彌勒菩薩所問本願經

Thus have I heard:

At one time the Buddha was journeying and teaching in the Deer Park, in the Forest of Terror, on Wondrous Flower Mountain, in the country of Phi Kỳ, together with a full assembly of great Bhikṣus, five hundred in number, all sages and saints who had attained spiritual powers, all of them Bhikṣus revered by everyone. The names of these venerable ones were: the worthy one Liễu Bổn Tế, the worthy one Mã Sư, the worthy one Hòa Ba, the worthy one Ðại Xứng, the worthy one Hiền Thiện, the worthy one Ly Cấu, the worthy one Cụ Túc, the worthy one Ngưu Từ, the worthy one Lộc Kiết Tường, the worthy Uruvilvā Kāśyapa, the worthy one Nadī Kāśyapa, the worthy one Gayā Kāśyapa, the worthy one Mahā Kāśyapa, the worthy one Sở Thuyết, the worthy one Sở Trước, the worthy one Diện Vương, the worthy one Nan Ðề,

the worthy one Hòa Nan, the worthy one Rāhula, the worthy one Ānanda, ... thus altogether five hundred Bhikṣus.

There were also Bodhisattvas such as: Maitreya ... five hundred persons, whose names were: the Bodhisattva Tăng Ý, the Bodhisattva Kiên Ý, the Bodhisattva Biện Tích, the Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara, the Bodhisattva Mahāsthāmaprāpta, the Bodhisattva Anh Kiết Tường, the Bodhisattva Nhuyến Kiết Tường, the Bodhisattva Thần Thông Hoa, the Bodhisattva Không Vô, the Bodhisattva Hỷ Tín Tịnh, the Bodhisattva Căn Ðộ, the Bodhisattva Xứng Ðộ, the Bodhisattva Nhu Nhuyến Âm Hưởng, the Bodhisattva Tịnh Ðộ, the Bodhisattva Sơn Tích, the Bodhisattva Cụ Túc, the Bodhisattva Mañjuśrī Căn Kiết Tường.

Thus altogether five hundred Bodhisattvas.

At that time the Bodhisattva Maitreya rose from his seat, arranged his robes properly, knelt upright with palms joined together, and addressed the Buddha:

"I have something I wish to ask. I humbly beg the Heaven-among-Heavens to grant me permission, that I may dare to ask."

The Buddha said to the Bodhisattva Maitreya:

"I grant my assent. The Tathāgata will explain according to your wish, so that your mind may rejoice."

Then the Bodhisattva Maitreya, having been granted permission by the Buddha, rejoiced with delight and addressed the World-Honored One:

"How many practices of the Dharma does a Bodhisattva have for casting away the evil paths and not following along with evil companions?"

The Buddha taught the Bodhisattva Maitreya:

"Excellent! Excellent! O Maitreya! It is because the Bodhisattva has great compassion, great peace, and love for the devas and human beings that he has aroused the mind to ask the Tathāgata about such meanings. Reflect upon this carefully."

The Bodhisattva Maitreya then said:

"Yes indeed, World-Honored One! I will receive the teaching and listen attentively."

The Buddha taught:

"O Maitreya! The Bodhisattva has one practice of the Dharma for casting away the evil paths and not falling into evil companions. What is this one Dharma? It is the mind of the Path that is tranquil, still, and equanimous. This is the one Dharma."

The Buddha taught:

"O Maitreya, the Bodhisattva also has two practices of the Dharma for casting away the evil paths and not falling into evil companions. What are these two Dharmas? The first is to dwell in the samādhi of non-arising; the second is the skillful means of discerning what is seen. These are the two Dharmas."

The Buddha taught:

"O Maitreya, the Bodhisattva also has three practices of the Dharma for casting away the evil paths and not falling into evil companions. What are the three? The first is to attain the Mahāyāna Dharma; the second is, with regard to emptiness, to have nothing accumulated; the third is to know that there is nothing to be thought of. These are called the three Dharmas."

The Buddha taught:

"O Maitreya! The Bodhisattva also has four practices of the Dharma for casting away the evil paths and not falling into evil companions. What are the four? The first is to stand upon the precepts; the second is to have no doubt with regard to all dharmas; the third is to delight in dwelling in places of peace and stillness; the fourth is to contemplate with equanimity. These are the four Dharmas."

The Buddha said:

"O Maitreya! The Bodhisattva also has five practices of the Dharma for casting away the evil paths and not falling into evil companions. What are the five?

