諸法最上王經

When this Dharma was taught, the Blessed One was dwelling at the Kalandaka Monastery in the Bamboo Grove, together with a community of 1,250 great bhiksus led by the elder Uruvilva Kasyapa. They had all attained arhatship; their outflows were exhausted, what had to be done had been done, the burden had been laid down, their own benefit had been attained, the fetters had been ended, and through right wisdom their minds were liberated. They had freely reached the other shore, with the sole exception of one person, the Venerable Ananda.

At that time, on the fifteenth day of the month, the Blessed One sat in the open ground to conduct the uposatha, respectfully surrounded by the community of bhiksus, who faced the Buddha. There was a bhiksu who had only recently renounced the household life and received full ordination. He approached the Buddha, bowed with his head at the Buddha’s feet, circumambulated him three times to the right, joined his palms, and said:

“Blessed One! I have only recently renounced the household life and today received full ordination. I pray that you will teach me: How may one receive food in a village so that it is called wholesome food? How, after receiving and eating that food, may one become a pure field of merit and obtain the foremost benefit?” The bhiksu spoke this verse:

I have only just renounced the household life,

And today received full ordination.

May the Blessed One teach me

How to obtain a pure offering.

For the sake of the Path I cultivate the practice,

Leaving home for homelessness.

Such is the pure offering;

Please teach me its meaning.

The Buddha told the bhiksu:

“Listen well and bear this properly in mind. I shall explain it to you. A bhiksu who is free from falsehood receives food in a village and partakes of it after making the offering pure. Thus, good men and good women leave home for homelessness and cultivate the unsurpassed practice, ultimately attaining supreme excellence. Such a bhiksu enters the community of the Sangha, follows the practices of the Sangha, and shares in the Sangha’s offerings. Endowed with these three qualities, he does not receive village food in vain. Having made the offering pure, he partakes of the food and obtains the foremost benefit.” The Blessed One spoke this verse:

One who enters the community of the Sangha,

Mindfully follows the practices of the Sangha,

And shares in the offerings of the Sangha,

Obtains the merit of a pure offering.

The bhiksu said to the Buddha:

“Blessed One! I have now heard the Buddha give this teaching in brief, but I do not clearly understand its meaning. Blessed One! How does a bhiksu enter the community of the Sangha, participate in the practices of the Sangha, and share in the Sangha’s offerings?” The bhiksu spoke this verse:

How does one enter the community of the Sangha

And behold the practices of the Sangha?

Please explain these benefits to me;

Having heard, I shall clearly understand.

The Buddha told the bhiksu:

“Listen attentively. I shall clearly explain to you the Sangha, the practices of the Sangha, and the benefits of the Sangha.”

The bhiksu said:

“Blessed One! I very much wish to hear this.”

The Buddha said:

“What is called the Sangha? The Sangha consists of those who comprise the four pairs and eight individuals; therefore, they are called the Sangha. One should respectfully offer them food and face them with palms joined. They are a pure recipient of offerings, called a field of merit, and are worthy of offerings from devas and humans alike.” The Blessed One spoke this verse:

I shall now speak of those

Who comprise the four pairs and eight individuals.

They are the Sangha,

The unsurpassed field of merit.

“Bhiksu! What are called the practices of the Sangha? The practices of the Sangha are the four foundations of mindfulness, the four right efforts, the four bases of spiritual power, the five faculties, the five powers, the seven factors of awakening, and the Noble Eightfold Path. These are the practices of the Sangha.” The Blessed One spoke this verse:

Diligently seeking the supreme Path,

Known as the Noble Eightfold Path,

Is the right practice of the Sangha,

Thus have I taught it.

“Bhiksu! What are called the benefits obtained by the Sangha? The benefits obtained by the Sangha are the four fruits of the sramana. What are the four? 1. The fruit of stream-entry; 2. The fruit of once-returning; 3. The fruit of non-returning; 4. The fruit of arhatship. These are the great benefits obtained by the Sangha.” The Blessed One spoke this verse:

Of great stature and great benefit

Are members of the Sangha such as these.

They attain the four fruits of the sramana

And are pure recipients of meritorious offerings.

The bhiksu said to the Buddha:

“Blessed One! According to what the Blessed One has taught, one who enters the community of the Sangha, participates in the practices of the Sangha, and shares in the Sangha’s offerings properly receives food faithfully offered in a village, partakes of it after making the offering pure, and obtains the foremost merit and benefit. Blessed One! If there are also people who arouse the Mahayana mind and, for the sake of omniscient wisdom, leave home and renounce the household life, do they belong to the Sangha? Do they participate in the practices of the Sangha? Do they share in the Sangha’s offerings?”

The Buddha said:

“Excellent, bhiksu! Only in the presence of the Tathagata, the Rightly and Universally Enlightened One, could you reflect upon and ask about this meaning. Bhiksu! Only because you possess supreme eloquence and great auspiciousness could you skillfully ask about this meaning. Bhiksu! Because you have reflected well, you now ask the Tathagata about this meaning. Bhiksu! All this is due to the Buddha’s awe-inspiring power, which has caused such eloquence to arise in you and moved you to ask about this meaning. It is also due to the power of your past vows that you are able to ask in this way. Therefore, bhiksu, listen well and reflect carefully. I shall explain it to you.”

The bhiksu said to the Buddha:

“Blessed One! Excellent! I now wish to hear.”

The Buddha said:

“Bhiksu! What do you think? Those people arouse the Mahayana mind and, for the sake of omniscient wisdom, leave home and renounce the household life. Do they belong to the Sangha? Do they participate in the practices of the Sangha? Do they receive the benefits obtained by the Sangha? Bhiksu! Those beings do not enter the Sangha, nor do they participate in the practices or benefits of the Sangha.” The Blessed One spoke this verse:

Those people arouse the mind of bodhi,

But do not belong among the Sangha.

In the practices of the Sangha

And its benefits they likewise do not share.

The bhiksu said to the Buddha:

“Blessed One! For what reason do those people, although they have renounced the household life and are known to receive and consume village food, not belong among the Sangha and not participate in the practices or benefits of the Sangha?

“Blessed One! How can those people be pure fields of merit for donors, while not belonging to the Sangha and not participating in either the practices or benefits of the Sangha?”

The Buddha said:

“Bhiksu! Why must you ask what should not be asked?”

The bhiksu said to the Buddha:

“Blessed One! How can those people be pure fields of merit for donors?”

The Buddha said:

“Bhiksu! Why must you ask what should not be asked?”

The bhiksu again said:

“Blessed One! Since those people do not belong to the Sangha and do not participate in either the practices or benefits of the Sangha, how can they be pure fields of merit for donors?”

At that time, seeing that the bhiksu had made his request three times, the Blessed One smiled and manifested spiritual powers. Through the miraculous transformations arising from those spiritual powers, the tuft of hair between his eyebrows emitted a great radiance. That radiance contained immeasurable hundreds of thousands of different colors.

By its spiritual power, the radiance illuminated the entire three-thousandfold great-thousand world-system, extending even to the beings within the great oceans. Those who had never before seen or heard of such a radiance now beheld it and were terrified, the hair on their bodies standing on end. Even the devas of the sphere of neither perception nor non-perception all had this same thought: “Through the Buddha’s spiritual power, we know that this radiance has issued from between the Buddha’s eyebrows.

Everyone who beholds this radiance is terrified, with the hair on their bodies standing on end.”

