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Sunlight on the Path to Freedom

The following selections are taken from "Sunlight on the Path to Freedom", written by Chone Lama Drakpa Shedrup (167 !17"#$ of Sera %ey Tibetan %onastery& The original root te't of the sutra by Lord (uddha is included in darker type&

Herein contained is a commentary upon The Diamond Cutter Sutra entitled Sunlight to See the )rofound* the +'cellent )ath to Tra,el to -reedom& I bow down to Manjughosha. I bow down to the Lord o the !ble "nes, the #ing o sponge$li#e clouds Floating high in the great e%panse o the s#y, the dharma body, unobscured, Stunning in the glory o his thunder, the sound o emptiness pro ound, Sending down to ields o students a stream o rain both o the goals. I prostrate mysel at the eet o Subhuti, a reali&ed being who is 'he (heel o Solid )arth, a destroyer o the enemy in disguise, Master ul in posing the *uestions and replies o the pro ound, Prophesied to be the supreme o those who+,e inished all a liction. I ma#e obeisance to the spiritual riends who one by one appeared

'o clari y the deepest teaching, as oretold by the -ictors. /agarjuna, and !ryade,a, and 0handra#irti too, Lobsang the -ictor come again ather and sons and the rest.

Here I will, with great eelings o aith and in #eeping with my own capacity, o er a commentary in e%planation o the )erfection of .isdom in /00 1erses* more commonly #nown as the Diamond Cutter& It would seem that this te%t is rather di icult to comment upon correctly, or a number o reasons. First o all, the wor# is largely de,oted to elucidating the meaning o the absence o a sel $nature. Moreo,er, Lord 1uddha repeats himsel *uite a number o times during the teaching. Finally, there appears to be but a single e%planation o the wor# by the masters o ancient India, and none by a 'ibetan at all. /onetheless, I will underta#e a commentary, to the best o my intellectual ability. (e will proceed in three steps. the preliminaries, the actual body o the te%t, and the conclusion. 'he irst part here has three sections o its own. a translation o the title, along with an e%planation o its signi icance2 the translator+s obeisance2 and setting the scene. Here is the irst. In the language of India, this teaching is called the Arya Vajra Chedaka Nama Prajnya Paramita Mahayana Sutra. In the language of Tibet, it is called the Pakpa Sherab Kyi Paroltu Chinpa Dorje Chupa Shejawa Tekpa Chenpoy Do. [In the English language, it is called An E alted Sutra o! the "reater #ay on the Per!e$tion o! #i%dom& entitled 'The Diamond Cutter.'] 'he root te%t here begins with "In the language o India, this te%t is called the Arya Vajra ! 'he 'ibetan e*ui,alents o the words in the title are as ollows. Arya means "a#"a, 3or !e$alted !4 Vajra means dorje, 3or !diamond !4 %heda#a is chu"a, 3or !cutter !4 Prajnya is sherab, 3or !&isdom !4 Para is "aroltu, 3or "to the other side,"4 while ita means chin"a, 3or "gone," and the two together mean !"erfection !4 /ama is or sheja&a, 3which means !entitled !4 'aha stands or chen"o, 3or !greater !4 (ana means te#"a, 3which is !&ay,! or ",ehicle."4 Sutra translates as do, 3or !sutra,! meaning the teaching o an enlightened being.4 How do we get this word "aramita) 'he ending am is re*uired between the words "ara and ita, to represent the second grammar case. In combination the a o the am drops out, and the resulting m is attached to the ita, which gi,es us mita Here is the signi icance o the name. 'he worldly god named Hundred 5i ts, or Indra,

wields a diamond bolt, which no physical object in the entire world can destroy. ! mere touch o this bolt though can reduce mountains o stone and other such entities to piles o dust. 'he subject o this wor# is the actual per ection o wisdom2 that is, the wisdom with which one percei,es emptiness. 'he point o the title is that the antithesis o this wisdom can ne,er a ect it in the least2 and that the wisdom, on the other hand, cuts rom the root e,erything in,ol,ed with the mental a lictions, and each and e,ery su ering. I bo& do&n to all *uddhas and bodhisatt+as

'he import o the second point, the translator+s obeisance, is sel $e,ident.

These &ords once I heard The %on,ueror &as residing at Shra+asti, in the "ar# of Anata"indada at the gardens of Prince -eta+an In con+ocation &ith him &ere a great gathering of .,/01 mon#s &ho &ere listeners, as &ell as an immense number of bodhisatt+as &ho &ere great beings 'hird is the third preliminary, where the scene is set. 'he spea#er is the person who compiled the &ords o this te%t, who says !I heard! the ollowing. 2nce, meaning at a certain time, the %on,ueror &as residing at Shra+asti, in the "ar# of Anata"indada at the gardens of Prince -eta+an In con+ocation &ith him that is, together with him &ere a great gathering of .,/01 mon#s &ho &ere listeners, as &ell as an immense number of bodhisatt+as &ho &ere great beings In India there were si% great cities, including the one #nown as "Shra,asti." 'his particular city was located in the domain o 6ing Prasenajita, and contained a particularly e%cellent site the e%*uisite gardens o one #nown as Prince 7eta,an. 'here came a time, se,eral years a ter the 0on*ueror attained his enlightenment, when a certain householder by the name o !natapindada resol,ed that he would construct a large, wondrous temple where Lord 1uddha and his retinue could reside on a regular basis. 'o this end he approached Prince 7eta,an and purchased his gardens by paying him many thousands o gold coins, enough in act to ill the gardens themsel,es. 7eta,an as well o ered to the 0on*ueror a parcel o land that had been part o the *uarters or the careta#ers o the property. In these gardens !natapindada, a,ailing himsel o the abilities o Shariputra, directed artisans rom the lands o both gods and men to construct an e%traordinary par#. (hen the par# was completed, the 0on*ueror, percei,ing that 7eta,an wished it, named the main temple a ter him. !natapindada, by the way, was a great being who had purposely ta#en a birth as someone who could act as the 'eacher+s sponsor. He had the power to see deposits o precious gems and metals deep under water or below the earth itsel , and could utili&e these riches whene,er he wished.

In the morning then the %on,ueror donned his mon#3s robes and outer sha&l, too# u" his sage3s bo&l, and entered the great city of Shra+asti for re,uesting his meal 4hen he had collected the food, he returned from the city and then "artoo# of it 4hen he had finished eating he "ut a&ay his bo&l and sha&l, for he &as a "erson &ho had gi+en u" the later meal 5e &ashed his feet and then seated himself on a cushion that had been set forth for him 5e crossed his legs in the full lotus "osition, straightened his bac#, and "laced his thoughts into a state of contem"lation In the morning then the %on,ueror all or the sa#e o his disciples donned the three parts o a mon#+s attire, too# u" his sage3s bo&l, and went to the great city of Shra+asti for re,uesting, in order to re*uest, his meal He accepted his food and then, after coming bac#, "artoo# of it 4hen he had finished eating he "ut a&ay his bo&l and so on, for he &as a "erson &ho had gi+en u" the later meal6 that is, who would ne,er go to re*uest a meal in the latter part o the day. 5e &ashed his feet, bathed them, and then seated himself on a cushion that had been set forth for him 5e crossed his legs in the full lotus "osition, and straightened his bac# 'hen he "laced his thoughts into a state of contem"lation, #nowing that he was about to deli,er this teaching. (e should spea# a bit here about the act that the 0on*ueror went to re*uest ood. !s ar as the 1uddha is concerned, there is no need at all to go and as# or his meal. 8ather, he does so only so that his disciples will ha,e an opportunity to collect masses o good #arma, or else in order to gi,e instruction in the 9harma, or or some similar reason. 'he Sutra of 2olden Light e%plains how it is completely impossible or a 1uddha to su er hunger or thirst. !nd e,en i they did need to eat or drin# something, it is a complete impossibility that the 1uddhas would e,er ind themsel,es without su icient supplies2 they could ta#e care o themsel,es per ectly well, or they ha,e gained total mastery o,er what we call the "#nowledge o the store o space." 'hey ha,e as well the ability, should they so desire, to turn dirt or stones or other things o the li#e into gold, or sil,er, or precious jewels. Furthermore they ha,e the power to trans orm such objects, and also in erior #inds o ood, into easts o a thousand delectable tastes. /o matter how poor some meal might be, it turns to a matchless, sa,ory ban*uet as soon as a 1uddha touches it to his lips delicious in a way that no other #ind o being could e,er in his li e e%perience. 'he 3rnament of 4eali5ations is ma#ing this same point when it says "'o him, e,en a terrible taste turns delicious to the supreme." 'here was a time be ore when, or three months, the 'eacher pretended to be so destitute that he was orced to eat the barley that we usually use or horse odder. His disciple !nanda was depressed by the sight, thin#ing to himsel , "/ow the day has come that the 'eacher, who was born into royalty, is reduced to eating horse odder." 'he 'eacher then too# a single piece o the grain rom his mouth, handed it to !nanda, and instructed him to eat it. 'he disciple complied, and was illed2 in act, or an entire

