This paper examines the relationship between the teachings of the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra (Léngqiéjīng 楞伽經) and the dhāraṇī contained within it. This paper also attempts to analyze the roles and the meaning of dhāraṇī in the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra. The Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra was a crucial sutra particularly in early Chan Buddhism. One of the main notions that emerged in the sutra is the concept of “mind” (xīn 心), which became a central idea in early Chan Buddhism. Generally, the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra explicates the concept of the five dharmas, three svabhāva (self-nature), eight vijñāna (consciousness) and twofold of non-ātman (Egolessness), which lead to self-realisation through wisdom but not through the reciting of dhāraṇī. The chanting of dhāraṇī is not generally thought to be the core practice promoted in the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra, however, one Sanskrit version and the later Chinese versions of the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra have appended chapter on dhāraṇī. According to the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra, if self-realisation were not involving the practice of dhāraṇī, why is there a chapter of dhāraṇī included in the sutra? This paper aims to explore the roles dhāraṇī play in this crucial text, and to fill a gap in the studies of the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra and of dhāraṇī that has been by in large neglected in the academic writing.
目次
Abstract i Acknowledgments ii Table of Contents iii List of Tables, Chart, Figure iv Chapter One – Introduction 1.1 Motivation & Purposes 1 1.2 Problem Statement 3 1.3 Approach and Limitation 3 1.4 Literature Review 4 1.5 Research Methodology 9 1.6 Thesis Structure 9 Chapter Two - The Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra 2.1 Introduction 10 2.2 Different versions of the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra 11 2.2.1 The Sanskrit Version 11 2.2.2 The Tibetan Versions 12 2.2.3 The Chinese Versions 13 2.3 The Chronicle of the Laṅkāvatāra Masters 15 2.4 The Popularity of Seven Fascicles by Śikṣānanda 19 2.5 Main discussion on the ideas of the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra 20 Chapter Three - Dhāraṇī 3.1 General Views of Dhāraṇī and Mantra 23 3.2 The Protecting Function of Dhāraṇī 28 3.3 Dhāraṇī serves as a reminder 32 3.4 Dhāraṇī serves to Inspire Bodhi-citta 35 3.5 The Karmic Views & Dhāraṇī 44 Chapter Four - Analysis of Dhāraṇī 4.1 General view of Dhāraṇī in the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra 54 4.2 Comparative Analysis on the Dhāraṇī –Verse 1 55 4.3 Comparative Analysis on the Dhāraṇī –Verse 2 70 4.4 Summary of Analysis of Dhāraṇī in the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra 77 Conclusion 79 Appendix 1: The Summary Chart of the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra 84 Appendix 2: Literature Review - The Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra 85 Appendix 3: The Records of the Lankavatara Sutra (Chinese Versions) 88 Appendix 4: Summary of the Four Teachings in the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra 90 Appendix 5: The Overview of the Comparison of Verse 1 Dhāraṇī 91 Appendix 6: The Overview of the Comparison of Verse 2 Dhāraṇī 94 Appendix 7: The Dhāraṇī in the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra (Sanskrit Version) 95 Bibliography 98
