大悲經

Volume Four

Chapter Twelve: Various Similes Concerning the Preservation of the True Dharma

At that time, the World-Honored One again said to Venerable Ananda: “When I attained bodhi, the merit and benefit were the same as when I practiced the bodhisattva conduct. Such merit and benefit are difficult for pratyekabuddhas to equal, much less shravakas and other sentient beings. Ananda! When I was still a bodhisattva devoted to ascetic practices, I relinquished my royal throne, wife and children, palace women, and even my life, hands and feet, head, eyes, ears, nose, blood, flesh, bones, and marrow; I also encountered countless illnesses and sufferings. All this was solely for the sake of attaining anuttara-samyak-sambodhi.

“Ananda! I relinquished everything that was difficult to relinquish. I endured all these hardships solely for the sake of sentient beings.

Ananda! Were I to speak continually of this merit, I could never exhaust it. Anyone who heard it might become mentally bewildered, how much more one who tried to recount it.

Ananda! If any sentient being gives rise to even a single thought of loving-kindness and compassion, thinking, ‘From time immemorial, Shakyamuni Tathagata, Worthy One, Perfectly Enlightened One, underwent the extreme hardships of the bodhisattva conduct and, for my sake, endured immeasurable kinds of illness, suffering, and adversity,’ Ananda, I say that such a person has already generated the aspiration and will ultimately attain nirvana, how much more those who have planted roots of goodness in my presence.

“Ananda! There may be foolish and arrogant people who do not believe. When they hear of my ascetic practices, they do not give rise to even a single thought of sorrow, do not say that the Tathagata has brought great benefit, and still do not believe.

Yet if such a person performs a supreme deed, that person can also attain nirvana. Ananda! Such supreme merit and benefit are absent in pratyekabuddhas, much less could they be possessed by shravakas and ordinary beings.

Ananda! The practice of the bodhisattva conduct requires great compassion, which likewise cannot be possessed by pratyekabuddhas. Ananda!

Through practicing the bodhisattva conduct, I attained great compassion; and after attaining great compassion, I attained anuttara-samyak-sambodhi. This is called the Dharma of protection and guidance through great loving-kindness and great compassion. This is a causal condition that pratyekabuddhas do not possess; such is its meaning.

Such a person cannot become a Tathagata, Worthy One, Perfectly Enlightened One, and does not possess in full the ten powers, the four fearlessnesses, great loving-kindness, and great compassion. Ananda! I know that in the past, while practicing austerities and seeking only wholesome Dharma, my mind constantly feared samsara.

Therefore, for the sake of sentient beings, I cultivated the mind of great compassion. It was as though, in a dream, I saw the Great Iron Enclosure Mountains covered in ice and frost. In those worlds were sentient beings dwelling in hell.

Imprisoned there, their bodies were broken and ruined, while blazing fires surrounded them on every side. They endured manifold sufferings, as though their lives were being taken away. I went to that place.

They all joined their palms, bowed, and said:

“‘Noble One! You are at ease, while we undergo the retribution of hell, suffering agonies and torments so unbearable that they are like death. No one rescues us, no one helps us; we have nowhere to return and nowhere to rely upon. Great Being! If you can save those who suffer in this way, that would indeed be no small deed.’ Ananda! At that time, I gave rise to loving-kindness and compassion for those sentient beings in hell. In that dream, the tears of the sentient beings surged like the waters of the Ganges. I comforted them, saying:

“‘All of you, do not be afraid! I shall free you from suffering.’ Ananda! At that time, I instructed all the sentient beings in hell to gather in one place.

I raised my left hand as a sign and said, ‘All of you, do not be afraid! I shall now save and deliver every one of you.’ After I had spoken these words, the fires of hell were extinguished, and in an instant all the sentient beings there attained peace and happiness. Ananda!

I then awoke from the dream, took up my robe, and collected my tears in a vessel. Ananda! Such was my practice of loving-kindness and compassion while cultivating the bodhisattva conduct, how much more now that I have attained anuttara-samyak-sambodhi.

Ananda! You should know that even pratyekabuddhas cannot possess such qualities, much less shravakas, ordinary beings, and others. Ananda!

Whoever possesses this Dharma is one who practices the bodhisattva conduct. Ananda, behold how, in the past, when the Tathagata practiced the bodhisattva conduct, he was fully endowed with sympathy, a wish to benefit sentient beings, and the mind of great compassion. Even if I were to speak continually of such merit with my own mouth, I could never exhaust it.

