Fóshuō bā yáng shénzhòu jīng 佛說八陽神呪經
Sūtra of the Divine Dhāraṇī of the Eight Luminous Ones by 竺法護 Zhú Fǎhù (Dharmarakṣa, 譯)
About the work
The Bā yáng shénzhòu jīng is a single-fascicle protective sūtra in which the Buddha, addressing Śāriputra at Rājagṛha’s Vulture Peak, enumerates eight auspicious Tathāgatas in the eight directions, each at progressively greater cosmic distances. The structure and content are closely parallel to Fóshuō bā jíxiáng shénzhòu jīng 佛說八吉祥神呪經 (KR6i0003, T14n0427), 支謙 Zhī Qiān’s translation of the same or a closely related original) and the related group T427–T431 in the Taishō. The translator colophon identifies 竺法護 of the Western Jìn (西晉月氏三藏竺法護譯). “八陽” (Eight Luminous / Eight Yáng-Principle Ones) may represent a slightly different rendition of the same Sanskrit term for the eight auspicious directional Buddhas as “八吉祥” in T427.
Prefaces
No separate preface survives. The body opens: 聞如是，一時佛在王舍城靈鳥山中… The Taishō notes cross-references with T427, T429–T431.
Abstract
The Bā yáng shénzhòu jīng is one of five parallel Chinese translations (T427–T431) of a short “eight directional Buddhas” protective text, here rendered by 竺法護 (ca. 239–316 CE) during the Western Jìn period. The term bā yáng 八陽 (eight yáng-principle / eight luminous) as a rendering of the Indic concept of eight auspicious directional Buddhas is unusual and may reflect his tendency toward Daoist-tinged calque terminology, a feature well documented in his other translations. The text enumerates the eight Buddhas in order from east (one Ganges-sand-distance away) through the eight directions, each with a distinctive epithet and world-name. Its function is clearly protective and devotional: hearing and memorizing the Buddha-names is said to confer merit and ward off harm.
The relationship between this translation and T427 (支謙’s slightly earlier Wú version of the same content) illustrates the common phenomenon of repeated translation of popular short texts in Chinese Buddhism: different translators, different terminological choices, but substantively similar content.
Translations and research
No substantial secondary literature located on this specific text.