Chapter 81: Yogic Practice of the Ultimate

81.1Then venerable Subhūti inquired of the Lord, “Lord, for someone who sees reality, defilement does not happen and purification does not happen, and even for someone who does not see reality, defilement does not happen and purification does not happen. This is because, Lord, all dharmas are the nonexistence of an intrinsic nature. So, there is no defilement and there is no purification for something that does not exist, and there is no defilement and there is no purification even for something that does exist. Lord, if there is no defilement and there is no purification even for something that exists in itself, [F.143.b] and if there is no defilement and there is no purification even for something that is the nonexistence of an intrinsic nature, well then, what is that purification the Lord has been speaking about?”

81.2“Subhūti,” he replied, “I have said that which is the sameness of all dharmas is purification.”

81.3“Lord, what is the sameness of all dharmas?” he asked.

“Subhūti,” he replied, “that suchness, unmistaken suchness, unaltered suchness, the true nature of dharmas, the dharma-constituent, the establishment of dharmas, the certification of dharmas‍—that establishment of dharmas, that dharma-constituent that remains as it is whether the tathāgatas arise or whether the tathāgatas do not arise‍—that, Subhūti, is called purification . Subhūti, that term is simply used conventionally by way of ordinary convention; it is inexpressible, not amenable to ordinary language, and inexpressible by verbal communication, sound, or word.”

81.4The Lord having said that, venerable Subhūti inquired further of him, “Lord, if all dharmas are like an illusion, like a dream, like an echo, like an apparition, like a reflection in the mirror, like a mirage, like a city of the gandharvas, and like a magical creation, well then, how, given that dharmas are like an illusion, up to like a magical creation, are nonexistent things and are not materially existent, do bodhisattva great beings produce the thought of unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening, thinking, ‘I will complete the perfection of giving,’ up to ‘I will complete the perfection of wisdom,’ and similarly, ‘I will complete the perfection of skillful means, the perfection of prayer, the perfection of power , the perfection [F.144.a] of knowledge, and the perfection of clairvoyance; I will complete absorption into the four concentrations, and I will complete the four immeasurables and four formless absorptions; I will cultivate the four applications of mindfulness, up to I will cultivate the eightfold noble path; I will gain the eight deliverances, nine serial absorptions, ten tathāgata powers, four fearlessnesses, four detailed and thorough knowledges, great love, great compassion, confident readiness, and the dhāraṇī gateways; I will complete the eighteen distinct attributes of a buddha and will gain…, up to the thirty-two major marks and eighty minor signs of a great person; I will complete the immeasurable light that causes an illumination pervading a great billionfold world system; and, having sought out the mental constructions of beings in world systems in the ten directions just by turning my mind to them, I will complete Brahmā’s melodious voice that will teach them the Dharma exactly according to their beliefs with a single melodious sound’?”

81.5“Subhūti,” he replied, “what do you think, those dharmas you have described, they are like an illusion, like a dream, like an echo, like an apparition, like a reflection in the mirror, like a mirage, like a city of the gandharvas, and like a magical creation, are they not?”

81.6The Lord having said that, venerable Subhūti said to him, “If those dharmas are like an illusion, like a dream, up to like a magical creation, [F.144.b] well then, Lord, how, given that those dharmas are like an illusion, like a dream, up to like a magical creation, would bodhisattva great beings have practiced the perfection of wisdom? Lord, an illusion, a dream, up to a magical creation are unreal, and, Lord, the unreal is unable to practice the perfection of giving, up to practice the perfection of wisdom, up to practice the thirty-seven dharmas on the side of awakening; similarly, the unreal is unable to practice…, up to the eighteen distinct attributes of a buddha and fully awaken to the knowledge of all aspects.”

