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Avatamsaka Sutra
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The (; ) is one of the most influential Mahayana Sutras of East Asian Buddhism. The title is rendered in English as Flower Garland Sutra, Flower Adornment Sutra, or Flowers Ornament Scripture.
This text describes a cosmos of infinite realms upon realms, mutually containing each other. The vision expressed in this work was the foundation for the creation of the Huayan school of Chinese Buddhism, which was characterized by a philosophy of interpenetration.
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The (; ) is one of the most influential Mahayana Sutras of East Asian Buddhism. The title is rendered in English as Flower Garland Sutra, Flower Adornment Sutra, or Flowers Ornament Scripture.
This text describes a cosmos of infinite realms upon realms, mutually containing each other. The vision expressed in this work was the foundation for the creation of the Huayan school of Chinese Buddhism, which was characterized by a philosophy of interpenetration. Huayan is known as Kegon in Japan.
The sutra is also well known for its detailed description of the course of the bodhisattva's practice through ten stages.
History
The sutra was written in stages, beginning from at least 500 years after the death of the Buddha. Two full Chinese translations of the Avatamsaka Sutra were made. Fragmentary translation probably began in the 2nd century CE, and the famous Ten Stages Sutra, often treated as an individual scripture, was first translated in the 3rd century. The first complete Chinese version was completed by Buddhabhadra around 420, and the second by around 699. There is also a translation of the Gandavyuha by Prajña around 798. The second translation includes more sutras than the first, and the Tibetan translation, which is still later, includes even more. Scholars conclude that sutras were being added to the collection.
Format
The sutra, among the largest in the Buddhist canon, contains 40 chapters of somewhat disparate topics, though with some overarching themes:
- The interdependency of all phenomena (dharmas).
- The progression of the Buddhist path to full Enlightenment, or Buddhahood.
Two of the chapters serve as sutras in their own right, and have been cited in the writings of many Buddhists in East Asia.
The Twenty-Sixth Chapter: Ten Stages Sutra
Chapter 26, the Dasabhumika Sutra or Sutra of the Ten Stages details the ten stages, or bhumi, of development a bodhisattva must undergo to attain supreme enlightenment. The ten stages are also depicted in the Lankavatara Sutra. The sutra also touches on the subject of the development of the aspiration for Enlightenment.
The Final Chapter: The Gandavyuha Sutra
The last chapter of the Avatamsaka also circulates as a separate text known as the Gandavyuha Sutra. The Gandavyuha Sutra details the journey of the youth Sudhana, who undertakes a pilgrimage at the behest of the bodhisattva Manjushri. Sudhana will converse with 52 masters in his quest for enlightenment. The antepenultimate master of Sudhana's pilgrimage is Maitreya. It is here that Sudhana encounters The Tower of Maitreya, which along with Indra's net is one of the most startling metaphors for the infinite to emerge in the history of literature across cultures.
The penultimate master that Sudhana visits is the bodhisattva Manjushri. Thus, one of the grandest of pilgrimages approaches its conclusion by revisiting where it began. The Gandavyhua suggests that with a subtle shift of perspective we may come to see that the enlightenment that the pilgrim so fervently sought was not only with him at every stage of his journey, but before it began as well—that enlightenment is not something to be gained, but "something" the pilgrim never departed from.
The final master that Sudhana visits is the bodhisattva Samantabhadra, who teaches him that wisdom only exists for the sake of putting it into practice; that it is only good insofar as it benefits all living beings.
See also
Further reading
- The Flower Ornament Scripture : A Translation of the Avatamsaka Sutra by Thomas Cleary, ISBN 0-87773-940-4
External links
- from the Avatamsaka Sutra.
- (Avatamsaka Sutra, ch. 39)
- (Avatamsaka Sutra, ch. 11)
- (the Flower Adornment Sutra) with explanation
- (the Flower Adornment Sutra) - translation by Thomas Cleary
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