For over a thousand years, the Siirarigama Siitra - the "Sutra of the Indestructible"
1 - has been held in great esteem in the Mahayana Buddhist
countries of East and Southeast Asia. In China the Sutra has generally
been considered as important and has been as popular as the Lotus Siitra,2
the Avatarhsaka Siitra,3 the Mahayana Mahaparinirvar:ia Siitra,4 the Heart
Siitra,5 and the Diamond Siitra.6 The appeal of the Siirarigama Siitra lies
in the broad scope of its teachings and in the depth and clarity of its prescriptions
for contemplative practice. Because of its wealth of theoretical
and practical instruction in the spiritual life, it was often the first major
text to be studied by newly ordained monks, particularly in the Chan
school. Many enlightened masters and illustrious monastic scholars have
written exegetical commentaries on it.7 To this day, for both clergy and
laity in the Chinese Buddhist tradition, the Siirarigama Siitra continues to
be the object of devout study, recitation, and memorization.
Author(s): Hsuan Hua, Buddhist Text Translation Society
Publisher: Buddhist Text Translation Society
Year: 2009
Language: English
Pages: 552
The Sūrangama Sūtra
Table of Contents
Acknowledgements
Foreword
Introduction
Prologue
The Occasion for the Teaching
I - The Nature and Location of the Mind
The Request for Dharma
The Location of the Mind
The Conditioned Mind and the True Mind
II - The Nature of Visual Awareness
It Is the Mind That Sees
Visual Awareness Does Not Move
Visual Awareness Does Not Perish
The True Nature of Visual Awareness Is Not Lost
Visual Awareness Is Not Dependent upon Conditions
Visual Awareness Is Not a Perceived Object
Visual Awareness Has Neither Shape Nor Extension
Visual Awareness Is Both Separate and Not Separate from Objects
Visual Awareness Arises Neither on Its Own nor from Causes
True Visual Awareness
Distortions in Visual Awareness Based on Karma
Visual Awareness Exists Neither Through Inhering Nor in Conjoining
Ill - The Matrix of the Thus-Come One
The Five Aggregates Are the Matrix of the Thus-Come One
The Six Faculties Are the Matrix of the Thus-Come One
The Twelve Sites Are the Matrix of the Thus-Come One
The Eighteen Constituents Are the Matrix of the Thus-Come One
The Seven Primary Elements Are the Matrix of the Thus-Come One
Ananda’s Vow
IV - The Coming into Being of the World of Illusion
Adding Understanding to Understanding
The Buddhas’ Enlightenment Is Irreversible
The Interfusing of the Primary Elements
Delusion Has No Basis: The Parable of Yajnadatta
V - Instructions for Practice
Five Layers of Turbidity
Choosing One Faculty in Order to Liberate All Six
The Example of the Bell’s Sound
The Analogy of the Six Knots
VI - Twenty-Five Sages
Twenty-Five Sages Speak of Enlightenment
The Bodhisattva Who Hears the Cries of the World
The Bodhisattva Manjusri's Recommendation
VII - Four Clear and Definitive Instructions on Purity
On Sexual Desire
On Killing
On Stealing
On Making False Claims
VIII - The Surangama Mantra
Establishing a Place for Awakening
The Surangama Mantra
The Powers of the Mantra
Vows of Protection
IX - Levels of Being
The Coming into Being of the World of Illusion
Twelve Classes of Beings
Three Gradual Steps
The Fifty-Seven Stages of the Bodhisattva’s Path
Naming the Discourse
The Hells
The Destiny of Ghosts
The Destiny of Animals
The Destiny of Humans
The Destiny of the Ascetic Masters
The Destiny of the Gods
The Destiny of Asuras
The Seven Destinies Are the Result of Karma
X - Fifty Demonic States of Mind
Dangers May Arise with Advanced Practice
Ten Demonic States of Mind Associated with the Aggregate of Form
Ten Demonic States of Mind Associated with the Aggregate of Sense-Perception
Ten Demonic States of Mind Associated with the Aggregate of Cognition
Ten Demonic States of Mind Associated with the Aggregate of Mental Formations
Ten Demonic States of Mind Associated with the Aggregate of Consciousness
The Five Aggregates Arise from Delusion
The Merit of Teaching the Surangama Dharma
Appendix - A Brief Account of the Life of the Venerable Master Hsuan Hua
Index
