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See Karma Gyaltsen Ling Translation Group, trans., The Questions of the Girl Vimalaśraddhā (Toh 84), 2021.
See UCSB Buddhist Studies Translation Group, trans., Aśokadattā’s Prophecy, Toh 76 (84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2024).
See Sakya Pandita Translation Group (International Buddhist Academy Division), trans., The Questions of an Old Lady (Toh 171), 2011.
On the two Chinese translations, see Schuster 1984, p. 46, note 36. As noted by Schuster (p. 39), the Taishō canon contains an additional three texts with the name Strīvivarta in their title (Taishō 562–64). These three translations are all related (though with some variations) but do not share any content with Taishō 565 and 566. Instead, the protagonist in Taishō 562–64 is a bodhisattva girl, not yet born, who engages in a conversation with the Buddha while still in her mother’s womb. Later in the sūtra the girl is born and subsequently changes into a male bodhisattva in pursuit of awakening. The Tibetan Kangyur does not contain a version of Taishō 562–64.
The Denkarma catalog is dated to c. 812
Translation of these two last sentences is tentative. Degé reads: la lar ni snga ma bkad pa tsam / la lar ni bkad zin pa tsam. Stok palace reads: la lar ni snga ma bkod pa tsam / la lar ni bkod zin pa tsam.
Translated based on Choné, Lhasa, Lithang, Narthang, Kangxi, Yongle, and Stok Palace, which all omit ma before mchis.
Here, “individual being” translates the Tibetan srog, which can also mean “life force,” “vitality,” or “soul.”
The fivefold basic grouping of the components out of which the world and the individual self are formed.
The buddha in the realm of Manifest Joy (Abhirati).
A major śrāvaka disciple and personal attendant of the Buddha Śākyamuni during the last twenty-five years of his life. He was a cousin of the Buddha (according to the Mahāvastu, he was a son of Śuklodana, one of the brothers of King Śuddhodana, which means he was a brother of Devadatta; other sources say he was a son of Amṛtodana, another brother of King Śuddhodana, which means he would have been a brother of Aniruddha).
Ānanda, having always been in the Buddha’s presence, is said to have memorized all the teachings he heard and is celebrated for having recited all the Buddha’s teachings by memory at the first council of the Buddhist saṅgha, thus preserving the teachings after the Buddha’s parinirvāṇa. The phrase “Thus did I hear at one time,” found at the beginning of the sūtras, usually stands for his recitation of the teachings. He became a patriarch after the passing of Mahākāśyapa.
A bodhisattva.
Relinquishing negative acts in the present and the future and enhancing positive acts in the present and the future. These four are part of the thirty-seven factors of awakening.
Yeshé Dé (late eighth to early ninth century) was the most prolific translator of sūtras into Tibetan. Altogether he is credited with the translation of more than one hundred sixty sūtra translations and more than one hundred additional translations, mostly on tantric topics. In spite of Yeshé Dé’s great importance for the propagation of Buddhism in Tibet during the imperial era, only a few biographical details about this figure are known. Later sources describe him as a student of the Indian teacher Padmasambhava, and he is also credited with teaching both sūtra and tantra widely to students of his own. He was also known as Nanam Yeshé Dé, from the Nanam (sna nam) clan.
Determination, discernment, diligence, and concentration. These four are part of the thirty-seven factors of awakening.
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).
The heaven of Brahmā, the god who rules the Sahā World.
Mindfulness, discrimination, diligence, joy, pliancy, absorption, and equanimity. These seven are part of the thirty-seven factors of awakening.
A bodhisattva.
The relative nature of phenomena, which arises in dependence on causes and conditions. Together with the four truths of the noble ones, this was one of the first teachings given by the Buddha.
A bodhisattva.
Correct view, intention, speech, action, livelihood, effort, mindfulness, and absorption. These eight are part of the thirty-seven factors of awakening.
The liberation of form observing form, the liberation of the formless observing form, the liberation of observing beauty, the liberation of infinite space, the liberation of infinite consciousness, the liberation of nothing whatsoever, the liberation of neither presence nor absence of perception, and the liberation of cessation.
One way of describing experience and the world in terms of eighteen elements: eye, form, and eye consciousness; ear, sound, and ear consciousness; nose, odor, and nose consciousness; tongue, taste, and tongue consciousness; body, touch, and body consciousness; mind, mental objects, and mind consciousness.
The buddha that the female bodhisattva Strīvivarta will one day become.
Faith, diligence, mindfulness, absorption, and wisdom. These five are part of the thirty-seven factors of awakening.
Five extraordinary abilities that result from meditative concentration: divine sight, divine hearing, knowing others’ minds, recollecting past lives, and the ability to perform miracles.
The powers of faith, diligence, mindfulness, absorption, and wisdom. These five are part of the thirty-seven factors of awakening.
Mindfulness of the body, feelings, the mind, and phenomena. These four are part of the thirty-seven factors of awakening.
According to traditional Indian cosmology, our own Sahā world system is said to comprise four continents, namely, Pūrvavideha in the east, Jambudvīpa in the south, Aparagodānīya in the west, and Uttarakuru in the north.
An elongated, shoulder-held wooden bar (or beam) struck with a wooden striker to call the saṅgha community to assembly.
The Sanskrit term śrāvaka, and the Tibetan nyan thos, both derived from the verb “to hear,” are usually defined as “those who hear the teaching from the Buddha and make it heard to others.” Primarily this refers to those disciples of the Buddha who aspire to attain the state of an arhat seeking their own liberation and nirvāṇa. They are the practitioners of the first turning of the wheel of the Dharma on the four noble truths, who realize the suffering inherent in saṃsāra and focus on understanding that there is no independent self. By conquering afflicted mental states (kleśa), they liberate themselves, attaining first the stage of stream enterers at the path of seeing, followed by the stage of once-returners who will be reborn only one more time, and then the stage of non-returners who will no longer be reborn into the desire realm. The final goal is to become an arhat. These four stages are also known as the “four results of spiritual practice.”
Tuṣita (or sometimes Saṃtuṣita), literally “Joyous” or “Contented,” is one of the six heavens of the desire realm (kāmadhātu). In standard classifications, such as the one in the Abhidharmakośa, it is ranked as the fourth of the six counting from below. This god realm is where all future buddhas are said to dwell before taking on their final rebirth prior to awakening. There, the Buddha Śākyamuni lived his preceding life as the bodhisattva Śvetaketu. When departing to take birth in this world, he appointed the bodhisattva Maitreya, who will be the next buddha of this eon, as his Dharma regent in Tuṣita. For an account of the Buddha’s previous life in Tuṣita, see The Play in Full (Toh 95), 2.12, and for an account of Maitreya’s birth in Tuṣita and a description of this realm, see The Sūtra on Maitreya’s Birth in the Heaven of Joy, (Toh 199).
A bodhisattva.
A bodhisattva.
This term can mean both physical seclusion and a meditative state of withdrawal.
The bodhisattva Maitreya is an important figure in many Buddhist traditions, where he is unanimously regarded as the buddha of the future era. He is said to currently reside in the heaven of Tuṣita, as Śākyamuni’s regent, where he awaits the proper time to take his final rebirth and become the fifth buddha in the Fortunate Eon, reestablishing the Dharma in this world after the teachings of the current buddha have disappeared. Within the Mahāyāna sūtras, Maitreya is elevated to the same status as other central bodhisattvas such as Mañjuśrī and Avalokiteśvara, and his name appears frequently in sūtras, either as the Buddha’s interlocutor or as a teacher of the Dharma. Maitreya literally means “Loving One.” He is also known as Ajita, meaning “Invincible.”
For more information on Maitreya, see, for example, the introduction to Maitreya’s Setting Out (Toh 198).
The buddha realm of the Buddha Akṣobhya.
The Sanskrit term literally means “one who toils,” i.e., an ascetic, and the term is applied to spiritual renunciants or monks, whether Buddhist or otherwise.
According to ancient Buddhist cosmology, this is the great mountain forming the axis of the universe. At its summit is Sudarśana, home of Śakra and his thirty-two gods, and on its flanks live the asuras. The mount has four sides facing the cardinal directions, each of which is made of a different precious stone. Surrounding it are several mountain ranges and the great ocean where the four principal island continents lie: in the south, Jambudvīpa (our world); in the west, Godānīya; in the north, Uttarakuru; and in the east, Pūrvavideha. Above it are the abodes of the desire realm gods. It is variously referred to as Meru, Mount Meru, Sumeru, and Mount Sumeru.
A bodhisattva.
A bodhisattva.
An Indian preceptor resident in Tibet during the late eighth and early ninth centuries.
The vows of moral discipline which are followed by monks and nuns. The term “prātimokṣa” can be used to refer both to the disciplinary rules themselves and to the texts from the Vinaya that contain them.
A bodhisattva.
A bodhisattva.
The ancient capital of Magadha prior to its relocation to Pāṭaliputra during the Mauryan dynasty, Rājagṛha is one of the most important locations in Buddhist history. The literature tells us that the Buddha and his saṅgha spent a considerable amount of time in residence in and around Rājagṛha—in nearby places, such as the Vulture Peak Mountain (Gṛdhrakūṭaparvata), a major site of the Mahāyāna sūtras, and the Bamboo Grove (Veṇuvana)—enjoying the patronage of King Bimbisāra and then of his son King Ajātaśatru. Rājagṛha is also remembered as the location where the first Buddhist monastic council was held after the Buddha Śākyamuni passed into parinirvāṇa. Now known as Rajgir and located in the modern Indian state of Bihar.
One of the heavens of Buddhist cosmology, lowest among the six heavens of the desire realm. Dwelling place of the Four Great Kings, traditionally located on a terrace of Mount Meru.
The name for our world system, the universe of a thousand million worlds, or trichiliocosm, in which the four-continent world is located. Each trichiliocosm is ruled by a god Brahmā; thus, in this context, he bears the title of Sahāṃpati, Lord of Sahā. The world system of Sahā, or Sahālokadhātu, is also described as the buddhafield of the Buddha Śākyamuni where he teaches the Dharma to beings.
The name Sahā possibly derives from the Sanskrit √sah, “to bear, endure, or withstand.” It is often interpreted as alluding to the inhabitants of this world being able to endure the suffering they encounter. The Tibetan translation, mi mjed, follows along the same lines. It literally means “not painful,” in the sense that beings here are able to bear the suffering they experience.
The lord of the gods. Also known as Indra, the deity who is called “Lord of the Gods” dwells on the summit of Mount Meru and wields the thunderbolt. The Tibetan translation brgya byin (meaning “one hundred sacrifices”) follows the traditional Sanskrit semantic gloss that śakra is an abbreviation of śata-kratu, one who has performed a hundred sacrifices. Each world with a central Meru has a Śakra.
A bodhisattva.
The six “inner” senses (eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind), and their respective six “outer” objects of forms, sounds, odors, tastes, touch, and mental objects, are sometimes called collectively the “six sense sources,” but are also sometimes taken as two separate groups, making twelve.
An Indian preceptor resident in Tibet during the late eighth and early ninth centuries.
Literally, “buddha for oneself” or “solitary realizer.” Someone who, in his or her last life, attains awakening entirely through their own contemplation, without relying on a teacher. Unlike the awakening of a fully realized buddha (samyaksambuddha), the accomplishment of a pratyekabuddha is not regarded as final or ultimate. They attain realization of the nature of dependent origination, the selflessness of the person, and a partial realization of the selflessness of phenomena, by observing the suchness of all that arises through interdependence. This is the result of progress in previous lives but, unlike a buddha, they do not have the necessary merit, compassion or motivation to teach others. They are named as “rhinoceros-like” (khaḍgaviṣāṇakalpa) for their preference for staying in solitude or as “congregators” (vargacārin) when their preference is to stay among peers.
A female bodhisattva.
One of the closest disciples of the Buddha, known for his profound understanding of emptiness.
The ultimate nature of things, or the way things are in reality, as opposed to the way they appear to unawakened beings.
A bodhisattva.
’phags pa bud med ’gyur ba lung bstan pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo. Toh 190, Degé Kangyur, vol. 61 (mdo sde, tsa), folios 201.a–224.b.
’phags pa bud med ’gyur ba lung bstan pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo. bka’ ’gyur (dpe bsdur ma) [Comparative Edition of the Kangyur], krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe sdur khang (The Tibetan Tripitaka Collation Bureau of the China Tibetology Research Center). 108 volumes. Beijing: krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang (China Tibetology Publishing House), 2006–9, vol. 61, pp. 542–98.
