Donate

Font chữ: + A   + A   + A   + A  

"Also, next, O good man! How does the Bodhisattva-mahasattva practise the Way of Great Nirvana and accomplish the second virtue?

O good man! The Bodhisattva-mahasattva practises the Way of Great Nirvana and now gains what he could not gain in the past, now sees what he could not see in the past, now hears what he could not hear in the past, attains what he could not attain in the past, and knows what he was not able to know in the past.”

"How does one now gain what one was unable to gain in the past? This is none other than the great miraculous power which one could not gain in the past, but which one now gains. Of power, there are two kinds. One is interior, the other exterior. We say "exterior". This refers to tirthikas. Of the interior, there are again two kinds. One is of the two vehicles, and the other is of the Bodhisattva. This is the divine power which the Bodhisattva gains by practising the Great Nirvana Sutra. It is not the same as that which obtains with sravakas and pratyekabuddhas. The divine power gained by the two vehicles is one gained by one mind; it is not many. This is not so with the Bodhisattva. In one mind, he gains five kinds of body. Why? Because he gains the divine power of the Great Nirvana Sutra. This is what one now obtains which one did not gain in the past.

"And, also, how does one now get what one did not get in the past? This refers to one's gaining unmolestedness [i.e. unimpededness] in body and mind. Why? The body and mind which common mortals possess are not unmolested. On some occasions, the mind follows the body, and on others, the body the mind.

"In what way does the mind follow the body? For example, this is as with an intoxicated person. When there is liquor in the body, the mind also moves. Also, it is as when the body feels lazy, the mind also feels so. This is an instance of the mind’s following the body.

"Also, it is as with a child. As the body is small, the mind, too, is still small. With a grown-up, as the body is big, the mind, too, is big.

"Or there might be a man whose body is rough and unwieldy, and who thinks of rubbing in oil so that his body can become soft and flexible. The case is like this. This is an instance of the mind’s following the body.

"How does the body follow the mind? This is when one enacts going and coming, sitting and lying, giving, upholding the precepts, practising patience and effort.

"A person possessed of worry has a body which is weak and wasted, whereas one who is happy has a body full in flesh and joy.

"A person who is frightened shakes; if, with an undivided mind, one gives ear to Dharma, one’s body brightens with joy. A person with sorrow sheds plentiful tears. This is what we mean when we say that the body follows the mind. The case of the body of the Bodhisattva is not thus. He has unmolestedness in body and mind. This is what we call having what one did not possess in the past.

"Also, next, O good man! The bodily appearance of the Bodhisattva-mahasattva is like a dust-particle, a mote. With this mote-sized body, he easily travels unhinderedly to the worlds of all the Buddhas as numerous and boundless as the sands of innumerable Ganges, and his mind never moves. This is what we mean when we say that the mind does not follow the body. This is why we say that one now arrives at what one had not reached in the past.

"Why do we say that what one had not arrived at is now arrived at? What all sravakas and pratyekabuddhas were unable to arrive at is now gained by the Bodhisattva. This is why we say that what one had not arrived at is now gained. Sravakas and pratyekabuddhas may transform their bodies into the size of a mote, and yet they are unable to travel to the worlds of all the Buddhas, whose number is as countless as the sands of the Ganges. With the sravakas and pratyekabuddhas, their minds also move when their bodies move about. It is not thus with the Bodhisattva. His mind does not move, but there is no case where his body does not move. This is the sense in which we speak of the mind of the Bodhisattva not following his body.

"Also, next, O good man! The Bodhisattva transforms his body and makes it as big in size as the 3,000 great-thousand worlds, and this large-size body can [also] turn into a mote-size body. The Bodhisattva’s mind does not grow small at such times. Sravakas and pratyekabuddhas may transform themselves into something as great as the 3,000 great-thousand worlds. But they cannot make their bodies the size of a mote. Here, they fail. And how could their minds not shake as their bodies move about? This is the sense in which we speak of the Bodhisattva’s mind not following his body.

"Also, next, O good man! The Bodhisattva-mahasattva causes his single voice to be heard by the beings of the 3,000 great-thousand worlds. Yet he does not pray that his voice might fill all worlds. He enables beings to hear now what they had not heard in the past. Yet he does not say that he has so contrived things that beings can now hear what they had not heard in the past. If a Bodhisattva said that he enabled people to hear now his sermons which they had been unable to hear in the past, such a person would not attain the unsurpassed body. Why not? The mind that thinks that as beings do not hear what I now speak is none but the mind of the world of birth and death. All Bodhisattvas have done away with such a mind. Thus the body or mind of the Bodhisattva does not now follow the other in this way. O good man! With the body and mind of all beings, each follows the other. It is otherwise with the Bodhisattva. In order to save beings, he may transform his body and mind, but his mind is not small. Why not? The mind of all Bodhisattvas is by nature always big. Hence, even though he manifests a large body, his mind does not become big. How big is his body? His body is like the 3,000 great-thousand worlds. How is his mind small? It enacts what a small child does. Thus his mind is not drawn by his body. The Bodhisattva, for innumerable asamkhyas of kalpas, has been segregated from alcohol. Yet his mind moves. Though his mind does not have suffering and pain, his body yet emits tears; though his mind has no fear, his body shakes. For this reason, know that unmolestedness obtains in the body and mind of the Bodhisattva, and one does not follow the other. The Bodhisattva-mahasattva already manifests himself in a single body, and yet all beings see him differently.

"O good man! How does a Bodhisattva-mahasattva practise the Way of the Great Nirvana Sutra and now hear what he has not heard in the past? The Bodhisattva-mahasattva first takes up [i.e. listens to, directs his mind to] the sound of such as the elephant, horse, vehicle, man, shell, drum, hsiao, flute, singing, and weeping, and these he learns. By practising, he indeed hears all the sounds of the hells of the innumerable 3,000 great-thousand worlds. Also, changing his angle, he practises and gains the different sense-organ of the ear [i.e. different sensory powers of the ear]. And this differs from the heavenly sense-organs of sravakas and pratyekabuddhas. How? These are none but the pure divine powers of the two vehicles. If one takes up the case of the four great elements of the first dhyana, one only hears of the first dhyana, not of the second. So does it proceed up to the fourth dhyana. One well hears the sounds of all the 3,000 great-thousand worlds, yet one cannot hear the sounds of worlds as numerous as the sands of innumerable and boundless Ganges. For this reason, we can say that what is gained by the Bodhisattva is different from the aural sense-organs of sravakas and pratyekabuddhas. Due to this difference, one now hears what one has not head in the past. Although one hears sound, there is no sensing of "is", the Eternal, Bliss, Self, and the Pure, master, depending, doing, cause, samadhi, and result. That is how all the Bodhisattvas now hear what they have not heard in the past."

