འཕགས་པ་མཚན་མ་བཟང་པ་ཞས་བྱ་བའ་མད 4

4

la lu| bhūtapataye| ba ta yi ye svāhā

tadyathā| arakāte | narakāte| pāṃśuka| pāyiye| kapotaka pāyiye| tapodhane svāhā

“Monk, when, with the intention of safeguarding all sentient beings, sons of good family or daughters of good family keep the meaning of Auspicious Night’s teachings,²⁹ together with its prose, its stanzas, and its Dravidian mantras, in their mind, or when they remember it, read it,³⁰ concentrate on it, master it, or correctly teach it in detail to others, their body will be indestructible by fire, indestructible by poison,³¹ and unharmed by punishment inflicted by authorities³² or assault from thieves; furthermore, they will not die prematurely and will certainly reach nirvāṇa.

“No matter where one is reborn,
When one has read the sūtra Auspicious Night,
One is bound to remember one’s past lives, become an arhat,
And even attain mastery.³³

“With a single recitation,³⁴ all beings in all circumstances,
Be it untimely death or the intermediate state,
Will be protected from and purged of
Untimely death and non-Dharmic fates
Without any effort of their own.
In the case of illness, pain, fearful births,
Or the sorrow³⁵ caused by inauspicious dreams,
Uttering it will bring good luck.

“Whoever writes it down
And fastens it to the body of a man or a woman
Will create good fortune, splendor,
And prosperity for them.

“The sūtra Auspicious Night
Will rescue from premature death³⁶
All those who, with body, speech, and mind,
Have committed minor evil deeds of any kind.

“Remembering the Auspicious ³⁷ protects
From kings, water, fire and lightning,
Bandits, illness, and foes,
As well as in battle and fighting.

“Uninterrupted recitation of the Auspicious incantations³⁸
And the mantras,
Especially silent recitation,
Makes people forever³⁹ fearless.

“Homage to the completely perfect buddhas, the tathāgatas, the arhats of the past, present, and future!

“Having thus paid homage,