“Ananda! In a past life, there were three merchant leaders who, seeking precious treasures, entered the great ocean together with a company of merchants. When their ship had been filled with treasures and reached the middle of the ocean, it was wrecked. At that time, the merchant leader became frightened and distressed. Some of those aboard clung to planks from the ship, while others died and floated upon the water. Ananda! At that time, I was the merchant leader who had come safely to the surface of that ocean. Then five men called out to the merchant leader, saying:

“‘Great Being, Merchant Leader! Please free us from fear.’ After they had spoken these words, the merchant leader immediately replied:

“‘Good men! Do not be afraid! I have escaped the perils of this great ocean and reached safety.’ Ananda! At that time, the merchant leader carried a sword upon his person and said:

“‘The great ocean does not retain a corpse. Therefore, I shall relinquish my own body and life so that these merchants may escape this suffering and danger.’ Having reflected in this way, he brought the merchants to safety. Some of them climbed upon his shoulders, while others clung around his legs. At that time, wishing to bestow fearlessness upon them, the merchant leader courageously aroused the mind of great compassion, summoned the strength of his resolve, and used the sword to sever his own life faculty. He then died. His corpse was carried by the currents to the shore of the great ocean. Thus the five merchants crossed the ocean safely and joyfully, met with no calamity, and returned safely to Jambudvipa.”

Ānanda! The caravan leader at that time was none other than I myself. Those five merchants were these very five bhikshus.

Long ago, upon the great ocean, those five bhikshus were delivered; now, once again, they have crossed over the great ocean of samsara, reaching safety and fearlessness upon the further shore of nirvana. Ānanda! Consider now what austerities I cultivated to perfection, and how many merits I accumulated to become such a bodhisattva-mahasattva. Ānanda! Such merits should be understood one by one.

Nor can they be accomplished by pratyekabuddhas. Ānanda! Such are the merits of a bodhisattva. Pratyekabuddhas do not possess these qualities.

They do not become a Tathagata, Worthy One, Perfectly Enlightened One, nor do they attain anuttara-samyak-sambodhi. Ānanda! Thus did I successively cultivate austerities and come to be called a bodhisattva who compassionately cares for all sentient beings. Ānanda! There are also foolish people who do not give rise to faith in the Buddha.

Because of this cause and condition, they do not obtain the fundamental seed for realizing anuttara-samyak-sambodhi, nor can they attain unsurpassed nirvana. If they give rise to reverence and faith in me, they immediately obtain the seed of bodhi through which they will realize the fruit of nirvana. Ānanda! Those who cultivate a little gain little merit; those who cultivate fully will gain complete merit. Ānanda!

What I now declare is certain: if any sentient being utters even a single word of reverence and faith, this root of goodness will become a seed—how much more so if that being plants supreme roots of goodness. Ānanda! If anyone plants a root of goodness in relation to the Buddha, even to the extent of giving rise to a single thought of mindfulness of the Buddha, I say that such a person is like the finest ambrosia among all ambrosias. Ānanda!

Practitioners should single-mindedly plant merits, recollect the Tathagata, and be mindful of what the Tathagata is mindful of: recollect the Tathagata’s roots of goodness and recollect the Tathagata’s lineage. This lineage is not one arising from worldly pleasures and delights. It is a lineage that has departed from every darkness and performs deeds of illumination.

Ānanda! I was born into the Śākya clan, a lineage of purity. Ānanda! Know the birth of the Tathagata; recollect the Tathagata’s ancestry, recollect the Tathagata’s clan, recollect the fullness of the Tathagata’s accumulated riches, and recollect the Tathagata’s noble appearance.

Recollect the Tathagata’s birthplace and marks; recollect the Tathagata’s beautiful marks; recollect the Tathagata’s ten powers; recollect the Tathagata’s four fearlessnesses; recollect the Tathagata’s eighteen exclusive qualities; recollect the perfection of the Tathagata’s birth; recollect the Tathagata’s beauty; recollect the Tathagata’s freedom from delusion; recollect the perfection of the Tathagata’s past practices; recollect the perfection of the Tathagata’s vows; recollect the perfection of the Tathagata’s morality, concentration, wisdom, liberation, and knowledge and vision of liberation; recollect the perfection of the Tathagata’s loving-kindness, compassion, sympathetic joy, and equanimity; and recollect the perfection of the Tathagata’s dignified conduct.

Ānanda! If anyone follows the practice of mindfulness of the Buddha and thereby obtains merit, great spiritual powers, and vast benefit, this is like the foremost ambrosia among all ultimate ambrosias. Ānanda! Long ago, when practicing the bodhisattva conduct, I cultivated the perfection of generosity.

I contemplated the merit, knowledge, and vision of a Buddha and found them boundless—how much more so the merits arising from the perfection of morality, the perfection of patience, the perfection of diligence, the perfection of meditation, and the perfection of prajnaparamita. If a bodhisattva has not yet received a prediction, the Buddha contemplates that bodhisattva’s merit and finds no limit to it; how much more so after the bodhisattva has received a prediction, when that merit continues until buddhahood and encompasses every merit.

