大智度論 報應品Dazhidulun — Mahāprajñāpāramitā-upadeśa · Recompense

The previous chapter praised the merits of prajñā at length; this one moves from merit to its fruit. When a bodhisattva practises prajñā and can perform every kind of merit, the Four Heavenly Kings are the first to rejoice, thinking to hold up four bowls and offer them to the bodhisattva, as bowls were once offered to the Buddhas of the past; then the gods of the Heaven of the Thirty-three up to the gods Sovereign over Others' Transformations, and even the hosts of gods throughout the three-thousand great-thousand world, all rejoice too, wishing to wait upon the bodhisattva and make offerings, and to ask that in time to come the bodhisattva turn the wheel of Dharma; even the good men and good women of the human world each rejoice, wishing life after life to be the bodhisattva's father and mother, wife and children, and kin. The treatise-author explains the causes of this joy one by one: why the gods rejoice; why the Four Heavenly Kings, who plainly no longer suffer the menace of the asuras, still rejoice; why, among so many offerings the gods make, it is the bowls alone that are offered; how the Four Heavenly Kings, whose lifespan is only five hundred years, could wait until the bodhisattva becomes a Buddha. In between he sets the jātaka of King Śibi cutting his own flesh to ransom a dove, and three past-life stories of good men and women who vowed to be the bodhisattva's kin life after life, so that the words 「果報終不虛」 tr. "the fruit of recompense is never in vain" are spoken with flesh and blood. The discourse then turns to leaving desire: the gods further wish that the bodhisattva cut off sexual desire from the first arousing of the mind and remain forever in the youthful state; so the Buddha says there are three kinds of bodhisattva: one who still has father and mother, wife and children; one who from the first arousing of the mind cuts off desire and cultivates the youthful state; and one who by the power of skilful means receives the five desires and only afterwards leaves home. And he gives the simile of a conjurer who conjures up the five desires and takes pleasure in them without any real receiving, to say that a bodhisattva manifests the five desires in order to deliver beings and is in truth unstained. Reading this far, you will most likely take the chapter to be about the glory of the offered bowls and the fullness of the fruit; its name, after all, is Recompense, and it is also called Offering the Bowls. But the real door opens in the last section. Śāriputra suddenly asks how, after all, a bodhisattva should practise prajñā. The Buddha's answer is this: when practising prajñā, one does not see a bodhisattva, does not see the bodhisattva's name, does not see prajñā, and does not see oneself practising or not practising; the bodhisattva and the bodhisattva's name are empty in their very nature, and within emptiness there is no form, feeling, perception, constructions, or consciousness; form is emptiness and emptiness is form; everything is only the coming together of conditions, a name borrowed for the sake of speaking, and therefore not even a name can be seen, and because it is not seen, it is not clung to. So it turns out that all this bustle of bowls offered, offerings made, and fruit received was, in the end, meant to lead a person to this one step: there is no real bodhisattva to be found, and yet the bodhisattva is born throughout the myriad kinds of beings and delivers beings everywhere; there is no dharma that can equal it, and yet from it all the Buddhas are born. The bowl the gods hold up is real, and the fruit the bowl holds is real; but the hand that lifts all of it is ultimate emptiness. This is what, beneath the two words Recompense, is truly being offered up.

The Four Heavenly Kings Rejoice and Wish to Offer Four Bowls to the Bodhisattva

The Buddha told Śāriputra: ‘If a bodhisattva-mahāsattva who practises prajñāpāramitā is able to produce merits such as these, then the Four Heavenly Kings all rejoice greatly and think: We should present four bowls to this bodhisattva, just as the Four Heavenly Kings of old presented bowls to the earlier Buddhas.’

The Previous Chapter Has Already Said This; Why Say It Again?

Question: The previous chapter has already said this completely; why is it said again now?

Answer: Although the previous chapter praised prajñāpāramitā, the matter had not yet been said in full, and the listeners were not weary of it, so it is said once more. Furthermore, that first chapter only praised the power and function of prajñāpāramitā; now it praises the practitioner who is able to produce merits such as these, making the Four Heavenly Kings and others rejoice and offer bowls. Furthermore, because the bodhisattva is able to fulfil all kinds of vows and practices, the Buddha comforts him and encourages and spurs him on, saying that there is such a recompense and that in the end it will not be in vain. Furthermore, prajñāpāramitā has two fruits: the first is becoming a Buddha and ferrying beings across; the second is that, though one has not yet become a Buddha, one already enjoys worldly recompense—becoming a wheel-turning sage king, becoming Śakra, becoming the Brahmā king who rules the three-thousand great-thousand world, with worldly blessings and pleasures and offerings all complete in every respect. Now worldly recompense is shown to beings, and that is why this matter is spoken of. Furthermore, when worldly people wish to accomplish a great undertaking, there are often all kinds of factors that ruin and disturb it; the bodhisattva is not like this—once his mind within is settled, outer affairs follow and come about smoothly. For causes and conditions of all these kinds, this chapter is spoken.

When the Bodhisattva Increases the Six Perfections, Why Do Gods and Humans Rejoice?

Question: When the bodhisattva increases the six perfections, on the basis of what causes and conditions do the gods and humans rejoice?

Answer: The gods were all able to be born in heaven because of the ten wholesome deeds, the four meditations, and the four immeasurable minds; and these merits all come about only by relying on the Buddhas and bodhisattvas. If a Buddha appears in the world, the ranks of the gods increase and the asuras decrease; if no Buddha is in the world, the asuras become many and the gods become few—this is because their deeds of merit are mixed and not pure enough.

