This sūtra should not be confused with the early Buddhist Brahmajālasūtra, which has an identical title but entirely different contents. That Brahmajālasūtra (Toh 352) was translated into Tibetan and is also included in the Pāli canon.
ting nge ’dzin gyi rgyal po’i mdo. See Peter Alan Roberts, trans., The King of Samādhis Sūtra, Toh 127.
dgongs pa nges par ’grel pa. See Buddhavacana Translation Group, trans., Unraveling the Intent, Toh 106.
chos yang dag par sdud pa’i mdo. See Tibetan Classics Translators Guild of New York, trans., The Dharma Council, Toh 238.
Commentary on the Sūtra of the Ten Bhūmis, sa bcu’i rnam par bshad pa (Daśabhūmivyākhyāna), Toh 3993.
A Commentary on the Commentary on the Sūtra of the Ten Bhūmis, sa bcu’i rnam par bshad pa’i rnam par bshad pa (Daśabhūmivyākhyānavyākhyāna), Toh 3998.
A Commentary on the Introduction to the Sūtra of the Ten Bhūmis, sa bcu’i mdo sde’i gleng gzhi’i bshad pa (Daśabhūmisūtranidānabhāṣya), Toh 3999.
The Sanskrit and the Chinese have a sentence preceding this, which is similar between the two. The Sanskrit has, “Thus did I hear at one time: the Bhagavat was residing in the Paranirmitavaśavartin deva realms. Not long after his buddhahood, two weeks later, he was in the deva king Vaśavartin’s divine palace…” The ensuing description in Tibetan is a simplified version compared to the Chinese and the Sanskrit.
The Chinese and Śākyabodhi’s commentary have at this point, “They were one lifetime from buddhahood.”
According to the Sanskrit and Śākyabodhi’s commentary. Unlike the preceding sentences, “all” in Tibetan is associated with the “accumulations” instead of the “bodhisattvas.”
According to the Chinese and Śākyabodhi’s commentary. Both the Sanskrit and the Tibetan here repeat “clairvoyance.”
According to the Sanskrit jñāna, the commentary, and the Chinese. The Kangyur version has both rig pa and ye shes.
According to the Sanskrit ṛddhibalavaśita and the commentary’s byang chub sems dpa’ thams cad kyi rdzu ’phrul gyi stobs la dbang thob. The Kangyur version had broken it up into “miracles, strengths, and powers.”
According to the Sanskrit pratipatti and the commentary’s ’byor ba. The Kangyur version has nan tan.
Sūryasiddha states that this refers to the wisdom in which the object is not separate from the subject and is therefore the wisdom of emptiness as the single characteristic of all phenomena. It is thus also known as the wisdom of equality (Sūryasiddha, folio 11.b).
“Commencing upon and attaining” occurs only in the introductory sentence, but the commentaries specify that it is understood to apply to all ten.
Both commentaries point out that these ten qualities benefit others in that they will support others in the attainment of the ten bhūmis.
According to the Sanskrit, both commentaries, and the Chinese. The Kangyur version has “attainment of the ornament of the knowledge of the great light of wisdom.”
According to Vasubandhu, this is “selflessness,” and the analysis is perfect, as there is no further analysis that can be made.
According to the Tibetan. BHS has sunistīritakauśalyajñāna (“perfectly complete skilled knowledge”). Cleary has “complete definitive adaptive knowledge.” Both commentaries emphasize that this is a subsequent attainment through one’s own individual examination.
According to the Sanskrit amanda (“not dull,” “bright”). Both commentaries have mun pa med pa (“not dark”). The Kangyur version has dma’ ba med pa (“not inferior”). Cleary has “without hesitation or obstruction.”
According to the Sanskrit, the commentaries, and the Chinese. The Kangyur version adds “attainment of the…”
Commentaries have gzhan (“other”), although glossed as phas kyi rgol ba (“opponent”). The Kangyur version has only gnas kyi rnam pa. The Sanskrit has arhasthāna, where arha could be “worthy” but could also possibly mean “enemy.” This quality is described as being that which is needed in debate.
According to the commentaries, “everything” refers to the five branches of knowledge: grammar, logic, crafts, medicine, and Dharma.
According to the Sanskrit pratibhāna. The Tibetan spobs pa could be translated as “courage” or “confidence,” which does not quite match the context.
According to Sūryasiddha, this is “having confidence in the purity of the dharmadhātu,” which is glossed as “the noncomposite true nature.”
Sūryasiddha states that, here, śarīra (“body”) should be understood to mean “the basis or location of wisdom.”
The commentaries explain that this means “creating certainty in others, removing various individuals’ doubts.”
The commentaries have, “As the mind is free of attachment and aversion, everyone is taught equally without bias.”
According to the commentaries and the Chinese. The Kangyur version and the Sanskrit omit “strengths.”
The commentaries state that the prayer was for the unique attainment of that samādhi, and that the rest on the list of ten are the other causes for the attainment of that samādhi.
Vasubandhu has “like the circle of the sun, in that everything is concentrated into that wisdom as a single light.”
From the Sanskrit asambheda, meaning “separate, not in contact.” However, the Tibetan has translated this as tha mi dad pa (“not separate”), though Vasubandhu basically describes this as meaning “not being mixed up.” Cleary has “without corruption.”
Vasubandhu has “the first of six aspects of certainty: certainty concerning what the mind is focused on, because of one taste with what the mind is focused on.”
Vasubandhu has “certainty of nature, because it transcends being an object for the worldly mind.”
Vasubandhu has “certainty that this is the most important element, as it is the root of all the Buddha’s Dharma.”
Vasubandhu has “certainty in causes in relation to all the phenomena that arise throughout space.”
According to the Sanskrit, Vasubandhu, and the Chinese. According to Vasubandhu, this is “certainty in the greatness of benefiting others, and these six aspects, in addition to the initial certainty, make seven.” The Kangyur version extends the list: “(7) pervades all buddha realms and worlds of beings, (8) protects all beings.”
According to the Sanskrit and the Chinese. The Sanskrit has “many trillions” (koṭiśatasahasrā: a hundred thousand times ten million, which comes to a million million, which is a trillion). Cleary has “hundreds of thousands of billions” (which would also be a trillion, as the Chinese billion is ten million). The number as given in the Kangyur version omits “many” and, literally, is ten million times a hundred thousand million times a hundred thousand, which equals a hundred thousand million million million, in other words a hundred thousand quintillion. However, Vasubandhu has simply “many tens of millions” (bye ba), probably because brgya stong (“hundred thousand”) has been accidentally omitted.
According to the Sanskrit, the commentaries, and the Chinese. In the Kangyur version the order of (4) and (5) are reversed.
According to the Sanskrit and Cleary, literally, “many hundreds of thousands of tens of millions.” According to the Kangyur version, “many tens of millions” (bye ba).
According to the Sanskrit, the commentaries, and the Chinese. In the Kangyur version the order of (4) and (5) are reversed.
According to the Tibetan. These two verses and their introductory sentences are absent in the Sanskrit, the commentaries, and the Chinese.
According to the Sanskrit, Vasubandhu, and the Chinese. The Kangyur version has “will not change into another.”
According to the BHS, the commentaries, and the Chinese. The Kangyur version reads “this is the first bhūmi of conduct and the foundation of the complete attainment of the entire Buddhadharma.”
According to Vasubandhu. Literally “number,” but meaning a number of letters forming a word.
From the Sanskrit ārakṣām adhiṣṭhāsyanti. The Tibetan translates as byin gyis rlob, which would normally be translated into English as “will give their blessing for protection.” Cleary has “will protect and support you.”
These verses and their introductory sentence are absent in the commentaries, the Sanskrit, and the Chinese.
According to the Sanskrit, the commentaries, and the Chinese. The Kangyur version perhaps comes from a corruption of bhidha to bheda.
The Kangyur version interprets paramārtha (“ultimate truth”) as “the supreme benefit for all.”
From the Sanskrit dhṛti. The Tibetan translates it, according to its secondary meaning of “joy,” as dga’ ba.
According to the Sanskrit āśayaviśuddhim. The Tibetan has shugs sogs yon tan: “the qualities such as power” or “the quality of accumulated power.” These appear to be qualities of the bhūmis in the Tibetan.
In accordance with the Sanskrit and the Chinese. The Tibetan here may be from a corrupt manuscript. The Tibetan has “You who know and practice the separate meanings explain / The supreme, sublime bhūmis of those who have pure conduct through memory and joy / And possess the quality of accumulating the strength of the power of the ten strengths.”
According to Vasubandhu, this means that, like space, they cannot be stained by anything in the world.
According to Vasubandhu “unequaled” refers to the buddhas being unequaled by any other beings. Those who are equal to the unequaled are so because of the dharmakāya.
The Vasubandhu translation here appears to have been translated from gaṇa (tshogs, “gathering,” “multitude”), which is defined as “the multitude of bodhisattvas that are their pupils,” as the aspect of their perfect followers or retinue among the list of the perfections of the buddhas as implied by these lines of verse. Cleary has “virtues,” and therefore it appears that at the time of the later Chinese translation the Sanskrit had guṇa (yon tan, “good qualities”) instead of gaṇa. It is also guṇa in the present Sanskrit, the Tibetan sūtra, and both commentaries. This may have been an early corruption that became widespread or, alternatively, Vasubandhu’s was composed on the basis of a corruption of guṇa to gaṇa in a manuscript.
According to the Tibetan. In the Chinese and the Sanskrit, the blessing is being given also by the Dharma teachings, as “Dharma” is in the plural instrumental dharmair: “…and the Dharma of the one born in the Śākya clan have given their blessing.”
From the Sanskrit anubhāva. Vasubandhu translates as mthus (Narthang, Kangxi, and the Comparative Edition read mthu). The Kangyur version of the sūtra has byin.
This verse is missing from Vasubandhu, which has only five verses in this section, even though it calls the last verse “sixth.” Present in the Sanskrit, the Chinese, and the Kangyur version.
According to the Sanskrit, Vasubandhu, and the Chinese. The Kangyur version verse here is not translated clearly, and the last two lines are “Teach the way of the Dharma of conduct and range and the way of wisdom in order to benefit beings.”
Vasubandhu explains the phrase “not existent” here but also notes the alternative version, which is that of the present Sanskrit, the Tibetan, and the Chinese, in a rare comment on a discrepancy between manuscripts.
According to the Sanskrit advayakṣaya (read as advayākṣaya), the Chinese, and Vasubandhu. The Tibetan translation of the Kangyur version has “and the cessation of suffering,” presumably from kṣaya as “cessation,” with suffering interpolated.
The Tibetan has translated nirvṛtam (“attained”) as “nirvāṇa,” although Vasubandhu explains this is the attainment of the equality of saṃsāra and nirvāṇa.
A traditional Indian title denoting a person who has authority because of superior knowledge, spiritual training, or position. In the Buddhist context, it is most often used for a scholar of great renown.
The bodhisattvas’ realization that all phenomena are unproduced and empty. It sustains them on the difficult path of benefiting all beings so that they do not succumb to the goal of personal liberation. Different sources link this realization to the first or eighth bodhisattva level (bhūmi).
The highest paradise in the form realm, and therefore the highest point within the universe. The name is used with other meanings in the tantra tradition.
A bodhisattva mahāsattva.
The nectar of immortality possessed by the devas, it is used as a metaphor for the teaching that brings liberation.
A bodhisattva mahāsattva.
A bodhisattva mahāsattva.
A vast legendary lake on the other side of the Himalayas. Only those with miraculous powers can go there. It is said to be the source of the world’s four great rivers.
In Sanskrit meaning “venerable one,” in Tibetan “enemy defeater.” Used as both as an epithet of the buddhas and to refer to the final accomplishment of early Buddhism.
Literally an “incalculable eon,” though precise numbers are given for its duration. The Abhidharmakośa states that its name does not mean that it is in fact incalculable. The number of years in this eon differs in various sūtras. For example, it is said to be 10 to the power of 49, or 10 to the power of 63 years. Also, twenty intermediate eons (antarakalpa) are said to be one asaṃkhyeya eon, and four asaṃkhyeya eons are said to form one great eon (mahākalpa). In that case those four asaṃkhyeya eons represent the eons of the creation, presence, destruction, and absence of a world. However, it is also used, as apparently in this sūtra, to refer to the longest of all eons, including all others.
Fourth-century Indian founder of the Yogācāra tradition.
A type of nonhuman being whose precise status is subject to different views, but is included as one of the six classes of beings in the sixfold classification of realms of rebirth. In the Buddhist context, asuras are powerful beings said to be dominated by envy, ambition, and hostility. They are also known in the pre-Buddhist and pre-Vedic mythologies of India and Iran, and feature prominently in Vedic and post-Vedic Brahmanical mythology, as well as in the Buddhist tradition. In these traditions, asuras are often described as being engaged in interminable conflict with the devas (gods).
The fifth of the golden mountain ranges (counting from the innermost) that encircle Sumeru.
The lowest hell, the eighth of the eight hot hells.
Here refers to both the four formless meditations (see “liberation”) and the sensory bases.
The six bases of sensory perception are the six sensory faculties: the eyes, nose, ear, tongue, body, and mind, which form in the womb but as yet have no contact with the external six bases of sensory perception: form, smell, sound, taste, touch, and phenomena. In another context in this sūtra, āyatana refers to the four formless meditations (see “liberations”).
Four qualities of the samādhi that has the activity of eliminating negative factors: aspiration, diligence, contemplation, and analysis.
Although it has often been translated as lapis lazuli, the descriptions and references in the literature, both Sanskrit and Tibetan, match the characteristics of beryl. The Pāli form is veḷuriya. The Prākrit form verulia is the source for the English beryl. This normally refers to the blue or aquamarine beryl, but there are also white, yellow, and green beryls, though green beryl is called emerald.
Literally “one who has bhaga,” which has many diverse meanings including “good fortune,” “happiness,” and “majesty.” In the Buddhist context, it means “one who has the good fortune of attaining enlightenment.” The Tibetan translation has three syllables defined to mean “one who has conquered (the māras), possesses (the qualities of enlightenment), and has transcended (saṃsāra, or both saṃsāra and nirvāṇa).”
The term bhikṣu, often translated as “monk,” refers to the highest among the eight types of prātimokṣa vows that make one part of the Buddhist assembly. The Sanskrit term literally means “beggar” or “mendicant,” referring to the fact that Buddhist monks and nuns—like other ascetics of the time—subsisted on alms (bhikṣā) begged from the laity.
In the Tibetan tradition, which follows the Mūlasarvāstivāda Vinaya, a monk follows 253 rules as part of his moral discipline. A nun (bhikṣuṇī; dge slong ma) follows 364 rules. A novice monk (śrāmaṇera; dge tshul) or nun (śrāmaṇerikā; dge tshul ma) follows thirty-six rules of moral discipline (although in other vinaya traditions novices typically follow only ten).
Literally the “grounds” in which qualities grow, and also meaning “levels.” Here it refers specifically to levels of enlightenment, especially the ten levels of the enlightened bodhisattvas.
The tree beneath which every buddha in this world will manifest the attainment of buddhahood.
The aspiration to become a samyaksambuddha, a buddha who liberates other beings.
The place where the Buddha Śākyamuni achieved awakening and where every buddha will manifest the attainment of buddhahood. In our world this is understood to be located under the Bodhi tree, the Vajrāsana, in present-day Bodhgaya, India. It can also refer to the state of awakening itself.
A being who is dedicated to the cultivation and fulfilment of the altruistic intention to attain perfect buddhahood, traversing the ten bodhisattva levels (daśabhūmi, sa bcu). Bodhisattvas purposely opt to remain within cyclic existence in order to liberate all sentient beings, instead of simply seeking personal freedom from suffering. In terms of the view, they realize both the selflessness of persons and the selflessness of phenomena.
This is the way (yāna) of the bodhisattva, the teachings of the Mahāyāna sūtras.
A high-ranking deity presiding over a divine world; he is also considered to be the lord of the Sahā world (our universe). Though not considered a creator god in Buddhism, Brahmā occupies an important place as one of two gods (the other being Indra/Śakra) said to have first exhorted the Buddha Śākyamuni to teach the Dharma. The particular heavens found in the form realm over which Brahmā rules are often some of the most sought-after realms of higher rebirth in Buddhist literature. Since there are many universes or world systems, there are also multiple Brahmās presiding over them. His most frequent epithets are “Lord of the Sahā World” (sahāṃpati) and Great Brahmā (mahābrahman).
A member of the priestly class or caste from the four social divisions of India.
The fourth bodhisattva bhūmi.
A bodhisattva mahāsattva.
Literally “buddha body,” it is another term for the state of buddhahood, which can be subdivided into two or three bodies (kāya).
“Circular mass.” In this sūtra it is the name of the outer ring of mountains at the edge of the flat disk that is the world, with Sumeru in the center. However, it is also used to mean the entire disk and the paradises above it. There is also a system where it is the eighth mountain range encircling Sumeru within the ocean.
An ideal monarch or emperor who, as the result of the merit accumulated in previous lifetimes, rules over a vast realm in accordance with the Dharma. Such a monarch is called a cakravartin because he bears a wheel (cakra) that rolls (vartate) across the earth, bringing all lands and kingdoms under his power. The cakravartin conquers his territory without causing harm, and his activity causes beings to enter the path of wholesome actions. According to Vasubandhu’s Abhidharmakośa, just as with the buddhas, only one cakravartin appears in a world system at any given time. They are likewise endowed with the thirty-two major marks of a great being (mahāpuruṣalakṣaṇa), but a cakravartin’s marks are outshined by those of a buddha. They possess seven precious objects: the wheel, the elephant, the horse, the wish-fulfilling gem, the queen, the general, and the minister. An illustrative passage about the cakravartin and his possessions can be found in The Play in Full (Toh 95), 3.3–3.13.
Vasubandhu lists four types of cakravartins: (1) the cakravartin with a golden wheel (suvarṇacakravartin) rules over four continents and is invited by lesser kings to be their ruler; (2) the cakravartin with a silver wheel (rūpyacakravartin) rules over three continents and his opponents submit to him as he approaches; (3) the cakravartin with a copper wheel (tāmracakravartin) rules over two continents and his opponents submit themselves after preparing for battle; and (4) the cakravartin with an iron wheel (ayaścakravartin) rules over one continent and his opponents submit themselves after brandishing weapons.
A bodhisattva mahāsattva.
The paradise of the Four Mahārājas situated around the base of Sumeru.
There are usually five or six clairvoyances: divine sight, divine hearing, knowing how to manifest miracles, remembering previous lives, and knowing what is in the minds of others; the sixth, knowing that all defects have been eliminated, occurs only at the attainment of enlightenment.
The tenth bodhisattva bhūmi.
