大般若波羅蜜多經

32

Furthermore, Kausika, apart from the various kinds of sentient beings in the four great continents, suppose good men and good women and others were to teach and transform all the various kinds of sentient beings in a small chiliocosm, causing them all to cultivate and train in the four dhyanas, the four immeasurables, the four formless concentrations, and the five superknowledges. What do you think? Would those good men and good women and others, through this cause and condition, acquire much merit?

Sakra, Lord of the Gods, replied: “World-Honored One, it would be very great! Well-Gone One, it would be very great!”

The Buddha said: “Kausika, if good men and good women and others copy out such profound prajnaparamita and present it to others for reading and recitation, or pass it from one to another to be copied and widely disseminated, the merit acquired by those good men and good women and others would far exceed the former. Why is this? Kausika, it is because all uncontaminated dharmas are extensively taught within this secret treasury of prajnaparamita.

Persons of the sravaka lineage who cultivate and train in this Dharma swiftly enter the right determination of a sravaka and attain the fruit of stream-entry, the fruit of once-returning, the fruit of non-returning, and the fruit of arhatship. Persons of the pratyekabuddha lineage who cultivate and train in this Dharma swiftly enter the right determination of a pratyekabuddha and progressively realize the fruition of a pratyekabuddha.

Persons of the bodhisattva lineage who cultivate and train in this Dharma swiftly enter the right determination of a bodhisattva, progressively cultivate the bodhisattva practices, and realize unsurpassed perfect awakening.

“Kausika, all uncontaminated dharmas are extensively taught within this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, namely: the paramita of generosity, the paramita of pure morality, the paramita of patient acceptance, the paramita of diligence, the paramita of dhyana, and the paramita of prajna;

the emptiness of the internal, the emptiness of the external, the emptiness of the internal and external, the emptiness of emptiness, great emptiness, the emptiness of ultimate meaning, the emptiness of the conditioned, the emptiness of the unconditioned, ultimate emptiness, boundless emptiness, the emptiness of dispersion, the emptiness of nonchange, the emptiness of essential nature, the emptiness of intrinsic characteristics, the emptiness of common characteristics, the emptiness of all dharmas, the emptiness of the ungraspable, the emptiness of nonbeing, the emptiness of self-nature, and the emptiness of the self-nature of nonbeing;

suchness, the dharma-dhatu, dharma-nature, the nature free from falsity, the nature free from change, the nature of equality, the nature of freedom from arising, the certainty of dharmas, the abiding of dharmas, the limit of reality, the realm of space, and the inconceivable realm; the four uncontaminated dhyanas, the four immeasurables, and the four formless concentrations; the eight liberations, the eight spheres of mastery, the nine successive concentrations, and the ten totalities; the four establishments 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;

the liberation gateway of emptiness, the liberation gateway of signlessness, and the liberation gateway of wishlessness; the five kinds of eyes and the six superknowledges; the Buddha’s ten powers, the four fearlessnesses, the four unobstructed understandings, great loving-kindness, great compassion, great sympathetic joy, great equanimity, and the eighteen distinctive qualities of a Buddha; knowledge of all things, knowledge of the aspects of the paths, and knowledge of all aspects; all dharani gateways, all samadhi gateways, and immeasurable and boundless other Buddha-dharmas—all are uncontaminated dharmas taught therein.

“Kausika, if good men and good women and others teach and transform a single sentient being so that the being abides in the fruit of stream-entry, the merit they acquire surpasses even that gained by teaching and transforming the various kinds of sentient beings in a small chiliocosm, causing them all to cultivate and train in the four dhyanas, the four immeasurables, the four formless concentrations, and the five superknowledges.

Why is this? Kausika, it is because sentient beings who cultivate the four dhyanas, the four immeasurables, the four formless concentrations, and the five superknowledges are not thereby freed from the hells, the animal realm, and the realm of hungry ghosts. Yet sentient beings who abide in the fruit of stream-entry are forever freed from the three evil destinies.

How much more so if one teaches and transforms them so that they abide in the fruits of once-returning, non-returning, or arhatship! Would not the merit thereby acquired be greater still?

