法苑珠林 30
English (machine translation) 30
- Language
- English
30.1
Compiled by the Śramaṇa Shi Daoshi of Ximing Temple
30.2
Section 22: Maintenance of the Dharma (consisting of ten parts)
30.3
Part on Explaining the Intention
Part on Punishments
Part on Prudence
Part on Preaching and Listening
Part on Bodhisattvas
Part on Arhats
Part on Monks and Nuns
Part on Elders
Part on Heavenly Kings
Part on Ghosts and Spirits
30.4
Part 1: Explaining the Intention
30.5
Now, the Dharma does not propagate itself; its propagation depends on people. People encompass both the crooked and the upright; the Dharma follows people into corruption. If one wishes to sustain the Three Jewels, moral virtue must be abundant within, and one must beforehand master and investigate the single school of Vinaya teachings. One must not fear toil and hardship, nor covet fame and renown, so that monastics and laypeople near and far may have firm grounds for rejoicing, and practitioners within the boundaries may emulate, revere, and advance their practice. Only when the ordained and the laity rely on one another can the Dharma endure for long. Therefore, the *Caturvargika-vinaya* states: 'What is not regulated, do not regulate; what is regulated, practice it. In this way, by degrees, the Dharma is made to endure long.' If regulations issue from worldly sentiment and words lack standard rules, turning into coarse vulgarity, how could this form a disciplined assembly? One ought in private to reflect upon oneself and act as a model for others. Thus the Vinaya says: 'To regulate what is not regulated, and to sever what is regulated—in this way, by degrees, the Dharma is brought to swift extinction.' Frequently one sees at the gates of court nobles many monks and nuns treating illnesses, or practicing medicine, acupuncture, and moxibustion out of craving for fame and gain; or gambling, singing, and acting without guarding their deportment; or brokering marriages and arranging matches between men and women; or collecting assessments of wine and meat to feast openly; or wearing luxurious ornaments and galloping on horses; or clasping wrists and clapping hands, resembling base commoners; or consorting with evil friends and relying on coarse men. This causes scandalous rumors to fill the roads and defiles worldly sentiments. The noble and eminent all learn of it, and reports reach the Emperor's ears. Thereupon, in sweeping conformity, they reject all alike and unjustly wrong the pure. This is not solely due to monks and nuns not following the holy teachings, but also because the white-robed [laity] fail to recognize the worthy and good. Indeed, it is because of one or two ordinary monks that the countless good assembly is reviled. Some diligently pursue learning, with vast knowledge of the Tripiṭaka; some lecture and guide to benefit beings without lapse throughout the four seasons; some dwell exclusively in dhyāna contemplation, always sitting and never lying down; some recite sūtras and treatises, constant, diligent, and untiring; some practice the six periods of repentance, walking the path day and night; some wear patched robes and beg for food, frugal, plain, and non-contriving; some reside in mountain araṇyas, practicing dhūta austerities; some devote themselves to cultivating merit, making offerings to the Three Jewels; some establish vegetarian feasts and sermons, converting the worldly to enter the Way; some produce scriptures and images, constructing saṃghārāmas. A brief list such as this—who could fully record them all? These renowned virtues always rely on the bodhimaṇḍa, dedicated to practicing merit and wisdom. They do not waste an inch of time and have no leisure even to bathe. Thus the dukes and nobles do not recognize them; they form intimate ties only with base scoundrels. Habituation having lasted long, they take the wrong to be right; even when they behold holy monks, they consider them ordinary assemblies. They only give rise to anger and arrogance, never adding respect. Calming the mind to reflect on this matter—is it not indeed a grave injustice?
30.6
Section Two: Chastisement and Punishment
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Ever since the Great Sage went into hiding in the West and the correct teaching flowed to the East, the Buddha-Dharma was entrusted to kings of states to afford it protection and maintenance. However, as the royal law encroached and shifted, it daily declined into frailty, and the statutes for punishing offenders were nearly exhausted. If anyone heard it spoken of, they were instead insulted. Because monastics and the laity had long mingled in evil and diverged from proper sentiments, even if one wished to chastise and punish so as to reform evil toward good, relying on official power they unjustly oppressed pure people. The saṃgha had no strength, and their pure minds were instead defiled; those harboring deceit grew increasingly treacherous and were truly difficult to subdue. This brought the great teaching's function to a halt and caused the bequeathed customs to degenerate. Therefore, the *Mahāsaṃnipāta-sūtra* states: 'If future kings of the four castes, for the sake of protecting the Dharma, are able to sacrifice their bodies and lives, they should rather protect one bhikṣu who accords with the Dharma than countless evil bhikṣus. Such a king, having cast off his body, will be reborn in a pure land. If he follows evil ones, that king for countless lifetimes will not regain a human body. If kings and others do not chastise them, they will sever the Three Jewels and pluck out the eyes of sentient beings. Though they cultivate giving, morality, and wisdom for countless lifetimes, these will all be destroyed. Furthermore, an offending bhikṣu who ought to be chastised should be subjected to hard labor for one or two months, or one should not speak with him or sit with him, or banish him out of one country, up to four countries where the Buddha-Dharma exists. By punishing such evil bhikṣus, all good bhikṣus will dwell in peace and receive the Dharma, thereby causing the Buddha-Dharma to endure long without extinction.' Furthermore, the *Sarvāstivāda-śāstra* states: 'Violating a king's decree incurs a duṣkṛta offense.' Furthermore, the *Śrīmālādevī-sūtra* states: 'The World-Honoured One subdues those who ought to be subdued, and gathers in those who ought to be gathered in. Why is this? Because by subduing and gathering in, the saddharma is made to endure long, heavenly beings and humans fill the realms, evil destinies decrease, and one is able to roll along with the wheel of the Dharma rolled by the Tathāgata.' Furthermore, the *Mahāparinirvāṇa-sūtra* states: 'Good sons, listen attentively, listen attentively! I shall now explain to you the karma by which the Tathāgata obtained long life. Bodhisattvas, through the causes and conditions of this karma, obtain longevity. One who wishes to obtain long life should be compassionate toward all sentient beings, regarding them as his own children; generate great kindness, great compassion, great sympathetic joy, and great equanimity; receive the precept against killing, and teach them to cultivate good dharmas. He should also establish all sentient beings in the five precepts and ten good deeds. Moreover, he should enter the hells, hungry ghosts, animals, asuras, and all other evil destinies to rescue and deliver the beings suffering torment therein: liberating those not yet liberated, crossing over those not yet crossed over, causing those not yet in nirvāṇa to attain nirvāṇa, and consoling all who are terrified. By such karmic causes and conditions, a bodhisattva attains longevity and freedom in all wisdoms, and upon the end of that life, is reborn in the heavens.' Bodhisattva Kāśyapa said to the Buddha: 'World-Honoured One, if within the Buddha-Dharma there are those who break precepts, commit deadly sins, and defame the saddharma, how can one regard such persons as one's own children?' The Buddha told Kāśyapa: 'Good son, just as when a king and his ministers punish and execute according to the crime those who violate the king's law without letting them off, the Tathāgata, the World-Honoured One, does not do so. Toward those who destroy the Dharma, he applies the expulsion karman, the censure karman, the abandonment karman, the formal charge karman, the unseen karman, the total expulsion karman, and the karman for not renouncing evil views. Good son, the Tathāgata, the World-Honoured One, applies such subduing karmans to those who slander the Dharma in order to show those who practice evil that there is retribution. After my nirvāṇa, wherever there may be, if there is a precept-holding bhikṣu fully endowed with deportment who protects and sustains the saddharma, and seeing those who destroy the Dharma, is able to expel, censure, and penalize them, you should know that this person attains immeasurable, incalculable merit. Up to this: if a good bhikṣu sees one who destroys the Dharma and leaves him without censuring, expelling, or charging him, you should know that this person is an enemy within the Buddha-Dharma. If he is able to expel, censure, and charge him, he is my true śrāvaka disciple.' It also says: 'The Tathāgata now entrusts the unexcelled saddharma to kings, great ministers, chancellors, bhikṣus, bhikṣuṇīs, upāsakas, and upāsikās. These kings and the fourfold assembly should encourage and exhort all trainees to attain superior morality, concentration, and wisdom. If there are those who do not train in these three dharmas, but are negligent, break the precepts, and destroy the saddharma, the kings, ministers, and fourfold assembly should severely punish them.' The sūtra also says: 'If there is a bhikṣu whose requisites of sustenance are abundant, who is able to guard and maintain the precepts he has received, and who can make the lion's roar to explain widely the excellent Dharma—that is, the sūtras up to the adbhutadharma—expounding such nine divisions of scriptures for others to benefit and bring peace to sentient beings, he proclaims these words: "In the *Nirvāṇa-sūtra*, the Buddha forbade all bhikṣus to keep slaves, cattle, sheep, and other improper items. If any bhikṣu keeps such impure items, he should be punished. The Tathāgata previously stated in other sūtras: 'If there is a bhikṣu who keeps such improper items, a certain king shall punish him according to the Dharma and expel him, forcing him to return to lay life.'" If there is a bhikṣu who can make such a lion's roar, at that time those who break precepts, upon hearing these words, will all become enraged and harm this Dharma master. Even if this preacher of Dharma loses his life, he is still called one who holds the precepts, benefiting himself and benefiting others. For this reason, I permit the rulers of countries, ministers, chancellors, and upāsakas to protect the preacher of Dharma.' The sūtra clarifies in detail: 'When Bhikṣu Jñānaprabha protected the saddharma, he forbade all bhikṣus from breaking the precepts and keeping improper items. The precept-breaking assembly, hearing these words, came to harm him. At that time, there was a king named Guṇavān, who risked his life to protect Bhikṣu Jñānaprabha, fought with them, and rescued the Dharma master. From that time on, he was always able to encounter Buddhas, until eventually both attained Buddhahood.' [The Buddha] pointed to himself, saying: 'The king of that time was myself, and the Dharma-preaching bhikṣu was Kāśyapa Buddha. For the sake of protecting the Dharma, both were able to accomplish this adamantine body.' It also says: 'In the turbid and evil age after my nirvāṇa, states will be in chaos, plundering one another, and the people will be starved. At that time, many will bring forth the resolve to leave household life merely on account of hunger. Such persons are called bald people. These bald people, seeing pure bhikṣus who hold the precepts, are endowed with deportment, and protect the saddharma, will drive them out, kill, or harm them.' Bodhisattva Kāśyapa said to the Buddha: 'World-Honoured One, how should these precept-holders who protect the saddharma wander through villages and towns to teach and transform?' 'Good son, for this reason, I now permit those who hold precepts to rely on white-robed [laypeople] who carry swords and staves as their companions. If kings, ministers, elders, upāsakas, and others, for the sake of protecting the Dharma, carry swords and staves, I declare them to be holding the precepts. Although they carry swords and staves, they must not take life. If they can act thus, they are called foremost in holding the precepts.' It also says: 'In the sūtras I have also said that those who commit the four pārājikas down to the minute duṣkṛtas should be severely punished. If sentient beings do not guard and uphold the precepts, how can they behold the Buddha-nature? Although all sentient beings have the Buddha-nature, they must rely on holding the precepts before they can perceive it. By perceiving the Buddha-nature, they attain anuttarasamyaksaṃbodhi.' A verse also states:
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If a bhikṣu cultivates and gathers
Morality, concentration, and wisdom,
You should know that before long
He will draw close to the Great Nirvāṇa.