This patience is an acceptance of the true nature of things. It is a patience that is in concord with the nature of phenomena.
This refers to the four confidences or fearlessnesses (as translated into Tibetan) of a buddha: confidence in having attained realization, confidence in having exhausted defilements, confidence in teaching the Dharma, and confidence in teaching the path of aspiration to liberation.
In the most general sense the devas—the term is cognate with the English divine—are a class of celestial beings who frequently appear in Buddhist texts, often at the head of the assemblies of nonhuman beings who attend and celebrate the teachings of the Buddha Śākyamuni and other buddhas and bodhisattvas. In Buddhist cosmology the devas occupy the highest of the five or six “destinies” (gati) of saṃsāra among which beings take rebirth. The devas reside in the devalokas, “heavens” that traditionally number between twenty-six and twenty-eight and are divided between the desire realm (kāmadhātu), form realm (rūpadhātu), and formless realm (ārūpyadhātu). A being attains rebirth among the devas either through meritorious deeds (in the desire realm) or the attainment of subtle meditative states (in the form and formless realms). While rebirth among the devas is considered favorable, it is ultimately a transitory state from which beings will fall when the conditions that lead to rebirth there are exhausted. Thus, rebirth in the god realms is regarded as a diversion from the spiritual path.
A bodhisattva mahāsattva.
Approximately ten ounces. One dharaṇa could be equivalent to between 3 and 5 grams, which could be from 50 to 70 grains, but that seems too small in relation to its usage in this sūtra. In one example of measurement used specifically for gold, a dharaṇa is equivalent to ten pala, or 40 suverna, or 640 māśa, or 3200 kṛṣṇala (black gañja seed), in which case the dharaṇa would be even smaller, equivalent to 1.5 grains. As there was no equivalent to dharaṇa in Tibetan, it was translated as srang, which in the Mahāvyutpatti is said to equal one pala, both being close to an ounce when used generally.
Dhāraṇī is translated as “retention” when it means the power of mental retention. The Sanskrit is given when it refers to a formula to be recited that is said to contain the essence of a teaching.
Dhāraṇī is translated as “retention” when it means the power of mental retention. The Sanskrit is given when it refers to a formula to be recited that is said to contain the essence of a teaching.
A bodhisattva mahāsattva.
In early Buddhism, a section of the saṅgha would be bhāṇakas, who, particularly before the teachings were written down, when they were solely transmitted orally, were the key factor in the preservation of the teachings. Various groups of bhāṇakas each specialized in memorizing and reciting a certain set of sūtras or vinaya texts.
In its earliest use it meant that though the corporeal body of the Buddha had perished, his “body of the Dharma” continued. It later came to be synonymous with enlightenment or buddhahood, a “body” that can only be “seen” by a buddha.
Generally one of the synonyms for meditation, referring to a state of mental stability. Specifically, as in this sūtra, it refers to the four dhyānas, which are responsible for rebirth in the four levels—composed of seventeen paradises—of the form realm, and the four dhyānas that bring rebirth in the four levels of the formless realm, which, though called a “realm,” has no cosmological location.
The fifth bodhisattva bhūmi.
These are of four kinds and are also found in the Pali tradition and in the Mahāvastu of the Mahāsaṅghikas. They are listed in this sūtra as the discerning knowledge of phenomena, the discerning knowledge of meaning, the discerning knowledge of definitions, and the discerning knowledge of eloquence.
There are three doors to liberation: emptiness, featurelessness, and aspirationlessness.
This is the opposite of the noble eightfold path and so consists in wrong view, examination, speech, action, livelihood, effort, mindfulness, and samādhi.
sa bcu pa (Daśabhūmika). Toh 44-31, Degé Kangyur vol. 36 (phal chen, kha), folios 166.a–283.a.
sangs rgyas phal po che (Buddhāvataṃsaka) [A Multitude of Buddhas]. Toh 44, Degé Kangyur vol. 35–38 (phal chen, ka–a).
sdong po bkod pa (Gaṇḍavyūha). Toh 44, ch. 45, Degé Kangyur vol. 37 (phal chen, ga), folios 274.b–336.a; vol. 38 (phal chen, a), folios 1.b–363.a. English translation in Roberts (2021).
byang sems rnam dgod bcu bstan pa’i le’u [The Ten Abodes of Bodhisattvas]. Toh 44, ch. 20, Degé Kangyur vol. 35 (phal chen, ka), folios 245.a–258.a.
kye’i rdo rje’i rgyud (Hevajratantra). Toh 417, Degé Kangyur vol. 80 (rgyud ’bum, nga), folios 1.b–30.a.
dkon mchog sprin (Ratnamegha) [The Jewel Cloud]. Toh 231, Degé Kangyur vol. 64 (mdo sde, wa), folios 1.b–112.b. English translation in Dharmachakra Translation Committee (2019).
dgongs pa nges par’ grel pa (Saṃdhinirmocana) [Unraveling the Intent]. Toh 106, Degé Kangyur vol. 49 (mdo sde, ca), folios 1.b–55.b. English translation in Buddhavacana Translation Group (2020).
rgyan stug po bkod pa (Ghanavyūha) [The Dense Array]. Toh 110, Degé Kangyur vol. 50 (mdo sde, cha), folios 1.a–55.b.
ting nge ’dzin gyi rgyal po’i mdo (Samādhirājasūtra) [The King of Samādhis Sūtra]. Toh 127, Degé Kangyur vol. 55 (mdo sde, da) folios 1.b–170.b. English translation in Roberts (2018).
chos yang dag par sdud pa’i mdo (Dharmasaṃgītisūtra) [The Sūtra of the Deliberation on the Dharma]. Toh 238, Degé Kangyur vol. 65 (mdo sde, zha), folios 1.b–99.b. English translation in Tibetan Classics Translators Guild of New York (2024).
sa’i sying po ’khor lo bcu pa’i mdo (Daśacakrakṣitigarbhasūtra) [The Sūtra of the Ten Wheels of Kṣitigarbha]. Toh 239, Degé Kangyur vol.65 (mdo sde, zha), 100.a–241.b.
tshangs pa’i dra ba’i mdo (Brahmajālasūtra) [The Sūtra of Brahma’s Net]. Toh 352, Degé Kangyur vol. 76 (mdo sde, aH), folios 70.b–86.a.
rnam par snang mdzad mngon par rdzogs par byang chub pa’i rgyud (Vairocanābhisambodhitantra) [The Tantra of the Complete Enlightenment of Vairocana]. Toh 494, Degé Kangyur vol. 86 (rgyud ’bum, tha), folios 151.b–260.a.
lang kar gshegs pa’i mdo (Laṅkāvatārasūtra) [The Sūtra on the Descent into Laṅka]. Toh 107, Degé Kangyur vol. 49 (mdo sde, ca), folios 1.b–213.a.
Asaṅga. rnal ’byor spyod pa’i sa las byang chub sems dpa’i sa (Yogacāryau bodhisattvabhūmi). Toh 4037, Degé Tengyur vol. 231 (sems tsam, wi), folios 1.b–213.a.
Candrakīrti. dbu ma la ’jug pa (Madhyamakāvatāra). Toh 3861, Degé Tengyur vol. 204 (dbu ma, ’a) folios 201.b–219.a.
Maitreyanātha. theg pa chen po mdo sde’i rgyan zhes bya ba’i tshig le’ur byas pa (Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkaranāmakārikā) [Adornment of the Mahāyāna Sūtras]. Toh 4020, Degé Tengyur vol. 225 (sems tsam, phi), folios 1.a–39.a.
Śākyabodhi. sa bcu’i mdo sde’i gleng gzhi’i bshad pa (Daśabhūmisūtranidānabhāṣya) [A Commentary on the Introduction to the Sūtra of the Ten Bhūmis]. Toh 3999, Degé Tengyur, vol. 218 (mdo ’grel, ji), folios 119.b–123.a.
Sūryasiddha. sa bcu’i rnam par bshad pa’i rnam par bshad pa (Daśabhūmivyākhyānavyākhyāna) [A Commentary on the Commentary on the Sūtra of the Ten Bhūmis]. Toh 3998, Degé Tengyur vol. 218 (mdo ’grel, ji), folios 1.a–119.b.
Vasubandhu. chos mngon pa’i mdzod kyi tshig le’ur byas pa (Abhidharmakośakārikā). Toh 4089, Degé Tengyur vol. 140 (mngon pa, ku), folios 1.b–25.a.
Vasubandhu. sa bcu’i rnam par bshad pa (Daśabhūmivyākhyāna) [Commentary on the Sūtra of the Ten Bhūmis]. Toh 3993, Degé Tengyur vol. 215 (mdo ’grel, ngi), folios 103.b–266.a.
bye brag tu rtogs par byed pa chen po (Mahāvyutpatti). Toh 4346, Degé Tengyur vol. 204 (sna tshogs, co), folios 1.b–131.a.
Buddhavacana Translation Group, trans. Unraveling the Intent (Saṃdhinirmocana, Toh 106). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2020.
Chun, Jang-kil. A Study of the Daśabhūmika‑Sūtra: Its Relation to Previous Buddhist Traditions and the Development of Bodhisattva Practice. PhD diss., University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1993.
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After his attainment of buddhahood, the Buddha Śākyamuni is present in many locations simultaneously. The Ten Bhūmis takes place two weeks after his enlightenment, while he is sitting silently in meditation in the central palace in the highest paradise of the desire realm. Countless bodhisattvas have assembled there. Through the power of the Buddha, the bodhisattva Vajragarbha enters samādhi and is blessed by countless buddhas, also named Vajragarbha, to give a Dharma teaching to the bodhisattvas. In response to the questions of the bodhisattva Vimukticandra, Vajragarbha describes successively the ten bhūmis of a bodhisattva. Countless bodhisattvas arrive and report that this same event is occurring simultaneously in the highest paradises of all other worlds. The Buddha is pleased by Vajragarbha’s teaching.
Translated from the Tibetan, with reference to the Sanskrit, by Peter Alan Roberts. The Tibetan reviewer was Tulku Yeshi. Emily Bower was the project manager and editor.
The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.
The generous sponsorship of Shakya Dewa and family, which helped make the work on this translation possible, is most gratefully acknowledged.
The Ten Bhūmis is chapter 31 in the 45-chapter Tibetan version of A Multitude of Buddhas (Buddhāvataṃsaka). This is often referred to by its shortened Sanskrit title, Avataṃsaka, and has been translated from the Chinese by Thomas Cleary as The Flower Ornament Scripture. The Ten Bhūmis is one of the most important chapters in A Multitude of Buddhas because its presentation of the ten bhūmis has become the standard presentation in Mahāyāna Buddhism of a bodhisattva’s progress toward buddhahood.
During the course of A Multitude of Buddhas, we find that the Buddha Śākyamuni who lived in our world is just one of countless manifestations of the Buddha Vairocana. Śākyamuni is even referred to as the Buddha Vairocana. Moreover, Śākyamuni is simultaneously present in various locations in our universe—at the Bodhi tree, in the Trāyastriṃśa paradise of Śakra on the summit of Sumeru, in the Yāma and Tuṣita paradises high above Sumeru, and in the highest paradise in the realm of desire—the Paranirmitavaśavartin paradise. Not only is he said to be simultaneously present in all those locations in our world, but he also has similar simultaneous presences in countless other worlds. All these appearances of Śākyamuni, and the gathering of the vast assemblies whom they teach, are the result of prayers he made while he was the Buddha Vairocana. In fact, according to A Multitude of Buddhas, Vairocana is even the source of all buddhas everywhere, and all the bodhisattvas listening to their teachings were pupils of Vairocana in the past.
This depiction of Śākyamuni as an emanation of Vairocana has its precedent in a sūtra that was never translated into Tibetan: the Brahmajālasūtra, which introduces the Buddha Vairocana as the source of ten billion Śākyamunis simultaneously existing in various worlds. The Buddha Vairocana would also later become the central buddha in such tantric traditions as Shingon Buddhism of Japan, which is based particularly on the Vairocanābhisambodhi Tantra.
Almost all the sūtras that make up A Multitude of Buddhas are set in the time when the Buddha Śākyamuni was still remaining silent following his enlightenment and had not yet taught. He is therefore a silent presence in all these different locations. As he does not speak, the teachings are given in his presence by such bodhisattvas as Mañjuśrī and Samantabhadra. An exception to this is the final chapter, the well-known Gaṇḍavyūha Sūtra, which takes place later in the Buddha’s life at the Jetavana Monastery in Śrāvastī. However, even in that sūtra the Buddha enters a state of meditation, and the teachings are given by others, primarily in South India, far from the physical location of Śākyamuni.
The Ten Bhūmis states that the discourse is taking place during the second week after the Buddha’s enlightenment, and that the teachings occur in the palace of Vaśavartin, the lord of the deities in the Paranirmitavaśavartin paradise. The assembly is composed of the deities dwelling in that paradise, together with bodhisattvas from countless worlds. The teaching is given by the bodhisattva Vajragarbha in response to questions from the bodhisattva Vimukticandra, who is the only bodhisattva listed in the introduction whose name does not end in garbha.
Vajragarbha appears among the lists of bodhisattvas present in other Kangyur texts and is the interlocutor in such sūtras as the Ghanavyūha and the Daśacakrakṣitigarbhasūtra. In particular, he is the Buddha’s interlocutor in the Hevajra Tantra.
The ten bhūmis are one of the groups of ten that are a frequent motif in A Multitude of Buddhas. For example, these teachings are said to occur within the Buddha Vairocana’s realm of activity, which is composed of ten vast universes. Several of its individual sūtras also present a set of ten qualities as their principal subjects: for example, the titles of chapters 15, 26, 27, 30, 31, 33, 34, 35, and 40 are respectively ten vihāras (“abodes”), ten practices, ten treasures, ten bhūmis, ten samādhis, ten clairvoyances, ten kinds of patience, and ten kāyas (“bodies”) of the Buddha. Within The Ten Bhūmis itself, each of the ten bhūmis is described through successive lists of ten qualities. The Perfection of Wisdom sūtras, the earliest of which were compiled earlier than The Ten Bhūmis, teach just six perfections of generosity, correct conduct, patience, diligence, meditation, and wisdom. The Ten Bhūmis, however, in accord with A Multitude of Buddhas’ emphasis on groups of ten, and in correlation with the ten bhūmis, contains the first appearance in Mahāyāna texts of the ten perfections, adding the four perfections of skillful method, prayer, strength, and knowledge.
The word bhūmi can mean “ground,” “level,” “stage,” and so on, but as the term ten bhūmis has become familiar to a Buddhist readership, the Sanskrit term has been retained rather than privileging one of the English translations.
The sūtras of the pre-Mahāyāna Buddhist traditions had already described distinct stages of spiritual development, primarily those of stream entrant, once-returner, non-returner, and arhat. A stream entrant will attain nirvāṇa within seven (or fourteen) lifetimes. A once-returner will only be reborn in the desire realm once more. A non-returner will be reborn in the Śuddhāvāsa paradises in the form realm and attain nirvāṇa there. Finally, the arhat will enter nirvāṇa upon death. Moreover, there are the progressive stages of the four dhyānas, which, although often referred to, are not considered to lead on their own to liberation from saṃsāra. Additionally, there are the five paths of accumulation, juncture, insight, meditation, and the stage of no-more-training, which, as we will see below, were adapted by the Mahāyāna tradition.
The Perfection of Wisdom sūtras presented two alternative descriptions of the stages of spiritual development: seven bhūmis and thirteen vihāras, which are correlated in subsequent commentarial works including the Bodhisattvabhūmi. A Multitude of Buddhas, however, teaches ten bhūmis as in the chapter translated here, and ten vihāras in the twentieth chapter, The Ten Abodes of Bodhisattvas.
The Mahāyāna commentarial tradition adapted and developed the earlier teaching of the five paths mentioned above, and these became as widely established as the teaching of the ten bhūmis. The five paths have been correlated with the ten bhūmis: the first two precede the first bhūmi, and the third is equivalent to the first bhūmi, the fourth to the other nine bhūmis, and the fifth to buddhahood.
There are other sūtras that specifically list these ten bhūmis, indicating the direct influence of The Ten Bhūmis, such as the Samādhirājasūtra, Saṃdhinirmocana, Ratnamegha, Ghanavyūha, and Dharmasaṃgītisūtra. Perhaps the earliest commentarial witness to the influence of The Ten Bhūmis is the Ratnāvalī of Nāgārjuna. Other early Mahāyāna sūtras and commentaries show no such influence from The Ten Bhūmis. The Laṅkāvatārasūtra, for example, only mentions seven bhūmis. Similarly, in the commentarial tradition, one finds that in the Bodhisattvabhūmi, which is the fifteenth section of the Yogācārabhūmi, only the seven bhūmis and the thirteen vihāras are taught. The authorship of the Yogācārabhūmi is attributed in China to Maitreyanātha and in Tibet to his successor, Asaṅga. However, it is probably a compilation from various authors. In contrast, in the Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra, which is also attributed to Maitreyanātha, the ten bhūmis are specifically presented.
The principal commentary to The Ten Bhūmis was written in the fourth century by Asaṅga’s successor and half-brother, Vasubandhu. That commentary was itself the subject of a commentary by Sūryasiddha, who claims that the meaning of the sūtra was revealed solely to Asaṅga, who subsequently transmitted it only to Vasubandhu. These texts do not concern themselves with the introductory section of the sūtra, but a commentary on the introduction was written in the eighth century by Śākyabodhi.
The ten bhūmis are found in many important later Indian Buddhist texts, such as Candrakīrti’s seventh-century Madhyamakāvatāra, and they became a central part in the presentation of the higher stages of the path in Tibet, featuring prominently in lamrim (“stages of the path”) texts.
The Ten Bhūmis first existed as an independent sūtra. Dharmarakṣa from Dunhuang translated this and other sūtras that are chapters in A Multitude of Buddhas into Chinese in the third century
In the early fifth century, The Ten Bhūmis was translated a second time into Chinese under the direction of the Indian Buddhabhadra (359–429
According to Chinese legend, A Multitude of Buddhas was preserved in three versions by a nāga king in his realm. The longest had verses as numerous as the atoms in thirteen universes. The middle length version had 1,200 chapters with 498,800 verses, and the shortest form had 48 chapters and 100,000 verses. Nāgārjuna then went to the nāga realm and brought back the shortest version to the human world. However, there is no version of the sūtra in 100,000 verses and 48 chapters.
Paramārtha (499–569) was an Indian monk who came to China in the sixth century and translated Buddhist texts into Chinese. In his writings he states that A Multitude of Buddhas was also called the Bodhisattvapiṭaka. Copies of this sūtra in the Dunhuang caves do indeed bear the title Bodhisattvapiṭaka Buddhāvataṃsaka.