Throughout the three-thousandfold great-thousand world-system, devas from the Heaven of the Four Great Kings up through the heavens of the form realm and the formless realm all came to the Kalandaka Monastery in the Bamboo Grove at Rajagrha. Upon arriving, they bowed with their heads at the Buddha’s feet, circumambulated him to the right immeasurable hundreds of thousands of times, and stood before him. With palms joined and bodies bowed, they remained properly mindful and reverent, neither moving nor leaning, their eyes never blinking. They gave rise to minds of veneration, loving respect, joy, gladness, patience, gentleness, purity, and freedom from obstruction. Ardently wishing to hear the Dharma, they stood to one side.

At that time, throughout the three-thousand-great-thousand world system were devas of great spiritual power, dragons, yakshas, rakshasas, gandharvas, asuras, garudas, kinnaras, mahoragas, humans, and nonhumans; lords of the devas, lords of the dragons, lords of the yakshas, lords of the gandharvas, lords of the asuras, lords of the garudas, lords of the kinnaras, lords of the mahoragas, lords of humans, and lords of nonhumans.

From beneath the earth to the heights above, there was not a single place that was not filled. The bhikshus, bhikshunis, upasakas, and upasikas of the three-thousand-great-thousand world system, together with all kinds of sentient beings dwelling upon the earth throughout its worlds, by the Buddha’s spiritual power all beheld the Buddha’s radiance, and their hearts trembled with awe, their hair standing on end. Just as a strong man might bend or extend his arm in an instant, so too, through the Buddha’s spiritual power, in a single thought they turned toward the Kalanda Bamboo Grove Monastery at Rajagriha and arrived there.

They bowed their heads at the Buddha’s feet, circumambulated him three times to the right, then stood before the Buddha with palms joined and right mindfulness established. Bowing respectfully, they gave rise to a mind of reverence, a mind of devotion, a mind of joy, a mind of gladness, a mind of patient endurance, a mind of gentleness, a mind of purity, and a mind free from obstruction. They gazed upon the Blessed One without ever taking their eyes from him.

Their bodies remained motionless as they stood to one side.

Throughout this three-thousand-great-thousand world system, whether within or outside the cities and in every concealed place, all the great and small rivers and all the streams flowing from their sources ran smoothly with gentle sounds. Moreover, in all the enclosed places and throughout space, birds of every kind raised their melodious songs. Through the Buddha’s spiritual power, all these sounds blended in harmonious accord.

Elephants, horses, cattle, goats, and even wild oxen and water buffaloes, through the Buddha’s spiritual power, all remained peacefully in their own places. The sentient beings dwelling in the oceans, through the Buddha’s spiritual power, each kept to its own habitat without troubling one another. The devas of this world, through the Buddha’s spiritual power, all stood silently, and even the sounds of the heavenly realms ceased to resound.

Sentient beings in the evil destinies, fierce and cruel by nature, including those ordinarily hostile to one another, also attained peace and happiness. Entirely through the Buddha’s spiritual power, in a single thought they all cherished one another like intimate friends. Their minds became beneficial, peaceful, gentle, ready for wholesome action, joyful, pure, and free from obstruction.

Their bearing and countenances were cheerful; their speech was gentle, neither hurried nor harsh; and whatever they said was loved by everyone. The old, the young, and the middle-aged all delighted in it.

At that very moment, throughout the entire three-thousand-great-thousand world system, not even the sound of someone clearing their throat could be heard. Through the Buddha’s spiritual power, all sentient beings stood silently. A gentle, fragrant wind blew, and the sentient beings who stood watching with delight were filled with joy; yet it did not stir the branches, flowers, leaves, or grasses. All this occurred through the Buddha’s spiritual power.

Just as an arhat who has entered the attainment of cessation no longer breathes in or out, so too did the great assembly stand in silence. This was because that bhikshu was sustained by the power of the supreme merit of his former lives and by the power of the Buddha’s supreme merit.

Then the Venerable Shariputra, knowing that everyone was silent, relied upon the Buddha’s spiritual power and rose from his seat. He bared one shoulder of his robe and, in accordance with the custom of the Sangha, placed his right knee upon the ground, joined his palms, bowed his body, and gazed single-mindedly upon the Buddha. Wishing the great assembly to obtain benefit and security, to have minds pure and unobstructed, and to hear the Dharma-gate concerning which that bhikshu had questioned the Buddha—as well as the reason the Buddha had emitted radiance and devas and humans had all gathered—he addressed the Buddha, saying:

“Blessed One! For what cause and condition did the Tathagata smile and emit radiance? There must be a reason for displaying this auspicious sign, and even the devas have assembled here and remain utterly silent.” Shariputra then spoke in verse:

The supremely victorious Buddhas act with cause;

Why has the Lord displayed this auspicious sign?

May the Blessed One quickly explain its meaning:

Why has the Lord displayed such great spiritual power?

More than hundreds of thousands of sentient beings,

And more than nayutas,

Have all assembled here

Because they beheld this spiritual power.

Blessed One, for what reason

Has this cause and condition arisen?

The Buddha’s wisdom knows its meaning;

Why have these beings assembled?

May the Blessed One have compassion upon me

And explain this meaning for my sake.

Devas and human beings

Have all given rise to reverence;

With palms joined, they face the Lord

And gaze upon the Honored One Among Bipeds.

The devas have left their palaces,

And the divine sons have all come here;

Reverently listening to the Dharma,

They gaze upon the Honored One Among Bipeds.

Leaving behind their dragon palaces,

Immeasurable dragons have all arrived.

The Lord should explain the reason

For such a miraculous transformation.

The yakshas have left their palaces,

And many yakshas have come here.

The Buddha should now proclaim

The meaning of this miraculous transformation.

After Shariputra had spoken these verses, he stood silently.

The Blessed One spoke in verse:

With the Brahma voice of a great man,

Roaring like resounding thunder,

I shall explain for Shariputra

The meaning of this miraculous transformation.

There is a newly ordained bhikshu

Who has gone forth and received full ordination.

That bhikshu asked me

About the great bodhisattvas:

After they have gone forth,

How should they conduct themselves?

When receiving food from a village,

What is called pure almsgiving?

Shariputra, because of this meaning,

From between my eyebrows a ray of light

Issued forth with vast, majestic power

And illuminated the entire world.

It is precisely for this reason

That the devas have assembled,

Joining their palms in deep reverence

And gazing upon the Honored One Among Bipeds.

Shariputra, precisely for this purpose,

Dragons and yakshas have all arrived;

Clouds, thunder, and lightning arose and dispersed

As they came to the Tathagata’s dwelling.

Shariputra, it is precisely for this reason

That multitudes of sentient beings have assembled.

They shall all attain arhatship,

Exhaust the outflows, and reach nirvana.

Shariputra, because of this meaning,

Countless multitudes have assembled.

They should give rise to such a mind,

The condition for attaining pratyekabuddhahood.

Shariputra, it is precisely thus;

Therefore they have assembled here,

Donning the magnificent armor

That leads to the Buddha’s wisdom.

Shariputra, it is precisely thus;

Many people have assembled.

They shall not retreat from the Mahayana mind

And shall attain supreme bodhi.

After hearing this meaning,

They shall receive the Buddha’s prediction.

Very many who have committed evil

Will repent and resolve never to do so again.

Hearing these words and their meaning,

In the future age of the final Dharma,

Hundreds of billions of sentient beings

Will abide upon the supreme path.

Except for bodhisattvas who have realized it,

In the future age of the final Dharma,

If one could uphold this sutra—

Such a thing could never occur.

Except for bodhisattvas who have realized it,

In the future age of the final Dharma,

If anyone hears this sutra

Yet remains ignorant and without faith,

Those sentient beings of little faith

Will be unable to give rise to bodhi.

When this sutra is heard,

Countless people may harbor doubts.

If they do not believe this sutra,

They will continually remain within samsara.

The hells will be their destination;

The animal realm will be their grove and garden.

