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The Shorter Devatā Sūtra

Translation of ལྷའ་མད་ཉང་ང (ལྷའི་མདོ་ཉུང་ངུ)

Language
English
Translator
Giuliano Proença
Extent
36 passages, 2,388 words
Text
complete digital text
Source
84000 · Translated by the Pema Yeshé Dé Translation Teamunder the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the… · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 (84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha). Shown whole and unaltered, with its notes, on a…

Contents

Text

84000's introduction

intro.1

While staying in Śrāvastī, the Buddha is approached by an unnamed “divine being,” who inquires as to what behavior merits rebirth in the higher realms. In response, the Buddha explains, in a series of concise and powerful verses, that abandoning each of the ten nonvirtues—killing, taking what is not given, sexual misconduct, telling lies, slander, harsh words, idle talk, covetousness, ill will, and wrong views—and embracing their opposites, the ten virtues, will lead to rebirth in the higher realms.

intro.2

The Shorter Devatā Sūtra (Skt. Alpadevatāsūtra, Tib. lha’i mdo nyung ngu) is a brief sūtra in which the Buddha, while staying in Śrāvasti, is approached by an unnamed divine being (Skt. devatā, Tib. lha), who inquires about what behavior merits rebirth in the higher realms. The Buddha replies with a series of simple and powerful verses in which he states that those who relinquish the ten nonvirtues of body, speech, and mind—killing, taking what is not given, sexual misconduct, telling lies, slander, harsh words, idle talk, covetousness, ill will, and wrong views—and embrace their opposites, the ten virtues, here called “the tenfold path of the good Dharma”, will be reborn in the higher realms.

intro.3

A Sanskrit manuscript fragment of the Alpadevatāsūtra, covering only the initial part of the sūtra, is found among the Gilgit Buddhist manuscripts discovered in 1931.¹ This fragment is written in the proto-Śāradā script that was in use from the seventh century ce and is mostly found in non-Mahāyāna texts. It is believed that the Gilgit manuscripts were written during the Palola Ṣāhi Dynasty (sixth to eighth century ce). In this manuscript, as in the Tshalpa Kangyurs, The Shorter Devatā Sūtra appears immediately after The Devatā Sūtra (Toh 329),² which is slightly longer and shares the general framing narrative and the theme of rebirth in higher realms but is otherwise distinct. Both texts have been published in a number of modern Sanskrit editions, all based on the Gilgit manuscript.³ As compared to the Tibetan, the Sanskrit fragment of the Alpadevatāsūtra has a slightly longer prose introduction, specifying that the devatā who came before the Buddha was beautiful and arrived at night. Otherwise, the three extant Sanskrit stanzas that open the dialogue are very close to the first three verses in the Tibetan translation.

intro.4

The Shorter Devatā Sūtra is extant in two Chinese translations, both of which are found in the Saṃyuktāgama, and are probably based on a Sanskrit text from the (Mūla)sarvāstivāda school. These are sūtra no. 1299 of the Saṃyuktāgama (Za a han jing 雜阿含經, Taishō 99), which was translated by Guṇabhadra during the Song (宋) between 435–443 ce in Jiankang (today’s Nanjing);⁴ and sūtra no. 297 of what is known as the Alternative Saṃyuktāgama (Bie yi za a han jing 別譯雜阿含經, Taishō 100), which was translated earlier during the Three Qin (三秦) period, probably between 385–431 ce, by an unknown translator in the Gansu corridor.⁵ While the Sanskrit and Tibetan correspond in their parsing of the opening three verses, the second Sanskrit verse is instead found as a short prose passage in Taishō 99. However, the opening narrative in both Chinese translations aligns more closely with the Sanskrit than the Tibetan translation.

intro.5

A colophon in Kangyurs of the Tshalpa lineage as well as the Narthang and Lhasa Kangyurs states that the sūtra was translated into Tibetan by the master translator Bandé Yeshé Dé, suggesting a translation from a Sanskrit source. The sūtra is listed among “Hīnayāna” (Tib. theg pa chung ngu) sūtras in the Denkarma imperial catalog,⁶ as well as in the Phangthangma catalog,⁷ confirming that it was translated no later than the early ninth century ce.

