’JU MI PHAM ON PURE LAND DOCTRINE AND PRACTICE

Lowell Cook
Master of Arts Thesis
Advisor: James Gentry
Centre for Buddhist Studies, Kathmandu University
2016
 དད་པའི་ཨ་ལོང་མེད་ན།།
ིང་ ེའི་ གས་ ་འ ེན་ཐབས་ ལ།།
It is impossible for the hook of compassion
To catch you without the ring of faith

དད་པ་ཉིད་ ིས་དབེན་ན།།
དངོས་ ས་ཟེར་ཡང་ཕན་ནམ་ཅི།།
What is the use of talking about other-power
When you are devoid of faith?

2
Table of Contents

Acknowledgements 5

Conventions and Abbreviations 6

Abstract 7

Introduction 9

Part I. Textual Interpretation

Chapter One: Development of the Pure Land Traditions 15

Defining Pure Land Buddhism 15

The Soteriology and Doctrines of Pure Land Buddhism 19

Early Mahāyāna and the Development of Pure Lands in India 21

Pure Land Comes to Tibet 24

The Identity of Amitābha and its Conflation with Amitāyus 27

Chapter Two: Bde smon and the genre of Pure Land literature in Tibet 29

Genres of Scripture 29

The Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtras 30

Bde smon, Aspiration Prayers for Sukhāvatī 33

Chapter Three: Sun-like Instructions of a Sage by ’Ju mi pham 36

The Life and Writings of ’Ju mi pham 36

Title and Colophon 38

Outline of the Text 40

Faith and Aspiration (dad ’dun) as the Primary Causes Among the Four 41
Causes

3
 The Terms Rang stobs and Dngos po’i nus pa Understood as Self-power and 43

Other-power

Pure Land Polemics 48

The Praxis of the Pure Land 50

Part II. Philology

Chapter Four: Introduction to the Critical Edition 53

Part III. Translation

Chapter Five: Translation Introduction 57

Chapter Six: An English Translation of Sun-like Instructions of a Sage: A 59

Clarification of Faith which Purifies the Pure Land, the Land of Bliss

Appendix A: Topical Outline 86

Appendix B: Critical Edition 86

Bibliography 108

4
Acknowledgements

I would like to humbly extend my gratitude to the Centre for Buddhist Studies at

Rangjung Yeshe Institute and its spiritual head Chos kyi nyi ma rin po che. Without their years

of instruction, I would never have had the knowledge, skills, or confidence to write a thesis as

this or do justice to Mi pham in translating his work. I would like to thank my thesis advisor,

James Gentry, for his guidance and encouragement over the two years of M.A. coursework as

well as Catherine Dalton and Mgar rdo rje for helping me read and interpret the Tibetan. Thanks

to Kurt Jensen for proofing the thesis’ many drafts. I am indebted to Georgios Halkias for

suggesting the text to translate and for acting as an external reader. Without the continued

support and encouragement of my kind parents, I would not have been able to complete the task

at hand. Without the generous financial assistance from the Khyentse Foundation, my graduate

studies in Nepal would not have been possible. Last, and certainly not least, I would like to

express my gratitude to Skyabs mgon ’phags mchog rin po che for being an unending source of

blessing and pointing out the downfalls of the academic mind. All mistakes herein are mine

alone. May all beings be led to the Land of Bliss!

5
Conventions and Abbreviations

Unless otherwise noted, all foreign terms that appear in parenthesis are Tibetan,

transcribed according to the Extended Wylie Transliteration System (EWTS). Tibetan proper

names and text titles have their first letter, not their root letter (ming gzhi), capitalized for

appearance. Words that appear in Sanskrit and Chinese are preceded by “Skt.” and “Ch.”

respectively. Literal translations are marked by “Lit.” In this paper, a number of complex

phenomena are glossed using simplified terminology for the sake of convenience. The most

contested of these terms is “Pure Land Buddhism” which, as I repeatedly attempt to prove below,

does not, and cannot refer to a cohesive self-identifying movement. Rather, here it is understood

according to its inclusive definition as a particular orientation toward celestial buddhas and their

buddha-fields which spans a wide range of time periods, cultures, and languages. This holds true

when used as an adjective (“pure land literature,” “pure land practices,” etc.). To refer to Pure

Land Buddhism as a self-identifying religious movement focused exclusively on Amitābha’s

pure land Sukhāvatī, I use the term Amidism. It would seem that any term could be

deconstructed and revealed to be a misconstruing of complex historical processes. Yet, even at

the risk of oversimplification, I maintain that the use of these conceptual labels is reasonable

insofar as it allows for comparison between different social, religious, and literary trends. Thus,

terms like Buddhism, Mahāyāna, and Tibetan Buddhism are only problematic insofar as they are

reified as monolithic and static as opposed to diverse and dynamic. With respect to the process of

translation, it should be understood that “meaning” is not a static entity confined to the text but is

generated in relationship to the place, time, and cultural-linguistic background of the reader.

Hence, the translation presented below cannot help but be determined within these limits and

6
thus merely represents one interpretation made at one time by one individual. In no way does it

claim to be definitive.

7
Abstract

The present study looks at self-power and other-power in a Tibetan Buddhist context. The

tension between self-power and other-power concerns the mechanism behind rebirth in the pure

land Sukhāvatī; that is, whether rebirth is achieved through one’s own volition (self-power) or,

conversely, through an external force such as the supernatural powers of Amitābha (other-power).

Self-power and other-power are discussed at length in Japanese Buddhist Studies where they are

called jiriki and tariki, respectively, and even has some distant parallels in Christian theology

(namely, works and grace). Nevertheless, these two terms have gone unmentioned in Tibetan

Buddhist literature. The only Tibetan author to my knowledge to explicitly discuss self-power

and other-power is the ecumenical scholar-practitioner ’Ju mi pham (1846-1912) in his work,

Sun-like Instructions of a Sage: A Clarification of Faith which Purifies the Pure Land, the Land

of Bliss (Bde ba can gyi zhing sbyong ba’i dad pa gsal bar byed pa drang srong lung gi nyi ma).

This fourteen-folio treatise affirms that faith and aspiration (dad ’dun) are the primary cause(s)

for rebirth in Sukhāvatī and defends this position in a series of polemics against detractors of

other-power. I engaged with the text Sun-like Instructions of a Sage in three different modes:

textual interpretation, philology, and translation. Part one, the textual analysis, required that I

first place the text within its historical and literary contexts. To do this, I first delineated the

historical developments of Pure Land Buddhism via the rise of Mahāyāna in India and the unique

pure land innovations that took place in Tibet. Next, the genres of scripture that deal with pure

land themes were discussed. After this, an in-depth analysis of Mi pham’s treatise ensued. In part

two, philology, I defend the use of critical editions and prepare a critical edition of Sun-like

Instructions of a Sage based on four editions (Appendix B). Finally, in part three, translation, I

8
offer an annotated English translation of Sun-like Instructions of a Sage based on the newly

edited critical edition.

9
Introduction

The collected writings of the renowned Tibetan scholar-practitioner ’Ju mi pham (1846-

1912) feature numerous texts on diverse subjects ranging from Buddhist philosophy to tantric

practice and from arts to folklore. Unique among this textual trove is a text on the thought and

praxis of Pure Land Buddhism titled Sun-like Instructions of a Sage: A Clarification of Faith

which Purifies the Pure Land, the Land of Bliss (Bde ba can gyi zhing sbyong ba’i dad pa gsal

bar byed pa drang srong lung gi nyi ma). This treatise is unique in that it explicitly uses the

terms self-power (rang stobs) and other-power (dngos po’i nus pa) to describe the causal basis

for being reborn in the pure land Sukhāvatī. Rebirth in Sukhāvatī via self-power is achieved on

account of one’s own effort and volition. Conversely, rebirth through other-power occurs

external to oneself through outside forces, namely the power and wisdom of the Buddha

Amitābha. This might not seem exceptional since this tension between self-power and other-

power has been thoroughly discussed in Japanese Buddhist studies and, in a slightly different

context, by Christian theologians with works and grace. However, Sun-like Instructions of a Sage

is, to my knowledge, the only explicit discussion of self-power and other-power within Tibetan

Buddhist literature.

To see how its author Mi pham understands self-power and other-power, this paper

engages with Sun-like Instructions of a Sage via a threefold approach: textual interpretation,

philology, and translation. The chapters and subsections of this thesis are likewise constructed

around these three approaches. Part One, textual intepretation, establishes a working definition

for the term “Pure Land Buddhism,” not as an exclusivist form of Amidism, but as a tool to

compare general tendencies towards celestial buddhas and their buddha-fields throughout history.

Next, I locate Sun-like Instructions of a Sage in its historical context via a discussion of the

10
contemporaneous developments of pure lands and early Mahāyāna in India before moving to the

unique pure land developments that occurred in Tibet.

Following this, the many types of texts that deal with Amitābha and Sukhāvatī— in

particular, the Sukhāvatīvyūha sūtras and bde smon aspiration prayers—are examined in Chapter

Two. Having located Sun-like Instructions of a Sage in its historical and literary environments, I

begin a detailed analysis of the text itself. To do so, I use a careful, philologically orientated

reading of the text to make claims about its central thesis—proving faith and aspiration

(dad ’dun) to be the primary cause behind rebirth in Sukhāvatī. Part two, philology, defends my

use of a critical edition over a diplomatic edition and my choice of preparing it in Tibetan over

Wylie transliteration. Having sufficiently proven my case, the final critical edition is constructed

from four different editions and can be found in Appendix B. The annotated translation in part

three takes the critically edited text as its working basis. These three modes of analysis reveal

much about self-power and other-power in the context of Mi pham’s Sun-like Instructions of a

Sage. This new context for self-power and other-power provides a window of insight into how

pure land orientated doctrines and practices continue to operate in Tibet. This creates new points

of comparison between Tibetan Buddhist literature, the literature of other forms of Buddhism, as

well as other religions.

Pure land tendencies have been an integral part of Buddhist traditions as early as the

Kuṣāṇa period (104/171 CE).1 Within the Tibetan tradition, there are different exegetical levels

as to what constitutes a pure land. On an exoteric level, it describes a world-system overseen by

a celestial buddha where the entire environment is conducive to awakening. The pure land

Sukhāvatī is traditionally praised as being constructed out of precious jewels, exotically

1
Halkias, Georgios T. Luminous Bliss: Religious History of Pure Land Literature in Tibet with an Annotated
English Translation and Critical Analysis of the Orgyan-gling Gold Manuscript of the Short Sukhāvatīvȳuha-sūtra.
Honolulu: U of Hawaiʻi, 2013, p.18.

11
perfumed, pleasurable to all the senses, and so on. Sukhāvatī lacks the presence of women and is

even devoid of the word “suffering.” These traits have led some scholars such as Karetsky (1997)

and Fujita (1996) to suggest non-Indic or non-Buddhist origins. Yet given that many such

descriptions prevail as part of a pan-Indian or even universal, religious aesthetic, it would be

hard to verify supposed origins without more concrete evidence. On the esoteric and secret

levels,2 the realm of Sukhāvatī is equated with a state of non-dual primordial awareness, the

nature of mind itself. However, Sun-like Instructions of a Sage is an exoteric or sutric text; its

presentation of the pure land Sukhāvatī is in accordance with the outer understanding (though it

does not negate the esoteric exegesis).

Nattier (2000) suggests that the emergence of pure lands corresponds with the rise of

early Mahāyāna, a movement that eventually diverged from mainstream Buddhism. 3 Early

Mahāyāna is characterized by a growing number of aspirants (predominately male monastics)

who opted out of arhatship or personal nirvāṇa for complete buddhahood in the likeness of

Buddha Śākyamuni. This trend, in turn, necessitated an equal number of buddha-fields to house

the awakenings for each of these bodhisattvas since there can be only one buddha per world

system at any given time. Here, it is vital to remember that, at this point in history, Pure Land

Buddhism in no way constituted its own separate sect divorced from Mahāyāna. Schopen (1977)

describes how rebirth in Sukhāvatī was part of a larger Indian Mahāyāna ethic in which it was

but one of a number of other worthwhile goals that the bodhisattva could achieve. For instance,

the Samādhirāja sūtra states that he (yes, here the bodhisattva was inevitably a he) might attain

such wonders as “analytical knowledges, uninterrupted speech, overcoming all opponents, or

2
Outer, inner, and secret (phyi nang gsang gsum) is a common exegetical scheme in Tibetan Buddhism.
3
How to reference this early period of Buddhism in relation to the development of Mahāyāna is an issue of
contention. Many scholars opt to refer to it as Śrāvakayāna or Nikaya Buddhism instead of ahistorically referring to
it as Hinayāna.

12
going to the world-sphere Sukhāvatī.”4 Similarly, in Sun-like Instructions of a Sage, Mi pham

repeatedly references final awakening with the term “the greater purpose” (don chen po),

reminding the reader that buddhahood is the ultimate goal for all Sukhāvatī related practices. In

time, it was this trend of longing to be born in the Sukhāvatī that grew into the diverse pan-Asian

phenomena of Amidism as we know it today.

With the importation of Buddhism and its designation as the state religion during the

Imperial Period (7th-9th CE), pure land practices, doctrine, and aesthetics were introduced to

Tibet. Both the long and short Sukhāvatīvyūha sūtras are present in the earliest imperial

catalogues (the Hlan/Ldan dkar ma and ’Phang thang ma), thus it is clear that pure land

literature was a part of Tibetan Buddhism from its very beginning.5 Yet pure land literature was

not limited to only sūtras that were being translated into Tibetan. As Silk (1993) demonstrates,

there were also indigenous compositions from 8th century Dunhuang connected to pure land.

Texts concerned with Sukhāvatī continued to proliferate, with evocative prayers and insightful

commentaries being composed by major religious figures up until the present day. The Indian

and Central Asian forms of pure land theory and practice thus began to take on new dimensions

in the Land of Snows. Pure land tendencies began to blend with a number of other literatures

such as tantra, dhāraṇī, revealed treasure (gter ma), prayer, consciousness transference (’pho ba),

eulogy, commentary, and longevity practices, among others. It is this development and

syncretism with other systems, particularly tantra and consciousness transference, that is Tibetan

Buddhism’s unique contribution to the traditions of Pure Land Buddhism. The Anthology of

Sukhāvatī Prayers (Bde smon phyogs bsgrigs) published by the Sichuan Publishing Group

4
Schopen, Gregory.“Sukhāvatī as a Generalized Religious Goal in Sanskrit Mahāyāna Sūtra Literature” in Indo-
Iranian Journal 19. 1977, pp.170-171.
5
Halkias, Georgios T. “Tibetan Buddhism Registered: An Imperial Catalogue from the Palace Temple of ’Phang-
thang,” in The Eastern Buddhist vol. 36 (1-2), 2004, pp. 46-105.

13
speaks to the variety of genres that reference Sukhāvatī. This anthology contains two volumes

(primary scriptures and commentaries), which span from the Imperial Period until the 20th

century. Mi pham’s text, Sun-like Instructions of a Sage, is also included in this anthology.

Sun-like Instructions of a Sage is divided into two sections: theory and praxis. The

theoretical section treats a number of doctrinal issues such as the four causes for rebirth in

Sukhāvatī. The four causes are: remembering the buddha (buddhānusmṛti), accumulating virtue,

dedicating said virtue, and making aspiration prayers. Mi pham provides scriptural support for

the claim that faith (dad pa) and aspiration (’dun pa)—which he identifies as the first and fourth

causes—are the foremost among the four causes. Next, he answers a number of doubts

concerning the efficacy of hearing dharma discourses on Sukhāvatī, the possibility that ordinary

beings can take birth there, that rebirth there is not intended for another time (that is, when one is

a noble being or ’phags pa), the viability of prayer as a means to be reborn, and so forth. Mi

pham refutes these doubts these based on quotations from scriptures (primarily the long

Sukhāvatīvyūha sūtra). From these polemics comes the discussion of self-power and other-power.

While it is impossible to say that Mi pham eschews self-power since he encourages his readers to

take up the many pure land practices, he devotes most of his ink to establishing the validity of

other-power. One way Mi pham establishes other-power is by using valid cognition (tshad ma)

to relate it with mantra practice (something fundamentally accepted, even by his detractors) since

both systems are characterized by accomplishing a great result with a reduced effort. This hints

at the influence of Rong zom chos kyi zang po might have had on Mi pham’s thought.6

The second section on practice is significantly shorter in length than the theoretical

chapter. Mi pham divides this section into day and night sessions, both of which revolve around

6
Köppl, Heidi. Establishing Appearances as Divine: Rongzom Chokyi Zangpo on Reasoning, Madhyamaka, and
Purity. Boston: Shambhala Publications, 2013, pp. 84.

14
faithfully recollecting the virtues of Amitābha and forming the resolve to be reborn in Sukhāvatī

(namely, the first and fourth causes). The daytime practices consist of putting the four causes

into practice, amassing the two accumulations via the seven-limb offering, and reciting the name

and dhāraṇī of Amitābha. Mi pham is more reserved as to the nighttime practices,

recommending that one fall asleep in a state of mindfulness and engage in the practice of sleep

transference (nyal ’pho). He does not go into any detail on how such practices are performed, but

instead states that they should be learned from scriptures and revealed treasures of the New and

Old schools (Gsar rnying). This demonstrates his ris med, or non-sectarian, bias.

Despite its richness, there are only a handful of articles on the literature related to pure

land doctrine and practice in Tibetan Buddhist literature. The only full-length title is Halkias’

Luminous Bliss: A Religious History of Pure Land Literature in Tibet, which was recently

published in 2013. Luminous Bliss is a thorough overview of the pure land themes in Tibetan

Buddhist literature and an indispensible work on this subject. While Halkias is explicit in

cautioning the reader not to imagine Tibetan Pure Land Buddhism as an autonomous system

distinct from Mahāyāna and/or Vajrayāna, we nevertheless cannot help but wonder if concepts of

Pure Land Buddhism from Japanese Buddhist studies have diffused into Tibetology (bod rig pa)

and allowed for the possibility of talking about such a thing as “Tibetan Pure Land Buddhism.”

We must therefore be conscious that our attempt to understand the historical developments of

Pure Land Buddhism must take into account our own position in history as well. The only place

that self-power and other-power is discussed in Luminous Bliss is in Halkias’ treatment of Sun-

like Instructions of a Sage. Given the wide scope of Halkias’ work, Mi pham’s treatment of self-

power and other-power in this text could not receive more extended analysis. The present study

aims to help fill this gap.

15
16
 Chapter One: Development of the Pure Land Traditions

Defining Pure Land Buddhism

The term “Pure Land Buddhism” is often used to refer to Amidism, which is defined by

the Columbia Encyclopedia as the “… devotional sect of Mahayana Buddhism in China and

Japan, centering on worship of the Buddha Amitabha” in which “[s]alvation could be attained by

invoking the name of Amitabha with absolute faith in his grace and the efficacy of his vow.”7

However, I employ the term Pure Land Buddhism throughout this paper in an inclusive sense,

referring loosely to the Buddhist cults centered around the soteriological powers of celestial

buddhas and their pure lands. 8 Among the plethora of pure lands, this paper is primarily

concerned with the pure land of Sukhāvatī. The word “pure land” lacks a direct Sanskrit

correspondent;9 the closest word is buddhakṣetra, literally “buddha-field.” The phrase “pure land”

is thought to have been originally coined in China with the terms fo guo or jing tu. We must also

consider the range of words for “pure land” in Tibetan since there is indeed a variety. In the

longer Sukhāvatīvyūha sūtra and other Tibetan scriptures translated from Indic languages,

buddhakṣetra is translated as sangs rgyas kyi zhing. In Sun-like Instructions of a Sage, the

following are used in reference to the pure land Sukhāvatī: zhing, zhing khams, zhing dag pa, and

dag pa’i zhing. The “pure” that we are lacking in the Sanskrit might be explained as a misreading

of vyūha (bkod pa) as viśuddha (yang dag), meaning “array” and “pure” respectively.10

7
“Pure Land Buddhism.” The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed. New York: Columbia University Press, 2001-07.
www.bartleby.com/65/. Accessed August 15, 2016.
8
Indeed, many enlightened beings have their own pure realms such as Padmasambhava’s Copper Colored Mountain
(zangs mdog dpal ri), Akṣobhya’s Abirati (mngon sum dga’ ba), and so forth.
9
Nattier, Jan. "The Realm of Akṣobhya: A Missing Piece in the History of Pure Land Buddhism" in Journal of the
International Association of Buddhist Studies. vol. 23, no. 1, 2000, pp. 73.
10
Fujita, Kotatsu. “The Origin of the Pure Land” in The Eastern Buddhist, vol. 29, no 1, 1996.

17
 While Pure Land Buddhism brings to mind an image of an independent school

(especially when written as a captialized proper noun), it cannot be understood outside of the

larger Mahāyāna framework. The goals and ideals of the Mahāyāna—cultivating of the

pāramitās and bodhisattva qualities, traversing the path to complete buddhahood as opposed to

arhatship, performing the benefit of beings, and so forth11—are the points of departure and return

for pure land theory and praxis. This is repeatedly emphasized in Sun-like Instructions of a Sage

where Mi pham reminds his audience that the greater purpose (don chen po), complete

buddhahood, is the ultimate aim of all his polemical digressions. Moreover, the line separating

pure land orientated practices from other practices is particularly faint in the Tibetan religious

milieu where all major schools have their share of pure land literature and traditions of practice.

There have not been no known instances of self-referential groups, schools, or sects self-

identifying as Tibetan Amidism.12 This is not the case in Japan where schools such as Jōdo Shū13

and Jōdo Shinshū14 self-identify as being of an exclusively pure land orientation. While pure

land trends in China are often thought to be similar to those in Japan, Jones (2001) casts doubt on

the notion that Chinese pure land practices constitutes a school in its own right, “… citing its

lack of institutional coherence and continuity, textual tradition, or clear-cut lineage of teachers

and students.”15 The same could be said, or rather should be said, of Tibetan Buddhism.

As with any conceptual imputation, Pure Land Buddhism could easily be deconstructed

to be an artificial label superimposed upon divergent groups of time periods, practices, and

11
These abovementioned trends describe later Mahāyāna. A description of what the early Mahāyāna entailed is
discussed below.
12
The movement of the renowned ’pho ba master Ayang Rinpoche whose teachings resolve largely around
consciousness transference begins to appear like a proto-Tibetan Amidism. Despite this, he explicitly identifies
himself as a follower of Rnying ma and ’Bri kung lineages.
13
A Pure Land school founded by Hōnen in 1175.
14
A Pure Land school founded by Shinran (1173-1263).
15
Jones, Charles B. “Toward a Typology of Nien-fo: A Study in Methods of Buddha-Invocation” in Chinese Pure
Land Buddhism, Pacific World, Third Series, vol. 3, 2001, pp. 220.

18
cultures. Yet, this is precisely what Pure Land Buddhism is—a constructed label, albeit an

extremely practical one. Hence, the term Pure Land Buddhism is not used here to refer to a

singular ideology or sect, but rather to describe general pure land orientations and tendencies.

Thus, without having to discard it entirely, it can be employed as a useful term insofar as it

allows us to compare parallel trends within various Buddhist cults centered around deities and

realms other than Amitābha and Sukhāvatī. Several scholars such as Halkias 16 and Nattier 17

come to a similar conclusion. Nattier writes, “By defining ‘Pure Land Buddhism’ in this more

inclusive sense [that is, to include other buddhas and pure lands beyond Amitābha and

Sukhāvatī], we will be able to ask a number of important questions of this material as a whole.”18

Despite the problems inherent in the term Pure Land Buddhism, it should nevertheless be utilized.

By provisionally accepting the notion of Pure Land Buddhism as described above, Sun-like

Instructions of a Sage is able to suddenly enter into dialogue with other texts of a pure land

persuasion, Tibetan or otherwise.

Understanding how certain historical conditions have given rise to the notion of Pure

Land Buddhism is a significant way to define the term. However, it is important not to reduce the

term to mere origins. Historically, there has been a tentativeness on the part of Western scholars

to engage with pure land orientated scriptures and doctrines. This is largely due to early British

and American scholars’ notion of so-called “original Buddhism” 19 which favored the self-

reliance and austerity found in Pali scriptures. These notions were in direct contrast to the

emphasis on faith and glorious descriptions of a heavenly realm that, at least for them, was

16
Halkias, Georgios T. Luminous Bliss, pp. xxvii-xxviii.
17
Nattier, Jan. “The Realm of Akṣobhya,” pp. 74-76.
18
Nattier, Jan. “The Realm of Akṣobhya,” pp. 75.
19
It need not be mentioned that “original Buddhism” is a largely a Western fabrication, yet a persistent one. For a
history of “Victorian Buddhism” please see Almond, Philip C. The British Discovery of Buddhism. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 1988.

19
uncomfortably akin to Christianity. This concern might seem confined to a bygone era, however,

it is remarkably similar to the tension that exists between self-power and other-power present in

Buddhist writing throughout the centuries.

It appears that the term Pure Land Buddhism comes to us from the context of East Asian

Buddhist studies, particularly Japanese Buddhist studies. There is nothing in the Tibetan tradition

or language that could be translated as “Pure Land Buddhism.” The Bilingual Tibetan-Han

Dictionary (Zang han dui zhao ci dian)20 translates the Chinese jing tu zong (lit. pure land sect)

as zhing sbyong ba’i grub mtha’. While this is a very appropriate translation that has emerged

from the modern Sino-Tibetan encounter, it remains entirely unattested in classical literature. As

one would expect, Mi pham never describes Pure Land Buddhism as being a unique system in

Sun-like Instructions of a Sage. It would then seem that this label must have been retroactively

applied from Japanese Buddhist studies21 to Tibetology. Otherwise, we are left with no other

reasonable explanation for the origin of so-called Tibetan Pure Land Buddhism. Jones (2014)

acknowledges this in his positive yet critical review of Halkias’ Luminous Bliss:

“The reason Western scholars refer to ‘Pure Land Buddhism’ at all is that there is a loose but

self-conscious Pure Land ‘lineage’ (zōng 宗) or ‘dharma-gate’ (fǎmén 法門) with ‘patriarchs’

(zǔ 祖) in China and a strong set of Pure Land institutions in Japan. […] Has the strong presence

of a Pure Land tradition in East Asia led to the reification of an etic category in the Tibetan

materials that would not have emerged without it?”22 Silk (1993) is also in agreement when he

writes, “It seems to me equally plausible to maintain that the cultic connection between

20
This is a modern online dictionary produced by the Minorities Publishing House (Min zu chu ban she), 2015.
21
Here I mean to say Western Buddhology focused on Japanese Buddhism in particular. For Japanese Buddhist
studies and how Western Buddhology has influenced it, please see Kiyota, Minoru. “Modern Japanese Buddhology:
Its History and Problematics” in JIABS vol. 7 no.1, 1984.
22
Jones, Charles B. Review of Halkias, Georgios T., Luminous Bliss: A Religious History of Pure Land Literature in
Tibet. H-Buddhism, H-Net Reviews. February, 2014.

20
Amitābha and Sukhāvatī has taken on a special, exaggerated importance only in the light of later

sectarian developments in the Far East, and specifically in Japan.”23 Thus, it would certainly

seem that the historical developments of “loose” Pure Land lineages in China followed by

Amidism in Japan must be the basis for Pure Land Buddhism as a field of knowledge, which is

now retroactively applied to Tibetan Buddhism. As stated above, using Pure Land Buddhism to

describe Tibetan Buddhism is not inherently problematic as long as we understand how the term

came to us.

The Soteriology and Doctrines of Pure Land Buddhism

While much can be said about religion’s role in fulfilling social functions, it is clear that

one of Pure Land Buddhism’s central functions is to address the fundamental human concern

with death. Indeed, rebirth in Sukhāvatī must necessarily be premised on passing away in this

life. Death is a central theme in Tibetan Buddhism, where we are reminded time and time again

of the certainty of death (’chi ba cha yod) and the uncertainty of the time of death (nam ’chi cha

med). It is likely that, against this backdrop of mortality, two of Sukhāvatī’s characteristics—

namely, its blissful aesthetics and universality—have made it historically “successful” in

providing hope to countless aspirants.

Sukhāvatī (bde ba can), or the Land of Bliss, is aptly named given the display (bkod pa)

of its blissful features. Essentially, it is a land where everything from Amitābha’s presence down

to the songs of birds is conducive to awakening. The lack of the mundane hardships we have in

23
Silk, Jonathan A. The Virtues of Amitābha: A Tibetan Praise Poem from Dunhuang. Kyoto: Ryukoku University,
1993, pp. 12.

21
our present impure, buddha-field24 make it an ideal destination for the hereafter. Yet despite the

wealth of detailed passages describing Sukhāvatī’s blissful landscapes and abundant pleasures in

both the short and long Sukhāvatīvyūha sūtras, Mi pham does not find it necessary to quote these

image-rich passages. Instead, he presumes the reader’s familiarity with these descriptions and

chooses instead to focus on how such limitless qualities are available to us via Amitābha’s

prayers and wisdom. The audience of Sun-like Instructions of a Sage is thus clearly intended for

those with some degree of familiarity with Sukhāvatī literature.

Schopen (1977) demonstrates how Sukhāvatī came to act as a stand-in for anything

marvelous or blissful in the same way that Mt. Meru, for instance, has come to represent

steadfastness. Schopen presents several peculiar textual instances where the goal of rebirth in

Sukhāvatī is dissociated from the cult of Amitābha and instead listed among a number of other

stock achievements. This is due to the fact, Schopen argues, that pure land tendencies were not

unique to any particular early group, but instead pervaded the whole of Buddhist society. Thus,

rebirth in Sukhāvatī is not conceived of as the sole and conclusive goal, but simply as one of

many “rewards” on the way to final awakening. This reinforces the claim that there never was a

self-identifying pure land sect in Indian Buddhism. Interestingly, Mi pham also lists a number of

other boons derived from Amitābha in addition to rebirth in Sukhāvatī: “The sutra25 goes on to

state that by having heard the name of the Bliss Gone One, you will gain countless qualities such

as not regressing from the path to awakening, obtaining complete recall, not being reborn as a

female, [maintaining] pure conduct, becoming a [member of the] high caste, attaining sublime

24
Yes, our current world system is indeed considered a buddha-field, albeit an impure one. Yet, purity might depend
on who you ask and their perceptions! For notions of purity and perception, please see Köppl, Heidi. Establishing
Appearances as Divine: Rongzom Chokyi Zangpo on Reasoning, Madhyamaka, and Purity. Boston: Shambhala
Publications, 2013.
25
Please note that in my translation I write sūtra without diacritics to nod towards its recent inclusion in the English
language.

22
[states of] meditative concentration, becoming happy and blissful towards the practices of the

bodhisattvas, encountering the roots of virtue of these things, and so on until the final stage of

buddhahood.” From this perspective, the power of Amitābha’s name is not only relevant to those

aspiring to Sukhāvatī, but to anyone seeking the qualities needed on the path. Thus, it is not

difficult to imagine how pure land tendencies would have pervaded the various forms of

Buddhism in India and later in Tibet.

The other feature that has allowed pure land practice a wide range of attraction is its

universality. The fact that Sukhāvatī is accessible to potentially anyone meant that all members

of a given society—whether in India’s caste society, Tibet’s feudal system,26 or otherwise—had

an equal opportunity at rebirth there and eventual awakening. In section 3.4, Mi pham tells us

that “... the sutra … teaches how ordinary beings in particular and those full of doubt will be also

born in the pure land merely through hearing the buddha’s name and having faith.” With this as

support, it is little wonder that Mi pham opens with the thesis: “[T]he foremost method to swiftly

attain [nirvana] with little difficulty is to make prayers to be born in the Land of Bliss.” The

universality of Sukhāvatī contrasts with the Abhirati pure land (Mngon par dga’ ba) in the

Akṣobhyavyūha sūtra where rebirth is reserved for an elite few. This sūtra was compiled earlier

than the Sukhāvatīvyūha sūtras and is more conservative, leading us to believe that the

universality of pure lands was a trait that gradually developed.27 Yet for some, Mi pham’s thesis

may seem too good to be true. In section 3.4, Mi pham strongly refutes those who contend that

only noble beings (’phags pa; Skt. ārya)—beings who have glimpsed emptiness or reached the

third of the five paths—can enter Sukhāvatī. Without ordinary beings (so so’i skye bo) being able

26
Describing premodern Tibet as a feudal system is highly controversial and politically charged. While these issues
are not of interest to this study, the point should generally be observed that premodern Tibet had a social hierarchy
and divisions of labor that afforded great options to some while limited options to others. Hence, the significance of
the universality of pure land practices.
27
Nattier, Jan. “The Realm of Akṣobhya.”

