The Questions of the Nāga King Sāgara (1)
Chapter Six: Being Supported by the Path of the Ten Virtues

Nāga King Sāgara then said to the Blessed One, “Blessed One, out of care for us, to benefit many beings, to bring many beings happiness, and out of love for the world, I beg you to take tomorrow’s midday meal in the ocean. Blessed One, the ocean is home to limitless beings such as gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, and other species of animals. If they see the Thus-Gone One, they will develop roots of virtue. By hearing the sublime Dharma, they will comprehend how there can be an end to beginningless saṃsāra. My royal nāga realm will flourish, [F.159.a] and the world and its gods will be unable to defeat us. In this way, the Thus-Gone One could demonstrate the eminence of the buddhas and explain the Dharma that describes the factors of awakening in relation to me.”

The Blessed One accepted this request out of his love for Nāga King Sāgara and in order to amplify the roots of virtue of limitless beings. Seeing that the Blessed One had approved his request, Nāga King Sāgara was satisfied, pleased, delighted, overjoyed, and at ease. He bowed his head to the Blessed One’s feet and circumambulated him three times. With his supporters and retinue, he disappeared from before the Blessed One and returned to the ocean.

He addressed the mass of beings assembled in the ocean, “I have invited the Thus-Gone One to take tomorrow’s midday meal here. Out of his love for me, he accepted. Thus, all of you must harmoniously and joyfully endeavor to venerate and serve the Thus-Gone One.”

Nāga King Sāgara told the asura lords Rāhu, Supreme Bliss, Satisfier, and Vemacitrin: “Friends, take notice! The Thus-Gone One plans to come to this ocean. I have created the opportunity for you, along with all your retinues, to venerate the Blessed One. Come to my abode!”

Nāga King Sāgara then addressed the nāga kings Takṣaka, Infinite Color, Immaculate, Light, Playful, Array, Vajrapāṇi, Expressed, Displaying All Colors, [F.159.b] Varieties of Sandalwood, and hundreds of thousands of other nāga kings, “Friends, you all must come to my abode to behold, prostrate to, and serve the Thus-Gone One.”

Nāga King Sāgara then commanded the prince Glorious Splendor, “Your Highness, go forth. Prostrate your head to the feet of the Nāga King Anavatapta and deliver my message. Tell him to come here to this ocean, because at your father’s request, the Blessed One, the perfect Buddha, is coming here to have his meal.”

“As you wish,” the prince said. And so Nāga King Sāgara’s son Glorious Splendor did just as he was told.

Nāga King Sāgara then said to Nāga King Fierce Strength, “Fierce Strength, get going. Go to the top of Mount Meru and call upon both Nāga King Nanda and Nāga King Upananda. Also tell Śakra, lord of the gods, to come to my abode to venerate and serve the Thus-Gone One.” Nāga King Sāgara’s son Fierce Strength then did as he was told and went before both Nāga King Nanda and Nāga King Upananda and Śakra, lord of the gods. He called on them just as he was instructed.

Nāga King Sāgara then set up the courtyard in his abode with blue beryl and gold from the Jambū river. He beautified it with various gems, covered it with a net of jewels, hung up a net of tiny bells, attached many silken tassels, erected a canopy, planted banners and pennants, fumigated the space with the ocean’s finest incense, and scattered various flowers. In the wide and vast courtyard, he set up a lion throne twelve leagues in height, set with various jewels, and laid with various fabrics of divine linen. [F.160.a] Above this he erected a canopy and surrounded it with an offering shrine made of the seven precious materials, decorating it by festooning it with a net of jewels, suspending from it a network of tiny bells, and attaching to it silken tassels, thus creating an arrangement that was the finest in all respects.

He set out appropriate seats for the monastic saṅgha and food of many flavors. Seeing that everything was well prepared, with his sons, relatives, and retinue arrayed on the terraces of Mount Meru, the king of mountains, he spoke these verses when the time had come for the Blessed One’s midday meal:

The Blessed One, knowing that Nāga King Sāgara had set the midday meal, addressed his monks, “Monks, Nāga King Sāgara has set the midday meal. So take up your alms bowls and monastic robes and come with me to the ocean in order to ripen beings and make use of the Nāga King Sāgara’s abode.”

