The Ten Grounds

Chapter Twenty-Six

 

 

Sutra:

He sees that all living beings are being scorched by the fire of the three poisons, and brings forth a mind of sympathy and pity. He sees that all living beings are shut up in the prison of the existences and brings forth a mind of sympathy and pity. He sees that all living beings are constantly covered and hemmed in by the dense forest of afflictions, and brings forth a mind of sympathy and pity. He sees that all living beings are not good at contemplating, and brings forth a mind of sympathy and pity.

He sees that all living beings do not desire wholesome dharmas, and brings forth a mind of sympathy and pity. He sees that all living beings lose all Buddhadharmas, and brings forth a mind of sympathy and pity. He sees that all living beings follow along with the flow of birth and death, and brings forth a mind of sympathy and pity. He sees that all living beings lose liberation and expedients, and brings forth a mind of sympathy and pity. Those are the ten.

The Bodhisattva in that way sees that the realm of living beings has limitless sufferings and troubles. He rouses up great vigor and makes the following reflection: “I should rescue all these living beings. I should liberate them. I should purify them. I should cross them over. I should establish them in a wholesome place.”

Commentary:

He, the Bodhisattva, further sees that all living beings are undergoing as much pain as if they were being scorched by the fire of the three poisons, greed, hatred, and stupidity being like fire burning them, and he brings forth a mind of sympathy and pity towards them. He also sees that all living beings are shut up in the prison of the existences. He sees that the Three Realms and all the existences-existence in the Desire Realm, the Form realm, the Formless realm-imprison all living beings as if they were shut up in a jail, and brings forth a mind of sympathy and pity. This too makes him feel very sorry for them.

He also sees that all living beings are constantly covered and hemmed in by the dense forest of afflictions. He sees that living beings have so many afflictions they are like the trees of a thick forest, that their afflictions-agreed, hatred, stupidity, and the rest, block and over them like a dense woods, and brings forth a mind of sympathy and pity. He for that reason also pities them. He also sees that all living beings are not good at contemplating. They are not skilled at carefully examining and contemplating all states. They don’t pay any attention to whether states are good or evil, wholesome or unwholesome, and so towards those kinds of living beings, the Buddha and Bodhisattva also brings forth a mind of sympathy and pity.

He again takes a look and sees that all living beings do not desire wholesome dharmas. Their thoughts are not those of desiring and liking to cultivate wholesome dharmas, and because of that the Bodhisattva again brings forth a mind of sympathy and pity for those kinds of living beings. He also sees that all living beings follow along with the flow of birth and death, that they run back and forth after birth and death, and he brings forth a mind of sympathy and pity once again, wanting to save them. He furthermore sees that all living beings lose liberation, and expedients. They lose liberation and expedient Dharma doors, and towards those living beings he brings forth a mind of sympathy and pity, seeing them as very pitiful. Those are the ten, the ten kinds of minds of sympathy and pity.

The Bodhisattva in that way sees that the realm of living beings has limitless sufferings and troubles, lots and lots of things that go wrong. At that time, he rouses up great vigor. He puts on the armor of great vigor, and makes the following reflection, saying to himself, “I should rescue all these living beings, the living being who are like that. I should liberate them, free and save them. I should purify them. I should cause living beings who are like that to purify and regulate all Bodhisattva practices. I should cross them over, rescuing all such beings. I should establish them in a wholesome place. I should help them dwell in a good location.”

Sutra:

“I should cause them to be secured. I should cause them to be happy. I should cause them to know and see. I should cause them to be tamed and subdued. I should cause them to attain Nirvana.”

Commentary:

The Bodhisattva says, “I should cause them, all of those living beings, to be secured in the position of Buddhahood. I also should cause them, all those living beings ,to be happy, to obtain limitless happiness. I should also cause them to know and see, so that all those living beings have proper knowledge and proper views. I should also cause them, all living beings, to be tamed and subdued. I should also cause them, all living beings, to attain the bliss of Nirvana.”

