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The Dhammachai International Research Institute (DIRI) is a research institute that traces the roots of the Buddha’s teachings back to original manuscripts with the aim of finding true and clear evidence of early methods of the teaching and practice of Dhamma. The study and skill of genuine practice will help us obtain pure knowledge of Buddhism that has been passed down to mankind for the happiness and progression of life.
This journal will publish articles by members of DIRI as well as relevant papers by other scholars engaged in research into the field of Early Buddhism
DIRI was established in Australia and in New Zealand by the 60th Dhammachai Education Foundation of Australia and New Zealand in 2007 and 2009 respectively.
JDIRI Journal Volume 1ISBN 978-0-646-58571-0
© Copyright 2012, Dhammachai International Research Institute Inc.
FounderThe Most Venerable
Phrathepyanmahamuni(Luang Phaw Dhammajayo)
Advisory BoardVen. Dr. Monchai Mantagamo
Professor Sukanya SudbanthadDr. Edward Crangle
Dr. Chaisit SuwanvarangkulDr. Siriporn Sirikwanchai
Sanit Svekaghane
Editorial BoardPhrakrupaladnayokwarawat
(Sudhammo Bhikkhu)Professor Garry W. Trompf
Dr. Jeff WilsonDr. Elizabeth Guthrie
CoordinatorPhraThong Katatepo
PhraAkbordin PanyaratanoSaichonnanee Rassameepaithun
Creative & DesignChayuda Chapman
Satit KriengmahasakSupakij Nantarojanaporn
Pittaya Tisuthiwongse
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สมโมทนยกถา
พระเทพญาณมหามน ว.องคประธานผสถาปนา
The Most Venerable Phrathepyanmahamuni(Luang Phaw Dhammajayo)
Founder of DIRI,
President of the Dhammakaya Foundation
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The teaching of the Great Lord Enlightened Buddha is Dhamma, which is the truth that leads sentient beings to be salvaged from the suffering of life and the cycle of rebirth and also truly enable them to access peaceful happiness to the full. Dhamma is akāliko1, accessing the real teaching of the Buddha is, therefore, to access the entirety of humanity and other sentient beings in the hundred thousand koti2 universes - in the immeasurable cosmos.
1 akāliko, being beyond time2 koti: ten million, highest counting point
Homily
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Prefaceby Professor Garry W. Trompf
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Preface
Not a month goes by these days without another important article being published on some newly uncovered Buddhist text, and among the discoveries are ancient materials about Buddhist meditation. It is a matter for our admiration that Venerable Phrakrupaladnayokwarawat (Sudhammo Bhikkhu), such a gentle and generous instructor in Buddhist concentration, has kept abreast of these findings and encouraged scholars to explore their implications. This present volume no better illustrates his industriousness and inspiration, and I am honoured to commend its contributions to as wide as readership as possible. Since it is also offered as one way of celebrating the ordination anniversary of his superior Most Venerable Luang Phaw Dhammajayo, the president of the Dhammakaya Foundation, we can add support to the Ven. Sudhammo’s gift with thanks for the initiatives and generosity of the Foundation’s leader. For, through the Dhammachai International Research Institute (DIRI), many relevant academic units of scholarship throughout the world have been funded and valuable high-level conferences very pleasantly hosted.
Consensus has yet to be reached about the nature and meaning of meditation in the original teachings of the Buddha, and insufficient attention has been paid to the purpose and effects of meditative practice for a proper understanding of the Buddhist tradition. This is why the research activities of DIRI are so important, and why the International Samadhi Forums and the inauguration of the DIRI journal with this volume should be welcomed into the sphere of ongoing scholarly discussions about ‘Buddhism in the world of religions.’ Quite apart from in-house differences of outlook between schools and movements, all significant positions should be aired in print and if they are reinforced by the attention to detail and quests for critical analysis we find in DIRI-backed research then they should all the more be welcomed. For too long traditionalist transmission of teaching has left many of Buddhism’s own highly adept practitioners unable or disinclined to consider their tradition with critical reflection. As a result ‘foreign experts’ are constantly pontificating about what Buddhist teaching is ‘essentially’ all about (even while acknowledging that the practices of Buddhism are open to all, and how valuable it can be for our understanding that many Zen roshis, for
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instance, are of non-Japanese origin). But DIRI is crucial for fostering many and varied ‘indigenous scholarly voices’ – of those who can speak more and more confidently within contemporary academic forums and who are seeking to acquire critical skills of exposition and analysis in the study of meditative practice and inner visioning.
Such a journal as this portends to be of immense value for sharing crucial information, for allowing fruitful consultation between those bringing different kinds of expertise to the field, and for both disseminating knowledge about newly discovered texts and the re-reading ancient texts in a new light. With the uncovering of very ancient bits and pieces, some on bark and palm-leaf that belong among the most ancient book remains on the planet, how exciting it will be to see the unfolding of Buddhist scholarship in future years, and to see the increasing participation in it of well-trained minds under DIRI’s beneficent sponsorship. Under Ven Sudhammo’s attentive eye, and with editor Dr Jeff Wilson’s skills at presentation, one looks forward to this journal’s bright future.
Garry W. TrompfEmeritus Professor in the History of Ideas and
Adjunct Professor in The Centre for Peace and Conflict StudiesUniversity of Sydney
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Congratulatory letter from Professor Murray Rae
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Congratulatory letter
The 60th Dhammachai Education Foundation of Australia and New Zealand has developed an increasing commitment in recent years to the academic study of the Buddhist tradition, including, in particular, its ancient texts and manuscripts. This commitment has manifested itself through the establishment of the Dhammachai International Research Institute, the fostering of strong relationships with a number of universities internationally, collaborative research projects, the funding of research and teaching, the provision of scholarships for students in Buddhist studies and the encouragement of students from the Foundation to undertake postgraduate study at the University of Otago and elsewhere.
The launching of the new Journal of the Dhammachai International Research Institute provides further evidence of this commitment to academic study and will provide a valuable vehicle for the dissemination of research in Early Buddhism. The central purpose of the journal will be to promote and publish research on the early texts of the Buddhist tradition. This is a timely development for as the Foundation’s Early Buddhist Manuscript Project pursues its goal of translating and digitizing previously unpublished Buddhist manuscripts, it will progressively make available a wealth of material deserving of careful scholarly consideration and analysis.
The study of ancient texts is always a collaborative exercise in-volving a range of academic disciplines. In the case of the Buddhist manuscripts, the skills of textual and linguistic analysis will be com-bined with the work of historians, ethnographers, anthropologists and scholars of religion. All of these will have an interest, therefore, in the publication of this new academic journal, both as contribu-tors themselves and as those whose own study of the Buddhist tradi-tion will be enriched by the scholarship made available through this journal.
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I am pleased to congratulate the Dhammachai International Research Institute on this new initiative and look forward to its growing success.
Professor Murray RaeHead of the Department of Theology and Religion
University of Otago, New Zealand
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Inspirational Messageby Phrakrupaladnayokwarawat (Sudhammo Bhikkhu)
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Inspirational Message
On the 44th Anniversary of the Ordination of Most Venerable Founder Luang Phaw Dhammajayo on 27th August 2012 and also in the historical year of the Buddhajayanti 2600 celebration of the Buddha’s Enlightenment, Dhammachai International Research Institute (DIRI), as an academic organization preserving Early Buddhist teaching, proudly publish the inaugural volume of their research works. This is part of meritorious needs deserving the celebration.
Our institute believes in the sharing of knowledge with the academic realm and world society by promoting Buddhist studies and practice in order to encourage practitioners towards their profit and peaceful happiness. This complies with the Lord Buddha’s words: Dhammo have rakkhati dhammacārī meaning “Dhamma protects the Dhamma practitioner”. In addition to the research in Buddhist studies and essays, we plan to proceed on an expanding scale that covers larger academic and geographic areas including the preservation of the texts of ancient manuscripts by means of digital photography. These manuscripts are left to the mercy of time in Buddhist monasteries, libraries, museums and Buddhist research institutes worldwide. Recently, we began carrying out such a project with the University of Kelaniya and the University of Peradeniya in Sri Lanka as well as fieldwork around the Thai-Cambodia border.
Before the essays contained here could be collected, much support and encouragement was provided and that needs to be addressed. We are grateful to Prof. Dr. Harald Hundius and his Preservation of Lao Manuscripts Program that inspires our team and shares knowhow on how to preserve manuscripts in a digital form, which last much longer than microfilm. Acknowledgement must be given and appreciation shown to the EFEO in Phnom Penh, Cambodia for their generously donated time and instruction on the photographic techniques, devices and applications appropriate to our work. The progress of academic research personnel in DIRI has been assisted by the University of Sydney, Australia and the University of Otago, New Zealand by special agreement and
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cooperation throughout the last ten and five years respectively. Appreciation to the Social Research Institute, Chiang Mai University for the photographic duplication of some Lan Na Palm-leaf manuscript is hereby acknowledged. Most of all, we are thankful to the International Association of Buddhist Studies (IABS), of which we are members, for their openness in sharing opportunities with us, and for the chance to participate and contribute in several valuable conferences hosted by the national institutes of members. With the benefit of these associations, DIRI has benefited largely in terms of up to date knowledge on history, archaeology and anthropology. For example, we became aware of the new discoveries and research essays in the Early Buddhist Manuscript Project by the University of Washington and the University of Oslo. Later that led us to contribute in the project by establishing a special agreement with the University of Washington and the Unversity of Oslo. The conference also gave us the opportunity to make the personal acquaintance of international and vanguard scholars, who have published remarkable works. We were becoming familiar with, as well as sharing knowledge and ideas with, several very interesting academic organizations and institutes. We count this as the beginning of a policy of sharing and cooperation with the academic/ research community.
I look forward to receive your kind valuable advice and co-operation for further improvement and mutual academic advancement.
Phrakrupaladnayokwarawat (Sudhammo Bhikkhu)Director of Dhammachai International Research Institute (DIRI)
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Introductionby Dr. Jeff Wilson
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Introduction
This collection of articles marks the launch of the Journal of the Dhammachai International Research Institute (JDIRI). The articles presented here indicate some of the perspectives on Buddhism that the journal intends to represent. It will feature articles that investigate all aspects of studies into Early Buddhism, with particular emphasis on the discovery and study of old manuscripts. Some of these manuscripts are copies of discourses from the Pāli canon. Others are extra-canonical Southeast Asian meditation manuals. The latter tend to relate to esoteric methodologies, as well as presenting exoteric notions from the vināya, the suttas and the abhidhamma. The former present researchers with the opportunity to examine early palm-leaf versions of canonical texts, many of which are often subjected to esoteric interpretations.
The JDIRI, then, plans to publish research articles about Early Buddhism and Buddhist meditation written by members of the DIRI and by international scholars. An important focus of the JDIRI will be research into the Buddhist texts related to the ancient meditation tradition, mūl kammaṭṭhān, of Theravāda Buddhist mainland South East Asia, and the connections between this borāṇ or ancient meditation tradition and the modern vijjā dhammakāya popular in Thai Buddhism today.
Over the past decade, the DIRI has trained a team of researchers, and entered into agreements with various universities around the world, for the purpose of pursuing these research interests. The DIRI sponsors graduate students from Thailand to undertake research degrees in Australia, New Zealand, the USA and other countries. Graduates from these programs have gone on to participate in various international Buddhist research projects such as the DIRI is assisting with the Early Buddhist Manuscript Project. at the University of Washington (Seattle) USA and the Unversity of Oslo, Norway. One of these graduates and participants in the Early Buddhist Manuscript Project is Dr. Chanida Jantrasrisalai; she is also a contributing author to this first volume of the Journal.
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The journal begins with Anatole-Roger Peltier’s article on his investigations of a wooden chest containing palm-leaf manuscripts that were recently discovered in a cave in the Khammouan province of Laos. The readable texts reveal that their sources lie in the Pāli canon. It is estimated, from the fact that the writing is in Pāli – in the Lao and Lan Na scripts - that the oldest date back to the sixteenth century and that they were probably sent to this location from Chiang Mai. These scripts were very similar at that time, as Peltier demonstrates, a fact that further strengthens the claim of a sixteenth century origin. It also adds to the notion of strong historical links between this region and the kingdom of Lan Na.
Chanida Jantrasrisalai’s article explores the possible interpretations of the term dhammakāya in the Pāli canon. It separately investigates the meanings of dhamma and kāya as well as that of the compound itself. The result is a semantic field of possibilities from which she constructs a textual analysis of the probably intended meaning of the term. Two main issues emerge at once. Only one of the four Pāli references to dhammakāya have previously been taken seriously by scholars, perhaps because the Apadāna discourses were considered too late to be considered expressions of Early Buddhism. The second issue arises from the meaning of the term itself. Jantrasrisalai suggests that many scholars have assumed that the term signifies the ‘collection of teachings’. dhamma can easily be interpreted as “teachings” and kāya means a “collection” as well as “body.” She offers persuasive textual evidence to support her thesis that kāya means more than the teachings of the Buddha and can also refer to the Buddha’s body.
These two issues come together when we realize the amount of information that is added to the available pool of knowledge about dhammakāya by the addition of the three references from the Apadānas. The earlier reference, from the Agañña-sutta provides the image of the dhamma body alongside that of the brahmā body. Whenever the two terms dhamma and brahmā “are mentioned together in parallel, they usually refer to the state of highest purity”. Then the Apadānas add the story of the Buddha’s aunt, Gotamī, who drinks ‘dhamma milk’ from the embodied dhamma
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and is ‘spiritually reborn’. The dhammakāya becomes her new identity as the milk nourishes her spiritually. It is something she is given as a verbal teaching.
To add the material from the Apadānas is to come closer to an understanding of the notion of dhammakāya. It is to support what we have learned from the Agañña-sutta where the term ‘designates the Tathāgata’. But it is not just the teachings that are to be equated with the dhamma; it is the reality that the Buddha has realized. The body of the Buddha signifies “rebirth on a transcendental plane” and indicates “the acquisition of the same sort of qualities as those possessed by the Buddha”. The transcendent paths that transform the ordinary person (putthajāna) into the enlightened ‘noble one’ belong to a whole spiritual process that includes the teachings but that is better understood as the creation or realisation of a new person, a Buddha within. The term dhamma then, in the expression dhammakāya, refers to the processes that bring about the enlightened person.
Dr. Joe Zhou Ya writes about the discovery of Theravāda manu-scripts around the region of Sipsongpanna in the Southwestern part of China. Theravāda is the traditional form of Buddhism in what is historically a predominantly Mahāyāna country. Sipsongpanna is home to over a million people of the ‘Dai’ group. ‘Dai’ is also the name of the family of languages that Thai belongs to. It should not be surprising then that this Theravāda community exists in China. The manuscripts used by this group reveal an unmistakable Theravāda perspective. ZhouYa discusses the geographical sources of the manuscripts, the writing systems used, the materials employed as well as the particular sections of the Theravāda canon emphasised in the region. She confirms the fragility of the earlier palm-leaf manuscripts and warns of the possibility of the ‘imminent extinction’ of these valuable historical assets.
Another contributor, Kitchai Urkasame, is involved with the discovery, transliteration and translation of Lan Na manuscripts from Northern Thailand. Urkasame’s article “Dhammakaya Verse : a Lan Na Thai Manuscript” presents a Thai manuscript from the Lan Na period. The text is known as dhammakāya. A Thai transliteration
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of the original content of the palm-leaf manuscript is provided along with a translation into modern Thai and English. It consists of a correlation of body parts with the sublime attributes of the enlightened Buddha, along with a note at the end that it should be recited every day. This suggestion reveals that this class of manuscript was part of the regular Buddhist practices of the era. Urkasame’s research confirms that meditation manuals of the borān kammaṭṭhān type existed in Thailand as well as Cambodia and Sri Lanka.
This author has previously produced studies into other Thai manuscripts of the borān kammaṭṭhān or yogāvacara type. Urkasame’s investigations into the Pavarabandha, Buddhanorakan and Phra Ñāṇakasiṇa reveal many correspondences between these Lan Na texts and the Khmer texts studied by Bizot and the École Française d’Extrême-Orient. Like the Khmer texts, these old Thai meditation manuals refer to the Nāng Cittakumārī, the subtle body that transmigrates from one lifetime to another. Other commonalities include the mantra samma arahan and the ‘dhamma sphere’ at the centre of the body that ‘makes possible’ the ‘birth’ of the subtle body or bodies. The text presented here shows that the notion of dhammakāya was also emphasized in the esoteric Theravāda practices common in Thailand before the mid-nineteenth century.
The last article by Phra Kittipanyo discusses An Shigao who taught meditation in China during the first century CE. It reveals how this influential figure in early Chinese Buddhism employed Daoist concepts to translate Buddhist notions. It demonstrates that ānāpānasati or ‘mindfulness of breathing’ meditation was an important aspect of An Shigao’s teaching. The technique of concentrating on a central point in the body is also shown to have been part of this meditation style. Phra Kittipanyo then draws comparisons between the essentials of Daoism, the system of An Shigao, and the teachings of Phramongkolthepmuni (Sodh Candasaro). He compares the Daoist practice of concentration on the centre of the body (dan tian) with the practices of An Shigao and Phramongkolthepmuni. It is the ‘middle way’ of esoteric Buddhism, the central channel where
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the cakras are located, a location that suggests comparisons with Tantra.
While the primary focus of this journal is dhammakāya, Luang Phaw Dhammajayo has instructed the Director of DIRI, Phrakrupaladnayokwarawat (Sudhammo Bhikkhu), to ensure that no bias be shown to any particular Buddhist school or nikai, and to support research that leads to a better understanding of the notion of ‘early Buddhism.’ Previously undiscovered Buddhist manuscripts are emerging all the time, and each one adds another piece to the jigsaw of Buddhist knowledge. The DIRI is fully committed to supporting this search for knowledge.
This journal is freely offered by Phrakrupaladnayokwarawat (Sudhammo Bhikkhu) in order to promote interest and research in the Buddha’s dhamma for the benefit of all sentient beings.
Dr. Jeff WilsonGeneral editor
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The Most Venerable Phrathepyanmahamuni(Luang Phaw Dhammajayo)HomilyGarry W. TrompfEmeritus Professor in the History of Ideas andPrefaceProfessor Murray RaeCongratulatory letterPhrakrupaladnayokwarawat (Sudhammo Bhikkhu)Inspirational MessageDr. Jeff WilsonIntroduction
Dr. Anatole-Roger PeltierThe Tipitaka Manuscripts of the Khammouan Cave in LaosDr. Chanida JantrasrisalaiDhammakāya in the Pali CanonDr. Joe Zhou YaBuddhist Manuscripts in China: A Case Study of Theravāda Buddhist Manuscripts in Sipsong Panna (Xishuangbanna, Yunnan Province, PRC)Kitchai UrkasameThe Dhammakāya Verse: a Lan Na Thai manuscriptPhra Kiattisak KittipanyoAn Shigao and Early Chinese Meditation Techniques
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JDIRIContents
Articles
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The Tipitaka Manuscripts of the Khammouan Cave
in Laos
Anatole-Roger Peltier
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The Tipiṭaka Manuscripts of the Khammouan Cave in Laos
Anatole-Roger Peltier
On invitation of the Ministry of Information and Culture (Vientiane, Laos), I went to Thakhek, capital of the Khammouan province, on May 8, 2005. Accompanied by an officer of the Bureau of Culture and a Lao scholar, I went into the cave. The purpose was to decipher and read the palm-leaf manuscripts which are kept in the cave.
“Nong Pa Fa Cave” is located in Khammouan Province, center of Laos. As for the cave, it was discovered in April 2004 by a farmer from the village of Ban Nakhangxang, Khammouan Province
Road leading to Nong Pa Fa Cave
Map of Nong Pa Fa Cave
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In front of Nong Pa Fa Cave
Some of the Buddha images in the cave
Seeing the bats flying out of a hole, he climbed the cliff, 15 m above the ground, saw a beautiful cave with more than 200 Buddha images ranging in size from 15 cm to 1 m tall.
The wooden box containing the palm-leaf manuscripts
Most of the manuscripts are in poor condition
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The Buddha images and the wooden box of manuscripts were probably brought to the Nong Pa Fa Cave before or during the Siamese-Lao war (1826-1828 AD), almost 200 years ago.
1 Dr Anatole Roger-Peltier is a member of the EFEO (1970) and a professor at Chiang Mai
Rajabhat University, Chiang Mai, Thailand. He has published many books on the Tai
languages and literature of Mainland Southeast Asia.
E-mail : [email protected]
Taking the manuscripts out of the wooden box
Most of the manuscriptsare in poor condition
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The palm-leaf manuscripts that I have just presented belong to the Tipiṭaka. These texts, or parts of texts, are in Pāli, the lingua franca of the Indochinese Peninsula. The versions in vernacular languages like Thai, only date from the beginning of last century. The latest version in local language comes from Tai Khün (Shan State of Burma), printed only five years ago.
Some manuscripts are readable
Pāḷi Mahāvagga
Collection of readable manuscripts
Reading manuscripts with Mr Khemphon Sengpathum, the officer of the Bureau of Culture, Khammouan Province
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The manuscripts of the Nong Pa Fa Cave have two forms of writing : Dham Lao from Laos, and Dham Lanna from northern Thailand. These two scripts are very similar, especially on manuscripts dating back several centuries, as shown in the following table. In fact, people do not make much difference between these two writings, they just call them Dham Phra Chao or « Scripts of the Buddha ».
Pāḷi Mahāvagga
Comparative Dhamma alphabets of Laos
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According to historical chronicles, the King Tilokaraja of Chiang Mai organized a Buddhist Council in 2020 BE (1477 CE). This Council is considered the eighth by the Lanna people. It’s also mentioned that, at the request of King Pothisarat of Lang Xang (old name of Laos), sixty bundles of the Tipiṭaka manuscripts have been sent from Chiang Mai to Luang Prabang in 2066 BE (1523 CE). It is quite possible that the manuscripts from the Nong Pa Fa Cave were a remote copy of the Tipiṭaka from Chiang Mai.
According to research done by many linguists, it seems that the Dham Lao is influenced by the Dham Lanna script, and the latter derives from Mon writing, as Burmese does also.
Roman
Mon
Burma
Dham Lanna
Dham Lao
Nong Pa Fa Cave manuscripts
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On the cover of one of the Nong Pa Fa Cave manuscript, we can read :
As the writing is clearly that of Dham Lanna, one wonders if some parts of the manuscripts come from Muang Nandaburi, a former name of Nan province, in northern Thailand.
Two hypotheses can be considered, as shown in the following table and on the map in
- The first is that the manuscripts with Lanna script were sent from Chiang Mai to Luang Prabang, then to Vientiane and then to Thakhek, province of Khammouane.
- The second is that these manuscripts were sent from Chiang Mai to Nandaburi (Nan), then to Luang Prabang, then to Vientiane and, finally, to Thakhek.
Map of Laos
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The Nong Pa Fa Cave manuscripts are quite old and one of them dates back to 2112 BE (1569 CE), or 441 years, which is extremely rare for a palm-leaf manuscript. The oldest manuscript, however, is kept at the Provincial Museum in Luang Prabang (formerly the Royal Palace). It is dated 1520 CE. This manuscript, written in a Lao variant of Dhamma script, is a copy of the Parivāra.
The manuscripts of Nong Pa Fa Cave show that the Lan Xang and Lanna had a close relationship in the past, especially in the culture.
These manuscripts are unique materials, both for the knowledge of the Tipiṭaka and the study of the Early Buddhism in the region.
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Dhammakāya in the Pali Canon1
Chanida Jantrasrisalai
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Dhammakāya in the Pali Canon1
Chanida Jantrasrisalai
I. Why ‘Dhammakāya’ in the ‘Pali Canon’?The term dhammakāya/dharmakāya appears in Buddhist literature of different schools. Previous scholars have done excellent work on interesting aspects of studies regarding the term,2 mostly in relation to its notions in Mahāyāna Buddhism. But its usages have not been studied in detail, and what the present study offers is a close examination of the term in the Pali canon.
Admittedly, many previous studies mention the appearance of the term dhammakāya in the Pali canon3, but only brief references have been made, most occurrences missed out altogether and some significant aspects not yet touched upon. 1 The topic was originally presented in the Annual Conference of the Australasian Association of Buddhist Studies (AABS) in December 2007 at the University of Western Sydney and once again in the International Seminar on Early Buddhism (ISEB) in August 2010 at the University of Sydney. The present paper is a revision of such presentations and a slightly revised edition of an earlier paper: Chanida Jantrasrisalai, “Early Buddhist Dhammakāya and Its Relation to Enlightenment,” in The Pathway to the Centre - Purity and the Mind: Proceedings of the Inaugural International Samādhi Forum, ed. Edward F. Crangle (Sydney: Dhammachai International Research Institute Inc., 2010).2 To name but a few: A.J. Prince, “The Conception of Buddhahood in Earlier and Later Buddhism,” The Journal of the Oriental Society of Australia 7, no. 1-2 (1970); Barbara E. Reed, “The Problem of the Dharmakāya as Seen by Hui-Yüan and Kumārajīva” (Ph.D., The University of Iowa, 1982); Ruben L. F. Habito, “The Notion of Dharmakāya: A Study in the Buddhist Absolute,” Journal of Dharma. 1986. 11: 348-378. (1986); Peter Harvey, The Selfless Mind: Personality, Consciousness and Nirvana in Early Buddhism (Richmond, Surrey: Curzon, 1995); John Makransky, Buddhahood Embodied Sources of Controversy in India and Tibet, ed. Matthew Kapstein, Suny Series in Buddhist Studies (NY: SUNY Press, 1997); Paul Mus, Barabudur: Sketch of a History of Buddhism Based on Archaeological Criticism of the Texts (New Delhi: Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts: Sterling Publishers, 1998); Guang Xing, The Concept of the Buddha: Its Evolution from Early Buddhism to the Trikaya Theory, Routledgecurzon Critical Studies in Buddhism (London: RoutledgeCurzon, 2005).3 Paul Williams, Mahāyāna Buddhism: The Doctrinal Foundations, Library of Religious Beliefs and Practices. (London ; New York: Routledge, 1989), p. 352 n.10; Paul Harrison, “Is the Dharma-Kāya the Real “Phantom Body” of the Buddha?,” The Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies 15, no. 1 (1992), pp. 50; Reed, op. cit.; Xing, op. cit.; Harvey, The Selfless Mind, op. cit.
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4 D.III.84.5 Ap.I.13; Ap.I.168, Ap.II.532.6 For example, Dutt refers to the passage as one of early references that lend support to Mahāyāna development of the Tri-kāya theory. Nalinaksha Dutt, Mahayana Buddhism (Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1978), p. 138-139. Harvey refers to the passage as an early Buddhist reference that indicates the nature of the Tathāgata. Harvey, The Selfless Mind, op. cit. pp. 233-234.7 See, for example, Mary E. Lilley, The Apadana of the Khuddaka Nikaya (London, New York [etc.]: Pub. for the Pali text society by the Oxford university press, 1925), p. v; H. R. Perera, “Apadāna,” in Encyclopaedia of Buddhism, ed. G. P. Malalasekera (Colombo: Govt. of Ceylon, 1961), p.3.
Most of them refer only to the Aggañña-sutta passage,4 missing out the three Apadāna references.5 The reason could be either that the scholars concerned have taken the aforementioned text as representing ‘early Buddhism,’6 while the Apadāna is usually seen as a later compilation,7 or that the Apadāna literature was not accessible at the time of those studies.
