• The Collection
  • The Kangyur
  • Discourses
  • Perfection of Wisdom

This rendering does not include the entire published text

The full text is available to download as pdf at:
https://read.84000.co/data/toh10_84000-the-perfection-of-wisdom-in-eighteen-thousand-lines.pdf

ཤེར་ཕྱིན་ཁྲི་བརྒྱད་སྟོང་པ།

The Perfection of Wisdom in Eighteen Thousand Lines
Chapter 16: Dhāraṇī Gateway

Aṣṭā­daśa­sāhasrikā­prajñā­pāramitā
འཕགས་པ་ཤེས་རབ་ཀྱི་ཕ་རོལ་ཏུ་ཕྱིན་པ་ཁྲི་བརྒྱད་སྟོང་པ་ཞེས་བྱ་བ་ཐེག་པ་ཆེན་པོའི་མདོ།
’phags pa shes rab kyi pha rol tu phyin pa khri brgyad stong pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo
The Noble Mahāyāna Sūtra “The Perfection of Wisdom in Eighteen Thousand Lines”
Āryāṣṭā­daśa­sāhasrikā­prajñā­pāramitā­nāma­mahāyāna­sūtra
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Toh 10

Degé Kangyur, vol. 29 (shes phyin, ka), folios 1.a–300.a; vol. 30 (shes phyin, kha), folios 1.a–304.a; vol. 31 (shes phyin, ga), folios 1.a–206.a

Translated by Gareth Sparham
under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha

First published 2022
Current version v 1.0.13 (2022)
Generated by 84000 Reading Room v2.17.7

84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha is a global non-profit initiative to translate all the Buddha’s words into modern languages, and to make them available to everyone.

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co.

Table of Contents

ti. Title
im. Imprint
co. Contents
s. Summary
ac. Acknowledgements
+ 2 sections- 2 sections
· The Translator’s Acknowledgments
· Acknowledgment of Sponsors
i. Introduction
+ 5 sections- 5 sections
· About the Perfection of Wisdom Manuscripts
· The Title: Eighteen Thousand
· The Structure of the Eighteen Thousand
+ 5 sections- 5 sections
· I. Introduction
· II. Brief Exegesis
· III. Intermediate Exegesis
· IV. Detailed Exegesis
· V. Summaries
· What Does the Eighteen Thousand Say?
· SUMMARY OF THE CHAPTERS
+ 62 sections- 62 sections
· Chapter 1
· Chapter 2
· Chapters 3–5
· Chapter 6
· Chapter 7
· Chapter 8
· Chapter 9
· Chapter 10
· Chapters 11–13
· Chapter 14
· Chapters 15–16
· Chapter 17
· Chapter 18
· Chapter 19
· Chapter 20
· Chapter 21
· Chapters 22–24
· Chapter 25
· Chapters 26–30
· Chapters 31–32
· Chapter 33
· Chapter 34
· Chapter 35
· Chapter 36
· Chapter 37
· Chapters 38–39
· Chapters 40–41
· Chapter 42
· Chapter 43
· Chapter 44
· Chapter 45
· Chapter 46
· Chapter 47
· Chapter 48
· Chapters 49–50
· Chapter 51
· Chapter 52
· Chapter 53
· Chapter 54
· Chapter 55
· Chapter 56
· Chapter 57
· Chapter 58
· Chapter 59
· Chapter 60
· Chapters 61–62
· Chapter 63
· Chapters 64–72
· Chapter 73
· Chapter 74
· Chapter 75
· Chapter 76
· Chapter 77
· Chapter 78
· Chapter 79
· Chapter 80
· Chapter 81
· Chapter 82
· Chapter 83
· Chapter 84
· Chapters 85–86
· Chapter 87
tr. The Translation
+ 87 chapters- 87 chapters
1. Chapter 1: Introduction
2. Chapter 2: Production of the Thought
3. Chapter 3: Designation
4. Chapter 4: Equal to the Unequaled
5. Chapter 5: Tongue
6. Chapter 6: Subhūti
7. Chapter 7: Entry into Flawlessness
8. Chapter 8: The Religious Mendicant Śreṇika
9. Chapter 9: Causal Signs
10. Chapter 10: Illusion-Like
11. Chapter 11: Embarrassment
12. Chapter 12: Elimination of Views
13. Chapter 13: The Six Perfections
14. Chapter 14: Neither Bound nor Freed
15. Chapter 15: Meditative Stabilization
16. Chapter 16: Dhāraṇī Gateway
17. Chapter 17: Level Purification
18. Chapter 18: The Exposition of Going Forth in the Great Vehicle
19. Chapter 19: Surpassing
20. Chapter 20: Not Two
21. Chapter 21: Subhūti
22. Chapter 22: Śatakratu
23. Chapter 23: Hard to Understand
24. Chapter 24: Unlimited
25. Chapter 25: Second Śatakratu
26. Chapter 26: Getting Hold
27. Chapter 27: Reliquary
28. Chapter 28: Declaration of the Good Qualities of the Thought of Awakening
29. Chapter 29: Different Tīrthika Religious Mendicants
30. Chapter 30: The Benefits of Taking Up and Adoration
31. Chapter 31: Physical Remains
32. Chapter 32: The Superiority of Merit
33. Chapter 33: Dedication
34. Chapter 34: Perfect Praise of the Quality of Accomplishment
35. Chapter 35: Hells
36. Chapter 36: Teaching the Purity of All Dharmas
37. Chapter 37: Nobody
38. Chapter 38: Cannot Be Apprehended
39. Chapter 39: The Northern Region
40. Chapter 40: The Work of Māra
41. Chapter 41: Not Complete Because of Māra
42. Chapter 42: Revealing the World
43. Chapter 43: Inconceivable
44. Chapter 44: Made Up
45. Chapter 45: A Boat
46. Chapter 46: Teaching the Intrinsic Nature of All Dharmas
47. Chapter 47: Taming Greed
48. Chapter 48: A Presentation of the Bodhisattvas’ Training
49. Chapter 49: Irreversibility
50. Chapter 50: Teaching the Signs of Irreversibility
51. Chapter 51: Skillful Means
52. Chapter 52: Completion of Means
53. Chapter 53: The Prophecy about Gaṅgadevī
54. Chapter 54: Teaching the Cultivation of Skillful Means
55. Chapter 55: Teaching the Stopping of Thought Construction
56. Chapter 56: Equal Training
57. Chapter 57: Practice
58. Chapter 58: Exposition of the Absence of Thought Construction
59. Chapter 59: Nonattachment
60. Chapter 60: Entrusting
61. Chapter 61: Inexhaustible
62. Chapter 62: Leaping Above Absorption
63. Chapter 63: Many Inquiries About the Two Dharmas
64. Chapter 64: Perfectly Displayed
65. Chapter 65: Worshiping, Serving, and Attending on Spiritual Friends as Skillful Means
66. Chapter 66: A Demonstration of Skillful Means
67. Chapter 67: Morality
68. Chapter 68: Growing and Flourishing
69. Chapter 69: An Explanation of Meditation on the Path
70. Chapter 70: An Explanation of Serial Action, Training, and Practice
71. Chapter 71: The True Nature of Dharmas That Cannot Be Apprehended
72. Chapter 72: Teaching the Absence of Marks
73. Chapter 73: Exposition of the Major Marks and Minor Signs and the Completion of Letters
74. Chapter 74: Exposition of the Sameness of Dharmas
75. Chapter 75: Exposition of Noncomplication
76. Chapter 76: The Armor for Bringing Beings to Maturity
77. Chapter 77: Teaching the Purification of a Buddhafield
78. Chapter 78: Teaching the Skillful Means for the Purification of a Buddhafield
79. Chapter 79: Teaching the Nonexistence of an Intrinsic Nature
80. Chapter 80: Teaching That There is No Defilement or Purification
81. Chapter 81: Yogic Practice of the Ultimate
82. Chapter 82: The Unchanging True Nature of Dharmas
83. Chapter 83: Categorization of a Bodhisattva’s Training
84. Chapter 84: Collection
85. Chapter 85: Sadāprarudita
86. Chapter 86: Dharmodgata
87. Chapter 87: Entrusting
c. Colophon
ab. Abbreviations
n. Notes
b. Bibliography
+ 2 sections- 2 sections
· Primary Sources
· Secondary References
+ 1 section- 1 section
· Sūtras
+ 1 section- 1 section
· Indic Commentaries
+ 1 section- 1 section
· Indigenous Tibetan Works
+ 1 section- 1 section
· Secondary Literature
g. Glossary

s.

Summary

s.­1

The Perfection of Wisdom in Eighteen Thousand Lines is one version of the Long Perfection of Wisdom sūtras that developed in South and South-Central Asia in tandem with the Eight Thousand version, probably during the first five hundred years of the Common Era. It contains many of the passages in the oldest extant Long Perfection of Wisdom text (the Gilgit manuscript in Sanskrit), and is similar in structure to the other versions of the Long Perfection of Wisdom sūtras (the One Hundred Thousand and Twenty-Five Thousand) in Tibetan in the Kangyur. While setting forth the sacred fundamental doctrines of Buddhist practice with veneration, it simultaneously exhorts the reader to reject them as an object of attachment, its recurring message being that all dharmas without exception lack any intrinsic nature.

s.­2

The sūtra can be divided loosely into three parts: an introductory section that sets the scene, a long central section, and three concluding chapters that consist of two important summaries of the long central section. The first of these (chapter 84) is in verse and also circulates as a separate work called The Verse Summary of the Jewel Qualities (Toh 13). The second summary is in the form of the story of Sadāprarudita and his guru Dharmodgata (chapters 85 and 86), after which the text concludes with the Buddha entrusting the work to his close companion Ānanda.


ac.

Acknowledgements

ac.­1

This sūtra was translated by Gareth Sparham under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.

The Translator’s Acknowledgments

ac.­2

This is a good occasion to remember and thank my friend Nicholas Ribush, who first gave me a copy of Edward Conze’s translation of The Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines in 1973. I also thank the Tibetan teachers and students at the Riklam Lobdra in Dharamshala, India, where I began to study the Perfection of Wisdom, for their kindness and patience; Jeffrey Hopkins and Elizabeth Napper, who steered me in the direction of the Perfection of Wisdom and have been very kind to me over the years; and Ashok Aklujkar and others at the University of British Columbia in Canada, who taught me Sanskrit and Indian culture while I was writing my dissertation on Haribhadra’s Perfection of Wisdom commentary. I thank the hermits in the hills above Riklam Lobdra and the many Tibetan scholars and practitioners who encouraged me while I continued working on the Perfection of Wisdom after I graduated from the University of British Columbia. I thank all those who continued to support me as a monk and scholar after the violent death of my friend and mentor toward the end of the millennium. I thank those at the University of Michigan and then at the University of California (Berkeley), particularly Donald Lopez and Jacob Dalton, who enabled me to complete the set of four volumes of translations from Sanskrit of the Perfection of Wisdom commentaries by Haribhadra and Āryavimuktisena and four volumes of the fourteenth-century Tibetan commentary on the Perfection of Wisdom by Tsongkhapa. I thank Gene Smith, who introduced me to 84000. I thank everyone at 84000: Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche and the sponsors; the scholars, translators, editors, and technicians; and all the other indispensable people whose work has made this translation of The Perfection of Wisdom in Eighteen Thousand Lines and its accompanying commentary possible.

