佛垂般涅槃略說教誡經

1. PREFACE TO THE SUTRA

When Śākyamuni Buddha first turned the Dharma Wheel, he delivered Ājñāta Kauṇḍinya; when he preached the Dharma for the last time, he delivered Subhadra. After all those who should be delivered had been delivered, he was about to enter nirvana between the twin śāla trees. It was then midnight; everywhere was still, without a sound. For the sake of his disciples, the Buddha briefly taught the essential points of the Dharma.

2. OBSERVING THE PRECEPTS

(Main Section)

“O bhikkhus! After my passing, you should honor and reverence the precepts, as one who finds light in darkness or as a poor person who obtains a treasure. Know that the precepts are your teacher, no different from me remaining in the world.

“One who observes the precepts purely must not engage in commerce or barter; acquire and possess fields, lands, or houses; or keep servants or livestock for profit. All kinds of seeds and cultivated plants, together with every sort of precious possession, should be kept at a distance as one avoids a pit of fire. You must not cut down plants or trees, plow fields, dig the earth, compound medicines, interpret auspicious and inauspicious signs, or observe the stars to calculate favorable and unfavorable destinies. Nor should you select auspicious or inauspicious dates and times.

“Exercise restraint and moderation, eat at the proper time, and sustain yourselves through pure means. Do not take part in worldly affairs, serve as messengers, or act as envoys. You should not practice spells or prepare elixirs of immortality; associate with the powerful while looking down upon those who are close and familiar; or do anything of that kind.

“You must always maintain right mindfulness yourselves and, with upright minds, seek liberation from birth and death. Do not conceal your faults or perform extraordinary acts to delude others. Regarding the four kinds of offerings, exercise moderation and know what is sufficient. When you receive offerings, you should not store them up.

“This is a brief description of the characteristics of observing the precepts. The precepts accord with the very foundation of liberation and therefore are called that which accords with liberation. By relying upon the precepts, the various gateways of meditative concentration and the wisdom that extinguishes suffering arise. Therefore, bhikkhus must observe the precepts purely, allowing neither violations nor deficiencies. Those who observe the precepts purely will certainly attain wholesome qualities. If the precepts are not observed purely, no wholesome merit can arise. You should therefore know that the precepts are the foremost secure abiding place from which all merit arises.”

3. RESTRAINING THE MIND

“O bhikkhus! Once you are firmly established in the precepts, you should restrain the five faculties and not allow them to become heedless and pursue the five desires. It is like a cowherd who watches his cattle with a staff and does not allow them to roam freely and trespass upon another’s fields.

“If the five faculties are indulged, not only will they pursue the five desires without limit and become impossible to restrain, but, like a vicious horse uncontrolled by a bridle, they will drag a person into a pit. Harm inflicted by bandits brings suffering in this life alone, but harm inflicted by the bandits of the five faculties brings severe suffering extending through many kalpas. You cannot fail to be vigilant.

“Therefore, the wise restrain their faculties and never follow after them. They guard against them as against bandits and do not allow them free rein. If they are set loose, before long they will surely bring destruction through contact with objects.

“The mind is master of the five faculties. You must therefore skillfully restrain the mind. The mind is more fearsome than poisonous snakes, wild beasts, hostile bandits, or a great conflagration spreading unchecked. Even such analogies are insufficient. The danger is like that of a person carrying a bowl of honey and walking quickly, whose eyes are fixed only upon the honey so that he fails to see the deep pit beneath his feet; or like a mad elephant without an iron hook to restrain it; or like an ape that has climbed a tree and leaps about at will, difficult to check or control. You must restrain it at once and not allow it to become heedless. If you indulge the mind, all wholesome deeds will be destroyed; once the mind is restrained, there is nothing that cannot be accomplished.

“Therefore, bhikkhus, you must diligently and vigorously restrain the mind.”

4. MODERATION IN FOOD AND DRINK

“O bhikkhus! When eating and drinking, regard food as medicine taken to cure an illness. Whether delicious or unpleasant, consume only the proper measure, taking it into the body solely to ward off hunger and thirst.

