'Mahayana sutras' are a very broad genre of
Buddhist scriptures (
sutras) that began (it is conjectured by scholars) to be written down
[1] by Buddhist monks in South India from the
first century BCE onwards. Although these scriptures claim to be the factual words of the Buddha
[2], many scholars believe they were written by monks who felt the need for wholesale restatements of the original doctrine of
Early Buddhism[3].
Although in the beginning the Mahayana sutras were mainly composed in the south
[4] of India, later the activity of writing additional scriptures was continued in the east
[5] and north
[6] of India.
Mahayana Buddhists believe that the Mahayana sutras, with the possible exception of those with an explicitly Chinese provenance, are an authentic account of the life and teachings of the Buddha. These sutras form the basis of the various
Mahayana schools and are accepted as transmitting the genuine doctrines of the Buddha by devotees of Mahayana Buddhism. The various
early Buddhist schools, however, declared the Mahayana sutras to be heretical, saying they are late compositions which were never proclaimed by the historical Buddha. They claim the Mahayana sutras contain various untruths and falsifications, and therefore do not represent the life and teachings of the historical
Gautama Buddha.
Historicity and Background
Generally, scholars conclude that the Mahayana scriptures were composed from the first century CE onwards, with some of them having their roots in other scriptures, composed in the first century BCE. The Mahayana sutras are thus not included in the more ancient
Agamas, nor in the
Sutta Pitaka of the
Theravada, both of which represent an older stratum of Buddhist scriptures, which some claim can be historically linked to
Gautama Buddha himself.
Mahayana beliefs
The tradition in Mahayana is that the Mahayana sutras were written down at the time of the Buddha and stored for five hundred years in the realm of the dragons (or
Nagas). The tradition further claims that the teachings of the Mahayana sutras are higher than the teachings contained in the
Agamas and the
Sutta Pitaka, and that people were initially unable to understand the Mahayana sutras at the time of the Buddha (500 BCE). This is the reason given, according to some Mahayana accounts, for the need to store these sutras in the realm of the dragons for 500 years, until suitable recipients for these teachings arose amongst humankind
[7].
Scholars' opinion on historicity
The accounts of the texts specific to the Mahayana school (the
Mahayana Sutras) are often seen by scholars to not represent a true historic account of the life and teachings of Buddha. The traditional account of why these accounts are not preserved in the older Tripitaka texts (the
Pali Canon and the
Agamas) of
Early Buddhism, invariably involve stories of mythical dragons (
NÄgas) and denigrating accounts on the intelligence of humankind (not clever enough) at the time of the Buddha. The scholar A. K. Warder gives the following reasons for not accepting the Mahayana Sutras as giving a historical account of events in the life of
Gautama Buddha[8]:
#It is a curious aspersion on the powers of the Buddha that he failed to do what others were able to accomplish 600 years later.
#Linguistically and stylistically the Mahayana texts belong to a later stratum of Indian literature than the
Tripitaka known to the
early schools.
#Everything about
early Buddhism, and even the Mahayana itself (with the exception of the
Mantrayana), suggests that it was a teaching not meant to be kept secret but intended to be published to all the world, to spread enlightenment.
#We are on safe ground only with those texts the authenticity of which is admitted by all schools of Buddhism (including the Mahayana, who admit the authenticity of the early canons as well as their own texts), not with texts accepted only by certain schools.
#Mahayana developed gradually out of one, or a group, of the
eighteen early schools, and originally it took its stand not primarily on any new texts but on its own interpretations of the universally recognised Tripitaka.
[9]
Mahayanist attitude to the Mahayana Sutras
One Mahayana tradition holds (based on the
Sandhi-nirmocana Sutra) that Gautama Buddha's teachings may be divided into three general hierarchical categories, known as the "three turnings of the wheel of dharma" – the Hinayana turning, and two Mahayana turnings: the ''
Prajna Paramita'' (
Perfection of Wisdom), and
Yogacara. The Mahayana Sutras would thus belong to the two later turnings, and not form part of the 'Hinayana' turning.
