde ba chen po'i sku, "great bliss body"). The svābhāvikakāya is simply the unity or non-separateness of the three kayas. The term is also known in Gelug teachings, where it is one of the assumed two aspects of the dharmakāya: svābhāvikakāya "essence body" and jñānakāya "body of wisdom". Haribhadra claims that the Abhisamayalankara describes Buddhahood through four kāyas in chapter 8: svābhāvikakāya, [jñāna]dharmakāya, sambhogakāya and nirmāṇakāya.

In dzogchen teachings, "dharmakaya" means the buddha-nature's absence of self-nature, that is, its emptiness of a conceptualizable essence, its cognizance or clarity is the sambhogakaya, and the fact that its capacity is 'suffused with self-existing awareness' is the nirmanakaya.

The interpretation in Mahamudra is similar: When the mahamudra practices come to fruition, one sees that the mind and all phenomena are fundamentally empty of any identity; this emptiness is called dharmakāya. One perceives that the essence of mind is empty, but that it also has a potentiality that takes the form of luminosity. In Mahamudra thought, Sambhogakāya is understood to be this luminosity. Nirmanakāya is understood to be the powerful force with which the potentiality affects living beings.

In the view of Anuyoga, the Mind Stream (Sanskrit: citta santana) is the 'continuity' (Sanskrit: santana; Wylie: rgyud) that links the Trikaya. The Trikāya, as a triune, is symbolised by the Gankyil.

Dakinis

A ḍākinī (Tibetan: མཁའ་འགྲོ་[མ་], Wylie: mkha' 'gro [ma] khandro[ma]) is a tantric deity described as a female embodiment of enlightened energy. The Sanskrit term is likely related to the term for drumming, while the Tibetan term means "sky goer" and may have originated in the Sanskrit khecara, a term from the Cakrasaṃvara Tantra.

Ḍākinīs can also be classified according to the trikāya theory. The dharmakāya ḍākinī, which is Samantabhadrī, represents the dharmadhatu where all phenomena appear. The sambhogakāya ḍākinī are the yidams used as meditational deities for tantric practice. The nirmanakaya ḍākinīs are human women born with special potentialities; these are realized yogini, the consorts of the gurus, or even all women in general as they may be classified into the families of the Five Tathagatas.

See also

• Aniconism in Buddhism
• Buddharupa
• Leela attitude
• Maravijaya attitude
• Meditation attitude
• Naga Prok attitude
• Nāma & Rūpa
• Physical characteristics of the Buddha
• Rainbow body
• Refuge in Buddhism
• Relics associated with Buddha
• Trimurti
• Trinity

Sources

Printed sources

• Griffin, David Ray (2018), Reenchantment without Supernaturalism: A Process Philosophy of Religion, Cornell University Press
• Makransky, John J. (1997), Buddhahood Embodied: Sources of Controversy in India and Tibet, State University of New York Press, ISBN 0-7914-3432-X
• Schloegl, Irmgard (1976), The Zen Teaching of Rinzai (PDF), Shambhala Publications, Inc., ISBN 0-87773-087-3
• Snellgrove, David (1987). Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, Vol. 1. Boston, Massachusetts: Shambhala Publications, Inc. ISBN 0-87773-311-2.
• Snellgrove, David (1987). Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, Vol. 2. Boston, Massachusetts: Shambhala Publications, Inc. ISBN 0-87773-379-1.
• Snelling, John (1987), The Buddhist handbook. A Complete Guide to Buddhist Teaching and Practice, London: Century Paperbacks
• Walsh, Maurice (1995). The Long Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of the Dīgha Nikāya. Boston: Wisdom Publications. ISBN 0-86171-103-3.

Web sources

Further reading

• Radich, Michael (2007). Problems and Opportunities in the Study of the Bodies of the Buddha, New Zealand Journal of Asian Studies 9 (1), 46-69
• Radich, Michael (2010). Embodiments of the Buddha in Sarvâstivāda Doctrine: With Special Reference to the Mahavibhāṣā. Annual Report of the International Research Institute for Advanced Buddhology 13, 121-172
• Xing, Guang (2005). The Concept of the Buddha: Its Evolution from Early Buddhism to the Trikāya Theory. Psychology Press. ISBN 978-0-415-33344-3.

External links

• Trikaya del Saya Kunsal Kassapa
• trikāya - A Dictionary of Buddhism
• Khandro: The Three Kayas
• Kagyu: The Three Kayas
• 32 marks of the Buddha ("THIRTY TWO MARKS OF A GREAT MAN")
• Trikaya - The Three Bodies of a Buddha or Learning to Love

In Asian thought and religion

Indian religions and philosophies are often eclectic, in the sense of drawing upon ideas and practices from diverse philosophical and religious traditions. Indian thought included a diversity of traditions, each with its own distinct teachings and practices, such as Vedānta, Sāṃkhya, Nyāya, and Buddhism. These traditions have shown a remarkable ability to assimilate and adapt elements from one another. This tendency goes back to the Upaniṣads, which incorporate and synthesize a wide array of ideas about the nature of reality, the self (ātman), and the ultimate principle (Brahman). The Upaniṣads do not represent a single, uniform doctrine but rather various perspectives.