30.9
Furthermore, a verse from the *Candrapradīpa-sūtra* states:
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Though one widely reads the numerous sūtras,
Relying on great learning to break the prohibitions,
Great learning cannot save one
From the hellish torments of breaking the precepts.
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Furthermore, a verse spoken by the Buddha in the *Daśacakra-sūtra* states:
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There are true and good kṣatriyas
Who make offerings to the saddharma;
The three vehicles flourish thereby,
And they will obtain an ocean of merit.
Even if with the seven treasures and the like,
Filling the entirety of Jambudvīpa,
One offers them to all Buddhas,
That merit still has a limit.
Even if across the four continents
One builds monasteries and makes offerings,
Though one gains great merit thereby,
It is not as good as protecting the saddharma.
Even if for all Buddhas
One builds stūpas filling the world,
Though one gains great merit thereby,
It is not as good as protecting the saddharma.
Just as the rising of five suns
Can dry up the great ocean,
If one protects my Dharma,
It dries up the fetters of affliction.
Just as when the wind calamity arises,
It utterly shatters all mountains,
If one protects the saddharma,
It also destroys all afflictions.
Just as when the flood calamity arises,
It sweeps away and destroys the great earth,
If one protects the saddharma,
It also dissolves all afflictions.
30.13
Section Three: Careful Reflection
30.14
Now, one who wishes to become a great physician and propagate the Tripiṭaka must first adapt to the spiritual capacities [of others], curing his own ailments before treating others. In this way the Dharma may long endure. One must not, for the sake of fame and gain, idly talk about orthodox teachings while failing to cultivate even a single practice, thereby becoming like one crazed with drink. Hence the Daśabhūmi-vibhāṣā-śāstra states: 'There are two kinds of intoxication: the first is intoxication when family, beauty, wealth, and the like are accomplished; the second is intoxication when praised by others. Of these two intoxications, the former is mostly the intoxication of householders when they are wealthy and noble, opening the gates of indolence and creating the causes for hell. The latter is mostly that of renunciants: greedily pursuing fame and gain, they hold themselves cheap; desiring praise from others, they give rise to arrogance, become blinded to their aspirations, lose the holy intention, and, blind and unable to see the Path, wander adrift in the three evil destinies.' Therefore the Nirvāṇa Sūtra says: 'The Buddha told Kāśyapa: "Seven hundred years after my parinirvāṇa, Māra Pāpīyān will gradually subvert and destroy my saddharma. Just as a hunter wears a kāṣāya on his body, Māra the King Pāpīyān will do likewise: he will assume the form of a bhikṣu, the form of a bhikṣuṇī, the form of an upāsaka, and the form of an upāsikā. He will also manifest as a srotāpanna, up to manifesting as an arhat and as the physical body of a Buddha. Māra the King will use these defiled forms to make undefiled forms and destroy my saddharma." The sūtra also says: 'If there is a bhikṣu who expounds the Dharma for others for the sake of material gain, all the disciples and followers of this person will also imitate this teacher and greedily seek material gain. In this way, this person will destroy his own assembly.' It also says: 'If there is a bhikṣu who, though observing the prohibitive precepts, sits, rises, and walks with precept-breakers for the sake of material gain, associating intimately with them and joining in their activities, this is called breaking the precepts and is also called a corrupt monk.' It also says: 'Furthermore, there are those who are constantly submerged and yet are not icchantikas. Who are they? If a person cultivates the virtues of giving and precepts for the sake of existence, this is called being constantly submerged.' Therefore the sūtra says: 'Good sons, there are four good deeds that result in evil fruits. What are the four? First, chanting the scriptures to surpass others. Second, upholding the pure precepts for the sake of material gain. Third, practicing dāna for the sake of [gaining] followers. Fourth, focusing mindfulness and contemplating for the sake of the station of neither-perception-nor-non-perception. These four good deeds bring evil retributions.' It also says: 'These icchantikas extinguish all roots of goodness; because they are not vessels [for the Dharma], even if such a person were to hear and receive such a Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra for hundreds of thousands of myriad years, they could never generate the bodhicitta. Why is this? Because they lack a good mind.' The sūtra also says: 'Good sons, an immeasurable hundred thousand years after my nirvāṇa, the noble ones of the four fruits will all have entered nirvāṇa as well. After the saddharma has disappeared, during the semblance Dharma, there will be bhikṣus who resemble observers of the vinaya but seldom read or recite the sūtras. Greedily craving food and drink to nourish their bodies, the clothes they wear on their bodies will be coarse, shabby, and unsightly. Their countenances will be withered and exhausted, devoid of majestic dignity. Tending cattle and sheep, carrying firewood and grass, their head-hair, beards, and nails will all be long and sharp. Though wearing kāṣāyas, they will be like hunters, walking with slow and cautious steps like a cat stalking a mouse. They will constantly proclaim: "I have attained arhatship!" Having many painful illnesses, they will sleep and lie in filth and excrement. Outwardly displaying virtue and goodness, inwardly they harbor greed and jealousy, like Brahmins who have undertaken vows of silence. Not truly śramaṇas, they display the appearance of śramaṇas; their wrong views will blaze furiously, and they will slander the saddharma. Such people as these will destroy the vinaya precepts and the proper deportment established by the Tathāgata, proclaiming the fruit of liberation while failing to depart from impure dharmas, and destroying the profound and secret teachings. Following their own inclinations, they will conversely distort the sūtras and vinaya, saying: "The Tathāgata allows all of us to eat meat and drink alcohol." Generating such assertions on their own, they will say they were spoken by the Buddha. Quarreling with one another, each will claim to be a śramaṇa and a disciple of the Śākya. Good