T2008 The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch

2: Prajñā

The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch group that had come after me, saying "I just climbed this mountain of boulders, and there was no trace of him. We should try searching by another road.

" The group of those chasing [Huineng] all did as he said. Huiming later changed [his name] to Daoming, in order to avoid the first character of his teacher

'

s name.)

"After this I went to Caoqi. There too I was beset by evil people searching for me and so fled to Sihui [Xian], 60 where I spent fifteen years in all [living] with a group of hunters.

61 During this time I preached the Dharma to the hunters when the occasion arose. The hunters had always had me guard their nets, but whenever I saw living animals in them I set them free. Whenever it was mealtime, I put vegetables in the pot for boiling the meat. They asked me about this sometimes, and I would answer, 'These are just vegetables to

go with the meat.

'

"One day I realized that the time had come to disseminate the Dharma, that I could not hide forever. Accordingly, I left [the mountains and] went to Faxingsi ("Monastery of the Dharma-nature") in Guangzhou, where I encountered Dharma Master Yinzong lecturing on the Nirvana Sutra. "At that time the wind was blowing and the banner [announcing the lecture] was moving. One monk said that the wind was moving, while another monk said the banner was moving. They argued on and on, so I went forward and said,

'It is not the wind that is moving, and it is not the banner that is moving. It is your minds that are moving. ' Everyone listening was amazed.

Yinzong had me brought up to the dais, where he examined me on the import of what I had said. Hearing me say that the discrimination of the truth did not depend on written words, Yinzong said, 'You are certainly an extra ordinary person. Long ago I heard that the robe and bowl of Huangmei had come south—might you be the one [who received them]?' I said, 'In all modesty, [I am].

'

"At this Yinzong bowed to me and asked me to bring forth the robe and bowl to show to the assembly. He questioned me further, saying 'What instructions did you receive at Huangmei?' I said, 'I received no instructions. [Hongren and I] only discussed seeing the nature, we did not discuss samādhiand emancipation.

' Yinzong said,

'Why did you not discuss samādhiand emancipation?' I said, 'Because the dualistic dharmas are not Buddhism. Buddhism consists of nondualistic dharmas.

'

26

Number Two: Prajñā

"Yinzong also asked,

'How is it that Buddhism consists of nondualistic dharmas?' I said,

'You lecture on the Nirvana Sutra's elucidation of the buddha nature, which is a nondualistic dharmaof Buddhism. Just as when Bodhisattva King of Lofty Virtue asked the Buddha,

'Do those who break the four major

prohibitions and commit the five perverse transgressions, as well as the icchan tikas, eradicate their good roots and buddha-natures?' The Buddha said, 'There

are two types of good roots. One is permanent and the other is impermanent. The buddha-nature is not permanent and not impermanent. ' Therefore, not to

eradicate is said to be nondual. One type [of roots] is said to be the good, and the other is the nongood. The buddha-nature is not the good and not the nongood. This is called nondual. The skandhas and sensory realms are seen as two by ordinary people, but the wise comprehend their natures to be nondual. The nondual nature is none other than the buddha-nature. "When Yinzong heard this explanation, he joyfully held his palms together and said,

'My lecturing on the sutra was like a [worthless piece of] roof tile or rock, while your explanation is like gold. ' At this, he administered

the tonsure for me and asked to serve me as his teacher. "Thus did I, under the bodhitree, reveal the East Mountain teaching. After receiving the Dharma at East Mountain, I experienced all kinds of suffering, and my life expectancy was like a dangling thread. Today I have been able to join this assembly of the prefect, government staff members, monks, nuns, and laypeople—could it but be the karmic result of successive eons? Also, that you have been able to hear the sudden teaching just given and have gained the cause for attaining the Dharma can only be because in past lives you cultivated good roots identical to those of the buddhas. The teaching is that which has been transmitted by the former sages; it is not something known to myself [alone]. I wish you would all listen to this teaching of the former sages: you should all purify your minds, and after hearing it you should all eradicate your doubts. You are no different from the former generations of sages. "

The entire assembly, after hearing this Dharma, joyfully did obeisance and dispersed.

Number Two: Prajñā

The next day Prefect Wei asked [Huineng] to benefit [sentient beings by lecturing on the Dharma]. The master ascended the [lecture] seat and informed 27

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The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch

the assembly,

"You should all purify your minds and concentrate on the Great Perfection of Wisdom (mahāprajñāpāramitā).

"

[Huineng] continued,

"Good friends, bodhiis the wisdom of prajñā.

People of this world possess it fundamentally and naturally. It is only because your minds are deluded that you are unable to become enlightened yourselves. You must rely on a great spiritual compatriot to show you how to see the nature. Youmust realize that there is fundamentally no distinction between the buddha natures of the foolish and the wise—it is only because of delusion and enlightenment that [you think they are] different and that there are foolish and wise.

"I will now explain the teaching of the Great Perfection of Wisdom for you, so that you will all attain wisdom. Listen well and attentively, and I will explain this for you!

"Good friends, people of this world always recite prajñāwith their mouths, but they don't recognize the prajñāof the self-natures. This is like talking about eating, which doesn't satisfy one's hunger. If you just talk about emptiness with your mouths, you won't be able to see the nature for a myriad eons. Ultimately, this is of no benefit at all.

"Good friends,

'

mahāprajñāpāramitā'is a Sanskrit word; here we say 'great wisdom going to the other shore.

' This must be practiced in the mind,

not recited by the mouth. To recite it orally without practicing it in the mind is [as unreal] as a phantasm or hallucination, [and as evanescent] as dew or lightning. To recite it orally and practice it mentally is for mind and mouth to correspond. The fundamental nature is buddha. There is no other buddha apart from this nature.

"What is

'

mahā'? Mahāmeans 'great.

' The ratiocination of the mind

is vast, like space, which is boundless. [Space] is also without square and round, large and small. It is also neither blue, yellow, red, nor white. It is also without above and below, long and short. It is also without anger and without joy, without affirmation and without negation, without good and without evil, without beginning and end. The fields of the Buddha are all identical to space. The wondrous natures of people of this world are empty, without a single dharmathat can be perceived. The emptiness of the selfnatures is also like this. 62

"Good friends, don't listen to me explain emptiness and then become 28

Number Two: Prajñā

attached to emptiness. The most important thing is not to become attached to emptiness. If you empty your minds and sit in quietude, this is to become attached to the emptiness of blankness.

