The Lankavatara Sutra
Page 4
“Lord of Lanka, this teaching will become clearer as you become adept at cultivating samadhi and samapatti.46 But don’t become attached to the realms cultivated by lesser practitioners and followers of other paths or consider the states they imagine as blissful. Followers of other paths cling to the belief in a self and the view that the world is real and that material elements, substances, and tendencies exist.47 Or they insist that ignorance and the chain of causation are real. They make distinctions where there is only emptiness. Lost in projections, they become captives of the actors and actions of their own minds.
“Lord of Lanka, this teaching is the pinnacle of Mahayana understanding, for it enables practitioners to achieve self–realization and to enjoy higher levels of existence. Lord of Lanka, through such understanding one removes obstructions and calms the myriad waves of consciousness and no longer falls prey to the views and practices of other paths. Lord of Lanka, because followers of other paths cling to their belief in a self, they become lost in dualistic views concerning the nature of consciousness. Well done, Lord of Lanka. As you reflected just now upon the meaning of seeing the tathagatas, this is how you should view the Buddha.”
Ravana then thought to himself,48 “I wish I could see the Bhagavan again. For the Bhagavan is the master of all those forms of yoga that give rise to an inner realization free from fabricator or fabrication and beyond the understanding of followers of other paths. His is the knowledge realized by yogins, and his is the experience of the bliss of samadhi, the great bliss only attained through meditation.
“I wish by means of his miraculous powers I could see the Compassionate One again, the one in whom the fuel of passion and projection has been burned up, the one surrounded by the sons of buddhas who is able to penetrate the thoughts of all beings and travel to all places and know all dharmas without showing any sign of effort. I wish I could see him so that I might attain what I have not yet attained and not relinquish what I have already attained and might advance to that realm marked by the absence of projection and the great bliss of samadhi where tathagatas dwell.”
Knowing that the Lord of Lanka had already attained the forbearance of non–arising,49 out of compassion for the ten-headed king, the Bhagavan once more appeared on the jewel-adorned, pearl-shaded summit. And the Lord of Lanka once more beheld all the glorious scenes that appeared earlier on the peaks, including the buddhas, the arhats, the fully enlightened ones with their thirty-two inspiring attributes,50 and with himself and Mahamati standing before them on each peak while the buddhas discoursed on the inner realization experienced by tathagatas and while the yakshas surrounding them discussed the language used to express this teaching. All this was witnessed by the King.
The Bhagavan, too, saw all those assembled there, but by means of his inner awareness, not his physical eye. Like a yawning lion, he smiled a great smile. And he emitted rays of light from the curl between his brows, from his sides and his waist, from the swastika51 on his chest, and from every hair and pore, a blazing radiance that resembled a world-destroying conflagration, rainbows in the sky, or the sun at dawn.52 From afar, Shakra and Brahma and the Four Guardians53 beheld the Bhagavan sitting and smiling at the summit of Lanka, as if it were Mount Sumeru.54 Together with the bodhisattvas in the assembly, they all asked themselves: “Why is the Bhagavan, the master of all dharmas, smiling like this and radiating light from his body? And why is he sitting there without speaking, unmoved by the bliss of samadhi or the self–realization of buddha knowledge, and gazing like the king of beasts upon Ravana and concerned with the progress of his practice?”
Mahamati Bodhisattva had previously agreed to Ravana’s request out of compassion and knew the thoughts of the bodhisattvas in the assembly. And he knew that because of their delight in verbal instruction, beings in future ages might become confused by their preference for words over meaning or by their attachment to the practices of lesser paths or other teachings, and they might wonder since the Tathagata had already transcended the realm of consciousness why he was smiling such a great smile. In anticipation of their curiosity, Mahamati asked the Buddha, “What is the cause of such a smile?”55
The Buddha replied, “Excellent, Mahamati. It is excellent that upon considering the true nature of the world and hoping to awaken beings of the past, the present, and the future from mistaken views, you have asked me about this. For a wise man should ask questions, not only for his own benefit but also for the benefit of others. Mahamati, Ravana, the Lord of Lanka, has asked the tathagatas, the arhats, the fully enlightened ones of the past, a twofold question,56 which he now wishes to ask me.57 And because this teaching is not something those who follow lesser paths or other teachings can understand, this ten-headed yaksha shall also ask buddhas in the future.”