Even if one were to contemplate and reveal it for hundreds of thousands of kotis of nayutas of kalpas, there would be no limit. Why is this? It is because the merits of a Tathagata, Worthy One, Perfectly Enlightened One are immeasurable. Ānanda!

Seeing this benefit, I now speak in this way. If anyone recollects the time when I practiced the bodhisattva conduct and gives rise to faith, that person will obtain meritorious benefit. Through this root of goodness, that person will certainly enter nirvana.

Furthermore, Ānanda, do not grieve! I have benefited and embraced devas and humans, and therefore taught them the path. I have enabled everyone to realize unsurpassed peace, and in the future they will enter nirvana.

You should diligently cultivate skillful means and must not be heedless.

At that time, the Blessed One again addressed the bhikshus:

“After this night, I shall enter nirvana! You now behold me for the last time, receive my instruction for the last time, and meet me for the last time. From this time onward, you will no longer see me, and I shall no longer see you.

Bhikshus! Do not grieve! All who are affectionately cherished and praised must eventually part.

Bhikshus! Whatever has arisen is subject to arising. You must know and discern all dharmas.

Whatever arises through causes and conditions must inevitably perish; there is no possibility that it will not perish. Bhikshus! Even one who lives long must eventually depart.

Bhikshus! Whoever is born cannot avoid death. All conditioned phenomena are impermanent and ultimately subject to change.

Bhikshus! You should strive diligently in cultivation and must not be heedless. Because the Buddhas, the World-Honored Ones, were not heedless, they realized anuttara-samyak-sambodhi together with all wholesome factors that assist the path.

You are now receiving my instruction.”

At that time, the great assembly of bhikshus, bhikshunis, upasakas, upasikas, devas, nagas, yakshas, gandharvas, asuras, garudas, kinnaras, mahoragas, Śakra, Brahmā, the Four Heavenly Kings, and others, upon hearing this final teaching, became sorrowful and joyless. Overcome by anxious thoughts, grief, and remembrance, they wept bitterly, cried out loudly, and said:

“The Bhagavat is entering nirvana! How can we bear it? The Sugata is entering nirvana! How can we bear it? The world is without eyes; the world has become blind. How painful this is! How can we and all sentient beings be parted from him so soon?”

At that time, when Venerable Ānanda heard these words, he fixed his eyes upon the Tathagata without looking away. Overcome by sorrowful thoughts, he wept, threw himself upon the ground, and struck his body against the trunk of a tree.

At that time, the Blessed One said to Ānanda: “Cease your grieving. As I have said, I am proceeding toward nirvana. All who are cherished and loved must eventually come to separation. Whatever arises and abides is conditioned. One must know the distinctions among dharmas and understand the Dharma. All dharmas arising through causes and conditions must disintegrate. It cannot be otherwise that they should not pass away.”

After the Venerable Ānanda heard the Buddha’s teaching, he immediately addressed the Buddha:

O Bhagavat! How could I not grieve? O Sugata!

How could I not sorrow? You are the most precious one to me and to all sentient beings. You have lived among sentient beings and have been their Teacher, the refuge of the world, the one to whom the world returns, the Great Teacher of gods and humans—yet now we must be parted from you.

Therefore, O Bhagavat, how could I not grieve? O Sugata, how could I not sorrow? How could I remain unmoved?

The World-Honored One has regarded all sentient beings with great compassion, cherishing the world as his own kin. You have been a bright lamp illuminating the path for the world, yet now we must part; I feel my heart overwhelmed a hundredfold. World-Honored One!

I do not wish to see you pass away in this place. World-Honored One! I perceive that your body cannot be subject to decay.

World-Honored One! I further reflect that your not entering nirvana is entirely due to the spiritual power of the Tathagata. O Bhagavat!

How could I not lament? O Sugata! How could I not grieve?

You are the Teacher of the world, the one who has compassionately cared for the world, yet tomorrow you will be no more and can no longer be seen.

At that time, the Buddha again said to the Venerable Ananda: “Do you cherish me?”

Ananda replied: “Very deeply, O Bhagavat! Very deeply, O Sugata!”

The Buddha said: “Ananda! What is it that you cherish in me?”

Ananda replied: “My love for the World-Honored One cannot be fully expressed in words, nor can I explain its ultimate extent. O Bhagavat, such is my love for you! O Sugata, such is my love for you! World-Honored One! For the sake of the Tathagata, I would relinquish even this body and life without regret. O Bhagavat, such is my love for you! O Sugata, such indeed is my love! World-Honored One! Only the Buddha himself can know and bear witness to my love for the Buddha. O Bhagavat, such is my love! O Sugata, such indeed is my love!”

At that time, the Buddha again said to Ananda: “If you cherish me in this way, then extend your right hand.”

