Sānjiè Tú 三界圖
Diagram of the Three Realms
About the work
The Sānjiè Tú 三界圖 (CBETA T85n2840) is an anonymous, undated 1-juan Abhidharma schematic document presenting in tabular form the distribution of afflictions (kleśa 煩惱) across the three realms of existence (sān jiè 三界: 欲界, 色界, 無色界) and their elimination through the sixteen-moment path of insight (jiàndào 見道) and through cultivation (xiūdào 修道). The text appears in Taisho Vol. 85, which collects Dunhuang manuscripts and fragmentary texts; no author or date attribution is given. The CBETA edition is the sole witness.
Prefaces
No preface. The text opens directly with the tabular presentation of afflictions by realm.
Abstract
The Sānjiè Tú presents the canonical Sarvāstivāda account of the 98 latent afflictions (anuśaya 九十八隨眠), tabulated by realm and truth-category in grid form. The three realms (欲界, 色界, 無色界) each carry their respective sets of anuśaya across the five categories associated with the Four Noble Truths and a final category of cultivation-eliminated afflictions, producing:
- 欲界: 32 anuśaya eliminated by insight (jiàn duàn 見斷) + 4 eliminated by cultivation (xiū duàn 修斷)
- 色界: 28 anuśaya eliminated by insight + 3 by cultivation
- 無色界: same as 色界
Total: 98. Following the table, a prose section explains the sixteen-ākāra (行相) contemplations of the Four Noble Truths and the path of knowledge that eliminates them (sixteen moments: dharmajñāna-kṣānti, dharmajñāna, etc. for each of the four truths and their counterparts). The text ends with a placeholder <img:> marking the location of an actual diagram (now lost from the CBETA digitization).
This schema is a fundamental tool of Kōsha-based Abhidharma pedagogy, derived from the Abhidharmakośa chapter 5 (分別隨眠品, KR6l0023). Its format — a simple reference chart rather than a discursive commentary — suggests it functioned as a teaching aid or mnemonic diagram (圖) for students. The T85 context (Dunhuang manuscripts) places its likely origin in the 7th–9th centuries CE.
Translations and research
- No substantial secondary literature on this specific text located.
Links
- CBETA Online
- Taisho Vol. 85, No. 2840
- Kanseki DB