Notes

n.1The sūtra is also included in the Mongolian and Korean (K22-8) canons.

n.2Fajie ti xing wu fenbie hui 法界體性無分別會 (Taishō 310-8, scroll 26). For more information on the Chinese version of this sūtra, see Lewis R. Lancaster, “K22(8),” The Korean Buddhist Canon: A Descriptive Catalogue.

n.3Cambodia was at that time culturally influenced by India and home to a thriving Buddhist culture under royal patronage in the fifth and sixth centuries.

n.4Skt. *Madhyamakaratnapradīpa, Tib. dbu ma rin po che’i sgron ma. Although attributed to Bhāviveka (fl. 6th century) this Indian work, extant only in Tibetan translation (Toh 3854), refers to both Dharmakīrti and Candrakīrti (both fl. 7th century) and the attribution is hence contested. See Ruegg 2010, p. 23–24.

n.5See the opening discussion in Bhāviveka, folios 259.b–260.a.

n.6Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen, folio 198.b. English translation in Dol-bo-ba Shay-rap-gyel-tsen 2006, p. 392.

n.7See Maitreya-Asaṅga, Madhyāntavibhāga, I.14-15, folio 41.a.2.

n.8See Maitreya-Asaṅga, II.14, folio 42.a.1, and Vasubandhu’s commentary, folio 9.a.6–9.b.2.

n.9Tib. shes pa brda sprod pa ’gyur ba. This complex term appears frequently in this sūtra. Following Mahāvyutpatti 6419, the Sanskrit equivalent is ājñāvyākaraṇa. In Skt. ājñā means “instruction,” “command,” or “order,” and vyākaraṇa and the verb vyākaroti mean “explain/explanation,” “prophesy/prophecy,” “analyze/analysis,” “elucidate/elucidation,” or just “show,” “reveal/revelation,” or “manifest/manifestation” (see Monier-Williams s.v. vyākaraṇa). However, in the Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Grammar and Dictionary (Edgerton 1953) s.v. ājñā, we see that ājñā (Tib. shes pa), in Buddhist texts, has the sense of “correct knowledge,” and that it is a usage close to the Pāli equivalent aññā, meaning the sort of knowledge that comes with being an arhat. Aññaṅ vyākaroti is explained in The Pali Text Society’s Pali-English Dictionary as “to manifest one’s Arahantship (by a discourse or by mere exclamation).” See Pali Text Society s.v. aññā: “knowledge, recognition, correct knowledge, philosophic insight, knowledge par excellence, viz., Arahantship.” Based on these considerations, we translate vyākaraṇa as “reveal” and ājñā as “knowledge,” thus here arriving at “will… reveal their knowledge.”

n.10The Degé Kangyur here reads: de dag la rgyu de dang rkyen de dang ngo bo nyid de’i rnam par smin pa nyid mngon par ’grub par ’gyur ro. However, the Stok Palace Kangyur has: de dag la rgyu de dang rkyen de dag ngo bo nyid de’i rnam par smin pa nyid mngon par ’grub par ’gyur ro, which seems more likely to be correct, although it is notable that the Shey Kangyur reads the same as the Degé. The Kangxi, Lithang, and Choné Kangyurs hedge their bets with …rgyu de dang rkyen de dag dang ngo bo nyid…

n.11This may refer to the nine realms of existence within saṃsāra: the realm of desire plus the four form realms and the four formless realms.

n.12The Degé Kangyur here reads gang gi tshe phyi nang gi sems kun nas mi slong bar bzod pa dang /, but the Stok Palace and Narthang have gang gis phyi nang gi sems… .

n.13The word chos (dharma) here could be understood in several other ways, including “quality,” “factor,” “the Dharma,” or perhaps “phenomena.”