The Simile of the Good Road, and the Thirty-Two Marks of a True Bodhisattva
A skilled guide's own knowledge of a good road — its grass and kindling, its freedom from bandits and wild beasts, the very ascetic extremes it need never resort to — is mapped, feature by feature, onto the ten bodhisattva grounds. Then numbered sets of dharmas, one through ten, encompass the entire path, thirty-two marks distinguish a genuine bodhisattva from one in name only, and ten minds carry a bodhisattva from the first ground into the second.
What Makes a Road Good: The Guide's Own Knowledge
譬喻品之餘
問曰：菩薩善知是諸法，未得佛道，終不退者，其喻云何？
答曰：如大力導師，善知好道相，此處與彼處，轉道之所宜。
資糧及行具，皆悉令備足，於彼險道中，令眾得安隱。
得至大城邑，能令眾無患，由是大導師，善能知道故。
善知諸地轉，具足助道法，菩薩善知道，好惡此彼處。
自度生死險，兼導多眾生，令至安隱處、無為涅槃城。
悉令於惡道，不遇眾苦患；菩薩方便力，善能知道故。
好道相者，多有薪、草、水；無有寇賊、師子、狼虎及諸惡獸、毒虫之屬；不寒、不熱，無有惡山、溝坑、絕㵎、險隘、深榛、叢林、隈障；亦無高下，平直夷通，少於岐道，寬博多容，多人行處；行無厭惓，多有華、果、可食之物。
如是等事，名為好道相；與此相違，名為惡道相。
「此處」名人眾止宿、食息之處。
「彼處」名從是處至異處；若二宿中間，亦名異處。
「轉道」名見有岐道至大城者，是道應行，餘者應捨。
「資糧」名麨蜜摶等，道路所食。
「大力」名大勢力，多有財物、善解治法。
「備足」名多有飲食無所乏少。
「安」名無有賊寇恐怖之事。
「隱」名無有疾病、苦痛、衰患。
「大城」名多容人眾，能令多人眾得至大城。
「導師」善解道相，自無患難，亦令人眾無有患難。善諳道故，無有寒熱、飢渴、怨賊、惡獸、毒虫、惡山、惡水、深坑坎等如是過患。何以故？善知道路好、惡相故。以此喻歡喜等十地，如人行路，去不休息，能至大城，菩薩如是行是十地，得至佛法，入涅槃大城。如彼好道多有薪、草、水等，行者無乏。
Simile Chapter, Continued
Question: The bodhisattva who skillfully knows these very dharmas, even before attaining buddhahood, never retrogresses — what simile illustrates this?
Answer: "Just as a guide of great strength skillfully knows the very mark of a good road, this place and that place, and which turn in the road is fitting.
"Provisions and every article for the journey, all made complete and sufficient, so that, amid this very perilous road, the multitude attains peace and security.
"Reaching the great city, causing the multitude to remain free of affliction — all of this comes from this very guide of great strength, since he skillfully knows the road itself.
"Skillfully knowing every turning of the ground, complete with every dharma that assists the path, the bodhisattva skillfully knows the road, whether good or bad, this place or that.
"Liberating themselves from the very peril of birth and death, and further guiding a great multitude of beings, causing them to reach a place of peace and security — the unconditioned city of nirvāṇa.
"Causing all to avoid every evil road, encountering no manifold suffering or affliction whatsoever — this is the bodhisattva's own power of skillful means, since he skillfully knows the road itself."
As for the very mark of a good road: it possesses abundant kindling, grass, and water; it is free of bandits and enemies, lions, wolves and tigers, and every kind of evil beast or venomous creature; it is neither too cold nor too hot; it is free of evil mountains, ditches and pits, sheer ravines, perilous narrows, deep thickets, dense forest, or hidden ambush; it is likewise free of steep rises and falls, level, straight, and smooth throughout; it has few forking paths, is broad and spacious, accommodating many travelers, a place where many people journey; traveling it brings no weariness whatsoever, and it possesses abundant flowers, fruit, and edible things.
Matters such as these are what is called the very mark of a good road; whatever contradicts this is called the mark of an evil road.
"This place" refers to wherever the multitude of travelers stops to lodge, eat, and rest.
"That place" refers to going from this place to a different place; even the interval between two nights' lodging is likewise called a different place.
"Turning in the road" refers to, upon beholding a fork in the road, recognizing which path leads to the great city — this very path ought to be taken, and every other ought to be abandoned.
"Provisions" refers to parched grain, honey-cakes, and the like, eaten along the road.
"Great strength" refers to great power, possessing abundant wealth, and skillfully understanding how to manage matters.
"Complete and sufficient" refers to possessing abundant food and drink, lacking nothing whatsoever.
"Peace" refers to being free of any matter of banditry or fearful threat.
"Security" refers to being free of illness, pain, and affliction.
"The great city" refers to a place able to accommodate a great multitude of people, able to cause a great multitude of people to reach this very great city.
As for "the guide": skillfully understanding the very mark of the road, he himself remains free of any affliction or difficulty, and further causes the multitude to remain free of any affliction or difficulty. Because he is thoroughly familiar with this road, there exists no cold, no heat, no hunger or thirst, no hostile bandit, no evil beast, no venomous creature, no evil mountain, no evil water, no deep pit or ravine, and no fault or affliction of any such kind whatsoever. And why is this so? Because he skillfully knows the good and evil marks of the road itself. This simile illustrates the Ground of Joy and the other nine grounds — just as a person traveling this road, journeying without ever ceasing, is able to reach the great city, the bodhisattva, practicing these ten grounds in just this same way, is able to reach the Buddhadharma, entering the great city of nirvāṇa. Just as this good road possesses abundant kindling, grass, water, and the like, the traveler lacks nothing whatsoever.
This chapter's own title, "Simile Chapter," is fully earned here: rather than a single brief comparison, the guide-and-road image is unpacked term by term — "this place," "that place," "provisions," "great strength," even the very city itself — each definition then mapped precisely onto a corresponding feature of the ten-ground path in the sections that follow. The technique gives the entire path a concrete, navigable shape: not an abstract sequence of attainments, but a road whose every hazard and resource has a specific, nameable counterpart in the bodhisattva's own actual practice.
Grass, Kindling, and Water — the Path's Own Sustenance
「草」名如人乘馬，路多好草，馬力強盛；十地道功德亦如是——諦、捨、滅、慧四勝處助諸功德故，名為草。何以故？若人貴於實事，樂隨諦語，常親近實語者，見實有利樂隨實事，深惡妄語，遠離妄語，見妄語過，不欲樂聞，如是等因緣得諦勝處；捨等三處，亦應如是知。如彼好道，須諸象、馬、牛驢等得至大城，草助成其力。如是諦、捨、滅、慧處，能令至佛法，入涅槃大城。
「薪」名多聞、思、修慧，能至大智慧業。如薪能令火然，亦令猛盛。如是聞、思、修慧能生大慧，能令增長。如火能燒、能煮、能照，智慧火亦如是：燒諸煩惱、成熟諸善根、照四聖諦。
如火是智慧，薪是能生智慧等諸法。
「多水」名多有諸流河渠，隨意取用，充足大眾；泉井及池所不能爾。
復次，「多水」者，如人乘船隨水至大城，井泉、陂池水則不能得爾。如《經》說：「信為大河，福德為岸。如河除熱、除渴、除垢，能生勢力；善法中，信亦如是，能滅三毒熱、除三惡行垢、除三有渴；為涅槃故，於善法中得勢力。」如彼好道，多有諸根、藥草，則行者無乏；十地道亦如是。
「根」名深心所愛，如有根故，則生芽、莖、枝、葉等及諸果實；深心愛道，生正憶念、大願等諸功德。
「藥草」名諸波羅蜜。如藥草能滅諸毒；諸波羅蜜藥草滅貪恚癡毒、諸煩惱病，亦復如是。
As for "grass": just as a person riding a horse, upon a road abundant with good grass, finds the horse's own strength vigorous and full — the merit of the path of the ten grounds is likewise so, since the four supreme places of truth, relinquishment, cessation, and wisdom assist every merit, and are thereby called "grass." And why is this so? Should a person value what is genuinely real, delighting in according with truthful speech, constantly drawing near to one who speaks truthfully, beholding this very truth as beneficial and delighting in according with what is real, deeply detesting false speech, departing far from false speech, beholding the fault of false speech and taking no delight in even hearing it — through causes and conditions such as these, one attains the supreme place of truth; the remaining three places of relinquishment, cessation, and wisdom ought likewise to be understood in just this same way. Just as this good road requires elephants, horses, oxen, and donkeys to reach the great city, with grass assisting and completing their own strength, so too do these places of truth, relinquishment, cessation, and wisdom enable one to reach the Buddhadharma, entering the great city of nirvāṇa.
As for "kindling": this refers to the wisdom born of learning, of reflection, and of cultivation, able to reach the very activity of great wisdom. Just as kindling causes a fire to burn, and further causes it to blaze fiercely — the wisdom born of learning, reflection, and cultivation is likewise so, able to give rise to great wisdom, and able to cause it to increase. Just as fire is able to burn, able to cook, and able to illuminate, the very fire of wisdom is likewise so: burning away every affliction, ripening every root of goodness, and illuminating the four noble truths.