“Kausika, if good men and good women and others teach and transform all the various kinds of sentient beings in a small chiliocosm so that they all abide in the fruits of stream-entry, once-returning, non-returning, and arhatship, the merit they acquire does not equal that of one who teaches and transforms a single sentient being, causing that being to abide in the fruition of a pratyekabuddha. Why is this? Kausika, it is because the merit of the fruition of a pratyekabuddha exceeds that of stream-entry and the other fruits by hundreds and thousands of times.

“Kausika, if good men and good women and others teach and transform all the various kinds of sentient beings in a small chiliocosm, causing them all to abide in the fruition of a pratyekabuddha, the merit they acquire does not equal that of one who teaches and transforms a single sentient being, causing that being to aspire toward unsurpassed perfect awakening. Why is this? Kausika, it is because teaching and transforming a sentient being so that the being aspires toward unsurpassed perfect awakening ensures that the Buddha-eye will not be cut off in the world.

Why is this? Because there are great bodhisattvas, there come to be the fruits of stream-entry, once-returning, non-returning, arhatship, and the fruition of a pratyekabuddha. Because there are great bodhisattvas, there come to be Tathagatas, Arhats, Perfectly Awakened Ones who realize unsurpassed perfect awakening.

Because there are great bodhisattvas, there come to be the Buddha-jewel, the Dharma-jewel, and the Sangha-jewel, to whom all the world goes for refuge and makes offerings. Therefore, Kausika, all beings in the world—whether gods, maras, brahmas, sramanas, brahmins, asuras, humans, nonhumans, and others—should respectfully make offerings to, honor, and praise great bodhisattvas with immeasurable exquisite flower garlands, scented pastes, powdered incense, and other offerings; garments, necklaces, banners, canopies adorned with jewels, all kinds of precious gems, music, lamps, and everything they possess.”

Kausika! Therefore, you should know that if good men, good women, and others copy out such profound prajnaparamita and present it to others to read and recite, or pass it among themselves to be copied and disseminated widely, the merit they acquire surpasses the merit previously described by an immeasurable and boundless amount. Why?

Because all the excellent wholesome dharmas, mundane and supramundane, have been extensively taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita. Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there comes to be in the world the great kshatriya lineage, the great brahmin lineage, the great householder lineage, and the great lay devotee lineage. Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world the gods of the Four Great Kings, the gods of the Thirty-Three, the Yama gods, the Tushita gods, the gods Who Delight in Creation, and the gods Who Exercise Mastery over the Creations of Others.

Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world the gods of the Brahma Host, the Ministers of Brahma, the Assembly of Brahma, and Great Brahma. Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world the gods of Light, the gods of Limited Light, the gods of Measureless Light, and the gods of Utmost Purity of Light. Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world the gods of Purity, the gods of Limited Purity, the gods of Measureless Purity, and the gods of Pervasive Purity.

Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world the gods of Vastness, the gods of Limited Vastness, the gods of Measureless Vastness, and the gods of Abundant Fruit. Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world the gods Free from Affliction, the gods Free from Heat, the Fair-Appearing gods, the Fair-Seeing gods, and the gods of the Ultimate Form Realm.

Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world the gods of the Sphere of Infinite Space, the gods of the Sphere of Infinite Consciousness, the gods of the Sphere of Nothingness, and the gods of the Sphere of Neither Perception nor Non-Perception. Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world the paramita of generosity, the paramita of pure morality, the paramita of patient acceptance, the paramita of diligence, the paramita of meditative concentration, and the prajnaparamita.

Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world the emptiness of the internal, the emptiness of the external, the emptiness of the internal and external, the emptiness of emptiness, great emptiness, the emptiness of ultimate meaning, the emptiness of the conditioned, the emptiness of the unconditioned, ultimate emptiness, boundless emptiness, the emptiness of dispersion, the emptiness of non-change, the emptiness of essential nature, the emptiness of individual characteristics, the emptiness of common characteristics, the emptiness of all dharmas, the emptiness of the unapprehensible, the emptiness of nonexistence, the emptiness of intrinsic nature, and the emptiness of the intrinsic nature of nonexistence.

Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world suchness, the dharma-dhatu, dharma-nature, the nature that is not false, the nature that does not change, the nature of equality, the nature of freedom from arising, the certainty of dharmas, the abiding of dharmas, the limit of reality, the realm of space, and the inconceivable realm. Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world the Noble Truth of suffering, the Noble Truth of the origin of suffering, the Noble Truth of the cessation of suffering, and the Noble Truth of the path.

Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world the four meditative concentrations, the four immeasurables, and the four formless attainments. Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world the eight liberations, the eight spheres of mastery, the nine successive attainments, and the ten spheres of totality. Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world the four establishments of mindfulness, the four right efforts, the four bases of spiritual power, the five faculties, the five powers, the seven factors of enlightenment, and the Noble Eightfold Path.

Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world the liberation gateway of emptiness, the liberation gateway of signlessness, and the liberation gateway of wishlessness. Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world the five kinds of eyes and the six superknowledges. Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world the ten powers of a Buddha, the four fearlessnesses, the four unobstructed understandings, great loving-kindness, great compassion, great sympathetic joy, great equanimity, and the eighteen distinctive qualities of a Buddha.

Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world the dharma of never losing mindfulness and the nature of constant equanimity. Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world the knowledge of all things, the knowledge of the aspects of the paths, and the knowledge of all aspects. Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world all dharani gateways and all samadhi gateways.

Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world stream-enterers, once-returners, non-returners, and arhats, as well as those progressing toward stream-entry, those who have attained the fruit of stream-entry, those progressing toward once-returning, those who have attained the fruit of once-returning, those progressing toward non-returning, those who have attained the fruit of non-returning, those progressing toward arhatship, and those who have attained the fruit of arhatship.

Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world pratyekabuddhas and the realization of pratyekabuddhahood. Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world all great bodhisattvas and the practices of great bodhisattvas. Because of the Dharma taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there come to be in the world all Tathagatas, Arhats, Perfectly and Completely Awakened Ones, and the unsurpassed awakening of the Buddhas.

Furthermore, Kausika! Setting aside the various kinds of sentient beings in a small chiliocosm, if good men, good women, and others were to teach and guide the various kinds of sentient beings in a medium chiliocosm, causing them all to cultivate and train in the four meditative concentrations, the four immeasurables, the four formless attainments, and the five superknowledges, what do you think? Would those good men, good women, and others acquire much merit through this cause and condition?

Shakra, Lord of the Gods, replied: “World-Honored One! It would be very great! Sugata! It would be very great!”

The Buddha said: “Kausika, if good men and good women and others copy out such profound prajnaparamita and give it to others to read and recite, or pass it among themselves to be copied and widely disseminated, the merit gained by those good men and good women and others will far surpass the former merit. Why is this? Kausika, it is because all uncontaminated dharmas are extensively taught within this secret treasury of prajnaparamita.

Pudgalas of the sravaka lineage who study and practice this Dharma quickly enter the rightly determined state of a sravaka, attain the fruit of stream-entry, attain the fruit of once-returning, attain the fruit of non-returning, and attain the fruit of arhatship. Pudgalas of the pratyekabuddha lineage who study and practice this Dharma quickly enter the rightly determined state of a pratyekabuddha and successively realize the fruit of pratyekabuddhahood.

Pudgalas of the bodhisattva lineage who study and practice this Dharma quickly enter the rightly determined state of a bodhisattva, successively cultivate the bodhisattva practices, and realize unsurpassed perfect awakening.

“Kausika, all the uncontaminated dharmas extensively taught within this secret treasury of prajnaparamita are: the paramita of generosity, the paramita of pure ethical discipline, the paramita of patient acceptance, the paramita of diligence, the paramita of meditative concentration, and the prajnaparamita;

emptiness of the internal, emptiness of the external, emptiness of the internal and external, emptiness of emptiness, great emptiness, emptiness of ultimate meaning, emptiness of the conditioned, emptiness of the unconditioned, ultimate emptiness, emptiness without boundaries, emptiness of dispersion, emptiness of the unchanging, emptiness of intrinsic nature, emptiness of individual characteristics, emptiness of common characteristics, emptiness of all dharmas, emptiness of the ungraspable, emptiness of nonexistence, emptiness of self-nature, and emptiness of the self-nature of nonexistence;

suchness, the dhatu of Dharma, the nature of dharmas, the nature free from falsity, the unchanging nature, the nature of equality, the nature free from arising, the fixed order of Dharma, the abiding order of Dharma, the true limit, the realm of space, and the inconceivable realm; the four uncontaminated meditative absorptions, the four immeasurables, and the four formless concentrations; the eight liberations, the eight spheres of mastery, the nine successive concentrations, and the ten totalities; the four establishments of mindfulness, the four right efforts, the four bases of supernormal power, the five faculties, the five powers, the seven factors of awakening, and the eightfold noble path;

the Dharma gateway of the liberation of emptiness, the Dharma gateway of the liberation of signlessness, and the Dharma gateway of the liberation of wishlessness; the five kinds of eyes and the six superknowledges; the Buddha’s ten powers, the four fearlessnesses, the four unobstructed understandings, great loving-kindness, great compassion, great sympathetic joy, great equanimity, and the eighteen unique qualities of a Buddha; knowledge of all things, knowledge of the aspects of the paths, and knowledge of all aspects; all dharani gateways, all samadhi gateways, and immeasurable, boundless other Buddha-dharmas.

