諸經要集

Chief Editor: Thích Nguyên Chơn

I.2. Reverence for the Dharma

This section consists of eight parts: General Meaning, Teaching the Dharma, Listening to the Dharma, Gradual and Sudden, Seeking the Dharma, Auspicious Responses, Repaying Kindness, and Slandering the Dharma.

I.2.1. General Meaning

It has been heard that the Great Way is empty, quiescent, and unmoving, and therefore has neither form nor words; yet whenever beings invoke it, it immediately responds, and thus there are names and teachings. Therefore, though it is difficult to hear even a single four-line verse, it is still easy to enter the trichiliocosm^[1] even while it is being consumed by fire. May practitioners sit alone in the stillness of night beneath the clear, bright moon and chant the scriptures, their voices rising and falling, the words clearly enunciated, the language exquisite and the meaning sublime, the tones harmonious, accordant with the hearts of people, and beneficial to all beings,

skillfully inspiring the mind and filling the spirit with joy. [09a] They should read attentively until they know the texts by heart and thoroughly comprehend their language and meaning; with reverence and diligence, they should read and recite them, responding inwardly with utmost sincerity.

They must believe and understand that upholding a single verse brings vast blessings and virtue, while transcribing a single sentence of scripture brings merit lasting many kalpas. Therefore, Kasyapa^[2] reverently upheld the Dharma, not begrudging even the flaying of his skin; Sada, sincerely devoted to it, did not shrink from shedding his blood.

This is the first gateway to liberation and the ultimate virtue for entering the Way.

I.2.2. Conditions for Teaching the Dharma

Upon ascending the Dharma seat, the Dharma teacher must first pay homage to the Three Jewels, calm the mind, consider the proper time, and discern the listeners. Having aroused compassion and the wish to rescue sentient beings, only then should the teacher expound the Dharma. Thus, the Sutra on Repaying Kindness states: “If the listener is seated while the speaker is standing, the Dharma should not be taught.

If the listener seeks to find fault with the speaker, it should likewise not be taught. If the listener relies upon the person rather than the Dharma, relies upon the words rather than the meaning, relies upon scriptures of provisional meaning rather than scriptures of definitive meaning, or relies upon discriminating consciousness rather than wisdom, the Dharma should likewise not be taught. Why?

Because such a person is incapable of revering the pure Dharma of the Buddhas and bodhisattvas.”

If the speaker honors the Dharma and the listener also possesses reverence, listens wholeheartedly, and is not contemptuous, this is a pure teaching of the Dharma.

The Five-Part Vinaya states: “Establish these states of mind: a mind free from craving, a mind that does not disparage oneself, a mind that does not disparage others, a mind of loving-kindness, a mind of joy, a mind wishing to benefit others, and an unmoving mind. If, with such states of mind, one teaches even a single four-line verse, enabling others to listen sincerely and understand it correctly, in accordance with reality, the speaker will enjoy lasting peace and immeasurable benefit.”

The Nirvana Sutra states: “If someone upholds, reads, recites, and teaches the Buddhist scriptures at an improper time or place, teaches without being requested, harbors contempt for the Dharma, disparages others, praises oneself, and teaches the Dharma everywhere indiscriminately, thereby instead destroying the Buddhadharma and causing innumerable people to fall into hell after death, that person is an evil spiritual friend to sentient beings.”

The Ten-Recitation Vinaya states: “When any of the following five kinds of people ask about the Dharma, it should not be taught, nor should they be answered: first, one who asks merely to test the speaker; second, one who asks despite having no doubt; third, one who asks without remorse for the offenses already committed; fourth, one who asks but does not listen attentively; and fifth, one who asks in order to create difficulties.

If someone is genuinely well-intentioned, has none of the motives described above, and seeks only to arouse wholesome thoughts and eliminate unwholesome thoughts, the Dharma teacher should employ skillful means appropriate to that person’s capacities and teach with goodwill. If the Dharma teacher has not yet attained a thorough understanding or still has doubts, the teacher must not speak to that person, lest the teaching be transmitted incorrectly and both parties incur an offense.”

[09b] The Sutra on the Upasaka Precepts states: “The Buddha taught:

– Those who abide in accordance with the Dharma are capable of benefiting both themselves and others. Those who do not abide in accordance with the Dharma can benefit neither themselves nor others. Those who abide in accordance with the Dharma possess eight kinds of knowledge: first, knowledge of the Dharma; second, knowledge of meaning; third, knowledge of the proper time; fourth, knowledge of contentment; fifth, knowledge of oneself and others; sixth, knowledge of assemblies; seventh, knowledge of faculties; and eighth, knowledge of superior and inferior capacities.

Those fully endowed with these eight kinds of knowledge possess sixteen qualities whenever they speak:

1. They speak at the proper time

2. They speak wholeheartedly

3. They speak in an orderly manner

4. They speak harmoniously

5. They accord with the meaning

6. They speak joyfully

7. They accord with the listeners’ dispositions

8. They do not disparage anyone

9. They do not reproach anyone

10. They accord with the Dharma

11. They speak for the benefit of themselves and others

12. They are not distracted

13. They accord with the true meaning

14. They are honest and upright

15. Having spoken, they do not become arrogant

16. Having spoken, they do not seek blessings and rewards in future lives.”

Teachers fully endowed with these sixteen qualities may be followed and heeded.

The Sutra of Mindfulness of the True Dharma states: “If sentient beings properly cultivate wholesome karma and teach a single verse to those holding wrong views, causing them to arouse a pure mind and have faith in the Buddha, then, when those sentient beings die, they will be reborn in the Heaven of Responsive Sound^[3] and enjoy happiness. Afterward, they will again undergo rebirth according to their karma. If someone teaches the Dharma in pursuit of wealth and accepts wealth not out of compassion or a wish to benefit sentient beings, but in order to drink alcohol or to eat and drink in the company of women, like courtesans selling themselves for money, then such a gift of Dharma yields very little blessed reward.

That person will merely be reborn in heaven as an intelligent bird capable of reciting verses. This is the inferior grade of Dharma giving.”

What is the intermediate grade of Dharma giving? It is teaching the Dharma to others for the sake of fame, out of a desire to surpass others or to surpass great Dharma teachers, or teaching the Dharma with an impure mind. Such Dharma giving likewise brings only a small blessed reward: one will merely be reborn in heaven to experience an intermediate reward, or be reborn as a human being.

What is the superior grade of Dharma giving? It is teaching the Dharma to others with a pure mind, wishing to develop the wisdom of sentient beings, not for personal gain, but to help sentient beings holding wrong views live within the true Dharma. Such Dharma giving benefits both oneself and others and is the most exalted. Until one enters nirvana, it will bring inexhaustible blessed rewards.

The Kasyapa Sutra states: “At that time, the Buddha spoke this verse:

Though one gives to everyone

All the precious jewels

Filling the trichiliocosm,

The merit gained is small.

[09c] But if one teaches a single verse,

The merit gained is very great.

If all the music of the three realms

Were given to a single person,

It would not equal giving one verse,

Whose merit is unsurpassed.

This merit surpasses the former

And delivers one from every suffering.

Or if one took myriad precious jewels

Filling realms as numerous as Ganges sands

And offered them to all the Buddhas,

How could that equal the gift of one Dharma teaching?

Though giving treasures brings abundant blessings,

It is still inferior to giving one Dharma teaching.

Giving one verse brings immense blessings;

How could the blessings from many verses be measured?”

The Treatise on the Ten Bodhisattva Grounds states: “Laypeople should practice the giving of material wealth, while monastics should practice the giving of Dharma. Why? Because it is less convenient for laypeople to give the Dharma than for monastics, since listeners have less faith in laypeople than in monastics. Moreover, laypeople possess abundant wealth, while monastics read, recite, and thoroughly understand the scriptures. Therefore, monastics far surpass laypeople in teaching fearlessly before an assembly. Furthermore, laypeople do not inspire as much reverence in listeners as monastics do, nor are laypeople as capable as monastics of bringing people’s minds under discipline.” As the verse states:

First cultivate the Way yourself,

Then teach it to everyone else;

Only then may you say:

“You should follow my example.”

If one commits unwholesome deeds,

How could one teach the cultivation of good?

If one has not oneself attained quiescence,

How could one teach others to attain quiescence?

Furthermore, if monastics practice material giving, it obstructs their other wholesome practices. They must also leave secluded and pure places, enter villages, work together with laypeople, and engage in much conversation; consequently, afflictions will arise, and their minds will be less concentrated on practices of liberation such as the six paramitas. They may even become attached to the five sensual desires, relinquish the precepts, and return to lay life, which is a form of death; or they may violate the precepts and readily incur grave offenses. These are the painful afflictions likened to death and the like. For these reasons, Dharma giving is praised for monastics, while material giving is praised for laypeople.

The Suvarnaprabhasa Sutra states: “A Dharma teacher has five considerations:

1. Dharma giving benefits both oneself and others; material giving does not do so.

2. Dharma giving can help sentient beings escape the three realms; material giving does not lead beyond the Desire Realm.

3. Dharma giving benefits the Dharma body; material giving nourishes the physical body.

4. Dharma giving brings inexhaustible growth; material giving will certainly be exhausted at some point.

[10a] 5. Dharma giving can completely eradicate ignorance; material giving merely subdues greed.”

Therefore, material giving is not equal to Dharma giving. Yet Dharma giving also has different degrees. If one understands something but does not help others understand it, fearing that they may surpass oneself, then in future lives one will often have no opportunity to hear the Dharma.

The Treatise on the Great Perfection of Wisdom states: “Those who are miserly with the Dharma are often born in border regions or in places where there is no Buddha Dharma. Because they are miserly with the Dharma, they obstruct the understanding of others. Such people are inferior even to those who sell the Dharma to others.”

The Sutra of the Courageous King of All Dharmas states: “Suppose all sentient beings dwelling in the waters, on land, or in the air throughout Jambudvipa were to attain human bodies, and someone taught all of them to abide in the five precepts and the ten wholesome deeds. The merit acquired by that person would not equal that of one who taught a single person to have faith and practice.”

The Treatise on the Ten Bodhisattva Stages states: “A bodhisattva should abandon four things that can diminish wisdom:

1. Failing to respect the Dharma and the Dharma teacher.

2. Concealing and begrudging the essential Dharma.

3. Creating obstacles and thwarting the desire of those who delight in the Dharma to hear it.

4. Harboring pride and arrogance and looking down upon others.

A bodhisattva should constantly cultivate four practices that help one attain wisdom:

1. Revering the Dharma and the Dharma teacher.

2. With a pure mind, explaining to others the Dharma exactly as one has heard, read, and recited it.

3. Knowing that wisdom arises from extensive learning, diligently and ceaselessly seeking instruction as though extinguishing a fire blazing upon one’s head.

4. Retaining without forgetting the Dharma one has heard. One should value practicing according to the teachings, rather than discussing their words.”

I.2.3. Causes and Conditions for Hearing the Dharma

Those who wish to hear the Dharma must sincerely revere the Dharma and esteem the teacher, earnestly aspire to abandon afflictions, and not seek the conditioned rewards of gods and humans. Therefore, in the Agama Sutras, the Buddha spoke this verse:

The listener concentrates as the thirsty drink,

Not daring to let slip a single word or meaning.

Hearing the Dharma, deeply moved, rejoicing without bound—

Teaching such a person is never in vain.

The Upasaka Precepts Sutra states: “When listening to someone expound the Dharma, one must fulfill sixteen conditions:

1. Listen at the proper time.

2. Listen with delight.

3. Listen wholeheartedly.

4. Listen respectfully.

5. Do not listen in order to seek out the speaker’s faults.

6. Do not listen merely for debate.

7. Do not listen out of a desire to prevail over others.

8. Do not give rise to contempt for the speaker.

9. Do not harbor contempt for the Dharma.

10. Do not belittle oneself.

[10b] 11. Keep the mind free from the five hindrances^[4].

