འཕགས་པ་ཆས་ཡང་དག་པར་སྡད་པ་ཞས་བྱ་བ་ཐག་པ་ཆན་པའ་མད 4
The Dharma Council 4
- Language
- English
4.2
“What is the suffering that bodhisattvas know?” asked Mativikrama.
Nirārambha answered, “Suffering is the ripening of the experiences of pleasant and unpleasant in relation to the five aggregates that are the bases for clinging. This is suffering. When bodhisattvas know that this suffering is dependently originated, empty, unwavering, and devoid of ‘I’ and ‘mine,’ they are said to ‘know suffering.’ When they see that suffering merely in terms of its origin, as insubstantial and immaterial, as essenceless and without agency, they are said to ‘know its origin.’ When they know that there is nothing that comes from the previous life, migrates to the next life, or that arises in the present, when they know that suffering is beginningless and is naturally in a state of cessation, naturally empty, and naturally isolated, they are said to ‘know its cessation.’”
“Child of good family, what’s another word for cessation?” asked Mativikrama.
“Child of good family,” replied Nirārambha, “there is nothing that can express cessation.”
“Child of good family, if nothing can express cessation, why do we say ‘cessation’?” asked Mativikrama.
“Child of good family,” answered Nirārambha, “cessation is free of adventitious obscurations; it is false, nonexistent, and an imputation. When something is false, it is an imputation. That is considered cessation. A phenomenon that is false, an imputation, and ceases cannot be destroyed in any way. Therefore, all phenomena are said to have utterly ceased.”
Mativikrama then said, “Child of good family, the Blessed One also said, ‘A bodhisattva does not actualize cessation. A bodhisattva who actualizes cessation has fallen to the level of a śrāvaka or pratyekabuddha.’ What did the Blessed One mean when he said that?”
“Child of good family,” answered Nirārambha, “the term actualize cannot be explained. Another way to put it would be see directly.
4.3
The Blessed One also said, ‘Cessation is a phenomenon that cannot be explained.’ Any phenomena that cannot be explained cannot possibly be actualized. Therefore, the Blessed One said, ‘A bodhisattva can neither actualize nor directly see cessation.’ With that intended meaning in mind, he also said,¹⁰⁶ ‘A bodhisattva does not actualize cessation. A śrāvaka has an intellect that grasps at a phenomenon’s attributes and thereby actualizes cessation. They remain that way and understand it as such.’ Those who apprehend and fixate their minds understand cessation in this way and see it as such. This kind of established certainty is what is known as knowing the path.
“Furthermore, child of good family, suffering is to cling to the notion of ‘I.’ Its origin is the arising of clinging to ‘mine’ along with the causes of that clinging. Knowing cessation is the recognition that there are no restrictive determinations¹⁰⁷ of phenomena when they arise. Knowing the path is recognizing that and pursuing it.
“Furthermore, child of good family, arrogance is suffering. Why? Child of good family, the Blessed One said, ‘The nature of arrogance is suffering.’ Arrogance is always false; therefore, the origin of arrogance is the origin of suffering, the absence of suffering is cessation, and the wisdom through which arrogance ceases to be arrogance is the path.
“Child of good family, for an eon and more I have not been able to fully realize this teaching on knowing the truth of a bodhisattva.”¹⁰⁸
When he finished explaining this teaching on truth, six thousand bodhisattvas realized the state of irreversible cultivation of the truth. For ten thousand goddesses present in the sky, dust fell away from their Dharma eye that sees phenomena, and they became stainless and pure.
The bodhisattva great being Mativikrama then asked the bodhisattva great being Nirārambha,
4.4
“Child of good family, what is the application of mindfulness? What is mindfulness? What are the modes of mindfulness?”
The bodhisattva great being Nirārambha answered the bodhisattva great being Mativikrama, “Child of good family, for bodhisattvas, mindfulness is knowing that no phenomena arise. Bodhisattvas aspire to know the lack of arising. Their mindfulness is made pure by knowing the lack of arising. It is, in all situations, unwavering, direct, unmoving, and recognizes neither the depths nor the shore. It is difficult for worldly beings, śrāvakas, and pratyekabuddhas to know. The mindfulness of a bodhisattva—which is the mindfulness that fully comprehends the words of all the buddhas—is the immediate experience of the thus-gone, worthy, completely perfect Buddha. This is what the mindfulness of a bodhisattva is like.
“A bodhisattva’s mindfulness has ten modes: (1) the application of mindfulness of the body, (2) the application of mindfulness of sensations, (3) the application of mindfulness of mind, (4) the application of mindfulness of phenomena, (5) the application of mindfulness of recollecting the Buddha, (6) the application of mindfulness of recollecting the Dharma, (7) the application of mindfulness of recollecting the Saṅgha, (8) the application of mindfulness of recollecting discipline, (9) the application of mindfulness of recollecting giving, and (10) the application of mindfulness of recollecting divinities. These are the ten applications of mindfulness.
