The Chinese Diamond Sutra, the oldest known dated printed book in the world, printed in the 9th year of Xiantong Era of the Tang Dynasty, i.e. 868 CE. British Library.

The Diamond Sutra (Sanskrit: वज्रच्छेदिका प्रज्ञापारमितासूत्र Vajracchedika-prajñāpāramitā-sūtra, Chinese: 金剛經, Pinyin: jin gang jing, Japanese: kosan-kongyō), or "The Sutra of the Perfection of Wisdom of the Diamond that Cuts Through Illusion," is a short Mahayana sutra of the Perfection of Wisdom genre, which teaches the practice of the avoidance of abiding in extremes of mental attachment. A copy of the Diamond Sutra, found sealed in a cave in China in the early 20th century, is the oldest known dated printed book, with a printed date of 868. The Sanskrit language ( , for short ) is an old Indo-Aryan language from the Indian Subcontinent, the classical literary language of the Hindus of India[1], a liturgical language of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism, and one of the 23 official languages of India. ... It has been suggested that Pinyin method be merged into this article or section. ... Relief image of the bodhisattva Kuan Yin from Mt. ... SÅ«tra (sex) (Sanskrit) or Sutta (Pāli) literally means a rope or thread that holds things together, and more metaphorically refers to an aphorism (or line, rule, formula), or a collection of such aphorisms in the form of a manual. ... Perfection of Wisdom is a translation of the Sanskrit term prajñā pāramitā (Devanagari: प्रज्ञा पारमिता, Chinese: 般若波羅蜜多/般若波罗蜜多, Pinyin: bānruò-bōluómìduō, Japanese: hannya-haramita), which is one of the aspects of a bodhisattvas personality called the paramitas. ... (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999... A chained book in the Bodleian Library at Oxford University A Chinese bamboo book, in a collection at the University of California, Riverside. ... Events 11 May: Printing of The Diamond Sutra, the oldest dated printed book. ...

Contents

The Diamond Sutra, like many sutras, begins with the famous phrase "thus have I heard" (एवं मया श्रुतम्, evam maya shrutam). In this sutra the Buddha has finished his daily walk with the monks to gather offerings of food and sits down to rest. One of the more senior monks, Subhuti, comes forth and asks the Buddha a question. SÅ«tra (sex) (Sanskrit) or Sutta (Pāli) literally means a rope or thread that holds things together, and more metaphorically refers to an aphorism (or line, rule, formula), or a collection of such aphorisms in the form of a manual. ... Standing Buddha sculpture, ancient region of Gandhara, northern Pakistan, 1st century CE, Musée Guimet. ... Subhuti (Chn: 須菩提) was one of the Buddha Shakyamunis Ten Major Disciples, a contemporary of such famous arhats as Sariputra, Mahakasyapa, Maudgalyayana, and Vimalakirti. ...

What proceeds from there is a lengthy, and often repetitive, dialogue regarding the nature of perception. The Buddha often uses paradoxical phrases like "what is the highest teaching is in fact not the highest teaching; thus it can be called the highest teaching".^[1] Standing Buddha sculpture, ancient region of Gandhara, northern Pakistan, 1st century CE, Musée Guimet. ...

The Buddha is trying to help Subhuti unlearn his preconceived, and limited, notions of what reality is, the nature of Enlightenment, and compassion. Standing Buddha, ancient region of Gandhara, northern Pakistan, 1st century CE, Musée Guimet. ...

A particularly noteworthy part is when the Buddha teaches Subhuti that what makes a Bodhisattva so great is that the Bodhisattva does not take pride in his/her work to save others, nor is their compassion calculated or contrived. They practice sincere compassion that comes from deep within, without any sense of ego or gain. In Buddhist thought, a bodhisattva (Pali: bodhisatta; Simplified Chinese: , Traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: púsà; Japanese: 菩薩 bosatsu; Korean: ë³´ì‚´ bosal ; Tibetan changchub sempa (byang-chub sems-dpa); Vietnamese: Bồ Tát; Thai: พระโพธิสัตว์) is a being who is dedicated to assisting all sentient beings in achieving complete Buddhahood. ...

In another section, Subhuti expresses concern that the Diamond Sutra will be forgotten 500 years after it is taught (alternatively, during the last 500 years of this era). The Buddha assures Subhuti that well after he is gone, there will still be some who can grasp the meaning of the Diamond Sutra and put it into practice. This section seems to reflect a concern found in other Buddhist texts that the teachings of the Buddha would eventually fade and become corrupted. A popular Buddhist concept, known as mappo in Japanese, also reflects this same anxiety. Standing Buddha sculpture, ancient region of Gandhara, northern Pakistan, 1st century CE, Musée Guimet. ... Mappo, 末法 Jp. ...

