般若波羅蜜多心經

THUS HAVE I HEARD:

At one time, the Buddha was dwelling on Vulture Peak near the great city of Rajagriha, together with a great assembly of bhikshus and bodhisattvas.

At that time, the Buddha, the Blessed One, entered a samadhi called Vast and Profound.

Then, within the great assembly, there was a great bodhisattva named Avalokiteshvara. While practicing the profound Prajnaparamita, he clearly saw that the five skandhas were all empty and thereby transcended all suffering and distress.

At that time, Shariputra, relying upon the Buddha’s spiritual power, respectfully joined his palms and addressed the great bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara, saying:

“Venerable One! If a practitioner wishes to train in the profound Prajnaparamita, how should that person practice?”

After he had asked this question, the great bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara said to the venerable Shariputra:

“Shariputra! When a good man or good woman practices the profound Prajnaparamita, that person should contemplate the emptiness of the five skandhas.

Shariputra! Form is not different from emptiness; emptiness is not different from form. Form itself is emptiness; emptiness itself is form. Sensation, perception, formations, and consciousness are likewise thus.

Shariputra! All dharmas are marked by emptiness: they are neither born nor extinguished, neither pure nor defiled, neither increasing nor decreasing. Therefore, in emptiness there is no form; no sensation, perception, formations, or consciousness; no eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, or mind; no form, sound, scent, taste, touch, or dharmas; no eye-consciousness, up to and including no mind-consciousness; no ignorance and also no ending of ignorance, up to and including no aging and death and also no ending of aging and death. There is no suffering, origin, cessation, or path; no wisdom and also no attainment.

Because there is nothing to attain, bodhisattvas rely upon Prajnaparamita, and their minds are without obstruction. Because there is no obstruction, there is no fear; they leave distorted, dreamlike thinking far behind and attain ultimate nirvana.

All Buddhas of the three times rely upon Prajnaparamita and therefore attain unsurpassed, complete, perfect enlightenment. Know, therefore, that Prajnaparamita is the great divine mantra, the great illuminating mantra, the unsurpassed mantra, the unequalled mantra. It can dispel all suffering and is true, not false.

Therefore, the Heart Mantra of Prajnaparamita has been proclaimed.”

The mantra is spoken thus:

|| yết đế, yết đế, ba ra yết đế, ba ra tăng yết đế, bồ đề, tát bà ha. ||

|| gate gate pāragate pārasaṃgate bodhi svāhā ||

“And thus, Shariputra, great bodhisattvas should practice the profound Prajnaparamita in this way.”

When this had been spoken, the Blessed One arose from the Samadhi Called Vast and Profound and praised the great bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara, saying:

“Excellent, excellent, good man! It is so, it is so! It is exactly as you have said. The profound Prajnaparamita should be practiced in this way. When it is practiced thus, all Tathagatas will rejoice in accord.”

When the Blessed One had spoken these words, the venerable Shariputra rejoiced beyond measure, and the great bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara was likewise filled with joy.

At that time, the devas, humans, asuras, and gandharvas in the Dharma assembly, having heard the Buddha’s teaching, all gave rise to great joy, faithfully accepted it, and reverently practiced it.

The Heart Sutra of Prajnaparamita