wee# therea ter he elt no urge to eat anything at all, and was o,ercome with ama&ement. 'his incident applies here too. 'he 2olden Light relates how despite the act that the 'eacher appeared to ha,e to go or re*uesting his meal and seemed as well to eat it, in truth he did not eat, and had no eces or urine either. 'he Sutra of the 6nconcei,able e%plains as well that the holy body o the "nes 'hus 5one are li#e a lump o solid gold. there is no ca,ity inside, and no organs li#e the stomach, nor large or small intestines. 'his is actually the way it is. And then a great number of mon#s ad+anced to&ards the %on,ueror and, &hen they had reached his side, bo&ed and touched their heads to his feet They circled him in res"ect three times, and then seated themsel+es to one &ay At this "oint the junior mon# Subhuti &as &ith the same grou" of disci"les, and too# his seat &ith them 'he root te%t is saying that, then, a great number of mon#s too ad+anced to the side o :which is to say approached; the %on,ueror 'hen they circled him in res"ect three times, and seated themsel+es to !one &ay!6 that is, they sat down all together. /ot only that, but at this "oint the respected elder named Subhuti &as &ith this same grou" of disci"les, and too# his seat &ith them (e now begin the second step in our commentary to the sutra, which is an e%planation o the actual body o the te%t. 'his itsel comes in two parts. a description o how the teaching was initially re*uested, and then an e%planation o the series o answers that ollowed. Here is the irst o these. And then the junior mon# Subhuti rose from his cushion, and dro""ed the corner of his higher robe from one shoulder in a gesture of res"ect, and #nelt &ith his right #nee to the ground 5e faced the %on,ueror, joined his "alms at his heart, and bo&ed Then he beseeched the %on,ueror in the follo&ing &ords7 'he root te%t ne%t describes how the junior mon# Subhuti then rose from the cushion where he had been seated, and dro""ed the corner of his !higher! robe meaning his upper robe from his le t shoulder in a gesture of res"ect He placed the sole o his le t oot on the ground, and then #nelt &ith his right #nee as well. 5e faced in the direction o the %on,ueror, joined his "alms at his heart, and bo&ed Then he beseeched the %on,ueror in the follo&ing &ords 2h %on,ueror, the *uddha the 2ne 8one Thus, the 9estroyer of the Enemy, the Totally Enlightened 2ne has gi+en much beneficial instruction to the bodhisatt+as &ho are great beings 4hate+er instruction he has e+er gi+en has been of benefit And the 2ne 8one Thus, the 9estroyer of the Enemy, the Totally Enlightened 2ne, has as &ell instructed these bodhisatt+as &ho are great beings by granting them clear direction 4hate+er clear direction he has granted, oh %on,ueror, has been a &ondrous thing 2h %on,ueror, it is a &ondrous thing

'o put it simply, Subhuti beseeches the 1uddha by saying.

2h %on,ueror, you ha,e gi+en much instruction to the bodhisatt+as &ho are great beings6 and in a spiritual sense it has been o the highest benefit, the ultimate help, or both their present and uture li,es. 4hate+er instruction you ha+e e+er gi+en, all o it has been of this same benefit <ou ha,e as well instructed these bodhisatt+as by granting them three #inds o clear direction <ou ha,e directed them towards the source, and towards the dharma, and towards the commands. Subhuti then tells the 0on*ueror how &ondrous this is, and so on.

In Master 6amalashila+s thin#ing here the word "source" would re er to directing a disciple to a spiritual guide. 'he word "dharma" would signi y how this guide leads his disciple to engage in what is bene icial. !nd the "commands" would describe the 1uddha+s directions. "<ou, my bodhisatt,a, must act to help all li,ing beings." 2h %on,ueror, &hat of those &ho ha+e entered &ell into the &ay of the bodhisatt+a) 5o& shall they li+e) 5o& shall they "ractice) 5o& should they #ee" their thoughts) This did Subhuti as#, and then 'his brings us to the actual way in which the sutra was re*uested. Subhuti as#s the %on,ueror, !4hat of those &ho ha+e entered &ell into the &ay of the bodhisatt+a)! He phrases his *uestion in three di erent sections. !5o& shall they li+e) 5o& shall they "ractice) 5o& should they #ee" their thoughts)! Here secondly we e%plain the 1uddha+s reply. the %on,ueror bes"o#e the follo&ing &ords, in re"ly to Subhuti3s ,uestion7 2h Subhuti, it is good, it is good 2h Subhuti, thus it is, and thus is it7 the 2ne Thus 8one has indeed done benefit to the bodhisatt+as &ho are great beings, by granting them beneficial instruction The 2ne Thus 8one has indeed gi+en clear direction to the bodhisatt+as &ho are great beings, by granting them the clearest of instruction The %on,ueror is greatly pleased by the re*uest that Subhuti submits to him, and so he says !It is good ! 'hen he pro,ides his a irmation o the truth o what Subhuti has spo#en, by assenting that the 2ne Thus 8one has indeed done benefit to the bodhisatt+as &ho are great beings, and has indeed gi+en them clear direction

And since it is so, oh Subhuti, listen no& to &hat I s"ea#, and be sure that it stays firmly in your heart, for I shall re+eal to you ho& it is that those &ho ha+e entered &ell into the &ay of the bodhisatt+a should li+e, and ho& they should "ractice, and ho& they should #ee" their thoughts !And since this reason is so,! continues the 1uddha, !listen well now to &hat I s"ea#, and be sure that it stays firmly, without e,er being orgotten. For I shall re+eal to you the answer to those three *uestions about ho& these beings should li+e, and so on." !Thus shall it be,! re"lied the junior mon# Subhuti, and he sat to listen as instructed by the %on,ueror The %on,ueror too then began, &ith the follo&ing &ords7 In re"ly then Subhuti pro ers to the 0on*ueror, !Thus shall it be ! 5e sits to listen as instructed by the %on,ueror, and the %on,ueror too begins his e%planation &ith the &ords that follo& 'his Subhuti, by the way, is only posing as a disciple. in reality he would appear to be an emanation o Manjushri himsel . (hen the 'eacher spo#e the sutras on the Mother o the 1uddhas, it was none other than Subhuti that he would appoint to gi,e the opening presentations and there is a special signi icance to why he did so. !s or the general structure o the te%t, Master 6amalashila ma#es his presentation in a total o eighteen di erent points. 'hese begin with relating the te%t to the (ish or enlightenment, and then to the per ections, and then discussing the aspiration or the 1uddha+s physical body. ! ter co,ering all the others, he reaches inally the part where the 1uddha has completed his pronouncement. Master 6amalashila pro,ides his commentary by relating the irst si%teen o these points to the le,els o those who act in belie . 'he one point that ollows then he relates to the le,els o those who act out o total personal responsibility. Point number eighteen re ers, lastly, to the le,el o a 1uddha. My intention here is to o er a somewhat more concise e%planation, and I begin with the part that concerns the (ish or enlightenment.

Em"tiness and the 4ish for Enlightenment


The following selections are taken from 'he 9iamond 0utter Sutra, spoken by Lord

(uddha ( 00 (C$* and the commentary to it named Sunlight on the Path to Freedom, by Chone Lama Drakpa Shedrup (167 !17"#$ of Sera %ey Tibetan %onastery& The root te't is in bold and has been inserted into the commentary& Subhuti, this is ho& those &ho ha+e entered &ell into the &ay of the bodhisatt+a must thin# to themsel+es as they feel the 4ish to achie+e enlightenment7 I &ill bring to nir+ana the total amount of li+ing beings, e+ery single one numbered among the ran#s of li+ing #ind7 those &ho &ere born from eggs, those &ho &ere born from a &omb, those &ho &ere born through &armth and moisture, those &ho &ere born miraculously, those &ho ha+e a "hysical form, those &ith none, those &ith conce"tions, those &ith none, and those &ith neither conce"tions nor no conce"tions 5o&e+er many li+ing beings there are, in &hate+er realms there may be anyone at all labelled &ith the name of !li+ing being! all these &ill I bring to total nir+ana, to the s"here beyond all grief, &here none of the "arts of the "erson are left at all (et e+en if I do manage to bring this limitless number of li+ing beings to total nir+ana, there &ill be no li+ing being at all &ho &as brought to total nir+ana (hat the root te%t is saying is. !Subhuti, this is ho& those &ho ha+e entered the &ay of the bodhisatt+a must thin# to themsel+es irst as they feel the 4ish to achie+e enlightenment7 4hate+er realms there may be, and ho&e+er many li+ing beings there are, they reach to in inity, they are countless. I one were to classi y those numbered among the ran#s of li+ing #ind by type o birth, there would be our. those &ho &ere born from eggs, and then those &ho &ere born from a &omb, those &ho &ere born through &armth and moisture, and those &ho &ere born miraculously 'hen again there are the sentient beings li,ing in the desire realm and the orm realm. those &ho ha+e a "hysical form 'here are also the beings in the ormless realm. those &ith no physical orm. 'here are !those &ith conce"tions,! meaning the beings who li,e in all the le,els e%cept the ones #nown as the "great result" and the "pea# o e%istence." 'here are !those &ith no conceptions," which re ers to a portion o the beings who reside at the le,el o the great result. In addition are the beings who ha,e been born at the le,el o the pea# o e%istence. those &ith no coarse #inds o conce"tions but who on the other hand are not such that they ha,e no subtle conce"tions 'he point, in short, is that I spea# o all li,ing beings. o anyone at all labelled &ith the name of !li+ing being ! All these &ill I bring to total nir+ana, to the s"here beyond all grief, where one no longer remains in either o the e%tremes and &here none of the two #inds o obstacles, and

none o the su ering heaps o "arts to the "erson, are left at all 'o summari&e, these bodhisatt,as de,elop the (ish or the sa#e o bringing all these di erent li,ing beings to the state o that nir,ana where one no longer remains in either o the e%tremes2 to bring them to the dharma body, the essence body, o the 1uddha. 'he re erence here is either to someone who is eeling the (ish or the irst time, or to someone who has already been able to de,elop it. 'he irst o these two has been practicing the emotion o great compassion, where one wishes to protect all li,ing beings rom any o the three di erent #inds o su ering they may be e%periencing. 'his has made him ready or his irst e%perience o the state o mind where he intends to lead all sentient #ind to the ultimate nir,ana. 'he latter o the two, the one who has already de,eloped the (ish, is re$ ocussing his mind on his mission, and thus increasing the intensity o his (ish. Here is a little on the our types o birth. 1irth rom an egg e%ists among humans, serpentines, birds, and other creatures. 1irth rom the womb is ound with humans and animals, and is also one o the ways in which cra,ing spirits ta#e birth. 'here are many e%amples o inanimate objects which grow rom warmth and moisture crops and so on. !mong humans though there was the case o the #ing called "Headborn." 'he majority o the insects which appear in the summer are also born this way. Miraculous birth occurs with the humans who appear at the beginning o the world, and with pleasure beings, hell beings, inbetween beings, and near pleasure$beings. It is also one o the ways in which animals ta#e birth. !n e%ample o birth rom an egg among humans would be the story that we see o Saga, who possessed the li etime ,ows o a laywoman. She ga,e a great number o eggs, and rom these eggs grew boys. 'he abo,e description applies to the way in which a person thin#s as he or she eels what we call the "decepti,e" (ish or enlightenment. It re ers both to the (ish in the orm o a prayer and to the (ish in the orm o actual acti,ities. I would say as well that Lord 1uddha+s intention at this point is to re er primarily to the (ish as it occurs at the paths o accumulation and o preparation. For a person to eel a (ish or enlightenment which is complete in e,ery necessary characteristic, it is not su icient simply to intend to lead all other sentient beings to the state o 1uddhahood. 8ather, you must ha,e the desire that you yoursel reach this state as well. 'his is e%actly why Maitreya stated that "'he (ish or enlightenment consists o the intention to reach total enlightenment or the sa#e o others." 'he part about "the sa#e o others" is meant to indicate that you must intend to lead other beings to nir,ana, whereas the part about the "intention to reach total enlightenment" means that you must intend to reach per ect 1uddhahood yoursel . Lord 1uddha wants us to understand that this (ish or enlightenment must be imbued with that correct ,iew wherein you percei,e that nothing has a sel $nature. 'his is why He states that we must de,elop a (ish or enlightenment where we intend to lead this limitless number o li,ing beings to the nir,ana beyond both e%tremes, but where at the same time we reali&e that, e+en if &e do manage to bring them to this total nir+ana, there &ill be no li+ing being at all who achie,ed it, and who also e%isted ultimately.

