Satyasiddhi Śāstra (成實論)

About 成實論

Yao Qin · by 訶梨跋摩造 · Source text translated by 鳩摩羅什

180,845 · about 603 min

The *Satyasiddhi Śāstra* was composed by the Indian monk Harivarman and translated into Chinese by Kumārajīva during the Later Qin dynasty. It is an important treatise marking the transition from the Hīnayāna to the Mahāyāna tradition. Centered on the Four Noble Truths, the text systematically expounds the truths of suffering, its origin, cessation, and the path, while critiquing the views of the Sarvāstivāda school and advocating the emptiness of both persons and dharmas. Its content encompasses the analysis of the five aggregates, theories of karma and retribution, and stages of practice, presented with rigorous structure and clear logic, regarded as a synthesis of the thought of the sectarian Buddhist schools. In the history of Chinese Buddhism, the *Satyasiddhi Śāstra* gave rise to the Satyasiddhi school, profoundly influencing the development of Buddhist studies during the Northern and Southern dynasties and providing a theoretical foundation for schools such as the Sanlun (Three Treatises) school. It remains an essential text for the study of early Buddhist philosophy.