Aware that Ravana wished to question him, the Bhagavan said, “Lord of Lanka, whatever you would ask, ask now, and I will put an end to your doubts and replace them with joy, and you will be able to see by means of wisdom, Lord of Lanka, instead of projection. And you will be able to know the practices appropriate for each stage and the way to attain the truth of self–realization and the bliss of samadhi. And while in samadhi, you will be protected by buddhas and will avoid the mistakes cultivated by those of lesser paths. And while dwelling in the unshakeable stage, the wisdom stage, and the dharma cloud stage58 of the bodhisattva path, you will penetrate the truth that all dharmas are without self–existence,59 and you will find yourself seated upon a giant, jeweled lotus flower, where you will enter countless samadhis and be instructed by buddhas.
“Lord of Lanka, as you see yourself seated upon this giant, jeweled lotus flower supported by the power of the buddhas, you will be surrounded by countless bodhisattvas also seated on lotus flowers, and all of them will be gazing upon you. This is an indescribable realm. And it is by cultivating the efficacious prac–tices of the various stages of this path that you will be able to see this indescribable realm and thereby experience the infinite characteristics of the tathagata stage, which is something that has never been witnessed by followers of lesser paths or other teachings, not even by Brahma, Shakra, or the Four Guardians.”
As the Buddha spoke, the Lord of Lanka rose to his feet and proceeded to cover the peak with a myriad of flawless jeweled lotuses, while a host of celestial maidens accompanied him bearing multicolored garlands, flowers of every kind and hue, incense and fragrances of every sort, jeweled banners, flowered umbrellas, and colored flags and wearing necklaces of varying lengths, jeweled caps, and filigreed tiaras and all sorts of beautiful attire, the splendor and rarity of which had never been known, much less seen. He also conjured a canopy of pearls and countless jeweled banners above the Buddha and the bodhisattvas and musical instruments surpassing anything that existed among the devas, nagas, yakshas, gandharvas, asuras, kinnaras, mahoragas,60 humans and non-humans in the realm of desire as well as instruments from buddhalands throughout the ten directions.
After he had done all this, King Ravana suddenly rose in the air to a height equal to more than seven palm trees.61 And as he stood there in space, all kinds of musical instruments, flowers, perfumes, and garments rained down and filled the sky, which he then used as offerings to the Buddha and the bodhisattvas. And once he had presented his offerings, he descended from the sky and seated himself upon an adjacent jewel-covered peak that was also adorned with giant, jeweled lotuses as bright as the sun or lightning.
Once the Buddha saw that Ravana was seated, he smiled and waited for him to present his twofold question. King Ravana then asked: “Bhagavan, I have asked the tathagatas, the arhats, the fully enlightened ones in the past about the two kinds of dharmas, and they have answered. I am now asking again in hopes that the Bhagavan might explain the meaning of their words.62
“Bhagavan, I have been instructed in the two kinds of dharmas by apparition buddhas but not by the primordial buddhas.63 The primordial buddhas cultivate the bliss of samadhi and do not speak about realms imagined by the mind. Most Honored On
e, as the Tathagata is a master of all dharmas, I hope the Bhagavan, the Arhat, the Fully Enlightened One will now explain these two kinds of dharmas about which these sons of buddhas and I wish to hear.”
The Buddha replied, “Then ask, Lord of Lanka, about these two kinds of dharmas.”
The king of the yakshas then rearranged the jeweled crown and necklaces and other ornaments that graced his body and said, “The Tathagata has said that dharmas should be abandoned, and non-dharmas even more so.64 Bhagavan, what do you mean when you say we should abandon these two kinds of dharmas? Bhagavan, what constitutes a dharma? And what constitutes a non-dharma? And if we should abandon something, why these two? Wouldn’t this result in projecting the existence of something or the nonexistence of something, something that is real and something that is not real? If all we do is give rise to projections, instead of the undifferentiated characteristics of our repository consciousness,65 we will behold strands of hair in the sky66 and realms of impure knowledge. Bhagavan, if this is the nature of dharmas, how are we to abandon them?”
