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T0315
No. 315 [No. 310(10)] 普門品經
The Exposition on the Universal Gateway
Acknowledgements
Translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee under the guidance of Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche. The translation was produced by Oriane Lavolé who also wrote the introduction. Andreas Doctor compared the translation with the original Tibetan and edited the text.
The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha
1.1
Homage to all buddhas and bodhisattvas.
Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was staying at Vulture Peak Mountain by Rājagṛha, together with a great saṅgha of eight hundred monks, and with forty-two thousand bodhisattvas. At that time, a bodhisattva great being by the name Amalagarbha, accompanied by ninety-two thousand other bodhisattvas, set out from the world known as Immaculate Conduct—the buddhafield of the thus-gone, worthy, perfect buddha Saṃkusumita. They traveled to Vulture Peak Mountain, here in this Sahā world, where the blessed, thus-gone, worthy, perfect buddha Śākyamuni dwelled.
1.2
As the bodhisattva great being Amalagarbha arrived in the sky, surrounded and attended by a great assembly of bodhisattvas, the Blessed One noticed him. As he caught sight of him, the Blessed One thought, “The bodhisattva great being Amalagarbha has been dispatched here by the thus-gone, worthy, perfect buddha Saṃkusumita in order to receive the Dharma teaching called The Exposition on the Universal Gateway. Therefore, I, for my part, should gather the bodhisattvas.” Then, because the Blessed One formed this intent, all bodhisattva great beings residing in boundless, infinite worlds7 arrived at Vulture Peak Mountain here in this Sahā world to meet the Blessed One.
1.3
Upon arrival, they bowed their heads to the Blessed One’s feet and sat down to one side. [F.185.b] All the bodhisattva great beings at Vulture Peak Mountain who had retired for meditation8 also gathered. The bodhisattva great being Amalagarbha then went before the thus-gone, worthy, perfect buddha Śākyamuni, holding a thousand-petaled lotus flower made of the seven precious substances. He bowed his head to the Blessed One’s feet and offered him the thousand-petaled lotus.
1.4
Amalagarbha then said to the Blessed One, “Blessed One, the thus-gone, worthy, perfect buddha Saṃkusumita from the world Immaculate Conduct inquiries about the Blessed One’s health. Does the Blessed One have but little trouble, grief, and agitation?9 Is he in good health, strong, and at ease? Is the Blessed One free of illness and does he have but few troubles?” When he had thus inquired after the Blessed One’s health, he added, “Might the blessed, thus-gone, worthy, perfect buddha Śākyamuni deliver the Dharma teaching pertaining to the inconceivable Exposition on the Universal Gateway to the bodhisattva great beings?” Then, having asked the Blessed One in this way, the bodhisattva great being Amalagarbha sat down cross-legged in the sky in the midst of his retinue of bodhisattvas.
1.5
At that time, Prince Mañjuśrī was also present within that assembly.10 He rose from his seat, draped his shawl over one shoulder, and knelt on his right knee. Joining his palms, he bowed toward the Blessed One and said, “In order to foster the bodhisattvas, I request the Blessed One, the Thus-Gone One, to thoroughly expound the Dharma teaching pertaining to the inconceivable Exposition on the Universal Gateway. Blessed One, [F.186.a] I beseech you. In the past, I received this teaching from the thus-gone, worthy, perfect buddha Bright Lamp and thereby developed eighty-four sextillion absorptions. I also understood seventy-seven sextillion approaches to accomplishing dhāraṇīs. That being the case, may the Blessed One also teach this thoroughly in order to foster these bodhisattvas.”
1.6
In response, the Blessed One said the following to Prince Mañjuśrī: “To this effect, Mañjuśrī, listen carefully and keep in mind what I explain.”
Prince Mañjuśrī answered, “Blessed One, so be it.”11
1.7
He listened closely as the Blessed One said, “Mañjuśrī, bodhisattva great beings should understand form to be absorption. They should understand sound to be absorption. They should understand scent to be absorption. They should understand taste to be absorption. They should understand tactile objects to be absorption. They should understand the objects of the mind to be absorption.
1.8
“They should understand women’s figures12 to be absorption. They should understand men’s figures13 to be absorption. They should understand boys’ figures to be absorption. They should understand girls’ figures to be absorption. They should understand the gods’ figures to be absorption. They should understand the nāgas’ figures to be absorption. They should understand the yakṣas’ figures to be absorption. They should understand the gandharvas’ figures to be absorption. They should understand the asuras’ figures to be absorption. They should understand the garuḍas’ figures to be absorption. They should understand the kinnaras’ figures to be absorption. They should understand the mahoragas’ figures to be absorption. They should understand the hell beings’ figures to be absorption. They should understand animals’ figures to be absorption. [F.186.b] They should understand the figures of beings in the world of the Lord of Death to be absorption.
1.9
“They should understand attachment to be absorption. They should understand anger to be absorption. They should understand ignorance to be absorption. They should understand all virtues to be absorption. They should understand all nonvirtues to be absorption. They should understand all conditioned phenomena to be absorption. They should understand all unconditioned phenomena to be absorption. In this manner, they should understand all phenomena to be absorption. Mañjuśrī, bodhisattva great beings who obtain all such absorptions have omnipresent minds and are trained in the Dharma teaching of The Exposition on the Universal Gateway.
