施諸餓鬼飲食及水法

Before bestowing food upon sentient beings, everything must be done in accordance with the Dharma; the offering articles must be clear, pure, and fine. Whether a portion, or a small amount, or a single item, all must be held in vessels of clean copper and in accordance with the Dharma. If there are no copper vessels, then white porcelain vessels may also be used. If there is no porcelain, then lacquer-coated vessels may be used. The various foods and drinks must be prepared with clean water. Facing toward the east, set up the seat (for the presiding Dharma master), and only then may the ritual be performed.

Whoever wishes to give food and drink to all the hungry ghosts must first arouse a vast and great mind and universally invite all the hungry ghosts. First, one must recite the following verse once with a sincere heart, and only afterward perform the rite of summoning and inviting; then the resulting reward of merit and benefit will be beyond all measure:

Your disciple, the bhikṣu (bhikṣuṇī) whose Dharma name is _______ ,

Arousing the mind to uphold and serve,

This single fine offering of food

I universally bestow upon the ten directions,

Reaching to the utter ends of empty space,

Pervading the entire Dharma realm,

Within realms as numerous as dust-motes,

However many lands there may be,

To all the hungry ghosts,

Those long departed and far gone,

The lords of earth, mountains, and rivers,

Even to the wilderness wastes,

The various kinds of ghosts and spirits—

I invite them to gather here.

I now, with compassion,

Universally bestow this food,

Praying that this multitude of ghosts and spirits

Receive these offerings,

And in turn offer them up

To the utter ends of the realm of empty space—

To all Buddhas and sagely saṅgha,

To all sentient beings.

May the multitudes of ghosts and spirits,

Together with all sentient beings,

All be universally satisfied and filled.

I further pray that your bodies,

Through the food empowered by mantra,

May depart from suffering and attain liberation,

Be born in the heavens to enjoy bliss,

And in the Pure Lands of the ten directions

Roam freely at will.

May you arouse the bodhi-mind,

Practice the conduct of the bodhisattva,

In the future become Buddhas,

And never once turn back.

May those who attain the Way before

Vow to liberate the others as well.

I further pray that you,

Day and night, always

Protect and support me

So that my heart's vow may be wholly fulfilled.

May the merit produced

By this Dharma of bestowing food

Be turned over and bestowed universally

Upon all sentient beings of the Dharma realm,

That all sentient beings

May share in it equally.

Together with all sentient beings,

I take this merit

And dedicate it entirely

To the Dharma realm of suchness,

To unsurpassed bodhi,

To the all-knowing awakening.

May we swiftly accomplish Buddhahood,

Seeking no other fruit;

May we, by means of this Dharma,

Swiftly attain Buddhahood.

Joining the palms before the heart, recite the above verse, and use the mudrā (of Summoning and Inviting) to perform the act of invitation.

The Mudrā for Opening the Throat (Khai hầu): With the right hand, the thumb and middle finger join touching one another, while the remaining three fingers are extended straight. Not making the posture (of the mudrā) supple and bending is called the Mudrā of Universal Gathering (gathering together everywhere). The mantra is:

Namo bộ đế rị đa rị đát tha nghiệt đa da.

Forming this mudrā and reciting this mantra seven times, broadly extending the mind of compassion, one prays to cause all the hungry ghosts throughout the dust-mote lands of the entire Dharma realm to assemble together like clouds.

Then recite the mantra for Opening the Gates of Hell and Opening the Throat (opening the gates of hell and opening the throat), as follows:

Án bộ bộ đế rị già đa rị đát tha nghiệt đa da.

When reciting this mantra, the left hand holds the food, while the right hand forms the Mudrā of Summoning and Inviting given above. The only change in method is that for each recitation of the mantra, one snaps the fingers once. Taking the tips of the thumb and the middle finger, snap the fingers to make a sound. The remaining three fingers are opened slightly and somewhat curved; this is called the Mudrā for Opening the Gates of Hell and Opening the Throat.

"At that time, the Tathāgata then spoke the dhāraṇī named Sublime and Supreme Radiant Light of Boundless Majestic Virtue and Sovereign Freedom, which has the power to empower the food and drink. The mantra is:

Namo tát phạ đát tha nghiệt đa phạ lỗ cát đế, án tam bà ra tam bà ra hồng.

