APPENDIX.

In this we find Buddha’s characteristic admonition to his disciples not to waste time but to work out their salvation with diligence and rigor, but we fail to find the gospel of annihilation, the supposedly fundamental teaching of Buddhism.

Did then Buddha start in his religious discipline to attain the absolute annihilation of all human aspirations and after a long meditation reach the conclusion that contradicted his premises? Far from it. His first and last ambition was nothing else than the emancipation of all beings from ignorance, misery, and suffering through enlightenment, knowledge, and truth. When Mâra the evil one was exhausting all his evil powers upon the destruction of the Buddha in the beginning of his career, the good gods in the heavens exclaimed to the evil one:[137]

“Take not on thyself, O Mâra, this vain fatigue,—throw aside thy malevolence and retire to thy home. This sage cannot be shaken by thee any more than the mighty mountain Meru by the wind.

“Even fire might lose its hot nature, water its fluidity, earth its steadiness, but never will he abandon his resolution, who has acquired his merit by a long course of actions through unnumbered eons.

“Such is the purpose of his, that heroic effort, that glorious strength, that compassion for all beings,—until he attains the highest wisdom [or suchness,tattva], he will never rise from his seat, just as the sun does not rise without dispelling the darkness.

“Pitying the world lying distressed amidst diseases and passions, he, the great physician, ought not to be hindered, who undergoes all his labors for the sake of the remedy-knowledge.

“He, who, when he beholds the world drowned in the great flood of existence and unable to reach the further shore, strives to bring them safely across,—would any right-minded soul offer him wrong?

“The tree of knowledge, whose roots go deep in firmness, and whose fibres are patience,—whose flowers are moral actions and whose branches are memory and thought,—and which gives out the Dharma as its fruit,—surely when it is growing it should not be cut down.”

These words of the good gods in the heavens truthfully echo the motive that stirred Çâkyamuni to take up his gigantic task of universal salvation, and we are unable here as before to perceive a particle of the nihilistic speculation which is supposed to characterise Nirvâna. The Buddha from the very first of his religious course searched after the light that will illuminatethe whole universe and dispel the darkness of nescience.

What enlightenment, then, did the Buddha, pursuing his first object, finally gain? What truth was it that he is said to have discovered under the Bodhi tree after six years’ penance and deep meditation? As is universally recognised, it was no more than the Fourfold Noble Truth and the Twelve Chains of Dependence, which are acknowledged by the Mahâyânists as well as by the Hînayânists as the essentially original teachings of the Buddha. What then was his subjective state when he discovered these truths? How did he feel in his inmost being after this intellectual triumph over egoistic thoughts and passions? According to the Southern tradition, the famous Hymn of Victory is said to be his utterance on this occasion. It reads (TheDharmapada, 153):

“Many a life to transmigrate,Long quest, no rest, hath been my fate,Tent-designer inquisitive for;Painful birth from state to state.“Tent-designer, I know thee now;Never again to build art thou;Quite out are all thy joyful fires,Rafter broken and roof-tree gone;Into the vast my heart goes on,Gains Eternity—dead desires.”[138]

“Many a life to transmigrate,Long quest, no rest, hath been my fate,Tent-designer inquisitive for;Painful birth from state to state.

“Tent-designer, I know thee now;Never again to build art thou;Quite out are all thy joyful fires,Rafter broken and roof-tree gone;Into the vast my heart goes on,Gains Eternity—dead desires.”[138]

In this Hymn of Victory, the “tent-designer” meansthe ego that is supposed to be a subtle existence behind our mental experiences. As was pointed out elsewhere the negative phase of Buddhism consists in the eradication of this ego-substratum or the “designer” of eternal transmigration. The Buddha now finds out that this ego-soul is a fantasmagoria and has no final existence; and with this insight his ego-centric desires that troubled him so long are eternally dead; he feels the breaking up of their limitations; he is absorbed in the Eternal Vast, in which we all live and move and have our being. No shadow is perceptible here that suggests anything of an absolute nothingness supposed to be the attribute of Nirvâna.

Before proceeding further, let us see what the Mahâyâna tradition says concerning this point. The tradition varies in this case as in many others. According to Beal’sRomantic History of Buddha, which is a translation of a Chinese version of theBuddhacarita(Fo pen hing ching),[139]Buddha is reported to have exclaimed this:

“Through ages past have I acquired continual merit,That which my heart desired have I now attained,How quickly have I arrived at the ever-constant condition,And landed on the very shore of Nirvâna.The sorrows and opposition of the world,The Lord of the Kâmalokas, Mâra Pisuna,These are unable now to affect, they are wholly destroyed;By the power of religious merit and of wisdom are they cast away.Let a man but persevere with unflinching resolution,And seek Supreme Wisdom, it will not be hard to acquire it;When once obtained, then farewell to all sorrows,All sin and guilt are forever done away.”[140]

Viewing the significance of Buddhism in this light, it is evident that Buddha did not emphasise so much the doctrine of Nirvâna in the sense of a total abnegation of human aspirations as the abandonment of egoism and the practical regulation of our daily life in accordance with this view. Nirvâna in which all the passions noble and base are supposed to have been “blown out like a lamp” was not the most coveted object of Buddhist life. On the contrary, Buddhism advises all its followers to exercise most strenuously all their spiritual energy to attain perfect freedom from the bondage of ignorance and egoism; because that is the only way in which we can conquer the vanity of worldliness and enjoy the bliss of eternal life. The following verse from theVisuddhi Magga(XXI) practicallysums up the teaching of Buddhism as far as its negative and individual phase is concerned:

“Behold how empty is the world,Mogharâja! In thoughtfulnessLet one remove belief in self,And pass beyond the realm of death.The king of death will never findThe man who thus the world beholds.”[141]

Nirvâna is Positive.