1.10
“Mañjuśrī, in this regard, how should bodhisattvas understand form to be absorption?
“Form is said to be like a bubble:
Its essence cannot be found.
Since it is essenceless and cannot be grasped,
I have taught it to be absorption.
“Mañjuśrī, this is how one should understand form to be absorption.
1.11
“Mañjuśrī, in this regard, how should bodhisattvas understand sound to be absorption?
“Sound is like an echo:
It has no substance.
I know it to have no distinguishable parts
And to be devoid of characteristics, with no particularities.
1.12
“It has no characteristics or origin,
And is hollow and unconditioned.
Knowing it14 to be like an echo,
I have taught it to be absorption.
“Mañjuśrī, that is how you should understand sound to be absorption.
1.13
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand scent to be absorption?
“Just as the bottom of the ocean
Can never be reached in any way,
You could smell for ten million eons,
But there would still be no satisfying the nose.
1.14
“The olfactory cognition cannot be apprehended;
It is deceiving and nonexistent.
Were it to be real,
It could rapidly be contented.
1.15
“Since it is imperceptible and unreal,
The nose is known to be nonexistent and hollow.15
Knowing it to be void and empty, [F.187.a]
I have taught it to be absorption.
“Mañjuśrī, this is how you should understand scent to be absorption.
1.16
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand taste to be absorption?
“The tongue is neither pungent nor bitter;
It is neither sour nor salty.
The tongue just changes in accordance
With the conditions it encounters.
1.17
Taste is known to arise through causes16
And in dependence on conditions.
Knowing it to be inconceivable,
I have taught it to be absorption.
“Mañjuśrī, this is how you should understand taste to be absorption.
1.18
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand tactile objects to be absorption?
“Tactile objects, which arise out of cognition,
Are not inherently existent.
Softness17 and roughness
Are created by conditions.
1.19
“Tactile objects are baseless;
Their way of abiding is devoid of self.
Knowing them to be a combination of composite factors,
I have taught them to be absorption.
“Mañjuśrī, this is how you should understand tactile objects to be absorption.
1.20
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand objects of the mind to be absorption?
“Beings of the trichiliocosm
All dwell in the same condition.18
Though they cognize the range of mental objects,
They cannot find their substance.
1.21
“That which is aggregated and amassed
Has no basis in cognition.
Though cognition displays various colors,
These exist neither outside nor inside.
1.22
“Mental objects do not abide and have no basis.
Like an illusion, they are insubstantial.
Knowing them to be nonexistent and hollow,
I have taught them to be absorption.
“Mañjuśrī, that is how you should understand mental objects to be absorption.
1.23
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand the female figure to be absorption?
“Though women do not exist
Within the four major elements,
The immature, with their confused minds,
Engage in trifling desires.
1.24
“Though illusory women are without marks,
They appear as the female figure.
Those men who are enclosed in darkness [F.187.b]
Give rise to strong attachment toward them.
1.25
“While they give rise to desirous thoughts
Regarding illusory women,
These women are nonexistent.19
1.26
“It is this mistaken mind
That has made the simple-minded
Circle around for countless eons.
1.27
“Therefore, if you know insubstantiality,
All women are without characteristics.
This statement on the peace of absorption
I have made with reference to the female figure.
“Mañjuśrī, that is how you should understand the female figure to be absorption.
1.28
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand the male figure to be absorption?
“When men declare:
‘This is a woman and I am a man,’
In that instant, their minds
Become desirous and mistaken.
1.29
“Yet mind is formless20 and imperceptible.
It is indemonstrable as woman or man.
It is conceptual superimpositions
That give rise to the perception of man.21
1.30
“Men declare: ‘This is a woman and I am a man.’
Yet all such imputed notions
I have taught to be like a mirage,
And no man exists therein.
1.31
“Since the nature of man is illusory,
He has arisen out of nonexistence.
This statement on the peace of absorption
I have made with reference to the male figure.
“Mañjuśrī, this is how you should understand the male figure to be absorption.
1.32
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand boys’ figures to be absorption?
“If there is no sapling,
How can a flower appear?
If there is no flower,
The fruit cannot grow either.
1.33
“Likewise, since women are nonexistent,
Boys cannot be apprehended either.
Those who are under the sway of their imaginations,
Falsely conceive22 what they call boy.
1.34
“If you know woman to be unborn,
Boys have no origin either.
Realizing all entities to be nonexistent,
I have taught boys to be absorption.
“Mañjuśrī, this is how you should understand boys’ figures to be absorption.
1.35
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas [F.188.a] understand girls’ figures to be absorption?
“If a palm tree’s crown is cut off,
It can never grow again.
Knowing this, the wise
Will not wish for any fruits to appear.
1.36
“Likewise, once the wise know that women
Have also never been born,
They no longer wrongly think,
‘Their basis,23 a girl, has been born.’
1.37
“Knowing that when a seed is parched
It can no longer grow,
This statement on the peace of absorption
I have made with reference to girls’ figures.
