大方廣佛華嚴經

Children of the Buddhas! The great bodhisattva brings forth ten minds that are not inferior:

The great bodhisattva thinks: I shall subdue all heavenly maras and their retinues.

He further thinks: I shall destroy all heterodox paths and their false teachings.

He further thinks: Among all sentient beings, I shall use skillful and wholesome words to instruct and teach them, causing them all to rejoice.

He further thinks: I shall completely fulfill all practices of the paramitas throughout the dharmadhatu.

He further thinks: I shall accumulate the treasury of all merit and virtue.

He further thinks: Supreme bodhi is vast and difficult to attain; I shall practice until it is perfected.

He further thinks: I shall employ unsurpassed teaching and unsurpassed discipline to teach and discipline all sentient beings.

He further thinks: All worlds are manifold and dissimilar; with immeasurable bodies I shall attain Perfect Enlightenment.

He further thinks: While I practice the bodhisattva conduct, if sentient beings come to ask from me my hands, feet, ears, nose, blood, flesh, bones, marrow, wife, children, elephants, horses, or even the royal throne, I shall be able to relinquish all such things without giving rise to a single thought of anxiety or regret. I shall do so solely for the benefit of all sentient beings, seeking no reward, taking great compassion as foremost and great loving-kindness as the ultimate end.

He further thinks: All Buddhas of the three periods, all Buddha-Dharmas, all sentient beings, all lands, all worlds, all three periods, the entire realm of space, the entire dharmadhatu, the entire realm of conventionally established languages, the entire realm of quiescent nirvana—all such dharmas I must, through wisdom corresponding to a single thought, know, see, realize, cultivate, and sever completely. Yet amid them there is no discrimination; they are apart from discrimination, without manifold distinctions, without merit, without objects of cognition, neither existent nor nonexistent, neither one nor two.

Through nondual wisdom, I know all dualities; through signless wisdom, I know all signs; through nondiscriminating wisdom, I know all discriminations; through wisdom without difference, I know all differences; through undifferentiated wisdom, I know all distinctions; through unworldly wisdom, I know all worlds; through timeless wisdom, I know all periods; through wisdom devoid of sentient beings, I know all sentient beings; through unattached wisdom, I know all attachments; through wisdom without an abiding place, I know all abiding places; through undefiled wisdom, I know all defilements; through inexhaustible wisdom, I know all that is exhausted; through wisdom that penetrates the ultimate dharmadhatu, I know all bodies manifested in every world;

through wisdom apart from speech and sound, I manifest ineffable speech and sounds; through wisdom of one intrinsic nature, I enter into the absence of intrinsic nature; through wisdom of one domain, I manifest manifold domains.

Knowing that all dharmas are ineffable, I nevertheless manifest great mastery in speech. I realize the stage of omniscience and, in order to teach and discipline all sentient beings, manifest great spiritual powers and transformations throughout all worlds.

These are the ten minds that are not inferior brought forth by the great bodhisattva. If bodhisattvas abide in these minds, they attain the supreme and unsurpassed Buddha-Dharma that is not inferior.

Children of the Buddhas! Regarding supreme bodhi, the great bodhisattva has ten elevated minds like mountains:

The great bodhisattva constantly directs his mind toward diligently cultivating the Dharma of omniscience. This is the first elevated mind like a mountain.

He constantly contemplates that all dharmas are by their original nature empty and unobtainable. This is the second elevated mind like a mountain.

He vows to practice the bodhisattva conduct and cultivate all pure dharmas throughout immeasurable kalpas. By abiding in all pure dharmas, he sees and knows the immeasurable wisdom of the Tathagata. This is the third elevated mind like a mountain.

In seeking all Buddha-Dharmas, he serves spiritual benefactors equally and reverently, expecting nothing else and having no thought of stealing the Dharma. He gives rise only to exceptional respect for what is rare, and can relinquish all his possessions. This is the fourth elevated mind like a mountain.

If sentient beings insult, revile, strike, beat, cut, or wound him, causing his body pain even unto death, the bodhisattva can patiently endure all these things. He never gives rise to a disturbed mind or a mind of anger and harm, nor does he retreat from or abandon his vast vow of great compassion; instead, that vow continually increases without cease. This is because the bodhisattva has truly escaped from all dharmas, has perfected the practice of relinquishment, and, in order to realize all Buddha-Dharmas, has attained mastery in patience, gentleness, and harmony. This is the fifth elevated mind like a mountain.