Around me everything I see would be part of a perfect road if I had better driving skills.
Where I was born, where everything is made of concrete, it too is a perfect place.
Everyone I have been with, everyone who is near me now, and even those I have forgotten‍—there is no one who has not helped me.
So, I bow to everyone and to the world and ask for patience, and, as a boon, a smile.

Acknowledgment of Sponsors

ac.­3

We gratefully acknowledge the generous sponsorship of Matthew Yizhen Kong, Steven Ye Kong and family; An Zhang, Hannah Zhang, Lucas Zhang, Aiden Zhang, Jinglan Chi, Jingcan Chi, Jinghui Chi and family, Hong Zhang and family; Mao Guirong, Zhang Yikun, Chi Linlin; and Joseph Tse, Patricia Tse and family. Their support has helped make the work on this translation possible.


i.

Introduction

i.­1

In the introduction to his translation of The Transcendent Perfection of Wisdom in Ten Thousand Lines,1 Gyurme Dorje has given a clear account of the Tibetan tradition’s explanation (1) of the origin of the Perfection of Wisdom in the words of the Buddha on Gṛdhrakūṭa Hill in Rājagṛha some 2,500 years ago, (2) of the way the Perfection of Wisdom became extant in our world through the efforts of Nāgārjuna, and (3) of the Perfection of Wisdom’s place in the vast corpus of the Buddha’s words as “the middle turning of the wheel of the Dharma.” He has also given a brief account of the conclusions arrived at by the Western research tradition, which suggest that the Perfection of Wisdom may have originated in the south of the Indian subcontinent, perhaps the Andhra region, but more likely first began circulating in the far northwest of the Indian subcontinent. A prophecy in the text translated into English here provides some support for this conclusion. In chapter 39 the Buddha says to Śāriputra, “with the passing away of the Tathāgata this perfection of wisdom will circulate in the southern region,” and “from the country Vartani [the east] this deep perfection of wisdom will circulate into the northern region.” A comparison of early fragments of a Perfection of Wisdom in the Gāndhārī language, written in Kharoṣṭhī script and dated ca. 75 ᴄᴇ, with an early translation of a Perfection of Wisdom text into Chinese by Lokakṣema in the middle of the second century ᴄᴇ has led the Western research tradition to the tentative conclusion that the Perfection of Wisdom first circulated in written form in the northwest of the Indian subcontinent some 2,000 years ago.

About the Perfection of Wisdom Manuscripts

The Title: Eighteen Thousand

The Structure of the Eighteen Thousand

I. Introduction

II. Brief Exegesis

III. Intermediate Exegesis

IV. Detailed Exegesis

V. Summaries

What Does the Eighteen Thousand Say?

SUMMARY OF THE CHAPTERS

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapters 3–5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapters 11–13

Chapter 14

Chapters 15–16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapters 22–24

Chapter 25

Chapters 26–30

Chapters 31–32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Chapter 35

Chapter 36

Chapter 37

Chapters 38–39

Chapters 40–41

Chapter 42

Chapter 43

Chapter 44

Chapter 45

Chapter 46

Chapter 47

Chapter 48

Chapters 49–50

Chapter 51

Chapter 52

Chapter 53

Chapter 54

Chapter 55

Chapter 56

Chapter 57

Chapter 58

Chapter 59

Chapter 60

Chapters 61–62

Chapter 63

Chapters 64–72

Chapter 73

Chapter 74

Chapter 75

Chapter 76

Chapter 77

Chapter 78

Chapter 79

Chapter 80

Chapter 81

Chapter 82

Chapter 83

Chapter 84

Chapters 85–86

Chapter 87


The Translation
The Noble Mahāyāna Sūtra
The Perfection of Wisdom in Eighteen Thousand Lines

1.

Chapter 1: Introduction

[V29] [F.1.b] [B1]


1.­1

We prostrate to all the buddhas and bodhisattvas.


1.­2

Thus did I hear at one time. The Lord dwelt at Rājagṛha on Gṛdhrakūṭa Hill together with a great community of monks, numbering14 five thousand monks, all worthy ones with the exception of one single person‍—that is, venerable Ānanda‍—with outflows dried up, without afflictions, fully controlled, with their minds well freed and their wisdom well freed, thoroughbreds, great bull elephants, with their work done, their task accomplished, with their burden laid down, with their own goal accomplished, with the fetters that bound them to existence broken, with their hearts well freed by perfect understanding, in perfect15 control of their whole mind; [F.2.a] with nuns numbering five hundred‍—Yaśodharā, Mahāprajāpatī, and so on‍—and with a great many laymen and laywomen, all of them with a vision of the Dharma; and with an unbounded, infinite number of bodhisattva great beings, all of whom had acquired the dhāraṇīs, were dwellers in emptiness, their range the signless, and who had not fashioned any wishes, had acquired forbearance for the sameness of all dharmas, had acquired the dhāraṇī of nonattachment, with imperishable clairvoyant knowledges, and with speech worth listening to; who were not hypocrites, not fawners, without thoughts of reputation and gain; who were Dharma teachers without thought of compensation, with perfect forbearance for the deep dharmas, who had obtained the fearlessnesses, and who had transcended all the works of Māra, who had cut the continuum of karmic obscuration, were skillful in expounding the analysis of investigations into phenomena, with the prayer that is a vow made during an asaṃkhyeya of eons really fully carried out, with smiling countenances, forward in addressing others, without a frown on their faces, skillful in communicating with others in chanted verse, without feelings of depression, without losing the confidence giving a readiness to speak, and endowed with fearlessness when surpassing endless assemblies; who were skilled in going forth during an ananta of one hundred million eons, understanding phenomena to be like an illusion, a mirage, a reflection of the moon in water, a dream, an echo, an apparition, a reflection in the mirror, and a magical creation; who were skillful in comprehending the thoughts, conduct, and beliefs of all beings and subtle knowledge, [F.2.b] with unobstructed thoughts, and endowed with extreme patience; who were skilled in causing entry into reality just as it is, having appropriated all the endless arrays of the buddhafields through prayer and setting out, with the meditative stabilization recollecting buddhas in an infinite number of world systems constantly and always activated; who were skillful in soliciting innumerable buddhas; who were skillful in eliminating the various views, propensities, obsessions, and defilements; and who were skillful in accomplishing a hundred thousand feats through meditative concentration. That is, he was together with the bodhisattva great beings Bhadrapāla, Ratnākara, Ratnagarbha,16 Ratnadatta, Susārthavaha, Varuṇadeva, Guhyagupta, Indradatta, Uttaramatin, Viśeṣamatin, Vardhamāna­matin, Anantamati, Amoghadarśin, Anāvaraṇamatin, Susaṃprasthita, Su­vikrānta­vikrāmin, Anantavīrya, Nityodyukta, Nityaprayukta, Anikṣiptadhura, Sūryagarbha, Anupamamatin, and Avalokiteśvara, Mahā­sthāma­prāpta, Mañjuśrī Kumārabhūta, Māra­bala­pramardin, Vajramatin, Ratna­mudrā­hasta, Nityotkṣipta­hasta, Mahā­karuṇā­cinta, Mahāvyūha, Vyūharāja, and Merukūṭa, the bodhisattva great being Maitreya, and many hundreds of thousands of one hundred million billion other bodhisattvas as well.

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2.

Chapter 2: Production of the Thought

2.­1

When the Lord understood that the world with its celestial beings, Māras and Brahmās, śramaṇas and brahmins, gods and humans, as well as bodhisattvas, most of them in youthful form, had assembled, he said to venerable Śāriputra, “Here, Śāriputra, bodhisattva great beings who want to fully awaken to all dharmas in all forms should make an effort at the perfection of wisdom.”

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2.­2

The Lord having spoken thus, venerable Śāriputra inquired of him, “How then, Lord, [F.11.b] should bodhisattva great beings who want to fully awaken to all dharmas in all forms make an effort at the perfection of wisdom?”

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3.

Chapter 3: Designation

3.­1

Then [F.23.a] venerable Śāriputra inquired of the Lord, “Lord, how then should bodhisattva great beings practice the perfection of wisdom?”

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3.­2

Venerable Śāriputra having thus inquired, the Lord said to him, “Śāriputra, here bodhisattva great beings practicing the perfection of wisdom do not, even while they are bodhisattvas, see a bodhisattva. They do not see even the word bodhisattva. They do not see awakening either, and they do not see the perfection of wisdom. They do not see that ‘they practice,’ and they do not see that ‘they do not practice.’ They also do not see that ‘while practicing they practice and while not practicing do not practice,’ and they also do not see that ‘they do not practice, and do not not practice as well.’44 They do not see form. Similarly, they do not see feeling, perception, volitional factors, or consciousness either. And why? Because, Śāriputra, the name bodhisattva is empty of the intrinsic nature of a name. The name bodhisattva is not empty because of emptiness. A bodhisattva is also empty of the intrinsic nature of a bodhisattva, but a bodhisattva is not empty because of emptiness. Awakening, too, is empty of the intrinsic nature of awakening, but awakening is not empty because of emptiness. The perfection of wisdom, too, is empty of the intrinsic nature of the perfection of wisdom, but the perfection of wisdom is not empty because of emptiness. Form, too, is empty of the intrinsic nature of form, but form is not empty because of emptiness. [F.23.b] And feeling . . . perception . . . volitional factors . . . and consciousness is45 also empty of the intrinsic nature of consciousness, but consciousness is not empty because of emptiness. And why? Because the emptiness of the name bodhisattva is not the name bodhisattva, and there is no name bodhisattva apart from emptiness, because the name bodhisattva itself is emptiness and emptiness is the name bodhisattva as well. The emptiness of the bodhisattva is not the bodhisattva and there is no bodhisattva apart from emptiness, because the bodhisattva is emptiness and emptiness is the bodhisattva as well. The emptiness of the perfection of wisdom is not the perfection of wisdom and there is no perfection of wisdom apart from emptiness, because the perfection of wisdom itself is emptiness and emptiness is the perfection of wisdom as well. The emptiness of form is not form and there is no form apart from emptiness, because form itself is emptiness and emptiness is form as well. And the emptiness of feeling . . . perception . . . volitional factors . . . and consciousness is not consciousness, and there is no consciousness apart from emptiness because consciousness itself is emptiness and emptiness is consciousness as well. And why? Because this‍—namely, bodhisattva‍—is just a name; because these‍—namely, the name bodhisattva, awakening, [F.24.a] the perfection of wisdom, form, feeling, perception, volitional factors, and consciousness‍—are just names; and because this‍—namely, emptiness‍—is just a name. Why? Because where there is no intrinsic nature there is no production, stopping,46 decrease, increase, defilement, or purification. And why? Because form is like an illusion, feeling is like an illusion, perception is like an illusion, volitional factors are like an illusion, and consciousness is like an illusion. And an illusion is just a name that does not reside somewhere, does not reside in a particular place, so the sight of an illusion is mistaken and does not exist and is devoid of an intrinsic nature. Bodhisattva great beings practicing the perfection of wisdom like that do not see production, do not see stopping, do not see standing, do not see decrease, do not see increase, do not see defilement, and do not see purification in any dharma at all. They do not see ‘awakening,’ and they do not see a ‘bodhisattva’ anywhere. And why? Because names are made up. In the case of each of these different dharmas they are imagined,47 unreal, names plucked out of thin air working subsequently as conventional labels, and just as they are subsequently conventionally labeled, so too are they settled down on as real. Bodhisattva [F.24.b] great beings practicing the perfection of wisdom do not see any of those names as inherently existing, and because they do not see them, they do not settle down on them as real.

