仁王護國般若波羅蜜多經

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION

Thus have I heard:

At one time, the Buddha was dwelling on Vulture Peak near the city of Rajagriha, together with one thousand eight hundred bhiksus, all of whom were arhats. They had exhausted all outflows, were free from afflictions, completely liberated in mind and completely liberated through wisdom. They had attained the nine kinds of knowledge and the ten kinds of knowledge; had done what was to be done; contemplated the three kinds of provisional existence in accordance with reality; contemplated the three gates of liberation; and had perfected both conditioned and unconditioned merit.

There were also eight hundred bhiksunis, all of whom were arhats. There were also immeasurable and innumerable great bodhisattvas who possessed the true wisdom of equality and had forever severed the obstruction of the afflictions. Through skillful means, they had brought forth vast practices and vows.

They benefited sentient beings by means of the four methods of embracing and encompassed all with the four immeasurable minds. They had thoroughly penetrated the three knowledges and attained the five superknowledges. They cultivated the boundless factors of enlightenment and possessed skillful arts surpassing all those of the world.

They had deeply penetrated and clearly understood dependent arising, emptiness, signlessness, and wishlessness. They entered and emerged from the attainment of cessation, manifested in inconceivable ways, subdued the hostile forces of Mara, and clearly understood both truths. With the Dharma eye, they saw and knew all the faculties and dispositions of sentient beings.

With the four unobstructed understandings, they taught without fear; possessing the wondrous wisdom of the ten powers, their voices in teaching the Dharma resounded like thunder. They had drawn near to the unsurpassed Vajra Samadhi. All of them were fully endowed with such qualities.

There were also immeasurable upasakas and upasikas, all of whom had seen the Noble Truths.

There were also immeasurable practitioners of the practices of the seven worthies: the foundations of mindfulness, right efforts, bases of supernormal power, faculties, powers, eight spheres of mastery, ten totalities, and sixteen mental activities, through which they advanced to direct contemplation of the Four Noble Truths.

There were also the kings of sixteen great kingdoms, including King Prasenajit, together with their many millions of attendants.

There were also the six heavenly kings of the Desire Realm, including Sakra Devendra, together with immeasurable retinues of devas.

There were the devas of the four meditation heavens in the Form Realm, including the great Brahma kings, together with their retinues of immeasurable devas.

There were immeasurable transformed sentient beings from realms such as those of the asuras, together with their vast retinues.

Moreover, pure lands manifested throughout the ten directions, and ten billion lion thrones appeared. Seated upon those thrones, the Buddhas taught the Dharma of liberation. Before each throne appeared a flower with ten billion petals, adorned with precious objects. Upon each flower were immeasurable transformation Buddhas, immeasurable bodhisattvas, immeasurable members of the fourfold assembly, and the eight classes of beings. In their midst, the Buddhas taught the prajnaparamita, which gradually circulated throughout Buddha lands as numerous as the sands of the Ganges in the ten directions.

All the members of the great assembly who had thus arrived bowed at the Buddha’s feet and then withdrew to sit to one side.

At that time, on the eighth day of the first month, the Blessed One entered the wondrous samadhi of great quiescence. From every pore of his body he emitted a great radiance that illuminated Buddha lands as numerous as the sands of the Ganges throughout the ten directions. At that moment, immeasurable devas of the Desire Realm rained down various beautiful flowers. The devas of the Form Realm also rained down heavenly flowers of many colors, intermingled in an exceedingly beautiful display. From the Formless Realm there rained fragrant flowers whose fragrance was like Mount Sumeru; the flowers were like wheels and descended like gathering clouds, completely covering the great assembly and the Buddha, while causing the worlds to quake in six ways.

The great assembly then said to one another, “Previously, for our sake, the Greatly Enlightened Blessed One taught the Maha Prajnaparamita, the Vajra Prajnaparamita, the Prajnaparamita Requested by the Heavenly Kings, the Great Collection, and immeasurable and innumerable other prajnaparamita teachings. For what reason does the Tathagata emit such a great radiance today?”

At that time, King Prasenajit of Sravasti thought, “Today the Buddha manifests such a rare sign; surely a rain of Dharma is about to fall, bringing benefit, peace, and happiness to all.” The king then questioned the upasakas Jeweled Canopy, Vimalakirti, and others; the great sravakas Sariputra, Subhuti, and others; and the great bodhisattvas Maitreya, Lion’s Roar, and others:

“What auspicious sign does this manifestation of the Tathagata represent?”

No one in the great assembly was able to answer. Through the awesome spiritual power of the Buddha, King Prasenajit and the others caused music to resound, while the devas of the Desire Realm performed immeasurable kinds of heavenly music, whose sound filled the entire trichiliocosm.

The Blessed One then emitted immeasurable asamkhya rays of light, displaying every color in beautiful intermixture. Within each halo of light appeared a jeweled lotus. Each lotus had a thousand petals made of pure gold, and upon it sat a transformation Buddha teaching the Dharma of liberation. The Buddha’s light illuminated Buddha lands as numerous as the sands of the Ganges throughout the ten directions. It was because of certain causes and conditions that these manifestations appeared.

From Buddha lands in other directions came great bodhisattvas: from the east came the great bodhisattva Universal Light; from the southeast, the great bodhisattva Lotus Hand; from the south, the great bodhisattva Free from Sorrow; from the southwest, the great bodhisattva Radiance; from the west, the great bodhisattva Practicing Wisdom; from the northwest, the great bodhisattva Jeweled Excellence; from the north, the great bodhisattva Excellent Lifespan; from the northeast, the great bodhisattva Free from Defilement; from above, the great bodhisattva Joyful Lifespan; and from below, the great bodhisattva Lotus Excellence.

Each came together with immeasurable hundreds of thousands of kotis of great bodhisattvas. They brought many kinds of incense, scattered many kinds of flowers, and performed immeasurable music as offerings to the Tathagata. They all bowed at the Buddha’s feet, then silently withdrew to one side, where they sat with palms joined in reverence and single-mindedly gazed upon the Buddha.

