賢聖集伽陀一百頌

Bowing my head to all who transcend the world,

In the Three Realms most honored, an ocean of merit,

The fire of wisdom able to burn the filth of afflictions,

To the Perfectly Enlightened One I now go for refuge with my life,

Bowing my head to the One who can escape the perils of birth and death,

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

Shattering the mountain of sin and karma, as many as motes of dust,

I now take refuge with my life in the wondrous Dharma,

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

The Noble Eightfold Path practiced and adorned,

The unconditioned meditative absorption, nearly full and bright,

I now take refuge with my life in the Jewel of the Noble Assembly,

The inner palaces, the treasuries, the many towers and pavilions,

Maṇi gems shining with rare radiance,

True pearls and amber, lovely golden hues,

A hundred thousand devas and humans constantly come to behold,

If one is able to dwell at peace in the realm of the Heavens,

Beautifying the temples of the Buddha is a good fruit of reward,

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

Giving money and cloth to the Vihāra,

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

And ever attains the fruit of Nirvāṇa, still and serene,

When the Vihāra over many years has fallen into ruin,

To repair and restore it, offering to the Buddha and Saṅgha,

One ever attains joy in the realms of humans and devas,

And again attains the fruit of Nirvāṇa, still and serene,

If one offers a Vihāra with gardens and groves,

With places of rest, with clothing, and with medicine,

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

Gives food and drink to sentient beings,

In this way one attains very abundant merit,

And attains, as one of wisdom, the Seven Riches of the Noble Ones,

Eradicating all the suffering of the evil destinies,

Forever enjoying wealth without end,

Wherever the Buddhas, the Tathāgatas, go and dwell,

If there are those who arrive there and give rise to reverence,

Serving, making offerings, and listening to the Dharma,

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

They ever attain a fruit vast, great, and boundless,

Just as the great ocean, deep and immense,

Which one truly cannot measure with any vessel,

So too are the causes and conditions of merit and virtue,

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

So that cold, heat, wind, and rain can never do harm,

At first they realize the Dharma of stillness and serenity,

Complete in all things, their vows fulfilled as they wish,

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

They are liberated from sorrow, affliction, and disease,

And again attain rebirth in the Heavens, with bodies fair and beautiful,

Great in wisdom, auspicious, and honored and revered,

If there are those who repair the various images of the Buddha,

They will attain forever a body without sickness,

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

And afterward attain Nirvāṇa, the joy of stillness and serenity,

Sorrow, affliction, and disputes are all destroyed,

Bold and eloquent, they are praised and extolled by others,

Their faculties subdued, and again diligent,

Adorned in all ways, revered by everyone,

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

Far removed from error and fault, they are at once reborn in the Heavens,

Wealthy and noble, upright and dignified, all fair and beautiful,

All merit and virtue are complete and full,

If a stūpa or shrine has been ruined and one repairs it again,

That person is without sickness, the body complete,

All the lovely fruits of the world,

Every matter accords with the heart and is complete and full,

If one fashions an image of the Buddha or a stūpa of the Buddha,

A form as tiny as a grain of rice,

Whether among the heavens or in the human realm,

One is surely to become a king, enjoying pleasure and delight,

Into the realms of form and the formless one is again reborn,

Wealthy beyond bound, beyond all measure,

One will depart from the sufferings of birth, aging, sickness, and death,

And ultimately the fruit of bodhi, the Buddhahood made full,

If at a stūpa or shrine one enshrines relics,

And paints images of the Buddha to make offerings,

One attains the bright wisdom that shines upon the great earth,

The Sugata's pure and wondrous Buddha-wealth,

Dwelling at peace among the boundless realms of sentient beings,

Together entering equality, without nature or mark,

If upon a high mountain, in a place still and serene,