23
to access Sukhāvatī as claimed above, the pure land teachings would certainly lose their wider

appeal. These contentions and their refutations are discussed further in Chapter Three under

“Pure Land Polemics.”

Early Mahāyāna and the Development of Pure Lands in India

Early Mahāyāna is far from being fully understood. In fact, our understanding of its

origins has recently undergone a significant paradigm shift. Previously, the view that Mahāyāna

first emerged as a lay movement was widely held. This stance was (and still is) triumphed by

Hirakawa Akira (1963) who claims that Mahāyāna emerged around lay stūpa   worship.28 This

theory was first debunked by Schopen who used archeological evidence to show how stūpas  

were often located close to, if not on the premises of, monastery complexes. Due to the work of

Schopen and other scholars such as Nattier, Silk, and Boucher, a new understanding has since

emerged; namely, that early Mahāyāna was a movement fueled by “hardcore” monastics

pursuing forest asceticism in an attempt to imitate the bodhisattva. It is important to remember

that, at this point in time, “bodhisattva” did not have the same connotation that it does now;

instead, it referred to the past lives of the Buddha Śākyamuni as found in the jātaka tales

(’khrungs rabs). Monks who identified as bodhisattvas inhabited the same monasteries as those

who did not and there is no evidence that early Mahāyāna had a distinct vinaya code (’dul ba).

So, in contrast with later Mahāyāna, it should be viewed as a trend within the mainstream

Buddhism of that time. The idea that Mahāyāna stands opposed to so-called Hīnayāna is a trait of

later Mahāyāna and should not be anachronistically applied to this earlier period. Nattier (2003)

finds in her study of the Urgaparipṛcchā sūtra that “It describes a monastic community in which

28
The Tibetan for stūpa (mchod rten) does in fact mean a “support for offering or worship.”

24
scriptures concerning the bodhisattva path were accepted as legitimate canonical text (and their

memorization a viable monastic specialty), but in which only a certain subset of monks were

involved in the practices associated with the Bodhisattva Vehicle.”29 In sum, Mahāyāna in its

earliest incarnation was not a distinct school, but simply a pervasive collection of ideologies. The

same can be said for the loose, pure land trends of this time.

The development of pure land ideology began in the climate of early Indian Mahāyāna.

In fact, the earliest attestation of the term Mahāyāna is an inscription that also features

Amitābha’s name.30 Although records from this period are scarce, there are several reasons why

their tandem development is plausible. First, there was an increasing number of practitioners on

the bodhisattva path, all aspiring to full buddhahood in the likeness of the bodhisattva. Hence, an

equal number of buddha-fields were required on account of the belief that there can only be one

buddha per world-system (’jig rten gyi khams) at any given time. This is what Nattier jokingly

refers to as “bodhisattva job market crowding.”31 Thus, this climate fostered the development of

pure land strains of Buddhism. Second, pure land practices are thought to have grown out of

buddhānusmṛti practices. The application of buddhānusmṛti (sangs rgyas rjes su dran pa) is

discussed in its early Indian Mahāyāna context in Harrison (1978). Here, Harrison reads the

Pratyutpanna Buddha Saṃmukhāvasthita Samādhi sūtra in order to demonstrate how this

practice of buddhānusmṛti allowed early Buddhists to “travel” to other realms and subsequently

develop the pure land narrative with their reports. Harrison even suggests that the aesthetic of

supernatural trees described in Sukhāvatī could have their roots (pun not intended) in the

mystical visions that took place in the forest. Through “remembering” (rjes su dran pa) or

29
Nattier, Jan. A Few Good Men: The Bodhisattva Path according to The Inquiry of Ugra (Ugrapariprccha).
Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press, 2005, pp. 81.
30
Halkias, Georgios T. Luminous Bliss, pp. 18.
31
Nattier, Jan. “The Realm of Akṣobhya,” pp. 90.

25
engaging in meditative visualization practices focused on various buddhas, the practitioner could

receive visions in which he traveled to other realms, receive teachings from celestial buddhas,

and so forth. This potential of travel allowed for innovations across aesthetic, doctrinal, and

literary dimensions in the absence of the historical Buddha.

Despite major advancements in our knowledge of early Mahāyāna, we are still in the dark

as to the early developments of the theology, iconography, and narratives of Amitābha until

earlier archeological and textual sources emerge. 32 It is nevertheless certain that Amitābha

emerged as one of the earliest celestial buddhas in Buddhist cosmology. As previously

mentioned, the earliest archeological reference to him is also the earliest reference to the term

Mahāyāna, an inscription dating to 104 or 171 CE.33 Based on the Akṣobyavyūha and the long

Sukhāvatīvyūha, Nattier (2000) says, “[T]hese early [Chinese] translations demonstrate with

certainty that the cult of Akṣobya (to a significant degree) and the cult of Amitābha (perhaps to a

lesser degree) were already well established in India by this time [prior to the beginning of the

third century].”34 Hence, this early dating of pure land’s development coincides with the early

Mahāyāna.

Pure Land Comes to Tibet

As Buddhism began to be imported to Tibet from Indian, Central Asian, and Chinese

kingdoms during the Tibetan Imperial Period (btsan po’i skabs; 7th-9th C.E.), scriptures

describing Amitābha and his blissful realm were coincident. The Tibetan imperial catalogues

32
This material may not have survived to the present day. Even if it did survive, its continued survival or discovery
is not guaranteed in war-torn Afghanistan or inaccessible regions of Pakistan (the past Kushan empire). Nor is there
any guarantee that this material will find its way into the hands of scholars instead of private collectors.
33
Halkias, Georgios T. Luminous Bliss, pp. 18.
34
Nattier, Jan. “The Realm of Akṣobhya,” pp. 79.

26
(dkar chag)35 list both the long and short Sukhāvatīvyūha sūtras,36 so it is evident that they were

translated from this earliest period. These sūtras’ translation colophons (’gyur byang)

demonstrate that during the three Great Language Revisions (bkas bcad rnam gsum) they were

amended according to the revised spelling and terminology of the Mahāvyutpatti (Bye brag rtog

byed chen po) and the Madhyavyutpatti (Sgra sbyor bam po gnyis pa), state-mandated lexicons

for translators during this period.37

The great Tibetan empire extended beyond the Tibetan plateau into parts of Central, East,

and South Asia where its cultural and religious legacy can still be observed today. The caves at

Dunhuang (present day Gansu province) were most likely sealed no later than 103038 and hence

provide invaluable insight into this early period of Tibetan literature. Silk (1993) examines a

eulogy to Amitābha from this time period in his article The Virtues of Amitābha: A Tibetan

Praise Poem from Dunhuang. This authorless liturgy opens with a succession of homages to

Amitābha followed by a description of the completely perfected (yongs su grub pa) qualities of

Sukhāvatī. It then elaborates all of the various deeds that cause one to be born in that pure land.

Additionally, a mid-ninth century manuscript39 provides evidence that around 480 Tibetan scrolls

35
Of the three historically known catalogues, Ldan dkar ma, ’Phang thang ma, and Mchims phu ma, only the former
two are available. For more on the catalogues, please see Halkias, Georgios T. “Tibetan Buddhism Registered: An
Imperial Catalogue from the Palace Temple of ’Phang-thang,” in The Eastern Buddhist vol. 36 (1-2), 2004, pp. 46-
105.
36
Lalou, Marcelle. “Les textes Bouddhiques au tempes du Roi Khri-sroṅ-lde-bcan” in Journal Asiatique 241, 1953,
313–353; and Yoshimura, Shyuki. The Denkar-ma: An Oldest Catalogue of the Tibetan Buddhist Canons, with
introductory notes. Kyoto: Ryukoku University, 1950.
37
Scherrer-Schaub, Cristina. “Enacting Words. A Diplomatic Analysis of the Imperial Decrees and their Application
in the Sgra sbyor bam po gñis pa Tradition” in Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies, 25, 1-2,
2002, pp. 263-340.
38
van Schaik, Sam. “The Early Days of the Great Perfection” in Journal of the International Association of
Buddhist Studies. vol. 27 (1), 2004, pp. 185.
39
Halkias, Georgios T. Luminous Bliss, pp. 68-69. This is the Pel. Tib. 999 MS discovered by Paul Pelliot from the
Dunhuang caves in 1908. This manuscript and close to half a million images of other Dunhuang manuscripts are
available online courtesy of the International Dunhuang Project at http://idp.bl.uk. For a listing and descriptions of
the tantric literature from Dunhuang, please see van Schaik, Sam and Dalton, Jacob. Tibetan Tantric Manuscripts
from Dunhuang: A Descriptive Catalogue of the Stein Collection at the British Library. Leiden: Brill, 2006.

27
of the Immeasurable Life and Wisdom sūtra were copied in Tibetan for the longevity of the

reigning ruler. These early instances of literature connected with Amitābha’s pure land and its

commonality to the Tibetans, Chinese, and others present at Dunhuang speak strongly of pure

land’s early beginnings in Tibet.

As time passed, pure land practice and thought gradually developed uniquely Tibetan

characteristics in terms of tantra, transference, and treasure texts. The Buddhist tantric teachings

that comprise the Vajrayāna are often distinguished from sutric teachings by designating the

former as the resultant vehicle (’bras bu’i theg pa) and the latter as the causal vehicle (rgyu’i

theg pa).40 Thus, tantra takes the actual results of awakening as the path to be cultivated in lieu

of the causes of enlightenment. A few of the tantric titles with references to with Amitābha or

Amitāyus include Sūtra of Immeasurable Life and Wisdom (Tshe dang ye shes dpag tu med

pa),41 Dhāraṇī-Mantra of Amitābha,42 Recollecting Amitābha,43 Accomplishment of the Infinite

Gate Dhāraṇī (’Phags pa sgo mtha’ yas pa sgrub pa’i gzungs),44 and Offering Cloud Dhāraṇī

(Mchod pa’i sprin zhes bya ba’i gzungs),45 among others. While Mi pham may mention dhāraṇī

instructing his readers to “… invok[e] his [Amitbha’s] enlightened mind by means of dhāraṇī

recitation,” he otherwise avoids discussions of tantra in Sun-like Instructions of a Sage. It is thus

40
For a more detailed analysis of the historical origins and development of tantra please see Harper, Katherine Anne
and Robert L. Brown, eds. The Roots of Tantra. Albany: State Univ. of New York, 2002.
41
Like a number of other so-called tantras, this text’s title refers to itself as a Mahāyāna sūtra (theg pa chen po’i
mdo) while its content is predominately dhāraṇī with some narrative framing, yet it is classified as tantra (rgyud).
Tshe mdo. Bka’ ’gyur dper bsdur ma. Krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe sdur khang. 108
volumes. Beijing: Krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang, 2006-2009, vol. 91, pp. 776-796.
42
Snanga ba mtha’ yas kyi gzungs sngags. Bka’ ’gyur dper bsdur ma. Krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi
bka’ bstan dpe sdur khang. 108 volumes. Beijing: Krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang, 2006-2009, vol.97, 243-
245.
43
Snanga ba mtha’ yas rjes su dran pa. Bka’ ’gyur dper bsdur ma. Krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’
bstan dpe sdur khang. 108 volumes. Beijing: Krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang, 2006-2009, vol. 91, pp.819-
820.
44
Mgo mtha’ yas pa sgrub pa’i gzungs. Bka’ ’gyur dper bsdur ma. Krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’
bstan dpe sdur khang. 108 volumes. Beijing: Krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang, 2006-2009, vol. 56, pp. 800-
821.
45
Mchod pa'i sprin gyi gzungs. Bka’ ’gyur dper bsdur ma. Krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan
dpe sdur khang. 108 volumes. Beijing: Krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang, 2006-2009, vol. 98, pp.821-822.

28
also beyond the relevance and scope of this study to delve into further detail about tantric

understandings of Sukhāvatī and Amitābha.

The practice of ’pho ba or consciousness transference is a technique in which the

practitioner is able to eject his or her consciousness through the crown of their head or “brahma

gate” (tshangs pa’i sgo) upon death, thereby securing liberation or rebirth in various pure lands.

Although consciousness transference has its roots in Indic texts, 46 the Tibetan tradition

developed it further through centuries of literary production. While many transference practices

have Amitābha as the presiding deity, not all of them do. In fact, this is the case in Mi pham’s

collected works where the only transference text is a single folio work titled Consciousness

Transference of Mañjuśrī (’Jam dpal gyi ’pho ba).47 It is possible that Mi pham’s association of

consciousness transference with Mañjuśrī led him to refrain from discussing it in Sun-like

Instructions of a Sage where Amitābha takes precedence. Mi pham only mentions transference

once in the section on nighttime practices (section 6.2) at the end of the text. Here, he suggests

that his reader continue learning about “… transference during sleep (nyal ’pho) … in the

scriptures and treasures of the New and Ancient schools.” The practice of dream yoga may have

developed out of buddhānusmṛti practices, as the dreamscape is ripe for visionary experiences.48

But beyond this single brief description, Mi pham is silent on these extraordinary means in Sun-

like Instructions of a Sage. In sum, the development upon and syncretism with other systems,

particularly tantra and consciousness transference, is Tibetan Buddhism’s unique contribution to

the traditions of Pure Land Buddhism.

The Identity of Amitābha and its Conflation with Amitāyus

46
Halkias, Georgios T. Luminous Bliss, pp. 150.
47
Gsung 'bum/ mi pham rgya mtsho. Paro: Lama Ngodrub and Sherab Drimey, 1984-1993, vol. 5, pp. 493-494.
48
Halkias, Georgios T. Luminous Bliss, pp. 148.

29
 The buddhas Immeasurable Light (’Od dpag tu med pa) and Immeasurable Life (Tshe

dpag tu med pa)—Amitābha and Amitāyus respectively—have an intimate relationship

throughout history. Some sūtras prefer one name to the other or use them interchangeably.

Initially, these two names referred to a single, undistinguished enlightened figure who later

began to be identified as two distinct buddhas. This is true in the case of both Tibetan and

Chinese Buddhism.49 In the Mahāvyupatti, the term Amitābha is listed as entry eighty-five to the

exclusion of Amitāyus which suggests an earlier preference of the former over the latter.50 Yet

their potential for re-equation in later literature is far from surprising given that all buddhas are

said to have a single essence yet different aspects (ngo bo gcig la ldog pa tha dad). In the

opening homage (mchod par brjod pa), section 1.1, Mi pham seems to say just this. He uses

word play on their names, invoking Amitābha and/or Amitāyus as “Creator of Light, Infinite Life”

(’Od mdzad tshe mtha’ yas pa ). Although the names sound similar to ’Od dpag med and Tshe

dpag med, they are not the standard way these buddhas are referred to. Similarly, in the

concluding verses, section 7.0, Mi pham refers to them as “Limitless Light, Protector of Life”

(’Od zer dpag med tshe yi mgon), respectively. Although it is difficult to say with precision

whether Mi pham wishes to consider them as a singularity or plurality, it is clear that the two

buddhas are being recognized in an open-ended, poetic manner. Due to this lack of clarity, the

translation attempted to leave room for either interpretation in the same way as the Tibetan.

49
Karashima, Seishi. “On Amitābha, Amitāyu(s), Sukhāvatī and the Amitābhavyūha” in Bulletin of the Asia
Institute, New Series, vol. 23, 2009.
50
Halkias, Georgios. "Aspiring for Sukhāvatī in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism: Entering the Dhāraṇī and Buddhakṣetra of
Buddha Aparimitāyus" in Journal of Buddhist Studies, vol. XI, 2013, pp. 2.

30
 Chapter Two: Bde smon and the Genre of Pure Land Literature in Tibet

Genres of Scripture

The literature associated with Sukhāvatī overlaps with several other literary categories.

Genre51 is often understood to refer to a likeness of form (rjod byed), however we can also speak

of genre as similarity of content (brjod bya). Various literary categories such as sūtra (mdo),

classes of tantra (rgyud), dhāraṇī or “spells” (gzungs), treasure texts (gter ma), prayer (smon lam,

gsol ’debs), transference (’pho ba), eulogy (bstod pa), commentarial treatises (’grel ba), practice

manuals (sgrub thabs), longevity practice texts (tshe chog, tshe sgrub), ritual (cho ga),

empowerment cycles (dbang skur ba), dedication prayers (bsngo ba), and so forth have all dealt

with Sukhāvatī. Despite significant divergences in form, I propose that the shared theme of

rebirth in Sukhāvatī and devotion towards Amitābha is sufficient to unify these numerous texts

as a coherent genre referred to as Tibetan pure land literature.52 This genre is subject to the same

complications inherent in the term pure land. However, as previously stated, it will be employed

because of its usefulness in drawing attention to convergences and departures between the pure

land literature of various traditions and languages.

The two most fundamental texts to this genre are the long and short Sukhāvatīvyūha

sūtras, simply by virtue of being buddhavacana (bka’), or words of the Buddha. Similar to

51
We must exercise some caution when applying terms from Western literary criticism to Tibetan literature,
particularly when we lack a Tibetan term that adequately translates “genre.” Though rtsom rigs is often paired with
“literature” it seems to be the most apt translation of “genre” as it literally translates as “categories of literature.”
Rtsom rigs is a modern word (from the 20th CE onwards) and is a product of the translation interaction as well.
However, that is not to say that Tibetan authors and text critics were unaware of the variations in form and content
suggested by “genre.” Instead, we have many instances of great care being taken to differentiate texts from one
another based on style and content, such as the compilations of the canons (bka’ bstan).
52
I am not alone in using this term since Halkias writes “A Religious History of Pure Land Literature in Tibet” as
the subtitle to Luminous Bliss.

31
canonical works in other religions, the words of the Buddha hold an elevated position in

Buddhism and Mi pham strongly contends that the long sūtra is indeed genuine buddhavacana.

Both the long and short sūtras can be found in the imperial catalogues (dkar chag), the

Hlan/Ldan dkar ma and the ’Phang thang ma, thus it’s certain that these were among the earliest

scriptures translated into Tibetan.53 In section 3.2, Mi pham encourages his readers to use the

“threefold investigation,” that is, the three types of valid cognition—direct perception (mngon

sum tshad ma), inference (rjes dpag tshad ma), and scripture (lung gi tshad ma)—to evaluate the

three objects of evaluation (gzhal bya gsum), namely, manifest (mngon gyur), obscure (lkog

gyur), and highly obscure (shin tu lkog gyur) phenomena. In Sun-like Instructions of a Sage, the

object being evaluated is the mechanics behind rebirth in Sukhāvatī, something highly obscure

which can only be validly established (tshad grub) via scripture. Mi pham praises those who use

this approach, saying, “[W]hen it comes to these highly obscure objects of valid cognition,

engaging with the process of the greater purpose by relying on infallible scriptures is none other

than the way of holy beings.”

The Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtras

Both the long and short Sukhāvatīvyūha sūtras are found in all editions of the Tibetan

canon (bka’ ’gyur).54 The Sanskrit versions share an identical title and are only distinguished by

referring to them as the long or the short sūtra. Yet, they are undoubtedly distinct texts given

their different content and length. This may suggest that they emerged from an earlier proto-

53
The Hlan/Ldan dkar ma lists the long sūtra as no.29 whereas the ’Phang thang ma lists it as no. 29. The
Hlan/Ldan dkar ma lists the short sūtra as no. 196 whereas the ’Phang thang ma lists it as no. 188.
54
‘Od dpag med kyi bkod pa’i mdo. Bka’ ’gyur dper bsdur ma. Krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’
bstan dpe sdur khang. 108 volumes. Beijing: Krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang, 2006-2009, vol. 39, pp. 697-
779. Bde ba can gyi bkod pa’i mdo. Bka’ ’gyur dper bsdur ma. Krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’
bstan dpe sdur khang. 108 volumes. Beijing: Krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang, 2006-2009, vol. 51, pp.516-
526.

32
Sukhāvatīvyūha sūtra, however, there is no textual evidence to support this claim. The Tibetan

translators assigned different titles to the Sukhāvatīvyūha sūtras. The long sūtra is listed as ’Od

dpag med kyi bkod pa in all extant canonical catalogues with the exception of the ’Phang thang

ma catalogue, which slightly expands upon it with De bzhin gshegs pa ’od dpag med kyi zhing gi

bkod pa. In addition to their varying lengths, these alternative titles suggest that there were

several different Sanskrit manuscripts from which the Tibetan translators worked. In Sun-like

Instructions, Mi pham refers to the long sūtra by several names. In section 2.0, he expands the

title to Display of the Qualities of Amitābha’s Pure Land Sūtra (’Od dpag med pa’i zhing gi yon

tan bkod pa’i mdo) but then later refers to it simply as the Pure Land sūtra (Zhing mdo). The

long sūtra is placed by most Bka’ ’gyur collections in the Ratnakūṭa section (Dkon brtegs).55 As

for the short sūtra, all the canonical catalogues appear to be in agreement, listing it with the Bde

ba can gyi bkod pa in the Sūtra Section (Mdo sde).

The long sūtra is where Mi pham, as well as many other commentators, draws the

majority of his scriptural references (lung ’dren pa). Mi pham reads the long sūtra as a testament

for other-power. He writes that other-power is none other than “… the intended meaning of the

scripture when it says that one will be born [in the pure land] merely through faith and aspiration.”

One of the most commonly quoted passages is the nineteenth vow of Dharmākara (Chos

kyi ’byung gnas), a previous incarnation of Amitābha before his awakening. This belongs to an

episode of the long sūtra where Dharmākara goes before the Buddha Lokeśvararāja (’Jig rten

dbang phyug rgyal po) and makes forty-seven vows to not awaken to complete Buddhahood if

certain criteria are not met. One of these conditions is the nineteenth vow:

55
The Stog pho brang bka’ ’gyur however places it in the Mahāratnakūṭa section.

33
 O Blessed One, as long as there is any being throughout the countless and
limitless buddha-fields—except those who have committed sins of immediate
retribution or are obscured from having forsaken the Dharma—who, after I have
attained enlightenment, hears my name, directs their mind (sems gtong) in order
to be born in [my] pure land, and dedicates their roots of virtue for that, yet is not
born in [my] buddha-field through merely generating the mind bent on
enlightenment at least ten times, then I [vow] not to awaken to unsurpassed,
perfectly complete enlightenment!

This is cited by Mi pham in section 3.4 as evidence that the ease of rebirth in the pure land is

indeed due to the Bliss Gone One’s (bde bar gshegs pa) previous aspiration prayers. The long

sūtra was first translated from Sanskrit into English very early on by Max Müller in 1894.56 Luis

Gomez has also published four English translations of the long and short sūtras based on both

the Sanskrit and Chinese versions.57

Another foundational Indic and Tibetan pure land scripture is the Ārya

Bhadracaryapraṇidhānarāja (’Phags pa bzang po spyod pa’i smon lam gyi rgyal po), often

referred to as the King of Prayers. This prayer is extracted from the Gandhavyūha sūtra (Mdo

sdong po bkod pa), a section of the Avataṃsaka sūtra (Mdo phal po che)58 and is oft cited by

Tibetan pure land commentators for its three references to Amitābha and Sukhāvatī. In section

5.0 Mi pham cites the first reference, “When it comes time for me to die,/ Let all my

obscurations be dispelled/ Directly beholding Limitless Light (Snang ba mtha’ yas)/59 I will go

immediately to the Land of Bliss.” The second reference to Sukhāvatī in the King of Prayers

concerns the prophecy (lung bstan) that one receives upon death from Amitābha, foretelling

rebirth in the pure land. These prophecies to be reborn in the Land of Bliss are also mentioned by

56
Müller, Max Friedrich. “The Larger Sukhāvatī-vyūha” in The Sacred Books of the East, vol. XLIX: Buddhist
Mahāyāna Texts, Part II. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1894.
57
Gomez, Luis O. Land of Bliss: The Paradise of the Buddha of Measureless Light: Sanskrit and Chinese Versions
of the Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtras. Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press, 1996.
58
Phal po che’i mdo. Bka’ ’gyur dper bsdur ma. Krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe sdur
khang. 108 volumes. Beijing: Krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang, 2006-2009, vol. 35, 3-864.
59
Snang ba mtha’ yas or Infinite Light is a common epithet of Amitābha.

34
Mi pham in section 6.3, Results of Practice, where he elucidates the signs that individuals of

highest, middling, and lower capacities (rab ’bring tha gsum) should expect. The third reference

prescribes making dedication prayers so that all beings may reach the pure land, which is not

cited by Mi pham. While the practice of dedicating merit (bngo ba) is commonplace throughout

the Mahāyāna, it has a special place in pure land practice as the fourth of the four causes.

Bde smon, Aspiration Prayers for Sukhāvatī

Beyond these Indic works that appear in Tibetan translation, there is the autochthonous category

of pure land literature called bde smon (an abbreviation of bde ba can du skyes pa’i smon lam, or

prayers for birth in Sukhāvatī). In common parlance, bde smon is understood to refer to the

renowned prayer composed by Karma chags med (1613-1678), Bde chen smon lam,60 a classic

exemplar of this genre.61 There are numerous bde smon aspiration prayers throughout all the four

schools,62 however, the Rnying ma and Bka’ brgyud schools comprise the vast majority. The two

volume Anthology of Sukhāvatī Prayers (Bde smon phyogs bsgrigs) published by the Sichuan

Nationalities Printing House (1994)63 demonstrates how bde smon is at the heart of Tibetan pure

land literature. It is evident that, while the majority of these texts are not strictly bde smon

aspirations per se, they are intricately linked with bde smon in content, if not in form. The first

volume (stod cha) contains primary scriptures (rtsa gzhung). These include canonical texts (that

is, scriptures from the Bka’ ’gyur and Bstan ’gyur) such as the long and short Sukhāvatīvyūha

60
It is not uncommon for bde ba can (possessing bliss) to be spelled as bde ba chen (great bliss). The first instance
of this conflation can be found in the writings of ‘Bri gung skyob pa who lived in the late 12th and early 13th
centuries. Of this Halkias writes that “it may have been influenced by the Chinese translation of Sukhāvatī as
“supreme bliss” (Ch. ji-le), or simply because in some Tibetan dialects these two are homonyms.” Halkias, Georgios
T. Luminous Bliss, pp. 148.
61
Skorupski (1995) has prepared an English translation with introduction.
62
The Anthology of Sukhāvatī Prayers features twenty-six Rnying ma authors, ten Bka’ brgyud, three Sa skya, two
Dge lugs, and two Jo nang.
63
Bde smon phyogs bsgrigs. 2 vols. Chengdu: Si khron mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 2007.

35
sūtras, The Dhāraṇī-mantra of Amitābha,64 a tantra titled Essence of Sukhāvatī,65 a practice text

titled Meditation and Recitation of Amitābha 66 extracted from the Ratnakūṭa section, among

others. The volume of primary scriptures also contains numerous aspiration prayers by authors

such as Nāgārjuna (150-250 CE),67 Ye shes mtsho rgyal (8th CE),68 Dol po shes rab rgyal mtshan

(1292-1361), Tsong kha pa blo bzang grags pa (1357-1419), Go rams pa bsod nams seng ge

(1429-1489), and Karma chags med (1613-1678), as well as ’Ju mi pham (1846-1912). These

Sukhāvatī aspiration prayers have many formal literary qualities in common. They typically

employ emotional language longing for rebirth in the pure land and contain evocative praises for

the abundance of positive qualities of the pure land. Given how widely read Mi pham was, we

can assume he would certainly be familiar with the majority of these titles. Mi pham composed

his own bde smon aspiration which is simply titled The Sukhāvatī Aspiration Prayer of ’Ju mi

pham (’Ju mi pham gyi bde smon). It is common for most bde smon prayers to be similarly titled

according to the author’s name.

The second volume (smad cha) of the Anthology contains commentaries (’grel ba). The

majority of the volume comprises a lengthy (257 page) commentary by Glag bla chos ’grub

(1862-1944) titled Illuminating the Path of Liberation: Explanatory Commentary of Karma

chags med’s Aspiration Prayer for the Pure Land Sukhāvatī (Rnam dag bde chen zhing gi smon

lam gyi ’grel bshad thar lam snang byed). This masterpiece is a commentary on Karma chags

med’s aspiration prayer and uses its auto-commentary as a working basis. It is significant in that

it blends both sūtrayāna and vajrayāna pure land practices, something which Sun-like

Instructions of a Sage does not. The outline to Illuminating the Path of Liberation has been

64
Snang ba mtha’ yas kyi gzungs sngags
65
Bde ldan snying po
66
’Od dpag med kyi sgom bzlas bzhugs
67
The attribution of the text to Nāgārjuna is contested.
68
Her bde smon is from the Stag sham rdo rje treasure revelation.

36
translated by Halkias in Luminous Bliss. 69 In addition to this epic commentary, the second

volume includes the commentaries of Karma chags med, Tsong kha pa, ’Jigs med bstan pa’i nyi

ma (1816-), and Rdza dpal sprul (1808-1887) in addition to one edition of Sun-like Instructions

of a Sage. While a few of these are auto-commentaries (rang ’grel), Mi pham’s differs in that he

does not comment on a specific text or sūtra but surveys pure land theory and praxis at large.

Having established Sun-like Instructions of a Sage in its historic and literary contexts, let us now

turn to a more detailed analysis of the text itself.

69
Halkias, Georgios T. Luminous Bliss, pp. 116-119.

37
 Chapter Three: Sun-like Instructions of a Sage by ’Ju mi pham

The Life and Writings of ’Ju mi pham

’Ju mi pham is most widely remembered for being a non-sectarian (ris med) master who

defended and revitalized the Ancient Translation School (Snga ’gyur rnying ma pa) in the 19th

and 20th centuries. While non-sectarianism and ecumenicalism conjure images of interreligious

harmony, it should be noted that Mi pham heavily critiqued other schools, the Dge lugs pa school

in particular. Thus, we cannot say that Mi pham was without his own sectarian preferences.

Instead, ris med non-sectarianism for Mi pham was an approach to the study and practice of

scripture without sectarian bias, an idea that he embodied by receiving transmissions from all

schools of Tibetan Buddhism. In fact, Mi pham said he found the New School’s (Gsar ma)

teachings more easily comprehensible, a fact which influenced him in revitalizing the scholastic

tradition and curricula of the Rnying ma.70 Mi pham is also a unique figure in that he was never

recognized as the reincarnation of a previous master (sprul sku). He also did not allow for his

reincarnation (yang srid) to be sought by stating that he was not returning to this impure realm.

Furthermore, he refrained from engaging with new treasure revelations (gter) but chose to focus

on the teachings that had already been transmitted to Tibet.71

Mi pham’s collected works are known for their wide-ranging subject matter, including a

variety of Buddhist topics, astrology, and folklore. There are two fables that Mi pham draws

upon in Sun-like Instructions. The first is an account of a mother and daughter who, despite

lacking the requisite meditative prowess to choose their future destination together, are still able
70
Dudjom Rinpoche. The Nyingma School of Tibetan Buddhism. Translated and edited by Gyurme Dorje and
Matthew Kapstein. Boston: Wisdom Publications, vol. 1, 1991, pp. 870.
71
Douglas Duckworth, "Mipam Gyatso," Treasury of Lives, accessed August 16, 2016,
http://treasuryoflives.org/biographies/view/Mipam-Gyatso/4228.

38
to be reborn together in the god realm on account of the virtuous power of mutual feelings of

intense love (phan tshun brtse ba’i bsam pa shugs drag po’i dge ba’i mthus). Even more obscure

is the reference to the householder Risen Glory (Dpal skyes; Skt: *Śaivala) whose mindstream

apparantely was unable to be perceived by the great Foe Destroyers (dgra bcom pa chen po).

