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ལྷག་བསམ་སྐུལ་བ།

Inspiring Determination

Adhyāśayasaṃcodana
འཕགས་པ་ལྷག་པའི་བསམ་པ་བསྐུལ་བ་ཞེས་བྱ་བ་ཐེག་པ་ཆེན་པོའི་མདོ།
’phags pa lhag pa’i bsam pa bskul ba zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo
The Noble Mahāyāna Sūtra “Inspiring Determination”
Āryā­dhyāśayasaṃcodana­nāma­mahāyāna­sūtra

Toh 69

Degé Kangyur, vol. 43 (dkon brtsegs, ca), folios 131.b–153.b

ᴛʀᴀɴsʟᴀᴛᴇᴅ ɪɴᴛᴏ ᴛɪʙᴇᴛᴀɴ ʙʏ
  • Jinamitra
  • Surendrabodhi
  • Bandé Yeshé Dé

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Translated by the Blazing Wisdom Translation Group
under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha

First published 2021

Current version v 1.1.27 (2023)

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co.

Table of Contents

ti. Title
im. Imprint
co. Contents
s. Summary
ac. Acknowledgements
i. Introduction
tr. The Translation
+ 2 sections- 2 sections
1. Inspiring Determination
c. Colophon
n. Notes
b. Bibliography
g. Glossary

s.

Summary

s.­1

Inspiring Determination is directed at reforming the conduct of sixty bodhisattvas who have lost their sense of purpose and confidence in their ability to practice the Dharma. The bodhisattva Maitreya leads them to seek counsel from the Buddha, who explains the causes these bodhisattvas created in former lives that resulted in their current circumstance. They make a commitment to change their ways, which pleases the Buddha, and this leads him to engage in a dialog with the bodhisattva Maitreya on how bodhisattvas, including those in the future age of final degeneration, the final half-millennium, should avoid faults and uphold conduct that accords with the Dharma.


ac.

Acknowledgements

ac.­1

This translation was completed by the Blazing Wisdom Translation Group, Tulku Sherdor and Virginia Blum, under the guidance of Khenpo Sonam Tobgyal, with editorial assistance from Hans Schmidt, research of Chinese canonical indices by Geok Hui Loo, and final editing and review by the 84000 editorial team.

ac.­2

The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.


i.

Introduction

i.­1

Inspiring Determination appears in the Heap of Jewels (Skt. Ratnakūṭa; Tib. dkon brtsegs) section of the Kangyur. The sūtra opens with the bodhisattva Maitreya observing a group of sixty among the five hundred bodhisattvas who have gathered around the Buddha in the Deer Park on the outskirts of Vārāṇasī. These sixty bodhisattvas have strayed from the bodhisattva path. Rather than studying and practicing in solitude, they have become distracted by worldly concerns and have stopped applying themselves to the Dharma. Seeking to help them restore their commitments, Maitreya invites them to approach the Buddha, confess their faults, and request his guidance. The bodhisattvas then reveal and confess to the Buddha their failings and their doubts about being able to live up to the bodhisattva ideal.

i.­2

The Buddha explains the causes and conditions they created in a former lifetime that have led to their current predicament. Specifically, during the previous period of the Buddha Krakucchanda, these bodhisattvas denigrated and slandered two monks, creating schisms and doubts in the Saṅgha and the wider community. Many lifetimes of painful ripening of this negative karma ensued.

i.­3

The Buddha further prophesies, however, that although the bodhisattvas’ negative karma will continue to ripen in subsequent lives, once it is finally exhausted, during a period in which the Dharma is declining, they will attain rebirth in the realm of the Buddha Amitābha. Hearing this, the bodhisattvas are newly inspired and resolve not to repeat their mistakes. Maitreya asks the Buddha whether they will abide by their renewed commitment, and he confirms that they will.

i.­4

This is followed by a lengthy series of enumerations by the Buddha, in response to inquiries by Maitreya, concerning the negative consequences of each fault of conduct in which the sixty bodhisattvas had engaged, as well as the advantages of refraining from each one. In several instances, these lists are presented first in prose form and then repeated in verse as an aide-memoire. Maitreya’s questions also prompt the Buddha to caution about the future degeneration of the Dharma, when it will be corrupted by the materialistic interests of teachers. He describes the pitfalls of teaching the Dharma without ridding oneself of attachment to personal gain and honor.

i.­5

The Buddha’s countervailing instruction is to refrain from judging the veracity or quality of a Dharma teaching by the character or motivation of the teacher who offers it. Śāntideva (late seventh to mid-eighth century) emphasizes this point in his Śikṣāsamuccaya, citing this sūtra at length1 to assert that a genuine follower of the Buddha must refrain from judging the conduct of fellow practitioners of the Bodhisattva Vehicle; instead, one must focus on detecting and correcting one’s own faults. The Buddha later advises Maitreya that what marks someone as a follower of his teachings, and as an ordained member of his community, is not the formality of vows or the semblance of piety, but rather one’s cultivation of the qualities of the path, including renunciation, concentration, restrained speech, and the pursuit of wisdom.2

i.­6

An important corollary teaching imparted by the Buddha in this sūtra is how to determine whether a teaching qualifies as authentic Dharma. His rule, also quoted and discussed by Śāntideva, is that everything that is well spoken is the speech of the Buddha, no matter what it is or by whom it is offered.3 Moreover, to qualify as well spoken, an instruction must be meaningful, consistent with the Dharma, and designed to reduce mental defilements, and it must laud the qualities of nirvāṇa as opposed to saṃsāra. This sūtra appears to be the locus classicus for this doctrine in the Mahāyāna tradition.4

i.­7

The sūtra concludes on a positive note, with the Buddha outlining the ten positive attitudes that lead to rebirth in the realm of the Buddha Amitāyus, which is another name for the Buddha Amitābha. This serves as a valediction to his earlier prophecy of the future rebirth in Amitāyus’ realm of the sixty bodhisattvas whose confessions and renewed commitments prompted this teaching. In this way, Inspiring Determination fulfills its intention and serves as a set of guidelines and an exhortation for aspiring bodhisattvas to follow suit.

i.­8

Many sūtras in the Kangyur mention the obstacles and difficulties practitioners may encounter, often in the context of the degenerate future times when the Dharma will be in decline. Few, however, relate in such detail the lapsed conduct of bodhisattvas or explain so precisely its consequences and cures. One sūtra on a similar theme that does share these features is Not Forsaking the Buddha (Buddhākṣepaṇa, Toh 276).5

i.­9

While there is no known extant version of this sūtra in Sanskrit, as noted earlier, a number of lengthy quotations from and other references to it are found in the surviving Sanskrit version of Śāntideva’s eighth-century work, the Śikṣāsamuccaya.6 Two separate classical Chinese versions of this sūtra are found in the Taishō Tripitaka. One version7 is included in Bodhiruci’s translation from Sanskrit of the Heap of Jewels section, completed during the early part of the eighth century ᴄᴇ (Tang Dynasty). The other8 is an earlier work translated by Jñānagupta during the sixth century ᴄᴇ (Sui Dynasty).

i.­10

In producing this translation, we have based our work on the Degé xylograph, while consulting the Comparative Edition (Tib. dpe bsdur ma) and the Stok Palace manuscript. We also have made occasional use of Bodhiruci’s Chinese translation for issues of terminology. The colophon of the sūtra states that it was translated by the Indian preceptors Jinamitra and Surendrabodhi, together with the translator and editor Bandé Yeshé Dé. Consequently, we can date the Tibetan translation to the late eighth to early ninth century, a date further evidenced by the text’s inclusion in the early ninth-century Denkarma (Tib. ldan dkar ma) catalog.9


Text Body

The Noble Mahāyāna Sūtra
Inspiring Determination

1.

The Translation

[F.131.b] [B1]10


1.­1

Homage to all buddhas and bodhisattvas!


1.­2

Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was residing at Vārāṇasī, in the Deer Park by the Hill of Fallen Sages, accompanied by a great congregation of one thousand monks and five hundred bodhisattvas, most of whom had ripened their roots of virtue and cleared away their obscurations of karma.

1.­3

At that time, some of the bodhisattvas there continued to enjoy social diversions, liked to sleep, liked to work, liked to talk, and liked deceit; they were soiled with stains, improper, indolent, and lazy. They had poor diligence and had stopped applying themselves. The bodhisattva great being Maitreya noticed those bodhisattvas conducting themselves in these unvirtuous ways.

1.­4

The bodhisattva great being Maitreya then thought to himself, “Alas, these bodhisattvas have slackened in their efforts to perfect the branches of awakening. Therefore, I must rouse these bodhisattvas; I must remind them‍—that is for certain!”

1.­5

Accordingly, in the afternoon, the bodhisattva great being Maitreya arose from his inner absorption and proceeded to where those bodhisattvas were staying. When he arrived, the bodhisattva great being [F.132.a] exchanged greetings with them with sincere joy and delight, and then asked those bodhisattvas, “Tell me, children of noble lineage, are you improving yourselves through the practice of virtue, or have you perhaps been negligent?”

1.­6

They answered, “Venerable Maitreya, we have neglected and not increased our practice of virtue. Our minds are ensnared by doubt, as we wonder whether we can become thus-gone ones. Our minds are further ensnared by regret, as we worry that we might fall into lower realms; and so, we have no enthusiasm left for virtuous practice.”

1.­7

The bodhisattva great being Maitreya then said to those bodhisattvas, “Children of noble lineage, come this way.11 Let us proceed to where the blessed, thus-gone, worthy, and perfect Buddha Śākyamuni is residing. Why? Because the Blessed One is omniscient and all-seeing, possesses unobscured wisdom, and is wise in the ways of all beings; and so, he will teach you the Dharma in a way that is well suited to your level of experience.”

1.­8

Then those sixty bodhisattvas, together with the bodhisattva great being Maitreya, went to where the Blessed One was residing. They assembled before him and offered homage with their heads at his feet. They cried and offered homage to the Blessed One with their four limbs and heads, over and over again, with tears streaming down their faces, and without raising their heads. The bodhisattva great being Maitreya, too, prostrated with his head at the feet of the Blessed One, [F.132.b] circumambulated him three times, and then sat off to one side.

1.­9

The Blessed One then told the bodhisattvas, “Children of noble lineage, stop crying and moaning, and stand up! Without regard for the ripening of karma, you joyfully harmed and abused others, taking delight and pleasure in doing so. Through creating obscurations of karma in that way, you are now obscured and hampered. Being overcome and ensnared, you are unable to exert yourselves.”

1.­10

Then those sixty bodhisattvas, hanging their shawls over one shoulder, knelt with their right knees on the ground, joined their palms together respectfully toward the Blessed One, and petitioned him with these words: “Learning this, our minds reverse course; and so, we beg of the Blessed One to explain well to us our obscurations of karma, so that we can refrain from further compounding them hereafter.”

1.­11

In response to this request, the Blessed One said the following to those sixty individuals of the Bodhisattva Vehicle: “Children of noble lineage, long ago, in the distant past, during the doctrinal period of the Thus-Gone One Krakucchanda, you took ordination. Thus established, you became intoxicated with conceit about your discipline, drunk with vanity about your learning, and strongly attached to your ascetic practices and your lack of possessions. Consequently, you became jealous and resentful of two monks who were preaching the Dharma, due to the offerings and respect they received, the households12 of their friends and relatives, and the households of their patrons, and so you directed accusations of lewd conduct at them. This created a schism dividing those two Dharma-teaching monks from the households of their friends and relatives and the households of their patrons, who became skeptical and lost their faith [F.133.a] in the two monks. By leveling these and many further insults at those two Dharma-teaching monks, you obscured and cut off at the root the virtues of those other beings.

1.­12

“Due to that nonvirtuous obscuration of karma, you were reborn in the major hell Incessant Torment for sixty thousand years. For forty thousand years, you were reborn in the major hell Reviving. For twenty thousand years, you were reborn in the major hell Black Lines. For eight thousand years, you were reborn in the major hell of Heat. Afterward, once you died and passed from that realm, you managed to obtain human rebirths, but for five hundred consecutive lifetimes you had no eyes, and so were blind. Through the shrouding effect of your obscurations of karma, no matter where you were reborn, in all those lifetimes you were dimwitted and absent-minded. You were shrouded by your obscurations rooted in unvirtuous acts and were entirely hapless. You were oppressed by ugly flaws and frequently reviled, cursed, and ridiculed. You were reborn in bad lands, bad regions, and bad countries, into bad and impoverished families; you had meager means and little respect, and you were ostracized and unsupported.

1.­13

“When you have died and passed from this life, during the final half-millennium, at the time when the sacred Dharma is fading, you will be reborn solely in bad lands, into low-caste families and poverty. You will be reviled and feeble-minded, and you will abandon the roots of virtue. Even when you apply yourselves, obstacles will arise; and although moments of clarity will dawn, they will subsequently fade away.

1.­14

“During the final half-millennium, all your obscurations of karma will finally be exhausted. With their exhaustion, next you will be reborn in Sukhāvatī, the buddha realm of the Thus-Gone One Amitābha. The Thus-Gone One Amitābha also will prophesy your unsurpassed and perfect awakening.”

1.­15

The sad and distraught minds of those sixty children of noble lineage who belonged to the Bodhisattva Vehicle [F.133.b] then turned perfectly joyous. Wiping the tears from their faces, and with their bodily hairs standing on end, they petitioned the Blessed One as follows:

1.­16

“Blessed One, we confess the fault of generating a hostile attitude toward individuals who belong to the Bodhisattva Vehicle, and we also confess any other obscurations of karma we have amassed.

1.­17

“Blessed One, from today onward, we make the following promises in the presence of the Thus-Gone One:

1.­18

“Blessed One, from today onward, if we should speak of the failings, no matter whether they are many or few,13 of individuals belonging to the Bodhisattva Vehicle, then we will have betrayed the thus-gone, worthy, and perfect Buddha.

1.­19

“Blessed One, from today onward, if we should insult14 individuals who belong to the Bodhisattva Vehicle or speak rudely to them, then we will have betrayed the thus-gone, worthy, and perfect Buddha.

1.­20

“Blessed One, from today onward, if we see individuals who belong to the Bodhisattva Vehicle, whether they are lay or ordained, amusing themselves with and enjoying the five sense pleasures, and this makes us lose faith, such that we become disrespectful or unable to perceive them as teachers, then we will have betrayed the Thus-Gone One.

1.­21

“Blessed One, from today onward, if we physically or mentally harm individuals belonging to the Bodhisattva Vehicle on account of the households of their friends and relatives or the households of their patrons, [F.134.a] then we will have betrayed the Thus-Gone One.

1.­22

“Blessed One, from today onward, if even a single unpleasant word slips from our mouths upon seeing an individual belonging to the Bodhisattva Vehicle, then we will have betrayed the Thus-Gone One.

1.­23

“Blessed One, from today onward, if we fail to pay homage to individuals belonging to the Bodhisattva Vehicle three times during the day and three times at night, then we will have betrayed the Thus-Gone One.

1.­24

“Blessed One, from today onward, if we are unwilling to sacrifice a kingdom or a fortune, or to risk life and limb, for the sake of this disciplined conduct to which we have committed, then we will have betrayed the Thus-Gone One.

1.­25

“Blessed One, from today onward, if we demean individuals belonging to the Hearer or Solitary Buddha Vehicles, thinking, ‘We most assuredly are not like them!’ then we will have betrayed the Thus-Gone One.

1.­26

“Blessed One, from today onward, if we do not maintain an attitude of humility, as if we were outcasts or dogs, then we will have betrayed the Thus-Gone One.

1.­27

“Blessed One, from today onward, if we praise ourselves or criticize others, then we will have betrayed the Thus-Gone One.

1.­28

“Blessed One, from today onward, if we are at risk of becoming involved in conflict and dispute and we do not immediately distance ourselves from it15 by a mile or a hundred miles, then we will have betrayed the Thus-Gone One.