It is not my intention here to investigate the historical side of this question; we are not concerned with the problem of how the followers of Buddha gradually developed the positive aspect of Nirvâna in connection with the practical application of his moral and religiousteachings; nor are we engaged in tracing the process of evolution through which Buddha’s noble resolution to save all sentient beings from ignorance and misery was brought out most conspicuously by his later devotees. What I wish to state here about the positive conception of Nirvâna and its development is this: The Mahâyâna Buddhism was the first religious teaching in India that contradicted the doctrine of Nirvâna as conceived by other Hindu thinkers who saw in it a complete annihilation of being, for they thought that existence is evil, and evil is misery, and the only way to escape misery is to destroy the root of existence, which is nothing less than the total cessation of human desires and activities in Nirvânic unconsciousness. The Yoga taught self-forgetfulness in deep meditation; the Samkhya, the absolute separation of Puruṣa from Prakṛti, which means undisturbed self-contemplation; the Vedânta, absorption in the Brahma, which is the total suppression of all particulars; and thus all of them considered emancipation from human desires and aspirations a heavenly bliss, that is, Nirvâna. Metaphysically speaking, they might have been correct each in its own way, but, ethically considered, their views had little significance in our practical life and showed a sad deficiency in dealing with problems of morality.

The Buddha was keenly aware of this flaw in their doctrines. He taught, therefore, that Nirvâna does not consist in the complete stoppage of existence, but in the practise of the Eightfold Path. This moralpractise leads to the unalloyed joy of Nirvâna, not as the tranquillisation of human aspirations, but as the fulfilment or unfolding of human life. The word Nirvâna in the sense of annihilation was in existence prior to Buddha, but it was he who gave a new significance to it and made it worthy of attainment by men of moral character. All the doctrinal aspects of Nirvâna are later additions or rather development made by Buddhist scholars, according to whom their arguments are solidly based on some canonical passages. Whatever the case may be, my conviction is that those who developed the positive significance of Nirvâna are more consistent with the spirit of the founder than those who emphasised another aspect of it. In theUdânawe read (IV., 9):

“He whom life torments not,Who sorrows not at the approach of death,If such a one is resolute and has seen Nirvâna,In the midst of grief, he is griefless.The tranquil-minded Bhikkhu, who has uprooted the thirst for existence,By him the succession of births is ended,He is born no more.”[142]

According to the Mahâyânistic conception Nirvâna is not the annihilation of the world and the putting an end to life; but it is to live in the whirlpool of birth and death and yet to be above it. It is affirmation and fulfilment, and this is done not blindly and egoistically, for Nirvâna is enlightenment. Let us see how this is.

The Mahâyânistic Conception of Nirvâna.

While the conception of Nirvâna seems to have remained indefinite and confused as far as Hînayânism goes, the Mahâyâna Buddhists have attached several definite shades of meaning to Nirvâna and tried to give each of them some special, distinctive character. When it is used in its most comprehensive metaphysical sense, it becomes synonymous with Suchness (tattva) or with the Dharmakâya. When we speak of Buddha’s entrance into Nirvâna, it means the end of material existence, i.e., death. When it is used in contrast to birth and death (samsâra) or to passion and sin (kleça), it signifies in the former case an eternal life or a state of immortality, and in the latter case a state of consciousness that follows from the recognition of the presence of the Dharmakâya in individual existences. Nirvâna has thus become a very comprehensive term, and this fact adds much to the confusion and misunderstanding with which it has been treated ever since Buddhism became known to the Occident. The so-called “primitive Buddhism” is not altogether unfamiliar with all these meanings given to Nirvâna, though in some cases they might have been but faintly foreshadowed. Most of European missionaries and scholars have ignored this fact and wanted to see in Nirvâna but one definite, stereotyped sense which will loosen or untie all the difficult knots connected with its use. One scholar would select a certain passage in a certain sûtra, where the meaningis tolerably distinct, and taking this as the key endeavor to solve all the rest; while another scholar would do the same thing with another passage from the scriptures and refute other fellow-workers. The majority of them, however, have found for missionary purposes to be advantageous to hold one meaning prominently above all the others that may be considered possibly the meaning of Nirvâna. This one meaning that has been made specially conspicuous is its negativistic interpretation.

According to theVijñânamâtra çâstra(Chinese version Vol. X.), the Mahâyâna Buddhists distinguish four forms of Nirvâna. They are:

(1)Absolute Nirvâna, as a synonym of the Dharmakâya. It is eternally immaculate in its essence and constitutes the truth and reality of all existences. Though it manifests itself in the world of defilement and relativity, its essence forever remains undefiled. While it embraces in itself innumerable incomprehensible spiritual virtues, it is absolutely simple and immortal; its perfect tranquillity may be likened unto space in which every conceivable motion is possible, but which remains in itself the same. It is universally present in all beings whether animate or inanimate[143]and makes their existence real. In one respect it can be identified with them, that is, it can be pantheistically viewed; but in the other respect it is transcendental,for every being as it is is not Nirvâna. This spiritual significance is, however, beyond the ken of ordinary human understanding and can be grasped only by the highest intelligence of Buddha.

(2)Upadhiçeṣa Nirvâna, or Nirvâna that has some residue. This is a state of enlightenment which can be attained by Buddhists in their lifetime. The Dharmakâya which was dormant in them is now awakened and freed from the “affective obstacles,”[144]but they are yet under the bondage of birth and death; and thus they are not yet absolutely free from the misery of life: something still remains in them that makes them suffer pain.

(3)Anupadhiçeṣa Nirvâna, or Nirvâna that has no residue. This is attained when the Tathâgata-essence (the Dharmakâya) is released from the pain of birth and death as well as from the curse of passion and sin. This form of Nirvâna seems to be what is generally understood by Occidental missionary-scholars as the Nirvâna of Buddhists. While in lifetime, they have been emancipated from the egoistic conception of the soul, they have practised the Eightfold Path, and theyhave destroyed all the roots of karma that makes possible their metempsychosis in the world of birth and death (samsâra), though as the inevitable sequence of their previous karma they have yet to suffer all the evils inherent in the material existence. But at last they have had even this mortal coil dissolved away, and have returned to the original Absolute from which by virtue of ignorance they had come out and gone through a cycle of births and deaths. This state of supramundane bliss in the realm of the Absolute is Anupadiçeṣa Nirvâna, that is, Nirvâna that has no residue.

