No More Learning

Rising from failings involves three things: begetting five despairs, a five-limbed vigilance, and removing despair in five ways. The five-limbed vigilance can be studied in the Hearers Level [of Asatiga). l6
[I]
The five despairs arise when a person commits some trans- gression or other and thinks: [1] "With this kind ofstart, my observance will [always] be faulty", or [2] "The Teacher [Buddha] and learned men of the Pure Life [surely] con- demn me", or [3] "The gods condemn me [for this]", or [4]
"Sinful men from here to the border know about me, and talk about me indecently", or [5] "With this unvirtuous
? beginning of mine, I will be reborn in the bad destinies after [leaving] this body, and then it will be no use! "
These despairs are removed by five [contrary] ways of thjnking: [1] "The Blessed One taught a Doctrine which has both a foundation and way of deliverance; therefore there [surely] is a means of rising from transgression", or [2] "Because I have not [yet] learned that transgressions are committed through ignorance, irreverence, negligence [304a] and strong passions, they [continue to] increase", or [3] "I now beget the Enlightenment Thought with sincere superior intention so that I will not go on failing", or [4] "I have now properly confessed [my failing] in the presence of learned men of the Pure Life", or [5] "I have entered the religious life of the well-spoken Doctrine-Discipline, and
my despair when I go against its training is not right or proper. The Blessed One condemned the stream of despair with whole lists of the obstructions [it creates]. Now since despair is the thing making the obstacles, then to put up with it and not cleanse it away from the start [can only] mean that I am the one who is not virtuous and right in not removing it! "
Summation of the Discipline
Confession should be made according to the methods found in the proper Discipline of each one's own school. You can also confess [privately] with the more general method I composed in my Ritual for Confession o f Failings. But be earnest about the fortnightly recitation of the Pratimok~a- s f i t r a a n d a b o u t t h e Po~adha [ o b s e r v a n c e ] . T h e m o n k w h o i s earnest about his Discipline training knows what the trans- gressions are and is wise about the [means] of deliverance
[from them]. He does not despair because his nature is to be pure, clean, unsullied, and sinless. Having left the house- holder's state to become homeless and enter religion, his Conduct in the well-spoken Doctrine-Discipline is not dim- inished, stained, tom, destroyed or impure. He guards it well. He stands adorned with the Twelve Qualities of Purifi- cationandtheSeventeenOrnamentsofReligiousPractice. 37
THE MONASTIC LIFE 79
? 80 A LAMP FOR THE PATH AND COMMENTARY
It was as I reflected on how the pure Monk is this kind of man that I wrote:
THE. GLORIOUS PURE LIFE IS HIGHEST;
BY WHICH HE MEANT THE VOWS OF A MONK [304b]
Finally, Ajitanatha says in his Ornament ofthe Sutras:
"The Doctrine of the Discipline is [expressed] in terms of [1] Transgression, [2] its Source, [3] Rising from it, [4] Deliverance, [5] Persons, [6] Promulgation, [7] Distinc- tion, and [8] Determination. "38
This completes the section on the Hearer's Vehicle.
Notes to Chapter 3
1 Ot. 5584, Vol. 114:262. 2.
2 rigs-med-pa/agotraka. In some systems of Mahayana, notably the Yogacara
school, classification of persons into "Families" according to their dis- positions in a particular rebirth became popular. The reference here is to a fivefold division:
l) rigs-med/agotra: No-Family (= no inclination to liberation in one's present rebirth);
2) ma-nges-pa/aniyata: Uncertain Family ( = those who will enter which- ever Family circumstances suggest to them);
3) nyan-thos/Sriivaka: Hearer Family (= Hinayana ideal of the Arhat saint);
4) rang-sangs-rgyas/pratyeka-buddha: Solitary Buddha Family (=the self- made Buddha ideal ofHinayana);
5) de-bzhin-gshegs-pa/tathiigata: Tathagata Family (= the Mahayana ideal of compassionate Enlightenment).
