Notes

n.1Butön, F.148.b

n.2Butön, F.153.b

n.3The index of the Narthang Kangyur (though difficult to read clearly), after stating that the text has four hundred ślokas, opines that “although in the early inventories, including Butön’s, it is said to have six bam po, later generations mention [this lower figure] on the basis of examination” (F.92.b: bu sogs dkar chag sngon ma rnams su bam po drug ces gsung na’ang phyi rabs rnams dpyad gzhir mdzad do).

n.4The great translator Kawa Paltsek (ska ba dpal brtsegs, eighth to ninth century) cites the brief passage on how a bodhisattva should live in solitude (1.­18) in a work included in the Tengyur (Toh 4357), his Account of the Precious Scriptures and the Śākya Lineage (Kawa Paltsek, F.249.a). The citation, or perhaps paraphrase, is closer to the proto-Kangyur version (see n.­7) than to the Degé version translated here. Later in the same text (folios 327.a – 328.b), he then quotes the entire passage on the two dhāraṇīs (1.­25 to 1.­33), followed without a break by the earlier passage on the reasons for Avalokiteśvara’s name (1.­21 to 1.­22). The fourteenth century Nyingma master Longchen Rabjam uses, several times in his Treasury of Wishfulfilling Jewels, citations from a text he calls The Noble Sūtra King of the Array of Qualities (’phags pa yon tan bkod pa’i mdo), two of which include‍—verbatim from this present sūtra‍—all or some of the three sets of four deeds of Māra (1.­34 to 1.­36), but another speaks of the qualities of a spiritual friend in lines not found in this sūtra. The eighteenth century editor of the Degé Tengyur, Tsultrim Rinchen (tshul khrims rin chen), cites the passage on the benefits of contemplating Avalokiteśvara’s name.

n.5A very small possibility remains that it was the hypothetical much longer text with the same title, mentioned above in i.­6, that was designated by Butön and his successors for this position, and that the present sūtra was at some point in the Tshalpa lineage duplicated from the tantra section to take its place.

n.6In the Toh 527 version of the text there is a slight discrepancy in the folio numbering between the 1737 par phud printings and the late (post par phud) printings of the Degé Kangyur. Although the discrepancy is irrelevant here, further details concerning this may be found in n.­6 of the Toh 527 version of this text.

n.7The proto-Kangyur manuscripts (Tabo and Gondhla as presented in Criegern 2009) have two more bodhisattva names added to this list: rtag tu rab brtson, and yid gnyis yang dag sel ba. The latter also appears in the Sanskrit text as Vi­mati­samud­ghātin.

n.8The Sanskrit text reads “three hundred nuns” (tribhiś ca bhikṣuṇī­śataiḥ) in place of “three hundred yakṣiṇīs.”

n.9Proto-Kangyur: bcom ldan ’das bdag gis sa chen po ’di rnam par ltas na / bcom ldan ’das ’dus pa chen po ’dir / bcom ldan ’das kyis sems can thams cad bde bar mdzad par bdag gis mthong ngo (“Blessed One, I have looked at the world. I see that the Blessed One brings happiness to all beings within / through this great assembly.”). Sanskrit: vyavalokitaṃ mayā bhagavan ayaṃ mahā­pṛthivī kṛtā bhagavatā sarva­sattvānāṃ sukhaṃ mahā­sannipātaṃ bhagavan paśyāmi (“Blessed One, I have looked and I see that the Blessed One has made this world into a great, joyful gathering of all beings.”).

n.10Proto-Kangyur: khyim par gnas pa yongs su spang ba dang / myi dge’i ba’i bshes gnyen spang ba dang / khyim pa yongs su spang ba dang / bdag gi bdog pa thams cad yongs su gtang bar bya ste / rigs kyi bu chos bzhi po dang ldan pa’i byang chub sems dpa’ sems dpa’ chen pos dgon par gnas par bya’o (“Noble son, a bodhisattva great being who remains in solitude should follow these four principles: they should completely give up (1) relationships with householders, (2) non-spiritual friends, (3) households, and (4) all their material possessions.”). Sanskrit: caturbhiḥ kulaputra dharmaiḥ samanvāgatenāraṇyavāsinā bodhisatvena bhavitavyaṃ / katamaiś caturbhiḥ? yad uta gṛhāvāsaparivarjanatayā kalyāṇamitrasevanatayā gṛhaparivarjanatayā sarvasvaparityāginā bhavitavyaṃ (“Noble son, a bodhisattva should live in the wilderness following four principles. Which four? (1) They should avoid living in households, (2) should attend to spiritual friends, (3) should avoid householders, and (4) should give up all personal belongings.”).