'he 'ibetan term or "nir,ana" means "passing beyond sorrow." 'he "sorrow" mentioned here re ers to the pair o #arma and mental a lictions, as well as to su ering. 'he nir,ana to which you wish to bring beings then re ers to a state o escaping rom the combination o #arma and bad thoughts, along with su ering. it means to go beyond them. 'his is why the unusual 'ibetan ,erb here re ers not only to nir,ana, but to the act o bringing someone to nir,ana as well. 'he root te%t at this point is meant to indicate that ordinary beings can possess something that appro%imates the ultimate (ish or enlightenment. It is also indicating the e%istence o the actual ultimate (ish or enlightenment, which only reali&ed beings possess. !t this juncture in his commentary, Master 6amalashila presents a great deal o e%planation concerning the correct ,iew o reality. He does so because he reali&es that this bac#ground is ,ery important or a proper understanding o the remainder o the root te%t, which is all spo#en relati,e to the correct ,iew o emptiness. I I did the same here in my own commentary I ear it would become too long or the reader, and so I will co,er some o these points now, but only in the ,ery brie est way, just to gi,e you a taste. /ow each and e,ery e%isting object, be it part o the a licted part o e%istence or part o the pure side, is established as e%isting only by ,irtue o terms. I one per orms an analysis with reasoning which e%amines an object in an ultimate sense, no object can bear such e%amination, and we ail to locate what we ga,e our label. Here the thing we deny is easier to deny i we can identi y it clearly. !s such I will spea# a bit about what this thing we deny is li#e. 5enerally spea#ing there are a great number o di erent positions that e%ist about what the object we deny e%actly is. Here though I will gi,e my e%planation according to the position o the 0onse*uence section o the Middle$(ay school. ! certain sutra says that "'hey are all established through concepts." 'he Commentary to the -our 7undred too contains lines such as the one which says, "It is only due to the e%istence o concepts that e%istence itsel can e%ist, and..." 'he Lord, in his 6llumination of the True Thought* says as well that "'hese lines 3 rom sutra4 are describing how all e%isting things are established by orce o concepts2 and we see many other such statements, that all e%isting objects are simply labelled with our concepts, and are established only by orce o concepts." 'here is a metaphor used to describe how all e%isting things are labelled with our concepts. (hen you put a rope with a chec#ered pattern on it in a dar# corner, some people might get the impression that it+s a sna#e. 'he truth at this point though is that nothing about the rope is a sna#e. neither the rope as a whole, nor the parts o the rope. /onetheless the person thin#s o the rope as a sna#e, and this sna#e is an e%ample o something which only ma#es its appearance as something labelled with a concept. In the same way, the heaps o parts that ma#e us up ser,e as a basis or us to get the impression "'his is me." 'here is nothing at all about these heaps as a whole, nor their continuation o,er time, nor their separate components, that we could establish as being an actual representation o "me." !t the same time though there is nothing else, nothing essentially separate rom these heaps o parts to oursel,es, that we could consider an

actual representation o "me" either. !s such, this "me" is merely something labelled upon the heaps o parts that ma#e us up2 there is nothing which e%ists by its own essence. 'his too is the point being made in the String of )recious 8ewels* by the reali&ed being /agarjuna. I it+s true that the persona is not the element " earth, nor water, nor ire, nor wind, /ot space, or consciousness, not all o them, 'hen how could he e,er be anything else= 'he part o the ,erse that goes rom "not earth" up to "not consciousness" is meant to deny that you could e,er establish a sel $nature o the person in any o the si% elements that ma#e up a persona, considered separately. 'he words "not all o them" are meant to deny that you could establish such a sel $nature in the collection o the si% elements, considered as a whole. 'he inal line o the ,erse denies that there could be any sel $ nature which was essentially separate rom these same elements. How then do we establish the e%istence o the persona :which in this case simply means "person";= 'he same wor# says. 1ecause the persona includes all si% )lements, he+s nothing that purely e%ists2 7ust so, because they include their parts, /one o these elements purely e%ist. 5i,en the reason stated abo,e, the persona is nothing more than something labelled upon the si% elements that ma#e him up he does not though purely e%ist. 7ust so none o these elements themsel,es e%ist purely, or they too are simply labelled upon the parts that they include. 'his same reasoning can be applied to the heaps o parts that ma#e up a person, and all other objects as well. you can say about all o them that, because they are labelled on their parts and their whole, they do not e%ist independently. 'he physical heap o parts that I mysel possess is something labelled upon my i,e appendages and so on2 these appendages themsel,es are something labelled upon the body as a whole and the parts that go o to each side o it2 and the smaller appendages li#e ingers and toes too are labelled upon their whole and their parts. ! water pitcher is something labelled on its spout and base and other parts2 the spout and base and such in turn are labelled on their parts and whole2 and so on the same pattern applies to all physical objects. Mental things too are labelled on mental e,ents o successi,e moments, and through the objects towards which they unction, and so on.

),en uncaused phenomena are labelled upon the respecti,e bases that ta#e their labels. !ll this I ha,e co,ered be ore, in other writings. 5i,en the abo,e, there does not e%ist anything which does not occur in dependence, or which is not labelled through a dependent relationship. 'here ore the point at which we can say something is the object denied by our search or a hypothetical sel $e%istent thing would be any time that thing e%isted without ha,ing been labelled through a dependent relationship. 'his too is why the 4oot Te't on .isdom states. /o object which does not occur 'hrough dependence e,en e%ists at all2 !s such no object could e%ist !t all i it weren+t empty. In short, when you search or the thing gi,en the name o "sel " or "me" you will ne,er ind anything2 despite this, the act that things can do something is completely right and proper, in the sense o an illusion, or magic. !nd this act applies to each and e,ery e%isting thing there is. !s the Shorter 9Sutra on the )erfection of .isdom: states, <ou should understand that the nature o e,ery single li,ing is the same as that o the "sel ." <ou should understand that the nature o all e%isting objects is the same as that o e,ery li,ing being.

'he ;ing of Concentration says as well,

<ou should apply what you understand about how <ou thin# o your "sel " to e,ery thing there is. !ll this is true as well or objects li#e the per ection o gi,ing and so on. they e%ist only through being labelled with a term, and are empty o any natural e%istence. See#ing to ma#e us reali&e how necessary it is to understand this act, Lord 1uddha ma#es statements li#e "Per orm the act o gi,ing without belie,ing in any object at all." 'his is the most important thing or us to learn. so long as we are still not ree o the chains o grasping to things as truly e%isting, and so long as we ha,e yet to grasp the meaning o emptiness, then we will ne,er be able to achie,e reedom, e,en i the

1uddha should appear himsel and try to lead us there. 'his is supported by the words o the sa,ior /agarjuna. Freedom is a complete impossibility For anyone who does not understand emptiness. 'hose who are blind will continue to circle Here in the prison o si% di erent births. Master !ryade,a as well has spo#en that "For those who concei,e o things, reedom does not e%ist." !nd there are many other such *uotations. 4hy is it so) *ecause, Subhuti, if a bodhisatt+a &ere to concei+e of someone as a li+ing being, then &e could ne+er call him a !bodhisatt+a ! Here we return to where we le t o in the root te%t. "ne may as#, !4hy is it so) (hat reason is there or saying that we should de,elop a (ish or enlightenment, while still understanding that there is no truly e%isting sentient being at all who e,er achie,es it=" Lord 1uddha irst calls Subhuti by name, and then e%plains that &e could ne+er call any particular bodhisatt,a a !bodhisatt+a who had reali&ed the meaning o no$sel $ nature" if this bodhisatt+a &ere to concei+e of any li,ing being as a li+ing being who e%isted truly.