In the realms of devas and humans,

They will have no place or standing.

Those who do not disparage this sutra

In the future age of the final Dharma,

Whether devas or human beings,

Will all attain arhatship.

If, when the foregoing is taught,

They give rise to a doubtful mind,

They may attain the path of a pratyekabuddha

Throughout the worlds of the ten directions.

If, when the foregoing is taught,

Their minds give rise to no doubt,

None will fail to cultivate goodness

Upon hearing such a teaching.

If they accomplish this meaning,

Only then can they hear this path.

For the bodhisattvas,

I teach this Dharma sutra.

Having practiced among the assembly,

They shall become Honored Ones Among Bipeds.

The Blessed One said to Shariputra:

“That bhikshu has gone forth only recently. Today he received ordination and came to ask me: ‘How can one who has given rise to the Mahayana mind partake of food received from a village in such a way that it is called wholesome food? Having eaten, how can one become a field of merit for the donor?’ Shariputra! Because that bhikshu asked about this meaning, immeasurable asamkhyeyas of hundreds of thousands of nayutas of sentient beings have assembled here, all wishing to hear me explain it.”

Shariputra! I now wish to explain, elucidate, and distinguish this meaning so that those of lesser capacity may easily understand it and immeasurable living beings may obtain great benefit.

Shariputra said to the Buddha:

– World-Honored One! Now is the proper time. I beseech you to expound it for me.

The Buddha said:

– Shariputra! If, when this meaning is taught, living beings become confused, why is this so? It is because that great donor cannot conceive of generosity, moral discipline, patience, diligence, meditative concentration, and wisdom. The great lion’s roar of the Teacher is inconceivable. These great beings cannot conceive of the Dharma. Ordinary beings and followers of the Two Vehicles cannot discern, believe in, deeply enter, or understand it, with the sole exception of non-retrogressing great bodhisattvas.

Shariputra! Because I perceived this, although that bhikshu entreated me three times, I remained silent and did not answer.

Shariputra again said:

– World-Honored One! Tathagata, Worthy One, Perfectly Enlightened One, I beseech you to expound it for me so that many living beings may acquire right faith.

The Buddha said:

– Shariputra! If living beings become confused when I expound this meaning, why is this so? It is because generosity and all dharmas are inconceivable. Because I perceived this, although you entreated me three times, I remained silent and did not teach.

Shariputra again said:

– World-Honored One! For the benefit and happiness of many living beings, and out of loving-kindness and compassion for them, I beseech you to expound the foregoing meaning for me. In the future age, if any great bodhisattvas resolve upon the Great Vehicle and, upon hearing this meaning, give rise to reverence and respect, they will acquire right faith, cultivate many wholesome deeds, and adorn themselves with the armor of patience.

At that time, seeing that Shariputra had respectfully entreated him three times, the World-Honored One said to Shariputra:

– Great bodhisattvas have no need to purify offerings. Why? From the moment they first arouse the aspiration until they attain enlightenment, great bodhisattvas always and completely purify offerings. Why? Because great bodhisattvas become fields of merit for living beings, through which living beings attain complete peace and happiness. Even by making offerings to bodhisattvas, they cannot repay the kindness of the bodhisattvas. The World-Honored One then spoke in verse:

Suppose there is a person

Who resolves to seek the Buddha’s wisdom;

From the first arousing of that resolve onward,

That person abides in the purification of offerings.

And if there is a person

Who resolves to seek the Buddha’s path,

That person need not cultivate the purification of offerings,

For they are already pure by nature.

Devas and human beings

Always diligently strive onward;

The valiant ones surround and guard

The wisdom of great bodhisattvas.

The realms of devas and human beings

Are all brought into being through bodhisattvas.

The wise who single-mindedly arouse the resolve

Have already purified all offerings.

Not clinging to the Desire Realm or the Form Realm,

Nor to the Realm of Formlessness,

With a mind free from attachment,

They purify all offerings.

The World-Honored One said to Shariputra:

– Shariputra! I shall use an analogy so that you may clearly understand this meaning. Why? I teach analogies so that those possessing wisdom may correctly and clearly understand this meaning. Shariputra! Suppose a bodhisattva accepts and uses clothing offered by living beings in quantities sufficient to fill the entire continent of Jambudvipa, receiving and using it every day from the moment that bodhisattva first arouses the aspiration. All such clothing can be purified as offerings. Why? Because that bodhisattva is the unsurpassed field of merit for living beings.

Shariputra! Suppose a bodhisattva accepts and consumes food offered by living beings in an amount as great as Mount Sumeru, receiving and consuming it every day from the time that bodhisattva arouses the aspiration. All such food can be purified as offerings. Why? Because the bodhisattva is the unsurpassed field of merit for living beings.

Shariputra! Suppose a bodhisattva accepts and uses seats and couches offered by living beings in quantities sufficient to fill all four continents, as lofty as Mount Sumeru and, like that mountain, adorned with the seven treasures and spread with celestial fabrics of the utmost softness and delicacy, receiving and using them every day from the moment that bodhisattva first arouses the aspiration. All such wondrous seats and couches can be purified as offerings. Why? Because the bodhisattva is the unsurpassed field of merit for living beings.

Shariputra! Suppose there are precious palaces and lofty mansions, the windows of those many mansions adorned with banners, canopies, bells, and curtains of every color. They are encircled by seven walls and resemble the palaces in the Heaven of Mastery over Others’ Transformations.

There are also immeasurable kalpavriksha trees, musical trees, fragrant flowering and fruit-bearing trees, and trees hung with jeweled necklaces. Everywhere are displayed countless incense burners and flowers of every kind. The ponds are filled with water possessing the eight qualities, beautiful, crystal clear, undefiled, and free from mud.

Flowers cover their surfaces; golden sand lies upon their beds; and their limpid water resembles vaidurya. Railings made of the seven treasures encircle them seven times. There are pathways in each of the four cardinal directions, where silken fabrics of every kind are hung and precious vessels of many beautiful colors are placed.

Within are immeasurable hundreds of thousands of nayutas of seats made from the seven treasures. Seats are spread in the east, west, south, and north; incense is burned, flowers are scattered, and jeweled curtains are suspended above them.

Shariputra! Suppose living beings offer to a bodhisattva precious seats, precious palaces, and all the other things described above, and the bodhisattva accepts them. If that bodhisattva enjoys and uses them every day from the moment of first arousing the aspiration, all can be purified as offerings. Why? Because the bodhisattva is the unsurpassed field of merit for living beings.

Shariputra! You should know that all wholesome dharmas, mundane and supramundane, arise through bodhisattvas. These include birth into a great kshatriya family, a great brahmin family, or a great householder’s family; becoming a king or a wheel-turning monarch; birth among the devas of the Four Great Kings, the Thirty-Three, Suyama, Santushita, Delight in Transformations, or Mastery over Others’ Transformations; or birth among the devas of the Form Realm or Formless Realm.

They also include abiding in the first fruit through the fourth fruit; progressing toward solitary awakening and attaining solitary awakening; attaining unsurpassed perfect enlightenment; and turning the Dharma Wheel. Those who hear the true Dharma that has been taught and practice it will, through that practice, abide in the four fruits of the shravakas, or even arouse the resolve to seek solitary awakening or unsurpassed perfect enlightenment.

If they hear generosity taught, they cultivate the practice of generosity. Having cultivated it, they are born into a kshatriya, brahmin, or householder’s family, and so forth, even attaining the position of a wheel-turning monarch. If they hear moral discipline taught, they cultivate the karma of moral discipline.

Having cultivated it, they are born among the devas of the Four Great Kings, and so forth, up to the Heaven of Mastery over Others’ Transformations. If they hear the four immeasurable states of mind expounded, they practice them after hearing them. Having practiced them, they are born in the Form Realm or the Formless Realm.