All these are the uncontaminated dharmas taught therein.

“Kausika, if good men and good women and others guide one sentient being to abide in the fruit of stream-entry, the merit they gain surpasses even that gained by guiding all kinds of sentient beings throughout a medium world-system to study and practice the four meditative absorptions, the four immeasurables, the four formless concentrations, and the five superknowledges. Why is this? Kausika, it is because sentient beings who practice the four meditative absorptions, the four immeasurables, the four formless concentrations, and the five superknowledges are not thereby freed from the hells, the animal realm, and the realm of hungry ghosts.

But if sentient beings abide in the fruit of stream-entry, they are forever freed from the three evil destinies. How much more, then, if one guides them to abide in the fruit of once-returning, non-returning, or arhatship! Would not the merit gained be even greater than that?

“Kausika, if good men and good women and others guide all kinds of sentient beings throughout a medium world-system to abide in the fruits of stream-entry, once-returning, non-returning, and arhatship, the merit they gain does not equal that gained by one who guides a single sentient being to abide in the fruit of pratyekabuddhahood. Why is this? Kausika, it is because the merit of the fruit of pratyekabuddhahood surpasses that of stream-entry and the other fruits by hundreds and thousands of times.

“Kausika, if good men and good women and others guide all kinds of sentient beings throughout a medium world-system to abide in the fruit of pratyekabuddhahood, the merit they gain does not equal that gained by one who guides a single sentient being toward unsurpassed perfect awakening. Why is this? Kausika, it is because guiding a sentient being toward unsurpassed perfect awakening ensures that the Buddha-eye will not be cut off in the world.

Why is this? Because great bodhisattvas exist, there come to be the fruits of stream-entry, once-returning, non-returning, arhatship, and pratyekabuddhahood. Because great bodhisattvas exist, there come to be Tathagatas, Arhats, Perfectly Awakened Ones who realize unsurpassed perfect awakening.

Because great bodhisattvas exist, there come to be the Jewel of the Buddha, the Jewel of the Dharma, and the Jewel of the Sangha, in which all the world takes refuge and to which it makes offerings. Therefore, Kausika, all beings in the world—whether devas, maras, brahmas, sramanas, brahmins, asuras, humans, nonhumans, and others—should respectfully make offerings to, honor, and praise great bodhisattvas with immeasurable quantities of exquisite flower garlands, fragrant ointments, powdered incense, and the like; garments, necklaces, banners, canopies adorned with precious jewels, all kinds of gems, music, bright lamps, and everything they possess.”

“Kausika, therefore you should know that if good men or good women and others copy out such profound prajnaparamita and present it to others for reading and recitation, or pass it among themselves to be copied and widely disseminated, the merit they acquire surpasses the merit previously described by an immeasurable and boundless amount. Why? Because all the supremely wholesome dharmas, both worldly and supramundane, have been extensively taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita.

Because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exists in the world the great kshatriya lineage, the great brahmin lineage, the great householder lineage, and the great lay householders’ lineage; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the hosts of gods of the Four Great Kings, the Thirty-Three Gods, the Yama gods, the Tushita gods, the Delight in Creation gods, and the Masters of Others’ Creations gods; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the Brahma Host gods, the Brahma Ministers gods, the Brahma Assembly gods, and the Great Brahma gods;

because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the Light gods, the Limited Light gods, the Immeasurable Light gods, and the Utmost Light and Purity gods; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the Purity gods, the Limited Purity gods, the Immeasurable Purity gods, and the Pervasive Purity gods; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the Expansive gods, the Limited Expansive gods, the Immeasurably Expansive gods, and the Abundant Fruit gods;