The present paper concentrates on overlooked parts of the Pali canon on dhammakāya. It places the use of the term in a distinct context, in a way not presented previously. Rather than treating the Pali canonical references either as purely representing ‘early Buddhist ideas’ or simply sectarian ‘Theravāda thoughts,’ it understands the function of the Pali canon as something in between that reflects the understanding of the term in an early Theravāda community that sought to preserve and understand the Buddha’s teachings as they are.8 By means of this more direct approach, the resulting interpretation, while dissimilar to most previous studies, will be interestingly more or less in correspondence with the majority of traditional understandings, which have been too downplayed by contemporary academics. The following will briefly explain how and why the present study differs from previous works with respect to their research approaches.
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II. The Different Approach
A fairly established academic understanding has settled regarding the term dhammakāya in the Pali canon, that it was used merely in the sense of the ‘Buddha’s teachings.’9 In concluding so, most studies refer to a few canonical passages where the Buddha appears to equate himself with dhamma. The first passage frequently mentioned is located in the Aggañña-sutta where the term dhammakāya, along with three other terms,10 are said to designate the Tathāgata.11 The second is a passage in the Mahāparinibbāna-sutta where the Buddha is said to say that the teaching taught and the discipline laid down by him (dhamma-vinaya) would be the future teacher after his passing.12 The third is the Buddha’s discourse delivered to the elder Vakkali which states that it is useless to long for seeing the Buddha’s corruptible physical body, for he who sees the dhamma sees the Buddha and he who sees the Buddha sees the dhamma.13
8 It is usually debatable to determine the position of the Pali canonical context at all. To rely on it as purely early Buddhist thought requires caution, for there are at least some signs of later re-arrangment. But to view it as only Theravāda could mean to deprecate the effort of the old Buddhist community who sought to preserve the Buddhist teachings intact at best of their ability, as may be observed by its separation of Theravāda traditional writing in commentarial and postcanonical accounts rather than adding them to the canon. The well-preservation of the Pali suttas can be witnessed also by its close correspondence with the content of ancient Gāndhārī Buddhist manuscripts, dated 1st-5th century CE, known to be the earliest Buddhist manuscripts ever found.To stratify the older and later layers of parts of the canon is also not an easy task and not always perfectly correct.9 For example, see Dutt, op. cit., p. 142; Reed, op. cit., pp. 28-29; Xing, op. cit., p. 74; Williams, op. cit., p. 352, n.10; Harrison, op. cit., p.50.For example of different voices that are the minority of academic interpretations, see Harvey, The Selfless Mind, op. cit., p. 234; Frank E Reynolds, “The Several Bodies of the Buddha: Reflections on a Neglected Aspect of Theravada Tradition,” History of Religion 16(1976), p. 376, n. 6; David Norton Need, “Rendering the Body: Etherealization and Sense in Vedic and Early Buddhist in Religiosity” (University of Virginia, 2004), pp. 383-387. It is interesting to note that the minority of academic interpretations of the term dhammakāya accord with the majority of Theravādin interpretations, as detailed in the Appendix. But very few instances of traditional understandings on the term agree with the interpretation of the academic mainstream.10 The three terms are dhammabhūta, brahmakāya, and brahmabhūta.11 D.III.84.12 D.II.154.13 S.III.120.
14
14 It is possible that the identification of d hammakāya with ‘dhamma in the sense of teaching,’ which has become a common practice in many previous works, was influenced by different factors. A possibility is some of Buddhaghoṣa’s writings viewed through the researchers’ preferred style of interpretation. For example of this case, see Dutt, op. cit., p. 138-142. Reed and Xing seem to follow Dutt’s lead. Reed, op. cit., p. 29; Xing, op. cit., pp.35-36. But for some scholars, the idea seems to have been influenced partly by the authors’ aversion of Mahāyāna conception of ‘dhammakāya’ as ‘transcendent body,’ or more specifically of ‘kāya’ as ‘body.’ For example, see the expression in Harrison, op. cit., pp. 74-76. Cf. Chanida Jantrasrisalai, “Early Buddhist dhammakāya: Its Philosophical and Soteriological Significance” (University of Sydney, 2009), pp. 18-19.
Of the three canonical passages mentioned above, only the first, namely the Aggañña-sutta passage, contains the term dhammakāya, while the other two do not. The reason for which all these passages are employed as being Pali references to dhammakāya is the seeming identification of the Buddha and his teachings. This may reflect the scholarly methodology employed whereby previous studies were set off from a preconception regarding the early meaning of dhammakāya,14 as if the term dhammakāya/dharmakāya was exclusively related to the Buddha.
The present study employs a different approach. Rather than beginning from the preconception of such an exclusive relation of the term to the Buddha, it simply starts from listing Pali canonical passages in which the term dhammakāya appears. The use and meaning of the term dhammakāya in each passage is then assessed, by means of text critical analysis, from each passage’s environmental setting. On providing interpretations, it considers the philosophical background existing in the Pali canonical context as a key tool to determine the intention of particular expressions. A review of contemporary academic interpretations will be made according to each particular passage as we proceed. By means of a neutral method of assessment, it hopes to provide resultant interpretations which are more direct and inclusive.Below is the list of all Pali canonical passages containing the term dhammakāya.
15
III. References to ‘Dhammakāya’ in the Pâli Canon
In the Pali canon, the term dhammakāya appears four times; once in the Aggañña-sutta of the Dīgha-nikāya and three more times in Apadāna literature. They can be listed as follows:1. Aggañña-sutta: Dhammakâya as the Tathāgata’s Designation (D.III.84)2. Paccekabuddha-apadâna: Dhammakâya and Paccekabuddhas (Ap.I.13)3. Mahâpajâpatîgotamî-apadâna: Dhammakâya and Noble Disciple (Ap.II.532)4. Atthasandassakathera-apadâna: Dhammakâya and Previous Buddha (Ap.I.168)
Of these four passages, only the first was cited in previous scholarly works that refer to the term dhammakāya in the Pali canon, while the latter three seem to have been unknown to them.15 The present study takes all these references as a whole to reflect the use and understanding of the term in the early Theravāda community - the Pali canonical period.16
We shall now look at each passage in detail.
15 With the exception of a PhD dissertation (Need, op. cit.), other scholarly works do not mention the appearance of the term dhammakāya in the Apadāna literature.16 Even though the Apadāna literature is usually viewed as a later added part, its canonical status in all editions of the Pali canon is beyond doubt.
16
IV. Reference 1: Dhammakâya as the Tathāgata’s DesignationThe first Pali reference to the term dhammakāya that is well known to all previous works is a passage in the Aggañña-sutta, wherein the term is said to designate the Tathāgata.17 The narrative setting is a conversation between the Buddha and two novices, namely Vāseṭṭha and Bhāradvāja, who went forth from Brahmin families and were awaiting higher ordination (upadampadā). In the Buddha’s discourse being delivered, the term dhammakāya is mentioned in the context of a definition of ‘an heir of dhamma’ or ‘the Tathāgata’s true son:’
yassa kho pan’ assa vāseṭṭha18 tathāgate saddhā niviṭṭhā mūla-jātā patiṭṭhitā daḷhā asaṃhārikā19 samaṇena vā brāhmaṇena vā devena vā mārena vā brahmunā vā kenaci vā lokasmiṃ, tass’etaṃ kallaṃ vacanāya:20 “bhagavato’mhi putto oraso mukhato jāto dhamma-jo dhamma-nimmito dhamma-dāyādo” ti. Taṃ kissa hetu? Tathāgatassa h’etaṃ Vāseṭṭha adhivacanaṃ “dhamma-kāyo iti pi brahma-kāyo iti pi, dhamma-bhūto iti pi brahma-bhūto iti pīti.”
17 This passage is claimed in some scholarly works as being the sole appearance of dhammakāya in the Pali canon. For example, see Williams, op. cit., p. 284, note 5; Harrison, op. cit., p. 50. 18 The vocative ‘vāseṭṭha’ in this passage is variably written in different editions of the Pali sutta. The PTS and CS versions put the word in singular form, while the BJ and SR versions show the word in plural form ‘vāseṭṭhā.’ The singular form implies that the Buddha was speaking to vasettha only, while the plural form implies both vāseṭṭha and bhāradvāja. (The latter is a reduced form of a dvanda compound in which there remain only one component and the plural number.) the present paper takes this to be plural, as it is stated at the beginning of the story that both novices approached the Buddha together [D.III.80], and at the end of the story that both of them were delighted and rejoiced at the Blessed one’s speech.’ [D.III.98].19 Some manuscripts write ‘asaṃhāriyā.’20 SR edition writes, ‘vācāya.’
17
D.III.84
Vāseṭṭha and Bhāradvāja, he whose confidence in the Tathāgata is settled, rooted, established, solid, irremovable by any ascetic or brahmin, any deva or Māra or Brahmā or anyone in the world, can truly say: ‘I am a son of the Blessed one, born of his mouth, born of dhamma, created by dhamma, an heir of dhamma.’ Why is that? Because, Vāseṭṭha and Bhāradvāja, this designates the Tathāgata: ‘dhamma-bodied,’ ‘brahma-bodied,’ ‘(who) become dhamma,’ or ‘(who) become brahma.’21
The passage lists four words by which the Tathāgata may be denominated: ‘dhammakāya,’ ‘brahmakāya,’ ‘dhammabhūta,’ and ‘brahmabhūta.’ As the context of this passage is complicated, it requires a lengthy discussion.
Previous Scholarly InterpretationsPrevious scholars interpret the term dhammakāya in this passage either as a substantive or an adjective. Most of them interpret the first component, i.e., dhamma, in the sense of ‘the Buddha’s teaching(s).’ For example, Dutt interprets the term as being a tappurisa compound referring to a ‘collection of the Buddha’s teachings and disciplines.’22 Reed interprets it in the same way that it refers to ‘the body of the Buddha’s verbal teachings.’23 Similarly, Kajiyama notes that the later expression of dharmakāya as a ‘collection of Buddhist sūtras’ agrees with its meaning in the Pāli Nikāya.24 Xing also interprets the term dhammakāya in this passage as ‘the Buddha’s collective teachings.’25
21 The two latter compounds are undoubtedly adjectives, as their last component ‘bhūta,’ which is a past participle modifying the subject, indicates. The first two compounds, each consists of two substantives, while being potential to be translated as one among the two alternative compounds, i.e., kammadhāraya (Skt.karmadhāraya), or tappurisa (Skt.tatpuruṣa), seems more likely to be a bahubbīhi,21 being a designation of the Tathāgata, as Harrison has suggested. Harrison, op. cit., p. 50.22 Dutt, op. cit., p. 139.23 Reed, op. cit., pp. 28-29.24 Yuichi Kajiyama, “Stūpas, the Mother of Buddhas, and Dharma-Body,” in New Paths in Buddhist Research, ed. Anthony Kennedy Warder (Durham, N.C.: Acorn Press, 1985), p. 14.25 Xing, op. cit., pp. 71, 74.
18
26 Richard Gombrich, “The Buddha’s Book of Genesis,” Indo-Iranian Journal 35(1992), p. 165.27 Harrison, op. cit., p. 50.28 Ibid., p. 54.29 Need, op. cit., pp. 377-378. As he comments:
......care should be taken with respect to reading the compound as “one who has the teachings as his body,” or “one whose body has been developed in accordance with the teachings,” where teachings is understood as “text” or “canon”.30 Reynolds, op. cit., p. 376 n. 6. He comments:
As we shall see, the term dhammakāya was already in use in the canon. However in the later context it is clear that dhammakāya is being identified with the scriptural legacy.31 He notes further that, even though the term has encountered a series of changes of meanings in the Pāli commentarial tradition, it has consistently been employed to express the Buddha’s essence. Tomomichi Nitta, “The Meaning of “Dhammakāya” in Pāli Buddhism,” Journal of Indian and Buddhist Studies 51, no. 1 (2002), p. 47.32 Harvey, The Selfless Mind, op. cit., p. 234. Harvey also interprets ‘dhamma’ that is the Tathāgata’s nature as Nibbāna.
Gombrich, while differently translating the term in this passage as a bahubbīhi compound ‘dhamma-bodied,’ similarly interprets it as an indication that the Buddha’s true import is due to ‘his teaching,’ not his personality.26 Likewise, Harrison proposes that the term dhammakāya in the Aggañña-sutta is to be translated as a bahubbīhi compound,27 and that its first component, dhamma, is used in the sense of the Buddha’s teaching.28
In contrast, Need believes that the meaning of ‘dhammakāya’ in this passage is unclear and can hardly be certain. Nevertheless, he suggests a caution against the interpretation of the first component, ‘dhamma,’ in the sense of text.29 Similarly, Reynolds seems to suggest that the interpretation of ‘dhammakāya’ in the early Pāli suttas as ‘teaching’ or scripture has been developed at a later date.30 Nitta, while reluctant to ascribe an exact meaning to the term dhammakāya in the sutta, similarly expresses a disagreement towards the claim that the original meaning of dhammakāya is exclusively a ‘collection of the teachings.’31
Harvey is more specific in regard to the interpretation of the term ‘dhamma’ as the first component of ‘dhammakāya.’ On interpreting the term in the Aggañña-sutta, he suggests a bahubbīhi compound, interpreting ‘dhamma,’ that is the Tathāgata’s body, as the noble eightfold path.32
19
In brief, contemporary academics refer to the term dhammakāya in the Aggañña-sutta either as a noun or an adjective. As a noun, the term is interpreted mostly as the Buddha’s teachings collected together. As an adjective, the term’s first component ‘dhamma’ is also mostly interpreted in the sense of the Buddha’s teaching collected together, with a few exceptions.
The translation of the term dhammakāya in this passage as a bahubbīhi compound agrees with explanations given by traditional Pāli commentators, Buddhaghoṣa and Dhammapāla. The former explains the term as ‘(he) who has dhamma as body,’ and interprets its first component either as the Buddha’s verbal teaching33 or as the ninefold transcendent dhamma (navavidha lokuttaradhamma).34 The latter refers to the ninefold transcendent dhammas (nava-lokuttara-dhamma) as being the Tathāgatas’ nature or ‘body.’ He relates it with the Buddhas’ enlightenment that it is ‘the dhamma which all Tathāgatas have attained and have become.’35
33 DA.III.865.34 SA.II.313. Even though this is not a direct commentary to the Aggañña-sutta, its mention of ‘dhamma that is the Tathāgata’s body’ refers directly to the term dhammakāya in the Aggañña-sutta. Note that the expression ‘ninefold transcendent dhamma’ (navavidha lokuttaradhamma) is a commentarial expression collectively referring to nine dhammas mentioned in the canon, i.e., the ‘four transcendental fruits (phalas)’ along with their ‘corresponding paths (maggas)’ and ‘Nibbāna.’35 ThrA.II.205.Dhammabhūtehīti dhammakāyatāya dhammasabhāvehi, navalokuttaradhammato vā bhūtehi jātehi, dhammaṃ vā pattehi.
Having become dhamma means having dhamma as their own nature, for they (the Tathāgatas) have the dhamma as body. In other words, they have become or have been born through the ninefold transcendent dhamma, or they have attained the dhamma.
20
Points to ConsiderIt may be observed that the difference in previous scholarly interpretations of the term dhammakāya in this passage mainly pertains to the inter-relatedness of two distinctive meanings of the term dhamma, i.e., the reality the Buddha has realized and its verbal expression, i.e., his teaching(s).36 Closer attention is therefore required regarding prior fine distinctions, in order to re-interpret the term dhammakāya more precisely. Also, more attention needs to be paid to the nuance of the context. At least, three inter-connected issues required a close reading:
1. saddhā: the criterion of being the Tathāgata’s son2. implication of parallel descriptions between monks and brahmins3. implication of parallel usage of the terms dhamma and brahma
The following section will assess these points more closely. It will then determine the most probable meaning of the term’s first component, ‘dhamma,’ followed by considering the most appropriate meaning of the term’s second component, ‘kāya’.
36 The two inter-related meanings of dhamma may be distinguished according to the context of the following passage:Adhigato kho me ayaṃ dhammo gambhīro duddaso duranubodho santo paṇīto atakkāvacaro nipuṇo paṇḍitavedanīyo. … Ahañ c’eva kho pana dhammaṃ deseyyaṃ pare ca me na ājāneyyuṃ. Vin.I.4-5, M.I.167-168, S.I.136.This dhamma attained by me is deep, hard to see, hard to comprehend, serene, subtle, beyond the dominion of reasoning, recondite, apprehensible only to the wise. … Would I preach the dhamma, others will not understand.In this passage, which is generally regarded as a revelation of the Buddha’s thought after his perfect enlightenment and prior to his first teaching, the word dhamma is used in two distinct contexts. Its first appearance in the phrase ‘dhamma attained by me’ (adhigato… dhammo) represents the ‘reality realised’ or spiritually experienced by the Buddha. Its occurrence in the second phrase ‘would I preach the dhamma’ (dhammaṃ deseyyaṃ) stands for the ‘teaching taught’ by the Buddha which can be regarded as the ‘verbal expression’ of the reality he has realised.
21
Saddhā: Criterion of being the Tathāgata’s SonThe first point to be looked at is the criterion of being the Buddha’s ‘true son’ which is, in this passage, defined by means of his irremovable confidence in the Tathāgata. The degree of saddhā is described here as ‘settled, rooted, established, and solid’ so that it cannot be altered either by the one who possesses magical power, or who is of so-called high birth, or by divine power, evil power, or highest power these being symbolized by the titles ‘ascetic, brahmin, god, Māra, and Brahmā’ respectively.
According to Buddhist philosophy in the Pali canonical context, this kind of unshakeable confidence is not merely a ‘strong belief ’ or ‘firm faith’ in the ordinary sense, but is a specific quality of noble persons (ariya-puggala)37 who have witnessed the reality and become independent or self-reliant regarding Buddha’s dhamma, as is evident in a passage describing the spiritual attainment of a Stream-enterer:
seyyathâpi nâma suddhaṃ vatthaṃ apagatakâḷakaṃ sammad eva rajanaṃ paṭigaṇheyya, evam eva tassa purisassa tasmiṃ yeva âsane virajaṃ vîtamalaṃ dhammacakkhuṃ udapâdi yaṃ kiñci samudayadhammaṃ sabbaṃ taṃ nirodha-dhamman ti. atha kho so puriso diṭṭhadhammo pattadhammo viditadhammo pariyogâḷhadhammo tiṇṇavicikiccho vigatakathaṃkatho vesârajjappatto aparappaccayo satthu sâsane.
37 Buddhist noble ones are those who have spiritually realised/experienced the reality and hence have been transformed by means of a permanent eradication of certain influxes (āsavas). They are classified into four main levels; 1) sotāpanna - Stream-enterer, 2) sakadāgāmī - Once returner, 3) anāgāmī - Non-returner, and 4) arhant - Arhat. A Stream-enterer (sotāpanna) is a noble disciple of the lowest degree of enlightenment. According to Buddhist philosophy, a stream enterer (sotāpanna) has uprooted three fetters: 1) the view that the assemblage of five aggregates subject to clinging (pañca-upādāna-khandha) is ‘self ’ or ‘belonging to self ’ (sakkāyadiṭṭhi), 2) the doubt regarding truth or realities (vicikicchā), 3) the practice of discipline or ceremonial observances without right understanding that could lead to strong attachment (sīlabbataparāmāsa). This is elaborated in detail in the Mahāniddesa. Nd1.27, 141, 507.
22
Vin.II.192, A.IV.186, 210, 213
Just as a piece of clean cloth that is deprived of dirt would well-absorb the dye, the pure and clear eye of dhamma (dhammacakkhu) arose to the man, on that current seat, that whatever whose nature is to arise, are those whose nature is to cease. At that time, the man has seen dhammas, attained dhammas, known dhammas, dived into dhammas; has crossed beyond doubt, deprived of uncertainty; has obtained confidence in the master’s teaching, without having to rely on others.As a consequence of transformation resulting from their spiritual
realization of realities, these noble disciples have eradicated at least the three lower fetters (saṃyojanas), including doubt (vicikicchā).38 Therefore, the quality of saddhā in the Pāli Aggañña-sutta as a property of the Buddha’s ‘true son,’ indicates the person’s state as being a noble disciple who has witnessed the truths, rather than ‘anyone who claim himself a Buddhist.’39
The definitions of ‘true son’ reaffirm his state of being a noble disciple. Here, he is entitled a) a son of the Blessed Lord, b) who is born of his mouth, c) who is born of dhamma, d) who is created by dhamma, and e) an heir by (of) dhamma. These titles refer to different aspects of the same person. Each of them corresponds, in one way or another, to the activities and qualities of a Stream-attainer
38 See note 37 above.39 As Harvey rightly states in The Selfless Mind, op. cit., p. 234: “A person of such firm faith is clearly at least a Stream-enterer, one who has entered the `stream’ of the Holy Eightfold Path (S.V347) and is endowed with `unwavering confidence’ in the three refuges: the Buddha, Dhamma and the Holy Sangha of Stream-enterers and other saints (S.II.68).”
23
40 Different sets of qualities of a Stream-attainer as mentioned in the canon are as follows:1. Being possessed of four activities: a) association with a virtuous one, b) listening to his teaching, c) proper contemplation on the teaching heard, d) proper practice according to the teaching. D.III.227, S.V.347.2. Being possessed of the noble eightfold path, and, to some extent, the qualities of a non-trainee (asekhadhamma). S.V.348, S.V.380-385.3. Having witnessed (seen, known, attained, penetrated) the truth and becomes independent or self-reliant regarding Buddha’s dhamma. Vin.II.192, A.IV.186, 210, 213.4. Being endowed with four qualities of a Stream-attainer (sotāpattiyaṅga), namely, unwavering confidence in the Buddha, dhamma, Sangha; and the perfect virtues beloved of the noble ones (ariyakanta-sīla). D.II.93-94.5. Having quitted of the five evils, as well as having penetrated the truth to be realised - the dependent causation (paṭicca samuppāda). S.II.68-70, S.V.387-389.
It is more likely that a Stream-attainer possesses all of these qualities, rather than some of them. These different descriptions seem to represent different steps in the process of realisation of an individual, rather than representing different individuals.
mentioned in the canon.40
The title ‘son of the Blessed one’ suggests that, through the Buddha, the person was (re)born to the same plane (bhūmi) to which the Buddha belongs, i.e., passing beyond the worldly plane (lokiya-bhūmi) to the transcendental plane (lokuttara-bhūmi). So the title ‘son of the Blessed one’ suggests that the person is a noble disciple (ariya-sāvaka).
The next title clarifies the means by which the person was born through the Buddha. ‘Born of his mouth’ signifies his rebirth into such a transcendental plane through the Buddha’s verbal teaching.
24
This corresponds to the set of four activities41 belonging to a Stream-attainer (sotāpattiyaṅga) which brings about other sets of qualities.
The titles ‘born of dhamma’ (dhammaja) and ‘created by dhamma’ (dhamma-nimmita) imply a further step - the realization or attainment of dhamma, and the consequent transformation of the person. Having listened to the teaching, having contemplated on it, and practised according to it, the person then attains or spiritually realizes the realities. Consequently, some fetters (saṃyojanas) have been eradicated and superior transcendent qualities have arisen in him.42 In other words, the person’s mental qualities have been raised up from an ordinary level to a supramundane level; in which case he is said to be (re)born of dhamma (dhammaja) and created by dhamma (dhammanimmita).
41 See no. 1 of note 40.While it is evident in the canon that some noble disciples could attain their noble state through a single hearing of the Buddha’s discourse without other preparatory activities, it can be explained that, during the time of their listening and understanding of the discourse, their mental qualities have been gradually purified and thus prepared. All their three modes of activities, i.e., body-speech-mind, were all ‘at peace,’ and hence considered ‘right’ or ‘wholesome’ in accordance with the first six constituents of the noble eightfold path. This engenders the seventh (sammāsati) and eighth (sammāsamādhi) constituents of the path, which can be identified with the ‘appropriate state of mind’ which is ‘instrumental’ to the realisation. As is usually described in the canon, when the mind of listeners becomes ‘workable’ as such, the Buddha would consider it is ‘the right time’ to deliver a deeper discourse associated with the four noble truths in order to ‘direct the listener’s workable mind’ to the realisation of the truth. In this manner, a single listening to the discourse can be equated with the ‘right practice’ elaborated into these four activities.42 The mention of the rise of new qualities does not preclude the idea that the person attains the previously hidden qualities.
25
Therefore, the titles dhammaja and dhammanimmita indicate the person’s acquisition of a new state – being his rebirth to the dharmic plane, obtained through the penetration of the dhamma.43 As Horner notes, ‘a spiritual paternity and sonship are meant, not a physical one.’44
The last title ‘an heir by means of dhamma’ (dhammadāyāda) is generally employed to refer to a noble disciple, and more specifically an Arhat.45 It indicates the acquisition of the same sort of qualities as those possessed by the Buddha - the qualities arising as a consequence of spiritual realization of the reality. Such qualities or properties, being the indicators of the noble lineage, must effectively distinguish both the Buddha and his dharmic inheritor from a worldly individual (puthujjana).
Hence, the description of his ‘unwavering confidence’ in the Buddha and the various descriptions of such a ‘true son’ indicate his state as a noble disciple (ariya-sāvaka). This point will be helpful for further understanding of other implications as will be discussed below.We shall now proceed to the next point.
43 This is, perhaps, as Eliade observes, ‘for the Buddha, one can be ‘saved’ only by attaining nirvāṇa - that is, by going beyond the plane of profane human experience and re-establishing the plane of the unconditioned. In other words, one can be saved only by dying to this profane world and being reborn into a transhuman life impossible to define or describe.’Mircea Eliade, Yoga: Immortality and Freedom, N.Y: Panthean Books, 1958, p. 165.44 I. B. Horner, “Early Buddhist Dhamma,” Artibus Asiae 11, no. 1 (1948), p. 119.45 For example, see M.II.25-29, S.I.221-222, Ap.II.544.
26
Implications of Parallel Descriptions of Monks and BrahminsAs Gombrich points out, the passage in question is comparable to the Brahmins’ claim:46
brāhmaṇā va brahmuno puttā orasā mukhato jātā brahma-jā brahma-nimmitā brahma-dāyādā.D.III.81.The Brahmins are Brahmā’s own children, born of his mouth, born of Brahmā, created by Brahmā, heirs of Brahmā.
Grammatically, the component ‘brahma-’ in the three compounds brahmajā, brahmanimmitā, and brahmadāyādā may be translated either as a masculine Brahmā which refers to the bramanical creator, or a neuter brahman which represents brahmanical ultimate reality.47 Therefore, from the above two parallel passages, the comparable context may be arranged in two forms, according to two different translations of the term ‘brahma-’ as follows.
46 Gombrich, op. cit., p. 163. 47 Ibid, p. 165. Here, Gombrich briefly mentions the distinction between the masculine Brahmā (the creator) and the neuter brahman (ultimate reality).
27
From the table, two possible translations of ‘brahma-’ suggest different sets of parallels implied in the context. This may be summarized as follows:
Table 1: Parallel descriptions of noble disciples and Brahmins
Implied Parallel
Mythical paternity& Spiritual paternity
Brahmā & Tathāgata
Brahmā’s mouth& Tathāgata’s verbal teaching
Brahmā & dhamma
brahman & dhamma
Brahmā & dhamma
brahman & dhamma
Brahmā & dhamma
brahman & dhamma
Noble Disciples (D.III.84)Tathāgata’s sons
Born of Tathāgata’s mouth
born of dhamma (dhamma-ja)
created by dhamma (dhamma-nimmita)
heirs of dhamma (dhamma-dāyāda)
Brahmins(D.III.81)Brahmā’s children
Born of Brahmā’s mouth
Born of Brahmā
Born of brahman
created by Brahmā
created by brah-man
heirs of Brahmā
heirs of brahman
No.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
28
1. The Tathāgata and Brahmā,48 the creator god2. The Tathāgata’s mouth (verbal teaching) & Brahmā mouth.3. The dhamma and Brahmā, the creator god;or
The dhamma and Brahman, the ultimate reality.
