菩提行經

In Praise of Bodhicitta (Bodhicittānuśaṃsā)

(Chapter One)

As the Buddha's sublime Dharma-body is boundless,

The disciple with upright mind takes refuge and bows in homage.

The Buddha's ambrosial precepts grant their protection;

I now praise and expound, relying wholly upon the Dharma.

This teaching has not existed, has never existed before;

Nor does it set up a self to stand supreme and alone.

I am neither self nor other—it is just so;

Yet one may reflect within and contemplate.

Thus, arousing the mind, one contemplates,

And so may cause this goodness to grow within me.

Then one sees, in such a way, the realm of Sahā,

Here together with the Buddha, the World-Honored One.

In this realm, even for a single instant, it is hard to be born;

Born as a human, one speaks of one's own joy.

If, in reflection, one parts from the mind of Bodhi,

And further, coming to this point, what then is gained?

Like clouds that veil the dark of night,

A lightning flash blazes dazzling in an instant—

So too is the great majesty and virtue of the Buddha:

In a single instant of arousing the resolve, a person gains merit.

Therefore, though one's goodness be little and one's strength be weak,

It can shatter the karmic force of great evils.

Thus, if one arouses the mind of Bodhi,

This goodness advances mightily, surpassing all that.

Reflect: through measureless, boundless kalpas,

One sees the Buddha, or hears this truth proclaimed.

If, not being at peace and joyful, one yet attains peace and joy,

And makes it grow, delivering all sentient beings—

For the sake of beings in their suffering,

Causing them to leave behind a hundred thousand fears and pains,

To receive instead a hundred thousand kinds of joy—

Because one cannot part from the mind of Bodhi.

That Sugata, amid the bonds of fetters,

Dwells within saṃsāra yet without craving.

Should one but speak of an instant's mind of Bodhi,

Gods and humans rejoice and all take refuge.

Or one may receive and uphold an impure form,

Like a precious image of the Buddha, beyond all price—

Like a medicine that transforms throughout the prison-house—

So, by reflection, one holds fast the mind of Bodhi.

The mind of Bodhi is precious, truly boundless;

The riches of the world can hardly equal it.

The Tamer of Beings, who acts and accompanies as a friend,

Can wholly receive and uphold it even within the dungeon.

The plantain tree, without true substance, yet brings forth fruit;

It bears true fruit, and then the trunk withers away.

Yet the tree of the mind of Bodhi, if it be pure,

Brings forth supreme fruit beyond all knowing.

Having committed cruel deeds and many sinful karmas,

Relying on the mind of Bodhi, in an instant one is freed.

The valiant, relying upon it, have no fear;

But deluded sentient beings do not rely upon it.

Like the great fire at the kalpa's end,

In an instant it burns away those sinful karmas.

If one recollects the boundless words of the loving and honored One,

Then truly it is well for the wise person.

The many kinds of awakening minds,

With right wisdom, all in equality—

The mind of Bodhi as vow and aspiration,

And the practicing of the deeds of Bodhi:

Just as a person who wishes to set out,

For their sake it is explained with distinction;

Having spoken the distinguishing wisdom,

One can then act in accord with what wisdom knows.

The aspiring mind of Bodhi

Yields great fruit, like saṃsāra itself,

Its merit without interruption,

Just as that wish desires.

Therein there is no end;

For sentient beings it is liberation—

With that mind, in perfect equality,

The vow of Bodhi never retreats.

There, fond of sleep and rest,

And given over to much intoxication and delusion,

Interrupting one's stock of merit,

It is as though empty, possessing nothing.

One may set forth and ask this:

The lowly-minded among sentient beings—

In liberation they are born;

For this is the Tathāgata himself.

Again, reflect and resolve to remove

The sufferings and afflictions of sentient beings;

Having made their sufferings cease,

One straightway gains boundless merit.

Sentient beings have boundless suffering;

How is it to be healed?

By bringing each and every one to bliss,

One attains boundless virtue and merit.

