The Monkey Caught in Glue

"Furthermore, good son, how does the bodhisattva-mahāsattva who cultivates this subtle and wondrous scripture of the great nirvāṇa accomplish and fully complete the seventh merit? Good son, the bodhisattva-mahāsattva who cultivates this subtle and wondrous scripture of the great nirvāṇa reflects, thus: 'What dharma is able to serve as the near cause of this great nirvāṇa?' The bodhisattva then knows that there are four dharmas that serve as the near cause of this great nirvāṇa… What are these four? First, drawing near to a good and wise friend; second, listening to the Dharma with a single-pointed mind; third, fixing the mind in reflection; and fourth, practicing in accordance with the Dharma. Good son, it is like a man afflicted with every kind of illness — whether heat or cold, exhaustion, or dysentery, or possessed by every kind of evil spirit or poison — who goes to a good physician, and the good physician, according to his illness, prescribes him medicine. This man, with a sincere mind, well receives the physician's own instruction, compounds the medicine exactly as instructed, and takes it in accordance with the Dharma — and, having taken it, his illness is cured, and his body attains peace and ease. The sick man is a likeness for every bodhisattva; the great, good physician is a likeness for the good and wise friend; what the good physician says is a likeness for the Vaipulya scriptures; well receiving the physician's own instruction is a likeness for skillfully reflecting on the meaning of the Vaipulya scriptures; compounding the medicine exactly as instructed is a likeness for practicing, in accordance with the Dharma, the thirty-seven factors that assist the path; the illness being cured is a likeness for extinguishing affliction; and attaining peace and ease is a likeness for attaining nirvāṇa, permanence, bliss, self, and purity… Good son, a good and wise friend means the bodhisattva, the buddha, the pratyekabuddha, the śrāvaka, and, among humans, one who has faith in the Vaipulya teachings. Why is such a person named a good and wise friend? A good and wise friend is one able to teach beings to keep far from the ten evils and practice the ten wholesome deeds — it is for this very reason that he is named a good and wise friend. Furthermore, a good and wise friend is one who speaks in accordance with the Dharma and acts in accordance with what he speaks… He himself practices faith, moral discipline, giving, vast learning, and wisdom, and is, further, able to teach others faith, moral discipline, giving, vast learning, and wisdom — it is on account of this, too, that he is named a good and wise friend. A good and wise friend possesses wholesome dharmas of his own. What are these wholesome dharmas? Whatever he does, he does not seek pleasure for himself, but forever seeks pleasure for the sake of beings; seeing another's own fault, he does not broadcast his shortcoming; his mouth forever proclaims only what is purely wholesome — it is for this very reason that he is named a good and wise friend."

"Good son, it is like a man afflicted with a grave, leprous disease, whom a good and wise friend addresses, saying: 'Should you be able to reach the edge of Mount Sumeru, your illness can be cured — for there is a fine medicine there, with the flavor of ambrosia, and, should you be able to consume it, your illness will, without exception, be healed.' This man, with a sincere mind, believes this, and goes at once to that mountain, gathers and consumes this very ambrosia, and his illness is cured, his body attaining peace and ease. The grave, leprous disease is a likeness for every ordinary being; the good and wise friend is a likeness for the bodhisattva-mahāsattva; believing with a sincere mind is a likeness for the four immeasurable minds; Mount Sumeru is a likeness for the eightfold noble path; the flavor of ambrosia is a likeness for buddha-nature; the healing of the leprous disease is a likeness for leaving affliction behind; and attaining peace and ease is a likeness for attaining nirvāṇa's own permanence, bliss, self, and purity… Good son, it is like the moon in the sky, which, from the first day of the month to the fifteenth, grows gradually greater — a good and wise friend is exactly the same, causing every student to gradually keep far from unwholesome dharmas and to grow and increase in wholesome ones. Good son, should one draw near to a good and wise friend, whatever moral discipline, concentration, wisdom, liberation, and knowledge and vision of liberation he did not originally possess, he thereupon comes to possess, and whatever he has not yet fully completed comes to grow and expand. Why is this? Because, through this very drawing near to a good and wise friend, he comes, further, to penetrate the very deep meaning of the twelve divisions of scripture. Should he be able to hear this very deep meaning of the twelve divisions of scripture, this is named listening to the Dharma; and this listening to the Dharma is itself the Mahāyāna's own Vaipulya scriptures; listening to the Vaipulya scriptures is named true listening to the Dharma; and true listening to the Dharma is itself listening to and receiving this great Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra — hearing, within this great nirvāṇa, that buddha-nature exists, and that the Tathāgata, in the end, never actually enters parinirvāṇa at all — it is for this very reason that this is named listening to the Dharma with a single-pointed mind; and listening to the Dharma with a single-pointed mind is itself named the eightfold noble path, since the eightfold noble path is able to sever craving, anger, and delusion — it is for this reason that this, too, is named listening to the Dharma."

"How is it that the cause and condition of listening to the Dharma brings a bodhisattva near to this great nirvāṇa? Every being, through listening to the Dharma, thereby becomes endowed with the root of faith, and, having attained this root of faith, delights in practicing giving, moral discipline, patience, diligence, meditative concentration, and wisdom, attaining the fruit of stream-entry, up through the fruit of buddhahood itself — you should therefore know that the attainment of every wholesome dharma is entirely the power of the cause and condition of listening to the Dharma. Good son, it is like an elder who has but a single son, whom he sends to another kingdom to trade for what is needed, showing him which roads are passable and which are not, and further warning him: 'Should you encounter a woman of pleasure, be careful never to become attached to her — for, should you become attached, you shall lose your very life and your wealth alike; nor should you keep company with wicked people.' The son, reverently obeying his father's own instruction, attains peace and ease of body and mind, and obtains a great deal of wealth. The bodhisattva-mahāsattva, expounding the essentials of the Dharma for the sake of beings, is exactly the same: showing beings and the fourfold assembly which roads are passable and which are not, these very beings, through hearing the Dharma, keep far from every evil and become fully endowed with wholesome dharmas… Good son, it is like a bright mirror reflecting a person's own face, leaving nothing at all unclear — the bright mirror of listening to the Dharma is exactly the same: whoever is reflected in it sees good and evil with perfect clarity, without the slightest obscurity… Good son, it is like a merchant who wishes to reach an island of treasure, but does not know the way — someone shows him the road, and, following these directions, he reaches the island of treasure, and obtains every kind of precious thing beyond all reckoning. Every being is exactly the same: wishing to reach a wholesome place and gather the treasure of the path, yet not knowing which roads are passable and which are not, the bodhisattva shows them the way, and these beings, following him, reach this wholesome place, and obtain the unsurpassed treasure of this great nirvāṇa."