The Buddha replied, “Lord of Lanka, you see how ignorant people distinguish things, things as fragile and impermanent as a clay pot, do you not? The distinctions among dharmas and non–dharmas67 are the projections of foolish people and not how things are viewed according to buddha knowledge.68 Lord of Lanka, foolish people see things in terms of characteristics, not the wise.
“Lord of Lanka, fire is seen as something uniform, but when it destroys such things as buildings or trees, its flames are distinguished depending on the shape and size of the material that burns. Why don’t you see that dharmas and non-dharmas are distinguished the same way—just as a fire is seen as a singular continuity or as a diversity of flames?69 Or consider the continuity of a seed, Lord of Lanka, as it gives rise to such varying forms as sprouts, stems, joints, branches, leaves, buds, flowers, and fruits.70 And as with external objects, the same is true of internal objects, whereby ignorance gives rise to such dharmas as skandhas, dhatus, and ayatanas71 as well as to the varieties of existence in the three realms and to differences in terms of suffering and joy, good and evil, speech and silence. So, too, consciousness and its objects are the same but differ depending on distinctions as to which is superior, neutral or inferior, defiled or pure, good or bad. Not only are there distinctions among such things as these, Lord of Lanka, when yogins practice meditation, the characteristics of their internal realms are also marked by differences. How much more then are dharmas and non-dharmas marked by a multitude of distinctions? Thus, Lord of Lanka, the different characteristics of dharmas and non-dharmas are the result of projection.72
“What, then, Lord of Lanka, is a dharma? A dharma is whatever ordinary people and followers of lesser and heterodox paths imagine. Basically, they think a dharma has existence and substance and arises from causes. Such things must be abandoned and avoided.73 Don’t engage in the projection of appearances or become attached to what are perceptions of your own mind. The things people grasp, such as clay pots, lack any real substance. To view dharmas like this is to abandon them.
“And what, Lord of Lanka, is a non-dharma?74 This refers to what has no discernible body of its own, what has no distinguishable characteristics, what is not subject to causation, and what offers no basis for views of its existence or nonexistence. Therefore, it is also to be abandoned. Non-dharmas are things like horns on a rabbit, an ass, a camel, or a horse or the offspring of a barren woman. Such things lack any form or appearance and cannot be perceived. They are merely names talked about according to convention. They are not things that can be grasped, like a clay pot. And just as what is discriminated as existing should be abandoned, what cannot be known by any form of consciousness should also be abandoned. This is why I say to abandon dharmas and non-dharmas. Lord of Lanka, I have answered what you have asked.
“Lord of Lanka, you say you have asked the tathagatas, the arhats, the fully enlightened ones about this in the past, and they have also answered you. Lord of Lanka, what you call the past is, by another name, a projection. And just as the past is a projection, so are the future and the present. Lord of Lanka, the tathagatas do not project what amounts to reality.75 They transcend projection and fabrication76 and do not go along with distinguishing forms, except to instruct or to pacify the ignorant. It is by means of such wisdom that tathagatas practice a formless practice. Thus, tathagatas consider knowledge as their real body. And because they consider knowledge as their real body, they are free from projection or anything that projects, such as a self, a life, or a person or any kind of consciousness that gives rise to forms dependent on an objective world. Thus, they are free from what projects and what is projected.
“Lord of Lanka, the appearances of beings are like paintings: they are not conscious and not subject to karma.77 The same is true of dharmas and non-dharmas. There is no one who speaks, nor is there anyone who hears. Lord of Lanka, everything in the world is like an illusion. This is beyond the understanding of ignorant beings and the followers of other paths. Lord of Lanka, to see things like this is to see them as they really are. To see otherwise is to see them as they are not, to engage in projection, and to become attached to these two kinds of dharmas. Lord of Lanka, this is like seeing an image in a mirror or a reflection in water or like seeing a figure in the moonlight or a shadow on a wall or like hearing an echo in a valley. People attached to the images of their own projections cling to dharmas and non-dharmas. Unable to abandon them, they continue to engage in projection and fail to attain tranquility. Tranquility means oneness,78 and oneness means the tathagata-garbha, the realm of self–realization of buddha knowledge, from which the supreme samadhi arises.”79
1 Although we have no early copies of the Sanskrit text of this sutra, those that we do have divide the text into ten chapters—with the tenth chapter being a collection of gathas to which Nanjio Bunyiu gave the title: Sagathakam (Verse Anthology). The same ten-chapter division was also used by Shikshananda but not by Bodhiruchi, who divided his translation into eighteen chapters, and not by Gunabhadra, who divided his translation (minus this first chapter, the Dharani, and the Sagathakam) into four parts, all with the title: “The Heart of the Teaching of Buddhas.” The further division into sections was the work of subsequent commentators, and a number of variations exist. Rather than introduce a new set of section divisions and in order to make comparisons easier, I have followed those of Suzuki, whose sections were based on those of the Japanese monk, Kokan Shiren (1278–1346). However, I have combined chapters Four through Eight into a single chapter, and, unlike Suzuki, I have numbered verses separately for each section rather than for each chapter.
