THE SUTRA OF PERFECT ENLIGHTENMENT
OF GREAT VAST EXPANSIVENESS,
AN ULTIMATE TEACHING SUTRA
(OPENING SECTION)
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VERSE FOR OPENING THE SUTRA
The unsurpassed, profound, subtle, and wondrous Dharma,
In hundreds of thousands of myriads of eons, is hard to encounter.
Now that I have seen and heard it, received and upheld it,
May I understand the Tathagata’s true meaning.
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The Buddha-Dharma is vast and deep, exquisitely wondrous;
Across countless eons, difficult to find and seek.
Now that I have heard it, I will diligently recite and uphold it;
May I clearly realize the Tathagata’s subtle meaning.
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EIGHT RULES OF THE BUDDHIST SCRIPTURE TRANSLATION INSTITUTE
1. Translators must free themselves from motives of seeking fame and profit.
2. Translators must cultivate and refine themselves, abandoning arrogance.
3. Translators must be self-restrained: do not praise themselves while disparaging others.
4. Translators must not set themselves up as the sole standard or measure, then belittle others by fault-finding in their works.
5. Translators must take the Buddha’s mind as their own mind.
6. Translators must use the discerning Dharma-eye to judge what is truth.
7. Translators must respectfully request eminent monks and great virtuous ones in all ten directions to certify the translation.
8. Translators must joyfully propagate Buddhist teachings by printing Sutras, Vinaya, and Treatises once their translation has been certified as correct.
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INTRODUCTION
The Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment is a sudden-teaching Mahayana scripture. Only those with sufficient Mahayana capacities, or those who have cultivated Perfect Enlightenment over many lifetimes, can truly receive it. Yet fortunately for us, the Bodhisattvas in the Dharma assembly, moved by great compassion, requested that the Buddha teach expedient means and gradual stages, so that all beings may cultivate according to this sutra and advance toward Buddhahood.
We, a group of lay followers, through blessings and conditions from past lives, have in recent years been able to attend the South Vietnam Buddhist Institute at An Quang Temple (Cho Lon) and listen to the Dharma teachings of the lecturers there for six to seven years. Step by step, from easy to difficult, from shallow to profound, the more we studied, the more inspired and diligent we became, joyfully seeing a broad horizon of truth opening before us. Now, with this Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment, under the clear and dedicated instruction of Venerable Thich Thien Hoa, instructor at the South Vietnam Buddhist Institute and a Dharma-propagation committee member of the General Buddhist Association of Vietnam, we have received even more of the Buddhas’ profound doctrine and grown more ardent on the path of study and practice.
To repay even a tiny fraction of the boundless kindness of our Fundamental Teacher, Shakyamuni Buddha, who manifested in this world and taught for forty-nine years, showing methods to escape samsara and birth-and-death; and in order not to fail the painstaking teaching efforts of Venerable Thich Thien Hoa and the other lecturers of the South Vietnam Buddhist Institute, we have hastily compiled these lessons on the Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment and printed them as a set, respectfully offering them to Dharma friends near and far, with the hope that from now on your study and practice may become easier and progress day by day.
Dear Dharma friends, the Buddha taught: “A human body is hard to obtain; the Buddha-Dharma is hard to encounter.” From beginningless time until now, we have lived intoxicated and died in sleep within this false and illusory dream-field, revolving through countless lifetimes; beings remain beings again and again. Is this not betraying our ever-abiding, undying Mind, and our equal true-suchness nature of awakening, our “Perfect Enlightenment”? Through wholesome causes from past lives, we now receive the fruit of being human. We must therefore further nourish those wholesome causes, decisively cut off afflictions, trust that we possess the nature of Perfect Enlightenment, and live in accord with that nature, so that we may take a great step on the path of liberation.
This Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment is a lamp that illuminates and guides us on the path to liberation. Therefore, we sincerely and respectfully introduce it to all faithful practitioners.
May the Triple Gem protect all who read this Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment, so that all may enter Perfect Enlightenment.
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TRANSLATORS
1. SANSKRIT-TO-CHINESE TRANSLATION:
- Master La-hou-mo-kien translated it at Bao Van Monastery in Dam Chau, in the Tang dynasty, 21st year of the Zhenguan era (647), on the 15th day of the 7th month of the year Dinh Mui. This account is based on Master Kui Feng’s Great Commentary on Perfect Enlightenment.
- Master Buddhatrata (in Chinese rendered as Jue Jiu), from Kasmira (Jishidi-la), North India, translated it at White Horse Monastery in the Eastern Capital, in the Tang dynasty, 2nd year of the Changshou era (693). At that time, Wu Zetian had changed the Tang dynasty to the Zhou dynasty
Of the two translations, Master Buddhatrata’s became widely circulated, while Master La-hou-mo-kien’s is mentioned mainly by Master Kui Feng in the Great Commentary on Perfect Enlightenment and was less widespread.