Although it was difficult to find the sources for these two stories, either electronically or orally,

from context we can infer what Mi pham wishes to say; namely, that the mother and daughter

episode supports the power of aspiration (the fourth cause) and the reference to Risen Glory cites

a historical (lo rgyus) source for the invariability of past life karma and fortune.

Mi pham never composed an autobiography,72 but there are a few biographies. The two

main sources for his life story, or liberation narrative (rnam thar), are Dudjom Rinpoche’s The

Nyingma School: Its Fundamentals & History translated by Gyurme Dorje and Matthew

Kapstein73 and Mkhan po kun bzang dpal ldan’s Essential Hagiography,74 the majority of which

has been translated by Petit (1999). All of the biographies contain more or less identical accounts

of his life story, which will be briefly recounted below.

Mi pham was born to Mgon po dar rgyas and Sring chung of the ’Ju clan in the kingdom

of Sde dge, Eastern Tibet (present day Sichuan province). At the age of twelve, he entered the

monastery of ’Ju mo hor gsang sngags chos gling where he soon made a name for himself as the

“little scholar monk.” Around the age of fifteen or sixteen, he underwent an intensive retreat on

the yi dam deity Mañjuśrī (’Jam dpal dbyangs) for a year and a half, after which Mañjuśrī

appeared to him (zhal mjal ba). Around 1859, Mi pham went to Golok (Mgo log; present day

72
Petit, John Whitney. Mipham’s Beacon of Certainty: Illuminating the View of Dzogchen the Great Perfection.
Boston: Wisdom Publications. 1999, pp.19.
73
Dudjom Rinpoche. The Nyingma School of Tibetan Buddhism: Its Fundamentals and History, Matthew Kapstein,
ed., Gyurme Dorje, trans. Boston: Wisdom Publications. vol. 1, 1991, pp. 870-875.
74
The full Tibetan title reads: Gangs ri’i khrod kyi smra ba’i seng ge gcig pu ’jam mgon mi pham rgya mtsho’i
rnam thar snying po bsdus pa dang gsung rab kyi dkar chag snga ’gyur bstan pa’i mdzod rgyan.

39
Qinghai province), fleeing invading forces. He later went to Lha sa in 1861 where he began to

engage scholastically with the Dge lugs tradition at the renowned Dga’ ldan monastery. After

this Mi pham spent the majority of his life in retreat, primarily in Eastern Tibet, a fact which is

attested to by the colophons of many of his writings. Indeed, Sun-Like Instructions of a Sage was

composed in the Tiger’s Nest retreat cave. At the time of his death, around age sixty-seven, he is

reported to have told his close disciples that he was a high level bodhisattva and would not be

taking birth again in impure worlds—thus eschewing the tradition of searching for a

reincarnation—but instead go to a pure realm. It is interesting to consider these final words in

light of Sun-like Instructions of a Sage. While Mi pham remains silent on which pure land he

intends to be reborn in, Sukhāvatī might be his destination of choice since “… you can be easily

born in that pure land through the power of the prayers of the Conqueror himself; all the

bodhisattvas who have taken birth there are held back by [only] one more life; and because it is

praised for its limitless, exalted qualities.” Thus, why wouldn’t Mi pham take birth there when it

is in line with his opening thesis that the best way to achieve non-abiding nirvāṇa is birth in

Sukhāvatī?

Title and Colophon

Titles (mtshan, ming byang) of Tibetan texts can speak volumes of their contents.

Typically, a Tibetan text will have a primary title, which states its general content or genre, and a

poetic subtitle usually marked by zhes bya ba. This is the case with the title of Mi pham’s work,

which has the primary title of A Clarification of Faith which Prepares the Pure Land, the Land

of Bliss (Bde ba can gyi zhing sbyong ba’i dad pa gsal bar byed pa) combined with the subtitle

Sun-like Instructions of a Sage (Drang srong lung gi nyi ma). I recognized this in the translation

40
by allocating different font sizes to each title. Furthermore, given that a new, previously non-

existent text was being created in the process of preparing a critical edition, I decided to slightly

amend the title to A Critical Edition of ’Ju Mi Pham’s A Clarification of Faith which Prepares

the Pure Land Sukhāvatī (’Ju mi pham gyis mdzad pa’i bde ba can gyi zhing sbyong ba’i dad pa

gsal bar byed pa drang srong lung gi nyi ma zhes bya ba dpe bsdur ma dang bcas pa) in order to

reflect the slightly modified format. The altered title better reflects the presentation and format of

the new edition and also helps to distinguish it from other editions.

Mi pham must have taken his inspiration for the title from section 5.0 where he writes,

“[J]ust like how an obedient son gets meaning out of the words of his father, the sage, anyone

who pays respect to an eminent sutra such as this will, without a doubt, take birth in the supreme

pure land through having pursued faith in the words of the Bliss Gone One, and engaged with

them properly.” The faithful reader is likened to an obedient son and the long sūtra is compared

to a father’s counsel. Perhaps in compiling this “roadmap” to Sukhāvatī, Mi pham also

envisioned himself as a father-like sage and his treatise to be kind words of advice for his

childlike disciples. Certainly the imagery of the title conjures up such imaginings. Section 5.0

also compares the spiritual efficacy of the sūtra to the light of the sun as it has the ability to

“clarify” one’s faith, which is needed for rebirth in Sukhāvatī. Mi pham writes, “It is no different

from how someone with eyes can see things thanks to the light of the sun!” This is where it

would seem the terms “sun[-like]” (nyi ma) and “clarification” (gsal ba) come from. The title

serves its purpose, as Mi pham’s sun-like instructions are indeed a clarification on the meaning

and importance of faith, the foremost cause for rebirth in Sukhāvatī.

The colophon (section 7.1) tells us that the text was composed as an offering to Mi

pham’s spiritual teacher, Grags pa rgyal mtshan dpal bzang, who encouraged Mi pham to

41
compose the treatise. This appears to be an abbreviation of Kun dga’ bstan pa’i gyal mtshan dpal

bzang po, which was one of the many names belonging to Mi pham’s root teacher, ’Jam dbyangs

mkhyen brtse dbang po (1820-1892). It is curious that Mi pham describes their relationship in

terms of priest and patron (mchod yon). Generally this expression describes the relationship of

clergy exchanging religious services for monetary recompense from their patrons. Yet it has also

been used in a socio-political context to refer to the relationship of providing counsel in return

for protection. For instance, the relationship between the Sa skya religious leaders and Mongol

overlords during the Yuan dynasty (1271-1368) is often discussed in these terms.75 Furthermore,

since the patron (yon bdag) is subservient to the priest in many respects, it allows Mi pham to

take a place of humility before his teacher who “… is incomparably kind” (bka’ drin mtshungs

pa ma mchis pa). The treatise must have been composed between the 1870’s and 1880’s 76 given

that Mi pham wrote it in his mountain hermitage, White Tiger’s Nest near Rongme (Rong

me ’chi med dkar mo stag tshang), located in Dzongsar (Rdzong gsar) in eastern Tibet, present

day Sichuan. This cave is one of thirteen Guru Rinpoche holy sites that all share the name

Tiger’s Nest. The most famous of these is the Tiger’s Nest in Paro (Spa gro), Bhutan while

others are not readily known.77

Outline of the Text

75
Ruegg, David S. “Mchod yon, yon mchod and mchod gnas/yon gnas: On the historiography and semantics of a
Tibetan religio-social and religio-political concept” in Tibetan History and Language: Studies dedicated to Uray
Géza on his Seventieth Birthday, edited by Ernst Steinkellner, 329–351. Wien: Arbeitskreis für Tibetische und
Buddhistische Studien Universität Wien, 1991.
76
Douglas Duckworth, in Treasury of Lives, writes: “He spent thirteen years in meditation retreat in a cave named
Rongme Chime Karmo Taktsang (rong me 'chi med dkar mo stag tshang) near the Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo's
monastery, Dzongsar (Rdzong gsar), most likely during the 1870’s and 1880’s.
http://treasuryoflives.org/biographies/view/Mipam-Gyatso/4228
77
According to Tulku Orgyen Rinpoche (Sprul sku o rgyan) only five are still known. Schmidt, Erik. The Light of
Wisdom. Kathmandu: Rangjung Yeshe Publications, vol. I, 2001, pp. 209.

42
 There is no traditional topical outline (sa bcad) available to Sun-like Instructions of a

Sage. This is not surprising since it is a relatively short text, lacks a commentary of its own, and

is overshadowed by Mi pham’s greater works. For ease of reference, I have created a topical

outline that is divided according to two primary headings, theory and praxis. Please see

Appendix A for the full outline.78

Faith and Aspiration (dad ’dun) as the Primary Causes Among the Four Causes

There are four causes traditionally required for rebirth in the pure land Sukhāvatī. Mi

pham spills much ink on the four causes yet is not alone; the four causes are a central topic of

discussion in Glag blab sod nams chos ’grub’s magnum opus, Rdza dpal sprul’s commentary to

Tsong kha pa’s bde smon and ’Jig med bstan pa’i nyi ma’s Bursting Summer Cloud,79 among

others.80 In section 2.0, Mi pham cites the following passage from the long Sukhāvatīvyūha sūtra

where Śākyamuni addresses Ānanda:

Ānanda! Anyone who [1] repeatedly brings the Thus Gone One’s features to mind,
[2] produces immeasurable amounts of roots of virtue, [3] makes dedications
[with] the mind bent on enlightenment,81 and [4] prays to be born in that world
system will, when they are approaching the time of death, behold the Thus Gone
One, the Foe Destroyer, 82 the perfectly completely awakened one, Amitābha

78
There is only one academic article that deals specifically with Sun-like Instructions of a Sage. This is Mi pham’s
Pure Land Thought (Mi pham の浄土思想) by Ryoshun Kajihama (1992). This article in Japanese and unavailable
in translation was inaccesible to me. However, judging by a cursory glance on Google Translate, it appears to
summarize the text and its contents. This disconnect between English and Japanese language academic publications
is not an uncommon occurance. Thus, it would be of immense benefit for both schools of Buddhology to encourage
more communication and interaction.
79
See Halkias (2013), pp. 131-133 for a translation of its topical outline (sa bcad).
80
All of these commentarial works are included in the Anthology of Sukhāvatī Aspiration Prayers.
81
For a discussion of the history of the translation of bodhi as “enlightenment,” please see Solomon, Jon. “The
Affective Multitude: Towards a Transcultural Meaning of Enlightenment” in Beyond Imperial Aesthetics: Theories
of Art and Politics in East Asia, Mayumo Inoue and Steve Choe, editors. Hong Kong University Press, forthcoming.
82
Here I have opted for a translation of the Tibetan dgra bcom pa as “Foe Destroyer” instead of a transliteration of
the Sanskrit arhant. Not only does this accord with my translation methodology of translating into English but it
also attempts to reflect the distance a 19th or 20th century text can be assumed to have from Sanskrit etymology.

43
 surrounded by a numerous assembly of monks seated right before them.
Beholding the Blessed One Amitābha, they pass away in a state of utterly serene
devotion and are born in that very world system, the Land of Bliss.

This is one of two locus classici for the four causes theory (the other being Dharmākara’s

nineteenth vow). Immediately after this quote, he glosses the first cause, “bringing the buddha to

mind” (sangs rgyas yid la byed pa; Skt. buddhamanasikāra), with “recollecting the buddha”

(sang rgyas rjes su dran pa; Skt. buddhānusmṛti). While these might seem entirely synonymous,

there is variation within buddhānusmṛti practices. Jones (2001) delineates the variety of modes

that practices of buddhānusmṛti can take. The various typologies include: buddhānusmṛti as one

practice among many, as a single practice with many forms, as one component in a gradual path,

as the sole practice in and of itself, as subordinate to other practices, and as a practice for

purposes other than rebirth in the pure land. It seems safe to say that buddhānusmṛti practices in

Sun-like Instructions fall under the “single practice with many forms” typology since Mi pham

instructs his readers to employ many means in the context of buddhānusmṛti. He writes,

“[I]nvok[e] [Amitābha’s] enlightened mind by means of dhāraṇī recitation, performing

supplications to him, and other such practices.”

After laying out the four causes, Mi pham claims that the first and fourth causes, which

he is now referring to as faith (dad pa) and aspiration (’dun pa), are the chief causes whereas the

second and third “… [act] as an aid for [the first and fourth]” (de’i grogs su). To prove this claim,

Mi pham quotes four more passages from the long sūtra and two passages from the Drum Beat

of Immortality Dhāraṇī (’Chi med rnga sgra’i gzungs).83 It is interesting that the first and fourth

causes later appear merged into the compound dad ’dun. It is unclear if Mi pham takes this as a

singular compound or simply an abbreviation of two terms. The Great Tibetan-Chinese

83
’Chi med rnga sgra'i gzungs mdo. Gzungs bsdus. 2 Vols. Lhun grub lha rtse’i par khang, 1947, Vol. 1, pp. 62-67

44
Dictionary writes “mentally respectful and devoted” (yid kyis gus shing mos pa)84 for dad ’dun,

which suggests that it is a single term. Dad pa, mos pa, gus pa, yid ches, dang ba, mos kus, dad

mos, and even ’dun pa seem to be used with great synonymity by Mi pham despite their subtle

nuances. Similarly, since Tibetan does not distinguish between singular and plural like English, it

is unclear if rgyu gtso bo means “the foremost cause” or “one of the foremost causes.” Otherwise,

that could help us determine the number of dad ’dun. At any rate, the claim that one can take

birth in Sukhāvatī through mere faith and/or aspiration alone has been contested and is at the

heart of the self-power/other-power distinction, to which we shall now turn.

The Terms Rang stobs and Dngos po’i nus pa Understood as Self-power and Other-power

Self-power and other-power are a central topic of discussion in pure land theology.85

They are a dyad that describes two very different manners of being reborn in the pure land

Sukhāvatī. These terms are most well-known as being a translation from the Japanese jiriki and

tariki, self-power and other-power. Jiriki and tariki have their origins in the Chinese zi li and ta li

which were well established as early as the 5th century. 86 Self-power suggests that rebirth is

dependent on the volition of the practitioner; that is, through engaging in pure land practices

(whether it be buddhānusmṛti, reciting bde smon, practicing transference, or otherwise) one gains

the merit necessary to be reborn in the pure land after death. Contrary to this, other-power denies

any efficacy on the part of the individual, attributing rebirth in the pure land entirely to the graces
84
Bod rgya tshigs mdzod chen mo. Beijing: Mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 1993, pp. 1242.
85
Whether the use of the term “theology” is appropriate in the context Buddhism is a topic of debate. B. Alan
Wallace feels that it is appropriate in certain contexts—namely, when discussing “the existence of the Dharmakāya
as an omnipresent, omniscient, omni-benevolent consciousness.” However, he finds it too narrow a term to refer to
Buddhist studies or Buddhology and thus suggests three categories: that of the Buddhologist, the Buddhist theorist,
and the Buddhist practitioner. For more on this please see Wallace, B. Alan. “Three Dimensions of Buddhist Studies
Buddhist Theology” in Critical Reflections of Contemporary Buddhist Scholars, John Makransky & Roger Jackson,
eds., London: Curzon Press, 1999, pp. 61-77.
86
Ford, James L. “Jōkei and the Rhetoric of ‘Other-Power’ and ‘Easy Practice’ in Medieval Japanese Buddhism” in
Japanese Journal of Religious Studies 29 (1-2), 2002, pp. 68.

45
and powers of Amitābha. This is not dissimilar to other tensions such as gradualist and suddenist

approaches to enlightenment (rim gyis pa and cig car ba) or intrinsic and extrinsic emptiness

(rang stong and gzhan stong) as they all represent the extremes of a given phenomenon.

Furthermore, self and other are not limited to philosophy but also extend into Tibetan verb theory

as well. Volitional verbs are named rang dbang can whereas non-volitional verbs are called

gzhan dbang can. Interestingly enough, when translated literally, these terms become “with self-

power” and “with other-power.”87 These two verb classes allow one to describe an action that

happens with willed effort (for instance, “to look;” lta ba) or an action that occurs on its own (“to

see;” mthong ba).88 The distinction between the volition of an action resting on oneself or on

external forces is deeply entrenched in the Tibetan language itself. Thus, while the terms self-

power and other-power remain largely foreign to the Tibetan language (beyond their usage in

Sun-like Instructions of a Sage), the concepts certainly do not.

Self-power and other-power represent the two extremes of the spectrum of rebirth in

Sukhāvatī, which is why many Buddhist scholars and practitioners throughout history have taken

more nuanced approaches. Ford (2002) notes how Hōnen (1133-1212) was an advocate of other-

power yet still upheld his vows, engaged in visualization practices, and performed rituals that

would suggest an acceptance of self-power. This is also the case with Mi pham who, despite his

lengthy reasonings in support of faith and aspiration (dad ’dun) being the principle causes for

rebirth in Sukhāvatī, still admonishes his readers to engage in buddhānusmṛti during the daytime

and fall asleep with mindfulness of Amitābha at night. One of the few exceptions to this was

Shinran (1173-1263), a student of Hōnen, who held an exclusivist approach to other-power.

87
Gzhan dbang could also be translated as “dependence.” Thus, another way of conceiving of these verb types
would be independent and dependent.
88
In his translation seminar hosted at the Rangjung Yeshe Institute at Kathmandu University’s Centre for Buddhist
Studies in August 2015, Dr. Dorji Wangchuk informed us of his preference to render them as “autonomous” and
“heteronomous” verbs, which only reinforce this point.

46
 For Shinran, radical and absolute faith in Amida’s vow was essential for rebirth
and this precluded any notion of self-effort. He took the rhetorical category of
“other-power” to its extreme and, in doing so, tried to overcome an implicit
tension in Hōnen’s own message. Any notion that one can effect [sic] birth in
Amida’s paradise even remotely is foolish and self-centered.89

In this light, we should consider the terms rangs stobs and dngos po’i nus pa, as they appear in

Mi pham’s text connoting self-power and other-power. This is quite an exceptional reading given

that there is no other attested usage of these terms in Tibetan.90 Unlike how self-power and other-

power are extensively discussed in East Asian Buddhism, we have very little, if any, discussion

of it in Tibetan literature. 91 Jones (2014) writes, “This raises the question whether or not

centuries of interaction with Chinese Buddhism exerted any influence on Tibetan Pure Land

literature over the centuries.” 92 Since there is no evidence in Mi pham’s life story or his

Collected Works that would suggest direct contact with Chinese Buddhism, it is not within

reason to conspire that these rang stobs and dngos po’i nus pa might be borrowed from the

Chinese. Instead, it is sufficient to accept that this tension is a universal one (it also appears in

Christian theology via works and grace) and Mi pham was simply the first Tibetan author to

acknowledge it in writing.

Rang (self) stobs (power) is a literal correspondent with self-power, though this is never

proof that they refer to the same idea. In fact, rang stobs is often used synonymously with ngang

89
Ford, James L. “Jōkei and the Rhetoric of ‘Other-Power’ and ‘Easy Practice’ in Medieval Japanese Buddhism” in
Japanese Journal of Religious Studies 29 (1-2), 2002, pp. 75.
90
At least to my knowledge, self-power and other-power have not been discussed explicitly in any other Tibetan
work. Halkias (2012) and Jones (2014) are also in agreement on the lack attestation.
91
The only time self-power and other-power are mentioned in Halkias’ Luminous Bliss is in his treatment of Sun-
like Instructions of a Sage. This speaks strongly of its absence in Tibetan Buddhist Studies given that his book is so
comprehensive.
92
Jones, Charles B. Review of Halkias, Georgios T., Luminous Bliss: A Religious History of Pure Land Literature in
Tibet. H-Buddhism, H-Net Reviews. February, 2014.

47
ngam shugs kyis in other contexts, which has the sense of something happening “spontaneously”

or “of its own accord,” which echoes of other-power. However, judging from the following

quotation, Mi pham unequivocally intends to denote with this term the attainment of rebirth in

the pure land solely through one’s own effort and action: “If we are to prove based on self-power

(rang stobs) that their [those reborn in Sukhāvatī] qualities are in fact equal to the fortune of the

bodhisattvas in the pure land, then countless eons of training must have previously taken place.”

It is undeniable that Mi pham does understand rang stobs as referring to individual volition

exerted towards the goal of Sukhāvatī. Yet, as Mi pham tells us, it is not the case that all the

beings reborn in Sukhāvatī have been practicing for countless eons. “However,” he writes, “they

are led there through the Compassionate One’s name.” Consequently, rebirth in Sukhāvatī is not

achieved solely through one’s efforts but instead through the power of Amitābha’s previous

aspiration prayers (namely, the vow that he will not awaken to enlightenment if there is even a

single being who is not brought to Sukhāvatī upon hearing his name).

The word Mi pham uses for other-power is dngos po’i nus pa. The word dngos po is not

unlike the English word “thing;” dngos po can denote both material things (nor rdzas; ja lag),

actions (las don), as well as the abstract ability to perform a function (don byed nus pa).93 That

dngos po is used to designate a wide range of external objects supports the understanding of

dngos po’i nus pa as other-power since Amitābha’s power is some thing external and other.

Miller (2013) shows how dngos po’i gnas lugs is understood by Yang mgon pa (1213-1258) not

in its typical sense as the “ultimate state of things,” but instead as “the nature of the human

psychophysical organism, in its ordinary state.”94 While it is interesting to observe how terms

change according to context, the understanding expressed by Yang mgon pa does not fit with Mi

93
Bod rgya tshigs mdzod chen mo. Beijing: Mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 1993, pp. 680.
94
Miller, Willa Blythe. Secrets of the Vajra Body: Dngos po'i gnas lugs and the Apotheosis of the Body in the Work
of Rgyal ba Yang dgon pa. Doctoral dissertation, Harvard University. 2013, pp. iii.

48
pham’s discourse given their radically different contexts. Mi pham interprets other-power using

the most fundamental principle of the traditional Buddhist framework, interdependent origination

(rten cing ’brel bar ’byung ba; Skt. pratītyasamutpāda). He writes, “Thus, even the path, which

is extremely difficult to practice, can be accomplished with ease through the powers of the

inconceivably great fortune beings and the buddha’s inconceivable wisdom being set in mutual

interdependence.” For Mi pham, other-power is far from impossible, as it is within the realm of

interdependent origination. This understanding of other-power must allow for some volition on

behalf of the practitioner (in this case, the fortune amassed through practice), otherwise the

proper causes and conditions (rgyu rkyen) for rebirth in Sukhāvatī via the power of Amitābha’s

name would be lacking. Mi pham acknowledges this when he writes, “The fact that beings who

hear the names of the Land of Bliss and the teacher had already gathered vast accumulations [of

merit and wisdom] in the past is shown in the sutra.” In this sense, Mi pham’s view is markedly

different than Shinran’s exclusivist approach to other-power since it allows for the possibility of

self-power.

Readers familiar with Mi pham’s other writings might be eager to conclude that Mi pham

is putting self-power and other-power into a “unity” or “coalescence” (zung ’jug). This approach

is commonly used in many of Mi pham’s works. For instance, the Beacon of Certainty (Nges

shes sgron me) harmonizes via unity a number of seemingly contradictory issues, such as relative

and ultimate truths, analytical and resting meditation, and others.95 In Sun-like Instructions of a

Sage, Mi pham is primarily focused on validly establishing other-power, yet he in no way rejects

the efficacy of pure land orientated practices. Mi pham admits, “[T]he strength of inconceivable

other-power (dngos po’i nus pa) is something truly fantastical (ngo mtshar che).” However, he

95
Petit, John Whitney. Mipham’s Beacon of Certainty: Illuminating the View of Dzogchen the Great Perfection.
Boston: Wisdom Publications. 1999.

49
continues to maintain that there is nothing impossible about being reborn in Sukhāvatī via other-

power when we consider all variables such as karma, faculties, good fortune, the stages of the

path, and so on. While it would be tempting to call this a resolution à la unity, we should

exercise caution since Mi pham does not explicitly use this term. The sole attestation of

zung ’jug throughout Sun-like Instructions of a Sage is “zung ’jug gi ’bras bu,” referring to the

non-dual state of buddhahood. Once again, it is clear that Mi pham intentionally did not describe

self-power and other-power as a unity. Since the colophon tells us that the text was composed in

White Tiger’s Next near Rongme, we know that it was composed in the latter period of his life.

Similarly, since the trope of unity is present in his earliest works it is certain he did not wish to

label self-power and other-power a unity. This debate on self-power and other-power continues

in the next section on polemics.

Pure Land Polemics

In section 3.0, responding to objections, Mi pham disputes several rejections of the

claims for other-power within the long sūtra. It is possible that these detractors, the “evil

intellectuals” (rtog ge ba ngan pa) Mi pham speaks of, refers to actual individuals or, perhaps,

they are simply personifications of philosophical concepts. The first contention (section 3.1)

regards those who are unmoved by hearing the pure land sūtra(s) and don’t consider faith to be

as essential as other-power would make it seem. Yet without faith it is taught that entering

Sukhāvatī is virtually impossible and so Mi pham suggests placing them within the fold of the

pure land teachings via logic (tshad ma) and miraculous powers (rdzu ’phrul). The next qualm

with other-power (section 3.2) is a natural one: how could it ever be possible for ordinary folk

(the simple farmers and pastoralists of Tibet come to mind) to attain something as marvelous as

50
having their consciousness travel to the Land of Bliss? Here Mi pham encourages his readers to

have faith in the other-power teachings of the sūtra, which say that such feats are indeed within

the realm of possibility. “[R]elying on infallible scriptures is none other than the way of holy

beings,” he writes encouragingly. It is here that he references the nineteenth vow of Dharmākara

since this aspiration is at the heart of Amitābha’s compassionate activity.

In section 3.3, Mi pham’s opponents contend the sūtra must intend to say that ease of

birth in Sukhāvatī is only possible at a much later time, when one is a noble being. Here Mi

pham chooses his words carefully. While the sūtra may claim that hearing the name of Amitābha

or Sukhāvatī will guarantee birth in the pure land it does not explicitly say when. While it may

be the case that some individuals will be born there as noble beings, he nevertheless reminds us

that this does not rule out instantaneous birth in Sukhāvatī in the slightest. It is simply difficult to

state with certainty without having considered “… a given individual’s karma, good fortune, and

mental capacity.” After all, there is a reason why this realm of inquiry is called extremely

obscure (shin tu lkor gyur). This misgiving continues into section 3.4 where some still think one

must first have the realization of a noble one to be born in the pure land. They try to rationalize

other-power by saying that aspiration prayers for Sukhāvatī (bde smon) could become a cause for

attaining the state of a noble one which, in turn, later acts as the cause for rebirth in Sukhāvatī.

To this Mi pham is not apologetic in spelling out other-power explicitly, saying that everyone

“will be born [in the pure land] merely through faith and aspiration,” just as the sūtra teaches.

For those who still harbor doubts about other-power, Mi pham relates it to other supernatural

feats, which his Buddhist audience would traditionally accept: “This is so because, just as a seed

that is planted with mantric powers, for instance, will ripen extremely fast, it is possible to draw

forth in great leaps (thod rgal) the realization of the path of the noble ones with very little

51
difficulty.” Other-power is not foreign to esoteric practices; during the Heian era (794-1185) in

Japan, all the dominant Buddhist schools acknowledged other-power through their understanding

of the efficacy of esoteric rituals.96 Mi pham’s appeal to esoteric mantra might have its origins in

the works of Rong zom chos kyi bzang po, whom Mi pham read widely. Köppl (2013) notes this

in her treatment of Rong zom’s Establishing Appearances as Divine (Snang ba lhar bsgrub pa).

She writes that, “This clarifies the strong emphasis that post-Mipham Rnyingma proponents

place on the ability to establish esoteric theorems by means of a particular pramāṇa—an

emphasis on reasoning in the esoteric context that they tend to trace back to Rongzom.”97 While

Mi pham does not using valid cognition to substantiate mantra, he does indeed use valid

cognition to establish other-power before comparing it with mantra.

Still unable to fully accept other-power, some seek to posit an additional cause required

for rebirth in Sukhāvatī in section 3.5. They posit that the additional cause of immense

accumulations of merit and wisdom would make rebirth in Sukhāvatī via faith alone more readily

acceptable. To this Mi pham says the vast amounts of merit required by self-power is ultimately

not that different than other-power because “it would be impossible for them to lack the fortune

[to be born in the pure land] if they possess great faith and aspiration. It is in this manner that

those who generate faith towards the Land of Bliss and its guide, Amitābha, complete the

immense accumulations.” In this way, faith works for both self-power as well as other-power. Mi

pham concludes section 3.0 by demonstrating that self-power and other-power are but two sides

of a single coin. It is clear that each objection was a direct attack on other-power in one form or

another. Not only did Mi pham support other-power via reasoning and scripture, but he also

96
Ford, James L. “Jōkei and the Rhetoric of ‘Other-Power’ and ‘Easy Practice’ in Medieval Japanese Buddhism” in
Japanese Journal of Religious Studies 29 (1-2), 2002, pp. 97.
97
Köppl, Heidi. Establishing Appearances as Divine: Rongzom Chokyi Zangpo on Reasoning, Madhyamaka, and
Purity. Boston: Shambhala Publications, 2013, pp. 84.

52
synthesized it with self-power, yet not in terms of a unity. This marks a transition point of the

text into the more self-power orientated domain of his treatise dealing with practice.

The Praxis of the Pure Land

It would seem appropriate for the section on practice to be significantly shorter given that

Mi pham has thus far been invested in supporting other-power. Otherwise, requiring other pure

land practices would necessarily contradict his claim that faith alone is enough to bring one to

Sukhāvatī. Hence, the prescriptions for practice are rather general. They start off with the

daytime practices that recommend to begin with the first cause, buddhānusmṛti: “[Y]ou should

take as your object of mindfulness the qualities of the environment and inhabitants of the

buddha-field just as they are described in the sutra.” With the pure land in one’s mind’s eye, one

should “fervently generate serene faith, faith with the desire to be born there, and faith that trusts

in the profound manners in which [Amitābha] emanates.” Finally, one should make the standard

Mahāyāna conclusion (the fourth cause): “Gather as many stocks of virtue as you are able to and

then dedicate them with the fervent aspiration towards birth in the pure land.” Mi pham generally

recommends that one should utilize the store of traditionally available practices such as “…

reciting the name of Amitābha, Limitless Light, invoking his enlightened mind by means of

dhāraṇī recitation, performing supplications to him, and other [such practices].”

The nighttime practices are even briefer. Mi pham simply recommends that “… you

should lie down to sleep without losing mindfulness of your fervent aspirations to reside in the

pure land and behold the Bliss Gone One.” There are, however, many other “extraordinary

means” such as preparing the pure land (zhing sbyong ba) and consciousness transference during

sleep (nyal ’pho) that he mentions in passing. It would seem that this text is aimed at entry-level

53
pure land practitioners and a discussion of extraordinary means would not be appropriate. Thus,

it is satisfactory for Mi pham to assure his audience that faith alone is sufficient and the more

complex and/or secret practices are not in fact necessary. Careful not to write off these profound

practices, Mi pham encourages the interested reader to learn more about them from “the multiple

levels of pith instructions in the scriptures and treasures of the New and Ancient schools” as is

suitable.

If one properly puts the text’s advice into practice, there are certain results that can be

expected. Mi pham lists these according to those of high, middling, and low capacities

(rabs ’bring tha gsum). Those of highest capacity will actually behold (dngos su mthong ba)

Amitābha in person and receive a prophecy (lung bstan) of their imminent journey to the pure

land and eventual awakening. This tradition of receiving a prophecy from Amitābha also appears

in Karma chags med’s famous bde smon: “May on that occasion the blessed Tathāgata /
 Stretch

out and place his right hand on my head, / And bestow upon me the prophecy of

enlightenment.”98 Those of middling capacity will gain blessings from Amitābha in the way of

experience (nyams myong gi tshul gyis). Finally, those of lowest capacity will see Amitābha and

Sukhāvatī in their dreams. While it may sound like this is something of a consolation prize, Mi

pham says this is certainly not the case: “No matter how trivially [the signs] appear in your

dreams due to your aspirations, we should not leave out the possibility of habitual patterning

being sowed. You can be born in the pure land through even the slightest habitual patterning of

aspiration due to the power of the buddha’s prayers.” The brevity of this section is significant in

that it shows Mi pham’s acknowledgement of self-power despite his stance on undeniable other-

power.