Just as fire is itself wisdom, kindling is every dharma able to give rise to this wisdom.
As for "abundant water": this refers to possessing many flowing rivers and channels, drawn upon exactly as needed, fully sufficient for the great multitude — something a mere spring, well, or pond is unable to accomplish.
Furthermore, as for "abundant water": just as a person riding upon a boat, following the water, reaches the great city, while the water of a mere well, spring, or pond is unable to bring this about — as the sūtra states: "Faith is the great river, merit its own bank. Just as a river removes heat, removes thirst, and removes defilement, and is able to generate this very force — within the wholesome dharma, faith is likewise so, able to extinguish the very heat of the threefold poison, remove the defilement of the three evil conducts, and remove the thirst of the three states of existence; for the sake of nirvāṇa, within the wholesome dharma, one thereby attains this very force." Just as this good road possesses abundant roots and medicinal herbs, so that the traveler lacks nothing whatsoever, the path of the ten grounds is likewise so.
As for "root": this refers to what is loved with a deep mind — just as, because a root exists, a sprout, stem, branch, leaf, and every fruit thereby arises, loving the path with a deep mind gives rise to right mindfulness, the great vow, and every other such merit.
As for "medicinal herb": this refers to every pāramitā. Just as a medicinal herb is able to counteract every poison, the medicinal herb of every pāramitā counteracts the poison of craving, anger, and delusion, and every illness of the afflictions, in just this same way.
The image of faith as a great river, with merit as its own bank, gives a physically grounded picture to what could otherwise remain an abstract virtue: a river's own power to remove heat and thirst and carry heavy loads that a well or pond cannot is presented as the precise analogue for what faith accomplishes against the threefold poison and the three states of existence — not a static reservoir but a moving force capable of carrying a traveler all the way to the destination.
The Talisman, and Every Danger the Road Lacks
如彼好道，不失韋婆陀，則行道安隱。
韋陀秦言無對義，是符檄。如行者不失符檄，則在所欲至，無有障礙；十地道亦如是，不失韋婆陀，則在所過諸地、所集善根，則能隨意助成、增長現在善根。彼又能教化聲聞道、辟支佛道、欲界、色界諸天道眾生，令住佛道。若魔、若外道，不能干亂，是名不失韋婆陀。
如彼好道無有蚊、虻、毒虫之屬；十地道亦如是，無有憂愁、啼哭之聲。
如彼好道無有賊難；十地道亦如是，無有五蓋諸惡賊眾。
如佛告比丘：「聚落賊者，所謂五蓋，如賊先奪人物，後乃害命；五蓋賊亦如是，先奪善根，後斷慧命，則墮放逸而死」。
如道中無師子、虎狼、諸惡獸等；十地道亦如是，無有瞋恚、鬪諍。
如師子等惡獸好惱害他；瞋恚等為惱他故生，亦復如是。
如惡獸等噉肉、飲血；瞋恨等食多聞慧肉、飲修慧等血，亦復如是。
如彼好道，無有寒、熱過惡；十地道亦如是，不墮寒氷地獄，故無有寒過惡；不墮熱地獄故，無有熱過惡。
如彼好道無深坑等諸難；十地道亦如是，無有外道苦行等諸難，所謂：灰身、入氷、拔髮、日三洗、翹一足、日一食、二日一食…乃至一月一食、默然至死、常舉一臂，常行忍辱、五熱炙身、臥刺蕀上、入火、入水、自投高巖、深爐中立、牛屎燒身、直趣一方不避諸難、常著濕衣裳、水中臥等，身苦心苦不至正智；無如是等故，名為無難。
如道無邪徑；十地道亦如是，無身、口、意惡業故，名為無邪徑。
如道無刺蕀者；十地道亦如是，無諸業障刺蕀故，名為無刺蕀。
如刺刺脚則廢行路，業障刺蕀障行佛法、入涅槃。
如道正直；十地道亦如是，無一切諂曲、欺誑故，名為正直。
如道少岐道；十地道亦如是，少於異道，何以故？發大乘者，少行聲聞、辟支佛道，是故少於異道。或有菩薩行二乘道者，當知未到菩薩地、未入正位，行於邊行故。
Just as, upon this good road, never losing this very talisman brings peace and security to one's own journey —
"Vaidya," in Chinese, means "matchless meaning" — this refers to a pass or a proclamation. Just as the traveler who never loses this very pass or proclamation reaches wherever they wish, without any obstruction whatsoever, the path of the ten grounds is likewise so — never losing this very talisman, one is thereby able, within every ground passed through and every root of goodness gathered, to freely assist, complete, and increase one's own present roots of goodness exactly as one wishes. This person is further able to teach and transform the śrāvaka path, the pratyekabuddha path, and every sentient being belonging to the heavenly paths of the desire and form realms, causing them to abide within the path to buddhahood. Neither māra nor any outside path is able to disturb or confound them — this is what is called never losing this very talisman.
Just as this good road is free of mosquitoes, gadflies, and every kind of venomous creature, the path of the ten grounds is likewise so, free of the very sound of sorrow and weeping.
Just as this good road is free of the danger of bandits, the path of the ten grounds is likewise so, free of the five hindrances and every such evil, bandit-like host.
As the Buddha told the monks: "The bandits of a settlement are the five hindrances — just as a bandit first seizes a person's own possessions, and only afterward takes their life, the bandits of the five hindrances are likewise so, first seizing away one's own roots of goodness, and only afterward severing the very life of wisdom, so that one falls into heedlessness and dies."
Just as this road is free of lions, tigers, wolves, and every evil beast, the path of the ten grounds is likewise so, free of anger and contention.
Just as lions and every such evil beast delight in afflicting and harming others, anger and the like arise for the very sake of afflicting others, in just this same way.
Just as an evil beast devours flesh and drinks blood, anger and resentment devour the very flesh of vast-learning wisdom, and drink the very blood of cultivated wisdom, in just this same way.
Just as this good road is free of the affliction of cold and heat, the path of the ten grounds is likewise so — never falling into the icy hell, it is thereby free of the affliction of cold; never falling into the fiery hell, it is thereby free of the affliction of heat.
Just as this good road is free of the danger of deep pits and the like, the path of the ten grounds is likewise so, free of the danger of every ascetic austerity practiced by the outside paths — namely: smearing the body with ash, sitting in ice, tearing out one's own hair, washing three times a day, standing on a single leg, eating once a day, once every two days, up to once a month, remaining silent until death, constantly holding one arm aloft, constantly practicing patient endurance amid the "five fires" scorching the body, lying upon a bed of thorns, entering fire, entering water, throwing oneself from a high cliff, standing within a deep furnace, burning the body with cow dung, walking straight in a single direction without avoiding any obstacle, constantly wearing wet clothing, lying within water, and the like — suffering in body and suffering in mind, and yet never reaching right wisdom. Being free of every such practice, this is what is called being free of danger.
Just as this road is free of wrong turns, the path of the ten grounds is likewise so, free of any evil karma of body, speech, or mind, and is thereby called free of wrong turns.
Just as this road is free of thorns and brambles, the path of the ten grounds is likewise so, free of every thorn and bramble of karmic obstruction, and is thereby called free of thorns and brambles.
Just as a thorn piercing the foot causes one to abandon the journey, the very thorns and brambles of karmic obstruction obstruct one's own practice of the Buddhadharma, and entry into nirvāṇa.
Just as this road is straight and true, the path of the ten grounds is likewise so, free of every flattery, crookedness, and deception, and is thereby called straight and true.
Just as this road has few forking paths, the path of the ten grounds is likewise so, having few divergent paths. And why is this so? One who has given rise to the Great Vehicle's own aspiration rarely practices the śrāvaka or pratyekabuddha path — it is for this reason that there are few divergent paths. Should there exist a bodhisattva who practices the path of these two lesser vehicles, one should know that they have not yet reached the bodhisattva's own ground, have not yet entered the very station of certainty, and are practicing a peripheral conduct.
The extended list of ascetic extremes — ice-sitting, hair-pulling, the "five fires," standing in a furnace, lying in water — draws on a well-documented catalogue of non-Buddhist austerities found across early Buddhist literature, cited here not to condemn effort itself but to make a specific point: a genuinely good road requires none of these desperate measures, since "suffering in body and suffering in mind, yet never reaching right wisdom" is precisely the outcome such practices produce when severed from wisdom. The talisman opening this section functions as a memorable image for whatever protects safe passage through the grounds — likely referring to the very mindfulness or vow discussed in earlier fascicles — described here through its own effect: freedom from confusion by māra or any outside path, wherever one currently stands on the road.
