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Currently the manuscript is kept in the Potala. Vinītā’s critical edition is based on a copy of the manuscript that is kept in the China Tibetology Research Center. For further details on the state of this manuscript see Vinītā (2010), pp. xv–xvii.
There is also another text in the Chinese canon similarly called The Question of Mañjuśrī (文殊師利問經, Taishō 468), which is, however, longer and differs thematically from the text translated here. There are no known Sanskrit or Tibetan versions of this longer sūtra.
Denkarma, folio 299.b; see also Herrmann-Pfandt, p. 112 (no. 211). Phangthangma (2003), p. 17. Note also the zhus pa (“question”) used in the title ’phags pa ’jam dpal gyis zhus pa, rather than dris pa found in the majority of the Kangyur recensions’ titles, although zhus pa is found among a few of them.
Here we followed the Sanskrit, Y, F, S, and U, which have “Dharma conch” (chos kyi dung); C, D, and J have “in the presence of the Tathāgata” (de bzhin gshegs pa’i drung); H, K, and N, have “in the presence of the Dharma of the Tathāgata” (de bzhin gshegs pa’i chos kyi drung). In these cases, drung is likely a scribal error for dung.
Go. adds several descriptions qualifying this great merit: “it is engendered by skill in means and aspirations, and it is authentically born from special meditation that fully purifies discipline. This great merit is inconceivable to all śrāvakas and pratyekabuddhas” (thabs la mkhas pa chen po smon lam gyis bskyed pa/ thul khrims dang / ting nge ’dzind shind tu rnam par dag pa bsgoms pa’i khyad par gis yang dag pa grub pa ste/ nyan thos dang / rang sang rgyas thams cad kyis bsam gyis myi khyab pa yin no/). This correlates with the description of the Dharma conch at the end of the sūtra.
"Following this, the Sanskrit text includes an additional stage in the hierarchy of merit not attested in the Tibetan translation. This stage, for a rājā jambudvīpeśvaraḥ (“a king who is lord of Jambudvīpa"), ranks below a cakravārtin king, the first stage in the hierarchy of merit as listed in the Tibetan text.
From here throughout the rest of the text, the numbers for multiplying merit vary in the different sources. Here, for example, Go., Taishō 473, Taishō 662, and the Sanskrit have “multiplied by a thousand”; Taishō 661 has “multiplied by a hundred thousand.” For the sake of simplicity, we have translated the text from D and refrained from annotating these numerical variations from the sources unless they significantly change the meaning.
Taishō 473 adds an additional stage in the hierarchy of merit comparing that of Śakra to that of Nārāyaṇa, before going on to compare Nārāyaṇa to Māra.
D: ’dod pa’i khams su bstan pas go bar byed pa. Our translation here is corroborated by Taishō 662: 教受護持 “who upholds and bears in mind the teachings.” The implication of this remark is not clear. Taishō 473 adds “in the heaven of Paranirmitavaśavartin.” This implies that Māra is the highest deity presiding within the bounds of the desire realm, where Paranirmitavaśavartin is the highest heaven according to Abhidharma cosmology.
The following passage is omitted in Taishō 473, which skips to the next stage in the hierarchy of merit, comparing the merit of Māra to that of a brahmā, sovereign of a dichiliocosm, in the same format.
Taishō 662 adds that this is a brahmā “of the first dhyāna.” This is consistent with the cosmology presented in the sūtra. As Māra represents the highest deity of the desire realm, “a brahmā, sovereign of a chiliocosm,” represents a god in one of the three lowest strata of the form realm, which is associated with the first dhyāna, while the brahmās of a dichiliocosm and trichiliocosm represent gods of the higher strata associated with the second and fourth dhyānas respectively. There are some sources that seem to give the dhyānas and the spatial locations they encompass in the form realm progressively greater dimensions. For instance, the Abhidharmakośabhāṣya states that while each chiliocosm contains a thousand sets of four continents, along with a thousand suns, moons, Mount Merus, and so forth up to the desire realms, there is one position that states that the first dhyāna encompasses a single world system, the second dhyāna a chiliocosm, the third dhyāna a dichiliocosm, and the fourth dhyāna a trichiliocosm. The text goes on to state that there is a differing opinion in which the first dhyāna encompasses a chiliocosm, the second dhyāna a dichiliocosm, and the third dhyāna a trichiliocosm, and the fourth dhyāna is without measure. The first of these two opinions would seem to be validated by the context of this sūtra, where the sequential brahmās are described as being “sovereign” of exponentially larger domains. See Vasubandhu, Abhidharmakośabhāṣya, in Sangpo (2012), pp. 1075–6.
All the Chinese versions of the sūtra describe this moment as the destruction of the world through fire rather than water, and then, following this, the great brahmā commands the rain to come down and fill the trichiliocosm up to the brahmā heavens in the form realm. Go. has the phrase “when the eon of incineration arises” (’sreg pa’i bskal pa ’byung ba de’i tshe), and following this it also describes the trichiliocosm filling up with rain and drops of water. The Abhidharmakośabhāṣya describes the destruction of the world through water up to the top of the first dhyāna, through fire up to the top of second dhyāna, and through wind up to the top of the third. See Vasubandhu, Abhidharmakośabhāṣya, in Sangpo (2012), pp. 1109–15.
Go. adds an additional stage in the hierarchy of merit, comparing the merit of a great brahmā, sovereign of a trichiliocosm, to that of a great śrāvaka with great miraculous powers (nyan thos chen po rdzu ’phrul chen po dang ldan pa). Then, in the next passage, the śrāvaka’s merit is compared to that of a pratyekabuddha, and it continues in the same form as in the other versions.
This is a truly all-inclusive list of possible beings found in Buddhist cosmology. The latter categories, including those with and without forms or perceptions all the way up to those with neither perceptions nor the absence of them, is representative of beings abiding in formless realms. See also the glossary entry for “beings with neither perception nor nonperception.”
There are many minor spelling variations found among the Kangyur recensions for the eighty designs. For the sake of clarity, variant readings have not been noted unless they affected the meaning or interpretation of the term; however, all the attested spelling variations have been represented in the glossary. For a detailed analysis of the eighty designs compared across various sources see Skilling (1992), pp. 67–79.
Go. has dbyig tog; all other Tibetan recensions have dbyig to. The meaning of “staff” is derived from correlation with Taishō 473 and from consultation with a series of dictionary entries. The meaning of dbyig to(g) could also be “jewel” or “crest jewel.” For more details on this see Vinītā (2010), p. 741, note d. Also see Skilling (1992), p. 73.
Go.: bil shing ba; F: bil ba dang; C, D, H, J, K, Y, N, S, and U: bil ba dang / shing dang / (“a bilva fruit, a tree” as two items). In addition to Go., F and the Saṃskṛtāsaṃskṛtaviniścaya also omit “a tree” as a separate item. We have chosen to translate this as one item, “bilva fruit tree,” following Go., as this results in a list of exactly eighty items, and the “wish-granting tree” already appears as item number 79 in the list.
C, D, H, J, N, and U: ’khor srung. This form is listed as an alternate spelling for Dhṛtarāṣṭra in the Mahāvyutpatti (the imperial period Sanskrit–Tibetan dictionary), no. 3381. K and Y: ’khor bsrung; S: ’khor bsrungs; Go.: yul ’khor srung.
F and S: mri tang ga (transliteration of the Sanskrit mṛdaṅga). Go. and the Saṃskṛtāsaṃskṛtaviniścaya have rdza rnga, which has the same translated meaning as the former transliteration. D, H, J, and N: smri ga; K: smri dang ga/ ga dang /; Y: smri dang ga; C and U: smrig.
Translated from Go. and the Saṃskṛtāsaṃskṛtaviniścaya: ’khor lo’i dbus kyi seng ge. C, D, H, K, Y, J, N, and U: ’khor lo dang / dpung gi seng ge; F and S: ’khor lo dpung gi seng ge.