“What is the bodhisattvas’ application of mindfulness of the body? Bodhisattvas apply mindfulness to the body by thinking as follows: ‘This body did not come from a previous life, it does not migrate to the next life; it was not present in the previous life, and it will not be present in the next life. Otherwise, it would be false, and would arise from error. It would be devoid of one who acts and one who feels, and it would have no beginning, no end, and no middle.
4.5
There is no fundamental root¹⁰⁹ or governing power. There is no “mine” and no appropriation. Notions of “collection,” “body,” “enjoyment,” “basis,”¹¹⁰ “corpse,” and “sense base” are conventional designations based on superficial conventions. This body is without essence; it comes from the father’s semen and the mother’s blood. It is innately unclean, putrid, and foul-smelling. It is confounded by the thieves of desire, anger, dullness, fear, and sloth. It is continuously beset by decay, collapse, disintegration, decomposition, and destruction, and it is host to a hundred thousand different diseases.’¹¹¹
“Furthermore, child of good family, bodhisattvas think about what the body is like and apply mindfulness to the body as follows:¹¹² ‘This body is just a collection composed of the feet, toes, calves, thighs, sacrum,¹¹³ abdomen, navel, spine, heart, sides, ribs, palms,¹¹⁴ forearms, shoulders, neck, cheeks, forehead, and skull. It has been gathered through the impetus of karma’s arising and persists as the hundred thousand different afflictive emotions, secondary afflictive emotions, notions, and concepts. It is a collection of many substances: head hair, body hair, nails, teeth, bone, skin, muscle, marrow, tendons, omentum, fat, serum, liver, urine, feces, stomach, intestines,¹¹⁵ blood, saliva, bile, pus, mucus, skull, and brain.’
“Bodhisattvas analytically think, ‘This body is equal to space,’ and apply mindfulness to the body that is space-like. They see everything as being space-like.
4.6
They neither apply mindfulness to anything apart from that which comprehends the body, nor do they avoid it.¹¹⁶ This is known as sustaining mindfulness by neither applying it nor avoiding it. To sustain mindfulness in this way is to correctly know that the body accords with awakening. There is nothing that obstructs this. Why? Because anything that obstructs it is not fundamental to it. This is what is known as a bodhisattva’s application of mindfulness of the body.
“What is a bodhisattva’s application of mindfulness of sensations? A bodhisattva thinks, ‘Sensations are something understood; that knowledge¹¹⁷ is either erroneous, correct, or free of both.’ The sensations of naive, ordinary people, whose minds are distracted and in error, are also in error. They experience the impermanent as permanent, suffering as happiness, selflessness as the self, and the impure as pure. These are erroneous sensations. Experiencing the impermanent as impermanent, suffering as suffering, selflessness as selflessness, and the impure as impure are the sensations of śrāvakas. Experiencing the impermanent as neither impermanent nor not impermanent, suffering as neither suffering nor happiness, selflessness as neither selfless nor not selfless, and the impure as neither impure nor not impure are the sensations of bodhisattvas.
“A bodhisattva does not recognize an experiencer of these sensations, and in not recognizing one, does not in any way recognize sensations either. A bodhisattva thinks, ‘The Blessed One said, “All compounded things involve sensation.” If all compounded things involve sensation,¹¹⁸ there would be something referred to as an “experiencer.” Sensations are not the cause of sensations; there is nothing to be sensed, no sensation, and no cause of sensation.
4.7
Even the uncompounded is not the cause of sensation for the compounded. There is nothing at all that causes sensation that is independent of the compounded and uncompounded. Thus, a bodhisattva recognizes that there is no sensation in any of those sensations.’ A bodhisattva does not recognize any kind of effort derived through sensation. This correct recognition of how sensation accords with awakening is what is known as a bodhisattva’s application of mindfulness of sensations.
“What is a bodhisattva’s application of mindfulness of the mind? A bodhisattva thinks, ‘A sensation is merely the mind, and that mind has no location, has no grasping, and has no body. What would the location be for that which has no status, no grasping, and no body?’ The bodhisattva sees that the mind is not known by the mind, the mind is not seen by the mind, and that a mind that arises on the basis of something is dependent on something other and has no independent agency. Even awakening is not known separately from the mind.¹¹⁹ By knowing awakening as merely the mind, bodhisattvas attain power over the mind, and through their power over the mind they master the Great Vehicle. They regard all beings equally and cannot be dissuaded by others from the Great Vehicle. This is known as a bodhisattva’s application of mindfulness of the mind.