(4)The Nirvâna that has no abode.In this, the Buddha-essence has not only been freed from the curse of passion and sin (kleça), but from the intellectual prejudice, which most tenaciously clings to the mind. The Buddha-essence or the Dharmakâya is revealed here in its perfect purity. All-embracing love and all-knowing intelligence illuminate the path. He who has attained to this state of subjective enlightenment is said to have no abode, no dwelling place, that is to say, he is no more subject to the transmigration of birth and death (samsâra), nor does he cling to Nirvâna as the abode of complete rest; in short, he is above Samsâra and Nirvâna. His sole object in life is to benefit all sentient beings to the end of time; but this he proposes to do not by his human conscious elaboration and striving. Simply actuated by his all-embracing love which is of the Dharmakâya, he wishes to deliver all his fellow-creatures from misery, he doesnot seek his own emancipation from the turmoil of life. He is fully aware of the transitoriness of worldly interests, but on this account he desires not to shun them. With his all-knowing intelligence he gains a spiritual insight into the ultimate nature of things and the final course of existence. He is one of those religious men “that weep, as though they wept not; that rejoice as though they rejoiced not; that buy, as though they possessed not; that use this world, as not abusing it; for the fashion of this world passes away.” Nay, he is in one sense more than this; his life is full of positive activity, because his heart and soul are devoted to the leading of all beings to final emancipation and supreme bliss. When a man attains to this stage of spiritual life, he is said to be in the Nirvâna that has no abode.

A commentator on theVijñânamâtra Çâstraadds that of these four forms of Nirvâna the first is possessed by every sentient being, whether it is actualised in its human perfection or lying dormantin posseand miserably obscured by ignorance; that the second and third are attained by all the Çrâvakas and Pratyekabuddhas, while it is a Buddha alone that is in possession of all the four forms of Nirvâna.

Nirvâna as the Dharmakâya.

It is manifest from the above statement that in Mahâyânism Nirvâna has acquired several shades of meaning psychological and ontological. This apparent confusion, however, is due to the purely idealistictendency of Mahâyânism, which ignores the distinction usually made between being and thought, object and subject, the perceived and the perceiving. Nirvâna is not only a subjective state of enlightenment but an objective power through whose operation this beatific state becomes attainable. It does not simply mean a total absorption in the Absolute or of emancipation from earthly desires in lifetime as exemplified in the life of the Arhat. Mahâyânists perceive in Nirvâna not only this, but also its identity with the Dharmakâya, or Suchness, and recognise its universal spiritual presence in all sentient beings.

When Nâgârjuna says in hisMâdhyamika Çâstra[145]that: “That is called Nirvâna which is not wanting, is not acquired, is not intermittent, is not non-intermittent, is not subject to destruction, and is not created;” he evidently speaks of Nirvâna as a synonym of Dharmakâya, that is, in its first sense as above described. Chandra Kîrti, therefore, rightly comments that Nirvâna issarva-kalpanâ-kṣaya-rûpam,[146]i.e., that which transcends all the forms of determination.Nirvâna is an absolute, it is above the relativity of existence (bhâva) and non-existence (abhâva).[147]

Nirvâna is sometimes spoken of as possessing four attributes; (1) eternal (nitya), (2) blissful (sukha), (3) self-acting (âtman), and (4) pure (çuçi). Judging from these qualities thus ascribed to Nirvâna as its essential features, Nirvâna is here again identified with the highest reality of Buddhism, that is, with the Dharmakâya. It is eternal because it is immaterial; it is blissful because it is above all sufferings; it is self-acting because it knows no compulsion; it is pure because it is not defiled by passion and error.[148]

Nirvâna in its Fourth Sense.

No further elucidation is needed for the first signification of Nirvâna, for we have treated it already when explaining the nature of the Dharmakâya. Nor is it necessary for us to dwell upon the second and the third phases of it. The Occidental missionary-scholars and Orientalists, however one-sided and often biased, have almost exhaustively investigated these points from the Pâli sources. What remains for us now is to analyse the Mahâyânistic conception of Nirvâna which was stated above as its fourth signification.

Nirvâna, briefly speaking, is a realisation in this life of the all-embracing love and all-knowing intelligence of Dharmakâya. It is the unfolding of the reason of existence, which in the ordinary human life remains more or less eclipsed by the shadow of ignorance and egoism. It does not consist in the mere observance of the moral precepts laid down by Buddha, nor in the blind following of the Eightfold Path, nor in retirement from the world and absorption in abstract meditation. The Mahâyânistic Nirvâna is full of energy and activity which issues from the all-embracing love of the Dharmakâya. There is no passivity in it, nor a keeping aloof from the hurly-burly of worldliness.He who is in this Nirvâna does not seek a rest in the annihilation of human aspirations, does not flinch in the face of endless transmigration. On the contrary, he plunges himself into the ever-rushing current of Samsâra and sacrifices himself to save his fellow-creatures from being eternally drowned in it.

Though thus the Mahâyâna Nirvâna is realised only in the mire of passions and errors, it is never contaminated by the filth of ignorance. Therefore, he that is abiding in Nirvâna, even in the whirlpool of egoism and in the darkness of sin, does not lose his all-seeing insight that penetrates deep into the ultimate nature of being. He is aware of the transitoriness of things. He knows that this life is a mere passing moment in the eternal manifestation of the Dharmakâya, whose work can be realised only in boundless space and endless time. As he is fully awake to this knowledge, he never gets engrossed in the world of sin. He lives in the world like unto the lotus-flower, the emblem of immaculacy, which grows out of the mire and yet shares not its defilement. He is also like unto a bird flying in the air that does not leave any trace behind it. He may again be likened unto the clouds that spontaneously gather around the mountain peak, and, soaring high as the wind blows, vanish away to the region where nobody knows. In short, he is living in, and yet beyond, the realm of Samsâra and Nirvâna.

We read in theVimalakirti Sûtra(chap. VIII.):

“Vimalakirti asks Mañjuçri: ‘How is it that youdeclare all [human] passions and errors are the seeds of Buddhahood?’

“Mañjuçri replies: ‘O son of good family! Those who cling to the view of non-activity [asamskrita] and dwell in a state of eternal annihilation do not awaken in them supremely perfect knowledge [anuttara-samyak-sambodhi]. Only the Bodhisattvas, who dwell in the midst of passions and errors, and who, passing through the [ten] stages, rightly contemplate the ultimate nature of things, are able to awaken and attain intelligence [prajñâ].

