The Twelve Kinds of Birth and Death (Shi Er Pin Sheng Si Jing) 十二品生死經

Translated by Guṇabhadra

Colophon

第 17 冊　No. 753 十二品生死經 劉宋 求那跋陀羅譯 共 1 卷 Volume 17, No. 753; The Twelve Kinds of Birth and Death (Shi Er Pin Shengsi Jing); Translated by Guṇabhadra in the Liu Song in 1 scroll

Notes

Date 435-443 from Lancaster (Lancaster 2004, 'K 840')

English Translations

Saddhāloka Bhikkhu 1973, “The Twelve Kinds of Birth and Death,” in: Visakha Puja - Annual Publication of the Buddhist Association of Thailand, p. 48.

Summary

The Buddha, while staying at Jetavana in Śrāvastī, addressed the monks, explaining that there are twelve types of death, including the death of an Arhat who is free from attachments, the death of an Anāgāmin who does not return, and various other deaths caused by karma, ignorance, and suffering, such as those of beings in hell, hungry ghosts, and animals. The Buddha urged the monks to cultivate a pure mind, avoid heedlessness and desires, and practice meditation in solitude to escape the suffering of repeated deaths.

Primary Source

Guṇabhadra, 《十二品生死經》 'Shi Er Pin Shengsi Jing,' in Taishō shinshū Daizōkyō 《大正新脩大藏經》, in Takakusu Junjiro, ed., (Tokyo: Taishō Shinshū Daizōkyō Kankōkai, 1988), Vol. 17, No. 753, Accessed 2016-09-25, http://tripitaka.cbeta.org/T17n0753.

References

  1. Lancaster, L.R. 2004, The Korean Buddhist Canon: A Descriptive Catalogue, http://www.acmuller.net/descriptive_catalogue.

Collection vocabulary analysis