3 bar-chad/antaraya: impediment. The Vinaya (Discipline) specifies many physical and circumstantial impediments which the candidate must be free from for acceptance as a Novice or Monk. The Ordination ceremony itself contains a double inquiry into freedom from these impediments; e. g. , free- dom from deformities, from a variety of specific diseases, from debt, lack of parental consent, and so on. See Matters of Discipline, Ot. 1030, Vol. 41:24. 3ff.
4 pham-pa byung-ba/piiriijika: expulsion offence. The first of the eight classes of offence against the monastic rule (which constitute the divisions of the Priitimolqa-sutra itself (Ot. 1031, Vol. 41:141-9):
1) 2) 3)
Expulsion (see below);
Suspension (dge-'dun lhag-ma/sarrrghiivaie~a); Indeterminate (ma-nges-pa/aniyata);
? 4) 5) 6) 7) 8)
Forfeiture (spang-ba/nai! Jsargika);
Transgression (/tung-byed-pa/ptitayantika); Confessable (so-sor-bshag-pa/pratideianiya); Etiquette (bslab-pa'i chos/iaik~a);
Dispute-settling (rtsod-pa'i zhi/adhikararJa-iamatha).
The four Expulsion Offences are the most serious and involve dismissal from the community:
1) Sexual intercourse (mi-tshangs-pa spyod-pa/a-brahma-caryam: lit. , impure life);
2) 3) 4)
Theft (ma-byin-par len-pa/adatttidiinam);
Homicide (gsod-pa/badha);
Lying to praise self (mi'i chos bla-mar smra-ba/uttara-manu~ya-dharma- praltipa: lit. , speaking of self as higher in things of man).
5 de-bzhin-gshegs-pa'i snying-po-can = Tathtigata-garbha. A term of the YogiicaraNijfliinaviida school of Mahiiyiina referring to ultimate reality under the aspect of the potential for Buddhahood within every "vessel" Such a reality would be rejected by strict Miidhya111ika as holding to a position of reality, and therefore false both by reason of holding to a position
and by establishing a reality. See Atisa's Chapter VI of the Commentary; also A. K. Warder, Indian Buddhism, pp. 404-S.
Ot. 112.
6
7 Unidentified.
8
9
10 11 12 13
chos-kyi dbyings! dharma-dhiitu. The term for ultimate reality when con- sidered under the aspect of its own proper nature, indescribable, incon- ceivable.
The two types of Family [rigs/gotra1presented here differ from the fivefold distinction mentioned earlier [see note 21. The True Nature [chos-nyid kyi rigs] Family means those who have already achieved Buddhahood in the various bodies of fruition that Suvarl)advipa describes; the Striving Family [sgrub-pa'i rigs1refers to those still progressing on the Paths.
Illumination on the Unfathomable, Ot. 5192, Vol. 91.
Ot. 162, Vol. 6.
Ot. 5584, Vol. 114:262. 2.
The five precepts of the lay Devotee, according to the Miilasarviistiviida tradition which the Tibetan Communities follow, are found in the vow formula itself:
"0 Aciirya, please heed me! From this day forward, as long as I live, I, (name), renounce [11 the killing of living beings; I tum away, as was done by the saintly Arhats as long as they lived, from the killing of life. With this first precept I shall train, obey, and imitate the training of the saintly Arhats. Moreover, as was done by the saintly Arhats as long as they lived, I too from this day forward, as long as I live, renounce [21 the taking of what is not given, and [3] unlawful sexual conduct, and [4] speaking untruly, and [5] intoxicating liquor and places of vulgar amusement. These five precepts I shall study, obey, and follow as the saintly Arhats before
me "[Matters ofDiscipline, Ot. 1030, Vol. 41:22ff].
The forty-five rules connected with the five precepts. are not mentioned in the Discipline itself, but are later interj>retations and refinements of the applica- tion of the precepts; e. g. , the basic precept ofNot Killing would have several types of killing expressed as "rules" connected with it: parricide, matricide, infanticide, the killing of an Arhat, and so on.