1/ Always to establish virtue and righteousness.

2/ Not to seek out the good or bad points of others.

3/ To purify oneself through bodily conduct.

4/ Always to delight in the right Dharma.

5/ Not to think of oneself, but always to rescue others.

These are the five Dharmas."

The Buddha said:

"O Maitreya! The Bodhisattva also has six practices of the Dharma for casting away the evil paths and not falling into evil companions. What are the six?

1/ Not to be miserly or greedy.

2/ To rid oneself of a wicked and evil mind.

3/ Not to be deluded.

4/ Not to speak coarse and vulgar words.

5/ To keep the mind like empty space.

6/ To take emptiness as one's dwelling.

These are the six Dharmas."

The Buddha said:

"O Maitreya! The Bodhisattva also has seven practices of the Dharma for casting away the evil paths and not falling into evil companions. What are the seven?

1/ To have an expedient and skillful mind.

2/ To be able to discern the Dharma-treasures.

3/ Always to be diligent.

4/ Always to be joyful.

5/ To attain the eye of faith.

6/ To understand well the settling of the mind in samādhi.

7/ To gather in completely the bright wisdom.

These are the seven Dharmas."

The Buddha said:

"O Maitreya! The Bodhisattva also has eight practices of the Dharma for casting away the evil paths and not falling into evil companions. What are the eight?

1/ To attain right view.

2/ Right mindfulness.

3/ Right speech.

4/ Right livelihood.

5/ Right action.

6/ Right effort.

7/ Right thought.

8/ Right concentration.

These are the eight Dharmas."

The Buddha said:

"O Maitreya! The Bodhisattva also has nine practices of the Dharma for casting away the evil paths and not falling into evil companions. What are the nine?

1/ The Bodhisattva, having been liberated from desire and having departed far from all evils, with regard to unwholesome dharmas having no thought or remembrance, attains tranquility and joy, and practices the foremost one-pointedness of mind.

2/ Having removed thought and remembrance, the inner mind being tranquil and still, having attained one-pointedness, without thought, without activity, he then attains the settling of the mind, the mind becomes joyful and pleased, and he practices the second one-pointedness of mind.

3/ Departing from the contemplation of joy, he always attains tranquility, and the body becomes at ease like that of the sages and saints. Whether speaking or contemplating, the mind does not waver; he practices the third one-pointedness of mind.

4/ Having cut off both suffering and pleasure, having put to rest both gladness and sorrow, having contemplated and seen neither suffering nor pleasure, the mind being pure, he attains the fourth one-pointedness of mind.

5/ He transcends the perception of form.

6/ He no longer speaks of perception.

7/ He no longer thinks of perception, and enters entirely into the wisdom of empty space, which is countless and immeasurable.

8/ Having transcended the countless wisdom of empty space, he enters into the practice of the boundless realm of bliss.

9/ Having transcended all the wisdoms of consciousness and knowing, no longer holding the perceptions of existence or non-existence, having transcended all the wisdoms of non-consciousness, he then enters into the practice of neither-perception-nor-non-perception, not seeing perception, and attains the samādhi of tranquility and stillness.

These are the nine Dharmas."

The Buddha said:

"O Maitreya! The Bodhisattva also has ten practices of the Dharma for casting away the evil paths and not falling into evil companions. What are the ten?

1/ To attain the Vajra Samādhi.

2/ Wherever he may be, the samādhi continues to progress.

3/ To attain the samādhi of teaching with skillful means.

4/ To attain the samādhi of mastering both that which has thought and that which is without thought.

5/ To attain the samādhi that pervades all the world.

6/ To attain the samādhi of equanimity toward suffering and pleasure.

7/ To attain the Jewel-Moon Samādhi.

8/ To attain the Bright-Moon Samādhi.

9/ To attain the Illuminating Samādhi.

10/ To attain the Twofold-Stillness Samādhi, complete with all the dharmas.

O Maitreya! These are the ten practices of the Dharma of the Bodhisattva for casting away the evil paths and not entering among evil companions."

At that time the Bodhisattva Maitreya used a verse to praise the Buddha:

At that time the worthy one Ānanda addressed the Buddha:

"It is truly unprecedented, World-Honored One! The aspiration of this Bodhisattva Maitreya is complete; his exposition of the Dharma is without deficiency, his teaching of the Dharma's words and phrases is evenly balanced, the Dharma-verses he has spoken are unconstrained, and his exposition of the sūtra is entirely without disorder."

