Toh 2306The Inconceivable Enlightened Activities, Advice to the Powerful
Pāli / Sanskrit:mthu can la gdams pa phrin las bsam gyis mi khyab pa/
Save your scripture progress
Create a free account to save scriptures, track progress, and continue your daily learning path.
Exposition of the Scripture “Inconceivable Enlightened Activities, Advice to the Powerful”
Context
This scripture belongs to the Northern Tibetan tradition of Mahayana Buddhism and is recorded in the Tengyur, the collection of commentaries on the scriptures. The work is directed toward leaders and highly influential figures in society, those who possess power and responsibility. It is a profound counsel that helps such people understand that Buddhist practice is not meant to reject the world, but to employ power ethically and to serve sentient beings selflessly.
The main title, “Inconceivable Enlightened Activities” (bsam gyis mi khyab pa — inconceivable), emphasizes that true practitioners can give rise to awakened actions that surpass ordinary prediction and understanding. This is a crucial concept in the Mahayana.
Main Content
The scripture takes the standpoint of the Mahayana Buddha Dharma — especially the Tibetan tradition — to show clearly that those in positions of power do not need to abandon their status or social role in order to practice the Buddha Dharma. Instead, they should train in selfless wisdom, compassion, and the understanding that all phenomena are impermanent, without self, and sunyata (empty).
The essential advice is this: the actions of such people must arise from awakened intent (bodhicitta), not from greed, hatred, and delusion. When a person with power acts on the basis of wisdom and compassion, those activities become “inconceivable” — that is, not bound by selfhood, without any intention to seek gain or accumulate private merit. This is precisely the most subtle point: vast actions with wide-reaching influence, yet carried out with a mind free from self.
The activities of a Buddha (buddha-karya) in the Mahayana are not manufactured or craved for, but arise naturally from compassion and comprehensive wisdom. This scripture teaches that those who have authority should use it as a means (upaya) to promote the Buddha Dharma, protect sentient beings, and educate citizens in ethics.
🌏 The Buddhist canon is vast — some sūtras (such as comparative Vinaya across schools, or untranslated Tibetan-canon texts) have to this day NEVER been translated into Vietnamese or English by anyone, scholars included. Rather than leave it blank, Inti AI offers a FAITHFUL summary grounded in the tradition — from the sūtra's title, origin and essence — so you can still reach this rare part of the treasury. Whenever an original translation exists, the app shows the original first.
Translations belong to the translator/source credited above. The bilingual compilation, presentation, and AI translations compiled by Inti are © Inti Foundation. Please attribute when quoting; do not bulk-copy or use commercially without permission.