2 Chapter One. In this first chapter, as the Buddha reappears from the palace of the serpent king, Ravana asks for instruction about dharmas, the constituents of reality as perceived and understood by those who divide the world or their own awareness into parts, and non-dharmas, the creations of our imagination. The Buddha responds with the manifestation of a fun house of illusion, a monumental smile and light, and finally a few words to point Ravana past dharmas and non-dharmas back to his own undifferentiated and undifferentiating mind.
3 As in other Buddhist sutras, the presumed speaker is Ananda, the Buddha’s cousin and personal attendant, whose unfailing memory formed the basis for the initial compilation of Shakyamuni’s sermons at the First Council, held in 383 B.C. shortly after the Buddha’s Nirvana.
4 Lanka refers to the island of Sri Lanka (Holy Lanka).
5 Maha means “great,” and mati (from the root man) means “mind.” Thus, maha-mati means “great-minded” or “wise,” and the term was applied to those noted for their wisdom. Thus, Mahamati represents all those who cultivate wisdom. Mahamati is also the name for the planet Jupiter. The appellation “mahasattva” was applied to lions and also to human heroes who shared the fearlessness of lions. It is usually translated as “great being,” but “fearless” comes closer. In the interests of simplicity, I have decided to omit ma
hasattva from its subsequent appearances, but readers can assume its presence after most instances of the word “bodhisattva.”
6 The Sanskrit is sva–citta–drshya (perceptions of one’s own mind). This is one of the two main threads that runs through this sutra, the other being variations of pratyatma–gati (personal realization).
7 Among the concepts used in this sutra to explain how the mind works and how we (mis-)perceive reality are the five dharmas: appearance, name, projection, correct knowledge, and suchness; the three modes of reality: imagined, dependent, and perfected; the eight forms of consciousness: one for each of the six senses—the sixth being conceptual consciousness, a seventh for self- identity and reasoning, and an eighth for storing and distributing the seeds from the habit-energy left behind by the operations of the sixth and seventh forms of consciousness; and two kinds of no-self: the denial of self-existence concerning animate and inanimate objects. For the last phrase, (and I have followed Gunabhadra’s Chinese translation up to the end of this paragraph) the Sanskrit has nairatmya–advaya, “non-self and non-duality.” For the relationships among these various concepts, see sections LXXXIII & LXXXIV.
8 With this paragraph, extant Sanskrit texts and the Chinese translations of Bodhiruchi and Shikshananda begin a chapter-long account of the Buddha’s discourse to Ravana, the ruler of Lanka and chief of the yakshas who inhabited this island. None of this appears in Gunabhadra’s translation. But rather than place it in an appendix, I’ve decided it fits better here, especially as it serves to introduce the teaching that follows. Although my translation of the rest of this chapter is based for the most part on the Sanskrit, I have sometimes chosen to follow the Chinese of Bodhiruchi and/or Shikshananda. In cases where such a choice results in a significantly different reading, I have mentioned this in my notes.
9 The Sanskrit for “serpent-king” is naga–raja. In ancient India, as in other early civilizations, serpents were viewed as guardians of knowledge, and buddha knowledge, or arya–jnana, is the goal of the practice taught in this sutra. Sagara was one of eight serpent kings who acted as protectors of the Dharma in ancient India. His residence was at the bottom of the ocean, and there are two sutras in the Tripitaka addressed to him (Taisho 598 and 599), the first of which was extant as early as A.D. 300.