The Buddha taught:

"So it is, so it is, Ānanda! As you have said, the Bodhisattva Maitreya is fully endowed with eloquence, and the sūtra-Dharma he expounds is without deficiency."

The Buddha taught:

"O Ānanda! It is not only with this verse that the Bodhisattva Maitreya praises me. But a thousand countless eons ago, in the past, there was at that time a Buddha named Viêm Quang Cụ Hưởng Tác Vương [King of the Maker of Flaming Light and Complete Resonance], who was a Tathāgata, the One Free of All Attachment, the Perfectly Enlightened One, presently accomplished in wisdom-conduct and abiding in peace, the Father of the World, the Unsurpassed One, the Tamer who governs by the Dharma of the Path, the Honored One of the heavens above and the heavens below, the Buddha, the Heaven-among-Heavens.

At that time there was a brahmin elder named Hiền Hạnh [Worthy Conduct] who came out from his garden lodge. From afar he saw the Tathāgata practicing walking meditation, his bodily form shining with brilliant radiance. When he had seen this, his mind reflected thus: 'How excellent, truly unprecedented!

The body of the Tathāgata is lofty and sublime, beyond all conception in this way; the radiance of his form is truly beautiful, his majestic spirit shines forth, and he has fine virtues to adorn his body. May my body in a future life be endowed with such radiance and majestic spirit shining forth, and may I have fine virtues to adorn myself!' When he had made this aspiration, he then lay stretched out upon the ground, and in his mind he thought: 'May I in a future life attain the Dharma-body like the Tathāgata, the One Free of All Attachment, the Perfectly Enlightened One.

May the Tathāgata walk upon my body.'

At that time the World-Honored One, the Tathāgata King of the Maker of Flaming Light and Complete Resonance, knowing the mind of the brahmin Hiền Hạnh, who was thus the son of an elder, stepped across his body. As soon as he had stepped across his body, the man attained the forbearance of the non-arising of dharmas. Then the Buddha turned back and said to his attendant:

'The reason I stepped upon the body of the brahmin Hiền Hạnh, the son of the elder, was so that he might immediately attain the forbearance of the non-arising of dharmas, so that his eyes might see everywhere, his ears might hear all, that he might know the thoughts in the minds of others, know for himself whence he was born, that his body might travel through the air, and that he might be fully endowed with spiritual powers.'

When the Buddha stepped across the body of the brahmin Hiền Hạnh, the man at once became fully endowed with all the wisdoms and the five spiritual powers, without ever losing them.

Then he composed a verse to praise the Buddha:

"Coming and going through the world, reaching the ten directions,
Honored among men, none can equal you;
Pointing the way for all beings in their conduct,
I vow to bow my head to the Teacher of the Path.

The mark between his brows is clear and translucent,
His majesty immeasurable as the snowy mountains;
His halo illuminates the three realms,
The Buddha in the world has no equal.

At that time the Buddha said to the worthy one Ānanda:

"Do you wish to know who the son of the elder, the brahmin Hiền Hạnh, was at that time? Now he is none other than the Bodhisattva Maitreya."

The worthy one Ānanda then addressed the Buddha:

"The Bodhisattva Maitreya attained the forbearance of non-arising long, long ago. Why then has he not quickly attained the Path of Supreme, True, and Right Enlightenment, becoming the Utmost Perfectly Enlightened One?"

The Buddha said:

"O Ānanda! It is for four matters that the Bodhisattva does not grasp the fruit of perfect enlightenment. What are the four?

1/ To purify the buddha-land.

2/ To protect the buddha-land.

3/ To purify all (living beings).

4/ To protect all living beings.

These are the four matters. When the Bodhisattva Maitreya sought the fruit of Buddhahood, it was for these four matters that he did not take hold of the fruit of Buddhahood."

The Buddha said:

"O Ānanda! When I myself sought the fruit of Buddhahood, I too wished to purify the buddha-land, also wished to purify all, also wished to protect the buddha-land, also wished to protect all. The Bodhisattva Maitreya aroused the mind forty-two eons before me. Only afterward did I arouse the aspiration for the Path, in the time of the Worthy Eon, and by exerting the utmost diligence I surpassed nine eons and attained the Path of Supreme, True, and Right Enlightenment, becoming the Utmost Perfectly Enlightened One."

