Chapter 29: The Approach12981299
“Furthermore, Subhūti, a bodhisattva great being should approach the transcendent state of wisdom in this way.1300 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom through being free from attachment to all things.1301 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom through not differentiating all things.1302 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom through the nonoccurence of all things.1303 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom comprehending that all things are equal to the unchanging.1304 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom through wisely knowing the freedom from self and the freedom from representations.1305 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom comprehending that all things are talked about by way of a mere name or conventional expression. But a conventional expression neither arises anywhere, nor arises from anywhere, and also the conventional expression is not a thing. He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom comprehending that all things are not a conventional expression or utterance, and not expressed conventionally or uttered.1306 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom through the lack of any valid means of cognizing anything. He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom through the lack of any valid means of cognizing physical forms. Likewise, he or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom through the lack of any valid means of cognizing feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, or consciousness.1307 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom through the freedom from signs of all things.1308 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom through penetrating all things.1309 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom through the natural purity of all things.1310 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom through not speaking of any things.1311 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom through the noncessation of all things being equal to relinquishing them.1312 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom through the attainment of nirvāṇa of all things being the same in their actual nature.1313 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom comprehending that all things neither come nor go, and are neither knowing nor born, because of their absolute freedom from birth.1314 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom through not seeing a ‘self’ or an ‘other.’1315 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom comprehending that all things are noble worthy ones insofar as they are pure by nature.1316 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom comprehending that all things have laid down their burdens since they are not imposed upon by burdens.1317 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom through the lack of place or location of all things. Why is that? Because, Subhūti, physical forms have no place and no location, given the inherent nature of their essential nature.1318 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom through being delighted in the cessation of all things. He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom through neither liking nor disliking.1319 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom through neither passion nor dispassion.1320 Why is that? Because, Subhūti, physical forms are neither impassioned nor unimpassioned by a nature with any reality, insofar as physical forms are pure by nature. Likewise, feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness are neither impassioned nor unimpassioned by a nature with any reality, insofar as they are pure by nature. He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom comprehending that all things are detached since they are devoid of either attachment or freedom from attachment.1321 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom comprehending that all things are awakening through becoming aware of the knowing of a buddha.1322 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom as all things being empty, free from signs, and free from inclinations.1323 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom comprehending that all things are medicine, since they are preceded by benevolence.1324 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom comprehending that all things are due to abiding in benevelonce, compassion, rejoicing, and impartiality.1325 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom comprehending that all things are like Brahmā, since faults do not arise in them because of their freedom from the arising of all faults.1326 He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom comprehending that all things are due to the freedom from inclination and freedom from revulsion.1327
“He or she should approach the limitlessness of the transcendent state of wisdom through it being as limitless as the ocean.1328 He or she should approach the limitlessness of the transcendent state of wisdom through it being as limitless as the sky.1329 He or she should approach the multifaceted nature of the transcendent state of wisdom through its nature being as multifaceted as Mount Meru.1330 He or she should approach the limitlessness of the transcendent state of wisdom as the limitlessness of physical forms. Likewise, he or she should approach the limitlessness of the transcendent state of wisdom as the limitlessness of feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness.1331 He or she should approach the limitlessness of the transcendent state of wisdom as illuminating limitlessly like the sun’s halo of rays.1332 He or she should approach the limitlessness of the transcendent state of wisdom as the limitlessness of all sounds.1333 He or she should approach the limitlessness of the transcendent state of wisdom as the limitlessness of the attainment of the buddha’s qualities. He or she should approach the limitlessness of the transcendent state of wisdom as the limitlessness of the accumulation of merit and knowledge by all the masses of sentient beings. He or she should approach the limitlessness of the transcendent state of wisdom as the limitlessness of the earth element. Likewise, he or she should approach the limitlessness of the transcendent state of wisdom as the limitlessness of the water element, the fire element, the wind element, the space element, and the consciousness element.