98
Skorupski, Tadeusz. “A Prayer for Rebirth in Sukhāvatī” in The Buddhist Forum. London: SOAS, University of
London, vol. III, 1994, pp. 403.

54
55
 Chapter Four: Introduction the Critical Edition

From the moment a text leaves its author’s hands, it takes on a life of its own. This is

especially true in the case of Mi pham’s Sun-like Instructions of a Sage which was first written

by Mi pham at Tiger’s Nest retreat cave, later carved into woodblocks (par shing) after his

passing, and digitized in the modern age. Each step represents a unique text, which challenges

the presumption that the text is a singular, unified entity. In light of the variant texts, or “editions,”

a critical edition comparing all textual variations has been prepared. A critical edition draws on

all available editions but does not favor any single one. Instead, readings are chosen on a case-

by-case basis. Critical editions are often criticized for “inventing” a new text since they employ a

mixture of readings from a multitude of editions. The alternative to a critical edition would be a

diplomatic edition. In a diplomatic edition, a particular edition is chosen to be the copy-text

based on a particular preference, its contents are reproduced in full, and the variants found in

other editions are noted. An example of this is the Bka’ ’gyur dpe bsdur ma produced by the

PRC’s Tibetology Center (Krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas). They use the Sde dge dpar

phud edition of the Bka’ ’gyur as the copy-text and note variants from several other versions in

endnotes. The critique of having created a new text via critical edition did not deter me since,

ultimately, any text we reproduce must necessarily be a new creation and thus constitute a

previously non-existent text. I found myself more comfortable actively acknowledging this

process and utilizing the freedom to add new things such as an expanded title, revised formatting,

and critical apparatus. While I did not pretend to have “faithfully” reproduced Sun-like

Instructions of a Sage, I nevertheless feel that my edition is superior to the previous editions on

account of its critical selection of readings.

56
 The critical edition below is based on four editions of Sun-like Instructions of a Sage that

I was able to obtain. I classify them in the critical apparatus (dpe bsdur ma) according to four

categories: publisher (dpe skrun), type (rigs), year (par lo), and sigla (rtags ma). The four

editions are as follows:

(1) A block print (par ma/dpar ma) edition of Mi pham’s Gsung ’bum reproduced in

Sgang tog, Sikkim in 1979 by Mr. Sonam Topgay. 99 This publication bases itself on the

woodblock prints of Mi pham’s Gsung ’bum from the Great Derge Monastery (Sde dge dgon

chen). The Gsung ’bum commissioned by H.H. Dil mgo mkhyen brtse100 and published by Lama

Ngodrub and Sherab Drimey in 1984-1993 is identical101 to this edition and hence need not be

considered as a separate edition. The siglum for this edition is sgang;

(2) A typeset, book format (deb gzugs) from the second volume of An Anthology of

Sukhāvatī Prayers (Bde smon phyogs bgrigs) printed by the Sichuan Publishing Group (Si khron

dpe skrun tshogs pa) at the Sichuan Nationalities Publishing House (Si khron mi rigs dpe skrun

khang) in 2007.102 This edition seems to have been manually inputted from one of the other

editions, but it is difficult to say which one since its variants do not uniformly match any single

edition. The compilers (sgrig pa po) are aware of this when they write: “It is possible that there

are numerous errors, such as poor editing, additions, and/or subtractions, which we would like to

humbly acknowledge before our learned reader.”103 The siglum for this edition is bde;

99
Gsung ’bum/ mi pham rgya mtsho. Gangtok: Sonam T. Kazi, vol. 7, 1976, pp. 234-263.
100
Gsung 'bum/ mi pham rgya mtsho. Paro: Lama Ngodrub and Sherab Drimey, vol. 8, 1984-1993, pp. 225-254.
101
In fact the latter appears to be a photocopy of the former.
102
Bde smon phyogs bsgrig. Chengdu: Si khron mi rigs dpe skrun khang, vol. 2, 2007, pp. 319-341.
103
Zhus dag legs cha thon med pa sogs nor ’khrul chad lhag ci rigs yod srid pas/ mkhyen spyan ldan pa’i gzigs pa
po’i spyan sngar snying nas ’chags gsol bas/

57
 (3) A typeset, traditionally formatted (dpe gzugs) edition of the Gsung ’bum printed by

the Snow Land Culture and Ancient Text Preservation Group (Gangs can rig gzhung dpe rnying

myur skyobs lhan tshogs) in 2007.104 The siglum for this edition is gangs;

(4) A typeset, book format of the Gsung ’bum printed by the Manjushri’s Yellow Dhi

Syllable Publishers (’Jam dpal d+hi yig ser po’i dpe skrun tshogs pa)105 in 2008. The siglum for

this edition is ’jam.

There is very little variation among these editions so it is relatively safe to assume that

they stem from a single line, which is not surprising given the relatively short lifespan of the text.

I was inspired by the critical work that was done with the Bka’ ’gyur dpe bsdur ma106 and

sought to create something similar so I similarly set the text into searchable Unicode Tibetan

print (dbu can) as opposed to Wylie. This makes the text more accessible and gives it the

potential to be performed by those who do not know Wylie, namely, the majority of the Tibetan

community. To further avoid weighing down the text with annotations, I distinguish between

substantial and insubstantial variations and display them in footnotes and endnotes, respectively.

The categories of substantial and insubstantial variations are subjective, but they are nevertheless

a helpful distinction. For example, variations in spelling are typically considered insubstantial,

however, the insubstantial difference between the American “color” and the British “colour”

could reveal substantial information about the author’s nationality, audience, or editor in certain

contexts. Yet, the spelling variants in Sun-like Instructions of a Sage seem to be predominately

scribal errors (or rather typing input errors) and are thus relegated to endnotes. As for the notes

themselves, I opt for a positive apparatus in which a preferred reading is critically chosen and

104
Rgya mtsho, Mi pham. Gsung ’bum: mi pham rgya mtsho. 32 vols. Chengdu: Gangs can rig gzhung dpe rnying
myur skyob lhan tshogs, vol. 1, 2007, pp. 67-96.
105
Mi pham gsung 'bum las gzhung ’grel skor. Chengdu: ’Jam dpal d+hi yig ser po’i dpe skrun tshogs pa, 2008.
106
Bka’ ’gyur dpe bsdur ma. Beijing: Krung go’i bod rigs dpe skrun khang, 2006-2009.

58
marked with a square bracket ( ] ). Following the preferred readings, the variants found in other

editions are noted. At times, I take the liberty of amending the text based on my own

understanding despite lacking attestation in any edition. Passages of quotations are distinguished

from the rest of the text authored by Mi pham with an off-grey font color. This gives the reader

an accurate breakdown of the amount of quoted material versus Mi pham’s pen.

59
 Chapter Five: Translation Introduction

Translation, in its truest sense, is an organization of differences107 that comes about from

the encounter of two languages. Translation is not, as most would believe, a simple relocation of

meaning from one language to another. This is because meaning is not a static entity confined to

the text but is relative to the place, time, and cultural-linguistic background of author, reader, and

translator. The same should be said of language. Indeed, language does not exist as a singular,

static entity but exists only after the translation process. That is to say, language can only exists

after being defined in relation to some “other.” In simpler terms, we can only begin to conceive

of Tibetan language when it is paired against non-Tibetan language, English for instance. This is

what is meant by “co-figuration,” a term first coined by Naoki Sakai. He writes:

What I want to suggest is that the representation of translation in terms of “the

regime of translation” serves as a schema of co-figuration: only when translation
is represented by the schematism of co-figuration does the putative unity of a
national language as a regulative idea ensue.108

Here, Sakai claims that in order for languages to be conceived of as discrete and distinct entities

(to designate Pu tong hua, for instance, as the national language of the People’s Republic of

China) they must first be established in a co-figured relationship via the act of translation.

Otherwise, without this dualism, language remains as natural language and exists as a gradient of

minor linguistic variations, not as a “putative unity.” This is what Sakai means above when he

107
I am indebted to Jon Solomon’s translation seminar held at Rangjung Yeshe Institute at Kathmandu University’s
Centre for Buddhist Studies in December, 2014 and his presentation of the thought of Naoki Sakai in coming to
understand what it means for translation to be an organization of differences.
108
Sakai, Naoki. “How do we count a language? Translation and discontinuity” in Translation Studies 2:1, 2009, pp.
75.

60
says, “‘the regime of translation’ serves as a schema of co-figuration.” This mode of

understanding translation as a process that presumes discretely packaged languages from its very

outset has direct connections with the current system of organizing peoples and languages. In

fact, without translation as such, national language—the foundation of the modern nation state—

would be impossible. I approached translating Sun-like Instructions of a Sage steeped in this

understanding of translation. Hence, the translation presented below cannot help but to be

determined within its given temporal, linguistic, and cultural limitations and thus merely

represents one interpretation made at one time by one individual. In no way does it claim to be

definitive.

While much more could be said about why we translate and the socio-political dynamics

that translation entails, it is beyond the scope of this study. Instead, I would like to present a few

notes on my translation as it occurred “on the ground.” I sought to translate into English (as

opposed to using Sanskrit terms or speaking in Buddhist Hybrid English) as much as possible.

While there remain a few exceptions to this ideal—in the case of names (Ānanda, Ajita, and so

forth) and transliterated Sanskrit—the majority of the text reflects this attempt. Some words like

sūtra and nirvāṇa have recently entered the English lexicon and so, in acknowledgement of their

new status, I consciously write them without diacritics (sutra and nirvana). Similar to the use of

gray font for quotes from scripture in the critical edition, they are set off in the translation by

block quotes. The topical outline I created (Appendix A) was inserted into the text in brackets to

make for easier reading. Each Tibetan term is translated consistently, unless otherwise noted.

61
 Chapter Six: An English Translation of Sun-like Instructions of a Sage: A Clarification of

Faith which Prepares the Pure Land, the Land of Bliss

[1.0 Title]

Sun-like Instructions of a Sage:109

A Clarification of Faith which Prepares110 the Pure Land, the Land of Bliss

[1.1 Opening Homage]

namo guru mañjughoṣāya

He, whose name from the instant it enters your ears,

Bestows the foremost collection of limitless qualities

Such as never regressing from the path of awakening,

O Creator of Light, Infinite Life, 111 care for this wandering being!

[2.0 Proving faith and aspiration to be the foremost causes for birth in the pure land]

Indeed, the greatest thing fortunate individuals can pursue in this [life]112 is the nirvana113

of neither dwelling in existence nor peace.114 As for how, the foremost method to swiftly attain

109
Please see Chapter Three with regards to the title of the text.
110
The verb sbyong ba is often paired with the noun zhing khams, as it is here to describe the creation of one’s own
pure land in the process of becoming a buddha. We can find other instances of this usage such as in the third
Karmapa’s Aspiration Prayer of Mahāmudrā (Phyag chen smon lam) where he writes, “purifying the buddha-field”
(sangs rgyas zhing rab sbyangs).
111
Here Mi pham employs the epithets Creator of Light (’Od mdzes) and Infinite Life (Tshe mtha’ yas pa) for
Amitābha (’od dpag med) and Amitāyus (tshe dpag med) respectively. He is thereby able to fully connote the
meanings behind their names while simultaneously invoking them nominally. By translating into English in
combination with capitalizing the two epithets, the reader is privy to the significance behind “Amitābha” and
“Amitāyus” while still recognizing them as proper nouns. Additionally, Mi pham may be attempting to identify the
two buddhas as a single identity. See Chapter One for more information on the conflated identity of these two
buddhas.

62
[nirvana] with little difficulty is to make prayers to be born115 in the Land of Bliss.116 This is

because you can be easily born in that pure land 117 through the power of the prayers of the

Conqueror himself; all the bodhisattvas who have taken birth there are held back by [only] one

more life; and because it is praised for its limitless, exalted qualities which can be found among

the immaculate scriptures of the Thus Gone One as is repeatedly proclaimed by all the

Conquerors that reside throughout the infinite pure lands. Consequently, there are certain causes

to be born in that pure land, which are taught in the Display of the Qualities of Amitābha’s Pure

Land sutra:118 119

Ānanda! Anyone who [1] repeatedly brings the Thus Gone One’s features120 to
mind, [2] produces immeasurable amounts of roots of virtue, [3] makes
dedications [with] the mind bent on enlightenment,121 and [4] prays to be born in
that world system will, when they are approaching the time of death, behold the
Thus Gone One, the Foe Destroyer,122 the perfectly completely awakened one,
Amitābha surrounded by a numerous assembly of monks seated right before them.

112
While Mi pham writes only “in this,” we can assume he means “in this life.” This understanding is attested in his
commentary to Śāntarakṣita’s Ornament of the Middle Way (dbu ma rgyan) where Thomas Doctor translates it
accordingly. Doctor, Thomas H. (trans.) Mipham, Jamgon Ju. Speech of Delight: Mipham's Commentary of
Shantarakshita's Ornament of the Middle Way. Ithaca: Snow Lion Publications, 2004, pp. 39.
113
By intentionally not using diacritics (i.e., Nirvāṇa), I acknowledge the process of this term’s assimilation into
mainstream English.
114
Referring to neither abiding in saṃsāra nor nirvāṇa.
115
While in English we often specify that one is re-born in another realm, in the Buddhist worldview the assumption
of past and future lives is so fundamental that it need not be made explicit. I have translated to reflect this
fundamental assumption.
116
While the term Sukhāvatī might actually be more widely understood in Buddhist circles than its various
translations such as the Land of Bliss, the Blissful Realm, Realm of Bliss, and so on, I have chosen to translate it
into English.
117
For a discussion of the term pure land, please see the introduction to Chapter One.
118
Similarly, sūtra has been translated without diacritics to mark its assimilation into English.
119
Here Mi pham elaborates on the long Sukhāvatīvyūha sūtra as the ’Od dpag med pa’i zhing gi yon tan bkod pa’i
mdo instead of its more common title’Od dpag med kyi bkod pa’i mdo.
120
While all editions assign an agentive particle to rnam pa, it seems most logical to translate it without.
121
For a discussion of the history of the translation of bodhi as “enlightenment,” please see Jon Solomon (2015).
122
Here I have opted for a translation of the Tibetan dgra bcom pa as “Foe Destroyer” instead of a transliteration of
the Sanskrit arhant. Not only does this accord with my translation methodology of translating into English but it also
attempts to reflect the distance a 19th century text has from Sanskrit etymology.

63
 Beholding the Blessed One 123 Amitābha, they pass away in a state of utterly
serene devotion124 and are born in that very world system, the Land of Bliss.125

From among the four causes spoken of [above]—namely, bringing the buddha Amitābha to mind,

accumulating countless roots of virtues, generating the mind bent on enlightenment, and making

dedications of roots of virtues and prayers in order to be born in the pure land—the chief [causes]

are taught to be [the first], remembering the buddha, and [the fourth], aspiring (’dun pa) to be

born in the pure land. [The second], accumulating roots of virtue, and [the third], generating the

mind bent on enlightenment with respect to determining that you are of the Great Vehicle

class,126 are said to [act] as an aid to [the first and fourth]. In order to thus demonstrate that

faith127 in the buddha alone (sangs rgyas la dad pa nyid) is the foremost [cause], it is stated in the

same sutra:

Ānanda! Sons and daughters of noble family should generate the mind bent on
unsurpassable perfect complete enlightenment thinking “how wonderful it would
be to behold the Thus Gone One Amitābha in this very lifetime,” focus their
minds with an altruistic attitude to be born in that buddha-field, generate roots of
virtue, and then make dedications.128

123
The traditional etymological explanation (sgra bshad) of the word bcom ldan ’das is that the Blessed One (bcom
ldan ’das) is someone who has conquered (bcom) the māras (bdud), is endowed (ldan) with positive qualities, and
has transcended (’das) the world.
124
Dang ba has two primary connotations, namely devotion and lucidity. The bod rgya tshigs mdzod chen mo lists it
as a verb meaning “for a joyful or reverent mindset to arise” and also as a noun with the meaning “a reverent mind”
and “unsullied or stainless” (1. yid dga’am dad mos skyes ba and 2.dad mos kyi sems … rnyog pa med pa’am ra ri
med pa). We can see both these meanings present in the term dang ba’i dad pa. Although tracing Tibetan etymology
is difficult given the sheer lack of etymological studies, it would seem safe to assume that this word is somewhat
related to dwangs pa. Bod rgya tshig mdzod chen mo. Beijing: Mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 1993, pp. 1241.
125
’Od dpag med kyi bkod pa. Bka’ ’gyur dper bsdur ma. Krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe
sdur khang. 108 volumes. Beijing: Krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang, 2006-2009, vol.39, pp. 751.
126
The term rigs (gotra) has a wide range of meaning and usage according to context. Here it denotes the type of
individual who is of the Mahāyāna disposition. In this context some of the possibilities include family, line, caste,
lineage, class, type, and so forth.
127
There are numerous words in Tibetan that resemble the English “faith.” Some of them include dad pa, yid ches,
dang ba, mos pa, mos gus, dad mos, and so forth.
128
’Od dpag med kyi bkod pa. Bka’ ’gyur dper bsdur ma. Krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe
sdur khang. 108 volumes. Beijing: Krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang, 2006-2009, vol.39, pp. 752.

64
In order to demonstrate that the aspiration (’dun pa) to be born in that pure land is [also] the

foremost [cause], it is stated in that sutra:

Ānanda! When someone who has brought the Thus Gone One to mind,
continuously generated limitless roots of virtue, and focused their mind on that
buddha-field is approaching the time of death, buddha emanations that resemble
identically the color, form, field,129 and monastic attendants of the Thus Gone
One, the Foe Destroyer, the perfectly completely awakened one, Amitābha will be
present right before them. Beholding the Thus Gone One, they thereby pass away
within [a state of] meditative concentration focused on serene devotion with
perfect mindfulness and are born in that very buddha-field.130

Hence, faith in the buddha and aspiring to be born in the pure land are essentially the two most

important [causes]. The sutra demonstrates that you will be born in the pure land if you possess

those [two causes]:

Ānanda! If beings recollect the Thus Gone One with as little as just a single
thought and desire to be born in that buddha-field; if they undergo difficulty and
do not become lazy, disheartened, or discouraged upon hearing the profound
dharma explained; if they bring the Thus Gone One Amitābha to mind for as little
as a single thought and also generate desire [to be born in his pure realm], they
will behold the Thus Gone One Amitābha in their dreams, be born in the Land of
Bliss world system, and not regress from [the attainment of] unsurpassed, perfect,
and complete enlightenment. Ānanda, perceiving this genuine power,131 [all] the
Thus Gone Ones proclaim the name of the Thus Gone One Amitābha, sing his
praises, and extol his virtues throughout [all] the innumerable, limitless world
systems of the ten directions.132

In the Drum Beat of Immortality, it says:

129
The use of chu zhing, an irrigated field, is interesting. From context it is clear that it refers to the pure land in the
same way that zhing does. It might be safe to assume it is merely a synonym of kṣetra.
130
’Od dpag med kyi bkod pa. Bka’ ’gyur dper bsdur ma. Krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe
sdur khang. 108 volumes. Beijing: Krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang, 2006-2009, vol.39, pp. 752.
131
The Mahāvyupatti gives imamarthavaśaṃ saṃpaśyamānaḥ for don gyi dbang ’di mthong nas (Entry number:
6685).
132
’Od dpag med kyi bkod pa. Bka’ ’gyur dper bsdur ma. Krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe
sdur khang. 108 volumes. Beijing: Krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang, 2006-2009, vol.39, pp. 752.

65
 Towards the west of here
Is the world system, the Land of Bliss
It is there where the perfect buddha
The Thus Gone One Amitāyus resides
Whoever were to recite his name
Would [certainly] be born there133

You134 should give rise to trust (yid ches pa) in accordance with this fact that is clearly found

time and time again within scriptures such as the above quote. Furthermore, understand that the

pure land is exalted in terms of its positive qualities. Since these positive qualities are due

exclusively to the Bliss Gone One’s prayers and wisdom, which emanate, you [should] feel

devotion towards the interaction between the environment and its inhabitants.135 Devotion (mos

pa) is [one of] the foremost [causes], a fact that is demonstrated in the Drum Beat of Immortality

Dhāraṇī:

Whichever faithful sons and daughters of noble family are rich with devotion,
faith, and reverence will be born there.136

The Pure Land Sutra reads:137

Even if all beings were to become Bliss Gone Ones

With pure wisdom skilled in ultimate truth
And extol praises for The Land of Bliss
For an eon or, perhaps, even longer

133
’Chi med rnga sgra'i gzungs mdo. Gzungs bsdus. 2 Vols. Lhun grub lha rtse’i par khang, 1947, Vol. 1, pp. 62-67.
134
Pronouns, in particular, serve as excellent indicators of the incommensurability of language when translating
Tibetan to English. One of the distinguishing features between classical and modern Tibetan languages is the
absence and presence of pronouns. Whereas classical Tibetan need not specify the pronoun, leaving it open to
include oneself, one’s sangha, and even all sentient beings, in English we are forced to make a choice between “I
should,” “one should,” “we should,” “everyone should,” etc.
135
The Tibetan literally reads, “between the support (rten) and that which is supported (brten pa)” referring to the
pure land Sukhāvatī itself and the beings who are born there.
136
’Chi med rnga sgra'i gzungs mdo. Gzungs bsdus. 2 Vols. Lhun grub lha rtse’i par khang, 1947, Vol. 1, pp. 62-67.
137
Here Mi pham refers to the long Sukhāvatīvyūha sūtra simply as the Pure Land sūtra (Zhing mdo) which speaks
of this sūtra’s position as fundamental to Tibetan pure land literature.

66
 Upon proclaiming such garlands of praise
Ten million eons might well have passed
Yet the praises for the Land of Bliss would remain unfinished
And their eloquence (spobs pa)138 would not have run dry

Even if one were to pulverize, crush, and grind up

As many world systems as there are atomic particles
Then fill yet many more world systems with jewels
And offer up such a gift as that

It would not even be a fraction of the merit

Of someone who has rejoiced and joined their palms
Upon hearing the name of Light Immeasurable, Amitābha
And of the extraordinary qualities of the Land of Bliss

Since it is so, having now heard these qualities

Of the Thus Gone One, feel elated,
Full of faith, and generate fierce devotion
To go to the supreme world system, the Land of Bliss

All of the great vastness of [other] supreme realms

Cannot parallel nor be analogous to
The merit of having heard
The name of the Land of Bliss world system

The wise ones who [believe] in the Conqueror’s words

Have yet even more merit than that
Since faith is the root for obtaining the ultimate purpose
Cast away doubt139 as soon as you have heard!140

Also, [it is taught]: 141

All phenomena are like conditions

138
The Sanskrit pratibhāna is markedly different than the Tibetan spobs pa, although the latter translates the form.
Hence, we should understand spobs pa here not as “courage,” but as “eloquence” or “inspired speech.” See Braarvig,
Jens, “Dhāraṇī and Pratibhāna: Memory and Eloquence of the Bodhisattvas,” JIABS 8, 1 (1985): 17-30.
139
The Tibetan literally reads “two minds” (yid gnyis).
140
Gómez writes here: “The[se] stanzas also contain a faint but significant hint that, to some redactor(s) in the
transmission of the text, faith had to be accompanied by ‘wisdom’ (prajîā) [sic]. I am inclined to consider these
stanzas a late interpolation.” Gomez, Luis O. Land of Bliss: The Paradise of the Buddha of Measureless Light;
Sanskrit and Chinese Versions of the Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtras. Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press, 1996, pp. 237.
’Od dpag med kyi bkod pa. Bka’ ’gyur dper bsdur ma. Krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe
sdur khang. 108 volumes. Beijing: Krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang, 2006-2009, vol.39, pp. 756-757.
141
This appears to be from the Qualities of the Display of Mañjuśrī’s Buddha-field sūtra (’Jam dpal sangs rgyas kyi
zhing gi bkod pa’i yon tan mdo).

67
 In that they rest on the root of your aspirations
A given result will be attained
That is similar to the prayers you have made

Also, [it is taught]: 142

The root of all virtuous things

Is taught by the Sage to be devotion

As it is said [in these scriptural citations], generating faith is crucial. The hindrances that prevent

faith from being properly born are: misunderstanding, backward thinking, and doubt. These

should be consequently eliminated.

[3.0 Responding to Objections]

In that regard, those who are unaware of ignorant of the unique qualities of the Land of

Bliss pure land and the teacher are just like low-caste,143 common fools who do not ask about

precious jewels or try to do anything with them on account of a lack of knowledge of their

qualities. In that way, these people do not work towards being born in that pure realm. You

should thus first listen to the qualities of the pure land yourself just as they are praised in genuine

scriptures and then show them to others. It is similarly stated in the sutra:

Ajita, look at how many (ji rnyed cig) gains (rnyed pa) these beings who have
heard the name of the Thus Gone One, the For Destroyer, the perfectly
completely awakened one, Amitābha, have easily gained (legs par rnyed pa).144
Any being who gains even the tiniest bit of faith in 145 the Thus Gone One
Amitābha or has undivided faith in this dharma discourse will not have an

142
This quote appears to be from the Bodhisattvacaryāvatāra (Byang chub sems dpa’i dpyod la ’jug pa).
143
Again we have rigs in more or less the same sense as above.
144
The Li thang and Co ne Bka’’gyurs both lack the pa ji rnyed.
145
The G.yung, Li thang, Pe cing, Snar thang, Co ne, and Zhol editions all read “from” (las) instead of “in” (la).

68
 inclination towards the inferior.146 Ajita, since it is so, you should feel devotion
[toward Amitābha] and internalize [the dharma discourse]. In the presence of the
[entire] world with its gods, demons, Brahma, and myriad beings like spiritual
practitioners (dge sbyong) and Brahmins, you should acquire, hold, recite, and
master this dharma discourse. You should show it widely to others. Take great joy
in habituating yourself to it. Ajita, even for just a single day, 147 you should
acquire, hold, recite, and master it. You should explain it widely to others from
the depths of your heart. At the very least, you should copy it finely in a book
format, [mentally] retain it, and generate the perceptions of it as the teacher.148
Anyone who desires to swiftly place countless beings in [a state] that will not
regress from unsurpassed, perfectly complete enlightenment; behold the Blessed
One, the Thus Gone One Amitābha; and acquire (bzung) their very own
extraordinary buddha-field perfectly arrayed with qualities and adornments,
should listen to this dharma discourse. Thus, you should [be ready to] traverse149 a
three-thousandfold, many thousandfold, world system full of fire and then listen
to this dharma discourse. And after having heard it, you should rejoice from the
depths of your heart with an unwavering attitude. You should strive with a great
and immense diligence to memorize, master, retain, copy this dharma discourse
and habituate yourself to it. You should tell others about it even for the time it
takes to milk a single cow. And after having traversed a three-thousandfold, many
thousandfold, world system full of fire, you will not have even a single thought of
regret. Why is that? Ajita, it is so because many myriads of bodhisattvas have
heard this type of vast dharma discourse and do not regress from unsurpassed,
perfectly complete enlightenment.150 151

[3.1 Those of little faith]

If someone who had not previously gathered the accumulations hears such a dharma

discourse as this and not only does not feel devotion, but moreover holds is ignorant of what was

taught therein, then they are comparable to the non-Buddhists. Though mere scripture is not valid

146
Gómez writes: “The point here seems to be that these beings are moved by faith alone and often by a single
thought of faith, yet this does not mean that they are in any way inferior to the full bodhisattvas who also go to
Sukhāvatī.” Gomez, Luis O. Land of Bliss: The Paradise of the Buddha of Measureless Light; Sanskrit and Chinese
Versions of the Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtras. Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press, 1996, pp. 242.
147
Nyin zhag refers specifically to a full twenty-four hour period.
148
Here we can see the presence of the Mahāyāna cult of the book. Schopen, Gregory. Figments and Fragments of
Māhāyana Buddhism in India: More Collected Papers. Honolulu: U of Hawai'i, 2005
149
Based on Gómez and Muller’s translations, it seems that the Sanskrit reads “plunge” instead of “traverse.”
150
This passage is present in the Sanskrit and Tibetan sūtras but not in the Chinese versions. Gomez, Luis O. Land
of Bliss: The Paradise of the Buddha of Measureless Light; Sanskrit and Chinese Versions of the Sukhāvatīvyūha
Sūtras. Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press, 1996.
151
’Od dpag med kyi bkod pa. Bka’ ’gyur dper bsdur ma. Krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe
sdur khang. 108 volumes. Beijing: Krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang, 2006-2009, vol.39, pp. 781-782.

69
for them [non-Buddhists], they should nevertheless be tamed with skillful means or with logic so

that they may engage with the truth contained within genuine scripture. In order to do that, they

can be gradually placed into the teachings with such things as [displays of] miraculous powers.

Alternatively, the teacher can be thoroughly proven via sound reasoning to be an authoritative

individual being and his teachings the entrance to complete liberation. Then, using threefold

investigation 152 in terms of generating the certainty that buddha’s prayers and wisdom are

especially inconceivable, they should be brought to trust in the fact that highly obscure objects of

valid cognition (zhal bya) such as the Display of the Land of Bliss sutra153 and others are indeed

infallible scriptures.

[3.2 Those who doubt ordinary beings cannot take birth in the pure land]

Let us say that even those people who accept this dharma [discourse] become inclined to

the inferior154 and wonder whether hearing of the pure land’s (dag pa’i zhing )155 vast qualities

and then taking birth in such a land is something possible only for noble beings. That is to say,

[they doubt whether] ordinary beings can take birth there even by acquiring the buddha’s name

and so forth.156 We should see how those who speak with such doubts will fall short of the

greater purpose.157 As for how [this is possible], the fact that there are indeed ordinary beings

152
The threefold investigation is using the three types of valid cognition—direct perception (mngon sum tshad ma),
inference (rjes dpag tshad ma), and scripture (lung gi tshad ma)—to evaluate the three objects of evaluation (gzhal
bya gsum), namely manifest (mngon gyur), obscure (lkog gyur), and highly obscure (shin tu lkog gyur). See
Tillemans, Tom. “Dharmakīrti, Āryadeva and Dharmapāla on Scriptural Authority.” In Scripture, Logic, and
Language: Essays on Dharmakīrti and His Tibetan Successors. Boston: Wisdom Publications, 1999, pp.29-30.
153
This is the Tibetan title for the short Sukhāvatīvyūha sūtra.
154
It is worthwhile to ponder what this might mean. Initially, one might consider the “lesser” vehicle (thegs pa dman
pa) but what I believe is meant here is an inferiority complex. The Sanskrit for dman pa la mos is hīnādhimuktikaḥ.
155
In light of the discussion of Pure Land Buddhism being an East Asian construct and lacking Indic equivalents, it
is significant that dag pa’i zhing does translate literally as “pure land.”
156
Here the so forth (la sogs pa) seems to refer to the series of actions listed above in the sūtra—that is, acquiring,
holding, reciting, and mastering.
157
That is, as Mi pham mentioned earlier, full awakening.

