Masters of Nikāya Buddhism Part II

Origins of Secret Mantra – Day Eight 20 August, 2026 His Holiness first gave the reading transmission and explanation of his newly composed prayer for the masters of the Karma Kamtsang. He then continued the topic begun in the previous session’s teachings, specific masters of Nikāya Buddhism. Masters of the Southern Tradition: Moggaliputta Tissa and Buddhaghoṣa Moggaliputta Tissa Moggaliputta Tissa lived in the 3 rd century BCE and he was emperor Aśoka’s main teacher. According to the histories of the Southern tradition, he presided over the Third Council that was held in Pāṭaliputra, or modern-day Paṭnā, the main city in Bihar. He authored a very important text, an Abhidharma treatise of the Southern tradition called the Katthāvatthu ( Points of Controversy ) This text refutes over two hundred wrong views of the Mahāsāṃghika , Vātsīputrīya and other schools at the time. Buddhaghoṣa Buddhaghoṣa was a very influential scholar and translator in the Southern tradition. He wrote commentaries on all three piṭakas in the P ā li canon as well as the Dhammapada . The most well-known of his works is the Visuddhimagga [ Path of Purification ], a “comprehensive encyclopedia” of the Southern transmission. It presents the ground, path, and fruition, or the entire path, of this tradition. Buddhaghoṣa also laid the foundation for the modern Theravāda school. Master and Student: Venerable Pārśva and Master Aśvaghoṣa Venerable Pārśva Pārśva in Sanskrit means “rib”. He was given this name because he always sat up and never laid on his side to sleep. Born in the Northwestern Indian area of Gandhāra, Venerable Pārśva was a contemporary of King Kaniṣka, which means he probably lived during the 1 st or 2 nd century CE. As His Holiness illustrated last year, there are several lists or explanations of the patriarchs of the lineage. According to one explanation, Venerable Pārśva is said to be the tenth patriarch of the teachings. Venerable Pārśva was originally a Brahminical practitioner. Only when he was already elderly did he go forth and take ordination in the Sarvāstivāda school. He stayed in the region of Gandhāra, spreading Dharma widely in all directions. His Holiness shared that in Tang Xuanzang’s Great Records of the Western Regions , there is an amazing story about how he achieved realization and how he was given his name. It recorded that he was eighty years old when he went forth and donned saffron robes to become a Buddhist monk. At that time, there were some young people who criticized him, saying, “You’re a stupid old man. You’re so ignorant. You have no intelligence. A Buddhist monk has two duties: first to practice meditation and second to recite scriptures. Now you are so old you can’t recite texts and you can’t meditate, so there’s no way you can make any progress. So, you’re just going to go off and try to fill your stomach, but there’s nothing else you know how to do.” When he heard this, Venerable Pārśva made a commitment and told the others that if he didn’t fully master the Tripiṭaka and realize its meaning, and if he didn’t eliminate all desires for the three realms of the world so as to attain the six clairvoyances, he would not lay down to sleep again with his ribs touching the ground. Once he made that commitment, he worked day and night; he was not at all lazy and he worked incredibly hard. Walking, pacing, sitting – he was always in meditation. He didn’t waste any time at all. During the day, Venerable Pārśva studied theories and doctrines while at nighttime he practiced samadhi meditation. Within three years, Venerable Pārśva mastered the Tripiṭaka and eliminated the desires of the three realms. Basically, His Holiness explained, Pārśva became an arhat. Amazed that this had happened, the public gave him the name Venerable “Ribs”. His Holiness talked about some discrepancies between different records regarding Venerable Pārśva’s life. Tang Xuanzang’s Great Records of the Western Regions said Venerable Pārśva went forth and was ordained at the age of eighty. However, in the great commentary on the hundred-thousand-line Prajñāpāramitā , which exists in Chinese translation and is attributed to Nāgārjuna, it states that Venerable Pārśva went forth at the age of sixty. Contemporary scholars believe that going forth at sixty years old is a more reasonable age than eighty. The fifteenth fascicle of The Great Exposition [ Mahāvibhāṣā ], “The lives of the patriarchs”, says that this patriarch spent sixty years in his mother’s womb. Normally, one is in the womb for a little over nine months but Pārśva spent sixty years there! Therefore, Pārśva was already an old man when he was born; his hair and beard were already white. From the very beginning he felt revulsion for the five sensory pleasures and he had no desire for a householder life. His Holiness explained that in any case, this showed that Venerable Pārśva went forth at the age of sixty. In preparation to speak about Venerable