1.­29

“Blessed One, from today onward, if we claim to have good discipline, or refer to ourselves as well educated or well trained, or as having any good qualities at all, then we will have betrayed the Thus-Gone One. [F.134.b]

1.­30

“Blessed One, from today onward, if we do not refrain from boasting of our virtues and concealing our faults, then we will have betrayed the thus-gone, worthy, and perfect Buddha.”

1.­31

Then the Blessed One congratulated those individuals belonging to the Bodhisattva Vehicle, saying, “Well said! Well said, children of noble lineage! Well said! You have spoken well! This commitment is well made. If you abide by this commitment, your obscurations of karma will be purified, and you likewise will acquire pure roots of virtue.”

1.­32

At that point the Blessed One addressed the bodhisattva great being Maitreya: “Maitreya, sons or daughters of noble lineage who wish to purify their obscurations of karma should make just the type of commitment these children of noble lineage have made.”

1.­33

Then the bodhisattva great being Maitreya asked the Blessed One, “Blessed One, will these children of noble lineage fulfill this commitment, or will they abandon it? Please tell me.”

1.­34

“Maitreya, these children of noble lineage will never abandon their commitment, even at the cost of life and limb.”

1.­35

Then the bodhisattva great being Maitreya asked the Blessed One, “Blessed One, during the final half-millennium, when the sacred Dharma is perishing, if an individual who belongs to the Bodhisattva Vehicle possesses certain qualities, will that person then be spared harm and injury,16 and readily attain liberation?”

1.­36

The Blessed One responded to the question posed by the bodhisattva great being Maitreya in this way: “Maitreya, if an individual who belongs to the Bodhisattva [F.135.a] Vehicle possesses four qualities, then during the final half-millennium, when the sacred Dharma is perishing, that person will be spared harm and injury, and will be liberated without difficulty. What are the four? (1) Recognizing one’s own mistakes, (2) not discussing the faults of others who belong to the Bodhisattva Vehicle, (3) paying no attention to the households of friends and relatives and the households of patrons, and (4) abandoning unpleasant speech. Maitreya,17 if an individual who belongs to the Bodhisattva Vehicle possesses those four qualities, then during the final half-millennium, when the sacred Dharma is perishing, that person will be spared harm and injury, and will be liberated without difficulty.

1.­37

“Moreover, Maitreya, if someone who belongs to the Bodhisattva Vehicle possesses another four qualities, then during the final half-millennium, when the sacred Dharma is perishing, that person will be spared harm and injury, and will be liberated without difficulty. What are these other four? (1) Avoiding beings who are of little learning, (2) not collecting followers, (3) taking shelter in sparsely inhabited places, and (4) diligently training oneself to be disciplined and peaceful and to remain tranquil.

1.­38

“Maitreya, if someone who belongs to the Bodhisattva Vehicle possesses these other four qualities, then during the final half-millennium, when the sacred Dharma is perishing, that person will be spared harm and injury, and will be liberated without difficulty.

1.­39

“Maitreya, because sons or daughters of noble lineage who belong to the Bodhisattva Vehicle will want to be spared harm and injury, be liberated without difficulty, and exhaust entirely their obscurations of karma during the final half-millennium when the sacred Dharma is perishing, they should (1) dislike social diversions, (2) stay in the wilderness, in forests, and in sparsely inhabited places, (3) avoid beings who lack noble lineage or diligence, (4) reflect on their own mistakes and not look for mistakes in others, (5) enjoy silence, and, (6) through the perfection of insight, enjoy being at rest. [F.135.b]

1.­40

“If the wish to converse with others ever arises within them, then they should offer them the gift of Dharma while remaining free of materialistic interest.

1.­41

“Maitreya, giving the gift of Dharma without materialistic interest, without the desire for offerings or respect, confers twenty benefits. These twenty are as follows:

1.­42

“One will (1) have mindfulness, (2) have intelligence, (3) be judicious, (4) gain stability, (5) possess insight, (6) realize supermundane insight, (7) have less desire, (8) have less anger, (9) have less delusion, (10) become invulnerable to māras, (11) come to the attention of the blessed buddhas, (12) be guarded by nonhuman spirits, (13) be favored with splendor by the gods, (14) become invincible to enemies, and (15) not be separated from friends and relatives; (16) one’s word will be sacrosanct; (17) one will become fearless; (18) one’s mind will grow happier; (19) one will be honored by the wise; and (20) one’s offerings of the Dharma will become worthy of commemoration as well.

1.­43

“And so, Maitreya, these twenty are the benefits that accrue when one offers the Dharma free of materialistic interest, having rejected all interest in gain or respect, and without hoping to get food or clothing, simply motivated by an altruistic intent to offer the gift of Dharma continually and repeatedly.

1.­44

“Maitreya, offering the Dharma with an attitude that is free of materialistic interest has another twenty benefits. What are these twenty?

1.­45

“(1) Intellectual prowess will be born in one formerly without it; [F.136.a] (2) that prowess, once born, will not be lost; (3) one will possess the integrity necessary to gain the power of retention; (4) one will accomplish the aims of many beings with little difficulty; (5) one will become respectfully venerated by beings with little difficulty; (6) one will achieve physical restraint; (7) one will achieve verbal restraint; (8) one will achieve mental restraint; (9) one will pass beyond the fear of inferior rebirth; (10) one will make death an occasion for great joy; (11) one will defeat all challengers in a manner consistent with the Dharma; (12) even beings of high status will be overwhelmed by one’s majesty, let alone common folk; (13) one’s faculties will become unassailable; (14) one will adhere to the highest and finest intentions; (15) one will gain tranquility and special insight; (16) one will bring rigorous training to perfection; (17) one’s diligence will become unrelenting; (18) one will protect the sacred Dharma at all times; (19) one will quickly arrive at the level of a non-returner; and (20) one will be in harmony with all the conduct of bodhisattvas.

1.­46

“Maitreya, these twenty are additional benefits that derive from offering the Dharma with an attitude free of materialistic interest.

1.­47

“Maitreya, in the future, Dharma offered with materialistic interest by those who belong to the Bodhisattva Vehicle will be highly appreciated, whereas Dharma offered without materialistic interest will not. Those with faulty discernment will rely on such teachers!

1.­48

“For their part, those teachers will depend upon the households of friends and relatives and the households of patrons and will offer them the gift of Dharma in a manner that is calculated to elicit their trust and respect. Dispensing with offering the Dharma while free of materialistic interest, they will teach the Dharma to others for the sake of clothing, food, bedding, cushions, curative medicines, [F.136.b] and other useful items.

1.­49

“Maitreya, it is like this. If, for instance, some person had hunks of putrid, rotting flesh hung around his neck, whether from the corpse of a dog, a human, or a monkey, he would wish to clean himself. And so, with embarrassment and revulsion, he would seek to rid himself of them. In the same way, those future teachers will be embarrassed and appalled by the prospect of offering the Dharma without obtaining material benefit. Once they realize there is nothing to be gained,18 they will be disappointed, refuse to teach, and leave.

1.­50

“Wondering, ‘Why are they not giving us any food or clothing?’ and saying, ‘There is no reason for us to offer the Dharma; we really would rather not be stuck here for no reason,’ they will proceed to gather students for the sake of further adorning themselves, and not for the sake of attracting more and more beings to the Dharma. They will claim, ‘We gather followers only out of love, and so we have no need at all for them to serve and respect us. Because of our altruistic principles, in order to bring beings to maturity, we spend all our time visiting villages, towns, cities, states, and royal palaces’; and so they will promote themselves to many people. What they have in mind, however, is to go searching for food and clothing.

1.­51

“Maitreya, now, I would not speak of a desirous mind bringing beings to maturity. Why not? Because, if one has not even matured oneself‍—a state that is not so easy to attain‍—then bringing other beings to maturity is out of the question.

1.­52

“Maitreya, I would not call preoccupation with being served, and contamination from the pleasures of being physically served, helpfulness. Why not? Because, if one gathers followers in order to be made physically comfortable by their service, one is not concerned with whether they are practicing earnestly.

1.­53

“Maitreya, I would not call such a hypocrite someone dwelling in isolation. [F.137.a] I would not call having little merit having few needs. I would not call longing for fine food collecting alms.

1.­54

“I would not call longing for beautiful clothes wearing robes made of discarded rags. I would not say that one who mixes lay with monastic life lacks entanglement. I would not call a charlatan the manifestation of a buddha. I would not say that looking for faults in others is being diligent in one’s practice.

1.­55

“I would not say that continually losing your temper is compiling pure discipline. I would not call a prideful person learned. I would not call someone who holds a bias an upholder of the Vinaya. I would not call an intemperate person a Dharma teacher. I would not call socializing with laypeople discharging one’s administrative duties purely.

1.­56

“I would not call selecting patrons being free from material needs. I would not call hoping for reciprocal benefit a method of attraction. I would not call desire for reward and respect pure motivation.

1.­57

“I would not call having more and more doubt taking ordination. I would not say that being a contrarian is pursuing one’s training.

1.­58

“I would not call showing disrespect offering the Dharma. I would not call being obsessed with worldly spells delighting in the Dharma. I would not call applying no effort toward realizing emptiness, emancipation.

1.­59

“I would not say that failing to practice is performing one’s duties. Nor would I say that one who does not practice is perfecting the branches of awakening.

1.­60

“I would not call a conceptual point of reference true realization. I would not call powerlessness the perfection of patience. I would not say that those who never have been tested wear the armor of the power of patience.

1.­61

“I would not call having a naturally low libido the asceticism of maintaining pure conduct. I would not call failing to get anything done doing what one has committed to do. [F.137.b]

1.­62

“Conversely, I would not say that one with pure motivation is falling into the lower realms. I would not call acting with insight reckless conduct. I would not call someone who possesses skill a fraud.

1.­63

“I would not call someone who lacks desire for gain or respect an inveterate liar. I would not call maintaining neutrality rejecting the Dharma. I would not call wanting to protect the sacred Dharma at all costs attachment to life and limb. I would not call being timid having no pride.

1.­64

“Maitreya, such deceitful expressions, in the final half-millennium, will turn bodhisattvas barbarous; therefore, they must properly comprehend them19 and, having comprehended, must reject them.”

1.­65

Then the bodhisattva great being Maitreya asked the Blessed One, “Blessed One,20 will these sixty bodhisattvas be obscured by short-lived obscurations of karma, or will they be obscured in some other fashion?”

1.­66

The Blessed One responded to the bodhisattva Maitreya, “Maitreya, in the final half-millennium, most bodhisattvas will be obscured by obscurations of karma. Some of those bodhisattvas will exhaust their obscurations of karma. Some will increase them.

1.­67

“Maitreya, furthermore, among these particular sixty bodhisattvas, there are twenty bodhisattvas who have only minor obscurations of karma, or slight obscurations of karma, and these will take rebirth during the final half-millennium in different villages and towns and in a variety of castes, where they will be learned, circumspect, upright, wise, and skillful. They will be broad-minded, richly beneficial to others, [F.138.a] very compassionate, and handsome and lovely to behold. They will not put their virtues on display, will hide their qualities, and will be stable in their conduct. Taking ordination out of these various castes, they will train toward unsurpassed and perfect awakening over uncountable eons, and they will preserve and uphold this ordination, even risking life and limb, as they dwell in wildernesses, jungles, and sparsely populated places, without interest in gain or respect. They will always be diligent, superbly diligent, skillful in relating to the ways of beings, expert in secret mantra and scholarly treatises, very quick learners, expert in special insight, and of flawless acumen.

1.­68

“Having acquired unfailing retention, through the power and blessings of the buddhas they will teach the Dharma to the four retinues and will be well versed in all the classes of teaching by the Thus-Gone One, namely, sūtras, verse narrations, prophecies, poetic verses, aphorisms, ethical narrations, narrative discourses, parables, past-life stories, extensive sayings, marvels, and resolutions.

1.­69

“At that time, those twenty highly skilled bodhisattvas will be authorized masters and authorized scholars of the Dharma, such that when they assert, ‘I have absorbed this Dharma discourse from the master So-and-So and from the scholar So-and-So,’ those holy persons will never have cause to be troubled.

1.­70

“At that time, there also will appear certain unskillful bodhisattvas who will be conceited about their own virtues and, being complacent and haughty,21 will have no regard for those twenty. They will seek to promote themselves, and so will not uphold the sacred [F.138.b] Dharma.

1.­71

“They will even castigate them, saying, ‘The Dharma you have taught is the product of your own cleverness, not what the Thus-Gone One taught. This Dharma is just your own spurious creation. Since the Dharma that you teach is merely fabricated on your own authority, your teaching should be neither respected nor revered.’ This will cause many beings to reject their Dharma discourses, and because of such remarks, many will lose interest in the Dharma.

1.­72

“They will go even further, saying, ‘Those monks are engaged in the material pursuit of donations, rather than in teaching the Dharma found in the sūtras and the vinaya. This is not the proper Dharma, so do not show reverence toward it!’

1.­73

“Those with poor discernment simply will not understand that whatever qualifies as a well-spoken statement‍—no matter what it is‍—is the word of the Buddha.22 Because they are under the spell of Māra, they will reject the Dharma of those Dharma-holding monks, and so will accumulate the karma of abandoning the Dharma. Through accumulating the karma of abandoning the Dharma, they will fall into lower realms.

1.­74

“Maitreya, in light of that, bodhisattvas who wish to safeguard the sacred Dharma must become skilled in method. No matter what, they must be very careful not to provoke feelings of hostility in those who have differing dispositions.”

1.­75

The bodhisattva great being Maitreya then said to the Blessed One, “Blessed One, in that way, during the final half-millennium, when the sacred Dharma is perishing, such bodhisattvas with weak sensibility will come to the fore. Though ostensibly pursuing virtuosity, at the same time they will take no interest in those who actually possess it; and while they seek as well the power of retention, they will nonetheless denigrate the Dharma of monks who do retain the Dharma. Incredible, isn’t it? [F.139.a]

1.­76

“Blessed One, to offer an analogy, it is as though a person goes out searching for water from a spring, a well, or a lake, and when he gets there, he defecates in it, after which he thinks to draw the water out.

1.­77

“When the foul odor of the water reaches his nose, it doesn’t occur to him that the smell is his own fault, as he exclaims, ‘Oh my, this water stinks!’ Instead, he blames the water for being bad.

1.­78

“Blessed One, in this analogy, where, through the power of the Buddha, there are Dharma-teaching monks who have confident command over the system of Dharma teachings, they are like the spring, the well, or the lake. Blessed One, those bodhisattvas who will come to the fore in the final half-millennium are just like people of childish nature who defecate into the springs, wells, or lakes, and then when they seek to draw water out, find fault with that water; similarly, having faulty discernment, they will discredit those who teach the Dharma and discredit even the Dharma itself. And although they are the ones who have discredited it, they will still believe that they are seeking the taste of the Dharma. And without comprehending their own error, with a faulty sense of hearing, they will criticize and show contempt for those Dharma-holding monks, saying, ‘Look at how these monks teaching the Dharma are betrayed by their many faults!’ They will revile the taste of the Dharma conveyed by those Dharma-teaching monks and look for its mistakes, dismiss it with distaste, and turn their backs on it.”

1.­79

The Blessed One then commended the bodhisattva great being Maitreya, saying, “Splendid! Wonderful, Maitreya! This example you have explained expresses very well how not to search for mistakes, and how to be free of any faults.

1.­80

“Maitreya, in addition, one should understand that any discourse that satisfies four conditions is what the Buddha spoke.23 [F.139.b] What are the four? Maitreya, they are (1) when the discourse is meaningful instead of meaningless, (2) when it contains the Dharma as opposed to not containing the Dharma, (3) when it makes defilements decrease and does not make defilements increase, and (4) when it teaches the qualities and benefits of nirvāṇa and does not increase the defects of saṃsāra. Maitreya, one should know that any discourse is what the Buddha spoke when it possesses these four factors.

