Toh 257Tinh Túy Của Mặt Trời

Summary

The Quintessence of the Sun is a long and
heterogeneous sūtra in eleven chapters. At the Veṇuvana in the Kalandakanivāpa on the
outskirts of Rājagṛha, the Buddha Śākyamuni first explains to a great assembly the severe
consequences of stealing what has been offered to monks and the importance of protecting
those who abide by the Dharma. The next section tells of bodhisattvas sent from buddha
realms in the four directions to bring various dhāraṇīs as a way of protecting and
benefitting this world. While explaining those dhāraṇīs, the Buddha Śākyamuni presents
various meditations on repulsiveness and instructions on the empty nature of phenomena. On
the basis of another long narrative involving Māra and groups of nāgas, detailed teachings
on astrology are also introduced, as are a number of additional dhāraṇīs and a list of
sacred locations blessed by the presence of holy beings.

《大方廣日藏經》是一部長篇且內容豐富多元的經文，由十一品組成。在王舍城的竹林精舍，佛陀向僧眾宣說偷竊比丘的供品之嚴重後果，以及保護佛法追隨者的重要性。接著，他形容了菩薩們從佛土被派送到四方去傳播陀羅尼的場景。在解釋陀羅尼的同時，佛陀也提供了不淨觀之修持的開示以及諸法空相的教法。經文還包括關於天文學的詳細解釋，另外也列舉出種種被菩薩們加持過的聖地。

Acknowledgements

This text was translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee under the
supervision of Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche. Benjamin Collet-Cassart translated the text from
Tibetan into English and wrote the introduction. Andreas Doctor compared the draft
translation with the original Tibetan and edited the text.

The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000:
Translating the Words of the Buddha.

The generous sponsorship of Jamyang Sun and Manju Sun, which helped make the work
on this translation possible, is most gratefully acknowledged.

Introduction

The Quintessence of the Sun, which belongs to the
General Sūtra section of the Kangyur, is a long and heterogeneous sūtra containing
eleven chapters. At the Veṇuvana in the Kalandakanivāpa on the outskirts of Rājagṛha,
the Buddha Śākyamuni first explains to a great assembly the severe consequences of
stealing what has been offered to monks and the importance of protecting those who abide
by the Dharma. The next section tells of bodhisattvas sent from buddha realms in the
four directions to bring various dhāraṇīs as a way of protecting and benefitting this
world. While explaining those dhāraṇīs, the Buddha Śākyamuni presents various
meditations on repulsiveness and instructions on the empty nature of phenomena. On the
basis of another long narrative involving Māra and groups of nāgas, detailed teachings
on astrology are also introduced, as are a number of additional dhāraṇīs and a list of
sacred locations blessed by the presence of holy beings.

With the exception of a short Sanskrit manuscript fragment found in Central
Asia, no
Sanskrit manuscript of the text appears to be extant. We do, however, have translations
of the sūtra into both Chinese and Tibetan. The Chinese translation (Rizang fen
日藏分, Taishō 397-14) was translated in
585 ce by Narendrayaśas (517–89), an Indian translator from
Oḍḍiyāna who traveled the Silk Road in order to propagate Buddhism. He arrived in China
during the Northern Qi dynasty in 556. At the request of Emperor Wenxuan, he resided at
Tianpingsi and later at Daxingshansi, where he translated fourteen Indian sūtras into
Chinese, including the Karuṇāpuṇḍarīkasūtra,
the Samādhirājasūtra, and the Mahāmeghasūtra. The Tibetan translation was completed in the early
translation period and is listed in the early ninth-century Denkarma (ldan dkar ma) catalog. According to the
colophon of the Tibetan translation, the sūtra was translated into Tibetan by the Indian
scholars Sarvajñādeva, Vidyākaraprabha, and Dharmākara and by the Tibetan translator
Zangkyong. It was then edited and finalized by Kawa Paltsek, the prolific translator who
participated in numerous translation projects in Tibet during the early translation
period, when the majority of Indian sūtras were translated into Tibetan. In producing
this English rendering, we have based our work on the Tibetan Degé block print with
reference to the Comparative Edition (dpe bsdur ma)
and the Stok Palace manuscript.

The sūtra is quoted in Nāgārjuna’s
Sūtrasamuccaya

and in Tsongkhapa’s major work on the stages
of spiritual progress, the lam rim chen mo. In
terms of modern scholarship, the French scholar Sylvain Lévi includes translations from
the Chinese of three long passages of the sūtra in an influential essay that
investigates connections between Indian Buddhism and Central Asia. Bill Mak and Jeffrey Kotyk discuss some of the astrological elements contained in the sūtra in publications that focus on
Buddhist astral science in China and its relationships with India. A
passage of the text has also been translated by Jonathan Silk in his study of
administrative roles in Indian Buddhist monasticism.

In the Chinese canon, The Quintessence of the Sun
is included in the Mahāsannipāta (Tib. ’dus pa chen
po), also called the Mahāvaipulya (Tib. shin tu
rgyas pa chen po’i sde), a massive collection of seventeen Mahāyāna sūtras.
According to Jens Braarvig, who presents a detailed textual history of this collection
in his doctoral thesis on the Akṣayamatinirdeśasūtra, the term mahāsannipāta
can be understood to refer to both this great collection of sūtras and the great
assembly of monks and bodhisattvas present around the Buddha when those teachings were
given. The
Mahāsannipāta, preserved in its entirety in the Chinese canon, is a group of rather
loosely related texts. Although these texts vary in terms of doctrine and form, they do
show greater homogeneity than other scriptural collections such as the Ratnakūṭa.
Braarvig argues that the first twelve sūtras in this collection must have been part of
an Indic version of the collection, and that this collection probably predates the versions of texts
from the collection that circulated as independent Sanskrit manuscripts or were
translated into Tibetan and added to the Tibetan canon as independent texts. A few
sūtras of the Mahāsannipāta are indeed available in Sanskrit (mostly in fragmentary
forms) and in Tibetan, but only as independent texts. It appears that this collection
did not receive the same level of attention in India as other large collections like the
Ratnakūṭa and the Buddhāvataṃsaka. On the other hand, it is obvious that the
Mahāsannipāta played an important role in some of the Chinese and Central Asian kingdoms
along the Silk Road. It is, for example, praised in The Book of
Zambasta, an important Khotanese Buddhist poem from the eighth century, along
with the Prajñāpāramitā and the Buddhāvataṃsaka. According to Braarvig, the Chinese
translation of the Mahāsannipāta was initially compiled during the second or third
century, at the earliest during the first. The collection that is extant today (Taishō
397) was compiled in 586 ce by the Khotanese monk Sengjiu.
This collection is based on the manuscript of the translation of the first sūtras by
Dharmarakṣema (414–21 ce) and was enlarged by new texts
translated by Narendrayaśas, including The Quintessence of the
Sun.

There is some evidence suggesting that this sūtra, or at least parts of it,
may have been composed in Central Asia. Its last chapter contains a list of twenty sacred sites blessed
by the presence of holy beings. Less than half of the sites mentioned in this chapter
are located in India, and many are Central Asian. This geographical list clearly
reflects the propagation of Buddhism from India to China along the route of the
pilgrims. The sacred location given the most attention in this text is situated in the
land of Khaṣa, another name for the site of what would become the city-state of Khotan,
which existed during the first millennium ce. According to
Lévi, The Quintessence of the Sun is one of the sūtras most
intimately connected with that region, and he holds the view that Khotan was one of the
most active centers for the compilation of Mahāyāna literature, especially of sūtras
destined for China. This passage of the text, which begins at

12.26, relates the story of a specific site in
Khaṣa called Gomasālagandha, and is a condensed version of the narrative of the sūtra
The Prophecy on Mount Gośṛṅga
containing some of the same people and names. Other passages
mentioning the same story are found in another work belonging to the Mahāsannipāta, the
Candragarbhaparipṛcchā. This latter work is
represented in the Kangyur only by an excerpt (Toh 356) which does not
seem to include such passages.

The connection between The Quintessence of the
Sun and Central Asia is further confirmed by one of the astronomical
measurements contained in the text, which places the user of that measurement in the
northern or northwestern frontier of India. Also, the only extant Sanskrit manuscript fragment
of the sūtra was found in Central Asia. It is a fragment of the astrological section of
the text that, according to Rudolf Hoernle, was composed in a mixed dialect that is very
corrupt and whose meaning is sometimes obscure. Due to the complex and
obscure nature of this astrological section, we have not attempted a rendering of it
into English. Instead, we are hoping that future scholars may be able to produce a
reliable study and translation of this section that can be added to this translation. We
have indicated in the notes the relevant section, where thirty-two folios have been left
untranslated.

The Translation

The Noble Very Extensive Sūtra

The Quintessence of the Sun

Chapter One

Protection of the Sacred Dharma

Homage to all buddhas and
bodhisattvas!

Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was residing in the Veṇuvana at
the Kalandakanivāpa near Rājagṛha, surrounded and attended by an innumerable, limitless,
and indescribable number of bodhisattva great beings who had arrived from countless
other buddha realms of the ten directions. He was also surrounded and attended by an
innumerable, limitless, and indescribable number of great hearers who had gathered there
from different buddha realms of the ten directions. In the same way, an innumerable,
limitless, and indescribable number of other beings who had arrived there from the
various buddha realms of the ten directions—Śakra, Lord Brahmā, the rulers of the gods,
the rulers of the nāgas, the rulers of the yakṣas, the rulers of the gandharvas, the
rulers of the asuras, the rulers of the garuḍas, the rulers of the kinnaras, and the
rulers of the mahoragas—filled all the pathways on the ground and in the sky throughout
the entire buddha realm of Sahā. There also arrived an innumerable and limitless number
of different gods from the desire and form realms, of nāgas, yakṣas, and rākṣasas, and
of asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, and mahoragas. Sitting in silence, they looked up at the
Blessed One as he revealed how bodhisattva conduct quickly brings perfection and
manifests like space and as he gave teachings on the mindfulness of breathing, which is
the gateway to immortality, and the sublime states. They filled all the pathways on the ground and in the
sky throughout the entire buddha realm of Sahā.

Still not satisfied by the teachings of the Blessed One’s Dharma rain, they
remained with their palms joined together, staring at the Blessed One. They beheld him
like sick persons seeing the doctor, or like beings engulfed in darkness seeing a source
of light, or like beings carried off by a river looking at the riverbank, or like
afflicted beings looking at a refuge from their suffering. In that way, filling all the
pathways on the ground and in the sky throughout the entire buddha realm of Sahā, the
bodhisattva great beings and the hearers as well as Lord Śakra and everyone else up to
the lords of the mahoragas, the different gods from the desire and form realms, and the
various humans and nonhuman beings were sitting silently with their palms joined
together, looking at the Blessed One, the righteous King of the Dharma.

Present at that time was a mahābrahmā named Glorious Blazing Lotus. He had
generated roots of virtue under many buddhas and would no longer regress on the path to
unsurpassed and perfect awakening. He had also thoroughly trained in love by observing
phenomena. This mahābrahmā Glorious Blazing Lotus then stood up, draped his shawl over
one shoulder, and knelt on his right knee. Bowing down with his palms joined together in
the direction of the Blessed One, with these verses he supplicated him to expound the
Dharma:

“You have reached far and possess a swift course.

Dedicated to exhaustion, you are immutable and luminous.

You generate all forms of realization, your speech is utterly peaceful,

And you are an expert in the ways of the stars.

“You master the mindfulness of breathing,

You are endowed with the four sublime states,

And you cause sentient beings to abandon the destinies of rebirth

In a way that purifies the three realms.

“You possess the knowledge of the single mode,

You eliminate the doubts of tens of thousands of gods and humans,

You have attained goodness, you have crossed the flood,

And you are endowed with the swift knowledge that leads to happiness.

“Your awakened conduct and buddha qualities are manifest,

And you have conquered the entirety of the suffering of those beings with agitated
minds

Who are blind, engulfed in darkness,

And carried away by the river of desire.

“Lord of humankind, you manifest compassion for those who have not studied

And for those who are bereft of virtue and separated from skilled teachers.

Please let us hear about the Dharma of sameness;

Explain how to pass beyond birth and sever saṃsāra!

“Great sage, you have crossed the river of birth; please speak with compassion!

Due to their distorted minds, beings will wander for many lifetimes

On those paths that are webs of craving and contain the roots of afflictions;

Please sever them all!

“Victor, please tell us about the defects of craving,

So that our suffering is pacified along with our six senses and our minds.

Great sage, in order for beings to be free from craving and its causes

And from the abundance of their torments,

“Please expound to us, out of your affection,

The Dharma that dries up the river of craving,

Swiftly leads to happiness and immortality,

And eliminates craving!”

The Blessed One replied to the mahābrahmā Glorious Blazing Lotus:

“Those who have practiced the perfections in
the past

And will practice them in the future

Should never delight

In the teachings of the hearers.

“There is no other downfall besides that,

To corrupt the teaching of the buddhas.

Yet the mind engages repeatedly,

Again and again, in such duality.

“By abandoning the three types of teachings—

Those associated with aggression,

The teaching of the hearers, and conditioned awakening —

One will perfect the qualities of the buddhas.

“Those beings, born in one of the four ways,

Who have arrived in this buddha realm

Are all free from indulging in desire,

And all of them have attained insight into repulsiveness.

“The wise beings present here

Who follow the path to supreme awakening,

Who exert themselves and are well trained

In retention and patience,

“Whose six sense doors are restrained,

And who have mastered their senses

By applying mindfulness cross-legged

Will be the future thus-gone ones.

“They will also perfect the seven riches.

If I explain the way of repulsiveness here,

Then the basis for all, the constant that binds beings,

Will be severed.

“I have relinquished miserliness regarding the Dharma,

Yet, in order to protect beings, I have not explained this.

Still, for the sake of awakening,

Bodhisattvas will never give up this attitude.

“The buddhas of the ten directions

Have subsisted on this earth and blessed it

As they declared,

‘This Dharma must remain for a long time!’

“Likewise, you should frolic in this realm

And revel in the acceptances.

With restraint you should also

Remain here for a long time!

“I shall expound the vehicle of the hearers;

I shall explain that beings must be liberated from attachment

And that the aggregates, the elements,

And the sense sources are empty.

“I shall expound the thirteen aspects of tranquility

As well as special insight,

So that sentient beings bound by the tight fetters of desire

May become pure.

“I shall explain the four truths of the hearers

Out of affection for sentient beings,

To ensure that the Dharma teachings

Endure forever and remain undefiled.

“The hearers are tamed by the truths;

I shall free them from the ocean of saṃsāra.

Only at a later point shall I teach you

All the practices of the bodhisattvas.”

At that moment, all the beings present throughout the entire buddha realm of
Sahā thought, “Alas, the Thus-Gone One will now give a hearers’ discourse. He will not
give a discourse related to the Great Vehicle!”

All the bodhisattvas thought to themselves, “O, the Thus-Gone One wishes us to withdraw into
meditative seclusion, to ensure that we subsist on the earth in this buddha realm; to
ensure that the way of the Dharma remains for a long time into the future; to ensure
that the lineage of the Three Jewels remains uninterrupted in this buddha realm; to
ensure that in the future the gods, nāgas, yakṣas, rākṣasas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras,
mahoragas, humans, and nonhumans who lack faith generate faith; to ensure that those
among them who have faith develop it further and further; to ensure that those beings
who strive for the Dharma, who abide by the Dharma, who possess a wealth of qualities,
and who are endowed with the scent of discipline gain happiness, remain free from harm,
and perfect the happiness of emancipation; to ensure that, by all means, this buddha
realm becomes saturated with qualities; to ensure that all the other buddha realms of
the ten directions are also worthy of such a saturation; and
to ensure that the masters receive reverence and respect. O, we must now fulfill the
wish of the Thus-Gone One! We must ensure that we all sit cross-legged upon this earth
and abide by our various individual acceptances, dhāraṇīs, absorptions, and practices
replete with the most excellent aspects!”

Then all the bodhisattva great beings who had reached emancipation over the
course of a hundred eons, who had reached the ten levels, who abided by the acceptance
of the unborn nature of phenomena, who were endowed with the eighteen unique qualities
of the buddhas and were skilled in the wisdom that does not depend upon anything else,
and who had reached fearlessness sat cross-legged upon the earth, and thus they settled
within their individual acceptances, dhāraṇīs, and absorptions replete with the most
excellent aspects.

At that moment, in accordance with the strength of that merit and through the
power of that concordant cause, light started to radiate from the bodies of those great
bodhisattvas who were settled in equipoise and from the bodies of those great
bodhisattvas who were absorbed in concentration. Those lights were like the light of
lamps. Some of those lights were equal to the light emitted by shooting stars; some were
equal to the light emitted by Śakra, some were equal to the light emitted by Brahmā, the
lord of the Sahā world, and some were equal to the light emitted by the moon. Some were
equal to the light emitted by the sun, some were equal to the light emitted by two suns,
some were equal to the light emitted by three suns, some were equal to the light emitted
by five suns, and some were equal to the light emitted by a thousand suns. From the
bodies of some of those bodhisattvas radiated light equal to the light emitted by a
trillion suns. This far-reaching, brilliant light, which had never been seen or heard of
before anywhere in this entire buddha realm of Sahā, pervaded the world. From their
bodies radiated a light that brought the most supreme form of bliss to the bodies and
minds of sentient beings and provided delight and satisfaction. This light completely
pacified all diseases, completely pacified all unwholesome views, completely pacified
all kinds of physical depravity, completely pacified all types of hunger and thirst,
completely pacified all desires, and completely pacified all forms of aggression, fear,
affliction, and bondage. In this buddha realm, this light completely pacified all the
fears associated with the suffering experienced in the prison of the three realms.

At that time, all those sentient beings—who were inclined toward the Buddha
and the Dharma and skilled in delighting in the qualities of the Saṅgha—were seated in
this buddha realm. At the
same time, this buddha realm became visible, in a radiant, clear, and brilliant manner,
from as many buddha realms in the ten directions as there are grains of sand in the
Ganges—whether those realms were empty of buddhas or not, whether they were pure or
impure. This buddha realm had the radiance, clarity, and brilliance of a hundred
thousand moons rising in the darkness of the night. In that way, this buddha realm of
Sahā appeared in the most radiant, clear, and brilliant manner in buddha realms of the
ten directions as numerous as the grains of sand in the Ganges—whether those realms were
empty of buddhas or not, whether they were pure or impure.

Then, through the power of the Buddha, all bodhisattva great beings present in
those different buddha realms who had reached emancipation over the course of a hundred
eons, who were endowed with the eighteen unique qualities of the buddhas and skilled in
the wisdom that does not depend on anything else, and who had reached fearlessness
departed from those places, entered this buddha realm in a single instant of thought,
and sat cross-legged upon the earth in their respective ways of abiding. The exact same
lights radiated from the bodies of each of those beings who exerted themselves in
virtuous endeavors, who had developed the power of virtue, and who were endowed with the
causes and conditions of fearlessness.

Surrounded by his saṅgha of monks, the Blessed One then said to the great
hearers, “Look at the power of the domain of concentration! Having used their blessings
to overpower the domains of all the māras and nāgas, all the thus-gone ones of the past
engaged with this entire buddha realm of Sahā to ensure that the way of the Dharma and
the lineage of the Three Jewels remain uninterrupted and illuminated here. Similarly, a countless and
limitless number of bodhisattva great beings—as numerous as the grains of sand in the
Ganges—who revel in the domains of concentration and higher perception are now engaging
with this great earth in this buddha realm of Sahā to ensure that the Dharma way remains
for a long time and is illuminated; to ensure that the gods, nāgas, yakṣas, asuras,
garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas, humans, and nonhumans who lack faith develop faith; to
ensure that those among them who have faith develop it further and further; to ensure
that sentient beings who strive for the Dharma, abide by the Dharma, possess a wealth of
qualities, and have developed control over their minds experience happiness and remain
free from harm; to ensure that my teachings do not vanish; and to perfect the happiness
of emancipation. The bodhisattva great beings are thus reveling in the domains of
concentration to bless those goals. In the places where these bodhisattva great beings
revel in the domains of concentration, sentient beings who are afraid of saṃsāra’s
suffering and wish for nirvāṇa will, now and after I pass away in the future, order the
construction of stūpas and build buddha shrines, buddha statues, or repositories for the
Dharma. Alternatively, in those places they will write down my teachings in books and
carry this Dharma body of mine. In those places they will also engage in different forms
of worship and offer a variety of precious substances such as gold, silver, beryl,
crystals, red pearls,
emeralds, white corals, jewels, pearls, gemstones, conch shells, moonstones, corals,
silken clothes, bells, silk brocades, high-quality cotton fabrics, fine cloths from
Vārāṇasī, padded cushions, carpets, parasols, banners, flags, Dharma robes, necklaces,
bracelets, perfumes, flowers, incense, and music, and they will express intense
veneration, respect, devotion, and reverence.”

