華嚴經 品三十六 普賢行品Avataṃsaka Sūtra · The Practice of Samantabhadra

One thought of anger can block a whole road along its entire length.

Samantabhadra says one thing of the utmost weight: “I see no single thing so greatly at fault as bodhisattvas rousing a mind of anger against another bodhisattva.” He is not saying that anger is the worst of the afflictions; he is saying that anger of a fellow traveler against a fellow traveler is the worst. Great compassion is the very substance of this road, and the moment anger rises, the substance is the first thing broken. And so one thought of anger accomplishes ‘a million gateways of hindrance’: from not seeing awakening and not hearing the true Dharma, all the way down to the last two — according with the two vehicles, departing far from the lineage of the Buddhas and bodhisattvas of the three times. Once there, it is not that one cultivates badly; it is that one is no longer on this road at all.

The first medicine for turning about is just as simple: “toward the bodhisattvas, give rise to the thought of them as Tathāgatas.”

Only when the hindrances have been told to the end does the practice get spoken. Ten dharmas, ten purities, ten wisdoms, ten universal enterings, ten surpassingly wondrous minds, ten kinds of skillful wisdom — each stage gives birth to the next. And the whole look of the practice of Samantabhadra is there in that one verse: “Within a single mote of dust the worlds are wholly seen; should beings hear this word, they would be confounded and their minds go mad.”

And take that person beside you who is hardest to get on with, and look upon him as a Tathāgata.

Marking What Went Before as Little Said: What Was Spoken Before Is but a Small Part of the Tathāgata’s Realm

At that time the bodhisattva-mahāsattva Samantabhadra again told the great assembly of bodhisattvas seated there, saying:

“Sons of the Buddha! What was expounded before is only a brief telling, following what suits the capacities of beings, of a small part of the Tathāgata’s realm. Why is it said so? The Buddhas, the World-Honored Ones, appear in the world for the sake of those beings — beings who, being without wisdom, do evil deeds; who reckon that there is a self and what belongs to a self; who cling to this body; whose views are upside down and whose minds harbor doubt; who discriminate things by wrong views; who are ever conjoined with every kind of knot (the binding knots of the afflictions) and every kind of bond (the fetters that tie the mind down); who drift along with the flood of birth-and-death and grow ever farther from the way of the Tathāgata — it is for the sake of just such beings that the Buddhas arise in the world.

The General Statement of the Hindrance of Anger: I See No Single Thing So Greatly at Fault as a Bodhisattva Rousing Anger Against a Bodhisattva

“Sons of the Buddha! I have never seen any one thing so greatly at fault as a bodhisattva rousing a mind of anger against another bodhisattva. Why is it so? Sons of the Buddha! If bodhisattvas rouse a mind of anger and rage against the remaining bodhisattvas, then in that very moment they accomplish a million gateways of hindrance.

The Million Gateways of Hindrance (1): From Not Seeing Awakening to Wanting in Wisdom

“Which are the million hindrances? They are these: the hindrance of not seeing awakening; the hindrance of not hearing the true Dharma; the hindrance of being born in an impure world; the hindrance of being born in the evil destinies; the hindrance of being born in the difficult places (places where one cannot see a Buddha or hear the Dharma); the hindrance of having many kinds of sickness; the hindrance of being much slandered; the hindrance of being born among the stubborn and dull destinies; the hindrance of losing right mindfulness; the hindrance of wanting in wisdom.

The Million Gateways of Hindrance (2): The Hindrances of the Six Faculties and the Hindrances of Evil Conditions

“The hindrance of the eye; the hindrance of the ear; the hindrance of the nose; the hindrance of the tongue; the hindrance of the body; the hindrance of the mind; the hindrance of meeting evil friends; the hindrance of forming evil companies; the hindrance of delighting to practice the Lesser Vehicle; the hindrance of delighting to draw near the common and mediocre; the hindrance of not believing in and not delighting in those of great awesome virtue; the hindrance of delighting to dwell together with those far from right view; the hindrance of being born into a house of the outer paths; the hindrance of dwelling within the realm of Māra; the hindrance of departing from the Buddha’s right teaching; the hindrance of not seeing good friends; the hindrance of one’s roots of good being held back and hindered; the hindrance of increasing unwholesome dharmas; the hindrance of gaining a low and mean place.

The Million Gateways of Hindrance (3): The Hindrances of Where One Is Born

“The hindrance of being born in a borderland; the hindrance of being born in the house of evil men; the hindrance of being born among evil spirits; the hindrance of being born among evil dragons, evil yakṣas, evil gandharvas, evil asuras, evil garuḍas, evil kiṃnaras, evil mahoragas, and evil rākṣasas.

