Śāradvatīputra asked, “Are physical forms also nonconceptual, are feelings also nonconceptual, are perceptions also nonconceptual, are formative predispositions also nonconceptual, and is consciousness also nonconceptual? Are the eyes also nonconceptual, are the ears also nonconceptual, is the nose also nonconceptual, is the tongue also nonconceptual, is the body also nonconceptual, and is the mental faculty also nonconceptual? Are sights also nonconceptual, are sounds also nonconceptual, are odors also nonconceptual, are tastes also nonconceptual, are tangibles also nonconceptual, and are mental phenomena also nonconceptual? Is visual consciousness also nonconceptual, is auditory consciousness also nonconceptual, is olfactory consciousness also nonconceptual, is gustatory consciousness also nonconceptual, is tactile consciousness also nonconceptual, and is mental consciousness also nonconceptual? Is visually compounded sensory contact also nonconceptual, is aurally compounded sensory contact also nonconceptual, is nasally compounded sensory contact also nonconceptual, is lingually compounded sensory contact also nonconceptual, is corporeally compounded sensory contact also nonconceptual, and is mentally compounded sensory contact also nonconceptual? Are feelings conditioned by visually compounded sensory contact also nonconceptual, are feelings conditioned by aurally compounded sensory contact also nonconceptual, are feelings conditioned by nasally compounded sensory contact also nonconceptual, are feelings conditioned by lingually compounded sensory contact also nonconceptual, are feelings conditioned by corporeally compounded sensory contact also nonconceptual, and are feelings conditioned by mentally compounded sensory contact also nonconceptual? Is the earth element also nonconceptual, is the water element also nonconceptual, is the fire element also nonconceptual, is the wind element also nonconceptual, is the space element also nonconceptual, and is the consciousness element also nonconceptual? Is ignorance also nonconceptual, are formative predispositions also nonconceptual, is consciousness also nonconceptual, are name and form also nonconceptual, are the six sense fields also nonconceptual, is sensory contact also nonconceptual, is sensation also nonconceptual, is craving also nonconceptual, is grasping also nonconceptual, is the rebirth process also nonconceptual, is birth also nonconceptual, and are aging and death nonconceptual? Is the perfection of generosity also nonconceptual, is the perfection of ethical discipline also nonconceptual, is the perfection of tolerance also nonconceptual, is the perfection of perseverance also nonconceptual, is the perfection of meditative concentration also nonconceptual, and is the perfection of wisdom also nonconceptual? Is the emptiness of internal phenomena also nonconceptual, is the emptiness of external phenomena also nonconceptual, is the emptiness of external and internal phenomena also nonconceptual, is the emptiness of emptiness also nonconceptual, is the emptiness of great extent also nonconceptual, is the emptiness of ultimate reality also nonconceptual, is the emptiness of conditioned phenomena also nonconceptual, is the emptiness of unconditioned phenomena also nonconceptual, is the emptiness of the unlimited also nonconceptual, is the emptiness of that which has neither beginning nor end also nonconceptual, is the emptiness of nonexclusion also nonconceptual, is the emptiness of inherent nature also nonconceptual, is the emptiness of all phenomena also nonconceptual, is the emptiness of intrinsic defining characteristics also nonconceptual, is the emptiness of that which cannot be apprehended also nonconceptual, is the emptiness of nonentities also nonconceptual, is the emptiness of essential nature also nonconceptual, and is the emptiness of an essential nature of nonentities also nonconceptual? Are the applications of mindfulness also nonconceptual, are the correct exertions also nonconceptual, are the supports for miraculous ability also nonconceptual, are the faculties also nonconceptual, are the powers also nonconceptual, are the branches of enlightenment also nonconceptual, and is the noble eightfold path also nonconceptual? Are the truths of the noble ones also nonconceptual, are the meditative concentrations also nonconceptual, are the immeasurable attitudes also nonconceptual, are the formless absorptions also nonconceptual, are the liberations also nonconceptual, are the serial steps of meditative absorption also nonconceptual, are the emptiness, signlessness, and wishlessness gateways to liberation also nonconceptual, are the extrasensory powers also nonconceptual, are the meditative stabilities also nonconceptual, and are the dhāraṇī gateways also nonconceptual? Are the powers of the tathāgatas also nonconceptual, are the fearlessnesses also nonconceptual, are the kinds of exact knowledge also nonconceptual, is great compassion also nonconceptual, and are the distinct qualities of the buddhas also nonconceptual? Is the fruit of having entered the stream also nonconceptual, is the fruit of once-returner also nonconceptual, is the fruit of non-returner also nonconceptual, is arhatship also nonconceptual, is individual enlightenment also nonconceptual, is the knowledge of the aspects of the path also nonconceptual, is all-aspect omniscience also nonconceptual, is the realm of the conditioned also nonconceptual, and is the realm of the unconditioned also nonconceptual?”
“Venerable Śāradvatīputra, all phenomena are nonconceptual,” replied Subhūti.
Śāradvatīputra then asked, “Venerable Subhūti, if all phenomena are nonconceptual in that way, how has this differentiation of ‘saṃsāra with its five classes of beings’ into those in the hells, the animal realm, and the world of Yama, the gods, and the humans come about? And from what has the description of those who have entered the stream, once-returners, non-returners, arhats, pratyekabuddhas, bodhisattvas, and lord buddhas come about?”
“Venerable Śāradvatīputra,” replied Subhūti, “those beings who accumulate karma through actions of body, speech, and mind that have arisen from error materialize1054 such kinds of places.1055 They have grabbed hold of the maturations that have the aggregates as their foundation and have arisen from conceptualization, and materialize as the living beings in the hells, the animal realm, and the world of Yama, and who are gods and humans.
“Venerable Śāradvatīputra, you said, ‘From what has the description of those who have entered the stream come about? From what has the description of once-returners come about? From what has the description of non-returners come about? From what has the description of arhats come about? From what has the description of pratyekabuddhas come about? From what has the description of bodhisattvas come about? And from what has the description of tathāgatas, arhats, perfectly complete buddhas come about?’ Venerable Śāradvatīputra, they are described as those who have entered the stream because of nonconceptualization. They are described as once-returners because of nonconceptualization. They are described as non-returners because of nonconceptualization. They are described as arhats because of nonconceptualization. They are described as pratyekabuddhas because of nonconceptualization. They are described as bodhisattvas because of nonconceptualization. They are described as buddhas because of nonconceptualization. They are described as enlightened because of nonconceptualization.
“Venerable Śāradvatīputra, those tathāgatas, arhats, perfectly complete buddhas who appeared in the past, as many as there were, did not have conceptualization and had abandoned conceptualization. Venerable Śāradvatīputra, those tathāgatas, arhats, perfectly complete buddhas who will appear in the future, as many as there will be, will also not have conceptualization and will abandon conceptualization. Venerable Śāradvatīputra, those lord buddhas who are fully awakening to unsurpassed, perfect, complete enlightenment at the present time in the world systems of the ten directions, as many as there are, also do not have conceptualization and absolutely abandon conceptualization. Since that is the case, Venerable Śāradvatīputra, for that reason, having persevered at the real nature that is the nonconceptualization of all phenomena, the real nature of the very limit of reality, and the real nature of the realm of phenomena, you should know the absence of conceptualization. Venerable Śāradvatīputra, bodhisattva great beings should accordingly practice the perfection of wisdom without conceptualization. By practicing the nonconceptual perfection of wisdom, they will fully awaken with respect to all phenomena that are nonconceptual.”
This completes the forty-eighth chapter from “The Perfection of Wisdom in One Hundred Thousand Lines.”