賢聖集伽陀一百頌

Bowing my head to all the world-transcending ones,

The most honored in the three realms, an ocean of merit,

Whose fire of wisdom can burn away the filth of afflictions,

To the Perfectly Awakened One I now take refuge with my life.

Bowing my head to that which frees from the peril of birth and death,

Drying up the ocean of sorrow, anguish, greed, and delusion,

Smashing the mountains of sin and karma numerous as dust,

To the wondrous, subtle Dharma I now take refuge with my life.

Bowing my head to all that the Buddhas praise and extol,

The Noble Eightfold Path practiced as adornment,

The unconditioned meditative concentration nearing perfect radiance,

To the precious Noble Assembly I now take refuge with my life.

In the inner palace, treasure-stores and many towered pavilions,

Mani jewels and gems shining with marvelous light,

Pure pearls and amber of beautiful golden hue,

Hundreds of thousands of gods and humans constantly come to behold.

If one is able to dwell at peace within the heavenly realm,

Adorning the Buddha's temple is a good fruit of recompense,

With a heart of faith taking reverent refuge in the Triple Gem,

Giving money and cloth to the Vihara.

One attains rebirth among gods and humans, receiving that joy,

And ever obtains the fruit of Nirvana, still and serene.

When the Vihara through many years has fallen into much decay,

To mend and repair it as an offering to the Buddha and Sangha,

One ever obtains joy in the realm of humans and gods,

And further obtains the fruit of Nirvana, still and serene.

If one offers a Vihara that has gardens and groves,

Resting places, clothing, and medicine,

And further, meeting an evil age of famine and thirst,

Gives to living beings food and drink,

In this way one obtains exceedingly abundant merit,

And gains the wise one's Seven Noble Treasures,

Eliminating all the sufferings of the evil paths,

Forever enjoying wealth without end.

Wherever the Buddhas, the Tathagatas, walk and dwell,

If there are those who can come and give rise to reverence,

Attending, making offerings, and listening to the Dharma,

With deep faith cultivating and learning, relying upon the precepts,

They ever obtain a fruit vast and boundless,

Just like the great ocean, deep and immense,

Which truly cannot be measured by any vessel.

The causes and conditions of merit are likewise so.

If there are those who cultivate and build a temple to enshrine the Buddha,

Where cold, heat, wind, and rain can never harm,

They first realize the still and serene Dharma,

Fully complete in all things, their wishes following their will.

If there are those who can paint images of the Buddha,

Their sorrow, anguish, and illness are liberated,

And further they gain rebirth in heaven with a beautiful body,

Great wisdom, auspiciousness, and honored nobility.

If there are those who restore the images of the Buddha,

They shall obtain forever a body without illness,

Long life, fine color and strength, all the marks complete,

And afterward attain the joy of Nirvana, still and serene.

Sorrow, anguish, disputes and litigation are all extinguished,

Valiant and eloquent, praised and extolled by others,

Taming all the sense faculties and ever diligent,

Adorned in all ways, revered by everyone.

If a person mends and repairs the images of the Buddha,

Departing far from error, they are at once born in heaven,

Wealthy and noble, upright and dignified, all beautiful,

All merit and virtue completely fulfilled.

If a stupa or shrine is damaged and one repairs it again,

That person shall be free of illness, the body complete,

All the lovely fruits of the world,

And in every matter, following the heart, all complete.

If one makes an image of the Buddha and a stupa of the Buddha,

Of a form as tiny as a grain of rice,

Whether in the heavens or in the realm of humans,

One shall surely become a king, enjoying delight,

Reborn again into the form and formless realms,

Wealthy beyond bound, impossible to measure,

Departing from the sufferings of birth, old age, sickness, and death,

The ultimate bodhi, the fruit of Buddhahood made perfect.

If within a stupa or shrine one places relics,

And paints an image of the Buddha to make offering,

One obtains bright wisdom illuminating the great earth,

The Well-Gone One's pure, marvelous, Buddha-abundance,

Dwelling at peace among boundless realms of living beings,

Together entering the equality without nature or mark.