King Śibi Cuts His Flesh to Ransom the Dove: How Śakra Tested for a Decided Great Mind

If the Buddhas appear in the world, they are able to cut off the gods' net of doubt and able to accomplish great matters. It is like Śakra Devānām Indra, when his life was about to end: his mind was full of terror, and he wished to seek a Buddha to save him, but though he searched everywhere he could not find where a Buddha was. Although he saw renunciants practising in quiet places in the mountains, forests, rivers, and marshes, none of these people could cut off his net of doubt either. At that time the god Viśvakarman said to Śakra Devānām Indra: ‘King Śibi's ascetic practice is extraordinary and rare in the world! All the wise say: This man will soon become a Buddha!’ Śakra Devānām Indra said: ‘This is hard to settle! How can we know it is true? Like fish roe, the blossoms of the āmra tree, and bodhisattvas who have first aroused the mind—these three are many at the start, but those that truly come to fruition are extremely few. Now I shall test him!’ So Śakra changed himself into a hawk and turned Viśvakarman into a dove; the dove flew to King Śibi's side seeking rescue, and the king cut the flesh from his own body to exchange it for the dove's life, going so far as to place his whole body on the scale, giving his body in place of the dove. At that moment the great earth shook. When Śakra Devānām Indra and the others saw this, their minds greatly rejoiced; they scattered all kinds of heavenly flowers and praised it as something that had never been before; they thought: With a great mind as decided and unmoving as this, becoming a Buddha will not be long!

Furthermore, ordinary people have only the fleshly eye and no wisdom, and toil their bodies seeking wealth to support themselves; if even such people all rejoice on hearing that the bodhisattva increases the six perfections and will soon become a Buddha, how much more the gods!

The Gods of the Higher Realms No Longer Suffer from the Asuras; Why Do They Also Rejoice?

Question: The heaven of the Four Heavenly Kings and the Heaven of the Thirty-Three are harassed by the asuras; but the gods higher up have no such trouble, so why do they also rejoice?

Answer: Although the gods of the higher realms have no trouble from the asuras, if no Buddha appears in the world, few people are born into their heavens; and even if some are born there, the five desires they enjoy are not refined. Why? Because they have cultivated only impure merit. The palaces, radiance, and lifespans of the gods of the form realm are likewise. Furthermore, those among the gods who have wisdom are able to know that the taste of meditative absorption and the five desires are all impermanent; only when a Buddha appears in the world can they be brought to attain the permanent bliss of nirvāṇa. Because both worldly bliss and the bliss of nirvāṇa are attained only by relying on the Buddhas and bodhisattvas, they rejoice. It is like a sweet fruit tree that has grown lush and ripe: people rejoice greatly, because the tree has all kinds of benefits—some people gain shelter in its shade, some pick its flowers, some eat its fruit. The bodhisattva is also like this: with the shade of separation from unwholesome dharmas he can screen off the scorching heat of suffering in the three evil paths, he can give the flowers of the wealth and bliss of humans and gods, and he can also enable the worthies and sages to attain the fruits of the three vehicles; therefore all rejoice.

There Are So Many Kinds of Offering; Why Single Out the Offering of Bowls?

Question: The gods have so many matters of offering; why speak only of offering bowls?

Answer: The Four Heavenly Kings are responsible for offering bowls; the other gods each make their own offerings. The offerings of the gods each have a fixed, constant rule. It is like when the Buddha was first born: Śakra Devānām Indra received the Buddha's body with heavenly cloth, the Brahmā king personally held a jewelled canopy for the Buddha, and the Four Heavenly Kings stood guard on the four sides. The gods of the Pure Abodes, in order to make the bodhisattva give rise to a mind of revulsion, conjured the forms of an old man, a sick man, a dead man, and a śramaṇa. Again, when the bodhisattva left home, the Four Heavenly Kings ordered messengers to hold up the horse's hooves, and themselves attended and guarded the bodhisattva from the four sides. Śakra, lord of the gods, took the bodhisattva's hair and raised a hair stūpa outside the east gate of their heavenly city; he also took the bodhisattva's jewelled robe and raised a robe stūpa outside the south gate of the city; when the Buddha went to the tree, someone offered fine grass. The Vajra-holding Bodhisattva constantly guarded the bodhisattva with vajra in hand; the Brahmā king requested the Buddha to turn the Dharma wheel. Offerings of all these kinds each have their constant rule. Precisely because of this, the Four Heavenly Kings offer the bowls.

As for the meaning of the four bowls, it is as has already been said above.

The Buddha Has Only One Body; How Does He Receive Four Bowls?

Question: The Buddha has only one body; why does he receive four bowls?

Answer: The powers of the four great Heavenly Kings are equal, and the Buddha cannot receive the bowl of one of them alone. Moreover, the Buddha also wishes them to see the Buddha's spiritual power, merging the four bowls into one, so that the Four Heavenly Kings rejoice and their faith becomes pure, and they have this thought: All the offerings we have made from the time the bodhisattva was first born until his becoming a Buddha now—their merit is real and will not be in vain.

The Four Heavenly Kings Live Only Five Hundred Years; How Can They Wait Until the Bodhisattva Becomes a Buddha?

Question: The lifespan of the Four Heavenly Kings is only five hundred years, while the bodhisattva becomes a Buddha only after passing through immeasurable asaṃkhyeya kalpas; the Four Heavenly Kings of this present generation are not the heavenly kings of that future time, so why would they rejoice over this?

Answer: Because they belong to one and the same clan; it is like a noble clan whose bloodline is handed down for a hundred generations and is not reckoned another family just because the years are long. Or again there are practitioners of this kind who, seeing the bodhisattva increasing the six perfections, make a vow in their minds: When this bodhisattva becomes a Buddha, I will offer him a bowl. Precisely because of this vow, they are able to be born at that time. Furthermore, the Four Heavenly Kings live five hundred years; fifty years of the human world are only one day and one night where the Four Heavenly Kings are; they too take thirty days as a month and twelve months as a year; reckoning five hundred years by such years equals nine million years of the human world. A bodhisattva able to produce such merits may already be near becoming a Buddha, and the Four Heavenly Kings just born at that time will be exactly in time to meet him.

Some Buddhas Take Joy as Food and Use No Bowl; Why Say the Four Heavenly Kings Always Offer Bowls?

Question: As is said in the Mahāyāna sūtras: some Buddhas take joy as food and do not eat morsel food. And like the Buddha Heavenly King, whose clothing and bearing are no different from a householder's, and who has no need of food from a bowl—why then is it said ‘the Four Heavenly Kings always offer bowls’?

