Kāraṇḍavyūha

Kāraṇḍavyūha (T. za ma tog bkod pa; mdo; C. Dasheng zhuangyan baowang jing 大乘莊嚴寶王經), or "The Basket’s Display," is a Mahayana sutra that is the source of the mantra om mani padme hum. The Kāraṇḍavyūha displays characteristics of both sūtra and tantra, and is also described as a "Mantrayana" sutra.

Peter Alan Roberts states:

The Basket’s Display (Kāraṇḍavyūha) is the source of the most prevalent mantra of Tibetan Buddhism: oṁ maṇipadme hūṁ. It marks a significant stage in the growing importance of Avalokiteśvara within Indian Buddhism in the early centuries of the first millennium. In a series of narratives within narratives, the sūtra describes Avalokiteśvara’s activities in various realms and the realms contained within the pores of his skin. It culminates in a description of the extreme rarity of his mantra, which, on the Buddha’s instructions, Bodhisattva Sarvanīvaraṇaviṣkambhin obtains from someone in Vārāṇasī who has broken his monastic vows. This sūtra provided a basis and source of quotations for the teachings and practices of the eleventh-century Maṇi Kabum, which itself served as a foundation for the rich tradition of Tibetan Avalokiteśvara practice.

And also:

The Kāraṇḍavyūha is an early Mantrayāna sūtra that is the source of the mantra oṁ maṇipadme hūṁ. The sūtra is thus of particular importance, as this mantra now holds a central role in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, especially throughout the lay population. This sūtra also records Avalokiteśvara’s transformation into the principal figure of the Buddhist pantheon, greater than all other buddhas, let alone bodhisattvas. In this sūtra, Avalokiteśvara is a resident of Sukhavātī and acts as a messenger and gift bearer for Amitābha, even though he is also described as superior to all buddhas and therefore paradoxically has both a subservient and dominant status.

The Princeton Dictionary states:

The Kāraṇḍavyūha displays characteristics of both sūtra and tantra literature in its emphasis on the doctrine of rebirth in Amitābha Buddha’s pure land (Sukhāvatī), as well as such tantric elements as the mantra “oṃ maṇi padme hūṃ” and the use of maṇḍalas; it is thought to represent a transitional stage between the two categories of texts.

Translation

• Roberts, Peter Alan (2023), The Basket’s Display, 84000 Reading Room