1.­81

“Maitreya, no matter whether a discourse endowed with these four factors is offered, or to be offered, by a monk, a nun, or a male or female lay precept-holder, faithful sons or daughters of noble lineage should perceive that person to be the Buddha; perceiving them as the Teacher, they should listen to the sacred Dharma. If you wonder why that is so, Maitreya, it is because everything that is well spoken‍—no matter what it is‍—is what the Buddha taught.

1.­82

“Maitreya, when someone says, ‘This is not what the Buddha taught,’ because they feel hostility toward the speaker, then that person has rejected those four conditions and caused them to be disrespected. That person has thereby rejected all discourses that are the teaching of the Buddha. Having rejected the Dharma, that person accumulates the karma of abandoning the Dharma, and so is destined for the lower realms. Maitreya, since this is the case, faithful sons or daughters of noble family who want to avoid the karma of rejecting the Dharma should never feel hostility toward the Dharma out of hostility for an individual.

1.­83

“Maitreya, the following four types of discourse are rejected by the buddhas. Maitreya, what are the four? They are (1) when a discourse is meaningless rather than meaningful, (2) when it does not contain the Dharma as opposed to containing the Dharma, [F.140.a] (3) when it makes defilements increase rather than decrease, and (4) when it increases the defects of saṃsāra rather than teaching the qualities and benefits of nirvāṇa. Maitreya, these four types of discourse have been rejected and are not sanctioned by the buddhas.”

1.­84

Then the bodhisattva great being Maitreya asked the Blessed One, “Blessed One, if it is the case that the buddhas have not approved of discourse that causes saṃsāra to increase, how is it that the Blessed One taught that defilements are good for bodhisattvas, in order for them to perfect the branches of awakening? And how is it that he recommended that they embrace saṃsāra as well? Or else, Blessed One, are such teachings not those of the Buddha after all?”

1.­85

In response, the Blessed One asked, “Maitreya, what do you think about this? Is there meaning, or is there no meaning, in my teaching that defilements are helpful for bodhisattvas, to aid them in perfecting the branches of awakening, and in my teaching recommending that they embrace saṃsāra?”

1.­86

He answered, “Since the Blessed One speaks perfectly, if he says that bodhisattvas should appreciate defilements, so that they might perfect the branches of awakening, then it certainly is meaningful, and it certainly contains the Dharma. Consequently, it is undoubtedly the speech of he who speaks perfectly.”

1.­87

The Blessed One replied, “Maitreya, since that is so, as is the case with the teaching that defilements support bodhisattvas in perfecting the branches of awakening, and the express injunction to embrace saṃsāra, [F.140.b] one must recognize that whatever is well spoken is what the Buddha spoke. Why is that? Maitreya, those matters that are the exclusive province of bodhisattvas with masterful command over the Dharma do not apply to hearers and solitary buddhas. As bodhisattvas will not experience them as defilements, defilements will not harm them.

1.­88

“Maitreya, although that is so, defilements are not beneficial for others. For them they do not serve the purpose of perfecting the factors of awakening, have no value, and produce not even the slightest trace of virtue. Others must not succumb to the power of those very defilements for which bodhisattvas will risk even life and limb. And why is that? Because, Maitreya, teachings on defilements for bodhisattvas who have attained the power of wisdom are one thing, while teachings for those on levels at which the powers of bodhisattvas have not yet developed are a different matter.”

1.­89

The bodhisattva great being Maitreya then said to the Blessed One, “As I understand the meaning of what the Blessed One has stated, bodhisattvas who seek not to create further obscurations of karma, who strive to purify their obscurations of karma, and who seek to be liberated easily, without harm or injury, will therefore have to take interest in all bodhisattva conduct in the final half-millennium, and practice it more and more, without reservation. They must not look for faults in others, must embrace all that is beneficial, and must focus on what is most essential.”

1.­90

The Blessed One replied, “Maitreya, it is just so. Bodhisattvas will have to increase the scope of their bodhisattva conduct, without any reservations. [F.141.a] Why is that? Maitreya, it is because the experience of bodhisattvas who enjoy superior discernment is entirely at odds with the rest of the world.

1.­91

“As an analogy, Maitreya, while the conduct of stream enterers24 may resemble that of ordinary beings, they are not stained by the faults of ordinary, immature beings. You see, whereas desire, anger, and obliviousness cause childish, ordinary beings to fall into the lower realms, desire, anger, and obliviousness do not cause stream enterers to fall into the lower realms, since they have realized the nature of the transitory assemblage.

1.­92

“Similarly, Maitreya, since they have not yet eliminated habitual tendencies, bodhisattvas who enjoy superior discernment may yet be caught unaware by desire and aversion, but their situation is quite different from that of childish, ordinary beings. Why is that? Latent tendencies do not thoroughly ensnare or occupy their minds; and so, their situation is not at all comparable to that of ordinary, immature beings, or bodhisattvas who have dim faculties and are not sharp in their renunciation.

1.­93

“Maitreya, even though some among the faults of bodhisattva great beings who exercise fine discernment may be quite serious, through the power of insight they pulverize them, and so those faults never cause them to fall into lower realms.

1.­94

“Maitreya, as an analogy, if you add a large bundle of sticks to a raging bonfire, the more you add, the longer and greater the blaze will grow; but they will not extinguish the fire. In just that way, Maitreya, the more fuel of defilements you add to the blazing insight of bodhisattvas who exercise insight, the more the fire of insight will blaze, without ever being extinguished or exhausted.

1.­95

“Maitreya, since that is the case, from this description it should also be clear to you how the experience of bodhisattvas who enjoy superior discernment is entirely at odds with the rest of the world.” [F.141.b]

1.­96

The bodhisattva great being Maitreya then asked the Blessed One, “Blessed One, since they leave their homes behind seeking to develop their power of insight, which traits should fledgling bodhisattvas reject? Upon which traits should they rely? By respectively rejecting and relying upon which traits will they generate the power of insight‍—generate it where it hasn’t been generated before, and further increase the power of insight and prevent it from weakening where it already has been generated?”

1.­97

The Blessed One replied to this question posed by the bodhisattva great being Maitreya as follows: “Maitreya, fledgling bodhisattvas who leave their homes behind and are developing their powers of insight should reject gain and honor and see the fault in gain and honor. They should give up their enjoyment of social diversions and see the fault in enjoying social diversions.

1.­98

“They should give up their enjoyment of conversation and see the faults in enjoying conversation. They should no longer like to sleep and see the fault in liking to sleep. They should stop liking activity and see the fault in liking activity. They should stop enjoying excess and see the harm in enjoying excess.

1.­99

“Giving up gain, honor, and praise, they should meditate on having fewer needs. Through giving up social diversions, they should rely on liking solitude. Through giving up their enjoyment of conversation, they should continually devote themselves to reflecting on what matters.

1.­100

“By abandoning their penchant for sleep, they should count on not lying down to rest in either the earlier or the later part of the night. [F.142.a] Giving up their desire for activity, they should devote themselves to loving all beings.

1.­101

“Maitreya, fledgling bodhisattvas who leave their homes behind and who wish to acquire the power of insight should therefore completely reject those traits that are to be abandoned. They should devote themselves to those qualities upon which they must rely. Why is this so? Maitreya, just as ignorance depends upon conditions, so wisdom depends upon conditions, too. And so, without gathering those conditions, wisdom is not at all easy to acquire.” [B2]


1.­102

Then the bodhisattva great being Maitreya posed the following question to the Blessed One: “Blessed One, how can a bodhisattva see the drawbacks of gain and honor? What are the notable faults of gain and honor? What are the things bodhisattvas should examine so that they will happily have fewer needs and not feel any yearning?”

1.­103

He answered, “Maitreya, bodhisattva great beings should examine how gain and honor produce desire. They should examine how gain and honor destroy recollection. They should examine gain and honor to see how one feels haughty or deflated by gaining or failing to gain. They should examine how gain and honor produce delusion.

1.­104

“They should examine how gain and honor, since they are for one’s personal welfare, make one hoard and become attached to one’s belongings. They should examine how gain and honor produce deceit. They should examine how gain and honor make one shameless and brazen, since one has completely abandoned the four ways of nobility.

1.­105

“They should examine how none of the buddhas endorsed gain and honor. [F.142.b] They should examine how gain and honor generate pride, arrogance, and vanity. They should examine how gain and honor cause one to disregard one’s gurus. They should examine how gain and honor are on the side of Māra. They should examine how gain and honor are the very roots of carelessness. They should examine how gain and honor rob one of the roots of virtue.

1.­106

“They should examine how gain and honor are like flashes of lightning, weapon wheels, and lightning strikes. They should examine how gain and honor soil one with many stains. They should examine how, for the sake of gain and honor, one focuses attention on the households of friends and relatives and the households of patrons. They should examine how gain and honor fill one’s mind with discontent. They should examine how gain and honor make one’s thoughts confused.

1.­107

“They should examine gain and honor to see that, to create something of transient beauty, one generates misery. They should examine how gain and honor cause one to forget the four applications of mindfulness.25 They should examine how gain and honor weaken positive qualities. They should examine how gain and honor cause the four correct exertions to deteriorate.

1.­108

“They should examine how gain and honor create obstacles for the faith of others. They should examine how gain and honor impair miraculous powers and super-sensory cognition. They should examine gain and honor to see that, while there is respect early on, there is no respect later on. They should examine how gain and honor make one keep disagreeable company. They should examine how gain and honor make one abandon friends.

1.­109

“They should observe that, since one entices others for gain and honor, one is just like a prostitute. They should examine how one abandons the concentrations and the immeasurables for gain and honor. They should examine how gain and honor catapult beings down into the animal and hell [F.143.a] realms, and into the clutches of the Lord of Death. They should examine how gain and honor are suited to the rituals of Devadatta and Rudraka.

1.­110

“Maitreya, these are the ways in which bodhisattvas should examine the shortcomings of gain and honor. Having so examined, moreover, they will find it no great deprivation to reduce their needs. Why is that? Maitreya, it is because bodhisattvas with few needs lack these kinds of faults, which therefore pose no obstacles to their buddha qualities and cause no disgrace to laypeople or monastics.

1.­111

“Because they are present to bring joy to gods and humans, they are worthy of the latter’s protection. They lack any fear of falling into lower realms. Because they are not intimidated, they cannot be bested. Because they have been freed from the hegemony of Māra, they are indomitable. They do not undergo suffering. They are highly appealing to gods and humans.

1.­112

“Since they sustain deep familiarization with concentration, they are lucid. Since they have rid themselves of deceit and pretense and regard the five sense pleasures as faulty, they are conscientious. Since they belong to the class of noble ones, their words and deeds have integrity. They are accepted by the wise and by those of pure conduct.

1.­113

“Maitreya, understanding the value of benefits like these, wise bodhisattva great beings entirely reject gain and honor; and so, in order to be rid of all gain and honor, they live with few needs and the highest intentions, and they always rely on needing little.”


1.­114

Thus spoke the Blessed One; and in response, the bodhisattva great being Maitreya asked him, “Blessed One, how should bodhisattvas identify the faults of liking social diversions? [F.143.b] What are the faults of liking social diversions? What are the things that bodhisattvas should examine, so that they will enjoy the pleasures of solitude, and not become despondent?”

1.­115

The Blessed One answered, “Maitreya, there are twenty shortcomings to social diversions. They are as follows: (1) You are physically out of control, (2) you are verbally out of control, (3) you are mentally out of control, (4) desires get stronger, (5) anger gets stronger, (6) delusion gets stronger, (7) you are soiled by the talk of this world, (8) you no longer talk about matters beyond this world, (9) you consort with those who disrespect the Dharma, (10) you abandon the Dharma, (11) this puts you at the mercy of Māra, (12) you keep company with the careless, (13) you yourself become careless, (14) you become suspicious and cynical, (15) your studies go to waste, (16) you do not achieve tranquility or special insight, (17) your pure conduct is promptly lost, (18) you lose appreciation for the Buddha, (19) you lose appreciation for the Dharma, and (20) you lose appreciation for the Saṅgha.

1.­116

“Maitreya, you should know these twenty to be the shortcomings of liking social diversions. If bodhisattvas examine them, they will enjoy the pleasures of solitude, and not become despondent either.”


1.­117

The Blessed One, at that point, spoke the following verses:

“Rid of desire and having rejected anger,
Yogins stay uninvolved in social diversions.
To those faults they lead, and there they end up;
Therefore, take no pleasure in them.
1.­118
“Agitation, anxiety, and rampant thoughts, too‍—
All these result from social diversions.
Whoever partakes of pointless social diversions
Behaves erratically and loses all control. [F.144.a]
1.­119
“Childish people enjoy worldly chatter;
Those children have forsaken refined discourse.
They spread anger and stimulate thoughts, too.
Because of those flaws, do not be attracted to them.
1.­120
“By taking an interest in improper talk,
Monks will not advance in their studies.
Since that is the case, abandon unsuitable talk,
And have abiding affection for the Dharma.
1.­121
“Out of intense yearning for awakening,
I gave away my limbs a thousand times over.
If hearing the Dharma made me insatiable,
Hearing the Dharma should make monks contrite.
1.­122
“If for the sake of four-line verses
I took no joy in wife and child
And abandoned my kingdom and possessions,
How can the wise not study the Dharma?
1.­123
“Fully and always abandon
Improper and profane speech.
Take delight in that which is most precious
Across hundreds of eons‍—the sacred Dharma.
1.­124
“Since you wish for freedom and pursue good qualities,
Never seek out worldly affairs.
One whose wishes are limited to food and clothing
Does not glorify the supreme and the foremost.
1.­125
“Anyone who is curious, and you monks, kindly come,
Spread your cushions over here, and take your seats.
Come and find the rarest, the finest, of all human discoveries.
Share the Dharma among yourselves, too.
1.­126
“Through scriptural recitation and concentration,
Won’t you increase your positive aspects?
And, if you wish, you may pose questions.
I too, on occasion, shall put questions to you.
1.­127
“After the Thus-Gone One has transcended misery,
When the time comes for his teachings to be destroyed,
Monks will be extremely wild and arrogant,
Flee the wilderness, and enjoy social diversions.
1.­128
“For gain and likewise for sustenance,
They will talk day and night, to anyone at all;
And even when those callow monks fall asleep,
Their dreams will be filled with growing crops.
1.­129
“All those juveniles with badly impaired faculties [F.144.b]
Are headed downward to the three lower realms.
And so, with delight and dedication,
Like the rhinoceros, always remain in the forest.
1.­130
“Those who wish for good qualities, by staying in the forest,
Will not examine the faults of others.
Never permit yourselves to think,
‘I am the best; I am exceptional.’
1.­131
“Such conceit is the root of all carelessness,
So do not have contempt for even the least among monks.
You won’t attain liberation in a single eon.
This teaching, you see, is gradual, in stages.
1.­132
“In light of that, monks desiring good qualities,
You heroes, dispense with improper talk,
And with joy and appreciation, utmost joy,
Just like the rhinoceros, remain in the wilderness!”
1.­133

The bodhisattva great being Maitreya then said to the Blessed One, “Blessed One, they lead, in this way, to the abandonment of positive qualities‍—social diversions generate many deplorable faults, have no redeeming qualities, and are so harmful. In fact, it is rather astounding how much social diversions increase defilements, and what unwholesome activities they are. Blessed One, what wise bodhisattvas in search of virtue would not be thrilled to enjoy solitude?


1.­134

“Blessed One, how should bodhisattvas examine the drawbacks of liking to talk? What must bodhisattvas realize to happily stay on course and recall their true purpose, so that they never become despondent?”

1.­135

The Blessed One replied to the bodhisattva great being Maitreya in the following way: “To address your question, Maitreya, there are twenty faults of liking to talk, which bodhisattvas should examine. What are the twenty?