Em"tiness and the *odies of a *uddha


The following selections are taken from Sunlight on the Path to Freedom, written by Chone Lama Drakpa Shedrup (167 !17"#$ of Sera %ey Tibetan %onastery& The original root te't of the sutra by Lord (uddha is included in darker type& 4hy is that) Thin#, oh Subhuti, of the mountains of merit collected by any bodhisatt+a &ho "erforms the act of gi+ing &ithout staying This merit, oh Subhuti, is not something that you could easily e+er measure "ne would ha,e to admit that a person loc#ed in the chains o grasping to some true e%istence can collect a great amount o merit through acts o gi,ing and the li#e. 1ut suppose a person is able to practice gi,ing and the rest a ter he has reed himsel rom

these same chains. His merit then is certain to be e,er much greater. !nd it is to emphasi&e this point that the 1uddha says, 4hy is that) Thin#, oh Subhuti, of the mountains of merit collected by any bodhisatt+a &ho "erforms the act of gi+ing &ithout staying This merit is not something whose limit you could easily e+er measure6 in act, it would be *uite di icult to measure. 2h Subhuti, &hat do you thin#) 4ould it be easy to measure the s"ace to the east of us) And Subhuti re"lied, 2h %on,ueror, it &ould not The %on,ueror bes"o#e7 And just so, &ould it be easy to measure the s"ace to the south of us, or to the north of us, or abo+e us, or belo& us, or in any of the ordinal directions from us) 4ould it be easy to measure the s"ace to any of the ten directions from &here &e no& stand) And Subhuti re"lied, 2h %on,ueror, it &ould not The %on,ueror bes"o#e7 And just so, oh Subhuti, it &ould be no easy thing to measure the mountains of merit collected by any bodhisatt+a &ho "erforms the act of gi+ing &ithout staying 'he root te%t here is presenting an e%ample. It would be no easy thing to measure the space to the east or any o the rest o the ten directions reaching out rom the particular point where we are now. 'hen the 1uddha summari&es the point o the e%ample with the words that start with !-ust so, Subhuti ! 2h Subhuti, &hat do you thin#) Should &e consider someone to be the 2ne Thus 8one because he "ossesses the totally e$,uisite mar#s on a *uddha3s body) And Subhuti re"lied, 2h %on,ueror, &e should not 4e should not consider someone the 2ne Thus 8one because he "ossesses the totally e$,uisite mar#s on a *uddha3s body And &hy not) *ecause &hen the 2ne Thus 8one himself described the totally e$,uisite mar#s on a *uddha3s body, he stated at the same time that they &ere im"ossible And then the %on,ueror s"o#e to the junior mon# Subhuti again, as follo&s7 'he merit o acts such as gi,ing and the rest bring us the physical body o a 1uddha, and this physical body is adorned with ,arious mar#s and signs. 'he words !Subhuti,

&hat do you thin#)! mean "Subhuti, turn your mind to this subject, and thin# about how it could be contemplate upon it." 'he 1uddha then as#s Subhuti, "!ssume or a minute that someone "ossessed the totally e$,uisite mar#s and signs, or the two physical bodies, o the "ne 'hus 5one. (ould that in itsel re,uire us to consider him that is, assert that he is the 2ne Thus 8one) (hat do you thin#=" Subhuti replies to the 1uddha with the words starting o rom, !4e should not consider him so." !t this point we ha,e to draw a slight distinction. "ne should not necessarily consider someone the "ne 'hus 5one simply because he "ossesses the totally e$,uisite mar#s and signs. !And &hy not)! says Subhuti. He answers himsel by saying, !*ecause &hen the 2ne Thus 8one himself described the totally e$,uisite mar#s and signs on a *uddha3s body, he stated at the same time that they e%isted decepti,ely, in the way o an illusion. Signs and mar#s o this #ind that e%isted ultimately, howe,er, would be a complete im"ossibility ! 2h Subhuti, &hat do you thin#) The totally e$,uisite mar#s on a *uddha3s body, as such, are dece"ti+e The totally e$,uisite mar#s on a *uddha3s body are also not dece"ti+e, but only insofar as they do not e$ist Thus you should see the 2ne Thus 8one as ha+ing no mar#s, no mar#s at all Thus did the %on,ueror s"ea# And then the junior mon# Subhuti re"lied to the %on,ueror, as follo&s7 'he mar#s and signs on the physical body o the 1uddha are li#e an image drawn on a piece o paper. they are not the real thing they e%ist in a decepti,e manner, as things that occur when all o their causes ha,e gathered together. 'hey do not e%ist as something with a true nature. 'o indicate this act, Lord 1uddha says to Subhuti, "Inso ar as the totally e$,uisite mar#s on a *uddha3s body e%ist, as such they are dece"ti+e "7ust what," you may as#, "is meant by the word dece"ti+e=" The totally e$,uisite mar#s and signs on a *uddha3s body are also not dece"ti+e, and true, but only insofar as they do not e$ist truly. Thus you should see the 2ne Thus 8one as ha+ing no mar#s, no mar#s to indicate his nature, at all 'he section here helps to pre,ent us rom alling into either one o the two e%tremes. 'he physical body o the 1uddha and its ,arious mar#s and signs do e%ist albeit in a decepti,e way, in a alse or empty way and this act #eeps us rom the e%treme o denying the e%istence o something which actually does e%ist. 'he te%t though also states that there e%ist no mar#s, and no mar#s that would indicate any nature, which also e%ist truly. 'his act #eeps us rom the e%treme o asserting the e%istence o something which actually does not e%ist. 'he ormer o these two 3mar#s4 is re erring to the physical body o a 1uddha. 'he latter is re erring to the dharma body, and chie ly to the essence body.

The Future of the *uddha3s Teachings

The following selections are taken from Sunlight on the Path to Freedom, written by Chone Lama Drakpa Shedrup (167 !17"#$ of Sera %ey Tibetan %onastery& The original root te't of the sutra by Lord (uddha is included in darker type& 2h %on,ueror, &hat &ill ha""en in the future, in the days of the last fi+e hundred, &hen the holy 9harma is a""roaching its final destruction) 5o& could anyone of those times e+er see accurately the meaning of the e$"lanations gi+en in sutras such as this one) And the %on,ueror bes"o#e, 2h Subhuti, you should ne+er as# the ,uestion you ha+e just as#ed7 !4hat &ill ha""en in the future, in the days of the last fi+e hundred, &hen the 9harma is a""roaching its final destruction) 5o& could anyone of those times e+er see accurately the meaning of the e$"lanations gi+en in sutras such as this one)! 'he issue is whether or not there will be anyone at all in the future who belie,es in, or has any great interest in, sutras such as this one sutras which e$"lain the nature o the dharma body, and the physical body, o a 1uddha. In order to raise this issue, Subhuti as#s the *uestion that begins with !2h %on,ueror, &hat &ill ha""en in the future, in the days of the last fi+e hundred, &hen the holy 9harma is a""roaching its final destruction)! In reply, the %on,ueror s"ea#s7 !2h Subhuti, you should ne+er as# the ,uestion you ha+e just as#ed ! (hat he means here is that Subhuti should ne,er entertain the uncertainty o wondering whether or not there will be anyone o this type in the uture2 and i he ne,er had this doubt, Subhuti would ne,er as# the *uestion. And again the *uddha bes"o#e, 2h Subhuti, in the future, in the days of the last fi+e hundred, &hen the holy 9harma is a""roaching its final destruction, there &ill come bodhisatt+as &ho are great beings, &ho "ossess morality, &ho "ossess the fine ,uality, and &ho "ossess &isdom And these bodhisatt+as &ho are great beings, oh Subhuti, &ill not be ones &ho ha+e rendered honor to a single *uddha, or &ho ha+e

collected stores of +irtue &ith a single *uddha Instead, oh Subhuti, they &ill be ones &ho ha+e rendered honor to many hundreds of thousands of *uddhas, and &ho ha+e collected stores of +irtue &ith many hundreds of thousands of *uddhas Such are the bodhisatt+as, the great beings, &ho then &ill come 2h Subhuti, says the te%t, in the future, e,en &hen the holy 9harma is a""roaching its final destruction, there &ill come bodhisatt+as &ho are great beings They &ill "ossess the e%traordinary orm o the training o morality6 they &ill "ossess that fine ,uality which consists o the e%traordinary orm o the training o concentration, and they &ill "ossess the e%traordinary orm o the training o &isdom And these bodhisatt+as &ho are great beings &ill not be ones &ho ha+e rendered honor to or collected stores of +irtue &ith only a single *uddha, but instead they &ill be ones &ho ha+e rendered honor to and collected stores of +irtue &ith many hundreds of thousands of *uddhas 'his act, says the 0on*ueror, is something I can percei,e right now. Master 6amalashila e%plains the e%pression !days of the last fi+e hundred! as ollows. "Fi,e hundred" here re ers to a group o i,e hundreds2 it re ers to the well$ #nown saying that "'he teachings o the 0on*ueror will remain or i,e times i,e hundred." !s such, the " i,e times i,e hundred" re ers to the length o time that the teachings will remain in the world. >,?@@ years. "n the *uestion o just how long the teachings will sur,i,e in this world, we see a number o di erent e%planations in the ,arious sutras and commentaries upon them. 'hese state that the teachings o the !ble "ne will last or a thousand years, or two thousand, or two and a hal thousand, or i,e thousand years. (hen we consider their intent though these ,arious statements are not in contradiction with each other. 'he reason or their lac# o contradiction is that some o these wor#s are meant to re er to the length o time that people will still be achie,ing goals, or still be practicing. Still others re er to the length o time that the physical records o these teachings remain in our world. Some, inally, appear to be re erring to the Land o the 8eali&ed 3India4. 'here are many e%amples o the #inds o bodhisatt,as mentioned in the te%t. In the Land o the 8eali&ed, there ha,e been the "Si% 7ewels o the (orld o 9&ambu," and others li#e them. In 'ibet there ha,e been high beings li#e the Sa#ya Pandita, or 1uton 8inpoche, or the 'hree Lords the ather and his spiritual sons. 2h Subhuti, su""ose a "erson reaches e+en just a single feeling of faith for the &ords of a sutra such as this one The 2ne Thus 8one, oh Subhuti, #no&s any such "erson The 2ne Thus 8one, oh Subhuti, sees any such "erson Such a "erson, oh Subhuti, has "roduced, and gathered safely into himself, a mountain of merit

beyond any estimation Su""ose, says the te%t, that a "erson o those uture days learns, and then contemplates, a sutra such as his one6 that is, a scripture which teaches the per ection o wisdom. !nd say urther that this brings him to reach, or de,elop, e+en just a single feeling of admiration or this teaching much less any re*uent emotion o faith or it. From this moment on the 2ne Thus 8one #no&s and sees that any such "erson has "roduced, and gathered safely into himself, a mountain of merit beyond any estimation He "#nows" the person+s thoughts, and "sees" his ,isual orm and such. 4hy is it so) *ecause, Subhuti, these bodhisatt+as &ho are great beings entertain no conce"tion of something as a self, nor do they entertain any conce"tion of something as a li+ing being, nor any conce"tion of something as being ali+e, nor any conce"tion of something as a "erson "ne may as# the reason &hy the abo,e is so It+s because these particular bodhisatt+as will entertain no mani est conce"tion of something as a self, or as a li+ing being, or as being ali+e, or as a "erson 'he denotation o the words "sel " and "person" and so on here are the same as I ha,e mentioned earlier. Master 6amalashila at this point says. 'he e%pression "concei,e o something as a sel " means thin#ing "me," or grasping that the sel e%ists. "0oncei,ing o something as a li,ing being" means grasping that something belonging to the sel e%ists. "0oncei,ing o something as being ali,e" means continuing to grasp to the same "sel " as abo,e, but or the entire length o its li e. "0oncei,ing o something as a person" means grasping that those who are born again and again are born. 'hus the meaning o grasping to something as belonging to the sel is a bit di erent than be ore.