Medieval India saw the rise of bhakti movements, which were also characterized by their eclectic use of varying philosophical ideas and religious practices, including Vedānta, Tantra, and local folk practices. Similarly, the Sikh tradition exemplifies eclecticism by combining elements of bhakti Hinduism and Islam. Modern Hinduism is also the result of an eclectic process that brought together numerous philosophical and religious influences (Unifying Hinduism). Modern Hindu figures like Swami Vivekananda and Mahatma Gandhi continued this tradition of eclecticism. Vivekananda drew upon Vedānta, Sāṃkhya-Yoga, and Western philosophy to present a universalist view of religion. Gandhi, influenced by Jain, Hindu, and Christian ideas, developed a unique philosophy of nonviolence (ahimsa) and social activism.

Indian Buddhism, especially the Mahāyāna tradition is also notable for its openness to a wide range of philosophical ideas and practices. Mahāyāna absorbed and reinterpreted concepts from earlier Buddhist schools while also integrating elements and deities from non-Buddhist traditions. The later Vajrayana Buddhist movement also drew on numerous Mahayana streams of thought as well as on Shaiva Tantra to develop its systems of thought and practice.

In a similar fashion, Chinese thought can also tend towards the harmonization of diverse philosophical and religious traditions, allowing for the coexistence and mutual influence of Confucianism, Daoism, Buddhism, and other indigenous beliefs. The three major Chinese religious and philosophical traditions - Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism - have been coexisting and interacting with one another for over two millennia. The synthesis of the "Three Teachings" (Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism) became increasingly pronounced in later periods of Chinese history. The Song dynasty (960–1279 CE) witnessed the rise of Neo-Confucianism, a movement that sought to revitalize Confucian thought in response to the growing influence of Buddhism and Daoism. Neo-Confucian thinkers such as Zhu Xi and Wang Yangming developed more systematic and metaphysical systems which drew upon other systems of thought, including Buddhism. In the modern era, intellectuals of the late Qing dynasty and the Republican period, such as Kang Youwei and Liang Qichao, sought to integrate Western philosophical ideas with traditional Chinese thought. In contemporary China, there is a renewed interest in Confucianism, often blended with elements of modernity and other philosophical systems to address current social and ethical issues.

Jingying Huiyuan

Jingying Huiyuan (Chinese: 淨影寺, "Huiyuan of Jingying Temple"; c. 523–592).

Also known as 隋遠, 小遠, 大遠, and 北遠. Originally from Dunhuang, he traveled to Shanxi, where he entered the saṃgha at age 13, studying the Vinaya and basic Mahāyāna doctrine until his full ordination at the age of twenty. After this, he studied under the Southern Dilun 地論 patriarch Huiguang 慧光, and his later work, although being broad in scope, would come to center on works seminal to the Dilun and Tathāgatagarbha 如來藏 traditions. Huiyuan is attributed to be the author of a number of exegetical works on major scriptures, with extant attributed works including the Dasheng yi zhang 大乘義章 (T 1851), the Shidijinglun yiji 十地經論義記 (ZZ1.71.2 and 3), the Huayanjing shu 華嚴經疏 (not extant), the Da panniepanjing yiji 大般涅槃經義記 (T 1764), Fahuajing shu 法華經疏 (not extant), Weimojing yiji 維摩經義記> (T 1776), Wuliang shou jing yishu 無量壽經義疏, Guan wuliangshou jing yishu 觀無量壽經義疏, and the Shengmanjing yiji 勝鬘經義記 (ZZ1.30.4). He is attributed as the author of one of the major commentaries to the Awakening of Mahāyāna Faith, the 大乘起信論義疏 (T 1843), although his authorship of this work is doubted by modern scholarship. 〔翻譯名義集 T 2131.54.1114b4〕

Ghanavyuha chapters

Chapter 1

Zen Transmission

According to Borup the emphasis on 'mind to mind transmission' is a form of esoteric transmission, in which "the tradition and the enlightened mind is transmitted face to face". Metaphorically this can be described as the transmission from a flame from one candle to another candle, or the transmission from one vein to another. In exoteric transmission requires "direct access to the teaching through a personal discovery of one's self. This type of transmission and identification is symbolized by the discovery of a shining lantern, or a mirror."