’phags pa bud med ’gyur ba lung bstan pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo. Stok Palace Kangyur vol. 74 (mdo sde, ’a), folios 199.a–232.b.
pho brang stod thang ldan dkar gyi chos ’gyur ro cog gi dkar chag [Denkarma]. Toh 4364, Degé Tengyur vol. 206 (sna tshogs, jo), folios 294.b–310.a.
84000 Translation Team, trans. The Sūtra of Gaṅgottara’s Questions (Gaṅgottaraparipṛcchāsūtra, Toh 75). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2024.
Bien, Annie, trans. The Prophecy of the Girl Candrottarā (Candrottarādārikāvyākaraṇa, Toh 191). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2025.
Braarvig, Jens Erland, trans. The Miraculous Play of Mañjuśrī (Mañjuśrīvikrīḍita, Toh 96). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2020.
Dharmasāgara Translation Group, trans. The Inquiry of the Girl Sumati (Acintyabuddhaviṣayanirdeśa, Toh 74). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2024.
Karma Gyaltsen Ling Translation Group, trans. The Questions of the Girl Vimalaśraddhā (Dārikāvimalaśraddhāparipṛcchāsūtra, Toh 84). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2021.
Herrmann-Pfandt, Adelheid. Die lHan kar ma: ein früher Katalog der ins Tibetische übersetzten buddhistischen Texte. Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 2008.
Sakya Pandita Translation Group (International Buddhist Academy Division), trans. The Questions of an Old Lady (Mahallikāparipṛcchā, Toh 171). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2011.
Schuster, Nancy. “Yoga-Master Dharmamitra and Clerical Misogyny in Fifth Century Buddhism.” In The Tibet Journal, vol. 9, no. 4, 1984, pp. 33–46.
Subhashita Translation Group, trans. The Prophecy of Kṣemavatī (Kṣemavatīvyākaraṇa, Toh 192). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2022.
UCSB Buddhist Studies Translation Group, trans. Aśokadattā’s Prophecy (Aśokadattāvyākaraṇa, Toh 76). 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2024.
In this sūtra, Subhūti, one of the Buddha’s close disciples, enters into a discussion with several individuals in the course of his alms rounds. His primary interlocutor is a laywoman who reveals herself to be a bodhisattva great being named Strīvivarta; her teachings are profound and challenging, consistently pointing in the direction of ultimate truth. The sūtra culminates in the Buddha prophesying Strīvivarta’s future awakening.
Translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee under the guidance of Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche. Miguel Sawaya produced the translation and wrote the introduction. Andreas Doctor and Catherine Dalton compared the translation with the original Tibetan and edited the text. The translators are grateful to Khenpo Tokpa Tulku and Khenpo Gyaltsen from Ka-Nying Shedrub Ling Monastery for their assistance in resolving several difficult passages.
The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.
As the Buddha’s disciple Subhūti goes to collect alms one morning, he encounters a laywoman who imparts to him wise and penetrating teachings on the nature of reality. The bulk of the sūtra recounts Subhūti’s encounter and dialogue with this laywoman, who turns out to be a highly developed spiritual being named Strīvivarta. Subhūti himself adheres to the Hearers’ Vehicle, a spiritual path based on the teachings that emphasize the discipline of the prātimokṣa vows and the lack of any fixed, singular entity that could constitute a personal “self.” By contrast, Strīvivarta is a follower of the Bodhisattva Vehicle, a path toward the development of boundless compassion, the ability to benefit beings on a vast scale, and wisdom that realizes not only the lack of a personal self but also the lack of a fixed, graspable identity in all phenomena. Thus, their exchange serves to contrast these two approaches to awakening. It is worth noting that the name Strīvivarta means “female transformation,” a fact that seems relevant as she in fact transforms into a male at the end of the sūtra.
Set in Rājagṛha, where the Buddha is staying with a large number of disciples, the sūtra commences with Subhūti asking the Buddha about his dream the night before. The Buddha explains that Subhūti’s dream indicates that a previously unheard Dharma teaching will be heard; and with that, Subhūti sets off for town to collect alms. Eventually he arrives at the home of Strīvivarta, who immediately poses challenging questions to the monk on a series of profound subjects. In exchange after exchange, Subhūti does his best to reply to the laywoman, but she continuously confronts him with ever more provocative questions.
As their dialogue unfolds, we encounter explanations regarding an array of challenging topics. In addition to Strīvivarta’s eloquent ability to outshine Subhūti on topics of profound import, she is also able to read Subhūti’s mind. This fact significantly increases the monk’s consternation—not only does she challenge him regarding what he says, she even directly confronts him about his thoughts! Moreover, others (including disembodied voices from the sky and various gods) appear throughout the sūtra to put Venerable Subhūti to the test. When Subhūti tries to excuse himself and make an exit, he is schooled as to why it is inappropriate to take leave in such a situation.
Over the course of their encounter, Strīvivarta delivers a series of formidable teachings that illuminate the nature of the Great Vehicle and the Buddha’s purposes in going for alms. Strīvivarta also explains how she leads beings to spiritual maturity through skillfully bringing them pleasure. Throughout the exchange, the laywoman’s power and authority are highlighted by the fact that periodically, at the close of particular passages of her teaching, members of the audience attain significant levels of spiritual maturity.
Later in the sūtra, two of the laywoman’s young male disciples cross paths with Subhūti. They explain the greatness of bodhisattvas in comparison to the hearers and recite verses in praise of their teacher and her skillful means. This skillfulness becomes strikingly clear when Strīvivarta assumes a handsome male form, showing Subhūti the body with which she teaches women. With this, she stuns the monk to the point that he admits he is at a loss for words; and once again, he tries to leave to complete his alms rounds before it grows too late in the day. In response, Strīvivarta confounds his sense of time by showing various buddha realms in various times and by moving the sun’s position in the sky. Convinced of the truth of her teachings, and no longer concerned about time, Subhūti remains.
Following meaningful encounters with a celestial being and another inspiring bodhisattva, Subhūti finally returns to the Buddha, to whom he relates his experiences. The Buddha explains that the woman he encountered is in fact a bodhisattva great being who benefits countless beings by skillfully bringing them pleasure. Soon thereafter, the great bodhisattva herself arrives with a large retinue of women. When Subhūti pays the woman homage, the senior monk Śāriputra questions why he makes such a gesture of respect to a woman lacking both the spiritual qualities and the body of a noble one. Strīvivarta then proceeds to teach on what constitutes a noble being, the profound nature of the Great Vehicle and its followers, and the unhindered confidence of bodhisattvas.
There are other sūtras that prominently feature female bodhisattvas. The protagonists in The Questions of the Girl Vimalaśraddhā (Toh 84), The Questions of Vimaladattā (Toh 77), and The Lion’s Roar of Śrīmālādevī (Toh 92) are princesses. Elsewhere, royal women are the protagonists predicted to future awakening in The Sūtra of Aśokadattā’s Prophecy (Toh 76), The Questions of Vimalaprabhā (Toh 168), and The Sūtra of Kṣemavatī’s Prophecy (Toh 192). Less privileged laywomen are the main interlocutors in The Inquiry of the Girl Sumati (Toh 74), The Questions of Gaṅgottara (Toh 75), The Questions of an Old Lady (Toh 171), The Miraculous Play of Mañjuśrī (Toh 96), and The Sūtra of the Girl Candrottarā’s Prophecy (Toh 191). Even so, given the longstanding Buddhist tradition of according primacy to males, the focus on Strīvivarta in this scripture is unusual and refreshing. Still, in the end Strīvivarta bows down at the Buddha’s feet, saying that she will not rise again until she has received a prophecy of her future awakening and has obtained a man’s body. The five hundred women in her retinue do and say the same. In the Buddha’s prophecy that follows, he says that in the bodhisattva’s future buddha realm “not even the word woman will exist.” Upon receiving this prophecy, Strīvivarta and the five hundred women rise into the air, overjoyed, and “take on the appearance of sixteen-year-old boys.” The traditional stance on male superiority thus seems to be, after all, reinstated.
The original Sanskrit of this sūtra no longer seems to be extant, but two Chinese translations are contained in the Taishō canon (Taishō 565 and 566), the earliest of which was translated ca. 300
[B1] Homage to all the buddhas and bodhisattvas.
Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was dwelling in Rājagṛha, at Vulture Peak Mountain, together with a great saṅgha of five thousand monks. Also present were eight thousand bodhisattvas. All of them were renowned, had attained the superknowledges, and had unimpeded eloquence, fearlessness, and the acceptance that phenomena are unborn. All of them had generated roots of virtue in the presence of countless buddhas and had become followers of the Great Vehicle. Among them were the bodhisattva great beings Nimindhara, Dharaṇīdhara, Terrace Holder, Holder of the Family of Offering and Giving, Illuminating Intelligence, Completely Pure Intelligence, Purified Intelligence, Viśeṣamati, Anantamati, Vardhamānamati, Priyadarśana, Sudarśana, Surūpa, and the bodhisattva great being Seeing All Meanings. All the bodhisattva great beings of the Good Eon, such as Maitreya, had also gathered and were present in that retinue.
While the Blessed One was staying in the city of Rājagṛha, the king and all the princes, merchants, householders, ministers, attendants, and city residents, as well as all the people of that area, venerated him, showed him reverence, served him, and made offerings to him.
One morning, Venerable Subhūti put on his lower garment and robes, picked up his alms bowl, and approached the Blessed One. He prostrated, placing his head at the Blessed One’s feet, and then sat to one side. Sitting there, Venerable Subhūti told the Blessed One, “Blessed One, in my dream last night I saw the Thus-Gone One seated upon the seat of awakening. He raised his right hand, which was the color of gold, placed it on the crown of my head, and said, ‘Subhūti, tomorrow you will hear a Dharma teaching that you have not heard before.’ Blessed One, what does this foretell?”
The Blessed One replied, “Subhūti, this is an omen that sons and daughters of noble family who long for the Dharma will hear a previously unheard Dharma teaching.”
Then Venerable Subhūti said to the Blessed One, “Blessed One, I will go to the city of Rājagṛha for alms.”
“If you know that it is time for that, Subhūti, then go,” replied the Blessed One.
Having received the Blessed One’s assent, Venerable Subhūti prostrated, placing his head at the Blessed One’s feet, and then went into the city of Rājagṛha for alms. Venerable Subhūti proceeded through the city of Rājagṛha seeking alms, and, arriving at the residence of a particular householder, he stood quietly inside the gate. Emerging from that home came a lovely lady, beautiful and elegantly adorned with jewelry. She wore jewelry of precious stones, pearl, coral, and gold, so that she blazed with splendor. Her complexion was lustrous and beautiful. The lady prostrated, placing her head at Venerable Subhūti’s feet, and asked, “What do you desire, honorable Subhūti, standing at my gate?”
“Elder sister,” replied Subhūti, “it is because I seek alms that I am here at the gate.”
“Honorable Subhūti,” asked the lady, “does the notion of alms still occur to you? Have you, honorable Subhūti, not yet fully understood the notion of alms?”
Subhūti replied, “Indeed, I have fully understood the notion of alms. Nevertheless, elder sister, this body born of parents and developed by consuming rice and porridge cannot subsist without food.”
The lady asked, “Has honorable Subhūti not actualized the cessation of formative factors through the cessation of ignorance; the cessation of consciousness through the cessation of formative factors; the cessation of name and form through the cessation of consciousness; the cessation of the six sense sources through the cessation of name and form; the cessation of contact through the cessation of the six sense sources; the cessation of sensation through the cessation of contact; the cessation of craving through the cessation of sensation; the cessation of grasping through the cessation of craving; the cessation of becoming through the cessation of grasping; the cessation of birth through the cessation of becoming; the cessation of old age and death, as well as misery, lamentation, suffering, unhappiness, and agitation, through the cessation of birth?”
“Elder sister,” replied Subhūti, “I have actualized cessation.”
“Honorable Subhūti, what is it that ceases? What is it that you cultivate?”
“Elder sister, cessation is not cultivating anything at all.”
“Honorable Subhūti, if cessation is not the cultivation of anything at all, how is it that honorable Subhūti’s body will be nourished by means of alms?”
“Elder sister, having entered the equilibrium of cessation, the body that has arisen from the ceasing of all sensation is nourished by alms.”
“Honorable Subhūti, if you have passed into nirvāṇa, how is it that your body is to be nourished?”
“Elder sister, the Blessed One’s hearers wander for alms in order to nourish the body.”
“Well, hasn’t the Blessed One taught that honorable Subhūti is supreme among those without afflictions?”