"Good friends, the space of this world embraces within itself the myriad things and [all] the images of form. The sun, moon, and stars; and the mountains, rivers, and earth; the springs and streams that enrich the plants and forests; bad people and good people, bad dharmas and good dharmas; the heavens and hells; all the great oceans and the mountains, including Sumeru: all of these exist within space. The emptiness of the natures of the people of this world is also like this. Good friends, that the self-natures can embody the myriad dharmas is 'great.

' The myriad dharmas are within people's

natures. If one perceives the goodness and badness of people without ever grasping or rejecting [their goodness and badness], one will not become tainted or attached. For the mind to be like space is called 'great. ' Therefore,

it is said [to be] '

mahā.

'

"Good friends, the deluded speak with their mouths, but the wise practice with their minds. Furthermore, there are deluded people who empty their minds and sit in quietude without thinking of anything whatsoever, claiming that this is great. You can't even speak to these people, because of their false views! "Good friends, the ratiocination of the mind is vast and great, permeating the dharmadhātu(i.e., the cosmos). Functioning, it comprehensively and distinctly responds [to things]. Functioning, it knows everything. 63 Everything

is the one [mind], the one [mind] is everything.

64 [With mind and dharmas]

going and coming of themselves, the essence of the mind is without stagnation. This is

'

prajñā.

'

"Good friends, all prajñāwisdom is generated from the self-natures. It does not enter us from outside. To not err in its functioning is called the spontaneous functioning of the true nature.When the one [mind] is true, all [things] are true.

65 When your minds are considering the great affair, you will not practice the small path. Do not be always speaking of emptiness with your mouth without cultivating the practice in your minds! That would be like an ordinary person claiming to be a king! You will never attain anything [this way. Such persons] are not my disciples.

"Good friends, what is prajñā? In Chinese, it is called wisdom. To always practice wisdom in all places, at all times, and in all moments of thought, 350b

29

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without stupidity—this is the practice of prajñā.A single moment's stupidity and prajñāis eradicated, a single moment's wisdom and prajñāis generated. The people of this world are stupid and deluded and do not see prajñā.They speak of prajñāin their mouths but are always stupid in their minds. They always say to themselves,

'I am cultivating prajñā.

' In every moment of

thought they speak of emptiness, without recognizing true emptiness. Prajñā is without shape or characteristics, it is the mind of wisdom. To have such an understanding is called the wisdom of prajñā.

"What is

'

pāramitā'? This is an Indian word; in Chinese it is 'arriving at the other shore.

' If one understands the meaning [of Buddhism,] one transcends samsara; if one is attached to one's sensory realms, samsara is activated,

66 just as waves [arise on] water. This is called the 'other shore, '

therefore it is said to be

'

pāramitā.

'

"Good friends, the deluded person recites with his mouth, and he does so with falsity and error. To practice in every moment of thought is called the true nature. To be enlightened to this Dharma is the Dharma of prajñā, to cultivate this practice is the practice of prajñā.To not cultivate this is to be an ordinary [unenlightened] person. To cultivate this in a single moment of thought is to be equivalent to the Buddha in one's own body. "Good friends, ordinary people are buddhas, and the afflictions are bodhi. With a preceding moment of deluded thought, one was an ordinary person, but with a succeeding moment of enlightened thought, one is a buddha. To be attached to one's sensory realms in a preceding moment of thought is affliction, but to transcend the realms in a succeeding moment of thought is bodhi. "Good friends,

'

mahāprajñāpāramitā'is the most honored, the supreme, the primary. It is without abiding [in the present], without going [into the past], and without coming [from the future]. It is from this that all the buddhas of the three periods of time emerge. One should use this great wisdom to destroy the enervating defilements of the afflictions of the five skandhas. 67

Those who cultivate in this fashion will definitely accomplish the enlightenment of buddhahood, transforming the three poisons into morality, meditation, and wisdom. "Good friends, in this teaching of ours68 eighty-four thousand wisdoms are generated from the one prajñā.Why? Because the people of this world have eighty-four thousand enervating defilements. If they were without these 30

Number Two: Prajñā

enervating defilements, wisdom would always be manifest and they would not depart from the self-natures. To be enlightened to this Dharma is to be without thought. To be without recollection, without attachment, to not activate the false and deceptive—this is to allow one's self[-suchness]-nature to function. To use wisdom to contemplate all the dharmas without grasping or rejecting is to see the nature and accomplish the enlightenment of buddhahood. "Good friends, if you wish to enter into the profound dharmadhātuand the samādhiof prajñā,you must cultivate the practice of prajñāand recite the Diamond Sutra.Thus will you attain seeing the nature. You should realize that the merits of this sutra are immeasurable and unlimited. They are clearly praised within the sutra; I cannot explain them fully here. This teaching is the Supreme Vehicle: it is preached for those of great wisdom, it is preached for those of superior capacities. Those of small capacities and small wisdom who hear it will generate doubt. Why? It is likened to rain poured down by the great dragon onto Jambudvīpa: it washes away all the cities, towns, and villages as if they were floating plants. But rain falling on the ocean causes it neither to increase nor to decrease. If a person of the Mahayana or a person of the Supreme Vehicle hears this explanation of the Diamond Sutra,his mind will open forth in enlightened understanding. Therefore, you should understand that your fundamental natures have in themselves the wisdom of prajñā.Allowing this wisdom to function of itself in constant contemplation, one therefore need not rely on the written word. It is likened to rainwater, which does not derive from heaven. Fundamentally, this [rainwater] is engendered by the dragon, and it causes all living beings, all plants, all those sentient and insentient beings to be enriched. But the hundred streams flow together into the ocean, where they become one. The wisdom of prajñā, which is the fundamental nature of sentient beings, is also like this.

"Good friends, those of small capacities who hear this sudden teaching are like plants whose capacities are small. Beset by a great rain, they all collapse and are unable to grow. People of small capacities are also like this. They possess the wisdom of prajñāfundamentally, no differently from those of great wisdom. So why do they hear the Dharma without being able to become enlightened? Because of the profundity of their false views and layered afflictions! Just as if great clouds are blocking the sun, unless a wind blows [them away], the light of the sun will not be visible. 31

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"There is also no great and small in the wisdom of prajñā;it is only that the delusion and enlightenment of the minds of all sentient beings differ. Those with deluded minds appear to be cultivating and seeking buddhahood, but they are unenlightened to their self-natures. Hence are they of small capacities. If one is to be enlightened to the sudden teaching, one cannot cultivate externally (i.e., superficially): one should just constantly activate correct views in one's own mind, and the enervating defilements of the afflictions will be rendered permanently unable to defile one. This is to see the nature. "Good friends, one should not reside within or without, and one's going and coming should be autonomous. One who is able to eradicate the mind of attachment will [attain] penetration unhindered. Those who are able to cultivate this practice are fundamentally no different from [what is described in] the Prajñā Sutra.

