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尼拘陀梵志經

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Text ID
KR6a0011
Date
982–1017
Dynasty
宋

Níjūtuó fànzhì jīng 尼拘陀梵志經

Sūtra of the Brahmin-Ascetic Nyagrodha (the Udumbarika-sīhanāda-sūtra; parallel to Cháng Āhán sūtra 8, the Sǎntuónà jīng 散陀那經, and to Madhyama-āgama sūtra 104) by 施護 (Shīhù / Dānapāla, 等譯) et al.

About the work

The Níjūtuó fànzhì jīng is a two-fascicle Northern-Sòng translation of the Udumbarika-sīhanāda-sūtra, the Buddha’s “Lion’s Roar at the Udumbarikā Park,” in which Śākyamuni visits the great wandering ascetic Nigrodha (Nyagrodha, “Banyan-Tree”) at the park of Queen Udumbarikā outside Rājagṛha and refutes him on the proper conditions and goals of asceticism. The Taishō head-note marks T11 explicitly as a parallel to T1[8] (the Sǎntuónà jīng 散陀那經 of the Cháng Āhán) and to T26[104] of the Zhōng āhán (Madhyama-āgama sūtra 104, the Yōudānpó luó jīng 優曇婆邏經). The Pāli parallel is DN 25 Udumbarika-sīhanāda-sutta.

The text opens at the Veṇuvana Monastery (迦蘭陀竹林精舍) in Rājagṛha. The Buddha leaves the monastery to visit the wandering-ascetic park of Queen Udumbarikā (here named only by the place-name 烏曇娑梨女論議堂, “Hall of Disputation of Lady Udumbarikā”), where the ascetic-leader Nyagrodha 尼拘陀 holds court with three thousand fellow ascetics and a wealthy householder, Hé-hé 和合 (Sandhāna), as the Buddha’s lay-introducer. The body of the discourse is the Buddha’s exposition of the four “blights” (upaklesa) of asceticism — pride in austerity, ostentation, hypocrisy, and competitive recognition-seeking — and his contrasting account of the four “purities” of right asceticism, culminating in the jhānas and the deathless.

Prefaces

The text bears no preface or postface. The only paratext is the Sòng-court translator’s signature at the head: 「西天譯經三藏朝奉大夫試光祿卿傳法大師賜紫沙門臣施護等奉詔譯」 (cf. KR6a0008).

Abstract

T11 is one of Shīhù’s series of Sòng-Institute renderings of long discourses already represented in older Chinese versions through the Cháng āhán and Zhōng āhán. The defensible bracket for the translation is 982–1017 (Shīhù’s full Institute career, cf. KR6a0008 for the calculation), recorded in the frontmatter. The Indic source is presumed lost; comparative work suggests it represents an Indic recension distinct from those underlying the older Chinese versions.

The principal text-historical interest of T11 is its lexical and stylistic profile against T1[8] and T26[104]: the Sòng Institute’s preference for transparent renderings is visible (e.g. 和合 for Sandhāna; 圓寂 / 涅槃 for parinirvāṇa), and the doctrinal argument of the four upaklesa / four pārisuddhi of asceticism is articulated more systematically than in the older parallels. The discourse-frame of the “lion’s roar” (sīhanāda / 師子吼) — the Buddha’s confident self-assertion in the face of rival ascetic claims — is one of the standard rhetorical structures of the Dīgha-nikāya tradition; T11 preserves it and renders it into the polished Sòng register.

Translations and research

  • Walshe, Maurice, tr. The Long Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of the Dīgha Nikāya. Boston: Wisdom Publications, 1995. — DN 25 Udumbarika-sīhanāda-sutta with notes.
  • Anālayo, Bhikkhu. “Udumbarikā-sīhanāda-sutta and Its Chinese Parallels.” In Saṃyukta-āgama Studies, 167–192. Taipei: Dharma Drum, 2015. — Comparative study including T1[8], T11, T26[104].
  • Sen, Tansen. Buddhism, Diplomacy, and Trade: The Realignment of Sino-Indian Relations, 600–1400. Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press, 2003 / 2nd ed. 2016.

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