Sources

Printed sources

• Abe, Masao (1989), Zen and Western Thought, translated by William R. LeFleur, University of Hawaii Press
• Abe, Masao; Heine, Steven (1996), Zen and Comparative Studies, University of Hawaii Press
• Addiss, Stephen; Loori, John Daido, The Zen Art Book: The Art of Enlightenment
• Aitken, Robert (1994), Foreword to "A Buddhist Bible", Boston, Massachusetts: Beacon Press
• Anderson, Reb (2000), Being Upright: Zen Meditation and the Bodhisattva Precepts, Rodmell Press
• Arokiasamy, Arul M. (2005), Zen: Awakening to Your Original Face, Chennai, India: Thiruvanmiyur
• Batchelor, Martine (2004), The Path Of Compassion: The Bodhisattva Precepts, Rowman Altamira
• Bell, Sandra (2002), "Scandals in emerging Western Buddhism" (PDF), Westward Dharma: Buddhism beyond Asia, Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, pp. 230–242, archived (PDF) from the original on 27 February 2021, retrieved 26 June 2012
• Benesch, Oleg (2016), Reconsidering Zen, Samurai, and the Martial Arts, The Asia Pacific Journal: Japan Focus, archived from the original on 16 September 2016, retrieved 4 September 2016
• Bodiford, William M. (1992), "Zen in the Art of Funerals: Ritual Salvation in Japanese Buddhism", History of Religions, 32 (2): 150, doi:10.1086/463322, S2CID 161648097
• Bodiford, William M. (1993), Sōtō Zen in Medieval Japan, University of Hawaii Press, ISBN 0-8248-1482-7
• Bodiford, William M. "Koan practice". In Loori (2006).
• Borup, Jørn (2008), Japanese Rinzai Zen Buddhism: Myōshinji, a Living Religion, Brill Publishers
• Braak, Andre van der. Reimagining Zen in a Secular age: Charles Taylor and Zen Buddhism in the West (Brill Rodopi, 2020) online review Archived 19 March 2022 at the Wayback Machine
• Broughton, Jeffrey L. (1999), The Bodhidharma Anthology: The Earliest Records of Zen, Berkeley: University of California Press, ISBN 0-520-21972-4
• Broughton, Jeffrey (2009), Zongmi on Chan, New York: Columbia University Press, ISBN 978-0-231-14392-9
• Brown Holt, Linda (1995), "From India to China: Transformations in Buddhist Philosophy", Qi: The Journal of Traditional Eastern Health & Fitness, archived from the original on 4 June 2012, retrieved 8 June 2012
• Buswell, Robert E. "The "Short-cut" Approach of K'an-hua Meditation: The Evolution of a Practical Subitism in Chinese Ch'an Buddhism". In Gregory (1991).
• Buswell, Robert E. "Ch'an Hermeneutics: A Korean View". In Lopez (1993).
• Buswell; Lopez (2014), The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, Princeton University Press
• Blyth, R. H. (1966), Zen and Zen Classics, Volume 4, Tokyo: Hokuseido Press
• Chappell, David W. "Hermeneutical Phases in Chinese Buddhism". In Lopez (1993).
• Cheng, Hsueh-Li (1981), "The Roots of zen Buddhism", Journal of Chinese Philosophy, 8 (4): 451–478, doi:10.1111/j.1540-6253.1981.tb00267.x, archived from the original on 2 June 2019, retrieved 12 May 2015
• Cheng Chien Bhikshu (1992), "Introduction", Sun-Face Buddha. The Teachings of Ma-tsu and the Hung-chou School of Ch'an, Asian Humanities Press
• Cleary, Thomas (2010), Translator's introduction. The Undying Lamp of Zen. The Testament of Zen Master Torei, Boston & London: Shambhala Publications
• Collins, Randall (2000), The Sociology of Philosophies: A Global Theory of Intellectual Change, Harvard University Press
• Dumoulin, Heinrich (2000), A History of Zen Buddhism, New Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers Pvt. Ltd.
• Dumoulin, Heinrich (2005a), Zen Buddhism: A History. Volume 1: India and China, World Wisdom Books, ISBN 978-0-941532-89-1
• Dumoulin, Heinrich (2005b), Zen Buddhism: A History. Volume 2: Japan, World Wisdom Books, ISBN 978-0-941532-90-7
• Hori, Victor Sogen (2005), Introduction, Zen Buddhism: A History (PDF), by Dumoulin, Heinrich, Vol. 2: Japan, translated by Heisig, James W.; Knitter, Paul, World Wisdom Books, p. xiii–xxi, ISBN 978-0-941532-90-7, archived (PDF) from the original on 9 March 2012, retrieved 13 January 2012
• Faure, Bernard (2000), Visions of Power. Imaging Medieval Japanese Buddhism, Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press
• Ferguson, Andy (2000), Zen's Chinese Heritage, Boston, MA: Wisdom Publications, ISBN 0-86171-163-7
• Fischer-Schreiber, Ingrid; Ehrhard, Franz-Karl; Diener, Michael S. (2008), Lexicon Boeddhisme. Wijsbegeerte, religie, psychologie, mystiek, cultuur en literatuur, Asoka