“ ‘Just as the lotus-flowers do not grow in the dry land, but in the dark-colored, waterly mire, O son of good family, it is even so [with intelligence (prajñâorbodhi)] In non-activity and eternal annihilation which are cherished by the Çrâvakas and the Pratyekabuddhas, there is no opportunity for the seeds and sprouts of Buddhahood to grow. Intelligence can grow only in the mire and dirt of passion and sin. It is by virtue of passion and sin that the seeds and sprouts of Buddhahood are able to grow.

“ ‘O son of good family! Just as no seeds can grow in the air, but in the filthy, muddy soil,—and there even luxuriously,—O son of good family, it is even so [with the Bodhi]. It does not grow out of non-activity and eternal annihilation. It is only out of the mountainous masses of egoistic, selfish thoughts that Intelligence is awakened and grows to the incomprehensible wisdom of Buddha-seeds.

“ ‘O son of good family! Just as we cannot obtainpriceless pearls unless we dive into the depths of the four great oceans, O son of good family, it is even so [with Intelligence]. If we do not dive deep into the mighty ocean of passion and sin, how could we get hold of the precious gem of Buddha-essence? Let it therefore be understood that the primordial seeds of Intelligence draw their vitality from the midst of passion and sin.’ ” In a Pauline epistle we read, “From the foulness of the soil, the beauty of new life grows.” And Emerson sings:

“Let me go where’er I will,I hear a sky-born music still.’Tis not in the high stars alone,Nor in the cup of budding flowers,Nor in the redbreast’s mellow tone,Nor in the bow that smiles in showers,But in the mud and scum of things.There always, always, something sings.”

Do we not see here a most explicit statement of the Mahâyânistic sentiment?

Nirvâna and Samsâra are One.

The most remarkable feature in the Mahâyânistic conception of Nirvâna is expressed in this formula: “Yas kleças so bodhi, yas samsâras tat nirvânam.” What is sin or passion, that is Intelligence, what is birth and death (or transmigration), that is Nirvâna. This is a rather bold and revolutionising proposition in the dogmatic history of Buddhism. But it is no more than the natural development of the spirit that was breathed by its founder.

In theViçeṣacinta-brahma-paripṛccha Sûtra,[149]it is said that (chap. II):

“Samsâra is Nirvâna, because there is, when viewed from the ultimate nature of the Dharmakâya, nothing going out of, nor coming into, existence, [samsâra being only apparent]: Nirvâna is samsâra, when it is coveted and adhered to.”

In another place (op. cit.) the idea is expressed in much plainer terms: “The essence of all things is in truth free from attachment, attributes, and desires; therefore, they are pure, and, as they are pure, we know that what is the essence of birth and death that is the essence of Nirvâna, and that what is the essence of Nirvâna that is the essence of birth and death (samsâra). In other words, Nirvâna is not to be sought outside of this world, which, though transient, is in reality no more than Nirvâna itself. Because it is contrary to our reason to imagine that there is Nirvâna and there is birth and death (samsâra), and that the one lies outside the pale of the other, and, therefore, that we can attain Nirvâna only after we have annihilated or escaped the world of birth and death. If we are not hampered by our confused subjectivity, this our worldly life is an activity of Nirvâna itself.”

Nâgârjuna repeats the same sentiment in hisMâdhyamika Çâstra, when he says:

“Samsâra is in no way to be distinguished from Nirvâna:Nirvâna is in no way to be distinguished from Samsâra.”[150]

Or,

“The sphere of Nirvâna is the sphere of Samsâra:Not the slightest distinction exists between them.”[151]

Asanga goes a step further and boldly declares that all the Buddha-dharmas, of which Nirvâna or Dharmakâya forms the foundation, are characterised with the passions, errors, and sins of vulgar minds. He says inMahâyâna-Sangraha Çâstra(the Chinese Tripitaka, Japanese edition of 1881,wangVIII., p. 84):

“(1) All Buddha-dharmas are characterised with eternality, for the Dharmakâya is eternal.

“(2) All Buddha-dharmas are characterised with an extinguishing power, for they extinguish all the obstacles for final emancipation.

“(3) All Buddha-dharmas are characterised with regeneration, for the Nirmânakâya [Body of Transformation] constantly regenerates.

“(4) All Buddha-dharmas are characterised with the power of attainment, for by the attainment [of truth] they subjugate innumerable evil passions as cherished by ignorant beings.

“(5) All Buddha-dharmas are characterised with the desire to gain, ill humor, folly, and all the otherpassions of vulgar minds, for it is through the Buddha’s love that those depraved souls are saved.

“(6) All Buddha-dharmas are characterised with non-attachment and non-defilement, for Suchness which is made perfect by these virtues cannot be defiled by any evil powers.

“(7) All Buddha-dharmas are above attachment and defilement, for though all Buddhas reveal themselves in the world, worldliness cannot defile them.”[152]

Buddha-dharma means any thing, or any virtue, or any faculty, that belongs to Buddhahood. Non-attachment is a Buddha-dharma, love is a Buddha-dharma, wisdom is a Buddha-dharma. and in fact anything is a Buddha-dharma which is an attribute of the Perfect One, not to mention the Dharmakâya or Nirvâna which constitutes the very essence of Buddhahood. Therefore, the conclusion which is to be drawn from those seven propositions of Asanga as above quoted is this: Not only is this world of constant transformation as a whole Nirvâna, but its apparent errors and sins and evils are also the various phases of the manifestation of Nirvâna.

The above being the Mahâyânistic view of Nirvâna, it is evident that Nirvâna is not something transcendental or that which stands above this world of birthand death, joy and sorrow, love and hate, peace and struggle. Nirvâna is not to be sought in the heavens nor after a departure from this earthly life nor in the annihilation of human passions and aspirations. On the contrary, it must be sought in the midst of worldliness, as life with all its thrills of pain and pleasure is no more than Nirvâna itself. Extinguish your life and seek Nirvâna in anchoretism, and your Nirvâna is forever lost. Consign your aspirations, hopes, pleasures, and woes, and everything that makes up a life to the eternal silence of the grave, and you bury Nirvâna never to be recovered. In asceticism, or in meditation, or in ritualism, or even in metaphysics, the more impetuously you pursue Nirvâna, the further away it flies from you. It was the most serious mistake ever committed by any religious thinkers to imagine that Nirvâna which is the complete satisfaction of our religious feeling could be gained by laying aside all human desires, ambitions, hopes, pains, and pleasures. Have your own Bodhi (intelligence) thoroughly enlightened through love and knowledge, and everything that was thought sinful and filthy turns out to be of divine purity. It is the same human heart, formerly the fount of ignorance and egoism, now the abode of eternal beatitude—Nirvâna shining in its intrinsic magnificence.