Only twenty-nine of the thirty-two signs of a great being are listed here, although in other sources (6) and (7) are usually counted as two signs each. There are many instances of the list of thirty-two signs found throughout the Kangyur, and significant differences can be found among them. For other examples of the list complete with thirty-two signs, see Dharmachakra Translation Committee, trans., The Play in Full, Toh 95 (84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2013), 7.98; or Padmakara Translation Group, trans, The Transcendent Perfection of Wisdom in Ten Thousand Lines, Toh 11 (84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2018), 2.15 (which contains thirty-three signs). In the latter, see also note 61 for further details concerning the various locations of the list found throughout the Kangyur. There is also a standard list found in the Mahāvyutpatti (the imperial period Sanskrit–Tibetan dictionary), entries 235–67. If one looks to the latter as a standard, the missing three can be accounted for by entries 242, “even teeth” (samadanta, tshems mnyam pa), and 243, “close-fitting teeth” (aviraladanta, tshems thag bzang ba), which in the Mahāvyutpatti is separate from the sign of “forty teeth,” whereas in The Question of Mañjuśrī they are joined; 251, “collarbones that are well covered” (citāntarāṃsa, thal gong rgyas pa); and 257 “body hairs that grow upward” (ūrdhvagaroma, sku’i spu gyen du phyogs pa), which is found in Go. (see n.38). Note that here in The Question of Mañjuśrī, the fourth sign in the list, “being adorned with a beautiful complexion,” is not found in the Mahāvyutpatti. Thus by omitting these four and adding one more The Question of Mañjuśrī lists a total of twenty-nine signs.
Go. adds: “body hairs that grow upward” (sku’i spu gyend du phyogs pa). This is usually included in other lists of the thirty-two signs.
A very similar passage, with the same sequence of meritorious figures and signs culminating in the Buddha’s voice, can be seen in the Ratnameghasūtra (Toh 231); see Dharmachakra Translation Committee, trans., The Jewel Cloud (84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2019), 1.233–4. A somewhat less similar calculation of merit beginning with the Buddha’s pores, but culminating specifically in the Dharma conch, is found in the Akṣayamatinirdeśasūtra: see Jens Braarvig and David Welsh, trans., The Teaching of Akṣayamati, Toh 175, (84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2020), 1.103. See also Āryaśūra’s Pāramitāsamāsa (pha rol tu phyin pa bsdus pa, Toh 3944), folios 227a–b.
Go. again adds the passage, “The presence of the Tathāgata’s Dharma completely fulfilling the wishes of beings to be tamed” (de bzhin gshegs pa’i chos kyi mur ’gram gdul bya’i bsam ba yongs su rdzogs par byed par ’gyur ro/).
This following sequence of comparison differs in Go., which first compares the Tathāgata’s body to his voice (gsung sgra), then compares his voice to his “signs” (mtshan), and then compares his signs to the Dharma taught (chos bstan pa). From there the sequence continues in the same manner as D and the other sources, continuing with his light and so forth.
For this sentence Go. has “Mañjuśrī, the Tathāgata’s body is vast through all its marks.” (’jam dpal de bzhin gshegs pa’i sku mtshan thams cad kyis rgyas pa yin).
Listed in The Question of Mañjuśrī as the twenty-second of the thirty-two signs of a great being.
Listed in The Question of Mañjuśrī as the twenty-sixth of the thirty-two signs of a great being.
Listed in The Question of Mañjuśrī as the fourth of the thirty-two signs of a great being. This sign is not mentioned in any of the other lists of thirty-two that we have investigated.
The Sanskrit īśvara literally means “powerful one.” In both Indian and Tibetan literature it is often an epithet applied to Śiva. However, here where the title is given to a “supremely great almighty brahmā, sovereign of a trichiliocosm” (tshangs pa stong gsum gyi stong chen po’i ’jig rten gyi bdag po dbang phyug chen po’i mchog), the term signifies that Brahmā, or rather a brahmā, is the overseer of an entire trichiliocosm.
Listed in The Question of Mañjuśrī as the twelfth of the thirty-two signs of a great being.
According to Buddhist tradition, one who is worthy of worship (pūjām arhati), or one who has conquered the enemies, the mental afflictions (kleśa-ari-hata-vat), and reached liberation from the cycle of rebirth and suffering. It is the fourth and highest of the four fruits attainable by śrāvakas. Also used as an epithet of the Buddha.
Seventy-fourth of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
Thirty-seventh of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
One of the eight “close sons” of the Buddha, the embodiment of compassion. He first appeared as a bodhisattva beside Amitābha in the Sukhāvatī Sūtra. The name has been variously interpreted. In his name meaning “the lord of avalokita,” avalokita has been interpreted as “seeing,” although as a past passive participle, it is literally “lord of what has been seen.” One of the principal sūtras in the Mahāsamghika tradition, not translated into Tibetan, was the Avalokita Sūtra, in which the word is a synonym for awakening, as it is “that which has been seen” by the buddhas. In the early tantras, he is one of the lords of the three families, as the embodiment of the compassion of the buddhas.
Forty-second of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
Twenty-fifth of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
Twenty-third of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
This refers to the category of beings abiding in the fourth and highest level of the formless realm. These are either the gods that abide there or persons who have reached this state though meditative equipoise. This state is also referred to as the “peak of existence” (bhavāgra; srid rtse) and is located at the apex of saṃsāra. Abiding there, such beings do not experience perceptions and yet cannot be said to be without perceptions.
Aegle mermelos, also known as Indian bael or wood apple. Thirty-first of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata. Some sources seem to list the fruit and tree as separate designs (see n.29).
Most likely refers to the blackbuck (Antilope cervicapra), also known as the Indian antelope. Thirty-second of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
Forty-fourth of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
One of the four modes of birth (caturyoni; skyes gnas bzhi).
One of the four modes of birth (caturyoni; skes gnas bzhi).
One of the four modes of birth (caturyoni; skes gnas bzhi). Tiny bugs and microbes are understood to be born from the confluence of heat and moisture.
One of the four modes of birth (caturyoni; skes gnas bzhi). Those who take miraculous birth are spontaneously born fully mature at the time of their birth. There are many categories of beings that can be born under these circumstances including gods, hungry ghosts, beings born in hell, beings born in the intermediate state (antarābhava; bar ma do), and even humans in special circumstances or in the pure realms.
Thirty-sixth of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
Sixty-eighth of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
Seventy-third of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
One of the primary deities of the Brahmanical pantheon, Brahmā occupies an important place as one of two deities (the other being Indra/Śakra) that are said to have first exhorted Śākyamuni to teach the Dharma. The particular heavens found in the form realm over which Brahmā rules are often some of the most sought after realms of higher rebirth in Buddhist literature. Since there are multiple universes and world systems, there are also multiple Brahmās presiding over them; however, The Question of Mañjuśrī describes sequentially higher brahmā gods as ruling over sequentially more numerous world systems. The image of the singular deity, Brahmā, is depicted as the forty-seventh of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
Listed in The Question of Mañjuśrī as the seventeenth of the thirty-two signs of a great being.
A bull. Also the second zodiac sign, vṛṣabha, which corresponds to Taurus. Both vṛṣabha and ṛṣabha can be used as respectful epithets implying preeminence, usually in phrases such as “a bull among men” (a frequent epithet of the Buddha), “a bull among sages,” and the like. Here, the bull is the twenty-ninth of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
Tadorna ferrugine or ruddy shelduck. Nineteenth of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
A cakravartin is a king who rules over at least one continent and gains his territory by the rolling of his magic wheel over the land. Therefore he is called a king with the revolving wheel. This is as the result of the merit he has accumulated in previous lifetimes. An illustrative passage about the cakravartin and his wheel can be found in Toh 95, The Play in Full \1\23.3–\1\23.6 (here translated as “universal monarch”).
Listed in The Question of Mañjuśrī as the sixteenth of the thirty-two signs of a great being. Eṇeya (sometimes Aiṇeya) is the mythical king of ungulates, usualy depicted as an antelope.
Eighteenth of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata. This most likely refers to the Indian Roller, Coracias indica, a small bird with bright blue plumage.