(hen the te%t says that these bodhisatt,as entertain no such coarse conce"tions, it is re erring speci ically to the occasions at which one reali&es the lac# o a sel $nature. 2h Subhuti, these bodhisatt+as &ho are great beings neither entertain any conce"tion of things as things, nor do they entertain any conce"tion of things as not being things They neither entertain any conce"tion of a thought as a conce"tion, nor do they entertain any conce"tion of a thought as not being conce"tion 4hy is it so) *ecause if, oh Subhuti, these bodhisatt+as &ho are great beings &ere to entertain any conce"tion of things as things, then they &ould gras" these same things as being a !self!6 they &ould gras" them as being a li+ing being6 they &ould gras" them as being something that li+es6 they &ould gras" them as a

"erson And e+en if they &ere to entertain them as not being things, that too they &ould gras" as being a !self!6 they &ould gras" as being a li+ing being6 they &ould gras" as being something that li+es6 they &ould gras" as a "erson 'he te%t is saying. "/ot only do these beings a,oid entertaining a belie in things as being something true2 neither do they entertain any conce"tion of physical orm and other things as being true things nominally. :or as well do they entertain any conce"tion where they belie,e that these things are not things ! From another point o ,iew, it is appropriate as well to gloss the passage as ollows. Physical orm and other such things are decepti,e objects, and decepti,e objects are not something which is true. 'hese bodhisatt,as a,oid entertaining e,en the conception where one belie,es that this act itsel is something true. I one in act did entertain such a conception, then certain problems would arise and this e%plains the rele,ance o the two paragraphs that come ne%t in the root te%t, the one that mentions !If they &ere to entertain any conce"tion of things as things! and so on2 and the other that starts with !If they &ere to entertain them as not being things! that had a sel .

Em"tiness and ;arma


The following selections are taken from Sunlight on the Path to Freedom, written by Chone Lama Drakpa Shedrup (167 !17"#$ of Sera %ey Tibetan %onastery& The original root te't of the sutra by Lord (uddha is included in darker type& The %on,ueror bes"o#e7 2h Subhuti, &hat do you thin#) Su""ose some son or daughter of noble family &ere to ta#e all the "lanets of this great &orld system, a system &ith a thousand of a thousand of a thousand "lanets, and fill them all u" &ith the se+en #inds of "recious substances, and offer them to someone 4ould that son or daughter of noble family create many great mountains of merit from such a deed) (ith this ne%t section o the sutra, Lord 1uddha wishes to demonstrate a certain act. In the sections abo,e we ha,e spo#en about the act o becoming enlightened, and o teaching the dharma, and so on. /either these, nor any other object in the uni,erse,

e%ists ultimately. /onetheless, they do e%ist nominally. !s such, one would ha,e to admit that anyone who per orms an act o gi,ing does ac*uire great merit thereby. <et anyone who carries out the process o learning, or contemplating, or meditating upon this teaching ac*uires in initely greater merit. 'o con,ey this point, the %on,ueror as#s Subhuti the *uestion beginning with !4hat do you thin#) Su""ose some son or daughter of noble family &ere to ta#e this great &orld system, as system &ith a thousand of a thousand of a thousand "lanets ! 'he system mentioned here is described in the Treasure 7ouse 9of 7igher ;nowledge* the <bhidharmakosha*: as ollows. ! thousand sets o all our continents with ! sun and moon, Mount Supreme, pleasure 1eings o the desire, and world o the Pure agreed as an elementary system. ! thousand o these is a second$order #ind, 'he intermediate type o world system. ! third$order system is a thousand o these. "Suppose urther," continues Lord 1uddha, !that they &ere to fill u" this system of "lanets &ith the se+en #inds of "recious substances7 with gold, sil,er, crystal, lapis, the gem essence 3emerald4, karketana stone, and crimson pearl. !nd say then that they offered them to someone 4ould they create many great mountains of merit from such a deed, rom gi,ing someone else such a gi t=" And Subhuti re"lied, 2h %on,ueror, many &ould it be 2h %on,ueror, it &ould be many This son or daughter of noble family &ould indeed create many great mountains of merit from such a deed And &hy so) *ecause, oh %on,ueror, these same great mountains of merit are great mountains of merit that could ne+er e$ist And for this +ery reason do the 2nes Thus 8one s"ea# of !great mountains of merit, great mountains of merit ! In response, Subhuti re"lies7

It &ould be many great mountains o merit and these great mountains o merit are mountains o merit that we could establish as e%isting only in name, only in the way that a dream or an illusion e%ists. these same great mountains of merit though could ne+er e$ist as mountains that e%isted ultimately. The 2nes Thus 8one as well s"ea# in a nominal

sense of !great mountains of merit, great mountains of merit! applying the name to them. 'his section is meant to demonstrate a number o di erent points. 1lac# and white deeds that you ha,e committed be ore now, and which you are going to commit later, are such that the ones in the past ha,e stopped, and the ones in the uture are yet to come. 'here ore they are non$e%istent, but we ha,e to agree that, generally spea#ing, they e%ist. (e also ha,e to agree that they are connected to the mind stream o the person who committed them, and that they produce their appropriate conse*uences or this person. 'hese and other di icult issues are raised in the words abo,e. And the %on,ueror bes"o#e7 2h Subhuti, su""ose some son or daughter of noble family &ere to ta#e all the "lanets of this great &orld system, a system &ith a thousand of a thousand of a thousand "lanets, and fill them all u" &ith the se+en #inds of "recious substances, and offer them to someone Su""ose on the other hand that one of them held but a single +erse of four lines from this "articular dharma, and e$"lained it to others, and taught it correctly *y doing the latter, this "erson &ould create many more great mountains of merit than &ith the former7 they &ould be countless, and beyond all estimation (e should irst say something about the word !+erse! here. !lthough the sutra in 'ibetan is not written in ,erse, the idea is that one could put it into ,erse in Sans#rit. 'he word !hold! re ers to "holding in the mind," or memori&ing. It can also apply to holding a ,olume in one+s hand and, in either case, reciting the te%t out loud. 'he phrase !e$"lain it correctly! is e%plained as stating the words o the sutra and e%plaining them well. 'he phrase !teach it correctly! is e%plained as teaching the meaning o the sutra well, and this is the most important part. Suppose now that one held the sutra and did the other things mentioned with it, rather than the other good deed described. This "erson &ould then create great mountains of merit that &ere e+er more countless, and beyond all estimation 4hy is it so) *ecause, Subhuti, this is &here the matchless and totally "erfect enlightenment of the 2nes Thus 8one, the 9estroyers of the Foe, the Totally Enlightened *uddhas, comes from It is from this as &ell that the *uddhas, the %on,uerors, are born 'he reason or this is as ollows. 'he act o gi,ing someone the dharma is o much more bene it that the act o gi,ing material things. /ot only that, but the enlightenment of the totally enlightened *uddhas comes from is achie,ed through the per ection o wisdom. the reali&ation o emptiness which orms the subject matter o this te%t. It is from putting this into practice as well that the *uddhas, the %on,uerors, are born

Em"tiness and the 9estruction of the 'ental Afflictions


The following selections are taken from Sunlight on the Path to Freedom, written by Chone Lama Drakpa Shedrup (167 !17"#$ of Sera %ey Tibetan %onastery& The original root te't of the sutra by Lord (uddha is marked with an ornament in the Tibetan and bold in the +nglish& 2h %on,ueror, I declare that the 2nes Thus 8one those 9estroyers of the Foe &ho are the Totally Enlightened *uddhas reside in the highest of all those states that are free of the mental afflictions I am, oh %on,ueror, a "erson &ho is free of desire6 I am a foe destroyer *ut I do not, oh %on,ueror, thin# to myself, !I am a foe destroyer ! For su""ose, oh %on,ueror, that I did thin# to myself, !I ha+e attained this +ery state, the state of a foe destoyer ! If I did thin# this &ay, then the 2ne Thus 8one could ne+er ha+e gi+en me the final "rediction7 he could ne+er ha+e said7 !2h son of noble family, oh Subhuti, you &ill reach the highest of all those states that are free of the mental afflictions *ecause you stay in no state at all, you ha+e reached the state free of mental afflictions6 you ha+e reached &hat &e call the 3state free of mental afflictions 3 'hen Subhuti e%plains, !I am, nominally spea#ing, a foe destroyer 1ut it is also true that I do not, while grasping to some true e%istence, thin# to myself, !I am a foe destroyer ! I I did grasp to it this way then I would start to ha,e mental a lictions, and then I would stop being a oe destroyer. I am a oe destroyer, and the 0on*ueror has gi+en me the final "rediction7 he has told me, "/ominally spea#ing Subhuti, son of noble family, you &ill reach the highest of all those states that are free of the mental afflictions ! In an ultimate sense though, because I stay in no state at all, he could ne+er ha+e gi+en me the final "rediction, he could ne+er ha+e said, !2h son of noble family, oh Subhuti, you &ill reach the state free of mental afflictions ! 'his is because, ultimately spea#ing, there does not e,en e%ist any place to stay, not thing to ma#e one stay there, nor e,en anyone who stays there. !ll this is consistent with the position o the 0onse*uence school, which says that grasping to some true e%istence is a mental a liction. The %on,ueror bes"o#e7

2h Subhuti, &hat do you thin#) 4as there any dharma at all &hich the 2ne Thus 8one too# u" from that 2ne Thus 8one, the 9estroyer of the Foe, the Perfectly Enlightened *uddha called !'a#er of <ight!) And Subhuti res"ectfully re"lied,

