Practice · DānaVolume TwoPart IV · Early MahāyānaPaper 14 of 31

The Nine Characteristics of Giving

中文主題：瑜伽師地論的九種相施

Author: Shi Huijing 釋慧鏡

Date: Spring 2026

Version: 1.0

ID: DANA-P14

Abstract

"How does a bodhisattva accomplish the pāramitā of giving? The summary verse states: self-nature, all, difficulty, all-feature, good-person, all-mode, wish-fulfillment, this-and-next-life-happiness, purity—thus nine characteristics, briefly, is called giving." (T1579 vol 39) The Yogābhūmi fascicle 39 opens with a nine-characteristic taxonomy of dāna-pāramitā that is not merely a classification scheme but an internal-to-external-to-internal path of qualitative transformation: from the definition of giving's self-nature to the completed purification. While P13 traced the prajñāpāramitā sources of trilakṣaṇa-śūnya and established Nāgārjuna's madhyamaka path of processing the three wheels through emptiness, this paper argues that T1579 provides the Yogācāra counter-construction: not through the negatory "three wheels emptied" but through the affirmative "nine characteristics" that construct the path of dāna-pāramitā. T1579's core innovation is threefold: (1) the nine characteristics as a universal framework for all six perfections (the same nine-fold structure applies equally to sīla, kṣānti, vīrya, dhyāna, and prajñā); (2) the ten phases of purified giving as Yogācāra's positive formulation of "three wheels purified"; (3) the extreme setting of all-giving — while permitting body-giving, simultaneously imposing the hard limit of "never following another's command" to prevent giving from being co-opted by external power.

I. Question

P13 established the prajñāpāramitā sources of trilakṣaṇa-śūnya in three strata: the "anupalabdha" universal pattern in the prajñāpāramitā sūtra, the "though giving, not-grasping" dāna-specific instance, and Nāgārjuna's systematization via madhyamaka methodology. Nāgārjuna's approach was deśanā-śūnyatā (decomposition-emptiness) — dismantling giver, receiver, and gift through reductio until inherent existence dissolved.

But a symmetric question remains: how does Yogācāra approach the same problem?

If Nāgārjuna cuts through emptiness, what does Yogācāra cut through? T1579's Yogābhūmi fascicle 39 lists nine characteristics (九種相) of dāna-pāramitā. What is the logic of the number nine? Are the nine characteristics a flat taxonomy or a deep genealogy?

The answer of this paper: T1579 constructs dāna-pāramitā through lakṣaṇa (characteristics), not through śūnyatā (emptiness). The nine characteristics form a spiral path of qualitative transformation: from the inner (self-nature of giver) to the outer (expansion of giving) back to the inner (purified completion). And crucially, the ninefold structure applies uniformly to all six perfections — a unified pāramitā-framework.

II. Source Material

The Opening ūbhāya — the Full Nine

The opening of T1579 fascicle 39 （施品第九） is remarkably concise:

"How does a bodhisattva accomplish the pāramitā of giving? The summary verse (ūbhāya) states: self-nature, all, difficulty, all-feature, good-person, all-mode, wish-fulfillment, this-and-next-life-happiness, purity — thus nine characteristics, briefly, is called giving." (T1579)

The sequence of the nine is not arbitrary. It carries an internal logic:

Group I (1–2): Foundation

Self-nature giving (svabhāva-deśanā): what giving is in its essence
All-giving (sarva-deśanā): the scope of giving

Group II (3–4): Difficulty and Entry

Difficult giving (kṣatya-deśanā): giving under extreme hardship
All-feature giving (sarva-mukha-deśanā): giving through all gates

Group III (5–6): Qualitative Deepening

Good-person giving (kuṇāṭha-deśanā): giving of one who is truly virtuous
All-mode giving (sarva-vidha-deśanā): giving in every possible mode