At that moment, the Blessed One joined his palms and his ten fingers together
and continued: “I will then accept their offerings. In accordance with their
inclinations, all those sentient beings will practice the three vehicles in order to
reach the level of nonregression. In some lands, they will arrange temples, dwelling
places, walking paths, hermitages, parks, and monastic compounds. Alternatively, they
will perform or cause others to perform various acts of worship and veneration toward
the followers of the hearers’ Dharma by offering Dharma robes, alms, bedding, seats,
medicine, and tools. In those temples, walking paths, and hermitages, they will
respectfully listen to the Dharma, engage in exegetical discussions about it, and read
the scriptures. In those temples, walking paths, and other such places, they will also
offer various types of gifts such as offerings stemming from the fields, households, and
monastic compounds as well as male and female servants, elephants, horses, camels, oxen,
buffaloes, donkeys, and other types of cattle and a variety of containers. They will dedicate various
bedding and seat articles for the use of my hearers who abide by the Dharma, so that
they may attain mental ornaments, mental tools, an assembly of practices, and the
supreme happiness of emancipation. They will, now and in the future, offer various types
of gifts to benefit my teachings. I will rejoice in and accept all those meritorious
deeds manifested through the generosity of those sentient beings, to ensure that they
are certain to experience a great result. All those beings will then avoid falling into
error and will certainly abandon the three lower realms. Then, in accordance with their
inclinations, they will reach the level of nonregression by practicing the three
vehicles. As long as they continue in cyclic existence, those beings will never be
separated from the two types of enjoyments—the enjoyment of the Dharma and material
enjoyment.

“Now and in the future, whether in mountains, in jungles, under great trees,
in the wilderness, or in the woods, there will be monks, nuns, and male and female lay
practitioners who strive for liberation, abide by the Dharma, speak few words, observe
silence, withdraw into meditative seclusion, engage in proper mental activity, and act
in wholesome ways. There will also be gods, nāgas, and yakṣas. For the sake of
discipline, monks, look at the power of the domain of concentration! Having overpowered
the domains of all the māras and nāgas, the thus-gone ones of the past who resided,
thrived, and lived well engaged with this buddha realm of Sahā to ensure that the way of
the Dharma remains for a long time and that the lineage of the Three Jewels remains
uninterrupted. Now, a countless and limitless number of bodhisattva great beings have
arrived in my buddha realm from other buddha realms of the ten directions as numerous as
the grains of sand in the Ganges in order to ask questions, behold me, pay homage to me,
worship me, honor me, and hear about the practices of the bodhisattvas who abide by the
Dharma and who are endowed with the eye of space and the four correct knowledges. Since
they are close to my heart, those bodhisattva great beings are sitting on this earth in
states of concentration in order to ensure that the way of the Dharma remains for a long
time and that the lineage of the Three Jewels remains uninterrupted; they are engaging
with this buddha realm in order to subjugate the domains of the māras out of affection
for those sentient beings who are afraid of cyclic existence and exert themselves in
generosity.

“Now and in the future, as long as my teaching and the sacred Dharma, or even
a reflection of the sacred Dharma, remain, should immoral monks who engage in negative
actions make use of things that have been dedicated to monks who abide by the
Dharma—even just a single leaf, fruit, or flower coming from any house, monastic
compound, or field or, likewise, any male or female servant—such fools will encounter
misfortune and trouble.

“They will experience four types of harm. What are the four? ⁽¹⁾ Great infamy
related to them will spread in the ten directions. ⁽²⁾ They will soon be separated from
their dear and beloved friends, relatives, kin, preceptors, teachers, and attendants.
⁽³⁾ They will suffer from severe and long-lasting diseases. ⁽⁴⁾ Their Dharma robes and alms bowls will
be taken away from them by the five great dangers. What are the five? They are
⁽¹⁾ kings, ⁽²⁾ thieves, ⁽³⁾ fire, ⁽⁴⁾ water, and ⁽⁵⁾ the hostile confiscation of one’s
property.

In their next lives, four undesirable consequences will quickly manifest for
such beings. What are the four? ⁽¹⁾ After their bodies disintegrate, they will be born
within the terrible great hells. ⁽²⁾ When, in a rare combination of circumstances and
after a long time has passed, they finally pass away and leave the hell realms, they
will be born in a dry and barren wilderness as blind animals or pretas without arms and
legs, and for many hundreds of thousands of years they will experience the suffering of
the intense torments caused by hunger and thirst. ⁽³⁾ When, in a rare combination of
circumstances and after a long time has passed, they then pass away and transmigrate,
they will be born for many hundreds of thousands of years as blind poisonous snakes that
feed on dust. ⁽⁴⁾ When, in a rare combination of circumstances and after a long time has
passed, they finally pass away and are born among humans, they will achieve the human
condition within empty buddha realms ripe with the five degenerations. They will be
stupid and ugly, their eyes, arms, and legs will be impaired, and they will crave dog
food and feed on excrement. They will sleep in filthy swamps and rubbish heaps and spend
their lives in the wilderness, in barren lands, and on highways. Then, after they pass
away, they will again be born within the hell realms.

“Why will they experience such severe undesirable consequences? Because those
monks who engage in negative actions steal and use for their own personal enjoyment the
houses, fields, monastic compounds, male and female servants, and cattle that have been
dedicated to those who abide by the Dharma. By doing so, those monks who engage in negative actions
are exerting themselves to eliminate, destroy, interrupt, and weaken the amazing and
marvelous Dharma way of all the blessed buddhas who have appeared. Similarly, they put
effort into eliminating, destroying, interrupting, and weakening the lineage of the
Three Jewels. Why is it so? Because there are many on the side of virtue and because the
Dharma way, as well as the lineage of the Three Jewels, blossoms due to the side of
virtue. This is the reason why such severe ripening of undesirable circumstances will
manifest to them.”

At that moment, the elder Gayākāśyapa started to shed tears and said,
“Respected Blessed One, it would be permissible to remain unchanged even after achieving
a human birth, but that is not the case if one engages in evil behavior for the sake of
food and drink after becoming a renunciate!”

The Blessed One replied, “Thus it is, Mahāgayākāśyapa! Just as you have said,
it would be better for beings to remain in the hell realms and exhaust their previous
actions than for them to misbehave like that. Yet, there are some fools who have
obtained a human birth, which is so hard to find, and received the vows, which are also
so hard to obtain, pertaining to going forth and becoming fully ordained monks under the
well-spoken Dharma and Vinaya. These are amazing and marvelous conditions that lead to
the exhaustion of all suffering and bring an end to all defilements, yet those fools
will entertain thoughts about nonvirtuous practices that will instead cause them to be
disrespected and go without food and drink. Due to the strength of their erudition or due to the
influence of remaining in households, those monks who engage in negative actions will
then steal and misappropriate the resources and possessions—houses, fields, monastic
compounds, parks, male and female servants, and cattle—that have otherwise been
dedicated to support the side of virtue by faithful members of the kṣatriya class, the
brāhmaṇa class, the vaiśya class, and the śūdra class who have all donated this to be
used by monks that abide by the Dharma and possess a wealth of qualities. Such will be
the evil behavior of those fools.”

At this point King Bimbisāra asked the Blessed One, “Respected Blessed One, if
such undesirable consequences are experienced by ordained monks who steal and use for
themselves the resources and possessions that have been dedicated to monks who abide by
the Dharma and possess a wealth of qualities, what analogy would illustrate the mass of
nonvirtue generated by householders who steal and use for themselves the resources and
possessions that have been dedicated to monks who abide by the Dharma?”

The Blessed One replied, “Tell me, Your Majesty, what is the point of your
question?”

“Respected Blessed One, I donate
resources and possessions to those monks who abide by the Dharma and who possess a
wealth of qualities—I do not steal them. However, in the future, there will be members
of the kṣatriya class, the brāhmaṇa class, the vaiśya class, and the śūdra class who
lack faith and are not afraid of the afterlife. They will steal and use for themselves
the resources and possessions that have been dedicated to monks who abide by the Dharma
and possess a wealth of qualities. What troubles will they experience?”

“Your Majesty,” replied the Blessed One, “If I were to describe the misfortunes that will be
experienced by those oxen-like beings—whether from the kṣatriya class, the brāhmaṇa
class, the vaiśya class, or the śūdra class—who steal and use for themselves the
resources and possessions that have been dedicated to those who abide by the Dharma and
possess a wealth of qualities, they would reject and disbelieve my words whenever they
have the opportunity to hear my teachings. Those beings will experience two types of
harm stemming from great terrors that cause ruin.”

King Bimbisāra requested the Blessed One a second time, “Blessed One, please
instruct us! Well-Gone One, please instruct us! Respected Blessed One, there will be
members of respectable family lineages—from members of the kṣatriya class to śūdras—who
are afraid of the afterlife and genuinely uphold and consider the excellent teachings of
the Blessed One’s well-spoken Dharma and Vinaya. Blessed One, upon hearing the teachings
that stem from the activity of your speech, they will, with utmost strength and
diligence, consider and protect the well-spoken teachings of the Victor. They will
worship, look after, and protect those who correctly follow these teachings, who abide
by the Dharma, and who possess a wealth of qualities. They will not steal from
householders or from those who have gone forth. However, respected Blessed One, what
troubles will be experienced by those householders who steal and use for themselves the
resources and possessions of those who abide by the Dharma?”

“Your Majesty,” replied the Blessed One, “If I were to describe the
misfortunes that will be experienced in the future by those oxen-like beings— from members of the kṣatriya
class to śūdras—who steal and use for themselves the resources and possessions that have
been dedicated to those who abide by the Dharma and possess a wealth of qualities, they
would reject and disbelieve my words whenever they have the opportunity to hear my
teachings. Those beings will experience two types of harm stemming from great terrors
that cause ruin.”

King Bimbisāra spoke a third time to the Blessed One: “Blessed One, please
instruct us! Well-Gone One, please instruct us! Respected Blessed One, there will be
members of respectable family lineages—from members of the kṣatriya class to śūdras—who
are afraid of the afterlife and genuinely uphold and consider the excellent teachings of
the Blessed One’s Dharma and Vinaya. Having heard the teachings that stem from the
activity of the Blessed One’s speech, they will, with utmost strength and diligence,
consider the well-spoken teachings of the Victor, and they will worship, look after, and
protect those who correctly follow these teachings, abide by the Dharma, and possess a
wealth of qualities. They will not steal from householders or from those who have gone
forth, and they will not steal the resources and possessions of those who abide by the
Dharma.”

The Blessed One exclaimed, “Excellent, Your Majesty, excellent! Your eloquence
is excellent! Your Majesty, in the future, there will be members of the kṣatriya class,
the brāhmaṇa class, the vaiśya class, and the śūdra class who steal and rob the
offerings related to the houses, fields, monastic compounds, and parks as well as the
male and female servants, the bedding, the seats, the medicine, the tools, and the cattle that
have been dedicated to those who abide by the Dharma. All those beings—from the members
of the kṣatriya class to śūdras—will soon experience twenty undesirable consequences in
their present life. What are the twenty? ⁽¹⁾ They will be
abandoned by the gods. ⁽²⁾ Their infamy will resound in all the cardinal and
intermediate directions. ⁽³⁾ They will be abandoned by their friends and kin. ⁽⁴⁾ They
will have a lot of enemies. ⁽⁵⁾ Their wealth and valuables will deteriorate. ⁽⁶⁾ They
will have a lot of distractions. ⁽⁷⁾ Their limbs will be impaired. ⁽⁸⁾ They will suffer
from insomnia. ⁽⁹⁾ They will constantly be tormented by craving. ⁽¹⁰⁾ They will be
poisoned by what they eat and drink. ⁽¹¹⁾ They will quickly be separated from their dear
and loved ones. ⁽¹²⁾ They will continuously fight with others. ⁽¹³⁾ Their fathers,
mothers, siblings, spouses, daughters, and male and female servants will not follow
their instructions. ⁽¹⁴⁾ All their secret mantras, secret riches, secret retinues, and
secret possessions will be revealed. ⁽¹⁵⁾ Their possessions will be squandered by the
five terrors, such as the hostile confiscation of one’s property. ⁽¹⁶⁾ They will quickly
be struck by severe diseases. ⁽¹⁷⁾ They will be without doctors and attendants and will
experience the suffering of their flesh and blood drying out. ⁽¹⁸⁾ They will die in
their excrement and urine. Your Majesty, those are the twenty undesirable consequences
that those beings will quickly experience.

“After they die, those who steal and use for themselves the resources,
possessions, and valuables that have been dedicated to the monks who abide by the Dharma
will be born in the
great Hell of Unceasing Torment. There, for a lifetime stretching over eons, they will
drink molten iron and copper, eat lumps of iron, and experience a variety of intense and
unbearable harms while having to use clothes, resources, and belongings made of fire.
Once the eons of their lifespans are exhausted, they will pass away and be born on paths
within a dry and barren wilderness, with the general fortune of pretas with impaired
legs, arms, and eyes. There, scorching winds blowing from the four directions will
torture them, and they will experience torment and agony on razor-like grounds. They
will undergo those types of suffering for many hundreds of thousands of years. When, in
a rare combination of circumstances, they pass away and transmigrate, they will then be
born within the great oceans as creatures with oblong shapes and bodies that measure a
hundred leagues. Due to their previous actions, the water surrounding them will be red
like molten copper for leagues. In those waters, they will experience the harms of the
hell realms for many hundreds of thousands of years. Then, after they pass away, they
will be miraculously born into a vast wilderness as creatures with oblong shapes as
large as mountains. They will be burned by scorching winds blowing from the four
directions, and wild beasts and birds will come to feed on them. If, in a rare
combination of circumstances, they pass away and transmigrate, they will then be born
into the great hells. Then, after passing away, they will experience such great
misfortunes again and again. Considering their condition thoroughly, even if, in a rare
combination of circumstances, they are then born with the general fortune of humans,
they will be born blind in miserable circumstances, in buddha realms ripe with the five
degenerations. Your
Majesty, such are the misfortunes that will be experienced by those who steal the
resources, possessions, and valuables that have been dedicated to those who abide by the
Dharma.”

At that moment, King Bimbisāra shed tears and said, “Respected Blessed One,
such beings will surely have to remain in the hell realms, but how can they achieve a
human condition and then engage in such severe nonvirtuous acts while they are humans?”

“Your Majesty,” replied the Blessed One, “now and in the future, people will
put their trust in you members of the kṣatriya class who abide by the Dharma, so look
after them and protect them! You must by all means punish, in accordance with the
Dharma, the renunciates or householders who steal the resources, possessions, and
valuable belongings that have been dedicated to the monks who abide by the Dharma!”

“Respected Blessed One,” said the king, “if the king does not by all means
punish, in accordance with the Dharma, those householders and renunciates who steal the
resources, possessions, and valuable belongings that have been dedicated to the monks
who abide by the Dharma, and if he remains indifferent toward them, what mass of
nonvirtue would that member of the kṣatriya class generate?”

“Your Majesty,” replied the Blessed One, “if a single being were endowed with
the entire mass of virtue of all sentient beings, including the hearers and solitary
buddhas but not the thus-gone ones, would that sentient being be much more exalted than
all the hearers and solitary buddhas, and would they possess much greater merit?”

The king answered, “Respected Blessed One, that is correct! Respected Blessed
One, that being would be much more exalted! Among all the living beings, there are not
many who possess much greater merit than all the hearers and solitary buddhas.”

“Your Majesty,” continued the Blessed One, “imagine that all beings were
endowed with the mass of merit in possession of this previously mentioned being and that
some persons cut the limbs, gouged the eyes, and chopped the ears, noses, hands, and
feet of all the living beings. Your Majesty, what do you think? What amount of
nonvirtuous, evil actions would such persons generate?”

King Bimbisāra shed tears and remained silent.

The Blessed One insisted, “Answer this question, Your Majesty, answer this
question!”

Weeping, the great king Bimbisāra answered, “Respected Blessed One, the
persons who would cut the limbs, gouge the eyes, and chop the ears, nose, hands, and
feet of a single one of those meritorious sentient beings would generate an uncountable,
limitless, unfathomable, and incomparable amount of nonvirtuous, evil actions, so there
is no need to speak of what would happen if one were to cut the limbs, gouge the eyes,
and chop the ears, noses, hands, and feet of all those meritorious sentient beings!”

“Your Majesty,” continued the Blessed One, “whether the Thus-Gone One is alive or has passed into
nirvāṇa, now and in the future, until the last five hundred years when the sacred Dharma
will be about to vanish, if members of the kṣatriya class remain indifferent toward
householders and renunciates who steal and rob the resources, possessions, valuable
belongings, offerings related to fields and houses, monastic compounds, parks, male and
female servants, cattle, Dharma robes, alms, bedding, seats, medicine, and tools that
have been dedicated to those who abide by the Dharma and who possess a wealth of
qualities, and if they do not order those renunciate and householder thieves to be
punished in all possible ways, those members of the kṣatriya class will generate much
more nonvirtue. Just as it is for the members of the kṣatriya class, if those who have
been appointed as authorities in villages, cities, towns, and countries remain
indifferent and do not act against such thieves, all of them will also generate a much
greater mass of nonvirtue.”

King Bimbisāra then asked, “Respected Blessed One, the king himself is heavily
burdened, and the members of the kṣatriya class live with a great amount of
carelessness. Nevertheless, respected Blessed One, if the king, while living carelessly,
were to protect those persons who abide by the Dharma and stand up against the evil
actions of sentient beings who steal the resources and possessions that have been
dedicated to them, and if all the authorities—from those of villages to those of
countries—also stand up against the evil actions of those who rob the resources and
possessions that have been dedicated in that way, what mass of merit will they generate?”

“Your Majesty,” said the Blessed One, “imagine that all beings were endowed
with the mass of merit that I have described before and that they were thrown into a
prison where they would be tormented by hunger and thirst. Imagine that some beings then
appeared and freed all those meritorious beings from that prison and served them for a
full hundred years with offerings of Dharma robes, alms, bedding, seats, medicine, and
tools. Your Majesty, what do you think? Would those beings generate a lot of merit on
that basis?”

“A lot of merit, respected Blessed One! Respected Well-Gone One, the mass of
merit generated by those beings would be immeasurable, limitless, and unfathomable!”

“Your Majesty,” continued the Blessed One, “now and in the future, until the
last five hundred years, if any member of the kṣatriya class or any regional authority
acts against the evil actions of people who steal something that has been dedicated to
those who abide by the Dharma and who possess a wealth of qualities, they will generate
a much greater mass of merit than that.”

The king then asked, “Respected Blessed One, if not protecting a single monk
who abides by the Dharma generates that amount of nonvirtue, does protecting a single
one of them generate that same amount of merit?”

“Your Majesty,” replied the Blessed One, “I have not allowed the practice of
having only a single individual, or two, or three, or four; instead, Your Majesty, for
the purposes of the saṅgha in the four directions, I have prescribed that in each temple or hermitage
there should be at least five monks who abide by the Dharma. I have prescribed that
those monks who gather swiftly from the four directions at the sound of the gong should
share their resources, possessions, rooms, bedding, seats, food, beverages, medicine,
and tools. Even if as many as a hundred thousand monks reside in a single temple or
hermitage, I have also prescribed in those places the shared use of all those things—up
to and including tools—to those monks who gather swiftly at the sound of the gong. I
have prescribed such use to those who are detached, unfettered, and dispassionate, to
those who do not sleep but exert themselves during the first and last parts of the
night, to those who turn their backs to saṃsāra, to those who focus inwardly on nirvāṇa,
to those who do not criticize others, to those who do not praise themselves, to those
who are content, to those who engage in ascetic practices, to those who remain in
seclusion, to those who engender diligence, to those who are settled in equipoise, and
to those who engage in the applications of mindfulness.

“Your Majesty, such beings are present within the saṅgha of monks. Your
Majesty, by giving away resources and possessions to those beings present within the
saṅgha of monks, people generate limitless merit. Your Majesty, when five or more monks
reside in a temple or a hermitage, people will acquire limitless merit in relation to
such a saṅgha of monks when, at the sound of the gong, they offer resources to those
monks who are disciplined, who observe pure discipline, who are apprehensive of the
slightest wrongdoing, who teach and recite the discourses related to emptiness that were
taught by the Thus-Gone One, who neither criticize others nor praise themselves, who have abandoned envy and
miserliness, who are affectionate toward all sentient beings, and who strive for
liberation.

“Your Majesty, even if a saṅgha of monks consists of the minimum of five
members, that saṅgha is referred to as an ocean-like saṅgha of
monks as long as they observe pure discipline, are perfectly modest and
humble, fear wrongdoing related to the next life, and exert themselves in ascetic
practices and in the noble lineage. Since even such a saṅgha is said to help and benefit
countless humans and liberate all beings from all their suffering, what need is there to
mention a saṅgha of monks that consists of ten members or a hundred thousand members?
Your Majesty, brāhmaṇas and great householders who are filled with faith will beat the
gong in order to serve the saṅgha of monks. Your Majesty, regardless of whether there
are few or many monks in that saṅgha who engage in negative actions and pretend to be
spiritual practitioners, if there are just five monks in that congregation who abide by
the Dharma and observe pure discipline and who are perfectly modest and humble, that
saṅgha of monks will possess limitless qualities. That saṅgha is very deserving of
generosity and deserves to be worshiped by all gods and humans. Therefore, Your Majesty,
I entrust to your hands those monks who abide by the Dharma and who delight in the joy
of the Dharma. If, for some reason, any householders or renunciates should threaten or
harm them, do not let this happen but protect them!”

King Bimbisāra then asked, “Respected Blessed One, should monks with impaired
discipline who engage in negative actions be allowed to reside within the saṅgha? Should
they be allowed to use and avail themselves of the sacred Dharma robes, alms, bedding,
seats, medicine, and tools?”