Queen Wu (690–704) of the Tang dynasty, on hearing that there was a version of A Multitude of Buddhas in Khotan that was longer than that of the previous Chinese translations, sponsored its translation under the direction of the Khotanese Śikṣānanda (652–710). It was completed in 699, with the queen supplying a preface and titles. This version was composed of thirty-nine sūtras with The Ten Bhūmis as its twenty-sixth sūtra or chapter. It was this seventh-century version of A Multitude of Buddhas that became the basis for the Huayan School of Chinese Buddhism, huayan being the Chinese translation of avataṃsaka as “flower garland.” In the ninth century, Śīladharma made a new translation in China of The Ten Bhūmis.
A Multitude of Buddhas was translated into Tibetan in the early ninth century. The Tibetan version, even longer than the Chinese, is composed of forty-five sūtras with The Ten Bhūmis as its thirty-first sūtra, or chapter.
In the Chinese version of A Multitude of Buddhas, The Ten Bhūmis retains the traditional beginning of a sūtra: “Thus did I hear…” and so on. However, the version translated into Tibetan was further adapted into being a chapter in a longer work by omitting the traditional opening and by transferring a part of its introduction to its conclusion. Therefore, the Tibetan version of this sūtra begins abruptly.
The Sanskrit text referred to for this translation is based on Johannes Rahder’s 1926 edition of the prose passages, which was itself based on two manuscripts from the Bibliothèque nationale in Paris, two manuscripts from Cambridge University Library, one manuscript from the Royal Asiatic Society in London, one manuscript from the Asiatic Society of Bengal in Calcutta, and one manuscript from the Royal Library in Nepal. For the verses, the Sanskrit referred to is a 1931 edition, which is an amalgamation of Rahder’s work with Shinryu Susa’s edition based on one manuscript from the Imperial University Library in Kyoto and another from the Imperial University Library in Tokyo.
The Sanskrit version of The Ten Bhūmis is written with numerous nonclassical Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit (BHS) features and vocabulary. In particular, the verses are written in a form of Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit that has stronger Prakrit features. They favor the -u ending for the nominative case, where it would be -a in Sanskrit, -e in the ancient northeastern dialect, and -o in that of the northwest (and its continuation in Pali). It is sometimes the case that the verses of a sūtra are older than the prose sections that accompany them. In Sūryasiddha’s commentary, he even mentions the view of some scholars that the verses had been corrupted in form and meaning. The difference between the Sanskrit used in the verses and prose sections is not evident in either the Tibetan or this English translation.
The Ten Bhūmis is the thirty-first chapter in the Tibetan version of A Multitude of Buddhas and is located in the second of the four Kangyur Multitude of Buddhas volumes. It comprises fascicles 13–21 of the original 115 bundles that constitute the entire sūtra in the Sanskrit manuscript. A Multitude of Buddhas was translated into Tibetan by Yeshé Dé, Jinamitra, and Surendrabodhi during the reign of King Ralpachen (r. 815–36). The former two translators had been working at Samyé Monastery since the reign of King Trisong Detsen (r. 742–98), but Surendrabodhi came to Tibet only after King Ralpachen came to the throne. Therefore, this translation was made sometime between 815 and 836.
In addition to the translation of the sūtra in the Kangyur, most of the sūtra, but not its verses or introduction, appears in Vasubandhu’s Commentary on the Sūtra of the Ten Bhūmis, in which each passage is followed by an explanation. Vasubandhu’s commentary was presumably translated into Tibetan at some time following the translation of the sūtra. The translators of the commentary were Yeshé Dé, Kawa Paltsek, Prajñāvarman, and Mañjuśrīgarbha. Even though Yeshé Dé was involved in translating both the sūtra and the commentary, the translation in the commentary is of a better quality than that in the Kangyur, which does not appear to have been revised in the light of the translation of the commentary. There are some passages in the translation of the commentary that repeat the Kangyur version word for word, but the majority of the translation differs and is more accurate. The witness of the Sanskrit manuscripts, together with the contents of the Chinese translation, verify that the version in the translation of the commentary is more accurate and preserves certain phrases, or sometimes even entire sentences, that are missing in the Kangyur version, either as a result of omissions in a Sanskrit manuscript that was used as a source or through errors made during the centuries when the translation was preserved only in handwritten copies. This translation into English has been made by generally favoring the version translated within the commentary, with any dissimilarities from the Kangyur version annotated.
Accompanying Yeshé Dé as translator of the commentary was Kawa Paltsek. He had been among the first group to take monastic ordination in the 770s when he was a young man, but he was still active during Ralpachen’s reign and worked with Dānaśīla, who came to Tibet after 815. Another co-translator of the commentary was Prajñāvarman. He was a Bengali who had come to Tibet during Trisong Detsen’s reign and was a prolific translator of Sanskrit texts into Tibetan. He also authored Sanskrit works that were translated into Tibetan and are contained in the Tengyur. The co-translator Mañjuśrīgarbha is a lesser-known figure; he is recorded as being involved in only three translations, two of which are the two commentaries on The Ten Bhūmis.
Sūryasiddha, who wrote the second commentary, A Commentary on the Commentary on the Sūtra of the Ten Bhūmis, is an otherwise unknown author who lived sometime between the fourth and ninth centuries. This commentary was translated by three of the translators of the Vasubandhu commentary: Prajñāvarman, Kawa Paltsek, and Mañjuśrīgarbha. Yeshé Dé is noticeable by his absence, and Kawa Paltsek has taken over his role of chief editor. It is possible, but by no means certain, that this dates to a time after Yeshé Dé’s passing, which occurred during Ralpachen’s reign. Yeshé Dé’s funerary stūpa is in the environs of Samyé Monastery, where he had spent so many years working on translations. When passages from Vasubandhu’s commentary were found verbatim in Sūryasiddha’s commentary, the translators simply repeated the earlier translation they had made with Yeshé Dé.
The introductory section of the sūtra was not commented upon in either of those two commentaries, but the eighth-century Yogatantra master Śākyabodhi filled this commentarial gap with his A Commentary on the Introduction to the Sūtra of the Ten Bhūmis, which was translated into Tibetan by Kawa Paltsek and Prajñāvarman and was a useful reference for this translation.
We have translated the title Buddhāvataṃsaka as A Multitude of Buddhas. The title avataṃsaka is derived from avataṃsa. In Classical Sanskrit, avataṃsa describes a garland or any circular ornamentation. For example, karṇāvataṃsa (ear avataṃsa) means “earring.” One Tibetan translation of buddhāvataṃsaka is “the Buddha’s earring” (sangs rgyas kyi snyan gyi gong rgyan). A kusumāvataṃsa (flower avataṃsa) is a flower garland that is worn by a person, hence another Tibetan translation of buddhāvataṃsaka is “the Buddha’s garland,” using an obscure archaic word with various spellings (rmad ga chad, rma ga chad, or rmag chad). Thomas Cleary, translating into English from the Chinese Huayan, calls it Flower Ornament. However, in Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit, avataṃsaka means “a great number,” “a multitude,” or “a collection.” Therefore, we have the Tibetan version of the title as A Multitude of Buddhas (sangs rgyas phal po che). phal po che is used elsewhere in the Kangyur to translate Classical Sanskrit words meaning “multitude,” such as nicaya; or, for example, mahat janakāya (“a great assembly of beings”) is translated as skye bo phal po che. Although sangs rgyas phal po che is the title given to the sūtra in all Kangyurs, some Kangyurs, such as Degé, Urga, and the Comparative Edition (dpe bsdur ma), which is based on Degé, have the title The Mahāvaipulya Sūtra Entitled Buddha Garlands (sangs rgyas rma ga chad) at the conclusion of each fascicle. Perhaps this is the residue of an initial translation, before the title was revised. The Mahāvyutpatti dictionary, compiled by those engaged in the translation of this sūtra, gives phal po che for avataṃsaka, and neither rma ga chad nor its variant forms appear anywhere in that dictionary. This variant title rma ga chad is not found in the conclusion of the chapters in the Lhasa, Stok Palace, Narthang, Lithang, and Shelkar Kangyurs. This translation follows the example of those Kangyurs.
Whatever the original intended meaning of the title, the Tibetan translation as phal po che (“multitude”) is not inappropriate, as A Multitude of Buddhas depicts a multitude of buddhas, including a multitude of Śākyamunis that are all emanations of the Buddha Vairocana.
The sūtra is divided into ten bhūmis, and within each bhūmi there are sets of ten qualities. This has been made evident by the insertion of numbers, as otherwise it might escape attention.
The Tibetan translators appear to have either made unusual choices in the interpretation of the verses in particular, or they may have been using a manuscript with unusual variants. They occasionally translated the same Sanskrit word differently and translated different Sanskrit words with the same Tibetan word. For example, in one passage that in the English translation forms one paragraph, the Tibetan word gnas was used to translate ālaya, niketa, and the suffix -ka. This has caused certain passages in Tibetan to be comparatively obscure, as the specificity of the Sanskrit has been lost.
For this translation, when the Sanskrit words in the prose and accompanying verses correspond, then the English has also been made to match, which the Tibetan translation did not always do.
The use of numbers is unusual in the sūtra. Niyuta and koṭi, “a million” and “ten million” respectively, are usually translated as sa ya and bye ba. However, niyuta or nayuta in BHS can also mean “a hundred thousand million,” which is translated into Tibetan as khrag khrig. The Tibetan translation of the sūtra, however, translates niyuta as “ten million” (bye ba) and koṭi as “a hundred thousand million” (khrag khrig).
There are certain Sanskrit terms translated by words that have a generally known meaning in Tibetan that does not match their context in this sūtra. For example, pratibha here means “brilliance of mind” or “eloquence,” but it is translated as spobs pa. While the Tibetan definitions of this word include shes rab (“wisdom”) and smra nus (“ability to speak,” “eloquence”), this word is primarily defined and known as meaning “confidence,” but this is not the intended meaning here. Adhiṣṭhāna is used in the sūtra to mean “a basis” or “support,” as in the Mahāvyutpatti dictionary’s gzhi or rten. The Tibetan translation uses byin rlabs (“blessing”). Abhiṣekha (literally “sprinkling”) was translated into Tibetan as dbang skur. Both the Sanskrit and Tibetan are known in the West as referring to “empowerment” or “initiation” in the context of tantra, but in this sūtra, as elsewhere in Sanskrit, it specifically refers to the consecration of a crown prince to become a king: the consecration of the bodhisattva by the buddhas, the final stage of the path to buddhahood, is presented as being analogous to the consecration of a crown prince.
As for the use of pronouns, “he” is frequently used in referring to a bodhisattva in the translation, as the Sanskrit pronoun is specifically male, for in the context of a number of Mahāyāna sūtras and commentaries the advanced bodhisattva, like a buddha, has to be male.
There are numerous lists of qualities, often in sets of tens. The groupings of these qualities are clear in Sanskrit, but in the Tibetan version it is unclear where one set ends and the other begins. In this translation the lists have been separated by formatting, and each successive quality has been numbered.
The Ten Bhūmis begins with a description of the Buddha’s presence at the palace of Vaśavartin in the Paranirmitavaśavartin paradise, where bodhisattvas from countless other universes, including the bodhisattvas Vajragarbha and Vimukticandra, have gathered.
Through the power of the Buddha, Vajragarbha enters a samādhi called the radiance of the Mahāyāna, and as a result, an inconceivable number of buddhas, all of whom are named Vajragarbha, appear to him and bless him. They say that because of the prayers he made in the past, the Buddha Vairocana is now manifesting in the form of Śākyamuni in various locations. The buddhas named Vajragarbha place their hands on the bodhisattva Vajragarbha’s head, giving him a blessing that will enable him to give a teaching that will enable bodhisattvas to ascend through the ten bhūmis.
Vajragarbha comes out of that samādhi and addresses the assembled bodhisattvas. He lists the names of the ten bodhisattva bhūmis, which he says are taught by all buddhas, and then remains silent.
Vimukticandra, on behalf of all the assembled bodhisattvas, asks Vajragarbha why he does not teach these ten bhūmis. He assumes Vajragarbha does not do so because beings will not believe the teaching, but Vimukticandra states that this is an assembly of highly realized bodhisattvas who will believe what Vajragarbha teaches.
Vajragarbha answers that he did indeed remain silent out of compassion for lesser beings who would reject the teaching, because this rejection would cause them to be reborn in the lower realms.
Vimukticandra repeats his request, stating that the teaching of the ten bhūmis is essential for attaining buddhahood, from the very beginning of the path to its conclusion, just as the alphabet is crucial for all writing.
At this point, a ray of light accompanied by hundreds of thousands of light rays shines from Śākyamuni’s ūrṇā hair, the coil of white hair between his eyebrows. The light rays illuminate all worlds everywhere and darken the realms of the māras. All buddhas everywhere are illuminated. These buddhas in turn shine light rays from their own ūrṇā hairs, illuminating all worlds; in particular, the Buddha Śākyamuni and the bodhisattva Vajragarbha form an assembly hall of light in the sky above them. From that assembly hall of light comes a voice instructing Vajragarbha to teach the ten bhūmis.
Vajragarbha begins with a description of the initial motivation to attain buddhahood, which leads to the first bhūmi, Perfect Joy. He describes the nature of the joy experienced upon attaining that bhūmi, and also the other qualities that are gained, which are presented as sets of ten qualities. He contrasts these qualities with the suffering of beings, which is the result of the consecutive phases of dependent origination. The bodhisattva on the first bhūmi has compassion for these beings, performs great acts of generosity, and learns all that needs to be learned in this world. Many buddhas appear to him, and he serves the buddhas and ripens beings, as he will do on each successive bhūmi.
The qualities of each bhūmi are expressed by an analogy referring to gold, and the first bhūmi is said to be like refined gold.
From among the ten perfections, the bodhisattva on the first bhūmi practices the perfection of generosity. Like a caravan leader who must first learn about the route on which he will lead others, he learns about all ten bhūmis.
Vajragarbha concludes by stating that this is just a brief description of the first bhūmi, as a full description would take eons. He adds that the bodhisattvas on the first bhūmi become rulers of Jambudvīpa, become supreme among humans, and use this position to benefit humans. In a single instant they gain twelve qualities, such as the ability to see a hundred buddhas, manifest a hundred bodies, cause a hundred worlds to shake, and so on. This set of twelve qualities will be described for each bhūmi, with the number of buddhas, and so on, becoming progressively greater.
Vajragarbha repeats this teaching in verse.
At the conclusion of the teaching, the assembled bodhisattvas rise into the air, scatter flower petals, and praise Vajragarbha.
Vimukticandra asks Vajragarbha to teach the second bhūmi. Vajragarbha describes the ten kinds of thought that enable the bodhisattva to reach the second bhūmi, which is called Stainless. The bodhisattva on the second bhūmi practices the ten good actions and avoids the ten bad actions. He contemplates the results of bad and good actions, which range from rebirth in the lower realms to the attainments of a bodhisattva. He resolves to bring beings onto the path of good actions, to liberation from saṃsāra, and to enlightenment.
The bodhisattva on the second bhūmi is like gold that has had all impurities removed by green vitriol.
From among the ten perfections, he practices the perfection of good conduct. Bodhisattvas on the second bhūmi become cakravartin kings who rule all four continents and use their power to lead beings onto the path of good actions. In each instant they see a thousand buddhas, illuminate a thousand worlds, causes a thousand worlds to shake, and so on.
Vajragarbha repeats the teaching in verse.
The overjoyed bodhisattvas let fall clouds of flowers and praise Vajragarbha.
Vimukticandra asks Vajragarbha to teach the third bhūmi. Vajragarbha describes the ten kinds of mental orientation that enable the bodhisattva to ascend to the third bhūmi, which is called Shining. The bodhisattva on the third bhūmi contemplates the wisdom of the buddhas and how its absence causes beings to suffer in saṃsāra. The bodhisattva therefore diligently works to enable beings to practice meditation and attain wisdom so that they will be liberated. He practices generosity with diligence. He is so devoted to the Dharma that he would jump into a pit of fire in order to receive just one word of the Buddha’s teaching. He is diligent in cultivating the four dhyānas and the four formless states. He obtains miraculous powers such as clairvoyance, the ability to remember millions of previous lifetimes, and the ability to know what karma sentient beings have accumulated.
The bodhisattva on the third bhūmi is like gold perfected by a skilled goldsmith.
Of the ten perfections, he primarily practices the perfection of patience. Most of the bodhisattvas on the third bhūmi become an Indra, the deity of the paradise on the summit of Sumeru, a paradise that exists in every world of four continents. In each instant the bodhisattva sees a hundred thousand buddhas, illuminates a hundred thousand worlds, causes a hundred thousand worlds to shake, and so on.
Vajragarbha repeats the teaching in verse.
The overjoyed bodhisattvas scatter flowers on Vajragarbha and praise him. Vaśavartin scatters jewels and praises Vajragarbha’s teaching.
Vimukticandra asks Vajragarbha to teach the fourth bhūmi. Vajragarbha describes the ten attainments through insight into the Dharma that enable a bodhisattva to ascend to the fourth bhūmi, which is called Brilliance. Upon attaining this bhūmi, the bodhisattva becomes a member of the family of the buddhas. He develops the five powers, the five strengths, the four bases of miraculous powers, and the factors for enlightenment, including the noble eightfold path. He eliminates the view of self.
The bodhisattva on the fourth bhūmi is like gold that has been made into supreme jewelry.
From the ten perfections he primarily practices the perfection of diligence. Most of the bodhisattvas on the fourth bhūmi become a Suyāma, the deity who is the lord of a Yāma paradise. In each instant the bodhisattva sees ten million buddhas, illuminates ten million worlds, causes ten million worlds to shake, and so on.
Vajragarbha repeats the teaching in verse.
The overjoyed bodhisattvas scatter flowers on Vajragarbha and praise him. Vaśavartin and his deities scatter flowers on the Buddha and praise Vajragarbha’s teaching.
Vimukticandra asks Vajragarbha to teach the fifth bhūmi. Vajragarbha describes ten kinds of sameness of thought that enable the bodhisattva to ascend to the fifth bhūmi, which is called Difficult to Conquer. The bodhisattva on the fifth bhūmi attains various kinds of wisdom, and seeing that beings are in a state of ignorance, he has compassion for them. He is wise in worldly knowledge such as mathematics, medicine, poetry, music, history, architecture, and so on, through which he brings happiness to beings.
The bodhisattva on the fifth bhūmi is like gold adorned with white coral.
From the ten perfections he primarily practices the perfection of meditation. Most of the bodhisattvas on the fifth bhūmi become a Saṃtuṣita, the deity who is the lord of a Tuṣita paradise. In each instant the bodhisattva sees ten billion buddhas, illuminates ten billion worlds, causes ten billion worlds to shake, and so on.
Vajragarbha repeats the teaching in verse.
