འཕགས་པ་མ་ཏག་ག་ཚགས་ཞས་བྱ་བ་ཐག་པ་ཆན་པའ་མད intro.11

intro.11

In terms of structure, the sūtra divides into three distinct sections marked by changes in interlocutor, content, and form. The first of the Buddha’s interlocutors is Śāriputra. The discourse the Buddha puts forth while addressing him constitutes the bulk of the text (–). In this section, the Buddha presents a long list of buddhas and their world systems together with the benefits of hearing their names and giving rise to faith. He often punctuates these promises with the horrific outcomes that await those who hear the names and do not give rise to faith. Warnings about the risks of spending long eons in the hells due to having no faith in these names or being critical of their efficacy point toward a self-defensive posture, common to several Great Vehicle sūtras, that express the ongoing dialogue in India between proponents and detractors of the Great Vehicle.