The spirit in which Mahayana sutras are to be understood is stated in the
Vimalakirti Sutra:
★ relying on the meaning and not on the literal expression;
★ relying on gnosis and not on consciousness;
★ relying on the ultimate teachings definitive in meaning and not insisting on the superficial teachings interpretable in meaning;
★ relying on reality and not insisting on opinions derived from personal authorities;
In other words, these teachings should not necessarily be taken literally but understood directly by sages through contemplative gnosis. Certain Mahayana sutras (such as the
Srimala Sutra and the
Mahaparinirvana Sutra) state that they themselves are definitive (''nitartha'') or complete statements of final Dharma and do not require further interpretative explication.
Nature of the Mahayana Sutras
Diversity
The teachings as contained in the Mahayana Sutras as a whole have been described as a loosely bound bundle of many teachings, which was able to contain the various contradictions between the varying teachings it is comprised of
[10]. Because of these contradictory elements, there are very few things which can be said with certainty about Mahayana Buddhism
[11][12].
Polemical
Being restatements of a doctrine, part of nearly every Mahayana Sutra contains a denigrative section of varying length, denunciating the earlier, original doctrine of
Early Buddhism. Some scholars have commented on the unpleasant nature of these polemical statements, noting that such negative comments are mostly absent in the earlier texts (the
Agamas and
Pali Canon), which are of a more tolerant and understanding nature
[13].
Collections of Mahayana Sutras
The Mahayana Sutras survive predominantly in primary translations in
Chinese and
Tibetan from original texts in
Sanskrit,
Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit or various
Prakrits. From these Chinese and Tibetan texts, secondary translations were also made into
Mongolian,
Korean,
Japanese and
Sogdian.
Mahayana Canon
Although there is no definitive Mahayana canon as such, the printed or manuscript collections in Chinese and Tibetan, published through the ages, have preserved the majority of known Mahayana sutras. Many parallel translations of certain sutras exist. A handful of them, such as the
PrajñÄpÄramitÄ sutras like
Heart Sutra and the
Diamond Sutra, are considered fundamental by most Mahayana traditions.
The standard modern edition of the Buddhist Chinese canon is the
Taisho Tripitaka, redacted during the 1920s in Japan, consisting of eighty-five volumes of writings which, in addition to numerous Mahayana texts, also include
Agama collections, several versions of the
Vinaya,
Abhidharma and
Tantric writings. The first thirty-two volumes contain works of Indic origin, volumes thirty-three to fifty-five contain works of native Chinese origin, volumes fifty-six to eighty-four contain works of Japanese composition. the eighty-fifth volume contains miscellaneous items including works found at
Dunhuang. A number of apocryphal sutras composed in China are also included in the
Chinese Buddhist Canon, although the spurious nature of many more was recognized, thus preventing their inclusion into the canon. The
Sanskrit originals of many Mahayana texts have not survived to this day, although Sanskrit versions of the majority of the major Mahayana sutras have survived.
Divisions
Mahayana sutras are divided into a number of traditions. Some, like the PrajñÄpÄramitÄ sutras, are almost completely philosopical in nature. Others are texts based on lives of
Bodhisattvas and
Buddhas outlining their vows for sentient salvations, or are made for the benefits of suffering beings. The latter two classes usually contains specific
dharana and
mantras.