Then, the All-Shining Bodhisattva-mahasattva Highly-Virtuous King said: "You the Buddha say that there is no sense of samadhi and result. This cannnot be. Why not? The Tathagata earlier said: "If one hears a line or letter of this Great Nirvana Sutra, one unfailingly attains unsurpassed Bodhi." In contrast, the Tathagata now says that what there is is non- samadhi and non-result. If one gains unsurpassed Bodhi, this is none other than a definite form of samadhi and result. How can you say that what there is is no other than non-samadhi and non-result? When one hears an evil voice, one gains an evil mind. Gaining an evil mind, one falls into the three unfortunate realms. If one falls into the three unfortunate realms, this is none other than a definite result. How can you say that there is no samadhi and no definite result?"

Then the Tathagata expressed his praise and said: "Well said, well said, O good man! You do well to put this question. If there is any form of fixedness in the result of their voice, such cannot be what there is of the All-Buddha-World-Honoured One. All such are what obtain with the king of Maras, the form of birth and death, and one far away from Nirvana. Why? What all Buddhas speak about has no fixed form of result.

"O good man! For example, a sword reflects the human face. The vertical shows the length and the horizontal the width. If there is any fixed form, how could one see the length in the vertical and the width in the horizontal? For this reason, there cannot be any fixedness in what the All-Buddha-World-Honoured One says.

"O good man! Nirvana is no fruition of voicing [i.e. speaking]. If Nirvana were the fruition of voice, know that Nirvana would not be anything Eternal.

"O good man! For example, what obtains in the world is that a result comes about from a cause, and that if there is no cause, there is no result. As the cause is non-eternal, the result, too, is non-eternal. Why? Because cause can become result, and result, too, can become cause. Thus there is not anything that is fixed in all things. If Nirvana comes from a cause, this implies that as the cause is non-eternal, the result, too, must be non-eternal. But this Nirvana is not something that has arisen from a cause; the body of Nirvana cannot, therefore, be a result.

"O good man! For this reason, the body of Nirvana has no fixedness and no result.

"O good man! Nirvana is fixed and is the result. So might we say. How is it fixed? “The Nirvana of all Buddhas is the Eternal, Bliss, Self, and the Pure. For this reason, we say fixed. There is no birth, age, or dissolution." "Hence, fixed. When we do away with the original mind of the icchantika, the four grave offences, slandering the vaipulya, and the five deadly sins, we unfailingly reach Nirvana. Hence, fixed."

"O good man! You say that if one hears one line or one letter of my Great Nirvana [Sutra], one will gain unsurpassed Bodhi. But this indicates that you do not fully understand the meaning. Listen carefully! I shall now make it clear for you.

"If any good man or good woman, on having heard a letter or line from [the] Great Nirvana [Sutra], does not entertain the notion of a letter or line, of having heard it, of the look of the Buddha, of an element of his sermon, such is a form of non-form. Due to non-form, one attains unsurpassed Bodhi.

"O good man! You say that by hearing an evil voice one gains life in the three unfortunate realms. This is not so. One does not gain the three unfortunate realms from an evil voice. Know that this results from an evil mind. Why?

"O good man and good woman! There can be instances where one hears an evil voice, and yet one does not gain evil in one’s mind. Because of this, know that one does not gain life in the three unfortunate realms. And yet, as all beings have the bond of defilement and much evil in their mind, they do gain life in the three unfortunate realms. This is not from a voice that is evil. If the voice had a fixed state, all who heard it would have to gain an evil mind. There are situations where that comes about and where it does not. Hence, know that there is no fixed state regarding the voice. As there is no fixed state, it is possible that no evil thought will come about, though one may well hear it."

"O World-Honoured One! If there is no fixed state with the voice, how can a Bodhisattva hear what he had not heard before?"

"O good man! The voice has no fixed state. It certainly enables one to hear what one has not heard in the past. Hence, I say that one hears what one has not heard in the past.

"O good man! How can one see what one has not seen in the past? The Bodhisattva- mahasattva practises the All-Wonderful Great Nirvana Sutra and first gains brightness. Such light is like that of the sun, moon, constellation, camp fire, lamplight, the light of a gem, or the light of a medicinal herb. By practice, he gains difference in sense. It differs from that of sravakas and pratyekabuddhas. How is it different? It is the pure Heavenly Eye of the two vehicles. Based on the sense-organs of the four great elements of the world of desire, one cannot see the first dhyana. If one is grounded in the first dhyana, one cannot see what obtains in the stages above. Or one cannot see one’s own eyes. One may desire to see much, but the limit is the 3,000 great-thousand worlds. The Bodhisattva-mahasattva, not having practised the Heavenly Eye, sees, of the all-wonderful body, only the bone. He may well see what obtains in the outer forms of the things of the 3,000 great-thousand worlds of the other world-spheres as numerous as the sands of the Ganges, and yet he gains no sense of having seen any concrete form, no sense of eternity, no form of " is" , of matter, name, letter, no thought of cause and effect, no sense of having ever seen. This eye does not say that what there is there is all-wonderful and pure; what it sees is the causal and the non-causal. What is the causal? Colour is the result of the by-cause [i.e. condition] of the eye. If the causal relation of colour does not come in, no common mortal can gain a sense of colour. Hence, we say that colour constitutes causal relations. We say non-causal relation. The Bodhisattva-mahasattva may see colour. But he does not gain any sense of colour. Hence, it forms no by-cause. Thus we say that the pristine Heavenly Eye of the Bodhisattva differs from what the sravakas and pratyekabuddhas possess. Due to this difference in quality, he sees at one time all Buddhas of the ten directions. This is why we say that he sees now what he has not seen in the past. Due to this difference, he can well see a mote, which the sravakas and pratyekabuddhas cannot. Due to this difference, he may well see his own eyes, and yet he gains no sense of having first seen, and no sense of the non-eternal. He sees the 36 impure things which common mortals possess, just as he would see an amalaka [emblic mycrobalan fruit] in the palm of his hand. For this reason, we say that he now sees what he has not seen in the past. If he sees the colour of beings, he can tell whether they are Mahayana or Hinayana; on once touching their clothing, he sees the good or bad, and the differences of all the sense-organs. For this reason, we say that the person now knows what he did not know in the past. Due to this power of knowledge, he now sees what he did not see in the past.