• Fischer-Schreiber, Ingrid; Ehrhard, Franz-Karl; Diener, Michael S. (1991), The Shambhala dictionary of Buddhism and Zen, Translated by M. H. Kohn, Boston: Shambhala
• Ford, James Myoun, A Note On Dharma Transmission And The Institutions Of Zen, archived from the original on 20 January 2012, retrieved 13 January 2012
• Foulk, T. Griffith (n.d.), History of the Soto Zen School, archived from the original on 16 May 2012, retrieved 19 May 2012{{citation}}: CS1 maint: year (link)
• Fowler, Merv (2005), Zen Buddhism: Beliefs and Practices, Sussex Academic Press, ISBN 978-1-902210-42-1, archived from the original on 14 January 2023, retrieved 4 November 2020
• Gimello, Robert M. (1994), Marga and Culture: Learning, Letters, and Liberation in Northern Sung Ch'an. In: Buswell & Gimello (editors)(1994), Paths to Liberation. Pages 475–505, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers
• Goddard, Dwight (2007), "History of Ch'an Buddhism previous to the times of Hui-neng (Wie-lang)", A Buddhist Bible, Forgotten Books, ISBN 978-1-60506-104-7, archived from the original on 14 January 2023, retrieved 4 November 2020
• Gregory, Peter N., ed. (1991). Sudden and Gradual. Approaches to Enlightenment in Chinese Thought. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers.
• Gregory, Peter N. (1991a). "Sudden Enlightenment Followed by Gradual Cultivation: Tsung-mi's Analysis of mind". In Gregory (1991).
• Gregory, Peter N. "What Happened to the "Perfect Teaching"? Another lOok at Hua-yen Buddhist hermeneutics". In Lopez (1993).
• Gregory, Peter N. (1995), Inquiry into the Origin of Humanity: An Annotated Translation of Tsung-mi's Yüan jen lun with a Modern Commentary, Hawaii: University of Hawai’i Press, Kuroda Institute, ISBN 0-8248-1764-8
• Gregory, Peter N. (2002), Tsung-Mi and the Sinification of Buddhism, Hawaii: University of Hawai’i Press
• Grigg, Ray (1994), The Tao Of Zen, Charles E. Tuttle Company
• Harvey, Peter (1995), An introduction to Buddhism. Teachings, history and practices, Cambridge University Press
• Haskel, Peter (1984), Bankei Zen. Translations from The Record of Bankei, New York: Grove Weidenfeld
• Heine, Steven; Wright, Dale S. (2000). The Koan: Texts and Contexts in Zen Buddhism. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-511748-4.
• Heine, Steven (2007), "A Critical Survey of Works on Zen since Yampolsky.", Philosophy East & West, 57 (4): 577–592, doi:10.1353/pew.2007.0047, S2CID 170450246
• Heine, Steven; Wright, Dale S., eds. (2008). Zen Ritual: Studies of Zen Buddhist Theory in Practice. USA: Oxford University Press.
• Heine, Steven (2008), Zen Skin, Zen Marrow
• Hisamatsu, Shin'ichi; Gishin Tokiwa; Christopher Ives (2002), Critical Sermons of the Zen Tradition: Hisamatsu's Talks on Linji, University of Hawaii Press
• Hori, Victor Sogen (1994), "Teaching and Learning in the Zen Rinzai Monastery" (PDF), Journal of Japanese Studies, 20 (1): 5–35, doi:10.2307/132782, JSTOR 132782, archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-07-07, retrieved 2012-07-16
• Hori, Victor Sogen. "Koan and Kensho in the Rinzai Zen Curriculum". In Heine & Wright (2000).
  • Hsing, Yun (1999), Being Good: Buddhist Ethics for Everyday Life., New York: Weatherhill
• Hu Shih (1953), "Ch'an (Zen) Buddhism in China. Its History and Method", Philosophy East & West, 3 (1): 3–24, doi:10.2307/1397361, JSTOR 1397361, archived from the original on 17 February 2020, retrieved 13 January 2012
• Huaijin, Nan (1997), Basic Buddhism: Exploring Buddhism and Zen, York Beach: Samuel Weiser
• Isshū, Miura; Sasaki, Ruth F. (1993), The Zen Koan, New York: Harcourt Brace & Company, ISBN 0-15-699981-1
• Jaksch, Mary (2007), The Road to Nowhere. Koans and the Deconstruction of the Zen Saga (PDF), archived (PDF) from the original on 20 February 2012, retrieved 13 January 2012
• Jorgensen, John (1991), "Heinrich Dumoulin's Zen Buddhism: A History", Japanese Journal of Religious Studies, 18 (4), doi:10.18874/jjrs.18.4.1991.377-400
• Kalupahana, David J. (1992), The Principles of Buddhist Psychology, Delhi: ri Satguru Publications
• Kalupahana, David J. (1994), A history of Buddhist philosophy, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers Private Limited
• Kapleau, Philip (1989), The three pillars of Zen
• Kasulis, Thomas P. (2021), Zen Action/Zen Person, Hawaii: University of Hawaii Press