Answer: ‘Always’ is said with regard to Buddhas who use bowls; it does not mean that bowls are always offered even to those who do not use them. Furthermore, the Buddhas who use bowls are many and those who do not are few, so the majority is taken as the standard, and only then is ‘always’ said.

The Heaven of the Thirty-Three up to the Heaven Sovereign over Others' Transformations Also Rejoice, Wishing to Request the Turning of the Dharma Wheel

The sūtra goes on to say: ‘The Heaven of the Thirty-Three up to the Heaven Sovereign over Others' Transformations also all rejoice, thinking: We should serve and make offerings to the bodhisattva, decrease the asuras, and increase the ranks of the gods. In the three-thousand great-thousand world, from the heaven of the Four Heavenly Kings up to the Akaniṣṭha Heaven, all rejoice greatly, thinking: We should request this bodhisattva to turn the Dharma wheel.’

The treatise-author explains: These gods pay homage and reverence with flowers, incense, and necklaces, and also make offerings by listening to the Dharma, praising, and so on; they also have this thought: If people cultivate pure merit, the asuras decrease and the Heaven of the Thirty-Three increases, and we gods increase along with it.

The Six Heavens Have Been Spoken Of Above; Why Speak Again of the Gods of the Trichiliocosm?

Question: The six heavens have already been spoken of above; why is it said again, ‘in the three-thousand great-thousand world, up to the Akaniṣṭha Heaven, they rejoice and make offerings’?

Answer: What was spoken of earlier are the six heavens on a single Mount Sumeru; what is spoken of here are the gods of the three-thousand great-thousand world. Earlier only the desire realm was spoken of; now here the gods of both the desire realm and the form realm are spoken of, and it is said that they request the Buddha to turn the Dharma wheel. Although above it was said that the gods of the Pure Abodes made all kinds of offerings, requests, and assistance, now requesting the turning of the Dharma wheel is spoken of because this matter is weightier.

The Tripiṭaka Speaks Only of Brahmā Requesting the Turning of the Dharma Wheel; Why Speak Broadly of the Gods Here?

Question: The Tripiṭaka only says ‘Brahmā requested the turning of the Dharma wheel’; why is it now said that ‘from the Four Heavenly Kings up to the Akaniṣṭha Heaven’ all come to request it?

Answer: The heavens of the desire realm are near, so they come first. The form realm is named Brahmā throughout; if one says the Brahmā king requested the Buddha, the other gods have already all been included. Also, because Brahmā is the first tier of the form realm, when the beginning is spoken of, what follows is spoken of along with it. Furthermore, whether or not there is a Buddha, beings have always known Brahmā and regarded Brahmā as the grandfather of the world, so Brahmā is spoken of especially for the sake of worldly people.

As for the characteristics of the Dharma wheel, it is as has already been said above.

Good Men and Good Women Rejoice, Wishing to Be the Bodhisattva's Parents, Wife, and Children

The sūtra goes on to say: ‘Śāriputra! When this bodhisattva-mahāsattva practises prajñāpāramitā and increases the six perfections, all good men and good women each rejoice, thinking: We should be this person's parents, wife and children, relatives, and acquaintances.’

Question: Earlier it was already said ‘able to produce such merits’; why is it now also said ‘increases the six perfections’?

Answer: What was said earlier is the general mark; what is said now is the particular mark. Furthermore, the merits spoken of earlier are of all kinds and immeasurable, which would make the listeners weary; now only the six perfections are stated briefly, and all merits are gathered in completely. Furthermore, when speaking for the gods, it says ‘able to produce all kinds of merits’; when speaking for worldly people, it says ‘increases the six perfections’. How do we know this is so? By seeing that what follows speaks of ‘good men and good women’, this can be known.

Why Is ‘Good Gods’ Not Said of the Gods, and ‘Good Men and Women’ Said Only among Humans?

Question: From the heaven of the Four Heavenly Kings up to the Akaniṣṭha Heaven, why is ‘good gods’ not said, while ‘good men and good women’ is said only among humans?

Answer: The gods all have the divine eye, the divine ear, and the knowledge of others' minds, and are able to know that they should make offerings to the bodhisattva, so there is no need to mark out their goodness separately. Worldly people see with the fleshly eye and cannot know clearly; among them only the good are able to know that they should make offerings to the bodhisattva, and because such people are few, the good are specially marked out. These good people have heard the Dharma either from the Buddha, or from the Buddha's disciples and bodhisattvas; or they have heard that the bodhisattva received the prediction that he would become a Buddha in the future, and also heard the Buddha praise his name, and therefore they know to cultivate the good.

Why Speak Only of the Goodness of Men and Women, and Not of Those with Both Organs or No Organ?

Question: Why speak only of the goodness of men and women, and not of the goodness of people with both organs or with no organ?

Answer: A person with no organ is said to lack the marks of one able to attain the path, so he is not spoken of. It is like the precepts, which do not permit him to leave home, because he lacks the marks of male or female. His mind is not settled, and he becomes angry over small matters; his fetters are many, so he is attached to worldly affairs; he also harbours much of the net of doubt and does not delight in the Dharma of the right path; although he can also do some small deeds of merit, his wisdom is shallow and cannot go deep; and his nature changes easily, so he is not spoken of—this is how it is said in the Dharma of the śrāvakas. As for the Mahāyāna, it is like the great ocean, which accepts everything; such a person with no organ sometimes also cultivates the good, but simply because they are too few, they are not specially spoken of. ‘Few’ means that among men and women such people are the fewest, and among such people those who cultivate the good are fewer still; it is like a fair-skinned person who, even though his beard, hair, and moles are black, still cannot be called a black person. A person with both organs has fetters that are many and mixed, acts both as a man and as a woman, and his mind is crooked and very hard to rescue; it is like dragging timber through a dense forest—the crooked pieces are hard to pull out. It is also like the asuras, who, because their minds are not upright, constantly suspect the Buddha, thinking the Buddha is helping the gods: when the Buddha teaches them the five aggregates, they insist there are six aggregates and will not believe in fewer; if the Buddha teaches the four truths, they insist there are five truths and will not believe in one fewer. People with both organs are also like this: their minds are much crooked, and they are not equal to attaining the path. Precisely because of this, only the good among men and women are spoken of.