because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the Untroubled gods, the Unafflicted gods, the Clearly Manifest gods, the Clear-Sighted gods, and the Ultimate Form gods; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the gods of the Sphere of Infinite Space, the gods of the Sphere of Infinite Consciousness, the gods of the Sphere of Nothingness, and the gods of the Sphere of Neither Perception nor Non-Perception;

because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the paramita of generosity, the paramita of pure ethical discipline, the paramita of patient acceptance, the paramita of diligence, the paramita of meditative concentration, and prajnaparamita;

because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the emptiness of the internal, the emptiness of the external, the emptiness of the internal and external, the emptiness of emptiness, great emptiness, the emptiness of ultimate meaning, the emptiness of the conditioned, the emptiness of the unconditioned, ultimate emptiness, the emptiness of that which has no boundaries, the emptiness of dispersion, the emptiness of the unchanging, the emptiness of intrinsic nature, the emptiness of individual characteristics, the emptiness of common characteristics, the emptiness of all dharmas, the emptiness of the ungraspable, the emptiness of nonexistence, the emptiness of self-nature, and the emptiness of the self-nature of nonexistence;

because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world suchness, the dharma realm, dharma-nature, the nature free from falsity, the unchanging nature, the nature of equality, the nature of freedom from arising, the certainty of dharmas, the abiding of dharmas, the limit of reality, the realm of space, and the inconceivable realm; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the Noble Truth of suffering, the Noble Truth of the origin of suffering, the Noble Truth of the cessation of suffering, and the Noble Truth of the path;

because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the four meditative absorptions, the four immeasurables, and the four formless concentrations; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the eight liberations, the eight spheres of mastery, the nine successive concentrations, and the ten totalities; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the four foundations of mindfulness, the four right efforts, the four bases of miraculous power, the five faculties, the five powers, the seven factors of awakening, and the eightfold noble path;

because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the liberation gateway of emptiness, the liberation gateway of signlessness, and the liberation gateway of wishlessness; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the five kinds of eyes and the six superknowledges; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the ten powers of a Buddha, the four fearlessnesses, the four unobstructed understandings, great loving-kindness, great compassion, great sympathetic joy, great equanimity, and the eighteen unique qualities of a Buddha;

because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the dharma of never losing mindfulness and the nature of perpetual equanimity; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the knowledge of all things, the knowledge of the aspects of the paths, and the knowledge of all aspects; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world all dharani gateways and all samadhi gateways;

because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world stream-enterers, once-returners, non-returners, and arhats, as well as those proceeding toward stream-entry, the fruit of stream-entry, those proceeding toward once-returning, the fruit of once-returning, those proceeding toward non-returning, the fruit of non-returning, those proceeding toward arhatship, and the fruit of arhatship; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world pratyekabuddhas and the fruit of pratyekabuddhahood; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world all great bodhisattvas and the practices of great bodhisattvas;

because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world all Tathagatas, Arhats, Perfectly Awakened Ones, and the supreme awakening of the Buddhas.

“Furthermore, Kausika, setting aside the various kinds of sentient beings in a middle chiliocosm, suppose good men or good women and others were to teach and transform the various kinds of sentient beings throughout an entire great trichiliocosm, causing them all to cultivate and train in the four meditative absorptions, the four immeasurables, the four formless concentrations, and the five superknowledges. What do you think? Would those good men or good women and others acquire much merit through these causes and conditions?”

Shakra, Lord of the Gods, replied, “World-Honored One, very much indeed! Sugata, very much indeed!”

The Buddha said: “Kausika, if good men and good women and others copy out such profound prajnaparamita and present it to others for reading and recitation, or pass it among themselves to be copied and disseminated widely, the merit acquired by those good men and good women and others will be far greater than before. Why is this? Kausika, it is because all uncontaminated dharmas are extensively taught within this secret treasury of prajnaparamita.

Persons of the shravaka lineage who study and practice this Dharma swiftly enter the shravakas’ right determination of freedom from arising, attain the fruit of stream-entry, attain the fruit of once-returning, attain the fruit of non-returning, and attain the fruit of arhatship. Persons of the pratyekabuddha lineage who study and practice this Dharma swiftly enter the pratyekabuddhas’ right determination of freedom from arising and, in due sequence, realize the fruition of pratyekabuddhahood.

Persons of the bodhisattva lineage who study and practice this Dharma swiftly enter the bodhisattvas’ right determination of freedom from arising, successively cultivate the bodhisattva practices, and realize unsurpassed perfect enlightenment.