CHAPTER TWO: CONTEMPLATING THE TATHAGATA

At that time, the Blessed One emerged from samadhi and, seated upon the lion throne, addressed the great assembly:

“The Tathagata knows that the kings of the sixteen great kingdoms are all thinking, ‘The Blessed One, in his great compassion, enables everyone to attain benefit, peace, and happiness. How should we kings protect our kingdoms?’ Good men, I shall first explain, for the great bodhisattvas, how to protect the fruit of Buddhahood and how to protect the practices of the Ten Grounds. Listen clearly and attentively, and properly remember what I shall say.”

Upon hearing the Buddha speak thus, the entire great assembly, including King Prasenajit and the others, praised him together, saying:

“Excellent! Excellent!”

They then scattered immeasurable fragrant and beautiful jeweled flowers. Those flowers transformed into jeweled canopies suspended in the air, covering the entire great assembly and extending everywhere.

At that time, King Prasenajit rose, bowed at the Buddha’s feet, joined his palms, knelt upright, and addressed the Buddha:

“Blessed One, how do great bodhisattvas protect the fruit of Buddhahood? How do they protect the practices of the Ten Grounds?”

The Buddha said to King Prasenajit:

“To protect the fruit of Buddhahood means that great bodhisattvas should abide in the following manner: they teach and transform all beings born from eggs, born from wombs, born from moisture, and born through transformation, yet they do not contemplate the characteristics of form and do not contemplate form itself. The same applies to feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness. Their understanding of self and person; permanence, bliss, self, and purity; the four methods of embracing; the six paramitas; the two truths; the Four Noble Truths; the powers; the fearlessnesses; and all practices up to those of bodhisattvas and Tathagatas is likewise: they neither contemplate concepts nor contemplate suchness.

Why is this? Because the nature of all dharmas is true reality: it neither comes nor goes, is neither born nor ceases, and is identical with the ultimate limit of reality. The Dharma-nature is neither dual nor differentiated.

It is like empty space, and the characteristics of the skandhas, ayatanas, and dhatus possess neither self nor what belongs to a self. This is how great bodhisattvas practice the prajnaparamita.”

King Prasenajit said to the Buddha:

“Blessed One, if the nature of bodhisattvas and sentient beings is nondual, then by what characteristics do bodhisattvas teach and transform sentient beings?”

The Buddha said:

“Great King! Form, feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness are permanence, bliss, self, and purity. The Dharma-nature does not abide in form, nor does it abide in non-form.

Feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness are permanence, bliss, self, and purity; it does not abide in purity, nor does it abide in non-purity. Why is this? Because the nature of all dharmas is empty; they exist according to conventional truth and through provisional designation.

All sentient beings and the dharmas of the skandhas, ayatanas, and dhatus; meritorious, non-meritorious, and imperturbable actions—all exist through cause and effect. The practices cultivated by the sages and worthies of the Three Vehicles, up to and including the fruit of Buddhahood, are all said to exist. The sixty-two views are also said to exist.

“Great King! If one clings to names and characteristics and discriminates among the practices of the six realms, the four modes of birth, and the Three Vehicles, one does not see the true nature of all dharmas.”

King Prasenajit said to the Buddha:

“World-Honored One! The true nature of all dharmas is pure and equal, neither existent nor nonexistent. How, then, does wisdom illuminate it?”

The Buddha said:

“Great King! Wisdom illuminates the true nature, which is neither existent nor nonexistent. Why is this?

Because the Dharma-nature is empty. Thus form, feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness; the twelve ayatanas; the eighteen dhatus; the six realms of ordinary beings; the twelve links of dependent origination; the two truths; and the Four Noble Truths are all empty. These dharmas arise and then cease, exist and then become nonexistent; so it is in every ksana.

Why is this? Because within a single thought there are ninety ksanas, and in each ksana there are nine hundred instances of arising and cessation. Thus all conditioned dharmas are empty.

Through profound prajnaparamita, one illuminates and sees that all dharmas are empty: inner emptiness, outer emptiness, inner-and-outer emptiness, the emptiness of emptiness, great emptiness, emptiness of ultimate meaning, emptiness of the conditioned, emptiness of the unconditioned, beginningless emptiness, ultimate emptiness, emptiness of nature, emptiness of intrinsic nature, emptiness of individual characteristics, emptiness of all dharmas, emptiness of prajnaparamita, emptiness of causes, emptiness of the fruit of Buddhahood, and emptiness because emptiness itself is empty.

Conditioned dharmas exist through the aggregation of dharmas, through the aggregation of reception, through the aggregation of names, through the aggregation of causes, through the aggregation of fruits, through the six realms, and through the ten bhumis. The fruit of Buddhahood exists; all these are said to exist.

“Good man! If a bodhisattva abides in the characteristics of dharmas and entertains the notion of a self or the notion of a person, this is the understanding of a sentient being and attachment to the world; therefore, he is not a bodhisattva. Why is this?

Because all dharmas are empty. If, with regard to all dharmas, one attains immovability, neither arising nor ceasing, neither characterized nor uncharacterized, one should not give rise to views and attachments. Why is this?

Because all dharmas are Suchness. The Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha are also Suchness. In the very first thought when noble wisdom becomes manifest, the eighty-four thousand paramitas are fully present.

This is called the Bhumī of Joy. All obstructions are extinguished, and liberation is attained. Its movement is called the vehicle.

When the characteristic of movement ceases, it is called vajra samadhi; when the characteristic of veneration is equal, it is called the wisdom of all-knowledge.

“Great King! The letters, passages, and sentences of this prajnaparamita have all been spoken alike by a hundred Buddhas, a thousand Buddhas, and hundreds of thousands of myriads of kotis of Buddhas. Suppose someone were to give away the seven treasures filling as many trichiliocosms as there are sands in the Ganges, and were to enable all sentient beings throughout those great-thousand worlds to attain the fruit of arhatship.