81.7Venerable Subhūti having said that, the Lord said to him, “Exactly so, Subhūti, exactly so! The unreal is unable to practice the perfection of giving, up to practice the perfection of wisdom. The unreal is unable to practice…, up to the eighteen distinct attributes of a buddha and fully awaken to unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening. What do you think, Subhūti, does the perfection of giving fully awaken to unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening, up to does the perfection of wisdom fully awaken to unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening? Do the thirty-seven dharmas on the side of awakening, the fourteen emptinesses, the noble truths, the concentrations, the immeasurables, the formless absorptions, the deliverances, the dhāraṇī gateways, emptiness, signlessness, and wishlessness, the clairvoyances, [F.145.a] up to the ten tathāgata powers, the four fearlessnesses, the four detailed and thorough knowledges, or the eighteen distinct attributes of a buddha fully awaken to unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening?”

“No, Lord.”

81.8“Exactly so, Subhūti, exactly so! The perfection of giving does not fully awaken to unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening, up to the eighteen distinct attributes of a buddha do not fully awaken to unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening. And why? Subhūti, it is because all these dharmas have been brought into being and are the outcome of intentions, and the knowledge of all aspects cannot be reached through dharmas that have been brought into being and are the outcome of intentions.

81.9“But still, Subhūti, all those dharmas establish the path and bring about the path, even though they do not cause a result to be obtained. In those dharmas, what does not arise and does not stop is also what has no mark. Bodhisattva great beings, therefore, starting from the first production of the thought, are aware that those wholesome dharmas they undertake, whatever the wholesome dharma may be‍—the perfection of giving, up to or the perfection of wisdom, up to or the eighteen distinct attributes of a buddha‍—are all like an illusion. But without completing those dharmas‍—the perfection of giving, up to the perfection of wisdom, up to the eighteen distinct attributes of a buddha‍—they cannot bring beings to maturity or reach the knowledge of all aspects, so whatever the wholesome dharma the bodhisattva great beings practicing the perfection of wisdom [F.145.b] undertake, they are aware that all are like a dream, up to aware that all are like a magical creation. When they are practicing the perfection of wisdom, they are aware that…, up to the knowledge of all aspects is like a dream, up to aware that it is like a magical creation. They are aware that those beings too are practicing a practice like a dream, up to are practicing a practice like a magical creation. Therefore bodhisattva great beings practicing the perfection of wisdom apprehend all illusion-like phenomena as things that do not exist, and, apprehending them like that, accomplish the knowledge of all aspects, up to apprehend all magical creation-like phenomena as things that do not exist, and, apprehending them like that, reach the knowledge of all aspects.

81.10“The perfection of giving cannot be grasped, up to the perfection of wisdom cannot be grasped, up to the eighteen distinct attributes of a buddha cannot be grasped, so bodhisattva great beings, knowing that all phenomena cannot be grasped, set out for unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening. And why? Because all phenomena are like a dream, up to like a magical creation, cannot be grasped and are things that do not exist, and, except that all beings do not know and do not see those phenomena, phenomena that cannot be grasped are not able to reach phenomena that cannot be grasped.

81.11“Therefore, bodhisattva great beings set out for unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening for the sake of all beings. Starting from the first production of the thought, whatever gifts they give, they give all for the welfare of beings; whatever morality they guard, whatever patience they practice, whatever effort they make, whatever meditative stabilization they become absorbed in, and whatever wisdom [F.146.a] they cultivate, they cultivate all for the sake of beings, not for their own sake.

81.12“Bodhisattva great beings would not even set out for unsurpassed, perfect, complete awakening except for the sake of all beings. When they practice the perfection of wisdom, bodhisattva great beings practicing the perfection of wisdom free beings stuck in the perception of a being where there is no being, stuck in the perception of self where there is no self‍—they free from these errors beings stuck in the perception of a creature, a child of Manu, one born of Manu, a living being, one who lives, a person , an individual, one who does, one who feels, one who makes someone else do, a motivator, one who motivates, one who knows, up to one who sees, up to where there is no one who sees. Having freed them from those errors, they establish them in the realm of immortality. Having established them there, habitual ideas do not arise and do not move about, so the habitual idea of a notion of self, up to the habitual idea of the notion of one who does, do not habitually occur. Having forsaken all that moving, shaking, false projection, and thought construction, they regularly become absorbed in and stay with a mind free from false projection.