12. Listen in order to retain, read, and recite the teachings.

13. Listen in order to subdue the five sensual desires.

14. Listen with a mind of faith.

15. Listen in order to understand and instruct sentient beings.

16. Listen in order to eliminate ignorance.

Good man! One endowed with the eight kinds of wisdom is able to hear and expound the Dharma. Such a person can benefit both oneself and others.”

The Sutra of King Ashoka states: “Long ago, King Ashoka ordered a spiritual practitioner to expound the Dharma. The king would always place a screen across the hall and have the women listen to the Dharma from behind it. At that time, the Dharma teacher regularly taught the women about giving, morality, and rebirth in the heavens.

One woman disobeyed the king’s command. With a mind of reverence, she approached the Dharma teacher and asked:

– When the Tathagata, the Greatly Awakened One, awakened to all dharmas beneath the bodhi tree, did he realize only the teachings of giving and morality? Or did he also realize other dharmas?

The Dharma teacher replied:

– The Buddha awakened to the truth that all conditioned dharmas are suffering, like iron heated until it melts. That suffering arises from long-established habits, just as a poisonous tree grows. One must cultivate the Noble Eightfold Path to extinguish the truths of suffering and its origin.

Upon hearing these words, the woman immediately attained the fruit of stream-entry. She then fastened a knife to her neck, went to the royal palace, and reported:

– I have now committed a grave offense. I beg Your Majesty to punish me according to the royal law!

The king said:

– What offense have you committed?

– I violated the king’s command forbidding anyone from approaching the spiritual practitioner. Like an ox dying of thirst that no longer fears death, I truly thirsted for the Buddha Dharma; therefore, I risked my life to go and hear the Dharma taught.

The king asked:

– What did you comprehend upon hearing the Dharma?

– I comprehended the Four Noble Truths, understood that the skandhas, ayatanas, dhatus, and elements are all without self, and attained the Dharma eye.

Hearing this, the king was elated and joyful. He immediately bowed and issued this decree:

– From this day forward, I permit no one to obstruct those who delight in hearing the Dharma. Whoever wishes to listen may go directly before the Dharma teacher and hear the teaching.

The king further praised her:

– How extraordinary! A human treasure^[5] has only now appeared within my palace.

For this reason, one should know that hearing the Dharma brings immense benefit.”

The Sutra of Miscellaneous Treasures states: “The kingdom of Panchala presented King Prasenajit with five hundred white geese. The king ordered that the birds be taken to Jetavana Monastery. Whenever mealtime arrived and the geese saw the Sangha setting out the newly obtained alms food, all five hundred would fly over and settle before the Sangha.

At that time, the Buddha expounded the Dharma in a single language, yet every species that heard him could understand. The flock of geese also understood the Buddha’s words. Hearing the Dharma taught by the Buddha, they rejoiced greatly, raised their voices together in resonant cries, and then flew back to the pond.

Later, after their feathers had grown long, they flew elsewhere, where hunters spread nets, caught them, and killed them all. When they were captured, one goose cried out, and the whole flock joined it, uttering the same sounds they had habitually made while hearing the Dharma. Through that wholesome state of mind, the flock was reborn in the Trayastrimsha Heaven as heavenly sons.

[10c] Whenever beings are born in a heaven, they must recollect three things: they recollect where they originally came from; they recollect the place where they wish to be reborn; and they recollect what karma they created in their previous bodies that enabled them to be born in heaven.

At that time, the five hundred heavenly sons reflected and saw that in their previous lives they had cultivated no wholesome karma apart from staying near the Buddha and the Sangha and listening to the Dharma. Having reflected in this way, they descended together to Jambudvipa, went before the Buddha, and listened to the Dharma. All of them attained the fruit of stream-entry.

At that time, King Prasenajit often visited the Buddha and would regularly see the five hundred geese settled before him. On that day, the king did not see the flock, so he asked the Buddha:

– Where has the flock of geese flown today?

The Buddha said:

– The flock of geese that Your Majesty wished to see flew elsewhere and were all killed by hunters. Afterward, they were reborn in heaven and are now precisely these five hundred handsome devas wearing celestial crowns who are present here. Today, having heard the Dharma, they have all attained the fruit of stream-entry.

The king asked:

– Through what causes and conditions did that flock of geese fall into the animal realm, and why, after death, were they reborn in heaven and today attained the fruit of the path?

The Buddha said:

– Long ago, during the time of the Buddha Kasyapa, five hundred women received the precepts together. Later, because their faith was not firm, they violated the precepts and consequently fell into the animal realm, becoming those geese. Through the causes and conditions created by previously receiving the precepts, the flock encountered the Tathagata, heard the Dharma, and attained the path. Through the causes and conditions created by hearing the Dharma while living as geese, they were reborn in heaven.”

The Sutra of Old Miscellaneous Parables records: “Long ago, there was a sramana who recited sutras throughout the day and night. A dog habitually lay beneath his bed, listening to the sutras with wholehearted attention and even forgetting to eat. This continued for many years. After the dog died, it was reborn as a girl in the city of Sravasti. When she grew up, she saw a sramana going on alms round and immediately brought food to make an offering to him. Later, the girl renounced the household life, became a bhiksuni, and attained arhatship.”

The Sutra of the Transmission of the Dharma Treasury records: “The Buddha said:

– All sentient beings who wish to escape the vast ocean of birth and death in the three realms must rely upon the vessel of the Dharma. The Dharma is a cool breeze that dispels the heat of the afflictions. The Dharma is good medicine that cures the illness of the afflictions. The Dharma is the true spiritual friend of sentient beings, bringing great benefit and helping to eliminate every form of suffering. Why is this so? Because the dispositions of all sentient beings are not fixed but follow habituation: when they associate with good people, they develop goodness; when they associate with evil people, they develop evil. If they remain close to evil friends, sentient beings create evil karma and will wander through birth and death without end. If they remain close to good friends, they give rise to faith and reverence, hear and uphold the wondrous Dharma, and will certainly escape the suffering of the three evil paths. Through this merit, they enjoy the most excellent happiness.

Long ago, the king of Pataliputra had a white elephant that habitually killed his enemies. Whenever anyone committed a crime, the king would have that person trampled to death by the elephant. Later, when the elephant stable burned down, the king had the elephant moved to a place near a monastery. From then on, the elephant often heard the bhiksus reciting verses from the Dhammapada:

[11a] Doing good, one is reborn in heaven;

Doing evil, one falls into hell.

After hearing the Dharma, the elephant’s mind became gentle and docile. When the king ordered criminals brought before it, the elephant merely smelled them with its trunk, licked them with its tongue, and then walked away, refusing to kill them. Seeing this, the king became alarmed and summoned his ministers to court to deliberate upon the matter. One learned minister reported:

– This elephant has been staying near the monastery and hearing the wondrous Dharma; that is why it has become like this. It should now be tethered near an animal slaughterhouse.

The king immediately followed this counsel. When the white elephant witnessed animals being slaughtered, its mind became extremely vicious, and it killed with far greater cruelty than before.

Therefore, one should understand that the dispositions of all sentient beings are not fixed. Even animals are like this: hearing the Dharma, they become gentle; witnessing slaughter, they come to delight in cruelty—how much more so human beings. Therefore, when wise people encounter the wicked, they should leave them; when they encounter the virtuous, they should draw near and diligently listen to the teachings of the sutras.

Long ago, a brahmin brought a great many human skulls to the city of Pataliputra and hawked them throughout its streets, but no matter how long he cried his wares, no one bought them. The brahmin then became exceedingly angry and shouted curses in a loud voice:

– The people of this city are truly benighted and ignorant. If no one comes to buy my human skulls, I will utter a curse!

When the male lay devotees in the city heard this, they feared being cursed and brought money to purchase the skulls. They used a bronze rod to pierce each skull through the ear. If the rod passed all the way through a skull, they paid a high price for it; if it passed halfway through, they paid a lower price; and if it did not pass through at all, they paid nothing.

The brahmin said:

– These human skulls are all alike. Why do you pay different prices for them?

The lay devotees replied:

– The skulls through which the rod passes completely belonged to people who, while alive, heard and upheld the wondrous Dharma and possessed lofty, far-reaching wisdom. Therefore, we buy them for a high price. The skulls through which it passes only halfway belonged to people who heard the teachings of the sutras but did not yet understand them clearly. Therefore, we pay a lower price for them. Those through which it cannot pass at all belonged to people who, in former times, never heard the teachings of the sutras. Therefore, we do not buy them.

The lay devotees then carried those human skulls outside the city, built a stupa, and made offerings to them. Later, when they died, all those male lay devotees were reborn in heaven. From these causes and conditions, one should understand that the wondrous Dharma possesses great merit. Even the lay devotees who built a stupa and made offerings to the skulls of those who had heard the Dharma were reborn in heaven; how much more so those who habitually listen wholeheartedly to the teachings of the sutras and make offerings to those who reverently receive and uphold the sutras. The meritorious rewards of such people are truly beyond reckoning, and in future lives they will certainly accomplish the unsurpassed path.”

Therefore, wise people who wish to attain ultimate peace and happiness should listen to the teachings of the sutras wholeheartedly and diligently.

The Sutra of the Wise and the Foolish records: “Long ago, when the Buddha was still in the world, the householder Sudatta of Sravasti was a donor who reverently believed in the Buddha-Dharma. He provided the Sangha with everything it needed. [11b] In Sudatta’s household were two parrots; one was named Luti and the other Saluti. Both were intelligent and understood human speech.

Whenever they saw a bhiksu coming to the house, they always announced his arrival so that members of the household could come out to welcome him. Later, the Venerable Ananda came to Sudatta’s house. Seeing that the two birds were intelligent, he taught them the Dharma of the Four Noble Truths.

After hearing the Dharma, they flew onto the branches of a tree before the house and joyfully recited and retained it. That night, while they rested in the tree, they were eaten by a mongoose. Through those wholesome roots, they were reborn in the Heaven of the Four Great Kings.

When their lifespans there ended, they were reborn in the Trayastrimsa Heaven; when their lifespans in the Trayastrimsa Heaven ended, they were reborn in the Yama Heaven; when their lifespans in the Yama Heaven ended, they were reborn in the Tusita Heaven; when their lifespans in the Tusita Heaven ended, they were reborn in the sixth heaven, the Heaven of Those Who Freely Enjoy the Creations of Others; when their lifespans in the Heaven of Those Who Freely Enjoy the Creations of Others ended, they were reborn in the Heaven of Delight in Creation.

Then, successively and in order, they were reborn downward as far as the Heaven of the Four Great Kings; when their lifespans in that heaven ended, they were again successively reborn upward as far as the Heaven of Those Who Freely Enjoy the Creations of Others. Passing through seven such cycles of rebirth upward and downward among the six heavens of the desire realm, they freely enjoyed happiness until the full end of each lifespan and never died prematurely.

Later, they died and were reborn in the human realm, renounced the household life, cultivated the path, and became pratyekabuddhas; one was named Dharma and the other Sudharma.”

The Sutra of the Wise and the Foolish records: “Long ago, when the Buddha was still in the world, there was a bhiksu dwelling in a forest who regularly recited sutras. His chanting voice was truly clear and ethereal. At that time, a bird heard the Dharma being recited, gave rise to reverence and affection, and often perched in a tree to listen.

One day, the bird was shot and killed by a hunter. Through the wholesome root it had planted by hearing the Dharma, it was reborn in the Trayastrimsa Heaven as a deva prince of handsome appearance, whose brilliant radiance was beyond compare. Knowing from the recollection of his former life that he had been born in this heaven because he had heard the bhiksu reciting the Dharma of the sutras, the deva prince immediately went to the bhiksu, reverently bowed to him, inquired after his well-being, and made offerings of incense and celestial flowers.

After questioning him and learning what had occurred, the bhiksu invited the deva to sit down and expounded the Dharma for him, enabling him to attain the fruit of stream-entry.”

Even birds and beasts obtain boundless merit by hearing the Dharma; how much more, then, would people who hear the Dharma with faithful hearts obtain wholesome karmic rewards?