Listed in The Question of Mañjuśrī as the ninth of the thirty-two signs of a great being.
In Buddhist cosmology, a universe that itself contains a thousand world systems, each made up of its own Mount Meru, four continents, sun, moon, and god realms.
Forty-sixth of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
Listed in The Question of Mañjuśrī as the fourteenth of the thirty-two signs of a great being. In the Mahāvyutpatti and other sources this sign is expressed as “genitals concealed in a sheath” (kośagatavastiguhya; ’doms kyi sba ba sbubs su nub pa).
Seventy-first of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata. This design of the conch is represented separately from the Dharma conch found at the apex of the hierarchy of merit described in The Question of Mañjuśrī.
Seventy-seventh of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
Listed in The Question of Mañjuśrī as the sixth of the thirty-two signs of a great being. This matches the list found in the Mahāvyutpatti, no. 240, but in other lists this is represented as two separate signs: “dark blue eyes” and “bovine eyelashes.”
In Buddhist cosmology, this is our own realm, the lowest and most coarse of the three realms of saṃsāra. It is called this because beings here are characterized by their strong longing and attachment to the pleasures of the senses. The desire realm includes hell beings, hungry ghosts, animals, humans, asuras, and the lowest heavens of the gods. Located above the desire realm is the form realm and formless realm.
Dhanada (“Wealth Giver”) is another name of Vaiśravaṇa (rnam thos sras, “Prince of the Distinctly Hearing One”), one of the Four Great Kings (rgyal po chen po bzhi) ruling the four directions of the desire realm. Vaiśravaṇa rules the northern direction and the yakṣas (gnod sbyin) that reside there. In The Question of Mañjuśrī his image is the fifty-third of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
One of the eight auspicious emblems. As a musical instrument, the conch is blown like a trumpet, and throughout India’s history it has been a symbol of power, authority, and auspicious beginnings. In Buddhism, the Dharma conch has been variously described to represent the Buddha’s speech, his thought or intention (dgongs), or the sound of his teachings—in essence the Dharma itself. The sound of blowing the Dharma conch awakens beings from their sleep of delusion and ignorance.
One of the Four Great Kings (rgyal po chen po bzhi) ruling the four directions of the desire realm. Dhṛtarāṣṭra rules the eastern direction and the gandharvas (dri za) that reside there. In The Question of Mañjuśrī the image of him is the forty-ninth of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
One of the synonyms for meditation, referring specifically to states of mental stability or one-pointed abiding in an undistracted state of mind free from afflicted mental states. The term also refers to the specific states of absorption of the form and formless realms. Abiding in these absorptions can cause one to be reborn into these realms, and the states themselves also seem to have a spatial correlation to the form and formless realms. In this way there are eight progressive dhyānas; the first four rūpāvacaradhyāna correspond to the form realm and the latter ārūpāvacaradhyāna corrspond to the formless realms. See also n.19.
Sixth of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
In Buddhist cosmology, a dichiliocosm is a galaxy or aggregate of universes that itself contains a thousand chiliocosms, or one million world systems.
Twenty-second of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
Seventieth of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
Cynodon dactylon (syn. Panicum dactylon), a kind of grass that is used in a variety of Buddhist ceremonies. It is also one of the eight auspicious substances (bkra shis rdzas brgyad). Here it is sixty-sixth of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
Seventy-fifth of the eighty designs on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
Eight Indian emblems signifying fortune and auspiciousness. They include the lotus, the śrīvatsa, the pair of golden fish, the parasol, the victory banner, the treasure vase, the conch, and the wheel. They are not discussed particularly in this sūtra, although several of the eight are also included in the list of eighty designs found on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata.
Eighty images found on the palms and soles of the Tathāgata. See Introduction and 1.17.
’jam dpal gyis dris pa (Mañjuśrīparipṛcchā). Toh 172, Degé Kangyur vol. 60 (mdo sde, ma), folios 1.b–5.a.
’jam dpal gyis dris pa. bka’ ’gyur (dpe bsdur ma) [Comparative Edition of the Kangyur], krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe sdur khang (The Tibetan Tripitaka Collation Bureau of the China Tibetology Research Center). 108 volumes. Beijing: krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang (China Tibetology Publishing House), 2006–2009, vol. 60, pp. 3–13.
’jam dpal gyis dris pa. Stok 56, Stok Palace Kangyur vol. 57 (mdo sde, cha), folios 142.b–147.b.
’jam dpal gyis dris pa. F150, Phukdrak Kangyur vol. 66 (mdo sde, pa), folios 260.b–265.b.
’jam dpal gyis zhus pa. Go 26.7, Gondhla Collection vol. 26 (ka-ma), folios 17.a–21.a.
blo gros mi zad pas bstan pa (Kṣayamatinirdeśa). Toh 175, Degé Kangyur, vol. 60 (mdo sde, ma), folios 79.a–174.b. English translation in Braarvig, Jens, and David Welsh (2020).
byams pas zhus (Maitreyaparipṛcchā). Toh 149, Degé Kangyur vol. 57 (mdo sde, pa), folios 330.b–331.a. English translation in Kīrtimukha Translation Group (2021).
shes rab kyi pha rol tu phyin pa khri brgyad stong pa (Āṣṭādaśasāhasrikāprajñāpāramitā). Toh 10, Degé Kangyur vol. 29 (khri brgyad, ka), folios 1.b–300.a; vol. 30 (khri brgyad, kha), folios 1.b–206.a; vol. 31 (khri brgyad, ga), folios 1.b–206.a. English translation in Sparham (2022).
shes rab kyi pha rol tu phyin pa khri pa (Daśasāhasrikāprajñāpāramitā). Toh 11, Degé Kangyur vol. 31 (shes phyin, ga), folios 1.b–91.a; vol. 32 (shes phyin, nga), folios 92.b–397.a. English translation in Padmakara Translation Group (2018).
rgya cher rol pa (Lalitavistara). Toh 95, Degé Kangyur vol. 46 (mdo sde, kha), folios 1.b–216.b. English translation in Dharmachakra Translation Committee (2013).
Āryaśūra. pha rol tu phyin pa bsdus pa (Pāramitāsamāsa). Toh 3944, Degé Tengyur vol. 111 (dbu ma, khi), folios 217.b–235.a.
Daśabalaśrīmitra. ’dus byas dang ’dus ma byas rnam par nges pa (Saṃskṛtāsaṃskṛtaviniścaya). Toh 3897, Degé Tengyur vol. 108 (dbu ma, ha), folios 109.a–110.a. English translation in Skilling (1992): 71–73.
Maudgalyāyana. rgyu gdags pa (Kāraṇaprajñapti). Toh 4087, Degé Tengyur vol. 139 (mngon, pa), folios 93.a–172.b.
Śamathadeva. chos mngon pa’i mdzod kyi ’grel bshad nye bar mkho ba (Abhidharmakośaṭīkopayikā). Toh 4094, Degé Tengyur vol. 146 (mngon pa, ju), folios 1.b–95.a.
Vasubandhu. chos mngon pa’i mdzod kyi bshad pa (Abhidharmakośabhāṣya). Toh 4090, Degé Tengyur vol. 140 (mngon pa, ku), folios 26.a–258.a. English translation in Sangpo 2012.
Phangthangma (dkar chag ’phang thang ma). Beijing: mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 2003.
Denkarma (pho brang stod thang ldan dkar gyi chos ’gyur ro cog gi dkar chag). Toh 4364, Degé Tengyur vol. 206 (sna tshogs, jo), folios 294.b–310.a.
Mahāvyutpatti (bye brag rtogs byed chen po). Toh 4346, Degé Tengyur vol. 204 (sna tshogs, co), folios 1.b–131.a. Also in Sakaki, Ryozaburo, ed. 1916–25; reprint, 1965; and Delhi: Tibetan Religious and Cultural Publication Centre (bod gzhung shes rig dpe khang), 2000.
Vinītā, Bhikṣuṇī, ed. and trans. A unique collection of twenty Sūtras in a Sanskrit manuscript from the Potala. Sanskrit Texts from the Tibetan Autonomous Region 7/1. Beijing: China Tibetology Publishing House; Vienna: Austrian Academy of Sciences Press, 2010.