“That is so, elder sister.”
“Well, does one who is without afflictions wander or move about?”
“No, elder sister, that is not the case.”
“Well then, to what end does honorable Subhūti wander about for alms?”
“Elder sister, I do not wander for alms in order to beautify the body. Rather, I go for alms in order to cease sensations and to remain alive.”
“Honorable Subhūti, are you still dominated by sensations?”
“Although I am not dominated by sensations, elder sister, I wander for alms in order to cease sensations.”
“Honorable Subhūti, one who is without afflictions is peerless. And why is that? One who is without afflictions does not experience bodily or mental sensations. One who is without afflictions is not associated with body or mind. One who is without afflictions does not feel pleasure or displeasure. One who is without afflictions is not beset with afflictions for anyone. So, why has the Blessed One taught that honorable Subhūti is supreme among those without afflictions? And why is the absence of afflictions called the absence of afflictions?”
Subhūti replied, “Elder sister, the absence of afflictions that is beyond apprehending is free from the flaws of passion.”
“Honorable Subhūti, is it then the case that if one has no afflictions, one is also free from passion?”
“That is not the case, elder sister.”
“Well then, honorable Subhūti, how is it that the absence of afflictions is also freedom from the flaws of passion?”
“The teaching on the absence of afflictions, elder sister, amounts to nothing more than an explanation.”
“Well, honorable Subhūti, does this explanation regarding the absence of afflictions not exist?”
“No, elder sister, it does not.”
“Honorable Subhūti, if this explanation regarding the absence of afflictions does not exist, what are you explaining here?”
“Elder sister, the Blessed One’s hearers simply make designations on the conventional level using conventional terms.”
“Honorable Subhūti, to the degree that there is expression, to that extent there are conventional designations. To the degree that there are conventional designations, to that extent there is error. To the degree that there is error, to that extent there will be contention. To the degree that there is contention, to that extent this is not the Dharma of mendicants.”
“So then, elder sister, what is the Dharma of mendicants?”
“Honorable Subhūti, the Dharma of mendicants is without conventions. It is unmistaken, and it is free from contention. The Dharma of mendicants is beyond Dharma and non-Dharma. The Dharma of mendicants is free from attachment and nonattachment. The Dharma of mendicants is without objects, and it is not an object. The Dharma of mendicants is without attachment; it is neither bound nor liberated. The Dharma of mendicants is without mind; it is free from mind, mentation, and consciousness. The Dharma of mendicants is contentment. The Dharma of mendicants is letting go of jealousy and attachment. The Dharma of mendicants is having little desire and being content. The Dharma of mendicants is free from all desires. The Dharma of mendicants completely transcends all objects, and it is without grasping. The Dharma of mendicants is definitely freed from the demon of the aggregates. The Dharma of mendicants is without afflictions; it has completely passed beyond the demon of the afflictions. The Dharma of mendicants is unborn. The Dharma of mendicants is free from the demon of the Lord of Death. The Dharma of mendicants is without deceit, arrogance, and concepts; it is unobscured and unfettered. The Dharma of mendicants has completely passed beyond the realm of the demons. The Dharma of mendicants is free from adopting and discarding. The Dharma of mendicants is free from birth and perishing. The Dharma of mendicants is not defiled by the demon of the gods. The Dharma of mendicants is without mental engagement and entirely unsullied. The Dharma of mendicants is without clinging, without marks, and free from all marks. The Dharma of mendicants is not altered by any modes of elements and nonelements; it is without enumeration, separation, and location, and it is equal to space.”
When the lady gave this teaching on the Dharma of mendicants, for the four thousand gods among those who had gathered by her gate to listen to the Dharma, the faultless and stainless eye of Dharma that beholds phenomena was purified. For another five hundred gods who were dedicated to the vast Dharma, the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening was brought forth after hearing the lady’s eloquent teaching.
Then Venerable Subhūti thought, “It is amazing that this elder sister is so eloquent. Since this elder sister can demonstrate such eloquence, she is surely an emanation of the Thus-Gone One.”
The lady, who knew what he was thinking, said to the elder Subhūti, “Honorable Subhūti, when you thought, ‘She is surely an emanation of the Thus-Gone One,’ you were right indeed. Why is that? Just as the Thus-Gone One has understood suchness, likewise I too have understood suchness. That being so, I am indeed an emanation of the Thus-Gone One. That which is the suchness of the form of the Thus-Gone One, and the suchness of his feelings, perceptions, formations, and consciousnesses, is also my suchness. That being so, I am an emanation of the Thus-Gone One. The suchness of the Thus-Gone One never changes into something that is not suchness. Likewise, my suchness, along with the suchness of all beings, also never changes into something that is not suchness. That being so, I am an emanation of the Thus-Gone One. The Thus-Gone One’s suchness does not only sometimes become suchness; and likewise, my suchness does not only sometimes become suchness. Rather, it is always exclusively suchness. That being so, I am an emanation of the Thus-Gone One. My suchness, along with the suchness of all beings and the suchness of all phenomena, is simply suchness, genuine and not otherwise. That being so, I am an emanation of the Thus-Gone One.”
Then Venerable Subhūti said to the lady, “Elder sister, is it by the power of the Thus-Gone One that you knew my mind, or did you know it by means of your own mind?”
“Honorable Subhūti, all those who know the minds of others, be they hearers, solitary buddhas, bodhisattvas, or sages who possess the five extraordinary abilities, know the minds of others due to the power of the Buddha. In that way, elder Subhūti, the knowledge of the minds of others is knowledge through the power of the Buddha. Honorable Subhūti, to give an analogy, beings with eyes see forms in dependence upon the moon, the sun, fire, jewels, lamps, and stars. Similarly, honorable Subhūti, anyone who knows the minds of others, while living here in the darkness of ignorance, attains this knowledge in dependence upon the Thus-Gone One.”
Then Venerable Subhūti said to the lady, “Elder sister, you are so eloquent! Tell me who you are and whence you came.”
The lady responded, “Honorable Subhūti, what response could be given if someone were to question an emanation of the Thus-Gone One, saying, ‘Noble son, tell me who you are and whence you came’?”
“Elder sister, no response whatsoever could be given.”
“Similarly, honorable Subhūti, knowing that all phenomena are essentially emanations, what is there for me to say? Furthermore, if someone were to question honorable Subhūti, saying, ‘Are you an ordinary being, a learner, or a worthy one?’ how would you respond?”
While honorable Subhūti was pondering how to respond to the elder sister, a voice called out from the sky, “Honorable Subhūti, explain briefly to this elder sister how you know that you are a worthy one, whether it is due to your attainment, realization, experience, or understanding.”
Hearing this voice from the sky, Venerable Subhūti said to the lady, “Elder sister, I am not an ordinary being, nor am I a learner, nor am I a worthy one.”
“Honorable Subhūti, how am I to understand that?”
“Elder sister, think of me just like someone designated as an emanation of the Thus-Gone One.”
“Honorable Subhūti is called ‘the foremost among the worthy ones whose defilements have been exhausted and who are without afflictions, worthy of offerings.’ ”
“Elder sister, I am not the foremost among the worthy ones whose defilements have been exhausted and who are without afflictions, worthy of offerings.”
“If you speak in such a way, honorable Subhūti, aren’t you deliberately lying?”
“Elder sister, if I were to think that I was the foremost and most worthy of offerings among those whose defilements have been exhausted and who are without afflictions, then I would be lying. However, since I do not think that, I speak honestly, and this cannot be called lying.”
“Honorable Subhūti, aren’t you deceiving the gods who have seen the truths and who have gathered by the gate to listen to the Dharma?”
“Elder sister, one cannot deceive those who have seen the truths.”
“Has honorable Subhūti seen the truths?”
“I have.”
“If the truths can be seen, they are not the truths. Why not? Because the truths cannot be seen by anyone at all.”
“Elder sister,” replied Subhūti, “what does the phrase ‘seeing the truths’ mean?”
“ ‘Seeing the truths,’ honorable Subhūti, refers to beholding all phenomena as sameness. Saying ‘I have seen the truths’ refers to seeing that which is mistaken.”
“What do you mean by that, elder sister?”
“Honorable Subhūti, seeing the truths is to see that afflictions occur because of being mistaken. Therefore, by seeing that which is mistaken, it is said that one sees the truths.”
Then the gods who had gathered at the gate to listen to the Dharma revealed the coarse forms of their bodies to elder Subhūti and said, “Honorable Subhūti, you have heard the eloquence of this elder sister; this is a fortunate discovery by you. Anyone who, hearing this teaching, dedicated to it has also met with similar fortune. However, those who appreciate it are not liberated from anything. And why is that? It is because for those who are greatly appreciative, there is no liberation from anything at all. Since those who are greatly appreciative are not bound, they are also not liberated from anything.”
Then the lady said to Venerable Subhūti, “Honorable Subhūti, aren’t you going for alms? Why have you stopped collecting food?”
“Elder sister, my food is just this—it will suffice to listen to the Dharma like this. Elder sister, one who worries about Dharma robes and alms is not one who longs for the Dharma. One who longs for gain, esteem, and praise is not one who longs for the Dharma. One who is concerned with his body, life, and alms is not one who longs for the Dharma. Even one who longs for approval is also not one who longs for the Dharma. Elder sister, what are the sons and daughters of noble family who long for the Dharma like?”
“Honorable Subhūti, one who does not crave pleasure is one who longs for the Dharma. One who is not concerned with the eyes and forms, and who is not concerned with the ears and sounds, the nose and odors, the tongue and tastes, the body and tangible objects, or the mind and mental phenomena—that is one who longs for the Dharma. One who does not depend upon any phenomenon whatsoever is one who longs for the Dharma. Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, one who does not long for the aggregates, elements, and sense sources is one who longs for the Dharma. One who does not long for the realms of desire, form, and formlessness is one who longs for the Dharma. One who does not desire to focus on the characteristics of what is observed is one who longs for the Dharma.”
Then Venerable Subhūti said to the lady, “Elder sister, I beg your pardon, as I must take my leave of your gate.”
“Honorable Subhūti,” replied the lady, “to give an analogy, one does not beg pardon of the earth element. Likewise, honorable Subhūti, one does not beg pardon of someone whose mind is like earth. Honorable Subhūti, one does not beg pardon of water. Likewise, one does not beg pardon of someone whose mind is like water. Honorable Subhūti, one does not beg pardon of fire, wind, or space. Likewise, one does not beg pardon of someone whose mind is like fire, wind, or space. Honorable Subhūti, one does not beg pardon of a ship, platform, bridge, or highway. Likewise, honorable Subhūti, one does not beg pardon of someone whose mind is like a ship, platform, bridge, or highway. Honorable Subhūti, although one begs pardon of immature beings, one does not beg pardon of noble ones. Honorable Subhūti, although one begs pardon of those for whom ill will, wrath, and latent tendencies arise, one does not beg pardon of those for whom these do not arise. Honorable Subhūti, to give an analogy, one might seek to extinguish a blazing fire, but one would not seek to extinguish a fire that is not blazing. Likewise, honorable Subhūti, although one begs pardon of those whose afflictions are blazing, one does not beg pardon of those without afflictions.”
Then Venerable Subhūti said to the lady, “Elder sister, what is it that you desire as you roar like a lion in this way?”
“Honorable Subhūti, one who has desire cannot resound with a lion’s roar. It is those who desire nothing at all who resound with a lion’s roar. Why is that? For someone who has reference points, there is desire. But for one who is free from reference points, a lion’s roar does not exist at all. For one who has the view of the transitory collection, there is desire. But for one who does not hold views, there is no lion’s roar at all. Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, what wish liberates the mind from defilements with no further grasping?”
“Elder sister, for one who has desire there is no liberation whatsoever.”
“Honorable Subhūti, in that way I have also entered the state where the mind is liberated from defilements with no further grasping. So I too am now liberated. I too have attained an understanding of the realm of phenomena.”
Then Venerable Subhūti said to the lady, “Elder sister, if you explain to me the aspects, signs, and features of the Great Vehicle, I will have no doubt that you have genuinely entered the Great Vehicle.”
The lady replied, “Honorable Subhūti, do you know the Great Vehicle’s aspects, signs, and features?”
“Elder sister, without hearing about them, the hearers are unable to know the Great Vehicle’s aspects, signs, and features. So therefore, elder sister, please explain the aspects, signs, and features of the Great Vehicle.”