“What is a bodhisattva’s application of mindfulness of phenomena? Bodhisattvas whose mindfulness has fully comprehended, fully trained in, fully gathered, fully mastered, and taken full independent control over any phenomena to which mindfulness can be applied—virtuous and nonvirtuous, fallible and infallible, defiled and undefiled, mundane and transmundane phenomena, as well as the phenomena of śrāvakas, pratyekabuddhas, and ordinary people—will consider them equal insofar as they do not arise or cease.
4.8
They do not recognize any phenomenon that transcends being unarisen and unceasing, that transcends dependent arising, or that transcends being empty, signless, and wishless.
“The bodhisattva thinks, ‘All phenomena lack something that possesses them; they are naturally isolated. All phenomena lack a self; they are naturally nondual. All phenomena are unobscured; they have the nature of space. All phenomena are nonconceptual; they are free of mind, thought, and the mind consciousness. All phenomena are essentially liberated; they are naturally free of the afflictive emotions. All phenomena are indescribable; they are naturally inexpressible. All phenomena are inarticulable; they are naturally uncontrived. All phenomena are incalculable; they completely transcend all calculations. All phenomena are straightforward; they completely transcend all conceptual elaborations. All phenomena are rootless because they are seedless. All phenomena are faultless because they are purified at the root. No phenomena arrive because they are incorporeal. No phenomena depart because they are not located anywhere. All phenomena are unobstructed because they are empty. All phenomena are empty because they originate dependently. All phenomena escape because they are nonconceptual. All phenomena are independent because they are understood in whatever manner is desired. All phenomena are fully realized because they are innately knowable. All phenomena are mere designations because they are immaterial. All phenomena are unobservable because they are innately unsupported. All phenomena are unfettered because they are incorporeal. All phenomena are unliberated because they are essenceless. All phenomena are not impervious because of their essential state of suchness.
4.9
All phenomena are of a single scope because of the indivisibility of the expanse of phenomena. And all phenomena are undifferentiated because they are equal to the limit of reality.’ Thinking this, bodhisattvas examine phenomena in this way and sustain that examination.
“Bodhisattvas who examine phenomena as such and sustain that examination do not differentiate between beings. They do not differentiate between phenomena, vehicles, buddhas, or buddhafields. They do not recognize inferior and superior, bondage and release, or saṃsāra and nirvāṇa. They lack abandonment, grasping, engaging, avoiding, accepting, and rejecting. They attain and maintain a state of nondistraction. Those bodhisattva great beings who sustain peace will be seen by the blessed buddhas residing in their different buddhafields, and will be prophesied by them to attain unsurpassable, completely perfect awakening. This is known as a bodhisattva’s application of mindfulness of phenomena.
“What is a bodhisattva’s application of the mindfulness of recollecting the Buddha? A bodhisattva’s application of the mindfulness of recollecting the Buddha is to cultivate the following: After bringing all beings immediately to mind, they apply mindfulness with the thought, ‘May I and all beings achieve unsurpassable, completely perfect awakening. To that end I will achieve the thus-gone, worthy, completely perfect buddhas’ ten strengths of a thus-gone one, four kinds of fearlessness, and eighteen unique qualities.’ Through that mindfulness, bodhisattvas recollect the mindfulness of the blessed buddhas, which is inconceivable, stainless, pure, luminous, and free of latent impressions; in which the entire nexus of habitual patterns has been severed; which is based in wisdom, governed by wisdom, and governed by all the buddhas, the Dharma,
4.10
and the divine; in which all types of certainty have been obtained; which lacks the stains that obscure objects of knowledge and so cannot be comprehended by śrāvakas and pratyekabuddhas; and which is spontaneously present, of unhindered power, is sustained without obstruction, enhances the thoughts of all beings, and is unchanging like space. They recollect the buddhas through these ways of recollection. They recollect with modes of mindfulness that are the precious jewels of the buddhas, the treasury of the buddhas. For that reason, this is known as the recollection of the Buddha.
“A buddha is neither mindful nor unmindful; they are always spontaneously present and nonconceptual. To recollect these modes of mindfulness is therefore known as the recollection of the Buddha.
“A buddha does not perceive differences among beings and phenomena. Because a bodhisattva recollects through these modes of mindfulness, this is therefore known as the recollection of the Buddha.
“Buddhas are not conceptual; they are nonconceptual. They do not accept or reject. They do not cycle in saṃsāra or pass into nirvāṇa. They do not arise or cease. A bodhisattva recollects these points, which is why this is known as the recollection of the Buddha.