The overjoyed bodhisattvas scatter flowers and jewels upon the Buddha, and the deities scatter garlands, parasols, banners, and so on upon the Buddha and praise the teaching.
Vimukticandra asks Vajragarbha to teach the sixth bhūmi. Vajragarbha describes the ten kinds of equality of phenomena that enable a bodhisattva to ascend to the sixth bhūmi, which is called Manifested. The bodhisattva on the sixth bhūmi attains the wisdom that sees the twelve phases of dependent origination and has compassion for beings who are under the power of dependent origination. He attains the three doors to liberation.
The bodhisattva on the sixth bhūmi is like gold adorned with beryl.
From the ten perfections he primarily practices the perfection of wisdom. Most of the bodhisattvas on the sixth bhūmi become a Sunirmita, the deity who is the lord of a Nirmāṇarati paradise. In each instant the bodhisattva sees a trillion buddhas, illuminates a trillion worlds, causes a trillion worlds to shake, and so on.
Vajragarbha repeats the teaching in verse.
The overjoyed deities scatter clouds of incense and light and praise the teaching.
Vimukticandra asks Vajragarbha to teach the seventh bhūmi. Vajragarbha describes the ten kinds of engagement with the path that enable a bodhisattva to ascend to the seventh bhūmi, which is called Gone Far. The bodhisattva on the seventh bhūmi apprehends countless worlds, buddhas, and eons, the thoughts and motivations of countless beings, and so on. All the factors for enlightenment are complete in each instant, and he has pure bodhisattva conduct. Nevertheless, he cannot be said to be completely free of the kleśas, because he still desires buddhahood. He attains cessation in each instant, but instead of merging into that cessation he takes rebirth in the three realms and engages in worldly activities in order to benefit beings.
The bodhisattva on the seventh bhūmi is like gold adorned with every jewel.
From the ten perfections he primarily practices the perfection of skill in methods. Most of the bodhisattvas on the seventh bhūmi become a Vaśavartin, the deity who is the lord of a Paranirmitavaśavartin paradise, the highest paradise in the desire realm. In each instant the bodhisattva sees a quintillion buddhas, illuminates a quintillion worlds, causes a quintillion worlds to shake, and so on.
Vajragarbha repeats the teaching in verse.
The overjoyed deities scatter banners, parasols, jewelry, and so on as offerings to the Buddha and the bodhisattvas, and they sing praises of the buddhas.
Vimukticandra asks Vajragarbha to teach the eighth bhūmi. Vajragarbha describes the acceptance of the birthlessness of phenomena through which a bodhisattva attains the eighth bhūmi, which is called Unwavering. The bodhisattva on the eighth bhūmi has no conceptuality. He sees the suffering of beings and therefore strives for enlightenment like a person trying to wake himself from a nightmare. He has no dualistic effort or dualistic engagement in any kind of activity. He has knowledge of all universes, the elements, and atoms. He takes birth in countless universes, taking on whatever form is necessary to guide beings.
The bodhisattva on the eighth bhūmi is like a golden adornment on the head or throat of a ruler of Jambudvīpa.
From the ten perfections he primarily practices the perfection of aspiration. Most of the bodhisattvas on the eighth bhūmi become a Brahmā, a ruler of a billion-world universe, who teaches the perfections to beings. In each instant the bodhisattva sees as many buddhas as there are atoms in a million universes, illuminates as many worlds as there are atoms in a million universes, causes as many worlds to shake as there are atoms in a million universes, and so on.
Vajragarbha repeats the teaching in verse.
Millions of realms shake, and light from the Buddha illuminates all realms. The bodhisattvas, Vaśavartin, and the deities make offerings, and goddesses sing praises to bodhisattvas.
Vimukticandra asks Vajragarbha to teach the ninth bhūmi. Vajragarbha describes the ten qualities through which a bodhisattva attains the ninth bhūmi, Perfect Understanding. The bodhisattva on the ninth bhūmi has perfect knowledge of all kinds so that he can guide beings in various ways. He can teach simultaneously in all worlds and in all languages. He can cause all sounds to be the teaching of the Dharma and all Dharma teachings to come from one syllable. He can answer the simultaneous questions of all beings in the universe at the same time.
The bodhisattva on the ninth bhūmi is like a gold adornment on the head or throat of a cakravartin who rules the four continents.
From among the ten perfections, he primarily practices the perfection of strength. Most of the bodhisattvas on the ninth bhūmi become a great Brahmā, a ruler of two universes, who teaches the perfections to beings. In each instant, the bodhisattva sees as many buddhas as there are atoms in countless millions of universes, illuminates as many worlds as there are atoms in countless millions of universes, causes to shake as many worlds as there are atoms in countless millions of universes, and so on.
Vajragarbha repeats the teaching in verse.
A million deities from the form realm, the bodhisattvas, Vaśavartin, and the Paranirmitavaśavartin deities make offerings to the Buddha, and goddesses sing praises to the Buddha.
[B13]
Then the Bhagavat was in the deva king Vaśavartin’s divine palace of precious jewels, together with a great saṅgha of bodhisattvas. They were all irreversible and one lifetime away from attaining the highest complete enlightenment. They had gathered there from various worlds. They dwelled in the attainment of the scope and range of the wisdom of all bodhisattvas. They maintained the range of activity that approaches and enters the scope of the wisdom of all tathāgatas. They were skilled in manifesting at the proper moment in time all the activities of unimpeded blessings that would ripen and guide all beings. They had a range of activity that continually fulfilled the prayers of all bodhisattvas, and they continued in their conduct throughout eons, realms, and times. They had completed the accumulations of the merit, wisdom, and miraculous powers of all bodhisattvas, and they had unceasingly cared for all beings. They had attained the highest perfection of the wisdom and methods of all bodhisattvas. They had unceasing accomplishment of bodhisattva conduct, manifesting the doorways of saṃsāra and nirvāṇa. They were skilled in manifesting all the activities that come from being adept in the dhyānas, liberations, samādhis, samāpattis, clairvoyances, and wisdom of all bodhisattvas.
They had attained mastery of the miraculous powers of all bodhisattvas. Without performing any action, they went in a mind’s instant to the assemblies of the followers of all tathāgatas as individuals who would be their foremost interlocutors. They maintained the Dharma wheels of all tathāgatas. They engaged in a multitude of offerings and acts of service to the buddhas. They manifested the appearance of bodies in all worlds and with equanimity engaged in undertaking the activities of all bodhisattvas. The unimpeded sound of their voices resounded throughout the entire realm of phenomena so that the three times were pervaded by the scope of the unimpeded wisdom of their minds. They had the perfection of the acquisition of the qualities of all bodhisattvas and taught them continuously for uncountable eons by unceasingly expressing praises of these qualities.
These bodhisattvas were the bodhisattva mahāsattva Vajragarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Ratnagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Padmagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Śrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Padmaśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Sūryagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Śucigarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Kṣitigarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Śaśivimalagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Sarvavyūhālaṃkārapratibhāsasaṃdarśanagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Jñānavairocanagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Ruciraśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Candanaśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Puṣpaśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Kusumaśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Utpalaśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Devaśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Puṇyaśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Anāvaraṇajñānaviśuddhigarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Guṇaśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Nārāyaṇaśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Amalagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Vimalagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Vicitrapratibhāṇālaṃkāragarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Mahāraśmijālāvabhāsagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Vimalaprabhāsaśrītejorājagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Suvarṇabhadravimalavasucitratejolalitagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Sarvalakṣaṇapratimaṇḍitaviśuddhiśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Vajrārciḥśrīvatsālaṃkāragarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Jyotirjvalanārciḥśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Nakṣatrarājaprabhāvabhāsagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Gaganakośānāvaraṇajñānagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Anāvaraṇasvaramaṇḍalamadhuranirghoṣagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Dhāraṇīmukhasarvajagatpraṇidhisaṃdhāraṇagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Sāgaravyūhagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Meruśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Sarvaguṇaviśuddhigarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Tathāgataśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Buddhaśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Vimukticandra, and so on. These boundless, innumerable, countless, inconceivable, unequaled, measureless, infinite, endless, unlimited, and most indescribable of indescribable bodhisattva mahāsattvas such as Vajragarbha had all gathered there from various buddha realms.
Then at that time the bodhisattva mahāsattva Vajragarbha, through the power of the Buddha, entered the samādhi called the radiance of the Mahāyāna.
As soon as the bodhisattva mahāsattva Vajragarbha entered the samādhi called the radiance of the Mahāyāna, buddha bhagavats who all had the name Vajragarbha and were as numerous as the atoms in a hundred million buddha realms, who were from beyond worlds in the ten directions as numerous as the atoms in a hundred million buddha realms, appeared to him. Those buddha bhagavats said these words:
“O noble son! It is excellent, excellent that you have entered the samādhi called the radiance of the Mahāyāna. In this way, noble son, the buddhas, the bhagavats in the ten directions, who are as numerous as the atoms in a hundred million buddha realms, and who all have the same name as you, which is Vajragarbha, because of the blessing of the previous prayers of this bhagavat tathāgata arhat samyaksambuddha Vairocana and because of your particular wisdom, give you their blessing so that through your teaching all bodhisattvas will (1) enter the bhūmis of the wisdom of the radiance of the Buddha’s inconceivable Dharma, (2) completely accumulate all roots of goodness, (3) become skilled in examining the entire Dharma of the Buddha, (4) possess a vast wisdom of the entire Dharma, (5) teach the perfectly preserved Dharma, (6) have the purified wisdom of indivisibility, (7) be unstained by all worldly qualities, (8) purify the transcendent roots of goodness, (9) realize the scope of inconceivable wisdom, and (10) ultimately attain the scope of omniscient wisdom.
“This is for the purpose of commencing upon and attaining the ten bhūmis of the bodhisattvas through (1) the teaching that presents the bodhisattva bhūmis, (2) a focus on the entire Dharma of the Buddha, (3) meditation on the different kinds of immaculate qualities, (4) skill in the great light of wisdom that has analyzed the perfectly analyzed, (5) entry through the door of knowledge through perfect examination, (6) the bright illumination of the eloquence of explaining every kind of opposing standpoint, (7) the realization of the level of great discerning knowledge, (8) the continuous remembering of bodhicitta, (9) the ripening of all realms of beings, and (10) the acquisition of skillfulness through certainty in the comprehension of everything.
“Therefore, noble son, be eloquent in this Dharma teaching, which is being skillful in the different doors of the Dharma, so that through the power of the buddhas and the blessing of the light of the wisdom of the tathāgatas there will be (1) the complete purification of your roots of goodness, (2) the complete purification of the essence of phenomena, (3) benefit for all the realms of beings, (4) the dharmakāya, which is the body of wisdom, (5) the consecration received from all the buddhas, (6) the appearance of a body in all worlds, (7) the transcendence of all worldly existences, (8) the complete purification of the way of world-transcending qualities, and (9) the perfection of omniscient wisdom.”
Then those buddha bhagavats provided the bodhisattva Vajragarbha with (1) an unsurpassable body, (2) unimpeded eloquence in teaching, (3) the process of analysis through completely purified wisdom, (4) the blessing of unfailing memory, (5) skill in definitive understanding, (6) the judgment that is never lost in any situation, (7) the invincible strengths of a complete buddha, (8) the strengths and confidences of the tathāgatas, who will never be discouraged, (9) the accomplishment of the different aspects of the Dharma through the discerning knowledge of omniscient wisdom, and (10) the adornment of the unique aspects of the body, speech, and mind of the tathāgatas.
Why did this happen? It was because he (1) had attained the intrinsic nature of that samādhi, (2) had accomplished a previous prayer, (3) had perfectly purified higher motivation, (4) had the perfectly clarified circle of wisdom, (5) had perfectly accumulated the accumulations, (6) had become perfectly immaculate, (7) had become a vessel for limitless memory, (8) had the purity of clear motivation, and (9) had perfectly realized the distinct doors of retention, and because he had (10) applied the seal of the knowledge of the essence of the Dharma.
Those buddha bhagavats who were present there extended their right hands through their miraculous power and stroked the bodhisattva Vajragarbha’s head.
As soon as the bodhisattva Vajragarbha was touched by those buddha bhagavats, he arose from that samādhi and said to the bodhisattvas, “O jinaputras! This bodhisattva aspiration (1) is perfectly certain, (2) is not separate, (3) cannot be viewed, (4) is the vast essence of the Dharma, (5) extends to the limits of space, (6) reaches the ultimate conclusion, and (7) is the protection of the realm of beings.
“O jinaputras! The bodhisattva mahāsattvas enter the wisdom bhūmis of the buddha bhagavats of the past. They enter the wisdom bhūmis of the buddha bhagavats of the future. They enter the wisdom bhūmis of the buddha bhagavats of the present.
“O jinaputras! There are ten bodhisattva bhūmis that are entering the wisdom bhūmis of the buddha bhagavats.
“O jinaputras! What I say to you is what the buddha bhagavats of the past, future, and present have taught, will teach, and are teaching.
“What are these ten? They are the following: (1) Perfect Joy is the first bhūmi of the bodhisattva, (2) Stainless is the second bhūmi of the bodhisattva, (3) Shining is the third bhūmi of the bodhisattva, (4) Brilliance is the fourth bhūmi of the bodhisattva, (5) Difficult to Conquer is the fifth bhūmi of the bodhisattva, (6) Manifested is the sixth bhūmi of the bodhisattva, (7) Gone Far is the seventh bhūmi of the bodhisattva, (8) Unwavering is the eighth bhūmi of the bodhisattva, (9) Perfect Understanding is the ninth bhūmi of the bodhisattva, and (10) Cloud of Dharma is the tenth bhūmi of the bodhisattva.
“O jinaputras! These are the ten bodhisattva bhūmis of the bodhisattvas that the buddha bhagavats of the past, future, and present have taught, will teach, and are teaching.
“O jinaputras! I see that throughout all buddha realms there are no tathāgata arhat samyaksambuddhas who do not teach these ten bodhisattva bhūmis. Why is that? O jinaputras! The light from this doorway to the Dharma of purifying the bodhisattva path of the bodhisattva mahāsattvas is called most excellent. It is an inconceivable presentation of the classification of the ten bhūmis of the bodhisattvas. O jinaputras! That is this level of the knowledge of the bhūmis.”
Thus the bodhisattva Vajragarbha spoke merely the names of these ten bodhisattva bhūmis, became silent, and did not elucidate any further. All the bodhisattvas of the assembly heard just the names of the ten bodhisattva bhūmis with no further elucidation or description. Therefore, they yearned for that, thinking, “The bodhisattva Vajragarbha thus spoke just the names of the ten bodhisattva bhūmis and said no more. What is the cause and condition for his not giving any further elucidation?”
At that time, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Vimukticandra was present in that gathered assembly of bodhisattvas. The bodhisattva Vimukticandra, knowing what was being thought in the minds of the assembly of bodhisattvas, addressed these questions in verse to the bodhisattva Vajragarbha:
Then the bodhisattva Vimukticandra spoke these words to the bodhisattva Vajragarbha: “O jinaputra! This is a very pure assembly of gathered bodhisattva mahāsattvas who (1) have very pure higher motivation, (2) have very pure thoughts, (3) have practiced excellent conduct, (4) have served excellently many trillions of buddhas, (5) have excellently gathered the accumulations, (6) possess limitless qualities and wisdom, (7) are free of doubt and uncertainty, (8) are free of blemish, (9) are resolute in their motivation and aspiration, and (10) are within the Dharma of the buddhas and do not rely on anything else.
“O jinaputra, through the blessing of the tathāgatas teach well all these bodhisattvas who are present before you in this place.”
The bodhisattva Vimukticandra, in order to repeat his meaning clearly, recited these verses to the bodhisattva Vajragarbha:
The bodhisattva Vajragarbha said these words to the bodhisattva Vimukticandra: “O jinaputra, this very pure assembly of gathered bodhisattva mahāsattvas (1) has very pure higher motivation, (2) has very pure thoughts, (3) has practiced excellent conduct, (4) has excellently served trillions of buddhas, (5) has excellently gathered the accumulations, (6) possesses limitless qualities and wisdom, (7) is free of doubt and uncertainty, (8) is free of blemish, (9) is resolute in its motivation and aspiration, and (10) is within the Dharma of the buddhas and does not rely on anything else.
“However, other beings with lesser aspiration will have doubts and uncertainty if they hear such inconceivable subjects as these, which for a long time will not bring them benefit but will harm them and cause them unhappiness. Therefore, I remained silent out of compassion for them.”
Then Vajragarbha recited these verses in order to make his meaning clear:
Then the bodhisattva Vimukticandra repeated this request to the bodhisattva Vajragarbha: “O jinaputra! Teach it well. Through the power of the tathāgatas these inconceivable subjects will be well protected and will be believed in. Why is that? O jinaputra! When you give this teaching on the bhūmis to these jinaputras, there will be an understanding of the true nature, which is what all buddhas are intent upon, and all the bodhisattvas will long to protect this wisdom bhūmi. Why is that? Because this is both the initial conduct and complete attainment of the Buddhadharma.
“O jinaputra! By analogy, the alphabet precedes the teaching of written letters and words. Without the alphabet being learned, written letters and words cannot be taught.
“O jinaputra! In the same way, through the accomplishment of conduct the bhūmis precede all the qualities of buddhahood, and self-arisen wisdom is attained through the conclusion of the bhūmis. Therefore, O jinaputra, give your teaching! The tathāgata arhat samyaksambuddhas will oversee its protection.”
Then the bodhisattva Vimukticandra, in order to repeat this clearly, recited these verses to the bodhisattva Vajragarbha:
Then all the bodhisattvas sang together in one voice, making a request to the bodhisattva Vajragarbha through the verses of a song:
Then at that time, there shone from the Bhagavat Śākyamuni’s ūrṇā hair a light ray called the light of bodhisattva power accompanied by a retinue of countless hundreds of thousands of light rays. They illuminated all infinite worlds in the ten directions, ended the suffering of all beings in the lower existences, darkened all the palaces of the māras, illuminated the gathered assemblies of all tathāgatas, revealed the range of activity of the buddhas, illuminated the bodhisattvas who had been authorized with the authorization to teach in all the gathered assemblies of tathāgatas in every world throughout all the ten directions, revealed countless manifestations of buddhas, and then formed a network of clouds of light rays as vast kūṭāgāra halls situated in the sky.
Then there shone from the ūrṇā hairs of the buddha bhagavats light rays called the light of bodhisattva power, which illuminated the bodhisattvas who had been authorized with the authorization to teach in all the gathered assemblies of tathāgatas in every world throughout all the ten directions; revealed countless manifestations of buddhas; illuminated this Sahā universe; illuminated the gathered assembly of this tathāgata, the Bhagavat Śākyamuni; illuminated the body and seat of the bodhisattva mahāsattva Vajragarbha; and formed a network of clouds of light rays as a great kūṭāgāra hall situated in the sky.
