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On the age of children when entering marriage in ancient and medieval India, see Jamison 2018.
Braarvig and Harrison 2002, pp. 52–53. Diana Paul, in her treatment of the text, also surmised that it was likely compiled around the third or fourth century (Paul 1985, p. 190).
Following N, U, H: sems thams cad kyi dbang gi dam pa’i pha rol tu son pa. D, S: sems can thams cad kyi, “of all sentient beings.” The former reading (without can) matches the Mahāvyutpatti entry for hearer qualities: [1088] sarvacetovaśiparamapāramiprāptaḥ, sems kyi dbang thams cad kyi dam pa’i pha rol tu son thob pa, and is also corroborated by the Chinese.
Following S: brgyad stong. D: brgya stong. The former is corroborated by the Chinese: ba qian.
On the close connection between these two attainments, dhāraṇī and pratibhāna, see Braarvig 1985.
The translation of this and the preceding line is tentative. D: ngan bu lhan [J, K, N, C, H, S slan] chad lus kyis ni//’du shes ma mchis sems mi g.yo//.
Following F: gnas nas go ’phang mchog mnyes la. D, S: gsan nas go ’phang mchog brnyes la (“listening, he attains the supreme state”). The latter reading seems unlikely since there is no need to “attain” anything, as he is already a buddha.
dgra thul de. We have translated this term literally. It is possibly an alternative for dgra bcom pa (lit. “enemy-vanquisher”) which is the usual Tibetan translation of “arhat,” used here as an epithet of the Buddha.
The Sanskrit fragment from the Schøyen Collection begins here. Braarvig and Harrison 2002, pp. 55–57.
Though the girl’s speech has now ended, the Tibetan text continues in nine-syllable meter for two more verses.
D, S: hab shang. Y, K: hab she; N: ha gshang. In a footnote to the Schøyen fragment, Braarvig and Harrison note “The term hab śaṅ (the Thems spaṇs reading, here followed by D) is not found in the lexicons, but N’s ha gśaṇ points us in the direction of the gśaṇ, a musical instrument used especially by the Bon pos, which resembles a flattish sort of bell. See Helffer, 1994: 215ff.”
The section cited by Śāntideva in the Śikṣāsamuccaya, which is extant in Sanskrit, starts here. Braarvig and Harrison 2002, pp. 59–68. For another English translation of this section of the sūtra, as cited in the Śikṣāsamuccaya, see Goodman 2016, pp. 79–80.
The Sanskrit of this verse, as cited by Śāntideva in the Śikṣāsamuccaya, has an ambiguity whereby the girl is both teaching that her beauty has not been produced by lust, but also that her beauty will not be won by lustful suitors. See Braarvig and Harrison 2002, p. 60, n. 34.
D: gang dag tshangs spyod rnams spyod dag pa. The plural rnams has not been rendered in the English translation. It could refer to those (pl.) who observe celibacy, or to the aspects (pl.) of the celibate or spiritual life. This plural is absent from the Sanskrit as cited in the Śikṣāsamuccaya. Braarvig and Harrison 2002, p. 60.
Following D: kho mo ’dod chags ldan pa’i sems mi skyed// ’dod chags bral la chags pa ma skyed cig// ji ltar smras bden nam yang brdzum min te// mdun gyi thub dbang ’di ni bdag gi dpang. This verse, and those that follow, are very slightly different as cited in the Śikṣāsamuccaya from how they are found in the Kangyur version of the sūtra. For translations of the verses as cited in the Śikṣāsamuccaya, which is extant in Sanskrit, and comparison with the Tibetan, see Braarvig and Harrison 2002, pp. 62 ff. The Sanskrit term translated into Tibetan as both ’dod chags and chags pa in this verse, and rendered in English as both “desire” and “lust,” is rāga.
D: ’dod pa’i gzhi las. Here the Śikṣāsamuccaya citation reads (in Tibetan translation) ’dod pa’i rgyus. Here the Sanskrit term translated as ’dod pa and translated here into English as “lust” is kāma. In the following lines, ’dod chags, translated here as “desire,” translates rāga.
This verse is absent from the Śikṣāsamuccaya. It is, however, included in the Chinese translation of the sūtra.
D, S: ’dod pas ’khol ba dag. Here the Comparative Edition reads ’dod pas ’khor ba dag. There are numerous small variations in how this verse is found across the Kangyur editions of the sūtra, and in how it appears in the various editions of the Tibetan translation of the Śikṣāsamuccaya. For these variants, see Braarvig and Harrison 2002, p. 67.
In the Sanskrit of the Lalitavistara, rnam par gnod translates vyāhataṃ, hence the translation here as “conflict.”
Tib. kho bo ni mya ngan las ’das par ’gro’o. This could also be translated (based on the Tibetan) as “I am going to [a state that has] passed beyond sorrow,” or, based on the assumed underlying Sanskrit, “I am going to extinguishment.”
Following D: chos thams cad mya ngan las ’das par mchi ba lags pas. The Chinese translation as well as S and F present this as a question: “Are not all dharmas going…?”
Tib. gal te chos thams cad yongs su mya ngan las ’das par ’gro ba yin na. This could also be translated (based on the Tibetan) as “if all dharmas are going to a state that has passed completely beyond sorrow.”
Tib. khyod kyis ji ltar bzod pa de bzhin du lan gtab tu gsol. This polite phrase has been rendered loosely. A more literal translation could be, “Pray, answer in accordance with your forbearance.”
Tib. sems kyi skad cig gcig dang ldan pa’i shes rab. In The Perfection of Wisdom in Eighteen Thousand Lines (Toh 10, 64.29), the phrase skad cig gcig dang ldan pa’i shes rab translates the Sanskrit ekakṣaṇasamāyuktayā prajñayā, referring to the ekakṣaṇābhisaṃbodhi, the instant just prior to complete awakening.
Following D, S, in which bdag (“I”) may be read as the subject of chos ston par gyur cig, “May I become a teacher of the Dharma.” Y
In the mnemonic patterning of this section of the text, whereby the numbering of the flower corresponds to a parallel numbering of the teaching evoked in the aspiration, this third flower corresponds to the abandonment of the three root poisons of attraction, aversion, and ignorance.
Following D, S: chos lo legs bgyid. N, C read chos la legs bgyid, “excellent in Dharma.” The translation from Chinese has, “Who has enriched the Dharma, O lion among men?” Giebel 2018, p. 75.
Following D, S: rtog pa rnam. Y
Following S, Y
In Tibetan the term khye’u (“child”) is not explicitly gender-specific, but it likely translates the Sanskrit dāraka, “boy.”
The bodhisattvas’ realization that all phenomena are unproduced and empty. It sustains them on the difficult path of benefiting all beings so that they do not succumb to the goal of personal liberation. Different sources link this realization to the first or eighth bodhisattva level (bhūmi).
An epithet of Maitreya, meaning “Unconquerable.”
The eighth and highest level of the Realm of Form (rūpadhātu), the last of the five pure abodes (śuddhāvāsa); it is only accessible as the result of specific states of dhyāna. According to some texts this is where non-returners (anāgāmin) dwell in their last lives. In other texts it is the realm of the enjoyment body (saṃbhogakāya) and is a buddhafield associated with the Buddha Vairocana; it is accessible only to bodhisattvas on the tenth level.
