阿難整衣服，望大眾中合掌頂禮，心迹圓明悲欣交集，欲益未來諸眾生故，稽首白佛：「大悲世尊！我今已悟成佛法門，是中修行得無疑惑，常聞如來說如是言：『自未得度先度人者，菩薩發心；自覺已圓能覺他者，如來應世。』我雖未度，願度末劫一切眾生。世尊！此諸眾生去佛漸遠，邪師說法如恒河沙，欲攝其心入三摩地，云何令其安立道場遠諸魔事，於菩提心得無退屈？」
Ānanda adjusted his robe, brought his palms together and prostrated himself with his head at the feet of the Buddha. He rejoiced at his good understanding of the mind and, for the benefit of coming generations, bowed again and said, “Great Compassionate, World-Honored One! I have now awakened to the Dharma gateway to Buddhahood by means of right practice about which I have no more doubt. I have always heard the Thus Come One say, ‘Before one’s own liberation, they liberate others, bodhisattvas who generate bodhicitta; After their own complete enlightenment, they are able to enlighten others, Thus Come Ones in the world.’ Though I am not yet liberated, I now vow to deliver all living beings in the Dharma ending age. World-Honored One! Future generations will gradually move farther away from the Buddha and (will meet) heretics as many as the sand grains in the Ganges River. In order to control their minds for entry into Samādhi, what should they do to set up a site of enlightenment (bodhimaṇḍala) to keep the ‘doings of Māra’ away and avoid failure in the cultivation of the mind set on enlightenment?”
爾時，世尊於大眾中稱讚阿難：「善哉！善哉！如汝所問，安立道場救護眾生末劫沈溺，汝今諦聽，當為汝說！」阿難大眾唯然奉教。
At that time, the World-Honored One praised Ānanda before the great assembly saying, “Excellent! Excellent! As you ask about the setting up of bodhimaṇḍala for the protection of living beings against failure in the Dharma ending age. Listen attentively to what I now tell you.”
Ānanda and the great assembly reverently awaited the (holy) teaching.
佛告阿難：「汝常聞我毘奈耶中，宣說修行三決定義，所謂攝心為戒，因戒生定，因定發慧。是則名為三無漏學。阿難！云何攝心我名為戒？若諸世界六道眾生其心不婬，則不隨其生死相續。汝修三昧本出塵勞，婬心不除塵不可出，縱有多智禪定現前，如不斷婬必落魔道，上品魔王、中品魔民、下品魔女，彼等諸魔亦有徒眾，各各自謂成無上道。我滅度後末法之中，多此魔民熾盛世間，廣行貪婬為善知識，令諸眾生落愛見坑失菩提路。汝教世人，修三摩地先斷心婬，是名如來先佛世尊第一決定清淨明誨。
The Buddha told Ānanda, “You have always heard me teach about Vinaya (’discipline’) which consists in the practice of three decisive steps, the control (saṃgraha) of mind, called śīla which leads to stillness (dhyāna) and thence to wisdom (prajñā). This is called the threefold study of the supramundane way. Ānanda! Why is control of mind called śīla? If all living beings in the six realms of existence abstain from sexual desire, they will not be subject to the continual round (’continuity’ citta-santāna) of births and deaths (生死相續). Your practice of Samādhi should free you from defilements but they cannot be eliminated if your lustful mind is not wiped out. Even after you have acquired such wisdom, if you fail to cut off lust, then when dhyāna manifests, you will fall into the way of Māra in which Māra king takes the high, Māra [male] subjects the middle, and Māra females the low rank. These demons have their following and boast of having attained the Supreme Path. After my Nirvana, in the Dharma ending age, these subjects of Māra will be found everywhere, will encourage sexual desire and will disguise themselves as men of good friends (kalyāṇamitra) and cause living beings to fall into the pit of lust thereby missing the Bodhi path. You should teach worldly men who practice Samādhi to cut off their lustful minds at the very start. This is called the Tathāgata’s first clear and certain instruction on purity initially given by Buddha, World-Honored Ones.
