Yulanpen Sutra

Yulanpen Sutra
Mulian and his mother Madame Liu (19th century)
Traditional Chinese盂蘭盆
Simplified Chinese盂兰盆
Literal meaningSutra of the Yulan Bowl
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin《Yúlánpén jīng》
Wade–GilesYü-lan-p'ên Ching
Alternative name
Traditional Chinese盂蘭盆
Simplified Chinese盂兰盆
Literal meaningSutra of the Yulan Bowl Spoken by the Buddha
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin《Fú shuō Yúlánpén jīng》
Wade–GilesFo Shuo Yü-lan-p'ên Ching

The Yulanpen Sutra, also known as the Ullambana Sutra (traditional Chinese: 盂蘭盆經; ; pinyin: yúlánpén-jīng; Japanese pronunciation: urabon-kyō; Korean: 우란분경; Vietnamese: Kinh Vu Lan Bồn), is a Mahayana sutra concerning filial piety. It was translated from an Indic language (see History) and is found in Taisho 685 and Taisho 686 in Volume 16, the third volume of the Collected Sutra Section. Taisho 685 was translated by Dharmarakṣa from 265-311 CE and is entitled: 'The Buddha Speaks the Yulanpen Sutra'. Taisho 686 was translated by an unknown or lost translator during the Eastern Jin Dynasty and is entitled: 'The Buddha Speaks the Sutra of Offering Bowls to Repay Kindness'. According to Karashima, Taisho 686 is basically a more idiomatic adaptation of Taisho 685. It records the events which followed after one of the disciples of Shakyamuni Buddha, Maudgalyayana, achieves Abhijñā and uses his newfound powers to search for his deceased parents. In the end, Maudgalyayana finds his mother in the preta (hungry ghost) world and with the assistance of the Buddha, is able to save her. The East Asian Ghost Festival is based on this sutra.