《太上一乘海空智藏经》Vol. 3

Good man, some principles are not without arising; they merely need to be expounded according to the concrete circumstances of things. In the world there is “defilement” (afflictive pollution) that arises from causes and conditions, and there is also “purity” that clings to nothing. You should now understand that this is the supreme truth, the subtle and wondrous orthodox Dharma; what is spoken here is all true.

Then what are the “True Precepts”? The True Precepts and what is taught in the Basu and Siming (titles of Daoist classics) are fundamentally the same principle. You and your relatives and followers should observe them carefully. The meaning of this Jing (scripture) is profound; receive it with an open mind and firmly keep in mind its subtle and refined meaning.

The so-called “One Pure Precept” is the precept of self-nature. Human nature is originally pure; if one has transgressed, one need only repent sincerely and confess truthfully, and purity can be restored. Next, one should contemplate three kinds of purity: purity of faith, purity of mind, and purity of body. Giving rise to the supreme mind of the Dao, with body and mind both pure—this is the beginning of cultivating clear practice and the root of all cultivation.

Having attained purity, one then gives rise with great compassion to various virtuous actions and clearly sees that the Dao (the Way) and its teachings are originally pure and unobstructed. From this one truly realizes the subtle purport, penetrates the truth, and causes the mind and the object contemplated to be entirely without difference. This is called the Dao. Why? Because one has penetrated the true Dao.

The Dao can manifest through responsive transformation bodies and be transmitted to students. Good man, if one can uphold the orthodox teaching and cultivate right practice, such a person is the supreme foremost guide, able universally to bring beings to maturity, to understand the various aspects of the Dao, and to lead beings to seek the fruit of the Dao of true oneness and naturalness.

One should also cause all future beings to delight in propagating the supreme Great Dao and to proclaim the “One Vehicle, Ocean of Emptiness, Treasury of Wisdom” (referring to the vast, boundless, sole ultimate path of liberation and treasure of wisdom), so that beings give rise to a mind of equal benefit to others. Such a thing is extremely difficult to encounter—truly rare, truly rare! One should abide in merit, strengthen oneself, remain far from the five dusts of form, sound, smell, taste, and touch, abandon the mind of craving and attachment, guard one’s faculties and nature, and dwell securely and immovably in the place of eternal joy in the Supreme Heaven.

Good man, if someone can relinquish the mind of greedy craving and attachment, guard the six sense faculties (eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, mind), and prevent them from creating evil karma, then he can dwell securely in the “fruit of the four mindfulnesses” (the state reached through cultivating four kinds of contemplative observation), understand the profound and wondrous Dharma with thorough clarity, give rise to no doubt, and not slander it. His mind is pure like a lotus; within appearances he is naturally clear and luminous, is not defiled by the realms of sense objects (the temptations of external form, sound, fragrance, taste, touch, and so forth), and no longer gives rise to thoughts of greedy craving.

If he contemplates that this physical body is entirely empty and without anything possessed, then, like a son of a great king born by transformation (arising suddenly through the power of karma, without passing through a womb), his merits are pure; he is reborn in a pure land, can subdue afflictions, and by the power of awe-inspiring virtue seeks the Dharma and renounces household life. Pure in body and mind, he escapes the city of afflictions, ascends to the higher realms, draws near and serves the divine honored ones, and deeply understands that all dharmas are originally empty and originally pure—neither truly existent, nor pure, nor not pure.

Why is this? Because all sentient beings have not yet awakened to the principle of “emptiness”; they still cling to “existence” and have not yet attained the subtle, profound power of concentration and wisdom. Good man, since your relatives have already renounced household life, yet you have given rise to a mind of attachment to the profound and wondrous Dharma that you have obtained. Because there is attachment, one cannot attain purity. Why? The right Dharma of purity is precisely the place of non-attachment. If one clings to the idea that dharmas have other differentiated marks, then attachment arises. Good man, this is not correct.

Such attachment arises from thoughts of ignorance (deluded unawareness). “Formations” (the volitional stirring of thoughts) are karma. Although the youth of the True Person has already correctly cultivated the six practices and contemplates birth and death, he is still unable to relinquish them. Immeasurable merits require much cultivation before one can become weary of and detached from all evils. The arising and ceasing of conditioned dharmas (all things produced and destroyed through the convergence of causes and conditions) gives rise to weariness of and detachment from evils, and also gives rise to thoughts of aversion. Yet such thoughts are like emptiness; they are not real and cannot abide for long. Each dharma has its own meaning and principle; if one fails to understand them, one cannot penetrate them thoroughly. The speech of all sentient beings is not the same, and the bases they rely on also differ. Good man, the Buddha path uses Dharma gates to encompass immeasurable and boundless categories of dharmas; sometimes it takes the five aggregates (form, feeling, perception, formations, consciousness) as a Dharma gate that encompasses all dharmas. The faculties and capacities of sentient beings are as clear as if held in the palm of the hand. It is only those of dull faculties (those whose understanding is slow) who find it difficult to enter deeply and receive it.

The Perfected Youth (Zhenren Tongzi), relying on skillful Dharma-power, proclaims this profound and wondrous Dharma-gate. The Dharma-gates he encompasses are immeasurable and boundless; some take the “five aggregates” (the five constituents of sentient beings’ body and mind—form, sensation, perception, formation, and consciousness; called the “five skandhas” in Buddhism) as the entryway, and thereby gather in all dharmas. The superiority and inferiority of sentient beings’ capacities are as clear as if held in the palm of his hand.

Sentient beings of dull faculties (slow to comprehend, shallow in foundation) find it difficult to enter and receive deeply. The Perfected Youth therefore again proclaims this profound Dharma with the power of skillful means, enabling them to receive the supreme true Dharma. He proclaims immeasurable meanings, employs wondrous skillful means, and is sovereign in majestic virtue. With immeasurable subtle true Dharma, he teaches all immeasurable Dharma-gates. Therefore the Dharma-gates are immeasurable and boundless, and names, characteristics, phrases, and meanings are also immeasurable and boundless. The subtle phrases and meanings perfect sentient beings’ supreme skillful speech.

Toward Dharma that is not difficult in itself, they give rise to notions of difficulty, set up various challenges, and leave the other party with no words to reply. If someone does answer, he enables that person to understand.

The “Ocean-Empty Dao-Fruit” takes Dharma as its body. What is the Dharma-body? Its meanings are multiple. Among all dharmas of the three times—past, present, and future—some exist as they truly are, while others are like emptiness. Good sons, this is the gate of expedient means and also the gate of great wisdom.

If sentient beings have not yet given rise to faith, then with the teaching of the “Ocean-Empty Wisdom Treasury” of the “One Vehicle” (the single fundamental teaching that directly leads to Buddhahood), he upholds it like a precious treasure. For those who have not yet planted roots of goodness, he guides them with a loving heart; he makes already existing roots of goodness firm and brings about their universal fulfillment; he benefits all who are not yet accomplished, causing them to become accomplished; and those not yet liberated, he causes to be liberated. Therefore he establishes expedient Dharma in the world.

Good sons, just as Great Wisdom can increase merit and virtue and benefit sentient beings through the power of skillful means, you can skillfully exhort all sentient beings, causing them in exceedingly great numbers to advance with courage and vigor, to strive and aspire, so that afflictions are forever extinguished and, once extinguished, never arise again. Thus he establishes skillful means in the world.

