大智度論

EXPLANATION: CHAPTER 40, ILLUMINATION.

(The Great Prajnaparamita Sutra records: Part 2, Chapter 38, The Great Teacher)

SUTRA: At that time, the venerable Sariputra addressed the Buddha, saying: Blessed One, such is prajnaparamita!

Blessed One, prajnaparamita can clearly illuminate all dharmas, for it is ultimately pure.

Blessed One, homage should be paid to prajnaparamita.

Blessed One, prajnaparamita does not cling to the three realms.

Blessed One, prajnaparamita dispels all darkness, for all afflictions and deluded views have been eliminated.

Blessed One, prajnaparamita is supreme among all dharmas conducive to the Path.

Blessed One, prajnaparamita brings peace and security, for it can put an end to all suffering and fear.

Blessed One, prajnaparamita bestows light, for it is adorned with the five eyes.

Blessed One, prajnaparamita can guide beings holding wrong views far away from the two extremes.

Blessed One, prajnaparamita is the wisdom of all modes, for all afflictions and habitual tendencies have been extinguished.

Blessed One, prajnaparamita is the mother of the bodhisattva-mahasattvas, for it can give birth to all Buddha-dharmas.

Blessed One, prajnaparamita neither arises nor ceases, for its characteristic is emptiness.

Blessed One, prajnaparamita is far removed from birth and death, for it is neither eternal nor annihilated.

Blessed One, prajnaparamita protects those who have no protector, for it bestows every precious treasure.

Blessed One, prajnaparamita is fully endowed with power, for nothing can destroy it.

Blessed One, prajnaparamita can turn the Dharma wheel in three turnings and twelve aspects, for all dharmas neither turn nor return.

Blessed One, prajnaparamita can reveal the nature of all dharmas, for the emptiness of non-dharmas and dharmas is empty.

Blessed One, how should prajnaparamita be honored with offerings?

The Buddha said: Prajnaparamita should be honored with offerings just as the Blessed One is honored with offerings; homage should be paid to prajnaparamita just as homage is paid to the Blessed One. Why? Because the Blessed One is not different from prajnaparamita, and prajnaparamita is not different from the Blessed One.

The Blessed One is precisely prajnaparamita, and prajnaparamita is precisely the Blessed One. From within this prajnaparamita arise the Buddhas, bodhisattvas, pratyekabuddhas, arhats, anagamins, sakrdagamins, and srotapannas. From within prajnaparamita arise the ten wholesome paths of action, the four dhyanas, the four immeasurable minds, the four formless concentrations, the five superknowledges, inner emptiness through the emptiness of non-dharmas and dharmas, and the four foundations of mindfulness through the Noble Eightfold Path.

From within this prajnaparamita arise the Buddha’s ten powers, the eighteen distinctive qualities, great loving-kindness, great compassion, and the wisdom of all modes.

At that time, Sakra, lord of the devas, thought to himself: “For what reason did Sariputra ask about this matter?” Having thought thus, he said to Sariputra: “For what reason did you ask about this matter?”

Sariputra said to Sakra, lord of the devas: “Kausika, because bodhisattva-mahasattvas are protected by prajnaparamita and possess the power of skillful means, they can gather together all the roots of goodness cultivated during the interval from their initial generation of the aspiration until they abide in the Dharma position of the Buddhas of the past, present, and future, rejoice accordingly, and dedicate them toward unsurpassed, complete, perfect enlightenment. For this reason, I asked about this matter.

“Kausika, the prajnaparamita of bodhisattva-mahasattvas surpasses the perfection of giving and the perfections of morality, patience, vigor, and dhyana. It is like those blind from birth: whether there are a hundred, a thousand, or a hundred thousand of them, if no one leads them from the front, they cannot follow the road into a city. Kausika, the five paramitas are likewise. Apart from prajnaparamita, they are like people blind from birth without a guide: they cannot travel the road and cannot attain the wisdom of all modes.

“Kausika, if the five paramitas are guided by prajnaparamita, then the five paramitas are said to have eyes. Guided by prajnaparamita, they are called paramitas.”

Sakra, lord of the devas, said to Sariputra: “As you have said, because prajnaparamita guides the five paramitas, they are called paramitas. Sariputra, if there were no perfection of giving, the other five paramitas likewise could not be called paramitas. If there were no perfection of morality, perfection of patience, perfection of vigor, or perfection of dhyana, the other five paramitas likewise could not be called paramitas. If this is so, why do you praise prajnaparamita alone?”

Sariputra replied: “So it is, so it is! Kausika, without the perfection of giving, the other five paramitas could not be called paramitas. Without the perfection of morality or the perfections of patience, vigor, and dhyana, the other five paramitas could not be called paramitas. Yet when bodhisattva-mahasattvas abide in prajnaparamita, they can fully perfect the perfection of giving and the perfections of morality, patience, vigor, and dhyana. Therefore, Kausika, among the five paramitas, prajnaparamita is supreme, foremost, most sublime, unequaled, and equal to the unequaled.”

Sariputra addressed the Buddha, saying: “Blessed One, how does prajnaparamita arise?”

The Buddha told Sariputra: “Because form does not arise, prajnaparamita arises. Because feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness do not arise, prajnaparamita arises. Because the perfection of giving does not arise, prajnaparamita arises; and so on through the perfection of dhyana. Because inner emptiness through the emptiness of non-dharmas and dharmas, the four foundations of mindfulness through the Noble Eightfold Path, the Buddha’s ten powers through all-knowledge and the wisdom of all modes do not arise, prajnaparamita arises. Thus, because all dharmas do not arise, prajnaparamita arises.”

Sariputra said: “Blessed One, why does prajnaparamita arise because form does not arise, and so on through all dharmas not arising?”

The Buddha said: “Because form neither originates nor arises and is neither gained nor lost—and so on, because all dharmas neither originate nor arise and are neither gained nor lost—prajnaparamita arises.”

Sariputra addressed the Buddha, saying: “When prajnaparamita arises in this way, with what dharmas does it unite?”

The Buddha said: “It does not unite with anything; therefore, it is called prajnaparamita.”

“Blessed One, with what dharmas does it not unite?”

The Buddha said: “It does not unite with unwholesome dharmas; it does not unite with wholesome dharmas; it does not unite with worldly dharmas; it does not unite with supramundane dharmas; it does not unite with contaminated dharmas; it does not unite with uncontaminated dharmas; it does not unite with blameworthy dharmas; it does not unite with blameless dharmas; it does not unite with conditioned dharmas; and it does not unite with the unconditioned. Why? Because prajnaparamita does not arise for the sake of apprehending any dharma; therefore, it does not unite with any dharma.”

At that time, Sakra, lord of the devas, addressed the Buddha, saying: “Blessed One, this prajnaparamita also does not unite with sarvajñā.”

The Buddha said: “So it is, Kausika! Prajnaparamita also does not unite with sarvajñā, nor does it apprehend it.”

Sakra, lord of the devas, said: “Blessed One, why does prajnaparamita neither unite with sarvajñā nor apprehend it?”

The Buddha said: “Prajnaparamita does not unite through names, characteristics, or the arising activity of dharmas.”

Sakra, lord of the devas, said: “How, then, does it unite?”