In Practise

Since it can be read in approximately forty minutes, the Diamond Sutra is often memorized and chanted in Buddhist monasteries. This sutra has retained a high degree of popularity in the Mahāyāna Buddhist tradition for over a millennium, especially in East Asia, and most importantly within the East Asian meditation (Chan/Seon/Zen/Thien) school, where it is recited, taught, and commented extensively, even today. The text resonates with a core aspect of Chan doctrine/praxis: the theme of "non-abiding." Buddhism is a dharmic, non-theistic religion, which is also a philosophy and a system of psychology[]. Buddhism is also known as Buddha Dharma or Dhamma, which means the teachings of the Awakened One in Sanskrit and Pali, the languages of ancient Buddhist texts. ... Mah is an ancient Persian god of the moon, one of the Yazatas. ... A replica of an ancient statue found among the ruins of a temple at Sarnath Buddhism is a philosophy based on the teachings of the Buddha, Siddhārtha Gautama, a prince of the Shakyas, whose lifetime is traditionally given as 566 to 486 BCE. It had subsequently been accepted by... Chán is the Chinese name for the school of Mahāyāna Buddhism known in Japanese as Zen. ... The Seon school is a Korean branch of Buddhism that shares its origins and many characteristics with Chinese Chan and whose influence originated aspects of Japanese Zen. ... This article is about the religion Zen. ... JQ IS HERE GO AWAY DONT TOUCH MY NAME SHOOOO! ... In Buddhism, especially Zen and Chan, Non-abiding (Apratisthita in Sanskrit) is the practice of avoiding mental constructs while not engaged in meditation (zazen). ...

It is often said in the Diamond Sutra that if a person can even commit four lines of the Sutra into practice, they will be greatly blessed.

British Library

There is a wood block printed copy in the British Library which, although not the earliest example of block printing, is the earliest example which bears an actual date. The copy is a scroll, about 16 feet long, found in 1907 by the archaeologist Sir Marc Aurel Stein in the walled-up Mogao Caves near Dunhuang, in northwest China. The caves are known as the "Caves of the Thousand Buddhas." The colophon, at the inner end, reads: Reverently [caused to be] made for universal free distribution by Wang Jie on behalf of his two parents on the 13th of the 4th moon of the 9th year of Xiantong (i.e. 11th May, CE 868). This is about 587 years before the Gutenberg Bible. Yuan dynasty woodblock edition of a Chinese play Woodblock printing is a technique for printing text or images used widely throughout East Asia and originating in China sometime between the mid-6th and late 9th centuries. ... British Library Ossulston St entrance, with distinctive red logo. ... 1907 (MCMVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Archaeology or sometimes in American English archeology (from the Greek words αρχαίος = ancient and λόγος = word/speech) is the study of human cultures through the recovery, documentation and analysis of material remains, including architecture, artefacts, biofacts, human remains, and landscapes. ... Image:AurelStein. ... View of the Mogao Grottoes from outside The Mogao Caves, or Mogao Grottoes (Chinese: ; pinyin: ) form a system of 492 temples near Dunhuang, in Gansu province, China. ... Location of Dunhuang Dunhuang (Chinese: 敦煌, also written as 燉煌 till early Qing Dynasty; pinyin: DÅ«nhuáng; ) is a city in Jiuquan, Gansu province, China. ... In publishing, a colophon describes details of the production of a book. ... Events 11 May: Printing of The Diamond Sutra, the oldest dated printed book. ... A copy of the Gutenberg Bible, this version owned by the U.S. Library of Congress The Gutenberg Bible (also known as the 42-line Bible, and as the Mazarin Bible) is a print of the Latin Vulgate translation of the Bible that was printed by Johannes Gutenberg, in Mainz...

Image from British Library Copy

Image File history File links 40130085_diamondsutra203. ... Image File history File links 40130085_diamondsutra203. ... British Library Ossulston St entrance, with distinctive red logo. ...

References

Notes

1. ^ Diamond Sutra, Sec. 8, Subsec. 5 金剛經，依法出生分第八，五：結歸離相

Bibliography

• Thich Nhat Hanh: The Diamond that Cuts Through Illusion: Commentaries on the Prajñaparamita Diamond Sutra. Berkely, CA, USA: Parallax Press, 1992 ISBN 0-938077-51-1

External links

• Turn the pages of the British Library's copy of the Diamond Sutra.
• Diamond Sutra: English Translation, by Charles Muller
• Diamond Sutra: English Translation, by A. F. Price and Wong Mou-Lam
• Diamond Sutra - images of the original printed edition
• Streaming Audio of the Diamond Sutra Sung in English