2h %on,ueror, there &as not There e$ists no dharma at all &hich the 2ne Thus 8one recei+ed the 2ne Thus 8one too# u" from that 2ne Thus 8one, the 9estroyer of the Foe, the Perfectly Enlightened *uddha called !'a#er of <ight ! Altimately spea#ing then there is nothing or one to achie,e, and nothing that helps one achie,e it, and no one e,en to do the achie,ing. 1ut we can say e,en urther that, again spea#ing ultimately, there is no dharma at all that one ta#es up, and practices. In order to demonstrate this point, Lord 1uddha states the ollowing. 'he 0on*ueror as#s, ""h Subhuti, do you thin# that there was any dharma at all which I, the 2ne Thus 8one, in those days long ago too# u", ultimately spea#ing, from the *uddha called 3'a#er of <ight3)! And Subhuti o ers up the re"ly, "/o, there &as no such dharma." 'his speci ic re erence, wherein Lord 1uddha spea#s o the 1uddha "Ma#er o Light" by name, recalls an e,ent which had ta#en place long be ore. In those times our 'eacher was a youth #nown as "0loud o 9harma." 9ue to the blessing o the 1uddha "Ma#er o Light," he was able to achie,e a stage #nown as the "great mastery o things that ne,er grow," and to bring about the eighth bodhisatt,a le,el. (hen this had happened, Light Ma#er ga,e him the inal prediction, saying "In the uture, you will become the 1uddha #nown as +Sha#yamuni+." In order to remember the #indness that Light Ma#er paid on this occasion, I will spea# more o this later on. (e should say a little about this e%pression, the "great mastery o things that ne,er grow." 'his re ers to a point at which one has eliminated the mental a lictions, and achie,ed total mastery, luency, in meditating upon non$conceptual wisdom, which percei,es directly each and e,ery instance o the ,ery nature o all things, their emptiness o any natural e%istence. !s such, all caused objects appear to this person e%clusi,ely in the nature o an illusion, as empty o any true e%istence, not only during periods o deep meditation but during the times between these meditations as well. (hen one reaches the stage o the great mastery o things that ne,er grow, one directly percei,es that no object at all has any true e%istence. "ne percei,es that what was predicted to inally happen, and the thing one is to achie,e, and becoming enlightened all o them are empty o any natural e%istence. !s such the 1uddha had no belie that he was ta#ing up any truly e%isting dharma at all rom the 1uddha Light Ma#er. It is true that, at the time that the inal prediction is made, the 1uddha who is predicted

does not yet e%ist. !nd it is true that, by the time he becomes a 1uddha, the person who recei,ed the prediction no longer e%ists. In a nominal sense though there is a single continuum, a single person, who e%ists rom the point o the prediction up to the point o enlightenment. 'here does e%ist a general #ind o "me," one which e%tends to the whole "me" o the past and the uture, where we do not di,ide out the separate me+s o some speci ic points in the past and uture. It is with re erence to this general "me" that the 1uddha grants his inal prediction, and says "<ou will become such and such a 1uddha." 'o gi,e an e%ample, it is true that the particular me+s o speci ic past or uture li,es, or else the particular me+s o some point early on in your li e, or later on in your li e, are not the "me" you are at this present moment in time. /onetheless it is allowable or us to say, o things that those me+s ha,e done or are going to do, " 6 did that," or "6 am going to do that." It+s just the same with the inal prediction. (e also say things li#e "I am going to build a house," or "I am going to ma#e a hat, or some clothes, or a pair o shoes." ),en though the house and the rest ha,e no e%istence at the moment that we say these things, we can spea# nonetheless o them, or we are thin#ing o them in the sense o something that will come about in the uture. !nd they will occur, i only nominally2 but they will not come orth through any nature o their own. I they could come about through some nature o their own, then the house and so orth that we must agree e%ist e,en as we spea# o building or ma#ing them could ne,er e%ist at all. 'his is e%actly the idea e%pressed in the Sutra 4e=uested by %adrupa* where it says. !nything which arises rom conditions does not arise2 'here is no nature o arising in such a thing. !nything dependent on conditions is e%plained as empty2 !nyone who understands emptiness is mind ul. <ou can also apply at this point all the reasonings presented earlier or demonstrating how things ha,e no true e%istence. !t some point you will gain a really correct understanding o how, despite the act that results do come rom causes, they do not come rom these causes through any nature o their own. !t that moment you will inally grasp the way in which Middle$(ay philosophy describes how, despite the act that things are empty o any natural e%istence, they can still *uite properly wor# and unction as they do. !t that point too you will ha,e disco,ered the Middle (ay itsel , the path where the appearance o the normal world and emptiness itsel are inseparably married together.

BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB 4hy is it so) *ecause, oh Subhuti, there &as a time &hen the ;ing

of ;aling#a &as cutting off the larger limbs, and smaller a""endages, of my body At that moment there came into my mind no conce"tion of a self, nor or of a sentient being, nor of a li+ing being, nor of a "erson I had no conce"tion at all *ut neither did I not ha+e any conce"tion

For what reason is it so) *ecause long ago there &as a time, oh Subhuti, &hen the #ing of ;aling#a got the e,il suspicion that I had engaged in relations with his woman. !nd so he &as cutting off the larger limbs, and smaller a""endages of my body :'he latter re ers to the ingers and toes.; !t that moment I practiced patience, #eeping my mind on an understanding o the lac# o true e%istence to each o the three elements to the act o patience. !s I ocussed on the "me" which e%ists nominally, there came into my mind no conce"tion where I held any belie in some truly e%isting "me". and so I had no conception of anything rom a truly e%isting !self! up to a truly e%isting !"erson ! !t that moment I had no conce"tion at all o any such conception that something was e%isting truly. !t the same time though it was neither as i I had no other, nominal conce"tions at all. (hat Subhuti is saying here is the ollowing. I did ha,e the thought that I would ha,e to #eep my patience. I did ha,e the thought to ta#e the pain on willingly, and not to be upset about the harm being done to me. !nd I did ha,e the #ind o conception where I recon irmed my #nowledge o how I had percei,ed that no e%isting object has any true e%istence. 4hy is it so) Su""ose, oh Subhuti, that at that moment any conce"tion of a self had come into my mind Then the thought to harm someone &ould ha+e come into my mind as &ell The conce"tion of some sentient being, and the conce"tion of some li+ing being, and the conce"tion of "erson, &ould ha+e come into my mind And because of that, the thought to harm someone &ould ha+e come into my mind as &ell Here is the reason &hy it is so Su""ose that at that moment any conce"tion of a self, where I thought o "me" as e%isting in an ultimate way, had come into my mind "r suppose any o the other conceptions mentioned had come into my mind. Then the thought to harm someone &ould ha+e come into my mind as &ell6 but the act is that it did not.

Em"tiness and Paradise6 Em"tiness and Purification

The root text is found in bold in the translation, and is marked with an ornament in the Tibetan. The commentary is by Chone Lama Drakpa Shedrup (1 !"#1!$%& of Sera 'ey Tibetan 'onastery.

The %on,ueror bes"o#e7 Su""ose, oh Subhuti, that some bodhisatt+a &ere to say, !I am &or#ing to bring about "aradises ! This &ould not be s"o#en true Lord 1uddha wishes to indicate that, in order or a person to reach the enlightenment described abo,e, he or she must irst bring about a paradise in which to achie,e the enlightenment. 'here ore the %on,ueror says to Subhuti, Su""ose some bodhisatt+a &ere to say or thin# to himsel while holding a belie in true e%istence, and re erring to ultimate e%istence !I am &or#ing to bring about "aradises ! This statement &ould not be s"o#en true 4hy is it so) *ecause the 2nes Thus 8one ha+e stated that these "aradises, these !"aradises,! these lands that are "ut there do not e+en e$ist And this is &hy &e call them !"aradise ! 4hy is this the case) 'he reason is that the 2nes Thus 8one ha+e stated that these per ect "aradises, these places where you achie,e your enlightenment, are put there li#e an illusion2 that is, they occur because a great many causes and conditions ha,e come together. 1ut lands which ha,e been "ut there in an ultimate sense, say the 1uddhas, do not e+en e$ist Since though they do e%ist to that state o mind which per orms no chec# or analysis, &e can nominally call them !"aradise ! 'his act re ers not only to the paradise o a 1uddha, but also to each and e,ery thing which has e,er been put here. to both the world where beings li,e and the beings who li,e in the world. !ll o these are simply a label put on the collection o a number o parts. they are all the same as a house, or e%ample. !nd all o these are such that, should you brea# them down mentally all the way to their tiniest atoms, you would reach the point where they are nothing at all. :'his is the brie est s#etch o the meaning or you.; Since this is so, oh Subhuti, those bodhisatt+as &ho are great beings de+elo" their &ish &ithout residing in these thoughts They de+elo" their &ish &ithout residing in anything at all They de+elo" their &ish &ithout residing e+en in +isible form They de+elo" their &ish &ithout residing e+en in sounds, or in smells, or in tastes, or in things to touch, or in any object at all Since this is so, says Lord 1uddha, bodhisatt+as who are wor#ing to bring about their

paradise should de+elo" their &ish 3 or enlightenment4 &ithout residing in any such state where they hold a belie in some true e%istence. They should de+elo" their &ish &ithout residing in any state where they belie,e in the ultimate e%istence o anything at all They should de+elo" their &ish &ithout residing in any state where they hold a belie in some true e%istence o any object at all7 +isible form, or any o the rest. 2h Subhuti, it is thus7 Su""ose, for e$am"le, that someone3s body &ere to gro& this large su""ose it &ere to gro& as large as the #ing of all mountains, 't Sumeru 4hat do you thin#, oh Subhuti) 4ould that "erson3s body be large) And Subhuti re"lied, 2h %on,ueror, such a body &ould be large 2h you &ho ha+e 8one to *liss, such a body &ould be large And &hy so) *ecause Those 8one Thus ha+e stated that it could ne+er be a thing at all And this is &hy &e call it a !body ! *ecause Those 8one Thus ha+e stated that it could ne+er be a thing at all, &e call it a !large body ! Lord 1uddha wishes to show that the abo,e applies not only to outer things such as paradises, but also to the beings who inhabit this world. to objects such as the body o a person. He wishes to show that they too e%ist only because conditions ha,e come together, and not in an ultimate way. 'here ore he as#s Subhuti, Su""ose some "erson3s body &ere to gro& to the si&e o the #ing of mountains, 't Sumeru 4hat do you thin#) 4ould that body be something large) And Subhuti respect ully re"lies, Such a body &ould be large Those who ha,e 8one Thus though ha+e stated that this same body e%ists only as a term applied to the heaps, to some collection o a great many parts. It could ne+er be a thing at all which e%isted in essence2 that is, it could ne,er be something which did not depend on its parts, say they. And this is &hy &e can call such a body !large,! in the sense that words are used in the e,eryday world. Here a large body is just a representati,e e%ample2 we are meant to apply this reasoning to all physical objects, large or small. 'he entire statement here in the sutra is aimed at showing us how to meditate upon the act that each and e,ery detail o the world and the beings who inhabit it are all empty o any natural e%istence.