1.­136

“Maitreya, monks who like to talk (1) become disrespectful because of conceit and arrogance about their scholarship, (2) become strongly prejudiced to one point of view because of their dedication to debate, [F.145.a] (3) forget to be mindful because they are not engaged with proper introspection, (4) conduct themselves inattentively because their minds and bodies have not been well trained, (5) become conceited or deflated because their tolerance for changing circumstance has become weak, (6) have volatile mindstreams because they have abandoned tranquility and special insight, (7) speak out of turn because they have been contaminated by the faults of speaking, (8) become uncontrolled because they have not obtained nobility of mind, (9) are not served by gods and nāgas, (10) are rebuked by those who have acquired proper understanding, (11) are chastised by those who have manifest spiritual attainment, (12) feel a sense of loss because they have not sustained their practice, (13) become increasingly unstable because they have not rid themselves of doubt, (14) let their studies and discrimination deteriorate because of their fascination with terminology, (15) are attached to sense pleasures because their experience is confined to the realm of ordinary consciousness, (16) do not reflect on what is finally true and real and thus soon abandon the Dharma, (17) are inconsistent and unreliable because they jump from one thing to another, (18) become completely irreverent because they have not tamed their minds at all, (19) must rely on what others say because they have not resolved the nature of phenomena for themselves, and (20) fall under the power of defilements because they have not fully understood their own sense powers.

1.­137

“Maitreya, those are the twenty negative consequences for bodhisattvas who, because they like to talk and are fascinated with semantics, fail to reflect on the meaning.”


1.­138

At that point, the Blessed One spoke the following verses:

“Full of their own learning, they become disrespectful
And attracted to contentious argument.
They grow forgetful and inattentive.
These are the faults of liking to talk.
1.­139
“They will lose sight of the mind within, [F.145.b]
And their bodies and minds will not be well trained.
They will swing often between deflation and inflation.
These are the faults of liking to talk.
1.­140
“The childish cease to contemplate the sacred Dharma;
Their minds become inflexible and callous.
They are far removed from tranquility and special insight.
These are the faults of liking to talk.
1.­141
“They continually disrespect their gurus,
And take delight in vulgar conversation.
They dwell on inessentials and let insight falter.
These are the faults of liking to talk.
1.­142
“The gods will not serve them,
Or even produce what they wish for,
And their powers of discrimination will fade away.
These are the faults of liking to talk.
1.­143
“The wise who possess manifest spiritual attainment
Will chastise them.
Their lives will lose any purpose.
These are the faults of liking to talk.
1.­144
“ ‘My practice has faltered; now what shall I do?’
At the time of death, they will wail like infants.
Having lost all footing, they will suffer intensely.
These are the faults of liking to talk.
1.­145
“Shaky and wobbly, like trembling grass,
That is how doubts will surely assail them.
At no time will they ever feel certain.
These are the faults of liking to talk.
1.­146
“Like someone in a crowd watching a play,
Extolling the valor of other heroes
While their own ardor flags,
These are the faults of liking to talk.
1.­147
“Their minds are seduced by the ear consciousness,
And their obsession with words impairs insight.
They are wrong-headed and headed toward the lower realms.
These are the faults of liking to talk.
1.­148
“Such people are deceitful and divisive,
Which in turn sets off quarrels.
They are extremely far from the noble ones’ sacred Dharma.
These are the faults of liking to talk.
1.­149
“Perfunctory courtesies bring them delight;
They know no better and are fickle and mercurial.
Like monkeys, their minds are capricious. [F.146.a]
These are the faults of liking to talk.
1.­150
“Since their own intellects are weak in understanding,
Those dullards are exploitable by others
And are drawn in by those who are defiled.
These are the faults of liking to talk.
1.­151
“Their eyes will be fooled, and their ears, too, will be just as fooled.
Their noses will be fooled, and their tongues, too, will be just as fooled.
Their bodies will be fooled, and their minds, too, will be just as fooled.
These are the faults of liking to talk.
1.­152
“For as long as they have enjoyed talking,
It has never brought them joy.
Though they have compiled endless lists of favorite terms,
To have contemplated a single one would have been far better.
1.­153
“Sugarcane husk has no sap at all;
The flavor we enjoy is found within it.
No one who eats only the husk
Can discover in it the taste of molasses.
1.­154
“What is true of the husk is also true of talking.
The flavor, here, is keeping the meaning in mind.
In light of that, abandon your taste for talking,
Be continually vigilant, and keep the meaning in mind.
1.­155
“Considering these faults of talking,
And understanding the superior merits of the meaning,
Those of you here who are skilled bodhisattvas,
Take delight in contemplating the meaning!”
1.­156

The bodhisattva great being Maitreya then remarked to the Blessed One, “Blessed One, the way in which the Thus-Gone One has expressed the faults of liking to talk and the qualities of reflecting on the meaning is truly extraordinary! Blessed One, bodhisattvas searching for the crucial point will reflect upon the meaning, and they will be utterly incapable of taking delight in talking about things that are not essential.


1.­157

“Blessed One, how should bodhisattva great beings examine the faults of enjoying the pleasures of sleep? What kind of examination is required for bodhisattvas to observe the drawbacks of lethargy and sleep, [F.146.b] exercise diligence, and never become despondent?”

1.­158

The Blessed One replied, “Maitreya, to answer you, liking to sleep has twenty distinct shortcomings that must be examined. If bodhisattvas were to examine these, they would happily begin to exercise diligence and never become despondent. What are the twenty?

1.­159

“Maitreya, to answer this, bodhisattvas who sleep a great deal (1) are overcome with lethargy and sleep, and so become extremely lazy and (2) become corpulent and develop pallid complexions. (3) The four types of disease oppress their major elements, (4) their heat constituent is dampened, (5) they do not digest food well, (6) lesions and ulcers break out on their bodies, (7) they become listless, (8) the web of their delusion spreads wider, (9) their insight becomes feeble, (10) they lose their appetite for tasty foods, (11) they are held in the dark clutches of ignorance, (12) nonhuman creatures do not serve them, (13) their minds become dull, (14) they find it harder and harder to get up, (15) their latent tendencies besiege and occupy their minds, (16) they lose any interest in virtuous activities, (17) they cease practicing virtuous activities, (18) their own conduct becomes feeble, (19) they disparage the efforts of those who exercise diligence, and (20) they are greeted with contempt when out among their peers.

1.­160

“Maitreya, those twenty are the shortcomings of bodhisattvas who like to sleep, are indolent, and are lethargic. And so, if bodhisattvas consider them, they will delight in exercising diligence and never become discouraged.”


1.­161

At that point, the Blessed One uttered these verses:

“When someone is indolent and likes to sleep,
His body becomes fat and flabby. [F.147.a]
A lazy person grows foolish and disagreeable,
And his complexion becomes pallid, too.
1.­162
“When someone is indolent and likes to sleep,
Phlegm, wind, and likewise bile
Overrun his physical body,
Severely agitating its constituents.
1.­163
“When someone is indolent and likes to sleep,
Impurities in food foul his belly,
And his body grows heavy and ungainly.26
His speech even becomes slurred.
1.­164
“When someone is indolent and likes to sleep,
Many ulcers form on his body.
He would rather stay reclined day and night,
Which produces excruciating sores.
1.­165
“When someone is indolent and likes to sleep,
It makes him lazy and robs him of initiative,
Dampening his spirits and draining his finances.
He is always weak, and his mind grows dim, too.
1.­166
“When someone is indolent and likes to sleep,
The great web of dullness spreads wider.
He is tentative and consumed with doubts,
And more and more paralyzed by indecision.
1.­167
“When someone is indolent and likes to sleep,
His insight becomes extremely frail.
His intellect, too, severely falters,
And his wisdom just withers away.
1.­168
“When someone is indolent and likes to sleep,
Out of apathy and lazy indifference, his judgement is lost.
Nonhuman creatures seize the advantage
And inflict harm upon him when about in the wilderness.
1.­169
“When someone is indolent and likes to sleep,
His mind is thick and his memory is obscured.
Whatever scriptures he hears and recites are not retained;
When he is to teach the Dharma, he cannot retrieve it.
1.­170
“When someone is indolent and likes to sleep,
His defilements are readily sparked.
He is befuddled and blind to deceit,
And his mind is always tormented.
1.­171
“When someone is indolent and likes to sleep,
Many things he does fail or flounder.
His body feels miserable, and his mind feels worse. [F.147.b]
His latent tendencies increase, yet he fails to see it.
1.­172
“When someone is indolent and likes to sleep,
He has no interest in being virtuous.
He develops no reverence for the Dharma,
And soon forms a liking for what is not the Dharma.
1.­173
“When someone is indolent and likes to sleep,
He is deluded, and loses interest in the Dharma.
Such a child loses all his good qualities.
The good is destroyed, and he ventures into darkness.
1.­174
“When someone is indolent and likes to sleep,
He becomes fearful, and his mind grows timid, too.
He can never be truly happy.
Sleep dominates him, and his body sags.
1.­175
“When someone is indolent and likes to sleep,
He lacks self-awareness and becomes a ne’er-do-well.
He is made jealous by those with strong diligence,
And speaks unkindly of those who are diligent.
1.­176
“Once he recognizes such faults,
What wise person would enjoy indolence and sleep?
They are the cause of many highly ignorant views
And put the fine qualities of the sacred Dharma,
Whose meaning is excellent, to waste.
Once he understands that sleep robs him of all diligence,
What good and wise person would still like it?
1.­177
“The dispeller of darkness and the remover of all suffering,
The foundation for leaving the lower realms behind,
The superior diligence commended by all buddhas‍—
On that you should continually rely.
1.­178
“If whatever projects there are in this world,
And projects there may be beyond this world,
Are not difficult to achieve when you exercise diligence,
What wise person would tire of the power of diligence?
1.­179
“Those who have set out to awaken to buddhahood,
Once they see the faults of indolence and sleep,
Always exercise and sustain their diligence.
This has been my encouragement to them.”
1.­180

The bodhisattva great being Maitreya then said to the Blessed One, “Blessed One, [F.148.a] any bodhisattvas who have learned of these kinds of faults of indolence and sleep, and yet do not abandon them or feel saddened by them, or for that matter do not arouse and exert diligence‍—for them to be that dense is astonishing!

1.­181

“Blessed One, bodhisattvas who seek to learn, and who strive with determination to awaken to unsurpassed and perfect buddhahood‍—who among them, having heard counsel as perfect as this, would be lazy and not cultivate virtuous qualities? And who among them, having learned about these types of qualities and advantages of diligence, would not exert diligent effort to perfect the branches of awakening? Indeed, the Thus-Gone One has explained well these failings of liking to sleep and the advantages of exerting diligence!


1.­182

“Blessed One, how should bodhisattvas examine the drawbacks of liking to work and being soiled with the stains of worldly activity? What are the things bodhisattvas must examine if they are to minimize their needs and reduce their activities, and thus be consistently diligent and assiduous in their pursuit of sacred Dharma?”

1.­183

The Blessed One responded, “Maitreya, to answer you, bodhisattva great beings should investigate twenty shortcomings of liking to work. If bodhisattvas reflect on these, they will minimize their desire and reduce their activities, and be consistently diligent and assiduous in their pursuit of the sacred Dharma. What are the twenty?

1.­184

“Maitreya, they are as follows. Bodhisattvas who like to work (1) exert themselves in worldly occupations, (2) stay involved in every manner of negative action, (3) are criticized by those who exert themselves in study and recitation, (4) are looked down upon by those who like to practice inner absorption, [F.148.b] (5) engage in actions that perpetuate saṃsāra without beginning or end, (6) do not enjoy the alms of faithful brahmins and householders as their minds become more fixated on material things, (7) multiply their attachments, (8) are continually engaged in making a living, (9) are not in charge, (10) are continually consumed with yearnings that are repugnant by nature, (11) invest themselves in domestic affairs, for the taste of which they develop more and more longing and attachment, (12) are upset when unable to acquire what they want, (13) continually reproduce obscurations of karma that increase their mental torment, (14) become dependent upon male and female lay precept-holders, (15) spend their days and nights ruminating about food, (16) are constantly curious about worldly affairs, (17) enjoy improper conversation, (18) abuse their administrative offices, bringing ruinous punishment by rulers upon those who practice monastic discipline, (19) think about others’ mistakes while never considering their own, and (20) dismiss out of hand reports that are both meaningful and properly verified.

1.­185

“Maitreya, those are the twenty faults of bodhisattvas who like to work and are soiled by the stains of performing administrative duties. If bodhisattvas reflect upon them, they will reduce their needs and limit their activities; abandoning worldly affairs, they will dedicate themselves to spiritual matters.”


1.­186

At that point, the Blessed One spoke the following verses:

“They remain involved in bad actions
And keep their distance from superior actions.
In this way, they wander far from great attainment.
These are the faults of a desirous mind.
1.­187
“Monks who enjoy study and recitation
Dislike and despise them, [F.149.a]
And those who meditate look down upon them.
These are the faults of always holding a job.
1.­188
“Laboring hard at saṃsāra's work,
They are detained a great distance from liberation.
They partake of unsavory food and company.
These are the faults of attachment to work.
1.­189
“They are always acquiring things
And are displeased when they cannot have them.
They pursue wealth that is worthless.
These are the faults of attachment to work.
1.­190
“They are attracted to those at leisure in their homes,
And their love for social activity destroys them entirely.
They become like birds stuck in their cages.
These are the faults of attachment to work.
1.­191
“Householders’ work always makes them miserable;
Yet, despite this torment, they are not deterred.
When they give their word, it is not credible.
These are the faults of liking to work.
1.­192
“If the guru exhorts them, his command is discomfiting.
They cannot follow his injunctions,
And their discipline soon collapses.
These are the faults of liking to work.
1.­193
“The tasks awaiting them at home are always on their minds,
And they always are willing to take them on.
They therefore practice neither concentration nor abstention.
These are the faults of liking to work.
1.­194
“Their passions grow exponentially,
They desire and crave what they savor and fancy,
And they are never satisfied with just modest fare.
These are the faults of liking to work.
1.­195
“When their social circles grow, they are delighted,
And when they shrink, they suffer intensely
And become irascible like donkeys.
These are the faults of liking to work.
1.­196
“Their minds are always filled with enmity.
Their tasks increase and never reach a conclusion.
The creeping vines of craving bind them tightly.
These are the faults of liking to work.
1.­197
“They never rely on their gurus;
They rely, instead, on self-interested householders.
They are jealous, too, of those who maintain disciplined conduct. [F.149.b]
These are the faults of liking to work.
1.­198
“Day and night, they think nonstop
Of food and clothing, and nothing else.
They never desire good qualities.
These are the faults of liking to work.
1.­199
“They are curious about worldly affairs,
And enjoy talk of indecent matters.
Decent talk they do not like at all.
These are the faults of liking to work.
1.­200
“They constantly critique those who hold vows,
Bringing the ruination of rulers’ punishments upon them.
They create terrible karma.
These are the faults of liking to work.
1.­201
“They are always concerned with the faults of others,
And yet do not see their own faults.
They look for flaws in those who possess fine qualities.
These are the faults of liking to work.
1.­202
“Those childish people are soon despised by others.
When they teach them the Dharma,
Since their own intellects are weak, no understanding emerges.
These are the faults of liking to work.
1.­203
“Having seen their damaging faults,
Who would be happy with negative actions?
Brave ones, always act in a superior fashion,
And do not squander whatever good you have done.
1.­204
“Those who fail to grasp a single word of what has been stated a thousand times
Are objects of ridicule for the intelligent.
The holy, likewise, continually reproach
Those who engage in negative actions.
1.­205
“That being the case, wise people,
Always forsake these negative actions;
Moreover, perform the excellent actions
That mighty sages always commend.”
1.­206

The bodhisattva great being Maitreya then said to the Blessed One, “Blessed One, those bodhisattvas who have rejected the supreme Dharma and engage in negative actions surely have incredibly weak insight, and their insight is inferior.”

