大寶積經

XXVII. THE TWENTY-SEVENTH DHARMA ASSEMBLY OF THE BODHISATTVA SUSĀRTHAVĀHA (GOOD AND COMPLIANT)

Thus have I heard. At one time the Buddha was dwelling in the Garden of Jeta and Anāthapiṇḍika in the country of Śrāvastī, together with a great assembly: five hundred Śrāvakas and ten thousand Bodhisattvas, who reverently surrounded Him.

At that time, within the city of Śrāvastī, there was a Bodhisattva named Susārthavāha (Good and Compliant). He had, in the presence of immeasurable Buddhas of the past, planted all the roots of goodness and had reverently honored and made offerings to them, thus attaining non-retrogression from Supreme Bodhi. He abided in great loving-kindness, his mind never harboring anger or resentment; he abided in great compassion, vast in his saving and never weary; he abided in great joy, gently at peace with the Dharma realm; he abided in great equanimity, regarding suffering and joy with equality.

He was moderate in eating, taking food at the proper times; he had few desires and knew contentment; he was ever delighted in by sentient beings who beheld him. He constantly took the Five Precepts and the Eight Precepts of abstinence, and within that city he compassionately taught and transformed beings. Thereafter he further exhorted and converted everyone to practice giving, upholding the precepts, patience, vigor, meditative concentration, wisdom, loving-kindness, compassion, joy, and equanimity, and the pure practice of brahmacarya.

At that time, the Bodhisattva Susārthavāha, in order to enable sentient beings to behold the Buddha and hear the Dharma, together with the great assembly surrounding him before and behind, was about to go to the place of the Buddha.

Śakra, Lord of the Devas, with his divine eye, saw that the Bodhisattva Susārthavāha was ever vigorous in practicing the dhūta austerities, complete in pure precepts, and firm in delivering beings across. The Lord of the Devas thought: "Now this Bodhisattva Susārthavāha is never lax or remiss in his brahmacarya practice. Could it be that he seeks the throne of Śakra, or wishes to become a king and enjoy the pleasures of the senses?" Having thought thus, the Lord of the Devas conjured up four robust young men who came before the Bodhisattva Susārthavāha, speaking foul and evil words, reviling and abusing him, and further using knives and clubs to slash and beat him, and hurling tiles and stones at the Bodhisattva.

The Bodhisattva Susārthavāha, abiding in the power of loving-kindness and patience, endured all these injuries without ever giving rise to anger or hatred. The Lord of the Devas then conjured up four other robust young men who came and said to the Bodhisattva: "Ah, Venerable Susārthavāha! Those evil men have beaten and reviled you most cruelly.

If you bid us avenge you, we will, for your sake, slay those evil men." The Bodhisattva Susārthavāha then said to the four young men: "O good sons! Do not speak thus. If you were to kill, that would constitute evil karma.

Even if someone were to come and hack my body to pieces like jujube leaves, I would never give rise to a mind of anger, hatred, or killing. Why is this? Because one who kills falls into the hells, the realm of hungry ghosts, and the realm of animals; and even if he should attain a human body, he will not be loved by his own parents who bore him, and he will ever be despised and rejected by all people.

O good sons! All dharmas are of two kinds: wholesome and unwholesome. Through unwholesome dharmas one falls into the evil destinies.

If one relies upon wholesome dharmas, one attains the benefit of the Dharma."

Wishing to restate this meaning, the Bodhisattva Susārthavāha spoke a verse, saying:

Wholesome and unwholesome are like sowing and planting,

All arise in accordance with karma.

How could a bitter seed

Give rise to sweet, ripe fruit?

Seeing manifestly that the Dharma is thus,

The wise one must reflect deeply:

The retribution of suffering repays evil karma,

While doing good brings ever-abiding peace and joy.

Being refused, these men then departed.

At that time the Lord of the Devas again conjured up heaps of jewels, gold, and silver, and sent the young men to say to the Bodhisattva: "Venerable one, you may by skillful means take these treasures and use them freely as you wish." The Bodhisattva Susārthavāha said: "Do not speak thus. Why? Because the karma of stealing causes sentient beings to be poor and lowly, with no place of refuge. Even were I to be so poor as to lack the means to live, I would never steal. It is the foolish and deluded common man who, out of greed, seeks to steal. How could a wise person commit such evil karma?"