Then the Blessed One, surrounded by his assembly of bodhisattvas, venerated by the saṅgha of hearers, honored by the assembly of gods, and praised by the assembly of asuras, rose into the sky like the king of swans. As he traveled, rays of light radiated out, filling buddha realms with light, causing a rain of lotuses, playing myriad instruments, and causing the resounding of myriad songs. They traveled to the shores of the ocean to a magnolia forest called Joyful, which was like a pleasure grove.

Nāga King Sāgara went to the Blessed One, bowed his head to the Blessed One’s feet, and venerated him. Having paid his respects, he set the midday meal.

Nāga King Sāgara then thought, [F.161.a] “I am not sure whether the Blessed One can come to my abode through his magical powers. So in order to venerate the Blessed One, I will bless a set of stairs to function just like the stairway the Blessed One used to come from the Heaven of the Thirty-Three to Jambudvīpa. Certainly, the Blessed One can descend into the ocean down such stairs.”

Nāga King Sāgara then set up a three-level staircase between the banks of the ocean and his own abode. One level was made of gold, one of beryl, and one of red pearl. They were decorated with all manner of jewels and were brilliant and beautiful to behold. The Blessed One then blessed the mass of water in the ocean so that it became invisible and would not harm any being. Next, light from the Blessed One’s body illuminated the ocean as when light spreads out to illuminate the worlds of the great trichiliocosm. Every being in the ocean who was merely touched by this light adopted a loving, altruistic, friendly, and happy attitude. Henceforth none of them harbored malice or harmfulness toward one another. Instead they all had the perception of one another as parents.

Gods of the desire and form realms followed behind the Blessed One because they yearned to hear the Dharma and to witness the features of the Nāga King Sāgara’s abode. Then the Blessed One, along with the bodhisattvas, the great hearers, Śakra, Brahmā, and other world protectors, [F.161.b] along with gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas, humans, and nonhumans left the park-like magnolia forest and descended the staircase erected by Nāga King Sāgara. The Blessed One stood in the center with the bodhisattvas arrayed on his right, the great hearers arrayed on his left, and six hundred million śakras before him, pointing out the path with their right hands. Six hundred million brahmās were arrayed in the sky above, shading the Blessed One with jeweled parasols. Six hundred million gods were arrayed behind the Blessed One, tossing a rain of flowers. Gods of the desire realm played six hundred million instruments in order to venerate the Blessed One. Six hundred million goddesses anointed the Blessed One’s tracks with scented water. Six hundred million female nāgas were arrayed in the sky with garlands of pearl draped over their upper torsos. Six hundred million kinnaras uttered verses of praise to the Blessed One. Six hundred million gandharvas draped flower garlands before the Blessed One. Six hundred million asuras draped the Blessed One with fine linens of many colors. Nāga King Anavatapta was also in the sky above with hundreds of millions of his retinue venerating the Blessed One with flowers, incense, powders, ointments, garments, parasols, banners, pennants, instruments, songs, cymbals, and divine adornments. Sixty thousand other nāga kings were engaged in venerating the Blessed One. [F.162.a]

The bodhisattvas Avalokiteśvara and Mahāsthāmaprāpta, along with hundreds of billions of bodhisattvas in their retinue, also came from the Thus-Gone One Amitāyus’ buddha realm Sukhāvatī to gladden Nāga King Sāgara and venerate the Blessed One. They even eclipsed the previous array of offerings made to the Blessed One, venerating him such that the former offerings seemed to disappear. Likewise, the two bodhisattvas, Crest of Light and Splendor of Light, came from the Blessed Thus-Gone One Difficult to Bear’s buddha realm called Light Rays. Next arrived the two bodhisattvas Gandhahastin and Giant Incense Elephant from the Blessed Thus-Gone One Akṣobhya’s buddha realm called Abhirati. Next arrived the two bodhisattvas Siṃha and Siṃhamati from the Blessed Thus-Gone One Candrasūrya’s buddha realm called Fully Illuminating. Next arrived the two bodhisattvas Sārathi and Mastery over All Phenomena from the Blessed Thus-Gone One Fine Eyes’ buddha realm called Unblinking Eye. Next arrived the two bodhisattvas Jeweled Maṇḍala and Jeweled Palm Tree from the Blessed Thus-Gone One Illuminator’s buddha realm called Light. Next arrived the two bodhisattvas Amoghadarśin and Meaningful Subjugator from the Blessed Thus-Gone One Ratnaśrī’s buddha realm called Heart of Joy. [F.162.b] Next arrived the two bodhisattvas Cloud King and Dharmarāja from the Blessed Thus-Gone One Samantavipaśyin’s buddha realm called All-Seeing. Next arrived the two bodhisattvas Mārapramardaka and Rock-Defeating King from the Blessed Thus-Gone One King of the World’s buddha realm called Priyadarśana. Lastly arrived the two bodhisattvas Grounded in Intelligence and Sarvanīvaraṇaviṣkambhin from the Blessed Thus-Gone One Ratnaketu’s buddha realm called Ratnavatī. In this manner hundreds of billions of bodhisattvas came from the ten directions to gladden Nāga King Sāgara and venerate the Thus-Gone One.