What Is the ‘Mark of Goodness’: Enduring Abuse, and Seventeen Virtues

The mark of goodness is having a mind of kindness and compassion and being able to endure harsh words and abuse. As is said in the Chapter on Abuse of the Dharmapada: ‘One who can endure harsh abuse is alone called the highest among humans!’ It is like a fine good horse, fit for a king to ride. Furthermore, when the five kinds of wrong speech, and whipping, beating with staves, wounding, binding and tying, and so on, all cannot destroy his mind, this is called the mark of goodness.

Furthermore, good people also have virtues of all these kinds: their three kinds of action are without fault, and they like to draw near to good people; they do not disparage others' goodness and do not flaunt their own virtue; they accord with the multitude and do not speak of others' faults; they are not attached to worldly pleasures and do not pursue fame, but only believe in and delight in the joy of the path and virtue; their own conduct and deeds are pure, and they do not trouble or harm beings; in their minds they value the Dharma of what is true and think lightly of worldly common affairs; they love only uprightness and sincerity and do not go along with others in deceit; to let all beings obtain happiness, they would rather give up their own happiness; to let all beings be free of suffering, they would rather take it upon their own bodies in their place. Immeasurable virtues such as these are all named the marks of a good person. Such marks appear mostly in men and women, so it says ‘good men and good women’.

On What Basis Do Good Men and Women Vow to Form a Bond with the Bodhisattva?

Question: On the basis of what causes and conditions are good men and good women able to make such a vow?

Answer: Good men and good women know for themselves that their merit is thin and their wisdom slight, so they draw near to the bodhisattva, wishing to be ferried across to liberation; it is like a heavy stone which, though heavy, can cross the water by relying on a boat. Again, good men and good women hear that the bodhisattva attains the path not after passing through only one or two lives, but after going back and forth in birth and death through countless lives, and so they give rise to this thought: I will form a causal bond with the bodhisattva. Furthermore, the bodhisattva's accumulated virtue is deep, so wherever he is born, beings come to revere him, because the benefit they receive from him is great. If they see the bodhisattva give up his life and die, they give rise to this vow: I will be the bodhisattva's parent, wife, or kin. Why? Because they know that drawing near to good people can increase merit; it is like gathering many incenses together—the fragrance grows ever stronger.

The Wish-Fulfilling Jewels and the Prince: Three Times into the Nāga Palaces, and Three Nāgas Vow to Be Three Great Disciples

It is like when the bodhisattva in a former life was the crown prince of a king; seeing that the people of Jambudvīpa were poor and suffering, he wished to seek a wish-fulfilling jewel to relieve them, so he went into the great ocean and came to the palace of a nāga king. The nāga king, seeing the prince's majestic virtue to be extraordinary, immediately rose to greet him, invited him in and made offerings, and asked him: ‘How are you able to come from so far away?’ The prince answered: ‘It is because I pity the beings of Jambudvīpa that I have come to seek a wish-fulfilling jewel, in order to benefit them!’ The nāga king said: ‘If you can stay in my palace and receive my offerings for one month, I will give you the jewel!’ So the prince stayed for one month, praising for the nāga king the virtue of broad learning, and the nāga king gave him the jewel; this wish-fulfilling jewel could send down rain over one yojana. The nāga king said: ‘The prince has the marks of becoming a Buddha and will soon be a Buddha; I vow to be your disciple foremost in broad learning.’ Then the prince went to another nāga palace and obtained a jewel that could rain over two yojanas; he spent two months praising the power of spiritual penetrations. This nāga king said: ‘The prince will soon be a Buddha; I vow to be your disciple foremost in supernormal travel.’ The prince went on to another nāga palace and obtained a jewel that could rain over three yojanas; he spent three months praising wisdom. This nāga king said: ‘The prince will soon be a Buddha; I vow to be your disciple foremost in wisdom.’ After the three nāga kings had given the jewels, they all said: ‘When your life ends, the jewel must be returned to me.’ The bodhisattva agreed. The prince brought the jewels back to Jambudvīpa; one jewel could rain down food and drink, one jewel could rain down clothing, one jewel could rain down the seven treasures, benefiting beings.

Sumati Buys Flowers; Bodhisattva Wondrous Light and the Maiden Joyful Virtue

Again, it is like Sumati Bodhisattva, who, on seeing Dīpaṃkara Buddha, wanted to buy five flowers from the girl Xuluosuo; the girl would not sell them. He then offered five hundred gold coins for those five flowers, and the girl still would not give them, but instead demanded: ‘Only if I may be your wife in life after life will I give you the flowers!’ Because the bodhisattva wished to make an offering to the Buddha, he agreed on the spot.