From that kūṭāgāra hall made of a network of clouds of light rays, there came these words through the power of the Buddha:
Then the bodhisattva Vajragarbha looked into the ten directions and spoke these verses so that the assembly would have faith:
“O jinaputras! The aspiration for enlightenment is developed by bodhisattvas who have (1) perfectly accumulated the roots of goodness, (2) perfectly practiced conduct, (3) perfectly accumulated the accumulations, (4) perfectly served the appearance of buddhas, (5) perfectly amassed pure qualities, (6) perfectly acquired kalyāṇamitras, (7) perfectly purified their intentions, (8) developed a vast higher motivation, (9) created the aspiration to the sublime, and (10) manifested kindness and compassion.
“That motivation is developed by the bodhisattvas in order to (1) desire the wisdom of buddhahood, (2) acquire the power of the ten strengths, (3) acquire the great confidences, (4) attain the equality of the Buddhadharma, (5) protect all beings, (6) have pure kindness and compassion, (7) have knowledge of all in the ten directions, (8) purify without impediment all buddha realms, (9) know in one instant all the three times, and (10) become confident in turning the great Dharma wheel.
“They have (1) great compassion that precedes all actions, (2) the power of knowledge and wisdom, (3) the acquisition of skillful means, (4) the support of intention and higher intention, (5) the measureless powers of the tathāgatas, (6) perfect analysis through analyzing with the power of courage and the power of intelligence, and (7) the continuous manifestation of wisdom; and they (8) have become conducive to self-arising wisdom, (9) have received the instructions for knowledge and wisdom in the Buddhadharma, and (10) are in the supreme essence of the Dharma, in the realm of space, the final highest point.
“Simultaneous with developing that motivation, the bodhisattva mahāsattva becomes transcendent, for he (1) rises above the level of ordinary beings, (2) becomes an immutable bodhisattva, (3) becomes faultless within the family of the sugatas, (4) has gone beyond caste identification, (5) has transcended all worldly ways, (6) follows the way that transcends the world, (7) remains perfectly in the nature of a bodhisattva, (8) has the unchanging possession of the bodhisattva state, (9) is in the lineage of the tathāgatas of the three times, and (10) is destined for buddhahood.
“O jinaputras! The bodhisattva established in the Dharma resides unshakably upon the bodhisattva bhūmi named Perfect Joy.
“O jinaputras! The bodhisattva who is on the Perfect Joy bodhisattva bhūmi has (1) a plenitude of joy, (2) a plenitude of admiration, (3) a plenitude of happiness, (4) a plenitude of rapture, (5) a plenitude of pleasure, (6) a plenitude of delight, (7) a plenitude of enthusiasm, (8) a plenitude of calmness, (9) a plenitude of harmlessness, and (10) a plenitude of freedom from anger.
“O jinaputras! In that way, the bodhisattva who resides on the Perfect Joy bodhisattva bhūmi has (1) perfect joy thinking of the buddha bhagavats, (2) perfect joy thinking of the Buddhadharma, (3) perfect joy thinking of the bodhisattva mahāsattvas, (4) perfect joy thinking of bodhisattva conduct, (5) perfect joy thinking of the pure perfections, (6) perfect joy thinking of the different bodhisattva bhūmis, (7) perfect joy thinking of the preeminence of the bodhisattvas, (8) perfect joy thinking of the instructions taught by the tathāgatas, (9) perfect joy thinking of the accomplishment of the benefit of beings, and (10) perfect joy thinking of accomplishing entry into the wisdom of all tathāgatas.
“Perfect Joy arises as he thinks, ‘(1) I have departed from the scope of the world, (2) I have approached the level of buddhahood, (3) I have withdrawn from the level of ordinary childlike beings, (4) I am near to the level of wisdom, (5) I am separated from falling into any lower existence, (6) I have become a refuge for all beings, (7) I am close to seeing all the tathāgatas, (8) I have arisen within the purview of all buddhas, (9) I have become equal to all bodhisattvas, and (10) I am free from all fear, alarm, and terror.’
“Why is that? O jinaputras! As soon as the bodhisattva attains the Perfect Joy bodhisattva bhūmi in this way, all these fears cease: (1) fear of the loss of livelihood, (2) fear of a bad reputation, (3) fear of death, (4) fear of the lower existences, and (5) fear from nervousness in an assembly.
“Why is that? He has no fear, alarm, terror, or horripilation (1) because he is free from the perception of a self and therefore has no attachment to the self, so how could he have attachment to material things? Therefore he has no fear of loss of livelihood; (2) because he does not have the slightest expectation of a reward from whomever he helps, but thinks, ‘My possessions are for sharing with beings’ and therefore has no fear of a bad reputation; (3) because he does not have the view of a self and therefore does not have the perception of a self and therefore has no fear of death; (4) because he thinks, ‘Even though I die, I will definitely be inseparable from the buddhas and bodhisattvas,’ and therefore has no fear of the lower existences; (5) because he thinks, ‘There is no one in the world whose motivation is even equal to mine, so how could they be higher?’ and therefore has no fear from being nervous in an assembly.
“O jinaputras! The bodhisattva who has first developed compassion, with unimpaired, uncommon higher motivation, is dedicated more than ever before to accumulating roots of goodness. This is because (1) he has the power of faith, (2) he has an abundance of admiration, (3) he has pure motivation, (4) he has an abundance of certainty, (5) he has developed kindness and compassion, (6) he has generated great love, (7) he has a resolute mind, (8) he is adorned by a sense of shame and conscience, (9) he possesses patience and gentleness, and (10) he has respect and reverence for the teachings of the tathāgata arhat samyaksambuddhas.
“(1) He accumulates roots of goodness day and night without ever being satisfied; (2) he is devoted to kalyāṇamitras; (3) he enjoys the delights of the Dharma; (4) he seeks to hear Dharma teachings without ever being satisfied; (5) he thoroughly examines the Dharma he has heard; (6) he has no mental fixation; (7) he has no attachment to acquisitions, honors, and praise; (8) he has no attachment to delight in material things; (9) he accomplishes, without ever being satisfied, the development of the motivation that is like a jewel; and (10) he aspires to the bhūmi of omniscience.
“(1) He has the strengths, confidences, and distinct qualities of the tathāgatas as his goal; (2) he seeks the perfections without impediment; (3) he has forsaken deception and deceit; (4) he practices what he preaches; (5) he always keeps to speaking the truth; (6) he creates no blemish in the family of the tathāgatas; (7) he never abandons the training of the bodhisattva and, like the great lord and king of mountains, is unshakable from the omniscient mind; (8) he has no desire for worldly activities and follows the path of renunciation that transcends the world; (9) he accumulates, without ever being satisfied, the accumulation of the factors for enlightenment; and (10) he continuously, without interruption, always seeks to progress higher and higher.
“O jinaputras! The bodhisattva mahāsattva who is on the Perfect Joy bodhisattva bhūmi is endowed with those kinds of qualities of a pure bhūmi.
“He who is on the Perfect Joy bodhisattva bhūmi accomplishes great prayers, great efforts, and great accomplishments in these ways:
1. “In order to offer to and serve all buddhas without exception, without remainder, the bodhisattva continuously makes great prayers, perfect in all aspects, that have the complete purity of a vast aspiration, are as vast as the realm of phenomena, reach the ends of space, and extend to the end of time, so that he may render great service and make great offerings to all buddhas who will appear in all eons.
2. “In order to possess the Dharma taught by all the tathāgatas, in order to obtain the enlightenment of all the buddhas, and in order to preserve the teachings of all the samyaksambuddhas, the bodhisattva continuously makes great prayers, perfect in all aspects, that have the complete purity of a vast aspiration, are as vast as the realm of phenomena, reach the ends of space, and extend to the end of time, so that he may possess the Dharma taught by all the tathāgatas.
3. “In order that during the lives of all the buddhas in infinite worlds without exception, from when they are in the divine palace in Tuṣita onward—their departure from there, descent, entering a body, being born, enjoying youth, living with a retinue of queens, abandoning the lay life, practicing asceticism, going to the bodhimaṇḍa, subjugating the māras, attaining buddhahood, receiving a supplication, turning the great Dharma wheel, and demonstrating passing into the great nirvāṇa—and in order that they may come into their presence, make offerings to them, serve them, receive the Dharma, and so on, the bodhisattva continuously makes great prayers, perfect in all aspects, that have the complete purity of a vast aspiration, are as vast as the realm of phenomena, reach the ends of space, and extend to the end of time, so that he may be in the presence of all buddhas until they pass into nirvāṇa.
4. “In order to accomplish the immeasurable vast extent of bodhisattva conduct without omission, accumulating all the perfections and refining all the bhūmis, and in order to acquire the aggregation of all the main and subsidiary factors for enlightenment—with the principal and various signs, dissolution, transformation, and all that is in the conduct of the bodhisattva, the teaching on the path of the bhūmis, the support and gift of the teaching and instruction on training in the perfections, and attaining the development of the motivation to buddhahood—the bodhisattva continuously makes great prayers, perfect in all aspects, that have the complete purity of a vast aspiration, are as vast as the realm of phenomena, reach the ends of space, and extend to the end of time, so that he may throughout all eons accomplish the development of the motivation to buddhahood.
5. “In order that all the worlds of beings, without exception or remainder, who make up the three realms, who are within the six kinds of existence—those with form and the formless, those with perception and those without perception, those who are not those with perception and also those who are not those without perception, those born from eggs, those born from wombs, those born from warm moisture, those born miraculously—in order that all these beings, all those realms of beings, be ripened completely, enter the Buddha’s Dharma, follow the path without interruption, and be brought to the bhūmi of omniscience, the bodhisattva continuously makes great prayers, perfect in all aspects, that have the complete purity of a vast aspiration, are as vast as the realm of phenomena, reach the ends of space, and extend to the end of time, so that he may throughout all eons ripen the nature of all beings.
6. “In order that his miraculous emanations may enter equally and separately into every assembly in every single world in the ten directions while having the wisdom that perceives their dissimilarities—the wide worlds and the narrow, the vast and immeasurable, the subtle and the gross, the inverted and the upside down—the bodhisattva continuously makes great prayers, perfect in all aspects, that have the complete purity of a vast aspiration, are as vast as the realm of phenomena, reach the ends of space, and extend to the end of time, so that he may throughout all eons enter those worlds for the sake of purification.
7. “In order for all purified realms to be in one realm and one realm in all realms, for there to be limitless purified buddha realms, beautified by adorning arrays of a multitude of lights, where there is the attainment of the path of purification that removes all kleśas, realms that are filled by countless beings who are the source of wisdom and that are the entirety of the vast fields of activity of the buddhas that satisfy with teachings the wishes of beings, the bodhisattva continuously makes great prayers, perfect in all aspects, that have the complete purity of a vast aspiration, are as vast as the realm of phenomena, reach the ends of space, and extend to the end of time, so that he may throughout all eons purify buddha realms.
8. “In order to be dedicated to the one intention of all bodhisattvas; in order to individually accumulate the roots of goodness; in order to have the same goal as all bodhisattvas; in order to be always inseparably accompanied by bodhisattvas; in order for the buddhas to teach him whatever he wishes; in order to obtain, through his motivation to buddhahood, the scope, power, and wisdom of all the tathāgatas; in order to attain imperishable, ever-present clairvoyance; in order to move throughout all worlds; in order for his form to appear among the assembled pupils of all buddhas and for all buddhas to teach him; in order for his bodies to continue in all his rebirths; in order to obtain the inconceivable Mahāyāna; and in order to have the uninterrupted practice of bodhisattva conduct, the bodhisattva continuously makes great prayers, perfect in all aspects, that have the complete purity of a vast aspiration, are as vast as the realm of phenomena, reach the ends of space, and extend to the end of time, so that he may throughout all eons accomplish the Mahāyāna in all his conduct.
9. “In order to practice the sublime bodhisattva conduct that resides within the irreversible wheel; in order for there to be the fruitful activities of body, speech, and mind that bring conviction in the Buddhadharma as soon as the body is seen, that bring attainment of wisdom as soon as the voice speaks, and that bring freedom from kleśas as soon as there is faith; in order to attain the motivation that is like the great king of medicines; in order to attain a body that is like a wish-fulfilling jewel; and in order to practice all the conduct of the bodhisattvas, the bodhisattva continuously makes great prayers, perfect in all aspects, that have the complete purity of a vast aspiration, are as vast as the realm of phenomena, reach the ends of space, and extend to the end of time, so that throughout all eons all his practice of the wheel of irreversibility will be fruitful.
10. “In order to attain buddhahood, unsurpassable complete enlightenment, in all worlds; in order that there will be, for each childlike being without a hairsbreadth of difference, birth, enjoying youth, living with a retinue of queens, abandoning the lay life, practicing asceticism, going to the bodhimaṇḍa, subjugating the māras, attaining buddhahood, receiving a supplication, turning the great Dharma wheel, and demonstrating passing into the great nirvāṇa; in order to obtain the Buddha’s great scope, powers, and wisdom; in order to manifest as a buddha in all the realms of beings in accordance with his wishes, and in each instant manifest buddhahood and the attainment of peace; in order that one buddhahood will fill the entire expanse of phenomena with emanations; in order that speaking in one voice will completely satisfy the minds and wishes of all the realms of beings; in order to manifest passing into the great nirvāṇa and the continuous practice of conduct; in order to teach the presentation of all the qualities in the bhūmis of great wisdom; and in order to emanate throughout all worlds the clairvoyance that is the power of the Dharma of wisdom, the bodhisattva continuously makes great prayers, perfect in all aspects, that have the complete purity of a vast aspiration, are as vast as the realm of phenomena, reach the ends of space, and extend to the end of time, so that he may throughout all eons have the clairvoyance of great wisdom in the attainment of buddhahood.
After his attainment of buddhahood, the Buddha Śākyamuni is present in many locations simultaneously. The Ten Bhūmis takes place two weeks after his enlightenment, while he is sitting silently in meditation in the central palace in the highest paradise of the desire realm. Countless bodhisattvas have assembled there. Through the power of the Buddha, the bodhisattva Vajragarbha enters samādhi and is blessed by countless buddhas, also named Vajragarbha, to give a Dharma teaching to the bodhisattvas. In response to the questions of the bodhisattva Vimukticandra, Vajragarbha describes successively the ten bhūmis of a bodhisattva. Countless bodhisattvas arrive and report that this same event is occurring simultaneously in the highest paradises of all other worlds. The Buddha is pleased by Vajragarbha’s teaching.
Translated from the Tibetan, with reference to the Sanskrit, by Peter Alan Roberts. The Tibetan reviewer was Tulku Yeshi. Emily Bower was the project manager and editor.
The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.
The generous sponsorship of Shakya Dewa and family, which helped make the work on this translation possible, is most gratefully acknowledged.
The Ten Bhūmis is chapter 31 in the 45-chapter Tibetan version of A Multitude of Buddhas (Buddhāvataṃsaka). This is often referred to by its shortened Sanskrit title, Avataṃsaka, and has been translated from the Chinese by Thomas Cleary as The Flower Ornament Scripture. The Ten Bhūmis is one of the most important chapters in A Multitude of Buddhas because its presentation of the ten bhūmis has become the standard presentation in Mahāyāna Buddhism of a bodhisattva’s progress toward buddhahood.
During the course of A Multitude of Buddhas, we find that the Buddha Śākyamuni who lived in our world is just one of countless manifestations of the Buddha Vairocana. Śākyamuni is even referred to as the Buddha Vairocana. Moreover, Śākyamuni is simultaneously present in various locations in our universe—at the Bodhi tree, in the Trāyastriṃśa paradise of Śakra on the summit of Sumeru, in the Yāma and Tuṣita paradises high above Sumeru, and in the highest paradise in the realm of desire—the Paranirmitavaśavartin paradise. Not only is he said to be simultaneously present in all those locations in our world, but he also has similar simultaneous presences in countless other worlds. All these appearances of Śākyamuni, and the gathering of the vast assemblies whom they teach, are the result of prayers he made while he was the Buddha Vairocana. In fact, according to A Multitude of Buddhas, Vairocana is even the source of all buddhas everywhere, and all the bodhisattvas listening to their teachings were pupils of Vairocana in the past.
This depiction of Śākyamuni as an emanation of Vairocana has its precedent in a sūtra that was never translated into Tibetan: the Brahmajālasūtra, which introduces the Buddha Vairocana as the source of ten billion Śākyamunis simultaneously existing in various worlds. The Buddha Vairocana would also later become the central buddha in such tantric traditions as Shingon Buddhism of Japan, which is based particularly on the Vairocanābhisambodhi Tantra.
Almost all the sūtras that make up A Multitude of Buddhas are set in the time when the Buddha Śākyamuni was still remaining silent following his enlightenment and had not yet taught. He is therefore a silent presence in all these different locations. As he does not speak, the teachings are given in his presence by such bodhisattvas as Mañjuśrī and Samantabhadra. An exception to this is the final chapter, the well-known Gaṇḍavyūha Sūtra, which takes place later in the Buddha’s life at the Jetavana Monastery in Śrāvastī. However, even in that sūtra the Buddha enters a state of meditation, and the teachings are given by others, primarily in South India, far from the physical location of Śākyamuni.
The Ten Bhūmis states that the discourse is taking place during the second week after the Buddha’s enlightenment, and that the teachings occur in the palace of Vaśavartin, the lord of the deities in the Paranirmitavaśavartin paradise. The assembly is composed of the deities dwelling in that paradise, together with bodhisattvas from countless worlds. The teaching is given by the bodhisattva Vajragarbha in response to questions from the bodhisattva Vimukticandra, who is the only bodhisattva listed in the introduction whose name does not end in garbha.
Vajragarbha appears among the lists of bodhisattvas present in other Kangyur texts and is the interlocutor in such sūtras as the Ghanavyūha and the Daśacakrakṣitigarbhasūtra. In particular, he is the Buddha’s interlocutor in the Hevajra Tantra.
The ten bhūmis are one of the groups of ten that are a frequent motif in A Multitude of Buddhas. For example, these teachings are said to occur within the Buddha Vairocana’s realm of activity, which is composed of ten vast universes. Several of its individual sūtras also present a set of ten qualities as their principal subjects: for example, the titles of chapters 15, 26, 27, 30, 31, 33, 34, 35, and 40 are respectively ten vihāras (“abodes”), ten practices, ten treasures, ten bhūmis, ten samādhis, ten clairvoyances, ten kinds of patience, and ten kāyas (“bodies”) of the Buddha. Within The Ten Bhūmis itself, each of the ten bhūmis is described through successive lists of ten qualities. The Perfection of Wisdom sūtras, the earliest of which were compiled earlier than The Ten Bhūmis, teach just six perfections of generosity, correct conduct, patience, diligence, meditation, and wisdom. The Ten Bhūmis, however, in accord with A Multitude of Buddhas’ emphasis on groups of ten, and in correlation with the ten bhūmis, contains the first appearance in Mahāyāna texts of the ten perfections, adding the four perfections of skillful method, prayer, strength, and knowledge.
