Diamond Perfection Of Wisdom Sutra (Buddhism, Mind, Spirit, English.pdf

The Diamond Perfection of Wisdom Såtra

( T 235.8.748c-752c)

Translated into Chinese by Kumàrajãva

Translated into English by Charles Patton

Diamond Perfection of Wisdom Såtra 2

Thus have I heard. One time the Buddha was staying at the Anàthapiõóada retreat

in the Jeta Grove near øràvastã, with a great congregation of 1,250 monks ( bhikùu ). At

meantime, the World Honored One put on his robes and took his alms bowl into the great

city of øràvastã to beg for alms. In the midst of that city, he begged successively and

then returned to his personal dwelling to eat his meal. Having put away his robes and

bowl, he washed his feet, prepared his seat, and sat.

At that time, the venerable Subhåti was amidst the great congregation. He then rose

from his seat, adjusted his robes, and kneeled his right knee to the ground. With his

palms joined together respectfully, he addressed the Buddha, saying, "Extraordinary,

World Honored One, is the Tathàgata’s skillful mindfulness of the bodhisattva s and his

skillful entrustment to the bodhisattva s. World Honored One, in what should good sons

and good daughters engendering the supremely unexcelled bodhicitta 1 dwell? How

should they subdue their minds?"

The Buddha replied, "Excellent, excellent! Subhåti, as you have said, the Tathàgata

is skillfully mindful of the bodhisattva s, and skillful is his entrustment to the bodhisattva s.

If you now listen closely, I shall explain for you in what good sons and good daughters

engendering the supremely unexcelled bodhicitta should thus abide, and how thus they

should subdue their minds."

"Yes, World Honored One. Gladly, I shall listen."

The Buddha addressed Subhåti, saying, " Bodhisattva-mahàsattva s should thus

subdue their minds: 'Where there is every single sort of sentient being; whether egg-

born, womb-born, water-born, or born of transformation; whether having form or

formless; whether having thought or no thought; whether neither having thought nor no

thought; I will cause all to enter the non-residual Nirvàõa, liberating them. Thus liberating

the measureless, countless, and boundless sentient beings, in reality there are no

sentient beings attaining that liberation.' And why? Subhåti, if a bodhisattva has the

image of a self, the image of a person, the image of beings, or the image of a soul; then

he is not a bodhisattva 2 .

1 The full Sanskrit term is anuttara-samyak-sa§bodhicitta . Anuttara-samyak-sa§bodhi was usually

transliterated by translators of Buddhist texts when rendering it into Chinese, even though the term

could have been easily translated. In the interest of making the term less cumbersome and more

comprehensible, I am translating anuttara-samyak-sa§ ('supremely unexcelled') and leaving bodhi

and bodhicitta untranslated.

2 The Chinese reads hsiang , which means "appearance, mark, characteristic, sign". The character

usually refers to the external environment, but Kumàrajãva here uses it in a way that seems to refer

to mental images or notions. The later translations of the Såtra use different characters that are

Diamond Perfection of Wisdom Såtra 3

"Furthermore, Subhåti, a bodhisattva in the Dharma should not dwell in the practice

of charity ( dàna ) 3 . I.e., he does not dwell in the forms of charity; does not dwell in the

sounds, odors, tastes, tactile sensations, or ideas of charity. Subhåti, a bodhisattva

should thus be charitable, not dwelling in such images. And why? If a bodhisattva does

not dwell in the images of charity, his blessed virtue is incalculable.

"Subhåti, what do you think? To the East, the space can be calculated, no?"

"No, World Honored One."

"Subhåti, to the South, West, North, the four directions between, the Zenith and

Nadir, the space can be calculated, no?"

"No, World Honored One."

"Subhåti, the blessed virtue of a bodhisattva who does not dwell in the images of

charity is also so. It cannot be calculated. Subhåti, bodhisattva s should only dwell

according to this teaching."

"Subhåti, what do you think? One can see the Tathàgata by his bodily signs 4 , no?"

"No, World Honored One. One cannot see the Tathàgata by his bodily signs. And

why is that? The Tathàgata has explained that the bodily signs are not bodily signs."

The Buddha addressed Subhåti, saying, "The signs ordinary people possess are

signs that are all empty and mistaken. If one sees that these signs are not signs, then

one sees the Tathàgata." 5

Subhåti said to the Buddha, "World Honored One, isn't it doubtful that there are

sentient beings who will hear thus the words spoken in this discourse and become

genuinely faithful?"

The Buddha addressed Subhåti, saying, "Do not say this. In the final five hundred

year era after the Tathàgata’s death 6 , those who uphold the precepts and cultivate the

blessed will be able to give rise to the faithful mind from these passages because they

more appropriate for internal images, notions, and views. I've translated hsiang as "image" in this

context, but the reader should understand that it is a mental image or notion.

3 Charity is one of the six pàramità s, or perfections, that are cultivated by the bodhisattva s.

4 I.e., the thirty-two marks of a Buddha.

5 This is one of the more meaningful passages of this Såtra, though it is not obvious. The unspoken

reference here is to the essential body ( dharmakàya ) of the Buddha, which is the body devoid of

characteristics that resides in ultimate reality. This passage, then, is pushing the reader towards

seeing what lies beneath sensory appearances and images, rather than the surface of things.

6 In expressing the impermanence of the practice of the Dharma in the world, the Buddha described

in other scriptures how it would progressively become superficial as the original intent of his

teachings was forgotten. He broke the period of the Dharma's decay into five hundred year

periods, the practice becoming more corrupted as time wore on. Once the Dharma had completely

disappeared there would be a long period without it, and then a new Buddha would appear in the

world to reestablish it.