The Million Gateways of Hindrance (4): The Hindrances of Not Delighting in the Great Dharma

“The hindrance of not delighting in the Buddha’s Dharma; the hindrance of practicing the shallow dharmas of childish ignorance; the hindrance of clinging with love to the Lesser Vehicle; the hindrance of not delighting in the Great Vehicle; the hindrance of being by nature much startled and much afraid; the hindrance of a mind that ever harbors sorrow and vexation; the hindrance of clinging with love to birth-and-death; the hindrance of not being single-minded upon the Buddha’s Dharma; the hindrance of not delighting to see and hear the Buddha’s sovereign spiritual penetrations.

The Million Gateways of Hindrance (5): The Hindrances of Falling Back from the Bodhisattva Practice

“The hindrance of not gaining the bodhisattva’s faculties; the hindrance of not cultivating the bodhisattva’s pure practice; the hindrance of shrinking back and growing timid before the bodhisattva’s deep mind; the hindrance of not giving rise to the bodhisattva’s great vows; the hindrance of not rousing the mind of omniscience; the hindrance of indolence toward the bodhisattva practice; the hindrance of being unable to purify one’s deeds; the hindrance of being unable to gather in great merit; the hindrance of a power of wisdom that cannot be clear and sharp; the hindrance of cutting off vast wisdom; the hindrance of being unable to guard and uphold the bodhisattva’s practices.

The Million Gateways of Hindrance (6): The Hindrances of Slandering Wisdom and Dwelling with Māra

“The hindrance of delighting to slander the words of omniscience; the hindrance of departing far from the awakening of the Buddhas; the hindrance of delighting to dwell within the realms of the hosts of Māra; the hindrance of not being single-minded in cultivating the Buddha’s realm; the hindrance of being unable to rouse with decision the bodhisattva’s great oath; the hindrance of not delighting to dwell together with bodhisattvas; the hindrance of not seeking the bodhisattva’s roots of good; the hindrance of being by nature much given to views and doubts; the hindrance of a mind ever dark with its own folly.

The Million Gateways of Hindrance (7): The Hindrances of Practice Contrary to the Six Perfections

“Because one cannot practice the bodhisattva’s equal giving, there arises the hindrance of stinginess that does not let go; because one cannot keep the Tathāgata’s precepts, there arises the hindrance of breaking the precepts; because one cannot enter the gate of forbearance, there arise the hindrances of folly, of harming and vexing, and of anger and rage; because one cannot practice the bodhisattva’s great vigor, there arises the hindrance of the filth of indolence; because one cannot gain the samādhis, there arises the hindrance of distraction; because one does not cultivate prajñā-pāramitā (the perfection of wisdom), there arises the hindrance of evil understanding; the hindrance of having no skill amid what is and what is not the case (what in a matter can and cannot be); the hindrance of having no means amid the delivering of beings; the hindrance of being unable to contemplate amid the bodhisattva’s wisdom; the hindrance of being unable to comprehend amid the bodhisattva’s dharmas of going forth.

The Million Gateways of Hindrance (8): The Hindrances of the Six Faculties and the Three Kinds of Action

“Because one does not accomplish the bodhisattva’s ten kinds of vast eye, there is the hindrance of having eyes as of one born blind; because the ear cannot hear the unobstructed Dharma, there is the hindrance of a mouth as of a dumb sheep; because one is not furnished with the marks and signs, there is the hindrance of a broken faculty of smell; because one cannot distinguish and know the speech of beings, there is accomplished the hindrance of the faculty of the tongue; because one slights and despises beings, there is accomplished the hindrance of the faculty of the body; because the mind is much distracted and wild, there is accomplished the hindrance of the faculty of the mind; because one does not keep the three kinds of restraint, there is accomplished the hindrance of bodily action; because one ever rouses the four faults of speech (false speech, divisive speech, harsh speech, and frivolous speech), there is accomplished the hindrance of verbal action; because one much gives rise to greed, anger, and wrong view, there is accomplished the hindrance of mental action.

The Million Gateways of Hindrance (9): On to the Hindrance of Cutting Off the Lineage

“The hindrance of seeking the Dharma with a thief’s mind; the hindrance of cutting off the bodhisattva’s realm; the hindrance of a mind that shrinks back and grows timid amid the bodhisattva’s dharmas of valor; the hindrance of a mind that grows lazy amid the bodhisattva’s way of going forth; the hindrance of a mind that comes to rest amid the gateways of the light of the bodhisattva’s wisdom; the hindrance of a mind that grows weak and mean amid the bodhisattva’s power of mindfulness; the hindrance of being unable to dwell in and uphold the Tathāgata’s teaching; the hindrance of being unable to draw near amid the bodhisattva’s way of leaving birth behind (the way that passes beyond birth-and-death); the hindrance of being unable to cultivate amid the bodhisattva’s way that is without loss or ruin; the hindrance of according with the right position of the two vehicles; the hindrance of departing far from the lineage of the Buddhas and bodhisattvas of the three times.