"Good son, it is like a drunken elephant, frenzied, wild, and violent, wishing to kill and harm many — an elephant-trainer, with a great iron hook, strikes it upon its crown, and it is at once tamed and made compliant, every evil thought within it entirely exhausted. Every being is exactly the same: drunk on craving, anger, and delusion, wishing to commit every kind of evil, the bodhisattva, with the hook of hearing the Dharma, strikes and restrains him, so that he can no longer give rise to any evil thought at all… It is for this very reason that I say, throughout every scripture: 'My own disciples, listening to and receiving the twelve divisions of scripture with a single-pointed mind, thereby keep far from the five hindrances, and cultivate the seven factors of awakening — and, through cultivating these seven factors of awakening, they thereby draw near to this great nirvāṇa.' It is through listening to the Dharma that the stream-enterer keeps far from every terror. Why is this? The elder Sudatta, once gravely ill, his mind filled with great sorrow and dread, heard Śāriputra speak of the stream-enterer's own four merits, offering him ten kinds of consolation — and, hearing this, his own terror was at once removed… Why is this? Because it opens the Dharma-eye. There are, in this world, three kinds of people: those without eyes, those with a single eye, and those with two eyes. Those without eyes are those who never hear the Dharma at all; those with a single eye, though they may hear the Dharma for a moment, do not let it settle in their own minds; and those with two eyes listen to and receive it with a single-pointed mind, and practice exactly as they have heard it. It is through listening to the Dharma that one comes to know that the world contains three kinds of people such as this… Good son, it was just as when, in the past, at the city of Kuśinagara, Śāriputra himself fell gravely ill, and I, at that time, entrusted the monk Ānanda to expound the Dharma broadly for him. Śāriputra, hearing of this, said to his four disciples: 'Carry my own bed to where the Buddha is — I wish to hear the Dharma.' His four disciples then carried him there together, and, having heard the Dharma, through the very power of this hearing, his suffering was removed and cured, his body attaining peace and comfort. It is for this very reason that the cause and condition of listening to the Dharma brings one near to this great nirvāṇa."

"How is it that the cause and condition of reflection brings a bodhisattva near to this great nirvāṇa? Through this very reflection, the mind attains liberation. Why is this? Every being is forever bound by the five desires — and, through reflection, he becomes entirely liberated from them… Furthermore, good son, every being is forever inverted by these four dharmas — permanence, bliss, self, and purity — and, through reflection, comes to see that every dharma is impermanent, without bliss, without self, and without purity; and, having seen this, these four inversions are at once severed… Furthermore, good son, every dharma bears four kinds of mark: the mark of birth, the mark of aging, the mark of illness, and the mark of cessation. It is these four marks that cause every ordinary being, up through the stream-enterer, to give rise to great suffering and anguish — but one who is able to fix his mind and reflect well, though he encounters these same four, gives rise to no suffering at all on account of them… Furthermore, good son, there is not a single wholesome dharma that is not attained through reflection. Why is this? There is a person who, though he listens to the Dharma with a single-pointed mind throughout immeasurable, boundless, incalculable kalpas, if he does not reflect upon it, shall, in the end, never attain unsurpassed, complete awakening."

"What is meant by 'the bodhisattva practicing in accordance with the Dharma'? Good son, severing every unwholesome dharma and cultivating every wholesome dharma — this is what is meant by the bodhisattva practicing in accordance with the Dharma. What else, further, is meant by practicing in accordance with the Dharma? Seeing that every dharma is empty, without anything at all, impermanent, without bliss, without self, and without purity, and, through this very seeing, would rather cast off his own body and life than transgress a single restraining precept — this, too, is what is meant by the bodhisattva practicing in accordance with the Dharma. What else, further, is meant by practicing in accordance with the Dharma? Practice is of two kinds: true, and untrue. What is untrue is not knowing the marks of nirvāṇa, buddha-nature, the Tathāgata, the Dharma, the Saṅgha, true reality, and empty space — this is what is meant by untrue. What is true? Being able to know the marks of nirvāṇa, buddha-nature, the Tathāgata, the Dharma, the Saṅgha, true reality, and empty space — this is what is meant by true. What is meant by knowing the mark of nirvāṇa? The mark of nirvāṇa consists, in all, of eight matters. What are these eight? Exhaustion, wholesome nature, reality, truth, permanence, bliss, self, and purity — this is what is named nirvāṇa. There are, further, eight matters… liberation, wholesome nature, unreality, untruth, impermanence, no bliss, no self, and no purity. There are, further, six marks: liberation, wholesome nature, unreality, untruth, peace and ease, and purity. Should any being, following the worldly path, sever affliction, the nirvāṇa he attains possesses these eight matters of liberation, yet remains unreal. Why is this? Because it is not permanent. Being impermanent, it has no reality; having no reality, it has no truth; and, though affliction is severed, since it arises again, it is impermanent, without self, without bliss, and without purity — this is what is meant by the eight matters of the liberation named nirvāṇa. What, then, are the six marks? The śrāvaka and pratyekabuddha, severing affliction, are named liberated, and yet, not yet able to attain unsurpassed, complete awakening, are named unreal. Being unreal, they are named untrue. In an age yet to come, they shall attain unsurpassed, complete awakening — and so they are named impermanent. And, having attained the eightfold noble path free of outflow, they are named pure and at ease."