“Mañjuśrī, this is how you should understand girls’ figures to be absorption.
1.38
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand gods’ figures to be absorption?
“Gods are the result of virtuous action
Produced by virtuous thoughts.
Pure minds cause
The manifestation of beautiful gods.
1.39
“Their delightful palaces
Are not created by anyone else.
The mandārava flower too
Is not made by anyone else.
1.40
“Produced by illusory action,
These appearances are inconceivable.
The beautiful glitter of beryl gems
Is also false and untrue.
1.41
“Knowing that gods manifest in an unreal manner
And are therefore unreal,
This statement on the peace of absorption
I have made with reference to the gods’ figures.
“Mañjuśrī, this is how you should understand gods’ figures to be absorption.
1.42
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand nāgas’ figures to be absorption?
“By becoming intolerant,
They manifest the forms of nonexistent clouds.
Although they do not remain in those clouds,
They bring down heavy rainfall.
1.43
“They fill up the seas,
Rivers,24 and oceans here in Jambudvīpa.
Yet, whether in the beginning or the end,
This water is devoid of origin.
1.44
“All beings are similar to that water—
They are skilled in various undertakings
And display various karmic actions,
But these karmic actions have no origin.
1.45
“The wise know these illusions, [F.188.b]
Which delude the immature, to be unarisen.
Thus, since the untrue appears as true,
I have taught nāgas to be absorption.
“Mañjuśrī, that is how you should understand nāgas’ figures to be absorption.
1.46
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand yakṣas’ figures to be absorption?
“From the transformation of the mind
Manifests a terrifying figure.
Though its body may be great,
It was created by a single mind.
1.47
“Fear does not exist within the mind;
It appears from a combination of factors.
Look at the inconceivable array of hideous forms25
Arising out of nonexistent action!
1.48
“Knowing this inconceivable array of hideous forms
To be utterly empty,26
This statement on the peace of absorption
I have made with reference to the yakṣas’ figures.
“Mañjuśrī, that is how you should understand yakṣas’ figures to be absorption.
1.49
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand gandharvas’ figures to be absorption?
“Though these phenomena are devoid of any going,
They are given the name of wanderers.
Knowing wanderers to go nowhere,
I have taught absorption with reference to gandharvas.27
“Mañjuśrī, this is how you should understand gandharvas’ figures to be absorption.
1.50
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand asuras’ figures to be absorption?
“The asura, sealed with the letter a,28
Truly arises from the unborn.
Since they are unceasing and non-arising,
Absorption is taught with reference to the asuras.29
“Mañjuśrī, this is how you should understand asuras’ figures to be absorption.
1.51
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand garuḍas’ figures to be absorption?
“Grasping onto the ungraspable,30
We apply labels as we speak.
Since neither name nor form are existent,
I have taught absorption with reference to the garuḍas.
“Mañjuśrī, this is how you should understand garuḍas’ figures to be absorption.
1.52
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand kinnaras’ figures to be absorption?
“It is by uncreated, created actions [F.189.a]
That the kinnaras are produced.31
Knowing them to be unborn,
I have taught absorption with reference to the kinnaras.
“Mañjuśrī, this is how you should understand the kinnaras’ figures to be absorption.
1.53
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand mahoragas’ figures to be absorption?
“By whatever names these phenomena
Are variously posited32 in the worlds,
The phenomena do not exist there;
Everything is imagined out of nonexistence.
1.54
“If you know everything to be fabricated,
There are naturally no concepts.
This statement on the peace of absorption
I have made with reference to the mahoragas’ figures.
“Mañjuśrī, this is how you should understand mahoragas’ figures to be absorption.
1.55
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand the hell beings’ figures to be absorption?
“Stainless, pure, and hollow,
They have no maker whatsoever.
They are produced by their own thoughts,
Which have no existence either.
1.56
“Hell is clean, immaculate,
Pure, true, and luminous.
It is beyond all characteristics and marks,
Like the seat of awakening—thus I know.
1.57
“Knowing hell to be beyond attributes and unarisen,
Similar to the sky,
This statement on the peace of absorption
I have made with reference to the hell beings’ figures.
“Mañjuśrī, this is how you should understand hell beings’ figures to be absorption.
1.58
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand figures in the animal realm to be absorption?
“For instance, cloud formations
Appear in various colors;
Though the clouds have no real color,
They fool the unwise.
1.59
“Likewise, since the mind does not exist
It is like the form of a cloud:
In the realms of animals,
It displays bodies in various forms.
1.60
“Karmic actions33 are of an illusory nature.
I know them to be unarisen and beyond characteristics.
This statement on the peace of absorption
I have made with reference to animals’ figures.
“Mañjuśrī, [F.189.b] this is how you should understand figures in the animal realm to be absorption.
1.61
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand the figures in the world of the Lord of Death to be absorption?
“Black misdeeds and objectionable deeds
And white irreproachable deeds
Have all become mixed up
In terms of the best, the middling, and the worst.
1.62
“Then, in the world of the Lord of Death,
Beings suffer and spin around in confusion.34
Yet there is no realm of the Lord of Death—
It is inherently empty.