Then, through the tremendous power, magical ability, miraculous power, array, greatness, display, veneration, and lion’s roar of the buddhas, the Blessed One flooded countless buddha realms throughout the ten directions with light and made his buddha speech heard. A hundred thousand gods played instruments, sang songs, and cast a rain of flowers. All death and rebirth into the lower realms was quelled. All beings were established in happiness and joy and entered into an awakened absorption called stability in great compassion.

Amidst this unfathomable display, he then descended the jeweled staircases into the ocean. After this kind of song [F.163.a] and his speech were heard throughout countless buddha realms throughout the ten directions, bodhisattvas, śakras, brahmās, world protectors, gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas, humans, and nonhumans living in other worlds saw the Blessed Thus-Gone One Śākyamuni enter the ocean through the power of the Buddha and the blessing of the Thus-Gone One. Trillions of goddesses, nāgas, yakṣas, asuras, garuḍas, gandharvas, kinnaras, and mahoragas played instruments and sang songs, inviting the Blessed One from on ahead. From the sound of the strings arose these extraordinary verses in praise of the Blessed One:

Once these goddesses, nāgas, asuras, kinnaras, garuḍas, mahoragas, and gandharvas offered the Blessed One these verses of praise, they all together developed the mind set on unsurpassed and perfect awakening, and each adorned the body of the Blessed One with their respective ornaments. Finally, the Blessed One traveled to the depths of the ocean where the courtyard of the Nāga King Sāgara had been made ready, taking his seat on the lion throne. The saṅgha of monks and the bodhisattvas arranged themselves on the seats that had been prepared for them.

Seeing that the Blessed One, his saṅgha of monks, and the bodhisattvas had taken their seats, Nāga King Sāgara and his children, wives, relatives, and retinue themselves served a feast of whatever they desired, satisfying them with many tastes and many excellent aspects. When this delicious and satisfying food had been distributed, they took their meal. Once Nāga King Sāgara saw that the Blessed One had cleaned his bowl and washed his hands, the king and the gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas, śakras, brahmās, world protectors, and bodhisattva great beings who had gathered from the ten directions arranged themselves before the Blessed One to hear him preach the Dharma.

When the Blessed One saw that the entire assembly had gathered, he emitted from his body light rays called the blissful, pleasing, and supremely joyful hearing of Dharma. These light rays [F.164.b] allowed all the greater, lesser, and middling beings in the ocean to behold the Blessed One seated before them, which aroused in them bliss, pleasure, and supreme joy. They joined their hands respectfully, eager to hear the Dharma. Arrayed there, they bowed before the Blessed One.

The Blessed One then addressed Nāga King Sāgara, “Nāga Lord, this world is moved by myriad actions. These actions lead to myriad mental observations that again create myriad actions, and the beings that result from them are also myriad. Nāga Lord, consider for instance the diversity of life forms in this ocean and the diversity of ordinary beings. Nāga Lord, the whole gamut of these is caused by their individual minds and their various physical, verbal, and mental roots of virtue and nonvirtue. The mind is formless and cannot be pointed out. For this reason, Nāga Lord, all phenomena are characterized as fictitious creations. As such, they are unowned, unpossessed, and ungraspable. They only manifest in various ways according to accumulated karma; there is no creator of them at all. In this way, such phenomena are unfathomable and nothing more than illusions.

“Nāga Lord, becoming learned in this, one knows that all phenomena are characterized as existing due to such production. Knowing this, one will go on to create nothing but virtue. The resulting characteristics of the aggregates, elements, and sense sources that manifest due to such virtuous actions are such that one gains a beautiful and fine appearance with a lovely countenance.