81.13“Subhūti, bodhisattva great beings practicing the perfection of wisdom with skillful means do not personally settle down on any dharma at all, and also establish all beings in nonsettling as well, but as an ordinary convention, not ultimately.”

81.14Then venerable Subhūti asked the Lord, “Lord, is the dharma a tathāgata [F.146.b] has fully awakened to, fully awakened to as an ordinary convention or as an ultimate?”

81.15“Subhūti, ‘a tathāgata has taught this dharma, a tathāgata has fully awakened to this dharma’ is a convention designated by ordinary language, because in ‘this dharma has fully awakened to that dharma’ there is nothing at all that can be apprehended. And why? Because ‘this dharma has fully awakened to that dharma’ falsely considers something a fact, because there is no attainment or clear realization at all dualistically.”

81.16Then venerable Subhūti asked the Lord, “Lord, if there is no attainment or clear realization at all dualistically, well then, is there an attainment and clear realization nondualistically?”

81.17“Subhūti, there is no clear realization dualistically and there is no clear realization nondualistically either. Here, where there is no duality and no nonduality, that is clear realization. And why? Because ‘this is clear realization; this clearly realizes’ is thought construction. In the sameness of dharmas there is no thought construction, because the absence of thought construction is the sameness of dharmas.”

81.18“Lord, given that dharmas are the nonexistence of an intrinsic nature, what is this ‘sameness of dharmas’?”

81.19“Subhūti, here where there is no existing thing, no intrinsic existence, and nothing that has been expressed, that is the sameness of dharmas. The sameness of dharmas is not something that can be expressed. Setting aside the sameness of dharmas, there is no dharma at all that can be apprehended. The sameness of dharmas has passed completely beyond [F.147.a] all dharmas. The sameness of dharmas is not the support and not within the range of simple folk or noble beings.”

81.20“Lord, is that sameness of dharmas not within the range even of a tathāgata?”

“Subhūti, that sameness of dharmas is not within the range of all noble beings, and neither is it within the range of stream enterers, or once-returners, or non-returners, or worthy ones, or pratyekabuddhas, or bodhisattvas, or even tathāgatas.”

81.21“Lord, is a tathāgata, worthy one, perfectly complete buddha not in control of the entire range of dharmas?”

81.22“Subhūti,” he replied, “were the sameness of dharmas one thing and a tathāgata, worthy one, perfectly complete buddha another, a tathāgata, worthy one, perfectly complete buddha might have control of the entire range of dharmas, but, Subhūti, that sameness that is the sameness of foolish, ordinary people, that sameness of faith followers and Dharma followers, that sameness of stream enterers, and similarly, connect this with that sameness of once-returners, non-returners, worthy ones, and pratyekabuddhas, and that sameness of tathāgatas, worthy ones, perfectly complete buddhas‍—there is not the slightest difference in that sameness. The sameness of ordinary people and the sameness of noble beings is the same sameness. In a sameness that is the same, the duality ‘this is an ordinary person, up to this is [F.147.b] a tathāgata, worthy one, perfectly complete buddha’ does not exist. In a sameness that is the same, those dharmas ‘this is an ordinary person, up to this is a tathāgata, worthy one, perfectly complete buddha’ all cannot be apprehended.”

81.23The Lord having said that, venerable Subhūti said to him, “Lord, if, in the sameness of all dharmas, ‘this is an ordinary person, this is a stream enterer,’ up to ‘this is a pratyekabuddha, this is a bodhisattva,’ up to ‘this is a tathāgata, worthy one, perfectly complete buddha’ all cannot be apprehended, in that case foolish, ordinary people, faith followers and Dharma followers, stream enterers, once-returners, non-returners, worthy ones, pratyekabuddhas, bodhisattvas, and even tathāgatas, worthy ones, perfectly complete buddhas would not have specific features.”

81.24“Exactly so, Subhūti, exactly so! In the sameness of dharmas, foolish, ordinary people, up to tathāgatas, worthy ones, perfectly complete buddhas do not have specific features.”

