Toh 221The Sūtra of Advice to the King
Pāli / Sanskrit:Rājāvavādakasūtra
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THE SUTRA OF ADVICE TO THE KING - An Exposition
Background
The Sutra of Advice to the King (Rājāvavādakasūtra) is a precious sutra belonging to the Northern Transmission canon, recorded in the Kangyur, the collection of scriptures taught by Buddha Śākyamuni. This sutra is numbered Toh 221 and belongs to the Sutra section of the Tibetan Buddhist tradition.
This sutra was composed to guide great sovereign kings on the proper path of practice according to the Buddha-Dharma. In the Mahāyāna context, a king is regarded as a bodhisattva with a heavy responsibility: to maintain justice, protect sentient beings, and guide the entire nation according to the teachings of the Buddha. Therefore, The Sutra of Advice to the King has canonical significance for Buddhist politics and royal ethics.
The Tibetan tradition highly values this sutra because it directly links Buddhist Dharma practice with the governance of a country. This reflects the Mahāyāna philosophy that liberating sentient beings is accomplished not only through personal practice, but also through social action that benefits the collective.
Main Content
The sutra takes the form of the Buddha directly giving teachings to kings on the principles they should follow in order to rule a country while still practicing the Buddha-Dharma. The sutra teaches that a virtuous king must act according to the ten wholesome actions (Daśa Kuśala Karma-patha): that is, to avoid eight evils, namely killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, lying, harsh speech, disparaging speech, useless repetitive speech, and covetousness, while also cultivating ten aspects: compassion, duty, truthfulness, and conscience.
The sutra emphasizes that a Buddhist king must act with loving compassion toward all sentient beings, including enemies. The balance between justice and mercy is the key. The king must protect monks and nuns, support the Three Jewels (Buddha, Dharma, Sangha), and create conditions for sentient beings to study and practice the Buddha-Dharma without oppression or fear.
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