The Ten Inexhaustible Treasuries

Chapter Twenty-Two

 

 

 

10. Ultimate Giving

Sutra:

“What is the Bodhisattva’s Ultimate Giving? Disciples of the Buddha, suppose there were living beings who perhaps had no eyes, or no ears, or no noses or tongues, or no hands and feet, who came to where the Bodhisattva was and said, ‘My body is defective, my faculties are maimed and incomplete. I only wish the humane one would compassionately use expedient means and relinquish what he has in order to make me whole and perfect.’ When the Bodhisattva hears this he immediately gives in this way, and if because of this he must pass through asamkhyeyas of kalpas with incomplete faculties, still his mind never gives rise to a thought of regret.

He only contemplates that from the time he entered the womb he had an unclean form. He reflects on how the fetus, which takes shape and develops sense organs, is subject to birth, old age, sickness, and death. He also contemplates the body as unreal, that it is shameless, and not a thing which is sagely or holy. It smells, is filthy and unclean. It is supported by bones and joints, and smeared with blood and flesh. The nine apertures constantly flow with impurities. It is that which people loathe and despise. Having contemplated in this way, he does not give rise to a single thought of love or attachment regarding it.

He also has this thought: ‘This body is fragile and not solid, so why should I be fond of or attached to it? I should give to all those people, to fulfill their wishes. I do this to instruct and guide living beings, to cause them to not be greedily attached to their bodies and minds, so they can all become accomplished in the pure wisdom body.’ This is called Ultimate Giving.

Commentary:

What is the Bodhisattva’s Ultimate Giving? After the Bodhisattva Forest of Merit and Virtue has spoken about “present giving”, he then discusses “ultimate giving”, and asks, “What is the ultimate giving of a Great Bodhisattva?”

Disciples of the Buddha, suppose there were living beings who perhaps had no eyes, or no ears, or no noses or tongues. You can imagine that a living being without a nose would be very ugly, and a living being without a tongue would not be able to speak. Or they had no hands and feet. Perhaps some living beings had no hands and some had no feet, and who came to where the Bodhisattva was and said, “My body is defective—our bodies are deficient in blessings, so we lack either eyes, ears, nose, tongue, hands or feet.” But of course they couldn’t lack brains or heads. When one’s faculties are incomplete, one is said to have a deficiency of the six sense organs. Those living beings said, “ my faculties are maimed and incomplete. ” This means that their eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, or mind are imperfect.

They continue, “I only wish the humane one would compassionately use expedient means and relinquish what he has in order to make me whole and perfect. Give to us in order to cause those of us who have no eyes to obtain eyes; those without ears, to have ears; those without noses, to have noses; those without tongues, to have tongues; and those without hands and feet, to have hands and feet.” When the Bodhisattva hears this he immediately gives in this way. Without a second thought, he gives those without eyes his eyes. He gives those without ears, his ears. He gives those without noses, his nose. He gives those without tongues, his tongue. He gives those without hands and feet, his hands and feet.

And if because of this he must pass through asamkhyeyas of kalpas, limitless numbers of kalpas, with incomplete faculties, still his mind never gives rise to a thought of regret. It’s not for certain he would be asked to give in this way, but if he were, he would do so and would have no regrets.

He only contemplates that from the time he entered the womb he had an unclean form. The Body is not clean and pure. He reflects on how the fetus, which takes shape and develops sense organs, is subject to birth, old age, sickness, and death. After it is born, it gets old, becomes sick and dies. He also contemplates the body as unreal—not a single part of it is real. What part of it can be considered real? Also, he contemplates that it is shameless, and not a thing which is sagely or holy. It smells, is filthy and unclean. It’s rank and turbid. This body always emits a noxious odor and exudes impure vapors. It is supported by bones and joints, and smeared with blood and flesh. The blood and flesh adhere to the structure of the bones and joints. The nine apertures constantly flow with impurities. The eyes ooze matter, the ears have wax, and the nose has mucus. There’s saliva in the mouth, and urine and excrement are even more impure. That’s why it says that the nine apertures are constantly flowing with impurities. If you were told to eat these impure substances which flow out of the body, it would be next to impossible for you to do so. And if you were to say they are clean, then why can’t you eat your own excrement? Why can’t you drink your own urine? This just proves that they are unclean.

It is that which people loathe and despise. Everybody is repulsed by it and feels that the body is filthy and unclean. Having contemplated in this way, he does not give rise to a single thought of love or attachment regarding it.

He also has this thought: “This body is fragile and not solid. The suffering of birth, old age, sickness, and death are really a lot of trouble, so why should I be fond of or attached to it? Eventually it is going to die. It’s not solid and durable. I should give to all those people, to fulfill their wishes. I do this to instruct and guide living beings, to cause them to not be greedily attached to their bodies and minds.” He uses this act of compassion as a means of teaching living beings. “I’m not attached to my body and mind and I hope that all living beings will also not be greedy and fond of their body, mind, nature, and life, so they can all become accomplished in the pure wisdom body. I hope that they will all obtain a body of wisdom that is pure.”

This is called Ultimate Giving. This is the ultimate giving cultivated by the Great Bodhisattva, among the various kinds of giving which they cultivate.

Sutra:

“This is the Bodhisattva Mahasattvas’ Sixth Treasury, that of Giving.

Commentary:

This is the Bodhisattva Mahasattvas’ Sixth Treasury, that of Giving. What has just been explained are the many, many kinds of giving. They are:

• Giving by reducing one’s portion
• Exhaustive giving
• The giving of inner wealth
• The giving of outer wealth
• The giving of inner and outer wealth
• Total giving
• Past giving
• Future giving
• Present giving
• Ultimate giving

What have been explained are the conducts cultivated by Bodhisattvas who practice the Bodhisattva Path. They truly and actually cultivate. This is the Sixth Treasury, that of Giving, and tells of the giving done by the Great Bodhisattvas who don’t attach to any marks.

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