Shariputra! Therefore, you should know that all these things arise through bodhisattvas.

Shariputra! It is as though the dragon king Anavatapta, through the power of his awe-inspiring spiritual might, divides the waters into four great rivers: the Ganges, the Sindhu, the Vakshu, and the Sita. Each of these four rivers is accompanied by five hundred tributaries. The Ganges and its tributaries flow into the eastern sea, filling it to abundance. The Sindhu and its tributaries flow into the southern sea, filling it to abundance. The Vakshu and its tributaries flow into the western sea, filling it to abundance. The Sita and its tributaries flow into the northern sea, filling it to abundance.

What do you think? As these four great rivers and their tributaries flow successively into the seas and follow their proper courses, do they benefit the living beings of the four directions?

Shariputra said to the Buddha:

– World-Honored One! They provide boundless benefit to living beings. Humans and nonhumans alike are moistened and receive great benefit. The fields of rice, beans, and wheat near the rivers are all irrigated.

The Buddha said:

– Shariputra! What do you think? By what are those four seas filled to abundance?

Shariputra said to the Buddha:

– World-Honored One! They are filled to abundance by these four rivers.

The Buddha said:

“Sariputra, what do you think? Do those four rivers bring benefit to sentient beings?”

Sariputra said to the Buddha:

“World-Honored One, sentient beings dwelling in the water or on land all receive great benefit. These include turtles, fish, and other creatures, as well as fishermen. There are also yakshas, rakshasas, asuras, pishacas, nagas, mahoragas, and immeasurable other kinds of sentient beings. Some sentient beings dwell in palaces and houses. Those abodes contain every kind of precious substance, such as coral, vaidurya, the translucent jewels of the god Sakra, mother-of-pearl, mani gems, all kinds of pearls, and countless other treasures. All these arise from the great ocean and provide every kind of useful article, bringing immense benefit to those who enjoy them.”

The Buddha said:

“Sariputra, what do you think? From where do the waters of the four great rivers flow?”

Sariputra said to the Buddha:

“World-Honored One, they arise from Lake Anavatapta.”

The Buddha said:

“Sariputra, the naga king Anavatapta has escaped three fears. What are the three?

1. Fear of the golden-winged birds.

2. Being scorched by burning sand.

3. Fear of being transformed into the form of a serpent when desiring sexual intercourse.

“He has escaped these three fears.

“Sariputra, only those who have attained supernormal powers and meditative concentration dwell in the naga palace of the naga king Anavatapta. Whoever enters it or beholds it is not burned.”

Sariputra said to the Buddha:

“World-Honored One, that naga palace is replete with rare, wondrous, and extraordinary supreme qualities. Other nagas have such fears, but that naga king is entirely free of them. The sentient beings dwelling there and all who enter it are free from every fear because mighty beings of great supernormal powers dwell there. World-Honored One, only the naga king Anavatapta is endowed with immeasurable merit and virtue, sending forth four great rivers that flow toward the oceans in the four directions, bringing benefit, peace, and happiness to sentient beings.”

The Buddha said:

“So it is! So it is! Sariputra, you should know that a great bodhisattva is likewise. Sariputra, just as the naga king Anavatapta has escaped three fears, so too has a great bodhisattva escaped three fears. What are the three?

– Fear of the hell realms.

– Fear of the animal realm.

– Fear of the realm of hungry ghosts.

“Sariputra, just as the great Lake Anavatapta sends forth four great rivers flowing in the four directions, so too does a bodhisattva gather and guide sentient beings by means of the four methods of attraction: 1. Giving; 2. Loving speech; 3. Beneficial conduct; 4. Cooperation.

“Sariputra, just as that great ocean has its source in Lake Anavatapta, the Perfect Enlightenment of the Buddhas arises from bodhisattvas. Sariputra, just as immeasurable hundreds of thousands of nayutas and kotis of sentient beings dwell in that great ocean and fully enjoy peace and happiness, you should know that sentient beings in these three realms likewise abide in reliance upon the omniscience of the Buddhas. These are existence in the desire realm, existence in the form realm, and existence in the formless realm.

“Sariputra, for this reason you should know that all the happiness within the trichiliocosm arises from bodhisattvas. Why is this? When bodhisattvas first arouse the aspiration, they immediately undertake practice. Having undertaken practice, they receive a prediction of future Buddhahood. Having received that prediction, they attain unsurpassed, complete, perfect enlightenment. Having realized bodhi, they then turn the Dharma wheel.

“Such a Dharma wheel has never before been turned, and no shramana, brahmin, deva, Mara, Brahma, or any other sentient being is able to turn it. When they turn the Dharma wheel for sentient beings, the Dharma they teach is excellent in the beginning, excellent in the middle, and excellent in the end; complete in meaning and expression; pure, unalloyed, and undefiled. They proclaim the holy life so that the four assemblies may understand it. The four assemblies are bhikshus, bhikshunis, upasakas, and upasikas. Through these causes and conditions, immeasurable and innumerable sentient beings enjoy the unceasing happiness of devas and humans, bring suffering and affliction to an end, and never become separated from joy.

“Sariputra, what do you think? From where does such Dharma bliss arise?”

Sariputra said to the Buddha:

“World-Honored One, it arises from bodhisattvas.”

“Sariputra, what do you think? From whom do the teachings that you see being propagated throughout the three realms arise?”

Sariputra said to the Buddha:

“World-Honored One, they arise from bodhisattvas.”

“Sariputra, what do you think? If all the offerings within the three realms were presented in their entirety to bodhisattvas, would it be possible to repay the kindness and virtue of the benefits bestowed by bodhisattvas?”

“World-Honored One, it would not. Why is this? Because everything arises from bodhisattvas. World-Honored One, suppose there were a poor person, destitute and without money or possessions. A wealthy person, moved by compassion, gave that poor person hundreds of thousands of immeasurable and innumerable riches and treasures. He likewise gave to a second and a third poor person, continuing in this way until he had given riches and treasures to hundreds of thousands of immeasurable and innumerable sentient beings, enabling them all to enjoy complete wealth and prosperity. If they suffered distress, fear, conflict, bondage, or imprisonment, he freed them all. He also delivered them from the sufferings of the evil paths and enabled them to enjoy immeasurable happiness among devas and humans.

“Among those sentient beings, one person divided a crystal jewel into one hundred parts. Taking one of those hundred parts, he went to his former benefactor and said:

“‘Previously, you bestowed many benefits upon me. I have now come to repay your kindness with this.’

“World-Honored One, that sentient being had received great benefit from the noble man, yet offered him only one part of a crystal jewel. Could this be called repaying his kindness?”

The Buddha said:

“No.”

Sariputra said to the Buddha:

“World-Honored One, so it is! Well-Gone One, so it is! That bodhisattva is like the great noble man who bestowed immense benefit upon sentient beings. A person could not repay his kindness with only one part of a crystal jewel. Likewise, World-Honored One, if someone arouses the Mahayana aspiration, sentient beings may make offerings with a mind of sympathetic joy, even making offerings throughout their entire lives, yet despite doing so, they still could not repay that person’s kindness.”

The Buddha said:

“Excellent! Excellent, Sariputra! You have followed the Buddha’s teaching exceedingly well and have acted in a manner worthy of a disciple of the Buddha. Sariputra, even if sentient beings were to offer their own skin, flesh, sinews, blood, bones, and marrow, or relinquish their bodies as many as hundreds of thousands of times, wishing to bring benefit and repay the kindness of a bodhisattva, they still could not repay even one hundredth part, one hundred-thousandth part, or one asamkhya part of that kindness. No calculation, enumeration, or analogy could adequately express it.