The Mahavihara Vinaya Commentary records: “Long ago, when the Buddha was still in the world, he once went to the shore of Lake Gara in the land of Campa and expounded the Dharma for the assembly. At that time, a frog in the lake heard the sound of the Buddha expounding the Dharma. It came out of the lake and crawled into a clump of grass to listen.

At the same time, a cowherd carrying a staff saw the Buddha seated upon the Dharma seat expounding the Dharma, and so approached the Buddha to listen. When he planted his staff in the ground as he stood listening to the teaching, he inadvertently drove it into the frog’s head, killing it instantly. The frog was immediately reborn in the Trayastrimsa Heaven.

Through this meritorious reward, that deva enjoyed happiness together with celestial maidens in a palace measuring twelve yojanas in both length and breadth. The deva descended from his palace, went before the Buddha, and bowed with his head at the Buddha’s feet. Although the Buddha already knew, he nevertheless asked:

[11c] ‘Where have you come from? How is it that your spiritual powers, excellent marks, and radiance are unequaled, illuminating this place, and yet you have suddenly bowed at my feet?’

The deva replied in verse:

In the past, I had the body of a frog,

Seeking food within a pond.

Hearing the Buddha expound the Dharma,

I crawled into a clump of grass.

There was a cowherd

Who came with his staff to hear the Dharma.

He planted his staff upon my head;

I died and was reborn in heaven.

When the deva had finished speaking this verse, the Buddha expounded it to the fourfold assembly. At that time, eighty-four thousand people all attained the path of seeing, and the deva attained the fruit of stream-entry. All rejoiced and withdrew.”

I.2.4. Gradual and Sudden

The Sutra of a Hundred Parables records: “Long ago, in a village five yojanas from the capital of a certain kingdom, there was a spring whose water was exceptionally sweet and delicious. The king ordered the villagers to bring this water to the palace every day. The people of the village were greatly burdened by this task, and they all wished to abandon the village and leave. At that time, the village headman told everyone:

‘Do not leave! I shall petition the king to change the distance of five yojanas to three yojanas, so that the journey to carry the water will be shorter and less exhausting for everyone.’

He immediately entered the palace and presented his petition, whereupon the king issued an order changing the distance to three yojanas. When the villagers heard the decree, they were all delighted. Later, someone told them, ‘It was originally only five yojanas; nothing has actually changed.’ Although they heard these words, because they placed such great faith in the king’s pronouncement, they still refused to abandon their belief.

People in the world are likewise. When cultivating the true Dharma to transcend the five paths^[6] and advance toward nirvana, they often become weary and wish to abandon their practice, remaining upon the shore of birth and death and ceasing to progress in cultivation. The Tathagata, the Dharma King, possesses vast skillful means and, in accordance with the capacities of sentient beings, divides the Dharma of the One Vehicle into three vehicles in order to teach them.

Those of the capacity for the Lesser Vehicle hear this Dharma and rejoice greatly, deeming it easy to practice; they then cultivate goodness and advance in virtue, seeking liberation from birth and death. Later, they hear others say that there are no three vehicles, because the three vehicles are in truth only the One Vehicle. Yet, because they believe what the Buddha taught earlier, they refuse to relinquish their former view.

Thus, they are just like the villagers in that story.”

The Avatamsaka Sutra records: “O children of the Buddha! Suppose that when the sun rises, it first shines upon all the sovereign mountains, next upon the precious vajra mountains, and only afterward across the entire earth. The sunlight does not think, ‘I must first shine upon the sovereign mountains and then shine across the entire earth.’ Yet because mountains and the earth differ in height, they are illuminated earlier or later. [12a] The Tathagata, the Worthy One, the Perfectly Enlightened One, is likewise.

Having brought to perfection the sun of wisdom that illuminates immeasurable Dharma realms, he constantly emits immeasurable rays of unobstructed wisdom. They first shine upon the sovereign mountains—the bodhisattvas and others—next upon the pratyekabuddhas, and then upon the sravakas. Next, they shine upon sentient beings whose wholesome roots are firmly established, teaching and transforming each according to what is appropriate.

Afterward, they shine upon all sentient beings, even those holding wrong views. In order to create causes and conditions that will benefit them in future lives, the sun of the Tathagata’s wisdom does not think, ‘I shall first shine upon the bodhisattvas and so forth, and lastly upon sentient beings who hold wrong views.’ Rather, it emits brilliant rays of wisdom that shine universally upon all.

O children of the Buddha! Just as the sun and moon, when they rise in the world, shine everywhere, even into deep mountains and profound valleys, so too does the sun of the Tathagata’s wisdom illuminate all universally. Yet because the aspirations and wholesome roots of sentient beings are not the same, the light of the Tathagata’s wisdom appears different to each of them.”

The Nirvana Sutra records: “It is never possible to attain nirvana apart from four dharmas. What are these four? They are:

1. Drawing near to good spiritual friends,

2. Single-mindedly listening to the Dharma,

3. Concentrating the mind in contemplation,

4. Practicing in accordance with the Dharma.”

For this reason, hearing the Dharma is a cause and condition for drawing near to great parinirvana. Why is this so? Because hearing the Dharma opens the Dharma eye. There are three kinds of people in the world: first, those without eyes, representing ordinary beings; second, those with one eye, representing the sravakas; and third, those with two eyes, representing the bodhisattvas. Those without eyes are people who never listen to the Dharma. Those with one eye are people who, although they listen to the Dharma for a time, do not abide in the Dharma. Those with two eyes are people who single-mindedly listen to the Dharma and practice in accordance with the Dharma they have heard. Through hearing the Dharma, one comes to know these three kinds of people in the world.

I.2.5. Seeking the Dharma

The Sutra of Miscellaneous Treasures records: “The Buddhadharma is vast and boundless, and its deliverance of sentient beings is inexhaustible. Those who seek the Way with utmost sincerity all attain realization; even those who jest about the Buddhadharma obtain merit.”

Long ago, there was an exceedingly aged bhiksu whose faculties were no longer clear. One day, he heard some young bhiksus speaking about the four fruits^[7] of the ascetic path. The old bhiksu became delighted and said to the young bhiksus:

‘You are wise; please explain the four fruits of the ascetic path to me.’

Those bhiksus were ignorant, but they said:

‘We possess the four fruits of the ascetic path, but you must first treat us to a delicious meal, and only then will we give them to you.’

Hearing this, the old bhiksu rejoiced. He immediately prepared many delicious dishes and then invited the young bhiksus to come, seeking from them the four fruits of the ascetic path.

After they had finished eating, they began to make sport of the old bhiksu, saying:

‘Venerable sir! Sit in this corner of the house, and I shall give you that fruit.’

[12b] Hearing this, the elderly bhikshu rejoiced and sat down as the young bhikshus had instructed. The young bhikshus then struck the elderly bhikshu on the head with a leather ball and said:

– This is the fruit of stream-entry.

Upon hearing this, the elderly bhikshu focused his mind without distraction and immediately attained the first fruit.

The young bhikshus continued their jest, saying:

– Although I have given you the fruit of stream-entry, you must still undergo seven more births and seven more deaths. Move over and sit in another corner of the room, and I shall next give you the fruit of once-returning.

Having just attained the first fruit, the elderly bhikshu’s resolve for the path grew even stronger, and he moved to another seat. The young bhikshus again struck him on the head with the leather ball and said:

– Here, I give you the second fruit!

The elderly bhikshu concentrated even more deeply in contemplation and immediately attained the second fruit. Again the young bhikshus said in jest:

– Now you have attained the fruit of once-returning, but you are still subject to the hardship of returning to birth and death. Move to another seat, and I shall give you the fruit of non-returning.

The elderly bhikshu immediately followed their instruction and moved to another seat. Once again, the young bhikshus struck him with the leather ball and said:

– Now I give you the third fruit.

Upon hearing this, the elderly bhikshu rejoiced and applied himself still more earnestly to contemplation, immediately attaining the fruit of non-returning.

Again the young bhikshus said in jest:

– Now you have attained the fruit of non-returning, but you must still assume outflow-tainted bodies in the Form Realm and the Formless Realm. You therefore remain subject to impermanence, transformation, and dissolution, suffering in every thought-moment. Move to another seat, and I shall give you the fruit of arhatship.

The elderly bhikshu immediately followed their instruction and moved to another seat. Once again, the young bhikshus struck him on the head with the leather ball and said:

– Now I give you the fourth fruit!

The elderly bhikshu contemplated with single-minded concentration and immediately attained the fruit of arhatship. Overjoyed, he prepared delicious foods and many kinds of incense and flowers, then invited the young bhikshus to come so that he might repay their kindness and discuss with them the undefiled merits of the factors of the path. The young bhikshus were rendered speechless and could say nothing. The elderly bhikshu then said:

– I have attained the fruit of arhatship.

Hearing this, all the young bhikshus felt remorse and apologized for their earlier jest.

Therefore, practitioners should contemplate what is wholesome. Even jesting with the Buddhadharma can bring true fruition; how much more so when one is utterly sincere.

The Sutra of the Miscellaneous Treasures records: “Long ago, there was an intelligent and widely learned woman who had faith in the Three Jewels. Following an established order, she would regularly invite one bhikshu at a time to her home to receive offerings. Later, when it was the elderly bhikshu’s turn, he went to her house.

He was advanced in years, of dull faculties, and lacking in understanding. After the elderly bhikshu had finished his meal, the woman sincerely requested him to teach the Dharma. She spread out a mat, sat before him, closed her eyes, and remained silent.

Knowing that he understood no Dharma he could expound, the elderly bhikshu took advantage of the female donor’s closed eyes and returned to the monastery. The woman, however, sincerely contemplated that conditioned phenomena are impermanent, suffering, empty, and not subject to one’s control. Through profound contemplation, she immediately attained the fruit of stream-entry.

[12c] After attaining the fruit, the woman went to the monastery to find that bhikshu and repay his kindness. The bhikshu, however, knew himself to be without wisdom and therefore left to avoid her. The more ashamed he became, the more carefully he concealed himself. Yet the woman persisted in seeking an audience, so the bhikshu finally had no choice but to come out and meet her. Upon meeting him, the woman clearly explained that through the causes and conditions he had provided, she had attained the fruit of the path, and that she had therefore brought gifts as offerings to repay his kindness. Hearing this, the elderly bhikshu was filled with shame. He reproached himself most severely and likewise attained the fruit of stream-entry.”

Therefore, practitioners should sincerely concentrate their minds when seeking the Dharma. If they are utterly sincere, they will certainly attain what they seek.

The Sutra of the Samadhi That Gathers All Merits records: “In the exceedingly distant past, there was a sage named Supreme Victory who dwelt in a mountain forest. He had attained the five supernatural powers and constantly cultivated loving-kindness. One day, the sage thought: ‘Loving-kindness alone is not sufficient to aid sentient beings. Extensive learning can also completely eliminate their wrong views and afflictions and enable them to give rise to right view.’ Having thought this, the sage traveled throughout villages and cities in search of a teacher who could expound the Dharma.

At that time, a heavenly Mara came and said to the sage:

– I possess a verse spoken by the Buddha. If you can flay your skin to make paper, draw your blood to make ink, and split your bones to make a pen with which to write down this verse, I shall recite it for you.

Upon hearing this, the sage thought: ‘Throughout countless kalpas, I have repeatedly allowed my body to be cut apart and squandered for the sake of others, enduring immeasurable suffering without gaining any benefit. Now I shall relinquish this fragile body in exchange for the wondrous Dharma.’ Then, filled with joy and enthusiasm, the sage used a knife to flay his skin for paper, drew his blood for ink, and split a bone for a pen. With palms joined, he looked toward the heavens and asked to hear the Buddha’s verse. Seeing this, the heavenly Mara became dejected and dismayed and immediately disappeared. The sage then said:

– For the sake of the Dharma, I now cherish not my own life. I have flayed my skin to make paper, drawn my blood to make ink, and split my bone to make a pen. For the sake of sentient beings, I act with perfect sincerity and without deceit. If there is any being of great loving-kindness and compassion in another world who can expound the Dharma, I beseech that being to appear before me.