Good sons, the wisdom of Guangyan (Light-Adornment) is surpassing, and you too are exceedingly rare; the Dharma-ground King is also called rare, and the Transformation-born Great King is also called rare. He can cause roots of goodness to come together; greatly wise beings are rare in the world; the Ocean-Empty Wisdom Treasury is also called rare, and the Good-Seed Great King is also called rare.

Thereupon the Heavenly Worthy (Tianzun), with eyes of great compassion, opened his mouth and spoke a verse.

This scripture discusses the principle of “emptiness.” The various dharma-gates in the world are expedient means that guide sentient beings toward liberation; in themselves they have no fixed, unchanging substantial entity. Therefore, in the supreme realm, there is no “dharma” that can be grasped.

The subtle principle here lies in this: when one observes “form” (referring to all tangible, visible things), one knows that its own-nature is originally empty. Whether it is “great emptiness” (the emptiness that pervades all things) or “small emptiness” (the empty aspect of individual things), both are nothing possessed.

Originally there is no truly existing dharma; only because sentient beings’ minds engage in deluded conceptualization do things seem to exist. All dharmas should be viewed in this way, and this is precisely the foundation on which methods of cultivation are established.

Sentient beings’ minds delight in discrimination, and relying on external objects they generate all kinds of discriminations, thus producing oppositions such as “empty” and “non-empty,” “existence” and “nonexistence.” In reality, neither emptiness nor existence is something that can be fabricated or obtained.

Do not cling to the “emptiness of emptiness.” One should understand that form is emptiness, and that emptiness is not apart from form; from this, non-discriminating wisdom arises, clinging neither to form nor to empty nothingness.

Therefore it is said, “form is emptiness.” If form and emptiness were regarded as two different things, then emptiness would lose its own essential nature; how then could it be said to be established or not established?

Conditioned dharmas (referring to conditioned phenomena arising from the convergence of causes and conditions) are not different from the marks of permanence. If one discerns their own-nature, one knows that these dharmas are empty. Emptiness is the emptiness of form; the mark of form is originally nothing possessed. Existence and emptiness are merely two sides of the same reality.

The scripture also says that true own-nature cannot be spoken of; like a pure land, it naturally manifests. It is not apart from form and yet possesses emptiness, so emptiness cannot independently become form; form is like space, and therefore it is called the “emptiness of emptiness.”

The nature of things is empty; intrinsic nature has never arisen from the outset, so there is no arising and ceasing, and still less any distinction between deep and shallow, pure and defiled. This form (tangible things, the phenomenal world) is originally nothing whatsoever.

Whenever there is arising, there is attachment and defilement; therefore “form” has no independent, unchanging, inherent characteristic. When one penetrates this meaning through the principle of “nothing whatsoever,” names are then established with respect to false “existence.”

These names are false fabrications, produced when people discriminate among various names and appearances. The intrinsic nature of all dharmas (all things and truths) is empty; only because names are provisionally posited do various descriptions and characteristics arise.

Teaching all dharmas in accordance with causes and conditions, all these names and appearances thus come to be. Those who truly realize see through them as not substantially existent, and therefore neither cling to “views” nor give rise to discriminating thoughts.

This is called the “unequalled pair,” and it serves as the basis for expounding the Dharma. Since there is nothing divided and nothing distinguished, the confusion produced by all sorts of discrimination is thereby eliminated.

Names and dharmas are not different; this is so for all conditioned dharmas. “Form” is precisely “emptiness,” and “non-emptiness” is also “form.” When something arises from emptiness, it becomes a seed (the source of causes and conditions); when it returns into emptiness, it arises without intrinsic nature—this is the principle of “signlessness.”

Even a wisdom eye as firm as the earth and as sharp and hard as diamond (referring to prajna wisdom) cannot perceive their emptiness if, in the face of names and appearances, one has no wisdom.

These many names are not fixed; their meanings are all established from the same essential reality. The many manifold things, differing in substance and appearance, are originally signless; therefore these differences already exist within signlessness.

Where there is no defilement, there is purity; hence the analogy of space. By contemplating emptiness through this teaching of emptiness, there is neither self-nature nor other-nature.

A truly existent nature is also nonexistent, like an image in a mirror. Everything seen is without real existence, yet good and evil bodily karma arises from this.

Form exists like a shadow following a shape, like an echo coming and going with a sound. It is like light and shadow, like an echo, and like the moon in water.

The moon in water has no substantial object; the stillness of the mind is likewise so. Therefore, by using “non-existence” as a metaphor, one thereby penetrates the unsurpassed path (the highest state of practice).

To engage with the world skillfully—how excellent indeed, O teacher of the Great Sage! By expounding in detail profound and hidden truths, you enable those who awaken to the One Vehicle (the sole path to Buddhahood, the supreme Buddha Dharma) to realize it.

At that time, after Dahui (Great Wisdom) had heard the verse spoken by the Tianzun (Heavenly Worthy), he asked the youth Fangcheng Shengyin: “The greatly compassionate Tianzun, with compassion like a rain of Dharma, has set forth the meaning of these words and the place of their teaching. Excellent! Youth Fangcheng Shengyin, for what reason did the greatly compassionate Tianzun speak in this way? The Tianzun travels everywhere through all the heavens—why does he not see birth and death? Within the dependent nature (the nature of things that arise in dependence on causes and conditions), according to the true nature (the nature of things as they truly are, real and not false), birth and death, coming and going, are without difference. I wish to inquire about this principle, but I dare not speak rashly. Excellent, Zhenren (True Person, one accomplished in cultivation) Fangcheng Shengyin! I hope you and the great kings will go together to the Tianzun’s seat and ask about the doubts in our minds. What do you think?”

At that time, the youth Fangcheng Shengyin replied to Dahui: “Excellent, Dharma Master! I constantly ponder this subtle and wondrous true Dharma, hoping to propagate and protect it. Today you have asked me, and I wish to answer as best I can.” Thereupon the two went together before the Tianzun named Jinguang Baoming Xinsheng Fawang (Golden Light, Jeweled Clarity, Faith-Victory Dharma King), bowed respectfully, and reported to the Tianzun: “We only pray that the Tianzun take pity and resolve our doubts for us.”

At that time, Dahui spoke again and asked: “All sentient beings—those with karmic affinity and those without—whence do they come? The permanent and the impermanent—whence do they come? The characteristics of emptiness and existence are neither permanent nor impermanent; words and meaning are separated from one another. I do not see whether form (tangible things) is conditioned and possesses form, or is without form.”

At that time, the Tianzun answered joyfully. This passage shows that after hearing the question the Tianzun gave rise to joy in his heart, was glad to receive and guide sentient beings, and prepared to instruct everyone with compassion.

At that time, the Heavenly Worthy replied joyfully: Excellent, excellent, good man! What you have asked today is in fact nothing that can be asked; what you have said today is in fact nothing that can be said. Listen carefully, sit in your proper place, and I will tell you the causes and conditions of the past.

Good man, amid impermanent things, [he] proclaims the “dharma of the unchanging”: it neither says it is impermanent nor says it is permanent; it is neither “permanent” nor “non-permanent.” Relying on the principle of “signlessness” (transcending all appearances) to expound the way of permanence—this is called “impermanence.”