Pārśva’s influence and his work, His Holiness painted the context in which Venerable Pārśva lived. Venerable Pārśva appeared when Śrāvaka schools were flourishing widely. The situation was that amongst the Buddhists there, each master had his own views that he would teach. That resulted in many disputes and disagreements between masters. Consequently, this was a time of a lot of debates. Venerable Pārśva asked King Kaniṣka to sponsor a council. Venerable Pārśva would lead the council of five hundred arhats who were learned in the three piṭaka and the five sciences to compile the Abhidharma. The result of the council was the Great Exposition of the Abhidharma ( Abhidharma Mahāvibhāṣā Śāstra also referred to as Mahāvibhāṣā ) , a text that compiled the entire meaning of the Sarvāstivādin Abhidharma teachings. However, contemporary scholars argue that the Great Exposition was not compiled at the time of Venerable Pārśva and King Kaniṣka but was compiled somewhat later. The Mahāyāna was also gradually spreading at this time and there were continual debates between the Mahāyāna and the Sarvāstivāda . This was when the decline of Sarvāstivāda began. This is the traditional explanation. One of Venerable Pārśva’s most important works is called Instructions on the Four Āgamas but it is no longer extant. However, Venerable Pārśva’s main strength was not as an author of treatises, explained His Holiness. His main strength could be drawn from his story. As the Chinese scholar Yin Shun wrote at the time of the Kuomintang, when we look at the story of how Venerable Pārśva practiced ascetically without his ribs touching the ground, this Elder made practice the most important, he made sūtra the most important, and he emphasized primarily dhyāna. He was advanced in years and high in qualities. He was a master who received the honour of King Kaniṣka, becoming his main teacher. His Holiness said this written account seemed to describe the situation well. Venerable Pārśva was accepted by later generations, said His Holiness. One reason for this was that he was very accepting of Mahāyāna Dharma. In this way, he was different than other Sarvāstivādin scholars. In The Great Exposition , there is a quote where Venerable Pārśva praised the Mahāyāna. Venerable Pārśva said that prajñāpāramitā was called “extremely vast” ( vaipulya in Sanskrit) because its function was vast. In other words, its function, benefits, capacities, and power were great. Instead of rebutting the Mahāyāna, Venerable Pārśva praised and promoted it. While this may not be surprising nowadays, His Holiness said that during Venerable Pārśva’s time, it was very amazing because most scholars and elders of the Sarvāstivāda were very narrow-minded, disparaging the Mahāyāna which was beginning to spread. Similarly, most of the Śrāvaka schools refuted Mahāyāna schools, saying these were not the words of the Buddha. They did not like the Mahāyāna at all. Given this environment, for Venerable Pārśva to say something like he did showed that his views were not comparable to those of his contemporaries in many ways. Some scholars have even said that Venerable Pārśva appeared as a śrāvaka externally but internally, he engaged in the practice of a bodhisattva. In short, they asserted he was a bodhisattva. In any case, said His Holiness, Venerable Pārśva was accepting of the Mahāyāna. He didn’t refute it but saw it in a positive way and saw it as worthy. Master Aśvaghoṣa His Holiness offered a detailed explanation on Aśvaghoṣa as well as some of the confusion that surrounds the name. In Sanskrit, Aśvaghoṣa means “horse voice”. Historically, there were several figures named Aśvaghoṣa. According to the Treatise Explaining the Mahāyāna that is in the Chinese tradition and said to be written by Nāgārjuna , there were six people named Aśvaghoṣa. Here, His Holiness was referring to the Aśvaghoṣa who lived six centuries after the Buddha’s parinirvāṇa, which would be around the 2 nd century CE. This was around the same time as King Kaniṣka. Aśvaghoṣa was actually a student of Ācārya Pārśva. He was born in the Brahmin caste in the area of Central India near Śrāvastī called Sāketa. He was learned in non-Buddhist topics such as the Vedas and he was a master of debate. In addition, Aśvaghoṣa left an incredible legacy of poetry and music. He was not a minor figure. Rather, he was an important figure and very important scholar celebrated all over by Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike. His Holiness summarized an account regarding Aśvaghoṣa. Kumārajīva was a great translator of Chinese Buddhism. His Holiness likened Kumārajīva to the Tibetan translator Vairotsana. There’s a text Kumārajīva translated called The Biography of Bodhisattva Aśvaghoṣa in which it says Aśvaghoṣa first entered into non-Buddhist schools – he was basically a Hindu monk. Aśvaghoṣa was really learned in philosophy, especially in logic. He went to a Buddhist monastery and said to the Buddhist bhikṣus, “If you