「是故阿難！若不斷婬修禪定者，如蒸沙石欲其成飯，經百千劫秖名熱沙。何以故？此非飯本石沙成故。汝以婬身求佛妙果，縱得妙悟皆是婬根，根本成婬，輪轉三途必不能出，如來涅槃何路修證？必使婬機身心俱斷，斷性亦無，於佛菩提斯可希冀。如我此說名為佛說；不如此說即波旬說。
“Therefore, Ānanda! If one cultivates dhyāna without having cut off sexual desire, it will be like cooking gravel to make rice; even if it is boiled for hundreds and thousands of kalpas, it will be only hot gravel. Why? Because it is not rice grain to begin with, it contains only stones. If you set your lustful mind on seeking the profound fruit of Buddhahood, whatever you may realize will be carnal by nature. If your root is lustful, you will have to transmigrate through three unhappy ways (to the hells of fire, blood and swords) from which you will not escape. How then can you find the way to cultivate the Tathāgata’s nirvāṇa? You should cut off both the sensual body and mind until even the very idea of doing so ceases; only then can you hope to seek the Buddha’s Enlightenment. This teaching of mine is that of the Buddha whereas any other is that of Pāpīyān (’The Evil One’).”
「阿難！又諸世界六道眾生其心不殺，則不隨其生死相續。汝修三昧本出塵勞，殺心不除塵不可出，縱有多智禪定現前，如不斷殺必落神道，上品之人為大力鬼，中品即為飛行夜叉諸鬼帥等，下品當為地行羅剎，彼諸鬼神亦有徒眾，各各自謂成無上道。我滅度後末法之中，多此神鬼熾盛世間，自言食肉得菩提路。阿難！我令比丘食五淨肉，此肉皆我神力化生本無命根，汝婆羅門地多蒸濕，加以沙石草菜不生，我以大悲神力所加，因大慈悲假名為肉，汝得其味，奈何如來滅度之後，食眾生肉名為釋子。汝等當知，是食肉人縱得心開似三摩地，皆大羅剎，報終必沈生死苦海，非佛弟子，如是之人相殺相吞相食未已，云何是人得出三界？汝教世人，修三摩地次斷殺生，是名如來先佛世尊第二決定清淨明誨。
“Ānanda! If living beings in the six realms of existence cease to kill (prāṇātipātād vairamaṇī) they will not be subject to the continual round of births and deaths (生死相續). Your practice of Samādhi should free you from defilements but if your murderous mind is not cut off, they cannot be eliminated. You may acquire much wisdom but if you fail to stop killing, when dhyāna manifests, you will fall into the way of spirits, in which the high rank is attained by the mighty ghost (preta), the middle one by flying yakṣa and chief ghosts, and the low one by earth-bound rākṣāsa. These have followers and boast that they have attained the Supreme Path. After my nirvāṇa, in the Dharma ending age, these ghosts will be found throughout in the world, and will boast of how they feed on flesh which leads them to realize Bodhi. Ānanda! I permit the bhikṣus to eat only the five kinds of pure flesh which are the product of my transcendental power of transformation and not of animal slaughter. You, Brahman, live in a country where vegetables do not grow because it is too damp and hot and because of all the gravel and rock. I use my spiritual power of compassion to provide you with illusory meat to satisfy your appetite. How then, after my nirvāṇa, can you eat the flesh of living beings and so pretend to be my disciple? You should know that those who eat meat, though their minds may open and realize a semblance of Samādhi, are but great rākṣāsas who, after this life, will sink back into the bitter ocean of saṃsāra and cannot be my disciples. They will kill and devour one another ceaselessly; how then can they escape from the three worlds of existence? You should teach worldly men who practice Samādhi not to kill. This is called the Tathāgata’s second clear and certain instruction on purity initially given by Buddha, World-Honored Ones.”