The Bodhisattva spoke a verse, saying:

Though one amasses wealth to a thousand koṭis,

If the greedy mind never lets go,

The wise call such a person

One who is ever poor and wretched in the world.

Though a person has not a single possession,

Yet his mind ever practices renunciation,

The wise call such a person

One who is exceedingly rich and noble in the world.

The wise depart from all evils,

And all of them are upright and dignified;

The foolish, because of the karma they create,

Have bodies entirely coarse and ugly.

The wise exhort others to do good,

The foolish ever do evil;

Better to be reviled by the wise

Than to be praised by the foolish.

Hearing the Bodhisattva speak thus, these men then departed.

The Lord of the Devas then came in person to the place of the Bodhisattva, holding in his hands a hundred thousand taels of gold, and said: "Just now, before King Prasenajit in the city of Śrāvastī, I had a dispute with someone, and I need a person to bear witness. If you can be a witness for me, I will offer you all this gold."

The Bodhisattva Susārthavāha said to the Lord of the Devas: "You should know that false speech is unwholesome karma; it not only deceives oneself but also deceives the Devas, Nāgas, and the Eightfold Division. False speech can become the very root of all evils, drawing forth evil retribution: it ruins the pure precepts, corrupts the physical body, makes one's breath foul and stinking, and causes the words one speaks to be despised by others."

The Bodhisattva Susārthavāha spoke a verse, saying:

One who commits false speech

Will ever have foul breath;

Entering the suffering of the evil destinies,

None will be able to rescue him.

Whoever commits false speech

Deceives his very own self,

And also cheats the Devas and Nāgas,

The Eightfold Division of ghosts and spirits.

You should know that false speech

Is the root of all evils;

It destroys the pure precepts,

And at death one falls into the three evil paths.

Even if you were to give me

Gold enough to fill all Jambudvīpa,

I would never be able

To become one who speaks falsely.

Hearing these words, the Lord of the Devas departed, and then sent the Lady Śacī, the Lady Sūryaprabhā, and the Lady Pañcaśikha, together with other ladies, to come to the place of the Bodhisattva Susārthavāha to test and try to break the Bodhisattva's pure precepts. These ladies, together with five hundred maidens, perfumed with fragrances and adorned with flowers, came before the Bodhisattva in the deep of night and said: "We women, young and beautiful, willingly wish to serve at your knees and take delight together with you." The Bodhisattva Susārthavāha, with eyes free of defilement, contemplated these women and said to them: "Those mad and disordered ones, those of perverted minds in the hells, among the animals and hungry ghosts, intoxicated and clinging to the foul filth of pus,

blood, and impurity, those fierce and evil rākṣasas—these are your kin and companions, and not the kindred of the pure Devas."

The Bodhisattva Susārthavāha spoke a verse, saying:

The foolish, dull and deluded, dwell on impurity,

Defiled and attached to bodies of pus, blood, and foul filth.

The pleasures of desire swiftly perish—all is impermanent—

Forever falling into hells, animal realms, and hungry ghosts.

Even if you were to transform yourselves, all of you,

Into shapely, beautiful forms filling the whole world,

I would never give rise to a single thought of defilement,

But would ever regard them as a dream, as an enemy and foe.

Though the Lady Śacī and the others exhausted every means of seduction, the Bodhisattva was never moved by greed or defilement. So they returned together to the heavenly palace and reported to the Lord of the Devas, saying: "We have seen that Susārthavāha's resolve and aspiration are firm, and that he will, without doubt, attain Perfect Enlightenment. Why?

Because toward us this Bodhisattva had not the slightest thought of craving or attachment, but only a mind of revulsion and detachment." Although he heard this said, the Lord of the Devas was still anxious and sorrowful, as though struck by a poisoned arrow, fearing that this man would seize his throne. He thought: "I should go and test him once more—what is it that he truly aspires to and seeks?" Having thought thus, the Lord of the Devas came before the Bodhisattva, abandoned his arrogance, bowed his head at the Bodhisattva's feet, and then spoke a verse, asking:

Now, Venerable one, diligently cultivating the pure practice,

Among all your wishes, what is it you seek?

Do you seek to be Śakra, Brahmā, or the various Deva Kings?

Or do you seek the various kingly thrones of the three realms?

The Bodhisattva Susārthavāha spoke a verse in reply to the Lord of the Devas:

I regard Śakra, Brahmā, and the various Deva Kings,

The kingly throne among humans, and the rewards of the three realms,

As all impermanent and not firm.