What benefit do father and mother gain?

So too with kin and relations,

With gods and ṛṣis,

And the pure-conduct Brāhmaṇas?

Such sentient beings as these,

In the past slumbered in delusion,

Vowing nothing for their own benefit—

But here one vows to bring forth benefit for others.

Most excellent and precious among sentient beings,

How rare to be born thus!

With the many kinds of intent to benefit others,

Not for one's own benefit alone—

The sprout of the world's rejoicing and gladness,

The medicine of the world's diligence,

A mind precious and possessed of merit—

How then shall that one speak?

How shall all the sentient beings

Attain every joy?

By arousing the mind of Bodhi,

By making offerings to the Tathāgata.

Infatuation, craving, pleasure, and joy,

Like doubt and suspicion as well—

Distancing oneself and following along—

All arise from the mind.

If the mind seeks pleasures and delights,

Afflictions fill it everywhere;

But by gathering up those joys,

The afflictions are dispelled.

Destroying the cause of delusion and confusion—

How well it is to attain this!

Drawing near to the wise and virtuous friend,

That merit is gained in such a way.

The benefit and blessing is straightway dedicated;

That one should then be straightway praised.

To do good without seeking gain—

Of such a one it is said: this is a Bodhisattva.

If one gives in charity yet eats but little,

Cultivating good and making offerings in the world—

Charity great or small, like a mosquito or gnat,

Yet one gains joy for half a day.

How is one to harvest that cause?

It is needed until all boundless sentient beings are saved.

Sentient beings, inexhaustible as empty space—

All seeking of wisdom is thereupon fulfilled.

The disciple of the Buddha, with pure mindfulness, reflects:

If afflictions arise, produced by the mind,

And the count of afflictions born gives rise to doubt,

The Buddha says such a one falls into hell.

But if the Buddha's disciple arouses the mind of Bodhi,

The great power that destroys sin gains the supreme fruit.

I now take refuge in the wish-fulfilling jewel of the mind,

That delivers sentient beings and brings them peace and joy.

The Sūtra of the Practice of Bodhi (Bodhicaryāvatāra)

The Offering and Worship of the Mind of Bodhi

(Chapter Two)

That lovely wish-fulfilling jewel, with a reverent mind,

I use to make offering to the Tathāgata,

Together with that pure and sublime Dharma-jewel,

And the Buddha's ocean of virtues, boundless beyond measure.

Whatever lovely flowers there are in the world,

Down to the finest fruits and healing medicines,

The treasures found within clear waters—

All I present in offering, with joyful heart.

The many kinds of precious things within the mountains,

The joy-bringing trees in places of tranquil stillness,

The māndāra blossoms adorning the radiant trees,

The fruit-laden trees, their branches and their seeds;

In the heavens and among humans, the precious incenses,

Down to the many trees and the precious trees,

The pure pond-waters, adorned besides—

The cry of the wild geese, heard, delights the mind.

The rice that grows of itself, without any seed,

Each in its own way adorned, I offer up;

Compared to the realm of empty space, it is far greater,

And all of it here is given for enjoyment.

I now offer up this sweet cake,

Making the supreme offering to the Buddha, the Muni.

Since I do not forsake great loving-kindness and compassion,

May He receive this most supreme of offerings.

I now am without merit and impoverished,

Not being wealthy enough to make offerings.

I now reflect for the sake of others;

May the Buddha receive this gift according to my strength.

I give my own self to all the Buddhas;

This gift, compared with all the rest—

Bless me to act for the sake of sentient beings,

That sentient beings may ever be taught and transformed by the Buddha.

Having been blessed by the Tathāgata,

I work for the benefit of beings without fear.

The sinful karmas of the past are wholly left behind;

The sins of the future I shall never commit.

The radiance there is truly delightful;

A heavenly canopy adorns and serves true Suchness.

The crystal, pure, shines forth again;

Everywhere, kind upon kind of precious fragrant perfumes.