Reciting this mantra seven times, all the hungry ghosts, each one, obtains forty-nine hộc of food—the hộc being the measure used by the country of Magadha; having eaten, all are born in the heavens or born in a Pure Land. (This divine mantra) can cause the practitioner's karmic obstructions to be eliminated, his lifespan to be increased and benefited, and in the present life to harvest boundless, limitless merit and reward—how much more so in future lives."

When reciting this true word (the Sublime and Supreme Radiant Light of Boundless Majestic Virtue and Sovereign Freedom) to empower the food and drink, one must form the mudrā: Using the thumb of the right hand, rub against the nail of the middle finger three times or two times, with the remaining three fingers raised straight up. Then, using the thumb spread together with the tip of the middle finger, snap the fingers to make a sound. For each recitation of the mantra, snap the fingers once.

Then recite the true word for Receiving the Dharma-Flavor of Sweet Dew (receiving the grace of the sweet-dew Dharma-flavor), forming the Mudrā of Bestowing Fearlessness by raising the right arm straight up, with the five fingers also pointing straight upward. The true word is:

Namo tô lỗ phả da, đát tha nghiệt đa da, đát nhĩ dã tha, án tô lỗ tô lỗ, bát la tô lỗ, bát la tô lỗ, sa phạ hạ.

Forming the Mudrā of Bestowing Fearlessness above and reciting the true word for Bestowing Sweet Dew seven times has the power to cause the food and water to transform into an ocean of milk and sweet dew, can open the throats of all the hungry ghosts, cause the food to be multiplied and to fill everywhere, and cause the eating and drinking to be equal.

With the mudrā and true word of the Single-Syllable Mind Water-Wheel Contemplation of Vairocana Buddha, first contemplate the syllable vaṃ in the palm of the right hand, colored like the color of milk, then transformed into an ocean possessing the eight precious qualities, flowing forth all the flavors of sweet dew and ghee. Bring that hand over the vessels holding the food, recite the divine mantra of the syllable vaṃ seven times, then turn the five fingers downward toward the vessels holding the food, contemplating milk and the various flavors of sweet dew and ghee flowing forth from within the syllable vaṃ, transforming into an ocean of milk, vast as the orb of the sun and moon, so that all the multitudes of ghosts and spirits are satisfied and filled, with no lack whatsoever.

This is called the Mudrā of Universally Bestowing upon All Hungry Ghosts, and (the following is) the true word of the Ocean of Milk (sea of milk):

Namo tam mãn đa một đà nẫm, (án) noan.

Having contemplated and recited this mantra seven times, write (the syllable vaṃ) upon clean ground, in a place where no one walks, or beneath the root of a tree beside a pool of water; it must not be written beneath the roots of trees such as the peach tree, the willow tree, or the pomegranate tree. Having finished writing, one must with utmost sincerity invoke the names of the Five Tathāgatas three times, and one will obtain boundless merit.

Namo bạt già phạt đế, bát ra bộ đa ra, đát nẵng dã, đát tha nghiệt đa da.

Namo Ratnaketu Tathāgata (Jeweled Victory Tathāgata), who removes the karma of miserliness and greed and fills one with merit and virtue.

Namo bạt già phạt đế, tô lỗ ba da, đát tha nghiệt đa da.

Namo Surūpakāya Tathāgata (Wondrous Form-Body Tathāgata), who breaks ugly and unsightly appearances and fills one with fine marks.

Namo bạt già phạt đế, a mật lật đế ra nhạ da, đát tha nghiệt đa da.

Namo Amṛtarāja Tathāgata (Sweet-Dew King Tathāgata), who pours the true Dharma into body and mind so that one receives peace and bliss.

Namo bạt già phạt đế, vĩ bố la nghiệt đát la da, đát tha nghiệt đa da.

Namo Vipulakāya Tathāgata (Broad and Vast Body Tathāgata), who opens the throat clear and through so that one may receive the wondrous flavors.

Namo bạt già phạt đế, a bà diễn ca la da, đát tha nghiệt đa da.

Namo Abhayaṃkara Tathāgata (Free-from-Fear Tathāgata), who wholly removes fear and dread and causes one to leave the realm of hungry ghosts.