How could one who is wise seek after such things?

The Lord of the Devas asked again: "If it is as you say, then what is it that you seek?"

The Bodhisattva Susārthavāha spoke a verse in reply to the Lord of the Devas:

I fundamentally do not crave the pleasures of the world;

I seek only to attain a body free of birth and death,

Diligently cultivating skillful means to rescue the multitude of beings.

I vow and aspire to ascend yonder, upon the path of Bodhi.

Having heard the verse, the mind of the Lord of the Devas became peaceful and joyful, for he knew with certainty that the Bodhisattva did not seek the throne of Śakra. Delighted and exultant, he spoke a verse, saying:

You speak of delivering across all sentient beings—

That mind is vast and great, beyond all compare.

You vow to crush the armies of Māra and realize the ambrosia,

And thereby ever turn the wondrous wheel of the Dharma.

Having spoken this verse of praise, the Lord of the Devas reverently circumambulated the Bodhisattva, bowed at his feet, and then suddenly vanished.

Early the next morning, the Bodhisattva Susārthavāha entered the city of Śrāvastī, wandering to and fro, transforming beings, and there obtained a golden bell of Jambūnada gold from the beginning of the kalpa. This golden bell was worth more than the whole continent of Jambudvīpa. The Bodhisattva took this golden bell and stood at a crossroads, proclaiming aloud: "Whoever is the poorest of all in the city of Śrāvastī, I shall give him this golden bell."

At that time there was a most eminent old elder who hurriedly ran up and said: "In this city, I am the poorest of all. Please give me that bell." The Bodhisattva said: "You are not the poorest person, for in this city there is yet another good man, the poorest among the poor, to whom this bell shall be given." The elder asked: "Who is that person?" The Bodhisattva answered: "It is none other than King Prasenajit." The elder said: "King Prasenajit is the wealthiest and most noble; his treasuries are full to overflowing and inexhaustible in use. How can you say he is the poorest among the poor?"

In the midst of the great assembly, the Bodhisattva Susārthavāha spoke a verse in reply, saying:

Though one has hidden treasures beyond a thousand koṭis,

Because of the craving mind that is never satisfied,

He is like the great ocean swallowing the hundred rivers.

The foolish person of this kind is the poorest of all.

Thereby it causes his greedy mind to increase the more,

Revolving and spreading, arising one after another,

In this present world and in the lives to come;

That person devoid of wisdom is ever poor and wanting.

Having spoken this verse, the Bodhisattva Susārthavāha, together with the great assembly, went to the place of King Prasenajit. It happened that the king, with five hundred elders and great ministers, was counting and assessing his treasuries of jeweled goods. The Bodhisattva then came before the king and addressed him, saying: "Just now, as I wandered to and fro transforming beings within this city, I obtained a golden bell of Jambūnada gold from the beginning of the kalpa, worth more than the whole continent of Jambudvīpa. I wished to give this bell to the poorest person in the city. And I further thought that no one is poorer than the king, and so I have brought this golden bell to present to you. Since the king is the poorest of all, please accept this golden bell."

Having said this, the Bodhisattva Susārthavāha further spoke a verse, saying:

If a person greatly craves and seeks,

Amassing wealth without ever being satisfied,

A mad and disordered person of this kind

Is called the poorest of all.

A king who ever collects heavy taxes,

Who punishes the innocent unjustly,

Who clings with craving to his realm and cities,

Not seeing the karma of lives to come;

Who in the world enjoys sovereign ease,

Yet gives no aid to sentient beings;

Who, seeing the poor and the suffering,

Never knows pity or compassion;

Who is besotted with the women of his harem,

Not fearing to fall into the evil destinies,

Perverse and disordered, never once awakening—

How is such a one not poor and wretched?

If a person knows pure faith,

Taking refuge in the Buddha, Dharma, and Saṅgha,

And regarding his own body, life, and possessions,

Ever reflects that they are not enduring;

Knowing that they are not enduring,

He is not deluded or deceived by body and wealth,

And therefore attains a body, life, and wealth

That are forever and ever firm and secure.

If one diligently cultivates the foundations of mindfulness,

Delighting in non-heedlessness,

This person is called wealthy,

Rich in possessions and ever at peace and joy.

Like a fire blazing fiercely,

That is never wearied of the forest and trees,

Now the king is also like this:

His craving and attachment are never satisfied.

