འཕགས་པ་འཇམ་དཔལ་རྣམ་པར་འཕྲལ་པའ་ལའ་ཞས་བྱ་བ་ཐག་པ་ཆན་པའ་མད 6

6

yet they also engage in teaching the Dharma appropriate to each being, through their knowledge of skillful means.

“With their knowledge of insight, bodhisattvas engage in comprehending the 84,000 activities of beings; yet they also teach the 84,000 collections of the Dharma, through their knowledge of skillful means.

“This, divine being, is the most excellent proper engagement of bodhisattvas.”

As youthful Mañjuśrī gave this teaching on proper engagement, the intention to reach unexcelled and perfect awakening arose within eight thousand gods from that assembly, and five thousand bodhisattvas developed acceptance that phenomena are unborn.

The Blessed One gave his approval to youthful Mañjuśrī, saying, “Excellent, Mañjuśrī! You have explained the proper engagement of bodhisattvas well.”

The god Great Light then asked youthful Mañjuśrī, “Mañjuśrī, were you pleased when the Thus-Gone One gave you his approval?”

Mañjuśrī replied, “Divine being, tell me, when one emanation gives approval to another emanation, does that emanation become pleased?”

“Mañjuśrī, if the emanation has no attachment or aversion, how could it become pleased?” asked the god.

“Divine being,” replied Mañjuśrī, “all phenomena have the inherent characteristic of being emanations, and so the Thus-Gone One and Mañjuśrī also have that characteristic. Therefore, why would I become pleased by being praised? By way of analogy, divine being, an echo does not become attached to pleasant or unpleasant sounds. Nor does it become averse to them. Divine being, in that way all phenomena have the inherent nature of an echo. The Thus-Gone One and Mañjuśrī both have that nature.