In both instances of the alternative translations of brahma-, it appears that there are different degrees of semantic depth of terms in the whole passage. In the brahmanical claim, the passage first refers to Brahmā’s mouth, but later on to the Brahmā as a whole. The same holds true for the Aggañña-sutta passage. At the beginning, the context refers to the Tathāgata’s mouth, which implies his verbal teaching, comparable to Brahmā’s mouth. But afterward it refers to dhamma, which is comparable to Brahmā the creator, or Brahman the ultimate. With this fine distinction, it seems not appropriate to readily conclude that the term ‘dhamma’ in the passage refers to the Buddha’s ‘verbal teaching’ simply because the passage begins with the phrase mukhato jāto (born of mouth).49 Hence, our study will closely examine the above two sets of parallels one after another.
48 Note that ‘Brahmā’ in Brahmanical sense is different from the ‘Brahmā’ as beings in form (rūpāvacara) or formless (arūpāvacara) realms in Buddhist philosophy.49As shown in the above parallel, to equate the Tathāgata with his verbal teaching is like to equate the Brahmā with his mouth.
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In the case that ‘brahma-’ refers to the masculine ‘Brahmā’In case of the term ‘brahma-’ in the three compounds50 being translated as a masculine ‘Brahmā,’51 the comparison of the first and the third parallels suggests that the Buddha compares both himself and the dhamma with the brahmanical Brahmā, the creator. Thus, he is also equating himself with the dhamma. The reason given immediately afterward reinforces this point: ‘Why is that? Because the Tathāgata is designated ‘dhamma-bodied’ (dhammakāya) and he who has ‘become dhamma’ (dhammabhūta), so the noble disciples are entitled ‘born of dhamma,’ ‘created by dhamma,’ and ‘heir (by means) of dhamma,’ as they are named the Tathāgata’s sons. According to this line of thought, the sense of the Tathāgata’s paternity is retained throughout the passage. The Tathāgata’s designations and the noble disciples’ titles are thus connected together, implying that the term dhamma in all these compounds, both the designations of the Tathāgata and the titles for his noble disciples, carries the same connotation; the connotation that is comparable to the brahmanical Brahmā, the creator.
In order to determine which connotation of dhamma is meant here, it is necessary to understand the distinction between the Tathāgata’s spiritual paternity and the Brahmā’s mythical fatherhood. According to the brahmanical claim, Brahmā may simply create Brahmins through his mouth, out of his desire.52 In contrast, the Tathāgata’s ‘creation’ of a Buddhist noble disciple through his verbal teachings involves the entire process of spiritual realisation.
As discussed earlier, the titles of the Tathāgata’s true son as ‘born of dhamma,’ and ‘created by dhamma,’ imply the person’s transformation from a worldling (puthujjana) into a noble one (ariya-puggala). His title as an ‘heir of dhamma’ implies similar qualities he shares with the Buddha which indicates the noble (ariya) heredity. Therefore, the component ‘dhamma’ in all these compounds must
50 This refers to the compounds ‘brahma-ja,’ ‘brahma-nimmita,’ and ‘brahma-dāyāda.’51 Gombrich chooses to translate ‘brahma-’ in this instance as ‘Brahmā.’ Ibid., pp. 163-165.52 Paul Deussen, V. M. Bedekar, and Gajanan Balkrishna Palsule, Sixty Upaniṣads of the Veda, 1st ed. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1980, pp. 414-415.
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refer to something which ‘transforms’ the person into noble states, so that itself is comparable to the creator. At the same time, it must refer also to the shared or same kind of qualities or essence of the Buddha and his noble disciples which are distinct from those of worldly people.
According to the Buddhist philosophy of the Pāli canon, transformation arises in succession of, and as a consequence of, the realization of truths. It involves the elimination of particular fetters, as well as the rise of new qualities. In such a circumstance, the dhamma which transforms a worldly human (puthujjana) into a noble disciple (ariyasāvaka) may be identified either with defilement-uprooter, the resultant qualities or with both of them.
In this regard, the Paṭisambhidāmagga describes that the four transcendent paths function in eradicating different sorts of defilements53. Once a particular ‘transcendental path’ (lokuttara magga) eradicates particular defilements, a set of new resultant qualities arises. Each set of ensuant qualities is identified with a particular ‘transcendental fruit’ (lokuttara phala) by which the person is then said to have achieved a corresponding noble state.
A similar statement is made in the Dhammacakkappavattana-sutta54 that the middle way, i.e., the noble eightfold path, leads to Nibbāna. Also, as stated in Magga-saṃyutta, the noble eightfold path once cultivated to the degree that the practitioner ‘is endowed with it’ or ‘has attained it,’ is destined to experience the removal of lust, anger, and delusion.55 Hence, it may be said in general terms that the noble eightfold path functions by eradicating defilements.
While being addressed with different titles, ‘the noble eightfold path’ may be considered comparable to the four transcendent paths in certain respects. As some scholars have suggested, the ‘path’ may be developed to higher levels until the point of final liberation. For example, Govinda suggests a ‘spiral-like’ progression of the noble eightfold path:56
53 Ps.I.72-3, 94, 96, 117-8. 54 S.V.421.55 S.V.5-6.56 Lama Anagarika Govinda, The Psychological Attitude of Early Buddhist Philosophy (London: Rider, 1969), pp. 69-70.
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[R]ight concentration, again, becomes the basis of right views, right aspirations, and other steps of the noble eightfold path, which is now experienced on a higher level, and this spiral-like progression is continued until complete liberation is attained.
Similarly, Harvey explains the development of the threefold path in different levels up to the point where Arhatship is attained:57
With each more refined development of the virtue-meditation-wisdom sequence, the path spirals up to a higher level, until the crucial transition of Stream-entry is reached. The holy path then spirals up to Arahatship.
Harvey’s explanation of the development of the path-function is quite explicit in its relation to the attainment of different levels of noble states. The development of the threefold path in this manner is comparable to that of the noble eightfold path, previously explained by Govinda, as these two titles of ‘path’ correspond to one another.58 Thus, certain levels of the noble eightfold path can be comparable to the four transcendent paths, just like the same road leading straight up to a destination being addressed with different titles at certain points along the way.59 The four transcendent maggas, in functioning by eradicating defilements, must be constitutive of the eight elements of the noble path that are instrumental to enlightenment.
As these transcendental paths and fruits function in transubstantiating a person into noble states, they may be considered comparable to Brahmā, the creator. Indeed, as these supramundane paths and fruits can be regarded also as ‘shared or the same kind of properties/qualities’ of the Buddha and his noble disciples which distinguish them from worldly people (lokiya puthujjana), they seem to fit in the meaning of ‘dhamma’ in our quest.60
57 Peter Harvey, An Introduction to Buddhism: Teachings, History, and Practices (Cambridge England ; New York: Cambridge University Press, 1990), pp. 70-71.58 M.I.301.59 In the Pāli canon, the noble eightfold path is mentioned as the best of all ‘conditioned states.’ A.II.34. The Theravādins also understand the four transcendent maggas as ‘conditioned.’ Kv.318, Kv.580.60 Cf. Harvey’s interpretation of dhamma that is the Tathāgata’s body as the noble eightfold path, as mentioned earlier.
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With regard to dhamma as the ‘essence’ of the Buddha and Arhat disciples, however, it may be more appropriate to refer to ‘Nibbāna,’ for once they have attained Buddhahood and Arhatship their spiritual qualities are transformed and they have passed beyond the earlier paths and fruits by means of the permanent destruction of certain defilements. Besides, the Buddha’s designation dhammabhūta, ‘(he) who has become dhamma,’ indicates that previously he was not a dhamma-being, but that he becomes dhamma later. Such a ‘later’ time in this case must refer to the time of his enlightenment, when he could declare himself ‘Buddha.’ This, again, implies dhamma at the level of enlightenment, and seems to support the earlier interpretation as ‘transcendent dhammas’ especially ‘Nibbāna.’
In this case, it does not mean that all the noble ones possess all transcendental paths and fruits. The noble disciples of lower levels have not possessed the higher paths and fruits. Nevertheless, as the word ‘heir’ indicates, while the properties shared by the father and the son are of the same kind, those belonging to the son may be less or of lower quality than those belonging to the father. In a similar way, the qualities/properties possessed by the noble disciples could be of a lower level than that possessed by the Buddha. But they must be of the same sort, which in this case means ‘lokuttara,’ that differs from those belonging to the worldlings.
As discussed above, the Tathāgata’s designation61 being related as the reason for the true son’s titles62 renders it necessary in both cases that the term dhamma carries the same connotation in all compounds. Thus, it may be concluded heuristically that the term dhamma as the first constituent of the compound dhammakāya and dhammabhūta may be identified in a general term such as ‘transcendent dhamma.’We shall now turn to examine another possibility by which the term brahma- is translated in the compounds as brahman.
61 This refers to the designations dhammakāya and dhammabhūta.62 This refers to the titles dhammaja, dhammanimmita, dhammadāyāda.
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In the case that ‘brahma-’ refers to the neuter ‘brahman’In the other case in which the term brahma- is translated as ‘brahman’63 the ultimate,64 the third parallel65 suggests that the term dhamma in the passage equals ultimate reality, but in the Buddhist sense. This directly precludes the interpretation of the term dhamma in the passage as the Buddha’s ‘verbal teaching,’ while allowing its interpretation as ‘transcendental realities.’ The equation of the Buddha and dhamma, as well as the connection between the Buddha’s designations and the titles of his ‘true son’ is implied in the same manner as in the above case.
Thus, the translation of ‘brahma-’ in the Brahmins’ titles either as the masculine ‘Brahmā’ or as the neuter ‘brahman’ leads to the same conclusion that the term dhamma constituting the compound dhammakāya refers to ‘transcendental realities.’ It refers to the dhamma that is the incorruptible Buddha’s essence;66 dhamma which gives birth to noble disciples, dhamma which is the shared qualities of the Buddha and his noble disciples which distinguishes them from worldly people, and dhamma the ‘verbal expression’ of which is regarded as the Buddha’s verbal teaching. Therefore, the present study concludes that dhamma, that is, the ‘body’ of the Tathāgata, refers to ‘transcendental realities’ in general.
63 Some scholars are more inclined to choose this translation. For example, see Wilhelm Geiger, “Dhamma Und Brahman,” Zeitschrift für buddhismus (1921): 73-83, 79, Harrison, op. cit., note 20, p. 78. Here, Harrison refers to a number of scholars who translate ‘brahma-’ in this case as ‘brahman,’ which he thinks more correct. Gombrich, while translating the term in this case as the masculine ‘Brahmā,’ acknowledges also the possibility of translating it as the neuter ‘brahman.’ Gombrich, ‘The Buddha’s Book of Genesis?’ op. cit., p. 165.64 As Geiger states, ‘Ursprünglich umfasst dieses Wort die Summe aller der geheimnisvollen magischen Kräfte, die im Opfer und in der priesterlichen Tätigkeit enthalten sind.’ Wilhelm Geiger, “Dhamma Und Brahman,” Zeitschrift four buddhismus (1921), p. 74. Cf. Gombrich, op. cit., p. 165., p. 12.65 As a reminding, the ‘third parallel’ refers to the parallel of the term ‘dhamma’ in the three titles of Buddhist noble disciples (dhammaja, dhammanimmita, dhammadāyāda) with the term ‘brahman’ in the titles of brahmins (brahmaja, brahmanimmita, brahmadāyāda.)66 Cf. S.III.120. ‘Seeing the Buddha’ purportedly means ‘seeing the Buddha’s incorruptible nature or essence’ as opposed to ‘seeing the Buddha’s corruptible physical body’ which is useless.
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While a conclusion is proposed here to some extent, it may be useful to examine further implications from the parallel usage of the term ‘dhamma’ and ‘brahma’ elsewhere, for it may add further understanding to the present conclusion regarding the four designations of the Buddha.
Implications from Parallel Usage of Dhamma and BrahmaOf the four designations of the Buddha, scholars note also the parallel usage of ‘dhamma’ and ‘brahma’ that seems to equate ‘dhammakāya’ with ‘brahmakāya’ and ‘dhammabhūta’ with ‘brahmabhūta.’67 The same parallel can be found also in other passages where, for example, ‘brahmacakka’ replaces ‘dhammacakka’68 or where ‘brahmacariya’ and ‘dhammacariya’ appear to correspond.69
The parallel usage of the two terms appears to have some significance. On their own, both terms can carry different connotations in different contexts. But their analogous usage restricts their possible interpretations to some degree. It is observed that, whenever both terms are mentioned together in parallel, they usually refer to the state of highest purity, or at least signify ‘the best.’
The parallel between dhammayāna and brahmayāna points to this direction. In Magga-saṃyutta, the noble eightfold path is entitled either ‘the path to/of brahma-’ (brahmayāna),70 ‘the path to/of dhamma’ (dhammayāna), or ‘the supreme path of victory in the battle’ (anuttara saṅgāmavijaya). This is because such a noble path, once cultivated and frequently practised to the degree of attainment, leads to the removal of lust, anger, and delusion.71 Hence, the terms dhamma and brahma in this case refer to the state of supreme purity,67 Geiger, op. cit.; Horner, op. cit., pp. 117-118; Theodore Stcherbatsky, The Conception of Buddhist Nirvana. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1977, p. 52; Gombrich, op. cit., p. 165.68 M.I.69-71, S.II.27, A.II.9, A.III.417-419, A.V.33-38.69 Dhammacariya-sutta, Sn.49.70 DA.III.865. Cf. S.V.4-6.While the term yāna is used usually in the sense of ‘vehicle,’ its meaning in the ancient Indian traditions is ‘path.’ As brahmayāna and dhammayāna in this passage refer to ‘the noble eightfold path,’ they are, hence, translated as ‘path to brahma’ and ‘path to dhamma’ respectively. Thanks are due to Prof. Richard Gombrich for teaching me its ancient meaning.71 S.V.5-6.
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72 Harvey, The Selfless Mind, op. cit., p. 271. 73 The former generally refers to the renunciation (living the holy life), while the latter to the virtuous observances (living the righteous life).74 Sn.49.75 S.III.83.76 brahmabhūtena attanā viharati . For example, see M.I.348-349, M.I.413, A.II.208-211.77 so anattantapo aparantapo diṭṭhe va dhamme nicchāto nibbuto sītibhūto sukhapaṭisaṃvedī brahmabhūtena attanā viharati. M.I.348-349, M.I.413, A.II.210-211.78 M.II.160-162.79 Geiger, op. cit., pp. 76-77.80 A.III.346.81 Phayre MS. (in Burmese characters), in the India Office Library. [Information from the preface of Edmund Hardy, The Anguttara-Nikaya V.3 (London: Pali Text Society : Distributed by Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1976), p. v.]
where all fetters are uprooted, or at least they signify the ‘best’ state.72
The same may be said for the parallel of dhammacariya and brahmacariya. Although these two compounds are normally used in different senses,73 in the passage where they appear together, both are said to be the highest ways of living.74
It is likely that the analogue of both terms in ‘dhammakāya,’ ‘brahmakāya,’ ‘dhammabhūta’ and ‘brahmabhūta’ in the Aggañña-sutta can be understood in the same way. The notion of ‘brahmabhūta’ found elsewhere seems to reinforce this. It always refers to an Arahat, who has eradicated all defilements.75 Sometimes, an Arahat is described with the expression ‘lives by means of self having become brahma.’76 In these cases, he is said to live without burning himself or others, satisfied, extinguished, tranquil, and experiencing happiness presently.77 Sometimes an Arahat who ‘lives with his self and becomes brahma’ is explained as passionless, as opposed to worldly people who passionately seek material properties.78 Therefore, the word brahmabhūta indicates the state of having eradicated all traces of defilements and sufferings - that he becomes one with the ultimate peace and happiness.
Geiger remarks that the word Brahman here is synonymous to Buddhist Nibbāna.79 He notes also the use of the word ‘brahmapatha’80 which in a Pāli manuscript81 is glossed as ‘amatapatha’ - the way to the deathless. It is expressed explicitly that ‘brahma-’ in the passage is to be understood as Nibbāna, ‘the undying,’ which is the highest goal of Buddhists.
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On the whole, it appears that the terms dhamma and brahma constituting four designations of the Tathāgata are used in the sense of the ‘highest.’ It is most likely that they refer to Nibbāna.
This is in line with our earlier proposed interpretation that the term dhamma in the designations of the Buddha refers to ‘transcendental realities’ (lokuttara dhammas), the highest of which is that the essence of the Buddha is Nibbāna. According to Buddhist philosophy, the dhammas that ‘create’ or ‘give birth’ to a Buddhist disciple could be referred to also as the ‘highest’ or ‘ultimate,’ as they transcend the realm of saṃsāra. These are systematized later as the ninefold transcendental dhamma (navavidha lokuttaradhamma), subsuming the four supramundane paths, their corresponding fruits,and Nibbāna. Thus, from all the implications discussed above, the present study concludes that the term dhamma in the compound dhammakāya and dhammabhūta refers to the ninefold transcendental dhamma in general.’Next, we shall determine the meaning of the second component ‘kāya.’
The Meaning of ‘Kāya’ in the Aggañña-sutta PassageThe term kāya may be translated into English either as ‘body’ or ‘collection,’ which sometimes can be used interchangeably.82 However, these English words have different senses in their main definitions. The word ‘body’ is used mainly in the sense of ‘the entire structure of an organism.’ But the word ‘collection’ merely provides the sense of ‘a number of things collected together.’ This suggests both their similarities and differences which may be considered in two aspects: ‘structure’ and ‘function.’
Structurally, both ‘body’ and ‘collection’ consist of a number of elements or individual members. A ‘body,’ as the ‘entire structure of an organism,’ consists of organs which are entitled ‘limbs and parts’ (aṅga-paccaṅga). A ‘collection’ also consists of several things which may be either similar or different. Thus, both ‘body’ and ‘collection’ can be reduced to individual members or elements. This may be regarded as their similarity.
82 An example is the expression ‘body of people’ and ‘collection of people’ which can be used interchangeably.
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Functionally, however, both terms seem to imply a different relationship between individual members and the ‘totality’ of the whole ‘body’ or ‘collection.’ As a ‘body,’ the ‘totality’ of the whole organism is important for an organ to function. Once an organ is cut off from the ‘whole,’ it cannot function anymore. Likewise, if the sense of ‘totality’ or ‘whole’ is lost, in which case the organism is considered ‘dead,’ all organs cannot function, even though they are still attached to that ‘dead body.’ Thus, in case of a ‘body,’ the functional ability of its limbs and parts depends on the sense of ‘functioning totality’ or the ‘living body.’ In contrast, the word ‘collection’ does not imply any sense of such functional dependence. It seems to hold loosely its individual members or ‘several things’ under the same title of the group. Even though the ‘totality’ or the ‘collection’ is not retained, individual members do not lose their identity or function. Thus, from the functional aspect, the words ‘body’ and ‘collection’ are different.
In order to determine the most probably meaning of the term kāya constituting part of ‘dhammakāya,’ it is helpful to recollect how our study has arrived at the conclusion that the component ‘dhamma’ in the Tathāgata’s designation refers to ‘transcendental dhamma.’ To reiterate, the titles of the noble disciples are connected with the designations of the Tathātata by means of this reasoning; because the Buddha is ‘dhamma-bodied’ and ‘become dhamma,’ thus ‘his son’ can be entitled ‘born of dhamma,’ ‘created by dhamma,’ and ‘an heir by means of dhamma.’ The term dhamma in all these compounds carries the same connotation comparable to the ‘creator,’ or the dhamma that ‘transforms’ a worldly human into a noble one. This refers to transcendental ‘paths’ and ‘fruits.’
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The parallel usage of dhammakāya and dhammabhūta with brahmakāya and brahmabhūta suggests further that the term dhamma in the passage should refer to Nibbāna. Indeed, it is possible also to say that Nibbāna itself can ‘transform’ beings as well, for the realization of it engenders the transformation from worldly people to noble persons.83 Our study thus concludes, in general terms, that ‘dhamma’ in all these compounds refers to ‘transcendental dhamma.’84 As the significance of such a conception of ‘dhamma’ is determined by ‘its function’ as ‘transformer’ or ‘defilement eradicator,’ the meaning of ‘kāya’ as ‘body’ is more appropriate.
Each transcendental path or fruit can be understood as a totality of various qualities. As an example, the Stream-attaining path (sotāpattimagga) is composed of path-constituents at the level of the Stream-attaining state.85 Thus, the path itself is the ‘whole’ or the ‘totality’ of all path-constituents at the corresponding level. It could be possible that different path-constituents may perform different functions in the elimination of defilements. But the effective elimination of corresponding fetters (saṃyojanas) requires the ‘whole’ or ‘totality’ by which the particular ‘path’ is named. In other words, the effective functions of individual path-constituents are ‘dependent’ on this ‘whole’ or ‘totality’ which is identified with the particular ‘path.’ Thus, the text mventions the eradication of particular fetters in accordance with different levels of the functioning path, from the path to Stream-entry (sotāpattimagga) up to the path to
83 As the Dhammacakkappavattana-sutta suggests, there can be different levels of the realisation of the four noble truths. These many levels may well correspond to different levels of transcendental states. In other words, the trainee (sekha-puggala) from the Stream-attainer (sotāpanna) to the Non-returner (anāgāmī) have realised Nibbāna also to their corresponding degrees.84 Rather than limiting its interpretation to only ‘Nibbāna,’ the present study proposes a broader context of ‘dhammakāya’ as ‘transcendental dhamma’ (lokuttara dhamma) in order to avoid the preclusion of noble disciples of lower levels, e.g., the stream-attainer (sotāpanna) to the non-returner (anāgāmī) which appear to be included also in the sutta. Cf. Harvey, The Selfless Mind, op. cit., pp. 233-4.85 S.V.348.
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86 Ps.I.96.87 Even though ‘dhammakāya’ here is used to designate the Tathāgata, along with three other designations, two of which are apparently adjectives, it needs not mean that the term dhammakāya must necessarily be an adjective, for they are not synonymous in the sense of English grammar. These designations may well be similar to the Buddha’s epithets that are simply listed together, while some epithets are adjectives (e.g. vijjācaraṇasampanno) and some are substantives (e.g. satthā devamanussānaṃ).
Arhatship (arahattamagga).86 Therefore, the particular path is not a mere ‘collective title’ of the path-constituents but the ‘essential totality’ by which a ‘body’ is defined.
The dependence of functions of individual constituents on the ‘totality’ of the particular transcendental path allows its definition as a kind of ‘body.’ The same could be said for transcendental fruits (lokuttara phala) and Nibbāna. Thus, the transcendental dhamma should be defined as a ‘body’ rather than being a mere collection of those functional qualities.From the above conclusion regarding the meanings of both components ‘dhamma’ and ‘kāya,’ we now come to the re-interpretation of ‘dhammakāya’ as a whole.
Possible meanings of Dhammakāya in the Aggañña-suttaIn the above discussion, the present study tentatively translated the term dhammakāya as an adjective ‘dhamma-bodied’. Based on the above concluded meanings of ‘dhamma’ and ‘kāya,’ the term ‘dhammakāya’ as an adjective conveys the meaning that transcendental dhamma or Nibbāna is the Buddha’s ‘body.’ As ‘dhammakāya’ in this instance designates the Buddha, such a translation as an adjective is naturally reasonable. However, as the context of the passage does not preclude the translation of the term as a substantive,87 it may be interesting to try also the other two grammatical forms that give the translation of the compound as a noun.
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First, as a kammadhāraya compound, the translation of the term dhammakāya will be ‘the body that is transcendental (lokuttara) dhamma’ or ‘the body that is Nibbāna.’ This gives a similar sense as that of the translation of the term as an adjective that the Tathāgata’s body is the transcendental dhamma(s) or Nibbāna. The only difference is the shift of identification of this dhamma-body,88 from ‘belonging to the Tathāgata’ to ‘itself being (identified with) the Tathāgata’89 or his essence.
This translation seems also appropriate, considered from the parallel usage of dhammakāya and dhammabhūta. The Buddha has become the transcendental dhamma or Nibbāna, having such dhamma as his nature. Also, as discussed above, the transcendental dhamma itself possesses a property of ‘body.’ Hence, it is possible to say that the Buddha is the body that is transcendental dhamma, or Nibbāna.
Alternatively, as a tappurisa compound, ‘dhammakāya’ may be translated as the ‘body pertaining to transcendental dhamma.’ Also, as a particular ‘transcendent dhamma’ consists of corresponding constituents, the term ‘dhammakāya’ may be translated as a tappurisa compound as ‘body of transcendental dhammas,’ where ‘dhammas’ in the latter refers to those constituents. Hence, when designating the Tathāgata, the translation of ‘dhammakāya’ in
88 As stated at the beginning, the English expression as ‘dhamma-body’ corresponds to both translations of dhammakāya as a substantive, i.e., ‘body that is dhamma’ and ‘body of dhamma.’ For the sake of simplicity and understanding, the present work refers sometimes to dhammakāya as a noun simply as ‘dhamma-body.’89 When translating the term as an adjective, as the Buddha ‘has dhamma as body,’ it can be said that ‘the body which is dhamma’ belongs to him. But when the term is translated as a noun, it means that the Tathāgata is ‘the body that is (transcendental) dhamma.’ In other words, the dhamma-body (the body which is dhamma) is the Tathāgata.
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this sense conveys the meaning that the Tathāgata is the body pertaining to transcendental dhamma or Nibbāna, or he is the body of those transcendent qualities. This is similar to the kammadhāraya compound in that it provides the sense of an identification of the Tathāgata with ‘dhammakāya.’
To conclude, our study proposes that ‘dhammakāya’ as it designates the Tathāgata may be translated either as an adjective (bahubbīhi compound) which conveys the meaning that transcendent dhamma or Nibbāna is the Tathāgata’s body, or as a noun (kammadhāraya or tappurisa compound) being the dhamma-body with which the Tathāgata is identified.In the next part, the study will examine another Pāli passage that is related to Paccekabuddhas, the self-enlightened persons.
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V. Reference 2: Dhammakāya and Paccekabuddhas A Paccekabuddha is counted as one of the two types of Buddhas.90 According to Buddhist philosophy, a Paccekabuddha is a person who is of the highest wisdom of realization that he can be self-enlightened, in the same way as a Buddha can. However, he is said to lack teaching ability in that he cannot teach a body of people to
90 A.I.77. Some scholars argue that the concept of a Paccekabuddha is originally non-Buddhist, and that it has been included into Buddhist texts later. A reason given is that the references to Paccekabuddhas are found also in the canon of Jainism. Gombrich proposes also that the assimilation of the concept regarding Paccekabuddhas into Buddhist canon could have resulted from an actualisation of ‘an interstitial category’ inferred logically. Norman, likewise, claims that the concept regarding this type of enlightened beings is ‘pre-Buddhist’ and ‘pre-Jainist.’ The issue is discussed in detail in K. R. Norman, “The Pratyeka-Buddha in Buddhism and Jainism,” in Buddhist Studies: Ancient and Modern (London: Curzon Press, 1983). However, this can be looked at also from a different point. In the Buddha’s time, Buddhism was not regarded by the Buddha or his disciples as a particular ‘school of thought.’ Rather, it seems to be seen as ‘a way of practice’ or ‘a way of life.’ The Buddha’s main concern of delivering his teaching is the audience’s enlightenment or spiritual realisation, as mentioned in the Abhayarājakumāra-sutta (M.I.395) where he declares his speaking characters, which can be summarised as follows:
1. Knowing what is untrue, incorrect, and useless, whether or not it will be dear or agreeable to the audience, the Buddha would not speak it.
2. Knowing what is true, correct, but useless, whether or not it will be dear or agreeable to the audience, the Buddha would not speak it.
3. Knowing what is true, correct, and useful, whether or not it will be dear or agreeable to the audience, the Buddha would know the right time to speak it.