1.­207

The Blessed One answered the bodhisattva great being Maitreya this way: “Maitreya, that is so, [F.150.a] that is so. Just as you say, those bodhisattvas who reject the supreme Dharma and engage in negative actions have incredibly weak insight, and their insight is inferior.

1.­208

“Maitreya, there is something else you ought to know, something else you should take to heart. Those bodhisattvas who do not apply themselves, who lack concentration, who do not renounce, who do not abstain, and who do not strive to become learned are not ordained within the teachings of the thus-gone ones.

1.­209

“Maitreya, the teachings of thus-gone ones are distinguished by meditating and renouncing, by gathering wisdom and steadily abiding in wisdom, and by practicing diligently, as opposed to doing the work of householders and performing administrative duties. Monks who perform administrative work are corrupted by those who engage in improprieties, by those who delight in amassing property, and by worldly affairs in general; thus, bodhisattvas should not develop a liking for such work. Maitreya, even if, by diligently performing administrative duties, bodhisattvas could fill this billionfold world system with stūpas constructed from the seven types of precious substances, this would not please me, would not honor me, and would not venerate me. On the other hand, Maitreya, if bodhisattvas do no more than retain, grasp, read, absorb, or bear in mind a single stanza of four verses containing the perfections, that would honor, serve, venerate, and be an offering to me.

1.­210

“Why is that? Maitreya, it is because the awakening of the thus-gone ones springs from great learning, and not from holding on to material things. Maitreya, if bodhisattvas devote themselves to administrative duties, and by performing those duties, damage the efforts of other bodhisattvas to teach and recite scripture, their desire for merit will result in the generation of an enormous heap of demerits, [F.150.b] and they will be gripped by obscurations of karma. Why is that the case? Well, the three things that are the bases for producing merit all arise from insight. Therefore, Maitreya, the efforts of bodhisattvas working in administrative offices must not cause obstacles for bodhisattvas devoting themselves to study and recitation of scripture.

1.­211

“All those who serve in administrative offices and perform administrative duties throughout Jambudvīpa should honor and serve even a single bodhisattva devoted to study and recitation of scripture. However many bodhisattvas devoted to study and recitation of scripture there are in all of Jambudvīpa, they should honor and serve even a single bodhisattva dedicated to proper contemplation. If they do so, the thus-gone ones will rejoice and approve, and will have been venerated properly. Performing such honor and service will generate an infinite amount of merit for those who wish to experience insight. If you ask why that is the case, it is because working on insight is the most challenging, the best, the highest, and the most exceptional and exalted of all occupations in the threefold world.

1.­212

“Maitreya, that being so, bodhisattvas who wish to apply themselves with dedicated effort and to exercise diligence must vigorously train in insight and pursue their training in insight.”


1.­213

The bodhisattva great being Maitreya then said to the Blessed One, “Now that the Blessed One has explained the drawbacks of bodhisattvas enjoying social diversions and liking to work, would the Blessed One next explain how to examine the shortcomings of bodhisattvas liking to deceive? [F.151.a] What are the things bodhisattvas should examine, if they are to remain peaceful and not engage in disputes?”

1.­214

The Blessed One said, “Maitreya, to summarize, there are twenty shortcomings of bodhisattvas liking to deceive that must be examined. More broadly, the thus-gone ones have taught that these faults are limitless; there is no end to them. What are these twenty faults, Maitreya, of bodhisattvas who like to be deceitful? (1) They experience a great deal of suffering and unhappiness in their lives; (2) they lose their sense of patience; (3) their opponents rejoice in that loss; (4) Māra, too, takes great satisfaction in that loss; (5) Māra’s cohorts delight in it as well; (6) virtuous qualities that have not yet arisen in them do not arise; (7) those that have arisen disappear; (8) their disputes, grudges, arguments, and conflicts increase; (9) those disputes, arguments, and conflicts actively create karma that leads to rebirth in the lower realms; (10) they are bound to a course of sheer recklessness; (11) their speech becomes crude; (12) they do not properly retain Dharma transmissions they previously have received; (13) sūtra transmissions they have not previously received never reach their ears; (14) they entirely abandon all their spiritual mentors; (15) they quickly associate with evil friends; (16) they take ordination on the path of austerity; (17) they hear an uninterrupted flow of unpleasant words; (18) no matter where they are reborn they are born skeptics; (19) in their future lives, the eight states lacking leisure will always be close by; and (20) whatever good they try to do will always run into obstacles. Maitreya, those twenty summarize the shortcomings of enjoying deceit, [F.151.b] and these are what must be avoided.”


1.­215

The Blessed One then spoke these verses:

“They will not be happy in their lives.
Patience will stay distant, and anger will remain nearby.
Their enemies will be pleased.
These are the faults of liking to deceive.
1.­216
“Māra will like and appreciate them,
As will Māra’s cohorts.
Their virtuous qualities will go to waste.
These are the faults of liking to deceive.
1.­217
“They will never develop virtues;
And at death, continuing by a different cause,
They will enact the karma of falling into lower realms.
These are the faults of liking to deceive.
1.­218
“Unattractive and unpleasant to behold,
Their clans and lineages will always be inferior.
Their manner of speech will be very crude.
These are the faults of liking to deceive.
1.­219
“Past Dharma transmissions they will not retain well,
And sūtra scriptures not yet received they will never hear.
They will give up on all their spiritual mentors, too.
These are the faults of liking to deceive.
1.­220
“They will make evil friends.
They will delight in the vehicle of austerity.
They will continually hear unpleasant words.
These are the faults of liking to deceive.
1.­221
“No matter where those juveniles are reborn,
They will wonder, ‘Is it so, or is it not?’
And they will always be left in doubt.
These are the faults of liking to deceive.
1.­222
“The eight states without leisure will not be far away,
And they will not be blessed with great leisure.
They will constantly face all sorts of harm.
These are the faults of liking to deceive.
1.­223
“There will be many obstacles to their virtues.
Due to impediments, success won’t come quickly.
Even if they are diligent, they will face adversity.
These are the faults of liking to deceive.
1.­224
“The wise, understanding these faults so well,
Rid themselves of all deviousness.
Those who enjoy deceit easily find trouble.
In light of that, don’t be devious. [F.152.a]
1.­225
“It would be best to flee a hundred miles
From where there is deceit or duplicity.
Do not linger or rest for even a moment
In any place where defilements are found.
1.­226
“You who seek the goal of ordination
And wish for good qualities, do not angrily squabble.
You have no fields, nothing of the field to sell.
Whatever is done for wealth produces complications.
1.­227
“You have no wives, no sons or daughters.
You have not homes, or kinfolk either.
You have no male or female servants, none to rule over.
Having taken ordination, do not take part in quarrels.
1.­228
“Don with faith the saffron-colored robes
That foster peace and deep tranquility,
Be peaceful, most peaceful, and totally at peace.
Reject guile and generate tolerance.
1.­229
“Guard against intemperance as you would a poisonous snake.
Those who enjoy aggrandizement are never far from hell,
The animal kingdom, or the Lord of Death’s domain.
This being so, generate patience and diligence.
1.­230
“Going to great lengths to damage a community,
Whether by hurting, killing, or shackling,
Or imprisoning, torturing, or cursing‍—
Such things happen to those who live in this world.
1.­231
“But these faults are rare for members of the order,
As what is latent in them does not spread.
If joy comes to those in the order,
What wise person would not support it?
1.­232
“Those eager to expose them will find no faults.
The assembly will never be divided;
Its companionship, too, will endure.
These are the advantages of abandoning deceit.
1.­233
“Through the power of this vehicle, make yourself pure,
And, clearing away all obscurations of karma,
Use its strength; ride it to subdue the māras.
That which is stable will generate restraint.
1.­234
“Deceit and aggrandizement create many faults‍—
I am unable to express their flaws adequately.
My endorsements of simplicity are continual and endless.
Whoever makes the effort will develop restraint.”
1.­235

The bodhisattva great being Maitreya then said to the Blessed One, [F.152.b] “Blessed One, what the Thus-Gone One has conveyed thus far about defilements has been expressed very well‍—it is wonderful! Blessed One, will it be the case, during the final half-millennium, that having heard sublime words like these, bodhisattvas will be chastened and abandon defiled behavior as well?”

1.­236

The Blessed One answered, “Maitreya, few individuals belonging to the Bodhisattva Vehicle in the final half-millennium, upon hearing these types of sublime words, will feel chastened and abandon defiled behavior.

1.­237

“Maitreya, those whose temperaments are marked by arrogance, disrespect, stubborn pride, and mistrustfulness will be in the majority. They will neither receive scriptural transmission of the profound discourses spoken by the Thus-Gone One, which are rich in benefits and qualities, nor will they recite them, retain them, or comprehend them. The magnitude of their obscurations of karma will prevent them from realizing those qualities and those benefits.

1.­238

“They will have no faith, and so they will come to doubt those discourses; consequently, they will not receive transmission of them, will not retain them, and will not comprehend them.27

1.­239

“Before them will appear evil māras in the guise of monks who will tell them, ‘These discourses are spurious and are not, in fact, what the Thus-Gone One said.’ And if they are asked why that is the case, they will answer, ‘Because the qualities and benefits of hearing these discourses, as described in them, have not arisen and are lacking in you.’ And this will subvert their motivation.

1.­240

“As a result of their change of heart, they will not be interested in and will have doubts about the profound discourses, and so they will not receive their scriptural transmissions, and will not recite them. When these fools hear about the qualities and benefits of these teachings, because of the ripening of their karma of abandoning the Dharma in this way, they will think, ‘We are not able to practice this,’ and will put it out of their minds.”


1.­241

The bodhisattva great being Maitreya then asked the Blessed One, [F.153.a] “Blessed One, among the many qualities of the Thus-Gone One Amitāyus that the Thus-Gone One has explained, it was mentioned that if one applies one’s mind to the cultivation of certain positive attitudes, and brings to mind the Thus-Gone One Amitāyus himself, one will take rebirth in his buddha realm. Blessed One, since that is so, what are those positive attitudes?”

1.­242

The Blessed One answered the bodhisattva great being Maitreya in the following way: “Maitreya, the positive attitudes that result in rebirth in Sukhāvatī, the buddha realm of the Thus-Gone One Amitāyus, are not attitudes generated by childish beings. They are not attitudes generated by anyone other than holy beings. They are not attitudes generated by a defiled mind.

1.­243

“Maitreya, there are ten such positive attitudes to be generated. What are they? Maitreya, I shall put it this way: (1) Harboring resentment toward the conduct of any being will make one incapable of taking rebirth in the buddha realm of the Thus-Gone One Amitāyus; and so, generate the attitude of loving kindness toward all beings. (2) Ridding oneself of all enmity, generate the attitude of compassion for all beings. (3) Generate the determination to preserve the sacred Dharma, without concern for life and limb. (4) Develop strong dedication to the sacred Dharma, through certainty that one can tolerate the profound. (5) Give rise to completely pure intentions by not being stained by gain and honor. (6) Through perfect recall, generate the viewpoint that the state of omniscience is extremely precious. (7) Without getting discouraged, generate an attitude of respect towards all beings, as if they were one’s guru. [F.153.b] (8) Develop the attitude of not enjoying mere short-lived meditative experiences, by being certain about the branches of awakening. (9) By seeing them distinctly, cultivate a wide assortment of virtuous roots. (10) Abandoning conceptual constructs, cultivate a state of contemplation that simply recalls the Buddha.

1.­244

“Maitreya, these are the ten positive attitudes. If one develops any among these ten attitudes‍—no matter which ones‍—then, because one has given rise to and possesses these attitudes, there is no chance that one will not be born in that buddha realm.”

1.­245

The venerable Ānanda then said to the Blessed One, “Blessed One, this account of the Dharma, which inspires determination, is truly incredible‍—how wonderful it is indeed!”

1.­246

The Blessed One voiced his approval to the venerable Ānanda, saying, “Excellent! Ānanda, that is excellent, truly excellent! Ānanda, for that reason, you must retain this account of Dharma, which you have called ‘Inspiring Determination.’ ”

1.­247

After the Blessed One made this pronouncement, the bodhisattva great being Maitreya, the other bodhisattvas who were present, the venerable Ānanda along with the world’s gods, humans, asuras and gandharvas, rejoiced in and extolled what the Blessed One had said.

1.­248

This concludes Inspiring Determination, the twenty-fifth of the one hundred thousand sections of the Dharma discourse known as The Noble Great Heap of Jewels.


c.

Colophon

c.­1

Translated, edited, and finalized by the Indian preceptors Jinamitra and Surendrabodhi along with the translator and editor Bandé Yeshé Dé, among others.


n.

