VIMALAKIRTI’S DISCOURSE ON
EMANCIPATION
INTRODUCTION
HIS is
an
English
translation
of the Vimalakirli-zzirdesa(Nanjio
146),being
the firstattempt
* to introduce thetext to
Westernreaders. Strangely,
noone
has sofar tried to translateit
into any of
theEuropeanlanguages—-a
book sofullof
interest
in various waysand
solargely
contributing to the foundations of Orientalphilosophy
and
religion.* I did not know when I wrote these lines that an English translation by Mr. Kakichi Ohara appeared in the Ilanset-Zasshi for 1898-99, which, is now extremely difficult to obtain. I have had so far no opportunity to read it, but the translator, I am told, was a young and sincere Buddhist who unfortunately died prematurely some fifteen years ago. Some passages from this Sutra are also translated in the Outlines of Muhafam Buidhism, London, 1907, by Prof. B. T. Suzuki, to which I have referred in the text. In any way, my translation, which was done quite independently, may be judged on its own merits.
The
Sutra was
probably first composedin
Sanskrit
orin
some
Indian dialect
much earlierthan
the timeof
Nagarjuna, which was in thesecond
century a.d
. ; forit
isfrequently
quoted
byhim in his
commentaryon thePrajnuparamita-sutra
(Nanjio
1169).But
how much earlierit
was composedwe
have no
means
toascertain;
butthere is
no doubtthat
the
compilation
took
placesomecenturies
beforeNagarjuna,
because it requires someconsiderable
time for aSutra
to
grow worthyof being
quoted
as a sacredauthority.
King Asoka, a patron of
Buddhism,
who flourished in the thirdcentury b
.c
. and who was agreat
propagator of the faith throughout India evenbeyond
the northern frontiers, over theHimalayan
ranges,
nevermentions
this Sutra; nor359
doss
King
;Kanishka
of the first centurya.
d.
But thereis no
reason
whywe should deny
theexistence
of theVimalakvrti
in
those days
simply
fromthis
fact, because thereare in
this
Sutra
remarkablecharacteristics
which are
quitedifferent
from those recognised as orthodoxby
thesekings
; forit
is
quite
likely
that
theywould
ignore thecanons
of the othersects
though such
might have
alreadybeen
inactual
existence.We may
howeversay,
with
somehesitation, that
thisSutra
existedalready in
thethought
of lay-Buddhists, not in
the circle
of
the monastic orthodoxy, atthetimesof
thesekings,
to
whom
it seems tohave
remained
quite unknown.I
now
proposeto
pointout
what aresomeof
theoutstanding
characteristics
of theSutra,
which
distinguish themselves fromthose of
theBuddhist
doctrine
knownto
those kings.(1) We
see in this Sutravery
frequently aphrase
“ theskilful means
” *;
the fulloriginal meaning
ofwhichis difficult
to
reproduce inEnglish
except bythis literal
rendering,so
dry and
altogether inadequate.But
this isto
be madeto
include
every
legitimatepractice
issuing from a perfectlyreligious
life.From
the firstchapter
to
thelast
we oftenmeet
alsowith
a supernatural powerwhich
aBodhisattva
or
a
Buddha exercises.What does
this supernaturalpower
mean
? It has no meaning byitself.
If it had ’anyat
allit
would bemerely
to please
theignorant
andchildish
people,which
is absurd
andridiculous
in such a serious literature.The
supernatural
power exercised by the principal figuresin this
Sutra,
isan indispensable
expedient forleading
beings to the realisation of the highest truth. The Mahayanisticideals of
a
Bodhisattva
are to sacrificehis
own selfish happiness for a greater cause, andhis
efforts
are concentratedin this
self
sacrifice.
He
does noteven
extirpate his
passions,quite
* ITpayn-kausalya in Sanskrit. Upaya means “ coming near,” “approach.,” “a means,” or “expedient,” and Kauialya, “cleverness,” “skilfulness,” or “expediency” ; they are rendered in Chinese
360 THE EASTERN BUDDHIST
contrary to the ideal
of
the Hinayanists; for otherwisehe
could
not
feel
any sympathy with thelower beings
suffering
from passions and deliver them from
pain.
