Gathering Skillful Means and the Acquiescence to Non-Arising

Commentary: Within the Eighth Ground there are seven distinct aspects: first, the division generally showing the gathering of skillful means for this ground; second, the division of attaining pure acquiescence; third, the division of attaining surpassing practice; fourth, the division of purifying buddha-lands; fifth, the division of attaining mastery; sixth, the division of great excellence; and seventh, the division explaining the name. What, then, is the division generally showing the gathering of skillful means for this ground?

Sūtra: At that time the bodhisattva Vajragarbha said: Sons of the Buddha! If a bodhisattva, within the seven grounds [already traversed], has well gathered the skillful means of wisdom, well purified every practice, well gathered the dharmas that assist the path, and well given rise to the power of great vows, and well received the empowering strength of the Tathāgatas — through the strength of his own roots of goodness having attained strength; constantly mindful, according with the Tathāgatas' own strength, fearlessness, and unshared buddha-dharmas; his deep mind well purified and awakened; having accomplished the power of merit and wisdom; his great loving-kindness and compassion and the rest never abandoning the practice for the sake of all sentient beings; and thoroughly penetrating the boundless path of wisdom —

Commentary: The division generally showing the gathering of skillful means for this ground gathers together the seven grounds, having both a shared characteristic and a distinct characteristic. What, then, is the shared characteristic?

The shared characteristic has three kinds: first, because he has, in the most excellent way, realized the twofold selflessness; second, because the path of non-abiding is purified; and third, because the dharmas that assist enlightenment, gathered in by that skillful, expedient wisdom and practice, are fulfilled. As the sūtra says, "Sons of the Buddha! If a bodhisattva, within the seven grounds, has well gathered the skillful means of wisdom, well purified every practice, well gathered the dharmas that assist the path." What, then, is the distinct characteristic? It is shown through such phrases as "well giving rise to the power of great vows" and the rest.

[Matching] the First Ground and each of the other grounds in turn — as the sūtra says, "well giving rise to the power of great vows." Within the Second Ground: it is on this account that he should, cultivating in every mode the path of the ten wholesome actions, cause the strength of the Tathāgatas belonging to that stage to become pure and complete — as the sūtra says, "well received the empowering strength of the Tathāgatas." Within the Third Ground: having attained aversion to worldly existence and non-retrogression in meditative concentration and the rest, the strength of his own roots of goodness attains thorough penetration — as the sūtra says, "through the strength of his own roots of goodness having attained strength." Within the Fourth Ground: the wisdom that discriminates the Dharma taught, and the wisdom that teaches and transforms others, the purification surpassing the hindrance to wisdom, and mindfulness thoroughly penetrating the buddha-dharmas — as the sūtra says, "constantly mindful, according with the Tathāgatas' own strength, fearlessness, and unshared buddha-dharmas." Within the Fifth Ground: the equality of the pure, deep mind, and the well purified deep mind and the rest — as the sūtra says, "his deep mind well purified and awakened." Within the Sixth Ground: great compassion, self-mastery foremost, the surpassing contemplation of the gathering of dependent origination, accomplishing the power of merit and wisdom — as the sūtra says, "having accomplished the power of merit and wisdom." Within the Seventh Ground: skillful, expedient wisdom arousing the surpassing path, not abandoning the practice for the sake of all sentient beings — as the sūtra says, "his great loving-kindness and compassion and the rest never abandoning the practice for the sake of all sentient beings." Through the boundless realm of sentient beings, he enters the boundless path of wisdom — as the sūtra says, "thoroughly penetrating the boundless path of wisdom." In this way, the division generally showing the gathering of skillful means for the Eighth Ground has now been explained. What, then, is the division of attaining pure acquiescence? It is because he attains acquiescence to the non-arising of dharmas (anutpattika-dharma-kṣānti). This should be understood as a practice, pure, natural, and without effortful application.

Sūtra: He enters into the fact that all dharmas are, from the very beginning, without arising, without coming-into-being, without characteristic, without emergence, unlost, inexhaustible, and without activity; not having any substantial, existent nature; equal in their beginning, middle, and end; and, through suchness free of discrimination, enters the wisdom of omniscience. This bodhisattva, far removed from every discrimination of mind, mentation, and consciousness, and from every act of recollection and conceptualization, is without any object of craving, equal like empty space. Entering into the fact that all dharmas are, in their own nature, like empty space — this is what is called attaining acquiescence to the non-arising of dharmas.

