འཕགས་པ་རྟན་ཅང་འབྲལ་པར་འབྱང་བ་ཞས་བྱ་བ་ཐག་པ་ཆན་པའ་མད intro.5

intro.5

The teaching on dependent arising is epitomized by the famous “creed” (dhāraṇī) in verse-form, stating that the Buddha teaches the causes for the arising of phenomena as well as that which is their cessation. This verse formula is perhaps best known from a narrative in the Vinaya recounting Śāriputra’s life. The story tells of Upatiṣya (as Śāriputra was called before he met the Buddha) first hearing about the Buddha from Aśvajit, one of the Buddha’s five erstwhile companions and earliest disciples. When Upatiṣya asks Aśvajit to summarize the very essence of the Buddha’s teaching, Aśvajit answers him by reciting this verse. As soon as he hears it, Upatiṣya immediately attains a preliminary state of realization.²