“Furthermore, the blessed buddhas possess a great collection of merit and wisdom. They are domains of great love and compassion. They serve as refuge¹²⁰ and protectors for the great mass of beings and are great doctors who alleviate pain. They are perpetual domains of samādhi in which all beings are held to be equal. They are free of both saṃsāra and nirvāṇa¹²¹ and have surpassed the obscurations of the afflictive emotions and cognitive obscurations. They are the abode of a great being, the basis of a great being, and a guide. They have the scope of the dharmakāya, are in all circumstances possessed of a mind free of hostility, and are constantly delighted to serve beings. They are vast in body, speech, and mind,
4.11
teach perpetually, and are irreproachable in their activities of body, speech, and mind. They have confounded desire, anger, and dullness along with their habitual patterns, have conquered all māras and adversaries, and possess the supreme and undisputed Dharma. They are of greater depths than all the oceans, of greater height than all sumerus, more stable than the earth, and more supple than water; they blaze hotter than fire; and they are more unencumbered than the wind, more stainless than space, more nimble than the movements of the mind, and more exalted than a wish-fulfilling jewel. They are omniscient, equally engaged with every being, free of all desire, and unceasing in their efforts to benefit all beings. Their physical form, sound, and qualities are immeasurable. They are inconceivable, possess the inconceivable Dharma of the buddhas, and utterly transcend the mind, thought, and mental objects. Their minds are rich in knowledge and ethical conduct and they have cut through the evil of the three paths.¹²² They have the exalted intentions that come from great compassion, possess qualities that are shared in common with all beings, and act as if a mother and father to all beings.¹²³ To them, friend and foe are regarded equally, and they experience an axe and sandalwood as the same.¹²⁴ They have the character to bring clarity to all beings—inferior, average, and superior—at all times and in every circumstance. They are great beings whom others find difficult to fathom. They possess great luxuries, are rich in knowledge and ethical conduct, and are great speakers of the Dharma and Vinaya. They are great people who have the marks of a great person. They surpass the entire world¹²⁵ and serve as a light of the world. They are yogins of the great yoga,¹²⁶ domains of great meditation who possess the wonder of great liberation.¹²⁷
4.12
Great beings with a retinue of great and distinguished people, they have not turned away from seeing, listening, relying upon, and serving. Indifferent to their own happiness, they take joy in soothing the suffering of others. They are dedicated to the Dharma, are rich in the Dharma, take the Dharma as food, take the Dharma as medicine, possess the treasury of Dharma, and are lords of the Dharma, masters of the Dharma, and give the Dharma freely. They always delight in renouncing, remain ever vigilant, and always delight in isolation. They serve as a ford and causeway in every regard, are like a royal highway or a great sun,¹²⁸ and are like the great Brahmā. They hold the vajra of great wisdom, provide relief through the great Dharma, and have appearances that are never tiring to see and behold. This is how bodhisattvas recollect the blessed buddhas. Recollecting them in this way, they apply mindfulness in order to perfect their qualities,¹²⁹ ¹³⁰ doing so with sustained diligence. Therefore, this is known as the recollection of the Buddha.
“All this is known as a bodhisattva’s application of the mindfulness of recollecting the Buddha.
“What is a bodhisattva’s application of the mindfulness of recollecting the Dharma? Bodhisattvas apply the mindfulness of recollecting the Dharma by thinking, ‘The blessed buddhas have infinite, limitless good qualities. They are born from Dharma, are heirs to the Dharma,¹³¹ emanate through the Dharma, are lords of the Dharma, arise from the Dharma, are within the scope of the Dharma, are the basis of the Dharma, and are perfected through the Dharma. The major and minor marks of the blessed buddhas are also born from the Dharma, found through the Dharma, and perfected through the Dharma. The thus-gone ones’ ten strengths of a thus-gone one and the four kinds of fearlessness are also born from the Dharma, found through the Dharma, and perfected through the Dharma.
4.13
The thus-gone ones’ eighteen unique qualities of a buddha are also born from the Dharma, found through the Dharma, and perfected through the Dharma. All the mundane and transmundane happiness that exists is also born from the Dharma, found through the Dharma, and perfected through the Dharma. Therefore, other than seeking the awakening of buddhahood, the Dharma will be my main focus. I will remain in the scope of the Dharma, support the Dharma, be dedicated to the Dharma, take the Dharma as essential, and accomplish all things that are aligned with the Dharma.’
“Furthermore, bodhisattvas think, ‘The Dharma applies equally to all beings; thus it does not perceive them as inferior, average, or superior, and then apply to them as such. I should therefore make my mind like the Dharma. The Dharma¹³² is impartial, thus it does not perceive or engage with an essence. I should therefore make my mind like the Dharma. The Dharma is timeless, meaningful to behold, and self-evident, thus it has no regard for or concern with time. I should therefore make my mind like the Dharma. There is no high and low in the Dharma, thus it is not concerned with what is vast or lowly. I should therefore make my mind like the Dharma. The Dharma is neither superior nor inferior, thus it is not concerned with purity or defilement. I should therefore make my mind like the Dharma. The Dharma is free of the view of what is and is not a field,¹³³ thus it is not concerned with either noble beings or ordinary people. I should therefore make my mind like the Dharma. The Dharma is constantly and uninterruptedly engaged; thus it is not something engaged in during the day but not at night, or at night but not during the day.