This would not equal the merit of one who, toward this sutra, gives rise to even a single thought of pure faith—how much less could it equal the merit of one who receives, upholds, reads, recites, and understands even a single sentence! Why is this? Because, apart from the nature of written words, there is no characteristic of written words; it is neither Dharma nor non-Dharma.

Because prajna is empty, the bodhisattva is also empty. Why is this? Because within each of the ten bhumis there is the initial arising, the present arising, and the cessation of arising.

Thus, all thirty kinds of arising are empty. The wisdom of all-knowledge is also entirely empty.

“Great King! If a bodhisattva sees an object realm, sees wisdom, sees speaking, or sees receiving and upholding, that is not the vision of a noble one but the vision of an ordinary being. The retributive results of sentient beings in the three realms are false and illusory.

The karma of the Desire Realm is produced by discrimination; the karma of the Form Realm is produced by the four dhyanas; and the karma of the Formless Realm is produced by the four formless samadhis. All karmic fruits of the three realms are empty. The fundamental ignorance of the three realms is also empty.

The bhumis of noble ones involve the arising and cessation of the uncontaminated. Within the three realms, other forms of ignorance are perfumed; although their retributive results undergo change, they too are all empty. A bodhisattva at the stage of Equal Enlightenment realizes vajra samadhi; the causes and fruits of the two kinds of death are empty, and all-knowledge is also empty.

In the Buddha of unsurpassed enlightenment, all forms of wisdom are perfected; analytical cessation, non-analytical cessation, and the truly pure Dharma-dhatu are equal in nature and characteristics, and their functioning is also empty.

“Good man! When one cultivates prajnaparamita, the speaker and the listener are like an illusionist: there is no speaking and no hearing. Dharma is identical with the Dharma-nature, like empty space. All is Suchness.

“Great King! In this way, a great bodhisattva safeguards the fruit of Buddhahood.”

At that time, the World-Honored One said to King Prasenajit:

“By what characteristics do you contemplate the Tathagata?”

King Prasenajit replied:

“To contemplate the true characteristic of the body is likewise to contemplate the Buddha. There is no former interval, no latter interval, and no middle interval. He does not abide in the three intervals, nor is he apart from the three intervals.

He does not abide in the five skandhas. He does not abide in the four great elements, nor is he apart from the four great elements. He does not abide in the six ayatanas, nor is he apart from the six ayatanas.

He does not abide in the three realms, nor is he apart from the three realms. He does not abide in the directions, nor is he apart from the directions. Knowledge and ignorance are equal, neither identical nor different, neither this nor that, neither pure nor defiled, neither conditioned nor unconditioned, neither bearing the characteristic of self nor the characteristic of person.

He has neither name nor characteristic, neither strength nor weakness. He neither instructs nor speaks, neither gives nor is miserly, neither observes the precepts nor transgresses them, neither practices patience nor becomes angry, neither strives diligently nor grows indolent, neither enters samadhi nor becomes distracted, neither possesses wisdom nor is deluded, neither comes nor goes, neither enters nor departs. He is neither a field of merit nor not a field of merit, neither characterized nor uncharacterized.

He neither grasps nor relinquishes, is neither great nor small, neither sees nor hears, neither perceives nor knows. The activities of the mind are entirely extinguished, and the path of language is utterly cut off. The Dharma-nature is identical with the true limit.

By such characteristics do I contemplate the Tathagata.”

The Buddha said:

“Good man! It is exactly as you have said. The powers, fearlessnesses, and other virtues as numerous as the sands of the Ganges, as well as the exclusive dharmas of all Buddha-Tathagatas, are all likewise. One who cultivates prajnaparamita should contemplate in this way. To contemplate otherwise is called erroneous contemplation.”

When the Buddha spoke this Dharma, an immeasurable multitude attained the pure Dharma-eye.

CHAPTER THREE: THE PRACTICE OF THE BODHISATTVA

At that time, King Prasenajit said to the Buddha:

“World-Honored One! How should great bodhisattvas cultivate the practice that safeguards the Ten Bhumis? How should they teach and transform sentient beings? And by what characteristics should they contemplate?”

The Buddha said:

“Great King! Great bodhisattvas rely upon the five kinds of acceptance to cultivate their practice. These are: the acceptance of subjugation, the acceptance of faith, the acceptance of conformity, and the acceptance of non-arising, each of which has superior, intermediate, and inferior levels; while the acceptance of quiescence has superior and inferior levels. This is called the bodhisattva’s cultivation of prajnaparamita.”

Good man! Upon first entering the stage of the Patience of Subjugation, a bodhisattva begins to permeate the seed-nature and cultivate the practices of the Ten Abodes. When first arousing the aspiration, beings as numerous as the sands of the Ganges, upon seeing the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha, give rise to the ten kinds of faith: the mind of faith, the mind of mindfulness, the mind of diligence, the mind of wisdom, the mind of concentration, the mind of non-retrogression, the mind of moral discipline, the mind of vows, the mind of protecting the Dharma, and the mind of dedication.

If these ten minds are perfected, one can teach and transform beings to a small degree and surpass all the wholesome stages of those of the two vehicles. This is the bodhisattva’s newly nurtured and matured mind, the sacred embryo.

Furthermore, a bodhisattva at the stage of the seed-nature of the nature cultivates the ten kinds of paramita and gives rise to ten kinds of counteraction: contemplating the body, feelings, mind, and dharmas as impure, suffering, impermanent, and without self; counteracting the three unwholesome roots of greed, anger, and delusion; giving rise to the three wholesome roots of generosity, loving-kindness and compassion, and wisdom; and contemplating the patience regarding causes in the past, the patience regarding causes and effects in the present, and the patience regarding effects in the future.

A bodhisattva at this stage benefits and brings happiness to beings, transcends the notions of self and person held by beings, and cannot be harmed by the inverted views of non-Buddhist practitioners.

Furthermore, a bodhisattva at the stage of the seed-nature of the Path cultivates the Ten Dedications and gives rise to ten minds of patience. That is, by contemplating the five skandhas—form, feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness—one attains the patience of moral discipline, the patience of concentration, the patience of wisdom, the patience of liberation, and the patience of the knowledge and vision of liberation.

