離垢慧菩薩所問禮佛法經

Thus indeed have I heard: At one time, the Buddha, together with five hundred great bhikṣus and innumerable bodhisattvas, was dwelling at the Jeta Grove, the Garden of Anāthapiṇḍika, in the city of Śrāvastī. At that time there were immeasurable brāhmaṇas, vaiśyas, śūdras, and elders, each of them being a chief who together led his retinue and came to the place where the Buddha was. There were also devas, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kiṃnaras, and mahoragas present, filling the whole Dharma assembly.

At that time, among the assembly there was a bodhisattva-mahāsattva named Vimalamati who rose from his seat, bared his right shoulder, placed his right knee upon the ground, and before the Buddha joined his palms together and respectfully said:

"World-Honored One! I have a few matters I wish to inquire about; I beg you to grant your consent!"

The Buddha said:

"Just ask, and I shall answer according to your wishes."

After having received the Buddha's assent, the bodhisattva Vimalamati, exceedingly joyful, said:

"World-Honored One! If there be good men and good women who wish to revere, pay homage to, and make offerings to the Tathāgata, how should they do so?"

The Buddha said:

"O Vimalamati! Excellent, excellent! You have a heart of compassion and pity, doing many things that benefit all devas and humans. Listen well, and I shall expound it.

"If there be any good man or good woman who wishes to revere and venerate the Tathāgata with prostrations, he must first make this vow: 'Today I, with a wholehearted mind, venerate and prostrate to the Buddhas of the ten directions, vowing to enter together into all the supreme dharmas. I vow that when I prostrate to the Buddha with the five members,[1] I may be freed from the five paths and may cut off the five hindrances;[2] I vow that all sentient beings may ever abide in peace, not lose the five supernatural powers, and be fully endowed with the five faculties.

When my right knee touches the ground, I vow that all sentient beings may attain the path of Right Enlightenment. When my left knee touches the ground, I vow that all sentient beings may not give rise to wrong views regarding the teachings of the non-Buddhist paths, and that all may stand firm in the path of Right Enlightenment. When my right hand touches the ground, I vow that I may be like the World-Honored One who, seated upon the vajra throne, pointed his right hand down toward the earth, whereupon the earth quaked and an auspicious sign appeared, and he realized the fruit of great bodhi; now I too pray to be thus, together with all sentient beings equally realizing the path of Enlightenment.

When my left hand touches the ground, I vow to use the four means of embracing to subdue the non-Buddhist practitioners who are difficult to tame, and to lead them into the right Dharma. When the crown of my head touches the ground, I vow that all sentient beings may depart far from the mind of arrogance, and that all may accomplish the mark of the invisible crown.[3]'

"O Vimalamati! This is the manner of prostrating to the Buddha with the five members. Next, pay homage to the present Buddhas of the ten directions. You should chant:

"Homage to Akṣobhya Tathāgata and to all the Tathāgatas in the immeasurable worlds of the eastern direction, to the great treasuries of the Dharma, and to the bodhisattvas, śrāvakas, pratyekabuddhas, and all the sages and saints.

"Homage to Ratnaketu Tathāgata and to all the Tathāgatas in the immeasurable worlds of the southern direction, to the great treasuries of the Dharma, to the bodhisattvas, śrāvakas, pratyekabuddhas, and all the sages and saints.

"Homage to Amitāyus Tathāgata and to all the Tathāgatas in the immeasurable worlds of the western direction, to the great treasuries of the Dharma, to the bodhisattvas, śrāvakas, pratyekabuddhas, and all the sages and saints.

"Homage to Dundubhisvara Tathāgata and to all the Tathāgatas in the immeasurable worlds of the northern direction, to the great treasuries of the Dharma, to the bodhisattvas, śrāvakas, pratyekabuddhas, and all the sages and saints.

"Homage to Indraketudhvajarāja Tathāgata and to all the Tathāgatas in the immeasurable worlds of the southeastern direction, to the great treasuries of the Dharma, to the bodhisattvas, śrāvakas, pratyekabuddhas, and all the sages and saints.

"Homage to Ratnavikrāmin Tathāgata and to all the Tathāgatas in the immeasurable worlds of the southwestern direction, to the great treasuries of the Dharma, to the bodhisattvas, śrāvakas, pratyekabuddhas, and all the sages and saints.

"Homage to Sālendrarāja Tathāgata and to all the Tathāgatas in the immeasurable worlds of the northwestern direction, to the great treasuries of the Dharma, to the bodhisattvas, śrāvakas, pratyekabuddhas, and all the sages and saints.