Ananda then extended his right hand. The World-Honored One emitted a wondrous golden-crimson light from his own right hand and gently said to Ananda:

“If you cherish me, you should cherish all beings just as you cherish me. Throughout immeasurable hundreds of thousands of kotis of nayutas of asamkhya kalpas, I have progressed toward Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi. Now the treasure of the Dharma is entrusted to you.

Turn it in accordance with the way I have turned it; spread and develop it widely without allowing it to be interrupted. Do not let this Dharma disappear from the world. Ananda!

I shall now preserve it for your sake. Preserve the true Dharma and Vinaya as I have taught them, causing them to grow day by day; do not allow them to be destroyed or lost. I shall now give a parable by which all wise people will understand.

It is as though there were a noble householder, wealthy and prosperous, possessing property and many treasuries, yet still regarding those possessions as insufficient. Thus, his riches would not remain with him, and complete fulfillment would still be far away. Because conditioned things arise through causes and conditions, they can never be entirely complete.

The elder wished to have a son. When the son grew up, he had him study arithmetic, writings, literature, many crafts, and profound wisdom. After the son had completed his studies, the elder said to him: ‘I have now finished what I had to do for you by having you trained in arithmetic, history, writings, crafts, and wisdom.

Today I give you my final instruction. All these precious possessions belong to me, and I shall now entrust them to you. From this day forward, you should cultivate three things by which the family and its estate may be preserved.

What are the three? The first is aspiration, the second is diligence, and the third is heedfulness. Only then will you be worthy to become a wealthy elder.’ Thus, by skillful means, he instructed his son.

Nevertheless, the son lacked faith and became heedless, squandering all his parents’ property. Ananda! Consider this: did that son heed his father’s instruction?”

Ananda replied: “No, O Bhagavat! No, O Sugata!”

The Buddha said: “Ananda! Could that elder take his son’s place and carry out those duties for him?”

Ananda replied: “Indeed not, O Bhagavat! Indeed not, O Sugata!”

The Buddha said: “Ananda! The Tathagata is the father of the world, and you are like the son. Today this instruction is entrusted to you.

Throughout hundreds of thousands of kotis of nayutas of asamkhya kalpas, I have cultivated and accumulated the unsurpassed treasure of the Dharma, like stores of precious jewels! You must cultivate three things. What are the three?

The first is aspiration, the second is diligence, and the third is heedfulness. If you preserve these three things, you will long safeguard the unsurpassed treasure of the Dharma that I cultivated throughout asamkhya kalpas. Those who have not yet attained accord with the Dharma will penetrate it; once they have penetrated it, you must prevent them from regressing.

This is your responsibility. You should steadfastly preserve the treasury of the teaching that I cultivated throughout asamkhya kalpas in order to realize Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi. Those who have not yet abided in these three things shall now abide in them.

Those who have not yet attained accord with the Dharma shall now penetrate it. Those who have already penetrated it shall be kept from regressing and falling into ruin. Why is this?

Because, out of compassion, I have cared for and benefited the entire world, wishing to bring beings peace and happiness. Ananda! I have done for this world what a father does for his children.

I have done for you all that was to be done. Furthermore, Ananda! The Dharma of Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi that I cultivated throughout asamkhya kalpas can be submerged through three causes and conditions.

What are the three?

“The first is lack of faith, the second is acting without resolve, and the third is not knowing repentance. Therefore, Ananda! You should safeguard the treasury of the true Dharma. Abide in profound faith, firm resolve, and repentance. Cause these to grow, and do not be heedless; thereby apply skillful means to overcome the three things mentioned above. By doing so, you will make me worthy of being called the compassionate father of the world.

“I have done what a father wishing to care for his children should do. Ananda! This is the meaning. I further say: Cause this treasury of the true Dharma to be established and to flourish. Such is the parable. Upon hearing it, all wise people will understand clearly. Their reverence and faith will further increase, and they will then say:

“‘When Shakyamuni Tathagata, Arhat, Perfectly and Fully Awakened One, was about to enter nirvana for our sake, he extended his right hand, took Ananda’s hand, and entrusted to him the Dharma of Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi that he had cultivated throughout asamkhya kalpas.’ It is like a caravan leader who has traveled far along the road and has completed all that had to be done. Ananda! What do you think? Should that caravan leader return home, or remain midway upon the road?”

Ananda replied: “World-Honored One! That person should return home, not remain upon the road.”

“Ananda! In the same way, I am the father of the world, the friend of the world, and the Teacher of the world. Like that caravan leader, I have completed the task of awakening all beings. There is no work of a Buddha that I have left undone, and I have delivered all sentient beings who were ready to be delivered. Among those who have been delivered, none has any further grievance. Ananda! There are three things which, if incomplete and unattained, would prevent the Tathagata, Arhat, Perfectly and Fully Awakened One, from entering nirvana. What are the three?”