4.14
I should therefore make my mind like the Dharma. The Dharma is never present anywhere; thus it is never out of reach at a moment of training. I should therefore make my mind like the Dharma. The Dharma lacks desire for anything, thus it has no anger toward those who are hostile nor attraction for those with faith. I should therefore make my mind like the Dharma. The Dharma neither diminishes nor increases, but rather is unfathomable and incalculable. Like space, it does not contract or expand. I should therefore make my mind like the Dharma. The Dharma is not protected by beings, it is the Dharma that protects beings. I should therefore make my mind like the Dharma. The Dharma does not seek refuge, the Dharma is the refuge for all worlds. I should therefore make my mind like the Dharma. The Dharma has the character of being unobstructed, thus it is not obstructed by anything. I should therefore make my mind like the Dharma. The Dharma lacks latent impressions; thus it is not concerned with latent impressions. I should therefore make my mind like the Dharma. The Dharma is always nonconceptual, thus it does not fear saṃsāra nor is it attracted to nirvāṇa. I should therefore make my mind like the Dharma.’ Thus, because bodhisattvas apply the mindfulness of the Dharma in conformity with the Dharma, it is known as recollecting the Dharma.
“Child of good family, this is a bodhisattva’s application of the mindfulness of recollecting the Dharma.
“What is a bodhisattva’s application of the mindfulness of recollecting the Saṅgha? A bodhisattva thinks,
4.15
‘The saṅgha professes the Dharma, trains in the Dharma, reflects on the Dharma, is a field of Dharma, upholds the Dharma, supports the Dharma, worships the Dharma, performs the activities of the Dharma, is the domain of the Dharma, is perfect in the conduct of the Dharma, is naturally honest, is naturally clear, has the character of compassion, is compassionate, is always in the domain of solitude, is always dedicated to the Dharma, and will always engage in virtuous conduct.’
“Furthermore, a bodhisattva thinks, ‘The Blessed One spoke of many types of saṅgha: the conventional saṅgha, the ultimate saṅgha, the modest saṅgha, the immodest saṅgha, the noble saṅgha, the exalted saṅgha, and the irreversible saṅgha. A bodhisattva endeavors in gathering the conventional saṅgha, serving the ultimate saṅgha, liberating the modest saṅgha, taming the immodest saṅgha, and worshiping and venerating the noble saṅgha; endeavors just as the Buddha did with the exalted saṅgha; and endeavors for the sake of Dharma instruction among the irreversible saṅgha.’
“Furthermore, a bodhisattva thinks, ‘The saṅgha of a buddha’s heirs upholds the lineage. The saṅgha of excellent fields yields pleasing fruit. The saṅgha of the fearless frees from bad rebirths. The saṅgha of those devoid of the ordinary mind forsakes and casts aside grasping. The exalted saṅgha tames intently. The saṅgha that is free of afflictive emotions is uncontaminated. The saṅgha of the modest is free of evil.
4.16
The saṅgha of disciples takes pleasure in instruction. The saṅgha that lacks the notion of “mine” fully understands the self. The saṅgha devoid of arrogance is peaceful. The saṅgha that is free of error has few desires. The saṅgha free of illness cuts through conceptual thought. The saṅgha that remains on level ground has reached the other shore. The saṅgha that has attained happiness remains on level ground. The saṅgha of the vigilant sees things as they are. The saṅgha of the forest dwellers is not interested in faults. The saṅgha of those dedicated to awakening is vast. The saṅgha of those who seek training knows the ways of the three trainings. The saṅgha of the mindful falls within the scope of the applications of mindfulness. The saṅgha of those compelled by diligence falls within the scope of correct abandonment. The saṅgha of the unwearied falls within the scope of the bases of miraculous power. The saṅgha of the unrelenting falls within the scope of power. The saṅgha of the untroubled falls within the scope of strength. The saṅgha of the unobscured falls within the scope of the branches of awakening. The saṅgha of those with correct view falls within the scope of the path. The saṅgha of noble ones falls within the scope of truth. The saṅgha of those with meditative composure falls within the scope of meditative stability. The saṅgha that turns the wheel of Dharma falls within the scope of dependent arising. The irreversible saṅgha possesses great compassion. And the saṅgha of those with only a single birth remaining has accumulated the requisite of all merit.’ A bodhisattva who calls the saṅgha to mind in this way will think,
4.17
‘May I and all beings accomplish these perfect qualities of the saṅgha.’
