Toh 42 — The Sūtra of the Moon (1)
Candrasūtra
Translated by the Pema Yeshé Dé Translation Team under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha
The Sūtra of the Moon (1)
F.282.b Respectful homage to the noble Three Jewels!
Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was dwelling in Śrāvastī, in Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍada’s Park.[1] At that time the god Candramas was seized by Rāhu, lord of the asuras. Then the god Candramas, F.283.a recollecting and taking the Blessed One to heart,[2] recited this verse:
Then the Blessed One, for the sake of the god Candramas, addressed Rāhu, lord of the asuras, with this verse:
Thereupon Rāhu, lord of the asuras, set the god Candramas free and hurriedly[7] approached Vemacitra,[8] lord of the asuras. He then sat to one side, displeased,[9] agitated, and with all his body hairs bristling. Vemacitra, lord of the asuras, now questioned Rāhu, lord of the asuras, in verse:
Rāhu replied:[11]
Notes
The Paritta collection gives the setting in full, as does the Tibetan, but it is abbreviated as sāvatthinidānaṃ in the SN. The setting of Toh 331http://read.84000.co/translation/toh31.htm is on the bank of the Traveler Pond in the country of Campā.
backThe Pali omits “taking to heart.” Alternatively, it is possible that the Tibetan phrase bcom ldan ’das rjes su dran pa yid la byas is an attempt to translate the Pali bhagavantam anussaramāno and might be rendered “bringing to mind the remembrance of the Blessed One.”
backThe Pali reads namo te buddha vīratthu (“Homage to you, Buddha, heroic one!”).
backHere the Pali reads vippamuttosi sabbadhi (“You are completely liberated!”).
backThe Pali reads sambādhapaṭipannosmi, tassa me saraṇaṃ bhavā”ti (“I have entered confinement, be my refuge!”). Though the Tibetan translation bdag ’di’i kha ru bcug pas na/ /bdag ni khyed la skyabs su mchi, the first part of which seems to say, “As I have entered the mouth of it,” seems distant at first, upon reflection it conveys the meaning of the Pali well.
backThe causal connections in this verse are not explicit in Pali.
backHere translated with reference to the Pali taramānarūpo yena vepacitti asurindo tenupasaṅkami. The Tibetan phrase sngar gyi gzugs bzhin du corresponds to the Pali taramānarūpo, which “hurriedly.”
backIn Toh 331 Rāhu’s interlocutor is Bali. These asuras are often associated and accredited with the role of leaders. See The White Lotus of the Good Dharma, Toh 113 (#UT22084-051-001-174); and The Play in Full, , Toh 95 (#UT22084-046-001-1161).
backMissing in the Pali.
backThe Pali has kiṃ nu santaramānova, rāhu candaṃ pamuñcasi, saṃviggarūpo āgamma, kiṃ nu bhītova tiṭṭhasī”ti (“Why did you, Rāhu, in a hurry, release the moon? After having approached, moved by fear, why are you standing here so scared?”).
backMissing in the Pali.
backThis theme is found in the parallels of this sūtra and elsewhere in the Kangyur. See The White Lotus of the Good Dharma, Toh 113 (#UT22084-051-001-2703), The Hundred Deeds, Toh 340 (#UT22084-073-001-3058), The Root Manual of the Rites of Mañjuśrī, Toh 543 (#UT22084-088-038-2620) and Destroyer of the Great Trichiliocosm, Toh 558 (#UT22084-090-002-295).
backNarthang, Stok Palace, Lhasa, and Bardan here add: paNDi ta chen po A nanda shrI’i zhal snga nas/ mang du thos pa’i lo tsA ba shAkya’i dge slong nyi ma rgyal mtshan dpal bzang pos skad gnyis smra ba rnams kyi gdan sa/ gtsug lag khang chen po dpal thar pa gling du bsgyur cing zhus te gtan la phab pa’o (“Translated, edited, and finalized by the great paṇḍita Ānandaśrī and the learned translator, Śākya monk, Nyima Gyaltsen Palsangpo at the seat of translators, the great monastery, the glorious Tharpa Ling”). Narthang, Stok Palace, and Lhasa proceed with the aspiration: sa’i steng du nyi ma dang / zla ba ltar gyur cig (“May the sun and moon transform above the earth in the same way”). Narthang and Stok Palace add: sngar ’gyur yang yod (“There is also an early translation”).
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