“Your Majesty,” replied the Blessed One, “imagine that one of your senior
ministers or important officials, someone appointed by the king, a eunuch, a member of
the kṣatriya class, a brāhmaṇa, or a householder were to transgress the laws of the
government and commit crimes. Your Majesty, would you allow such a criminal to join your
personal retinue during royal celebrations and festivals and enjoy him or herself, thus
delighting and frolicking to his or her heart’s content?”

The king replied, “No, Respected Blessed One.”

“Similarly, Your Majesty,” continued the Blessed One, “such persons with
impaired discipline who engage in negative actions, who are like a rotten tree, who
pretend to be spiritual practitioners, and who pretend to observe pure conduct are
harming all the blessed buddhas of the past, present, and future. They are not the
Blessed One’s hearers—they have fallen under the influence of Māra. Those persons are
following a degenerate path, and they will not be counted within the saṅgha of hearers
in the future—they will not be able to enter it. It is inappropriate for such people to consume even the
husk of a sesame seed that has been dedicated to those monks who abide by the Dharma, so
what need is there to speak of them residing within the saṅgha? Those persons will be
rejected by the Dharma and Vinaya.”

King Bimbisāra then asked, “Respected Blessed One, what are the signs of
behavior through which one knows that monks with impaired discipline who engage in
negative actions are henceforth not worthy of remaining,
residing, and living among monks who abide by the Dharma?”

“Your Majesty,” replied the Blessed One, “this is not something that can be
known immediately by saying ‘These are the features through which their impaired
discipline becomes apparent.’ Nevertheless, Your Majesty, the first of these signs is
being disrespectful toward the Buddha as well as the Dharma, the Saṅgha, the preceptors,
the teachers, and those who are exalted. It also involves renouncing the noble lineage,
not delighting in spiritual contemplations, giving up modesty and humility, associating
with householders, engaging in idle gossip, praising oneself, criticizing others,
enjoying such behaviors, being caught in the trap of negative actions, following
unwholesome paths, being arrogant, being haughty, being petty, being conceited, being rude, being a hypocrite, being
deceitful, being a cunning spiritual practitioner, being like an indolent monk, talking
with the wish to cause disharmony in the saṅgha of monks, delighting in gain, honor, and
praise, and enjoying the pleasure of entertainment. However, as long as their impaired
discipline has not become apparent, one cannot immediately identify such signs in the
monks with impaired discipline who engage in negative actions. It is when such monks who engage in
negative actions take possession of offerings related to houses, fields, and monastic
compounds, as well as male and female servants, elephants, horses, camels, donkeys, and
sheep, that their impaired discipline becomes apparent. Due to this, those evil monks
will be banished from the saṅgha of monks; they will not be allowed to remain and live
there, since they have violated and lost their status as monks, and they will not be
able to regain this status in the future.

“Your Majesty, it is better to reside in the dwelling places of outcastes than
to reside with vile and greedy monks who are filled with aggression, who have no
consideration for what is beneficial, who reject the afterlife, who lack compassion, who
are like great pits filled with excrement, who follow the path of Māra, who harm gods
and humans, who deceive all the sages of the three times, who extinguish the Dharma lamp
of the lineage of the Three Jewels, who dry up the ocean of the Dharma, who create
dissension among Dharma preachers, who deceive almsgivers and benefactors, who hurt
monks that abide by the Dharma, and who disrupt the harmony of the Saṅgha. Through their
attitude of greed, such evil monks turn the king away from the path that leads to the
higher realms, and they will do the same to members of the kṣatriya class and to
brāhmaṇas, vaiśyas, śūdras, men, women, boys, and girls. Instead they establish them on
the three paths that lead to the lower realms.

“Your Majesty, behold the amount of distress that those evil monks will
generate in gods and humans because of their greed! Your Majesty, the greedy monks and
the monks who abide by the Dharma and possess a wealth of qualities should therefore not
reside together in the same monastic compound or the same temples. If they do reside
together with those evil, haughty monks who have abandoned modesty and humility, the
monks who abide by the Dharma should be loving and mindful in accordance with the
Dharma. If those evil monks decide to leave those places, it is excellent, but if they
do not, the monks who abide by the Dharma should then summon those members of the
kṣatriya class, the brāhmaṇa class, the vaiśya class, and the śūdra class who govern
over those cities, towns, villages, countries, or mountain areas. If the members of the
kṣatriya class or the brāhmaṇas, vaiśyas, or śūdras expel the evil and greedy monks from
those places, the monks who abide by the Dharma should remain there. If it is the case
that, for the sake of food, beverages, or gains, the members of the kṣatriya, brāhmaṇa,
vaiśya, or śūdra classes should take the side of the evil and greedy monks, the monks
who abide by the Dharma should not show any aggression, attachment, or pride. Instead,
they should leave those places without saying a word and go live elsewhere in the
wilderness, in forests, in hills, or on mountain slopes, where they should remain
silent, withdraw into meditative seclusion, and practice correct mental activity.”

Once again, King Bimbisāra shed tears and exclaimed, “Respected Blessed One,
the members of the kṣatriya class, the brāhmaṇa class, the vaiśya class, and the śūdra
class who, for the sake of food, beverages, or gains, take the side of the evil and
greedy monks and let the monks who abide by the Dharma and possess a wealth of qualities
leave their places are corrupt! Respected Well-Gone One, they are extremely corrupt! It
will be hard for them to achieve a human life again; for those beings who circle in
saṃsāra this is the last time to achieve a human life! Even though countless and
innumerable blessed buddhas endowed with great compassion—as numerous as the grains of
sand in the Ganges—will appear in the world, those sentient beings who do not listen
respectfully to the words of the monks who abide by the Dharma will not be liberated
from the lower realms or established in the higher realms. Instead, they will possess
such negative actions!”

“Your Majesty,” said the Blessed One, “in the future, there will be members
of the kṣatriya class, the brāhmaṇa class, the vaiśya class, and the śūdra class who
have strong faith in the monks who abide by the Dharma. They will build hermitages for
them. In those temples and hermitages, they will also give offerings of houses and
fields, male and female servants, and monastic compounds for their use and enjoyment.
After they die, they will be born as members of the kṣatriya class who are like great
sal trees, or in other states up to the gods of the sphere of neither perception nor
nonperception. They will also be born within pure buddha realms where they will meet
blessed buddhas, and before long those almsgivers and benefactors will awaken to
unsurpassed and perfect buddhahood. They will support the monks who abide by the Dharma
under my teachings.

“Your Majesty, imagine that one of your sons, siblings, dignitaries, or senior officials were to
engage in wrongdoing. Your Majesty, what do you think? While you partake in a variety of
joys and pleasures during the celebrations and festivals that you, great king, offer,
would that person be able to remain in front of you and feel happy and playful and
experience different types of joy and pleasure?”

“No, respected Blessed One,” replied the king, “that person would dare not
come in front of me, so there is no need to speak of him feeling happy and playful!”

“Similarly, Your Majesty,” continued the Blessed One, “if someone takes
possession of male and female servants, offerings related to houses and fields, and
everything else up to sheep, I am not the teacher of that person, and that person is not
my hearer. That person harms all the perfect buddhas of the three times and does not
deserve to reside, in accordance with the Dharma, in those places that have been
dedicated to those who abide by the Dharma. All the members of the kṣatriya class, the
brāhmaṇa class, the vaiśya class, and the śūdra class who benefit those evil and greedy
monks and do not make them leave those places also cause great harm to all the blessed
buddhas of the three times. Though they may have performed many acts of generosity,
after they die they will be born within the great Hell of Unceasing Torment. Therefore,
Your Majesty, since they only consider their own benefit, one should not side with those
evil and greedy monks. Why? Because they harm all the gods and humans; they do not benefit them,
they cause them to fall into error, and they destroy the lineage of the Three Jewels.

“Your Majesty, if members of the kṣatriya class, the brāhmaṇa class, the
vaiśya class, and the śūdra class remain on the side of the teaching of the monks who
abide by the Dharma, and if they do not side with evil monks, even if they have not
performed acts of generosity, since they side with the Dharma they are sublime
benefactors of all the blessed buddhas of the three times. Since they protect the sacred
Dharma, they should be regarded as the sacred upholders of the sacred Dharma. After they
die they will be born within pure buddha realms, and before long they will awaken to
unsurpassed and perfect buddhahood. Therefore, Your Majesty, wholesome member of the
kṣatriya class, I entrust to you and place in your hands the followers of the Dharma and
its teachings. Until the last five hundred years, support my Dharma followers! Thereby,
my Dharma way and the lineage of the Three Jewels will endure for a long time, and the
gods and humans will be benefited and experience happiness.”

Then King Bimbisāra asked the Blessed One, “Respected Blessed One, what are
the criteria for someone to be called an attendant?”

“Your Majesty,” replied the Blessed One, “I have authorized two types of
monks to be attendants. What are those two? They are worthy ones who cultivate the eight aspects of liberation and monks in
training who have entered the stream. Your Majesty, I have authorized those two types of
monks to perform the function of attendants.”

This concludes the chapter called “The Protection of the Sacred
Dharma,” the first among the eleven chapters included in “The
Quintessence of the Sun,” the Great Vehicle discourse of The Great
Assembly.

Chapter Two

The Messengers

When the Blessed One had begun this discourse with King Bimbisāra on how to
protect all those monks who abide by the Dharma, in the eastern direction, beyond
countless buddha realms as numerous as the grains of sand in the Ganges, there was a
world called Absence of Torment, where the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Campaka Color was residing, thriving, living well, and
teaching the Dharma. In that buddha realm, the bodhisattva great being named
Quintessence of the Sun’s Energy was sitting in the assembly of the blessed thus-gone
Campaka Color in order to listen to the Dharma. At one point, as the bodhisattva great
being Quintessence of the Sun’s Energy looked upward, he saw in the sky above that
innumerable and countless bodhisattva great beings were departing from the east and
proceeding toward the west. When he looked toward the west where those bodhisattva great
beings were going, he saw a brilliant light. At that moment, he bowed down with his
palms joined together in the direction of the Buddha Campaka Color and asked, “Respected
Blessed One, I have seen in the sky above that innumerable and countless bodhisattva
great beings are departing from the east and proceeding toward the west. I have also
seen a brilliant light in the western direction. Why is this so?”

The thus-gone Campaka Color replied to the bodhisattva great being
Quintessence of the Sun’s Energy, “Noble son, in the western direction, beyond countless
buddha realms as numerous as the grains of sand in the Ganges, in a place ripe with the
five degenerations, there is a buddha realm called Sahā, where the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Śākyamuni resides, thrives,
and lives well. To ensure that the Dharma way and the lineage of the Three Jewels endure
for a long time and that those who abide by the Dharma remain without interruption, he
delivers to a great assembly Dharma teachings that are the gateways to the ascertainment
of the three vehicles. He has gathered an assembly in that buddha realm of Sahā in order
to destroy the domain of the māras, to cause them to lose their power, to raise the
banner of the Dharma, and to ensure that the Dharma way endures for a long time. There,
all the thus-gone ones have uttered the dhāraṇī mantra called jewel
crest and then left after having engaged with that buddha realm. The
thus-gone Śākyamuni has gathered a great assembly of bodhisattva great beings and great
hearers. They possess the three eyes that are endowed with the four correct knowledges,
and they display the sublime states. This retinue distinctly fills the earth and the sky
of the buddha realm of Sahā, and it is insatiable with respect to the sacred Dharma
teachings revealed by the thus-gone Śākyamuni.

“At one point, the thus-gone Śākyamuni, who is endowed with the most
delightful voice, wished to explain the four means of attracting disciples, the practice
of the Dharma of The Quintessence of the Sun, the section
on the light rays that destroy the nāgas, the dhāraṇī mantra that exhausts the karmic
actions of sentient beings. So he formed the following wish: ‘May all bodhisattva great beings who are
practicing the six perfections within all the buddha realms of the ten directions—those
who have reached emancipation over a hundred eons, who possess the eighteen unique
qualities, who are not led astray by others, who have reached the level of
nonregression, and who are experts in unobstructed wisdom—come to this buddha realm of
Sahā! Once they have assembled here, may they employ their individual virtuous qualities
and concentrations so that in this buddha realm this great earth may become highly
favorable and nourishing and so that beings may be endowed with qualities, recall,
diligence, and generosity—just as in other buddha realms!’

“This is why the bodhisattva great beings who have entered that buddha realm
of Sahā are now sitting there absorbed in concentration in accordance with their own
appropriate virtuous qualities, and this is why light is now radiating from the bodies
of some of those meditators, as if from oil lamps. From the bodies of some of the others
radiate light rays like the light emitted by many hundreds of thousands of suns and
moons. The brilliant light emitted by the gathering of those numerous bodhisattva great
beings is now pervading the buddha realm of Sahā. All those bodhisattva great beings who
have arrived from all the buddha realms of the ten directions, none of whom had ever
gone there before, arose from their absorptions and departed for the buddha realm of
Sahā. Having arrived, they are now sitting cross-legged and revel in their individual
concentrations. They pay homage to the thus-gone Śākyamuni and serve him, and they
behold his great assembly. There, they also listen to the practice of the Dharma of
The Quintessence of the Sun, the section on the light rays that destroy
the nāgas, the dhāraṇī mantra that exhausts the karmic actions of sentient beings.

“Noble son, since you have arisen from your absorption, you should, noble
son, go to the Sahā world! Noble son, in that buddha realm of Sahā, sentient beings are
bound by intense craving—they are referred to as those who have fallen into
craving. In that buddha realm, women are unattractive and ugly, yet they
are extremely conceited in terms of their appearance. They are smelly and unclean yet
conceited due to their obsession with cleanliness. They are two-faced and lying yet
proud of their pure conduct. They are stupid yet proud of their skills. They are miserly
yet proudly consider themselves generous. They are unfaithful yet proudly consider
themselves faithful. They are hypocritical and deceitful yet proudly consider themselves
honest. They are envious yet proudly consider themselves free from envy. They are
malicious yet proudly consider themselves loving. They create divisions yet proudly
consider themselves harmonious. They have wrong views yet proudly consider their views
to be correct. Even sacred beings who are great scholars, who possess magical powers,
who revel in the higher perceptions, and who have trained in concentration can be
overpowered by women in an instant. Through the faults of women, all their roots of
virtue will be destroyed, and they will go to the lower realms and be born as hell
beings.

“Noble son, if you would like to bring my words to the Sahā world in order to
convey them to the thus-gone Śākyamuni, these words of mine will instill faith in the
practice of the Dharma of The Quintessence of the Sun, the
section on the light rays that destroy the domain of the nāgas, the dhāraṇī mantra that exhausts the
karmic actions of sentient beings. For that I shall confer the dhāraṇī mantra that
accords with the truth. It is powerful and very beneficial. It exhausts all forms of
attachment associated with the desire realm, the form realm, and the formless realm as
well as all forms of pride, special pride, and pride that thinks ‘I am.’ It exhausts all
forms of longing, covetousness, excitement, and ignorance. It exhausts the views related
to the transitory collection, all the extremist views, all doubts, all the views that
consider discipline and disciplined conduct to be supreme, and all the views of
permanence and nihilism, as well as all the views related to sentient beings,
obscurations, living beings, persons, creators, feeling subjects, forms, sounds, smells,
tastes, textures, great marvels, birth, and abiding. This acceptance that accords with
the truth induces complete and genuine understanding of all the aggregates, from the
aggregate of form up to the aggregate of consciousness. It induces complete and genuine
understanding of all the faculties, from the eye faculty up to the mind faculty. It induces genuine
understanding and abandonment of all the aggregates, the elements, and the sense
sources. It liberates from desire related to any phenomenon, and it reveals the complete
happiness of emancipation.

“Why will I do so? Because in those lands there are sentient beings who are
like blind creatures, who are completely dull, who are like sheep, and who are
intoxicated by sensual desire. This acceptance that accords with the truth eliminates
all the views of those sentient beings and provides them with inexhaustible enjoyment.
This acceptance that accords with the truth is the steadfast treasure of the entire
Dharma. It subjugates all māras and enemies by converting them to the inconceivable
Dharma, and it destroys the domain of all the māras. Furthermore, noble son, this
acceptance that accords with the truth annihilates the māras and defeats the nāgas. It
delights the gods, it pleases the hearts of the yakṣas, it causes the asuras to run
away, it frightens the garuḍas, it generates faith in the kinnaras, and it terrifies the
mahoragas. It subjugates the enemies, it generates sincere faith in the members of the
kṣatriya class, it attracts the brāhmaṇas, and it pleases the vaiśyas and the śūdras. It
frees women from their desires, it engenders weariness in the scholars, it delights the
spiritual practitioners, and it cures all diseases. It pacifies and eliminates all
struggle, famine, untimely death, hostile armies, untimely storms, untimely rain and
flooding, untimely hurricanes, untimely warm weather, snow, and heat waves, and it
softens and purifies all substances that are harsh, rough, and hard to touch. It expands
direct perception, clarifies the way of the sacred Dharma, ensures that the
lineage of the Three Jewels remains uninterrupted, and causes one to adhere to the
teachings of the Buddha. It provides relief to those who are afraid of saṃsāra,
generates the knowledge of exhaustion, causes one to realize the knowledge of the
unborn, overcomes all the dense darkness of ignorance, and removes the burden of
suffering.

syād yathedaṃ: vayevayaparivāre
vāhevāhaparivāre pṛthave pṛthavāparivāre āve āva parivāre tejetejaparivāre
mālemālaparivāre khagekhagaparivāri āloke āloka parivāre sthāmesthāmaparivāre
rijerijaparivāre silesilaparivāre gamegamaparivāre āvopa avopaparivāre mālamalama
lamalama rālarālama vijñānabhūtagrahe bhūtagrahāparivāre cakṣugrahaparivāre
śotragrahe śotragrahāparivāre ghrāṇagrahe grāṇagrahāparivāre jihvāgrahe
jihvāgrahāparivāre kāyagrahe kāyagrahāparivāre mangrahe mangrahāparivāre sparśagrahe
sparśagrahāparivāre vedanāgrahe vedanāgrahāparivāre tṛṣṇāgraha tṛṣṇāgrahāparivāre
upādānagrahe upādānagrahāparivāre bhāvagrahe bhāvagrahāparivāre jātigrahe
jātigrahāparivāre jaramaraṇagrahe jaramaraṇagrahāparivāre duḥkhas antapānagrahe
duḥkhas antapānagrahāparivāre ārapāradvijagrahe ārapāradvijagrahāparivāre
avṛtavivṛtasya avaramupamasasya vegavini vṛti āryar asmi saṃvegaśānti
svāhā.

“Noble son, with this practice of the Dharma of The
Quintessence of the Sun, the section on the light rays that destroy the nāgas,
the dhāraṇī that
exhausts the karmic actions of sentient beings, I will instill faith in others and
confer upon them the acceptance that accords with the truth. Therefore, arise, and go to
the buddha realm of Sahā! Present my words to the thus-gone Śākyamuni. Ask him if he has
any ills or problems and whether he is healthy and well. Tell him, ‘In the eastern
direction, beyond countless buddha realms as numerous as the grains of sand in the
Ganges, there is a world called Absence of Torment. In that buddha realm, the thus-gone
Campaka Color resides, thrives, lives well, and teaches the Dharma. That thus-gone one
has sent me here to ask these questions to the Blessed One: “Respected Blessed One, are
you well and free from ills? Are the members of your retinue comfortable and in good
health? Are they eager to listen to the sacred Dharma? Do they apply the Dharma in the
way they hear it? Do they persevere in the Dharma? Do they abide by the Dharma? Are the
domains of the māras and the nāgas subjugated in your buddha realm? Is this the domain
of the Buddha alone? Are you turning the Dharma wheel without obstruction in this
place?” For those who turn a wheel of non-Dharma in this buddha realm, the thus-gone
Campaka Color instills faith by granting the practice of the Dharma of The Quintessence of the Sun, the section on the light rays that
destroy the nāgas, the dhāraṇī mantra that exhausts the karmic actions of sentient
beings. He confers upon them this powerful and beneficial dhāraṇī mantra that accords
with the truth. It exhausts all forms of attachment associated with the desire realm,
the form realm, and the
formless realm. […] It overcomes all the dense
darkness of ignorance, and it removes the burden of suffering.’ ”

The bodhisattva great being Quintessence of the Sun’s Energy then said,
“Respected Blessed One, when I consider this beneficial acceptance that accords with the
Dharma and is filled with qualities, I am utterly afraid to go to the buddha realm of
Sahā! Why? Because I have just heard about that realm from the Blessed One, and I am now
aware that in the buddha realm of Sahā sentient beings are predominantly under the
influence of desire and like blind persons. There, the women are unattractive and ugly
yet extremely conceited in terms of their appearance. […] Even sacred beings who are
great scholars, who have trained in concentration, and who revel in the higher
perceptions can be overpowered by women. Through the faults of women, all their roots of
virtue will be destroyed, and they will go to the lower realms and be born as hell
beings.”

The blessed thus-gone Campaka Color replied to the bodhisattva great being
Quintessence of the Sun’s Energy, “Noble son, you do not speak for your own sake, and
you do not act for your own benefit. Noble son, you speak and act for the sake of all
sentient beings. Noble son, who is the lay practitioner named Vimalakīrti who appears in
the buddha realm of Sahā, within the retinue of the thus-gone Śākyamuni? Is that not you?”

He remained silent.