The clouds are never wearied of the waters,

The sea is never wearied of abundant waters;

The king too is just like this—

When will he ever be satisfied?

The sun and moon ever revolve in their course,

Never wearied of traveling the four directions;

The king too is just like this,

Until death he never ceases or stops.

Just as a fire that has flared up

Is never wearied of consuming grass and trees,

The wise too are just like this,

Ever and always doing what is good.

Just as the waters are never wearied of the clouds,

Just as the sea is never wearied of waters,

The wise too are just like this,

Never wearied of increasing the good.

Though the kingly throne may grant sovereign ease,

In the end it returns to impermanence;

All of it is impure—

The wise should renounce and forsake it.

Having heard this, the king was ashamed and said to the Bodhisattva: "Excellent, Venerable one! Though you exhort me to what is good, I still do not yet believe. As for the things you have just spoken—are you speaking of your own accord, or is there someone who can attest to them?"

The Bodhisattva Susārthavāha said: "Has the king not heard? The Tathāgata, the Worthy One, the Perfectly Enlightened One, the One of Omniscience, now manifestly dwells outside the city of Śrāvastī in the Garden of Jeta and Anāthapiṇḍika, together with immeasurable Devas, humans, and the Eightfold Division. He will attest that the Great King is one who is poor and wretched."

King Prasenajit said: "I beg to go with you to the place of the Buddha, that I may hear His admonishing instruction and take refuge and make offerings."

The Bodhisattva Susārthavāha said to the king: "The Great King should know that the realm of the Buddha is not something that the foolish common person can fathom or know. The Buddha has destroyed the conceit born of afflictions; He has compassion for sentient beings, has accomplished the holy wisdom, and clearly knows both this life and the lives to come. If a person has wholesome aspirations and excellent roots of goodness, then even though dwelling very far away, the Buddha ever protects and sustains him. If the Buddha knows my heart's wish that the Great King should believe in my words, the Buddha will come here to bear witness for me."

The Bodhisattva then bared his right shoulder, placed his right knee upon the ground, joined his palms in reverence, and spoke a verse, inviting the Buddha:

The Tathāgata, of true and real wisdom,

Who loves all the multitude of beings—

May He know the depths of my heart,

And with regard and compassion come to bear witness.

When the Bodhisattva had finished proclaiming this verse of invitation, the great earth suddenly quaked and split open, and five hundred Śrāvakas, ten thousand Bodhisattvas, and the Devas, Nāgas, and Eightfold Division, surrounding the Tathāgata, sprang up from the earth. The Bodhisattva Susārthavāha came before the Buddha, joined his palms in reverence, and said: "World-Honored One! Just now, as I wandered transforming beings within this city of Śrāvastī, I obtained a golden bell of Jambūnada gold from the beginning of the kalpa, worth more than the whole continent of Jambudvīpa.

I wished to give this bell to the poorest person in the city of Śrāvastī. And I further thought that King Prasenajit is the poorest person in this city. Why?

Because, relying upon his kingly throne, he has never had compassion toward sentient beings; he wreaks injury, exploits and plunders, and unjustly seizes and harms the possessions of others; obscured by craving and attachment, he knows not contentment. I deemed the king to be the poorest of all, and so I brought the golden bell to present to him. The king then asked me: 'You say I am poor—is there anyone who can attest to this?' I answered: 'The Tathāgata, the Great Master, the Worthy of Offerings, the Perfectly Enlightened One, who has cut off afflictions without remainder, who loves sentient beings equally, will attest to my words.' I humbly pray that the World-Honored One may instruct us, for the benefit and joy of all."

Because He wished to subdue and discipline him, the Buddha said to King Prasenajit: "There may be cases where, with regard to the Dharma, Susārthavāha is poor while the king is rich and noble; and there may be cases where, with regard to the Dharma, the king is poor while Susārthavāha is rich and noble. Inasmuch as one is enthroned as king with sovereign ease, with gold, silver, and jeweled treasuries full to overflowing—in this respect the king is rich and noble, while Susārthavāha is poor.

But inasmuch as one diligently cultivates brahmacarya, delights in pure precepts, has gone forth into homelessness, is learned and of broad hearing, departs from heedlessness, and with the Five Precepts and the Eightfold Abstinence rescues and relieves beings without weariness—in this respect the king is truly poor, while Susārthavāha is rich and noble.