The Buddha said: If a bodhisattva-mahasattva neither grasps, accepts, abides, clings, nor severs, and accords in this manner, there is nevertheless no place of accordance. Thus, Kausika, prajnaparamita accords with all dharmas, yet there is no place of accordance.

Then Sakra, Lord of the Devas, said to the Buddha: Never before has there been such a thing.

O Blessed One! This prajnaparamita arises because all dharmas neither arise nor are born, and are neither gained nor lost.

Subhuti said to the Buddha: O Blessed One! If, while cultivating prajnaparamita, a bodhisattva-mahasattva thinks, “Prajnaparamita either accords with all dharmas or does not accord with them,” that bodhisattva has abandoned prajnaparamita and become far removed from prajnaparamita.

The Buddha told Subhuti: There is yet another cause and condition whereby a bodhisattva-mahasattva abandons prajnaparamita and becomes far removed from prajnaparamita. If a bodhisattva-mahasattva thinks, “This prajnaparamita has nothing of its own; it is insubstantial and not firm,” that bodhisattva-mahasattva abandons prajnaparamita and becomes far removed from prajnaparamita. Subhuti, because of this cause and condition, one abandons prajnaparamita.

Subhuti said to the Buddha: O Blessed One! When one has faith in prajnaparamita, in what dharmas does one not have faith?

The Buddha told Subhuti: When one has faith in prajnaparamita, one does not have faith in form, nor in feeling, perception, formations, or consciousness; one does not have faith in the eye through the mind; one does not have faith in form through dharmas; one does not have faith in the eye-dhatu through the mind-consciousness-dhatu; one does not have faith in the perfection of giving, the perfection of morality, the perfection of patience, the perfection of vigor, or the perfection of meditation; one does not have faith in internal emptiness through the emptiness of nonexistence and existence; one does not have faith in the four foundations of mindfulness through the eightfold noble path; one does not have faith in the Buddha’s ten powers through the eighteen exclusive qualities;

one does not have faith in the fruit of stream-entry, the fruit of once-returning, the fruit of non-returning, the fruit of arhatship, or the path of the pratyekabuddha; one does not have faith in the bodhisattva path; and one does not have faith in unsurpassed, complete enlightenment through the knowledge of all modes.

Subhuti said to the Buddha: O Blessed One, why is it that when one has faith in prajnaparamita, one does not have faith in form through the knowledge of all modes?

The Buddha told Subhuti: Because form cannot be apprehended, when one has faith in prajnaparamita one does not have faith in form; and because the knowledge of all modes cannot be apprehended, when one has faith in prajnaparamita one does not have faith in the knowledge of all modes. Therefore, Subhuti, when one has faith in prajnaparamita, one does not have faith in form through the knowledge of all modes.

TREATISE: Above, the Buddha, together with Maitreya, Subhuti, and Sakra, Lord of the Devas, discussed the thought of sympathetic joy. Although Sariputra remained silent, he listened attentively to the meaning of sympathetic joy in prajnaparamita, which is exceedingly profound, immeasurable, boundless, and of great benefit to beings. Although he had exhausted the outflows and attained quiescence, he gave rise to a joyful mind, rose from his seat, joined his palms, and said to the Buddha: “To practice sympathetic joy, put an end to all conceptual proliferation, benefit immeasurable beings, and cause them to enter the Buddha path—this is prajnaparamita.” The Buddha affirmed these words and therefore said, “Indeed!” Prajnaparamita teaches the true character of all dharmas.

In the true character of all dharmas there is no defilement or conceptual proliferation; therefore it is called ultimately pure. Because it is ultimately pure, it can universally illuminate the entire treasury of the five classes of dharmas: past, future, present, unconditioned, and inexpressible.

Therefore Sariputra said: O Blessed One, prajnaparamita can universally illuminate all dharmas because it is ultimately pure. Prajnaparamita is able to protect bodhisattvas, rescue them from suffering and affliction, and fulfill their aspirations. Just as Brahma, King of the Devas, protects the great trichiliocosm, and beings therefore all pay him homage.

Because it is not defiled by the mire of the three poisons within the three realms, it is said not to cling to the three realms.

Because it destroys all 108 afflictions, such as craving and defilement, and the sixty-two views, such as the view of self, it is said to dispel the darkness of ignorance.

Among all dharmas, wisdom is supreme; among forms of wisdom, prajnaparamita is supreme. Taking wisdom as the foundation, it distinguishes the thirty-seven factors, such as the four foundations of mindfulness; therefore wisdom is said to be foremost among all dharmas that aid the path.

Because it can put an end to the sufferings and fears of birth, aging, illness, and death, it is said to be secure and peaceful.

Because prajnaparamita encompasses the five eyes, it is said to be able to bestow light.

Because it is far removed from the two extremes, such as the extremes of existence and nonexistence, it is said to be able to reveal the right path.

A bodhisattva abiding in the Vajra Samadhi eradicates all subtle habitual tendencies of the afflictions, leaving none remaining, and attains unobstructed liberation; therefore this is called the knowledge of all modes.

– Furthermore, because it knows the common and particular characteristics of all dharmas and knows the causes and conditions of the knowledge of all modes, it is called the knowledge of all modes.

Because it can give rise to the immeasurable Buddhadharmas of the ten directions and the three times, it is said to be the mother of all bodhisattvas.

Because the particular characteristic of each and every dharma is empty, it is said to be neither born nor extinguished.

The views of annihilationism and eternalism are the roots of all views; all views are the roots of the fetters; and the fetters are the roots of all suffering throughout birth and death. Therefore it is said to be far removed from birth and death.

It can cause beings to have faith in the precious wholesome dharmas of the Three Jewels. By attaining these precious wholesome dharmas, they attain mundane and supramundane happiness. Because it can enable beings to attain these two kinds of happiness, it is said to be the protector of those who have no protector.

Even all the Buddhas of the ten directions cannot destroy the character of prajnaparamita. Why? Because ultimately it cannot be apprehended; how much less could anyone else destroy it? Therefore it is said to be endowed with the perfections.

Because prajnaparamita has no intrinsic nature, it is said that all dharmas neither revolve in birth and death nor return to nirvana. Because they are not born, they do not revolve; because they do not cease, they do not return. Therefore it is said to be able to turn the Dharma wheel in three turnings and twelve aspects. The meaning of the Dharma wheel’s three turnings and twelve aspects has been explained above.

All dharmas have two aspects: either they exist or they do not exist. In prajnaparamita, existence should not be grasped, nor should nonexistence be grasped. Freedom from existence and nonexistence is precisely the true nature of all dharmas; therefore it is said to be able to reveal the nature of dharmas.

For these immeasurable causes and conditions, prajnaparamita is praised; this will be explained extensively below.

The character of prajnaparamita is signlessness. Some people whose minds are not yet mature insist on seeking a fixed characteristic of prajnaparamita. Unable to find it, they then give rise to arrogance. Therefore Sariputra asked: How should it be honored? The Buddha said: One should honor prajnaparamita just as one honors the Buddha. Since beginningless time, people have been deeply attached to the characteristic of beings, while their regard for the noble Dharma has been slight; therefore it is said that one should honor it as one honors the Buddha.