The Concluding of the Hindrance of Anger: One Thought of Anger Accomplishes a Million Gateways of Hindrance

“Sons of the Buddha! If a bodhisattva rouses one thought of anger against the bodhisattvas, he accomplishes the million gateways of hindrance spoken of above. Why is it so? Sons of the Buddha! I have never seen any one thing so greatly at fault as bodhisattvas rousing a mind of anger against the remaining bodhisattvas.

The Exhortation to Cultivate Ten Dharmas: One Who Would Swiftly Fulfill the Bodhisattva Practice Should Diligently Cultivate Ten Dharmas

“Therefore, if bodhisattva-mahāsattvas would swiftly fulfill the bodhisattva practices, they should diligently cultivate ten kinds of dharma. Which ten? They are these: in mind, to cast away not one single being; toward the bodhisattvas, to give rise to the thought of them as Tathāgatas; never to slander any Buddha-dharma; to know that the lands are without end; to give rise to deep faith and delight in the bodhisattva practice; not to cast away that mind of awakening which is equal to space and to the Dharma realm; to contemplate awakening and enter into the Tathāgata’s powers; to cultivate diligently unobstructed eloquence; to teach and transform beings without weariness; to dwell within all worlds with a mind that clings to nothing. These are the ten.

The Ten Purities: Dwelling in the Ten Dharmas, One Is Furnished with Ten Kinds of Purity

“Sons of the Buddha! When bodhisattva-mahāsattvas have dwelt in these ten dharmas, they can then be furnished with ten kinds of purity. Which ten? They are these: the purity of penetrating the most profound Dharma; the purity of drawing near the good friend; the purity of guarding and upholding the Dharma of the Buddhas; the purity of comprehending the realm of space; the purity of entering deeply into the Dharma realm; the purity of contemplating the boundless mind; the purity of sharing one and the same root of good with all bodhisattvas; the purity of not clinging to the kalpas; the purity of contemplating the three times; the purity of practicing all the dharmas of the Buddhas. These are the ten.

The Ten Kinds of Vast Wisdom: Dwelling in These Ten Dharmas, One Is Furnished with Ten Wisdoms

“Sons of the Buddha! When bodhisattva-mahāsattvas have dwelt in these ten dharmas, they are then furnished with ten kinds of vast wisdom. Which ten? They are these: the wisdom that knows the mental conduct of all beings; the wisdom that knows the deeds and the recompense of all beings; the wisdom that knows all the dharmas of the Buddhas; the wisdom that knows the deep and secret purport of all the dharmas of the Buddhas; the wisdom that knows all the gateways of dhāraṇī (the gateways of total retention); the wisdom that knows all letters and eloquence; the wisdom of skill in all the speech, the sounds, and the turns of phrase of beings; the wisdom of manifesting one’s own body universally within all worlds; the wisdom of manifesting one’s reflected image universally within all assemblies; the wisdom of being furnished with the wisdom of omniscience in every place of birth. These are the ten.

The Ten Universal Enterings: Dwelling in These Ten Wisdoms, One Enters the Ten Universal Enterings

“Sons of the Buddha! When bodhisattva-mahāsattvas have dwelt in these ten wisdoms, they then gain entry into ten kinds of universal entering. Which ten? They are these: all worlds enter into a single hair’s path, and a single hair’s path enters into all worlds; the bodies of all beings enter into one body, and one body enters into the bodies of all beings; kalpas beyond telling enter into a single thought, and a single thought enters into kalpas beyond telling; all the dharmas of the Buddhas enter into one dharma, and one dharma enters into all the dharmas of the Buddhas; places beyond telling enter into one place, and one place enters into places beyond telling; faculties beyond telling enter into one faculty, and one faculty enters into faculties beyond telling; all faculties enter into what is not a faculty, and what is not a faculty enters into all faculties; all conceivings enter into one conceiving, and one conceiving enters into all conceivings; all speech-sounds enter into one speech-sound, and one speech-sound enters into all speech-sounds; all the three times enter into one time, and one time enters into all the three times. These are the ten.