A Wide, Well-Traveled Road, and the Great City Itself
如彼好道無諸叢林妨礙；十住道亦如是，無有五欲諸惡叢林。
問曰：何故不言「都無五欲叢林」，但言「無惡林」耶？
答曰：發大乘者，福德因緣，有第一五欲，是故不得言無，但無惡耳。
復次，如深叢林，難入難過，多諸難礙；菩薩五欲則不然，不如凡夫於五欲生諸過惡。如是故，但說無叢林。
如道寬博多容，不相妨礙；十住道亦如是，多所容受，無量百千萬億眾生共發無上道心，而不相妨礙，是百千萬億眾生，若一切眾生，俱發阿耨多羅三藐三菩提心，同行此道，不相妨礙。
如道多人所行；十住道亦如是，恒河沙等過去、現在諸佛行菩薩道時，皆行此道。
如彼好道，行不疲厭；十住道亦如是，多有因果諸樂，所謂：多生人天中受果報，樂離欲故，受歡喜樂、禪定樂、無喜樂、現在樂；得是諸樂，故無有疲厭。
如道多有華、果、根；十住道亦如是，多根、華、果。
「根」者三善根。
「華」者七覺華是。如《經》說：「七華者七覺意是」。
「果」者四沙門果是。
無如是等違好道功德過故，名為離惡。
如導師知道中，是中應食、是應宿，彼處亦應宿；菩薩行十地亦如是，知何處可宿、何處可食。
可宿名有諸現在佛處。
可食名可得修習善法處。如食能利益諸根，亦助壽命；諸善法亦如是，能益「信」等諸根，助成慧命。
「異處宿」名從彼佛所，至餘佛所。
復次，此佛國土、彼佛國土中間，亦名異處。
善知道轉者，如彼導師知道不安隱則轉；菩薩亦如是，善知是道至聲聞、是道至辟支佛、是道至佛。如是知已，捨聲聞道、辟支佛道，但行至佛道。
如彼好道多有飲食；十住道亦如是，多行布施、持戒、修禪。
如彼導師以多財物，善能治法，有大勢力；菩薩亦如是，有財物、治法故，有大勢力。
財者七財，所謂信、戒、慚、愧、捨、聞、慧。
治法者，一切魔、種種沙門、婆羅門、外道論師，悉能摧伏，是為威勢。
如彼大城無有怨賊、疫病、暴死、種種衰惱故，名為安隱；涅槃大城亦如是，無有諸魔、外道諸流、貪欲、瞋恚、放逸、死、憂悲、苦惱、啼哭故，名為安隱。
如彼大城多有飲食，故名為豐饒；涅槃城亦如是，多有諸深禪定、解脫、三昧故，名為豐饒。
如彼大城多所容受，故名為大城；涅槃城亦如是，多受眾生，故名為大。假令一切眾生不受諸法故，皆入無餘涅槃，而涅槃性無增無減。
如彼導師能將多眾安隱示好道故，名為導師；菩薩亦如是，善將眾生示佛法、示涅槃，從生死險道得至涅槃，故名為大導師。
如彼導師善知道相故，身及餘人皆無有惡；菩薩亦如是，自不行貪瞋恚等諸蓋、諸惡、苦行、老死深坑；亦不墮寒熱地獄、餓鬼故，名為自不得惡，所隨從者亦不得惡。
是故「偈」中說：「善知道相故，自不得惡、餘不得惡」。
Just as this good road is free of the obstruction of dense forest, the path of the ten grounds is likewise so, free of the evil forest of the five desires.
Question: Why does the text not say "entirely free of the forest of the five desires," but say instead "free of the evil forest"?
Answer: One who has given rise to the Great Vehicle's own aspiration, through the very cause and condition of merit, still possesses the very foremost form of the five desires — it is for this reason that one cannot say they are entirely free of them, only free of their evil aspect.
Furthermore, just as a deep forest is difficult to enter and difficult to pass through, filled with manifold danger and obstruction — the bodhisattva's own experience of the five desires is not so, since they do not, like the ordinary being, give rise to every fault and evil through the five desires. It is for this very reason that the text speaks only of being free of the forest.
Just as this road is broad and spacious, accommodating many without mutual obstruction, the path of the ten grounds is likewise so, accommodating a great many — immeasurable hundreds of thousands of myriads of koṭis of sentient beings together giving rise to the unsurpassed mind of the path, without any mutual obstruction whatsoever; these very hundreds of thousands of myriads of koṭis of sentient beings, or even every sentient being whatsoever, together giving rise to unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening, practicing this same path together, without any mutual obstruction.
Just as this road is traveled by many people, the path of the ten grounds is likewise so — every buddha of the past and the present, as numerous as the sands of the Ganges, in their own practice of the bodhisattva path, have all traveled this very same path.
Just as this good road brings no weariness in traveling it, the path of the ten grounds is likewise so, possessing abundant joys, both causal and resultant — namely: being reborn often among humans and devas, receiving this very fruit in recompense; delighting in freedom from desire, one receives the joy of delight, the joy of meditative absorption, the joy free of delight, and present joy; having attained joys such as these, one thereby experiences no weariness whatsoever.
Just as this road possesses abundant flowers, fruit, and roots, the path of the ten grounds is likewise so, possessing abundant roots, flowers, and fruit.
"Roots" refers to the three wholesome roots.
"Flowers" refers to the flowers of the seven factors of awakening. As the sūtra states: "These seven flowers are the seven factors of awakening."
"Fruit" refers to the four fruits of the ascetic path.
Being free of every fault contrary to the merit of a good road, such as these, this is what is called being free of evil.
Just as a guide, knowing the road, knows where one ought to eat and where one ought to lodge, and that some other place likewise ought to be a place of lodging — the bodhisattva, practicing the ten grounds, is likewise so, knowing where one may lodge, and where one may eat.
"Where one may lodge" refers to wherever a buddha presently exists.
"Where one may eat" refers to a place where one may cultivate and study the wholesome dharma. Just as food is able to benefit every faculty, and further assist one's own lifespan, every wholesome dharma is likewise so, able to benefit faith and every other such faculty, and assist in accomplishing the very life of wisdom.
"Lodging in a different place" refers to going from this buddha's own place to some other buddha's own place.
Furthermore, the very interval between this buddha's own land and that buddha's own land is likewise called a different place.
As for "skillfully knowing a turn in the road": just as this guide, knowing the road to be unsafe, thereupon turns — the bodhisattva is likewise so, skillfully knowing that this road leads to the śrāvaka, that road leads to the pratyekabuddha, and this other road leads to buddhahood. Knowing this, they relinquish the śrāvaka path and the pratyekabuddha path, and practice only the path that leads to buddhahood.
Just as this good road possesses abundant food and drink, the path of the ten grounds is likewise so, abounding in the practice of giving, upholding the precepts, and cultivating meditative absorption.
Just as this guide, possessing abundant wealth, is skillfully able to manage every matter, possessing great power — the bodhisattva is likewise so, possessing wealth and skillfully managing every matter, and thereby possessing great power.
"Wealth" refers to the seven kinds of wealth — namely, faith, the precepts, conscience, shame, relinquishment, learning, and wisdom.
"Managing every matter" refers to being entirely able to subdue every māra, and every kind of ascetic, brahmin, and outside-path teacher — this is what is called majestic power.
Just as this great city is free of hostile bandits, plague, sudden death, and every kind of decline and affliction, and is thereby called secure and peaceful — the great city of nirvāṇa is likewise so, free of every māra, every current of the outside paths, craving, anger, heedlessness, death, sorrow and grief, suffering and affliction, and weeping and wailing, and is thereby called secure and peaceful.
Just as this great city possesses abundant food and drink, and is thereby called abundant and rich — the city of nirvāṇa is likewise so, possessing abundant profound meditative absorption, liberation, and samādhi, and is thereby called abundant and rich.
Just as this great city accommodates a great many, and is thereby called a great city — the city of nirvāṇa is likewise so, receiving a great many sentient beings, and is thereby called great. Even should every sentient being whatsoever, ceasing to receive any dharma at all, enter nirvāṇa without residue, the very nature of nirvāṇa itself neither increases nor diminishes.
Just as this guide is able to lead a great multitude safely, showing them the good road, and is thereby called a guide — the bodhisattva is likewise so, skillfully leading sentient beings, showing them the Buddhadharma, showing them nirvāṇa, bringing them from the perilous road of birth and death to reach nirvāṇa, and is thereby called the great guide.
Just as this guide, skillfully knowing the very mark of the road, remains himself free of evil, and causes others to remain free of evil as well — the bodhisattva is likewise so, himself never practicing craving, anger, and every other hindrance, every evil, ascetic extreme, or the deep pit of old age and death; and further never falling into the icy hell, the fiery hell, or the realm of hungry ghosts, and is thereby called himself free of evil, so that those who follow him likewise remain free of evil.
It is for this reason that the verse states: "Through skillfully knowing the very mark of the road, one remains oneself free of evil, and every other remains free of evil as well."
The closing observation on the city of nirvāṇa — that it could receive every sentient being whatsoever entering it and yet its own nature would neither increase nor diminish — makes a precise philosophical point through the simile's own physical language: an ordinary city has a finite capacity that fills as more people arrive, but nirvāṇa, described here as accommodating limitlessly without being altered by however many enter it, is being distinguished from any merely large but bounded place. This closes the extended road simile opened at the start of the fascicle; the treatise now turns to a chapter that condenses the entire path into successively larger numbered sets of dharmas.