sons, at that time there will also be śramaṇas who hoard raw grains, accept and take fish and meat, prepare food with their own hands, and hold oil jars. With precious parasols and leather sandals, they will curry favor with kings, great ministers, and elders. Divining constellations, diligently studying medicine, keeping slaves and maidservants, gold, silver, and miscellaneous gems, they will learn various crafts: painters, plasterers, making books and teaching, planting roots and crops, practicing sorcery and incantations, compounding medicines, performing music and dance, adorning their bodies with scents and flowers, playing dice, Go, and various handicrafts. If there is a bhikṣu who can keep far from such evil matters, that person should be called my true disciple. If, conversely, one practices these things, associates intimately with kings, princes, great ministers, and women, laughs loudly or remains sullenly silent, harbors many doubts regarding the teachings, talks excessively and falsely of faults and merits, the good and the ungood, loves wearing fine clothes—with various impure things such as these, praising oneself before donors, going in and out of impure places such as taverns, brothels, and gambling dens—such a person I do not now permit to remain among the bhikṣus. They should be expelled from the Path, returned to the laity, and put to forced labor, just as tares and weeds are completely eliminated without remainder. You should know that what is proscribed in these sūtras and vinayas was entirely spoken by the Tathāgata. If there are those who follow what is spoken by Māra, they are Māra's retinue; if there are those who follow what is spoken by the Buddha, they are bodhisattvas.' Furthermore, the sūtra says: 'Precept-breaking bhikṣus shall, for hundreds of thousands of kotis of myriad kalpas, have the flesh of their bodies sliced and cut to repay their donors. If born as animals, their bodies will constantly bear heavy burdens. Why is this? Just as dividing a single hair into a thousand kotis of parts, a precept-breaking bhikṣu cannot consume even one part of the offerings, how much less could he consume others' clothing, food and drink, bedding, and medicine!' It also says: 'They delight in looking at women and do not associate with men; they even despise precept-keepers and associate intimately with precept-breakers. They constantly praise dāna, but do not praise śīlapāramitā, kṣānti, vīrya, dhyāna, and prajñā. They do not praise tranquility, detachment, and solitude. They constantly love to mock and discuss the faults of precept-keepers, and do not praise those who practice dhūtas, or they point out their deeds, heaping abusive speech upon them.' The sūtra also says: 'Good sons, when the saddharma of the Tathāgata is about to disappear completely, there will be many bhikṣus of evil conduct at that time who do not understand the subtle, secret treasury of the Tathāgata. Lazy and indolent, they will be unable to read, recite, proclaim, and analyze the saddharma of the Tathāgata. Just as a foolish thief discards true gems and carries off grass and chaff, because they do not understand the subtle, secret treasury of the Tathāgata, they will be indolent and unenergetic toward this sūtra. Alas, what a great peril! The future age is truly terrifying! What suffering for sentient beings, who will not diligently listen to and receive this Mahāyāna scripture! Only the bodhisattva-mahāsattvas can grasp the true meaning of this Great Nirvāṇa Sūtra without clinging to the words, expounding it for sentient beings in accordance with it and without opposition. Furthermore, good sons, consider a cowherdess who, wishing to sell milk, added two parts of water out of greed for greater profit, and resold it to another cowherdess. That woman, having obtained it, added another two parts and resold it to a woman living near the city. Having obtained it, she added another two parts and resold it to a woman within the city. That woman, having obtained it, added another two parts and went to the market to sell it. At that time, a man was taking a wife for his son and needed good milk to entertain the guests. He went to the market intending to buy it. The milk seller demanded a high price. The man replied: "Your milk has much water and is not worth that much. But it happens that I must entertain guests today, so I will take it." Having taken it, he returned home and boiled it to make porridge, but it had no taste of milk at all. Yet, though it was tasteless, it was still a thousand times superior to bitter tastes. Why? Because among all tastes, the taste of milk is the supreme. Good sons, eighty years before the saddharma disappears after my nirvāṇa, this sūtra will be widely circulated throughout Jambudvīpa. At that time, there will be many evil bhikṣus who will plunder this sūtra and divide it into many portions, being able to destroy the color, fragrance, and delicious taste of the saddharma. Though these evil people read and recite such scriptures, they will eradicate the profound, secret, and essential meaning of the Tathāgata, inserting worldly ornamentation and embellished, meaningless words. They will copy what is at the beginning and place it at the end; copy what is at the end and place it at the beginning; place what is at the beginning and end in the middle; and place what is in the middle at the beginning and end. You should know that such evil bhikṣus are companions of Māra. They will receive and store all manner of impure things, saying: "The Tathāgata permitted us to keep all of them." Just as the cowherdesses added much water to the milk, so too are the evil bhikṣus: solely using worldly language, they will garble and standardize this sūtra, causing many sentient beings to be unable to expound it correctly, copy it correctly, comprehend it correctly, or revere, praise, make offerings to, and respect it. For the sake of material gain, these evil bhikṣus will be unable to widely proclaim and circulate this sūtra; what little they disperse will be scant and not worth mentioning. Just like that poor cowherdess, through successive dilutions it loses all flavor. Though it has no flavor, it is still superior to other tastes by a full thousand times, because the taste of milk is a thousand times superior to all bitter tastes. Why? Because this Mahāyāna scripture, the Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra, is the foremost among the śrāvaka sūtras, just as the taste of cow's milk is supreme among all tastes. For this reason, it is called the Great Nirvāṇa.'