81.25“Lord, if, in the sameness of dharmas, foolish, ordinary people, faith followers, up to tathāgatas, worthy ones, perfectly complete buddhas do not have specific features, well then, Lord, from where do the Three Jewels‍—the Buddha Jewel, Dharma Jewel, and Saṅgha Jewel‍—appear in the world?” [F.148.a]

81.26“What do you think, Subhūti, is the Buddha Jewel one thing, the Dharma Jewel another, the Saṅgha Jewel another, and the sameness of dharmas yet another?”

81.27The Lord having asked that, venerable Subhūti said to him, “The way I understand the meaning of what you, Lord, have said, is that the Buddha Jewel is not one thing, the Dharma Jewel another, the Saṅgha Jewel another, and the sameness of dharmas yet another. That Buddha Jewel, that Dharma Jewel, that Saṅgha Jewel, and that sameness of dharmas‍—all those dharmas are not conjoined, are not disjoined, are formless, do not show themselves, and are not obstructed and have only one mark‍—that is, no mark. So, Lord, how has this presentation of dharmas that have no marks made by the Lord into ‘this is an ordinary person, this is a stream enterer, up to this is a tathāgata, worthy one, perfectly complete buddha’ come about?”

81.28Venerable Subhūti having said that, the Lord asked him, “Subhūti, were a tathāgata, worthy one, perfectly complete buddha not to have awakened fully to complete awakening, and, having not fully awakened, not made a presentation of dharmas, would it be obvious that there is hell; would it be obvious that there is the animal world, the world of Yama, humans and gods; the Cāturmahā­rājika gods, up to the Para­nirmita­vaśa­vartin, Brahmakāyika, up to those [F.148.b] in the Naiva­saṃjñā­nāsaṃjñāyatana absorption; the four applications of mindfulness, up to the eightfold noble path; inner emptiness, and similarly, connect this with each, up to the emptiness that is the nonexistence of an intrinsic nature, up to the eighteen distinct attributes of a buddha?”

“No, Lord.”

81.29“So then, Subhūti, that a tathāgata makes a presentation of dharmas without moving from the sameness of dharmas is their personal heroic power.”

81.30Then venerable Subhūti asked the Lord, “Lord, is the way in which a tathāgata does not move from the sameness of dharmas how ordinary people, up to pratyekabuddhas do not move from the sameness of dharmas, and similarly how bodhisattvas do not move from the sameness of dharmas?”

81.31“Exactly so, Subhūti, exactly so! They do not move from the sameness of dharmas and do not pass beyond the sameness of dharmas. And why? Because just that suchness, unmistaken suchness, unaltered suchness, true nature of dharmas, dharma-constituent, establishment of dharmas, certification of dharmas, and very limit of reality of tathāgatas, worthy ones, perfectly complete buddhas is itself the suchness, unmistaken suchness, unaltered suchness, true nature of dharmas, dharma-constituent, establishment of dharmas, certification of dharmas, and very limit of reality of ordinary people, and just that is the suchness, unmistaken suchness, unaltered suchness, true nature of dharmas, dharma-constituent, establishment of dharmas, certification of dharmas, and very limit of reality of faith followers and Dharma followers, Aṣṭamakas, stream enterers, once-returners, non-returners, worthy ones, pratyekabuddhas, and bodhisattvas‍—they all do not pass beyond the sameness of dharmas. And why? Because their suchness, unmistaken suchness, [F.149.a] unaltered suchness, true nature of dharmas, dharma-constituent, establishment of dharmas, certification of dharmas, and very limit of reality is just that‍—there is no other ‘sameness of dharmas’ than those.”