List of the Mahayana Sutras
★ Texts of Indian or Central Asian origin
★
★
Lalitavistara Sutra(方廣大莊嚴經)
★
★
Lankavatara Sutra(楞伽經)
★
★
Lotus Sutra(妙法蓮è¯ç¶“)
★
★
Perfection of Wisdom sutras (PrajñÄpÄramitÄ sutras, 般若經)
★
★
★
PañcaviṃśatisÄhasrikÄ-prajñÄpÄramitÄ sutra(摩訶般若波羅蜜經)
★
★
★
Diamond Sutra(金剛般若波羅蜜經)
★
★
★
Heart Sutra(般若波羅蜜多心經)
★
★
Ten Stages Sutra(å地經)
★
★
Vimalakirti-nirdesa Sutra(ç¶æ‘©è©°æ‰€èªªç¶“)
★ Texts of Chinese origin
★
★
Perfect Enlightenment Sutra (''Yuanjue Jing'' 圓覺經)
★
★
Platform Sutra (''Liuzutan Jing'' å…祖壇經)
★ Other texts
★
★
Amitabha Sutra (''Smaller Pure Land Sutra'' 佛說阿弥陀經)
★
★
Avatamsaka Sutra (''Flower Garland Sutra'' è¯åš´ç¶“)
★
★
Contemplation Sutra(佛說觀無é‡å£½ç¶“)
★
★
Infinite Life Sutra(''Large Pure Land Sutra'' 大無é‡å£½ç¶“)
★
★
Mahaparinirvana Sutra(大涅槃經)
★
★
Shurangama Sutra(å¤§ä½›é ‚é¦–æ¥žåš´ç¶“)
★
★
Sutra of Forty-Two Sections(å››åäºŒç« ç¶“)
★
★
Sutra of Golden Light(金光經)
★
★
Sutra of The Great Vows of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva (地è—è©è–©æœ¬é¡˜ç¶“)
★
★
Ullambana Sutra(盂è˜ç›†ç¶“)
★
★ The Healing Buddha Sutra
★
★ The Dharani Sutra of Hundred Thousand Seals(百åƒå°é™€ç¾…尼經)
★
★ The Dharani Sutra of Peaceful Home(佛說安宅咒陀羅尼經)
Brief discriptions of the Sutras
Perfection of Wisdom Texts
These deal with prajÃ±Ä (
wisdom or
insight). Wisdom in this context means the ability to see reality as it truly is. They do not contain an elaborate philosophical argument, but simply try to point to the true nature of reality, especially through the use of paradox. The basic premise is a radical non-dualism, in which every and any dichotomist way of seeing things is denied: so phenomena are neither existent, nor non-existent, but are marked by sunyata, emptiness, an absence of any essential unchanging nature. The
Perfection of Wisdom in One Letter illustrates this approach by choosing to represent the perfection of prajÃ±Ä with the Sanskrit/Pali short ''a'' vowel ("अ",
IPA:
) -- which, as a prefix, negates a word's meaning (e.g., changing ''
svabhava'' to ''asvabhava'', "with essence" to "without essence"; cf. ''
mu''); which is the first letter of Indic alphabets; and which, as a sound on its own, can be seen as the most neutral/basic of speech sounds (cf
Aum and
bija).
Many sutras are known by the number of lines, or slokas, that they contained.
Edward Conze, who translated all of the Perfection of Wisdom sutras into English, identified four periods of development in this literature:
# 100BCE-100CE: Ratnagunasamcayagatha and the Astasaharika (8,000 lines)
# 100-300CE: a period of elaboration in which versions in 18,000, 25,000, and 100,000 lines are produced. Possibly also the Diamond Sutra
# 300-500CE : a period of condensation, producing the well known
Heart Sutra, and the Perfection of Wisdom in one letter
# 500-1000CE : texts from this period begin to show a tantric influence
The Perfection of Wisdom texts have influenced every Mahayana school of Buddhism.
Saddharma-pundarika
Also called the
Lotus Sutra, White Lotus Sutra, Sutra of the White Lotus, or Sutra on the
White Lotus of the Sublime Dharma; Sanskrit: ''SaddharmapundarÄ«ka-sÅ«tra''; 妙法蓮è¯ç¶“ Cn: ''Mià ofÇŽ LiánhuÄ JÄ«ng''; Jp: ''MyÅhÅ Renge KyÅ''.