As soon as the sage had finished speaking these words, there suddenly appeared before him the Buddha Pure Renown King from the land of Universal Immaculacy, thirty-two buddha-lands east of the Saha world. That Buddha emitted a brilliant radiance that illuminated the body of the sage Supreme Victory. All the sage’s pain immediately vanished, and his body was restored to its former wholeness.

The Buddha then taught the sage Supreme Victory the ‘Samadhi That Gathers All.’ Upon hearing it, the sage Supreme Victory immediately attained unobstructed eloquence, whereupon that Buddha disappeared. [13a] After attaining unobstructed eloquence, the sage Supreme Victory expounded the wondrous Dharma widely for sentient beings, enabling immeasurable beings to abide in the paths of the Three Vehicles. Only after a thousand years did the sage Supreme Victory pass away and take birth in the land of Universal Immaculacy of the Buddha Pure Renown King.

Because he revered the Dharma, the sage Supreme Victory has now attained buddhahood.”

The Buddha told Venerable Pure Awe:

– The sage Supreme Victory of that time was none other than I.

Therefore, it should be known that if anyone constantly seeks the Dharma with reverence, the Buddha will, for that person’s sake, not enter nirvana, nor will the Dharma perish. Although the Buddha may dwell in another land, that person will still regularly behold Him and hear the true Dharma.

In the Nirvana Sutra, the youth Snow Mountains^[8] relinquished his body to seek half a verse. In the Large Prajnaparamita Sutra, the bodhisattva Sadaprarudita split his bones to obtain their marrow in his quest for the Dharma, and so forth. Such causes and conditions are innumerable and cannot be fully recounted.

Commentary: At that time, monastics and laypeople alike studied little and possessed shallow understanding, yet claimed to be wiser than others. When they wished to study and cultivate, they did not devote themselves to studying the inner canon but delighted only in studying worldly writings and the teachings of non-Buddhist paths. Therefore, the Nirvana Sutra records: “The Buddha taught:

– After my parinirvana, there will be ignorant shravaka disciples who violate the precepts and delight in contention. They will neglect the twelve divisions of the scriptures, read and recite the books, poetry, and literature of non-Buddhist teachings, and accumulate all manner of impure things, while claiming that the Buddha permitted them to do so. Such people are like those who exchange sandalwood for miscellaneous timber, gold for copper ore, silver for white wax, silk for coarse cloth, and ambrosia for poison.”

The Vibhāṣā Treatise states: “Just as the eyes are dazzled when one looks at the sun, so the wisdom-eye becomes impure when one investigates the books of non-Buddhist teachings. Just as the eyes become clear when one looks at the moon, so the wisdom-eye becomes lucid when one reflects upon Buddhist sutras and treatises. Reading non-Buddhist and worldly books is like striking a monkey, which only causes it to discharge all manner of impurities. Reflecting upon the Buddhadharma is like refining pure gold: the more it is refined, the purer it becomes.”

The Sutra on the Bodhisattva’s Wholesome Precepts states: “Does a bodhisattva commit an offense by failing to read and recite the sutras of the Tathagata’s true Dharma, while instead reading and reciting worldly books, poetry, literature, and commentaries? If the purpose is to discuss their doctrines in order to refute wrong views, the bodhisattva may devote two parts of study to Buddhist scriptures and one part to non-Buddhist works. Why? Because non-Buddhist works contain false teachings, whereas only the Buddhadharma is true. Moreover, one who understands worldly affairs will not be looked down upon by people of the world.”

According to the passages cited above, students of the Buddhadharma commit an offense if they persist in “abandoning the inner teachings and following external doctrines.” Even after understanding the principles and practices, they should study non-Buddhist works only temporarily in order to subdue followers of non-Buddhist paths. Afterward, they must relinquish them and continually advance in cultivating the inner discipline until they become proficient. If they merely become infatuated with non-Buddhist works, they will corrupt the true Dharma.

Therefore, the Treatise on the Bodhisattva Grounds states: “If a bodhisattva casts aside and does not study the Buddha’s teachings, but instead studies the books of non-Buddhist paths and worldly scriptures, the bodhisattva commits an offense. Repeated commission is called a defiled transgression. [13b] If one is truly intelligent, can learn quickly, and has attained unwavering wisdom, one commits no offense by studying two parts Buddhadharma and one part non-Buddhist works each day. If one delights in and refuses to relinquish worldly books and the writings of non-Buddhist paths and heterodox teachings, having no intention of abandoning them, one commits a defiled transgression.”

I.2.6. Receiving Blessed Rewards

The Sutra of the Universal Radiance states: “If anyone hears this scripture, joins their palms, and personally takes refuge, they will abandon the roots of the eight kinds of indolence and accomplish eight virtues.” These eight virtues are:

1. A beautiful countenance.

2. Great physical strength.

3. Numerous relatives and followers.

4. Swift attainment of immeasurable eloquence.

5. Rapid learning and the opportunity to renounce the household life.

6. Purity in all deeds.

7. Attainment of samadhi.

8. Luminous wisdom and knowledge of all things.

If a Dharma teacher prepares a seat and reads and recites this sutra, the teacher will receive eight blessings concerning seats. They are:

1. The seat of an elder.

2. The seat of a wheel-turning king.

3. The seat of the Lord of the Devas.

4. The seat of the Lord of Self-Mastery Heaven.

5. The seat of an arhat.

6. The seat of a bodhisattva.

7. The seat of the Tathagata.

8. The seat from which the Dharma wheel is turned, bringing liberation to all sentient beings.

If a Dharma teacher expounds this teaching and someone praises the teacher, saying, “Excellent!”, that person will attain eight pure practices. They are:

1. Their words and deeds accord with one another and are not contradictory.

2. Their words are utterly sincere and without falsehood.

3. Amid the assembly, they are truthful and without deceit.

4. Whatever they say is believed and not dismissed by others.

5. They speak only gentle words and never use coarse speech.

6. Their voice is kind and harmonious, moving those who hear it.

7. Their body and mind respond appropriately to circumstances, and their voice resembles the Brahma voice, enabling all who hear it to comprehend.

8. Their voice resembles the Buddha’s voice and accords with the minds of sentient beings.

Anyone who transcribes this scripture will attain eight treasuries. They are:

1. Attainment of the Treasury of Intention, whereby nothing is ever forgotten or omitted.

2. Attainment of the Treasury of Mind, whereby all scriptural teachings are clearly understood.

3. Attainment of the Treasury of Coming and Going, whereby all the Buddha’s scriptural teachings are thoroughly understood.

4. Attainment of the Treasury of Complete Retention, whereby everything heard is remembered.

5. Attainment of the Treasury of Eloquence, whereby the scriptures are explained to sentient beings.

6. Attainment of the Treasury of the Profound Dharma, whereby the true Dharma is protected and upheld.

7. Attainment of the Dharma Treasury of Aspiration for the Path, whereby the teachings of the Three Jewels are never severed.

8. Attainment of the Dharma Treasury of Reverent Practice, whereby the patient acceptance of the non-arising of dharmas is swiftly attained.

The chapter “Perfection of Deliverance” in the Sutra Collection of the Six Paramitas states: “Long ago, there was a diligent bhikshu who received and upheld the teachings and regularly recited the Prajnaparamita Sutra. Everyone who heard the sound of his recitation rejoiced. [13c] There was a seven-year-old boy who tended goats outside the city each day. Hearing the sound of the bhikshu’s sutra recitation from afar, he went to the monastery, paid homage, and listened attentively.

When the recitation reached the passage concerning form and emptiness, the boy immediately awakened to its meaning and questioned the bhikshu, but the bhikshu was unable to answer. Instead, the boy explained to the bhikshu principles that the latter had never heard before. The bhikshu was greatly astonished by the boy’s extraordinary wisdom.

One day, while driving the flock of goats to the foot of a mountain, the boy suddenly encountered a tiger and was devoured. After his death, he was born into the family of an elder. While pregnant, the elder’s wife spontaneously became able to recite the Prajnaparamita Sutra continuously from morning until evening without rest.

The members of the elder’s family were astonished and all believed that she was possessed by a demon. At that time, a bhikshu passing by the elder’s house heard the sound of the scripture being recited and rejoiced greatly. He told the elder: “Your wife is not suffering from demonic possession; she is simply expounding this revered scripture.” The elder’s wife came out and bowed in greeting.

The bhikshu then expounded the Dharma to her and explained everything about which she had doubts or lacked understanding. The monks were greatly delighted. When the full term had elapsed, she gave birth to a boy.

Immediately upon being born, the child joined his palms, knelt upright, and spoke the Prajnaparamita Sutra. After giving birth, the elder’s wife returned at once to her former normal state.

The bhikshu said to her:

– O true disciple of the Buddha! Raise and care well for this child. When he grows up, he will become a teacher of everyone. We too shall study under him.

By the age of seven, the child had fully mastered the Dharma of the Path. His understanding far surpassed that of everyone else, and he had attained the wisdom of prajnaparamita. He was able to correct every error in the scriptures. Wherever he went, the child constantly taught and transformed people. All five hundred people in the elder’s household—old and young, women and men—studied the Path under the child. As many as eighty-four thousand people aroused the aspiration for the unsurpassed, perfectly true Path. Upon hearing the child’s teaching, five hundred bhikshus exhausted the outflows and attained liberation of mind^[9], devoted themselves to seeking the Mahayana, and attained the pure Dharma-eye.”

That child was none other than I in a former life, and that bhikshu was Buddha Kashyapa.

The Sutra of Shariputra in the Womb states: “When Shariputra’s mother was pregnant with him, she too became intelligent.”

The Biographies of Eminent Monks states: “When Kumarajiva’s mother was pregnant with him, she became intelligent. Previously, she could memorize and recite one thousand verses each day, but during her pregnancy she could memorize and recite two thousand verses each day. First she attained the fruit of stream-entry, and afterward she attained the fruit of once-returning.”

The Sutra of the Victorious Heavenly King states: “Wherever there is a Dharma master who propagates this sutra, that very place is where the Tathagata has come. One should regard that Dharma master as a virtuous spiritual friend and show respect to him as one would to the Buddha. Upon meeting him, one should reverently rejoice, honor, and praise him.”

The sutra further states: “Even if I were to remain in the world for a kalpa or somewhat less than a kalpa, I still could not fully describe the merit of the Dharma master who propagates this sutra. Good men and good women should draw their blood and sprinkle it upon the ground over which the Dharma master passes so that no dust may rise. Even an offering such as this should not be regarded as excessive, for the Tathagata’s Dharma is truly difficult to receive and uphold.”

[14a] The Nirvana Sutra states: “There has never been any good man or good woman who, after hearing this sutra, was still reborn in the four evil destinies^[10]. If any sentient being hears this sutra even once, all evil offenses will be completely eradicated, even the karma leading to the Avici Hell.”

The sutra also states: “If any sentient being hears this sutra even once, that being will not fall into an evil destiny during the following seven kalpas... If any sentient being knows that the Tathagata eternally abides without change, or hears the words ‘eternally abiding’ even once, then after death that being will be reborn in the heavens. Later, upon attaining liberation, that being will directly realize that the Tathagata eternally abides without change.”

The Avatamsaka Sutra states: “To hear a single sentence of Dharma never heard before is more precious than all the jewels in the trichiliocosm. If that bodhisattva hears a verse of the true Dharma and regards it as the unsurpassed wealth of Dharma, it is more precious even than attaining the throne of a wheel-turning sage-king.”

The Lotus Sutra states: “If any good man or good woman receives and upholds this Lotus Sutra, whether reading, reciting, explaining, or transcribing it, that person will obtain eight hundred merits of the eyes, one thousand two hundred merits of the ears, eight hundred merits of the nose, one thousand two hundred merits of the tongue, eight hundred merits of the body, and one thousand two hundred merits of the mind.”

The Nirvana Sutra states: “After I enter nirvana, if anyone hears the wondrous Mahayana scriptures and gives rise to reverent faith, know that throughout hundreds of thousands of kotis of future kalpas such people will not fall into the evil destinies... If anyone has generated the aspiration in the presence of as many Buddhas as the sands of one Ganges, in a later evil age that person will not slander this Dharma and will delight in this sutra, but will be unable to explain it fully and clearly for others to hear.

