Toh 637The Dhāraṇī-mantra of the One Hundred and Eight Names of Samantabhadra
Pāli / Sanskrit:Samantabhadrāṣṭottaraśatakanāma dhāraṇīmantrasahitam
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An Exposition of the Sutra of the Esoteric Names of the Bodhisattva Samantabhadra
Context
The Dhāraṇī-mantra of the One Hundred and Eight Names of Samantabhadra (Toh 637) belongs to the Kangyur collection—the scriptures translated from Sanskrit into Tibetan during the golden age of the Dharma in Tibet. This is a sutra in the Tantra section, reflecting a profound synthesis of Mahayana and Vajrayana.
Samantabhadra is one of the most distinctive bodhisattvas in Mahayana Buddhism. Whereas Mañjuśrī represents lucid wisdom, Samantabhadra symbolizes universal and virtuous action—that is, compassionate activity encompassing the entire cosmos. His eighty-eight names are not ordinary appellations, but aspects of Samantabhadra himself revealed through his interaction with the worlds of the ten directions.
In the Vajrayana tradition, a dhāraṇī-mantra is a sacred formula of sound endowed with the power to burn away impure dependent origination and activate innate wisdom. A bodhisattva’s name is not merely an appellation, but a way in which that bodhisattva’s true nature is manifested through each limitation of the world.
Main Content
This sutra focuses on enumerating and elucidating the one hundred and eight names of the Bodhisattva Samantabhadra. Each name is a mantra, a subtle instrument of practice designed to integrate the training into the practitioner’s mind. These names reflect the distinctive qualities manifested by Samantabhadra:
Samantabhadra is “He Who Travels to Innumerable Realms,” “He Whose Loving Mind Is Unsurpassed,” “He Who Fulfills Every Vow of Conduct,” and the other names successively disclose dimensions of universal action. Each name expresses a way in which Samantabhadra abides in order to liberate sentient beings from suffering.
The number one hundred and eight (108) is not arbitrary.
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