The Buddha said to the worthy one Ānanda:

"It is by means of ten matters that I attained the Utmost Perfect Enlightenment:

1/ Not begrudging my possessions.

2/ My wife.

3/ My children.

4/ My head and eyes.

5/ My hands and feet.

6/ My land and country.

7/ My jewels, treasures, and wealth.

8/ My marrow and brain.

9/ My blood and flesh.

10/ Not begrudging my own life.

O Ānanda, it is by means of these ten matters that I swiftly attained the Buddha-Path."

The Buddha said to the venerable Ānanda:

"There are also ten matters for swiftly attaining the Buddha-Path. What are the ten?

1/ To establish oneself in the Dharma with regard to moral virtue.

2/ Always to practice forbearance.

3/ Always to practice diligence.

4/ Always to maintain one-pointedness of mind.

5/ Always to practice the wisdom that reaches the other shore.

6/ Not to abandon all (beings).

7/ Having attained the mind of forbearance, to be equanimous toward all.

8/ Not to accumulate emptiness.

9/ To attain the Dharma-forbearance of emptiness.

10/ To attain the Dharma of non-perception.

O Ānanda! It is by means of these ten Dharmas that I myself realized the Buddha-Path."

The Buddha said to the worthy one Ānanda:

"When I first sought the Buddha-Path, I underwent countless hardships before I attained the Path of Supreme, True, and Right Enlightenment; this was not a matter of a single occasion."

The Buddha taught:

"O Ānanda! In a past age there was a Crown Prince, the son of a king, named Nhất Thiết Hiện Nghĩa [He Who Reveals the Meaning of All Things], upright and handsome, who came out from his garden lodge onto the road and saw a person suffering grievously from illness. Having seen this, he gave rise to compassion and asked the sick man:

'What kinds of medicine must be used to cure this disease?'

The sick man replied:

'Only the blood from the king's body can cure my disease.'

Then the Crown Prince at once took a sharp knife and pierced his own body, drew forth his blood, and gave it to the sick man, wholeheartedly giving it to the sick man without a single regret in his heart."

The Buddha said to Ānanda:

"The Crown Prince Hiện Nghĩa at that time was none other than my own body. O Ānanda! The waters of the four seas may yet be measured, but the blood from my body that I gave away is without limit, for I sought perfect enlightenment thereby."

The Buddha said to the worthy one Ānanda:

"In a distant age past there was a Crown Prince, the son of a king, named Liên Hoa Vương [Lotus-Flower King], upright, handsome, and of lofty majestic spirit, who came out from his garden lodge for a stroll and saw a person whose body was afflicted with leprosy. Having seen this, he gave rise to compassion and asked the sick man:

'What kinds of medicine must be used to cure your disease?'

The sick man replied:

'If the marrow from the king's body were smeared upon my body, then the disease would be cured.'

At that time the Crown Prince split open his own bones, took out his marrow, and gave it to the sick man. The Crown Prince gave such an offering with joy, and his mind held no regret. The Crown Prince at that time was none other than my own mind."

The Buddha said to the venerable Ānanda:

"The waters of the four seas may yet be measured, but the marrow from my body that I gave in charity cannot be reckoned."

The Buddha said to the venerable Ānanda:

"In a past age there was a king named Nguyệt Minh [Moonlight], upright, exceedingly handsome, and of lofty majestic spirit, who came out from his palace onto the road and saw a blind man, poor and destitute, hungry and thirsty, groping his way along the road to beg for food, who came to where the king was and said:

'You alone, O king, are honored and revered, at peace and full of delight, while I alone am poor and destitute, and moreover blind.'

At that time King Nguyệt Minh, seeing this blind man, felt pity and shed tears, and said:

'What kinds of medicine are there that can cure the disease of the eyes and enable me to see?'

Then King Nguyệt Minh gouged out both his own eyes and gave them to the blind man. At that time the king's heart remained calm and unmoved, without the slightest regret. King Nguyệt Minh at that time was none other than my own body."

The Buddha taught:

"Mount Sumāti-Meru may yet be weighed and measured, but the eyes I gave in charity cannot be counted."

The Buddha said to the worthy one Ānanda:

"In the past, when the Bodhisattva Maitreya sought the Path, he did not give away his ears, nose, head, eyes, hands, feet, body and life, precious treasures, cities and towns, wife and children, and his kingdom as charity to others in order to accomplish the Buddha-Path; rather, he used only the practice of peace and joy, and skillful expedient means, to attain the Buddha-Path."