THE MONASTIC LIFE 81
? 82 A LAMP FOR THE PATH AND COMMENTARY
14 Atrsa'stripledivisionofthemonasticrulesisamorege? ericcla~sification than the eight classes of transgressions [see note 4] foun~ m the Pratlmokfas of any of the schools. The eight classes of the Prattmok~a are spectfic descriptions of the type of transgression. ranked from the most senous to the least offensive. Atisa's analysis is rather of the nature of the transgressions themselves - whether they are actions evil in themselves (and therefore requiring confession). or actions that would n~t be w~ong ~f one had not promised to observe them, or actions that are stmply dtscrettonary matters
pertaining to good order.
15 The number of rules pertaining to each of the three classes totals 253, but
that. total is at variance with the total number of rules in the known Pratimoksas (Sarvastivada: 262; Miilasarviistiviida: 258; Pali: 227]. This in itself is not unusual. since there is considerable latitude in the enumeration of the Etiquette rules. some combining two prohibitions into one. However, the Commentary's statement that twenty-three rules pertain to the "Confessable" does not agree with any of the schools. which all enumerate four: not receiving food from the hands of nuns, admonishing nuns to let the monks eat first when in a layman's house. receiving food from families which have been interdicted by the Samgha, and taking food in the Community for use outside. without permission of the Community. [See W. Pachow,
Comparative Studv o f the Priitimok~a. p. II. ]
The discrepancies about the monastic rule here in the Commentary simply
point to Atlsa's having been ordained in the Mahiisamghika lineage, whose Pratimok~a has since been lost. Atisa did discourse on the Discipline during summer retreats in Central Tibet. but it is perhaps significant that no men- tion is made of his participating in any ordination ceremonies either as Aciirya or Upiidhyaya. The statement has been made by Nyii~amoli Thera in his Pii(imokkha [p. 101] that AtiSa was asked not to ordain in Tibet because his o;vn lineage [Mahasamghika] was different from t,hat begun at Bsam-yas by Santirak~ita with the first seven Tibetan monks. Santirak~ita's lineage is attested as the Tibetan preference by the Kanjur's containing only the Miilasarvastivada version of the Discipline and Priitimok~a Sutra.
16 The Six Basic Rules and Six Rules for Harmony are not identified in the known traditions. From the context they seem similar to the Nuns' "Eight Serious Virtues" mentioned in the Nuns Ordination Ritual; e. g. receiving ordination only from monks; awaiting announcement of the proper date for the fortnightly Po~adha from the monks' community; not making the summer retreat without the monks nearby for Instruction; not admonishing the monks; rising in reverence to even y0ung monks although the nun be a hundred years old, and so on. See Ridding and La Vallee Poussin, "A Fragment of the Sanskrit Vinaya: Bhi~unl-karma-vacana", Bulletin ofthe School ofOriental Studies (London), Vol. I, pt III, pp. 141-2.
17 '! fie number 500 for the rules of Nuns is mentioned in a siitra quote in Santideva's SS (p. 170), but the Nuns Priitimo~a Sutra (Ot. 1033) itself has a total of only 371 rules in the Miila-sarviistiviida tradition. The Pali version has 311 rules. See A. C. Banerjee, Sarviistiviida Literature, p. 88; and E. J. Thomas, The Life ofthe Buddha, pp. 107-12, for further information.
18 The history of the early divisions of Buddhism was knowledge that every monk was expected to have, and the enumeration here is in Tibetan verse in the Commentary,. a mnemonic borrowed from Bhavya's Nikaya-bheda- vibhanga-vyiikhyiina (Ot. 5640), and translated by Atisa himself. The proper names refer to certain doctrines held, or to founding teachers, or to places where moth~r monasteries were built. See Sukumar Dutt's Buddhist
? Monks and Monasteries ofIndia; A. K. Warder, Indian Buddhism, Chapter
9.