The buddha of the western buddhafield of Sukhāvatī, where fortunate beings are reborn to make further progress toward spiritual maturity. Amitābha made his great vows to create such a realm when he was a bodhisattva called Dharmākara. In the Pure Land Buddhist tradition, popular in East Asia, aspiring to be reborn in his buddha realm is the main emphasis; in other Mahāyāna traditions, too, it is a widespread practice. For a detailed description of the realm, see \1\2The Display of the Pure Land of Sukhāvatī, Toh 115. In some tantras that make reference to the five families he is the tathāgata associated with the lotus family.
Amitābha, “Infinite Light,” is also known in many Indian Buddhist works as Amitāyus, “Infinite Life.” In both East Asian and Tibetan Buddhist traditions he is often conflated with another buddha named “Infinite Life,” Aparimitāyus, or “Infinite Life and Wisdom,”Aparimitāyurjñāna, the shorter version of whose name has also been back-translated from Tibetan into Sanskrit as Amitāyus but who presides over a realm in the zenith. For details on the relation between these buddhas and their names, see \1\2The Aparimitāyurjñāna Sūtra (1) Toh 674, i.9.
The name of a bodhisattva meaning “Meaningful to Behold.”
The name of a bodhisattva meaning “King of Illumination.”
A major śrāvaka disciple and personal attendant of the Buddha Śākyamuni during the last twenty-five years of his life. He was a cousin of the Buddha (according to the Mahāvastu, he was a son of Śuklodana, one of the brothers of King Śuddhodana, which means he was a brother of Devadatta; other sources say he was a son of Amṛtodana, another brother of King Śuddhodana, which means he would have been a brother of Aniruddha).
Ānanda, having always been in the Buddha’s presence, is said to have memorized all the teachings he heard and is celebrated for having recited all the Buddha’s teachings by memory at the first council of the Buddhist saṅgha, thus preserving the teachings after the Buddha’s parinirvāṇa. The phrase “Thus did I hear at one time,” found at the beginning of the sūtras, usually stands for his recitation of the teachings. He became a patriarch after the passing of Mahākāśyapa.
The name of a bodhisattva.
The name of a bodhisattva meaning “Abandoning Bad Transmigrations.”
The name of a bodhisattva meaning “Unhindered Mind.”
The name of a bodhisattva meaning “Unhindered Eloquence.”
A type of nonhuman being whose precise status is subject to different views, but is included as one of the six classes of beings in the sixfold classification of realms of rebirth. In the Buddhist context, asuras are powerful beings said to be dominated by envy, ambition, and hostility. They are also known in the pre-Buddhist and pre-Vedic mythologies of India and Iran, and feature prominently in Vedic and post-Vedic Brahmanical mythology, as well as in the Buddhist tradition. In these traditions, asuras are often described as being engaged in interminable conflict with the devas (gods).
One of the “eight close sons of the Buddha,” he is also known as the bodhisattva who embodies compassion. In certain tantras, he is also the lord of the three families, where he embodies the compassion of the buddhas. In Tibet, he attained great significance as a special protector of Tibet, and in China, in female form, as Guanyin, the most important bodhisattva in all of East Asia.
Yeshé Dé (late eighth to early ninth century) was the most prolific translator of sūtras into Tibetan. Altogether he is credited with the translation of more than one hundred sixty sūtra translations and more than one hundred additional translations, mostly on tantric topics. In spite of Yeshé Dé’s great importance for the propagation of Buddhism in Tibet during the imperial era, only a few biographical details about this figure are known. Later sources describe him as a student of the Indian teacher Padmasambhava, and he is also credited with teaching both sūtra and tantra widely to students of his own. He was also known as Nanam Yeshé Dé, from the Nanam (sna nam) clan.
In Buddhist literature, this is an epithet applied to buddhas, most often to Śākyamuni. The Sanskrit term generally means “possessing fortune,” but in specifically Buddhist contexts it implies that a buddha is in possession of six auspicious qualities (bhaga) associated with complete awakening. The Tibetan term—where bcom is said to refer to “subduing” the four māras, ldan to “possessing” the great qualities of buddhahood, and ’das to “going beyond” saṃsāra and nirvāṇa—possibly reflects the commentarial tradition where the Sanskrit bhagavat is interpreted, in addition, as “one who destroys the four māras.” This is achieved either by reading bhagavat as bhagnavat (“one who broke”), or by tracing the word bhaga to the root √bhañj (“to break”).
A high-ranking deity presiding over a divine world; he is also considered to be the lord of the Sahā world (our universe). Though not considered a creator god in Buddhism, Brahmā occupies an important place as one of two gods (the other being Indra/Śakra) said to have first exhorted the Buddha 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 many universes or world systems, there are also multiple Brahmās presiding over them. His most frequent epithets are “Lord of the Sahā World” (sahāṃpati) and Great Brahmā (mahābrahman).
Lit. “brahmā group,” this refers to deities who inhabit the brahmā realms, the heavens of the form realm.
A member of the highest of the four castes in Indian society, which is closely associated with religious vocations.
The seven branches of awakening are (1) mindfulness, (2) investigation of the nature of reality, (3) energy, (4) joy, (5) tranquility, (6) concentration, and (7) equanimity.
The way to full awakening; another term for the Mahāyāna or Great Vehicle.
The protagonist of this sūtra, whose name means “Surpassing the Moon.”
Name of the male bodhisattva whom the girl Candrottarā transforms into at the end of the sūtra. Also the name of the future buddha he is predicted to become.
Brahman is a Sanskrit term referring to what is highest (parama) and most important (pradhāna); the Nibandhana commentary explains brahman as meaning here nirvāṇa, and thus the brahman conduct is the “conduct toward brahman,” the conduct that leads to the highest liberation, i.e., nirvāṇa. This is explained as “the path without outflows,” which is the “truth of the path” among the four truths of the noble ones. Other explanations (found in the Pāli tradition) take “brahman conduct” to mean the “best conduct,” and also the “conduct of the best,” i.e., the buddhas. In some contexts, “brahman conduct” refers more specifically to celibacy, but the specific referents of this expression are many.
A future rebirth of the girl Candrottarā during the time of the future buddha Maitreya.
A level of patience reached by bodhisattvas on the path. Concordant acceptance means acceptance that is concordant with the nature of reality. It precedes acceptance that all phenomena do not arise (anutpattikadharmakṣānti).
The destructible collection refers to the five aggregates. The erroneous view of the destructible collection refers to the view which takes the five aggregates as the basis as of an existent self and the reality of notions of “I” and “mine.”
In common use, the term is synonymous with ‘deva’. See also ‘god’.
In the most general sense the devas—the term is cognate with the English divine—are a class of celestial beings who frequently appear in Buddhist texts, often at the head of the assemblies of nonhuman beings who attend and celebrate the teachings of the Buddha Śākyamuni and other buddhas and bodhisattvas. In Buddhist cosmology the devas occupy the highest of the five or six “destinies” (gati) of saṃsāra among which beings take rebirth. The devas reside in the devalokas, “heavens” that traditionally number between twenty-six and twenty-eight and are divided between the desire realm (kāmadhātu), form realm (rūpadhātu), and formless realm (ārūpyadhātu). A being attains rebirth among the devas either through meritorious deeds (in the desire realm) or the attainment of subtle meditative states (in the form and formless realms). While rebirth among the devas is considered favorable, it is ultimately a transitory state from which beings will fall when the conditions that lead to rebirth there are exhausted. Thus, rebirth in the god realms is regarded as a diversion from the spiritual path.
