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The Mahavairocana Sutra is an important Buddhist sutra used in esoteric schools of Buddhism, particularly the Japanese Shingon school. The sutra is generally not well-known outside esoteric Buddhism, and is considered apocryphal by Theravada Buddhism.

The sutra begins in a timeless setting in one of the Buddhist heavens, with a dialogue between Mahavairocana Buddha and his disciple Vajrasattva. In chapter one, Mahavairocana Buddha expounds the Dharma to a great host of bodhisattvas, but this teaching in its fullness is incomprehensible to readers of the sutra. Thus, in chapter two, Mahavairocana begins translating the incomprehensible teachings into ritual forms that people can understand. He reveals the Mandala of the Womb Realm to Vajrasattva and teaches the rituals that relate to the Womb Mandala, known as abhiseka.

Subsequent chapters detail further rituals used to actualize the Dharma. These rituals form the basis of esoteric ritual in Shingon Buddhism.

The Mahavairocana Sutra is unusual in that it does not trace its lineage to Shakyamuni Buddha, the founder of Buddhism. Instead, the claim is that the lineage comes directly from Mahavairocana Buddha himself and then through the following people:

• Vajrasattva, the disciple in the sutra
• Nagarjuna
• Nagabodhi, Nagarjuna's secret disciple
• Vajrabodhi, an Indian monk famous for translating esoteric rituals into Chinese language
• Amoghavajra, Vajrabodhi's famous disciple
• Hui-kuo, a Chinese esoteric master
• Kukai, founder of Japanese Buddhism.

• Shingon
• Kukai
• Vajrasekhara Sutra.

• Ryuichi Abe: The Weaving of Mantra: Kukai and the Construction of Esoteric Buddhist Discourse. New York, NY: Columbia University Press, 1999 ISBN 0-231-11286-6

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