Suppose a torch light is taken into a dark cell, which people had hitherto imagined to be the abode of hideous, uncanny goblins, and which on that account they wanted to have completely destroyed to theground. The bright light now ushered in at once disperses the darkness, and every nook and corner therein is perfectly illumined. Everything in it now assumes its proper aspect. And to their surprise people find that those figures which they formerly considered to be uncanny and horrible are nothing but huge precious stones, and they further learn that every one of those stones can be used in some way for the great benefit of their fellow-creatures. The dark cell is the human heart before the enlightenment of Nirvâna, the torch light is love and intelligence. When love warms and intelligence brightens, the heart finds every passion and sinful desire that was the cause of unbearable anguish now turned into a divine aspiration. The heart itself, however, remains the same just as much as the cell, whose identity was never affected either by darkness or by brightness. This parable nicely illustrates the Mahâyânistic doctrine of the identity of Nirvâna and Samsâra, and of the Bodhi and Kleça, that is, of intelligence and passion.

Therefore, it is said:

“All sins transformed into the constituents of enlightenment!The vicissitudes of Samsâra transformed into the beatitude of Nirvâna!All these come from the exercise of the great religious discipline (upâya);Beyond our understanding, indeed, is the mystery of all Buddhas.”[153]

The Middle Course.

In one sense the Buddha always showed an eclectic, conciliatory, synthetic spirit in his teachings. He refused to listen to any extreme doctrine which elevates one end too high at the expense of the other and culminates in the collapse of the whole edifice. When the Buddha left his seat of enlightenment under the Bodhi tree, he made it his mission to avoid both extremes, asceticism and hedonism. He proved throughout his life to be a calm, dignified, thoughtful, well-disciplined person, and at no time irritable in character,—in this latter respect being so different from the sage of Nazareth, who in anger cast out all the tradesmen in the temple and overthrew the tables of the money-changers, and who cursed the fig tree on which he could not find any fruit but leaves unfit to appease his hunger. The doctrine of the Middle Path (Mâdhyamârga), whatever it may mean morally and intellectually, always characterised the life and doctrine of Buddha as well as the later development of his teachings. His followers, however different in their individual views, professed as a rule to pursue steadily the Middle Path as paved by the Master. Even when Nâgârjuna proclaimed his celebrated doctrine of Eight No’s which seems to superficial critics nothing but an absolute nihilism, he said that the Middle Path could be found only in those eight no’s.[154]

Mahâyânism has certainly applied this synthetic method of Buddha to its theory of Nirvâna and ennobled it by fully developing its immanent signification. In theDiscourse on Buddha-essence, Vasubandhu quotes the following passage from theÇrimala Sûtra, which plainly shows the path along which the Mahâyânists traveled before they reached their final conclusion: “Those who see only the transitoriness of existence are called nihilists, and those who see only the eternality of Nirvâna are called eternalists. Both views are incorrect.” Vasubandhu then proceeds to say: “Therefore, the Dharmakâya of the Tathâgata is free from both extremes, and on that account it is called the Great Eternal Perfection. When viewed from this absolute standpoint of Suchness, the logical distinction between Nirvâna and Samsâra cannot in reality be maintained, and hereby we enter upon the realm of non-duality.” And this realm of non-duality is the Middle Path of Nirvâna, not in its nihilistic, but in its Mahâyânistic, significance.

How to Realise Nirvâna.

How can we attain the Middle Path of Nirvâna? How can we realise a life that is neither pessimistic asceticism nor materialistic hedonism? How can we steer through the whirlpools of Samsâra without beingswallowed up and yet braving their turbulent gyration? The answer to this can readily be given, when we understand, as repeatedly stated above, that this life is the manifestation of the Dharmakâya, and that the ideal of human existence is to realise within the possibilities of his mind and body all that he can conceive of the Dharmakâya. And this we have found to be all-embracing love and all-seeing intelligence. Destroy then your ignorance at one blow and be done with your egoism, and there springs forth an eternal stream of love and wisdom.

Says Vasubandhu: “By virtue of Prajñâ [intelligence or wisdom], our egoistic thoughts are destroyed: by virtue of Karuṇâ [love], altruistic thoughts are cherished. By virtue of Prajñâ, the [affective] attachment inherent in vulgar minds is abolished; by virtue of Karuṇâ, the [intellectual] attachment as possessed by the Çrâvakas and Pratyekabuddhas is abolished. By virtue of Prajñâ, Nirvâna [in its transcendental sense] is not rejected; by virtue of Karuṇâ, Samsâra [with its changes and transmigrations] is not rejected. By virtue of Prajñâ the truth of Buddhism is attained; by virtue of Karuṇâ, all sentient beings are matured [for salvation].”

The practical life of a Buddhist runs in two opposite, though not antagonistic, directions, one upward and the other downward, and the two are synthesised in the Middle Path of Nirvâna. The upward direction points to the intellectual comprehension of the truth, while the downward one to a realisation of all-embracinglove among his fellow-creatures. One is complemented by the other. When the intellectual side is too much emphasised at the expense of the emotional, we have a Pratyekabuddha, a solitary thinker, whose fountain of tears is dry and does not flow over the sufferings of his fellow-beings. When the emotional side alone is asserted to the extreme, love acquires the egoistic tint that colors everything coming in contact with it. Because it does not discriminate and takes sensuality for spirituality. If it does not turn out sentimentalism, it will assume a hedonistic form. How many superstitious, or foul, or even atrocious deeds in the history of religion have been committed under the beautiful name of religion, or love of God and mankind! It makes the blood run cold when we think how religious fanatics burned alive their rivals or opponents at the stake, cruelly butchered thousands of human lives within a day, brought desolation and ruin throughout the land of their enemies,—and all these works of the Devil executed for sheer love of God! Therefore, says Devala, the author of theDiscourse on the Mahâpuruṣa(Great Man): “The wise do not approve lovingkindness without intelligence, nor do they approve intelligence without lovingkindness; because one without the other prevents us from reaching the highest path.” Knowledge is the eye, love is the limb. Directed by the eye, the limb knows how to move; furnished with the limb, the eye can attain what it perceives. Love alone is blind, knowledge alone is lame. It is only when one is supplementedby the other that we have a perfect, complete man.