• Kasulis, Thomas P. (2003), Ch'an Spirituality. In: Buddhist Spirituality. Later China, Korea, Japan and the Modern World; edited by Takeuchi Yoshinori, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass
• Katz, Jerry (2007), One: Essential Writings on Nonduality, Sentient Publications
• Koné, Alioune (2000), Zen In Europe: A Survey of the Territory, archived from the original on 2012-05-07, retrieved 2012-07-16
• Lachs, Stuart (1999), Means of Authorization: Establishing Hierarchy in Ch'an /Zen Buddhism in America, archived from the original on 19 March 2022, retrieved 18 February 2022
• Lachs, Stuart (2002), Richard Baker and the Myth of the Zen Roshi, archived from the original on 5 February 2012, retrieved 26 June 2012
• Lachs, Stuart (2006), The Zen Master in America: Dressing the Donkey with Bells and Scarves, archived from the original on 20 January 2012, retrieved 13 January 2012
• Lachs, Stuart (2011), When the Saints Go Marching In: Modern Day Zen Hagiography (PDF), archived (PDF) from the original on 20 January 2012, retrieved 26 June 2012
• Lachs, Stuart (2012), Hua-t'ou : A Method of Zen Meditation (PDF), archived (PDF) from the original on 21 September 2013, retrieved 4 April 2012
• Lai, Whalen (1985), "Ma-Tsu Tao-I And The Unfolding Of Southern Zen", Japanese Journal of Religious Studies, 12 (2/3): 173–192, doi:10.18874/jjrs.12.2-3.1985.173-192, archived from the original on 13 March 2012, retrieved 14 February 2012
• Lai, Whalen (2003), Buddhism in China: A Historical Survey. In Antonio S. Cua (ed.): Encyclopedia of Chinese Philosophy (PDF), New York: Routledge, archived from the original (PDF) on November 12, 2014
• Lathouwers, Ton (2000), Meer dan een mens kan doen. Zentoespraken, Rotterdam: Asoka
• Leighton, Taigen Dan (2000). Cultivating the Empty Field: The Silent Illumination of Zen Master Hongzhi. Tuttle Library Of Enlightenment. Tuttle Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4629-1652-8.
• Liang-Chieh (1986), The Record of Tung-shan, translated by William F. Powell, Kuroda Institute
• Lievens, Bavo (1981), Ma-tsu. De gesprekken, Bussum: Het Wereldvenster
• Loori, John Daido (2006), Sitting with Koans: Essential Writings on Zen Koan Introspection, Somerville, MA: Wisdom Publications, ISBN 0-86171-369-9
• Lopez, Donald S. Jr., ed. (1993). Buddhist Hermeneutics. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass.
• Loy, David (1988), Nonduality: A Study in Comparative Philosophy, New Haven, Conn: Yale University Press, ISBN 1-57392-359-1
• Low, Albert (2000), Zen and the Sutras, Boston: Turtle Publishing
• Low, Albert (2006), Hakuin on Kensho. The Four Ways of Knowing, Boston & London: Shambhala
• Maezumi, Taizan; Glassman, Bernie (2007), The Hazy Moon of Enlightenment, Wisdom Publications
• Matthiessen, Peter (1987), Nine-headed dragon river: Zen journals, 1969–1985, Shambhala
• McCauley, Charles (2005), Zen and the Art of Wholeness, iUniverse
• McMahan, David L. (2008), The Making of Buddhist Modernism, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-518327-6
• McRae, John (1986), The Northern School and the Formation of Early Chʻan Buddhism, University of Hawaii Press
• McRae, John. "Shen-hui and the Teaching of Sudden Enlightenment in Early Ch'an Buddhism". In Gregory (1991).
• McRae, John (2002), {{citation}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
• McRae, John (2003), Seeing Through Zen, The University Press Group Ltd, ISBN 978-0-520-23798-8
• McRae, John (2004), Seeing through Zen. Encounter, Transformation, and Genealogy in Chinese Chan Buddhism, University of California Press, ISBN 978-0-520-23798-8
• McRae, John (2005), Critical introduction by John McRae to the reprint of Dumoulin's A history of Zen (PDF), archived (PDF) from the original on 11 November 2011, retrieved 13 January 2012
• McRae, John (2008), The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch, translated from the Chinese of Zongbao (Taishō Volume 48, Number 2008) (PDF), archived from the original (PDF) on August 22, 2012
• Meinert, Carman, ed. (2015), Transfer of Buddhism Across Central Asian Networks (7th to 13th Centuries), BRILL
• Meng-Tat Chia, Jack (2011), "A Review of Enlightenment in Dispute: The Reinvention of Chan Buddhism in Seventeenth-Century China" (PDF), Journal of Buddhist Ethics, 18, archived (PDF) from the original on 29 January 2012, retrieved 2 November 2012
• Moore, Charles A. (1982), The Japanese Mind: Essentials of Japanese Philosophy and Culture, University of Hawaii Press
