大寶積經

20. CHAPTER ON THE PROPHECY OF THE ĀBHĀSVARA DEVAS

At that time, fifty-eight thousand kotis of Ābhāsvara devas saw the asuras, up to and including the Brahmā devas, make offerings to the Buddha and receive prophecies. They were all delighted, joyful, and gratified. Baring their right shoulders, placing their right knees on the ground, joining their palms, and bowing reverently to the Buddha, they addressed him, saying: “Blessed One!

There is a samadhi called Illumination of All Dharmas. If a great bodhisattva trains in this samadhi, he attains illumination regarding all dharmas and realizes the Dharma gateway of the bodhisattva treasury. Having clearly understood it, the great bodhisattva attains boundless eloquence, unobstructed eloquence, continuous eloquence, manifold eloquence, exquisite eloquence, truly excellent eloquence, appropriate eloquence, liberating eloquence, subtle eloquence, uncommon eloquence, extremely profound eloquence, and even the eloquence of the Tathagata.

Blessed One! What is the samadhi called Illumination of All Dharmas? A bodhisattva who enters this Dharma gateway reflects upon discursive thought and knows that all dharmas are without cognition and apart from cognition.

This absence of cognition pervades every place, and there is not a single dharma capable of examining or cognizing. Why is this? Because their nature is inherently detached.

If a dharma has no nature, how could it cognize? Having known that all dharmas are without cognition or awareness, the bodhisattva enters the gateway of the syllable A and attains the eloquence described above. Having entered the gateway of the syllable A, that bodhisattva attains boundless eloquence.

The syllable A is boundless; the syllable A is not all-pervasive; the syllable A is unconditioned; the syllable A is not conditioned; the syllable A is not accomplished; the syllable A is not a thing; the syllable A has no basis; the syllable A does not move; the syllable A is neither abbreviated nor extensive; the syllable A is not discriminated; the syllable A is not the accomplishment of any affair; the syllable A cannot be penetrated; the syllable A is not form; the syllable A cannot be displayed; the syllable A cannot be observed; the syllable A cannot be seen by anyone; the syllable A cannot be conceived; the nature of the syllable A is indeterminate; the syllable A is neither that which is known nor that which knows; the syllable A cannot be measured;

the syllable A cannot reveal itself; the syllable A cannot reveal anything else; the syllable A is inconceivable; the syllable A neither goes nor comes; the syllable A is neither near nor far; the syllable A is not speech; the syllable A is not a dharma that can be spoken; the syllable A is neither name nor function; the syllable A is not present before one; the syllable A does not obstruct; the syllable A does not shift; the syllable A cannot be altered; the syllable A is without differentiation; the syllable A is nondual; the syllable A is unborn; the syllable A is neither false nor real; the syllable A is inexpressible; the syllable A neither arises nor ceases; the syllable A is not purity.

The syllable A is not a dharma to be purified; the syllable A is neither grasped nor maintained; the syllable A does not appropriate anything else; the syllable A is not abandoned; the syllable A does not act for another dharma; the syllable A does not produce another dharma; the syllable A neither arises nor ceases; the syllable A can neither cause another dharma to arise nor cause another dharma to cease; the syllable A is neither arising nor non-arising; the syllable A is neither the cause of the arising of an arising dharma nor a condition for non-arising; the syllable A is not dependent; the syllable A is neither provisional nor non-provisional; the syllable A is neither compliant nor noncompliant; the syllable A is neither permitted nor not permitted;

the syllable A is neither attainable nor unattainable; the syllable A is neither empty nor nonempty; the syllable A is neither discriminated nor undiscriminated; the syllable A is neither characteristic nor non-characteristic; the syllable A is neither aspiration nor non-aspiration.

Blessed One! All dharmas have this same characteristic, namely, no characteristic. All dharmas share the same reality, namely, no reality; they share the same principle, namely, no principle; they share the same entry, namely, no entry; they share the same provisional designation, namely, no provisional designation; they share the same function, namely, no function; and they share the same expression, namely, no expression.

Blessed One! All dharmas are without arising, because they cannot be apprehended. Dharmas do not exist, because there is no existence. Dharmas are unborn, because they do not arise. Dharmas are unceasing, because they do not cease. They are unconditioned dharmas, because there is no fabrication.

Blessed One! All dharmas are identical in suchness. They should be known in this way.

Blessed One! Since those dharmas are unborn, how can their functions be known?

It is like a person acting in a dream. One should know that all dharmas are likewise. Why?