“Nāga Lord, [F.165.a] consider how the body of the Thus-Gone One is adorned and displayed due to billions of merits, how the world and its gods are overwhelmed by it and are under its control, how it eclipses even Brahmā, who rules over billions, and how if one gazes at the body of the Thus-Gone One, one’s eyes will be overwhelmed. Consider the ornaments of the bodies and physical marks of these bodhisattva great beings. All of these are collected, adorned, and displayed due to the accumulation of virtue.

“Nāga Lord, your array, too, has arisen from merit. The arrays of these śakras, brahmās, world protectors, gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, and mahoragas have also arisen from merit. Nāga King, the various bodies in this ocean that are ugly in form, poorly shaped, large and ungainly, or small and feeble are all fashioned in their multiplicity by the individual minds of beings and their various physical, verbal, and mental roots of virtue and nonvirtue. Therefore, Nāga Lord, you must learn to take responsibility for your own actions and accept that hose actions will come to fruition. When you take responsibility for your own actions and accept that those actions will come to fruition, your mind will engage in the virtuous actions that should be accumulated. You will not squander your view. You will not be stuck in either the view of eternalism or the view of nihilism. You must please those who are worthy recipients of generosity; once you have pleased them, you must not become discouraged. [F.165.b] By accumulating the roots of virtue that arise through veneration, you will become the object of service for the world and its gods. [B5]

“Nāga Lord, through a single practice, bodhisattvas prevent themselves from falling into the lower realms and painful destinies. What is this one practice? It is to assess their virtuous qualities, wondering both day and night how they themselves are. By repeatedly monitoring their virtuous qualities, they prevent nonvirtuous attitudes or mental states from occurring. Thus they abandon nonvirtuous qualities and accrue virtuous qualities instead. That is what allows such virtuous beings to encounter the buddhas and bodhisattvas.

“Nāga Lord, what are these virtuous qualities? Virtuous qualities are the roots that nurture the excellence of human and divine births. They are the roots that nurture the awakening of the hearers and solitary buddhas. They are the roots that nurture unsurpassed and perfect awakening.

“What are these nurturing roots? They are the ways of the ten virtues. What are these ten? They are abandoning taking life, abandoning stealing, abandoning sexual misconduct, abandoning lying, abandoning divisive speech, abandoning harsh speech, abandoning idle chatter, abandoning covetousness, abandoning malice, and abandoning wrong views. These are called the nurturing roots.

“Nāga Lord, regarding this, people who abandon taking life acquire ten qualities that bring about peace. What are these ten? They are as follows: Such people give all beings fearlessness; they keep their minds focused on love; their habitual tendencies toward aggression are terminated; [F.166.a] they adhere to the path of few illnesses; they plant the seed of longevity; they are guarded, protected, and concealed by nonhuman beings; they sleep and rise well, and they do not have evil dreams; when they have fallen asleep they are guarded by gods; there will be no hostility or even latent hostility toward them; and they have no need to fear any of the lower realms, for when they die they are reborn in the higher, more fortunate realms. These are the ten qualities that bring about peace. If the roots of virtue of abandoning taking life are dedicated to unsurpassed and perfect awakening, then when one attains awakening, one’s lifespan will be under the control of one’s mind.

“Nāga Lord, a person who abandons stealing acquires five qualities that bring mental stability. What are these five? They are as follows: Their wealth grows greater and their possessions cannot be taken away by the government, thieves, water, fire, or rival kinsmen; they will be liked, favored, and trusted by many beings; their praises will be sung in the cardinal and intermediate directions; they will have no fear of harm by others; and their minds will be engaged in the generous attitude of sharing. If the roots of virtue of abandoning stealing are dedicated to unsurpassed and perfect awakening, one will realize the unafflicted wisdom of the thus-gone ones, and thereby fully awaken to unsurpassed and perfect buddhahood.

“Nāga Lord, people who abandon sexual misconduct acquire four qualities [F.166.b] that earn the praise of the learned. What are these four? The four are as follows: Their senses will be restrained, they will be impervious to criticism, they will be praised by the entire world, and their wives will not be taken from them. If the roots of virtue of abandoning sexual misconduct are dedicated to unsurpassed and perfect awakening, they will achieve the mark of a great being such that their private parts are hidden in a sheath.