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4.

Chapter 4: Equal to the Unequaled

4.­1

Then venerable Śāriputra, venerable Mahā­maudgalyāyana, venerable Subhūti, venerable Pūrṇa Maitrāyaṇī­putra, and venerable Mahākāśyapa, as well as other monks, nuns, laymen, and laywomen celebrated for the state of their clairvoyance, and very many bodhisattva great beings said to the Lord, “This, Lord‍—that is, the perfection of wisdom‍—is the great perfection of bodhisattva great beings. This perfection of wisdom, Lord, is the vast perfection of bodhisattva great beings. This perfection of wisdom, Lord, is the highest perfection of bodhisattva great beings. It is the special perfection, it is the best perfection, it is the superb perfection, it is the sublime [F.54.b] perfection, it is the unsurpassed perfection, it is the unrivaled perfection, it is the unequaled perfection, it is the perfection equal to the unequaled, it is the calm and gentle perfection, it is the matchless perfection, it is the perfection for which no example does justice, it is the space-like perfection, it is the perfection of the emptiness of particular defining marks, it is the perfection endowed with all good qualities. This, Lord‍—that is, the perfection of wisdom‍—is the uncrushable perfection of bodhisattva great beings.


5.

Chapter 5: Tongue

5.­1

Then at that time the Lord extended his tongue and with it covered the great billionfold world system. Then from his tongue light beams of many colors, various colors, issued forth. Having issued forth, a great illumination spread through as many world systems as there are sand particles in the Gaṅgā River to the east. Similarly, a great illumination spread through as many world systems as there are sand particles in the Gaṅgā River to the south, west, and north, in the intermediate directions to the northeast, southeast, southwest, and northwest, below and above.


6.

Chapter 6: Subhūti

6.­1

The Lord then said to venerable Subhūti, “Subhūti, starting with the perfection of wisdom, be confident in your readiness to give a Dharma discourse to the bodhisattva great beings about how bodhisattva great beings go forth in the perfection of wisdom.”

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6.­2

Then it occurred to those bodhisattva great beings, those great śrāvakas, and those gods to think, “Will venerable Subhūti instruct the bodhisattva great beings in the perfection of wisdom on account of armor in which reposes the power of his own intellect and confident readiness, or will he instruct them through the power of the Buddha?”

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7.

Chapter 7: Entry into Flawlessness

7.­1

Venerable Subhūti then said to the Lord, “Lord, bodhisattva great beings who want to comprehend131 form should train in the perfection of wisdom. Bodhisattva great beings who want to comprehend feeling, perception, volitional factors, and consciousness should train in the perfection of wisdom. Bodhisattva great beings who want to comprehend eyes should train in the perfection of wisdom. Similarly, bodhisattva great beings who want to comprehend ears, nose, tongue, body, and thinking mind should train in the perfection of wisdom. Bodhisattva great beings who want to comprehend a form should train in the perfection of wisdom. Similarly, bodhisattva great beings who want to comprehend a sound, a smell, a taste, a feeling, and a dharma should train in the perfection of wisdom. Bodhisattva great beings who want to comprehend eye consciousness should train in the perfection of wisdom. Bodhisattva great beings who want to comprehend up to thinking-mind consciousness should train in the perfection of wisdom. Bodhisattva great beings who want to comprehend eye contact up to who want to comprehend thinking-mind contact should train in the perfection of wisdom. Bodhisattva great beings who want to comprehend the feeling that arises from the condition of eye contact, up to [F.69.b] who want to comprehend the feeling that arises from the condition of thinking-mind contact should train in the perfection of wisdom. Bodhisattva great beings who want to comprehend ignorance should train in the perfection of wisdom. Similarly, bodhisattva great beings who want to comprehend volitional factors, consciousness, name and form, the six sense fields, contact, feeling, craving, appropriation, existence, birth, and old age and death should train in the perfection of wisdom.

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8.

Chapter 8: The Religious Mendicant Śreṇika

8.­1

Then venerable Subhūti said to the Lord, “Lord, given that I do not find, do not apprehend, and do not see a bodhisattva or the perfection of wisdom, to which bodhisattva will I give advice and instruction in what perfection of wisdom? Lord, given that I do not find, do not apprehend, and do not see any real basis, this really is something I might be uneasy about‍—Lord, while not finding, not apprehending, and not seeing any real basis, which dharma will advise and instruct which dharma? Because, Lord, given that I do not find, do not apprehend, and do not see all dharmas, this really is something I might be uneasy about, how I might make just the name bodhisattva and just the name perfection of wisdom wax and wane.

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9.

Chapter 9: Causal Signs

9.­1

Then venerable Subhūti said to the Lord, “Lord, if bodhisattva great beings practicing the perfection of wisdom without skillful means [F.87.b] practice form166 they practice a causal sign; they do not practice the perfection of wisdom. If they practice feeling, perception, volitional factors, or consciousness they practice a causal sign; they do not practice the perfection of wisdom. If they practice ‘form is permanent’ or ‘impermanent’ they practice a causal sign; they do not practice the perfection of wisdom. If they practice ‘feeling, perception, volitional factors, or consciousness is permanent’ or ‘impermanent’ they practice a causal sign; they do not practice the perfection of wisdom. If they practice ‘form is happiness’ or ‘suffering’ they practice a causal sign. If they practice ‘feeling, perception, volitional factors, or consciousness is ‘happiness’ or ‘suffering’ they practice a causal sign. If they practice ‘form is self’ or ‘no self’ they practice a causal sign. If they practice ‘feeling, perception, volitional factors, or consciousness is self’ or ‘no self’ they practice a causal sign. If they practice ‘form is calm’ or ‘not calm’ they practice a causal sign. If they practice ‘feeling, perception, volitional factors, or consciousness is calm’ or ‘not calm’ they practice a causal sign. If they practice ‘form is isolated’ or ‘not isolated’ they practice a causal sign. If they practice ‘feeling, perception, volitional factors, or consciousness is isolated’ or ‘not isolated’ they practice a causal sign; they do not practice the perfection of wisdom.

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10.

Chapter 10: Illusion-Like

10.­1

Then venerable Subhūti said to the Lord, “Lord, suppose someone were to ask, ‘Does this illusory being, having trained in the perfection of wisdom, go forth to the knowledge of all aspects or reach the knowledge of all aspects?’ What, Lord, should be said to that questioner? And similarly, suppose someone were to ask, ‘Does this illusory being, having trained in the perfection of concentration, perfection of perseverance, perfection of patience, perfection of morality, and perfection of giving go forth to the knowledge of all aspects or reach the knowledge of all aspects?’ What, Lord, should be said to that questioner? And as to ‘Do they, having trained in, up to the thirty-seven dharmas on the side of awakening, [F.97.a] up to the knowledge of all aspects, go forth to the knowledge of all aspects or reach the knowledge of all aspects?’‍—what, Lord, should be said to that questioner?”

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11.

Chapter 11: Embarrassment

11.­1

Then venerable Subhūti said to the Lord, “Lord, you say ‘bodhisattva’ again and again. What is its basis in reality?”201

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The Lord [F.110.b] replied to venerable Subhūti, “Subhūti, the basis in reality for bodhisattva is an absence of a basis in reality. And why? Subhūti, it is because bodhi and sattva are not produced. Awakening and a being do not have an arising or an existence. They cannot be apprehended. Subhūti, awakening has no basis in reality and a being has no basis in reality, therefore a bodhisattva’s basis in reality is an absence of a basis in reality.

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12.

Chapter 12: Elimination of Views

12.­1

Then venerable Śāriputra said to the Lord, “Lord, I too am confident in my readiness to speak the sense in which bodhisattvas are said to be ‘great beings.’ ”

12.­2

“Śāriputra,” replied the Lord, “be confident in your readiness to explain the sense in which bodhisattvas are said to be great beings.”

12.­3

Śāriputra then explained, “Lord, they reveal the Dharma to beings to eliminate the view of a self and, similarly, the view of a being, a living being, a person, one who lives, an individual, one born of Manu, a child of Manu, one who does, one who makes someone else do, a motivator, one who motivates, one who feels, one who makes someone else feel, one who knows, and one who sees. And by way of not apprehending anything they reveal the Dharma to beings to eliminate the view of annihilation, the view of permanence, the view of existence, and the view [F.119.b] of nonexistence; the view of aggregates, the view of constituents, the view of sense fields, the view of isolation, and the view of dependent origination; and the view of the perfections, the view of the dharmas on the side of awakening, the view of the powers and fearlessnesses, the view of the distinct attributes of a buddha, the view of bringing beings to maturity, the view of the purification of a buddhafield, the view of awakening, the view of the Buddha, the view of the Dharma, the view of the Saṅgha, the view of turning the wheel of the Dharma, and the view of complete nirvāṇa. It is in this sense bodhisattvas are said to be great beings.”

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13.

Chapter 13: The Six Perfections

13.­1

Then venerable Pūrṇa Maitrāyaṇī­putra said to the Lord, “Lord, I too am confident in my readiness to speak the sense in which bodhisattvas are said to be great beings.”

“Pūrṇa, be confident in your readiness to speak,” replied the Lord.

13.­2

Pūrṇa then said, “Lord, those beings are armed with great armor, [F.122.a] those beings have set out in a Great Vehicle, and those beings have mounted on a Great Vehicle. It is in this sense, Lord, that bodhisattvas are said to be great beings.”