“Why is this? Sariputra, it is because whoever arouses the aspiration for unsurpassed, complete, perfect enlightenment will bring immense benefit to sentient beings. Sariputra, suppose that here in Jambudvipa there were a candana tree.

When it first sprouted, any boy or girl suffering from illness could use its sprout and be cured. When it produced leaves, any man, woman, boy, or girl suffering from illness could use those leaves and immediately be cured. When the tree grew large, whoever entered its shade would have all illnesses eliminated.

After it bore fruit, its light would illuminate the worlds throughout the ten directions. Any sentient being who recollected that light would no longer be subject to aging, illness, or death. If the tree were felled and its timber taken, there would be no fear of poverty or hardship.

Even after being cut down, the tree would continue to bring benefit. If its wood were used to build a dwelling, whoever entered that dwelling would have all fears eliminated and would not suffer from cold, heat, hunger, or thirst.

“Thus, Sariputra, from the time this candana tree first sprouts, produces leaves, flowers, and fruit, and grows to maturity, until it is cut down and used to build a dwelling, it brings immense benefit to sentient beings.”

Shariputra! You should know that when a great bodhisattva gives rise to the aspiration for unsurpassed, complete and perfect enlightenment, he gathers and guides sentient beings by means of the four methods of attraction. These are giving, loving speech, beneficial conduct, and cooperation, through which he enables all sentient beings to attain peace and happiness.

Once they have attained peace and happiness, they then cultivate the three gates of liberation: emptiness, signlessness, and wishlessness. When these have been developed, they fully attain the patient acceptance of the non-arising of dharmas, ultimately attaining the fruit of all-encompassing knowledge. Having attained that fruit, they enter the realm of the great nirvana without remainder and then pass into final extinction.

Upon passing into final extinction, they themselves divide their relics into pieces as small as mustard seeds, which nevertheless remain in the world.

Shariputra! It is like a candana tree: when its wood is cut out, all its branches are discarded. Whoever enters a house made from that wood will never again give rise to the burning afflictions of desire.

The relics of the Tathagata are likewise. Shariputra! In reliance upon this meaning, you should know that only when good men or good women give rise to the aspiration for unsurpassed, complete and perfect enlightenment can they repay the kindness described above.

Why is this? Shariputra! Because whoever gives rise to the aspiration for unsurpassed, complete and perfect enlightenment ensures that the Tathagata’s teaching is not cut off and that the Dharma of the shravakas and pratyekabuddhas is not cut off, while being able to eliminate the sufferings of sentient beings and the sufferings of devas and humans.

Shariputra! What do you think? Is there anyone else who can equal that person?

“World-Honored One, there is not.”

“That person may be a human, a deva, a mara, a brahma, a shramana, a brahmin, or some other sentient being, and may bring many kinds of peace and happiness as offerings to a bodhisattva, yet still cannot repay the former kindness.

“Shariputra! If throughout an entire kalpa, or a little less than a kalpa, or for a hundred kalpas, a thousand kalpas, or a hundred thousand kotis of nayutas of kalpas, one offered every kind of peace and happiness to a bodhisattva, could one thereby repay that kindness?”

“World-Honored One, one could not.”

“Shariputra! It is exactly as you say! If any good man or good woman wishes to repay that kindness, he or she should give rise to the aspiration for unsurpassed bodhi. Only then can that person equal the former person and repay the kindness described above.”

“World-Honored One! It is indeed so! Suppose that person gave something away and another person later returned an equivalent of what had been given; this would be called repaying kindness. If those living in the present wish to repay kindness, they should simply give rise to the unsurpassed aspiration. Good men and good women in future ages who wish to repay the unsurpassed kindness of the Buddhas must also give rise to the aspiration for unsurpassed, complete and perfect enlightenment. Only thus can it be called repaying kindness.”

“Shariputra! There are two kinds of people who make offerings to the Tathagata with the unsurpassed aspiration. Who are these two kinds of people? One is a person who has exhausted all outflows; the other is a person who has given rise to the aspiration for unsurpassed bodhi.” The World-Honored One then spoke these verses:

There are only two kinds of people

Who can make offerings to the Buddha:

Those whose outflows are exhausted and those who aspire to bodhi—

These are the two kinds of people.

Throughout all worlds of the three realms,

There is no material gift

That, when offered to the Great Being,

Can repay his kindness.

Forms, sounds, fragrances, and flavors,

Things delightful and worthy of praise,

When presented as offerings to that being,

Are still not called true offerings.

If one gives rise to the aspiration for bodhi,

One will attain the fruit of bodhi.

Seeking nothing for oneself herein—

This is the supreme offering.

Devas and beings of the world,

And the maras dwelling therein,

May give whatever anyone needs,

Yet this is still not called repaying kindness.

Even if one gives only a little,

Yet gives rise to no craving,

Toward the Great Being,

It is still not called an offering.

If anyone wishes to make

An offering to the Buddha,

They should aspire and give rise to this resolve:

To seek the path of bodhi.

If one wishes to create merit

Measureless and beyond reckoning,

One should give rise to the aspiration for bodhi

And swiftly accomplish this momentous deed.

If one wishes to seek meditative concentration

And cultivate immeasurable mindfulness,

One should give rise to diligent vigor,

The cause and condition for the Buddha’s wisdom.

If one wishes for abundant peace and happiness

And to eliminate every suffering,

One must give rise to this aspiration:

The Buddha’s bodhi.

If one wishes to behold immeasurable

Asamkhyeyas of Buddhas,

Having performed this most honored deed,

One should joyfully aspire to bodhi.

If that person wishes to travel

To boundless worlds,

They should give rise to great diligence

And joyfully aspire to bodhi.

If one’s heart rejoices

To behold the Buddhas of the past,

One must give rise to the aspiration for bodhi

And cultivate the bodhisattva practices.

If one wishes swiftly to behold

The Buddhas of the future,

One must give rise to the aspiration for bodhi

And cultivate the bodhisattva practices.

If one wishes to behold

The Buddhas of the present,

That person should always rejoice

In cultivating bodhi.

If one gives rise to loving-kindness

And wishes it to pervade all sentient beings,

One must give rise to this aspiration:

The Buddha’s bodhi-mind.

If one wishes all sentient beings

To be freed from suffering and affliction,

One must diligently train in

That unsurpassed wisdom.

If one wishes to bestow upon sentient beings

Immeasurable and boundless happiness,

One must give rise to this aspiration

And seek the Buddha’s bodhi.

If one wishes to cast off

The sufferings of the evil destinies,

One must give rise to this aspiration,

Which is to seek bodhi.

Its merit is boundless

And cannot be fully expressed.

Whoever gives rise to such an aspiration

Will awaken to bodhi.

After the Buddha had spoken these verses, Shariputra said:

“World-Honored One! When you taught this Dharma gateway, how many sentient beings gave rise to the aspiration for unsurpassed bodhi?”

The Buddha said:

“Shariputra! Why must you ask about this matter? Why is this? Shariputra! If the Tathagata were to speak of his great wisdom, the minds of boundlessly many sentient beings would become bewildered. Why is this? Shariputra! Because the Tathagata’s virtue of moral discipline, power of concentration, wisdom, and spiritual powers are all immeasurable. Shariputra! What do you think? Is anyone capable of knowing the boundaries of space?”

“World-Honored One, no. Why is this? Because the limits of space in the past cannot be known, nor can those in the future or present be known.”

“Just so, Shariputra! The great wisdom of the Tathagata cannot be known by shravakas, pratyekabuddhas, or sentient beings of the future or present. Why is this? Shariputra! Because this is the wisdom of a Buddha; it is not the sphere of shravakas or pratyekabuddhas.”