"Good friends, all the sutras and all their words, the two vehicles of great and small, and the twelve divisions of the canon—all these were established because of people, and could only have been established because of the wisdom nature. If there were no people in this world, all the myriad dharmas would be fundamentally and naturally nonexistent. Therefore, you should realize that the myriad dharmas were fundamentally generated because of people. All the sutras and texts exist through being preached because of people. "Because some people are stupid and some are wise, the stupid being the small and the wise being the great, the stupid ask questions of the wise and the wise preach the Dharma for the stupid. When a stupid person suddenly becomes enlightened, his mind opening forth, he is no different from a wise person. "Good friends, if one is unenlightened, then the buddhas are sentient beings. When one is enlightened for [even] a single moment, then sentient beings are buddhas. Therefore you should understand that the myriad dharmas are all within your own minds. Why can't you suddenly see the fundamental nature of suchness from within your own minds? The Sutra of the Bodhisattva Preceptssays,

'I am fundamentally pure in self-nature.

' If you recognize

your own mind and see the nature, you will definitely accomplish the enlightenment of buddhahood. The Vimalakīrti Sutrasays, 'He then un expectedly

retrieved the fundamental mind.

'

"Good friends, when I was with His Reverence Hongren, I became enlightened as soon as I heard him speak. I suddenly saw the fundamental 32

Number Two: Prajñā

nature of suchness. Therefore, I am disseminating this teaching so that you who study the Way69 may become suddenly enlightened and [achieve] bodhi. You should each contemplate your minds and each see the fundamental nature. If you do not become enlightened by yourself, then you must seek a great spiritual compatriot, someone who understands the Dharma of the Supreme Vehicle, to indicate directly the correct path for you. This spiritual compatriot will have a great background and will, so to speak, lead you to the attainment of seeing the nature. This is because the spiritual compatriot is able to manifest the causes of all the good dharmas. All the buddhas of the three periods of time and the twelve divisions of the canon are fundamentally and naturally immanent within the natures of people, but if you cannot become enlightened yourself, you must seek a spiritual compatriot's instructions in order to see [the nature].

"If you can become enlightened yourself, don't rely on external seeking— don't think I'm saying you can only attain emancipation through [the help of] a spiritual compatriot other than yourself. This is not the case! Why? Within your own minds there is a spiritual compatriot [who will help you] become enlightened by yourself! If you activate the false and deluded, you will become all mixed up with false thoughts. Although some external spiritual compatriots may be teachers, they cannot save you. If you activate the correct and true and contemplate with prajñā,in a single instant [all your] false thoughts will be completely eradicated. If you recognize the self-nature, with a single [experience of] enlightenment you will attain the stage of buddhahood. "Good friends, in wisdom's contemplation both interior and exterior are clearly penetrated, and one recognizes one's own fundamental mind. If you recognize your fundamental mind, this is the fundamental emancipation. And if you attain emancipation, this is the samādhiof prajñā,this is nonthought. "What is nonthought? If in seeing all the dharmas, the mind is not defiled or attached, this is nonthought. [The mind's] functioning pervades all locations, yet it is not attached to all the locations. Just purify the fundamental mind, causing the six consciousnesses to emerge from the six [sensory] gates, [causing one to be] without defilement or heterogeneity within the six types of sensory data (literally, the "six dusts"), autonomous in the coming and going [of mental phenomena], one's penetrating function without stagnation. This is the samādhi 351b

33

The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch

of prajñā,the autonomous emancipation. This is called the practice of nonthought. view.

"If one does not think of the hundred things in order to cause thought to be eradicated, this is bondage within the Dharma. This is called an extreme "Good friends, to be enlightened to the Dharma of nonthought is for the myriad dharmas to be completely penetrated. To be enlightened to the Dharma of nonthought is to see the realms of [all] the buddhas. To be enlightened to the Dharma of nonthought is to arrive at the stage of buddhahood. "Good friends, those who attain my Dharma in later generations will see and practice according to this sudden teaching exactly as I have explained.

70 Because they will generate the vow [to attain buddhahood] and maintain it just as if they are serving the Buddha, they will not regress during their entire lives and will definitely enter the stage of sagehood. But they must transmit that which has been silently transmitted from before, imparting it without obscuring the true Dharma. If they do not see and practice as I have explained, but [operate] within [the context of] another Dharma, the transmission will not occur and they will do a disservice to (literally, "harm")

their predecessors. Ultimately, this would be of no benefit [to sentient beings]. I fear that stupid people will not understand and will revile this teaching, for which they will eradicate their seeds of buddhahood for a hundred eons and a thousand lives!

"Good friends, I have a formless verse, which you should all listen to. Whether you are a householder or one who has left home, you should simply cultivate in reliance on this. To not cultivate [enlightenment] yourself, but merely to memorize what I say, would be of no benefit at all. Listen to my verse: The penetration of preaching and the penetration of mind Are like the sun located in space.

I transmit only the Dharma of seeing the nature;

I have appeared in the world to destroy the false teachings. There are no sudden and gradual in the Dharma,

It is delusion and enlightenment that are slow or fast. It is only this teaching of seeing the nature

Which stupid people cannot comprehend.

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Number Two: Prajñā

Although there are a myriad ways to explain it, Those which are reasonable all revert to the one. Within the dark house of the afflictions There always lives the sun of wisdom. The false comes, and the afflictions arrive [too]. The correct comes, and the afflictions are eliminated. Allowing neither false nor correct to function, In purity, one arrives at the remainderless [nirvana]. Bodhifundamentally is the self-nature. Activate the mind, and [all is] false. Purify the mind within the false. Just be correct in being without the three hindrances. If people of this world cultivate the Way (i.e., enlightenment), They will not be hindered by anything at all. Always see one's own errors, and Be in accord with the Way.