81.32The Lord having said that, venerable Subhūti inquired further of him, “Lord, if just that true dharmic nature of all dharmas is just that true dharmic nature of ordinary people, and if the true dharmic nature of stream enterers, once-returners, non-returners, worthy ones, pratyekabuddhas, bodhisattvas, and tathāgatas, worthy ones, perfectly complete buddhas is just that as well, in that case, Lord, given that those‍—namely, form , feeling, perception, volitional factors, and consciousness‍—have different marks, given that the true dharmic nature of form is one thing, of feeling another, of perception another, of volitional factors another, and the true dharmic nature of consciousness another; the true dharmic nature of the eyes is one thing, and the true dharmic nature of the ears, nose, tongue, body, and thinking mind another; the true dharmic nature of a form one thing, and the true dharmic nature of a sound, a smell, a taste, a feeling, and dharmas another; the true dharmic nature of the earth element one thing, and the true dharmic nature of the water element, fire element, wind element, space element, and consciousness element another; the true dharmic nature of greed, hatred, and confusion one thing, and the true dharmic nature of instances of views another; of the concentrations [F.149.b] another, of the immeasurables another, of the formless absorptions another; of the applications of mindfulness another, up to of the eightfold noble path another; of emptiness another, of signlessness another, of wishlessness another; of inner emptiness another, up to of the emptiness that is the nonexistence of an intrinsic nature another; of the deliverances another, of the absorptions another, of the tathāgata powers another, of the fearlessnesses another, of the detailed and thorough knowledges another, and of the eighteen distinct attributes of a buddha another; and given that the true dharmic nature of the compounded element is one thing, and of the uncompounded element another, in that case, Lord, how do those dharmas with different marks come to have one mark? How have bodhisattva great beings practicing the perfection of wisdom stayed there and made a differentiation of dharmas? Without making a differentiation of dharmas, bodhisattva great beings are not able to practice the perfection of wisdom, so, Lord, how do bodhisattva great beings practice the perfection of wisdom, go from level to level, enter into the secure state of a bodhisattva, having entered into the secure state of a bodhisattva transcend the śrāvaka and pratyekabuddha levels, and having transcended them complete the perfection of the clairvoyances? How do bodhisattva great beings while playing with the clairvoyances complete the perfection of giving, up to complete the perfection of meditative stabilization; while playing, pass on from buddhafield [F.150.a] to buddhafield, attend on the lord buddhas and plant wholesome roots in relation to them, and with those wholesome roots bring beings to maturity and purify a buddhafield?”

81.33Venerable Subhūti having thus inquired, the Lord said to him, “Subhūti, in regard to what you have said‍—‘If just that true dharmic nature of all dharmas is just that true dharmic nature of ordinary people, and if the true dharmic nature of tathāgatas, worthy ones, perfectly complete buddhas is just that as well, how is it right that those dharmas with different marks come to have the one mark of the true nature of dharmas?’‍—Subhūti, what do you think, is that which is the true dharmic nature of form not emptiness, up to is that which is the true dharmic nature of the Tathāgata not emptiness?”

“It is emptiness, Lord.”

81.34“Well then, Subhūti, is there any dharma with a distinct mark apprehended in emptiness‍—form with a distinct mark, up to consciousness with a distinct mark, up to a tathāgata?”

“No, Lord.”

81.35“Subhūti, from just this explanation you should understand that in the true dharmic nature of dharmas there are no ordinary people and there is nothing other than ordinary people, up to there is no tathāgata and there is nothing other than the Tathāgata.”

81.36“Lord, is that true nature of dharmas a compounded phenomenon or is it an uncompounded phenomenon?”

81.37“Subhūti, it is not a compounded phenomenon and it is not an uncompounded phenomenon either. An uncompounded phenomenon other than a compounded phenomenon cannot be apprehended, and a compounded phenomenon other than an uncompounded phenomenon cannot be apprehended either. Therefore, Subhūti, both [F.150.b] those dharmas‍—the compounded element and the uncompounded element‍—are not conjoined and not disjoined, are formless, cannot be pointed out, do not obstruct, and have only one mark‍—that is, no mark. A tathāgata employs this language according to ordinary convention, but not ultimately. In the ultimate there is no physical volitional factor, no verbal volitional factor, and no mental volitional factor, and in the ultimate something other than a physical volitional factor, verbal volitional factor, and mental volitional factor cannot be apprehended. That which is the sameness of compounded and uncompounded dharmas is the ultimate.

81.38“Therefore, bodhisattva great beings practicing the perfection of wisdom do not move from the ultimate, all the while doing the work that bodhisattvas have to do.”

81.39This was the eighty-first chapter, “Yogic Practice of the Ultimate,” of “The Perfection of Wisdom in Eighteen Thousand Lines.”