六祖大師法寶壇經 1.41

1.41

mountains, rivers, and earth; the springs and streams that enrich the plants and forests; bad people and good people, bad dharmas and good dharmas; the heavens and hells; all the great oceans and the mountains, including Sumeru: all of these exist within space. The emptiness of the natures of the people of this world is also like this. Good friends, that the self-natures can embody the myriad dharmas is ‘great.’ The myriad dharmas are within people’s natures. If one perceives the goodness and badness of people without ever grasping or rejecting [their goodness and badness], one will not become tainted or attached. For the mind to be like space is called ‘great.’ Therefore, it is said [to be] ‘mahā.’

“Good friends, the deluded speak with their mouths, but the wise practice with their minds. Furthermore, there are deluded people who empty their minds and sit in quietude without thinking of anything whatsoever, claiming that this is great. You can’t even speak to these people, because of their false views!

“Good friends, the ratiocination of the mind is vast and great, permeating the dharmadhātu (i.e., the cosmos). Functioning, it comprehensively and distinctly responds [to things]. Functioning, it knows everything. Everything is the one [mind], the one [mind] is everything. [With mind and dharmas] going and coming of themselves, the essence of the mind is without stagnation. This is ‘prajñā.’

“Good friends, all prajñā wisdom is generated from the self-natures. It does not enter us from outside. To not err in its functioning is called the spontaneous functioning of the true nature.When the one [mind] is true, all [things] are true. When your minds are considering the great affair, you will not practice the small path. Do not be always speaking of emptiness with your mouth without cultivating the practice in your minds! That would be like an ordinary person claiming to be a king! You will never attain anything [this way. Such persons] are not my disciples.

“Good friends, what is prajñā? In Chinese, it is called wisdom. To always practice wisdom in all places, at all times, and in all moments of thought,

without stupidity—this is the practice of prajñā. A single moment’s stupid-

ity and prajñā is eradicated, a single moment’s wisdom and prajñā is gen-

erated. The people of this world are stupid and deluded and do not see prajñā.

They speak of prajñā in their mouths but are always stupid in their minds.

They always say to themselves, ‘I am cultivating prajñā.’ In every moment

of thought they speak of emptiness, without recognizing true emptiness.

Prajñā is without shape or characteristics, it is the mind of wisdom. To have

such an understanding is called the wisdom of prajñā.

“What is ‘pāramitā’? This is an Indian word; in Chinese it is ‘arriving

at the other shore.’ If one understands the meaning [of Buddhism,] one tran-

scends samsara; if one is attached to one’s sensory realms, samsara is acti-

vated, just as waves [arise on] water. This is called the ‘other shore,’ there-

fore it is said to be ‘pāramitā.’

“Good friends, the deluded person recites with his mouth, and he does

so with falsity and error. To practice in every moment of thought is called

the true nature. To be enlightened to this Dharma is the Dharma of prajñā,

to cultivate this practice is the practice of prajñā. To not cultivate this is to

be an ordinary [unenlightened] person. To cultivate this in a single moment

of thought is to be equivalent to the Buddha in one’s own body.

“Good friends, ordinary people are buddhas, and the afflictions are bodhi.

With a preceding moment of deluded thought, one was an ordinary person,

but with a succeeding moment of enlightened thought, one is a buddha. To

be attached to one’s sensory realms in a preceding moment of thought is afflic-

tion, but to transcend the realms in a succeeding moment of thought is bodhi.

“Good friends, ‘mahāprajñāpāramitā’ is the most honored, the supreme,

the primary. It is without abiding [in the present], without going [into the

past], and without coming [from the future]. It is from this that all the buddhas

of the three periods of time emerge. One should use this great wisdom to

destroy the enervating defilements of the afflictions of the five skandhas.

Those who cultivate in this fashion will definitely accomplish the enlight-

enment of buddhahood, transforming the three poisons into morality, med-

itation, and wisdom.

“Good friends, in this teaching of ours eighty-four thousand wisdoms

are generated from the one prajñā. Why? Because the people of this world

have eighty-four thousand enervating defilements. If they were without these

enervating defilements, wisdom would always be manifest and they would not depart from the self-natures. To be enlightened to this Dharma is to be without thought. To be without recollection, without attachment, to not activate the false and deceptive—this is to allow one’s self[-suchness]-nature to function. To use wisdom to contemplate all the dharmas without grasping or rejecting is to see the nature and accomplish the enlightenment of buddhahood.

“Good friends, if you wish to enter into the profound dharmadhātu and the samādhi of prajñā, you must cultivate the practice of prajñā and recite the Diamond Sutra. Thus will you attain seeing the nature. You should realize that the merits of this sutra are immeasurable and unlimited. They are clearly praised within the sutra; I cannot explain them fully here. This teaching is the Supreme Vehicle: it is preached for those of great wisdom, it is preached for those of superior capacities. Those of small capacities and small wisdom who hear it will generate doubt. Why? It is likened to rain poured down by the great dragon onto Jambudvīpa: it washes away all the cities, towns, and villages as if they were floating plants. But rain falling on the ocean causes it neither to increase nor to decrease. If a person of the Mahayana or a person of the Supreme Vehicle hears this explanation of the Diamond Sutra, his mind will open forth in enlightened understanding. Therefore, you should understand that your fundamental natures have in themselves the wisdom of prajñā. Allowing this wisdom to function of itself in constant contemplation, one therefore need not rely on the written word. It is likened to rainwater, which does not derive from heaven. Fundamentally, this [rainwater] is engendered by the dragon, and it causes all living beings, all plants, all those sentient and insentient beings to be enriched. But the hundred streams flow together into the ocean, where they become one. The wisdom of prajñā, which is the fundamental nature of sentient beings, is also like this.

“Good friends, those of small capacities who hear this sudden teaching are like plants whose capacities are small. Beset by a great rain, they all collapse and are unable to grow. People of small capacities are also like this. They possess the wisdom of prajñā fundamentally, no differently from those of great wisdom. So why do they hear the Dharma without being able to become enlightened? Because of the profundity of their false views and layered afflictions! Just as if great clouds are blocking the sun, unless a wind blows [them away], the light of the sun will not be visible.

“There is also no great and small in the wisdom of prajñā; it is only that

the delusion and enlightenment of the minds of all sentient beings differ. Those

with deluded minds appear to be cultivating and seeking buddhahood, but

they are unenlightened to their self-natures. Hence are they of small capaci-

ties. If one is to be enlightened to the sudden teaching, one cannot cultivate

externally (i.e., superficially): one should just constantly activate correct views

in one’s own mind, and the enervating defilements of the afflictions will be