That is, the bodhisattva-mahasattvas who have not yet attained the stage of non-retrogression: if the Tathagata’s teaching has disappeared, and even after one kalpa, a hundred kalpas, a thousand kalpas, a hundred thousand kalpas, or a hundred thousand kotis of nayutas of kalpas they still have not attained awakening, then although the time has come for the Buddhas, the Blessed Ones, to enter nirvana, when they see that the bodhisattvas’ roots of goodness have not yet matured, they must bring them to maturity so that they may attain non-retrogression.

Sustained by the power of spiritual mastery in their bodies, they remain in the world and do not pass into extinction. They wait until the bodhisattvas attain non-retrogression; only then do they appoint successors and bestow predictions upon those who will attain the path and become Buddhas. Only at that time does the Tathagata enter nirvana without remainder.

Therefore, Maitreya and I have caused immeasurable hundreds of thousands of kotis of nayutas of bodhisattva-mahasattvas, who have received predictions of attaining anuttara-samyak-sambodhi, to remain until they reach the stage of avaivartika. This is what the Buddhas, out of compassion for sentient beings, have already accomplished. Furthermore, Ananda, if among the sentient beings who seek liberation through the Tathagata there remains anyone not yet delivered, the Tathagata will not enter nirvana.

A Buddha, a Blessed One, may know that throughout immeasurable hundreds of thousands of kotis of kalpas—except during times when no Buddha has appeared in this world or another world—wherever sentient beings dwell within the five paths, whether for one year, a hundred years, a thousand years, a hundred thousand years, a hundred thousand kotis of nayutas of years, one kalpa, or more than one kalpa, such persons will attain deliverance.

You should understand that it is not only all the shravakas and pratyekabuddhas who attain deliverance through the Buddha’s wisdom. Although the time for that Buddha’s nirvana has arrived, he still has compassion for them and, through his own spiritual power, prolongs the life of his body so that it does not perish, waiting until they have matured before entering extinction. Ananda, this is the second task that the Buddhas, the Blessed Ones, wish to accomplish and have already accomplished.

Only then do they enter nirvana without remainder.

Furthermore, Ananda, I have said: If something is Sutra, Vinaya, or Abhidharma, its profound meaning must be understood. When the shravakas and the Great Assembly have neither studied nor practiced it, they should discuss it together. If, within the assembly, a bhikshu gives rise to doubt and asks about it, one must not, out of reverence for the Buddha, intimidate or trouble him and refuse to answer; for this concerns the Buddha-knowledge and vision of the Tathagata, the Worthy One, the Perfectly Enlightened One. A magically manifested bhikshu came before the Tathagata and asked:

“Blessed One, what should be done here?”

The Buddha told that magically manifested bhikshu: “Bhikshu, what ought to be done here should be done.”

Ananda, these are the three tasks that the Buddhas, the Blessed Ones, must certainly accomplish. If these tasks are unfinished, they do not enter nirvana. As for me, I have completed everything that had to be done; there is nothing that I have left unsaid.

Ananda, I have now taught the shravakas how to preserve and cultivate the virtue of the precepts; to the very end, this remains the true and right path. Speech and conduct must accord with one another. Therefore, Ananda, you and the others should know that from this point onward I shall speak no more.

Be diligent and careful. I now bring my speaking to an end. Ananda, whatever I have taught, you should study and practice accordingly.

Do not be heedless or excessively lax. If you are not heedless, you will attain the fruit of the path. This is the meaning.

I instruct you not to worry and not to grieve.

Ananda, after tonight I shall enter nirvana. I am now taking leave of this land and realm, and I shall not return to this world again. Nor shall I go to another world. (Those who are born in that world in future generations will henceforth be unable to see me, and I shall no longer see them.) Ananda, I shall now enter nirvana without remainder.

This nirvana is tranquil and cool, free from dust and separated from defilement. All suffering is left behind. There is no birth, no aging, no illness, and no death; no anxiety, sorrow, suffering, or affliction.

There is nothing displeasing and nothing regrettable; there is no encountering those one hates and no separation from those one loves. It is the same for Blessed Ones as numerous as the sands of the Ganges, and likewise for all shravakas and pratyekabuddhas who have entered, are entering, or will enter it. Ananda, I now contemplate and delight in entering nirvana without remainder.

If ignorant ordinary beings do not rejoice in my entering this blissful nirvana and are also unable to give rise to a mind that accords with liberation, they should nevertheless arouse such a mind. This is the cause, the condition, and the seed through which they will enter nirvana in the future. Ananda, what power do ordinary beings possess?

In truth, they possess none at all. Ananda, I regard all ordinary beings as being like grains of barley. Therefore, Ananda, what power can ignorant people possess, and how can they be secure?

Thus, even if they are unable to arouse such a mind, this seed can assuredly enable them to enter nirvana.