“World-Honored One! This is truly unprecedented. Sentient beings who give rise to the aspiration for bodhi will surely come to comprehend such wisdom.”

“Shariputra! So it is, so it is! It is exactly as you say. Sentient beings who are great bodhisattvas will surely come to comprehend such wisdom.”

“World-Honored One! How will those great bodhisattvas surely come to comprehend this wisdom?”

“Shariputra! What do you think? Suppose all the sentient beings in this Jambudvipa—whether on land, beneath the water, in the air, or upon the ground—were gradually to cultivate and attain human bodies. If someone instructed them to uphold the five precepts or abide in the ten wholesome deeds, would the merit of that good man or good woman gained through these causes and conditions be great?”

“World-Honored One! It would be exceedingly great. Sugata! It would be exceedingly great, beyond even the possibility of comparison.”

“Shariputra! I shall now explain further so that, upon hearing it, you may attain joy. Suppose all the sentient beings in Jambudvipa upheld the five precepts and fully practiced the ten wholesome deeds. That person would thereby acquire merit. Yet if another person instructed even a single person to abide in the stage of faith-practice, the merit acquired by this good man or good woman would surpass the former.

“Shariputra! What do you think? If someone instructed all the sentient beings throughout Jambudvipa to abide in the stage of faith-practice, would that person’s merit be great?”

“World-Honored One! It would be exceedingly great. Sugata! It would be exceedingly great. That person’s merit would be immeasurably and boundlessly greater than that of the person described above, beyond all comparison.”

“Furthermore, Shariputra! If a good man or good woman instructs even one person to abide in the stage of faith-practice, the merit gained is exceedingly great. Yet instructing all sentient beings to abide in the stage of faith-practice does not equal instructing one person to abide in the eighth stage; the latter merit is greater.

Instructing all sentient beings to abide in the eighth stage does not equal instructing one person to abide in the first fruit; the latter merit is greater. Instructing all sentient beings in Jambudvipa to abide in the first fruit does not equal instructing one person to abide in the second fruit; the latter merit is greater. Instructing all sentient beings in Jambudvipa to abide in the second fruit does not equal instructing one person to abide in the third fruit; the latter merit is greater.

Instructing all sentient beings in Jambudvipa to abide in the third fruit does not equal instructing one person to abide in the fourth fruit; the latter merit is greater. Instructing all sentient beings in Jambudvipa to abide in the fourth fruit does not equal instructing one person to abide in the path of a pratyekabuddha; the latter merit is greater. Instructing all sentient beings in Jambudvipa to abide in the path of a pratyekabuddha does not equal instructing one person to set their mind upon unsurpassed bodhi; the latter merit is greater.

Instructing all sentient beings to set their minds upon unsurpassed bodhi does not equal instructing one person to abide in the Dharma of non-retrogression; the latter merit is greater. Instructing all sentient beings in Jambudvipa to abide in the Dharma of non-retrogression does not equal instructing one person to swiftly attain Omniscience; the latter merit is greater. Instructing all sentient beings in Jambudvipa to swiftly attain Omniscience does not equal a person who, within this Dharma gateway, gives rise to the wisdom of a bodhisattva, destroys all deeds of Mara, relinquishes the five skandhas and is no longer bound to the realms of experience, transcends all ayatanas, destroys the afflictions, preserves the pure Dharma, and eradicates the dharmas of darkness.

The merit of expounding these supreme kingly sutras of all dharmas to others is immeasurably greater than the former merit.

“Shariputra! Set aside Jambudvipa and even the four continents. Suppose that all sentient beings throughout one thousand worlds, two thousand worlds, a great trichiliocosm, and even worlds in the eastern direction as numerous as the sands of the Ganges—whether possessing form or formless, possessing perception or without perception, neither possessing perception nor without perception; whether living in water or on land; whether born from eggs, born from wombs, born from moisture, or born through transformation—all the various kinds of beings such as these were gradually, through cultivation, to attain human bodies.

Suppose that sentient beings throughout the worlds of the ten directions were likewise gradually, through cultivation, to attain human bodies, and someone wholeheartedly instructed them to abide in the five precepts and fully practice the ten wholesome karmas. Shariputra! What do you think?

Would that person’s merit be great?”

“World-Honored One! It would be exceedingly great. Sugata! It would be exceedingly great—immeasurable, boundless, and beyond all analogy.”

“Shariputra! If a good man or good woman, upon hearing these supreme kingly sutras of all dharmas, does not slander them but instead takes ever greater delight in hearing them, and then accepts and upholds, reads and recites them, and teaches them to others, the former merit, compared with this merit, does not equal even one hundredth, one thousandth, one hundred-thousandth, one koti-th, or one hundred thousand nayutas of kotis-th part of it. No calculation, number, or analogy could ever compare with it.

“Furthermore, Shariputra! Suppose someone instructed all sentient beings throughout the worlds of the ten directions to abide in the Dharma of faith-practice, the eight stages of persons, the four fruits, the path of a pratyekabuddha, and so forth, up to generating the aspiration and abiding in the Dharma of non-retrogression and the patient acceptance of the non-arising of dharmas, thereby swiftly attaining Omniscience.

If a good man or good woman accepts and upholds, reads and recites these supreme kingly sutras of all dharmas and extensively expounds them to others, this merit, compared with the former merit, is the most excellent, the supreme, the greatest, the most wondrous, the exceedingly subtle and wondrous, the incomparable, the unsurpassed, that which is above the unsurpassed, and that which has no equal. Within that which has no equal, one gains merit that has no equal.”

Shariputra! From this meaning, you should know that those beings will certainly comprehend this wisdom, give rise to the aspiration for unsurpassed bodhi, and, upon hearing this Dharma gate, engender faith. Shariputra!

Such beings should be called non-retrogressing; called liberated, fully delivered, quiescent, greatly purified, pure, tamed, unsurpassed, beyond the unsurpassed, arrived at nirvana, already passed into cessation, able to expound the Dharma, able to expound its meaning, speakers of truth, speakers of what is genuine, those who act in accordance with their words, those who have laid down the heavy burden, free from desire, free from anger, free from delusion, stainless, cleansed and purified, arrived at the other shore, hearers, those who have cast off desire, cast off anger, cast off delusion, extinguished all evils, children of the Buddha, fields of merit, courageous, valiant men, conquerors of the domain of form, victors over opposing armies, lions, men, great men, excellent men,

fearless men, wise men, men of great resolve, well-tamed men, bull-kings among men, transcendent men, valiant and victorious men, lions among humans, bulls among humans, dragons, devas, devas among devas, brahmins, those who have departed from evil, unobstructed, unfettered, free from stinginess, free from malice, not foolish, incomparable, inseparable, whose speech is unmixed, whose speech accords with right mindfulness, whose speech is unsurpassed, whose speech is beyond the unsurpassed, whose speech is supremely excellent, whose speech is undefiled, whose speech is unattached, whose speech is unfettered, whose speech is certain, who speak only what is true, who speak only what is genuine, endowed with all virtues, those who have done what should be done, whose necessary task is finished,

whose undertakings have all been accomplished, endowed with moral shame and dread of wrongdoing, those who have done much, those who have brought abundant benefit, loving, endowed with all virtuous dharmas, those who have abandoned all unvirtuous things, accomplished in all endeavors, undefiled, wholly undefiled, neither constrained nor afraid, fearless, unafraid, unalarmed, unperturbed, incapable of being weakened, heedful, possessing immeasurable and boundless virtues, perfect in the practice of Dharma, mountains, Mount Sumeru, Mount Meru, encircling mountains, great encircling mountains, immovable, donors, masters of giving, those who relinquish all they possess, excellent givers, those whose countenances are harmonious and joyful, perfect in generosity, morality, patience, diligence,