The First Ground Recapped
略行品第二十七
菩薩歡喜地，今已略說竟，菩薩住是中，多作閻浮王；常離慳貪垢，不失三寶念，心常願作佛，救護諸眾生。
初地名歡喜，已略說竟。諸佛法無量無邊，是地為本。
若廣說，亦無量無邊，是故言「略說」。
菩薩住是地中，多作閻浮提勢力轉輪王。先世修習是地因緣故，信樂布施，無慳貪垢；常施三寶故，不失三寶念；常念作佛，救諸眾生——如是等善念，常在心中。
復次——若欲得出家，勤心行精進，能得數百定，得見數百佛。
能動百世界，飛行亦如是；若欲放光明，能照百世界；化數百種人，能住壽百劫；能擇數百法，能變作百身。
能化百菩薩，示現為眷屬，利根過是數，依佛神力故。
已說初地相，果力淨治法，今當復更說，第二無垢地。
「果」名得數百定，見數百佛等。
「勢力」名能化數百眾生。
餘偈義先已說，不復解餘偈，今當復說第二無垢地。
Brief Practice Chapter
"The bodhisattva's own Ground of Joy has now been briefly explained in full. The bodhisattva, dwelling within this very ground, often becomes a king of Jambudvīpa; constantly departing from the defilement of stinginess and craving, never losing mindfulness of the Three Jewels, their own mind constantly wishing to accomplish buddhahood, rescuing and protecting every sentient being."
The first ground, named the Ground of Joy, has now been briefly explained in full. Every buddha's own dharma is immeasurable and boundless, and this very ground is their own root.
Should it be explained at length, it too would be immeasurable and boundless — it is for this reason that it is called only "briefly explained."
The bodhisattva, dwelling within this very ground, often becomes a wheel-turning king of great power throughout Jambudvīpa. Through the very cause and condition of having cultivated and studied this ground in a former life, they hold faith and delight in giving, free of the defilement of stinginess and craving; constantly giving to the Three Jewels, they never lose this very mindfulness of the Three Jewels; constantly mindful of accomplishing buddhahood, rescuing every sentient being — wholesome thoughts such as these constantly remain present within their own mind.
Furthermore: "Should one wish to go forth from home, diligently applying effort, one is thereby able to attain several hundred kinds of concentration, and attain the vision of several hundred buddhas.
"Able to shake a hundred worlds, and flight is likewise so; should one wish to emit radiance, one is able to illuminate a hundred worlds; transforming several hundred kinds of person, one is able to remain alive for a hundred kalpas; able to select from several hundred dharmas, one is able to transform oneself into a hundred bodies.
"Able to transform a hundred bodhisattvas, manifesting them as one's own retinue; one of sharp faculties exceeds even this very number, relying upon the Buddha's own spiritual power."
Having already explained the mark, fruit, power, and purification of the first ground, I shall now further explain the second ground, the Ground Free of Defilement.
"Fruit" refers to attaining several hundred kinds of concentration, and beholding several hundred buddhas, and the like.
"Power" refers to being able to transform several hundred sentient beings.
The meaning of every remaining verse has already been explained earlier, and I shall not explain these remaining verses again; I shall now further explain the second ground, the Ground Free of Defilement.
"Brief Practice Chapter" signals its own method directly in the text: rather than expanding the first ground's own account further, the treatise explicitly notes that a full explanation would itself be immeasurable, and offers instead a condensed recapitulation before moving to numbered sets of dharmas that summarize the entire path at successively greater scale. The wheel-turning king detail recalls a recurring pattern in this treatise — worldly power and buddhahood are not opposed destinies but sometimes overlapping ones, a bodhisattva's own accumulated merit from a particular ground occasionally expressing itself as this kind of temporal sovereignty even before buddhahood itself is reached.
One Dharma Through Ten: What Encompasses the Path
問曰：汝欲廣說菩薩所行法，初地義尚多，諸學者恐轉增廣，則懈怠心生，不能讀誦。是故汝今應為不能多讀誦者，略解菩薩所行諸法。
答曰：菩薩所有法，是法皆應行，一切惡應捨，是則名略說。
如上來諸品所說，能生、能增長諸地法，如上諸品中說；若於餘處說者，皆應令生。
菩薩過惡事，皆應遠離。是名略說菩薩所應行。
如《法句》中說：「諸惡莫作，諸善奉行，自淨其意，是諸佛教。」
有一法攝佛道，菩薩應行。云何為一？所謂：「於善法中，一心不放逸。」如佛告阿難：「我不放逸故，得阿耨多羅三藐三菩提。」如說：不放逸成佛，世間無與等，若能不放逸，何事而不成。
復有二法能攝佛道：一、不放逸，二、智慧。如說：不放逸智慧，佛說是利門，不見不放逸，而事不成者。
復有三法能攝佛道：一、學勝戒，二、學勝心，三、學勝慧。如說：戒生上三昧，三昧生智慧，智散諸煩惱，如風吹浮雲。
復有四法能攝佛道：一、諦處，二、捨處，三、滅處，四、慧處。如說：諦捨定具足，得慧利清淨，精進求佛道，當集此四法。
復有五法能攝佛道：一、信根，二、精進根，三、念根，四、定根，五、慧根。如說：信根精進根，念定慧堅牢，是法大悲合，終不退佛道。
如人得五根，能通達五塵，如得信等根，能通諸法相。
復有六法能攝佛道：所謂布施、持戒、忍辱、精進、禪定、智慧波羅蜜。如說：如所說六度，降伏諸煩惱，常增長善根，不久當得佛。
復有七法能攝佛道。所謂七正法：信、慚、愧、聞、精進、念、慧。如說：欲得七正法，當樂定精進，除去七邪法，能知諸功德。
是人能疾得，無上佛菩提，拔沒生死者，令在安隱處。
復有八法能攝佛道，所謂八大人覺：少欲、知足、遠離、精進、念、定、慧、樂不戲論。如說：若人決定心，住八大人覺，為求佛道故，除諸惡覺觀。
如是則不久，疾得無上道，如人行善者，必當得妙果。
復有九法能攝佛道，所謂：大忍、大慈、大悲、慧、念、堅心、不貪、不恚、不癡。如說：具足於大忍，大慈及大悲，又能住於慧，念及堅心中。
深心入無貪，無恚癡善根，若能如是者，佛道則在手。
復有十法能攝佛道，所謂十善道：自不殺生，不教他殺，見殺心不稱讚，見殺心不喜，乃至邪見亦如是。以是福德迴向阿耨多羅三藐三菩提。如說：不惱害眾生，亦不行劫盜，不婬犯他婦，是三為身業；不妄語兩舌，不惡口綺語，不貪惱邪見，是七口意行。
如是則能開，無上佛道門，若欲得佛者，當行是初門。
如是等法，菩薩應生；生已應守護，守護已應增長。於一善事，從一轉增。
Question: You wish to explain the bodhisattva's own practice at great length, and the very meaning of the first ground has already proven extensive; should the learners fear this grows ever more vast, an indolent mind might arise, and they would be unable to read or recite it. It is for this reason that you ought now, for the sake of those unable to read or recite extensively, briefly explain the dharma of the bodhisattva's own practice.
Answer: "Every dharma the bodhisattva possesses, this very dharma ought all to be practiced; every evil whatsoever ought to be relinquished — this alone is what is called the brief explanation."
As already explained in every chapter above, the dharma able to generate and increase every ground has already been explained within these very chapters; whatever is explained elsewhere ought likewise to be caused to arise.
Every fault and evil belonging to the bodhisattva ought, in every case, to be departed from. This alone is called the brief explanation of what the bodhisattva ought to practice.
As the Dharmapada states: "Refrain from every evil, undertake every wholesome deed, purify one's own mind — this is the teaching of every buddha."
There exists a single dharma that encompasses the path to buddhahood, which the bodhisattva ought to practice. What is this one dharma? Namely: "Within the wholesome dharma, a single mind, free of heedlessness." As the Buddha told Ānanda: "It is through my own freedom from heedlessness that I attained unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening." As it is said: "Through freedom from heedlessness, buddhahood is accomplished, with none in this world equal to it; should one be able to remain free of heedlessness, what matter whatsoever could fail to be accomplished?"
There are, further, two dharmas able to encompass the path to buddhahood: first, freedom from heedlessness; second, wisdom. As it is said: "Freedom from heedlessness, and wisdom — the Buddha calls these the very gateway of benefit; one never sees a matter that fails to be accomplished when freedom from heedlessness is present."
There are, further, three dharmas able to encompass the path to buddhahood: first, studying the supreme precepts; second, studying the supreme mind; third, studying supreme wisdom. As it is said: "The precepts give rise to the supreme samādhi, this samādhi gives rise to wisdom, and wisdom scatters every affliction, just as the wind scatters a drifting cloud."