Ananda, all ignorant ordinary beings lack the power of morality, the power of samadhi, and the power of wisdom. Ananda, I have perfected immeasurable powers of a Buddha. Throughout immeasurable asamkhya kalpas, I have perfected inconceivable and incomparable powers: morality, samadhi, wisdom, liberation, and the knowledge and vision of liberation; the power of moral dread, the power of moral shame, the difficult-to-accumulate power of cultivation, the power of knowledge, the power of equanimity, the power of merit, the power of wisdom, the power of the faculties, and the power of sustaining empowerment. Having fully perfected the ten powers, I therefore delight in nirvana without remainder.

Ananda, ignorant ordinary beings, being devoid of wisdom, cling to the sensual pleasures of samsara and wander within its dark prison, to the point that they are unable to arouse a mind of mindfulness that accords with liberation. Yet even they shall now possess the fundamental seed for entering nirvana. Ananda, the Tathagata has taught and praised it in this way. Regarding all the scriptures that will remain in the future: after the Buddha’s passing, if people in later ages hear them and, having heard them, arouse the aspiration, they will certainly attain entry into the realm of the true Dharma’s precious treasury—nirvana without remainder. Ananda, I shall now give a parable to deepen and increase your faith.

Ananda, it is like a caravan leader and merchants who have passed through dangerous places, escaped every hardship, and reached the city of fearlessness. There, one person went missing at midnight, and in great anxiety they searched for his tracks. All the merchants grieved and suffered; afterward, having crossed the perilous terrain, they saw their companion again.

Ananda, in the same way, after attaining anuttara-samyak-sambodhi, the Tathagata expounded the scriptures so that they might remain for future generations. After the Buddha’s passing, if good men and good women hear them and, having heard them, arouse the aspiration, they will reach the precious city of the true Dharma that I have left behind—the realm of nirvana without remainder. After reaching the city of the true Dharma, they will immediately reflect upon, safeguard, and widely proclaim my true Dharma.

Ananda, if even a single person who supports and preserves my true Dharma can accomplish this, how much more so immeasurable hundreds of thousands of sentient beings! For kotis of nayutas of asamkhya kalpas, I cultivated in order to attain anuttara-samyak-sambodhi and the precious treasury of the true Dharma. You should read, recite, receive, and uphold it.

For faithful men and women and the fourfold assembly, reveal, explain, and distinguish its meaning. Do not become people who destroy the Buddhadharma in the world.

Ānanda! In the future age, there will be sentient beings who, because they do not hear the meaning and principles of the sutras, will give rise to a mind of retreat. Therefore, Ānanda, I shall now relate a parable.

It is like a wealthy elder who possesses many treasuries filled to overflowing, fully furnished and lacking nothing. The elder has a son, but the son has traveled far away. The elder then falls gravely ill and suffers immeasurably. As he approaches death, he still has many precious things—maṇi gems, pearls, beryl, mother-of-pearl, gold, silver, and money—that must be entrusted to someone. The elder says, “My son has traveled far from here. Now I am gravely ill and may die today or tomorrow. For my son’s sake, I entrust to him this immeasurable wealth and treasure. If my son returns, tell him on my behalf: ‘Do not be heedless! Remain steadfast and composed; do not be heedless.’ Only afterward should you give these treasuries to him. When giving him the treasures, you should say this:

“‘You should accept them and not be heedless! Safeguard these possessions and do not allow them to be lost.’ After conveying these words of mine, give all these precious things to him.”

That person accepted the elder’s possessions. Not long after accepting them, the elder’s son returned from afar. Yet the person who had received the elder’s possessions in trust did not return them to the elder’s son. Ānanda! What do you think? Who was at fault in this matter?

The Venerable Ānanda said to the Buddha, “World-Honored One! The person who accepted the possessions in trust was at fault, not the other person. Why? Because that trustee personally received the precious things directly from the elder but did not return them to the elder’s son.”

The Buddha told Ānanda, “The noble and wealthy elder represents the Tathagata. His approaching death represents the Tathagata’s impending entrance into nirvana. The son represents those faithfully devoted good men and good women of future generations. His journey far away represents transmigration through the five paths. The precious treasures represent the precious treasury of Dharma that the Tathagata cultivated throughout hundreds of millions of nayutas of asaṃkhyeya kalpas to attain the unsurpassed state. Receiving the possessions from the elder represents you, the great śrāvakas, the bodhisattva-mahāsattvas, and the others who are charged with preserving my teaching.

“For the sake of the good men and good women of future generations, entrust it to Mahākāśyapa and Maitreya, as well as to the great bodhisattvas. If you are able to follow my teaching, then in future ages, after receiving this instruction, the disciples of the Buddha must preserve the precious Dharma. Why? Ānanda, among sentient beings after my passing, there will be those who mature and practice the bodhisattva conduct.