One peacefully enshrines a stūpa of the Buddha and an image,

That form being as small as a fingernail,

One will be reborn into the realm of humans and devas,

Upright and dignified, richly great, in fine complexion, strength, and peace,

Afterward becoming a Deva-prince of the Thirty-three,

If a person with their own hand opens a stūpa of the Buddha,

They will attain wealth and completeness,

The body radiant, the mind supple and gentle,

Abundant in wisdom, pure in nature, free of anger and hatred,

If there is a person of wisdom who is able to give in charity,

Offering to the Buddha incense oil and white sandalwood,

Together with all manner of fragrances,

They will attain a fruit ample and beautiful,

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

Bearing beautiful fragrant flowers and music,

Making every kind of offering to the Buddha, the Tathāgata,

Born in the Heavens, they draw near the precious golden pool,

In that pool the lotuses, their stamens, the delicate fragrance,

Filling the body, permeate it as though one were bathing,

The Mandā-keṇi waters, pure and clean,

For one who enters, the dust and defilement naturally end,

From beneath the pool there springs up a cool, refreshing fragrance,

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

The heavenly realm one can behold, and it is pleasing to the heart,

By aiding and giving to the Buddha and Saṅgha one attains this fruit,

Such merit and virtue cannot be measured,

And so all the sūtras extol and praise it,

Beautiful robes and garments,

Given to the Buddha and given to the Saṅgha,

Afterward one is reborn into the realm of the Heavens,

In the highest heavens, fragrant robes,

Blue and yellow, in every variety,

A hundred thousand maṇi jewels,

Used to make adornments,

Truly wealthy beyond measure,

Pleasure and delight again without bound,

Amply attaining the wondrous fruit,

If a person is reborn into the world,

They shall be able to become a King of the Realm,

Complete in all the marks of form,

Above wearing beautiful garments,

Complete with every kind of fragrance,

Following the body, ever enjoyed and used,

All because of offering robes to the Buddha,

Accomplishing this joyful reward,

If one is reborn in the realm of the Heavens,

Adorned with every kind of jewel,

The body draped fully in jeweled garlands,

The head crowned with a precious-gem diadem,

Earrings and bracelets for the wrists,

In this way much pleasure and delight,

By offering fine and beautiful things to the Buddha,

One attains the fruit of rebirth in the realm of the Heavens,

If one becomes a Great King of the Realm,

The form of the body broadly dignified and adorned,

The Nami pearls of the jeweled garlands,

The sound of the jewels truly fine to hear,

All are the field of the Triple Gem,

Giving in charity, the adornments complete,

The wise one, with a heart pure and clean,

Offers to the Buddha garlands of flowers and all such things,

In the realm of devas and the realm of humans,

Ever attaining much joy and delight,

And again reborn into the later reward,

Accomplishing the seven flowers of enlightenment,

And again reborn upon a great earthen mountain,

There becoming the lord Śakra,

Together with all his retinue,

Sporting and playing in the gardens and groves,

With every kind of flower making offerings,

One shall attain those fruits,

Lapis lazuli and true pearl jewels,

Gold and silver, blue and green,

Adorning the crown that is worn,

Encircling all around, full like the moon,

If a king or a great minister

Uses it to crown the head,

As the Buddha has spoken, this cause,

Offering a crown, one shall attain the reward,

Liberation from the affliction of greed and sorrow,

Without sickness, able to dwell in peace and joy,

And again becoming a king of the world,

All because of offering that crown,

If at a stūpa or shrine of the Buddha

One gives in charity banners and pennants,

One shall become a Heavenly Wheel-turning King,

In the world hard to be equaled,

Far removed from all transgressions,

Among all sentient beings

One becomes the foremost leader,

Ever attaining offerings from others,

If a person at a stūpa or shrine

Gives in charity bells and chimes,

They are not reborn in the evil grounds of transgression,

And ever hear the sound of the Brahma-voice,

If a person makes skillful music,

Lute and drum, together with flute,

Making offerings to the Buddha, the noble and worthy ones,

Causing those who hear it to delight in heart,

They shall attain the Faculty of the Divine Ear,

Adorned and ever pure and clean,