“In that buddha realm and in countless trillions of buddha realms in between,
I, the thus-gone Campaka Color, also sometimes manifest in the physical form of Brahmā
to ripen beings. To ripen beings, I sometimes manifest in the physical form of Īśvara,
of a spiritual practitioner, of Śakra, of a god, of the lord of the nāgas, of the lord
of the asuras, of the lord of the garuḍas, of the lord of kinnaras, of the lord of
humans, of a solitary buddha, of a hearer, of a member of the kṣatriya class, of a
brāhmaṇa, of a householder, of a woman, of a boy, of a girl, of an animal, of a preta,
and of a hell being.

“There are eighty thousand bodhisattva great beings in this retinue who are
absorbed in attainment and arise from that state together with me. In this retinue,
there are also some bodhisattvas whose minds are wavering and unsettled, and they
strongly wish to behold the thus-gone Śākyamuni, to pay homage to him, to serve him, and
to behold his great assembly. They also strongly wish to hear The Great Assembly from
the thus-gone Śākyamuni.
However, those bodhisattvas only want to go there together with me. It would be improper
if they were deceived by sensual desires there and if they were to go there and act in
ways that make them unworthy to be my followers, so I will
now speak for their benefit.”

The thus-gone Campaka Color then said to the bodhisattva Quintessence of the
Sun’s Energy, “Noble son do not be afraid! Do not be afraid! Sacred being, I will confer
upon you the dhāraṇī mantra called lotus of sunlight, through which
one will develop intense aversion for the entire prison of the three realms; one will
reach, perfect, and abide by the gateway of liberation, the absorption of the absence of
marks; one will enter unwavering absorption; and one will thoroughly pass into nirvāṇa.
This dhāraṇī mantra accomplishes all physical feelings and perceptions as well as the
level of gaining control and liberation. It accomplishes the elimination of the ocean of
saṃsāra and the removal of obstructions to the lineage of the Three Jewels. It
accomplishes great love, great compassion, liberated insight, the subjugation of all
māras and enemies, the knowledge of exhaustion, and the knowledge of the unborn, as well
as enjoyment, life energy, peace, and lasting nirvāṇa.

“Noble son, all afflictions, such as desire, will diminish in those who
listen one-pointedly to this sunlight dhāraṇī mantra, and after
they die they will circle for seven lifetimes among the gods. There they will remember
their former lives and will not be sullied by desires. They will become sages among the gods, worthy to be worshiped by them. After they die, they will circle
for seven lifetimes among the humans, without being sullied by desires. They will become
sages among the humans, worthy to be revered and worshiped by
all the gods and humans. Those who listen one-pointedly to this
sunlight dhāraṇī mantra seven times will, after they die, be born
seven times among the gods, as sages endowed with the five higher perceptions and worthy to be revered and worshiped by all the gods. Then, they
will be born seven times among the humans, as sages endowed with the five higher
perceptions and worthy to be revered and worshiped by the
gods, the nāgas, the yakṣas, the asuras, the humans, and the nonhumans. Noble son, all
the gods and goddesses who recite seven times this dhāraṇī mantra lotus of
sunlight to gatherings of gods in the god realms and listen to it
one-pointedly will disregard all the pleasures of the five senses and delight in
concentration. In this world, if someone whispers it seven times in the ears of kings,
of members of the kṣatriya class, or of brāhmaṇas, vaiśyas, or śūdras, and if they
listen to it one-pointedly, they will all disregard all the pleasures of the five senses
and delight in concentration. Noble son, a woman who listens to this dhāraṇī mantra
lotus of sunlight and contemplates it or recites it for seven
days without doing anything else will, accordingly, experience a diminution of all her
afflictions, such as desire. It will be the last time she is born with a female body,
and she will not regress on the path to unsurpassed and perfect awakening. From then on,
until she reaches unsurpassed parinirvāṇa, she will never again be born with a female
body while circling in saṃsāra—unless she wishes to. Noble son, if people create a
cooling balm by reciting this dhāraṇī mantra lotus of sunlight
seven times, anoint great drums or conch shells with it, and then beat these drums or
blow in these conch shells, the potency of the curses directed at humans will be
annihilated anywhere the sound reaches. No torments related to medicines, envoys, words,
mental activity, physical transformation, pretense, bondage, the body, or the heart will
be experienced, and fruits will manifest without doing any work. Noble son, the dhāraṇī
mantra lotus of sunlight thus possesses great miraculous
powers.

tadyathā: siddhamate vilokamate
eleketereṣe rūcisurūci buddhevibuddhe mahābuddhe unmadte unmadta pratiṣedhane
ragadhuragadhuva pratiṣedhanebindu bindumate ciṭaciṭapratiṣedhani arkacandra adhe
hatacid atihatanirmi hatakāmavege hatapaunabhaviraje hatac kṣusamate
hatavitamabuddhe hatayāgre hatavisamāgre hatasumudracave hatavitamāraje hatatite
hatadharmacacate hatadharmarāje hatavahurāje hatapavarjamati hataugharaśmi
hatadharmasiddhi hatasarva upadhanajñājñājñā vijñājñājñā rivijñājñājña
sarvamārgajñajñā eṣa antasaṁsāraduḥkhe svāhā.

“Noble son, remembering this dhāraṇī mantra that dries up all the rivers of
desire and leads to the other shore of emancipation, proceed to the Sahā world! Since you have already
overcome all the demonic hooks of desire through your courage and heroic exertion with
the objects, no one is able to sully your body or mind with the fetters of desire. So go
to the buddha realm of Sahā and apply this dhāraṇī mantra as you have heard it! In that
place, surely none of the billions of māras will be able to sully you with the stench of
desire through the use of any mantras, medicines, or doctrines—just as no god or human
can do so!”

At that moment, the bodhisattva great being Quintessence of the Sun’s Energy
and all the other myriads of bodhisattvas and divine beings as well as the gods and
humans exclaimed with amazement and astonishment, “The wisdom vision of the blessed
buddhas and the level of mastery they have attained are amazing! They are truly amazing!
We have never before heard this dhāraṇī mantra that completely destroys the torments of
desire!”

Within the retinue, there were eighty-four thousand goddesses and girls who
listened to this dhāraṇī mantra with reverence. As soon as they heard it their female
genitals disappeared, they developed male genitals, and they all reached nonregression
on the path to unsurpassed and perfect awakening.

The thus-gone Campaka Color then held up a garland of campaka flowers and
said to the bodhisattva great being Quintessence of the Sun’s Energy, “O noble son, take
this garland of campaka flowers along with the dhāraṇī mantra lotus of
sunlight and the acceptance that accords with the truth. Bring to that place those
two dhāraṇīs which clear away desire like a flash of lightning, as well as the Dharma
gateway. Once there, please convey my words to the thus-gone Śākyamuni and ask him if he
has any ills or problems and whether he is healthy and well. Tell him ‘The thus-gone
Campaka Color is inquiring whether you, respected Blessed One, are well and free from
ills. Do the members of your retinue listen to you with respect? Are they eager for the
Dharma? Do they abide by the Dharma? Do they persevere in the Dharma? That thus-gone one
causes others to develop faith in those dhāraṇīs which clear away afflictions in all
buddha regions, and in the Dharma gateway. He confers those powerful and beneficial
dhāraṇī mantras—the Dharma gateways that clear away desire like a flash of lightning.
They exhaust all forms of attachment associated with the desire realm and the form
realm. […] They overcome all the dense darkness of ignorance, and they remove the
burden of suffering.’ ”

The bodhisattva great being Quintessence of the Sun’s Energy replied,
“Respected Blessed One, I shall do so!”

Also, at that moment, eighty thousand bodhisattvas exclaimed in unison,
“Respected Blessed One, we also wish to behold the thus-gone Śākyamuni, pay homage to
him, worship him, revere him, and behold his great assembly, so we also wish to go. From
that thus-gone one we wish to hear The Great Assembly, the Dharma gateway that clears
away afflictions in all the buddha regions!”

The thus-gone Campaka Color replied to them, “Noble sons, in that case, all of you proceed together
while assuming the appearance, look, hue, shape, and behavior of mahābrahmās!”

At that moment, the bodhisattva Quintessence of the Sun’s Energy and all the
myriads of other bodhisattvas emanated bodies with the appearance, look, hue, shape, and
behavior of mahābrahmās. They prostrated to the feet of the thus-gone Campaka Color and
circumambulated him three times. Then they departed, and in a single instant they
arrived in the buddha realm of Sahā. Immediately upon arriving, those sacred beings
showered a rain of campaka flowers everywhere in the buddha realm of Sahā in order to
worship the Blessed One. They then proceeded toward Magadha and the place where the
blessed thus-gone Śākyamuni was residing. When they arrived there, they prostrated to
the feet of the Blessed One and sat to one side. Up to that moment, the Blessed One had
been engaged in a discourse with King Bimbisāra about how to abide by the Dharma.

At that time, in the southern direction, beyond buddha realms as numerous as
the grains of sand needed to fill a city one league square, there was a world ripe with
the five degenerations called Banner of Degeneration, where the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha King of the Lord of Mountains
was residing. He thrived, lived well, and taught the Dharma. At that point there was a
bodhisattva great being named Gandhahastin present in his assembly. In the sky above he
saw an innumerable and limitless number of bodhisattvas departing from the south and
proceeding toward the north. As he looked in the direction in which those
bodhisattva great beings were going, he saw a brilliant light. He then questioned the
thus-gone King of the Lord of Mountains, who replied to him in the same way as before:
“Noble son, beyond buddha realms as numerous as the grains of sand needed to fill a city
one league square, there is a world called Sahā, where the thus-gone Śākyamuni resides.
He thrives, lives well, and teaches the Dharma. In that place, there is now a great
assembly in which that thus-gone one reveals Dharma teachings that are the gateways to
the ascertainment of the three vehicles, in order to ensure that the Dharma way remains
for a long time, to ensure that the lineage of the Three Jewels remains uninterrupted,
to ensure that those who abide by the Dharma remain without interruption, to destroy the
domain of the māras, and to raise the banner of the Dharma. There, all the thus-gone
ones have recited the dhāraṇī mantra called jewel crest and then
left. The thus-gone Śākyamuni has gathered a great assembly of bodhisattva great beings
and hearers who possess the three eyes that are endowed with the four correct knowledges
and who display the sublime states. This retinue distinctly fills the earth and the sky
of the buddha realm of Sahā, and it is insatiable with respect to the Dharma teachings
of the thus-gone Śākyamuni, who is endowed with the most delightful voice.

“Noble son, if you would like to bring my words to the Sahā world in order to
convey them to the thus-gone Śākyamuni, there these words of mine will instill faith in the
practice of the Dharma of The Quintessence of the Sun, the
section on the light rays that destroy the domain of the nāgas, the dhāraṇī mantra that
exhausts the karmic actions of sentient beings. There, I will confer this powerful and
beneficial dhāraṇī mantra that accords with emptiness. It exhausts all forms of
attachment associated with the desire realm, the form realm, and the formless realm, as
well as all forms of pride, special pride, and pride that thinks ‘I am.’ […] It
generates the knowledge of exhaustion, causes one to realize the knowledge of the
unborn, overcomes all the dense darkness of ignorance, and removes the entire burden of
suffering.

tadyathā: dhumate dhumate akṣidhumate
prabhāsadhumate sarvākāśadhumate avavīkṣakhaga vimānakhaga avamohakhaga ananyakhaga
vyavavṛdatikhaga arocanakhaga animākhaga lokakhaga śikhikhaga vitimirakhaga namokhaga
akṣikhaga śrotrakhaga ghrāṇakhaga jihvākhaga kāyakhaga manakhaga rūpakhaga śaptakhaga
gandhakhaga rasakhaga sparśakhaga dharmakhaga cakṣurdhātukhaga rūpadhātukhaga
cakṣurvijñānadhātukhaga yāpadmanadhātukhaga dharmadhātukhaga manvijñānadhātukhaga
pṛthavīdhātukhaga apadhātukhaga tejodhātukhaga vāyudhātukhaga
caturanusmṛtyupasthānakhaga yāvadveṇikakhaga yāvadmārgakhaga abhikṣipa ananana vanana
samudranana sarvakaranana sarvasaṃskaraviśeṣanana akinacananana kṣatakṣata ilimili
iiiilimile svāhā.

“Noble son, this is the dhāraṇī mantra that accords with emptiness. It is very powerful and
beneficial. It exhausts all forms of attachment associated with the desire realm and the
form realm, and […] it removes the burden of suffering. Arise, and go to the buddha
realm of Sahā! Present my words to the thus-gone Śākyamuni and ask him if he has any
ills. […] For those who turn a wheel of non-Dharma in this buddha realm, the
thus-gone King of the Lord of Mountains instills faith by granting the practice of the
Dharma of The Quintessence of the Sun, the section on the
light rays that destroy the nāgas, the dhāraṇī mantra that exhausts the karmic actions
of sentient beings. He confers this powerful and beneficial dhāraṇī mantra that accords
with emptiness. It exhausts all forms of attachment associated with the desire realm and
the form realm, and […] it removes the entire burden of suffering.”

The bodhisattva great being Gandhahastin said, “Respected Blessed One, when I
consider the benefits of the qualities and emptiness that are related to this dhāraṇī
mantra that accords with emptiness, I am afraid to go to the buddha realm of Sahā! Why
is it so, respected Blessed One? Because I have heard and understood what the Blessed
One said: that in that buddha realm of Sahā, sentient beings are predominantly under the
influence of intense desire; […] due to the faults of women, all beings’ roots of
virtue will deteriorate, and they will go to the lower realms and be born as hell
beings.”

The thus-gone King of the Lord of Mountains then said to the bodhisattva
great being Gandhahastin, “The sky has three conditions. Due to those three conditions,
it is always beautiful, it is unafflicted by snow, and it does not dry up the rivers.
When the body has three conditions present—expertise, acceptance, and restraint—the
stormy river of ignorance will not afflict the six sense faculties. You are speaking like a child. Because of those three
circumstances you are liberated from all rivers. These three circumstances reveal the
nonexistence of sentient beings and the Dharma that removes the burden of the
aggregates. You have cultivated the thirteen types of acceptance of the unborn nature of
phenomena and abandoned all fears, so why do you say that you are afraid? Sometimes you
assume the physical form of Brahmā to liberate beings in other buddha realms. At other
times you manifest in many other buddha realms, in the physical forms of Maheśvara,
Śakra, Nārāyaṇa, gods, yakṣas, lords of the nāgas, asuras, universal monarchs, doctors,
members of the kṣatriya class, brāhmaṇas, hearers, […] or ministers. You constantly
manifest within afflicted buddha realms to purify buddha realms, so why do you say that
you are afraid of ripening sentient beings?

“Noble son, I will now reveal to you the teaching of the
inexhaustible core. It fulfills all wishes, it attracts omniscient wisdom,
it subjugates the four māras, it eliminates all obstructions to the lineage of the Three
Jewels, it produces the light rays that destroy the entire domain of the nāgas, it exhausts all karmic
actions of sentient beings, it produces great love, it brings sentient beings to
maturity, it lets one take rebirth in the lower realms intentionally and with great
compassion, it protects sentient beings, it pleases the minds of all beings, it reverses
all wrong paths, views, desires, aspirations, and vehicles of all beings, it liberates
all beings from the lower realms, it liberates all women and causes them to obtain male
bodies, it causes all sections of the Dharma to become inexhaustible, it eliminates all
miserliness, it causes all types of absorption and higher perceptions to become
inexhaustible, it generates faith in all beings, it establishes them on the path of the
bodhisattvas, it transforms the vehicle of the hearers and the vehicle of
conditions, […] and it accomplishes unsurpassed parinirvāṇa. Such is the teaching of
the inexhaustible core. Merely by hearing it, all the karmic
obscurations of sentient beings, as well as all their other obscurations—as numerous as
the grains of sand in the Ganges—that cause them to block, discard, and disregard all
roots of virtue and prevent their fulfillment and practice, will be immediately
exhausted. The fruition of these obscurations will not manifest, except for that of the
karmic actions generated by the acts of immediate retribution, the rejection of the
sacred Dharma, and the denigration of noble beings.

“Noble son, joy, faith, and understanding will develop in those who listen
one-pointedly to this teaching of the inexhaustible core even a
single time. All the
karmic obscurations of those sentient beings, as well as all their other obscurations—as
numerous as the grains of sand in the Ganges—that cause them to block, discard, and
disregard all roots of virtue and prevent their fulfillment and practice, will be
immediately exhausted. The fruition of these obscurations will not manifest. No matter
how they engage in the roots of virtue, if they undertake the practice of the perfection of generosity, they will be blessed by
all buddhas, by all bodhisattvas, by all circumstantial victors, and by all worthy ones. Their households will experience
inexhaustible enjoyments. If they are themselves proper vessels with body, speech, and
mind undefiled by miserliness, and if they practice generosity without apprehension and
with minds free of contempt for the recipients of generosity, even if they give away
their head—their most sacred limb, no one in the world with its gods and humans will be
able to create obstacles for them, unless they have committed the acts of immediate
retribution, rejected the sacred Dharma, or denigrated noble beings.

“If they are diligent in undertaking the practice of the perfection of discipline, if they please the noble
beings and receive their blessings, and if they abide by pure discipline, patience, and
certainty, they will be worthy to be trusted and revered by
Śakra, Brahmā, and all the protectors of the world. They will also be worthy to be revered by all the members of the kṣatriya class,
the brāhmaṇas, the vaiśyas, and the śūdras. They will spend their days and nights
without criticizing others or praising themselves and without clinging to personal gains
and honor. They will sleep well, wake up refreshed, and experience few discomforts, and
food and beverages will be available for them immediately and in great quantity. They
will be compassionate and altruistic toward all beings and will exert themselves in meaningful endeavors.
Later, when they die, in the ten directions they will see blessed buddhas who will give
them this advice: ‘Excellent, sublime being, excellent! Your discipline is faultless, so
please come here to my pure realm! I will establish you on the ten levels.’ Due to their
vision of the buddhas, noble joy and faith will arise in them. After they die, they will
be born into pure buddha realms where buddhas are present, and there they will quickly
reach the ten levels. Once they abide on the ten levels, they will then swiftly awaken
to unsurpassed and perfect buddhahood.

“If, when they hear this teaching of the inexhaustible
core, those persons immediately cultivate the perfection of diligence, they will be endowed with
generosity, pleasant speech, the ability to benefit, diligence that accords with one’s
aim, strength, enthusiasm, intelligence, and sacred courage. They will be worthy to be trusted, worshiped, revered, remembered, pleased,
and protected by all the lords of the gods, nāgas, yakṣas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras,
mahoragas, and humans, […] and they will swiftly awaken to unsurpassed and perfect
buddhahood.

“If, when they hear this teaching of the inexhaustible
core, those persons immediately cultivate the perfection of patience, they will be free from all
beings, they will be endowed with nonapprehension, they will be blessed by noble beings, and they will
achieve the acceptance that focuses on the Dharma. Even if their main and secondary
limbs are cut off, not a single instant of anger will arise in them, and they will
renounce all forms of aggression. They will be worthy to be
trusted by everyone, from the lords of the gods to the lords of the humans, […] and
they will swiftly awaken to unsurpassed and perfect buddhahood.

“Similarly, if, when they hear this teaching of the inexhaustible
core, those persons immediately cultivate the perfection of concentration, they will be swiftly
blessed by noble beings and achieve the concentration that focuses on the Dharma, and
they will achieve liberation, and formless attainment, as well as trillions of gateways
to absorption, dhāraṇī, and acceptance. They will always be considered by all the
buddhas. Everyone—from the lords of the gods to the lords of the humans—will think about
them, and they will deserve their trust. […] They will swiftly awaken to unsurpassed
and perfect buddhahood.

“Noble son, those who listen one pointedly to this teaching of the
inexhaustible core even a single time will give rise to intense joy, faith,
and comprehension. All their karmic obscurations, mental obscurations, obscurations to
the Dharma, and afflictive obscurations—as numerous as the grains of sand in the
Ganges—that cause them to block, discard, and disregard all roots of virtue and prevent
their fulfillment and practice will be exhausted. The fruition of these obscurations
will not manifest, except for that of the karmic actions generated by the acts of
immediate retribution, the rejection of the sacred Dharma, and the denigration of noble
beings.

“When they cultivate the perfection
of insight of the noble ones, they will be blessed by all buddhas, bodhisattvas,
solitary buddhas, and worthy ones, and they will
enjoy remaining in seclusion. The qualities through which they purify and perfect the
faculty of insight of the noble ones will arise within their minds and mental states.
They will comprehend all phenomena and eliminate and transcend all doubts. The world
with its gods and asuras will not be able to harm them, and they will be worthy to be trusted, remembered, pleased, worshiped, revered,
and protected by all the lords of the gods, yakṣas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, and
humans. Later, when they die, in the ten directions they will behold familiar blessed
buddhas who will extend them a hand and say, ‘Sacred being, come here and stay in my
pure buddha realm. I will establish you on the ten levels by means of knowledge.’
Through their vision of these buddhas, their noble joy, and their faith, they will,
after they die, be born into pure buddha realms where buddhas are present. There they
will attain the ten levels, and before long they will awaken to unsurpassed and perfect
buddhahood. Noble son,
this is how greatly beneficial the great teaching of the inexhaustible
core is.