1.63
“Like experiences in a dream,
It is without beginning or completion.
Since the realm of the Lord of Death is nonexistent,
I have taught it to be absorption.
“Mañjuśrī, this is how you should understand the figures in the world of the Lord of Death to be absorption.
1.64
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand desire to be absorption?
“Desire surges from the imagination;
Those fancies too are unarisen.
That which has no arising has no abiding—
Its location can never be determined.
1.65
“Since it does not abide and has no location,
Desire is like the sky.
Yet immature defiled beings
Imagine it to be affliction.
1.66
“This phenomenon, which knows no affliction,
Is then designated by the word desire.
Were one to search in all ten directions,
One would not find its substance.
1.67
“This insubstantial desire
Is feared by confused, childish beings.
Those who fear where there is no danger
Can know no happiness.
1.68
“For instance, some people
Might perceive the sky as something frightening.
Terrified, they will run away, exclaiming,
‘I must not see the sky!’
1.69
“Yet, since space is omnipresent,
No one can be free from it.
Corrupted, immature beings
Imagine it falsely.
1.70
“Thus, childish beings who do not know
Phenomena to be like the sky
Yearn to rid themselves
Of insubstantial desire.
1.71
“Since desire is like the sky
No one can be freed from it.
Perfectly freed and liberated, [F.190.a]
Phenomena are like nirvāṇa.
1.72
“The buddhas of the past,
The guides of the present,
And the perfect buddhas yet to come
All have desire as their domain of experience.
1.73
“When you have known desire to be empty,
There is no deliverance from it whatsoever.
It is those who perceive desire as something frightening
Who think they must free themselves from it.
1.74
“Being a limit of nothing whatsoever,
The limit of desire is luminosity.
As it is without characteristics, permanent, and sameness35—
I see it as the seat of awakening.
1.75
“Beings who perceive it as existent
Aim to diminish desire.
Imagining the nonexistent,
They imagine its abandonment.
1.76
“ ‘I must abandon desire’—
Giving rise to such a conception,
They would speak of its abandonment;
But such is these beings’ mere conception.
1.77
“The limit of desire defies thought
And is indestructible.
Thus it is equal to the limit of reality.
So, do not think36 of being freed from it!
1.78
“If one were freed from desire,
One would be freed from emptiness.
Desire and emptiness
Are not two separate things.
1.79
“In this way, these beings imagine37
The birth of the unborn.
Therefore, to such immature beings whose consciousness is dualistic,
I have taught abandonment.
1.80
“Since it is unborn,
Desire is just a label.
Names have no desire,
And no one at all is attached to a name.
1.81
“Knowing desire to be without attachment,
And seeing it as limitless emptiness,
The wise do not see liberation
As a way to eliminate desire.
1.82
“Knowing that desire is like the qualities of awakening,
And like nirvāṇa,
I have taught immaculate38 absorption39
With reference to the word desire.
1.83
“Desire rests on the sphere of peace.
Knowing it to be complete peace,
To the wise ones I have taught
Absorption with reference to the word desire.
“Mañjuśrī, this is how bodhisattvas should understand desire [F.190.b] to be absorption.
1.84
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand anger to be absorption?
“As anger comes from rejecting,
It is also an affliction born from conditions.
This self, which has arisen from a lack of self,
Comes about through the aggregation of many things.40
1.85
“Anger at harsh words
Comes about like lethal poison.
Words are simply the nature of sound
And therefore completely nonexistent.
1.86
“For instance, fire is kindled through the meeting
Of the grinding stick and grinding support.
Without these materials coming together,
Fire cannot be.
1.87
“Likewise, from unpleasant words
Arises vain anger;
But if you examine these hollow41 words,
You will find no anger there.
1.88
“Anger does not come from words.
It does not reside inside,
Nor does anger arise from the outside—42
Since it is without origination, it is hollow.
1.89
“The coming together of causes
Is the source of anger.
If the causes come apart,
Anger is nowhere to be found.
1.90
“People may seek
Curd and milk, churn it with a stick,
And create the conditions
For butter to appear.
1.91
“Likewise, unpleasant words
Are sources of hollow anger:
Because of their illusions,
The unwise get fired up about them.
1.92
“Knowing anger to be caused by imputation,
And therefore utterly insubstantial,
I have made this statement on the peace of absorption
With reference to the word anger.
1.93
“Knowing anger to be equal to the limit of reality,
Rooted in suchness,43
And similar to the realm of phenomena,
I have taught about absorption.
“Mañjuśrī, this is how you should understand anger to be absorption.
1.94
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand delusion to be absorption?
“Delusion comes from ignorance;
Ignorance too is nonexistent.
Where there is no delusion,
There can be no confusion.
1.95
“Beings confuse what is without confusion,
And perceive attachment where there is none.44
This is just like a childish being [F.191.a]
Vainly trying to tie a knot in space.
1.96
“Labeling45 nonexistent phenomena
As defilements:
This [problem] of childish beings is outrageous.
It is indeed the most heinous of evil deeds.
1.97
“Just as someone
May examine the sky
For ten million eons
And find no aggregates in it—
1.98
“Likewise, due to confusion
The origin of immature beings is inconceivable.
