we thus find that various scriptures have held sway over different branches of mahayana at various periods of history , including : the saddharmapundarika sutra ( lotus of the good law sutra , popularly known as the lotus sutra ) , the vimalakirti sutra , the avatamsaka sutra ( garland sutra ) , and the lankavatara sutra ( the buddhas descent to sri lanka sutra ) , as well as a group of writings known as the prajnaparamita ( perfection of wisdom ) .