Probably composed in the period
100 bce–
100 ce, the White Lotus proposes that the three
yanas (Shravakayana, Pratyekabuddhayana, and Bodhisattvayana) are not in fact three different paths leading to three goals, but one path, with one goal. The earlier teachings are said to be 'skilful means' in order to help beings of limited capacities. Notable for the (re)appearance of the Buddha Prabhutaratna, who had died several aeons earlier, because it suggests that a Buddha is not inaccessible after his parinirvana, and also that his life-span is said to be inconceivably long because of the accumulation of merit in past lives. This idea, though not necessarily from this source, forms the basis of the later
Trikaya doctrine. Later associated particularly with the
Tien Tai in China (
Tendai in Japan) school and the
Nichiren schools in Japan.
Pure Land Sutras
There are three major sutras that fall into this category: the
Infinite Life Sutra, also known as the Larger Pure Land Sutra; the
Amitabha Sutra, also known as the Smaller Pure Land Sutra; and the
Contemplation Sutra, or Visualization, Sutra. These texts describe the origins and nature of the Western
Pure Land in which the Buddha
Amitabha resides. They list the forty-eight vows made by Amitabha as a
bodhisattva by which he undertook to build a Pure Land where beings are able to practise the Dharma without difficulty or distraction. The sutras state that beings can be reborn there by pure conduct and by practices such as thinking continuously of Amitabha, praising him, recounting his virtues, and chanting his name. These Pure Land sutras and the practices they recommend became the foundations of
Pure Land Buddhism, which focus on the salvific power of faith in the vows of Amitabha.
The
Vimalakirti Nirdesha Sutra
Composed some time before
150CE., the Bodhisattva Vimalakirti appears in the guise of a layman in order to teach the Dharma. Seen by some as a strong assertion of the value of lay practice. Doctrinally similar to the Perfection of Wisdom texts, another major theme is the Buddhafield (Buddha-kshetra), which was influential on Pure Land schools. Very popular in
China and
Japan where it was seen as being compatible with
Confucian values.
Samadhi Sutras
Amongst the very earliest Mahayana texts, the Samadhi Sutras are a collection of sutras which focus on the attainment of profound states of consciousness reached in meditation, perhaps suggesting that meditation played an important role in early Mahayana. Includes the
Pratyutpanna Sutra and the
Shurangama-samadhi Sutra.
Confession Sutras
The Triskandha Sutra, and the Suvarnaprabhasa Sutra (or
Golden Light Sutra), which focus on the practice of confession of faults. The Golden Light Sutra became especially influential in Japan, where one of its chapters (on the Universal Sovereign) was used by the Japanese emperors to legitimise their rule, and it provided a model for a well-run state.
The
Avatamsaka Sutra
A large composite text consisting of several parts, most notably the
Dasabhumika Sutra and the
Gandhavyuha Sutra. Probably reached its current form by about the 4th Century CE, although parts of it such as those mentioned above, are thought to date from the 1st or 2nd century CE. The Gandhavyuha sutra is thought to be the source of a cult of
Vairocana that later gave rise to the Mahavairocana-abhisambodhi tantra, which became one of two central texts in
Shingon Buddhism, and is included in the
Tibetan canon as a carya class
tantra. The Avatamsaka Sutra became the central text for the
Hua-yen (Jp. Kegon) school of Buddhism, the most important doctrine of which is the interpenetration of all phenomena.
Third Turning Sutras
Sutras which primarily teach the doctrine of ''vijnapti-matra'' or 'representation-only', associated with the Yogacara school. The ''
Sandhinirmocana Sutra'' (c 2nd Century CE) is the earliest surviving sutra in this class. This sutra divides the teachings of the Buddha into three classes, which it calls the "Three Turnings of the Wheel of the Dharma." To the first turning, it ascribes the ''Agamas'' of the Shravakas, to the second turning the lower Mahayana sutras including the ''Prajna-paramita Sutras'', and finally sutras like itself are deemed to comprise the third turning. Moreover, the first two turnings are considered, in this system of classification, to be provisional while the third group is said to present the final truth without a need for further explication (''nitartha''). The well-known ''
Lankavatara Sutra'', composed sometime around the 4th Century CE, is sometimes included in this group, although it should be noted that it is somewhat syncretic in nature, combining pure Yogacara doctrines with those of the ''tathagata-garbha'' system, and was unknown or ignored by the progenitors of the Yogacara system. The ''Lankavatara Sutra'' was influential in the
Chan or
Zen schools.