“Nāga Lord, people who abandon lying acquire eight qualities that earn praise from gods and humans. What are these eight? The eight are acquiring the scent of blue lotuses and a pure complexion; becoming trustworthy in the eyes of the whole world; becoming a reliable witness favored by gods and humans; becoming fearless through having correct intention; becoming purified in body, speech, and mind through abundant pure motivation; having one’s joy increase to the utmost through using undeluded words; finding one’s speech is well heeded through using words that are well worth recalling; and achieving insight that makes one a reliable witness in spite of being born in the human and god realms. If the roots of virtue of abandoning lying are dedicated to unsurpassed and perfect awakening, one’s words will be based on the truth.

“Nāga Lord, people who abandon divisive speech acquire five indivisible qualities. What are these five? The five are acquiring an indivisible body because one is free from harm done by others, acquiring an indivisible retinue of servants because one is not attached to the belongings of others, acquiring indivisible faith because one can see the ripening of karma, becoming indivisible from the Dharma because one engages in the essential practice, and acquiring indivisible friends because one does not deceive anyone. If these roots of virtue are dedicated to unsurpassed and perfect awakening, [F.167.a] one will become a fully awakened buddha, a worthy one, a thus-gone one with an inseparable retinue of followers. Neither māras nor the calumny of adversaries will be able to divide this assembly.

“Nāga Lord, people who abandon harsh speech acquire eight aspects of pure speech and, even when they die, will be reborn among gods and humans. What are these eight? The eight are balanced words, beneficial words, sensible words, gentle words, apprehended words, heeded words, words that many beings enjoy, and irreproachable words. If these roots of virtue are dedicated to unsurpassed and perfect awakening, such people will become thus-gone ones with the voice of Brahmā.

“Nāga Lord, people who abandon idle chatter acquire three absolute certainties. What are these three? The three are that they will certainly be appreciated by the learned, their minds will certainly adhere to the truth as they give good responses, and they will certainly become great beings among gods and humans because of being free from falsity. If these roots of virtue are dedicated to unsurpassed and perfect awakening, such people will become thus-gone ones who always teach and who do not speak in other ways.

“Nāga Lord, people who abandon covetousness acquire five qualities of mastery. What are these five? The five are mastery of body, speech, and mind through lacking no faculties; mastery of wealth and vast power through being unconquerable by any enemies; gaining control of merit, which delights the mind; mastery of royalty due to obtaining and maintaining great wealth; [F.167.b] and attaining many thousand times over what one aspires to due to having had no jealousy. If these roots of virtue are dedicated to unsurpassed and perfect awakening, such people will become the singular teacher, the thus-gone one venerated by the threefold world.

“Nāga Lord, people who abandon malice acquire eight qualities that make the mind blissful. What are these eight? The eight are engaging the mind in doing no harm; engaging in the pacification of malice; engaging in the absence of debate and strife; engaging in gentleness, softness, and discipline; being served by noble beings on account of having a loving mind; having an abundance of beneficial experiences on account of being pleased by the joys of all beings; being beautiful on account of being served by many beings; and facing no difficulty in being reborn in the Brahmā world on account of having a mind that is gentle and pliant. If these roots of virtue are dedicated to unsurpassed and perfect awakening, such people will become thus-gone ones whose minds are unobstructed, and whom no one will tire of beholding.

“Nāga Lord, people who abandon wrong views acquire ten positive qualities. What are these ten? They are becoming virtuous in thought and finding virtuous companions; refraining from evil deeds at the cost of one’s life because of trust in karmic ripening; counting the buddhas as divine, but not others; having an honest view by having no clinging to positive and auspicious signs; associating with gods and humans, but not with beings of the animal realms and the realms of Yama; becoming distinguished by the expansion of merit; entering the path of noble ones [F.168.a] by abandoning all mistaken pursuits; eliminating all evil views by shifting away from personalistic false views; entering in the correct way by seeing without obscuration; and avoiding all the unfavorable situations within the human and god realms. If such people dedicate the roots of virtue of abandoning wrong views to unsurpassed and perfect awakening, then upon attaining awakening, all the qualities of buddhahood will manifest, and they will become thus-gone ones who are swift in the higher knowledges.

“Nāga Lord, regarding this, if bodhisattvas who abandon taking life practice giving, their wealth will increase, and also their lifespan will extend. As they engage in bodhisattva conduct, no harm done by others will impact them.

“If bodhisattvas who abandon stealing practice giving, their wealth will increase and also become impossible to steal. As they engage in bodhisattva conduct, they will accomplish all roots of virtue and thereby achieve the unsurpassed.