Ignorance does not heap up—
It cannot fill anything up.
1.99
“One may try to measure the sky,
But it has no beginning.
The sky cannot be filled by anything:
It is immeasurable.
1.100
“Likewise, for thousands of eons
Beings have been filled with46 ignorance;
Still, they are never being filled,
And they are never satisfied in the slightest.
1.101
“When a person who uses a bellow
First empties it, expelling its air, and
Having compressed it, opens it up again,
Nothing is to be found inside it.
1.102
“Likewise, desire is like a bellow:
Those who act out of delusion
Can never find satisfaction,
But only pursue further desires.
1.103
“Ignorance is said to be nonexistent:
It is uprooted and insubstantial,
Rootless and without location;
Therefore, ignorance is inexhaustible.
1.104
“Since ignorance is inexhaustible,47
Its end cannot be found.
Therefore, I cannot make it disappear
For all sentient beings.
1.105
“To make an analogy,
Even if I were to remain alive
For inconceivably many tens of millions of eons
And every single day
1.106
“Cause as many beings as there are in a trichiliocosm
To pass into nirvāṇa,
Though I may succeed in this,
The realms of beings would still not be depleted.
1.107
“Created by ignorance,
The realms of beings are without marks.
Ignorance is like an illusion,
And its end can therefore not be found.
1.108
“Since Buddha is the same as ignorance,
I have taught that they are no different.
It is confused, childish beings
Who have given me the name Buddha.48
1.109
“Omniscience and ignorance are the same;
All ignorance is nonexistent.
Ignorance is the same as all beings,
And all beings are inconceivable. [F.191.b]
1.110
“Inconceivability and ignorance
Are thus imputed by thought.
All of the mind49 is inconceivable,
And has no limit.
1.111
“Since ignorance is immeasurable,
One cannot find its origin.
Without an origin,
How can it arise?
1.112
“If ignorance is unborn,
How could it ever cause confusion?
How could it ever cause confusion
Is how it also is with all buddhas.50
1.113
“Knowing that they are neither different nor separate,
And that all phenomena are nondual,
I made this statement on the peace of absorption
With reference to the word ignorance.
1.114
“When I came to know sameness,
I [understood] that ignorance was the same as it.51
Knowing all of these to be the same,
Understand absorption accordingly.
“Mañjuśrī, this is how you should understand ignorance to be absorption.
1.115
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand all nonvirtues to be absorption?
“The features of being desirous,
And the turbulence of being angry,
As well as being ignorant—
Know them all to be absorption.
1.116
“The production52 of any affliction53
Is absorption—be confident of that!
Afflictions are false and unreal;
Meditate on them all in this way.
“Mañjuśrī, this is how you should understand all nonvirtues to be absorption.
1.117
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand all virtues to be absorption?
“Whatever virtues beings may have,
And howsoever their minds and conduct may be,
All conduct is but one conduct;
Know absorption to be like this!
1.118
“Knowing the conduct of all beings
To be but one performance,54
I have made this statement on the peace of absorption
With reference to the word all.55
“Mañjuśrī, in this way, you should understand all virtues to be absorption.
1.119
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand all conditioned phenomena to be absorption?
“Formations are not formations.
In terms of numerical estimation,
They are uncountable and immeasurable—
Know absorption to be so.
1.120
“Knowing formations to be immeasurable, [F.192.a]
Without body or substance,
I have made this statement on the peace of absorption
With reference to all formations.
“Mañjuśrī, this is how you should understand all conditioned phenomena to be absorption.
1.121
“Mañjuśrī, how should bodhisattvas understand all unconditioned phenomena to be absorption?
“Since this Dharma is naturally peaceful,
It is beyond number.
I have taught that peace formed by ignorance
Is formed by absorption.
1.122
“Knowing everything conditioned to be inexpressible
And uncreated,
I have taught such
To all beings who are attached to words.
“Mañjuśrī, this is how you should understand all unconditioned phenomena to be absorption.”
1.123
As he completed these verses, thus delivering this inconceivable teaching, ninety-two thousand bodhisattvas gained the acceptance of phenomena being unborn. Seventy-two sextillion gods formed the resolve to attain unsurpassed and perfect awakening. Thirty-six thousand monks liberated their minds from the defilements, without further appropriation. Six thousand two hundred nuns also formed the resolve to achieve unsurpassed and perfect awakening. Eight million one hundred thousand male lay practitioners formed the resolve to achieve unsurpassed and perfect awakening. Four million two hundred thousand female lay practitioners also formed the resolve to reach unsurpassed and perfect awakening.
1.124
Then Prince Mañjuśrī said to the Blessed One, “If those bodhisattvas with sharp faculties who have come here hear the names of some absorptions, they will attain illumination in all phenomena. They will be impervious to all the gods belonging to the entourage of Māra and to those who hold the view that apprehends the person. Through a single letter, they will understand all letters, and through all letters, they will understand56 one letter.57 They will become skilled in teaching the Dharma to all beings with unimpeded confident eloquence. [F.192.b] They will gain acceptance of the profound Dharma. They will understand all conduct to be of a single defining characteristic. They will achieve an unobscured state through the four correct discriminations. I beseech the Blessed Ones to teach the names of these absorptions.”