"What is meant by the bodhisattva knowing buddha-nature? Buddha-nature has six aspects. What are these six? Permanence, purity, reality, goodness, being destined to be seen, and truth. There is, further, a seventh matter: being verifiable — the remaining six are as above. This is what is meant by the bodhisattva knowing buddha-nature. What is meant by the bodhisattva knowing the mark of the Tathāgata? The Tathāgata is precisely the mark of awakening, the mark of goodness, permanence, bliss, self, and purity, liberation, reality, and showing the path so that it can be seen — this is what is meant by the bodhisattva knowing the mark of the Tathāgata. What is meant by the bodhisattva knowing the mark of the Dharma? The Dharma may be wholesome or unwholesome, permanent or impermanent, blissful or not, self or non-self, pure or impure, known or unknown, understood or not understood, true or untrue, cultivated or not cultivated, a teacher or not a teacher, real or unreal — this is what is meant by the bodhisattva knowing the mark of the Dharma. What is meant by the bodhisattva knowing the mark of the Saṅgha? The Saṅgha, whether or not it possesses permanence, bliss, self, and purity, bears the mark of a disciple — a visible mark, good and true, yet unreal. Why is this? Because every śrāvaka shall attain the buddha-path. Why is it named true? Because it awakens to the nature of dharmas. This is what is meant by the bodhisattva knowing the mark of the Saṅgha. What is meant by the bodhisattva knowing the mark of true reality? True reality may be permanent or impermanent, blissful or not, self or non-self, pure or impure, wholesome or unwholesome, existent or non-existent, nirvāṇa or not nirvāṇa, liberation or not liberation, known or unknown, severed or unsevered, verified or unverified, cultivated or uncultivated, seen or unseen — this is what is meant by true reality, and it is distinct from nirvāṇa, buddha-nature, the Tathāgata, the Dharma, the Saṅgha, and empty space. This is what is meant by the bodhisattva, through cultivating this great nirvāṇa, coming to know the distinguishing marks of nirvāṇa, buddha-nature, the Tathāgata, the Dharma, the Saṅgha, true reality, and empty space, each in its own right."

"Good son, the bodhisattva-mahāsattva who cultivates this subtle and wondrous scripture of the great nirvāṇa does not, in fact, see empty space at all. Why is this? Because even the Buddha and the bodhisattva, though possessed of the five eyes, are unable to see it — only the eye of wisdom is able to see it, and what the eye of wisdom sees is that there is no dharma there at all to be seen — it is for this very reason that this is named 'seeing.' Should this very absence of anything be named 'empty space,' then this empty space would itself be named a real thing — and, being real, it would be named permanently non-existent, and, being permanently non-existent, would be without bliss, self, or purity. Good son, 'empty' names the absence of any dharma, and the absence of any dharma is named 'empty' — it is just as, in the world, the absence of any object is called 'empty.' The very nature of empty space is exactly the same: because it possesses nothing at all, it is named empty space. Good son, the nature of beings and the nature of empty space are both alike without any real nature of their own. Why is this? It is as when someone says that emptiness is produced by first removing an existing object — and yet this very empty space, in reality, cannot be produced at all. Why is this? Because it possesses nothing at all — and, possessing nothing at all, you should know that there is, in fact, no 'emptiness' there to speak of either. Were the very nature of this empty space capable of being produced, it would be named impermanent — and, being impermanent, it could not be named empty space at all. Good son, it is as people of the world say, that empty space has no form, no obstruction, and is forever unchanging — and it is for this reason that the world names the dharma of empty space the fifth of the great elements. Good son, and yet this very empty space, in reality, has no nature of its own at all — it is only on account of light and illumination that it is named 'empty space'; in reality, there is no such thing as empty space at all. It is just like worldly truth, which, in reality, has no nature of its own, and yet, for the sake of beings, is spoken of as existing. Good son, the very substance of nirvāṇa is exactly the same: it has no fixed dwelling place at all — it is simply the very place where every buddha severs affliction, and it is for this reason that it is named nirvāṇa. Nirvāṇa is itself permanence, bliss, self, and purity — and, though nirvāṇa is bliss, this is not a bliss that is felt as a sensation at all, but the very finest, most subtle bliss of quiescence itself. Every buddha, every tathāgata, possesses two kinds of bliss: the bliss of quiescence, and the bliss of awareness. The very substance of true reality possesses three kinds of bliss: the bliss of sensation, the bliss of quiescence, and the bliss of awareness. Buddha-nature possesses a single bliss, since it is destined to be seen — and, at the very moment one attains unsurpassed, complete awakening, this is named the bliss of bodhi itself."