The word bhūmi can mean “ground,” “level,” “stage,” and so on, but as the term ten bhūmis has become familiar to a Buddhist readership, the Sanskrit term has been retained rather than privileging one of the English translations.
The sūtras of the pre-Mahāyāna Buddhist traditions had already described distinct stages of spiritual development, primarily those of stream entrant, once-returner, non-returner, and arhat. A stream entrant will attain nirvāṇa within seven (or fourteen) lifetimes. A once-returner will only be reborn in the desire realm once more. A non-returner will be reborn in the Śuddhāvāsa paradises in the form realm and attain nirvāṇa there. Finally, the arhat will enter nirvāṇa upon death. Moreover, there are the progressive stages of the four dhyānas, which, although often referred to, are not considered to lead on their own to liberation from saṃsāra. Additionally, there are the five paths of accumulation, juncture, insight, meditation, and the stage of no-more-training, which, as we will see below, were adapted by the Mahāyāna tradition.
The Perfection of Wisdom sūtras presented two alternative descriptions of the stages of spiritual development: seven bhūmis and thirteen vihāras, which are correlated in subsequent commentarial works including the Bodhisattvabhūmi. A Multitude of Buddhas, however, teaches ten bhūmis as in the chapter translated here, and ten vihāras in the twentieth chapter, The Ten Abodes of Bodhisattvas.
The Mahāyāna commentarial tradition adapted and developed the earlier teaching of the five paths mentioned above, and these became as widely established as the teaching of the ten bhūmis. The five paths have been correlated with the ten bhūmis: the first two precede the first bhūmi, and the third is equivalent to the first bhūmi, the fourth to the other nine bhūmis, and the fifth to buddhahood.
There are other sūtras that specifically list these ten bhūmis, indicating the direct influence of The Ten Bhūmis, such as the Samādhirājasūtra, Saṃdhinirmocana, Ratnamegha, Ghanavyūha, and Dharmasaṃgītisūtra. Perhaps the earliest commentarial witness to the influence of The Ten Bhūmis is the Ratnāvalī of Nāgārjuna. Other early Mahāyāna sūtras and commentaries show no such influence from The Ten Bhūmis. The Laṅkāvatārasūtra, for example, only mentions seven bhūmis. Similarly, in the commentarial tradition, one finds that in the Bodhisattvabhūmi, which is the fifteenth section of the Yogācārabhūmi, only the seven bhūmis and the thirteen vihāras are taught. The authorship of the Yogācārabhūmi is attributed in China to Maitreyanātha and in Tibet to his successor, Asaṅga. However, it is probably a compilation from various authors. In contrast, in the Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra, which is also attributed to Maitreyanātha, the ten bhūmis are specifically presented.
The principal commentary to The Ten Bhūmis was written in the fourth century by Asaṅga’s successor and half-brother, Vasubandhu. That commentary was itself the subject of a commentary by Sūryasiddha, who claims that the meaning of the sūtra was revealed solely to Asaṅga, who subsequently transmitted it only to Vasubandhu. These texts do not concern themselves with the introductory section of the sūtra, but a commentary on the introduction was written in the eighth century by Śākyabodhi.
The ten bhūmis are found in many important later Indian Buddhist texts, such as Candrakīrti’s seventh-century Madhyamakāvatāra, and they became a central part in the presentation of the higher stages of the path in Tibet, featuring prominently in lamrim (“stages of the path”) texts.
The Ten Bhūmis first existed as an independent sūtra. Dharmarakṣa from Dunhuang translated this and other sūtras that are chapters in A Multitude of Buddhas into Chinese in the third century
In the early fifth century, The Ten Bhūmis was translated a second time into Chinese under the direction of the Indian Buddhabhadra (359–429
According to Chinese legend, A Multitude of Buddhas was preserved in three versions by a nāga king in his realm. The longest had verses as numerous as the atoms in thirteen universes. The middle length version had 1,200 chapters with 498,800 verses, and the shortest form had 48 chapters and 100,000 verses. Nāgārjuna then went to the nāga realm and brought back the shortest version to the human world. However, there is no version of the sūtra in 100,000 verses and 48 chapters.
Paramārtha (499–569) was an Indian monk who came to China in the sixth century and translated Buddhist texts into Chinese. In his writings he states that A Multitude of Buddhas was also called the Bodhisattvapiṭaka. Copies of this sūtra in the Dunhuang caves do indeed bear the title Bodhisattvapiṭaka Buddhāvataṃsaka.
Queen Wu (690–704) of the Tang dynasty, on hearing that there was a version of A Multitude of Buddhas in Khotan that was longer than that of the previous Chinese translations, sponsored its translation under the direction of the Khotanese Śikṣānanda (652–710). It was completed in 699, with the queen supplying a preface and titles. This version was composed of thirty-nine sūtras with The Ten Bhūmis as its twenty-sixth sūtra or chapter. It was this seventh-century version of A Multitude of Buddhas that became the basis for the Huayan School of Chinese Buddhism, huayan being the Chinese translation of avataṃsaka as “flower garland.” In the ninth century, Śīladharma made a new translation in China of The Ten Bhūmis.
A Multitude of Buddhas was translated into Tibetan in the early ninth century. The Tibetan version, even longer than the Chinese, is composed of forty-five sūtras with The Ten Bhūmis as its thirty-first sūtra, or chapter.
In the Chinese version of A Multitude of Buddhas, The Ten Bhūmis retains the traditional beginning of a sūtra: “Thus did I hear…” and so on. However, the version translated into Tibetan was further adapted into being a chapter in a longer work by omitting the traditional opening and by transferring a part of its introduction to its conclusion. Therefore, the Tibetan version of this sūtra begins abruptly.
The Sanskrit text referred to for this translation is based on Johannes Rahder’s 1926 edition of the prose passages, which was itself based on two manuscripts from the Bibliothèque nationale in Paris, two manuscripts from Cambridge University Library, one manuscript from the Royal Asiatic Society in London, one manuscript from the Asiatic Society of Bengal in Calcutta, and one manuscript from the Royal Library in Nepal. For the verses, the Sanskrit referred to is a 1931 edition, which is an amalgamation of Rahder’s work with Shinryu Susa’s edition based on one manuscript from the Imperial University Library in Kyoto and another from the Imperial University Library in Tokyo.
The Sanskrit version of The Ten Bhūmis is written with numerous nonclassical Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit (BHS) features and vocabulary. In particular, the verses are written in a form of Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit that has stronger Prakrit features. They favor the -u ending for the nominative case, where it would be -a in Sanskrit, -e in the ancient northeastern dialect, and -o in that of the northwest (and its continuation in Pali). It is sometimes the case that the verses of a sūtra are older than the prose sections that accompany them. In Sūryasiddha’s commentary, he even mentions the view of some scholars that the verses had been corrupted in form and meaning. The difference between the Sanskrit used in the verses and prose sections is not evident in either the Tibetan or this English translation.
The Ten Bhūmis is the thirty-first chapter in the Tibetan version of A Multitude of Buddhas and is located in the second of the four Kangyur Multitude of Buddhas volumes. It comprises fascicles 13–21 of the original 115 bundles that constitute the entire sūtra in the Sanskrit manuscript. A Multitude of Buddhas was translated into Tibetan by Yeshé Dé, Jinamitra, and Surendrabodhi during the reign of King Ralpachen (r. 815–36). The former two translators had been working at Samyé Monastery since the reign of King Trisong Detsen (r. 742–98), but Surendrabodhi came to Tibet only after King Ralpachen came to the throne. Therefore, this translation was made sometime between 815 and 836.
In addition to the translation of the sūtra in the Kangyur, most of the sūtra, but not its verses or introduction, appears in Vasubandhu’s Commentary on the Sūtra of the Ten Bhūmis, in which each passage is followed by an explanation. Vasubandhu’s commentary was presumably translated into Tibetan at some time following the translation of the sūtra. The translators of the commentary were Yeshé Dé, Kawa Paltsek, Prajñāvarman, and Mañjuśrīgarbha. Even though Yeshé Dé was involved in translating both the sūtra and the commentary, the translation in the commentary is of a better quality than that in the Kangyur, which does not appear to have been revised in the light of the translation of the commentary. There are some passages in the translation of the commentary that repeat the Kangyur version word for word, but the majority of the translation differs and is more accurate. The witness of the Sanskrit manuscripts, together with the contents of the Chinese translation, verify that the version in the translation of the commentary is more accurate and preserves certain phrases, or sometimes even entire sentences, that are missing in the Kangyur version, either as a result of omissions in a Sanskrit manuscript that was used as a source or through errors made during the centuries when the translation was preserved only in handwritten copies. This translation into English has been made by generally favoring the version translated within the commentary, with any dissimilarities from the Kangyur version annotated.
Accompanying Yeshé Dé as translator of the commentary was Kawa Paltsek. He had been among the first group to take monastic ordination in the 770s when he was a young man, but he was still active during Ralpachen’s reign and worked with Dānaśīla, who came to Tibet after 815. Another co-translator of the commentary was Prajñāvarman. He was a Bengali who had come to Tibet during Trisong Detsen’s reign and was a prolific translator of Sanskrit texts into Tibetan. He also authored Sanskrit works that were translated into Tibetan and are contained in the Tengyur. The co-translator Mañjuśrīgarbha is a lesser-known figure; he is recorded as being involved in only three translations, two of which are the two commentaries on The Ten Bhūmis.
Sūryasiddha, who wrote the second commentary, A Commentary on the Commentary on the Sūtra of the Ten Bhūmis, is an otherwise unknown author who lived sometime between the fourth and ninth centuries. This commentary was translated by three of the translators of the Vasubandhu commentary: Prajñāvarman, Kawa Paltsek, and Mañjuśrīgarbha. Yeshé Dé is noticeable by his absence, and Kawa Paltsek has taken over his role of chief editor. It is possible, but by no means certain, that this dates to a time after Yeshé Dé’s passing, which occurred during Ralpachen’s reign. Yeshé Dé’s funerary stūpa is in the environs of Samyé Monastery, where he had spent so many years working on translations. When passages from Vasubandhu’s commentary were found verbatim in Sūryasiddha’s commentary, the translators simply repeated the earlier translation they had made with Yeshé Dé.
The introductory section of the sūtra was not commented upon in either of those two commentaries, but the eighth-century Yogatantra master Śākyabodhi filled this commentarial gap with his A Commentary on the Introduction to the Sūtra of the Ten Bhūmis, which was translated into Tibetan by Kawa Paltsek and Prajñāvarman and was a useful reference for this translation.
We have translated the title Buddhāvataṃsaka as A Multitude of Buddhas. The title avataṃsaka is derived from avataṃsa. In Classical Sanskrit, avataṃsa describes a garland or any circular ornamentation. For example, karṇāvataṃsa (ear avataṃsa) means “earring.” One Tibetan translation of buddhāvataṃsaka is “the Buddha’s earring” (sangs rgyas kyi snyan gyi gong rgyan). A kusumāvataṃsa (flower avataṃsa) is a flower garland that is worn by a person, hence another Tibetan translation of buddhāvataṃsaka is “the Buddha’s garland,” using an obscure archaic word with various spellings (rmad ga chad, rma ga chad, or rmag chad). Thomas Cleary, translating into English from the Chinese Huayan, calls it Flower Ornament. However, in Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit, avataṃsaka means “a great number,” “a multitude,” or “a collection.” Therefore, we have the Tibetan version of the title as A Multitude of Buddhas (sangs rgyas phal po che). phal po che is used elsewhere in the Kangyur to translate Classical Sanskrit words meaning “multitude,” such as nicaya; or, for example, mahat janakāya (“a great assembly of beings”) is translated as skye bo phal po che. Although sangs rgyas phal po che is the title given to the sūtra in all Kangyurs, some Kangyurs, such as Degé, Urga, and the Comparative Edition (dpe bsdur ma), which is based on Degé, have the title The Mahāvaipulya Sūtra Entitled Buddha Garlands (sangs rgyas rma ga chad) at the conclusion of each fascicle. Perhaps this is the residue of an initial translation, before the title was revised. The Mahāvyutpatti dictionary, compiled by those engaged in the translation of this sūtra, gives phal po che for avataṃsaka, and neither rma ga chad nor its variant forms appear anywhere in that dictionary. This variant title rma ga chad is not found in the conclusion of the chapters in the Lhasa, Stok Palace, Narthang, Lithang, and Shelkar Kangyurs. This translation follows the example of those Kangyurs.
Whatever the original intended meaning of the title, the Tibetan translation as phal po che (“multitude”) is not inappropriate, as A Multitude of Buddhas depicts a multitude of buddhas, including a multitude of Śākyamunis that are all emanations of the Buddha Vairocana.
The sūtra is divided into ten bhūmis, and within each bhūmi there are sets of ten qualities. This has been made evident by the insertion of numbers, as otherwise it might escape attention.
The Tibetan translators appear to have either made unusual choices in the interpretation of the verses in particular, or they may have been using a manuscript with unusual variants. They occasionally translated the same Sanskrit word differently and translated different Sanskrit words with the same Tibetan word. For example, in one passage that in the English translation forms one paragraph, the Tibetan word gnas was used to translate ālaya, niketa, and the suffix -ka. This has caused certain passages in Tibetan to be comparatively obscure, as the specificity of the Sanskrit has been lost.
For this translation, when the Sanskrit words in the prose and accompanying verses correspond, then the English has also been made to match, which the Tibetan translation did not always do.
The use of numbers is unusual in the sūtra. Niyuta and koṭi, “a million” and “ten million” respectively, are usually translated as sa ya and bye ba. However, niyuta or nayuta in BHS can also mean “a hundred thousand million,” which is translated into Tibetan as khrag khrig. The Tibetan translation of the sūtra, however, translates niyuta as “ten million” (bye ba) and koṭi as “a hundred thousand million” (khrag khrig).
There are certain Sanskrit terms translated by words that have a generally known meaning in Tibetan that does not match their context in this sūtra. For example, pratibha here means “brilliance of mind” or “eloquence,” but it is translated as spobs pa. While the Tibetan definitions of this word include shes rab (“wisdom”) and smra nus (“ability to speak,” “eloquence”), this word is primarily defined and known as meaning “confidence,” but this is not the intended meaning here. Adhiṣṭhāna is used in the sūtra to mean “a basis” or “support,” as in the Mahāvyutpatti dictionary’s gzhi or rten. The Tibetan translation uses byin rlabs (“blessing”). Abhiṣekha (literally “sprinkling”) was translated into Tibetan as dbang skur. Both the Sanskrit and Tibetan are known in the West as referring to “empowerment” or “initiation” in the context of tantra, but in this sūtra, as elsewhere in Sanskrit, it specifically refers to the consecration of a crown prince to become a king: the consecration of the bodhisattva by the buddhas, the final stage of the path to buddhahood, is presented as being analogous to the consecration of a crown prince.
As for the use of pronouns, “he” is frequently used in referring to a bodhisattva in the translation, as the Sanskrit pronoun is specifically male, for in the context of a number of Mahāyāna sūtras and commentaries the advanced bodhisattva, like a buddha, has to be male.
There are numerous lists of qualities, often in sets of tens. The groupings of these qualities are clear in Sanskrit, but in the Tibetan version it is unclear where one set ends and the other begins. In this translation the lists have been separated by formatting, and each successive quality has been numbered.
The Ten Bhūmis begins with a description of the Buddha’s presence at the palace of Vaśavartin in the Paranirmitavaśavartin paradise, where bodhisattvas from countless other universes, including the bodhisattvas Vajragarbha and Vimukticandra, have gathered.
Through the power of the Buddha, Vajragarbha enters a samādhi called the radiance of the Mahāyāna, and as a result, an inconceivable number of buddhas, all of whom are named Vajragarbha, appear to him and bless him. They say that because of the prayers he made in the past, the Buddha Vairocana is now manifesting in the form of Śākyamuni in various locations. The buddhas named Vajragarbha place their hands on the bodhisattva Vajragarbha’s head, giving him a blessing that will enable him to give a teaching that will enable bodhisattvas to ascend through the ten bhūmis.
Vajragarbha comes out of that samādhi and addresses the assembled bodhisattvas. He lists the names of the ten bodhisattva bhūmis, which he says are taught by all buddhas, and then remains silent.
Vimukticandra, on behalf of all the assembled bodhisattvas, asks Vajragarbha why he does not teach these ten bhūmis. He assumes Vajragarbha does not do so because beings will not believe the teaching, but Vimukticandra states that this is an assembly of highly realized bodhisattvas who will believe what Vajragarbha teaches.
Vajragarbha answers that he did indeed remain silent out of compassion for lesser beings who would reject the teaching, because this rejection would cause them to be reborn in the lower realms.
Vimukticandra repeats his request, stating that the teaching of the ten bhūmis is essential for attaining buddhahood, from the very beginning of the path to its conclusion, just as the alphabet is crucial for all writing.
At this point, a ray of light accompanied by hundreds of thousands of light rays shines from Śākyamuni’s ūrṇā hair, the coil of white hair between his eyebrows. The light rays illuminate all worlds everywhere and darken the realms of the māras. All buddhas everywhere are illuminated. These buddhas in turn shine light rays from their own ūrṇā hairs, illuminating all worlds; in particular, the Buddha Śākyamuni and the bodhisattva Vajragarbha form an assembly hall of light in the sky above them. From that assembly hall of light comes a voice instructing Vajragarbha to teach the ten bhūmis.
Vajragarbha begins with a description of the initial motivation to attain buddhahood, which leads to the first bhūmi, Perfect Joy. He describes the nature of the joy experienced upon attaining that bhūmi, and also the other qualities that are gained, which are presented as sets of ten qualities. He contrasts these qualities with the suffering of beings, which is the result of the consecutive phases of dependent origination. The bodhisattva on the first bhūmi has compassion for these beings, performs great acts of generosity, and learns all that needs to be learned in this world. Many buddhas appear to him, and he serves the buddhas and ripens beings, as he will do on each successive bhūmi.
The qualities of each bhūmi are expressed by an analogy referring to gold, and the first bhūmi is said to be like refined gold.
From among the ten perfections, the bodhisattva on the first bhūmi practices the perfection of generosity. Like a caravan leader who must first learn about the route on which he will lead others, he learns about all ten bhūmis.
