༄༅། །བམ་ན་འདས་མ་ས་རབ་་ཕ་ལ་་ན་པ་ང་།

The Heart of the Perfection of Wisdom, the

Blessed Mother

Bhagavatīprajñāpāramitāhṛdaya

Translated into Tibetan by

Vimalamitra · Rinchen Dé · Gelo · Namkha
 Toh 21
Degé Kangyur, vol. 34 (sher phyin, ka), folios 144b–146a

Translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee

under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha

First published 2022

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co. TABLE OF CONTENTS
ti. Title
im. Imprint
co. Contents
s. Summary
ac. Acknowledgements
i. Introduction
· The Short Sūtra
· The Long Sūtra
· The Heart Sūtra in the Kangyur
tr. The Translation
1. The Heart of the Perfection of Wisdom, the Blessed Mother
c. Colophon
n. Notes
b. Bibliography
· Tibetan Canonical Texts
· Secondary Sources
g. Glossary
s. SUMMARY
s.1 In this famous scripture, known popularly as The Heart Sūtra, the Buddha
Śākyamuni inspires his senior monk Śāriputra to request instructions from
the bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara on the way to practice the perfection of
wisdom. Avalokiteśvara then describes how an aspiring practitioner of the
perfection of wisdom must first understand how all phenomena lack an
intrinsic nature, which amounts to the realization of emptiness. Next,
Avalokiteśvara reveals a brief mantra that the practitioner can recite as a
method for engendering this understanding experientially. Following
Avalokiteśvara’s teaching, the Buddha offers his endorsement and confirms
that this is the foremost way to practice the perfection of wisdom.
ac. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
ac.1 Translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee under the guidance
of Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche. The translation was produced by Catherine
Dalton and Andreas Doctor, who also wrote the introduction. Wiesiek Mical
compared the translation against the Sanskrit. The translators also wish to
thank Jeffrey Kotyk, Jayarava Attwood, and Joshua Capitanio for their
helpful comments and advice.
The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of
84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.
i. INTRODUCTION
i.1 The Heart of the Perfection of Wisdom, the Blessed Mother,1 which today is
popularly known simply as The Heart Sūtra,2 has been cherished, read, and
recited by Mahāyāna Buddhists in East and Central Asia for well over a
millennium. Over the centuries, scholars and practitioners have continued to
find deep meaning in this short scripture and vigorously debated its purpose
and practice —and even whether to classify it as a sūtra or a tantra. Still
today, The Heart Sūtra continues to be recited around the world in
monasteries, temples, and meditation centers in a variety of Buddhist
traditions. As a result of its popularity, in more recent times the sūtra has
been translated into a wide variety of modern languages that are available in
print and online.
i.2 The sūtra takes place on Vulture Peak Mountain near Rājagṛha. Here the
Buddha inspires his senior monk Śāriputra to request instructions from the
bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara regarding the practice of the perfection of
wisdom.3 Prompted in this way, Avalokiteśvara describes how an aspiring
practitioner of the perfection of wisdom must first understand that all
phenomena lack an intrinsic nature and therefore are empty. To manifest this
realization in the practitioner, Avalokiteśvara reveals a brief mantra to be
recited: tadyathā gate gate pāragate pārasaṃgate bodhi svāhā. Following
Avalokiteśvara’s teaching, the Buddha offers his endorsement of what has
been said and confirms that this is indeed the foremost way to practice the
perfection of wisdom.
i.3 In English we speak of The Heart Sūtra in the singular, but this obscures
the fact that—more than most Buddhist canonical scriptures —this short
teaching exists in a variety of versions, recensions, and redactions in
multiple canonical languages. Most importantly, The Heart Sūtra exists in both
a short and a long version (although the long version is also very brief) in
 Chinese, Sanskrit, and Tibetan. In East Asia the shorter version, which is also
the older one in terms of textual history, became the most popular, while in
Tibet the longer version was favored.