The precious vases, filled with all the scented waters,

And bearing besides the pleasing, lovely flowers,

I use to bathe the Tathāgata's undefiled body;

I am now offering praise and presenting song and music.

Pure incense is smoked upon those robes;

A canopy of beautiful colors shades Him.

I now present these upon the garments;

May the Buddha of loving-kindness graciously receive them.

The many kinds of heavenly raiment, lovely to behold,

Adorning within and above,

I offer to the Tathāgata and to Samantabhadra,

Together with Mañjuśrī and Avalokiteśvara.

The Sūtra of the Practice of Bodhi (Bodhicaryāvatāra)

Guarding the Precepts (V. Saṃprajanyarakṣaṇa)

(Chapter Three)

Uphold the precepts in order to guard the mind;

Keep it truly firm and steadfast.

This mind is hard to guard;

Why, then, should one guard the precepts?

Like a maddened elephant unsubdued,

Heedless of pains and injury,

The mind runs wild like a maddened elephant—

Now I invite the Ālaya.

Recall the rope that holds and grasps,

Binding fast the elephant of the mind;

Then it forsakes its reckless rampaging,

And all becomes peace and bliss.

If one can tie the mind down,

Then all things become possible.

If one can subdue this mind,

Then all things are subdued.

Lions, boars, tigers, and leopards,

Yakṣas together with Rākṣasas,

And all that dwell within the hells—

All these enmities become clearly known.

Whether the fear of all such enmities,

Or boundless sufferings and afflictions—

All are obtained by means of that mind,

As the World-Honored Buddha has declared.

The hells, the places of confinement,

Together with those red-hot iron balls—

Whoever makes them must himself endure them.

Greed, hatred, and delusion arise therefrom.

In that evil mind,

When the Buddha is born into the world,

The minds of the three realms are exhausted;

Therefore there is no fear.

If one is able to practice giving,

In this life one is not greedy.

Do not be greedy, and there is no affliction;

How then could there be regret over the past?

If a person's mind shares but little,

One should still give the pāramitā of charity.

If one speaks of the fruit of recompense,

Together with all acts of giving—

If a person's mind upholds the precepts,

Suspecting whom would one harm and kill?

A wrathful mind is the enemy;

It would slay all, exhausting empty space.

The great earth is without limit or bound;

Its hide would cover it over.

Using hide to cover but a little,

Following wherever one walks, one gathers it up;

The nature of self outside is likewise.

To whom does it belong, who is it that acts?

So one should exhort one's own mind:

That self outside is subdued of itself.

To crave the body is to be without merit;

Its fruit is like the deeds one performs.

If with one's mind one offers a single robe,

Its fruit increases one's merit.

If one is able to keep all the practices,

And does not forsake that mindful recollection,

Then all the mind's profits—

The false and hollow ones—should be left far behind.

In all the mind's seeking of the Dharma,

One should observe in secret:

Departing from suffering, one gains peace and bliss;

Thus one comes to leave the world behind.

Why is it that I practice?

In practice, though one guards the mind—

Therefore I contemplate the mind,

Hour by hour keeping watch and care.

Like a monkey afflicted with sickness,

That mind can be kept and guarded.

The lives of evil people are likewise;

So too should one ever guard the mind.

Fearing the affliction of suffering and disease,

I single-mindedly bring help.

Destroying all manner of contact and collision,

The sick mind, and being without fear—

Ever doing it in just this way,

One does not become a person amid evil.

A human, who does not transgress through evil,

Is naturally without dread.

I wish, at the very close of life,

To make offering through beneficial conduct.

When all other lives and bodily existences are spent,

The good mind does not retreat or recoil.

I wish to guard this mind;

With palms joined I now do so.

Mindful recollection, always and ever,

Of all those skillful means—

Just as a person gravely ill

Cannot bear up under any task,

So too with a scattered, distracted mind:

It does not go deep into the works it does.