"O good man! How does the Bodhisattva know now what he did not know in the past? The Bodhisattva-mahasattva knows the minds of greed, anger, and ignorance of common mortals, and yet he does not see the mind and the mental functions. He does not have any form of beings or things. He practises “Paramartha-satya” [Ultimate Reality] and the Ultimate Void. Why? Because all Bodhisattvas always thoroughly practise the natures and characteristics of the Void. By practising the Void, he can now know what he did not know in the past. What does he know? He knows that there is no self and what one possesses. All beings have the Buddha-Nature. He knows that by reason of the Buddha-Nature, even the icchantika, when he abandons the mind that he possesses, can indeed attain unsurpassed Enlightenment. Such is not what sravakas and pratyekabuddhas can know. The Bodhisattva knows this well. Hence, one can know what one did not know in the past.

"Also, next, O good man! How can one know now what one did not know in the past? Having practised the All-Wonderful Sutra of Great Nirvana, the Bodhisattva-mahasattva thinks of all sources of birth, caste, parents, brothers, sisters, wife, children, relatives, friends, and enemies. In the flash of a moment he gains diverse knowledge, which differs from that of sravakas and pratyekabuddhas. How does it differ? The wisdom of sravakas and pratyekabuddhas thinks of the caste, parents, and enemies of all beings of the past. What it sees is nothing but enemies and friends. It is not so with the Bodhisattva. He may think of caste, parents, and enemies of the past. But he gains no forms of caste, parents, and enemies. What he sees is the law [dharma] that obtains and the Void. This is why we say that the Bodhisattva now knows what he did not know in the past.

"Also, next, O good man! How does one know what one did not know in the past? The Bodhisattva-mahasattva practises the All-Wonderful Sutra of Great Nirvana and gains what is different from what has been attained by sravakas and pratyekabuddhas who can read other people’s minds. How does it differ? The sravaka and pratyekabuddha can read, in the flash of a moment, the minds of other persons. But they cannot read the minds of those in such realms as hell, animals, pretas, and heaven. But this is not so with the Bodhisattva. In the flash of a moment, he can read the minds of the beings of the six realms. This is why we say that the Bodhisattva now knows what he did not know in the past.

"Also, next, O good man! There is a different kind of knowing. The Bodhisattva- mahasattva, in the flash of a moment, sees all grades of mind of the sakrdagamin that proceeds from the first stage up to the sixteenth. Thus he now knows what he did not know in the past. This is why we say that he practises the Way of Great Nirvana and accomplishes the second virtue.

"Also, next, O good man! How does the Bodhisattva-mahasattva practise the Way of Great Nirvana and accomplish the third virtue? O good man! The Bodhisattva-mahasattva practises the Way of Great Nirvana. He abandons loving-kindness [“maitri”] and gains it. When gaining loving-kindness, things do not follow the course of causal relations. How does he abandon loving-kindness and gain it? O good man! Loving-kindness belongs to secular dharma. The Bodhisattva-mahasattva abandons the loving-kindness of secular dharma and gains that of “Paramartha-satya”. The loving-kindness of “Paramartha-satya” does not actualise following the dharma of by-cause.

"Also, next, how does he abandon loving-kindness and gain it? If loving-kindness can be abandoned, the common mortal calls this loving-kindness. If it is gained, the Bodhisattva calls this the loving-kindness without causal relations. He abandons the loving-kindness of the icchantika, of those who are guilty of the five grave offences, those who have slandered the vaipulya, and of those who have committed the five deadly sins. He gains the loving-kindness of pity, the loving-kindness of the Tathagata, that of the World-Honoured One, that of non-causal relations.

"Why do we say that he abandons loving-kindness and gains it? He abandons the lovingkindness of those of imperfect genital organs, of those with no genital organs, of those with dual genital organs, of women, butchers, hunters, those who keep fowl and raise pigs, and others such as this. He also abandons the loving-kindness of sravakas and pratyekabuddhas and gains the loving-kindness of no causal relations of all Bodhisattvas. He does not see his own lovingkindness, that of others, or the upholding of sila, or the breaking of sila. He sees his own compassion [“karuna”], but not the beings. He sees suffering, but not the person who wriggles in suffering. Why not? Because he practises the truth of “Paramartha-satya”. This is why we say that the Bodhisattva practises the Way of Great Nirvana and accomplishes the third virtue.

"Also, next, O good man! How does a Bodhisattva practise the Way of Great Nirvana and accomplish the fourth virtue?

"O good man! There are ten things when the Bodhisattva-mahasattva practises the Way of Great Nirvana and accomplishes the fourth virtue. What are the ten?

"Firstly, it is deep-rooted and is difficult to uproot.

"Secondly, there comes about the thought of self-decision.

"Thirdly, he does not feel any sense of a field of weal or non-field-of-weal.

"Fourthly, he practises the Way of the Pure Buddha-Land.

"Fifth, he cuts off what yet remains to be cut off.

"Sixth, he cuts off karma relations.

"Seventh, he practises the way of the pure body.

"Eighth, he grasps all causal relations.

"Ninth, he segregates himself from all enmity.

"Tenth, he severs himself from the two phases of existence.

"Why is it deep-rooted and difficult to uproot? The "root" referred to refers to non-indolence. What does the root belong to? It is none other than the root of unsurpassed Enlightenment.

"O good man! The root of all Buddhas and all good deeds is grounded in non-indolence. Due to non-indolence, all other good roots increase by degrees. As all good increases, this is the most superb of all good deeds.