“Honorable Subhūti, the Great Vehicle refers to a vehicle without attachment. It is unobscured wisdom and wisdom beyond distinctions. To give an analogy, honorable Subhūti, the chariots of the active gods and those of the moon and the sun spontaneously traverse the sky and shine on beings, doing so without attachment, without obscuration, and without interruption. Similarly, honorable Subhūti, holy beings who have genuinely entered the Great Vehicle act by the strength of the six perfections and shine the light of the Dharma on all beings without attachment, without obscuration, and without interruption. To give an analogy, honorable Subhūti, the four continents belong to the universal monarch, and wherever he goes it is appropriate that he be attended by the people of the four continents. But the universal monarch does not think of those subjects as being unequal to him; rather, he acts with loving-kindness toward them. Likewise, honorable Subhūti, wherever bodhisattvas who have genuinely entered the Great Vehicle go, whether to hamlets, cities, towns, districts, provinces, or royal palaces, it is appropriate that they be attended by all beings. Nevertheless, those bodhisattvas have an attitude of impartiality toward all those beings and do not act differently toward them. When bodhisattvas gather disciples through the four means of attraction, their love for all beings never differs. This is why it is called the Great Vehicle.
“Honorable Subhūti, the Great Vehicle means that the vehicle is greater. It is worshiped by gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas, humans, nonhumans, Śakra, Brahmā, the guardians of the world, wise ones, holy beings, knowledgeable ones, those who have gone correctly, and those who have entered correctly. This is why it is called the Great Vehicle. Since the Great Vehicle is unborn, it is inexhaustible. This vehicle is the unbroken lineage of the Buddha. This vehicle is the consolidation of the Dharma lineage. This vehicle upholds the Saṅgha lineage. Since this vehicle provides opportunities for all beings and is without obscurations, it is expansive. Since this vehicle is not a matter of improvement, it is unconditioned. This vehicle brings proficiency by means of the six perfections. This vehicle excellently draws others in through the four means of attraction. Since it follows the eight branches of the path of the noble ones, this vehicle proceeds correctly. Due to the cultivation of tranquility and special insight, this vehicle is a fine conveyance. Because the four applications of mindfulness and the mind of awakening are not forgotten, it is the abode of the excellent helmsman. Because of its great compassion, this vehicle is extremely stable. This vehicle is well-established by the state of omniscience itself. Because it conquers all demons, this vehicle is free from fear. Displaying the light of knowledge, this vehicle is free from darkness. Having gathered and accumulated all roots of virtue, this vehicle is the greatest wealth. This vehicle is revered by the world and its gods. This vehicle cannot be destroyed by any opponent. This vehicle is difficult for any hearer or solitary buddha to comprehend.
“This vehicle delights those lacking faith. This vehicle brings loving-kindness to those who are aggressive. This vehicle brings generosity to the miserly. This vehicle brings discipline to those whose discipline is lax. This vehicle brings patience to those who harbor ill will. This vehicle brings diligence to the lazy. This vehicle brings mindfulness to the forgetful. This vehicle brings calm to the distracted. This vehicle brings knowledge to those whose knowledge is faulty. This vehicle brings wealth to the poor. This vehicle brings ease to those who suffer. This vehicle brings supreme joy to the wise. This vehicle brings delight to the knowledgeable. This being so, it is called the Great Vehicle.”
Then Venerable Subhūti said to the lady, “Elder sister, you have excellently articulated the aspects, signs, and features of the Great Vehicle.”
“Honorable Subhūti,” replied the lady, “even if I were to explain the aspects, signs, and features of the Great Vehicle for an eon, or even longer than that, I would not reach the end. Honorable Subhūti, just as the Great Vehicle is immeasurable, so too are its aspects, signs, and features.”
Venerable Subhūti continued by asking the lady, “Elder sister, when you asked what I desire in going for alms, you were looking for faults in me. However, since the Thus-Gone One, the master of Dharma himself, also goes for alms, are you looking for faults in the Thus-Gone One as well?”
“Honorable Subhūti,” said the lady, “if you know of the skillfulness with which the Thus-Gone One goes for alms, please say so.”
“No, elder sister, with which skillfulness does the Thus-Gone One go for alms?”
“Honorable Subhūti, the Thus-Gone One goes for alms because he sees twenty-one great purposes. And what are those twenty-one? The Thus-Gone One goes for alms in order to display his excellent form body. Anyone who sees the body of the Thus-Gone One, adorned with the thirty-two marks of a great being and the best of all features, engenders the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening in order to attain the marks of the Thus-Gone One’s form body. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, when the Thus-Gone One goes to hamlets or cities for alms, those who are blind regain their sight. Those who are deaf can hear again. The mad regain their senses. Those who are naked find clothing. Those who are hungry acquire food. Those who are thirsty find drink. And everyone without exception becomes free from the harms of passion, aggression, delusion, envy, stinginess, wrath, haughtiness, hypocrisy, and anguish. Everyone becomes loving and perceives others as their parents. Since many beings behold these perfect qualities of the Thus-Gone One when he goes to hamlets or cities, they give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, when the Thus-Gone One goes to hamlets, cities, and towns, gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas, Śakra, Brahmā, and the guardians of the world follow close behind, in order to offer him worship. By the power of the Buddha, humans are able to see gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas, Śakra, Brahmā, and the guardians of the world worshiping the Blessed One. Seeing this, they admire the Thus-Gone One, thinking, ‘The qualities of the Thus-Gone One are truly amazing and wondrous!’ With this admiration for the Thus-Gone One, they give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, when they see the Thus-Gone One going for alms, countless beings who are conceited and obsessed with resources and power, as well as those who are conceited and obsessed with their looks, caste, livelihood, and health, think, ‘It is said that he cast away the kingdom of a universal monarch and became a renunciate going for alms. If he has overcome pride like that, surely we too should vanquish our pride.’ With this observation, they give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, when the Thus-Gone One goes to hamlets or cities for alms, the majestic and magnificent gods perceive his state of mind and say, ‘He is not afflicted by hunger or thirst, nor is his body weak. And still, through his ever-increasing affection for others, he goes for alms. That being so, we too should go for alms in a similar fashion, with a mind of ever-increasing affection for others.’ With this observation, they give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, there are lazy and indolent people who never come to see, pay homage to, and honor the Thus-Gone One. However, when the Thus-Gone One goes to hamlets or cities, they are able to see him effortlessly. Then, seeing him in this way, they experience intense pleasure and joy. With that feeling of intense pleasure and joy, they give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, the blessed buddhas are meaningful to behold. If beings even so much as behold the Thus-Gone One with a calm gaze for merely a single conscious moment, this becomes an enduring cause for them to pass into nirvāṇa. Honorable Subhūti, it is through considering this great purpose that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, when the Thus-Gone One goes to hamlets or cities, those who are bound by fetters are freed from their fetters. They think, ‘It is by the power of the Thus-Gone One that we have been freed from these fetters.’ Understanding this, they are appreciative and grateful to the Thus-Gone One, and they give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, when sons and daughters of noble family hear praises of the Thus-Gone One’s qualities, they think, ‘My goodness! We must offer alms to the Thus-Gone One. Let’s give him Dharma robes, make offerings, and show respect. Let’s make offerings with whatever is suitable.’ And those who think this way go to see him. But there are also those who are under the protection of mothers, fathers, elder siblings, spouses, and partners. Due to such circumstances, they cannot go directly before the Thus-Gone One. Instead, when they see that the Thus-Gone One has come to their hamlet or city, they feel fulfilled and gladdened. Extremely delighted, they experience joy and happiness, and they offer alms to the Thus-Gone One. Moreover, having offered, they give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, the gods in the realm of the Four Great Kings offered an alms bowl to the Thus-Gone One, and he accepted it. When beings of meager resources with only little to give, whoever they may be, see the Thus-Gone One’s alms bowl they perceive it as full. However, beings of greater resources with much to give, whoever they may be, see the Thus-Gone One’s alms bowl as not full, and so they offer as much as necessary. Having filled his alms bowl, they give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, when many delicious foods are placed into the Thus-Gone One’s alms bowl, they do not become mixed, but remain apart, as if they were in separate containers. Many gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, and mahoragas behold such miracles of the Thus-Gone One’s alms bowl, and thereby give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, even if the food of all the monks is put into the Thus-Gone One’s alms bowl, it is not filled, nor will it ever become full. Many gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, and mahoragas behold such miracles of the Thus-Gone One’s alms bowl. They are amazed and give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, the Thus-Gone One’s body is solid throughout; it is not hollow, but solid like a vajra. Although the body of the Thus-Gone One has no stomach, intestines, excrement, or urine, he nevertheless goes for alms and eats food. Even so, he does not swallow the food. Many gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas, humans, and nonhumans witness this and thereby give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, when the Thus-Gone One goes to hamlets or cities, many beings offer alms, whether a lot or a little, excellent or poor. Although those beings may be unable to perfect all the qualities that the Thus-Gone One possesses, they do experience many of the pleasures of gods and humans. And those qualities are not exhausted until they pass into nirvāṇa. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, the Thus-Gone One is perpetually in equipoise and never leaves the state of absorption. When Brahmā or other majestic and magnificent gods of the form realm see the Thus-Gone One going for alms without wavering from his absorption, they think, ‘He exerts himself for the welfare of beings, but surely he does not long for food.’ With this thought they are elated and give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“If, honorable Subhūti, the Thus-Gone One neither went for alms nor ate food, then those sons and daughters of noble family who have gone forth and renounced the householder’s life for the sake of the well-spoken Dharma and Vinaya would also not eat. They would think, ‘We, too, should not go for alms; we, too, should not eat.’ In that way they would go hungry and grow feeble and therefore be unable to realize the unique attainment. It is with their future accomplishment of the unique attainment in mind that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms and partakes of food. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, the Thus-Gone One goes for alms in order to fully care for those in the family of the noble ones.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, it is because of his affection for future beings that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms. Otherwise, in the future faithless priests and householders would feel strong aversion for monks and nuns, saying, ‘Why do they go for alms if their teacher himself did not?’ Now they will instead think, ‘If even their teacher went for alms, why should they not as well?’ Thus, they will utter praise and give alms. They will say, ‘Going for alms is indeed a sacred tradition. This practice was praised by the Thus-Gone One.’ It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, there are those who have renounced their householder’s lives as kings, ministers, priests, householders, and sons of ministers and have gone forth out of faith in the well-spoken Dharma and Vinaya. Out of shame, they might not go for alms, thinking, ‘If we have been born into such high castes, why should we go from house to house for alms?’ But this way they can go for alms, following in the footsteps of the Thus-Gone One, who himself went for alms in all his majesty. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, the thus-gone ones intend to act in accord with the world. They act in whichever way brings beings to maturity. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, the Thus-Gone One is without obscurations, thirst, feebleness, attachment, or anything that could become attachment. He has no wish for negative deeds, and he does not accumulate negativity. Nevertheless, the thus-gone, worthy, and perfect Buddha goes for alms in order to act in accord with the world and bring beings to full maturity. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the thus-gone, worthy, and perfect Buddha goes for alms.
“That being so, honorable Subhūti, do you also go for alms with such skillfulness, such great compassion, and such pure purpose?”
“No, elder sister, I am incapable of that. To give an analogy, elder sister, there are no dogs or cats capable of destroying Mount Meru, the king of mountains. And there are no foxes capable, even over the course of eons, of teaching the lion, the king of beasts, how to obtain its powerful abilities and its resounding roar. Similarly, elder sister, there are no hearers or solitary buddhas capable of demonstrating such conduct, skillfulness, or great compassion as the Thus-Gone One.”
When this account of the Thus-Gone One’s skill in means and his going for alms was given, two thousand eight hundred people from that household, as well as from other households, who had come to listen to the Dharma gave rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening.
Then Venerable Subhūti said to the lady, “Elder sister, where is your husband now?”
“Honorable Subhūti,” replied the lady, “my husband does not amount to just one. And why is that? I have as many husbands as there are beings to be tamed by skillfully bringing them pleasure.”
“Elder sister, the Thus-Gone One does not grant anyone sensual pleasure.”
“Honorable Subhūti, as befits the circumstances, a monk may own and make use of robes, alms, bedding, seat, healing substances, and medicinal goods, and he may approach the households of close ones and those who provide alms. He may please his friends and follow, attend, and serve his preceptors and masters. The Thus-Gone One has referred to these acts in terms of increasing virtuous qualities and decreasing nonvirtuous qualities.”
“Elder sister, it is just as you have said.”
“That being the case, honorable Subhūti, it is by such means that the Thus-Gone One grants beings all sensual pleasure.”
“Elder sister, you must have tamed a lot of beings by skillfully bringing them pleasure.”
