National Treasures & Important Cultural Properties
of National Institutes for Cultural Heritage, Japan

This text is one of the Mahayana Buddhist scriptures translated in China by Dharmaksema (Ch., Tanwuchen) during the Northern Liang dynasty (397-439). The beginning of the scroll is missing, however, we know that it once belonged to Todai-ji Temple from the temple’s round red seal stamped on the title and at the scroll. The powerful brush work and the care given to each character indicate that this outstanding manuscript comes from the golden age of sutra copying in the Nara period (710-94).