The Ten Surpassingly Wondrous Minds: Contemplating Thus, One Dwells in Ten Kinds of Surpassingly Wondrous Mind

“Sons of the Buddha! When bodhisattva-mahāsattvas have contemplated in this way, they then dwell in ten kinds of surpassing and wondrous mind. Which ten? They are these: the surpassingly wondrous mind that dwells in the speech and the non-speech of all worlds; the surpassingly wondrous mind that dwells in the conceivings of all beings as resting upon nothing; the surpassingly wondrous mind that dwells in the ultimate realm of space; the surpassingly wondrous mind that dwells in the boundless Dharma realm; the surpassingly wondrous mind that dwells in all the deep and secret dharmas of the Buddhas; the surpassingly wondrous mind that dwells in the most profound dharma without distinction; the surpassingly wondrous mind that dwells in the extinguishing of all doubt; the surpassingly wondrous mind that dwells in all worlds as equal and without distinction; the surpassingly wondrous mind that dwells in the sameness of the Buddhas of the three times; the surpassingly wondrous mind that dwells in the measureless powers of all Buddhas. These are the ten.

The Ten Kinds of Skillful Wisdom in the Buddha-Dharma: Dwelling in the Surpassingly Wondrous Minds, One Gains Skillful Wisdom

“Sons of the Buddha! When bodhisattva-mahāsattvas have dwelt in these ten surpassingly wondrous minds, they then gain ten kinds of skillful wisdom with regard to the Buddha-dharma. Which ten? They are these: the skillful wisdom that comprehends the most profound Buddha-dharma; the skillful wisdom that brings forth the vast Buddha-dharma; the skillful wisdom that proclaims the Buddha-dharma in its many kinds; the skillful wisdom that realizes and enters the equal Buddha-dharma; the skillful wisdom that makes clear the differentiated Buddha-dharma; the skillful wisdom that awakens to the undifferentiated Buddha-dharma; the skillful wisdom that enters deeply into the adorned Buddha-dharma; the skillful wisdom that enters the Buddha-dharma by a single means; the skillful wisdom that enters the Buddha-dharma by measureless means; the skillful wisdom that knows the boundless Buddha-dharma to be without distinction; the skillful wisdom that, by one’s own mind and one’s own strength, does not turn back amid all the dharmas of the Buddhas. These are the ten.

The Concluding Exhortation to Receive and Uphold: One Who Upholds This Dharma, with Little Labor, Swiftly Gains Awakening

“Sons of the Buddha! When bodhisattva-mahāsattvas have heard this dharma, they should all rouse the mind and reverently receive and uphold it. Why is it so? A bodhisattva-mahāsattva who upholds this dharma, using only a little labor, swiftly gains anuttarā-samyak-saṃbodhi (unsurpassed perfect awakening); he gains all the dharmas of the Buddhas in their fullness, all equal to the dharmas of the Buddhas of the three times.”

The Auspicious Witness (1): The Six Kinds of Quaking and the Ten Kinds of Raining Clouds

At that time, by the Buddha’s spiritual power and because the Dharma is of itself so, in each of the ten directions worlds to the number of the dust-motes of ten beyond-telling hundreds of thousands of koṭis of nayutas of Buddha-lands quaked in six ways; and there rained down clouds of every flower surpassing those of the heavens, clouds of incense, clouds of powdered incense, clouds of garments and canopies, clouds of banners and pennants, clouds of maṇi jewels and the rest, and clouds of every kind of adornment; there rained down clouds of manifold music; there rained down clouds of bodhisattvas; there rained down clouds beyond telling of the form and appearance of Tathāgatas; there rained down clouds beyond telling of praising the Tathāgatas as well said; there rained down clouds of the Tathāgata’s voice filling the whole Dharma realm; there rained down clouds beyond telling of adorned worlds; there rained down clouds beyond telling of increasing awakening; there rained down clouds beyond telling of shining light; there rained down clouds beyond telling of expounding the Dharma by spiritual power. Just as in this world, in the four continents, at the place of awakening beneath the tree of awakening, within the bodhisattva’s palace, the Tathāgata was seen to accomplish right and perfect awakening and to expound this Dharma, so was it also within all the worlds of the ten directions.

The Auspicious Witness (2): Bodhisattvas of Other Quarters, All Named Samantabhadra, Come to Bear Witness

At that time, by the Buddha’s spiritual power and because the Dharma is of itself so, from beyond worlds to the number of the dust-motes of ten beyond-telling Buddha-lands in each of the ten directions, there came to this land bodhisattva-mahāsattvas to the number of the dust-motes of ten Buddha-lands, filling the ten directions, and they spoke thus:

“Well said, well said, sons of the Buddha! That you have been able to proclaim this profound Dharma of the greatest vows and the predictions of the Buddhas, the Tathāgatas! Sons of the Buddha! We are all of us alike named Samantabhadra, and we have each come to this land from the world Universal Victory, from the presence of the Tathāgata Universal Banner Sovereign; all of us, by the Buddha’s spiritual power, expound this Dharma in every place. Assemblies such as this, and what is spoken such as this — all are equal, with nothing added and nothing taken away. We have all come, borne by the Buddha’s awesome spiritual power, to this place of the Way to bear witness for you. Just as in this place of the Way we bodhisattvas to the number of the dust-motes of ten Buddha-lands have come to bear witness, so is it also within all the worlds of the ten directions.”