If upon a high mountain, a quiet and tranquil place,

One enshrines a stupa of the Buddha and a sacred image,

That form being as small as a fingernail,

One shall be reborn into the realm of humans and gods,

Upright and dignified, greatly wealthy, with color, strength, and peace,

And afterward become a heavenly son among the thirty-three.

If a person uses their hand to open a stupa of the Buddha,

They shall obtain wealth and complete sufficiency,

A body bright and radiant, a mind gentle and pliant,

Of great wisdom, pure nature, free of anger and hatred.

If there is a wise person who can give in charity,

Offering to the Buddha fragrant oil and white sandalwood,

Together with all manner of sweet fragrances,

They shall obtain an ample and beautiful fruit.

If a person who believes in the Buddha gives rise to joy,

Bearing beautiful incense and flowers and music,

Making all manner of offerings to the Buddha, the Tathagata,

They are born in heaven, near a precious golden pond.

That pond's lotuses, their stamens with subtle fragrance,

Fill the body, soaking it as though bathing,

The Mannakkeli waters, pure and clean,

So that one entering them, the dust of defilement naturally ends.

From beneath the pond rises a cool, refreshing fragrance,

On the far shore the red lotuses all burst into bloom,

The heavenly realm, beholding, is well pleased.

By aiding and giving to the Buddha and Sangha one obtains this fruit.

In this way the merit cannot be measured,

Therefore all the sutras praise and extol it.

Beautiful robes and garments,

Given to the Buddha and given to the Sangha,

Afterward one is born into the heavenly realm,

The supreme heaven's fragrant robes,

Blue and gold of every kind,

Hundreds of thousands of mani jewels,

Used to make adornment,

Wealth truly immeasurable,

Delight again without bound,

Amply obtaining the wondrous, subtle fruit.

If a person is born into the world,

They shall be able to become a king,

Complete in all marks of beauty,

Above, wearing beautiful robes,

Complete in all manner of fragrances,

Following the body, ever enjoyed and used,

All from offering robes to the Buddha,

Accomplishing this joyful recompense.

If one gains rebirth in the heavenly realm,

Adorned with every kind of jewel,

The body draped full with necklace-ornaments,

The head crowned with a precious jewel diadem,

Earrings and bracelets,

In this way much delight,

Offering to the Buddha fine and beautiful things,

One obtains the fruit of rebirth in the heavenly realm.

If one becomes a Great King of a Realm,

The bodily marks broadly dignified and adorned,

Necklaces and Nami pearls,

The sound of jewels truly fine to hear,

All being the field of the Triple Gem,

Giving in charity, fully adorned.

The wise one of pure mind,

Offering to the Buddha garlands of flowers and all,

In the heavenly realm and the human realm,

Ever obtains much joy and gladness,

And further is born into the later recompense,

Accomplishing the seven flowers of enlightenment.

Again born upon a great earthen mountain,

And becoming the lord Sakra,

Together with all his retinue,

Sporting and playing in the gardens and groves,

With all manner of flowers making offerings,

They shall obtain those fruits.

Lapis lazuli and pearl jewels,

Gold and silver and green and blue,

Adorning the crown that is worn,

Encircling the head, full as the moon,

If a king or a great minister

Uses it to crown the head,

As the Buddha spoke of this cause,

Offering a crown one shall obtain recompense,

Liberation from greed, sorrow, and anguish,

Free of illness and at peace and ease,

Again becoming a king of the world,

Again by reason of offering that crown.

If at the stupa or shrine of the Buddha

One gives in charity banners and pennants,

One shall become a Heavenly Wheel-Turning King,

Hard to be matched in the world,

Departing far from all sins,

Among all living beings

Becoming the foremost leader,

Ever receiving the offerings of others.

If a person at a stupa or shrine

Gives in charity bells and chimes,

They are not born in the evil grounds of sin,

But ever hear the sound of the Brahma voice.