The name of a bodhisattva meaning “King Among Lords of Dhāraṇīs.”
The name of a bodhisattva meaning “Earth Holder.”
One of the “five eyes” with which buddhas and bodhisattvas see.
The name of a bodhisattva meaning “Dharma Arisen”
Morally virtuous or disciplined conduct and the abandonment of morally undisciplined conduct of body, speech, and mind. In a general sense, moral discipline is the cause for rebirth in higher, more favorable states, but it is also foundational to Buddhist practice as one of the three trainings (triśikṣā) and one of the six perfections of a bodhisattva. Often rendered as “ethics,” “discipline,” and “morality.”
The name of a bodhisattva meaning “Difficult in Occurring.”
The eight errors are the opposite of the eightfold path: wrong view, wrong thought, wrong speech, wrong action, wrong livelihood, wrong effort, wrong mindfulness, and wrong meditation.
The eight-branched purification vow, which may be taken as a temporary or a lifelong commitment, consists first of the five precepts—refraining from (1) killing, (2) stealing, (3) sexual misconduct, (4) lying, and (5) consuming intoxicants—plus three further ones, namely refraining from (6) resting on a high or luxurious bed, (7) wearing ornaments, makeup or perfume, and (8) eating at improper times (after midday).
The eighty secondary physical characteristics of a buddha and of other great beings (mahāpuruṣa), which include such details as the redness of the fingernails and the blackness of the hair. Sometimes rendered as the “minor marks” in terms of being secondary to the thirty-two major marks or signs of a great being.
The Tibetan, like the Sanskrit, literally means “confidence” or “courage” but in the Buddhist sūtras it refers specifically to inspired speech, to being perfectly eloquent in expressing the Dharma.
The name of a bodhisattva.
Included among the thirty-seven factors of awakening, the five faculties are often listed as (1) faith, (2) perseverance, (3) mindfulness, (4) meditative stability, and (5) wisdom.
Five impediments to meditation (bsam gtan, dhyāna): sensory desire (’dod pa la ’dun pa, kāmacchanda), ill will (gnod sems, vyāpāda), drowsiness and torpor (rmugs pa dang gnyid, styānamiddha), agitation and regret (rgod pa dang ’gyod pa, auddhatyakaukṛtya), and doubt (the tshom, vicikitsā).
The five powers, listed among the thirty-seven factors of awakening, are the same as the five faculties, but pursued to greater degree. They are (1) faith, (2) perseverance, (3) mindfulness, (4) meditative stability, and (5) wisdom.
The five eyes consist of five faculties of pure vision acquired by buddhas and bodhisattvas: the physical eye, the divine eye, the wisdom eye, the Dharma eye, and the Buddha eye.
The five supernatural abilities attained through realization and yogic accomplishment: divine sight, divine hearing, knowing how to manifest miracles, remembering previous lives, and knowing the minds of others. (Provisional 84000 definition. New definition forthcoming.)
The name of the current eon, so-called because one thousand buddhas are prophesied to appear during this time
The four errors are (1) taking that which is impermanent to be permanent, (2) taking that which is suffering to be happiness, (3) taking that which is impure to be pure, and (4) taking that which is not a self to be a self.
The four māras are symbolic personifications of the defects that prevent awakening. The four are the māra of the gods (Skt. devaputramāra, Tib. lha’i bu’i bdud), representing the distraction of pleasures; the māra of the afflictions (kleśamāra, nyon mongs pa’i bdud), representing being controlled by afflictions; the māra of the aggregates (skandhamāra, phung po’i bdud), representing identifying with the five aggregates; and the māra of the lord of death (mṛtyumāra, ’chi bdag gi bdud), representing having one’s life cut short by death.
The name of a bodhisattva meaning “Sky Treasury.”
The name of a bodhisattva.
The name of a bodhisattva meaning “Profound Eloquence.”
The name of a bodhisattva.
’phags pa bu mo zla mchog lung bstan pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo (Āryacandrottarādārikāvyākaraṇanāmamahāyānasūtra). Degé Kangyur vol. 61 (mdo sde, tsa), folios 224.b–243.b.
’phags pa bu mo zla mchog lung bstan pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo. 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), 2006–9, vol. mdo sde, tsa, pp. 607–51.
’phags pa bu mo zla mchog lung bstan pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo. Stok Palace Kangyur vol. 66 (mdo sde, ba), folios 292.a–317.a.
Braarvig, Jens and Paul Harrison. “Candrottarādārikāvyākaraṇa.” In Buddhist Manuscripts in the Schøyen Collection II, edited by Jens Braarvig et al., 51–68. Manuscripts in the Schøyen Collection. Oslo: Hermes Publishing, 2002.
Denkarma (pho brang stod thang ldan dkar gyi chos kyi ’gyur ro cog gi dkar chag). Toh 4364, Degé Tengyur vol. 206 (sna tshogs, jo), folios 294.b–310.a.
Mahāvyutpatti (bye brag tu rtogs par byed pa chen po). Toh 4346, Degé Tengyur vol. 204 (sna tshogs, co), folios 1.b–131.a.
Mahāvyutpatti with sGra sbyor bam po gñis pa. Bibliotheca Polyglotta, University of Oslo. Input by Jens Braarvig and Fredrik Liland, 2010. Last accessed May 06, 2024.
Phangthangma (dkar chag ’phang thang ma). Beijing: mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 2003.
84000. Aśokadattā’s Prophecy (Aśokadattāvyākaraṇa, mya ngan med kyis byin pa lung bstan pa, Toh 76). Translated by the UCSB Translation Group. Online publication. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2023.
84000. The Questions of the Girl Vimalaśraddhā (Dārikāvimalaśraddhāparipṛcchā, ’phags pa bu mo rnam dag dad pas zhus pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo, Toh 84), Translated by the Karma Gyaltsen Ling Translation Group. Online publication. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2021.
84000. The Teaching of Vimalakīrti (Vimalakīrtinirdeśa, dri ma med par grags pas bstan pa, Toh 176). Translated by Robert A. F. Thurman. Online publication. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2017.
84000. The Teaching of Vimalakīrti (Acintyabuddhaviṣayanirdeśa, bu mo blo gros bzang mos zhus pa, Toh 74). Translated by Dharmasāgara Translation Group. Online publication. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2024.