The bodhisattva perfects elevated and great merit and virtue, namely: the elevated merit and virtue of celestial beings, of humans, of physical form, of strength, of retinues, of desires, of royal position, of mastery, of blessings, and of wisdom. Although he perfects such merit and virtue, he does not give rise to attachment to it. He is not attached to flavors, sensual pleasures, wealth, or retinues.

He only cherishes the Dharma deeply, follows the Dharma, stands by the Dharma, advances toward the Dharma, and ultimately accords with the Dharma. He takes the Dharma as his support, rescue, refuge, and home. He preserves the Dharma, delights in the Dharma, seeks the Dharma, and reflects upon the Dharma.

Although he fully experiences the joy of the Dharma, he always remains far removed from the domains of the maras, because in the past the bodhisattva brought forth this resolve: I shall cause all sentient beings to leave the domains of the maras and abide in the domain of the Buddha. This is the sixth elevated mind like a mountain.

Having sought supreme bodhi and diligently practiced the bodhisattva path throughout immeasurable and innumerable kalpas, the great bodhisattva still considers that he has only now first brought forth the resolve for supreme bodhi and begun practicing the bodhisattva conduct; yet he is not frightened. Although he could attain Supreme Perfect Enlightenment in a single thought, for the sake of sentient beings he practices the bodhisattva conduct throughout immeasurable kalpas without rest. This is the seventh elevated mind like a mountain.

The great bodhisattva knows that sentient beings are by nature discordant and unwholesome, difficult to discipline and difficult to liberate, ungrateful and unresponsive to kindness. Therefore, for their sake, the bodhisattva makes great vows, wishing that they may all attain mastery of mind and intention, act without obstruction, abandon evil thoughts, and give rise to no afflictions toward others. This is the eighth elevated mind like a mountain.

The great bodhisattva further thinks: No one else caused me to bring forth the resolve for bodhi, nor do I wait for another to help me practice. I myself brought forth the resolve to accumulate the Buddha-Dharma, and I vow to exert myself throughout all future kalpas, practicing the bodhisattva path and attaining supreme bodhi. Therefore, as I now cultivate the bodhisattva conduct, I must purify my own mind and also purify the minds of others; I must know my own domain and also know the domains of others. I must be equal to the domains of all Buddhas of the three periods. This is the ninth elevated mind like a mountain.

The great bodhisattva contemplates thus: There is no single dharma by which the bodhisattva conduct is cultivated; no single dharma by which the bodhisattva conduct is perfected; no single dharma by which all sentient beings are taught and disciplined; no single dharma by which all Buddhas are revered and honored with offerings; no single dharma by which supreme bodhi was attained, is attained, or will be attained; and no single dharma that was spoken, is spoken, or will be spoken.

Both the speaker and the Dharma are unobtainable, yet he does not abandon his vow for supreme bodhi. Because the bodhisattva seeks all dharmas and finds them all unobtainable, supreme bodhi arises in this way. Therefore, although nothing whatsoever is obtained among dharmas, he diligently cultivates the counteractive practices of elevated, wholesome, and pure karma; his wisdom becomes perfect and increases thought after thought until all is complete.

In this, the bodhisattva’s mind is not frightened. He does not think: If all dharmas are entirely quiescent and extinguished, what purpose is there in my seeking the path of supreme bodhi? This is the elevated mind of bodhi.

This is the tenth elevated mind like a mountain.

If bodhisattvas abide herein, they attain an elevated mind like the king of mountains—the unsurpassed great wisdom of the Tathagata.

Children of the Buddhas! The great bodhisattva has ten ocean-like wisdoms that enter supreme bodhi:

Ocean-like wisdom that enters the realms of all immeasurable sentient beings.

Ocean-like wisdom that enters all worlds without giving rise to a discriminating mind.

Ocean-like wisdom that knows the entire realm of space to be immeasurable and unobstructed, universally entering the nets of all distinct worlds throughout the ten directions.

Ocean-like wisdom that skillfully enters the dharmadhatu: unobstructed entry, entry that is neither annihilation nor permanence, immeasurable entry, entry that neither arises nor ceases, and entry into all things, because it understands them all clearly.

Ocean-like wisdom that completely knows all roots of goodness accumulated, being accumulated, and to be accumulated by the Buddhas, bodhisattvas, Dharma masters, shravakas, pratyekabuddhas, and all ordinary beings of the past, future, and present; the supreme bodhi attained, being attained, and to be attained by the Buddhas of the three periods; and the Dharma spoken, being spoken, and to be spoken by the Buddhas of the three periods to teach and discipline all sentient beings. Whatever roots of goodness there may be, the bodhisattva knows them all clearly, deeply believes in and rejoices with them, and gladly vows to cultivate them without weariness or satisfaction.