• Mumon, Yamada (2004), The Ten Oxherding Pictures, translated by Victor Sōgen Hori, University of Hawai'i Press
• Muller, A. Charles, ed. (n.d.), Digital Dictionary of Buddhism{{citation}}: CS1 maint: year (link)
• Nadeau, Randall L. (2012), The Wiley-Blackwell Companion to Chinese Religions, John Wiley & Sons
• Newland, Guy (2001), Schijn en werkelijkheid. De twee waarheden in de vier boeddhistische leerstelsels, KunchabPublicaties
• Oh, Kang-nam (2000), "The Taoist Influence on Hua-yen Buddhism: A Case of the Scinicization of Buddhism in China", Chung-Hwa Buddhist Journal (13), archived from the original on 21 August 2012, retrieved 8 June 2012
• Orzech, Charles D.; Sørensen, Henrik Hjort; Payne, Richard Karl (2011). Esoteric Buddhism and the Tantras in East Asia. Leiden: BRILL. ISBN 978-90-04-20401-0. OCLC 731667667.
• Pajin, Dusan (1988), "On Faith in Mind – Translation and Analysis of the Hsin Hsin Ming", Journal of Oriental Studies, 26 (2): 270–288
• Poceski, Mario (n.d.), Attitudes Towards Canonicity and Religious Authority in Tang Chan, archived from the original on 14 April 2012, retrieved 14 February 2012{{citation}}: CS1 maint: year (link)
• Sato, Kemmyō Taira, D.T. Suzuki and the Question of War (PDF), archived (PDF) from the original on 25 October 2014, retrieved 13 January 2012
• Sasaki, Ruth Fuller (2009), The Record of Linji. Translation and commentary by Ruth Fuller Sasaki. Edited by Thomas Yūhō Kirchner (PDF), Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press, archived from the original (PDF) on 22 June 2012, retrieved 30 January 2012
• Schlütter, Morten (2008), How Zen became Zen. The Dispute over Enlightenment and the Formation of Chan Buddhism in Song-Dynasty China, Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press, ISBN 978-0-8248-3508-8
• Sekida, Katsuki (1989), Zen Training: Methods and Philosophy, Shambhala
• Sekida, Katuski (1996), Two Zen Classics. Mumonkan, the gateless gate. Hekiganroku, the blue cliff record, New York & Tokyo: Weatherhill
• Shahar, Meir (2008), The Shaolin Monastery: History, Religion, and the Chinese Martial Arts, University of Hawaii Press
• Sharf, Robert H. (1993), "The Zen of Japanese Nationalism", History of Religions, 33 (1): 1–43, doi:10.1086/463354, S2CID 161535877, archived from the original on 29 December 2020, retrieved 13 January 2012
• Sharf, Robert H. (1995a), Whose Zen? Zen Nationalism Revisited (PDF), archived (PDF) from the original on 2 February 2019, retrieved 13 January 2012
• Sharf, Robert H. (1995b), "Buddhist Modernism and the Rhetoric of Meditative Experience" (PDF), NUMEN, 42 (3): 228–283, doi:10.1163/1568527952598549, hdl:2027.42/43810, archived (PDF) from the original on 12 April 2019, retrieved 31 May 2012
• Sharf, Robert H. (1995c), "Sanbokyodan. Zen and the Way of the New Religions" (PDF), Japanese Journal of Religious Studies, 22 (3–4), doi:10.18874/jjrs.22.3-4.1995.417-458, archived (PDF) from the original on 16 March 2012, retrieved 21 June 2012
• Sharf, Robert (2002), {{citation}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
• Sharf, Robert (2014), "Mindfullness and Mindlessness in Early Chan", Philosophy East & West, 64 (4): 933–964, doi:10.1353/pew.2014.0074, S2CID 144208166, archived from the original on 21 June 2022, retrieved 10 November 2023
• Shimano, Eido T. (1991), Points of Departure: Zen Buddhism With a Rinzai View, Livingston Manor, NY: The Zen Studies Society Press, ISBN 0-9629246-0-1
• Shohaku Okumura (2012). Living by Vow: A Practical Introduction to Eight Essential Zen Chants and Texts. Simon and Schuster.
• Snelling, John (1987), The Buddhist handbook. A Complete Guide to Buddhist Teaching and Practice, London: Century Paperbacks
• Stein, R.A. "Sudden Illumination or Simultaneous Comprehension: Remarks on Chinese and Tibetan Terminology". In Gregory (1991).
• Suzuki, D.T. (1932), The Lankavatara Sutra: A Mahayana text, London: Routledge & Kegen Paul
• Suzuki, Shunryu (1997), Branching streams flow in the darkness: Zen talks on the Sandokai, University of California Press, ISBN 978-0-520-22226-7, archived from the original on 14 January 2023, retrieved 4 November 2020
• Swanson, Paul L. (1993), "The Spirituality of Emptiness in Early chinese Buddhism", in Takeuchi Yoshinori (ed.), Buddhist Spirituality. Indian, Southeast Asian, Tibetan, Early Chinese, New York: Crossroad
