COMPLETE
TITLE: "GREAT
MASTER BODHIDHARMA’S
ESSENTIAL
DISCOURSE ON
ENTERING
THE MAHAYANA
PATH BY PRINCIPLE
AND BY PRACTICE"
Page 5
Fourth, to act in accordance with the Dharma. The
principle of intrinsic purity is the Dharma. By
this principle, all forms and characteristics
are empty, without defilement and attachment,
without self or others. The sutra says, “In the
Dharma there are no sentient beings, because it
is free of the impurities of sentient beings. In
the Dharma there is no self, because it is free
of the impurities of self.” When the wise
believe in and understand this Principle, they
should act in accordance with the Dharma. There
is no stinginess in the Dharma, so practice the
giving of body, life, and possessions, with a
mind free of parsimony. Understand and achieve
“triple emptiness”, with no reliance and no
attachment. Practicing for the sake of removing
impurities, one liberates others without
becoming attached to form. This benefits
oneself, benefits others, and also glorifies the bodhi path. This is the perfection of dana; it
is likewise with the other five paramitas. In
order to relinquish delusions, one practices
these six perfections, yet there is nothing that
is practiced. This is to act in accordance with
the Dharma.
四稱法行者。性淨之理，目之為法。此理眾相斯空，無染無著，無此無彼。經曰：法無眾生，離眾生垢故；法無有我，離我垢故。智者若能信解此理，應當稱法而行。法體無慳，身命財行檀捨施，心無吝惜。脫解三空，不倚不著，但為去垢，稱化眾生而不取相。此為自行，復能利他，亦能莊嚴菩提之道。檀施既爾，餘五亦然。為除妄想，修行六度，而無所行。是為稱法行。
Act in accordance
with the Dharma:
Finally, this practice of six perfections (pāramitā)
brings one’s action and mind back to the single,
ultimate Principle.
Intrinsic purity:
All dharmas (lowercase dharma means all
phenomena) are neither good nor bad, beyond
dualistic discrimination. Therefore it is called
“intrinsic purity;” this purity is absolute, like
the empty space, which can neither be contaminated
nor cleansed.
Forms and
characteristics相:
The Chinese word
相
(xiang) means forms, marks, or appearances; it is
extended to mean all perceived characteristics of
any phenomena.
Impurities of
sentient beings and self:
Ordinary sentient beings have the deep-rooted
delusion of an intrinsic self, which develops into
the ego and subsequently gives rise to greed,
anger, ignorance, pride, and a host of false
views; they then lead to the suffering of sentient
beings. Being delusions, these false views and
vexations have no real substance. Therefore, all
dharmas are intrinsically “free from all
impurities.” To act with this understanding of
no-self is to act in accordance with the Dharma.
Dāna:
The practice of charity, which involves giving of
possessions, body, Dharma, encouragement, etc. One
is not able to give freely because of the
attachment to the self. Without the selfish ego
(“impurities of the self”), one can give anything
others need, which benefits others as well as the
self.
Triple emptiness:
The highest form of dana is to give without the
concept of the giver, the receiver, and the given,
because all are empty. Then one can truly give
without expectations, without the ego being
involved. This is the perfection of dana, or
dāna pāramitā.
Six pāramitās:
Dāna, śīla (moral conduct,
precepts), ksānti (tolerance, patience),
vīrya (diligence, effort, persistence),
dhyāna (meditation), and prajñā
(wisdom) are the six perfections, the Mahayana
path to Buddhahood. The practice of the six
paramitas can remove our impurities/delusions,
which are originally empty, so in the end, nothing
is gained and nothing is lost. Still, one then
becomes a Buddha; without the practice, the Buddha
nature is latent and one is an ordinary sentient
being imbued with suffering.
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