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C Choné (co ne) Kangyur
D Degé (sde dge) Kangyur
F Phukdrak MS (phug brag) Kangyur
H Lhasa (zhol) Kangyur
J Lithang (’jang sa tham) Kangyur
K Peking (pe cin) Kangxi Kangyur
N Narthang (snar thang) Kangyur
S Stok Palace (stog pho brang) Manuscript Kangyur
U Urga (ur ga) Kangyur
Y Peking Yongle (g.yung lo) Kangyur
In Vaiśālī, a daughter is born to the wealthy Licchavī couple Vimalakīrti and his beautiful wife, Vimalā. At their daughter’s birth, she speaks eloquently in verse, and gives forth a brilliant golden-colored light that surpasses even the light of the moon, thus earning her the name Candrottarā (“Surpassing the Moon”). All around the city, men are besotted with the idea of marrying her. To defuse the situation, the girl promises to go out into the city after seven days and choose a husband. Before this she takes the eight-branched purification vows, whereupon a lotus with an emanation of a thus-gone one seated upon it miraculously appears in her hand. The emanation tells her about the Buddha Śākyamuni, and she resolves to meet him. When she leaves the house on the seventh day, she is mobbed by a crowd of would-be suitors. She evades them by rising into the air, and from there delivers a teaching on the futility of lust and desire. She then calls upon the crowd of men to join her in going to meet the Buddha. On the way, they meet Śāriputra and other elders. The elders question her and are impressed by the profundity and eloquence of her answers. When she arrives in the presence of the Buddha himself, numerous bodhisattvas ask her further questions. The Buddha is delighted by her answers, and after she makes the aspiration to seek awakening for the benefit of all beings, he smiles. When Ānanda asks what his smile means, the Buddha predicts her future awakening.
This text was translated by Annie Bien and revised and introduced by the 84000 editorial team. The translator wishes to thank Khyongla Rato Rinpoche for giving the oral transmission, and Leslie Kriesel for editing the initial draft.
The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha. George FitzHerbert edited the translation and the introduction, and Ven. Konchog Norbu copyedited the text. Martina Cotter was in charge of the digital publication process.
The translation of this text has been made possible through the generous sponsorship of Make and Wang Xiao Juan.
The Prophecy of the Girl Candrottarā takes place in the city of Vaiśālī, and its main protagonist is the young daughter of the wealthy Licchavī couple Vimalakīrti and his wife Vimalā. Although this appears to refer to the same Vimalakīrti who is the main protagonist of the well-known Great Vehicle scripture The Teaching of Vimalakīrti, no mention is made of Vimalakīrti at this time being a follower of the Buddha.
As soon as the couple’s daughter is born, she appears to be about eight years old, and speaks eloquently in verse about her former lives. She is so magnificently beautiful and radiant that her light “far surpassed the radiance of the moon,” earning her the name Candrottarā (“Exceeding the Moon”). Men of all social statuses from around the city are besotted by the girl and obsessed with marrying her, and they pursue her father for favor. Some follow him around and lavish gifts on him, while others threaten him and plot her abduction. Her father is distraught, but the girl remains undaunted and promises to go out into the city after seven days in retreat to make her choice. On the sixth day, she takes the eight-branched purification vows, whereupon an extraordinary jeweled lotus with an emanation of a thus-gone one seated upon it miraculously appears in her hand. She speaks to this apparition, which informs her that he has been sent by the Buddha, the Lion of the Śākyas. She questions the emanation about this Buddha, and resolves to meet him. On the seventh day, she leaves the house as planned, and is mobbed by a crowd of lustful would-be suitors. She evades this boisterous crowd by rising into the air to the height of a palm tree, and from there, still holding the lotus with the thus-gone one seated upon it, she delivers a teaching on the futility of lust and desire. When the crowd has been pacified by this, she asks them to join her in going to meet the Buddha at Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest near Vaiśālī where he is staying.
On the way there, they meet a group of elders who are walking to the city to collect alms. Śāriputra questions the girl, and the elders are impressed by the profundity of her answers and the confident eloquence with which she speaks, so they decide to accompany her back to Kūṭāgāraśālā. When she arrives in the presence of the Buddha himself, numerous bodhisattvas ask her further questions. Śāriputra then resumes his questioning, at which the girl extols the superiority of the complete awakening of a bodhisattva over the limited awakening of a hearer like him.
The Buddha praises her answers, whereupon the thus-gone one seated on the girl’s lotus rises and dissolves into the Buddha’s navel. At this, the Buddha manifests a miraculous display in which innumerable similar jeweled lotuses, each with a thus-gone one seated upon it, spring from every pore of his body and fill the great trichiliocosm with the light of the Dharma. The girl is delighted by this, and throws her lotus toward the Blessed One as an offering with the aspiration that she too may become a teacher of the Dharma. Mid-air, the flower transforms into a huge pavilion of flowers that hovers over the Buddha’s head. Another lotus then appears in her hand, and she throws this too, with a further aspiration to teach the Dharma for the benefit of beings. It too transforms into a pavilion of flowers that hovers above the first. In the same way, further lotuses keep appearing in her hand, she keeps throwing them with further aspirations to teach the Dharma, and they keep transforming into pavilions of flowers that hover above the last, until the tenth flower, when she makes the aspiration to reach complete awakening. At this point, the stacked pavilions of flowers reach all the way up the brahmā heavens above, and great myriads of gods gather to bear witness.
Just then, the Buddha gives one of his cosmically radiant smiles. When Ānanda asks what the smile means, the Buddha prophesies Candrottarā’s future lives and eventual complete awakening as a buddha. When she hears this prophecy, Candrottarā is overjoyed, and rises into the sky to the height of seven palm trees. There, she transforms her female form into that of a boy, who, when he descends, touches the Buddha’s feet and requests to go forth as a renunciant in the Buddha’s dispensation. After the child’s parents give their consent for this, the sūtra concludes with the boy’s verses of praise for the Blessed One.
The Prophecy of the Girl Candrottarā is among a group of Great Vehicle sūtras in which daughters of powerful or wealthy laymen are presented as highly realized and eloquent beings who receive prophecies of future awakening from the Buddha. Several of these sūtras feature the daughters of kings. Both Aśokadattā’s Prophecy (Toh 76) and The Questions of Vimalaprabhā (Toh 168) center on daughters of King Ajātaśatru. The daughters of King Prasenajit are the main 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). A point made in many of these discourses, including this one, is that there is no distinction of gender in emptiness. Nevertheless, reflecting the monastic milieu of these Great Vehicle texts, the predictions in each case include the female protagonist transforming into a male form at some stage on the journey to complete awakening.
There is no extant Sanskrit for the entirety of The Prophecy of the Girl Candrottarā, though a fragment of a Sanskrit manuscript dating from circa 500
The Chinese translation of the Candrottarādārikāvyākaraṇa/Candrottarādārikāparipṛcchā was made in 591
The colophon to the Tibetan translation, as found in the various Kangyur recensions, does not explicitly name a translator but says that it was edited and finalized by Jinamitra and Yeshe Dé, perhaps indicating that these translators revised an earlier translation. It is listed in both the Phangthangma and Denkarma imperial-era catalogs of translated texts compiled in the early ninth century. Butön Rinchen Drup, in his fourteenth century History of Buddhism, attributes the translation directly to Yeshé Dé.
This English translation is based on the Tibetan as found in the Degé Kangyur, in consultation with the variant readings listed in the Comparative Edition (dpe bsdur ma) and the Stok Palace Kangyur. Where variant readings other than the Degé have been preferred, this has been recorded in the notes. To our knowledge, this is the first full English translation of the sūtra from Tibetan.
Homage to all buddhas and bodhisattvas.
Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was residing at Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest at Vaiśālī. He was staying there with a large saṅgha of monks, which consisted of five hundred worthy ones. All of them had thoroughbred minds, had done what they needed to do, and had accomplished their work, put down their burdens, fulfilled their own purpose, completely exhausted the bonds of mundane existence, thoroughly liberated their minds through correct understanding, and reached the sublime perfection of all mental powers.