Good man, the other-dependent nature (the appearances arising from causes and conditions) exists because of the true reality nature (the real and unchanging essence); what is called “partial permanence” (appearing locally as permanent) comes from the discriminating nature (the mind’s discriminative grasping). Therefore “nature” itself is also impermanent.

Because of the distinction between the two natures, it is neither permanent nor impermanent. Thus permanence and impermanence are non-dual; suffering and happiness are non-dual; good and evil are non-dual; emptiness and non-emptiness are non-dual; self and no-self are non-dual; pure and impure are non-dual; nature and non-nature are non-dual; arising and non-arising are non-dual; cessation and non-cessation are non-dual.

Why? Because of clinging to various views of difference: viewing permanence, viewing impermanence; viewing happiness, viewing non-happiness; viewing purity, viewing impurity; viewing emptiness, viewing non-emptiness; viewing nature, viewing non-nature; viewing suffering, viewing non-suffering; viewing cessation, viewing non-cessation. Because of these views, one is the same as the views of the multitude; because one clings to a single view, one sees only what is seen and does not see “no-view.” This “view of no-view” accords with sentient beings.

The proclamation of permanence and impermanence is for the sake of settling the two kinds of nature and characteristics, so that coming and going return to quiescent cessation. At that time the Heavenly Worthy spoke a verse:

The good man is like a bridge across the world, the unsurpassed guide of great wisdom. The true reality of all dharmas is exceedingly rare, appearing in the world like various scenes.

He is revered in common by all sages, precisely because he can transcend the distinction between dharma and non-dharma. Only by departing from clinging to dharma and non-dharma is one the unsurpassed good man.

This meaning belongs to the unconditioned Dharma (the dharma that does not arise and cease through fabrication), and therefore the meaning of non-duality is proclaimed. Considered from one side, it is sometimes said to be existent and sometimes said to be nonexistent; with respect to both, it is further said to be neither existent nor nonexistent. Because it manifests, it is not nonexistent; therefore it cannot be called permanent. Because what manifests is true reality, it is called the supreme good man.

(This verse passage is the same as the preceding passage and has the same meaning.)

As for the principle of these two, all dharmas are neither truly existent nor absolutely nothingness. Because all dharmas do manifest in some way, one cannot say they are empty and nonexistent; therefore it is said that all dharmas lack an unchanging, permanent essence.

Because what manifests is ultimate reality, it is said that all dharmas are not empty and nonexistent. Things themselves are not truly existent, and their self-nature cannot abide forever.

When one clings to dharmas that are not truly existent, the three natures (in Consciousness-Only: the imagined, the dependent, and the perfected) become non-abiding. This is like a field that originally has no self-nature and only thus can produce crops; the former cause is the support for the later result.

Originally there is no arising or cessation, and the original nature is pure; self-nature likewise becomes quiescent and attains liberation. May the one mind be pure like a blue lotus and obtain the flower of true gold.

The light of the seven treasures of Wuwei (non-action) constantly dwells beside the Dharma King. Not falling into the Dharma wheel of regression, may one be reborn in the Difficult-to-Conquer Ground (a stage in bodhisattva practice).

Always maintaining the life-state of Wuwei, all can accomplish the supreme Dao.

At that time, the boy Victorious Cause of Fangcheng (the boy listening to the teaching in the scripture), after hearing the verses spoken by the Heavenly Worthy (Tianzun), said to Great Wisdom: The Heavenly Worthy of Great Compassion, through great compassion, has accomplished the immeasurable meanings of the One Vehicle (the single ultimate path of practice) and the Ocean-Empty Wisdom Treasury (a treasury of wisdom vast as the ocean and space), using words to guide beings. As I now reflect, this is truly rare, truly rare. The Heavenly Worthy is skilled at expounding the characteristics of all dharmas: neither “existent” nor “not existent”; neither “nonexistent” nor “not nonexistent”; neither “spoken” nor “not spoken.” When causes and conditions coalesce, he opens the gate of expedient means and points out and guides beings. For this reason, this Dao is inconceivable; the ultimate Dao is empty and void because nothing is obtained. This is like using a wedge to remove a wedge, or using sound to stop sound. Why? For example, when someone is ill, they take medicine because of the illness and regulate body and mind; when the illness is cured, the medicine disappears, and all returns to empty nothingness.

At that time, Great Wisdom again said: The Heavenly Worthy of Great Compassion says that the characteristics of all dharmas are neither empty nor existent, neither permanent nor annihilated. Now do we people understand the principle of emptiness and existence, or not? For example, someone attached to the Dharma of equality verbally proclaims “this” and “that,” yet where “this” and “that” are, there is nothing at all. Heavenly Worthy.

At this time, Great Wisdom again said to the Heavenly Worthy (Tianzun): “The Great-Compassion Heavenly Worthy (a general designation for revered Daoist deities) proclaims the true reality of all dharmas: it is neither empty nothingness nor real existence; it is neither permanent nor annihilated. Do we people here now understand the principle of emptiness and existence, or do we not? For example, someone clings to the dharma of equality and teaches that self and other alike return to emptiness and nothingness. The Heavenly Worthy is likewise: he settles the Dharma-body of equality within his mind and therefore teaches in this way. Again, for example, someone says that former days are precisely today. What the Heavenly Worthy has accomplished is to take equality as the disposition of his mind.

For example, someone takes one gold coin and engages in trade, exchanging it for a thousand coins. This is not a failure to obtain a thousand coins, nor is it obtaining only one coin. The Heavenly Worthy is likewise, like one gold coin able to exchange for ten million coins. This is comparable to someone reciting and upholding scriptures: the merit obtained can continue for hundreds of thousands of kalpas. The ten-millionfold increase of all merit is also like this, just as from obtaining one gold coin one can bring forth ten million coins.

If men and women seek the Dao, it is likewise: if they can practice small goodness, they obtain a supremely excellent good reward. In accordance with the vows they have made, they are reborn in the path of peace and bliss, in a pure land; going there to receive birth, they fulfill ten kinds of recollection and thereby perfect their minds. If one has ten million coins, it is also like this. If sentient beings can accomplish the Heavenly Worthy’s Dao, they should first praise the Heavenly Worthy and then distribute merit. If someone, out of craving for wealth and treasures, gives rise to a stingy heart and does not follow the wisdom and grace of the Dao, yet is able to devise skillful means so that all myriad beings and sentient beings do not go against the Daoist teaching, this is likewise.

At this time, Fangcheng Shengyin, the Youth (a character in the scripture), bowed before the Heavenly Worthy, joined his hands in reverence (a respectful gesture of cupping the hands and joining the palms), and prepared to speak a gatha.

The Heavenly Worthy (Tianzun), the Great Compassionate Mother, skillfully expounds the unsurpassed meaning: all is produced from perfuming habituation (xunxi).

The Heavenly Worthy, bearing the greatest compassion, skillfully proclaims the unsurpassed wondrous principle; all things are generated through perfuming habituation.

All dharmas that exist—thus are karmic results accomplished; whether human or nonhuman, receiving the Dao (the Way) arises naturally.

All things in the world are accomplished according to karmic retribution; whether human or nonhuman, receiving the Dao arises naturally.