Group IV (7–8): Altruistic Unfolding

Wish-fulfillment giving: fulfilling all beings' mundane needs
This-and-next-life-happiness giving (verse-abbrev. "second-life happiness"): welfare in both realms

Group V (9): Completion

Purified giving (viśuddhi-deśanā): giving completely purified

Definitions of Each Characteristic

1. Self-nature giving: "What does a bodhisattva's self-nature giving look like? A bodhisattva, regarding self and possessions, harbors no reluctance or attachment, and can give all that ought to be given. Associated with non-aversion, the intention to give arises, along with the corporeal and verbal actions that are harmless gifts. Abiding in the discipline and in the trusted testimony that meditation yields fruit — with whatever is sought, the bodhisattva gives it." The core is "於自身財無所顧惜" (no reluctance regarding self and possessions) and "安住律儀阿笈摩見、定有果見" (abiding in moral discipline and the conviction that dhyāna yields fruit). This is not emotional generosity but volitional resolve rooted in ethical foundation.

2. All-giving: "All-giving has two categories: inner gift and outer gift. If a bodhisattva gives only the body, this is giving the inner gift alone. If a bodhisattva, out of compassion for beings who eat, vomit, and survive, feeds them their own vomited food — this is mixed inner and outer giving. If a bodhisattva gives all remaining that ought to be given — this is giving the outer gift alone." The core is the twofold: inner (body/self) and outer (all remaining possessions). T1579 immediately places severe limits:

"If a bodhisattva gives only the body, this is giving merely the inner gift. If a bodhisattva, out of compassion for beings who eat, vomit, and survive, feeds them their own vomited food — this is mixed inner and outer giving." ... "If a bodhisattva has pure intention in giving, and sees immeasurable benefiting-beings activities presently before them, even if one comes to request limb and joint, [the bodhisattva] should not give. Why? It is not that the bodhisattva's intention becomes impure, that the mind grows weak. Rather, for the bodhisattva's intention to become pure, one must give up the presently-before benefiting-beings-activities and give the body."

There is a crucial tension here: T1579 says "隨其所須，一切皆捨" (give everything as asked), yet also says "設有來求自身支節，不應施與" (do not give limbs even if asked). The reason is not "the body is essential for practice" but more subtle — if giving one's body prevents the execution of immeasurable benefiting activities, the trade-off itself is impure. The qualitative transformation of giving is not about how much one gives but about pure intention.

3. Difficult giving: "This giving has three types: When a bodhisattva, with scarce wealth, endures poverty to give to others — this is the first difficult giving. When a bodhisattva, regarding beloved objects — deeply attached by nature, long-practiced, or objects of great grace or supreme excellence — lets go of deep obsession and gives — this is the second difficult giving. When a bodhisattva gives wealth obtained through extreme hardship — this is the third difficult giving." The core is three graded difficulties of giving: scarcity, attachment, and hardship — each a test of the capacity to let go.

4. All-feature giving: "What is all-feature giving? A bodhisattva should know this giving has four phases: either one's own wealth, or wealth obtained by persuading others, or giving to relatives, parents, spouse, servants, assistants, good friends, ministers, kin and dependents, or again giving to those who come to ask." All-feature giving's "feature" (相) refers to the four sources of giving's material — own wealth, persuaded wealth, giving to kin, giving to askers. It maps onto the full network of social relations through which giving flows.

5. Good-person giving: "This giving has five phases: giving with pure faith, giving with reverence, giving with one's own hand, giving at the right time, giving without causing distress to others." The key is five qualities of the giver: pure faith (淨信), reverence (恭敬), personal action (自手), timeliness (應時), and non-harming (不損惱他) — the five hallmarks of a truly virtuous person's giving.