intro.6

Although no copy of The Shorter Devatā Sūtra is found among the manuscripts recovered from the cave library at Dunhuang, we know that the teaching on the ten virtues (Tib. dge ba bcu) had considerable prominence in the Tibetan imperial period, when it was established as a public code of ethics that would lay the foundation for Tibetan law (khrims) for centuries to come.⁸

intro.7

The Shorter Devatā Sūtra has been the object of Western scholarly attention since the end of the nineteenth century, when a full French translation from the Tibetan was published by Léon Feer in his Extraits du Kandjour,⁹ together with a short introduction on the subject of the ten virtues. Most modern scholarly attention on the sūtra has been concerned with the Gilgit manuscript. Adelheid Mette published a Sanskrit edition of the fragmentary Shorter Devatā Sūtra along with The Devatā Sūtra (Toh 329), in which the Sanskrit and Tibetan texts are compared, and a partial German translation from the Tibetan is presented. Soon after that publication, Hisashi Matsumura published further Sanskrit editions of the same texts in two separate articles, also based on the facsimile edition of the Gilgit manuscripts, and improving on Mette’s editions.¹⁰ The second of these articles (Matsumura 1983) presents The Shorter Devatā Sūtra with the Sanskrit and Chinese (Taishō 99) texts placed side by side, and in those portions of the text where the Sanskrit is not extant, with the Tibetan and Chinese side by side. Differences are highlighted and references are also made to some textual parallels identified by Fumio Enomoto, such as two corresponding verses in the Gāndhārī Dharmapada.¹¹

intro.8

The Shorter Devatā Sūtra is found in the General Sūtra (mdo sde) section in all Kangyurs of the Tshalpa line, the mixed line, Hemis I, and in the independent Kangyurs, such as the Phukdrak, Langdo, and Namgyal. It is also included in some collections from Western Tibet, such as Tholing and Gondhla. However, it is missing from the Kangyurs of the Thempangma lineage.

intro.9

The Tibetan title, in all editions, is lha’i mdo nyung gu, but the various Kangyurs offer three variants on its Sanskrit title. In most Kangyurs of the Tshalpa line, the title is Alpadevatāsūtra, while the Qianlong and Kangxi have Albalbadevatasūtra and Alpalbadevatasūtra (sic for Alpālpadevatāsūtra) respectively, meaning The Very Short Devatā Sūtra. The Yongle, Hemis I, and independent Kangyurs have Svalpadevatāsūtra, also meaning The Shorter Devatā Sūtra.

intro.10

This translation is based on the Tibetan as found in the General Sūtra (mdo sde) section of the Degé Kangyur, in consultation with the variants recorded in the Comparative Edition (dpe bsdur ma), and other editions such as the Phukdrak, Hemis I, and Gondhla. All significant variations have been recorded in the notes. Matsumura’s annotated edition of the Sanskrit fragment among the Gilgit manuscripts as well as the parallel verses of the Gāndhārī Dharmapada have also been consulted, and where differences with the Tibetan are apparent this has also been recorded in the notes. Léon Feer’s French translation, and Adelheid Mette’s partial German translation were also consulted.

1

Homage to all buddhas and bodhisattvas.

Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was staying in Śrāvastī, in the Jetavana, Anāthapiṇḍada’s Park,

2

when a divine being¹² approached the Blessed One, paid homage by bowing its head to the feet of the Blessed One, and sat down to one side.¹³ Thereupon the divine being asked the Blessed One:¹⁴

“With what discipline, what conduct,
What qualities, what actions,
What manner of living, and what wisdom
Do beings go to the higher realms?”