There are, further, four dharmas able to encompass the path to buddhahood: first, the place of truth; second, the place of relinquishment; third, the place of cessation; fourth, the place of wisdom. As it is said: "Complete with truth, relinquishment, and concentration, attaining the benefit and purity of wisdom, diligently seeking the path to buddhahood — one ought to gather these very four dharmas."
There are, further, five dharmas able to encompass the path to buddhahood: first, the faculty of faith; second, the faculty of diligent effort; third, the faculty of mindfulness; fourth, the faculty of concentration; fifth, the faculty of wisdom. As it is said: "The faculty of faith, the faculty of diligent effort, mindfulness, concentration, and wisdom, firm and secure — this very dharma, joined with great compassion, never retrogresses from the path to buddhahood.
"Just as a person possessing the five sense faculties is able to penetrate the five sensory objects, one who has attained faith and these other faculties is likewise able to penetrate the very mark of every dharma."
There are, further, six dharmas able to encompass the path to buddhahood: namely, the pāramitās of giving, upholding the precepts, patient endurance, diligent effort, meditative concentration, and wisdom. As it is said: "Through these very six perfections as explained, one subdues every affliction, constantly increasing one's own roots of goodness, and, before long, shall attain buddhahood."
There are, further, seven dharmas able to encompass the path to buddhahood, namely, the seven true dharmas: faith, conscience, shame, learning, diligent effort, mindfulness, and wisdom. As it is said: "Wishing to attain these seven true dharmas, one ought to delight in concentration and diligent effort, removing the seven wrongful dharmas, and thereby able to know every merit.
"This person is thereby able swiftly to attain unsurpassed buddha-bodhi, drawing out those sunk within birth and death, and placing them within a place of peace and security."
There are, further, eight dharmas able to encompass the path to buddhahood, namely, the eight awakenings of a great person: few desires, contentment, dwelling apart, diligent effort, mindfulness, concentration, wisdom, and delighting in freedom from idle proliferation. As it is said: "Should a person, with a resolute mind, abide within these eight awakenings of a great person, for the sake of seeking the path to buddhahood, removing every evil thought and reflection —
"In this way, before long, they shall swiftly attain the unsurpassed path, just as a person who practices what is wholesome shall certainly attain a sublime fruit."
There are, further, nine dharmas able to encompass the path to buddhahood, namely: great forbearance, great loving-kindness, great compassion, wisdom, mindfulness, a firm and resolute mind, freedom from craving, freedom from anger, and freedom from delusion. As it is said: "Complete with great forbearance, great loving-kindness, and great compassion, and further able to abide within wisdom, mindfulness, and a firm and resolute mind —
"Entering, with a deep mind, the very roots of goodness free of craving, anger, and delusion — should one be able to accomplish this, the path to buddhahood is then already within one's own grasp."
There are, further, ten dharmas able to encompass the path to buddhahood, namely, the ten wholesome paths: never killing oneself, never teaching another to kill, never praising killing when it is witnessed, never delighting in killing when it is witnessed, and so forth up through wrong view, likewise so. Through this very merit, dedicating it toward unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening. As it is said: "Never harming or afflicting sentient beings, and further never committing robbery or theft, never committing sexual misconduct with another's own wife — these three are the karma of the body; never speaking falsely, never speaking divisively, never speaking harshly or idly, never craving, never harboring ill will, never holding wrong view — these seven are the conduct of speech and mind.
"Practiced in this way, one is thereby able to open the very gateway of the unsurpassed path to buddhahood; should one wish to attain buddhahood, one ought to practice this very first gateway."
Dharmas such as these, the bodhisattva ought to give rise to; having given rise to them, one ought to guard and protect them; having guarded and protected them, one ought to increase them. From a single wholesome matter, one advances, growing ever greater in turn.
This section's own escalating structure — a single dharma sufficient on its own, then two, then progressively larger sets up through ten — is not merely a mnemonic device but an argument in itself: each larger set does not replace the smaller ones before it but incorporates and elaborates them, so that "freedom from heedlessness" alone at the base and the ten wholesome paths at the summit are shown to be different resolutions of the very same underlying practice rather than competing systems. The technique lets a reader daunted by the treatise's own accumulating detail enter the path at whatever scale of commitment currently feels manageable, with the assurance that each smaller formulation genuinely does encompass the whole.
One Fault Through Ten: What Must Be Left Behind
亦應當知求佛道者，於一惡法，應疾遠離。所謂遠離不放逸。如說：若人不能度，生死險惡道，是為可呵責，最是罪惡事；雖樂於富樂，而生貧賤家，不能種善根，為人作奴僕。
皆由於放逸，因緣之所致，是故有智者，疾遠如惡毒；若未成大悲，無生忍不退，而行放逸者，是則名為死。
復有二過應疾遠離：一、貪聲聞地，二、貪辟支佛地。如說：若墮聲聞地，及辟支佛地，是名菩薩死，亦名一切失。
雖墮於地獄，不應生怖畏，若墮於二乘，菩薩應大畏；雖墮於地獄，不永遮佛道，若墮於二乘，畢竟遮佛道。
佛說愛命者，斬首則大畏，如是欲作佛，二乘應大畏。
復有三過應疾遠離：一、憎諸菩薩，二、憎菩薩所行，三、憎甚深大乘經。如說：小智以小緣，憎恚諸菩薩，亦憎菩薩道，亦憎大乘經；不解故不信，墮在大地獄，怖畏大驚喚，是事應遠離。
復有四過應疾遠離：一、諂，二、曲，三、急性，四、無慈愍。如說：自言是菩薩，其心多諂曲，急性無所容，不行慈愍心。
是近阿鼻獄，離佛道甚遠。
復有五過應疾遠離：一、貪欲，二、瞋恚，三、睡眠，四、調戲，五、疑。是名五蓋覆心。如說：若人放逸者，諸蓋則覆心，生天猶尚難，何況於得果。
若勤行精進，則能裂諸蓋，若能裂諸蓋，隨願悉皆得。
復有六過與六波羅蜜相違，應疾遠離：一、慳貪，二、破戒，三、瞋恚，四、懈怠，五、調戲，六、愚癡。如說：慳貪垢污心，破戒而懈怠，無知如牛羊，好瞋如毒蛇，心亂如獼猴，不遠離諸蓋，生天為甚難，何況得佛道。
復有七過應疾遠離：一、樂多事務；二、樂多讀誦；三、樂睡眠；四、樂語說；五、貪利養；六、常欲令人喜；七、迷悶於道，心隨愛行。如說：弊人樂事務，樂多誦外經，癡人樂睡眠，樂共聚眾語。
雖願欲作佛，而深著利養，是恩愛奴僕，迷悶於佛道，如是諸惡人，自言是菩薩。
復有八法應疾遠離：一、邪見，二、邪思惟，三、邪語，四、邪業，五、邪命，六、邪方便，七、邪念，八、邪定。如說：若有人愚癡，行於八邪道，學邪諸經法，好隨逐邪師，遠離八聖道、深妙諸功德。
堅深著煩惱，而或願菩提，如是愚癡人，欲度於大海，捨好堅牢船，抱石欲求渡。
復有九法應疾遠離：一、不聞阿耨多羅三藐三菩提；二、聞已不信；三、若信不受；四、若受不誦持；五、若又誦持；不知義趣；六、若知不說；七、若說；不如說行；八、若如說行；不能常行；九、若能常行，不能善行。如說：癡人不欲聞，無上正真道，聞已不能信，又不能誦持；不知義不說，不如所說行，不能常善行，又無念安慧。
如是愚癡人，不堪得道果，猶如罪惡人，不得生天上。
復有十過應疾遠離，所謂十不善道。如說：癡人於少時，貪愛弊五欲，捨離十善道，行十不善道。
諸天樂在手，而復自捨棄，如貪小錢利，而捨大寶藏。
One who seeks the path to buddhahood ought further to know that, toward this one single evil dharma, one ought swiftly to depart from it. Namely, departing from heedlessness itself. As it is said: "Should a person be unable to cross beyond the perilous, evil road of birth and death, this is itself worthy of reproach, the very foremost of evil matters; though one might delight in wealth and pleasure, one is instead born into a poor and lowly family, unable to plant any root of goodness, made to serve another as a mere servant.
"All of this comes about through the very cause and condition of heedlessness — it is for this reason that the wise swiftly depart from it, just as from a deadly poison; should one not yet have accomplished great compassion, the forbearance of non-arising, and non-retrogression, and yet practice heedlessness nonetheless, this alone is what is called death."
There are, further, two faults that ought swiftly to be departed from: first, craving the ground of the śrāvaka; second, craving the ground of the pratyekabuddha. As it is said: "Should one fall into the ground of the śrāvaka, or the ground of the pratyekabuddha, this is called the bodhisattva's own death, and is likewise called the loss of everything.
"Though one might fall into hell, one ought not to give rise to dread; should one fall into either of these two lesser vehicles, the bodhisattva ought to hold great dread indeed. Though one might fall into hell, this does not permanently obstruct the path to buddhahood; should one fall into either of these two lesser vehicles, this obstructs the path to buddhahood utterly and completely.