Tathagatagarbha Class Sutras
Especially the
Tathagatagarbha Sutra, the ShrÄ«mÄlÄdevi-simhanÄda SÅ«tra (
Srimala Sutra) and the
Mahayana Mahaparinirvana Sutra (which is very different in character from the
Pali Mahaparinibbana Sutta). These texts teach that every being has a Tathagatagarbha: variously translated as
Buddha nature, Buddha seed, Buddha matrix. It is this Buddha nature, Buddha Essence or Buddha Principle, this aspect of every being which is itself already enlightened, that enables beings to be liberated. One of the most important responses of Buddhism to the problem of immanence and transcendence. The Tathagatagarbha doctrine was very influential in East Asian Buddhism, and the idea in one form or another can be found in most of its schools. The Buddha in these sutras insists that the doctrine of the Tathagatagarbha is ultimate and definitive (''nitartha'') - not in need of "interpretation" - and that it takes the Dharma to the next and final, clarifying step regarding the Emptiness (
shunyata) teachings.
Collected Sutras
Two very large sutras which are again actually collections of other sutras. The MahÄratnakÅ«ta SÅ«tra contains 49 individual works, and the MahÄsamnipÄta SÅ«tra is a collection of 17 shorter works. Both seem to have been finalised by about the 5th century, although some parts of them are considerably older.
Transmigration Sutras
A number of sutras which focus on the actions that lead to existence in the various spheres of existence, or which expound the doctrine of the twelve links of
pratitya-samutpada or
dependent-origination.
Discipline Sutras
Sutras which focus on the principles which guide the behaviour of Bodhisattvas. Including the KÄshyapa-parivarta, the Bodhisattva-prÄtimoksa SÅ«tra, and the BrahmajÄla SÅ«tra.
Sutras devoted to individual figures
A large number of sutras which describe the nature and virtues of a particular Buddha or Bodhisattva and/or their Pure Land, including
Mañjusri,
Ksitigarbha, the Buddha
Akshobhya, and Bhaishajyaguru also known as the
Medicine Buddha.
Proto-Mahayana Sutras
Early in the 20th Century, a cache of texts was found in a mound near
Gilgit, Afghanistan. Amongst them was the Ajitasena Sutra. The Ajitasena Sutra appears to be a mixture of Mahayana and pre-Mahayana ideas. It occurs in a world where monasticism is the norm, which is typical of the Pali Suttas; there is none of the usual antagonism towards the Shravakas (also called the Hinayana) or the notion of Arahantship, which is typical of Mahayana Sutras such as the White Lotus, or Vimalakirti Nirdesha. However, the sutra also has an Arahant seeing all the Buddha fields, it is said that reciting the name of the sutra will save beings from suffering and the hell realms, and a meditative practice is described which allows the practitioner to see with the eyes of a Buddha, and to receive teachings from them that are very much typical of Mahayana Sutras.
References
★ Nakamura, Hajime. 1980. ''Indian Buddhism: A Survey with Bibliographical Notes''. 1st edition: Japan, 1980. 1st Indian Edition: Delhi, 1987. ISBN 81-208-0272-1
★ Warder, A. K. ''Indian Buddhism''. Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi. 3rd revised edition: 1999.
★ Dutt, Nalinaksha. ''Buddhist Sects in India'', Motilal Banararsidass, Delhi, 2nd Edition, 1978
★ ''Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism'', Macmillan, 2004.
Notes
1. 'they (the Mahyana Sutras) were recent fabrications.’ AK Warder, Indian Buddhism, 3rd edition, p. 335.