“If sentient beings who are despised and rejected from all the pure buddha
realms, who have committed the acts of immediate retribution, who have rejected the
sacred Dharma, denigrated the noble ones, and committed the root downfalls hear this
great teaching of the inexhaustible core, and if, while maintaining
for seven years an attitude that is loving, affectionate toward all beings, impartial,
and free from slander or idle gossip, they remember it by constantly cultivating the
recollection of the Buddha and fixing their attention on him three times during the day
and three times during the night while draping their shawls over one shoulder, kneeling
on both knees, and joining their palms together, then, after those seven years have
passed, the entirety of their terrible karmic actions will be exhausted and purified.
Noble son this great teaching of the inexhaustible core is
therefore endowed with great miraculous powers.

“If women who wish for success hear this teaching of the
inexhaustible core and remember it while visualizing the Buddha in front of
them three times during the day and three times during the night for seven months while
kneeling on both knees and joining their palms together, they will achieve great
success. From then on, until they reach unsurpassed and perfect awakening, they will no
longer be born with a female body in saṃsāra—unless they wish for it. If women who wish
for a husband, for status, for wealth, for pregnancy, or for sons perform ablutions, guard against
frivolousness, and remember this great teaching of the inexhaustible
core by visualizing the Buddha in front of them three times during the day
and three times during the night in a solitary place while kneeling on both knees and
bowing with their palms joined together, their wishes will then be fulfilled
accordingly. Until they reach unsurpassed nirvāṇa, it will be the last time they are
born with a female body—unless they wish for it. This great teaching of the
inexhaustible core is therefore very meaningful and beneficial; you have
never heard anything like this before!

tadyathā: śaraṇavyaya śikṣavyaya
smṛtivyaya brahmaṇivyaya ṛddhivyaya indrīyavyaya balavyaya bodhyaṅavyaya samādhivyaya
dhāraṇīvyaya kṣāntivyaya dhyānavyaya arūpavyaya aninajavyaya mārgavyaya avijñāvyaya
pratisamavidvyaya bhūmivyaya vidyāvyaya āmaitrivyaya mahākāruṇāvyaya pṛthavivyaya
satvavyaya dharmavyaya tamovyaya ālokavyaya pratibhasavyaya pratiśrudkavyaya
gaganavyaya marutavyaya śunyatāvyaya praṇihitavyaya animittavyaya rutavyaya ghoṣavyaya
kincanāvyaya abhisamaya anūna apaha cacacaca cārāca caravimu cavicakṣaca kucacāravimu
vyayavimu kṣayavimu caravimu cavicakṣaca kucacāravimu vyayavimu kṣayavimu asamudra
caravimu cchadavimu ākāśavimu vyupaśamavimu anābhasavimu ahatavimu ārapāravimu
araparavimu upaśamasalilavimu svāhā.

“Noble son, this is the great teaching of the inexhaustible
core. It is endowed with great qualities, great meaning, and great
benefits. It subjugates all sentient beings and benefits, cleanses, illuminates, and
pacifies all of them.
Arise, and go to the Sahā world to present my words to the thus-gone Śākyamuni!”

Then, amazed and filled with intense joy, the entire retinue exclaimed, “The
unobscured wisdom vision of the blessed buddhas is amazing, and so is this great
teaching taught by the Thus-Gone One! It eliminates all minor, middling, and severe
karmic obscurations that hinder all roots of virtue, and it swiftly delivers the
happiness of emancipation!”

Then, the bodhisattva Gandhahastin exclaimed:

“This inexhaustible core that was uttered

Liberates the entire world

And exhausts all the karmic actions of sentient beings;

There is nothing else like it!

“It casts far away the karmic actions

One has generated in saṃsāra.

It liberates from all forms of suffering

And delivers splendorous merit.

“It dries up the ocean of saṃsāra,

It overcomes all negative actions,

And it swiftly leads to the realms

Where the guides reside.

“After perceiving the many shortcomings

Of saṃsāra, the vessel of suffering,

All afflictions will be cleared away,

And sublime awakening will be achieved.

“If sentient beings listen to this way,

They will become unassailable.

Therefore, listening to it respectfully

Will lead to everything glorious!

“Respected Blessed One, I will remember this great teaching of the
inexhaustible core and go to the Sahā world!”

At that moment, the bodhisattva great beings in the retinue arose from their
absorption, and before long an innumerable and limitless number of them exclaimed
in unison, “Respected Blessed One, we also want to behold the thus-gone Śākyamuni, to
pay homage to him, to worship him, to revere him, to behold his great assembly, and to
listen to the Dharma teaching of The Quintessence of the
Sun, which has never been heard before! Blessed One, please allow us to go
there!”

The thus-gone King of the Lord of Mountains replied, “Noble sons, all of you
please proceed together while adopting the attire, behavior, marks, shape, and majestic
power of Śakra.”

Then, the bodhisattva great being Gandhahastin and all the innumerable and
limitless bodhisattva great beings manifested personal emanations with the attire,
behavior, marks, shape, and majestic power of Śakra. They prostrated to the feet of the
blessed thus-gone King of the Lord of Mountains, circumambulated him three times, and
left. In a single instant they arrived in the Sahā world. As soon as they arrived, in
this buddha realm of Sahā they showered a rain of perfumed substances—powders of white
sandalwood, uragasāra sandalwood, tamāla tree leaves, aloeswood, Chinese incense, and
yellow sandalwood—to worship the blessed Śākyamuni. When, looking like Śakra, they
arrived at the place where the thus-gone Śākyamuni was residing, they prostrated to the
feet of the Blessed One, circumambulated him three times, and then sat to one side. Up to that moment, the
Blessed One had been engaged in a discourse with King Bimbisāra about how to abide by
the Dharma.

Also during that time, in the western direction, beyond buddha realms as
numerous as the grains of sand in forty-two Ganges Rivers, there was a buddha realm ripe
with the five degenerations called Essence Banner, where thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Royal Mass of Glorious Wisdom
was residing. He thrived, lived well, and taught the Dharma to sentient beings and in
accordance with the inclinations of the members of his four assemblies. A bodhisattva
great being named Glorious Essence of Light, who had joined the assembly to listen to
the Dharma, looked upward and saw in the sky above an innumerable and limitless number
of bodhisattva great beings departing from the west and proceeding toward the east. When
he looked in the eastern direction, where those bodhisattva great beings were going, he
saw a brilliant light. He then questioned the thus-gone Royal Mass of Glorious Wisdom,
who replied to him, “Noble son, in the eastern direction, beyond buddha realms as
numerous as the grains of sand in forty-two Ganges Rivers, in a place ripe with the five
degenerations, there is a world called Sahā, where the blessed Buddha, the thus-gone
Śākyamuni, resides, thrives, lives well, and teaches the Dharma. At this time, there is
in that place a great assembly in which that thus-gone one reveals Dharma teachings
that are the gateways to the ascertainment of the three vehicles, to ensure that the
Dharma way and the lineage of the Three Jewels endure for a long time, to ensure that
those who abide by the Dharma remain without interruption, to destroy the domain of the
māras, and to raise the banner of the Dharma. There, all the thus-gone ones have recited
the dhāraṇī mantra called jewel crest and then left. The thus-gone
Śākyamuni has gathered a great assembly of bodhisattva great beings and hearers who
possess the three eyes that are endowed with the four correct knowledges and who display
the sublime states. This retinue distinctly fills the earth and the sky of the buddha
realm of Sahā, and it is insatiable with respect to the Dharma teachings of the
thus-gone Śākyamuni, who is endowed with the most delightful voice.

“Noble son, if you would like to bring my words to the Sahā world in order to
convey them to the thus-gone Śākyamuni, I shall instill faith there in the practice of
the Dharma of The Quintessence of the Sun, the section on
the light rays that destroy the domain of the nāgas, the dhāraṇī mantra that exhausts
the karmic actions of sentient beings. There, I will confer this powerful and beneficial
acceptance that accords with the absence of wishes. It exhausts all forms of attachment
associated with the desire realm, the form realm, and the formless realms, as well as
all forms of pride, special pride, and pride that thinks ‘I am.’ […] It generates
the knowledge of exhaustion, causes one to realize the knowledge of the unborn,
overcomes all the dense darkness of ignorance, and removes the burden of suffering.

tadyathā: śanaśava maśanaśava
avakṣaśava kṣukṣutaśava cakṣaśava śrotraśava ghrāṇaśava jihvaśava kāyaśava manaśava
kṣubhavidha cakṣuprativiśava śrotra abhakṣabha ghrāṇatejakṣabha jihvavāyukṣabha
kāyakramakṣabha manoja ālokajñāyakṣabha vījasaṅkramakṣabha aṅgarakhagakṣabha
samāropavyayakṣabha śamakankṣabha kṣayakarasakṣabha śāntavyahyasthakṣabha
natotaitatona acanainanatona naghavanayinatona eśa evāntodukhasya svāhā.

“Noble son, this is the dhāraṇī mantra that accords with the absence of
wishes. It is powerful and beneficial, it exhausts all forms of attachment associated
with the desire realm and the form realm, […] and it removes the entire burden of
suffering. Take it with you, and go to the Sahā world! Convey my words to the thus-gone
Śākyamuni and ask him if he has any ills or problems and whether he is healthy and well.
Tell him, ‘In the western direction, beyond buddha realms as numerous as the grains of
sand in forty-two Ganges Rivers, there is a buddha realm ripe with the five
degenerations called Essence Banner, where the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Royal Mass of Glorious Wisdom
resides, lives well, and teaches the Dharma to sentient beings and in accordance with
the inclinations of the members of his four assemblies. That thus-gone one has sent me here from that place to
ask these questions to the Blessed One: “Respected Blessed One, are you well and free
from ills? Are the members of your retinue in good health? Are they eager to listen to
the sacred Dharma? Do they apply the Dharma in the way they hear it? Do they persevere
in that Dharma? Do they abide by the Dharma? Are the domains of the māras and the nāgas
subjugated in your buddha realm? Is this the domain of a single buddha? Are you turning
the Dharma wheel without obstruction in this place?” For those who turn a wheel of
non-Dharma in this buddha realm, the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Royal Mass of Glorious Wisdom instills faith by
granting the practice of the Dharma of The Quintessence of the
Sun, the section on the light rays that destroy the domain of the nāgas, this
dhāraṇī mantra that exhausts the karmic actions of sentient beings. He also confers this
powerful and beneficial dhāraṇī mantra that accords with the absence of wishes. It
exhausts all forms of attachment associated with the desire realm and the form
realm, […] and it removes the entire burden of suffering.’ ”

The bodhisattva great being Glorious Essence of Light then said, “Respected
Blessed One, when I consider the benefits of this dhāraṇī mantra that accords with the
absence of wishes, I am very afraid of going to the buddha realm of Sahā! Why is it so? Because I
have heard and understood what the Blessed One said: in that buddha realm of Sahā,
sentient beings experience intense suffering due to their improper views; they are
predominantly under the influence of intense desire and are like blind persons; […]
due to the faults of women, all roots of virtue will deteriorate, and beings will be
born instantly in the Hell of Unceasing Torment.”

The thus-gone Royal Mass of Glorious Wisdom replied to the bodhisattva great
being Glorious Essence of Light, “Answer these questions, noble son, answer these
questions! In the buddha realm of Sahā, in the great ocean between the four continents,
have you not established six hundred forty million nāgas into the practice of taking the
threefold refuge by displaying the frightening appearance of a garuḍa, the king of
birds, for nine days? Have you not caused them to give rise to the mind set on
unsurpassed and perfect awakening?”

“Respected Blessed One, that is correct. I did as you have just said. I have
indeed established sixty hundred forty million nāgas in that practice, until awakening,
by displaying a frightening appearance.”

“Well then, noble son, in the middle of the four continents, in the place
where no rain was falling and all the nāgas had become distressed, did you not manifest
as great elephant-nāgas, great horse-nāgas, and great snake-nāgas showering down rains
for seven days?”

“Respected Blessed One, that is correct. I did that due to my specific past
aspirations.”

“Then why are you nervous to be sent there by me?” the Blessed One continued.

The bodhisattva replied, “Respected Blessed One, when a skilled person
encounters a great treasure of gems and starts digging with his fingernails, the more he
or she digs, the more he or she will discover large amounts of jewels. Respected Blessed
One, in the same way, the more a skilled person extracts the thus-gone ones’ treasure by
means of such words, the more that person will gain huge amounts of invaluable Dharma
gems. Therefore, in order to ripen beings in that place, I am now seeking from the
Thus-Gone One great amounts of Dharma seals that can generate the thus-gone ones’ power,
so that I may ripen a huge number of these beings.”

The thus-gone Royal Mass of Glorious Wisdom then said to the bodhisattva
great being Glorious Essence of Light, “Noble son, I confer upon you what is known as
the great teaching of the fundamental knowledge mantra:

tadyathā: striraṇaśama samudthānaśama
avarjanaśama svaraṁgaśasama saṁyogaśama bandhanaśama samavisaraśama vātīnaśama
samākramśama avidyāśama saṃskāraśama vijñānaśama nāmarūpaśama ṣaḍāyatanaśama
sparśaśama vedanaśama tṛṣṇaśama upādanaśama bhavaśama jātiśama jarāmaraṇaśama
yāvadsarvamanuṣyaśama yāvadsarvatraidhātukasaṁskṛtaśama ārapāraśama.

“This is the great teaching of the fundamental knowledge
mantra. In that place,
merely by hearing that great teaching, the lesser, moderate, and intense cravings of
sentient beings and their afflictions that are the cause of saṃsāra will be completely
pacified, as will their afflictions that act as the causes of rebirth in the form and
formless realms. All their afflictions, as numerous as the grains of sand in the Ganges,
will be pulverized, and all the physical, verbal, and mental negativities of the five
classes of beings that they have accumulated so far—those that have not yet reached full
fruition and those that have not been purified—will be counteracted. If some beings
listen one-pointedly and appropriately to this great teaching of the
fundamental knowledge mantra and cultivate this Dharma for seven
days without doing anything else, everything that causes the deterioration and
obstruction of virtue will be exhausted without coming to fruition. The same applies to
everything that causes wealth to decline, everything that causes one to be separated
from desirable objects, everything that harms the body and disturbs the mind, everything
that causes one to feel weary of any type of virtue, and everything that causes one to
feel joyful about any type of nonvirtue—except for the acts of immediate retribution,
the rejection of the sacred Dharma, the denigration of the noble ones, and the root
downfalls.

“Those beings will then engage in such roots of virtue. If they undertake the
practice of the perfection of generosity, they
will be blessed by all buddhas, by all bodhisattvas, by all circumstantial victors, and
by all worthy ones, and their households will
experience inexhaustible wealth. If they cultivate the perfections of discipline, patience, diligence, concentration, and insight,
they will not be
harmed by the world with its gods and asuras. Instead, they will be worthy to be trusted, remembered, pleased, worshiped, revered, and protected
by everyone, from all the lords of the gods to all the lords of the humans. Later, when
they die, they will see in the ten directions blessed buddhas who will extend their
hands and tell them, ‘Sublime beings, welcome! Please stay here in my pure buddha realm.
I will establish you on the ten levels.’ Due to their visions of the buddhas and their
noble joy and faith, they will, after they die, be born into buddha realms where the
buddhas are present. There, they will reach the ten levels, and before long they will
awaken to unsurpassed and perfect buddhahood. Noble son, this great teaching of the
fundamental knowledge mantra is therefore very valuable.

“Noble son, in that buddha realm of Sahā, sentient beings are deteriorating
in the roots of virtue that are conducive to certainty. Why is it so? Because they have
been removed from all the buddha realms of the ten directions and because they commit
the acts of immediate retribution, reject the sacred Dharma, denigrate the noble ones,
and commit the root downfalls. For a long time, they have all experienced various types
of intense and harsh suffering in the three lower realms. Due to their release from and
purification of those three lower realms, they adopt the paths of the ten virtuous actions. Due
to that cause, as well as the previous aspirations of the thus-gone Śākyamuni, they have
now obtained a human body in that buddha realm. However, because of their familiarity
with the experience of suffering in the lower realms, they have completely forgotten any
faculties of faith up to insight that they had developed familiarity with in the past.
This also applies to any previous familiarity with generosity up to insight, and it also
applies to aspirations, weariness of saṃsāra, happiness of emancipation, and cultivation
of the sublime states. Having forgotten all these, they have been born into that buddha
realm. Moreover, due to all their former negative acts, they are born unattractive,
ugly, with limbs missing, and lacking food, drinks, clothes, bedding, and ornaments.
There they have short lifespans, their intellect and intelligence are weak, and they
have few resources and possessions. Their roots of virtue, merits, and accomplishments
are weak, and they perform few positive deeds. They engage in negative activities, they
are seized by wrong view, they have faith in negative treatises, and they form harmful
aspirations. They are affected by many diseases, they have many distractions, they have
many activities and undertakings, and they repeatedly perform the three types of
negative acts. They are discomposed, scathing, impetuous, harsh,
and angry. They follow the paths of the ten nonvirtuous actions, and they reject the
Three Jewels. Therefore, most beings in that buddha realm are headed for the three lower
realms.

“Noble son, merely hearing this great teaching of the fundamental
knowledge mantra will immediately liberate those beings from the paths that
lead to the lower realms, since it connects them to the virtues that accord with
certainty. They will rejoice in their past familiarity with the faculties of faith up to
insight, as well as in their former formation of aspirations,
meditation on the defects of saṃsāra, and cultivation of the sublime states. Just by
hearing it, their lifespans will increase, their health will improve, their resources
and possessions will multiply, and their virtuous deeds will immensely increase, as will
their accomplishments of roots of virtue, their insight, their love, their equanimity,
and their wholesome actions. Just by hearing it, they will all develop the correct view.
Those beings who listen respectfully to this great teaching of the fundamental
knowledge mantra and contemplate these qualities one-pointedly for seven
days without doing anything else will follow the paths of the ten virtuous actions. They
will engage in the three types of positive acts, take refuge in the Three Jewels,
delight in the strength of aspirations, abide by the Dharma, and illuminate the lineage
of the Three Jewels. All those beings—except for those who have committed the acts of
immediate retribution or the root downfalls—will recollect their previous lives there.
After they die, they will then be born in this buddha realm of Sahā, over and over
again. Those sentient beings who have not yet experienced the karmic ripening of their
extremely severe negative actions will, if they hear this great teaching of the
fundamental knowledge mantra, achieve such qualities. As soon as
they hear it, all their immeasurable karmic obscurations will be exhausted.

“In that place, those sentient beings should write down this entire Dharma
teaching. They should build statues of the seven perfect buddhas and create monastic
compounds for the saṅgha of the thus-gone Śākyamuni’s hearers who abide by the Dharma.
They should also arrange benefactors in that place, exert themselves in restoring their
vows at the proper times, and listen to the Dharma. For those sentient beings who have
developed delight and supreme joy in the Three Jewels, there may manifest some
undesirable consequences that resemble those various types of intense suffering they
would otherwise experience in the three lower realms for myriads of eons: some may be
sick for extended periods, but this will lead to the exhaustion of the capacity of their
previous nonvirtuous actions. For some, it will be exhausted through their limbs being
cut off. For some, it will be exhausted through running out of wealth. For some, it will
be exhausted through the dissolution of their retinues. For some, it will be exhausted
through losing their resources and possessions. For some, it will be exhausted through
being harmed physically by members of their retinues and servants, or through being
thrown into prison. For some, it will be exhausted through being told unpleasant words
and being insulted. Through such consequences of similar nature, the nonvirtuous actions
they created previously will be exhausted. Noble son, this great teaching of the
fundamental knowledge mantra is therefore very valuable.

tadyathā: khagapariccheda garbhakṣase
garbharevidyā prabhagakṣe kṣavayoge pratihāre śamanasikathe samameghajuṣṭe akṣayatate
kṣabhavaje ninadanajhuṣe samāgrajhuṣe adhyāśayajhuṣe viprabhajhuṣe śaikṣajhuṣe
satyajavajhuṣe sainyajavajhuṣe salilaguhyajhuṣe salaguhyavyākṣe paṇaghoṣe sadānakone
sarvadhananthye vītapravṛtate upakramaṇathe anacchadyaprakhe pratikramana sakhathyeśe
salocanavame krodhadharekāśasaśe ākāśakhage nayakuñje vidyāvane klānavane upavane
samemakāre śārayavane meghajhuṣe harikona vanayanmukhe sarakṣakole narāyanajhuṣe
indravasane o a a va ā aravaha jarā avarāva sameghaduḥkhenastiraṇirvāhe
svāhā.

“Noble son, this great teaching of the fundamental
knowledge mantra is very valuable and beneficial. It benefits, cleanses,
illuminates, reminds, and pacifies all beings. Sentient beings who listen to it
one-pointedly and accomplish it as it is taught will be blessed by all thus-gone ones,
by all bodhisattva great beings, by all circumstantial victors, and by all the worthy ones. They will deserve the consideration,
trust, reverence, offerings, and protection of everyone—from the lords of the gods to
the lords of the humans. Later, in their last moment of consciousness when they are
about to die, they will see in front of them blessed buddhas from the ten directions
who will extend their
hands and tell them, ‘O, come here, you who possess a wealth of qualities! Please stay
in my pure buddha realm. I will establish you on the ten levels.’ Due to their noble
joy, delight, and faith born from their visions of the buddhas, they will, after they
die, be born into buddha realms where the buddhas are present. There they will reach the
ten levels and swiftly awaken to unsurpassed and perfect buddhahood. This great teaching
of the fundamental knowledge mantra is therefore very valuable and
beneficial for exhausting the karmic actions of sentient beings and causing the
attainment of complete purity and the attainment of the happiness of emancipation.
Therefore, take it with you, go to the Sahā world, and present my words to the thus-gone
Śākyamuni!”