Again, it is like Wondrous Light Bodhisattva: the daughter of an elder, seeing twenty-eight kinds of marks on his body, gave rise to a mind of love and reverence and stood waiting beneath the gate. When the bodhisattva arrived, the girl took off the beryl bead from her neck and placed it in the bodhisattva's bowl, vowing in her mind: ‘I will be this man's wife in life after life!’ For two hundred and fifty kalpas after this, the girl accumulated all kinds of merit; later she was born within a lotus in the garden of the courtesan Joyful-to-See, and the courtesan Joyful-to-See raised her as her daughter; by the age of fourteen, this maiden Joyful Virtue was complete in every respect in women's handiwork and in worldly skill and ingenuity. At that time there was a king of Jambudvīpa named Lord of Wealth, whose crown prince was named Lord of Virtue and had a mind of great compassion; once he left the city and entered a garden to sightsee, with the courtesans leading the way in front, singing and chanting praises. Prince Lord of Virtue distributed all kinds of treasures, clothing, food and drink all along the way; like a nāga sending down rain, there was nowhere it did not reach. When the maiden Joyful Virtue saw the prince, she composed verses of her own to praise him and gazed at him with love, her eyes never once blinking, and she said of herself: ‘The affairs of the world—I understand them all; I wish to offer this body of mine to serve the prince!’ The prince asked her: ‘To whom do you belong? If you already belong to someone, this would not be proper for me.’ Then the courtesan Joyful-to-See answered the prince on her behalf: ‘The year, month, day, and hour of this daughter's birth are all the same as the prince's. This daughter was not born of me; one morning I entered the garden and saw this daughter born within a lotus, so I raised her and took her as my daughter. Please do not look down on this daughter because of me! This daughter is complete in the sixty-four arts, with none lacking; she is thoroughly versed in women's crafts, scriptures, and medical prescriptions; she always has a sense of shame and conscience, her heart is loyal and upright, she has no jealousy and no thought of sexual misconduct. Since my daughter's virtue and bearing are such as this, the prince ought to accept her!’ Prince Lord of Virtue answered the girl: ‘Sister! I have already set out the mind of anuttarā samyaksaṃbodhi and cultivate the bodhisattva path, begrudging nothing at all. The wealth of the kingdom, wife and children, elephants and horses and the seven precious things—whenever someone comes asking for them, I do not go against their wish; if someone comes asking for the sons and daughters you bear, or for your own self, I will also give them away, and you must not grieve or regret it because of this! At some time I may leave you to go forth from home, become a disciple of the Buddha, and practise in pure mountain forests; you must not be sorrowful either!’ The maiden Joyful Virtue answered: ‘Even if the fires of hell come and burn my body away, I will never regret it! Nor have I come with this body of marks and excellent features for the sake of lust and amusement; I have come to serve the true gentleman in order to encourage and assist anuttarā samyaksaṃbodhi!’ The girl also said to the prince: ‘Last night I dreamed of the Buddha Wondrous Sun Body sitting beneath the tree of the path; we can go and pay homage to him!’ The prince, seeing that the girl was upright and handsome, and also hearing that a Buddha had appeared in the world, for these two causes and conditions rode in one carriage with her, and together they went to where the Buddha was. The Buddha taught them the Dharma; the prince obtained immeasurable dhāraṇī gates, and the girl obtained a tamed and subdued resolve. The prince then made an offering to the Buddha of five hundred jewelled flowers, in seeking anuttarā samyaksaṃbodhi. The prince reported to his father the king: ‘I have been able to see the Buddha Wondrous Sun Body and have gained great good benefit.’ When the king his father heard this, he gave up the wealth he loved and valued to the prince, and together with his ministers and the people of the land went to where the Buddha was. The Buddha taught them the Dharma, and the king obtained the dhāraṇī of the Lamp Without Darkness, which penetrates all dharmas. The king then reflected: ‘It is not possible to govern a kingdom and enjoy the five desires in the way of a householder and still attain the path!’ Having reflected thus, he set up Prince Lord of Virtue as king and himself left home to seek the path. Then, on the fifteenth day of a certain month, six kinds of treasures appeared for Prince Lord of Virtue, and his wife Joyful Virtue became the jewel-maiden. These causes and conditions are as told in full in the Inconceivable Sūtra.

From this it can be known that good men and good women vow life after life to be the bodhisattva's parents, wife, and kin.

The Gods Wish the Bodhisattva to Be Free of Sexual Desire and Always Live as a Pure Youth

The sūtra goes on to say: ‘At that time, from the Four Heavenly Kings up to the Akaniṣṭha Heaven, all rejoiced greatly, each thinking: We should find a means to make this bodhisattva keep far from sexual desire, and from the time he first arouses the mind always live in the youthful state, not coming together with sensual desire; if even receiving the five desires obstructs birth in the Brahmā heavens, how much more anuttarā samyaksaṃbodhi! Precisely because of this, Śāriputra! only a bodhisattva-mahāsattva who has cut off sexual desire and left home should attain anuttarā samyaksaṃbodhi; it is not attained without cutting off desire.’

Question: Why do the gods make such a vow?

Answer: In the world the five desires are foremost, and there is no one who does not love and delight in them; and among the five desires, touch is foremost again, binding the human mind most of all; it is like a person fallen into deep mud, very hard to rescue. Precisely because of this, the gods find a means to make the bodhisattva keep far from sexual desire. Furthermore, if one receives the other desires, one does not yet go so far as to lose wisdom; only at the time of coming together in sexual desire are body and mind dazed and confused, with no awareness at all, deeply sunk in indulgence and drowning oneself! Precisely because of this, the gods wish the bodhisattva to keep far from it.

How to Make the Bodhisattva Keep Far from It: The Gods of the Pure Abodes Show Old Age, Sickness, and Death

Question: How is the bodhisattva made to keep far from sexual desire?

Answer: It is like when the Bodhisattva Śākyamuni was still in King Śuddhodana's palace and wished to leave the city to sightsee: the gods of the Pure Abodes conjured an old man, a sick man, and a dead man to make his mind turn in revulsion; they also made him see, in the middle of the night, the palace women on duty exposing foul discharges and impurity, with snot and spittle flowing and excrement and urine smeared on their bodies; when the bodhisattva saw this, he at once felt disgust. At times the gods also made women show themselves with evil minds and jealousy, not recognising kindness and virtue, with harsh speech and deceit, without any self-reflection at all; when the bodhisattva saw this, he gave rise to the thought: ‘Though the body looks like a person, that mind is loathsome!’ and so he abandoned them. All this was to make the bodhisattva, from the time he first aroused the mind, always practise the conduct of the youthful state and not come together with sensual desire. Why? Because sexual desire is the root of all fetters! The Buddha said: ‘Rather cut the body with a sharp knife than come together with a woman! Though cutting with a knife is painful, it does not lead to falling into the evil paths; but the causes and conditions of sexual desire bring the sufferings of hell again and again through immeasurable kalpas.’ If a person merely receives the five desires, he cannot even be born in the Brahmā world, how much less attain anuttarā samyaksaṃbodhi!

