A Pure Land, and Seven Causes of Bodhicitta
The seventh vow catalogues, in exhaustive detail, everything that makes a buddha-land impure — sins, evil destinies, a whole taxonomy of wrong teachers and ascetic practices, hostile terrain — before turning to the ten adornments and marks of a truly pure one. Vows eight through ten close the series, and a new chapter opens: the seven distinct causes by which beings actually come to give rise to the aspiration for awakening.
The Seventh Vow: A Pure Buddha-Land
釋願品之餘
復次——願淨佛土故 滅除諸雜惡
殺生、偷盜、邪婬、妄語、兩舌、惡口、綺語、貪、恚、邪命、飲酒等，有如是惡；名為不淨。
復次，國土中有地獄、畜生、餓鬼等諸惡道，名為不淨。
復次，眾生無信、懈怠、亂心、愚癡、諂曲、慳嫉、忿恨重、邪見、慢、憍慢、大慢、我慢、邪慢、矯異、自親、激動、抑揚、因利求利、貴於世樂、放逸自恣、多欲、惡欲、邪貪、邪婬、不識父母、沙門、婆羅門、不忍辱、破威儀、難與語、邪覺觀、貪欲、瞋恚、睡眠、調戲、疑所覆蔽，名為不淨。
復次，惡鳥獸、多怨賊，無水漿、飢饉災疫，人畏、非人畏，內反逆、外賊寇，若多雨、若亢旱、諸衰惱、小劫盡諸苦惱等，名為不淨。
復次，眾生短命、惡色無力、多諸憂苦，少膽幹、多疾病，少威力、少眷屬、惡眷屬、易壞眷屬，小居家、儜劣、邪出家，名為不淨。
復次，僧佉、榆伽、憂樓迦王、那波羅他、毘佉那、蓱莎王、那吉略仙人、象仙人、斷婬人、上弟子行者、放羊者、大心者、忍辱者、喬曇摩、鳩蘭陀磨、活人者、度人者、緣水者、婆羅沙伽那、頗羅墮闍、著衣者、無衣者、韋索衣者、皮衣者、草衣者、著下衣者、角鵄毛衣者、木皮衣者、三洗者、隨順者、事梵王者、事究摩羅者、事毘舍闍者、事金翅鳥者、事乾闥婆者、事閻羅王者、事毘沙門王者、事密迹神者、事浮陀神者、事龍者、裸形沙門、白衣沙門、染衣沙門、末伽梨沙門、毘羅哆子者、迦旃延尼子者、薩耆遮子者、持牛戒者、鹿戒者、狗戒者、馬戒者、象戒者、乞戒者、究摩羅戒者、諸天戒者、上戒者、婬欲戒者、淨潔戒者、火戒者、說色滅涅槃者、說聲滅涅槃者、說香滅涅槃者、說味滅涅槃者、說觸滅涅槃者、說覺觀滅涅槃者、說喜滅涅槃者、說苦樂滅涅槃者、水衣為鬘者、水淨者、食淨者、生淨者、執杵臼者、打石者、喜洗者、浮沒者、空地住者、臥刺蕀者、世性者、大者、我者、色等者、聲等者、香等者、味等者、觸等者、地知者、水知者、火知者、風知者、虛空知者、和合知者、變知者、眼知者、耳知者、鼻知者、舌知者、身知者、意知者、神知者。如是等在家、出家，種種邪見、邪行，名為不淨。
復次，其地高下，坑坎埠阜，榛叢刺蕀，多所妨閡；塵土坌穢，泥潦臼陷，惡山巉巖，屈曲隈障；重嶺隔塞，峻峭難上，鹹鹵乾燥，沙礫瓦石；眾果少味，色香不具，藥草不良，勢力薄少；少有妙色、聲、香、味、觸；園林樓閣、流水浴池、小山土嶺、登緣遠望，娛樂之處，皆悉尠少；郡縣聚落，不相接近，地多丘荒，人民希少；多見無福、貧窮、下劣諸城；宰牧、大官、貴人、諸賈、客主，巧匠、工師、學讀之人，亦復甚少；衣服、臥具、醫藥，便身之具，甚為難得，雖得非妙。名為不淨。
不淨略說有二種：一、以眾生因緣，二、以行業因緣。眾生因緣者，眾生過惡故。行業因緣者，諸行過惡故。此二事上已說。轉此二事，則有眾生功德，行業功德。此二功德名為淨土，是淨國土，當知隨諸菩薩本願因緣。諸菩薩能行種種大精進故，所願無量不可說盡，是故今但略說，開示事端。其餘諸事，應如是知。
The Remainder of Explaining the Vows Chapter
Furthermore: "For the sake of purifying the buddha-land, I vow to eliminate every manner of miscellaneous evil."
Killing living beings, stealing, sexual misconduct, false speech, divisive speech, harsh speech, idle speech, greed, anger, wrong livelihood, and the drinking of alcohol — evils such as these are called impurity.
Furthermore, a land in which there exist the evil destinies of hell, animals, and hungry ghosts is called impure.
Furthermore, sentient beings without faith, indolent, of scattered mind, foolish, crooked and flattering, stingy and envious, harboring grave resentment, holding wrong views, arrogant, given to conceit, given to great conceit, given to the conceit of self, given to false conceit, feigning peculiarity, feigning intimacy, provoking, alternately praising and disparaging, seeking further gain through gain already obtained, prizing worldly pleasure, heedless and unrestrained, of many desires, of evil desires, of wrong craving, of sexual misconduct, failing to recognize their own parents or ascetics and brahmins, unable to bear patiently, breaking their own proper bearing, difficult to converse with, given to wrong thought, covered over by desire, anger, torpor, restlessness, and doubt — these are called impurity.
Furthermore, wicked birds and beasts, an abundance of bandits and enemies, absence of water and drink, famine and pestilence, fear of humans and fear of non-humans, internal rebellion and external invasion, excessive rain or severe drought, every manner of decline and affliction, and every suffering attending the exhaustion of a small kalpa — these are called impurity.
Furthermore, sentient beings of short life, of poor appearance and without strength, beset with much sorrow and suffering, of little courage, afflicted with much illness, of little majestic power, of few companions, of evil companions, whose companions are easily lost, of meager dwelling, weak and inferior, or gone forth from home in a wrongful manner — these are called impurity.
Furthermore: the Sāṃkhya, the Yoga, King Ulūka, Nabharatha, Vikhyāta, King Piṅgala, the seer Nāgraja, the elephant-seer, those who have severed sexual desire, the practitioner who is a superior disciple, the shepherd, the one of great mind, the one of patience, Gautama, Kulandhara, the sustainer of life, the ferrier of others across, the one who relies upon water, Vārṣagaṇya, Bharadvāja; wearers of cloth, the unclothed, wearers of grass-rope garments, wearers of hide, wearers of grass garments, wearers of a lower garment only, wearers of owl-feather garments, wearers of bark garments, the thrice-bathing, the compliant; worshippers of Brahmā, worshippers of Kumāra, worshippers of piśācas, worshippers of garuḍas, worshippers of gandharvas, worshippers of Yama, worshippers of Vaiśravaṇa, worshippers of the Guhyaka spirits, worshippers of bhūta spirits, worshippers of nāgas; naked ascetics, white-robed ascetics, dyed-robe ascetics, ascetics of Maskarin; those calling themselves sons of Vairāṭī, sons of Kātyāyanī, sons of Saccaka; those who uphold the ox-vow, the deer-vow, the dog-vow, the horse-vow, the elephant-vow, the beggar's vow, the Kumāra-vow, the deva-vow, the superior vow, the sexual vow, the purity-vow, the fire-vow; those who teach that nirvāṇa is the cessation found in form, in sound, in fragrance, in taste, in touch, in initial and sustained thought, in joy, in pain and pleasure; those who wear garlands of water-weed as their vestment, those who hold water itself to be purifying, those who hold food itself to be purifying, those who hold birth itself to be purifying, those who wield pestle and mortar as ascetic implements, those who strike stones, those who delight in ritual bathing, those who float and submerge in water austerities, those who dwell upon open, empty ground, those who lie upon thorns; those who hold the primordial nature of the world as ultimate, those who hold the great principle as ultimate, those who hold the self as ultimate, those who hold form and the rest as ultimate, sound and the rest, fragrance and the rest, taste and the rest, touch and the rest; those who hold the earth-element to be the knower, the water-element, the fire-element, the wind-element, space itself, a combination of elements, transformation itself, the eye, the ear, the nose, the tongue, the body, the mind, or the spirit itself to be the knower. Householders and renunciants such as these, holding every manner of wrong view and wrong conduct, are called impurity.
