菩薩戒本疏 1.9

1.9

The ritual procedures for receiving the precepts comprise six sections in brief: 1. revealing the virtues to encourage reception; 2. the superior and inferior regarding conditions; 3. the collective and distinct among the seven assemblies; 4. the sequence of the Greater and Lesser [Vehicles]; 5. directly explaining the ritual of reception; 6. comparison to reveal superiority. Regarding 'revealing the virtues to encourage reception', the text says: 'When sentient beings receive the Buddha-precepts, / they immediately enter the rank of the Buddhas. / Once their rank is equal to the Great Awakened One, / they are truly sons of the Buddhas.' The Benye jing says: 'For entering the ocean of the Three Jewels, faith is the root; for dwelling in the Buddha's household, precepts are the root. Beginning bodhisattvas—whether men or women—who initially generate the aspiration to leave home and wish to succeed to the bodhisattva rank should first receive the precepts of the true Dharma. Precepts are the foundation of the treasury of merits of all practices; directly facing the path of the Buddha-fruit, they are the root of all practices. These precepts are able to eliminate all great evils, the seven views, and the six attachments; they are the bright mirror of the true Dharma.' It also says: 'Buddha-sons! Having received the ten inexhaustible precepts, the recipient transcends the four māras and crosses over the suffering of the three realms. From life to life, they never lose these precepts; they constantly accompany the practitioner until the attainment of buddhahood. If any sentient beings of the past, future, or present do not receive these bodhisattva precepts, they are not named sentient beings. Those with consciousness are no different from beasts and are not named humans. Constantly estranged from the ocean of the Three Jewels, they are not bodhisattvas, not men, not women, not spirits, and not humans; they are named beasts, named false views, and named outsiders; they are lacking in human nature. Hence we know that the bodhisattva precepts have a method for receiving them but no method for relinquishing them; though transgressed, they are not lost, reaching unto the limit of the future. Furthermore, if a Dharma master can teach and convert one person in any land to leave home and receive the bodhisattva precepts, the merit of this Dharma master surpasses that of building eighty-four thousand stupas—how much more so for two people, three people, or up to hundreds and thousands; the fruit of such merit cannot be measured. As for teachers, husband and wife or the six relations may mutually serve as master and transmit [the precepts]. The recipients enter into the number of the bodhisattvas of all Buddha-realms, transcending the suffering of birth and death for three kalpas. Therefore, one should receive them. Having them and transgressing is superior to lacking them and not transgressing. One who transgresses is named a bodhisattva; one without transgression is named an outsider.' Regarding 'the superior and inferior regarding conditions', the sūtra says: 'There are three kinds of receiving precepts: First, when Buddhas and bodhisattvas are present before one, receiving them yields the genuine superior-grade precepts. Second, after the nirvāṇa of the Buddhas and bodhisattvas, if within a thousand li there is a bodhisattva who previously received the precepts, one requests them to serve as Dharma master, saying: "Instruct me in the precepts." Having first bowed to their feet, one should speak thus: "I request the great venerable one to serve as master and confer the precepts upon me." That disciple receives the precepts of the true Dharma. These are the middle-grade precepts. Third, after the Buddha's nirvāṇa, when within a thousand li there is no Dharma master, one should kneel before an image of the Buddhas and bodhisattvas with palms joined and take the vows oneself to receive the precepts, speaking thus: "I, so-and-so, declare to the Buddhas of the ten directions, the bodhisattvas of the great grounds, and the rest: I train in all the bodhisattva precepts." These are the lower-grade precepts. The second and third [times] are also spoken in this manner. Buddha-sons! These three kinds of receiving precepts have been spoken by past Buddhas, will be spoken by future Buddhas, and are now spoken by present Buddhas; they have been trained in by past bodhisattvas, will be trained in by future bodhisattvas, and are now trained in by present bodhisattvas. They are the true Dharma precepts of all Buddhas. If any Buddha or any bodhisattva does not enter this gateway of the Dharma precepts yet attains the fruit of the unexcelled path and the ground of the equality of space, there is no such possibility.' Regarding 'the collective and distinct among the seven assemblies', among the three kinds of precepts, the features of the precepts that gather wholesome dharmas and the precepts that gather sentient beings are mostly shared between monastics and laypeople, whereas the deportments of the precepts of moral discipline differ among the seven assemblies. Now, based on moral discipline, we distinguish the collective and the distinct. The ritual procedures for receiving the precepts of moral discipline are twofold: first, receiving them collectively together with the other two; second, receiving them distinctly apart from the other two. In the collective procedure of reception, there is no distinction among the seven assemblies, because all three precepts are named and received collectively. Thus, a single karman extends to those seven assemblies, while in their subsequent aspects, what is upheld differs; the ritual of reception in the Bodhisattvabhūmi-dhāraṇī directly refers to this. If received distinctly, the rituals for the seven assemblies differ: if the two lay assemblies receive their five precepts, as for the subsequent aspects, the six major and twenty-eight minor precepts are further explained, fully detailed in the Sujāta-upāsaka-sūtra. The ritual of reception for the two monastic assemblies with full ordination relies on a jñapti-karman from a sangha of ten members, and so forth. The Nirvāṇa-sūtra says: 'Those who receive the precepts of worldly teaching obtain them only after a jñapti-caturtha-karman.' This directly refers to this. The lower three assemblies each follow their respective rituals; their rituals are the same as those of the śrāvakas. Regarding 'the sequence of the Greater and