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14.

Chapter 14: Neither Bound nor Freed

14.­1

Then venerable Subhūti inquired of the Lord, “Lord, you say ‘armed with great armor’ again and again. Lord, to what extent are bodhisattva great beings armed with great armor?”

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The Lord said, “Subhūti, here bodhisattva great beings, having become armed with great armor‍—that is, armed with perfection of giving armor, and armed with perfection of morality, perfection of patience, perfection of perseverance, perfection of concentration, and perfection of wisdom armor; armed with applications of mindfulness armor, and armed with right efforts, legs of miraculous power, faculties, powers, limbs of awakening, and path armor; armed with inner emptiness armor, up to armed with emptiness that is the nonexistence of an intrinsic nature armor; and armed with powers armor, armed with fearlessnesses armor, armed with detailed and thorough knowledges armor, and armed with distinct attributes of a buddha armor‍—and having become armed with the armor of the knowledge of all aspects and the body of a buddha, they pervade world systems in the great billionfold world system with light and shake the earth. Having blown out all the fires in the hell dwellings, extinguished the sufferings of the beings in the hells, and caused them to know their suffering is extinguished, those bodhisattvas [F.132.b] say, ‘I bow to you, tathāgata, worthy one, perfectly complete Buddha!’ proclaiming the name out loud, and then those beings in the hells, having heard the sound buddha, find pleasure and mental happiness. They emerge from those hells just because of that pleasure and mental happiness, and wherever lord buddhas are standing and can be seen and can be pleased they take birth in those world systems, reborn as gods and humans.


15.

Chapter 15: Meditative Stabilization

15.­1

Then venerable Subhūti inquired of the Lord, “Lord, what is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings? Lord, to just what extent should bodhisattva great beings be known to have set out in the Great Vehicle?248 Where249 will the Great Vehicle have set out? Where will the Great Vehicle stand?250 Who will go forth in the Great Vehicle?”

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Subhūti having said asked this, the Lord said to him, “Subhūti, in regard to what you have asked‍—‘Lord, what is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings?‍—Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings is this: the six perfections. And what are the six? They are the perfection of giving, perfection of morality, perfection of patience, perfection of perseverance, [F.142.b] perfection of concentration, and perfection of wisdom.


16.

Chapter 16: Dhāraṇī Gateway

16.­1

“Furthermore, Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings is this: the four applications of mindfulness. What are the four? They are the application of mindfulness to the body, the application of mindfulness to feeling, the application of mindfulness to mind, and the application of mindfulness to dharmas.

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“What is the application of mindfulness to the body? Here enthusiastic, introspective, mindful bodhisattva great beings, having cleared away ordinary covetousness and depression, dwell while viewing in a body the inner body by way of not apprehending anything, and without indulging in speculations to do with the body. They dwell while viewing in a body the outer body, and they dwell while viewing in a body [F.155.b] the inner and outer body by way of not apprehending anything, and without indulging in speculations to do with the body.

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“Enthusiastic, introspective, mindful bodhisattva great beings, having cleared away ordinary covetousness and depression, dwell while viewing in dharmas inner feelings, mind, and inner dharmas, by way of not apprehending anything, and without indulging in speculations to do with dharmas. They dwell while viewing in dharmas outer feelings, mind, and outer dharmas, and dwell while viewing in dharmas inner and outer feelings, mind, and inner and outer dharmas by way of not apprehending anything, and without indulging in speculations to do with the body.

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“And how, Subhūti, do bodhisattva great beings dwell while viewing in a body the inner body? Subhūti, here bodhisattva great beings dwell, while viewing in a body the inner body, aware when practicing, ‘I am practicing’; aware when they have stood, ‘I am standing’; aware when they have sat down, ‘I am sitting’; aware when they have laid down, ‘I am lying down.’ Whatever the position their body is in, they are aware of what it is. Subhūti, enthusiastic, introspective, mindful bodhisattva great beings, having cleared away ordinary covetousness and depression, dwell while viewing in a body the inner body like that.

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“Furthermore, Subhūti, bodhisattva great beings who dwell while viewing in a body the inner body, while going out or coming back, are those who are clearly conscious of what they are doing. When they have looked around or peered, they are clearly conscious of what they are doing. When they have pulled in; [F.156.a] stretched out; are wearing an under robe, carrying a begging bowl, or wearing an outer robe; or have eaten, drunk, chewed, savored, warded off being overcome by drowsiness,282 come, gone, stood, sat down, slept, awoken, spoken, remained silent, or withdrawn for meditation, they are those who are clearly conscious of what they are doing. Subhūti, bodhisattva great beings practicing the perfection of wisdom dwell while viewing in a body the inner body by way of not apprehending anything like that.

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16.­6

“Furthermore, Subhūti, bodhisattva great beings are mindful when breathing in, aware of the fact ‘I am breathing in’; are mindful when breathing out, aware of the fact ‘I am breathing out’; when breathing in long, are aware of the fact ‘I am breathing in long’; when breathing out long, are aware of the fact ‘I am breathing out long’; when breathing in short, are aware of the fact ‘I am breathing in short’; and when breathing out short, are aware of the fact ‘I am breathing out short.’

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“To illustrate, Subhūti, when a skillful potter or potter’s apprentice283 turns the wheel they are aware when they give it a long spin, ‘I am giving it a long spin,’ and they are aware when they give it a short spin, ‘I am giving it a short spin.’ Similarly, Subhūti, bodhisattva great beings when mindfully breathing in are mindfully aware of the fact ‘I am breathing in’; when mindfully breathing out are mindfully aware of the fact ‘I am breathing out’; when breathing in longare aware of the fact ‘I am breathing in long’; [F.156.b] when breathing out long are aware of the fact ‘I am breathing out long’; when breathing in short are aware of the fact ‘I am breathing in short’; and when breathing out short are aware of the fact ‘I am breathing out short.’ Subhūti, enthusiastic, introspective, mindful bodhisattva great beings, having cleared away ordinary covetousness and depression, dwell viewing in a body the inner body like that, and that by way of not apprehending anything.

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“Furthermore, Subhūti, bodhisattva great beings practicing the perfection of wisdom examine how this very body in fact has constituents, how in this body are the earth element, water element, fire element, and wind element. As an example, Subhūti, when a skillful butcher of cows or apprentice to a butcher of cows has killed a cow with a sharp knife and quartered it, they examine it while standing or sitting. Similarly, Subhūti, bodhisattva great beings practicing the perfection of wisdom also examine how this very body in fact has constituents, how in this body are the earth element, water element, fire element, and wind element. Subhūti, bodhisattva great beings practicing the perfection of wisdom dwell viewing in a body the inner body like that while standing or sitting, and that by way of not apprehending anything.

16.­9

“Furthermore, Subhūti, bodhisattva great beings practicing the perfection of wisdom examine properly how this very body is full of various types of filth from the soles of the feet on up, from the top of the head on down, and out as far as the nails, hairs, and skin. They examine on this body [F.157.a] the hair on the head and hairs on the body, the nails, the teeth, the covering of skin, and the flesh, sinew, blood, bone, marrow, heart, kidney, liver, lungs, spleen, gut, intestines, coiled intestines, colon, urine, excrement, tears, sweat, fat, snot, mucus, pus, bile, phlegm, oil, marrow, plasma, dirt, cranium, brain, discharge from the eyes, and ear wax. As an analogy, Subhūti, when those with eyes untie and inspect a farmer’s sack full of different types of unhusked rice, unhusked grains, sesame seeds, husked grains, mung beans,284 kidney beans, lentils, barley, wheat, and mustard seeds, they know ‘this is unhusked rice, these are unhusked grains, these are sesame seeds, these are mung beans, these are kidney beans, these are lentils, this is barley, this is wheat, and these are mustard seeds.’ Similarly, Subhūti, bodhisattva great beings practicing the perfection of wisdom examine how this very body is full of various types of filth from the soles of the feet on up, from the top of the head on down, and out as far as the nails, hairs, and skin. They examine on this body the hair on the head and hairs on the body, the nails, the teeth, the covering of skin, and the flesh, sinew, blood, bone, marrow, heart, kidney, liver, lungs, spleen, gut, intestines, coiled intestines, colon, urine, excrement, [F.157.b] tears, sweat, fat, snot, mucus, pus, bile, phlegm, oil, marrow, plasma, dirt, cranium, brain, discharge from the eyes, and ear wax. Subhūti, enthusiastic, introspective, mindful bodhisattva great beings practicing the perfection of wisdom, having cleared away ordinary covetousness and depression, dwell viewing while in a body the inner body like that, by way of not apprehending anything.

16.­10

“Furthermore, Subhūti, when bodhisattva great beings staying in a charnel ground see various bodies thrown out in the charnel ground that have been dead for one day, dead for two days, dead for three days, dead for four days, or dead for five days, or are bloated, black and blue, rotten, or cleaned out by worms, they connect this very body with that reality: ‘This body too has such a quality, is of such a nature, and does not avoid having that as its natural state.’ Subhūti, enthusiastic, introspective, mindful bodhisattva great beings, having cleared away ordinary covetousness and depression, dwell while viewing in a body the body285 like that.

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16.­11

“Furthermore, Subhūti, when bodhisattva great beings see human corpses thrown out in the charnel ground dead for six days or dead for seven days or lying there being eaten by crows, kites, buzzards, vultures, hawks,286 jackals, foxes, or dogs, or being eaten by any other of the various kinds of creatures, they connect this very body with that reality: ‘This body too is of such a quality, is of such a nature, and does not avoid having that as its natural state.’ Subhūti, enthusiastic, [F.158.a] introspective, mindful bodhisattva great beings, having cleared away ordinary covetousness and depression, dwell while viewing in a body the outer body like that.

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“Furthermore, Subhūti, when bodhisattva great beings see human corpses thrown out in the charnel ground that are chewed up, filthy, rotten, and stinking, they connect this very body with that reality: ‘This body too is of such a quality, is of such a nature, and does not avoid having that as its natural state.’ Subhūti, enthusiastic, introspective, mindful bodhisattva great beings, having cleared away ordinary covetousness and depression, dwell while viewing in a body the body like that.

16.­13

“Furthermore, Subhūti, when bodhisattva great beings see a complete skeleton thrown out in the charnel ground daubed with flesh and blood and hardly connected by sinews, they connect this very body with that reality: ‘This body too is of such a quality, is of such a nature, and does not avoid having that as its natural state.’ [F.158.b] Subhūti, enthusiastic, introspective, mindful bodhisattva great beings, having cleared away ordinary covetousness and depression, dwell while viewing in a body the body like that.

