佛說八大人覺經

As disciples of the Buddha, day and night we must wholeheartedly recite and reflect upon the Eight Realizations of the Great Beings.

The First Realization:

The world is impermanent. Nations are perilous and fragile. The four great elements give rise to suffering and are empty. The five aggregates are without a self. They arise, perish, and change, being false, illusory, and without an owner. The mind is the source of evil; the body is the dwelling place of transgression. Contemplating in this way, one will gradually grow apart from birth and death.

The Second Realization:

Excessive desire brings suffering. The weariness of birth and death arises from the mind of craving. With few desires and non-action, body and mind are at ease and free.

The Third Realization:

This mind is never content and forever seeks more. Thus it causes evil and transgression to grow. The Bodhisattvas are not so. They always abide in right mindfulness and are content with what they have. They live a peaceful and simple life in order to cultivate the Way. Their sole endeavor is the cultivation of wisdom.

The Fourth Realization:

Indolence leads to degradation. One must always cultivate diligently, destroy the evil afflictions, subdue the four kinds of māra, and escape from the prison of the five aggregates.

The Fifth Realization:

Ignorance leads to birth and death. For this reason, the Bodhisattvas always abide in right mindfulness, broadly learning and hearing much, so that their wisdom may grow and their eloquence be accomplished. To teach and transform sentient beings is their greatest joy.

The Sixth Realization:

Poverty and hardship give rise to much resentment and bind one in adverse and evil conditions. Therefore the Bodhisattvas always practice giving. They treat foe and kin with equal regard. They harbor no evil in their hearts, nor do they hate those who do wrong.

The Seventh Realization:

The five sensual desires lead to faults and calamities. Even those who dwell at home should not be defiled by the worldly pleasures of the senses. One must always be mindful of the three robes, the clay bowl, and the implements of the Dharma. One must set forth the aspiration to leave the household life, to cultivate the Way in purity, to live the noble life of Brahma conduct, and to be compassionate toward all.

The Eighth Realization:

Birth and death are like a blazing fire, and they carry with them immeasurable suffering and affliction. Give rise to the Mahāyāna mind in order to broadly deliver all beings. Vow, for the sake of sentient beings, to bear their immeasurable suffering and to lead all to ultimate peace and bliss.

These are the eight things that the Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and Great Beings have realized. They diligently practice the Way, with compassion they cultivate wisdom, and they sail the boat of the Dharma-body to the shore of Nirvāṇa. Then they return again to birth and death to liberate sentient beings. They use these eight things to guide all, causing sentient beings to awaken to the suffering of birth and death, to grow apart from the five sensual desires, and to cultivate their minds in the holy Way.

If any disciple of the Buddha upholds and recites these eight things, then in thought after thought they will extinguish immeasurable transgressions, advance upon the path of Bodhi, and swiftly attain Right Enlightenment. They will forever sever birth and death and always dwell in peace and joy.

The Sūtra on the Eight Realizations of the Great Beings, Spoken by the Buddha