Fóshuō Miàojíxiáng zuìshèng gēnběn dàjiào jīng 佛說妙吉祥最勝根本大教經
Sūtra of the Most-Excellent Root-Great-Teaching of Mañjuśrī, Spoken by the Buddha by 法賢 (Fǎxián, 譯)
About the work
A three-fascicle Sòng-period Mañjuśrī Esoteric scripture translated by Fǎxián (法賢, d. 1000), structured around the Yánmándéjiā (焰鬘得迦 = Yamāntaka) wrathful-protector cycle. Colophon: 西天譯經三藏朝散大夫試光祿卿明教大師臣法賢奉詔譯. The text uses the alternate transcription 焰鬘得迦 for Yamāntaka (whereas the Táng texts T1214–T1216 use 閻曼德迦).
Abstract
Structured into chapters, the first being 焰鬘得迦忿怒明王成就儀軌分第一 (“Section One: Accomplishment-Ritual Manual of the Yamāntaka Wrathful-Vidyārāja”). The opening verse: “Now the Mañjuśrī Bodhisattva…”
This Sòng-period three-fascicle manual is a more comprehensive treatment of the Yamāntaka cycle than the Táng one-fascicle texts. It presents:
- The doctrinal frame in which Mañjuśrī, as the bodhisattva of wisdom, manifests Yamāntaka as his wrathful aspect to subdue Yama (the Lord of Death) and through this subjugation deliver beings from the fear of death;
- The maṇḍala-architecture with detailed parivāra-deity arrangement;
- The mantra-and-mudrā cycles including root, heart, and abridged forms;
- The homa-rituals and post-rite dispersal procedures;
- The abhicāra application for the protection from premature death and demonic obstruction.
The text is doctrinally aligned with the Yoga-tantra / Anuttara-yoga-tantra transition in late-Indian Buddhism, of a piece with the contemporary Tibetan Vajrabhairava literature. Its three-fascicle scope makes it the most extensive Yamāntaka manual in the Chinese canon.
The dating bracket follows Fǎxián’s tenure at the Sòng Translation Institute (982–1000).
Translations and research
- Siklós, Bulcsu. The Vajrabhairava Tantras. Tring: Institute of Buddhist Studies, 1996.
Links
- CBETA T21n1217
- Kanseki DB
- 法賢 DILA
- Dazangthings date evidence (1001) — 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.