Mahaparinirvana Sutra

Categories: Mahayana sutras | Pure Land Buddhism

From Buddhist Encyclopedia

• Chinese :   大涅槃經

The Infinite Life Sutra, or Larger Pure Land Sutra, a Mahayana Buddhist text, is the primary text of Pure Land Buddhism. It is the longest of the three major texts or sūtras (traditional Chinese:三部經/simplified Chinese:三部经 sān bù jīng) of the Pure Land School of Buddhism (traditional Chinese:淨土宗/simplified Chinese:净土宗 jìngtǔ zōng). Also referred to as the Sukhāvatīvyūha-sūtra (sanskrit) and most commonly in Chinese in traditional Chinese as 無量壽經, or in simplified Chinese as 无量寿经 (wúliáng shòu jīng). Alternative readings of title include: Muryōju Kyō (Japanese), 무량수경 Muryangsu Gyeong (Korean) and vô lượng thọ kinh (Vietnamese).

Traditionally it is believed to have been translated twelve time from the original Sanskrit into Chinese from 147 to 713 CE. Of those, only five translations are extant in the Chinese Buddhist Canon (traditional Chinese:大藏經/simplified Chinese:大藏经, dàzàng jīng). There are also many historical commentaries on the text written in China, Japan and Korea.

The most well-known version is the two-fascicle 佛說無量壽經/佛说无量寿经 (fó shuō wúliáng shòu jīng), meaning "The Buddha speaks of Infinite Life Sutra". This translation is traditionally attributed to Saņghavarman (康僧鎧/康僧铠 kāng sēngkǎi), an Indian monk, in 252 CE at the White Horse Temple (白馬寺/白马寺 báimǎ sì) in Luoyang under the Kingdom of Wei (曹魏 cáo wèi) of the Three Kingdoms Period (三国 sānguó) in Chinese history. The common opinion now is that is was more likely a work of the Indian monk and translator Buddhabhadra (佛陀跋陀羅/佛陀跋陀罗 fótuóbátuóluó).

The earliest of the five translations is attributed to Zhī-qiān (支谦). He came from the Kushan kingdom (月氏國 yuèzhī guó) to Luoyang during the decline of the Han Dynasty (汉朝 hàn cháo) and translated between 223 and 253 CE. This translation is known most commonly as 大阿彌陀經/大阿弥陀(佛)经 (dà āmítuófó jīng), meaning "Larger Sutra of the Amitābha Buddha ". It has also been attributed to the earlier Han period translator Lokaksema (支谶 zhī chèn), also from the Kushan kingdom. He arrived in Luoyang 164 CE and translated works through 186 CE.

The sūtra begins as a discourse between the Buddha and Ānanda (阿難/阿难 Ānán), disciple and personal attendant to the Buddha. It goes on to relay the story of Dharmakara (法藏 Fǎzàng), a monk who renounced a life as a king to pursue enlightenment. He vowed to become a buddha to earn a land of bliss - the Pure Land (淨土/净土 jìngtǔ) - whose inhabitants would be assured a life of bliss until they earned entry into Nirvana (涅槃 nièpán). Through his efforts he attained this, becoming the Amitābha Buddha (阿彌陀佛/阿弥陀佛 Āmítuófó).

The sūtra describes in great detail this Land of Bliss and its inhabitants. It also details how sentient beings are able to attain rebirth into it. The text also provides a detailed account of the various levels and beings in the Mahayana Buddhist cosmology.

The sūtra also contains the Forty-eight vows (四十八願/四十八愿 sìshíbā yuàn) made by the Amitābha Buddha to save all sentient beings. The eighteenth vow is among the most important as it forms a basic tenet of the Pure Land school. This vow is most commonly known as 十念必生願/十念必生愿 (shí niàn bì shēng yuàn) because it states that if a sentient being makes even "ten recitations" (十念 shí niàn) of the Amitābha Buddha's name they will attain "certain rebirth" (必生 bì shēng) into the Pure Land.

External Links

• The Infinite Life Sutra, Part One - translation from Chinese by Hisao Inagaki
• The Infinite Life Sutra, Part Two - translation from Chinese by Hisao Inagaki
• 佛說無量壽經 - The Infinite Life Sutra in traditional Chinese. (Acrobat PDF file)

See also

• Amitabha Sutra (Smaller Pure Land Sutra)
• Mahayana sutraszh:無量壽經