“This is what is known as a bodhisattva’s application of the mindfulness of recollecting the Saṅgha.
“What is a bodhisattva’s application of the mindfulness of recollecting discipline? A bodhisattva thinks, ‘I see that all that is excellent and perfect, both mundane and transcendent, arises from discipline. How so? Discipline is the basis for all that is excellent and perfect. The earth, for example, is the basis for all medicinal plants, grasses, and forests. Just so, discipline is the basis for all that is excellent and perfect. Bodhisattvas who maintain a basis of discipline are worthy recipients of worship by the world and its gods. Doing so also perfects the practice of generosity. Bodhisattvas who maintain a basis of discipline experience joy. Joyful in mind, they have no regrets, and without regrets, they attain supreme joy. Through their supreme joy they become physically and mentally pliable, and they reach a stage of bliss through that physical and mental pliancy and attain samādhi. Resting in meditative composure they see everything exactly as it is. Bodhisattvas who see everything exactly as it is act with great compassion for beings.’
“A bodhisattva also thinks, ‘For the sake of all beings I should accomplish this gateway of samādhi and be able to see phenomena exactly as they are. Motivated with that kind of great compassion, one perfects the trainings of higher discipline, higher intention, and higher insight, and then awakens to unsurpassable, completely perfect awakening.
4.18
Therefore I too will be unshakeable and steady in maintaining discipline. I will guard my discipline with all beings in mind.’¹³⁴ Why do they think this? The discipline of bodhisattvas benefits all beings and is a support for happiness. It does not fail as a support for it.
“Furthermore, a bodhisattva thinks, ‘A bodhisattva’s discipline of leaving home brings about the perfection of a mind without harmful intent. A bodhisattva’s discipline as a renunciant perfects the abandonment of all possessions. A bodhisattva’s discipline of maintaining their trainings and vows perfects purity in body, speech, and mind. A bodhisattva’s discipline of contemplation perfects the six higher cognitions. A bodhisattva’s discipline of settling internally perfects the factors of awakening. A bodhisattva’s discipline of listening to the Dharma perfects the four correct discernments. A bodhisattva’s discipline of seeking learning perfects the absence of pride. A bodhisattva’s discipline of serving a spiritual friend perfects the indestructibility of their virtuous qualities. A bodhisattva’s discipline of the perfections perfects omniscient wisdom. A bodhisattva’s discipline of teaching the Dharma just as they heard it perfects their status as a Dharma reciter. A bodhisattva’s discipline of reflecting on the Dharma just as they heard it perfects their dhāraṇī and confident eloquence. A bodhisattva’s discipline of the mind set on awakening perfects their transcendence of all births.
4.19
A bodhisattva’s discipline of not feeling hostile toward any being perfects the indestructibility of the mind set on awakening. A bodhisattva’s discipline of the indestructible mind set on awakening perfects the indestructibility of the Three Jewels.’ They also think, ‘Those who have guarded their discipline have guarded all that needs guarding.’
“This, child of good family, is what is known as a bodhisattva’s application of the mindfulness of recollecting discipline.
“What is a bodhisattva’s application of the mindfulness of recollecting giving? A bodhisattva thinks, ‘All that can be given is included in the two types of giving: giving material goods and giving the Dharma.’ By giving material goods, bodhisattvas perfect the purity that completes the major and minor marks, purify buddhafields, and ripen beings. By the giving of Dharma, bodhisattvas perfect the ten strengths, the four kinds of fearlessness, and the eighteen unique qualities of a buddha. Habitual patterns are also destroyed.
“By giving material goods bodhisattvas reject all the aggregates. By giving the Dharma they surpass the state of all the śrāvakas and pratyekabuddhas. By giving material goods bodhisattvas purify their birth body. By giving the Dharma they purify the dharmakāya.
“Child of good family, by giving material goods bodhisattva great beings perfect the strength imparted by their mother and father. No one else possesses that strength, apart from the thus-gone ones and bodhisattvas on the tenth bodhisattva level.
4.20
By giving the Dharma they achieve the strength of miraculous power. No one else possesses that strength, apart from the thus-gone ones and bodhisattvas on the tenth bodhisattva level.
“Giving material goods brings about ripening. Giving the Dharma brings about release. Giving material goods gathers the requisites. Giving the Dharma brings liberation. By giving material goods bodhisattvas give up wealth. By giving the Dharma, they give up everything. By giving material goods bodhisattvas effect liberation from the obscurations of the afflictive emotions. By giving the Dharma, they effect liberation from cognitive obscurations.
“Another way giving is defined as ‘giving’ is in terms of giving up conceptual designations. That is to say, this mode of giving is supreme among all modes of giving. Why? By giving up conceptual designations one is known as an authentic bodhisattva.”