Furthermore, terrain that rises and falls into pits and mounds, thick with thorny thickets, obstructing passage in every direction; soil thick with dust and filth, mired in mud and sunken hollows, wicked mountains with sheer, jagged cliffs, twisting and hemmed in with obstructions; ranges of peaks blocking passage, steep and difficult to climb, brackish and parched ground, strewn with sand, gravel, and broken stone; fruits of poor flavor, lacking in color and fragrance, medicinal herbs of poor quality, weak in their own potency; scant presence of any fine form, sound, fragrance, taste, or touch; groves, pavilions, flowing streams, bathing pools, small hills, and vantage points for gazing into the distance — places of delight — all exceedingly scarce; towns and settlements far apart from one another, the land largely overgrown and desolate, its people few; frequent sight of the luckless, the poor, and inferior cities; ministers, high officials, nobles, merchants, hosts and guests, skilled artisans, craftsmen, and the learned likewise exceedingly scarce; clothing, bedding, medicine, and every article for personal comfort exceedingly hard to obtain, and even when obtained, never fine. This too is called impurity.
To speak of impurity in brief, there are two kinds: first, that arising from the causes and conditions of sentient beings; second, that arising from the causes and conditions of karmic conduct. "The causes and conditions of sentient beings" refers to the very faults of sentient beings themselves. "The causes and conditions of karmic conduct" refers to the very faults of conduct itself. These two matters have already been explained above. Reversing these two matters, there then arise the merit of sentient beings and the merit of karmic conduct. These two kinds of merit are what is called a pure land — such a pure land, one should understand, follows entirely from the causes and conditions of each bodhisattva's own original vow. Since bodhisattvas are able to practice great diligence of every kind, their vows are immeasurable and cannot be exhaustively described; I have therefore only briefly explained this here, opening up the matter's own general outline. Every other such matter should be understood in just this same way.
This roster of rival ascetic schools, ox-vows and dog-vows, and metaphysical positions (the primordial nature, the great principle, the self, the elements each claimed in turn as the true "knower") is a snapshot of the crowded religious landscape early Indian Buddhism actually argued against — Sāṃkhya's own prakṛti and puruṣa are recognizable among the "world-nature" and "self" positions listed. Several proper names here resist confident modern reconstruction; they are rendered as best-effort transliterations, following the Chinese phonetics, rather than claimed identifications. What matters for Nāgārjuna's own argument is simply the sheer number and variety catalogued — a land is impure in proportion to how many such rival teachings its own people are drawn toward.
The Ten Adornments of Well-Attained Bodhi
略說淨土相，所謂：菩薩善得阿耨多羅三藐三菩提，佛功德力，法具足，聲聞具足，菩提樹具足，世界莊嚴，眾生善利，可度者多，大眾集會，佛力具足。
善得菩提者，以十事莊嚴：一、離諸苦行，二、無厭劣心，三、速疾得，四、無求外道師，五、菩薩具足，六、無有魔怨，七、無諸留難，八、諸天大會，九、希有事具足，十、時具足。
離諸苦行者：若菩薩為阿耨多羅三藐三菩提出家，不行諸苦行，所謂：若四日、若六日、若八日、若半月、若一月，乃至食一麻、一米、一果；或但飲水，或但服氣。不以如是苦行求道，安坐道場，而成佛道。
無厭劣心者：若菩薩少得厭離心，即時出家。
速疾得者：若菩薩出家已，即得阿耨多羅三藐三菩提。
不求外道師者：若菩薩出家已，時有外道大師有名稱者，不往諮求：「汝等說何法？論何事？以何為利？」亦不於四方求索。
菩薩具足者：菩薩欲成佛道時，三千大千世界中諸菩薩，及他方諸菩薩，各持供養，具來圍繞已。待佛成道，放大光明，各共供養，從佛聞法，皆是不退轉、一生補處。
無魔怨者：若菩薩垂成佛時，無有魔軍能來破者。
無諸留難者：菩薩垂成佛時，乃至無有毫釐煩惱來入其心。
諸大眾集會者：若菩薩垂成佛時，四天王諸天、忉利諸天、夜摩天、兜率陀天、化樂天、他化自在天、梵天乃至阿迦膩吒天；諸龍神、夜叉、乾闥婆、阿修羅、迦樓羅、緊那羅、摩睺羅伽等一切諸神。十方無量世界，各持第一上妙供養之具來供養菩薩，名為大眾集會。又聲聞人言：十世界諸天盡來，名為諸天大會。
希有行具足者：若菩薩得佛時，地六種震動。十方無量三千大千世界，諸魔王宮殿，皆變壞、無色，光不復現。無量須彌山皆悉動搖，無量大海皆悉振蕩，一切世界出非時華、雨栴檀末香及諸天名華；諸希有事。
時具足者：時無疾疫、飢饉、刀兵、流離、逃迸。雨澤隨時，無諸災橫。諸國王等，如法治化，人民安樂，壽命延長。無有怨賊、諸惡鳥獸、毒虫、鬼神惱害眾生。
To speak briefly of the mark of a pure land: namely, the bodhisattva well attaining unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening; the power of the buddha's own merit; the Dharma complete; the śrāvaka assembly complete; the bodhi tree complete; the world itself adorned; sentient beings well benefited; those able to be liberated numerous; a great assembly gathered together; and the buddha's own power complete.
"Well attaining bodhi" is adorned with ten matters: first, freedom from every austerity; second, freedom from any mind of aversion or inferiority; third, swiftly attaining it; fourth, seeking no teacher among outside paths; fifth, the bodhisattva assembly complete; sixth, free of any hostile māra; seventh, free of every obstruction and hindrance; eighth, a great assembly of devas; ninth, every rare occurrence complete; tenth, the very time itself complete.
"Freedom from every austerity": should a bodhisattva go forth from home for the sake of unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening, they do not practice austerities such as fasting for four days, six days, eight days, half a month, or a full month, down to eating but a single sesame seed, a single grain of rice, or a single fruit; or drinking only water, or subsisting only on breath. Without seeking the path through austerities such as these, they sit at ease at the very seat of awakening, and thereby accomplish the path to buddhahood.
"Freedom from any mind of aversion or inferiority": should a bodhisattva give rise to even the slightest mind of weariness and renunciation, they go forth from home at once.
"Swiftly attaining it": should a bodhisattva, having already gone forth from home, attain unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening at once.
"Seeking no teacher among outside paths": should a bodhisattva, having already gone forth from home, encounter some renowned great teacher of an outside path, they do not go to inquire of them, asking: "What Dharma do you teach? What matters do you discuss? What do you hold to be beneficial?" — nor do they seek such teachers throughout the four directions.
"The bodhisattva assembly complete": when the bodhisattva is about to accomplish the path to buddhahood, the bodhisattvas throughout the three-thousandfold great thousand-world system, and bodhisattvas from every other realm besides, each bring their own offerings and come to surround them completely. Awaiting the Buddha's own accomplishment of the path, they emit great light, together make offerings, and, hearing the Dharma from the Buddha, are every one of them non-retrogressing, bound to buddhahood in a single further life.
"Free of any hostile māra": when the bodhisattva is about to accomplish buddhahood, no army of māra is able to come and destroy this attainment.
"Free of every obstruction and hindrance": when the bodhisattva is about to accomplish buddhahood, not even the slightest affliction, however faint, is able to enter their mind.
"A great assembly gathered together": when the bodhisattva is about to accomplish buddhahood, the devas of the Four Heavenly Kings, the devas of Trāyastriṃśa, the Yāma devas, the Tuṣita devas, the Nirmāṇarati devas, the Paranirmita-vaśavartin devas, the Brahmā devas up through the Akaniṣṭha devas; every nāga, yakṣa, gandharva, asura, garuḍa, kiṃnara, mahoraga, and every other spirit — throughout the immeasurable worlds of the ten directions, each brings the very finest and most sublime offerings to make offerings to this bodhisattva. This is called a great assembly gathered together. And the followers of the śrāvaka vehicle say: when the devas of ten world-systems all come, this is called a great assembly of devas.
"Every rare occurrence complete": when the bodhisattva attains buddhahood, the earth quakes in six ways. Throughout the immeasurable three-thousandfold great thousand-world systems of the ten directions, the palaces of every māra-king are transformed and destroyed, losing their own color, their light no longer appearing. Immeasurable Mount Sumerus all tremble and shake, immeasurable great oceans all surge and stir, and every world puts forth flowers out of their proper season, raining down powdered sandalwood incense and every renowned flower of the devas — occurrences such as these, rare beyond measure.
"The very time itself complete": at such a time, there is no plague, famine, warfare, displacement, or flight. Rain falls according to its proper season, free of any calamity. Every king of every land governs and transforms their people in accordance with the Dharma, so that the people dwell in peace and joy, their own lifespans extended. There is no bandit or enemy, no wicked bird or beast, no venomous insect, and no spirit that brings harm to sentient beings.
This list quietly rewrites the historical Buddha's own biography as it is normally told: six years of extreme austerity at Bodh Gayā, a long search among various teachers, and the difficult subduing of Māra's own army under the bodhi tree are each, in turn, the very things the treatise here declares absent from a properly pure attainment of buddhahood. The tension is left unresolved rather than explained away — a marker that this vow describes an idealized template for buddhahood in a pure land generally, not necessarily a claim about how Śākyamuni's own historical attainment specifically unfolded.
