THE GREAT PRAJÑĀPĀRAMITĀ SUTRA
VOLUME 315
Chapter 45: TRUE GOOD FRIENDS (3)
The Buddha said:
“Subhūti, yes, indeed, yes, indeed, just as you have said! Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of form there is no such discrimination as: ‘This is form’; within the ultimate nature of feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness there is also no such discrimination as: ‘This is feeling, perception, formations, consciousness.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the eye faculty there is no such discrimination as: ‘This is the eye faculty’; within the ultimate nature of the ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind faculties there is also no such discrimination as: ‘This is the ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind faculties.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the form realm there is no such discrimination as: ‘This is the form realm’; within the ultimate nature of the sound, smell, taste, touch, and dharma realms there is also no such discrimination as: ‘This is the sound, smell, taste, touch, and dharma realms.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the eye element there is no such discrimination as: ‘This is the eye element’; within the ultimate nature of the form element, eye-consciousness element, eye contact, and the feelings arising conditioned by eye contact, there is also no such discrimination as: ‘This is the form element up to the feelings arising conditioned by eye contact.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the ear element there is no such discrimination as: ‘This is the ear element’; within the ultimate nature of the sound element, ear-consciousness element, ear contact, and the feelings arising conditioned by ear contact, there is also no such discrimination as: ‘This is the sound element up to the feelings arising conditioned by ear contact.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the nose element there is no such discrimination as: ‘This is the nose element’; within the ultimate nature of the smell element, nose-consciousness element, nose contact, and the feelings arising conditioned by nose contact, there is also no such discrimination as: ‘This is the smell element up to the feelings arising conditioned by nose contact.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the tongue element there is no such discrimination as: ‘This is the tongue element’; within the ultimate nature of the taste element, tongue-consciousness element, tongue contact, and the feelings arising conditioned by tongue contact, there is also no such discrimination as: ‘This is the taste element up to the feelings arising conditioned by tongue contact.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the body element there is no such discrimination as: ‘This is the body element’; within the ultimate nature of the touch element, body-consciousness element, body contact, and the feelings arising conditioned by body contact, there is also no such discrimination as: ‘This is the touch element up to the feelings arising conditioned by body contact.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the mind element there is no such discrimination as: ‘This is the mind element’; within the ultimate nature of the dharma element, mind-consciousness element, mind contact, and the feelings arising conditioned by mind contact, there is also no such discrimination as: ‘This is the dharma element up to the feelings arising conditioned by mind contact.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the earth element there is no such discrimination as: ‘This is the earth element’; within the ultimate nature of the water, fire, wind, space, and consciousness elements there is also no such discrimination as: ‘This is the water, fire, wind, space, and consciousness elements.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of ignorance there is no such discrimination as: ‘This is ignorance’; within the ultimate nature of formations, consciousness, name-and-form, the six sense bases, contact, feeling, craving, grasping, existence, birth, aging-and-death, sorrow, lamentation, suffering, grief, and distress there is also no such discrimination as: ‘This is formations up to aging-and-death, sorrow, lamentation, suffering, grief, and distress.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the perfection of generosity there is no such discrimination as: ‘This is the perfection of generosity’; within the ultimate nature of moral discipline, patience, vigor, meditative concentration, and the perfection of wisdom there is also no such discrimination as: ‘This is moral discipline up to the perfection of wisdom.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the emptiness of internal phenomena there is no such discrimination as: ‘This is the emptiness of internal phenomena’; within the ultimate nature of the emptiness of external phenomena, emptiness of both internal and external phenomena, emptiness of emptiness, great emptiness, emptiness of ultimate meaning, emptiness of conditioned phenomena, emptiness of unconditioned phenomena, emptiness of the ultimate, emptiness without boundaries, emptiness of dispersion, emptiness of non-transformation, emptiness of intrinsic nature, emptiness of own characteristics, emptiness of common characteristics, emptiness of all phenomena, emptiness of the ungraspable, emptiness of non-existence, emptiness of self-nature, and emptiness of the non-existence of self-nature, there is also no such discrimination as: ‘This is the emptiness of external phenomena up to the emptiness of the non-existence of self-nature.