佛說菩薩修行經

Thus have I heard:

At one time, the Buddha was dwelling at the Jeta Grove, the Garden of Anāthapiṇḍika, in the country of Śrāvastī, together with one thousand two hundred and fifty bhikṣus and five thousand Bodhisattvas, all of whom were Bodhisattvas possessed of penetrating spiritual powers, endowed with skillful and transformative wisdom, traveling throughout the three-thousandfold worlds to rescue and bring benefit to all sentient beings.

At that time, in a city of the country of Śrāvastī there lived a wealthy and noble elder named Pīladhara (also called Veṣṭhila, Awesome Almsgiver), together with five hundred other great elders who also dwelt in that city. On a certain night they all conceived the same thought, and at dawn they all went out from the city of Śrāvastī, journeyed to the Jeta Grove, the Garden of Anāthapiṇḍika, bowed their heads at the feet of the Buddha, circumambulated the Buddha three times, paid their respects to the World-Honored One, and then sat to one side.

At that time, with immeasurable wisdom, the World-Honored One asked the elder Awesome Almsgiver and the elders, sons of clan and lineage:

"What were you contemplating that you have come to meet the Tathāgata?"

Then the elder Awesome Almsgiver and the other elders addressed the Buddha:

"World-Honored One! We had gathered to sit together in a secluded place, and we all had this thought: 'In this world it is difficult to encounter a Buddha; to obtain a human body is likewise difficult; and to attain liberation from the world is also very difficult.'

We secretly thought: 'By which Dharma vehicle should one proceed to reach Nirvāṇa? Should one use the Śrāvaka vehicle or the Pratyekabuddha vehicle to attain Nirvāṇa? Or should one use the Mahāyāna Dharma to reach Nirvāṇa?'

As we thought thus, we then said: 'May we attain the Nirvāṇa of the Unsurpassed Vehicle. This body cannot be liberated through the Dharma of the Śrāvaka or the Pratyekabuddha.'

World-Honored One! We vow to give rise to the mind of Unsurpassed Perfect Enlightenment. Because of this Dharma, we have been able to come near to the Tathāgata. Why is it that the mind-nature of a Bodhisattva, a great being, ever yearns for the Unsurpassed, Equal, and Truly Right Way? Which Dharma should we study in order to abide securely? We pray that the Tathāgata, out of boundless compassion and pity, will clearly resolve our doubts."

At that time, the World-Honored One said to Awesome Almsgiver:

"Excellent! Excellent! That you great elders are able to renounce the worldly, to cast aside all the glory and the desires and pleasures of the world, to give rise to the mind of the Unsurpassed and Truly Right, and to come near to the Tathāgata. Furthermore, Awesome Almsgiver and you elders! Listen diligently and reflect well. I shall expound the practice by which a Bodhisattva, a great being, realizes Unsurpassed, Perfect, Equal Enlightenment, the vows and practices that should be undertaken, and the Dharma of enlightenment."

The elder Awesome Almsgiver and the five hundred others all joined their palms and listened reverently.

At that time, the Buddha said to the elders:

"When a Bodhisattva, a great being, gives rise to the mind that yearns for the Way of Unsurpassed Perfect Enlightenment, the mind turns toward sentient beings; he gives rise to immeasurable great loving-kindness, ever mindful of them, rescuing them, never abandoning them, diligently cultivating and learning without forgetting. Only thus is it the giving rise of the mind of Unsurpassed Perfect Enlightenment.

Furthermore, elders! If there are sentient beings who create the various evil deeds of body, speech, and mind, performing unlawful actions, then after death they will fall into the hells.

Elders! Within heaven and earth there is gathered nothing but every kind of suffering. The Bodhisattva, beholding the various kinds of sentient beings with a mind of great loving-kindness and great compassion, exerts his power to rescue them. As for his own body, he does not greedily cling to clothing, food and drink, or the various gains and comforts; he should give away entirely all his precious and cherished things, ever mindful of those sentient beings, and carefully practice the precepts, forbearance, vigor, meditative concentration, and wisdom.