Vajragarbha concludes by stating that this is just a brief description of the first bhūmi, as a full description would take eons. He adds that the bodhisattvas on the first bhūmi become rulers of Jambudvīpa, become supreme among humans, and use this position to benefit humans. In a single instant they gain twelve qualities, such as the ability to see a hundred buddhas, manifest a hundred bodies, cause a hundred worlds to shake, and so on. This set of twelve qualities will be described for each bhūmi, with the number of buddhas, and so on, becoming progressively greater.
Vajragarbha repeats this teaching in verse.
At the conclusion of the teaching, the assembled bodhisattvas rise into the air, scatter flower petals, and praise Vajragarbha.
Vimukticandra asks Vajragarbha to teach the second bhūmi. Vajragarbha describes the ten kinds of thought that enable the bodhisattva to reach the second bhūmi, which is called Stainless. The bodhisattva on the second bhūmi practices the ten good actions and avoids the ten bad actions. He contemplates the results of bad and good actions, which range from rebirth in the lower realms to the attainments of a bodhisattva. He resolves to bring beings onto the path of good actions, to liberation from saṃsāra, and to enlightenment.
The bodhisattva on the second bhūmi is like gold that has had all impurities removed by green vitriol.
From among the ten perfections, he practices the perfection of good conduct. Bodhisattvas on the second bhūmi become cakravartin kings who rule all four continents and use their power to lead beings onto the path of good actions. In each instant they see a thousand buddhas, illuminate a thousand worlds, causes a thousand worlds to shake, and so on.
Vajragarbha repeats the teaching in verse.
The overjoyed bodhisattvas let fall clouds of flowers and praise Vajragarbha.
Vimukticandra asks Vajragarbha to teach the third bhūmi. Vajragarbha describes the ten kinds of mental orientation that enable the bodhisattva to ascend to the third bhūmi, which is called Shining. The bodhisattva on the third bhūmi contemplates the wisdom of the buddhas and how its absence causes beings to suffer in saṃsāra. The bodhisattva therefore diligently works to enable beings to practice meditation and attain wisdom so that they will be liberated. He practices generosity with diligence. He is so devoted to the Dharma that he would jump into a pit of fire in order to receive just one word of the Buddha’s teaching. He is diligent in cultivating the four dhyānas and the four formless states. He obtains miraculous powers such as clairvoyance, the ability to remember millions of previous lifetimes, and the ability to know what karma sentient beings have accumulated.
The bodhisattva on the third bhūmi is like gold perfected by a skilled goldsmith.
Of the ten perfections, he primarily practices the perfection of patience. Most of the bodhisattvas on the third bhūmi become an Indra, the deity of the paradise on the summit of Sumeru, a paradise that exists in every world of four continents. In each instant the bodhisattva sees a hundred thousand buddhas, illuminates a hundred thousand worlds, causes a hundred thousand worlds to shake, and so on.
Vajragarbha repeats the teaching in verse.
The overjoyed bodhisattvas scatter flowers on Vajragarbha and praise him. Vaśavartin scatters jewels and praises Vajragarbha’s teaching.
Vimukticandra asks Vajragarbha to teach the fourth bhūmi. Vajragarbha describes the ten attainments through insight into the Dharma that enable a bodhisattva to ascend to the fourth bhūmi, which is called Brilliance. Upon attaining this bhūmi, the bodhisattva becomes a member of the family of the buddhas. He develops the five powers, the five strengths, the four bases of miraculous powers, and the factors for enlightenment, including the noble eightfold path. He eliminates the view of self.
The bodhisattva on the fourth bhūmi is like gold that has been made into supreme jewelry.
From the ten perfections he primarily practices the perfection of diligence. Most of the bodhisattvas on the fourth bhūmi become a Suyāma, the deity who is the lord of a Yāma paradise. In each instant the bodhisattva sees ten million buddhas, illuminates ten million worlds, causes ten million worlds to shake, and so on.
Vajragarbha repeats the teaching in verse.
The overjoyed bodhisattvas scatter flowers on Vajragarbha and praise him. Vaśavartin and his deities scatter flowers on the Buddha and praise Vajragarbha’s teaching.
Vimukticandra asks Vajragarbha to teach the fifth bhūmi. Vajragarbha describes ten kinds of sameness of thought that enable the bodhisattva to ascend to the fifth bhūmi, which is called Difficult to Conquer. The bodhisattva on the fifth bhūmi attains various kinds of wisdom, and seeing that beings are in a state of ignorance, he has compassion for them. He is wise in worldly knowledge such as mathematics, medicine, poetry, music, history, architecture, and so on, through which he brings happiness to beings.
The bodhisattva on the fifth bhūmi is like gold adorned with white coral.
From the ten perfections he primarily practices the perfection of meditation. Most of the bodhisattvas on the fifth bhūmi become a Saṃtuṣita, the deity who is the lord of a Tuṣita paradise. In each instant the bodhisattva sees ten billion buddhas, illuminates ten billion worlds, causes ten billion worlds to shake, and so on.
Vajragarbha repeats the teaching in verse.
The overjoyed bodhisattvas scatter flowers and jewels upon the Buddha, and the deities scatter garlands, parasols, banners, and so on upon the Buddha and praise the teaching.
Vimukticandra asks Vajragarbha to teach the sixth bhūmi. Vajragarbha describes the ten kinds of equality of phenomena that enable a bodhisattva to ascend to the sixth bhūmi, which is called Manifested. The bodhisattva on the sixth bhūmi attains the wisdom that sees the twelve phases of dependent origination and has compassion for beings who are under the power of dependent origination. He attains the three doors to liberation.
The bodhisattva on the sixth bhūmi is like gold adorned with beryl.
From the ten perfections he primarily practices the perfection of wisdom. Most of the bodhisattvas on the sixth bhūmi become a Sunirmita, the deity who is the lord of a Nirmāṇarati paradise. In each instant the bodhisattva sees a trillion buddhas, illuminates a trillion worlds, causes a trillion worlds to shake, and so on.
Vajragarbha repeats the teaching in verse.
The overjoyed deities scatter clouds of incense and light and praise the teaching.
Vimukticandra asks Vajragarbha to teach the seventh bhūmi. Vajragarbha describes the ten kinds of engagement with the path that enable a bodhisattva to ascend to the seventh bhūmi, which is called Gone Far. The bodhisattva on the seventh bhūmi apprehends countless worlds, buddhas, and eons, the thoughts and motivations of countless beings, and so on. All the factors for enlightenment are complete in each instant, and he has pure bodhisattva conduct. Nevertheless, he cannot be said to be completely free of the kleśas, because he still desires buddhahood. He attains cessation in each instant, but instead of merging into that cessation he takes rebirth in the three realms and engages in worldly activities in order to benefit beings.
The bodhisattva on the seventh bhūmi is like gold adorned with every jewel.
From the ten perfections he primarily practices the perfection of skill in methods. Most of the bodhisattvas on the seventh bhūmi become a Vaśavartin, the deity who is the lord of a Paranirmitavaśavartin paradise, the highest paradise in the desire realm. In each instant the bodhisattva sees a quintillion buddhas, illuminates a quintillion worlds, causes a quintillion worlds to shake, and so on.
Vajragarbha repeats the teaching in verse.
The overjoyed deities scatter banners, parasols, jewelry, and so on as offerings to the Buddha and the bodhisattvas, and they sing praises of the buddhas.
Vimukticandra asks Vajragarbha to teach the eighth bhūmi. Vajragarbha describes the acceptance of the birthlessness of phenomena through which a bodhisattva attains the eighth bhūmi, which is called Unwavering. The bodhisattva on the eighth bhūmi has no conceptuality. He sees the suffering of beings and therefore strives for enlightenment like a person trying to wake himself from a nightmare. He has no dualistic effort or dualistic engagement in any kind of activity. He has knowledge of all universes, the elements, and atoms. He takes birth in countless universes, taking on whatever form is necessary to guide beings.
The bodhisattva on the eighth bhūmi is like a golden adornment on the head or throat of a ruler of Jambudvīpa.
From the ten perfections he primarily practices the perfection of aspiration. Most of the bodhisattvas on the eighth bhūmi become a Brahmā, a ruler of a billion-world universe, who teaches the perfections to beings. In each instant the bodhisattva sees as many buddhas as there are atoms in a million universes, illuminates as many worlds as there are atoms in a million universes, causes as many worlds to shake as there are atoms in a million universes, and so on.
Vajragarbha repeats the teaching in verse.
Millions of realms shake, and light from the Buddha illuminates all realms. The bodhisattvas, Vaśavartin, and the deities make offerings, and goddesses sing praises to bodhisattvas.
Vimukticandra asks Vajragarbha to teach the ninth bhūmi. Vajragarbha describes the ten qualities through which a bodhisattva attains the ninth bhūmi, Perfect Understanding. The bodhisattva on the ninth bhūmi has perfect knowledge of all kinds so that he can guide beings in various ways. He can teach simultaneously in all worlds and in all languages. He can cause all sounds to be the teaching of the Dharma and all Dharma teachings to come from one syllable. He can answer the simultaneous questions of all beings in the universe at the same time.
The bodhisattva on the ninth bhūmi is like a gold adornment on the head or throat of a cakravartin who rules the four continents.
From among the ten perfections, he primarily practices the perfection of strength. Most of the bodhisattvas on the ninth bhūmi become a great Brahmā, a ruler of two universes, who teaches the perfections to beings. In each instant, the bodhisattva sees as many buddhas as there are atoms in countless millions of universes, illuminates as many worlds as there are atoms in countless millions of universes, causes to shake as many worlds as there are atoms in countless millions of universes, and so on.
Vajragarbha repeats the teaching in verse.
A million deities from the form realm, the bodhisattvas, Vaśavartin, and the Paranirmitavaśavartin deities make offerings to the Buddha, and goddesses sing praises to the Buddha.
[B13]
Then the Bhagavat was in the deva king Vaśavartin’s divine palace of precious jewels, together with a great saṅgha of bodhisattvas. They were all irreversible and one lifetime away from attaining the highest complete enlightenment. They had gathered there from various worlds. They dwelled in the attainment of the scope and range of the wisdom of all bodhisattvas. They maintained the range of activity that approaches and enters the scope of the wisdom of all tathāgatas. They were skilled in manifesting at the proper moment in time all the activities of unimpeded blessings that would ripen and guide all beings. They had a range of activity that continually fulfilled the prayers of all bodhisattvas, and they continued in their conduct throughout eons, realms, and times. They had completed the accumulations of the merit, wisdom, and miraculous powers of all bodhisattvas, and they had unceasingly cared for all beings. They had attained the highest perfection of the wisdom and methods of all bodhisattvas. They had unceasing accomplishment of bodhisattva conduct, manifesting the doorways of saṃsāra and nirvāṇa. They were skilled in manifesting all the activities that come from being adept in the dhyānas, liberations, samādhis, samāpattis, clairvoyances, and wisdom of all bodhisattvas.
They had attained mastery of the miraculous powers of all bodhisattvas. Without performing any action, they went in a mind’s instant to the assemblies of the followers of all tathāgatas as individuals who would be their foremost interlocutors. They maintained the Dharma wheels of all tathāgatas. They engaged in a multitude of offerings and acts of service to the buddhas. They manifested the appearance of bodies in all worlds and with equanimity engaged in undertaking the activities of all bodhisattvas. The unimpeded sound of their voices resounded throughout the entire realm of phenomena so that the three times were pervaded by the scope of the unimpeded wisdom of their minds. They had the perfection of the acquisition of the qualities of all bodhisattvas and taught them continuously for uncountable eons by unceasingly expressing praises of these qualities.
These bodhisattvas were the bodhisattva mahāsattva Vajragarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Ratnagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Padmagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Śrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Padmaśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Sūryagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Śucigarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Kṣitigarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Śaśivimalagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Sarvavyūhālaṃkārapratibhāsasaṃdarśanagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Jñānavairocanagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Ruciraśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Candanaśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Puṣpaśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Kusumaśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Utpalaśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Devaśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Puṇyaśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Anāvaraṇajñānaviśuddhigarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Guṇaśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Nārāyaṇaśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Amalagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Vimalagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Vicitrapratibhāṇālaṃkāragarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Mahāraśmijālāvabhāsagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Vimalaprabhāsaśrītejorājagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Suvarṇabhadravimalavasucitratejolalitagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Sarvalakṣaṇapratimaṇḍitaviśuddhiśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Vajrārciḥśrīvatsālaṃkāragarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Jyotirjvalanārciḥśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Nakṣatrarājaprabhāvabhāsagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Gaganakośānāvaraṇajñānagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Anāvaraṇasvaramaṇḍalamadhuranirghoṣagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Dhāraṇīmukhasarvajagatpraṇidhisaṃdhāraṇagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Sāgaravyūhagarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Meruśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Sarvaguṇaviśuddhigarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Tathāgataśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Buddhaśrīgarbha, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Vimukticandra, and so on. These boundless, innumerable, countless, inconceivable, unequaled, measureless, infinite, endless, unlimited, and most indescribable of indescribable bodhisattva mahāsattvas such as Vajragarbha had all gathered there from various buddha realms.
Then at that time the bodhisattva mahāsattva Vajragarbha, through the power of the Buddha, entered the samādhi called the radiance of the Mahāyāna.
As soon as the bodhisattva mahāsattva Vajragarbha entered the samādhi called the radiance of the Mahāyāna, buddha bhagavats who all had the name Vajragarbha and were as numerous as the atoms in a hundred million buddha realms, who were from beyond worlds in the ten directions as numerous as the atoms in a hundred million buddha realms, appeared to him. Those buddha bhagavats said these words:
“O noble son! It is excellent, excellent that you have entered the samādhi called the radiance of the Mahāyāna. In this way, noble son, the buddhas, the bhagavats in the ten directions, who are as numerous as the atoms in a hundred million buddha realms, and who all have the same name as you, which is Vajragarbha, because of the blessing of the previous prayers of this bhagavat tathāgata arhat samyaksambuddha Vairocana and because of your particular wisdom, give you their blessing so that through your teaching all bodhisattvas will (1) enter the bhūmis of the wisdom of the radiance of the Buddha’s inconceivable Dharma, (2) completely accumulate all roots of goodness, (3) become skilled in examining the entire Dharma of the Buddha, (4) possess a vast wisdom of the entire Dharma, (5) teach the perfectly preserved Dharma, (6) have the purified wisdom of indivisibility, (7) be unstained by all worldly qualities, (8) purify the transcendent roots of goodness, (9) realize the scope of inconceivable wisdom, and (10) ultimately attain the scope of omniscient wisdom.
“This is for the purpose of commencing upon and attaining the ten bhūmis of the bodhisattvas through (1) the teaching that presents the bodhisattva bhūmis, (2) a focus on the entire Dharma of the Buddha, (3) meditation on the different kinds of immaculate qualities, (4) skill in the great light of wisdom that has analyzed the perfectly analyzed, (5) entry through the door of knowledge through perfect examination, (6) the bright illumination of the eloquence of explaining every kind of opposing standpoint, (7) the realization of the level of great discerning knowledge, (8) the continuous remembering of bodhicitta, (9) the ripening of all realms of beings, and (10) the acquisition of skillfulness through certainty in the comprehension of everything.
“Therefore, noble son, be eloquent in this Dharma teaching, which is being skillful in the different doors of the Dharma, so that through the power of the buddhas and the blessing of the light of the wisdom of the tathāgatas there will be (1) the complete purification of your roots of goodness, (2) the complete purification of the essence of phenomena, (3) benefit for all the realms of beings, (4) the dharmakāya, which is the body of wisdom, (5) the consecration received from all the buddhas, (6) the appearance of a body in all worlds, (7) the transcendence of all worldly existences, (8) the complete purification of the way of world-transcending qualities, and (9) the perfection of omniscient wisdom.”
Then those buddha bhagavats provided the bodhisattva Vajragarbha with (1) an unsurpassable body, (2) unimpeded eloquence in teaching, (3) the process of analysis through completely purified wisdom, (4) the blessing of unfailing memory, (5) skill in definitive understanding, (6) the judgment that is never lost in any situation, (7) the invincible strengths of a complete buddha, (8) the strengths and confidences of the tathāgatas, who will never be discouraged, (9) the accomplishment of the different aspects of the Dharma through the discerning knowledge of omniscient wisdom, and (10) the adornment of the unique aspects of the body, speech, and mind of the tathāgatas.
Why did this happen? It was because he (1) had attained the intrinsic nature of that samādhi, (2) had accomplished a previous prayer, (3) had perfectly purified higher motivation, (4) had the perfectly clarified circle of wisdom, (5) had perfectly accumulated the accumulations, (6) had become perfectly immaculate, (7) had become a vessel for limitless memory, (8) had the purity of clear motivation, and (9) had perfectly realized the distinct doors of retention, and because he had (10) applied the seal of the knowledge of the essence of the Dharma.
Those buddha bhagavats who were present there extended their right hands through their miraculous power and stroked the bodhisattva Vajragarbha’s head.
As soon as the bodhisattva Vajragarbha was touched by those buddha bhagavats, he arose from that samādhi and said to the bodhisattvas, “O jinaputras! This bodhisattva aspiration (1) is perfectly certain, (2) is not separate, (3) cannot be viewed, (4) is the vast essence of the Dharma, (5) extends to the limits of space, (6) reaches the ultimate conclusion, and (7) is the protection of the realm of beings.
“O jinaputras! The bodhisattva mahāsattvas enter the wisdom bhūmis of the buddha bhagavats of the past. They enter the wisdom bhūmis of the buddha bhagavats of the future. They enter the wisdom bhūmis of the buddha bhagavats of the present.
“O jinaputras! There are ten bodhisattva bhūmis that are entering the wisdom bhūmis of the buddha bhagavats.
“O jinaputras! What I say to you is what the buddha bhagavats of the past, future, and present have taught, will teach, and are teaching.
“What are these ten? They are the following: (1) Perfect Joy is the first bhūmi of the bodhisattva, (2) Stainless is the second bhūmi of the bodhisattva, (3) Shining is the third bhūmi of the bodhisattva, (4) Brilliance is the fourth bhūmi of the bodhisattva, (5) Difficult to Conquer is the fifth bhūmi of the bodhisattva, (6) Manifested is the sixth bhūmi of the bodhisattva, (7) Gone Far is the seventh bhūmi of the bodhisattva, (8) Unwavering is the eighth bhūmi of the bodhisattva, (9) Perfect Understanding is the ninth bhūmi of the bodhisattva, and (10) Cloud of Dharma is the tenth bhūmi of the bodhisattva.
“O jinaputras! These are the ten bodhisattva bhūmis of the bodhisattvas that the buddha bhagavats of the past, future, and present have taught, will teach, and are teaching.