Faxian, trans. 佛説妙吉祥菩薩所問大乘法螺經 (fo shuo miao ji xiang pu sa suo wen da cheng fa luo jing; Chinese translation of The Question of Mañjuśrī), Taishō 473.
Divākara, trans. 大乘百福相經 (da cheng bai fu xiang jing; Chinese translation of The Question of Mañjuśrī), Taishō 661.
Divākara, trans. 大乘百福莊嚴相經 (da cheng bai fu zhuang yan xiang jing; Chinese translation of The Question of Mañjuśrī), Taishō 662.
Braarvig, Jens, and David Welsh, trans. The Teaching of Akṣayamati (Akṣayamatinirdeśa, Toh 175). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2020.
Dharmachakra Translation Committee, trans. The Jewel Cloud (Ratnamegha, Toh 231). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2019.
Dharmachakra Translation Committee, trans. The Play in Full (Lalitavistara, Toh 95). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2013.
Herrmann-Pfandt, Adelheid. Die lHan kar ma: ein früher Katalog der ins Tibetische übersetzten buddhistischen Texte. Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 2008.
Kīrtimukha Translation Group, trans. The Question of Maitreya (2) (Maitrīparipṛcchā, Toh 149). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2021.
McRae, John, trans. “The Sutra of Mañjuśrī’s Question.” In The Sutra That Expounds the Descent of Maitreya Buddha and His Enlightenment and The Sutra of Mañjuśrī’s Questions, pp. 27–143. BDK English Tripiṭaka. Moraga: BDK America, 2016.
Padmakara Translation Group, trans. The Transcendent Perfection of Wisdom in Ten Thousand Lines (Daśasāhasrikāprajñāpāramitā, Toh 11). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2018.
Sangpo, Gelong Lodrö, trans. Abhidharmakośa-Bhāṣya of Vasubandhu Volume III. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 2012.
Silk, Jonathan A. “Review Article: Buddhist Sūtras in Sanskrit from the Potala.” Indo-Iranian Journal 56 (2013): 61–87.
Skilling, Peter. “Symbols on the body, feet, and hands of a Buddha, Part I—Lists.” Journal of the Siam Society 80 (1992): 67–79.
Sparham, Gareth, trans. The Transcendent Perfection of Wisdom in Eighteen Thousand Lines (Aṣṭadaśasāhasrikāprajñāpāramitā, Toh 10). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2022.
C Choné (co ne) Kangyur
D Degé (sde dge) Kangyur
F Phukdrak (phug brag) Kangyur
Go. Gondhla Collection
H Lhasa (zhol) Kangyur
J Lithang (li thang) Kangyur
K Peking (pe cin) or “Kangxi” Kangyur
N Narthang (snar thang) Kangyur
S Stok Palace (stog pho brang bris ma) Kangyur
Sanskrit Sanskrit manuscript found in the Potala Palace (see Introduction and Bibliography)
Saṃskṛtāsaṃskṛtaviniścaya A commentary by Daśabalaśrīmitra found within the Tengyur containing a list of the eighty designs found on the hands and feet of the Tathāgata (see Bibliography)
Taishō 473 4th–5th century Chinese translation by Faxian (法賢)
Taishō 661 7th century Chinese translation by Divākara (地婆訶羅)
Taishō 662 7th century Chinese translation by Divākara (地婆訶羅)
U Urga (ku re) Kangyur
Y Yongle (g.yung lo) Kangyur
The bodhisattva Mañjuśrī approaches the Buddha and asks about the extent of the merit represented by the Buddha’s “Dharma conch,” which here seems to mean the Buddha’s voice. The Buddha proceeds to illustrate the vastness of this merit by means of a cosmic multiplication—sequentially compounding the merit of all beings in a certain realm if they each possessed the merit of a cakravartin, a brahmā god, a bodhisattva, and so forth, each having more merit than the previous one. The expansion continues through a list of the eighty designs marking the body of a buddha and the thirty-two signs of a great being, which, multiplied inconceivably, are said to be equal in merit to the Dharma conch. The Buddha then explains how the voice, body, and light of the Buddha are made known throughout countless realms and take on numberless manifestations to tame beings.
This sūtra was translated by the Kīrtimukha Translation Group. Celso Wilkinson, Laura Goetz, and L.S. Summer translated the text from the Tibetan and Sanskrit. William Giddings provided comparisons to the Chinese versions of the text.
The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.
The Question of Mañjuśrī presents a dialogue between the Buddha and the bodhisattva Mañjuśrī, in which the Buddha illustrates the vastness of the merit represented by the Buddha’s Dharma conch and how, by means of his conch and other auspicious qualities, the Buddha and his teaching pervade countless worlds and manifest in countless guises according to the myriad needs and dispositions of beings.
The sūtra opens with Mañjuśrī approaching the Buddha and asking him to explain the measure of the merit represented by the Buddha’s “Dharma conch,” which in this sūtra seems to mean the Buddha’s voice. The conch symbolizes the far-reaching power of the Buddha’s word and the vast extent to which the teachings resonate among the incalculable realms. The conch shell is also one of the eight auspicious emblems that each symbolize various beneficent aspects of the Buddha’s teaching.
In order to express the vast magnitude of the merit of the Dharma conch, the Buddha proceeds to present a sequence of hypothetical scenarios in which all beings in a given realm possess the merit of a previously introduced figure or attribute. That merit is then multiplied by varying amounts to equal that of an even greater figure or attribute—from the cakravartin monarch to Māra, to brahmā gods of increasingly vast domains, to pratyekabuddhas and bodhisattvas, to the pores of the Buddha’s body and his eighty excellent signs—culminating in lists of the eighty designs marking the Buddha’s hands and feet and the thirty-two signs of a great being. Finally, the Buddha states that the sum of multiplying these eighty designs by an inconceivable amount is equal to the sum of merit generated by the Dharma conch. A very similar passage, with the same sequence of meritorious figures and signs culminating in the Buddha’s voice, can be seen in the Ratnameghasūtra (Toh 231),1 while a somewhat less similar presentation of the exponential superiority of the Dharma conch is found in another sūtra, the Akṣayamatinirdeśasūtra (Toh 175, placed nearby in the Degé Kangyur).2
The list of eighty designs on the Buddha’s hands and feet is a unique feature of this sūtra. Peter Skilling has compiled an analysis of the various sources that list the designs and symbols found on the body or on the hands and feet of the Buddha.3 Such lists are well known in the Theravādin traditions, which include an early list of around forty designs given by Buddhaghosa in his commentaries on the Digha and Majjhima Nikāyas, and several later lists of one hundred and eight signs found in Pali sources from the twelfth to fourteenth centuries. In the Kangyur this list of eighty designs is found exclusively in The Question of Mañjuśrī, but there are two texts in the Tengyur that contain similar lists: Śamathadeva’s Abhidharmakośaṭīkopayikā (Toh 4094) contains two lists—one short and one long—of designs found on the body of the Buddha, cited from texts that no longer exist, and Daśabalaśrīmitra’s Saṃskṛtāsaṃskṛtaviniścaya (Toh 3897) also contains a short and long list of designs found on the hands and feet of the Buddha. In this latter text the long list is, with some exceptions, nearly identical to that found in The Question of Mañjuśrī and likely drawn from the same source. Skilling points out that although The Question of Mañjuśrī is a Mahāyāna sūtra, this list must have been taken from a Vaibhāṣika or (Mūla)Sarvāstivādin source.4
The eighty designs differ from the more commonly known eighty excellent signs on the body of a buddha. The eighty designs are adornments on the hands and feet that are said to be greater in the hierarchy of merit than the eighty excellent signs on the body, which, although not enumerated in Tibetan sources of The Question of Mañjuśrī, are listed in two of the Chinese versions.5 The thirty-two signs listed in this sūtra align roughly with other standard enumerations in the canonical literature.
