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The Jieshen mijing 解深密經, short Shenmijing 深密經, is one of the fundamental scriptures of the Buddhist Yogācāra tradition (Ch. Yuejiaxing Pai 瑜伽行派) in India and of the Faxiang School (Faxiang Zong 法相宗) in China. It was translated into Chinese during the Tang period 唐 (618-907) by Xuanzang 玄奘 (602-664) and comprises five fascicles. The Sanskrit original is titled Sandhinir-mokcana-vyūha-sūtra.
According to tradition, this sutra originally existed in a large Sanskrit recension of one hundred thousand verses; the Chinese translation is an abridged version of about fifteen hundred verses. Apart from Xuanzang's standard translation, there are three other Chinese translations: Guṇabhadra's (Ch. Qiunabatuoluo 求那跋陀羅, 394-468) Xiangxu jietuo jing 相續解脫經 (T0678), Bodhiruci's (Ch. Putiliuzhi 菩提流支, d. 535) Shenmi jietuo jing 深密解脫經 (T0675), and Paramārtha's (Ch. Zhendi 真諦, 499-569) Jiejiejing 解節經 (T077).
The sutra centres on elucidating the objects (jing 境), practices (xing 行), and results (guo 果) of the Mahāyāna path. Its eight chapters explain the "Characteristics of ultimate truth" (Shengyidi xiang 勝義諦相), the "Characteristics of mind, thought, and consciousness" (Xin yi shi xiang 心意識相), the "Characteristics of all phenomena" (Yiqiefa xiang 一切法相), the "Characteristics of non-self-nature" (Wuzixing xiang 無自性相), the way of "Analytical yoga" (Fenbie yujia 分別瑜伽), "Stages and perfections" (Di boluomi 地波羅蜜, original bhūmi pāramitā), and the "Tathāgata's (i.e., the Buddha's) accomplished activities" (Rulai cheng suo zuo shi 如來成所作事).
After its transmission to China, the Faxiang School relied especially on the chapter Wuzixing xiang to classify the Buddha's teachings over his lifetime into the three periods of teaching (san shi jiao 三時教), namely, the teachings of existence (you 有), emptiness (kong 空), and the middle way (zhongdao 中道). The Faxiang School established its core doctrines, including the three natures theory (sanxing shuo 三性說), the consciousness-only (vijñaptimātra, Ch. weishi shuo 唯識說) doctrine, ālaya-consciousness (i.e., the seat of consciousness, alaiye shi 阿賴耶識), and dependent origination (yuanqi shuo 緣起說).
The principal commentaries and subcommentaries include Wŏnch'ŭk's 圓測 (613–696) Jieshen mijing shu (Korean reading Haesim milgyŏng so) 解深密經疏 (only partially preserved), Toryun's 道倫 (826–898) Jieshen mijing zhu (Haesim milgyŏng chu) 解深密經注, Yŏng'in's 令因 Jieshen mijing shu 解深密經疏 and Hyǒnbǒm's 玄範 (c. 700) Jieshen mijing shu 解深密經疏, all from Korea. The commentaries of Wŏnhyo 元曉 (617-686) and Kyŏnghŭng 憬興 (fl. 800) are lost.