30.15
Section 4: Expounding and Listening
30.16
As the Nirvāṇa Sūtra says: 'Furthermore, good sons, if my disciples uphold, read, recite, copy, and expound this Nirvāṇa Sūtra, let them not speak it at the wrong time; let them not speak it without conviction; let them not speak it uninvited; let them not speak it with a light mind; let them not speak it everywhere; let them not speak it to praise themselves; let them not speak it to disparage others; let them not speak it when the Buddhadharma is being extinguished; and let them not speak it when worldly concerns are blazing. Good sons, if my disciples uphold this sūtra and speak it at the wrong time, up to speaking it when worldly concerns are blazing, people will lightly rebuke them, saying: "If the secret treasury of the Buddha, the Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra, possesses majestic power, why does it cause you to speak it at the wrong time, up to speaking it when worldly concerns are blazing? If the upholders of the sūtra speak like this, you should know that this sūtra has no majestic power. If it has no majestic power, then even if one upholds it, there is no benefit." Because of this light disparagement of the Nirvāṇa Sūtra, immeasurable sentient beings will fall into hell. These [teachers] are then evil companions to sentient beings; they are not my disciples, but Māra's retinue. If one expounds the sūtra for the sake of material gain, the five desires, or fame, the matter is like commerce, and it will quickly destroy the saddharma.' The Nirvāṇa Sūtra also says: 'What is trading sandalwood for ordinary wood? It is like my disciples who, for the sake of offerings, expound the sūtra and Dharma to white-robed laity. The laity, indulging their inclinations, do not delight in hearing it. The laity sit in high places while the bhikṣus sit below, and furthermore provide them with various fine foods and delicacies, yet they are still unwilling to listen. This is called trading sandalwood for ordinary wood. What is trading gold for brass? Brass is an analogy for forms, sounds, scents, tastes, and tangibles. Gold is an analogy for the precepts. My disciples breaking the precepts they have undertaken due to the causes and conditions of sensual forms: this is called trading gold for brass. What is trading silver for pewter? Silver is an analogy for the ten wholesome deeds. Pewter is an analogy for the ten unwholesome deeds. My disciples abandoning the ten wholesome deeds and practicing the ten unwholesome deeds: this is called trading silver for pewter. What is trading silk for coarse hemp? Coarse hemp is used as an analogy for shamelessness and lack of conscience. Silk is an analogy for shame and conscience. My disciples abandoning shame and conscience to practice shamelessness and lack of conscience: this is called trading silk for coarse hemp. What is trading amṛta for poison? Poison is used as an analogy for various offerings. Amṛta is used as an analogy for all undefiled dharmas. My disciples, for the sake of material gain, bitterly praising themselves to the white-robed laity, saying they have attained the undefiled: this is called trading amṛta for poison.'
30.17
Furthermore, the Lotus Sūtra says: 'A bodhisattva-mahāsattva does not closely associate with kings, princes, ministers, or officials; does not closely associate with various non-Buddhists, brāhmaṇas, Nirgranthas, and the like, nor those who compose worldly literature, panegyrics, and non-Buddhist writings, up to hunting, fishing, and various evil vows of conduct; nor does he closely associate with those who seek the vehicle of the voice-hearer (śrāvaka). Moreover, he should not seize upon signs in a woman's body that can give rise to lustful thoughts and preach the Dharma for her, nor does he take pleasure in seeing her. If he enters another's house, he does not converse with young girls, virgins, or widows. Furthermore, he does not approach the five kinds of unmanly persons to make them close friends. He does not enter another's house alone; if there is a cause or condition requiring him to enter alone, he simply mindfulness of the Buddha single-mindedly. When preaching the Dharma for a woman, he does not show his teeth in smiling, nor does he expose his chest; he is not intimate even for the sake of the Dharma, much less for other matters. He takes no pleasure in keeping young disciples, śrāmaṇeras, or small boys, nor does he take pleasure in sharing the same teacher with them. He constantly delights in seated meditation, training and subduing his mind in empty and quiet places.' Furthermore, the Fo zang jing says: 'There are five kinds of impure preaching of the Dharma: first, claiming for oneself that one completely knows the Buddha-Dharma; second, when preaching the Buddhist sūtras, pointing out contradictory faults among the various scriptures; third, having doubt and disbelief in one's heart toward the teachings; fourth, relying on one's own understanding to negate the scriptural teachings of others; fifth, preaching the Dharma for others for the sake of material gain and offerings. For those who preach like this, I say that such persons will fall into hell and will not reach nirvāṇa.' It also says: 'For a long time I endured hardship and suffering to seek this Dharma-jewel, yet these evil people discard it and do not preach it; instead, relying on contradictory words and meanings in the scriptures, they mutually affirm and deny each other without conforming to the true Dharma. Within the noble Dharma, they harbor arrogance in their hearts, speaking as they please to seek material gain and offerings. If a bhikṣu preaches the Dharma mixed with the meanings of non-Buddhists, any good bhikṣu should rise from his seat and leave. If he does not do so, he is not a good bhikṣu, nor is he called one who follows the Buddha's teaching. For one who preaches like this, I say this person is called a disciple of the non-Buddhist Nirgranthas, not a disciple of the Buddha; he is to be regarded as one of hell, animals, or hungry ghosts. Why is this? If one's person has not realized the Dharma yet sits on a high seat, and being ignorant oneself yet instructs others, by law one falls into hell. Furthermore, in the future there will be bhikṣus who are fond of reading non-Buddhist scriptures; when preaching the Dharma, they will adorn their literary expressions to delight the multitude. At that time, evil Māra will assist in deluding the masses and obstructing the wholesome Dharma. If