Buddha-Power, Dharma, and Śrāvaka Assembly Complete
佛功德力者，一切去、來、今佛威力、功德、智慧、無量深法，等無差別，但隨諸佛本願因緣，或有壽命無量；或有見者即得必定，聞名者亦得必定，女人見者即成男子身，若聞名者亦轉女身；或有聞名者即得往生；或有無量光明，眾生遇者離諸障蓋；或以光明即入必定；或以光明滅一切苦惱。
無量壽命者：壽命無量劫，過諸算數——一劫、百劫、千劫、萬劫、億劫、百千萬億那由他阿僧祇劫；如是久住，為利益憐愍眾生故。一切諸佛雖力能無量壽，以本願故，有久住世者，有不久住者。
見時得入必定者：有眾生見佛，即住阿耨多羅三藐三菩提、阿惟越致地，何以故？是諸眾生見佛身者心大歡喜、清淨悅樂，其心即攝得如是菩薩三昧。以是三昧力通達諸法實相，能直入阿耨多羅三藐三菩提必定地。是諸眾生長夜深心，種見佛入必定善根，以大悲心為首善妙清淨，為通達一切佛法故，為度一切眾生故，是善根成就時至，是故得值此佛。又以諸佛本願因緣，二事和合故，此事得成。
聞佛名入必定者：佛有本願，若聞我名者即入必定；如見佛，聞亦如是。
女人見得轉女形者：若有一心求轉女形，深自厭患，有信解力，誓願男身。如是女人，得見佛者，即轉女形。若女人無有如是業因緣，又女身業未盡，不得值如是佛。
女人聞佛名轉女形者：此事因緣，如見佛中說。
聞佛名得往生者：若人信解力多，諸善根成就，業障礙已盡，如是之人得聞佛名。又是諸佛本願因緣，便得往生。
無量光明者：一切佛光明所炤，隨意遠近。此說無量者，是其常光。常光明，不可由旬里數以為限量。遍滿東方若干百千萬億由旬，不可得量；南西北方，四維上下亦復如是。但知其無量，而莫知邊際。
遇光明得除諸蓋者：是諸佛本願力所致，貪欲、瞋恚、睡眠、調悔、疑，除此障蓋，眾生遇光即能念佛；念佛因緣故念法，念法故諸蓋得除。
光明觸身，苦惱皆滅者：若眾生墮地獄、畜生、餓鬼、非人之中，多諸苦惱。以佛本願、神通之力，光觸其身，即得離苦。
法具足者：一切諸佛法悉皆具足，無有具足、不具足者，諸佛說法同故，法俱具足。但以本願因緣故，差別不同，或有久住、不久住耳！何謂法具足？法有略說、有廣說、有略廣說。有具足聲聞乘、有具足辟支佛乘、有具足大乘。以諸神通力守護，令不為外道所壞，不為諸魔所破，久住於世。
略說者：以少言辭，包含多義，利根之人，聞則開悟。廣說者：於一事、一義種種因緣，為諸鈍根、樂分別者，敷演解說。若略廣說者：亦以一言，包舉廣義。又亦種種，演散一義。有具足聲聞乘、具足辟支佛乘、具足大乘者：此義後當說。
神力護法者：以佛神力護念是法，以諸佛印印之。諸佛印者，所謂四大因，離四黑因。
不為外道所壞者：一切沙門、婆羅門、外道論師，所有邪見說生、滅、味、患、出。又覺一切善、說破壞因緣。
不為一切魔所壞者：諸佛有無量無邊功德，智慧方便，神通力故；魔雖有力，而不能壞。又諸菩薩力故，魔不能壞。
法久住者：若一劫，若減一劫。若過數百劫、千劫、萬劫、十萬劫、百萬劫、千萬劫、萬萬劫、無量千萬億那由他阿僧祇劫，乃至無量無邊劫。
聲聞具足者：一切諸佛悉皆具足聲聞僧，但諸佛本願因緣故，有少、多差別。何謂具足？所謂：如來聲聞眾，具足持戒、禪定、智慧、解脫、解脫知見，同等清淨，悉是利根，益諸菩薩，形色嚴淨。
具足持戒者：遠離殺生、偷盜、邪婬、妄語、兩舌、惡口、綺語、飲酒、邪命等諸惡法。又毘尼所制皆悉遠離，又能成就無漏戒故。
具足禪定者：四禪、四無量心、四無色定、八解脫、八背捨、八勝處、十一切入等，及得無漏諸禪定故。
具足智慧者：成就四種智慧。從多聞生、從思惟生、從修集生、從先世業因緣果報生。
具足解脫者：於一切煩惱得解脫，又於一切障閡得解脫。
具足解脫知見者：知名識其事，見名明了其事，於解脫中了了知見無疑。又知名盡智；見名見四諦。
同等者：諸入須陀洹果，悉皆同等，乃至阿羅漢亦如是。
清淨者：成就三種清淨，身清淨、口清淨、意清淨。
利智者：但聞少語能廣解了通達義趣；略能作廣廣能作略，義理微隱能令易解。
利益菩薩者：念諸菩薩乃至初發心者亦不輕慢，深愛敬故，常開示善惡為說佛道方便因緣。
形色嚴淨者：身體姝美姿容具足，兼有相好見者歡喜。如辟支佛，行來進止，坐臥寐寤，飲食澡浴，著衣持鉢，威儀庠序無所闕少。若人見者，心則清淨。
"The buddha's own power of merit": the majestic power, merit, wisdom, and immeasurable profound Dharma of every buddha of the past, the future, and the present is equal without distinction; yet, according to the causes and conditions of each buddha's own original vow, some possess an immeasurable lifespan; some cause whoever beholds them to attain the stage of certainty at once, and whoever merely hears their name likewise attains this stage of certainty — a woman who beholds them at once becomes transformed into a man's body, and one who merely hears their name likewise has her woman's body transformed; some cause whoever merely hears their name to attain rebirth at once; some possess immeasurable light, such that sentient beings who encounter it depart from every hindrance and obstruction; some, by means of this light, cause beings to enter the stage of certainty at once; and some, by means of this light, extinguish every affliction and suffering.
"Immeasurable lifespan": a lifespan lasting immeasurable kalpas, beyond every reckoning — a single kalpa, a hundred kalpas, a thousand kalpas, ten thousand kalpas, a hundred million kalpas, or a hundred thousand ten thousand koṭis of nayutas of asaṃkhyeya kalpas; abiding for so long a time for the sake of benefiting and having compassion for sentient beings. Though every buddha, in terms of sheer power, is capable of an immeasurable lifespan, on account of their own original vow, some abide long in this world, and some do not abide long.
"Attaining the stage of certainty at the very moment of beholding them": there are sentient beings who, upon beholding a buddha, abide at once within unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening, the stage of non-retrogression. And why is this so? Because these sentient beings, beholding this buddha's own body, their mind is filled with great joy, pure delight, and their mind at once takes hold of a bodhisattva's own samādhi. By the power of this very samādhi, they penetrate the real mark of every dharma, and are thereby able to enter directly into the stage of certainty of unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening. These sentient beings, throughout the long night of saṃsāra, with a profound mind, have planted the root of goodness that is beholding a buddha and entering this stage of certainty; with a mind of great compassion foremost, wholesome, sublime, and pure, seeking to penetrate the entire Buddhadharma, and seeking to liberate every sentient being — the moment this root of goodness reaches maturity has now arrived, and it is for this reason that they come to encounter this very buddha. Further, it is through the combination of these two matters together — this root of goodness, and the causes and conditions of the buddha's own original vow — that this matter is thereby accomplished.
"Entering the stage of certainty upon hearing the buddha's own name": the buddha holds this very original vow — that whoever hears my own name shall enter the stage of certainty at once; just as with beholding the buddha, so too with hearing this name.
"A woman, upon beholding, has her woman's form transformed": should there be one who, with a single mind, seeks to have her woman's form transformed, deeply weary and troubled by it herself, possessed of the power of faith and understanding, vowing to attain a man's body — such a woman, upon coming to behold this buddha, has her woman's form transformed at once. But should a woman lack causes and conditions of karma such as this, her karma of a woman's body not yet exhausted, she does not come to encounter such a buddha.
"A woman, upon hearing the buddha's own name, has her woman's form transformed": the causes and conditions of this matter are as explained above, under beholding the buddha.
"Attaining rebirth upon hearing the buddha's own name": should a person possess abundant power of faith and understanding, every root of goodness accomplished, and the obstruction of karma already exhausted, such a person comes to hear this buddha's own name. And it is further through the causes and conditions of this buddha's own original vow that they thereby attain rebirth.
"Immeasurable light": the light of every buddha shines forth, near or far, according to its own will. What is spoken of here as "immeasurable" refers to this buddha's own constant light. This constant light cannot be measured or limited by any reckoning of yojanas or leagues — it fills, throughout the eastern direction, some hundred thousand million yojanas beyond any possible measure; and it is likewise so to the south, the west, and the north, and in the four intermediate directions, above and below. One knows only that it is immeasurable, without ever knowing where its own boundary lies.