Someone says: ‘Although the bodhisattva receives the five desires, because his mind is not attached, it does not hinder his cultivation of the path.’ In response to this claim, the sūtra says: ‘Receiving the five desires, one cannot even be born in the Brahmā world. The Brahmā world is where beings from beginningless time have all been able to be born; if a person who receives the five desires cannot attain even the Brahmā world he ought to attain, how much less anuttarā samyaksaṃbodhi, which he has never attained yet still wishes to attain!’ Precisely because of this, the bodhisattva should live in the youthful state and cultivate the pure life, and then he will attain anuttarā samyaksaṃbodhi. The bodhisattva who cultivates the pure life, because he is not attached to the world, is able to accomplish the bodhisattva path quickly; as for one who indulges in sexual desire, it is like glue and lacquer, very hard to get free of. Why? Because when the body craves and enjoys the pleasures of desire, the root of sexual desire sinks deep! Precisely because of this, in the precepts for those who have left home, the precept on sexual conduct stands first and is also listed as a grave precept.

Must a Bodhisattva Have Parents, Wife, and Children? The Three Kinds of Bodhisattva

Śāriputra said to the Buddha: ‘World-Honored One! Must a bodhisattva-mahāsattva have parents, wife and children, relatives, and acquaintances?’

The Buddha told Śāriputra: ‘Some bodhisattvas have parents, wife and children, relatives, and acquaintances; some bodhisattvas, from the time they first aroused the mind, cut off sexual desire and practise the conduct of the youthful state, and until they attain anuttarā samyaksaṃbodhi never transgress in sensual desire; some bodhisattvas, by the power of skilful means, receive the five desires and only afterwards leave home and attain anuttarā samyaksaṃbodhi.’

The treatise-author explains: Of these three kinds of bodhisattva, the first is like worldly people who first receive the five desires and only later give them up, leave home, and attain the path of awakening. The second is one whose great merit is firm, who cut off sexual desire when first setting out the mind and continues so until attaining the Buddha path. Such a bodhisattva has either a dharma-body or a flesh body; is either already free of desire or not yet free of desire. The third is the bodhisattva of the pure dharma-body, who has already attained the acceptance of the non-arising of dharmas and abides in the six supernormal powers. In order to teach and transform beings, he engages in the same activities as beings and so gathers them in. Such a bodhisattva becomes a wheel-turning sage king, or a king of Jambudvīpa, an elder, or a kṣatriya, benefiting beings according to what they need.

The Conjurer Produces the Five Desires: The Bodhisattva Receives the Five Desires Without Truly Receiving Them

The sūtra goes on to say: ‘It is like a conjurer or a conjurer's disciple, skilled in the art of illusion, who conjures up the five desires and amuses himself with others among them. What do you think? Does this person truly and really enjoy these five desires?’

Śāriputra said: ‘No, World-Honored One!’

The Buddha told Śāriputra: ‘The bodhisattva-mahāsattva, by the power of skilful means, conjures up the five desires, takes pleasure among them, and by this brings beings to maturity—it is just like this. This bodhisattva-mahāsattva is not stained by desire, and also disparages the five desires by all kinds of causes and conditions: saying that desire burns like a blazing fire, saying that desire is filthy and foul, saying that desire brings ruin, saying that desire is like an enemy! Precisely because of this, Śāriputra! you should know that the bodhisattva receives the five desires for the sake of beings.’

Question: Among these three kinds of bodhisattva, why is a simile made for only one kind of bodhisattva?

Answer: The first, like ordinary people, does not cut off sexual desire; the second always cuts off sexual desire and cultivates pure conduct; the third also cultivates pure conduct yet appears to receive sexual desire—because worldly people do not understand this third kind, the simile is made especially for it.

Question: Why are dreams, transformations, and the like not used as similes?

Answer: A dream is not something the five senses can perceive; it arises only from the mind's recollection and imagining; whereas an illusion is seen by people with the five senses, it changes and perishes and is impermanent, and one can gain understanding by means of it. Although a transformation is also known by the five senses, those who can see it are extremely few. The Buddha wishes to ferry across the beings who can be ferried across, and illusion is something the multitude all believe in, so illusion is taken as the simile. Just as a conjurer by the art of illusion shows marvellous things before the multitude, making people rejoice, so too the bodhisattva, this conjurer, by the art of the five supernormal powers conjures up the five desires among beings, amusing himself with them, and by this ferries beings across and transforms them. Beings are of two kinds: those at home and those who have left home. To ferry across beings who have left home, he appears as a śrāvaka, a pratyekabuddha, a Buddha, or as teachers of all kinds of outside paths who have left home; as for beings at home, some are ferried across by seeing a renunciant, and some can instead be transformed by seeing a householder who receives the five desires together with them.

The Four Faults of the Five Desires: Blazing, Foul, Ruinous, Like an Enemy

The bodhisattva constantly disparages the five desires by all kinds of causes and conditions. As for ‘desire burns like a blazing fire’: before the pleasure of desire is lost, the fire of the three poisons—greed, hatred, and delusion—burns; once it is lost, the fire of impermanence burns again. Burned by two fires, it is therefore called ‘blazing’, and there is no time of true ease and happiness. As for ‘desire is filthy and foul’: the Buddhas, bodhisattvas, arhats, and all who are free of desire regard it as filthy and base. It is like a person who sees a dog eating dung, and both despises it and pities it for not getting good food but eating that impure thing instead; one who receives desire is also like this, not obtaining the inner joy of freedom from desire, but seeking pleasure in the impurity of sensual desire. As for ‘desire brings ruin’: because of attachment to the five desires, heavenly kings, human kings, and all kinds of rich and noble people have lost their kingdoms and endangered their lives—none of it has come from anything but this! As for ‘desire is like an enemy’: it makes people lose the benefit of the good; it is also like an assassin who outwardly seems like a friendly person but inwardly harbours harm; the five desires are just like this, making people lose their good mind and robbing them of their wisdom-life. The very reason the five desires arise is to destroy all good and ruin virtuous works. Know also that the five desires are like a hook that lures and harms the swimming fish, like a net that traps the mountain deer, like a lamp flame that burns the flying moth to death; precisely because of this, it is said ‘desire is like an enemy’. The harm an enemy does is only within this one life; but the causes and conditions of attachment to the five desires lead to falling into the three evil paths and undergoing to the full all kinds of suffering and poison through immeasurable lives.