There will also be those who, because of evil karma, fall into the hells or are born as hungry ghosts or animals. After the Tathagata’s parinirvana, these sentient beings will also escape the evil paths, return to human birth, and cultivate and train until their faculties grow and mature. Through even a slight causal connection with my Dharma, they will be able to give rise to reverence and faith.

Among them will also be those who enter the monastic life and, upon hearing the sutras that I taught, attain excellent practice. Whether through the Śrāvaka Vehicle, the Pratyekabuddha Vehicle, or the Great Vehicle, they will enter nirvana.

“Ānanda! For the sake of these good men and good women of future generations, who rely upon me, I cultivated and trained for hundreds of thousands of millions of nayutas of asaṃkhyeya kalpas and imbued myself with the unsurpassed great treasury of the precious Dharma, so that they might hear it. Why? Because if those sentient beings do not hear this true Dharma, they will give rise to a mind of retreat. Therefore, for the sake of people in future generations, I now entrust this Great Treasury of Jewels to them. If they are able to hear it, they will not retreat. For this reason, I shall relate another parable.

“Ānanda! It is like a Wheel-Turning King who opens his treasury and commands his ministers, saying, ‘I shall now give alms to all śramaṇas and brāhmaṇas, and even to the poor and to beggars upon the roads. Let each receive according to his wishes. Those who want food shall have food; those who want drink shall have drink. Those who want vehicles shall have vehicles, and they shall also receive incense, flowers, ornaments, clothing, beds, pure lodgings, and every kind of necessary article in abundance.’ Yet after receiving this command, the keepers of the treasury give nothing away. Ānanda! What do you think? Who is at fault?”

Ānanda replied, “Greatly Virtuous Bhagavān, the keepers of the treasury are at fault.”

“Having understood this, you should cause the teaching to flourish, revealing, expounding, and explaining it for devas and humans, just as I have revealed it to you. Śramaṇas, brāhmaṇas, and all ordinary beings who possess reverent faith and seek the meaning of the Dharma must be allowed to hear it. Therefore, Ānanda, I now entrust this treasury of the precious Dharma to you, and you must disseminate it widely. If you do not joyfully proclaim, propagate, and extensively elucidate its meaning for faithful brāhmaṇas, elders, householders, and ordinary beings, then you have failed to act according to the Tathagata’s teaching.

Why? Ānanda, I am the unsurpassed Dharma Wheel-Turning King, possessing many treasuries of precious teachings. I am fully endowed with the seven factors of awakening, the ten powers, fearlessness, and the other aids to the path. Because I have attained mastery within this Dharma, I am called the Dharma King.

“You should preserve these eighty-four thousand treasuries of the true Dharma and expound them fully and without discrimination for faithfully devoted śramaṇas, brāhmaṇas, elders, householders, faithful ordinary beings, Dharma teachers, and others who seek the meaning of the Dharma. If you do not do so, the Dharma will perish. Therefore, Ānanda, remember that throughout hundreds of millions of nayutas of asaṃkhyeya kalpas I cultivated the path in order to realize the unsurpassed precious Dharma of Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi. If you reveal it widely to the four assemblies, you will not be acting contrary to the Tathagata’s teaching. If you do not expound it widely, you will be acting contrary to my words.

“Furthermore, Ānanda, even if a bhikṣu is an arhat who has exhausted the outflows and realized the unconditioned, if he is unable to elucidate and explain the Dharma to others, then as a teacher he brings no benefit to the Tathagata’s teaching. Nor is he one who safeguards my true Dharma. Therefore, I now entrust this Dharma to you.

Why? Ānanda, it is like a person who carries a torch of grass through the darkness as he returns to his home. There are also many people who wish to follow the torchbearer and, relying upon his grass torch, cross beyond that dark place. Yet once he reaches his home, he goes inside and leaves all the others behind. Ānanda!

What do you think? This person knows that the grass torch continues to burn. He also knows that many people wish to follow him and make use of this torch, yet he does not allow them to use it.

Thus, his conduct should be called unwholesome.”

Ānanda replied, “It should not be so, Bhagavān. It should not be so, Sugata.”

The Buddha said, “So it is, so it is, Ānanda! Suppose a bhikṣu attains the fruit of arhatship. After realizing the unconditioned Dharma, he also knows how sentient beings may be carried beyond birth and death, yet he does not elucidate and reveal it to them. I cultivated throughout asaṃkhyeya kalpas so that this Dharma might be widely disseminated and perpetuated. Therefore, such a person is called one who does not benefit sentient beings. He is also one who neither gathers in nor safeguards my true Dharma.

“Therefore, Ānanda, I now entrust to you this Dharma, which I cultivated throughout hundreds of millions of nayutas of asaṃkhyeya kalpas. You must preserve it and proclaim it widely. Do not allow it to be lost, for this is the true path. Do not permit this Dharma to disappear.”