Therefore it is said: revere the Brahma Venerable Teacher (Fan Zunshi), and swiftly accomplish the “sea and emptiness troops.”

Therefore, one should revere the Brahma Venerable Teacher (referring to the teacher who cultivates the Dao or to the unsurpassed Dao), and then swiftly accomplish the “sea and emptiness troops” (in the scripture, “sea and emptiness” metaphorically indicates the vast boundless realm of cultivation; here it refers to the practitioner’s spiritual power and merit).

From having marks and having views, one should know that entering the Dharma is illumination.

Starting from attachment to having form, having marks, and having views, one should understand: entry into the Dharma lies in awakening.

Discrimination arising through dependence on others is not without being produced by true perfuming habituation.

Discrimination produced in reliance on others (referring to external conditions) is not without being produced by true perfuming habituation.

All dharmas that exist—thus are karmic results accomplished; whether human or nonhuman, receiving the Dao arises naturally. Therefore it is said: revere the Brahma Venerable Teacher, and swiftly accomplish the “sea and emptiness troops.” From having marks and having views, one should know that entering the Dharma is illumination. Discrimination arising through dependence on others is not without true feeling.

(This passage largely repeats the preceding one, with slight differences in wording and the same meaning: all dharmas are accomplished according to karmic results; human and nonhuman beings who receive the Dao all arise naturally; revering the Brahma Venerable Teacher enables one swiftly to accomplish the “sea and emptiness troops”; starting from having marks and having views, one should know the illumination of entering the Dharma. Discrimination arising through reliance on others is not without true feeling or perfuming habituation.)

Therefore, if one does not obtain this “medicine,” I and the Dharma cannot be universally equal and level.

Therefore, if one does not obtain this “medicine” (referring to the wondrous Dharma, a metaphor for the fundamental principle that can cure attachment), I and the Dharma cannot be universal, equal, and level.

Revering the Dao and abiding in merit, the good possesses the glory of many meanings; all together bring forth the path of wisdom and all ascend to Taishang’s immortal capital.

Revering and upholding the Dao, abiding securely in merit, with good actions complete, many wondrous meanings are made manifest; everyone together brings forth the path of wisdom, and all ascend to the immortal capital where Taishang resides (referring to the highest realm in Daoism).

At that time, after the youth Fangcheng Shengyin had spoken these verses, he said to Hai Kong: “How great is the true person! Your causes and conditions are ancient and far-reaching; your body has radiance, sovereign spiritual powers, and transcends the world; your virtue is perfect and cannot be praised enough. Sentient beings are drowned in defilement—with what root nature do you pose such a difficult question? Entering and not entering, emerging and not emerging, attached to both sides—how is this matter?”

At that time, Hai Kong Zhizang replied to Shengyin: “Great Being and benevolent one, in entering there is no duality; one sees the Dharma as equal, not one. With what root nature do you pose such a difficult question? Entering and not entering, emerging and not emerging, attached to both sides—how is this matter?”

Hai Kong Zhizang replied to Shengyin, saying: Great Being, virtuous one, you have realized the state of “non-duality,” see all dharmas as equal, and are neither “one” nor “not-one.” If one views all dharmas by such a principle, one will find that there is something inapplicable at every point. Why? Because the practitioner can destroy all kinds of demons and evils, subdue all evil minds and outer-path teachers, and the merit thereby established is incomparable in the world; whereas what heavenly demons and outer paths say is merely discourse that deviates from right principle. The subtle and wondrous right Dharma proclaimed by the Heavenly Worthy has itself already established a fundamental purport; therefore there is no fixed, unchanging “self-dharma” that can be grasped. Why? The supreme right path of original nature proclaimed by the Great Compassion Heavenly Worthy—the right Dharma he teaches—cannot be altered or destroyed. Why? Because wisdom is perfect; yet all heavenly demons, holders of heterodox views, and outer-path practitioners, clinging with evil minds, obstruct the great Dharma, give rise to biased minds, and in turn destroy the great Dharma.

For this very reason, Shengguang Tongzi manifests various transformation bodies, teaches the Dharma to sentient beings, liberates them, and manifests merit. What is called merit is that, because of non-self, pure and subtle merit manifests. The skillful-means power of this merit is immeasurable and boundless; as in worldly principles, the higher realms are superior. Good man, the Dharma teaching I expound is meant to exhaust the root of birth-and-death. It can give rise to the roots of goodness in all sentient beings, benefit and bring peace to them, and manifest merit; what is called merit is likewise that, because of non-self, pure and subtle merit manifests. This skillful-means merit is likewise immeasurable; as in worldly principles, the higher realms are superior. Good man, the Dharma teaching I expound is meant to exhaust birth-and-death. It can give rise to the roots of goodness in all sentient beings, benefit and bring them peace, and possesses unobstructed merit.

The Great Compassion Heavenly Worthy dwells in the Dharma realm and takes Wuwei (non-action) as the supreme Dharma. Good man, the Dharma realm has two kinds: the defiled realm and the undefiled realm. The undefiled realm is pure and most supreme. Why? Because the Great Compassion Heavenly Worthy has exhausted the limit of birth-and-death, benefits and brings peace to sentient beings, and his merit and peace are inexhaustible.

At that time, Hai Kong Zhizang spoke a gatha:

Able to uphold the Dharma of great love,

In accord with roots of goodness.

It belongs neither to oneself nor to others;

There is benefit, and there is increase and decrease, gain and loss.

Where does the Heavenly Worthy proclaim

The true reality of all these dharmas?

This realm, from beginningless time,

Has been the support of all dharmas.

If there are states beyond the various paths,

And those who attain extinction and liberation,

Such root and non-root

Is rare beyond rare.

Notes: Hai Kong Zhizang is a figure in the scripture, the name of a bodhisattva renowned for wisdom. Shengyin is the figure in the scripture who asks about the Dharma. Shengguang Tongzi is a transformation-body bodhisattva in the scripture who can manifest various forms to teach and save people. The Great Compassion Heavenly Worthy is the supreme deity revered in the scripture, whose teaching is the “supreme right path of original nature.” The defiled realm refers to the world polluted by afflictions and birth-and-death; the undefiled realm refers to the pure, undefiled state transcending birth-and-death.

After Haikong finished speaking this verse, he again asked Fangcheng Shengyin Tongzi (Fangcheng Shengyin Tongzi: the questioner in the scripture; tongzi refers to a young cultivator-disciple): Daoist priests, all sentient beings at first are unable to understand and penetrate [the truth]. Because ignorance (delusion concerning the true nature of the original essence) has not yet been completely eliminated, they are bound by craving (attachment to worldly desires) and thus transmigrate through birth and death, sometimes falling into the animal realm, sometimes falling into the ghost realm, and sometimes not returning to their original destination. This is truly an extremely rare matter.

After Haikong finished speaking this verse, he again asked Fangcheng Shengyin Tongzi: all sentient beings at first are unable to understand and penetrate [the truth]. Ignorance has not been eliminated, and they are entangled by craving, continuing without interruption along the stream of birth and death. Sometimes they are reborn as animals, sometimes they sink into the ghost realm, sometimes they are born in the human realm, sometimes they become Tianzun (Heavenly Worthies among the Daoist heavens), and sometimes they become Tianzhen (immortals who have attained the Dao). Although those Daoist priests have already left the household, they hold inverted wrong views, are unaware and unknowing, and suffer thus in the world; craving increases day by day, and they constantly incur blame. For what reason are these Daoist priests so unaware and unknowing?