Because actions within a dream neither arise nor originate, nor do they truly exist. Although a dream is unreal, it is not without the provisional designation that says there are actions in a dream. All dharmas are likewise.

Blessed One! It is like an echo that exists only as a provisional designation. Dharmas are likewise merely provisional designations.

Blessed One! It is like an illusory person who is merely a provisional designation. One should know that dharmas are likewise merely provisional designations.

Blessed One! It is like a mirage that is merely a provisional designation. The provisional designation of dharmas is likewise.

Blessed One! Just as an image in a mirror has only nominal function, one should know that dharmas are likewise.

Blessed One! To please foolish ordinary beings, it is said that dream events exist, yet all events within a dream are unreal. Echoes, illusions, mirages, and reflections are likewise: they are only provisional designations and have no actual substance.

Blessed One! We understand the meaning and intent of the dharmas proclaimed by the Tathagata.”

The Ābhāsvara devas then spoke verses in praise of the Buddha:

“The Blessed One well knows this Dharma meaning
And boundlessly many other dharmas.
The Tathagata’s children, the heirs of the Buddha,
Receive their Father’s wealth and ever sport therein.

Those of little worldly wisdom cannot enter,
For they constantly cling to thoughts of self.
A self throughout the ten directions cannot be found;
The nature of self has always been inherently empty.

Like a mirage, which is not actual water,
The foolish see shimmering heat and think it water.
All such delusion arises from lack of wisdom;
Falsely and invertedly they grasp a self and person.

They misunderstand the Buddha’s teachings,
And therefore cannot fathom their profound intent.
The consciousness of ordinary beings is like mirage-water
And cannot comprehend the meaning of the skandhas.

Delighting in samsara, pierced by poisoned arrows,
Their faculties are swept away by powerful currents.
Ultimately all these are without inherent nature,
Yet, veiled by delusion, they falsely undergo suffering.

Without wisdom, they follow the afflictions,
Like fools carrying enemies upon their backs.
Hearing the Buddha teach the gateway of emptiness,
They fear that emptiness will destroy liberation.

Like a frightened person holding a knife,
Who should feel secure but instead becomes afraid.
The Dharma taught by the greatly wise Blessed One
Is the wondrous gateway of the syllable A.

They swiftly destroy afflictions, their enemies,
And soon realize unsurpassed great bodhi.
Having freed themselves and left the mind’s poisons,
They see the poisoned and give wisdom’s medicine.

They reach the ultimate fruit of the farther shore
And attain the supremely peaceful unconditioned state.
All dharmas are entirely empty;
Yet non-Buddhist doctrines falsely discriminate.

True suchness, quiescent cessation, and non-suchness
Are neither defiled nor pure.
Afflictions have no characteristics and need not be severed,
For their nature has always been inherently empty.

The world’s devas and humans are all deluded,
Like birds and beasts that see water in a mirage.
Falsely discriminating, they give rise to thirst,
Conceiving men and women, they undergo suffering.

Perfect in merit and free from darkness,
Only the Buddha can be the eye of the three realms.
The merit gained by our praise of the Buddha today
Is known only by the great Guide appearing in the world.

The Blessed One, Honored among Bipeds, is a mass of merit
And knows the karmic fruit that we shall receive.
With these supreme and wondrous roots of goodness,
We dedicate the merit to all beings.

May they, in future lives,
All attain omniscience.”

The Blessed One knew that the Ābhāsvara devas possessed profound faith and delight, and that they had perfected the cultivation of eloquence. Wishing the merit and roots of goodness of the great assembly to advance and increase gradually, the Buddha immediately manifested a smile.

The Venerable Bhikshu Aśvajit spoke verses to question the Buddha:

“The Greatly Compassionate Sugata never without cause
Displays so rare a smile.
The Unsurpassed One benefits the world;
The Perfectly Awakened One’s wisdom surpasses all beings.

The Blessed One, Honored among Bipeds, a mass of merit,
Out of compassion for beings, please explain:
For whom have you manifested this smile
And emitted supreme light illuminating the world?

If all beings should hear of this,
Their minds, becoming resolute, would greatly rejoice.
Practicing wholesome karma, they would realize Buddhahood,
Leave samsara, and reach nirvana.

The devas and humans of this world
Are oppressed by the sufferings of samsara.
Please ferry all beings beyond the sea of suffering
By expounding the great vessel of the Noble Eightfold Path.

Courageous, diligent, and mighty,
Their inner minds pure and free from the net of doubt,
They will transmit the Dharma spoken by the Tathagata,
True Buddha-children receiving the noble teaching.