A scattered, distracted mind, unconcentrated,

Hears, reflects, and contemplates—

Yet like a leaking, dripping vessel,

That water cannot be much retained.

Through what such a person hears,

And the faith placed in skillful means,

A turbulent, unsettled mind

Acts without ease, and falls into transgression.

A mind that cannot reach a firm resolve

Is deluded and confounded in what it gains.

Whatever merit and goodness one possesses

May yet fall into evil destinies.

The afflictions, those thieves and brigands,

Defile and entangle one in that very place.

Through the arising of Māra's obstructions,

The good life is ruined and destroyed.

Guarding that intent at its very root,

One does not let loose evil deeds at large.

Relying upon those afflicting torments,

One yet brings the mind to dwell at rest.

How good it is to follow the Master's teaching,

That wholesome mindfulness may be born.

Able to hear the Master's instruction,

One must single-mindedly serve and provide—

Toward the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas,

In an instant the mind reaches resolve.

Able to recollect and to fear,

With compassion it is made present.

That guarded mind, unsettled still,

Runs on forever, never turning back.

If one is able to guard this intent,

Keeping watch over it and never departing,

I now guard this mind;

In just this way one can abide.

Like a tree without any root,

It does not bring forth evil branches and leaves.

The eye gazes upon forms and appearances;

Know them to be false and hollow, not real.

Thing by thing one should observe,

And so one does not crave or cling.

Seeing the cause, one observes,

And looks clearly, without confusion or error;

And when one has come to see it thus,

One comforts and consoles in all that is good.

One who wishes to act yet knows not the way,

Facing the four directions, gives rise to fear;

But having resolved and known the direction,

One contemplates the mind in just this way.

The wise person ever does this:

Reflecting upon both before and after,

The works of good together with the works of evil,

Those things that are never lost.

It no longer abides in this body;

Parting from it, then what is to be done?

How does this body abide?

One must indeed observe it in the midst.

Contemplating within the mind is likewise:

To employ all the various skillful means.

That Dharma is like a pillar and post,

Binding fast the life that does not escape.

One should indeed think in this way:

Contemplating, "I now exist."

The consciousnesses are likewise so,

Mastered and gathered in each instant.

If one fears the cause of karmic force,

And wishes to seek peace and joy,

Cultivate charity and uphold the precepts,

Down to renouncing all things.

To cultivate the cause of liberation,

One should not, apart from this, ponder otherwise.

Single-mindedly turning toward one's own mind,

One must give rise to this view:

Cultivating good deeds in this way,

One does not give rise to deeds of fear,

And is able to make the afflictions

Resolutely cease to grow.

Speaking of the many kinds of right faith,

Seeing much that is here present,

Contemplating and beholding, one knows all clearly,

Tearing the net of doubt and realizing the fruit—

Like grass whose root is cut.

Recollecting the Buddha, holding the precepts,

In an instant doing this very thing,

One receives the surpassing fruit.

Wishing to speak of what is right and fitting,

All must be thoroughly understood.

One must contemplate one's own mind,

And ever cultivate all forms of diligence.

Like wood that is insentient,

Without word and doing nothing—

Seeing one's own mind to be thus,

One resolves to act accordingly.

When the mind gives rise to arrogance and contempt,

Like one who is drunk and inebriated,

Seeking to praise oneself,

That one is no practitioner.

If that one is myself,

Giving rise to deeds of slander and abuse,

In meaning together with all hatred and folly,

Let the mind abide like wood.

That wood does not discriminate;

It does not take gain and offerings as weighty,

Nor does it make of them kin and relations.

So too with all other matters:

Benefiting others, not benefiting oneself,

Wishing to give to all—

Therefore it is said of this mind:

Let it abide at peace like that wood.

Single-mindedly keeping it like wood,

Toward kin, loved ones, and friends,

Down to the three kinds of karma,

Give rise to no love, hatred, or fear.

Contemplating the afflictions,

As if empty, one does not cling either.

One must be valiant, firm, and steadfast,

Guarding and keeping ever in this way.