19 Questions forthe Monks' Retreat, Ot. 5649, Vol. 127:309. 1.
20 In SS: p. 81.
21 Ot. 817, Vol. 33:36. 5.
22 Ot. 886. Vol. 35:55. 2.
23 bsnyen-par rdzogs-pa/upasan:zpadii: the ordination ceremony as distinct
24
from the ceremony for admission to the religious life as a novice (rab-tll- byung-ba/pravrajyii). The essence of ordination is the unanimous and formally acknowledged consent of the Community to accept the novice who has the intention to be bound (vowed) by the rules of the Monk. The ceremony itself was conducted as a formal business meeting of the Com- munity, requiring a minimum of five monks (four of whom have specific functions in the ceremony), and consent of the Community given in its most solemn and binding form. The four officers required for the ceremony are: 1) Preceptor (mkhan-po/upiidhyiiya): to sponsor and receive the novice in
the name of the Community;
2) Teacher (slob-dpon/iiciirya): to instruct the novice and receive his
promises at the end of the ceremony;
3) President (las-byed-pa/karma-karaka): to act as master of ceremonies
or chairman, seeing to the proper conduct of the ritual, and to present
the formal motion to the Community for granting the ordination;
4) Admonitor (gsang-ste ston-pa/raho'nuJiisaka): to inquire privately during the ceremony about the novice's freedom from the physical
impediments.
The ceremony in all its details of rubrics and formulas and proper conduct of the meeting is described in the first chapter of the Matters o f Discipline itself, and is considered to be among the oldest of Buddhist scriptures. See A. C. Banerjee, op. cit. pp. 101-42.
The four basic types of acts of the Community (dge-'dun gyi las/samgha-
karma) are described in great detail in the Matters o f Discipline, chapter 10: Acts. It is believed that this true democratic parliamentary procedure was adapted by the Buddha from contemporary tribal council systems such as the Vajji of northern India. (See S. Dutt. op. cit. . pp. 85-7. ) An Act of the Community is always expressed by silence in response to the presiding monk's proposal of the Motion. As Atisa states, the third type of Act is required for ordination: a triple repetition of the Motion before the fourth and final assent of the Community. SeeS. Dutt, Early Buddhist Monachism, pp. 144ff; A. C. Banerjee, op. cit. , pp. 222-4; for the Pali Vinaya: Mahiivagga IX(S. B. E . ? Vol. XVIII).
Numerous rules throughout the Priitimo! qa are concerned with harmony in the religious community, and appropriate penances imposed for infractions, and formal lifting of the penance when atonement has been made. Banish- ment (bskrad-pa/praviisaniyam) could be carried out against a group of monks who had created scandal in a given place. Penances in general are treated? in Chapter XIII of the Discipline. Regulations and conduct for the annual monsoon retreat are covered in Chapter IV.
The first two items pertain to the Ordination Ritual; the third pertains to poverty in the matter of the monks' robes. their care and distribution. (Chapter VII of the Discipline). Forfeiture, the fourth class of Priitimok~a rules, describes offences for which the monk must give up the cloth (and other material gain) he has received through suggesting that generosity to laypersons.
25
26
THE MONASTIC LIFE 83
? 84 A LAMP FOR THE PATH AND COMMENTARY
27 The? prescriptions mentioned here show the minimal number (two) of monks required (and obligated) to conduct the fortnightly recitation of the Priitimoksa. as well as how confession may be made even when a larger assembly ? is gathered: i. e. by turning to the monk at one's elbow to admit the guilt.
- Ordination hy five monks in remote areas had application in the history of Tibet when the native Tibetan lineage of ordina.
tions begun at Bsam-yas by Santirak~ita was nearly broken by the persecution of Glang-dar-ma in the ninth centurv. In the later rekindling of the Doctrine. three monks who had fled the persecution and had found ; Tibetan worthy and desirous of ordina-
tion in A-mdo. one Dgongs-pa rab-gsal. performed the ceremony according to the prescribed ritual by inviting two Chinese monks to participate in order to make up the minimal assembly of five. Bu-ston records the incident: chos-'bvun~ (Obermiller). Pt II. pp. 201-2.