With palms joined reverently and thoughts rightly composed,
They all long to listen.
Excellent indeed! Please proclaim the taste of amrita,
That those who thirst for Dharma may drink.

Who has increased roots of goodness before the Buddha
And fully accomplished past aspirations?
Who has attained a supreme and wondrous treasury of merit?
I now wish to hear their prophecy.

The Blessed One replied to the Venerable Aśvajit in verse:

For the benefit of the world, your eloquence increases;
Therefore you are able to question the Buddha today.
The Buddha shall now bestow a prophecy upon them;
Quiet your faculties and listen single-mindedly.

The Ābhāsvara devas possess supreme wisdom;
In the past they made offerings to countless Buddhas.
Seeing that no one in this world could offer refuge,
They brought forth the vast resolve to become Buddhas.

They cultivate genuine and wondrous practices
And will certainly attain omniscience.
For the sake of beings, they seek the Buddha-path,
Like showing the right road to those who have lost their way.

Hearing the Blessed One teach in this way,
In the Buddha’s supreme and unequaled voice,
Those wise ones who delight in the Buddha’s merit
Will certainly reach the ultimate farther shore.

Through the power of wisdom, they know their roots of goodness
And will certainly attain the bodhi of a Buddha.
Joyfully they have made the aspiration for bodhi,
As a mother rejoices greatly at the birth of a son.

For those seeking bodhi, these devas
Reveal the genuine, world-transcending right path.
For ineffably many nayutas of kalpas,
They shall cultivate the supreme and wondrous bodhisattva practices.

They shall teach beings more numerous than the stars
And establish them in a Buddha’s bodhi.
In future lives they shall perfect knowledge of the world
And naturally accomplish omniscience.

Their lands shall be ineffable;
Their vast worlds will contain tens of billions of realms.
Those lands shall be extremely pure and magnificent,
Adorned with measurelessly many supreme ornaments.

Among the beings in those Buddha-realms,
There shall be neither the three evil destinies nor the eight difficulties.
All shall bring forth the aspiration for bodhi,
And all shall abide at the stage of non-retrogression.

The former merit, compared with this mass of virtue,
Could never equal it through calculation or analogy.
Therefore, those established in the Mahayana
Should transmit its teaching to others.

Aśvajit, you should know that for this reason
The appearance of a Tathagata in the world is extremely rare,
As rare to encounter as an udumbara flower.
Thus has the Boundlessly and Greatly Wise One spoken.

A spiritual friend of profound and skillful wisdom,
Well versed in expedient means, shows the right path—
The peaceful, unsurpassed, and supreme bodhi.
Those who seek it should draw near such a friend.

Having heard such words from the Buddha’s mouth,
Perfect in wondrous and extremely profound meaning,
The entire great assembly rejoiced,
Elated, fulfilled, and gratified.

Nayutas of devas in the sky
Scattered celestial garments that floated slowly down.
Sounds of joyful praise filled the firmament
As they bowed to the unsurpassed one of great spiritual power.

His wondrous, pure wisdom liberates the world
And can remove the fever of beings’ afflictions.
The Buddha’s amrita teaching ends the three poisons,
Like agada medicine dispelling poison.

21. CHAPTER ON THE PROPHECY OF THE ŚUBHAKṚTSNA DEVAS

At that time, twelve nayutas of Śubhakṛtsna devas saw the asuras, up to and including the Ābhāsvara devas, make offerings to the Buddha and receive prophecies. They all rejoiced and exulted, manifested their spiritual power, and addressed the Buddha, saying: “Blessed One! There is a samadhi called Transcending All Dharmas.

After attaining this samadhi, a great bodhisattva experiences pleasant sensation rather than painful sensation in relation to all objects and all circumstances. Even amid the torments of hell, he gives rise to a perception of joy. When undergoing retribution as an animal in the animal realm, he likewise gives rise to a perception of joy.

When suffering hunger and thirst in the realm of hungry ghosts, he gives rise to a perception of joy. In the asura realm, he also gives rise to a perception of joy. When suffering in the human realm, he gives rise to a perception of joy and never gives rise to a perception of pain.

Even if his hands and feet are cut off, his ears and nose severed, or his body hacked and beaten with knives and clubs; if he is imprisoned, suspended upside down, or has his skin and flesh flayed off like clothing; if he is bound, sliced apart, pounded and crushed like sugarcane pulp, or trampled and shattered like reeds and rushes; if he is burned like a lampwick or blazing torch; if lions, tigers, or wolves tear at and devour him; if vinegar or pungent liquid is poured into his mouth and nose; if he is boiled or roasted; if elephants or horses trample him; if his eyes are gouged out; if he is pierced by spears and raised high; or if he is beheaded—in all such circumstances, he gives rise to a perception of joy.