Shengyin Tongzi (Youth of Victorious Cause) replied to Haikong: “Excellent, True Adept! Although these Daoist priests have renounced the household life, they still cling to all kinds of desires and loves; their deceitful minds blaze strongly, and many of them engage in fraud and theft. They say with their mouths that they have renounced the household life, but in reality they pursue fame and profit and wish to enter the ranks of those who receive offerings. Good man, causes and conditions such as these will bring long-lasting guilt and demotion. Why? Because they have only renounced the household life in form, while their minds remain in the worldly realm. The Heavenly Worthy (Tianzun) also speaks in this way, and one should take this as a warning.

Good man, a virtuous Daoist priest has no love or clinging in the mind; he seeks the supreme great Dharma and contemplates all phenomena as impermanent and utterly empty. Renouncing the household life in this way accords with wholesome causes. The causes of good and evil each receive their retribution according to their own direction, and this has nothing to do with others.

Good man, the Heavenly Worthy says: those who can be vigilant and uphold this principle should rely on it, never abandoning it, and thus they have no attachment to an ‘I.’ Why? Because all phenomena are empty by nature. Even if there were merit as numerous as the sands of the Ganges, one should not cling to it at all.

Good man, if one can understand the wisdom and principle contained in the True Person, then whether one has an awakening or has not, one does not fall into any fixed place. The secret treasury of the Great Compassion Heavenly Worthy (Da’ai Tianzun) is not existence, not nonexistence, and not neither existence nor nonexistence; it has no place that can be determined. One who is skilled in renouncing the household life relies on this.

Those who are not [truly] renounced cling to consciousness, often follow heterodox paths, engage in deceit and false speech, and head toward the gate of evil destinies. They cling by themselves and bind themselves; they give no thought to outer accumulations but only utter sighs of ‘Alas, suffering!’ All sentient beings are like this.”

Shengyin Tongzi said these words to the Great True Adept Haikong Zhizang. Haikong replied: “No—the causes and conditions of the Great Master True Adept are vast and profound. Today you are joyful and courageous; you are an unsurpassed master with immeasurable retinues. That you can arouse the unsurpassed mind of the Dao is truly inconceivable.”

At that time, amid the great assembly, Shengyin Tongzi again spoke in verse (gatha):

All things exist in reliance upon the "storehouse" — that is, the fundamental consciousness capable of containing all seeds, namely the ālayavijñāna — and all sentient beings possess this kind of consciousness. This is why this scripture is named "Keliya," and why I expound this principle for the assembly.

The appropriating consciousness is exceedingly profound and subtle, and the seeds of all dharmas flow onward in unceasing continuity. This level of truth I do not speak of to ordinary people, lest they grasp this consciousness as a "self."

If one does not cultivate in reliance upon all practices, one cannot fully know all practices. The true person, whose understanding of the good is clear, is thereby able to free himself from the bondage of the five consciousnesses (those of eye, ear, nose, tongue, and body).

If one seeks the transformation of the basis through the application of antidotes, but not as a state of cessation, then the transformation of the basis cannot be established. Fruit and cause are fundamentally without distinction; only at the point of cessation is there an encounter.

If there are no seeds, then no dharma can arise; and if one holds that the transformation of the basis can take place without seeds, then, since there is no duality, the very meaning of the transformation of the basis likewise cannot be established.

When the mind is free of residual thought and yet transforms all dharmas, by what method is this to be accomplished, such that one may arrive at the ocean-empty storehouse?

("Chapter on Asking about Illness": the title of one chapter within this scroll.)

Haikong Zhizang then rose from his seat, composed his body and mind, made obeisance, and said to the Heavenly Worthy: “Heavenly Worthy, you have now escaped all afflictions and illnesses, are no longer subject to suffering, distress, and the changes of impermanence, have transcended birth and death, and forever abide in pure, peaceful bliss, subtle and perfect. O greatly compassionate Heavenly Worthy, why do sentient beings have four kinds of illness? And why do greed for sounds and forms, foolish ignorance, and arrogant self-importance—these four—become the root of all illnesses? They cause the mind and spirit to become wild and dull, deluded and vexed, agitated and restless, and so illness arises. What is the reason for this? Greed and desire give rise to illness of the body; craving and attachment give rise to illness of the mind. Illnesses of body and mind together are called the ‘four hundred and four illnesses’ (a term from Buddhist and Daoist scriptures, broadly referring to the total number of illnesses that afflict the human body). They manifest as wasting and damage to the skin, mental turmoil and depression, disharmony of the five viscera, dripping and obstructed urination, pain in the eyes and ears, pain in the abdomen and back, aching in the joints of the four limbs, and many other kinds. The greatly compassionate Heavenly Worthy no longer has the suffering of illness. Therefore I now see that sentient beings, whether human or non-human, are all afflicted by illness. I too now have these illnesses—abdominal pain and heart pain. I only pray that the Heavenly Worthy will take pity on us and proclaim various methods of medicine and healing, to rescue and cure all sentient beings of the future, so that those who have not seen the Dao may see it and those who have not heard the Dao may hear it.”

At that time, the Heavenly Worthy praised Haikong, saying: "Excellent, excellent! Good man, you are skilled at seizing the opportunity and asking on behalf of the great assembly; out of compassion for living beings, you therefore manifest this sign of illness. If you wish to eliminate illness and suffering, come to me and seek medical treatment. Good man, throughout countless kalpas you have cultivated great compassion, constantly harboring loving thoughts and benefiting living beings, not causing them to suffer affliction, and you have given various medicines and comforts to the sick. Why do you now call yourself ill? You see people in the world suffering from abdominal illness, mental illness, and damaged skin and emaciation, and you give rise to great sorrow and distress. In order to cure these severe illnesses, newly entered practitioners greedily seek to collect all impure things. In reality you are not ill; rather, you wish to cause all ignorant beings to dedicate themselves together to the One Vehicle—the single ultimate path of liberation—and to the sea-and-space treasure-store of wisdom, vast and inexhaustible as the ocean and space, thereby removing beings' afflictive obstacles, namely greed, hatred, delusion, and wrath.

"Good man, the True Person and his disciples cultivate great compassion, giving medicine to all the sick and constantly making vows: 'May living beings forever cut off the suffering of illness and attain a true diamond-like indestructible body; and may countless living beings constantly encounter wondrous medicine and cut off all grave illnesses such as deafness and blindness.' Because they have cut off the root of illness, they obtain the medicine of wisdom; because they obtain the power of medicine, they cut off all poisonous afflictions. These living beings give rise to irreversible faith in the medicine of wisdom, quickly accomplish the unsurpassed medicine of the Dao, eliminate all afflictions, diligently cultivate effort, and accomplish the Heavenly Worthy's mind of wisdom.

