Introduction

i.1While residing in Nyagrodha Park in Kapilavastu, the Buddha meets an emaciated, long-haired brahmin named Vasiṣṭha. When the Buddha asks this brahmin why he looks so thin, unkempt, and haggard, Vasiṣṭha explains that it is because he is observing a month-long fast. The Buddha then asks him whether he maintains the so-called “eightfold observance of the noble ones,” prompting an exchange between the two about what this observance entails, and the extent of the merit gained by maintaining it. After outlining the observance, the Buddha declares to Vasiṣṭha that maintaining the eightfold observance, even just once, results in far more merit than making vast offerings. At the end of the sūtra, Vasiṣṭha takes refuge in the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Saṅgha, and he pledges to maintain the eightfold observance and practice generosity in tandem.

i.2At its heart, The Sūtra of Vasiṣṭha outlines the eightfold observance that laypeople are encouraged to maintain on the four sacred lunar days of the new moon, the full moon, and the two days that fall halfway in between these two lunar events. This practice is closely related to the restorative rite, known in Sanskrit as poṣadha, in which the monks and nuns gather on the new moon and full moon days to confess any faults and transgressions and to recite the monastic rules, the prātimokṣa. In fact, at times the term poṣadha can also refer specifically to the eightfold observance that is adopted by some lay people on the four sacred lunar days.

i.3Regarding this latter meaning, the Buddha tells Vasiṣṭha that on these days a layperson should emulate the conduct of the worthy ones‍—the Buddha’s awakened disciples‍—by refraining from eight things: (1) killing, (2) stealing, (3) engaging in sexual activity, (4) speaking falsely, (5) becoming intoxicated, (6) singing, dancing, music, and beautifying oneself with adornments or cosmetics, (7) using high or large beds, and (8) eating at the improper time.

i.4If one refrains from all these things, even just for one day, one is certain to gain vast amounts of merit. Following this explanation, Vasiṣṭha asks the Buddha how, in terms of merit accumulation, gift-giving compares to maintaining the eightfold observance. The Buddha’s response is definitive: the merit produced by generosity does not even come close to a fraction of the merit born of maintaining the eightfold observance. Moreover, the Buddha adds, by maintaining the eightfold observance, one stands to be reborn into heavenly realms where the gods enjoy happiness for far longer than the average human lifetime, and that divine happiness makes sovereignty in the mundane world pale in comparison.

i.5Although no Indic source text exists for the Tibetan translation of The Sūtra of Vasiṣṭha, the text does share a number of similarities with several Pali suttas, yet the exact relationship between these texts is unclear. However, in terms of its circulation and influence beyond the Indian subcontinent, one remarkable fact related to The Sūtra of Vasiṣṭha is that, along with two other sūtras, it appears to have served as a source on the history of India in the famous fourteenth-century Persian historical account of Asia known as Compendium of Chronicles (Jāmiʿ al-tawārīkh).

i.6This English translation of The Sūtra of Vasiṣṭha, which to the best of our knowledge is the first in any modern language, is based on the Tibetan version in the Degé Kangyur in consultation with the variant readings recorded in the Comparative Edition (Tib. dpe bsdur ma) and the Stok Palace Kangyur. The Pali suttas referred to above were also consulted. The colophon to the Tibetan translation states that it was translated, corrected, and finalized by the Indian scholar Sarvajñādeva and the chief editor-translator Bandé Paltsek. The text’s inclusion in the Denkarma and Phangthangma imperial catalogs confirms its provenance in the late eighth or early ninth century.