Translation of two dhāraṇī sūtras parallel to pāli suttas

[anātman]

Hello! Greetings, I am new to the forum.

I have been working on a translation of the deva king vaiśravaṇa sūtra, which is Taisho #1245. I do not know Chinese so I took a Malay translation I found on the web and put it in Google Translate, then used my own knowledge of Sanskrit terms and phrasing to make it readable. I want to study Sanskrit, Chinese and Tibetan in the future so I can gain access to more texts and share knowledge with others. But as a small start, I am looking for a place to share this work I've done and make this text accessible in English, even if it is imperfect. Better yet, I would be grateful if there was someone who knew Chinese and could fix it up and verify it before I upload it to the web. Like many sūtras it states that there is great merit in copying and sharing the text! It provides protection against eight types of non-human beings.

I took interest in this text as it grew out of the āṭnāṭiya sutta, which is the only pāli sutta to include a spell-like sort of chanting. The Sanskrit and it's Chinese translation have actual mantras and extended sections, a Sanskrit copy was found so even the original mantras are all there!

I also found a fragmented version of a Sanskrit parallel to the pāli bhaddekaratta sutta. I believe this is the same as Taisho #1362, which is known roughly as the good night sūtra. If anyone who knows Chinese could summarize it and list the benfits of reciting the dhāraṇī I would be very grateful. That way even without a full translation I could still include that as a bonus for people who might be interested in these sorts of things.

[PadmaVonSamba]

Google Translate from Chinese to English
thinks Manjushri is King Kong

[Aemilius]

Hello! Greetings, I am new to the forum.

I have been working on a translation of the deva king vaiśravaṇa sūtra, which is Taisho #1245. I do not know Chinese so I took a Malay translation I found on the web and put it in Google Translate, then used my own knowledge of Sanskrit terms and phrasing to make it readable. I want to study Sanskrit, Chinese and Tibetan in the future so I can gain access to more texts and share knowledge with others. But as a small start, I am looking for a place to share this work I've done and make this text accessible in English, even if it is imperfect. Better yet, I would be grateful if there was someone who knew Chinese and could fix it up and verify it before I upload it to the web. Like many sūtras it states that there is great merit in copying and sharing the text! It provides protection against eight types of non-human beings.

I took interest in this text as it grew out of the āṭnāṭiya sutta, which is the only pāli sutta to include a spell-like sort of chanting.

This last part is not true. There are many verses and sutras/suttas in the sravakayana that have quality of "blessings" or "safe-guard", given by the Buddha himself, for example to guard oneself from snakebite and wild animals etc.. These are called "paritta" in pali, they exist also in the sutras of other early buddhist schools like the Sarvastivada. Vasubandhu explains paritta in the Abhidharmakosha.

"In the Pali literature, these short verses are recommended by the Buddha as providing protection from certain afflictions. The effective power to heal, or protect, of the sacca-kiriya, or asseveration of something that is held to be true is an aspect of the work of the paritta."

"It is also widely believed that all-night recitations of paritta by monks bring safety, peace and well-being to a community. Such recitations will also occur on auspicious occasions, such as the inauguration of a new temple or home or to provide blessings upon those who hear. Conversely, paritta discourses are recited on inauspicious occasions as well, such as at a funeral or on the death anniversary of a loved one. They may also be recited to placate antagonistic spirits."

"Most paritta involve offering praise to the Buddha, or to the the Triple Gem, of these paritta one of the best known is the Ratana sutta:
"Whatever treasure there be either here or in the world beyond, whatever precous jewel there be in the heavenly worlds,
there is nought comparable to the Tathagata (the Perfect One). This precious jewel is the Buddha. By this truth may there be happiness."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paritta

[anātman]

Google Translate from Chinese to English
thinks Manjushri is King Kong

Yes, Google Translate is terrible for Chinese to English. This is why I chose to use the Malay version which came out more or less eligible.

[anātman]

Hello! Greetings, I am new to the forum.

I have been working on a translation of the deva king vaiśravaṇa sūtra, which is Taisho #1245. I do not know Chinese so I took a Malay translation I found on the web and put it in Google Translate, then used my own knowledge of Sanskrit terms and phrasing to make it readable. I want to study Sanskrit, Chinese and Tibetan in the future so I can gain access to more texts and share knowledge with others. But as a small start, I am looking for a place to share this work I've done and make this text accessible in English, even if it is imperfect. Better yet, I would be grateful if there was someone who knew Chinese and could fix it up and verify it before I upload it to the web. Like many sūtras it states that there is great merit in copying and sharing the text! It provides protection against eight types of non-human beings.