“Honorable Subhūti, if one were to count all the stars in the great trichiliocosm, one could determine their number. However, one cannot do so for the number of beings that I have trained by skillfully bringing them pleasure and have subsequently established in unsurpassed and perfect awakening.”
“Elder sister, what kind of pleasure do you give those beings?”
“Honorable Subhūti,” replied the lady, “there are beings who are keen for the pleasure of Brahmā. To them, honorable Subhūti, I give the pleasure of the boundless concentrations, so that they attain the state of Brahmā. After giving them this, I cause them to enter into unsurpassed and perfect awakening. Honorable Subhūti, there are beings keen for the pleasure of Śakra, to whom, honorable Subhūti, I give the pleasure of Śakra. After giving them this, I cause them to enter into unsurpassed and perfect awakening. Honorable Subhūti, there are beings who are keen for the pleasures of the gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, and mahoragas, to whom, honorable Subhūti, I give such pleasures. After giving them these, I cause them to enter into unsurpassed and perfect awakening. Honorable Subhūti, there are beings who are keen for the pleasures of a universal monarch’s realm, while others are keen for the pleasures of ministers, townsfolk, countrymen, priests, and the members of the warrior, aristocratic, and commoner castes. There are beings keen for the pleasures of forms, sounds, odors, tastes, and touch. There are beings keen for the pleasures of flowers, fragrant substances, incense, flower garlands, lotions, powders, parasols, victory banners, pennants, and fans. There are beings keen for the pleasures of gold, silver, gems, pearls, beryl, conches, crystal, red pearls, coral, emerald, cat’s eye, and many sorts of precious substances. There are beings keen for the pleasures of the various sounds of instruments, such as the large drum, clay drum, conch, gong, lute, and flute. To those beings, honorable Subhūti, I grant all wishes, pleasures, and amusements. After granting them these, I cause them to enter into unsurpassed and perfect awakening.”
“Elder sister,” said Subhūti, “the five sense pleasures are to be avoided up until the path of the noble ones. Yet you guide others by giving them such pleasures? This seems to be a contradiction in terms. However, elder sister, although it is indeed difficult to guide others by means of those very things that one should avoid until one is on the path of the noble ones, bodhisattva great beings nevertheless do so. How amazing!” [B2]
At this point, two sons of merchants had gathered by the gate to listen to the Dharma. Through her skillful ways of bringing pleasure to others, the lady had already matured both of them for unsurpassed and perfect awakening. Now they said to Venerable Subhūti, “Honorable Subhūti, do not judge the knowledge of bodhisattvas by your own knowledge. Why not? Tell us, honorable Subhūti, can a small oil lamp be extinguished by the breath from one’s mouth or by the draft caused by waving one’s hands or clothes?”
“Sons of noble family, yes, the breath from one’s mouth or the draft caused by waving one’s hands or clothes can extinguish a small oil lamp.”
“Similarly, honorable Subhūti,” continued the two, “even a single desirous thought eradicates the miniscule light of knowledge and merit of sons and daughters of noble family who belong to the Hearers’ Vehicle. Now tell us, honorable Subhūti, can the mass of the blazing apocalyptic fire be extinguished by the Ganges river, filled with water?”
“Sons of noble family, if it cannot be extinguished even by a hundred thousand oceans, what need to mention the Ganges river, brimming with water?”
“Likewise, honorable Subhūti,” they said, “the light of knowledge and merit of bodhisattva great beings should be considered to be like that. Honorable Subhūti, even if bodhisattva great beings were to frolic and enjoy themselves by means of the five sense pleasures and were to engage in lovemaking for eons as numerous as the grains of sand in the Ganges river, the light of knowledge and merit of those bodhisattvas could not be exhausted by that.
“It is like the following analogy, honorable Subhūti. In order to heal and alleviate the illness of a poor person who is sick, a physician dispenses many inexpensive medicines that are sweet, sour, salty, spicy, bitter, and astringent. The sick person will then decide to take those medicines so that they may experience relief. As the illness diminishes due to the medicines, they finally regain their health. Similarly, honorable Subhūti, those who follow the Hearers’ Vehicle experience all sorts of suffering in terms of having to endure ascetic practices, reducing their belongings, having few desires, living in remote places, practicing modesty, and having few resources and little to do. Having experienced such suffering, they eventually pass into nirvāṇa without further grasping. By way of that instruction, honorable Subhūti, you should understand that the liberation of those who follow the Hearers’ Vehicle is like the healing of a poor person.
“To give another analogy, honorable Subhūti, consider the efforts to heal a king of the royal caste upon whom royal authority has been conferred. When he falls ill, a physician carefully concocts and proffers medicine worthy of a king; medicine of the most excellent color, smell, and taste; medicine that is delicious when ingested, and easy on the stomach. Thus, he proffers any and all essential elixirs worthy of a king. Moreover, he offers flowers, fragrant substances, incense, flower garlands, and lotions so that the king is not displeased. Gathering appropriate musical instruments and cymbals, he offers song. To the degree that the king is pleased in these various ways, he is released from his illness. Similarly, honorable Subhūti, certain bodhisattvas, being skilled in bringing pleasure to others, experience themselves all sorts of pleasure and awaken to unsurpassed and perfect awakening by means of a vehicle that brings all types of pleasure in its wake. There are indeed such bodhisattvas. Through this explanation, honorable Subhūti, you should understand that the bodhisattvas’ realization of wisdom is like the healing of a king.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, the five sense pleasures are without root and without location. And omniscience itself also has no root and no location. One with acceptance of this will naturally understand what to do and what to avoid. Whoever has attained the acceptance of not focusing on the five sense pleasures naturally understands what the correct and incorrect paths are like. The five sense pleasures are empty, and so is omniscience. Thus, one with such acceptance does not seek to drive away pleasures. However, he or she will still condemn pleasures and not teach them.”
Then Venerable Subhūti asked the two sons of merchants, “How did this elder sister come to you two sons of noble family?”
At this point the two sons of merchants joined their palms and spoke the following verses to Venerable Subhūti:
Then Venerable Subhūti asked the lady, “Elder sister, is it the case that you only tame sons of noble family through your skills in bringing pleasure to others? Or do you also tame daughters of noble family?”
“Honorable Subhūti, there is no sentient being I do not tame with my skills in bringing pleasure to others. However, honorable Subhūti, since the minds of women especially crave pleasure, most beings I have tamed skillfully by bringing them pleasure are women.”
“How is it, elder sister, that you tame women with a female form?”
At that point, the lady took on the appearance of a twenty-two-year-old man, dressed in fine, immaculate clothes, adorned with men’s jewelry, handsome and pleasing to behold, with the most radiant complexion, and said, “It is with a physical body such as this one, honorable Subhūti, that women are tamed.”
Then Venerable Subhūti asked that noble son, “Are you a woman, or are you a man?”
“Honorable Subhūti,” came the response, “are you an ordinary being or a learner?”
“Noble son, I am not an ordinary being, nor am I a learner.”
“So it is with me, honorable Subhūti—I am not a woman, nor am I a man.”
“If you are neither man nor woman,” said Subhūti, “then how should I think of you?”
“If you, honorable Subhūti, are neither an ordinary being nor a learner, how should I think of you?”
In this sūtra, Subhūti, one of the Buddha’s close disciples, enters into a discussion with several individuals in the course of his alms rounds. His primary interlocutor is a laywoman who reveals herself to be a bodhisattva great being named Strīvivarta; her teachings are profound and challenging, consistently pointing in the direction of ultimate truth. The sūtra culminates in the Buddha prophesying Strīvivarta’s future awakening.
Translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee under the guidance of Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche. Miguel Sawaya produced the translation and wrote the introduction. Andreas Doctor and Catherine Dalton compared the translation with the original Tibetan and edited the text. The translators are grateful to Khenpo Tokpa Tulku and Khenpo Gyaltsen from Ka-Nying Shedrub Ling Monastery for their assistance in resolving several difficult passages.
The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.
As the Buddha’s disciple Subhūti goes to collect alms one morning, he encounters a laywoman who imparts to him wise and penetrating teachings on the nature of reality. The bulk of the sūtra recounts Subhūti’s encounter and dialogue with this laywoman, who turns out to be a highly developed spiritual being named Strīvivarta. Subhūti himself adheres to the Hearers’ Vehicle, a spiritual path based on the teachings that emphasize the discipline of the prātimokṣa vows and the lack of any fixed, singular entity that could constitute a personal “self.” By contrast, Strīvivarta is a follower of the Bodhisattva Vehicle, a path toward the development of boundless compassion, the ability to benefit beings on a vast scale, and wisdom that realizes not only the lack of a personal self but also the lack of a fixed, graspable identity in all phenomena. Thus, their exchange serves to contrast these two approaches to awakening. It is worth noting that the name Strīvivarta means “female transformation,” a fact that seems relevant as she in fact transforms into a male at the end of the sūtra.
Set in Rājagṛha, where the Buddha is staying with a large number of disciples, the sūtra commences with Subhūti asking the Buddha about his dream the night before. The Buddha explains that Subhūti’s dream indicates that a previously unheard Dharma teaching will be heard; and with that, Subhūti sets off for town to collect alms. Eventually he arrives at the home of Strīvivarta, who immediately poses challenging questions to the monk on a series of profound subjects. In exchange after exchange, Subhūti does his best to reply to the laywoman, but she continuously confronts him with ever more provocative questions.
As their dialogue unfolds, we encounter explanations regarding an array of challenging topics. In addition to Strīvivarta’s eloquent ability to outshine Subhūti on topics of profound import, she is also able to read Subhūti’s mind. This fact significantly increases the monk’s consternation—not only does she challenge him regarding what he says, she even directly confronts him about his thoughts! Moreover, others (including disembodied voices from the sky and various gods) appear throughout the sūtra to put Venerable Subhūti to the test. When Subhūti tries to excuse himself and make an exit, he is schooled as to why it is inappropriate to take leave in such a situation.
Over the course of their encounter, Strīvivarta delivers a series of formidable teachings that illuminate the nature of the Great Vehicle and the Buddha’s purposes in going for alms. Strīvivarta also explains how she leads beings to spiritual maturity through skillfully bringing them pleasure. Throughout the exchange, the laywoman’s power and authority are highlighted by the fact that periodically, at the close of particular passages of her teaching, members of the audience attain significant levels of spiritual maturity.
Later in the sūtra, two of the laywoman’s young male disciples cross paths with Subhūti. They explain the greatness of bodhisattvas in comparison to the hearers and recite verses in praise of their teacher and her skillful means. This skillfulness becomes strikingly clear when Strīvivarta assumes a handsome male form, showing Subhūti the body with which she teaches women. With this, she stuns the monk to the point that he admits he is at a loss for words; and once again, he tries to leave to complete his alms rounds before it grows too late in the day. In response, Strīvivarta confounds his sense of time by showing various buddha realms in various times and by moving the sun’s position in the sky. Convinced of the truth of her teachings, and no longer concerned about time, Subhūti remains.
Following meaningful encounters with a celestial being and another inspiring bodhisattva, Subhūti finally returns to the Buddha, to whom he relates his experiences. The Buddha explains that the woman he encountered is in fact a bodhisattva great being who benefits countless beings by skillfully bringing them pleasure. Soon thereafter, the great bodhisattva herself arrives with a large retinue of women. When Subhūti pays the woman homage, the senior monk Śāriputra questions why he makes such a gesture of respect to a woman lacking both the spiritual qualities and the body of a noble one. Strīvivarta then proceeds to teach on what constitutes a noble being, the profound nature of the Great Vehicle and its followers, and the unhindered confidence of bodhisattvas.
There are other sūtras that prominently feature female bodhisattvas. The protagonists in The Questions of the Girl Vimalaśraddhā (Toh 84), The Questions of Vimaladattā (Toh 77), and The Lion’s Roar of Śrīmālādevī (Toh 92) are princesses. Elsewhere, royal women are the protagonists predicted to future awakening in The Sūtra of Aśokadattā’s Prophecy (Toh 76), The Questions of Vimalaprabhā (Toh 168), and The Sūtra of Kṣemavatī’s Prophecy (Toh 192). Less privileged laywomen are the main interlocutors in The Inquiry of the Girl Sumati (Toh 74), The Questions of Gaṅgottara (Toh 75), The Questions of an Old Lady (Toh 171), The Miraculous Play of Mañjuśrī (Toh 96), and The Sūtra of the Girl Candrottarā’s Prophecy (Toh 191). Even so, given the longstanding Buddhist tradition of according primacy to males, the focus on Strīvivarta in this scripture is unusual and refreshing. Still, in the end Strīvivarta bows down at the Buddha’s feet, saying that she will not rise again until she has received a prophecy of her future awakening and has obtained a man’s body. The five hundred women in her retinue do and say the same. In the Buddha’s prophecy that follows, he says that in the bodhisattva’s future buddha realm “not even the word woman will exist.” Upon receiving this prophecy, Strīvivarta and the five hundred women rise into the air, overjoyed, and “take on the appearance of sixteen-year-old boys.” The traditional stance on male superiority thus seems to be, after all, reinstated.