"The True Person and his disciples prepare the medicine of equality, universally treating all kinds of illness, and do not cause living beings to give rise to thoughts of slander. The roots, trees, stems, and leaves of the medicine of equality are all the medicine of equality, able to cure all severe malignant illnesses, all kinds of wrong views, grave afflictions, and heavy attachments. They also vow that living beings may leave the city of afflictions, escape the prison of craving and desire, accomplish the Heavenly Worthy's pure, bright, luminous wisdom, and enter the secret treasure-store of sea and space.

"Good man, the True Person and his disciples have already made great vows in countless worlds in the ten directions, wishing all living beings to be far from the roots, trees, and branches of illness. All the various signs of these illnesses return to emptiness, stillness, purity, coolness, and peace; beings constantly attain happiness and ease, subtle and perfectly complete, equal and nondual with the mark of the unequaled."

At that time, Haikong said to the Heavenly Worthy (Tianzun), asking: I plainly am ill; why do you say there is no illness? When I think carefully, people in the world who are ill cannot sit up, have difficulty bowing and raising their heads, cannot eat, cannot drink, and cannot speak. They are like a son who has lost discipline and neglected the family estate; at such a time, relatives, parents, wife, brothers, and friends have all done their utmost to care for him, and the sick person’s mind gives rise to the thought that death is certain. Heavenly Worthy, I too am like this today. I see sentient beings living in the City of Afflictions (a metaphor for the defiled world full of affliction), seeing only red-hot iron pellets blazing fiercely red, while hungry ghosts wail to heaven. When hungry, they eat charcoal; when thirsty, they drink fiery liquid. The hell officers, ox-headed men with eyes like bright stars, holding iron forks, stand beside great cauldrons of boiling liquid; they seize people and press them into the pots, until their bodies and bones are boiled to pulp and scattered. Because of this, I see that sentient beings all have illness, illness of the belly and illness of the heart. Why does the Heavenly Worthy say there is no illness?

After Haikong finished speaking, he made a gatha (a verse hymn in Buddhist and Daoist scriptures) before the Heavenly Worthy and earnestly requested: Venerable One of great compassion and great virtue, throughout the Three Realms (the Desire Realm, Form Realm, and Formless Realm) all look up to you as a rare being. May you proclaim for us the Dharma of equality, like the root of the wisdom-medicine tree, able to cure all illnesses.

Today we sick disciples can hardly preserve our lives from morning to evening. Tossed and unsettled by illness of the belly and illness of the heart, our spirit is dim and muddled. How could the understanding of foolish ordinary people recognize the gateway to good medicine? It is like a blind person who cannot see the road: advancing a foot, they cannot distinguish an inch. Though a crossroads lies before their eyes, they run about at random. The compassionate father of the three times (past, present, and future) constantly speaks of the gate of the wisdom treasury.

Afflictions arise together with the four illnesses; the body falls apart, the hun and po souls scatter, and one falls into the dark hell—how then could one see one’s descendants again? Born each day, dying each day, forever taking leave of the Venerable One of Everlasting Joy. I pity sentient beings, and therefore implore the medicine of equality. Whether human or non-human, those who take it can endure forever. It is like sweet dew raining down, so that branches and leaves all receive its grace. Grasses and trees sprout, bloom, take root, put forth branches, and become trees; their fruits ripen and are freely taken and eaten by people. I only pray that the Supreme Venerable One will proclaim the Dao of the One Vehicle (the single great path leading to liberation).

Haikong asked: Those beings in the dark realm who endure great suffering wish to obtain the medicine of equality. Whether they are human or non-human, taking this medicine enables them to live long. This medicine is like a rain of sweet dew: branches, leaves, flowers, and fruits all receive its grace; grasses and trees sprout and bloom, roots and branches become trees, and when the fruits ripen they are free for people to pick and eat. He earnestly prayed that the Supreme Venerable Deity (Taishang Zunshen) would proclaim the One Vehicle Great Dao—the single correct path that alone can liberate beings, without distinction of higher and lower and without setting up expedient gates.

Those suffering beings in the dark realm, seeing their own circumstances, lose their original nature and are filled with resentment. Therefore, out of compassion for future beings, he wished them to worship the Supreme Venerable, forget their attachment to fear, and settle their hun and po souls. He saw the children of hungry ghosts searching everywhere throughout the Three Paths (the three evil destinies of hell, hungry ghosts, and animals) for descendants; ox-headed jailers dragged them into a great cauldron, and the jailers stirred them with iron forks. Their cries resounded like thunder, white bones piled up like mountains; when hungry they swallowed fire and charcoal, and when thirsty they drank seething fiery liquid.

Haikong pleaded with the Venerable Deity to bestow the teaching of great compassion and universally open the gates of hell. All the beings present bowed together in obeisance to the Supreme Venerable Deity.

At that time, the Heavenly Worthy (Tianzun), his heart filled with great compassion, replied to Haikong: “Good, good! Good man, you are skilled at seizing the opportune moment and asking on behalf of beings. Beings arise individually from their thoughts, and in the discriminating mind they pursue various forms, sounds, fragrances, tastes, and tactile sensations. Because of these causes and conditions, diseases of the eyes, ears, abdomen, and heart arise, along with various diseases of the body, collectively called the four hundred and four illnesses (the Buddhist total of human ailments, broadly all suffering). You wish to accord with the needs of all beings and, for their benefit, ask in verses.”

Then the Heavenly Worthy sat upright and composed; his countenance was harmonious and joyful, like a blooming red lotus, and his dignified appearance was like the radiance of sun and moon. Thereupon the Heavenly Worthy emitted a great light that illumined the void everywhere. This light surpassed a hundred thousand suns, shining upon the four directions—east, south, west, and north—the four intermediate directions (the four corners: northeast, southeast, northwest, and southwest), and above and below. It reached all lands and other worlds, benefiting beings, using the medicine of equality as a bright torch, so that all beings’ four hundred and four illnesses were completely eliminated, and they abided securely without regression, attaining a mind of equality.

At that time, the Heavenly Worthy (Tianzun) was in a pure and quiet place, concentrating his spirit in silent contemplation, and there appeared a subtle and wondrous radiance. His body possessed seventy-two marks and eighty-one excellent characteristics (used in Buddhist and Daoist scriptures to describe the supremely dignified and adorned bodies of sages), adorning him with majestic beauty. At that moment, from each mark and characteristic there arose a treasure flower. These flowers were extraordinary and wondrous; each had a thousand petals and was a pure red lotus, with lapis lazuli for stems, coral for branches, amber for roots, and pearls for leaves. Their forms stood out upright, like a jeweled banner (a kind of flag-like ceremonial object).

These treasure flowers in turn emitted radiance of various mixed colors—blue, yellow, red, white, crimson, green, vermilion, purple, and so on. The light universally illuminated the Hell of Ignorance, Avici Hell, the Hell of Lamentation, the Hell of Weeping and Wailing, the Fiery Cart Hell, the Fiery Bed Hell, the Iron Pellet Hell, the Iron Cauldron Hell, and other hells. (Hells are dark places of suffering, and their names refer respectively to different punishments.)

At this time, in the hells there were also various hungry ghosts: solitary-form hungry ghosts, solitary-body hungry ghosts, solitary-bone hungry ghosts, solitary-touch hungry ghosts, withered-form hungry ghosts, withered-skin hungry ghosts, withered-bone hungry ghosts, withered-flesh hungry ghosts, empty-food hungry ghosts, charcoal-eating hungry ghosts, formless hungry ghosts, weeping hungry ghosts, and so on. For long ages they endured cold and suffering, oppressed by affliction without cease; their heads and faces split, their bodies broken, and they harmed one another.