If anyone has generated the aspiration in the presence of as many Buddhas as the sands of two Ganges, in a later evil age that person will not slander this Dharma, but will investigate it correctly and delight in receiving, upholding, and reciting this sutra, yet will still be unable to explain it for others to hear. If anyone has generated the aspiration in the presence of as many Buddhas as the sands of three Ganges, in a later evil age that person will not slander this Dharma, but will transcribe this sutra and be able to explain its profound meaning for others to hear, although that person will still not personally understand the profound principles within the sutra.

If anyone has generated the aspiration in the presence of as many Buddhas as the sands of four Ganges, in a later evil age that person will not slander this sutra; on the contrary, that person will transcribe it and be able to explain the meaning of one of its sixteen parts. If anyone has generated the aspiration in the presence of as many Buddhas as the sands of five Ganges, in a later evil age that person will be able to explain the meaning of eight of this sutra’s sixteen parts for all people to hear. [14b] If anyone has generated the aspiration in the presence of as many Buddhas as the sands of six Ganges, in a later evil age that person will be able to explain twelve of this sutra’s sixteen parts for all people to hear.

If anyone has generated the aspiration in the presence of as many Buddhas as the sands of seven Ganges, in a later evil age that person will be able to explain fourteen of this sutra’s sixteen parts for all people to hear. If anyone has generated the aspiration in the presence of as many Buddhas as the sands of eight Ganges, in a later evil age that person will transcribe this sutra, encourage others to receive and uphold it, practice in accordance with the sutra, and understand and explain all its meanings.”

I.2.7. Repaying Kindness

The Sutra on Proper Reverence states: “The Buddha told Ananda:

– If a person hears a Dharma master expound a single four-line verse, or copies a sutra from the Dharma master’s bamboo tablets or silk scroll, then even if for many kalpas that person were to carry that upadhyaya or acarya upon his shoulders, bear him upon his back, carry him upon his head, or constantly bear him about while making offerings to the Dharma master with every kind of music, such deeds would still not fully repay the teacher’s kindness. If, in a future life, that person gives rise to disrespect and frequently speaks of the Dharma master’s faults, I say that person is foolish and will undergo the most extreme suffering, certainly falling into an evil destiny in a future life. Therefore, Ananda, I instruct you: if you constantly cultivate a mind of reverence and respect, you will attain the precious Dharma called Profound Loving Reverence for the Three Jewels.”

The Brahma Net Sutra states: “If a disciple of the Buddha sees a Mahayana Dharma master who shares the same understanding and the same practice arriving from a hundred or a thousand miles away at a Sangha residence or at homes within a town, the disciple must welcome him, see him off, bow to him, and make offerings to him. Three times each day, the disciple must offer fine food and drink worth three ounces of gold, while also preparing beds and seats for his rest and providing everything the Dharma master requires.

Three times each day, the disciple must also bow and request the Dharma master to teach the Dharma. The disciple must not become angry with or harass the Dharma master, but must forget himself for the sake of the Dharma in seeking the Dharma. Otherwise, he commits a minor defiling offense.”

The Upasaka Sutra states: “If an upasaka who has received and upheld the six grave precepts^[11] fails to travel to a place where the Dharma is taught within forty miles in order to hear the Dharma, he commits an offense of negligence.”

The Great Vaipulya Dharani Sutra states: “The Buddha told Ananda:

– If a person’s parents, spouse, or children do not permit that person to go to the place of practice, the person should burn various kinds of incense, kneel upright with palms joined before the parents, ... and say: ‘I now wish to go to the place of practice. I pray that my parents will have compassion and grant me permission.’ At the same time, that person should counsel the parents so that they understand and, as appropriate, teach the Dharma for them to hear. [14c] The request must be made three times. If the family still does not grant permission, that person must remain at home, quietly contemplate, and recite and uphold the scriptures.”

The Sutra of Mindfulness of the True Dharma states: “If anyone makes offerings to a Dharma master who teaches the Dharma, that person has made offerings to the World-Honored One presently before him. Whatever such a person seeks will be accomplished in accordance with the offerings made. Even the attainment of unsurpassed bodhi comes through constantly making offerings to Dharma masters who teach the Dharma. Why is this? Because through hearing the Dharma, the mind is disciplined; because the mind is disciplined, the dark ignorance that perpetuates the cycle of birth and death is eliminated. Apart from hearing the Dharma, there is no way to discipline the mind.”

The Sutra of Excellent Contemplation states: “Not giving rise to unwholesome karma, not creating meritorious karma, and not giving rise to imperturbable karma—this is making offerings to the Buddha.”

The Lotus Sutra states: “Offering incense, flowers, clothing, food, medicines, and other things to the Buddhas is not called true offering. Constantly cultivating and learning the wondrous Dharma realized by the Tathagata while seated at the place of awakening is called true offering.” Therefore, the Buddha spoke this verse:

Though flowers and scented ointments,

Food, medicine, and clothing

Are presented to the Buddhas,

This is not called true offering.

Seated at the place of awakening,

The Tathagata realized the wondrous Dharma;

If one cultivates and learns that Dharma,

This is truly offering to the Buddha.

The Treatise on the Ten Stages, the Vibhasa, states: “The Buddha told Ananda:

– A rain of incense and flowers is not called reverent offering to the Tathagata. If bhikshus, bhikshunis, upasakas, and upasikas remain single-minded and heedful, draw near to the Buddhadharma, and cultivate it, that is truly making offerings to the Tathagata.”

The Jewel Cloud Sutra states: “Do not make offerings to the Buddha through gifts of material wealth. Why? Because the Dharma-body of the Tathagata does not accept material gifts. One should make offerings to the Buddha only through the gift of Dharma; only in this way can the Buddha-path be brought to fulfillment, for this is the foremost manner of making offerings.”

The Sutra on Wholesome Reverence states: “The Buddha taught:

– If a bhikshu of many rains-retreats does not thoroughly understand the words of the Dharma, he should rely upon and learn from another. Why? Because he himself does not yet understand the path and the Dharma; how much less could he wish to become a teacher of others? Even if a bhikshu is one hundred rains-retreats old, if he does not understand the profound and hidden matters of a shramana and is not thoroughly versed in the Vinaya, precepts, and Dharma, he should likewise be told to rely upon and learn from another.

[15a] If a bhikshu receives the Dharma from a teacher, while in the teacher’s presence he must cherish and revere the teacher. When wishing to receive the Dharma, while before the teacher, he must not laugh or show his teeth, stand with his legs crossed, look at his feet, move his feet, or shake his thighs. Unless the teacher asks him, he must not speak hastily.

Whatever the teacher instructs him to do, he must not refuse. He must not stare at the teacher’s face and must remain three cubits^[12] away from him. When the teacher tells him to sit, he should sit and must not disobey.

He must arouse a mind of loving-kindness toward the teacher. If he has any doubts, he should respectfully inquire; only after receiving the teacher’s permission may he ask the teacher for instruction. Each day, at the three appointed times, he must respectfully ask what should or should not be done.

If the student does not inquire during these three periods, the teacher should discipline him in accordance with the Dharma. If the student comes for consultation but the teacher does not grant him an audience, the student must use a clod of earth, a piece of wood, or a stick to leave a mark as evidence. When he sees that the teacher is in his chamber, the student must single-mindedly circumambulate the chamber three times, bow at the teacher’s feet, and only then depart.

If he cannot meet the teacher, everyone must cease all activities and do nothing, except urinating and defecating. While in the teacher’s presence, a disciple must not speak coarsely; even if the teacher rebukes him, he must not respond defiantly. The disciple must prepare the teacher’s seat and bed in advance and regularly sweep them clean of dust, ants, mosquitoes, and so forth.

From the time the teacher sits or lies down to rest until he rises, the disciple must read and recite the scriptures. When the sun rises in the east, the student should immediately go to the teacher, tactfully inform him that the appointed time has arrived, and remain constantly at his side, respectfully asking: ‘Master, is there anything you require? Please allow me to serve you.’ Moreover, while before the teacher, the disciple must not spit or blow his nose.

Out of reverence for the teacher, when walking in the monastery, the disciple must not wear his kashaya covering both shoulders and must not cover his head. In hot weather, the disciple must fan the teacher three times each day to keep him cool, bring water three times for the teacher to bathe, and likewise offer cool drinking water to the teacher three times. Whenever the teacher has some matter requiring attention, the disciple must exert himself fully to assist him.”

The Buddha told Ananda:

– If, in a future age, any bhikshu fails to revere his teacher and speaks of his preceptor’s faults, that person is neither a stream-enterer nor an ordinary person, but a fool who must be disciplined. Even if the teacher truly has faults, the disciple must not speak of them; how much less so when the teacher has none. If a bhikshu behaves irreverently while in the teacher’s presence, I say that person will fall into the minor Scorching and Blazing Hell. One who falls into that place has a single body with four heads; his entire body resembles a great mass of fire, burning fiercely without cease and growing ever greater as it burns. In that hell there are also savage beasts called Hooked-Beaks that constantly devour people’s tongues. After escaping from that place, he will be reborn among animals. All this results from having reviled his teacher in a previous life. Because of offenses committed with the tongue, that animal will constantly eat excrement and drink urine. [15b] After relinquishing the body of an animal, even if he is reborn as a human being, he will ordinarily be born in remote and desolate regions and endure every kind of misery. Although he obtains a human body, his appearance will not resemble that of a human being, his physical form will be incomplete, and he will constantly be despised, slandered, and humiliated. He will remain far removed from the Buddha, the World-Honored One, and will ordinarily be without wisdom. After death, that person will again fall into hell and undergo immeasurable suffering.

I.2.8. Slandering the Dharma

In the present age of the decline of the Dharma, the True Dharma is distorted by people. Monastics and laypeople intermingle indiscriminately, spreading erroneous teachings contrary to the truth and engaging in miscellaneous practices. They do not study the inner scriptures but devote themselves to worldly affairs.

Even when some people copy the scriptures, their minds are not earnest. They do not keep the scriptures clean and moreover engage in many improper acts: they sleep together with scriptures or abandon them beneath the eaves, allowing rain, wind, termites, and so forth to destroy them, without the slightest fear of wrongdoing. Consequently, the scriptures no longer manifest their numinous efficacy, and reading and reciting them no longer bring the benefit of relieving suffering…

This is indeed due both to the lack of earnestness among copyists and to the contempt in which all of us hold the scriptures.

Therefore, the Sutra on Reverence and Merit states: “Virtuous ones! You must not invert, alter, or corrupt the Dharma of the Birth Sutra^[13].

Otherwise, you will fall into a deluded realm for five hundred lifetimes and will not hear the True Dharma.”

The Great Collection Sutra states: “If sentient beings committed evil karma in past lives—whether by damaging the Buddhadharma, slandering sages, obstructing those who expounded the Dharma, erasing written characters while copying Dharma scriptures, destroying other teachings, or concealing other scriptures—then, because of those karmic conditions, they will now receive the retribution of blindness.”

Fascicle 14 of the Great Prajnaparamita Sutra states: “The Buddha taught:

– Good men and good women! When copying the profound Prajnaparamita Sutra, if you stretch and yawn, laugh and jest without cause, behave contemptuously, and so forth; if body and mind become restless, the words are transposed, the meaning is misconstrued, the central intent is not comprehended, or some matter causes you to abandon the work midway so that the copying remains unfinished—you should know that all these are demonic obstructions affecting a bodhisattva.”

The Mahayana Lotus Treasury Sutra states: “One who receives the Buddha’s prohibitive precepts but fails to uphold them, and afterward considers himself correct—who neither understands the Mahayana Dharma nor refrains from boasting that he has comprehended the Buddhadharma—will undergo indescribable suffering in the Iron Spear Hell. After escaping from hell, that person will be born stammering, mute, blind, and deaf and will not encounter the True Dharma.”