He
incarnates himself inany being,
even ina
medical
herb(Chapter
VIII) inorder
to
save
allbeings and
lead them
to
thehigher
stageof
religious life. These sacrificial deedsare never
orhardly
known in the
doctrine
of the Hinayana.(2) TheSix Paramitas,
being
thepreliminary means
for attaining Buddhahood, arenever
sought
by theHinayanists
whosefinal goal
is
tobecome
anArhat;
but inthepresentSutra moststrongly
emphasised arethese
Paramitas.In
factthey
are
one
of the
signsdistinguishing
Mahayana fromHinayana.
Charity,
discipline, patience,
diligence,meditation,
and wisdom whichare
repeatedly taught in thetext,
form the highest standardof
thereligious
life
ofa
Bodhisattva. And wemay
take
them
as
thestandard
ethicalteachings
even when they areinterpreted
in themodern sense.
(3)
The
greatmercy and
compassion
towards allbeings
is
mosthighly recommendedin
this Sutra.
They are cherished only by aBodhisattva,
who belongs to the Mahayana; but noSravaka
or Pratyeka-Buddhacan
cherish itinasmuch as
he belongs to
theHinayana. A
Sravaka or
aPratyeka-Buddha
acts
only
forhimself, not
forothers
;his
Nirvana
is
acomplete
extinction
which
is
thefinal
goalto his life. But
aBodhisattva
does not
enter intoNirvana
forthe sake
of
beings whosuffer
in
thislife, and whose
salvation
is
his
soleduty.
(4)
Lastly,
frequently thisSutra makes reference
to a certainmental outlook in
which attachment finds noplace.
This state
is beyond
either
wordsorthought
(ChapterIX,
etc.).. Infact
even theHinayana.
speaks
offreeing
oneself
from
attachment, but
to
cling to a stateof
non-attachmentis
stillan
attachment,
which is always
condemned
inthis
Sutra.True
non
attachment
isabsolute,
itis
not
onlyfreefromallformsof
attach
ment
but free from non-attachmentitself.
Here
isan
absolute
L
freedom of
theBodhisattva
in allhis life-activities, and
thisis
what
has
never beenknown to
theHinayanists.
All
these characteristicsabove
mentioned,which
arenever
found
in
HinayanaBuddhism are products of
“
the Supreme Enlightenment” whichis
designated by theMahayanists
as“ Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi
” ; andto
cherish thethought
which
will lead
to this enlightenmentis the
firststep to be
taken
by all Mahayanists.On
the
whole,what
ismost
emphatically
insistedupon
in
theSutrabeforeusis
thepractisingof thelife
of aBodhisattva
as
againstthat of a Sravaka
or aPratyeka-Buddha,that
is to
say,
the Mahayana isstrongly
upheldagainst
the Hinayana;
the
religion
of laymen
againsttheascetic life
ofthe
monastery.The
FourfoldNoble Truth,
the TwelveChains
of Causation,
and
theEightfold Right
Path,which
arefound everywhere
in
the Buddhistteaching as preached in
Ceylonor Burma,
disappear
in thisSutra,
orat
leastthey
arepresented
in
dif
ferent
forms, andin
their place aretaught
the Fourfold Acceptance*
(JSamgralia),
the Ten
Paramitas,and
theThirty-
Seven
Requisites(bodhipakshika)
for AttainingSupreme
En
lightenment. We
can also
point out how thehuman Gautama gradually givesway
to asuperhuman
Buddha, who in turnassumes many forms—not
as
historical Buddhas
who aresaid to havepreceded Gautama
Buddha,
but asmanifestations
of the eternal truth (Chapter HI). Itis
always
theway
with the Mahayana Sutra thatan
exceedinglylong
listof Buddhas
is given, and
thatfinally
their
number
grows so enormously large—millions,
trillions,
or
even equalto
the sandsof the
Gangs,—that
theindividual
namingis
now quite
impossible.
* “ Acceptance ” is not a good word for SamyraAa, which, primarily means “ seizing,” or “ holding.” In this case, it is to accept or receive kindly, or to have good understanding, and four modes of it are enumerated by Buddhists: 1. giving, 2. speaking kindly, 3. beneficent deeds, and 4. impartiality.
862 THE EASTERN BUDDHIST
It
shows
howBuddhism
developedin its
ontology from thehistorical
conception of one teacher
tothat
of theHighest
Being.