Touched by compassion for the divine being,
The Teacher told him:
“O divine being, listen to me!
These beings go to the higher realms:

“Those who turn back from killing,
Who uphold the law¹⁵ and delight in restraint,
Who do not harm any beings—
Those beings go to the higher realms.¹⁶

“Those who abandon taking what is not given
And always delight in giving,
Who abandon stealing and do not steal—
Those beings go to the higher realms.

“Those who do not approach the spouses of others,¹⁷
Who abandon sexual misconduct,
Who are satisfied with their spouses—
Those beings go to the higher realms.

“Those who do not tell lies,
Either to steal in the interest of others,¹⁸
Or for their own sake, or out of fear—
Those beings go to the higher realms.

“Those who give up slander,
Which constantly separates¹⁹ friends,
And delight in appreciation²⁰—
Those beings go to the higher realms.

“Those who abandon²¹ hurtful harsh words,
Spoken with contempt,
And who speak with gentle words—
Those beings go to the higher realms.

“Those who abandon
Meaningless and idle talk,
And when appropriate, expound the Dharma—
Those beings go to the higher realms.

“Either in villages or in remote places,²²
Those who do not have any desire
To claim another’s possessions as their own—
Those beings go to the higher realms.

“Those who, with a loving mind,
Do not hurt, and without ill will
Do not harm any being—
Those beings go to the higher realms.

“Those who have confidence and faith
In both karma and the ripening of karma,
And truly hold the correct view—
Those beings go to the higher realms.

3

“These virtuous qualities
Are the tenfold path of the good Dharma.
Those beings who truly uphold them
Will go to the higher realms.

“I do not see many brāhmaṇas who have attained nirvāṇa,
Who have overcome all enemies and fears,
Who have crossed over,
Free from attachment to the world.”²³

After the Blessed One had spoken thus, the divine being rejoiced and praised what the Blessed One had said.

Colophon

Translated, edited, and finalized by the senior editor and translator Bandé Yeshé Dé.

Notes

notes.1

1. Published in facsimile by Raghu Vira and Lokesh Chandra Vira as Gilgit Buddhist Manuscripts. For the Alpadevatāsūtra, see Raghu and Lokesh Chandra, eds. (1974), Part 7, folio 1545, lines 3 to 8.

notes.2

2. The Devatā Sūtra (translated 2023).

notes.3

3. Mette 1981, pp. 139–51; Matsumura 1982; Matsumura 1983.

notes.4

4. See Bingenheimer 2011, p. 44.

notes.5

5. See Bingenheimer 2011, p. 6.

notes.6

6. Denkarma, folio 301.a; Hermann-Pfandt 2008, pp. 164–65.

notes.7

7. Phangthangma 2003, p. 22.

notes.8

8. In Tibetan historiographic tradition, Songtsen Gampo (Tib. srong btsan sgam po), known in earlier sources as Tri Songtsen (Tib. khri srong btsan), is said to have established the law (Tib. khrims) proscribing the ten nonvirtues in the seventh century ce. In the early ninth century, the emperor Ralpachen (Tib. ral pa can) commanded a text on the ten nonvirtues to be copied in every corner of the empire. This may have been the teaching found in a number of extant copies from Dunhuang (such as IOL Tib J 606), a text that has been discussed by Van Schaik that was not included during the later compilation of the Kangyur and Tengyur. See Van Schaik 2016, pp. 13–27.

notes.9

9. See Feer 1883, pp. 189–91.

notes.10

10. The first article (Matsumura 1982) presents an edition of the Devatāsūtra, along with general remarks on both texts, improving upon Mette’s edition. The second (Matsumura 1983) also includes the Alpadevatāsūtra.

notes.11

11. Enomoto (1982, pp. 79–82) examines verses 343 and 344 of the Gāndhārī Dharmapada, comparing them with the setting and the first verse of the Chinese version of The Short Devatāsūtra, as found in Taishō 99, which share the same content and have many elements in common, even in their wording. A similar narrative is also observed in the Mahābhārata (13.132.3–37), in a dialogue between Maheśvara and the goddess Umā when the goddess asks Maheśvara about the causes of being reborn in heaven. Enomoto also compares this, in content and wording, to the Chinese (sūtra no. 1299) from Taishō 99.