The venerable Ānanda addressed the Buddha:

"By what skillful means did the Bodhisattva Maitreya attain the Buddha-Path?"

The Buddha taught:

"O Ānanda, the Bodhisattva Maitreya, day and night, wore his three robes upon his body, joined his palms, knelt upon the ground, and facing the ten directions spoke this verse:

'I repent of all my faults,
I take refuge in and pay homage to all the Buddhas,
I urge the multitude to aid in the virtue of the Path,
May I attain the Unsurpassed Wisdom.'"

The Buddha said to the worthy one Ānanda:

"It was by using this skillful means that the Bodhisattva Maitreya attained the Path of Supreme, True, and Right Enlightenment, becoming the Utmost Perfectly Enlightened One. O Ānanda! When the Bodhisattva Maitreya sought the Path, he made this vow: 'May the people of my country be without any defilements. When their lust, anger, and delusion are slight and thin, and they earnestly practice the ten wholesome deeds, only then shall I realize the fruit of Supreme, Right Enlightenment.'"

The Buddha said to the venerable Ānanda:

"When the people of a future age are without defilement, practice the ten wholesome deeds, and have no lust, anger, or delusion in their minds, at that very moment the Bodhisattva Maitreya shall attain the Path of Supreme, True, and Right Enlightenment, becoming the Utmost Perfectly Enlightened One. Why is this so? Because the original vow of the Bodhisattva Maitreya shall thus be fulfilled."

The Buddha said to the worthy one Ānanda:

"When I sought the Bodhisattva-Path, wishing to protect all living beings and wishing them to be made pure, I dwelt amid lust, anger, and delusion, and amid the five turbidities, taking my delight in the place of birth and death. Why is this so? Because the people for the most part did what is contrary to the Dharma, took the wrong for the right, practiced heretical paths, killed and harmed one another, were unfilial toward their fathers and mothers, with minds that constantly thought of evil, held ill will toward brothers, wives, children, kinfolk, and others, despised the upādhyāya, constantly committed the impurities between men and women, and devoured one another.

I vowed to become a Buddha in this very age, whether they dwell in provinces and kingdoms, mountains and forests, districts and towns. They speak only of evil things, turn back to kill and harm one another, or hurl bricks and stones at one another, beat one another with staves, gather together to revile and curse one another, return to their homes and set out their tables of food and drink, and put poison into the food wishing to harm others, give rise to defiled thoughts, slander one another, conceal what is evil, turn to bribery, and have no good intentions."

The Buddha taught:

"O Ānanda! With a vast and boundless compassion I am mindful of them all, and for these people I expound the Dharma and the sūtras."

When the worthy one Ānanda heard the Buddha teach thus, he then said:

"I have never seen any Heaven-among-Heavens Tathāgata, any Perfectly Enlightened One, who could undergo such hardship, arouse the great resolve to subdue what is wicked and evil, cause the wholesome Dharma to be accomplished, remove the heavy burden, be fully endowed with the Dharma-treasures, and for the sake of these people expound the Dharma and the sūtras."

The Buddha taught:

"It is so, Ānanda, as you have said. The Buddha is able to endure this, and so the Tathāgata, the Perfectly Enlightened One, teaches and transforms the stubborn and unyielding, removing the darkness for all kinds of beings. He uses the full majestic virtue of the Buddha-Dharma, and for the sake of these people he expounds the Dharma and the sūtras."

The venerable Ānanda addressed the Buddha:

"Hearing that the Tathāgata uses such an equanimous, diligent, and firm mind, the hairs upon my body stand on end. Now, what is this sūtra to be called, and how is it to be upheld and practiced?"

The Buddha taught:

"This sūtra is called 'Maitreya's Inquiry Concerning the Original Vow, on Guarding the Original Conduct of the Compassionate One [Maitreya], Which Is to Be Well Received and Upheld.'"

When the Buddha, the Tathāgata, had finished expounding this sūtra, the Bodhisattva Maitreya, the worthy one Ānanda, the worthy one Mahā Kāśyapa, the great disciples and the assembly of Bodhisattvas, the entire assembly, the devas, nāgas, gandharvas, and the people of the world... having heard the sūtra rejoiced, came before the Buddha, and bowed in homage.

THE SŪTRA OF THE BODHISATTVA MAITREYA'S INQUIRY CONCERNING THE ORIGINAL VOW