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“Furthermore, Subhūti, when bodhisattva great beings see the bones of a skeleton in the charnel ground without flesh and blood, colored like a conch shell and unconnected by sinews, they connect this very body with that reality: ‘This body too is of such a quality, is of such a nature, and does not avoid having that as its natural state.’ Subhūti, enthusiastic, introspective, mindful bodhisattva great beings, having cleared away ordinary covetousness and depression, are those who view in a body the body like that.

16.­15

“Furthermore, Subhūti, when bodhisattva great beings see in the charnel ground the bones no longer held in the frame of a skeleton, detached from each other, scattered about like conch shells, they connect this very body with that reality: ‘This body too is of such a quality, is of such a nature, and does not avoid having that as its natural state.’ Subhūti, enthusiastic, introspective, mindful bodhisattva great beings, having cleared away ordinary covetousness and depression, dwell while viewing in a body the body like that.

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“Furthermore, Subhūti, when bodhisattva great beings see in the charnel ground bones scattered on the ground in the main and intermediate directions‍—in one the bones of the feet, in another the bones of the lower leg, in another the bones of the upper leg, in another hip bones, in another rib bones, in another vertebrae, in another shoulder bones, in another neck bones, in another the skull and jaw bone‍—they connect this very body with that reality: ‘This body too is of such a quality, is of such a nature, and does not avoid having that as its natural state.’ Subhūti, enthusiastic, introspective, mindful bodhisattva great beings, having cleared away ordinary covetousness and depression, dwell while viewing in a body the body like that.

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16.­17

“Furthermore, Subhūti, when bodhisattva great beings see in the charnel ground bones [F.159.a] that have been there for years bleached by the wind and the sun, colored like conch shells, they connect this very body with that reality: ‘This body too is of such a quality, is of such a nature, and does not avoid having that as its natural state.’ Subhūti, enthusiastic, introspective, mindful bodhisattva great beings, having cleared away ordinary covetousness and depression, dwell while viewing in a body the body like that.

16.­18

“Furthermore, Subhūti, when bodhisattva great beings see in the charnel ground decayed bones the dark color of the wood pigeon, crumbled to bits and become like the soil of the earth, they connect this very body with that reality: ‘This body too is of such a quality, is of such a nature, and does not avoid having that as its natural state.’ Subhūti, enthusiastic, introspective, mindful bodhisattva great beings, having cleared away ordinary covetousness and depression, are those who view in a body the inner body, are those who view in a body the outer body, and dwell as those who view in a body the inner and outer body like that.

16.­19

“Similarly, enthusiastic, introspective, mindful bodhisattva great beings, having cleared away ordinary covetousness and depression, are those who view the dharmas of feelings, minds, and dharmas.

“That, Subhūti, is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings.

16.­20

“Furthermore, Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings is this: the four right efforts. What are the four? Subhūti, bodhisattva great beings generate the desire not to produce wrong unwholesome dharmas not yet produced, making an effort at it, making a vigorous attempt, [F.159.b] tightening up the mind and perfectly settling it down.287 They generate the desire to abandon wrong unwholesome dharmas already produced, making an effort at it, making a vigorous attempt, exerting themselves mentally, and setting it out as a perfect goal. They generate the desire to produce wholesome dharmas not yet produced, making an effort at it, making a vigorous attempt, exerting themselves mentally, and setting it out as a perfect goal. They generate the desire that wholesome dharmas already produced will remain, will increase, will not be forgotten, will not degenerate, and will be completed, making an effort at it, making a vigorous attempt, tightening up the mind and perfectly settling it down by way of settling it down without apprehending anything.

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“That, Subhūti, is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings.

16.­21

“Furthermore, Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings is this: the four legs of miraculous power. What are the four?288 Subhūti, here bodhisattva great beings develop a leg of miraculous power endowed with meditative stabilization and the volitional effort to eliminate caused by yearning based on isolation, based on detachment, based on cessation, and transformed by renunciation; and they develop a leg of miraculous power endowed with meditative stabilization and the volitional effort to eliminate caused by perseverance, concentrated mind, and examination based on isolation, based on detachment, based on cessation, and transformed by renunciation, and that without apprehending anything.

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“That, Subhūti, is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings.

16.­22

“Furthermore, Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings is this: the five faculties. What are the five? They are the faith faculty, perseverance faculty, mindfulness faculty, meditative stabilization faculty, and wisdom faculty. [F.160.a]

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“That, Subhūti, is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings.

16.­23

“Furthermore, Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings is this: the five powers. What are the five? They are the power of faith, power of perseverance, power of mindfulness, power of meditative stabilization, and power of wisdom, by way of not apprehending anything.

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“That, Subhūti, is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings.

16.­24

“Furthermore, Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings is this: the seven limbs of awakening. What are the seven? They develop the right mindfulness limb of awakening, the right examination of dharmas limb of awakening, the right perseverance limb of awakening, the right joy limb of awakening, the right pliability limb of awakening, the right meditative stabilization limb of awakening, and the right equanimity limb of awakening, all based on detachment, based on cessation, and transformed by renunciation, and that without apprehending anything.

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“That, Subhūti, is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings.

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“Furthermore, Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings is this: the eightfold noble path. What are the eight limbs of the noble path? They are right view, right idea, right speech, right conduct, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right meditative stabilization, by way of not apprehending anything.

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“That, Subhūti, is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings. [F.160.b]

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“Furthermore, Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings is this: the three meditative stabilizations that are the three gateways to liberation. What are the three? They are the emptiness meditative stabilization, the signless meditative stabilization, and the wishless meditative stabilization.

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“What is the emptiness meditative stabilization? The stability of mind that understands analytically that all dharmas are empty of their own mark is the emptiness gateway to liberation called the emptiness meditative stabilization.

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“What is the signlessness meditative stabilization? The stability of mind that understands analytically that all dharmas are without a causal sign is the signlessness gateway to liberation called the signlessness meditative stabilization.

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“What is the meditative stabilization on the wishlessness? The stability of mind that understands analytically that all dharmas do not occasion anything is the wishlessness gateway to liberation called the wishlessness meditative stabilization.

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“The meditative stabilizations that are those three gateways to liberation are the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings. They should train in those three gateways to liberation.

16.­31

“Furthermore, Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings is this: the eleven knowledges. What are the eleven? They are knowledge of suffering, knowledge of origination, knowledge of cessation, knowledge of the path, knowledge of extinction, knowledge of nonproduction, knowledge of dharma, subsequent realization knowledge, conventional knowledge, knowledge of mastery, and knowledge in accord with sound.

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“What is knowledge of suffering? The knowledge that suffering is not produced is called knowledge of suffering.

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“What is knowledge of origination? The knowledge of the abandonment of origination is called knowledge of origination.

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“What is knowledge of cessation? [F.161.a] The knowledge of the cessation of suffering is called knowledge of cessation.

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“What is knowledge of the path? The knowledge of the eightfold noble path is called knowledge of the path.

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“What is knowledge of extinction? It is the knowledge that greed, hatred, and confusion have been extinguished.

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“What is knowledge of nonproduction? It is the knowledge that a form of life in suffering existence is not produced.

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“What is knowledge of dharma? It is knowledge that knows decisively that the aggregates are artificial.289

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“What is subsequent realization knowledge? It is knowledge that the eyes and the ears, nose, tongue, body, and thinking mind are impermanent. Connect this in the same way with the aggregates, constituents, and sense fields, up to all dharmas.

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“What is conventional knowledge? It is knowledge of the thoughts of other beings and other persons by the thought to know them.

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“What is knowledge of mastery? Knowledge of the path and knowledge of extinction is called knowledge of mastery.

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16.­42

“What is knowledge in accord with sound? It is a tathāgata’s knowledge of all sounds. It is knowledge, furthermore, by way of not apprehending anything.

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“That, Subhūti, is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings.

16.­43

“Furthermore, Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of a bodhisattva great being is this: the three faculties. They are the faculty of coming to understand what one does not understand, the faculty of understanding, and the faculty of having understood.

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“What is the faculty of coming to understand what one does not understand? The faith faculty, perseverance faculty, mindfulness faculty, meditative stabilization faculty, and wisdom faculty without appearances that tame the arrogance [F.161.b] of trainee persons who have not had a clear realization is called the faculty of coming to understand what one does not understand.

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16.­45

“What is the faculty of understanding? The faith faculty, perseverance faculty, mindfulness faculty, meditative stabilization faculty, and wisdom faculty of trainees who have understood is called the faculty of understanding.

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“What is the faculty of having understood? The faith faculty, perseverance faculty, mindfulness faculty, meditative stabilization faculty, and wisdom faculty of nontrainee persons‍—worthy ones, pratyekabuddhas, bodhisattvas, and tathāgatas, worthy ones, perfectly complete buddhas‍—is called the faculty of having understood.

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“That, Subhūti, is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings.

16.­47

“Furthermore, Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings is this: the three meditative stabilizations. They are the meditative stabilization with applied thought and with sustained thought, the meditative stabilization without applied thought with only sustained thought, and the meditative stabilization without either applied or sustained thought.

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16.­48

“What is the meditative stabilization with applied thought and with sustained thought? Subhūti, here bodhisattva great beings detached from sense objects, detached from wrong unwholesome dharmas, perfectly accomplish and dwell in the first concentration that has applied thought and has sustained thought and joy and happiness born of detachment. That is called the meditative stabilization with applied thought and with sustained thought.

16.­49

“What is the meditative stabilization without applied thought with only sustained thought? It is between the first concentration and the second concentration. That is called the meditative stabilization without applied thought with only sustained thought.

16.­50

“What [F.162.a] is the meditative stabilization without either applied or sustained thought? It is from the second concentration, up to the station of the neither perception nor nonperception absorption. That is called the meditative stabilization without either applied or sustained thought.

“That, Subhūti, is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings.

16.­51

“Furthermore, Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great being is this: the ten mindfulnesses. What are the ten? They are mindfulness of the Buddha, mindfulness of the Dharma, mindfulness of the Saṅgha, mindfulness of morality, mindfulness of giving away, mindfulness of the gods, mindfulness of disgust, mindfulness of death, mindfulness of what is included in the body, and mindfulness of breathing in and out. That mindfulness, furthermore, is by way of not apprehending anything.

“That, Subhūti, is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings.

16.­52

“Furthermore, Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings is this: the four immeasurables.290 What are the four? They dwell having pervaded the ten directions of a world that is vast because of the dharma-constituent and that extends as far as the space element with a vast, inclusive, infinite, nondual mind endowed with love without enmity, unrivaled, not harmful, and well cultivated.

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16.­53

“They dwell having pervaded the ten directions of a world as vast as the dharma-constituent and as far-reaching as the space element with a vast, inclusive, infinite, nondual mind endowed with compassion, endowed with joy, and endowed with equanimity without enmity, unrivaled, not harmful, and well cultivated.