Diamond Perfection of Wisdom Såtra 4

are true. It should be known that these people would not have been with one Buddha,

two Buddhas, three, four, or five Buddhas and sown the good roots. They will have

sown the good roots with a measureless hundreds of thousands of Buddhas. 7 Hearing

these passages, even for a single recitation, they shall give rise to a pure faith. Subhåti,

the Tathàgata fully knows and fully sees that these sentient beings will attain thus such

measureless blessed virtue. And why? These sentient beings will not return to the

images of a self, images of a person, images of sentient beings, or images of a soul.

They would have no images of the Dharma and also no images of the non-Dharma. And

why? If these sentient beings' minds were to grasp such images, they would become

attached to a self, a person, sentient beings, and a soul. If they were to grasp the

images of the Dharma, they would become attached to a self, a person, sentient beings,

and a soul. And why? If they were to grasp the images of the non-Dharma, they would

become attached to a self, a person, sentient beings, and a soul. This is why one should

not grasp the Dharma and why one should not grasp the non-Dharma. It is because of

this meaning that the Tathàgata always says, 'You monks! Know that my spoken

Dharma is like the bamboo raft. The Dharma that is honored must be relinquished. How

much more so is it with what is not the Dharma?'

"Subhåti, what do you think? The Tathàgata has attained the supremely unexcelled

bodhi , no? The Tathàgata has a teaching of the Dharma, no?"

Subhåti replied, "As I have understood the meaning of the Buddha's discourse, there

is no certain Dharma called 'the supremely unexcelled bodhi '. Also, there is no certain

Dharma that the Tathàgata can expound. And why? The Dharmas expounded by the

Tathàgata are intangible and inexpressible. They are neither Dharmas nor non-

Dharmas. And why is that? All of the Sages make discriminations from the

unconditioned Dharma." 8

"Subhåti, what do you think? If a person filled the trichiliocosm 9 with the seven

treasures 10 for the purpose of charity, this person's blessed virtue would become

plentiful, no?"

7 I.e., over the course of numerous past lives as bodhisattva s.

8 This is another important passage. The unconditioned Dharma is Nirvàõa. Thus, this passage is

saying that the particular spoken doctrines expounded by the Buddhas are not absolutes, but

relative expressions discriminated out of the unconditioned. The unconditioned is their source and

they point those who hear them back towards the unconditioned, if followed properly.

9 A 'trichiliocosm' is a term coined to translate trisahasra-mahàsahasra-lokadhàtu , which is a world

system consisting of a billion worlds. This is arrived at through a complex of nested small,

medium, and large world-systems. I.e., a thousand worlds make a small chiliocosm, a thousand

small chiliocosms make a medium chiliocosm, and a thousand medium chiliocosms make a large

chiliocosm. Thus, a large chiliocosm is 1000 3 worlds. This is called a 'trichiliocosm' to remind us

of the nested chiliocosms.

10 The seven treasures are: gold, silver, lapis lazuli, crystal, agate, rubies, and carnelian.

Diamond Perfection of Wisdom Såtra 5

Subhåti replied, "Very plentiful, World Honored One. And why? This blessed virtue

then would not be of a blessed nature. This is why the Tathàgata has said that his

blessed virtue would be plentiful."

"If, again, there is a person who receives and upholds just four lines of verse that is

in this Såtra and explains it to another person, that person's blessedness would

overcome the other's. And why? Subhåti, the Dharmas of all the Buddhas who have

reached the Buddhas' supremely unexcelled bodhi are produced from this Såtra.

Subhåti, that is, those Buddhas' Dharmas, then, are not the Buddha's Dharma.

"Subhåti, what do you think? The stream entrant ( ÷rota-àpanna ) is able to think, 'I

have attained the stream entrant's reward', no?"

Subhåti replied, "No, World Honored One. And why? 'Stream entrant' is the name

for entering the stream and for entering nowhere else: not entering forms, sounds, odors,

tastes, tactile sensations, or ideas. This is called a 'stream entrant'."

"Subhåti, what do you think? The Once-returner ( sakçdàgàmin ) is able to think, 'I

have attained the Once-returner's reward', no?"

Subhåti replied, "No, World Honored One. And why? 'Once-returner' is the name

for one more arrival and really is without future arrival 11 . This is called a 'Once-returner'."

"Subhåti, what do you think? The Non-returner ( anàgàmin ) is able to think, 'I have

attained the Non-returner's reward', no?"

Subhåti replied, "No, World Honored One. And why? 'Non-returner' is the name for

no further arrival, and really has no non-arrival. This is why he is called 'Non-returner'."

"Subhåti, what do you think? The Worthy ( arhat ) is able to think, 'I have attained the

Worthy's enlightenment', no?"

Subhåti replied, "No, World Honored One. And why? Really, there is nothing called

a 'Worthy'. 12

"World Honored One, if a Worthy were to think, 'I have attained the Worthy's

enlightenment', then it would be because of attachment to a self, a person, sentient

beings, and a soul. World Honored One, the Buddha has said that I have attained the

samàdhi of non-dispute that among others is the best. It is the best because I am free of

the desire to be a Worthy. I do not think, 'I am free of the desire to be a Worthy'. World

Honored One, if I were to think, 'I have attained the Worthy's enlightenment', then the

World Honored One would not have said that Subhåti is a happy woodland practitioner 13 ,

because Subhåti really practices nowhere. And so he is called 'Subhåti, the happy

woodland practitioner'."

10.

The Buddha addressed Subhåti, saying, "What do you think? When the Tathàgata

11 I.e., one more arrival in Sa§sàra.

12 These are the four levels of spiritual attainment found in the early Buddhist Såtras, such as

those of the modern Theravàda canon.

13 'Happy woodland practitioner' is another name for an ascetic, as asceticism often involves taking

up residences in the wilderness away from cities and people for extended meditation retreats.

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