70
who have taken birth in the pure land through the strength of their faith and aspirations can be

known through scriptures. It is said:

As for migration throughout the three realms

Those of possessed of reason (rigs ldan) take it from scriptural treatises158

As it is said, when it comes to these highly obscure objects of valid cognition, engaging with the

process of the greater purpose by relying on infallible scriptures is none other than the way of

holy beings. Hence, the qualities of the pure land’s environment and inhabitants are extremely

vast and those who, after hearing the Bliss Gone One Amitābha’s name, aspire to be born in that

pure land are certainly born there. Previously, the monk 159 known as Source of Dharma 160

completed all the abundant displays of 81,000 myriads of buddha-fields in the presence of the

Bliss Gone One [called] Lord of the World King,161 and took up a pure land to surpass all of

them. Then, in order to fulfill the great prayers he had made, he completed his training of the

countless bodhisattva practices. With his previous prayers now accomplished, he fully awakened

and remains in the pure land known as the Land of Bliss where he teaches the Dharma. Thus, it

is easy to be born there through the power of this buddha’s prayers. 162 You should see how

extremely meaningful (don che ba) it is if you are born there. In the sutra it says:

O Blessed One, as long as there is any being throughout the countless and
limitless buddha-fields—except those who have committed sins of immediate
retribution or are obscured from having forsaken the Dharma—who, after I have

158
This citation is taken from Dharmakīrti’s Commentary on the Compendium of Valid Cognition (Tshad ma
rnam ’grel; Skt. Pramāṇavārttika kārikā)
159
The Tibetan dge slong literally means “virtuous beggar” and denotes a fully ordained monk (bhikṣu).
160
Chos kyi ’byung gnas; Skt. Dharmakara
161
’Jig rten dbang phyug rgyal po; Skt. Lokeśvarāja
162
Here Mi pham is recounting the tale of Dharmakara who is one of the previous incarnations of Amitābha. In this
incarnation, Dharmakara is remembered for making forty-seven vows to not awaken if certain criteria, namely the
accessibility of his pure land, are not fulfilled.

71
 attained enlightenment, hears my name, directs their mind (sems gtong) in order
to be born in [my] pure land, and dedicates their roots of virtue for that, yet is not
born in [my] buddha-field through merely generating the mind bent on
enlightenment at least ten times, then I [vow] not to awaken to unsurpassed,
perfectly complete enlightenment!163

We should gain certainty based on scriptures such as this and others above that teach about the

four causes.

You might take this to mean that ordinary individuals would be unable to take birth there

since this pure land surpasses all others and the only beings born there all possess countless

qualities such as complete recall, meditative concentration, and clairvoyance. [Yet,] if you assert

the fact those born there possess such qualities and so forth based on scripture, then why

wouldn’t you also accept the causes for taking birth there in accordance with the scriptures? In

other words, we should view the accomplishment of such great qualities as being the power of

the buddha’s prayers and wisdom-that is, [the qualities] don’t come about only through a being’s

individual power [self-power] coming to fruition.164

[3.3 Those who think birth in the pure land is intended for another time]

You may think that birth [in the pure land] is intended for when you have already attained

the level of a noble one since it is said, “Such things as being born in that pure land through

reciting the buddha’s name are intended for another time.” It is indeed true that not everyone will

be born in the pure land immediately upon passing away by simply reciting the [buddha’s] name

exactly as [the sutra] says by reciting the buddha’s name you will be born in that pure land.

However, they will nevertheless take birth there at some point and therefore this [sutra] is in no

way unsound. Nor does the [sutra] falsify when it says they are born there after passing away

163
This is the nineteenth vow, one of the most important of Dharmakara’s vows for pure land commentators.
164
Here we see how Mi pham rejects exclusive self-power in favor of a more nuanced approach.

72
since there are some that are born [there] immediately upon passing away if their faith and so

forth are strong. Though [the sutra] may say birth is intended for another time, who could

possibly explain birth in that pure land through reciting the buddha’s name and other such

statements as “nothing but the ripening on another occasion [in a future life]?” The extent of a

given individual’s karma, good fortune, and mental capacity is inestimable and so are the

buddha’s miraculous manifestations. Given that this cannot be refuted by reasoning, it is entirely

within the realm of possibility that those who have heard the buddha’s name will be born in that

pure land as soon as they leave this life.

[3.4 Those who think you must first have the realization of a noble one to be born in the

pure land]

Perhaps you might think that you are unable to be immediately born in the pure land upon

dying because you do not currently see extraordinary qualities [in yourself] even though you are

capable of generating the realization of a noble one through meditation and so forth. There is no

doubt at all that someone, who has either manifested the realization of the path of the noble ones

or is about to through cultivating that path in this life, will be born in the pure land without

[needing] to add any additional causes that possess great purpose with little effort, such as

hearing the buddha’s name or otherwise. Here, the statement in the sutra, “unless you are

obscured by sins of immediate retribution and [the karma] of forsaking the Dharma,” teaches

how ordinary beings in particular and those full of doubt will be also born in the pure land

merely through hearing the buddha’s name and having faith. Though [the sutra] discusses how

ordinary beings who have heard the buddha’s name and made prayers will be born in the pure

73
land, it does not mention hearing the buddha’s name and prayer as being the way noble ones are

born [there].

You may wonder if [the sutra] doesn’t intend to say that prayers made when one was an

ordinary being first cause one to attain the level of a noble one and only then is one born in the

[pure land], the Land of Bliss. Well then, tell me—does the sutra say that it is only through the

power of faith and aspiration?

You may think that the sutra intends to say that even if one does not take birth [in the

pure land] through the power of faith and aspiration one will in fact gradually attain the

realization of the noble ones if they generate faith and aspiration and then later are born [there].

[Yet,] there is no reasoning that can truly discredit the intended meaning of the scripture when it

says that one will be born [in the pure land] merely through faith and aspiration. It is through the

power of the buddha’s prayers and wisdom that you will behold an emanation of the Bliss Gone

One at the time of death through those [two] causes alone—that is, if you had heard [Amitābha’s]

name and generated aspiration. Focusing on that with faith, being perfectly mindful of it, and

strengthening the five powers,165 you will be able to generate the realization of the path of the

noble ones in a very short time. This is so because, just as a seed that is planted with mantric

powers, for instance, will ripen extremely fast, it is possible to draw forth in great leaps (thod

rgal) the realization of the path of the noble ones with very little difficulty. On the other hand, it

will not be possible for people who have two minds [doubt] about the profound methods of

secret mantra, the profound qualities of knowledge mantra (rig sngags), and the profundity of the

Bliss Gone One’s emanations [and so forth] to easily accomplish this greater purpose with little

difficulty.

165
See Nor brang o rgyan (editor). Gangs can rig brgya’i chos kyi rnam grangs mthong tshad kun las btus pa ngo
mtshar ’phrul gyi lde mig chen po. Krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug lte gnas kyi tshan rig zhib ’jug gtsho gnad rnam
grangs. 5 Vols. Beijing: Krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang, 2008, vol. 1, pp. 1166-1689.

74
 If that were possible, the assertion [that ordinary beings can easily be born in the pure

land through faith and aspiration] would also be possible. It is like, for instance, the story (lo

rgyus) of a mother and daughter166 who died at the convergence of the river Ganges and Yamuna

and were born in the form realm.167 Although they hadn’t previously accomplished the cause [for

that to happen], namely, meditative absorption, meditative stability was nevertheless

accomplished at that very moment through the virtuous power of mutual feelings of intense love

after which they took birth as gods. There are still yet other [stories]: people have effortlessly

accomplished meditative stability at the dissolution of an eon through the power of the intrinsic

nature (chos nyid). It is said that people have accomplished extraordinary qualities such as [states

of] meditative concentration that take eons to master simply through having the Thus Gone Ones

or bodhisattvas place their hands on the tops of their heads. [The ability to be easily born in the

pure land] is similar to these [stories].

[3.5 Those who think immense accumulations of merit and wisdom are required]

You may still think that one is unable to be born [in the pure land] through making

prayers if you lack immense accumulations [of merit and wisdom] because the sutra itself says

gather immeasurable accumulations and the primary cause of having your prayers fulfilled

hinges upon the accumulations. Generally speaking, the causal basis for the fulfillment of

prayers is gathering the accumulations and it is indeed posited that, after passing away, you are

born in the pure land in the next life or one of the various future lives according to the

accumulates you’ve gather as well as your particular karma, faculties, and fortune. Nevertheless,

166
This is clearly a proverbial tale that Mi pham is invoking however I was unable to find its source.
167
The Yamunā river is a tributary to the river Ganges. According to Negi, it is also known as the peaceful sister
Yamunā (zhi ba’i sring mo ya mun). Negi, J.S. Tibetan-Sanskrit Dictionary: Bod skad dang legs sbyar gyi tshig
mdzod chen mo. Benares: Central Institutes of Higher Tibetan Studies, 1993. pp. 5623.

75
if you are imbued with intense faith and aspiration, the immense [requisite of] accumulations

will be met by that very cause without having to rely on anything else. The fact that beings who

hear the names of the Land of Bliss and the teacher had already gathered vast accumulations [of

merit and wisdom] in the past is shown in the sutra in the following way:

In the future, until the holy Dharma168 has completely vanished, any being whose
ears resound 169 with a dharma discourse such as this that is praised by all the
buddhas, commended by all the buddhas, approved by all the buddhas, and [able
to] produce170 create great omniscient wisdom will very easily gain great gains.
They will create roots of virtue and serve the Conquerors of the past, and be
blessed by the buddhas’ blessings. Having heard [the dharma discourse], they will
find happiness and vast bliss. They will acquire, hold, recite, master, and joyfully
meditate on [the discourse], then teach it widely to others. At the very least, even
those who just copy and offer it will also produce a great amount of merit. It is no
easy task to count [their merit].171

And:

Those who have not created the merit

Will not hear such things as this
Heroic ones who have gathered [merit]172
Will hear the teachings [about the pure land]

And:

Anyone who has heard this supreme dharma [discourse]

Will attain mindfulness and joy [towards the] Bliss Gone One
Anyone who has felt devotion towards the buddha’s enlightenment
Will have known me in a previous time

168
The G.yung edition of the Bka’ ’gyur is missing “Dharma” (chos).
169
Mi pham has grags whereas the Sde dge edition reads grag. This is surprising since one would expect Mi pham
to be working off a Sde dge edition given his geographical location. However, there are endless variations that could
account for this; namely, that it was recalled from memory and not from a hard text.
170
Here is another one of the few instances in which Mi pham’s citation of the sūtra varies from the Sde dge.
Whereas Mi pham writes the present tense sgrub, the Sde dge has the future past tense bsgrubs.
171
’Od dpag med kyi bkod pa. Bka’ ’gyur dper bsdur ma. Krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe
sdur khang. 108 volumes. Beijing: Krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang, 2006-2009, vol.39.
172
In lieu of grub gyur, the G.yung, Snar than, and Zhol editions all read don grub.

76
Just as these quotes from scripture teach, if you fathom the way in which we presently hear the

Bliss Gone One’s name, which is like a precious treasure difficult to acquire, then you can

clearly see that the cause of immense accumulations was previously present and one will

eventually be born in the Land of Bliss. Besides, normal beings are unable to know what [sort of]

identity they had in the past or will have in their future, or whether or not they posses the fortune

to become liberated and omniscient. And it’s not only them—even the great Foe Destroyers are

unable to properly understand what sort of mindstream those [beings] have had, as was the case

with the roots of virtue of the householder Risen Glory. Even though a given result is

accomplished in accordance with an individual’s particular karma, faculties, and fortune, we are

nevertheless able to know that it would be impossible for them to lack the fortune [to be born in

the pure land] if they possess great faith and aspiration. It is in this manner that those who

generate faith towards the Land of Bliss and its guide, Amitābha, complete the immense

accumulations. This is similar to the above citation from the sutra where it says [hearing the

name of the Buddha] is greater than filling as many world systems as there are particles with

jewels and then offering it. The sutra goes on to state that by having heard the name of the Bliss

Gone One, you will gain countless qualities such as not regressing from the path to awakening,

obtaining complete recall, not being reborn as a female, [maintaining] pure conduct, becoming a

[member of the] high caste, attaining sublime [states of] meditative concentration, becoming

happy and blissful toward the practices of the bodhisattvas, encountering the roots of virtue of

these things, and so on until the final stage of Buddhahood (byang chub gyi snying po).173

173
The Bod rgya tshig mdzod chen mo provides two definitions for byang chub gyi snying po: 1) Bodhgaya, India
(rgya gar rdo rje gdan) and 2) The level of buddhahood (sangs rgyas kyi go ’phang).

77
[4.0 Self-Power and Other-power]

In sum, the extraordinary qualities of the Land of Bliss pure land are utterly

inconceivable. All those who are born there will see the Thus Gone One seated before the bodhi

tree (byang chub shing gi dbang po), after which they will gain the renunciation and realization

of the noble ones from which they will never regress. On the basis of all [the beings born in the

pure land] possessing immense qualities that far surpass all other noble ones, it is simply

impossible to estimate whether they will progress to the end of the path in this very lifetime or

other such qualities. Therefore, accomplishing self-power (rang stobs)174 the qualities equal in

fortune to the boddhisatvas in the pure land would require countless eons of training. However,

just as how those fortunate ones with faith and aspiration can be led there through the

inconceivable power of the Bliss Gone One Amitābha’s previous prayers and wisdom, similarly,

they are led there through the Compassionate One’s name.175 Acquiring mastery over these vast

qualities after having been led there cannot even be compared to the gains acquired by a

hardworking poor person who is always searching and suddenly finds precious jewels. Thus,

even the path, which is extremely difficult to practice, can be accomplished with ease through

the powers of the inconceivably great fortune of beings and the buddha’s inconceivable wisdom

being set in mutual interdependence. In general, the sutra [tradition] speaks of accelerating the

path in five manners, moving with miraculous speed (phyugs kyi ’gro ba),176 and so forth.177

174
For a discussion on self-power, see Chapter Three.
175
All four editions read tshan, however, I have amended the text to read mtshan.
176
The gangs, ’jam, and bde editions of Sun-like Instructions of a Sage read phyugs kyis ’gro ba (which would mean
to go via cow). However, I presume this to be a mistake for shugs kyis ’gro ba, to move with miraculous powers.
We can see this attested in other texts such as The Concise Sang Offering of Lamé Tukdrub Barché Künsel,
Accomplishing the Guru’s Wisdom Mind, Dispeller of All Obstacles (Thugs sgrub bar chad kun sel gyi bsangs
mchod mdor bsdus) translated by Lhasey Lotsawa. http://lhaseylotsawa.org/no-empowerment-required/ Accessed;
Sept. 21, 2016. The confusion between phyugs (or phyogs) and shugs seems likely given the homonymic nature of
phyugs and shugs in the Khams dialect, assuming Mi pham had a scribe to whom he was dictating his work.
177
Although the five manners (tshul lnga) clearly refer to five ways in which one can speed up one’s progress on the
path, I was unable to locate them in the Chos rnam kun btus.

78
Furthermore, by refining the coarse body through training in mantra, one can attain the [state of]

a knowledge-holder in the desire and form realms. Then, with that as a support, your personal

tutelary deity accepts you, and you are able to completely perfect the results of the [path of]

training and [the path of] no more training. Through the path of Secret Mantra it is said that we

are able to accomplish the fruition of coalescence within a single life in these degenerate

times.178 When we carefully examine this, it would seem that the ability to accomplish the great

purpose with ease through the strength of inconceivable other-power (dngos po’i nus pa) is

something truly fantastical. Yet, just as we are unable to logically prove these [three points of

mantra] to be impossible, there isn’t anything impossible here about attaining such a great

purpose as this with very little difficulty. The fact that the wisdom emanations of the Bliss Gone

One are limitless falls under the power of fact (dngos po stobs) in this system here and the

authentic scriptural sources that prove this are [indeed] valid on this issue. If that is so, then why

do evil intellectuals accept a part of the Bliss Gone One’s teachings—namely, the vast qualities

of the Land of Bliss as taught in the scriptures—while saying that you are unable to be born in

the pure land through such things as hearing the Bliss Gone One’s name [simply] because those

qualities are so vast? These people who reject one part of the scriptures spew childish,

nonsensical hearsay (cal sgrogs) without having developed their intellect to carefully analyze

highly obscure objects of evaluations like scripture. This causes the meaning [contained within]

the Bliss Gone One’s teachings to get mixed up which [only] further weighs down upon worldly

people who are already naturally oppressed with intense doubt. In other words, even [individuals]

with probable doubt,179 who would have taken birth in the pure land through their aspiration to

178
The end times, or degenerate times (snyigs ma’i dus), is the end period of an eon in which beings suffer from the
five degenerations (snyigs ma lnga).
179
Probable and improbable doubts refer to the doubt when one thinks something is likely the case and the doubt
when one thinks something is not likely the case, respectively.

79
be born there, will [now instead] give rise to improbable doubt and slide away from the greater

purpose, accumulating the roots of virtue to be born in the pure land, and so forth. Other than

making those who possess an intellectual [thought process] that depends on others to squander

their few aspirations to be born in the pure land, [evil intellectuals] do not speak with any

rational power of fact (dngos stobs rigs pa) 180 whatsoever. As there is nothing that directly

discredits the qualities of the pure land and the two causes to be born there, you simply cannot

explain it saying, “the teachings on the causes are not as they are [stated to be].”

If you unreasonably make connections with your own experience and distrust the causes,

then you will [end up] doubting the pure land’s qualities, the wisdom of the Conqueror, and all

of the profound methods on the path. This will ultimately lead you to fall back from the path

[itself]. Again, that is taught to be the case in the [long] sutra:

Ajita, that being the case, I have performed the duty (mdzad pa) of the Thus Gone
Ones. Now you must strive to be without doubts. Do not doubt that wisdom of the
awakened ones is unhindered and unobscured. Do not enter the prison of jewels
[though it may] possess the highest qualities.181 Ajita, I am entrusting this dharma
discourse to you so that it would not be doubted. Strive in order to prevent the
buddha’s teachings from perishing. Do not muddle the Thus Gone One’s words.
Do not let [the dharma discourse] be harmed at length, become helpless, become
uneasy, suffer, or fall into ruin.

Having come to understand what is said here, you should be wholly joyful and full of aspiration

[thinking] with a mind free from doubts that “a process such as this is [indeed] the power of the

Thus Gone One’s inconceivable wisdom!” Furthermore, those who assert that you cannot be

180
So far Mi pham has used three terms which include dngos: dngos po’i nus pa, dngos po stobs, and dngos po’i
rigs pa.
181
After this line, Mi pham’s text omits several lines from the sūtra: mi pham pa sangs rgyas ’byung ba rnyed par
dka’o/ /chos bstan pa rnyed par dka’o/ /dal ba phun sum tshogs pa rnyed par dka’o/ /mi pham pa ngas khyod la dge
ba’i rtsa ba thams cad kyi pha rol tu phyin pa bsnyad kyis da khyod kyi mgon par sbyor la sgrubs shig/ /
Bka’ ’gyur dpe bsdur ma. Beijing: Krung go’i bod rigs dpe skrun khang, vol. 39, 2006-2009, pp. 777.

80
born [in the pure land] through just faith and aspiration [also] hold that the prayers and wisdom

of the Bliss Gone One lack such power. They are suspicious of authentic scriptures and, hence,

could not be more wrong.

From the [Discourse] Requested by Brahmadatta:

Doubting the buddha is the greatest abyss

Unable to protect the entire world
The small-minded fall away from the teachings
Thus, the helpless head toward the lower realms

Also, from the Pure Land sutra:

Those with [wrong] views and an inferior or sunken [disposition]

Will not be able to find faith in the buddha’s teachings
[Yet] anyone who had previously worshipped (mchod pa) the buddhas
Will become trained in the conduct of the world protectors

Just as a blind person, for instance, cannot recognize a path in the darkness
And is certainly unable to show the way
So too are the Hearers unable to comprehend the buddha’s wisdom
So what need to mention other beings?

[Only] a buddha knows a buddha’s qualities—

Not gods, nāgas, demi-gods, malevolent spirits,182 or the Hearers
A thorough explanation of the buddha’s wisdom
Is not present even on the path of the Solitary Realizers

Even if all beings were to become Bliss Gone Ones

With pure wisdom skilled in ultimate truth
And expound the qualities of just a single buddha
For an eon or, perhaps, even longer

Though they would proclaim on for ten million eons

And have already passed away into complete nirvana
They wouldn’t have found the limit to the buddha’s wisdom
Such is the marvel of the wisdom of the Conqueror!

182
The Tibetan gnod sbyin is the translation of yakṣa, a class of malevolent spirit.

81
 Hence, any person with naturally gifted intellect
Who was to believe in my words
Would master (dbang byas) the heap of the Conqueror’s wisdom
And declare “Indeed is the buddha wise!”

Only rarely does one obtain a human body

Only rarely does a buddha appear [in this world]
Faith and intelligence (shes rab) are not obtained quickly
Thus, you must strive to attain the [great] purpose!

Just as it is taught here, the fortunate who delight in profound issues should know that

inconceivable other-power, the varying degree of effort [required] to accomplish the result

[rebirth in the pure land], is undeniable given the particularities of karma, faculties, good fortune,

and limitless stages of the path. Based on the sutra, you can realize how accomplishing a great

purpose such as this one with little difficulty through the powers of the Thus Gone One’s

wisdom is [certainly] within reason:

Ānanda, you might have discovered the inconceivable ripenings and manifest
formations (mngon par ‘du byed pa) of karma. Yet, no one can possibly
comprehend the limit or consider the extent of the inconceivable virtue, miracles,
and blessings of the Buddha, the Blessed One. Additionally, the realm of
buddhahood (sangs rgyas kyi yul) is classed as (rab tu ’byed pa) [as]
“inconceivable.”

Comparably, it is like the following example. When deity is accomplished (lha grub) by

mantra [recitation], clairvoyance is obtained merely through having the deity place his hands on

the top of one’s head. All of this happens through the power of the mantra. The practitioner did

not need to have had previously accomplished clairvoyant powers through training in meditative

stability or meditative repose (rnam gnas). In the same vein, let’s suppose the practitioner had

already been accomplished prior to this. If that were the case, then what profound difference

could the mantra attain?

82
 Similarly, for anyone who accepts this teaching and doesn’t mistakenly view the power

of sacred substances,183 the beholding statues of the buddhas and bodhisattvas and [subsequent]

blessings, the ability to see the truth through simply having the dharma taught, and other such

things taught in the sutras and tantras, it would be illogical to give rise to doubts regarding the

ways in which you are born in the pure land since these [various types of] processes are [all]

analogous. The fact that those who hear the Bliss Gone One’s name and generate faith are able to

extract vast qualities through simply being born in the Land of Bliss is [solely on account of] the

buddha’s extraordinarily marvelous prayers. Hence, the dharma discourse that teaches such is

also exalted and wondrous. This is just as it is elaborately taught in the sutra, starting from the

opening narrative frame (gleng gzhi), “O Blessed One, your 184 sense faculties are extremely

lucid!”185

[5.0 Conclusion to the theoretical section]

Thus, just like how an obedient son finds meaning in the words of his sage-like father, 186

anyone with great fortune who pays respect to a sutra such as this will pursue faith in the words

of the Bliss Gone One, engage with them properly, and thus, without a doubt, take birth in the

supreme pure land. Alternatively, those fortunate ones who pursue the Dharma, trust in the

words of the Buddha with a strong [sense of] rationality, and give rise to pristine certainty in his

inconceivable wisdom, will be free from doubts when they engage in the intended meaning of

the scriptures, which teaches on highly obscured objects of evaluation. They will thereby acquire

183
Grub ba’i rdzas denotes material substances that are imbued with special powers through practices such as
mantra recitation, etc.
184
It is interesting to note here that the vernacular (phal skad) khyod is used for the buddha instead of the honorific
(zhe sa) khyed.
185
’Od dpag med kyi bkod pa. Bka’ ’gyur dper bsdur ma. Krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe
sdur khang. 108 volumes. Beijing: Krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang, 2006-2009, vol.39, pp. 706.
186
This is the only instance of the term “sage” (drang srong) in the body of the text. Perhaps Mi pham envisioned
himself as a father-like sage in the process of composing this writing.

83
the unparalleled meaning just as it is determined (bcad pa) to be. This is no different from how

someone with eyes can see things thanks to the light of the sun!

As such, the one who possesses [the most] unparalleled, unequaled qualities throughout

[all] objects of knowledge is the Buddha, the Blessed One. The cause that lets you attain that

[state] is the limitless conduct of the bodhisattvas. When someone who has the love that wishes

to protect all beings from degeneration and who desires to train in that [conduct] carefully

inspects, they see how beings are fiercely oppressed by karma and afflictive emotions and are in

lack of exquisiteness such as insight and the like. Thus, they see the best way to easily complete

all the deeds of Samantabhadra for anyone who finds it difficult to practice the profound and vast

paths is [simply] praying to be born in the Land of Bliss. The reason for this is because birth in

the pure land is possible just through faith and aspiration on account of the buddha’s prayers and

wisdom; you will effortlessly attain the exquisite qualities connected with faith after having been

born there; and you will complete the entirety of Samantabhadra’s deeds without the possibility

of ever regressing from the path. Perceiving the actual power (don gyi dbang) of that approach,

the King of Prayers states:

When it comes time for me to die,

Let all my obscurations be dispelled
Directly beholding Limitless Light187
I will go immediately to the Land of Bliss
Having made it to the [pure land]
May all my prayers be fulfilled without exception!

[6.0 The Praxis of the Pure Land]

Indeed, this approach is extremely easily accomplished and more meaningful (don che ba)

than all other [approaches]. You should therefore strive in the types of practice that prepare the

187
The Tibetan reads snang ba mtha’ yas which is an epithet for Amitābha literally meaning “limitless light.”

84
potential (rtsal sbyang) for the Land of Bliss pure land. Those who wish to do so should be

aware that there are both day and night practices.

[6.1 Daytime practices]

During the day, you should take as your object of mindfulness the qualities of the

environment and inhabitants of the buddha-field just as they are described in the sutra. Next,

fervently generate serene faith, faith with the desire to be born there, and faith that trusts in the

profound manner in which [Amitābha] emanates. Focus uninterruptedly on the attributes of the

pure land in your mind. Gather as many stocks of virtue as you are able to and then dedicate

them with the fervent aspiration towards birth in the pure land.

Furthermore, taking this as a pith instruction, you should quickly amass (’dums pa)

infinite accumulations and practice the key points of accumulating [merit and wisdom], purifying,

and increasing—three practices subsumed in the seven limbs. Exert effort in the yoga 188 of

reciting the name of Amitābha, Limitless Light, invoking his enlightened mind by means of

dhāraṇī recitation, performing supplications to him, and other [such practices].

[6.2 Nighttime practices]

During the night, you should lie down to sleep without losing mindfulness of your fervent

aspirations to reside in the pure land and behold the Bliss Gone One. You should come to know

in detail the key points connected with these extraordinary skillful methods—namely, the ways

of preparing the pure land in the daytime and transference during sleep (nyal ’pho). These are to

188
The Tibetan word for yoga is rnal ’byor which, if translated literally, means to connect (’byor ba) with the
natural state (rnal ma). Hence, yoga is the practice which enables one to perform such a feat.

85
be found in the multiple levels of pith instructions in the scriptures and treasure texts of the New

and Ancient schools.189

[6.3 Results of practice]

In brief, after having understood the qualities associated with being born in the pure land

and the way in which you are born there, you should strive to continuously generate as much

faithful diligence (dad brtson) as you can every day and night, and dedicate all roots of virtue

towards being born in the pure land. If you practice in that way, there will be signs. Those of

highest capacity will actually behold the guide Amitābha in this life, receive a prophecy,190 and

gain assurance of being born in the pure land; those of middling capacity will receive blessings

in the way of experience; and even those of lowest capacity will have dreams with the features of

the pure land and the teacher. No matter how trivially [the signs] appear in your dreams due to

your aspirations we should not leave out the possibility of habitual patterning being sowed. You

can be born in the pure land through even the slightest habitual patterning of aspiration due to the

power of the buddha’s prayers. Though you may lack clear signs—let alone repeatedly

engendering faith and aspiration in this life—if someone makes you hear the name of the buddha

on the verge of death and you generate the aspiration to be born in the pure land, you will be

born there. This is so because, no matter how clear your perception may be at the time of death,

they possess an incredible power because of the buddha’s extraordinary prayers. Even

remembering the buddha’s name in the intermediate state (bar do) will cause you to be

immediately born in the pure land since you are easily transformed in the intermediate state and

the power of the buddha’s prayers is extremely great. Needless to say, applying the key points of

189
This line demonstrates Mi pham’s non-sectarian (ris med) background.
190
The prophecy to be born in the pure land prior to death is also mentioned in the King of Prayers.

86
practice in this [life],191 at the moment of death, and in the intermediate state is crucial. It is thus

only logical that anyone with intelligence and good fortune would take as a yogic practice this

foremost method which conveniently draws the marvelous bodhisattva qualities into your

mindstream with little difficulty based on the Bliss Gone One’s teachings.

[7.0 Concluding verses]

1. Having undergone intense study and reflection [with] pure discipline

And fervently gathered the immense accumulations with faithful diligence

You, who has perfected the great conduct192 connected with the Land of Bliss,

Endlessly meditates on the [profound] key points of yoga

2 Your words have encouraged me, precious teacher with unequalled kindness

Even though others’ minds may have already freed themselves

From the hindrances of subtle doubts with regards to

The practical points of preparing the great purpose, the unequalled pure land

3 I still reflected on how I might create infinite goodness

Thus did I strive to compose this [treatise]

Unstained by any motivation that

Intends to validate one’s attachments and negate one’s aversions

191
While Mi pham writes only “in this,” we can assume he means “in this life.” This understanding is similarly
attested in Mi pham’s commentary to Śāntarakṣita’s Ornament of the Middle Way (dbu ma rgyan) where Thomas
Doctor translates it accordingly. Doctor, Thomas H. (trans.) Mipham, Jamgon Ju. Speech of Delight: Mipham's
Commentary of Shantarakshita's Ornament of the Middle Way. Ithaca: Snow Lion Publications, 2004, pp. 39.
192
Here bzang spyod might also be in reference to the King of Prayers since that is one of its many titles.

87
4 May the sunlight of this [treatise’s] accumulated virtue

Dispel the darkness of doubt which obscures

Sublime wisdom, vast and profound, as well as

The immaculate scriptures that bring it about

5 May wandering beings possess the supreme qualities of faith

May the prayers and oceans of wisdom

Of the Bliss Gone One,193 Limitless Light, Protector of Life,194

Be hereby fulfilled exactly as they are

[7.1 Colophon]

Our foremost spiritual guide whose life story of the three trainings inspires (phul du

byung) genuinely possesses mastery over the host of causes for training in the bodhisattva

conduct (spyod pa) in the Land of Bliss is the renowned195 monk [named] Gyaltsen Palzangpo

who is incomparably kind. He prepared me with the basic conditions for writing along with an

auspicious silken scarf and repeatedly encouraged me saying, “compose something like this!”

Based on this, this disciple of his who goes by the name of Mipham Jamyang Namgyal

193
Here I was unsure whether to translate bde bar gshegs pa in the plural or singular on account of whether or not
Amitābha and Amitāyus are identical for Mi pham.
194
Again we have epithets referring to Amitābha and Amitāyus.
195
At first glance, it would seem that grags pa should be connected to the name Rgyal mtshan dpal bzang po since it
is such a common name. However, it cannot be a name here since Kun dga’ bstan pa’i gyal mtshan dpal bzang po is
one of the many names belonging to ’Jam dbyangs mkhyen brtse dbang po (1820-1892) who was Mi pham’s root
teacher or, as he writes, his foremost spiritual guide. Please see Alexander Gardner, "Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo,"
Treasury of Lives, accessed August 20, 2016, http://treasuryoflives.org/biographies/view/Jamyang-Khyentse-
Wangpo/4291.

88
composed [this treatise] in the Tiger’s Nest mountain hermitage196 and offers it in the manner of

the “priest and patron,”197 that is, to repay his kindness. May its virtue lead all beings to the Land

of Bliss pure land! Virtue! Auspiciousness!

196
The full name of this retreat is Rong me dkar mo stag tshang, a treasure site of Mchog gyur gling pa and the
retreat place of Mi pham for thirteen years.
197
It is interesting that Mi pham describes his relationship to his teacher as one of “priest and patron.” For more on
this please see, Chapter Three’s Title and Colophon.