The ? R~treat Examination (Discipline. Chap. Ill) is the special recitation of Priitimoksa at the end of the summer retreat, with examina- tion and confession of faults committed, seen. or apprehended by others during the time of retreat. ?
2R Considering that Atisa was ordained in the Mahasamghika lineage and described a different analysis of Priitimok~a rules from that of the Sarvastivada, it is interesting to note here his listing of their great Discipline masters as authorities - perhaps in deference to his Tho-ling patrons. The title. "Reverend" (btsun-pa! bhadanta) is especially reserved for outstanding Discipline commentators. and all those listed here are found in the Tanjur, ~xcept for two (Dbyangs-sgrogs and Bsam-rdzogs). Gul)aprabha and Sakyaprabha are especially revered in Tibet as the "Two Excellents" (mchog gnyis).
The Ten Ways of Ordination are a traditional listing, found in AK(LVP). IV, 60, and in the Blue Annals (Roerich), p. 33. The first Five Converts refers to the Buddha's companions in his initial austerities, who later listened to . his first sermon on the Four Holy Truths and followed him. (See Mahiivagga, I, 6. ) Yasas' ordination by the "Come aside, 0 Monk! " (dge- slong tshur shog! ehi bhik! u) is described in the Ordination Ceremony itself as the Buddha's first way of receiving monks into the Community. (See Matters of Discipline: Ot. 1030, Vol. 41:22). Mahakasyapa, the ascetic of Uruvela, came to the Buddha with his five hundred disciples, and all were ordained by their very assent to the Buddha's teaching. (See E. J. Thomas,
Life ofthe Buddha, p. 91. ) Sudatta (or Aniithapil)c;lada) is not recorded as ever being other than a lay devotee; so this reference remains unidentified. Mahaprajapati, the Buddha's aunt, who prevailed upon him to permit women to join the Community as nuns. (See Cullavagga, X. 1. ) Dharmadinnii, a woman locked up in a harem, sent a messenger to the Buddha for admission to the Community. (See Majjhima Nikaya. I, 299. ) The Sixty Bhadravargas ("the good groups") are not accounted for in the various Disciplines known to date. The appellation bhadravarga is usually given to the first five converts.
these topics, defines this as meaning death; i. e. , one must be in the human body to be able to observe the precepts of the Pratimok~a. At death, the
InAK(L VP). IV ,97. BCA, IX. 45.
mi brda phrad-pa.
29
30
31
32 ris mthun-pa/nikiiya-sabhiiga. Vasubandhu, whom Atisa is following in
? vows of the monastic life do not carry over into other rebirths. even human.
See AK(LVP). IV. 94.
33 See note 4.
34 mtshan gnyis dus gcig-tu byung-ba: lit. , "both [sex] marks appearing at the same time", which is hermaphroditism. But actually sex-change is meant here- a physiological possibility accepted in the history of Indian medicine. SeeAK(LVP), IV, 94.
35 AK(LVP). IV. 94.
36
The five-limbed vigilance is not found in the Hearer's Level. but rather in Asariga's Bodhisattva Levels (Ot. 5538. Vol. 110. 167. 3]:
I) sngon-f{yi mtha' dang-ldan-pa: one who has put an end to past trans- gressions:
2) phyi-ma'i mtha' dang-ldan-pa: one who has put an end to future trans- gressions:
3) dbus-kyi mtha' dang-ldan-pa: one who has put an end to present trans- gressions:
4) snga-nas bya-ba: learning what should be done from previous mistakes:
5) lhan-cig rjes-su spyod-pa: one who has put all the above together and
acts accordingly ever after.
The Twelve Qualities of Purification (sbyangs-pa'i yon-tan/dhilta-guf! a) are one item in the Seventeen Ornaments ofthe Religious Practice (dge-sbyong- gi rgyan/sriimatJii-alamkiira). both of which are listed in Asariga's Hearer's Level [Ot. 5537. Vol. 110:65. 5f]. The Twelve Qualities all have to do with living frugally in the religious life; the Seventeen Ornaments are more generic: having greater faith, greater patience, few necessities, and so on. See Glossary.