Sutra:

The Bodhisattva in that way becomes disgusted with and leaves behind all that is conditioned. He in that way is sympathetically mindful of all living beings. He knows the supreme benefits of the wisdom of all wisdom. He wishes to use the Thus Come One’s wisdom to rescue and cross over living beings. He makes the following reflection: “All these living beings have fallen into the midst of the great sufferings of afflictions. What expedients can be used to pull them out and save them, so they attain the bliss of ultimate Nirvana?”

Then he makes the following reflection: “One wishing to cross over living beings so they dwell within Nirvana does not separate from unobstructed wisdom of liberation. Unobstructed wisdom of liberation is not separate from awakening to the reality of all dharmas. Awakening to the reality of all dharmas is not separate from the light of wisdom of non-doing and non-production. The light of wisdom of non-doing and non-production is not separate from investigation though the wisdom of clever, decisive contemplation. Investigation through the wisdom of clever, decisive contemplation is not separate from skilled learning.”

Commentary:

The Bodhisattva in that way becomes disgusted with and leaves behind all that is conditioned. That’s how the Bodhisattva comes really to despise all conditioned dharmas, and so he wants to leave all conditioned dharmas behind. He in that way is sympathetically mindful of all living beings. That’s how he feels sorry for living beings, and remembers them with pity. He knows the supreme benefits of the wisdom of all wisdom, that the wisdom of all wisdoms has supremely beneficial advantages.

He wishes to use the Thus Come One’s wisdom, the wisdom of a Tathagata, to rescue and cross over living beings, all living beings within the six paths. He makes the following reflection, thinking yet again: “All these living beings have fallen into the midst of the great suffering of afflictions, that cause trouble and difficulty. What expedients can be used to pull them out and save them? What kind of expedient Dharma doors can I se to pluck out and rescue all those living beings, so they attain the bliss of ultimate Nirvana, so that they obtain non-production and non-extinction, neither defilement nor purity, permanence, bliss, true self, and purity which is the happiness of ultimate Nirvana?”

Then he makes the following reflection, contemplating in this way, “one wishing to cross over living beings, one who wants to cross over all living beings, so they dwell within Nirvana, so they reside in the principle and substance of Nirvana, does not separate from unobstructed wisdom of liberation. One should not leave wisdom of liberation which is unobstructed. If one has unobstructed wisdom of liberation, one can cause all living beings to be free from suffering and attain bliss. It is not separate from awakening to the reality of all dharmas.

One should not separate from the awakening to the true thusness of all dharmas. If one can manage not to separate from awakening to the reality of all dharmas, then one can cause all living beings to turn back from confusion and return to enlightenment, for it is not separate from the light of wisdom of non-doing and non-production. It is not separate from the light of wisdom of doors of practice such that there is nothing that is cultivated and one certifies to patience with the non-production of dharmas.

The light of wisdom of non-doing and non-production has nothing that is practiced and nothing that is produced-it’s the wisdom light of that kind of behavior and it is not separate from investigation through the wisdom of clever, decisive contemplation. It is not separate from wisdom which skillfully investigates through decisive contemplation. With investigation through the wisdom of clever, decisive contemplation, then one can truly and actually end birth and death. It is not separate from skilled learning.

Sutra:

After the Bodhisattva in that way contemplates and thoroughly understands, he doubles his diligent search for and practice of proper dharmas. Day and night he only wishes to hear the Dharma, delights in the Dharma, relies upon the Dharma, follows the Dharma, reaches the Dharma, dwells in the Dharma, and cultivates the Dharma. The Bodhisattva in that way diligently seeks the Buddhadharma. He does not begrudge any of his gems or wealth. He does not see that there is any object difficult to obtain or estimable, but has the thought that only someone who is able to speak the Buddhadharma is difficult to meet.

