Derge Kangyur/Tengyur e-text, Esukhia/Barom edition — public domain (mechanical reproduction)
The Praise of All Things Stemming from the One (Ekottarikastava) is a devotional composition structured around the numerical symbolism of unity and completion. The text employs a repetitive, laudatory framework to address a singular enlightened entity, likely Mañjuśrī, emphasizing the transition from the 'single dharma' to the multifaceted perfections of a Buddha. By invoking the 'ten powers,' 'ten qualities,' and 'ten noble abodes,' the work argues that the singular nature of ultimate reality manifests as the complete set of spiritual capacities required to eliminate the ten obscurations. The reader is committed to a meditative recognition of the noble one as the 'sole eye of the worlds,' suggesting that the path to enlightenment involves reconciling the singular essence of the dharma with the complex requirements of the Buddhist path. The fragmented nature of the provided passages indicates a structure based on numerical sequences used to quantify the attributes of the Sangha and the enlightened mind.
Provenance
About this text
A devotional composition structured around numerical symbolism, the Ekottarikastotra is a work of the Indo-Tibetan tradition. It is attributed to the Indian author Mātṛceṭa. The work is preserved in the classical Tibetan tradition under the title gcig las 'phros pa'i bstod pa, appearing in the Eulogy collection of the Tengyur, volume ཀ, where it extends over two pages. The text enacts a laudatory framework that addresses a singular enlightened entity, beginning with an homage to the noble Mañjuśrī. It argues for the transition from a single dharma to the multifaceted perfections of a Buddha, invoking the ten powers, ten qualities, and ten noble abodes to illustrate the capacity to eliminate the ten obscurations. By recognizing the noble one as the sole eye of the worlds, the work suggests a path to enlightenment that reconciles the singular essence of the dharma with the complex requirements of the Buddhist path. A scholar or serious reader consults this text today to examine how the singular nature of ultimate reality is presented as manifesting through a complete set of spiritual capacities.
Cite thisAnuvāda, “Praise of All Things Stemming from the One” (Toh 1141), machine draft, 2026.https://naxiai.com/tibetan/works/toh1141
Summary & commentary
Significance
The work is significant for its use of numerical lists to define the qualities of an enlightened being, a common feature in Indo-Tibetan liturgical texts. It illustrates the intersection of philosophical non-duality (the 'single dharma') and the systematic categorization of spiritual progress (the 'nine stages' and 'ten powers').
Structure
Passages
Section
Description
1
Invocation and Praise of Unity
Homage to Mañjuśrī and an exploration of the singular nature of the dharma and the enlightened eye.
2
Praise of Numerical Perfections
A series of homages focusing on the nine stages and the ten-fold qualities, powers, and abodes of the noble one.
Themes
Numerical Symbolism (1-2)
The Nature of Enlightenment (2)
Non-duality and Singularity (1)
Summary, significance and provenance note generated by gemma4:31b from the translation and the catalogue record.
AnuvādaPraise of All Things Stemming from the One·
In the language of India: Ekottarikastava. In the language of Tibet: gcig las 'phros pa'i bstod pa (The Praise of the Single Emanation). Homage to the noble Mañjuśrī.
You who delight in a single dharma,
Who dwell alone in the forest,
Who have become the sole eye of the worlds—
Homage to the sole eye of the world.
You who are the supreme among bipeds,
Who have meditated upon the two truths,
Who possess no second companion—
Homage to the one whose speech is non-dual.
You who possess the three concentrations,
Who are equal to the Three Jewels,
Who have crossed the waters of the three sufferings—
Homage to the sustainer of the three worlds.
You who possess the fourfold teaching,
Who embody the four concentrations,
Who are free from the four applications—
Homage to the knower of the four truths.
You who are free from attachment to the five aggregates,
Who have meditated upon the five faculties,
Who are free from the five limbs—
Homage to the one who cuts the five destinies.
You who abide in the river of the six faculties,
Who dwell within the six continuums,
Who have perfected the six perfections—
Homage to the one with the six superknowledges.
You who possess the seven precious branches of awakening,
Who bestow the seven riches of the noble ones,
Who are free from the seven limbs—
Homage to the lord of the seven existences.
You who arise from the eightfold path,
Who teach the eight types of individuals,
Who have abandoned the eight worldly dharmas—
Homage to the one who destroys the eight unfavorable states.
You who are liberated from attachment to the nine abodes,
Who have completely abandoned the nine types of anger,
Who have attained the nine types of pliancy—
Homage to the one who knows the nine stages. The noble Saṅgha, possessing the ten qualities, cuts through the ten obscurations. Delighting in the ten noble abodes, homage to the one endowed with the ten powers. Thus, for the sake of honoring the noble one endowed with the ten powers with words, whatever root of virtue I have obtained through this praise, may it become the cause for crossing over the ocean of existence—the world pervaded by the sufferings of hell-beings, hungry ghosts, and animals. The Ekottarastotra composed by the master Mātṛceṭa is complete.