The Inquiry of Lokadhara
Chapter Seven: The Five Powers

“When bodhisattvas put the five powers into practice, they gain trust in how all phenomena are born from dependent origination, arise through mistaken perception, and are like a whirling firebrand or a dream, in owing their existence to a gathering of conditions of false perception. They trust that all phenomena have the characteristics of being impermanent, suffering, impure, selfless, like a thorn or blister, insubstantial, unstable, mutable, and destructible. [F.59.b] Moreover, they trust that all phenomena are false, and thus nonexistent; that just as a child is fooled by an empty fist or a rainbow, phenomena are merely arisen from imputation and dependent phenomena, and thus lack even a single true quality of being an entity. Moreover, they trust that all phenomena are neither past, present, nor future. They trust that all phenomena neither come from, nor go, anywhere. They trust that all phenomena are emptiness, without marks, and unconditioned. They trust that all phenomena are unborn, unconditioned, unarisen, without marks, and free from marks. They trust in pure discipline, pure absorption, pure insight, and the pure teaching of the wisdom of liberation.61 Bodhisattvas become irreversible by effortlessly accomplishing the power of faith; guided by faith, they can observe discipline, such that their faith will not decline or be lost. By effortlessly accomplishing the quality of irreversibility, they will have unwavering faith. They will ripen faith in accordance with the ripening of karmic results, and they will destroy all wrong views. They will not spurn the teachings or seek out any teachers other than the blessed buddhas. They will always follow the true nature of all phenomena. They will follow the genuine path practiced by the saṅgha. Through observing pure discipline and effortlessly accomplishing acceptance, they will attain faith that is unwavering, unchanging, and extraordinary. They are thus said to possess the power of faith.”

“Lokadhara, how do bodhisattva great beings accurately contemplate the power of diligence? How do they effortlessly accomplish the power of diligence? How do they become highly skilled in the power of diligence? [F.60.a] Bodhisattva great beings practice diligence endlessly. They practice diligence without any interruption, in order to dispel the five obscurations. They practice diligence in order to hear the profound Dharma in this manner. Bodhisattvas are uninterrupted in their pursuit of the Dharma, never regressing from their diligent pursuits. They are dauntless in their practice of diligence in order to disrupt obscuring phenomena. Furthermore, they practice diligence in order to abandon myriad unwholesome and unvirtuous phenomena, as well as all perishable phenomena. Furthermore, they practice diligence in order to increase and generate myriad virtuous phenomena. Without a doubt, bodhisattvas effortlessly accomplish diligence. However, they do not become attached to it, but rather, engage in diligence with equanimity. By effortlessly accomplishing irreversible diligence, such people will understand and realize all the qualities of proper practice, thereby mastering diligence. By practicing diligence so well, they will not be dependent on others. Through their practice of diligence, they will achieve the light of insight and effortlessly accomplish the characteristic of irreversibility. As they become irreversible in their diligence and practice such extraordinary diligence, they are said to possess the power of diligence.”

“Lokadhara, how do bodhisattva great beings attain the power of mindfulness, and how do they practice the power of mindfulness? Bodhisattva great beings focus one-pointedly on mindfulness, engage in generosity, are gentle, observe pure conduct perfectly, and guard the branch of pure discipline. They carefully guard the branch of absorption, the branch of insight, the branch of liberation, and the branch of teaching the wisdom of liberation.

“They constantly consider and bring to mind62 the actions of body, speech, and mind. They constantly consider and bring to mind the topics of perfection. [F.60.b] They consider and bring to mind the methods related to the characteristics of all phenomena as arising, ceasing, remaining, and transferring. They see the truths of suffering, origination, cessation, and the path. They consider and bring to mind what is to be understood. They consider and bring to mind the powers, strengths, factors of awakening, paths, absorptions, liberations, and the practices of the attainments. They consider and bring to mind the characteristics of all phenomena as being unborn, unceasing, unconditioned, unarisen, and inexpressible. They constantly consider and bring to mind the attainment of the insight into the unborn. They consider and bring to mind the wish to attain the perfect wisdoms of acceptance, abandonment, and cessation. They consider and bring to mind the wish to attain all the perfect qualities of buddhahood. They consider and bring to mind how to avoid letting the qualities of the hearers or solitary buddhas influence their minds. They constantly consider and bring to mind the mindfulness of unimpeded wisdom. Given such accurate considerations, they come to know the phenomena of the body. Thereby their mindfulness never declines or regresses from that. Due to these contemplations, they become independent from others. As this occurs, such people attain a superior mindfulness that is meaningful in these ways. Thus, they are said to possess the power of mindfulness.”