Commentary: Furthermore, this acquiescence should be understood within four kinds of non-arising. The four kinds of non-arising are: first, non-arising with respect to phenomena; second, non-arising with respect to own-nature; third, non-arising with respect to the distinction of number; and fourth, non-arising with respect to the distinction of karmic function. Here, "non-arising with respect to phenomena": there are, in reality, seven kinds of phenomena being refuted. First, the mistaken reality that, within the pure portion of dharmas, something originally exists — the antidote to this is, as the sūtra says, "enters into the fact that all dharmas are, from the very beginning, without arising." Second, the mistaken reality of ever-new arising — the antidote to this is, as the sūtra says, "without coming-into-being." Third, the mistaken reality of characteristic — the antidote to this is, as the sūtra says, "without characteristic." Fourth, the mistaken reality of a final limit — the antidote to this is, as the sūtra says, "without emergence." Fifth, the mistaken reality of an initial limit, on account of the hindrance of affliction within the defiled portion — the antidote to this is, as the sūtra says, "unlost." Sixth, the mistaken reality of exhaustion, with respect to every sentient being — the antidote to this is, as the sūtra says, "inexhaustible." Seventh, the mistaken reality of admixed defilement, within the pure portion — the antidote to this is, as the sūtra says, "without activity." "Non-arising with respect to own-nature" means the selflessness of dharmas: that very selflessness of dharmas is because their own substance is without any fixed nature — as the sūtra says, "not having any substantial, existent nature." Because he contemplates this very phenomenon, this is what constitutes this acquiescence — one cannot say that this is a contemplation of utter non-existence, since the selflessness of dharmas is a mark without duality. "Non-arising with respect to the distinction of number" means that, across the three times, defiled and pure dharmas neither increase nor decrease — as the sūtra says, "equal in their beginning, middle, and end." "Non-arising with respect to the distinction of karmic function" means that, within suchness, the buddhas' own wisdom is pure and free of discrimination — as the sūtra says, "through suchness free of discrimination, enters the wisdom of omniscience." In this way, the contemplation of acquiescence to the non-arising of dharmas has been made manifest. Next it is made manifest that this practice is far removed from the discriminating conceptualization of the object-realm belonging to karmic retribution, and takes up the conceptualization of true discriminated nature — as the sūtra says, "this bodhisattva, far removed from every discrimination of mind, mentation, and consciousness, and from every act of recollection and conceptualization." "Conceptualization" here means conceptualization far removed from the dharma of hindrance — it does not mean the absence of any conceptualization of the antidote-dharma.

This conceptualization of the antidote, in comparison with the lower grounds, has three excellent matters: first, practice that is natural and without effortful application — as the sūtra says, "without any object of craving." Second, pervading the characteristic of all dharmas — as the sūtra says, "equal like empty space." Third, entering suchness through natural, unmoving practice — as the sūtra says, "entering into the fact that all dharmas are, in their own nature, like empty space — this is what is called attaining acquiescence to the non-arising of dharmas." In this way, the division of attaining pure acquiescence within the Eighth Ground has now been explained. Next, the division of attaining surpassing practice will be explained.

Sūtra: Further, sons of the Buddha! Having accomplished acquiescence to the Dharma in this way, the bodhisattva at that very moment attains this Eighth Ground of the bodhisattva, the Ground Immovable, becoming a bodhisattva of deep practice — difficult to fathom, impossible to discriminate, free of every characteristic, free of every conceptualization and every object of craving, boundless and limitless, a quiescence that no śrāvaka or pratyekabuddha is able to destroy, a state in which every quiescence stands directly present.

Sons of the Buddha! It is like a monk who, having attained spiritual powers complete and his mind self-mastering, enters, in due sequence, the absorption of cessation, in which every agitated mind, recollection, and conceptualization is entirely and utterly extinguished. Sons of the Buddha! A bodhisattva, too, is just so: dwelling in this Eighth Ground of the bodhisattva, the Ground Immovable, he is at once far removed from every practice of effortful application and every act of recollection, attains the dharma of being without effortful application, is free from the exertions of body, speech, and mind, and abides, accomplished, within the practice belonging to his own karmic recompense. Sons of the Buddha! It is like a person who, within a dream, sees his own body fallen into a great river; at that moment this person arouses great courage and applies great skillful means, wishing to escape this river. Just as he arouses this courage, he suddenly awakens; having awakened, he is at once free from every urgent matter of courage and skillful means. Sons of the Buddha!

A bodhisattva, too, is just so: from the very beginning he has seen every sentient being fallen into the four great rivers, and has aroused the power of great diligence, broadly cultivating the practice of the path, arriving at the Ground Immovable, where he is at once free from every conceptualized practice of effortful application. This bodhisattva no longer activates either of these two minds at all, and all his acts of recollection no longer stand present before him. Sons of the Buddha! It is like one born within the Brahmā heaven, in whom every affliction of the desire realm is entirely inactive. Just so, sons of the Buddha! A bodhisattva, dwelling in this Ground Immovable of the bodhisattva, finds that mind, mentation, consciousness, and the rest are all entirely inactive; the mind of the buddhas, the mind of enlightenment, the mind of the bodhisattva, and the mind of nirvāṇa are all inactive — how much more so any worldly mind!