Thus, elder! A Bodhisattva, a great being, who wishes to give rise to the mind of the Unsurpassed and Truly Right, should cultivate the contemplation of the Dharma right there in the conduct of the body."

At that time, Awesome Almsgiver and the elders said:

"World-Honored One! We should cultivate mindfulness of the Dharma—the body having three, speech having four, the mind having three. Why should a Bodhisattva, a great being, contemplate the Dharma of bodily conduct?"

At that time, the World-Honored One said to Awesome Almsgiver and the elders:

"Thus it is, elders! A Bodhisattva, a great being, has forty-two contemplations of the body. After contemplating, he will depart from the notions that bind body, mind, and consciousness, from greedy clinging to the self, from craving for a defiled life, from distraction, and he will utterly sever all that is wrong and erroneous."

At that time, Awesome Almsgiver and the elders received the teaching and listened.

The Buddha said:

"A Bodhisattva, a great being, contemplates the body as defiled, fundamentally impure.

He contemplates the body as a gathering place that holds together everything foul and stinking. He contemplates the body as perilous, destined to be destroyed.

He contemplates the body as not firm, destined to crumble into dust.

He contemplates the body as illusory, produced by the transformation of the great elements.

He contemplates the body as having nine orifices that ever discharge filth.

He contemplates the body as scorched by the fire of lust.

He contemplates the body as burned by the fire of anger and hatred.

He contemplates the body as deluded by ignorance.

He contemplates the body as bound by the net of love and affection.

He contemplates the body as a boil, oppressed by the various sufferings. He contemplates the body as subject to four hundred and four kinds of illness.

He contemplates the body as a defiled dwelling that holds every kind of microbe.

He contemplates the body as impermanent, returning in death to dust.

He contemplates the body as ignorant, not penetrating the substance of the Dharma.

He contemplates the body as perilous, before long to be destroyed.

He contemplates the body as without benefit, ever harboring sorrow and grief.

He contemplates the body as not lasting, falling into great hardship upon old age.

He contemplates the body as untrustworthy, being merely the product of various adornments.

He contemplates the body as hard to satisfy, receiving much yet never weary of it.

He contemplates the body as a den that endures every craving for form.

He contemplates the body as greedy and deluded, clinging to the five desires and pleasures.

He contemplates the body as ignorant, concerned only with amusement and play.

He contemplates the body as not enduring, subject to birth and death within the various destinies.

He contemplates the body whose consciousness ever thinks upon base and lowly things.

He contemplates the body as without friends to aid and nourish it, that gathers together and then parts.

He contemplates the body as like foxes and wolves, fighting to devour and swallow food.

He contemplates the body whose organs change without ceasing.

He contemplates the body as greatly dependent upon eating and drinking.

He contemplates the body in which blood and pus overflow, foul-smelling so that none dare look upon it.

He contemplates the body as subject to destruction, not a thing that abides permanently.

He contemplates the body as a recompense ever subject to much enmity and harm.

He contemplates the body as burning hot, ever harboring sorrow and grief.

He contemplates the body as a gathering of calamities arising from the errors of the five aggregates.

He contemplates the body as subject to the affliction and suffering of birth and death.

He contemplates the body as having no self, formed by the gathering of various conditions.

He contemplates the body as having no nature of male or female; it is merely union and dispersion.

He contemplates the body as fundamentally empty, receiving the various feelings.

He contemplates the body as unreal, like an illusory transformation.

He contemplates the body as false and deceptive, appearing like a dream.

He contemplates the body as fabricated, like a mirage in the sunlight.

He contemplates the body as deceitful, like an echo, like a shadow.

Elder! These are the forty-two contemplations of bodily conduct of a Bodhisattva, a great being. Whoever does not contemplate thus, or greedily clings to body, spirit, and consciousness, by this gives rise to birth and death. But the Bodhisattva who has contemplated thus utterly severs all craving for body and life, craving for self, all doubts, distortions, errors, all desires and pleasures, and reckonings of permanence. With single-minded resolve he upholds the Way, not begrudging even his own life. Thus he swiftly fulfills the six perfections without limit.