“He or she should approach the nature beyond measure of the transcendent state of wisdom as the nature beyond measure of gathering virtuous and unvirtuous qualities. He or she should approach the nature beyond measure of the transcendent state of wisdom as the nature beyond measure of gathering all the qualities. He or she should approach the limitlessness of the transcendent state of wisdom as having attained the limitlessness of all the qualities and meditative concentrations. He or she should approach the limitlessness of the transcendent state of wisdom as the limitlessness of all the qualities of a buddha. He or she should approach the limitlessness of the transcendent state of wisdom as the limitlessness of all things.1334 He or she should approach the limitlessness of the transcendent state of wisdom as the limitlessness of emptiness. He or she should approach the limitlessness of the transcendent state of wisdom as the limitlessness of mindsets and the components of mindsets. He or she should approach the limitlessness of the transcendent state of wisdom as the limitlessness of mental wanderings. He or she should approach the transcendent state of wisdom as unlimited just as virtuous and unvirtuous qualities are unlimited. He or she should approach the roaring of the transcendent state of wisdom as the roaring of a lion’s roar.1335 He or she should approach the inviolability of the transcendent state of wisdom as the unassailability of all things.1336 Why is that?
“It is because physical forms are like the ocean. Likewise, feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness are like the ocean.
“Physical forms are like the sky. Likewise, feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness are like the sky.
“Physical forms are like the multifaceted Mount Meru. Likewise, feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness are like the multifaceted Mount Meru.
“Physical forms are like the development of the sun’s halo of rays. Likewise, feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness are like the development of the sun’s halo of rays.
“Physical forms are as limitless as the attainment of all the qualities of a buddha. Likewise, feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness are as limitless as the attainment of all the qualities of a buddha.
“Physical forms are like earth. Likewise, feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness are like earth.
“Physical forms are like water. Likewise, feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness are like water.
“Physical forms are like fire. Likewise, feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness are like fire.
“Physical forms are like wind. Likewise, feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness are like wind.
“Physical forms are like space. Likewise, feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness are like space.
“Physical forms are like consciousness. Likewise, feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness are like consciousness.
“Physical forms are devoid of gathering virtuous and unvirtuous qualities. Likewise, feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness are devoid of gathering virtuous and unvirtuous qualities.
“Physical forms are devoid of gathering all the qualities. Likewise, feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness are devoid of gathering all the qualities.
“Physical forms are as limitless as all the qualities and meditative concentrations. Likewise, feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness are as limitless as all the qualities and meditative concentrations.
“Physical forms are void as the inherent nature of physical forms, the actual nature of physical forms, and the qualities of a buddha. Likewise, feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness are void as the inherent nature of consciousness, the actual nature of consciousness, and the qualities of a buddha.
“Physical forms are the limitless true nature of all things. Likewise, feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness are the limitless true nature of all things.
“Physical forms are emptiness, the limitless true nature. Likewise, feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness are emptiness, the limitless true nature.
“Physical forms are the limitlessness of mindsets and the components of mindsets. Likewise, feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness are the limitlessness of mindsets and the components of mindsets.
“Physical forms are the mental wanderings. Likewise, feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness are the mental wanderings.
“Physical forms are like the lion’s roar. Likewise, feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness are like the lion’s roar.
“Physical forms are inviolable. Likewise, feelings, conceptions, conditioning factors, and consciousness are inviolable.
“A bodhisattva great being should approach the transcendent state of wisdom in this very way.
“Subhūti, if the bodhisattva great being will approach, explore, get into, become aware of, contemplate, weigh, and investigate this transcendent state of wisdom and cultivate it with attentiveness free from all self-deception and dishonesty; with attentiveness free from all conceit; with attentiveness free from self-superiority; with attentiveness free from all laziness; with attentiveness free from disparaging others; with attentiveness free from conceptions of oneself; with attentiveness free from conceptions of sentient beings; with attentiveness free from donations, tributes, and celebrity; with attentiveness free from the five obstructions; with attentiveness free from jealousy and envy; and with attentiveness free from all wavering, then it will not be difficult for him or her to attain the complete perfection of all the qualities, the complete perfection of the buddhafield, and the unsurpassed qualities of a buddha.”
This ends the chapter “The Approach,” the twenty-ninth chapter in “The Noble Transcendent State of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines.”