Why is this?

Throughout the long night, that great bodhisattva cultivated bodhisattva practices and made this aspiration: ‘If any being gives me food, may that being attain the bliss of nirvana. If any being gives offerings to me, bows to me, honors, reveres, respects, or praises me—or disparages, expels, rebukes, strikes, or kills me—may they all attain the bliss of nirvana and awaken to unsurpassed bodhi.’

That great bodhisattva has accomplished such a mind, perfected such karma, and fully completed such aspirations. Toward all beings, he gives rise to a perception of joy, which he constantly cultivates without interruption. Through the karmic result of this, he attains that supremely excellent samadhi called Joy in All Dharmas.

When the great bodhisattva attains this samadhi, no Māra can disturb or harm him, nor can any deeds of Māra bind him. One should know that this great bodhisattva attains five kinds of mastery: first, mastery of lifespan; second, mastery of birth; third, mastery of karma; fourth, mastery of discursive thought; and fifth, mastery of the various kinds of karmic results. If this great bodhisattva wishes to realize unsurpassed bodhi after one more life, through the power of this samadhi he can immediately do so.

If he does not wish to realize unsurpassed bodhi quickly, he can remain in the world for immeasurable asamkhyeya kalpas to liberate beings. Why is this? One should know that this bodhisattva abides in the Mahayana, constantly serves as a Guide for bodhisattvas, and gathers and accepts all other bodhisattvas.

Although this great bodhisattva has become disenchanted with all destinies, he is reborn within them to liberate beings. He reaches the ultimate aim of all bodhisattva training, is embraced by prajnaparamita, perfects all skillful means, knows the deeds of Māra, and attains the ultimate Dharma. Through the Buddha’s awesome spiritual power, these great bodhisattvas can know all dharmas completely.”

The Śubhakṛtsna devas spoke verses in praise of the Buddha:

“We, all the Śubhakṛtsna devas,
Completely understand the Buddha-Dharma.
With heads and faces we bow to the Teacher of Devas and Humans,
Whose faculties are tranquil as quiescent cessation.

The wise clearly understand the sounds of language,
Like echoes sounding in a deep valley.
The Blessed One’s knowledge and vision are likewise skillful:
Throughout the worlds of devas and humans,

The Blessed One, Honored among Bipeds, has great loving-kindness and compassion;
He constantly practices loving-kindness without ever forsaking it.
All devas and humans throughout the world
Cannot fathom the Tathagata’s wisdom.

The Guide teaches by taking beings as a condition;
This is the great root of goodness of a loving mind.
He clearly knows all beings,
Yet there are no beings or persons possessing life.

Though one searched throughout the worlds of the ten directions,
Ultimately no suffering could be found.
The unsurpassed Tathagata, Deva among Devas,
Speaks of beings as a condition for bringing forth loving-kindness.

Since there are no beings, there is also no suffering;
Therefore, no one can be found who is liberated.
Having dispelled sorrow and anguish,
We thereby attain great joy and exultation.

There is no suffering, no destiny, and no being,
Nor any nirvana in which to abide.
Having understood the Buddha-Dharma in this way,
We now therefore make offerings.

The Unsurpassed One is apart from body with regard to body
And contemplates that ultimately body cannot be apprehended.
Even so, it is not that he does not teach mindfulness;
He speaks of mindfulness and loss of mindfulness.

The Sugata always teaches the cultivation of mindfulness,
Namely, contemplation of the body as a foundation of mindfulness.
We now make offerings to the Liberator.
The Blessed One contemplates that sensation cannot be apprehended,

For sensation has no intrinsic nature.
He also contemplates the recipient of sensations
And sees that ultimately it has no real nature.
He further contemplates the practitioner of that foundation of mindfulness
And sees that ultimately this practitioner also cannot be apprehended.

We understand the Buddha-Dharma in this way
And now make offerings to the Teacher of Devas and Humans.
Contemplating mind and the mental factors,
He sees that ultimately their intrinsic nature cannot be apprehended.

Nor does he see anyone cultivating mindfulness,
Or anyone rightly abiding in a foundation of mindfulness.
The Buddha teaches that mindfulness accords with mind,
And seekers of liberation should cultivate it.