The Manner of Speaking the Verses: The Nine Wishes

At that time the bodhisattva-mahāsattva Samantabhadra, by the Buddha’s spiritual power and by the power of his own roots of good, contemplated the ten directions and on to the whole Dharma realm — wishing to reveal the bodhisattva practice, wishing to proclaim the realm of the Tathāgata’s awakening, wishing to speak of the realm of the great vows, wishing to speak of the number of kalpas of all worlds, wishing to make clear that the Buddhas appear according to the time, wishing to speak of how the Tathāgata appears for those beings whose faculties have ripened and causes them to make offerings, wishing to make clear that the Tathāgata’s coming into the world is not in vain, wishing to make clear that the roots of good that are planted must surely obtain their fruit, wishing to make clear that bodhisattvas of great awesome virtue manifest their form and expound the Dharma for all beings and cause them to awaken — and thereupon he spoke these verses:

The Long Verses (1): The Charge to Listen and the Promise to Speak (Verses One to Five)

“You should rejoice and cast away the coverings (the afflictions that cover the mind over), and with one mind reverently listen — listen to the vows and the practices of the bodhisattvas. The bodhisattvas of old, those most surpassing lions among men, the practices that they cultivated I shall proclaim in order. I shall speak too of the number of kalpas, of worlds and of deeds, and of the World-Honored Ones beyond compare who arose therein. The Buddhas of the past such as these appeared in the world with great vows — in what manner did they extinguish the manifold sufferings of beings? All the lions of discourse (the Buddhas, who expound the Dharma fearless as a lion), all that they practiced was continuous and complete; they gained the Buddha’s dharma of sameness, the realm of omniscience.

The Long Verses (2): The Original Vows of the Buddhas of the Past (Verses Six to Ten)

“Seeing all the lions among men of ages past send forth a net of great light that shone universally upon the worlds of the ten directions, they pondered and gave rise to this vow: ‘I shall be a lamp for the world, furnished with the Buddha’s merits, his ten powers, and omniscience. All the beings there are burn in the flames of the three poisons, greed, anger, and folly; I shall deliver every one of them and cause the sufferings of the evil destinies to be extinguished.’ Having made a vow such as this, firm and not turning back, they cultivated the bodhisattva practice in its fullness and gained the ten unobstructed powers. Having made a vow such as this, they practiced without shrinking back, and nothing that they did fell empty; this it is that is called a lion of discourse.

The Long Verses (3): The Promise to Speak of the Practices of the Buddhas of the Three Times (Verses Eleven to Seventeen)

“Within a single Worthy Kalpa a thousand Buddhas arise in the world; all their universal eyes (the eye that beholds all things universally) I shall proclaim in order. As it is within a single Worthy Kalpa, so it is also within measureless kalpas; the practices of those Buddhas yet to come I shall set forth and proclaim. As it is with one seed-kind of Buddha-land (lands that form a kind), so it is also with measureless Buddha-lands; the World-Honored Ones of ten powers yet to come, their practices I this day proclaim. The Buddhas arise in the world in order, according to the vows they made and according to their names, according to the predictions they received and according to their spans of life; according to the true Dharma they cultivated, single-mindedly seeking the unobstructed way; according to the beings they transformed, the true Dharma abiding in the world; according to the Buddha-lands they purified, the beings they transformed, and the Dharma-wheels they turned, expounding at the time to speak and at the time not to speak, purifying the flocks of beings in order; and according to the deeds, the conduct, and the faith and understanding of beings, higher, middling, and lower, they teach and transform them and cause them to cultivate.

The Long Verses (4): Entering This Wisdom and Cultivating, Ever Doing the Deeds of Samantabhadra (Verses Eighteen to Twenty-Four)

“Entering wisdom such as this and cultivating the most surpassing practice therein, they ever do the deeds of Samantabhadra and widely deliver beings. Their bodily action is without hindrance, their verbal action wholly pure, and the conduct of their mind is so likewise, throughout the three times without exception. The bodhisattva cultivating in this way brings the way of Samantabhadra to its end and brings forth the sun of pure wisdom that shines universally upon the Dharma realm. The kalpas of ages to come and lands beyond telling he knows wholly in a single thought, yet has no discriminating view of them. If a practitioner can enter a ground most surpassing such as this, these dharmas of the bodhisattva I shall speak in small part. His wisdom is without bound; he penetrates the Buddha’s realm; into all he can well enter, and what he practices does not turn back. Furnished with the wisdom of Samantabhadra, fulfilling the vows of Samantabhadra, entering a wisdom beyond compare — their practice I shall now proclaim.