89
Appendix A: Topical Outline

1.0 Title

1.1 Opening homage

2.0 Proving faith and aspiration to be the foremost causes for birth in the pure land

3.0 Responding to objections

3.1 Those of little faith

3.2 Those who think ordinary beings cannot take birth in the pure land

3.3 Those who think being born in the pure land is intended for another time

3.4 Those who think you must first have the realization of a noble one to be born in

the pure land

3.5 Those who think immense accumulations of merit and wisdom are required

4.0 Self-power and other-power

5.0 Conclusion to the theoretical section

6.0 The praxis of the pure land

6.1 Daytime practices

6.2 Nighttime practices

6.3 The result of practice

7.0 Concluding verses

7.1 Colophon

90
 Appendix B: The Critical Edition
འ ་མི་ཕམ་ ིས་མཛད་པའི་བདེ་བ་ཅན་ ི་ཞིང་ ོང་བའི་དད་པ་གསལ་བར་ ེད་པ་

ང་ ོང་ ང་གི་ཉི་མ་ཞེས་ ་བ་དཔེ་བ ར་མ་དང་བཅས་པ་བ གས་སོ།།

༄༅། །1 བདེ་བ་ཅན་ ི་ཞིང་ ོང་བའི་དད་པ་གསལ་བར་ ེད་པ་ ང་ ོང་ ང་གི་ཉི་མ་ཞེས་ ་བ་བ གས་སོ།2

།3 ནོ་མོ་ ་ ་མ ་གྷོ་ ་ཡ།

གང་མཚན་ ་བར་སོན་པའི་ ད་ཅིག་ནས། །4

ང་ཆེན་ལམ་ལས་ ིར་མི་ ོག་པ་སོགས། །

དཔག་མེད་ཡོན་ཏན་ཚགས་ ི་མཆོག་ ིན་པ། །

འོད་མཛད་ཚ་མཐའ་ཡས་པས་འ ོ་འདི་ ོངས།།

དེ་ལ་འདིར་གང་ཟག་ ལ་བ་དང་ ན་པ་ མས་ ིས་དོན་ ་གཉེར་ འི་མཆོག་ནི་ ིད་ཞིར་མི་གནས་པའི་ ་ངན་ལས་འདས་པ་

ཡིན་ལ། ལ་དེའང་ཚགས་ ང་ ས་བདེ་ ག་ ་འཐོབ་པའི་ཐབས་ ི་དམ་པ་ནི་བདེ་བ་ཅན་ ་ 5 ེ་བའི་ 1 ོན་ལམ་གདབ་པ་

ཡིན་ཏེ། ལ་བ་ཉིད་ ི་ ོན་ལམ་ ི་ ོབས་ལས་ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་བར་ ་ཞིང་། ེས་པའི་ ང་ ང་སེམས་དཔའ་ མས་ནི་ ེ་བ་

གཅིག་གིས་ཐོགས་པ་ཤ་ ག་ ་ ར་ལ། གཞན་ལས་ཆེས་ ད་པར་ ་འཕགས་པའི་ཡོན་ཏན་ཚད་མེད་པ་དང་ ན་པའི་བ གས་

1
"ེ་བའི་ ] (ང གངས འཇམ ། omitted, བདེ

91
པ་ཞིང་མཐའ་ཡས་པ་ན་བ གས་པའི་ ལ་བ་ ན་ ིས་ཡང་ཡང་བ གས་པར་དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པའི་བཀའ་ ང་ ི་མ་མེད་པ་

ནས་འ ང་བའི་ ིར་རོ། །དེས་ན་ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་བར་ ་བ་ལ། ་ནི་ཇི་ ད་ ། འོད་དཔག་མེད་པའི་ཞིང་གི་ཡོན་ཏན་བཀོད་པའི་

མདོ་ལས་6 ན་དགའ་བོ། སེམས་ཅན་གང་དག་ཁ་ཅིག་ནི་དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པ་དེ་ མ་པས་ཡང་དང་ཡང་ ་ཡིད་ལ་ ེད་པ་དང་།

དགེ་བའི་ ་བ་མང་པོ་དཔག་ ་མེད་པ་བ ེད་པ་དང་། ང་ བ་ ་སེམས་ཡོངས་ ་བ ོས་ཏེ་འཇིག་ ེན་ ི་ཁམས་དེར་ ེ་བར་

ོན་ལམ་འདེབས་པ་དེ་དག་འཆི་བའི་ ས་ཉེ་བར་གནས་པ་ན 7 ། དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པ་ད ་བཅོམ་པ་ཡང་དག་པར་ ག

ོ ས་པའི་

སངས་ ས་འོད་དཔག་མེད་དེ་དགེ་ ོང་གི་ཚགས་ ་མས་ཡོངས་ ་བ ོར་ཞིང་ 8 མ ན་ ིས་བ ས་ནས་བ གས་པར་འ ར་ཏེ།

དེ་དག་གིས་བཅོམ་ ན་འདས་འོད་དཔག་མེད་དེ་མཐོང་ནས་རབ་ ་དང་བའི་སེམས་ ིས་ཤི་འཕོས་ཏེ། འཇིག་ ེན་ ི་ཁམས་

བདེ་བ་ཅན་དེ་ཉིད་ ་ ེ་བར་འ ར་རོ། །ཞེས་སངས་ ས་འོད་དཔག་མེད་ཡིད་ལ་ ེད་པ་དང་། དགེ་ ་དཔག་མེད་གསོག་པ་

དང་། ང་ བ་ ་སེམས་བ ེད་པ་དང་། དགེ་ ་ མས་ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་བའི་ ིར་བ ོ་ཞིང་ ོན་ལམ་གདབ་པ་དང་ ་བཞི་ག ངས་

པ་ལས། གཙ་བོ་སངས་ ས་ ན་པ་དང་ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་བར་འ ན་པ་གཉིས་ཡིན་ཅིང་། དེའི་ ོགས་ ་དགེ་ ་གསོག་པ་དང་༑ ཐེག་

ཆེན་ ི་རིགས་ ་ངེས་པ་ལ་ ་ན་མེད་པའི་ ང་ བ་ ་སེམས་བ ེད་པ་དང་ 9 གཉིས་ག ངས་སོ། དེས་ན་སངས་ ས་ལ་དད་པ་

ཉིད་གཙ་བོར་བ ན་པའི་ ད་ ། མདོ་དེ་ལས། ན་དགའ་བོ། རིགས་ ི་ འམ་རིགས་ ི་ ་མོ་དག་གིས་ཚ་འདི་ཉིད་ལ་དེ་

བཞིན་གཤེགས་པ་འོད་དཔག་མེད་མཐོང་ཡང་ཅི་མ་ ང་ མ་ ་སེམས་པ་དེས་ ་ན་མེད་པ་ཡང་དག་པར་ ོགས་པའི་ ང་ བ་

་སེམས་བ ེད་ལ། ག་པའི་བསམ་པའི་ ད་ ིས་སངས་ ས་ ི་ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་བར་ ་བའི་ ིར་སེམས་ཡང་དག་པར་བཏད་10 ེ་

དགེ་བའི་ ་བ་ མས་བ ེད་པར་ ་ཞིང་ཡོངས་ ་བ ོ་བར་ འོ།ཞེས་དང་། ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་བའི་འ ན་པ་གཙ་བོར་ 11 བ ན་པའི་

ཆེད་ ་ཡང་མདོ་དེ་ལས། ན་དགའ་བོ་གང་དག་ཡང་དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པ་དེ་ཡང་ཡིད་ལ་ ེད་ཅིང་དགེ་བའི་ ་བ་དཔག་ ་

མེད་པ་ ན་ ་བ ེད་ལ། སངས་ ས་ ི་ཞིང་དེར་སེམས་ཡང་དག་པར་གཏོད་པ་དེ་དག་འཆི་བའི་ ས་ཉེ་བར་གནས་པ་ན། དེ་

92
བཞིན་གཤེགས་པ་ད ་བཅོམ་པ་ཡང་དག་པར་ ོགས་པའི་སངས་ ས་འོད་དཔག་ ་མེད་པ་དེའི་ཁ་དོག་དང་། ད ིབས་དང་། ་

ཞིང་དང་། ཞབས་འ ིང་བ་དགེ་ ོང་གི་དགེ་འ ན་ཅི་འ ་བ་དེ་འ ་བའི་སངས་ ས་ ི་ ལ་པ་དག་མ ན་ ་གནས་པར་

འ ར་ཏེ། དེ་དག་དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པ་མཐོང་བས་རབ་ ་དང་བ་ལ་དམིགས་པའི་ཏིང་ངེ་འཛན་དེ་དང་། བ ེད་པ་མེད་པའི་ ན་

པས་ཤི་འཕོས་ནས་སངས་ ས་ ི་ཞིང་དེ་ཉིད་ ་ ེ་བར་འ ར་རོ། ཞེས་ག ངས་ལ། དེའི་ ིར་དོན་བ ས་ནས་སངས་ ས་ལ་

དད་ཅིང་ཞིང་ཁམས་ ་ ེ་བར་འ ན་པ་གཉིས་གལ་ཆེ་ཞིང་དེ་དང་ ན་ན་ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་བར་བ ན་པ་མདོ་དེ་ལས། ན་དགའ་

བོ༑ སེམས་ཅན་གང་དག་དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པ་དེ་ཐ་ན་སེམས་བ ེད་པ་གཅིག་ཙམ་ ེས་ ་ ན་པར་ ེད་ཅིང་སངས་ ས་ 12 ི་

ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་བར་འདོད་ལ། ཆོས་ཟབ་མོ་དག་འཆད་པ་ན་དཀའ་བ་ཐོབ་ཅིང་ ིད་ ག་པ་མེད་ལ་མི་འགོང་མི་ མ་ཞིང་ཐ་ན་

སེམས་བ ེད་པ་གཅིག་ཙམ་དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པ་འོད་དཔག་མེད་དེ་ཡིད་ལ་ ེད་དེ། འདོད་པ་ཡང་བ ེད་ན་དེ་དག་ ི་ལམ་ན་

དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པ་འོད་དཔག་མེད་དེ་མཐོང་ཞིང་། འཇིག་ ེན་ ི་ཁམས་བདེ་བ་ཅན་དེར་ ེ་བར་འ ར། ་ན་མེད་པ་ཡང་

དག་པར་ ོགས་པའི་ ང་ བ་ལས་ ིར་མི་ ོག་པར་འ ར་རོ། ན་དགའ་བོ་དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པ་དེ་དག་དོན་ ི་དབང་དེ་

གཟིགས་ནས་ ོགས་བ འི་འཇིག་ ེན་ ི་ཁམས་ ངས་མེད་དཔག་ ་མེད་པ་དག་ན་དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པ་འོད་དཔག་མེད་དེའི་

མཚན་ཡང་ཡོངས་ ་བ ོད། བ གས་པ་ཡང་ག ང་། བ ོད་པ་ཡང་ ོགས་སོ། ཞེས་ག ངས་ཤིང་། འཆི་མེད་ ་ ་ལས་ ང་།

འདི་ནས་ བ་ ི་ ོགས་རོལ་ན། །བདེ་བ་ཅན་ ི་འཇིག་ ེན་ཁམས། །དེ་ན་ ོགས་པའི་སངས་ ས་བ གས། །དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་

པ་ཚ་དཔག་མེད། ། ་ཞིག་དེ་ཡི་མཚན་བ ོད་ན། །དེ་ནི་དེ་ ་ ེ་བར་འ ར། ཞེས་པ་ལ་སོགས་པ་བཀའ་ མས་ནས་ཡང་ཡང་

གསལ་པོར་13འ ང་བ་བཞིན་ཡིད་ཆེས་པ་བ ེད་དགོས་ཏེ། དེ་ཡང་ཞིང་དེ་ཡོན་ཏན་ ིས་ ད་པར་འཕགས་པར་ཤེས་ཤིང་། དེ་ ་

འི་ཡོན་ཏན་ ང་བདེ་བར་གཤེགས་པ་དེའི་ ོན་ལམ་དང་ཡེ་ཤེས་ ི་ མ་པར་འ ལ་བ་འབའ་ཞིག་ཡིན་པས་ ེན་དང་བ ེན་

པའི་ ལ་ལ་མོས་པ་ནི་ འི་གཙ་བོ་ ེ། འཆི་མེད་ ་ འི་ག ངས་བ ན་པ་ལས། དད་པའི་རིགས་ ི་ འམ་ ་མོ་གང་ལ་ལ་མོས་

93
པ་དང་། དད་པ་དང་། གོས་པ་མང་བ་དེ་དེར་ ེ་བར་འ ར་ཏེ། ཞེས་དང་། ཞིང་མདོ་ལས། སེམས་ཅན་ཐམས་ཅད་བདེ་བར་

གཤེགས་ ར་ལ། །དམ་པའི་དོན་མཁས་ཡེ་ཤེས་ མ་དག་ ེ། དེ་དག་བ ལ་པའམ་འོན་ཏེ་ ག་པར་ནི། །བདེ་བ་ཅན་ ི་བ གས་

པ་རབ་བ ོད་ ང་། །བ གས་པའི་ ེང་བ་རབ་ ་བ ོད་པ་ན། །བ ལ་པ་ ེ་བ་དེ་དག་ཟད་འ ར་ ི། །བདེ་བ་ཅན་ ི་བ གས་པ་

མཐར་མི་ ིན། །དེ་དག་ ོབས་པའང་ཟད་པར་འ ར་མ་ཡིན། གང་གིས་ ་རབ་ ལ་ ེད་འཇིག་ ེན་ཁམས། །བཤིག་ཅིང་

བཏགས་ཏེ་ ལ་ ་ ས་ ར་པ། །དེ་བས་མང་བའི་འཇིག་ ེན་ཁམས་ ི་ མས། །རིན་ཆེན་བཀང་ ེ་ ིན་པ་ ིན་པས་ནི། །གང་

གིས་དཔག་ ་མེད་པའི་འོད་མཚན་དང་། བདེ་བ་ཅན་ ི་ཡོན་ཏན་ ད་འཕགས་ མས། །ཐོས་ནས་དགའ་ ེ་ཐལ་མོ་ ར་ ེད་

པ། །བསོད་ནམས་འདི་ཡི་ཆར་ཡང་འ ར་མ་ཡིན། །དེ་ ་བས་ན་དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པ་དེའི། །ཡོན་ཏན་ཐོས་ནས་མ ་དང་དད་

ེད་ལ། བདེ་བ་ཅན་ ི་འཇིག་ ེན་ཁམས་མཆོག་ ། །འ ོ་བ་ ་ ིར་མོས་པ་ ག་པོ་ ེད། །གང་གིས་བདེ་བ་ཅན་ ི་འཇིག་ ེན་

ི། །མིང་ཐོས་པ་ཡི་བསོད་ནམས་དེ་ལ་ནི། །ཞིང་མཆོག་ཐ་ ་ཆེན་པོ་དེ་དག་ ན། །ཆ་དང་དཔེར་ཡང་འ ར་མ་ཡིན་ནོ། །གང་

དག་ ལ་བའི་བཀའ་དང་ཤེས་རབ་ཅན། །དེ་དག་དེ་བས་བསོད་ནམས་མང་ ་འ ར། །དོན་དམ་ཐོབ་ ིར་དད་པ་ ་བ་ ེ། །དེ་ ་

བས་ན་ཐོས་ནས་ཡིད་གཉིས་སོལ། །ཞེས་དང་། གཞན་ཡང་། ཆོས་ མས་ཐམས་ཅད་ ེན་བཞིན་ཏེ། འ ན་པའི་ ་ལ་རབ་ ་

གནས། །གང་གིས་ ོན་ལམ་ཅི་བཏང་པ། །དེ་འ འི་འ ས་ ་འཐོབ་པར་འ ར། །ཞེས་དང་། དགེ་བའི་ཆོས་ མས་ཐམས་ཅད་

14
ི༑ ། ་བ་མོས་པར་ བ་པས་ག ངས། །ཞེས་པ་བཞིན་དད་པ་ཉིད་བ ེད་པ་གལ་ཆེ་ལ། དད་པ་དེ་ ལ་བཞིན་མི་ ེ་བའི་

གེགས་ནི། །མ་ ོགས་པ་དང་། ལོག་པར་ ོག་པ། ཐེ་ཚམ་དང་ག མ་ཡིན་པས་དེ་དག་བསལ་བར་ ་དགོས་ཏེ། ༈15 དེ་ཡང་

བདེ་བ་ཅན་ ི་ཞིང་དང་ ོན་པའི་ཡོན་ཏན་ ད་པར་ཅན་མི་ཤེས་ཤིང་མ་ ོགས་པ་དག་ནི། རིགས་ངན་ ན་པོ་ཕལ་ ིས་ནོར་ ་

16
རིན་པོ་ཆེ་དག་གི་ཡོན་ཏན་མི་ཤེས་པའི་ ས་མི་འ ི་མི་ ོལ་བ་དང་འ ་བར་ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་བ ་དོན་ ་མི་གཉེར་བས་ན། ཐོག་

མར་ཞིང་དེའི་ཡོན་ཏན་ མས་ཡང་དག་པའི་ ང་ལས་བ གས་པ་བཞིན་རང་གིས་མཉན་ཞིང་གཞན་ལ་བ ན་པར་ཡང་ ་ ེ།

94
མདོ་ལས། མི་ཕམ་པ་གང་དག་དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པ་ད ་བཅོམ་པ་ཡང་དག་པར་ ོགས་པའི་སངས་ ས་འོད་དཔག་མེད་ ི་

མཚན་ཐོས་པའི་སེམས་ཅན་དེ་དག་ ེད་པ་ཇི་ ེད་ཅིག་ལེགས་པར་ ེད་པ་ལ་ ོས། སེམས་ཅན་གང་དག་དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པ་

འོད་དཔག་མེད་དེ་ལ་ཐ་ན་སེམས་དད་པ་གཅིག་ཙམ་ ེད་པ་དང་། ཆོས་ ི་ མ་ ངས་འདི་ལ་དད་པ་མི་ ེད་པ་ནི་དམན་པ་ལ་

མོས་པར་མི་འ ར་རོ། མི་ཕམ་པ་དེ་ ་བས་ན་ ོད་མོས་པར་ ། ོད་ ིས་ཁོང་ ་ ད་པར་ ་ ེ། ་དང་བཅས་པ་དང་། བ ད་

དང་བཅས་པ་དང་། ཚངས་པ་དང་བཅས་པ་དང་། དགེ་ ོང་དང་ མ་ཟའི་ ེ་ ་དང་བཅས་པའི་འཇིག་ ེན་ ི་མ ན་ ་ཆོས་ ི་

མ་ ངས་འདི་ག ང་བ་དང་། བཅང་བ་དང་། བ ག་པ་དང་། ན་ བ་པར་ ་དང་། གཞན་དག་ལ་ཡང་ ་ཆེར་ཡང་དག་པར་

བ ན་པར་ ་བ་དང་། བ ོམ་པ་ལ་མངོན་པར་དགའ་བར་ འོ། །མི་ཕམ་པ་ཆོས་ ི་ མ་ ངས་འདི་ཉིན་ཞག་གཅིག་ཙམ་ཡང་

བ ང་ཞིང་བཅངས་ཏེ། བ གས་ཤིང་ ན་ བ་པར་ ས་ལ་བསམ་པ་ཐག་པ་ནས་གཞན་དག་ལ་ཡང་ ་ཆེར་ཡང་དག་པར་བཤད་

པར་ འོ། །ཐ་ན་ ེགས་བམ་ལ་ལེགས་པར་ ིས་ཏེ་བཅང་བར་ ་ཞིང་ ོན་པའི་འ ་ཤེས་ ང་བ ེད་པར་ འོ། །གང་ཞིག་སེམས་

ཅན་དཔག་ ་མེད་པ་དག་ ར་ ་ ་ན་མེད་པ་ཡང་དག་པ་ ོགས་པའི་ ང་ བ་ལས་ ིར་མི་ ོག་པ་ལ་དགོད་པ་དང་། བཅོམ་

ན་འདས་དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པ་ཚ་དཔག་མེད་དེ་ལ་ ་བ་དང་། བདག་ཉིད་ ང་སངས་ ས་ ི་ཞིང་གི་ཡོན་ཏན་ ི་ ན་བཀོད་

པ་ ན་ མ་ཚགས་པ་ ད་པར་ ་འཕགས་པ་ཡོངས་ ་ག ང་བར་འདོད་པ་དེས་ཆོས་ ི་ མ་ ངས་འདི་མཉན་པའི་ ིར་ ོང་

17
ག མ་ ི་ ོང་ཆེན་པོའ་འཇིག་ ེན་ ི་ཁམས་མེས་ཡོངས་ ་གང་བ་ལས་བ ལ་ཏེ། ཆོས་ ི་ མ་ ངས་འདི་མཉན་པར་

འོ༑ ༑ཐོས་ནས་ ང་གཡོར་མ་ ང་བའི་ 18 ད་ ིས་བསམ་པ་ཐག་པ་ནས་ ེས་ ་དགའ་བར་ འོ། །ཆོས་ ི་ མ་ ངས་འདི་

ག ང་བ་19དང་། ན་ བ་པར་ ་བ་དང་། བཅང་བར་ ་བ་དང་། ཡི་གེར་འ ི་བ་དང་། བ ོམ་པའི་ ིར་བ ོན་འ ས་ བས་པོ་

ཆེ་ཆེན་པོ་བ མ་པར་ འོ། །ཐ་ན་བ་གཅིག་འཇོས་པ་དེ་ ིད་ ་ཡང་གཞན་དག་ལ་བ ོད་པར་ འོ། ། ོང་ག མ་ ི་ ོང་ཆེན་

པོའ་འཇིག་ ེན་ ི་ཁམས་མེས་ཡོངས་ ་གང་བ་དེ་བ ལ་ནས་ ང་འ ོད་པ་དང་ ན་པའི་སེམས་གཅིག་ ང་བ ེད་པར་ 20 མི་

95
 འོ༑ །དེའི་ཅིའི་ ིར་ཞེ་ན། མི་ཕམ་པ་འདི་ ར་ ང་ བ་སེམས་དཔའ་ ེ་བ་ ག་ 21 ིག་ ག་ ་མ་དག་ཆོས་ ི་ མ་ ངས་ ་

ཆེན་པོ་ མ་པ་འདི་ ་ ་འདི་ཉན་ཅིང་ ་ན་མེད་པ་ཡང་དག་པར་ ོགས་པའི་ ང་ བ་ལས་ ིར་མི་ ོག་པའི་ ིར་རོ། །ཞེས་

ག ངས་པ་བཞིན་ནོ།། ༈22 གལ་ཏེ་ཆོས་ ི་ མ་ ངས་འདི་ ་ ་ཐོས་ ང་ ོན་ཚགས་མ་བསགས་པ་དག་མོས་པར་མི་

འ ར་ལ། དེ་ཡང་ཇི་ ད་བཤད་པའི་དོན་ལ་ལོག་པར་ ་བ་ནི་ ི་རོལ་ ་ ེགས་ཅན་ ་ ་ ེ། དེ་དག་ལ་ ང་ཙམ་ཚད་མར་སོང་

བ་མིན་ཡང་། ཡང་དག་པའི་ ང་གི་དོན་ལ་ག ག་པའི་ ིར་ཐབས་ ིས་ག ལ་བར་ ་བའམ། རིགས་པའི་ ོ་ནས་ག ལ་བར་ ་

བ་ལ་རིམ་པ་བཞིན་ ་འ ལ་ལ་སོགས་པས་བ ན་པ་འདི་ལ་འ ད་པའམ། ཡང་དག་པའི་རིགས་ལམ་ནས་ ོན་པ་ཚད་མའི་

ེས་ ་དང་། བ ན་པ་ མ་ ོལ་ ི་འ ག་ངོགས་ ་ལེགས་པར་བ བས་ནས། ེ་ ག་ ་སངས་ ས་ ི་ ོན་ལམ་དང་ཡེ་ཤེས་

བསམ་ ིས་མི་ བ་པའི་ ལ་ལ་ངེས་པ་བ ེད་པའི་ ོ་ནས་ད ད་པ་ག མ་ ིས་དག་པའི་ ང་བདེ་བ་ཅན་ ི་ཞིང་བཀོད་པའི་

མདོ་ལ་སོགས་པ་ མས་ ང་གཞལ་ ་ཤིང་ ་ ོག་ ར་ལ་མི་བ ་བའི་ ང་ མ་དག་ ་ཡིད་ཆེས་པ་བ ེད་པར་ ་དགོས་

སོ། །23 ༈24 གལ་ཏེ་ཆོས་འདི་པར་25ཁས་འཆེ་བ་དག་ ང་དམན་པ་ལ་མོས་པའི་དབང་གིས་དག་པའི་ཞིང་གི་ཡོན་ཏན་ ་ཆེ་

བ་ཐོས་ནས་འདི་ ་ འི་ཞིང་ ་ ེ་བ་ལ་འཕགས་པ་ཁོ་ན་མ་གཏོགས་སོ་སོའ་ ེ་བོ་དག་གིས་སངས་ ས་ ི་མཚན་བ ང་བ་

སོགས་ ིས་ ེ་བར་མི་ ས་སམ་ མ་ ་སེམས་ཐེ་ཚམ་དང་བཅས་ཤིང་ ་བ་དག་ནི་དོན་ཆེན་པོ་ལས་ཉམས་པར་རིག་པར་ ་ ེ།

དེའི་ ལ་ནི་སོ་སོ་ ེ་བོ་དག་ ང་དད་པ་དང་འ ན་པའི་ ོབས་ལས་ཞིང་འདིར་ ེ་བ་ཡོད་པ་སོགས་ ང་གིས་ཤེས་པར་ ་བ་ན།

ཇི་ ད་ ༑ གནས་ག མ་པར་ནི་འཕོ་བ་ན། །བ ན་བཅོས་ལེན་པ་རིགས་ ན་ཡིན། །26ཞེས་ག ངས་པ་ ར་གཞལ་ ་ཤིན་ ་

ོག་ ་ ར་འདི་ ་ ་ལ་མི་བ ་བའི་ ང་ཉིད་ལ་བ ེན་ནས་དོན་ཆེན་པོའ་ ལ་ལ་འ ག་པ་ཁོ་ན་དམ་པ་ མས་ ི་ ོལ་ཡིན་

ནོ། །དེའི་ ིར་ཞིང་འདིའི་ ོད་བ ད་ ི་ཡོན་ཏན་ཤིན་ ་ ་ཆེ་བ་ཡང་ཡིན་ལ། བདེ་བར་གཤེགས་པ་འོད་དཔག་མེད་ ི་མཚན་

ཐོས་ནས་ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་བར་འ ན་པ་ མས་ངེས་པར་ ེ་བའང་ཡིན་པ་ནི་ ོན་བདེ་བར་གཤེགས་པ་འཇིག་ ེན་དབང་ ག་ ལ་

96
པོའ་ ང་ ་དགེ་ ོང་ཆོས་ ི་འ ང་གནས་ཞེས་ ་བས་སངས་ ས་ ི་ཞིང་ ེ་བ་ ག་ ིག་བ ་ ོང་ ག་བ ད་ ་ ་གཅིག་གི་

བཀོད་པ་ ན་ མ་ཚགས་པ་མ་ ས་པ་ཚང་ཞིང་དེ་ལས་ ང་ཆེས་ ད་པར་འཕགས་པའི་ཞིང་ཁམས་ཡོངས་ ་བ ང་ནས། ོན་

ལམ་ཆེན་པོ་བཏབ་པ་དེ་དག་ཡོངས་ ་ ོགས་པར་ ་བའི་ ིར་ ང་ བ་སེམས་དཔའི་ ོད་པ་ཚད་དཔག་ ་མེད་པ་ལ་བ བ་པ་

མཐར་ ིན་ནས། ད་ ་ ོན་ ི་ ོན་ལམ་བཏབ་པ་ཡོངས་ ་ བ་ ེ་ཞིང་ཁམས་བདེ་བ་ཅན་ཞེས་ ་བར་སངས་ ས་ནས་འཚ་

ཞིང་གཞེས་ལ་ཆོས་ ང་ ོན་པ་ཡིན་པའི་ ིར་སངས་ ས་དེའི་ ོན་ལམ་ ི་མ ་ལས་ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་ ་ལ་ ེས་ན་དོན་ཆེ་བ་ཡིན་

པར་རིག་པར་ ་དགོས་ཏེ། མདོ་ལས། བཅོམ་ ན་འདས་གལ་ཏེ་བདག་ ང་ བ་ཐོབ་པའི་ཚ། སངས་ ས་ ི་ཞིང་ ངས་མ་

མཆིས་དཔག་ ་མ་མཆིས་པ་དག་ན་སེམས་ཅན་གང་དག་གིས་བདག་གི་མིང་ཐོས་ནས། སངས་ ས་ ི་ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་བར་བ ི་

བའི་ ད་ ་སེམས་གཏོང་ཞིང་དགེ་བའི་ ་བ་ མས་ ང་ཡོངས་ ་བ ོ་བར་བ ིད་ན་མཚམས་མ་མཆིས་པར་བ ིད་པ་དང་།

དམ་པའི་ཆོས་ ང་བའི་ ིབ་པས་བ ིབས་པའི་སེམས་ཅན་ མས་མ་གཏོགས་པར་དེ་དག་ཐ་ན་སེམས་བ ེད་པའི་འ ར་བ་

བ ས་སངས་ ས་ ི་ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་བར་མ་ ར་པ་དེ་ ིད་ ་བདག་ ་ན་མེད་པ་ཡང་དག་པ་ ོགས་པའི་ ང་ ང་མངོན་པར་

ོགས་པར་འཚང་ ་བར་མི་བ ིའོ། །ཞེས་པ་ལ་སོགས་པ་དང་གོང་ ་ཇི་ ད་ ་བཞི་བ ན་པ་སོགས་ ང་གིས་ངེས་པར་

འོ། །དེ་ལ་འདི་ མ་ ་ཞིང་འདི་ནི་དག་པའི་ཞིང་གཞན་ལས་ ང་ ད་པར་འཕགས་ཤིང་དེར་ ེས་པ་ཐམས་ཅད་ག ངས་དང་

ཏིང་ངེ་འཛན་དང་མངོན་པར་ཤེས་པ་ལ་སོགས་པའི་ཡོན་ཏན་ཚད་མེད་པ་དང་ ན་པ་ཤ་ ག་ཡིན་པས་འཕགས་པ་མིན་པ་དག་

དེར་ ེ་བར་མི་ ས་ མ་ན། དེར་ ེས་པ་ མས་ནི་ཡོན་ཏན་དེ་ ་ ་དང་ ན་པ་སོགས་ ང་ལས་འ ང་བ་བཞིན་འདོད་ན། དེར་

ེ་བའི་ ་ཡང་ ང་བཞིན་ཅིའི་ ིར་མི་འདོད་དེ། ཡོན་ཏན་ཤིན་ ་ཆེ་བ་དེ་ ་ འང་ཚགས་ ང་ ས་འ བ་པ་ནི་སངས་ ས་ ི་

ོན་ལམ་དང་ཡེ་ཤེས་ ི་མ ར་བ ་བར་ ་ ེ། སེམས་ཅན་རང་རང་གི་ ོབས་ ིན་པ་ཁོ་ན་ལས་ ང་བ་མིན་ནོ། །གལ་ཏེ་སངས་

ས་ ི་མཚན་བ ོད་པས་ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་བ་ ་ ་སོགས་ ས་གཞན་ལ་དགོངས་པའོ། །ཞེས་བཤད་པ་ཡོད་པས་ན་ནམ་ཞིག་འཕགས་

97
ས་ཐོབ་ནས་གཟོད་ ེ་བ་ལ་དགོངས་སོ་ཞེ་ན། སངས་ ས་ ི་མཚན་བ ོད་པས་སངས་ ས་ ི་ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་བར་ག ངས་པ་ ་ ་

ཁ་ཅིག་མཚན་བ ོད་པ་ཙམ་ ིས་ཚ་དེ་འཕོས་མ་ཐག་ ་དེར་ ེ་ངེས་པ་མིན་ ང་། ནམ་ཞིག་ ེ་བར་ངེས་པས་ག ང་དེ་ཉིད་

ནམ་ཡང་བ ་བ་མེད་ལ། དད་པ་སོགས་ ོབས་ ་ ར་ན་ཁ་ཅིག་ཚ་འཕོས་མ་ཐག་ ་ ེ་བའང་ཡོད་པས་ན་འཕོས་ནས་དེར་ ེ་