“O jinaputras! I see that throughout all buddha realms there are no tathāgata arhat samyaksambuddhas who do not teach these ten bodhisattva bhūmis. Why is that? O jinaputras! The light from this doorway to the Dharma of purifying the bodhisattva path of the bodhisattva mahāsattvas is called most excellent. It is an inconceivable presentation of the classification of the ten bhūmis of the bodhisattvas. O jinaputras! That is this level of the knowledge of the bhūmis.”
Thus the bodhisattva Vajragarbha spoke merely the names of these ten bodhisattva bhūmis, became silent, and did not elucidate any further. All the bodhisattvas of the assembly heard just the names of the ten bodhisattva bhūmis with no further elucidation or description. Therefore, they yearned for that, thinking, “The bodhisattva Vajragarbha thus spoke just the names of the ten bodhisattva bhūmis and said no more. What is the cause and condition for his not giving any further elucidation?”
At that time, the bodhisattva mahāsattva Vimukticandra was present in that gathered assembly of bodhisattvas. The bodhisattva Vimukticandra, knowing what was being thought in the minds of the assembly of bodhisattvas, addressed these questions in verse to the bodhisattva Vajragarbha:
Then the bodhisattva Vimukticandra spoke these words to the bodhisattva Vajragarbha: “O jinaputra! This is a very pure assembly of gathered bodhisattva mahāsattvas who (1) have very pure higher motivation, (2) have very pure thoughts, (3) have practiced excellent conduct, (4) have served excellently many trillions of buddhas, (5) have excellently gathered the accumulations, (6) possess limitless qualities and wisdom, (7) are free of doubt and uncertainty, (8) are free of blemish, (9) are resolute in their motivation and aspiration, and (10) are within the Dharma of the buddhas and do not rely on anything else.
“O jinaputra, through the blessing of the tathāgatas teach well all these bodhisattvas who are present before you in this place.”
The bodhisattva Vimukticandra, in order to repeat his meaning clearly, recited these verses to the bodhisattva Vajragarbha:
The bodhisattva Vajragarbha said these words to the bodhisattva Vimukticandra: “O jinaputra, this very pure assembly of gathered bodhisattva mahāsattvas (1) has very pure higher motivation, (2) has very pure thoughts, (3) has practiced excellent conduct, (4) has excellently served trillions of buddhas, (5) has excellently gathered the accumulations, (6) possesses limitless qualities and wisdom, (7) is free of doubt and uncertainty, (8) is free of blemish, (9) is resolute in its motivation and aspiration, and (10) is within the Dharma of the buddhas and does not rely on anything else.
“However, other beings with lesser aspiration will have doubts and uncertainty if they hear such inconceivable subjects as these, which for a long time will not bring them benefit but will harm them and cause them unhappiness. Therefore, I remained silent out of compassion for them.”
Then Vajragarbha recited these verses in order to make his meaning clear:
Then the bodhisattva Vimukticandra repeated this request to the bodhisattva Vajragarbha: “O jinaputra! Teach it well. Through the power of the tathāgatas these inconceivable subjects will be well protected and will be believed in. Why is that? O jinaputra! When you give this teaching on the bhūmis to these jinaputras, there will be an understanding of the true nature, which is what all buddhas are intent upon, and all the bodhisattvas will long to protect this wisdom bhūmi. Why is that? Because this is both the initial conduct and complete attainment of the Buddhadharma.
“O jinaputra! By analogy, the alphabet precedes the teaching of written letters and words. Without the alphabet being learned, written letters and words cannot be taught.
“O jinaputra! In the same way, through the accomplishment of conduct the bhūmis precede all the qualities of buddhahood, and self-arisen wisdom is attained through the conclusion of the bhūmis. Therefore, O jinaputra, give your teaching! The tathāgata arhat samyaksambuddhas will oversee its protection.”
Then the bodhisattva Vimukticandra, in order to repeat this clearly, recited these verses to the bodhisattva Vajragarbha:
Then all the bodhisattvas sang together in one voice, making a request to the bodhisattva Vajragarbha through the verses of a song:
Then at that time, there shone from the Bhagavat Śākyamuni’s ūrṇā hair a light ray called the light of bodhisattva power accompanied by a retinue of countless hundreds of thousands of light rays. They illuminated all infinite worlds in the ten directions, ended the suffering of all beings in the lower existences, darkened all the palaces of the māras, illuminated the gathered assemblies of all tathāgatas, revealed the range of activity of the buddhas, illuminated the bodhisattvas who had been authorized with the authorization to teach in all the gathered assemblies of tathāgatas in every world throughout all the ten directions, revealed countless manifestations of buddhas, and then formed a network of clouds of light rays as vast kūṭāgāra halls situated in the sky.
Then there shone from the ūrṇā hairs of the buddha bhagavats light rays called the light of bodhisattva power, which illuminated the bodhisattvas who had been authorized with the authorization to teach in all the gathered assemblies of tathāgatas in every world throughout all the ten directions; revealed countless manifestations of buddhas; illuminated this Sahā universe; illuminated the gathered assembly of this tathāgata, the Bhagavat Śākyamuni; illuminated the body and seat of the bodhisattva mahāsattva Vajragarbha; and formed a network of clouds of light rays as a great kūṭāgāra hall situated in the sky.
From that kūṭāgāra hall made of a network of clouds of light rays, there came these words through the power of the Buddha:
Then the bodhisattva Vajragarbha looked into the ten directions and spoke these verses so that the assembly would have faith:
“O jinaputras! The aspiration for enlightenment is developed by bodhisattvas who have (1) perfectly accumulated the roots of goodness, (2) perfectly practiced conduct, (3) perfectly accumulated the accumulations, (4) perfectly served the appearance of buddhas, (5) perfectly amassed pure qualities, (6) perfectly acquired kalyāṇamitras, (7) perfectly purified their intentions, (8) developed a vast higher motivation, (9) created the aspiration to the sublime, and (10) manifested kindness and compassion.
“That motivation is developed by the bodhisattvas in order to (1) desire the wisdom of buddhahood, (2) acquire the power of the ten strengths, (3) acquire the great confidences, (4) attain the equality of the Buddhadharma, (5) protect all beings, (6) have pure kindness and compassion, (7) have knowledge of all in the ten directions, (8) purify without impediment all buddha realms, (9) know in one instant all the three times, and (10) become confident in turning the great Dharma wheel.
“They have (1) great compassion that precedes all actions, (2) the power of knowledge and wisdom, (3) the acquisition of skillful means, (4) the support of intention and higher intention, (5) the measureless powers of the tathāgatas, (6) perfect analysis through analyzing with the power of courage and the power of intelligence, and (7) the continuous manifestation of wisdom; and they (8) have become conducive to self-arising wisdom, (9) have received the instructions for knowledge and wisdom in the Buddhadharma, and (10) are in the supreme essence of the Dharma, in the realm of space, the final highest point.
“Simultaneous with developing that motivation, the bodhisattva mahāsattva becomes transcendent, for he (1) rises above the level of ordinary beings, (2) becomes an immutable bodhisattva, (3) becomes faultless within the family of the sugatas, (4) has gone beyond caste identification, (5) has transcended all worldly ways, (6) follows the way that transcends the world, (7) remains perfectly in the nature of a bodhisattva, (8) has the unchanging possession of the bodhisattva state, (9) is in the lineage of the tathāgatas of the three times, and (10) is destined for buddhahood.
“O jinaputras! The bodhisattva established in the Dharma resides unshakably upon the bodhisattva bhūmi named Perfect Joy.
“O jinaputras! The bodhisattva who is on the Perfect Joy bodhisattva bhūmi has (1) a plenitude of joy, (2) a plenitude of admiration, (3) a plenitude of happiness, (4) a plenitude of rapture, (5) a plenitude of pleasure, (6) a plenitude of delight, (7) a plenitude of enthusiasm, (8) a plenitude of calmness, (9) a plenitude of harmlessness, and (10) a plenitude of freedom from anger.
“O jinaputras! In that way, the bodhisattva who resides on the Perfect Joy bodhisattva bhūmi has (1) perfect joy thinking of the buddha bhagavats, (2) perfect joy thinking of the Buddhadharma, (3) perfect joy thinking of the bodhisattva mahāsattvas, (4) perfect joy thinking of bodhisattva conduct, (5) perfect joy thinking of the pure perfections, (6) perfect joy thinking of the different bodhisattva bhūmis, (7) perfect joy thinking of the preeminence of the bodhisattvas, (8) perfect joy thinking of the instructions taught by the tathāgatas, (9) perfect joy thinking of the accomplishment of the benefit of beings, and (10) perfect joy thinking of accomplishing entry into the wisdom of all tathāgatas.
“Perfect Joy arises as he thinks, ‘(1) I have departed from the scope of the world, (2) I have approached the level of buddhahood, (3) I have withdrawn from the level of ordinary childlike beings, (4) I am near to the level of wisdom, (5) I am separated from falling into any lower existence, (6) I have become a refuge for all beings, (7) I am close to seeing all the tathāgatas, (8) I have arisen within the purview of all buddhas, (9) I have become equal to all bodhisattvas, and (10) I am free from all fear, alarm, and terror.’
“Why is that? O jinaputras! As soon as the bodhisattva attains the Perfect Joy bodhisattva bhūmi in this way, all these fears cease: (1) fear of the loss of livelihood, (2) fear of a bad reputation, (3) fear of death, (4) fear of the lower existences, and (5) fear from nervousness in an assembly.
“Why is that? He has no fear, alarm, terror, or horripilation (1) because he is free from the perception of a self and therefore has no attachment to the self, so how could he have attachment to material things? Therefore he has no fear of loss of livelihood; (2) because he does not have the slightest expectation of a reward from whomever he helps, but thinks, ‘My possessions are for sharing with beings’ and therefore has no fear of a bad reputation; (3) because he does not have the view of a self and therefore does not have the perception of a self and therefore has no fear of death; (4) because he thinks, ‘Even though I die, I will definitely be inseparable from the buddhas and bodhisattvas,’ and therefore has no fear of the lower existences; (5) because he thinks, ‘There is no one in the world whose motivation is even equal to mine, so how could they be higher?’ and therefore has no fear from being nervous in an assembly.
“O jinaputras! The bodhisattva who has first developed compassion, with unimpaired, uncommon higher motivation, is dedicated more than ever before to accumulating roots of goodness. This is because (1) he has the power of faith, (2) he has an abundance of admiration, (3) he has pure motivation, (4) he has an abundance of certainty, (5) he has developed kindness and compassion, (6) he has generated great love, (7) he has a resolute mind, (8) he is adorned by a sense of shame and conscience, (9) he possesses patience and gentleness, and (10) he has respect and reverence for the teachings of the tathāgata arhat samyaksambuddhas.
“(1) He accumulates roots of goodness day and night without ever being satisfied; (2) he is devoted to kalyāṇamitras; (3) he enjoys the delights of the Dharma; (4) he seeks to hear Dharma teachings without ever being satisfied; (5) he thoroughly examines the Dharma he has heard; (6) he has no mental fixation; (7) he has no attachment to acquisitions, honors, and praise; (8) he has no attachment to delight in material things; (9) he accomplishes, without ever being satisfied, the development of the motivation that is like a jewel; and (10) he aspires to the bhūmi of omniscience.
“(1) He has the strengths, confidences, and distinct qualities of the tathāgatas as his goal; (2) he seeks the perfections without impediment; (3) he has forsaken deception and deceit; (4) he practices what he preaches; (5) he always keeps to speaking the truth; (6) he creates no blemish in the family of the tathāgatas; (7) he never abandons the training of the bodhisattva and, like the great lord and king of mountains, is unshakable from the omniscient mind; (8) he has no desire for worldly activities and follows the path of renunciation that transcends the world; (9) he accumulates, without ever being satisfied, the accumulation of the factors for enlightenment; and (10) he continuously, without interruption, always seeks to progress higher and higher.
“O jinaputras! The bodhisattva mahāsattva who is on the Perfect Joy bodhisattva bhūmi is endowed with those kinds of qualities of a pure bhūmi.
“He who is on the Perfect Joy bodhisattva bhūmi accomplishes great prayers, great efforts, and great accomplishments in these ways:
1. “In order to offer to and serve all buddhas without exception, without remainder, the bodhisattva continuously makes great prayers, perfect in all aspects, that have the complete purity of a vast aspiration, are as vast as the realm of phenomena, reach the ends of space, and extend to the end of time, so that he may render great service and make great offerings to all buddhas who will appear in all eons.
2. “In order to possess the Dharma taught by all the tathāgatas, in order to obtain the enlightenment of all the buddhas, and in order to preserve the teachings of all the samyaksambuddhas, the bodhisattva continuously makes great prayers, perfect in all aspects, that have the complete purity of a vast aspiration, are as vast as the realm of phenomena, reach the ends of space, and extend to the end of time, so that he may possess the Dharma taught by all the tathāgatas.
3. “In order that during the lives of all the buddhas in infinite worlds without exception, from when they are in the divine palace in Tuṣita onward—their departure from there, descent, entering a body, being born, enjoying youth, living with a retinue of queens, abandoning the lay life, practicing asceticism, going to the bodhimaṇḍa, subjugating the māras, attaining buddhahood, receiving a supplication, turning the great Dharma wheel, and demonstrating passing into the great nirvāṇa—and in order that they may come into their presence, make offerings to them, serve them, receive the Dharma, and so on, the bodhisattva continuously makes great prayers, perfect in all aspects, that have the complete purity of a vast aspiration, are as vast as the realm of phenomena, reach the ends of space, and extend to the end of time, so that he may be in the presence of all buddhas until they pass into nirvāṇa.
4. “In order to accomplish the immeasurable vast extent of bodhisattva conduct without omission, accumulating all the perfections and refining all the bhūmis, and in order to acquire the aggregation of all the main and subsidiary factors for enlightenment—with the principal and various signs, dissolution, transformation, and all that is in the conduct of the bodhisattva, the teaching on the path of the bhūmis, the support and gift of the teaching and instruction on training in the perfections, and attaining the development of the motivation to buddhahood—the bodhisattva continuously makes great prayers, perfect in all aspects, that have the complete purity of a vast aspiration, are as vast as the realm of phenomena, reach the ends of space, and extend to the end of time, so that he may throughout all eons accomplish the development of the motivation to buddhahood.
5. “In order that all the worlds of beings, without exception or remainder, who make up the three realms, who are within the six kinds of existence—those with form and the formless, those with perception and those without perception, those who are not those with perception and also those who are not those without perception, those born from eggs, those born from wombs, those born from warm moisture, those born miraculously—in order that all these beings, all those realms of beings, be ripened completely, enter the Buddha’s Dharma, follow the path without interruption, and be brought to the bhūmi of omniscience, the bodhisattva continuously makes great prayers, perfect in all aspects, that have the complete purity of a vast aspiration, are as vast as the realm of phenomena, reach the ends of space, and extend to the end of time, so that he may throughout all eons ripen the nature of all beings.
6. “In order that his miraculous emanations may enter equally and separately into every assembly in every single world in the ten directions while having the wisdom that perceives their dissimilarities—the wide worlds and the narrow, the vast and immeasurable, the subtle and the gross, the inverted and the upside down—the bodhisattva continuously makes great prayers, perfect in all aspects, that have the complete purity of a vast aspiration, are as vast as the realm of phenomena, reach the ends of space, and extend to the end of time, so that he may throughout all eons enter those worlds for the sake of purification.
7. “In order for all purified realms to be in one realm and one realm in all realms, for there to be limitless purified buddha realms, beautified by adorning arrays of a multitude of lights, where there is the attainment of the path of purification that removes all kleśas, realms that are filled by countless beings who are the source of wisdom and that are the entirety of the vast fields of activity of the buddhas that satisfy with teachings the wishes of beings, the bodhisattva continuously makes great prayers, perfect in all aspects, that have the complete purity of a vast aspiration, are as vast as the realm of phenomena, reach the ends of space, and extend to the end of time, so that he may throughout all eons purify buddha realms.
8. “In order to be dedicated to the one intention of all bodhisattvas; in order to individually accumulate the roots of goodness; in order to have the same goal as all bodhisattvas; in order to be always inseparably accompanied by bodhisattvas; in order for the buddhas to teach him whatever he wishes; in order to obtain, through his motivation to buddhahood, the scope, power, and wisdom of all the tathāgatas; in order to attain imperishable, ever-present clairvoyance; in order to move throughout all worlds; in order for his form to appear among the assembled pupils of all buddhas and for all buddhas to teach him; in order for his bodies to continue in all his rebirths; in order to obtain the inconceivable Mahāyāna; and in order to have the uninterrupted practice of bodhisattva conduct, the bodhisattva continuously makes great prayers, perfect in all aspects, that have the complete purity of a vast aspiration, are as vast as the realm of phenomena, reach the ends of space, and extend to the end of time, so that he may throughout all eons accomplish the Mahāyāna in all his conduct.
9. “In order to practice the sublime bodhisattva conduct that resides within the irreversible wheel; in order for there to be the fruitful activities of body, speech, and mind that bring conviction in the Buddhadharma as soon as the body is seen, that bring attainment of wisdom as soon as the voice speaks, and that bring freedom from kleśas as soon as there is faith; in order to attain the motivation that is like the great king of medicines; in order to attain a body that is like a wish-fulfilling jewel; and in order to practice all the conduct of the bodhisattvas, the bodhisattva continuously makes great prayers, perfect in all aspects, that have the complete purity of a vast aspiration, are as vast as the realm of phenomena, reach the ends of space, and extend to the end of time, so that throughout all eons all his practice of the wheel of irreversibility will be fruitful.
10. “In order to attain buddhahood, unsurpassable complete enlightenment, in all worlds; in order that there will be, for each childlike being without a hairsbreadth of difference, birth, enjoying youth, living with a retinue of queens, abandoning the lay life, practicing asceticism, going to the bodhimaṇḍa, subjugating the māras, attaining buddhahood, receiving a supplication, turning the great Dharma wheel, and demonstrating passing into the great nirvāṇa; in order to obtain the Buddha’s great scope, powers, and wisdom; in order to manifest as a buddha in all the realms of beings in accordance with his wishes, and in each instant manifest buddhahood and the attainment of peace; in order that one buddhahood will fill the entire expanse of phenomena with emanations; in order that speaking in one voice will completely satisfy the minds and wishes of all the realms of beings; in order to manifest passing into the great nirvāṇa and the continuous practice of conduct; in order to teach the presentation of all the qualities in the bhūmis of great wisdom; and in order to emanate throughout all worlds the clairvoyance that is the power of the Dharma of wisdom, the bodhisattva continuously makes great prayers, perfect in all aspects, that have the complete purity of a vast aspiration, are as vast as the realm of phenomena, reach the ends of space, and extend to the end of time, so that he may throughout all eons have the clairvoyance of great wisdom in the attainment of buddhahood.