The Buddha goes on to explain that the Dharma conch, with its power to tame beings, causes the teachings to pervade countless world systems, as do his body, light, and conduct—all of which manifest according to the needs and inclinations of beings. In the end, Mañjuśrī praises the Buddha, and the audience rejoices in his teaching.
There was no known Sanskrit original of The Question of Mañjuśrī available until recently, when a manuscript containing a collection of twenty texts, all of them sūtras, was found in the Potala Palace in Lhasa. Bhikṣuṇī Vinītā published a critical edition of this collection, along with an English translation, in the series Sanskrit Texts from the Autonomous Region (2010). Unfortunately, due to the inaccessibility of the manuscript collection and because it is missing a final colophon, its origin and date are currently unknown.6 In our translation, citations of the Sanskrit are given using Vinītā’s emendations of the handwritten manuscript.
The Question of Mañjuśrī is the last in the manuscript collection and is abruptly cut off about one third of the way through, ending in the middle of the third folio (F.2.b) of this sūtra as found in the Degé Kangyur. In the Sanskrit manuscript, this sūtra is titled Dharmaśaṅkhasūtra, or The Dharma Conch Sūtra, while in Tibetan manuscripts it is only ever called The Question of Mañjuśrī (Mañjuśrīparipṛcchāsūtra).
There are three versions of the text found in the Chinese Tripiṭaka: one (Taishō 473) translated by Faxian (法賢, 337–422
No information is given in the colophon as to the translator or editor of the Tibetan. The Denkarma and Phangthangma imperial catalogs both mention a Question of Mañjuśrī among the registry of sūtras, although there is a slight ambiguity owing to the length of ninety ślokas (one śloka equaling sixteen syllables in the Sanskrit source) described in both catalogs,8 which seems a bit short for this text. Nonetheless, considering the sūtra’s early presence in the Chinese canon, this is most likely the same text, and assuming this is the case we can surmise that it was translated into Tibetan in the early translation period at a date no later than that of the Denkarma, 812
We have based our translation primarily on the Degé edition of the Tibetan Kangyur, but we have also consulted the Sanskrit as well as the Comparative Edition (Tib. dpe bsdur ma) and several other Kangyur editions, including those from Tshalpa, Thempangma, and independent lines. These recensions are generally consistent and roughly correspond to the Sanskrit and Chinese sources, but there are occasional differences such as additions or omissions of stages in the hierarchical sequence of merit.9 There are also, as is to be expected, some variations between the Chinese and Tibetan translations of the lists found in the sūtra.
[B1] Homage to all buddhas and bodhisattvas!
Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was dwelling in the Samanta Assembly Hall in Śrāvastī together with a great saṅgha of 1,250 monks, innumerable bodhisattva mahāsattvas, and many hundreds of thousands of beings to be tamed, and other bodhisattva mahāsattvas headed by Avalokiteśvara.
The Blessed One sat unwavering upon a jeweled lion throne. Through the power of the Buddha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Mañjuśrī rose from his seat, draped his upper robe over one shoulder, and knelt on his right knee. Joining his palms toward the Blessed One, he said, “Blessed One, how extensive is the great merit of the Tathāgata’s Dharma conch,10 the great merit by which the wishes of the many hundred sextillions of beings to be tamed are completely fulfilled?”
The Blessed One replied to the bodhisattva mahāsattva Mañjuśrī, “Mañjuśrī, the great merit of the Tathāgata’s Dharma conch,11 the great merit by which the wishes of a hundred sextillion beings to be tamed are completely fulfilled, arises from insight and is imbued with great compassion.12 It is inconceivable.13
“Mañjuśrī, if all of the beings in the world were to engage in the path of the ten virtuous actions, and if that collection of merit, which is the collection of merit of all those beings, were multiplied by a hundred, it would equal that of a cakravartin king who has dominion over the four continents and possesses the seven treasures. The seven treasures are as follows: the precious wheel, the precious elephant, the precious horse, the precious jewel, the precious woman, the precious steward, and the precious minister. He has a thousand heroic sons who are courageous, have excellent well-built bodies, and utterly defeat opposing armies. Mañjuśrī, such is the cakravartin king’s great miraculous powers and might.
“Mañjuśrī, if all beings in the world with its four continents were to possess the cakravartin king’s merit, and if that merit, which is the merit of all those beings, were multiplied by a hundred,14 it would equal that of Śakra, lord of the gods. Such is the lord of the gods’ great miraculous powers and great might.
“Mañjuśrī,15 if all of the beings in the realm of the world with its four continents were to possess Śakra’s merit, and if that merit, which is the merit of all those beings, were multiplied by a hundred thousand,16 it would equal that of Māra, lord of the desire realm, who understands the teachings within the desire realm.17 Such is Māra of the desire realm’s great miraculous powers and great might.
“Mañjuśrī,18 if all of the beings in the realm of the world with its four continents were to possess Māra’s merit, and if that merit, which is the merit of all of those beings, were multiplied by a hundred thousand, it would equal that of a brahmā, sovereign of a chiliocosm,19 whose love pervades the domain of a chiliocosm.
“Mañjuśrī, if all of the beings in this chiliocosm were to possess the merit of a brahmā god, sovereign of a chiliocosm, and if that merit, which is the merit of all those beings, were multiplied by a hundred thousand, it equal that of a brahmā god, sovereign of a dichiliocosm,20 whose love pervades the domain of a dichiliocosm.
“Mañjuśrī, if all of the beings in this dichiliocosm were to possess the merit of a brahmā god, sovereign of a dichiliocosm, and if that merit, which is the merit of all of those beings, were multiplied by a hundred thousand, it would equal that of a supremely great almighty brahmā, sovereign of a trichiliocosm,21 whose love pervades the domain of a great trichiliocosm.
“Mañjuśrī, consider a supremely great almighty brahmā. In a single intermediate eon following the rise of the waters after the eon of destruction,22 the trichiliocosm fills up with rainfall with its droplets of water. A supremely great almighty brahmā knows all the drops of water that have amassed in his world. Therefore, he is endowed with great wisdom and has great miraculous powers and great might. The root of virtue of a great almighty one is no trifling thing.
“Mañjuśrī, if all of the beings in this trichiliocosm were to possess the merit of a great brahmā, sovereign of a trichiliocosm, and if that merit, which is the merit of all those beings, were multiplied by many hundred sextillions, it would equal that of a pratyekabuddha who had obtained great might.23
“Mañjuśrī, put aside this great trichiliocosm. Mañjuśrī, if all the beings in the domain of the buddhas, the realm of the worlds of the ten directions, were to possess the merit obtained by a pratyekabuddha who had obtained great might, and if that merit, which is the merit of all of those beings, were multiplied by many hundred sextillions, it would equal that of a single bodhisattva in their final existence.
“Mañjuśrī, if all of the beings in the realm of the worlds of the ten directions of space—beings born from an egg, born from a womb, born from heat and moisture, and born miraculously; those with form and those without; and those with perception, those without perception, and those with neither perception nor nonperception24—were to possess the merit of a bodhisattva in their final existence, and if that merit, which is the merit of all of those beings, were multiplied by many hundred sextillions, it would equal that of a single hair pore on the body of the Tathāgata. Each of the nine million nine hundred thousand hair pores on the body of the Tathāgata are established in the same way.
“Mañjuśrī, if the merit that is equal to the merit contained in all those hair pores were multiplied many hundred sextillions, it would equal that of one of the eighty excellent signs on the body of the Tathāgata.25 Each of the eighty excellent signs is established on the body of the Tathāgata in the same way.
“Mañjuśrī, if that merit, which is the merit contained in the eighty excellent signs, were multiplied by many hundred sextillions, it would be like that of one of the designs marking the Tathāgata’s hands and feet.