"Encountering this light, obtaining the removal of every hindrance": this is brought about through the power of each buddha's own original vow — desire, anger, torpor, restlessness and regret, and doubt, these very hindrances and obstructions are thereby removed; sentient beings, encountering this light, are at once able to be mindful of the Buddha; and through the causes and conditions of this very mindfulness of the Buddha, they become mindful of the Dharma as well, and it is through this mindfulness of the Dharma that every such hindrance is removed.
"This light touching the body, every affliction thereby extinguished": should sentient beings fall among hell-beings, animals, hungry ghosts, or non-humans, enduring manifold affliction, it is through the power of the buddha's own original vow and spiritual power that this light touches their very body, and they at once attain freedom from this suffering.
"The Dharma complete": the Dharma of every buddha, without exception, is entirely complete — there is no such thing as one more complete and another less so, since every buddha expounds the very same Dharma, and this Dharma is, in every case, complete together. It is only through the causes and conditions of each buddha's own original vow that differences arise — some Dharma abiding long, some not abiding long. What, then, is meant by "the Dharma complete"? This Dharma may be spoken briefly, spoken at length, or spoken both briefly and at length. There is the vehicle of the śrāvaka complete, the vehicle of the pratyekabuddha complete, and the Great Vehicle complete. It is protected and guarded by the power of spiritual force, so that it may not be destroyed by any outside path, nor broken by any māra, but may abide long within this world.
"Spoken briefly": with few words, encompassing extensive meaning, such that a person of sharp faculties, upon hearing it, awakens to understanding at once. "Spoken at length": for a single matter, a single meaning, through causes and conditions of every kind, expounded and explained at length for those of dull faculties who delight in careful distinctions. "Spoken both briefly and at length": likewise, through a single utterance, encompassing extensive meaning; and likewise, through causes and conditions of every kind, unfolding a single meaning at length. As for "the vehicle of the śrāvaka complete, the vehicle of the pratyekabuddha complete, and the Great Vehicle complete" — this meaning will be explained hereafter.
"Protected by spiritual power": this Dharma is guarded and held in mind by the buddha's own spiritual power, sealed with the very seal of every buddha. "The seal of the buddhas" refers to the four great causes, and departure from the four dark causes.
"Not destroyed by any outside path": every ascetic, brahmin, and treatise-master of an outside path, whatever wrong view they hold concerning arising, cessation, savor, danger, and transcendence, and whatever they perceive to be wholesome, and whatever causes and conditions of destruction they may expound —
"Not destroyed by any māra whatsoever": every buddha possesses immeasurable, boundless merit, wisdom, skillful means, and spiritual power; though māra too possesses power, he is nonetheless unable to destroy it. And through the power of the bodhisattvas as well, māra is unable to destroy it.
"The Dharma abiding long": whether for a single kalpa, or less than a single kalpa; or beyond several hundred kalpas, a thousand kalpas, ten thousand kalpas, a hundred thousand kalpas, a million kalpas, ten million kalpas, a hundred million kalpas, or immeasurable hundred thousand koṭis of nayutas of asaṃkhyeya kalpas, even up to immeasurable, boundless kalpas.
"The śrāvaka assembly complete": every buddha, without exception, possesses this śrāvaka saṅgha complete; yet, through the causes and conditions of each buddha's own original vow, there are differences of fewer or more. What, then, is meant by "complete"? Namely: the Thus Come One's own assembly of śrāvakas, complete in upholding the precepts, meditative concentration, wisdom, liberation, and the knowledge and vision of liberation, equally alike in purity, every one of them of sharp faculties, benefiting the bodhisattvas, their own form and appearance adorned and pure.
"Complete in upholding the precepts": departed far from killing living beings, stealing, sexual misconduct, false speech, divisive speech, harsh speech, idle speech, drinking alcohol, wrong livelihood, and every such evil dharma; further departed entirely from whatever the Vinaya proscribes; and further able to accomplish the uncontaminated precepts.
"Complete in meditative concentration": the four dhyānas, the four immeasurables, the four formless absorptions, the eight liberations, the eight forms of renunciation, the eight bases of mastery, the ten totalities, and the rest, together with attaining every uncontaminated meditative absorption.
"Complete in wisdom": accomplishing four kinds of wisdom — arising from vast learning, arising from reflection, arising from cultivation, and arising from the ripened fruit of karma from former lives.
"Complete in liberation": liberated from every affliction, and further liberated from every obstruction and hindrance.
"Complete in the knowledge and vision of liberation": "knowledge" means knowing and recognizing this very matter; "vision" means clearly comprehending this very matter — within liberation itself, knowing and seeing it with full clarity, free of any doubt. Further, "knowledge" means the knowledge of exhaustion; "vision" means seeing the four noble truths.
"Equally alike": every one who enters the fruit of stream-entry is entirely equal and alike, and this holds likewise up through arhatship.
"Pure": accomplishing three kinds of purity — purity of body, purity of speech, and purity of mind.
"Of sharp faculties": upon hearing but a few words, able to understand and penetrate their meaning and intent extensively; able to expand what is brief into what is extensive, and to compress what is extensive into what is brief, causing meaning that is subtle and obscure to be easily understood.
"Benefiting the bodhisattvas": mindful of the bodhisattvas, never once slighting even one who has only just given rise to the aspiration, but, out of deep love and reverence, constantly revealing what is wholesome and what is unwholesome, expounding the skillful means and causes of the path to buddhahood.
"Their own form and appearance adorned and pure": their bodies handsome and fine, their bearing complete, further possessing the excellent marks, a joy to behold. Just as with a pratyekabuddha, in coming and going, advancing and halting, sitting and lying, waking and sleeping, eating and bathing, donning robes and holding the bowl, their own bearing is dignified and orderly, lacking in nothing whatsoever. Whoever beholds such a one, their own mind is thereby made pure.
The specific vow — that a woman who beholds this buddha, or merely hears his name, has her woman's form transformed into a man's — reflects an assumption common across much of the Buddhist literature of this period: that femaleness itself is treated as a karmic condition some practitioners actively vow to be freed from, on a level with the removal of any other hindrance or obstruction. Nāgārjuna neither defends nor questions this premise here; he simply catalogues it as one among many powers a buddha's original vow might grant, alongside immeasurable light and immeasurable lifespan.