• Pocescki, Mario (2007), Ordinary Mind as the Way: The Hongzhou School and the Growth of Chan Buddhism, Oxford: Oxford University Press
• Tetsuo, Otani (2003), To Transmit Dogen Zenji's Dharma (PDF), archived (PDF) from the original on 25 January 2013, retrieved 19 May 2012
• Tomoaki, Tsuchida (2003), "The Monastic spirituality of Zen Master Dogen", in Takeuchi Yoshinori (ed.), Buddhist Spirituality. Indian, Southeast Asian, Tibetan, Early Chinese, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass
• Torei (2010), The Undying Lamp of Zen. The Testament of Zen Master Torei, translated by Thomas Cleary, Boston & London: Shambhala
• Tweed, Thomas A. (2005), "American Occultism and Japanese Buddhism. Albert J. Edmunds, D. T. Suzuki, and Translocative History" (PDF), Japanese Journal of Religious Studies, 32 (2): 249–281, archived from the original (PDF) on May 22, 2012
• Verstappen, Stefan H. (2004), Blind Zen, Red Mansion Pub, ISBN 978-1-891688-03-4, archived from the original on 14 January 2023, retrieved 4 November 2020
• Victoria, Brian Daizen (2006), Zen at war (2nd ed.), Lanham e.a.: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
• Victoria, Brian Daizen (2010), "The "Negative Side" of D. T. Suzuki's Relationship to War" (PDF), The Eastern Buddhist, 41 (2): 97–138, archived (PDF) from the original on 20 January 2012, retrieved 13 January 2012
• Waddell, Norman (2010), Foreword to "Wild Ivy: The Spiritual Autobiography of Zen Master Hakuin", Shambhala Publications
• Waddell, Norman (2010a), Foreword to "The Essential Teachings of Zen Master Hakuin: A Translation of the Sokko-roku Kaien-fusetsu", Shambhala Publications
• "The Diamond Sutra", A Buddhist Bible, translated by Wai-tao, Boston, Massachusetts: Beacon Press, 1994
• Wang, Youru (2017). Historical Dictionary of Chan Buddhism. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-1-5381-0552-8. Archived from the original on 14 January 2023. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
• Wayman, Alex and Hideko (1990), The Lion's roar of Queen Srimala, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers
• Welter, Albert (2002), The Textual History of the Linji lu (Record of Linji): The Earliest Recorded Fragments, archived from the original on 11 April 2012, retrieved 15 February 2012
• Welter, Albert (2006), The Formation of the Linji lu: An Examination of the Guangdeng lu/Sijia yulu and Linji Huizhao Chanshi yulu. Versions of the Linji lu in Historical Context (PDF), archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-03-16
• Welter, Albert. "Mahakasyapa's smile. Silent Transmission and the Kung-an (Koan) Tradition". In Heine & Wright (2000).
• Wolfe, Robert (2009), Living Nonduality: Enlightenment Teachings of Self-Realization, Karina Library
• Wright, Dale S. (2010), "Humanizing the Image of a Zen master: Taizan Maezumi Roshi", in Steven Heine and Dale S. Wright (ed.), Zen Masters, Oxford: Oxford University Press
• Yampolski, Philip (1967), The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch. Translated with notes by Philip B. Yampolsky, Columbia University Press, ISBN 0-231-08361-0
• Yampolski, Philip (2003a), "Chan. A Historical Sketch.", in Takeuchi Yoshinori (ed.), Buddhist Spirituality. Indian, Southeast Asian, Tibetan, Early Chinese, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass
• Yampolski, Philip (2003b), "Zen. A Historical Sketch", in Takeuchi Yoshinori (ed.), Buddhist Spirituality. Indian, Southeast Asian, Tibetan, Early Chinese, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass
• Yanagida, Seizan (2009), Historical Introduction to The Record of Linji. In: The record of Linji, translated by Ruth Fuller Sasakia e.a. Pages 59–115 (PDF), University of Hawaii Press, archived from the original (PDF) on 22 June 2012, retrieved 30 January 2012
• Yen, Chan Master Sheng (1996), Dharma Drum: The Life and Heart of Ch'an Practice, Boston & London: Shambhala
• Yoshizawa, Katsuhiro (2009), The Religious Art of Zen Master Hakuin, Counterpoint Press
• Young, Stuart (2009), Linji Lu and Chinese Orthodoxy. Review of "Albert Welter. The Linji lu and the Creation of Chan Orthodoxy: The Development of Chan's Records of Sayings Literature., archived from the original on 10 May 2013, retrieved 27 October 2012
• Zhang, Shengyen; Stevenson, Dan (2002), Hoofprint of the Ox: Principles of the Chan Buddhist Path as Taught by a Modern Chinese Master, Oxford University Press

