The Scripture on the Explication of Underlying Meaning

The Scripture on the Explication of Underlying Meaning

Translation of Unravelling the Intent (84000)

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Taishō 676
Volume 16

The basic sūtra of the Faxiang School, The Scripture on the Explication of Underlying Meaning expounds the thought of the Yogācāra or Mind-Only School (Vijñānavāda), stating that all phenomena are manifestations of the mind. It belongs to the middle period of Indian Mahāyāna Buddhism and is considered to have been composed at the start of the fourth century A.D. It is divided into eight chapters, and gives a detailed exposition of the philosophy of the Yogācāra School. Judging from the fact that the greater part of this sūtra is quoted in the Yogācārabhūmi (Taishō 53), and that numerous citations from it are to be found in such works as the Mahāyānasaṃgraha (Taishō 57) and Jō-yui-shiki-ron (Taishō 54), it is clear that it exerted considerable influence in later times.

Source
Skt. Saṃdhinirmocana-sūtra. Translated into the Chinese by Xuan Cang as Jie shenmi jing (解深密經). 5 fascicles.
(Source: BDK America)

Citation	Keenan, John P., trans. The Scripture on the Explication of Underlying Meaning. Translated from the Chinese of Hsüan-tsang (Taisho Volume 16, Number 676). BDK English Tripiṭaka 25, no. 4. Berkeley, CA: Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 2000. https://bdkamerica.org/product/the-scripture-on-the-explication-of-underlying-meaning/.

ContentsSources

• A Message on the Publication of the English Tripitaka
•                                                                 Numata Yehanv
• Editorial Foreword                                Mayeda Sengakuvii
• Publisher’s Foreword                             Kenneth K. Inadaix
• Translator’s Introduction                      John P. Keenan1

• The Scripture on the Explication of Underlying Meaning
• Chapter I
  • Thus Have I Heard7

Chapter II The Descriptive Marks of the Truth of Ultimate Meaning 11 Chapter III The Descriptive Marks of Mind, Thought, and [Sense] Consciousness 27 Chapter IV The Characteristic Patterns of All Things 31 Chapter V The Absence of Essence 35 Chapter VI The Analysis of Centering 51 Chapter VII The Stages and Perfections 77 Chapter VIII The Duty Accomplishment of a Tathagata 99

Notes 113 Glossary 117 Bibliography 119 Index 121 A List of the Volumes of the BDK English Tripitaka (First Series)

1. Saṃdhinirmocanasūtra - ārya-saṃdhinirmocana-nāma-mahāyāna-sūtra, (jie shen mi jing), ('phags pa dgongs pa nges par 'grel pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po'i mdo), Taishō Volume 16. No. 676. In bka' 'gyur (sde dge par phud), Vol. 49: 1-110. Delhi: delhi karmapae chodhey gyalwae sungrab partun khang, 1976-1979. Columbia AIBS

Taishō - Taishō Shinshū Daizōkyō, Chinese Tripiṭaka

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sūtra - Sūtras mainly refer to the discourses delivered by the Buddha and his disciples, and the Sūtra corpus is one of the three main sets of teachings which form the Buddhist canon. Skt. सूत्र Tib. མདོ། Ch. 佛经

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Yogācāra - Along with Madhyamaka, it was one of the two major philosophical schools of Mahāyāna Buddhism. Founded by Asaṅga and Vasubandhu around the fourth century CE, many of its central tenets have roots in the Saṃdhinirmocanasūtra and the so-called third turning of the dharma wheel (see tridharmacakrapravartana). Skt. योगाचार Tib. རྣལ་འབྱོར་སྤྱོད་པ་ Ch. 瑜伽行派

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Mahāyāna - Mahāyāna, or the Great Vehicle, refers to the system of Buddhist thought and practice which developed around the beginning of Common Era, focusing on the pursuit of the state of full enlightenment of the Buddha through the realization of the wisdom of emptiness and the cultivation of compassion. Skt. महायान Tib. ཐེག་པ་ཆེན་པོ། Ch. 大乘

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