The wise see no difference between the Buddha and prajnaparamita. Why? Because when prajnaparamita is cultivated, it becomes omniscience. Here the Buddha himself states the cause and condition. From this prajnaparamita arise the sages and noble ones, the ten wholesome paths, and mundane and supramundane dharmas, through the knowledge of all modes.

At that time Sakra gave rise to this thought: Sariputra is one who has exhausted the outflows and is free from desire, yet he praises prajnaparamita as though he were someone attached to dharmas. Sariputra now himself explained the cause and condition: Protected by prajnaparamita, a bodhisattva uses the power of skillful means to rejoice in merits and dedicate them, without destroying the character of prajnaparamita. This is exceedingly rare; therefore he honored prajnaparamita and asked the Buddha how it should be honored.

– Furthermore, Kausika! Because prajnaparamita possesses power of its own, it surpasses the other five perfections.

Question: The other five paramitas could sufficiently be illustrated by five blind persons. Why speak of hundreds of thousands of persons?

Answer: Here the essential point is to explain the power of prajna, irrespective of whether the number is great or small.

– Furthermore, if it were said that it guides five persons, this would not be sufficiently esteemed; therefore, it is said to guide hundreds of thousands of persons.

– Furthermore, among the paramitas in the Samadhi of the Worthy Kalpa, there are 84,000 paramitas; when explained extensively, they are immeasurable.

Question: The dana paramita also has eyes. Why? Because one believes in transgression and merit and destroys the ignorance of wrong views, one therefore practices giving. Why, then, is it compared to a person without eyes?

Answer: Within giving, wisdom is a guest that comes from outside; it is not the principal substance. It is like the four great elements, which are always united and cannot be separated from one another. The paramitas are united with one another in the same way.

They cannot follow the road and reach the city. The road is the path of the bodhisattva’s ten bhumis, and the city is knowledge of all modes and the various Buddha-dharmas.

– Furthermore, the road is the Noble Eightfold Path, and the city is nirvana. Although a blind person possesses sufficient strength in hands and feet, he cannot go wherever he wishes. Only when guided by a person with clear sight can he go wherever he wishes and accomplish every task. Although each of the five paramitas can accomplish its respective work, without the guidance of prajna they cannot attain even the two vehicles, much less the unsurpassed path. Because the five paramitas are guided by the prajnaparamita, they are called paramitas and ultimately accomplish the Buddha path.

Sakra asked: You yourself have said that the paramitas unite and assist one another, just as the four great elements cannot be separated from one another. If so, the prajnaparamita must also depend upon those five dharmas. Why is it said here only that, by relying upon prajna, those five dharmas are called paramitas?

Answer: Although the six dharmas unite and assist one another, the power of the prajnaparamita is greater; therefore, because of it, the other five dharmas are called paramitas. It is like combining various medicines and grinding them into powder: although all the medicines have their respective powers and functions, the potency of the mineral is greater, and therefore it is called mineral powder. It is also like a great army fighting an enemy: although every person has strength, the commander’s strength is greater; therefore, the leader is called the general.

Sariputra had already asked about making offerings to prajna. He now asked how a practitioner gives rise to the prajnaparamita.

The Buddha answered: If a practitioner contemplates and sees that the characteristics of dharmas such as form are unborn, the prajnaparamita then arises.

Sariputra asked again: How does the prajnaparamita arise through contemplating and seeing that form is unborn?

Answer: Form arises through the conjunction of causes and conditions. The practitioner knows form to be false and illusory and does not allow it to arise. Because it does not arise, it is unborn; because it is unborn, it cannot be obtained; because it cannot be obtained, it cannot be lost.

At that time, Sariputra intended to ask: The arising of prajna has no object as its condition, and the practitioner also has no arising. With what dharma, then, does prajna unite? Where does it finally abide? What fruit of recompense does it obtain?

Answer: The characteristic of the prajnaparamita is unborn; therefore, there is no union. If the prajnaparamita united with any dharma, whether wholesome, unwholesome, or otherwise, it would not be called the prajnaparamita. Because it does not enter into union with anything, it enters the prajnaparamita.

Question: If so, Sakra already knew that all dharmas do not unite. Why did he ask only whether it does not unite with sarvajnana?

Answer: Sakra esteemed and was deeply attached to this prajna, but he had not yet relinquished attachment to sarvajnana. Therefore, he asked, “Does it not unite even with sarvajnana?”

The Buddha answered: The prajnaparamita does not unite even with sarvajnana, because all dharmas are ultimately unborn. Here the Buddha refutes the wrong view of annihilation; therefore, he speaks of union. The prajnaparamita does not, like ordinary people, grasp characteristics and names and unite with conditioned, fabricated dharmas. Instead, one should unite with the Buddha’s mind.

Question: What does it mean to unite with the Buddha’s mind?

Answer: Knowing that all characteristics are false and deceptive, one does not grasp characteristics. Knowing that all dharmas contain the faults of impermanence, one does not accept them. The mind that clings to “I” and “mine” and binds one to the world consists entirely of moving characteristics; therefore, one does not abide in them.

Because they can produce various kinds of suffering and affliction and later undergo change, one does not become attached to them. All worldly things are inverted, and their inverted fruits of recompense are unreal, like illusions and dreams. Because they do not perish and go anywhere, one does not hold the view of annihilation.

Therefore, the Buddha does not cling to dharmas and does not give rise to an arrogant mind. He enters the wholesome characteristic of ultimate emptiness and deeply enters the mind of great compassion in order to save sentient beings. A bodhisattva should unite with the Buddha’s mind in this way.

Sakra rejoiced and praised it, saying: “Rare indeed! This prajnaparamita neither destroys dharmas nor causes them to arise; it neither obtains nor loses them, yet it can bring bodhisattvas to fulfillment and enable them to reach Buddhahood.”

Subhuti said: “If a bodhisattva, with a mind that apprehends something as obtainable, discriminates knowledge of all things and the other dharmas as either united or not united, then that bodhisattva’s prajnaparamita.”

The Buddha confirmed these words. “So it is. There is also another cause and condition: if a bodhisattva grasps your statement that all dharmas neither unite nor fail to unite, grasps that characteristic of emptiness, and says that prajna is empty, possesses nothing of its own, and is not solid, then he also loses the prajnaparamita.”

Subhuti knew that the characteristic of the prajnaparamita cannot be obtained. He therefore asked: “If one believes in the prajnaparamita, in what dharma does one believe? Since even the emptiness of the prajnaparamita cannot be obtained, in what dharma does the mind resolutely place its faith?”

The Buddha taught: “Dharmas such as form cannot be believed in. Why? Because the intrinsic nature of all dharmas such as form cannot be obtained; therefore, they cannot be believed in.”

SUTRA: Subhuti said to the Buddha: “World-Honored One! The prajnaparamita is called the great paramita!”

Subhuti said: “World-Honored One, with regard to form, the prajnaparamita does not conceive it as great or conceive it as small. With regard to feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness, it does not conceive them as great or conceive them as small. With regard to the eye through the mind; forms through dharmas; the eye-consciousness dhatu through the mind-consciousness dhatu, it does not conceive them as great or conceive them as small.

