On the Thoughts of the Thousand-armed Avalokitesvara-Sutra Translated by Bhagavaddharma

Abstract

It is said that the Thousand-armed Avalokitesvara sutra translated by Bhagavaddharma could be divided into two parts: ‘the original part’ and ‘the additional part’. The scope of this article is limited to the former, the original part. Although this sutra has been known to belong to esoteric Buddhism, this original part actually shows not only esoteric Buddhist thought but also the Pureland idea and Dasabhumi concepts of the Avatamsaka sutra. These three kinds of Mahayana Buddhist thought seem to have been harmonized in this part of the sutra, which influenced strongly the establishment of the ‘Recitation Version’ of the Thousand-armed Avalokitesvara sutra created in Korean Buddhism.