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深密

Pronunciations

Basic Meaning: profound

Senses:

  • Underlying; deep, profound, abstruse; the real meaning, the hidden intent, deep esoteric meaning, mystery; syn. 深奧 (Skt. saṃdhi; Tib. dgongs pa nges par 'grel pa). In the title of foundational Yogâcāra sutra, the Saṃdhinirmocana-sūtra, Xuanzangʼs Chinese reads: 解深密經, i.e., Explicating the Deep Mystery. Edgertonʼs Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Grammar and Dictionary, 558, renders its meaning in the sutra (saṃdhi-nirmocana) as the “setting forth or unfolding of the real truth, the fundamental explanation.” This parallels the Tibetan dgoṅs pa nges par 'grel pa, the real explanation of the esoteric meaning. Étienne Lamotte, Saṃdhinirmocana-sūtra: L'explication des mystères (Louvain and Paris: Bibliothèque nationale de France, 1935), 12, writes that the title literally means “Sutra detachant les noeuds” (The Sutra that Loosens Knots). The question is just what is meant by these mysteries, hidden intentions, or knots (saṃdhi). In chapter five of this sutra, the Buddha is questioned concerning the “secrets” of cittamanovijñāna (心意識秘密). It would thus seem that, in this Yogâcāra context, saṃdhi refers to the implicit functions and structures of consciousness, which are made explicit (nirmocana) by this sutra. It is not that undefined mysterious or hidden things are explained, but that by making explicit the implicit structure and functioning of consciousness, the Saṃdhinirmocana-sūtra lays the foundation for Yogâcāra itself. (Skt. anusaṃdhi, gahvara, gūḍha, ghana, durgama). 〔瑜伽論 T 1579.30.579a13 〕 [John Keenan; source(s): Hirakawa, Nakamura]
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    [Dictionary References]

    Bukkyōgo daijiten (Nakamura) 797a

    Buddhist Chinese-Sanskrit Dictionary (Hirakawa) 0732

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    The rights to textual segments (nodes) of the DDB are owned by the author indicated in the brackets next to each segment. For rights regarding the compilation as a whole, please contact Charles Muller. Please do not reproduce without permission. And please do not copy into Wikipedia without proper citation!

    Entry created: 1993-09-01

    Updated: 2017-09-12