"The Buddha has said that one who cherishes their own life holds the very greatest dread of beheading — in just this same way, should one wish to accomplish buddhahood, one ought to hold the very greatest dread of these two lesser vehicles."
There are, further, three faults that ought swiftly to be departed from: first, hating every bodhisattva; second, hating the bodhisattva's own practice; third, hating the exceedingly profound sūtras of the Great Vehicle. As it is said: "One of little wisdom, through some trifling cause, hates every bodhisattva, and further hates the bodhisattva's own path, and further hates the sūtras of the Great Vehicle; failing to understand, they thereby lack faith, and fall into the great hell, dreading and crying out in great alarm — this very matter ought to be departed from."
There are, further, four faults that ought swiftly to be departed from: first, flattery; second, crookedness; third, an impetuous nature; fourth, lacking compassion and pity. As it is said: "One who calls themselves a bodhisattva, and yet whose own mind is filled with flattery and crookedness, of an impetuous nature that tolerates nothing, never practicing a mind of compassion and pity —
"This person draws near to the very Avīci hell, and departs exceedingly far from the path to buddhahood."
There are, further, five faults that ought swiftly to be departed from: first, craving; second, anger; third, drowsiness and sleep; fourth, restlessness; fifth, doubt. This is called the five hindrances that cover the mind. As it is said: "Should a person be heedless, these very hindrances then cover their own mind, so that even rebirth among the devas becomes difficult — how much more so, then, attaining the fruit of the path!
"Should one diligently apply effort, one is thereby able to tear through these very hindrances; should one be able to tear through these hindrances, whatever one wishes shall entirely be attained."
There are, further, six faults contrary to the six pāramitās, which ought swiftly to be departed from: first, stinginess and craving; second, breaking the precepts; third, anger; fourth, indolence; fifth, restlessness; sixth, delusion. As it is said: "Stinginess and craving defile the mind, breaking the precepts and indolence follow; lacking knowledge, like an ox or a sheep, delighting in anger, like a venomous serpent, the mind scattered, like a monkey — should one fail to depart far from these very hindrances, even rebirth among the devas becomes exceedingly difficult — how much more so, then, attaining the path to buddhahood!"
There are, further, seven faults that ought swiftly to be departed from: first, delighting in many worldly affairs; second, delighting in excessive recitation; third, delighting in drowsiness and sleep; fourth, delighting in mere talk; fifth, craving gain and support; sixth, constantly wishing to please others; seventh, becoming confounded regarding the path, one's own mind following mere affection. As it is said: "A corrupt person delights in worldly affairs, delights in excessive recitation of outside scriptures; a foolish person delights in drowsiness and sleep, delights in gathering together with a crowd in idle talk.
"Though wishing to accomplish buddhahood, they remain deeply attached to gain and support — these are the very servants of affection and craving, confounded regarding the path to buddhahood; evil persons such as these nonetheless call themselves bodhisattvas."
There are, further, eight dharmas that ought swiftly to be departed from: first, wrong view; second, wrong intention; third, wrong speech; fourth, wrong action; fifth, wrong livelihood; sixth, wrong effort; seventh, wrong mindfulness; eighth, wrong concentration. As it is said: "Should there be a foolish person, practicing this eightfold wrong path, studying every wrongful scripture and teaching, delighting in following a wrongful teacher, departing far from the eightfold noble path, and every profound and sublime merit —
"Firmly and deeply attached to the afflictions, and yet perhaps still wishing for bodhi — a foolish person such as this, wishing to cross the great ocean, relinquishes a fine and sturdy boat, and instead clutches a stone, hoping thereby to cross."
There are, further, nine dharmas that ought swiftly to be departed from: first, never hearing of unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening at all; second, having heard of it, failing to believe it; third, believing it, yet failing to accept it; fourth, accepting it, yet failing to recite and uphold it; fifth, reciting and upholding it, yet failing to know its own true meaning; sixth, knowing it, yet failing to expound it; seventh, expounding it, yet failing to practice exactly as taught; eighth, practicing exactly as taught, yet failing to sustain this practice constantly; ninth, sustaining this practice constantly, yet failing to practice it well. As it is said: "A foolish person has no wish to hear of the unsurpassed, true, and genuine path; having heard of it, they are unable to believe it, and further unable to recite and uphold it; not knowing its own meaning, they fail to expound it, and fail to practice exactly as it has been taught, unable to practice it well constantly, and further lacking mindfulness and tranquil wisdom.
"A foolish person such as this is unable to bear attaining the fruit of the path, just as an evil and offending person fails to attain rebirth among the devas."
There are, further, ten faults that ought swiftly to be departed from, namely, the ten unwholesome paths. As it is said: "A foolish person, for the sake of a brief moment, craves and clings to the corrupt five desires, relinquishing and departing from the ten wholesome paths, and practicing the ten unwholesome paths instead.
"The very joy of the devas already within their own grasp, and yet they relinquish and abandon it themselves — just as one who craves a small coin's worth of profit thereby relinquishes a great treasury of jewels."
This section mirrors the preceding one exactly in scale and organization — one fault through ten — but inverts its logic: rather than dharmas that build cumulatively toward buddhahood, these are hazards to be recognized and refused at every stage. The second item's own severity is worth pausing on: falling into hell is explicitly ranked as less dangerous to a bodhisattva than falling into either lesser vehicle, since hell does not permanently foreclose the path to buddhahood while genuine attainment of the śrāvaka or pratyekabuddha fruit does — the sharpest statement in this treatise of just how seriously it treats the distinction between the vehicles.
The Thirty-Two Marks of a True Bodhisattva
問曰：汝說無上道相時，種種因緣訶罵空發願菩薩、自言菩薩、但名字菩薩；若是三不名為菩薩者，成就何法名為真菩薩？
答曰：非但發空願，自言是菩薩，名字為菩薩；略說能成就，三十二法者，乃名為菩薩。
若人發心欲求佛道，自言是菩薩，空受名號，不行功德、慈悲心、諸波羅蜜等，是不名為菩薩。如土城名寶城，但自誑身，亦誑諸佛，亦誑世間眾生。若人有三十二妙法，亦能發願，是名真實菩薩。何等三十二？
一、深心為一切眾生求諸安樂。二、能入諸佛智中。三、自審知：堪任作佛、不作佛。四、不憎惡他。五、道心堅固。六、不假偽、結託親愛。七、乃至未入涅槃，常為眾生作親友。八、親疎同心。九、已許善事，心不退轉。十、於一切眾生，不斷大慈。十一、於一切眾生，不斷大悲。十二、常求正法，心無疲懈。十三、勤發精進，心無厭足。十四、多聞而解義。十五、常省己過。十六、不譏彼闕。十七、於一切見聞事中，常修菩提心。十八、施不求報。十九、持戒不求一切生處。二十、於一切眾生，忍辱無瞋礙。二十一、能勤精進修習一切善根。二十二、不隨無色定生。二十三、方便所攝智慧。二十四、四攝法所攝方便。二十五、持戒、毀戒，慈愍無二。二十六、一心聽法。二十七、一心阿練若處住。二十八、不樂世間種種雜事。二十九、不貪著小乘。三十、見大乘利益為大。三十一、遠離惡知識。三十二、親近善知識。
菩薩住是三十二法，能成七法。所謂：四無量心。能遊戲五神通。常依於智。常不捨善惡眾生。所言決定。言必皆實。集一切善法，心無厭足。
是為三十二法，為七法，菩薩成就此者，名為真實菩薩。
Question: When you spoke of the mark of the unsurpassed path, through causes and conditions of every kind, you reproached the bodhisattva of an empty vow alone, the one who merely calls themselves a bodhisattva, the one who is a bodhisattva in name only — should these three fail to be genuinely called bodhisattvas, what dharma, then, when accomplished, is what is called a true bodhisattva?
Answer: "Not merely giving rise to an empty vow, calling oneself a bodhisattva, a bodhisattva in name alone; to speak briefly, one who is able to accomplish these thirty-two dharmas is what is truly called a bodhisattva."
Should a person give rise to the aspiration to seek the path to buddhahood, calling themselves a bodhisattva, receiving this very title in vain, without practicing merit, a mind of loving-kindness and compassion, or any of the pāramitās, this cannot be called a genuine bodhisattva. Just as an earthen wall called "the jeweled city" only deceives oneself, and further deceives every buddha, and further deceives every sentient being of this world. Should a person possess these thirty-two sublime dharmas, and further be able to give rise to this very vow, this alone is what is called a genuine, true bodhisattva. What are these thirty-two?