Notes

n.­1
See Śikṣāsamuccaya, Toh 3940, folio 59.a, quoting Inspiring Determination at folio 133.b and the same at folio 270.b.
n.­2
This section of the sūtra is also quoted extensively in Śikṣāsamuccaya, starting at folio 272.b.
n.­3
See Śikṣāsamuccaya folio 11.b. See also Wedemeyer 2007, 411 and n. 45 (referencing Śāntideva’s quotation of this passage from this sūtra) and Snellgrove 1958, 620–23 (referencing the same passage from Śāntideva).
n.­4
See Silk 2015, 7–8, s.v. “Canonicity.”
n.­5
See Dharmachakra Translation Committee, trans., Not Forsaking the Buddha, 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2021.
n.­6
The lengthy passages from the sūtra quoted in the Śikṣāsamuccaya are rather different in wording and phrasing from the Tibetan Kangyur editions of the sūtra, with numerous minor additions and deletions. Interestingly, David Snellgrove observes that the Tibetan and Chinese translations are closer to one another than to the extant Sanskrit, which would seem to suggest that the surviving Sanskrit passages in the Śikṣāsamuccaya differ from the earlier Sanskrit witnesses on which the Tibetan and Chinese translations were based. See Snellgrove 1958, 622.
n.­7
Fashengzhile hui 發勝志樂會 (Taishō 310 [25]). A short passage from this version on the ten virtuous attitudes that result in rebirth in the realm of the Buddha Amitāyus was translated into English by Saddhaloka Bhikkhu in a 1996 publication entitled The Giving Rise of the Ten Kinds of Mind of the Bodhisattva. For more information on this version of the sūtra, see Lancaster, The Korean Buddhist Canon, K 22(25).
n.­8
Fajue jing xin jing 發覺淨心經 (Taishō 327). For more information on this version of the sūtra, see Lancaster, The Korean Buddhist Canon, K 37.
n.­9
Denkarma, folio 296.a.5. See also Herrmann-Pfandt, 2008, 29–30, no. 49.
n.­10
The full heading for this section of the Heap of Jewels, as it appears in the Degé, reads: “ ‘Inspiring Determination,’ the twenty-fifth section of ‘The Noble Dharma Discourse, The Great Heap of Jewels,’ in one hundred thousand sections.” The Yongle version omits “twenty-fifth section,” while the Kangxi, Narthang, Lhasa, and Stok Palace editions omit this heading entirely (Comparative Edition, 421; Stok Palace, folio 243.a).
n.­11
Tib. khyed tshur shog. Instead of the imperative marker shog, the Yongle and Kangxi versions read shegs and the Narthang and Lhasa editions read sheg. The meaning of these two terms is unclear, so perhaps they are nothing more than scribal errors (Comparative Edition, p. 422).
n.­12
Tib. khyim (“household”). In this context, khyim carries not just the sense of “household” but the reputation or social standing of that household. While this is not explicit in the Tibetan, Bodhiruci’s Chinese translation communicates exactly this sense: “many friends and relatives who had gained a good reputation” (duo zhu qinyou mingwen li yang 多諸親友名聞利養).
n.­13
Following the Degé: ltung ba mang ba’am/ mang ba ma lags pa yang rung ste/. Yongle and Kangxi: ltung ba smad pa’am/ smad pa (“whether they are to be blamed or not”) (Comparative Edition, p. 422). Narthang and Lhasa: ltung ba med pa’am/ med pa (“whether they exist or not”) (Comparative Edition, p. 423). Stok Palace: ltung ba mad pa ’am/ mad pa (“whether they are true or not”) (folio 246.a).
n.­14
Tib. brnyas. The Yongle and Kangxi versions read brnyes (“receive”), which is likely a scribal error.
n.­15
Reading ma byol na instead of ram byol na. The Narthang and Lhasa editions read ma phyin na (“if we have not gone”).
n.­16
Tib. rmas (“injury,” “wound”). The Yongle and Kangxi versions have the mistaken smras (“to speak”), while the Narthang, Lhasa, and Stok Palace versions read smas, which is an archaic term meaning “aggression” and would lead us to translate this phrase as “be spared harm and aggression” (Comparative Edition, p. 423; Stok Palace, folio 248.a).
n.­17
The Narthang version here omits byams pa (“Maitreya”) (Comparative Edition, p. 423).
n.­18
Tib. mnog (“profit”). The Lithang and Choné versions read gnog, which is simply an alternate spelling of the more common mnog, while the Narthang mistakenly reads mgon, which would lead one to translate this phrase as “after realizing there is no protector” (Comparative Edition, p. 424). The Stok Palace version matches the Degé in reading mnog (Stok Palace, folio 250.a).
n.­19
Tib. gang dag byang chub sems dpas khong du chud par bya zhing khong du chud nas kyang yongs su spang bar bya ba ni de dag yin no/. The Narthang edition avoids the repetition in this line, omitting khong du chud par bya zhing (Comparative Edition, p. 424).
n.­20
The Degé here mistakenly reads bcom ldan ’das kyi, while the Yongle, Lithang, Kangxi, Narthang, Choné, and Lhasa read bcom ldan ’das ci. This latter reading marks a question, though the early placement of the ci is unusual. The Urga leaves off any particle after bcom ldan ’das and thus produces a vocative structure that is commonly found elsewhere in the text (Comparative Edition, p. 425).
n.­21
Curiously, the Narthang edition adds the negative particle mi here, which would translate as “nonconceit” (Comparative Edition, p. 425).
n.­22
This fascinating statement is clarified later in the text, see 1.­80, where the repeated use of the perfective structure sangs rgyas kyis gsungs pa seems to suggest that such well-spoken utterances are consistent with what the Buddha has already spoken‍—they do not represent new teachings of the Buddha per se.
n.­23
Tib. byams pa gzhan yang rgyu bzhis na spobs pa thams cad ni sangs rgyas kyis gsungs par rig par bya’o/. As mentioned earlier, the use of sangs rgyas kyis gsungs pa seems to communicate that anything that meets these qualifications is something that the Buddha has spoken. It is not new buddhavacana, but rather an echo of what the Buddha has already taught. Subsequent discussions of this point in the text share the same grammar.
n.­24
The Degé and Comparative Edition have the misspelled rgyun tu zhugs pa, with the Comparative Edition noting no variants (Comparative Edition, p. 391). The Stok Palace version, however, has the correct rgyun du zhugs pa (Stok Palace, folio 256.a).
n.­25
Tib. dran pa nye bar bzhag pa bzhi. The Yongle, Lithang, Kangxi, Narthang, Choné, Lhasa, and Stok Palace editions read dran pa nye bar gzhag pa bzhi (Comparative Edition, p. 427; Stok Palace, folio 258.b).
n.­26
The Degé edition has the misspelled zo bdog bde ma yin, while the Yongle, Kangxi, Narthang, Lhasa, and Stok Palace editions have the correct zo mdog bde ma yin (Comparative Edition, p. 429; Stok Palace, folio 265.a).
n.­27
Tib. phyis kyang lung nod par mi byed/ ’chang bar mi byed/ kun chub par mi byed de/. Here the Narthang version omits kun chub par mi byed de/ and thus would translate as “…consequently they will neither receive transmission of them nor retain them” (Comparative Edition, p. 431).

b.

Bibliography

lhag pa’i bsam pa bskul ba (Adhyāśayasaṃcodana­nāma­mahāyāna­sūtra) Toh 69, Degé Kangyur (par phud), vol. 43 (dkon brtsegs, ca), folios 131.b–153.b

lhag pa’i bsam pa bskul ba. Toh 69, Stok Palace Kangyur, vol. 39 (dkon brtsegs, ca), folios 243.a–276.a.

lhag pa’i bsam pa bskul ba. bka’ ’gyur (dpe bsdur ma) [Comparative Edition of the Kangyur], krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe sdur khang (The Tibetan Tripitaka Collation Bureau of the China Tibetology Research Center). 108 volumes. Beijing: krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang (China Tibetology Publishing House), 2006–9, vol. 43, pp. 390–442.

pho brang stod thang ldan dkar gyi chos kyi ’gyur ro cog gi dkar chag [Denkarma]. Toh 4364, Degé Tengyur vol. 206 (sna tshogs, jo), folios 294.b–310.a.

Śāntideva. bslab pa kun las btus pa (Śikṣāsamuccaya) [Compendium of Bodhisattva Training]. Toh 3940, Degé Tengyur, vol. 111 (dbu ma, khi), folios 3.a–194.b.

Herrmann-Pfandt, Adelheid. Die lHan kar ma: ein früher Katalog der ins Tibetische übersetzten buddhistischen Texte. Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 2008.

Lancaster, Lewis R. The Korean Buddhist Canon: A Descriptive Catalogue.

Saddhaloka Bhikkhu, trans. The Giving Rise of the Ten Kinds of Mind of the Bodhisattva: The Discourse on the Ten Wholesome Ways of Action. Hong Kong: Gigantic Printing and Design Co., 1996.

Silk, Jonathan A. et al., ed. Brill’s Encyclopedia of Buddhism. Vol. 1, Literature and Languages. Leiden: Brill, 2015.

Snellgrove, David. “Note on the Adhyāśayasaṃcodanasūtra.” Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies 21 (1958): 620–23.

Wedemeyer, Christian K. “Beef, Dog, and Other Mythologies: Connotative Semiotics in Mahāyoga Tantra Ritual and Scripture.” Journal of the American Academy of Religion 75(2) (2007): 383–417.


g.

Glossary

Types of attestation for names and terms of the corresponding source language

AS

Attested in source text

This term is attested in a manuscript used as a source for this translation.

AO

Attested in other text

This term is attested in other manuscripts with a parallel or similar context.

AD

Attested in dictionary

This term is attested in dictionaries matching Tibetan to the corresponding language.

AA

Approximate attestation

The attestation of this name is approximate. It is based on other names where the relationship between the Tibetan and source language is attested in dictionaries or other manuscripts.

RP

Reconstruction from Tibetan phonetic rendering

This term is a reconstruction based on the Tibetan phonetic rendering of the term.

RS

Reconstruction from Tibetan semantic rendering

This term is a reconstruction based on the semantics of the Tibetan translation.

SU

Source unspecified

This term has been supplied from an unspecified source, which most often is a widely trusted dictionary.

g.­1

administrative duties

Wylie:
  • zhal ta byed pa
Tibetan:
  • ཞལ་ཏ་བྱེད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • vaiyāpṛtyakara

A term used to describe a managerial role or administrative duties in a monastic setting. While the position can be filled by a monk, it appears to be typically delegated to non-monastics.

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­55
  • 1.­185
  • 1.­209-211
g.­2

Amitābha

Wylie:
  • ’od dpag med
Tibetan:
  • འོད་དཔག་མེད།
Sanskrit:
  • amitābha

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The buddha of the western buddhafield of Sukhāvatī, where fortunate beings are reborn to make further progress toward spiritual maturity. Amitābha made his great vows to create such a realm when he was a bodhisattva called Dharmākara. In the Pure Land Buddhist tradition, popular in East Asia, aspiring to be reborn in his buddha realm is the main emphasis; in other Mahāyāna traditions, too, it is a widespread practice. For a detailed description of the realm, see The Display of the Pure Land of Sukhāvatī, Toh 115. In some tantras that make reference to the five families he is the tathāgata associated with the lotus family.

Amitābha, “Infinite Light,” is also known in many Indian Buddhist works as Amitāyus, “Infinite Life.” In both East Asian and Tibetan Buddhist traditions he is often conflated with another buddha named “Infinite Life,” Aparimitāyus, or “Infinite Life and Wisdom,”Aparimitāyurjñāna, the shorter version of whose name has also been back-translated from Tibetan into Sanskrit as Amitāyus but who presides over a realm in the zenith. For details on the relation between these buddhas and their names, see The Aparimitāyurjñāna Sūtra (1) Toh 674, i.9.

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • i.­3
  • i.­7
  • 1.­14
  • g.­3
  • g.­73
g.­3

Amitāyus

Wylie:
  • tshe dpag med
Tibetan:
  • ཚེ་དཔག་མེད།
Sanskrit:
  • amitāyus

The buddha residing in the western buddha realm of Sukhāvatī. He is also known as Amitābha.

Located in 7 passages in the translation:

  • i.­7
  • 1.­241-243
  • n.­7
  • g.­2
  • g.­73
g.­4

Ānanda

Wylie:
  • kun dga’ bo
Tibetan:
  • ཀུན་དགའ་བོ།
Sanskrit:
  • ānanda

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A major śrāvaka disciple and personal attendant of the Buddha Śākyamuni during the last twenty-five years of his life. He was a cousin of the Buddha (according to the Mahāvastu, he was a son of Śuklodana, one of the brothers of King Śuddhodana, which means he was a brother of Devadatta; other sources say he was a son of Amṛtodana, another brother of King Śuddhodana, which means he would have been a brother of Aniruddha).

Ānanda, having always been in the Buddha’s presence, is said to have memorized all the teachings he heard and is celebrated for having recited all the Buddha’s teachings by memory at the first council of the Buddhist saṅgha, thus preserving the teachings after the Buddha’s parinirvāṇa. The phrase “Thus did I hear at one time,” found at the beginning of the sūtras, usually stands for his recitation of the teachings. He became a patriarch after the passing of Mahākāśyapa.

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­245-247
g.­5

aphorisms

Wylie:
  • ched du brjod pa’i sde
Tibetan:
  • ཆེད་དུ་བརྗོད་པའི་སྡེ།
Sanskrit:
  • udāna

One of the “twelve branches of excellent speech.”

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­68
  • g.­83
g.­6

armor of the power of patience

Wylie:
  • bzod pa’i stobs kyi go cha
Tibetan:
  • བཟོད་པའི་སྟོབས་ཀྱི་གོ་ཆ།
Sanskrit:
  • kṣanti-saṃnaddha

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­60
g.­7

ascetic practices

Wylie:
  • sbyangs pa’i yon tan
Tibetan:
  • སྦྱངས་པའི་ཡོན་ཏན།
Sanskrit:
  • dhūtaguṇa

An optional set of practices that monastics can adopt in order to cultivate greater detachment. The list of practices varies in different sources. When thirteen practices are listed, they consist of (1) wearing patched robes made from discarded cloth rather than from cloth donated by laypeople; (2) wearing only three robes; (3) going for alms; (4) not omitting any house while on the alms round, rather than begging only at those houses known to provide good food; (5) eating only what can be eaten in one sitting; (6) eating only food received in the alms bowl, rather than more elaborate meals presented to the Saṅgha; (7) refusing more food after indicating one has eaten enough; (8) dwelling in the forest; (9) dwelling at the root of a tree; (10) dwelling in the open air, using only a tent made from one’s robes as shelter; (11) dwelling in a charnel ground; (12) satisfaction with whatever dwelling one has; and (13) sleeping in a sitting position without ever lying down.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­11
g.­8

Bandé Yeshé Dé

Wylie:
  • ban de ye shes sde
Tibetan:
  • བན་དེ་ཡེ་ཤེས་སྡེ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

One of the three foremost translators of the Tibetan imperial era. A disciple of Padmasambhava and one of the main translators of the Kangyur.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • i.­10
  • c.­1
g.­9

blessed one

Wylie:
  • bcom ldan ’das
Tibetan:
  • བཅོམ་ལྡན་འདས།
Sanskrit:
  • bhagavān

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

In Buddhist literature, this is an epithet applied to buddhas, most often to Śākyamuni. The Sanskrit term generally means “possessing fortune,” but in specifically Buddhist contexts it implies that a buddha is in possession of six auspicious qualities (bhaga) associated with complete awakening. The Tibetan term‍—where bcom is said to refer to “subduing” the four māras, ldan to “possessing” the great qualities of buddhahood, and ’das to “going beyond” saṃsāra and nirvāṇa‍—possibly reflects the commentarial tradition where the Sanskrit bhagavat is interpreted, in addition, as “one who destroys the four māras.” This is achieved either by reading bhagavat as bhagnavat (“one who broke”), or by tracing the word bhaga to the root √bhañj (“to break”).

Located in 70 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­2
  • 1.­7-11
  • 1.­15-33
  • 1.­35-36
  • 1.­65-66
  • 1.­75-76
  • 1.­78-79
  • 1.­84-87
  • 1.­89-90
  • 1.­96-97
  • 1.­102
  • 1.­114-115
  • 1.­117
  • 1.­133-135
  • 1.­138
  • 1.­156-158
  • 1.­161
  • 1.­180-183
  • 1.­186
  • 1.­206-207
  • 1.­213-215
  • 1.­235-236
  • 1.­241-242
  • 1.­245-247
g.­10

branches of awakening

Wylie:
  • byang chub kyi yan lag
Tibetan:
  • བྱང་ཆུབ་ཀྱི་ཡན་ལག
Sanskrit:
  • bodhyaṅga

There are seven branches of awakening: mindfulness, discrimination, diligence, joy, pliancy, absorption, and equanimity.

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­4
  • 1.­59
  • 1.­84-87
  • 1.­181
  • 1.­243
g.­11

carelessness

Wylie:
  • bag med pa
Tibetan:
  • བག་མེད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • pramāda

Disregard for virtuous qualities.

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­105
  • 1.­131
  • 1.­214
g.­12

concentration

Wylie:
  • bsam gtan
Tibetan:
  • བསམ་གཏན།
Sanskrit:
  • dhyāna

Meditative concentration in which the mind achieves stable attention or one-pointed focus.

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • i.­5
  • 1.­109
  • 1.­112
  • 1.­126
  • 1.­193
  • 1.­208
g.­13

Deer Park

Wylie:
  • ri dags kyi nags
Tibetan:
  • རི་དགས་ཀྱི་ནགས།
Sanskrit:
  • mṛgadāva

The forest located on the outskirts of Vārāṇasī where the Buddha first taught the Dharma.

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • i.­1
  • 1.­2
  • g.­28
g.­14

defilement

Wylie:
  • nyon mongs pa
Tibetan:
  • ཉོན་མོངས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • kleśa

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The essentially pure nature of mind is obscured and afflicted by various psychological defilements, which destroy the mind’s peace and composure and lead to unwholesome deeds of body, speech, and mind, acting as causes for continued existence in saṃsāra. Included among them are the primary afflictions of desire (rāga), anger (dveṣa), and ignorance (avidyā). It is said that there are eighty-four thousand of these negative mental qualities, for which the eighty-four thousand categories of the Buddha’s teachings serve as the antidote.

Kleśa is also commonly translated as “negative emotions,” “disturbing emotions,” and so on. The Pāli kilesa, Middle Indic kileśa, and Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit kleśa all primarily mean “stain” or “defilement.” The translation “affliction” is a secondary development that derives from the more general (non-Buddhist) classical understanding of √kliś (“to harm,“ “to afflict”). Both meanings are noted by Buddhist commentators.

