Fó shuō Dàjíxiáng tuóluóní jīng 佛說大吉祥陀羅尼經
Sūtra of the Dhāraṇī of Mahā-śrī (Great Auspiciousness)
by 法賢 (譯)
About the work
A short single-juan dhāraṇī-sūtra translated at the Sòng 譯經院 by 法賢 Fǎxián. CANWWW restores two alternative Sanskrit titles: Kāruṇikāryajambhalajalendrasuśaṅkaranāmadhāraṇī and Maṇibhadradhāraṇī(sūtra) — the second being the more compact form, and reflecting the South-Asian Maṇibhadra/Jambhala wealth-cult substrate visible in the spell’s content.
Abstract
The setting is the Pure Land of Sukhāvatī (蘇珂嚩帝佛剎 Sūkhā-vatī). Avalokiteśvara (觀自在菩薩) and a Mahā-śrī bodhisattva (大吉祥菩薩, “Great Auspiciousness”) are present. The Buddha addresses Avalokiteśvara, declaring that Mahā-śrī possesses a dhāraṇī by which, in the polluted world of Jambudvīpa, monks, nuns, lay-men, and lay-women who hear, recite, and reflect upon it will attain great wealth and beloved by all bhūta-beings. At Avalokiteśvara’s request the Buddha pronounces it: tadyathā lakṣmīśrīpadme vāhini dhana-adhipati gauri mahā-yaśe padmaniṭri mahā-niyote anaśca-anāye ratnaprabhā mahā-śrī bhayatīna gṛṇi gṛṇi sarvārthakari-śmi dhini dhini sisi sisi… etc. The mantra is a paradigm of the Mahā-śrī / Lakṣmī / Maṇibhadra class — invoking goddesses of wealth and protection, suppressing all malign forces, and securing the welfare of the reciter.
The text belongs to the dhāraṇī-corpus produced by Fǎxián at the Kāifēng 譯經院, c. 982–1000. Recorded in the Dà-zhōng-xiángfú fǎbǎo lù; Nanjio N0907.
Translations and research
For the broader Maṇibhadra/Jambhala / Mahā-śrī cult tradition see:
- Bhattacharyya, Benoytosh. The Indian Buddhist Iconography. 2nd ed., Calcutta: Firma K.L. Mukhopadhyay, 1958.
- Birnbaum, Raoul. “Studies on the Mysteries of Mañjuśrī,” Society for the Study of Chinese Religions Monograph 2 (1983).