The original Sanskrit of this sūtra no longer seems to be extant, but two Chinese translations are contained in the Taishō canon (Taishō 565 and 566), the earliest of which was translated ca. 300
[B1] Homage to all the buddhas and bodhisattvas.
Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was dwelling in Rājagṛha, at Vulture Peak Mountain, together with a great saṅgha of five thousand monks. Also present were eight thousand bodhisattvas. All of them were renowned, had attained the superknowledges, and had unimpeded eloquence, fearlessness, and the acceptance that phenomena are unborn. All of them had generated roots of virtue in the presence of countless buddhas and had become followers of the Great Vehicle. Among them were the bodhisattva great beings Nimindhara, Dharaṇīdhara, Terrace Holder, Holder of the Family of Offering and Giving, Illuminating Intelligence, Completely Pure Intelligence, Purified Intelligence, Viśeṣamati, Anantamati, Vardhamānamati, Priyadarśana, Sudarśana, Surūpa, and the bodhisattva great being Seeing All Meanings. All the bodhisattva great beings of the Good Eon, such as Maitreya, had also gathered and were present in that retinue.
While the Blessed One was staying in the city of Rājagṛha, the king and all the princes, merchants, householders, ministers, attendants, and city residents, as well as all the people of that area, venerated him, showed him reverence, served him, and made offerings to him.
One morning, Venerable Subhūti put on his lower garment and robes, picked up his alms bowl, and approached the Blessed One. He prostrated, placing his head at the Blessed One’s feet, and then sat to one side. Sitting there, Venerable Subhūti told the Blessed One, “Blessed One, in my dream last night I saw the Thus-Gone One seated upon the seat of awakening. He raised his right hand, which was the color of gold, placed it on the crown of my head, and said, ‘Subhūti, tomorrow you will hear a Dharma teaching that you have not heard before.’ Blessed One, what does this foretell?”
The Blessed One replied, “Subhūti, this is an omen that sons and daughters of noble family who long for the Dharma will hear a previously unheard Dharma teaching.”
Then Venerable Subhūti said to the Blessed One, “Blessed One, I will go to the city of Rājagṛha for alms.”
“If you know that it is time for that, Subhūti, then go,” replied the Blessed One.
Having received the Blessed One’s assent, Venerable Subhūti prostrated, placing his head at the Blessed One’s feet, and then went into the city of Rājagṛha for alms. Venerable Subhūti proceeded through the city of Rājagṛha seeking alms, and, arriving at the residence of a particular householder, he stood quietly inside the gate. Emerging from that home came a lovely lady, beautiful and elegantly adorned with jewelry. She wore jewelry of precious stones, pearl, coral, and gold, so that she blazed with splendor. Her complexion was lustrous and beautiful. The lady prostrated, placing her head at Venerable Subhūti’s feet, and asked, “What do you desire, honorable Subhūti, standing at my gate?”
“Elder sister,” replied Subhūti, “it is because I seek alms that I am here at the gate.”
“Honorable Subhūti,” asked the lady, “does the notion of alms still occur to you? Have you, honorable Subhūti, not yet fully understood the notion of alms?”
Subhūti replied, “Indeed, I have fully understood the notion of alms. Nevertheless, elder sister, this body born of parents and developed by consuming rice and porridge cannot subsist without food.”
The lady asked, “Has honorable Subhūti not actualized the cessation of formative factors through the cessation of ignorance; the cessation of consciousness through the cessation of formative factors; the cessation of name and form through the cessation of consciousness; the cessation of the six sense sources through the cessation of name and form; the cessation of contact through the cessation of the six sense sources; the cessation of sensation through the cessation of contact; the cessation of craving through the cessation of sensation; the cessation of grasping through the cessation of craving; the cessation of becoming through the cessation of grasping; the cessation of birth through the cessation of becoming; the cessation of old age and death, as well as misery, lamentation, suffering, unhappiness, and agitation, through the cessation of birth?”
“Elder sister,” replied Subhūti, “I have actualized cessation.”
“Honorable Subhūti, what is it that ceases? What is it that you cultivate?”
“Elder sister, cessation is not cultivating anything at all.”
“Honorable Subhūti, if cessation is not the cultivation of anything at all, how is it that honorable Subhūti’s body will be nourished by means of alms?”
“Elder sister, having entered the equilibrium of cessation, the body that has arisen from the ceasing of all sensation is nourished by alms.”
“Honorable Subhūti, if you have passed into nirvāṇa, how is it that your body is to be nourished?”
“Elder sister, the Blessed One’s hearers wander for alms in order to nourish the body.”
“Well, hasn’t the Blessed One taught that honorable Subhūti is supreme among those without afflictions?”
“That is so, elder sister.”
“Well, does one who is without afflictions wander or move about?”
“No, elder sister, that is not the case.”
“Well then, to what end does honorable Subhūti wander about for alms?”
“Elder sister, I do not wander for alms in order to beautify the body. Rather, I go for alms in order to cease sensations and to remain alive.”
“Honorable Subhūti, are you still dominated by sensations?”
“Although I am not dominated by sensations, elder sister, I wander for alms in order to cease sensations.”
“Honorable Subhūti, one who is without afflictions is peerless. And why is that? One who is without afflictions does not experience bodily or mental sensations. One who is without afflictions is not associated with body or mind. One who is without afflictions does not feel pleasure or displeasure. One who is without afflictions is not beset with afflictions for anyone. So, why has the Blessed One taught that honorable Subhūti is supreme among those without afflictions? And why is the absence of afflictions called the absence of afflictions?”
Subhūti replied, “Elder sister, the absence of afflictions that is beyond apprehending is free from the flaws of passion.”
“Honorable Subhūti, is it then the case that if one has no afflictions, one is also free from passion?”
“That is not the case, elder sister.”
“Well then, honorable Subhūti, how is it that the absence of afflictions is also freedom from the flaws of passion?”
“The teaching on the absence of afflictions, elder sister, amounts to nothing more than an explanation.”
“Well, honorable Subhūti, does this explanation regarding the absence of afflictions not exist?”
“No, elder sister, it does not.”
“Honorable Subhūti, if this explanation regarding the absence of afflictions does not exist, what are you explaining here?”
“Elder sister, the Blessed One’s hearers simply make designations on the conventional level using conventional terms.”
“Honorable Subhūti, to the degree that there is expression, to that extent there are conventional designations. To the degree that there are conventional designations, to that extent there is error. To the degree that there is error, to that extent there will be contention. To the degree that there is contention, to that extent this is not the Dharma of mendicants.”
“So then, elder sister, what is the Dharma of mendicants?”
“Honorable Subhūti, the Dharma of mendicants is without conventions. It is unmistaken, and it is free from contention. The Dharma of mendicants is beyond Dharma and non-Dharma. The Dharma of mendicants is free from attachment and nonattachment. The Dharma of mendicants is without objects, and it is not an object. The Dharma of mendicants is without attachment; it is neither bound nor liberated. The Dharma of mendicants is without mind; it is free from mind, mentation, and consciousness. The Dharma of mendicants is contentment. The Dharma of mendicants is letting go of jealousy and attachment. The Dharma of mendicants is having little desire and being content. The Dharma of mendicants is free from all desires. The Dharma of mendicants completely transcends all objects, and it is without grasping. The Dharma of mendicants is definitely freed from the demon of the aggregates. The Dharma of mendicants is without afflictions; it has completely passed beyond the demon of the afflictions. The Dharma of mendicants is unborn. The Dharma of mendicants is free from the demon of the Lord of Death. The Dharma of mendicants is without deceit, arrogance, and concepts; it is unobscured and unfettered. The Dharma of mendicants has completely passed beyond the realm of the demons. The Dharma of mendicants is free from adopting and discarding. The Dharma of mendicants is free from birth and perishing. The Dharma of mendicants is not defiled by the demon of the gods. The Dharma of mendicants is without mental engagement and entirely unsullied. The Dharma of mendicants is without clinging, without marks, and free from all marks. The Dharma of mendicants is not altered by any modes of elements and nonelements; it is without enumeration, separation, and location, and it is equal to space.”
When the lady gave this teaching on the Dharma of mendicants, for the four thousand gods among those who had gathered by her gate to listen to the Dharma, the faultless and stainless eye of Dharma that beholds phenomena was purified. For another five hundred gods who were dedicated to the vast Dharma, the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening was brought forth after hearing the lady’s eloquent teaching.
Then Venerable Subhūti thought, “It is amazing that this elder sister is so eloquent. Since this elder sister can demonstrate such eloquence, she is surely an emanation of the Thus-Gone One.”
The lady, who knew what he was thinking, said to the elder Subhūti, “Honorable Subhūti, when you thought, ‘She is surely an emanation of the Thus-Gone One,’ you were right indeed. Why is that? Just as the Thus-Gone One has understood suchness, likewise I too have understood suchness. That being so, I am indeed an emanation of the Thus-Gone One. That which is the suchness of the form of the Thus-Gone One, and the suchness of his feelings, perceptions, formations, and consciousnesses, is also my suchness. That being so, I am an emanation of the Thus-Gone One. The suchness of the Thus-Gone One never changes into something that is not suchness. Likewise, my suchness, along with the suchness of all beings, also never changes into something that is not suchness. That being so, I am an emanation of the Thus-Gone One. The Thus-Gone One’s suchness does not only sometimes become suchness; and likewise, my suchness does not only sometimes become suchness. Rather, it is always exclusively suchness. That being so, I am an emanation of the Thus-Gone One. My suchness, along with the suchness of all beings and the suchness of all phenomena, is simply suchness, genuine and not otherwise. That being so, I am an emanation of the Thus-Gone One.”
Then Venerable Subhūti said to the lady, “Elder sister, is it by the power of the Thus-Gone One that you knew my mind, or did you know it by means of your own mind?”
“Honorable Subhūti, all those who know the minds of others, be they hearers, solitary buddhas, bodhisattvas, or sages who possess the five extraordinary abilities, know the minds of others due to the power of the Buddha. In that way, elder Subhūti, the knowledge of the minds of others is knowledge through the power of the Buddha. Honorable Subhūti, to give an analogy, beings with eyes see forms in dependence upon the moon, the sun, fire, jewels, lamps, and stars. Similarly, honorable Subhūti, anyone who knows the minds of others, while living here in the darkness of ignorance, attains this knowledge in dependence upon the Thus-Gone One.”
Then Venerable Subhūti said to the lady, “Elder sister, you are so eloquent! Tell me who you are and whence you came.”
The lady responded, “Honorable Subhūti, what response could be given if someone were to question an emanation of the Thus-Gone One, saying, ‘Noble son, tell me who you are and whence you came’?”
“Elder sister, no response whatsoever could be given.”
“Similarly, honorable Subhūti, knowing that all phenomena are essentially emanations, what is there for me to say? Furthermore, if someone were to question honorable Subhūti, saying, ‘Are you an ordinary being, a learner, or a worthy one?’ how would you respond?”
While honorable Subhūti was pondering how to respond to the elder sister, a voice called out from the sky, “Honorable Subhūti, explain briefly to this elder sister how you know that you are a worthy one, whether it is due to your attainment, realization, experience, or understanding.”
Hearing this voice from the sky, Venerable Subhūti said to the lady, “Elder sister, I am not an ordinary being, nor am I a learner, nor am I a worthy one.”
“Honorable Subhūti, how am I to understand that?”
“Elder sister, think of me just like someone designated as an emanation of the Thus-Gone One.”
“Honorable Subhūti is called ‘the foremost among the worthy ones whose defilements have been exhausted and who are without afflictions, worthy of offerings.’ ”
“Elder sister, I am not the foremost among the worthy ones whose defilements have been exhausted and who are without afflictions, worthy of offerings.”
“If you speak in such a way, honorable Subhūti, aren’t you deliberately lying?”
“Elder sister, if I were to think that I was the foremost and most worthy of offerings among those whose defilements have been exhausted and who are without afflictions, then I would be lying. However, since I do not think that, I speak honestly, and this cannot be called lying.”