meditative concentration, and wisdom, cultivators of supernormal powers, those who have accomplished supernormal powers, those who reach every place, those of great might and resolve, those of powerful resolve, those who have reached the place of peace and security, those who have crossed over to the other shore, those who train in the deeds of the Buddhas, those who undertake the work of the Buddhas, those whose power of vows concerning all Buddha-dharmas has been completely fulfilled, those who vanquish every hostile mara, those whom no poison or harm can subdue, those who weaken Mara’s power, those who scatter the hosts of Mara, those who cause Mara’s armies suddenly to collapse, those seated at the bodhimanda of Buddhahood, those who have subdued every poison and harm,

those who eliminate the opposing armies of Mara, those who accord with awakening, those who turn the adverse current into the favorable current, the other shore, those able to deliver others, those who have already delivered others, those who have themselves attained liberation, dispellers of darkness, moons, suns, boundless light, unobstructed light, inconceivable light, inexpressible light, immeasurable light, light reaching every place, universally illuminating light, those unattached to the realm of desire, unattached to the realm of form, unattached to the formless realm, liberated from the hells, liberated from the animal realm, liberated from the realm of hungry ghosts, those who bring coolness to the hells, bring coolness to animals, bring coolness to hungry ghosts,

those able to give whatever anyone needs, those who cast off all decline and adversity, extinguish all suffering, reveal joy, wheel-turning kings, fathers of the world, those who transcend the world, those liberated from the world, those who escape the world’s decline and adversity, those who reveal what is concealed, establish bodhisattvas, inspire bodhisattvas, open hidden treasuries, reveal the mysteries of the Buddhas of the past, make conceivable what cannot be conceived, and are endowed with boundless dharmas and limitless virtues.

At that time, the Blessed One, with a pure and adorned mind, uttered a voice replete with merit. It was supreme speech, speech that instructed others, speech concordant with meaning, profound speech, irrefutable speech, subtle and wondrous speech, illuminating speech, joyful speech, pure speech, pleasing speech, mind-directing speech, lovely speech, complete speech, speech beloved by many, lively speech, fluent speech, speech skillfully ordered from beginning to end, speech cherished as one’s own child, perfect speech, agreeable speech, with clear and continuous letters and words; speech skillfully resolving doubtful matters, of wholly genuine and true conduct;

enriching speech, speech resembling the voice of Brahma, a subtle and wondrous voice like thunder, clear and truthful speech, a voice like the song of the kalavinka bird, lucid and truthful speech, speech capable of purifying companions, resolving immeasurable doubts, independent speech, speech capable of bringing security to others, memorable speech, speech capable of attenuating the fetters, speech perfecting the ayatanas, speech eliminating disputes, speech that from beginning to end was wholesome and without deception, uttering the true meaning beyond words, hundreds of thousands of expressions all in harmony; speech praised through wisdom, causing the world to delight and attain happiness, together with Dharma gates of foremost meaning;

speech in which the past is relinquished, mutually concordant speech, speech appropriate to the proper time, speech capable of summoning, speech without discrimination among names, meanings, phrases, and sentences, speech that assuredly purifies the meanings of phrases, speech that destroys the many barbs of desire, speech that destroys the many barbs of anger, speech that destroys the many barbs of delusion, speech capable of revealing many principles and matters, speech realizing boundless meanings and principles, speech transcending the six destinies, speech transcending all paths, speech transcending the discourses of non-Buddhist traditions;

speech concerning the affairs of devas, the affairs of nagas, the affairs of yakshas, the affairs of gandharvas, the affairs of asuras, the affairs of garudas, the affairs of kinnaras, and the affairs of mahoragas; speech expressing compassion and patient forbearance, causing others joyfully to trust the teaching; speech without flattery, speech present everywhere, speech without attachment, speech free from error, self-respecting speech without cunning, speech always true and in accord with the established Dharma, speech without deceit, speech without partiality, speech free from gloomy suffering, skillfully concordant with benefit, swiftly instructing others to attain completeness;

supremely trustworthy speech, speech that shatters and disperses the flowing darkness, speech far removed from wickedness, opposition, and the loss of meaning; speech that distinguishes the meanings of phrases, speech that eliminates the meanings and phrases of non-Buddhist discourses, certain speech free from doubt, speech eliminating all dharmas of suffering and causing them to cease; supreme, true, pure, and natural speech; speech concordant with all wholesome dharmas and causing joy, expounding wholesome dharmas in peaceful and concordant speech; speech free from all defilements, entirely pure and concordant with the ultimate meaning;

speech concordant with the resolution of many doubts, pure speech concordant with a pure mind, speech not concordant with meaningless words, speech concordant with every eloquent language capable of exposition, speech elaborated according to various inclinations, speech employing the languages of the world to gladden sentient beings, speech loved and honored by many, concordant speech, liberating speech, skillfully liberating speech, supreme speech, a sovereign voice, speech skillfully concordant with a reassuring voice, speech of embrace concordant with the pure dharmas, utterly consummate speech, speech radiating boundless light, speech creating boundless light, speech capable of explaining questions concerning boundless knowledge of the Dharma, speech capable of delivering beings,

exposition concordant with the bliss of Dharma, exposition complete in letters, phrases, and meanings, speech skillfully brought to consummation, exposition concordant with letters, phrases, and meanings, exposition concordant with insatiable letters, phrases, and meanings, exposition concordant with contentment in letters, phrases, and meanings, exposition concordant with letters, phrases, and meanings that fully reveal happiness;

speech revealing immeasurable roots of virtue, exposition concordant with immeasurable roots of virtue, speech adorned with words concordant with the adornments of a Buddha, exposition concordant with boundless meanings and phrases, exposition of letters, phrases, and meanings that neither come nor go and are exceedingly upright and beautiful, unhindered exposition of letters, phrases, and meanings, speech skillfully brought to consummation; exposition concordant with devas and asuras, continuously instructing them; exposition concordant with letters, phrases, and meanings; speech without deficiency, exposition concordant with meanings and phrases; speech without confusion, exposition concordant with meanings and phrases;

speech without delay, manifesting lucid speech, lucid action, lucid and excellent manifestation, and lucid action; manifesting transcendent speech, manifesting speech surpassing transcendence, manifesting speech transcendent and surpassing transcendence; teaching the practice of skillfully carrying robes and alms bowl; teaching that one must honor the instructing teacher and diligently safeguard the teaching so as to be in accord with it, and that one must honor the preceptor and diligently safeguard the teaching so as to attain accord.

It always purified knowledge of the Dharma and, once purified, caused it to become still purer. It diligently preserved the letters, phrases, and meanings of the highest truth. It skillfully expounded dharanis and sutras, skillfully expounded the Sutra of the Three Wheels, the Bodhisattva Pitaka, and the Prajnaparamita, skillfully expounded the circulating Mani Pitaka, skillfully expounded the eighty-four thousand collections of Dharma, and further revealed hundreds of thousands of teachings.

It inspired bodhisattvas to give rise to the aspiration for bodhi and to vow to behold the Buddhadharma throughout the three times. It was unattached, liberated, and completely liberated; a voice reaching the Brahma realm, the realm of Brahma’s voice; a voice like birdsong, far removed from voices of desire, far removed from voices of anger, far removed from voices of delusion; a voice in which all Buddhas rejoiced and which all Buddhas praised.

All such kinds of voices issued forth. The Blessed One upheld the thirty-two marks of a Dharma-Wheel-Turning King, and the Tathagata was endowed with the eight foremost and supreme qualities. Immeasurable thousands of kinds of praises were employed. At that very moment, he spoke these verses:

Whoever brings forth the aspiration for bodhi,

That person will certainly arrive;

There is no need to give rise to doubt,

Thinking, “I shall not attain Tathagatahood.”