there are those who greedily cling to sounds and words with skillfully decorated rhetoric, or if there are those who are fond of non-Buddhist scriptures, Māra will delude them all, causing their minds to feel secure. Furthermore, just as a group of blind people who, discarding the goods they had acquired, wish to go to a great almsgiving but fall into a deep pit, so too are my disciples: they abandon coarse clothing and food to chase after great almsgivings seeking fine offerings; because of worldly gain, they lose great wisdom and fall into the deep pit of Avīci hell.' It also says: 'Preaching the Dharma with impurity incurs exceedingly great guilt; it also makes one an evil friend to sentient beings, and slanders the Buddhas of the past, future, and present. If someone were to take the lives of all the sentient beings in the trichiliocosm, the guilt of preaching the Dharma with impurity would be greater than this. Why is this? These people all destroy the anuttarā-samyak-saṃbodhi of all Buddhas to assist Māra's deeds, and they also cause sentient beings to undergo decline and distress for hundreds of thousands of lifetimes, only able to bind them and unable to liberate them. You should know that such persons are evil friends to all sentient beings; because of this false speech, they slander the Buddhas in the midst of the great assembly, and for this reason fall into the great hells. Because they teach many sentient beings matters of wrong view, they are therefore called people of evil, wrong views.' It also says: 'Śāriputra, at that time there will be precept-breaking bhikṣus who, even for the sake of obtaining a single cup of wine, will expound the Buddha-Dharma to laypeople. What do you think? They have abundant greed, hatred, and delusion, and delight greatly in reciting sūtras; greedily clinging to gain and offerings, their conduct is impure. Śāriputra, if there is a bhikṣu who is advanced in years and virtuous, a dragon among bhikṣus, possessing deep wisdom, such a person can have faith in the Dharma of non-existence, intrinsic signlessness, and emptiness, the Dharma of no self and no person. Why is this? This person does not delight in noisy crowds and diverse talk, does not delight in sleep and multiple affairs, does not manage worldly business for laypeople, does not act as an envoy delivering letters, does not practice medicine, does not read medical formulas, does not engage in trade, and does not delight in discussing worldly matters; he only delights in wishing to speak of supramundane dharmas. Śāriputra, I now clearly tell you: good bhikṣus who seek their own benefit should at that time not enter the assembly even for a single night, with the sole exception of arhats whose defilements are already cut off, or sick bhikṣus who have circumstances among them. Why is this? Śāriputra, the people of that time will have the poisons of lust, anger, and delusion raging vigorously; they will constantly be pressed by the fear of failing to make a living. Good people who seek benefit should constantly dwell by themselves in small forests, empty and quiet, even until ending their lives dying like wild beasts.' It also says: 'This true Dharma of mine will not remain in the world for long. Why is this? The merit and wholesome roots of sentient beings are already exhausted, and the defiled age is at hand.'
30.18
Furthermore, the Candragarbha-sūtra of the Mahāsaṃnipāta says: 'If there are sentient beings who rely solely on reading and reciting in wishing to seek anuttarā-samyak-saṃbodhi, these people mostly delight in clinging to the worldly. Because of worldly affairs, they cannot even subdue the defilements of their own minds; how could they subdue the defilements of others? Good sons, those who delight in and cling to reading and reciting while seeking bodhi will develop jealousy, seek fame and profit, become proud and rely on themselves, and slight and disparage others. They cannot even attain the wholesome roots of the desire realm, how much less could they attain any of the wholesome roots of the form or formless realms?'
30.19
Furthermore, the Mahāyāna Mahāratnakūṭa-sūtra says: 'Just as a physician travels carrying medicines yet cannot cure his own illness, so it is with a person of wide learning who has the disease of defilements: though he has wide learning, he does not restrain his defilements, cannot benefit himself, and it is entirely useless. Just as a dead corpse may be adorned with gold necklaces, so too is one of wide learning who breaks the precepts, wears the Dharma robes, and receives offerings from others.'
30.20
Furthermore, the Daśacakra-kṣitigarbha-sūtra says: 'If there are sentient beings who give rise to coarse, vile, foolish, and harsh speech, deeming themselves to be wise, up to not being separated from wrong views; who, for the sake of seeking benefits from others, give rise to jealousy; who, greedily attached to renown, elevate themselves and slight others, unable to guard body, speech, and mind, their minds constantly thinking evil and constantly speaking in this way, while styling themselves persons of the Mahāyāna and also teaching others to read and recite, merely praising themselves and disparaging others—for this reason, though praising the Mahāyāna, they are themselves unsubdued, yet wish to teach others to practice the Mahāyāna on the Mahāyāna path. It even says that it is difficult [for them] to obtain a human body, and they will also lose the vehicles of the voice-hearer (śrāvaka) and pratyekabuddha, constantly heading toward the evil destinies. They do not wish to approach the wise, yet proclaim and make this lion's roar: "I am a good son of the Mahāyāna." For example, just as if a donkey were to put on a lion's skin, considering itself a lion, and someone seeing it from afar also took it to be a lion; before the donkey brays, no one can distinguish it, but once it emits its cry, everyone far and near knows it is not a real lion, and all the people who see it spit upon it and say: "Is this wretched donkey not pretending to be a lion?" In the same way, those who break the prohibitory precepts and engage in evil deeds are in all respects not vessels of the Dharma. If such a person should say of himself: "I belong to the Mahāyāna, and am able to shatter the great battle array of defilement and affliction of all sentient beings, and for the sake of sentient beings abide in the noble eightfold path and enter the city of fearlessness," there is no such possibility.'