There were also eight thousand bodhisattvas who were renowned for their knowledge, and who had attained recollection and unhindered eloquence, meditative absorption, and acceptance toward phenomena as nonarising. They were endowed with the five superknowledges, had unobstructed speech, were not hypocritical, and lacked flattery. Their intention was free of desire for selfish profit and they taught the Dharma without regard for worldly things. They had reached the perfection of patience toward the profound Dharma, were endowed with fearlessness, had completely transcended the activities of Māra, had abandoned karmic obscurations, and were without doubts concerning the nature of phenomena. With their aspiration fully formed over countless hundreds of thousands of myriad eons, they were skilled at speaking in melodious verse with a smiling countenance and without frowning. Their minds were not overwhelmed, they had an uninterrupted eloquence, and they had attained acceptance toward the equality of phenomena. They outshone the limitless audience in attendance with their great fearlessness.
They were skilled in the wisdom that with a single word teaches for a hundred thousand myriad eons. They had conviction that every phenomenon that arises in the past, future, and present is like an illusion, a mirage, the moon in water, a dream, a reflection, and an echo—that it is empty, signless, wishless, void, unfluctuating, and ungraspable, like the nature of space. They were skilled in immeasurable insight and wisdom, and skilled in knowing the functioning of the minds of all sentient beings. They were skilled at teaching the Dharma in accordance with the inclinations of sentient beings. Their unobstructed minds were free from craving for phenomena. They had acceptance that was free from secondary afflictions. They were skilled in knowing phenomena as they are. They were thoroughly immersed in the full range of qualities of limitless buddha fields. They could always and continuously realize the meditative absorption that recollects the Buddha. They were skilled in knowing the supplications to limitless buddhas. They were skilled in abandoning obsessions, views, afflictions, and latent impulses. By means of every meditative stabilization and meditative absorption they had fully mastered the one-pointed superknowledges.
Among those eight thousand bodhisattvas were the bodhisattva great beings Mañjuśrī Kumārabhūta, Avalokiteśvara, Mahāsthāmaprāpta, Durabhisambhava, Gandhahastin, Anikṣiptadhura, Sūryagarbha, Dhāraṇīśvararāja, Emitting the Light of Incense, Sound of Thunder, King of Definite Golden Luster, Nārāyaṇa, Ratnapāṇi, Ratnamudrāhasta, Gaganagañja, Amśurāja, Priyadarśana, Liberator of Beings, Nityodyukta, Nityaprahasitapramuditendriya, Apāyajaha, Vanquishing Vajra State, Vanquishing the Three Worlds State, Vanquishing Unwavering State, Amoghadarśin, Śrīgarbha, Padmaśrī, Gajagandhahastin, Gambhīrapratibhāna, Mahāpratibhāna, Dharmodgata, Without Doubting the Nature of Phenomena, Moves with the Strength of a Lion, Removing All Fear, Sarvanīvaraṇaviṣkambhin, Loud Roar of the Great Lion, Inexpressible, Pratibhānakūṭa, and the bodhisattva great being Maitreya.
Then the kings and eminent persons, city and country folk, attendants, brahmins, kṣatriyas, and householders all paid their respects to the Blessed One. They revered him, worshiped him, and made offerings to him during his stay at Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest at the great city of Vaiśālī.
At that time, in the great city of Vaiśālī, there lived a Licchavī known as Vimalakīrti. He was rich and wealthy, an opulently wealthy and prosperous man, with many treasuries and storehouses. His wife, Vimalā, was beautiful, lovely to behold, with a full figure and good complexion. After nine months passed, she gave birth to a daughter with a fine body, beautiful, lovely to behold, with perfect limbs, fingers, and toes. As soon as this daughter was born, their entire home was suffused with a great light, and the earth trembled. Outside, the gutters above the doors dripped with ghee and oil, and those who were weak, defenseless, hungry, and impoverished were satisfied. In the great city of Vaiśālī, large drums, clay drums, gongs, cymbals, and tambourines all resounded without being struck, and a great rain of flowers came down. In the four corners of the house, four large treasure chests filled with a variety of precious gems appeared and then opened, shining light everywhere.
As soon as she was born, the girl neither wailed nor shed tears. Instead, she placed her ten fingers and palms together and spoke these verses:
Having spoken these verses, the girl said no more.
Due to the ripening of roots of virtue acquired during previous lives, her body appeared as if it was dressed in precious celestial garments, and from her body there radiated extraordinary golden-colored light that far surpassed the radiance of the moon. For that reason, her parents named her Candrottarā.
Then at that instant, that moment, that very second, it appeared to everyone as if the girl Candrottarā had already reached the age of eight, and wherever she stood, or walked, or sat, or took a rest, it was as if the ground beneath her was illuminated by a golden-colored light, a fragrance of the finest sandalwood rose from every pore of her body, and from her mouth came the scent of the blue utpala flower.
When merchants, householders, princes, and others from important families and high-ranking castes in the city of Vaiśālī heard about this girl Candrottarā’s physical form and her perfect complexion, their minds were ensnared by lustful desire, and they thought, “How good it would be if she were to become my wife.”
Whereupon a great number of men set about trying to obtain her.
Some among them made approaches to the Licchavī Vimalakīrti, staying close to him and venerating him. Some tried to rouse his interest by making gifts of jewels, gold, silver, diamonds, beryl, cat’s-eye, sapphire, conch, crystals, and coral, as abundant as grains of sand. Some showed off their wealth in cattle, grain, houses, luxuries, and food. Some showed their ferocity by killing, binding, and beating male and female slaves, workers, and laborers. Some threatened Vimalakīrti, saying, “If you do not give us the girl Candrottarā, then we will cause great suffering and will inflict great harm upon you.”
The Licchavī Vimalakīrti thought, “Right now, armed groups are on their way to arrest and overthrow me. They will surely kidnap my daughter and kill me too!” At this thought, he panicked and with his hair standing on end, was immobilized by fear. Losing his mindfulness, and intimidated by others, he wept in distress, staring without blinking at his daughter.
When the girl Candrottarā saw her father crying, his face covered in tears and ashamed, she asked him, “Father, why are you weeping and staring like this?”
The Licchavī Vimalakīrti replied to his daughter Candrottarā, “Daughter, do you not understand that you will be kidnapped, and that there will be fighting and conflict everywhere in this city on account of you? Because of you, there are armies approaching, and we will be destroyed. If I thought you wouldn’t be captured, I would not weep so.”
The girl Candrottarā then spoke to her father in verse:
After speaking these verses, the girl Candrottarā then told her parents, “Father, Mother, I request that bells be rung and that this be proclaimed on every road and at every crossroads and intersection: ‘In seven days from now, the girl Candrottarā will come out, and when she comes out, she will choose for herself whichever husband she wishes. You should prepare for this: decorate the roads, crossroads, and intersections in all directions with ornaments; sweep them and ritually cleanse them with flowers, incense, perfumes, garlands, and ointments.’ ”
Then both parents of Candrottarā came out from their home and announced, “Seven days from now, Candrottarā will come out, and when she comes out, our daughter will choose whichever husband she wishes. You should prepare for this: decorate the roads, crossroads, and intersections in all directions with ornaments; sweep them and ritually cleanse them with flowers, incense, perfumes, garlands, and ointments.” This they proclaimed to all.