“The eighty designs are as follows:26 (1) a parasol, (2) a victory banner, (3) a śrīvatsa, (4) a garland, (5) a hook, (6) a diadem, (7) a staff,27 (8) a vase, (9) an elephant, (10) a horse, (11) a tiger, (12) a makara, (13) a fish, (14) a turtle, (15) a peacock, (16) a kalaviṅka bird, (17) a partridge, (18) a cāṣa bird,28 (19) a cakravāka shelduck, (20) a parrot, (21) a goose, (22) a dove, (23) barley, (24) the great medicine, (25) bamboo, (26) a gayal, (27) a nāga, (28) a goat, (29) a bull, (30) a mountain, (31) a bilva fruit tree,29 (32) a black antelope, (33) a precious jewel, (34) a supreme sword, (35) a vajra, (36) a bow, (37) an arrow, (38) a lance, (39) a trident, (40) a plow, (41) a mace, (42) an axe, (43) a lasso,30 (44) a boat, (45) a pearl ornament, (46) a cloud, (47) Brahmā, (48) Indra, (49) Dhṛtarāṣṭra,31 (50) Varuṇa, (51) Virūḍhaka, (52) Virūpākṣa, (53) Dhanada, (54) a great sage, (55) Śrī, (56) a sun, (57) a moon, (58) a fire, (59) wind, (60) a lotus, (61) a nandyāvarta, (62) a triangle,32 (63) an excellent throne, (64) a mirror, (65) a tail whisk, (66) dūrvā grass, (67) puroḍāśa cake, (68) a boy, (69) a girl, (70) a drum, (71) a conch, (72) a mṛdaṅga drum,33 (73) a bracelet, (74) an armband, (75) an earring,34 (76) a ring, (77) a dangling earring, (78) an excellent flower, (79) a wish-granting tree, and (80) a lion at the center of a wheel.35 These are the eighty designs. They appear on the palms of the Tathāgata’s hands and the soles of his feet.
“Mañjuśrī, if that merit, which is the merit contained in those eighty designs, were multiplied by many hundred sextillions, it would be like one of the signs of a great being on the Tathāgata’s body; each of the thirty-two signs of a great being are established in the same way. They are as follows:36 (1) the uṣṇīṣa on the head, (2) right-curling dark blue hair on the head, (3) an even forehead, (4) being adorned with a beautiful complexion,37 (5) an ūrṇā hair between the eyebrows, (6) dark blue eyes with bovine eyelashes, (7) forty close-fitting teeth, (8) white canine teeth, (9) cheeks like a lion, (10) a large and slender tongue, (11) a torso like a lion, (12) an arm span and height that are identical like the banyan tree, (13) a hair growing from every pore,38 (14) a concealed male organ, (15) full and rounded thighs, (16) calves like those of Eṇeya, king of antelopes, (17) broad heels, (18) palms and soles that are soft and supple, (19) webbed fingers and toes, (20) long fingers and toes, (21) feet with high arches, (22) a supreme organ of taste, (23) round shoulders, (24) the seven prominent parts, (25) fine skin the color of gold, (26) the ability to reach the hands to the knees without bending, (27) well-positioned feet, (28) palms and soles with the mark of the wheel, and (29) the voice of Brahmā. These are the thirty-two signs of a great being. They appear on the body of the Tathāgata.
“Mañjuśrī, if that merit, which is the merit contained in the thirty-two signs of a great being, were multiplied innumerable times, multiplied inconceivably, multiplied incalculably, and multiplied beyond expression, it would be like that of the Tathāgata’s Dharma conch. By the power of taming with the Dharma conch, with his voice the Tathāgata engenders understanding throughout limitless and countless world realms. Just as with his voice, so it is with his light and his body.39
“In this way, Mañjuśrī, this great merit, arisen from great insight, imbued with compassion, generated through skill-in-means and aspirations, completely pure in moral discipline,40 and authentically born from the distinctions of practice, is inconceivable to all śrāvakas and pratyekabuddhas.41
“Mañjuśrī, the form body of the Tathāgata is especially exalted for two reasons. What are these two reasons? They are the power of aspiration and the power of the complete ripening of the virtue of sentient beings to be tamed. Mañjuśrī, for these two reasons the form body of the Tathāgata is especially exalted.
“Mañjuśrī, just as the form body of the Tathāgata is especially exalted,42 the Dharma taught is also especially exalted.
“Mañjuśrī, just as the Dharma taught by the Tathāgata, his light is also especially exalted.
“Mañjuśrī, just as the light of the Tathāgata is especially exalted, his conduct is also especially exalted.
“Mañjuśrī, the Tathāgata pervades the entire world with his body.43
“Mañjuśrī, whatever particular color, shape, or conduct will tame sentient beings, sentient beings will see the Tathāgata accordingly as having that particular color, shape, and conduct.
“Mañjuśrī, whatever particular signs will tame sentient beings, sentient beings will see the Tathāgata accordingly as having those particular signs.
“Mañjuśrī, whatever Dharma teachings will fully ripen sentient beings, sentient beings will understand the particular Dharma teachings of the Tathāgata to be Dharma teachings of that kind.
“Mañjuśrī, whatever conduct tames sentient beings and causes them to engage with the teachings of the Tathāgata, sentient beings will see the Tathāgata abiding by that conduct.
“Mañjuśrī, in this way the tathāgata, arhat, perfect Buddha comes into the world, benefits and brings happiness to many beings, has love and affection for the world, and takes birth in order to help, benefit, and bring happiness to gods, humans, and the host of beings.”
Then the bodhisattva Mañjuśrī rose from his seat and, approaching the Blessed One, pressed his palms together and said, “Blessed One—my unparalleled, matchless teacher, supreme protector in the three realms and benefactor for all sentient beings, unperturbed by worldly phenomena, unblemished like the sky, inconceivable, a worthy inspiration, desirable to behold, and beautiful to behold—I have truly found a great treasure! Sugata, I have truly found a great treasure!”
Youthful Mañjuśrī was overjoyed at what the Tathāgata had said. The bodhisattva great beings and the monks praised the words of the Blessed One.
This completes the noble Mahāyāna sūtra “The Question of Mañjuśrī.”
The bodhisattva Mañjuśrī approaches the Buddha and asks about the extent of the merit represented by the Buddha’s “Dharma conch,” which here seems to mean the Buddha’s voice. The Buddha proceeds to illustrate the vastness of this merit by means of a cosmic multiplication—sequentially compounding the merit of all beings in a certain realm if they each possessed the merit of a cakravartin, a brahmā god, a bodhisattva, and so forth, each having more merit than the previous one. The expansion continues through a list of the eighty designs marking the body of a buddha and the thirty-two signs of a great being, which, multiplied inconceivably, are said to be equal in merit to the Dharma conch. The Buddha then explains how the voice, body, and light of the Buddha are made known throughout countless realms and take on numberless manifestations to tame beings.
This sūtra was translated by the Kīrtimukha Translation Group. Celso Wilkinson, Laura Goetz, and L.S. Summer translated the text from the Tibetan and Sanskrit. William Giddings provided comparisons to the Chinese versions of the text.
The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.
The Question of Mañjuśrī presents a dialogue between the Buddha and the bodhisattva Mañjuśrī, in which the Buddha illustrates the vastness of the merit represented by the Buddha’s Dharma conch and how, by means of his conch and other auspicious qualities, the Buddha and his teaching pervade countless worlds and manifest in countless guises according to the myriad needs and dispositions of beings.
The sūtra opens with Mañjuśrī approaching the Buddha and asking him to explain the measure of the merit represented by the Buddha’s “Dharma conch,” which in this sūtra seems to mean the Buddha’s voice. The conch symbolizes the far-reaching power of the Buddha’s word and the vast extent to which the teachings resonate among the incalculable realms. The conch shell is also one of the eight auspicious emblems that each symbolize various beneficent aspects of the Buddha’s teaching.