2. COMMENTARIES:
According to Great Master Tai Xu, the Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment received many commentaries. All major schools in China at that time produced commentaries, especially the Chan school and the Huayan school. During the Tang dynasty there were masters such as Master Duy Phat, Master Dao Xuan, and Master Kui Feng. Master Kui Feng wrote two commentaries: one titled Abridged Commentary, and one titled Great Commentary.
By the Southern Song, Master Nguyen Tuy compiled a Collected Commentary. This work gathered the explanatory remarks of earlier commentators into one collection. More recently, Great Master Tai Xu gave lectures under the title Brief Explanation of Perfect Enlightenment.
3. CHINESE-TO-VIETNAMESE TRANSLATIONS:
Master Huyen Co translated the Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment, published in 1951.
Venerable Thich Thien Hoa translated it under the title Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment (translation and brief explanation), printed in Popular Buddhist Studies, volume 8, published by Huong Dao in 1958.
Venerable Tri Huu translated the Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment; I do not recall the publication year.
Venerable Trung Quan translated the Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment into two volumes; I also do not recall the publication year.
Layman Doan Trung Con also translated the Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment.
Since the Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment has been translated into Vietnamese, in principle we should study the Vietnamese version. But because I am addressing monastics (bhikkhus and bhikkhunis), I lecture directly from the Chinese text so that you can become familiar with methods of meaning-translation and later read Chinese scriptures more easily.
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LECTURE ON THE SUTRA TITLE:
Regarding the sutra title, in chapter 12, Bodhisattva Hien Thien Thu asks the Buddha for the name of this sutra.
The Buddha gives five names:
Great Vast Perfect Enlightenment Dharani.
Ultimate-Meaning Sutra.
Secret King Samadhi.
Tathagata’s Definitive Realm.
Differentiations of the Tathagata Treasury Self-Nature.
These five names are abbreviated as: The Ultimate-Meaning Sutra of Great Vast Perfect Enlightenment.
GREAT VAST PERFECT ENLIGHTENMENT
According to Master Kui Feng Zong Mi, each sentient being has a true essence that is vast and all-pervasive throughout the Dharma realm; therefore it is called Great. This true essence preserves all principles and can give rise to myriad dharmas; therefore it is called Vast-Form (Phuong). This true essence is fully endowed with inconceivable wondrous functioning; therefore it is called Expansive (Quang).
According to Master Tai Xu, Great refers to the absolute essence that transcends all dualistic dharmas. Great does not mean “large” in contrast to “small.” Phuong indicates direction or domain: that absolute essence is boundless and immeasurable, beyond space and time.
Quang means vast and inconceivable. Great, Vast-Form, and Expansive together point to the meaning of Perfect Enlightenment. Vien means complete or perfectly round; Giac means awakening. Complete awakening is called Perfect Enlightenment. Perfect Enlightenment refers to the Buddha’s state. Buddhist scriptures distinguish as follows: ordinary beings are unawakened; non-Buddhist paths have deviant awakening; the Two Vehicles have correct awakening; Bodhisattvas have partial awakening; Buddhas have Perfect Enlightenment. Only a Buddha has complete awakening. Ordinary beings, due to non-awakening, cannot see Buddha-nature. Non-Buddhist paths have deviant awakening: they know, but their knowing is skewed and mistaken. Those of the Two Vehicles, though having correct awakening, have not yet reached vast awakening. Bodhisattvas see Buddha-nature, but only in part, and are therefore called partially awakened. When a practitioner applies effort in cultivation and practice to full completion, Buddha-nature manifests in perfect fullness; this is called Perfect Enlightenment. Thus, Great Vast Perfect Enlightenment is the fully complete and boundless nature of Perfect Enlightenment that pervades the Dharma realm, transcends space and time, is the source from which myriad dharmas arise, and has inconceivable wondrous function.
ULTIMATE-MEANING SUTRA
Tu-da-la (Sutra) is originally a Sanskrit term, translated in Chinese as Jing (scripture). The systematically compiled teachings spoken by the Buddha are called sutras. Sutras include those of definitive meaning and non-definitive meaning. In the Maharatnakuta Sutra, there are passages where the Buddha says to Shariputra:
– Teachings about worldly matters are non-definitive; teachings about ultimate truth are definitive.
– Teachings that generate afflictive karma are non-definitive; teachings that cleanse afflictive karma are definitive.
– Teachings that reject birth-and-death while seeking Nirvana are non-definitive; teachings that birth-and-death and Nirvana are non-dual are definitive.
– Teachings on various differentiated words and phrases are non-definitive; teachings on the profound Dharma, difficult to see and difficult to awaken to, are definitive.
Through these four distinctions made by the Buddha regarding definitive and non-definitive meaning, the Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment belongs to definitive-meaning sutras, because it speaks directly to the ultimate truth without relying on expedient means.
In form, the Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment is sometimes compiled as one scroll and sometimes divided into two. It contains twelve chapters; in each chapter, a representative great Bodhisattva respectfully asks a question, and the Buddha answers with very clear guidance for practice.