With regard to the dana paramita through the dhyana paramita, it does not conceive them as great or conceive them as small. With regard to inner emptiness through the emptiness of non-being and being, it does not conceive them as great or conceive them as small. With regard to the four foundations of mindfulness through unsurpassed, complete and perfect enlightenment, it does not conceive them as great or conceive them as small.

With regard to the various Buddha-dharmas, it does not conceive them as great or conceive them as small. With regard to the Buddha, it does not conceive him as great or conceive him as small.

“This prajnaparamita, with regard to form, does not conceive union or conceive dispersion. With regard to feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness, it does not conceive union or conceive dispersion; and so forth, through the Buddhas, it does not conceive union or conceive dispersion. With regard to form, it does not conceive it as immeasurable or conceive it as not immeasurable. With regard to form, it does not conceive it as vast or conceive it as narrow; it does not conceive form as possessing power or conceive form as lacking power; and so forth, through the Buddhas, it does not conceive them as possessing power or conceive them as lacking power.

“World-Honored One! For this cause and condition, the prajnaparamita is called the great paramita.”

“Blessed One! If a newly trained bodhisattva-mahasattva does not depart from prajnaparamita, does not depart from dhyana-paramita, does not depart from virya-paramita, does not depart from kshanti-paramita, does not depart from sila-paramita, and does not depart from dana-paramita, yet thinks thus: ‘This prajnaparamita does not attend to form as great, nor does it attend to form as small; and so forth, up to the Buddhas, it does not attend to them as great, nor does it attend to them as small.

With regard to form, it does not attend to it as conjoined, nor does it attend to it as dispersed; it does not attend to form as immeasurable, nor does it attend to form as not immeasurable; it does not attend to form as possessing power, nor does it attend to form as lacking power; and so forth, up to the Buddhas, it does not attend to them as possessing power, nor does it attend to them as lacking power.’ Blessed One, if that bodhisattva-mahasattva thinks in this way, he is not truly practicing prajnaparamita.

Why? Because these are not the characteristics of the paramita—namely, attending to form as great or small, and so forth, up to attending to the Buddhas as great or small; attending to form as possessing power or lacking power, and so forth, up to attending to the Buddhas as possessing power or lacking power.

“Blessed One! Because that bodhisattva-mahasattva employs an apprehending wisdom, he commits a grave error: while practicing prajnaparamita, he attends to form as great and attends to form as small, and so forth, up to attending to the Buddhas as possessing power or lacking power. Why? Because wherever there is the characteristic of apprehension, there is no unsurpassed, complete, perfect enlightenment. Why is this? Because sentient beings are unborn, prajnaparamita is also unborn; and so forth, because the Buddha is unborn, prajnaparamita is also unborn.

“Because sentient beings have no intrinsic nature, prajnaparamita has no intrinsic nature. Because form has no intrinsic nature, prajnaparamita has no intrinsic nature; and so forth, because the Buddha has no intrinsic nature, prajnaparamita has no intrinsic nature.

“Because sentient beings are not dharmas, prajnaparamita is not a dharma. Because form is not a dharma, prajnaparamita is not a dharma; and so forth, because the Buddha is not a dharma, prajnaparamita is not a dharma.

“Because sentient beings are empty, prajnaparamita is empty. Because form is empty, prajnaparamita is empty; and so forth, because the Buddha is empty, prajnaparamita is empty.

“Because sentient beings are free from characteristics, prajnaparamita is free from characteristics. Because form is free from characteristics, prajnaparamita is free from characteristics; and so forth, because the Buddha is free from characteristics, prajnaparamita is free from characteristics.

“Because sentient beings do not exist, prajnaparamita does not exist. Because form does not exist, prajnaparamita does not exist; and so forth, because the Buddha does not exist, prajnaparamita does not exist.

“Because sentient beings are inconceivable, prajnaparamita is inconceivable. Because form is inconceivable, prajnaparamita is inconceivable; and so forth, because the Buddha is inconceivable, prajnaparamita is inconceivable.

“Because sentient beings do not cease, prajnaparamita does not cease. Because form does not cease, prajnaparamita does not cease; and so forth, because the Buddha does not cease, prajnaparamita does not cease.

“Because sentient beings cannot be known, prajnaparamita cannot be known. Because form cannot be known, prajnaparamita cannot be known; and so forth, because the Buddha cannot be known, prajnaparamita cannot be known.

“Because the power of sentient beings is not established, the power of prajnaparamita is not established. Because the power of form is not established, the power of prajnaparamita is not established; and so forth, because the power of the Buddha is not established, the power of prajnaparamita is not established.

“Blessed One, for these causes and conditions, the prajnaparamita of the bodhisattvas is called the great paramita.”

TREATISE: Subhuti, having heard the Buddha’s teaching, resolved the doubts in his mind and praised prajnaparamita, saying: “This prajnaparamita is called the great paramita.”

The Buddha in turn asked Subhuti: “What do you think? Why is it called the great paramita?”

Subhuti replied: “Because with regard to dharmas such as form, it does not attend to them as great or small.” The minds of ordinary beings arbitrarily regard dharmas as great or small. For example, when people encounter an urgent crisis, their minds contract; when they are secure, prosperous, and joyful, their minds expand greatly.

Furthermore, as in the eight liberations, external forms may become either great or small in accordance with the mind.

Moreover, when ordinary beings lose sight of form, they regard what is not form as form. For example, they combine action, measure, number, unity, difference, and other dharmas and take them to be form. This is called attending to form as great. There are

people who say that whatever the eye sees is called form, while whatever cannot be seen is not called form.

Some say: “Coarse form is false and unreal, and is not true form. Only the minute particles that permanently exist are called true form. When these minute particles combine, they are provisionally designated as form.” This is called attending to form as small.

Through causes and conditions such as these, ordinary beings attend to form either as great or as small. Because they discriminate according to conceptual thought, they destroy the Dharma-nature. Prajnaparamita, however, accords with the nature of form and contemplates it in accordance with reality. It does not attend to it as great or small, conjoined or dispersed. In prajnaparamita, it is not said that when minute particles combine, the designation “form” thereby comes into existence. There is only a provisional designation, and no form possessing a fixed characteristic. Therefore, it is neither conjoined nor dispersed.

Because form is boundless, it is immeasurable. There is no place where form is absent and no time when form is absent; therefore, it has no measure.

Form is a conditioned dharma. In prajnaparamita, it is not held that coarse form exists because minute particles combine, nor that coarse form becomes minute particles because it disperses. Therefore, it is said to be neither conjoined nor dispersed.

When dharmas arise, there is discrimination and calculation of whether they are many or few; thus, they cannot be said to be neither conjoined nor dispersed and immeasurable. For ordinary beings, because things are “empty,” they are said to be immeasurable, and because they are “real,” they are said to have measure. Prajnaparamita is free from both “emptiness” and “reality”; therefore, it is said to be neither measurable nor immeasurable.

Ordinary beings understand things according to the thoughts and recollections of their minds; therefore, they attend to form as broad or narrow. Prajnaparamita, however, contemplates the true characteristic of dharmas and does not follow the mind; therefore, it is neither broad nor narrow.

