Open to all - Yogacara - Lankavatara Sutra

Keeping on with our series of teachings on the Yogacara, this month we'll focus on the Lankavatara Sutra, a major sutra of the Mahayana cannon.

The Lankavatara Sutra is a foundational text in Mahayana Buddhism, particularly revered within the Zen and Chan traditions. This sutra, whose title can be translated as "The Scripture of the Descent into Lanka," is believed to have been composed between the 2nd and 4th centuries CE, though its origins are shrouded in the mists of time and the complexity of Buddhist textual history.

The narrative framework of the Lankavatara Sutra is set around a dialogue that takes place in Lanka (traditionally identified with Sri Lanka), where the Buddha, upon his mythical descent, imparts wisdom to a gathering of bodhisattvas, divine beings, and the ruler of Lanka, Ravana. This dialogue serves as a vehicle for the exploration of profound philosophical concepts and teachings central to Mahayana…