n.11Sanskrit: na vayam bhagavan samanupaśyāmaḥ sadevake loke samārake sabrahmake saśramaṇabrāhmaṇikāyāḥ prajāyāḥ sadevamānuṣāsurāyāḥ yad ayaṃ bhagavan dharmaparyāyaṃ śrutvāpāyagamanaṃ gacchen (“Blessed One, we have not seen anyone in the god realm, the realm of māras, the Brahmā realm, anyone among ascetics or brahmins, or any god, human, or asura who was reborn in the lower realms after hearing this Dharma teaching.”).

n.12Proto-Kangyur: myi skye ba’i chos la bzod pa (“receptive to the unborn nature of phenomena”). The term dharmakṣāṇti can refer either to a set of ways one becomes “receptive” to key points of the Dharma, or it can be a specific abbreviation of anutpattikadharmakṣāṇti (“receptivity to the unborn nature of phenomena”). The Sanskrit and Degé recensions both contain dharmakṣāṇti (Tibetan: chos la bzod pa), but considering the Proto-Kangyur contains the full term, we have elected to understand it as such in this translation.

n.13A tentative translation of this dhāraṇī based on the Tibetan (as in the Degé) is as follows: “The dhāraṇī is as follows: Conquer, conquer, O bringer of victory! You who travel through space! O bringer of victory! Hulu hulu! You who resemble a lotus! Show me a favor! Move, O mover! Be firm, be firm! Be firm, be firm! You who protect the deities! You who save in battle! You who stop enemy armies! Fulfill all my aspirations, O Blessed One! Remove all my karma, by the blessing of the Buddha! Svāhā!” The Sanskrit version according to Criegern (2009) is as follows: tadyathā: jaya jaya, jayavaha, khavaha, jayavaha, hulu hulu, padmābhe, avam ava me, dhiri dhiri, dhirādhiri, devatānuparipālani, yuddhottāraṇi, paracakranivāraṇi, pūraya bhagavan sarvāśā mama vuddunibhaṭṭārikasya sarvakarmaṃ kṣapaya buddhādhiṣṭhānena svāhā.

n.14A tentative translation of this dhāraṇī based on the Tibetan (as in the Degé Kangyur) is as follows: “Homage to all the thus-gone ones! Homage to the thus-gone Amitābha! Homage to all the buddhas and bodhisattvas! Homage to them, the possessors of great powers! It is as follows: Huhu hehe! Mind, mind, O great-minded one, vajra-minded one, steadfast vajra-minded one! You who are protected by the tathāgatas, go, go, O you who have an iron mouth, knitted eyebrows, and a frowning face, O you who have compassion and a compassionate gaze! Pay heed to these words of truth, O exalted Vajrapāṇi, destroy all karmic obscurations, fulfill all my aspirations! By the truth of the buddhas and the truth of the bodhisattvas, grant me a boon! Svāhā!” The Sanskrit version according to Criegern (2009) is as follows: namaḥ sarva­tathāgatānāṃ namaḥ amitābhāya tathāgatāya, namaḥ sarva­bodhisatvānām, namaḥ sarva­mahardhikebhyaḥ. tadyathā: huhu hehe, mati, mahā­mati, vajra­mati, dṛḍha­vajra­mati, tathāgatānu­paripālite, sara sara, ayomukhi, bhṛkuṭi, bhṛkuṭā­mukhi, kṛpe, kṛpāluke satyam anusmara bhagavan vajra­pāṇi sarva­karma kṣapaya, sarvāśāṃ pari­pūraya dehi me varaṃ buddha­satyena bodhi­satva­satyena svāhā.

n.15Translated based on the Proto-Kangyur: nor bsgyur shes pa. This seems to be a reference to the practice of alchemy. Degé and the other Tibetan editions consulted read: khams rnam par smin par ’gyur ba (“ripen the elements”).

n.16Translation tentative (Tib. ’dam bu mda’ rgyu’i mdog can). This seems to refer to a plant growing in water. The Sanskrit text reads: śaratkāṇḍa.

n.17Thus Vajradhara is to Śākyamunī’s left in this arrangement.

n.18The Sanskrit text adds that the maṇḍala should be “four cubits in size” (caturhasta).