“If bodhisattvas who abandon sexual misconduct practice giving, their wealth will increase, and also their partners will not cheat on them. As they engage in bodhisattva conduct, anyone who would have a desirous attitude toward their mother, children, or partner will be unable to actually see them.

“If bodhisattvas who abandon lying practice giving, their wealth will increase, their possessions will be invulnerable to theft, and they will uphold the irreproachable path. As they engage in bodhisattva conduct, they will practice exactly what they preach and be firm in their promises.

“If bodhisattvas who abandon divisive speech practice giving, their wealth will increase, and their retinue will be impervious to division. [F.168.b] As they engage in bodhisattva conduct, they will achieve a retinue of bodhisattvas through their accommodating attitude.

“If bodhisattvas who abandon harsh speech practice giving, their wealth will increase, and their words will become gentle and never grating. As they engage in bodhisattva conduct, no one in their retinue will become displeased.

“If bodhisattvas who abandon idle chatter practice giving, their wealth will increase, and their words will become pleasing. As they engage in bodhisattva conduct, they will become skilled in severing all doubts.

“If bodhisattvas who abandon covetousness practice giving, their wealth will increase, and they will enter into the frame of mind where they can extensively enjoy and savor it. As they engage in bodhisattva conduct, they will be inspired toward vastness and become renowned for their might.

“If bodhisattvas who abandon malice practice giving, their wealth will increase, and they will be beautiful, be liked by many people, and make an agreeable impression. As they engage in bodhisattva conduct, their minds and cognition will be unimpeded, and their faculties will all be complete.

“If bodhisattvas who abandon wrong views practice giving, their wealth will increase, and they will be born into households that have faith in the Buddha and have correct views. As they engage in bodhisattva conduct, they will never lose the opportunity to behold the Buddha, hear the Dharma, serve the Saṅgha, and develop the mind set on awakening.

“Nāga Lord, if one adorns the path of the ten virtues with giving, one will thereby become more powerful, helpful, generous, and open. If one adorns the path of the ten virtues with discipline, one will fulfill one’s aspiration toward all the qualities of buddhahood. If one adorns it with patience, [F.169.a] one will perfect the major and minor marks of excellence and the perfect speech of buddhahood. If one adorns it with diligence, one will defeat all māras and obstructors and bring all the qualities of buddhahood to completion. If one adorns it with concentration, one will become wise, realized, conscientious, and stable. If one adorns it with insight, one will truly defeat all views.

“If one adorns it with love, one will eliminate one’s aggression toward all beings. If one adorns it with compassion, one will never abandon any being. If one adorns it with joy, one’s mind will become dauntless. If one adorns it with equanimity, one will abandon attachment and anger. If one adorns it with the means of attracting disciples, one will ripen all beings. If one adorns it with the applications of mindfulness, one will become learned in body, feelings, mind, and mental events. If one adorns it with the correct abandonments, one will abandon all nonvirtuous qualities and perfect all virtuous qualities. If one adorns it with the bases of miraculous absorption, one’s body and mind will become perfect. If one adorns it with the five faculties, one’s faith and diligence will be firm, and one will abandon all delusion, unworkable aspects of mind, and afflictions. If one adorns it with the strengths, one will be inviolable and will overcome all enemies and disturbances. If one adorns it with the branches of awakening, one will realize all phenomena genuinely and accurately. If one adorns it with the path, one will be guided by authentic wisdom. If one adorns it with tranquility, one will destroy all the afflictions. If one adorns it with special insight, one will come to genuinely and accurately know all phenomena. [F.169.b] If one adorns it with skillful means, one will perfect conditioned and unconditioned happiness.

“In essence, Nāga Lord, it is solely through the path of the ten virtues that one can perfect the ten powers of the thus-gone ones, the fourfold fearlessness, and the qualities of buddhahood. Therefore, Nāga Lord, one should extensively discern these paths of the ten virtues and endeavor to adorn oneself with each of them. Nāga Lord, to draw an analogy, all villages, towns, cities, regions, countrysides, and royal palaces dwell upon the earth, as do all grasses, trees, herbs, and bushes, all types of action, all collections of seeds, the germinating and plowing of all crops, the harrowing of fields, and everything that grows upward. The earth is their support. In a similar way, Nāga Lord, the path of the ten virtues is the support for rebirth among the gods and humans, the attainment of the result sought by monastics on the paths of training and no-more-training, the awakening of solitary buddhas, the conduct of bodhisattvas, and the qualities of buddhahood.