Mativikrama then asked, “Child of good family, what does conceptual designation refer to?”
“Child of good family,” replied Nirārambha, “a conceptual designation is false and an imputation based on nothing.”
“How is it false and an imputation based on nothing?” asked Mativikrama.
Nirārambha replied, “All imputations, such as thinking ‘I am attached,’ ‘I am angry,’ ‘I am dull,’ ‘I am afflicted,’ ‘I am pure,’ ‘I am fettered,’ ‘I am free,’ ‘I am in saṃsāra,’ ‘I have passed into nirvāṇa,’ and similar thoughts are false and are conceptual designations based on nothing. How so? They are all circumstantial; there is no ‘I’ or ‘mine,’ no being, no life force, no person, no human being, no humankind. They are all circumstantial, and naturally empty. They are naturally isolated and free of mind, thought, and the mental consciousness.
4.21
They are not sentient but are conceptual designations. They are not afflicted or pure and are not related to saṃsāra or nirvāṇa. Bodhisattvas do not form imputations on what does not exist. Giving up imputations is known as perfect giving. When bodhisattvas recollect this quality, it is known as the recollection of giving.
“Furthermore, child of good family, a bodhisattva’s practice of giving is of three types: giving, great giving, the supreme giving. What is the bodhisattvas’ practice of giving? It is the giving of food to those who need food, and the giving of drink, conveyances, clothes, lamps, incense, fragrances, garlands, ointments, powders, cloth, parasols, banners, flags, chariots, ornaments, and so forth. There is no object bodhisattvas do not give to beings apart from that which would harm or ruin them. This is known as the bodhisattvas’ practice of giving.
“What is the bodhisattvas’ practice of great giving? Bodhisattvas engage in great giving after they perfect giving. They give up their wives, sons, daughters, beloved male and female servants, workers, laborers, household, and kingdom. This is known as the bodhisattvas’ practice of great giving.
“What is the bodhisattvas’ practice of supreme giving? Bodhisattvas engage in supreme giving after they perfect giving and great giving. It entails giving up their arms, legs, ears, nose, flesh, bones, skin, eyes, tongue, skull, marrow, and so forth. This is known as the bodhisattvas’ practice of supreme giving.
4.22
“A bodhisattva recollects giving, great giving, and supreme giving, and thinks, ‘I will perfect these kinds of mindfulness.’ That is known as the recollection of giving, and this, in total, is known as a bodhisattva’s application of the mindfulness of recollecting giving.
“What is a bodhisattva’s application of the mindfulness of recollecting divinities? It is a bodhisattva’s recollection of the pure divinities: śrāvakas, pratyekabuddhas, bodhisattvas, and completely perfect buddhas. Bodhisattvas recollect them through their practices, good qualities, birth, pleasures, behavior,¹³⁵ endeavors, attainments, and accomplishment. This is known as the application of the mindfulness of recollecting divinities.
“Bodhisattvas also recollect other divinities. They think, ‘In a similar way to how I recollected those divinities, these divinities are the products of virtuous actions—virtuous actions that include the path of the ten virtuous actions that counter nonvirtue. All their appearances, many states of bliss, and sensory gratifications are the ripening of the path of the ten virtuous deeds.’ Bodhisattvas will then rejoice in that divine bliss, and dedicate themselves to unsurpassable, completely perfect awakening for the benefit of all beings. They wish that all beings would have divine bliss, and through the wish that all beings have that divine bliss, then establish the great diligence required to accomplish the roots of virtue.
“Bodhisattvas discover great compassion for beings born in the lower realms and think, ‘I will orient all such beings toward the performance of actions that lead to birth among the worldly gods.
4.23
For those beings already among the gods, I will work for their full and complete attainment of unsurpassable, completely perfect awakening. I will ensure that beings perform those actions through which they attain divine bliss, that it does not later diminish, and that once they have reached that bliss, they attain the bliss of the thus-gone ones’ peaceful bliss.’ This thought is known as a bodhisattva’s application of the mindfulness of recollecting divinities.
“Child of good family, these are a bodhisattva’s ten applications of mindfulness.”
The bodhisattva great being Nirārambha then expressed that same meaning in verse:
“Because emptiness is not observed
Anywhere other than suffering,
Do not see suffering as suffering;
Suffering should be seen as empty.
“One who wishes to see emptiness
Should see suffering correctly.
Suffering is the meaning of emptiness,
As that which is empty is uncompounded.
“Because suffering is uncreated,
Suffering has no creator.
A creator that is free of suffering
Never was and never will be.
“If suffering is totally and completely
Free of any obscuration,
And if suffering is uncreated,
What then is its origin?