That person gains abundant merit

For which no analogy can be made.

The merit of that person

Arises from the aspiration for bodhi.

Though immeasurable and boundless numbers

Of sentient beings dwell throughout all realms,

This merit surpasses the merit above,

Just as I have stated before.

The merit of that person

Is supremely greater than theirs.

For one who brings forth the aspiration for bodhi,

There is no merit greater than this.

Apart from what this sutra has taught,

There is no sutra more excellent.

Whoever studies and understands this sutra

Is said to have gained meritorious benefit.

If anyone hears this sutra,

That child of the Buddha follows the teaching;

As a field of merit, disciplined and subdued—

I teach this purity and serenity.

If anyone hears this sutra,

That one is a lion among devas and nagas,

A courageous person free from fear,

Liberated, gentle, and harmonious.

Have faith in this sutra,

This great, unsurpassed, and honored scripture,

Honored by the Deva among Devas in heaven,

Unsurpassed among sentient beings.

How much more so for one who, having heard it,

Reveres it and proclaims it!

The eloquence of that person

Can never be fully described.

Whoever hears this Dharma gate

Attains eloquence such as that.

Whoever accepts and upholds this sutra

Practices patience and harbors no anger,

Observes the precepts without weakness,

And possesses the bright eye of wisdom.

If anyone has faith in this sutra,

That person attains boundless wisdom

And reveres the Dharma teacher

As lovingly as one honors one’s parents.

Whoever can uphold this sutra

Is a bodhisattva of great wisdom,

Not dependent upon the desire realm,

The form realm, or the formless realm.

Whoever can uphold this sutra

Delights in the stage of a Great Bodhisattva

And swiftly advances toward

The unsurpassed seat of bodhi.

Whoever can uphold this sutra

Bodhisattvas of great wisdom

Dispel even the slightest fear.

Among those seeking unsurpassed bodhi,

Whoever upholds this sutra

Is a bodhisattva of great wisdom

Who shall turn the Dharma wheel

That the world cannot turn.

Whoever upholds this sutra

Is a bodhisattva of great wisdom

Whom the Blessed One has given a prediction,

And shall behold the Buddhas of the three times.

Whoever upholds this sutra

Is a bodhisattva of great wisdom

Who has already entered nirvana,

No different from all the Buddhas.

Sariputra addressed the Buddha:

“Rare indeed, O Blessed One! The Tathagata has briefly expounded the teachings for the bodhisattvas. Although the great bodhisattvas have practiced the bodhisattva conduct for innumerable asamkhya kalpas, they have not yet awakened to the path of unsurpassed perfect enlightenment, nor have they attained the wisdom of unsurpassed perfect enlightenment.

O Blessed One! In this sutra, You have expounded the unsurpassed Dharma. Those sentient beings gain exceedingly great benefit, for in this very present life they hear the Buddha expound this supreme sutra, namely the Dharma gateway called the Supreme King of All Dharmas.

Excellent, O Blessed One! This Dharma gateway has now been expounded once again. Why is this?

According to my understanding of the meaning of the Buddha’s teaching, the Buddhas of the past who have entered nirvana expounded this true Dharma for sentient beings and made it supreme—namely, the Dharma gateway of the Supreme King of All Dharmas. The Buddhas who will appear in the future will likewise take this sutra as the supreme Dharma and expound it—namely, the Dharma gateway of the Supreme King of All Dharmas. I too have heard the unsurpassed Dharma gateway expounded in the presence of the Blessed One, and I shall certainly understand its words and meaning clearly, just as I have previously heard this unsurpassed Dharma.

Excellent, O Blessed One! You have continuously expounded this most excellent Dharma gateway for me.”

The Buddha said:

“Sariputra! According to the proper time, according to the faith and understanding in the minds of those sentient beings, and according to the thoughts in their minds, I receive and guide them. Sariputra! This is the wisdom of a Buddha; it is not the sphere of sravakas or pratyekabuddhas.”

When this Dharma gateway was expounded, eighty-four thousand people brought forth the aspiration for unsurpassed perfect enlightenment; sixty thousand sentient beings brought forth the aspiration for bodhi; and seventy kotis of devas of the Desire Realm who had not previously brought forth the aspiration for unsurpassed bodhi now all did so. Thirty kotis of sentient beings attained the patient acceptance of the non-arising of dharmas, and immeasurable earth-dwelling beings, devas, dragons, and others who had never before brought forth the aspiration for bodhi now all did so.

“Sariputra! For this reason, I shall now once again extensively expound this most excellent Dharma gateway.” At that very moment, immeasurable thousands of sentient beings—bhiksus, bhiksunis, upasakas, and upasikas—stood silently with palms joined, facing the Buddha and gazing upon the countenance of the Blessed One.

Then the Blessed One smiled. Whenever the Buddhas smile, light of many colors issues from their mouths, displaying immeasurable hundreds of thousands of hues. Blue, yellow, red, white, and crystal-clear, it illuminated the entire trichiliocosm, shining universally and everywhere, outshining the sun and moon and reaching even to the Brahma heavens. It then returned, circled the Buddha three times, and entered the crown of the Buddha’s head.

When Sariputra saw this manifestation of the Buddha’s spiritual power, he immediately rose, bared one shoulder, knelt with his right knee upon the ground, joined his palms, and addressed the Buddha:

“O greatly virtuous Blessed One! For what cause and condition did You smile? The Buddhas do not smile without cause and condition.”

“Sariputra! Do you see these bhiksus, bhiksunis, upasakas, and upasikas facing Me with joined palms, their eyes never turning away?”

“O Blessed One! Yes, I do. O Sugata! It is indeed so.”

“Sariputra! These four assemblies have all brought forth the aspiration for the Mahayana and wish to hear the bodhisattva conduct. Sariputra! To practice wisdom is to seek within the mind of the Tathagata and apart from the Tathagata: the past cannot be apprehended, the future cannot be apprehended, and the present cannot be apprehended. This is called the bodhisattva conduct. Sariputra! Not gathering together, not becoming attached to objects, and not grasping at the ayatanas—this is called the bodhisattva conduct. One should practice in accordance with it.”

When this bodhisattva conduct was expounded, the trichiliocosm shook in six ways.

At that time, Mara Papiyan became terrified and fell sprawling upon the ground, and the other celestial maras also fell to the ground. On account of this cause and condition, these verses were spoken:

Mara and the armies of Mara are vanquished;

They flee but find no place of escape.

Now the Supremely Honored One

Expounds the Dharma in which worldly beings place their faith.

How could Mara, embodiment of the afflictions,

Not lose all his powers?

Now he no longer possesses any strength,

Upon hearing this Dharma of emptiness.

Mara is terrified, frantic, and bewildered

Upon hearing the Dharma of non-action.

He departs, finding nowhere to go;

Wherever he may be, he meets his death.

Then the celestial son Mara rose from where he had fallen and said:

“Excellent, O Blessed One! Excellent, Great Naga! Excellent, One of Great Loving-Kindness! You possess a compassionate heart and bring benefit to all sentient beings. Today the Blessed One has caused me to live again. O greatly compassionate Blessed One, please do not cause us to die.”

The Blessed One spoke in verse:

O Mara clad in dyed robes, the Tathagata has spoken thus:

Very few people believe Me; therefore, remain forever an ordinary being.

Then Mara Papiyan, receiving the Tathagata’s compassion, rejoiced with delight, regained his composure, and vanished together with his retinue.

THE SUTRA OF THE SUPREME KING OF DHARMA, SPOKEN BY THE BUDDHA — End.