“That, Subhūti, [F.162.b] is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings.

16.­54

“Furthermore, Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings is this: the four concentrations.291 What are the four?

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16.­55

“Detached from sense objects, detached from wrong unwholesome dharmas, they perfectly accomplish and dwell in the first concentration that has applied thought and has sustained thought and joy and happiness born of detachment.

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16.­56

“Relieved of applied thought and sustained thought, with an inner serene confidence and a mind that has become a single continuum, they perfectly accomplish and dwell in the second concentration that has joy and happiness born of a meditative stabilization without applied thought and without sustained thought.

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16.­57

“Because they are free from attachment to joy they abide in equanimity, and with equanimity and recollection and introspection they experience pleasure with their body, and they perfectly accomplish and dwell in the third concentration without enjoyment, about which the noble beings say, ‘They have equanimity and recollection and dwell in happiness.’

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16.­58

“Because they have forsaken pleasure, have earlier forsaken suffering, have set to rest mental happiness and mental unhappiness and have equanimity that is neither happiness nor suffering, and have an extremely pure equanimity and recollection, they perfectly accomplish and dwell in the fourth concentration.

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“That, Subhūti, is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings.

16.­59

“Furthermore, Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings is this: the four formless absorptions. What are the four?

16.­60

“Totally transcending perceptions of form, setting to rest perceptions of obstruction, not paying attention to perceptions of difference, in endless space they perfectly accomplish and dwell in the station of endless space.

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16.­61

“Totally transcending [F.163.a] the station of endless space, in endless consciousness they perfectly accomplish and dwell in the station of endless consciousness.

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16.­62

“Totally transcending the station of endless consciousness, in nothing-at-all they perfectly accomplish and dwell in the station of nothing-at-all.

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16.­63

“Totally transcending the station of nothing-at-all, in neither perception nor nonperception they perfectly accomplish and dwell in the station of neither perception nor nonperception.

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“That, Subhūti, is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings.

16.­64

“Furthermore, Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings is this: the eight deliverances. What are the eight?

16.­65

“With form they see forms. This is the first deliverance.

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“With the perception of form inside they see forms outside. This is the second deliverance.

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“They have admiration for the pleasant. This is the third deliverance.

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“Totally transcending perceptions of form, setting to rest perceptions of obstruction, not paying attention to perceptions of difference, in endless space they perfectly accomplish and dwell in the station of endless space. This is the fourth deliverance.

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“Totally transcending the station of endless space, in endless consciousness they perfectly accomplish and dwell in the station of endless consciousness. This is the fifth deliverance.

16.­68

“Totally transcending the station of endless consciousness, in nothing-at-all they perfectly accomplish and dwell in the station of nothing-at-all. This is the sixth deliverance.

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“Totally transcending the station of nothing-at-all, in neither perception nor nonperception they perfectly accomplish and dwell in the station of neither perception nor nonperception. This is the seventh deliverance.

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“Totally transcending [F.163.b] the station of neither perception nor nonperception they perfectly accomplish and dwell in the cessation of perception and feeling. This is the eighth deliverance.

“That, Subhūti, is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings.

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“Furthermore, Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings is this: the nine serial absorptions. What are the nine?

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16.­72

“Detached from sense objects, detached from wrong unwholesome dharmas, they perfectly accomplish and dwell in the first concentration that has applied thought and has sustained thought and joy and happiness born of detachment.

16.­73

“Relieved of applied thought and sustained thought, with an inner serene confidence and a mind that has become a single continuum, they perfectly accomplish and dwell in the second concentration that has joy and happiness born of a meditative stabilization without applied thought and without sustained thought.

16.­74

“Because they are free from attachment to joy they abide in equanimity, and with equanimity and recollection and introspection they experience happiness with their bodies, and they perfectly accomplish and dwell in the third concentration without joy, about which the noble beings say, ‘They have equanimity and recollection and dwell in happiness.’

16.­75

“Because they have forsaken happiness, have earlier forsaken suffering, have set to rest mental happiness and mental unhappiness and have pure equanimity that is neither happiness nor suffering, and have recollection, they perfectly accomplish and dwell in the fourth concentration.

16.­76

“Totally transcending perceptions of form, setting to rest perceptions of obstruction, not paying attention to perceptions of difference, thinking ‘it is endless space’ they perfectly accomplish and dwell in the station of endless space.

16.­77

“Totally transcending the station of endless space, [F.164.a] thinking ‘it is endless consciousness’ they perfectly accomplish and dwell in the station of endless consciousness.

16.­78

“Totally transcending the station of endless consciousness, in nothing-at-all they perfectly accomplish and dwell in the station of nothing-at-all.

16.­79

“Totally transcending the station of nothing-at-all, in neither perception nor nonperception they perfectly accomplish and dwell in the station of neither perception nor nonperception.

16.­80

“Totally transcending the station of neither perception nor nonperception they perfectly accomplish and dwell in the cessation of perception and feeling.

“That, Subhūti, is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings.

16.­81

“Furthermore, Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings is this: the ten powers of a tathāgata. What are the ten?

16.­82

“Accurately knowing the possible as possible, and accurately knowing the impossible as impossible.

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16.­83

“Accurately knowing past, present, and future actions, and the place of the undertaking of the actions, and the results.292

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16.­84

“Accurately knowing the world with its various constituents and multiplicity of constituents.293

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16.­85

“Accurately knowing the various beliefs and many beliefs of other beings and other persons.

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“Accurately knowing the stages of faculties and perseverance of other beings and other persons.

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“Accurately knowing the path wherever it goes.

16.­87

“Accurately knowing the defilement and purification of all concentrations, deliverances, meditative stabilizations, and absorptions, and the emergence from them. [F.164.b]

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16.­88

“Accurately recollecting and knowing many various previous lives and knowing deaths and rebirths with the divine eye.

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16.­89

“Perfectly accomplishing and dwelling in a freedom in their minds that they have realized themselves in this very life with clairvoyance, a freedom and wisdom without outflows because of having put an end to outflows. They know, ‘Birth has come to an end for me. I have lived the pure life. My work is done. From now on there will be nothing like this.’ And that, furthermore, is by way of not apprehending anything.

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“That, Subhūti, is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings.

16.­90

“Furthermore, Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings is this: the four fearlessnesses. What are the four?

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16.­91

“When I claim, ‘I am perfectly completely awakened,’ ah! I see no cause that would make me think that anyone in this world of beings, together with the gods, Māra, Brahmā, those leading a secluded religious life, and brahmins, could in truth argue there that these dharmas have not become perfectly, completely awakened. Because I do not see here that cause, I, who have found happiness, found fearlessness, and found a ground for self-confidence, claim the exalted status of the dominant bull. I roar the lion’s perfect roar in the assembly. I, Brahmā-like, turn the wheel that no one in this world‍—not a god or Māra or Brahmā or one leading a secluded religious life or a brahmin‍—can in truth turn.

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16.­92

“When I claim, ‘I have put an end to outflows,’ ah! I see there no cause that would make me think that anyone in this world of beings, together with the gods, Māra, Brahmā, those leading a secluded religious life, and brahmins, could in truth argue, [F.165.a] ‘You have not put an end to those outflows.’ Because I do not see that cause here I have found happiness, found fearlessness, and found a ground for self-confidence, and I claim the exalted status of the dominant bull. I roar the lion’s perfect roar in the assembly. I, Brahmā-like, turn the wheel that no one in this world‍—not a god or Māra or Brahmā or one leading a secluded religious life or a brahmin‍—can in truth turn.

16.­93

“There are no grounds for those phenomena that I have explained to be hindrances not to become phenomena that hinder those who resort to them, so I see no cause that would make me think that anyone in this world of beings, together with the gods, Māra, Brahmā, those leading a secluded religious life, and brahmins, could in truth argue that even if they resort to them they do not become hindrances. Because I do not see any cause here, I have found happiness, found fearlessness, found a ground for self-confidence, and claim as my state the exalted state of the dominant bull. I roar the lion’s perfect roar in the assembly. I, Brahmā-like, turn the wheel that no one in this world‍—not a god or Māra or Brahmā or one leading a secluded religious life or a brahmin‍—can in truth turn.

16.­94

“There are no grounds for saying that the noble paths that I have said cause escape do not perfectly put an end to suffering when those escapes that perfectly put an end to the suffering of those who effect them have been accomplished. I see no cause that would make me think that anyone in this world of beings, together with the gods, Māra, Brahmā, those leading a secluded religious life, and brahmins, could in truth argue, ‘Even if they have been accomplished they do not put an end to outflows.’ [F.165.b] Because I do not see any cause here, I have found happiness, found fearlessness, found a ground for self-confidence, and claim as my state the exalted state of the dominant bull. I roar the lion’s perfect roar in the assembly. I, Brahmā-like, turn the wheel that no one in this world‍—not a god or Māra or Brahmā or one leading a secluded religious life or a brahmin‍—can in truth turn. And that, furthermore, is by way of not apprehending anything.

“That, Subhūti, is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings.

16.­95

“Furthermore, Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings is this: the four detailed and thorough knowledges. What are the four? They are detailed and thorough knowledge of meanings, detailed and thorough knowledge of dharmas, detailed and thorough knowledge of creative explanations, and detailed and thorough knowledge of confidence giving a readiness to speak. It is knowledge, furthermore, by way of not apprehending anything.

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“That, Subhūti, is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings.

16.­96

“Furthermore, Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings is this: the eighteen distinct attributes of a buddha. What are the eighteen?

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16.­97

Between the night when tathāgatas awaken to unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening and the night when they pass into complete nirvāṇa in the element of nirvāṇa without any aggregates left behind, while tathāgatas teach the world of beings together with the gods, Māra, Brahmā, those leading a secluded religious life, and brahmins, together with gods, humans, and asuras the path that puts an end to suffering, they do not go wrong, do not shout out, are not robbed of mindfulness, do not discriminate differences, do not have uncollected thoughts, [F.166.a] are not inconsiderately dispassionate, are not deficient in yearning, are not deficient in perseverance, are not deficient in recollection, are not deficient in meditative stabilization, are not deficient in wisdom, are not deficient in liberation, and are not deficient in seeing into knowledge of liberation.294 All physical actions are preceded by knowledge and informed by knowledge, all verbal actions are preceded by knowledge and informed by knowledge, all mental actions are preceded by knowledge and informed by knowledge; they see past time with knowledge free from attachment and free from obstruction, they see future time with knowledge free from attachment and free from obstruction, and they see the present time with knowledge free from attachment and free from obstruction, and that, furthermore, by way of not apprehending anything.

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“That, Subhūti, is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings.