The bodhisattva great being Glorious Essence of Light replied, “Respected
Blessed One, I shall do so!”

At that moment, in that retinue, an innumerable and limitless number of
bodhisattva great beings exclaimed in unison, “Respected Blessed One, we also want to
behold the thus-gone Śākyamuni, to pay homage to him, to revere him, to behold his great
assembly, and to hear the practice of the Dharma of The
Quintessence of the Sun, the section on the light rays that destroy the domain
of the nāgas, this dhāraṇī mantra that exhausts the karmic actions of sentient beings.
It has not been long since we arose from the practice of absorption. Respected Blessed
One, since many others have already left, please allow us also to go to the Sahā world!”

The thus-gone Royal Mass of Glorious Wisdom said to them, “Noble sons, all of
you proceed together while assuming the complexion, marks, appearance, shape, behavior,
and attire of Nārāyaṇa!”

They replied, “Respected Blessed One, we shall do so!”

The bodhisattva great being Glorious Essence of Light and all those
bodhisattva great beings now transformed themselves to have the complexion, marks,
appearance, shape, behavior, and attire of Nārāyaṇa. They prostrated to the feet of the
thus-gone Royal Mass of Glorious Wisdom and circumambulated him three times. Then they
left and instantaneously arrived in the buddha realm of Sahā. As soon as they arrived,
they showered a rain of gold from the Jambū River everywhere in the buddha realm of Sahā
in order to worship the Blessed One. They then proceeded toward the middle region of the
four continents, in the direction of Magadha. When they arrived there, they prostrated
to the feet of the blessed Śākyamuni and sat to one side. The Blessed One was still
engaged in a discourse with King Bimbisāra about how to abide by the Dharma.

Also during that time, in the northern direction, beyond buddha realms as
numerous as the grains of sand in eighty Ganges Rivers, there was a buddha realm ripe
with the five degenerations called Manifestation of All Perfumes, where the thus-gone,
worthy, perfect Buddha Glorious Essence of
Flowers was residing. He thrived, lived well, and taught the Dharma. A bodhisattva great being named
Ākāśagarbha was present in that assembly in order to listen to the Dharma. At one point,
he looked in the sky above and saw an innumerable and limitless number of bodhisattva
great beings departing from the north and proceeding toward the south. When he looked in
the southern direction, he saw a brilliant light. He then bowed down with his palms
joined together in the direction of the Buddha Glorious Essence of Flowers and said,
“Respected Blessed One, when I recently arose from the practice of absorption, I saw in
the sky above an innumerable and limitless number of bodhisattva great beings departing
from the north and going toward the south. Then, respected Blessed One, as I looked
toward the south, I saw a brilliant light and wondered, ‘Why is this so?’ ”

The thus-gone Glorious Essence of Flowers replied to the bodhisattva great
being Ākāśagarbha, “Noble son, in the southern direction, beyond buddha realms as
numerous as the grains of sand in eighty Ganges Rivers, there is a buddha realm ripe
with the five degenerations called Sahā, where the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Śākyamuni resides. He
thrives, lives well, and to a great assembly he now reveals Dharma teachings that are
the gateways to the ascertainment of the three vehicles, to ensure that the Dharma way
endures for a long time and that those who abide by the Dharma of the lineage of the
Three Jewels remain without interruption. In that buddha realm of Sahā, a great assembly of the
Buddha has gathered to destroy and cleanse the domain of the māras, to raise the banner
of the Dharma, and to ensure that the Dharma way remains for a long time. There, all the
thus-gone ones have uttered the dhāraṇī mantra called jewel crest
and then left after having engaged with that buddha realm. The thus-gone Śākyamuni has
gathered a great assembly of bodhisattva great beings and great hearers who possess the
three eyes that are endowed with the four correct knowledges and who display the sublime
states. This retinue fills the earth and the sky of that buddha realm of Sahā, and it is
insatiable with respect to the Dharma teachings of the thus-gone Śākyamuni, who is
endowed with the most delightful voice.

“Wishing to explain the four means of attracting disciples, the practice of
the Dharma of The Quintessence of the Sun, the section on
the light rays that destroy the domain of the nāgas, the dhāraṇī mantra that exhausts
the karmic actions of sentient beings, that thus-gone Śākyamuni, who is endowed with the
most delightful voice, has formed the wish, ‘May the bodhisattva great beings from the
buddha realms of the ten directions—from those who will reach emancipation over a
hundred eons up to those who are in their final existence and possess the eighteen
unique qualities, who are not led astray by others, and who are experts in unobstructed
wisdom—enter this buddha realm of Sahā at this very moment! Once they are here, may they
abide by each of their virtuous concentrations! In the same way, may the great earth in
this buddha realm come to possess great strength, nourishment, and qualities. In the
same way, may everyone be endowed with recollection, diligence, generosity, and insight—just as in other
buddha realms! May all bodhisattva great beings who are dwelling in the buddha realms of
the ten directions enter this buddha realm of Sahā at this very moment! Once they have
gathered here, may they dwell in accordance with the power of their individual virtues
and in accordance with their concentrations!’

“The light that radiates from the bodies of some of those beings who are
absorbed in states of concentration is like the light emitted by oil lamps. The light
that radiates from the bodies of some is like the light emitted by […] many
trillions of suns and moons. This brilliant light emitted by the gathering of those
bodhisattva great beings is now pervading the buddha realm of Sahā. Right now, the
bodhisattva great beings who had withdrawn into meditative seclusion in all the buddha
realms of the ten directions and who had never previously gone to the buddha realm of
Sahā have arisen from their absorptions and departed for that realm. Once they arrive
there, they will behold that thus-gone one and his great assembly. They will hear that
great dhāraṇī mantra, sit cross-legged, and revel in a variety of individual virtuous
concentrations.

“Noble son, you should also arise from your absorption and go to the buddha
realm of Sahā! Noble son, in that buddha realm of Sahā, sentient beings have extremely
short lifespans. They are affected by many diseases, their intelligence is weak, and
their involvement with roots of virtue is limited. Their merit and their pursuit of
virtuous activities are weak, they are not afraid of the afterlife, their resources
and possessions are few, and they are attached to desirable objects. They engage in
nonvirtue, they are envious, and they have abandoned modesty and humility. Since most of
them have adopted the paths of the ten nonvirtuous actions, they will be born in the
lower realms. Why is it so? Because, after they die, sentient beings living there who
engage in a variety of actions are born in that same place as evil beings—from yakṣas to
kaṭapūtanas. Those evil beings—from yakṣas to kaṭapūtanas—feed themselves by robbing the
earth of its vitality. They also feed themselves by robbing of their vitality all
grains, herbs, flowers, fruits, leaves, and juices. In this sense they are powerful
beings. They also rob the vitality of humans who are in the womb and the vitality of
those who have just been born. They also rob the vitality of the milk and the vitality
of food and beverages. Since, in that place, they rob the vitality of humans when they
are in the womb and right after they are born, the humans lack vitality and so must feed
themselves on food and drink that are already degraded. Because of this, the humans
living there are very sickly and have short lifespans. They are forgetful, and all their
roots of virtue are corrupted. They are devoid of merit, they are not afraid of the
afterlife, they lack resources and possessions, and they are attached to desirable
objects. Since their conduct is impure, […] and since they have adopted the paths of
the ten nonvirtuous actions, they will be born in the lower realms.

“Noble son, in the past, when I was a bodhisattva, I made the aspiration to
be endowed with diligence, enthusiasm, and firm resolution during my
activities, and I venerated the perfect buddhas of the past. I supplicated them so that
I may be able to protect pregnant women by whatever means necessary. I supplicated them
so that, through my diligence, both the mothers and the children present in their wombs
may experience well-being. I supplicated them so that no gods, nāgas, yakṣas, rākṣasas,
garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas, kumbhāṇḍas, pretas, piśācas, pūtanas, kaṭapūtanas,
ojohāras, apasmāras, fevers that last one day, fevers that last two days, fevers that
last three days, fevers that last four days, vetālas, mantras, or medicines may be able
to harm their bodies and minds. I supplicated them so that the mothers, the children
present in their wombs, the newborn children, the milk they drink, and the food and
drink they ingest may not be harmed in any way. I supplicated them so that their
vitality may not be robbed and so that their bodies, elements, and minds may not be
disturbed in any way. I supplicated them so that those beings may remain in the womb in
a natural way and so that they may come out of the womb easily and unharmed, without
their bodies or minds being hurt. I supplicated them so that they may drink milk and
enjoy food and beverages with ease. I supplicated them so that they may experience
little discomfort, live a long life, be intelligent,  […] adopt the paths of the ten virtuous actions,
delight in generosity, self-control, and restraint, and be afraid of the afterlife. I
asked them what are the mantras and medicines through which I could ripen those sentient
beings, and so those perfect buddhas of the past taught me this great teaching—a mantra
formula, a dhāraṇī mantra called the peaceful core of knowledge,
through which I could ripen infinite myriads of beings and establish them in the six
perfections.

“With firm diligence and resolution, in all my lives I continuously protected
pregnant women with this dhāraṇī mantra, this mantra formula, this vidyā mantra called
the peaceful core of knowledge. I established in the three
objects of refuge these women and the children in their wombs. From then on, those
pregnant women and their children could not be hurt or injured, and their bodies,
elements, and minds could no longer be disturbed by gods or any other beings, including
māras, apasmāras, humans, and nonhumans. The world with its gods and asuras could no
longer rob their vitality or hurt them with any medicines or mantras. Pregnant mothers
would not be harmed by them anymore, and the children present in their wombs would
remember their previous lives. The bodies of those beings who had entered the womb would
have perfectly developed faculties, beautiful and elegant appearances, and excellent
complexions which are replete with the most delightful features. They would be highly
intelligent and emerge from the bellies of their mothers with ease and with minds free of forgetfulness.
Immediately after their births, powerful gods renowned for their great strength, each
surrounded by a retinue of a hundred thousand members, would protect them and guard
them. No humans or nonhumans could hurt them, injure them, disturb their bodies,
elements, and minds, take their vitality, or hurt them with mantras and drugs. Those
beings would have the most excellent physiques, and they would remember their past lives
and be afraid of the afterlife. They would be endowed with a loving mindset, great
compassion, and a generous attitude. They would delight in discipline and be endowed
with patience, diligence, and other qualities. They would enjoy seclusion, exert
themselves in concentration, and experience great joy in the presence of virtuous
friends, and they would be endowed with the noble knowledge of emancipation that brings
such qualities and leads to the exhaustion of suffering. Gods, nāgas, and yakṣas would
diligently venerate those beings who dwelled in peace and with few afflictions. These
people would vividly perceive the defects of saṃsāra and wish for the happiness of
emancipation. If they were to give rise to the mind set on unsurpassed and perfect
awakening, they would accordingly swiftly achieve the absorption of the bodhisattvas
without forgetting the mind set on awakening. If they were to give rise to the mind set
on the vehicle of the solitary buddhas, they would swiftly achieve the acceptance that
accords with birth and disintegration. If those sentient beings were to give rise to the
mind set on the vehicle of the hearers, they would, in accordance with this, achieve the
acceptance that accords with the truth. All those sentient beings would be free from the
three lower realms and proceed toward the higher realms. Noble son, through my
commitment to engaging in the application of such skillful means, I ripened sentient
beings and accomplished unsurpassed and perfect awakening. Noble son, this great
teaching of the peaceful core of knowledge is therefore very
meaningful.

“Noble son, when I saw sentient beings affected by diseases, I would
infuse the medicinal plant siṃhakṣir with
this great teaching of the peaceful core of knowledge and give it
to those sick persons, and all their diseases would be completely cured. Where no such
medicinal plant was available, I would instead infuse food and drink with the teaching
of the peaceful core of knowledge and give it to those sick
persons, and all their diseases would be completely cured. If those were not available
either, I would infuse medicinal decoctions with the
mantra formula of the peaceful core of knowledge and give it to
those sick persons, and all their diseases would be completely cured. Noble son, through
my commitment to engaging in the application of such skillful means, I ripened sentient
beings and accomplished unsurpassed and perfect awakening.

“Noble son, in places where trees did not bear flowers or fruits, I would
infuse rainwater with the mantra formula of the peaceful core of
knowledge and sprinkle it on those trees. Many flowers and fruits would
then grow on those trees for many years, even in the absence of any water. I did the
same with sugarcane plants, grapes, grains, and herbs. In places affected by droughts,
where no rain was falling, I would infuse tortoise heart
with the mantra formula of the peaceful core of knowledge and wrap
it with campaka leaves.
I would then place it on the shore of the ocean of the nāgas, and strong rains and great
masses of water would pour down. If the downpour of those strong rains damaged the
houses, fields, and monastic compounds, I would then infuse a precious gem of the king
of snakes with this mantra formula of the peaceful core of
knowledge and place it in the abode of those nāgas, and the rains would
then come to a halt.

“In places affected by untimely wind, sun, untimely clouds, darkness,
sandstorms, cold, heat, or untimely seasons, by armies, or by disturbances of the moon,
the sun, the planets, the lunar mansions, the full moon, the half-moon, the seasons, or
the years, I would, for the sake of sentient beings and out of compassion for them,
perform ablutions day and night for seven days, feed on milk and cooked rice, and with
great delight in the cultivation of the sublime states recite this teaching of
the peaceful core of knowledge without doing anything else. Had I
failed to look after those lands for these seven days, I would not have kept the promise
I made to myself. In those places, I would infuse with this great teaching of
the peaceful core of knowledge an extract of campa herbs combined with uragasāra sandalwood, mix it
with an emetic made from the fruits of madana trees, and place it by a temple. That
would pacify all instances of untimely wind, sun, untimely clouds, darkness, sandstorms,
cold, and heat, and it would cause the seasons, the moon, the sun, the planets, the
lunar mansions, the full moon, the half-moon, and the years to occur properly.

“Noble son, in this way I revealed the Dharma of this great teaching of
the peaceful core of knowledge in places where people adhered to
signs of auspiciousness and fortune and had wrong views. Wherever people heard it, their
afflictions would diminish. After renouncing all such signs of auspiciousness, fortune,
and wrong views, those beings henceforth formed groups devoted to virtuous deeds and
wholesome actions and to numerous aspirations.

“Noble son, similarly, through my commitment to engaging in the application
of such skillful means, I ripened sentient beings, made them master the six perfections,
and awoke to unsurpassed and perfect buddhahood. This great teaching of the
peaceful core of knowledge is therefore very helpful and beneficial to
sentient beings: it benefits all of them, it cures all their diseases, and it protects
and liberates all pregnant women. It pacifies all afflictions, it generates complete
knowledge of all the aggregates and elements, and it causes one to discern all
phenomena. It reveals all skillful means, it makes one realize the complete happiness of
emancipation, and it induces sincere faith in all sentient beings. It causes one to
attain happiness related to all phenomena, it eradicates all māras and enemies in
accordance with the Dharma, and it thoroughly subjugates all the domains of the māras.
Noble son, this great teaching of the peaceful core of knowledge
annihilates all māras and vanquishes the afflictions. It pleases the gods, it delights
the yakṣas, it overcomes the asuras, it frightens the garuḍas, it generates faith in the
kinnaras, and it puts the mahoragas to flight. It completely pacifies quarrels, fights, famines, death,
diseases, hostile armies, untimely wind, rain, and all types of sicknesses. It pacifies
cold, heat, snow, and heat waves, and it softens substances that are harsh, rough, and
hard to touch. It causes the way of the Dharma related to all phenomena to blaze, it
reveals the teachings of the buddhas, and it ensures that the lineage of the Three
Jewels remains uninterrupted. It provides relief to those who are afraid of saṃsāra, it
generates knowledge of exhaustion, it actualizes knowledge of the unborn, it overcomes
all the dense darkness of ignorance, and it removes the burden of suffering. This is the
great teaching of the peaceful core of knowledge:

tadyathā: manākṣa avākṣa ghasākṣa
janekṣa marmanākṣa kṣavākṣa maṇḍākṣa naṭākṣa nadarahu visanāda khaganāda atanaṭa
kunaṭa parikunaṭa nāṭanāṭa parikanāṭa udtaranāṭa vināṭa kuñjanāṭa cavaṃvaranāṭa
khaghamabhanāṭa puśkaranāṭa siṅharudranāṭa samalanāṭa śirikusaklaunāṭa talamarutakhava
tehukṣavatirakṣadāmarajuvaha naputisantiranajava amohoragajala atrinā atrinā rava
atrinākṣa avahā mārgatrinākṣa eṣa evantoduḥkhasya svāhā.”

When the Blessed One delivered this teaching, six hundred million beings in
that retinue achieved the concordant acceptance, and sixty trillion of them entered into
faultlessness.

“Noble son, through you I will confer this great teaching of the
peaceful core of knowledge upon the thus-gone Śākyamuni. I will also bestow
faith in the practice of the Dharma of The Quintessence of the
Sun, the section on the light rays that destroy the domain of the nāgas, the
dhāraṇī mantra that exhausts the karmic actions of sentient beings. Take this peaceful core of
knowledge with you, and go to that buddha realm of Sahā! Present my words
to the thus-gone Śākyamuni, and ask him if he has any ills or problems and whether he is
healthy and well. Tell him, ‘In the northern direction, beyond buddha realms as numerous
as the grains of sand in eighty Ganges Rivers, there is a buddha realm ripe with the
five degenerations called Manifestation of All Sounds, where the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Glorious Essence of Flowers
resides and teaches the Dharma. That thus-gone one has sent me here from that buddha
realm to ask these questions to the Blessed One: “Respected Blessed One, are you well
and free from ills? Are the members of your retinue comfortable and in good health? Are
they eager to listen to the sacred Dharma? Do they apply the Dharma persistently in the
way they hear it? Do they abide by the Dharma? Are the domains of the māras and the
nāgas subjugated in your buddha realm? Is this your only buddha realm? Are you turning
the Dharma wheel without obstruction in this place?” For the sake of those who will turn
the wheel in this buddha realm, the thus-gone Glorious Essence of Flowers will, in this
place, bestow faith in the practice of the Dharma of The
Quintessence of the Sun, this section on the light rays that destroy the
domain of the nāgas, the dhāraṇī mantra that cleanses the karmic actions of sentient
beings. He bestows this powerful and beneficial great teaching of the peaceful
core of knowledge, which benefits all beings, cures all diseases, pacifies all
afflictions, […] and removes the burden of suffering.’ ”

At that moment, the entire retinue exclaimed, amazed and astonished, “The
blessed buddhas’ wisdom and vision, which are unimpeded with respect to all phenomena,
are amazing! They are truly amazing! The Thus-Gone One has now revealed to us nothing
but this great teaching of the peaceful core of knowledge, which
benefits all beings and has never been heard before. What wise being in pursuit of
awakening would not strive for something endowed with such countless and limitless
qualities?”

Then, the bodhisattva Ākāśagarbha said, “When the sentient beings who are
afraid of saṃsāra and pursue the happiness of emancipation proclaim the names of the
Blessed One and the words of this dhāraṇī mantra peaceful core of
knowledge, the great attainments and virtues of sentient beings will
greatly increase in them, along with feelings of joy, delight, and respect.”

The thus-gone Glorious Essence of Flowers replied, “Thus it is, noble son! It
is just as you have said! Noble son, when I was a bodhisattva and practiced the conduct
with diligence, I made these aspirations: ‘Once I achieve awakening, if, in all the
buddha realms of the ten directions, sentient beings who have the wish to strive for the
perfections—from generosity up to insight—
proclaim my name and
cause sentient beings to contemplate it, then, if there are any beings in the world with
its gods and asuras who have the ability to create obstacles to their practice of those
perfections, may the virtuous side of those
beings—all but the causes that are results of their previous actions—multiply many
hundreds of thousands of times! May I postpone my awakening to unsurpassed and perfect
buddhahood in order to help those mothers who experience great joy with their children,
those who are weary of the burden of having children, and those pregnant women who pay
homage to me, as well as anyone who proclaims my name with joy, respect, and faith. May
I postpone my awakening to unsurpassed and perfect buddhahood in order to help should
any human or nonhuman being filled with hostility use medicines or mantras to hurt or
disturb the bodies and minds of such mothers and the children they carry in their wombs,
or should they for a single instant hurt a newborn baby!’ Those are the aspirations I
made in the past when I was a bodhisattva. In accordance with those, anyone who is now
tormented by such sufferings in any buddha realm and—as it was explained before—anyone
who proclaims my name with joy, respect, and faith will be liberated from their
sufferings. It will not be any other way—except when it comes to causes that are results
of their previous actions, if these are not purified.”

The bodhisattva said, “Respected Blessed One, that buddha realm of Sahā is
strange: in that place, sentient beings are extremely hostile, impetuous, harsh, and
envious. They lack affection and gratitude, they speak with harsh words, and they adhere
to wrong views. So it would not be good if I were hurt there by some of those beings. I
would not benefit anyone by going there!”

“Noble son,” replied the Blessed One, “it is impossible. There is no chance
for this to happen! Not even ten million māras could hurt or create obstacles to those
who have properly cultivated and contemplated the sublime states free from concepts; it
would be impossible! Noble son, you have already properly cultivated and contemplated
the sublime states free from concepts for a long time, so do not be afraid! Noble son, I
will confer upon you a dhāraṇī mantra of great love that emerges from the sublime states
free from concepts. Through this mantra, all hostile beings will develop trust and
become stupefied; it will cause them to achieve acceptance, recollection, and sincere
faith.

tadyathā: vovriha vuvula ilavara
ilasaha haṭyaṭyagaganākṣa śamaśama mitramitra cakravartitile sāgaratile durbhali
hihile havahenarājane yavanamitre kṣānatimitre mitrarlame mitrakhaghe sarvasatojamitre
sarvakramamitre manavartamitre dhitiśaramitre svāhā.