Located in 14 passages in the translation:

  • i.­6
  • 1.­80
  • 1.­83-88
  • 1.­94
  • 1.­133
  • 1.­136
  • 1.­170
  • 1.­225
  • 1.­235
g.­15

Devadatta

Wylie:
  • lhas byin
Tibetan:
  • ལྷས་བྱིན།
Sanskrit:
  • devadatta

The Buddha’s cousin and challenger.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­109
g.­16

eight states lacking leisure

Wylie:
  • mi khom pa brgyad po
Tibetan:
  • མི་ཁོམ་པ་བརྒྱད་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

The eight unfavorable conditions that pose obstacles to the practice of Dharma and attaining the state of awakening.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­214
g.­17

ethical narrations

Wylie:
  • gleng gzhi brjod pa’i sde
Tibetan:
  • གླེང་གཞི་བརྗོད་པའི་སྡེ།
Sanskrit:
  • nidāna

One of the “twelve branches of excellent speech.”

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­68
  • g.­83
g.­18

extensive sayings

Wylie:
  • shin tu rgyas pa’i sde
Tibetan:
  • ཤིན་ཏུ་རྒྱས་པའི་སྡེ།
Sanskrit:
  • vaipulya

One of the “twelve branches of excellent speech.”

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­68
  • g.­83
g.­19

final half-millennium

Wylie:
  • lnga brgya pa tha ma
Tibetan:
  • ལྔ་བརྒྱ་པ་ཐ་མ།
Sanskrit:
  • paścimāyāṃ pañcaśatyām

The final five hundred years in the period of decrease during an intermediate eon, in which the five degenerations are at their peak and the Buddha’s teachings have nearly disappeared.

Located in 16 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • 1.­13-14
  • 1.­35-39
  • 1.­64
  • 1.­66-67
  • 1.­75
  • 1.­78
  • 1.­89
  • 1.­235-236
g.­20

five sense pleasures

Wylie:
  • ’dod pa’i yon tan lnga
Tibetan:
  • འདོད་པའི་ཡོན་ཏན་ལྔ།
Sanskrit:
  • pañcakāmaguṇa

The five sense pleasures are pleasing visual objects, sounds, fragrances, tastes, and tactile sensations.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­20
  • 1.­112
g.­21

four applications of mindfulness

Wylie:
  • dran pa nye bar bzhag pa bzhi
Tibetan:
  • དྲན་པ་ཉེ་བར་བཞག་པ་བཞི།
Sanskrit:
  • catuḥ-smṛtyupasthāna

Application of mindfulness with respect to the body, feelings, mind, and phenomena.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­107
g.­22

four correct exertions

Wylie:
  • yang dag pa’i spong ba bzhi
Tibetan:
  • ཡང་དག་པའི་སྤོང་བ་བཞི།
Sanskrit:
  • catvāri samyakprahāṇāni

Not giving rise to any negativity that has not yet arisen, abandoning those negativities that have arisen, actively giving rise to virtues that have not yet arisen, and causing those virtues that have arisen to increase.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­107
g.­23

four retinues

Wylie:
  • ’khor bzhi po
Tibetan:
  • འཁོར་བཞི་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

Monks, nuns, male lay precept-holders, and female lay precept-holders.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­68
g.­24

four ways of nobility

Wylie:
  • ’phags pa’i rigs bzhi
Tibetan:
  • འཕགས་པའི་རིགས་བཞི།
Sanskrit:
  • catur-ārya-vaṃśa

Being content with simple food, simple clothing, a simple dwelling place, and few possessions.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­104
g.­25

habitual tendencies

Wylie:
  • bag chags
Tibetan:
  • བག་ཆགས།
Sanskrit:
  • vāsanā

Subtle propensities created in the mind as a result of repeated experience.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­92
g.­26

Heap of Jewels

Wylie:
  • dkon brtsegs
Tibetan:
  • དཀོན་བརྩེགས།
Sanskrit:
  • mahāratnakūṭa

One of the five major sūtra groups contained within the Kangyur.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • i.­1
  • i.­9
  • 1.­248
  • n.­10
g.­27

hearer

Wylie:
  • nyan thos
Tibetan:
  • ཉན་ཐོས།
Sanskrit:
  • śrāvaka

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The Sanskrit term śrāvaka, and the Tibetan nyan thos, both derived from the verb “to hear,” are usually defined as “those who hear the teaching from the Buddha and make it heard to others.” Primarily this refers to those disciples of the Buddha who aspire to attain the state of an arhat seeking their own liberation and nirvāṇa. They are the practitioners of the first turning of the wheel of the Dharma on the four noble truths, who realize the suffering inherent in saṃsāra and focus on understanding that there is no independent self. By conquering afflicted mental states (kleśa), they liberate themselves, attaining first the stage of stream enterers at the path of seeing, followed by the stage of once-returners who will be reborn only one more time, and then the stage of non-returners who will no longer be reborn into the desire realm. The final goal is to become an arhat. These four stages are also known as the “four results of spiritual practice.”

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­25
  • 1.­87
g.­28

Hill of Fallen Sages

Wylie:
  • drang srong lhung ba
Tibetan:
  • དྲང་སྲོང་ལྷུང་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • ṛṣipatana

A hill near the Deer Park on the outskirts of Vārāṇasī.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­2
g.­29

holy beings

Wylie:
  • skyes bu dam pa
Tibetan:
  • སྐྱེས་བུ་དམ་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • satpuruṣa

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­69
  • 1.­242
g.­30

immeasurables

Wylie:
  • tshad med pa
Tibetan:
  • ཚད་མེད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • catvāryapramāṇāni

The four immeasurables: loving-kindness (Tib. byams pa, Skt. maitrī); compassion (Tib. snying rje, Skt. karuṇā); joy (Tib. dga’ ba, Skt. muditā); and equanimity (Tib. btang snyoms, Skt. upekṣā).

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­109
g.­31

inner absorption

Wylie:
  • nang du yang dag ’jog pa
Tibetan:
  • ནང་དུ་ཡང་དག་འཇོག་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • pratisaṃlayana

This term can mean both physical seclusion and a meditative state of withdrawal.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­5
  • 1.­184
g.­32

insight

Wylie:
  • shes rab
Tibetan:
  • ཤེས་རབ།
Sanskrit:
  • prajñā

Located in 17 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­39
  • 1.­42
  • 1.­62
  • 1.­93-94
  • 1.­96-97
  • 1.­101
  • 1.­141
  • 1.­147
  • 1.­159
  • 1.­167
  • 1.­206-207
  • 1.­210-212
g.­33

Jambudvīpa

Wylie:
  • ’dzam bu’i gling
Tibetan:
  • འཛམ་བུའི་གླིང་།
Sanskrit:
  • jambudvīpa

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The name of the southern continent in Buddhist cosmology, which can signify either the known human world, or more specifically the Indian subcontinent, literally “the jambu island/continent.” Jambu is the name used for a range of plum-like fruits from trees belonging to the genus Szygium, particularly Szygium jambos and Szygium cumini, and it has commonly been rendered “rose apple,” although “black plum” may be a less misleading term. Among various explanations given for the continent being so named, one (in the Abhidharmakośa) is that a jambu tree grows in its northern mountains beside Lake Anavatapta, mythically considered the source of the four great rivers of India, and that the continent is therefore named from the tree or the fruit. Jambudvīpa has the Vajrāsana at its center and is the only continent upon which buddhas attain awakening.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­211
g.­34

Jinamitra

Wylie:
  • dzi na mi tra
Tibetan:
  • ཛི་ན་མི་ཏྲ།
Sanskrit:
  • jinamitra

An Indian paṇḍita and translator who was one of the great scholars invited to Tibet during the reign of King Trisong Detsen.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • i.­10
  • c.­1
g.­35

karma

Wylie:
  • las
Tibetan:
  • ལས།
Sanskrit:
  • karman

Any volitional act, whether of body, speech, or mind. Karmic accumulation, positive or negative, will produce results in the future, unless it is purified.

Located in 25 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2-3
  • 1.­2
  • 1.­9-10
  • 1.­12
  • 1.­14
  • 1.­16
  • 1.­31-32
  • 1.­39
  • 1.­65-67
  • 1.­73
  • 1.­82
  • 1.­89
  • 1.­184
  • 1.­200
  • 1.­210
  • 1.­214
  • 1.­217
  • 1.­233
  • 1.­237
  • 1.­240
g.­36

Krakucchanda

Wylie:
  • log par dad sel
Tibetan:
  • ལོག་པར་དད་སེལ།
Sanskrit:
  • krakucchanda

A former buddha.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • 1.­11
g.­37

lethargy and sleep

Wylie:
  • rmugs dang gnyid
Tibetan:
  • རྨུགས་དང་གཉིད།
Sanskrit:
  • styānamiddha

The third of the five hinderances to attainment of the first dhyāna.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­157
  • 1.­159
g.­38

level of a non-returner

Wylie:
  • phyir mi ldog pa’i sa
Tibetan:
  • ཕྱིར་མི་ལྡོག་པའི་ས།
Sanskrit:
  • avinivartanıya-bhūmi

A level on the path to awakening at which point there is no danger of falling back into saṃsāra.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­45
g.­39

Lord of Death

Wylie:
  • gshin rje
Tibetan:
  • གཤིན་རྗེ།
Sanskrit:
  • yama

The lord of death who judges the dead and rules over the hells.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­109
  • 1.­229
g.­40

Maitreya

Wylie:
  • byams pa
Tibetan:
  • བྱམས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • maitreya

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The bodhisattva Maitreya is an important figure in many Buddhist traditions, where he is unanimously regarded as the buddha of the future era. He is said to currently reside in the heaven of Tuṣita, as Śākyamuni’s regent, where he awaits the proper time to take his final rebirth and become the fifth buddha in the Fortunate Eon, reestablishing the Dharma in this world after the teachings of the current buddha have disappeared. Within the Mahāyāna sūtras, Maitreya is elevated to the same status as other central bodhisattvas such as Mañjuśrī and Avalokiteśvara, and his name appears frequently in sūtras, either as the Buddha’s interlocutor or as a teacher of the Dharma. Maitreya literally means “Loving One.” He is also known as Ajita, meaning “Invincible.”

For more information on Maitreya, see, for example, the introduction to Maitreya’s Setting Out (Toh 198).

Located in 89 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1
  • i.­3-5
  • 1.­3-8
  • 1.­32-39
  • 1.­41
  • 1.­43-44
  • 1.­46-47
  • 1.­49
  • 1.­51-53
  • 1.­64-67
  • 1.­74-75
  • 1.­79-85
  • 1.­87-97
  • 1.­101-103
  • 1.­110
  • 1.­113-116
  • 1.­133
  • 1.­135-137
  • 1.­156
  • 1.­158-160
  • 1.­180
  • 1.­183-185
  • 1.­206-210
  • 1.­212-214
  • 1.­235-237
  • 1.­241-244
  • 1.­247
  • n.­17
g.­41

major hell Black Lines

Wylie:
  • dmyal ba chen po thig nag
Tibetan:
  • དམྱལ་བ་ཆེན་པོ་ཐིག་ནག
Sanskrit:
  • kālasūtra

The second of the eight hot hells.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­12
g.­42

major hell Incessant Torment

Wylie:
  • dmyal ba chen po mnar med pa
Tibetan:
  • དམྱལ་བ་ཆེན་པོ་མནར་མེད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • avīci

The last and most severe of the eight hot hells.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­12
g.­43

major hell of Heat

Wylie:
  • dmyal ba chen po tsha ba
Tibetan:
  • དམྱལ་བ་ཆེན་པོ་ཚ་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • tāpana

The sixth of the eight hot hells.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­12
g.­44

major hell Reviving

Wylie:
  • dmyal ba chen po yang sos
Tibetan:
  • དམྱལ་བ་ཆེན་པོ་ཡང་སོས།
Sanskrit:
  • saṃjīva

The first of the eight hot hells.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­12
g.­45

Māra

Wylie:
  • bdud
Tibetan:
  • བདུད།
Sanskrit:
  • māra

Originally the name of Indra’s principal enemy among the asuras. In early Buddhism he appears as a drought-causing demon, and eventually his name becomes that of Māra, the principal opponent of the Buddha’s teaching. The name also applies to the deities ruled over by Māra who attempted to prevent the Buddha’s awakening and who do not wish any being to escape from saṃsāra.

Located in 10 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­42
  • 1.­73
  • 1.­105
  • 1.­111
  • 1.­115
  • 1.­214
  • 1.­216
  • 1.­233
  • 1.­239
  • g.­9
g.­46

marvels

Wylie:
  • rmad du byung ba’i chos kyi sde
Tibetan:
  • རྨད་དུ་བྱུང་བའི་ཆོས་ཀྱི་སྡེ།
Sanskrit:
  • abidhutadharma

One of the “twelve branches of excellent speech.”

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­68
  • g.­83
g.­47

method of attraction

Wylie:
  • bsdu ba’i dngos po
Tibetan:
  • བསྡུ་བའི་དངོས་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • saṃgrahavastu

The four methods of attracting disciples are generosity (Tib. sbyin pa, Skt. dāna), pleasant speech (Tib. snyan par smra ba, Skt. priyavādita), helpfulness (Tib. don spyod pa, Skt. arthacaryā), and acting in a way that accords with the teachings (Tib. don ’thun pa, Skt. samānārthatā).

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­56
g.­48

miraculous powers

Wylie:
  • rdzu ’phrul
Tibetan:
  • རྫུ་འཕྲུལ།
Sanskrit:
  • ṛddhi

The ability to make manifest miraculous displays evident to ordinary beings.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­108
g.­49

monk

Wylie:
  • dge slong
Tibetan:
  • དགེ་སློང་།
Sanskrit:
  • bhikṣu

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The term bhikṣu, often translated as “monk,” refers to the highest among the eight types of prātimokṣa vows that make one part of the Buddhist assembly. The Sanskrit term literally means “beggar” or “mendicant,” referring to the fact that Buddhist monks and nuns‍—like other ascetics of the time‍—subsisted on alms (bhikṣā) begged from the laity.

In the Tibetan tradition, which follows the Mūlasarvāstivāda Vinaya, a monk follows 253 rules as part of his moral discipline. A nun (bhikṣuṇī; dge slong ma) follows 364 rules. A novice monk (śrāmaṇera; dge tshul) or nun (śrāmaṇerikā; dge tshul ma) follows thirty-six rules of moral discipline (although in other vinaya traditions novices typically follow only ten).

Located in 21 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • 1.­2
  • 1.­11
  • 1.­72-73
  • 1.­75
  • 1.­78
  • 1.­81
  • 1.­120-121
  • 1.­125
  • 1.­127-128
  • 1.­131-132
  • 1.­136
  • 1.­187
  • 1.­209
  • 1.­239
  • g.­1
  • g.­23
g.­50

nāga

Wylie:
  • klu
Tibetan:
  • ཀླུ།
Sanskrit:
  • nāga

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A class of nonhuman beings who live in subterranean aquatic environments, where they guard wealth and sometimes also teachings. Nāgas are associated with serpents and have a snakelike appearance. In Buddhist art and in written accounts, they are regularly portrayed as half human and half snake, and they are also said to have the ability to change into human form. Some nāgas are Dharma protectors, but they can also bring retribution if they are disturbed. They may likewise fight one another, wage war, and destroy the lands of others by causing lightning, hail, and flooding.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­136
g.­51

narrative discourses

Wylie:
  • rtogs pa brjod pa’i sde
Tibetan:
  • རྟོགས་པ་བརྗོད་པའི་སྡེ།
Sanskrit:
  • avadāna

One of the “twelve branches of excellent speech.”