ག ངས་པའང་ ན་མེད་ཅིང་ ས་གཞན་ ེ་བ་ལ་ཡང་དགོངས་ཞེས་བཤད་ ི། སངས་ ས་ ི་མཚན་བ ོད་པས་ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་བ་

སོགས་ལན་ ངས་གཞན་ ི་ ས་ ་ ིན་པ་ཁོ་ན་ཞེས་ ་ཞིག་གིས་འཆད་ ས་ཏེ་གང་ཟག་གི་ལས་དང་ ལ་བ་དང་དབང་པོའ་

རིམ་པ་ཚད་མེད་ལ། སངས་ ས་ ི་ མ་པར་འ ལ་པའང་ཚད་མེད་ཅིང་། ཚ་འདི་བ ེས་མ་ཐག་ ་དག་པའི་ཞིང་ ་ ེ་བར་

སངས་ ས་ ི་མཚན་ཐོས་པ་དག་གིས་27 ེད་པ་ཡང་ ིད་པ་ལ་རིགས་པས་བ ོག་ ་མེད་པའི་ ིར་རོ། །གལ་ཏེ་ ོམ་པ་ལ་སོགས་

པ་འཕགས་པའི་ ོགས་པ་ ེད་ ས་ ི་ཡོན་ཏན་ ད་པར་ཅན་ད་ ་མ་མཐོང་བས་ན། ཤི་ནས་ ང་དེ་མ་ཐག་ ་ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་མི་

ས་ མ་ན། ཚ་འདིར་ལམ་བ ོམས་པར་འཕགས་ལམ་ ི་ ོགས་པ་མངོན་ ་ ར་པའམ། འ ར་མ་རག་པ་ཞིག་ལ་སངས་ ས་

ི་མཚན་ཐོས་པ་སོགས་ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་བའི་ ་གཞན་ཚགས་ ང་ལ་དོན་ཆེན་པོ་ཅན་འགའ་གསར་ ་བ ན་པ་མེད་ ང་ཞིང་

དག་པར་ ེ་བ་ལ་ཐེ་ཚམ་ཡང་མེད་ན། འདིར་ནི་མདོ་ལས་མཚམས་མེད་ ེད་པ་དང་། ཆོས་ ོང་གི་ ིབ་ཅན་མ་གཏོགས་ཞེས་སོ་

ེ་ལ་དམིགས་ ིས་བསལ་བ་དང་། ཐེ་ཚམ་ཟ་བཞིན་པའང་སངས་ ས་ ི་མཚན་ཐོས་པ་དང་། སེམས་དད་པ་2ཙམ་དེས་ཞིང་

དེར་ ེ་བའི་ ལ་ག ངས་པས་ན། སོ་སོ་ ེ་བོ་མཚན་ཐོས་ཤིང་ ོན་ལམ་འདེབས་པ་དག་ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་བའི་ ལ་ག ངས་ ི་

འཕགས་པ་གང་དག་སངས་ ས་ ི་མཚན་ཐོས་ཤིང་ ོན་འདེབས་པ་ ེ་བའི་ ལ་ ་མ་ག ངས་སོ། གལ་ཏེ་སོ་ ེའི་ ས་ན་ ོན་

ལམ་བཏབ་པའི་ ས་ ོན་ ་འཕགས་ས་ཐོབ་ལ། དེ་ནས་གདོད་བདེ་བ་ཅན་ ་ ེ་བ་ལ་དགོངས་ མ་ན་མདོ་ལས་དད་འ ན་ ི་

བ
ོ ས་ཁོ་ནས་ ེ་བར་ཅི་ ེ་བཤད། གལ་ཏེ་དད་འ ན་ ི་ ོབས་ལས་མི་ ེ་ན་ཡང་དད་འ ན་བ ེད་ན་རིམ་ ིས་འཕགས་པའི་

2
དད་པ ] (ང གངས འཇམ ། དང་བ བདེ

98
 ོགས་པ་ཐོབ་ཅིང་དེ་ནས་ ེ་བའི་ ིར་མདོ་དེ་ནི་དགོངས་པ་ཅན་ནོ་ མ་ན། དད་འ ན་ཙམ་ ིས་ ེ་བར་ག ངས་པའི་ ང་

28
དོན་ལ་དངོས་ ་གནོད་པའི་རིགས་པ་མེད་དེ། སངས་ ས་ ི་ ོན་ལམ་དང་ཡེ་ཤེས་ ི་ ོབས་ལས་མཚན་ཐོས་ཤིང་འ ན་པ་

བ ེད་ན་ ་དེ་དག་གི་ ོབས་ཁོ་ན་ལས་འཆི་བའི་ཚ་བདེ་བར་གཤེགས་པའི་ ལ་པ་མཐོང་ནས་དེ་ལ་དད་པས་དམིགས་ཤིང་། མི་

བ ེད་པའི་ ན་པ་སོགས་དབང་པོ་ ་ ོབས་ ་ ར་པས་ ས་ ང་ ་དེ་ཉིད་ ་འཕགས་པའི་ལམ་ ི་ ོགས་པ་བ ེད་ ས་ ་

འ ར་བ་ཡོད་དེ། དཔེར་ན་ གས་ ིས་བཏབ་པའི་ས་བོན་ ར་ ་ ིན་པ་བཞིན་ ་ཚགས་ ང་ ས་ ང་འཕགས་ལམ་ ི་ ོགས་

པ་ཐོད་ ལ་ ་འ ེན་པ་ ིད་པའི་ ིར། དེ་ ་མིན་ན་གསང་ གས་ ི་ཐབས་ཟམ་མོ་ མས་དང་། རིག་29 གས་ ི་ཡོན་ཏན་ཟབ་

མོ་དག་དང་། བདེ་བར་གཤེགས་པའི་ མ་འ ལ་ཟབ་མོ་ མས་ལ་ཡིད་གཉིས་ ་འ ར་ཏེ། དེ་དག་གིས་ཚགས་ ང་ལ་དོན་ཆེན་

པོ་བདེ་ ག་ ་ ེད་པ་མི་ ིད་པའི་ ིར་རོ། །གལ་ཏེ་ ིད་ན་བ བ་ འང་ ིད་པར་འ ར་ཏེ། དཔེར་ན་ ་བོ་གང་ ་དང་ཡ་ ན་

འ ས་པར་མ་ ད་ཤི་བ་ག གས་ཁམས་ ་ ེས་པའི་ལོ་ ས་བཞིན་ཏེ། དེ་དག་ ་ ོམས་འ ག་ ོན་ ་ བ་པ་མེད་ ང་ཕན་

ན་བ ེ་བའི་བསམ་པ་ གས་ ག་པའི་དགེ་བའི་མ ས་ ས་དེ་ཉིད་ ་བསམ་གཏན་ བ་ནས་ ར་ ེས་པ་དང་། གཞན་ཡང་

བ ལ་པ་འཇིག་པའི་ ས་ ་མི་ མས་ ིས་ཆོས་ཉིད་ ི་ ོབས་ལས་བསམ་གཏན་ཚགས་མེད་པར་ བ་པ་དང་། དེ་བཞིན་

གཤེགས་པ་དང་ ང་ བ་སེམས་དཔའི་ ག་ ི་བོར་བཞག་པ་ཙམ་ ིས་བ ལ་པར་ཡང་འ བ་པར་དཀའ་བའི་ཏིང་ངེ་འཛན་ལ་

སོགས་པའི་ཡོན་ཏན་ ི་ ད་པར་འ བ་པར་ག ངས་པ་བཞིན་ནོ། །ཡང་གལ་ཏེ་མདོ་ལས་ ང་ཚགས་དཔག་ ་མེད་པ་བསགས་

པ་ཞེས་སོགས་ག ངས་ཤིང་། ོན་ལམ་འ བ་པའི་ ་ཚགས་ལ་རག་ལས་པས་ན་ཚགས་ བས་པོ་ཆེ་དང་མི་ ན་ན་ ོན་ལམ་

བཏབ་པ་སོགས་ ིས་ ེ་མི་ ས་ མ་ན། ིར་ ོན་ལམ་འ བ་པའི་ ་ཚགས་བསག་ཡིན་ཅིང་། ཚགས་བསགས་པ་སོགས་ལས་

དང་དབང་པོ་ ལ་བའི་ ད་པར་བཞིན་ ་ཚ་འདི་བ ེས་མ་ཐག་དང་། ཚ་རབས་གཞན་དང་གཞན་ཅི་རིགས་ ་ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་བ་

ཡོད་པར་འདོད་པ་ཡིན་ལ། འོན་ ང་དད་འ ན་ ག་པོ་དང་ ན་ན་གཞན་ལ་རག་མ་ལས་པར་ཚགས་ བས་པོ་ཆེ་ ་དེ་ཉིད་

99
 ིས་འ མས་པར་འ ར་ཏེ། འདི་ ར་བདེ་བ་ཅན་དང་ ོན་པའི་མཚན་ཐོས་པ་ མས་ནི་ ོན་ཚགས་ ་ཆེན་པོ་བསགས་པ་ཡིན་

པར་མདོ་ལས། མ་འོངས་པའི་ ས་ན་དམ་པའི་ཆོས་རབ་ ་འཇིག་པའི་བར་ ་ཆོས་ ི་ མ་ ངས་ ་ཆེན་པོ་ མ་པ་འདི་ ་ ་

སངས་ ས་ཐམས་ཅད་ ིས་ཡང་དག་པར་བ གས་པ། སངས་ ས་ཐབས་ཅད་ ིས་བ ད

ོ ་པ། སངས་ ས་ཐབས་ཅད་ ིས་གནང་

བ༑ ཐམས་ཅད་མ ེན་པའི་ཡེ་ཤེས་ཆེན་པོ་ ར་ ་ བ་པ་འདི་གང་གི་ ་ལམ་ ་ གས་པའི་སེམས་ཅན་དེ་དག་ནི་ ེད་པ་ཤིན་ ་

ལེགས་པར་ ེད་ཅིང་དགེ་བའི་ ་བ་ མས་བ ེད་པ་དང་། ོན་ ི་ ལ་བ་ལ་ ག་པར་ ་བ་ ས་པ་དང་། སངས་ ས་ ི་ ིན་ ི་

བས་ ིས་ ིན་ ིས་བ བ་པར་འ ར་རོ། །ཐོས་ནས་ ང་དགའ་བ་དང་། མཆོག་ ་དགའ་བ་ ་ཆེན་པོ་ཐོབ་པ་དང་། འཛན་པ་

དང་། འཆང་བ་དང་། ོག་པ་དང་། ན་ བ་པར་ ེད་པ་དང་། གཞན་དག་ལ་ཡང་ ་ཆེར་ཡང་དག་པར་རབ་ ་ ོན་པ་དང་།

30
ོམ་པ་ལ་དགའ་བར་འ ར་བ་དང་། ཐ་ན་ཡི་གེར་ ིས་ཏེ་མཆོད་པ་ ེད་པ་ དེ་དག་ ང་བསོད་ནམས་མང་ ་བ ེད་པར་

འ ར་ཏེ། དེ་བ ང་བར་ ་བ་མ་ཡིན་ནོ། །ཞེས་དང་། བསོད་ནམས་དག་ནི་མ་ ས་པ། འདི་འ ་འདི་དག་ཐོས་མི་འ ར། དཔའ་བོ་

གང་དག་ བ་ ར་པ། །དེ་དག་ག ང་འདི་ཐོས་པར་འ ར། །ཞེས་དང་། གང་ཞིག་ཆོས་མཆོག་འདི་འ ་ཐོས་ནས་ནི། །བདེ་

གཤེགས་ ན་པ་དགའ་བ་འཐོབ་པར་འ ར། །གང་ཞིག་སངས་ ས་ ང་ བ་མོས་བ ེད་པ། །དེ་དག་འདས་པའི་ ས་ན་ངེད་དང་

བཤེས༑ །ཞེས་ག ངས་པ་སོགས་ ི་ ང་གི་དོན་བཞིན་ ་ད་ ་ ེད་པར་དཀའ་བ་རིན་པོ་ཆེའི་གཏེར་ ་ འི་བདེ་བར་གཤེགས་

པའི་མཚན་ཐོས་པ་སོགས་ ི་ ལ་ལ་དཔགས་ན་ཚགས་ བས་པོ་ཆེའི་ ་ ོན་ ་སོང་བ་དང་། ར་ཞིང་ཁམས་བདེ་བ་ཅན་ ་

ེ་ངེས་པར་རིག་པར་ ་བ་ཡིན་ཏེ། གཞན་ ་ ེ་བོ་ཕལ་པ་31དག་བདག་གིས་བདག་ཉིད་ ོན་དང་ ི་མའི་གནས་ བས་ན་ཇི་ ་

་ཞིག་ ་ ར་བ་དང་འ ར་བའི་ ལ་དང་། ཐར་པ་32དང་ཐམས་ཅད་མ ེན་པའི་ ལ་བ་33ཡོད་མེད་ནི་ཤེས་པར་མི་ ས་པ་མ་

ཟད༑ ད ་བཅོམ་པ་ཆེན་པོ་ མས་ ིས་ ང་དེ་དག་གི་ ད་ ལ་བཞིན་ ོགས་མི་ ས་ཏེ་ ིམ་བདག་དཔལ་ ེས་ ི་དགེ་ ་

བཞིན་ནོ། །དེས་ན་གང་ཟག་ མས་ ི་ལས་དང་དབང་པོ་ ལ་བའི་ 34 ད་པར་བཞིན་ ་འ ས་ ་ བ་པ་ཡིན་མོད་ ང་། དད་

100
འ ན་ཆེན་པོ་དང་ ན་ན་ ལ་བ་ 35 མེད་པ་མི་ ིད་པར་ཤེས་ ས་སོ། །དེ་ ར་ 36 བདེ་བ་ཅན་དང་འ ེན་པ་འོད་དཔག་མེད་ལ་

དད་པ་བ ེད་པ་དེ་དག་ ང་ཚགས་ ོབས་པོ་ཆེ་འ བ་པར་འ ར་ཏེ། ལ་ ེད་ ི་ཞིང་རིན་པོ་ཆེས་བཀང་ ེ་ ིན་པའི་བསོད་

ནམས་ལས་ ག་པའི་ ལ་མདོ་ལས་ག ངས་པ་ ར་བཀོད་པ་ ་ ་དང་། གཞན་ཡང་བདེ་བར་གཤེགས་པ་དེའི་མཚན་ཐོས་ནས་

ང་ བ་ ི་ལམ་ལས་ ིར་མི་ ོག་པ་དང་། ང་ བ་ ི་ ིང་པོའ་མཐའི་བར་ ་ག ངས་ཐོབ་པ་དང་། ད་མེད་ ་མི་ ེ་བ་དང་།

ཚངས་པར་ ོད་པར་འ ར་བ་དང་། རིགས་བཟང་པོར་འ ར་བ་དང་། ཏིང་ངེ་འཛན་དམ་པ་ཐོབ་པ་དང་། ང་ བ་སེམས་དཔའི་

ོད་པ་ལ་དགའ་བ་དང་། མཆོག་ ་དགའ་བའི་དགེ་བའི་ ་བ་དང་ ད་པ་སོགས་ཡོན་ཏན་ཚད་མེད་པ་འཐོབ་པར་མདོ་ལས་

ག ངས་པའི་ ིར་རོ། ། 37 ༈ 38 དེ་ ར་མདོར་ན་བདེ་བ་ཅན་ ི་ཞིང་འདི་ནི་ཡོན་ཏན་ ི་ ད་པར་ཆེས་བསམ་ ིས་མི་ བ་ལ༑

འདིར་ ེས་པ་ཐམས་ཅད་ ང་ བ་ ི་ཤིང་གི་དབང་པོའ་ ང་ན་བ གས་པའི་དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པ་མཐོང་ནས་འཕགས་པའི་

ང་ ོགས་ ས་ཏེ་ ིར་མི་ ོག་པར་འ ར་ཞིང་། ཐམས་ཅད་འཕགས་པ་གཞན་ལས་ ང་ཆེས་ ད་པར་ ་འཕགས་པའི་ཡོན་

ཏན་ བས་པོ་ཆེ་དང་ ན་པའི་ ོ་ནས་ལམ་ ི་མཐའི་བར་ ་ཚ་འདི་ཉིད་ལ་བ ོད་པར་འ ར་བ་སོགས་ཡོན་ཏན་དཔག་པར་

དཀའ་བ་ཤ་ ག་ཡིན་ཅིང་། དེའི་ ིར་ཞིང་དེའི་ ང་ བ་སེམས་དཔའ་ མས་དང་ ལ་བ་མཉམ་པའི་ཡོན་ཏན་རང་ ོབས་ ིས་

བ་པ་ལ་བ ལ་པ་ ངས་མེད་ ི་ ངས་པ་ 39 ོན་ ་སོང་བ་དགོས་ ང་། འདིར་དད་དང་འ ན་པའི་ ལ་བ་ཅན་དག་ལ་བདེ་

40
བར་གཤེགས་པ་འོད་དཔག་ ་མེད་པའི་ ོན་ ི་ ོན་ལམ་དང་ཡེ་ཤེས་བསམ་ ིས་མི་ བ་པའི་མ ས་ཁོ་ནས་ ངས་པ་

41
བཞིན་ ། གས་ ེ་ཆེན་པོའ་མཚན་ 42 ིས་ཞིང་དེར་ ངས་པར་ ར་ནས་ཡོན་ཏན་ ་ཆེན་པོ་ལ་རང་དབང་འ ོར་པ་ 43 ནི་

ཇི་ ར་ཚགས་ ིས་འཚ་བ་ད ལ་པོ་དག་གི་ ན་རིང་པོའ་ ེད་པ་ མས་ ིས་ ང་ནོར་ ་རིན་པོ་ཆེ་དང་ ད་པ་ཙམ་ ིས་ཐོབ་

འི་འ ོར་པ་ལ་ཆར་ཡང་བ ན་པར་མི་ ས་པ་བཞིན་ནོ། །དེས་ན་སེམས་ཅན་ ི་ ལ་བ་དང་སངས་ ས་ ི་ཡེ་ཤེས་བསམ་ ིས་

མི་ བ་ཅིང་དེ་གཉིས་ཕན་ ལ་ ེན་འ ེལ་ ་ ར་པའི་མ ་ལས་ཤིན་ ་ ང་བར་དཀའ་བའི་ལམ་ཡང་ཚགས་ ང་ ས་འ བ་

101
པ་ཡོད་ལ། ིར་མདོ་ལས་ ང་ གས་3 ི་འ ོ་བ་སོགས་ འི་ ལ་ ་ལམ་ ར་ ་ལ་44ག ངས་པ་དང་། གཞན་ཡང་ གས་ བ་

པས་རགས་ ས་ ངས་མར་ ར་ཏེ་འདོད་ག གས་ ི་རིག་འཛན་ཐོབ་ལ་ ེན་དེར་ ག་པའི་ ས་ ེས་ ་བ ང་བས་ ོབ་པ་དང་

མི་ ོབ་པའི་འ ས་ ་ཡོངས་ ་ ོགས་ ས་པ་དང་། 45 གསང་ གས་ ོ་ ེ་ཐེག་པའི་ལམ་ ིས་ ིགས་ ས་ ི་ཚ་ ང་གཅིག་ ང་

འ ག་གི་འ ས་ ་འ བ་པར་ག ངས་པ་ཡང་ལེགས་པར་ད ད་ན་དངོས་པོའ་ ས་པ་བསམ་ ིས་མི་ བ་པའི་མ ས་དོན་ཤིན་

་ཆེ་བ་དག་ ང་བདེ་ ག་ ་ ེད་ ས་པ་ལ་ངོ་མཚར་ཆེ་བར་ཤེས་ ི། དེ་དག་མི་ ིད་པར་རིགས་པས་བ བ་ ་མི་ ས་པ་བཞིན་

་འདིར་ཡང་འདི་ ་ འི་དོན་ཆེན་པོ་ཚགས་ ང་ ས་ཐོབ་པ་ནི་མི་ ིད་པ་མ་ཡིན་ཏེ། བདེ་བར་གཤེགས་པ་འདིའི་ཡེ་ཤེས་ ི་

མ་འ ལ་ཚད་མེད་པ་ནི་ ལ་འདི་ལ་དངོས་པོ་ ོབས་ ་སོང་བ་ཡིན་ཅིང་། དེའི་ བ་ ེད་ཡང་དག་པའི་ ང་ནི་གནས་འདི་

ལ་ཚད་མར་སོང་བ་ཡིན་ན4། ཅིའི་ ིར་ ག

ོ ་གེ་ངན་པ་དག་གིས་བདེ་བར་གཤེགས་པའི་བཀའི་ ོགས་གཅིག་བདེ་བ་ཅན་ ི་ཡོན་

ཏན་ ་ཆེ་བ་ ང་ལས་འ ང་བ་ ར་ཁས་ ངས་ནས། ཡོན་ཏན་ ་ཆེ་བའི་ ་མཚན་དེ་ལ་བ ེན་ནས་ཞིང་འདིར་བདེ་བར་

5
གཤེགས་པའི་ མཚན་ཐོས་པ་སོགས་ ིས་ ེ་མི་ ས་ཞེས་ ང་གི་ ོགས་གཅིག་ཁས་མི་ལེན་པ་དག་ནི་གཞལ་ ་ཤིན་ ་ ོག་

ར་ལ་ ང་བཞིན་ལེགས་པར་ད ོད་པའི་ ོ་ ོས་ཤེད་མ་ ེ་བར་ ིས་པའི་ཅལ་ ོགས་ ིས་བདེ་བར་གཤེགས་པའི་བཀའི་དོན་

ད གས་ནས་འཇིག་ ེན་པ་ མས་རང་བཞིན་ ི་ཐེ་ཚམ་ ག་པོས་ཟིལ་ ིས་མནན་པ་ལ། ར་ཡང་ ོན་བཏབ་ ེ་ཕལ་ཆེར་

6
དོན་འ ར་ ི་ཐེ་ཚམ་དང་བཅས་བཞིན་ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་བར་འ ན་པས་ ེ་བ་ཡོད་པ་ མས་ ང་དོན་མི་འ ར་ ི་ཐེ་ཚམ་བ ེད་

ནས་ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་བའི་དགེ་ ་གསོག་པ་སོགས་དོན་ཆེན་པོ་ལས་ཉམས་པ་དང་། གཞན་ ི་ ིང་ལ་འཇོག་པའི་ ོ་ ོས་ཅན་ཞིང་

དེར་ ེ་བར་འ ན་པ་གཞན་དག་ ང་ ད་ཟ་བར་ ེད་པ་ཙམ་ལས། དངོས་ ོབས་ ི་རིགས་པ་དང་ ན་པར་ ་བ་གང་ཡང་མེད་

3
1གས ] གངས འཇམ བདེ ། 2ོགས (ང
4
ན ] གངས འཇམ བདེ ། ནོ (ང
5
པའི ] གངས འཇམ བདེ ། པས (ང
6
ཆེར ] གངས འཇམ བདེ ། ཆེན (ང

102
དེ། ཞིང་གི་ཡོན་ཏན་དང་། དེར་ ེ་བའི་ ་གཉིས་ཀ་ལའང་དངོས་ལ་གནོད་ ེད་མེད་པས་ན་ ་བ ན་པ་ནི་དེ་ ར་མིན་ནོ་ཞེས་

མ་པར་གཞག་པར་མི་ ས་སོ། །གལ་ཏེ་རིགས་པ་མེད་པར་རང་གི་ཉམས་དང་ ར་ནས་ ་ལ་ཡིད་མི་ཆེས་ན། མཐར་ཞིང་གི་

ཡོན་ཏན་དང་། ལ་བའི་ཡེ་ཤེས། ལམ་ ི་ཐབས་ཟབ་མོ་ ན་ལའང་ཐེ་ཚམ་ ེས་ནས་ལམ་ལས་ཉམས་པར་འ ར་རོ༑ ༑དེ་ ར་

ཡང་མདོ་ལས། མི་ཕམ་པ་དེ་ ་ན་ངས་དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པའི་མཛད་པ་དེ་ ས་པ་ཡིན་ཏེ། ོད་ ང་ད་ཐེ་ཚམ་མེད་པར་བ ོན་

པར་ ིས་ཤིག །སངས་ ས་ ི་ཡེ་ཤེས་ཆགས་པ་མེད་ཅིང་ ིབ་པ་མེད་པ་ལ་སོམ་ཉི་མ་ཟ་ཞིག ། མ་པ་ཐམས་ཅད་ ི་མཆོག་དང་

ན་པའི་རིན་པོ་ཆེའི་བཙན་རར་ ད་ཏ་རེ་ཞེས་དང་། མི་ཕམ་པ་ཆོས་ ི་ མ་ ངས་འདི་ ད་མི་ཟ་བར་ ་བའི་ ིར་ཡོངས་ ་

གཏད་པ་ཆེན་པོ་ འོ། །སངས་ ས་ ི་ཆོས་མི་ བ་པར་ ་བའི་ ིར་བ ོན་པར་ ིས་ཤིག །དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པའི་བཀའ་མ་

འ གས་པར་ ིས་ཤིག ། ན་རིང་པོར་གནོད་པ་དང་། མི་ཕན་པ་དང་། མི་བདེ་བ་དང་། ག་བ ལ་བ་དང་། ལོག་པར་ ང་བར་

46
འ ར་ 47 ཏ་རེ། ཞེས་ག ངས་པ་བཞིན་ ་ཤེས་པར་ ས་ནས་ ལ་འདི་ ་ ་ནི་དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པའི་ཡེ་ཤེས་བསམ་ ིས་མི་

བ་པའི་མ འོ་ཞེས་ཐེ་ཚམ་མེད་པའི་ཡིད་ ིས་གཅིག་ ་དགའ་ཞིང་འ ན་པར་ ་ ེ། གཞན་ ་ན་དད་འ ན་ཙམ་ ིས་མི་ ེ་

བར་འདོད་པ་དག་གིས་བདེ་བར་གཤེགས་པའི་ ོན་ལམ་དང་ཡེ་ཤེས་ལ་ ས་པ་དེ་ ་ ་མེད་པར་བ ང་ནས་ཡང་དག་པའི་ ང་

48
ལ་ཐེ་ཚམ་ཟ་བ་ཡིན་པས་ཤིན་ ་མི་ ང་ ེ། ཚང་ པས་ ིན་ ིས་ ས་པ་ལས། སངས་ ས་སོམ་ཉི་ཟ་བ་གཡང་སའི་

མཆོག ༑འཇིག་ ེན་ ན་ ི་ བས་ ེད་མི་ ས་ཏེ། ། ོ་ ང་དེ་ནི་བ ན་ལས་ཉམས་ ར་པས། །མགོན་མེད་དེ་ནི་ངན་འ ོར་

འ ོ་བར་འ ར། །ཞེས་དང་། ཞིང་མདོ་ལས། ་བ་ཅན་དང་དམན་དང་ མ་ མས་ ིས། །སངས་ ས་ཆོས་ལ་དད་པ་ ེད་མི་

ས། །གང་དག་ ོན་ ི་སངས་ ས་མཆོད་ ས་པ། །དེ་དག་འཇིག་ ེན་མགོན་ ི་ ོད་ལ་ ོབ། །དཔེར་ན་ ེས་ ་ལོང་བ་49 ན་

ང་ན། །ལམ་ཡང་མི་ཤེས་བ ན་པར་ག་ལ་ ས། །དེ་ ར་ཉན་ཐོས་ཐམས་ཅད་སངས་ ས་ ི། །ཡེ་ཤེས་མི་ ོགས་སེམས་ཅན་

གཞན་ཅི་ ོས༑ །སངས་ ས་ ིས་ནི་སངས་ ས་ཡོན་ཏན་མ ེན། ། ་ ་ ་མིན་གནོད་ ིན་ཉན་ཐོས་མིན། །སངས་ ས་ཡེ་ཤེས་

103
རབ་ ་བཤད་པ་ནི། །རང་སངས་ ས་ ི་ལམ་ཡང་ 50 འདི་མ་ཡིན། །གལ་ཏེ་སེམས་ཅན་ཐམས་ཅད་བདེ་བར་གཤེགས། །ཡེ་ཤེས་

མ་དག་དོན་དམ་མཁས་ ར་ཏེ། །དེ་དག་བ ལ་པའམ་འོན་ཏེ་ ག་པར་ནི། །སངས་ ས་གཅིག་གི་ཡོན་ཏན་ ོད་ ེད་ ང་། །དེ་

དག་རབ་ ་ ་ངན་འདའ་འ ར་ ི། །བ ལ་པ་ ེ་བ་མང་པོར་རབ་བ ོད་ ང་། །སངས་ ས་ཡེ་ཤེས་ཚད་ ེད་མི་འ ར་ཏེ། །དེ་

ར་ ལ་བའི་ཡེ་ཤེས་ངོ་མཚར་ཏོ། །དེ་བས་མཁས་པ་རིག་པའི་རང་བཞིན་མི། །གང་ཞིག་ང་ཡི་ཚག་ལ་ཡིད་ཆེས་ཏེ། ། ལ་བའི་ཡེ་

ཤེས་ ང་པོ་དབང་7 ས་ཏེ། །སངས་ ས་ཉིད་ ིས་མ ེན་ཅེས་ཚག་ ་བ ད

ོ ། །བ ་ལམ་ན་ནི་མི་ཡི་ ས་ ེད་ལ། །བ ་ལམ་ན་ནི་

སངས་ ས་འ ང་བར་འ ར། །དད་དང་ཤེས་རབ་ ནརིང་ ེད་པར་འ ར། །དེ་བས་དོན་ཐོབ་ ་ ིར་བ ོན་འ ས་བ ེད། །ཅེས་

ག ངས་པ་ ར་འདི་ ར་ ལ་བ་དང་ ན་པས་ཟབ་མོའ་གནས་ མས་ལ་དགའ་བ་དག་གིས་ནི། ལས་དང་དབང་པོ་ ལ་བའི་

ད་པར་དང་ལམ་ ི་རིམ་པ་ཚད་མེད་པས་འ ས་ ་འ བ་པ་ལ་ཚགས་ཆེ་ ང་སོགས་དངོས་པོའ་ ས་པ་བསམ་ ིས་མི་ བ་པ་

8 51
དགག་ ་མེད་པར་ཤེས་ཤིག ། དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པའི་ཡེ་ཤེས་ ི་ ོབས་ཚགས་ ང་ ས་དོན་ཆེན་པོ་འདི་ ་ ་ཐོབ་པ་ནི་

འཐད་པར་ ོགས་ ས་ཏེ། མདོ་ལས། ན་དགའ་བོ། ལས་ ི་ མ་པར་ ིན་པ་དང་། ལས་མངོན་པར་འ ་ ེད་པ་བསམ་ ིས་མི་

བ་པ་ནི་ ེད་པར་ ང་གི52 །53སངས་ ས་བཅོམ་ ན་འདས་ མས་ ི་དགེ་བ་དང་། ་འ ལ་དང་། ིན་ ི་ བས་བསམ་ ིས་

མི་ བ་པ་ནི་ ས་ ང་མཐའ་འམ54། ཚད་ ོགས་པའམ། བསམ་པར་མི་ ས་ཏེ། གཞན་ ་ན་སངས་ ས་ ི་ ལ་བསམ་ ིས་མི་

བ་པོ་ཞེས་རབ་ ་འ ེད་དོ། །ཞེས་ག ངས་པ་བཞིན་ཏེ། ཇི་ ར་དཔེར་ན་ གས་ ིས་ ་ བ་པའི་ཚ་ ་དེའི་ ག་ ི་བོར་བཞག་

པ་ཙམ་ ིས་མངོན་པར་ཤེས་པ་ཐོབ་པ་ན་དེ་ གས་ ི་མ ས་ཡིན་ ི། བ་པ་པོས་ ོན་ ་བསམ་གཏན་དང་ མ་གནས་ ངས་