· The Short Sūtra ·

i.4 The short version of The Heart Sūtra was first compiled—most likely as an
abstract of longer Prajñāpāramitā sūtras —in China sometime in the middle
of the seventh century ᴄᴇ.4 Shortly thereafter, it appears that the sūtra was
translated from Chinese into Sanskrit. The material used to compile the sūtra
was extracted from key passages in Prajñāpāramitā scriptures in Chinese
translation, especially Kumārajīva’s (344–413 ᴄᴇ) translation of The Perfection
of Wisdom in Twenty-Five Thousand Lines (Taishō 223). These central statements
were then framed by an introduction describing the bodhisattva
Avalokiteśvara’s role as the teacher, and then a concluding mantra, which
functioned to encapsulate the blessings of the Prajñāpāramitā teachings.5 In
this way, the short version of The Heart Sūtra combines established Buddhist
Prajñāpāramitā scripture with dhāraṇī practice in an abridged format that is
eminently suited for recitation. Notably, at that time in China such scriptural
digests summarizing the words of the Buddha (buddhavacana) were common,
and The Heart Sūtra is certainly not unique in this way.6 What is remarkable,
however, is the immense importance and popularity the short version of The
Heart Sūtra came to enjoy in China and the rest of East Asia. When viewed
from the perspective of its roots in Prajñāpāramitā literature and its
transformative and liberating efficacy in the perception of its many devotees,
The Heart Sūtra does fulfill important criteria for being a genuine Buddhist
scripture. For example, the Mahāyāna sūtra Inspiring Determination
(Adhyāśayasañcodana, Toh 69) defines authentic buddhavacana as any
discourse 7 that fulfils the following four criteria: (1) it must be meaningful, (2)
it has to be consistent with the Dharma, (3) it should reduce mental
defilements, and (4) it should present the qualities of nirvāṇa as opposed to
saṃsāra.8 In this sense The Heart Sūtra is perhaps not so different from many
other Mahāyāna scriptures, in particular those of the Prajñāpāramitā family,
that likewise were transmitted across a variety of time periods, regions,
cultures, and languages —constantly in flux, yet ever encapsulating the
transcendent aspects of authentic buddhavacana.
i.5 Traditionally, the earliest version of The Heart Sūtra in Chinese was
thought to be Taishō 250, which in traditional sources is described as a
translation of Kumārajīva. However, this attribution is generally no longer
accepted, and some scholars have placed it later in time —some even in the
beginning of the eighth century ᴄᴇ.9 Apart from Taishō 250, the earliest
witness for The Heart Sūtra’s existence is a famous stone stele, which was
 discovered in the early twentieth century at the Yunju Temple in the
Fangshan region near Beijing. The inscription on this stele is a rendering of
the short version of The Heart Sūtra, and the colophon is dated to 661. The
colophon further states that this is the translation prepared by Xuanzang
(i.e., an equivalent of Taishō 251).10 Of the three shorter versions of the text in
Chinese,11 this is the one that has been commonly read and recited across
East Asia down to the present day.
i.6 In terms of Sanskrit sources, the first rendering of the short sūtra in
Sanskrit was likely produced shortly after the compilation of The Heart Sūtra
in Chinese in the middle of the seventh century. However, the earliest
witness we have of a Sanskrit text is not an actual Sanskrit manuscript, but
rather a version with the Sanskrit transliterated into Chinese characters
(Taishō 256). This text was likely produced by the famous translator and
teacher Amoghavajra (705–74) and can therefore be dated to the eighth
century.12 While multiple Sanskrit manuscripts of the shorter version of The
Heart Sūtra exist, any dating of such manuscripts is typically fraught with
much uncertainty.13 Scholars have, however, dated a Sanskrit manuscript of
the short version (currently kept in Tokyo National Museum) to the ninth or
tenth century, and this appears to be the earliest extant Sanskrit
manuscript.14 Tibetan translations of the short sūtra were never included in
any of the Kangyurs, but several have been identified among the Dunhuang
manuscripts.15
i.7 In sum, we can conclude that the Chinese version of the short sūtra must
have been compiled sometime between 404 (when Kumārajīva completed
his translation of Taishō 223) and 661 ᴄᴇ (the date on the stone stele), and
that the Sanskrit translation was produced soon thereafter.16 However, in
addition to these mutually distant historical markers, we also have data that
place the likely time of compilation much more precisely within just a two-
year period from 654–56 ᴄᴇ. First, 654 ᴄᴇ marks the year when the Dhāraṇī-
samuccaya (Taishō 901), which is the likely source of the mantra in The Heart
Sūtra, was translated into Chinese.17 Second, in Xuanzang’s biography
(Taishō 2053, written in the late seventh century) it is mentioned that in 656
Xuanzang offered a gold-lettered version of The Heart Sūtra to the imperial
family as a gift. Although the biography is a later source than the stone stele,
the date provided in the biography is the earliest placement of The Heart Sūtra
in the historical record and this may possibly be the very occasion on which
The Heart Sūtra was first compiled in Chinese.18

· The Long Sūtra ·

i.8 The history of the longer version of The Heart Sūtra presents us with an
equally complex picture of textual transmission. Notably, there are at least
two distinct longer versions of The Heart Sūtra. Both longer versions add to
the short sūtra by presenting a more extensive, traditional introduction
(beginning with the statement “Thus did I hear at one time”) and a
conventional concluding section as we generally know them from the
Mahāyāna sūtras. As a result, the longer versions appear much more like a
typical sūtra than does the short version.
i.9 The earliest version of the long sūtra, traditionally dated to 738 ᴄᴇ, is a text
that only exists in Chinese (Taishō 252). While the text presents itself as a
translation from Sanskrit, it is most likely an early attempt to present the
short sūtra in a traditional literary format by adding an introduction and a
concluding section, which appear to have been composed directly in
Chinese. This version does not seem to have gained much popularity, as its
unique introduction was never replicated or copied in other sources.19
i.10 The four remaining Chinese versions of the long sūtra (Taishō 253, 254,
255, and 257) are all translations that were produced either from Sanskrit or
Tibetan manuscripts.20 Although they each feature certain idiosyncratic
elements, all of them clearly belong to the same family in text-historical
terms. Unfortunately, there are no surviving Sanskrit manuscripts from the
period when these four translations were produced, from the late eighth to
the early eleventh century.21 The earliest Sanskrit witnesses we have of the
longer version of The Heart Sūtra are Nepalese manuscripts that were
produced several centuries later.
i.11 Just as with the Sanskrit translation of the short sūtra, we also do not
know the circumstances in which the Sanskrit text of the longer version first
appeared. It must have taken place, however, prior to 788 ᴄᴇ, when the first
Chinese translation from Sanskrit was produced. At around the same time,
the two Tibetan translations, which were subsequently included in the
Kangyur (see more below), must also have been produced. We can say that
with some confidence, since the translation is recorded in the Denkarma
catalog of completed translations, which is dated to 812.22
i.12 In the Tengyur collections seven commentaries on the long sūtra by
Indian scholars and one by a Chinese scholar are included in Tibetan
translation. Some of these commentaries were composed by such well-
known names in Tibetan history as Kamalaśīla (740–95), Vimalamitra
(eighth/ninth c.), and Atīśa (982–1054).23 The authors of these commentaries
were all active from the eighth to the eleventh century and most of them are
known to have visited Tibet. Interestingly, the different commentators view
The Heart Sūtra through very diverse hermeneutical lenses and interpret it
variously through the systems of sūtra, tantra, and even ritual practice
 (sādhana). This great variety of interpretations, combined with the fact that
there is no mention of The Heart Sūtra in any other source linked to India,
makes it seem likely that the commentaries were all composed in Tibet
during the sojourns of these Indian masters there.24
i.13 It therefore appears that the history of the long sūtra can be told largely as
a Sino-Tibetan exchange of ideas and manuscripts, which unfolded during
the eighth to the eleventh century. In this regard, there are strong
indications that the Dunhuang region was an important center for the
exchange of such ideas and manuscripts. Among the scriptural treasures
discovered in the Dunhuang caves in the early twentieth century, all of
which must date prior to the turn of the eleventh century when the caves at
Dunhuang were sealed off, there are numerous manuscripts of The Heart
Sūtra in both Chinese and Tibetan. In addition to the shorter versions
mentioned above, there are a number of longer versions, and apparently
even a few “hybrid” manuscripts that are neither of the standard short or
long sūtras.25 Like the Chinese and Sanskrit versions, these Tibetan
Dunhuang manuscripts provide a variety of readings, but so far no
comparative analyses of these texts, or critical editions of the manuscripts,
have been published.