Ocean-like wisdom that, in each thought, enters ineffable kalpas of the past. In a single kalpa, there may be ten billion Buddhas appearing in the world, or a hundred billion, or ten trillion; or there may be innumerable, immeasurable, boundless, unequaled, incalculable, inexpressible, inconceivable, immeasurable, ineffable, or ineffably ineffable numbers of Buddhas, Blessed Ones, appearing in the world, surpassing all calculation.

It clearly sees their places of enlightenment; assemblies of shravakas and bodhisattvas; their teaching of the Dharma and disciplining of all sentient beings; the length or brevity of their lives; and the long or short duration of their Dharma. It sees all these things clearly. Just as it clearly sees one kalpa, so too does it clearly see all kalpas.

It also clearly knows the sentient beings in kalpas without a Buddha who plant roots of goodness directed toward supreme bodhi. It also clearly knows which sentient beings, their roots of goodness having matured, will see a Buddha in the future. Contemplating ineffably ineffable kalpas of the past in this way, its mind is never weary or satisfied.

Ocean-like wisdom that enters the future and contemplates all immeasurable and boundless kalpas. It knows which kalpas have Buddhas, which kalpas have no Buddha, and how many Tathagatas appear in each kalpa. It knows the name of each Tathagata, the world in which he appears, that world’s name, how many sentient beings he liberates, and the duration of his life. Contemplating thus to the utmost reaches of the future, it knows all things clearly and inexhaustibly without weariness or satisfaction.

Ocean-like wisdom that enters the present and contemplates and reflects. In every thought, it universally sees boundless varieties throughout the ten directions. In ineffable worlds, there are Buddhas who have attained, are attaining, or will attain supreme bodhi: proceeding to the place of enlightenment beneath the bodhi tree, sitting upon auspicious grass, subduing the armies of Mara, and attaining Perfect Enlightenment; leaving the bodhi tree and entering towns and cities; ascending heavenly palaces and turning the great Dharma wheel; manifesting spiritual powers to discipline sentient beings; entrusting supreme bodhi to others; relinquishing their lifespans and entering nirvana;

and, after entering nirvana, having the Dharma treasury compiled so that it may long remain in the world, adorning the Buddha-Dharma with manifold offerings.

It also sees all sentient beings in those worlds encounter the Buddha, hear the Dharma, receive, uphold, chant, recite, remember, and contemplate it, thereby increasing their wisdom and understanding. It contemplates universally throughout the ten directions without error regarding the Buddha-Dharma. Thus, the bodhisattva clearly knows that all Buddhas are like dreams, yet can still approach them, pay reverence, and make offerings.

At that time, the bodhisattva does not cling to his own body, to the Buddha, to worlds, to assemblies, to the teaching of Dharma, or to the number of kalpas; nevertheless, he continues to see Buddhas, hear the Dharma, contemplate worlds, and enter the various kalpas without weariness or satisfaction.

Ocean-like wisdom that, throughout ineffably ineffable kalpas, in each kalpa reveres and makes offerings to immeasurably many Buddhas for ineffably ineffable kalpas. It manifests its own body passing away here and being born there, and offers the Buddhas every article of offering surpassing those of the three realms; it also makes offerings to bodhisattvas, shravakas, and the entire great assembly. After each Tathagata enters nirvana, the bodhisattva presents unsurpassed offerings to his relics and extensively practices generosity so that sentient beings may be fulfilled.

With an inconceivable mind, a mind seeking no reward, an ultimate mind, and a mind intent upon benefiting others, throughout ineffably ineffable kalpas the great bodhisattva makes offerings to the Buddhas for the sake of supreme bodhi, benefits sentient beings, protects and upholds the true Dharma, and reveals and expounds it.

Ocean-like wisdom that, in the presence of all Buddhas, all bodhisattvas, and all Dharma masters, single-mindedly seeks the Dharma taught by bodhisattvas, the Dharma studied by bodhisattvas, the Dharma instructed by bodhisattvas, the Dharma practiced by bodhisattvas, the Dharma purified by bodhisattvas, the Dharma mastered by bodhisattvas, the Dharma through which bodhisattvas discipline others, the Dharma of bodhisattva equality, the Dharma of bodhisattva liberation, and the Dharma of bodhisattva dharani.

Having obtained this Dharma, the bodhisattva receives, upholds, reads, recites, analyzes, and explains it without weariness or satisfaction, causing immeasurable sentient beings to bring forth within the Buddha-Dharma a mind corresponding to omniscience and to enter the characteristic of true reality. They become irreversible in supreme bodhi. Thus he continues throughout ineffably ineffable kalpas without weariness or satisfaction.