Whether good, or bad, or fearful,

Let one single-mindedly seek that purity,

Pure throughout the three times;

For its sake one should hold it in reverence.

Though one dwell in lowly circumstances,

Do not cause it wrath and affliction.

I myself feel no wrath toward it;

With loving-kindness and compassion it gives help here.

I receive and uphold meditative absorption,

Acting as a refuge, able to be tranquil and still.

For the sake of all sentient beings,

Ever dwelling in the place without transgression,

Thought after thought should be continuous;

The more there is, the more precious it grows.

In this way the mind, received and upheld,

Is unmoving like Mount Sumeru.

The bird that craves flesh is not held back;

A person craving goodness is likewise.

If body and mind do not practice,

How could one ever get free?

How is one to guard body and mind?

At all times one ought to do so.

How is it that you all do this?

Each and every one, with single mind.

The deluded and ignorant cannot do so themselves;

Greed and craving are like a body of wood.

This body does no good;

How then is one to sever fond attachment?

Bones together with bone joined to one another,

Adorned with ornaments outside the skin—

Self-awareness causes one not to crave;

Liberation together with wisdom

Cuts away the body and its parts.

Seeing only the so-called essence,

One must observe and reflect:

How is one to see it in another person?

Single-mindedly contemplating thus,

Clearly one does not see a person.

Why, then, is this impure body

Guarded and protected through craving and love?

In the womb it eats filthy things;

Leaving the womb it drinks blood and milk.

Never having eaten in such a way,

How could there be this body?

Foxes and birds too crave to eat it,

Not distinguishing good from evil.

A person too loves this body,

And in its enjoyment binds himself with karma.

Caring for the body in just this way,

Until death there is no compassionate forbearance—

No different from foxes and birds.

What, then, does a person do?

When the body dies, consciousness does not remain;

Clothing and food are kept and left behind.

That body, and consciousness departed far from it—

What use, what craving, is there then?

Therefore, now bring forth the intent

Not to crave such things as these.

Thus, not parting far from it,

One gains those unwholesome states.

Just like a person's own body—

The hands and feet, wishing to be complete,

Sensation, body, and wisdom do not grow.

Coming and going, running, one wears oneself out.

In this world the body is not deep;

By forms and pleasures one is first consoled.

In such a way one should ever restrain

The mind's recollection, and never abandon it.

In laughing, do not raise a loud voice;

Do not delight overmuch in one's seat.

Lightly tap upon that door;

Let faith be that which holds and grasps.

Like a thief, like a cat or a bird,

Seeking to act without a word—

Cultivating the mind is likewise so,

Able to part from the deer and the goat.

When another harbors resentment and anger,

If there is no benefit, do not speak.

Ever may one gain disciples

Whose words are reverent and faithful.

All such words as these,

Once heard and understood, one acts upon for good.

Looking upon another's meritorious deeds,

Praise and extol them, and rejoice.

Reflecting, speak of that one's virtues;

Hearing them, that one's mind is filled with joy.

Wishing to praise and extol that one,

First look upon that one's virtuous conduct.

Cultivating all the deeds of joyful rejoicing,

It is hard to realize the sincere mind.

One must cultivate the benefit and virtue of others,

Now receiving the reward of peace and joy.

Remembering that craving is suffering, one abandons it;

Born thereafter into still greater suffering.

In this suffering I do not abide;

In the life to come, great joy.

Words spoken and heard, gentle and soft,

The root of goodness, heard, gives rise to joy.

Acting so as to please that one,

One should trust in words that are true.

Able to feel compassion for sentient beings,

Loving them as one loves one's own eyes,

For their sake abiding in truth,

One shall surely attain Buddhahood.

That truth being attained,

Each and every benefit, and friends—

In an instant cultivating virtue and merit,

Departing from suffering, gaining peace and bliss.

