A Brahmin at the Village of Dharma
Sudhana bows farewell to Unsurpassed Army and journeys south to a village named Dharma, arriving before the brahmin Śibi Supreme to ask his now-familiar question.
Śibi Supreme
「時，善財童子禮無勝軍足，遶無數匝，戀仰辭去，漸次南行。詣彼聚落，見尸毘最勝，禮足圍遶，合掌恭敬，於一面立，白言：「聖者！我已先發阿耨多羅三藐三菩提心，而未知菩薩云何學菩薩行、修菩薩道？我聞聖者善能誘誨，願為我說。」」
At that time, Sudhana bowed at Unsurpassed Army's own feet, circled him countless times in longing reverence, took his leave, and journeyed gradually south. Arriving at that village, he saw Śibi Supreme; he bowed at his feet, circled him, and stood to one side with palms joined in reverence, saying: "Noble one, I have already raised the mind set on unsurpassed, perfect awakening, but I do not yet know how a bodhisattva learns the bodhisattva's own practice and cultivates the bodhisattva's own path. I have heard that you, noble one, are skilled in guiding and instructing — I ask that you teach me."
Śibi is a name inherited from the jātaka tradition — King Śibi, who famously cut flesh from his own body to ransom a dove from a pursuing hawk, remembered ever after as the paradigm of the perfection of giving. A brahmin bearing this name at a village named Dharma prepares the reader, before any teaching is given, for a liberation likely to concern speech kept utterly true to a vow — a virtue closely allied with, though distinct from, Śibi's own legendary generosity.
Part 242 Complete — Teacher 49 Begins
Sudhana has arrived and asked his question. Part 243 begins Śibi Supreme's own answer: his liberation, True Vow-Speech.
Continue to Part 243 →