· The Heart Sūtra in the Kangyur ·

i.14 In Tibet, only the longer version of The Heart Sūtra was included in the
various Kangyur collections, where it has been preserved in two recensions,
which Jonathan Silk has designated Recension A and Recension B.26 These
two recensions represent individual manuscript traditions and appear to
have been translated into Tibetan by different translators, although the exact
details remain unknown.27 The two recensions vary on several significant
points, such as the title of the text, the name of the absorption in which the
Buddha rests, the mantra that Avalokiteśvara reveals, and the presence or
absence of a translator’s colophon.
i.15 The fact that The Heart Sūtra incorporates elements of both sūtra and tantra,
and therefore has been variously classified throughout its history, is evident
from its placement in the different Kangyur collections, where it often
appears twice in both the Tantra section and the Perfection of Wisdom
section.28 Generally speaking, all Kangyurs include Recension A in their
Tantra sections, whereas some Kangyurs, mostly those of the Thempangma
(them spangs ma) branch, also include Recension B in the Perfection of
Wisdom section.29 The Kangyurs that belong to the Tshalpa (tshal pa) branch
mostly include the text only once, in the Tantra section.30 In the Degé
 Kangyur, however, the text appears in both the Perfection of Wisdom and
the Tantra sections, but, unlike the Thempangma Kangyurs, the Degé
Kangyur includes Recension A both times, thus omitting Recension B.31
i.16 Our translation is based primarily on the version of Recension A that is
included in the Degé Kangyur. We have made Recension A our primary
focus in order to present in English one important version of The Heart Sūtra
as it has been transmitted in Tibet since the early ninth century, rather than
attempting to edit this version in search of an elusive urtext. However, to
give the reader a taste of the differences between the two Tibetan
recensions —differences that the Tibetans found worthy of preservation in
their Kangyurs —we have included in the form of notes the most significant
variations between the Degé text and the version of Recension B that is
included in the Perfection of Wisdom section in the Stok Palace Kangyur.32
We have also attempted, whenever possible, to let our translation be
informed by the published Sanskrit editions of The Heart Sūtra, the eight
commentaries on the text in the Tengyur collections, and the growing
scholarly literature on The Heart Sūtra.
The Heart of the Perfection of Wisdom, the Blessed
Mother
1. The Translation
[F.144.b]33 [B1]

1.1 Homage to the Perfection of Wisdom, the Blessed Mother!34

Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was residing on Vulture Peak
Mountain at Rājagṛha together with a great saṅgha of monks and a great
saṅgha of bodhisattvas. [F.145.a]
1.2 At that time the Blessed One rested in an absorption on the categories of
phenomena called illumination of the profound.35
1.3 At the same time,36 the bodhisattva great being, noble Avalokiteśvara,
while practicing the profound perfection of wisdom, looked and saw that the
five aggregates are also37 empty of an intrinsic nature.38
1.4 Then, due to the Buddha’s power, venerable Śāriputra39 asked the
bodhisattva great being, noble Avalokiteśvara, “How should sons of noble
family or daughters of noble family40 train if they wish to engage in the
practice of the profound perfection of wisdom?”
1.5 The bodhisattva great being, noble Avalokiteśvara, replied to venerable
Śāradvatīputra,41 “Śāriputra, sons of noble family or daughters of noble
family who wish to engage in the practice of the profound perfection of
wisdom should see things in this way: they should correctly observe the five
aggregates to be empty of an intrinsic nature.42
1.6 “Form is empty.43 Emptiness is form. Emptiness is not other than form, and
form is also not other than emptiness.44 In the same way, feeling, perception,
formation,45 and consciousness are empty.
1.7 “Śāriputra, therefore, all phenomena are emptiness; they are without
characteristics, unborn, unceasing, without stains, without absence of
stains,46 not deficient, and not complete.
1.8 “Śāriputra, therefore, in emptiness there is no form, no feeling, no
perception, no formations, no consciousness, no eye, no ear, no nose, no
tongue, no body, no mind, no form, no sound, no smell, no taste, no texture,
 and no mental object.
1.9 “There is no element of the eye, [F.145.b] up to no element of the mind, and
further up to no element of the mind consciousness.47
1.10 “There is no ignorance and no exhaustion of ignorance, up to no aging
and death and no exhaustion of aging and death.
1.11 “There is no suffering, no origin of suffering, no cessation of suffering, no
path, no wisdom,48 no attainment, and no nonattainment.49
1.12 “Śāriputra, therefore, since bodhisattvas have no attainment, they rely
upon and dwell in the perfection of wisdom.50 Because their minds have no
veils, they have no fear. Having utterly51 gone beyond error, they reach the
culmination of nirvāṇa.
1.13 “All the buddhas who reside in the three times have likewise fully
awakened to unsurpassed and perfect awakening by relying upon the
perfection of wisdom.
1.14 “Therefore,52 the mantra53 of the perfection of wisdom is the mantra of
great knowledge, the unsurpassed mantra, the mantra that is equal to the
unequaled, and the mantra that utterly pacifies all suffering. Since it is not
false, it should be known to be true.
1.15 “The mantra of the perfection of wisdom is stated thus:54

tadyathā55 gate gate pāragate pārasaṃgate bodhi svāhā56

1.16 “Śāriputra, this is the way a bodhisattva great being should train in the
profound perfection of wisdom.”
1.17 Then the Blessed One arose from that absorption and gave his approval to
the bodhisattva great being, noble Avalokiteśvara, saying, “Excellent!57
Excellent! Son of noble family, it is like that. Son of noble family, it is like that.
The profound perfection of wisdom should be practiced just as you have
taught, and even the thus-gone ones will rejoice.”
1.18 When the Blessed One had said this, venerable Śāradvatīputra,58 the
bodhisattva great being, noble Avalokiteśvara, [F.146.a] and the entire
assembly, as well as the world with its devas, humans, asuras, and
gandharvas, rejoiced and praised what the Blessed One had said.

