The Sutra of the Sublime Golden Light

The Sutra of the Sublime Golden Light (Skt. Suvarṇaprabhāsottamasūtra; Tib. གསེར་འོད་དམ་པའི་མདོ།, Wyl. gser ‘od dam pa’i mdo) has held great importance in Buddhism for its instructions on the purification of karma. In particular, much of the sutra is specifically addressed to monarchs and thus has been significant for rulers—not only in India but also in China, Japan, Mongolia, and elsewhere—who wished to ensure the well-being of their nations through such purification. Reciting and internalizing this sutra is understood to be efficacious for personal purification and also for the welfare of a state and the world.

In this sutra, the bodhisattva Ruciraketu has a dream in which a prayer of confession emanates from a shining golden drum. He relates the prayer to the Buddha, and a number of deities then vow to protect it and its adherents. The ruler’s devotion to the sutra is emphasized as important if the nation is to benefit. Toward the end of the sutra are two well-known narratives of the Buddha’s previous lives: the account of the physician Jalavahana, who saves and blesses numerous fish, and that of Prince Mahasattva, who gives his body to a hungry tigress and her cubs.

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The Tibetan translation of this sutra can be found in the General Sutra section of the Tibetan Dergé Kangyur, Toh 555

• English translation: The Sūtra of the Sublime Golden Light