Wénshūshīlì wèn jīng 文殊師利問經
Sūtra of Mañjuśrī’s Questions translated by 僧伽婆羅 Sēngqiépóluó (Saṅghapāla, 譯)
About the work
The Wénshūshīlì wèn jīng (T468) is a two-fascicle Mahāyāna sūtra translated by the Liáng-era Funanese (扶南) monk Saṅghapāla 僧伽婆羅 (僧伽婆羅; ca. 460–524 CE) at the imperial Liáng translation institute at Jiànkāng under Emperor Wǔ. The text is a comprehensive Mañjuśrī compendium addressing topics from the Mahāparinirvāṇa-sūtra, doctrine of the anuttarā samyaksaṃbodhi, and Mahāyāna ethical-disciplinary concerns. It is structured into named chapters (品), opening with Xù pǐn dìyī 序品第一 (“Introduction Chapter”).
Prefaces
The text opens with the chapter heading and the standard rúshì wǒwén formula. The colophon names the translator “梁扶南三藏僧伽婆羅” (Saṅghapāla of Funan, Tripiṭaka master of the Liáng), with text-critical variants on the toponym (扶南/扶南國 / 沙門 / 三藏).
Abstract
Saṅghapāla was a Funanese (modern Cambodia) monk who came to Jiànkāng during the late Southern Qí or early Liáng. He worked at the Liáng translation institute under imperial patronage during 506–520 CE, producing major translations including the Vimuttimagga (Jiětuō dào lùn 解脫道論; T1648) and several avadāna-style sūtras. The Wénshū wèn jīng is one of his major Mañjuśrī corpus works.
The two-fascicle compendium addresses a wide range of topics through Mañjuśrī’s interrogation of the Buddha: Mahāyāna ethics, the doctrine of upāya (skillful means), the bodhisattva bhūmis, and the sectarian schism (nikāya-bheda) that produced the eighteen schools — the latter chapter is one of the most cited classical Chinese sources on the Indian sectarian schools. The text’s chapter on the abhīkṣṇa-saṃsmaraṇa of buddhas (持念佛) was used in Pure Land discussions.
Translations and research
- Bareau, André. Les sectes bouddhiques du petit véhicule. Paris: École française d’Extrême-Orient, 1955 — uses T468 for the doctrine of the eighteen sects.
- Lamotte, Étienne. Histoire du Bouddhisme indien. Louvain, 1958.
Other points of interest
The chapter on the eighteen nikāyas (sectarian schools) in T468 is one of the principal canonical Chinese sources for the Indian sectarian period (third century BCE to first century CE) and has been cited in nearly all modern Western historical reconstructions of Indian Buddhism.