1.125
To this the Blessed One responded, “Mañjuśrī, to that end, listen carefully and keep in mind what I shall say.”
Prince Mañjuśrī answered, “Blessed One, so be it.” He then listened58 as the Blessed One had directed.
1.126
The Blessed One then said, “Mañjuśrī, there is the absorption called the infinite immaculate. If bodhisattvas obtain this absorption, they will reveal all forms59 to be pure.
1.127
“Mañjuśrī, there is the absorption called swift travel. If bodhisattvas obtain this absorption, they will outshine the light of the sun and the moon.
1.128
“Mañjuśrī, there is the absorption called source of light. If bodhisattvas obtain this absorption, they will overwhelm Śakra and Brahmā in their splendor.
1.129
“Mañjuśrī, there is the absorption called showing the land. If bodhisattvas obtain this absorption, they will pacify the desire, anger, and ignorance of all their assembled retinues.
1.130
“Mañjuśrī, there is the absorption called unobstructed light. If bodhisattvas obtain this absorption, they will illuminate all buddha realms.
1.131
“Mañjuśrī, there is the absorption called forgetting no Dharma. If they obtain this absorption, bodhisattvas will retain all the Dharma teachings taught by the Buddha and teach them to others as well.
1.132
“Mañjuśrī, there is the absorption called imitating the pleasant sound of the lion’s roar. If they obtain this absorption, bodhisattvas will [F.193.a] make themselves heard all the way up to the Brahmā realm.
1.133
“Mañjuśrī, there is the absorption called truly creating all forms of joy, contentment, and satisfaction. If they obtain this absorption, bodhisattvas will gladden the various minds and thoughts of all sentient beings.
1.134
“Mañjuśrī, there is the absorption called captivating to behold and greatly joyous. If they obtain this absorption, bodhisattvas will become captivating to behold and to listen to.
1.135
“Mañjuśrī, there is the absorption called source of inconceivable qualities, wellspring of the precious domain of wisdom, singular stream free of affliction. If they obtain this absorption, bodhisattvas will be able to display all miracles and subdue all beings.
1.136
“Mañjuśrī, there is the absorption called the symbol of all languages. If they obtain this absorption, bodhisattvas will understand all languages, expressions, and signs. They will reveal a single letter through all letters, and all letters through a single letter.
1.137
“Mañjuśrī, there is the absorption called accumulation and demonstration of all merit and roots of virtue arisen from ripened action. If they obtain this absorption, bodhisattvas will remain in equipoise without saying anything. Without uttering a single sound, they will cause all beings to hear the words Buddha, Dharma, Saṅgha, hearers, solitary buddhas, bodhisattvas, and perfections.
1.138
“Mañjuśrī, there is the absorption called the exalted king of all dhāraṇīs. If they obtain this absorption, bodhisattvas will know how to engage in the accomplishment of infinite dhāraṇīs.
1.139
“Mañjuśrī, there is the absorption called the array of confident eloquence in all Dharma teachings. [F.193.b] If they obtain this absorption, bodhisattvas will become confidently eloquent in all utterances, languages, sounds, and expressions.”
1.140
Then Prince Mañjuśrī said to the Blessed One, “Blessed One, I have an insight to share regarding the unique description of qualities expressed in this Dharma teaching.”
The Blessed One responded, “Mañjuśrī, please share your insight.”
1.141
Mañjuśrī then said, “Blessed One, I wish that those bodhisattvas who are free of doubt and hesitation and who teach, hold, recite, integrate, and authentically and extensively expound this Dharma teaching to others, undoubtedly achieve confident eloquence in this very lifetime. I wish that they obtain swift confidence, vast confidence, confidence in the profound, unforgetting confidence, and variegated confidence. I wish that their minds become free from all animosity toward any sentient being. Why do I make that wish? It is because the accomplishment of this Dharma teaching depends on precisely this conduct.”
1.142
The Blessed One then approved of Prince Mañjuśrī, saying “Mañjuśrī, excellent, excellent. Your words are well spoken. Mañjuśrī, for instance, it is incontrovertible that generosity yields great wealth. It is incontrovertible that discipline leads to rebirth in the upper realms. It is incontrovertible that study leads to great insight. It is incontrovertible that familiarization leads to separation. Likewise, Mañjuśrī, it is incontrovertible that this Dharma teaching will bring forth confident eloquence in this very lifetime.
1.143
“Mañjuśrī, the rising sun dispels all the thick black of darkness. Mañjuśrī, likewise, you should wish for confident eloquence to arise as soon as this Dharma teaching is delivered. [F.194.a]
1.144
“Mañjuśrī, for instance, bodhisattvas who abide on the seat of awakening are certain to fully awaken to unsurpassed and perfect buddhahood. Likewise, Mañjuśrī, bodhisattva great beings who recite this Dharma teaching are certain to achieve confident eloquence in this very lifetime.
1.145
“Mañjuśrī, therefore, bodhisattva great beings who wish to achieve confident eloquence in this very lifetime should without doubt or hesitation obtain this Dharma teaching, hold it, recite it, read it, understand it, and expound it extensively and correctly to others.”
