Fóshuō Sūnduōyézhì jīng 佛說孫多耶致經

Sūtra of [the Brahmin] Sundarī(ka)bhāradvāja translated by 支謙 (Zhī Qiān, 譯)

About the work

The Fóshuō Sūnduōyézhì jīng (T582) is a one-fascicle short sūtra translated by Zhī Qiān 支謙 (支謙). Sūnduōyézhì 孫多耶致 transcribes the Indic name Sundarika(bhāradvāja) — the brahmin known from the Pāli Sundarikabhāradvāja-sutta (SN 7.9 / Sn 3.4), who debates with the Buddha over the value of ritual bathing in sacred rivers.

Prefaces

The text opens with the canonical formula.

Abstract

A short Saṃyukta-āgama / Sutta-nipāta-type narrative on the futility of bathing in sacred rivers as a means of purification. Datable to Zhī Qiān’s Wú-period activity (222–252 CE). Counterparts: Pāli Sundarikabhāradvāja-sutta (Sn 3.4) and Saṃyukta-āgama parallels.

Translations and research

  • Nattier, Jan. A Guide to the Earliest Chinese Buddhist Translations. Tokyo: IRIAB, 2008.
  • Norman, K. R. The Group of Discourses (Sutta-nipāta). PTS, 1992 — Pāli parallel.
  • CBETA T14n0582
  • Kanseki DB
  • 支謙 DILA
  • Dazangthings date evidence (245, 250) — T = CBETA [Chinese Buddhist Electronic Text Association]. Taishō shinshū daizōkyō 大正新脩大藏經. Edited by Takakusu Junjirō 高楠順次郎 and Watanabe Kaigyoku 渡邊海旭. Tokyo: Taishō shinshū daizōkyō kankōkai/Daizō shuppan, 1924-1932. CBReader v 5.0, 2014.