“If suffering does not involve coming,
And it does not go anywhere,
How does attachment arise?
If suffering does not exist, where is it?
“If suffering has an origin,
And craving is explained as that origin,
But there is no one who craves and no craving,
How then could there be a source?
“Suffering does not involve coming.
Without coming, how could there be going?
In the absence of coming and going,
Cessation is taught to be peace.
“Phenomena are essentially peaceful;
Their root is pure, luminous, and clear.
Cessation and phenomena are equivalent;
All things relinquish the two extremes.
“Phenomena that previously arose
Will also immediately cease.
Without cessation there is no arising,
And without arising, no waning.
“The effort to conceive of that
Is the path of nonattachment and nonwaning.
4.24
The path is taught to be like a boat,
A boat that should be entirely given up.
“What joy can be found in a phenomenon
That is gathered, only to be given up?
The yogi is called free
Who keeps to the high ground of giving up the path.
“Thus, by meditating on phenomena
Using the wisdom of the path,
The qualities of liberation are revealed.
This is wholly indisputable.
“What we call the body
Is a mass of head hair, body hair,
Nails, teeth, flesh, bone, blood,
Fat, omentum, muscle, excrement,
“Bile, phlegm, brain,
Liver, tendons, intestines, and urine.
The yogi sees these body parts
As mere nonexistent imaginings.
“In it there is no actor,
No one who senses or sees.
What we call the ‘body’
Is inherently like an empty town.
“Sensation is described as ‘experience,’
But who experiences it?
There is no one to sense it
Who is separate from the sensation.
“This is how the astute¹³⁶
Apply mindfulness to sensation.
It is peaceful, pure, and luminous,
Just as awakening is.¹³⁷
“Mind is not seen in¹³⁸ the body,
Nor likewise the mind in the mind.
Knowing this, there is no agitation;
Even the one who liberates knows no joy.
“One sees merely the mind.
Though all concepts are entirely abandoned,
The one in the domain of the unobscured
Does not forsake the practice.
“Phenomena are not self-arisen,
They are not effected by anything,
They are incalculable and without words,
And they have the quality of being like space.
“Upon assimilating the realization of this teaching,
A yogic practitioner who knows the Dharma
And remains in equipoise
Neither engages nor avoids.
“Those who are mindful of the Dharma in this way,
Who never stray from the Dharma,
Are stable in the perfections
And cultivate generosity toward the Buddha’s teaching.
“The Buddha is wise in all things,
Untainted by any obscuration;
He perfectly performs every wholesome deed,
And wishes benefit for all beings.
“Those of good lineage, appearance, qualities, and deeds,
Who are wise about perfect awakening,
4.25
And who are correctly mindful,
Will develop further through the virtuous Dharma.
“One who is always in meditative composure,
Undistracted from the mindfulness of phenomena,
Gladdens all the buddhas
Of both the past and the future.
“One with the nature to rely on the sublime Dharma,
Who has the scope to be mindful of phenomena,
And who is firm in their bodhisattva commitments
Will realize perfect awakening.
“The bodhisattva who is mindful, thinking,
‘Whatever phenomena are is what I am,’
And maintains meditative composure
Will understand the mindfulness of phenomena.
“ ‘There is no “I,” there is no “mine”;
Whatever phenomena are is what I am.’
Being mindful while thinking this
Is to cultivate the recollection of phenomena.
“The saṅgha, the disciples of the Buddha,
Are an unsurpassable field of merit.
Those who would awaken to buddhahood
Always engage in correct recollection.
“By whatever merit I have amassed,
Through the application of mindfulness
That is as hard to fathom as the ocean,
May beings become thus-gone ones!
“All the supreme merit generated
By correct recollection of the discipline
Demonstrated by those with an irreversible nature,
And by the intention to benefit all beings,
“I dedicate to perfect awakening,
Out of a wish to benefit all beings.
Acting to benefit all beings
Is known as mindfulness of discipline.
“In order to benefit all beings,
I help those with a compassionate nature
To dedicate the virtue of giving up afflictive emotions,
And giving away phenomena out of disinterest.
“May the perfect recollection of giving,
Present in every buddhafield and birth,¹³⁹
Rise everywhere like the sun,
Effortlessly and absent all features.
“Those with a compassionate nature aspire
That all beings may experience the bliss
Of the virtues known by all the gods,
And that are born from virtuous deeds.
“One should always cultivate the bliss,
Of those who first became gods
And then reached unsurpassable buddhahood.
May I practice in precisely this way.”
Then, both the bodhisattva great being Nirārambha
Linked texts (1)
- འཕགས་པ་ཆོས་ཡང་དག་པར་སྡུད་པ་ཞེས་བྱ་བ་ཐེག་པ་ཆེན་པོའི་མདོ — Classical Tibetan