"O good man! Of all footprints, that of the elephant is the best. So is the dharma of non-indolence.

"O good man! Of all lights, the light of the sun is the greatest. So is the dharma of non-indolence. Of all good dharmas, this is the most superior.

"O good man! Of all kings, the Chakravartin is the greatest. So is non-indolence. Of all good dharmas, it is the foremost.

"O good man! Of all rivers, the four are the greatest. So is the dharma of non-indolence. It is the highest of all good dharmas.

"O good man! Of all water-flowers, the utpala is the best. So is the dharma of non-indolence. It is the best of all good dharmas.

"O good man! Of all flowers that bloom on land, the varsika is the best. So is the dharma of non-indolence. Of all good dharmas, it is the best.

"O good man! Of all animals, the lion is the best. So is the dharma of non-indolence. Of all good dharmas, it is the best.

"O good man! Of all flying birds, the garuda is the best. So is the dharma of non-indolence. It is the best of all good dharmas.

"O good man! Of all great bodies, King Rahulasura is the best. So is the best dharma that of non-indolence.

"O good man! Of all beings, the two-footed, the four-footed, the multi-footed, and the non-footed, the Tathagata is the best. So is the dharma of non-indolence. It is the best of all good dharmas.

"O good man! Of all beings, the Buddhist monk is the best. So is the dharma of non-indolence. Of all good dharmas, it is the best.

"O good man! Of all the teachings of the Buddha, that of the Great Nirvana Sutra is the best. So is the dharma of non-indolence. It is the highest of all good dharmas.

"O good man! Thus the root of non-indolence is deep-rooted and difficult to uproot.

"Why does non-indolence increase? There are the roots of faith, shila, Wisdom, cognition, hearing, effort, remembrance, samadhi, and the good teacher of the Way, the roots of all of which increase through non-indolence. Due to [this] increase, it is deep-rooted and hard to uproot. For this reason we say that the Bodhisattva-mahasattva practises the Way of Great Nirvana and that it is deep-rooted and difficult to uproot. In what sense do we say that he gains a mind of decision and thinks: " I shall, with this body, unfailingly attain, in the days to come, a state in which I shall awaken to unsurpassed Enlightenment." His mind thinks thus. It does not become narrow-minded, change, gain the mind of a sravaka or pratyekabuddha, the mind of Mara, the mind of self-pleasure, or that which is pleased with birth and death. He always seeks to be compassionate to all beings. This is the sense in which we say that the Bodhisattva gains in himself the mind of decision, thus to attain in the life to come unsurpassed Bodhi. Hence, the Bodhisattva-mahasattva practises the Way of Great Nirvana and gains in himself a decided mind.

"In what way does the Bodhisattva not see any field of weal or non-weal?

"What is a field of weal? All upholding of sila, from that of the tirthika up to that of all Buddhas, falls under the category of a field of weal. If all such is the field of weal, know that the mind is low and deteriorated. The Bodhisattva-mahasattva sees all innumerable beings as nothing other than a field of weal. Why? Because he indeed practises a different mental sphere. With one who practises this different mental sphere, there can come about no upholding or non-upholding of sila as one looks upon beings; what one sees is what is said by the All-Buddha-World-Honoured One.

"There are four kinds of giving. And all evoke pure recompenses. What are the four?

"First, the giver is pure, and the recipient is not pure.

"Second, the giver is not pure, but the recipient is pure.

"Third, both the giver and the recipient are pure.

"Fourth, both are not pure.

"In what way is the giver pure and the recipient not pure? The giver is perfect in sila, listening, and Wisdom, and knows that there are giving and recompense. The recipient violates sila and lives amidst twisted views. He does not give, and there is no recompense. This is why we say giving is pure but the recipient is impure.

"Why do we say that the recipient is pure, but the giver impure? The giver transgresses sila and has twisted views and says that there cannot be any such thing as giving and recompense. The recipient upholds sila, has listened much, has Wisdom, knows [that it is important] to give, and knows the recompense thereof. This is why we say that the giver is impure, but the recipient pure.

"In what sense do we say that both giver and recipient are pure? Both giver and recipient observe sila, listen much, have Wisdom, know [about] giving, and know that there is recompense to giving. This is how we can say that both giver and recipient are pure.

"How can we say that both are impure? Both giver and recipient abide in twisted views and say that there cannot be any giving and recompense. If the situation is thus, how can we say that the recompense is pure? When there is no [sense of] giving and no [sense of] recompense, we say pure.

"O good man! If there is a person who does not see giving and its recompense, know that we do not say that such a person has violated sila or clings exclusively to twisted views. If, heeding the words of a sravaka, a person does not see giving and its recompense, we call this a violation of sila and abiding in twisted views.

"If a person, abiding in the Great Nirvana Sutra, does not see giving and the recompense thereof, this is the upholding of sila and abiding in right views. The Bodhisattva-mahasattva abides in a different mental sphere and, through practice, does not see beings upholding or violating sila, any giver, recipient, or recompense. Hence this is upholding sila and abiding in the right view. Thus the Bodhisattva-mahasattva does not meditate on the field of weal or the non-field of weal.

"What do we mean by "Pure Buddha-Land"? The Bodhisattva-mahasattva practises the Way of the Great Nirvana Sutra and saves beings so as to attain unsurpassed Enlightenment, and segregates himself from any thought of killing or harming others. He prays that, by this act of good, he and all beings will gain a long life and great divine power. Due to this prayer, all the beings of the Land where he attains Buddhahood in the life to come will be blessed with a long life and great divine power.

"Also, next, O good man! The Bodhisattva-mahasattva practises the Way of the All-Wonderful Sutra of Great Nirvana, saves beings so as to attain unsurpassed Bodhi, and segre-gates himself from all thought of stealing. He prays that he will share the virtue of this good act with all beings, and that all Buddha-Lands will be adorned with the seven treasures, that beings will be rich, and that they will be unmolested [i.e. unhindered] in all that they desire to possess.

On account of this power of prayer, the Land where he gets reborn and attains Buddhahood in the future will be blessed with wealth and unmolestedness [i.e. unhinderedness] regarding what beings desire to possess.