6. All-mode giving: "What is all-mode giving? A bodhisattva should know this giving has thirteen phases: non-reliance giving, vast giving, joyful giving, repeated giving, field-supporting giving, non-field-supporting giving, all-thing giving, all-place giving, all-time giving, non-fault giving, sentient-being-thing giving, regional-thing giving, wealth-grain giving." The thirteen phases cover giving's posture (non-reliance, vast, joyful), frequency (repeated), object classification (field-supporting / non-field-supporting), scope (all-thing, all-place, all-time), moral quality (non-fault), and item types (sentient-being-thing, regional-thing, wealth-grain) — the most complete taxonomy of "what kinds of giving exist."

7. Wish-fulfillment giving: "What is wish-fulfillment giving? A bodhisattva should know this giving has eight phases: those lacking food who ask — give food; those lacking transportation who ask — give transport; those lacking clothing who ask — give clothing; those lacking adornments who ask — give adornments; those lacking implements who ask — give implements; those lacking incense and garlands who ask — give incense and garlands; those lacking houses who ask — give houses; those lacking light who ask — give light." The eight phases of wish-fulfillment giving are all mundane, material needs — food, transport, clothing, adornments, implements, incense/garlands, houses, light. These are eight concrete daily necessities, not abstract "body, life, wealth, meritorious roots, bliss."

8. This-and-next-life-happiness giving (abbreviated "second-life happiness" in the opening verse): "This giving has nine phases: wealth-giving, fearlessness-giving, dharma-giving — collectively named as giving that enables beings' this-life and next-life happiness. Wealth-giving is giving excellent, pure, Dharma-consistent wealth, subduing the defilement of stinginess and the defilement of hoarding. Fearlessness-giving is liberating beings from the fears of lions, tigers, wolves, ghosts, kings, thieves, water, and fire. Dharma-giving is teaching without distortion, teaching in accordance with reality, and exhorting the practice of training. All nine are thus named." The nine phases center on the triad of wealth-giving, fearlessness-giving, and dharma-giving, extended into six sub-elaborations of subduing specific obsessions. This-life welfare (wealth/fearlessness) and next-life welfare (dharma) converge here.

9. Purified giving: "What is purified giving? It is ten phases of purity."

The Ten Phases of Purity

T1579 is most detailed on purified giving:

"The ten phases of purity: non-abiding giving, non-grasping giving, non-accumulating giving, non-exalting giving, non-relying giving, non-weakening giving, non-superficial giving, non-bias giving, non-hoping-for-gratitude giving, non-seeking-retribution giving."

The ten phases divide into three groups:

Dismantling grasping (1–5):

Non-abiding: not abiding in the mark of giving
Non-grasping: not grasping the objects of giving
Non-accumulating: not treating merit as an accumulatable entity
Non-exalting: not developing pride from giving
Non-relying: giving without relying on any condition (not on retribution, fame, or gratitude)

Preventing regression (6–8):

Non-weakening: not weakening in face of difficulty
Non-superficial: not despising inferior recipients
Non-bias: not favoring or rejecting based on intimacy

Transcending retribution (9–10):

Non-hoping-for-gratitude: not expecting recipients to repay
Non-seeking-retribution: not expecting future karmic fruit

These ten phases correspond directly to T1604's "non-conceptual wisdom" （無分別智）：

Non-abiding, non-grasping, non-accumulating, non-exalting, non-relying ←→ "disengaging from conception"
Non-weakening, non-superficial, non-bias ←→ "equanimity"
Non-hoping-for-gratitude, non-seeking-retribution ←→ "non-apprehension"

T1604 states: "The three wheels purified — this purification comes from non-conceptual wisdom as the means." T1579 expresses the same insight by elaborating the "non-conceptual wisdom" into ten concrete mental dimensions. Each phase is a specific aspect that can be observed and corrected.

Universality of the Nine — Six Perfections, One Structure

The most striking structural feature of T1579 is this: the nine characteristics are not only for giving but serve as a universal taxonomy for all six perfections:

"Thus nine characteristics, briefly, is called sīla. Thus nine characteristics, briefly, is called kṣānti. Thus nine characteristics, briefly, is called vīrya. Thus nine characteristics, briefly, is called dhyāna. Thus nine characteristics, briefly, is called prajñā."