“Just as a bee gathers honey, taking only nectar from the flower without harming its fragrance or color, so too should a bhikkhu accept people’s offerings only sufficiently to relieve hunger and thirst. He must not greedily seek more and thereby injure their wholesome intentions. He should be like a wise person who knows the strength of an ox pulling a load and does not burden it so heavily that its strength is exhausted.”

5. DO NOT INDULGE IN SLEEP

“O bhikkhus! Throughout the day, you should diligently cultivate wholesome qualities and not waste time. At night, you should not neglect either the beginning of the night or the time near dawn.

At midnight, use the recitation of sutras to examine yourselves. Do not allow slumber to make your entire life pass vainly without attainment. Constantly remember the fire of impermanence that forever consumes the world.

Quickly seek your own deliverance and do not delight in sleep. The bandits of the afflictions constantly lie in wait to kill people and are more venomous than enemies. How can you still delight in sleep and fail to awaken yourselves?

The poisonous snake of the afflictions sleeps within your mind like a vicious serpent sleeping in your house. Use the iron hook of observing the precepts to remove it quickly. Only when that sleeping snake has been removed can you rest peacefully.

To sleep while it has not yet been removed is to be without a sense of shame.

“To wear a sense of shame as one’s garment is the foremost of all beautiful adornments. Shame is like an iron hook capable of restraining wrongdoing. Therefore, bhikkhus must always maintain a sense of shame and never become negligent. If you part from shame, you will lose all merit.

“One who knows shame can practice what is wholesome. One who knows no shame is no different from a beast.”

6. DO NOT BECOME ANGRY

“O bhikkhus! If someone comes and dismembers your body piece by piece, gather in your mind and do not become angry; also guard your speech and utter no malicious words. If you indulge an angry mind, you harm the Path yourselves and lose all the benefits of merit.

“Forbearance is a virtue with which even observance of the precepts and ascetic practices cannot compare. Only one capable of forbearance deserves to be called a mighty great person. If a person cannot gladly receive vicious abuse as though drinking amrita, that person cannot be called a wise one who has entered the Path. Why is this? The harm caused by anger destroys wholesome qualities, ruins one’s good reputation, and causes people in both this life and future lives to avoid one.

“You should know that an angry mind is fiercer than a raging fire. You must constantly guard against it and not allow it to enter. Among thieves that plunder merit, none surpasses anger. Worldly people enjoy sensual pleasures and do not practice the Path; lacking any means of self-restraint, their anger may still be excused. But for a renunciant who practices the Path and has abandoned desire to harbor anger is utterly unacceptable. It is like thunder and fiery lightning appearing in a clear, cool sky—something that ought not occur.”

7. DO NOT BE ARROGANT

“O bhikkhus! When you stroke your shaven heads, remember that you have cast aside beautiful ornaments, put on robes of subdued color, taken up alms bowls, and sustain your lives by begging for food. Seeing yourselves thus, if an arrogant thought arises, remove it quickly. Even worldly people should not allow arrogance to grow; how much less should renunciants who have entered the Path and, seeking liberation, humble themselves to beg for food?”

8. REMOVE FLATTERY AND CROOKEDNESS

“O bhikkhus! A flattering and crooked mind runs contrary to the Path. Therefore, you must maintain sincerity and uprightness. Know that flattery and crookedness serve only to deceive. One who has entered the Path must not be so. You should keep your minds honest and upright, taking sincerity and straightforwardness as the foundation.”

9. FEW DESIRES

“O bhikkhus! Know that people of many desires constantly seek many benefits and thus also suffer many afflictions. People of few desires do not suffer the harm caused by such craving and seeking. The single practice of having few desires is greatly worthy of cultivation; how much more so because few desires can also give rise to merit!

“People of few desires do not flatter or act crookedly to gain others’ favor, nor are they dragged along by their faculties. Those who practice having few desires possess serene minds and fear nothing; whatever circumstances they encounter, they always find themselves content. By maintaining few desires, they will attain nirvana.