When these hungry ghosts encountered this radiance, all their former sufferings were completely removed; their minds were subdued (calmed and guided to transformation), and their bodies and minds became gentle and comfortable. Moreover, within the light they saw the secret treasury of the Ocean of Emptiness and Jeweled Terrace. The scripture says that sentient beings—including these hungry ghosts—all possess Dao-nature (the nature capable of attaining the Dao).

Hearing these words, the hungry ghosts each repented, and immediately upon the end of their lives they were reborn as humans or gods. All the hells thereby became empty, with no one left to undergo punishment. Only those who did not believe or who slandered the One Vehicle, the Ocean of Emptiness, the Treasury of Wisdom were oppressed by hunger and thirst, passing hundreds and thousands of years in the hells without ever hearing even the name of sweet dew, and never receiving the moisture of sweet rain. At this time the hells were empty, without a single person.

Then, within the light there were also a hundred thousand true immortals and divine youths, each holding golden lotuses and jade flowers. Upon each lotus sat a Daoist priest, supremely majestic, beyond compare in the world.

The following is a vernacular interpretation.

The Supreme One Vehicle Ocean of Emptiness Wisdom Treasury Scripture

At that time, within the lotus there were also hundreds and thousands of perfected immortals and divine youths, each holding golden lotuses and jade flowers. On each lotus sat a Daoist priest, solemn and supremely excellent, incomparable in the world.

At that time, among the lotuses were Daoist priests of Perfected Form, Perfected Appearance, Perfected Grace, Dharma Joy, Dharma Accomplishment, Dharma Understanding, Dharma Beneficence, Dharma Truth, Dharma Bliss, Wondrous Solemnity, Wondrous Mind, Wondrous Vision, Wondrous Garden, Wondrous Flower, and Wondrous Marks, and other Daoist priests. They gathered in one place, some walking, some sitting, some lying down, and some standing, each bringing forth wondrous music: they blew the phoenix sheng, played the qin and zheng, struck the zhu, and plucked the konghou, while the sounds of phoenixes, peacocks, lions, and white tigers joined in harmony. They gave long whistles and sang, their voices harmonious and refined. Men and women alike, all who heard these sounds, could see the scenes of the hells, the animal realm, and the hungry ghost realm. Whether human or nonhuman (referring to ghosts, spirits, and other nonhuman sentient beings), all rejoiced greatly.

At that time, Tianzun (Heavenly Worthy, one of the supreme deities of Daoism; here referring to the honored deity who is expounding the teachings), for sentient beings such as lions and white tigers, expounded the teachings in the same manner of long whistling and chanting, with harmonious and refined sound. When men and women heard it, all came following the sound, and they too could see the scenes of the hells, the animal realm, and the hungry ghost realm. Human and nonhuman alike rejoiced beyond measure.

At that time, Tianzun proclaimed to all sentient beings the “One Vehicle Treasure Store,” or taught the “Luminous Categories of the Three Caverns” (the classification and sequence of the Daoist Three Caverns scriptures), or expounded elixir texts (scriptures recording the cultivation of the elixir way), enabling sentient beings to accomplish the Three Vehicles and benefit all. Tianzun also proclaimed the method of leaving the household to cultivate the Dao—dwelling in a pure, empty city, a city adorned with the seven treasures. Tianzun proclaimed the wondrous Dharma and turned the Dharma wheel. When the turning of the Dharma wheel was complete, the people of that country at that time and all sentient beings received benefits: the blind could see forms, the deaf could hear sounds, the mute could speak, the lame could walk, the poor became prosperous, and the distinction between rich and poor was thereby erased; even those who previously did not believe in the Dao gave rise to faith. The sentient beings thus delivered were immeasurable and boundless, and all cultivated this “One Vehicle Ocean of Emptiness Treasury.”

At that time, there were also heavenly dragons, ghosts and spirits, void dragon-ghosts, and the Mengma Bawai (a fierce class among Dharma-protecting deities; the name is rarely seen in ordinary Daoist scriptures and is understood here only literally), as well as people of the Qiang, Hu, Di, Lao, and other borderland peoples—whether human or non-human—all raised their voices together in praise, saying: “Wonderful, wonderful! The Supreme Heavenly Worthy (Tianzun) has brought immeasurable benefit to sentient beings.” After saying this, they were joyful and exuberant; some sang, some danced, and they bowed in reverence, circumambulated the Heavenly Worthy while praising him, burned incense and scattered flowers, raised banners, streamers, and canopies, and played all kinds of musical instruments. The many varieties of sound were exquisite and complete, shaking the seat from which the scripture was being preached. They made offerings to the Heavenly Worthy and the Great Compassionate Heavenly Worthy and begged them to have compassion on them.

They said: “We were born in remote borderlands. Though we have human form, we do not possess ‘zhongzhi’ (the complete wisdom that comprehends all things). How can we ride a dais adorned with seven treasures and proclaim the ‘One Vehicle Wisdom Storehouse’ (Yicheng Zhizang; the profound wisdom that guides to the single ultimate Dao) for sentient beings amid the sea and sky? Such a supreme Dharma is truly difficult to encounter and difficult to hear. Why is it said that ‘my body too is ill’? We only pray that the Heavenly Worthy will explain it in detail, so that the assembly may understand.”

The Heavenly Worthy replied to Tianlong: “Excellent, excellent, good man. You have already attained profound wisdom and are able to make pure offerings—various fragrant flowers, various delicious foods, performances on various musical instruments, and various precious banners (jeweled pennants). Good man, you have perfected wisdom and eloquence, and you have also made offerings to immeasurable, boundless Heavenly Worthies of the three times. Therefore you are now skilled in making offerings with pure incense and with various kinds of gifts.

Good man, in past ages immeasurably boundless and long ago, when heaven and earth were chaotic and dark, I passed through kalpa cycles such as Longhan and Chiming. Although I bore names according to those kalpas, I was without name and without form. For the sake of gods and humans, I proclaimed this Scripture of the One Vehicle, Hai Kong Zhi Zang (Sea of Emptiness, Treasury of Wisdom), revealing and distinguishing its principles and inner flavor, repeatedly expounding it for the assembly, and causing people to read and recite it, copy it, mount the scrolls, and tie on silk cords and roller ends, so that it might circulate throughout the ten directions and all beings might thereby receive benefit.

Good man, from that time onward I have never had evil karma, afflictions, or karmic obstacles; I have never slandered, never disbelieved, never opposed, and never broken the precepts. Since then, body and mind have been peaceful and happy, free from all kinds of suffering.

Good man, you beings dwell in the city of afflictions and are much beset by illness and affliction—illness of the abdomen and illness of the heart—yet you do not know the secret treasure of the One Vehicle. You can only follow words and rely on expedient teachings, and so you speak of the abdominal illness and heart illness of “Sea of Emptiness.” Tianlong, you say that Hai Kong Zhi Zang is a great Dharma master who teaches the assembly; but what is called “Hai Kong” is not actually Hai Kong. Tianlong, you say Hai Kong Zhi Zang—but what is called “Zhi Zang” is not actually Zhi Zang. Tianlong, you say that Hai Kong Zhi Zang is a Zhenren (Perfected Person) or an immortal; but what is called “Hai Kong” is not actually a true immortal. Tianlong, you say that Hai Kong Zhi Zang is a human, a beast, a bird, an insect, grass, wood, water, fire, stone, or earth; but what is called “Hai Kong” is not actually human or beast, not bird or insect, not grass or wood, not water or fire, not earth or stone. All such statements are the secret treasury of Hai Kong.