The same nine-fold structure applies to sīla, kṣānti, vīrya, dhyāna, and prajñā — a unified pāramitā-framework. The six perfections are not six independent virtues but the same qualitative transformation process manifesting across six dimensions. This discovery is crucial: T1579 provides not just a taxonomy of giving but a unified theory of the entire bodhisattva path.

The Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra's Six Meanings

T1604 approaches the same problem from a different angle:

"The six perfections have six meanings respectively: (1) self-nature (svabhāva), (2) cause (hetu), (3) result (phala), (4) function (karman), (5) concomitance (samprayukta), (6) category (prabheda)." ¹

T1604 then applies this framework specifically to dāna-pāramitā: dāna's self-nature is the act of giving to another; its cause is the co-arising of intention with the non-greed root; its result is the dual accomplishment of wealth and body; its function is the dual benefiting of self and others culminating in great awakening; its concomitance is abiding in the heart of non-stinginess; its category is threefold: dharma-giving, wealth-giving, fearlessness-giving.

And the seven non-graspings:

"Dāna departs from seven graspings — therefore 'non-attaching' is spoken as seven types. Know that the remaining five perfections similarly have seven obstructions and their antidotes."

T1579 constructs positively through nine characteristics; T1604 defines positively through six meanings and negates through seven graspings. The two complement each other within Yogācāra.

III. Core Argument

(A) The Deep Structure of the Nine — Genealogy, Not Taxonomy

The nine characteristics are often read as a flat classification — nine different types of giving. But examining the sequence reveals a clear spiral path of qualitative transformation:

Inner (giver's mental quality)  →  Self-nature: no reluctance on self/possessions
        ↓
Outer (expansion of giving)  →  All-giving: inner gift, outer gift
        ↓  Difficult: scarce wealth, deep attachment, hardship
        ↓  All-feature: own wealth, persuaded wealth, to kin, to askers
        ↓
Inner (qualitative deepening)  →  Good-person: pure faith, reverence, own hand, timeliness, non-harming
        ↓  All-mode: thirteen phases
        ↓
Outer (altruistic unfolding)  →  Wish-fulfillment: food through light (eight phases)
        ↓  This-and-next-life-happiness (v. "second-life happiness"): wealth/fearlessness/dharma (nine phases)
        ↓
Inner (completion)  →  Purified: ten phases of purity

Phase I (self-nature → all-feature) is "expansion outward" — from inner volition to scope. Phase II (good-person → all-mode) is "deepening inward" — from behavior to mental quality. Phase III (wish-fulfillment → this-and-next-life-happiness) is "expansion outward again" — complete shift from giver-centered to receiver-centered. Phase IV (purified) is "return to inner completion" — total purification of mental quality.

This is a spiral structure, not a linear one. The endpoint (purified) seems to return to the beginning (self-nature), but has passed through an entire qualitative cycle.

(B) The Ten Phases and "Non-Conceptual Wisdom"

T1579's ten phases of purity correspond to T1604's non-conceptual wisdom: the ten phases are the practical elaboration of what T1604 calls nirvikalpa-jñāna. Where T1604 gives the label, T1579 gives the manual. Both converge on the same insight: purified giving depends on the structure of the mind, not on the external characteristics of the act.

(C) The Hard Limit — "Never Following Another's Command"

T1579 places a hard limit on all-giving:

"Though a bodhisattva may, a hundred times, a thousand times, or a hundred thousand times, give up the body to benefit beings, [the bodhisattva] will never follow another's command, flatter their feelings, and thereby oppress, harm, or deceive beings through what is against dharma."

Two layers of meaning:

Layer 1: Extreme giving is possible — "a hundred times, a thousand times, or a hundred thousand times." There is no theoretical upper limit to a bodhisattva's giving.