First, with a deep mind, seeking peace and joy for every sentient being. Second, being able to enter into the very wisdom of every buddha. Third, examining and knowing for oneself whether one is capable, or not capable, of accomplishing buddhahood. Fourth, never hating or despising another. Fifth, a firm and resolute mind toward the path. Sixth, never falsely or deceptively forming a bond of intimate affection. Seventh, right up until entering nirvāṇa, constantly serving as an intimate friend to every sentient being. Eighth, holding an equal mind toward both the intimate and the estranged. Ninth, having once promised a wholesome deed, one's own mind never retrogressing from it. Tenth, never severing great loving-kindness toward any sentient being whatsoever. Eleventh, never severing great compassion toward any sentient being whatsoever. Twelfth, constantly seeking the true Dharma, one's own mind never weary or indolent. Thirteenth, diligently giving rise to effort, one's own mind never satiated. Fourteenth, being of vast learning, and further understanding its own meaning. Fifteenth, constantly examining one's own faults. Sixteenth, never mocking another's own shortcomings. Seventeenth, within every matter seen or heard, constantly cultivating bodhicitta. Eighteenth, giving without seeking any recompense in return. Nineteenth, upholding the precepts without seeking any particular place of rebirth. Twentieth, toward every sentient being, practicing patient endurance free of any anger or obstruction. Twenty-first, being able diligently to apply effort in cultivating and studying every root of goodness. Twenty-second, never following the formless absorptions into rebirth there. Twenty-third, wisdom gathered together with skillful means. Twenty-fourth, skillful means gathered together with the four means of gathering others. Twenty-fifth, holding no duality between compassion and pity toward one who upholds the precepts and one who has broken them. Twenty-sixth, listening to the Dharma with a single-pointed mind. Twenty-seventh, dwelling within a forest hermitage with a single-pointed mind. Twenty-eighth, taking no delight in every kind of worldly, mundane affair. Twenty-ninth, never craving attachment to the lesser vehicle. Thirtieth, beholding the benefit of the Great Vehicle as itself the greater good. Thirty-first, departing far from an evil friend. Thirty-second, drawing near to a good and virtuous friend.
The bodhisattva, abiding within these thirty-two dharmas, is thereby able to accomplish seven further dharmas. Namely: the four immeasurable states of mind. The ability to sport freely amid the five spiritual powers. Constantly relying upon wisdom. Never abandoning any sentient being, whether wholesome or evil. Whatever is spoken is resolute and certain. Whatever is spoken is entirely true. Gathering every wholesome dharma, one's own mind never satiated.
These are the thirty-two dharmas, leading to these seven further dharmas — the bodhisattva who accomplishes these is what is truly called a genuine bodhisattva.
The image of an earthen wall bearing the name "jeweled city" gives sharp, memorable shape to this section's own central distinction: a title claimed without the substance behind it deceives not only outside observers but the very person who claims it, promising a defense the wall cannot actually provide. Against this stands a thirty-two item inventory notable for how much of it concerns interior disposition rather than outward deed — examining one's own capacity honestly (third), never forming false intimacy (sixth), holding no duality of compassion between the precept-keeper and the precept-breaker (twenty-fifth) — treating the difference between a bodhisattva in name and a bodhisattva in substance as located primarily in habits of mind sustained over time, not in any single dramatic act.
The Ten Minds That Reach the Second Ground
分別二地業道品第二十八
諸菩薩已得，具足於初地，欲得第二地，當生十種心。
諸菩薩已得歡喜初地，為得二地故，生十種心，因是十心能得第二地；如人欲上樓觀，要因梯而上。
問曰：何等是十心，得第二地方便？
答曰：直心堪用心，軟伏寂滅心，真妙不雜貪，快大心為十。
諸菩薩已具足於初地，欲得第二地，生是十方便心：一、直心，二、堪用心，三、柔軟心，四、降伏心，五、寂滅心，六、真妙心，七、不雜心，八、不貪心，九、廣快心，十、大心。
直心者：離諂曲。
離諂曲故，心轉柔軟。柔軟者：不剛強麁惡。
菩薩得是柔軟心，生種種禪定，亦修習諸善法，觀諸法實相，心則堪用。
心堪用故，生伏心。伏心者：善能降伏眼等諸根；如經中說：「何等是善道？所謂比丘降伏眼根，乃至意根。」以降伏六根故，名為伏心。
心已降伏，則易生寂滅心。
寂滅心者：能滅貪欲、瞋恚、愚癡等諸煩惱。先「伏心」已遮，令寂滅。
復有人言：「得諸禪定是名寂滅心；如經說：『若人善知禪定相，不貪其味，是名寂滅心。』」
得寂滅心已，必生真妙心。真妙心者：於諸禪定神通所願事中如意得用，譬如真金隨意所用。
行者既得直心乃至真妙心已，為守護是心故，樂生不雜心。不雜心者：不與在家、出家從事。是人作是念：「我得如是等心，皆由禪定力故；以是諸心，當得第二地等無量利益。若與眾人雜者，則失此利。何以故？若人與眾人雜行，則眼等六根或時還發諸不善法。何以故？親近可染、可瞋、可癡法故，諸根發動煩惱火然；煩惱火然故，則失此利。」見此等過故，生不雜心，不應與在家、出家者雜行。
是人得是不雜心已，次生不貪心。不貪心者：於在家、出家人中，所謂父母兄弟、和上師長等不生貪著，作是念：「若我於在家、出家生貪著者，必當來往問訊，我則何有不雜心耶？是故，我欲令諸禪定等利住不雜心者，當於在家、出家捨貪著心。」
Distinguishing the Karmic Path of the Second Ground Chapter
"Every bodhisattva who has already attained completeness within the first ground, wishing to attain the second ground, ought then to give rise to ten kinds of mind."
Every bodhisattva who has already attained the first ground, the Ground of Joy, for the sake of attaining the second ground, gives rise to these ten kinds of mind — through these very ten minds, one is thereby able to attain the second ground, just as a person wishing to ascend to an upper story must necessarily climb by means of a stairway.
Question: What are these ten minds, the skillful means for attaining the second ground?
Answer: "An upright mind, a fit and usable mind, a gentle mind, a subdued mind, a tranquil, ceased mind, a genuine and sublime mind, an unmixed mind, a mind free of craving, and a vast, joyful mind, together with a great mind — these are the ten."
Every bodhisattva already complete within the first ground, wishing to attain the second ground, gives rise to these ten minds as skillful means: first, an upright mind; second, a fit and usable mind; third, a gentle mind; fourth, a subdued mind; fifth, a tranquil, ceased mind; sixth, a genuine and sublime mind; seventh, an unmixed mind; eighth, a mind free of craving; ninth, a vast and joyful mind; tenth, a great mind.
As for "an upright mind": this refers to departing from flattery and crookedness.
Through departing from flattery and crookedness, the mind thereby becomes gentle. "Gentle" refers to being free of rigidity, harshness, and coarseness.
The bodhisattva, having attained this very gentle mind, gives rise to meditative absorption of every kind, and further cultivates and studies every wholesome dharma, contemplating the true mark of every dharma — the mind thereby becomes fit and usable.
Through this very mind becoming fit and usable, one gives rise to a subdued mind. "Subdued" refers to being skillfully able to subdue the eye and every other faculty; as the sūtra states: "What is the wholesome path? Namely, the monk who subdues the very faculty of the eye, right up through the faculty of the mind." Through subduing these very six faculties, this is what is called a subdued mind.
Once the mind has already been subdued, it thereby easily gives rise to a tranquil, ceased mind.
"Tranquil, ceased mind" refers to being able to extinguish craving, anger, delusion, and every other affliction. Having first restrained these through the very "subdued mind," one thereby causes them to become tranquil and ceased.
There are, further, those who say: "Attaining meditative absorption of every kind is itself what is called the tranquil, ceased mind; as the sūtra states: 'Should a person skillfully know the very mark of meditative absorption, and yet never grasp at its own flavor, this is called the tranquil, ceased mind.'"
Having attained this very tranquil, ceased mind, one necessarily gives rise to the genuine and sublime mind. "Genuine and sublime mind" refers to, within every matter concerning meditative absorption, spiritual power, and one's own vow, attaining mastery over them exactly as one wishes, just as genuine gold can be used exactly as one wishes.
The practitioner, having already attained the upright mind up through the genuine and sublime mind, for the sake of guarding and protecting this very mind, delights in giving rise to the unmixed mind. "Unmixed mind" refers to never engaging in worldly affairs together with either householder or renunciant. This person reflects thus: "I have attained minds such as these entirely through the power of meditative absorption; through these very minds, I shall attain the second ground and every other immeasurable benefit. Should I engage together with the multitude, I would thereby lose this very benefit. And why is this so? Should a person engage in worldly affairs together with the multitude, the eye and the other five faculties may, at times, once more give rise to some unwholesome dharma. And why is this so? Because, drawing near to a dharma capable of defiling, capable of provoking anger, capable of provoking delusion, every faculty is thereby stirred into motion, and the very fire of the afflictions is kindled; through this very fire of the afflictions being kindled, this benefit is thereby lost." Beholding faults such as these, one gives rise to the unmixed mind, and ought never to engage in worldly affairs together with either householder or renunciant.
This person, having already attained this very unmixed mind, next gives rise to the mind free of craving. "Mind free of craving" refers to, toward both householder and renunciant alike — namely, one's own parents, siblings, preceptor, and teacher — never giving rise to any craving attachment whatsoever, reflecting thus: "Should I give rise to craving attachment toward either householder or renunciant, I would necessarily come and go, offering greeting to them, and how, then, could I possibly maintain this very unmixed mind? It is for this very reason that, wishing to cause every benefit of meditative absorption and the rest to abide within this unmixed mind, I ought to relinquish, toward both householder and renunciant, this very mind of craving attachment."