Ordinary beings do not know that dharmas arise through the conjunction of causes and conditions; therefore, they say that form possesses power. This is like strands being combined to make a rope: one who does not understand says that the rope possesses power. It is also like a wall collapsing and killing someone, whereupon it is said that the wall possesses power. Yet when each component is separately dispersed, there is no power. Prajnaparamita knows the characteristic of conjunction; therefore, it does not say that any single dharma possesses power, nor does it say that it lacks power. For this reason, it is called the great paramita.

There is also an important reason: if a bodhisattva does not depart from the six paramitas, and with regard to form and the other dharmas neither conceives them as great nor conceives them as small, but solely practices prajnaparamita, then the mind will be scattered, inharmonious, and unyielding; doubts, regrets, and wrong views will continually arise, and the characteristic of prajnaparamita will be lost. If prajnaparamita is practiced in conjunction with the other five paramitas, then the mind becomes harmonious and yielding, free from error, and able to accomplish every undertaking.

It is like the eight factors of the Noble Path: right view is the Path, but without the assistance of the other seven factors, the undertaking cannot be accomplished, nor can it be called right view. Therefore, the Buddha taught that all wholesome dharmas arise together through the conjunction of causes and conditions; there is not a single dharma that arises entirely by itself. Thus, when they are conjoined, each possesses efficacy, although their efficacy may be greater or lesser.

This is called the practice of prajnaparamita. If one discriminates form and the other dharmas as either great or small, one immediately falls into the sphere of attainment and into the extreme of existence. If, with regard to form and the other dharmas, one does not discriminate them as either great or small, yet departs from the five paramitas, one becomes attached to the characteristic of emptiness—neither great nor small, and so forth.

Previously, discriminating dharmas as great or small and regarding them as something attainable was an error; now, becoming attached to the characteristic of emptiness as neither great nor small is also an error. Why? Here Subhuti explains the reason: the characteristic of attainment extends even to the assertion that there is no unsurpassed complete enlightenment, no characteristic of quiescent cessation, no characteristic of non-attainment, and no characteristic of ultimate purity.

The characteristic of attainment gives rise to frivolous disputation and contention.

All dharmas are neither produced nor extinguished and have no characteristic of attainment. Just as the self and a sentient being cannot be found even when sought throughout the ten directions, but exist only as provisional designations and are not truly produced, so too, because sentient beings are not produced, prajnaparamita, like the characteristic of a sentient being, is neither produced nor extinguished, for it destroys the deluded mind that clings to ‘I’ and ‘mine.’ Likewise, because the characteristic of arising cannot be found when sought in form and the other dharmas, they are not produced.

Two dharmas encompass all dharmas: sentient beings and phenomena. Because these two arise through the conjunction of causes and conditions, they exist only as provisional designations and possess no fixed nature. If a dharma has no fixed nature, that dharma is unproduced. Because these two dharmas are unproduced, one therefore knows that form and the other dharmas are also unproduced.

The dharma of sentient beings has no intrinsic nature and possesses nothing of its own; it is empty, free from characteristics, inconceivable, unceasing, and unknowable. The same is true of all dharmas.

‘Because the efficacy of sentient beings is not established, the efficacy of prajnaparamita is not established’ means this: it was previously stated that all dharmas arise through the conjunction of their own causes and conditions, and that none possesses efficacy of its own. Prajnaparamita knows that each dharma possesses no efficacy of its own; therefore, it has no intrinsic nature, and because it has no intrinsic nature, it is empty.

Prajnaparamita arises from dharmas and therefore has no efficacy of its own. Because it has no efficacy of its own, it too, like all dharmas, is ultimately empty. Therefore, it is said that because the efficacy of sentient beings and phenomena is not established, the efficacy of prajnaparamita is likewise not established.

Question: It was previously said that, with regard to form and the other dharmas, one does not conceive them as possessing efficacy or as lacking efficacy. Why, then, is it now said that because the efficacy of sentient beings, form, and the other dharmas is not established, the efficacy of prajnaparamita is also not established?

Answer: Above, it was said that prajnaparamita contemplates all dharmas without conceiving them as possessing efficacy or as lacking efficacy. The listener might suppose that prajnaparamita is able to produce this contemplation and therefore possesses efficacy. Thus, it is stated here that because the efficacy of sentient beings, form, and the other dharmas is not established, the efficacy of prajnaparamita is likewise not established.

For reasons such as these, it is called the great paramita.

EXPLANATION: CHAPTER 41, FAITH AND UNDERSTANDING.

(The Great Prajnaparamita Sutra records this as Part 2, Chapter 39: The Hells.)

SUTRA: At that time, the venerable Sariputra addressed the Buddha, saying: “World-Honored One, from what place did a bodhisattva-mahasattva who has faith in and understands prajnaparamita pass away before being born here? How long has it been since that bodhisattva first generated the aspiration for unsurpassed complete enlightenment? How many Buddhas has that bodhisattva made offerings to? How long has that bodhisattva practiced the paramita of giving, the paramita of morality, the paramita of patience, the paramita of vigor, the paramita of meditation, and prajnaparamita, so that now that bodhisattva is able to accord with and understand the meaning of profound prajnaparamita?”

The Buddha told Sariputra: “That bodhisattva-mahasattva has made offerings to the Buddhas of the ten directions and has now been born here. Measureless, boundless, incalculable kalpas have passed since that bodhisattva generated the aspiration for unsurpassed complete enlightenment. From the time that bodhisattva-mahasattva first generated the aspiration, that bodhisattva has constantly practiced the paramita of giving, the paramita of morality, the paramita of patience, the paramita of vigor, the paramita of meditation, and prajnaparamita; and has made offerings to measureless, boundless, inconceivable, incalculable numbers of Buddhas before being born here.

“Sariputra, when that bodhisattva-mahasattva sees or hears prajnaparamita, that bodhisattva thinks: ‘I see the Buddha; I hear this from the Buddha.’

“Sariputra, that bodhisattva-mahasattva constantly accords with and understands the meaning of profound prajnaparamita because it is signless, nondual, and without attainment.”

The Buddha told Subhuti: “There is no one who hears prajnaparamita and no one who sees it. Prajnaparamita neither hears nor sees, because dharmas are dull and insentient. The paramita of meditation, the paramita of vigor, the paramita of patience, and the paramita of morality neither hear nor see, because dharmas are dull and insentient.

Inner emptiness neither hears nor sees, because dharmas are dull and insentient; and so forth through the emptiness of nonexistence and existence, which neither hears nor sees, because dharmas are dull and insentient. The four foundations of mindfulness neither hear nor see, because dharmas are dull and insentient; and so forth through the eight factors of the Noble Path, which neither hear nor see, because dharmas are dull and insentient.

The Buddha’s ten powers, and so forth through the eighteen exclusive qualities, neither hear nor see, because dharmas are dull and insentient.

“Subhuti, the path to Buddhahood neither hears nor sees, because dharmas are dull and insentient.”

Subhuti addressed the Buddha, saying: “World-Honored One, how long must that bodhisattva cultivate the path to Buddhahood before being able to practice such exceedingly profound prajnaparamita?”

The Buddha told Subhuti: “A distinction should be made in this matter. Subhuti, there are bodhisattva-mahasattvas who, immediately upon first generating the aspiration, are able to practice exceedingly profound prajnaparamita and to practice the paramita of meditation, the paramita of vigor, the paramita of patience, the paramita of morality, and the paramita of giving. Through the power of skillful means, they do not destroy any dharma, nor do they regard any dharma as being without benefit.