Everyone heard it, and a great number of men in Vaiśālī then set about decorating every road, crossroad, and intersection accordingly, but each was scheming in his mind, “How can I, and no one else, win the girl Candrottarā?” So they competed with one another to beautify themselves. Merchants and householders, ministers, brahmins, and princes, all the way down to workers, washed themselves thoroughly, rubbed their bodies well, dressed in fine clothing, and adorned themselves with various kinds of jewelry. They told their servants, “Be attentive! If the girl Candrottarā looks like she will not come with us of her own accord, we will have to take her by force.”
And so, seven days passed, and a large crowd of men, enthralled and amazed, gathered to see the girl Candrottarā.
Then, on the sixth day, during the full moon, the girl Candrottarā took the full eight-branched purification vows. That night, just as people were going to sleep, she went to the roof of the mansion and sat down. Then, by the power of the Buddha, a lotus appeared in the right hand of the girl Candrottarā. It was beautiful to behold and radiated clear light. Its stalk was gold, its petals silver, its anthers beryl, its center emerald, and it had many hundreds of thousands of petals. In the middle of this lotus appeared the figure of a thus-gone one, the color of whose body was like gold, and blazed with splendor. He was fully adorned with the thirty-two marks of a great being and further by the eighty excellent marks. Seated in full lotus posture, light rays from the thus-gone one’s body illuminated the entire house, making everything clearly visible.
When the girl Candrottarā saw the lotus and saw the figure of the thus-gone one, she rejoiced with great delight. Elated, joyful, and happy, she spoke the following verses to that figure of the thus-gone one:
The figure of the thus-gone one then spoke these verses to Candrottarā:
The girl Candrottarā replied to the figure of the thus-gone one in verse:
Then that figure of the thus-gone one replied to the girl Candrottarā in verse:
At this, the girl Candrottarā was delighted and she rejoiced. She was delighted, ecstatic, and joyful, and the sight of the thus-gone one made her thirst for more.
In response, she spoke these verses to the figure of the thus-gone one:
The emanation then said to her:
Then the girl Candrottarā, holding that very lotus with the figure of the thus-gone one seated upon it, descended from the roof of the mansion, went before her own father and mother, and spoke to her parents in the following verses:
At that time, on the seventh day, many hundreds of thousands of people gathered to see the girl Candrottarā. Among them, some had minds completely ensnared by lust, some just wanted to look at her, and some had the idea to decorate the entire great city of Vaiśālī with ornaments. Boys and girls also came out to watch from the platforms, gatehouses, pediments, windows, balustrades, and roofs of the manors and mansions.
The girl Candrottarā then emerged from her home, carrying the figure of the thus-gone one sitting on a lotus, accompanied by her parents and surrounded and escorted by a large retinue who carried flowers, incense, perfumes, garlands, ointments, powders, clothing, umbrellas, victory banners, and silk flags, and played a variety of cymbals and drums.
When the many hundreds of thousands of people saw her setting off toward the center of the city, they came running, thinking, “I must catch her!” At that very moment, just as a great crowd of men from the great city of Vaiśālī were rushing at her together, laughing and shouting, “Ha, ha! Come here! Come here!” the girl Candrottarā, at that very moment, seeing this large crowd of people running, and still holding in her hand the figure of the thus-gone one sitting upon the lotus, rose into the sky to the height of a palm tree, and remained there. Sitting there, she addressed that crowd of men in verse:
In Vaiśālī, a daughter is born to the wealthy Licchavī couple Vimalakīrti and his beautiful wife, Vimalā. At their daughter’s birth, she speaks eloquently in verse, and gives forth a brilliant golden-colored light that surpasses even the light of the moon, thus earning her the name Candrottarā (“Surpassing the Moon”). All around the city, men are besotted with the idea of marrying her. To defuse the situation, the girl promises to go out into the city after seven days and choose a husband. Before this she takes the eight-branched purification vows, whereupon a lotus with an emanation of a thus-gone one seated upon it miraculously appears in her hand. The emanation tells her about the Buddha Śākyamuni, and she resolves to meet him. When she leaves the house on the seventh day, she is mobbed by a crowd of would-be suitors. She evades them by rising into the air, and from there delivers a teaching on the futility of lust and desire. She then calls upon the crowd of men to join her in going to meet the Buddha. On the way, they meet Śāriputra and other elders. The elders question her and are impressed by the profundity and eloquence of her answers. When she arrives in the presence of the Buddha himself, numerous bodhisattvas ask her further questions. The Buddha is delighted by her answers, and after she makes the aspiration to seek awakening for the benefit of all beings, he smiles. When Ānanda asks what his smile means, the Buddha predicts her future awakening.
This text was translated by Annie Bien and revised and introduced by the 84000 editorial team. The translator wishes to thank Khyongla Rato Rinpoche for giving the oral transmission, and Leslie Kriesel for editing the initial draft.
The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha. George FitzHerbert edited the translation and the introduction, and Ven. Konchog Norbu copyedited the text. Martina Cotter was in charge of the digital publication process.
The translation of this text has been made possible through the generous sponsorship of Make and Wang Xiao Juan.
The Prophecy of the Girl Candrottarā takes place in the city of Vaiśālī, and its main protagonist is the young daughter of the wealthy Licchavī couple Vimalakīrti and his wife Vimalā. Although this appears to refer to the same Vimalakīrti who is the main protagonist of the well-known Great Vehicle scripture The Teaching of Vimalakīrti, no mention is made of Vimalakīrti at this time being a follower of the Buddha.
As soon as the couple’s daughter is born, she appears to be about eight years old, and speaks eloquently in verse about her former lives. She is so magnificently beautiful and radiant that her light “far surpassed the radiance of the moon,” earning her the name Candrottarā (“Exceeding the Moon”). Men of all social statuses from around the city are besotted by the girl and obsessed with marrying her, and they pursue her father for favor. Some follow him around and lavish gifts on him, while others threaten him and plot her abduction. Her father is distraught, but the girl remains undaunted and promises to go out into the city after seven days in retreat to make her choice. On the sixth day, she takes the eight-branched purification vows, whereupon an extraordinary jeweled lotus with an emanation of a thus-gone one seated upon it miraculously appears in her hand. She speaks to this apparition, which informs her that he has been sent by the Buddha, the Lion of the Śākyas. She questions the emanation about this Buddha, and resolves to meet him. On the seventh day, she leaves the house as planned, and is mobbed by a crowd of lustful would-be suitors. She evades this boisterous crowd by rising into the air to the height of a palm tree, and from there, still holding the lotus with the thus-gone one seated upon it, she delivers a teaching on the futility of lust and desire. When the crowd has been pacified by this, she asks them to join her in going to meet the Buddha at Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest near Vaiśālī where he is staying.
On the way there, they meet a group of elders who are walking to the city to collect alms. Śāriputra questions the girl, and the elders are impressed by the profundity of her answers and the confident eloquence with which she speaks, so they decide to accompany her back to Kūṭāgāraśālā. When she arrives in the presence of the Buddha himself, numerous bodhisattvas ask her further questions. Śāriputra then resumes his questioning, at which the girl extols the superiority of the complete awakening of a bodhisattva over the limited awakening of a hearer like him.