Ot. 5521, Vol. 108:8. 1. The summary inserted here is a mnemonic verse covering the contents of the Discipline itself. Atisa has treated only the first four topics in this chapter. Persons [5] refers to the subject matter of chapter XII of the Matters of Discipline: the disposition of disciplinary actions against persons. Promulgation [6] refers to the Buddha's assembling the monks to announce new changes in the rule as each new case arose.
Distinction [7] covers the many exceptions allowed by the Pratimok~a rules: e. g. absence from Po~adha by reason of illness. Determination [8] refers to the settling of dissension in the Community and to the decision about undetermined infractions of the rule.
37
38
THE MONASTIC LIFE 85
? I
II
THE BODHISATfVA VOW
A Conduct Chapter of Asanga
B The Good Guru
EXPLANATION OF THE VOW
A Ritual
1 WithGuru
2 Without Guru B Extent of Conduct
c Forsaking the Vow
D Preventing Transgression
E Rising from Transgression
F Benefits of Conduct
PURIFICATION OF BODY, SPEECH AND MIND
A ConductoftheVow
B Conduct for Garnering Virtue c Conduct for the Good of Others
PERFECTING THE EQUIPMENT
A Striving in Both Vows
B Five Effects
c Marks of Unfailing Thought
BEGINNER BODHISATfVAS
A Skilled in Means
B Unremitting Practice
c Siitra Study
Stanza Page
22 88
III
IV
v
32 95
96 97 97
33 98
98
99 100
101 102 102 104
VI
KINDS OF BEGINNERS
105
CHAPTER 4
The Bodhisattva Vow
24-31
88 89
90
91 91 91 91 93 93 93 94
? 4
The Bodhisattva V ow
The Bodhisattva Vow
But you must not think it enough simply to have the P. nHimok~a vow and beget a resolve [for Perfect Enlighten- ment]; for the Cloud o fJewels says:
"0 Noble Youth, a bodhisattva bound by the vow of bodhisattva training is one who says: 'I cannot be directly awakened to the supreme and perfect Enlightenment just by Pnltimok~a vows. Rather I must train myself in everything the Tathagatas have enjoined as bodhisattva practice and training in the sutras and by their example. ' " 1
And so at this point I will imitate my Gurus in following the Mahayana sutras to explain what must be practised in the comprehensive training of a bodhisattva.
Conduct Chapter ofAsahga
I have already indicated [in the preceding stanzas] who the unique vessel for Mahayana. is, so now I point out the Path
ofthe Great Wagons for him by saying:
ACCORDING TO THE RITUAL GIVEN IN THE CONDUCT CHAPTER OF THE BODHISATIVA LEVELS, [ONE TAKES THE VOW . . ? ] [Stanza 22]
This Bodhisattva Levels is the treatise composed by noble Asariga to present the Six Perfections. In that text there is the Chapter on the Perfection of Conducf comprised of nine titles: [1] The Nature of Conduct, [2] All-inClusive, [3]TheDifficulties, [4]TheApproaches, [5]TheHolyMan, [6] All Kinds, [7] The Wish in Misfortune, [8] Happiness
? THE BODHISATTVA VOW 89
Here and Hereafter, (305a] and [9] Purified Conduct. My reference here is to what is stated under the heading "All- inclusive Conduct".
The Good Guru
I show how this ritual proceeds by saying ONE TAKES THE VOW FROM ANY GOOD GURU
WHO HAS THE PROPER CHARACTERISTICS. (Stanza 22)
And who is the good Guru and what are his? proper characteristics?