In order to express the vast magnitude of the merit of the Dharma conch, the Buddha proceeds to present a sequence of hypothetical scenarios in which all beings in a given realm possess the merit of a previously introduced figure or attribute. That merit is then multiplied by varying amounts to equal that of an even greater figure or attribute—from the cakravartin monarch to Māra, to brahmā gods of increasingly vast domains, to pratyekabuddhas and bodhisattvas, to the pores of the Buddha’s body and his eighty excellent signs—culminating in lists of the eighty designs marking the Buddha’s hands and feet and the thirty-two signs of a great being. Finally, the Buddha states that the sum of multiplying these eighty designs by an inconceivable amount is equal to the sum of merit generated by the Dharma conch. A very similar passage, with the same sequence of meritorious figures and signs culminating in the Buddha’s voice, can be seen in the Ratnameghasūtra (Toh 231),1 while a somewhat less similar presentation of the exponential superiority of the Dharma conch is found in another sūtra, the Akṣayamatinirdeśasūtra (Toh 175, placed nearby in the Degé Kangyur).2
The list of eighty designs on the Buddha’s hands and feet is a unique feature of this sūtra. Peter Skilling has compiled an analysis of the various sources that list the designs and symbols found on the body or on the hands and feet of the Buddha.3 Such lists are well known in the Theravādin traditions, which include an early list of around forty designs given by Buddhaghosa in his commentaries on the Digha and Majjhima Nikāyas, and several later lists of one hundred and eight signs found in Pali sources from the twelfth to fourteenth centuries. In the Kangyur this list of eighty designs is found exclusively in The Question of Mañjuśrī, but there are two texts in the Tengyur that contain similar lists: Śamathadeva’s Abhidharmakośaṭīkopayikā (Toh 4094) contains two lists—one short and one long—of designs found on the body of the Buddha, cited from texts that no longer exist, and Daśabalaśrīmitra’s Saṃskṛtāsaṃskṛtaviniścaya (Toh 3897) also contains a short and long list of designs found on the hands and feet of the Buddha. In this latter text the long list is, with some exceptions, nearly identical to that found in The Question of Mañjuśrī and likely drawn from the same source. Skilling points out that although The Question of Mañjuśrī is a Mahāyāna sūtra, this list must have been taken from a Vaibhāṣika or (Mūla)Sarvāstivādin source.4
The eighty designs differ from the more commonly known eighty excellent signs on the body of a buddha. The eighty designs are adornments on the hands and feet that are said to be greater in the hierarchy of merit than the eighty excellent signs on the body, which, although not enumerated in Tibetan sources of The Question of Mañjuśrī, are listed in two of the Chinese versions.5 The thirty-two signs listed in this sūtra align roughly with other standard enumerations in the canonical literature.
The Buddha goes on to explain that the Dharma conch, with its power to tame beings, causes the teachings to pervade countless world systems, as do his body, light, and conduct—all of which manifest according to the needs and inclinations of beings. In the end, Mañjuśrī praises the Buddha, and the audience rejoices in his teaching.
There was no known Sanskrit original of The Question of Mañjuśrī available until recently, when a manuscript containing a collection of twenty texts, all of them sūtras, was found in the Potala Palace in Lhasa. Bhikṣuṇī Vinītā published a critical edition of this collection, along with an English translation, in the series Sanskrit Texts from the Autonomous Region (2010). Unfortunately, due to the inaccessibility of the manuscript collection and because it is missing a final colophon, its origin and date are currently unknown.6 In our translation, citations of the Sanskrit are given using Vinītā’s emendations of the handwritten manuscript.
The Question of Mañjuśrī is the last in the manuscript collection and is abruptly cut off about one third of the way through, ending in the middle of the third folio (F.2.b) of this sūtra as found in the Degé Kangyur. In the Sanskrit manuscript, this sūtra is titled Dharmaśaṅkhasūtra, or The Dharma Conch Sūtra, while in Tibetan manuscripts it is only ever called The Question of Mañjuśrī (Mañjuśrīparipṛcchāsūtra).
There are three versions of the text found in the Chinese Tripiṭaka: one (Taishō 473) translated by Faxian (法賢, 337–422
No information is given in the colophon as to the translator or editor of the Tibetan. The Denkarma and Phangthangma imperial catalogs both mention a Question of Mañjuśrī among the registry of sūtras, although there is a slight ambiguity owing to the length of ninety ślokas (one śloka equaling sixteen syllables in the Sanskrit source) described in both catalogs,8 which seems a bit short for this text. Nonetheless, considering the sūtra’s early presence in the Chinese canon, this is most likely the same text, and assuming this is the case we can surmise that it was translated into Tibetan in the early translation period at a date no later than that of the Denkarma, 812
We have based our translation primarily on the Degé edition of the Tibetan Kangyur, but we have also consulted the Sanskrit as well as the Comparative Edition (Tib. dpe bsdur ma) and several other Kangyur editions, including those from Tshalpa, Thempangma, and independent lines. These recensions are generally consistent and roughly correspond to the Sanskrit and Chinese sources, but there are occasional differences such as additions or omissions of stages in the hierarchical sequence of merit.9 There are also, as is to be expected, some variations between the Chinese and Tibetan translations of the lists found in the sūtra.
[B1] Homage to all buddhas and bodhisattvas!
Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was dwelling in the Samanta Assembly Hall in Śrāvastī together with a great saṅgha of 1,250 monks, innumerable bodhisattva mahāsattvas, and many hundreds of thousands of beings to be tamed, and other bodhisattva mahāsattvas headed by Avalokiteśvara.
The Blessed One sat unwavering upon a jeweled lion throne. Through the power of the Buddha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Mañjuśrī rose from his seat, draped his upper robe over one shoulder, and knelt on his right knee. Joining his palms toward the Blessed One, he said, “Blessed One, how extensive is the great merit of the Tathāgata’s Dharma conch,10 the great merit by which the wishes of the many hundred sextillions of beings to be tamed are completely fulfilled?”
The Blessed One replied to the bodhisattva mahāsattva Mañjuśrī, “Mañjuśrī, the great merit of the Tathāgata’s Dharma conch,11 the great merit by which the wishes of a hundred sextillion beings to be tamed are completely fulfilled, arises from insight and is imbued with great compassion.12 It is inconceivable.13
“Mañjuśrī, if all of the beings in the world were to engage in the path of the ten virtuous actions, and if that collection of merit, which is the collection of merit of all those beings, were multiplied by a hundred, it would equal that of a cakravartin king who has dominion over the four continents and possesses the seven treasures. The seven treasures are as follows: the precious wheel, the precious elephant, the precious horse, the precious jewel, the precious woman, the precious steward, and the precious minister. He has a thousand heroic sons who are courageous, have excellent well-built bodies, and utterly defeat opposing armies. Mañjuśrī, such is the cakravartin king’s great miraculous powers and might.
“Mañjuśrī, if all beings in the world with its four continents were to possess the cakravartin king’s merit, and if that merit, which is the merit of all those beings, were multiplied by a hundred,14 it would equal that of Śakra, lord of the gods. Such is the lord of the gods’ great miraculous powers and great might.
“Mañjuśrī,15 if all of the beings in the realm of the world with its four continents were to possess Śakra’s merit, and if that merit, which is the merit of all those beings, were multiplied by a hundred thousand,16 it would equal that of Māra, lord of the desire realm, who understands the teachings within the desire realm.17 Such is Māra of the desire realm’s great miraculous powers and great might.
“Mañjuśrī,18 if all of the beings in the realm of the world with its four continents were to possess Māra’s merit, and if that merit, which is the merit of all of those beings, were multiplied by a hundred thousand, it would equal that of a brahmā, sovereign of a chiliocosm,19 whose love pervades the domain of a chiliocosm.
“Mañjuśrī, if all of the beings in this chiliocosm were to possess the merit of a brahmā god, sovereign of a chiliocosm, and if that merit, which is the merit of all those beings, were multiplied by a hundred thousand, it equal that of a brahmā god, sovereign of a dichiliocosm,20 whose love pervades the domain of a dichiliocosm.
“Mañjuśrī, if all of the beings in this dichiliocosm were to possess the merit of a brahmā god, sovereign of a dichiliocosm, and if that merit, which is the merit of all of those beings, were multiplied by a hundred thousand, it would equal that of a supremely great almighty brahmā, sovereign of a trichiliocosm,21 whose love pervades the domain of a great trichiliocosm.