1.19 This completes The Great Vehicle Sūtra “The Heart of the Perfection of Wisdom, the
Blessed Mother.”
c. Colophon
c.1 This was translated by the Indian preceptor Vimalamitra and the translator
monk Rinchen Dé, and then edited and finalized by the editor-translators
Gelo, Namkha, and others. It was then carefully proofed against the writing
on the wall of the Gegye Jema Ling Temple 59 at glorious Samye —the
spontaneously accomplished temple.60
n. NOTES
n.1 The title given in Stok (our representative of Recension B, as explained
below) is The Noble Heart of the Perfection of Wisdom (’phags pa shes rab kyi pha rol
tu phyin pa’i snying po, Āryaprajñāpāramitāhṛdaya). However, the title that is
included at the end of the text in Stok is The Noble Heart of the Perfection of
Wisdom, the Blessed Mother (’phags pa bcom ldan ’das ma shes rab kyi pha rol tu phyin
pa’i snying po, Āryabhagavatīprajñāpāramitāhṛdaya).

n.2 “Heart Sūtra” is a translation of the last two words of the Chinese title ( ⼼經).
n.3 In Prajñāpāramitā literature in general, the presence of Avalokiteśvara as an
interlocutor is unique to The Heart Sūtra. Usually, this role is performed by
other disciples of the Buddha, such as the elder Subhūti.

n.4 The Heart Sūtra’s Chinese origins were first pointed out in English by Jan
Nattier (1992), who argued that the short version of The Heart Sūtra was
originally compiled in China rather than India. Nattier further suggested that
The Heart Sūtra was transmitted to the famous Chinese translator Xuanzang
(600/602–64), who edited the Chinese text and subsequently translated it
into Sanskrit. Some elements in Nattier’s study, such as the role of Xuanzang
in producing the Sanskrit translation and subsequently transmitting the
sūtra within China, have since been challenged by other scholars, such as
Dan Lusthaus (2003, pp. 81–87) and Kōsei Ishii (2015). For a critique of
Lusthaus’s arguments, see Attwood 2020. Jeffrey Kotyk (2019, pp. 538–40)
also argues that Xuanzang is unlikely to have received The Heart Sūtra prior
to his journey to India but suggests that he may have compiled it in Chinese
after his return to China. Nevertheless, Nattier’s main thesis —that the short
version of The Heart Sūtra was originally compiled in China based on existing
sources in Chinese —still appears the most compelling account of events.
Notably, Shi (2014) was the first scholar to apply Nattier’s methods to other
parts of the text. Over the last decade, Jayarava Attwood has written
 extensively on this topic (e.g., 2015, 2017a, 2017b, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021)
and provided many new insights in favor of the Chinese origin of The Heart
Sūtra. Besides adding weight to the argument that the sūtra was compiled in
China, Attwood’s writings have also contributed much to our general
knowledge of The Heart Sūtra, in particular the history and linguistic nature
of the Chinese and Sanskrit sources. Besides the articles by Attwood
included in this bibliography, links to his other published articles on The
Heart Sūtra can be found at his blog: http://jayarava.blogspot.com
(http://jayarava.blogspot.com).

n.5 This mantra was most likely extracted from the Chinese translation of the
Dhāraṇīsamuccaya (Taishō 901), which was translated into Chinese in 654 ᴄᴇ.
This possibility was already mentioned by Nattier, but without providing
any details (1992, p. 177). The Dhāraṇīsamuccaya does indeed contain the
mantra that is included in The Heart Sūtra and the passage in question reads:

“16. The Great Heart Dhāraṇī of Prajñāpāramitā

The incantation goes: Duozhita (1). Jiedi jiedi (2). Boluo jiedi (3). Boluoseng
jiedi (4). Puti (5). Shahe (6).
For this great heart incantation, use the Great Heart Seal. It can be used
comprehensively with all the various altars [i.e., for all different ritual
applications].
The Lesser Heart Dhāraṇī of Prajñāpāramitā goes:
Duozhita (1). Jiedi jiedi (2). Boluomin jiedi (3). Boluoreta (4). Shahe (5).
Use the Lesser Heart Seal for all applications.”

The Chinese reads:

《陀羅尼集經》卷 佛說跋折囉功能法相品 般若⼤⼼陀羅尼第⼗六 呪曰。

跢姪他(⼀)揭帝揭帝(⼆)波羅揭帝(三)波囉僧揭
帝(四)菩提(五)莎訶(六)
是⼤⼼呪。⽤⼤⼼印。作諸壇處⼀切通⽤。
般若⼩⼼陀羅尼呪曰。
跢姪他(⼀)揭帝揭帝(⼆)波囉⺠(彌忍反)揭帝(三)波
囉若(若冶反)他(四)莎訶(五)
⽤⼩⼼印通⼀切⽤。
(CBETA, T18, no. 901, p. 807, b19–26. The incantation itself is found at 18:
807b20–21.)