"Homage to Amitadhvajarāja Tathāgata and to all the Tathāgatas in the immeasurable worlds of the northeastern direction, to the great treasuries of the Dharma, to the bodhisattvas, śrāvakas, pratyekabuddhas, and all the sages and saints.

"Homage to Jñānaprabha Tathāgata and to all the Tathāgatas in the immeasurable worlds of the upper direction, to the great treasuries of the Dharma, to the bodhisattvas, śrāvakas, pratyekabuddhas, and all the sages and saints.

"Homage to Vairocana Tathāgata and to all the Tathāgatas in the immeasurable worlds of the lower direction, to the great treasuries of the Dharma, to the bodhisattvas, śrāvakas, pratyekabuddhas, and all the sages and saints.

"Homage to the Original Teacher of the Sahā world, Śākyamuni Tathāgata, and to all the Tathāgatas in the immeasurable worlds throughout the ten directions, to the great treasuries of the Dharma, to the bodhisattvas, śrāvakas, pratyekabuddhas, and all the sages and saints.

"Next, vow again:

"Today I, with a single mind, venerate and prostrate to all the Buddhas, the Dharma, and the assembly of sages and saints. I beg you all to bear witness for me. From now until I attain Buddhahood, I shall ever take refuge in the Buddha, the World-Honored One, the One of Great Loving-Kindness and Compassion, the One of All-Knowledge, the One of All-Knowing Vision, the One who has departed from anxiety and fear, the great lion among humankind, the great dragon king, the Great Sage among humankind, the Great Hero, the One whose body is known to all, beyond conception, the One of the unsurpassed body, the body without equal, the body not shared with the Two Vehicles, the One of the pure Dharma-body, the most supreme among all sentient beings.

Now I, with utmost sincerity and a single mind, take refuge with my very life. Such refuge with my very life I make a hundred times, a thousand times, a hundred thousand myriad times, immeasurable and countless times, even to the very end of future ages, penetrating to the bone and to the marrow. I take refuge in the Buddhas, the World-Honored Ones, as stated above.

"Vow again:

"Now I vow to take the wholesome roots of the three karmas of body, speech, and mind, together with all sentient beings, to take refuge in the Buddha, ever not departing far from the Buddha. I take refuge in the One who sits upon the place of enlightenment, the One who abides permanently without change, the One who neither ages nor dies nor perishes, the One who neither abides nor has conditioned nature but is ever still and quiescent, the One who abides in the dharma of equanimity, making it the shore of great mindful protection, the One who has realized nirvāṇa, making it a place of reliance, the One who abides in the most supreme dharma among all dharmas.

I now, with utmost sincerity and earnest reverence, take refuge with my very life in the right Dharma of the Buddhas in this way. Furthermore, I, with utmost sincerity as above, take refuge with my very life in the bodhisattvas abiding in the Stage of the Lineage, the bodhisattvas from the Stage of Joy up to the Stage of the Dharma Cloud, and the assembly of bodhisattvas abiding in the rank of the Ten Stages.

"Furthermore, I beg to repent and make this vow:

"I humbly beg the Buddhas, the World-Honored Ones of the ten directions, to bear witness, to be mindful, and out of pity and compassion to accept my repentance. The body has three karmas: killing, stealing, and sexual misconduct. The speech has four karmas: false speech, harsh speech, double-tongued speech, and frivolous speech. The mind has three karmas: greed, anger, and delusion. These karmas, whether I committed them myself, or caused others to commit them, or rejoiced upon seeing or hearing others commit them—these ten evils, I now all beg to repent of them entirely.

"Reflecting again: from of old until now I have transmigrated within the six paths, employing many methods to deceive sentient beings—using a heavy scale and a large measure to take goods unto myself, while using a light scale and a small measure to give to others; gilding the outside with gold while secretly poisoning within… all of which inflicted harm upon everyone. Today I beg to repent of all these entirely.

"Or I have slandered the Three Vehicles, spoken recklessly of the Dharma and discipline, disdained and slighted the Three Jewels, deceived my father and mother, and failed to revere the venerable elders, the upādhyāyas, the ācāryas, and the elders. Such past transgressions I now all beg to repent of entirely. With sincere heart I disclose the evil deeds I have done in the present, and those not yet done I dare even more not to do. Now, before the Buddhas and the bodhisattvas, who are the most elevated of beings, the incomparable, the unsurpassed, the matchless-equal, I disclose and repent, not daring to conceal anything. Having repented once, I vow hereafter not to dare to commit them again. (Repenting in this way, the second time and the third time, one also recites as above.)

