Ajay Kumar at 06:30, 9 August 2023

2023-08-09T06:30:14Z

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The '''''Ghanavyūha sūtra''''' ([[Sanskrit]], ''Dense Array Sūtra''), also called the ''Mahāyāna Secret Adornment Sūtra'' ([[Chinese language|Chinese]]: 大乘密嚴經, ''Dà chéng mì yán jīng'') is a [[Mahayana sutras|Mahāyāna Sūtra]] which is an important scriptural source for Indian [[Yogachara|Yogācāra]] and [[Buddha-nature|tathāgatagarbha]] thought.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ghanavyūhasūtra - Buddha-Nature |url=https://buddhanature.tsadra.org/index.php/Texts/Ghanavy%C5%ABhas%C5%ABtra |access-date=2023-08-07 |website=buddhanature.tsadra.org}}</ref>

The Sanskrit source text is no longer extant. The sutra survives in two Chinese translations, one ([[Taishō Tripiṭaka|Taishō]] no. 681) by the Indian translator [[Divākara]] (613-687) assisted by Fazang, and one by [[Vajracharya|Vajrācārya]] [[Amoghavajra]] (Taishō no. 682).<ref name=":0">Hamar, Imre (2014). ''[http://real-d.mtak.hu/784/7/dc_915_14_doktori_mu.pdf The Buddhāvataṃ saka-sūtra and Its Chinese Interpretation: The Huayan Understanding of the Concepts of Ālayavijñāna and Tathāgatagarbha],'' p. 149</ref><ref name=":1" /> A Tibetan translation also survives as part of the [[Kangyur|Kanjur]] (Derge Kanjur no. 110) and it is titled ''<nowiki/>'phags pa rgyan stug po bkod pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po'i mdo'' (Skt. ''Ārya ghanavyūha nāma mahāyāna sūtra'').<ref name=":1">Brunnholzl, Karl (2014). ''When the Clouds Part, The Uttaratantra and Its Meditative Tradition as a Bridge between Sutra and Tantra,'' pp. 38-41. Boston & London: Snow Lion.</ref>

== Content ==
[[File:Taizokai.jpg|thumb|The [[Womb Realm|Garbhadhatu]] Mandala depicts the buddhafield of [[Vairocana]] in [[Chinese Esoteric Buddhism]] and [[Shingon Buddhism|Shingon]] Buddhism.]]
The sutra recounts a discourse between [[The Buddha|Śākyamuni Buddha]] and a bodhisattva named [[Vajra]]-garbha (whose name is a synonym for the [[Buddha-nature|Tathāgatagarbha]]) which takes place in [[Akaniṣṭha|Ghanavyūha]] (Dense Array or Secret Adornment), the [[Pure land|buddhafield]] of [[Vairocana]]''.''<ref name=":1" /> The themes of this discourse are similar to the themes found in the ''[[Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra|Laṅkāvatāra sūtra]],'' and include: the Yogācāra [[Yogachara|three natures]] doctrine, the [[Buddha-nature|tathāgatagarbha]] (also called nirvāṇadhātu or [[Dharmadhatu|dharmadhātu]] in this sutra), the [[Eight Consciousnesses|ālayavijñāna]] (storehouse consciousness), and the eternal nature of the [[Buddhahood|Buddha]]''.''<ref name=":1" /> Just like the ''Laṅkāvatāra sūtra,'' the ''Ghanavyūha'' sutra presents teachings on the [[Śūnyatā|emptiness]] of all phenomena and also on how all phenomena arise from mind.

According to the ''Ghanavyūha,'' the [[Tathāgata|Tathagata]] (i.e. the Buddha, equated with nirvāṇadhātu and [[Dharmadhatu|dharmadhātu]]) is unchanging, unable to be destroyed or extinguished, and is comparable to space (''[[Akasha|ākāśa]]''). The ''Ghanavyūha'' states that the Buddha is all pervasive and compares the Buddha's [[omnipresence]] to the moon's reflection which pervades all bodies of water.<ref name=":2" /> The ''Ghanavyūha'' also rejects the view that [[Nirvana (Buddhism)|nirvāṇa]] is a kind of annihilation or destruction (like a lamp which goes out), since buddha-nature is that which is [[Anutpada|unborn]] and [[Amrita|undying]].<ref>[https://ntireader.org/taisho/t0681_01.html ''Ghanavyūhasūtra'' (Dasheng Mi Yan Jing) 大乘密嚴經], Scroll 1, section [0727a22], NTI Reader.</ref>