By contemplating causes and effects within the three realms, one attains the Patience of Emptiness, the Patience of Signlessness, and the Patience of Wishlessness. By contemplating the provisional and real dharmas of the two truths as impermanent, one attains the Patience of Impermanence. By contemplating all dharmas as empty, one attains the Patience of Non-arising.

A bodhisattva at this stage becomes a wheel-turning king, possessing the power to teach, transform, and benefit all beings.

Furthermore, a bodhisattva at the stage of the Patience of Faith—that is, at the Ground of Joy, the Stainless Ground, and the Luminous Ground—is able to eliminate the three obstructions and sever the bonds of affliction pertaining to form; practices the four means of embracing beings: generosity, kind speech, beneficial conduct, and cooperation; cultivates the four immeasurable minds: immeasurable loving-kindness, immeasurable compassion, immeasurable sympathetic joy, and immeasurable equanimity; fulfills the four great vows; eliminates the fetters and hindrances; constantly teaches and transforms beings; cultivates the knowledge and vision of a Buddha; realizes unsurpassed enlightenment;

and abides in the three gates of liberation: the gate of liberation through emptiness, the gate of liberation through signlessness, and the gate of liberation through wishlessness.

These are the fundamental practices of great bodhisattvas, from the initial arousal of the aspiration through to omniscience, by which they benefit and bring peace and happiness to all beings.

Furthermore, a bodhisattva at the stage of the Patience of Conformity—that is, at the Blazing Wisdom Ground, the Difficult-to-Conquer Ground, and the Manifest Ground—is able to eliminate the three obstructions and the bonds of affliction pertaining to mind. With a single body, such a bodhisattva can travel throughout a hundred million Buddha lands in the ten directions and manifest inconceivable spiritual transformations in order to benefit and bring peace and happiness to beings.

Furthermore, a bodhisattva at the stage of the Patience of Non-arising—that is, at the Far-Going Ground, the Immovable Ground, and the Ground of Excellent Wisdom—is able to eliminate the three obstructions and the habitual tendencies of form and mind, and manifest incalculably many bodies, benefiting all beings according to their respective kinds.

Furthermore, Buddhas and bodhisattvas alike rely upon the Patience of Quiescent Extinction. With vajra samadhi, one who abides at the lower level of this patience is called a bodhisattva, while one who abides at its higher level is called Omniscient. By contemplating the ultimate truth and eliminating the characteristic of ignorance, one attains Equal Enlightenment.

The single characteristic and non-characteristic are equal and nondual. This is the eleventh ground of omniscience, neither existent nor nonexistent, limpid and pure, neither coming nor going, eternally abiding and unchanging. Its Dharma-nature is equal to the true limit.

Through great compassion without conditions, one constantly teaches and transforms beings, riding the vehicle of omniscience to liberate those in the three realms.

Good man! All the afflictions of the various kinds of beings, the ripened fruits of karma, and the twenty-two faculties do not extend beyond the three realms. The transformation bodies and Dharma-body through which the Buddhas teach likewise do not extend beyond these realms. To say that beyond the three realms there is yet another realm of all beings is a teaching found in the scriptures of non-Buddhist proponents of a great existent entity.

Great King! I have always taught beings merely to completely eliminate birth and death and the ignorance of the three realms; this itself is Buddhahood. The intrinsic purity of the self-nature is called original enlightenment; it is the wisdom of omniscience of all Buddhas. By virtue of this, it becomes the foundation of beings and is also the fundamental practice of Buddhas and bodhisattvas. This is the bodhisattva’s cultivation: the fourteen patiences within the five kinds of patience.

The Buddha said:

– Great King! Previously, you asked how bodhisattvas teach and transform beings. Great bodhisattvas should teach and transform them in this way: From the first ground to the final ground, they must understand all domains of their own practice and the domain of a Buddha’s practice. If a great bodhisattva abides in one hundred Buddha lands, becomes a wheel-turning sage king in Jambudvipa, cultivates one hundred Dharma illumination gateways, and abides with an impartial mind through the perfection of generosity, that bodhisattva teaches and transforms beings throughout the four continents. If a great bodhisattva abides in one thousand Buddha lands, becomes a king in the Heaven of the Thirty-Three, cultivates one thousand Dharma illumination gateways, and expounds the ten wholesome paths, that bodhisattva liberates all beings.

If a great bodhisattva abides in ten thousand Buddha lands, becomes the heavenly king of the Yama Heaven, cultivates ten thousand Dharma illumination gateways, and relies upon the four meditative concentrations, that bodhisattva teaches and transforms all beings.

If a great bodhisattva abides in one hundred million Buddha lands, becomes the heavenly king of the Tusita Heaven, cultivates one hundred million Dharma illumination gateways, and practices the factors of enlightenment, that bodhisattva teaches and transforms all beings.

If a great bodhisattva abides in ten billion Buddha lands, becomes the heavenly king of the Heaven of Delight in Transformations, cultivates ten billion Dharma illumination gateways, and employs the two truths and the Four Noble Truths, that bodhisattva teaches and transforms beings.

If a great bodhisattva abides in one hundred billion Buddha lands, becomes the heavenly king of the Heaven of Mastery over Others’ Transformations, cultivates one hundred billion Dharma illumination gateways, and employs the wisdom that realizes the twelve links of dependent origination, that bodhisattva teaches and transforms all beings.

If a great bodhisattva abides in one trillion Buddha lands, becomes a Brahma king in the realm of the first dhyana, cultivates one trillion Dharma illumination gateways, and employs the wisdom of skillful means, that bodhisattva teaches and transforms all beings.

If a great bodhisattva abides in Buddha lands equal in number to the dust particles of ten quadrillion worlds, that bodhisattva becomes a Brahma king in the realm of the second dhyana, cultivates Dharma illumination gateways of equal and simultaneous illumination as numerous as the dust particles of one million worlds, and employs the wisdom of vows and spiritual powers to teach and transform all beings.