Layer 2: But there is one non-negotiable bottom line — "never follow another's command." Even if body-giving has infinite merit, if the giving serves "oppression, harm, or deception of beings," the bodhisattva absolutely refuses.

This bottom line protects the autonomy of giving — giving cannot be co-opted by external power as an instrument of harm. This is an extremely important political-philosophical insight: even the noblest virtue, if captured by power, becomes an instrument of evil.

(D) Symmetry and Divergence with the Mahāprajñāpāramitā-śāstra

Dimension	T1509 Nāgārjuna (Madhyamaka)	T1579 Asaṅga (Yogācāra)
Core method	Emptiness (decomposition → contemplative)	Characteristics (nine-fold → ten phases)
Three wheels	Emptied (negative)	Purified (positive)
Framework	Three kinds of existence	Nine characteristics
Giving limit	Conventional validity preserved	Ten phases as cultivation-and-realization dimensions
Six perfections	Universalized (non-apprehension as common condition)	Universalized (nine-fold as common structure)
bottom line	Not falling into māra's domain	Not following another's command

Both universalize the six perfections: T1509 through "non-apprehension," T1579 through "nine characteristics." But:

T1509 cuts through darśana (view) — emptiness is the view
T1579 cuts through caryā (practice) — characteristics are the practice

The core insight converges: the qualitative transformation of giving depends on the structure of the mind. T1509 says "to contemplate emptiness is purification"; T1579 says "the ten phases of purity is the transformation."

IV. Scholarly Context

(A) The Pāramitā Framework in Yogācāra

T1579's nine characteristics as a universal framework for all six perfections has deep roots in the Yogācāra tradition. Asaṅga's treatment in T1604 through six meanings and seven non-graspings shows that Yogācāra internalized multiple paths of theorizing about the perfections. The nine-fold framework of T1579 and the six-meaning framework of T1604 are translatable — both list "self-nature" (svabhāva) as their first term, and both unfold giving through the same internal–external–internal arc, though T1604 compresses what T1579 elaborates: T1604's "category" (法/財/無畏 threefold giving) corresponds to what T1579 expands across 一切種施 (thirteen modes) and 此世他世樂施 (nine modes).

(B) Maitreya-Yogācāra's Innovation in Dāna Theory

T1579's contribution is not only in presenting the nine characteristics but in applying them to all six perfections — a unified bodhisattva path theory. Traditional six-perfection doctrine often treats them as six independent virtues; T1579 breaks this: the six perfections are the same qualitative process across six dimensions, each with the same nine-stage structure.

(C) Dialogue with Western Yogācāra Scholarship

Western scholarship on Yogācāra dāna-pāramitā has focused primarily on T1604's six-meaning framework, paying less attention to T1579's nine-characteristic system. This paper's finding suggests that T1579 provides an underappreciated thread in Yogācāra dāna theory — the path of constructing through characteristics rather than dismantling through emptiness. This thread is crucial for understanding Yogācāra's practice theory.

V. Middle-Way Corrections

Misreading 1: The Nine as Flat Classification

Error: Reading the nine as nine independent types of giving.

Correction: The nine are a deep genealogy — a spiral path of qualitative transformation from inner to outer to inner. Each characteristic is a deepening and expansion of the preceding, not an independent category.

Misreading 2: All-Giving = Unconditional Giving of Everything

Error: Believing all-giving means giving everything unconditionally, including the body, without exception.

Correction: T1579 places hard limits on all-giving: "even if one comes to request limbs, do not give" (when immeasurable benefiting activities are present). More fundamentally, "never follow another's command." The limit of giving is not "how much to give" but "pure intention."

Misreading 3: The Yogābhūmi and the Mahāprajñāpāramitā-śāstra Contradict

Error: Reading Yogācāra's "constructing characteristics" and Madhyamaka's "contemplating emptiness" as contradictory.