The Long Verses (5): One Mote Holding the Lands (Verses Twenty-Five to Thirty-One)

“Within a single mote of dust the worlds are wholly seen; should beings hear this word, they would be confounded and their minds go mad. As it is within a single mote of dust, so it is with all motes of dust; the worlds enter wholly therein — a thing beyond conceiving. Within each single mote of dust there are the dharmas of the ten directions and of the three times, and the Buddha-lands they lead to are all measureless, yet the bodhisattva can distinguish and know them all. Within each single mote of dust there are measureless kinds of Buddha-land, kinds upon kinds without measure, and among them there is not one that he does not know. Whatever marks of difference there are within the Dharma realm, and the several distinct kinds of destiny, he can distinguish and know them all. Entering deeply into a subtle and fine wisdom, he distinguishes the worlds, and the forming and the breaking of all kalpas he can clearly proclaim. He knows the length and the shortness of the kalpas; the three times are a single thought; the sameness and the difference of the manifold practices he can distinguish and know.

The Long Verses (6): The Breadth and Narrowness, the Forming and Breaking of the Worlds (Verses Thirty-Two to Forty-One)

“Entering deeply into the worlds — the vast and the not vast — within one body there are measureless Buddha-lands, and within one Buddha-land there are measureless bodies. Of all the worlds of differing kinds within the ten directions, that vast and measureless aspect he can wholly know. Of the measureless lands within all the three times, with a most profound wisdom in its fullness he wholly knows their forming and their ruin. Among the worlds of the ten directions, some are forming and some are breaking; such things cannot be told to the end, yet the worthy penetrate them all deeply. Some lands are adorned and dressed with manifold marks of ground, and the recompense of the destinies is so likewise; this is by reason of the purity of deeds. Some worlds have measureless kinds of defilement; this is what beings have brought upon themselves, and all of it is according to their conduct. Measureless and boundless Buddha-lands he knows to be one Buddha-land; entering the Buddha-lands in this way, their number cannot be known. All the worlds enter wholly within a single Buddha-land, yet the worlds do not thereby become one, nor is there any confusion. Worlds there are that face upward and that lie inverted, some high and some again low; all this is wrought by the conceivings of beings, and the bodhisattva can distinguish and know it all. The worlds broad and wide, measureless and without bound, he knows the many to be one and knows the one to be many.

The Long Verses (7): The Wisdom of Samantabhadra Knowing the Lands and the Transformations (Verses Forty-Two to Forty-Eight)

“The sons of the Buddha who are Samantabhadra can, by the wisdom of Samantabhadra, know the number of the Buddha-lands, a number that has no bound. They know the transformation of the worlds, the transformation of Buddha-lands, the transformation of beings, the transformation of dharmas, and the transformation of Buddhas, and all of it to the end. Of all the worlds, Buddha-lands subtle and fine and Buddha-lands vast, the manifold and differing adornments are all brought forth by deeds. The measureless sons of the Buddha study well and enter the Dharma realm; the power of their spiritual penetrations is sovereign and pervades the ten directions. Taking kalpas equal in number to beings to speak the names of those worlds, one could not speak them to the end, save only by the Buddha’s revealing. The worlds, and the manifold names of the Tathāgatas — though measureless kalpas pass, they cannot be spoken to the end. How much less the most surpassing wisdom, the dharma of the Buddhas of the three times — born from the Dharma realm, filling the ground of the Tathāgata!

The Long Verses (8): Knowing Wholly the Buddha-Work of the Three Times (Verses Forty-Nine to Fifty-Five)

“With mindfulness pure and unobstructed, with wisdom boundless and unobstructed, he distinguishes and proclaims the Dharma realm and gains the farther shore. The worlds of the past, the vast and the subtle and fine, and those adorned by cultivation, he can wholly know in a single thought. The lions among men therein cultivate the manifold practices of a Buddha, accomplish right and perfect awakening, and display sovereign powers of every kind. Of the measureless kalpas in order to come in ages hereafter such as these, all the most honored among men, the bodhisattva can know them all. All their practices and vows and all their realms, thus diligently cultivated, and their accomplishing right awakening therein. He knows too their assemblies, their spans of life, and the beings they transform, and with these gateways of Dharma he turns the Dharma-wheel for the multitude. The bodhisattva knowing in this way dwells in the ground of the practice of Samantabhadra; his wisdom is wholly clear, and he brings forth all Buddhas.