In Buddha as the ideal human being we recognise the perfection of love and intelligence; for it was in him that the Dharmakâya found its perfect realisation in the flesh. But as far as the Bodhisattvas are concerned, their natural endowments are so diversified and their temperament is so uneven that in some the intellectual elements are more predominant while in others the emotional side is more pronounced, that while some are more prone to practicality others preferably look toward intellectualism. Thus, as a matter of course, some Bodhisattvas will be more of philosophers than of religious seers. They may tend in some cases to emphasise the intellectual side of religion more than its emotional side and uphold the importance of prajñâ (intelligence) above that of karuṇâ (love). But the Middle Path of Nirvâna lies in the true harmonisation of prajñâ and karuṇâ, of bodhi and upâya, of knowledge and love, of intellect and feeling.

Love Awakens Intelligence.

But if we have to choose between the two, let us first have all-embracing love, the Buddhists would say; for it is love that awakens in us an intense desire to find the way of emancipating the masses from perpetual sufferings and eternal transmigration. The intellect will now endeavor to realise its highest possibilities; the Bodhi will exhibit its fullest strength. When it is found out that this life is an expression of the Dharmakâya which is one and eternal, thatindividual existences have no selfhood (âtmanorsvabhâva) as far as they are due to the particularisation of subjective ignorance, and, therefore, that we are true and real only when we are conceived as one in the absolute Dharmakâya, the Bodhisattva’s love which caused him to search after the highest truth will now unfold its fullest significance.

This love, or faith in the Mahâyâna, as it is sometimes called, is felt rather vaguely at the first awakening of the religious consciousness, and agitates the mind of the aspirant, whose life has hitherto been engrossed in every form of egocentric thought and desire. He no more finds an unalloyed satisfaction, as the Çrâvakas or the Pratyekabuddhas do, in his individual emancipation from the curse of Samsâra. However sweet the taste of release from the bond of ignorance, it is lacking something that makes the freedom perfectly agreeable to the Bodhisattva who thinks more of others than of himself; to be sweet as well as acceptable, it must be highly savored with lovingkindness which embraces all his fellow-beings as his own children. The emancipation of the Çrâvaka or of the Pratyekabuddha is like a delicious food which is wanting in saline taste, for it is no more than a dry, formal philosophical emancipation. Love is that which stimulates a man to go beyond his own interests. It is the mother of all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. The sacred motive that induces them to renounce a life of Nirvânic self-complacency, is nothing but their boundless love for all beings. They donot wish to rest in their individual emancipation, they want to have all sentient creatures without a single exception emancipated and blest in paradisiacal happiness. Love, therefore, bestows on us two spiritual benefits: (1) It saves all beings from misery and (2) awakens in us the Buddha-intelligence.

The following passages quoted at random from Devala’sMahâpuruṣawill help our readers to understand the true signification of Nirvâna and the value of love (karuṇâ) as estimated by the Mahâyânists.

“Those who are afraid of transmigration and seek their own benefits and happiness in final emancipation, are not at all comparable to those Bodhisattvas, who rejoice when they come to assume a material existence once again, for it affords them another opportunity to benefit others. Those who are only capable of feeling their own selfish sufferings may enter into Nirvâna [and not trouble themselves with the sufferings of other creatures like themselves]; but the Bodhisattva who feels in himself all the sufferings of his fellow-beings as his own, how can he bear the thought of leaving others behind while he is on his way to final emancipation, and when he himself is resting in Nirvânic quietude?..... Nirvâna in truth consists in rejoicing at other’s being made happy, and Samsâra in not so feeling. He who feels a universal love for his fellow-creatures will rejoice in distributing blessings among them and find his Nirvâna in so doing.[155]

“Suffering really consists in pursuing one’s egotistic happiness, while Nirvâna is found in sacrificing one’s welfare for the sake of others. People generally think that it is an emancipation when they are released from their own pain, but a man with loving heart finds it in rescuing others from misery.

“With people who are not kindhearted, there is no sin that will not be committed by them. They are called the most wicked whose hearts are not softened at the sight of others’ misfortune and suffering.

“When all beings are tortured by avarice, passion, ill humor, infatuation, and folly, and are constantly threatened by the misery of birth and death, disease and decay..... how can the Bodhisattva live among them and not feel pity for them?

“Of all good virtues, lovingkindness stands foremost.... It is the source of all merit.... It is themother of all Buddhas.... It induces others to take refuge in the incomparable Bodhi.

“The loving heart of a Bodhisattva is annoyed by one thing, that all beings are constantly tortured and threatened by all sorts of pain.”

Let us quote another interesting passage from a Mahâyâna sûtra.

When Vimalakirti was asked why he did not feel well, he made the following reply, which is full of religious significance: “From ignorance there arises desire and that is the cause of my illness. As all sentient beings are ill, so am I ill. When all sentient beings are healed of their illness, I shall be healed of my illness, too. Why? The Bodhisattva suffers birth and death because of sentient beings. As there is birth and death, so there is illness. When sentient beings are delivered from illness, the Bodhisattvas will suffer no more illness. When an only son in a good family is sick, the parents feel sick too: when he is recovered they are well again. So it is with the Bodhisattva. He loves all sentient beings as his own children. When they are sick, he is sick too. When they are recovered, he is well again. Do you wish to know whence this [sympathetic] illness is? The illness of the Bodhisattva comes from his all-embracing love (mahâkarunâ).”

This gospel of universal love is the consummation of all religious emotions whatever their origin. Without this, there is no religion—that is, no religion that is animated with life and spirit. For it is in the factand nature of things that we are not moved by mere contemplation or mere philosophising. Every religion may have its own way of intellectually interpreting this fact, but the practical result remains the same everywhere, viz. that it cannot survive without the animating energy of love. Whatever sound and fine reasoning there may be in the doctrine of the Çrâvaka and the Pratyekabuddha, the force that is destined to conquer the world and to deliver us from misery is not intellection, but the will, i.e. the pûrvapranidhâna of the Dharmakâya.