How Should One Practise Prajñā: Not Seeing a Bodhisattva, Not Seeing Prajñā

Śāriputra said to the Buddha: ‘How should a bodhisattva-mahāsattva practise prajñāpāramitā?’

The Buddha told Śāriputra: ‘When a bodhisattva-mahāsattva practises prajñāpāramitā, he does not see that there is a bodhisattva, does not see that there is the name bodhisattva, does not see that there is prajñāpāramitā, also does not see “I am practising prajñāpāramitā”, and also does not see “I am not practising prajñāpāramitā”. Why? Because the bodhisattva and the name bodhisattva are empty in their very nature; in emptiness there is no form, and no feeling, perception, constructions, or consciousness; apart from form there is no emptiness, and apart from feeling, perception, constructions, and consciousness there is no emptiness. Emptiness is form, form is emptiness; emptiness is feeling, perception, constructions, and consciousness, and feeling, perception, constructions, and consciousness are emptiness. Why? Śāriputra! Only because there is a name is it called awakening; only because there is a name is it called bodhisattva; only because there is a name is it called emptiness. What is the reason for this? Because the true nature of all dharmas is originally without arising, without ceasing, without defilement, without purity. When a bodhisattva-mahāsattva practises in this way, he sees neither arising nor ceasing; he sees neither defilement nor purity. Why? Because names are produced by the coming together of many conditions, and are only provisional names set up and spoken of through recollection, imagining, and discrimination. Precisely because of this, when a bodhisattva-mahāsattva practises prajñāpāramitā, he does not see any names, and because he does not see them, he does not cling to them.’

Question: Śāriputra already asked about this matter earlier; why does he ask again now?

Answer: Earlier he asked because the Buddha had said ‘one who wishes to know all dharmas with the omniscience of all kinds should learn prajñāpāramitā’; it was not a question he asked on his own initiative. Furthermore, now Śāriputra, having heard all the praises above of the merits of prajñā, rejoices in his mind and honours prajñā, so he asks ‘how should one practise it’; it is like a sick person who hears someone praise a good medicine and then asks ‘how should it be taken’.

Question: He already asked earlier, ‘abiding in the dharma of non-abiding, practising the perfection of giving, where the giver, the receiver, and the gift are all unfindable—practising in this way is practising prajñā’; why does he ask again now how to practise?

Answer: Above was a general question about all the perfections; here he asks only about prajñā. Above, broadly praising prajñā was the main point; here he asks directly how to practise prajñā. Furthermore, although prajñāpāramitā was broadly praised above, those in the assembly longed to obtain it; so for the sake of the multitude Śāriputra asks ‘how is prajñāpāramitā practised’. The merits of prajñāpāramitā are immeasurable and inexhaustible, and the Buddha's wisdom is also immeasurable and inexhaustible; if Śāriputra did not raise the question, then the Buddha's praise would be endless and inexhaustible; if Śāriputra did not ask, there would be no cause and condition to bring the praise to a stop.

Question: Since the merits of prajñā are so worthy of honour, what would be wrong with the Buddha simply going on praising it broadly?

Answer: When prajñā is praised, the listeners rejoice and honour it, and this increases their merit; if prajñā is taught to them, this increases their wisdom. The causes and conditions of merit alone cannot accomplish the Buddha path; it can be accomplished only with wisdom; so one should not simply go on praising. When people have heard the praise, their minds are already purified and they long to obtain prajñā; it is like facing a thirsty person—simply praising at length how fine a drink is does not quench his thirst; at that point one should give him the drink. For these causes and conditions, Śāriputra now asks how prajñā is practised.

If One Does Not See, How Can One Still Practise? Not Seeing While in Contemplation, as Fire Is a Provisional Name Yet Can Burn Things

Question: It is like a person who has eyes and can see, and so knows where to go, and only then can walk; the bodhisattva too should be like this: first recollect the Buddha path, understand prajñā, and see it, and only then can he practise; why is it now said ‘he does not see the bodhisattva or prajñā’? Since he does not see, how can he practise?

Answer: This does not say that he never sees; it only says that at the time of entering the right contemplation of prajñā, he does not see the bodhisattva or prajñāpāramitā; prajñāpāramitā comes forth in order to make beings understand the Dharma of what is true. This name ‘bodhisattva’ is an appellation provisionally set up through the coming together of many conditions, as is explained in detail in a later chapter. The name prajñāpāramitā is also like this: it is the coming together of many dharmas that is provisionally named prajñāpāramitā. Although prajñāpāramitā is a provisional name, it can break through all kinds of idle discourse; because its own-nature is originally non-existent, it is said to be ‘not visible’. It is like fire: it is from the coming together of many conditions that it is provisionally named fire, and though there is no real substance of fire, it can burn things.

Question: If upon entering prajñā one does not see, and upon leaving prajñā one sees again, which side is then to be believed?

Answer: What was said above, ‘prajñā comes forth in order to reveal the Dharma of what is true’—this is to be believed; what is seen after leaving prajñāpāramitā is not true, so it is not to be believed.

Question: If ‘upon entering prajñā one does not see, and upon leaving one sees’, then you should know that it is not that all dharmas are originally and always empty, but rather that it is the power of prajñā that makes them empty!

Answer: It is in accordance with worldly convention that practising is spoken of and entering prajñāpāramitā is spoken of; in reality all the idle discourse of contemplation has ceased, and there is neither leaving nor entering. If the worthies and sages did not speak by means of names, they would have no way to teach and transform ordinary people; so one should grasp the intent of what is said, and not cling to the words!

Why First Refute the ‘Self’, and Then the Emptiness of All Dharmas?

Question: Since what is valued in prajñā is the emptiness of all dharmas, why does it here first speak of the emptiness of beings and first refute the ‘self’?

