Aryadeva's Grand Poem

Esoteric Instructions on the Perfection of Wisdom
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Esoteric Instructions on the Perfection of Wisdom by Āryadeva the Brahmin (draft translation by Sarah Harding ©2011)

The Sanskrit title is Āryaprajñāpāramitā Upadeśa. The Tibetan is 'Phags pa shes rab kyi pha rol tu phyin pa'i man ngag

Homage to all buddhas and bodhisattvas.

The sun and moon of your realization conquers ignorance and misconceptions and the moisture of your compassion matures living beings. Lion of Speech who perfectly completes the two purposes, I bow to you in sincere devotion with body, speech, and mind.

The essence of the subject matter is the meaning of nondual perfection of wisdom without root, freed from referential extremes of nihilism and eternalism. I will explain as best I can in order to benefit beings.

Rest the three bases to be prepared directly on the word. Recognize uncontrived, unspoiled awareness: mind that is the root of both samsara and nirvana, yet is not established by any causes or conditions; unborn single cut, intrinsic emptiness. Such realization is like cutting the root of the tree trunk; the branches of discursive thoughts will never grow again.

Give as vast offerings to the guru and Jewels actual and emanated appearances in your mind. After doing prostrations and offerings, take refuge and arouse the mind with devotion.

Guard the precepts you have taken like your eyes. {3} Do not abandon the bodhisattva precepts even at the cost of your life. Strive to uphold the training.

Abandon the ten nonvirtues, such as killing, and encourage others to so as well. Express approval of what is consistent with abandoning killing and those others. Merely abandoning the ten nonvirtues, the supreme path will not be discovered.

Practice the six perfections oneself and encourage others to do so as well. Express approval of what is consistent with all six perfections.

Turn away from the arising of arrogance resulting from the conduct of virtuous action such as the six perfections.

If you do not realize that ultimate nondual perfection is free of extremes such as virtue-sin, accept-reject and hope-fear, even if you practice conditioned virtue, you will not become liberated in this very life.

Therefore do not reference even an atom in all phenomena, positive or negative, conditioned or unconditioned.

Nonetheless, wisdom that is not founded on method will not become manifest.{4} It is similar to the harvest of crops that will not grow without cultivation.

If you do not resolutely engage in the meaning of the perfection of wisdom, even if you engage in generosity, ethical discipline, patience, diligence, and meditative stability, it is like a blind person without a cane. How could you possibly find your way?

The meaning of the perfection of wisdom— do not seek elsewhere; you have it yourself. That is the meaning of inherent great lucid clarity, not established as an entity or with characteristics.

Meditate on recollecting the Buddha, naturally clear of thoughts and memories, free of all mental engagement.

Outer-inner, gods-demons, samsara-nirvana, appearance-emptiness, and so forth; free of dualistic appearances, Buddha's intent is unmistaken and uncontrived, similar, for example, to the expanse of space.

The most sublime method is to blend space and awareness.

At the times of mixing space and awareness, things and characteristics, rejecting and accepting: fixation on referents, are naturally cleared up. Abide in the ultimate nature of phenomena without subject-object dualistic fixation.

With body and mind thus uncontrived, wherever empty sky pervades empty direct awareness also pervades. Rest in the extent of great pervasive expanse.

At that time there is an experience of awareness free of basis or root. Awareness does not dwell anywhere in the five senses and their objects.

Meditate without dualism in places of rock houses, cemeteries, haunted places, towns and big cities, caves, and secluded caverns.

The meaning of the unborn taught by the guru; practice it during the four daily activities.

Putting it into practice this way, the blessings of the perfection of wisdom and the realization that all phenomena are empty will prevent obstacles from arising. How would it be possible for emptiness to take advantage of emptiness?

When the empty nature of phenomena is realized, {5} the sign or characteristic is that externally all objects of the five sense gates— form, sound, smell, taste and touch— are fully illuminated as emptiness. Inwardly, the coarse afflictive emotions and the subtle dualistic fixation, although they arise, are self-liberated in nonduality, beyond concern.

