A class of celestial female beings known for their great beauty.
Jasminum sambac according to the Pandanus Database of Plants.
One of the eight great yakṣīs.
A class of beings constantly in conflict with the gods.
Musa paradisiaca according to the Pandanus Database of Plants.
Aegle mermelos, also known as Indian bael or wood apple.
Syzygium cumini according to the Pandanus Database of Plants.
Caves on the northern border of the Middle Country earlier in the current eon, during the time of the Buddha Kāśyapa.
Name of an apsaras.
A high-ranking deity presiding over a divine world; he is also considered to be the lord of the Sahā world (our universe). Though not considered a creator god in Buddhism, Brahmā occupies an important place as one of two gods (the other being Indra/Śakra) said to have first exhorted the Buddha Śākyamuni to teach the Dharma. The particular heavens found in the form realm over which Brahmā rules are often some of the most sought-after realms of higher rebirth in Buddhist literature. Since there are many universes or world systems, there are also multiple Brahmās presiding over them. His most frequent epithets are “Lord of the Sahā World” (sahāṃpati) and Great Brahmā (mahābrahman).
A member of the highest caste in Indian society, which is most closely associated with religious vocations.
A location in the country of Trigarta.
One of the eight yakṣa generals.
Michelia champaca according to the Pandanus Database of Plants.
A nāga lady from a previous time.
A forest on the northern border of the Middle Country earlier in the current eon, during the time of the Buddha Krakucchanda.
Caves on the northern border of the Middle Country earlier in the current eon, during the time of the Buddha Krakucchanda.
Ficus Glomerata according to the Pandanus Database of Plants.
Jasminum grandiflorum according to the Pandanus Database of Plants.
One of the eight nāga ladies.
Large political formations, either republics or kingdoms, of ancient India.
Acaia catechu according to the Pandanus Database of Plants.
One of the eight nāga ladies.
A monk from a previous eon.
One of the eight yakṣa generals.
One of the eight yakṣa generals.
Jasminum multiflorum according to the Pandanus Database of Plants.
Name of a nāga lady of a former time.
A forest on the northern border of the Middle Country earlier in the current eon, during the time of the Buddha Kanakamuni.
One of the eight nāga ladies.
This list of eight nāgas is probably unique to this sūtra. They are Tawny, Scent, Watery, Wrathful, Staircase to Heaven, Staircase to a Vase, Nearby Nāga, and Oḍasuta.
This list of eight yakṣa ladies is probably unique to this sūtra. They are Aśiḍi, Many Sons, Hanging Down, Fully Hanging, Terrible, Fierce Lady, Small Club Holder, and Sky Dweller.
This list of eight nāga ladies may be unique to this sūtra. They are Darkness, Eager to Leave, Seer, Cool, Load Carrying, Speech Strewing, Universal Army, and Gandharva Lady.
Lists of the generals of the yakṣas are frequent in Buddhist scripture. They can variously consist in five, eight, twelve, or twenty-eight yakṣas. The list of names given here appears to be unique to this sūtra. They are Siṅgala, Dharma Protector, Successful, Victorious, Bull Ear, Jewel Ear, Dharma Endowed, and Uplifted by Dharma.
Limonia acidissima according to the Pandanus Database of Plants.
Caves on the northern border of the Middle Country earlier in the current eon, during the time of the Buddha Kanakamuni.
Name of a nāga lady from a previous eon.
A forest on the northern border of the Middle Country in a past eon.
Name of the present eon, in which the Buddha Śākyamuni and other buddhas appear.
One of the eight great yakṣīs.
Presumably this list consists of the six forms of superknowledge without knowledge of the destruction of the defiled.
Vaiśravaṇa (Kubera), Virūḍhaka, Dhṛtarāṣṭra, and Virūpākṣa.
One of the eight great yakṣīs.
A class of generally benevolent nonhuman beings who inhabit the skies, sometimes said to inhabit fantastic cities in the clouds, and more specifically to dwell on the eastern slopes of Mount Meru, where they are ruled by the Great King Dhṛtarāṣṭra. They are most renowned as celestial musicians who serve the gods. In the Abhidharma, the term is also used to refer to the mental body assumed by sentient beings during the intermediate state between death and rebirth. Gandharvas are said to live on fragrances (gandha) in the desire realm, hence the Tibetan translation dri za, meaning “scent eater.”
One of the eight nāga ladies.
An elongated, shoulder-held wooden bar (or beam) struck with a wooden stick to call the monastic community to assembly.