Interestingly, Taishō 901 includes tadyathā (duozhita) at the beginning of the

incantation, as do the Sanskrit and Tibetan versions, whereas this is not
found in the Chinese versions of The Heart Sūtra. There are a few additional
 incantations in this section of Taishō 901 that are also labeled “heart
dhāraṇī” or “lesser heart dhāraṇī.” We are grateful to Josh Capitanio for
locating this passage in Taishō 901 and for providing the above translation.

n.6 Attwood 2020, pp. 161–64. See also Attwood 2019, pp. 19–23.

n.7 The actual term used in this sūtra is pratibhāna (spobs pa), which can also be
translated as “inspired speech”.

n.8 See Blazing Wisdom Translation Group, trans., Inspiring Determination

(https://read.84000.co/translation/toh69.html#UT22084-043-006-121), Toh 69
(84000:Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2021), 1.80.

n.9 For arguments in favor of and against an early dating of this text, see
Lusthaus 2003 (pp. 86–87) and Attwood 2020.

n.10 In spite of the colophon’s claim, we now know that Xuanzang could not
have translated the sūtra into Chinese, since it was rather translated from
Chinese into Sanskrit subsequent to its appearance in China. See Attwood
2019 and Kotyk 2019 (pp. 538–40).

n.11 Besides Taishō 250 and Taishō 251, there is one additional version of the
short sūtra: Taishō 256. However, this version is a transliteration into
Chinese of the Sanskrit.

n.12 Silk 2021, p. 103.

n.13 On the Sanskrit manuscripts, see Conze 1967. Many edited versions of the
Sanskrit text have also been published over the last century. For a listing of
these, see Attwood 2015, pp. 45–46.

n.14 Previously, scholars had dated this manuscript to 609 ᴄᴇ, but this dating was
not accurate. See Silk 2021, pp. 102–4. See also Attwood 2015, p. 30 (and n.6).

n.15 On the Tibetan translations of the shorter version, see Attwood 2015, pp. 38–
40. Interestingly, in addition to the Tibetan translations found at Dunhuang,
one manuscript (Pelliot tibétain 448) consists of a transliteration into Tibetan
of the Chinese text (a scan of this manuscript can be viewed at:
https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b83061587
(https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b83061587)). This manuscript appears
to have been produced for recitation of the Chinese text by those Tibetans in
the region who could not read the Chinese characters. This could perhaps
indicate that the Chinese version enjoyed a privileged status compared to
the Tibetan translation, even by those who could only read Tibetan. For a
scan of a Dunhuang manuscript with Tibetan translation of the short version,
 currently held at the British Library (Or. 8212/77), see:
http://idp.bl.uk/database/large.a4d?recnum=7852&imageRecnum=122101
(http://idp.bl.uk/database/large.a4d?
recnum=7852&imageRecnum=122101).

n.16 Attwood 2019, pp. 25–26.

n.17 See n.5.

n.18 This time of compilation has been suggested by Jeffrey Kotyk (2019, p. 538–
40).

n.19 For a detailed comparison of the five Chinese versions of the longer sūtra
(Taishō 252, 253, 254, 255, and 257), see Attwood 2021. See also Nattier 1992,
p. 200, note 1.

n.20 Of these, Taishō 253, 254, and 257 were translated from Sanskrit, and Taishō
255 from Tibetan.

n.21 Taishō 253 was translated in 788 ᴄᴇ, Taishō 254 in 861 ᴄᴇ, and Taishō 257 in
1005 ᴄᴇ. Taishō 255 was translated from Tibetan in 856. On these dates see
Attwood 2015, p. 38. Note, however, that these dates still require further
research.

n.22 See Denkarma, folio 295.a.6. See also Herrmann-Pfandt 2008, pp. 9–10,
number 14.

n.23 Seven of the commentaries are included in the Degé Tengyur (Toh 3818–
3823, all in the Perfection of Wisdom section, and Toh 4353, in the
Miscellaneous section). The eighth commentary is only included in the
Peking (P 5221) and Narthang (3994) Tengyurs. All eight commentaries have
been translated into English and commented upon by Donald Lopez (1996).

n.24 We know that Kamalaśīla, Vimalamitra, Atīśa, Vajrapāṇi (eleventh century),

and Mahājana (eleventh century) all visited Tibet. Moreover, according to
Toshio Horiuchi (2021), at least the two commentaries by Śrīsiṃha (dates
uncertain) and Jñānamitra (dates uncertain) were composed directly in
Tibetan. As for Praśāstrasena (dates uncertain), we do not have any
biographical details, so it is not clear whether he ever visited Tibet or where
his commentary was composed.

n.25 Attwood 2021, p. 63.

n.26 See Silk 1994 for editions of these two recensions.

n.27 Recension A, which we have translated here, contains a translators’
colophon specifying that the translation was produced by the Indian scholar
Vimalamitra and the Tibetan translator Rinchen Dé. Recension B lacks a
translators’ colophon.

n.28 Within the Perfection of Wisdom section, The Heart Sūtra is placed in a final
volume of miscellaneous Perfection of Wisdom scriptures (sher phyin sna
tshogs). On The Heart Sūtra being classified (and practiced) as dhāraṇī, see Silk
2021.

n.29 Besides the Thempangma Kangyurs, Narthang (from the “mixed” group of
Kangyurs) also includes both recensions.

n.30 This is the case with the Berlin, Choné, Lithang, Peking, Dragon, and Urga
Kangyurs.

n.31 Besides the Degé Kangyur, Recension A is also included twice in the Ragya
Kangyur. In the “mixed” group of Kangyurs, Lhasa and Phukdrak also
include Recension A twice.

n.32 In our notes, “Stok” refers exclusively to this text of the Perfection of
Wisdom section, since the other version of the text in the Stok Palace
Kangyur belongs to Recension A. Besides the differences that we have noted
here, there are numerous minor differences between the two recensions,
even within the individual versions of the two recensions. For details, see
Silk 1994.

n.33 In the Toh 531 version of the text there is a slight discrepancy in the folio
numbering between the 1737 par phud printings and the late (post par phud)
printings of the Degé Kangyur. Although the discrepancy is irrelevant here,
further details concerning this may be found in note 33
(https://read.84000.co/translation/toh531.html# end-note-UT22084-034-009-
160) of the Toh 531 version of this text.

n.34 Stok: “Homage to all buddhas and bodhisattvas!”

n.35 This sentence could also be translated: “At that time the Blessed One rested
in a Dharma-discourse-absorption called illumination of the profound.” The
Tengyur commentaries are all vague on this point but are united in glossing
the term dharmaparyāya (chos kyi rnam grangs), which is often translated
“Dharma discourse,” as a categorization of phenomena, rather than a
Dharma teaching. We have therefore opted to follow this in our translation.
In recension B, the sentence is quite different. Thus, Stok reads: “At that time
 the Blessed One rested in the absorption called illumination of the profound
Dharma discourse.”