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of suchness there is no such discrimination as: ‘This is suchness’; within the ultimate nature of the dharma realm, dharma nature, the nature of non-falsity, the nature of non-change, the nature of equality, the nature of freedom from arising, the fixed nature of phenomena, the abiding nature of phenomena, ultimate reality, the realm of space, and the inconceivable realm, there is also no such discrimination as: ‘This is the dharma realm up to the inconceivable realm.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the noble truth of suffering there is no such discrimination as: ‘This is the noble truth of suffering’; within the ultimate nature of the noble truths of origin, cessation, and the path there is also no such discrimination as: ‘This is the noble truths of origin, cessation, and the path.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the four meditative absorptions there is no such discrimination as: ‘These are the four meditative absorptions’; within the ultimate nature of the four immeasurables and the four formless concentrations there is also no such discrimination as: ‘These are the four immeasurables and the four formless concentrations.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the eight liberations there is no such discrimination as: ‘These are the eight liberations’; within the ultimate nature of the eight bases of mastery, the nine successive concentrations, and the ten universal bases there is also no such discrimination as: ‘These are the eight bases of mastery, the nine successive concentrations, and the ten universal bases.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the four foundations of mindfulness there is no such discrimination as: ‘These are the four foundations of mindfulness’; within the ultimate nature of the four right efforts, four bases of miraculous powers, five faculties, five powers, seven factors of enlightenment, and the eightfold noble path there is also no such discrimination as: ‘These are the four right efforts up to the eightfold noble path.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the liberation door of emptiness there is no such discrimination as: ‘This is the liberation door of emptiness’; within the ultimate nature of the liberation doors of signlessness and wishlessness there is also no such discrimination as: ‘These are the liberation doors of signlessness and wishlessness.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the ten bodhisattva grounds there is no such discrimination as: ‘These are the ten bodhisattva grounds.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the five kinds of eyes there is no such discrimination as: ‘These are the five kinds of eyes’; within the ultimate nature of the six supernormal powers there is also no such discrimination as: ‘These are the six supernormal powers.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the ten powers of a Buddha there is no such discrimination as: ‘These are the ten powers of a Buddha’; within the ultimate nature of the four fearlessnesses, four kinds of unobstructed knowledge, great loving-kindness, great compassion, great joy, great equanimity, and the eighteen unique qualities of a Buddha there is also no such discrimination as: ‘These are the four fearlessnesses up to the eighteen unique qualities of a Buddha.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the quality of not forgetting there is no such discrimination as: ‘This is the quality of not forgetting’; within the ultimate nature of the constant quality of equanimity there is also no such discrimination as: ‘This is the constant quality of equanimity.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the omniscient wisdom there is no such discrimination as: ‘This is omniscient wisdom’; within the ultimate nature of path-aspect wisdom and all-aspect wisdom there is also no such discrimination as: ‘This is path-aspect wisdom and all-aspect wisdom.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of all dhāraṇī methods there is no such discrimination as: ‘These are all dhāraṇī methods’; within the ultimate nature of all samādhi methods there is also no such discrimination as: ‘These are all samādhi methods.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the fruit of stream-entry there is no such discrimination as: ‘This is the fruit of stream-entry’; within the ultimate nature of the fruits of once-returning, non-returning, and arhatship there is also no such discrimination as: ‘These are the fruits of once-returning, non-returning, and arhatship.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the realization of a solitary buddha there is no such discrimination as: ‘This is the realization of a solitary buddha.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of all practices of great bodhisattvas there is no such discrimination as: ‘These are all practices of great bodhisattvas.’
Subhūti, within the ultimate nature of the supreme enlightenment of all Buddhas there is no such discrimination as: ‘This is the supreme enlightenment of all Buddhas.’
Subhūti, this is the difficult deed of a great bodhisattva: although contemplating that all phenomena have the characteristic of complete cessation, the mind does not cling or become attached, thinking: ‘Through this Dharma, I will manifest awakening, attain unsurpassed complete enlightenment, and teach and reveal to all sentient beings such a wondrous and tranquil Dharma.’
Subhūti, this is why the great bodhisattva, wishing to create the ultimate path for the world, generates the aspiration toward supreme enlightenment.”