The point of this declaration is that, the Buddha would say only what he knows is true, correct, and beneficial to listeners and at an appropriate time. Even though it is not dear or agreeable to his audience, he would know the right time to speak it. This is done for the audience’s good. He compares this with taking out a stick or pebble from a child’s mouth, even if it means drawing blood, in order to save that child. The Buddha’s speech is thus characterised by his compassion to beings. Considering the characteristics of his speech as such, it is more likely that the Buddha does not think of Paccekabuddhas as ‘Buddhist’ or ‘non-Buddhist’ but rather ‘enlightened beings.’ The same holds true for his statement regarding any noble disciples. For example, the Buddha would call anyone who possesses qualities of a Stream-attainer as a ‘Stream-attainer’ (sotāpanna). The categorisation of ‘Buddhist’ and ‘non-Buddhist’ by means of ‘registering’ to a ‘particular school of thought’ seems to be a later classification or merely scholarly definition or differentiation for the convenience of discussion proposed within the academic arena.
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obtain enlightenment in the same way as the Buddha can.91 Therefore, a Paccekabuddha does not need a teacher for his enlightenment, nor is he himself regarded as a teacher. This is perhaps one of the reasons why Paccekabuddhas are usually described as travelling alone like the single horn of a rhinoceros.92 Due to his enlightening superiority and purity, a Paccekabuddha is then ranked as second to the Buddha, and is said to be the second superior field of merit.93
Buddhist traditions hold that many Paccekabuddhas can arise in the world in the same age,94 while only one perfectly enlightened Buddha (sammāsambuddha) can arise in the world at a time. Paccekabuddhas are persons who deserve - people’s veneration by stūpas (thūpāraha),95 possess human essence (sattasāra), are free from trouble (anigha), desireless (nirāsa), free from grief (visalla), well-enlightened, superior men (naruttama),96 having great powers (mahānubhāva), and whose craving for rebirth is exhausted.97
91 While it is possible for a Paccekabuddha to teach an individual which finally leads to that person’s enlightenment, he does not teach to a multitude of people in the same way as a Buddha does. Hence, a Paccekabuddha is not regarded as being a ‘teacher’ in general sense. Also, their discourses are brief and mainly concerned with the praise of solitude, rather than containing instructions on how to practise oneself in order to gain spiritual realisation. See, for example, Ap.I.7-14.92 Although the Pāli word ‘khaggavisāṇa’ could mean either the ‘rhinoceros’s horn’ or the animal ‘rhinoceros’ itself, this work chooses the former definition for it better symbolises the Paccekabuddhas’ solitude.93 The first superior field of merit is the Buddha (sammāsambuddha). M.III.254.94 It is mentioned in the Isigili-sutta that five hundred Paccekabuddhas lived together at the Isigili mount in Magadha. M.III.68.95 D.II.142-143.96 M.III.69.97 M.III.71.
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In the Apadāna literature, besides the life history of the Buddha and his disciples, a section is devoted to a depiction of the characteristics of Pacceka-buddhas. This - section is entitled ‘Paccekabuddhāpadāna.’ At verse 52 of the section, there is a mention of ‘dhammakāya’ in relation to Paccekabuddhas:
Mahantadhammā bahudhammakāyā, cittissarā sabbadukkhoghatiṇṇā; udaggacittā paramatthadassī, sīhopamā khaggavisāṇakappā.Ap.I.13.
(The Paccekabuddhas) whose dhamma(s) is great, having many dhammas as body (or having many dhamma-bodies), whose mind is independent (without attachment), have crossed beyond the flood of all sufferings, delighted minded, the seers of supreme welfare, comparable to sīha (the king of forest), and the horn of a rhinoceros.
In this verse, many words seem to carry various connotations in themselves. The term ‘mahantadhammā’ is a bahubbīhi compound meaning ‘whose dhammas are great,’ qualifying ‘Paccekabuddhas’ To consider what is meant by the term dhamma(s) in this compound, it is helpful to look at the preceding verses of the same story.
Immediately preceding the verse in question, two other verses refer to Paccekabuddhas in general as follows: 98
Visuddhasīlā suvisuddhapaññā samāhitā jāgariyānuyuttāVipassakā dhammavisesadassī maggaṅgabojjhaṅgagate vijaññā.Puññappaṇidhiñ (suññatāpaṇihitañ) ca tathānimittaṃ āsevayitvā Jinasāsanamhi ye sāvakattaṃ na vajanti dhīrā bhavanti paccekajinā sayambhū.
They whose virtue and wisdom are supremely purified, composed minded, vigilant, gifted with introspection, the seers of superior dhammas, cognizing dhammas included in path-constituents and elements of enlightenment. The wise, having cultivated three deliverances, do not proceed to discipleship in the Buddhas’ teaching, [but] become Paccekabuddhas, the self-enlightened.
98 Ap.I.13.
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These verses describe the Paccekabuddhas as ones possessed of supreme purity, wisdom, wakefulness, composure, and having the ability for seeing and knowing. In other words, they are full of realizing capacity, and so finally become self-enlightened. Then, it is likely that the term ‘dhamma’ in the qualitative compound mahantadhammā ‘having great dhammas’ are those pertaining to such a realizing capacity. Certainly, these qualities of Paccekabuddhas are great, compared to those of the noble disciples.
The second bahubbīhi compound qualifying ‘Paccekabuddhas’ is ‘bahudhammakāyā.’ Gramm atically, this may be translated in two different ways: ‘having many dhammas as body’ or ‘having many dhamma-bodies.’ The former conveys the meaning that a Paccekabuddha has many dhammas as his body, whereas ‘many dhammas’ refer to those pertaining to the capacity of self-enlightenment, as elaborated in the previous verses above. The latter implies that a Paccekabuddha could have more than one ‘dhamma-body.’99
Information provided in the canon seems insufficient to determine this with certainty. Therefore, the present study holds that both translations are possible, for there is no indication in the
99 Cf. Need, op. cit., p. 380. Need seems inclined to interpret the term in this way, as he states: “[I]t is unclear whether the term modifies dhamma or kāyā – although dhammakāya is not plural, the sense could be “manifold body of dhamma”, rather than “body of manifold dhammas”.”
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early texts that ‘dhammakāya’ must be singular.100 In any case, the verse conveys the meaning that a Paccekabuddha has dhamma(s) as his body (or bodies), where ‘dhammas’ refers to the qualities pertaining to self-enlightenment. Here again, we note the connection between the term dhammakāya and enlightenment.
The adjectival (bahu) dhammakāya in the case of Paccekabuddhas is comparable to that in the case of the Buddha’s designation. We noted earlier that scholars tend to interpret the component ‘dhamma’ as ‘teaching.’ However, this does not fit the adjective ‘(bahu)dhammakāya’ referring to Paccekabuddhas, for Paccekabuddhas do not need a teacher and they themselves are not ‘teachers.’ They are ‘enlightened beings.’ This then reinforces the notion that the term dhamma in the adjective ‘dhammakāya’ corresponds to enlightenment,’ i.e., transcendental dhamma(s).
It may be argued that the Buddha and Paccekabuddhas are not the same. As the Buddha is a teacher, then it should be fine to say that he ‘has teaching as body.’ This is unlikely, however, for it would be strange to differentiate that the component ‘dhamma’ of the adjectival dhammakāya refers to ‘teaching’ in the case of Buddha, while referring to ‘transcendental dhamma’ in the case of Paccekabuddhas. Such would give an impression that a Buddha is a ‘non-enlightened being,’ which is incorrect. The study of this passage thus reinforces our earlier conclusion regarding dhammakāya and the Buddha that the component dhamma in the adjective dhammakāya does not refer to ‘teaching,’ but ‘transcendental dhamma’ relating to spiritual realization.
In conclusion, our study in this part adds further information that dhammakāya is related not only to the Buddha but also to the enlightenment of Paccekabudhas. We shall now proceed to examine further the meaning of dhammakāya in relation to noble disciples.
100 As Harrison states, the understanding that dhammakāya must be singular is ‘later traditional belief ’ that links ‘dhammakāya’ with other words for reality such as dhammatā, dhammadhātu, etc. Harrison, op. cit., pp. 44, 48. As observed above, ‘dhammakāya’ may be identified with any transcendental path, fruit, or Nibbāna. This seems to allow the possibility of different levels of dhammakāya. The study of dhammakāya and noble disciples below will affirm this point.
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VI. Reference 3: Dhammakāya and Noble Disciples Besides the term’s relation to the Buddha and Paccekabuddhas, a Pāli canonical reference mentions also the relation of dhammakāya with noble disciples. This is found in the seventeenth story of the Theriyāpadāna which records the autobiography of the great nun Gotamī - the aunt and foster mother of the Buddha.
The narrative setting is that the nun considered her day of passing and went to see the Buddha for the last time. On the way to the Buddha’s residence, her declaration to female lay supporters who lamented on her parting indicates that Gotamī was an Arhat, who has completely destroyed all fetters (saṃyojanas), and whose trace of rebirth has been uprooted.101 In the first part of her acknowledgement regarding her intention of passing, in the presence of the Buddha, she makes the comparison of her motherhood to the Buddha’s fatherhood. The relevant lines are as follows:
31. ahaṃ sugata te mātā tvaṃ ca dhīra pitā mama; saddhammasukhado102 nātha, tayā jāt’amhi gotama.32. saṃvaddhitoyaṃ sugata rūpakāyo mayā tava; anindiyo103 dhammakāyo104 mama saṃvaddhito tayā.33. Muhuttaṃ taṇhāsamanaṃ khīraṃ tvaṃ pāyito mayā; tayā’haṃ santam accantaṃ dhammakhīram hi pāyitā.
Ap.II.532.
31. I am your mother, O Sugata; and, O the wise, you are my father;O Gotama the refuge who gives happiness of truths, I have been born through you.32. This physical body of yours, O Sugata, was brought up by me;The blameless (pleasurable) dhamma-body of mine was brought up by you.
101 Ap.II.531. Here, she declares the following points: 1) her realisation of the four noble truths, by three rounds - twelve steps, 2) she has completely finished the course of practice laid down by the Buddha, 3) her release 4) her destruction of all desires 5) her complete attainment of successive fruits of renunciation, and 6) her absence of all fetters (saṃyojanas).102 Another manuscript gives ‘~sukhada’ indicating the vocative case.103 A Sinhalese and a Burmese Mss. gives ‘ānandito.’ SR version: ‘ānandiyo’104 Here, the CS and SR versions of the Tipiṭaka record the term as ‘dhammakāyo.’ But the BJ and PTS version writes ‘dhammatanu,’ which has the same meaning as that of dhammakāya. The Pāli term ‘tanu’ usually refers to ‘body’ in the physical sense.
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33. You were fed by me the milk that could relieve thirst (only) momentarily;But I was fed by you the dhamma-milk that is perpetually peaceful.
In this passage, a comparison is made between worldly motherhood and spiritual paternity, the fostering of the physical body and that of the dhamma-body, the thirst-relieving efficacy of ordinary milk and the milk that is dhamma. In all cases of such a comparison, the superiority of the spiritual side over the worldly side is demonstrated. According to the verses quoted above, some points can be made of verses in particularVerse 31 implies that Gotamī was ‘spiritually reborn’ to the noble clan through the realization of truths, initiated with the teaching of the Buddha. Thus, the Buddha is her spiritual father. Such a declaration indicates her state of being a noble disciple, as her declaration of emancipation affirms. The mention of ‘happiness of truths’ implies also that such a realization brings about happiness.
In verse 32, she declares that her blameless or pleasurable dhammakāya was brought up by the Buddha. This has a number of implications regarding dhammakāya. First, the term dhammakāya in this passage is used as a substantive ‘dhamma-body.’ Secondly, her mention of ‘my dhammakāya’ (dhammakāyo mama) implies its relation to her spiritual attainment, being her new identity corresponding to her spiritual new birth in the supramundane plane. Once obtained, it is ‘her dhammakāya.’ Thirdly, the statement that her dhammakāya was brought up (saṃvaḍḍhita) by the Buddha implies its different levels. It suggests that there can be a number of levels of dhammakāya, and that the dhammakāya can be developed to a higher state up to its final perfection. Fourthly, her dhammakāya is regarded as blameless (anindito, anindiyo), or pleasurable (ānandiyo, ānandito). While more information is required in order to further analyze these aspects of dhammakāya precisely, at least some initial implications can be appreciated right away. For example, its quality as being blameless implies its completeness or perfection, and its quality as being pleasurable connotes joy, delight, or happiness. This could be
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related also to the happiness arisen from the realisation of truths, as mentioned in the previous verse.
In verse 33, Gotamī is said to have been fed on the ‘dhamma-milk.’105 Because it is fed to her by the Buddha, it sounds likely that such ‘milk’ refers to his ‘teaching.’ However, its quality as ‘unceasingly peaceful’ indicates the state to which the teaching has brought her. That is to say, she is led from the initial introduction to the inner experience of the reality, so that she can eventually and actually ‘taste’ or realize it through her spiritual attainment. Rather than being sustenance to her physical body, the dhamma-milk is fed to nourish the growth of her dhamma-body (dhammakāya). Thus, in her declaration ‘I was fed by you,’ the ‘I’ refers here to her dhamma-body (dhammakāya) rather than her physical body. This expression implies her identification with the dhammakāya. It affirms the earlier statement that the dhammakāya is ‘a new and now true identity’ that corresponds to her spiritual rebirth in the noble plane. This could also, in a way, clarify why the Buddha is designated ‘dhammakāya,’ as mentioned earlier.106 It implies his identity with dhammakāya from the time of his enlightenment. This is affirmed by the parallel usage of dhammakāya and dhammabhūta (become dhamma). Therefore, observations regarding dhammakāya from this declaration may be made as follows:
105 Dhammakhīraṃ. This is a Kammadhāraya compound, translated literally as ‘milk that is dhamma.’106 D.III.84.
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1. The term dhammakāya is related to enlightenment. This agrees with our earlier observation regarding the relation of ‘dhammakāya’ to the Buddha and Paccekabuddhas.
2. Dhammakāya is not exclusive to the Buddha, but attainable also to his disciples. Once obtained, it is ‘his/her dhammakāya.’
3. The phrase ‘my dhammakāya’ spoken by Gotamī precludes the interpretation of the term as ‘teaching,’ but allows an interpretation as ‘quality/property.’ Whereas the ‘teaching’ belongs generally to the Buddha, ‘quality/property/capacity’ can belong also to anyone who obtained it.
4. The dhammakāya can be brought up (saṃvaḍḍhita) - can be developed to a higher level until the highest perfection is met. This implies that there are at least two different levels of dhammakāya which supports our earlier conclusion from the Aggañña-sutta that the term could refer to a particular transcendental state, and that each state being a ‘whole’ or ‘totality’ of transcendental constituents in the corresponding level.
5. Unlike ‘dhammakāya’ in the Aggañña-sutta which can be translated as an adjective, ‘dhammakāya’ in this passage is used strictly as a noun. It affirms that both forms of translation should be accepted according to the context of the passage where the term is located.
6. With the description of dhammakāya in the passage, the term dhamma in the compound seems to convey the sense of ‘transcendental reality’ that is attainable and developable to its perfection. Gotamī’s mention of ‘my dhammakāya’ also affirms our earlier remark, that both the Buddha and his noble disciples have some properties or qualities in common. Such properties refer to dhammakāya(s). Thus, the great nun’s mention of her dhammakāya suggests that she is ‘an heir’ by dhamma, and that such a title arises on her acquisition of dhammakāya.
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In regard to the different levels of dhammakāya, the canon talks about the different states of trainees (sekha) and non-trainees (asekha). The former refers to states in which a further course is yet to be accomplished, while the latter requires no further course.The Pāli canon distinguishes these two types of noble disciples by qualities they possess. The text enumerates the tenfold quality (dasa asekha-dhamma) that identifies a person as ‘a non-trainee’ (asekha puggala),107 who is a virtuous one,108 or a more-virtuous-than-virtuous virtuous one.109 But sometimes, a trainee (sekha) is said also to possess the same ten qualities.110 In this latter case, the ten qualities belonging to a ‘non-trainee’ (asekha) is differentiated by an addition of a qualitative ‘asekha,’ meaning ‘pertaining to a non-trainee,’ which precedes the title of each of the ten qualities.111 Likewise, the partial or entire practice of the four foundations of mindfulness differentiates between noble disciples as ‘trainees’ (sekha) and as ‘non-trainees’ (asekha). Thus, these qualities belonging to trainees (sekha) and to non-trainees (asekha) could characterise different levels of the dhamma-body.
Traditional accounts make further classifications of trainees according to different transcendental paths and their corresponding fruits as understood in the early Theravāda community. As is evident in the canon, a standard formula is usually employed to enumerate the members of the assembly of noble disciples (ariya saṅgha), i.e., four pairs of persons, the eight individuals.112 The ‘eight individuals’ refer to noble disciples who have achieved different levels of
107 D.III.271, M.III.75-76.108 A.II.222.109 S.V.20. In this reference, a virtuous one is identified with a ‘trainee’ (sekha) noble disciple. Therefore, a ‘non-trainee’ (asekha) is said to be more virtuous.110 S.V.380-385.111 See, for example, M.I.446-447, A.V.221.112 Cattāri purisayugāni aṭṭha purisapuggalā. D.II.93-94, D.III.5, M.I.37, S.I.220.
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supramundane paths and fruits.113 The ‘four pairs’ are mentioned instead when particular paths and their corresponding fruits are collectively called under the same titles. Of the eight transcendental levels, the first to the seventh titles refer to the quality of ‘trainees,’ while the last refers to that of ‘non-trainee.’ In this context, different levels of dhammakāya may correspond to all these transcendental states.
This agrees with our earlier observation that these transcendental paths and fruits as well as Nibbāna can be identified with dhammakāya. Gotamī’s speech, that her dhammakāya has been ‘brought up’ (saṃvaḍḍhita), indicates the development of her dhammakāya from an initial state as a ‘trainee’ which refers to any of the first seven levels of noble persons. As far as a person is still a trainee (sekha-puggala), he/she still needs further development. Once he/she has attained the eighth state - the state of a non-trainee (asekha-puggala), no further growth is needed. This is one of the reasons why a general expression that is often found for an Arhat is ‘exhausted is my rebirth, completed by me is the course of practice, done by me is what needs to be done, there is no further course for me to undertake.’114 Therefore, we could say that dhammakāya needs to be developed until it reaches the final perfection.115
Nevertheless, on the way to the final goal, each level of dhammakāya of a ‘trainee’ could be said also to be ‘complete’ or ‘sufficient’ in regard to its function, as discussed earlier regarding 113 M.III.255, S.III.168. The eight noble persons are as follows:
1. an arhat (arahant)2. a person who proceeds to the realisation of the fruit of Arhatship (arahattaphalasacchikiriyāya paṭipanna)3. a non-returner (anāgāmī)4. a person who proceeds to the realisation of the fruit of Non-returning (anāgāmiphalasacchikiriyāya paṭipanna)5. a once-returner (sakadāgāmī)6. a person who proceeds to the realisation of the fruit of Once-returning (sakadāgāmiphalasacchikiriyāya paṭipanna)7. a stream-attainer (sotāpanna)8. a person who proceeds to the realisation of the fruit of Stream-attaining (sotāpattiphalasacchikiriyāya paṭipanna)
114 Khīṇā jāti vusitaṃ brahmacariyaṃ kataṃ karaṇīyaṃ nāparaṃ itthattāya. D.I.84, D.II.153, M.I.40, M.I.392, etc.115 S.III.167-169.
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the function of each particular transcendent dhamma.116 The totality of transcendental qualities constituting each transcendental state, which is identified earlier with dhammakāya, denotes a degree of sufficiency in performing its function. This agrees with Gotamī’s expression that her dhammakāya is ‘blameless.’
Also, as noted above, the term dhammakāya is related to enlightenment, where the experience or the witness of realisation is required and the consequent transformation takes place. Once each kind of defilement is abandoned and eradicated, the noble disciple experiences happiness from release (vimutti-sukha), and the knowledge of such happiness (ñāṇa) arises.117 This corresponds to Gotamī’s claim of happiness arisen from realisation, and her possible expression that the dhammakāya is pleasurable.
To conclude, some further remarks and re-affirmation regarding dhammakāya could be observed from this Apadāna passage. Firstly, it re-affirms that dhammakāya is connected to enlightenment. Secondly, it affirms that the term dhammakāya can be translated as a substantive, denoting the body that is identified with, or pertaining to, transcendental dhamma. Thirdly, it gives further implication that Buddhist disciples can attain dhammakāya, and once so attained, it could be called ‘his/her’ dhammakāya. Fourthly, it implies that there are different levels of dhammakāya, plausibly each corresponding to a particular level of transcendental state, and therefore also to each level of noble disciples. Fifthly, different levels of dhammakāya or transcendental reality can be said to be sufficient or complete in performing their functions, and thus are entitled ‘blameless.’ Sixthly, every time a transformation takes place, happiness of release (vimutti-sukha), as well as the knowledge regarding one’s release, arises. Therefore, each instance of realization or enlightenment brings about happiness, and so dhammakāya is said to be pleasurable.Next we shall proceed to a close reading of an ambiguous Pāli reference to dhammakāya.
116 See earlier discussion under the heading ‘The Meaning of ‘Kāya’ in the Aggañña-sutta Passage.’117 Ps.I.195-196.
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VII. Reference 4: Dhammakâya and Previous Buddha Another Pāli passage that shows the relation of dhammakāya with the Buddha is found in the Aṭṭhasandassakathera-apadāna. But here the narrative relates the term with a previous Buddha. The whole story is the autobiography of the elder Aṭṭhasandassaka who recounts the meritorious deeds performed at the time of the Padumuttara Buddha.118 The term dhammakāya appears in the expression of his appreciation of the Buddha. The elder, being Nārada brahmin at that time, praised the Padumuttara Buddha with the following three stanzas.
Satasahassatevijjā chaḷabhiññā mahiddhikāparivārenti sambuddhaṃ ko disvā nappasīdati?Ñāṇe upanidhā yassa na vijjati sadevakeanantañāṇaṃ sambuddhaṃ ko disvā nappasīdati?Dhammakāyañca dīpentaṃ119 kevalaṃ ratanākaraṃ vikopetuṃ120
na sakkonti ko disvā nappasīdati?
Ap.168.
A hundred thousand (monks) possessing the threefold knowledge, the sixfold superknowledge, endowed with great supernatural powers, are surrounding the enlightened one; having seen him, who is not pleased? Among human and gods, nobody is found comparable to him in knowledge; having seen the perfectly enlightened one whose knowledge is endless, who is not pleased? No-one can upset the dhamma-bodied who is illuminating all around, being the mine of jewels; having seen him, who is not pleased?
In this praise, the term dhammakāya is found in the last stanza, which is the most ambiguous and difficult to translate. Difficulties involve the manifold meaning of each term, as well as the ambiguous structure of the verse. However, a survey of the popular usage of each term in different instances helps to overcome the difficulties to some extent.
118 Padumuttara Buddha is a previous Buddha of a hundred thousand kalpas ago. 119 CS version: dīpentaṃ; BJ version: dipentaṃ; PTS and SR versions: dīpenti. 120 CS version and a Sinhalese mss: vikappetuṃ.
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Generally, the term ‘kevala’ is translated either as ‘only’ or ‘entirely.’ It is observed that, whenever the term appears together with another word that conveys the meaning of ‘emanating,’ ‘illuminating,’ or ‘enlarging,’ the term kevala carries the meaning of ‘entirely’ or ‘all around.’ In this sentence, the word kevala comes immediately after the verb ‘dīpentaṃ’ which conveys the meaning of ‘illuminating.’ It is thus translated here as ‘all around.’
Another term that can convey different connotations is ‘ratanākara.’ This term is found representing the ‘Vinaya’121 that the elder Upāli maintains. It also refers to the elder nanda122 who is the treasurer of the dhamma. But sometimes it represents the Buddha.123 As this verse is the praise of the Buddha, the term dhammakāya can be translated as an adjective, ‘dhamma-bodied,’ qualifying the Padumuttara Buddha. Need agrees with this way of interpretation. He translates the term dhammakāya in the verse as an epithet of the Buddha.124 In this case, the notion of ‘dhammakāya’ would be the same as that in the Aggañña-sutta passage.
However, the ambiguous structure of the verse allows some space for alternative translations. Here, the terms dhammakāya and ratanākara, as well as the present participle dīpenta, are written in the same case, i.e., accusative. This allows the term dhammakāya to function either as the subject or object of dīpenta. In the former case, the term dhammakāya functions as an adjective, qualifying the Padumuttara Buddha, as in the tentative translation presented above. But in the case that dhammakāya functions as an object of dīpenta, it refers to ‘what the Padumuttara Buddha demonstrates.’ This gives an alternative translation of the last stanza of the above quote as follows:121 Ap.I.93.122 Th.93.123 Ap.II.319.124 Need, op. cit., p. 381. He writes:
Because of the syntax of the verse, and because the Dīgha Nikāya passage indicates that the Buddha is designated as such, it seems possible to read dhammakāya as a epithet of the Buddha. However, the surrounding context also permits one to read dhammakāya as a gloss for ñāṇa and perhaps for the kinds of knowledges and powers cited in the first verse. In this sense we are again in the context of those dharmas which are conducive or related to the realization of Nibbāna.
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No-one can upset the (Padumuttara Buddha) entire mine of jewels, who is demonstrating the dhammakāya; having seen him, who is not pleased?
In order to clarify further regarding the precise connotation of dhammakāya in this latter case, it would be useful to look at a Pāli passage that refers to what the Buddha demonstrates. In the Sambuddha-sutta, the Buddha explains that he demonstrates the path:125
Monks, the Tathāgata, who is the perfectly enlightened Arhat, has given rise to the path that had not risen, has generated the path that had not been generated, has proclaimed the path that had not been proclaimed. He is the path-knower, wise in the path, skilled in the path. Monks, but the disciples now are the path followers who live endowed with the path later.
This suggests that the term dhammakāya in this passage, which is demonstrated or proclaimed by the Buddha, refers to ‘the path’ (magga). Due to the inter-related nature of the ‘reality’ and ‘teaching,’ it is possible that the expression ‘the path’ may refer either to ‘attainable reality’ or ‘prescriptive teaching’ that is the method to realization. But the statement that monks ‘live endowed with the path’ seems to suggest the former interpretation. Hence, the interpretation of this Apadāna passage, while being ambiguous, seems to lead to the same or similar conclusion regarding the term dhammakāya as in other passages.
VIII. ConclusionThe present study re-evaluated academic interpretations of the term dhammakāya used in the Pali canon. It identified the aspects omitted in previous studies of the term in the Pali canon and proposed to fill in the gap by means of a different approach.
125 Tathāgato bhikkhave arahaṃ sammāsambuddho anuppannassa maggassa uppādetā asañjātassa maggassa sañjānetā anakkhātassa maggassa akkhātā maggaññū maggavidū maggakovido. Maggānugā ca bhikkhave etarahi sāvakā viharanti pacchāsamannāgatā. S.III.66.
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The research approach employed in the present study is intended as a more direct, analytical and inclusive one than previous approaches to this question. It is more direct in that it set off by documenting all Pali canonical passages that contain the term dhammakāya, and then interpreted the meaning of the term from its surrounding context in each particular passage. It is more analytical than previous interpretations in regard to the differentiation of the fine distinction between two inter-related meanings of dhamma, i.e., reality and its verbal expression. It is more inclusive in terms of the relation of the term with noble persons. In other words, it avoided the exclusive relation of the term with the Buddha and allowed possible connection of the term dhammakāya with other persons, as is evident in the passages being studied.
