Category Archives: Mañjuśrī Teaches Prajñāpāramitā

Closing Teachings on Prajñāpāramitā

Posted on February 10, 2015 by Vajragoni


Painting by Peter Adams

At that time, Mañjuśrī addressed the Buddha, saying, “Bhagavān, in the cities and villages of Jambudvīpa, what should be the station of one who expounds the extremely profound Prajñāpāramitā?” The Buddha said to Mañjuśrī, “Now in this assembly, if there are people who hear Prajñāpāramitā, and all vow saying, ‘In a future life, I should always attain this manifestation of Prajñāpāramitā,’ then from this belief, in a future life, they will be able to hear this sūtra. It should be known that it is not from few good roots that such a person is able to accept and hear it with bliss. Mañjuśrī, if there is again someone who has heard this Prajñāpāramitā from you, then you should say, ‘In this Prajñāpāramitā, there is no Śrāvaka or Pratyekabuddha Dharma, or a Buddha Dharma, and also no dharmas of birth and death, of ordinary beings, and so on.’” Mañjuśrī addressed the Buddha, saying, “Bhagavān, suppose bhikṣus, bhikṣuṇīs, upāsakas, or upāsikās come and ask of me, ‘How does the Buddha expound Prajñāpāramitā?’ I would reply saying, ‘All dharmas are without conflicting characteristics, so how should the Tathāgata expound Prajñāpāramitā?’ Why? There is no perception of the existence of dharmas with which dharmas may conflict, and also no minds and consciousnesses of sentient beings which are able to know. read more

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Single Action Samādhi

Posted on February 9, 2015 by Vajragoni

At that time, Mañjuśrī addressed the Buddha, saying, “Bhagavān, I contemplate the true Dharma which is unconditioned and without characteristics, without obtaining and without benefit, without birth and without death, without coming and without going, without one who knows, without one who perceives, and without one who acts. There is no perceiving Prajñāpāramitā, nor perceiving a realm of Prajñāpāramitā, being neither realization nor non-realization. It is not composing conceptual elaborations, and is without discrimination. All dharmas are endless and apart from any end. There is no Ordinary Person Dharma, Śrāvaka Dharma, Pratyekabuddha Dharma, or Buddha Dharma. There is neither attainment nor non-attainment, neither abandoning birth and death, nor realizing Nirvāṇa. There is neither conceivable nor inconceivable, neither doing nor nondoing. Such being the characteristic of the Dharma, how then should one learn Prajñāpāramitā?” At that time, the Buddha said to Mañjuśrī, “If one is able to thusly know the characteristics of the Dharma, then this is what is called learning Prajñāpāramitā. Bodhisattva-mahāsattvas who wish to learn the Bodhi Sovereign Samādhi, and having attained this samādhi, illuminate all extremely profound Buddha dharmas, as well as know the names of all buddhas, and in each case thoroughly understand the various buddha world realms without obstruction, should learn this Prajñāpāramitā spoken by Mañjuśrī.” read more

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Cultivating Prajñāpāramitā II

Posted on February 8, 2015 by Vajragoni


Painting by Peter Adams

At that time, Mahākāśyapa addressed the Buddha, saying, “Bhagavān, in the coming age, if the extremely profound true Dharma is spoken thusly, who will be able to believe, understand, accept, and practice it?” The Buddha said to Kāśyapa, “If bhikṣus, bhikṣuṇīs, upāsakas, and upāsikās in this assembly are able to hear this sūtra thusly, then in the coming age, if they hear this Dharma again, they will certainly be capable of understanding the extremely profound Prajñāpāramitā. They will even be able to study, recite, believe, understand, accept, and maintain it, and they will be able to expound it to others and explain it. Consider a householder who is worried and distressed after losing a maṇi jewel. When it is found again later, his mind will be extremely happy. It is just like this, Kāśyapa. Bhikṣus, bhikṣuṇīs, upāsakas, and upāsikās, are also such as this, who have a mind of faith and happiness. If they do not hear the Dharma, then distress will arise, but when they are able to hear it, they will believe, understand, accept, and maintain it, always happy when studying and reciting it, extremely blissful and happy. It should be known that such a person is essentially perceiving the Buddha, and essentially serving and providing offerings to all buddhas.” read more

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The Inconceivable Samādhi

Posted on February 5, 2015 by Vajragoni

At that time, the spiritual power of the Buddha caused the great earth to shake in six directions, with the manifestation of impermanence. Sixteen thousand people attained the Dharma Patience of Non-arising, and seven hundred bhikṣus, three thousand upāsakas, forty thousand upāsikās, and sixty countless myriads of beings from the Six Heavens of Desire left the dust and dirt far behind, and attained the pure Dharma Eye regarding all dharmas. read more

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The True Liberation of the Tathāgatas

Posted on February 1, 2015 by Vajragoni

At that time, the Bhagavān spoke to Mañjuśrī, saying, “When you say I am the Tathāgata, do you mean that I have come from suchness?” Mañjuśrī said, “No, Bhagavān, I would not say that the Tathāgata is the one who has come from suchness. Why? There is no appearance of suchness which may be called suchness, and no Tathāgata wisdom which is able to know suchness. Why? The Tathāgata and wisdom are without characteristics of duality. Emptiness is the Tathāgata, only existing as a name, so what should I say is the meaning of Tathāgata?” The Buddha spoke to Mañjuśrī, saying, “Do you doubt the Tathāgata?” Mañjuśrī said, “No, Bhagavān. I contemplate the Tathāgata as being without fixed nature, without birth and without death, and for this reason there is no doubt.”  read more