n.36 At this point the short version of The Heart Sūtra begins. In the long version,
the first sentence of the short version is extended into a paragraph that
incorporates the original in a new, expanded context. The texts converge at
the second sentence of the standard text (beginning with “Form is empty.
Emptiness is form”).

n.37 According to Vimalamitra’s commentary, the word “also” indicates that

Avalokiteśvara also saw that the sense sources and the elements likewise
are empty of an intrinsic nature. (Toh 3818, F.271.a)

n.38 Stok: “and he saw that the five aggregates are empty of an essence.” On the
variations of this sentence across the Sanskrit, Chinese, and Tibetan sources,
see Attwood 2015. Our translation of the Tibetan agrees with Attwood’s
proposed reading of the Sanskrit. However, unlike Attwood, we also believe
that the same reading can be applied to the Tibetan text in both Recension A
and Recension B. Besides simply making better sense overall, this reading is
also supported by Vimalamitra’s commentary on this passage (Toh 3818,
F.270.a–F.271.b), and, moreover, it agrees semantically with the shorter
version of The Heart Sūtra in Chinese, Sanskrit, and Tibetan. Attwood’s
analysis of the Tibetan (2015, p. 40) therefore misreads the Tibetan, we would
argue, as does Jonathan Silk’s translation of the same passage (1994, pp. 174–
75) on which Attwood’s arguments are based. Several other translators, e.g.,
Donald Lopez (1996, p. vii) and Thupten Jinpa (Dalai Lama 2015, pp. 59–62),
translate using the same reading as Silk, though not all (e.g., Nālandā
Translation Committee 1980).

n.39 Stok: “Śāradvatīputra.”

n.40 Stok omits “or daughters of noble family.”

n.41 The names Śāradvatīputra and Śāriputra are used interchangeably in the
sūtras to refer to the same person.

n.42 Stok: “the five aggregates to be empty of an essence.”

n.43 Both recensions A and B in Tibetan read “empty” (stong pa) rather than
“emptiness” (stong pa nyid). Conze’s edition of the Sanskrit reads śūnyatā
(“emptiness”), although several sources read śūnyam (“empty”) (1967, p. 150,
note 10). Taishō 250 and 251 both read “emptiness” (Attwood 2017b, p. 56).
n.44 On these four sentences, see Attwood 2017b where their origins in earlier
Prajñāpāramitā literature are traced. This way of articulating the relationship
between emptiness and the phenomena of the five aggregates echoes sets of
passages in all three of the long Prajñāpāramitā sūtras. In two passages in
The Perfection of Wisdom in Eighteen Thousand Lines (Toh 10, 3.23 and 8.14), two
in The Perfection of Wisdom in Twenty-Five Thousand Lines (Toh 9, 2.113–2.117
and 6.11), and three in The Perfection of Wisdom in One Hundred Thousand Lines
(Toh 8, vol. 14, F.73.b–F.75.b, F.86.b–F.87.b, and F.367.a–373.a) there are
similarly statements to the effect that emptiness is not other than form, that
form itself is emptiness, and emptiness itself is form. Those passages go on
to characterize the relationship between emptiness and the other
aggregates, and all other phenomena, in the same way. See also n.49.

n.45 Stok: “formations.”

n.46 Stok: “free from stains, without stains.”

n.47 Stok: “There is no element of the eye and no element of the eye
consciousness, up to no element of the mind and no element of the mind
consciousness.”

n.48 Stok: “no cognition.”

n.49 This series of negations echoes the more extensive series found in passages
in The Perfection of Wisdom in Eighteen Thousand Lines (Toh 10, 3.23–3.28), in The
Perfection of Wisdom in Twenty-Five Thousand Lines (Toh 9, 2.113–2.117), and in
The Perfection of Wisdom in One Hundred Thousand Lines (Toh 8, vol. 14, F.74.a–
F.74.b), which also begin by negating each of the five aggregates. The series
of negations there is immediately preceded by a passage declaring that each
of the aggregates “is not one thing and emptiness another,” since each of
the aggregates “is itself emptiness,” and emptiness is each of the
aggregates. See also n.44. See also Shi 2014 who analyzes earlier Chinese
translations of Prajñāpāramitā literature to argue for a new translation of the
terms “no nonattainment” in this sentence and “no attainment” in the
following sentence.

n.50 Stok: “they rely upon the perfection of wisdom.”

n.51 Stok omits “utterly.”

n.52 Stok: “Śāriputra, therefore.”

n.53 Attwood (2017a) has argued that the term mantra in The Heart Sūtra most
likely is a mistranslation of the Chinese rendering of the term vidyā, because
 this is what appears in Sanskrit manuscripts of the The Perfection of Wisdom in
Twenty-Five Thousand Lines and because of how Kumārajīva phrases it in his
translation of that text.

n.54 Instead of these last two sentences, Stok reads: “The perfection of wisdom,
which is without error, should be known as a true mantra and as
knowledge.”

n.55 Most witnesses of Recension A (though not the versions in the Degé
Kangyur, nor the versions in Choné, Lhasa, Lithang, or Urga) include the
syllable oṁ after tadyathā. See Silk 1994, p. 138. None of the Chinese sources
include oṁ whereas some Sanskrit manuscripts do.

n.56 This mantra can be rendered in English as “Like this: gone, gone, gone
beyond, utterly gone beyond. Awakening. Svāhā.” At this point the short
version of The Heart Sūtra ends.

n.57 Before “Excellent,” Stok inserts “Son of noble family.”

n.58 Stok: “Śāriputra.”

n.59 The “writing on the wall of the Gegye Jema Ling Temple” is a reference to a
Sanskrit version of The Heart Sūtra written on one of the walls in the Gegye
Jema Ling (dge rgyas bye ma gling) Temple at Samye Monastery. That the
writing was in Sanskrit, and that the comparison of the translation to that
Sanskrit text took place “at a later time,” is mentioned in the catalogs (dkar
chag) of the Narthang, Degé, Urga, and Lhasa Kangyurs. The earliest of these
is the Narthang catalog, written by the Lelung Jedrung Lobzang Trinlé
(1690–1740), which specifies that the version on the wall was the one “with
introduction” (gleng gzhi’i bkod pa dang bcas bris pa; see Narthang dkar chag
F.85.b). For the mention in the Degé catalog, see Degé Kangyur vol. 103
(lakṣmī), F.118.b. See also Silk 1994, pp. 48–49.

