The Questions of the Naga King Anavatapta

The Questions of the Naga King Anavatapta (Skt. Anavataptanāgarājaparipṛcchā; Tib. ཀླུའི་རྒྱལ་པོ་མ་དྲོས་པས་ཞུས་པ།, Wyl. klu’i rgyal po ma dros pas zhus pa) is a discourse that provides guidance on core features of the bodhisattva path, including the perfections, mindfulness, and meditation, with a strong orientation toward emptiness as the inexpressible ultimate nature. As the Buddha is teaching at Vulture's Peak Mountain near Rajagriha, a naga king named Anavatapta approaches, questions him on these topics, and receives instruction on them. He then invites the Buddha to his home at Anavatapta, the legendary lake from which the four rivers of Jambudvipa flow. After flying there with an enormous entourage, the Buddha resumes his teachings. The assembly is joined by Manjushri and thousands of other bodhisattvas, and there ensues a debate on the relative merits of the hearer path and the bodhisattva path. At the culmination of the sutra, the Buddha prophesies Anavatapta's future awakening, and the naga king and his entire family take refuge in the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha.

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The Tibetan translation of this sutra can be found in the General Sutra section of the Tibetan Dergé Kangyur, Toh 156

• English translation: The Questions of the Nāga King Anavatapta