The Stem Array · Gaṇḍavyūha

Then Sudhana, the head merchant’s son, contemplating the night goddess Vāsantī’s first entry into the pure domain of aspiration to enlightenment, analyzing the arising of the essence of a bodhisattva, comprehending the ocean of bodhisattva prayer, purifying the bodhisattva path of perfections, overcoming the domain of the bodhisattva levels, augmenting the domain of bodhisattva conduct, following¹³²⁵ an ocean of the setting-forth of bodhisattvas, looking at the ocean of the great illumination of omniscience, increasing the bodhisattva clouds of great compassion intent on saving all beings, and attaining the blessing of the completely good bodhisattva conduct and prayer of the night goddess Vāsantī that extends to the limits of all realms, went to the location of the night goddess Samanta­gambhīra­śrī­vimala­prabhā. Having reached her, he bowed his head to the feet of the night goddess Samanta­gambhīra­śrī­vimala­prabhā, circumambulated the night goddess Samanta­gambhīra­śrī­vimala­prabhā many hundreds of thousands of times, keeping her to his right, and then stood before her and, with palms together, said, “Āryā, I have developed the aspiration for the highest, complete enlightenment. However, I do not know how a bodhisattva practices on the level of a bodhisattva, how a bodhisattva sets forth, or how a bodhisattva accomplishes.”

She answered, “Noble one, it is excellent, excellent, that you have developed the aspiration for the highest, complete enlightenment and that you ask how to practice, set forth, and accomplish on the level of a bodhisattva. It is through possessing ten qualities that bodhisattvas accomplish bodhisattva conduct. What are these ten? They are (1) the pure attainment of the samādhi that directly perceives all the tathāgatas; (2) the pure eyesight that sees the bodies, endowed with the various signs, of all the buddhas; (3) realizing the perception of the centerless, endless ocean of the colors of the tathāgatas; (4) comprehending the extent of the entire realm of phenomena and the measureless ocean of the domain of the radiant qualities of the buddhas; (5) comprehending the ocean of light rays from the pores of all the tathāgatas that are as numerous as all beings and radiate to benefit the variety of beings; (6) seeing an ocean of light rays, the colors of all jewels, coming from each pore; (7) comprehending the ocean of emanations of the buddhas that in each instant of mind pervade the entire realm of phenomena and give the blessing that guides beings; (8) comprehending the domain of thunder from the clouds of all the sūtras through possessing the speech of the tathāgatas, which has the aspects of the voices of all beings, and the sound of the wheel of the Dharma appearing in the three times; (9) comprehending the centerless and endless ocean of the signs of the buddhas; and (10) comprehending the guiding of beings through the manifestation of the inconceivable emanations of the buddhas.

“Noble one, the bodhisattvas who possess these ten qualities accomplish bodhisattva conduct.

“Noble one, I have attained the bodhisattva liberation called complete subjugation through the bliss of the peace of śamatha.

“Noble one, through its power I see all the tathāgatas who are in the three times, and I perceive the completely pure buddha realms of those tathāgatas. I perceive the ocean of their assemblies of followers, the ocean of their centerless and endless miraculous manifestations from samādhi, the ocean of their past practices, and the ocean of their names. I also perceive each separate turning of the wheel of the Dharma by those tathāgatas. I perceive the various lifespans and different aspects of voice of those tathāgatas and the bodies of those tathāgatas who have the nature of the centerless and limitless realm of phenomena.

“Those tathāgatas are not attached to things as being existent. Why is that? Those tathāgatas do not go because of their cessation of going through all worlds. Those tathāgatas do not arrive because their nature has no arising. Those tathāgatas are unborn because they have a body that is the same as the birthless true nature. Those tathāgatas are unceasing because they have the characteristic of birthlessness. Those tathāgatas are not true¹³²⁶ because of perceiving and seeing phenomena to be illusions. Those tathāgatas are not false because there arises benefit for all beings. Those tathāgatas do not pass away because they have transcended death, passing, and birth. Those tathāgatas are not destroyed because the indestructible true nature is the nature of phenomena. All those tathāgatas have a single characteristic because of their transcendence of all paths of speech. Those tathāgatas do not have characteristics because they are the termination of the nature of the characteristics of phenomena.

“Noble one, I perceive all tathāgatas in that way, and through the radiance of the tathāgatas’ domain of dhyāna, I increase this bodhisattva liberation called complete subjugation through the bliss of the peace of śamatha; I make it vast, perceive it, realize it, make it even, accomplish it, make it level, enter it, augment it, contemplate it, reflect upon it, am mindful of it, make it my field of practice, make it firm, illuminate it, explain it, divide it, categorize it, unite it, and have conviction in it.