One
thing
however we
shouldnot
overlook here, is that thisSutra
has contributed muchto
the
popularisation
of Bud
dhism. We
canimagine
how,
at thetime
of itsappearance,
the monks
became
corrupted, since
theyhid themselves
behind
the
walls ofthen-
monastery, lost theinfluence and
power which,
owing
to
the virtue planted by theBuddha,
they had
exercised
over the outside world. Thelay-brothers
of Buddhism
were
quite
dissatisfied
with thisinactivityof
the priests,and
united
themselves
to takethe
scepter
away from the monks nowpowerless
in
the propagation ofaliving
faith.
Religion
oughtnot to
bemade
the monopolyof
thepriests,
but the
possession of all who seek
inearnest,
either monksor laymen.
As
theVimalakirti
is
aproductionofsuch a movement
as
started
by the laity, Sariputra, Mahamaudgalyayana,and
Mahakasyapa,
who-have
always
been
considered
thegreat
disciples of Sakyamuni and the leaders of the priesthood, are
now
treatedin
thisSutra
as
miserable ignoramusesdestitute
of supernatural
powers,which
fact they themselves
confesseither
by
compulsion or on theirown account.
It
isdue to
thisinfluence
of themovement
of
thelaity
that, in
Japan,Shotoku Umayado
(574-622), thecrownprinceof
theEmperor
Yomei, who was agreat
patron ofBuddhism,thought
himselfto
be aVimalakirti,
and wrote acommentaryon
this
Sutra.
He
was never ordainedas
priest butdid far-
more than a professional priest in propagating Buddhism
in
Japan, and
even
nowmany
a layman following theexample
of
thisdevout
prince-Budclhist, takes
pleasure in readingthis
Sutra
above
all others.Besides,
I
wishto
remindone
fact in thisconnection,
363
Yuima-e,
whichwas
performed byorder of
theImperial
Court
during
certain periods of the Naraand
the Heianreign.
This
was
the ceremony of reciting the Vimalakirti-nirdeka-Sutra,Yuima
being theJapanese
pronunciationof Vimalakirti.
With reference
to
the
origin of
theceremony,
we are toldthat
in
the thirdyear
of the EmpressSaimyo (a
.d. 655-661) thechief minister
Kamataribecame
ill,
andHomyo,
anun
who had
comefrom
Korea,
persuaded theEmpress
to recite this Sutra for the recoveryof
the sick minister, sayingthat
the Discourse originated
in
thesickness of Vimalakirti andits
recitation would be
efficacious in the presentcase.
The Em
press, therefore, commanded this
to be done,and
Kamatariwas
restoredto
health
even before the recitation wasover.
Then
heas an
act ofgratitude
beganthe
ceremony ofreciting
the
Vimalakirti
inthetemple
which
he
haderected
as
athanks
giving
offer to the .Budclha. Since thattime this
became
one
of the chief
ceremonies
to be
performed
annuallyby
order of
the
Court.
The
Sanskrit
text
waslost
along
time ago, andthereis
very
little
hope of discovering
it;therefore
theChinese
trans
lations
which
were
made directly from the original shouldbe
taken
as
thetexts
for a translation just as I have done nowhere. Fortunately
the styleis
sosimple
that
we can withoutmuch
difficulty see through theChinese
textswhattheoriginal
might
have
been,and
to
some
extent we can reconstruct theoriginal
with ease.The
earliest Chinesetranslation
was
done in A. D.
188 by Yen-fo-tiao, of the LaterHan
dynasty,
'g|, A. d.25-220.
It wascalled
Wei-Mo-Ching, twovol
umes). But
this
is lost.(2) The
next translation in
twovolumes was
done
under the
title,
Wei-Mo-Chieh-Ching,by Chih-chien,
a layman of Wu dynasty, a.d.
222-280.
This
is extant.364 THE EASTERN BUDDHIST
(3) (4) The next
two translations wereprod
needduring
the
Western Ts
‘in
dynasty,
'E'-g-, A.d.
265-316; one byChu-shu-lan,
and
the otherby
Dharmaraksha, ;they are
in three volumes, respectivelyknown
asWei-Mo-la-chieh-ching,
ItMOOufe
and
Wei-mo-cliieli-so-sliou-fa-men-clmg,but
they
are both lost.When this
latter
translation of
Dharmaraksha’s was made,
a compilation
of
these three translations
mentionedabove
was
done
by Cliih-min-tu,
;but
it
wasalso
lost. (5) In theEastern Ts‘
in dynasty,A.