“Noble son, if one rubs both hands with oil from campaka grains while
reciting this secret dhāraṇī mantra that pacifies and stupefies hostile beings, it will
make all hostile beings trusting and astonished. All those beings with hostile minds,
such as the trillions of angry snakes, yakṣas, kumbhāṇḍas, pūtanas, and māras, will
become powerless. Even
if all those hostile beings were to fill the four continents, a single handful of water
would immediately annihilate them all. Even if the four oceans were entirely filled with
murky water, a single handful of water would immediately make that water completely
clear. There are no doubts about this, so take it with you, and go to the buddha realm
of Sahā!”

At that moment, the innumerable and limitless bodhisattvas exclaimed in
unison, “Respected Blessed One, we also wish to behold the thus-gone Śākyamuni, to pay
homage to him, to revere him, to behold his great assembly, and to listen to the
practice of the Dharma of The Quintessence of the Sun, the
section on the light rays that destroy the domain of the nāgas, the dhāraṇī mantra that
cleanses the karmic actions of sentient beings! Respected Blessed One, if you grant your
permission, we will also go to the buddha realm of Sahā!”

The blessed thus-gone Glorious Essence of Flowers replied to them, “Noble
sons, all of you please proceed together while adopting the attire, marks, shape,
implements, and behavior of universal monarchs ruling over the four continents.”

All those eight hundred million bodhisattvas then transformed themselves to
have the attire, marks, shape, implements and behavior of universal monarchs ruling over
the four continents. Then, the bodhisattva Ākāśagarbha and all the other bodhisattvas
bowed their heads to the feet of the thus-gone Glorious Essence of Flowers,
circumambulated him three times, and rested in the sky. Each bodhisattva great being
also manifested seven lotuses, each with a thousand petals made of precious gems, as well as the four kinds
of troops. They departed in this manner and instantaneously arrived in this buddha realm
of Sahā. Some of them showered a rain of gold powder everywhere in the buddha realm of
Sahā in order to worship the blessed thus-gone Śākyamuni and his bodhisattvas. To
worship the blessed thus-gone Śākyamuni and his bodhisattvas, others showered a rain of
silver powder, and still others showered rains of perfumed powders, pearls, gold
threads, pearl necklaces, armlets, cotton, fine fabrics, parasols, banners, and flags.
All of them circumambulated this buddha realm of Sahā three times and then sat to one
side.

This concludes the chapter called “The Messengers,” the second chapter
in “The Quintessence of the Sun,” the Great Vehicle
discourse of The Great Assembly.

Chapter Three

The Dhāraṇī Mantras

When King Bimbisāra saw the unprecedented sight of innumerable and limitless
numbers of mahābrahmās, Śakras, Nārāyaṇas, and universal monarchs ruling over the four
continents, he was utterly amazed. He stood up and went close to them. Next, together
with their retinues, the bodhisattva great beings—the four messengers of the buddhas—sat
down and bowed with their palms joined together in the direction of the thus-gone
Śākyamuni. The
bodhisattva great being Quintessence of the Sun’s Energy then tossed garlands of campaka
flowers in the direction of the thus-gone Śākyamuni and uttered these verses:

“Sublime human, you hold the light that illuminates beings,

And you show the path to those who have corrupt views.

Endowed with the view of sameness, you benefit beings

And swiftly subjugate māras and nāgas.

“You liberate from their afflictions beings who are hard to tame,

And you cause the light of the Dharma to blaze for a long time in this world.

Supreme being, you beautify all the many realms

With these gateways of concentration.

“Victor, supreme being, many wise ones

Speak about this realm from far away.

This time for beings to receive the Dharma is hard to attain;

Seeing this, we have joined this assembly for the sake of the Dharma.

“It is difficult to achieve a human birth,

And even those who have obtained a human body for a very long time

Are seized by severe afflictions;

Great sage, please quickly sever the web of the afflictions!

“Like a great elephant, you liberate beings who have fallen

Into the ocean of suffering and the river of the afflictions.

The victors have sent us here as messengers

As they rejoice in your Dharma treasure.

“Respected Blessed One, in the eastern direction, beyond countless buddha
realms as numerous as the grains of sand in countless Ganges Rivers, there is a world
called Absence of Heat, where the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Campaka Color resides,
thrives, lives well, and teaches the Dharma. That thus-gone one has sent me here. He
puts faith in the practice of the Dharma of The Quintessence of the
Sun, the section on the light rays that destroy the domain of the nāgas, the
dhāraṇī mantra expounded by you that cleanses the karmic actions of sentient beings, and
he enquires whether you have any ills or problems and whether you are healthy and well.
Respected Blessed One,
are you in good health and free from ills? Are the members of your retinue comfortable
and free from ills? Are they eager to listen to the Dharma? Do they follow the Dharma
persistently in the way they hear it? Do they abide by the Dharma? Are the domains of
the māras and nāgas subjugated in your buddha realm? Is this your only buddha realm? Are
you turning the Dharma wheel without obstruction in this place?

“For the sake of those who will turn the wheel in this buddha realm, the
thus-gone Campaka Color puts faith in you and in this practice of the Dharma of The Quintessence of the Sun, the dhāraṇī mantra of the section
on the light rays that destroy the domain of the nāgas. He confers this powerful and
beneficial dhāraṇī mantra that accords with the truth. It exhausts all forms of
attachment associated with the desire realm, the form realm, and the formless realm, as
well as pride, special pride, and pride that thinks ‘I am.’ This acceptance that accords
with the truth annihilates all māras and vanquishes the nāgas. It pleases the gods, it
satisfies the yakṣas, it overcomes the asuras, it pleases the vaiśyas, and it delights
the śūdras. It liberates women from their desires, it induces weariness in the scholars,
it delights the spiritual practitioners, it completely pacifies all diseases, quarrels,
fights, famines, untimely sicknesses, hostile armies, wind, rains, rivers, cold, heat, snow,
and heat waves, and it softens unsavory tastes and substances that are harsh, rough, and
hard to touch. It causes the way of the Dharma to blaze, it reveals the teachings of the
buddhas, and it ensures that the lineage of the Three Jewels remains uninterrupted. It
provides relief to those who are afraid of saṃsāra, generates the knowledge of
exhaustion, causes one to realize the knowledge of the unborn, overcomes all the dense
darkness of ignorance, removes the burden of suffering, and dries up the river of
craving.

tadyathā: vāyevayaparivāre
vahevahaparivāre pṛthāviparivāre āve avaparivāre tejetejaparivāre mālemalaparivāre
khagekhagaparivāre āloke ālokaparivāre sthama sthamaparivāre rājerājaparivāre
silisilaparivāre gamegamaparivāre āvoca avocaparivāre malamalalamalamelama
rālarālalama vidyājñānabhutaṃgame bhutaṅgamaparivāre cakṣugrahe cakṣugrahaparivāre
śotragrahe śotragrahaparivāre ghrāṇagrahe ghrāṇagrahaparivāre jihvāgrahe
jihvagrahāparivāre kāyagrahe kāyagrahaparivāre managrahe managrahaparivāre
sparśagrahe sparśagrahaparivāre vedanagrahe vedanagrahaparivāre tṛṣṇāgraha
tṛṣṇāgrahaparivāre upādānagrahe upādānagrahaparivāre bhāvagrahe bhāvagrahāparivāre
jātigrahe jātigrahaparivāre jaramaraṇgrahe jaramaraṇagrahāparivāre
duḥkhasantapāgrahe duḥkhasantapāgrahaparivāre ārāpārādvajegrahe
ārāpārādvajagrahāparivāre ārāpārādhvajegrahe ārāpārādhvajaṃgrahāparivāre
ārāpārādvijagrahe ārāpārādvijaṁgrahāparivāre avrtavivrtasya avaramupamāsvasya vegavinivarta
āryarasmisamveganaśānati svāhā.

“Respected Blessed One, this is the acceptance that accords with the truth,
which was conferred by the thus-gone Campaka Color.”

The Blessed One expressed his approval of this, as did the entire retinue
that had arrived in the buddha realm of Sahā—all but those who were absorbed in
concentration.

Then, the Blessed One said to the bodhisattva great being Quintessence of the
Sun’s Energy, “Noble son, while sitting here on this seat, I shall teach extensively to
sentient beings, with both meaning and letter and without adding or omitting anything,
this acceptance that accords with the truth. Noble son, please reveal also the dhāraṇī
mantra hollow lotus stalk of the sun’s eye, which the thus-gone Campaka Color
gave to protect you when you were coming here, the dhāraṇī mantra that accomplishes
everything from the unique features of the body up to parinirvāṇa.”

At that moment, the bodhisattva great being Quintessence of the Sun’s Energy
uttered these words:

syād yathedaṃ: siddhamate vilokamate
alegetariśe rucesuruce buddhe vibuddhe mahābuddhe unmadte unmadtapratiṣedhane
ragadhruvapratiṣedhane bindubindumate citacitavatiṣedhane arkecandra ardhe hataciti
hatanirmi hatakāmavege hatapaunabhaviraje hatacakṣusamate hatavimatamudre hatayāghe
hatayāghe hatasamudrajave hatavimanarāje hatahite hatacitaṭe hatadharmarāje
hatavahurāje hatavarjamati hata upagamate hataroparasmi hatadharmasiddhi
hatasarvonamad
jñājñājñā vijñājñājñā sarvamārgajñājñā eṣonadasaṁsaraduḥkhe svāhā.

“Respected Blessed One, this is the dhāraṇī mantra lotus of the
sun’s eye, which the thus-gone Campaka Color gave to protect me when I
departed.”

The blessed Śākyamuni then said to Venerable Yaśas, “Yaśas, remember this
dhāraṇī mantra lotus of the sun’s eye! Yaśas, it is rare for
thus-gone, worthy, perfect buddhas to appear in
the world, but it is much more difficult to obtain this dhāraṇī mantra lotus
of the sun’s eye. Noble son, the thus-gone ones or their hearers could
describe the qualities and the benefits related to Mount Sumeru or the great ocean, but
they could never fully express the qualities and benefits of this dhāraṇī mantra
lotus of the sun’s eye, even if they were to endeavor for eons or
more. This dhāraṇī mantra lotus of the sun’s eye is therefore
profound! Noble son, you must remember this dhāraṇī mantra lotus of the sun’s
eye! Comprehend it and teach it on a vast scale to the four assemblies!
Thereby, sentient beings’ attachments related to the desire realm will be
abandoned, […] all their defilements will be exhausted, and they will experience the
happiness of emancipation.”

Then the bodhisattva great being Gandhahastin uttered these verses:

“In front of the king of the trees, you defeated Māra

And achieved supreme awakening on your own.

Alone, you have subjugated gods, humans, and yakṣas.

Victor, you are the light rays of the sun’s supreme liberated wisdom.

“You alone outshine the non-Buddhists in this world,

And you beautify the entire world, like the sun compared to a firefly.

Great sage, you liberate sentient beings within your assembly,

And you ensure that the lineage of the Three Jewels and the Dharma way endure for a
long time.

“Bodhisattvas who have arrived to worship you alone

Strive for the Dharma in the pursuit of virtue and awakening.

Victor, you teach the Dharma that eliminates all suffering,

And you reveal the supreme conduct of awakened wisdom.

“You alone appease sentient beings through your pacifying nectar,

And you liberate hundreds of millions of beings to free them from new births.

Your defilements are exhausted, you are free from views, you have abandoned
afflictions,

And you have reached the city of peace, where there is no sorrow.

“In the entire world, you are the sole doctor,

And the victors have sent us as messengers to ask you questions.

You abide by an ocean of knowledge and impartial compassion;

Great sage, listen to this moon-like Dharma, and I will confer a dhāraṇī.

“Respected Blessed One, in the southern direction, beyond buddha realms as
numerous as the grains of sand needed to fill a city about a league in size, in a place
ripe with the five degenerations, there is a world called Banner of Degeneration, where
the thus-gone King of the Lord of Mountains resides, thrives, lives well, and teaches
the Dharma. That thus-gone one has sent me here. He puts faith in you and in this
practice of the Dharma of The Quintessence of the Sun, the
section on the light rays that destroy the domain of the nāgas, the dhāraṇī mantra you
expound that cleanses the karmic actions of sentient beings. He enquires whether you have any ills or
problems and whether you are healthy and well. Respected Blessed One, are you healthy
and free from ills? Are the members of your retinue comfortable and in good health? Are
they eager to listen to the sacred Dharma? Do they follow the Dharma persistently in the
way they hear it? Do they abide by the Dharma? Are the domains of the māras and nāgas
subjugated in your buddha realm? Is this your only buddha realm? Are you turning the
Dharma wheel without obstruction in this place? For the sake of those who will turn the
wheel in this buddha realm, the thus-gone King of the Lord of Mountains puts faith in
you and in this practice of the Dharma of The Quintessence of the
Sun, the section on the light rays that destroy the domain of the nāgas, the
dhāraṇī mantra that cleanses the karmic actions of sentient beings. Then, he confers
this powerful and beneficial dhāraṇī mantra that accords with emptiness. It exhausts all
forms of attachment associated with the desire realm, the form realm, and the formless
realm. It exhausts pride, special pride, and pride that thinks ‘I am,’ […] and it
removes the burden of suffering.

tadyathā: dhumate dhumate akṣidhumate
prabhāsadhumate sarvākāśadhumate avaikhagha vaimetakhaga avaikṣakhaga amohakhaga
ananyakhaga vyāvṛttikhaga saṁrucakhaga anaimakhaga locanakhaga śikhikhaga vitimirakkhaga
ukṣomakhaga urokhaga akṣikhaga yāvadmanokhaga rūbakhaga yāvadvijñānakhaga
cakṣudhātukhaga yāvadmanovijñānadhātukhaga pṛthavīdhātukhaga yāvadvijñānadhātukhaga
catusmṛtyupasthānakhaga yāvadāvonakakhaga duḥkhakhaga yāvadmārgakhaga vipavana vikṣapa
ananasamudranana sarvakāranana sarvasaṅsthanana viśūpanana akincananana kṣa bhakṣa i
le i i le i i le mi le svāhā.

“Blessed One, this is the dhāraṇī mantra that accords with emptiness
conferred by the thus-gone King of the Lord of Mountains.”

The blessed Śākyamuni expressed his approval of this, as did the entire
retinue that had arrived in the buddha realm of Sahā—all but those who were absorbed in
concentration.

Then the Blessed One said to the bodhisattva great being Gandhahastin, “Noble
son, while sitting here on this seat, I shall teach extensively, with both meaning and
letter and without adding or omitting anything, this dhāraṇī mantra that accords with
emptiness. Noble son, please reveal also the teaching of the inexhaustible
core, which the thus-gone King of the Lord of Mountains gave to protect you
before you came here. This teaching of the inexhaustible core
subsumes the accomplishment of the intentions and feelings of all sentient beings; it
causes one to achieve omniscient wisdom, it subjugates the four māras, it is the basis
for accomplishment, and it establishes the Dharma way and the lineage of the Three
Jewels.”

At that moment, the bodhisattva great being Gandhahastin uttered these
words:

tadyathā: śraṇavyāya śikṣavyāya
smṛtivyāya
prahīnavyāya ṛddhivyāya indriyavyāya balavyāya bodhyāṅgavyāya samadhivyāya
dhāraṇīvyāya kṣāntivyāya dhyānavyāya arūpavyāya aninajavyāya mārgavyāya abhijñāvyāya
pratisaṁvidvyāya bhūmivyāya vidyāvyāya mahāmaitrivyāya mahākaruṇavyāya pṛthivīvyāya
satvavyāya dharmavyāya tamavyāya ālokavyāya pratibhāsavyāya pratiśrutkavyāya
gaganavyāya māravyāya śūnyatāvyāya pratītyavyāya apraṇihitavyāya animidtavyāya
rutavyāya ghoṣavyāya akincanvyāya abhisamaya anunu anona avaha cacāra cacacāravimu
cacacakṣa cacacaravimuvyāya vimukṣaya vimu āpavyāya vimu asamudracaravimu cchedavimu
ākāśavamu vyupaśmavimu anābhasavimu ahahavimu apāravimu upaśama salilavimu
svāhā.

“Respected Blessed One, this is the dhāraṇī mantra inexhaustible
core, which the thus-gone King of the Lord of Mountains conferred in order
to protect me when I departed.”

The blessed Śākyamuni then said to Venerable Ājñātakauṇḍinya, “Kauṇḍinya,
remember this dhāraṇī mantra inexhaustible core! Kauṇḍinya, it is
rare for thus-gone, worthy, perfect buddhas to
appear in the world, but it is much more difficult to obtain this teaching of the
inexhaustible core. Noble son, the thus-gone ones or their
hearers could enumerate all the moments of thoughts formed by all sentient beings for a
hundred thousand eons, but no one could enumerate the eighteen unique qualities of the
buddhas who have understood without obscuration this dhāraṇī mantra
inexhaustible core. Therefore, Kauṇḍinya, you should teach the
Dharma of this teaching of the inexhaustible core on a vast scale
to the four assemblies, just as you have heard it! By hearing that Dharma, they will reach the exhaustion
of all their karmic actions, achieve unimpeded, undivided, and uninterrupted eloquence,
and become thus-gone ones who are more exalted than the three realms.”

At that moment, the bodhisattva great being Glorious Essence of Light bowed
down with his palms joined together in the direction of the thus-gone Śākyamuni and
uttered these verses:

“Wise protector, having crossed over,

You liberate the six classes of beings

Who are carried away by suffering

And agitated by the diseases of their afflictions.

“You reveal the correct path

To those who are deluded with regard to the six senses

And caught by Māra’s noose;

Within the worlds, your presence is extremely rare.

“Wise humans will abandon the basis of the household,

Which is endowed with the six branches.

You are the friend of the entire world,

And you eliminate all Dharma famine.

“Great practitioner, you possess the six higher perceptions

And reveal the truths.

Great sage, you liberate beings circling in saṃsāra

From their tight fetters.

“We have come to this realm

Out of faith in your mantra.

The protectors of the world have sent us here

As messengers, so please listen.

“Respected Blessed One, in the western direction, beyond buddha realms as
numerous as the grains of sand in forty-two Ganges Rivers, there is a world called
Essence Banner, where the thus-gone one named Royal Mass of Glorious Wisdom resides,
thrives, lives well, and teaches the Dharma. That thus-gone one has sent me here. He
puts faith in the practice of the Dharma of The Quintessence of the
Sun, the section on the light rays that destroy the domain of the nāgas, the
dhāraṇī mantra expounded by you that cleanses the karmic actions of sentient beings.
He enquires whether
you have any ills or problems and whether you are healthy and well. Respected Blessed
One, are you healthy and free from ills? Are the members of your retinue comfortable and
in good health? Are they eager to listen to the sacred Dharma? Do they follow the Dharma
persistently in the way they hear it? Do they abide by the Dharma? Are the domains of
the māras and nāgas subjugated in your buddha realm? Is this your only buddha realm? Are
you turning the Dharma wheel without obstruction in this place? For the sake of those
who will turn the wheel in this buddha realm, the thus-gone Royal Mass of Glorious
Wisdom puts faith in you and in the practice of the Dharma of The
Quintessence of the Sun, the section on the light rays that destroy the domain
of the nāgas, the dhāraṇī mantra that cleanses the karmic actions of sentient beings.
Then, he also confers this powerful and beneficial dhāraṇī mantra that accords with the
absence of wishes. It exhausts all forms of attachment associated with the desire realm,
the form realm, and the formless realm. It exhausts pride, special pride, and pride that
thinks ‘I am,’ […] it overcomes all the dense darkness of ignorance, and it removes
the burden of suffering.

tadyathā: śanaśara śamanaśava
apakṣavaśa cakṣubhavaśava śotraśava ghrāṇaśava jihvaśava kāyaśava manāśava
kṣatividyacakṣupṛthavīkṣabha śrotra avakṣabha jihvavāyukṣabha manojakṣabha
ālokajñānakṣabha vījasaṅgramakṣabha aṅkurakhaghakṣabha śamkarukṣabha kṣayarāsakṣabha
śāntivyasrakṣabha natonatainatona avanyeratona nayāvanayinatoneṣa antaduḥkhasya
svāhā.

“Blessed One, this is the dhāraṇī mantra that accords with the absence of
wishes conferred by the thus-gone Royal Mass of Glorious Wisdom.”

The blessed Śākyamuni expressed his approval, as did all the sentient beings
present within the buddha realm of Sahā—except for those who were absorbed in
concentration.

Then the Blessed One said to the bodhisattva great being Glorious Essence of
Light, “Noble son, while sitting here on this seat, I shall teach extensively to
sentient beings, with excellent meaning and words and without adding or omitting
anything, this dhāraṇī mantra that accords with emptiness. Noble son, please reveal also
the teaching of the fundamental vidyā mantra that the thus-gone
Royal Mass of Glorious Wisdom gave to protect you before you came here. That teaching
completely pacifies and pulverizes the causes of saṃsāra—sentient beings’ lesser,
moderate, and intense cravings as well as their afflictions associated with the form and
the formless realms—accumulated for eons as numerous as the grains of sand in the
Ganges. It cleanses their karmic actions, and it perfects all their virtues.”