The venerable Subhūti said to the Buddha:
“World-Honored One, why does the great bodhisattva, wishing to create sandbanks in the vast ocean for the world, generate the aspiration toward supreme enlightenment?”
The Buddha said:
“Subhūti, it is like in the great ocean or in large and small rivers, there are places rising above the surface of the water where beings can dwell and live; these are called sandbanks.
Subhūti, likewise, the before and after of form are extinguished; the before and after of feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness are extinguished; the before and after of the eye faculty are extinguished; the before and after of the ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind faculties are extinguished; the before and after of the form realm are extinguished; the before and after of the sound, smell, taste, touch, and dharma realms are extinguished; the before and after of the eye element are extinguished; the before and after of the form element, eye-consciousness element, eye contact, and feelings arising conditioned by eye contact are extinguished; and likewise for the ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind elements and all corresponding realms, consciousnesses, contacts, and feelings arising from those contacts.
The before and after of the earth element are extinguished; the before and after of the water, fire, wind, space, and consciousness elements are extinguished; the before and after of ignorance are extinguished; the before and after of formations, consciousness, name-and-form, six sense bases, contact, feeling, craving, grasping, existence, birth, aging-and-death, sorrow, lamentation, suffering, grief, and distress are extinguished.
The before and after of the perfection of generosity are extinguished; the before and after of moral discipline, patience, vigor, meditative concentration, and the perfection of wisdom are extinguished; the before and after of all forms of emptiness are extinguished; the before and after of suchness, the dharma realm, dharma nature, and all such ultimate realities are extinguished; the before and after of the noble truths are extinguished; the before and after of the meditative absorptions, immeasurables, formless concentrations, liberations, bases of mastery, successive concentrations, universal bases, foundations of mindfulness, right efforts, miraculous powers, faculties, powers, enlightenment factors, noble path, liberation doors, bodhisattva grounds, eyes, supernormal powers, Buddha powers, fearlessnesses, unobstructed knowledges, great loving-kindness, great compassion, great joy, great equanimity, unique Buddha qualities, qualities of not forgetting, constant equanimity, wisdoms, dhāraṇī methods, samādhi methods, fruits of the noble paths, solitary-buddha realization, bodhisattva practices, and the supreme enlightenment of Buddhas are all extinguished.
Subhūti, because all these before and after aspects are extinguished, all phenomena are extinguished.
Subhūti, the extinguishing of the before and after of all these phenomena is cessation, is wondrous, is reality as it truly is; it is emptiness, it is non-attainment, it is the cutting off of all paths, the complete ending of craving, freedom from defilement, without anything remaining, the complete and perfectly peaceful nirvāṇa.
Subhūti, the great bodhisattva seeks to attain supreme enlightenment in order to teach and reveal to sentient beings such a wondrous and tranquil Dharma.
Subhūti, this is why the great bodhisattva, wishing to create sandbanks for the world, generates the aspiration toward supreme enlightenment.”
The venerable Subhūti said to the Buddha:
“World-Honored One, why does the great bodhisattva, wishing to become a source of light for the world, generate the aspiration toward supreme enlightenment?”
The Buddha said:
“Subhūti, the great bodhisattva, wishing to destroy the long night of ignorance, wishing to shatter the many-layered dark coverings that constantly obscure sentient beings, wishing to heal the clouded eyes of ignorance of sentient beings so they become clear, and wishing to provide illumination for all ignorant sentient beings, generates the aspiration toward supreme enlightenment.
Subhūti, this is why the great bodhisattva, wishing to become a source of light for the world, generates the aspiration toward supreme enlightenment.”
The venerable Subhūti said to the Buddha:
“World-Honored One, why does the great bodhisattva, wishing to become a lamp and torch for the world, generate the aspiration toward supreme enlightenment?”
The Buddha said:
“Subhūti, the great bodhisattva wishes to explain the six perfections and the four methods of gathering that accord with the scriptures and true meaning, using skillful means to teach and guide sentient beings, encouraging them to cultivate and learn, and therefore generates the aspiration toward supreme enlightenment.
Subhūti, this is why the great bodhisattva, wishing to become a lamp and torch for the world, generates the aspiration toward supreme enlightenment.”