Therefore, the Bodhisattva in his search for the Buddhadharma is completely able to give up all inner and out wealth. There is no reverence he is unable to practice. There is no pride he is unable to renounce. There is no service he is unable to perform. There is no suffering he is unable to undergo, if he hears a single phrase of Dharma that he has not heard before, he becomes more delighted than if he obtained precious jewels that fill a three thousand great thousand world-system.

Commentary:

After the Bodhisattva in that way contemplates and thoroughly understands, when the Bodhisattva has made those kinds of contemplations and gains clear understanding, then after that he doubles his diligent search for and practice of proper dharmas. He doubly intensifies his diligence in seeking and practicing Proper Dharma. Day and night he only wishes to hear the Dharma. In the daytime and at night as well, all he wants to do is listen to the Buddhadharma. He delights in the Buddhadharma. He likes the Buddhadharma. He relies upon the Buddhadharma to cultivate. He follows and accords with the Buddhadharma to rescue and cross over all living beings. He clearly understands the Buddhadharma, and teaches and transforms all living beings. He accords with the Dharma, following and according with the real mark of all dharmas and he reaches the Dharma, the other shore of all dharmas. He dwell sin the Nirvana of Dharma, and cultivates the unconditioned aspect of all Dharma.

The Bodhisattva in that way diligently seeks the Buddhadharma. He does not begrudge any of his gems or wealth. He would never think of being unable to give them up. He does not see that there is any object, any possession, that is difficult to obtain or estimable. He doesn’t’ see any articles as very hard to possess or valuable. But has the thought that only someone who is able to speak the Buddhadharma is difficult to meet. Only toward a person who can speak the Buddhadharma does he bring forth the thought that such a person is difficult to encounter and difficult to meet.

Therefore, the Bodhisattva in his search for the Buddhadharma is completely able to give up all inner and out wealth. He can give both inner and outer wealth away in order to seek the Buddhadharma. There is no reverence he is unable to practice. There is no act of respect or veneration he would not be able to bring himself to do. There is no pride he is unable to renounce. There is no kind of arrogance he would not be able to let go of.

There is no service he is unable to perform. He would never say, “I can’t possibly attend upon and serve all Buddhas.” There is no suffering he is unable to undergo. There isn’t any toil of which he would say, “I can’t stand it.” If he hears a single phrase of Dharma that he has not heard before, upon hearing that one sentence of Dharma he had never before heard, he becomes more delighted than if he obtained precious jewels that fill a three thousand great thousand world-system. His joy is greater than if he came into possession of all the precious jewels in an entire Trichiliocosm.

Sutra:

If he hears one verse of Proper Dharma he has never heard before, he becomes more delighted than if he obtained the position of Wheel-Turning Sage King. If her obtains one verse of Dharma he has never heard before which can purify the Bodhisattva conduct, it surpasses obtaining the royal positions of Shakra and Brahma and remaining in them for limitless hundreds of thousands of kalpas. If a person were to say to him, “I have a phrase of Dharma spoken by the Buddha that can purify the Bodhisattva conduct. If you can now enter a great pit of fire and undergo ultimately great suffering, I shall bestow it upon you.”

The Bodhisattva at that time makes the following reflection: “Since with a single phrase of Dharma spoken by the Buddha I can purify the Bodhisattva conduct, if the three thousand great thousand world-system were filled with massive fire, I would even be willing to hurl my body down from the top of the Brahma Heaven and endure it, so how much less is there question of whether I can enter a small pit of fire. For now, to seek the Buddhadharma, I should undergo all the sufferings of the hells, much less the small vexations in the realm of humans.

Commentary:

The Bodhisattva, if he hears as little as one sentence of Buddhadharma that he hasn’t ever heard before, becomes very happy and feels more content than if he obtained an entire Great Trichiliocosm filled with precious jewels. If he hears one verse, most verses being four-line gathas-of Proper Dharma that he has never heard before, orthodox Dharma he has never listened to, he also becomes very happy, more delighted than if he obtained the position of Wheel-Turning Sage King.