"Also, next, O good man! The Bodhisattva-mahasattva segregates himself from lustful thoughts as he practises the Way of the All-Wonderful Sutra of Great Nirvana and saves beings so as to attain unsurpassed Enlightenment. He prays that he will share the merit of this good act with all beings, that all beings of all Buddha-Lands will not have thoughts of greed, anger and ignorance, and that there will not be the pain of hunger. Due to the power of this prayer, all the beings of the Land where he attains Buddhahood in the days to come will be far removed from greed, lust, anger and ignorance, and from all the pains of hunger.

"Also, next, O good man! As the Bodhisattva-mahasattva practises the Way of the AllWonderful Great Nirvana [Sutra] and saves beings so as to attain unsurpassed Enlightenment, he parts from unrooted words. He prays that he might share with all beings the virtue of that good, that the Lands of all Buddhas will have flowers, fruits, luxuriant forest trees and fragrant trees, and that all beings will gain all-wonderful voices. Due to the power of prayer, all Lands, when he attains Buddhahood in the days to come, will have flowers and fruits, and fragrant trees, and all the people of those lands will have pure, all-wonderful voices.

"Also, next, O good man! The Bodhisattva-mahasattva practises the All-Wonderful Sutra of Great Nirvana, parts from a double-tongue, and saves beings, so as to attain unsurpassed Enlightenment. He prays that he may share the virtue of this good deed with all beings and that the beings of all Buddha-Lands will always unite together in peace and preach Wonderful Dharma. Due to this power of prayer, all the beings of all [Buddha]-Lands will, when he attains Buddhahood, unite together in peace, and preach the essence of Dharma.

"Also, next, O good man! As the Bodhisattva-mahasattva practises the All-Wonderful Sutra of Great Nirvana, he segregates himself from ill-speaking, and saves beings so as to attain unsurpassed Bodhi. He prays that he will share the merit of this good deed with all beings, that all Buddha-Lands will be as smooth as one's palm, that there will be no sand, stones, thorny plants or hateful thorns, and that the minds of all beings will be all equal. Due to the power of this prayer, when he attains Buddhahood in the days to come, all the [Buddha]-Lands will be as smooth as one's palm, and there will be no sand, stones, thorny plants or hateful thorns, and the minds of all beings will be all equal.

"Also, next, O good man! As the Bodhisattva-mahasattva practises the Way of the All-Wonderful Sutra of Great Nirvana and saves beings so as to attain unsurpassed Bodhi, he will segregate himself from meaningless words and pray that he can share with all beings the virtue of this good deed and that the beings of all Buddha-Lands will have no suffering. Due to the power of this prayer, all beings of the [Buddha]-Lands will not have any suffering when he attains Buddhahood in the days to come.

"Also, further, O good man! The bodhisattva-mahasattva practises the Way of the AllWonderful Sutra of Great Nirvana and saves all beings so as to attain Buddhahood in the days to come, and segregates himself from greed and jealousy. He prays that he might share the virtue of this good deed with all beings and that the beings of all Buddha-Lands will have no greed, jealousy, worry, or twisted views. Due to this prayer, when he attains Buddhahood in the days to come all beings of the [Buddha]-Lands will have no greed, jealousy, worry, or twisted views of life.

"Also, further, O good man! The Bodhisattva-mahasattva practises the Way of the AllWonderful Sutra of Great Nirvana and saves all beings and segregates himself from worries so as to attain unsurpassed Enlightenment. He prays that he will share the merit of this good deed with all beings and that in the Lands of all Buddhas the beings will practise Great Loving-Kindness and Great Compassion, and thus attain the soil of the single son [i.e. will view all beings as if they were their own son]. Due to the power of this prayer, all the beings of all the [Buddha]-worlds, when he attains Buddhahood in the days to come, will practise Great Loving-Kindness and Great Compassion, and will gain the soil of the single son.

"Also, further, O good man! The Bodhisattva-mahasattva practises the Way of the AllWonderful Sutra of Great Nirvana and saves beings and segregates himself from twisted views, so as to attain unsurpassed Bodhi. He prays that he will share the virtue of this good deed with all beings and that the beings of all [Buddha]-Lands will gain mahaprajna [i.e. Great Wisdom]. Due to this prayer, when he attains Buddhahood in the days to come, all the beings gain mahaprajna. That is why we say that the Bodhisattva practises the Way of the Pure Buddha-Land.

"How does the Bodhisattva-mahasattva make away with what yet remains to be made away with? Here there are three kinds of things to be made away with, namely: 1) the remnant karmic consequences of defilement, 2) remnant karma, and 3) what remains behind.

"O good man! Why are the remnant karmic consequences of defilement? If a being learns and draws near to greed, he will, when the time comes for the karmic consequences to activate, fall into hell. When he comes out of hell, he will gain life as an animal, such as a dove, sparrow, mandarin duck, parrot, jivamjivaka, sarika, blue sparrow, fish, turtle, monkey, reindeer, or deer. It he happens to get a human form, he will gain a form having such things as imperfect genital organs, the female form, a form with dual genital organs, one with no genital organs, or that of a lustful woman. Even if born as a priest, he will commit the first grave offence. This is the case of remnant karmic consequences.

"Also, next, O good man! If a person direly seeks to learn to draw near to anger, he will fall into hell when the time comes for his karma to work out its effect. And on coming out of hell, he will gain an animal body which will be perfect in the four kinds of poisoning which characterise the viper. These are: poisoning from its look, poisoning by its touch, poisoning from stinging, and poisoning by sobbing. And the animals are: lion, tiger, wolf, bear, brown bear, cat, raccoon, hawk, and sparrow hawk. Even if born as a human, he will have 12 kinds of evil manners; even if born as a priest, he will commit the second grave offence. This is remnant karmic consequences.

"Also, next, O good man! A person who practises ignorance falls into hell when the time comes for the karmic effects to actualise. And when his life in hell ends, he comes out of it and gains life as an animal, such as: elephant, pig, cow, sheep, flea, louse, mosquito, gadfly, or ant. If he happens to gain life as a human, such imperfections of bodily form and sense-organs will come about as: deafness, blindness, dumbness, retention of uring, being a hunchback, and he will be barred from coming close to Dharma. Even if he gets ordained, all the workings of his carnal organs will be dull, and he will take pleasure in committing the [third] grave offence. He will pilfer even five pennies. This is the case of remnant karmic consequences.

