84000, a global nonprofit founded by the renowned Bhutanese lama, author, and filmmaker Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche, has announced a new milestone in its mission to translate and share the wisdom of all Buddhist texts preserved in Classical Tibetan: the completion of its English translation of The Perfection of Wisdom in One Hundred Thousand Lines—the longest sutra in the Tibetan Buddhist canon.
The milestone caps a multiyear effort led by renowned translator of Prajnaparamita literature Gareth Sparham. 84000 marked the occasion with a video in which Rinpoches, teachers, translators, and practitioners were invited to offer a single word describing the essence of the text.
“In the Tibetan Buddhist canon, few texts have the same magnitude—literally and spiritually—as The Perfection of Wisdom in One Hundred Thousand Lines,” 84000 remarked. “[Recently,] 84000 marked a new milestone in our multiyear project to translate the longest known Prajnaparamita text into English: the 100,000-line Perfection of Wisdom sutra. In early June, translator Gareth Sparham, a renowned expert and translator of Perfection of Wisdom texts, submitted his translation of the final chapters to 84000’s editorial team.” (84000)
Recalling that the first 13 chapters of the 100,000-line Perfection of Wisdom sutra were published in 2024, and the next 15 in early 2025, 84000 emphasized the significance of this achievement for the propagation of the Buddhadharma, noting that the translation of the entirety of the sutra marks the first time this monumental text has become available in its entirety in English or any modern language.
“The Perfection of Wisdom in One Hundred Thousand Lines fills 12 volumes—15 per cent of the Dege Kangyur—and is far more amplified than its sister texts, the 18,000- and 25,000-line versions, although all three have the same scope,” 84000 research editor Nathaniel Rich explained. “It is the most detailed record of the Buddha Shakyamuni’s teaching on the perfection of wisdom, which he delivered on Vulture Peak in Rajgir. This teaching sets out all aspects of the path to awakening that bodhisattvas must know and put into practice, yet without taking them as having even the slightest true existence.” (84000)
The text belongs to a body of Mahayana scriptures that began emerging in India around the first century BCE. The corpus also produced shorter, more widely known works such as the Diamond Sutra and the Heart Sutra. Across its vast scope, the 100,000-line Perfection of Wisdom sutra sets out the doctrine of emptiness (Skt. shunyata), the teaching that all phenomena lack inherent, independent existence, together with a detailed account of the bodhisattva path and the perfections (Skt: paramitas) cultivated on the way to buddhahood.
More than 15 years ago, 84000 set out on a long and winding path to translate into English—and make freely available—all surviving canonical texts preserved in the Classical Tibetan language—a literary archive of immeasurable wisdom that was on the brink of being lost to the world forever. According to 84000, less than 5 per cent of the canon had hitherto been translated into a modern language, and due to a rapid decline in the knowledge of Classical Tibetan and in the number of qualified scholars, the world was in danger of losing an irreplaceable cultural and spiritual wisdom legacy.
This long-term labor of devotion aims to translate some 70,000 pages of the Kangyur (the translated words of the Buddha) by 2035 and 161,800 pages of the Tengyur (translated commentaries on the teachings) by 2110. Since its founding, the work of the 84000 team has been anchored by five guiding principles: offering and volunteerism; translation accuracy and readability; nurturing and supporting translators; placing equal value on all audiences; and understanding that the project will require perpetual effort.
“Fifty per cent of the Kangyur is now published and freely available on the 84000 website. At the same time, 80 per cent has now been translated, 84000 affirmed in a recent public statement. “A milestone that once felt almost unimaginable—when less than 5 per cent of the canon had been translated into any language—has, over the past 16 years, taken shape slowly, text by text.
“This moment is the result of many conditions coming together: the care of translators and scholars, the dedication of editors and teams, and the generosity of donors, volunteers, and readers around the world. We rejoice in what has been made possible—and in the opportunity for these texts to be encountered, read, and reflected on more widely.”
In addition to 84000, Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche’s projects include Khyentse Foundation, established in 2001 to promote the Buddha’s teaching and support all traditions of Buddhist study and practice; Siddhartha’s Intent, an international collective of Buddhist groups supporting Rinpoche’s Buddhadharma activities by organizing teachings and retreats, distributing and archiving recorded teachings, and transcribing, editing, and translating manuscripts and practice texts; Lotus Outreach, which directs a range of projects to ensure the education, health, and safety of vulnerable women and children in the developing world; and Lhomon Society, which promotes sustainable development in Bhutan through education.
The translation of Buddhist texts is one of the foundational initiatives undertaken by Khyentse Foundation. This aspiration has branched out into four multi-year translation projects: 84000; the Khyentse Vision Project,* founded in 2021 to make the writings and treasures (terma) of Khyentse lineage masters accessible to practitioners and scholars; the Kumarajiva Project,** launched in 2019 to produce Chinese translations of texts in the Tibetan Buddhist canon; and DJK Chinese Translation, initiated in 2023 to translate key works of Khyentse lineage masters from Tibetan into Chinese.
No matter what kind of changes happen in the world, there is always an answer that can be found in the 84,000 teachings of the Buddha. And I think it’s going to be more and more relevant because modern people like us, and more than us our next generation, are challenged by all kinds of challenges. There’s a challenge of identity crisis. There’s a challenge of sanity crisis.
This is good news for 84,000 because we have the remedy for everything even gardening, parenting of course, leadership, at every level the Buddha’s teaching is absolutely relevant now more than ever. — Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche
* Khyentse Foundation Launches New Initiative to Translate the Works of Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo (BDG)
** Khyentse Foundation Plans Ambitious Undertaking to Translate Tibetan Buddhist Canon into Chinese (BDG) and Khyentse Foundation’s Kumarajiva Project Marks 2nd Year with 7 Buddhist Texts Translated into Chinese (BDG)
See more
The Living Power of the 100,000-Line Perfection of Wisdom Sūtra (84000)
Perfection of Wisdom (84000)
84000
84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha (Bluesky)
84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha (Facebook)
Translate 84000 (Instagram)
Related news reports from BDG
Online Dharma: Buddhist Translation Project 84000 Announces Branding and Website Refresh
Online Dharma: 84000 Celebrates 15 Years of Translating the Words of the Buddha
84000 Launches New Community for Supporters of its Dharma-Translation Mission
84000 Announces New Translation Milestone, Publishing Their First Text from the Tibetan Tengyur
UPDATE: 84000 Launches Crowdfunding Campaign to “Bring 10,000-pages of the Buddha’s Words to Life”
84000 Announces that 25 Per Cent of the Tibetan Kangyur Is Now Freely Available in English
