[Pramāṇa](https://indike.org/pramana/) › [Indian literature](https://indike.org/pramana/in) › [Buddhist Literature](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha) › [Buddhist Sanskrit literature](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.sanskrit) › [Mahāyāna sūtras](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.sanskrit.mahayanasutra) › [Saddharmapuṇḍarīkasūtra](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.sanskrit.mahayanasutra.saddharmapundarika) › [དམ་པའི་ཆོས་པད་མ་དཀར་པོ་ཞེས་བྱ་བ་ཐེག་པ་ཆེན་པོའི་མདོ](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.sanskrit.mahayanasutra.saddharmapundarika*bo) › [The White Lotus of the Good Dharma](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.sanskrit.mahayanasutra.saddharmapundarika*bo~en-84000) › 7.4 # དམ་པའ་ཆས་པད་མ་དཀར་པ་ཞས་བྱ་བ་ཐག་པ་ཆན་པའ་མད 7.4 The White Lotus of the Good Dharma 7.4 - **Language:** English ### [7.4](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.sanskrit.mahayanasutra.saddharmapundarika*bo~en-84000.7.4) Thereupon the Bhagavān taught on this topic in detail, speaking these verses: “The bodhisattvas who wish To give the teaching of this sūtra With confidence and courage In the later, terrifying times, {1} “Should maintain their practice and field of activity: They should be isolated and pure. They should always abstain From association with kings and princes. {2} “They should have no association either With those who are the king’s courtiers, Nor at all with caṇḍālas, swindlers, Or those who are tīrthikas.⁴⁰¹ {3} “They should not associate with arrogant bhikṣus, Who follow vinaya and scripture And conceive of themselves as arhats. They should avoid those with poor conduct. “They should always avoid bhikṣuṇīs Whose behavior is talking and laughing. They should also avoid the upāsikās⁴⁰² Who are evidently dissolute. {5} “They should avoid association with Those upāsikās who are seeking For nirvāṇa within this lifetime. This is what is called the practice. {6} “The brave one should always teach Confidently and freely Those who come asking for the Dharma For the sake of supreme enlightenment. {7} “He should avoid association with Beings who are women, or paṇḍakas. He should also avoid families That have brides and young women. {8} “He should not delight those women,⁴⁰³ Laughingly asking after their welfare.⁴⁰⁴ He should avoid association With pig farmers and shepherds.⁴⁰⁵ {9} “He should avoid association With those who will kill various creatures For the sake of pleasure, And those who sell flesh to eat. {10} “He should avoid association With those beings who are keepers of women, Dancers, wrestlers, musicians,⁴⁰⁶ And other people of that kind. {11} “He should not frequent courtesans Or others who provide pleasures; He should completely avoid The enjoyments that they provide. {12} “When the wise one is teaching The Dharma to a woman, He should not be alone with her, Nor should it be an occasion for laughter. {13} “If he has to enter a village Repeatedly to obtain alms, - [Previous: 7.3](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.sanskrit.mahayanasutra.saddharmapundarika*bo~en-84000.7.3) - [Next: 7.5](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.sanskrit.mahayanasutra.saddharmapundarika*bo~en-84000.7.5) - [Up: 7](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.sanskrit.mahayanasutra.saddharmapundarika*bo~en-84000.7) ## Linked texts (1) - [དམ་པའི་ཆོས་པད་མ་དཀར་པོ་ཞེས་བྱ་བ་ཐེག་པ་ཆེན་པོའི་མདོ](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.sanskrit.mahayanasutra.saddharmapundarika*bo.7.4) — Classical Tibetan --- Source: [https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.sanskrit.mahayanasutra.saddharmapundarika*bo~en-84000.7.4](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.sanskrit.mahayanasutra.saddharmapundarika*bo~en-84000.7.4) · Pramāṇa