「是故阿難！若不斷殺修禪定者，譬如有人自塞其耳，高聲大叫求人不聞，此等名為欲隱彌露。清淨比丘及諸菩薩，於岐路行不踏生草，況以手拔；云何大悲取諸眾生血肉充食？若諸比丘不服東方絲綿絹帛，及是此土靴履裘毳、乳酪醍醐，如是比丘於世真脫，酬還宿債不遊三界。何以故？服其身分皆為彼緣，如人食其地中百穀，足不離地；必使身心於諸眾生，若身、身分，身心二途不服不食，我說是人真解脫者。如我此說名為佛說；不如此說即波旬說。
“Therefore, Ānanda! If killing is not stopped, the practice of dhyāna-samādhi is like shutting ones ears while crying in the hope that people will not hear one’s voice, or like trying to hide something that is already exposed to full view. All bhikṣus who live purely and all Bodhisattvas always refrain even from walking on the grass; how can they agree to uproot it? How then can those who practice great compassion feed on the flesh and blood of living beings? If bhikṣus do not wear garments made of silk, boots of local leather and furs, and refrain from consuming milk, cream and butter, they will really be liberated from the worldly; after paying their former debts, they will not transmigrate in the three realms of existence. Why? Because by using animal products, one creates causes (which are always followed by effects), just like a man who eats cereals grown in the soil and whose feet cannot leave the ground. If a man can (control) his body and mind and thereby refrains from eating animal flesh and wearing animal products, I say he will really be liberated. This teaching of mine is that of the Buddha whereas any other is that of Pāpīyān.”
「阿難！又復世界六道眾生其心不偷，則不隨其生死相續。汝修三昧本出塵勞，偷心不除塵不可出，縱有多智禪定現前，如不斷偷必落邪道，上品精靈、中品妖魅、下品邪人諸魅所著，彼等群邪亦有徒眾，各各自謂成無上道。我滅度後末法之中，多此妖邪熾盛世間，潛匿姦欺稱善知識，各自謂己得上人法，詃惑無識恐令失心，所過之處其家耗散。我教比丘循方乞食，令其捨貪成菩薩道，諸比丘等不自熟食，寄於殘生旅泊三界，示一往還去已無返；云何賊人假我衣服，禆販如來造種種業，皆言佛法却非出家，具戒比丘為小乘道？由是疑誤無量眾生墮無間獄。若我滅後，其有比丘發心決定修三摩提，能於如來形像之前，身然一燈、燒一指節，及於身上爇一香炷，我說是人無始宿債一時酬畢，長挹世間永脫諸漏，雖未即明無上覺路，是人於法已決定心，若不為此捨身微因，縱成無為必還生人酬其宿債，如我馬麥正等無異。汝教世人，修三摩地後斷偷盜，是名如來先佛世尊第三決定清淨明誨。
“Ānanda! Furthermore, if living beings in the six realms of existence cease to steal, they will not be subject to the continual round of births and deaths. Your practice of Samādhi should free you from defilements, but if your robber’s mind is not wiped out, they cannot be eliminated. You may acquire much wisdom but if you do not stop stealing, when dhyāna manifests, you will fall into the way of devils (落邪) in which the high rank is attained by cunning spirits (精靈), the intermediate one by evil spirits (妖魅) and the low one by bedevilled men (邪人諸魅所著). These devils have their following and boast that they attain Supreme Bodhi. After my nirvāṇa, in the Dharma ending age, these devils will be found everywhere in the world. They will hide their perfidy, pose as good friends and declare that they have won the Superior Dharma to deceive the ignorant who will thus lose their minds; wherever they pass, they will cause untold miseries to their believers. This is why I teach the bhikṣus to beg for food so that they can overcome cupidity and realize Bodhi. They do not cook themselves and pass their remaining years as transitory travelers in the three realms of existence to prove their last transmigration without incarnating again. How can thieves who wear the saṅgha robe, act as Tathāgata-mongers and commit karmic deeds, claim that they all preach the Buddha Dharma? They are not (true) leavers of home and are not ordained bhikṣus of the Little Vehicle. They deceive an incalculable number of living beings causing them to fall into the realm of unintermittent hells. After my nirvāṇa, if there is a bhikṣu who, in token of his determination to practice Samādhi, lights in front of an image of the Tathāgata a torch (planted in his body) or burns a bone of his finger or an incense stick inserted in his flesh, I say he will thus repay all his karmic debts since the time without beginning, will leave the worldly way for ever and will escape from the stream of transmigration, for although he has not yet attained Supreme Bodhi, his mind is already set decisively on the Dharma. However, without these small sacrifices, even if he realizes something, he will be reborn as a human being and will have to repay his former debts, as I did when I had to eat the grain fed to horses. You should teach worldly men who practice Samādhi not to steal. This is called the Tathāgata’s third clear and certain instruction on purity initially given by Buddha, World-Honored Ones.”
