The Awakening of Mahāvairocana 7.1

7.1

大唐天竺三藏善無畏共沙門一行譯

Fascicle Seven

Chapter I

The Code of Training for

Mantra Practice among the

Procedural Rules for Worship

I bow down to the Buddha Vairocana,

his pure eyes wide open like a blue lotus. On the basis of the Mahāvairocana Sutra King I shall

explain the ritual rules helpful for worship. In order to accomplish the procedural mantra method

so that one may attain swift accomplishment in accordance with it, And in order to render one’s own mind free from sully,

I shall now proclaim them in summary. First, the expedient means of the unsurpassed vow of knowledge

for the accomplishment of benefits for self and others: Although the expedient means for accomplishing it are immeasurable,

the generation of siddhi is dependent on faith-and-understanding. All the Tathāgatas and sons born of the Jina

who have fulfilled the excellent vows of siddhi, The mantric forms of their buddha-bodies,

the various seals and modes of conduct in which they dwell, The special path whereby mantras are practiced,

and the Broad (Vaipulya) Vehicle—have clear faith in all these. In the faith-and-understanding of sentient beings there are higher,

middling, and lower,

and the World-honored One has taught the methods for realizing

and cultivating them;

Taking pity on beings in the six destinies of transmigration,

he expounds them in order to bring benefit in conformity with them.

You should pay reverence with a resolute mind

and arouse thoughts of diligent sincerity and deep faith.

Someone who in the supreme Broad Vehicle

knows the wondrous mantra practices of self-discipline (i.e.,

vinaya),

Follows the unsurpassed separate regulations (i.e., prātimokṣa) for

reciting vidyās

practiced by the sons of the Sugata,

Understands the items of the full [ritual] appurtenances, and has

received certification for transmitting the teachings and so on—

If you see a teacher like this, reverently make obeisance to him,

and in order to benefit others abide in singlemindedness.

Look up to him as if he were a guide for the world

or as a good friend or kinsman;

Engender a special mind of diligence,

worship him, serve him, and follow his actions.

Obedient to the teacher’s wishes, make him rejoice,

and when facing him, embraced by his compassion,

Ask him with head bowed for the excellent practices of the Sugata:

“I beg you, O Venerable One, to instruct me as you see fit.”

The teacher will freely construct

a wondrous circular altar (i.e., maṇḍala) of the “Matrix of Great

Compassion” and so on,

He will induct [the disciples] into the maṇḍala in accordance with

the rules,

and he will bestow the samaya according to their capacity.

The ritual site, book of teachings, mantras, and seals

are orally transmitted by the venerable teacher in person;

[The disciple] acquires the excellent samaya and protection,

and he should practice as taught.

Moreover, what is taught in this scripture encompasses the right

practice of the equality (samaya) of mantras;

Out of pity for disciples of inferior intelligence,

the gradual rites are differentiated.

Gods among the victory-creating gods, sons born from the mind of the Perfectly Awakened One, And mundane gods below with their seals of body and speech enter this supreme vehicle of mantras. Those who act as models, providing guidance in mystic practices, should all be revered and not slighted; Because they are able to bring benefit to all worlds, you must not engender thoughts of forsaking them. You should always focus uninterruptedly on their vast virtues, And in accordance with what suits your capacity you should serve and worship them all. The multitudes of the Buddha’s śrāvakas, pratyekabuddhas, the exposition of their teachings about the path of extinguishing suffering, Teachers who bestow the code of training, and fellow celibates— toward none of these should you entertain thoughts of contempt. Carefully observing what should be done at the appropriate time, attend on them with respect. Do not engage in dharmas of foolish and childlike mental conduct, nor do you bear grudges against deities. As is taught in the scriptures of the world’s Guide, nothing does more than anger to harm great benefit; The causes and conditions of a single moment of thought will completely burn away

the good cultivated during koṭis of vast eons. Therefore, you should always earnestly reject this root of profitlessness. The wish-fulfilling jewel of the pure bodhi-mind fulfills mundane and supramundane excellent wishes; The removal of doubts ultimately ends in the acquisition of samādhi, and self-benefit and benefiting others are born of this. Therefore, you should guard it twice as dearly as your own life, observing how you possess a treasury of vast merit. Should your body, speech, or mind disturb [other] beings, even to the slightest degree, you should eschew all [such behavior],

Unless many can be helped by other expedient means,

in which case you dwell inwardly in thoughts of compassion

while [outwardly] manifesting anger.