The Bodhi Tree, World, Beings, and Assembly Complete
菩提樹具足者：所有大樹——娑羅樹、多羅樹、提羅迦樹、多摩羅樹、婆求羅樹、瞻蔔樹、阿輸迦樹、娑呵迦羅樹、分那摩樹、那摩樹、那迦樹、尸利沙樹、涅劬陀樹、阿輸陀樹、波勒叉樹、憂曇鉢羅樹等。於此諸大樹中隨取一樹，在平地者，高廣具足；根、莖、枝、葉滋潤茂盛，華色鮮明無有傷缺。其樹舉高五十由旬，端直平澤，無有盤節；皮膚細軟，色白鮮淨；無有刺閡，內不朽腐。又不空中虫蝎傷齧。其根深固連編相次。其華嚴飾如鬘瓔珞。枝葉蔚茂猶如圓蓋。次第分布功殊人造。其葉青鮮猶如寶色，枝無絞戾萎黃枯葉，無有虫蟻蚊蚋虻蟻。其下清淨布諸金沙，種種光明周匝炤燿，栴檀香水以灑其地，平坦柔軟清涼快樂，牛頭栴檀細末布上。諸天常雨曼陀羅華，燒黑沈香芬馨流溢，五色天繒參羅垂列，清風微動猗靡隨順，鳥獸遊側寂然無聲。其樹左右天常雨華，眾妙雜色自然間錯，垂以為瓔猶如龍身，身上往往懸以金色華貫，四面大枝垂寶羅網。眾寶莊嚴猶紫金山，巍巍姝妙如帝釋幢。斯由菩薩百千萬億阿僧祇劫，修集善行功德所致。種種妙寶化為師子王，四師子頂上有大寶床敷諸天繒。四天王天、忉利諸天、夜摩天、兜率陀天、化樂天、他化自在天、梵天乃至阿迦膩吒天，乘琉璃、車璩、馬瑙、大青寶、帝青寶、金剛、頗梨眾寶宮殿，其色無比光明遠炤，俱集寶樹圍繞供養。又十方無量世界諸菩薩眾隨本所願備諸供具，雨眾寶物花香幡蓋種種伎樂等。是名具足菩提樹。
世間莊嚴者：菩薩觀察十方清淨國土最上妙者而發大願：我修集功德所得國土，復勝於此，第一無比。
眾生善利者：眾生端正，無諸疾患，無有老病，壽無量阿僧祇劫，悉皆化生，身無眾穢，具足三十二相，光明無量，煩惱微薄，易可化度。
可度具足者：一坐說法，恒河沙眾生同時得度，自有餘佛演說法時度一人二人，是諸眾生宿種善根，結使微薄聞說即悟。
大眾集會者：有佛大會滿一由旬，或十由旬，有百千萬億由旬，有滿三千大千世界。此中大集會者：十方恒河沙世界以為大會；又其會中但是福德之人，及諸天八部，初地菩薩乃至十住悉共來會，唯除諸佛。
佛力具足者：諸佛所行四十不共法，是一一法所行處，一切無量無邊。
是第七願。
"The bodhi tree complete": among the great trees — the sāla tree, the tāla tree, the tilaka tree, the tamāla tree, the vakula tree, the campaka tree, the aśoka tree, the sahakāra tree, the puṇḍarīka tree, the nāma tree, the nāga tree, the śirīṣa tree, the nyagrodha tree, the aśvattha tree, the palāśa tree, and the udumbara tree, and the rest — taking any one of these great trees, standing upon level ground, complete in its own height and breadth; its roots, trunk, branches, and leaves lush and flourishing, the color of its flowers bright and unblemished. This tree rises fifty yojanas in height, straight and even, without any gnarled knot; its bark fine and soft, its color white, bright, and pure; free of any thorn or obstruction, its interior never rotting or decaying, and never bored through or gnawed by any insect. Its roots run deep and firm, interlaced in sequence. Its flowers are adorned as though with garlands and jeweled necklaces. Its branches and leaves grow lush and abundant, just like a round canopy, arranged in sequence with a skill surpassing any human craft. Its leaves are fresh and green, the very color of jewels; its branches never twisted, never bearing any withered or fallen leaf, free of any insect, ant, mosquito, or gnat. Beneath it, spread out in purity, lies golden sand, shimmering with light of every kind on every side; sandalwood-scented water sprinkles the ground, level, soft, cool, and pleasant, with fine powder of ox-head sandalwood scattered upon it. The devas constantly rain down mandārava flowers, and the fragrance of burning black agarwood incense flows and overflows; banners of five-colored heavenly silk hang draped in rows; a gentle, cool breeze stirs softly, and birds and beasts roam nearby in tranquil silence. To the left and right of this tree, the devas constantly rain down flowers, every wondrous and varied color naturally interwoven, hanging down as garlands like the very body of a dragon; upon this body, strings of golden flowers hang here and there, and from its four great branches on every side hang nets of jeweled treasure. Adorned with every treasure, it is like a mountain of purple gold, towering and beautiful as Śakra's own banner. This is brought about through the bodhisattva's own cultivation and gathering of wholesome conduct and merit across a hundred thousand million asaṃkhyeya kalpas. Every kind of wondrous treasure transforms into a lion-king, and atop the heads of four such lions rests a great jeweled couch spread with heavenly silks. The devas of the Four Heavenly Kings, the devas of Trāyastriṃśa, the Yāma devas, the Tuṣita devas, the Nirmāṇarati devas, the Paranirmita-vaśavartin devas, the Brahmā devas up through the Akaniṣṭha devas, riding in palaces of every treasure — lapis lazuli, mother-of-pearl, agate, great sapphire, indranīla, vajra, and crystal — their own color beyond compare, their light shining far, all gather together around this jeweled tree, surrounding it and making offerings. And the assembled bodhisattvas of the immeasurable worlds of the ten directions, following their own original vows, prepare offerings of every kind, raining down every treasure, flowers and incense, banners and canopies, and music of every kind. This is called the bodhi tree complete.
"The world itself adorned": the bodhisattva, contemplating the very finest and most sublime pure lands throughout the ten directions, gives rise to this great vow: "May the land I obtain, through cultivating and gathering merit, surpass even these, foremost and beyond compare."
"Sentient beings well benefited": sentient beings of upright and fine appearance, free of every disease, free of old age and sickness, their lifespan immeasurable asaṃkhyeya kalpas, every one of them born through transformation, their bodies free of any impurity, fully possessed of the thirty-two marks, their light immeasurable, their afflictions slight and thin, easily transformed and liberated.
"Those able to be liberated complete": in a single sitting of expounding the Dharma, sentient beings as numerous as the sands of the Ganges attain liberation all at once — whereas, in other buddha-lands, when the Dharma is expounded, only one or two persons are liberated at a time. These sentient beings, having long since planted roots of goodness, their own fetters slight and thin, awaken at once upon merely hearing this exposition.
"A great assembly gathered together": there are buddha-assemblies filling a single yojana, or ten yojanas, or a hundred thousand million yojanas, or filling an entire three-thousandfold great thousand-world system. What is meant here by "a great assembly gathered together" is this: the worlds of the ten directions, as numerous as the sands of the Ganges, together constitute this great assembly; and within this very assembly are found only persons of merit, together with the eight classes of devas and spirits, and bodhisattvas from the first ground up through the tenth abiding — all gathered together in this assembly, excepting only the buddhas themselves.
"The buddha's own power complete": the forty uncommon dharmas practiced by every buddha — the very field in which each and every one of these dharmas operates is, in every case, immeasurable and boundless.
This is the seventh vow.
The bodhi tree description here shares its central image with the great jeweled tree Shandao's own Contemplation Sūtra Commentary, already translated on this site, describes Amitābha seated beneath in one of his own dream-visions — a single tree, fifty yojanas tall, adorned with garlands, jeweled nets, and a lion-throne beneath it, encircled by devas bearing offerings. Whether this convergence traces a shared literary inheritance across centuries of Buddhist visionary description, or simply reflects how thoroughly this particular image had become the standard vocabulary for describing a buddha's own seat of awakening, the resemblance is striking enough to note.
Vows Eight Through Ten, and Their Completeness
復次——俱行於一事， 願無有怨競。
若菩薩所作福德，若布施、持戒、忍辱、精進、禪定、智慧；若諦、捨、滅、慧四功德處，若因諸大願，求佛道時應作是願：「若有餘人同我行此六波羅蜜、四功德處，求佛道者，願我以此福德因緣，不於餘人而生怨競，何以故？同行一事。」諸有智者說有怨相，世間亦復現有此事。除此過故，發是大願。是第八願。
復次——願行菩薩道， 轉不退轉輪，令除諸煩惱， 得入信清淨。
輪者，法輪。不退轉者，無人能壞。菩薩應如是發願：「我當如說行道，必轉不退法輪，轉此法輪除諸眾生三毒煩惱。轉捨生死入佛法眾，苦、集、滅、道中使得清淨。」是第九願。
復次——願一切世界， 皆示成菩提。
隨諸世界應有佛事處，盡於其中示得阿耨多羅三藐三菩提，安樂一切眾生故，滅度一切眾生故，以阿耨多羅三藐三菩提大故獨說；其餘入胎、出胎、生長在家、出家受戒苦行、降伏魔眾、梵王勸請、及轉法輪，大眾集會廣度眾生，現大神力示大滅度。如此諸事悉皆如是應作。是知有如是無量力，能利無量無邊眾生，不應但於一國示成佛道。有人言：「於一佛國所有四天下，諸閻浮提是一佛土，過此已外唯佛能知。」而實不爾。是第十願。
復次——如是諸菩薩， 十大願為首，廣大如虛空， 盡於未來際；及餘無量願， 亦各分別說。
願名：心所貪樂，求欲必成。十者：有十種門。廣大如虛空者：願所緣方，如所有虛空處；願亦如是。盡未來際者：願時所住，盡一切眾生未來生死際。有人言：阿耨多羅三藐三菩提是未來世生死際，若諸佛入無餘涅槃是生死後際。菩薩志願無盡，而實成佛則止，一切十方世界諸大菩薩，皆有是願。餘無量願者：諸菩薩成就無量、希有功德故，諸所有願，不可盡說。
Furthermore: "In practicing together in a single matter, I vow that no resentment or rivalry should ever arise."
Should the bodhisattva's own accumulated merit — whether through giving, upholding the precepts, patient endurance, diligent effort, meditative concentration, or wisdom; or through the four abodes of merit of truth, generosity, cessation, and wisdom; or through their own great vows — at the moment of seeking the path to buddhahood, they should give rise to this very vow: "Should there be any other person likewise practicing these six pāramitās and these four abodes of merit, likewise seeking the path to buddhahood, I vow that, through the causes and conditions of this very merit, no resentment or rivalry should ever arise between myself and that other person. And why is this so? Because we practice this same single matter together." Every person of wisdom acknowledges that a mark of resentment can arise here, and this matter does indeed manifest itself within the world. It is in order to remove this very fault that this great vow is given rise to. This is the eighth vow.
Furthermore: "I vow to practice the bodhisattva path, turning the wheel of non-retrogression, causing the removal of every affliction, and attaining entry into the purity of faith."
"Wheel" refers to the wheel of the Dharma. "Non-retrogression" means that no one is able to destroy it. The bodhisattva should give rise to this very vow: "I shall practice this path exactly as it has been taught, and shall certainly turn this wheel of the Dharma, never to retrogress; and by turning this very wheel, I shall remove the threefold poison of affliction from every sentient being. I shall cause them to turn away from and relinquish birth and death, entering into the very assembly of the Buddhadharma, and, within the truths of suffering, its arising, its cessation, and the path, I shall cause them to attain purity." This is the ninth vow.