have the ability to debate with me, strike the gaṇḍī (the long beam used to summon the sangha). If you are unable, then you should stop striking the gaṇḍī in the monastery and you are not allowed to receive offerings.” At that time, no one among them were able to debate with the non-Buddhist Aśvaghoṣa. At some point later, however, Venerable Pārśva, who normally lived in the northwestern area of Gandhāra, came down to Central India and was staying in a Buddhist monastery there. Normally, in Tibetan Buddhist monasteries, a gong is hit to summon the sangha, but here they would normally have struck a gaṇḍī. Pārśva asked the bhikṣus why they weren’t striking the gaṇḍī at all. They told him what Aśvaghoṣa had said to them, that they were not allowed to strike the gaṇḍī if they were not able to debate with him. Pārśva told them, “If that’s the case, then today you should strike the gaṇḍī. If this Aśvaghoṣa comes, I have a plan.” Now the Buddhist monks didn’t really believe it at first and they were skeptical. “This Aśvaghoṣa, no one can [debate with him]. He’s really hard, no one can do it. How is this old guy going to stand up to him?” They were suspicious but, in the end, the bhikṣus did what Pārśva had instructed them to do and struck the gaṇḍī. The non-Buddhist Aśvaghoṣa came and asked, “Why are you beating that wood today? Normally you wouldn’t dare strike the gaṇḍī but today you are, so what’s going on?” “A venerable master from the north came and said to strike it,” the monks replied. “We weren’t going to do it but he said we had to. Otherwise, we would not have struck it.” Then the non-Buddhist Aśvaghoṣa instructed, “Bring him here, go get him. Get this venerable master who came from the north”. And so Venerable Pārśva and the non-Buddhist Aśvaghoṣa met. They made a commitment that seven days later, they would have an assembly of all the kings, ministers, bhikṣus, non-Buddhists and everyone and have a debate in the middle of the assembly. On the dawn of the seventh day, a huge crowd of people gathered. Into the middle of the crowd, Pārśva came out first and walked straight to the high throne there and sat atop it. His face was more radiant than usual. A bit later, the non-Buddhist Aśvaghoṣa arrived; Pārśva was already sitting on the throne. Since there was only one throne, Aśvaghoṣa had no choice but to stand in front of Pārśva and stay there. Before they debated, they discussed what the penalty would be for the one who lost. The non-Buddhist Aśvaghoṣa suggested, “Whoever loses, you should cut his tongue out.” Venerable Pārśva disagreed: “That is not okay, that is not good. What we should do is that whoever loses should become the victor’s student.” Aśvaghoṣa assented. Then they had to decide who would state their position first and begin the debate. Pārśva said, “I am older and have come a long way from Gandhāra. Also, I was the first to arrive today and I sat on the throne, so I will speak first.” The non-Buddhist answered, “Go ahead. Whatever you’re going to say, I’m just going to completely refute your every single word.” Then, Venerable Pārśva said “May the world be happy. May the King live long. May the crops and livestock of the kingdom flourish. May all misfortune be pacified.” After Pārśva said these words, the non-Buddhist Aśvaghoṣa could not think of anything to say in reply; there was actually nothing to say! This is how Aśvaghoṣa lost the debate and because he had made a commitment before the debate had started, this is how he became Pārśva’s student. Aśvaghoṣa shaved his hair and beard and became a novice monk. He then also took full ordination. Yet at that point, in the depths of his heart, Aśvaghoṣa hadn’t developed faith and he was not fully convinced. Aśvaghoṣa had become Pārśva’s student only because he had lost the debate and he had had no choice. Aśvaghoṣa had not really become Pārśva’s student from his heart. Then one day, Elder Pārśva displayed miraculous powers, whereupon Aśvaghoṣa was amazed and developed faith and belief. Elder Pārśva eventually returned home to Northern India, while Aśvaghoṣa remained in Central India, thoroughly mastering all the Buddhist sūtras. Becoming proficient in all inner and outer fields of knowledge, he overwhelmed the entire world with his skills in debate. He was revered and venerated by the fourfold assembly of bhikṣu, bhikṣunī, lay men and women practitioners, and he was respected by the kings of Central India. His Holiness then related a story about how this figure came to be called Aśvaghoṣa (Voice of a Horse-Voice). A king of Central India saw that Aśvaghoṣa possessed very vast knowledge and high realization, and he saw that Aśvaghoṣa was really skilled at teaching and explaining the Dharma. Of course, Aśvaghoṣa was able to subdue and tame human beings so the king wondered if he could perhaps help non-human beings as well. The king thought other ignorant beings might not realize that. In order to know if Aśvaghoṣa could help non-human beings, the king