At that time, the bodhisattva-mahāsattva Bright Virtuous King of Universal Illumination said to the Buddha: "World-Honored One, should the place where affliction is severed simply be nirvāṇa, this does not seem correct. Why is this? When the Tathāgata, in ages past, first accomplished the buddha-path, at the bank of the Nairañjanā River, the demon king, together with his own retinue, came to where the Buddha was, and said: 'World-Honored One, the time for nirvāṇa has come — why do you not enter it?' The Buddha said to the demon king: 'I do not yet have disciples of vast learning, well upholding the restraining precepts, clever and sharp in wisdom, able to transform beings — it is for this reason that I do not enter it.' Should the place where affliction is extinguished simply be nirvāṇa, then every bodhisattva, having already severed affliction throughout immeasurable kalpas, should equally be named as having entered nirvāṇa — why, then, is it not so named? Since both are equally a place where affliction is severed, for what reason is it said that only the buddhas possess it, and the bodhisattvas do not? And should severing affliction not be nirvāṇa, why, then, did the Tathāgata once tell the brahmin named Janma: 'This very body of mine is itself nirvāṇa'? And, when the Tathāgata was, in the past, in the kingdom of Vaiśālī, Māra again petitioned him, saying: 'The Tathāgata, in the past, on account of not yet having disciples of vast learning, upholding the precepts, clever and sharp in wisdom, able to transform beings, did not enter nirvāṇa — now that this is fully accomplished, why do you not enter it?' The Tathāgata, at that time, said to Māra: 'Do not now give rise to any anxious impatience — after three more months, I shall enter nirvāṇa.' World-Honored One, should final extinction not be nirvāṇa, why, then, did the Tathāgata himself set a term of three months before entering parinirvāṇa? World-Honored One, should severing affliction be nirvāṇa, then the Tathāgata, in the past, at the very moment he severed affliction beneath the bodhi tree at the seat of enlightenment, would already have entered nirvāṇa at that time — why, then, did he say, further, that after three months he would enter parinirvāṇa? World-Honored One, should that very moment already have been nirvāṇa, how, then, could he now tell the strongmen of the city of Kuśinagara that he shall enter parinirvāṇa this very night? The Tathāgata is truthful — how, then, could he utter words that are false?"

At that time, the World-Honored One said to the bodhisattva-mahāsattva Bright Virtuous King of Universal Illumination: "Good son, should it be said that the Tathāgata possesses a broad, long tongue, you should know that the Tathāgata has, throughout immeasurable kalpas, already left false speech entirely behind. Every buddha and every bodhisattva, whatever they say, speaks truthfully and sincerely, without the slightest falsehood. Good son, as for what you have said, that Māra, in ages past, petitioned me to enter nirvāṇa — good son, this demon king, in truth, does not actually know the fixed mark of nirvāṇa at all. Why is this? Māra's own intention was that, should the Buddha cease transforming beings and dwell in silence, this alone would already be nirvāṇa. Good son, it is like people of the world who, seeing a person neither speaking nor doing anything at all, take him to be exactly the same as one already dead. The demon king Māra is exactly the same: his own intention was that, should the Tathāgata cease transforming beings and remain silent, saying nothing at all, this alone would mean the Tathāgata had entered parinirvāṇa. Good son, the Tathāgata has never taught that the Buddha, the Dharma, and the holy Saṅgha bear no distinguishing mark whatsoever between them — he has taught only that the two dharmas of permanence and purity bear no distinction between them. Good son, the Buddha, likewise, has never taught that the Buddha himself, buddha-nature, and nirvāṇa bear no distinguishing mark between them — he has taught only that their shared quality of being ever-abiding and unchanging bears no distinction. Good son, the Buddha, likewise, has never taught that nirvāṇa and true reality bear no distinguishing mark between them — he has taught only that their shared quality of being ever-existing, real, and unchanging bears no distinction. Good son, at that very time, my own śrāvaka disciples gave rise to contention among themselves — as with the evil monks of Kauśāmbī, who violated my own teaching, transgressed the restraining precepts extensively, accepted impure objects, and craved personal gain, proclaiming to lay believers that they themselves had attained freedom from outflow, claiming the fruit of stream-entry, up through claiming the fruit of arhatship, while heaping insult upon others, showing no reverence at all toward the Buddha, the Dharma, the Saṅgha, the monastic discipline, or their own preceptors… Evil people of this kind did not believe my own words — and it was for the sake of people such as these that I told Māra: 'Do not be so impatient — after three more months, I shall enter parinirvāṇa.' Good son, it is on account of evil monks of exactly this kind that my own śrāvaka disciples, those still under training, fail to see my own body and fail to hear my own teaching, and so say that the Tathāgata has entered nirvāṇa. Only the bodhisattvas are able to see my own body and forever hear my own teaching, and it is for this reason that they do not say I have entered nirvāṇa. Though my śrāvaka disciples speak of the Tathāgata's own nirvāṇa, I myself, in reality, do not enter nirvāṇa at all. Good son, should any of my own śrāvaka disciples say that the Tathāgata has entered nirvāṇa, know that this person is not my own disciple at all, but Māra's own companion, a person of wrong view and evil, not of right view. But should he say that the Tathāgata does not enter nirvāṇa, know that this person is truly my own disciple, not Māra's companion, a person of right view, not of evil and wrong view."

"Good son, for what cause and condition did I, in ages past, at the bank of the Nairañjanā River, tell Māra that, not yet having disciples of great wisdom, I could not yet enter nirvāṇa? At that time, I still wished to turn the Dharma-wheel for the sake of the five monks, at Vārāṇasī. Furthermore, I wished to do so for these very five monks, namely, Yaśa, Pūrṇa, Vimala, Kauṇḍinya, and Subāhu. Next, I wished to do so for the elder Ugra and his fifty companions. Next, I wished to do so for immeasurable gods and humans, including King Bimbisāra of the kingdom of Magadha. Next, I wished to do so for the five hundred monks who were disciples of Uruvilvā-Kāśyapa. Next, I wished to do so for the two brothers Nadī-Kāśyapa and Gayā-Kāśyapa, together with their five hundred disciples. Next, I wished to turn the wondrous Dharma-wheel for the sake of Śāriputra, Maudgalyāyana, and their own two hundred and fifty monks. It was for these very reasons that I told the demon king Māra that I would not enter parinirvāṇa. Good son, there is what is named nirvāṇa, yet is not this great nirvāṇa. What is meant by this? Severing affliction without seeing buddha-nature is named nirvāṇa, yet is not this great nirvāṇa. Because buddha-nature is not seen, it is impermanent and without self, possessing only bliss and purity — it is for this very reason that, though affliction is severed, this cannot be named this great nirvāṇa. But should one see buddha-nature and thereby be able to sever affliction, this, precisely, is named this great nirvāṇa. Because buddha-nature is seen, this attains the name of permanence, bliss, self, and purity — and it is for this very reason that severing affliction, in this case, can indeed be called this great nirvāṇa."