And I tell you further, oh Subhuti7 any "lace &here this sutra is taught thereby becomes a "lace &orthy of the offerings of the entire &orld, &ith its gods, and men, and demigods It becomes a "lace

&hich is &orthy of their "rostrations, and &orthy of their circumambulations That "lace becomes something li#e a stu"a Furthermore, any "lace &here this sutra is taught thereby becomes a "lace &orthy of the offerings, and the "rostrations, and the circumambulations of all the li,ing beings in the entire &orld, &ith its gods, and men, and demigods 'his point recalls the line in the 3rnament of 4eali5ations where it tal#s about "enlightenment and none other than a stupa." 'his re ers to a act mentioned in the root sutra in the Mother, in its more e%tensi,e, medium, and shorter ,ersions, as well as in the commentaries. Here it says that any place where a bodhisatt,a on the path o habituation stays thereby becomes a place li#e a stupa, a place that should be re,ered by other people. 'he re erence here in this case is mainly to any place where there resides a person who has managed to de,elop the whole point o this te%t that is, an e%traordinary orm o actual per ection o wisdom within the stream o his mind. Pre,iously in the sutra a section similar to this one appears, but each instance applies to a di erent case. 2h Subhuti, any son or daughter of noble family &ho ta#es u" a sutra li#e this, or &ho holds it, or reads it, or com"rehends it fully, &ill suffer They &ill suffer intensely Here in a statement o,er and abo,e the one be ore, Lord 1uddha says, 2h Subhuti, consider any son or daughter of noble family &ho ta#es u" this sutra, who holds it in their hands, and so on any li,ing being who does these things and then puts the meaning o the sutra into practice. It is entirely possible that such a person could e%perience some pain, that they could suffer, and suffer intensely, through ,arious #inds o illness, or con lict with others, or being critici&ed, or chained, or beaten, or anything o the li#e. It could happen, but it would be no great problem, because. . .

4hy is it so) *ecause, oh Subhuti, such beings are "urifying non= +irtuous #arma from the entire string of their "re+ious li+es, #arma that &ould ha+e ta#en them to the three lo&er realms As they "urify this #arma, it causes them to suffer here in this life As such they &ill succeed in cleaning a&ay the #arma of these non=+irtuous deeds of their "re+ious lifetimes, and they &ill as &ell achie+e the enlightenment of a *uddha For what reason is it so) *ecause such beings are "urifying great non=+irtuous #arma that they ha,e committed both in this li e and in their li etimes past #arma so serious that it &ould normally ha+e ta#en them to the three lo&er realms !s such, the results o all these deeds are ripening here in this ,ery life 'hus one is suffering pain, and by orce o this su ering he or she is !cleaning a&ay! that is, puri ying all o this non$,irtuous #arma !s such, one will *uic#ly achie+e the enlightenment of a *uddha

'he orce o an antidote action consisting o ma#ing great e orts in the per ection o wisdom is destroying the grasping to some sel $e%istence, the ,ery root o all non$ ,irtuous deeds. 'his is why the te%t goes on to say that one will achie,e reedom and the state o omniscience. !nd since the te%t does say this, then needless to say one could destroy the #arma that is leading you to a birth in the lower realms. 'he way in which this wor#s is e%plained in te%ts such as the (la5e of 4easoning and others. !s the Sutra of the 2reat Liberation says as well, ),en though one may ha,e the bad #arma 'o ta#e his birth in the three lower realms, ! simple headache will clean it away. Suppose or e%ample that a seed is planted, but is then depri,ed completely o water, or ertili&er, or warmth, or the rest. 'hen it would ne,er sprout. Here the case is the same. I you are able to eliminate grasping to some sel $nature, then none o the #armas you ha,e collected, regardless o how many there are, can e,er ripen orth. 'his is because their companion, the mental a lictions, are absent. !s the Commentary on 1alid )erception states, /o urther #armas can e,er project their results In one who has gone beyond the desire or e%istence2 'his is because the conditions ha,e all been inished.

Emptiness and the Perfection of Wisdom. How it Prevents the Two Extremes?
The root te't is found in bold in the translation* and is marked with an ornament in the Tibetan& The commentary is by Chone Lama Drakpa Shedrup (167 !17"#$ of Sera %ey Tibetan %onastery& The junior mon# Subhuti s"o#e the follo&ing &ords, &ith great res"ect, to the %on,ueror7

2h %on,ueror, &hat is the name of this "articular #ind of 9harma) 5o& are &e to consider it) And the %on,ueror bes"o#e the follo&ing to the junior mon# Subhuti7 2h Subhuti, this "articular #ind of 9harma is #no&n as the !"erfection of &isdom,! and that is ho& you should consider it 'hen Subhuti as#s, !4hat is the name of this te%t=" In reply the %on,ueror states, "Its name is the 3"erfection of &isdom,3! and !that is ho& you should consider it to be named." 'he subject matter selected by the 'eacher, the subject e%pressed by the te%t, is the per ection o wisdom in its actual orm. 'he point here then is that the 'eacher has named the te%t that e%presses this subject by using the name o the subject it e%presses. Here the name o the per ection o wisdom is meant to represent all the other per ections as well. 4hy is it so) *ecause, oh Subhuti, that same "erfection of &isdom s"o#en by the 2nes Thus 8one is a "erfection of &isdom that doesn3t e+en e$ist And this is &hy &e call it the !"erfection of &isdom ! That same "erfection of &isdom s"o#en by the 2nes Thus 8one to be the !"erfection of &isdom! is a "erfection of &isdom that doesn3t e+en e$ist as a per ection o wisdom in an ultimate sense. And this is &hy &e can, in a nominal sense, label it the !"erfection of &isdom ! !ll these #inds o e%planations, where they state that things do not e%ist ultimately but do e%ist nominally, illustrate the path o the middle way, wherein the two truths are accepted as an inseparable unity, which unctions to pre,ent completely the two e%tremes. 'hey illustrate, in short, how the *uality o being empty o any natural e%istence, and the *uality o e%isting nominally, coe%ist with each other as simultaneous attributes o any single object. Here is a bit on the literal meaning o the e%pression "per ection," or "gone to the other side." 'his term connotes either that thing which ta#es you to the other side o the ocean o cyclic li e, or else the state o ha,ing already reached that other side. 'a#en the ormer way, the e%pression re ers the per ection o wisdom as it e%ists on the paths o those who are still learning 3that is, non$1uddhas4. 'a#en the latter way, it re ers to the per ection o wisdom which e%ists at the le,el o a 1uddha, and is e*ui,alent to the #nowledge o all objects. I we go beyond its strictest sense, there are many di erent usages o the term "per ection o wisdom". it can re er to the "natural," or the "te%tual," or the "path," or the "resulting" per ection o wisdom. It+s important to be able to distinguish between all these, but it would be beyond the scope o this commentary or me to discuss them here. 'o put it brie ly, what was s"o#en o as the !"erfection of &isdom! re ers to that #nowledge which is imbued with the wish to attain enlightenment, and which percei,es emptiness. It is this same "erfection of &isdom which acts as an e%traordinary #ind o method or ta#ing the irst i,e per ections those o gi,ing and the rest and leading

them up to the point o enlightenment. I will spea# urther o this later. 2h Subhuti, &hat do you thin#) Is there any dharma at all &hich the 2nes Thus 8one e+er s"ea#) And Subhuti res"ectfully re"lied, 2h %on,ueror, none of the dharmas e+er s"o#en by the 2nes Thus 8one e+en e$ist In the part be ore this one, Lord 1uddha mentioned "the per ection o wisdom spo#en by the "nes 'hus 5one," and e%plained how it could be the per ection o wisdom. Someone might thin# to themsel,es, "!re there though any other dharmas which were spo#en by the "nes 'hus 5one, and which do e%ist in an ultimate sense=" In order to answer this *uestion with an emphatic "/oC" the 1uddha poses a *uestion to Subhuti7 !Is there any such dharma at all)!

In re"ly, Subhuti o ers up the ollowing answer. !:one of the dharmas e+er s"o#en by the 2nes Thus 8one e+en e$ist, at least in an ultimate sense." 'he point here is ,ery similar to the one be ore, where it said that the teaching o the dharma by the "nes 'hus 5one did not e,en e%ist.

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'he ollowing selection is rom the DEth 0hapter o the Commentary on the Three )rincipal )aths* written by Pabong#a 8inpoche :DEFE$DGHD;. I-III. ! Ani*ue 'eaching o the "Implication" School 'he i th and inal section in our e%planation o correct ,iew concerns a uni*ue teaching ollowed by the "Implication" group o the Middle (ay school. 'his instruction is contained in the ollowing ,erse o the root te%t.