n.19Proto-Kangyur: nam sku gzugs ’gul bar gyurd pa’am / sa g.yo’ bar mthong na bdag spro ba bskyed par bya ste / de nas des gcig tu spro ba bskyed par bya’o (“They should rejoice when they see that the image or the ground starts to shake. This should generate in them a state of great joy.”).

n.20Translated based on the Sanskrit (akṣarakhaṭuṅkatā) and the Proto-Kangyur (yi ge la khro ba). The text preserved in the Degé is clearly an alternate reading: khengs pa’i tshig smra ba (“speaking arrogantly”).

n.21Proto-Kangyur: shes pa ngan pa yang med (“There is no negative mind.”). Sanskrit: nāsti kujyatvaṃ (“This is not unintelligible.”).

n.22Proto-Kangyur: shes pa dman pa yang med (“There is no inferior mind.”). The Sanskrit includes the thought, “I am not deaf” (nāsti badhiratvaṃ). The Sanskrit for “my mind is not dull” (nāsti dhandhāyitatvaṃ) follows nāsti badhiratvaṃ.

n.23Sanskrit: teṣāṃ kalyāṇamitrāṇāṃ hāsyalapanatā (“mocking and gossiping about spiritual friends”). Proto-Kangyur: mi dge ba’i bshes gnyen gyi lag tu song bas bzhad gad dang / kha gsag can du gyurd pa (“Laughter and flattery under the influence of non-virtuous friends”).

n.24Sanskrit: te idaṃ sūtraṃ na śraddhāsyanti, na likhiṣyanti, na likhāpayiṣyanti, na dhārayiṣyanti, na vācayiṣyanti, na pūjayiṣyanti (“Such people have no faith in this sūtra, they do not write it down, commission it to be written, retain it, teach it, or revere it.”).

n.25The Sanskrit text omits “the great king of the gandharvas.”

n.26Sanskrit: sarvasattva-aparityāga (“(3) never forsaking a single being”).

n.27Sanskrit: mahārthika (“great value”).

n.28The Sanskrit includes “and under the king” (rājasaumanasya). This might suggest they will also have the “favor of the king.”

n.29The proto-Kangyur manuscript and the Sanskrit manuscript mention seven hundred thus-gone ones. The seven thus-gone ones are: Vipaśyin, Śikhin, Viśvabhū, Krakucchanda, Kanakamuni, Kāśyapa, and Śākyamuni.

n.30Sanskrit: kiñcinmatrāṃ jambudvīpagato bhaviṣyati, sthānāsthāneṣu pracariṣyati (“It will remain in this world only for a while, spreading to various places.”). The Stok Palace MS accords more closely with the Sanskrit: gnas kha cig kha cig tu spyod par ’gyur ro.

n.31Proto-Kangyur: gal te yul du chos smra ba myed na (“If there are no Dharma teachers in those lands”).

n.32Sanskrit: sacet tasya tan dharmabhāṇakan dṛṣṭvā cittadaurmasyaṃ bhavet tasya sarvaviṣaye putra bhāryāmātāpitṛdaurmanasyam bhaviṣyati paścā narakeṣūpapatsyate (“If one were to see someone spreading this teaching and become distressed, then in the entire country there will be distress over the children, spouses, mothers, and fathers, and afterward one will be reborn in the hells.”).

n.33Sanskrit: mahārthika (“great value”).

n.34Proto-Kangyur: myi skye ba’i chos la bzod pa (“receptivity to the unborn nature of phenomena”). See also n.­12.

n.35In the Sanskrit text this passage is a continuation of the Buddha’s speech, not a new address by Avaloki­teśvara. It begins: durlabhās te kulaputra sattvā bhaviṣyanti ye uman dharmaparyāyaṃ śraddhāsyanti... (“Noble son, rare are the beings who have faith in this Dharma teaching...”).

n.36The Sanskrit and Proto-Kangyur manuscripts add: “those who spread this teaching.”

n.37The Proto-Kangyur manuscripts only mention the first and the last of these titles.

n.38Sanskrit: idam avocad bhagavān āttamanā āryāvalokiteśvaro bodhisattvo mahāsattvo vajrapāṇiś ca bodhisattvo mahāsattvaḥ sā ca sarvāvatī parṣat sadevamānuṣāsuragandharvaś ca loko bhagavato bhāṣitam abhyanandat (“When the Blessed One finished speaking, the delighted bodhisattva great beings Avaloki­teśvara and Vajrapāṇi, along with the entire world with its gods, humans, asuras, and gandharvas, praised the words of the Blessed One.”).