Introduction

i.1As the Buddha’s disciple Subhūti goes to collect alms one morning, he encounters a laywoman who imparts to him wise and penetrating teachings on the nature of reality. The bulk of the sūtra recounts Subhūti’s encounter and dialogue with this laywoman, who turns out to be a highly developed spiritual being named Strīvivarta. Subhūti himself adheres to the Hearers’ Vehicle, a spiritual path based on the teachings that emphasize the discipline of the prātimokṣa vows and the lack of any fixed, singular entity that could constitute a personal “self.” By contrast, Strīvivarta is a follower of the Bodhisattva Vehicle, a path toward the development of boundless compassion, the ability to benefit beings on a vast scale, and wisdom that realizes not only the lack of a personal self but also the lack of a fixed, graspable identity in all phenomena. Thus, their exchange serves to contrast these two approaches to awakening. It is worth noting that the name Strīvivarta means “female transformation,” a fact that seems relevant as she in fact transforms into a male at the end of the sūtra.

i.2Set in Rājagṛha, where the Buddha is staying with a large number of disciples, the sūtra commences with Subhūti asking the Buddha about his dream the night before. The Buddha explains that Subhūti’s dream indicates that a previously unheard Dharma teaching will be heard; and with that, Subhūti sets off for town to collect alms. Eventually he arrives at the home of Strīvivarta, who immediately poses challenging questions to the monk on a series of profound subjects. In exchange after exchange, Subhūti does his best to reply to the laywoman, but she continuously confronts him with ever more provocative questions.

i.3As their dialogue unfolds, we encounter explanations regarding an array of challenging topics. In addition to Strīvivarta’s eloquent ability to outshine Subhūti on topics of profound import, she is also able to read Subhūti’s mind. This fact significantly increases the monk’s consternation‍—not only does she challenge him regarding what he says, she even directly confronts him about his thoughts! Moreover, others (including disembodied voices from the sky and various gods) appear throughout the sūtra to put Venerable Subhūti to the test. When Subhūti tries to excuse himself and make an exit, he is schooled as to why it is inappropriate to take leave in such a situation.

i.4Over the course of their encounter, Strīvivarta delivers a series of formidable teachings that illuminate the nature of the Great Vehicle and the Buddha’s purposes in going for alms. Strīvivarta also explains how she leads beings to spiritual maturity through skillfully bringing them pleasure. Throughout the exchange, the laywoman’s power and authority are highlighted by the fact that periodically, at the close of particular passages of her teaching, members of the audience attain significant levels of spiritual maturity.

i.5Later in the sūtra, two of the laywoman’s young male disciples cross paths with Subhūti. They explain the greatness of bodhisattvas in comparison to the hearers and recite verses in praise of their teacher and her skillful means. This skillfulness becomes strikingly clear when Strīvivarta assumes a handsome male form, showing Subhūti the body with which she teaches women. With this, she stuns the monk to the point that he admits he is at a loss for words; and once again, he tries to leave to complete his alms rounds before it grows too late in the day. In response, Strīvivarta confounds his sense of time by showing various buddha realms in various times and by moving the sun’s position in the sky. Convinced of the truth of her teachings, and no longer concerned about time, Subhūti remains.

i.6Following meaningful encounters with a celestial being and another inspiring bodhisattva, Subhūti finally returns to the Buddha, to whom he relates his experiences. The Buddha explains that the woman he encountered is in fact a bodhisattva great being who benefits countless beings by skillfully bringing them pleasure. Soon thereafter, the great bodhisattva herself arrives with a large retinue of women. When Subhūti pays the woman homage, the senior monk Śāriputra questions why he makes such a gesture of respect to a woman lacking both the spiritual qualities and the body of a noble one. Strīvivarta then proceeds to teach on what constitutes a noble being, the profound nature of the Great Vehicle and its followers, and the unhindered confidence of bodhisattvas.

i.7There are other sūtras that prominently feature female bodhisattvas. The protagonists in The Questions of the Girl Vimalaśraddhā (Toh 84), The Questions of Vimaladattā (Toh 77), and The Lion’s Roar of Śrīmālādevī (Toh 92) are princesses. Elsewhere, royal women are the protagonists predicted to future awakening in The Sūtra of Aśokadattā’s Prophecy (Toh 76), The Questions of Vimalaprabhā (Toh 168), and The Sūtra of Kṣemavatī’s Prophecy (Toh 192). Less privileged laywomen are the main interlocutors in The Inquiry of the Girl Sumati (Toh 74), The Questions of Gaṅgottara (Toh 75), The Questions of an Old Lady (Toh 171), The Miraculous Play of Mañjuśrī (Toh 96), and The Sūtra of the Girl Candrottarā’s Prophecy (Toh 191). Even so, given the longstanding Buddhist tradition of according primacy to males, the focus on Strīvivarta in this scripture is unusual and refreshing. Still, in the end Strīvivarta bows down at the Buddha’s feet, saying that she will not rise again until she has received a prophecy of her future awakening and has obtained a man’s body. The five hundred women in her retinue do and say the same. In the Buddha’s prophecy that follows, he says that in the bodhisattva’s future buddha realm “not even the word woman will exist.” Upon receiving this prophecy, Strīvivarta and the five hundred women rise into the air, overjoyed, and “take on the appearance of sixteen-year-old boys.” The traditional stance on male superiority thus seems to be, after all, reinstated.

i.8The original Sanskrit of this sūtra no longer seems to be extant, but two Chinese translations are contained in the Taishō canon (Taishō 565 and 566), the earliest of which was translated ca. 300 ᴄᴇ. According to the colophon to the Tibetan translation, the sūtra was translated into Tibetan by the two Indian preceptors Jinamitra and Prajñāvarman, along with the Tibetan translator Yeshé Dé and others. This locates the Tibetan translation in the late eighth or early ninth century. This dating is also confirmed by the text’s inclusion in the Denkarma Catalog of the early ninth century. In producing this translation, we have based our work on the Degé xylograph while consulting the Comparative Edition (Tib. dpe bsdur ma) and the Stok Palace Kangyur.