These are the ten ocean-like wisdoms through which the great bodhisattva enters supreme bodhi. If bodhisattvas abide in this Dharma, they attain the unsurpassed ocean of great wisdom of all Buddhas.

Children of the Buddhas! Regarding supreme bodhi, the great bodhisattva has ten kinds of abiding in accordance with reality:

The great bodhisattva can journey to the presence of Buddhas in innumerable worlds, behold them reverently, bow at their feet, attend upon them, and make offerings. This is the first abiding in accordance with reality.

In the presence of inconceivably many Buddhas, he listens to the true Dharma, receives and upholds it, remembers it without forgetting, analyzes and contemplates it, and increases his awakened wisdom. Such deeds fill the ten directions. This is the second abiding in accordance with reality.

Passing away in this realm and manifesting elsewhere, he is never confused regarding the Buddha-Dharma. This is the third abiding in accordance with reality.

He knows that all dharmas arise from one Dharma and can fully analyze and expound them, because the ultimate meaning of all dharmas is a single meaning. This is the fourth abiding in accordance with reality.

He knows how to become disenchanted with and leave afflictions, how to restrain afflictions, how to guard against afflictions, and how to eliminate afflictions. He practices the bodhisattva conduct without realizing the limit of reality prematurely, and ultimately reaches the farther shore of the limit of reality. Skillful in means and well trained in what must be learned, he causes all his former practices and vows to be fulfilled, while his body never grows weary. This is the fifth abiding in accordance with reality.

He knows that all sentient beings and all their discriminating thoughts have no location, yet he also speaks of their various locations. Although there is neither discrimination nor activity, in order to discipline all sentient beings he nevertheless cultivates practices and performs deeds. This is the sixth abiding in accordance with reality.

He knows that all dharmas share a single nature, namely, the absence of nature: they have no manifold natures, no immeasurable natures, no calculable natures, no measurable natures, no form, and no characteristics; whether one or many, they are all unobtainable. Yet he decisively and clearly knows: this is Buddha-Dharma; this is bodhisattva Dharma; this is pratyekabuddha Dharma; this is shravaka Dharma; this is the Dharma of ordinary beings; this is wholesome Dharma; this is unwholesome Dharma; this is worldly Dharma; this is supramundane Dharma; this is faulty Dharma; this is faultless Dharma; this is contaminated Dharma; this is uncontaminated Dharma; and so forth, up to: this is conditioned Dharma, and this is unconditioned Dharma. This is the seventh abiding in accordance with reality.

The great bodhisattva seeks the Buddha and finds him unobtainable; seeks the bodhisattva and finds him unobtainable; seeks the Dharma and finds it unobtainable; and seeks sentient beings and finds them unobtainable. Yet he does not abandon disciplining sentient beings and causing them to vow to attain perfect enlightenment among all dharmas. The great bodhisattva skillfully contemplates and knows the discriminations of all sentient beings, knows the domains of all sentient beings, and uses skillful means to guide them so that they attain nirvana. Wishing to fulfill his vow to teach sentient beings, he vigorously cultivates the bodhisattva conduct. This is the eighth abiding in accordance with reality.

The great bodhisattva knows how to teach the Dharma skillfully and manifest nirvana. All the skillful means he possesses for liberating sentient beings are established through mental conceptions, yet they are neither inverted nor false. This is because the bodhisattva clearly knows that the dharmas of the three periods are equal, suchness itself, unmoving, the limit of reality, and without abiding. He sees no sentient being who was liberated, is being liberated, or will be liberated. He also clearly knows that there is no practice he himself cultivates. Not even the slightest dharma that arises or ceases can be obtained. Nevertheless, relying upon all dharmas, he ensures that his vows are not in vain. This is the ninth abiding in accordance with reality.

In the presence of inconceivably and immeasurably many Buddhas, the great bodhisattva hears from each Buddha ineffably ineffable Dharma teachings and predictions of attainment, each with a different name and differing number of kalpas. From one kalpa up to ineffably ineffable kalpas, he constantly hears such predictions. Having heard them, he practices without alarm, fear, confusion, or doubt, because he knows that the Buddha’s wisdom is inconceivable; because the Tathagata’s predictions contain no duplicity; because of the power cultivated through his own practices and vows; and because, teaching beings according to what is appropriate, he causes them to attain supreme bodhi and fulfills all vows coextensive with the dharmadhatu. This is the tenth abiding in accordance with reality.