71

The categories of form have their own ways, and They do not hinder or afflict each other. If one seeks the way apart from the Way, One will never see the Way.

If one passes one's life in prevarication, 72

One will ultimately only cause oneself grief. If you want to see the true Way, Practice the correct, and this is the Way. If one's eyes have no aspiration for the Way, One will practice in obscurity and will not see the Way. If one is a true cultivator of the Way, One will not see the transgressions of the world. If one sees the errors of others, One's own errors will rather be augmented. 73

If one considers others to be in error and not oneself, One's errors will automatically embody a transgression. 351c

35

The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch Simply eliminate any inclination to see errors and Smash away the afflictions.

Repugnance and attraction have nothing to do with the mind. Stretch out both legs and lie down. If you want to teach others,

You must have expedient means yourself. Do not make them destroy their doubts— This is what allows the self-nature to become manifest. Buddhism's being in the world

Is not separate from the awareness of the world. To seek bodhiapart from the world Is like searching for the horn of a hare. Correct seeing (or views) is called to escape the world, False seeing is [to be in] the world. When false and correct are completely destroyed, The nature of bodhiis just so.

This verse is the sudden teaching. It is also called the ship of the great Dharma. In delusion one can listen to the sutras for eons, but Enlightenment occurs in a moment. The master spoke again,

"Now at Dafan Monastery I have preached this sudden teaching. I hope that all sentient beings throughout the dharmadhātu will at these words see the nature and accomplish buddhahood. "

At that time everyone listening to the master's preaching—Prefect Wei, the government staff, and the ordained and lay followers—all experienced enlightenment. Simultaneously they bowed and sighed, "How excellent!

Whenever has a buddha appeared in the world in Lingnan!" Number Three: Questions

One day Prefect Wei held a large vegetarian feast on behalf of the master. When the feast was over, the prefect invited the master to ascend the dais [to give a sermon]. The government staff, scholars, and commoners respectfully bowed once again and asked,

"It was truly inconceivable (i.e., wonderful) for 36

3: Questions

Number Three: Questions

us to hear Your Reverence explain the Dharma, but now we have some slight doubts. We wish that, in your great compassion, you would make a special effort to explain these for us. " The master said,

"If you have doubts, then ask, and I will explain them for you. "

Lord Wei asked,

"The doctrine Your Reverence has preached—it must be that of Great Master Bodhidharma?" The master said, "So it is.

" Wei

asked,

"I have heard that when Bodhidharma first taught Emperor Wu of the Liang, the emperor asked, 'Throughout my entire life I have constructed monasteries, had monks ordained, and held vegetarian feasts. What merit is there in these?' Bodhidharma said, 'In fact, these are without merit. '" [Wei

said,] "Your disciple does not understand the principle of this, and I ask you to explain it for me.

"

The master said,

"'In fact, these are without merit' —do not doubt the

words of the former sage. Emperor Wu was heterodox in mind and did not understand the correct Dharma. To build monasteries, have monks ordained, and hold vegetarian feasts is to seek blessings, but one cannot convert blessings into merit. Merit exists within the dharmakāya,not within the cultivation of blessings.

"

The master also said,

"Seeing the nature is 'effort, ' and universal sameness

is 'virtue.

' To be without stagnation in successive moments of thought, to always see the fundamental nature, [to possess] the wondrous functioning of the true and actual—this is called 'merit. ' To be humble in the mind within is 'effort'; to practice ritual without is 'virtue. ' For the self-nature to establish the myriad dharmas is 'effort'; for the mind-essence to transcend thoughts is 'virtue.

' To not transcend the self-natures is 'effort'; for one's responsive functioning to be undefiled is 'virtue. ' If you would seek merit and the dharmakāya,just rely on this, and [you will create] true merit. Those who cultivate merit must be without disparagement in their minds but always practice respect for all. Those whose minds always disparage others will not eradicate their own [false views of the] self and are themselves without 'effort. ' [Those

who consider the] self-natures to be empty and false are themselves without 'virtue.

' It is only because they consider themselves to be great that they always disparage everyone else. "Good friends, to be without any suspension of one's continuous thoughts [of inner humility, etc.] is 'effort'; for the mind to practice universal directness 37

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The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch

is 'virtue.

' To cultivate the nature oneself is 'effort'; to cultivate the body oneself is 'virtue.

'

"Good friends, merit must be seen within the self-natures, it cannot be sought in donations and offerings. Therefore, blessings and merit are different. Emperor Wu did not understand the truth of this, it was not that our patriarch [Bodhidharma] was wrong.

"

Prefect [Wei] asked further,

"Your disciple always sees monks and

laypeople [practicing] mindfulness of Buddha Amitābha and wishing for rebirth in the Western [Paradise]. Please explain this, are they reborn there or not? Please eliminate my doubts.

"

The master said,

"Your Lordship, listen well! I will explain this for you. When the World-honored One was in Śrāvastī, he taught about the Western [Paradise in order to] entice [the sentient beings of Śrāvastī to practice Buddhism]. The text of the scripture is very clear [in saying that the Western Paradise] 'is not far from here.

' If you wish to discuss it, then the ten tenthousands and eight thousands of li[from here to the Pure Land] are the ten evils and eight heterodoxies within the body.

"This is the explanation of [the Pure Land] as distant. The explanation of it as distant is done on behalf of those with inferior capacities, while the explanation of it as close is for those of superior capacities. Although there are two types of people, there are not two different Dharmas. Although deluded and enlightened [people] are different, [it is only that] there is slow and fast in seeing. The deluded person recites the Buddha's [name] and seeks for rebirth in that other [location], while the enlightened person purifies his mind. Therefore the Buddha said,

'As the mind is purified, so is the buddha

land purified.

'

"Your Lordship, you are a person of the East: if only your mind is pure, you will be without transgression. But persons of the West are impure of mind and are in error. When a person of the East commits a transgression, he may recite the Buddha's [name] and seek rebirth in the Western [Paradise]. But when a person of the West commits a transgression, in what country should he seek rebirth when reciting the Buddha's [name]? Stupid ordinary people do not comprehend their self-natures, and they do not recognize that the Pure Land is within their own bodies. Whether you wish for East or West, the enlightened person is the same in either location. Therefore the Buddha said, 38

Number Three: Questions

'always in joyful repose wherever one is.