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­68
  • g.­83
g.­52

nature of phenomena

Wylie:
  • chos kyi dbyings
Tibetan:
  • ཆོས་ཀྱི་དབྱིངས།
Sanskrit:
  • dharmadhātu

A synonym for emptiness or the ultimate nature of things. This term is interpreted variously‍—given the many connotations of the Sanskrit dharma, Tibetan chos‍—as the sphere, element, or nature of phenomena, reality, or truth.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­136
g.­53

nun

Wylie:
  • dge slong ma
Tibetan:
  • དགེ་སློང་མ།
Sanskrit:
  • bhikṣuṇī

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The term bhikṣuṇī, often translated as “nun,” refers to the highest among the eight types of prātimokṣa vows that make one part of the Buddhist assembly. The Sanskrit term bhikṣu (to which the female grammatical ending ṇī is added) literally means “beggar” or “mendicant,” referring to the fact that Buddhist nuns and monks‍—like other ascetics of the time‍—subsisted on alms (bhikṣā) begged from the laity. In the Tibetan tradition, which follows the Mūlasarvāstivāda Vinaya, a bhikṣuṇī follows 364 rules and a bhikṣu follows 253 rules as part of their moral discipline.

For the first few years of the Buddha’s teachings in India, there was no ordination for women. It started at the persistent request and display of determination of Mahāprajāpatī, the Buddha’s stepmother and aunt, together with five hundred former wives of men of Kapilavastu, who had themselves become monks. Mahāprajāpatī is thus considered to be the founder of the nun’s order.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­81
  • g.­23
g.­54

opponent

Wylie:
  • phas kyi rgol ba
Tibetan:
  • ཕས་ཀྱི་རྒོལ་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • paravāda

One who teaches a false doctrine.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­214
g.­55

outcasts

Wylie:
  • gdol pa
Tibetan:
  • གདོལ་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • caṇḍāla

The lowest and most disparaged class of people within the caste system of ancient India, who fall outside of the caste system altogether due to their low rank in society.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­26
g.­56

parables

Wylie:
  • de lta bu byung ba’i sde
Tibetan:
  • དེ་ལྟ་བུ་བྱུང་བའི་སྡེ།
Sanskrit:
  • itivṛttaka

One of the “twelve branches of excellent speech.”

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­68
  • g.­83
g.­57

past-life stories

Wylie:
  • skyes pa’i rabs kyi sde
Tibetan:
  • སྐྱེས་པའི་རབས་ཀྱི་སྡེ།
Sanskrit:
  • jātaka

One of the “twelve branches of excellent speech.”

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­68
  • g.­83
g.­58

phlegm, wind, and likewise bile

Wylie:
  • bad kan rlung dang mkhris pa
Tibetan:
  • བད་ཀན་རླུང་དང་མཁྲིས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

The three humors or vital substances in the body which, according to Tibetan medicine, result in good health when balanced and illness or less than optimal health when imbalanced.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­162
g.­59

poetic verses

Wylie:
  • tshigs su bcad pa’i sde
Tibetan:
  • ཚིགས་སུ་བཅད་པའི་སྡེ།
Sanskrit:
  • gāthā

One of the “twelve branches of excellent speech.”

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­68
  • g.­83
g.­60

proper understanding

Wylie:
  • so so yang dag par rig pa
Tibetan:
  • སོ་སོ་ཡང་དག་པར་རིག་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • pratisaṃvid

Correct understanding of meaning, Dharma, language, and eloquence.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­136
g.­61

prophecies

Wylie:
  • lung du bstan pa’i sde
Tibetan:
  • ལུང་དུ་བསྟན་པའི་སྡེ།
Sanskrit:
  • vyākaraṇa

One of the “twelve branches of excellent speech.”

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­68
  • g.­83
g.­62

pure conduct

Wylie:
  • tshangs par spyod pa
Tibetan:
  • ཚངས་པར་སྤྱོད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • brahmacharya

The practice of celibacy.

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­61
  • 1.­112
  • 1.­115
g.­63

resolutions

Wylie:
  • gtan la bab par bstan pa’i sde
Tibetan:
  • གཏན་ལ་བབ་པར་བསྟན་པའི་སྡེ།
Sanskrit:
  • upadeśa

One of the “twelve branches of excellent speech.”

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­68
  • g.­83
g.­64

restraint

Wylie:
  • sdom pa
Tibetan:
  • སྡོམ་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • saṃvara

Restraint from unwholesome deeds, generally engendered by observance of the three levels of vows.

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­45
  • 1.­233-234
g.­65

retention

Wylie:
  • gzungs
Tibetan:
  • གཟུངས།
Sanskrit:
  • dhāraṇī

An incantation, spell, or mnemonic formula that distills essential points of the Dharma and is used by practitioners to attain mundane and supramundane goals. It also has the sense of “retention,” referring to the special capacity of practitioners to memorize and recall detailed teachings.

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­45
  • 1.­68
  • 1.­75
g.­66

Rudraka

Wylie:
  • lhag spyod
Tibetan:
  • ལྷག་སྤྱོད།
Sanskrit:
  • rudraka

A meditation teacher who was one of the Buddha’s teachers before he attained awakening.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­109
g.­67

Śikṣāsamuccaya

Wylie:
  • bslab pa kun las btus pa
Tibetan:
  • བསླབ་པ་ཀུན་ལས་བཏུས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • śikṣāsamuccaya

An eighth-century work by Śāntideva.

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • i.­5
  • i.­9
  • n.­1-3
  • n.­6
g.­68

social diversion

Wylie:
  • ’du ’dzi
Tibetan:
  • འདུ་འཛི།
Sanskrit:
  • saṃsarga

Worldly activities such as social gatherings and performances that distract one from the Buddhist path.

Located in 12 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­3
  • 1.­39
  • 1.­97
  • 1.­99
  • 1.­114-118
  • 1.­127
  • 1.­133
  • 1.­213
g.­69

solitary buddha

Wylie:
  • rang sangs rgyas
Tibetan:
  • རང་སངས་རྒྱས།
Sanskrit:
  • pratyekabuddha

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Literally, “buddha for oneself” or “solitary realizer.” Someone who, in his or her last life, attains awakening entirely through their own contemplation, without relying on a teacher. Unlike the awakening of a fully realized buddha (samyaksambuddha), the accomplishment of a pratyeka­buddha is not regarded as final or ultimate. They attain realization of the nature of dependent origination, the selflessness of the person, and a partial realization of the selflessness of phenomena, by observing the suchness of all that arises through interdependence. This is the result of progress in previous lives but, unlike a buddha, they do not have the necessary merit, compassion or motivation to teach others. They are named as “rhinoceros-like” (khaḍgaviṣāṇakalpa) for their preference for staying in solitude or as “congregators” (vargacārin) when their preference is to stay among peers.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­25
  • 1.­87
g.­70

special insight

Wylie:
  • lhag mthong
Tibetan:
  • ལྷག་མཐོང་།
Sanskrit:
  • vipaśyanā

One of the two primary forms of meditation in Buddhism, the other being tranquility.

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­45
  • 1.­67
  • 1.­115
  • 1.­136
  • 1.­140
  • g.­81
g.­71

stream enterer

Wylie:
  • rgyun du zhugs pa
Tibetan:
  • རྒྱུན་དུ་ཞུགས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • śrota-āpanna

The first stage of superior development in becoming a noble being on the path to awakening. Such an individual has not yet eliminated the afflictions but has entered a stream of forceful merit where a limit of seven lifetimes in the higher realms precede a final birth in which liberation is achieved.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­91
g.­72

stūpa

Wylie:
  • mchod rten
Tibetan:
  • མཆོད་རྟེན།
Sanskrit:
  • stūpa

Sacred structures filled with relics and other sacred objects that represent the enlightened mind of the buddhas.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­209
g.­73

Sukhāvatī

Wylie:
  • bde ba can
Tibetan:
  • བདེ་བ་ཅན།
Sanskrit:
  • sukhāvatī

The blissful western pure realm of the Buddha Amitābha/Amitāyus.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­14
  • 1.­242
  • g.­2
  • g.­3
g.­74

super-sensory cognition

Wylie:
  • mngon par shes pa
Tibetan:
  • མངོན་པར་ཤེས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • abhijñā

A type of extrasensory perception gained through spiritual practice. In the Buddhist presentation, this consists of five types: (1) miraculous abilities, (2) divine eye, (3) divine ear, (4) knowledge of others’ minds, and (5) recollection of past lives.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­108
g.­75

supermundane insight

Wylie:
  • ’jig rten las ’das pa’i shes rab
Tibetan:
  • འཇིག་རྟེན་ལས་འདས་པའི་ཤེས་རབ།
Sanskrit:
  • lokottaraprajñā

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­42
g.­76

Surendrabodhi

Wylie:
  • su ren dra bo d+hi
Tibetan:
  • སུ་རེན་དྲ་བོ་དྷི།
Sanskrit:
  • surendrabodhi

An Indian scholar and translator invited to Tibet in the ninth century by King Ralpachen.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • i.­10
  • c.­1
g.­77

sūtra

Wylie:
  • mdo’i sde
Tibetan:
  • མདོའི་སྡེ།
Sanskrit:
  • sūtrapiṭaka

One of the “twelve branches of excellent speech.”

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­68
g.­78

taking ordination

Wylie:
  • rab tu byung ba
Tibetan:
  • རབ་ཏུ་བྱུང་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • pravrajita

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The Sanskrit pravrajyā literally means “going forth,” with the sense of leaving the life of a householder and embracing the life of a renunciant. When the term is applied more technically, it refers to the act of becoming a male novice (śrāmaṇera; dge tshul) or female novice (śrāmaṇerikā; dge tshul ma), this being a first stage leading to full ordination.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­57
  • 1.­67
  • 1.­110
  • 1.­184
g.­79

threefold world

Wylie:
  • ’jig rten gsum po
Tibetan:
  • འཇིག་རྟེན་གསུམ་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

The desire, form, and formless realms, which together comprise the cycle of existence.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­211
g.­80

thus-gone one

Wylie:
  • de bzhin gshegs pa
Tibetan:
  • དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • tathāgata

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A frequently used synonym for buddha. According to different explanations, it can be read as tathā-gata, literally meaning “one who has thus gone,” or as tathā-āgata, “one who has thus come.” Gata, though literally meaning “gone,” is a past passive participle used to describe a state or condition of existence. Tatha­(tā), often rendered as “suchness” or “thusness,” is the quality or condition of things as they really are, which cannot be conveyed in conceptual, dualistic terms. Therefore, this epithet is interpreted in different ways, but in general it implies one who has departed in the wake of the buddhas of the past, or one who has manifested the supreme awakening dependent on the reality that does not abide in the two extremes of existence and quiescence. It is also often used as a specific epithet of the Buddha Śākyamuni.

Located in 30 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­6
  • 1.­11
  • 1.­14
  • 1.­17
  • 1.­20-29
  • 1.­68
  • 1.­71
  • 1.­127
  • 1.­156
  • 1.­181
  • 1.­208-211
  • 1.­214
  • 1.­235
  • 1.­237
  • 1.­239
  • 1.­241-243
g.­81

tranquility

Wylie:
  • zhi gnas
Tibetan:
  • ཞི་གནས།
Sanskrit:
  • śamatha

One of the basic forms of Buddhist meditation that focuses on calming the mind. Often presented as part of a pair of meditation techniques, the other being special insight.

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­45
  • 1.­115
  • 1.­136
  • 1.­140
  • 1.­228
  • g.­70
g.­82

transitory assemblage

Wylie:
  • ’jig tshogs
Tibetan:
  • འཇིག་ཚོགས།
Sanskrit:
  • satkāya

The transitory collection of the five aggregates, the basis for the view of a self or that which belongs to a self.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­91
g.­83

twelve branches of excellent speech

Wylie:
  • gsung rab yan lag bcu nyis
Tibetan:
  • གསུང་རབ་ཡན་ལག་བཅུ་ཉིས།
Sanskrit:
  • dvādaśāṅga­pravacana

The “twelve branches of excellent speech” or the “twelve categories of the Buddha’s teachings” are discourses (Tib. mdo’i sde, Skt. sūtra), verse narrations (Tib. dbyangs kyis bsnyad pa’i sde, Skt. geya), prophecies (Tib. lung du bstan pa’i sde, Skt. vyākaraṇa), poetic verses (Tib. tshigs su bcad pa’i sde, Skt. gāthā), aphorisms (Tib. ched du brjod pa’i sde, Skt. udāna), ethical narrations (Tib. gleng gzhi brjod pa’i sde, Skt. nidāna), narrative discourses (Tib. rtogs pa brjod pa’i sde, Skt. avadāna), parables (Tib. de lta bu byung ba’i sde, Skt. itivṛttaka), past-life stories (Tib. skye pa’i rabs kyi sde, Skt. jātaka), extensive sayings (Tib. shin tu rgyas pa’i sde, Skt. vaipulya), marvels (Tib. rmad du byung ba’i chos kyi sde, Skt. abidhutadharma), and resolutions (Tib. gtan la bab par bstan pa’i sde, Skt. upadeśa).

Located in 12 passages in the translation:

  • g.­5
  • g.­17
  • g.­18
  • g.­46
  • g.­51
  • g.­56
  • g.­57
  • g.­59
  • g.­61
  • g.­63
  • g.­77
  • g.­86
g.­84

upholder of the Vinaya

Wylie:
  • ’dul ba ’dzin pa
Tibetan:
  • འདུལ་བ་འཛིན་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • vinayadhāra

A term used to designate someone who is a master of Buddhist monastic discipline.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­55
g.­85

Vārāṇasī

Wylie:
  • ba ra na si
Tibetan:
  • བ་ར་ན་སི།
Sanskrit:
  • vārāṇasī

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Also known as Benares, one of the oldest cities of northeast India on the banks of the Ganges, in modern-day Uttar Pradesh. It was once the capital of the ancient kingdom of Kāśi, and in the Buddha’s time it had been absorbed into the kingdom of Kośala. It was an important religious center, as well as a major city, even during the time of the Buddha. The name may derive from being where the Varuna and Assi rivers flow into the Ganges. It was on the outskirts of Vārāṇasī that the Buddha first taught the Dharma, in the location known as Deer Park (Mṛgadāva). For numerous episodes set in Vārāṇasī, including its kings, see The Hundred Deeds, Toh 340.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • i.­1
  • 1.­2
  • g.­13
  • g.­28
g.­86

verse narrations

Wylie:
  • dbyangs kyis bsnyad pa’i sde
Tibetan:
  • དབྱངས་ཀྱིས་བསྙད་པའི་སྡེ།
Sanskrit:
  • geya

One of the “twelve branches of excellent speech.”

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­68
  • g.­83
g.­87

vinaya

Wylie:
  • ’dul ba
Tibetan:
  • འདུལ་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • vinaya

The vows and texts pertaining to monastic discipline.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­72
g.­88

wearing robes made of discarded rags

Wylie:
  • phyag dar khrod pa
Tibetan:
  • ཕྱག་དར་ཁྲོད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • pāṃsa-kulika

The ascetic practice of gathering discarded rags and using them to produce one’s own garments.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­54
g.­89

wisdom

Wylie:
  • ye shes
Tibetan:
  • ཡེ་ཤེས།
Sanskrit:
  • jñāna

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • i.­5
  • 1.­7
  • 1.­88
  • 1.­101
  • 1.­167
  • 1.­209
g.­90

word of the Buddha

Wylie:
  • sangs rgyas kyi bka’
Tibetan:
  • སངས་རྒྱས་ཀྱི་བཀའ།
Sanskrit:
  • buddhavacana

A term used to denote the teachings of the Buddha, which in the case of this sūtra can be anything that the Buddha taught or any statement that precisely accords with what the Buddha taught.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­73
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    84000. (2023) Inspiring Determination (Adhyāśayasaṃcodana, lhag bsam skul ba, Toh 69). (Blazing Wisdom Translation Group, Trans.). Online publication. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha. https://84000.co/translation/toh69.Copy

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