“Kausika, all uncontaminated dharmas are extensively taught within this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, namely: the perfection of generosity, the perfection of pure discipline, the perfection of patience, the perfection of diligence, the perfection of meditative concentration, and the perfection of prajna;

emptiness of the internal, emptiness of the external, emptiness of the internal and external, emptiness of emptiness, great emptiness, emptiness of ultimate meaning, emptiness of the conditioned, emptiness of the unconditioned, ultimate emptiness, emptiness without boundaries, emptiness of dispersion, emptiness of the unchanging, emptiness of intrinsic nature, emptiness of individual characteristics, emptiness of common characteristics, emptiness of all dharmas, emptiness of the unapprehensible, emptiness of nonexistence, emptiness of self-nature, and emptiness of the self-nature of nonexistence;

suchness, the dharma realm, dharma-nature, the nature free from falsity, the nature free from alteration, the nature of equality, the nature of freedom from arising, the certainty of dharmas, the abiding of dharmas, the limit of reality, the realm of space, and the inconceivable realm; the four uncontaminated meditative absorptions, the four immeasurables, and the four formless attainments; the eight liberations, the eight spheres of mastery, the nine successive attainments, and the ten totalities; 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 enlightenment, and the Noble Eightfold Path;

the gateway of liberation through emptiness, the gateway of liberation through signlessness, and the gateway of liberation through wishlessness; the five kinds of eyes and the six superknowledges; the Buddha’s ten powers, four fearlessnesses, four unobstructed understandings, great loving-kindness, great compassion, great sympathetic joy, great equanimity, and the eighteen distinctive qualities of a Buddha; the knowledge of all things, the knowledge of the aspects of the paths, and the knowledge of all aspects; all dharani gateways, all samadhi gateways, and immeasurable, boundless other Buddha-dharmas—all these are uncontaminated dharmas taught therein.

“Kausika, if good men and good women and others guide one sentient being to abide in the fruit of stream-entry, the merit they acquire surpasses even that of guiding all the various sentient beings throughout the trichiliocosm to study and practice the four meditative absorptions, the four immeasurables, the four formless attainments, and the five superknowledges. Why is this? Kausika, it is because sentient beings who practice the four meditative absorptions, the four immeasurables, the four formless attainments, and the five superknowledges are not thereby freed from the hells, the animal realm, and the realm of hungry ghosts; but sentient beings who abide in the fruit of stream-entry are forever freed from the three evil destinies.

How much more, then, would the merit acquired by guiding them to abide in the fruits of once-returning, non-returning, and arhatship surpass the former merit!

“Kausika, if good men and good women and others guide all the various sentient beings throughout the trichiliocosm to abide in the fruits of stream-entry, once-returning, non-returning, and arhatship, the merit they acquire does not equal that of one who guides a single sentient being to abide securely in the fruition of pratyekabuddhahood. Why is this? Kausika, it is because the merit of the fruition of pratyekabuddhahood surpasses that of stream-entry and the other fruits by hundreds and thousands of times.

“Kausika, if good men and good women and others guide all the various sentient beings throughout the trichiliocosm to abide securely in the fruition of pratyekabuddhahood, the merit they acquire does not equal that of one who guides a single sentient being to proceed toward unsurpassed perfect enlightenment. Why is this? Kausika, it is because guiding a sentient being to proceed toward unsurpassed perfect enlightenment ensures that the Buddha-eye will never cease to exist in the world.

Why is this? Because there are great bodhisattvas, there come to be the fruits of stream-entry, once-returning, non-returning, and arhatship, as well as the fruition of pratyekabuddhahood. Because there are great bodhisattvas, there come to be Tathagatas, Arhats, Perfectly and Completely Enlightened Ones who realize unsurpassed perfect enlightenment.

Because there are great bodhisattvas, there come to be the Jewel of the Buddha, the Jewel of the Dharma, and the Jewel of the Sangha, in whom the entire world takes refuge and to whom it makes offerings. Therefore, Kausika, the entire world—with its devas, maras, brahmas, shramanas, brahmins, asuras, humans, nonhumans, and others—should respectfully make offerings to, honor, and praise great bodhisattvas with immeasurable quantities of exquisite garlands, scented ointments, aromatic powders, and the like; garments, necklaces, banners, pennants, precious canopies, various precious jewels, music, bright lamps, and all that they possess.”