By means of this different approach, the present study has come to a conclusion that the close readings of different Pali passages all point to the same direction and reinforce each other. This, in a way, shows the consistency of understanding regarding the term dhammakāya in the early Theravādin community. As a whole, the study has shown that the term dhammakāya as understood in the Pali canonical context does not relate exclusively to the Buddha, but to noble persons of all types, i.e., Buddhas, Paccekabuddhas and noble disciples. The term may function either as an adjective or a substantive.
As an adjective, dhamma that is the Tathāgata’s body may be defined in a general term as transcendent dhamma, being the pure nature of the Tathāgata, comparable to ‘the creator’ that spiritually transforms beings into supramundane level and being the same sort of quality/property/capacity shared by the Buddha and his noble disciples that distinguishes them from worldly people. The reference to dhammakāya in relation to Paccekabuddhas affirms its connotation as transcendent dhamma, being the body of enlightening capacity instrumental to spiritual realisation, while effectively negating its interpretation as ‘teaching.’
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As a noun, the term refers to the new identity of a noble person once he/she is transubstantiated either from the worldly plane to a supramundane plane or from a lower transcendent state to a higher. A close reading suggests that there are different levels of dhammakāya and they can be developed up to the final perfection. Nevertheless, dhammakāya in each level can be regarded as being ‘sufficient’ as a ‘complete body’ capable of performing the function pertaining to that particular transcendent state.
Dhammakāya, therefore, represents the reality spiritually realized by, and identified with, the Buddha, rather than his teaching. In other words, dhammakāya in the Pali canonical context represents the dhamma-body instrumental to enlightenment. It is the body from which the Buddha’s teachings originate, rather than being a ‘collection of his teachings’ as has been previously claimed.
Appendix: Theravādin Views on the Term DhammakāyaTraditional writings mark the attempts of the early community to understand the Buddhist teaching(s) intellectually. In the Theravādin traditional writings, two commentators who provide main explanations of the term are Buddhaghoṣa126 and Dhammapāla.127
Buddhaghoṣa, in most instances, refers to dhammakāya substantively. He either relates the term to the Buddha’s purified
126 around 5th century CE.127 around 6th century CE.
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mental qualities128 or purity,129 or identifies it with realities to be attained or experienced spiritually by noble disciples through the penetration of the noble paths.130 In one instance, he connects the term with the Buddha’s teachings and disciplines collected together, i.e., the dhamma-vinaya which takes on the role of the teacher after his passing.131
In some explanations, Buddhaghoṣa uses the term dhammakāya as an adjective, qualifying the Tathāgata as ‘having dhamma as body.’ In this case, he identifies ‘the dhamma’ either as the ninefold transcendental reality132 or as the Buddha’s verbal teaching.133
128 At Vism.I.227, Buddhaghoṣa explains the Buddha’s dhammakāya as being succeeded or prosperous with treasured qualities (guṇa-ratana) such as the body of virtue (sīlakkhandha) that is pure in all respects, “yopi so bhagavā… sabbākāraparisuddha-sīlakkhandhādiguṇaratanasamiddha-dhammakāyo…”
The ‘aggregate of virtue’ or sīlakkhandha could refer to the first member of either the three, four, or five dhamma-aggregates (dhammakkhandhas). See D.I.206, D.III.229, and D.III.279 for respective examples of these different enumerations of dhamma-aggregates. The five refers to virtue (sīla), concentration (samādhi), wisdom (paññā), release (vimutti), and the knowing and seeing of one’s own release (vimuttiñāṇadassana). The last one and two members are dropped out in the sets of four and three dhamma-aggregates respectively. In the Pali canon, these dhammas generally refer to qualities (to be) accomplished.
It may be argued that, being qualities (to be) accomplished, these five dhammas may also be regarded in another aspect as being a set of ‘prescribed practices’ or the Buddha’s ‘verbal teachings.’ Nevertheless, it is hard to imagine how a practitioner would actually ‘practise these dhammas,’ as they indeed arise as the ‘result of practice,’ rather than being the ‘practice’ itself. Overlooking this fine distinction, a reader may mistake these ‘qualities’ for ‘teachings’ in an exclusive sense. 129 Vism.I.204, VinA.I.124, KhpA.108. In these passages, Buddhaghoṣa relates the Buddha’s endowment of dhammakāya (dhammakāyasampatti) with his state of having all hatred destroyed (bhaggadosatāya). This connects the term dhammakāya with the Buddha’s destruction of defilements.130 SnA.I.34, SnA.II.594.131 DA.I.34.132 SA.II.313, SnA.I.34. 133 DA.III.865.
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Dhammapāla, like Buddhaghoṣa, employs the term dhammakāya mostly as a noun, and relates it either with the Buddha’s mental qualities and purity,134 with the enlightenment either of the Buddha135 or his noble disciples,136 with reality visible through the ‘seeing’ (dassana) of the noble truths137 or with ‘self.’138 As an adjective, he identifies ‘the dhamma that is the Tathāgatas’ body as the ninefold transcendental dhamma (nava-lokuttara-dhamma).139 In one instance, he uses the term dhammakāya in the sense which may be interpreted either as ‘teaching’ or ‘truth’ that can be expressed by the preaching of true dhamma.140
134 At ThrA.I.115 and DṬ.II.201, Dhammapāla follows Buddhaghoṣa that the Buddha’s dhammakāya is prosperous with treasured qualities such as the overall-pure aggregate of virtue. At ItA.I.13, ThrA.II.121, CpA.332, UdA.87-88, VvA.213, DṬ.I.130, DṬ.II.4, MṬ,II.51, AṬ.III.76, AṬ.III.216, and AṬ.III.261, he refers to dhammakāya as bodies of those extraordinary qualities connected with the Buddha’s mental purity such as the ten powers (dasa bala), four causes of intrepidity (catu vesārajja), six kinds of unshared knowledges (cha asādhāraṇañāṇa) and eighteen exclusive Buddha’s qualities (aṭṭhārasāveṇikabuddhadhammā). Note that the qualities enumerated here are similar to those expressed by the Sarvāstivādin, but the details of the qualities mentioned in both traditions are slightly different.At ItA.II.102, UdA.310, he refers to the equality of the Buddha with previous Buddhas by means of his physical body and dhamma-body (dhammakāya).135 MṬ.I.46-7, AṬ.I.40. The connection of the term dhammakāya to the Buddha’s own benefit, rather than to others’ benefit, indicates its relation to the Buddha’s spiritual realisation or enlightenment. 136 ItA.II.115, ThrA.I.37.137 UdA.310, ThriA.28.138 CpA.332 and DṬ.I.86.’139 In his explanation of the term dhammabhūta (having become dhamma) at ThrA.II.205, Dhammapāla connects the Buddhas’ dhammakāya with the ninefold transcendental dhamma and the Buddhas’ attainment of the dhamma.140 DṬ.I.449:
Evarūpassāti sammāsambuddhattā aviparītadhammadesanatāya evaṃpākaṭadhammakāyassa satthu. The Buddha is said to have the dhamma-body (dhammakāya) revealed as such because of his preaching of true dhamma, because he is the perfectly self-enlightened one (sammāsambuddha).
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In addition to the above two commentators, Upasena and Buddhadatta141 are also Pali commentators who lived around the same times.142 Upasena agrees with Buddhaghoṣa in regard to his interpretations of dhammakāya as related to the Buddha’s qualities or spiritual attainment.143 None of his writings interprets the term dhammakāya in the sense of ‘teaching.’ Likewise, Buddhadatta differentiates dhammakāya or dhamma-body from the Buddha’s physical body (rūpakāya).144 He expresses the beauty of the Buddha by means of the properties (guṇa) of both his physical body and his dhamma-body.145
Later in the eleventh to twelfth centuries CE, two commentators of the Pali Vinaya differ slightly in their interpretations of dhammakāya. Vajirabuddhi usually interprets the term dhammakāya in the sense of Buddha’s teaching or dhamma-vinaya that takes the role of the teacher after the Buddha’s passing,146 while Sāriputta prefers to relate the term dhammakāya with the Buddha’s enlightenment147
or to identify it with the Buddha’s qualities (buddhaguṇa)148 and as that which can be seen through the disciples’ spiritual attainment.149
141 Buddhadatta’s Abhidhammāvatāra may be regarded either as an introductory summary or as one of the oldest sub-commentaries (ṭīkā) on the Pali abhidhamma.142 Approximately 5th century CE.143 For Upasena’s work, see Nd1A.II.265 (cf. VinA.I.124, Vism.I.204), Nd2A.31-32 (cf. SnA.II.594).144 AbhAv.I.241:
Tattha satthari kaṅkhanto tassa rūpakāyadhammakāyānaṃ vijjamānataṃ, avijjamānatañca kaṅkhatiAmong the three gems, a person while doubting in the teacher (Buddha), would doubt in the existence and non-existence of his physical body and dhamma-body.
145 AbhAv.II.106-7.146 VjB.15, VjB.19.147 At SrD.I.211, the Buddha is said to have been born twice; first by his physical body at the Lumbinī forest, and later by his dhamma-body (dhammakāya) under the bodhi tree. Here, Sāriputta further connects the Buddha’s birth through his physical body with compassion (karuṇā) and other people’s benefit, and his birth through the dhammakāya with equanimity (upekkhā) and the Buddha’s own benefit.148 SrD.I.310-311; SrD.I.352.149 SrD.III.299.
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150 SrD.II.166-7; SrD.I.126.
In a few passages, however, Sāriputta also refers to the term dhammakāya in the sense of the Buddha’s teaching.150
On the whole, traditional Theravādins interpret the term dhammakāya mostly in the sense of the Buddha’s qualities or realities to be realised or attained spiritually. The term is related to the Buddha’s mental purity or to enlightenment either of the Buddha or of his disciples. In a few instances, however, the term is interpreted as the Buddha’s collective teaching which takes on the role of the master after his parinibbāna. Likewise, when used as an adjective, it is used more in the sense of the ninefold transcendental dhamma (nava-lokuttara-dhamma) and less in the sense of the Buddha’s verbal teaching.
AbbreviationsA Aṅguttara-nikāya Ap ApadānaBJ Sinhalese Buddhajayantī version of the Pali TipiṭakaCS Burmese Chaṭṭhasaṅgāyanā version of the Pali TipiṭakaD Dīgha-nikāya DA Dīghanikāya-aṭṭhakathāDṬ Dīghanikāya-ṭīkā Kv Kathāvatthu M Majjhima-nikāya Mss. ManuscriptsP. PaliPs PaṭisambhidāmaggaPTS The Pali Text SocietyS Saṃyutta-nikāyaSA Saṃyutta-nikāya-aṭṭhakathāSkt. SanskritSn SuttanipātaSR Thai Syamraṭṭha version of the Pali TipiṭakaTh Theragāthā-TherīgāthāThrA Theragāthā-aṭṭhakathāVin Vinaya-piṭaka
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BibliographyDutt, Nalinaksha. Mahayana Buddhism. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1978.Geiger, Wilhelm. “Dhamma and Brahman.” Zeitschrift flour buddhismus (1921): 73-83.Gombrich, Richard. “The Buddha’s Book of Genesis.” Indo-Iranian Journal 35 (1992): 159-78.Govinda, Lama Anagarika. The Psychological Attitude of Early Buddhist Philosophy. London: Rider, 1969.Habito, Ruben L. F. “The Notion of Dharmakāya: A Study in the Buddhist Absolute.” Journal of Dharma. 1986. 11: 348-378. (1986): 348-78.Hardy, Edmund. The Anguttara-Nikaya V.3. London: Pali Text Society : Distributed by Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1976.Harrison, Paul. “Is the Dharma-Kāya the Real “Phantom Body” of the Buddha?” The journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies 15, no. 1 (1992): 44-76.Harvey, Peter. An Introduction to Buddhism: Teachings, History, and Practices. Cambridge England ; New York: Cambridge University Press, 1990.Harvey, Peter. The Selfless Mind: Personality, Consciousness and Nirvana in Early Buddhism. Richmond, Surrey: Curzon, 1995.Horner, I. B. “Early Buddhist Dhamma.” Artibus Asiae 11, no. 1 (1948): 115-23.Jantrasrisalai, Chanida. “Early Buddhist Dhammakāya and Its Relation to Enlightenment.” In The Pathway to the Centre - Purity and the Mind: Proceedings of the Inaugural International Samādhi Forum, edited by Edward F. Crangle, 189-242. Sydney: Dhammachai International Research Institute Inc., 2010.Jantrasrisalai, Chanida. “Early Buddhist Dhammakāya: Its Philosophical and Soteriological Significance.” University of Sydney, 2009.Kajiyama, Yuichi. “Stūpas, the Mother of Buddhas, and Dharma-Body.” In New Paths in Buddhist Research, edited by Anthony Kennedy Warder, 9-16. Durham, N.C.: Acorn Press, 1985.Lilley, Mary E. The Apadana of the Khuddaka Nikaya. London, New York [etc.]: Pub. for the Pali Text Society by the Oxford University Press, 1925.Makransky, John. Buddhahood Embodied Sources of Controversy in India and Tibet. Edited by Matthew Kapstein, Suny Series in Buddhist Studies. NY: SUNY Press, 1997.
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Mus, Paul. Barabudur: Sketch of a History of Buddhism Based on Archaeological Criticism of the Texts. New Delhi: Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts: Sterling Publishers, 1998.Need, David Norton. “Rendering the Body: Etherealization and Sense in Vedic and Early Buddhist in Religiosity.” University of Virginia, 2004.Nitta, Tomomichi. “The Meaning of “Dhammakāya” in Pāli Buddhism.” Journal of Indian and Buddhist Studies 51, no. 1 (2002): 45-47.Norman, K. R. “The Pratyeka-Buddha in Buddhism and Jainism.” In Buddhist Studies: Ancient and Modern, viii, 197 p. London: Curzon Press, 1983.Perera, H. R. “Apadāna.” In Encyclopaedia of Buddhism, edited by G. P. Malalasekera. Colombo: Govt. of Ceylon, 1961.Prince, A.J. “The Conception of Buddhahood in Earlier and Later Buddhism.” The Journal of the Oriental Society of Australia 7, no. 1-2 (1970): 87-118.Reed, Barbara E. “The Problem of the Dharmakāya as Seen by Hui-Yüan and Kumārajīva.” Ph.D., The University of Iowa, 1982.Reynolds, Frank E. “The Several Bodies of the Buddha: Reflections on a Neglected Aspect of Theravada Tradition.” History of Religion 16 (1976): 374-89.Williams, Paul. Mahāyāna Buddhism: The Doctrinal Foundations, Library of Religious Beliefs and Practices. London ; New York: Routledge, 1989.Xing, Guang. The Concept of the Buddha: Its Evolution from Early Buddhism to the Trikaya Theory, Routledgecurzon Critical Studies in Buddhism. London: RoutledgeCurzon, 2005.
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Buddhist Manuscripts in China: A Case Study
of Theravāda Buddhist Manuscripts
in Sipsong Panna (Xishuangbanna,
Yunnan Province, PRC)
Joe Zhou Ya
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Buddhist Manuscripts in China: A Case Study of Theravāda Buddhist Manuscripts in Sipsong Panna (Xishuangbanna, Yunnan Province, PRC)
Joe Zhou YaChina, like many other countries in the world, is a country where
multiple religious beliefs co-exist. China has its indigenous religious forms (Confucianism, Taoism and folk beliefs), and also the world’s three major religions (Buddhism, Christianity and Islam). Among these world religions, Buddhism has made the greatest impact on Chinese culture. Buddhism was introduced into China very early (first century BCE), into Southwestern China on the Silk Road. The great charm of the doctrine and teaching method of Buddhism, and the Sakyamuni Buddha, cannot be denied. In addition, the inclusiveness and flexibility of Buddhism allowed it to merge into Chinese society and to merge with the traditional culture of China itself; and it quickly became a part of Chinese culture. Today, the influence of Buddhism can be seen in politics (for example, Buddhist participation in China’s political consultation system), the economy (such as the rush of tourism aimed at Buddhist sacred places) and culture (literature, music, dance, sculpture, painting, architecture, education and so on).
The Buddhist culture of China is extensive and profound. It includes Mahāyāna Buddhism which is followed by the majority of Han Chinese Buddhists, Tibetan Vajrayāna Buddhism, and the Theravāda Buddhism of the Dai people in Southwestern China. This article is concerned with Theravāda Buddhism, and in particular, with the Buddhist manuscript culture of the Dai people in Sipsong Panna (Chinese: Xishuangbanna) in Southwestern China. The history of China’s Theravāda Buddhism is of great interest to Buddhist scholars as it is very ancient, and its teachings and texts contain the earliest strands of Buddhist thought. In this article I will present some current research into the Theravāda Buddhist manuscript culture in Southwestern China.
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I will give a brief overview of the manuscripts that have been discovered and catalogued, an explanation of some current research projects, and I will discuss some of the problems that threaten China’s palm-leaf manuscript culture with extinction.1
I. An Overview of Theravāda Buddhist manuscripts in China
Most of China’s Theravāda Buddhist manuscripts come from the border regions of Yunnan Province in Southwestern China. This is where China’s Theravāda Buddhist communities are located: the Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture, Pu’er City, Dehong Autonomous Prefecture, Lingcang City and Baoshan City. The ethnic groups who follow Theravāda Buddhism – the Dai, Palaung, De’ang and sections of the Wa and Yi nationalities – live in this area which is known in Tai Lü as Sipsong Panna, or สบสองพนนา, which means “twelve thousand rice fields.” The Dai group, which has a population of more than 1,000,000 people, is the largest group of Theravāda Buddhists in China.2 There are Buddhist temples in almost every Dai village, and Buddhist belief and ritual is an important part of Dai social life. The Dai people value their Buddhism and their Buddhist manuscripts highly.
The Administrative Department for the Religious Affairs of the People’s Government, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture, has set about collecting and collating the Buddhist manuscripts that are kept in Buddhist temples, the State Archives, academic institutions and in private collections.
1 The analysis of the contents and scope of the Buddhist manuscripts of the Sipsong Panna region is beyond the scope of this article, and is the subject of a future publication.2 Dai people are part of the Tai ethnic group that can be found living in northern Thailand, Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam as well as Southwestern China. The Dai group is one of the 55 minority groups in China. According to the officially published investigation results of 1990 Chinese Population Census, the total population of the Dai in China is about 1,115,900, and 98.55% inhabit in Yunnan Province, of which those in Xishuangbanna State are 296,930. the rest are mainly distributed in places like Dehong Automonous Prefecture (nearly 700,000 people), Gengma, Menglian, Jinggu, Yuanjiang, Xinping and Jinping.
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This project is in accordance with the national emphasis on the protection and development of religious culture in minority areas.3 Most of the Dai Buddhist manuscripts in Sipsong Panna are made from the leaves of the palm tree, and sa-paper.4 More than 400 copies in total have been collected from different locations. Of these, 152 are palm-leaf manuscripts, 211 are Chinese paper ones and 40 are “Zanha Libretto.”5 According to Yanxiang, the head of Xishuangbanna State Ethnic Research Institute and director of the State Palm-Leaf Culture Research Center, there are about 1,000 copies of palm-leaf scriptures in the Yunnan, and countless sa-paper manuscripts.6 This author has done extensive fieldwork in Dai temples in places such as Menghai and interviewed the leading Buddhist monk（大佛爷) in the region, the abbot of Kubalong Monastery (祜巴龙庄). According to this fieldwork, there are many palm-leaf manuscripts and sa-paper manuscripts held in Dai Buddhist temple libraries.
3 The Dai group is one of the 55 minority groups in China. According to the officially published investigation results of 1990 Chinese Population Census, the total population of the Dai in China is about 1,115,900, and 98.55% inhabit in Yunnan Province, of which those in Xishuangbanna State are 296,930. the rest are mainly distributed in places such as Dehong Automonous Prefecture (nearly 700,000 people), Gengma, Menglian, Jinggu, Yuanjiang, Xinping and Jinping.4 Sa-Paper is paper manufactured from the pulp of the sa tree, a kind of mulberry (Brousontetia papyrifera). For more information on Sa-Paper, see Volker Grabowsky, “Tai manuscripts in the Dhamma script domain: surveying, preservation and documentation,” part 1 Manuscript Cultures, Autumn/Winter 2008, pp. 16 -23.5 Yanxiang Zai. “On Compilation, Translation and Collation of Dai’s Palm-Leaf Scriptures In Sipsongbanna”. Palm-Leaf Culture and Construction of a Harmonious Society of the Dai. Gen. Edi. Guo Shan, Zhou Ya, Yanxiang Zai Yunnan University Press, July 2008. At that time Mr. Yanxiang Zai was director of Xishuangbanna State People’s Government Ethnic & Religious Affairs Authority, in charge of the collection and collation work of Buddhist manuscripts. Noted by the Author.6 Another argument is 3,000 scriptures. See the propaganda materials of introduction to The Complete Collection of Chinese Palm-Leaf Scripture. But the Author thinks this figure should not be the amount of the existing palm-leaf manuscripts in Sipsong Panna, but the one including the number of part of sa-paper manuscripts.
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Buddhist manuscripts from the Sipsong Panna region can be divided into four categories. The first category consists of the Dai Pāli Tripiṭaka and Tripiṭaka commentary (三藏疏) which is represented by five copies of the Agama Sutras (阿含经) and the Visuddhimagga (清净道论).7 Category Two includes anthologies of frequently used texts from the Pāli Canon such as the Ordination Practitioner Scripture (出家业经) and the Bhikkhu Practitioner Scripture (比丘业经).8 Category Three consists of Theravāda Buddhist literature based on the Jātakas; this literature includes “indigenous” jātakas such as Zhao Shutun (召树屯）and Langaxihe (兰嘎西贺) and contains references to the ethnic and regional characteristics of the Dai. Category Four includes secular literature that has been given a Buddhist structure such as Songpaxue (松怕雪), an anthology of folk proverbs and mottos, and Hantadangha Tadudanxi (四塔 and 五蕴, 阐释), a traditional Dai medical text based on the Buddhist theories of the Four Noble Truths (四塔), the Five Aggregates (五蕴) and Pharmacopoeia (Danghaya 药典). Research on these Buddhist manuscripts is still underway, but a large percentage of Dai Buddhist literature seems to be non-canonical.
A recent publication, The Complete Collection of Chinese Palm-Leaf Scriptures, lists more than 100 volumes of Theravada Buddhist manuscripts. These can be divided into five categories: The Agama Sutras (阿含经), the Vinayapitaka (律藏), the Abhidharma Pitika (论藏), the Khuddaka-Nikāya (小阿含经), the Jātakas and secular
7 See Yao Yu: “Some Understandings of the Special Values & Research Methods of the Existing Theravada Buddhist Pali-language Literature of the Dai in Sipsongbanna of Yunnan”. Palm-Leaf Culture and Construction of a Harmonious Society of the Dai. Gen. Edi. Guo Shan, Zhou Ya, Yanxiang Zai, and Yanxiang. Yunnan University Press, July 2008.8 Ibid.
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literature.9 It is notable that the Agama Sutras (阿含经) discovered in the Xishuangbanna region are incomplete. For example, the Hinayana Agama should have contained the Khuddaka Patha (小诵), Dharma-phrase Sutra (法句经), Itivuttaka (如是语经), Sutra Collection (经集), Vimanavatthu (天宫事经), Hungry Ghost Affair Sutra (饿鬼事经), Theragāthā (长老偈), Therīgāthā (长老尼偈), the Jataka 本生经), Allegory Sutra (比喻经), History of Buddhist Sutra (佛经史), etc. According to The Complete Collection of Chinese Palm-Leaf Scriptures which were compiled, translated and published on the basis of recently collected palm-leaf and sa-paper manuscripts, volume 98 of the Hīnayāna Agama contains only three books: the Sutra Collection (经集), the Theragāthā (长老经) and the Therīgāthā (长老尼经). Nearly forty copies of the Jatakas which should have been included in Khuddaka-Nikāya (小阿含经) have been published in later volumes of The Complete Collection of Chinese Palm-Leaf Scriptures.
II Theravāda Buddhist manuscripts in Sipsong Panna
The following is a study of the Theravāda Buddhist manuscripts of the Sipsong Panna region in terms of manuscript form, format of writing, the characters, the maker, geographical source and content, etc.
Buddhist manuscripts of the Sipsong Panna region can be grouped into two types: Palm-Leaf manuscripts and sa-paper manuscripts. At one time, most Buddhist texts, especially those used regularly in ritual and practice, were recorded on palm leaves. For example, the most important manuscripts documented in The Complete Collection of Chinese Palm-Leaf Scripture are all palm-leaf manuscripts. The text on each leaf of the manuscript is set out in five uniform lines. Examples of these are Palm-Leaf manuscripts of the Agama Sutra (阿含经) and the Visuddhimagga(清净道论). There
9 See Hu Tinwu: “The Academic Space of Chinese Palm-Leaf Scripture”, a paper presented to The First International Symposium on Palm-Leaf Culture.
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are also certain exceptions to this. For example, Buddhist scriptures that are chanted daily are always copied on sa-paper manuscript for the convenience of page turning and reading. Secular literature, especially literature that is commonly used, is written on sa-paper.
Buddhist manuscripts may also be written on sa-paper. Sa-paper is similar to Chinese paper, but it is made by the local people with local materials. Manuscripts of such material are lightweight, and the pages are large. Characters can be written easily and clearly on the surface using black ink and the document is easy to read. Sa-paper is durable, and can be preserved for more than one hundred years. Although sa-paper is a very good alternative, it has less symbolic meaning than palm leaves, and Dai people prefer to use sacred palm-leaf manuscripts to record Buddhist texts, and sa-paper to record secular texts such as astronomical calendars, medical texts, rules and laws codes, technological know-how, folklore, narrative poems, and Zanha Libretto. Strictly speaking, sa-paper manuscripts are not Buddhist scriptures, but they use the sacred script, and Dai people regard these manuscripts as part of their Buddhist culture. Therefore, in Sipsong Panna, both sa-paper and palm-leaf manuscripts can be collected and worshipped in Buddhist temples10.
The convenience, applicability and inexpensiveness of sa-paper manuscripts mean that they are readily available, whereas palm-leaf manuscripts tend to be rare. For example, some contents of Buddhist classics cannot be discovered in palm-leaf manuscripts, but they can be found in sa-paper form. Take Volume 19 Buddha’s Edification (reproduced in The Complete Collection of Chinese Palm-Leaf Scripture) as an example: this text is an important Buddhist classic, but the authors of the The Complete Collection of Chinese Palm-Leaf Scripture were unable to find a complete palm-leaf version of the text, and reproduced the readily available sa-paper version of the text instead.
10 Except for a small part of those whose content is too secular, like Zanha libretto and love songs.
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There are three forms of sa-paper manuscripts in the Sipsong Panna region. The first is the most common “ordinary wide-breadth manuscript”, with a length of about 18cm, a height of about 25cm and the top bound with woven cords; each page contains 14 to 20 lines. The second is the “folding sa-paper manuscript.” This form is also popular in the Sipsong Panna region. Pages are usually 30-45cm long, and 12-17cm wide. The page material is a dark sa-paper. The folded manuscript is similar in format to the “folding-flipping style” of the palm-leaf manuscripts, but there is room for 7 lines of characters inscribed on each page (for an example of this, see Tam XiangMeng ZongBu (召相勐与喃宗布) in volume 15 of The Complete Collection of Chinese Palm-Leaf Scripture). The larger format of this type makes it easier to read and manipulate, and this format is often favored by monks for ritual use in the Buddhist temples. The third type is the sa-paper manuscript, manufactured by a special process. Comrade Dao Jinping of Xishuangbanna State Ethnic Research Institute & Xishuangbanna State Palm-Leaf Culture Research Center, discovered another kind of sa-paper manuscript that is made by soaking it in various materials like cattle blood. Such manuscripts are deep brown/black in appearance and rough in texture. Two books of this kind, inscribed using ink made from gold powder and silver powder, and containing two versions of the sutra Karma Sayings (羯磨说), have been collected by the Xishuangbanna State Ethnic Research Institute. Such manuscripts are rather rare. According to the staff members at the Institute, the manufacturing processes used to produce these two manuscripts have been lost, and these two may be the only remaining examples of this type.