Toward the likes of sentient beings who turn their backs on debts of

gratitude

always espouse forbearance, disregarding their faults.

Furthermore, be always possessed of the immeasurable thoughts

of great kindness and pity, as well as joy and equanimity.

Gifts of the Dharma and of food made to the best of your ability

convert living beings through the beneficent practice of compassion,

Or else, with your mind attuned to the great boon,

remain indifferent, waiting for the [right] time.

Should you not have the strength to bring extensive benefit [to others],

simply observe the bodhi-mind, abiding by the rules;

The Buddha has taught that it is endowed with the myriad practices

and satisfies the white and pure dharmas.

By means of giving and the other [four] gateways to deliverance

embrace sentient beings into the Great Vehicle,

Making them dwell therein, uphold it, recite [its scriptures], and so on,

as well as thinking on it and practicing it correctly.

The wise person restrains the six sense organs

and, his mind calmed, he should always cultivate mental equipoise.

Destructive to [all] deeds is liquor,

the root of all unwholesome dharmas;

It is like poison, fire, sword, frost, hail, and so on,

and therefore you should keep your distance and not go near it.

Furthermore, since the Buddha has taught that it increases self-conceit,

you should not sit or lie on fine raised beds.

In short, he who possesses wisdom

renounces all things that harm himself or harm others.

Basing myself on the right samaya path,

I have now in due order proclaimed it in brief,

Elucidating the sutras taught by the Buddha

in order to broaden understanding and produce resolve.

Dwelling properly on this basis in the precepts of equality (samaya),

you should moreover dissociate yourself from the causes of

transgression, That is to say, habituation to evil thoughts, laziness, delusion, fear,

[idle] talk, and so on. He whose mind has awoken to the wondrous gateway of mantras,

thus dwelling properly in the samaya, Should cause obstacles to be gradually extinguished

so that his merits may increase. Desirous of entering siddhi in this lifetime,

he thinks about it as is appropriate And receives in person the vidyā methods from a venerable [teacher],

observing what is appropriate for performing [rites of]

accomplishment. He should himself dwell in the mantra practices

in accordance with the procedural rules for vidyās that have been

explained. First, he makes obeisance to a venerable [teacher qualified to]

initiate him and transmit the teachings,

requesting the [ritual] deeds to be practiced with mantras. Having received permission from the teacher, the wise person

should base himself in a place of suitable topography: A fine mountain, a secondary peak, a ravine,

various grottoes, between two mountains, Wherever tranquility can be had at all times,

a pond completely adorned with lotuses and blue lotuses, Large rivers, flowing streams, sandbars, and riverbanks,

far removed from the tumult and clamor of people; Where there are trees pleasing to the mind with luxuriant foliage

and an abundance of lactaceous trees and auspicious grasses, Where there are no mosquitoes or gadflies, no suffering from cold

or heat,

and no molestation by wicked beasts or poisonous insects, Or where the Tathāgata and his saintly disciples

once in former times roamed and dwelled,

And temples, stupas, araṇyas, and chambers of seers of yore—

he should base himself in a place in which his heart and mind

rejoice.

He renounces the [life of a] householder, cutting off social obligations,

and strives to avoid the hindrances and entanglements caused by

the five desires;

Intently and profoundly rejoicing in the taste of the Dharma,

he nurtures his mind to seek siddhi.

Furthermore, he is always endowed with the wisdom of perseverance