16.­98

“Furthermore, Subhūti, the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings is this: the dhāraṇī gateways. What are the dhāraṇī gateways? It is like this: there is the sameness of the way the letters work, the letters as gateways, and entrances through letters.

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16.­99

“What are the letters as gateways and entrance through letters? The letter a295 is the gateway to all dharmas because they are unproduced from the very beginning (ādy-anutpannatvād); ra is a gateway to all dharmas because they are without dirt (rajas); pa is a gateway to all dharmas because they are ultimately (paramārtha) without distinctions;296 tsa is a gateway to all dharmas because of the way death (cyavana) and rebirth are unfindable; na is a gateway to all dharmas because names (nāman) have gone, because of the way names are unfindable; la is a gateway to all dharmas because they transcend the ordinary world (loka), because the vine (latā) of craving and the causes and conditions have been destroyed; [F.166.b] da is a gateway to all dharmas because tamed (dānta) and staying tamed (damatha) have a certain limit; ba is a gateway to all dharmas because they are free from bonds (bandhana); ḍa is a gateway to all dharmas because disorder (ḍamara) has gone; sa is a gateway to all dharmas because attachment (saṅga)297 is unfindable; wa is a gateway to all dharmas because the sound of speech paths (vākpatha) has been cut; ta is a gateway to all dharmas because they do not wander from suchness (tathatā); ya is a gateway to all dharmas because in fact (yathāvat) they are not produced; sta is a gateway to all dharmas because they have nothing to be pretentious about (stambha);298 ka is a gateway to all dharmas because an agent (kāraka) is unfindable; sa is a gateway to all dharmas because they do not pass beyond sameness (samatā), and sameness is unfindable; ma is a gateway to all dharmas because taking something as ‘mine’ (mamakāra) is unfindable; ga is a gateway to all dharmas because going (gamana) is unfindable; tha is a gateway to all dharmas because a standing place ([s]thāna) is unfindable; dza is a gateway to all dharmas because birth (jāti) is unfindable; shwa is a gateway to all dharmas because breath (śvāsa) is unfindable; dha is a gateway to all dharmas because a dharma (dharma) is unfindable; śa is a gateway to all dharmas because calm abiding (śamatha) is unfindable; kha is a gateway to all dharmas because a state the same as the sky (kha) is unfindable; kṣa is a gateway to all dharmas because extinction (kṣaya) is unfindable; dzjnā is a gateway to all dharmas because knowledge (jñāna) is unfindable; ha is a gateway to all dharmas because a cause (hetu) is unfindable; bha is a gateway to all dharmas because destruction (bhaṅga) is unfindable; tsha [F.167.a] is a gateway to all dharmas because a beautiful skin color (chavi) is unfindable; sma is a gateway to all dharmas because mindfulness (smaraṇa) is unfindable; hva is a gateway to all dharmas because calling out (āhvāna) is unfindable; tsa is a gateway to all dharmas because eagerness (utsāha) for dharmas is unfindable; gha is a gateway to all dharmas because density (ghana) in dharmas is unfindable; ṭha is a gateway to all dharmas because establishment (viṭhapana) is unfindable; ṇa is a gateway to all dharmas because conflict (raṇa) is unfindable; pha is a gateway to all dharmas because a result (phala) is unfindable; ska is a gateway to all dharmas because aggregates (skandha) are unfindable; dza is a gateway to all dharmas because old age (jarā) is unfindable; tsa is a gateway to all dharmas because conduct (caraṇa) is unfindable; ṭa is a gateway to all dharmas because harm (ṭākara) is unfindable;299 and ḍha is a gateway to all dharmas because grasping at something as ‘I’ ([ḍ]haṃkāra) is unfindable.

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16.­100

“There is no expression as a letter above and beyond these. And why? Because there is no name at all by which anything might be conventionally designated, or by which anything might be expressed, expounded, realized, or seen. Like this, Subhūti, you should understand that all dharmas are like space.

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16.­101

“Subhūti, this letter a, and so on, the entrance into the teaching, is the entrance through a dhāraṇī gateway.

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“Subhūti, any bodhisattva great beings who come to know this skill in the letter a, and so on, will not become perplexed300 whatever the sound, will succeed though the sameness of dharmas, and will gain skill in understanding sounds.

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16.­103

“Subhūti, you should know that there are twenty benefits for any bodhisattva great beings [F.167.b] who hear these spoken words stamped with the letter a, and so on, the letter a, and so on, that are the entry stamp,301 and who, having heard them, with a continuum of mental certainty take them up, bear them in mind, read them out loud, and master and expound them in detail to others by way of not apprehending anything.

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“What are the twenty? They will have mindfulness, will have intelligence, will have understanding, will have awareness, will have steadfastness, will have a sense of shame, will have wisdom, and will have a confidence giving a readiness to speak. They will also gain this dhāraṇī gateway with little difficulty, will not become tongue-tied and will not be of two minds, and will not become attracted even when they hear smooth words from somebody else, will not get offended when they hear harsh words, will not be uplifted and will not be put down, and will remain in an ordinary state. They will also become skilled in sounds, will become skilled in aggregates, will become skilled in constituents, will become skilled in sense fields, will become skilled in dependent origination, will become skilled in causes, will become skilled in conditions, will become skilled in the true nature of dharmas, will become skilled in knowing higher and lower faculties, will become skilled in knowing the thoughts of others, will become skilled in knowledge of the performance of miraculous power, will become skilled in knowing the divine eye, will become skilled in knowledge that recollects past lives, will become skilled in knowledge of death and rebirth, will become skilled in knowledge that outflows are extinguished, will become skilled in knowing what is possible and impossible, and will become skilled in going, skilled in returning, [F.168.a] and skilled in the ways of carrying themselves.

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16.­105

“That dhāraṇī gateway, Subhūti, the letter a, and so on, that are the entrance, is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings.”

16.­106

This was the sixteenth chapter, “Dhāraṇī Gateway,” of “The Perfection of Wisdom in Eighteen Thousand Lines.” [B13]


17.

Chapter 17: Level Purification

17.­1

“Subhūti, in regard to what you have asked‍—‘How have bodhisattva great beings come to set out in the Great Vehicle?’‍—Subhūti, here bodhisattva great beings practicing the six perfections change place, going from level to level. And how do bodhisattva great beings practicing the six perfections change place, going from level to level? Like this: by all dharmas not changing place. And why? Because no dharma comes, or goes, or changes place, or is close to changing places. But even though they do not falsely project the level of those dharmas,302 do not direct their thoughts toward them, they still do the purification303 for a level, and they do not view those levels.

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18.

Chapter 18: The Exposition of Going Forth in the Great Vehicle

18.­1

“Subhūti, in regard to what you have asked‍—‘From where321 will the Great Vehicle go forth?’‍—it will go forth from the three realms and will stand wherever there is knowledge of all aspects, and it will stand, furthermore, by way of nonduality. And why? Because, Subhūti, these two dharmas‍—the Great Vehicle and the knowledge of all aspects‍—are not conjoined and not disjoined, are formless, cannot be pointed out, do not obstruct, and have only one mark‍—that is, no mark. And why? Because, Subhūti, a dharma without a mark is not going forth, nor will it go forth, nor has it gone forth. [F.180.b] Subhūti, someone who would assert that dharmas without marks go forth322 might as well assert of suchness that it goes forth. Similarly, Subhūti, someone who would assert that dharmas without marks go forth might as well assert of the very limit of reality, the inconceivable element, the abandonment element, the detachment element, and the cessation element that they go forth. And why? Because, Subhūti, the intrinsic nature of suchness does not go forth from the three realms. And why? Because suchness is empty of the intrinsic nature of suchness.”

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19.

Chapter 19: Surpassing

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Then venerable Subhūti said to the Lord, “Lord, you say this‍—‘Great Vehicle’‍—again and again. It surpasses the world with its gods, humans, and asuras and goes forth. Is that why it is called a Great Vehicle?329

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19.­2

“Lord, that vehicle is equal to space. To illustrate, Lord, just as space has room for infinite, countless beings beyond measure, the Great Vehicle also, Lord, has room330 for infinite, countless beings beyond measure. Such, Lord, is the Great Vehicle of bodhisattva great beings. Lord, you cannot apprehend the Great Vehicle coming, going, or remaining, you cannot apprehend a prior limit, cannot apprehend a later limit, and cannot apprehend a middle either.

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20.

Chapter 20: Not Two

20.­1

Then venerable Pūrṇa Maitrāyaṇī­putra said to the Lord, “Lord, tasked343 with the perfection of wisdom by the tathāgata, worthy one, perfectly complete Buddha, this elder Subhūti thinks he has to give instruction in the Great Vehicle.”

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Venerable Subhūti then said to the Lord, “Let it not be the case, Lord, that I am giving instruction in the Great Vehicle, having violated the perfection of wisdom.”

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“No, you have not,” replied the Lord. “You are giving instruction in the Great Vehicle in harmony with the perfection of wisdom. And why? Because, Subhūti, śrāvaka dharmas, pratyekabuddha dharmas, bodhisattva dharmas, or buddha dharmas‍—or any wholesome dharmas, whatever they are‍—they all come together and stream into the perfection of wisdom.”

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21.

Chapter 21: Subhūti

21.­1

Then venerable Śāriputra inquired of venerable Subhūti, “Venerable Subhūti, how do bodhisattva great beings practicing the perfection of wisdom investigate these dharmas? And, Venerable Subhūti, what is a bodhisattva? What is the perfection of wisdom? What is it to investigate?”

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21.­2

“Venerable Śāriputra,” replied Subhūti, “in regard to what you asked‍—‘What is a bodhisattva?’‍—they are called bodhisattvas because awakening is itself their state of being.357 And with that awakening they know the aspects of dharmas but they do not settle down on those dharmas.

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22.

Chapter 22: Śatakratu

22.­1

And indeed all the Four Mahārājas stationed in the great billionfold world system together with many hundreds of thousands of one hundred million billion gods were assembled in that very retinue, as were the Śatakratus,373 heads of the gods, and the Suyāmas, Saṃtuṣitas, Nirmāṇaratis, Para­nirmita­vaśa­vartins, and Brahmapurohitas, up to the Brahmās together with many hundreds of thousands of one hundred million billion gods also assembled, and as many Brahmās, up to Śuddhāvāsa classes of gods stationed in the great billionfold world system together with hundreds of thousands of one hundred million billion gods, also were assembled. The light originating from the maturation of earlier karma coming from the bodies of those Cāturmahā­rājika gods, and the light originating from the maturation of earlier karma coming from the bodies of those Trāyastriṃśa, Yāma, Tuṣita, Nirmāṇarati, and Para­nirmita­vaśa­vartin classes of gods, and Brahmakāyika gods, up to the Śuddhāvāsa class of gods, does not approach the natural light of the Tathāgata even by a hundredth part, or by a thousandth part, or by a hundred thousandth part, or by a hundred-thousand hundred-millionth part; it would not stand up to any number, or fraction, or counting, or example, or comparison. In the presence of374 the natural light of the Tathāgata all the lights originating from the maturation of earlier karma coming from the bodies of the gods do not gleam, do not radiate, and do not shine. [F.243.a] Among those the light of the Tathāgata reveals itself as the highest, reveals itself as special, and reveals itself as the best, superb, exemplary, unsurpassed, and unrivaled. As an analogy, just as a fired iron statue in the presence of the golden Jambū River does not gleam, does not radiate, and does not shine, similarly, in the presence of the natural light of the Tathāgata all the lights originating from the maturation of earlier karma coming from the bodies of the gods do not gleam, do not radiate, and do not shine. Among those the light of the Tathāgata reveals itself as the highest, reveals itself as special, and reveals itself as the best, superb, exemplary, unsurpassed, and unrivaled.