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The True Nature of Bodhi

Posted on January 29, 2015 by Vajragoni

At that time, Śāriputra addressed the Buddha, saying, “Bhagavān, the beginning bodhisattvas are unable to understand Prajñāpāramitā as Mañjuśrī explains it.” Mañjuśrī said, “It is not only the beginning bodhisattvas who are unable to understand, but also those who are established in the Two Vehicles have not yet been able to understand it. When the Dharma is explained thusly, they are unable to understand it. Why? The appearance of Bodhi is truly without the existence of dharmas which may be known. It is without seeing and hearing, without grasping and without thought, without birth and without death, without speech and without listening. As such, the appearance of the nature of Bodhi is empty and silent, without realization and without knowledge, without form and without appearance, so how could there be the existence of one who attains Bodhi?”  read more

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Contemplating the Buddha

Posted on January 27, 2015 by Vajragoni

Mañjuśrī addressed the Buddha, saying, “Bhagavān, I will now speak further about the meaning of Prajñāpāramitā.” The Buddha said, “As you wish.” “Bhagavān, when cultivating Prajñāpāramitā, there is no seeing dharmas in which one should dwell or not dwell, nor seeing the appearance of a realm that may be obtained or relinquished. Why? This is because all tathāgatas as such do not see the appearance of a realm of dharmas, not even seeing the buddha realms. It is also such as this for the attainment of the śrāvaka, pratyekabuddha, and mundane realms. There is no grasping characteristics of thought and also no grasping characteristics of no-thought. Not seeing the existence of various characteristics of dharmas, self-realization of the emptiness of dharmas is inconceivable. Thusly, all bodhisattva-mahāsattvas provide offerings to innumerable hundreds of thousands of myriads of buddhas, planting every good root, and are therefore able to be without alarm and fear of the extremely profound Prajñāpāramitā. Moreover, when cultivating Prajñāpāramitā, seeing neither fetters nor liberation, and not distinguishing between characteristics of ordinary people and even those of the Three Vehicles, is cultivating Prajñāpāramitā.”  read more

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Cultivating Prajñāpāramitā

Posted on January 25, 2015 by Vajragoni

The Buddha spoke to Mañjuśrī, saying, “When cultivating Prajñāpāramitā thusly, how should one abide in Prajñāpāramitā?” Mañjuśrī said, “Not abiding in dharmas is abiding in Prajñāpāramitā.” The Buddha again asked Mañjuśrī, “Why do you say that not abiding in dharmas is abiding in Prajñāpāramitā?” Mañjuśrī said, “Not abiding in appearances is itself abiding in Prajñāpāramitā.” The Buddha spoke to Mañjuśrī again, saying, “When abiding in Prajñāpāramitā thusly, do one’s good roots increase or decrease?” Mañjuśrī said, “If one is able to abide in Prajñāpāramitā thusly, then one’s good roots neither increase nor decrease, just as all dharmas neither increase nor decrease, and the characteristic of the nature of Prajñāpāramitā likewise neither increases nor decreases. Bhagavān, cultivating Prajñāpāramitā thusly is not abandoning the dharmas of ordinary beings, nor is it grasping the dharmas of the noble ones. Why? Prajñāpāramitā does not perceive the existence of a dharma which may be grasped or abandoned. Cultivating Prajñāpāramitā thusly is also not seeing Nirvāṇa to delight in, nor birth and death to despise. Why? One does not perceive birth and death, much less something to leave behind. One does not perceive Nirvāṇa, much less something to delight  in. read more

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Emptiness on a Thursday Afternoon

Posted on January 22, 2015 by Vajragoni

Mahāratnakūṭa Sūtra
46. Mañjuśrī Teaches Prajñāpāramitā
Translated from Taishō Tripiṭaka volume 11, number 310 read more

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Mañjuśrī Teaches Prajñāpāramitā

Posted on January 20, 2015 by Vajragoni

Perhaps more than any other Celestial Bodhisattva, Mañjuśrī best captures the epitome of Wisdom. Mañjuśrī is undoubtedly synonymous with and the very embodiment of the Perfection of Wisdom (Prajñāpāramitā). He is the ever-present guide and interlocutor in countless sutras; perhaps best well-known for his role in the Vimalakirti Sutra where he is the only fearless Bodhisattva present who dare go and visit the apparently ailing-lay bodhisattva, the mysterious and Noble Vimalakirti, and whose subsequent dialog with him becomes the very cornerstone of that sutra. He is also a prominent feature in the Lotus Sutra where he becomes privy to what the Buddha is about to reveal, even before the majestic Maitreya. Less well known is his pivotal role in a sutra from the Mahāratnakūṭa corpus, Mañjuśrī’s Discourse of the Pāramitā of Wisdom. Yet, this little gem packs a powerful punch in the spirit of the Diamond Sutra, and could actually be considered its sister text. It expounds a very High-Gnosis, not based on the relative truth of the mundane, but instead the Ultimate Truth of the Unborn and Absolute. Before venturing-forth in this new series, it is appropriate to begin with an exposé on the nature of its shining star—Mañjuśrī, the Maha-Bodhisattva of Transcendent Wisdom, whose name Man-ju (charming, beautiful and pleasant), and Shri (meaning a shining glory) encapsulates the very essence of the Prajñāpāramitā literature. read more

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