"The Great King should know that all the wealth and goods of all sentient beings in the country of Kośala, compared with the Five Precepts and Eightfold Abstinence that Susārthavāha upholds firmly and purely, do not amount to even one part in a hundred thousand."

When King Prasenajit heard the true and real teaching of the Tathāgata, he abandoned his arrogance, joined his palms, and earnestly gazed upon Susārthavāha, speaking a verse, saying:

Excellent! You have cast down and crushed my self-conceit;

You shall attain the most supreme body of a Buddha.

I offer up my kingly throne and relinquish it to you,

Vowing ever to be of your Bodhi assembly.

Truly I am poor and wretched, while you are rich and noble;

Now I know that these words are not false.

The kingly throne vainly becomes a cause that brings forth suffering,

Contrary to the wholesome Dharma, giving rise to the evil destinies.

Having spoken this verse, King Prasenajit addressed the Buddha, saying: "World-Honored One! Now I give rise to the mind of Supreme and Great Bodhi, vowing that sentient beings may have peace and joy, and be liberated from the bonds of birth and death. Now I vow to take my treasuries of gold, silver, and wealth and divide them into three parts: one part to offer to the Tathāgata and the assembly of Bhikṣus; one part to give to the poor, the suffering, and those without any place of refuge in the city of Śrāvastī; and one part of wealth to be kept for the affairs of state. All my gardens, ponds, flowers, and fruits I vow to offer up to the Tathāgata and the assembly of Bhikṣus. May the Tathāgata, out of regard and compassion, accept and receive them."

At that time, the five hundred elders of the country of Kośala, seeing such events, all gave rise to the mind of Supreme Bodhi.

The Bodhisattva Susārthavāha addressed the Buddha: "I humbly pray that the World-Honored One, for the sake of the great assembly, will speak the essentials of the Dharma, so that those sentient beings who have been able to meet the Buddha will not have done so in vain."

The Buddha proclaimed: "Good sons! There are three provisions of immeasurable merit and virtue which, even were the Tathāgatas to expound them, could not be fully told—how much less the Śrāvakas and Pratyekabuddhas. What are these three provisions? The first is to protect and uphold the true Dharma; the second is to give rise to the mind of Bodhi; the third is to exhort sentient beings to give rise to the supreme aspiration.

"Furthermore, there are thirty-two dharmas. If good sons and good women are able to cultivate them diligently, then they will not have seen the Tathāgata in vain. What are the thirty-two dharmas?

The first is to give rise to indestructible faith toward the Buddhas. The second is to protect and uphold the true Dharma so that it endures long. The third is to honor and revere the Saṅgha and not to slight them.

The fourth is to be reverent and intimate toward those worthy of offerings. The fifth is to keep the mind ever impartial toward those one loves and those one dislikes. The sixth is ever to delight in hearing and revering the true Dharma.

The seventh is to abide in quiet seclusion, apart from clamor and noise. The eighth is to expound the Buddha Vehicle without weariness. The ninth is, when expounding the Dharma, not to do so for the sake of fame and gain.

The tenth is to aspire and seek for what is true and real, in accord with principle, cultivating diligently. The eleventh is renunciation through giving. The twelfth is upholding the precepts.

The thirteenth is patience. The fourteenth is vigor. The fifteenth is right concentration.

The sixteenth is right wisdom. The seventeenth is, toward sentient beings, sympathetic joy and protective mindfulness. The eighteenth is to bring sentient beings to maturity without forgetting the true Dharma.

The nineteenth is, with regard to one's own self, to discipline oneself well. The twentieth is, with the essentials of the wholesome Dharma, to discipline all people. The twenty-first is not to be defiled by the afflictions.

The twenty-second is ever to delight in going forth into homelessness. The twenty-third is to dwell in the araṇya (forest hermitage). The twenty-fourth is to know contentment with regard to the four noble lineages.

The twenty-fifth is to cultivate diligently the dhūta austerities. The twenty-sixth is to forsake unwholesome dharmas. The twenty-seventh is to be firm in one's vast vows.

The twenty-eighth is to dwell in seclusion without laxity. The twenty-ninth is to plant all the roots of goodness. The thirtieth is ever to be free of heedlessness.

The thirty-first is to keep far from the views and attachments of the Two Vehicles. The thirty-second is to praise and extol the Great Vehicle."

