妙法蓮華經 1.60

1.60

“Again, O Śāriputra! If there are any monks or nuns who would declare

that they have attained arhatship, that they are bearing their last bodies and

are destined for complete nirvana, and yet who have not sought highest, com-

plete enlightenment, they should be considered arrogant people.

“Why is this? Because there is no case in which a monk who has actu-

ally achieved arhatship does not believe in this Dharma, except after the

Buddha has entered parinirvāṇa and there is no buddha present.

“What is the reason for this? Because after the parinirvāṇa of the Buddha

it is hard to find people who preserve, recite, and understand the meaning of

the sutras like this. But if they should meet other buddhas they will imme-

diately understand this teaching.

“O Śāriputra! You should wholeheartedly accept and preserve the words

of the Buddha. The words of the Buddha Tathāgatas are never false. There

are no other vehicles, only the single buddha vehicle.”

Thereupon the Bhagavat, wanting to elaborate the meaning of this fur-

ther, uttered these verses:

In the fourfold assembly there were five thousand

Monks and nuns who were excessively proud,

Laymen who were arrogant,

And laywomen who were unaccepting.

They did not see their own defects, Being faulty in self-discipline, And clung to their shortcomings; These of little wisdom have already left. Through the virtuous dignity of the Buddha The dregs of the assembly have departed. Having little virtue, These people were incapable of accepting this Dharma. Free of useless twigs and leaves, Only the pure essence of this assembly remains. O Śāriputra, listen carefully! All the buddhas teach the Dharma That they have attained Through the immeasurable power of skillful means, For the sake of sentient beings. Completely knowing their intentions, Their various ways of practice, Their wishes and capacities, And the good and bad karma Of their previous lives, The Buddha gladdens all sentient beings With the power of words and skillful means, Using examples and illustrations. The Buddha teaches by means of sutras, verses, Stories of his past deeds, and of past events, Miraculous tales, explanatory tales, Allegories, poems, and exegeses.

The Buddha teaches nirvana To those with dull faculties, Who are satisfied with lowly aspirations And attached to birth and death, Who have not practiced the profound path In the presence of innumerable buddhas And are confused by suffering. Having devised this skillful means

I enable them to enter the wisdom of the buddhas. But I have never said That all of you would attain The path of the buddhas. I have never said this Because the occasion never arose. Now is precisely the right time for me To teach definitively the Mahayana. I apply these nine kinds of teachings According to the capacities of sentient beings. I teach these sutras Because they are the basis for entering the Mahayana. I teach the Mahayana sutras To those heirs of the buddhas Who are pure in mind, mild, and receptive, Have keen faculties, And who have practiced the profound path Under immeasurable buddhas. I predict that such people Will attain the path of the buddhas In their future lives, Because they keep the buddhas in mind With profound thoughts And practice pure conduct. Hearing that they shall attain buddhahood They will be filled with great joy; Because a buddha knows their intentions He teaches the Mahayana. Those śrāvakas or bodhisattvas, Who have heard even a single verse Of the Dharma that I have taught, Will all become buddhas. There can be no doubt about it. In the buddha worlds of the ten directions There is only the Dharma of the single vehicle.

Apart from the skillful means of the buddhas, There is neither a second nor a third [vehicle]. A buddha merely uses provisional words In order to lead sentient beings. All the buddhas appear in the world To teach the wisdom of the buddhas. Only this one thing is real, The other two are not true. In the end, A buddha does not save sentient beings Through an inferior vehicle. The buddhas themselves Abide in the Mahayana; The Dharma that they have attained, Is adorned with meditation, wisdom, and power; And through these they save the sentient beings. I would be ungenerous If I were to lead and inspire even a single person Through an inferior vehicle, Having attained the highest path, The universal Dharma of the Mahayana. This is simply not possible. If anyone takes refuge in the Buddha, The Tathāgata will not deceive him. A Tathāgata has neither stinginess nor jealousy And has detached himself From the evils of the phenomenal world.

That is why the buddhas of the ten directions Are the only ones who have no fear. Having a body adorned with the marks of a buddha, Emitting a ray of light that illuminates the worlds And revered by immeasurable sentient beings, I teach the signs of the true aspects Of the phenomenal world. O Śāriputra! You should now know

That originally I made a vow To make all sentient beings my equal Without any difference. Now I have already fulfilled this vow That I made in the past. I will lead and inspire all sentient beings And cause them to enter the path of the buddhas. If I met sentient beings And taught them till the end the path of the buddhas, Those with little understanding Would be confused and perplexed And would not accept the teaching. I know that these sentient beings Have never cultivated the roots of good merit. They are attached to the desires of the five senses, Disordered by delusion and passion, And have fallen into the three troubled states of being Because of these desires. They are wandering through The six transmigratory states, Tormented by every kind of suffering. They are continually being born as tiny embryos In one world after another. These people of few qualities and little merit Are afflicted by various sufferings. They enter into the jungle of sixty-two false views Such as “This exists” or “This does not exist.” They are so firmly and deeply attached to false teachings That they cannot get rid of them. They are arrogant, proud, deceitful, and dishonest. They have heard neither the names Nor the True Dharma of the buddhas For thousands of myriads of koṭis of kalpas. Such people are difficult to save. That is why, O Śāriputra, I devised the method of teaching