Elder! By this a Bodhisattva, a great being, fulfills the six virtuous skillful means, delivering beings far and wide, and so swiftly realizes the Way of Unsurpassed Perfect Enlightenment."

At that time, the World-Honored One, wishing to restate the Dharma of bodily conduct, spoke in verse:

"To obtain a human body is most difficult—

Do not use this body to commit evil deeds.

When death comes, it is cast away upon the burial mound,

Devoured by foxes and wolves, or left to rot.

Deceiving oneself, ever deluded,

Ever harboring greed for the desires of form;

Seeking after this body without reflection,

Day and night enduring the various sufferings.

From suffering arise the afflictions;

The body, a boil, is full of impurity,

Ever toiling in hardship, enduring hunger and thirst—

How could the wise be greedy for life?

Ever cherishing the body without weariness,

With all one's heart nourishing this body;

Because of beholding form, one commits the various offenses,

And so must receive the sufferings of the hells.

The body cannot be like a diamond—

It should not be used to create evil karma.

Though one lives long, one will still die;

Right now, let one be mindful of the Buddha.

Suppose one ever nourishes the body

With sweet delicacies, adornments, and fragrant flowers—

Yet ever hungry and thirsty, never fully sated,

Though one strives with all one's might, what use is it?

Through countless eons one may at last encounter

A Buddha, the heroic and mighty one of the world.

Give rise to faith, do not commit offenses,

Falling into the three destinies to endure suffering,

There enduring a thousand million years.

Strive with all your might as if rescuing yourself from fire—

How much more one who lives but a hundred years,

Heedlessly creating the causes of hell.

If one dwells in thought upon the self—

To obtain a human body is most difficult—

Ever heedless amid the five desires and pleasures,

Only amusement and play—how can one know what comes after?

These desires and pleasures do not last long;

The various sufferings draw not far off.

Therefore swiftly depart from the habit of miserly greed,

And one may obtain great merit and fortune.

Existence and nonexistence of possessions are all like a dream;

Taking these to deceive sentient beings—

Once they are possessed, they are at once entirely lost.

The person of wisdom is not stingy.

Form deludes like an illusory transformation,

Appearing falsely like a beautiful flower;

Craving wealth, one deceives oneself,

Foolishly deluded, turned upside down.

Bringing on the various sufferings, and even merit,

Using this body, one dwells in thought upon them—

Existence and nonexistence of possessions belong to the five households.

What person of wisdom would again be deluded by wealth?

Erring, one follows after wife and children;

The king, relying on his power, seizes the wealth.

Understanding clearly this meaning of impermanence,

One takes no delight at all in profit and gain.

Because love and affection give rise to suffering and distress,

One does not greedily cling to the household—

Father and mother, wealth, wife and children—

All are left behind; one departs alone.

If there is greed and miserliness, one does not awaken oneself,

Fearing that one's wealth will follow one in its loss.

The fool carries his wealth along;

The person of wisdom has faith and does not crave.

Greed, faithlessness—these cannot follow one;

One debases oneself like a servant.

Outwardly greedy, inwardly burning hot,

The sages and worthy ones do not chant and recite—

Holding forth, reading, reciting, and chanting verses,

One is deluded by lustful women,

Of nature fierce, cruel, and coarse.

The miserly are prone to jealousy and hatred;

Of greedy nature, they have no friends.

The humble and yielding have many close ones;

Because of craving wealth, suffering follows after.

The wise reflect: do not place trust in it.

Following after wealth, this matter arises,

And gives rise to a venomous and harmful mind.

The person of wisdom should contemplate well,

Casting off miserliness, jealousy, and crookedness.

Gold, jewels, and the various precious treasures—

Because one renounces them, one obtains merit and fortune;

But on their account arise disputes and strife.

Establish this Dharma to govern the mind and thought,

And one may meet the most venerable one,

The Tathāgata, the Buddha of Loving-Kindness, Maitreya.

Only then will there be ground of gold and silver;

One will know to what place one will be reborn.

The five desires and pleasures are all false and deceptive,

Foolishly deluding and deceiving the mind.