“I meditate on the first dhyāna in order to remain in that great compassion in which there is no movement of any thought and in order to have a single-pointed mind for engaging in saving all beings.

“I meditate on the second dhyāna in order to pacify all mental activity and, through the strength and power of wisdom, to have a one-pointed mind with joy of bliss in gathering all beings.

“I meditate on the third dhyāna in order to have equanimity toward the distress of saṃsāra and to realize the nature¹³²⁷ of all beings.

“I meditate on the fourth dhyāna in order to bring an end to the kleśas and suffering of all beings.

“I purify the way of the wisdom that enters the realm of phenomena through every gateway and thus meditate on this bodhisattva liberation called complete subjugation through the bliss of the peace of śamatha in order to increase¹³²⁸ the domain of aspiration for omniscience, to become skilled in the accomplishment of an ocean of samādhis, to realize the ways of the ocean of all bodhisattva liberations, and to have the higher cognition of all the wisdoms displayed by bodhisattvas.

“Noble one, in that way I meditate on this liberation and ripen beings through various methods: I instill in the beings who enjoy carnal pleasure in the peace of the night the perception of it as ugliness, the perception of it as lack of pleasure, the perception of it as wearying, the perception of it as an obstacle, the perception of it as bondage, the perception of it as a rākṣasī, the perception of impermanence, the perception of suffering, the perception of no self, the perception of no ownership, the perception of dependence on others,¹³²⁹ the perception of aging and death, and the perception of a lack of joy in all indulgence in desires. When those beings meditate on that state of mind, they will take no delight in any indulgence in carnal pleasure and will instead aspire to enjoy the delights of the Dharma and leave home for homelessness. When they dwell in solitude, I instill in them the faith that accords with the Dharma. I cause all loud, frightening, unpleasant sounds to cease, and in the peace of the night I teach the profound Dharma of the buddhas.

“I gather¹³³⁰ the conditions necessary for renunciation. I open the door of the house for their departure. I show them the path. I illuminate it. I dispel the darkness. I free them from fear. I praise departure from home. I describe the qualities of buddhahood. I explain the excellence of the Dharma, the excellence of the saṅgha, and the excellence of the kalyāṇamitra. I praise going to a kalyāṇamitra.

“Noble one, meditating on this liberation, I eliminate in beings the passion and desire for what is not Dharma, and thoughts of desire for what is not Dharma. I dispel the thoughts and notions of those overpowered by inappropriate desires, and those whose conduct comes from wrong thoughts.

“I create the conditions for those who have not developed evil thoughts and bad qualities to not develop them, and for those who think evil thoughts to eliminate them.

“I create in various ways the supporting conditions for those who have virtuous thoughts, who practice the perfections, who are engaged in good conduct, who are engaged in accomplishing prayers for the arising of omniscient wisdom, who are engaged in the ways of love, who are pervaded by great compassion for beings, who are engaged in creating the various kinds of happiness of devas and humans, and who have given rise to such thoughts, and I create the conditions that support omniscience.

“Noble one, I know only the bodhisattva liberation called complete subjugation through the bliss of the peace of śamatha. How could I know the conduct or describe the qualities of bodhisattvas who have arisen through completely good bodhisattva conduct and prayers, who have attained the wisdom of the infinite realm of phenomena, who have minds that increase all roots of merit, who have attained illumination of their minds through the power of the wisdom of all the tathāgatas, who have minds that maintain the same scope as that of all the tathāgatas, whose minds are unobscured in all situations, whose minds have perfected the aspiration for omniscience, whose minds perceive the entire ocean of realms, whose minds are focused on the vision of the entire ocean of buddhas, whose minds have received the clouds of the Dharma of all the tathāgatas, who dispel the darkness of ignorance of all beings, and who have minds that have given rise to the illumination of omniscience through the path of the final cessation of delight in and craving for saṃsāra?

“Depart, noble one. Here, not far from me, to the south of Vairocana’s bodhimaṇḍa, there is the goddess of the night named Pramudita­nayana­jagad­virocanā. Go to her and ask her, ‘How should a bodhisattva train in bodhisattva conduct? How should a bodhisattva practice it?’ ”

Then at that time, the night goddess Samanta­gambhīra­śrī­vimala­prabhā, in order to emphasize and teach this bodhisattva liberation called complete subjugation through the bliss of the peace of śamatha, recited these verses to Sudhana, the head merchant’s son:

Then Sudhana, the head merchant’s son, bowed his head to the feet of the night goddess Samanta­gambhīra­śrī­vimala­prabhā, circumambulated the night goddess Samanta­gambhīra­śrī­vimala­prabhā many hundreds of thousands of times, keeping her to his right, and, looking back again and again, departed from the night goddess Samanta­gambhīra­śrī­vimala­prabhā.