"Also, next, O good man! If there is a person who practises arrogance, such a one, when his karma comes to work out its effect, will fall into hell. And again, on his coming out of hell, he will gain life as an animal, such as: dung worm, camel, donkey, dog or horse. If he gains life as a human, he will be a menial servant and be oppressed by poverty and may have to beg for alms. Even if he gets ordained, he will always be looked down upon and will commit the fourth grave offence. Such are remnant karmic consequences. All such are the remnant consequences of defilement. The Bodhisattva-mahasattva does away with all such things, because he practises the Way of Great Nirvana.

"What is remnant karma? This is the karma of all common mortals, and of all sravakas, the karma by which one receives the seven existences of those of the stage of srotapanna, the karma by which one receives the two existences of those of the stage of sakrdagamin, the karma by which one receives the rupa [i.e. bodily] existence of those of the stage of anagamin. These constitute remnant karma. The Bodhisattva-mahasattva, as he practises the Way of Great Nirvana, wholly extirpates such remnant karma.

"Why do we say "remnant existence"? The arhat gains the fruition of arhatship and the pratyekabuddha gains the fruition of pratyekabuddhahood. There is no karma and there is no bond, and yet they attain the two fruitions. This is the sense in which we speak of "remnant existence" .

"There are three kinds of remnant existence. The Bodhisattva-mahasattva, as he practises the Way of the Mahayana Sutra of Great Nirvana, annihilates these. This is why we say that he extirpates remnant existence.

"How does the Bodhisattva practise the way of the pure body?

"The Bodhisattva-mahasattva practises the sila of non-killing. Of this, there are five kinds, namely: low, middle, top, top-middle, and topmost. The same with right view. These five kinds of ten minds are called the first stage of aspiration. When one is perfect and fixed in mind, and when one accomplishes the five kinds of ten minds, this is satisfaction. The 100 such minds are 100 virtues. With the 100 virtues perfected, a phase is accomplished. Thus do things proceed one after the other, and the 32 signs of perfection are attained. When all this is accomplished, we say " pure body" .

"Also, the Bodhisattva practises the way of the 80 minor marks of excellence. This comes from the fact that the world’s beings worship these 80 kinds of devas. What are the 80? They are: Twelve Days , Twelve Great Devas, Five Big Stars, Great Bear, Horse Deva, Circumambulating Deva , Bhadradvaja, Gunadeva, Twenty-Eight Constellations, Earth Deva, Wind Deva, Water Deva, Fire Deva, Brahma, Rudra, Indra, Kumara, Eight-Elbow Deva, Mahesvara, Panjara, Hariti, Four Guardians of the Earth, Book Deva, and Vasu. These are the 80. For the sake of all beings, he practises the ways of the 80 characteristics and adorns his own body. This is the pure body of the Bodhisattva. Why so? Because all these 80 gods are what all beings greatly trust in. That is why the Bodhisattva practises the ways of these 80 characteristics, and his body does not suffer change. He so contrives matters that all beings see him, each according to what that being believes in. Having seen thus, they gain respect, and each aspires to unsurpassed Enlightenment. For this reason, the Bodhisattva-mahasattva practises the way of the pure body. O good man! For example, there is a man who wishes to invite a great King to his home. He will doubtless adorn his own abode, make it extremely clean, and have 100 varieties of beautiful dishes prepared, and then the King will accept the invitation. It is the same with the Bodhisattva-mahasattva. When he wishes to invite the Dharma-Raja of unsurpassed Enlightenment, he first practises the Way and cleanses and purifies his body. And the unsurpassed Dharma-Raja will then take his seat. Thus the Bodhisattva-mahasattva must first make his own body clean and pure.

"O good man! For example, if one desires to partake of amrta [ambrosia], know that one will makes one’s body clean. It is the same with the Bodhisattva-mahasattva. When he deisres to partake of prajna, the unsurpassed taste of the amrta of Dharma, he needs to make his body clean with the 80 minor marks of excellence.

"O good man! For example, if one puts water into a precious vessel of gold or silver, all will look pure and clean, in and out. It is the same with the Bodhisattva-mahasattva whose body is pure. Within and without, he is clean, because the water of unsurpassed Enlightenment has been poured inside him.

"O good man! It is just as the white cloth of varanabusa is easy to dye. Why so? Because is is, by nature, white and clean. The same with the Bodhisattva-mahasattva. When his body is pure and clean, he gains unsurpassed Enlightenment. For this reason, the Bodhisattva- mahasattva practises the Way and makes his body clean.

"How does the Bodhisattva-mahasattva know all the factors of causal relations? The Bodhisattva-mahasattva does not see the outward appearances of a thing, the causal relations of a thing, the thing itself, how it has come to be, how it dies out, how it is one, how it is different, who sees, what it looks like, or who receives it. Why not? Because he knows all about causal relations. The same applies to everything. This is why we say that the Bodhisattva perceives all about causal relations.

"How does the Bodhisattva segregate himself from enemies? All defilements are enemies to the Bodhisattva. The Bodhisattva-mahasattva always keeps away from these. This is the sense in which we say that the Bodhisattva crushes all his enemies.

"The Bodhisattva of the fifth abode does not regard all defilements as enemies. Why not? Because he stands on defilement [bases himself on defilements]. He has come to be because of defilements. Born, he well moves on from one to the other, and enlightens beings. For this reason, we do not speak of an enemy.

"What is an enemy? This is no other than one who slanders the vaipulya sutras. The Bodhisattva is not afraid of following others and being born in the realms of hell, animals, or hungry ghosts. He only fears the person who slanders the vaipulya [i.e. the lengthy sutras of the Mahayana].

"There are eight kinds of Maras to all Bodhisattvas. These are the enemies. When segregated from these eight Maras, we say of that person that he is segregated from his enemies. This is the sense in which we speak of the Bodhisattvas' segregating themselves from their enemies. How do the Bodhisattvas become segregated from the two aspects of existence [i.e. the one-sided views of "is" and "non-is" regarding existence]? The two aspects are the 25 existences and the defilement of craving. This is the sense in which we speak of the Bodhisattva's segregating himself from the two aspects. This is what we mean when we say that the Bodhisattva-mahasattva practises the Way of Great Nirvana and is perfect and fully accomplished in the fourth virtue."