ONE WHO IS LEARNED IN THE RITUAL OF THE VOW,
AND HIMSELF LIVES THE VOW HE HAS TAKEN,
AND HAS THE COMPASSIONATE FORBEARANCE TOIMPARTIT-KNOWHIMTOBETHEGOODGURU. 3 (23]
"LEARNED IN THE RITUAL OF THE VOW" means that he is well-informed and knowledgeable about it. "uvEs THE vow HE HAS TAKEN" means that the Guru's own Conduct is not diminished or destroyed and that it is pure. "FORBEARANCE" means he is willing to do it, and proceeds freely in imparting the vow. "coMPASSIONATE" means he sees a disciple as a son, and that he cannot bear to see others suffer. When I say he must be a "GuRu" ["higher"] I mean that a vow can
only [truly] be taken from someone whose attainment is higher than others. And a Guru is considered to be higher when his disciples possess virtues like his and when great reverence has been paid to his teaching.
Furthermore, a Guru possesses four excellences: [1] excellent Conduct; [2] excellent attainments, [3] excellent intention, and [4] excellent practice. I specify his excellent Conduct by saying "HIMSELF LIVES TflE VOW HE HAS TAKEN", and his excellent attainments by "LEARNED IN THE RITUAL OF THE VOW . . . [ANT)) . . . FORBEARANCE TO IMPART IT".
T o explain this further: "LIVES THE vow" means that you cannot acquire a vow from a Guru who has forsaken his own vow or has violated his own Conduct or no longer agrees With the Doctrine. "LEARNED IN THE RITUAL" means
? 90 A LAMP FOR THE PATH AND COMMENTARY
a vow cannot be acquired from a Guru who does not know the ritual because then the ritual itself is defective. And "FORBEARANCE TO IMPART" means he is willing to grant the vow because he approaches it with a glad heart, saying, "Excellent! I must give this vow without hesitation! "
His excellent intention and excellent practice are shown by the word "COMP ASSIONA TE":
The Guru's excellent intention is his faith, his sincere motivation in action, his detachment and compassion, his reverence for his own Guru. He desires little and knows moderation, keeping trifles unimportant. He has no anxieties, he is patient with others' faults, he is free of anger and grudge-bearing.
The Guru's excellent practice is his advancing in prac- tice of virtue, ever esteeming and increasing it. He does not deceive himself about the rules of his training. He is neither overenthusiastic nor indolent, and he does not like noisy crowds or pleasure-seeking. His mind is undisturbed. 4
If you take the vow from such a Guru your practice of Conduct will grow, and that kind of Guru is what I had in mind when I wrote:
ONE TAKES THE VOW FROM ANY GOOD GURU
WHO HAS THE PROPER CHARACTERISTICS. (Stanza 22]
Explanation of the Vow
My explanation continues now with these topics: [A] the ritual for taking the vow, [B] the full extent of it, [C] how the vow is forsaken, [D] how it will not be forsaken, (E] rising from failings in it, [F] the benefits of Conduct.
There are of course many systems of interpretation from the great scholars of the P? St, but here I am going to ex- glain only the thought of Arya Asanga and of Venerable Santideva because theirs is the spirituality of the Superior
? THE BODHISA TTV A VOW 91
Person - which is the Great Path of the Great Vehicle. [306a]
The Ritualfor Taking the Vow
[1] "for the full ritual, you should study the one composed by Adirya Asari. ga in his Chapter on ConductS or the one that I myself composed. 6 There is also a ritual foF taking the vow without a Guru given in the same Chapter on Conduct. For_the ritual I made, I imitated Arya Asari. ga's. The ritual by Santideva is found of course in his Progress in Practice, but is presented more fully in the Compendium ofTraining. 7 He has also given a ritual for the vow without a Guru in the
latter text.
[2] I presented my own ritual without a Guru in the
stanzas from:
"BUT IF, AFTER TRYING, ONE CANNOT
FIND JUST SUCH A GURU AS THIS,
I WILL EXPLAIN ANOTHER RITUAL
FOR TAKING THE VOW IN A CORRECT WAY. " (Stanza24]
down to the words:
"NO UNVIRTUOUS DEED WILL EVER BE MINE. " (Stanza 31b]
I chose this ritual of Ambaraja8 here because my Gurus have said it is a formula for the ritual both with and without a Guru. It is true, the Compendium of Training gives it as a ritual for taking the vow from a Guru, but since I am presenting both methods, my ritual for taking with a Guru is based on the Chapter on Conduct [of Asari. ga] and the one 'Jithout Guru is based on the Compendium of Training [of Santideva].