The Treatise on Ananda’s Request Concerning the Precepts and Vinaya states: “Any monk, nun, or layperson who walks about, talks, or places a scripture face down while reading a sutra, Vinaya text, or treatise commits a grave duskrita offense. That person will receive the retribution of rebirth among animals and, for two hundred million years (calculated according to the years of the Trayastrimsha Heaven), must be reborn as a deer, constantly having the spine broken and suffering unbearable pain. [15c] One who inadvertently jokes while holding a sutra, Vinaya text, or treatise will likewise receive the retribution described above.

If someone leaves scriptures or images beneath the eaves, that person commits a grave duskrita offense and will receive the retribution of rebirth among animals, taking the bodies of dogs and pigs for two hundred million years (calculated according to the time of the Trayastrimsha Heaven, where one year equals eight hundred years in the Saha world). Afterward, if that person is able to become human, for one hundred million years he must constantly labor as a hired servant, toiling without the slightest freedom.”

The Larger Prajnaparamita Sutra states: “Those who slander the Omniscience of the Buddhas of the three times must, because of the causes and conditions of having created the karma of destroying the Dharma, fall into a great hell for immeasurable years. After escaping from this great hell, they enter another great hell. If the conflagration at the end of the kalpa arises here, they are born in a great hell in another region.

There, they must again pass from this great hell into another great hell. In this way, they must enter hells throughout the ten directions. If the conflagration at the end of the kalpa arises in those places, they die; but because the karmic conditions arising from destroying the Dharma have not yet been exhausted, they must be born in a hell in this place, again passing from one great hell to another and undergoing immeasurable suffering.

When the conflagration at the end of the kalpa arises in this place, they are born again among animals in other realms throughout the ten directions, undergoing the painful retribution resulting from the evil karma of destroying the Dharma. If they escape from hell, their grave offense may be transformed into a lighter one, and they may become human; yet they will be born into families of the blind, families of chandalas, or other lowly families whose members clean latrines and carry human corpses.

Or they may be born with only one eye, without eyes, blind, without a tongue, without ears, or without hands, in a place where there is no Buddha, no Dharma, and no disciples of the Buddha. Why is this? Because they have planted and accumulated the karma of destroying the Dharma so deeply and extensively.”

The Nirvana Sutra states: “If a person does not believe in this scripture, then in the present life that person will be tormented by immeasurable illness and suffering and subjected to abuse by many beings. After death, if that person is reborn as a human, everyone will despise them. Their appearance will be ugly, they will struggle to make a living, and they will constantly suffer deprivation.

Even if they obtain a little food, it will be coarse, inferior, and spoiled. They will often dwell in impoverished, lowly families that hold wrong views and slander the true Dharma, and they will encounter warfare and turmoil. Or they will be persecuted by tyrannical kings or bitter enemies.

Even if good friends exist, they will not meet them. They will be unable to find a means of livelihood; or although they may gain a little profit, they will still frequently suffer hunger and thirst. Only lowly people will show them concern; kings and high officials will pay them no heed.

Even if that person speaks reasonably, no one will believe or follow them. [16a] Just as a bird with broken wings cannot fly, such a person cannot reach a fortunate state among gods and humans.

“If someone is able to believe in such Mahayana scriptures, although their body may originally be ugly, through the merit of those scriptures they will become beautiful. Their appearance, deportment, and health will increasingly improve. Humans and gods will delight in meeting, respecting, and admiring them; kings, high officials, and their families will respectfully believe and listen to them. Among My shravaka disciples, whoever wishes to accomplish the foremost rare deed should widely expound this Mahayana scripture for the people of the world to hear.

“O good man! Although mist may wish to endure, it cannot remain beneath the light of the sun. When the sun appears, the mist disperses. O good man! The evil karma of sentient beings is likewise. No matter how powerful it may be in the world, it cannot remain before the sun of the Great Nirvana. When that sun appears, it will completely eradicate all evil karma.”

The Lotus Sutra states: “Now listen attentively. Whether the Buddha is still in the world or has entered parinirvana, if people slander this scripture and, upon seeing those who read, recite, transcribe, or uphold it, despise, envy, or harbor hatred toward them, then after death those people, as retribution for their offenses, must fall into the Avici Hell for an entire kalpa. They will then be born there again, continuing in this way in succession for innumerable kalpas. Afterward, when they emerge from hell, they will fall into the animal realm, where for innumerable kalpas they will be born mute, deaf, and deficient in their faculties.

“Shariputra! Were I to speak of the offenses of those who slander this sutra, I could not finish even after entire kalpas.”

Listen to the verse:

Hearing the Dharma at dawn brings true joy;

Dying at dusk surely brings no sorrow.

If one does not seek within the scriptures,

How can one fathom the profound meaning?

Even shedding blood, it remains hard to inquire;

How could burning the body be easily sought?

Cold air envelops the dark night;

Sunlight illuminates the deep abyss.

The flock of wild geese is about to rejoice,

Yet one abandons its former practice.

At first, delighted, one opens the precious chest;

Later, one throws the Dharma vessel into disorder.

Hard it is to know the marvels of the eight treasuries^[14];

Even after three asamkhyeya kalpas^[15], it cannot yet be completed.

If one does not oneself settle the dust of the mind,

How can suchness ever be realized?

I.3. Reverence for the Sangha

This section consists of three parts: Introduction, Benefits, and Losses.

I.3.1. Introduction

[16b] The Sangha Jewel comprises those who strictly uphold the precepts, whose deportment differs from that of worldly people, who arouse the resolve to leave the household life, relinquish worldly living, and train in the Dharma of the Way; who remain unmoved by fame, gain, glory, and splendor, and whose resolve is not swayed by relatives; who propagate the Buddha’s Way to repay the four kinds of kindness and cultivate the virtue of the precepts to rescue beings in the three realms. They rise above the realms of gods and humans and are more precious than gold and jewels. The benefits brought by the Sangha Jewel are beyond reckoning.

Therefore, the sutra says: “Toward members of the Sangha, whether old or young, whether they uphold or violate the precepts, one should always show sincere reverence and must not despise them. Whoever contravenes this teaching incurs a grave offense. Shakyamuni Buddha and the other Buddhas are truly the Buddha Jewel; the teachings, principles, practices, and fruits spoken from His golden mouth are truly the Dharma Jewel; and the shramanas who have attained realization are truly the Sangha Jewel.

Therefore, those who behold and bow to the Three Jewels extinguish the myriad afflictions, while those who praise and recite the names of the Three Jewels dispel a thousand calamities.” Those of meager merit do not encounter the true Dharma; yet, through the teachings left by the Buddha, they are fortunate enough to enjoy the sheltering merit of the Tathagata. Images of the Buddha painted or embroidered with pigments and blue or red thread upon gold, precious wood, bronze, silk, and other materials constitute the Buddha Jewel.

Profound teachings written upon paper, silk, bamboo, cloth, and other materials are called the Dharma Jewel. Those who shave their hair and beard, wear dyed robes, and carry alms bowls are called the Sangha Jewel. Although these three forms are provisional, they represent the true forms.

Therefore, by venerating these three forms, one will forever escape samsara; conversely, by treating them with contempt, one incurs painful retribution. Although a wooden image is not one’s birth mother, bowing to it produces merit surpassing a thousand years; although an ordinary member of the Sangha is not a holy Sangha member, venerating that person produces radiance surpassing ten thousand lifetimes. This is a custom transmitted from ancient times and followed everywhere.

The merit that invisibly aids sentient beings is sublime and immeasurable. If one commits an offense against such a person, one incurs an extremely grave offense. Those who have undertaken the life of renunciation should, in principle, differ from worldly people.” Furthermore, the statement in the Book of Rites that “Those wearing armor do not bow” is incorrect.

How could one who has renounced worldly life and wears the armor of patience kneel and bow before laypeople? In principle, this cannot be accepted. The Three Jewels are equally honored and must be equally revered.

One should not follow only the Buddha and Dharma while abandoning monks and nuns. Therefore, the Dharma does not propagate itself; its propagation depends upon people. Those capable of propagating the Dharma should be revered just like the Buddha and the Dharma.

I.3.2. Benefits

The Brahma Net Sutra states: “The rule for those who have left the household life is that they do not bow to kings, parents, or the six classes of relatives, nor do they worship ghosts and spirits.”

The Nirvana Sutra states: “Those who have left the household life do not bow to householders.”

The Dharmaguptaka Vinaya states: “The Buddha taught that bhikshus should bow in order of seniority, with the younger bowing to the elder, and that they should not bow to any householder.”

The Scripture of the Buddha’s Original Conduct records: “After King Suddhodana, together with his retinue and officials, had successively paid homage to the Buddha, the Buddha said:

– Now, Great King, you should pay homage to the bhiksus Upali and the others.

[16c] Hearing the Buddha’s instruction, the king rose from his seat, reverently paid homage to the five hundred bhiksus, and then successively paid homage to the newly ordained bhiksus.”

The Satyaka-nirgrantha Sutra records: “If one disparages the Dharma of the sravakas, the pratyekabuddhas, or the Mahayana Dharma, the person who thus disparages and undermines them commits a fundamental offense.” (Thus, when members of the Sangha, in accordance with the Hinayana and Mahayana scriptures, do not bow to kings or parents, they are following the Buddha’s ancient teaching. If members of the Sangha are compelled to kneel and bow before laypeople, this contradicts the Buddha’s teaching. Such conduct shows disbelief in the Buddha’s words and therefore constitutes a fundamental offense.)

The Treatise on the Accordance with Right Principle records: “The heavenly spirits dare not accept the homage of those who have undertaken the five precepts. The ruler of a nation likewise does not wish bhiksus to bow to him, fearing that it would diminish his merit and lifespan.”

The Nirvana Sutra records: “The Buddha said to Kasyapa:

– If someone establishes and upholds the true Dharma in this way, one should approach that person and request instruction, and one must offer one’s very life in making offerings to that person, just as I have said concerning this Mahayana scripture:

One who understands the true Dharma,

Whether old or young,

Should be presented with offerings,

Revered and paid homage,

Just as a brahmin

Single-mindedly worships fire.

One who understands the true Dharma,

Whether old or young,

Should be presented with offerings,

Revered and paid homage,

Just as the devas

Attend upon Lord Sakra.

Kasyapa asked:

– If a venerable elder who upholds the precepts follows a young bhiksu to learn what he does not yet know, should he pay homage to that bhiksu? If he pays homage, he cannot be called an upholder of the precepts.

If a young bhiksu who observes the precepts follows older bhiksus who have broken the precepts to learn what he does not yet know, must he pay homage to those bhiksus? Within the Buddha-Dharma, the young should revere venerable elders of greater age, because those elders received full ordination and perfected the rules of deportment before them. Therefore, they should be revered and presented with offerings.

If a monastic follows a layperson to learn what he does not yet know, should the monastic pay homage to the layperson? A monastic should not pay homage to a layperson.”

The Madhyama Agama records: “How does one know who is superior and who is inferior? A bhiksu knows that there are two kinds of people: those with faith and those without faith. Those with faith are superior; those without faith cannot equal them.

Among those with faith, there are again two kinds: those who regularly visit bhiksus and those who do not regularly visit bhiksus. Those who regularly visit bhiksus are superior; those who seldom visit bhiksus cannot equal them. Among those who regularly visit bhiksus, there are again two kinds: those who pay homage to bhiksus and those who do not.

Those who pay homage to bhiksus are superior; those who do not cannot equal them. Among those who pay homage to bhiksus, there are again two kinds: those who inquire about the scriptures and those who do not. [17a] Those who inquire about the scriptures are superior; those who do not cannot equal them.”

The Scripture of Old Miscellaneous Parables records: “Long ago, there was a king who traveled throughout his realm on inspection. Whenever he encountered a sramana, he would immediately descend from his carriage and bow with his head at the sramana’s feet. One practitioner said:

– Great King, please refrain! There is no need to step down from your carriage!

The king replied:

– I am stepping upward, not downward. I say that I am stepping upward rather than downward because, by paying homage to a practitioner now, after my death I shall be reborn in heaven.”