2. ‘The Mahayana movement claims to have been founded by the Buddha himself … The consensus of the evidence, however, is that it originated in South India in the 1st century AD’ – AK Warder, Indian Buddhism, 3rd edition, p. 335.
3. ‘Sometime after the founding of the Purva Saila school in the 1st century B.C. certain monks felt the need not simply for new interpretations of the original sutras (such as, for example, the new Abhidharma texts of the schools …), but for wholesale restatements of the doctrine. For this purpose they rewrote the sutras, or wrote new sutras.’ AK Warder, Indian Buddhism, 3rd edition, p. 335.
4. ‘The south (of India) was then vigorously creative in producing Mahayana Sutras’ – AK Warder, Indian Buddhism, 3rd edition, 1999, p. 335.
5. Mahayanism in all probability germinated in the south, where the offshoots of the Mahasanghikas had their centres of activities, but where it appeared more developed was a place somewhere in the eastern part of India, a place where the Sarvastivadins were predominant.' Buddhist Sects in India, Nalinaksha Dutt, Motilal Banararsidass Publishers (Delhi), 2nd Edition, 1978, p. 243)
6. ‘The sudden appearance of large numbers of (Mahayana) teachers and texts (in North India in the second century AD) would seem to require some previous preparation and development, and this we can look for in the South.’ AK Warder, Indian Buddhism, 3rd edition, p. 335.
7. ‘though the Buddha had taught them (the Mahayana Sutras) they were not in circulation in the world of men at all for many centuries, there being no competent teachers and no intelligent students: the sutras were however preserved in the Dragon World and other non-human circles, and when in the 2nd century AD adequate teachers suddenly appeared in India in large numbers the texts were fetched and circulated. ... However, it is clear that the historical tradition here recorded belongs to North India and for the most part to Nalanda (in Magadha)’– AK Warder, Indian Buddhism, 3rd edition, 1999
8. Some of our sources maintain the authenticity of certain other texts not found in the canons of these schools (the early schools). These texts are those held genuine by the later school, not one of the eighteen, which arrogated to itself the title of Mahayana, 'Great Vehicle '. According to the Mahayana historians these texts were admittedly unknown to the early schools of Buddhists. However, they had all been promulgated by the Buddha. [The Buddha’s] followers on earth, the sravakas ('pupils'), had not been sufficiently advanced to understand them, and hence were not given them to remember, but they were taught to various supernatural beings and then preserved in such places as the Dragon World. … With the best will in the world we cannot accept this or similar accounts as historical facts. – Indian Buddhism, 3rd edition, page 4
9. Indian Buddhism, A.K. Warder, 3rd edition, page 4-5
10. ''It has become increasingly clear that Mahayana Buddhism was never one thing, but rather, it seems, a loosely bound bundle of many, and — like Walt Whitman — was large and could contain, in both senses of the term, contradictions, or at least antipodal elements.'', Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism, 2004, page 492
11. ''There are, it seems, very few things that can be said with certainty about Mahayana Buddhism'', Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism, 2004, page 492
12. ''But apart from the fact that it can be said with some certainty that the Buddhism embedded in China, Korea, Tibet, and Japan is Mahayana Buddhism, it is no longer clear what else can be said with certainty about Mahayana Buddhism itself, and especially about its earlier, and presumably formative, period in India.'', Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism, 2004, page 492
13. ‘Practically every Mahayana sutra repeats this denunciation of the 'inferior' (hina) way of the pupils in more or less shrill tones and at varying length, contrasting rather unpleasantly with the tolerance and understanding characteristic of most earlier Buddhist texts.’ Indian Buddhism, AK Warder, 3rd edition, p. 341
External Links
★
Buddhist Scriptures in Multiple Languages
★
Mahayana Buddhist Sutras in English
★
English translations of many Mahayana Buddhism texts
★
BuddhaNet's eBook Library(English pdfs)
★
Full English text and discussion of the ''Mahayana Mahaparinirvana Sutra''
★
Translations of major Tathagatagarbha sutras
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