If the practitioner is able to do thus, he obtains the majestic radiance of the Buddhas to protect and cover him over. Invoking the names of the Five Tathāgatas has the power to cause all kinds of hungry ghosts to have their boundless sins eliminated, their boundless merit arise, to obtain bodies of wondrous form, minds vast and great, and fearlessness, so that they may receive the food that has been transformed into wondrous and sublime offerings of sweet dew, swiftly depart from their bodies of suffering, and be born in the heavens or in a Pure Land.

After bestowing the food, the practitioner should, for the sake of the multitudes of ghosts and spirits, recite the dhāraṇī for Conferring the Bodhisattva Samaya Precepts, reciting it three times. The true word is:

Án, tam muội da tát đoã phạm.

Having recited it three times, all the ghosts and spirits are able to hear and receive the profound secret Dharma, all attain the full Samaya precepts, and obtain boundless merit.

Having bestowed upon all the hungry ghosts so that they are satisfied and filled, one should use the Dharma of dhāraṇī to send them on their way, so that they may return to the source and origin (suchness). The true word of Sending Forth and Liberating is:

Án, phạ nhật ra, mục khất sái mục.

If reciting the mantra of Sending Forth, one should first form the mudrā: that is, the right hand makes a fist, with the tip of the thumb curved in, the fist turned face-up, then snapping the thumbnail to make a sound—this is called the act of opening the road for sending them on their way.

Each time one writes (the syllable vaṃ) upon the food and then recites seven times (the true word of the Ocean of Milk), together with snapping the fingers, then all the ghosts and spirits, having received the food, are able to depart. However, if the mantra of Sending Forth has not yet been recited, they cannot depart. If one does not fully carry out the method in this way, then the bestowal upon the hungry ghosts will not be complete: some may obtain it and some may not, the effort spent in vain—truly how pitiable.

If there is a practitioner who arouses the bodhi-mind and is able to cultivate in accordance with the Dharma by carrying out fully, in accordance with the Dharma, the Dharma of bestowing upon the hungry ghosts, then all the hungry ghosts will be satisfied and filled, with no lack whatsoever. One who practices and upholds this Dharma of bestowal should indeed know this.

If anyone uses the dhāraṇī to empower the food and drink, and then takes a portion of pure food and writes (the syllable vaṃ) into a stream of clean water, this can cause all the brāhmaṇa-ṛṣis to obtain this food; having eaten, with one accord and one voice they turn back and pray that the giver may, in the present life, enjoy a long life, be endowed with the majestic virtue of Brahmā, and practice the conduct of Brahmā.

If one uses this divine mantra to empower the items offered to the Buddha—such as water, incense, flowers, and food and drink—one must recite the mantra twenty-one times before then offering them to the Buddha. To do so is the same as having taken those items and offered them up to all the Buddhas of the ten directions, without difference.

This is the essential secret of the Dhāraṇī Sūtra for Bestowing Food upon the Burning-Face Hungry Ghosts and All Ghosts and Spirits. There is also the Dhāraṇī Sūtra for Rescuing the Burning-Face Hungry Ghosts, translated by the Venerable Śikṣānanda during the Tang dynasty.

In the fourth year of Teikyō, in mid-spring, on the twentieth day, Jōgon, at the age of forty-nine, collated this once.

In the sixteenth year of Genroku, on the seventeenth day of the second month, the monk Jōgon collated it once more.

In the third year of Hōei, in the spring of the year Bính Tuất, this secret manual was received; and in the winter of the year Mậu Tý, on the twenty-second day of the tenth month, Tánh Tịnh, in obedience to instruction, collated it once more.

Notes:

2 In the Erke Hejie (Combined Commentary on the Two Daily Liturgies), in the passage discussing the divine mantra of the Single-Syllable Water-Wheel, the Sūtra for Bestowing upon the Hungry Ghosts is cited; compared with this passage, a few words appear to be missing before "contemplate the syllable vaṃ" here (i.e., "first contemplate this syllable vaṃ"), which is why the meaning appears obscure.

3 The principal text reads "ocean of the eight qualities of merit," but the Erke Hejie quotes it as "water of the eight qualities of merit."

4 The Samaya precept takes the wisdom-awareness of the Buddha—that is, one's own nature of awareness—and makes it the precept-Dharma. The true word of the Samaya precept serves to stir and rouse sentient beings, among whom are ghosts and spirits, to awaken to that nature of awareness, instructing and admonishing them to conform to that nature of awareness and never to transgress against it.