Śrīmālādevīsiṃhanādasūtra

https://buddhanature.tsadra.org/index.php/Texts/%C5%9Ar%C4%ABm%C4%81l%C4%81dev%C4%ABs%C5%ABtra

file:///C:/Users/javier.fernandez/Downloads/Jonathan%20A.%20Silk%20-%20Brill's%20Encyclopedia%20of%20Buddhism.%201-Brill%20(2015).pdf

https://terebess.hu/english/vim2.pdf

https://www.jstor.org/stable/602656

https://www.jstor.org/stable/3270277

file:///C:/Users/javier.fernandez/Downloads/(Buddhist%20Traditions)%20Alex%20Wayman,%20Hideko%20Wayman%20-%20The%20Lion's%20Roar%20of%20Queen%20%C5%9Ar%C4%ABm%C4%81l%C4%81_%20A%20Buddhist%20Scripture%20on%20the%20Tath%C4%81gatagarbha%20Theory%20(1990).pdf

The Śrīmālādevī Siṃhanāda Sūtra (traditional Chinese: 勝鬘師子吼一乘大方便方廣經, Lion’s Roar of Queen Śrīmālā) is one of the main early Mahāyāna Buddhist texts belonging to the Tathāgatagarbha sūtras that teaches the doctrines of Buddha-nature and "One Vehicle" through the words of the Indian queen Śrīmālā. After its composition, this text became the primary scriptural advocate in India for the universal potentiality of Buddhahood.

History

Relief image of the Great Stupa at Amaravati in Andhra Pradesh, India

Brian Edward Brown, a specialist in Buddha-nature doctrines, writes that the composition of the Śrīmālādevī Siṃhanāda Sūtra occurred during the Īkṣvāku Dynasty in the 3rd century CE as a product of the Caitika schools of the Mahāsāṃghikas. Alex Wayman has outlined eleven points of complete agreement between the Mahāsāṃghikas and the Śrīmālā, along with four major arguments for this association. Anthony Barber also associates the earlier development of the Tathāgatagarbha Sūtra with the Mahāsāṃghikas, and concludes that the Mahāsāṃghikas of the Āndhra region were responsible for the inception of the Buddha-nature doctrine. In the 6th century CE, Paramārtha wrote that the Mahāsāṃghikas revere the sūtras that teach the Buddha-nature doctrine.

Translations

The Śrīmālādevī Siṃhanāda Sūtra was translated to Chinese in 436 CE by Guṇabhadra (394-468) and later by Bodhiruci (672-727). A complete Sanskrit original is no longer extant, but extensive quotations are found in the Sanskrit text of the Ratnagotravibhāga as well as some recently discovered fragments conserved in the Schøyen Collection. It was later translated into English by Alex and Hideko Wayman as The Lion's Roar of Queen Srimala.

Content

The Śrīmālādevī Siṃhanāda Sūtra teaches the reality of an ultimate, immaculate consciousness within each living being, which is the Buddhic "Dharmakāya" (essence of Truth), which is yet temporarily sheathed in obscuring defilement. This Dharmakāya, when viewed as intrinsically free from spiritual ignorance, is said to constitute eternity, bliss, the self, and purity in their perfect state. The use of the word "self" in this sutra is in a way unique to this class of sutra. The great Queen Śrīmālā, who according to this text is empowered by the Buddha to teach the Dharma, affirms:

[T]he Dharmakāya of the Buddha has the perfection of permanence, the perfection of pleasure, the perfection of self, the perfection of purity. Whatever sentient beings see the Dharmakāya of the Tathagāta that way, see correctly. Whoever see correctly are called the sons of the Lord born from his heart, born from his mouth, born from the Dharma, who behave as manifestation of Dharma and as heirs of Dharma.

The scripture, which was extremely influential by way of clarification of the Tathagātagarbha view of Śūnyatā, insists that the ultimately correct understanding of emptiness is that the Tathāgatagarbha is empty of all knowledge that is not liberation, whereas, in contrast, the qualities which characterise a Buddha are not empty of inconceivable virtues. An alternative title offered by the Buddha for this sutra expresses this idea of an ultimate meaning to the emptiness doctrine: "The True Revelation of the Buddha's Intention when Teaching Emptiness."

The sūtra has, furthermore, significantly contributed to the Mahāyāna notion of the permanent, steadfast and eternal Tathagātagarbha, which is nothing less than the perfect Dharmakāya temporarily concealed by (ultimately unreal) mental contaminants:

“The tathāgatagarbha is without any prior limit, is nonarising, and is indestructible, accepting suffering, having revulsion toward suffering, and aspiring to nirvana. O Lord, the tathāgatagarbha is not a substantial self, nor a living being, nor ‘fate,’ nor a person. The tathāgatagarbha is not a realm for living beings who have degenerated into the belief of a substantially existent body or for those who have contrary views, or who have minds bewildered by emptiness.

See also

• Aṅgulimālīya Sūtra
• Anunatva-Apurnatva-Nirdesa
• Ātman (Buddhism)
• Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra
• Purity in Buddhism
• Shōmangyō Gisho (an annotated Japanese version of the sutra)