1.146
Then the bodhisattva great being Amalagarbha said to the Blessed One, “Blessed One, after you pass into parinirvāṇa, I too will work to ensure that those bodhisattvas who have no doubt or hesitation and who retain, hold, read, understand, and correctly and extensively expound this Dharma teaching to others achieve confident eloquence in it.”
1.147
At this point, the evil Māra came weeping and wailing before the Blessed One and said, “Blessed One, if the thus-gone, worthy, perfect buddha is compassionate and bestows60 happiness to suffering beings, then I beseech the Blessed One not to further bless this Dharma teaching, so as to dispel my own mental anguish. Blessed One, when the Blessed One was seated on the seat of awakening, and now as he delivered this Dharma teaching, [F.194.b] I was tormented by intense suffering, anguish, and sorrow. Blessed One, if any sentient being who so much as hears this Dharma teaching will proceed irreversibly to unsurpassed and perfect awakening, then no need to mention that those who not only hear but retain, hold, read, understand, and expound this Dharma teaching extensively and correctly to others will likewise proceed irreversibly to unsurpassed and perfect awakening. All these beings will fully pass into nirvāṇa. Therefore, Blessed One, my māra realm will become empty. If the thus-gone, worthy, perfect buddha is compassionate and bestows happiness onto those who suffer, then I beseech the Blessed One to relieve my suffering. I beseech the Blissful One to relieve my suffering.”
1.148
Then the Blessed One responded to the evil Māra, “Evil one, do not fear. Not all sentient beings will fully pass into nirvāṇa. Evil one, nor will I bless this Dharma teaching, so do not fear.”
When the Blessed One had consoled him, the evil Māra was satisfied, pleased, and happy. He became joyful, delighted, and elated, and instantly disappeared.
1.149
Then Prince Mañjuśrī spoke to the Blessed One, “Blessed One, with what intention did you tell the evil Māra that you would not bless this Dharma teaching?”
The Blessed One responded, “Mañjuśrī, since no phenomenon is blessed, all phenomena [F.195.a] are blessed. Since this Dharma teaching is not blessed either, it is blessed. Mañjuśrī, that is why I told the evil Māra that I would not bless this Dharma teaching. Mañjuśrī, by the power of truth and the truth of these words, since no phenomenon is blessed, they are all blessed. They are beyond distinction, inexpressible, without characteristics, inexplicable, unutterable, nondual, without duality, and identical with the limit of reality. They are steeped in suchness and are of the nature of the realm of phenomena. By the power of this truth and these true words, may this Dharma teaching spread throughout the world!”
1.150
Then, having performed this truth blessing, the Blessed One addressed the venerable Ānanda, “Ānanda, this Dharma teaching and all the eighty-four thousand sections of Dharma are the same,61 so you must therefore retain this teaching of The Universal Gateway. You must hold it, read it, master it, and teach it extensively and authentically to others. Why is that? Ānanda, it is because the thus-gone ones teach the eighty-four thousand sections of the Dharma to beings once they have understood this realm of Dharma62 of The Universal Gateway. Ānanda, for that reason you must guard, retain, and master this Dharma teaching.”
1.151
When the Blessed One had said this, the bodhisattva great being Amalagarbha, Prince Mañjuśrī, Venerable Ānanda, and the whole world with its gods, humans, asuras, and gandharvas rejoiced and praised the Blessed One’s words.
1.152
This completes The Universal Gateway, the tenth chapter within the one-hundred-thousand-chapter Dharma discourse of The Noble Great Heap of Jewels.
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Notes
n.1
Dhammadinnā 2013, 340.
n.2
Dhammadinnā 2013, 340.
n.3
Sen et al., 2011.
n.4
Orzech et al., 2011.
n.5
Da baoji jing 大寶積經, Taishō 310. This text has also been translated into English by Chang (1983, 134–148).
n.6
This dating is also confirmed by the text’s inclusion in the Denkarma inventory of the early ninth century ᴄᴇ. See Denkarma, 295.b. See also Herrmann-Pfandt 2008, 22, no. 34.
n.7
N has dge (“virtuous”) instead of dag (a plural particle) here.
n.8
KY has gzhol (which might translate “who were engaged in true training”) instead of ’jog.
n.9
Reading according to KY, which has bskyod pa yang chung ngam, whereas there is no chung (“little”) in the other versions, though it would seem to be implied.
n.10
KY does not have ’khor de nyid du ’dus par gyur (“was also present within that assembly”) and would therefore just translate as “at that time, Prince Mañjuśrī was also present.”
n.11
N and H have de ltar ’tshal lo (“pray do so”) instead of de bzhin no (“so be it”) here.
n.12
KY, J, K, N, and C do not have kyi gzugs (“figures”) here.
n.13
KY, J, K, and N again do not have gzugs (“form”) here.
n.14
This translation is according to KY, K, N, H, and S, which have shes pas na instead of shes pa na (“when it is known”).
n.15
N has sna yang yod min gsog tu med (“The nose is nonexistent and does not exist in its emptiness”) instead of sna yang yod min gsog tu shes here.