"Good son, 'ni' means 'not,' and 'rvāṇa' means 'weaving' — and the meaning of 'not weaving' is what is named nirvāṇa. 'Rvāṇa' also means 'covering' — and the meaning of 'not covering' is what is named nirvāṇa. 'Rvāṇa' means 'going and coming' — and 'neither going nor coming' is what is named nirvāṇa. 'Rvāṇa' means 'grasping' — and the meaning of 'not grasping' is what is named nirvāṇa. 'Rvāṇa' means 'unfixed' — and 'fixed, without any unfixedness' is what is named nirvāṇa. 'Rvāṇa' means 'new and old' — and the meaning of being without anything new or old is what is named nirvāṇa. 'Rvāṇa' means 'obstruction' — and the meaning of being without obstruction is what is named nirvāṇa. Good son, the followers of Uraka Kapila say that 'rvāṇa' names a 'mark' — and the meaning of being without any mark is what is named nirvāṇa. Good son, 'rvāṇa' means 'existence' — and the meaning of non-existence is what is named nirvāṇa. 'Rvāṇa' means 'combination' — and the meaning of being without any combination is what is named nirvāṇa. 'Rvāṇa' means 'suffering' — and the meaning of being without suffering is what is named nirvāṇa. Good son, one who has merely severed affliction is not, on that account, named as having attained nirvāṇa — it is one in whom affliction no longer arises at all who is truly named as having attained nirvāṇa. Good son, that no affliction arises at all in any buddha, any tathāgata, is what is named nirvāṇa; and possessing wisdom entirely unobstructed with regard to every dharma is what constitutes the Tathāgata. The Tathāgata is neither an ordinary being, a śrāvaka, a pratyekabuddha, nor a bodhisattva — this is what is named buddha-nature. The Tathāgata's own body, mind, and wisdom pervade every immeasurable, boundless, incalculable land, entirely without obstruction — this is what is named empty space. The Tathāgata is forever ever-abiding, without any change at all — this is what is named true reality. It is for this very reason that the Tathāgata, in reality, never, in the end, enters nirvāṇa at all. This is what is meant by the bodhisattva who cultivates this subtle and wondrous scripture of the great nirvāṇa accomplishing and fully completing the seventh merit."

"Furthermore, good son, how does the bodhisattva-mahāsattva who cultivates this subtle and wondrous scripture of the great nirvāṇa accomplish and fully complete the eighth merit? Good son, the bodhisattva-mahāsattva who cultivates this great nirvāṇa eliminates and severs five matters, keeps far from five matters, accomplishes six matters, cultivates five matters, protects a single matter, draws near to four matters, trusts and follows the one true reality, and attains a mind well liberated and a wisdom well liberated. Good son, what is meant by the bodhisattva eliminating and severing five matters? Namely, the five aggregates: form, sensation, perception, formations, and consciousness. What, exactly, is meant by 'aggregate'? That which causes beings' own birth-and-death to continue unbroken, never free of its heavy burden, scattering and gathering, encompassed by the three time-periods, whose own underlying meaning, sought out, can never truly be grasped — it is on account of meanings of this kind that this is named an aggregate. The bodhisattva-mahāsattva, though he sees the aggregate of form, sees no fixed mark within it at all. Why is this? Because, seeking out its own nature among the ten kinds of form, it can never, in the end, be truly grasped at all — it is only for the sake of the world's own conventions that this is spoken of as an aggregate. Sensation is of a hundred and eight kinds, and, though he sees the aggregate of sensation, he never, in the end, holds any fixed mark of sensation at all. Why is this? Because, though sensation is of a hundred and eight kinds, its own underlying principle has no fixed reality at all — it is for this reason that the bodhisattva sees no fixed aggregate of sensation, and it is exactly the same with perception, formations, and consciousness. The bodhisattva-mahāsattva, seeing deeply that the five aggregates are themselves the very root of arising affliction, thereby employs skillful means to sever them. What is meant by the bodhisattva keeping far from five matters? Namely, the five views: the view of a self in the body, the extreme view, wrong view, clinging to precepts and vows, and clinging to views themselves. On account of these five views, sixty-two further views arise, and, on account of these views, birth-and-death continues without end — it is for this reason that the bodhisattva guards himself against them and keeps far from them."

"What is meant by the bodhisattva accomplishing six matters? Namely, the six recollections. What are these six? Recollection of the Buddha, of the Dharma, of the Saṅgha, of the gods, of giving, and of moral discipline — this is what is meant by the bodhisattva accomplishing six matters. What is meant by the bodhisattva cultivating five matters? Namely, five kinds of concentration: the concentration of knowing, the concentration of tranquility, the concentration of receiving bliss of body and mind, the concentration free of ordinary pleasure, and the Śūraṅgama concentration. Through cultivating these five kinds of concentrated mind, one draws near to this great nirvāṇa — it is for this very reason that the bodhisattva diligently cultivates them. What is meant by the bodhisattva protecting a single matter? Namely, the bodhi-mind. The bodhisattva-mahāsattva forever diligently protects this very bodhi-mind, just as a person of the world protects his own only child, just as a blind man protects the single eye he has left, and just as one traveling through a desolate wilderness protects his own guide. The bodhisattva protects the bodhi-mind in exactly this way — and, through protecting this very bodhi-mind, he attains unsurpassed, complete awakening, and, through attaining unsurpassed, complete awakening, permanence, bliss, self, and purity come to be fully and completely present, and this is itself the unsurpassed great nirvāṇa — it is for this very reason that the bodhisattva protects this single dharma. What is meant by the bodhisattva drawing near to four matters? Namely, the four immeasurable minds. What are these four? Great loving-kindness, great compassion, great sympathetic joy, and great equanimity. Through these four minds, he is able to cause immeasurable, boundless beings to give rise to the bodhi-mind — it is for this very reason that the bodhisattva fixes his own mind upon them and draws near to them. What is meant by the bodhisattva trusting and following the one true reality? The bodhisattva fully understands that every being ultimately returns to a single path — and this single path is the Mahāyāna itself. Every buddha and bodhisattva, for the sake of beings, divides this single path into three — and it is for this reason that the bodhisattva trusts and follows it without any contradiction. What is meant by the bodhisattva's mind being well liberated? Because the mind of craving, anger, and delusion is forever severed and extinguished — this is what is meant by the bodhisattva's mind being well liberated. What is meant by the bodhisattva's wisdom being well liberated? The bodhisattva-mahāsattva, with regard to every dharma, knows it entirely without obstruction — this is what is meant by the bodhisattva's wisdom being well liberated. Through this very liberation of wisdom, he comes to hear what he had never heard before, to see what he had never seen before, and to arrive at what he had never arrived at before."

