A History of Indian Literature v2.c19.s6.t4.81

v2.c19.s6.t4.81

According to a Nepalese tradition, there was first of all a Prajñā-Pāramitā-Mahāyāna-Sūtra of 125,000 "Ślokas,"³ and this is supposed to have been abridged successively to similar Mahāyāna-Sūtras of 100,000, 25,000, 10,000 and 8,000 "Ślokas" respectively. According to another tradition, however, the Sūtra of 8,000 "Ślokas" is the original one, and was gradually enlarged more and more.⁴ The latter tradition appears to be the likelier one. At any rate, a considerable number of Prajñā-Pāramitā texts of all lengths were already in existence in India, and their number increased even more in China and Tibet. Hsüan-Tsang translated 12 different Prajñā-Pāramitā-Sūtras in his Mahā-Prajñā-Pāramitā-Sūtra: the longest is that of 100,000 "Ślokas," and the shortest that of 150. In the Chinese Tripiṭaka, the first large section is made up of the Prajñā-Pāramitās.¹ In the Tibetan Kanjur, in which the Prajñā-Pāramitā texts constitute the Śer-phyin section in 21 books, there are translations of the Prajñā-Pāramitās of 100,000, 25,000, 18,000, 10,000, 8,000, 800, 700 and 500 "Ślokas," of the Vajracchedikā (with 300 "Ślokas") right down to an Alpākṣarā or Svalpākṣarā Prajñā-Pāramitā, "Prajñā-Pāramitā of (very) few syllables", and even a Bhagavatī-Prajñā-Pāramitā-sarva-Tathāgata-māta Ekākṣarī, "the sacred Prajñā-Pāramitā of One Syllable, of the mother of all Tathāgatas", in which the perfection of wisdom is concentrated in the one sound "a."[^2) The following have come down to us in Sanskrit: Prajñā-Pāramitās of 100,000 "Ślokas" (Śatasāhasrikā),[^3) of 25,000 (Pañcaviṃśatisāhasrikā),[^4) of 8,000 (Aṣṭasāhasrikā),[^5) of 2,500 (Sārdhadvisāhasrikā),¹ of 700 (Saptaśatikā),² the Vajracchedikā Prajñā-Pāramitā, "the diamond cutter Prajñā-Pāramitā," *i.e.*, the Prajñā-Pāramitā,³ cutting as sharp as a diamond and also the Alpākṣarā Prajñā-Pāramitā⁴ and Prajñā-Pāramitāhṛdaya-Sūtras,⁵ which are only used as protecting magic formulas (Dhāraṇīs).