When you listen to Sutras and heard the Dharma, you need to know how to apply that Dharma. You listen to the Sutras and hear the Dharma every day, and you sort of get tired of it. So there is true and actual Dharma, but you don’t recognize it, and you don’t feel the Dharma’s value and importance. But the Bodhisattva isn’t that way. The Bodhisattva, if he hears just one phrase of Buddhadharma that he hasn’t heard before, or else a single gatha whose principles he never understood before and now gets to hear, he likes it better than if he got to be a Wheel-Turning Sage King.

If he obtains one verse of Dharma he has never heard before, which can purify the Bodhisattva conduct-“purify” means “perfect” the conduct of a Bodhisattva-it surpasses obtaining the royal positions of Shakra and Brahma. It’s great happiness for him than if he received the kingly positions of the God Shakra or the Great Brahma Heaven God.

First it was the jewels in a Great Trichiliocosm, next the position of Wheel-Turning Sage King, and now it surpasses obtaining the positions of kingship held by the God Shakra and the Great Brahma Heaven God and remaining in them for limitless hundreds of thousands of kalpas. It is better than enjoying the reward of blessings of the God Shakra and the Great Brahma Heaven God throughout unlimited hundreds of thousands of kalpas.

If a person were to say to him “I have a phrase of Dharma spoken by the Buddha, I now have just one sentence of Dharma spoken by the Buddha in the past, that can purify the Bodhisattva conduct. It can purify and regulate the doors of practice cultivated by Bodhisattvas. If you can now enter a great pit of fire, if right now, in your search for the Dharma, you can cast yourself into a huge fiery pit, and undergo ultimately great suffering, the most intense bitterness, suffering within suffering, I shall bestow it upon you. If you can do that, it proves you have real sincerity, and I will transmit the single phrase of Buddhadharma to you.”

The Bodhisattva at that time, the Bodhisattva who is cultivating the Bodhisattva Way when that happens makes the following reflection: “Since with a single phrase of Dharma spoken by the Buddha, because of that one sentence of Buddhadharma, I can purify the Bodhisattva conduct, I can purify and regulate the doors of practice cultivated by a Bodhisattva, if the three thousand great thousand world-system were filled with massive fire, should the Great Trichiliocosm turn into a huge pit of fire, I would even be willing to hurl my body down from the top of the Brahma Heaven.

In order to seek that one phrase of Buddhadharma, I would be willing to jump from the top of the Great Brahma Heaven down into the great pit of fire, and endure it, myself undergo being physically burned by the fire in the pit in exchange for the Buddhadharma, so how much less is there question of whether I can enter a small pit of fire. There is even less question about my being able to jump into a tiny little pit of fire in search of the Dharma.

For now, to seek the Buddhadharma, I should undergo all the sufferings of the hells, much less the small vexations in the realm of humans. I would willingly renounce my body in that way in order to seek the Buddhadharma. Even if I had to endure all the sufferings in the hells in order to do so, I would still seek the Dharma spoken by the Buddha, and so the minor torments and vexations such as a little fiery pit in the human realm are even less of a problem. Even if I have to give up my body and life, I absolutely wish to seek the Buddhadharma!”

Sutra:

The Bodhisattva in that way rouses up diligence and vigor in his search for the Buddhadharma, in accord with what he hears, he contemplates and cultivates. Once this Bodhisattva comes to hear the Dharma, he collects his mind and dwells secured. In a quiet and tranquil place he makes the following reflection: “It is by practicing as is spoken that one obtains the Buddhadharma. Merely talking cannot make one pure.”

Disciples of the Buddha, when that Bodhisattva dwells upon this Ground of Emitting Light, he dwells in the First Dhyana, having become free from desires and from evil and unwholesome dharmas, possessing reflection and possessing consideration, in the Joy of Separation from Production.

