Avatamsaka Sutra
The
Avataṃsaka Sūtra (
Chinese 華嚴";
pinyin hua yan jing) is one of the most influential scriptures in East Asian
Buddhism. The title is rendered in English as
Flower Garland Sutra,
Flower Adornment Sutra, or
Flower Ornament Scripture.
This text describes a cosmos of infinite realms upon realms, mutually containing each other. The vision expressed in this work was the foundation for the creation of the
Huayan school of
Chinese Buddhism, which was characterized by a philosophy of
interpenetration. Hua-yen is known as
Kegon in
Japan.
The sutra is also well known for its detailed description of the course of the
bodhisattva's practice through fifty-two stages.
Three full Chinese translations of the Avatamsaka Sutra were made. Fragmentary translation probably began in the second century CE, and the famous
Ten Stages Sutra (十地"), often treated as an individual scripture, was first translated in the third century. The first complete Chinese version was completed by
Buddhabhadra around 420, the second by
Śikṣānanda around 699, and the third by
Prajñā around 798. The last chapter of the Avatamsaka also circulates as a separate text known as the
Gandavyuha Sutra.
*
List of sutras*
Mahayana sutras*
The Flower Ornament Scripture : A Translation of the Avatamsaka Sutra by
Thomas Cleary, ISBN 0877739404
*
Practices and Vows of the Bodhisattva Samantabhadra from the Avatamsaka Sutra.
*
The Youth Sudhana Meets his First Teacher (Avatamsaka Sutra, ch. 39)
*
Purifying Practice (Avatamsaka Sutra, ch. 11)
*
The Gandavyuha bas-reliefs at Borobudur temple