Lesser [Vehicles]', herein there are two: 1. first the Lesser and then the Greater; 2. first the Greater and then the Lesser. If one first receives the Lesser and later receives the Greater, are the former Lesser Vehicle precepts relinquished or do they remain? Furthermore, are not killing and the rest, which are shared with the śrāvakas, newly obtained, or are they the former precepts themselves? One says: When the mind turns, the Lesser transforms into the Greater; therefore, the former Lesser precepts are not relinquished and remain, yet they cannot be called Lesser Vehicle precepts; because the mind has turned, the precepts shared with the śrāvakas are not newly increased. As for the unshared precepts, they are newly obtained at the time of reception. A second says: When the mind turns and one newly receives them, although the former are not relinquished, because the aspiration of the mind differs, abstaining from killing and so forth are further augmented, just as when one receives the full ordination, abstaining from killing and so forth are further obtained. As for 'first the Greater and then the Lesser', if one regresses from the Greater and enters the Lesser, one immediately loses the Greater precepts; if one does not regress from the Greater but simply trains in the Lesser in accordance with it, one does not lose the former Greater [precepts]; although one receives the śrāvaka precepts, one is not called a Lesser Vehicle person. Regarding 'the actual method of reception', according to the Bodhisattvabhūmi, there are eight ritual steps: 1. Requesting the master. The text says: 'If bodhisattvas wish to train diligently in the three collections of precepts trained in by such bodhisattvas, whether they are householders or renunciants, having first generated the vast vow for anuttarasamyaksaṃbodhi, they should carefully seek out a bodhisattva of shared practice who has already generated the great vow, possesses wisdom and power, and is able to confer and explain the meaning through verbal expression. Before such an exalted bodhisattva endowed with these virtues, they first bow to both feet and make this request: "I now wish to ask to receive the pure bodhisattva precepts from the good son—or elder, or venerable one. I only pray that you will not spare the brief exertion, and will compassionately consent to confer them." ' 2. Seeking empowerment. The text says: 'Having made this unerring request, with the right shoulder bared, one reverently makes offerings to the World-Honoured Buddhas of the ten directions and the three times, and to the assemblies of bodhisattvas who have already entered the great grounds, attained great wisdom, and achieved great supernormal powers, currently focusing one's mindfulness upon their virtues.' 3. Begging for the precepts. The text says: 'In accordance with one's capacity and causal power, generating a profoundly pure mind, not a petty pure mind, before the superior bodhisattva endowed with wisdom and power, with humble reverence, kneeling with knees touching the ground or squatting, facing before the Buddha image, one makes this request: "I only pray that the venerable one—or elder, or good son—will compassionately confer upon me the pure bodhisattva precepts." ' 4. Nurturing the pure mind. The text says: 'Having made this request, focusing the mind on a single object, one nurtures a pure mind: "Before long, I shall obtain the inexhaustible, immeasurable, unexcelled treasury of virtues." Having thus reflected accordingly upon this matter, one remains in silence.' 5. Questioning the conditions. 'At that time, the bodhisattva endowed with wisdom and power, with an undistracted mind, sitting or standing, says to that bodhisattva capable of practicing the correct practice: "Listen, good son—or Dharma brother—of such a name: Are you a bodhisattva or not?" They should answer: "I am." "Have you generated the bodhi-vow or not?" They should answer: "I have already generated it." ' 6. The actual reception. 'From this point onward, one should say: "Listen, good son—or Dharma brother—of such a name: Do you wish to receive from me all the śikṣāpadas of all bodhisattvas, to receive all the pure precepts of all bodhisattvas—namely, the precepts of moral discipline, the precepts that gather wholesome dharmas, and the precepts that benefit sentient beings? Such śikṣāpadas and such pure precepts were possessed by all past bodhisattvas, will be possessed by all future bodhisattvas, and are currently possessed everywhere by all present bodhisattvas of the ten directions. In these śikṣāpadas and these pure precepts, all past bodhisattvas have trained, all future bodhisattvas will train, and all present bodhisattvas now train. Are you able to receive them or not?" The reply is: "I am able to receive them." The conferring bodhisattva speaks likewise a second and third time. The receiving bodhisattva also answers likewise a second and third time. The conferring bodhisattva asks in this manner up to the third conferral of the pure precepts. The receiving bodhisattva answers in this manner up to the third reception of the pure precepts.' 7. Addressing and requesting witness. Detailed as in that text. 8. Bowing and withdrawing. The text says: 'Having thus performed the karman and other matters of receiving the bodhisattva precepts, the conferring and receiving bodhisattvas both rise and make offerings to the Buddhas and bodhisattvas everywhere in the boundless world-realms of the ten directions, prostrate at their feet, and reverently withdraw.' The ritual procedures for conferring the precepts are not singular among various masters; here they are briefly recounted following the Bodhisattvabhūmi-dhāraṇī. There are differences among such explanations, which should be investigated in the various texts. As for 'comparison to reveal superiority': 'The precepts of moral discipline received by such a bodhisattva are, among all other precepts of moral discipline received, accompanied by the most superior, unexcelled, immeasurable, and boundless great treasury of virtues, brought forth by the primary and supreme resolve of bodhicitta, and universally capable of counteracting all kinds of evil conduct toward all sentient beings. All prātimokṣa disciplines, compared to these bodhisattva precepts of moral discipline, do not equal a hundredth part, do not equal a thousandth part, nor do they equal a part reckoned by number, calculation, counting, simile, or upaniṣad; they encompass all great virtues.'