O Kausika! Therefore, you should know that if good men, good women, and others copy out such profound prajnaparamita and present it to others for reading and recitation, or pass it among themselves to be copied and widely disseminated, the merit they gain will be immeasurably and boundlessly greater than the merit previously described. Why?

Because all the supreme wholesome dharmas, both worldly and supramundane, have been extensively taught within this secret treasury of prajnaparamita. Because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exists in the world the great Kshatriya class, the great Brahmin class, the great householder class, and the great lay-follower class; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the gods of the Four Great Kings, the gods of the Thirty-Three, the Yama gods, the Tusita gods, the gods Who Delight in Transformation, and the gods Who Exercise Mastery over Others’ Creations;

because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the gods of the Brahma Host, the Ministers of Brahma, the Assembly of Brahma, and Great Brahma; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the gods of Light, Limited Light, Limitless Light, and Utterly Pure Light; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the gods of Purity, Limited Purity, Limitless Purity, and Pervasive Purity; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the gods of Vastness, Limited Vastness, Limitless Vastness, and Abundant Fruit;

because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the gods Free from Affliction, Free from Heat, of Excellent Manifestation, of Excellent Vision, and of the Ultimate Form Realm; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the gods of the Sphere of Infinite Space, the Sphere of Infinite Consciousness, the Sphere of Nothingness, and the Sphere of Neither Perception nor Non-Perception; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the perfection of generosity, the perfection of pure morality, the perfection of patient acceptance, the perfection of vigor, the perfection of meditative concentration, and the perfection of wisdom;

because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the emptiness of the internal, the emptiness of the external, the emptiness of the internal and external, the emptiness of emptiness, great emptiness, the emptiness of ultimate meaning, the emptiness of the conditioned, the emptiness of the unconditioned, ultimate emptiness, the emptiness of that which is without bounds, the emptiness of dispersion, the emptiness of the unchanging, the emptiness of intrinsic nature, the emptiness of individual characteristics, the emptiness of common characteristics, the emptiness of all dharmas, the emptiness of the unobtainable, the emptiness of nonexistence, the emptiness of self-nature, and the emptiness of the self-nature of nonexistence;

because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world suchness, the dharma realm, dharma-nature, the nature free from falsity, the unchanging nature, the nature of equality, the nature of freedom from arising, the certainty of dharmas, the abiding of dharmas, the limit of reality, the realm of space, and the inconceivable realm; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the Noble Truth of suffering, the Noble Truth of the origin of suffering, the Noble Truth of the cessation of suffering, and the Noble Truth of the path;

because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the four meditative absorptions, the four immeasurables, and the four formless attainments; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the eight liberations, the eight spheres of mastery, the nine successive meditative attainments, and the ten spheres of totality; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world 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 eight factors of the Noble Path;

because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the liberation gateway of emptiness, the liberation gateway of signlessness, and the liberation gateway of wishlessness; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the five kinds of eyes and the six superknowledges; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the ten powers of a Buddha, the four fearlessnesses, the four unobstructed understandings, great loving-kindness, great compassion, great sympathetic joy, great equanimity, and the eighteen distinctive qualities of a Buddha;

because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the quality of never losing mindfulness and the nature of constant equanimity; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world the knowledge of all things, the knowledge of the aspects of the paths, and the knowledge of all aspects; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world all dharani gateways and all samadhi gateways;

because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world stream-enterers, once-returners, non-returners, and arhats, as well as those practicing toward stream-entry and the fruit of stream-entry, those practicing toward once-returning and the fruit of once-returning, those practicing toward non-returning and the fruit of non-returning, and those practicing toward arhatship and the fruit of arhatship; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world pratyekabuddhas and the fruition of pratyekabuddhahood; because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world all great bodhisattvas and the practices of great bodhisattvas;

because of the dharmas taught in this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, there exist in the world all Tathagatas, Worthy Ones, Perfectly and Completely Awakened Ones, and the unsurpassed awakening of the Buddhas.

Furthermore, Kausika! Apart from the various sentient beings in this three-thousandfold world system, suppose good men, good women, and others were to teach and transform all the various sentient beings throughout worlds in the ten directions as numerous as the sands of the Ganges, causing them all to cultivate and train in the four meditative absorptions, the four immeasurables, the four formless attainments, and the five superknowledges. What do you think? Would those good men, good women, and others gain much merit through these causes and conditions?