“Lokadhara, how do bodhisattva great beings attain the power of absorption, and how do they attain the practices of absorption? When bodhisattva great beings dwell on the level of the noble ones, even though they practice absorption, they never dwell in absorption or become attached to absorption. By thoroughly engaging in the characteristics of absorption‍—and by thoroughly attaining the practices of absorption, thoroughly generating the absorptions, and practicing absorption that is without observation‍— [F.61.a] they become skilled in the gateways of all absorptions, skilled in entering absorption, skilled in abiding in absorption, skilled in leaving absorption, skilled in not resting in absorption, skilled in the characteristics of observation, and skilled in observing the characteristics of suchness. Because they are skilled in the experience of all absorptions and have power over absorption, they are not dependent on others, and they do not fall under the power of absorption. Rather, they gain power and strength from absorption. Among absorptions, there are none that are difficult or deficient; they are accomplished precisely according to their wishes.63 People with such extraordinary absorptions are said to have attained the power of absorption and the practice of the power of absorption.”

“Lokadhara, how do bodhisattva great beings attain the power of insight, and how do they practice the power of insight? Bodhisattva great beings who understand and realize the power of insight will correctly quell all suffering. Since such people understand and realize the locus and activity of insight, they disengage from concepts and abandon concepts, whereby they will perfect the insight that leads to nirvāṇa. By effortlessly accomplishing the power of insight, they understand the three realms to be entirely ablaze. With insight into the fact that the three realms are all suffering, they do not abide in the three realms. By realizing the three realms to be emptiness, without marks, without wishes, unborn, unconditioned, unarisen, beyond the way of conditioned phenomena, and endowed with the perfect qualities of buddhahood‍—they will engage diligently as if their hair were on fire. [F.61.b] The insight of these bodhisattvas is indestructible. By mastering such insight, they transcend the three realms and do not abide in the existence of the three realms. They eliminate all conditioned phenomena and do not abide in any phenomena of attachment and bondage. They become weary of the five objects of desire and avoid both the form and formless realms. Thereby they possess extraordinary insight and immeasurable qualities like a vast ocean. Through such insight, they will be free of any impediment in their skillful use of all phenomena. While such beings use this insight to understand and comprehend the three realms in this way, their minds are not attached to the three realms. This extraordinary insight is the attainment of the power of insight and the practice of insight.”

“Lokadhara, why are these called powers? They are called powers64 because they are supreme. They are called powers because they are unwavering. They are called powers because they are indestructible. They are called powers because they are irreversible. They are called powers because they do not depend on others. They are called powers because they cannot be taken away. They are called powers because they pursue genuine qualities. They are called powers because they are unobstructed. They are called powers because they cannot be lost. Moreover, Lokadhara, bodhisattva great beings know well the powers of65 beings and can therefore act skillfully66 when training in the various powers. Bodhisattvas understand the powers of beings who have attachment as well as the powers of beings without attachment. They understand the powers of beings with aversion as well as the powers of beings without aversion. They understand the powers of beings with ignorance as well as the powers of beings without ignorance. They understand the powers of beings who have fallen to the lower realms as well as the powers of beings who have been born in the god or human realms. [F.62.a] They understand the powers of beings who are gentle as well as the powers of beings of the sharpest, middling, and lowest powers. They understand beings with impaired powers as well as beings with unimpaired powers. They understand beings with diligent and lazy powers. They understand those beings who are skilled and those who are not skilled. They understand the powers of beings who have misdeeds, do not have misdeeds, have stains, are immaculate, have aversion, lack aversion, are compliant, are not compliant, and who are impeded, as well as those who are unimpeded. They understand the powers of beings with formations for the desire realm, the form realm, and the formless realm. They understand the powers of beings with thick roots of virtue and with thin roots of virtue. They understand beings’ powers that are determined, undetermined, and aberrantly determined. They understand the powers of beings who are stingy, not stingy, frivolous, serious, deceptive, not deceptive, exhilarated, not exhilarated, aggressive and impatient, gentle and patient, and miserly or generous. They understand beings’ powers of faith, skepticism, respect, disrespect, discipline, impure discipline, patience, laziness, diligence, distraction, settling into absorption, errancy of knowledge, insightfulness, stupidity, genius, pride, humility, [F.62.b] practice of the correct path, practice of the wrong path, carelessness, mindfulness, and intelligence. They understand beings’ powers that are disturbed, withdrawn, impaired, unimpaired, impure, pure, of the lesser vehicle, of the solitary buddhas, of buddhas, of bodhisattvas, and of unsurpassed awakening.

“Because these bodhisattvas transcend all such distinct features of the powers and their practices, they are said to be skilled in discerning the distinct features of the powers of beings. Due to their insight, they do not depend on others, and therefore they are said to attain the practices of the powers. Therefore, they are also called those who cannot be taken away by others, those who are indestructible, those who are irreversible, those who attain the strength of application, those who know the powers, those who attain the powers of gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas, humans, and nonhumans, those who attain the supreme faculty, those who attain the fearless and unwavering state, those who are perfected, and those who effortlessly accomplish immeasurable qualities. They will swiftly attain power and dominion over all phenomena.” [B4]