References
Citation: | Zimmermann, Michael. "The Tathāgatagarbhasūtra: Its Basic Structure and Relation to the Lotus Sūtra." Annual Report of the International Research Institute for Advanced Buddhology at Soka University 2 (1999): 143–68. http://iriab.soka.ac.jp/content/pdf/aririab/Vol.%202%20(1999)%20[rev.4Aug2010].pdf. |
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In his comprehensive study of the development of the tathāgatagarbha teaching, J. Takasaki also deals with the sūtra which bears the name of this Mahāyāna philosophical current.[1] The Tathāgatagarbhasūtra (TGS) has generally been referred to as the earliest expression of this doctrine and the term tathāgatagarbha itself seems to have been coined by this very sūtra. In this paper I intend to introduce the textual history and doctrinal content of the TGS and offer some speculations concerning the possible motivations lying behind its compilation. By pointing out some interesting parallels concerning the structure and formulations in the Saddharmapuṇḍarīkasūtra (SP), I shall then suggest that the SP and the TGS carry a similar compositional line. Finally, I shall determine the position and role of the TGS in Mahāyāna Buddhism as a sūtra presupposing the doctrine of the SP and providing its metaphysical foundation. (Zimmermann, introductory remarks, 143–44)
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