The Treatise on the Good View records: “After King Suddhodana^[16] had paid homage to the Buddha, he said:

– By now, I have paid homage to the Blessed One three times. The first was when the Buddha had just been born. Asi^[17], after examining his marks, said: ‘If he remains a householder, this child will become a wheel-turning sage-king. If he leaves home to train in the Way, this child will certainly become a Buddha.’ At that moment the earth trembled. When I witnessed that spiritual power, I bowed to the Blessed One. The second time was when I left the palace on an excursion to watch the farmers plowing their fields. At that time, the bodhisattva was seated beneath a jambu tree. Although the sun had already declined, the tree’s shadow remained above him, sheltering the bodhisattva without shifting. When I witnessed that spiritual power, I bowed to the Blessed One. The third time is now, when I welcomed the Blessed One to my kingdom. He rose into the air and manifested eighteen kinds of spiritual transformation, fearlessly displaying spiritual power and subduing the adherents of other paths. When I saw this, I bowed down in homage.”

The Madhyama Agama also records: “At that time, the Buddha said to the bhiksus:

– In the past, whenever Sakra, Lord of the Devas, wished to go and sit in the garden, he would order his charioteer to prepare the carriage and horses. When they were ready, the charioteer would report this to the king. Sakra, Lord of the Devas, would then descend from the Hall of Everlasting Victory, face east, and pay homage to the Buddha. Seeing this, the charioteer was greatly astonished; the hairs on his body stood on end, and the horsewhip fell to the ground. Seeing this, Sakra spoke in verse:

Why are you so frightened

That you drop your horsewhip to the ground?

The charioteer replied in verse:

Seeing the heavenly king Sakra,

The husband of Saci,^[18]

My heart became afraid,

And I dropped my horsewhip to the ground,

For I have always seen Sakra

Throughout all realms, great and small,

The four heavenly kings who guard the world,

And the devas of the Heaven of the Thirty-Three,

All reverently pay homage

To Lord Sakra, king of the devas.

What other honored one

Could be more honored than Sakra,

That now you face east,

Join your palms, and reverently bow?

Sakra replied in verse:

[17b]Among all the kings,

Great and small, within the world,

The four heavenly kings who guard the world,

And the devas of the Heaven of the Thirty-Three,

I am indeed the most honored,

And all pay reverence to me.

Yet in the world there is one

Who has attained perfect enlightenment,

Known as the Fully Accomplished Great Teacher;

Therefore, I bow my head in homage.

The charioteer again said:

He must be supreme in the world,

For he causes Lord Sakra

To join his palms facing east

And reverently bow his head in homage.

Now I too shall pay homage

To the one whom the heavenly king reveres.

The Buddha told the bhiksus:

– Sakra, Lord of the Devas, is the sovereign of the Heaven of Sovereignty, yet he reveres the Buddha. You bhiksus who have left home to train in the Way should likewise revere the Buddha. Sakra, Lord of the Devas and husband of Saci, reverently pays homage to the Dharma and the Sangha, and he also praises those who pay homage to the Dharma and the Sangha. Since you have left home to train in the Way with right faith, you too should reverently pay homage to the Dharma and the Sangha; moreover, you must praise those who pay homage to the Dharma and the Sangha.

At that time, Sakra descended from the Hall of Everlasting Victory, joined his palms toward all directions, and reverently paid homage. Seeing Lord Sakra descend from the hall, stand in the middle of the courtyard, join his palms, and reverently face all directions, the charioteer became frightened, let the horsewhip fall to the ground, and spoke in verse:

Why does Kausika

Honor those without homes?

Explain its meaning to me;

I thirst to hear it.

Sakra, Lord of the Devas, replied in verse:

I revere those people,

The homeless who have gone forth,

Who freely wander in all directions

And go wherever they may,

Through every country and city,

Their hearts attached to nothing.

They store no means of livelihood,

Their sole path is concentration free from desire;

Coming and going, they seek nothing,

Delighting only in the unconditioned.

When they speak, all their words are wholesome;

When silent, their minds are tranquil.

The devas and asuras

Are constantly opposed to one another;

Human beings contend with one another,

Opposing each other in the same way.

[17c] Only those who have gone forth

Take no interest in strife,

Having cast aside all blades and staffs,

Harming no living beings,

Free from beauty and wealth,

Neither intoxicated nor heedless,

Far removed from every evil deed—

Therefore, I must pay homage.

The charioteer then spoke this verse:

One whom the heavenly king reveres

Must surely be noble in this world;

Therefore, from this day onward,

I shall bow to those who have gone forth.”

The Sutra of King Ashoka records: “Long ago, upon seeing a seven-year-old novice, King Ashoka wished to lead the young novice to a secluded place and bow to him, so he said:

‘Do not tell anyone that I bowed to you!’

At that moment, there was a water jar before them. The young novice immediately climbed into it and then climbed back out, saying:

‘Great King, do not tell anyone that a novice climbed into and out of the water jar!’

The king immediately said:

‘I shall tell everyone. Hide no longer!’”

Therefore, the sutras all record: “Though a novice may be young, no one should look down upon him. Though a king’s son may be young, no one should look down upon him. Though a young dragon may be small, no one should look down upon it. Though a novice may be young, he can deliver people. Though a king’s son may be young, he can put people to death. Though a young dragon may be small, it can form clouds and bring rain, thunder, and lightning. Do not look down upon them merely because they are young!”

The Scripture on the Transmission of the Dharma Treasury records: “Long ago, one hundred years after the Buddha entered nirvana, there was a King Ashoka who devoutly believed in the Three Jewels and regularly convened the great Ban-già vu-sắt assembly^[19]. On the day of the assembly, the king bathed in scented water, donned new robes, ascended a high tower, bowed toward the four directions, and invited the Sangha. Two hundred thousand noble members of the Sangha flew there.

The profundity of the king’s faith was truly beyond measure. Whenever he encountered a shramana, whether old or young, ordinary or noble, the king welcomed him, inquired after his well-being, and reverently bowed before him. At that time, there was an official named Yasha who held deeply rooted wrong views and had no reverent faith.

Seeing the king bow to the Sangha, he said, ‘The king is truly devoid of wisdom. He lowers his own noble and virtuous person to bow before children.’ Hearing these words, the king ordered his officials to have people find the heads of dead animals, with each official presenting one animal’s head. Yasha alone was ordered by the king to find a human head.

After everyone had found a head, the king ordered them to take the heads to the market and sell them. All the animal heads were sold. But as for the human head held by Yasha, everyone who saw it recoiled in disgust and contempt, and no one would buy it.

Several days later, the human head was about to decay. Everyone who saw it reviled Yasha, saying:

[18a] ‘You are not a chandala, yaksha, or rakshasa, so why have you obtained a human head to sell?’

After being reviled, Yasha entered the palace and reported:

‘When I went to sell the human head, many people reviled me! No one wished even to look at it, much less buy it.’

The king said:

‘If no one will buy it, give it away for nothing!’

Obeying the king, Yasha again took the human head to the market and told everyone:

‘If anyone has no money with which to make purchases, I shall give him this head for nothing.’

When the people in the market heard this, they reviled Yasha even more harshly, and no one would accept the head. Ashamed, Yasha returned to the royal palace, joined his palms, and reported:

‘This head is truly difficult to sell. Even when I offer it for nothing, no one will take it; instead, I am reviled!’

The king asked Yasha:

‘What is most precious?’

Yasha replied:

‘A human being is most precious.’

The king asked:

‘If it is precious, why can it not be sold?’

Yasha answered:

‘Though a living person is precious, once dead, he is worthless.’

The king asked again:

‘If I were to die, would my head also be as worthless as this?’

Yasha became frightened and dared not answer.

The king then said:

‘I grant you permission. Do not be afraid; you must answer truthfully!’

Terrified and not daring to raise his head, Yasha replied:

‘If the Great King were to die, your head would also be as worthless as this head.’

The king continued:

‘If I die, my head will be just like this lowly head. Why, then, are you astonished that I revere and bow to the Sangha? If you are truly my good friend, you should urge me to exchange this fragile head for an enduring head. Why do you now hinder me from bowing to the Sangha?’

Hearing the king speak thus, Yasha finally felt remorse and reproached himself. He abandoned wrong views, adopted right views, and took refuge in and revered the Three Jewels.

For this reason, any sentient being who hears of or beholds the Three Jewels should wholeheartedly revere and bow to them.”

I.3.3. Diminishment

The Sutra Resolving Doubts Concerning the Semblance Dharma records: “All laypeople, whether noble or lowly, must not beat the servants or livestock belonging to the Three Jewels, nor may they receive bows from those servants. Otherwise, they will incur an offense.”

The Satyaka Nirgrantha Sutra records: “If anyone destroys a monastery or a Buddha stupa, takes property belonging to the Three Jewels, instructs others to do such things, rejoices upon seeing others do them, or beats, binds, imprisons, forces to return to lay life, or kills shramanas wearing dyed robes, whether they observe or violate the precepts, that person commits a fundamental grave offense and will certainly undergo suffering in the Avici Hell.

If the king of a country commits such unwholesome deeds, sages and noble beings will depart from that country, and powerful deities will cease to protect it. Officials will contend with one another; armed uprisings will occur everywhere; natural disasters will arise; winds and rains will come out of season; the people will suffer famine; bandits will run rampant; epidemics will spread; and countless people will die. Because the king does not understand that these calamities were caused by his own actions, he will constantly resent the devas.”

[18b] The Sutra of the Benevolent Kings records: “Kings and great ministers, relying upon their own lofty and noble status, establish laws and regulations that destroy My Dharma: they prohibit people from going forth, forbid the making of Buddha images, appoint supervisory officials to control the Sangha, establish registers recording the personal histories of monastics, and compel bhikshus to stand on the ground while laypeople sit in elevated seats. Kings and crown princes arbitrarily impose prohibitions, disobey the Buddha’s words, and damage the Sangha. Supervisory officials control the Sangha, use registers to administer the monastic rolls, and impose restrictions, causing the Sangha to endure many hardships and preventing the Buddha-Dharma from long enduring.”

The Great Collection Sutra records: “The Buddha said:

‘All sentient beings in this and future lives should possess deep faith in the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha. Those sentient beings will continually enjoy excellent karmic rewards among devas and humans and will soon enter the city of fearlessness. Sentient beings who perform such deeds—even those who make offerings to a single person who has gone forth on My account, or who, following Me, has shaved off his beard and hair and donned the kashaya but has not received the precepts—will also gain merit… and will eventually enter the city of fearlessness.

For this reason, I say: “If any sentient beings go forth on My account, shave off their beards and hair, and don the kashaya, yet do not observe the prohibitory precepts, all such people have already been certified with the seal of nirvana. If anyone uses wrongful means to harass, revile, or disparage monastics who do not observe the precepts; strikes them with hands, knives, or staffs; binds, hacks, or cuts them; or seizes their robes, bowls, and other implements needed for their livelihood, that person destroys the Dharma body and recompense body of the Buddhas of the three times.

Such a person gouges out the eyes of all devas and humans, seeks to destroy the true Dharma of the Buddhas and eradicate the seed of the Three Jewels, deprives devas and humans of all benefit, and causes the three lower realms to flourish everywhere. Therefore, that person will fall into hell.”’

At that time, the lord of the Sahā world, the Great Brahmā Heavenly King, addressed the Buddha:

“If there is a person who, following the Buddha, shaves off his beard and hair and dons the kāṣāya, but has not received the precepts, or who, after receiving them, violates them, and is then harassed, reviled, beaten, bound, and imprisoned by a king of the kṣatriya lineage, what offense does that king incur?”

The Buddha said:

“O Great Brahmā King! I shall now explain this briefly for you. If someone were to cause the bodies of a trillion Buddhas to bleed, would that person’s offenses be many?”

The Great Brahmā King replied:

[18c] “If one caused the body of even a single Buddha to bleed, one would incur immeasurable offenses leading to the uninterrupted hell, beyond all calculation, and would fall into the great Avīci Hell. How much more so one who caused the bodies of a trillion Buddhas to bleed! Apart from the World-Honored One, no one could fully describe the karmic retribution for that person’s offenses.”