I took interest in this text as it grew out of the āṭnāṭiya sutta, which is the only pāli sutta to include a spell-like sort of chanting.

This last part is not true. There are many verses and sutras/suttas in the sravakayana that have quality of "blessings" or "safe-guard", given by the Buddha himself, for example to guard oneself from snakebites etc.. These are called "paritta" in pali, they exist also in the sutras of other early buddhist schools like the Sarvastivada. Paritta has been explained by Vasubandhu in the Abhidharmakosha.

"In the Pali literature, these short verses are recommended by the Buddha as providing protection from certain afflictions. The belief in the effective power to heal, or protect, of the sacca-kiriya, or asseveration of something quite true is an aspect of the work ascribed to the paritta.

It is also widely believed that all-night recitations of paritta by monks bring safety, peace and well-being to a community. Such recitations will also occur on auspicious occasions, such as the inauguration of a new temple or home or to provide blessings upon those who hear. Conversely, paritta discourses are recited on inauspicious occasions as well, such as at a funeral or on the death anniversary of a loved one. They may also be recited to placate antagonistic spirits.The Mahavamsa contains the earliest historical reference to this practice, describing how Upatissa I of Anuradhapura instructed monks to recite the Ratana Sutta through the night during a period when Sri Lanka was afflicted by plague and disease."

Most paritta involve offering praise to the Buddha, or to the the Triple Gem, of these paritta one of the best known is the Ratana sutta:
"Whatever treasure there be either here or in the world beyond, whatever precous jewel therebe in the heavenly worlds,
there is nought comparable to the Tathagata (the Perfect One). This precious jewel is the Buddha. By this truth may there be happiness."

A few paritta involve the asking directly for the aid of the Buddha. Examples of this type of paritta verse can be seen in the Candima Sutta (SN 2.9) and Suriya Sutta (SN 2.10) of the Samyutta Nikaya. In these two scriptures, the deities Canda and Surya protect themselves from the attack of the eclipse deity Rahu by reciting short verses praising the Buddha and pleading for his protection:

"O Buddha, the Hero, thou art wholly free from all evil. My adoration to thee. I have fallen into distress. Be thou my refuge."
In these cases, the Buddha is shown as specifically hearing and responding to the paritta; he enjoins Rahu to release the captive deities rather than have his "head split into seven pieces."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paritta

Thank you for the additional detail. I am aware that the Theravada school uses many sutta sections as parittas. What I meant by it being 'the only pāli sutta to include a spell-like sort of chanting', is that the content resembles more closely the later dhāraṇī format in the literary style and content. Perhaps I should have made that more clear, I did not mean to undermine the effectiveness of parittas.

[Sentient Light]

Google Translate from Chinese to English
thinks Manjushri is King Kong

Hahhaa, Vietnamese to English will translate a lot of dharma terms to the names of countries, because they're teh same word. Like 'Dharma' in Vietnamese sometimes gets translated to "France."

As a consequence to this, "Buddha dharma" sometimes ends up translated as "the French Buddha," and always makes me chuckle, because I imagine Buddha as a snooty Frenchman with a wispy moustache.

[Tenma]

Google Translate from Chinese to English
thinks Manjushri is King Kong

Hahhaa, Vietnamese to English will translate a lot of dharma terms to the names of countries, because they're teh same word. Like 'Dharma' in Vietnamese sometimes gets translated to "France."

As a consequence to this, "Buddha dharma" sometimes ends up translated as "the French Buddha," and always makes me chuckle, because I imagine Buddha as a snooty Frenchman with a wispy moustache.

Mais mon copain! Le Bouddha est vraiment un français! Hommage aux trois joyaux!

https://www.shutterstock.com/image-phot ... 1412024795
https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/easy-beret-hat

[anātman]

I was able to find someone to help with the translation on SuttaCentral, if anyone is still interested progress will be made there.

[anātman]

While Google Translate can be quite humorous, I am taking on this project with utmost seriousness. If anyone has further comments / questions I would appreciate if any humor was left at the door.