Qǐng guānyīn jīng shū 請觀音經疏
Commentary on the Qǐng guānyīn jīng (Sūtra of Inviting Avalokitêśvara) by 智顗 (說), 灌頂 (記)
About the work
A one-fascicle (1卷) commentary on the Qǐng guānshìyīn púsà xiāofú dúhài tuóluóní zhòujīng 請觀世音菩薩消伏毒害陀羅尼呪經 (KR6d0288 = T20n1043) by Tiāntái Zhìyǐ 智顗 智顗 (538–597), recorded (jì 記) by his disciple Zhāng’ān Guàndǐng 章安灌頂 灌頂 (561–632). Preserved as T39 no. 1800 in the Taishō, 2 in the Northern Yǒnglè canon / Jiāxīng zàng circulation. The Qǐng guānyīn jīng (T20 n1043) is one of the canonical Tiāntái-school texts of Avalokiteśvara devotional practice, and Zhìyǐ’s commentary establishes its place within the Tiāntái doctrinal scheme.
Abstract
The Shū unfolds the sūtra’s title and content under Zhìyǐ’s standard Tiāntái scheme of rén 人 / fǎ 法 (person and method): the “person” is Avalokiteśvara (with tōngbié 通別 — generic and specific — aspects); the “method” is the dhāraṇī. Each is then unfolded under further sub-distinctions (yòng 用 / tǐ 體, néng 能 / suǒ 所), and the whole apparatus is read through the Tiāntái sānguān 三觀 method. The commentary is one of the foundational sources for Tiāntái Avalokiteśvara devotional practice, particularly for the xiāofú dúhài 消伏毒害 (“dissolving and conquering toxic harms”) liturgy associated with the dhāraṇī. The Shū circulated widely in the Tiāntái lineage before falling into relative obscurity, until Gūshān Zhìyuán 孤山智圓 智圓 (976–1022) revived it by composing his Chǎnyì chāo (KR6j0730). Composition: late sixth century, before Zhìyǐ’s death in 597.
Translations and research
- Stevenson, Daniel B., “The T’ien-t’ai Four Forms of Samādhi and Late North-South Dynasties, Sui, and Early T’ang Buddhist Devotionalism” (PhD diss., Columbia, 1987) — discusses the Qǐng guānyīn in the context of Tiāntái sìzhǒng sānmèi practice.
- Donner, Neal & Stevenson, Daniel B., The Great Calming and Contemplation: A Study and Annotated Translation of the First Chapter of Chih-i’s Mo-ho chih-kuan (Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1993) — places Zhìyǐ’s commentarial enterprise in context.
Links
- CBETA
- DILA author authority (智顗)
- DILA author authority (灌頂)
- Kanseki DB
- Dazangthings date evidence (590, 620): [T] = CBETA 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. https://dazangthings.nz/cbc/source/1/