30.21
Furthermore, the Fo zang jing says: 'In a past age there were five bhikṣus: the first was named Pushi, the second Kuan, the third Saheta, the fourth Jiangqu, and the fifth Banantuo. These five bhikṣus were masters of the great assembly. Pushi understood the meaning of real emptiness and the Dharma of non-attainment spoken by the Buddha. The other four bhikṣus all fell into deviant paths and spoke much of [the existence of] a person. The bhikṣu Pushi was despised by the fourfold assembly, had no influence, and was hated and degraded by many people. The four evil bhikṣus mostly taught the multitude the path of wrong views; within the Buddha-Dharma they did not respect one another, and because they opposed each other, they brought about the destruction of the Buddha-Dharma.' It even says: 'These evil people destroyed the true Dharma of the Buddha and also brought great distress to many people. Moreover, after these evil people ended their lives, they fell into the Avīci hell, lying on their backs for nine million billion years, lying on their bellies for nine million billion years, and lying on their left and right sides likewise, burning and scorched on red-hot iron. Dying out from there, they were reborn in the Tāpana hell, the Pratāpana hell, the Saṃjīva hell, and the Kālasūtra hell, undergoing all manner of suffering for the same number of years as above. Dying in the Kālasūtra hell, they were reborn back into the great Avīci hell.' It even says: 'Those who were close to these people, as well as their good friends and various dānapatis, altogether numbering six trillion and forty billion people, were born together and died together with these four masters, undergoing all manner of burning and boiling in the great hells.' It even says: 'In this manner, they experienced suffering turn by turn for a kalpa. Because the mahākalpa was about to be burned, they remained in hell.' It also says: 'When the mahākalpa burns, these four evil people and the six trillion and forty billion people are reborn from this great Avīci hell into the great hells of other directions. Why is this? Śāriputra, when heavy sins are fully laden, their retribution is not slight; for immeasurable hundreds of thousands of millions of billions of nayutas of years they undergo great suffering in other directions. When the world comes into being again, these four guilty persons and the six trillion and forty billion people, together with the other people whose sins are not yet exhausted, will end their lives there and be reborn back into the great hells here.' It also says: 'After a very long time, though escaping the suffering of hell and attaining birth among humans, they will be born blind for five hundred lifetimes. Only then will they encounter a Buddha endowed with all marks.' It even says: 'In that Buddha's Dharma they will go forth from the household, and for a hundred thousand billion years diligently practice vigor like putting out a fire on their heads, yet fail to attain the stage of conforming patience, how much less attain the fruits of the path!' Furthermore, the Nirvāṇa Sūtra says: 'The bhikṣu Sunakkhatta could recite the twelve divisions of scripture.' The Mahāprajñāpāramitā-śāstra says: 'Devadatta left the household to study the path and recited sixty thousand collections of Dharma.' The author remarks: Neither of these two men cultivated the true Buddha-nature in the path of skillful means, nor the practice of contemplating the four applications of mindfulness and the like, observing the five aggregates as impermanent, suffering, empty, and non-self and not mine. Having greedily clung to the view of a self, the view of a person, and the view of a sentient being, they gave rise to sins of great treason and slandered the Tathāgata. For this reason, these two men fell alive into the Avīci hell to undergo endless suffering. Precedents of this kind are difficult to exhaust in narration.
30.22
Section 5: Bodhisattvas
30.23
As the Kāśyapa Sūtra says: At that time the Buddha said to Mahākāśyapa, "Before long, the Tathāgata shall enter parinirvāṇa." Kāśyapa said to the Buddha, "World-Honoured One, we pray only that the World-Honoured One remain in the world for one kalpa, or slightly less than one kalpa, to guard and protect the saddharma." The Buddha told Kāśyapa, "Even if a thousand Buddhas were to appear in the world, with all kinds of supernormal powers, preaching the Dharma and transforming them, those foolish people could not be made to cease their evil desires. Kāśyapa, in the future degenerate age, during the final five hundred years, there will be sentient beings who are fully endowed with good roots and whose minds are pure, who can repay the Buddha's kindness and guard and protect my Dharma." Kāśyapa said to the Buddha, "World-Honoured One, I cultivate few practices and my wisdom is shallow and slight; like carrying a heavy burden, I cannot bear it. Only a bodhisattva is able to shoulder such a heavy burden. For example, suppose there were a person advanced in years, fully one hundred and twenty years old, afflicted with severe illness and unable to stand or walk. At that time there is a person of immense wealth and abundant treasures who takes precious jewels and comes to the sick person's place, saying to him, 'I have matters that require me to go to another land. I entrust these treasures to you to guard and protect for me. Wait until my return, and then you shall give them back to me.' That old sick person has no sons or daughters and is all alone. Not long after that person departs, the old man becomes critically ill and dies. The entrusted property is entirely scattered and lost. When that person returns from his journey, he seeks it in vain. World-Honoured One, the śrāvaka is also like this: his wisdom is shallow and slight, he cultivates very little, and moreover he has no companions; he cannot remain long in the world. If the saddharma were entrusted to him, before long it would be scattered and extinguished." The Buddha praised Kāśyapa: "I already knew this, and yet I entrusted it to you so that those foolish people, having heard this, might give rise to remorse." At that time Kāśyapa said to the Buddha, "World-Honoured One, I shall now speak a second parable. For example, suppose there is a man whose physical strength is flourishing and robust, without any afflictions or suffering. His lifespan is immeasurable, hundreds of thousands of millions of years. He is born of a great lineage and fully endowed with wealth and treasures. He maintains pure precepts well, possesses great loving-kindness and compassion, harbors joy within, and benefits many people, causing them to attain peace and happiness. At that time a person carrying precious objects comes to his place and says to him, 'I have matters that require me to go to another land. I entrust these treasures to you to guard and protect well. Whether I return in