“This is called having few desires.”

10. KNOWING CONTENTMENT

“O bhikkhus! If you wish to escape all suffering and affliction, contemplate contentment. Contentment is itself the abode of wealth, joy, and peace. A contented person is peaceful and happy even when lying upon the ground. A discontented person remains unsatisfied even while dwelling in a heavenly realm.

“Those who do not know contentment are poor though wealthy. Those who know contentment are wealthy though poor. The discontented are constantly dragged along by the five desires and are greatly pitied by the contented.

“This is called contentment.”

11. SECLUSION

“O bhikkhus! If you seek tranquility, the unconditioned, and peace, you should leave noisy gatherings and dwell alone in a secluded place. Those who dwell in quiet places are honored by Śakra and all the devas. Therefore, you should relinquish both your own assemblies and those of others, live alone in a secluded place, and contemplate how to extinguish suffering at its root.

“If you delight in gatherings, you will inevitably endure many afflictions. It is like a great tree where many birds congregate: it cannot escape the danger of its branches drying out and breaking. Those entangled and bound by worldly conditions inevitably sink into the ocean of suffering, like an old elephant mired in mud and unable to free itself.

“This is called seclusion.”

12. DILIGENT EFFORT

“O bhikkhus! If you apply yourselves diligently and vigorously, nothing will be difficult. Therefore, you should practice with diligence and vigor. A small stream, if it flows continuously, can wear a hole through stone. If a practitioner’s mind is lax and indolent, it is like someone who rubs sticks together to make fire but stops before they become hot. Although that person wishes to obtain fire, it will be difficult to do so.

“This is called diligent effort.”

13. NOT LOSING RIGHT MINDFULNESS

“O bhikkhus! Seeking a good spiritual friend or a skillful supporter is not as beneficial as never losing right mindfulness. If people do not lose right mindfulness, the bandits of the afflictions cannot enter them. Therefore, you must always gather right mindfulness within your minds. If you lose right mindfulness, you lose all merit. If the power of mindfulness is strong and enduring, then even when entering among the bandits of the five desires you will not be harmed, just as one who enters battle wearing armor has nothing to fear.

“This is called not losing right mindfulness.”

14. MEDITATIVE CONCENTRATION

“O bhikkhus! If people gather in the mind, it becomes concentrated. Because the mind is concentrated, they can know the characteristics of the arising and ceasing of worldly dharmas. Therefore, you must constantly and vigorously cultivate the various concentrations. When people attain concentration, their minds are not scattered. It is like someone who wishes to retain water and must skillfully build and repair the embankments. Practitioners are likewise: to preserve the water of wisdom, they must skillfully cultivate meditative concentration and not allow it to leak away.

“This is called concentration.”

15. WISDOM

“O bhikkhus! Those who possess wisdom are neither greedy nor attached. They constantly examine themselves and allow no errors. In this way, they can attain liberation within my Dharma. Those who do otherwise are neither practitioners of the Path nor worldly people; there is no name by which to call them.

“Wisdom is truly a sturdy vessel that carries people across the ocean of aging, sickness, and death. It is also like a great lamp illuminating the darkness of ignorance; like excellent medicine that cures every illness; and like a sharp axe that fells the tree of the afflictions. Therefore, through the gateways of wisdom—learning, reflection, and cultivation—you must increase your own benefit. Those illuminated by wisdom, although possessing only fleshly eyes, truly see everything clearly. This is called wisdom.”

16. DO NOT ENGAGE IN IDLE TALK

“O bhikkhus! If you speak on all kinds of subjects merely for amusement, your minds will become scattered. Although you have renounced the household life, you will not attain liberation. Therefore, bhikkhus must quickly abandon the distracting harm of idle talk. If you wish to attain the joy of quiescent cessation, you should skillfully eliminate the danger of idle talk.

“This is called not engaging in idle talk.”