If a person produces skilled music,

Strings and drums and the blowing of flutes,

Making offering to the Buddha, the Noble and Worthy Ones,

Causing those who hear it to delight in mind,

They shall obtain the Faculty of the Heavenly Ear,

Adorned and ever pure,

And further obtain the wisdom of the Vajra,

Which shatters the mountain of afflictions.

If one gives rise to a mind of joy and gladness,

Using beautiful flowers, fragrance, and color,

All manner of fine food and drink,

To make offerings to the Buddhas,

One shall be born into the heavenly realm,

Where retinue sit together in fineness,

All vessels made of mani,

Eating the precious food of the heavenly realm.

In an eon of famine, thirst, and war,

One shall surely not be born therein.

If a person uses food and drink

To make offerings to the Noble and Worthy Ones,

They shall be born among gods and humans,

Fine food ever complete,

All manner of the precious and rare,

The wise ones ever loving and revering them.

If one uses this fine food

To gladly give to those who have left the home life,

One can obtain a body of wealth,

Eloquence and long life,

Color, strength, and marks complete,

By offering food in this way.

If with a mind of compassion and kindness

One offers there sweet honey,

Milk, ghee, and cream and all,

Causing those who thirst

To drink and obtain peace and joy,

One again obtains recompense as told before.

If one uses myrobalan,

Linden and medicinal herbs,

Giving in charity to the Noble and Worthy Ones,

One shall be born among gods and humans,

Free of illness and long of life,

Ever obtaining a body at peace and ease.

The one who gives that drink in charity

Afterward is born in a heavenly palace,

Enjoying eons full of flowers,

Whatever they seek fulfilled to their wish.

Bottles of precious wine and sweet honey,

Retinue drinking together,

And again dwelling in an eon of long life,

Able to display adornments,

Dancing and singing the music of the heavenly realm,

Gladdening the minds of the heavenly host,

Amrita too following the body,

Giving it to drink, a recompense of benefit.

If there is a person who gives food,

They shall be born among gods and humans,

Departing far from poverty and want,

Long of life and full of wealth,

Together with elephants, horses, and all,

Carriages and precious parasols,

Offered in charity to the Buddha, the Tathagata,

They shall obtain great spiritual power.

If one gives shoes and sandals and all,

One is ever born into a high and noble house,

One shall have carriages, elephants, and horses,

Surely departing from the suffering of greed and poverty.

If one's teacher or elder has an illness,

And there is a person who can give aid,

They shall, in every place,

Have all that they seek accomplished.

If one gives even a seat in charity,

One shall be born in the heavens above,

Not suffering hardship and the like,

Ever sitting upon a precious throne.

Using a sleeping place to give in charity,

One is born in heaven, ever in delight,

The bodily form truly upright and straight,

Without fear, praised by others.

Cultivating mixed groves and gardens,

Adorning the rooms and dwellings,

The one who gives causes others to halt and stay,

Body and mind giving rise to joy and delight,

They shall be invited to the Garden of Gladness,

Where gods and humans roam and travel,

Together with the heavenly maidens,

Sporting and playing, enjoying delight.

If one meets a time of scorching heat

And creates a warm and cooling air,

One shall feel the touch of the Udumbara,

The Nyagrodha, and the Bodhi tree,

And afterward gain rebirth in heaven,

Ever enjoying the pleasures of the five desires.

Wells, springs, and ponds and lakes,

Repaired and made beautiful,

Aiding those who hunger and thirst,

So that all is complete,

In the next life one is born in heaven,

Or born in the Brahma World,

In each case enjoying delight,

And further realizing the fruit of stillness and cessation.

If a begging bowl

Is given in charity to the Triple Gem,

One shall, in every place,

Have wealth, nobility, and delight,

And in that world

Be exalted, of supreme virtue,

And further move all living beings

To make offerings according to the time.

If a wise one gives a knife in charity,

They shall be born in the heavenly realm,

Their wisdom exceedingly keen and sharp,

Surely never meeting blade or weapon.