There are four formats for the palm-leaf manuscripts in Sipsong Panna: 4-line, 5-line, 6-line and 8-line, of which the first three are comparatively common. For example, the five copies of the Agama Sutra (阿含经), where important doctrines of Theravāda Buddhism are recorded and which were found to be well preserved in the Sipsong Panna region, are all palm-leaf manuscripts. The formats are as follows: Volume 96 Ekottara-nikāya （增-阿含经）is in 4-line to 5-line format; Volume 97 Samyutta-nikāya (杂阿含经),
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Volume 98 Khuddaka-nikāya (小阿含经) and Volume 99 Majjhima-nikāya (中阿含经) are all in 5-line to 6-line format manuscripts; Volume 100 Digha-nikāya (长阿含经) is in 4-line to 5-line-format. The jātaka Wexiandala is the most popular and influential form of Buddhist classic in the Dai region. This jātaka promotes dāna (赕), or Buddhist generosity, as the highest form of merit. A folded (梵夹装) palm-leaf scripture of Weixiandala (维先达腊) collected by my Research Center, is a 5-line-format manuscript.
The formats of sa-paper manuscripts are varied. Manuscript pages may have 14,15,16,17,19,20,21 lines depending on the size of the paper; the most common is the 17-line format which is often seen in jātaka manuscripts such as Bo Huan Ban Ga (千瓣莲花), Yu Nan Miao (玉喃妙), and Ai O Jin Han (笨人吃斧).
The flipping-folded sa-paper manuscripts contain between 5 to 11 lines per page. Examples of such manuscripts include Volume 15 Tam Xian Meng Zong Bu (召相勐与喃宗布) (reproduced in The Complete Collection of Chinese Palm-Leaf Scripture) and the two versions of the Karma Saying (羯磨说) manuscript processed with cattle blood and mentioned above.
Theravāda Buddhist manuscripts in Sipsong Panna are written in Daile (this is how the Dai pronunciation of “Pāli” is rendered in Chinese pinyin) using Tai Yuan “Dhamma” script.11 Today, few Dai people can read and write this traditional script as it is taught in Buddhist temples to the men who are ordained as Buddhist novices and monks.12
11 For more on the Tai Dhamma scripts, see Grabowsky, op.cit..12 A modernised, simplified version of the traditional script has been developed to some render the Dai language as part of the national ethnic minority educational policies. After the 1950s Zanha Librettos and narrative poems have been producing using the New Dai characters. But because of the secular nature of the new script, and because this script lacks elements such as the retroflexes (弹舌音) and silibants 连续音 necessary for spelling Daile, it is not used for Buddhist scriptures.
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It is noteworthy that there is a community of Dai people in the Dehong Autonomous Prefecture in the west of Yunnan, and a wide range of Buddhist manuscripts are stored there. Palm-leaf manuscripts are rare in the Dehong area, and most manuscripts are made from sa-paper and Chinese paper. The script used to write these manuscripts is also different.13 The Buddhist manuscripts of the Sipsong Panna region are mainly copied (sa-paper manuscripts) or inscribed (palm-leaf manuscripts) by Buddhist monks after they resume secular life. The process of recopying Buddhist manuscripts is closely related to the Buddhist ritual life of the Dai people. Donors commission the recopying of Buddhist manuscripts as an act of merit (dāna) while the scribes perform the act of calligraphy as a form of self-cultivation.
Seen from a geographical perspective, the Theravāda Buddhist manuscripts of China are part of the Tai Dhamma manuscript culture that includes the modern states of Thailand, Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam. While some manuscripts are still being produced in Sipsong Panna, the majority of manuscripts are imported from northern Thailand and Myanmar as part of the cross-border flow of Buddhist monks, material culture, and concepts between these regions. An example of this geographical flow was illustrated during a survey of the Jingzhen Buddhist Temple in Menghai. Here, the Author found that the vice-abbot of the Temple, a 22 year old monk, was originally from Myanmar. The only palm-leaf manuscript in Jingzhen Temple was a text he brought from Myanmar, and it was stored in the young monks’ dormitory room.
13 For more information on the manuscript traditions of Dehong, see Christian Daniels, Surveying and Preserving Documents in Dehong, Yunnan, China, in National Library of Laos (ed.), The Literary Heritage of Laos: Preservation, Dissemination and Research Perspectives ມລະດກວນນະຄະດລາວ ການປກປກຮກສາ ການເຜແ ຜ ແລະ ທດ ສະນະການຄນ ຄວາ (Vientiane: Manthathulat Print- ing House, 2005), 335–340.
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III The Problem of the Imminent Extinction of Palm-Leaf Manuscripts in Sipsong Panna
Buddhism in Sipsong Panna is characterised by its manuscript culture. However, today the number of the palm-leaf manuscripts being produced in the region is in decline. If this decline continues, palm-leaf manuscripts are in danger of imminent extinction. The major reasons for this extinction lie in the autonomous character of Dai Buddhism, the geography of the region, and the management of the production of palm-leaf manuscripts.
There is no central authority in Dai Theravāda Buddhism, and individual temples are largely autonomous. As a result, there is no one central location where archives and records are kept. Palm-leaf manuscripts are scattered around the different temples in the area and there are no statistics or catalogues on manuscript collections. When the Author interviewed Venerable Meng (勐长老) the abbot of Kubalong Monastery in Menghai, she discovered that most local Buddhist temples have libraries or Scripture Halls where they keep palm-leaf scriptures. However there is no systematic effort to catalogue these manuscripts.
Geographical factors also affect the future of palm-leaf manuscripts in Sipsong Panna. Palm-leaf trees do not grow in many areas in the region, so it is often difficult to obtain the materials to make manuscripts. Gradually, the art of producing finished palm-leaves ready for inscription and binding is dying out. For example, when the Author surveyed the Jingzhen Temple, the biggest Buddhist temple in Menghai, in April of 2010, a retired monk who managed the temple in the past remembered seeing more than one hundred Palm-Leaf scriptures at the temple. However by 2010, there were only ten scriptures in the Scripture Cabinet behind the Buddha’s Statue in the Main Hall and the other manuscripts had been lost. According to the abbot, Menghai has an altitude of over 1,400 metres above sea level and a rather cool climate, and is unsuitable for the growth of palm-leaf trees, and palm leaves cannot be obtained locally. The need to import raw materials from outside of China makes it more expensive and difficult for local people to
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donate palm-leaf scriptures as an act of merit and such donations appear less frequently in the sacred dantan (赕坦) or offering ceremony. Donors prefer to donate Buddhist scriptures printed using modern technology on the less expensive Chinese paper. The donation of a Buddhist text printed on Chinese paper or sa-paper costs only a few Renminbi, while the donation of a traditionally inscribed palm-leaf manuscript can cost many thousands of Yuan.
Another reason for the popularity of Chinese and sa-paper is the increased legibility of the manuscripts: monks prefer to hold sa-paper and Chinese paper manuscripts while chanting. The main halls of Dai Buddhist temples in Menghai are usually very dark and it is very difficult to read palm-leaf scriptures under these lighting conditions. The Author had tried to hold one Palm-Leaf scripture in the Hall to read, and found it very hard to see clearly the dense and numerous small letters. In contrast, Chinese and sa-paper texts are much easier to read because both the page and the character size is larger, and the white background contrasts sharply with the black letters.
A further problem is that increasing amounts of Dai people are unable to read and write the ancient Dai Dhamma script or the Pāli language. The traditional script has been replaced by the New Dai script developed since the 1950s which currently is part of the bilingual curriculum in the National Education System. The traditional place where literacy in the Dhamma script was learned was the Buddhist temple. Dai men who ordain as Buddhist novices and monks can and do learn the Dhamma scripts. However, today, the ordination period tends to be very short (often only 3 months in duration) which is not enough time to learn the ancient script adequately (today, few Dai males choose to become lifetime monks). Dai women have never learned the Dhamma script, as it is associated with the ordination of males as Buddhist novices and monks. It seems likely that in the future, the preservation of Palm-Leaf scriptures will rely on those academics who master Pāli as well as the Dai Dhamma script. Unless priority is given to the study of Dai Buddhist manuscripts, it seems likely that this ancient manuscript culture will also vanish slowly from Sipsong Panna.
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Conclusion
Numerous palm-leaf and sa-paper manuscripts exist in the Dai regions in Southwestern China. These Buddhist manuscripts, copied and inscribed in Pāli and the Dai language using traditional Dai Dhamma script, show the spread of Theravāda Buddhism into China, and are of great importance for the study of ancient Buddhism in the region. However, there has been little research into this field until recently. The publication in 2010 of The Complete Collection of Chinese Palm-Leaf Scripture, a selected anthology of an anthology of these manuscripts made it possible for research into these manuscripts to begin. Recent projects to collect and collate these manuscripts by the The Administrative Department for the Religious Affairs of the People’s Government, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture mean that more manuscripts will be discovered and brought to public knowledge. To protect these valuable palm-leaf manuscripts, China will need to learn from the experiences of neighboring countries like Thailand and Laos that have already developed projects to digitalize their palm-leaf manuscripts. The activity of preservation of China’s national heritage in Sipsong Panna will encourage the development of harmonious links across national borders. As it is said; “there is a grand task to perform and a long way to go”!
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The Dhammakāya Verse:a Lan Na Thai manuscript
Kitchai UrkasameAcademic member of the 60th Dhammachai Education
Foundation of New Zealand and Australia (DEF)
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The Dhammakāya Verse:a Lan Na Thai manuscriptKitchai Urkasame1
This article is a report on research undertaken with the support of the 60th Dhammachai Education Foundation (DEF) on a palm leaf manuscript titled Dhammakāya from the Lan Na region of northern Thailand. This manuscript is undated, but archaeological evidence from Phitsanulok and a gold-plated inscription deposited in Wat Chetuphon during the reign of Rama I shows that the concept of the Dhamma body of the Buddha, or dhammakāya, that is expounded in this manuscript has been an important part of Thai Buddhism since the 16th century. In this article the Dhammakāya verse contained in the Lan Na manuscript is analysed, and a transliteration and translation of the Dhammakāya verse into Pāli, Central Thai and English is presented.2
The ManuscriptThe palm-leaf manuscript titled Dhammakāya consists of a single bundle (phūk, ผก) of ten palm-leaves (bai lan ใบลาน). The manuscript is kept in the library of the monastery of Wat Pasak Noi, Amphoe San Kamphaeng, Changwat Chiang Mai. This manuscript was microfilmed in 1979 by the Institute of Social research, Chiang Mai University, and given the identification number 79 029 11 027-029.3 There is no trace of a date on the manuscript.
1 Kitchai Urkasame (Chulalongkorn University, Northern Arizona University, Ramkhamhaeng University, Sukhothai Thammathirat University) is an academic member of the 60th Dhammachai Education Foundation of New Zealand and Australia (DEF). He currently resident in Bangkok, Thailand where he works on Lan Na manuscripts.2 This text was published (in Pāli) by George Coedès in Adyar Library Bulletin, vol. 29, 1956, 248-286.3 Between 1978-2002 the Social Science Research Institute (SSRI), an autonomous institution attached to Chiang Mai University, surveyed and documented thousands of Lan Na manuscripts and inscriptions; this manuscript is part of their collection.
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The TextThe first nine leaves are inscribed with Pāli verses and a
commentary in Tai Yuan.4 The final leaf of the manuscript is an addendum, inscribed with a stanza of the Dvatiṃsa-mahāpurisa-lakkhaṇa. The text is thirty stanzas long and consists of a summary of Buddhist doctrine in the form of a list of the constituents of the physical body of the Buddha. This list describes the twenty-six qualities and forms of wisdom and the four personal robes of the Buddha.
This list compares the specific constituent or group of constituents of the Dhamma body of the Buddha with particular qualities or forms of wisdom of a Buddha. For example, the ear of the dhammakāya is identified as the divine ear (dibbasota). The eyes of the Dhammkaya are composed of the divine eye (dibbacakkhu), the wisdom eye (paññācakkhu), the eye of a Buddha (Buddhacakkhu), the eye of all-round knowledge (samantacakkhu), the worldly eye (lokacakkhu) and the eye of Dhamma (Dhammacakkhu). The eyebrow of the dhammakāya is identified as the wisdom of the blue kasiṇa (nīla-kasiṇa). The four canine teeth of the dhammakāya are recognized as the wisdom of the fourfold path (maggañāṇa). The teeth of the dhammakāya are identified as the wisdom of the thirty-seven virtues partaking of enlightenment (bodhipakkhiya-dhamma). The ten fingers of the dhammakāya are equated with the wisdom of the ten recollections (anussati). The torso of the dhammakāya is identified with the ten supreme intellectual powers of the Buddha (dasabalañāṇa). The navel of the dhammakāya is identified with the wisdom of the chain of causation (paṭiccasamuppāda) which can be terminated with the cessation of suffering (nirodha). Lastly, the feet of the dhammakāya are identified with the path of accomplishment (iddhipāda).
4 For more information on the Buddhist manuscript languages of northern Thailand, see Volker Grabowsky, “Tai manuscripts in the Dhamma script domain: surveying, preservation and documentation,” part 1 Manuscript Cultures, Autumn/Winter 2008, pp. 16 -23.
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Some of the qualities or forms of wisdom listed in the text are exclusive to Buddhas such as omniscience (sabbaññutañāṇa), intrepidity (vesārajjañāṇa),5 and the ten supreme intellectual powers of a Buddha (dasabalañāṇa). All the qualities or forms of wisdom listed in the text can be found in the Pāli Canon and commentaries as the results obtained from meditation practice (paṭipatti-sāsanā). However, it is remarkable that the text does not compare the dhammakāya to the Buddha’s Dhamma, i.e., the collection of teachings (pariyatti-sāsanā) sutta (discourse), geyya (discourse mixed with verses and songs) gāthā (verses) and jātaka (birth-stories), etc. Rather, the text personifies the dhammakāya as the body of the Buddha, attributing the dhammakāya with human-like characteristics. The dhammakāya is described as the inner quality of a Buddha as opposed to the outer quality of a Buddha (which is described in the addendum, the Dvatiṃsa-mahapurisa-lakkhaṇa, on the final leaf of the manuscript).
The Monastic RobesThe text describes the monastic robes worn by the dhammakāya
in detail. These robes are identified with the virtue of the learner (sekha): the wisdom of the noble eightfold path (aṭṭhaṅgika-magga-ñāṇa) and the group of moralities (sīla), concentration (samādhi) and wisdom (paññā), also known as the threefold learning (sikkhāttaya). The discussion of the monastic robes is related to the virtue of moral shame (hiri) and moral fear (ottappa). The text mentions the chest belt, or girdle (kāya-bandha) that is worn by exclusively by Theravāda monks. At the end of the text, it is stated that having possessed dhammakāya, the body of ultimate wisdom, the Buddha is superior to divine and human beings. Practitioners (yogāvacara) are encouraged to accomplish the ambition of Buddhahood by regularly recalling the qualities of the Buddha, namely the dhammakāya.
5 “Having intrepidity, the Buddha claimed the leader’s place, and set the Dhamma wheel rolling” (M.I.71; A.II.8).
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Although there is no date on the manuscript, the dhammakāya verse has been known in the Lan Na regions for many centuries. It also appears on a 16th century stone inscription unearthed at the site of Wat Tham Suea, Changwat Phitsanulok, northern Thailand. This inscription was given the identification number of 54 in the Corpus of Thai Inscriptions, and published under the name “Inscription of dhammakāya” by the Office of the Prime Minister in 1965. The inscription was transliterated from Khom Thai script into modern Thai script by Professor Cham Thongkhamwan and identified as the beginning of the dhammakāya verse recorded in the Lan Na manuscript. The Phitsanulok inscription is dated Friday, the first day of the third waxing moon, 1470 Mahasakkarāja, which is equivalent to 2092 BE (or 1548 CE). The scribe was a Buddhist monk: Mahāthera Śribaṅśa. The inscription was commissioned by Mahā Brahmakumāra with the support of a group of donors. This dated inscription confirms that the verse, and the concept of the Dhamma body of the Buddha, was known to Buddhists in the city of Phitsanulok during the 16th century. At this time, Phitsanulok was part of the kingdom of Ayutthaya, and was ruled by King Mahācakkraphat (r.1548-1564 CE).
Another piece of evidence that shows the age and the importance of the dhammakāya verse for Thai Buddhism is a gold-plated manuscript found in the monastery of Wat Phra Chetupon, Bangkok, a royal Wat founded by King Rama I (r. 1782-1809 CE). The gold-plated manuscript was found during a reconstruction of the jetiya of Srisanpedchadayan that was carried out by the Fine Arts Department in 1988, and is now kept in the monastery museum. The gold-plated manuscript was sealed in the chamber at the top part of the jetiya together with Buddha relics, miniature crown jewels and several other gold-plated manuscripts, mostly containing abstracts from the seven books of the Abhidhamma. This particular manuscript contains the Paccayākāra-anekajātisaṃsāraṃ, a text about the chain of causation, as well as the dhammakāya verse, which is identical to the Lan Na text discussed in this article. The inclusion of the dhammakāya verse in the royal Wat’s collection of gold-plated manuscripts shows its importance during the early Ratanakosin or
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Bangkok period.The Lan Na palm-leaf manuscript itself cannot provide an
accurate date for the composition of the verse because palm-leaf manuscripts are fragile, and rarely survive more than a century; they are continually recopied by monastic scribes.6 However, when the Lan Na manuscript is considered together with the evidence of the Phitsanulok inscription and the gold-plated manuscript from Wat Phra Chetupon, it can be seen that the dhammakāya verse has been treasured, read and recited by devout Buddhists since the 16th century in the Lan Na regions, Ayutthaya and in the early Ratanakosin period.7 Additional research into the dhammakāya verse, its concepts, and the meditation practices associated with the verse will bring Buddhist scholars a greater appreciation and understanding of the contemporary Vijja dhammakāya practice as well as being useful for the practitioners of meditation.
6 For more information on the life and ritual function of palm-leaf manuscripts in the Tai regions, see Volker Grabowsky, “Tai manuscripts in the Dhamma script domain: surveying, preservation and documentation”, part 1, Manuscript Cultures, Autumn/Winter 2008, pp. 16 -23.7 Coedes’ article, Adyar Library Bulletin, vol. 29, 1956, 248-286, shows that the dhammakāya verse was important for Khmer Buddhists as well.
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Dhammakāya
Wat Pāsak Noi MonasteryAmphoe San Kampaeng, Changwat Chiang Mai
คมภร ธรรมกาย
วดปาสกนอยอำาเภอ สนกำาแพง จงหวดเชยงใหม
Transliteration and English translation
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Leaf 1
“สพพญตญาณปวรสสนพพานารมมณ ปวรวรสตเกสจตตฏจฌานปวรนราตวชชรสมาปตญาณปวรอณณาสนลกสณโสภาตกนตปวร
ภมยคคลทพพจกขสมนตาจกขปณญาจกขพทธจกขธมมจกขโลกจกขปวรจกขทวยทพพโสตญาณปวรโสตทวยโคตรภญาณปวรอตตงค
ฆานอนตตรปโมกขาธคคมญาณปวรตนทวยโลกยโลกฏฏรญาณปวรโอฏฐทวยสตตตงสโพธปกขยญาณปวรสภทนตา
จตมคคญาณปวรจตทาฒาจตสจจญาณปวรชวหาอปปตหตตญาณปวรหนกอนตตรวโมกขธคมญาณปวรกณฐตลกข
ณญาณปวรควรวราชกจตเวสารชชญาณปวรพาหทวยทสสานสสตญาณปวรวฏงคลโสภา สตตสมโพช คาปวรปณอรตร
Sabbañūtañāṇa pavarasisaṃ; Nibbānārammaṇa pavaravirasitakesaṃ; Catutṭacñāna pavaranarātaṃ; Vajjirasamāpatiñāṇa pavarauṇṇāsaṃ; Nilakasiṇasobhātikanta pavara;bhamuyuggalaṃ; Dibbacakkhu, Samantācakkhu, Paṇñācakkhu, Buddhacakkhu, Dhammacakkhu, Lokacakkhu, pavaracakkhudvayaṃ; Dibbasotañāṇa pavarasotadvayaṃ; Gotrabhūñāṇa pavarauttuṅgaghānaṃ; Anuttarapimokkhādhiggamñāṇa pavaratanadvayaṃ; Lokiyalokuṭṭarañāṇa pavaraoṭṭhadvayaṃ; Sattatiṃsabodhipakkhiyañāṇa pavarasubhadantā;Catumaggañāṇa pavaracatudāḍhā; Catusaccañāṇa pavarajivahā; Appatihattañāṇa pavarahanukaṃ; Anuttaravimokkhadhigamañāṇa pavarakaṇṭha; Tilakkhaṇañāṇa pavaragivaravirājikaṃ; Catuvesārajjañāṇa pavarabāhūdvayaṃ; Dassānussatiñāṇa pavaravaṭaṅguliṃsobhā; Sattasambhojjhaṅgā pavarapaṇaurataraṃ;
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“สพพญตญาณ ปวรสส นพพานารมมณ ปวรวรสตเกส จตตฏจฌาน ปวรนราต วชชรสมาปตญาณ ปวรอณณาส นลกสณโสภาตกนต ปวร
ภมยคคล ทพพจกข สมนตาจกข ปณญาจกขพทธจกข ธมมจกขโลกจกข ปวรจกขทวย ทพพโสตญาณ ปวรโสตทวย โคตรภญาณ ปวรอตตงค
ฆาน อนตตรปโมกขาธคคมญาณ ปวรตนทวยโลกยโลกฏฏรญาณ ปวรโอฏฐทวย สตตตงสโพธปกขยญาณ ปวรสภทนตา
จตมคคญาณ ปวรจตทาฒา จตสจจญาณ ปวรชวหา อปปตหตตญาณ ปวรหนก อนตตรวโมกขธคมญาณ ปวรกณฐ ตลกข
ณญาณ ปวรควรวราชก จตเวสารชชญาณ ปวรพาหทวย ทสสานสสตญาณ ปวรวฏงคลโสภา สตตสมโพชฌงคา ปวรปณอรตร
Thai Transliteration Thai Translation
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Leaf 2
อาสยานสยญาณปวรทนายคคลทสสผลญาณปวรมชจมมคคปฏจจสมปาทปวรนาภอนทรยปณญาพลปวรชงฆนาทสสกสสลกมมปทญาณปวรอรทว
ยทสสผลณญาณปวรชคคทวยจตรทธปาทถยทวยสลสลสมมาธปญญาปวรสงฆาฏหรโอตปปญาณปวรปงสกลปฏจฉาทน
จวรอฏฐคกมคคญาณปวรอนตรวาสกจตสตปฏฐานนญาณปวรกายพนธนอเญสเทวมนสสานพทโธอตวโลจห
ยสสตปตตมงคาญาณสพพณญตาทกาธมมกายมตตปวรนเมตโลกนายกอมธมมกายพทธรกขณโยคาวจรปตเตนตกขญา
เณนสพพณญพทธภาวปกเฏนเตนปนปนอนสวตพพนตคถาบตนชธมมกายขนไจไวยจาเรนดนกแลสพพณยตญาณปวรสสปรยาสพพญ
Āsayānusayaṃñāṇa pavaradanāyuggalaṃ; Dassaphalañāṇa pavaramajcimmaggaṃ; Paṭiccasamupāda pavaranābhi; Indriyapaṇñābalaṃ pavarajaṅghanā; Dassakussalakammapadañāṇa pavaraurūthavyaṃ; Dassaphalakhāṇañāṇa pavarajaggadvayaṃ; Caturiddhipādathayaṃ dvayaṃ; Salasalasammādhipaññā pavarasaṅghāṭi; Hiriotappañāṇa pavarapaṅsukula; Paṭicchādanacivaraṃ; Aṭṭaṃgikamaggañāṇa pavaraantaravāsakaṃ; Catusatipaṭṭhānanañāṇa pavarakāyabandhanaṃ. Añesaṃ devamanussānaṃ buddho ativilocahiyassataputtamaṅgāñāṇaṃ sabbaṇñūtādikādhammakāyamattaṃ pavaraṃ nametalokanāyakaṃ. Imaṃ dhammakāyaṃ buddharakkhaṇaṃ yogāvacaraputtena tikkhañāṇena sabbaṇñūbuddhabhāvaṃ pakṭentena punapunaṃ. This stanza is called dhammakāya. It would be of prosperity if one could remember [the stanza] by heart. Sabbaṇñūtañāṇa pavarasisaṃ: the wisdom of omniscience (sabbaṇñūtañāṇa)
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อาสยานสยญาณ ปวรทนายคคล ทสสยลญาณ ปวรมชจมมคค ปฏจจสมปาท ปวรนาภ อนทรยปณญาพล ปวรชงฆนา ทสสกสสลกมมปทญาณ ปวรอรทว
ย ทสสผลณขาณญาณ ปวรชคคทวย จตรทธปาทวย ทวย สลสลสมมาธปญญา ปวรสงฆาฏ หรโอตปปญาณ ปวรปงสกล ปฏจฉาทน
จวร อฏฐคกมคคญาณ ปวรอนตรวาสก จตสตปฏฐานนญาณ ปวรกายพนธน อเญส เทวมนสสาน พทโธ อตวโลจห
ยสสตปตตมงคาญาณ สพพณญตาทกาธมมกายมตต ปวรนเมตโลกนายก อม ธมมกาย พทธรกขณ โยคาวจรปตเตน ตกขญา
เณน สพพณญพทธภาว ปกเฏนเตน ปนปนอนสวตพพนต คาถาบทนชอ ธมมกาย ขนใจไวจาเรญดนกแล สพพณยตญาณ ปวรสส ปญญา สพพญญตญาณ
Thai Transliteration Thai Translation
87
Leaf 3
ตญารเปนหวอนปรเสฏแหงพรเจานพพานรมมณปวรสตเกสปรยาอนรยงอารมมณแหงนพพานเปนเสนผมอนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาจตตฏชฌานปว
รนลาตเปนหนาผากอนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาวชรสมมาปตญาณปวรอพภาสปรยาอนรยงวชรสมมาปตเปนกวอนมหวางควทง๒
อนมรสสมอนรงเรงอนปรเสฏแหงพรเจานลกสณโสสาภาตกนตปวรภมยคคลปรยาอนรยงนลกสณทลามนล
กสณเปนตนอนงามยงนกเปนควทง๒อนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาทพยโสตญาณปวรโสตทวยปรยาอนไดยงทพพโสตณญานคหรทบ
เปนโสตปรสาดทง๒อนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาโคตรภญาณปรวรอตตคคงฆานปรยาอนรยงโคตรภญาณเปนจะมกดงอนปรเสฏแหง
[Sabbaṇñūtañāṇa pavarasisaṃ] is the sublime head of the Lord. Nibbānarammaṇa pavarasitakesaṃ: the wisdom that recognizes Nibbāna as the object of consciousness is the sublime hair of the Lord. Catutṭajjhāna pavaranalātaṃ:[the statement is missing]…is the sublime forehead of the Lord. Vajirasammāpatiñāṇa pavaraubbhāsaṃ: the wisdom that attains vajirasammāpati is the long hair appears between the two eyebrows of the Lord that has a brilliant halo. Nilakasiṇa sosābhātikanta pavarabhamu yuggalaṃ: the wisdom of recognizing various elegant blue objects of meditation (nilakasiṇa).Such a blue colour signifies the two sublime eyebrows of the Lord. Dibyasotañāṇa pavarasota dvayaṃ: the wisdom that attains divine ear (dibbasotaṇñāna ) is the sublime sense of hearingof the two ears of the Lord. Gotrabhūñāṇa paraṃvarautatuggaṅghānaṃ: the wisdom that accesses the “change of lineage” (gotrabhū) is the sublime nose of the Lord
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เปนหวอนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา นพพานรมมณ ปวรสตเกส ปญญาอนรยงอารมณแหงนพพาน เปนเสนผมอนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา จตตฏชฌาน ปวรนลาต
เปนหนาผากอนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา วชรสมมาปตญาณ ปวรอพภาส ปญญาอนรยง วชรสมมาบต เปนกวอนมหวางควทงสอง
อนมรศมอนรงเรองอนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา นลกสณโสสาภาตกนต ปวรภมยคคล ปญญาอนรยงนลกสณทงหลายมนล
กสณเปนตนอนงามยงนก เปนควทงสอง อนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา ทพยโสตญาณ ปวรโสต ทวย ปญญาอนไดยงทพพโสตณญานคอหทพย
เปนโสตประสาททง สองอนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา โคตรภญาณ ปรวรอตตคคงฆาน ปญญาอนรยงโคตรภญาณเปนจมกดงอนประเสรฐแหง
Thai Transliteration Thai Translation
88
Leaf 4
พรเจาอนตตรวโมกขาธคมญาณปวรกนถวยปรยาอนรยงอบายอนหไดเถงยงอนตตรวโมกฆเปนไปหรอนปรเสฏแหงพรเจา
โลกยโลกฏฏรญาณปวรโอฏฐทวยปรยาอนรยงโลกยโลกฏฏรทาทงมวรเปนรมปากอนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาสตตตส
โพธปกขยญาณปวรสกภทนตปรยาอนรยงโพธปกขยธา๓๗เปนเขยวอนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาสตมคคญาณปวรจต
ทาฒปรยาอนรยงมคค๔เปนเขยวทางหนาแง สนอนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาจตสจจญาณปวรชวหาปรยาอนรยงสจจธาทง๔เปน
นอนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาอปปตหตญาณปวรหนกปรยาอนบหยอทอยงเญยยธาแลปณหาอนฅนแลเทวดาหากถามเปนคางอนปรเสฏแหงพรเจา
Anuttaravimokkhādhigamañāṇa pavarakana dvayaṃ: the wisdom of recognizing expedient toward the ultimate liberation is the two sublime ears of the Lord.Lokiyalokuṭṭarñāṇa pavaraoṭṭha dvayaṃ: the wisdom of recognizing the entire worldly Dhammas (lokiyadhamma) and the Supramundane Dhammas (lokuttaradhamma) is the pair of sublime lips of the Lord. Sattatiṃsabodhipakkhiyañāṇa pavarasakabhadanta: the wisdom of the thirty-seven-fold virtues partaking of enlightenment (bodhipakkhiyadhamma) is the sublime teeth of the Lord. Satumaggañāṇa pavaracatudāḍhaṃ:the wisdom that accesses the Four Noble Paths is the sublime eyeteeth of the Lord. Catusaccañāṇa pavarajivhā: the wisdom that accesses the Four Noble Truths isthe sublime tongue of the Lord. Appatihatañāṇa pavarahanukaṃ: the wisdom that enables the Lord to cope with knowledge that is knowable (ñeyyadhamma) and enquiries that might be raised by man and deity is the sublime chin of the Lord.