“Honorable Subhūti, aren’t you deceiving the gods who have seen the truths and who have gathered by the gate to listen to the Dharma?”
“Elder sister, one cannot deceive those who have seen the truths.”
“Has honorable Subhūti seen the truths?”
“I have.”
“If the truths can be seen, they are not the truths. Why not? Because the truths cannot be seen by anyone at all.”
“Elder sister,” replied Subhūti, “what does the phrase ‘seeing the truths’ mean?”
“ ‘Seeing the truths,’ honorable Subhūti, refers to beholding all phenomena as sameness. Saying ‘I have seen the truths’ refers to seeing that which is mistaken.”
“What do you mean by that, elder sister?”
“Honorable Subhūti, seeing the truths is to see that afflictions occur because of being mistaken. Therefore, by seeing that which is mistaken, it is said that one sees the truths.”
Then the gods who had gathered at the gate to listen to the Dharma revealed the coarse forms of their bodies to elder Subhūti and said, “Honorable Subhūti, you have heard the eloquence of this elder sister; this is a fortunate discovery by you. Anyone who, hearing this teaching, dedicated to it has also met with similar fortune. However, those who appreciate it are not liberated from anything. And why is that? It is because for those who are greatly appreciative, there is no liberation from anything at all. Since those who are greatly appreciative are not bound, they are also not liberated from anything.”
Then the lady said to Venerable Subhūti, “Honorable Subhūti, aren’t you going for alms? Why have you stopped collecting food?”
“Elder sister, my food is just this—it will suffice to listen to the Dharma like this. Elder sister, one who worries about Dharma robes and alms is not one who longs for the Dharma. One who longs for gain, esteem, and praise is not one who longs for the Dharma. One who is concerned with his body, life, and alms is not one who longs for the Dharma. Even one who longs for approval is also not one who longs for the Dharma. Elder sister, what are the sons and daughters of noble family who long for the Dharma like?”
“Honorable Subhūti, one who does not crave pleasure is one who longs for the Dharma. One who is not concerned with the eyes and forms, and who is not concerned with the ears and sounds, the nose and odors, the tongue and tastes, the body and tangible objects, or the mind and mental phenomena—that is one who longs for the Dharma. One who does not depend upon any phenomenon whatsoever is one who longs for the Dharma. Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, one who does not long for the aggregates, elements, and sense sources is one who longs for the Dharma. One who does not long for the realms of desire, form, and formlessness is one who longs for the Dharma. One who does not desire to focus on the characteristics of what is observed is one who longs for the Dharma.”
Then Venerable Subhūti said to the lady, “Elder sister, I beg your pardon, as I must take my leave of your gate.”
“Honorable Subhūti,” replied the lady, “to give an analogy, one does not beg pardon of the earth element. Likewise, honorable Subhūti, one does not beg pardon of someone whose mind is like earth. Honorable Subhūti, one does not beg pardon of water. Likewise, one does not beg pardon of someone whose mind is like water. Honorable Subhūti, one does not beg pardon of fire, wind, or space. Likewise, one does not beg pardon of someone whose mind is like fire, wind, or space. Honorable Subhūti, one does not beg pardon of a ship, platform, bridge, or highway. Likewise, honorable Subhūti, one does not beg pardon of someone whose mind is like a ship, platform, bridge, or highway. Honorable Subhūti, although one begs pardon of immature beings, one does not beg pardon of noble ones. Honorable Subhūti, although one begs pardon of those for whom ill will, wrath, and latent tendencies arise, one does not beg pardon of those for whom these do not arise. Honorable Subhūti, to give an analogy, one might seek to extinguish a blazing fire, but one would not seek to extinguish a fire that is not blazing. Likewise, honorable Subhūti, although one begs pardon of those whose afflictions are blazing, one does not beg pardon of those without afflictions.”
Then Venerable Subhūti said to the lady, “Elder sister, what is it that you desire as you roar like a lion in this way?”
“Honorable Subhūti, one who has desire cannot resound with a lion’s roar. It is those who desire nothing at all who resound with a lion’s roar. Why is that? For someone who has reference points, there is desire. But for one who is free from reference points, a lion’s roar does not exist at all. For one who has the view of the transitory collection, there is desire. But for one who does not hold views, there is no lion’s roar at all. Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, what wish liberates the mind from defilements with no further grasping?”
“Elder sister, for one who has desire there is no liberation whatsoever.”
“Honorable Subhūti, in that way I have also entered the state where the mind is liberated from defilements with no further grasping. So I too am now liberated. I too have attained an understanding of the realm of phenomena.”
Then Venerable Subhūti said to the lady, “Elder sister, if you explain to me the aspects, signs, and features of the Great Vehicle, I will have no doubt that you have genuinely entered the Great Vehicle.”
The lady replied, “Honorable Subhūti, do you know the Great Vehicle’s aspects, signs, and features?”
“Elder sister, without hearing about them, the hearers are unable to know the Great Vehicle’s aspects, signs, and features. So therefore, elder sister, please explain the aspects, signs, and features of the Great Vehicle.”
“Honorable Subhūti, the Great Vehicle refers to a vehicle without attachment. It is unobscured wisdom and wisdom beyond distinctions. To give an analogy, honorable Subhūti, the chariots of the active gods and those of the moon and the sun spontaneously traverse the sky and shine on beings, doing so without attachment, without obscuration, and without interruption. Similarly, honorable Subhūti, holy beings who have genuinely entered the Great Vehicle act by the strength of the six perfections and shine the light of the Dharma on all beings without attachment, without obscuration, and without interruption. To give an analogy, honorable Subhūti, the four continents belong to the universal monarch, and wherever he goes it is appropriate that he be attended by the people of the four continents. But the universal monarch does not think of those subjects as being unequal to him; rather, he acts with loving-kindness toward them. Likewise, honorable Subhūti, wherever bodhisattvas who have genuinely entered the Great Vehicle go, whether to hamlets, cities, towns, districts, provinces, or royal palaces, it is appropriate that they be attended by all beings. Nevertheless, those bodhisattvas have an attitude of impartiality toward all those beings and do not act differently toward them. When bodhisattvas gather disciples through the four means of attraction, their love for all beings never differs. This is why it is called the Great Vehicle.
“Honorable Subhūti, the Great Vehicle means that the vehicle is greater. It is worshiped by gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas, humans, nonhumans, Śakra, Brahmā, the guardians of the world, wise ones, holy beings, knowledgeable ones, those who have gone correctly, and those who have entered correctly. This is why it is called the Great Vehicle. Since the Great Vehicle is unborn, it is inexhaustible. This vehicle is the unbroken lineage of the Buddha. This vehicle is the consolidation of the Dharma lineage. This vehicle upholds the Saṅgha lineage. Since this vehicle provides opportunities for all beings and is without obscurations, it is expansive. Since this vehicle is not a matter of improvement, it is unconditioned. This vehicle brings proficiency by means of the six perfections. This vehicle excellently draws others in through the four means of attraction. Since it follows the eight branches of the path of the noble ones, this vehicle proceeds correctly. Due to the cultivation of tranquility and special insight, this vehicle is a fine conveyance. Because the four applications of mindfulness and the mind of awakening are not forgotten, it is the abode of the excellent helmsman. Because of its great compassion, this vehicle is extremely stable. This vehicle is well-established by the state of omniscience itself. Because it conquers all demons, this vehicle is free from fear. Displaying the light of knowledge, this vehicle is free from darkness. Having gathered and accumulated all roots of virtue, this vehicle is the greatest wealth. This vehicle is revered by the world and its gods. This vehicle cannot be destroyed by any opponent. This vehicle is difficult for any hearer or solitary buddha to comprehend.
“This vehicle delights those lacking faith. This vehicle brings loving-kindness to those who are aggressive. This vehicle brings generosity to the miserly. This vehicle brings discipline to those whose discipline is lax. This vehicle brings patience to those who harbor ill will. This vehicle brings diligence to the lazy. This vehicle brings mindfulness to the forgetful. This vehicle brings calm to the distracted. This vehicle brings knowledge to those whose knowledge is faulty. This vehicle brings wealth to the poor. This vehicle brings ease to those who suffer. This vehicle brings supreme joy to the wise. This vehicle brings delight to the knowledgeable. This being so, it is called the Great Vehicle.”
Then Venerable Subhūti said to the lady, “Elder sister, you have excellently articulated the aspects, signs, and features of the Great Vehicle.”
“Honorable Subhūti,” replied the lady, “even if I were to explain the aspects, signs, and features of the Great Vehicle for an eon, or even longer than that, I would not reach the end. Honorable Subhūti, just as the Great Vehicle is immeasurable, so too are its aspects, signs, and features.”
Venerable Subhūti continued by asking the lady, “Elder sister, when you asked what I desire in going for alms, you were looking for faults in me. However, since the Thus-Gone One, the master of Dharma himself, also goes for alms, are you looking for faults in the Thus-Gone One as well?”
“Honorable Subhūti,” said the lady, “if you know of the skillfulness with which the Thus-Gone One goes for alms, please say so.”
“No, elder sister, with which skillfulness does the Thus-Gone One go for alms?”
