Fó shuō sì wúsuǒwèi jīng 佛說四無所畏經
The Buddha Speaks: The Sūtra of the Four Fearlessnesses (Skt. Catur-vaiśāradya-sūtra) translated by 施護 (Shīhù = Dānapāla, 譯)
About the work
T775 in one fascicle is a brief sūtra-translation by 施護 (Dānapāla, fl. 980–1017) at the Northern Sòng Translation Bureau in Kāifēng. The title 四無所畏 (sì wúsuǒwèi) translates Skt. catur-vaiśāradya — the four “fearlessnesses” or “self-confidences” of a Tathāgata — one of the standard abhidharma enumerations of the Buddha’s exclusive epistemic and ethical perfections.
Abstract
The four vaiśāradya of a buddha, as enumerated in the standard abhidharma tradition (cf. [[KR6n0023|Abhidharma-kośa]] book 7) and in the prajñāpāramitā and bodhisattva-piṭaka literature, are: (1) confidence in proclaiming full and perfect awakening — i.e. that he has attained complete bodhi and that no opponent can rightly contradict the claim; (2) confidence in proclaiming the destruction of all defilements — that all āsravas are extinguished in him; (3) confidence in teaching the path — that the path he expounds leads to the cessation of suffering for those who practise it; (4) confidence in teaching the obstacles — that the dharmas he identifies as obstacles to the path are indeed obstacles. The Buddha’s four vaiśāradya are paired in scholastic literature with the daśa-bala (ten powers — see KR6i0479 and KR6i0480) as the basic enumeration of the exclusive properties of buddhahood.
Dānapāla’s brief Chinese rendering is a free-standing exposition of the catur-vaiśāradya doctrine in sūtra-frame, suitable for recitation and study. The vaiśāradya doctrine is given fuller treatment in the [[KR6q0019|Mahā-prajñā-pāramitā-śāstra (T1509)]] of Nāgārjuna and in the [[KR6q0006|Daśabhūmika-vyākhyāna]] of Vasubandhu; the Sòng Bureau’s stand-alone sūtra-translation provides Chinese audiences with the doctrine in its short narrative form.
Translations and research
- La Vallée Poussin, Louis de, trans. L’Abhidharmakośa de Vasubandhu. 6 vols. Paris/Brussels, 1923–1931. (Treatment of the catur-vaiśāradya in book 7.)
- Lamotte, Étienne, trans. Le Traité de la grande vertu de sagesse de Nāgārjuna (Mahāprajñāpāramitāśāstra). 5 vols. Louvain, 1944–1980. (Detailed exposition.)
Links
- CBETA online T0775
- Dazangthings source 1 — Dazangthings date evidence (1000): [ T ] 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.
- Kanseki DB
- 施護 DILA