If a great bodhisattva abides in Buddha lands equal in number to the dust particles of one million asamkhya kalpas, that bodhisattva becomes a Brahma king in the realm of the third dhyana, cultivates Dharma illumination gateways as numerous as the dust particles of one million asamkhyas, and employs the wisdom of the four unobstructed knowledges to teach and transform all beings.

If a great bodhisattva abides in Buddha lands too numerous to speak of or describe, that bodhisattva becomes a Great Brahma Heavenly King in the realm of the fourth dhyana, cultivates Dharma illumination gateways too numerous to speak of or describe, and attains the Samadhi of Exhaustive Principle, identical to the domain of a Buddha’s practice. Thoroughly understanding the source of the three realms, that bodhisattva benefits beings just as does the Buddha in his sphere of realization. This is how great bodhisattvas manifest the bodies of kings in order to teach, guide, and transform beings.

The Tathagatas of the ten directions are likewise: having attained unsurpassed enlightenment, they are perpetually present throughout the Dharma-realm to benefit and bring happiness to beings.

At that time, the entire great assembly rose, scattered flowers too numerous to speak of, burned incense too abundant to describe, and made offerings to, revered, and praised the Tathagata.

Then, before the Buddha, King Prasenajit spoke verses of praise:

– The Guiding Teacher, the World-Honored One, whose essence is vajra,

Turns the Dharma wheel, his mental activities quiescent and extinct.

He teaches through eight kinds of perfect voice;

Those attaining the Path number in the hundreds of billions.

Gods and humans alike cultivate the practice of liberation.

Cultivating all the bodhisattva paths,

The merits of the wondrous Dharma-gates of the five forbearances,

And the fourteen—all bodhisattvas understand them clearly.

Those practicing forbearance are the Three Worthies and Ten Sages;

Only a Buddha comprehends them to their very source.

The ocean of Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha, the treasury of the Three Jewels,

Contains immeasurable merit within.

Bodhisattvas practicing the ten wholesome deeds bring forth the great resolve,

Yet remain within the ocean of samsara in the three realms.

Those of lesser and middling goodness become minor kings;

Those of superior goodness become Iron-Wheel Kings.

Those of the seed of cultivation become Copper-Wheel Kings over two continents;

Those of the seed of nature become Silver-Wheel Kings over three continents;

Those of the seed of the Path securely attain the state of wheel-turning kings,

Possessing the seven treasures and ruling with the Golden Wheel over four continents.

The thirty positions within the sacred embryo of Subduing Forbearance—

The ten abodes, ten practices, and ten dedications—

Are the Dharma studied by the Buddhas of the three times;

All arise through this Subduing Forbearance.

It is the foundation of all bodhisattva practices;

Therefore, the resolve and mind of faith are difficult to arouse.

If the mind of faith is attained, one will certainly not regress,

But advance into the non-arising Path of the First Bhumi.

Benefiting oneself and others equally,

One is therefore called a newly resolved bodhisattva.

The Bodhisattva of Joy is a wheel-turning king,

Illuminating the principle of the equality of the two truths.

He reaches a hundred realms to teach and transform sentient beings,

Practicing pure generosity for the benefit of all beings.

Entering the essence of prajna is called an abode;

Abiding in virtuous conduct is called a bhumi.

In the first abode, the single mind is complete in every virtue

And remains unmoved in ultimate truth.

The Bodhisattva Free from Defilement is a king of the Trayastrimsa Heaven,

Manifesting bodies throughout a thousand realms within the six destinies.

His pure observance of the precepts is entirely complete,

And he forever ends all faults previously committed.

Without characteristics or conditions, his nature is true;

Without essence or arising, his radiance is nondual.

The Bodhisattva Luminous is a king of the Yama Heaven,

Manifesting bodies and journeying to ten thousand Buddha-realms.

He completely penetrates samadhi,

Freely appearing and disappearing, endowed with the three knowledges.

Joy, Freedom from Defilement, and Luminosity

Destroy the bonds of form and the afflictions.

They clearly contemplate all bodily and verbal karma;

The pure Dharma-nature shines in perfect fullness.

– The Bodhisattva Blazing Wisdom is a king of the Tusita Heaven,

Who advances with utmost diligence through a hundred million realms.

With true wisdom of quiescent cessation and skillful wisdom,

He realizes the principle of non-arising and illuminates emptiness and existence.

– The Bodhisattva Difficult to Conquer is a king of the Heaven of Delight in Transformations,

Who attains equality and journeys through ten billion realms.

Emptiness and the truth of emptiness are contemplated without dual characteristics;

He manifests bodies and travels throughout the six destinies.

– The Bodhisattva Manifest is a sovereign king,

Who clearly sees that the characteristics of dependently arisen phenomena are one.

The radiant wisdom of ultimate truth pervades all places;

He reaches a hundred billion realms to liberate sentient beings.

– The bhumis of Blazing Wisdom, Difficult to Conquer, and Manifest

Eliminate the three obstacles that delude the mind.

The wisdom of emptiness is quiescent, contemplating without conditions,

Illuminating the empty mind and immeasurable objects in return.

– The Bodhisattva Far-Going is a king of the First Dhyana,

Who abides in the forbearance of signlessness and non-arising.

His skillful means are all impartial;

He reaches a trillion realms to liberate sentient beings.

Entering the unmoving current of the Dharma of this bhumi,

He no longer undergoes fragmentary birth and death and transcends all modes of existence.

He constantly contemplates ultimate truth and clearly realizes nonduality,

Practicing emptiness and quiescence through the twenty-one kinds of birth.

Attachment to the Dharma that accords with the Path, together with ignorance,

Is severed only by the bodhisattva on the Far-Going Bhumi.

– The Bodhisattva Immovable is a king of the Second Dhyana,

Who attains a transformation body and is always sovereign and free.

He journeys to realms numerous as a million dust motes,

Transforming himself according to each kind of being to liberate sentient beings.

He clearly knows the immeasurable kalpas of the three times

And remains unmoved in the ultimate truth.

– The Bodhisattva Excellent Wisdom is a king of the Third Dhyana,

Who in a single moment manifests throughout a hundred billion realms.