withheld food from seven of his horses for six days. Horses need hay but he let them starve for six days. On the morning of the sixth day, he gathered monastics and philosophers from both Buddhist and non-Buddhist traditions and requested Aśvaghoṣa to preach the Dharma. The king’s horses were placed in the middle of the crowd. When the horses heard Aśvaghoṣa, they shed tears and had no thought of eating. With complete concentration, the horses listened to all of Aśvaghoṣa’s words. When the people witnessed this event, they realized Aśvaghoṣa was not an ordinary individual. He was incredible; even horses could understand his voice! Henceforth the public gave him the title “Bodhisattva Aśvaghoṣa” or “Horse Voice”. Aśvaghoṣa was the name given to him when he was well-known. Neither his original lay name, his name when he was a non-Buddhist teacher, his name when he first became a Buddhist monastic, nor his actual monastic name are known. Later, Master Aśvaghoṣa traveled to Northwestern areas of India and widely propagated the Buddha’s teachings. He was skilled in spreading the Dharma through various means such as poetry and music. King Kaniṣka, who was very influential and powerful, showed Aśvaghoṣa much reverence and praise, calling him the “ guṇāditya teacher” (“Sun of Virtues teacher”). Focusing on another aspect of Aśvaghoṣa’s contributions, His Holiness turned to his written work. He explained that Aśvaghoṣa wrote a great number of texts but very few of them survive today. Among them, there are not just treatises but also Buddhist literary works. Historically, he was known for his literary contributions, which His Holiness discussed later. He spoke of the treatises first. In the Chinese canon, there are eight main texts attributed to Aśvaghoṣa, four of which are Mahāyāna treatises, His Holiness said. They are: The Treatise on Awakening Faith in the Mahāyāna ( 大乘起信論 Dasheng qixin lun ); The Treatise on the Fundamental Text of the Great Doctrinal Stage ( 大宗地玄文本論 Dazongdi xuanwenben lun ); The Sūtra on the Nirgrantha’s Question on Selflessness [Skt: Nairātmyaparipṛcchā or Questions on Selflessness ] ; and Fifty Verses of Guru Devotion (Skt: Gurupañcāśikā ). The other four texts belong to the Śrāva ka vehicle. However, His Holiness said, among contemporary scholars there is intense debate over who actually authored the texts attributed to Aśvaghoṣa, in particular The Treatise on Awakening Faith in the Mahāyāna . In the 20th century, Japanese Buddhist researchers questioned whether The Treatise on Awakening Faith in the Mahāyāna was truly authored by Aśvaghoṣa and translated by Paramārtha. Most maintain that the text was not composed by Aśvaghoṣa and suspect that it was not written by an Indian scholar at all. Rather, the actual author borrowed Aśvaghoṣa’s name and attributed the treatise to him. Today, it has become basically a settled conclusion among international scholars that this text is not Aśvaghoṣa’s work. However, it is a very important and well-known text in the Chinese tradition. His Holiness then mentioned a Japanese scholar, Sakaino Kōyō, who states that even if we believe that this treatise was authored by someone named Aśvaghoṣa, it couldn’t be the same Aśvaghoṣa of King Kaniṣka’s era. He reasoned that the views presented in the text had not yet appeared when Aśvaghoṣa and King Kaniṣka lived. His Holiness continued to explain the argument. Because the inner thought of this text synthesized the tathāgatagarbha (buddha nature) view and the cittamātra (mind-only) view, it belonged to the Tathāgatagarbha school. The Tathāgatagarbha sūtras and Cittamātra sūtras had not yet appeared at the time of Aśvaghoṣa and King Kaniṣka, but emerged after the spread of the Prajñāpāramitā sutras. Cittamātra thought in particular arose even later. Under such circumstances, a formal treatise like the Treatise on Awakening Faith in the Mahāyāna could only have been composed after the spread of the Tathāgatagarbha and Cittamātra sūtras. Chronologically, it must date to a time later than Master Asaṅga at least, making it impossible to have been written by the Aśvaghoṣa at that time of Mahāyāna’s emergence. His Holiness then examined the authorship of the next three Mahāyāna treatises attributed to Aśvaghoṣa. The Treatise on the Fundamental Text of the Great Doctrinal Stage ( Dazongdi Xuanwenben Lun ) may not have been authored by Aśvaghoṣa, His Holiness said. He pointed out that the title is a Chinese name or expression rather than a Sanskrit one, and its structure is a mixture of various different components. Thus, it seems to have been written by a Chinese author. Similarly, Aśvaghoṣa may not have authored Fifty Verses of Guru Devotion although it is attributed to him in the Chinese tradition. [His Holiness has discussed this text fully in his teachings during the 7 th , 8 th and 9 th Arya Kshema Nuns’ Winter Gathering ( https://www.aryakshema.com ) where he explained that modern researchers attribute the authorship to Indian