Exhorting the cultivation of fine virtue and merit,

Able to act so as to realize it,

Without boasting, without hoarding—

Whoever asks about these things,

The giving of charity and all such deeds,

Subtle and wondrous and supreme—

One does not act upon them apart;

Benefit and blessing are never left behind.

The Buddha, in this way, benefits people,

Ever together with all.

In the Tathāgata's teachings,

One sees those deeds of compassion.

In the three realms the Master entered nirvāṇa;

Distinguishing the one gone forth into homelessness,

The matter of eating, gained or not gained,

Never parting from the three robes,

One is able to seek the sublime Dharma-body,

Not afflicting sentient beings.

Toward sentient beings in this way,

According to their wishes, help them to fullness.

Renouncing, one does not exhaust this life;

In renouncing, one needs equanimity.

The compassionate mind must be pure;

The fruit of recompense is of itself complete.

With a pure mind, honoring the Dharma,

One does not cling to blade or staff.

One does not hold a canopy over one's head;

One harbors no slights or contempt.

For men and for women,

Expound the Dharma skillfully, broad and deep,

Without distinguishing high from low,

So that they attain equality.

That Dharma is not made grand,

Down to there being no wholesome dharma;

Departing far from disrespect and discourtesy,

Joyfully expound the Mahāyāna.

The cleaning of teeth and the spitting of saliva—

Do not spit upon clean ground.

Clean water and pure dwelling places—

Do not relieve oneself there for convenience.

In drinking and eating, do not fill the mouth;

In eating, do not make a sound.

While eating, do not speak,

Nor open the mouth wide.

When sitting, do not shake the legs;

When walking, do not make affected gestures.

Do not walk together with a woman,

Nor likewise sit or lie down with her.

All that is not in accord with the discipline,

When people see it, the mind is not pleased.

Whenever people pass and see,

Departing, they do not show reverence.

When a person asks about the road,

Do not point with a single hand;

Both hands must be used

To point out the way for them to come.

Whenever one walks on foot,

Do not make noise along with it;

Nor forget to snap the fingers—

Keeping deportment in just this way.

Though the Master has already entered nirvāṇa,

The four methods one must indeed learn;

Keep the precepts and conduct without slackening,

Resolutely guarding the holy fruit.

The Bodhisattva's practices are measureless;

One may speak of them without limit.

One must have a pure mind,

And resolutely carry them out in practice.

In one day and one night,

Divided into three periods,

Practicing the Way together with repentance,

Abiding in the Buddha, in the mind of Bodhi—

That mind is ever sovereign and free,

And again brings benefit and joy to others.

The Buddha's disciple, abiding in the precepts,

Single-mindedly guards them in just this way.

The Buddha attained, his essence pure,

Sees no ingratitude or coldness.

Ever doing it in just this way,

That merit can hardly be equaled.

From beginningless time acting as sentient beings,

Acting and acting without discrimination—

Such are the kinds of sentient beings:

Cause all of them to awaken.

One must know the wholesome spiritual friend

As life itself, not to be forsaken.

The Bodhisattva precepts are supreme;

So too the Mahāyāna Dharma.

Liberation relies upon the Master,

And thereby one can bring forth goodness and excellence.

Buddha after Buddha speaks the sūtras of wisdom;

Reading, seeing, and hearing the precepts and the Dharma,

If a person guards the precepts with the mind,

The deeds done will all be seen.

Whether in body, or in the mind,

Observe and examine with great care.

If the mouth recites but the mind does not practice,

What likeness or example does one realize?

It is like a person gravely ill

Who will not consent to medicine and remedy.

In the Ākāśagarbha Sūtra (Ākāśagarbhasūtra)

Are spoken the Root Downfalls (Mūlāpatti);

So too together with the precepts and concentration,

Expounded broadly as that sūtra tells.

The Holy Bodhisattva Nāgārjuna,

Single-mindedly composed this.

According to wherever one dwells,

Make offering in just this way.

The Sūtra of the Practice of Bodhi (Bodhicaryāvatāra)

(End of Scroll One)