If a person gives a needle in charity,

Their wisdom is ever keen and sharp,

Able to sever all afflictions,

Realizing that still and serene path.

The Buddha spoke: if there is a person

Who paints and draws images of the Buddha,

They are born within the heavenly realm,

Their body the color of shining gold,

Bright, clear, and pure as the heavens,

And dwelling among gods and humans,

Heavenly men and heavenly maidens

At every moment turn toward them.

Or if that person has wisdom

And skillfully can give the gift of teaching the Dharma,

They are born into the realm of gods and humans,

Complete in wisdom, virtue, and strength,

Ever enjoying delights,

Ever departing from sufferings and anguish,

And in this latter body

Attain and realize the path of stillness and cessation.

If there are sentient beings

Who draw and write the wondrous Dharma,

They shall obtain the wisdom of past lives,

Wealth and nobility, ever at peace and joy,

And cut off all sins,

Passing through many numbered eons,

Never falling into the hells,

Nor among the hungry ghosts and animals.

If there is a wise person

Who sweeps clean the ritual platform,

And then weaves flowers to scatter,

And in this way makes offerings,

Afterward they are born in the human realm,

Or born in the heavenly realm,

Ever enjoying wealth and nobility,

And further realizing stillness and cessation.

If one can take a long-burning bright lamp

To make offering to the Buddha, the Worthy and Noble Ones,

That person is born among gods and humans,

Their three eyes ever pure,

The eye of wisdom and the heavenly eye,

Together with the physical eye.

Further, the one who gives that lamp in charity

Is ever born among gods and humans,

Their mouth never foul of breath,

Their ears and eyes never deaf or blind.

Further, the one who gives that lamp in charity,

Not only have the three eyes made pure,

But can, within the True Dharma,

Penetrate and master all things.

If a wise one gives money in charity,

Making offering to those possessed of virtue,

Sramanas and Brahmins,

Though they give little, the merit is great,

Amply obtaining good wealth and riches,

Enjoyed and used for a long time.

Further, that giver of charity,

By giving food to animals,

Again obtains much merit and virtue,

Which becomes a hundredfold.

If together with food and goods

One gives in charity to a person of sin,

The benefit increases all the more,

The merit obtained again a thousandfold.

If one gives to one who keeps the precepts,

The merit is again a hundred thousand times,

Making offering to one without thought,

One obtains benefit through a hundred eons.

If one gives to one who is learned,

And again to that one who is beyond learning,

One again obtains much merit and virtue,

Higher still than the former.

If one gives to the Buddha, the Tathagata,

One shall be born in the heavenly realm,

Greatly wealthy without ever ceasing,

Ever enjoying delights,

Until the round of rebirth is ended,

And realizing the Dharma of stillness and cessation.

Relying upon all of this,

The Buddha spoke the Gatha sutra,

Briefly clarifying the recompense of merit,

Causing beings to give rise to faith and acceptance.

Suppose a thousand suns

Brightly shone upon the great earth,

In the middle of the night the moon shines clear,

And the blue lotuses shall bloom.

The realms of the gods, Vaisravana,

Sakra, Narayana,

The foremost leaders among the devas,

All obtained through the cause of giving.

The sun within the empty void,

Above and below, shining everywhere,

Making manifest all forms of life,

Yet it too is impermanent.

Sakra, the Four Heavenly Kings,

Together with all the devas,

When their merit and lifespan are at last exhausted,

Enter the hateful gate of death.

Sorrow, grief, and the fire of suffering and anguish,

That one may not be in the burning fire,

Therefore I exhort you all:

Contemplate the body as impermanent,

Depart far from the body's defiled craving,

Be not attached to the joys of gods and humans,

For a moment they do not last long,

All returning to dissolution and ruin.

I give rise to a mind of pure faith,

Casting off the joy of empty illusion,

Ever dwelling before the Buddha,

With palms joined, drawing near,

Using that self-awakening

To become the lord of liberation.

Here end the 108 verses of praise of the Collection of the Worthy and Noble Ones.