He constantly practices the unconditioned conduct of emptiness and quiescence;

In a single thought, he understands Buddha-treasuries numerous as the sands of the Ganges.

– The Bodhisattva Dharma Cloud is a king of the Fourth Dhyana,

Who reaches realms numbering a hundred million Ganges sands to liberate sentient beings.

Upon first entering the Vajra Samadhi, he knows all things

And has passed beyond the twenty-nine realms.

Within the Forbearance of Quiescent Cessation, neither contemplation nor forbearance remains;

He immediately turns to Wondrous Awakening, the Unequaled Equal.

– The bhumis of Immovable, Excellent Wisdom, and Dharma Cloud

Remove the preceding habitual tendencies of ignorance.

The habitual tendencies of ignorance and consciousness are transformed together,

And the principles of the two truths are understood exhaustively.

Signless perfect awakening pervades the Dharma-realm;

At the end of thirty births, wisdom is perfect and luminous.

Quiescent illumination is unconditioned, true liberation;

The manifestations of great compassion are beyond compare.

Serene and unmoving, one is always peaceful and secure;

Light shines everywhere without obstruction.

The Three Worthies and Seven Sages still experience karmic recompense;

Only the Buddha alone dwells in the Pure Land.

All sentient beings dwell only temporarily,

While one who realizes the Vajra is fundamentally unmoved.

The virtues of the Tathagata’s three kinds of karma are immeasurable;

He equally loves and cares for all sentient beings.

The unsurpassed Dharma King within the human realm,

His immeasurable radiance shelters and refreshes all beings.

He constantly teaches the Dharma in accordance with true meaning;

His mind and wisdom are quiescent, clearly comprehending the unconditioned.

The lion among humans expounds

Profound meanings of phrases never heard before,

Causing realms numerous as the sands of the Ganges to quake.

The great assembly rejoices and obtains benefit.

The World-Honored One taught this to the fourteen kings;

Now I bow my head in reverent homage.

At that time, upon hearing the Buddha, the World-Honored One, and King Prasenajit speak of the immeasurable merits of the fourteen forbearances, the great assembly, numbering millions of billions of Ganges sands, obtained the benefit of the Great Dharma; and through hearing the Dharma, they awakened and realized the forbearance regarding the non-arising of dharmas.

The World-Honored One then addressed the great assembly:

– In the past, ten thousand kalpas ago, this King Prasenajit was a bodhisattva on the Fourth Bhumi within the Dharma of Buddha Dragon Light King, while I was a bodhisattva on the Eighth Bhumi. Today, before me, he has uttered the great lion’s roar. So it is, so it is! It is exactly as you have said: he has realized the true meaning, the inconceivable meaning. Only a Buddha together with another Buddha can know this.

Good men! These fourteen forbearances, the Dharma-bodies of all Buddhas, and the practices of bodhisattvas are inconceivable and incalculable. Why is this? Because all Buddhas are born from prajnaparamita, transform through prajnaparamita, and enter cessation through prajnaparamita. Yet in truth, although the Buddhas are born, there is no place of birth; although they transform, there is no place of transformation; and although they enter cessation, there is no place of cessation. This is the supreme truth, without duality: neither characteristic nor absence of characteristics, neither self nor other, neither coming nor going, for it is like empty space.

Good men! The nature of all sentient beings neither arises nor ceases. Through the illusory conjunction of dharmas, the characteristics of the skandhas, ayatanas, and dhatus appear, yet there is neither combination nor dissolution.

Dharmas are identical with Dharma-nature because they are quiescent, empty, and still. The intrinsic nature of all sentient beings is pure. The actions they perform are neither bound nor released, neither cause nor effect, yet neither are they without cause and effect.

What is known arises from knowing the afflictions, from undergoing conditioned activities and every suffering, and from the characteristics of self, person, knower, and experiencer. Because all is empty, the dharmas of the objective realm are empty. Emptiness, signlessness, and wishlessness do not accord with inversion and do not accord with illusion.

There are no characteristics of the six destinies, no characteristics of the four modes of birth, no characteristics of the noble ones, and no characteristics of the Three Jewels, for all are like empty space.

Good men! Profound prajna cannot be known or seen. It neither acts nor takes conditions, neither relinquishes nor receives.

One abides rightly in contemplation, yet there is no characteristic of illumination. Whoever practices the Path in this manner is like empty space. Thus, whether the mind apprehends the characteristics of dharmas or apprehends nothing, neither can be attained.

Therefore, prajna is neither the five skandhas nor apart from the five skandhas; neither sentient beings nor apart from sentient beings; neither the objective realm nor apart from the objective realm; neither practice and understanding nor apart from practice and understanding. Such characteristics cannot be reckoned or measured. Therefore, although all the practices cultivated by bodhisattvas have not yet reached the ultimate, there is still practice within them.

All Buddhas know them to be like illusions; although they attain the characteristic of non-abiding, they nevertheless manifest transformations within them. Therefore, the fourteen forbearances are inconceivable and immeasurable.

Good man! Today you have spoken of this treasury of merit, which brings exceedingly great benefit to all sentient beings. Even if immeasurable bodhisattvas of the Ten Grounds, as numerous as the sands of the Ganges, were to speak of this merit, what they could express in a hundred thousand koṭis of parts would be like a single drop of water in the ocean. The Buddhas of the three times know it as it truly is, and all sages and noble ones praise it. Therefore, I shall now speak briefly of a small portion of this merit.

Good man! These fourteen kinds of patience have been revealed by all bodhisattvas of the past and present throughout the worlds of the ten directions. The Buddhas and great bodhisattvas of the future will do likewise. It is impossible for any Buddha or bodhisattva to attain omniscience without relying upon this Dharma gate. Why? Because the Buddhas and bodhisattvas have no other path.