Desire is like the scorching heat of summer;

Its suffering and toil are like a mirage in the sunlight.

Craving the desires of form, one is deluded;

Through intoxication, one loses one's resolve.

Following the habit of desire, one is turned upside down—

When will one come to meet a Buddha?

Within the span of ninety-one eons,

Only then does a Buddha appear in the world.

When Mount Sumeru is burned up entirely,

By what then shall one be able to meet him?

Seas, ponds, and lakes all run dry;

Throughout heaven and earth there is no water left;

The burning of desire is likewise so—

What person of wisdom would again be steeped in desire?

The persons of wisdom understand penetratingly,

And so should discern and abide in still cessation.

In craving desire and pleasure, what joy is there?

Understanding thus, one is not caught in the net.

Contemplate and practice the supreme Dharma;

Do not cling with longing to the prison of the household.

With a defiled mind craving love and affection,

One can never escape the prison of suffering.

Wife and children, having joined together, also part;

What one has done, one must oneself bear.

Alone one endures the various sufferings;

There is no one who can take one's place.

These three realms are full of suffering and distress;

One should not crave wife and children.

In times of love, being near is joyful;

In reverse, it becomes grief and distress.

Through such conditions one falls into the three suffering destinies,

The bitterness and venom truly pitiable.

If one must endure the various sufferings,

Wife and children cannot take one's place.

Do not, for the sake of parents and kinsfolk,

Create the various evil deeds—

One will not escape the suffering of Avīci;

Better that the body perform good deeds.

King Yama and the wardens of hell

Do not ask about the affairs of one's parents,

Brothers, wife and children, friends and companions;

They ask only whether one has done good or evil.

Now that one has received a human body,

One should therefore not think of evil,

But destroy and remove all transgressions and faults,

Correcting the unwholesome deeds of before,

Guarding oneself against bad and evil deeds.

Do not believe that deeds bear no recompense.

The Dharma King is now expounding,

Discerning and distinguishing the pure practice:

Whatever karma is created, the fruit corresponds.

With a heedless mind, one endures suffering and distress;

The body that does the deeds receives the calamity—

Just as a shadow follows a form.

At the time of enduring the various sufferings,

Even one's parents cannot take one's place.

Though one's kin be many, they cannot take one's place;

Therefore the wise do not cling to desire.

Wishing to escape the suffering of the hells,

And the fetters, cangues, and chains,

One should diligently reflect on departing far from desire,

And swiftly practice the Buddha's teaching.

The dwelling of fire holds many afflictions;

With flames blazing up, still one sits at ease—

How can the wise one find peace and joy

In falling into the midst of the fierce flames?

The householder is concerned with gain and comfort,

Dwelling in worldly affairs, in wife and children,

Having ten thousand cares and anxieties.

How can the wise one not leave the household?

The Dharma of the Ten Powers is most peaceful and blissful;

Not being so, one endures suffering and distress.

Anxious for one's children, one loses one's resolve;

The deluded one falls into the hells.

The deluded ones in the world

Dwell in thought upon their wife and children,

In their ignorance regarding them as permanent,

Not knowing that the body is like an illusory transformation."

When the World-Honored Buddha had spoken this Dharma, Awesome Almsgiver and the five hundred elders at once attained the Dharma-forbearance of gentle compliance. Because they had attained this forbearance, their spiritual powers were complete; they came to know the past and the future, attained the subtle and wondrous wisdom of the sages, free of any obstruction, comprehending the wishes of sentient beings; and giving rise to a mind that contemplated all the sentient beings in the assembly, they then spoke in verse:

"Excellent—to bring about the great benefit,

The supreme among all benefits—

Is to give rise to the mind and practice,

Aspiring to and seeking after the Buddha and the Bodhisattvas.

The mind of the Mahāyāna is peaceful and blissful;

It wishes only to bring joy to the multitude,

For the sake of others repairing the roads and bridges.

One who aspires to and seeks the Mahāyāna—

All sentient beings delight in him;

His form and bearing are pleasing to behold.