' Your Lordship, just have your

mind-ground be without that which is not good, and the Western [Para dise] will not be far off. If you harbor that which is not good in your mind, it will be impossible to attain rebirth [in the Western Paradise] by reciting the Buddha's [name].

"I exhort you now, good friends, to first eliminate the ten evils is to go the ten ten-thousand [li]. To later eliminate the eight heterodoxies is to pass beyond the eight thousand [li]. Seeing the nature in successive moments of thought and always practicing universal directness is to gain a vision of Amitābha in the snap of a finger. Your Lordship, just practice the ten [types of] good. Why would you want to be reborn [in the Pure Land]? If you do not eradicate the ten [types of ] evil from your minds, what buddha will come to escort you [to the Western Paradise]? If you are enlightened to the sudden Dharma (teaching) of birthlessness, seeing the Western [Paradise is a matter of ] a mere instant. If you recite the Buddha's [name] and seek rebirth [in the Pure Land] without being enlightened, how will you ever be able to travel such a long road?

"I will move the Western [Paradise] for you in an instant, so you will be able to see it right in front of you. Do you all want to see it or not?" Those in the assembly all bowed their heads to the ground and said, "If

we could see it here, how could we then want to be reborn there? We ask that in Your Reverence's compassion you manifest the Western [Paradise] for us all to see!"

The master said,

"[All of you in this] great assembly, [understand that] the very form-bodies of people in this world are the city walls [of the Pure Land]. Your eyes, ears, nose, and tongue are the gates [of the Pure Land]. Externally, you have five gates, and within is the gate of the sensory mind. The mind is the ground, and the nature is the king. The king resides on the mind-ground, and the nature exists just as a king exists. When the nature goes, the king is absent.When the nature is present, the body and mind continue. When the nature departs, the body disintegrates.

'Buddha' acts within the nature—don't look for

it outside your bodies! When one is deluded as to the self-nature, one is a sentient being, but when one realizes the self-nature, one is a buddha. "Compassion is Avalokiteśvara, joy and equanimity are Mahā sthama prāpta, the ability to purify is Śākyamuni, and universal directness is Amitābha. 39

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The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch

The self is Sumeru, desire is the ocean's water, and the afflictions are the waves. The poisons are the evil dragons, the falsenesses are the ghosts and spirits, the enervating defilements are the fishes, lust and anger are the hells, and stupidity is the animals.

"Good friends, if you always practice the ten [types of] good, you will go to heaven. By eliminating the [false conception of the] self, Sumeru will fall; by destroying desire, the ocean's waters will dry up; by eliminating the afflictions, the waves will be extinguished; by eradicating the poisons, the fishes will be extirpated.

"The Tathāgata, who has realized the nature in his own mind-ground, releases a great refulgence and illuminates the six gates without; its purity can destroy all the heavens of the six desires. By illuminating the self-nature within, the three poisons are eliminated, and all the transgressions [leading to] the hells are dissolved in an instant. Clearly penetrating within and without, it is no different from the Western [Paradise]. If you do not cultivate in this fashion, how could you ever arrive there?"

When those in the great assembly heard this explanation, they all saw their natures. They all bowed and sighed,

"How excellent!" They cried out,

"We wish that all the sentient beings throughout the dharmadhātucould all become enlightened instantaneously!"

The master said,

"Good friends, if you wish to cultivate this practice, you may do so either as a householder or in a monastery. Householders who are able to practice this are like those persons of the East whose minds [harbor] good. Those in the monastery who do not cultivate it are like those people of the West whose minds [harbor] evil. It is only that the mind should be pure—then it is the Western [Paradise] of the self-nature!" Lord Wei asked further,

"How can householders cultivate this practice?

I hope you will teach us this.

" The master said,

"I will recite a formless verse

for this great assembly. Just cultivate according to this, doing exactly as if you were always with me. If you do not cultivate according to this, what benefit would it be to take the tonsure and leave home [to become a monk]?" The verse goes:

With the mind universally [the same], why labor to maintain the precepts?

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4: Meditation and Wisdom

Number Four: Meditation and Wisdom

With practice direct, what use is it to cultivate dhyāna? Gratitude is to be filial in supporting one's parents Righteousness is to have sympathy for those above and below. Self-subordination is to honor the lowly and the familiar. Forbearance is not to approve of the various evils. If one is able to rub sticks to create a fire, The red lotus blossom will certainly grow from the mud. That which causes the mouth suffering is good medicine. That which offends the ears is loyal speech. By reforming transgressions one will necessarily generate wisdom. To defend shortcomings within one's mind is not wise. In one's daily actions one must always practice the dissemination of benefit [for others].

Accomplishing enlightenment does not depend on donating money. Bodhishould only be sought for in the mind. Why belabor seeking for the mysterious externally? If you hear this explanation and practice accordingly, The Western [Paradise] is right in front of you. The master said further,

"Good friends, you should all practice according to this verse. See your own natures and directly accomplish the enlightenment of buddhahood!

"I cannot wait any longer, and you should all disperse [now]. I am returning to Caoqi. If anyone here has doubts, then come and ask me about them. "

At that time the prefect and government staff, as well as all the good men and faithful women in the assembly, all attained enlightenment and accepted and respectfully practiced [Huineng's teaching] with conviction. Number Four: Meditation and Wisdom

The master addressed the assembly,

"Good friends, our teaching takes meditation and wisdom as its fundamental. Everyone, do not say in your delusion that meditation and wisdom are different. Meditation and wisdom are of one essence, not different. Meditation is the essence of wisdom, and wisdom is the function of meditation. At times 41

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The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch

of wisdom, meditation exists in that wisdom; at times of meditation, wisdom exists in that meditation. If you understand this doctrine, this is the equivalent study of meditation and wisdom. All you who study the Way, do not say that they are different, with meditation prior to and generating wisdom or with wisdom prior to and generating meditation. If your view of them is like this, then the Dharma would have two characteristics. This would be to say something good with your mouth but to have that which is not good in your minds. It is to make meditation and wisdom falsely existent to consider them as not equivalent.

"If there is good in both mouth and mind and if internal and external are identical, then meditation and wisdom will be equivalent. One should understand oneself that spiritual cultivation does not exist in argumentation. If you argue about which is prior and which secondary, then you are just like [all the other] deluded people. Not to desist from competition is to increase the illusion of selfhood. One will not transcend the four characteristics [this way]! "Good friends, how is it that meditation and wisdom are equivalent? It is like the light of a lamp. When the lamp exists, there is light; when there is no lamp, there is darkness. The lamp is the essence of the light, and the light is the function of the lamp. Although the names are different, in essence they are fundamentally identical. The Dharma of meditation and wisdom is just like this.

