stages and Demons The Śūraṅgama Sūtra also contains various explanations of Buddhist cosmology and soteriology. The sutra outlines various levels of enlightenment, the fifty five bodhisattva stages. It also contains explanations of the horrible sufferings that are experienced in the hells (narakas) as well as explanations of the other realms of rebirth. Another theme found in the Śūraṅgama Sūtra is that of various Māras (demonic beings) which are manifestations of the five skandhas (aggregates). In its section on the fifty skandha-māras, each of the five skandhas has ten skandha-māras associated with it, and each skandha-māra is described in detail as a deviation from correct samādhi. These skandha-māras are also known as the "fifty skandha demons" in some English-language publications. Epstein introduces the fifty skandha-māras section as follows: Influence James A. Benn, while arguing that the text is a Chinese composition, also writes that, "no crude fake, the Śūraṅgama is elegantly constructed and beautifully written, a text that we might easily rank among the masterpieces of medieval Chinese literature. It today remains a widely read text, much appreciated,and seriously studied by Chinese Buddhists. Its insights continue to inform the lives and practices of both monastics and laypeople. That it is not a translation of an Indian original by no means discredits its spiritual value. Buddhism from its origins was adaptable to local circumstances, and the Śūraṅgama is but another example of that missionary spirit." Mainland East Asia The Śūraṅgama Sūtra has been widely studied and commented on in China. Ron Epstein has "found reference to 127 Chinese commentaries on the Sutra, quite a few for such a lengthy work, including 59 in the Ming dynasty alone, when it was especially popular". The Śūraṅgama Sūtra is one of the seminal texts of Chán Buddhism. It is held to have been first transmitted by Yuquan Shenxiu, the original sixth patriarch and the seminal figure of the Northern school. The Śūraṅgama was particularly influential during the Song Dynasty, where it was used in a ritual called the Śūraṅgama assembly which "was held semi-annually during monastic retreats, and there the participants chanted the long magical spell (dharani) contained in the sutra. The dharani was also recited at memorial services for Chan abbots and patriarchs." The sūtra is cited in various Chan Buddhist texts, like the Blue Cliff Record (case 94). The Śūraṅgama Sūtra also influenced the work of several Song intellectuals, like Su Shi (1037-1101)