The ten minds unfold here as a genuine causal sequence, each explicitly generating the next — uprightness producing gentleness, gentleness producing fitness for use, fitness producing subdual of the faculties, subdual producing tranquility, tranquility producing the genuine and sublime mind capable of using its own attainments freely, and only then, as a deliberate act of guarding what has been built, the unmixed mind that withdraws from ordinary social entanglement. The very next section raises the obvious objection this withdrawal invites — has the bodhisattva not just been warned, at length, never to abandon any sentient being? — before answering it and completing the remaining minds.
Objection: Does This Not Abandon Sentient Beings?
問曰：菩薩法不應捨眾生，不應生捨心；如《助菩提》中說：菩薩初精進，所有方便力，應令諸眾生，住於大乘中。
若人教恒沙，眾生住羅漢，不如教一人，住大乘為勝。
若人少勢力，不堪發大乘，次當教令住，辟支聲聞乘；若人不堪住，辟支聲聞乘，應教此眾生，令行福因緣；不任住三乘，不堪人天樂，當以今世事，隨而利益之。
若有諸眾生，不受菩薩利，於此不應捨，應生大慈悲。
汝云何言：「菩薩得不雜心，生不貪心？」若菩薩不貪眾生，則為捨離，何能度耶？
答曰：應隨順菩薩道，行捨心。何以故？是人因捨心生廣快心，作是念：「我若捨是眾閙當得禪定，因禪定生妙廣快法；得是法已，其後則能利益眾生，勝今千萬倍。」是故為多利益眾生，少時捨心，權捨眾閙，當得禪定五神通等利益眾生。
菩薩何故作如是方便？菩薩為得大心，而作是念：「大人樂大利益故，不存小利。」是故，我今當求大人之法，隨而修學；應如是勤加精進，為大利益，所謂諸禪定神通、滅苦解脫等。
是故汝說非也。
Question: The bodhisattva's own dharma states that one ought never to abandon sentient beings, and ought never to give rise to a mind of relinquishing them; as it is stated within the Aids to Bodhi: "The bodhisattva's own initial diligent effort, and every skillful means they possess, ought to cause every sentient being to abide within the Great Vehicle.
"Should a person teach sentient beings as numerous as the sands of the Ganges to abide within the fruit of the arhat, this does not equal teaching even a single person to abide within the Great Vehicle — the latter is superior.
"Should a person possess but little power, unable to give rise to the Great Vehicle's own aspiration, one ought next to teach them to abide within the pratyekabuddha or śrāvaka vehicle instead; should a person be unable even to abide within the pratyekabuddha or śrāvaka vehicle, one ought to teach this very sentient being to practice the causes and conditions of merit; should they be unfit to abide within even one of the three vehicles, unable to bear even the joy of humans and devas, one ought, through the affairs of this present life alone, benefit them accordingly.
"Should there exist sentient beings who fail to accept the bodhisattva's own benefit, toward these one ought never to abandon them, but ought instead to give rise to great loving-kindness and compassion."
How, then, can you say that "the bodhisattva, having attained the unmixed mind, gives rise to the mind free of craving"? Should the bodhisattva hold no craving whatsoever toward sentient beings, would this not itself be a form of abandoning them — how, then, could they possibly liberate them?
Answer: One ought to practice this very mind of relinquishment in accordance with the bodhisattva's own path. And why is this so? This person, through this very mind of relinquishment, gives rise to the vast and joyful mind, reflecting thus: "Should I relinquish this very clamor of the crowd, I shall thereby attain meditative absorption; through this meditative absorption, I shall give rise to a sublime, vast, and joyful dharma; having attained this very dharma, I shall afterward be able to benefit sentient beings a thousand myriad times more than I could now." It is for this reason that, for the sake of benefiting sentient beings all the more, one relinquishes, for a brief time, this very clamor of the crowd through this mind of relinquishment, as a skillful expedient, so as to attain meditative absorption, the five spiritual powers, and every other means of benefiting sentient beings.
Why, then, does the bodhisattva employ this very skillful means? The bodhisattva, for the sake of attaining the great mind, reflects thus: "A great person delights in great benefit, and does not settle for a lesser benefit." It is for this reason that I ought now to seek the very dharma of a great person, and cultivate and study it accordingly; I ought, in just this way, diligently apply further effort, for the sake of this great benefit — namely, meditative absorption of every kind, spiritual power, the extinguishing of suffering, liberation, and the rest.
It is for this reason that what you have said does not hold.
The resolution here turns on timing rather than intention: the unmixed mind's own temporary withdrawal from ordinary social entanglement is reframed not as abandoning sentient beings but as investing in a far greater future capacity to benefit them, the very same logic this treatise has applied elsewhere to giving that appears, on its surface, to withhold something. The great person's own preference for great benefit over lesser benefit gives this deferral its own ethical justification — a bodhisattva who declines an immediate, modest engagement is not thereby less committed to sentient beings, but calculating toward a return "a thousand myriad times" greater once meditative absorption and its own powers are secured.
The Fruit of the Ten Minds: Entering the Second Ground
問曰：初地中已有「直心」等法，何故復說：「菩薩欲得二地，生於十心？」
答曰：初地雖有此法，未得深樂，未有堅固；在此地中心常憙樂，轉深堅固，堪任施用，是故汝難非也。
問曰：若深樂堅固此法者，得何異事？
答曰：若其一時得，深樂堅固心，更不復用功，如使常隨逐。
如使一時生，常隨逐人；菩薩如是一時得深樂堅固心已，即常隨逐；更不須用功而生，若以少因緣便生。何以故？根深入故，莖、節相續。
問曰：若菩薩得是十種心，得何等果？
答曰：若得是諸心，正住第二地；具三種離垢、惡業及煩惱。
若菩薩得是「直」等十心，即名住第二菩薩地。
一離垢者，地名也；二離垢者，於此地中離十不善道罪業之垢；三離垢者，離貪欲、瞋恚等諸煩惱垢，故名為離垢。
復次，離垢義者：
Question: The first ground already possesses this very dharma of "an upright mind" and the rest — why, then, does the text speak once more of "the bodhisattva, wishing to attain the second ground, giving rise to these ten minds"?
Answer: Though the first ground already possesses this very dharma, one has not yet attained a deep delight in it, and it is not yet firm and secure; within this very ground, the mind constantly delights in it, growing ever deeper and more firm, until it becomes fit and usable — it is for this reason that your own challenge here does not hold.
Question: Should one attain a deep delight in this dharma, firm and secure, what different matter is thereby attained?
Answer: "Should one attain, all at once, this deep delight and this firm, secure mind, one no longer requires any further effort to sustain it, just as one who has been sent on an errand constantly continues to follow it through."
Just as an emissary, once dispatched, constantly continues to follow the person they were sent to attend — the bodhisattva, having attained, all at once, this deep delight and this firm, secure mind, likewise constantly continues in just this way; it no longer requires any further effort to arise, and, given even the slightest cause and condition, arises of its own accord. And why is this so? Because its own root has already penetrated deeply, so that its own stem and every joint continue on in unbroken succession.
Question: Should the bodhisattva attain these very ten kinds of mind, what fruit is thereby attained?
Answer: "Should one attain these very minds, one rightly abides within the second ground, complete with the threefold freedom from defilement — freedom from evil karma, and freedom from the afflictions."
Should the bodhisattva attain this very "upright mind" and the other nine, this is what is called abiding within the bodhisattva's own second ground.
The first freedom from defilement is the very name of this ground itself; the second freedom from defilement refers to, within this very ground, departing from the defilement of offense and karma belonging to the ten unwholesome paths; the third freedom from defilement refers to departing from the defilement of craving, anger, and every other affliction — it is for this reason that this ground is called freedom from defilement.
Furthermore, as for the very meaning of freedom from defilement:
The image of an emissary who, once dispatched, continues on their own errand without requiring further instruction gives concrete shape to the distinction this passage draws between merely possessing a quality and having it become self-sustaining: the first ground already contains an upright mind and the rest in some form, but only once these minds deepen into firm, rooted qualities do they continue "of their own accord," arising from the slightest prompting the way a plant's own stem and joints, once the root has struck deep, continue growing without renewed effort at each stage. This closes the fascicle's own account of the ten minds; the explanation of what "freedom from defilement" specifically means, promised in the final line, continues directly into Fascicle 14.
Fascicle 13 Complete
This closes Fascicle 13: the extended simile of the good road mapped in full onto the ten bodhisattva grounds, the ascending numerical sets of one dharma through ten that encompass the entire path, the corresponding one fault through ten that must be left behind, the thirty-two marks distinguishing a genuine bodhisattva from one in name only, and the ten minds that carry a bodhisattva from the first ground into the second, complete with the threefold freedom from defilement that names this very ground. Fascicle 14 continues this same account of the second ground.
Continue to Fascicle 14 →