He dwells in the Second Dhyana, having extinguished reflection and consideration, with inner purity and singleness of mind, devoid of reflection and consideration, in the Joy of Production of Samadhi.

He dwells in the Third Dhyana, having separated from joy, dwelling in renunciation while still possessing thought and proper knowledge, so that his experience of personal bliss is as described by all sages: the Bliss of Renunciation while still Possessing Thought.

He dwells in the Fourth Dhyana, having severed bliss, by first expelling suffering, and then extinguishing joy and sorrow, Feeling Neither Suffering nor Bliss in the Purity of Renunciation of Thought.

Commentary:

The Bodhisattva forgets about himself for the sake of the Dharma. He is able to renounce his body and life to seek the Buddhadharma, and he in that way rouses up diligence and vigor in his search for the Buddhadharma, in order to seek the Buddhadharma. In accord with what he hears, he wants to put what he has heard into practice. He contemplates and cultivates, investigating and, bit by bit, actually doing the work of cultivation.

Once this Bodhisattva comes to hear the Dharma, after the Bodhisattva in question has heard the Buddhadharma, he collects his mind and dwells secured. He gathers in and collects his body and mind and dwells secured within that Buddhadharma. In a quiet and tranquil place, a very still and quiet location, empty and retired and where there are no people, he makes the following reflection. He thinks this way in the course of his cultivation, saying, “It is by practicing the Buddhadharma as it is spoken that one obtains the Buddhadharma.”

One needs to cultivate according to the Dharma spoken by the Buddha, and it is in that way that one can certify to the attainment of the states of the Buddhadharma. “Merely talking cannot make on pure.” It’s not by chanting “Buddhadharma, Buddhadharma” from morning to night with one’s mouth and not cultivating-just mouthing Buddhadharma but not practicing-that one obtains purity.

Disciples of the Buddha, all of you, when that Bodhisattva dwells upon this Ground of Emitting Light-the Third Ground-he dwells in the First Dhyana, having become free from desires and from evil and unwholesome dharmas. One leaves behind thoughts of desire, and all of one’s evil reflections and considerations of evil wisdom, and the deviant knowledge and deviant views of unwholesome dharmas, possessing reflection and possessing consideration. He has that kind of reflective process and consideration, yet he wants to leave behind all evil reflection and consideration. That means evil advisors, not good advisors. This is the First Dhyana that he certifies to, the Stage of the Joy of Separation from Production, also called Dwelling in the Joy of Separation from Production.

He dwells in the Second Dhyana, having extinguished reflection and consideration. He eradicates all evil reflections and considerations, with inner purity and singleness of mind. Inside he is pure and of one mind, devoid of reflection and consideration. He doesn’t have any of those evil reflections and considerations. At that time Samadhi arises. It is the Stage of the Joy of the Production of Samadhi, also called Dwelling in the Joy of Production of Samadhi, the Second Dhyana, in which Samadhi is produced.

He dwells in the Third Dhyana, having separated from joy. He leaves joy behind, dwelling in renunciation while still possessing thought and proper knowledge. He has a kind of thought, has proper knowledge, so that his experience of personal bliss, a kind of ecstasy, is as is described by all sages: the Bliss of Renunciation while still Possessing Thought. The First Dhyana is the Stage of Joy of Separation from Production. The Second Dhyana is the Stage of Joy of Production of Samadhi. The Third Dhyana is the Stage of Wonderful Bliss of Separation from Moy. The Fourth Dhyana is the Stage of Purity of Renunciation of Thought. He has certified to the Third Dhyana.

He dwells in the Fourth Dhyana, having severed bliss, by first expelling suffering, and then extinguishing joy and sorrow. He cuts off all bliss, the Stage of Wonderful Bliss from Separation from Joy. If he can go on to destroy all suffering, joy and sorrow, feeling neither suffering nor bliss, at that time he reaches the Stage of Dwelling in the Purity of Renunciation of Thought, the Fourth Dhyana.

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