With that realization, abiding and arising are liberated in the nature of phenomena, like reaching the island of gold.

When a person's root life force is severed, there is no need to purposefully sever the eyes and other five sense gates. Similarly, when the mind itself is severed at the root, all phenomena are realized to be empty.

Since it severs the root of mind itself, and severs the five toxic emotions, extremes of view, meditational formations, conduct anxiety, and hopes and fears; since it severs all inflation, it is called "severance" by semantic explanation.

Attachment to real [things] with passion and aggression is the tangible devil, so how should one sever that?

Superior, average, or inferior experiencers rest in the state of no-thought, meditate with attention on that, or ascertain it through examination and analysis.

For instance like a thick forest, a strong person, and a sharp axe.

The apparitions of gods and demons that cause inflation are called the intangible devil.

Set pestilence upon pestilence, directly in the flesh. Stick the hot needle precisely there. Go for refuge in the Three Jewels. Put the constellations under thumb. Reject closeness and distance towards gods and demons. Focus on the extreme great pestilence.

In Severance, the evidence of having severed is freedom from fear. Evidence of termination is that apparitions subside by themselves. Evidence of turning away is fleeing in fear and terror. Don't turn away; be like a doorframe. Don't flee, even in fear and terror. Suppress [them] like a spike, Bend them down, and apply effort. That is the supreme esoteric instruction.

Worldly gods and demons cannot bear one's meditation on nondual perfections {6} and cause various kinds of apparitions: manifesting, overwhelming, dreamt, and so on.

Those with superior meditative experience rest in the nondual meaning of it all. The average practitioners focus on that and meditate. The inferior offer their body aggregate as food.

Afterwards, an experience of direct awareness free of any mental support will arise.

Having gone to a haunted place, if gods and demons manifest overwhelming presence, separate awareness from matter. This body is matter, like stone; no harm can come to it.

Mind is not an actual thing, it is like the sky. Who harms it and who is harmed? Thinking that, rest without despair or worry in the nature of phenomena. Even if you think that the gods and demons have snatched your material body and left, without moving from your previous place, do not despair over anything at all.

Whatever discursive thoughts arise are devils. They come from one's own mind. In mind, not even an atom is established of a place from which to arise, to abide, or to go. Buddhahood does not come after being liberated. It is impossible to wander in samsara due to delusion.

Virtue, sin, and all karmic action are totally pure, pure since forever, liberated since forever, awakened since forever. One deviates by not avoiding sin. Attachment to tenets is an obscuration. Nondual self-liberation is the abiding nature.

Take refuge from within the nature of phenomena. Arouse the aspiration and supplicate. If obstacles arise for you, go to a haunted place and meditate on the nondual.

In order to help other sentient beings, with compassion as your preliminary, know the emptiness of everything: oneself, the patient, the evil spirit, and the disease. Pat [the diseased area] and meditate in emptiness. Face the prone [patient] toward you.

If thereby [the disease] is not yet pacified, go for refuge and arouse the mind in a haunted place. Pass over [the patient] three times and meditate beyond extremes. With a mandala, bless the sticks and stones and confer them.

Hold the gods above to their oaths, {7} subdue with splendor the nāgas below. Tasks assigned to nāgas will all be accomplished. Gods, from their abodes, will be your allies. Nāgas without exception are bound into service. Gurus, yidams, ḍākinīs, and dharma protectors will watch over you as their child.

Having severed the tangible devils, appearance will not rise up as your enemy. Having severed the intangible devils, male and female yakṣas will be held under oath.

That and other such benefits that are immeasurable will occur.

The source text Esoteric Instructions on Profound Perfection of Wisdom called The Grand Poem by Āryadeva the Brahmin is finished.

The Indian Paṇḍita Dampa Rinpoche translated this himself. Zhama Lotsā received it and edited it.

Footnotes

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