“Honorable Subhūti, the Thus-Gone One goes for alms because he sees twenty-one great purposes. And what are those twenty-one? The Thus-Gone One goes for alms in order to display his excellent form body. Anyone who sees the body of the Thus-Gone One, adorned with the thirty-two marks of a great being and the best of all features, engenders the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening in order to attain the marks of the Thus-Gone One’s form body. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, when the Thus-Gone One goes to hamlets or cities for alms, those who are blind regain their sight. Those who are deaf can hear again. The mad regain their senses. Those who are naked find clothing. Those who are hungry acquire food. Those who are thirsty find drink. And everyone without exception becomes free from the harms of passion, aggression, delusion, envy, stinginess, wrath, haughtiness, hypocrisy, and anguish. Everyone becomes loving and perceives others as their parents. Since many beings behold these perfect qualities of the Thus-Gone One when he goes to hamlets or cities, they give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, when the Thus-Gone One goes to hamlets, cities, and towns, gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas, Śakra, Brahmā, and the guardians of the world follow close behind, in order to offer him worship. By the power of the Buddha, humans are able to see gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas, Śakra, Brahmā, and the guardians of the world worshiping the Blessed One. Seeing this, they admire the Thus-Gone One, thinking, ‘The qualities of the Thus-Gone One are truly amazing and wondrous!’ With this admiration for the Thus-Gone One, they give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, when they see the Thus-Gone One going for alms, countless beings who are conceited and obsessed with resources and power, as well as those who are conceited and obsessed with their looks, caste, livelihood, and health, think, ‘It is said that he cast away the kingdom of a universal monarch and became a renunciate going for alms. If he has overcome pride like that, surely we too should vanquish our pride.’ With this observation, they give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, when the Thus-Gone One goes to hamlets or cities for alms, the majestic and magnificent gods perceive his state of mind and say, ‘He is not afflicted by hunger or thirst, nor is his body weak. And still, through his ever-increasing affection for others, he goes for alms. That being so, we too should go for alms in a similar fashion, with a mind of ever-increasing affection for others.’ With this observation, they give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, there are lazy and indolent people who never come to see, pay homage to, and honor the Thus-Gone One. However, when the Thus-Gone One goes to hamlets or cities, they are able to see him effortlessly. Then, seeing him in this way, they experience intense pleasure and joy. With that feeling of intense pleasure and joy, they give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, the blessed buddhas are meaningful to behold. If beings even so much as behold the Thus-Gone One with a calm gaze for merely a single conscious moment, this becomes an enduring cause for them to pass into nirvāṇa. Honorable Subhūti, it is through considering this great purpose that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, when the Thus-Gone One goes to hamlets or cities, those who are bound by fetters are freed from their fetters. They think, ‘It is by the power of the Thus-Gone One that we have been freed from these fetters.’ Understanding this, they are appreciative and grateful to the Thus-Gone One, and they give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, when sons and daughters of noble family hear praises of the Thus-Gone One’s qualities, they think, ‘My goodness! We must offer alms to the Thus-Gone One. Let’s give him Dharma robes, make offerings, and show respect. Let’s make offerings with whatever is suitable.’ And those who think this way go to see him. But there are also those who are under the protection of mothers, fathers, elder siblings, spouses, and partners. Due to such circumstances, they cannot go directly before the Thus-Gone One. Instead, when they see that the Thus-Gone One has come to their hamlet or city, they feel fulfilled and gladdened. Extremely delighted, they experience joy and happiness, and they offer alms to the Thus-Gone One. Moreover, having offered, they give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, the gods in the realm of the Four Great Kings offered an alms bowl to the Thus-Gone One, and he accepted it. When beings of meager resources with only little to give, whoever they may be, see the Thus-Gone One’s alms bowl they perceive it as full. However, beings of greater resources with much to give, whoever they may be, see the Thus-Gone One’s alms bowl as not full, and so they offer as much as necessary. Having filled his alms bowl, they give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, when many delicious foods are placed into the Thus-Gone One’s alms bowl, they do not become mixed, but remain apart, as if they were in separate containers. Many gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, and mahoragas behold such miracles of the Thus-Gone One’s alms bowl, and thereby give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, even if the food of all the monks is put into the Thus-Gone One’s alms bowl, it is not filled, nor will it ever become full. Many gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, and mahoragas behold such miracles of the Thus-Gone One’s alms bowl. They are amazed and give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, the Thus-Gone One’s body is solid throughout; it is not hollow, but solid like a vajra. Although the body of the Thus-Gone One has no stomach, intestines, excrement, or urine, he nevertheless goes for alms and eats food. Even so, he does not swallow the food. Many gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas, humans, and nonhumans witness this and thereby give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, when the Thus-Gone One goes to hamlets or cities, many beings offer alms, whether a lot or a little, excellent or poor. Although those beings may be unable to perfect all the qualities that the Thus-Gone One possesses, they do experience many of the pleasures of gods and humans. And those qualities are not exhausted until they pass into nirvāṇa. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, the Thus-Gone One is perpetually in equipoise and never leaves the state of absorption. When Brahmā or other majestic and magnificent gods of the form realm see the Thus-Gone One going for alms without wavering from his absorption, they think, ‘He exerts himself for the welfare of beings, but surely he does not long for food.’ With this thought they are elated and give rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“If, honorable Subhūti, the Thus-Gone One neither went for alms nor ate food, then those sons and daughters of noble family who have gone forth and renounced the householder’s life for the sake of the well-spoken Dharma and Vinaya would also not eat. They would think, ‘We, too, should not go for alms; we, too, should not eat.’ In that way they would go hungry and grow feeble and therefore be unable to realize the unique attainment. It is with their future accomplishment of the unique attainment in mind that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms and partakes of food. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, the Thus-Gone One goes for alms in order to fully care for those in the family of the noble ones.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, it is because of his affection for future beings that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms. Otherwise, in the future faithless priests and householders would feel strong aversion for monks and nuns, saying, ‘Why do they go for alms if their teacher himself did not?’ Now they will instead think, ‘If even their teacher went for alms, why should they not as well?’ Thus, they will utter praise and give alms. They will say, ‘Going for alms is indeed a sacred tradition. This practice was praised by the Thus-Gone One.’ It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, there are those who have renounced their householder’s lives as kings, ministers, priests, householders, and sons of ministers and have gone forth out of faith in the well-spoken Dharma and Vinaya. Out of shame, they might not go for alms, thinking, ‘If we have been born into such high castes, why should we go from house to house for alms?’ But this way they can go for alms, following in the footsteps of the Thus-Gone One, who himself went for alms in all his majesty. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, the thus-gone ones intend to act in accord with the world. They act in whichever way brings beings to maturity. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the Thus-Gone One goes for alms.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, the Thus-Gone One is without obscurations, thirst, feebleness, attachment, or anything that could become attachment. He has no wish for negative deeds, and he does not accumulate negativity. Nevertheless, the thus-gone, worthy, and perfect Buddha goes for alms in order to act in accord with the world and bring beings to full maturity. It is through considering this great purpose, honorable Subhūti, that the thus-gone, worthy, and perfect Buddha goes for alms.
“That being so, honorable Subhūti, do you also go for alms with such skillfulness, such great compassion, and such pure purpose?”
“No, elder sister, I am incapable of that. To give an analogy, elder sister, there are no dogs or cats capable of destroying Mount Meru, the king of mountains. And there are no foxes capable, even over the course of eons, of teaching the lion, the king of beasts, how to obtain its powerful abilities and its resounding roar. Similarly, elder sister, there are no hearers or solitary buddhas capable of demonstrating such conduct, skillfulness, or great compassion as the Thus-Gone One.”
When this account of the Thus-Gone One’s skill in means and his going for alms was given, two thousand eight hundred people from that household, as well as from other households, who had come to listen to the Dharma gave rise to the mind set upon unsurpassed and perfect awakening.
Then Venerable Subhūti said to the lady, “Elder sister, where is your husband now?”
“Honorable Subhūti,” replied the lady, “my husband does not amount to just one. And why is that? I have as many husbands as there are beings to be tamed by skillfully bringing them pleasure.”
“Elder sister, the Thus-Gone One does not grant anyone sensual pleasure.”
“Honorable Subhūti, as befits the circumstances, a monk may own and make use of robes, alms, bedding, seat, healing substances, and medicinal goods, and he may approach the households of close ones and those who provide alms. He may please his friends and follow, attend, and serve his preceptors and masters. The Thus-Gone One has referred to these acts in terms of increasing virtuous qualities and decreasing nonvirtuous qualities.”
“Elder sister, it is just as you have said.”
“That being the case, honorable Subhūti, it is by such means that the Thus-Gone One grants beings all sensual pleasure.”
“Elder sister, you must have tamed a lot of beings by skillfully bringing them pleasure.”
“Honorable Subhūti, if one were to count all the stars in the great trichiliocosm, one could determine their number. However, one cannot do so for the number of beings that I have trained by skillfully bringing them pleasure and have subsequently established in unsurpassed and perfect awakening.”
“Elder sister, what kind of pleasure do you give those beings?”
“Honorable Subhūti,” replied the lady, “there are beings who are keen for the pleasure of Brahmā. To them, honorable Subhūti, I give the pleasure of the boundless concentrations, so that they attain the state of Brahmā. After giving them this, I cause them to enter into unsurpassed and perfect awakening. Honorable Subhūti, there are beings keen for the pleasure of Śakra, to whom, honorable Subhūti, I give the pleasure of Śakra. After giving them this, I cause them to enter into unsurpassed and perfect awakening. Honorable Subhūti, there are beings who are keen for the pleasures of the gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, and mahoragas, to whom, honorable Subhūti, I give such pleasures. After giving them these, I cause them to enter into unsurpassed and perfect awakening. Honorable Subhūti, there are beings who are keen for the pleasures of a universal monarch’s realm, while others are keen for the pleasures of ministers, townsfolk, countrymen, priests, and the members of the warrior, aristocratic, and commoner castes. There are beings keen for the pleasures of forms, sounds, odors, tastes, and touch. There are beings keen for the pleasures of flowers, fragrant substances, incense, flower garlands, lotions, powders, parasols, victory banners, pennants, and fans. There are beings keen for the pleasures of gold, silver, gems, pearls, beryl, conches, crystal, red pearls, coral, emerald, cat’s eye, and many sorts of precious substances. There are beings keen for the pleasures of the various sounds of instruments, such as the large drum, clay drum, conch, gong, lute, and flute. To those beings, honorable Subhūti, I grant all wishes, pleasures, and amusements. After granting them these, I cause them to enter into unsurpassed and perfect awakening.”
“Elder sister,” said Subhūti, “the five sense pleasures are to be avoided up until the path of the noble ones. Yet you guide others by giving them such pleasures? This seems to be a contradiction in terms. However, elder sister, although it is indeed difficult to guide others by means of those very things that one should avoid until one is on the path of the noble ones, bodhisattva great beings nevertheless do so. How amazing!” [B2]
At this point, two sons of merchants had gathered by the gate to listen to the Dharma. Through her skillful ways of bringing pleasure to others, the lady had already matured both of them for unsurpassed and perfect awakening. Now they said to Venerable Subhūti, “Honorable Subhūti, do not judge the knowledge of bodhisattvas by your own knowledge. Why not? Tell us, honorable Subhūti, can a small oil lamp be extinguished by the breath from one’s mouth or by the draft caused by waving one’s hands or clothes?”
“Sons of noble family, yes, the breath from one’s mouth or the draft caused by waving one’s hands or clothes can extinguish a small oil lamp.”
“Similarly, honorable Subhūti,” continued the two, “even a single desirous thought eradicates the miniscule light of knowledge and merit of sons and daughters of noble family who belong to the Hearers’ Vehicle. Now tell us, honorable Subhūti, can the mass of the blazing apocalyptic fire be extinguished by the Ganges river, filled with water?”
“Sons of noble family, if it cannot be extinguished even by a hundred thousand oceans, what need to mention the Ganges river, brimming with water?”
“Likewise, honorable Subhūti,” they said, “the light of knowledge and merit of bodhisattva great beings should be considered to be like that. Honorable Subhūti, even if bodhisattva great beings were to frolic and enjoy themselves by means of the five sense pleasures and were to engage in lovemaking for eons as numerous as the grains of sand in the Ganges river, the light of knowledge and merit of those bodhisattvas could not be exhausted by that.
“It is like the following analogy, honorable Subhūti. In order to heal and alleviate the illness of a poor person who is sick, a physician dispenses many inexpensive medicines that are sweet, sour, salty, spicy, bitter, and astringent. The sick person will then decide to take those medicines so that they may experience relief. As the illness diminishes due to the medicines, they finally regain their health. Similarly, honorable Subhūti, those who follow the Hearers’ Vehicle experience all sorts of suffering in terms of having to endure ascetic practices, reducing their belongings, having few desires, living in remote places, practicing modesty, and having few resources and little to do. Having experienced such suffering, they eventually pass into nirvāṇa without further grasping. By way of that instruction, honorable Subhūti, you should understand that the liberation of those who follow the Hearers’ Vehicle is like the healing of a poor person.
“To give another analogy, honorable Subhūti, consider the efforts to heal a king of the royal caste upon whom royal authority has been conferred. When he falls ill, a physician carefully concocts and proffers medicine worthy of a king; medicine of the most excellent color, smell, and taste; medicine that is delicious when ingested, and easy on the stomach. Thus, he proffers any and all essential elixirs worthy of a king. Moreover, he offers flowers, fragrant substances, incense, flower garlands, and lotions so that the king is not displeased. Gathering appropriate musical instruments and cymbals, he offers song. To the degree that the king is pleased in these various ways, he is released from his illness. Similarly, honorable Subhūti, certain bodhisattvas, being skilled in bringing pleasure to others, experience themselves all sorts of pleasure and awaken to unsurpassed and perfect awakening by means of a vehicle that brings all types of pleasure in its wake. There are indeed such bodhisattvas. Through this explanation, honorable Subhūti, you should understand that the bodhisattvas’ realization of wisdom is like the healing of a king.
“Furthermore, honorable Subhūti, the five sense pleasures are without root and without location. And omniscience itself also has no root and no location. One with acceptance of this will naturally understand what to do and what to avoid. Whoever has attained the acceptance of not focusing on the five sense pleasures naturally understands what the correct and incorrect paths are like. The five sense pleasures are empty, and so is omniscience. Thus, one with such acceptance does not seek to drive away pleasures. However, he or she will still condemn pleasures and not teach them.”
Then Venerable Subhūti asked the two sons of merchants, “How did this elder sister come to you two sons of noble family?”
At this point the two sons of merchants joined their palms and spoke the following verses to Venerable Subhūti:
Then Venerable Subhūti asked the lady, “Elder sister, is it the case that you only tame sons of noble family through your skills in bringing pleasure to others? Or do you also tame daughters of noble family?”
“Honorable Subhūti, there is no sentient being I do not tame with my skills in bringing pleasure to others. However, honorable Subhūti, since the minds of women especially crave pleasure, most beings I have tamed skillfully by bringing them pleasure are women.”
“How is it, elder sister, that you tame women with a female form?”
At that point, the lady took on the appearance of a twenty-two-year-old man, dressed in fine, immaculate clothes, adorned with men’s jewelry, handsome and pleasing to behold, with the most radiant complexion, and said, “It is with a physical body such as this one, honorable Subhūti, that women are tamed.”
Then Venerable Subhūti asked that noble son, “Are you a woman, or are you a man?”
“Honorable Subhūti,” came the response, “are you an ordinary being or a learner?”
“Noble son, I am not an ordinary being, nor am I a learner.”
“So it is with me, honorable Subhūti—I am not a woman, nor am I a man.”
“If you are neither man nor woman,” said Subhūti, “then how should I think of you?”
“If you, honorable Subhūti, are neither an ordinary being nor a learner, how should I think of you?”