n.60 This colophon is missing in Stok.

b. BIBLIOGRAPHY
· Tibetan Canonical Texts ·

bcom ldan ’das ma shes rab kyi pha rol tu phyin pa’i snying po bam po gcig go. Toh
21, Degé Kangyur vol. 34 (sher phyin, ka), folios 144b–146a.

bcom ldan ’das ma shes rab kyi pha rol tu phyin pa’i snying po bam po gcig go. Toh
531, Degé Kangyur vol. 88 (rgyud, na), folios 77b–78b.

’phags pa shes rab kyi pha rol tu phyin pa’i snying po. Stok no. 28, Stok Palace
Kangyur vol. 51 (sras sna tshogs, ka), folios 277a–278b.

Denkarma (pho brang stod thang ldan [/ lhan] dkar gyi chos ’gyur ro cog gi dkar
chag). Degé Tengyur vol. 206 (sna tshogs, jo), folios 294b–310a.

· Secondary Sources ·

Attwood, Jayarava. “Heart Murmurs: Some Problems with Conze’s

Prajñāpāramitā-hṛdaya.” Journal of the Oxford Centre for Buddhist Studies 8
(2015): 28–48. http://jocbs.org/index.php/jocbs/article/view/104
(http://jocbs.org/index.php/jocbs/article/view/104).

_______. “Epithets of the Mantra in the Heart Sutra.” Journal of the Oxford
Centre for Buddhist Studies 12 (2017a): 26–57.
http://jocbs.org/index.php/jocbs/article/view/155
(http://jocbs.org/index.php/jocbs/article/view/155).

_______. “Form is (Not) Emptiness: The Enigma at the Heart of the Heart
Sutra.” Journal of the Oxford Centre for Buddhist Studies 13 (2017b): 52–80.
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(http://www.jocbs.org/index.php/jocbs/article/view/164).
_______. “The Buddhas of the Three Times and the Chinese Origins of the
Heart Sutra.” Journal of the Oxford Centre for Buddhist Studies 15 (2018): 9–27.
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(http://jocbs.org/index.php/jocbs/article/view/184).

_______. “Xuanzang’s Relationship to the Heart Sūtra in Light of the

Fangshan Stele.” Journal of Chinese Buddhist Studies 32 (2019): 1–30.
http://chinesebuddhiststudies.org/previous_issues/jcbs3201_Attwood(1
-30).pdf
(http://chinesebuddhiststudies.org/previous_issues/jcbs3201_Attwood(
1-30).pdf).

_______. “The History of the Heart Sutra as a Palimpsest.” Pacific World,

Series Four, no. 1 (2020): 155–82.

_______. “Preliminary Notes on the Extended Heart Sutra in Chinese.” Asian

Literature and Translation 8 (1) (2021): 63–85.
https://alt.cardiffuniversitypress.org/articles/abstract/10.18573/alt.53/
(https://alt.cardiffuniversitypress.org/articles/abstract/10.18573/alt.53/).

Conze, Edward. “The Prajñāpāramitā-Hṛdaya Sūtra.” In Thirty Years of

Buddhist Studies: Selected Essays, 147–67. Bruno Cassirer, 1967.

Dalai Lama. Essence of the Heart Sutra: The Dalai Lama’s Heart of Wisdom Teachings.
Translated and edited by Geshe Thupten Jinpa. Sommerville: Wisdom
Publications, 2015.

Herrmann-Pfandt, Adelheid. Die lHan kar ma: ein früher Katalog der ins Tibetische
übersetzten buddhistischen Texte. Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen
Akademie der Wissenschaften, 2008.

Horiuchi, Toshio. “Revisiting the ‘Indian’ Commentaries on the

Prajñāpāramitāhṛdaya: Vimalamitra’s Interpretation of the ‘Eight Aspects.’
” Acta Asiatica 121 (2021): 53–81.

Shi, Huifeng. “Apocryphal Treatment for Conze’s Heart Problems: ‘Non-

attainment,’ ‘Apprehension,’ and ‘Mental Hanging’ in the
Prajñāpāramitā.” Journal of the Oxford Centre for Buddhist Studies 6 (2014): 72–
105. http://jocbs.org/index.php/jocbs/article/view/75
(http://jocbs.org/index.php/jocbs/article/view/75).

⽯井 公成). 『般若⼼経』をめぐる諸問題 : ジャン・ナティエ⽒の

Ishii, Kōsei (
⽞奘創作説を疑う [Issues Surrounding the Prajñāpāramitā-hṛdaya: Doubts
Concerning Jan Nattier’s Theory of a Composition by Xuanzang].
Indogaku Bukkyōgaku kenkyū 印度學佛教學研究 64 (2015): 499–92.
Translated by Jeffrey Kotyk.
Kotyk, Jeffrey. “Chinese State and Buddhist Historical Sources on Xuanzang:
Historicity and the Daci’en si sanzang fashi zhuan 大慈恩寺三藏法師傳.”
T’oung Pao 105 (2019): 513–44.

Lopez, Donald S. Elaborations on Emptiness: Uses of the Heart Sūtra. Princeton:

Princeton University Press, 1996.

Lusthaus, Dan. “The Heart Sūtra in Chinese Yogācāra: Some Comparative

Comments on the Heart Sūtra Commentaries of Wŏnch’ŭk and K’uei-chi.”
International Journal of Buddhist Thought and Culture 3 (2003): 59–103.

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Knowledge. 1980. Online publication.
https://www.nalandatranslation.org/wp-
content/uploads/2020/06/Heart-Sutra-for-website.pdf
(https://www.nalandatranslation.org/wp-
content/uploads/2020/06/Heart-Sutra-for-website.pdf).