Ananda! If there are bhiksus, bhiksunis, upasakas, or upasikas who abide in this Dharma, you should analyze and explain it to them, enabling them to comprehend, part by part, the Dharma treasure that I cultivated throughout kotis of nayutas of asamkhyeya kalpas. Therefore, Ananda, my cultivation of wholesome dharmas throughout kotis of nayutas of asamkhyeya kalpas, and this second entrustment, are for the sake of sentient beings in future generations. You must ensure that even those sentient beings who have not heard this Dharma do not lose heart.

Furthermore, Ananda! Suppose that wealthy elder, who possessed many treasure stores filled with mani jewels, pearls, coral, mother-of-pearl, and all manner of objects, had someone angrily set fire to one of those stores. The elder likewise became extremely angry, and one whose heart had always delighted in the elder became unhelpful.

One who was unhappy became joyful; one who was unhappy became secure. Thus, upon seeing the fire consuming the treasure store, he angrily abandoned it, remained indifferent, and paid no heed to the flames. Later, however, that person again conceived a compassionate, friendly, and beneficial mind toward the elder, wishing to restore security to everyone; yet upon seeing the fire, he left it alone, remained there indifferently, and did not wish to extinguish it.

Ananda! What does this mean? Can this friend be said to have acted rightly and in accordance with his intentions?

Ananda replied: No, Bhagavat! No, Sugata!

The Buddha said: Ananda! Though they were close to one another, when he saw the fire consuming the treasure store, he gave up without making any effort and even intensified his intention to let all the treasure stores be completely consumed. Is that not so?

Ananda replied: It is so, Bhagavat. It is so, Sugata.

The Buddha said: So it is, so it is. Ananda! I cultivated unsurpassed roots of goodness throughout kotis of nayutas of asamkhyeya kalpas. Yet when the Dharma treasure is declining and perishing, there will be bhiksus whose minds lack reverence and faith, who constantly violate the pure precepts and habitually practice evil dharmas. They will frequently come and go wherever there is singing and dancing. They will not delight in cultivating meditative concentration and an undistracted mind, but will be indolent, fallen, and corrupt. They will seldom listen to expositions of the Dharma and will not delight in reciting sutras. How, then, could they analyze and explain the Dharma for others, enabling those who hear it to preserve the Dharma treasure?

Furthermore, Ananda! A consecrated great ksatriya king had only one son, who had traveled far away and was absent. At that time, the great ksatriya king himself became gravely ill. Knowing that his illness was severe, he entrusted his various treasure stores to his chief ministers for safekeeping and said: If my son returns, you should enthrone him as king and hand over all the treasures to him. The chief ministers accepted the duties entrusted to them by the king. After they had accepted them, the king died. After the king's death, his son returned and ascended the throne. Once enthroned, he possessed sovereign authority, but the chief ministers did not return the treasures to him. Instead, they said:

Very well, Great King! The methods of governance are the precious things by which you may rule us.

Ananda, do you understand the meaning of this? Was it right for those chief ministers, who had accepted the elder's entrusted possessions, not to return them to the king's son?

Ananda replied: Bhagavat, Sugata, they were in the wrong.

The Buddha said to Ananda: The journey far away is an analogy for the five destinies of sentient beings. The illness is an analogy for the Buddha's approaching entry into nirvana. The storehouse of many treasures is an analogy for the thirty-seven factors conducive to awakening.

The elder's chief ministers are an analogy for the arhats. The other precious objects are an analogy for the Dharma treasures that I cultivated throughout kotis of nayutas of asamkhyeya kalpas and have entrusted to you for the sake of my disciples in future generations. Ananda!

In future generations, there will be sentient beings whom I matured long ago, but who, because of evil karma, were born among hell beings, animals, or hungry ghosts. After my parinirvana, they will be reborn as human beings. Their faculties will then grow and mature, and they will give rise to faith in my Dharma.

Some will therefore leave the household life. Among those who remain householders, some will attain stream-entry, while others will attain stages up to arhatship. After dying while still on the stage of training, they will again arouse a profound and vast aspiration and be born in a Buddha land.

Possessing many roots of goodness in relation to devas and humans, they will therefore fully obtain benefit. Having already aroused a mind of faith, they will then say:

That World-Honored One is my benevolent father who aided me; when I was born again, I gave rise to vast reverence and faith. Ananda! It is for their sake that I now entrust this entire Dharma treasure to you, so that they may hear this treasury of Dharma. Therefore, Ananda! For the sake of the Great Dharma Treasury, I now cause them to possess faith, just as those good men and good women who have heard it possess faith.

Ananda! When those good men and good women hear this Great Dharma Treasury, some will attain supreme realization; some will give rise to a mind of great love and delight; and some, after hearing it, will weep and their hair will stand on end. Ananda! If, after hearing this Dharma gate, anyone recollects the Buddha's merits, weeps, and has their hair stand on end, I predict that, through all these roots of goodness, they will attain nirvana.