འཕགས་པ་འཇམ་དཔལ་གནས་པ་ཞས་བྱ་བ་ཐག་པ་ཆན་པའ་མད 8

8

I am shocked that one hundred monks have all gone to ruin⁴¹ because you did not teach a Dharma that protects sentient beings.”

Thereupon the Bhagavān replied to the elder Śāriputra, “Śāriputra, do not say such things. Why? Śāriputra, those one hundred monks will come into contact with the great hell of Howling for only a moment, and they will then take rebirth together among the gods of Tuṣita heaven.⁴² Śāriputra, if these monks had not heard this Dharma discourse, they would undoubtedly have gone to hell, and having exhausted their karma,⁴³ some would have taken rebirth as humans. But since they have relied upon this Dharma discourse, even those deeds that would cause other beings to experience hell for an eon will, for them, cause that experience for only a short while. Therefore, Śāriputra, those one hundred monks will be included among the initial hearers of the tathāgata Maitreya and become arhats who have exhausted their pollutions. Since that is so, Śāriputra, for this Dharma discourse to be heard by those who have doubt is excellent indeed, in a way that is not the case for the attainment of the four meditative concentrations, in a way that is not the case for the four immeasurables, and in a way that is not the case for the cultivation of the four formless attainments. Why is that? Because without hearing such a Dharma discourse, one will not be liberated from cyclic existence, nor will one be liberated from birth, ageing, sickness, death, sorrow, lamentation, suffering, sadness, and agitation.”

The venerable Śāriputra then said to the youthful Mañjuśrī, “Mañjuśrī, it is amazing how you have matured sentient beings through your eloquent explanation of this Dharma discourse.”

“Honorable Śāriputra,” replied Mañjuśrī, “the true nature does not diminish, nor does it increase. The realm of reality does not diminish