“Respected Blessed One, I shall do so:

tadyathā: vegapariccheda
garbhasakṣase garbharevidyāprabhagakṣekṣaya yogepratihareśamannasikathe samameghajhaṣe
akṣaya natekṣabhavaje niddhajhaṣe samanajhaṣe adhyaśayajhaṣe viprabhajhaṣe śaikṣajhaṣe
senyajavajhaṣe saliguhyajhaṣe saliguhabhaikṣivanakośe sādhanakonosivadhananathye
vitapavidte
upakramapathe anacchedyaprakhe pratikramena sakaṅthyaśaisalocanavame krodhadhare
kāmasaśe ākāśakhagenāgakunje vidyavane klanavane ucavane samamakere śariyavane
meghajaveharikonova nayanamukhe sārakṣakole narāyaṇacare indravāsane o a ava ārāva ā
vara avāra sāramegha duḥkhanastiraninirvāhe svāhā.

“Respected Blessed One, this is the teaching of the fundamental
vidyā mantra that the thus-gone Royal Mass of Glorious Wisdom conferred to
protect me when I departed.”

The blessed Śākyamuni then said to Venerable Śāriputra, “Śāriputra, remember
this fundamental dhāraṇī mantra! Śāriputra, it is rare for thus-gone, worthy, perfect buddhas to appear in the world, but
it is much more difficult to obtain this fundamental dhāraṇī mantra. Śāriputra, the
thus-gone ones or their hearers could count or evaluate the number of smallest particles
in the earth element present in the world with its four
continents over a hundred eons. However, even if they were to try for a hundred thousand
eons, they could never describe the scope of this fundamental dhāraṇī mantra. This
fundamental dhāraṇī mantra is therefore very profound. Śāriputra, you must remember this
fundamental dhāraṇī mantra. You must comprehend it and teach it on a vast scale to the
four assemblies! When sentient beings hear it, the causes of saṃsāra that exist within
them—their lesser, moderate, and intense cravings as well as their afflictions
associated with the form and the formless realms—will be completely pacified, and they
will turn their backs on them for eons as numerous as the grains of sand in the Ganges.
Women’s karmic
obscurations associated with the five acts of immediate retribution and their other
causes of saṃsāra will be exhausted without any remainder; all their defilements will be
exhausted, and they will be endowed with the happiness of emancipation.”

At that moment, the bodhisattva great being Ākāśagarbha bowed down with his
palms joined in the direction of the Blessed One and uttered these verses:

“You are the sole guide,

And you have gained certainty with respect to all phenomena.

Since devotion arises in them upon seeing this,

Even the glorious spiritual friends worship you.

“You are worshiped by delightful spiritual friends

Replete with the most supreme aspects.

They make offerings to the Thus-Gone One

By offering flowers and incense.

“Since you have gathered this great assembly

Instantly in this place,

All the gods are praising you,

And the glorious spiritual friends worship you.

“O protector of the world,

You only demonstrate this on one occasion.

The wise asuras and the glorious spiritual friends

Are continuously worshiping you.

“Glorious Essence of Flowers

Is adorned with all aspects of glory;

He has sent us here as messengers

To ask you these questions.

“Respected Blessed One, in the northern direction, beyond buddha realms as
numerous as the grains of sand in eighty Ganges Rivers, in a place ripe with the five
degenerations, there is a world called Manifestation of All Perfumes, where the
thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha Glorious
Essence of Flowers resides and teaches the Dharma. That thus-gone one has sent me here.
He puts faith in the practice of the Dharma of The Quintessence of
the Sun, the section on the light rays that destroy the domain of the nāgas,
the dhāraṇī mantra expounded by you that cleanses the karmic actions of sentient beings.
He enquires whether you have any ills or problems and whether you are healthy and well.
Respected Blessed One,
are you healthy and free from ills? Are the members of your retinue comfortable and in
good health? Are they eager to listen to the sacred Dharma? Do they follow the Dharma
persistently in the way they hear it? Do they abide by the Dharma? Are the domains of
the māras and nāgas subjugated in your buddha realm? Is your buddha realm unique? Are
you turning the Dharma wheel without obstruction in this place? For the sake of those
who will turn the wheel in this buddha realm, the thus-gone Royal Mass of Glorious
Wisdom puts faith in you and in the practice of the Dharma of The
Quintessence of the Sun, the section on the light rays that destroy the domain
of the nāgas, the dhāraṇī mantra that cleanses the karmic actions of sentient beings.
Moreover, he also confers this powerful and beneficial dhāraṇī mantra peaceful
core of knowledge. It benefits all sentient beings, completely cures all
diseases, and completely subdues all afflictions. It generates complete knowledge of all
the aggregates and elements, causes one to discern all phenomena, reveals all the
skillful means, and causes one to experience the entirety of the happiness of
emancipation. It induces sincere faith in all sentient beings, causes one to attain
happiness related to all phenomena, eradicates all māras and enemies in accordance with
the Dharma, and subjugates all the domains of the māras. This great teaching of the
peaceful core of knowledge annihilates all māras and vanquishes
enemies. It pleases the gods, delights the yakṣas, overcomes the asuras, pleases the garuḍas, generates
faith in the kinnaras, and puts the mahoragas to flight. It subdues all enemies,
delights the members of the kṣatriya class, induces comprehension in the brāhmaṇas,
overcomes the vaiśyas, and utterly pleases the śūdras. It frees women from their
desires, easily releases pregnant women, induces recollection in the scholars, and
delights the spiritual practitioners. It completely pacifies all sicknesses, quarrels,
fights, famines, epidemics, diseases, hostile armies, untimely winds, rains, rivers,
cold, heat, snow, and heat waves, and it softens substances that are harsh, rough, and
hard to touch. It causes the way of the Dharma to blaze, it reveals the teachings of the
buddhas, and it ensures that the lineage of the Three Jewels remains uninterrupted. It
provides relief to those who are afraid of saṃsāra, generates the knowledge of
exhaustion, causes one to realize directly the knowledge of the unborn, overcomes all
the aggregates associated with darkness, and removes the burden of suffering. It is very
powerful.

tadyathā: manākṣa anākṣa ghasākṣa
jālakṣa mānākṣa kṣavakṣa mandhākṣa naḍakṣa naḍararahuvisanāta khaghanāṭa āṭanāṭakunāṭa
parikusanāṭa nāṭanāṭa purikṣanāṭa utaranāṭa kavināṭa kunjanāṭa amakhanāṭa
cavamabhanāṭa khagamabhanāṭa pukṣaranāṭa hisadudrānāṭa samalayanāṭa
śirakumaṅkautaṭamatugurava tvehukṣa vanirajū dhvanamarajū vaghanapute
santiravajava mahoragajala atrinā atrinā atrinānava atrinākṣa avahamārgatrinākṣa
eṣonatauduḥkhabharasya svāhā.

“Respected Blessed One, the thus-gone Glorious Essence of Flowers confers
here this powerful and beneficial great teaching of the peaceful core of
knowledge.”

The blessed Śākyamuni expressed his approval, as did all the sentient beings
who had assembled in the buddha realm of Sahā—except for those who were exerting
themselves in concentration.

Then the Blessed One said to the bodhisattva great being Ākāśagarbha, “Noble
son, while sitting here on this seat, I shall teach extensively to sentient beings, with
both meaning and words and without adding or omitting anything, this dhāraṇī mantra
peaceful core of knowledge. Noble son, please also reveal the
mantra that the thus-gone Glorious Essence of Flowers gave when you departed, the
dhāraṇī mantra that is the outcome of the sublime states free from concepts and through
which all hostile beings develop faith, become pacified, and fall asleep.”

“Respected Blessed One, I shall do so:

tadyathā: vovṛhabubura talarava
ilasaha haṭūhaṭū gaganākṣaśamamitra cakravrtitilesāgara tiledūnahile hilehavahe
narajaṭe yavanamitre kṣitimitre paramitre śikhimitre marutramitre khagamitre sarva
ujamitre sarvakāmamitre manaparumitre dhanaśvaramitre svāhā.”

Oh! As this teaching that pacifies hostile beings and puts them to sleep was
being uttered by the bodhisattva great being Ākāśagarbha, all hostile snakes—except for those who
had reached acceptance and those who had reached the level of nonregression on the path
to unsurpassed and perfect awakening—left for their respective places and fell asleep.
Besides the bodhisattvas who had reached acceptance and the level of nonregression, all
hostile yakṣas, asuras, garuḍas, mahoragas, pretas, piśācas, pūtanas, and kaṭapūtanas in
saṃsāra also left for their respective places and fell asleep. Upon hearing this
teaching that pacifies and puts to sleep all the hostile humans who are impetuous,
harsh, devoid of affection, and in conflict with one another, as well as those who
constantly manifest aggressive behavior, commit the five acts of immediate retribution,
reject the sacred Dharma, denigrate the noble ones, and are endowed with the roots of
nonvirtue, everyone developed a sincere attitude of love, compassion, and affection and
became free of malice and anxiety. Everyone focused on the Dharma, began to fear the
afterlife, developed sincere respect for the Three Jewels, observed the Dharma, and
manifested a peaceful mindset.

“Respected Blessed One, this is the dhāraṇī mantra that pacifies hostile
beings that the thus-gone Glorious Essence of Flowers conferred to protect me when I
departed.”

The thus-gone Śākyamuni then said to Venerable Maudgalyāyana, “Maudgalyāyana,
remember this dhāraṇī mantra that pacifies and puts to sleep hostile beings and that is
the outcome of the sublime states free from concepts! Maudgalyāyana, it is rare for
thus-gone, worthy, perfect buddhas to appear in
the world, but it is much more difficult to obtain this dhāraṇī mantra that is the
outcome of the sublime states free from concepts and pacifies and puts to sleep hostile
beings. Maudgalyāyana, even if one were to teach this mantra that pacifies and puts to
sleep hostile beings for a hundred thousand eons without doing anything else, the world
with its gods, and even the bodhisattva great beings who dwell on the levels, could not
apprehend its meaning—only the thus-gone ones themselves could apprehend it. It is
therefore very profound, valuable, and beneficial. It perfects the path to unsurpassed
and perfect awakening, it fulfills all wishes, and it causes one to attain the great
compassion that ripens sentient beings. Therefore, Maudgalyāyana, remember this dhāraṇī
mantra that pacifies and puts to sleep hostile beings, and teach it extensively to
sentient beings at the proper times. By the mere fact of hearing it, those beings who
listen to it will gain many qualities and benefits. The results of the karmic ripening
of much aggression, which would otherwise have led to undesired consequences, will
vanish and become nonexistent. They will clearly understand the many defects of saṃsāra,
they will generate
many roots of virtue, they will acquire much merit, and they will attend to, serve, and
revere many virtuous friends. They will therefore not regress from unsurpassed and
perfect awakening. Maudgalyāyana, this dhāraṇī mantra causes the light of the Dharma to
blaze, and it ensures that the lineage of the Three Jewels remains uninterrupted.

This concludes the chapter called “The Dhāraṇī Mantras,” the third
chapter in “The Quintessence of the Sun,” the Great Vehicle
discourse of The Great Assembly.

Chapter Four

The Purification of Karmic Actions

The Blessed One then said to the four messengers and the other bodhisattva
great beings, “Noble sons, abide in this buddha realm by your individual virtues!”

So, together with their retinues, those bodhisattva great beings sat
cross-legged in their respective places. Then, those beings who had thoroughly
cultivated the absorption of the dhāraṇī of acceptance entered into their respective
states of absorption. From the bodies of some of those beings dwelling in equipoise
radiated lights like the light emitted by oil lamps. From the bodies of some others
radiated lights like the light emitted by trillions of suns and moons.

At that moment Venerable Ājñātakauṇḍinya thought, “Through the power of the
Buddha, I should make a request to the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha. I should request the Thus-Gone One to teach about
those four dhāraṇī mantras in detail. I should ask so that the sentient beings who have
arrived in this buddha realm of Sahā may hear this teaching and eliminate all their
doubts, attain illumination with respect to all phenomena, become free of excitement,
transcend all uncertainties and doubts, swiftly enter into faultlessness, avoid falling into
error, and strive for the higher realms.”

So, without speaking, Venerable Ājñātakauṇḍinya bowed with his palms joined
together in the direction of the Blessed One.

The Blessed One asked Venerable Ājñātakauṇḍinya, “Kauṇḍinya, do you wish to
ask the Thus-Gone One a question?”

“Respected Blessed One, indeed! Indeed, respected Well-Gone One! Respected
Blessed One, should I be granted the opportunity, I would like to ask a few questions to
the respected Thus-Gone One.”

The Blessed One replied, “Kauṇḍinya, you may ask the thus-gone, worthy, perfect Buddha anything you wish. I will
elucidate your questions and bring satisfaction to your mind in a way that will be
directly understood by the world with its gods.”

Venerable Ājñātakauṇḍinya then said to the Blessed One, “Respected Blessed
One, you have repeatedly stated that craving is a companion of individuals. Why did the
Thus-Gone One designate craving as a companion of individuals? The Thus-Gone One has
said that craving—the companion of beings—will cause one to continuously circle and take
rebirth in saṃsāra for a long time.”

The Blessed One replied, “Kauṇḍinya, you act for the benefit and welfare of
many beings. This opportune question is excellent! Therefore, Kauṇḍinya, listen
carefully and pay attention. I will now explain this.”

The Blessed One then said, “Kauṇḍinya, the term craving
refers to three types of craving. What are the three? They are ⁽¹⁾ the craving related
to the desire realm, ⁽²⁾ the craving related to the form realm, and ⁽³⁾ the craving
related to the formless realm.

“There are also three other types of craving: ⁽¹⁾ the craving related to
arising, ⁽²⁾ the craving related to disintegration, and ⁽³⁾ the craving related to
phenomena.

“Kauṇḍinya, what are the forms of craving related to the desire realm?
Desire refers to sexual intercourse. Careless beings strive to
experience sensual pleasures, and humans with base natures delight in them. All forms of
attachment will develop in sentient beings who are tormented by lustful longing. Those
beings will therefore adopt the paths of the ten nonvirtuous actions and abide by it.
Through such causes and conditions, the hell realms, the animal realms, the World of the
Lord of Death, and the abodes of the destitute yakṣas will manifest. Due to attachment,
sentient beings will experience a variety of harsh and unbearable sufferings within the
five destinies of saṃsāra, and yet they will not be afraid of attachment. Since they
have abandoned humility and modesty, and since they are disconnected from roots of
virtue, they will only very rarely obtain a human body. Due to attachment, they will
repeatedly engage in various physical, verbal, and mental unwholesome actions—up to the
acts with immediate retribution. They will, repeatedly and for long periods of time,
experience harsh and unbearable feelings in the lower realms. Since these are all caused
by and based on attachment, they are referred to as the downfalls stemming
from the latent propensities of attachment.

“Therefore, the Thus-Gone One teaches the Dharma so that beings will abandon
attachment. He sees the
defects of the various desires as they are, and so he causes beings to understand and
genuinely realize the defects of those desires. He causes them to understand that
desires are repulsive like kimpaka fruits, heaps of glowing embers, vases filled with
poison, stinking excrement, the edges of razor blades, thieves, the houses of outcastes,
blazing iron lumps, hailstones, poisonous snakes, enemies, desolate roads, islands of
rākṣasīs, executioners, rubbish, or charnel grounds. He causes them to understand the
defects associated with attachment to sensual pleasures, clinging to desirable objects,
lustful longing, the origination of desire, and the desires themselves. Knowing the
defects of desires, those beings will grow weary of them. They will cultivate attitudes
that agree with the Dharma, joyfully abide by the trainings they uphold, pursue the
Dharma, delight in the joy of the Dharma, accumulate a wealth of Dharma, develop pure
mindsets that are in accord with the Dharma, genuinely follow the path of the Dharma,
and devote themselves to it. When they die, they will remember the Dharma, and the
flavor of the Dharma will ripen in them. In whatever directions those beings who have
lived with minds moistened by the Dharma look, they will see blessed buddhas who reside
while teaching the Dharma in the company of great assemblies. They will hear the Dharma,
and upon hearing it they
will behold the thus-gone ones with very delighted minds.

“After they die, they will leave the lower realms behind and be born within
buddha realms in which a buddha is present. There, they will enjoy a wealth of
qualities, self-control, and restraint. They will join the company of those who revel in
the concentrations and the higher perceptions, those who are adorned with the perfect
happiness of emancipation, with great love, and with great compassion, those who ripen
all sentient beings, and those who are ornamented with the qualities of the
buddhas. By coming
into contact with them, the latent imprints of their afflictions that lead to rebirth
will be exhausted, and they will be adorned with those same qualities. It will be as
when various fragrant substances are placed in a basket together with some ornaments.
Before long, those ornaments will be permeated by those fragrances and will begin to
emit the same scents. Even though their colors are dissimilar, they will soon be
suffused with those fragrant substances. Similarly, Kauṇḍinya, at the time of death,
sentient beings who know the defects of desires will behold the buddhas. After they die,
they will leave behind the lower realms and be born within buddha realms in which a
buddha is present. […] There, they will be adorned with those same qualities, and
before long they will awaken to unsurpassed and perfect buddhahood.

“Therefore, Kauṇḍinya, the noble sons or daughters who correctly discern what
will be of benefit to themselves, others, and both themselves and others should attend to, serve,
and revere sacred beings. They should also question them about the experience of
desires, their defects, and the emancipation from them. Upon hearing the Dharma in those
places, they will swiftly awaken to unsurpassed and perfect buddhahood. The ‘sacred
beings’ are the buddhas, the bodhisattvas, the circumstantial victors, the worthy ones, and myself—the Teacher who has now
appeared in the world, the blessed Buddha. I wish to benefit all sentient beings, to
completely liberate them from all their sufferings, and to fully reveal all the faults
of desire. Therefore, all of you who have assembled here, listen well to the teaching on
the defects of desires that I—the one who speaks without error, impartially, and with
love and compassion and who benefits all sentient beings—reveal! Upon hearing such a
teaching, keep it well in mind, and later on you will be liberated from the three lower
realms and swiftly awaken to unsurpassed and perfect buddhahood.”

At that moment, all the sentient beings present throughout the entire buddha
realm of Sahā exclaimed in unison, “Blessed One, please explain to us the defects of
desires! We shall listen to this teaching one-pointedly and accomplish it in accordance
with our strengths!”

The Blessed One then said, “The desires of sentient beings arise through four
conditions. What are the four? They are ⁽¹⁾ the attachment to form, ⁽²⁾ the attachment to shape, ⁽³⁾ the
attachment to contact, and ⁽⁴⁾ the attachment to passionate frolicking.

“What is meant by ‘attachment to form’? The wise ones, at the appropriate
times, investigate the four great elements in terms of their exhaustion, selflessness,
and the absence of sentient beings. On the other hand, immature beings who rely on
mistaken views apprehend the objects they investigate with concepts such as ‘this is the
body of a woman,’ ‘this is the body of a man,’ ‘this is bad,’ ‘this is good,’ ‘this is
pleasant,’ or ‘this is undesirable.’ When men who are intoxicated by desire see the
appearance of women, they fixate on attributes and signs. They thereby generate the
ground of desire, the inclination toward desire, and the strong attachment to desire
that had not yet previously arisen, and their roots of virtue will therefore become
corrupted. Those beings will be rejected by all the wise ones, and since they do not
guard their body, speech, and mind, they will involve themselves in all sorts of
unwholesome activities. They will not care about the emancipation from desires, and they
will fall into the three lower realms. After they die, they will be born as hell beings,
animals, or pretas. Through the causes, the conditions, and the ground of such desires,
they will experience harsh, scorching, and unbearable feelings of suffering in those
places for a long time.

“While they know them to be women and men, the wise ones generate the
perception of repulsiveness: they imagine their absence of hair, their skin, their
ligaments, their flesh, their absence of blood, their bones, and their white human
skulls. They pursue that process, cultivate it, and repeat it. They apply the same process with respect
to the physical forms of men as they do with respect to the physical forms of women.
They apply the same process with respect to what is far away as they do with respect to
what is present in front of them. They apply the same process with respect to what is
present in front of them as they do with respect to what is far away. Just as they do
with others, they focus their attention and apply knowledge to their own white heaps of
bones, their absence of hair, their skin, their ligaments, their flesh, and their lack
of blood. By repeating that process many times, their minds become fully settled,
trained, and focused. This is the first authentic elimination of the sphere of mental
afflictions.

“Then, directing their attention on those heaps of bones, they apply their
mindfulness to a spot about the size of a jujube fruit between their eyebrows. They
meditate on this and repeat that process many times. […] By doing so, their minds
become fully settled, trained, and focused. Both their minds and bodies are utterly
purified. How is it that their minds are utterly purified? Because they are pacified in
all possible respects. Contemplating, cognizing, and observing this for a while is the
second Dharma gateway, which accords with the practice of tranquility, eliminates
attachment, and eliminates the sphere of afflictions.

“Why is it that their bodies are utterly purified? Because, in a similar way,
the inhalation and exhalation of their breath is interrupted in their meditation—they
neither breathe in nor breathe out. With both their bodies and minds utterly purified,
they exert themselves in tranquility and focus on cessation. This is the third Dharma
gateway, which focuses on cessation and eliminates the sphere of afflictions.