They never depart from the practice of the six paramitas, nor do they depart from the Buddhas. They travel from one Buddha-land to another. If they wish to use the power of their roots of goodness to make offerings to the Buddhas, their wish is immediately fulfilled.

They are never born within a mother’s womb, never lose the superknowledges, and never give rise to afflictions or to the mind of a sravaka or a pratyekabuddha. Traveling from one Buddha-land to another, they bring the wisdom of awakening to maturity in sentient beings and purify and adorn Buddha-lands.

“Subhuti, bodhisattva-mahasattvas such as these are able to practice profound prajnaparamita.”

Subhuti, there are bodhisattva-mahasattvas who constantly see Buddhas—perhaps immeasurable hundreds of thousands of myriads of kotis of them—and who, in the presence of those Buddhas, cultivate generosity, morality, patience, diligence, one-pointed concentration, and wisdom. Yet because they practice with a notion of attainment, when those bodhisattvas hear the profound prajnaparamita taught, they immediately rise from the midst of the assembly and depart, showing no reverence for the profound prajnaparamita or for the Buddhas.

Such bodhisattvas are now seated in this assembly; when they hear this profound prajnaparamita, they take no delight in it and consequently depart. Why? Because in previous lives, when those good men and good women heard the profound prajnaparamita, they departed; therefore, in this life, when they hear the profound prajnaparamita, they again depart, their bodies and minds not being in harmony.

Such people plant the karmic causes and conditions of delusion. Because they have planted the karmic causes and conditions of delusion, when they hear the profound prajnaparamita taught, they disparage it. Because they disparage prajnaparamita, they disparage the Buddhas of the past, future, and present, and they disparage all-knowledge and the knowledge of all modes.

Because they disparage the all-knowledge of the Buddhas of the three times, they create the karma of destroying the Dharma. When the causes and conditions of that karma of destroying the Dharma come together, they must fall into the great hells for immeasurable hundreds of thousands of myriads of kotis of years. Through the karma of destroying the Dharma, they pass from one great hell to another great hell.

When the conflagration at the end of the kalpa arises, they are reborn in a great hell in another direction. There, they again pass from one great hell to another great hell; and when the kalpa fire arises, they are once again reborn in a great hell in yet another direction. There, they pass from one great hell to another great hell, proceeding in this way throughout the ten directions.

If the kalpa fire arises there and they die in that place while the causes and conditions of their sinful karma of destroying the Dharma have not yet been exhausted, they return to the great hells here. Here, too, they pass from one great hell to another great hell and undergo immeasurable suffering. When the kalpa fire arises here, they must again be reborn in other worlds throughout the ten directions.

The suffering they undergo in the animal realm because of the sinful karma of destroying the Dharma is like that undergone in the hells. When the weight of their grave offenses gradually diminishes and they are perhaps able to be born as human beings, they are born into families of those blind from birth, into families of chandalas, or into lowly families whose occupations are cleaning latrines or carrying corpses. They may be born without eyes, with only one eye, with dim sight, without a tongue, without ears, or without hands.

In the place where they are born, there is no Buddha, no Dharma, and no disciples of the Buddha. Why? Because they planted the karma of destruction and accumulated it until it became full, heavy, and deeply rooted; therefore, they undergo such retribution.

At that time, Sariputra addressed the Buddha, saying: “World-Honored One, are the five heinous offenses comparable to the offense of destroying the Dharma?”

The Buddha told Sariputra: “They should not be said to be comparable. Why? If someone hears this profound prajnaparamita taught and disparages it, refusing to believe, saying, ‘This Dharma should not be studied.

It is not Dharma, it is not wholesome, it is not the Buddha’s teaching, and the Buddhas did not speak these words,’ that person not only disparages prajnaparamita himself but also teaches others to disparage prajnaparamita. He destroys his own person and also destroys the persons of others; he drinks poison and kills himself and also gives poison to others to drink; he causes the loss of his own life and also causes the loss of others’ lives.

He himself neither understands nor believes but disparages prajnaparamita, and he also teaches others so that they neither understand nor believe.

“Sariputra, I do not permit such a person even to hear the name ‘Prajna,’ much less to behold it with his own eyes. Why? You should know that such a person defiles the Dharma, has fallen into decline and corruption, and is dark by nature. If anyone hears what such a person says, believes it, and follows it, that person will also undergo suffering in the same way.

“Sariputra, if someone destroys prajnaparamita, you should know that such a person destroys the Dharma.”

Sariputra addressed the Buddha, saying: “World-Honored One! The World-Honored One has said that those who destroy the Dharma incur grave offenses, but he has not described the size of the bodies they will assume.”

The Buddha told Sariputra: “There is no need to describe the size of the bodies they will assume. Why? If those who destroy the Dharma were to hear the size of the bodies they will assume, they would immediately vomit hot blood from anguish and would either die or come close to death. When such destroyers of the Dharma hear that they will assume bodies of this kind and incur offenses of such gravity, they would be overwhelmed by grief, like an arrow lodged in the heart, and would gradually wither away, thinking, ‘Because of the offense of destroying the Dharma, I shall have to bear an extremely hideous body and undergo immeasurable suffering such as this.’ For this reason, the Buddha does not permit Sariputra to ask about the size of the bodies they will assume.”

Sariputra addressed the Buddha, saying: “I pray that the Buddha will explain it, so that it may serve as a clear warning for future generations, enabling them to understand that because they have accumulated the karma of destroying the Dharma, they must assume such extremely hideous bodies and undergo such suffering.”

The Buddha told Sariputra: “If people in future generations hear that those who have accumulated the karma of destroying the Dharma until it becomes full, heavy, and deeply rooted must undergo immeasurable suffering for an exceedingly long time in the great hells, then merely hearing of that immeasurably long period of suffering will be sufficient to serve as a clear warning for future generations.”

Sariputra addressed the Buddha, saying: “World-Honored One, if good men and good women of wholesome nature hear this Dharma, it will be sufficient for them to take it as their guide. They would rather lose their lives than ever destroy the Dharma. They will think to themselves, ‘If I destroy the Dharma, I shall undergo suffering such as this.’”

TREATISE: Sariputra heard that prajnaparamita is subtle, wondrous, and profound, and that even hearing it is difficult, how much more so practicing it! Therefore, he said: “Those who believe in and understand prajnaparamita are truly rare.” He consequently asked the World-Honored One, “From where did those capable of believing in and understanding this prajnaparamita pass away before being born here?” Sariputra thought: “Such people must have passed away from a splendid world before being born here.

They are not people who have only recently aroused the aspiration; they are not people who have made offerings to only a few Buddhas; nor have they cultivated the six paramitas only slightly. They must certainly be people of great virtue who, though not yet noble ones, are nevertheless able to understand the Dharma of the noble ones.” Therefore, he asked how long ago they had aroused the aspiration, how many Buddhas they had made offerings to, and how long they had cultivated the six paramitas, such that they were able to believe in and understand the profound meaning of prajna.