Nattier, Jan. “The Heart Sūtra: A Chinese Apocryphal Text?” Journal of the
International Association of Buddhist Studies 15, no. 2 (1992): 153–223.

Padmakara Translation Group, trans. The Perfection of Wisdom in Twenty-five

Thousand Lines (https://read.84000.co/translation/toh9.html) (Pañcaviṃśati-
sāhasrikāprajñāpāramitā, Toh 9). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha,
2023.

Silk, Jonathan. The Heart Sutra in Tibetan: A Critical Edition of the Two Recensions
Contained in the Kanjur. Wiener Studien zur Tibetologie und
Buddhismuskunde, vol. 34. Vienna: Arbeitskreis fur Tibetische und
Buddhistische Studien, Universitat Wien, 1994.
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silk/3568398551-1639738170/authored_1994_heart.pdf
(https://openphilology.eu/media/pages/publications-jonathan-
silk/3568398551-1639738170/authored_1994_heart.pdf).

Sparham, Gareth, trans. The Transcendent Perfection of Wisdom in Eighteen

Thousand Lines (https://read.84000.co/translation/toh10.html) (Aṣṭadaśasāhasrikā-
prajñāpāramitā, Toh 10). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2022.

_______. “The Heart Sūtra as Dhāraṇī.” Acta Asiatica 121 (2021): 99–125.
g. GLOSSARY

· Types of attestation for Sanskrit names and terms ·

AS Attested in source text

This term is attested in the Sanskrit manuscript used as a source for this
translation.

AO Attested in other text

This term is attested in other Sanskrit manuscripts of the Kangyur or
Tengyur.

AD Attested in dictionary
This term is attested in Tibetan-Sanskrit dictionaries.

AA Approximate attestation
The attestation of this name is approximate. It is based on other names
where Tibetan-Sanskrit relationship is attested in dictionaries or other
manuscripts.

RP Reconstruction from Tibetan phonetic rendering

This term is a reconstruction based on the Tibetan phonetic rendering of the
term.

RS Reconstruction from Tibetan semantic rendering

This term is a reconstruction based on the semantics of the Tibetan
translation.

SU Source Unspecified
This term has been supplied from an unspecified source, which most often
is a widely trusted dictionary.

g.1 aggregate
phung po

ང་།
skandha
Five “collections” that encompass all apparent physical and mental
phenomena: form, feeling, perception, formation(s), and consciousness.
g.2 Avalokiteśvara
spyan ras gzigs dbang phyug

ན་རས་གཟིགས་དབང་ག
avalokiteśvara
One of the main bodhisattva disciples of the Buddha Śākyamuni, praised for
his compassion.

g.3 element
khams

ཁམས།
dhātu
One way of describing experience and the world in terms of eighteen
elements: eye, form, and eye consciousness; ear, sound, and ear
consciousness; nose, odor, and nose consciousness; tongue, taste, and
tongue consciousness; body, touch, and body consciousness; and mind,
mental objects, and mind consciousness.

g.4 emptiness
stong pa nyid

ང་པ་ད།
śūnyatā
Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:
Emptiness denotes the ultimate nature of reality, the total absence of
inherent existence and self-identity with respect to all phenomena.
According to this view, all things and events are devoid of any independent,
intrinsic reality that constitutes their essence. Nothing can be said to exist
independent of the complex network of factors that gives rise to its
origination, nor are phenomena independent of the cognitive processes and
mental constructs that make up the conventional framework within which
their identity and existence are posited. When all levels of conceptualization
dissolve and when all forms of dichotomizing tendencies are quelled
through deliberate meditative deconstruction of conceptual elaborations, the
ultimate nature of reality will finally become manifest. It is the first of the
three gateways to liberation.

g.5 Gelo
dge blo

ད་།
 —
Eighth-century Tibetan editor of Toh 21.

g.6 Namkha
nam mkha’

ནམ་མཁའ།
—
Eighth-century Tibetan editor of Toh 21.

g.7 Rājagṛha
rgyal po’i khab

ལ་ ་ཁབ།
rājagṛha
Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:
The ancient capital of Magadha prior to its relocation to Pāṭaliputra during
the Mauryan dynasty, Rājagṛha is one of the most important locations in
Buddhist history. The literature tells us that the Buddha and his saṅgha
spent a considerable amount of time in residence in and around Rājagṛha—
in nearby places, such as the Vulture Peak Mountain (Gṛdhrakūṭaparvata), a
major site of the Mahāyāna sūtras, and the Bamboo Grove (Veṇuvana)—
enjoying the patronage of King Bimbisāra and then of his son King
Ajātaśatru. Rājagṛha is also remembered as the location where the first
Buddhist monastic council was held after the Buddha Śākyamuni passed
into parinirvāṇa. Now known as Rajgir and located in the modern Indian
state of Bihar.

g.8 Rinchen Dé
rin chen sde

ན་ན་།
—
Eighth-century Tibetan translator of Toh 21.

g.9 Śāradvatīputra
sha ra dwa ti’i bu

ཤ་ར་་་།
śāradvatīputra
 More widely known as Śāriputra. He was one of the closest disciples of the
Buddha, known for his pure discipline and, of the hearer disciples,
considered foremost in wisdom.

g.10 Śāriputra
shA ri’i bu

་་།
śāriputra
Also known as Śāradvatīputra. He was one of the closest disciples of the
Buddha, known for his pure discipline and, of the hearer disciples,
considered foremost in wisdom.

g.11 sense sources

skye mched

་མད།
āyatana
One way of describing experience and the world in terms of twelve sense
sources: eye and form, ear and sound, nose and odor, tongue and taste, body
and touch, and mind and mental objects.

g.12 Vimalamitra
bi ma la mi tra

་མ་ལ་་།
vimalamitra
Eighth/ninth-century Indian master important in the transmission of
Buddhism to Tibet.

g.13 Vulture Peak Mountain

bya rgod phung po’i ri

་ད་ང་ ་།
gṛdhrakūṭaparvata
The mountain where many Great Vehicle teachings were delivered by the
Buddha Śākyamuni.