The venerable Subhūti said to the Buddha:
“World-Honored One, why does the great bodhisattva, wishing to become a guide and teacher for the world, generate the aspiration toward supreme enlightenment?”
The Buddha said:
“Subhūti, the great bodhisattva wishes to cause sentient beings who are being drawn along by false paths to abandon the four things that should not be done; for them, he explains clearly the single path for returning to the right way; he wishes those stained by defilement to become pure; he wishes those filled with sorrow to become joyful; he wishes those afflicted by suffering to attain peace and happiness; he wishes sentient beings following mistaken understanding to realize phenomena as they truly are; he wishes sentient beings endlessly wandering in birth and death to enter nirvāṇa, and thus generates the aspiration toward supreme enlightenment.
Subhūti, this is why the great bodhisattva, wishing to become a guide and teacher for the world, generates the aspiration toward supreme enlightenment.”
The venerable Subhūti said to the Buddha:
“World-Honored One, why does the great bodhisattva, wishing to become a general for the world, generate the aspiration toward supreme enlightenment?”
The Buddha said:
“Subhūti, the great bodhisattva seeks supreme enlightenment in order to explain and reveal to sentient beings that form is unborn, undying, undefiled, and pure; that feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness are unborn, undying, undefiled, and pure; that the eye faculty is unborn, undying, undefiled, and pure; that the ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind faculties are unborn, undying, undefiled, and pure; that the form realm is unborn, undying, undefiled, and pure; that the sound, smell, taste, touch, and dharma realms are unborn, undying, undefiled, and pure; and similarly all elements, realms, consciousnesses, contacts, feelings, dependent origination, perfections, emptinesses, suchness, noble truths, meditations, liberations, bodhisattva grounds, Buddha qualities, wisdoms, dhāraṇī methods, samādhi methods, noble fruits, solitary-buddha realization, all bodhisattva practices, and the supreme enlightenment of Buddhas are unborn, undying, undefiled, and pure.
Subhūti, this is why the great bodhisattva, wishing to become a general for the world, generates the aspiration toward supreme enlightenment.”
The venerable Subhūti said to the Buddha:
“World-Honored One, why does the great bodhisattva, wishing to become a place of refuge and direction for the world, generate the aspiration toward supreme enlightenment?”
The Buddha taught:
“Subhūti, the Great Bodhisattva who seeks the unsurpassed perfect enlightenment, wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that form takes space as its destination, and that feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that the eye-base takes space as its destination, and the ear-, nose-, tongue-, body-, and mind-bases also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that the form-field takes space as its destination, and the sound-, smell-, taste-, touch-, and dharma-fields also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that the eye-element takes space as its destination, and the form-element, eye-consciousness element, eye-contact, and the feelings arising dependent on eye-contact also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that the ear-element takes space as its destination, and the sound-element, ear-consciousness element, ear-contact, and the feelings arising dependent on ear-contact also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that the nose-element takes space as its destination, and the smell-element, nose-consciousness element, nose-contact, and the feelings arising dependent on nose-contact also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that the tongue-element takes space as its destination, and the taste-element, tongue-consciousness element, tongue-contact, and the feelings arising dependent on tongue-contact also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that the body-element takes space as its destination, and the touch-element, body-consciousness element, body-contact, and the feelings arising dependent on body-contact also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that the mind-element takes space as its destination, and the dharma-element, mind-consciousness element, mind-contact, and the feelings arising dependent on mind-contact also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that the earth-element takes space as its destination, and the water, fire, wind, space, and consciousness elements also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that ignorance takes space as its destination, and formations, consciousness, name-and-form, the six sense bases, contact, feeling, craving, grasping, existence, birth, aging-and-death, sorrow, lamentation, suffering, grief, and distress also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that the perfection of generosity takes space as its destination, and the perfection of morality, patience, vigor, meditative absorption, and wisdom also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that inner emptiness takes space as its destination, and outer emptiness, emptiness of both inner and outer, emptiness of emptiness, great emptiness, emptiness of ultimate meaning, emptiness of conditioned phenomena, emptiness of unconditioned phenomena, ultimate emptiness, emptiness without boundaries, emptiness of dispersion, emptiness of non-transformation, emptiness of intrinsic nature, emptiness of own characteristics, emptiness of common characteristics, emptiness of all phenomena, emptiness of what cannot be grasped, emptiness of no nature, emptiness of self-nature, and emptiness of the self-nature of no nature