Pí yē suō wèn jīng 毘耶娑問經

The Sūtra of the Inquiry of Vyāsa by 瞿曇般若流支 (Gautama Prajñāruci, 譯)

About the work

This 2-fascicle text by 瞿曇般若流支 Gautama Prajñāruci is a Mahāyāna sūtra featuring the legendary Indian sage Pí yē suō 毘耶娑 (Vyāsa, the redactor of the Mahābhārata and the Vedas) as the bodhisattva-inquirer. The Buddhist appropriation of Vyāsa as a Buddhist sage-figure is unusual and reflects the broader inter-religious dialogue between Buddhism and Brahmanical traditions in mid-first-millennium India.

Prefaces

No formal preface.

Abstract

The translation belongs to Prajñāruci’s Eastern-Wèi period (538 – 543 CE).

The Taishō text (T0354) is established on the standard apparatus.

Translations and research

  • No substantial Western-language translation located.