Correction: They are symmetric, not contradictory. T1509 cuts through darśana (view) — "emptiness is purification." T1579 cuts through caryā (practice) — "the ten phases of purity is transformation." The core insight is the same.

Warning: Nine ≠ Ladder

The nine are not a ladder (you must complete one before the next) but nine dimensions of the same qualitative process. A mature bodhisattva can simultaneously practice in all nine — the nine are analytical dimensions, not progressive stages.

VI. Conclusion

T1579 constructs a complete Yogācāra theory of dāna-pāramitā through the nine characteristics:

The nine are a deep genealogy: a spiral path of qualitative transformation from self-nature (giver's mental quality) to purity (completed state).
The nine are a universal structure for the six perfections: the same nine-fold structure applies to sīla, kṣānti, vīrya, dhyāna, and prajñā — a unified pāramitā-framework.
The ten phases of purity are Yogācāra's positive formulation of "three wheels purified": ten concrete mental dimensions, each observable and correctable.
"Never following another's command" is the non-negotiable bottom line: even the noblest virtue cannot be co-opted by external power.

T1579 and T1509 share the core insight — the qualitative transformation of giving depends on the structure of the mind — but T1509 cuts through emptiness, T1579 through characteristics. They are symmetric philosophically, complementary in practice.

Handoff — next: the deep development of "non-abiding giving" in the prajñāpāramitā tradition. How does the principle of "abide nowhere yet give" in T0220e become the core of giving theory in later prajñāpāramitā sūtra?

References

Primary Sources

T1579 = Yogābhūmi, Maitreya/Asaṅga, trans. Xuanzang
T1604 = Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra, Asaṅga, trans. Bodhiruci
T1509 = Mahāprajñāpāramitā-śāstra, Nāgārjuna, trans. Kumārajīva
T0220e = Mahāprajñāpāramitā-sūtra (second recension), trans. Xuanzang

Secondary Sources

Asaṅga, Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra (T1604) — Yogācāra six-meanings framework for dāna-pāramitā
Yogābhūmi (T1579) — Yogācāra bodhisattva path theory
Nattier, Jan. — Yogācāra text-critical methods
Harrison, Paul. — Early Yogācāra dāna-pāramitā studies

Series Cross-Reference Index

Within This Volume

P11 "From Dāna to Dāna-Pāramitā" → this paper: P11 established the "prajñā condition," P13 traced its prajñāpāramitā sources, this paper provides the Yogācāra counter-construction through T1579.
P12 "The Four-Chapter Structure of Dāna-Pāramitā" → this paper: P12 mapped T1509's giving framework, this paper provides Yogācāra's positive construction through T1579.
P13 "The Sources of Trilakṣaṇa-Śūnya" → this paper: P13 established the Madhyamaka path of "contemplating emptiness," this paper provides Yogācāra's path of "constructing characteristics," forming a symmetric pair.
P14 → P15: The Yogācāra nine-fold framework established here will be dialogued with prajñāpāramitā's "non-abiding giving" in P15 — how does Yogācāra's "purified" dialogue with prajñāpāramitā's "nowhere-abiding"?

Within the Series

NIAN-P17 "The Absence of Giving in the Heart Sūtra" → this paper: the Heart Sūtra's "absence of giving" and T1579's "ten phases of purity" form an interesting contrast — one through emptiness, one through characteristics.

This paper is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0. CBETA collation: all T-number / X-number citations verified against CBETA 電子佛典集成 (https://www.cbeta.org). Six Practice Gates series: https://github.com/pointing-at-the-moon/six-practice-gates

Footnotes

T1604 vol 7, T31p0629b08-13: "The six perfections have six meanings respectively: (1) self-nature, (2) cause, (3) result, (4) function, (5) concomitance, (6) category." The specific application to dāna-pāramitā follows at T31p0629b13-23. ↩

Source on GitHub ↗