At that time, the bodhisattva-mahāsattva Bright Virtuous King of Universal Illumination said: "World-Honored One, as the Buddha has taught, 'the mind is liberated' — this does not seem correct. Why is this? The mind, by its very own nature, was never bound at all. Why is this? This mind's own original nature is not bound by the fetters of craving, anger, or delusion at all — and, should it never have been bound to begin with, how, then, can it be said that the mind is 'well liberated'? World-Honored One, should the mind's own original nature never have been bound by the fetter of craving at all, by what cause and condition, then, could it ever come to be bound at all? It is like a man milking a bull's own horn — since the horn originally holds no mark of milk within it, however much effort he applies, no milk at all will ever come from it; but one who milks an actual cow is not like this — applying even a little effort, a great deal of milk comes forth. The mind is exactly the same: originally without craving, how, then, could it now come to possess it? Should it originally lack craving, and only later come to possess it, then every buddha and bodhisattva, too, originally lacking any mark of craving, should now, likewise, come to possess it. World-Honored One, it is like a barren woman, who originally bears no mark of a child within her — however much effort and however many immeasurable causes and conditions are applied, no child can ever be obtained from her. The mind is exactly the same: originally without any mark of craving, however many conditions are brought to bear upon it, craving can never, by any means, arise within it. World-Honored One, it is like rubbing damp wood together — no fire can ever be obtained from it. The mind is exactly the same: however much one rubs and seeks for it, craving can never be obtained from it — how, then, could the fetter of craving ever come to bind the mind at all? World-Honored One, it is like pressing sand — no oil at all can ever be obtained from it. The mind is exactly the same: however much one presses it, craving can never be obtained from it. You should know that craving and the mind are two entirely distinct principles — and, even were craving somehow present, how could it possibly defile the mind at all? World-Honored One, it is like a person who plants a stake in empty space — it can never, in the end, come to stand there at all. Planting craving within the mind is exactly the same — no cause or condition of any kind is able to bind craving to the mind at all. World-Honored One, should a mind free of craving be named 'liberated,' why, then, do the buddhas and bodhisattvas not go about pulling thorns out of empty space? World-Honored One, the mind of the past is not named liberated; the mind of the future, likewise, has no liberation; and the mind of the present does not coexist together with the path at all. Which mind, then, among these three times, is ever named as attaining liberation? World-Honored One, it is like how a lamp of the past is unable to dispel darkness, a lamp of the future, likewise, is unable to dispel darkness, and a lamp of the present, too, is unable to dispel darkness. Why is this? Because light and darkness, the two of them, can never coexist together at all. The mind is exactly the same — how, then, can it be said that the mind attains liberation at all?"

"World-Honored One, craving, too, is a real thing — should craving not exist at all, then, upon seeing a woman's own form, one should give rise to no craving at all; and, should craving indeed arise on account of a woman's own form, then you should know that this very craving is genuinely, truly real — and, because craving is real, one falls into the three evil destinies on account of it. World-Honored One, it is like a person who, seeing merely a painted image of a woman, likewise gives rise to craving, and, giving rise to this craving, incurs every kind of crime on account of it — should there originally be no craving at all, how, then, could seeing a mere painting give rise to craving? And should the mind be without craving, how, then, can the Tathāgata say that a bodhisattva's mind attains liberation? And should the mind possess craving, why, then, does it arise only upon seeing a certain form, and never arise at all when no such form is seen? I now see, before my own eyes, that an evil fruit does indeed result — you should therefore know that craving genuinely exists, and it is exactly the same with anger and delusion. World-Honored One, it is like how beings possess a body yet no self at all, and yet ordinary beings, mistakenly calculating, hold to the very notion of a self — and though they hold this notion of a self, they do not, on that account alone, fall into the three evil destinies. Why, then, does one given to craving, giving rise to the notion of a woman where no woman's own form actually exists as such, fall into the three evil destinies on that very account? World-Honored One, it is like rubbing wood together to produce fire — and yet this very nature of fire is present in none of the conditions involved — by what cause and condition, then, does it ever come to arise at all? World-Honored One, craving is exactly the same: there is no craving within form, nor within fragrance, flavor, touch, or mental objects — how, then, does craving ever arise with regard to form, fragrance, flavor, touch, or mental objects at all? And should craving be entirely absent from every one of these conditions, why, then, do beings alone give rise to craving on their account, while the buddhas and bodhisattvas do not? World-Honored One, the mind, too, is not fixed — for, were the mind fixed, it would be entirely without craving, anger, or delusion; and, being unfixed, how, then, can it be said that the mind attains liberation at all? Craving, too, is not fixed — and, being unfixed, how, then, does it come to produce the three evil destinies on its account? Both the one who craves and the very object craved are equally unfixed. Why is this? Both, taking the very same form as their condition, may give rise, in one case, to craving, in another, to anger, and in yet another, to delusion — it is for this very reason that both the one who craves and the object craved are equally unfixed. And, should both be equally unfixed, why, then, does the Tathāgata say that the bodhisattva who cultivates this great nirvāṇa attains a mind that is liberated at all?"