If bodhisattvas abide in this Dharma, they attain the unsurpassed jewel of great wisdom of the Buddhas.

Children of the Buddhas! The great bodhisattva brings forth ten adamantine minds of vows for the Great Vehicle:

The great bodhisattva thinks: All dharmas are without boundary or end. With wisdom penetrating the three periods, I shall awaken universally to all of them without exception. This is the first adamantine mind of vows for the Great Vehicle.

He further thinks: At the tip of a single hair there are immeasurable and boundless sentient beings, how much more throughout the entire dharmadhatu. I shall liberate them all through unsurpassed nirvana. This is the second adamantine mind of vows for the Great Vehicle.

He further thinks: The worlds of the ten directions are immeasurable and boundless, without limit and inexhaustible. I shall adorn all such worlds with the supreme adornments of Buddha lands, and all those adornments shall be true and real. This is the third adamantine mind of vows for the Great Vehicle.

He further thinks: All sentient beings are immeasurable and boundless, without limit and inexhaustible. I shall dedicate all roots of goodness to them and illuminate them with the unsurpassed light of wisdom. This is the fourth adamantine mind of vows for the Great Vehicle.

He further thinks: All Buddhas are immeasurable and boundless, without limit and inexhaustible. I shall dedicate all the roots of goodness I have planted as offerings to them, causing those offerings to extend everywhere without deficiency, and only afterward shall I attain supreme bodhi. This is the fifth adamantine mind of vows for the Great Vehicle.

When the great bodhisattva sees Buddhas and hears them teach the Dharma, his heart rejoices greatly. He clings neither to his own body nor to the body of a Buddha. He understands that the Tathagata’s body is neither real nor unreal, neither existent nor nonexistent, neither possessed of nature nor devoid of nature, neither form nor non-form, neither characterized nor uncharacterized, neither arising nor ceasing. In reality it possesses nothing, yet neither does it destroy what conventionally exists, because it cannot be grasped through any nature or characteristic. This is the sixth adamantine mind of vows for the Great Vehicle.

If the great bodhisattva is rebuked, reviled, or beaten by sentient beings; if his hands or feet are cut off, his ears or nose sliced away, his eyes gouged out, or his head severed, he can patiently endure all such suffering and humiliation. He never gives rise to anger or a wish to harm because of them. Throughout ineffably ineffable kalpas, he cultivates the bodhisattva conduct and embraces sentient beings without ever abandoning them. Because the great bodhisattva has skillfully contemplated all dharmas as having no dual characteristics, his mind remains unmoved and undisturbed; he can relinquish his own body and patiently endure such suffering. This is the seventh adamantine mind of vows for the Great Vehicle.

He further thinks: The number of kalpas in the future is immeasurable and boundless, without limit and inexhaustible. Throughout all those kalpas, in a single world, I shall cultivate the bodhisattva conduct and teach sentient beings. As in one world, so too shall I do throughout all worlds extending to the limits of the dharmadhatu and the realm of space, without fear. The bodhisattva path must be practiced in this way; for the sake of all sentient beings, I shall practice thus. This is the eighth adamantine mind of vows for the Great Vehicle.

He further thinks: Supreme bodhi has the mind as its foundation. If the mind is pure, all roots of goodness can be perfected, mastery of the Buddha’s bodhi will certainly be attained, and whenever one wishes to attain supreme bodhi, one can do so at will. If I wished to sever all grasping at conditions and abide single-mindedly in the path, I could also do so. Yet I do not sever them, because I wish to consummate the Buddha’s bodhi. Nor do I immediately realize supreme bodhi, because I must fulfill my original vow: to practice the bodhisattva path and teach sentient beings throughout all worlds. This is the ninth adamantine mind of vows for the Great Vehicle.

The great bodhisattva knows that the Buddha is unobtainable, bodhi is unobtainable, the bodhisattva is unobtainable, all dharmas are unobtainable, sentient beings are unobtainable, mind is unobtainable, practice is unobtainable, the past is unobtainable, the future is unobtainable, the present is unobtainable, all worlds are unobtainable, and the conditioned and unconditioned are unobtainable. Thus the bodhisattva abides in quiescence, profundity, cessation, noncontention, wordlessness, nonduality, the unequaled, intrinsic nature, accordance with principle, liberation, nirvana, and the limit of reality.

Yet he does not abandon any great vow, the mind of omniscience, the bodhisattva conduct, teaching sentient beings, the paramitas, disciplining sentient beings, serving the Buddhas, expounding the Dharmas, or adorning worlds. Because the great bodhisattva has made great vows, although he comprehends the characteristics of all dharmas, his mind of great loving-kindness and compassion increases still further. He fully cultivates immeasurable merit and virtue and never abandons any sentient being.