Is there any who gives rise to the mind,

Resolved to seek the Way of the Bodhisattva?

One who gives rise to the bodhi-mind

Sows virtue in the field of merit.

One who delights in the Bodhisattva

Is a sage of wisdom in the three realms.

The mind that reverences the holy Bodhisattva

Surpasses every other kind of mind.

All being complete and fulfilled,

He is able to deliver sentient beings.

We rejoice to have obtained this benefit,

Delighting to give rise to this mind.

Having met the Buddha, mighty among men,

The lion, supreme in perfect enlightenment,

We have at once been able to hear this Dharma:

The Bodhisattva's contemplation of the Dharma of the body.

Resolved to aspire to and seek the Mahāyāna,

We have attained the forbearance of gentle compliance."

At that time, the Buddha then smiled. When the World-Honored One smiled, radiances of five colors issued forth from His golden mouth, brilliant as the light of the sun, each color distinct from the others, countless rays of light illuminating all the lands throughout the ten directions; and the majestic power of this light eclipsed the light of all the Śakras, the Brahmās, the sun and moon, and the palaces of the devas and māras.

When the Buddha smiled and eclipsed their light, the devas, nāgas, spirits, and people of the world—nearly seventy-two thousand in number—seeing the spiritual transformations and the brilliantly shining light of the Buddha, all awakened of themselves. Illuminated by the Tathāgata's light, their bodies made peaceful and at ease, they all, right there upon their seats, suddenly realized the Forbearance of the Non-arising of Dharmas. Besides these, countless others gave rise to the mind of Unsurpassed Perfect Enlightenment.

Afterward, the light circled the Buddha's body three times and then suddenly returned to enter the crown of His head.

At that time, the worthy Ānanda addressed the Buddha:

"The Buddhas, the Tathāgatas, appear in the world to deliver sentient beings with the vast and great teaching, never at all deceiving. Now for what reason does the World-Honored One smile with joy? Excellent, World-Honored One! The Tathāgata bestows His virtue, mindful and compassionate toward all the immeasurable devas and people of the world, causing them to obtain peace and joy. Even the various beasts, birds, animals, and insects are all delivered. We pray that He will make clear the meaning of His smile."

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

"Do you see the elder Awesome Almsgiver and the five hundred elders?"

"World-Honored One! I do see them."

The World-Honored One said:

"These elders, in the time of the Buddhas of the past, planted and cultivated merit and virtue. Thus, Ānanda! From the time the elder Awesome Almsgiver and the five hundred elders gave rise to the mind of Unsurpassed Perfect Enlightenment onward, for seventy-six eons they will not fall into the three suffering destinies. Thereafter they will become Buddhas within a single eon, an eon named Valiant Courage, and all will bear one and the same title: Flower-Garland-Treasury King Tathāgata, Worthy of Offerings, Perfectly Enlightened One, Master of the Way and Dharma, Tamer of Beings, Teacher of Devas and Humans, Buddha, World-Honored One. And each of them will deliver sentient beings beyond measure."

At that time, Ānanda again addressed the Buddha:

"World-Honored One! This is truly profound, subtle, and wondrous, never before existing. The Tathāgata has expounded the right Dharma, profound and immeasurable. What is this sūtra called? How should it be upheld?"

The Buddha said:

"Ānanda! This sūtra is called The Bodhisattva's Practice, and it is also called The Sūtra of the Contemplation of Bodily Conduct, Asked by the Great Being Awesome Almsgiver.

Furthermore, Ānanda! The Buddhas of the past, the future, and the present achieve the Way and spread the teaching all by means of this contemplation. I have now become a Buddha, possessed of excellent bodily marks, and I transform and teach those within the round of birth and death also by means of this Dharma. You should diligently transcribe, uphold, read, recite, and expound it for all sentient beings."

When the Buddha had finished speaking this sūtra, the worthy Ānanda, the Great Being Awesome Almsgiver and the five hundred persons, the devas, nāgas, spirits, and the people who had heard the sūtra all rejoiced, joined their palms, and bowed their heads at the feet of the Buddha.