At that time, the World-Honored One said to the bodhisattva-mahāsattva Bright Virtuous King of Universal Illumination: "Excellent, excellent, good son! The mind is neither bound by the fetter of craving, nor unbound; neither liberated, nor unliberated; neither existent, nor non-existent; and neither present, past, nor future. Why is this? Good son, because not a single dharma possesses any fixed nature of its own at all… Good son, every ordinary being, blinded by ignorance, makes this fixed claim: that form possesses the very quality of attachment, and that the mind possesses the very nature of craving. They further say: 'The ordinary mind possesses both the nature of craving and the nature of liberation — meeting the cause and condition of craving, the mind gives rise to craving; meeting the cause and condition of liberation, the mind is liberated.' Though they make this claim, it is not correct. There are, further, ordinary beings who say: 'Within every cause, there is, in fact, no fruit at all. Cause is of two kinds: subtle, and coarse. The subtle is permanent, and the coarse is impermanent. From the subtle cause, a coarse cause is transformed; and from this coarse cause, a fruit is, in turn, transformed. Since the coarse is impermanent, the fruit, too, is impermanent.' Good son, there are, further, ordinary beings who say: 'The mind, too, has no cause at all, and craving, too, has no cause at all — it is simply on account of the season and the moment that a mind of craving arises.' Beings of this kind, unable to know the true cause and condition of the mind, turn endlessly among the six destinies, undergoing birth-and-death in full."

"Good son, every buddha and bodhisattva never, in the end, makes any fixed claim that the fruit exists within the cause, that the fruit does not exist within the cause, that both exist within the cause, or that neither exists within the cause. Should anyone claim, as a fixed doctrine, that the fruit definitely exists within the cause, or definitely does not exist, or both, or neither, know that people of this kind are all Māra's own companions, bound to Māra, themselves people of craving — and people of craving such as this are unable to forever sever the bonds of birth-and-death, not knowing the true mark of mind or the true mark of craving at all. Good son, every buddha and bodhisattva reveals instead the middle way. Why is this? Though they teach that every dharma is neither existent nor non-existent, this, too, is not held as a fixed doctrine. Why is this? On account of the eye, of form, of light, of mind, and of attention, consciousness thereby arises — and yet this very consciousness is not fixed as residing in the eye, in form, in light, in mind, or in attention, nor is it fixed as residing anywhere between them, nor is it fixed as existent, nor as non-existent. Because it arises from conditions, it is named existent; and because it has no fixed nature of its own, it is named non-existent — it is for this very reason that the Tathāgata teaches that every dharma is neither existent nor non-existent. Good son, every buddha and bodhisattva never, in the end, makes any fixed claim that the mind possesses a pure nature or an impure nature, since the mind abides nowhere at all. Craving arises from conditions — and it is for this reason that it is said to be 'not non-existent'; and it originally possesses no fixed nature of craving at all — and it is for this reason that it is said to be 'not existent.' Good son, it is from causes and conditions that the mind gives rise to craving, and it is from causes and conditions that the mind attains liberation. Good son, causes and conditions are of two kinds: those that follow birth-and-death, and those that follow this great nirvāṇa."

"Good son, there is a cause and condition by which mind arises together with craving and ceases together with craving; there is one by which mind arises together with craving yet ceases apart from craving; there is one by which mind arises apart from craving yet ceases together with craving; and there is one by which mind arises apart from craving and ceases apart from craving. What is meant by 'mind arising together with craving and ceasing together with craving'? Good son, should any ordinary being not yet have severed the mind of craving, but continue cultivating this very mind of craving, this person's own mind arises together with craving and ceases together with craving. Every being who has not severed the mind of craving has a mind that arises together with craving and ceases together with craving in exactly this way… What is meant by 'mind arising together with craving yet ceasing apart from craving'? Should a śrāvaka disciple, on account of some cause or condition, give rise to a mind of craving, and, fearing this very mind of craving, cultivate the contemplation of the skeleton, this is what is meant by mind arising together with craving yet ceasing apart from craving. There is, further, another case of this same kind: a śrāvaka who has not yet verified the fourth fruit may, on account of some cause or condition, give rise to a mind of craving, and, at the very moment he verifies the fourth fruit, this mind of craving is thereby extinguished — this, too, is what is meant by mind arising together with craving yet ceasing apart from craving. The bodhisattva-mahāsattva, at the very moment he attains the immovable ground, likewise has a mind that arises together with craving yet ceases apart from craving. What is meant by 'mind arising apart from craving yet ceasing together with craving'? Should the bodhisattva-mahāsattva, having already severed the mind of craving, manifest the appearance of craving for the sake of beings, through this very manifestation, he is able to cause immeasurable, boundless beings to consult and receive wholesome dharmas, becoming fully and completely accomplished — this is what is meant by mind arising apart from craving yet ceasing together with craving. What is meant by 'mind arising apart from craving and ceasing apart from craving'? Namely, the arhat, the pratyekabuddha, every buddha, and every bodhisattva apart from those at the immovable ground and below — this is what is meant by mind arising apart from craving and ceasing apart from craving. It is for this very reason that every buddha and bodhisattva never, in the end, makes any fixed claim that the mind's own nature is originally pure, or that its nature is originally impure."