Furthermore: "I vow that, throughout every world, I might reveal the accomplishment of awakening."
According to whichever worlds ought to be the site of the buddha's own deeds, within every one of them, I shall reveal the attainment of unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening — for the sake of bringing peace and joy to every sentient being, and for the sake of liberating every sentient being. Because unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening is so great a matter, it alone is spoken of here; but the remaining events — entering the womb, emerging from the womb, growing up as a householder, going forth from home to receive the precepts and practice austerities, subduing the host of māra, being entreated by Brahmā, and turning the wheel of the Dharma, gathering a great assembly and extensively liberating sentient beings, manifesting great spiritual power, and revealing the great passing into extinction — every one of these events should likewise be enacted in just this same way. One should know that, possessing power such as this, immeasurable, able to benefit sentient beings immeasurable and boundless in number, it would not be fitting to reveal the accomplishment of buddhahood within a single land alone. Some say: "Within a single buddha-land's own four continents, each Jambudvīpa constitutes one single buddha-land; beyond this, only a buddha himself is able to know." But this is, in truth, not so. This is the tenth vow.
Furthermore: "Thus do these bodhisattvas, taking these ten great vows as their foremost head, vast and expansive as empty space itself, extending to the very end of the future — and every further immeasurable vow besides, each expounded and distinguished in turn."
"Vow" is named for what the mind delights in and craves, seeking that it shall certainly be accomplished. "Ten" refers to ten distinct gates. "Vast and expansive as empty space itself": the scope this vow extends to is as vast as empty space itself extends — this vow is likewise so. "Extending to the very end of the future": the span of time this vow abides within extends to the very end of the future stream of birth and death of every sentient being. Some say: unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening is itself the future end of birth and death; while a buddha's own entry into nirvāṇa without remainder is the end that comes after birth and death itself. The bodhisattva's own resolve and vow is inexhaustible; yet, once buddhahood is truly accomplished, it comes to rest — every great bodhisattva throughout the worlds of the ten directions possesses this very vow. As for "every further immeasurable vow": since bodhisattvas accomplish immeasurable, rare qualities of merit, the entirety of their vows cannot be exhaustively described.
The tenth vow's own closing admission — that it would not be fitting for buddhahood to be revealed within a single land alone, followed immediately by the treatise rejecting the narrower view that a single Jambudvīpa constitutes an entire buddha-land — pushes the treatise's own cosmology outward at exactly the moment its argument requires it: a vow this vast needs a canvas large enough to actually enact it upon, immeasurable buddha-fields rather than one.
Giving Rise to Bodhicitta: Seven Causes
復次——菩薩發如是， 十大願究竟。
是十大願，有十究竟事。何等為十？答曰：眾生性、世性， 虛空性、法性，涅槃、佛生性， 諸佛智性竟，一切心所緣， 諸佛行處智，世間法智轉， 是名十究竟。
初、眾生性竟，二、世間性竟，三、虛空性竟，四、法性性竟，五、涅槃性竟，六、佛生性竟，七、諸佛智性竟，八、一切心所緣竟，九、諸佛行處智竟，十、世間法智轉竟；是名十究竟。
問曰：汝言「竟」，何者為「竟」？此義應分別。
答曰：眾生性若竟， 我願亦復竟；如眾生等竟， 如是諸願竟。竟義名無竟， 我善根無竟。
眾生性竟者：若眾生都盡滅，我願便應息；隨世間性盡、虛空性盡、諸法性盡、涅槃性盡、諸佛生性盡、諸佛智性盡、一切眾生心所緣性盡、入佛法智性盡、世間轉、法轉、智轉盡，我此十願爾乃盡息；但是眾生性等十事實不盡，我是福德善根亦不盡、不息。
不息義者：無量、無邊、不可思議，過諸算數名為不息。
如此三千大千世界、十方無量、無邊過諸算數故，名為世間無邊。是諸世界中，三界六趣眾生無邊故，名為眾生性無邊。是一切世界中，內外二種虛空性無邊故，名為虛空性無邊。是諸世界中，欲、色、無色，無漏性所攝有為法無邊故，名為法性無邊。若一切眾生滅度，涅槃性不增不減，是故涅槃性無邊。若過去十方諸佛無量、無邊，今現在十方諸佛亦無量、無邊，未來十方世界諸佛亦無量、無邊。是故佛生性無邊。諸佛智無量、不可稱、不可量，無等、無等等、無對、無比故；諸佛智性亦無量、無邊，如佛告阿難：「是聲聞人、諸佛智無量。」是故諸佛智性無量、無邊。於過去世一一眾生無量、無邊心，是諸心皆有緣生，未來世亦如是，現在世一切眾生心亦無量、無邊皆有緣生；是故心所緣亦無量、無邊。諸佛力略說有四十不共法。是四十不共法，一一法行處無量、無邊。行處無量、無邊故，智亦無量、無邊，是故說佛行處智無量、無邊。
世間轉、法轉、智轉者：轉名「以此法，有所轉。」世間者：世間有二種：國土世間、眾生世間。此中說眾生世間。諸佛及諸菩薩，以無量、無邊方便力引導眾生。法轉者：以無量、無邊善根福德，攝取諸佛法。智轉者：無量諸善法、六波羅蜜、十地等攝取佛智，是故智轉無邊。此三同轉故，合為一願。
是菩薩一一願牢堅故，成是十無盡願。方如虛空，時如未來際。如是以略說、廣說，解是十願究竟。
Furthermore: "Thus does the bodhisattva give rise to these ten great vows, complete to their very end."
These ten great vows possess ten matters of finality. What, then, are these ten? Answer: "The nature of sentient beings; the nature of the world; the nature of empty space; the nature of dharmas; the nature of nirvāṇa; the nature of the buddhas' own arising; the nature of the buddhas' own wisdom exhausted; every object of every mind; the wisdom of the buddhas' own field of activity; and the turning of worldly dharmas and wisdom — these are named the ten points of finality."
First, the finality of the nature of sentient beings; second, the finality of the nature of the world; third, the finality of the nature of empty space; fourth, the finality of the nature of dharmas; fifth, the finality of the nature of nirvāṇa; sixth, the finality of the nature of the buddhas' own arising; seventh, the finality of the nature of the buddhas' own wisdom; eighth, the finality of every object of every mind; ninth, the finality of the wisdom of the buddhas' own field of activity; tenth, the finality of the turning of worldly dharmas and wisdom — these are named the ten points of finality.
Question: You speak of "finality" — what, then, constitutes this "finality"? This meaning ought to be distinguished carefully.
Answer: "Should the nature of sentient beings itself reach its end, my own vow would likewise reach its end; just as the nature of sentient beings and the rest reach their end, so too would every one of these vows reach its end. Yet the very meaning of 'end' here is that there is no end at all — my own root of goodness is thus without end."
As for "the finality of the nature of sentient beings": were sentient beings entirely exhausted and extinguished altogether, my own vow ought then to cease; and likewise, were the nature of the world exhausted, the nature of empty space exhausted, the nature of every dharma exhausted, the nature of nirvāṇa exhausted, the nature of the buddhas' own arising exhausted, the nature of the buddhas' own wisdom exhausted, the nature of the object of every sentient being's mind exhausted, the wisdom that enters the Buddhadharma exhausted, and the turning of the world, the turning of the Dharma, and the turning of wisdom all exhausted — only then would these ten vows of mine finally come to cease. But since these ten matters, the nature of sentient beings and the rest, are in truth never exhausted, my own merit and roots of goodness are likewise never exhausted, and never cease.
As for the meaning of "never ceasing": immeasurable, boundless, inconceivable, beyond every reckoning — this is what is meant by never ceasing.
Just as this three-thousandfold great thousand-world system, and the immeasurable, boundless worlds of the ten directions, are beyond every reckoning, this is called the boundlessness of the world. Within these very worlds, since the sentient beings of the three realms and the six destinies are boundless, this is called the boundlessness of the nature of sentient beings. Within every one of these worlds, since the two kinds of space, internal and external, are boundless, this is called the boundlessness of the nature of empty space. Within these very worlds, since the conditioned dharmas subsumed within the desire realm, the form realm, the formless realm, and the uncontaminated nature are boundless, this is called the boundlessness of the nature of dharmas. Were every sentient being to attain liberation, the nature of nirvāṇa would neither increase nor decrease — it is for this reason that the nature of nirvāṇa is boundless. Since the buddhas of the past throughout the ten directions are immeasurable and boundless, and the buddhas presently existing throughout the ten directions are likewise immeasurable and boundless, and the buddhas of the worlds of the ten directions yet to come are likewise immeasurable and boundless, it is for this reason that the nature of the buddhas' own arising is boundless. Since the wisdom of the buddhas is immeasurable, beyond description, beyond measure, without equal, without any equal to their equal, without counterpart, and beyond comparison, the very nature of the buddhas' own wisdom is likewise immeasurable and boundless — just as the Buddha told Ānanda: "Even for one of the śrāvaka assembly, the wisdom of the buddhas is immeasurable." It is for this reason that the nature of the buddhas' own wisdom is immeasurable and boundless. Throughout the past, the immeasurable, boundless minds of each and every sentient being have all arisen with their own object; it is likewise so throughout the future; and throughout the present, the minds of every sentient being are likewise immeasurable and boundless, each arising with its own object — it is for this reason that the object of every mind is likewise immeasurable and boundless. The power of the buddhas, spoken briefly, comprises the forty uncommon dharmas. Within these forty uncommon dharmas, the very field in which each and every one of these dharmas operates is immeasurable and boundless. Since this field of activity is immeasurable and boundless, the wisdom that knows it is likewise immeasurable and boundless — it is for this reason that the wisdom of the buddhas' own field of activity is said to be immeasurable and boundless.
