Playing the
Sanghāta for Others

A comic-strip artist in Mexico leaves the CD of Lama Zopa Rinpoche reciting the Sanghāta playing loudly and continuously when he goes out, so the animals in the environment can benefit from hearing it. Have others ideas or suggestions for how to keep the Sanghāta active on this planet earth? Share them with others in the discussion forum in our Community Center by clicking hereWe will publish new and creative ways that our community members suggest on this page.

In the Words of the Sanghāta:

The Blessed One spoke: “Whatever the form by which they are to be subdued, I teach the Dharma in that form. In the world of the devas, I teach the Dharma in the form of a deva. ... In the world of humans, I teach the Dharma in the form of a human. To those sentient beings who are to be subdued by a buddha, I teach the Dharma in the form of a buddha. To those sentient beings who are to be subdued by a bodhisattva, I teach the Dharma in the form of a bodhisattva. By whatever form it is that sentient beings are to be subdued, I teach the Dharma in that very form.

- Ārya Sanghāta Sūtra

Translators' Experiences

We asked some of the translators to discuss their work on the text.

Christian Charrier, who translated the Ārya Sanghāta Sūtra from Tibetan into French, responded with the following reflection:

I am afraid that my understanding of the Sanghāta Sūtra is very limited and all in all there are more things I have to learn than teach.

Somehow translating this sutra was a painful experience for me. I can’t say I enjoyed it very much. I was always trying to guess all kinds of possible meanings, deeper than the mere surface of words and it was very frustrating to face such a chaotic experience of uncertainty. I constantly wished the Buddha was next to me clarifying what he really meant except that it was incredibly beneficial to read the Sanghāta Sūtra. As a translator, I felt very poor and sometimes thought I was going insane. It was very bothering.

I still can’t see what is meant by the pair, except the junction between the old and the young. Now every time I read it, something gets purified (or clarifies itself) during that very day, and for me it is always connected with money that I
have to give.

I don’t really remember everything I experienced during the translation as it is a bit far away now, but I feel that working on it again, as I plan to when the new English translation is done, will make me go through the difficult points within a new frame of mind.

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