The ''Ghanavyūha'' says that Buddha's presence is always guiding sentient beings according to their needs through numerous skillful means ([[upaya]]).<ref name=":2">[https://ntireader.org/taisho/t0681_01.html ''Ghanavyūhasūtra'' (Dasheng Mi Yan Jing) 大乘密嚴經], Scroll 1, section [0724c07], NTI Reader.</ref> The skillful means of the Buddhas include numerous magical transformations ([[Nirmāṇakāya|nirmanas]]). He may appear as a normal being in the world, as a [[Deva (Buddhism)|deva]], as [[Vajrapani]], or as [[Shiva|Mahesvara]].<ref name=":3">[https://ntireader.org/taisho/t0681_01.html ''Ghanavyūhasūtra'' (Dasheng Mi Yan Jing) 大乘密嚴經], Scroll 2, NTI Reader.</ref> The Buddha is compared to a gem which reflects many kinds of images and he is also compared to a sea captain who drives a ship.<ref name="ntireader.org">[https://ntireader.org/taisho/t0681_01.html ''Ghanavyūhasūtra'' (Dasheng Mi Yan Jing) 大乘密嚴經], Scroll 1, section [0725a05], NTI Reader.</ref> The numerous transformations of the Buddha include all worlds, which are said to be contained in the Buddha's body.<ref name="ntireader.org"/> According to the ''Ghanavyūha,'' the Buddhas also teach numerous scriptures as skillful means, including non-Buddhist scriptures like the [[Arthashastra|''Arthaśāstra'']] and the three [[Vedas]].<ref>[https://ntireader.org/taisho/t0681_01.html ''Ghanavyūhasūtra'' (Dasheng Mi Yan Jing) 大乘密嚴經], Scroll 1, section [0724c07], NTI Reader. [ 種種眾智法，王論三毘陀，悉是諸如來，定力持而說。] "Various types of wise dharmas, the Arthaśāstra and the Three Vedas, are taught by tathāgatas, through the sustaining power of their dhyānas."</ref>

Like the ''Laṅkāvatāra sūtra,'' the ''Ghanavyūha'' associates the doctrines of the storehouse consciousness and the [[Buddha-nature|tathāgatagarbha]]. It states that the storehouse consciousness has two aspects, a pure consciousness and a defiled consciousness. The pure part of the storehouse consciousness, the [[Luminous mind|naturally luminous mind]], is said to be a synonym for the tathāgatagarbha which is "luminous and always pure", while the defiled consciousness is what hides or conceals the pure aspect''.''<ref name=":1" />
[[file:Gold ore (Camp Bird Vein, Tertiary; Camp Bird Mine, San Juan Mountains, Colorado, USA) 1.jpg|thumb|The relationship between buddha-nature and the storehouse consciousness is compared to that of rock and [[gold]] in [[Gold extraction|gold ore]].]]
The ''Ghanavyūha'' uses the simile of the gold covered by rocks to explain this relationship:<blockquote>O king, the mind is inconceivable, always being naturally luminous. It is the tathāgatagarbha, which abides like gold in rocks.<ref name=":1" /> </blockquote>The sutra also states that even though the storehouse consciousness has a pure aspect, this is not seen until the consciousness is purified through [[Samadhi|samādhi]]. This is compared to how gold does not shine inside gold ore until it is cleansed of the surrounding rock.<ref name=":1" /> Another simile compares the pure consciousness to [[butter]], which only appears when the milk is [[Churned buttermilk|churned]].<ref name=":1" />

The ''Ghanavyūha'' also compares the tathāgatagarbha with the [[moon]], which seems to wane and to arise from the perspective of ignorant beings, but the moon itself does not truly arise or wane''.''<ref name=":1" /> The sutra also equates the tathāgatagarbha with the perfected nature (one of Yogācāra "three natures")''.<ref name=":1" />''

According to the ''Ghanavyūha,'' the storehouse consciousness which abides in the body of sentient beings, is the cause of both the defiled things of [[Saṃsāra|samsara]] and of all pure phenomena, like the meditations of noble beings and the buddhafields''.''<ref name=":1" /> Likewise, it is because of the pure stainless storehouse consciousness that bodhisattvas will become Buddhas''.''<ref name=":1" />

Also like the ''Laṅkāvatāra,'' the ''Ghanavyūha'' states that the realization of the Buddha transcends all language and is free of all discriminating thought.<ref name="ntireader.org"/>

The sutra also discusses the nature of Ghanavyūha, the pure buddhafield of [[Vairocana]]. It states that through following virtuous teachers, hearing and contemplating the Dharma and letting go of all concepts and craving, beings can be reborn there, achieve enlightenment, and manifest in countless ways to help all beings.<ref name=":3" />

== Influence ==
{{MahayanaBuddhism}}

The sutra was known to Indian authors like [[Bhāviveka|Bhaviveka]] (c. 6th century), who saw it as one of the [[Yogachara|Yogacara]] sutras which were not of definitive meaning, but were only provisional (neyartha).<ref>Harris, Ian Charles (1991). ''The Continuity of Madhyamaka and Yogācāra in Indian Mahāyāna Buddhism,'' p. 78''.'' BRILL.</ref>