“Mañjuśrī, consider a supremely great almighty brahmā. In a single intermediate eon following the rise of the waters after the eon of destruction,22 the trichiliocosm fills up with rainfall with its droplets of water. A supremely great almighty brahmā knows all the drops of water that have amassed in his world. Therefore, he is endowed with great wisdom and has great miraculous powers and great might. The root of virtue of a great almighty one is no trifling thing.
“Mañjuśrī, if all of the beings in this trichiliocosm were to possess the merit of a great brahmā, sovereign of a trichiliocosm, and if that merit, which is the merit of all those beings, were multiplied by many hundred sextillions, it would equal that of a pratyekabuddha who had obtained great might.23
“Mañjuśrī, put aside this great trichiliocosm. Mañjuśrī, if all the beings in the domain of the buddhas, the realm of the worlds of the ten directions, were to possess the merit obtained by a pratyekabuddha who had obtained great might, and if that merit, which is the merit of all of those beings, were multiplied by many hundred sextillions, it would equal that of a single bodhisattva in their final existence.
“Mañjuśrī, if all of the beings in the realm of the worlds of the ten directions of space—beings born from an egg, born from a womb, born from heat and moisture, and born miraculously; those with form and those without; and those with perception, those without perception, and those with neither perception nor nonperception24—were to possess the merit of a bodhisattva in their final existence, and if that merit, which is the merit of all of those beings, were multiplied by many hundred sextillions, it would equal that of a single hair pore on the body of the Tathāgata. Each of the nine million nine hundred thousand hair pores on the body of the Tathāgata are established in the same way.
“Mañjuśrī, if the merit that is equal to the merit contained in all those hair pores were multiplied many hundred sextillions, it would equal that of one of the eighty excellent signs on the body of the Tathāgata.25 Each of the eighty excellent signs is established on the body of the Tathāgata in the same way.
“Mañjuśrī, if that merit, which is the merit contained in the eighty excellent signs, were multiplied by many hundred sextillions, it would be like that of one of the designs marking the Tathāgata’s hands and feet.
“The eighty designs are as follows:26 (1) a parasol, (2) a victory banner, (3) a śrīvatsa, (4) a garland, (5) a hook, (6) a diadem, (7) a staff,27 (8) a vase, (9) an elephant, (10) a horse, (11) a tiger, (12) a makara, (13) a fish, (14) a turtle, (15) a peacock, (16) a kalaviṅka bird, (17) a partridge, (18) a cāṣa bird,28 (19) a cakravāka shelduck, (20) a parrot, (21) a goose, (22) a dove, (23) barley, (24) the great medicine, (25) bamboo, (26) a gayal, (27) a nāga, (28) a goat, (29) a bull, (30) a mountain, (31) a bilva fruit tree,29 (32) a black antelope, (33) a precious jewel, (34) a supreme sword, (35) a vajra, (36) a bow, (37) an arrow, (38) a lance, (39) a trident, (40) a plow, (41) a mace, (42) an axe, (43) a lasso,30 (44) a boat, (45) a pearl ornament, (46) a cloud, (47) Brahmā, (48) Indra, (49) Dhṛtarāṣṭra,31 (50) Varuṇa, (51) Virūḍhaka, (52) Virūpākṣa, (53) Dhanada, (54) a great sage, (55) Śrī, (56) a sun, (57) a moon, (58) a fire, (59) wind, (60) a lotus, (61) a nandyāvarta, (62) a triangle,32 (63) an excellent throne, (64) a mirror, (65) a tail whisk, (66) dūrvā grass, (67) puroḍāśa cake, (68) a boy, (69) a girl, (70) a drum, (71) a conch, (72) a mṛdaṅga drum,33 (73) a bracelet, (74) an armband, (75) an earring,34 (76) a ring, (77) a dangling earring, (78) an excellent flower, (79) a wish-granting tree, and (80) a lion at the center of a wheel.35 These are the eighty designs. They appear on the palms of the Tathāgata’s hands and the soles of his feet.
“Mañjuśrī, if that merit, which is the merit contained in those eighty designs, were multiplied by many hundred sextillions, it would be like one of the signs of a great being on the Tathāgata’s body; each of the thirty-two signs of a great being are established in the same way. They are as follows:36 (1) the uṣṇīṣa on the head, (2) right-curling dark blue hair on the head, (3) an even forehead, (4) being adorned with a beautiful complexion,37 (5) an ūrṇā hair between the eyebrows, (6) dark blue eyes with bovine eyelashes, (7) forty close-fitting teeth, (8) white canine teeth, (9) cheeks like a lion, (10) a large and slender tongue, (11) a torso like a lion, (12) an arm span and height that are identical like the banyan tree, (13) a hair growing from every pore,38 (14) a concealed male organ, (15) full and rounded thighs, (16) calves like those of Eṇeya, king of antelopes, (17) broad heels, (18) palms and soles that are soft and supple, (19) webbed fingers and toes, (20) long fingers and toes, (21) feet with high arches, (22) a supreme organ of taste, (23) round shoulders, (24) the seven prominent parts, (25) fine skin the color of gold, (26) the ability to reach the hands to the knees without bending, (27) well-positioned feet, (28) palms and soles with the mark of the wheel, and (29) the voice of Brahmā. These are the thirty-two signs of a great being. They appear on the body of the Tathāgata.
“Mañjuśrī, if that merit, which is the merit contained in the thirty-two signs of a great being, were multiplied innumerable times, multiplied inconceivably, multiplied incalculably, and multiplied beyond expression, it would be like that of the Tathāgata’s Dharma conch. By the power of taming with the Dharma conch, with his voice the Tathāgata engenders understanding throughout limitless and countless world realms. Just as with his voice, so it is with his light and his body.39
“In this way, Mañjuśrī, this great merit, arisen from great insight, imbued with compassion, generated through skill-in-means and aspirations, completely pure in moral discipline,40 and authentically born from the distinctions of practice, is inconceivable to all śrāvakas and pratyekabuddhas.41
“Mañjuśrī, the form body of the Tathāgata is especially exalted for two reasons. What are these two reasons? They are the power of aspiration and the power of the complete ripening of the virtue of sentient beings to be tamed. Mañjuśrī, for these two reasons the form body of the Tathāgata is especially exalted.
“Mañjuśrī, just as the form body of the Tathāgata is especially exalted,42 the Dharma taught is also especially exalted.
“Mañjuśrī, just as the Dharma taught by the Tathāgata, his light is also especially exalted.
“Mañjuśrī, just as the light of the Tathāgata is especially exalted, his conduct is also especially exalted.
“Mañjuśrī, the Tathāgata pervades the entire world with his body.43
“Mañjuśrī, whatever particular color, shape, or conduct will tame sentient beings, sentient beings will see the Tathāgata accordingly as having that particular color, shape, and conduct.
“Mañjuśrī, whatever particular signs will tame sentient beings, sentient beings will see the Tathāgata accordingly as having those particular signs.
“Mañjuśrī, whatever Dharma teachings will fully ripen sentient beings, sentient beings will understand the particular Dharma teachings of the Tathāgata to be Dharma teachings of that kind.
“Mañjuśrī, whatever conduct tames sentient beings and causes them to engage with the teachings of the Tathāgata, sentient beings will see the Tathāgata abiding by that conduct.
“Mañjuśrī, in this way the tathāgata, arhat, perfect Buddha comes into the world, benefits and brings happiness to many beings, has love and affection for the world, and takes birth in order to help, benefit, and bring happiness to gods, humans, and the host of beings.”
Then the bodhisattva Mañjuśrī rose from his seat and, approaching the Blessed One, pressed his palms together and said, “Blessed One—my unparalleled, matchless teacher, supreme protector in the three realms and benefactor for all sentient beings, unperturbed by worldly phenomena, unblemished like the sky, inconceivable, a worthy inspiration, desirable to behold, and beautiful to behold—I have truly found a great treasure! Sugata, I have truly found a great treasure!”
Youthful Mañjuśrī was overjoyed at what the Tathāgata had said. The bodhisattva great beings and the monks praised the words of the Blessed One.
This completes the noble Mahāyāna sūtra “The Question of Mañjuśrī.”