Conclusion.

We now conclude. What is most evident from what we have seen above is that the Mahâyâna Nirvâna is not the annihilation of life but its enlightenment, that it is not the nullification of human passions and aspirations but their purification and ennoblement. This world of eternal transmigration is not a place which should be shunned as the playground of evils, but should be regarded as the place of ever-present opportunities given to us for the purpose of unfolding all our spiritual possibilities and powers for the sake of the universal welfare. There is no need for us to shrink, like the snail into his cozy shelter, before the duties and burdens of life. The Bodhisattva, on the contrary, finds Nirvâna in a concatenation of births and deaths and boldly faces the problem of evil and solves it by purifying the Bodhi from subjective ignorance.

His rule of conduct is:

“Sabba pâpassa akaranam,Kusalassa upasampada,Sacitta pariyodapanam;Etam buddhânu sâsanam.”[156]

His aspirations are solemnly expressed in this, which we hear daily recited in the Mahâyâna Buddhist temples and monasteries and seminaries:

“Sentient beings, however innumerable, I take vow to save;Evil passions, however inextinguishable, I take vow to destroy;The avenues of truth, however numberless, I take vow to study;The way of the Enlightened, however unsurpassable, I take vow to attain.”

And an indefatigable pursuit of these noble aims will finally lead to the heaven of the Buddhists, Nirvâna, which is not a state of eternal quietude, but the source of energy and intelligence.

By way of summary, and to avoid all misconceptions, let me repeat once more that Nirvâna is thus no negation of life, nor is it an idle contemplation on the misery of existence. The life of a Buddhist consists by no means in the monotonous repetition of reciting the sûtras and going his rounds for meals. Far from that. He enters into all the forms of life-activity, for he does not believe that universal emancipationis achieved by imprisoning himself in the cloister.

Theoretically speaking, Nirvâna is the dispersion of the clouds of ignorance hovering around the light of Bodhi. Morally, it is the suppression of egoism and the awakening of love (karunâ). Religiously, it is the absolute surrender of the self to the will of the Dharmakâya. When the clouds of ignorance are dispersing, our intellectual horizon gets clearer and wider; we perceive that our individual existences are like bubbles and lightnings, but that they obtain reality in their oneness with the Body of Dharma. This conviction compels us to eternally abandon our old egoistic conception of life. The ego finds its significance only when it is conceived in relation to the not-ego, that is, to thealter; in other words, self-love has no meaning whatever unless it is purified by love for others. But this love for others must not remain blind and unenlightened, it must be in harmony with the will of the Dharmakâya which is the norm of existence and the reason of being. The mission of love is ennobled and fulfilled in its true sense when we come to the faith that says “thy will be done.” Love without this resignation to the divine ordinance is merely another form of egoism: the root is already rotten, how can its trunk, stems, leaves, and flowers make a veritable growth?

Let us then conclude with the following reflections of the Bodhisattva, in which we read the whole signification of Buddhism.

“Having practised all the six virtues of perfection (pâramitâ) and innumerable other meritorious deeds, the Bodhisattva reflects in this wise:

“ ‘All the good deeds practised by me are for the benefit of all sentient beings, for their ultimate purification [from sin]. By the merit of these good deeds I pray that all sentient beings be released from the innumerable sufferings suffered by them in their various abodes of existence. By the turning over (parivarta) of these deeds I would be a haven for all beings and deliver them from their miserable existences; I would be a great beacon-light to all beings and dispel the darkness of ignorance and make the light of intelligence shine.’

“He reflects again in this wise:

“ ‘All sentient beings are creating evil karma in innumerable ways, and by reason of this karma they suffer innumerable sufferings. They do not recognise the Tathâgata, do not listen to the Good Law, do not pay homage to the congregation of holy men. All these beings carry an innumerable amount of great evil karma and are destined to suffer in innumerable ways. For their sake I will in the midst of the three evil creations suffer all their sufferings and deliver every one of them. Painful as these sufferings are, I will not retreat, I will not be frightened, I will not be negligent, I will not forsake my fellow-beings. Why? Because it is the will [of the Dharmakâya] that all sentient beings should be universally emancipated.’

“He reflects again in this wise:

“ ‘My conduct will be like the sun-god who with his universal illumination seeks not any reward, who ceases not on account of one unrighteous person to make a great display of his magnificent glory, who on account of one unrighteous person abandons not the salvation of all beings. Through the dedication (parivarta) of all my merits I would make every one of my fellow-creatures happy and joyous.’ ” (TheAvatamsaka Sûtra, fas XIV).

HYMNS OF MAHÂYÂNA FAITH.

DHARMAKÂYA (TATHÂGATA).[1]

In all beings there abideth the Dharmakâya;With all virtues dissolved in it, it liveth in eternal calmness.It knoweth nor birth nor death, coming nor going;Not one, not two; not being, not becoming;Yet present everywhere in worlds of beings:This is what is perceived by all Tathâgatas.All virtues, material and immaterial,Dependent on the Dharmakâya, are eternally pure in it.

Like unto the sky is the ultimate nature of the Dharmakâya;Far away from the six dusts, it is defilement-free.Of no form and devoid of all attributes is the Dharmakâya,In which are void both actor and action:The Dharmakâya of all Buddhas, thus beyond comprehension,Quells all the struggles of sophistry and dialectics,Distances all the efforts of intellection,Thoughts all are dead in it, and suchness alone abideth.

THE DHARMAKÂYA OF TATHÂGATA.[2]

In all the worlds over the ten quarters,O ye, sentient creatures living there,Behold the most venerable of men and gods,Whose spiritual Dharma-body is immaculate and pure.

As through the power of one mind,A host of thoughts is evolved:So from one Dharma-body of Tathâgata,Are produced all the Buddha-bodies.

In Bodhi nothing dual there existeth,Nor is any thought of self present:The Dharma-body, undefiled and non-dual,In its full splendor manifesteth itself everywhere.

