Yulanpen Sutra

History

The Yulanpen Sutra has traditionally been regarded as being translated from the Sanskrit into Chinese by Dharmarakṣa under the Jin at some point between 265-311 CE. The subject matter of the Yulanpen Sutra is broadly similar to several accounts described in other sutras. The most ancient of those accounts (Petavatthu No. 14 - The Story of the Mother of Sariputta) describes how the disciple Sāriputta rescued his mother (from five past lives ago) who had become a preta or hungry ghost. Similar to the Yulanpen Sutra, Sariputta builds four huts and fills them with food and drink for the Sangha of the four quarters; with the Buddha present, he dedicates this donation on behalf of his suffering mother. The transference of merit enables Sariputta's mother to be reborn and released from the preta world. Another account can be found in the Avadanasataka, which is also very similar to the Yulanpen Sutra: Maudgalyayana communicates on the behalf of five hundred pretas with their relatives who make offerings on the pretas' behalf to the monastic community. Once the transference of merit is completed, the former pretas are reborn and released from their suffering.