And again attain the Vajra wisdom,

Able to demolish the mountain of afflictions,

If one gives rise to a joyful heart,

Using fine-colored flowers and beautiful fragrances,

Every kind of fine food and drink,

To make offerings to the Buddhas,

One shall be reborn into the realm of the Heavens,

With retinue seated together in fineness,

All the vessels made of maṇi,

Eating the precious foods of the heavenly realm,

The aeons of famine, thirst, and war,

One shall surely not be reborn into them,

If a person uses food and drink

To make offerings to the noble and worthy ones,

They shall be reborn among devas and humans,

With fine food ever in abundance,

Every kind of precious thing as well,

And the wise ones ever love and respect them,

If one uses these delicious foods,

Giving with delight to those who have gone forth,

One is able to attain a body wealthy and rich,

Eloquence and long life,

Complexion, strength, and marks all complete,

By offering food in this way,

If with a heart of loving kindness

One offers to them sweet honey,

Milk, ghee, and cream and all such things,

So that those who are thirsting

May drink and attain peace and joy,

One again attains the reward as told before,

If one uses harītakī,

Lambeṅ herbs together with medicinal grasses,

Giving in charity to the noble and worthy ones,

One shall be reborn among devas and humans,

Without sickness and with long life,

Ever attaining a body at peace and joy,

The one who gives, who gives that drink,

Afterward attains rebirth in a heavenly palace,

Enjoying through the aeon, flowers in abundance,

Whatever they seek is fulfilled to their wish,

Vessels of fine wine and delicious honey,

The retinue drinking together,

And again dwelling through the aeon of long life,

Able to display adornments,

Dancing and singing the music of the heavenly realm,

Bringing joy to the hearts of the deva multitude,

The nectar of amṛta following the body,

Given for drinking, the reward of benefit,

If there is a person who gives food,

They shall attain rebirth among devas and humans,

Far removed from poverty and hardship,

Long life, full of wealth and riches,

Together with elephants, horses, and all such things,

Carriages and precious canopies,

Offered in charity to the Buddha, the Tathāgata,

One shall attain great spiritual powers,

If one gives sandals and shoes and all such things,

One is ever reborn into a noble and lofty house,

One shall have carriages, elephants, and horses,

And surely depart from the suffering of greed and poverty,

If one's teacher or elder has sickness,

And there is a person who is able to give aid,

They shall, in all places,

Have whatever they seek accomplished,

If one gives in charity even a seat,

One shall be reborn in the heavens above,

Not undergoing hardship and suffering and all such things,

Ever seated upon a precious throne,

Using bedding to give in charity,

Born in the heavens, ever in pleasure and delight,

The form of the body truly upright and straight,

Without fear, praised and extolled by others,

Cultivating among the mixed gardens and groves,

Adorning the various rooms and chambers,

The giver causes wayfarers to halt and rest,

Body and mind giving rise to joy and delight,

One shall be invited to the gardens of joy,

The places where devas and humans roam,

Together with the heavenly maidens,

Sporting and playing, enjoying pleasure and delight,

If one meets a time of scorching heat,

And creates a warm and cooling air,

One shall draw forth the udumbara,

The nyagrodha and the bodhi tree,

Thereafter attaining rebirth in the heavens,

Ever enjoying the joy of the five desires,

Wells, springs, together with pools and lakes,

Repaired and made beautiful,

Aiding those who are hungry and thirsting,

So that all are complete and fulfilled,

In a later aeon one attains rebirth in the heavens,

Or is reborn in the Brahma-world,

In all cases attaining pleasure and delight,

And again realizing the fruit of stillness and cessation,

If it be a pātra bowl,

Given in charity to the Triple Gem,

One shall, in all places, be reborn

In wealth, nobility, pleasure, and delight,

There, in that world,

Exalted and lofty, of supreme virtue,

And again moving all sentient beings

To make offerings according to the time,

If a wise one gives in charity a blade,

They shall be reborn in the realm of the heavens,

Their wisdom utterly penetrating and sharp,

And surely never meet with sword and warfare,

If a person gives in charity a needle,

Their wisdom is ever keen and sharp,