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Chapter 23: Hard to Understand

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Then it occurred to those gods to think, “What would the elder Subhūti accept those listening to the Dharma to be like?”

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Then venerable Subhūti, understanding in his mind the thoughts occurring to those gods, said to those gods, “Gods, I would accept those listening to the doctrine to be like illusory beings. I would accept those listening to the doctrine to be like magically created beings. They will not listen to, master, or directly realize anything at all.”

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Chapter 24: Unlimited

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Then it occurred to Śatakratu, head of the gods, to think, “I will magically create flowers in order to worship this rain of Dharma being expounded by the elder Subhūti, and we will strew those flowers near, strew them in front, and strew them around the lord buddhas, the community of bodhisattva great beings, the monks, the elder Subhūti, and the perfection of wisdom.” And it occurred to all the Cāturmahā­rājika gods, up to the Akaniṣṭha class, as many as are stationed in the great billionfold world system, to think, “We will magically create flowers in [F.259.b] order to worship this rain of Dharma being expounded by the elder Subhūti, and will strew those flowers near, strew them in front, and strew them around the lord buddhas, the community of bodhisattva great beings, the monks, the elder Subhūti, and the perfection of wisdom.” Then Śatakratu, head of the gods, and all the Cāturmahā­rājika gods, up to the Akaniṣṭha class, as many as are stationed in the great billionfold world system, did magically create coral tree flowers and strewed them near, strewed them in front, and strewed them around the lord buddhas, the community of bodhisattva great beings, the monks, the elder Subhūti, and the perfection of wisdom. Immediately after Śatakratu, head of the gods, and the gods up to the Akaniṣṭha class had strewed those flowers, they matted together and spread out over the great billionfold world system and stayed there suspended in the sky, a second story of flowers delightful and pleasing to the mind.


25.

Chapter 25: Second Śatakratu

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The women and men and masses of seers, together with the gods‍—those with the Indras,397 those with the Brahmās, and those with the Prajāpatis as their leaders‍—cried out three times cries of delight in the Dharma that the elder Subhūti, through the might of the Tathāgata, through the sustaining power of the Tathāgata, had pointed out, taught, thrown light on, and illuminated: “Ah! How well it has been explained. Ah! How well this Dharma has been explained. Ah! How well the true dharmic nature of this Dharma has been explained.” And they said, “Lord, we shall treat those bodhisattva great beings who do not become separated from the perfection of wisdom, who do not apprehend any dharma, be it form, or feeling, or perception, or volitional factors, or consciousness, up to or the knowledge of all aspects, but still make known the presentation of the three vehicles‍—the vehicle of the śrāvakas, the vehicle of the pratyekabuddhas, and the vehicle of the perfectly complete buddhas‍—exactly like tathāgatas.”


26.

Chapter 26: Getting Hold

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Then Śatakratu, head of the gods, said to the Lord, “It is amazing, Lord, how these bodhisattva great beings who have taken up or borne in mind or read aloud or mastered or properly paid attention to this perfection of wisdom in this very life get hold of good qualities; how they bring beings to maturity, purify a buddhafield, and pass on from buddhafield to buddhafield in order to attend on the lord buddhas; how, if they still want to revere, demonstrate reverence for, show honor to, and worship those lord buddhas on account of wholesome roots, those wholesome roots establish it accordingly; how they go into the presence of those lord buddhas and listen to the Dharma; how they never forget their Dharma right up until they fully awaken to unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening; [F.275.b] how they take possession of a perfect family, perfect celebrity,399 a perfect life, a perfect retinue, perfect major marks, perfect radiance, perfect eyes, a perfect voice, perfect concentration, and perfect dhāraṇī; how they go from world system to world system where the lord buddhas have not appeared and with skillful means magically produce themselves in the shape a buddha assumes; how they speak in praise of the perfection of giving and speak in praise of the perfection of morality, perfection of patience, perfection of perseverance, perfection of concentration, and perfection of wisdom; how they speak in praise of inner emptiness, up to the emptiness that is the nonexistence of an intrinsic nature; how they speak in praise of the concentrations, speak in praise of the immeasurables and formless absorptions, speak in praise of the applications of mindfulness, and speak in praise of the right efforts, legs of miraculous power, faculties, powers, limbs of awakening, and eightfold noble path; how they speak in praise of the ten powers, fearlessnesses, detailed and thorough knowledges, up to the eighteen distinct attributes of a buddha; and how with skillful means they tame beings in the three vehicles‍—the Śrāvaka Vehicle, Pratyekabuddha Vehicle, and Great Vehicle‍—teaching them the Dharma.”

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Chapter 27: Reliquary

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Then the Lord said to Śatakratu, head of the gods, “Kauśika, if some son of a good family or daughter of a good family takes up or bears in mind or reads out loud or recites or teaches or intones or harmonizes with or properly pays attention to this deep perfection of wisdom, and if they go up to the front line of battle and have engaged in or are engaging in, or are traversing, or are sitting down or standing up in a battle that is underway, Kauśika, even if an arrow or a club or a stick or a stone or a sword is flung at that son of a good family or daughter of a good family who takes up or bears in mind or reads out loud or recites or teaches or intones or harmonizes with or properly pays attention to this deep perfection of wisdom, it is impossible that those projectiles would land on their body; it is impossible that the attacks of others would interfere with their life. And why? Kauśika, it is because that son of a good family or daughter of a good family who has practiced the perfection of wisdom for a long time has vanquished their own greed arrows and greed swords; they have vanquished others’ greed arrows and greed swords; they have vanquished their own hatred arrows and confusion arrows and their hatred swords and confusion swords; they have vanquished others’ hatred arrows and confusion arrows and hatred swords and confusion swords; they have vanquished their own arrows of instances of views and swords of instances of views, and they have vanquished others’ arrows of instances of views and swords of instances of views; they have vanquished their own obsession [F.284.b] arrows and obsession swords, and they have vanquished others’ obsession arrows and obsession swords; and they have vanquished their own proclivity arrows and proclivity swords, and they have vanquished others’ proclivity arrows and proclivity swords. Kauśika, because of this one of many explanations, even if an arrow or a sword is flung at a son of a good family or daughter of a good family, it does not land on their body.


28.

Chapter 28: Declaration of the Good Qualities of the Thought of Awakening

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Śatakratu, head of the gods, having said this, the Lord then said to him, “Exactly so. Kauśika, exactly so. Those sons of a good family or daughters of a good family [F.294.a] who write out and make this perfection of wisdom into a book; take it up, bear it in mind, read it aloud, master it, and properly pay attention to it and on top of that respect, revere, honor, and worship it with flowers, perfumes, incense, garlands, creams, powders, robes, parasols, flags, and banners would, based on that, make a lot of merit, an immeasurable, countless, inconceivable, infinite, incomparable amount. And why? Kauśika, it is because the knowledge of all aspects of tathāgatas, worthy ones, perfectly complete buddhas issues forth from the perfection of wisdom. Kauśika, the five perfections, all the emptinesses, the thirty-seven dharmas on the side of awakening, the ten powers, the fearlessnesses, the detailed and thorough knowledges, the distinct attributes of a buddha, the five eyes, the six clairvoyances, bringing beings to maturity, and the perfect purification of a buddhafield issue forth from the perfection of wisdom. Kauśika, all-knowledge, knowledge of path aspects, and knowledge of all aspects issue forth from the perfection of wisdom. Kauśika, the Śrāvaka Vehicle, the Pratyekabuddha Vehicle, and the Great Vehicle issue forth from the perfection of wisdom, and unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening issues forth from the perfection of wisdom too.


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Chapter 29: Different Tīrthika Religious Mendicants

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Then, many different tīrthika religious mendicants intent on criticizing, a hundred of them, specifically approached the Lord to level criticism.

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Then it occurred to Śatakratu, head of the gods, to think, “These many different tīrthika religious mendicants intent on criticizing the doctrine, a hundred of them, have specifically approached the Lord to level criticism. I will certainly recite as much of the perfection of wisdom as I have taken up in order that these different tīrthika religious mendicants will not get at all close to the Lord to hinder the teaching of the perfection of wisdom.”


30.

Chapter 30: The Benefits of Taking Up and Adoration

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Then venerable Ānanda said to the Lord, “Lord, you do not praise422 the perfection of giving, and you do not praise the perfection of morality, perfection of patience, perfection of perseverance, or perfection of concentration. Similarly, up to you do not proclaim the names of the eighteen distinct attributes of a buddha as you proclaim the name of the perfection of wisdom.”

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Venerable Ānanda having said this, the Lord then said to him, “Ānanda, these‍—that is, the [F.2.a] five perfections, connect this in the same way with each, up to the eighteen distinct attributes of a buddha‍—are preceded by the perfection of wisdom.

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Chapter 31: Physical Remains

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Then the Lord asked Śatakratu, head of the gods, “Kauśika, which of these two options would you choose: to have this Jambudvīpa filled right to the top with the physical remains of tathāgatas and to respect, revere, honor, and worship them with flowers, perfumes, incense, garlands, creams, powders, robes, parasols, flags, and banners, or to be given this perfection of wisdom?”

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“Lord,” replied Śatakratu, “were I to be offered this Jambudvīpa filled right to the top with the physical remains of the tathāgatas and to be offered this perfection of wisdom written out in book form‍—were I to be presented with these two options‍—I would want the perfection of wisdom. And why? Lord, it is not that I do not venerate those physical remains of the tathāgatas. Lord, I do indeed venerate them. It is not that I do not respect those physical remains of the tathāgatas, or do not revere, do not honor, and do not worship them. But I respect, revere, honor, and worship those physical remains of the tathāgatas because they come about from the perfection of wisdom. The physical remains of the tathāgatas [F.10.a] are suffused by the perfection of wisdom. That is why the physical remains of the