He thinks: All dharmas possess nothing whatsoever, but foolish and deluded ordinary beings neither understand nor know this. I shall cause them all to awaken and clearly illuminate the nature of all dharmas. Although all Buddhas abide in quiescent cessation, with minds of great compassion they teach the Dharma and transform beings throughout all worlds without ever resting.

How then could I abandon great compassion? Moreover, in the past I brought forth a vast mind of vows; a resolute mind to benefit all sentient beings; a mind to accumulate all roots of goodness; a mind abiding in skillful dedication; a mind bringing forth profound wisdom; a mind embracing all sentient beings; and a mind equal toward all sentient beings. I spoke truthful words and words free of falsehood.

I vowed to bestow the unsurpassed great Dharma upon all sentient beings and vowed never to sever the lineage of all Buddhas. Now all sentient beings have not yet attained liberation, have not yet attained Perfect Enlightenment, and have not yet perfected the Buddha-Dharma. My great vows remain unfulfilled; how could I wish to abandon great compassion?

This is the tenth adamantine mind of vows for the Great Vehicle.

If bodhisattvas abide in this Dharma, they attain the unsurpassed, adamantine wisdom of the Tathagata’s great spiritual powers.

Children of the Buddhas! The great bodhisattva has ten great initiations:

The great bodhisattva thinks: I shall revere and make offerings to all Buddhas. This is the first great initiation.

He further thinks: I shall nurture all the roots of goodness of bodhisattvas. This is the second great initiation.

He further thinks: After the Tathagata enters nirvana, I shall adorn the Buddha-Dharma. I shall make offerings to stupas with every kind of flower, garland, incense, scented ointment, powdered incense, garment, canopy, standard, and banner. I shall receive, uphold, and protect the Buddha’s true Dharma. This is the third great initiation.

He further thinks: I shall teach and discipline all sentient beings, causing them to attain supreme bodhi. This is the fourth great initiation.

He further thinks: I shall adorn all worlds with the unsurpassed adornments of Buddha lands. This is the fifth great initiation.

He further thinks: I shall bring forth a mind of great compassion and, for the sake of a single sentient being in every world, practice the bodhisattva conduct throughout all future kalpas. As for one sentient being, so too for all sentient beings: I shall cause them all to attain supreme bodhi without ever giving rise to a single thought of weariness or indolence. This is the sixth great initiation.

He further thinks: Those Tathagatas are immeasurable and boundless. In the presence of a single Tathagata, I shall spend inconceivable kalpas paying reverence and making offerings. As with one Tathagata, so too shall I do with all Tathagatas. This is the seventh great initiation.

He further thinks: After those Tathagatas enter parinirvana, whatever relics each Tathagata leaves, I shall build for them jeweled stupas as tall and broad as ineffably many worlds. I shall likewise create images of the Buddhas. Throughout inconceivable kalpas, I shall make offerings of every kind of jeweled standard, banner, canopy, incense, flower, and garment, without giving rise to a single thought of weariness. I shall do this to honor the Buddhas, perfect the Buddha-Dharma, teach sentient beings, protect and uphold the true Dharma, and reveal and expound it. This is the eighth great initiation.

He further thinks: Through these roots of goodness, I shall attain supreme bodhi and enter the stage of Buddhahood, becoming equal in essential nature to all Tathagatas. This is the ninth great initiation.

He further thinks: After I attain Perfect Enlightenment, throughout all worlds and for ineffable kalpas I shall expound the true Dharma and manifest inconceivable mastery of spiritual powers. My body, speech, and mind shall never grow weary or depart from the true Dharma. Sustained by the Buddha’s power, I shall diligently fulfill great vows for all sentient beings, taking great loving-kindness as foremost and great compassion as the ultimate end.

Because I realize the signlessness of dharmas, abide in truthful speech, realize that all dharmas are quiescent and extinguished, know that all sentient beings are unobtainable while never contradicting the practices I perform, share one essence with the Buddhas of the three periods, pervade the dharmadhatu and the realm of space, comprehend the signlessness of all dharmas, perfect non-arising and non-ceasing, and fulfill all Buddha-Dharmas, I shall use the power of great vows to discipline sentient beings and perform great Buddha-work without rest.

This is the tenth great initiation.

If bodhisattvas abide in this Dharma, they perfect the bodhisattva conduct and fulfill the unsurpassed great wisdom of the Tathagata.