The way to extinguish all suffering through nirvana. Even though I taught nirvana, It is not the true extinction. Every existing thing from the very beginning Has always had the mark of quiescence. The heirs of the buddhas who practice this path Will thereafter become buddhas in the future. With the power of skillful means I have presented the teachings of the three vehicles. Yet all of the Bhagavats Teach the path of the single vehicle. This great assembly Should now rid itself of confusion.

The words of the buddhas are not inconsistent. There is only the single vehicle; There is no other. In the past innumerable kalpas There appeared immeasurable and incalculable buddhas, Hundreds of thousands of myriads of koṭis in number, Who have attained parinirvāṇa. All the Bhagavats Taught the characteristics of all dharmas With the power of innumerable skillful means, Using various examples and illustrations. All these Bhagavats Taught the Dharma of the single vehicle, Led and inspired immeasurable sentient beings, And enabled them to enter the path of the buddhas. Understanding the deepest desires of the entire world Of the devas, humans, and other beings, The Great Sage Lord has illuminated The highest meaning With diverse skillful means. All those sentient beings Who encountered and heard the teaching

Of the buddhas of the past,

And who accumulated various merits

Through acts of giving (dāna), integrity (śīla), perseverance (kṣānti),

Diligence (vīrya), meditation (dhyāna), and wisdom (prajñā)

(i.e., the six perfections)

Have certainly attained the path of the buddhas.

And after the parinirvāṇa of the buddhas,

Those sentient beings with well-governed minds

Have certainly attained the path of the buddhas.

After the buddhas attained parinirvāṇa,

All those who paid homage to the relics,

Who made myriads of koṭis of stupas

Extensively and beautifully adorned with gold, silver,

Crystal, mother of pearl, agate, ruby,

Lapis lazuli, and pearl;

Those who made rock stupas,

Stupas out of sandal, aloe, deodar, and other woods,

As well as brick, tile, mud, and other materials;

All those who made buddha stupas

Out of piles of earth in desolate places;

And even children in play

Who made buddha stupas out of heaps of sand—

All such people have certainly attained

The path of the buddhas.

And all those who made images of the buddhas

Carved with their extraordinary marks

Have certainly attained the path of the buddhas.

All those who made buddha images

Out of the seven treasures,

Decorated with brass, copper, pewter, lead,

Tin, iron, wood, mud, glue, lacquer, and cloth,

Have certainly attained the path of the buddhas.

All those who made or had others make buddha images

Painted with the one hundred embellishing

Marks of merit,

Have certainly attained the path of the buddhas. This even includes children in play Who have drawn a buddha image With a blade of grass or a twig, Brush or fingernail. Such people, having gradually accumulated merit And perfected great compassion, Have certainly attained the path of the buddhas. Leading and inspiring the bodhisattvas, They save countless sentient beings. All those who paid homage to stupas, Sculpted or painted images, Honoring them with flowers, perfumes, Banners, and canopies; Those who paid homage with all kinds of sweet music— With drums, horns, conches, pipes, flutes, lutes, harps, Mandolins, gongs, and cymbals; Those who joyfully praised the qualities of the buddhas With various songs or Even with a single low-pitched sound, Have certainly attained the path of the buddhas. Those who, even with distracted minds Have offered a single flower to a painted image Will in time see innumerable buddhas. Or those who have done obeisance to images, Or merely pressed their palms together, Or raised a single hand, or nodded their heads, Will in due time see immeasurable buddhas. They will attain the highest path And extensively save innumerable sentient beings. They will enter nirvana without residue Just as a fire goes out after its wood is exhausted. Those who, even with distracted minds, Entered a stupa compound And chanted but once, “Homage to the Buddha!”

Have certainly attained the path of the buddhas. Anyone who heard this teaching, Either in the presence of a past buddha Or after their parinirvāṇa, Has certainly attained the path of the buddhas. The future Bhagavats, Tathāgatas, Immeasurable in number, Will teach the Dharma with skillful means.