The Buddha taught:

“Great Brahmā King! If someone harasses, reviles, beats, or binds a person who, for My sake, has shaved off his beard and hair and donned the kāṣāya, whether he has not received the precepts or has received and then violated them, that person incurs offenses even more numerous than those of the one who caused the bodies of Buddhas to bleed. Why is this?

Because that renunciant can still show devas and humans the path to nirvana. He has entered the ranks of the Three Jewels, and his reverent faith is deeper and more steadfast than that of all the ninety-five schools of non-Buddhists. He will certainly enter nirvana more swiftly than any householder, except a householder who has attained the patient acceptance of the Dharma.

Therefore, devas and humans should make offerings to him, how much more to one who constantly observes the precepts and whose three kinds of karma accord with the true Dharma. If any king, official, or monastic adjudicator^[20] sees a renunciant following My teaching commit a grave offense such as killing, stealing, defiling the holy life, lying, or some other unwholesome deed, he should expel that person from the country and not permit him to participate in the communal affairs of the Sangha within the monastery.

However, he must not beat, revile, or condemn him. If anyone deliberately acts contrary to this and punishes that renunciant, he has lost the path to liberation, willingly joined the ranks of the lowly, and become separated from every wholesome path among devas and humans. He will certainly enter Avīci Hell.

How much more so one who beats a renunciant who follows the Buddha and fully observes the precepts!”

The Sutra of the Ten Wheels records: “The Buddha said:

‘Good man! There are four classes of Sangha: the Sangha of Ultimate Truth, the Pure Sangha, the Mute-Sheep Sangha, and the Shameless Sangha.

‘What is the Sangha of Ultimate Truth? It consists of seven classes of noble beings: Buddhas, bodhisattvas, pratyekabuddhas, and those who have attained the four fruits of the śramaṇa.

‘What is the Pure Sangha? It consists of monastics who fully observe the precepts.

‘What is the Mute-Sheep Sangha? It consists of monastics who do not know whether an act constitutes a violation or not, whether an offense is grave or minor, or whether a minor fault can be confessed and repented. They are ignorant monastics without wisdom, who do not draw near to virtuous spiritual friends and do not regularly inquire about profound meanings. Whether their conduct is wholesome or unwholesome, all who bear such characteristics are called the Mute-Sheep Sangha.

‘What is the Shameless Sangha? It consists of those who enter the Buddha-Dharma to gain a livelihood, destroy the Dharma, disrupt the harmony of the Sangha, do not fear retribution in future lives, give free rein to the six sense faculties, and greedily cling to the five desires.’”

Householders must show reverence to all four classes of Sangha.

[19a] The Great Compassion Sutra records: “The Buddha said to Ānanda:

‘Within My Dharma, even if persons are śramaṇas in name only, don the kāṣāya yet defile the conduct of a śramaṇa, and call themselves śramaṇas, then during the Auspicious Kalpa—from Maitreya Tathāgata, the first, to Roca Tathāgata, the last—after all one thousand Buddhas have entered nirvana without remainder, those śramaṇas will successively enter nirvana, without a single exception. Why is this? For all such śramaṇas, even the merit of reciting the name of the Buddha once or giving rise to faith once will never be in vain.

‘Ānanda! With the wisdom of a Buddha, I have examined and completely known the Dharma realm. Every wholesome karma brings wholesome retribution, and every evil karma brings evil retribution. If sentient beings whose minds are pure recite, “Namo Buddha,” then by virtue of this wholesome root they will certainly draw near to nirvana. How much more so if they encounter the Buddha, draw near to and serve Him, and make offerings!’”

The Sutra of the Ten Wheels records: “The Buddha taught:

‘If bhikṣus have gone forth in the Buddha-Dharma, all devas, humans, and asuras should make offerings to them. Even if such a bhikṣu observes the precepts, he should not be punished, bound, imprisoned, have his hands or feet cut off, or be put to death, for all such actions are contrary to the Dharma. If a bhikṣu violates the precepts, lacks the holy life, yet claims to observe the holy life, he is like a festering boil that has burst.

That person has lost the noble path, and his attainment has been destroyed by afflictions. Nevertheless, he still has the capacity to reveal to all devas, nāgas, humans, nonhumans, and others the precious treasury of the true Dharma. Therefore, whether those who follow Me into the homeless life observe or violate the precepts, I do not permit kings, prime ministers, or great officials to punish, bind, imprison, beat, mutilate, or kill them.

How much less should they do so to a bhikṣu who has broken the precepts merely by committing minor faults in deportment! Even after that person dies, the precepts still retain their power. This is like bezoar^[21] within an ox: although the ox has died, people still extract and use it; or like musk, which remains beneficial after the musk deer has died.

A bhikṣu who has broken the precepts can still bring benefit to all sentient beings. Although an evil bhikṣu violates the precepts, the power of those precepts can still bring benefit to immeasurable devas and humans. It is like incense that, after being burned, is reduced to ashes, yet its fragrance has already permeated others and made them fragrant.

A bhikṣu who has broken the precepts is likewise: although he himself falls into the evil realms, he can enable sentient beings to increase their wholesome roots.

‘For this reason, no householder should offend or disparage a bhikṣu who has broken the precepts. Instead, they should protect, honor, and make offerings to him, and should not allow anyone to punish, imprison, bind, or kill him.’”

At that time, the Buddha spoke this verse:

Though the campaka flower has withered,

It is still more precious than other flowers.

Bhikṣus who have broken the precepts

Are still better than non-Buddhists.

[19b] In the Great Collection Sutra, the Buddha spoke this verse:

Those who shave their heads and don the kāṣāya,

Whether observing or violating the precepts,

Should receive offerings from devas and humans,

Who should always assist them so they lack nothing.

To make offerings to such persons

Is precisely to make offerings to Me.

If, out of reverence for the Dharma,

One shaves one’s head and takes refuge,

And clothes one’s body in the kāṣāya,

That person is truly My child.

Even if he violates the precepts,

He still abides on the Stage of Non-retrogression.

If anyone strikes that person,

It is the same as striking Me.

If anyone reviles that person,

It is the same as reviling Me.

That person’s mind seeks to extinguish

The great lamp of the true Dharma.

They fight each other over wealth,

And kings and lords alike become enraged.

The Sutra of the Ten Wheels records: “In ancient times, there was a king named Merit and Virtue. One day, a bhikṣu who had committed an offense was arrested and bound. The king did not wish to kill him, so he ordered that the man be taken before a mad elephant. The elephant seized both his legs with its trunk and prepared to hurl him to the ground, but when it saw that he was wearing robes of subdued colors, it gently placed him on the ground and dared not harm him. It sat down, sniffed his feet with its trunk, and showed him affection.”

“Good man! Although an elephant is an animal, when it sees a person wearing robes of subdued color, it does not give rise to a malicious intent to harm him. In a future age, there will be a Chandala king who sees within My Dharma a renunciant capable of assuming the responsibility of being a vessel of the Dharma, yet who has failed to become such a vessel. Because of this, the king will torture or kill that person. After his death, that king will certainly fall into the Avici Hell.”

Listen to this verse:

A fine horse is urged on by the whip;

Flowers rely on the wind to spread their fragrance.

The supreme principle is difficult to encounter;

Without a person, what kind of being could comprehend it?

With a sincere heart, seek perfection,

Penetrating the subtle and wondrous realm;

Completely encompassing all three realms,

Rank and honor are like an illusory dream,

Wealth and possessions resemble clouds of dust.

Forever departing far from the mundane realm,

One roams at ease, free from affliction and entanglement.

Notes:

^[1] Trichiliocosm (Three-Thousandfold World 三千世界; also: Three-Thousand Great-Thousandfold World; S: tri-sāhasra-mahā-sāhasra-loka-dhātu): the Three-Thousand Great-Thousandfold World. This is the cosmology of ancient India. With Mount Sumeru at the center, surrounded by four great continents, nine concentric mountain ranges, and eight concentric seas, this constitutes one Small World. One thousand Small Worlds form a Small Thousandfold World; one thousand Small Thousandfold Worlds form a Medium Thousandfold World; and one thousand Medium Thousandfold Worlds form a Great Thousandfold World. Because this Great Thousandfold World is composed of three kinds of thousandfold worlds—small, medium, and great—it is called the Three-Thousand Great-Thousandfold World.

^[2] Kasyapa 迦葉 (S: Mahā-kāśyapa): one of the Buddha’s ten great disciples, foremost in the practice of the dhutas.

^[3] Heaven of Responsive Sounds (Responsive Sounds Heaven 應聲天; also: Heaven of Freely Enjoying Others’ Emanations; S: Para-nirmita-vaśa-vartin): the sixth of the six heavens in the desire realm. The beings of this heaven fulfill their own pleasure through the pleasures emanated by others.

^[4] Five hindrances 五蓋 (S: pañca āvaraṇāni): five afflictions that obscure the true nature of human beings. They are sensual desire, ill will, sloth and torpor, restlessness, and doubt.

^[5] Treasure among humans 人寶: an expression praising the Buddha as a treasure among humankind. Here it refers to the woman who heard the Dharma and attained the fruit of stream-entry.

^[6] Five paths (five destinies 五道; S: pañca gatayaḥ): the five destinations toward which sentient beings proceed: the realms of devas, humans, hell beings, hungry ghosts, and animals.

^[7] Four fruits 四果: the four stages of fruition attained by shravakas of the Lesser Vehicle. In sequential order, they are the fruits of stream-enterer, once-returner, non-returner, and arhat.

^[8] Youth of the Snow Mountains (Snow Mountains Youth 雪山童子): the name of Shakyamuni Buddha when he practiced the bodhisattva path in a past life.

^[9] The outflows exhausted and the mind liberated 漏盡意解: all afflictions are eliminated, and the mind is completely liberated.

^[10] Four evil destinies 四惡趣: the four places into which beings who create evil karma are born and undergo painful retribution. They are the realms of hell beings, hungry ghosts, animals, and asuras.

^[11] Six grave precepts (six grave precepts 六重戒; also: six grave rules): the six grave precepts that laymen must undertake and uphold. They are not to kill, not to steal, not to lie, not to engage in sexual misconduct, not to speak of the faults of the fourfold assembly, and not to consume intoxicants.

^[12] Three cubits (three elbows 三肘): a unit of measurement. According to the Hanyu Da Cidian, one cubit equals one chi and five cun; three cubits equal four chi and five cun.

^[13] Transmitted scripture 經生 (also: preserved scripture): scriptures recorded and revised for preservation and transmission.

^[14] Eight treasuries 八藏: the eight treasuries of teachings. According to the Chapter on the Production of Scriptures in the Sutra of the Bodhisattva Dwelling in the Womb, the Buddha’s sacred teachings are divided into eight categories: birth from the womb and transformation; the intermediate state; the Mahayana Vaipulya teachings; the Vinaya; the ten abodes of bodhisattvas; the miscellaneous treasury; the Vajra treasury; and the Buddha treasury.

^[15] Three incalculable eons (three asamkhyeyas 三祇): namely, three asamkhyeyas.

^[16] King Shuddhodana (King Śuddhodana 輸頭檀那王; S: Śuddhodana): King Shuddhodana, father of Prince Siddhartha.

^[17] Ayi 阿夷 (S: ārya): namely, the sage Asita.

^[18] Shachi 舍脂: the chief queen of Shakra, daughter of an asura.

^[19] Pancha-varshika assembly 般遮于瑟會 (S: pañca-vārṣika-maha): the Great Unrestricted Assembly. It was an almsgiving assembly at which offerings were made to everyone, convened by King Ashoka once every five years.

^[20] Sangha adjudicator 斷事僧: a bhikshu well versed in the precepts who specializes in handling violations of the precepts committed by monks and nuns within the Sangha. This office corresponds to that of a modern disciplinarian.

^[21] Bezoar 牛黃: a gallstone found in the gallbladder of cattle and used as a medicinal ingredient.