Its ultimate reality is like unto the vastness of space;Its manifested forms are like unto magic shows;Its virtues excellent are inexhaustible,This, indeed, the spiritual state of Buddhas only.

All the Buddhas of the present, past, and future,Each one of them is an issue of the Dharma-body immaculate and pure;Responding to the needs of sentient creatures,They manifest themselves everywhere, assuming corporeality which is beautiful.

They never made the premeditationThat they would manifest in such and such forms.Separated are they from all desire and anxiety,And free and self-acting are their responses.

They do not negate the phenomenality of dharmas,Nor do they affirm the world of individuals:But manifesting themselves in all forms,They teach and convert all sentient creatures.

The Dharma-body is not changeable,Neither is it unchangeable;All dharmas [in essence] are without change,But manifestations are changeable.

The Sambodhi knoweth no bounds,Extending as far as the limits of the Dharmaloka itself;Its depths are bottomless, and its extent limitless;Words and speeches are powerless to describe it.

Of all the ways that lead to EnlightenmentThe Tathâgata knoweth the true significance;Wandering freely all over the worlds,Obstacles he encountereth nowhere.

THE TATHÂGATA. (1)[3]

The Tathâgata appeared not on earth,Nor did he enter into Nirvana;By the supreme power of his inmost will,He reveals himself freely as he wills.[4]

This fact is beyond comprehension,Belongs not to the sphere of a limited consciousness,Only an intelligence perfect and gone beyondIs able to have an insight into the realm of Buddhas.

The material body is not the Tathâgata,Nor is the voice, nor the sound:Yet he is not beyond the visible and the audible:The Buddha has indeed a power miraculous.

People of little faith are unable to knowThe inmost adytum of Buddhahood.It is by the perfecting of primordial karma-intelligenceThat the realm of all Buddhas is revealed.

All Buddhas come from nowhere,And depart for nowhere:The Body of Dharma that is pure, immaculate, and incomprehensible,Is invested with a power miraculously free.

In infinity of worlds,Revealing itself in the body of Tathâgata,It universally preaches the Law supremely excellent,And in its heart no attachment lingers.

An intellect that knows no limits or boundsPerceives no obstacles in all dharmas,And penetrates into the depths of the Dharmaloka,Revealing itself with a power miraculously divine.

All sentient beings and all creatures,It understandeth thoroughly without difficulty:Its Bodies of Transformation are innumerable,And universally revealed in all the worlds.

Those who seek after All-knowledgeMay in course of time attain perfect enlightenment;Let them above all purify the heartAnd complete their discipline in Bodhisattvahood.

And then they will see the Tathâgata’sImmeasurable power that comes from his free will;Devoid of all doubts they are, and accompaniedWith sages whose virtue is unsurpassable.

THE TATHÂGATA (2).[5]

The Tathâgata, in pure golden color,And in person resplendent and majestic,In innumerable ages past,All merits hath accumulated.

With bliss and wisdom all in perfection,And the highest enlightenment attaining.And with great loving heart animated,He now appeareth in this world of endurance.

Men and devas and the eight hosts of demons,All pay him homage most reverent,Who, from his inmost self-being,Preacheth the deepest spiritual Dharma.

Which is so unfathomably deep,That Buddha alone can understand it:Multitudes of beings, ignorant and blind,Listening to it, are unable to comprehend.

The Tathâgata is the great leader of beings;With skill that is excellent and marvellous,Guiding all those ignorant souls,By degrees bringeth them to Enlightenment.

The heart of all beings is miraculously bright,And eternally calm in its being.Pure and immaculate and defilement-free,It is replenished with all merits.

Its essence is like unto the sky:Devoid of all limitations,Knoweth neither birth nor death,And there is neither coming nor departing.

Eternally abiding in the Dharma-essence,It is immovable as the Mount Sumeru;The oneness in it of all beingsIs indeed beyond finite knowledge.

Vulgar minds from time immemorial,Blindly clinging to all passions,Are thrown deep into the ocean of pain,And know not how to escape.

The most profound doctrine of Tathâgata,Full of meaning, spiritual and transcendental,With recipient intellects in all degrees,In harmony unfoldeth he the Law.

A shower of one taste from aboveCovering all the ten quarters,Grasses and trees, woods and forests,Roots and trunks, large and small,

Of all growing on this vast earth,Nothing is there that thereby itself benefiteth not.The Law delivered by the TathâgataMay even be likened unto it.

With one voice which is wondrous,He giveth utterance to thoughts innumerable,That are received by audience of all sort,Each understanding them in his own way.

In this wise among the assemblage,None is there but that enters upon Buddha-knowledgeSuch is Buddha’s miraculous power,Truly called “Incomprehensible.”

REPENTANCE.[6]

Those who repent as prescribed by the Dharma,Altogether their earthly sins uproot;As fire on doomsday the world will consume,With its mountain peaks and infinite seas.

Repentance burns up of earthly desires the fuel;Repentance to heaven the sinners is leading;Repentance the bliss of the four Dhyânas imparteth;Repentance brings showers of jewels and gems;

Repentance a holy life renders firm as a diamond;Repentance transports to the palace of bliss everlasting;Repentance from the triple world’s prison releases;Repentance makes blossom the bloom of the Bodhi.

ALL BEINGS ARE MOTHERS AND FATHERS.

All sentient beings in transmigration travel through the six gatis,Like unto a wheel revolving without beginning and end,Becoming in turn fathers and mothers, men and women:Generations and generations, each owes something to others.

Ye should then regard all beings as fathers and mothers;Though this truth is too hidden to be recognised without the aid of Holy Knowledge,All men are your fathers,All women are your mothers.

While not yet requiting their love received in your prior lives,Why should ye, thinking otherwise, harbor enmity?Ever thinking of love, endeavor ye to benefit one another;And provoke ye not hostility, quarreling and insulting.

THE TEN PARÂMITÂS.

O ye, sons of Buddha, in the Holy Way trained,With the Heart of Highest Intelligence awakened,And living in seclusion at the Aranyaka,Should practice the ten pâramitâs.

At daily meal think ye first of almsgiving,And also distribute among beings the Treasure of Law;When the three rings[7]are pure, it is called true charity;Through this practice perfected are the merits of discipline.

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