「是故阿難！若不斷偷修禪定者，譬如有人水灌漏巵欲求其滿，縱經塵劫終無平復。若諸比丘衣鉢之餘分寸不畜，乞食餘分施餓眾生，於大集會合掌禮眾，有人捶罵同於稱讚，必使身心二俱捐捨，身肉骨血與眾生共，不將如來不了義說迴為己解以誤初學，佛印是人得真三昧。如我所說名為佛說；不如此說即波旬說。
“Therefore, Ānanda! If stealing is not stopped, the practice of dhyāna-samādhi is like pouring water into a vessel which will never hold it in spite of the passing of kalpas countless as dust. If this bhikṣu does not keep garments in excess of what he needs, gives to others all food in excess of his requirement, joins his two palms to salute the community and regards as praise abuse and blows ó that is if he is ready to give away his own flesh, bones and blood, and if he does not pose as an expert interpreter of the expedient incomplete doctrine and does not teach it to beginners in order not to mislead them, the Buddha will seal his realization of Samādhi. This teaching of mine is that of the Buddha whereas any other is that of Pāpīyān.”
「阿難！如是世界六道眾生，雖則身心無殺盜婬，三行已圓；若大妄語，即三摩提不得清淨，成愛見魔失如來種。所謂未得謂得、未證言證，或求世間尊勝第一，謂前人言：『我今已得須陀洹果、斯陀含果、阿那含果，阿羅漢道、辟支佛乘、十地、地前諸位菩薩。』求彼禮懺貪其供養，是一顛迦銷滅佛種，如人以刀斷多羅木，佛記是人永殞善根無復知見，沈三苦海不成三昧。我滅度後，勅諸菩薩及阿羅漢應身生彼末法之中，作種種形度諸輪轉，或作沙門、白衣居士、人王、宰官、童男、童女，如是乃至婬女、寡婦、姦偷、屠販，與其同事稱歎佛乘，令其身心入三摩地，終不自言我真菩薩、真阿羅漢。泄佛密因、輕言未學，唯除命終陰有遺付，云何是人惑亂眾生成大妄語？汝教世人，修三摩地後復斷除諸大妄語，是名如來先佛世尊第四決定清淨明誨。
“Ānanda! If living beings in the six realms of existence, after cleansing their bodies and minds from killing, stealing and carnality, continue to lie, they will fail to realize Samādhi and will become Māras (filled with) pride and prejudice. As a result, they will lose the Tathāgata seed and, in their search for worldly fame, will claim that they have achieved and realized what really they have not. They boast of their realization of the states of śrota-āpanna, sakṛdāgāmin, anāgāmin, arhat and pratyeka-buddha, and the ten stages of Bodhisattva development, in order to attract believers who will make offerings to them for the atonement of sins. These unbelievers (icchantika) will destroy the Buddha seed as easily as cutting into the trunk of a palm with a sharp chopper (to stop it from growing). The Buddha predicts that these people will destroy their excellent roots, will not regain common sense, will sink into the three oceans (realms) of suffering and will never achieve Samādhi. I now command Bodhisattvas and Arhats to appear, in the Dharma ending age after my nirvāṇa, in all appropriate transformation bodies to save those caught in the wheel of saṁsāra. They should come as monks, lay disciples, princes, ministers, boys, girls, and even as prostitutes, widows, rogues, thieves, butchers, peddlers, etc., to keep company with them and praise the Buddha Dharma in their presence so as to convert them and urge them to practice it. In so doing they should not disclose that they are true Bodhisattvas and Arhats. They will not reveal to beginners the Buddha’s esoteric cause but when they are about to die, they will secretly show some proof of their enlightenment (to increase their disciples faith in the Dharma). How then can such persons deceive living beings by telling deliberate lies? You should teach worldly men who practice Samādhi not to lie. This is called the Tathāgata’s fourth clear and certain instruction on purity initially given by Buddha, World-Honored Ones.”