Extent o f Conduct
The full extent of Conduct. Arya Asari. ga has summarised what the entire Sutra collection teaches on Conduct in the nine sections of his Chapter on Conduct beginning with "Nature". He concludes by saying:
? 92 A LAMP FOR THE PATH AND COMMENTARY
"The Conduct of the Bodhisattva is completely covered by these practices. What he must do in his Conduct is complete with just these. The benefit of his Conduct is complete in just these. [306b] There is nothing more; there is nothing beyond them. "9
And Acarya Santideva treats the whole Sutra teaching as a training by three types of person; hence in Mahayana there is a higher practice of Conduct, and an average, and a minimal. When speaking of the higher practice in his Compendium o f Training he says, "The fullest practice of Mahayana comes from the Bodhisattva vow. " 10 Then in the Progress in Practice he says:
"There is no virtuous practice to be had anywhere Which the Sons of the Victor do not observe. " 11
And my Guru, the glorious Bodhibhadra, has said:
"The chief precepts of Bodhisattva training are sum- marised here [in Asanga's Chapter on Conduct]. But this training of a Bodhisattva is measureless and endless [in actual practice], and therefore when you return to what is taught here in these precepts, you will know what is or is noLa fault. " 12
On the St! bject of the average practice of Bodhisattva ~onduct, Santideva says in the Compendium o f Training:
"This Bodhisattva will know the basic attitudes [neces- sary] for not transgressing. He gives away his person and enjoyments to all creatures, and all the merit he has ever gained as well. And he keeps on growing in these practices. " 13
Then on the subject of minimal practice, he says:
"A Bodhisattva who wants to observe some certain pre- cept of the. training makes a promise to do so in the presence of the Buddhas. If he has no [Guru] Spiritual
? THE BODHISA TTV A VOW 93
Friend, he acts on his own power to do so, and takes the vow in the presence of the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Hence, even when acting on your own in observing a single precept, you should take the vow correctly. "14 [307a]
_ Forsaking the Vow
According to Arya Asanga's explanation, the causes of
forsaking the vow are the failure to renew the resolve for the great Enlightenment, and through great entanglement to commit the four basic sins. The former means to grow tired of seeking the good of all creatures, and feeling that Enlightenment is too far off, and to have the resolution of only a Hearer or Solitary Buddha or an outsider. The latter means to be without shame or regret, and to lose all concern for the consequences, or to give back the vow in the prese~ce of a! lyone capable of understanding. 15
In Adirya Santideva's interpretation in the Compendium o f Training, the vow is forsaken by failing to reject the Evil Works of Mara or the Fourteen Evil Things16 that begin with the man who appropriates for himself what belongs to the holy religion, and so on; and by imperfect mindfulness, by laziness and indifference, by not learning what the trans- gressions are, and by having no shame or regret.
And in his Commentary on "Twenty Verses on the Vow", my Guru says, " . . . not learning the precepts of the train- ing, by unmindfulness, delusion, and irreverence. " 17
Preventing Transgression
For Asanga transgression is prevented by deliberateness and mindfulness, zeal and carefulness, by knowing what is ~nd is not a fault, and by a sense of shame and regret. Santideva mentions these also, along with rejecting and correcting the Fourteen Evil Things, as even the ordinary [Paths] do. 18
Risingfrom Transgression
Both Gurus say that one can be as free of regret for failure by being restored to virtue as by never having sinned in the first place. If one sees the wrong in his faults, and admits and confesses it even in little things, he will be pure. [307b]
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In the Chapter on Conduct, Arya Asanga speaks of rising from failings in the passage that begins "If there is no suitable person to act as one's teacher [to confess to] . . . ",19 where he also sayS that when the basic sins have been committed because of complete entanglement, then the vow should be taken again after confessing in the presence of the community. But, for [lesser] faults committed, con- fession to anyone of the Hearers' or the Great Vehjcle [is ~ufficient].