As for "the turning of the world, the turning of the Dharma, and the turning of wisdom": "turning" is named for the fact that, by means of this very Dharma, something is thereby turned. "The world" is of two kinds: the world of the physical land, and the world of sentient beings; what is spoken of here is the world of sentient beings. The buddhas and the bodhisattvas, by means of immeasurable, boundless skillful means, guide and lead sentient beings. "The turning of the Dharma" means that, by means of immeasurable, boundless roots of goodness and merit, the Dharma of every buddha is thereby taken hold of. "The turning of wisdom" means that immeasurable wholesome dharmas, the six pāramitās, the ten grounds, and the rest, take hold of the buddhas' own wisdom — it is for this reason that the turning of wisdom is boundless. Since these three turnings occur together, they are gathered together as a single vow.
It is because each and every one of these vows of the bodhisattva is firm and unshakeable that these ten inexhaustible vows are thereby accomplished. Their own scope is as vast as empty space itself; their own duration extends to the very end of the future. Thus, through both brief and extensive explanation, these ten vows are here explained to their very completion.
The tenfold "finality" that closes the vow section performs a deliberate rhetorical trick: it names ten conditions under which the bodhisattva's own vow would cease, then demonstrates, one by one, that every single one of these ten conditions is itself boundless and therefore can never actually obtain. The vow is not declared inexhaustible by simple assertion; it is derived, formally, from the boundlessness of everything it depends upon. This is the same underlying method as the earlier sixth vow's exhaustive dharma-list — completeness of enumeration used to certify that nothing has been left out of the scope of the claim.
The Seven Causes, in Full
發菩提心品第六
問曰：初發心是諸願根本，云何為初發心？
答曰：初發菩提心， 或三四因緣。
眾生初發菩提心，或以三因緣，或以四因緣，如是和合有七因緣，發阿耨多羅三藐三菩提心。
問曰：何等為七？
答曰：一者諸如來， 令發菩提心；二見法欲壞， 守護故發心；三於眾生中， 大悲而發心；四或有菩薩， 教發菩提心；五見菩薩行， 亦隨而發心；或因布施已， 而發菩提心；或見佛身相， 歡喜而發心；以是七因緣， 而發菩提心。
佛令發心者：佛以佛眼觀眾生，知其善根淳熟，堪任能得阿耨多羅三藐三菩提。如是人者，佛教令發心，作是言：「善男子來！今可發心當度苦惱眾生。」
或復有人生在惡世，見法欲壞，為守護故，發心作是念：「咄哉！從無量無邊百千萬億阿僧祇劫來，唯有一人，二處行，出三界，四聖諦大導師，知五種法藏，脫於六道，有七種正法大寶，深行八解脫，以九部經教化，有十大力，說十一種功德，善轉十二因緣相續，說十三助聖道法，有十四覺意大寶，除十五種貪欲，并得十六心無礙解脫，出十六地獄眾生，及身十七具足，十八不共法，善分別十九住果人，善知分別學人、阿羅漢、辟支佛、諸佛，二十根是。」
大悲心者：是大將主、大眾主、大醫王、大導師、大船師，久乃得是法；行難行苦行，乃得是法。而今欲壞，我當發阿耨多羅三藐三菩提心，厚種善根得成佛道，令法久住無數阿僧祇劫。又行菩薩道時，護持無量諸佛法故勤行精進。
或復有人見眾生苦惱可愍，無救、無歸，無所依止，流轉生死險難惡道。有大怨賊諸惡虫獸，生死恐怖諸惡鬼等。常有憂悲苦惱刺蕀，恩愛別離怨會深坑。喜樂之水甚為難得，大寒大熱獨行其中。曠絕無蔭，難得度脫，眾生於中多諸怖畏，無有救護將導之者。見如是眾生，入此生死險惡道中，受諸苦惱，以大悲故發阿耨多羅三藐三菩提心，作是言：「我當為無救作救、無歸作歸、無依作依。我得度已當度眾生，我得脫已當脫眾生，我得安已當安眾生。」
復有人但從人聞，以信樂心等發無上道心，作是念：「我當修善法不斷絕故，或墮必定得無生法忍。集諸福德善根淳熟故，或值諸佛或值大菩薩，能知眾生諸根利鈍，深心本末，性欲差別，善知方便，為般若波羅蜜所護，能作佛事者知我發願，善根成熟故令住必定。若無生法忍，是諸菩薩在第七、第八、第九、第十地，如佛善知眾生心力，教令發心；不以但有信樂力等教令發心。」
復有人見餘菩薩行道，修諸善根，大悲所護，具足方便，教化眾生。不惜身命，多所利益。廣博多聞，世間奇特人中標勝。疲苦眾生為作蔭覆。安住布施、持戒、忍辱、精進、禪定、智慧，慚愧、質直、柔軟、調和。其心清淨深樂善法，見如是人而作是念：「是人所行我亦應行，所修願行我亦應修；我為得是法故，當發是願。」作是念已，發無上道心。
復有人行大布施，施佛及僧；或但施佛以飲食、衣服等。是人因是布施，念過去諸菩薩能行施者，韋藍摩、韋首多羅、薩婆檀、尸毘王等，即發菩提心：「以此施福，迴向阿耨多羅三藐三菩提。」
復有人若見若聞佛三十二相——足下平、手足輪、指網縵、手足柔軟、七處滿、纖長指、足跟廣、身傭直、足趺高平、毛上旋、伊泥[跳-兆+專]、臂長過膝、陰馬藏、身金色、皮軟薄、一一孔一毛生、眉間白毫、上身如師子、肩圓大、腋下滿、得知妙味、身方如尼拘樓陀樹、頂有肉髻、廣長舌、梵音聲、師子頰、四十齒、齊白、密緻、眼睛紺青色、睫如牛王等相，心則歡喜作是念：「我亦當得如是相，如是相人所得諸法我亦當得，即發阿耨多羅三藐三菩提心。」
以是七因緣發菩提心。
Giving Rise to Bodhicitta Chapter
Question: Since the very first arising of this aspiration is the root of every vow, what, then, constitutes this first arising of the aspiration?
Answer: "The first arising of bodhicitta comes about through either three or four causes and conditions."
When sentient beings first give rise to bodhicitta, this comes about either through three causes and conditions, or through four; combined together in this way, there are seven causes and conditions by which the mind of unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening is given rise to.
Question: What, then, are these seven?
Answer: "First, the Thus Come Ones themselves cause this bodhicitta to be given rise to. Second, seeing the Dharma about to perish, one gives rise to this mind in order to protect it. Third, amid sentient beings, one gives rise to this mind through great compassion. Fourth, there may be a bodhisattva who teaches another to give rise to bodhicitta. Fifth, beholding a bodhisattva's own conduct, one likewise gives rise to this mind in turn. Or, through an act of giving, one gives rise to bodhicitta. Or, beholding a buddha's own bodily marks, one gives rise to this mind in joy. Through these seven causes and conditions, bodhicitta is given rise to."
As for "the Buddha causing this aspiration to be given rise to": the Buddha, beholding sentient beings with the buddha-eye, knows whose roots of goodness have ripened fully, capable of attaining unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening. To a person such as this, the Buddha teaches them to give rise to this aspiration, saying: "Come, good son! You may now give rise to this aspiration, and shall liberate sentient beings from their suffering and affliction."
Or there may be a person born into an evil age, who, beholding the Dharma about to perish, gives rise to this aspiration in order to protect it, thinking: "Alas! Throughout immeasurable, boundless hundred thousand million asaṃkhyeya kalpas, there has been but a single person, walking these two paths, departing the three realms, the great guide of the four noble truths, who knows the five kinds of Dharma-treasury, freed from the six destinies, possessing the seven kinds of true Dharma's own great treasure, deeply practicing the eight liberations, teaching and transforming beings by means of the nine divisions of scripture, possessing the ten great powers, expounding the eleven kinds of merit, skillfully turning the twelve links of dependent origination in unbroken sequence, expounding the thirteen dharmas that assist the noble path, possessing the fourteen great treasures of the factors of awakening, removing the fifteen kinds of craving, and further attaining the sixteen unobstructed liberations of mind, liberating the sentient beings of the sixteen hells, his own body complete with the seventeen, the eighteen uncommon dharmas, skillfully distinguishing the nineteen persons who abide in the fruit, skillfully distinguishing the trainee, the arhat, the pratyekabuddha, and the buddhas, and the twenty faculties — this is he."