In [[Chinese Buddhism]], the sutra was important to the [[Huayan|Huayan school]]. The Huayan patriarch [[Fazang]] wrote a commentary on it, the ''Dasheng miyan jing shu'' (大乘密嚴經疏, no. X368 in the supplement to the Taishō canon, ''Xu zang jing'' 續藏經 vol. 34).<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |title=X0368 大乘密嚴經疏 - CBETA 線上閱讀 |url=https://cbetaonline.dila.edu.tw/en/X0368_002 |access-date=2023-08-07 |website=cbetaonline.dila.edu.tw}}</ref> He also assisted in the first translation of the text into Chinese.<ref>Hamar, Imre. ''Reflecting Mirrors: Perspectives on Huayan Buddhism'', p. 88. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, 2007
</ref> According to Fazang's doctrinal classification system, the ''Ghanavyūha'' belongs to the highest class of scriptures, those related to "the dependent arising out of the tathāgatagarbha" , a class of texts which also includes the [[Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra|''Laṅkāvatāra'']] and the ''[[Awakening of Faith in the Mahayana|Awakening of Faith]]''.<ref>Jorgensen, et al. (2019) ''Treatise on Awakening Mahayana Faith,'' p. 46. Oxford University Press.</ref>

The Chan and Huayan patriarch [[Guifeng Zongmi|Zongmi]] also cites the ''Ghanavyūha'' along with the ''[[Buddhāvataṃsaka Sūtra|Avataṃsaka Sūtra]],'' the ''Sutra of Perfected Enlightenment'' and the ''[[Śrīmālādevī Siṃhanāda Sūtra|Śrīmālādevī]]'' as scriptures which expound the teaching of [[sudden awakening]], which Zongmi saw as being equivalent to the highest form of [[Chan Buddhism|Chan]] ([[Zen]]).<ref>Gregory, Peter N. (2002). ''Tsung-mi and the Sinification of Buddhism'', p. 150. University of Hawaii Press.</ref> The ''Ghanavyūha sūtra'' was also cited by the 8th century Chan monk [[Moheyan|Heshang Moheyan]] in defense of his "sudden awakening" doctrine.<ref>Gómez, Luis. "Purifying Gold: The Metaphor of Effort and Intuition in Buddhist Thought and Practice." In ''Sudden and Gradual: Approaches to Enlightenment in Chinese Thought'', edited by Peter N. Gregory, 67–165. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1991. First published 1987 by University of Hawai'i Press.</ref>

In [[Tibetan Buddhism]], the ''Ghanavyūha sūtra'' is classified as one of the "Tathāgatagarbha sūtras of definitive meaning" (''nges don snying po'i mdo'') and it is cited by Tibetan traditions which rely on these teachings, such as [[Jonang]], [[Kagyu]] and [[Nyingma]]. The ''Ghanavyūha sūtra'' was an important source for the Jonang school and it was considered by Jonang scholars like [[Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen|Dolpopa]] and [[Taranatha]] as one of the "sutras of definitive meaning".<ref name=":4">Brunnhölzl, Karl (2015). ''When the Clouds Part: The Uttaratantra and Its Meditative Tradition as a Bridge between Sutra and Tantra'', pp. 4-8. Shambhala Publications.</ref> Likewise, the sutra was cited by the [[Jonang]] scholar Blo bzang mchog grub rgya mtsho (1880-1940) and by the Kagyu scholar [[Jamgon Kongtrul]] as a definitive sutra of [[Three Turnings of the Wheel of Dharma|the final dharma-wheel]].<ref>Mathes, Klaus-Dieter. 'Blo bzang mchog grub rgya mtsho, the Dge bshes of Dza 'go (A mdo): A Jo nang Scholar Trained in the Dge lugs Tradition', In: ''Nonsectarianism (ris med) in 19th- and 20th-Century Eastern Tibet,'' pp. 165–200. DOI: <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004466364_009</nowiki> </ref><ref name=":4" /> It is also cited by the Nyingma scholar [[Dudjom Jigdral Yeshe Dorje]].<ref>See: [[Dudjom Jigdral Yeshe Dorje|Dudjom Rinpoche]] (2002), ''The Nyingma School of Tibetan Buddhism'', pp. 154, 161, 413. Simon and Schuster.</ref>

Scenes from the ''Ghanavyūha sūtra'' are depicted in cave shrine murals around [[Dunhuang]], indicating its importance for [[Buddhism in Central Asia|Central Asian Buddhism]].<ref>Zhang, Zong, 'Buddhist Arts: A Survey of Sites, Paintings, and Iconography', in Lagerwey and Marsone (ed.) (2014). ''Modern Chinese Religion I'' (2 vols.): Song-Liao-Jin-Yuan (960-1368 AD), BRILL.</ref>

==References==
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[[Category:Mahayana sutras]]
[[Category:Vaipulya sutras]]
[[Category:Yogacara]]
[[Category:Buddha-nature]]

Ghanavyūha Sūtra - Revision history

Ajay Kumar at 06:30, 9 August 2023