When they heard this Dharma, five hundred Bhikṣus departed from the dust and left behind defilement, attaining the pure Dharma eye; and twelve thousand sentient beings together gave rise to the mind of Supreme Bodhi.

Having, through the teaching of the Dharma, enabled sentient beings to attain wholesome benefit, the World-Honored One, together with the assembly of Bhikṣus and the multitude of Bodhisattvas, suddenly vanished. When King Prasenajit had seen this, he was joyful and exultant, and forthwith took two robes worth a hundred thousand taels of gold and gave them to the Bodhisattva Susārthavāha, saying: "Excellent, Venerable one!

I beg you, out of compassion for me, to accept and receive them." The Bodhisattva Susārthavāha said to the king: "Great King! I should not accept these two robes. Why?

Because I already have a patchwork robe that I ever hang upon a tree branch as though it were stored in a chest or cupboard, and no one has any thought of stealing it. Since I myself have no mind of covetousness, I also cause others not to give rise to a mind of attachment; and when there is one who gives, it is called pure giving."

King Prasenajit then said: "If you will not accept them, then for my sake, please tread upon these two robes, that I may forever have peace, joy, and benefit."

The Bodhisattva then, for the king's sake, placed his two feet upon the two robes.

King Prasenajit then said to the Bodhisattva: "Now that these two robes have been received by your very own person for my sake, what should I do with them?"

The Bodhisattva Susārthavāha said to the king: "Great King, give these two robes to those who are poor and have no place of refuge in the city."

King Prasenajit, following the Bodhisattva's words, gathered together the poor and gave them the two robes. When the poor touched these two robes, the mad were restored to their senses, the deaf were able to hear, the blind were able to see, and those lacking faculties were made whole in their faculties—all this through the power of the Bodhisattva's majestic spiritual might. All of them raised their voices together, saying: "With what can we repay the kindness of the Bodhisattva?" In the empty sky there came a voice saying: "You should know that, with regard to the Bodhisattva Susārthavāha, you cannot repay his kindness with flowers, incense, food, or drink; you must only swiftly give rise to the mind of Bodhi."

When the five hundred poor heard this voice in the sky, they straightaway spoke a verse, saying:

Now we here

Give rise to the mind of Bodhi;

We shall attain Perfect Enlightenment

And proclaim the supreme Dharma.

Toward all sentient beings

We shall bestow peace and joy.

I delight in Bodhi

For the sake of attaining the Buddha Dharma.

King Prasenajit said to the Bodhisattva: "Excellent, Venerable one! Whenever you wish to go to meet the Buddha, please inform me, and I shall beg to follow in attendance."

The Bodhisattva Susārthavāha said: "The Great King should know that the Buddhas are hard to meet and the true Dharma hard to hear. How could the king alone go to the place of the Buddha! The Great King should be a virtuous friend together with sentient beings. The Great King should issue a command that all the people of the city of Śrāvastī follow along, and whoever disobeys the command shall be punished by the law. Why? Because even the Bodhisattvas have retinues surrounding them—how much more the Great King!"

King Prasenajit asked: "Who are the retinue of the Bodhisattva?"

The Bodhisattva Susārthavāha answered: "Exhorting others to give rise to the mind of Bodhi is the retinue of the Bodhisattva, for it brings about awakening. Exhorting others to behold the Tathāgata is the retinue of the Bodhisattva, for it is not false or vain. Exhorting others to hear the true Dharma is the retinue of the Bodhisattva, for it brings broad learning.

Exhorting others to behold the holy assembly is the retinue of the Bodhisattva, for it brings virtuous friends. The Four Means of Embracing are the retinue of the Bodhisattva, for they embrace sentient beings. The Six Pāramitās are the retinue of the Bodhisattva, for they cause Bodhi to increase.

The Thirty-seven Factors that aid the Path are the retinue of the Bodhisattva, for they lead toward the place of enlightenment. The Bodhisattva has such a retinue, adorning and attending him, able to crush the armies of Māra, even to roar the lion's roar and ascend the most supreme seat."

King Prasenajit and the great assembly were joyful and exultant, and nine thousand sentient beings departed from the defilement of the afflictions and attained the pure eye.

When the Buddha had finished speaking this sūtra, the Bodhisattva Susārthavāha, King Prasenajit, together with the Devas, humans, Nāgas, and the Eightfold Division, having heard what the Buddha spoke, rejoiced and reverently put it into practice.