The Buddha praises her answers, whereupon the thus-gone one seated on the girl’s lotus rises and dissolves into the Buddha’s navel. At this, the Buddha manifests a miraculous display in which innumerable similar jeweled lotuses, each with a thus-gone one seated upon it, spring from every pore of his body and fill the great trichiliocosm with the light of the Dharma. The girl is delighted by this, and throws her lotus toward the Blessed One as an offering with the aspiration that she too may become a teacher of the Dharma. Mid-air, the flower transforms into a huge pavilion of flowers that hovers over the Buddha’s head. Another lotus then appears in her hand, and she throws this too, with a further aspiration to teach the Dharma for the benefit of beings. It too transforms into a pavilion of flowers that hovers above the first. In the same way, further lotuses keep appearing in her hand, she keeps throwing them with further aspirations to teach the Dharma, and they keep transforming into pavilions of flowers that hover above the last, until the tenth flower, when she makes the aspiration to reach complete awakening. At this point, the stacked pavilions of flowers reach all the way up the brahmā heavens above, and great myriads of gods gather to bear witness.
Just then, the Buddha gives one of his cosmically radiant smiles. When Ānanda asks what the smile means, the Buddha prophesies Candrottarā’s future lives and eventual complete awakening as a buddha. When she hears this prophecy, Candrottarā is overjoyed, and rises into the sky to the height of seven palm trees. There, she transforms her female form into that of a boy, who, when he descends, touches the Buddha’s feet and requests to go forth as a renunciant in the Buddha’s dispensation. After the child’s parents give their consent for this, the sūtra concludes with the boy’s verses of praise for the Blessed One.
The Prophecy of the Girl Candrottarā is among a group of Great Vehicle sūtras in which daughters of powerful or wealthy laymen are presented as highly realized and eloquent beings who receive prophecies of future awakening from the Buddha. Several of these sūtras feature the daughters of kings. Both Aśokadattā’s Prophecy (Toh 76) and The Questions of Vimalaprabhā (Toh 168) center on daughters of King Ajātaśatru. The daughters of King Prasenajit are the main 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). A point made in many of these discourses, including this one, is that there is no distinction of gender in emptiness. Nevertheless, reflecting the monastic milieu of these Great Vehicle texts, the predictions in each case include the female protagonist transforming into a male form at some stage on the journey to complete awakening.
There is no extant Sanskrit for the entirety of The Prophecy of the Girl Candrottarā, though a fragment of a Sanskrit manuscript dating from circa 500
The Chinese translation of the Candrottarādārikāvyākaraṇa/Candrottarādārikāparipṛcchā was made in 591
The colophon to the Tibetan translation, as found in the various Kangyur recensions, does not explicitly name a translator but says that it was edited and finalized by Jinamitra and Yeshe Dé, perhaps indicating that these translators revised an earlier translation. It is listed in both the Phangthangma and Denkarma imperial-era catalogs of translated texts compiled in the early ninth century. Butön Rinchen Drup, in his fourteenth century History of Buddhism, attributes the translation directly to Yeshé Dé.
This English translation is based on the Tibetan as found in the Degé Kangyur, in consultation with the variant readings listed in the Comparative Edition (dpe bsdur ma) and the Stok Palace Kangyur. Where variant readings other than the Degé have been preferred, this has been recorded in the notes. To our knowledge, this is the first full English translation of the sūtra from Tibetan.
Homage to all buddhas and bodhisattvas.
Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was residing at Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest at Vaiśālī. He was staying there with a large saṅgha of monks, which consisted of five hundred worthy ones. All of them had thoroughbred minds, had done what they needed to do, and had accomplished their work, put down their burdens, fulfilled their own purpose, completely exhausted the bonds of mundane existence, thoroughly liberated their minds through correct understanding, and reached the sublime perfection of all mental powers.
There were also eight thousand bodhisattvas who were renowned for their knowledge, and who had attained recollection and unhindered eloquence, meditative absorption, and acceptance toward phenomena as nonarising. They were endowed with the five superknowledges, had unobstructed speech, were not hypocritical, and lacked flattery. Their intention was free of desire for selfish profit and they taught the Dharma without regard for worldly things. They had reached the perfection of patience toward the profound Dharma, were endowed with fearlessness, had completely transcended the activities of Māra, had abandoned karmic obscurations, and were without doubts concerning the nature of phenomena. With their aspiration fully formed over countless hundreds of thousands of myriad eons, they were skilled at speaking in melodious verse with a smiling countenance and without frowning. Their minds were not overwhelmed, they had an uninterrupted eloquence, and they had attained acceptance toward the equality of phenomena. They outshone the limitless audience in attendance with their great fearlessness.
They were skilled in the wisdom that with a single word teaches for a hundred thousand myriad eons. They had conviction that every phenomenon that arises in the past, future, and present is like an illusion, a mirage, the moon in water, a dream, a reflection, and an echo—that it is empty, signless, wishless, void, unfluctuating, and ungraspable, like the nature of space. They were skilled in immeasurable insight and wisdom, and skilled in knowing the functioning of the minds of all sentient beings. They were skilled at teaching the Dharma in accordance with the inclinations of sentient beings. Their unobstructed minds were free from craving for phenomena. They had acceptance that was free from secondary afflictions. They were skilled in knowing phenomena as they are. They were thoroughly immersed in the full range of qualities of limitless buddha fields. They could always and continuously realize the meditative absorption that recollects the Buddha. They were skilled in knowing the supplications to limitless buddhas. They were skilled in abandoning obsessions, views, afflictions, and latent impulses. By means of every meditative stabilization and meditative absorption they had fully mastered the one-pointed superknowledges.
Among those eight thousand bodhisattvas were the bodhisattva great beings Mañjuśrī Kumārabhūta, Avalokiteśvara, Mahāsthāmaprāpta, Durabhisambhava, Gandhahastin, Anikṣiptadhura, Sūryagarbha, Dhāraṇīśvararāja, Emitting the Light of Incense, Sound of Thunder, King of Definite Golden Luster, Nārāyaṇa, Ratnapāṇi, Ratnamudrāhasta, Gaganagañja, Amśurāja, Priyadarśana, Liberator of Beings, Nityodyukta, Nityaprahasitapramuditendriya, Apāyajaha, Vanquishing Vajra State, Vanquishing the Three Worlds State, Vanquishing Unwavering State, Amoghadarśin, Śrīgarbha, Padmaśrī, Gajagandhahastin, Gambhīrapratibhāna, Mahāpratibhāna, Dharmodgata, Without Doubting the Nature of Phenomena, Moves with the Strength of a Lion, Removing All Fear, Sarvanīvaraṇaviṣkambhin, Loud Roar of the Great Lion, Inexpressible, Pratibhānakūṭa, and the bodhisattva great being Maitreya.
Then the kings and eminent persons, city and country folk, attendants, brahmins, kṣatriyas, and householders all paid their respects to the Blessed One. They revered him, worshiped him, and made offerings to him during his stay at Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest at the great city of Vaiśālī.