The Long Verses (9): The Buddhas of the Present and the Unobstructed Faculties (Verses Fifty-Six to Sixty-Two)

“All the Buddha-lands gathered within the present age — he enters deeply into these Buddha-lands and penetrates the Dharma realm. All the Buddhas now within those worlds are sovereign in the Dharma and unobstructed in their speech. He knows too their assemblies, their pure lands, and their power of responsive transformation, and through measureless koṭis of kalpas he ever ponders this matter. All the awesome spiritual power of the Most Honored Ones who tame the world, and their inexhaustible treasury of wisdom — he can know it all. He brings forth the unobstructed eye, the unobstructed ear, nose, and body, and the unobstructed broad and long tongue that can gladden the multitude. The most surpassing unobstructed mind, vast and universally pure, its wisdom filling all things, wholly knows the dharmas of the three times. He studies well all transformations — the transformation of Buddha-lands, the transformation of beings, the transformation of worlds, the transformation of taming — and reaches to the end the farther shore of transformation.

The Long Verses (10): The World Is but Conceiving, Like a Dream, Like a Shadow (Verses Sixty-Three to Seventy-Two)

“The manifold distinctions of the world are all set up by reason of conceiving; entering the Buddha’s wisdom of means, he is wholly clear about all of it. The assemblies cannot be told to the end; to each and every one he manifests his own body, causing them all to see the Tathāgata, and delivers boundless beings. The most profound wisdom of the Buddhas is like the sun appearing in the world; within all lands it manifests universally and without ceasing. He comprehends that the worlds are but names supposed and have no substance, and that beings and the worlds are like a dream, like a shadow cast by light. Toward the dharmas of the worlds he does not give rise to a discriminating view; and one who is good at leaving discrimination behind does not see any discrimination left to leave. Measureless and numberless kalpas, understood, are a single thought; and knowing that the thought too is without the mark of a thought, in this way he sees the world. Measureless lands he passes wholly beyond in a single thought; passing through measureless kalpas, he has never stirred from his own place. Kalpas beyond telling are but a moment’s while; do not see them as long or short — in the end it is a dharma of a kṣaṇa. The mind dwells in the world and the world dwells in the mind; concerning this he does not falsely rouse the discrimination of two and not-two. Beings, the worlds, the kalpas, the Buddhas, and the dharmas of the Buddhas — all are like a conjuring, and the Dharma realm is wholly equal.

The Long Verses (11): Arising from Conditions Without Clinging, and the Dharma-Body Everywhere Present (Verses Seventy-Three to Eighty-Five)

“Within the Buddha-lands of the ten directions he manifests measureless bodies universally, knowing that the body arises from conditions and in the end clings to nothing. The lions among men who appear by reason of a wisdom that is not two do not cling to the dharma that is not two, and know that the not-two is not two either. He knows that the worlds are like a shimmering mirage, like a shadow cast by light, like an echo, and again like a dream, like a conjuring, like a transformation. According and entering in this way, he comes to where the Buddhas walk, accomplishes the wisdom of Samantabhadra, and shines universally upon the deep Dharma realm. The defiling attachment to beings and to Buddha-lands he can wholly cast away, and rousing the mind of great compassion he universally purifies the worlds. The bodhisattva ever holds right mindfulness, mindful of the wondrous Dharma of the lion of discourse; pure as space, he rouses great means. Seeing that the world is ever in delusion and inversion, he rouses the mind to deliver them all; what he practices is wholly pure and pervades the Dharma realms. The Buddhas and the bodhisattvas, the Buddha-dharma and the dharmas of the world — if one sees them as they really are, there is no difference in any of it. The treasury of the Tathāgata’s dharma-body enters universally within the world; though it is within the world, it clings to nothing in the world. It is as with pure water: the reflected image within it has no coming and no going; the dharma-body pervades the world, and one should know that it is so likewise. Having in this way left defiling attachment behind, body and world are both pure, still and clear as space, and all is without arising. He knows that the body has no ending, is without arising and without ceasing, is neither permanent nor impermanent, yet displays itself within the worlds. He extinguishes the wrong views and reveals the right view; the nature of dharmas has no coming and no going, and he does not cling to a self or to what belongs to a self.

The Long Verses (12): The Simile of the Skilled Conjurer, and Measure and Measurelessness (Verses Eighty-Six to Ninety)

“It is as with a skilled conjurer who displays things of every kind: when they come there is nowhere they come from, and when they go there is nowhere they go to. The nature of a conjuring is not something measured, nor yet something measureless; and within that great assembly he displays both the measured and the measureless. With this still and settled mind he cultivates the roots of good and brings forth all Buddhas, neither measured nor measureless. The measured and the measureless are all alike false conceiving; comprehending all the destinies, he clings neither to measure nor to measurelessness. The most profound dharma of the Buddhas is vast and deeply still; with a most profound and measureless wisdom he knows the most profound destinies.

