The Perfection of Wisdom in First Bloom
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The Perfection of Wisdom in First Bloom: Relating Early Aṣṭasāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā to Āgama Literature
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Description
In this work we have a rare perspective on the early history of Mahayana Buddhism and the Perfection of Wisdom (Prajnaparamita), as far as this is still accessible in surviving texts. Bhikkhu Analayo critically analyzes early Perfection of Wisdom literature based on the earliest extant versions of the Astasahasrika Prajnaparamita, or the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines, one in Chinese and the other in Gandhari—one of the oldest surviving Mahayana manuscripts discovered to date. In reading this text from the viewpoint of early Buddhist literature, the author shows that what has generally been considered a sharp rupture in the formation of the Mahayana turns out to be more of a gradual evolution.
Analayo sifts through the layers of history and unveils new perspectives on the ideas and figures in early Perfection of Wisdom and Mahayana literature, covering such topics as the rhetoric of emptiness and the emerging bodhisattva ideal, as well as the status of women and the practice of self-immolation. In doing so, Analayo reveals fresh insights into the gradual development that informs the emergence of early Perfection of Wisdom literature. This is a rare opportunity to peer through a window at the beginnings of Mahayana thought—before the traditions had coalesced into the familiar forms we see today. (Source: Wisdom Publications)
Citation
Bhikkhu Analyo. The Perfection of Wisdom in First Bloom: Relating Early Aṣṭasāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā to Āgama Literature. New York: Wisdom Publications, 2025.
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Table of contents
- Foreword by His Holiness the Dalai Lama xi
- Acknowledgments and Dedication xiii
- Introduction 1
- On Chapter 1 5
- The Bodhisattva Path 5
- The Stage of Evolution Evident in the Perfection of Wisdom 8
- Connotations of the Term "Bodhisattva" 10
- The Bodhisattva Ideal in Later Pāli Texts 14
- Śāriputra and Subhūti 22
- Śāriputra 23
- Subhūti 29
- The Rhetoric of Emptiness36
- A Hermeneutic of Self-Contradiction? 36
- Emptiness of Persons or of All Phenomena?42
- The Basic Procedure of the Rhetoric of Emptiness 47
- The Nature of a Sentient Being 48
- Insight into the Five Aggregates 51
- Fear and Samādhi 58
- Summary 62
- The Bodhisattva Path 5
- On Chapter 2 65
- Śakra and Brahmā 65
- Śakra as a Buddhist Disciple 69
- Brahmā Sahāmpati 72
- No Stance on Anything 79
- Summary 86
- Śakra and Brahmā 65
- On Chapters 3 and 4 89
- Former Buddhas89
- An Abundance of Merit 89
- Buddhahood and Its Embodiment 93
- The Jātakas 101
- Meeting the Previous Buddha106
- The Wisdom of Impermanence 119
- Summary 132
- Former Buddhas89
- On Chapters 5 and 6 137
- Signs and Their Absence 137
- Rebirth in Hell 144
- Summary 158
- On Chapters 7 to 9161
- Turning the Wheel of Dharma 161
- Māra 168
- Summary 173
- On Chapters 10 to 15 175
- The Nature of the Mind 175
- Contemplation of Mental States 177
- The Mind's Original Purity 181
- Progress toward Awakening 184
- Patience 186
- A Teaching on Suchness 189
- Pratyekabuddhas 191
- The Superiority of Bodhisattvas 194
- Summary 199
- The Nature of the Mind 175
- On Chapters 16 to 20 203
- Women and Buddhahood 203
- Women in the Perfection of Wisdom 204
- Women in Āgama Literature 208
- Skill in Means 210
- Skill in Monitoring One's Own Practice 211
- The Buddha's Skill in Means 214
- Summary 218
- Women and Buddhahood 203
- On Chapters 21 to 25 221
- Ānanda 221
- Ānanda's Interest in Emptiness Teachings 223
- Ānanda's Kindness 225
- Nonduality 230
- Omniscience 237
- Summary 242
- Ānanda 221
- On Chapters 26 to 30 245
- Dependent Arising246
- The Sadāprarudita Tale 250
- Profound Teachings 251
- A Vision of Buddhas 255
- Sadāprarudita's Spiritual Maturation 258
- Sadāprarudita's Self-Sacrifice 264
- Self-Immolation 269
- Summary 278
- Conclusion 281
- The Perfection of Wisdom and Mahayana 282
- The Quest for Origins 293
- Abbreviations 303
- Notes 305
- References 427
- Image Credits 491
- About the Author 501
Interconnections
1 Modern commentary of
The Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines, like other sūtras on the Perfection of Wisdom, deals with the topic of emptiness and the understanding of the ultimate truth or the way things are. Modern scholars date the sūtra roughly to the 2nd and 1st century BC and consider it to be the earliest sūtra on which other Perfection of Wisdom sūtras are based. Its adherents claim the sūtra to be a part of the words of the Buddha. It is believed to have been taken to the subterranean world and brought back to the human world by Nāgārjuna. It is sometimes known as the Condensed Mother (ཡུམ་བསྡུས་པ་), the term Mother referring to the Perfection of Wisdom which gives rise to all buddhas and bodhisattvas. It is said to be the condensed version of the long version in one hundred thousand lines and the middle version in twenty-five thousand lines. Having spread across Asia and beyond and having been translated into many languages, it is one of the most common books to be found in the Buddhist Himalayas.
The sūtra takes the form of a series of dialogues between the Buddha Śākyamuni, Subhūti, Śāriputra, and others, such as Indra, the king of gods, and a goddess of the Ganges. In the final chapters, the sūtra contains the inspirational narratives of Sadāprarudita and his quest for the teachings on the Perfection of Wisdom from the Bodhisattva Dharmodgata. The sūtra is also one of the earliest Mahāyāna sources proclaiming the luminous nature of the mind.