Such bodhisattvas do not grasp the characteristics of dharmas, do not cling to emptiness, practice the conduct of emptiness, cultivate prajnaparamita in harmony with the other five paramitas, and, with a mind of great loving-kindness and compassion, cultivate prajnaparamita for the sake of all sentient beings. They passed away from the pure worlds of the Buddhas of the ten directions and were born here in order to liberate sentient beings with whom they had affinities and to serve as causes and conditions for Buddha Shakyamuni.

Although there are people who die and are born here, only those who come here from the abodes of Buddhas in other directions are esteemed. Because, from the time they first aroused the aspiration until now, they have passed through immeasurable and incalculable kalpas, accumulating profound and abundant merit, they are able to believe in, understand, and accord with the profound doctrine.

Some people, although they aroused the aspiration immeasurable and incalculable kalpas ago, did not cultivate merit. Therefore, it is said here that from the time they aroused the aspiration until now, they have constantly cultivated the six paramitas. Because of the merit gained through constantly cultivating the six paramitas, they are able to see and make offerings to immeasurable and incalculable Buddhas.

That bodhisattva fulfills the four causes and conditions mentioned above and therefore acquires immeasurable, boundless merit and wisdom. By reason of that merit, his afflictions become slight, his mind becomes gentle and pliant, and the bodhisattva’s faculties of faith and wisdom become keen and gradually gain strength. He therefore enters deeply into the prajnaparamita and grows weary of worldly affairs.

If he sees a scripture containing the prajnaparamita, he immediately gives rise to the same thought as if seeing the Buddha; or if he opens the scripture and seeks its meaning, he immediately gives rise to the same thought as if hearing it from the Buddha. Because he has perfected the powers of faith and wisdom, he accordingly comprehends the profound meaning of the prajnaparamita: all dharmas are without characteristics and transcend the twelve ayatanas, duality, and nonduality; the mind remains unattached, and this is called non-attainment.

In brief, these three characteristics constitute the corresponding comprehension of the meaning of the prajnaparamita.

When Subhuti heard it said that seeing the scripture was like seeing the Buddha and reading its text was like hearing the Buddha’s words, it seemed as though there were attachment. He therefore asked: “Can the prajnaparamita be seen or heard?” Subhuti’s meaning was that since the prajnaparamita is ultimately empty, even the divine eye and divine ear cannot see or hear it, much less the fleshly eye and fleshly ear. Even the supramundane wisdom-eye cannot see it, much less the worldly eye!

The Buddha accorded with his meaning and replied: “The prajnaparamita cannot be seen or heard.” Here he explained the reason: When all dharmas enter the prajnaparamita, they all have one characteristic—namely, the absence of characteristics. Within it, there is no distinction between the hearer and the seer, nor anything that can be heard or seen.

Ordinary beings within the three realms make such distinctions as eye and form, ear and sound; the six faculties are keen, while the six sense objects are dull. Dharmas such as form are dull, whereas wisdom and the like are keen. When all dharmas enter the prajnaparamita, just as a hundred rivers flow into the sea, they all become of one taste. Therefore, it is said that the prajnaparamita cannot be seen or heard. Because all dharmas are dull, the same applies from dana-paramita up to the path of Buddhahood, and from the stream-enterer up to the Buddha.

– Furthermore, apart from dharmas, beings cannot hear or see; and apart from beings, dharmas likewise cannot hear or see.

Question: Earlier it was already asked how long a bodhisattva had generated the aspiration and how many Buddhas he had made offerings to before he could accordingly comprehend the profound meaning. Why is this now asked again?

Answer: Earlier the Buddha said that the prajnaparamita can neither be heard nor seen, yet he also said that seeing a scripture containing the prajnaparamita is like seeing the Buddha and that reading the prajnaparamita is like hearing the Buddha speak. Since the prajnaparamita was described through these two aspects, it was said both that it can be heard and seen and that it cannot be heard or seen. Therefore, the Buddha was asked again: “How long must a bodhisattva practice before acquiring the skillful means whereby he can practice in accordance with existence and also practice in accordance with nonexistence; practice in accordance with existence without falling into the three realms, and practice in accordance with nonexistence without falling into annihilation;

and thus practice in accordance with the characteristic of the prajnaparamita?”

The Buddha answered: “Yes. This matter is not fixed and must therefore be explained by making distinctions. Some bodhisattvas, immediately upon first generating the aspiration, are able to cultivate and practice the six profound paramitas.”

To cultivate and practice means single-mindedly to believe, accept, and constantly practice. By the power of skillful means—that is, wisdom—although one cultivates and practices the six paramitas and thereby produces the causes and conditions for the arising of merit, the mind remains unattached.

That dharmas cannot destroy him means that the bodhisattva’s powers of faith and wisdom are very great. Thus, upon hearing the profound Dharma of the Mahayana, he immediately believes it; upon hearing the Dharma of the sravakas, he also believes it; and upon hearing the teachings of householders, renunciants, or adherents of heterodox paths, he likewise remains unshaken. From among them, he derives two kinds of benefit: 1. He distinguishes the true path from the false path, abandons the false path, and follows the true path. 2. When all dharmas enter the prajnaparamita, there is neither truth nor falsity, neither rejection nor acceptance.

Not seeing any dharmas as devoid of benefit refers precisely to the two kinds of benefit derived from them as explained above. Because that merit is complete, he ultimately never departs from the six paramitas, up to and including the purification and adornment of Buddha lands.

Some bodhisattvas, though they have only recently generated the aspiration, profoundly believe in and accept the prajnaparamita. Other bodhisattvas generated the aspiration long ago and have made offerings to thousands, tens of thousands, and hundreds of millions of Buddhas, yet because they practice the six paramitas with a mind that apprehends something as attained, they do not believe in or accept the prajnaparamita.

Here the Buddha himself explained the reason: In past lives, such persons heard the profound prajnaparamita but neither believed nor accepted it; they rose from their seats and departed. Therefore, even when the Buddha teaches it to them now, they still neither believe nor accept it. As the retribution for the offense of repudiating the prajnaparamita, through the karma of disbelief and non-acceptance they create causes and conditions that give rise to the karma of delusion.

Because of the karma of delusion, they become doubtful and irresolute and develop wrong views. Their attachment grows ever stronger; because their attachment grows ever stronger, they slander and repudiate the prajnaparamita amid the great assembly. By repudiating the prajnaparamita, they repudiate the omniscience of the Buddhas of the ten directions.

Because of the offense of repudiating the omniscience of all Buddhas of the ten directions, when they pass from that body, they fall into the great hells.

The great hell is the Avici Hell, the Hell of Uninterrupted Torment, where they endure sorrow, suffering, and anguish for immeasurable hundreds of thousands of myriads of millions of countless kalpas. Sorrow is mental suffering; suffering and anguish are bodily suffering.

Passing from one great hell to another great hell is as follows: Just as, by reason of merit, the six heavens of the desire realm exist above, so too, by reason of sinful karma, eight great hells exist below. Each of the eight great hells has sixteen minor hells, and among them Avici is the greatest. The same applies elsewhere beneath the heavens of the Four Heavenly Kings. Within the great trichiliocosm, there are ten billion Mount Sumerus and ten billion Avici Hells. Therefore, it is said that they pass from one great Avici Hell to another great Avici Hell, just as a person goes from one assembly to another.