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พระเจา อนตตรวโมกขาธคมญาณ ปวรกน ถวย ปญญาอนรยงอบายอนใหไดถงยงอนตตรวโมกข เปนใบหอนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา
โลกยโลกฏฏรญาณ ปวรโอฏฐ ทวย ปญญาอนรยงโลกยโลกตตรธรรมทงมวล เปนรมปากอนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา สตตตส
โพธปกขยญาณ ปวรสกภทนต ปญญาอนรยงโพธปกขยธรรม สามสบเจด เปนเขยวอนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา สตมคคญาณ ปวรจต
ทาฒ ปญญาอนรยงมรรค ส เปนเขยวทางหนาแง สนอนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา จตสจจญาณ ปวรชวหา ปญญาอนรยงสจจธรรมทง ส เปน
ลนอนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา อปปตหตญาณ ปวรหนก ปญญาอนบยอทอยงเญยยธรรม และปณหาอนคนและเทวดาหากถามเปนคางอน ประเสรฐแหงพระเจา
Thai Transliteration Thai Translation
89
Leaf 5
อนตตรวโมกขาธคคมญาณปวรกณฐปรยาอนรอบายอนจกหไดเถงยงวโมกขธาคนพพานอนลายงกวาธาทงมวรเปนกานฅออนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาตลกขณ
ญาณปวรควรวราชกปรยาอนรลกขณทง๓มอนจจลกขณเปนตนเปนลาตออนมลาย๓อนอนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาจตเวสารช
ญาณปวรพาหทวยปรยาอนรยงเวสารชญาณ๔ปรกานเปนตนแขนทง๒อนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาทสสานสสตญาณปวรวฏฏงคล
โสภาปรยาอนรยงอนสสตสบอนมพทธานสสตเปนตนเปนนวมอนสวยเถยวกมงามอนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาสตตสมโพชฌงคาปวรปณ
อรตตรโพชฌงค๗ปรกานมสตโพชฌงคเปนตนเปนพนอกอนเตมงามอนปรเสฏแหงพรพทธเจาอาสายานสนยญาณปวรรนยคครปรยาอนช
Anuttaravimokkhādhiggamañāṇa pavarakaṇṭha: the wisdom of recognizing expedient toward the possession of the state of deliverance (vimokkhadhamma) which is Nibbana, the most profound of all the Dhammas, is the sublime nape of the Lord. Tilakkhaṇañāṇapavaragivaravirājikaṃ: the wisdom of recognizing the Three Characteristics, such as impermanency (anicca-lakkhaṇa), is the sublime neck – with the three elegant curved lines - of the Lord. Catuvesārajañāṇapavarabāhu dvayaṃ : the wisdom of recognizing the four fold subject of perfect self-confidence (vesārajjañāṇa) is the two sublime upper arms of the Lord. Dassānussatiñāṇa pavaravaṭṭaṃgulisobhā:
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อนตตรวโมกขาธคคมญาณ ปวรกณฐ ปญญาอนรอบายอนจกใหไดถงยงวโมกขธรรมคอนพพานอนลายงกวาธรรมทงมวล เปนกานคออนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา ตลกขณญาณ
ปวรควรวราชก ปญญาอนรลกขณะทงสาม ม อนจจลกขณะเปนตน เปนลาคออนมลายสาม อนอนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา จตเวสารชญาณ
ปวรพาห ทวย ปญญาอนรยงเวสารชชญาณส ประการ เปนตนแขนทงสอง อนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา ทสสานสสตญาณ ปวรวฏฏงคลโสภา
ปญญาอนรยงอนสสตสบอนม พทธานสสตเปนตนเปนนวมออนสวยเถยวกลมงามอนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา สตตสมโพชฌงคา ปวรปณอรตตร
โพชฌงคเจด ประการม สตโพชฌงคเปนตน เปนพนอกอนเตมงามอนประเสรฐแหงพระพทธเจา อาสายานสนยญาณ ปวรรนยคคร ปญญาอนชอ
Thai Transliteration Thai Translation
90
the wisdom of recognizing the Ten Recollections (anussati) - for instance, the recollection of the Buddha - is the elegant fingers of the Lord. Sattasambhojjhoṅgā pavarapaṇaurattara:the Seven Enlightenment Factors (bojjhaṅga), for instance, mindfulness (sati) is the glowing sublime chest of the Lord. Āsāyānusanayañāṇa pavararanayuggaraṃ: the wisdom that is called
asayānusaya is the pair of sublime breasts of the Lord. Dassaphalañāṇa pavaramajjhimmagaṃ: the wisdom of recognizing the Fruit (phala) is the sublime middle part of the body of the Lord. Paṭiccasamupādañāṇa pavaranābhi:
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Leaf 6
อสยานสยเปนคน๒อนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาทสสผลญาณปวรมชณมมคปรยาอนรยงผลอนเปนองคทากางตนอนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาปฏจจสมปาทญาณปวร
นาภปรยาอนรยปฏจจสมปาทธาทงมวรหมายมอวชชาเปนตนมนโลเปนทสดเปนสดอนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาปญจนทรยปญจมพลปวร
ชคงนาอนทรยทง๕พลทง๕อนเปน ลาแฅง อนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาทสสกสสลกมมปถมญาณปวรอรทวยปรยาอนรยงกสสลกมมปถ
สบอนเปนขาทง๒อนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาทสสผลญาปวรชงคทวยปรยาอนรยงผละสบอนเปนหนาแฅงทง๒อนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาจตรทธปาท
ญาณปวรปาททวยอนทรยบาททง๔อนมฉนทเปนตนเปนตนทง๒อนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาสลลสมมาธปญาปวรสงฆาฏสลขนธสมมาธขนธแลปญาขนธแลเปนผา
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อสยานสย เปนคนมทงสอง อนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา ทสสผลญาณ ปวรมชณมมค ปญญาอนรยงผลอนเปนองค ทามกลางตนอนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา ปฏจจสมปาทญาณ ปวรนาภ
ปญญาอนรยงปฏจจสมปาทธรรม หมายม อวชชา เปนตนม นโรธ เปนทสดเปน สะดออนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา ปญจนทรย ปญจมพล ปวรชคงนา
อนทรยะทงหา พละทงหาอนเปนลาแขงอนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา ทสสกสสลกมมปถมญาณ ปวรอร ทวย ปญญาอนรยงกศลกรรมบถ
สบอน เปนขาทงสอง อนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา ทสสผลญา ปวรชงค ทวย ปญญาอนรยงผละสบอน เปนหนาแขงทงสอง อนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา จตรทธปาทญาณ
ปวรปาท ทวย อนทรยบาททงสอน มฉนทะเปนตน เปนตนทงสอง อนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา สลล สมมาธ ปญา ปวรสงฆาฏ สลขนธ สมาธขนธ และปญญาขนธ แล เปนผา
Thai Transliteration Thai Translation
Pāli/English Translation
91
the wisdom of recognizing the whole Chain of Phenomenal Cause and Effect (Paticcasamupādadhamma), commencing with ignorance (avijjā) and ending with cessation (nirodha), is the sublime navel of the Lord. Pañcindriyaṃ pañcamabala pavarajagaṅanā:the five controlling faculties (indriya), or the so-called five powers (bala), are the sublime lap of the Lord. Dassakussalakammapathamañāṇa pavaraura dvayaṃ: the wisdom of recognizing the ten wholesome courses of action (kussalakammapatha)is the sublime two legs of the Lord. Dassaphala pavarajaṅga dvayaṃ: the wisdom of recognizing the ten fruitions (dassaphala) is the sublime shins of the Lord. Caturiddhipādañāṇapavarapāda dvayaṃ : the Four Paths of Accomplishment, for instance, will (chanda), is the two sublime feet of the Lord. Silla sammādhi pañā pavarasaṅghāṭi: the body of morals (sila-khandha), the body of concentration (sammādhi-khandha) and the body of insight (paññā-khandha) are the
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Leaf 7
สงฆาฏผนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาหรโอตตปปญาณปวรปสกลปฏจฉาทนจวรหรธาแลโอตตปปธาแล เปนผาปสกลจวรอนกงบงบนเทาเอาเสยยสงมตนวาสตสสอณห
สสอนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาอฏฐคกมคคญาณปวรอนตรวาสกปรยาอนรยอฏฐคกมคคทง๘อนมสมมาทฏฐเปนตนมสมมาธเปนทสดเปนผาอนตรวา
สกกอนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาจตสตตปฏฐานญาณปวรกายพนธนปรยาอนรยสตตปฏฐานทง๔เปนกายพนธนอนปรเสฏแหงพรเจาแลพทธาอนวาพรพ
ทธเจาตนตรดรสจจธมมทง๔อตวโลจตครงเรงงามยงนกอเญสเทวมนสสานกวาฅนแลเทวดาทลารง_นกวาตนแลยสสตมตตมคาทนญาน
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สงฆาฏผนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา หรโอตตปปญาณ ปวรปสกล ปฏจฉาทนจวร หรธรรมและโอตตปปะธรรมแล เปนผาปงสกลจวรอนกนบงบรรเทาเอาเสยยงสงมตนวา สตสสอณหสส
อนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา อฏฐคกมคคญาณ ปวรอนตรวาสก ปญญาอนรยง อฏฐงคกมรรคทงแปด อนม สมมาทฏฐเปนตน มสมมาสมาธเปนทสด เปนผาอนตรวาสก
อนประเสรฐแหงพระเจา จตสตตปฏฐานญาณ ปวรกายพนธน ปญญาอนรยงสตปฏฐานทงสเปนกายพนธนะ อนประเสรฐแหงพระเจาแล พทธา อนวาพระพทธเจา
ตนตรสรสจจธรรมทงส อตวโลจต ก รงเรองงามยงนก อเญส เทวมนสสาน กวาคนแลเทวดาทงหลาย รง_นกวาตนแล ยสสตมตตม คาทน ญาน
Thai Transliteration Thai Translation
92
มนสสรตพนธพมเมกายอนวาฮธมมกายอนนสพพญทกอนมปรยาสพพญตญาณเปนตนตญาณอนวาปรยาอนนนอตตมคาทอนมองคอนปรเสฏมหวเปนตนยสส
5 มนสสรตพนธพม เมกาย อนวารธรรมกาย อนน สพพญทก อนมปญญา สพพญญตญาณเปนตน ต ญาณ อนวาปญญาอนนน อตตมคาท อนมองคอนประเสรฐ มหวเปนตน
sublime outer robe (saṅghāti) of the Lord. Hiriottappañāṇa pavarapasukula paticchādanacivaraṃ: moral shame (hiridhamma) and moral fear (ottappadhamma) are the sublime upper robe of discarded cloth (pasukulacīvara), which gives protection from the cold and heat (sitassauṇhatassa),of the Lord. Aṭṭhaṃgikamaggañāṇa pavaraantaravāsakaṃ: the wisdom of accessing the Noble Eightfold Path (aṭṭhaṅgikamagga), which commences with Right View (sammādiṭṭhi) and ends with Right Concentration (sammāsamādhi), is the sublime under robe (antaravāsaka)of the Lord. Catusattipaṭṭhānañāna pavarakāyabandhanaṃ: the wisdom of recognizing the Four Foundations of Mindfulness (satipaṭṭhāna) is the sublime girdle (kāyabandhana) of the Lord. Buddhā: the Lord Buddha,who attained the Four Noble Truths; ativilocatigaṃ añesaṃ devamanussānaṃ: is more brilliant than deities and men; yassatamuttamaṃ gādinaṃ ñānaṃmanussaritabandhibamaṃ mekāyaṃ sabbañudikaṃ: by the recognition of this body of Dhamma (dhammakāya) which consists of types of wisdom, for instance, the wisdom of omniscience (sabbaññutañāṇa). Taṃ ñānaṃ uttamagādi: these types of wisdom are [personified as] the sublime body, which is comprised of the head, for instance,
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Leaf 8
ตถาคตสสอนพรเจาตนไดอทคตหากไดเถงแลวอมธมมกายยงธมมกายอนนพทธรกขณเปนลกขณแหงพรพทธเจาโยคาวจจรปตตนอนกลบตตนปรกอบ
ดวยเกยรตกขญาเณนดวยอนมปรยาอนกลาฅมปเถนเตอนปราถนามกสพพญพทธภาวยภวอนเปนสพพญพทธภาวนนอนสรตพพเพงรนกเถง
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ยสสตถาคตสส อนพระเจาตนใด อทคต หากไดถงแลว อม ธมมกาย ยงธรรมกายอนน พทธรกขณ เปนลกษณะแหงพระพทธเจา โยคาวจจรปตตนอนกลบตรตนประกอบ
ดวยเกยรต ตกขญาเณน ดวยอนมปญญาอนกลาคม ปเถนเต อนปรารถนามก สพพญพทธภาว ยงภาวะอนเปนสพพญญพทธภาวะนน อนสรตพพ พงนกถง
Thai Transliteration Thai Translation
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yassatathāgatassa adigataṃ: that the Lord attained. Imaṃ dhammakāyaṃ buddharakkhaṇaṃ: the body of Dhamma (dhammakāya) is the property (lakkhaṇa) of the Lord Buddha. Yogāvaccaraputtana: the practitioners are furnished withhonor; tikkhañāṇena pathente sabbañu buddhabhāvaṃ anusaritabbaṃ: and acute wisdom that aspire after the state of enlightening omniscience as a Buddha should recall[the dhammakāya]; puna punaṃ: frequently. That is to say, the stanza should be remembered by heart and recited in order to pay homage to the Lord every day with no exception. For it could be an essential of protection in the present and futureuntil the attainment of the Path (magga), the Fruits (phala) and Nibbana. Iti vara-khandha santa : in the [mentioned] way, this narration of dhammakāya representes the assembly of the entire Dhammas that becomes the splendid aggregate of Buddhas is accomplished right here.[blank line]
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ตามครแหงพรพทธเจาปนปนไจๆควาขนไจไดแลวเพงจาเรนสวาดธฏายไหวพรเจาชวนอยาขาดอาดเปนปรไจรกสาตวไนภาวอนนอนหนากลได
เถงมคคผลนพพานอตดวยไนยปรกานดงนแลกลาวยงธมมกายอนกดเอายงธมมทงมวรเขามาเปนวรขนธสนตตนพรพทธเจาทงมวรคแลวเทานกอร
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ตามคณแหงพระพทธเจา ปน ปน ไจๆ คอวาขนใจไดแลว พงจาเรญสวาธยายไหวพระเจาชวน อยาขาด อาจเปนปจจยรกษาตวในภาวะอนนอนหนากนได
ถง มรรค ผล นพพาน อต ดวยนย ประการดงนแล กลาวยงธรรมกาย อนกดเอายงธรรมทงมวลเขามาเปน วรขนธ สนต ตนพระพทธเจา กแลวเทานกอน
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Leaf 9
สปฏฏฐตปาโทเหฏฐาปาทตเลสจกกานชาตาน [สหสสานสเนมตตาสพพาการปรปราน] อายตตนปณหทฆคลมทตลนหตฏปาโทชาลหตฏปาโท
อณหสงขปาโทเอณชงฆาฏฐตโกวอโนนมนเตอกโภหปานตเลหชานกานปรปชชตโกโสวตฏคณโหสวณณวณโณ ก
ปจนสนภตโชโจสขมฉวตายรชโชชลพทธสสกาเย อนปลมปตเอเกกโกโมเอเกกโลโมนโลมกป
เปปสชาตาน นลาน อญชนวณณาน กณขลาวฏกชาตานอธธคาน เกสมกโข พรหมชวโต สตตสโทเทวปฏฐหฏฐปาทตลา
เรวองสกฏาขนธาฏฐต อเมสสตต สอณณาม โสสหปพพฒกาโย ปตนตร โสนโครธปรมณฑ ยาวตตตสส กาโยตาวตตสสพยโม
Supaṭiṭṭhitapādo heṭṭhāpādatalesu cakkāni jātāni sahassāni sanemittā sabbākāra pariparāni āyatapaṇhi dighaguli mudutalunahatṭapādo jālahatṭapādouṇhisaṅkhapādo ejhijaṅghāṭṭhitkova anonamante ukbhohi pānitlehi jānukāni paripajjati kosovatṭuguṇho sovaṇṇavaṇṇokapcanasanibhatajoco sukhumachavitāyarajjojalaṃ buddhassakāye anupalimpati ekekakomo ekekalomo nilomakuppepasujātāni nilāni añjanavaṇṇāni kuṇkhalāvaṭakajātāni udhdhagāni kesamukkho brahmajuvato sattusado devapiṭṭhihaṭṭhapādatalārevaaṅsakuṭākhanadhāṭṭhati imesusatta suuṇṇāmaṃ sosihapubbaḍhakāyo pitantaraṃ sonigrodhaparimaṇḍa yāvatattassa kāyotāvattassabayamo.
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สปฏฏฐตปาโท เหฎฐาปาทตเลส จกกาน ชาตาน สหสสาราน สเนมกาน สพพาการ ปรปราน อายตปณห ทฆงคล มทตลนหตฏปาโท ชาลหตฏปาโท
อณหสงขปาโท เอณชงฆาฏฐตโกว อโนนมนเต อกโภห ปานตเลห ชานกาน ปรปชชต โกโสวตฏคณโห สวณณวณโณ ก
กปจนสนภตโชโจ สขมฉวตายรชโชชล พทธสสกาเย อนปลมปต เอเกกโกโม เอเกกโลโม นโลมกป
เปปสชาตาน นลาน อญชนวณณาน กณขลาวฏกชาตาน อธธคาน เกสมกโข พรหมชวโต สตตสโทเทวปฏฐหฏฐปาทตลา
เรวองสกฏาขนธาฏฐต อเมสสตต สอณณาม โสสหปพพฒกาโย ปตนตร โสนโครธปรมณฑ ยาวตตตสส กาโยตาวตตสสพยโม
Thai Transliteration Thai Translation
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Leaf 10
ยาวตาตตสสพยาโม ตาวตาตตสสกาโย สหาวฏขนโธ มคคมคค อถสหทน จตตาสทนโต อววรนโต สกกมหตตชวโห พรหมสโร
วกภาณอณณาภมกนตเรอณหสสโสจตตรโสตอมานทวตตสามหาปรสลกขณานนาม พนพรบาด บาทจกพรสพพญเจาแล
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yāvatāttassabayāmo tāvatātātassakāyo sahāvaṭakhandho maggamaggi athasihadana cattāsadanto arivaranto sukkamhuttajivaho brahmasaro karavikabhāṇi uṇṇābhamukantare uṇhisasiso cittaraṃsoti.Imāni davattisāmahāpurisalakkhaṇānināma. This is the boundary of the feet of the Omniscient One.[blank line]
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ยาวตาตตสสพยาโม ตาวตาตตสสกาโย สหาวฏขนโธ มคคมคค อถสหทน จตตาสทนโต อววรนโต สกกมหตตชวโห พรหมสโร
อณณาภมกนตเร อณหสสโส จตตรโสต อมาน ทวตตสามหาปรสลกขณานนาม พนพระบาท บาทจกรพระสพพญญเจาแล
Thai Transliteration Thai Translation
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Photographic duplication of the palm leaf manuscript fromWat Pā Sak Noi Monastery
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Photographic duplication of the palm leaf manuscript fromWat Pā Sak Noi Monastery
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An Shigao and Early Chinese
Meditation TechniquesPhra Kiattisak Kittipanyo
University of Otago
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An Shigao and EarlyChinese Meditation Techniques1
Phra Kiattisak Kittipanyo2 (University of Otago)
An Shigao安世高 (147~ 168 CE) played an important role in the early transmission of Buddhism into China, and there have been many investigations of his life and translations (Zürcher, 20073; Forte, 19954; Zacchetti, 20025; Nattier, 20086). Most of these investigations have focused on his ethnicity, sectarian affiliation, his translation style, and the authenticity of the texts attributed to him. However, a careful reading of his biography shows that during the time he was active in China, An Shigao was well-respected as a meditation master. There has been little interest in the form of meditation that he taught and practiced during his lifetime. One reason for this is that his translations of meditation sutras are often ambiguous and difficult to understand because he used Daoist terminology. Another reason is that his biographies emphasize his adventurous life and his supernatural abilities rather than his Buddhist practice. However, his biographers all mention that he practiced meditation, and it is known that he translated many important meditation sutras into Chinese. 1 This is the revised version of a paper, “An Shigao and Early Chinese Buddhist Meditation”, given at the 2011 NZASR/AABS Conference, (Queenstown, New Zealand, 7-9 December 2011). I am grateful to Prof. Adrian Snodgrass, Prof. Judith Snodgrass, Dr. Michael Radich and Dr. Elizabeth Guthrie who gave me many invaluable suggestions during and after my presentation at the conference. Please note that this article’s references have been formatted using Zotero2 Phra Kiattisak Kittipanyo is MA student at University of Otago New Zealand.3 Erik Zürcher, The Buddhist conquest of China: the spread and adaptation of Buddhism in early medieval China (BRILL, 2007).4 Antonino Forte, The Hostage An Shigao and His Offspring: An Iranian Family In China (Italian School of East Asian Studies, 1995).5 Stefano Zacchetti, “An Early Chinese Translation Corresponding to Chapter 6 of the Peṭakopadesa: An Shigao’s ‘Yin chi ru jing’ Ṫ 603 and Its Indian Original: A Preliminary Survey,” Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London 65, no. 1 (January 1, 2002): 74-98.6 Jan Nattier, A guide to the earliest Chinese Buddhist translations: texts from the Eastern Han“ Dong Han” and Three Kingdoms“ San Guo” periods (International Research Institute for Advanced Buddhology, Soka University, 2008).
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In this paper I explore the connections between An Shigao and the introduction of the Indian Buddhist meditation technique of mindfulness breathing meditation, or ānāpānasmṛti, into Eastern Han China. I will argue that the phrase 『息中具有四大。而心在中』can be interpreted as: “the mind should be located at the centre of the body while breathing (in and out).” Although the precise position of the centre of the body is not clear in this text, teachings from Chinese Daoism and from Thai Theravada Buddhism can provide insight into the ānāpānasmṛti meditation techniques that An Shigao introduced into China during the Eastern Han.
Traditional sources state that An Shigao安世高 (147~ 168 CE)7 was born as a prince of Parthia, and travelled to Luoyang the capital city of Eastern Han Dynasty 東漢 (25-220 CE) during 148 CE. He lived in China for many years, preaching, teaching and translating Buddhist texts dealing with meditation, Abhidharma and basic Buddhist doctrine into Chinese.8 According to the Chu sanzang ji ji 出三藏記集 (hereafter CSZJJ) compiled by Sengyou 僧祐 (445–518 AD) An Shigao was not only particularly proficient in the Abhidharma but he was also able to recite the meditation sutras by heart9 and thoroughly mastered the true essence of these works.10
7 Erik Zürcher, The Buddhist conquest of China: the spread and adaptation of Buddhism in early medieval China. (Leiden: BRILL, 2007) 32. 8 Lua Yin (2003) points out the Abhidharma texts which were translated by An Shigao belonging to Sarvāstivādin School and the meditation text closely related to breathing meditation; see 羅因, “安世高禪學思想的研究 -- 兼論漢末道教養生術對禪法容受的影響,” 臺大中文學報 n.19 (December 1, 2003): 19.9 The SAT Daizōkyō Text Database Committee, “出三藏記集 (No. 2145 僧祐撰 ) in Vol. 55,” Taishō Shinshū Daizōkyō (大正新脩大藏經), March 17, 1998, line T2145_.55.0095a07, http://21dzk.l.u-tokyo.ac.jp/SAT/ddb-sat2.php?mode=detail&useid=2145_,55,0094c23&key=%E5%AE%89%E4%B8%96%E9%AB%98%E5%82%B3+&ktn=&mode2=2. 10 J. Miyajima, “The Formation and Development of Chinese Buddhist Literature,” Institute for Cultural Interaction Studies, Kansai University 1, The International Academic Forum for the Next Generation Series (March 31, 2010): 127.12 冉雲華, “中國早期禪法的流傳和特點--慧皎、道宣所著「習禪篇」研究,” 中華學術院佛學研究所 7 (September 1984): 67.