Then Bodhisattva-mahasattva All-Shining Highly-Virtuous King said: " Just as the Bud-dha says, when the Bodhisattva practises the Way of Great Nirvana, all these ten virtues come about. Why does the Tathagata only practise nine things and not the Way of the Pure Land?"

The Buddha said: "O good man! In the past, I always practised the ten things fully. There are no Bodhisattvas and Tathagatas who do not practise these ten ways. There cannot be any such thing as saying that when the world is full of defilement there appears the All- Buddha-World-Honoured One. O good man! Do not say that the Buddha appears in a world of defilement. Know that a mind like this [i.e. this way of thinking] is not good and is low in grade. Know that I do not appear in Jambudvipa, truth to tell. For example, a man might say: "Only this world has a sun and moon. There are no sun and moon in other worlds." Such talk has no sense. If the Bodhisattva says that this world is defiled and not pure, but that other Buddha-Lands are pure and adorned, this amounts to the same thing [i.e. this is wrong].

"O good man! Far out to the west of this world of Saha [i.e. west of our world of "Endurance"], beyond as many Buddha-Lands as sands of 32 Ganges, there is a world called "Unsurpassed". Why do we say "Unsurpassed"? There, all things are equal, with no difference in adornment. It is as with the "World of Peace and Happiness in the West". Also, it is as with the "Land of the Full-Moon in the East". There, in that world, I [once] gained birth. In order to guide beings towards the Way, I turn the wheel of Dharma in this world of Jambudvipa [i.e. our world]. It is not only I who turn the wheel of Dharma; all Buddhas turn the wheel of Dharma here. For this reason, it is not the case that all Buddhas do not practise these ten things. O good man! Bodhisattva Maitreya, by dint of the vows he has taken, in time to come will adorn and make this world all pure. Thus it is not the case that there is a land of all Buddhas that is not strictly pure.

"Also, next, O good man! How does the Bodhisattva practise the Way of the All-Wonderful Sutra of Great Nirvana and perfect and accomplish the fifth virtue? O good man! There are five [requisite] things for the Bodhisattva-mahasattva to practise the Way of Great Nirvana and perfect and accomplish the fifth virtue. What are the five? They are: 1) all his sense-organs are perfect; 2) he does not gain birth in the border-lands; 3) all devas lovingly pray for [him]; 4) he is respected by Marapapiyas, sramanas, Kshatriyas, Brahmins, and others; 5) he can read [i.e. remember, or see] his past lives. Due to the causal relations of this Sutra of Great Nirvana, he perfects these five virtues."

Bodhisattva All-Shining Highly-Virtuous King said: "According to the Buddha, a good man and good woman can perfect the virtues of the five things by practising giving. How can you say that they attain the five things by Great Nirvana?"

The Buddha said: " Well said, well said, O good man! The meaning varies in what is said. I shall, for your sake, now analyse and explain.

"Five things are attained by giving, namely: being not fixed, non-eternal, non-pure, nonsuperior, non-different, and not non-secreting of defilement. But none of this can benefit, give peace to, or pity all beings. The five things which one gains from the Sutra of Great Nirvana are: being fixed, eternal, pure, superior, different, and not secreting defilement. This gives benefit, peace and puty to all beings.

"O good man! Now, by giving, one can part from hunger. The Sutra of Great Nirvana truly enables all beings to segregate themselves from the defilement of the burning craving of the 25 existences.

"Giving makes birth and death continue their existence, as against which the Sutra of Great Nirvana destroys the chain of birth and death, so that it no longer continues to exist.

"By giving, the common mortal receives Dharma; by means of the Sutra of Great Nirvana, one becomes a Bodhisattva.

"Giving indeed cuts away poverty and worry; by means of the Sutra of Great Nirvana, there cannot any longer be those who are poor as regards Wonderful Dharma.

"Giving has its own part to play and its fruition; by the Sutra of Great Nirvana, one arrives at unsurpassed Enlightenment, and there is no longer any part to play, and no fruition thereof.

"This is the sense in which we speak of the bodhisattva practising the Way of the All-Wonderful Sutra of Great Nirvana and being perfect in, and accomplishing, the fifth virtue.

"Also, further, O good man! How does the Bodhisattva practise the All-Wonderful Sutra of Great Nirvana and become perfect and accomplished in the sixth virtue? The Bodhisattva- mahasattva practises the Way of Great Nirvana and gains the Diamond Samadhi. Abiding in this, he crushes and disperses all dharmas. All these dharmas are impermanent and mobile [i.e. in a state of flux]. The causal relations of fear, the pain of illness, the plunderings of the robber visit one moment after moment, and there is no Truth. All [this] is the world of the Maras; what there is is what cannot be seen. The Bodhisattva-mahasattva abides in this samadhi and performs giving to all beings; yet there is not a single being that truly is. The same is the case when he makes effort and practises silaparamita or prajnaparamita. Should the Bodhisattva see even one single being, he cannot be perfect in danaparamita and prajnaparamita.

"O good man! There is no instance in which a diamond fails to crush whatever comes against it. And yet, it does not collapse or minimise its size. So do things obtain with the Diamond Samadhi. It thoroughly crushes whatever it encounters. Yet the samadhi itself does not get crushed or destroyed.

"O good man! Of all gems, the diamond is the most superb. It is the same with the Diamond Samadhi. It is the foremost of all samadhis. Why? When the Bodhisattva-mahasattva practises this samadhi, all samadhis come to it. It is just as all small kings foregather under the banner of a Chakravartin [i.e. world-ruler]. So is the case with all [other] samadhis. They all come and become one with the Diamond Samadhi.

"O good man! For example, there is a man who is an enemy of the state. He is hated by the people. If any person kills him, all the people will speak highly of the person who kills this man. It is the same with this samadhi. The Bodhisattva practises this samadhi and destroys all the enemies of all beings. For this reason, it is looked up to by all samadhis.