ནས་མངོན་ཤེས་ བ་མ་དགོས་པ་ ་ ་དེ་གལ་ཏེ་རང་གིས་ ོན་ནས་ བ་ཟིན་ན་ གས་ ི་མ ་ཟབ་པའི་ ད་པར་ ང་ཅི་ཞིག་

ཐོབ༑ དེ་བཞིན་ ་ བ་པའི་ ས་ ི་ ས་པ་སོགས་དང་། སངས་ ས་དང་ ང་སེམས་ ི་ ་མཐོང་བ་དང་ ིན་ ིས་བ བས་པ་

7
དབང ] (ང གངས འཇམ ། དཔང བདེ
8
ཤིག ] (ང གངས འཇམ ། ཤིང་། བདེ

104
དང་༑ ཆོས་བ ན་པ་ཙམ་ ིས་བདེན་པ་མཐོང་ ས་པ་སོགས་མདོ་ ད་ལས་ཇི་ ད་ག ང་པ་དེ་དག་ལ་ལོག་པར་མི་ ་བར་

བ ན་པ་འདི་པར་ཁས་འཆེ་ 9 བ་དག་གིས་ཞིང་འདིར་ ེ་བའི་ ལ་ལའང་སོམ་ཉི་ ེད་པར་མི་རིགས་ཏེ། དེ་དག་ ལ་མ ངས་

པའི་ ིར་རོ། །དེས་ན་བདེ་བ་ཅན་ ་ ེས་པ་ཙམ་ ིས་ཐོབ་པའི་ཡོན་ཏན་ ་ཆེ་བ་དག་ ང་ ་བདེ་བར་གཤེགས་པའི་མཚན་ཐོས་

ནས་དད་པ་བ ེད་པ་དག་གིས་འ ེན་ ས་པ་ནི་སངས་ ས་ ི་ ོན་ལམ་ ི་ ད་པར་ཆེས་ ད་ ་ ང་བ་ ེ། དེ་ ིར་དེ་ ་ ་

ོན་པའི་ཆོས་ ི་ མ་ ངས་འདི་ཡང་ཆེས་10 ད་པར་འཕགས་པའི་ངོ་མཚར་དང་ ན་པ་ཡིན་ཏེ། མདོ་ལས། བཅོམ་ ན་འདས་

ོད་ ི་དབང་པོ་ མས་ནི་ཤིན་ ་ ངས། ཞེས་སོགས་ ེང་གཞི་ནས་བ མས་ཏེ་ ས་པར་བ ན་པ་བཞིན་ནོ། །དེས་ན་ ལ་བ་

མཆོག་དང་ ན་པ་མདོ་འདི་ ་ ་ལ་ ས་པ་གང་ཞིག ། ་བ ོ་བ་ཉན་པས་ཕ་ ང་ ོང་གི་ཚག་ལས་དོན་ཐོབ་པ་བཞིན་ ་བདེ་

བར་གཤེགས་པའི་བཀའ་ལ་དད་པའི་ ེས་ ་འ ངས་ནས་ ལ་བཞིན་ གས་པས་ཞིང་ཁམས་མཆོག་ ་ ེ་བ་བ ་མེད་ ་ཐོབ་

པ་དང་། ཡང་ཆོས་ ི་ ེས་ ་འ ངས་ནས་རིགས་པའི་ ོབས་ ིས་སངས་ ས་ ི་བཀའ་ལ་ཡིད་ཆེས་ཤིང་། ཡེ་ཤེས་བསམ་ ིས་

མི་ བ་པ་ལ་ངེས་པ་ མ་དག་ ེས་པའི་ ལ་བ་བཟང་པོ་ མས་ ིས་ཉི་མའི་ ང་བ་ལ་བ ེན་ནས་མིག་དང་ ན་པ་ ་བ་བཞིན་

་གཞལ་ ་ཤིན་ ོག་ ོན་པའི་ ང་དོན་འདི་ ་ ་ལ་ཐེ་ཚམ་མེད་པར་ གས་ 11 པས་ཇི་ ར་བཅད་པའི་དོན་མ ངས་པ་མེད་པ་

ཐོབ་པར་འ ར་བས་ན། འདི་ ར་ཤེས་ ་ མས་ ི་ནང་ན་མི་མཉམ་ཞིང་མ ངས་པ་མེད་པའི་ཡོན་ཏན་དང་ ན་པ་ནི་སངས་

ས་བཅོམ་ ན་འདས་ཡིན་ལ། དེ་ཐོབ་པར་ ེད་པའི་ ་ནི་ ང་ བ་སེམས་དཔའི་ ོད་པ་ཚད་མེད་པ་ཡིན་ཅིང55་། དེ་ལ་བ བ་

པར་འདོད་པ་གང་ཞིག་འ ོ་བ་མཐའ་དག་ ད་པ་ལས་ ོབ་པར་འདོད་པའི་བ ེ་བ་ཅན་ མས་ ིས་ལེགས་པར་གཞིག་པའི་ཚ།

སེམས་ཅན་ མས་ལས་དང་ཉོན་མོངས་ ག་པོས་ཟིལ་ ིས་མནན་ཅིང་། ཤེས་རབ་སོགས་ ལ་ ་ ང་བ་དང་མི་ ན་པས་ལམ་

9
འཆེ ] (ང གངས འཇམ ། མཆེ བདེ
10
ཆེས ] (ང གངས འཇམ ། ཆོས བདེ
11
8གས ] (ང གངས འཇམ ། བ8གས བདེ

105
ཟབ་ཅིང་ ་ཆེ་བ་དག་ ང་ཉམས་འོག་ ་ ད་པར་དཀའ་བ་དག་གིས་ ང་ ན་ ་བཟང་པོའ་ ོད་པ་མ་ ས་པ་དཀའ་བ་མེད་

པར་བདེ་ ག་ ་ ོགས་པར་ ེད་པའི་ཐབས་མཆོག་ ་ ར་པ་ནི་བདེ་བ་ཅན་ ་ ེ་བར་ ོན་ལམ་གདབ་པ་ཡིན་པར་རིག་པར་ ་

ེ། དེའི་ ་མཚན་ཞིང་འདིར་ ེ་བ་ནི་སངས་ ས་ ི་ ོན་ལམ་དང་ཡེ་ཤེས་ ི་ ོབས་ལས་དད་འ ན་ཙམ་ཞིག་གིས་ ས་ལ།

ེས་ནས་དད་སོགས་ ི་ཡོན་ཏན་ ལ་ ་ ང་བ་འབད་པ་མེད་པར་ཐོབ་ཅིང་ལམ་ལས་ཉམས་མི་ ིད་པར་ ན་ ་བཟང་པོའ་

ོད་པ་ཡོངས་ ་ ོགས་པར་འ ར་བའི་ ིར་རོ། །དེས་ན་ ལ་དེ་ ་ འི་དོན་ ི་དབང་གཟིགས་ནས་བཟང་ ོད་ ། བདག་ནི་

འཆི་བའི་ ས་ ེད་ ར་བ56་ན། ། ིབ་པ་ཐམས་ཅད་དག་ནི་ ིར་བསལ་ཏེ། །མངོན་ མ་ ང་བ་མཐའ་ཡས་དེ་མཐོང་ནས༑ ༑བདེ་

བ་ཅན་ ི་ཞིང་དེར་རབ་ ་འ ོ། །དེར་སོང་ནས་ནི་ ོནལམ་འདི་དག་ ང་། །ཐམས་ཅད་མ་ ས་མངོན་ ་འ ར་བར་ཤོག །ཅེས་

ག ངས་སོ། །དེ་ ་བས་ན་ ལ་འདི་ ་ ་བ བ་པར་ཤིན་ ་ ་ལ། ན་ལས་ ང་དོན་ཆེ་བས་ན་བདེ་བ་ཅན་ ི་ཞིང་ ་ ལ་

ོང་བའི་ཉམས་ལེན་ ི་ ལ་ལ་འབད་པ་དག་གིས་ཉིན་མོ་དང་མཚན་མོའ་ཉམས་ལེན་གཉིས་ ་ཤེས་པར་ ས་ལ། ཉིན་པར་

སངས་ ས་ ི་ཞིང་ ེན་དང་བ ེན་པར་བཅས་པའི་ཡོན་ཏན་མདོ་ལས་འ ང་བ་ ར་ ན་པའི་ ལ་ ་ ས་ནས། དེར་དང་བའི་

དད་པ་དང་། ེ་བར་ 57 འདོད་པའི་དད་པ་དང་། མ་འ ལ་ཟབ་མོའ་ ལ་ལ་ཡིད་ཆེས་པའི་དད་པ་ ག་ ་བ ེད་ཅིང་ཞིང་

ཁམས་ ི་ མ་པ་ཡིད་ ལ་ ་ ས་པ་ལ་ ན་ཆགས་ ་དམིགས་ཤིང་། དགེ་བའི་ཚགས་ཇི་ ས་ ་བསགས་ནས་ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་བའི་

འ ན་པ་ ག་པོས་བ ོ་བར་ འོ། །དེ་ཡང་མན་ངག་གི་དབང་ ་ ས་ཏེ་ཚགས་མཐའ་ཡས་པ་ ར་ ་འ མས་པ་བསགས་ ོང་

12
ེལ་ག མ་ ི་གནད་བ ས་པའི་ཡན་ལག་བ ན་ པ་ ་བ་དང་། འོད་དཔག་ ་མེད་པའི་མཚན་ནས་བ ོད་ཅིང་ག ངས་

བ ས་པའི་ ོ་ནས་ གས་དམ་བ ལ་ཞིང་གསོལ་བ་འདེབས་པའི་ ལ་འ ོར་སོགས་ལ་བ ོན་པར་ འོ། །ཡང་མཚན་མོའ་ ས་

་ཞིང་ཁམས་དེར་གནས་ཤིང་བདེ་བར་གཤེགས་པ་མཐོང་བའི་འ ན་པ་ ག་པོས་ ན་པ་མ་ཉམས་པར་ཉལ་བར་ ས་ ེ༑ ཉིན་

12
བ9ན ] གངས འཇམ བདེ ། འ9ན (ང

106
པར་ཞིང་ ོང་བ་དང་། མཚན་མོ་ཉམ་འཕོའ་ ལ་ཐབས་ ད་པར་ཅན་དང་འ ེལ་བའི་གནད་ མས་ཞིབ་པར་གསར་ ིང་བཀའ་

གཏེར་ ི་མན་ངག་གི་རིམ་པ་མང་ ་བ གས་པ་ལས་ཤེས་པར་ འོ། །མདོར་ན་ཞིང་དེར་ ེས་པའི་ཡོན་ཏན་དང་། ེ་ ས་པའི་

ལ་ཤེས་ནས་ཉིན་མཚན་ ན་ ་དད་བ ོན་ ན་ཆགས་པ་ཇི་ ས་ ་བ ེད་ཅིང་། དགེ་ ་ཐམས་ཅད་ཞིང་དེར་ ེས་བའི་ ིར་

བ ོ་བ་ལ་འབད་པར་ འོ། །དེ་ ར་ ས་ན་རབ་ ིས་ཚ་འདིར་འ ེན་པ་འོད་དཔག་མེད་དངོས་ ་མཐོང་ཞིང་ ང་བ ན་ནས་

ཞིང་ཁམས་དེར་ ེ་བའི་གདེངས་ཐོབ་པ་དང་། འ ིང་གིས་ཉམས་ ི་ ལ་ ་ ིན་ ི་ བས་ཐོབ་པ་དང་། ཐ་མའང་ ི་ལམ་ ་

ཞིང་དང་ ོན་པའི་ མ་པ་ ིས་པ་དག་ནི་ གས་ཡིན་ཏེ། འ ན་པའི་ ོབས་ ིས་ ི་ལམ་ན་ ང་བའང་ཇི་ ར་དམན་ ང་བག་

ཆགས་ཐེབ་པ་ཙམ་མིན་པ་མི་ ིད་པས་འ ན་པའི་བག་ཆགས་ ང་ ་དེས་ ང་ཞིང་ ་ ེ་ ས་ཏེ་སངས་ ས་ ི་ ོན་ལམ་ ི་

མ ་ལས་ཡིན་ནོ། །གལ་ཏེ་ གས་ ི་ མ་པ་གསལ་པོ་མེད་ ང ཚ་འདིར་དད་འ ན་ཡང་ཡང་བ ེད་པ་ ་ཅི་ ོས། འཆི་ཁ་

མའི་ ་ལམ་ ་སངས་ ས་ ི་མཚན་ཐོས་ ་ག ག་ཅིང་ཞིང་དེར་འ ན་པ་བ ེད་ན་ཡང་ ེ་བར་འ ར་ཏེ། འཆི་ཁའི་འ ་ཤེས་

གང་གསལ་བ་ཤིན་ ་ ོབས་དང་ ན་ཅིང་སངས་ ས་འདིའི་ ོན་ལམ་ ད་པར་འཕགས་པའི་ ིར་རོ། བར་དོར་སངས་ ས་ ི་

མཚན་ ན་པས་ ང་འ ལ་ ་ཞིང་དེར་ ེ་བའི་ ་ ེད་དེ། བར་དོའ་གནས་ བས་བ ར་ ་ཞིང སངས་ ས་ ི་ ོན་ལམ་ཤིན་

་ ོབས་ཆེ་བའི་ ིར་རོ། །དེས་ན་འདི་དང་འཆི་ཁ་དང་བར་དོའ་ཉམས་ལེན་ ི་གནད་འདི་ ་ ་ལ་ ེད་པ་གལ་ཆེའོ། །དེས་ན་

གང་དག་ ོ་ ན་ ལ་བ་བཟང་པོ་ མས་ ིས་བདེ་བར་གཤེགས་པའི་བཀའ་འདི་ ་ ་ལ་བ ེན་ནས། ཚགས་ ང་ འི་ ོ་ནས་

ང་ བ་སེམས་དཔའི་ཡོན་ཏན་ ད་ ་ ང་བ་དང་ ད་ལ་བདེ་ ག་ ་འ ེན་པའི་ཐབས་དམ་པ་འདི་ལ་ ལ་འ ོར་ ་ ་བར་

རིགས་སོ། ། ལ་ ིམས་ མ་དག་ཐོས་བསམ་མཆོག་ ་ ངས། །དད་བ ོན་ ག་པོས་ བས་ཆེན་ཚགས་བསགས་ནས། །བདེ་བ་

ཅན་ ི་བཟང་པོར་ ོད་པའི་ ལ། ། ོགས་པའི་ ལ་འ ོར་གནད་ལ་ ག་བ ོམས་པ། ༡ །བཀའ་ ིན་མ ངས་མེད་བཤེས་གཉེན་

རིན་པོ་ཆེའི། །ག ང་གིས་བ ལ་ཚ་ཆགས་ ང་དགག་ བ་ ི། ། ོག་པའི་ ན་ ོང་ ོག་མ་ཡོགས་མེད་པར། དོན་ཆེན་མ ངས་

107
པ་མེད་པའི་ཞིང་ ོང་གི། ༢ །ཉམས་ལེན་གནད་ལ་ ེ་བོ་གཞན་ ི་ ོ། །ཐེ་ཚམ་ ་མོའ་གེགས་ལས་བ ལ་ན་ཡང་། ལེགས་ ས་

ཕ་མཐའ་ ལ་བར་འ ་ ེད་པའི། ། ལ་ལ་བསམས་ནས་འབད་པས་འདི་བ ིས་སོ། ༣ །དེ་ཡི་དགེ་ཚགས་ཉི་མའི་ ང་བ་

ཡིས། །ཟབ་ཅིང་ ་ཆེའི་ཡེ་ཤེས་དམ་པ་དང་། གང་དེའི་ ་མ ན་ག ང་རབ་ ི་མེད་ལ། ིབ་པའི་ཐེ་ཚམ་ ན་པ་ མ་བསལ་ནས།

༤ །འ ོ་ ན་དད་པ་མཆོག་གི་ཡོན་ཏན་དང། ན་པས་འོད་ཟེར་དཔག་མེད་ཚ་ཡི་མགོན། །བདེ་བར་གཤེགས་པ་དེ་ཡི་ ོན་ལམ་

དང། ཡེ་ཤེས་ ་མཚ་ཇི་བཞིན་འ བ་ ར་ཅིག ༥ །ཅེས་པའང་བདག་ཅག་གི་ཐོག་མའི་དགེ་བའི་བཤེས་གཉེན་ཆེན་པོ་བ བ་པ་ག མ་ ི་ མ་

ཐར་ ལ་ ་ ང་ཞིང་། བདེ་བ་ཅན་ ་ ལ་བའི་ ས་ ི་ ོད་པ་ལ་ ོབ་པའི་ ་ཚགས་ལ་མངའ་དབང་ཡང་དག་པར་འ ོར་པ་བཀའ་ ིན་མ ངས་པ་མ་

མཆིས་པའི་དགེ་ ོང་ གས་པ་ ལ་མཚན་དཔལ་བཟང་པོའ ་ཞལ་ ་ནས་འདི་ ་ ་ ིས་ཤིག་ཅེས་བ ་ཤིས་པའི་ ་རེག་དང་བཅས་ ི་གཞིའི་ ེན་ ར་ཏེ་

ཡང་ཡང་བ ལ་བ་ལ་བ ེན་ནས་གང་གི་ ོབ་ ་མི་ཕམ་འཇམ་ད ངས་ མ་ ལ་ཞེས་ ་བས་ ག་ཚང་རི་ ོད་ ་བཀའ་ ིན་གསོ་བའི་མཆོད་ཡོན་ ི་

ལ་ ་ ིས་ཏེ་ ལ་བའི་དགེ་བས་འ ོ་ ན་བདེ་བ་ཅན་ ི་ཞིང་ ་ ེ་བར་ ར་ཅིག །དགེའོ། །བ ་ཤིས་སོ།།

དཔེ་བ ར་མ།

དཔེ་ ན། རིགས། པར་ལོ། གས་མ།

ང་ཏོག པར་མ། 1979 《 ང》

གངས་ཅན་རིག་ག ང་དཔེ་ ིང་ ར་ ོབས་ ན་ཚགས། དཔེ་ག གས། 2007 《 གངས》

འཇམ་དཔལ་དྷི་ཡིག་སེར་པོའ་དཔེ་ ན་ཚགས་པ། དེབ་ག གས། 2008 《འཇམ》

སི་ ིན་དཔེ་ ན་ཚགས་པ། སི་ ོན་མི་རིགས་དཔེ་ ན་ཁང་། དེབ་ག གས། 2007 《བདེ》

108
བ ར་མཆན།

༄༅། ། ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 །
1
omitted, 《བདེ》

སོ། ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 །
2
omitted, 《བདེ》

omitted ] 《འཇམ》《བདེ》 ། ༄༅། ། 《 ང》《གངས》

3

། ] 《 ང》《འཇམ》 ། ༑ 《གངས》《བདེ》
4

་ ] 《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། ་ 《 ང》《བདེ》
5

omitted ]《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། ། 《བདེ》

6

གནས་པ་ན། ]《གངས》《འཇམ》《བདེ》 ། གནས་པར། 《 ང》

7

ཞིང་ ] 《བདེ》 ། ཅིང་ 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》

8

དང་ ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 །
9
omitted, 《བདེ》

བཏད་ ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། བཏང་ 《བདེ》

10

གཙ་བོར ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། གཙ་པོར་ 《བདེ》

11

སངས་ ས ] 《གངས》《འཇམ》《བདེ》 ། སངས་ 《 ང》

12

གསལ་པོར ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། གསལ་བོར 《བདེ》

13

omitted ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། ། 《བདེ》

14

༈ ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 །
15
omitted, 《བདེ》

ེ་བ ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། ེ་པ 《བདེ》

16

omitted ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། ། 《བདེ》

17

ང་བའི ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། ང་པའི 《བདེ》

18

ག ང་བ ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། ག ང་པ 《བདེ》

19

《བདེ》ནང་ ་མི་དགོས་པའི་བར་ ོང་གཅིག་གཞག་ཡོད།

20

ག ] 《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། ག་ 《བདེ》 ། 《 ང》ནང་ ་ཡི་གེ་གསལ་མི་གསལ་བར་ ག་ཞེས་བ ོས་པ་འ །

21

༈ ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 །
22
omitted 《བདེ》

། ]《གངས》《འཇམ》《བདེ》 ། omitted 《 ང》
23

༈ ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 །
24
omitted 《བདེ》

འདི་པར ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། འདི་བར 《བདེ》

25

109
 ། ]《གངས》《འཇམ》《བདེ》 ། omitted 《 ང》
26

གིས ]《གངས》《འཇམ》《བདེ》 ། གས《 ང》

27

omitted ]《གངས》《འཇམ》《བདེ》 ། ། 《 ང》
28

་ ]《གངས》《འཇམ》《བདེ》 ། ་་་ 《 ང》
29

པ ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 །
30
omitted 《བདེ》

པ ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། བ 《བདེ》
31

པ ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། བ 《བདེ》
32

བ ] 《གངས》《འཇམ》《བདེ》 ། པ 《 ང》
33

བ ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། པ 《བདེ》
34

པ ] 《གངས》《འཇམ》《བདེ》 ། བ 《 ང》
35

དེ་ ] 《 ང》《འཇམ》། དེ་ ར 《གངས》《བདེ》

36

37
།། ] 《གངས》《འཇམ》《བདེ》 ། ། 《 ང》

38
༈ ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། omitted 《བདེ》

39
པ ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། བ 《བདེ》

40
ཁོ་ནས ] 《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། ཅོ་ནས 《 ང》《《བདེ》

41
པ ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། བ 《བདེ》

42
མཚན ] ། ཚན 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》《བདེ》
43
པ ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། བ 《བདེ》

44
་ལ ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། ལ 《བདེ》

45
། ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། omitted 《བདེ》

46
པ ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། བ 《བདེ》

47
འ ར ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། ར 《བདེ》

48
ཚངས ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། ཚང 《བདེ》

49
བ ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། པ 《བདེ》

50
ཡང ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། ཡངས 《བདེ》

51
། ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། omitted 《བདེ》

110
52
omitted ]《འཇམ》 ། ། 《 ང》《གངས》《བདེ》

53
། ]《འཇམ》《བདེ》 ། omitted 《 ང》《གངས》

54
མཐའ་འམ ]《འཇམ》《གངས》། མཐའམ 《 ང》《བདེ》

55
ཅིང ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། ཞིང 《བདེ》

56
བ ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། པ 《བདེ》

57
བར ] 《 ང》《གངས》《འཇམ》 ། པར 《བདེ》

111
 Bibliography

Tibetan language sources

Bde smon phyogs bsgrig. 2 vols. Chengdu: Si khron mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 2007.

Bka’ ’gyur dper bsdur ma. Krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe sdur khang.
108 volumes. Beijing: Krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang, 2006-2009.

Gsung ’bum/ mi pham rgya mtsho. Gangtok: Sonam T. Kazi, 1976.

Gsung 'bum/ mi pham rgya mtsho. Paro: Lama Ngodrub and Sherab Drimey, 1984-1993.

Mi pham gsung 'bum las gzhung ’grel skor. Chengdu: ’Jam dpal d+hi yig ser po’i dpe skrun tshogs
pa, 2008.

’Phags pa bde ba can gyi bkod pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo, Toh 115, Degé Kangyur Vol.
51 (mdo sde, Ja), folios 195b-200b.

Rgya mtsho, Mi pham. Gsung ’bum: mi pham rgya mtsho. 32 vols. Chengdu: Gangs can rig gzhung
dpe rnying myur skyob lhan tshogs, 2007.

Dictionaries
Bod rgya tshigs mdzod chen mo. Beijing: Mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 1993.

Negi, J.S. Tibetan-Sanskrit Dictionary: Bod skad dang legs sbyar gyi tshig mdzod chen mo. Benares:
Central Institutes of Higher Tibetan Studies, 1993.
Nor brang o rgyan (editor). Gangs can rig brgya’i chos kyi rnam grangs mthong tshad kun las btus
pa ngo mtshar ’phrul gyi lde mig chen po. Krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug lte gnas kyi tshan rig
zhib ’jug gtsho gnad rnam grangs. 5 Vols. Beijing: Krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang, 2008.

English language sources

Almond, Philip C. The British Discovery of Buddhism. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,
1988.
The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed. New York: Columbia University Press, 2001-07.
www.bartleby.com/65/. Accessed August 15, 2016.

The Display of the Pure Land of Sukhāvatī. Sakya Pandita Translation Group (Trans.). 84000, 2011.
Retrieved from: http://read.84000.co/#!ReadingRoom/UT22084-051-003/16

112
Doctor, Thomas H. (trans.), Mipham, Jamgon Ju. Speech of Delight: Mipham's Commentary of
Shantarakshita's Ornament of the Middle Way. Ithaca: Snow Lion Publications, 2004.

Dudjom Rinpoche. The Nyingma School of Tibetan Buddhism, vol. 1. Translated and edited by
Gyurme Dorje and Matthew Kapstein. Boston: Wisdom Publications, 1991.

Ford, James L. “Jōkei and the Rhetoric of ‘Other-Power’ and ‘Easy Practice’ in Medieval Japanese
Buddhism” in Japanese Journal of Religious Studies 29 (1-2), 2002, pp. 67-106.

Fujita, Kotatsu. “The Origin of the Pure Land” in The Eastern Buddhist, vol. 29, no 1, 1996.

Gomez, Luis O. Land of Bliss: The Paradise of the Buddha of Measureless Light; Sanskrit and
Chinese Versions of the Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtras. Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press, 1996.

Halkias, Georgios T. “Tibetan Buddhism Registered: An Imperial Catalogue from the Palace Temple
of ’Phang-thang,” in The Eastern Buddhist 36 (1-2), 2004.

Halkias, Georgios T. Compassionate Aspirations and Their Fulfillment: Dol-po-pa’s A Prayer for
Birth in Sukhāvatī. In “As Long as Space Endures: Essays on the Kalachakra Tantra in Honor of
His Holiness the Dalai Lama.” Ithaca: Snow Lion Publications, 2009, pp. 259-275.

Halkias, Georgios. "Aspiring for Sukhāvatī in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism: Entering the Dhāraṇī and
Buddhakṣetra of Buddha Aparimitāyus." Journal of Buddhist Studies, vol. XI, 2013.

Halkias, Georgios T. Luminous Bliss: Religious History of Pure Land Literature in Tibet with an
Annotated English Translation and Critical Analysis of the Orgyan-gling Gold Manuscript of the
Short Sukhāvatīvȳuha-sūtra. Honolulu: U of Hawaiʻi, 2013.

Harper, Katherine Anne and Robert L. Brown. The Roots of Tantra. Albany: State U of New York,
2002.

Harrison, Paul M. “Buddhānusmrti in the Pratyutpanna-Buddha-Sammukhāvasthita-samādhi-sūtra.”

Journal of Indian Philosophy 6, 1978, pp. 35-57.

Hirakawa, Akira. “The Rise of Mahāyāna Buddhism and Its Relationship to the Worship of Stupas,”
in Memoirs of the Research Department of the Toyo Bunko, vol. 22, 1963, pp. 57-106.

Jones, Charles B. Review of Halkias, Georgios T., Luminous Bliss: A Religious History of Pure Land
Literature in Tibet. H-Buddhism, H-Net Reviews. February, 2014.

Jones, Charles B. “Toward a Typology of Nien-fo: A Study in Methods of Buddha-Invocation” in

Chinese Pure Land Buddhism, Pacific World, Third Series, vol. 3, 2001.

Karashima, Seishi. “On Amitābha, Amitāyu(s), Sukhāvatī and the Amitābhavyūha” in Bulletin of the
Asia Institute, New Series, 23, 2009.

113
Karetzky, Patricia Eichenbaum. “The Evolition of the Symbolism of the Paradise of the Buddha of
Infinite Life and Its Western Origins,” in Sino-Platonic Papers 76, 1997, 1-28.

Kiyota, Minoru. “Modern Japanese Buddhology: Its History and Problematics” in JIABS vol.7 no.1,
1984.

Köppl, Heidi. Establishing Appearances as Divine: Rongzom Chokyi Zangpo on Reasoning,

Madhyamaka, and Purity. Boston: Shambhala Publications, 2013.

Lalou, Marcelle. “Les textes Bouddhiques au tempes du Roi Khri-sroṅ-lde-bcan” in Journal

Asiatique 241, 1953.

Miller, Willa Blythe. Secrets of the Vajra Body: Dngos po'i gnas lugs and the Apotheosis of the
Body in the Work of Rgyal ba Yang dgon pa. Doctoral dissertation, Harvard University. 2013.

Nattier, Jan. A Few Good Men: The Bodhisattva Path according to The Inquiry of Ugra
(Ugrapariprccha). Honolulu: University of Hawa’i Press, 2005.

Nattier, Jan. "The Realm of Akṣobhya: A Missing Piece in the History of Pure Land
Buddhism." Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies. 23, no. 1, 2000, pp. 71-
102.

Pettit, John Whitney. Mipham's Beacon of Certainty: Illuminating the View of Dzogchen, the Great
Perfection. Boston: Wisdom Publications, 1999.

van Schaik, Sam and Dalton, Jacob. Tibetan Tantric Manuscripts from Dunhuang: A Descriptive
Catalogue of the Stein Collection at the British Library. Leiden: Brill, 2006.

van Schaik, Sam. “The Early Days of the Great Perfection” in Journal of the International
Association of Buddhist Studies. vol. 27 (1), 2004.

Ruegg, David S. “Mchod yon, yon mchod and mchod gnas/yon gnas: On the historiography and
semantics of a Tibetan religio-social and religio-political concept” in Tibetan History and
Language: Studies dedicated to Uray Géza on his Seventieth Birthday, edited by Ernst Steinkellner,
329–351. Wien: Arbeitskreis für Tibetische und Buddhistische Studien Universität Wien, 1991.

Sakai, Naoki. “How do we count a language? Translation and discontinuity” in Translation Studies
2:1, 2009.

Scherrer-Schaub, Cristina. “Enacting Words. A Diplomatic Analysis of the Imperial Decrees and
their Application in the Sgra sbyor bam po gñis pa Tradition” in Journal of the International
Association of Buddhist Studies, 25, 1-2, 2002, pp. 263-340.

Schmidt, Erik. The Light of Wisdom. vol. I, Kathmandu: Rangjung Yeshe Publications, 2001.

114
Schopen, Gregory. Figments and Fragments of Māhāyana Buddhism in India: More Collected
Papers. Honolulu: U of Hawai'i, 2005

Schopen, Gregory.“Sukhāvatī as a Generalized Religious Goal in Sanskrit Mahāyāna Sūtra

Literature” in Indo-Iranian Journal 19, 1977.

Silk, Jonathan A. The Virtues of Amitābha: A Tibetan Praise Poem from Dunhuang. Kyoto:
Ryukoku University, 1993.

Skorupski, Tadeusz. “A Prayer for Rebrith in Sukhāvatī” in The Buddhist Forum. London: SOAS,
University of London, vol. III, 1994, pp. 375-409.

Solomon, Jon. “The Affective Multitude:
 Towards a Transcultural Meaning of Enlightenment” in

Beyond Imperial Aesthetics: Theories of Art and Politics in East Asia, Mayumo Inoue and Steve
Choe, editors. Hong Kong University Press, forthcoming.

Tillemans, Tom. “Dharmakīrti, Āryadeva and Dharmapāla on Scriptural Authority.” In Scripture,

Logic, and Language: Essays on Dharmakīrti and His Tibetan Successors, Pp. 27-36. Boston:
Wisdom Publications, 1999.

Utsuki, Nishu. The Smaller Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra or The Sūtra on the Buddha Amitāyus: Translated
from the Chinese Version of Kumārajīva. Kyoto: Educational Department of the West Hongwanji,
1924. http://web.mit.edu/stclair/www/smaller.html.

Wallace, B. Alan. “Three Dimensions of Buddhist Studies Buddhist Theology” in Critical

Reflections of Contemporary Buddhist Scholars, John Makransky & Roger Jackson, eds., London:
Curzon Press, 1999, pp. 61-77.

Yoshimura, Shyuki. The Denkar-ma: An Oldest Catalogue of the Tibetan Buddhist Canons, with
introductory notes. Kyoto: Ryukoku University, 1950.

115