「是故阿難！若不斷其大妄語者，如刻人糞為栴檀形，欲求香氣無有是處。我教比丘直心道場，於四威儀一切行中尚無虛假，云何自稱得上人法？譬如窮人妄號帝王自取誅滅，況復法王如何妄竊？因地不直果招紆曲，求佛菩提如噬臍人，欲誰成就？若諸比丘心如直絃一切真實，入三摩提永無魔事，我印是人成就菩薩無上知覺。如我是說名為佛說；不如此說即波旬說。
“Therefore, Ānanda! If lying is not stopped, the practice of dhyāna-samādhi is like copying in excrement a sandalwood statue and expecting it to be fragrant, which is impossible. I teach the bhikṣus to develop a straightforward mind which is the site of enlightenment (bodhimaṇḍala) and to be righteous in their common acts of daily life, while walking, standing, sitting and reclining. How can a liar pretend that he has realized the Supreme Dharma? This is like a poor man proclaiming himself a king; he will only invite trouble and misfortune. Still less can he usurp the (throne of the) King of the Law. If the causal ground is false, its fruit will be distorted, and the quest of Buddha’s Enlightenment will become impossible. If a bhikṣu (develops) a mind as straight as a lute-string and is truthful under all circumstances, he will avoid, in his practice of Samādhi, all troubles caused by the demon. I will seal his realization of the Bodhisattva’s Supreme Bodhi. This teaching of mine is that of the Buddha whereas any other is that of Pāpīyān.”
Mahāsitātapatra / ‘Great White Canopy.’
「阿難！汝問攝心，我今先說入三摩地修學妙門。求菩薩道，要先持此四種律儀皎如氷霜，自不能生一切枝葉，心三口四生必無因。阿難！如是四事若不失遺，心尚不緣色香味觸，一切魔事云何發生？若有宿習不能滅除，汝教是人，一心誦我佛頂光明摩訶薩怛多般怛囉無上神呪，斯是如來無見頂相，無為心佛從頂發輝，坐寶蓮華所說心呪，且汝宿世與摩登伽歷劫因緣，恩愛習氣非是一生及與一劫；我一宣揚，愛心永脫成阿羅漢。彼尚婬女無心修行，神力冥資速證無學；云何汝等在會聲聞，求最上乘決定成佛？譬如以塵揚于順風，有何艱險。
“Ananda! You have asked about gathering (saṃgraha) the mind, and I have now told you about the wondrous method that will lead practitioners to enter samādhi. If you seek the way of the Bodhisattva, you must first follow the four instructions on purity so that your comportment may be as pure as the glistening frost. Then very naturally you will no more be able to commit the three errors of the mind and the four errors of speech than a tree is able to leaf out in freezing weather. Ānanda! How could anything of Māra happen to someone who faithfully follows the four instructions on purity? How much the more will that person be protected if their mind is not paying attention to sights, sounds, odors, flavors, tangible objects, or objects of cognition. As for people who cannot get rid of their stubborn habits, teach them to recite single-mindedly the mantra of supreme efficacy, which is called ‘Mahā-Sitātapatra’ — the ‘Great White Canopy.’ This is the mantra (神呪) spoken by the Buddha whom I make appear from my unconditioned mind — the Buddha who is seated invisible to ordinary sight, amidst a blaze of light on a precious lotus-flower at the crown of my head. Consider, moreover, that in previous lifetimes during many kalpas, you and the young Mātaṅga woman developed affinities with each other, which led to habits of love and devotion. It has not been for one lifetime only, nor even for one kalpa only. Yet hearing me proclaim the Dharma freed her mind forever from the entanglements of love. Now she is an Arhat, though she had been a mere courtesan, someone who had never intended to undertake spiritual cultivation. But by the hidden aid of the mantra’s power, she quickly became one who needs no further instruction. You Hearers of the Teaching in this assembly who seek to board the greatest of vehicles in your resolute quest to become Buddhas should reach your goal with no more effort than the wind needs to scatter a handful of dust into the air. Is there any danger that you will meet with difficulty?