"Good son, this mind is never truly combined with the fetter of craving, nor is it ever truly combined with anger or delusion. Good son, it is like the sun and moon, which, though covered over by smoke, dust, cloud, and mist, and by Rāhu himself, are, on account of this very obscuring, unable to be seen by beings — and yet, though the very nature of the sun and moon cannot be seen, it is never, in fact, truly combined with any of these five obscurations at all. The mind is exactly the same: it is through causes and conditions that the fetter of craving arises within it. Though beings say that the mind is combined with craving, this very nature of mind, in reality, is never truly combined with it at all. Were it a mind of craving, it would possess the very nature of craving itself; and were it a mind free of craving, it would possess the very nature of freedom from craving — a mind free of craving could never become a mind of craving, and a mind fettered by craving could never become free of craving. Good son, it is for this very reason that the fetter of craving is never actually able to defile the mind at all. Every buddha and bodhisattva has forever broken through the fetter of craving, and it is for this very reason that it is said that the mind attains liberation. Every being, through causes and conditions, gives rise to the fetter of craving — and it is through causes and conditions, likewise, that the mind attains liberation."

"Good son, it is like a place upon a sheer, towering cliff of the Himalayas, where neither a person nor a monkey is able to travel; and there is, further, a place where a monkey is able to travel, but a person is not; and there is, further, a place where both a person and a monkey alike are able to travel. Good son, as for that place where both a person and a monkey alike can travel, it is like hunters who take pure glue and place it upon a stand to catch a monkey. The monkey, being foolish, goes and touches it with its hand, and, once touched, its hand sticks fast; wishing to free its hand, it presses down with its foot, and its foot, too, becomes stuck in turn; wishing to free its foot, it bites at the glue with its mouth, and its mouth, too, becomes stuck fast — and so, in all five places, it can find no escape at all. The hunter then runs a pole through it and carries it home upon his own back. The sheer, dangerous places of the Himalayas are a likeness for the true path attained by the Buddha and bodhisattvas. The monkey is a likeness for every ordinary being. The hunter is a likeness for the demon Māra. The glue is a likeness for the fetter of craving. That neither person nor monkey can travel there is a likeness for a place where neither ordinary beings nor the demon king Māra himself are able to go at all. That the monkey can travel there but the person cannot is a likeness for the wise among the followers of other paths, whom every evil demon, though armed with the five desires, is unable to bind. That both person and monkey alike can travel there is a likeness for every ordinary being and Māra himself, forever dwelling within birth-and-death, unable to practice the path — an ordinary person, bound by the five desires, is carried off entirely at Māra's own will, exactly as that hunter, having caught the monkey with his glue, carries it home upon his own back."

"Good son, it is like a king who abides securely within his own realm, at peace in body and mind — but should he go into another's own realm, he encounters every kind of suffering there. Every being is exactly the same: should he be able to abide within his own domain, he attains peace and ease; but should he go into another domain, he encounters an evil demon there, and undergoes every kind of suffering and affliction. His own domain means the four foundations of mindfulness; another's domain means the five desires. What is meant by 'bound to Māra'? There are beings who, seeing the impermanent, take it as permanent, and seeing the permanent, take it as impermanent; seeing suffering, take it as bliss, and seeing bliss, take it as suffering; seeing the impure, take it as pure, and seeing the pure, take it as impure; seeing what is without self, take it as having a self, and seeing what has a self, take it as without one; falsely seeing what is not true liberation as liberation, and seeing true liberation as not liberation at all; seeing what is not a vehicle as a vehicle, and seeing a vehicle as not a vehicle — people of this kind are named bound to Māra, and one bound to Māra has a mind that is not pure. Furthermore, good son, should one see every dharma as genuinely, truly existing, bearing a fixed mark, whether general or particular, you should know that this person, upon seeing form, at once forms the mark of form, and, up through seeing consciousness, likewise forms the mark of consciousness; seeing a man, forms the mark of a man; seeing a woman, forms the mark of a woman; seeing a day, forms the mark of a day; seeing a month, forms the mark of a month; seeing a year, forms the mark of a year; seeing an aggregate, forms the mark of an aggregate; seeing a sense-field, forms the mark of a sense-field; and, seeing an element, forms the mark of an element — one who sees in this way is named bound to Māra, and one bound to Māra has a mind that is not pure. Furthermore, good son, should one see that the self is form, that form contains the self, that the self contains form, and that form belongs to the self — and so on, up through seeing that the self is consciousness, that consciousness contains the self, that the self contains consciousness, and that consciousness belongs to the self — one who sees in this way is bound to Māra, and is not my own disciple at all."

"Good son, should any of my own śrāvaka disciples keep far from the Tathāgata's own twelve divisions of scripture, and instead cultivate every kind of treatise belonging to other paths, failing to cultivate the renunciant's own practice of quiescence, and pursuing purely worldly, householder-like affairs… There are disciples who, not for the sake of nirvāṇa but purely for the sake of personal gain, draw near to and listen to the twelve divisions of scripture, appropriating property and garlands belonging to the Saṅgha, using its clothing and food as though it were their own, being stingy toward other households, and, seeking praise, drawing near to kings and princes, practicing divination of good and bad fortune and forecasting waxing and waning, playing chess, dice, and games of gambling, drawing near to nuns and unmarried women, keeping two novices for themselves, forever frequenting the houses of butchers, hunters, and wine-sellers, and the dwellings of outcastes, engaging in every kind of trade, cooking food with their own hands, and serving as couriers carrying messages between neighboring kingdoms — people of this kind, you should know, are Māra's own retinue, and are not my disciples at all. It is on account of causes and conditions such as these that a mind arises together with craving and ceases together with craving — and it is exactly the same, up through a mind of delusion, arising together and ceasing together. Good son, it is on account of reasoning such as this that the mind's own nature is neither pure nor impure — and it is for this very reason that I say the mind attains liberation. Should there be one who accepts and keeps none of these impure objects at all, but, for the sake of this great nirvāṇa, upholds, recites, copies out, and expounds the twelve divisions of scripture, know that a person of this kind is truly my own disciple, one who does not walk within the evil demon Māra's own domain at all — this is itself the cultivation of the thirty-seven factors, and, through this very cultivation, his mind arises apart from craving and ceases apart from craving. This is what is meant by the bodhisattva who cultivates this subtle and wondrous scripture of the great nirvāṇa accomplishing and fully completing the eighth merit."