All the Tathāgatas Will save sentient beings With immeasurable skillful means, Causing them to enter the wisdom of the buddhas That is free from corruption. Of those hearing this Dharma There will be no one Who will not become a buddha. The original vow of the buddhas Was to cause all sentient beings to universally Attain the very same buddha path That I have practiced. Even though the buddhas of the future Will teach hundreds of thousands of koṭis Of innumerable paths to the Dharma, Their teachings will actually be For the sake of the single vehicle. All the buddhas, the Best of Humans, Know that all dharmas are ever without substance And that the buddha-seeds germinate Through dependent origination. That is why they will teach the single vehicle. Having realized on the terrace of enlightenment That the state of the Dharma Is permanent and unchangeable in this world, The Leaders will teach with skillful means. The present buddhas of the ten directions,

As numerous as the sands of the Ganges River, Revered by devas and humans, Appear in the world and teach this Dharma To make sentient beings feel at peace. They know the utmost tranquility, And although they teach various paths With the power of skillful means, Their teachings are actually for the buddha vehicle. Knowing the character of sentient beings— Their deep intentions, past acts, Wishes, persistence, and strength, Their keen or dull faculties— The buddhas teach with skillful means Using various explanations, illustrations, and words, In accordance with the capacities of sentient beings. Now I too reveal the path of the buddhas Through various paths to the Dharma To make sentient beings feel at peace. Through the power of my wisdom I know the dispositions and desires of sentient beings, And explain various teachings with skillful means, Enabling them all to obtain joy. O Śāriputra! You should know that through the buddha-eye I see beings wandering in the six states of existence Who are poor, deprived of merit and wisdom, Who are entering into the bitter path of birth and death, And are suffering repeatedly and without end. They are deeply attached to the desires of the five senses, Just as yaks are attached to their tails. Obstructed by greed, they are blind and cannot see.

They do not seek the buddha who has great power, Nor the Dharma that cuts off suffering. Deeply immersed in false views, They try to eliminate suffering through suffering.

I feel great compassion For such sentient beings. Sitting on the terrace of enlightenment for the first time, Looking at the bodhi tree And walking about, During those twenty-one days I was thinking thus:

The wisdom I have attained

Is subtle and supreme.

But the faculties of sentient beings are dull.

They are attached to pleasures and blinded by delusion.

How can I save such beings?

Then Brahma and his devaputras, Śakra, The world-protectors of the four quarters, Maheśvara and the other devas, Together with a retinue of hundreds Of thousands of myriads of attendants, Paid their respects with palms pressed together And begged me to turn the wheel of the Dharma. Then I thought:

If I only praise the buddha vehicles,

Those beings who are submerged in suffering

Will not believe this Dharma.

Because they reject and do not believe the Dharma,

They will fall into the three troubled states of being.

I would rather not teach the Dharma

And instead immediately enter nirvana.

Then I thought of the power of skillful means Practiced by past buddhas. This path that I have attained Should now also be taught as the three vehicles. When I thought this,

The buddhas of the ten directions appeared And with beautiful voices praised me saying:

O Śākyamuni! Splendid!

O Supreme Leader,

You have attained the highest Dharma,

And yet still use the power of skillful means,

Following all the other buddhas.

We too have attained the best and utmost Dharma

And with discretion have explained the three vehicles

For the sake of sentient beings.

Those with little wisdom

Seek inferior teachings

And do not believe that they will become buddhas.

That is why we use skillful means

And with discretion teach of various results.

Although we teach the three vehicles

It is just for the instruction of the bodhisattvas!

O Śāriputra! You should know That when I heard this profound And beautiful roar of the Noble Lions, I chanted with joy, “Homage to the buddhas!”

And I thought:

Since I have been born in this defiled world

I will follow the other buddhas

And expound what they have expounded.

After contemplating this I set out for Vārāṇasī. All dharmas have the tranquil character Of the Dharma: This could not be expressed in words, So I taught the five monks

Through the power of skillful means. This I named: “Turning the Wheel of the Dharma,” And immediately the word nirvana appeared in it And the different designations for Arhat (Buddha), Dharma, and Sangha. From a great many kalpas ago I have always taught like this: I have praised and illuminated The teaching of nirvana, Saying that it ends the sufferings Of birth and death. O Śāriputra! You should know that I see Immeasurable thousands of myriads of koṭis Of the Buddha’s heirs, Who, having set out for the buddha path, And heard the Dharma explained with skillful means, Have respectfully come before the Buddha. Then I thought:

The reason why the Tathāgatas appear is

To explain the wisdom of the buddhas.

Now is precisely the right time for this!

O Śāriputra! You should know that Those who have dull faculties and little wisdom, And those who are attached to mere signs and Are arrogant cannot accept this teaching. Now I am happy and fearless. Having openly set aside skillful means, I will teach only the highest path To all the bodhisattvas. Having heard this teaching The bodhisattvas and twelve hundred arhats, Freeing themselves from the web of doubt,

Will all become buddhas. Just as the buddhas in the three periods Of the past, present, and future, Teach the true nature of the Dharma, Now I too will expound the Dharma That is beyond conception. All the buddhas Appear in worlds far away And are difficult to meet. Even if they appear in this world It is difficult to hear their teaching. Even in immeasurable, innumerable kalpas It is difficult to hear this Dharma, And those who are able to hear this Dharma Are also hard to find. They are just like the uḍumbara flower Which appears only once in a very long while And, beloved by all, Is considered a wonder among devas and humans.