Sakra, Lord of the Gods, replied, “World-Honored One, very much indeed! Sugata, very much indeed!”

The Buddha said: “Kausika, if good men and good women and others copy out such profound prajnaparamita and give it to others to read and recite, or pass it on so that others may copy it and disseminate it widely, the merit gained by those good men and good women and others will far surpass that mentioned before. Why is this? Kausika, it is because all uncontaminated dharmas are extensively taught within this secret treasury of prajnaparamita.

Persons of the shravaka lineage who study and practice this Dharma quickly enter the rightly determined state of a shravaka and attain the fruit of stream-entry, the fruit of once-returning, the fruit of non-returning, and the fruit of arhatship. Persons of the pratyekabuddha lineage who study and practice this Dharma quickly enter the rightly determined state of a pratyekabuddha and, in due sequence, attain the fruit of pratyekabuddhahood.

Persons of the bodhisattva lineage who study and practice this Dharma quickly enter the rightly determined state of a bodhisattva, successively cultivate the bodhisattva practices, and attain the fruit of unsurpassed awakening.

“Kausika, all uncontaminated dharmas are extensively taught within this secret treasury of prajnaparamita, namely: the perfection of generosity, the perfection of pure morality, the perfection of patient acceptance, the perfection of diligence, the perfection of meditative concentration, and the perfection of prajna;

emptiness of the internal, emptiness of the external, emptiness of the internal and external, emptiness of emptiness, great emptiness, emptiness of ultimate meaning, emptiness of the conditioned, emptiness of the unconditioned, ultimate emptiness, emptiness without bounds, emptiness of dispersion, emptiness of the unchanging, emptiness of intrinsic nature, emptiness of individual characteristics, emptiness of common characteristics, emptiness of all dharmas, emptiness of the ungraspable, emptiness of nonexistence, emptiness of self-nature, and emptiness of the self-nature of nonexistence;

suchness, the dharma realm, dharma-nature, the nature free from falsity, the unchanging nature, the nature of equality, the nature of separation from arising, the fixed order of dharmas, the abiding order of dharmas, the limit of reality, the realm of space, and the inconceivable realm; the four uncontaminated meditative absorptions, the four immeasurables, and the four formless concentrations; the eight liberations, the eight spheres of mastery, the nine successive attainments, and the ten totalities; 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 eight factors of the noble path;

the gateway to liberation through emptiness, the gateway to liberation through signlessness, and the gateway to liberation through wishlessness; the five kinds of eyes and the six superknowledges; the Buddha’s ten powers, four fearlessnesses, four unobstructed understandings, great loving-kindness, great compassion, great sympathetic joy, great equanimity, and the eighteen unique qualities of a Buddha; knowledge of all things, knowledge of the aspects of the paths, and knowledge of all aspects; all dharani gateways, all samadhi gateways, and immeasurable and boundless other Buddha-dharmas—all these are uncontaminated dharmas taught therein.

“Kausika, if good men and good women and others guide one sentient being to abide in the fruit of stream-entry, the merit they gain surpasses even that gained by guiding as many kinds of sentient beings as there are grains of sand in the Ganges throughout the worlds of the ten directions, causing them all to study and practice the four meditative absorptions, the four immeasurables, the four formless concentrations, and the five superknowledges.

Why is this? Kausika, it is because sentient beings who practice the four meditative absorptions, the four immeasurables, the four formless concentrations, and the five superknowledges are not thereby freed from the realms of hell beings, animals, and hungry ghosts; but sentient beings who abide in the fruit of stream-entry are forever freed from the three evil destinies. How much more, then, if one guides them to abide in the fruits of once-returning, non-returning, or arhatship—would not the merit thereby gained be even greater?

“Kausika, if good men and good women and others guide as many kinds of sentient beings as there are grains of sand in the Ganges throughout the worlds of the ten directions, causing them all to abide in the fruits of stream-entry, once-returning, non-returning, and arhatship, the merit they gain does not equal that of one who guides a single sentient being and causes that being to abide in the fruit of pratyekabuddhahood. Why is this? Kausika, it is because the merit of the fruit of pratyekabuddhahood surpasses that of stream-entry and the other fruits by hundreds and thousands of times.”

Fascicle 134

End