Again, it is like a person who has entered the fixed state of righteousness: descending from the heavens to the human world, he experiences happiness, and returning from the human realm to the heavens, he experiences happiness. If the kalpa-fire arises here before the offender’s karmic retribution is exhausted, he must be transferred to a great hell in another world of the ten directions to undergo punishment. If the kalpa-fire also arises there, he must again be transferred elsewhere. When the kalpa-fire arises in that other region, he returns to be born in the Avici Hell here, revolving in this manner as before.

When the offense gradually becomes lighter and he is able to obtain a human body, he is born into a lowly station. That is, he is born into a family of people congenitally blind because he did not wish to see the prajnaparamita. Because he disparaged the preacher of the Dharma, he must be born into the lowly caste of candalas, working as one who removes excrement, carries corpses, and so forth.

Because he slandered the preacher of the Dharma, he suffers the calamity of having no tongue; because he did not wish to hear the Dharma, he suffers the calamity of having no ears; because he rejected it, he suffers the calamity of having no hands. Although such a person’s mind cherishes the Buddha, through delusion and lack of wisdom he repeatedly destroys the mother of the Buddha—that is, the prajnaparamita—and ruins the treasury of the Dharma.

Because he ruins the treasury of the Dharma, he is born in a place where there are no Buddha, Dharma, or Sangha.

Question: Why is it not said that he is born among the hungry ghosts?

Answer: Those who commit such destruction do so mostly because of two afflictions: anger and delusion. One falls among the hungry ghosts because of stinginess and greed. Since stinginess and greed are absent here, birth among hungry ghosts is not mentioned.

Question: Why did Sariputra say that the five heinous offenses are similar to the offense of destroying the Dharma?

Answer: Sariputra, being a shravaka, had often heard it said that the five heinous offenses are extremely grave, causing one to fall into the Avici Hell and undergo suffering for an entire kalpa. Shravakas do not fully understand that making offerings to prajnaparamita brings great karmic reward, nor do they know that slandering prajnaparamita incurs a grave offense. Therefore, he brought up the five heinous offenses and asked whether they were comparable.

The answer was: They are not comparable, for they are exceedingly far apart. Why? Because one who slanders prajnaparamita not only forfeits great benefit oneself but also causes others to forfeit it; one not only distances oneself from prajnaparamita but also causes others to distance themselves from it; one not only destroys one’s own roots of goodness but also destroys the roots of goodness of others; one not only smears oneself with the poison of wrong views but also smears others with the poison of wrong views; one not only ruins one’s own person but also ruins the persons of others.

Because one does not understand and is attached to craving for dharmas, one destroys prajnaparamita oneself and causes others to destroy it as well. Parents love their children, and their kindness is unsurpassed throughout a single lifetime; moreover, their love arises from causes and conditions. Yet a bodhisattva who practices prajnaparamita cherishes sentient beings from the depths of the heart throughout immeasurable lifetimes.

Parents who care for their children cannot give even one eye to them, whereas a practitioner of prajnaparamita, throughout immeasurable kalpas, gives sentient beings enough eyes, marrow, and brains to form a heap surpassing Mount Sumeru. Causing the body of a Buddha to bleed or killing an arhat damages only the physical body, not the Dharma-body; creating a schism in the Sangha merely separates its members from one another.

This demonstrates that those five offenses do not destroy prajnaparamita. Therefore, the five heinous offenses must not be considered equal to the offense of destroying prajnaparamita.

Prajnaparamita enables people to become Buddhas; therefore, nothing can serve as an analogy for the offense of destroying prajnaparamita. Thus, as for one who destroys prajnaparamita, I do not wish you even to hear that person’s name, much less see that person with your own eyes. Such a destroyer of prajnaparamita may, through the merit of past lives, be widely learned and well informed, wealthy, honored, and influential, and eloquent in speech; the retinues of Mara may constantly follow and support that person.

A bodhisattva who has not yet attained the stage of non-retrogression may see that person receiving offerings from many people and having numerous monastic and lay disciples. Therefore, if anyone praises that person’s reputation, the bodhisattva should not even wish to hear it, much less approach and bow to that person or accept that person’s instruction. Why?

Because the bodhisattva wishes to increase wholesome dharmas and benefit sentient beings, whereas that person wishes only to destroy the Dharma and cause sentient beings to fall into a state of decline and defilement. These two aims are opposed to each other.

Decline and defilement are like the condition of a person afflicted by a wasting illness: although dressed in fine clothes and eating delicious food, that person is always without a healthy complexion or strength; although diligently working, that person’s wealth diminishes day by day. Because such a person destroys the supreme treasure of the Dharma of all Buddhas, even though that person’s bodily and verbal karma may be wholesome, and though that person observes the precepts, practices giving, and recites sutras, wholesome dharmas never increase.

It is like turbid, muddy water in which one cannot see one’s face and which one cannot drink. One should not approach such a person, for by approaching, one is easily tainted and becomes attached. Because that person destroys the Dharma, wrong views, doubt, and remorse constantly disturb the mind.

Being deeply attached to teachings previously heard and not understanding the characteristics of prajnaparamita, that person says that prajnaparamita contains nothing, is empty, is insubstantial, and that there is neither offense nor merit. Because that person’s mind is thus defiled, distracted, and obscured, that person cannot perceive the pure true characteristic of dharmas.

A dark nature means that, within the Buddha-Dharma, wholesome dharmas are called white and unwholesome dharmas are called black. Because such a person continually accumulates unwholesome dharmas, these become that person’s unwholesome nature. If anyone believes and accepts that person’s words, that person shares the same offense.

Question: Why did Sariputra ask about the size of the body that person would assume, yet the Buddha did not answer?

Answer: Sariputra had already heard of the duration and places in which that person would undergo punishment, but had not heard whether that body would be large or small. He wished to hear the Buddha say that the body would be immense. Furthermore, just as Sakra’s body is ten leagues tall and is completely pervaded by bliss, he wished to know whether a large body undergoing punishment would likewise experience greater suffering.

There were two reasons why the Buddha did not speak of it: 1. It had already been said above that the person would undergo suffering for ages in the two evil destinies. If it were now further said that the person’s body would be immense and hideous, people might not believe it; those who disbelieved would undergo intense suffering for a long time. 2.

If they believed the Buddha’s words, they would be greatly terrified. Because of this terror, their vital winds might surge, causing them to vomit hot blood and die. Even if they did not die, their bodies would continually wither away.

If they did not believe, they would incur grave offenses in future lives. Therefore, the Buddha did not speak of it.

Sariputra said to the Buddha: Although the Buddha does not speak of it now for these two reasons, may he speak out of compassion for people in the future.

The Buddha taught: For those whose nature is pure and white and whose roots of goodness are wholesome, what has already been said is sufficient to serve as a refuge. A pure and white nature is the opposite of a dark nature. To serve as a refuge means that, upon hearing of the suffering to be undergone, they will not dare commit such deeds. Those who do not believe will not believe even if told that the body is immense. Those who do believe have only to hear what was said above about enduring suffering for a long time, and that is sufficient for faith. Therefore, they should guard and restrain body, speech, and mind among the three kinds of karma.

(End of Scroll 62 according to the Chinese edition.)