Answer: One who first hears prajñā cannot straightaway be taught the emptiness of all dharmas. The ‘self’ cannot be found by the five senses; it is only through recollection, imagining, and discrimination that the notion of a ‘self’ arises, taking to exist what originally does not exist. Again, within the mind there is no fixed object; it is only through recollection, imagining, and discrimination, the causes and conditions of inversion, that the notion of a ‘self’ arises in the five aggregates, which are originally empty. If one is told there is no self, it is easy to understand. As for form and all the other dharmas, they are seen directly before the eyes; if at the very outset they are said to be empty and non-existent, it is hard to be believed. Now the ‘self’ is refuted first, and then the dharmas of ‘mine’; once the dharmas of self and mine are refuted, all dharmas are empty. Being thus free of desire is named attaining the path.

Furthermore, it is also because prajñāpāramitā has no fixed way of being taught.

The Five Senses of ‘Not Seeing “I Practise”, Not Seeing “I Do Not Practise”’

First, the phrase ‘does not see that I practise prajñā, does not see that I do not practise’. First: ordinary people, because they do not attain prajñā, are called ‘not practising’; the bodhisattva is not like this—he practises only the prajñā whose substance is empty, so it says ‘does not see not practising’. Second: the Buddha is the king of the Dharma, and he regards the wisdom of the other bodhisattvas as still slight and mixed with all kinds of fetters, not yet counting as practice; it is like a king who, even if he obtains some small thing, does not count it as having obtained anything; the Buddha too is like this—he regards the bodhisattvas, though they have some practice, as not yet counting as practising. Third: a person who practises prajñāpāramitā easily gives rise to arrogance, saying ‘I have prajñāpāramitā’, and grasps this mark; while a person who does not practise becomes lax and sunk in his own mind, harbouring sorrow and dejection. It is precisely to counteract these two extremes that it says ‘does not see that I practise or do not practise’. Fourth: ‘does not see that I practise prajñāpāramitā’ refutes the view that clings to ‘existence’; ‘does not see that I do not practise prajñāpāramitā’ refutes the view that clings to ‘non-existence’. Fifth: ‘does not see that I practise prajñā’ stops idle discourse and play upon dharmas; ‘does not see that I do not practise’ stops the lax mind. It is like riding a horse: when it runs too fast, one reins it in; when it goes too slowly, one whips it on. In such various ways ‘practising’ and ‘not practising’ are distinguished.

Form Is Emptiness; the Mark of Arising Is Unfindable: Names Are All the Coming Together of Causes and Conditions

Furthermore, the Buddha himself states the reason, namely ‘the bodhisattva and the name bodhisattva are empty in their very nature’. Although here only the name bodhisattva is said to be empty, in fact the five aggregates are empty in the same way. As for ‘in emptiness there is no form, and apart from form there is no emptiness’: this ‘emptiness’ refers to the emptiness of dharmas; in the emptiness of dharmas there is not even a hair's breadth of dharma, how much less coarse, manifest form! And ‘emptiness is not apart from form’—why? Precisely because form is refuted, there is this emptiness; how could it be said to be apart from form! Feeling, perception, constructions, and consciousness are also like this. And what is the reason for this? Because the Buddha again himself states the reason, namely ‘only because there is a name is it called awakening; only because there is a name is it called bodhisattva; only because there is a name is it called emptiness’.

Question: This matter has already been said earlier; why is it said again now?

Answer: What was said earlier is ‘does not see the bodhisattva, does not see the word bodhisattva, does not see prajñāpāramitā’; what is said now is the reason for ‘not seeing’, namely ‘only a name is called awakening, only a name is called bodhisattva, only a name is called emptiness’. The ‘bodhisattva’ earlier and the ‘bodhisattva’ here have the same meaning. As for the ‘word bodhisattva’, it too is as was said in explaining ‘bodhisattva’.

Prajñāpāramitā is divided into two parts: what has been accomplished is named ‘awakening’; what has not yet been accomplished is named ‘emptiness’.

The so-called ‘mark of arising’ is in fact utterly unfindable, so it is named ‘non-arising’. Why? Whether arising comes first and the dharma after, or the dharma comes first and arising after, or arising and the dharma are simultaneous—all are utterly unfindable, as has already been said above. Because there is no arising, there is also ‘no ceasing’; if a dharma neither arises nor ceases, it is like empty space—where then would there be defilement or purity? It is like empty space: ten thousand years of rain cannot wet it, a great fire cannot heat it, smoke cannot stain it. Why? Because it is originally without arising. When the bodhisattva is able to contemplate in this way, he does not, apart from this dharma of non-arising and non-ceasing, separately see arising, ceasing, defilement, or purity. Why? Because the Buddha himself states the reason: ‘All dharmas are recollection, imagining, and discrimination, the coming together of causes and conditions, with a name forcibly assigned to speak of them.’ What cannot be spoken is the true meaning; what can be spoken is all only names.

As for ‘when the bodhisattva practises prajñāpāramitā he does not see any names’: earlier a few names were stated briefly, namely bodhisattva, the word bodhisattva, prajñāpāramitā, and the word awakening; now it is stated broadly that no names at all can be seen, and because they are not seen, one does not cling to them—not clinging being precisely because they are utterly unfindable. It is like among all kinds of eyes, the wisdom eye is foremost; the bodhisattva seeks everywhere with the wisdom eye and does not see them, down to not seeing even one extremely subtle dharma; precisely because of this, he does not cling.

Since He Clings to Nothing, Why Does He Not Enter Nirvāṇa?

Question: If the bodhisattva does not cling to any dharmas, why does he still not enter nirvāṇa?

Answer: This matter has already been spoken of in many places; now it is stated briefly here: because he has the mind of great compassion; because the Buddhas of the ten directions protect and keep him in mind; because his original vow is not yet fulfilled; because of the power of the perfection of vigour; because the two things, prajñāpāramitā and skilful means, come together; that is, because he does not cling even to ‘not clinging’ itself. For causes and conditions of all these kinds it is said ‘although the bodhisattva does not cling to dharmas, he does not enter nirvāṇa’.