D. 317-120,
it was also translated by
Gitamitra,
in four volumesunder
thetitle
Wei-mo-ching, but it -was also lost. (6) Thesixth translation came
fromthe
penof
Kuma-rajiva
inthree
volumes,A.
D.406.
Thisis
the one most widely read and studied, and forms thetext for
the presentEnglish translation,
while I
did not neglect
consulting the other translationswherever
necessary.(7) The seventh
and
thelast translation
inChina is
byHsiian T'sang,
of
theT
‘ang
dynasty,Jff,
a.d.618-937,
entitled Shuo-wu-'kou-di'eng-cliing, i
n
sixvolumes,
still extant.
There
is a Tibetan translation entitled asDri-mcc-med-
par-grags-pas-tstan-pa,
which is
found
in
the
fourteenthvolume
of
theSutra
Collectiondesignated
as “
Pha.”Generally
it agreeswith
the Chinesetranslations.
There
was also a Kotanesetranslation,
the fragments of which consistingof two
folios arefound in
theStein
collec
tions. They
are saidto be
the beginningof
the first chapterof
thisSutrarepresenting
some
stanzas
therein. Thisidentifi
cation
wasdone
by Prof.Leumann. and
Dr. KaikyoknWatanabe.
(ZDJ/G, XXII, for 1908.)There are
mauy
commentatorsof
this famousSutra, and
365 of
liis
own sect. Among themwe
mention
the following:(1) Ofta-oM-mo, (^en
volumes)
commentated, by thetranslator
Kumarajivahimself and
his
favourite
disciples.(2) Z-s?.z,
(sixvolumes)
; (3) Liteli-su, (^ve volumes);
(4)
Cltincj-ming
HsUan-lun,
(eight volumes);
(5)
Yui-i,
The
above
works areby Chi-t‘
sang, ofSanron,
— sect.(6)
Kuang-su,by
Chi-i, igfg, (twenty-eight vol
umes) ;
(7) Hsitan-i,
BgJ!,
by the same (six volumes); (8) Lueh-su,by Chan-jan,
(ten
volumes);(9) Su-chi,
by
the same,(three
volumes).These are
from the standpoint of the Tendai,sect.
(10) Shuo-zou-lcou-ch‘eng-cliing-t8an,
by
K‘
uei-chi,(six
volumes).K‘uei-chi was one
ofthe
favourite
pupilsof Hsiian
T'sang, andaccordingly his
commen
tary was
done
on thenewly translated text
ofhis
master’s
from the standpoint
of
the Hosso sect.It is
the onlycom
mentary left to
us onHsuan
T hang’
s text.Later on in the Sung, ^5, and the Ming,
B$,
dynasty we have:(11) Wu-wo-su,
by
Ch‘uan-teng,
(twelve
volumes),
(12) Plng-chu,
hy
Yang-ch‘
ill-yuan,(four
teen volumes).
In
Japan, Umayado,
thecrown prince to
the
Emperor Yomei, wrote
a commentary.
Itis
called,
(13)
Yuimakyo-gisho,
in three volumes. Gyonen, a. d. 1240-1321, afamous priest,
wrote
a commentary on thisUmayado
’s
commentary. Itis entitled,
(14)
Yuim'.ikycslio-anraki, (fortyvol
366 THE EASTERN BUDDHIST
Hotan,
MW>
a.d.
1654-1738,another
learned priest,
writes
acommentary on Kumarajiva
’
s commentary designatedas
(15)
Hotsumosho,
lORIlJo (five volumes).This
list byno
means
exhausts all the commentariesthat
are stillin
existence.I
have
referredalready to
Nagarjunawho quoted
this
Sutra
frequently inhis
work;and other
scholars such as
Bhavaviveka,
Candrakirti,and Dharmakirti also very
oftenquote
this
Sutrain
theircommentaries on Maclhyamaka
Scistras.There is
abook
calledthe SikshasamuccayabySantidevaof
the eleventhcentury,
a compendium of the earlier Bud
dhist
MahayanaSutras,
editedby Professor C.
Bendallin the“
Bibliotheca Buddhica,” Vol.I.
Petrograd,1897.
Itcontains
a
few passages from thisSutra
in the originalSanskrit
form. As they are scattered throughout theSikshasamuccaya,
they
are all