In Indian mythology, the garuḍa is an eagle-like bird that is regarded as the king of all birds, normally depicted with a sharp, owl-like beak, often holding a snake, and with large and powerful wings. They are traditionally enemies of the nāgas. In the Vedas, they are said to have brought nectar from the heavens to earth. Garuḍa can also be used as a proper name for a king of such creatures.
The name of a nāga lady.
A forest located in modern-day Punjab where a community of Buddhist monks flourished.
One of the eight great yakṣīs.
mun gyi nags tshal gyi sgo (*Tamovanamukha). Toh 314, Degé Kangyur vol. 72 (mdo sde, sa), folios 163.b–169.a.
mun gyi nags tshal gyi sgo. bka’ ’gyur (dpe bsdur ma) [Comparative Edition of the Kangyur], krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe sdur khang (The Tibetan Tripitaka Collation Bureau of the China Tibetology Research Center). 108 volumes. Beijing: krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang (China Tibetology Publishing House), 2006–9, vol. 72, pp. 491–506.
mun gyi nags tshal gyi sgo (*Dandavanamukha). Stok Palace Kangyur vol. 67 (mdo sde, ma), folios 404.b–413.a.
kye’i rdo rje’i rgyud (Hevajratantra). Toh 417, Degé Kangyur vol. 80 (rgyud, nga), folios 1.a–13.b.
rgyud gyi rgyal po chen po dpal rdo rje mkha’ ’gro (Vajraḍākatantra), Toh 370, Degé Kangyur vol. 78 (rgyud, kha): 1.b–125.a.
mdo chen po kun tu rgyu ba dang / kun tu rgyu ba ma yin pa dang mthun pa’i mdo (Āṭānāṭīyamahāsūtra). Toh 656, Degé Kangyur vol. 91 (rgyud, ba), folios 149.b–162.b.
’dul ba gzhi (Vinayavastu), Toh 1, Degé Kangyur vols. 1–4 (’dul ba, ka–nga).
sman gyi gzhi (Bhaiṣajyavastu). Toh 1-6, Degé Kangyur vol. 1 (’dul ba, ka), folio 277.b–vol. 3 (’dul ba, ga), folio 50.a. English translation in Bhaiṣajyavastu Translation Team, trans. 2021.
Kṣemendra. byang chub sems dpa’i rtogs pa brjod pa dpag bsam gyi ’khri shing (Bodhisattvāvadānakalpalatā). Toh 4155, Degé Tengyur vol. 170–71 (skyes rabs, ke–khe), folios 1.b (ke)–329.a (khe). See Das and Vidyābhūṣaṇa 1888–1918.
Butön Rinchen Drup (bu ston rin chen grub). bde bar gshegs pa’i bstan pa’i gsal byed chos kyi ’byung gnas gsung rab rin po che’i mdzod. In The Collected Works of Bu-ston, edited by Lokesh Chandra, 633–1056. New Delhi: International Academy of Indian Culture, 1965–71.
Bhaiṣajyavastu Translation Team, trans. The Chapter on Medicines (Bhaiṣajyavastu, Toh 1-6). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2021.
Cowell, E. B., and R. A. Neil, eds. The Divyâvadâna: A Collection of Early Buddhist Legends London: Cambridge University Press, 1886.
Das, C. S., Hari Mohan Vidyābhūṣaṇa, and Satis Chandra Vidyābhūṣaṇa. Bodhisattvāvadānakalpalatā. Bibliotheca Indica 124. Calcutta: Baptist Mission Press, 1888–1918.
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Dutt, Nalinaksha. Gilgit Manuscripts, Vol. 3, Part 1. Srinagar: Research Department, 1947.
Meulenbeld, G. J. The Mādhavanidāna and Its Chief Commentary: Chapters 1–10. Leiden: Brill, 1974.
Monier-Williams, M. A Sanskrit–English Dictionary: Etymologically and Philologically Arranged with Special Reference to Cognate Indo-European Languages. Oxford: The Clarendon Press, 1899.
Pandanus Database of Plants. Accessed July 2020.
Slouber, Michael. Early Tantric Medicine: Snakebite, Mantras, and Healing in the Gāruḍa Tantras. New York: Oxford University Press, 2017.
Strong, John. The Legend of King Aśoka: A Study and Translation of the Aśokāvadāna. 1984. Reprint, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1989.
Waters, Thomas. On Yuan Chwang’s Travels in India: 629–645 A.D. London: Royal Asiatic Society, 1904.