Toh 253The Sūtra on the Threefold Teaching

Exposition of the Sūtra of the Threefold Dharma

(Tridharmakasūtra — Toh 253, Northern Tibetan Kangyur)

Background

The Sūtra of the Threefold Dharma is recorded in the Northern Tibetan Kangyur as a profound Mahāyāna teaching on the structure of practice on the bodhisattva path. This sūtra reflects the Northern Tibetan tradition, where the Buddha Dharma is divided into three clear domains to support practitioners on the path to awakening. The context of the sūtra belongs to the later development of Mahāyāna Buddhism, when systems of practice had been refined into comprehensive structures, especially in the Tibetan tradition.

This sūtra was transmitted in order to provide Mahāyāna devotees with a clear map of how to proceed in practice, thereby building a firm foundation for cultivation according to the bodhisattva path.

Main Content

The Threefold Dharma (Tridharmaka) refers to three fundamental dimensions of the teaching in the Northern Tibetan tradition, although the specific content of this sūtra has not yet been fully translated. However, in the context of Northern Tibetan Mahāyāna, the threefold Dharma is commonly understood as follows:

First is the Dharma of the Teaching (the Kangyur), that is, the sacred scriptures recorded and transmitted from the Buddha, serving as the foundation for accurate understanding of the doctrine. Second is the Dharma of Practice (tantra and methods of cultivation), including skills, concentration, meditation, and practices that transform consciousness according to gradual layers of instruction. Third is the Dharma of the Result (Buddhahood), that is, the spiritual attainments that practitioners can realize through devoted practice of the two preceding forms of Dharma.

This structure reflects a complete circle: from receiving the teaching, through conscious practice, to attaining the final fruition. The sūtra emphasizes that these three forms of Dharma are not separate, but closely connected stages in one unified process of practice.