n.16
K has ra ro yi rgyu las byung ba dang (“It is caused by drunkenness”) instead of ro ’di rgyu las byung ba dang.
n.17
K has ’jam dpal (“Mañjuśrī”) instead of ’jam pa.
n.18
This phrase, de dag gnas gcig gnas gyur te, could also be translated as “Each live in their own abode.”
n.19
This verse and the following only have three lines in the Tibetan.
n.20
KY and K have gzung med here instead of gzugs med, which would translate as “imperceptible” again instead of “formless.”
n.21
The word used for “man” here (skyes pa) also means “birth” or “being born.” Thus there is a word play on these two senses of skyes pa.
n.22
This reading is according to KY, K, and H. The other recessions had btags pa instead of brtags pa, which would translate as “impute” instead of “imagine.”
n.23
KY has bu rtan (sic!) instead of brtan.
n.24
KY and K have klu (“nāgas”) instead of klung (“rivers”).
n.25
This line is altogether absent from N.
n.26
KY has ston (“teach”) instead of stong (“empty”).
n.27
The next few one-stanza arguments make use of letter plays prevalent in dhāraṇī literature. The play here is on the letter ga, which begins both the Sanskrit term gandharva and the verb √gam (“to go”).
n.28
In other words, the letter a begins and ends the word asura.
n.29
There is another play here on the letter a, which begins the word asura but is also significant in Mahāyāna Buddhism, where it is considered to be the shortest form of the Prajñāpāramitā, whose topic is emptiness, characterized as unborn and unceasing. In fact, the prefix a- in Sanskrit indicates a negation and thus also begins the Sanskrit terms aniruddha (“unceasing”) and apravṛtti (“non-arising”).
n.30
The play on letters is at work here again with the letter ga beginning the term garuḍa and the verb root √grah (“grasping”).
n.31
Here again, the letter at play is ka, which begins both kinnara and the Sanskrit verb kṛta (“created” or “produced”).
n.32
KY has bzhig (“destroyed”) instead of bzhag (“posited”).
n.33
KY and K have lus instead of las here, which would translate as “bodies” instead of “karmic actions.”
n.34
This reading is according to S, which has chol par (“confusion”) instead of tshol ba (“seeking”).
n.35
KY and K have mnyam brtags and S has mnyam brtag (both translating as “equally imagined”) instead of mnyam rtag (“permanent, and sameness”).
n.36
Reading according to KY and N, rtog instead of rtogs (“realize”).
n.37
N has btags (“label”) instead of brtags.
n.38
KY has rdul phra ba’i (“subtle particle”) instead of rdul dang bral ba’i (“immaculate”).
n.39
There is a possible letter play here with the letter na beginning the words nirvāṇa and nirmala.
n.40
KY and K have med pa’i tshogs (“the meeting of nonexistent factors”) instead of mang po’i tshogs.
n.41
J and C have srog (“life-force”) instead of gsog (“hollow”).
n.42
KY , N, and H are missing the negation here and read phyi rol nas ’ongs te (“Anger comes from the outside”).
n.43
Instead of rten (“rooted”), H has bstan which would translate “I have taught it to be suchness.”
n.44
KY has chags med pa par and K has chags pa med par instead of chags med chags par. The translation for KY and K would therefore read “They perceive without attachment.”
n.45
KY, K, J, C, N, and H have brtags (“imagining”) instead of btags (“labeling”).
n.46
KY has dga’ (“pleased by”) instead of dgang (“filled with”).
n.47
The negation is missing in KY.
n.48
See “buddha.”
n.49
KY has sems can (“beings”) instead of sems kun (“all of the mind”).
n.50
In other words, the possibility of confusion is not inherent either to ignorance or buddhas because of their shared unborn nature.
n.51
Here “it” likely refers to absorption.
n.52
KY has sgrib (“obscuration”) instead of sgrub (“production”).
n.53
There is a possible letter play here with Skt. sādh (Tib. sgrub pa, “production”) and sarva (kun, “any”).
n.54
Here again the same letter play appears to be functioning between Skt. sādh (Tib. sgrub pa, “performance”) and sarva (kun, “all”).
n.55
“All” is likely meant to refer to “all virtues and nonvirtues” here, as there is a clear letter play connecting these two sections with the repeated use of sarva (“all”).
n.56
N has rtags (“indicate”) instead of rtogs (“understand”) here.
n.57
This refers to the letter play that runs throughout the entire text and is a salient feature of dhāraṇī texts.
n.58
N has mnyam pa (“equal”) instead of mnyan pa (“listened”).
n.59
N and H have gzungs (“dhāraṇī”) instead of gzugs (“form”).
n.60
N has rtsol (“strives”) instead of stsol (“bestows”).
n.61
KY and K have mnyan (“listen”) instead of mnyam (“same”). According to these recensions, this phrase would then translate as “in order to listen to the eighty-four thousand sections of Dharma and this Dharma teaching.”
n.62
Tibetan: chos kyi dbyings. Sanskrit: dharmadhātu. Elsewhere in this translation we have translated this as “realm of phenomena.”
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