"

The master addressed the assembly,

"Good friends, the samādhiof the

single practice74 is to always practice the single direct mind in all one's actions, whether walking, standing still, sitting, or lying down. The Vimalakīrti [Sutra] says,

'The straightforward mind is the place of enlightenment, the straightforward mind is the Pure Land.

' Don't allow your mental practices75

to become twisted while merely speaking of straightforwardness with your mouth! If you speak of the samādhiof the single practice with your mouth, you will not practice the straightforward mind. Just practice the straightforward mind, and be without attachment within all the dharmas. "The deluded person is attached to the characteristics of dharmas and grasps onto the samādhiof the single practice, merely saying that he always sits without moving and without falsely activating the mind and that this is the samādhiof the single practice. To have an interpretation such as this is 42

Number Four: Meditation and Wisdom

to be the same as an insentient object! This is rather to impede the causes and conditions of enlightenment!

"Good friends, one's enlightenment (one's Way, dao) must flow freely. How could it be stagnated? When the mind does not reside in the dharmas, one's enlightenment flows freely. For the mind to reside in the dharmas is called 'fettering oneself.

' If you say that always sitting without moving is it, then you're just like Śāriputra meditating in the forest, for which he was scolded by Vimalakīrti!

"Good friends, there are also those who teach meditation [in terms of ] viewing the mind, contemplating tranquility, motionlessness, and nonactivation. You are supposed to make an effort on the basis of these. 76 These

deluded people do not understand, and in their grasping become mixed up like all of you here. You should understand that such superficial teachings77 are greatly mistaken!"

The master addressed the assembly,

"Good friends, the correct teaching

is fundamentally without either sudden or gradual—it is human nature that is either clever or dull. Deluded people cultivate gradually, while enlightened people suddenly conform78 [to the truth]. If you recognize your own fundamental mind and see your own fundamental nature, there will be no such distinctions! Thus it is that sudden and gradual are posited as provisional names.

"Good friends, since the past this teaching of ours has first taken nonthought as its central doctrine, the formless as its essence, and nonabiding as its fundamental. The formless is to transcend characteristics within the context of characteristics. Nonthought is to be without thought in the context of thoughts. Nonabiding is to consider in one's fundamental nature that all worldly [things] are empty, with no consideration of retaliation—whether good or evil, pleasant or ugly, and enemy or friend, etc., during times of words, fights, and disputation.

"Within continuing moments of thought one should not think of the previous [mental] realm. If one thinks of the previous thought, the present thought, and the later thought, one's thoughts will be continuous without cease. This is called 'fettered.

' If one's thoughts do not abide in the dharmas, this is to be 'unfettered.

' Thus it is that nonabiding is taken as the fundamental. 43

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The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch

"Good friends, to transcend all the characteristics externally is called the formless. To be able to transcend characteristics is for the essences of the dharmas to be pure. Thus it is that the formless is taken as the essence. "Good friends, for one's mind to remain undefiled within the sensory realms is called nonthought. Within one's own thoughts one should always transcend the realms, one should not generate the mind relative to the realms. If one does not think of the hundred things, then thoughts will be completely eliminated. "It is greatly mistaken [to believe] that as soon as thought is eradicated, one dies and is born in some other location. Think on this, you who are studying the Way! If you cannot recognize your own mistakes regarding the meaning of Dharma, how much will you mislead others! To be deluded oneself and not see this is to slander the Buddhist scriptures! Thus it is that nonthought is taken as the central doctrine.

"Good friends, why is it that nonthought is taken as the central doctrine? If you depend merely on oral explanations of seeing the nature, [like a] deluded person you will have thoughts relative to the realms and you will even activate false views regarding those thoughts. And from this will be generated all the enervating defilements and false thoughts! There is in the self-nature fundamentally not a single dharmathat can be perceived. To think that there were any would be a false explanation, a disaster, a false view of enervating defilements. Therefore, this teaching takes nonthought as its central doctrine. "Good friends, what is negated by the 'non' (wu)? What kind of thing is 'thought'? 'Non' means to be without the characteristic of duality, to be without the mind of the enervating defilements.

'Thought' is to think of the

fundamental nature of suchness. Suchness is the essence of thought, thought is the function of suchness. Thought is activated in the self-nature of suchness—it is not the case that the eyes, ears, nose, and tongue are able to think, it is because of the self-nature79 of suchness that thoughts are activated. If suchness were nonexistent, then eyes and ears, forms and sounds would be simultaneously destroyed.

"Good friends, thoughts are activated from the self-nature of suchness. Although the six sensory faculties possess perceptual cognition, they do not defile the myriad realms. And yet the true nature is always autonomous. Therefore, the sutra says, 'When one is able to discriminate well the characteristics of the dharmas, this is to be unmoving within the cardinal meaning. '"80

44

5: Seated Meditation

Number Five: Seated Meditation

Number Five: Seated Meditation

The master addressed the assembly,

"In this teaching of seated meditation,

one fundamentally does not concentrate on mind,

81 nor does one concentrate

on purity, nor is it motionlessness. If one is to concentrate on the mind, then the mind [involved] is fundamentally false. You should understand that the mind is like a phantasm, so nothing can concentrate on it. If one is to concentrate on purity, then [realize that because] our natures82 are fundamentally pure, it is through false thoughts that suchness is covered up. Just be without false thoughts and the nature is pure of itself. If you activate your mind to become attached to purity, you will only83 generate the falseness of purity. The false is without location; it is the concentration that is false. Purity is without shape and characteristics; you only create the characteristics of purity and say this is 'effort' [in meditation]. To have such a view is to obscure one's own fundamental nature, and only to be fettered by purity. "Good friends, if you cultivate motionlessness, just see all people: when84 doing so, do not see the right and wrong, the good and bad, the transgressions and disasters of people. This is the motionlessness of the self-nature. "Good friends, the deluded person may be motionless in body, but he opens his mouth and speaks of the right and wrong, the strength and weakness, the good and bad of others. This is to go against the Way. If you concentrate on the mind or concentrate on purity, this is to impede the Way (i.e., enlightenment). "

The master addressed the assembly,

"Good friends, what is seated meditation (zuochan)? In this teaching, there is no impediment and no hindrance. Externally, for the mind to refrain from activating thoughts with regard to all the good and bad realms is called 'seated' (zuo). Internally, to see the motionlessness of the self-nature is called 'meditation' (chan). "Good friends, what is it that is called meditative concentration (chan ding;samādhi)? Externally, to transcend characteristics is 'meditation' (chan). Internally, to be undisturbed is 'concentration' (ding). If one concentrates on85 characteristics externally, internally the mind is disturbed. If one transcends characteristics externally, the mind will not be disturbed. The fundamental nature is naturally pure and naturally concentrated; it is only by seeing the realms and thinking of the realms that one is disturbed. 45

The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch If one can see the various realms without the mind being disturbed, this is true concentration.