「若有末世欲坐道場，先持比丘清淨禁戒，要當選擇戒清淨者第一沙門以為其師，若其不遇真清淨僧，汝戒律儀必不成就，戒成已後著新淨衣然香閑居，誦此心佛所說神呪一百八遍，然後結界建立道場，求於十方現住國土無上如來，放大悲光來灌其頂。阿難！如是末世清淨比丘、若比丘尼、白衣檀越，心滅貪婬持佛淨戒，於道場中發菩薩願，出入澡浴六時行道，如是不寐經三七日，我自現身至其人前，摩頂安慰令其開悟。」
“Those who wish to sit upon the site of awakening (bodhimaṇḍala) in the time of the Dharma’s ending should begin by undertaking to follow the monks’ prohibitory precepts. They should seek a teacher, an elder monk who himself observes the precepts with purity. Further, they must receive precepts from a member of the Sangha who is truly pure; otherwise they will not succeed in following those precepts. After the practitioners have received precepts, they should put on new clothes or newly washed clothes, and then in a quiet place burn incense and recite one hundred and eight times the efficacious mantra spoken by the Buddha who is made to appear from the mind of the Thus-Come One. Then they have established the site of awakening and safeguard its boundaries. These spiritual practitioners should ask the peerless Thus-Come Ones throughout the ten directions — each without departing from his own land — to pour down a light of great compassion, anointing the head. Ānanda! In the time of the Dharma’s ending, pure monks, nuns, and white-robed laity and other almsgivers, in whose minds sexual desire and craving have been completely extinguished and who follow the Buddha’s pure precepts, should enter a site of awakening and there make the vows of a Bodhisattva. If they can bathe before reentering their site of awakening and if they can continue their practice throughout the six periods of the day and the six periods of the night without sleep for twenty-one days, I myself will appear before them to bless each one of them by circling my hand over the crown of his head, and I will help each one become enlightened.”
阿難白佛言：「世尊！我蒙如來無上悲誨心已開悟，自知修證無學道成；末法修行建立道場，云何結界合佛世尊清淨軌則？」
Ānanda said respectfully to the Buddha, “World-Honored One! I have received the Thus-Come One’s supremely compassionate instruction, and my mind has already awakened. I myself know how to practice so that I can realize the enlightenment of one who needs no further instruction. But suppose spiritual practitioners should wish to establish a site for awakening in the time of the Dharma’s ending. How may they safeguard its boundaries in accord with the Buddha’s rules concerning purity?”