Good man, you say that Hai Kong is like the water of the great sea, but Hai Kong is not actually salty in taste. You say that Hai Kong is like father and mother, brothers, wife and children, but Hai Kong is not actually father or mother, brother or sister, wife or child. You say that Hai Kong is a great ship’s captain able to cross the great sea, but Hai Kong is not actually a great ship, nor one who crosses the sea. You say that Hai Kong has abdominal illness and heart illness, but Hai Kong is not actually ill. You say that Hai Kong dwells in the city of seven treasures, but Hai Kong does not actually dwell there. You say that Hai Kong requests a prescription, but Hai Kong does not actually request one. Seen according to this meaning of emptiness, Hai Kong is Zhi Zang, and Hai Kong is the city of Hai Kong.”

After the Heavenly Worthy (Tianzun) finished speaking these words, all the living beings in the assembly, whether male or female, gave rise to a mind of equality and became skilled in cultivating the three karmas of body, speech, and mind. At the end of life, they would personally entrust instructions to their parents, siblings, and spouses: after death, their remains should be cast into water, burned in fire, or abandoned in the wild, left for jackals, wolves, tigers, leopards, owls, and mandarin ducks to compete in pecking at and devouring. In this way, their soul and spirit, mind and intention become clear, and their spiritual consciousness becomes bright and lucid; they can then be reborn in good realms, be reborn as kings in the human world, teach and liberate all living beings, universally aid the people of the world, and with a good heart make offerings to the “One Vehicle, Ocean-Empty Wisdom Treasure” (referring to the supreme wisdom contained in the Great Dao).

At that time, in that country there was an elder named Fasheng (“elder” refers to an older person of high moral standing and a wealthy household). In the assembly he suddenly felt pain in the “four great elements” of his body. (The “four great elements” originally refer to earth, water, fire, and wind, which constitute the body; here they broadly refer to bodily illness and pain.) This passage is continuous with the preceding one and likewise speaks of practitioners whose soul and spirit are clear and whose mind and consciousness are lucid: after death they can be reborn in good realms, be reborn as good people, and with a good heart make offerings to the treasure of wisdom.

At that time there was an elder in the country named Fasheng. He was afflicted by the pains of the “four great elements”—earth, water, fire, and wind, the four elements that constitute the body and stand for bodily form—and lay reclining on his bed mat. Day and night he took no food or drink, and he seemed close to the end of his life. His family and wife gathered around him weeping.

The elder instructed them, saying: “You must diligently manage the family estate and practice giving with a compassionate heart. Now the root of my illness has deepened, and I will soon meet my end. Birth, aging, sickness, and death are unavoidable for everyone—how can death be refused?”

Hearing these words, his wife wept even harder, her voice shaking the very place where they sat. Then everyone present, old and young alike, snapped their fingers together and chanted aloud: “The power of the Ocean of Emptiness Secret Treasury is so wondrous—why then is the compassion of living beings so piercingly intense?” At that very moment the elder’s illness suddenly healed, and he recovered as if he had never been ill.

The elder thought silently to himself: The awe-inspiring power of the One Vehicle Ocean of Emptiness—the One Vehicle being the single supreme path to attainment, and Ocean of Emptiness the name given in the scripture to this secret treasury—is towering and magnificent, a rare and precious treasure in the Three Realms of Desire, Form, and Formlessness, the three levels of existence in Daoist cosmology where beings dwell. It is inconceivable. Now I reflect on the One Vehicle Ocean of Emptiness: it is the support of my body and lifespan, the foundation of my life, the food of my wisdom, and the drink of Dharma’s flavor. How shall I repay it?

So he selected from among his relatives and descendants, male and female alike, thirteen intelligent and clear-minded people, and had them leave household life to study and arrange the One Vehicle Ocean of Emptiness Wisdom Treasury. They burned incense and bowed, copied and recited it, pondered the meaning of the scripture, and preached and expounded it for the multitude.

The elder also gave away gold carriages, silver carriages, jade carriages, coral carriages, amber carriages, pearl carriages, and various other vehicles, as well as rice granaries, salt granaries, storehouses for all kinds of grain, and colored silk textiles such as damask, gauze, brocade, fine patterned silk, and figured silk—all were distributed in giving. Cattle, horses, donkeys, and mules were set free to wander in every direction. He further built Spirit Terraces and Seven Treasures Luminous Observatories—high terraces and towers adorned with the seven treasures, such as gold, silver, and lapis lazuli—with houses, corridors, and pavilions layered upon layer: front halls and rear halls, front palaces and rear palaces, subtle Spirit Terraces and pavilions of seven treasures and nine tiers, overlapping in every direction.

Zithers, zhu, konghou, and other instruments played together; their sounds blended, filling the air and reverberating faintly. People of the country, old and young, when passing this pure place, each praised it, saying: “Excellent, excellent! The merit is majestic and inconceivable.”

Thereupon everyone resolved in their hearts to build Daoist temples and pure retreats, large or small according to each person’s capacity to support them, and to construct halls, jeweled terraces, pavilions, and covered corridors.

In these halls, illumined teachers again gathered the multitude and expounded the secret treasury of the One Vehicle Ocean of Emptiness.

At that time, among the men and women in the land, any who had good thoughts in their hearts—if they could recite the One Vehicle, Ocean of Emptiness, Wisdom Treasury—with every character they read, they were thereby proclaiming the secret treasure within the ocean of emptiness of the One Vehicle (Yicheng), the fundamental Dharma gate that guides people directly to the Great Dao.

At that time, among the men and women in the land, any who had good thoughts in their hearts—if they could recite the One Vehicle, Ocean of Emptiness, Wisdom Treasury—whether one character, one sentence, one line, or one gatha (a verse passage in Buddhist scriptures), so long as they invoked its name, “Haikong Zhizang” (Ocean of Emptiness, Wisdom Treasury), these people would obtain the blessings of humans and heavenly beings, roam in freedom and happiness, not fall into the three evil destinies of hell, animals, and hungry ghosts, be far from all afflictions and illnesses, and enter the One Vehicle treasury. This is what is called the rare and hard-to-obtain merit of invoking the name.

Good man, if sentient beings hear the name of this scripture and, after hearing it, give rise to reverent faith, then all afflictions and grave illnesses in their bodies will be completely eliminated. But if they do not believe and instead slander it, their karmic offense is like this: although a wondrous medicine can cure all kinds of grave illness, it cannot revive someone already dead—there is no remedy.

At that time, Haikong respectfully asked the Heavenly Worthy (Tianzun): How can karmic offenses be eliminated and the fault of those who slander and disbelieve this scripture be cut off? How can good fruits be obtained, and how can good fruits accord with what is done and what is received? How can one cultivate the One Vehicle treasury with an impartial, single-minded mind?