Commentary: Here, "attaining surpassing practice" means attaining deep practice. Deep practice is of seven kinds: first, the depth of being difficult to enter — as the sūtra says, "further, sons of the Buddha! Having accomplished acquiescence to the Dharma in this way, the bodhisattva at that very moment attains this Eighth Ground of the bodhisattva, the Ground Immovable, becoming a bodhisattva of deep practice — difficult to fathom." Second, the depth of shared practice, since it is shared alike by the bodhisattvas of every pure ground — as the sūtra says, "impossible to discriminate." Third, the depth of the object-realm, since neither the apprehending subject nor the apprehended object stands present before him — as the sūtra says, "free of every characteristic, free of every conceptualization and every object of craving." Because he guards against every conceptualization that hinders, it is said, "free of every craving." Fourth, the depth of cultivated practice, on account of the practice that benefits both himself and others — as the sūtra says, "boundless and limitless." Fifth, the depth of non-retrogression — as the sūtra says, "no śrāvaka or pratyekabuddha is able to destroy." Sixth, the depth of being free from hindrance — as the sūtra says, "quiescence." Seventh, the depth of the antidote standing directly present — as the sūtra says, "every quiescence stands directly present" — since suchness itself is every quiescence. As for the simile of the absorption of cessation: it shows that this practice is quiescent and extinguished — as the sūtra says, from "sons of the Buddha! It is like a monk," all the way to "is free from the exertions of body, speech, and mind, and abides, accomplished, within the practice belonging to his own karmic recompense." "Every agitated mind, recollection, and conceptualization is entirely and utterly extinguished" means that it is without any basis to rely upon. "At once far removed from every practice of effortful application" means that he has passed beyond the ground of effortful application. "Attains the dharma of being without effortful application" means that he attains that very antidote-dharma, through attaining the natural practice of the dharma of being without effortful application. "Abides, accomplished, within the practice belonging to his own karmic recompense" makes manifest that he has attained a dharma directly contrary to the practice of effortful application. Furthermore, "abides, accomplished, within the practice belonging to his own karmic recompense" means that he well abides within the dharma of suchness belonging to the ālaya-consciousness. As for the simile of the dream and awakening: it shows that, within this practice, he guards against that mistaken conceptualization, while possessing the conceptualization of correct wisdom, since this practice is quiescent and extinguished — as the sūtra says, from "sons of the Buddha! It is like a person who, within a dream, sees his own body," all the way to "all his acts of recollection no longer stand present before him." Here, it is because, in dependence on purity, these two minds — the worldly mind and the mind of nirvāṇa — are inactive; and it is because, in dependence on the object-realm, the conceptualization of receiving and using it is inactive. As for the simile of birth in the Brahmā heaven: the mind of the lower ground is entirely inactive, since he attains the ground of this new karmic recompense — this speaks of the excellence of remoteness — as the sūtra says, from "sons of the Buddha! It is like one born within the Brahmā heaven," all the way to "how much more so any worldly mind!" Here, there are two portions, the conforming mind and the non-conforming mind, and the rest: because the buddhas and the rest are inactive, and because of the distinction between the Great Vehicle and the lesser vehicle. Within the Great Vehicle and the lesser vehicle, there is a distinction of sentient beings and of dharmas, and a distinction between the one beyond training and the one still in training. The distinct statements of "the buddhas and the rest" and "nirvāṇa" should be understood accordingly. Here, "the conforming mind" means that, within the portion of the conforming mind, mind and the rest are inactive — as the sūtra says, "mind, mentation, consciousness, and the rest are all entirely inactive." Here, "the non-conforming mind" means that, within the portion of the non-conforming mind, the buddhas and the rest are inactive — as the sūtra says, from "the mind of the buddhas" all the way to "the mind of nirvāṇa... are inactive." As for the distinction between the Great Vehicle and the lesser vehicle: the distinction within the Great Vehicle is the distinction between the buddhas, the bodhisattvas, and nirvāṇa; the distinction within the lesser vehicle is the distinction between the śrāvaka's own nirvāṇa, the arhat, and the rest. As for the distinction of sentient beings and of dharmas within the Great Vehicle and the lesser vehicle: the distinction of sentient beings is the distinction between the buddhas and the bodhisattvas; the distinction of dharmas is the distinction between enlightenment and nirvāṇa; and within the lesser vehicle, it is the distinction of sentient beings beyond training and still in training. Here, the distinction of dharmas is the distinction of nirvāṇa; the distinction of one beyond training is the distinction of the arhat; and the distinction of one still in training is the distinction of the non-returner and the rest. In this way, every such practice is, in every case, entirely inactive.