Children of the Buddhas! The great bodhisattva has ten ultimate great undertakings:

The ultimate great undertaking of revering and making offerings to all Tathagatas.

The ultimate great undertaking of constantly remembering those sentient beings who can be rescued and protected.

The ultimate great undertaking of single-mindedly seeking all Buddha-Dharmas.

The ultimate great undertaking of accumulating all roots of goodness.

The ultimate great undertaking of contemplating all Buddha-Dharmas.

The ultimate great undertaking of fulfilling all great vows.

The ultimate great undertaking of perfecting all bodhisattva practices.

The ultimate great undertaking of serving all spiritual benefactors.

The ultimate great undertaking of journeying to the presence of Buddhas in all worlds.

The ultimate great undertaking of hearing and upholding the true Dharma of the Buddhas.

If bodhisattvas abide in this Dharma, they attain the ultimate great wisdom of supreme bodhi.

Children of the Buddhas! The great bodhisattva has ten kinds of indestructible faith:

Indestructible faith in all Buddhas.

Indestructible faith in all Buddha-Dharmas.

Indestructible faith in the entire noble Sangha.

Indestructible faith in all bodhisattvas.

Indestructible faith in all spiritual benefactors.

Indestructible faith in all sentient beings.

Indestructible faith in all the great vows of bodhisattvas.

Indestructible faith in all bodhisattva practices.

Indestructible faith in revering and making offerings to all Buddhas.

Indestructible faith in the bodhisattvas’ skillful means for teaching and disciplining all sentient beings.

If bodhisattvas abide in this Dharma, they attain the indestructible faith of the Buddhas’ unsurpassed great wisdom.

Children of the Buddhas! The great bodhisattva receives predictions of attainment in ten ways:

Through possessing profound understanding within, he receives a prediction of attainment.

Through bringing forth roots of bodhisattva goodness in accordance with the Dharma, he receives a prediction of attainment.

Through cultivating vast practices, he receives a prediction of attainment.

In his presence, he receives a prediction of attainment.

Outside his presence, he receives a prediction of attainment.

Through realizing bodhi by his own mind, he receives a prediction of attainment.

Through perfecting patience, he receives a prediction of attainment.

Through teaching and disciplining sentient beings, he receives a prediction of attainment.

At the end of all numbers of kalpas, he receives a prediction of attainment.

Through mastery of all bodhisattva practices, he receives a prediction of attainment.

If bodhisattvas abide in this Dharma, they receive predictions of attainment in the presence of the Buddhas.

Children of the Buddhas! The great bodhisattva has ten dedications of roots of goodness. Through them, the bodhisattva can dedicate all roots of goodness:

Through my roots of goodness, may I be the same as spiritual benefactors in vows. May I attain this and nothing else.

Through my roots of goodness, may I be the same as spiritual benefactors in practice. May I attain this and nothing else.

Through my roots of goodness, may I be the same as spiritual benefactors in roots. May I attain this and nothing else.

Through my roots of goodness, may I be the same as spiritual benefactors in equality. May I attain this and nothing else.

Through my roots of goodness, may I be the same as spiritual benefactors in mindfulness. May I attain this and nothing else.

Through my roots of goodness, may I be the same as spiritual benefactors in purity. May I attain this and nothing else.

Through my roots of goodness, may I be the same as spiritual benefactors in their abiding. May I attain this and nothing else.

Through my roots of goodness, may I be the same as spiritual benefactors in fulfillment. May I attain this and nothing else.

Through my roots of goodness, may I be the same as spiritual benefactors in indestructibility. May I attain this and nothing else.

If bodhisattvas abide in this Dharma, they attain the unsurpassed dedication of roots of goodness.

Children of the Buddhas! The great bodhisattva has ten dharmas through which wisdom is attained:

Through mastery of giving and relinquishment, wisdom is attained.

Through profound understanding of all Buddha-Dharmas, wisdom is attained.

Through entering the wisdom of the Tathagata, wisdom is attained.

Through being able to resolve doubts in all questions and answers, wisdom is attained.

Through entering the meanings understood by the wise, wisdom is attained.

Through profoundly understanding the skillful sounds and languages of all the Buddha-Dharmas of all Buddhas, wisdom is attained.

Through profoundly understanding that planting even a few roots of goodness in the presence of the Buddhas can certainly bring all pure dharmas to fulfillment and lead to the Tathagata’s immeasurable wisdom, wisdom is attained.

Through perfecting the bodhisattva’s inconceivable abidings, wisdom is attained.

Through being able, in a single thought, to journey to ineffably many Buddha lands, wisdom is attained.

