The Chapter on Manjushri’s Magical Display

The Chapter on Manjushri’s Magical Display (Skt. Mañjuśrīvikurvāṇaparivarta; Tib. འཇམ་དཔལ་རྣམ་པར་འཕྲུལ་པའི་ལེའུ།, Wyl. 'jam dpal rnam par 'phrul pa’i le’u) — a prominent and influential Mahayana sutra which is quoted by scholars such as Vasubandhu, Gampopa Sönam Rinchen and Longchen Rabjam.

In this sutra, the bodhisattva Manjushri answers a series of questions posed by the god Great Light concerning the appropriate conduct for bodhisattvas and the potential pitfalls and obstacles presented to bodhisattvas by Mara. Midway through the sutra, the demon Mara himself appears and, after being captured and converted by Manjushri, he begins to teach the Buddha’s Dharma to the audience. After revealing that Mara was never truly bound by anything other than his own perception, Manjushri resumes his teaching for the remainder of the sutra.

Text

There is no extant Sanskrit or other Indic version of this text.

It was first translated into Chinese by Dharmaraksa in 289 ᴄᴇ.

The Tibetan translation was conducted in the ninth century by Yeshé Dé, Shilendrabodhi and Jinamitra. The text can be found in the General Sutra section of the Tibetan Kangyur, Toh 97.

• English translation: The Chapter on Manjushri’s Magical Display