Able to sever the various afflictions,

Realizing that path of stillness and serenity,

The Buddha has said, if there is a person

Who draws and paints the various images of the Buddha,

They are reborn within the realm of the Heavens,

The body the color of golden radiance,

Bright, pure, and clean as the heavens,

And dwelling among devas and humans,

The deva-men together with the deva-women,

At all times turning back toward them,

Or if that person has wisdom,

Skilled and able to speak the gift of the Dharma,

They are reborn into the realm of devas and humans,

Complete in wisdom, virtue, and power,

Ever enjoying every pleasure and delight,

Ever departing from the various sufferings and afflictions,

And in this later body

Attaining the realization of the path of stillness and cessation,

If there are any sentient beings

Who draw and write out the wondrous Dharma,

They shall attain the wisdom of past-life recollection,

Wealthy and noble, ever at peace and joy,

And severing all transgressions,

Passing through many a count of aeons,

They fall not into the hells,

Nor among hungry ghosts or animals,

If there be a person of wisdom there

Who sweeps and cleans the ritual platform,

And then binds flowers to scatter,

And in this way makes offerings,

Afterward they are reborn in the human realm,

Or are reborn in the realm of the Heavens,

Ever enjoying every wealth and honor,

And again realizing stillness and cessation,

If one is able to take a lamp burning long

And make offering to the Buddha, the worthy and noble,

The person is reborn in the realms of humans and devas,

The three eyes ever pure and clean,

The wisdom-eye and the heavenly-eye,

Together with that physical eye,

Moreover, that giver of lamps

Is ever reborn among devas and humans,

Their mouth, too, is not foul-smelling,

Their ears and eyes are neither deaf nor blind,

Furthermore, that giver of lamps,

Not only are the three eyes pure,

But within the true Dharma

They penetrate and master all of it,

If a wise one gives in charity money,

Making offerings to those of virtue,

The śramaṇas and the brāhmaṇas,

Giving little, yet the merit is great,

Amply attaining good wealth and riches,

Enjoying their use for a long, long time,

Moreover, that giver in charity

Who gives food to animals

Again attains much merit and virtue,

So that it becomes a hundredfold,

If together with goods and food

One gives in charity to a person of transgression,

The benefit increases all the more,

The merit attained again a thousandfold,

If one gives to one who upholds the precepts,

The merit is again a hundred thousand times,

Making offering to one free of mind's grasping,

One attains benefit for a hundred aeons in number,

If one gives to one who has learning,

And again to one beyond learning,

One again attains much merit and virtue,

Compared to the former, it is again loftier and higher,

If one gives to the Buddha, the Tathāgata,

One shall be reborn into the realm of the Heavens,

Wealthy and great, never ceasing,

Ever enjoying every pleasure and delight,

Until the ending of the cycle of saṃsāra,

And realizing the Dharma of stillness and cessation,

I, relying upon all of this,

The Buddha has spoken the Gāthā sūtra,

Concisely setting forth the blessings and reward,

Causing beings to give rise to faith and acceptance,

Suppose a thousand suns

Brightly shining illumined the great earth,

In the midst of night the moon shines clearly,

And the blue lotus shall open in bloom,

The lord of the Vaiśravaṇa heaven,

Śakra and Nārāyaṇa,

The foremost leaders among the devas,

All attained it by the cause of giving,

The sun within the empty sky,

Above and below illumines all around,

Making clear all forms of life,

Yet even it is impermanent,

Śakra and the Four Heavenly Kings,

Together with all the devas,

When their blessings and lifespan are exhausted,

Enter through the gate of death's enmity,

Sorrow, grief, the fire of suffering and affliction,

Not escaping being consumed by the fire,

And so I exhort all of you,

Contemplate the body's impermanence,

Depart far from the body's defilement and craving,

Do not be attached to the joys of devas and humans,

Even a kalpa is not long-lasting,

All returns to dissolution and ruin,

I give rise to a heart of pure faith,

Casting away and departing from illusory, empty joys,

Ever abiding before the Buddha,

Joining my palms and drawing near,

Using that self-awakening,

To become the master of liberation.

Here ends the 108 Verses in Praise of the Worthies and Noble Ones