Departing from Marks, Entering Stillness (Section 14)

離相寂滅分

14

Ěr shí Xū pútí wén shuō shì jīng, shēn jiě yì qù, tì lèi bēi qì, ér bái Fó yán: Xī yǒu Shì zūn! Fó shuō rúshì shèn shēn jīngdiǎn, wǒ cóng xī lái suǒ dé huì yǎn, wèicéng dé wén rúshì zhī jīng. Shì zūn, ruò fù yǒu rén dé wén shì jīng, xìnxīn qīngjìng, zé shēng shíxiāng; dāng zhī shì rén chéngjiù dì yī xī yǒu gōngdé. Shì zūn, shì shíxiāng zhě, zé shì fēi xiāng, shì gù Rúlái shuō míng shíxiāng. Shì zūn, wǒ jīn dé wén rúshì jīngdiǎn xìn jiě shòu chí, bùzú wéi nán. Ruò dānglái shì hòu wǔbǎi suì, qí yǒu zhòngshēng dé wén shì jīng, xìn jiě shòu chí, shì rén zé wéi dì yī xī yǒu. Hé yǐ gù? Cǐ rén wú wǒ xiāng, wú rén xiāng, wú zhòngshēng xiāng, wú shòuzhě xiāng. Suǒ yǐ zhě hé? Wǒ xiāng jí shì fēi xiāng, rén xiāng zhòngshēng xiāng shòuzhě xiāng jí shì fēi xiāng. Hé yǐ gù? Lí yīqiē zhū xiāng, zé míng zhū Fó. Fó gào Xū pútí: Rúshì rúshì. Ruò fù yǒu rén dé wén shì jīng, bù jīng bù bù bù wèi, dāng zhī shì rén shèn wéi xī yǒu. Hé yǐ gù? Xū pútí, Rúlái shuō dì yī Bōluómì, fēi dì yī Bōluómì, shì míng dì yī Bōluómì. Xū pútí, rěnrǔ Bōluómì, Rúlái shuō fēi rěnrǔ Bōluómì. Hé yǐ gù? Xū pútí, rú wǒ xī wéi Gēlì wáng gē jié shēntǐ, wǒ yú ěr shí, wú wǒ xiāng, wú rén xiāng, wú zhòngshēng xiāng, wú shòuzhě xiāng. Hé yǐ gù? Wǒ yú wǎng xī jié jié zhī jiě shí, ruò yǒu wǒ xiāng rén xiāng zhòngshēng xiāng shòuzhě xiāng, yīng shēng chēnhèn. Xū pútí, yòu niàn guòqù yú wǔbǎi shì zuò rěnrǔ xiānrén, yú ěr suǒ shì, wú wǒ xiāng, wú rén xiāng, wú zhòngshēng xiāng, wú shòuzhě xiāng. Shì gù Xū pútí, púsà yīng lí yīqiē xiāng, fā ānòuduōluó sānmiǎo sānpútí xīn. Bù yīng zhù sè shēng xīn, bù yīng zhù shēng xiāng wèi chù fǎ shēng xīn, yīng shēng wú suǒ zhù xīn. Ruò xīn yǒu zhù, zé wéi fēi zhù. Shì gù Fó shuō púsà xīn bù yīng zhù sè bùshī. Xū pútí, púsà wèi lìyì yīqiē zhòngshēng, yīng rúshì bùshī. Rúlái shuō yīqiē zhū xiāng, jí shì fēi xiāng; yòu shuō yīqiē zhòngshēng, zé fēi zhòngshēng. Xū pútí, Rúlái shì zhēn yǔ zhě, shí yǔ zhě, rú yǔ zhě, bù kuáng yǔ zhě, bù yì yǔ zhě. Xū pútí, Rúlái suǒ dé fǎ, cǐ fǎ wú shí wú xū. Xū pútí, ruò púsà xīn zhù yú fǎ ér xíng bùshī, rú rén rù àn, zé wú suǒ jiàn. Ruò púsà xīn bù zhù fǎ ér xíng bùshī, rú rén yǒu mù, rì guāng míng zhào, jiàn zhǒngzhǒng sè. Xū pútí, dānglái zhī shì, ruò yǒu shàn nánzǐ shàn nǚrén néng yú cǐ jīng shòu chí dú sòng, zé wéi Rúlái yǐ Fó zhìhuì, xī zhī shì rén, xī jiàn shì rén, jiē dé chéngjiù wúliàng wúbiān gōngdé.

Key Message

To depart from all marks is to be a Buddha. A mind that clings to no form and holds to no adversity — that is enlightenment itself.

Section 14, which concludes the first half of the Diamond Sutra, opens with the deeply moving scene of Subhuti weeping with tears upon hearing the sutra, saying he has never in all his years of wisdom heard such a profound scripture.

Section 14, which concludes the first half of the Diamond Sutra, opens with the deeply moving scene of Subhuti weeping with tears upon hearing the sutra, saying he has never in all his years of wisdom heard such a profound scripture. He declares that one who hears this sutra and whose faith-mind becomes pure will give rise to the true mark of reality (實相). Yet 'the true mark is not in reality a mark; therefore the Tathāgata calls it the true mark.' The great declaration follows: 'To depart from all marks is to be named a Buddha' (離一切相則名諸佛), and 'a bodhisattva must depart from all marks and arouse the aspiration to supreme enlightenment.' The section also presents the teaching of the perfection of patience (忍辱波羅蜜) together with the story from the Buddha's past life in which King Kalirāja cut his body limb from limb, yet the Buddha harbored no anger, for he had no four marks at that time.