17. EXERT YOURSELVES

“O bhikkhus! You should always devote yourselves wholeheartedly to all forms of merit. Abandon heedlessness as you would avoid a hostile bandit. The teachings imparted for your benefit by the greatly compassionate Blessed One can all bring you to the ultimate end; you should diligently put them into practice. Whether dwelling in high mountains, in deserted marshlands, beneath a tree, or in an empty room after relinquishing all affairs, you must constantly recollect the Dharma you have received and studied and never allow it to be forgotten. Always exert yourselves and practice diligently and vigorously. Do not waste your entire lives and later suffer regret.

“I am like a physician who diagnoses an illness and prescribes medicine. Whether the patient takes the medicine is not the physician’s fault. I am also like a skillful guide who shows people the right road. If they hear his directions but do not follow them, that is certainly not the guide’s fault.”

18. RESOLVING DOUBTS

“If you have any doubts concerning the Dharma of the Four Truths, ask about them quickly. Do not harbor doubts without seeking clarification.”

At that time, the Blessed One repeated this three times, but no one asked any question. Why was this? Because no one in the assembly still harbored any doubt.

Then Aniruddha, perceiving the thoughts of the entire assembly, addressed the Buddha:

“Blessed One! The moon might be made hot and the sun cold, but the Four Truths taught by the Buddha can never be altered. The Buddha taught the Truth of Suffering: it truly is suffering and cannot be called happiness. He taught that the Truth of Origination is the cause: there truly is no other cause. If suffering is extinguished, its cause has been extinguished. Precisely because the cause has been extinguished, the result must cease. The Path that extinguishes suffering is truly the right path; there is no other path.

“Blessed One! The bhikkhus now possess firm faith in the Dharma of the Four Truths and harbor no doubts.”

19. SENTIENT BEINGS ATTAIN DELIVERANCE

“Within this assembly, those who have not yet attained the fruit of arhatship will certainly feel sorrow when they see the Buddha enter nirvana. Those who have only recently entered the gateway of the Dharma will attain deliverance immediately upon hearing the Buddha’s teaching, just as a flash of lightning in the dark night suddenly reveals the road. Those who have attained the fruit of arhatship and crossed the ocean of suffering will merely think: ‘Why does the Blessed One enter final nirvana so soon?’”

Although Aniruddha spoke these words, everyone in the assembly already clearly understood the meaning of the Four Noble Truths.

The Blessed One, wishing to make the minds of the great assembly firm, again spoke to the entire assembly out of great compassion:

“O bhikkhus! Do not harbor grief and anguish. Even if I were to remain in the world for an entire kalpa, I would ultimately have to enter final nirvana. It is impossible for what has come together never to part. In my Dharma, I have fully taught everything beneficial to oneself and others. Even if I remained in the world longer, there would be no further benefit. All those among devas and humans who can be delivered have already been delivered. For those who cannot yet be delivered, I have already established the causes and conditions for their future deliverance.”

20. THE DHARMA BODY ENDURES FOREVER

(Concluding Section)

“From now on, my disciples should practice sequentially in accordance with the Dharma. In this way, the Tathagata’s Dharma body will always remain and never perish. You should know that all things in the world are impermanent; wherever there is gathering, there must be separation.

Harbor no further sorrow, for such is the nature of worldly phenomena. Practice diligently and vigorously, seek liberation swiftly, and use the light of wisdom to dispel the darkness of delusion. Life is truly fragile and perilous, and nothing in it is secure.

I am now about to enter final nirvana, like one freed from a grave illness. This evil and blameworthy form that should be cast aside, provisionally called the body, is submerged in the vast ocean of birth, aging, sickness, and death. What wise person, having eliminated it as though slaying a hostile bandit, would not rejoice?”

21. CONCLUSION

“O bhikkhus! You should always devote yourselves wholeheartedly and diligently seek to learn the Path of liberation. All moving and unmoving dharmas in the world bear the marks of decay and insecurity. All of you, say no more. Time is passing, and I am about to enter final nirvana. These are my final instructions.”