"O good man! For example, there is a man whose physical strength is so great that there is no one who can oppose him. The there comes along a man who brings this man down. The people praise the man. It is the same with the Diamond Samadhi. It thoroughly subdues whatever is difficult to subdue. Due to this, all samadhis come under its banner.

"O good man! On Mount Gandhamadana there is a spring called Anavatapta. The water of this spring possesses eight tastes. If one drinks this water, all the pains of defilement die away. It is the same with this Diamond Samadhi. It is perfect in the Noble Eightfold Path. The Bodhisattva practises the Way, and it cures all the serious illnesses of defilement, the pox, and warts.

"O good man! If one makes offerings to Mahesvara, know that this equates with having made offerings to all devas. It is the same with the Diamond Samadhi. If one practises this, know that this equates with having practised all other samadhis.

"O good man! If any Bodhisattva abides in this samadhi, he sees all, without any obstruction. This is like seeing the amalaka that is in the palm of one’s hand. The Bodhisattva enjoys such seeing. But he does not gain any sense of having ever had such an experience.

"O good man! For example, there is a man who sits at a crossroads and sees all comings and goings, sittings and lyings. It is the same with the Diamond Samadhi. One sees all the comings and goings of all things.

"O good man! There is a high mountain, and a man goes up it and looks all around, and sees everything as clearly as anything. It is the same with the Diamond Samadhi. The Bodhisattva ascends this [samadhi] and sees all things, and there is nothing that is not clearly seen.

"O good man! For example, in the month of spring, the heavens let fall sweet rain. The drops are small and minute, and they fill the space [around], and there is no space that is not filled. Pure eyes can see this well. It is the same with the Bodhisattva. With the pure eyes of the Diamond Samadhi, he sees far into the worlds to the east and sees all that is wholesome or broken [i.e. in a bad condition? destroyed] of the lands and sees everything clearly, without obstruction. The same applies to all the lands of the ten directions.

"O good man! If Yugamdha [i.e. one of the seven mountains of Mount Sumeru] appears all at once in seven days, all the trees and grass of the mountain will catch fire and burn. It is the same when the Bodhisattva practises the Diamond Samadhi. All the forest trees of defilement burn up.

"O good man! For example, the diamond indeed cuts all things. Yet it does not think to itself that it cuts things. It is the same with the Diamond Samadhi. The Bodhisattva, having practised it, destroys the defilements. Yet he does not think to himself that he cuts off the bond of defilement.

"O good man! For example, the great earth well supports all things, and yet it does not think to itself that it indeed supports things. Nor does fire, either, think: " I burn" . Nor does water think: "I get all things soaked". Nor does wind think: "I stir [things]". Nor does space think: "I contain things inside [myself]". Nor does Nirvana think: "I truly give beings extinction [of defilement]". It is the same with the Diamond Samadhi. It truly annihilates all defilements. Yet it does not think: "I truly annihilate". If the Bodhisattva abides in this Diamond Samadhi, he can, in the space of a moment, transform himself as in the case of the Buddha and can be in as many places as the sands of the ten directions and fill all the Buddha-Lands. The Bodhisattva performs this transformation. Yet there is not a whit of arrogance in his mind.? ?Why not? The Bodhisattva always thinks: "Who carries out [i.e. brings into being] this samadhi, and who performs this transformation?" Only the Bodhisattva abides in the Diamond Samadhi and thus can effect this transformation.

"The Bodhisattva-mahasattva peacefully abides in this Diamond Samadhi and can travel to all Buddha-Lands as numerous as the sands of the Ganges of the ten directions in the flash of a moment and return to his original place. Even with this power, he does not think: "I can do thus." Why not? Because of the power of the causal relations of this samadhi.

"The Bodhisattva-mahasattva peacefully abides in the Diamond Samadhi and in the flash of a moment annihilates all the defilements of the beings of all worlds, as many as sands of the Ganges, in the ten directions. And yet he never thinks that he has ever done away with the worries of beings. Why not? Because of the power of the causal relations of this samadhi.

"The Bodhisattva peacefully abides in this Diamond Samadhi and delivers sermons in a single voice, and all beings understand according to the grade of understanding of each person.

"A single colour is presented, and all beings see it variously, each seeing according to the choice of colour of each person.

"Abiding in a single place, with his body not moving, he enables beings to see that a single Way is displayed, according to the place where each person finds himself.

"Whether things relate to matters of the 18 realms or the 12 spheres, all beings understand what is said in the way it ought to have been heard. The Bodhisattva abides in such a samadhi and sees beings, and there is not a thought of having ever seen beings. He may see a male or female, and yet there is no sense of having ever seen a male or female. He may see any concrete form, and he has no sense of having ever seen anything concrete. This obtains down to consciousness, and yet there is not consciousness of anything. Days and nights may pass, and yet there is no sense of any day or night. He may see something, and yet there is no form of anything. He may see the bonds of all defilements, and yet there remains no trace of having ever seen anything of defilement. He may see the Noble Eightfold Path, but there is no sense of having ever seen anything of the Noble Path. He may see Enlightenment, and yet there is no sense of having gained Enlightenment. He may see Nirvana, and yet there is no thought of having ever seen Nirvana. Why not? O good man! Because all things have primordially no representational form. By the power of this samadhi, the Bodhisattva sees all things as having no representational form.

"Why do we speak of "Diamond Samadhi"?

"O good man! Just as in daylight the diamond has no fixed form of light to represent it, so does it obtain with the Diamond Samadhi. Even with a great mass, colour has nothing that is fixed. For this reason, we say "Diamond Samadhi".

"O good man! For example, just as all the people of the world cannot put a price on a diamond, so do things stand with the Diamond Samadhi. All of its virtues cannot be evaluated by human or god. Hence, we say "Diamond Samadhi". O good man! For example, just as when a poor man obtains the treasure of a diamond, he can do away with the pains of poverty and hateful poison, so do matters stand with the Bodhisattva-mahasattva. If he gains this samadhi, he does away with all the sorrows of defilement and the hateful poison of Mara. Hence, the Diamond Samadhi. Thus we say that the Bodhisattva practises the Way of Great Nirvana and perfects the sixth virtue."