佛告阿難：「若末世人願立道場，先取雪山大力白牛，食其山中肥膩香草，此牛唯飲雪山清水其糞微細，可取其糞和合栴檀以泥其地；若非雪山其牛臭穢不堪塗地，別於平原穿去地皮五尺已下，取其黃土和上栴檀、沈水、蘇合、薰陸、欝金、白膠、青木、零陵、甘松及雞舌香，以此十種細羅為粉，合土成泥以塗場地。方圓丈六為八角壇，壇心置一金銀銅木所造蓮華，華中安鉢，鉢中先盛八月露水，水中隨安所有華葉，取八圓鏡各安其方圍繞花鉢，鏡外建立十六蓮華，十六香鑪間花鋪設，莊嚴香鑪純燒沈水無令見火，取白牛乳置十六器，乳為煎餅，并諸沙糖、油餅、乳糜、酥合、蜜、薑、純酥、純蜜及諸菓子、飲食、葡萄、石蜜，種種上妙等食，於蓮華外各各十六圍繞華外，以奉諸佛及大菩薩，每以食時；若在中夜，取蜜半升用酥三合，壇前別安一小火鑪，以兜樓婆香煎取香水，沐浴其炭然令猛熾，投是酥蜜於炎爐內，燒令煙盡饗佛菩薩。令其四外遍懸幡華，於壇室中四壁敷設十方如來及諸菩薩所有形像；應於當陽張盧舍那、釋迦、彌勒、阿閦、彌陀；諸大變化觀音形像兼金剛藏，安其左右；帝釋梵王、烏芻瑟摩，并藍地迦諸軍茶利、與毘俱知、四天王等頻那夜迦，張於門側左右安置。又取八鏡覆懸虛空，與壇場中所安之鏡方面相對，使其形影重重相涉。
The Buddha said to Ānanda, “People in the time of the Dharma’s ending who wish to set up a site of awakening should begin by finding a strong white ox living in the Himalayas. It should be an ox that feeds upon rich and fragrant grasses and drinks only the pure waters of the mountain snows. The dung of such an ox will be of an exceptional purity. Those who wish to establish a site of awakening (lit. ‘altar’) may mix this pure ox-dung with sandalwood incense and spread the mixture upon the ground. The dung of an ox that does not live in the Himalayas will be foul-smelling and too unclean to be applied to the ground of an altar. If that is all the spiritual practitioners can obtain, then instead they should look for a spot on the plain where yellow clay can be found. They should dig up the clay from a depth of about five and a half feet and then mix it with sandalwood incense, aloeswood incense, storax, frankincense, saffron, teak resin, birthwort, basil, spikenard, and cloves. They should grind these ten fragrant substances into a powder, sift them together with the loam, and spread the mixture as a paste on the ground of the altar. The altar should be octagonal and sixty-five feet across. A lotus made of gold, silver, copper, or wood should be placed in the center of the altar, and a bowl filled with dew collected during the eighth lunar month should be placed in the center of the flower. An abundance of flower petals should be made to float upon the water in the bowl. Eight round mirrors should be arranged around the flower and bowl so that the mirrors face outward in each of the eight directions. Next, sixteen lotus flowers and sixteen elegant censers should be placed in front of the mirrors; the censers should alternate with the flowers. Only aloeswood incense should be burned in these censers, and they should be burned in such a way as to produce no flames. The practitioners should make fried cakes with sixteen jars of the milk of a white cow and then set the cakes out onto sixteen dishes. They should place raw sugar upon sixteen other dishes. Upon sixteen other dishes they should place oil cakes; and in the same manner, rice gruel, storax, honeyed ginger, clarified butter, and filtered honey should be distributed so that there are sixteen dishes of each of these eight kinds of offerings. These should be distributed by setting dishes containing each of the eight offerings behind each of the sixteen flowers as offerings to the Buddhas and great Bodhisattvas. At mealtime and at midnight, the practitioners should prepare a pint of honey and mix it three times with clarified butter. They should place a small burner in front of the place for awakening, prepare a decoction of storax, bathe charcoal with the decoction, and then ignite the charcoal, letting it blaze forth. The butter and honey should be tossed upon the flames. As long as it lasts, the fragrant smoke will be an offering to the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Outside the four walls of the room in which the altar is located, the practitioners should hang banners and arrangements of flowers. Further, they should adorn the walls inside the room with images of the Thus-Come Ones and the Bodhisattvas of the ten directions. Centered on the wall facing south, images of the Buddha Vairocana, the Buddha Śākyamuni, the Bodhisattva Maitreya, the Buddha Akṣobhya, and the Buddha Amitābha should be displayed. On one side of those images, an image of one of the imposing manifestations of the Bodhisattva Who Hears the Cries of the World should be shown; and on the other side, an image of the Bodhisattva Vajragarbha (Vajra Treasury). On either side of the door, images should be placed of Lord Śakra, King Brahma, FireHead, the Blue Durgā, Kuṇḍalī-rāja, Bhṛkuṭi, and the Four Celestial Kings, together with Vināyaka. Also, eight mirrors should be suspended from the ceiling in such a way that they directly face the other mirrors which have already been set up in the place for awakening. The mirrors will then reflect each other in infinite repetitions.