The Long Verses (13): The Practice of Compassion Wherein Wisdom Is Great — Making the Unsettled Settled (Verses Ninety-One to One Hundred)

“The bodhisattva leaves delusion and inversion behind, his mind ground pure and ever continuous, and skillfully, by the power of spiritual penetrations, delivers measureless beings. Those not yet settled he makes settled; to those already settled he displays the place of the Way; in this way he pervades the Dharma realm, and his mind clings to nothing. He does not dwell within the real limit (the limit of suchness), nor does he enter nirvāṇa; in this way he pervades the world and awakens the flocks of beings. The number of dharmas and the number of beings he knows and yet does not cling to; he rains down the rain of Dharma universally and fully moistens the worlds. Universally within all worlds, thought after thought he accomplishes right awakening, and yet still cultivates the bodhisattva practice and has never turned back. The manifold bodies of the world he wholly knows, every one; knowing in this way the dharma of the body, he gains the body of the Buddhas. He knows universally all beings, all kalpas, and all Buddha-lands; the ten directions are without shore, and the sea of his wisdom enters everywhere. The bodies of beings are measureless; to each and every one he manifests his own body; the body of the Buddha is without bound, and the wise can behold it all. What is known in a single thought — therein the Tathāgatas appear; through measureless kalpas one could not exhaust the praising of it. The Buddhas can display their bodies and enter parinirvāṇa in place after place; within a single thought there are measureless ones, and their relics too are each and every one distinct.

The Long Verses (14): Dwelling in the Practice of Samantabhadra and in the Wisdom of Samantabhadra (Verses One Hundred and One to One Hundred and Five)

“Among the ages to come such as these, if there be any who seek the fruit of Buddhahood, those measureless minds of awakening his decisive wisdom knows them all. All the Tathāgatas there are within the three times such as these he can wholly know; this it is that is named dwelling in the practice of Samantabhadra. Distinguishing and knowing in this way the measureless grounds of practice, he enters the place of wisdom, and his wheel does not turn back. A wisdom wondrous and vast, entering deeply into the Tathāgata’s realm, and having entered it not turning back — this it is that is called the wisdom of Samantabhadra. All the most surpassing World-Honored Ones enter universally into the Buddha’s realm, cultivate without turning back, and gain unsurpassed awakening.

The Long Verses (15): All Arise from One’s Own Conceiving (Verses One Hundred and Six to One Hundred and Thirteen)

“Measureless and boundless minds, and their several distinct deeds, are all heaped up by conceiving, and the bodhisattva knows them all alike. The defiled and the undefiled, the mind of the learner and the mind of the adept, minds beyond telling — thought after thought he knows them all. He knows that they are neither one nor two, neither defiled nor pure, nor yet confused, and that all arise from one’s own conceiving. In this way he sees clearly all beings, whose minds’ conceivings are each unlike the rest, and thereby the manifold worlds arise. By means such as these he cultivates the most surpassing practices and is born by transformation from the Buddha-dharma, and thereby gains the name Samantabhadra. Beings all falsely rouse conceivings of the good and the evil destinies, and thereby are born in the heavens or fall again into the hells. The bodhisattva contemplates that the world arises from false conceiving and from deeds; and since false conceiving is without bound, the world too is measureless. All the lands are what the net of conceiving displays; and because there is a means like a net of conjuring, in a single thought he can enter them all.

The Long Verses (16): The Equal Entering of the Faculties, and the Concluding Word (Verses One Hundred and Fourteen to One Hundred and Twenty-One)

“The eye, the ear, the nose, the tongue, and the body, and the faculty of mind likewise; the conceivings of the world are each distinct, yet the bodhisattva can enter them all alike. Into the realm of each single eye measureless eyes can enter; their manifold natures are distinct, measureless and not to be told to the end. What is seen is without difference, nor is there any confusion; each according to his own deeds receives and uses its recompense. The power of Samantabhadra is measureless, and he knows all of that; all the realms of the eye his great wisdom can wholly enter. The worlds such as these he can wholly distinguish and know, and he cultivates all practices and has never turned back. The Buddha speaks, beings speak, and the lands too speak; throughout the three times it is spoken thus, and he wholly knows the manifold of it. Within the past there is the future, and within the future the present; the three times behold one another, and each and every one is clear. In measureless ways such as these he awakens the worlds; of the means of omniscience, the bound cannot be got.”