The Great Sage merely teaches the cultivation of mindfulness,
Yet the nature of that mindfulness is itself empty.
He also says that mindfulness accords with dharmas,
And those seeking liberation should cultivate it.

That is, within the abiding places of mindfulness,
All the foundations of mindfulness are empty.
Therefore, when genuinely sought, they cannot be apprehended;
Ultimately there is no one who experiences pain or pleasure.

Nevertheless, provisional names and their functions are not destroyed;
Therefore, we now make offerings to the Great Sage.
The Buddha taught the four bases of spiritual power,
The supreme and wondrous peaceful path of liberation.

Therefore, to the unequaled one of wondrous wisdom,
We are now able to present offerings.
The Knower of the World taught the five faculties,
Through which one transcends the world and reaches liberation.

Be careful, do not be indolent, and always cultivate diligently;
This is the path leading toward nirvana.
The faculties and those who cultivate them are all empty;
There is neither liberation nor anyone liberated.

Concerning this, we have no doubt;
Therefore, we now make offerings to the Tathagata.
The Great Sage expounded the seven factors of awakening,
The supreme path of the factors conducive to bodhi.

Therefore, we now make offerings to the Tathagata.
The Great Sage expounded the seven factors of awakening,
The supreme path of the factors conducive to bodhi.
They can unfasten the bonds of beings

Thus revealing these teachings to beings.
All these are unconditioned and never interrupted;
Therefore, there is neither defilement nor purity.
Concerning this, we have no doubt;

The evil paths of karma committed by beings.
Since there are no beings, there is also no harm;
The other nine kinds of karma are likewise empty.
There are no wholesome or evil antidotes,

Because their inherent nature is originally empty and quiescent.
Yet it is not that the Buddha’s teaching does not exist,
For the intrinsic nature of dharmas is not destroyed.
I have no doubt concerning the Buddha’s wisdom;

And constantly remains far from every suffering.
The Sugata’s wisdom is supremely excellent in this way,
Peacefully guiding all beings.
Concerning this, we have left doubt behind;

We now all make offerings to the Worthy One.”

After speaking these verses in praise of the Buddha, the Śubhakṛtsna devas fell silent and stood to one side.

The Blessed One saw those devas standing silently and knew their profound faith; he therefore manifested a smile.

The Venerable Aśvajit spoke verses to question the Buddha:

“Today the Buddha, the Blessed One of supreme wisdom,
Smiles for the benefit of the world.
The Hero of the World, possessed of the Ten Powers, surpasses all
And skillfully transforms and subdues the great assemblies.

The great Guide, who thoroughly understands all dharmas,
Does not manifest a smile without cause.
The Knower of the World, whose mind lacks nothing—
We pray that you explain the meaning of this smile.

Before the Buddha, the sovereign Great Master of Treatises,
If they hear his teaching, all will rejoice.
With decisive wisdom, skillfully understanding all dharmas,
They shall become Buddhas and liberate beings.

Whoever gives rise to pure faith in the Buddha
Shall surely attain the greatest wisdom in the world.
Understanding the wondrous words of amrita,
Such a person shall see throughout the ten directions.

Those who give rise to reverence, faith, and respect
For the Great and Noble Hero,
And who also bring forth faithful wisdom regarding the true Dharma,
Cannot be shaken by any Māra.

Unsurpassed One adorned with a hundred merits,
We pray you explain and dispel the net of doubt.
They wish only to receive and retain the Blessed One’s Dharma;
For their sake, the Tathagata has manifested a smile.

May we hear the Buddha’s skillful words,
His wondrous voice endowed with eight qualities.
Having first reached the wholesome path himself,
He can afterward guide all beings.

The Blessed One replied in verse to the Bhikshu Aśvajit:

In past lives, those devas
Made offerings to hundreds of billions of nayutas of Buddhas.
They also asked those Buddhas about these meanings
And had no doubts regarding any dharma.

Each shall be named Dharma Banner Buddha, Tathagata,
And each shall liberate inconceivably many beings.
Nayutas of assemblies shall enter nirvana.
After those Tathagatas pass into final cessation,

Shall attain supreme and wondrous roots of goodness,
Accomplish the path of those in training,
Encounter Buddhas, and attain supreme fruits.
Likewise, immeasurably many inconceivable assemblies

Going from those Buddhas into the presence of other Buddhas,
Shall encounter the Buddhas and enter their assemblies,
All because they made offerings to those relics.”

Having heard these words of the Buddha,
The entire great assembly experienced something rare.
The Śubhakṛtsna devas, faithful devotees
Possessing supreme, wondrous merit and spiritual power,