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Dao An道安 (314-385 AD) states An Shigao’s translation works which are concerned with meditation include Anban shouyi jing 安般守意經, Da Daodi jing 大道地經 “Yogācārabhumi Sūtra”, Da shi er men jing 大十二門經, Xiao shi er men jing 小十二門經, Da Anban jing 大安般經, Siwei jing 思惟經 and Chanxing faxiang jing 禪行法想經.12 Unfortunately most of these translations have been lost except for the Da anban jing大安般經 T602, Da daodi jing 大道地經T607 and Chanxing faxiang jing 禪行法想經T605 which have survived in the Taisho Tripiṭaka.13 According to the Taisho Tripiṭaka, the Yin chi ru jing 陰持入經and the Chanxing sanshiqi pin jing 禪行三十七品經 can also be classified as meditation texts.14
It can be seen in the following chart (adapted from Nattier15 and based on Sengyou’s lists of An Shigao’s translation work) that while An Shigao translated both Hīnayāna and Mahāyāna texts16, the majority are associated with the Hīnayāna school. In addition, there are only seven texts related to meditation: Renben yusheng jing 人本欲
生經 (T14), Qi chu san guan jing 七處三觀經 (T150a), Da Anban shouyi jing 大安般守意經 (T602), Yin chi ru jing 陰持入經 (T603), Chanxing faxiang jing 禪行法想經 (T605), Daodi jing 道地經 (T607) and Wu yin piyu jing 五陰譬喩經
(T105).
12 Ibid.13 Ibid. Details are「大正新修大藏經」載有「陰持入經」兩卷、「禪行三十七品經」一卷，也都是禪經14 Nattier, A guide to the earliest Chinese Buddhist translations, 45–46.15 Nattier points out all of the work attributed to An Shigao that can be found in modern editions of the Chinese Buddhist Canon, is divided for three categories: āgama texts(i.e., non- Mahāyāna sūtra), Mahāyāna scriptures, and treatises; see Ibid., 49.17 釋大常, 智者大師判釋「三藏敎」之硏究 (Dharma Drum Publishing Corp, 2004), 28.18 中華電子佛典協會, “CBETA T01 No. 31《一切流攝守因經》卷1”, February 26, 2010, line 1, http://cbeta.org/result/normal/T01/0031_001.htm.
Number
T13
T14
T31
Text Name
Chang ahan shi bao fa jing 長阿含
十報法經
Renben yusheng jing 人本欲生經
Yiqie liu sheshou yin jing 一切流
攝守因經
Si di jing 四諦經
Hīnayāna
/
/
Dīrgha Āgama17
/18
Mahāyāna Meditation
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102
T32
T36
T48
T57
T98
T112
T150a
T150b
T602
T603
T605
T607
T792
T1508
T105
T109
T1557
Si di jing 四諦經
Benxiang yizhi jing 本相猗致經
Shifa feifa jing 是法非法經
Lou fenbu jing 漏分布經
Pufa yi jing 普法義經
Ba zhengdao jing 八正道經
Qi chu san guan jing 七處三觀經
Jiu heng jing 九横經
Da Anban shouyi jing 大安般守意經
Yin chi ru jing 陰持入經
Chanxing faxiang jing 禪行法想經 Daodi jing 道地經
Fa shou chen jing 法受塵經
Ahan koujie shi’er yinyuan jing 阿含口解十二因縁經
Wu yin piyu jing 五陰譬喩經
Zhuan falun jing 轉法輪經
Apitan wu fa xing jing 阿毘曇五
法行經
/
Madhyama
Āgama19
/20
/21
/20
/22
/23
/
Saṃyukta
Āgama24
/
/
/
/
/
/
/
Saṃyukta
Āgama25
/
/
/
/
/
/
/
/
19 釋大常, 智者大師判釋「三藏敎」之硏究, 28.20 中華電子佛典協會, “CBETA T01 No. 36《本相猗致經》卷1”, February 26, 2010, line 1, http://www.cbeta.org/result/normal/T01/0036_001.htm.21 中華電子佛典協會, “CBETA T01 No. 48《是法非法經》卷1”, February 26, 2010, line 1, http://www.cbeta.org/result/normal/T01/0048_001.htm.22 中華電子佛典協會, “CBETA T01 No. 57《漏分布經》卷1”, February 26, 2010, line 1, http://cbeta.org/result/normal/T01/0057_001.htm.23 中華電子佛典協會, “CBETA T01 No. 98《普法義經》卷1”, February 26, 2010, line 1, http://cbeta.org/result/normal/T01/0098_001.htm.24 釋大常, 智者大師判釋「三藏敎」之硏究, 28.25 Ibid.
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What kind of meditation did An Shigao introduce intoEastern Han China?
An Shigao and other Central Asian translators were welcomed into Eastern Han China (25-220 CE), by the cultured elites who were interested in learning about meditation.26 The kind of meditation that was popular during the second century CE seems to have been “breathing meditation.”27 Many of An Shigao’s translations were about the “counting in breath” meditation, for example the Anban shouyi jing; the Daodi jing (T607); Yin-chi ru jing (T603); the large and small of Shi’ermen jing (lost); the Renben yusheng jing (T14).28 These texts all contain classified and sub-classified lists of terms and concepts of chan shu 禪數29. According to Mair (2010) the term chanshu 禪數, which occurs in Dao’an’s preface to An Shigao ‘s translation of the Anban shouyi jing , refers to the enumerated categories concerning meditation30 which is also related to the “counting in breath” meditation （坐禪數息) 31
The meaning of shu 數 is explained in the Anban shouyi jing as:
數為何等？入息出息數十息，无得過十息，无得減十息，入息至竟投一，出息至
竟投二，若投二意誤，更從一投起，若至九投意誤，更從一數起。(K-ABSYJ, line 71-73)
What is “counting” (gaṇanā)? Counting the in-breath and the out-breath from one to ten. Do not count over ten, and do not count less than ten. Count one at the end of
26 See also Paul Williams, Mahāyāna Buddhism: the doctrinal foundations (Taylor & Francis, 2009), 132.27 Zürcher, The Buddhist conquest of China, 186.28 Erik Zürcher, The Buddhist conquest of China: the spread and adaptation of Buddhism in early medieval China (BRILL, 2007), 186.29 Ibid.30 Victor H. Mair, “What is Geyi, After All?,” in Philosophy and religion in early medieval China, ed. Alan Kam-leung Chan and Yuet Keung Lo (SUNY Press, 2010), 234.31 洪修平, “小乘禅数之学略述”, January 26, 2012, http://read.goodweb.cn/news/news_view.asp?newsid=51391.
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breathing in, and count two at the end of breathing out. If you count any other number than two when it should be two, start counting over from one. If you count any other number than nine when it should be nine, start counting over from one.32
According to Shi Guo Huei the word shu 數 is a key term that we can use to identify the kind of meditation associated with An Shigao.
Textual evidence for meditation in An Shigao’s corpus and in the Anban shouyi jing .
The Anban shouyi jing 安般守意經 (hereafter ABSYJ)33 is a meditation text and is one of the most influential scriptures translated by An Shigao from a Sanskrit text named Ānāpānasmṛti-sūtra, or the “Great Mindfulness of Breathing Sutra”.34 The full title of this text in the Taisho Tripiṭaka is Foshuo Da Anban shouyi jing 佛說大安般守意經 T602.35 In addition to mindfulness breathing, the sutra also explains other basic Buddhist meditation practices such as si nian chu 四念處 “the four objects of contemplation”, wu gen 五根 “the meditation on the five sense organs”, qi jue zhi七覺支“the seven aid to the enlightenment”, and ba zhengdao八正道 “the eight fold noble path”.36
32 Shi Guo Huei, “The Textual Formation of the Newly Discovered Anban shouyi jing,” Chung-Hwa Buddhist Journal 21 (2008): 125.33 安世高, trans., “佛説大安般守意經卷上T602,” 大正新脩大藏經, n.d., http://21dzk.l.u-tokyo.ac.jp/SAT/ddb-sat2.php?mode=detail&useid=0602_,15,0163a04&key=%E4%BD%9B%E8%AA%AA%E5%A4%A7%E5%AE%89%E8%88%AC%E5%AE%88%E6%84%8F%E7%B6%93&ktn=&mode2=2.34 冉雲華, “中國早期禪法的流傳和特點--慧皎、道宣所著「習禪篇」研究,” 68.35 Yixuan, Ruth Fuller Sasaki, and Thomas Yūhō Kirchner, The record of Linji (University of Hawaii Press, 2009), 373.36 Ibid.
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37 Stefano Zacchetti, “A ‘new’ early Chinese Buddhist commentary: The nature of the Da Anban shouyi jing (T 602) reconsidered,” Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies 31 (2008): 425.38 Ibid., 430. Ochiai (2002:35) and Deleanu (2003:87-89) have a similar hypothesis.39 Zürcher, The Buddhist conquest of China, 53.40 Zacchetti, “A ‘new’ early Chinese Buddhist commentary: The nature of the Da Anban shouyi jing (T 602) reconsidered,” 424.41 Yi-Jie Tang, “The Relationships Between Traditional And Imported Thought And Culture In China: From The Standpoint of The Importation Of Buddhism,” Dialogue Publishing Company 15 (1988): 417.
From Sengyou’s CSZJJ, we learn that there are two Anban[shouyi] jing sutras which were translated by An Shigao:37
安般守意經 一卷 安錄云：『小安般經』。（CSZJJ p.5c 23: “corresponding to a Smaller Anban jing”
大安般經一卷 (CSZJJ p. 6a 15): “corresponding to a Larger Anban jing”
Zürcher points out that the text of the Present Da Anban shouyi jing (T-ABSYJ) T 60238 seems to be “mixed with an ancient commentary, which probably consists of Chen Hui’s and Kang Senghui’s explanations and of glosses added by Dao An (312_285).” According to Zacchetti, the T-ABSYJ was generally believed to be a mixture of An Shigao’s translation plus an interlinear commentary.39 In contrast, the Kongo-ji Anban shouyi jing (K-ABSYJ), which may be similar to the Smaller Anban jing recorded by Sengyou, gives every appearance of being just a translated text with no traces of any interpolated commentary40 and seems to be a genuine translation by An Shigao.
An Shigao and ānāpānasmṛti
An analysis of An Shigao’s corpus shows that he translated a number of influential sutras which emphasized the meditative practice of breath control, or ānāpānasmṛti, namely the Ānāpānasmṛti-sūtra (T602); the Yin-chi ru jing zhu 陰持入經註 (T1694)41 which contains the Anban jie 安般解. Zacchetti hypothesizes that the first quotation of the Anban jie might be a commentary on a passage of the K-ABSYJ
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42 Zacchetti, “A ‘new’ early Chinese Buddhist commentary: The nature of the Da Anban shouyi jing (T 602) reconsidered,” 474.43 Marylin M. Rhie, Early Buddhist Art of China and Central Asia: Later Han, Three Kingdoms and Western Chin in China and Bactria to Shan-shan in Central Asia (Brill, 1999), 24. Rhie states that the most important and influential text translated by An Shigao was the Anban shouyi jing大安般守意經which remained influential into the third century CE.44 陳慧, “陰持入經註 (No. 1694 陳慧撰 ) in Vol. 33,” Taishō Shinshū Daizōkyō (大正新脩大藏經), November 28, 2011, line T1694_.33.0011b22, http://21dzk.l.u-tokyo.ac.jp/SAT/ddb-sat2.php?mode=detail&useid=1694_,33,0011b18&key=%E6%81%AF%E4%B8%AD%E5%85%B7%E6%9C%89%E5%9B%9B%E5%A4%A7&ktn=&mode2=2.
describing the practice of the four smṛtysthānas associated with the breath (ānāpānasmṛti), and resulting the attainment of the three vimoksamukhas.42
An Shigao’s translation of the Ānāpānasmṛti Sūtra later inspired the monk Dao An (312-385 CE), who wrote a commentary on it in the mid fourth century, and also the 大十二門經 “Greater of Scripture of the 12 Gateways,” a detailed meditation or dhyāna 禪 sutra. From this we can say that the breathing meditation technique contained in the Anban shouyi jing安般守意經 was one of the most influential Buddhist meditation techniques at that time.43
Breathing meditation technique and the centre of the body
In this section, I will analyze the breath meditation technique mentioned in the first quotation of the Anban jie 安般解 in the Yin-chi ru jing zhu 陰持入經註 (T1694).44
安般解曰: 『息從内出。息中具有四大。而心在中。謂之内身也。 息由外
來。四大亦爾。』
“Breathing comes out from within. In it are contained the four mahā-bhūta and the mind is located therein: this is called ‘internal.’ Breathing comes from without, and the same happens with the four mahā-bhūta.” [translated by Zacchetti (2008)]
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45 A. Charles Muller, “四大 | four great elements,” Digital Dictionary of Buddhism, November 28, 2011, http://buddhism-dict.net/cgi-bin/xpr-ddb.pl?56.xml+id(%27b56db-5927%27).46 Prayut, Buddhadhamma: natural laws and values for life (SUNY Press, 1995), 57–60.47 Jinhua Jia, The Hongzhou School of Chan Buddhism in Eighth- Through Tenth-Century China (SUNY Press, 2007), 122.
According to the above quotation from the Anban jie 安般解, there are two types of breath: in and out. However, when one is breathing in-out, the mind should be located at the centre of the 四大mahā-bhūta. What is the meaning of the term “四大”mahā-bhūta? According to Digital Dictionary of Buddhism,45 四大 means the four mahā-bhūta, which all physical substances are composed of. The four mahā-bhūta are:1.土 the earth element (Skt. prthivī dhātu); 2.水 water (Skt. ab-dhātu); 3.火 fire (Skt. teja-dhātu); 4.風wind (Skt. vāyū-dhātu). According to the Theravadin Abhidhamma, our physical body色 (rūpa) is also comprised from the 四大mahā-bhūta , which refers to the cycle of birth and death.46 Therefore, sometimes 四大 mahā-bhūta can imply the body of elements, 四大之身mahā-bhūta rūpa.47
The figure describes the four elements or four mahā-bhūta
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Thus, the phrase 『息中具有四大。而心在中』can be interpreted as: “the mind should be located at the centre of the body while breathing (in and out).” The precise position of the centre of the body where the mind should be located is not clearly identified in this text, and further research is needed. However, in the next section of this article, I will explore two sources which may be useful. The first one is related to Thai Buddhist meditation48 such as the teachings of PhraMongkolthepmuni (Sodh Candasaro; 1884 - 1959), a Thai meditation master who rediscovered and taught the dhammakāya meditation technique; and the second one is to the teachings of Chinese Daoism. According to PhraMongkolthepmuni, “The Center of the Body” is located around two finger breadths above the navel49 (see picture, below).50 Moreover, he also points out that the centre of the body is also related to the mahā-bhūta sphere, which is located around the centre of the body where is asserted as the Middle Way51 (Pali: majjhimā paṭipadā; Sanskrit: madhyamā-pratipad). This point has been identified by PhraMongkolthepmuni as the deepest end of the breath in the breathing meditation (ānāpānasmṛti).52 Another source which identifies the center of the body is the Daoist teachings about the dantian 丹田, or cinnabar field. According to Daoism,
48 A Thai source that connects yogavacara teachings on meditation with the location of the mahabhuta is Krrmṭhān mạchchimā bæb lảdạb “กรรมฐานมชฌมาแบบลำาดบ“; see http://somdechsuk.org/node/216# comment-73. see also Kate Crosby, “Tantric Theravada: A Bibliographic Essay on the Writings of Francois Bizot and Others on the Yogavacara Tradition,” Contemporary Buddhism 1, no. 2 (November 1, 2000): 141-198.49 พระมงคลเทพมน (สด จนทสโร), “หลกการเจรญภาวนา สมถวปสสนากรรมฐาน,” วดปากนำาภาษเจรญ, February 7, 2012, http://www.watpaknam.org/content.php?op=dsn_68.50 พระมงคลเทพมน (สด จนทสโร), “คมอสมภาร พระธรรมเทศนายอของพระมงคลเทพมน (สด จนทสโร) หลวงพอวดปากนำาภาษเจรญ,” in ทางมรรค ผล นพพาน ธรรมปฏบตตามแนววชชาธรรมกาย พ.ศ. 2525, ed. ฉลวย สมบตสข, 3rd ed. (กรงเทพ: ชวนพมพ, 2525), 587-8, http://www.watpaknam.org/book/view.php?id=5.51 พระมงคลเทพมน (สด จนทสโร), “มงคลกถา พระธรรมเทศนา กณฑท๖ วนท ๒๐ กนยายน พทธศกราช ๒๔๙๖,” วดปากนำาภาษเจรญ, February 6, 2012, http://www.watpaknam.org/content.php?op=dsn_6.52 โครงการปฏบตธรรมเพอประชาชน วดปากนำาภาษเจรญ, “ลำาดบท ๗ ธรรมบรรยาย หลกอานาปานสสต,” in ทางมรรค ผล นพพาน ธรรมปฏบตตามแนววชชาธรรมกาย พ.ศ. 2525, ed. พระเมธวราภรณ (วเชยร อโนมคโณ) ป.ธ. ๙, 2525, 327.
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The figure shows the position of “the centre of body” described by PhraMongkolthepmuni
Figure source: homeofpoi.comThe location of dantian 丹田 according to Daoism
the dantian is located around two or three inches below the navel.53 This is in contrast to the teachings of PhraMongkolthepmuni, which locates the centre point two finger breadths above the navel. Despite different opinions about location of the centre, it is interesting there are many similarities between the meditation techniques taught by An Shigao and the Daoists. Further research is needed, but there is some evidence that Daoism was influenced by Buddhism during this period, something that I will explore in the next section of this paper.
53 Jeaneane D. Fowler, An introduction to the philosophy and religion of Taoism: pathways to immortality (Sussex Academic Press, 2005), 173–174.
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Eastern Han Buddhist meditation and DaoismBy the middle of the first century CE, a Buddhist community
was already in existence in China, and growing. The arrival of translators from Central Asia and India, was a consequence of the great demand for Buddhist texts to be translated from foreign languages into Chinese. At first, translators had some difficulty in finding the exact words to explain Buddhist concepts in Chinese.54 These early translators employed the ke yi 格義 “method of analogy”, which Mair calls “matching concepts” or “matching meanings,” and used Daoist terms to explain Buddhist concepts.55 For example, An Shigao borrowed the Daoist term for meditation shou 守 “guarding or observing56 which “was used to denote the effort of concentration of mind;”57 this can be seen in the Chinese translation of the title of the Da Anban shouyi jing 大安般守意經 “Great Ānāpānasmṛti Sūtra.” Toward the end of Eastern Han Period (25-220 CE) Daoist meditation terms such as si 思 “think or contemplate”, sixiang 思想 ＂contemplate and imagine＂, sicun 思存 ＂contemplate and preserve＂,＂cun 存
＂preserve＂ were borrowed to explain another type of Buddhist meditation si 思 “think or contemplate”, sixiang 思想 ＂contemplate and imagine＂, sicun思存 ＂contemplate and preserve＂, cun 存 ＂preserve＂.58 The use of Daoist terminology to translate Buddhist concepts helped Chinese people to accept the “foreign” teachings of the Buddha during this early period.59
54 Buddha Dharma Education Association & BuddhaNet, “The Buddhist World: Buddhism in East Asia - China, Korean, Japan.,” 2011-11-18, n.d., para. 2–5, http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/buddhistworld/east-asia.htm.55 Mair, “What is Geyi, After All?,” 228–243.56 Ann Heirman and Stephan Peter Bumbacher, The spread of Buddhism (BRILL, 2007), 219.57 Livia Kohn and Yoshinobu Sakade, Daoist meditation and longevity techniques (Center for Chinese Studies, University of Michigan, 1989), 152.58 Heirman and Bumbacher, The spread of Buddhism, 219.59 Buddha Dharma Education Association & BuddhaNet, “The Buddhist World: Buddhism in East Asia - China, Korean, Japan.,” 2–5.
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Daoist meditation in the Eastern Han periodWhen An Shigao arrived in China around 148 CE, very few if
any Buddhist meditation texts had been translated into Chinese.60 However the Chinese people were already familiar with the meditation practiced by small groups of Daoist hermits who attempted to achieve immortality through breathing exercises, sexual techniques and the use of medical elixirs.61 Traces of the earliest form of meditation can be found in the fourth or third BCE in Chinese philosophical works like Guanzi 管子(Master Guan), Zhuangzi 莊子( Master Zhuang) and particularly Laozi’s 老子Tao Te Ching (Daodejing) 道德經 all of which refer to meditation practice as neidan 內丹, “inner cultivation” “inner alchemy.”62
Breathing techniques were part of Daoist meditation as well. According to Ye Young, “the Chinese traditional meditative practice (including Daoism and Buddhism) consists of an array of terminology, breathing, concentration, and visualization techniques: xinzhai 心
齋, or “fasting the heart,” zuowang 坐忘, or “sitting and forgetting,” cunsi 存思, or “focusing and observing,” shouyi 守一, or “observe on one,” xingqi 行氣, or “circulating qi,” fuqi 服氣, or “consuming qi,” taixi 胎息, or “fetus breathing,” tunai 吐納, or “expelling the old breath and drawing the new,” zhiguan 止觀, or “calmness and insight,” zuochan 坐禪, or “sitting meditation,” neidan 內丹, or “the inner alchemy.”63
According to Daoism, the practice of meditation, called neidan 內丹 or “the inner alchemy” or “inner cultivation”64 is a method of
60 冉雲華, “中國早期禪法的流傳和特點--慧皎、道宣所著「習禪篇」研究,” 67.61 Valerie Hansen, History of Early China to 1600: The Open Empire (New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2000), 144.62 Heirman and Bumbacher, The spread of Buddhism, 217.63 Xiansheng YeYoung, “LiteratiTradition: Neidan, the Traditional Meditative Practice,” Literati Tradition, May 4, 2011, http://sactaichi.com/literati-tradition.com/meditative_practice.html.64 Heirman and Bumbacher, The spread of Buddhism, 217.
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finding is a method of finding illumination by returning to the fundamental order of the cosmos65. This involves fully emptying out the contents of consciousness until a condition of union with the way is achieved. This union is referred to by distinctive phrases such as “attaining the One” (de yi 得一), “attaining the empty Way” (de xu dao 得虛道) and “the Profound Merging” (xuan tong 玄同)66 which can help the practice to attain the ultimate goal as the longevity and immortality. It is interesting that in order to overcome the difficulty in expressing the idea of an ultimate, unconditioned reality in the Chinese language, An Shigao used the Daoist term de dao 得道 “attain the Dao” and zhi wuwei 致無為 “attain non-action” to express Buddhist ideas about the experience of Nirvāṇa.67
The main meditative technique, neidan, is practiced along with classical Chinese medicine, the methods for “nourishing life” (yangsheng 養生) and the balance and inter-dependence between nature, man and the spirit world with other bodies of practices (fangshi方士)68 Mu mentions that there are four stages to practice neidan; (1) Laying the Foundations (zhuji 築基), (2) Refining Essence into Breath (lianjing huaqi 練精化氣), (3) Refining Breath into Spirit (lianqi huashen 練氣化神), (4) Refining Spirit and Reverting to Emptiness (lianshen huanxu 練神化虛).69
In terms of meditation and inner alchemy there are three cinnabar fields; one of them is tan-t’ian/ dantian, also called the “elixir fields” or “Sea of Breath” (ch’i-hai/ qihai) which is located one and three inches below the navel where energy is generated and the mid-point between yin (breath in) and yang (breath out). This is the most important of the three fields.
65 Isabelle Robinet, Original Contributions of Neidan to Daoism and Chinese Thought in Livia Kohn ed. Daoist Meditation and Longevity Techniques (The University of Michigan, 1989), 299.66 Heirman and Bumbacher, The spread of Buddhism, 218.67 Nattier, A guide to the earliest Chinese Buddhist translations, 40.68 Elliott Shaw, “Fang Shih,” Overview Of World Religions, n.d., http://www.philtar.ac.uk/encyclopedia/Daoism/fang.html.69 Wang Mu, Foundations of Internal Alchemy: The Daoist Practice of Neidan (Mountain View: Golden Elixir Press, 2011), 13.
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The second one is the “Golden Palace” which is located below the heart and spleen, and the last field is the “Mud Pill Court” or the Palace of Ni-wan which is located about three inches within the head from the point between the eyebrows.70
In addition, there was the visualization 思 meditation technique in the cinnabar field 丹田, which had become a common feature in the second half of the second century.71 There is one phrase sishen 思神
“visualize”, “concentrate your mind on the image of divinity(ies)”, “contemplate the divinity(ies)”, “meditate on” which is related to visualization techniques and starts with breathing exercises, its goal is to visualize a divinity in order to secure this superior being’s presence or enter into communication with it via the cinnabar field.72 The cinnabar field (dan tian 丹田) is described as the spot inside the human body, located below the navel. According to Laozi zhong jing 老子中經 the middle text of Laozi, which can be traced back to the end of the Eastern Han Period, describes the cinnabar field as the root of human being[s]. It is the place where the vital power is kept. The five energies of the five phases originated here…it is located three inches below the navel which symbolizes the trinity of Heaven, Earth and Human.73
Despite the difference in the location of the centre of the body (above the navel, or below the navel) there are many similarities between Daoist meditation techniques and the Buddhist mediation techniques introduced by An Shigao. It can be asked if the two groups influenced each other, and to what extent. It should be noted that Buddhist teachings about Visualization Meditation introduced to Eastern Han China by Zhi Loujiachen 支婁迦讖 Lokakṣema (active c. 164–186 CE74) had a strong influence on Daoist visualization
70 Fowler, An introduction to the philosophy and religion of Taoism, 173–174.71 Heirman and Bumbacher, The spread of Buddhism, 220.72 Ibid., 219–220.73 Ibid., 220.74 Oldmeadow, Light from the East, 140.
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meditation. Lokakṣema translated Foshuo banzhou sanmei jing
佛說般舟三昧經 Pratyutpanna Samadhi-sūtra or “The Samadhi of Being in the presence of all the Buddhas”, which is the Visualization of Buddha or Buddhānusmṛti (Pali: Buddhānussati). According to Bumbacher (2007) these Buddhist sutras influenced the development of Daoist Visualization technique 思神 which consisted of the visualization of Daoist deities at dan tian 丹田 was the consequence of the introduction of Buddhānusmṛti meditation.75 It seems possible that An Shigao’s introduction of ānāpānasmṛti meditation techniques into China had a similar influence on Daoism.
75 Heirman and Bumbacher, The spread of Buddhism, 228.
Figure source: daoistcenter.orgIllustration of Daoist Visualization technique〈思神〉: Daoist
deities are visualized at dan tian 丹田 .
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ConclusionIn conclusion, in this paper I have reviewed An Shigao’s career as a meditation master and a translator of Buddhist texts. Based on his translations of meditation sutras I have argued that he played an important role in introducing mindfulness breathing meditation, or ānāpānasmṛti, into Eastern Han China. I have also demonstrated that An Shigao was familiar with and used Daoist terminology to translate the concepts associated with ānāpānasmṛti meditation into Chinese. I have argued that An Shigao’s teachings and sutra translations influenced Daoists as well as Buddhists. The key to this is the phrase from the Anban Jie: 『息中具有四大。而心在中』: “the mind should be located at the centre of the body while breathing (in and out).” While the precise position of the 四大 mahā-bhūta in the centre of the body is not clear in the Anban Jie. The similarity between the ancient meditation techniques transmitted to China by An Shigao and the teachings of PhraMongkolthepmuni calls for further research.
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As director of the Dhammachai International Research Institute of Australia and NewZealand (DIRI), I would like to express my tremendous appreciation to Rungsilp Printing Co., Ltd. for kindly supporting the publishing of the journal DIRI. This journal will certainly prove to be of great benefit to students, scholars and anyone who is interested in learning about Buddhism. May the benefits come to fruition for all the people who generously contributed to this journal and its publishing. I am confident that the merit from your altruistic action on this occasion will lead you and your company to greater success and happiness.
Phrakrupaladnayokwarawat (SudhammoBhikkhu)Director of DIRI
“Sabba danam dhamma danam jinati” “The gift of Dhamma excels all other gifts”
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