ten years or return in twenty years, wait until I come and then return them to me.' That man receives the treasures, stores them, and guards them. When that person returns from his journey, he immediately returns them to him. World-Honoured One, the bodhisattva-mahāsattva is also like this. If one entrusts the Dharma jewel to the bodhisattvas, through immeasurable thousands of kotis of nayutas of kalpas it will never be lost or destroyed; it will benefit immeasurable and boundless sentient beings, not letting the Three Jewels be severed. World-Honoured One, such an affair I cannot sustain; only a bodhisattva is able to bear it. World-Honoured One, this Maitreya Bodhisattva-mahāsattva is right here in this assembly. Let the Tathāgata entrust it to him. In the future age, during the final five hundred years when the Dharma is about to be extinguished, he will be able to guard and protect, circulate, and extensively preach all the Dharma gathered by the Tathāgata. Why is this? Because this Maitreya Bodhisattva will realize anuttarā-saṃbodhi in a future age. For example, the foremost prince of a king will handle the affairs of state and govern the world according to the law. Maitreya Bodhisattva is also like this: he will govern the realm of the Dharma King and guard and protect the saddharma." At that time the Buddha praised Kāśyapa: "It is as you have said." He then extended his right hand, stroked Maitreya's head, and spoke these words: "Maitreya, I entrust this to you. In the future degenerate age, during the final five hundred years when the saddharma is being extinguished, you must guard and protect the Three Jewels and not let them be severed." At that time, when the Tathāgata stroked Maitreya's head, this trichiliocosm quaked in six ways, and radiance completely filled the great chiliocosm. At that time the earth devas, the sky devas, up to the Akaniṣṭha devas, all joined their palms and addressed Maitreya Bodhisattva-mahāsattva, saying, "The Tathāgata has entrusted the Dharma to the holy one. We pray only that the holy one, for the benefit of all devas and humans, receive this saddharma." At that time Maitreya Bodhisattva rose from his seat, bared his right shoulder, knelt with his right knee on the ground, joined his palms in reverent devotion, and addressed the Buddha, saying, "World-Honoured One, for the benefit of all sentient beings, I would even endure the suffering of immeasurable kotis of kalpas; how much more so when the Tathāgata entrusts to me the saddharma—how could I not receive it? World-Honoured One, I now receive and maintain it, and in a future age I shall preach the anuttarā-saṃbodhi Dharma gathered by the Tathāgata over immeasurable asaṃkhyeya kalpas." When Maitreya Bodhisattva spoke these words, the trichiliocosm quaked in six ways.
30.24
Also, the Mahāsaṃnipāta Sūtra says: At that time the World-Honoured One addressed the foremost, Maitreya, and all the bodhisattva-mahāsattvas of the Bhadrakalpa, saying, "Good sons, formerly when I was practicing the bodhisattva path, I made such offerings to the past Buddhas, the Tathāgatas. With these good roots, they served as the cause for my saṃbodhi. Out of pity for all sentient beings, I now divide this retribution-fruit into three portions. I reserve one portion for my own use. The second portion, after my extinction, I grant to the śrāvakas who are firmly endowed with dhyāna, liberation, and samādhi, so that they lack for nothing. The third portion I grant to those śrāvakas who have broken the precepts but recite the scriptures, and who shave their heads and wear the kāṣāya in the periods of the true Dharma and semblance Dharma, so that they lack for nothing. Maitreya, I now also entrust into your hands all the assemblies of śrāvakas—the bhikṣus, bhikṣuṇīs, upāsakas, and upāsikās who are aligned with the three modes of karma—do not let them fall into scarcity or die in isolation. And those who have broken and violated the prohibitions and precepts yet wear the kāṣāya in the periods of the true Dharma and semblance Dharma, I entrust into your hands; do not let them die in scarcity of material necessities, nor let there be caṇḍāla kings who together harass and harm them so that they suffer in body and mind. I now also entrust into your hands all those donors. Those who have gone forth for my sake—whether they are suitable vessels or not—and are offered sustenance, you must also protect and nourish. Maitreya, if in the present or in future ages there are those who recite, receive, and maintain this Dharma gate, they shall attain ten kinds of pure virtues. What are the ten? Beginning with physical purity and thus abstaining from taking life, up to abstaining from wrong views; these are the ten kinds of virtues. From this time onward, for hundreds of thousands of millions of births, they will always attain these ten kinds of pure virtues. If there are those who listen to this Dharma gate with a sincere mind, these persons, abiding in the limit of reality (bhūta-koṭi), will attain eight kinds of pure virtues. What are the eight? First, longevity. Second, handsome appearance. Third, wealth and nobility. Fourth, fame. Fifth, constant protection by all the devas. Sixth, constant lack of nothing in what is needed. Seventh, the exhaustion of all karmic hindrances. Eighth, when their lives are about to end, the Buddhas of the ten directions and the great assemblies will emit great radiance shining upon their eyes, causing those persons to see it and be reborn in a good realm. Through hundreds of thousands of millions of births, they will always attain such eight kinds of virtues. I shall now also speak in brief: these persons will attain thirteen kinds of pure virtues. What are the thirteen? First, in the transmigratory flow of saṃsāra, they will never again give rise to inverted, evil views. Second, they will not be born in Buddha-less lands of the five turbidities. Third, they will always be able to see the Buddha. Fourth, they will always hear the saddharma. Fifth, they will always be able to make offerings to the saṃgha. Sixth, they will meet good spiritual friends. Seventh, they will always be aligned with the six pāramitās. Eighth, they will not fall into the Hīnayāna. Ninth, they will always mature sentient beings through the power of great loving-kindness, great compassion, and great skillful means. Tenth, they will always generate supreme vows. Eleventh, up until bodhi, they will never be separated from the aforesaid dharmas. Twelfth, they will swiftly be able to fulfill the six pāramitās. Thirteenth, they will realize saṃbodhi in anuttarā-samyak-saṃbodhi. If there are those who receive, maintain, copy, recite, explain to others, and practice according to the teachings of this Candragarbha Dharma Gate, the merits and virtues they obtain will be as described above."
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- 法苑珠林 — 道世, Classical Chinese