"Good friends, to transcend characteristics externally is 'meditation. '

To be undisturbed internally is 'concentration. ' Externally 'meditation' and

internally 'concentration' is meditative concentration. "The Sutra of the Bodhisattva Preceptssays, 'My fundamental selfnature is pure.

' Good friends,

86 within every moment of thought you should see yourself that your fundamental nature is pure. You should cultivate for yourself, practice for yourself, and accomplish for yourself the enlightenment of buddhahood.

"

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Number Six: Repentance

At one time Great Master [Huineng], seeing that literati and commoners from all over the Guang[zhou and] Shao[zhou] areas had gathered at the monastery to hear the Dharma, ascended the dais and announced to the assembly,

"Good friends, all of your coming here must have arisen out of your own identities.

87 At all times and in every moment of thought, you should purify your own minds. Cultivate for yourself, practice for yourself, and see your own dharmakāya,see the buddha within your own mind. This is only attained through being saved by one's own self, by [taking the] precepts one's own self—it does not depend on coming here. Hence in coming from afar and gathering together here, you all share in [the same karmic] connection. Now everyone should kneel upright,

88 and I will first transmit for you the five dharmakāyaincenses of the self-natures; then I will bestow the formless repentances.

"

The assembly all knelt upright and the master said, "First is the incense

of the precepts, which is to have no error, no evil, no jealousy, no greed and anger, and no injury within one's own mind. This is called the incense of the precepts.

"Second is the incense of meditation, which is to look on the realms and characteristics of the various types of good and evil with one's mind undisturbed. This is called the incense of meditation. "Third is the incense of wisdom, which is for one's mind to be without hindrance, but always illuminating the self-nature with wisdom and never creating the various types of evil. Although one cultivates the myriad types 46

6: Repentance

Number Six: Repentance

of good, one's mind does not become attached. One is respectful of superiors and mindful of inferiors, taking pity on those poor and alone. This is called the incense of wisdom.

"Fourth is the incense of emancipation, which is for one's mind to be without equivocation. Not thinking of good and not thinking of evil, one is autonomous and without hindrance. This is called the incense of emancipation. "Fifth is the incense of emancipated perceptual understanding, 89 which

is for one's mind to be without equivocation regarding good and evil. One must not become immersed in emptiness, protecting one's tranquility. One should study extensively and become learned [in the scriptures], recognizing one's own fundamental mind and attaining the various principles of Buddhism. When the softened refulgence touches things there is no self, no person. Just proceed to bodhi,the true nature of which is unchanging. This is called the incense of emancipated perceptual understanding.

"Good friends, these incenses will influence each of you internally. Do not seek outside of yourselves.

"Now I will bequeath to you the formless repentances, so that you may extinguish your transgressions in the three periods of time and render pure your three types of karmic activity (i.e., those of body, speech, and mind). "Good friends, you should say the following in unison after me: 'From our past thoughts to our present thoughts to our future thoughts, [so that] in every moment of thought we are not subject to the defilement of stupidity, we disciples repent all our transgressions of stupidity and evil actions from the past. We beseech that [our transgressions] all be instantly eliminated, never to arise again.

"'From our past thoughts to our present thoughts to our future thoughts, [so that] in every moment of thought we are not subject to the defilement of deceitfulness, we disciples repent all our transgressions of deceitfulness and evil actions from the past.We beseech that [our transgressions] all be instantly eliminated, never to arise again.

"'From our past thoughts to our present thoughts to our future thoughts, [so that] in every moment of thought we are not subject to the defilement of jealousy, we disciples repent all our transgressions of jealousy and evil actions from the past. We beseech that [our transgressions] all be instantly eliminated, never to arise again.

'

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The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch

"Good friends, the above are the formless repentances. What is it that is called 'repentance' (chan)? What is it that is called 'remorse' (hui)? Repentance is to repent past licentiousness. One should repent completely for all one's evil actions from the past, one's transgressions of stupidity, pride and deception, jealousy, and so on, so that they will never arise again. This is called 'repentance. ' Remorse is to have remorse for future errors, those from now on. Since you have become enlightened [to them] now, all one's evil actions from the past, one's transgressions of stupidity, deceitfulness, jealousy, and so on, are eradicated forever, never to be committed again. This is called 'remorse. '

Therefore, it is called 'repentance and remorse' (chanhui). "Ordinary people are stupid and only know they should repent for their past licentiousness—they do not know they should feel remorse for future errors. Because they do not have such remorse, their previous licentiousness is not extinguished and future errors continue to be generated. With previous licentiousness not extinguished and future errors continuing to be generated, how can this be called repentance?

"Good friends, now that we have done the repentances, I will express for you the four great vows. You should all listen closely: the sentient beings of our own minds are limitless, and we vow to save them all. The afflictions of our own minds are limitless, and we vow to eradicate them all. The teachings of our own minds are inexhaustible, and we vow to learn them all. The enlightenment of buddhahood of our own minds is unsurpassable, and we vow to achieve it.

"Good friends, why don't we all say [simply] 'sentient beings are limitless, and we vow to save them all'? How should we say it? Certainly it's not me who's doing the saving!

"Good friends, the 'sentient beings of our own minds' are the mental states of delusion, confusion, immorality,

90 jealousy, and evil. All these are

sentient beings, and we must all [undergo] automatic salvation of the selfnature. This is called true salvation. "What is 'automatic salvation of the self-nature'? It is to use correct views to save the sentient beings of false views, afflictions, and stupidity within our own minds. Having correct views, we may use the wisdom of prajñāto destroy the sentient beings of stupidity and delusion, automatically saving each and every one of them.When the false occurs, it is saved by the 48

Number Six: Repentance

correct. When delusion occurs, it is saved by enlightenment. When stupidity occurs, it is saved by wisdom. When evil occurs, it is saved by good. Salvation such as this is called true salvation.