Good man! If anyone hears of the Patience of Abiding, the Patience of Practice, the Patience of Dedication, the Patience of Joy, the Patience of Freedom from Defilement, the Patience of Radiance, the Patience of Blazing Wisdom, the Patience of Being Difficult to Overcome, the Patience of Direct Presence, the Patience of Far-Reaching Practice, the Patience of Immovability, the Patience of Excellent Wisdom, the Patience of the Dharma Cloud, and the Patience of Perfect Awakening, and with one-pointed mind has pure faith in them, that person will transcend all suffering and calamity for a hundred kalpas, a thousand kalpas, and immeasurable, boundless kalpas as numerous as the sands of the Ganges. That person will not be born in the evil realms and, before long, will attain unsurpassed bodhi.

At that time, one billion bodhisattvas, all bearing the same name, the great bodhisattva Ākāśagarbha, arrived from other places together with an immeasurable and innumerable assembly. Filled with joy and delight, and through the awesome spiritual power of the Buddha, they saw Buddhas as numerous as the sands of the Ganges throughout the ten directions. Each of those Buddhas was seated at a place of enlightenment, teaching the fourteen kinds of patience exactly as the Blessed One had taught them. They all rejoiced exceedingly and practiced the prajnaparamita in accordance with those words.

The Blessed One then said to King Prasenajit:

“Previously, you asked what characteristics one should rely upon while abiding in contemplation. A great bodhisattva should contemplate thus: By means of an illusory body, one perceives illusions, while abiding in true and impartial equality, in which there is no longer any distinction between self and others. Through such contemplation, one teaches and benefits sentient beings.

Yet throughout remote and lengthy kalpas, the consciousness of sentient beings at the very first kṣaṇa has differed from wood and stone. When beings arise, their defilement and purity are both created by themselves. From the very first kṣaṇa through ineffably many kalpas, there are immeasurable and innumerable fundamentally defiled and pure consciousnesses; up to the final vajra-like kṣaṇa, the consciousnesses are so numerous that they cannot be spoken of or described.

When sentient beings arise, they possess two dharmas: form and mind. Form is called the form skandha, while mind is called the four skandhas. All have the nature of accumulation and conceal the truth.

“Great King! A single dharma of form gives rise to immeasurable forms. The eye engages with form, the ear with sound, the nose with fragrance, the tongue with taste, and the body with tangible objects. Solidity is called earth; moisture is called water; the nature of warmth is called fire; and lightness and movement are called wind. The bases from which the five consciousnesses arise are called the five physical sense faculties. Thus, successively, one mind and one form give rise to immeasurably and ineffably many forms and minds, yet all are like illusions.

“Good man! The experiences undergone by sentient beings stand upon the conventional level. Whether regarded as existent or nonexistent, they arise from the deluded thoughts of sentient beings. Recollecting and thinking, they create karma and undergo its fruits; all of this is called conventional truth. All sentient beings within the six paths and the three realms—brahmins, kṣatriyas, vaiśyas, śūdras, the notions of self and person, views and knowledge, dharmas of form, and dharmas of mind—are like things seen in a dream.

“Good man! All names are provisionally established. Before a Buddha appears in the world, the illusory dharmas of conventional truth have no names, no meanings, and no essential characteristics.

There are no names for the three realms or the six paths, nor for the karmic recompenses of good and evil. When a Buddha appears in the world, for the sake of sentient beings he teaches the immeasurable designations of the three realms, the six paths, defilement, and purity. All these are like echoes.

Dharmas continue in succession, thought after thought, without ceasing. Kṣaṇa after kṣaṇa, they are neither the same nor different; as soon as they arise, they immediately cease. They are neither annihilated nor permanent, for conditioned dharmas are like a mirage.

Dharmas arise in mutual dependence: the form dhatu, the eye dhatu, and the eye-consciousness dhatu, up to the dharma dhatu, the mind dhatu, and the mind-consciousness dhatu. They are like flashes of lightning, without fixed nature, arising in mutual dependence. Existence and nonexistence, identity and difference, are like a person seeing a second moon.

Dharmas are formed through conditions. The dharmas of the skandhas, ayatanas, and dhatus are like foam upon water; dharmas are formed through causes. All the simultaneous and temporally distinct causes and effects of sentient beings, as well as the good and evil of the three times, are like clouds in empty space.

“Good man! A great bodhisattva abides in non-discrimination, without the characteristics of this and that or of self and others, and constantly performs beneficial acts without attachment to any characteristic of benefit. Thus, one should understand that foolish ordinary beings, with their defiled consciousness, sink deeply into falsity and are bound by characteristics. Bodhisattvas see and know these things to be like the creations of an illusionist, devoid of essential characteristics and no more substantial than flowers in empty space. This is how great bodhisattvas, benefiting themselves and others, contemplate in accordance with true thusness.”

When the Buddha taught this Dharma, immeasurable devas and humans in the assembly attained the Patience of Subjugation, the Patience of Emptiness, and the Patience of Non-Arising. Immeasurable bodhisattvas, from the First Ground and the Second Ground up to the Tenth Ground, all attained the stage of being bound to one more birth.

CHAPTER FOUR: THE TWO TRUTHS

At that time, King Prasenajit addressed the Buddha:

“Blessed One! Does conventional truth exist within ultimate truth? If it is said not to exist, then these two kinds of wisdom are not two. If it is said to exist, then these two kinds of wisdom are not one. How should the meaning of one and two be understood?”

The Buddha said:

“Great King! In the past, during the dispensation of the Buddha Dragon Radiance King, you asked this same question. If I did not speak now, Great King, you would not hear. Thus, neither speaking nor hearing embodies the meaning of one and the meaning of two. Listen carefully, and I shall explain it for you.”

The Blessed One then spoke these verses:

“The ultimate truth is without characteristics;

Its essence is made by neither self nor others.

What arises through causes and conditions is like an illusion,

And likewise is made by neither self nor others.

The Dharma-nature is originally without nature;

Ultimate truth is empty and thus.

All dharmas are like illusions,

Existing through the union of the three provisional designations.

Emptiness and the truth of emptiness are truly empty;

Quiescent ultimate truth is empty.

All dharmas exist through conditions;

Such is the meaning of existence and nonexistence.