Through awakening to the bodhi of the Buddhas, entering the entire dharmadhatu, hearing and retaining all Dharmas spoken by the Buddhas, and entering deeply into all the Tathagatas’ adornments of speech and sound, wisdom is attained.

If bodhisattvas abide in this Dharma, they directly realize the unsurpassed wisdom of all Buddhas.

Children of the Buddhas! The great bodhisattva has ten dharmas for bringing forth an immeasurable, boundless, and vast mind:

In the presence of all Buddhas, he brings forth an immeasurable, boundless, and vast mind.

Contemplating the realms of all sentient beings, he brings forth an immeasurable, boundless, and vast mind.

Contemplating all lands, all periods, and the entire dharmadhatu, he brings forth an immeasurable, boundless, and vast mind.

Contemplating all dharmas as being like space, he brings forth an immeasurable, boundless, and vast mind.

Contemplating the vast practices of bodhisattvas, he brings forth an immeasurable, boundless, and vast mind.

Rightly recollecting all Buddhas of the three periods, he brings forth an immeasurable, boundless, and vast mind.

Contemplating inconceivable karmic retributions, he brings forth an immeasurable, boundless, and vast mind.

Purifying and adorning all Buddha lands, he brings forth an immeasurable, boundless, and vast mind.

Universally entering the great assemblies of all Buddhas, he brings forth an immeasurable, boundless, and vast mind.

Contemplating the wondrous sounds of all Tathagatas, he brings forth an immeasurable, boundless, and vast mind.

If bodhisattvas abide in these ten vast minds, they attain the vast ocean of wisdom of the immeasurable and boundless vast mind.

If bodhisattvas abide in these ten vast minds, they attain the vast, immeasurable, and boundless ocean of wisdom of all Buddha-Dharmas.

Children of the Buddhas! The great bodhisattva has ten hidden treasuries:

Knowing all dharmas as the treasury that gives rise to practices of merit and virtue.

Knowing all dharmas as the treasury of right contemplation.

Knowing all dharmas as the treasury of illuminating dharanis.

Knowing all dharmas as the treasury of eloquent exposition.

Knowing all dharmas as the treasury of ineffable, skillful awakening to reality.

Knowing all the Buddhas’ mastery of spiritual powers as the treasury of contemplative manifestation.

Knowing all dharmas as the treasury of skillfully giving rise to equality.

Knowing all dharmas as the treasury of constantly seeing all Buddhas.

Knowing all inconceivable kalpas as the treasury of clearly knowing them all to abide like illusions.

Knowing all Buddhas and bodhisattvas as the treasury that gives rise to joyful and pure faith.

If bodhisattvas abide in this Dharma, they attain the Dharma treasury of the unsurpassed wisdom of all Buddhas and can ultimately discipline all sentient beings.

Children of the Buddhas! The great bodhisattva has ten disciplines:

The discipline of never slandering any Buddha-Dharma.

The discipline of possessing joyful faith in the Buddhas that cannot be destroyed.

The discipline of honoring and revering all bodhisattvas.

The discipline of never abandoning the mind that cherishes all spiritual benefactors.

The discipline of never giving rise to thoughts inclined toward the paths of the shravakas and pratyekabuddhas.

The discipline of remaining far removed from every kind of retreat from the bodhisattva path.

The discipline of never giving rise to any thought of harming sentient beings.

The discipline of cultivating all roots of goodness and bringing them all to ultimate fulfillment.

The discipline of being able to subdue all maras.

The discipline of bringing all paramitas to fulfillment.

If bodhisattvas abide in this Dharma, they attain the discipline of unsurpassed great wisdom.

Children of the Buddhas! The great bodhisattva has ten masteries:

Mastery of lifespan, because he abides in life for ineffably many kalpas.

Mastery of mind, because his wisdom can enter innumerable samadhis.

Mastery of necessities, because he can adorn all worlds with immeasurable adornments.

Mastery of karma, because he undergoes karmic retribution at the appropriate time.

Mastery of birth, because he manifests birth in all worlds.

Mastery of understanding, because he sees Buddhas filling all worlds.

Mastery of vows, because in the various lands he attains Perfect Enlightenment whenever and however he wishes.

Mastery of spiritual power, because he manifests all great spiritual powers.

Mastery of Dharma, because he manifests boundless Dharma gates.

Mastery of wisdom, because in every thought he manifests the Tathagata’s ten powers and fearlessnesses and attains Perfect Enlightenment.

If bodhisattvas abide in this Dharma, they perfect all the Buddhas’ gates of paramita, wisdom, spiritual powers, and mastery of bodhi.