Buddhist Mahāyāna Text

General Contents of the Two Parts: Presents the volume as Buddhist Mahāyāna Texts, divided into Part I and Part II. Part I contains The Buddha-Karita of Aśvaghoṣa, Books I–XVII, with index and notes. Part II contains six Mahāyāna texts translated by F. Max Müller and J. Takakusu. Part I — Introduction: Discusses the Sanskrit text of The Buddha-Karita, its attribution to Aśvaghoṣa, its significance for Buddhist history and Sanskrit literary history, its Chinese and Tibetan translations, and the issue of later supplementary cantos. Part I — The Buddha-Karita of Aśvaghoṣa, Books I–XVII: Narrates the Buddha’s legendary life: birth, auspicious signs, youth, marriage, confrontation with impermanence, renunciation, ascetic search, meditation, enlightenment, defeat of Māra, and the beginning of his salvific mission. Index of Proper Names; Notes and Corrections: Provides reference materials for names, textual variants, emendations, and interpretive notes. Part II — Introduction: Discusses the importance of the Pure Land texts in Japanese Buddhism, especially the Shin-shū and Jōdo-shū traditions; explains the discovery and transmission of Sanskrit Buddhist manuscripts in Japan; and introduces the doctrinal significance of the Sukhāvatī, Vajracchedikā, Prajñāpāramitā, and Amitāyur materials. 1. The Larger Sukhāvatī-Vyūha: Describes Amitābha, Dharmākara’s vows, the formation of Sukhāvatī, the qualities of the Pure Land, and the conditions for rebirth there. 2. The Smaller Sukhāvatī-Vyūha: Gives a concise presentation of Amitābha’s Pure Land and emphasizes recollection, faith, and repetition of Amitābha’s name. 3. The Vajracchedikā: Presents the “Diamond-Cutter” teaching on non-attachment, non-self, emptiness of concepts, and the Bodhisattva’s practice beyond fixed views. 4. The Larger Prajñā-Pāramitā-Hṛdaya-Sūtra: Presents the doctrine of emptiness through the framework of transcendent wisdom. 5. The Smaller Prajñā-Pāramitā-Hṛdaya-Sūtra: Gives the shorter and more widely known form of the Heart Sūtra teaching on emptiness, form, perception, consciousness, and liberation. 6. The Amitāyur-Dhyāna-Sūtra: Explains meditative visualization of Amitāyus/Amitābha, the Pure Land, and practices leading to rebirth in Sukhāvatī.