Existence and nonexistence are originally two,

Like the two horns of an ox.

Through clear understanding, one sees they are not two;

The two truths are ever thus empty.

When the mind understands, it sees no duality;

Seeking the two, neither can be found.

One cannot say that the two are one;

Yet even the one cannot be attained.

Clear understanding always proceeds from the one;

Regarding the truths, one always proceeds from the two.

Penetrating this one and two,

One enters the ultimate truth.

Conventional truth arises through illusion and transformation,

Like a flower in empty space,

Like a reflection or a wheel of hairs (?).

Through conditions, these illusions appear to exist.

The illusory see illusions;

The foolish call illusion real.

An illusionist sees illusory dharmas;

Both reality and illusion are nonexistent.

If one understands dharmas in this way,

One understands the meaning of one and two.

Regarding each and every dharma,

One should contemplate in this way.”

Great King! A great bodhisattva abides in the ultimate truth in order to teach and transform sentient beings. Sentient beings and the Buddha are nondual.

Why is this? Because sentient beings and bodhi are both empty. Because sentient beings are empty, the attainment of bodhi is also empty.

Because bodhi is empty, sentient beings are empty. Because all dharmas are empty, emptiness itself is empty. Why is this?

Because prajna is signless, and both truths are empty. This means that from ignorance through all-knowledge, there is neither an intrinsic characteristic nor an extrinsic characteristic. Within the ultimate truth, there is seeing, yet nothing is seen.

If there is practice, one does not become attached to it; if there is no practice, one likewise does not become attached to it; and if there is neither practice nor non-practice, one likewise does not become attached to it. One is unattached to all dharmas. Before a bodhisattva attains Buddhahood, bodhi is regarded as affliction.

When a bodhisattva attains Buddhahood, affliction is bodhi. Why is this? Because within the ultimate truth there is no duality.

All Buddha Tathagatas and all dharmas are likewise.

King Prasenajit said to the Buddha:

– Why do all Buddhas and bodhisattvas throughout the ten directions practice the true characteristic without departing from written words?

The Buddha said:

– Great King! Written words refer to discourses, repeated verses, predictions, independent verses, spontaneous utterances, accounts of causes and conditions, parables, accounts of past events, birth stories, extensive teachings, marvelous events, and expositions. All passages, written words, speech, and sounds expressed in these scriptures are suchness and are not apart from the true characteristic. If one grasps the characteristics of written words, then they are not the true characteristic.

Great King! One who cultivates the true characteristic cultivates written words in the same way. The true characteristic is the mother of the wisdom of all Buddhas and the fundamental mother of wisdom of all sentient beings.

This is called the essence of all-knowledge. Before Buddhas attain Buddhahood, it is the mother of the wisdom of the Buddhas of the present. Once Buddhas have attained Buddhahood, it is all-knowledge.

Before it is attained, it is the nature; after it is attained, it is wisdom. The prajna of the three vehicles neither arises nor ceases; its intrinsic nature eternally abides. This is the awakened nature of all sentient beings.

If a bodhisattva neither clings to written words nor departs from written words, perceives no characteristic of written words yet does not deny written words, and can cultivate in this way without perceiving any characteristic of cultivation, that person is called one who cultivates written words and is able to attain the true nature of prajna. This is prajnaparamita.

Great King! In this way, great bodhisattvas protect and preserve the fruit of Buddhahood, protect and preserve the practices of the Ten Grounds, and safeguard the teaching and transformation of sentient beings.

King Prasenajit said to the Buddha:

– The true nature is one, yet the faculties, practices, classes, and kinds of sentient beings are immeasurable. Are the Dharma gates, then, one or immeasurable?

The Buddha said:

– Great King! The Dharma gates are neither one nor immeasurable. Why is this? Because material dharmas and mental dharmas, the characteristics of the five aggregates of clinging, and the views of self and person held by sentient beings involve many different faculties and practices and boundless classes and kinds. The Dharma gates corresponding to these faculties are therefore also immeasurable. Yet the nature of these dharmas is neither characterized nor uncharacterized, and neither immeasurable. If a bodhisattva, in accordance with sentient beings, sees one or sees two, then that bodhisattva does not perceive the meaning of one and two. To understand clearly that they are neither one nor two is the ultimate truth. To grasp one and two as either existent or nonexistent is the conventional truth. Therefore, the Dharma gates are neither one nor two.

Great King! The prajnaparamita taught by all Buddhas and the prajnaparamita that I teach today are nondual and no different. All of you in this great assembly should receive, uphold, read, and recite it, making your words accord with your practice. This is how the Dharma of all Buddhas is received and upheld.

Great King! This prajnaparamita possesses immeasurable merit. Suppose there were as many indescribable Buddhas as there are grains of sand in the Ganges, and each of those Buddhas taught and transformed immeasurable, indescribable numbers of sentient beings.

Suppose each of those sentient beings attained Buddhahood, and these Buddhas in turn taught and transformed immeasurable, indescribable numbers of sentient beings, all of whom attained Buddhahood. The prajnaparamita taught by those Buddhas would contain immeasurable, indescribable nayutas of kotis of verses, and its exposition would never be exhausted. From among those verses, take just one verse; divide that single verse into a thousand parts; and from those thousand parts, expound only one part.

Even the merit of the meaning contained in a single sentence of that part would be inexhaustible—how much more so all the merit of the immeasurable meanings contained in such sentences! If anyone gives rise to a single thought of pure faith in this sutra, that person will transcend the sufferings and perils of birth and death accumulated over hundreds of kalpas, thousands of kalpas, and hundreds of thousands of myriads of kalpas.

How much more merit will be attained by one who copies, receives, upholds, reads, recites, and expounds it to others! That merit will equal the merit of all Buddhas throughout the ten directions. You should know that this person will be kept in mind and protected by all Buddhas and will before long realize unsurpassed bodhi.

When the Buddha taught this Dharma, one billion people attained the acceptance of the threefold emptiness, one hundred trillion people attained the acceptance of great emptiness, and immeasurable bodhisattvas came to abide in the Ten Grounds.