As for "a mind of great compassion": he is the great general, the great leader of the assembly, the great physician-king, the great guide, the great captain of the ship — it took long ages before this very Dharma was attained; it was only through the practice of austerities difficult to practice that this Dharma was finally attained. And now that it is about to perish, I shall give rise to the mind of unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening, abundantly planting roots of goodness in order to accomplish the path to buddhahood, causing this Dharma to abide long across countless asaṃkhyeya kalpas. And, while practicing the bodhisattva path, I shall diligently exert myself for the sake of guarding and upholding the immeasurable Dharma of every buddha.
Or there may be a person who, beholding sentient beings' own suffering and affliction, pitiable, without rescue, without refuge, without any support to rely upon, cast adrift within the perilous and evil destinies of birth and death — beset by great and hostile bandits, wicked insects and beasts, the terror of birth and death, and every manner of evil spirit; constantly pierced by the thorns of grief, sorrow, and affliction, by separation from those they love and encounter with those they resent, as though into a deep pit; the very water of joy exceedingly hard to find, enduring extreme cold and extreme heat, walking this path entirely alone; a vast, desolate expanse without any shelter, difficult indeed to be liberated from — sentient beings within it beset by every manner of terror, with no one at all to rescue, protect, or guide them — beholding sentient beings such as these, entering into this perilous and evil path of birth and death, enduring every affliction, gives rise, through great compassion, to the mind of unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening, saying: "I shall become a rescuer for those without rescue, a refuge for those without refuge, a support for those without support. Having attained liberation myself, I shall then liberate sentient beings; having attained freedom myself, I shall then free sentient beings; having attained peace myself, I shall then bring peace to sentient beings."
Or there may be a person who, merely hearing this from another, with a mind of faith and delight alone, gives rise to the aspiration for the unsurpassed path, thinking: "I shall cultivate wholesome dharmas without ever letting them be severed, and may thereby fall into the stage of certainty, attaining the acceptance of the non-arising of all dharmas. Through gathering merit and roots of goodness until they ripen fully, I may encounter the buddhas themselves, or encounter great bodhisattvas, able to know the sharpness or dullness of sentient beings' own faculties, the roots and branches of their profound minds, and the differences of their own natures and desires, skillfully knowing every skillful means, protected by the perfection of wisdom, able to accomplish the very deeds of a buddha — knowing my own aspiration, and, my own roots of goodness having ripened fully, causing me to abide within this stage of certainty. Should this be the acceptance of the non-arising of all dharmas, these very bodhisattvas dwell upon the seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth grounds — just as the Buddha himself, skillfully knowing the strength of each sentient being's own mind, teaches them accordingly to give rise to this aspiration; it is not by the power of faith and delight alone that they are taught to give rise to this aspiration."
Or there may be a person who, beholding some other bodhisattva practicing this path, cultivating every root of goodness, protected by great compassion, fully possessed of skillful means, teaching and transforming sentient beings, begrudging neither body nor life, bringing benefit far and wide, vastly learned, a singular and outstanding figure amid the world, a shelter for beings weary with suffering, abiding securely in giving, upholding the precepts, patient endurance, diligent effort, meditative concentration, and wisdom, possessed of a sense of shame and reverence, straightforward, gentle, and harmonious, their mind pure and deeply delighting in the wholesome Dharma — beholding a person such as this, thinks: "What this person practices, I too ought to practice; the vows and conduct they cultivate, I too ought to cultivate; it is in order to attain this very Dharma that I shall now give rise to this vow." Having reflected in this way, they give rise to the aspiration for the unsurpassed path.
Or there may be a person who practices great giving, giving to the Buddha and the Saṅgha; or who merely gives food, drink, clothing, and the like to the Buddha alone. This person, through this very act of giving, becomes mindful of the bodhisattvas of the past who were able to practice giving — Velāma, Viśvaṃtara, Sarvadatta, King Śibi, and the rest — and at once gives rise to bodhicitta: "By means of the merit of this giving, I dedicate it toward unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening."
Or there may be a person who, seeing or hearing of the Buddha's own thirty-two marks — the soles of the feet level and even; the palms and soles marked with a wheel; the fingers and toes webbed; the hands and feet soft and supple; seven places full; slender, tapered fingers; broad heels; the body upright and straight; the instep high and even; body-hair curling upward; the calves shaped like those of the antelope king; arms long enough to reach past the knees; the male organ concealed as a horse's own; the body the color of gold; the skin soft and fine; a single hair growing from each pore; a white curl of hair between the eyebrows; the upper body like a lion's own; broad, rounded shoulders; the armpits full; the ability to taste every subtle flavor; the body square in proportion like a nyagrodha tree; a fleshy protuberance atop the crown; a broad, long tongue; the voice of Brahmā; a lion's own cheeks; forty teeth, even and white, and closely set; eyes the color of deep blue lotus; eyelashes like those of the king of oxen; and marks such as these — their mind fills with joy, and they think: "I too shall attain marks such as these; whatever dharmas a person possessed of marks such as these attains, I too shall attain," and at once gives rise to the mind of unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening.
It is through these seven causes and conditions that bodhicitta is given rise to.
The second cause's own verse — a single figure described through a cascading sequence of numbered attributes, one through twenty — reads almost as a riddle, deliberately withholding the name Buddha until the very syntax of "this is he" resolves it. Rather than simply saying "seeing the Dharma about to perish, one thinks of the Buddha and vows to protect his teaching," the treatise makes the reader work through the entire numbered catalogue first, so that the realization of who is being described becomes itself part of the persuasive experience — a structural echo of how this same chapter's seventh cause works, where merely seeing the thirty-two marks, before any doctrine is explained, is already sufficient to move a person to give rise to this aspiration.
Which of the Seven Causes Endure
問曰：汝說七因緣發菩提心為皆當成？有成、有不成？
答曰：是不必盡成，或有成、有不成。
問曰：若爾者應解說。
答曰：於七發心中， 佛教令發心，護法故發心， 憐愍故發心。如是三心者， 必定得成就；其餘四心者， 不必皆成就。
是七心中，佛觀其根本，教令發心必得成，以不空言故。若為尊重佛法為欲守護，若於眾生有大悲心，如是三心必得成就；根本深故！
餘菩薩教令發心、見菩薩所行發心、因大布施發心、若見若聞佛相發心，是四心多不成，或有成者；根本微弱故。
十住毘婆沙論卷第三
Question: You have explained these seven causes and conditions by which bodhicitta is given rise to — do all of them alike come to full accomplishment, or are some accomplished while others are not?
Answer: These do not necessarily all come to full accomplishment — some are accomplished, and some are not.
Question: If this is so, please explain it in detail.
Answer: "Among these seven arisings of the aspiration, that taught by the Buddha himself; that arising to protect the Dharma; and that arising through pity — these three minds are certain to reach accomplishment; the remaining four minds are not necessarily all accomplished."
Among these seven minds, the Buddha himself, having examined their very root, teaches this aspiration to be given rise to, and it is certain to reach accomplishment, since his own words are never spoken in vain. Whether arising in order to honor and protect the Dharma, or arising through a great mind of compassion for sentient beings — these three minds are certain to reach accomplishment, for their very root runs deep!
The remaining four — the aspiration taught by another bodhisattva, the aspiration arising from beholding a bodhisattva's own conduct, the aspiration arising through an act of great giving, and the aspiration arising from seeing or hearing of the Buddha's own marks — for the most part do not reach full accomplishment, though some among them do; for their very root remains slight and weak.
Fascicle 3 of the Daśabhūmika-vibhāṣā Śāstra
The treatise's own closing distinction — three causes certain to endure against four that mostly fail — is a candid admission that not every dramatic conversion moment produces a lasting bodhisattva. The aspiration kindled by beholding the Buddha's own thirty-two marks, so vividly described just above, is explicitly named among the weaker four: moved by beauty or generosity alone, without the Buddha's own direct teaching, protection of an endangered Dharma, or genuine compassion for suffering beings at its root, the resulting resolve is likely, on the treatise's own reckoning, not to last.
Fascicle 3 Complete
This closes Fascicle 3: the seventh vow's full catalogue of what makes a buddha-land pure or impure, the tenth vow's own inexhaustible scope proven through ten boundless conditions, and the seven distinct causes by which beings give rise to bodhicitta — only three of which, the treatise candidly notes, are certain to endure. Fascicle 4 continues within this same chapter, turning to what distinguishes a firm mind from one still liable to waver.
Continue to Fascicle 4 →