This rare sutra, ancient but timely has long been treated with circumspection because of its liberal attitude toward sexuality and other ethical concerns. One of the original statements of the early Mahayana school, it is here collated from Chinese and Tibetan translations, and from passages that remain in the original Sanskrit.  Originally part of a larger sutra on the six perfections that included the well known Perfection of Wisdom Sutra, the Skill in Means Sutra explicates the other five perfections of the Bodhisattva.

Mark Tatz holds a Ph.D. in Buddhist studies from the University of British Columbia and he is an independent research scholar based at Berkeley, California. He has authored and translated several books including The Skill in Means Sutra (New Delhi, 1994), Tibetan Game of Liberation (Anchor Books, 1977), and The Basic Path to Awakening (Edwin Mellen Press) and Buddhism and Healing: Demieville's Article "Byo" (MD University Press, 1985).