notes.12

12. Skt. (Mat.) has, in addition, atikrāṁtavarṇā atikrāntāyāṃ rātryāṃ (“of beautiful appearance, when the night was through”).

notes.13

13. Skt. (Mat.) has, in addition, apīdānīṃ tasyā devatāyā varṇānubhāvena sarvaṃ jetavanam udāreṇāvabhāsena sphuṭam abhūt (“At this moment, through the power of the divine being’s appearance, the whole of Jetavana became filled with exalted splendor”). This accords with the framing narrative of The Devatā Sūtra (Toh 329).

notes.14

14. Skt. (Mat.) reads sā devatā tasyāṃ velāyāṃ gāthāṃ bhāṣate (“At this moment, the divine being utters this verse”).

notes.15

15. D khrims bzung yang dag sdom la dga’. The Sanskrit fragment (Mat.) here reads suśīlāḥ saṃyame ratāḥ. So khrims bzung appears to be a corruption of khrims bzang, “good law,” “good custom,” or “good ethics,” as a rendering of suśīlāḥ. F (Phukdrak Kangyur, folio 119.b) here reads khrims bsrung (“will protect the law”). In translating khrims here as “law,” rather than as “discipline” or “ethics,” (as would be merited by the Sanskrit śīla), we have opted to retain the Tibetan referentiality of the term khrims, since by Tibetan tradition the ten virtues were enshrined as the foundation of law (khrims), both secular and monastic (rgyal khrims and chos khrims), from the Tibetan imperial period onward.

notes.16

16. The Sanskrit fragment (Mat.) ends with this verse. This verse is quoted in full by Desi Sangyé Gyatso in his biography of the Fifth Dalai Lama Ngawang Losang Gyatso (1617–82). See Ngawang Losang Gyatso, pp. 471–72.

notes.17

17. Tib. gzhan gyi chung ma’i thad mi ’gro (“approach the wives of others”). In the English translation, we have preferred the less gender-specific “spouses.”

notes.18

18. F and He here read gzhan gyi nor la rku bya dang (“to steal the wealth of others”). Go has gzhan gyi don la mgu bya (“to satisfy the interest of others”).

notes.19

19. F and He here read grogs po rtag par dbyen byed pa, with the similar meaning “that constantly creates discord among friends.”

notes.20

20. Go here reads gang dag dum par rab dga’ ba (“those who delight in concord”).

notes.21

21. Reading with Ky, K, N, C, H spong, as in previous verses. D here reads sbyong (“purify, refine”), which appears to be a scribal error. See Mahāvyutpatti no. 1692: pāruṣyāt prativiratiḥ–tshig rtsub po smra ba spong ba.

notes.22

22. dgon pa na. The term dgon pa, here is most likely translating the Sanskrit araṇya, meaning “remote place” or “wilderness.” This would later become the standard Tibetan term for “monastery.”

notes.23

23. In Taishō 99, sūtra no. 1299, and Taishō 100, sūtra no. 297, this final verse is uttered by the devatā. It also corresponds loosely with the final verse spoken by the devatā in The Devatā Sūtra (Toh 329) : cirasya bata paśyāmi brāhmaṇaṃ parinirvṛtam sarvavairabhayātītaṃ tīrṇaṃ loke viṣaktikām (“Oh! After a long time, I see a brāhmaṇa who has attained nirvāṇa, who has left all enmity and fears behind, and who has gone beyond attachment to the world”). Nearly all sūtras of Taishō 99 and Taishō 100 have this verse at the end. Note that Sanskrit and Chinese attestations of this verse, and the Tibetan of Toh 329, do not include “I do not see many,” as found in this text. This indicates the iteration of the verse in the present text may be a corruption. In the Pali canon, a similar verse is found only once, in SN 1.1. See also Great Upholder of the Secret Mantra (Toh 563). For more on this verse, see Choong 2011, pp. 68–69.