also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that suchness takes space as its destination, and the dharma realm, dharma nature, nature of non-deception, nature of non-change, nature of equality, nature of freedom from arising, dharma certainty, dharma abiding, ultimate reality, the realm of space, and the inconceivable realm also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that the noble truth of suffering takes space as its destination, and the noble truths of origination, cessation, and path also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that the four meditative absorptions take space as their destination, and the four immeasurables and four formless concentrations also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that the eight liberations take space as their destination, and the eight bases of mastery, the nine successive concentrations, and the ten universal bases also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that the four foundations of mindfulness take space as their destination, and the four right efforts, four bases of miraculous powers, five faculties, five powers, seven factors of enlightenment, and eightfold noble path also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that the liberation door of emptiness takes space as its destination, and the liberation doors of signlessness and wishlessness also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that the ten Bodhisattva grounds also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that the five kinds of eyes take space as their destination, and the six supernormal powers also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that the ten powers of the Buddha take space as their destination, and the four fearlessnesses, four kinds of unobstructed knowledge, great loving-kindness, great compassion, great sympathetic joy, great equanimity, and the eighteen unique qualities of the Buddha also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that the quality of not forgetting the dharma takes space as its destination, and the constant quality of equanimity also takes space as its destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that all-knowing wisdom takes space as its destination, and path-knowing wisdom and all-aspects-knowing wisdom also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that all dhāraṇī gateways take space as their destination, and all samādhi gateways also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that the fruit of stream-entry takes space as its destination, and the fruits of once-returning, non-returning, and arhatship also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that the state of the solitary awakened one also takes space as its destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that all practices of Great Bodhisattvas also take space as their destination; wishing to explain and reveal to sentient beings that the unsurpassed perfect enlightenment of all Buddhas takes space as its destination.
For the sake of sentient beings, he explains and reveals that form is neither a destination nor a non-destination. Why? Because the nature of form is emptiness; within the nature of emptiness, there is no destination and no non-destination. Feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness are also neither destinations nor non-destinations. Why? Because the nature of feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness is emptiness; within the nature of emptiness, there is no destination and no non-destination.
For the sake of sentient beings, he explains and reveals that the eye-base is neither a destination nor a non-destination. Why? Because the nature of the eye-base is emptiness; within the nature of emptiness, there is no destination and no non-destination. The ear-, nose-, tongue-, body-, and mind-bases are also neither destinations nor non-destinations. Why? Because the nature of the ear-, nose-, tongue-, body-, and mind-bases is emptiness; within the nature of emptiness, there is no destination and no non-destination.
For the sake of sentient beings, he explains and reveals that the form-field is neither a destination nor a non-destination. Why? Because the nature of the form-field is emptiness; within the nature of emptiness, there is no destination and no non-destination. The sound-, smell-, taste-, touch-, and dharma-fields are also neither destinations nor non-destinations. Why? Because the nature of the sound-, smell-, taste-, touch-, and dharma-fields is emptiness; within the nature of emptiness, there is no destination and no non-destination.
For the sake of sentient beings, he explains and reveals that the eye-element is neither a destination nor a non-destination. Why? Because the nature of the eye-element is emptiness; within the nature of emptiness, there is no destination and no non-destination. The form-element, eye-consciousness element, eye-contact, and the feelings arising dependent on eye-contact are also neither destinations nor non-destinations. Why? Because the nature of the form-element up to the feelings arising dependent on eye-contact is emptiness; within the nature of emptiness, there is no destination and no non-destination.
[The same explanation continues for all the remaining elements, aggregates, sense bases, dependent origination, perfections, emptinesses, suchness, noble truths, meditative attainments, spiritual qualities, wisdoms, dhāraṇīs, samādhis, stages, fruits, Bodhisattva practices, and Buddhahood: each is neither a destination nor a non-destination because its nature is emptiness; within emptiness there is no destination and no non-destination.]
“Subhūti, this is how the Great Bodhisattva, in order to become a destination for the world, gives rise to the aspiration toward unsurpassed perfect enlightenment.”