"Further, [with the vow] 'the afflictions are limitless, and we vow to eradicate them all,

' one uses the prajñāwisdom of the self-nature to eradicate false and empty thoughts. And with 'the teachings are inexhaustible, and we vow to learn them all,

' one should see the nature oneself and always practice the correct Dharma. This is called true learning. With 'the enlightenment of buddhahood is unsurpassable, and we vow to attain it,

' one should constantly be able to

practice the true and correct with a humble mind. Transcending delusion and transcending enlightenment, one should always generate prajñā.Eradicating the true and eradicating the false, one sees the buddha-nature. This is to accomplish the enlightenment of buddhahood upon hearing these words. Always mindful of one's cultivation, this is the Dharma of the power of the vows. "Good friends, we have now finished the four great vows. Next I will bestow upon you the formless precepts of the triple refuge. "Good friends,

take refuge in the Two-legged Honored One of Enlightenment. Take refuge in the Honored One of the Correct Transcendence of Desire. Take refuge in the Honored One within the Pure Assembly. From today onward, call on realization as your teacher and do not take refuge any longer in the heretical path of the false demons, but be constantly in realization yourselves using the three treasures of the self-nature.

"I exhort you, good friends, to take refuge in the three treasures of the self-nature. [The word] 'Buddha' means enlightenment. 'Dharma' means

correct.

'Sangha' means pure. In your own minds, take refuge in enlightenment, so that the deluded and false is not generated. Know the sufficiency of decreased desires, and be able to transcend wealth and sensual pleasures: this is called the Two-legged Honored One (i.e., a buddha in human form). In your own minds, take refuge in the correct, being without false views in every moment of thought. If you are without false thoughts, then there is no self to become proud, lustful, or attached: this is called the Honored One Who Has Transcended Desire. In your own minds, take refuge in purity, [realizing] your self-nature to be completely unattached and undefiled by all the realms of the defiled laborings and the desires: this is called the Honored One within the Pure Assembly.

49

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The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch

"If you cultivate this practice, this is to take refuge oneself. Ordinary people do not understand and from morning to night accept the three refuges, saying they are taking refuge in the Buddha. Where is the Buddha? If you do not see the Buddha, how will your entreaties for refuge reach him? Such words only create false [thoughts]!

"Good friends, you should each examine this for yourselves—do not go about this incorrectly.

91 The sutras clearly say one should take refuge in the Buddha oneself, but they do not say to take refuge in some 'other-buddha' (tafo,i.e., a buddha other than oneself). If you do not take refuge in the 'selfbuddha, ' you will have no place of refuge [at all]. Today you are to become enlightened yourselves, and each of you should take refuge in the three treasures of your own minds. Internally regulating the mind-nature, externally one pays reverence to other people: this is to take self-refuge. 92

"Good friends, now that we have finished taking refuge in the three treasures of our own [minds], you should all concentrate your minds, 93 and

I will explain for you the buddha of the self-nature in one essence and three bodies. I will make you see the three bodies and become comprehensively enlightened yourselves to the self-nature.

"Everyone should say after me: 'Within my own physical body (literally, "form-body"), I take refuge in the pure dharmakāyabuddha. In my own physical body I take refuge in the perfect and complete saṃbhogakāyabuddha. In my own physical body I take refuge in the thousand billion nirmāṇakāya buddhas.

'

"Good friends, the physical body is a house, but you can't take refuge in it.

94 The three bodies of the Buddha just mentioned exist within the selfnatures, and all the people of this world have them. It is only because one is deluded as to one's own mind that one does not see the inner nature, but seeks externally for the Tathāgata in three bodies. 95 Thus one does not see

that the three bodies of the Buddha exist within one's own body. You should all listen to this explanation, and I will make you see the three bodies of the Buddha that exist within the self-natures in your own bodies. These three bodies of the Buddha are generated from the self-natures, they are not attained from any external [source].

"What is the pure dharmakāyabuddha? The [self]-natures of the people of this world are fundamentally pure. The myriad dharmas are generated from 50

Number Six: Repentance

the self-natures. To think of all the evil things is to generate evil practices;96 to think of all the good things is to generate good practices. Thus it is that the dharmas occur within the self-natures. Just as heaven is always clear and the sun and moon always bright—it may be that [the sky] above is bright and [the world] below is dark through being blocked by the floating clouds, but all at once a wind will rise up and blow the clouds away, so that above and below are both bright, and the myriad forms are all visible. The natures of the people of this world are constantly floating, just like the clouds in the sky. "Good friends, sagacity is like the sun, and wisdom is like the moon. Sagacity and wisdom are always bright, but through being attached externally to sensory realms, the floating clouds of false thoughts block the self-nature, rendering it obscure. If you meet a spiritual compatriot and listen to the true and correct Dharma, you can eradicate the deluded and false within yourself, so that interior and exterior are penetrated by brilliance and so that the myriad dharmas within the self-nature are all manifest. Those who see the nature are like this. This is called the pure dharmakāyabuddha.

"Good friends, take refuge in the self-nature within your own minds. This is to take refuge in the true buddha. To take self-refuge is to eradicate all the unwholesome states of mind, jealousy, perversion, selfishness, delusion, disregard of others, deceitfulness, false views, pride, and the unwholesome practices of all the periods of time that exist in the self-nature. It is constantly to see one's own errors and to refrain from speaking of the good and bad points of others. This is to take self-refuge. One should always be humble and practice reverence for all, so that one sees the nature penetratingly, without any hindrance. This is to take self-refuge.

What is the perfect and complete saṃbhogakāya? Just as a single lamp is able to eradicate a thousand years of darkness, so can a single [moment of] wisdom extinguish ten thousand years of stupidity. Don't think of your previous errors, and don't think constantly of [what may happen] later. With every moment of thought perfect and bright, see your own fundamental nature. Although good and evil are different, their fundamental natures are nondual. The nondual nature is called the true nature. To be undefiled by good and evil within the true nature: this is called the perfect and complete saṃbhogakāya. "If a single thought of evil97 is activated in the self-nature, it will extinguish ten thousand eons of good causes. If a single thought of good is activated in the 51

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