:DJ; In addition, the appearance pre,ents the e%istence e%treme2

)mptiness that o non$e%istence, and i <ou see how emptiness shows in cause and e ect <ou+ll ne,er be stolen o by e%treme ,iews. /ow all the schools e%cept or the members o the "Implication" group hold that an understanding o the appearance o things pre,ents you rom alling into what we call the "e%treme o thin#ing things do not e%ist," while an understanding o emptiness pre,ents you rom alling into what is #nown as the "e%treme o thin#ing things do e%ist." 'he position o the Implication group though is that no particular object you can choose has any true e%istence, aside rom merely appearing this way2 and understanding this pre,ents you rom going to the e%treme o thin#ing things e%ist that is, e%ist in an ultimate way. !nd because this mere appearance itsel cannot e%ist on its own, an understanding o emptiness pre,ents your alling into the e%treme o thin#ing things do not e%ist that is, do not e%ist in a con,entional way. "nce something is interdependent there is no possibility or it to be anything else but something which does not e%ist naturally something which cannot stand on its own. 'his is because it must then occur in dependence on the collection o parts which ser,e as the basis that recei,es our label. Loo# at the e%ample o some eeble old man, unable to rise rom his chair by himsel , who must see# some other support to get up he cannot stand on his own. Here it+s a similar case. no object can stand on its own, no object can e%ist just naturally, so long as it must depend on any other actor. 5enerally spea#ing, there are a great number o logical proo s that can be used when you want to establish the meaning o no sel $nature. 'here is one though which is li#e the #ing o them all, and this is it. the "proo through interdependence." Let+s say we put orth this argument to someone, and we say. 0onsider a sprout. It cannot e%ist truly, For it is interdependent. Members o certain non$1uddhist schools will answer "I disagree with your reason," which is to say, "Sprouts are not interdependent." 'his they must say because they belie,e that e,ery object in the uni,erse is a mani estation o some prime,al "ne. 'he majority o the earlier 'ibetan 1uddhists ell into the e%treme that we call "thin#ing things ha,e stopped," or they would say that i something did not e%ist truly it could not e%ist at all. 'he schools rom the Mind$"nly on down, the group o schools #nown collecti,ely as the "Functionalists," all all into the e%treme o "thin#ing things are permanent," or they cannot e%plain interdependence i they accept that nothing e%ists naturally. Members o the "Independent" group within the Middle (ay school accept the idea o interdependence, but do not agree that i something is interdependent it cannot "e%ist by de inition." 'his too is tantamount to the e%treme o thin#ing things are

permanent. 'he real sages o the Middle (ay school ma#e a our old distinction. they say that nothing e%ists naturally, but not that nothing e%ists at all2 e,erything e%ists merely by con,ention, but e,erything e%ists without e%isting naturally. 'he point o error or the Functionalists and those other schools is their ailure to distinguish between these our. two #inds o "nothing e%ists" and two #inds o "e,erything e%ists." !ccording to the Implication system, both e%tremes$$thin#ing things are permanent and thin#ing things ha,e stopped$$can be pre,ented with a single logical statement. "It cannot e%ist truly, because it is interdependent." 'he irst part o the statement #eeps us rom the e%treme o thin#ing things are permanent2 the second, rom the e%treme o thin#ing things ha,e stopped. My own precious teacher, 0hone Lama, was always saying that both parts o the statement each pre,ent both o the e%tremes$$permanence and stopping. He would e%plain this as ollows. the literal sense o the statement+s irst part, "It cannot e%ist truly," ser,es to pre,ent the e%treme o thin#ing things are permanent. 'he implication o saying that something cannot e%ist "truly" though is to say that, more generally, it is not non$e%istent2 this then disallows the e%treme o thin#ing that things ha,e stopped. !nd this description, he would say, was enough or us to igure out or oursel,es the process or the second part o the statement. "...because it is interdependent." (ith this understanding we can see why the glorious 0handra#irti stated. 'here ore this proo employing interdependence 0uts the net o e,ery mista#en ,iew. So we+,e shown that no object in the uni,erse e%ists truly2 we+,e gi,en "because it+s interdependent" as our reason or saying so2 and we+,e demonstrated that these two acts can pre,ent one rom alling into either e%treme. 'his too is why we see statements li#e the ollowing, rom 4oot .isdom> ),erything is right or any thing For which the state o emptiness is right. "r the well$#nown sutra lines. Form is emptiness, )mptiness orm. 'hese last lines by the way are stated to show that interdependence is itsel empty, and emptiness itsel interdependent. It helps your understanding o this point i you ta#e the same pattern and read it as I am emptiness, )mptiness me.

In short, concluded our Lama, the laws o cause and e ect are all totally proper or any entity which is empty o any natural e%istence. I you can just #eep yoursel rom alling into the two e%tremes, you will ma#e no great other blunders in your e ort to de,elop correct ,iew.

How Empty Things Still Work


The root te't is found in bold in the translation* and is marked with an ornament in the Tibetan& The commentary is by Chone Lama Drakpa Shedrup (167 !17"#$ of Sera %ey Tibetan %onastery& It is thus Any li+ing beings &ho recei+e an e$"lanation of this sutra and &ho are not made afraid, and are not frightened, and &ho do not become frightened, are truly &ondrous Here is the reason. In uture days, certain li+ing beings &ill recei+e, they will listen to, an e$"lanation of the meaning o the words o this sutra !nd yet they &ill not be made afraid, and they &ill not be frightened, and they &ill not become e%tremely frightened, by any such thought as. "I this is so, and i nothing at all e%ists in a true way, then all the ways in which things li#e #arma and its conse*uences wor# cannot be right, and so really nothing at all can wor#." 8ather they will ind a greater belie , an e,en greater aith, in all these objects. !nd beings li#e this will be truly &ondrous I things did e%ist in a true way, then it would be improper to say that they e,er changed. !nd then it would be improper, it would ne,er be right, to describe all the wor#ings o things li#e #arma and its conse*uences. 'he way in which all things wor#, and nir,ana itsel , and e,erything else are all *uite proper. !nd none o these objects has any true e%istence, none o them has any nature o their own. How all this can be is described by Lord 'song#apa in his )raise from 6nterdependence> 8eaching the state o nir,ana could ne,er occur, !nd elaborations too could ne,er be stopped, I objects had any nature o their own, because

! nature could not be stopped, <ou stated. He also says, Since things are empty o any nature !nd the way things wor# is right, 'here is no contradiction between them. 'hose who see things the opposite 'hin# nothing can wor# with emptiness... 4hy is it so) *ecause, oh Subhuti, the 2ne Thus 8one no& s"ea#s to you the holy "erfection of &isdom6 and the holy "erfection &hich the 2ne Thus 8one no& s"ea#s to you is the same "erfection of &isdom &hich %on,uering *uddhas beyond any number to count ha+e s"o#en as &ell And this is &hy &e can call it the !holy "erfection of &isdom ! Here is the reason &hy it will be so wondrous. The holy, or highest, "erfection of &isdom a wor# which teaches how no object e%ists through any nature o its own is no& being s"o#en to you by mysel , by the 2ne Thus 8one !nd this is the same "erfection of &isdom &hich has been s"o#en in the past by %on,uering *uddhas who are beyond any number to count Lord 1uddha ma#es this statement because he wants his listeners to consider what he has just said abo,e as something authoritati,e. (hat he has just said, remember, is that nothing in,ol,ed with cause and e ect has any nature o its own. And this reason is &hy &e can call it the !5oly Perfection of 4isdom !

The Verse of mpermanence and Emptiness


The following selections are taken from Sunlight on the Path to Freedom, written by Chone Lama Drakpa Shedrup (167 !17"#$ of Sera %ey Tibetan %onastery& The original root te't of the sutra by Lord (uddha is marked with an

ornament in the Tibetan and bold in the +nglish& See anything *rought about by causes As li#e a star, An obstruction of the eye, A lam", an illusion, The de&, or a bubble6 A dream, or lightning, 2r else a cloud /e%t comes a concluding summary, which shows how all things brought about by causes are empty o any nature o their own, and are also impermanent. !ll this is contained in the ,erse about the "star, an obstruction o the eye, a lamp," and the rest. (e could ta#e or e%ample the i,e heaps physical orm and the rest or any such objects. !ll these can be described in the ollowing metaphors. Stars appear at night, and then by day they no longer appear. 'he parts to a person and other things brought about by causes are just the same. I a person+s mind is ull o the dar#ness o ignorance, then they appear to e%ist in an ultimate sense. 30orrecting an error in 'ibetan te%t, stong or snang.4 Suppose though that the sun rises the sun o the wisdom which percei,es that nothing e%ists truly. 'hen these objects no longer appear in an ultimate sense. !s such we should see these things as being li#e a star Suppose your eyes are bloc#ed by some obstruction in them by particles o dust or something o the li#e. 'he thing that you+re trying to loo# at then doesn+t loo# the way it really is2 rather, you see it some other way. It+s just the same with the eye o the mind when it+s bloc#ed by the obstruction o ignorance. 'hings brought about by causes then appear to this mind as something other than what they are. 'he lame o a butter lam", supported by a thin plant wic#, lares and then *uic#ly dies out. 0aused things, each supported their ,arious causes and conditions, also go through a continuous process o rising and *uic#ly dying out. !n illusion is something that loo#s di erent than what is actually there. 'hings brought about by causes also appear to e%ist truly, to a mista#en state o mind. 9e& ,anishes *uic#ly2 things with causes are the same they die away speedily, without lasting e,en into the second instant o their e%istence. *ubbles pop up at random, because some water is stirred up or something o the li#e, and then they burst and disappear just as suddenly. 0aused things wor# the same way. when the ,arious conditions all come together, they pop up suddenly, and then they die

out just as suddenly. 9reams are an e%ample o a misperception, which is due to the a ects o sleep on the mind. 'hings brought about by causes as well are misapprehended, they seem to e%ist truly, to the mind which is a ected by ignorance. <ightning lashes and dies out *uic#ly. 0aused things too rise and die out *uic#ly, depending on the conditions that assemble to bring them about. %louds are something that gather and ade in the s#y, depending on the wishes o the serpent$beings and such. 'hings brought about by causes are the same2 depending on the in luence o #arma which is either communal or not, they rise or die out. )ach o the metaphors abo,e is also meant to represent how no object brought about by causes has any true e%istence. 'he e%planation gi,en here applies to things brought about by causes as an entire group. ! more restricted application is *uoted rom sutra by Master /agarjuna. 'he physical orm is li#e a bubble that orms, !nd the eelings resemble the roth o a wa,e2 9iscrimination is just a mirage, !nd the other actors li#e empty cane2 !wareness is similar to an illusion 'hus did the 0ousin o the Sun spea#. Master 6amalashila relates the inal three metaphors to the three times2 this is a little di erent rom the e%planation here, but the two are in no way contradictory. 'o put it brie ly, Lord 1uddha is telling us that we should "See that each and e,ery thing brought about by causes is impermanent, and is empty o any nature o its own, all just li#e the nine e%amples gi,en abo,e." (e should also consider these lines as indicating both the lac# o sel to the person, and the lac# o sel to phenomena.

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