「於初七日中，至誠頂禮十方如來、諸大菩薩及阿羅漢，恒於六時誦呪繞壇至心行道，一時常行一百八遍；第二七中，一向專心發菩薩願心無間斷，我毘奈耶先有願教；第三七中，於十二時一向持佛般怛羅呪；至第四七日，十方如來一時出現鏡交光處，承佛摩頂即於道場修三摩地，能令如是末世修學，身心明淨猶如瑠璃。阿難！若此比丘，本受戒師及同會中十比丘等，其中有一不清淨者，如是道場多不成就。從三七後，端坐安居經一百日，有利根者，不起于座得須陀洹，縱其身心聖果未成，決定自知成佛不謬。汝問道場，建立如是。」
“During the first seven days, the practitioners should bow with the utmost sincerity to the Thus-Come Ones, the great Bodhisattvas, and the Arhats of the ten directions. During the six periods of the day and the six periods of the night, the practitioners should recite the mantra continuously while circumambulating the place for awakening, single-mindedly repeating the mantra one hundred and eight times. During the next seven days, the practitioners should focus their minds on the Bodhisattva’s vows, not letting their minds turn aside from them. My instructions to you in the monastic code have included teachings about the making of vows.“ During the last seven days, the practitioners should single-mindedly recite the Buddha’s Mantra of the White Canopy continuously throughout the twelve periods of the day and night. On the final day, the Thus Come Ones from all ten directions will appear at the same time. They and their light will be reflected in the mirrors as each of them circles his right hand on the crown of the head of each of the practitioners. If people can practice samādhi in an excellent Site of Awakening like this in the age of the Dharma’s ending, their bodies and minds will become as pure and bright as crystal. Ānanda! If the precept-master from whom a monk received precepts was not pure, or if any of the other monks in his group is not pure, then the practice in the place of awakening is unlikely to be successful. After the three weeks, the practitioners should remain sitting upright and peacefully for a hundred days. If their roots in the Dharma are deep and strong, they will not rise from their seats during that time, and they will become srota-āpanna (’stream-enterers’). Even if they do not reach the level of a sage in body and mind, they will be certain that in the future they will become Buddhas. You asked how to establish a Site of Awakening. This is how it should be done.”
阿難頂禮佛足而白佛言：「自我出家恃佛憍愛，求多聞故，未證無為。遭彼梵天邪術所禁，心雖明了，力不自由，賴遇文殊令我解脫。雖蒙如來佛頂神呪，冥獲其力，尚未親聞。唯願大慈重為宣說，悲救此會諸修行輩，末及當來在輪迴者，承佛密音身意解脫。」于時，會中一切大眾普皆作禮，佇聞如來祕密章句。
Ānanda bowed at the Buddha’s feet and addressed the Buddha saying, “Ever since I entered the monastic life, I have presumed upon the Buddha’s affection. I have sought merely to be learned, and as a result, I have not yet gained freedom from conditioned phenomena. I was ensnared by the evil Brahma-Heaven spell and could not escape, though my mind remained aware. Fortunately, Mañjuśrī arrived to rescue me with the efficacious mantra (神呪) spoken by the Buddha at the crown of the Thus-Come One’s head. But I benefited from its hidden power without actually hearing it myself. I sincerely hope that the Buddha will proclaim the mantra again out of his great kindness and out of his compassion for all the practitioners in this great assembly, as well as for beings of the future who will be bound to the cycle of death and rebirth, so that the esoteric sounds of the mantra may set their bodies and minds free.”
Everyone in the great assembly thereupon bowed to the Buddha, waiting to hear the sections and sub-sections of the esoteric mantra of the Thus Come One.