"Next one should exhort and entreat: 'If the Buddhas of the ten directions have not yet turned the wheel of the Dharma, or if they wish to enter nirvāṇa, then I beg to entreat the Buddhas to abide forever in the world, for immeasurable kalpas, out of pity for sentient beings to pour forth the great rain of the Dharma and turn the wheel of the right Dharma—do not hasten to enter nirvāṇa!'

"Then one should give rise to the mind of rejoicing: 'I rejoice in the sages and saints of the Three Vehicles, as numerous as the sands of the Ganges, throughout the ten directions, and in all sentient beings who cultivate the six pāramitās and assist the dharma of bodhi.'

"Then vow to dedicate the merit: 'May the deeds of the Buddhas, together with the practices of cultivating the six pāramitās by the bodhisattvas, śrāvakas, and pratyekabuddhas, all be dedicated to Unsurpassed Bodhi. I too vow thus to dedicate it toward the Buddha-path.'

"Then I beg to make this vow:

"Reverently I reflect! The Buddhas and bodhisattvas of the ten directions and the three times all make the great and vast vow to teach and transform all sentient beings throughout the entire Dharma-realm, throughout all the realms of empty space, embracing wholly the three realms, vowing that all sentient beings may attain complete benefit and joy, be fully endowed with the wholesome discipline and rules of conduct,[4] and abide in the great nirvāṇa.

Now, in this present moment, I too establish such a great oath and vow: 'I vow that within the Unsurpassed Path my mind shall not be scattered, that I may ever behold the Buddhas, be able to hear the right Dharma, receive and cultivate it without ever vainly abandoning it. The wholesome dharmas I have done and the mind of bodhi shall not retreat or regress; wherever I am born I shall ever make offerings to the assembly of the holy ones, teach and transform sentient beings to realize the Unsurpassed Path, turn the wheel of the right Dharma, be fully endowed with great supernatural powers, and also cause them to cultivate likewise until non-retrogression.'

"Furthermore, I vow that all sentient beings may soon sever all sufferings, swiftly realize Nirvāṇa, and abide in the wisdom of the Tathāgata. Having myself emerged from birth and death and become enlightened to all things, I shall also help sentient beings to depart far from birth and death, to escape every affliction, and to become enlightened to all things. I beg that the Buddhas of the ten directions bear witness for me as I practice the bodhisattva path and raise up the great ocean of vows."

At that time the World-Honored One spoke this verse:

The Buddha addressed the bodhisattva-mahāsattva Vimalamati:

"If there be sentient beings who practice the bodhisattva path as I have explained, they should accordingly cultivate and study it."

When they had heard the Buddha expound this sūtra, the bodhisattva Vimalamati and the great assembly of devas, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kiṃnaras, mahoragas, humans and non-humans, and so forth—all were greatly joyful, believed and received it, and reverently put it into practice.

Notes:

[1] The five members 五輪, also called the five parts of the body: the five parts upon the body—the right knee, the left knee, the right hand, the left hand, and the head.

[2] The five hindrances 五蓋: referring to the five kinds of afflictions that cover over the mind-nature and prevent wholesome dharmas from arising (sensual desire, ill-will, sloth-and-torpor, restlessness-and-remorse, and doubt).

[3] The mark of the invisible crown 無見頂相: the mark of the crown of the Buddha's head, so high that it cannot be seen; referring to the sixty-sixth mark among the eighty excellent marks of the Buddha.

[4] The wholesome discipline and rules of conduct 善律儀, also called the discipline and rules of conduct: the precepts and prohibitions established by the Buddha, used as standards in the conduct of life for his disciples, so that they may tame the body and mind and eliminate all faults.

[5] The ten pāramitās 十度: also called the ten pāramitās, the ten supreme practices. The ten supreme practices that a bodhisattva must cultivate completely in order to attain the great nirvāṇa: 1. the pāramitā of giving, 2. the pāramitā of discipline, 3. the pāramitā of patience, 4. the pāramitā of vigor, 5. the pāramitā of meditation, 6. the pāramitā of prajñā, 7. the pāramitā of skillful means, 8. the pāramitā of vows, 9. the pāramitā of power, 10. the pāramitā of wisdom.