At that time, in the great city of Vaiśālī, there lived a Licchavī known as Vimalakīrti. He was rich and wealthy, an opulently wealthy and prosperous man, with many treasuries and storehouses. His wife, Vimalā, was beautiful, lovely to behold, with a full figure and good complexion. After nine months passed, she gave birth to a daughter with a fine body, beautiful, lovely to behold, with perfect limbs, fingers, and toes. As soon as this daughter was born, their entire home was suffused with a great light, and the earth trembled. Outside, the gutters above the doors dripped with ghee and oil, and those who were weak, defenseless, hungry, and impoverished were satisfied. In the great city of Vaiśālī, large drums, clay drums, gongs, cymbals, and tambourines all resounded without being struck, and a great rain of flowers came down. In the four corners of the house, four large treasure chests filled with a variety of precious gems appeared and then opened, shining light everywhere.
As soon as she was born, the girl neither wailed nor shed tears. Instead, she placed her ten fingers and palms together and spoke these verses:
Having spoken these verses, the girl said no more.
Due to the ripening of roots of virtue acquired during previous lives, her body appeared as if it was dressed in precious celestial garments, and from her body there radiated extraordinary golden-colored light that far surpassed the radiance of the moon. For that reason, her parents named her Candrottarā.
Then at that instant, that moment, that very second, it appeared to everyone as if the girl Candrottarā had already reached the age of eight, and wherever she stood, or walked, or sat, or took a rest, it was as if the ground beneath her was illuminated by a golden-colored light, a fragrance of the finest sandalwood rose from every pore of her body, and from her mouth came the scent of the blue utpala flower.
When merchants, householders, princes, and others from important families and high-ranking castes in the city of Vaiśālī heard about this girl Candrottarā’s physical form and her perfect complexion, their minds were ensnared by lustful desire, and they thought, “How good it would be if she were to become my wife.”
Whereupon a great number of men set about trying to obtain her.
Some among them made approaches to the Licchavī Vimalakīrti, staying close to him and venerating him. Some tried to rouse his interest by making gifts of jewels, gold, silver, diamonds, beryl, cat’s-eye, sapphire, conch, crystals, and coral, as abundant as grains of sand. Some showed off their wealth in cattle, grain, houses, luxuries, and food. Some showed their ferocity by killing, binding, and beating male and female slaves, workers, and laborers. Some threatened Vimalakīrti, saying, “If you do not give us the girl Candrottarā, then we will cause great suffering and will inflict great harm upon you.”
The Licchavī Vimalakīrti thought, “Right now, armed groups are on their way to arrest and overthrow me. They will surely kidnap my daughter and kill me too!” At this thought, he panicked and with his hair standing on end, was immobilized by fear. Losing his mindfulness, and intimidated by others, he wept in distress, staring without blinking at his daughter.
When the girl Candrottarā saw her father crying, his face covered in tears and ashamed, she asked him, “Father, why are you weeping and staring like this?”
The Licchavī Vimalakīrti replied to his daughter Candrottarā, “Daughter, do you not understand that you will be kidnapped, and that there will be fighting and conflict everywhere in this city on account of you? Because of you, there are armies approaching, and we will be destroyed. If I thought you wouldn’t be captured, I would not weep so.”
The girl Candrottarā then spoke to her father in verse:
After speaking these verses, the girl Candrottarā then told her parents, “Father, Mother, I request that bells be rung and that this be proclaimed on every road and at every crossroads and intersection: ‘In seven days from now, the girl Candrottarā will come out, and when she comes out, she will choose for herself whichever husband she wishes. You should prepare for this: decorate the roads, crossroads, and intersections in all directions with ornaments; sweep them and ritually cleanse them with flowers, incense, perfumes, garlands, and ointments.’ ”
Then both parents of Candrottarā came out from their home and announced, “Seven days from now, Candrottarā will come out, and when she comes out, our daughter will choose whichever husband she wishes. You should prepare for this: decorate the roads, crossroads, and intersections in all directions with ornaments; sweep them and ritually cleanse them with flowers, incense, perfumes, garlands, and ointments.” This they proclaimed to all.
Everyone heard it, and a great number of men in Vaiśālī then set about decorating every road, crossroad, and intersection accordingly, but each was scheming in his mind, “How can I, and no one else, win the girl Candrottarā?” So they competed with one another to beautify themselves. Merchants and householders, ministers, brahmins, and princes, all the way down to workers, washed themselves thoroughly, rubbed their bodies well, dressed in fine clothing, and adorned themselves with various kinds of jewelry. They told their servants, “Be attentive! If the girl Candrottarā looks like she will not come with us of her own accord, we will have to take her by force.”
And so, seven days passed, and a large crowd of men, enthralled and amazed, gathered to see the girl Candrottarā.
Then, on the sixth day, during the full moon, the girl Candrottarā took the full eight-branched purification vows. That night, just as people were going to sleep, she went to the roof of the mansion and sat down. Then, by the power of the Buddha, a lotus appeared in the right hand of the girl Candrottarā. It was beautiful to behold and radiated clear light. Its stalk was gold, its petals silver, its anthers beryl, its center emerald, and it had many hundreds of thousands of petals. In the middle of this lotus appeared the figure of a thus-gone one, the color of whose body was like gold, and blazed with splendor. He was fully adorned with the thirty-two marks of a great being and further by the eighty excellent marks. Seated in full lotus posture, light rays from the thus-gone one’s body illuminated the entire house, making everything clearly visible.
When the girl Candrottarā saw the lotus and saw the figure of the thus-gone one, she rejoiced with great delight. Elated, joyful, and happy, she spoke the following verses to that figure of the thus-gone one:
The figure of the thus-gone one then spoke these verses to Candrottarā:
The girl Candrottarā replied to the figure of the thus-gone one in verse:
Then that figure of the thus-gone one replied to the girl Candrottarā in verse:
At this, the girl Candrottarā was delighted and she rejoiced. She was delighted, ecstatic, and joyful, and the sight of the thus-gone one made her thirst for more.
In response, she spoke these verses to the figure of the thus-gone one:
The emanation then said to her:
Then the girl Candrottarā, holding that very lotus with the figure of the thus-gone one seated upon it, descended from the roof of the mansion, went before her own father and mother, and spoke to her parents in the following verses:
At that time, on the seventh day, many hundreds of thousands of people gathered to see the girl Candrottarā. Among them, some had minds completely ensnared by lust, some just wanted to look at her, and some had the idea to decorate the entire great city of Vaiśālī with ornaments. Boys and girls also came out to watch from the platforms, gatehouses, pediments, windows, balustrades, and roofs of the manors and mansions.
The girl Candrottarā then emerged from her home, carrying the figure of the thus-gone one sitting on a lotus, accompanied by her parents and surrounded and escorted by a large retinue who carried flowers, incense, perfumes, garlands, ointments, powders, clothing, umbrellas, victory banners, and silk flags, and played a variety of cymbals and drums.
When the many hundreds of thousands of people saw her setting off toward the center of the city, they came running, thinking, “I must catch her!” At that very moment, just as a great crowd of men from the great city of Vaiśālī were rushing at her together, laughing and shouting, “Ha, ha! Come here! Come here!” the girl Candrottarā, at that very moment, seeing this large crowd of people running, and still holding in her hand the figure of the thus-gone one sitting upon the lotus, rose into the sky to the height of a palm tree, and remained there. Sitting there, she addressed that crowd of men in verse: