The Shurangama Sutra, Volume Five: The Twenty-Five Sages' Dharma Gates of Perfect Penetration - Gavampati

Original Text: Kaundinya arose from his seat, prostrated at the Buddha's feet, and addressed the Buddha, saying: "I have committed an oral karma. In a past kalpa, I lightly mocked a śramaṇa, saying he ate like a cow chewing grass. Life after life, I have suffered from the affliction of ruminating like a cow. The Tathāgata showed me the single-flavored pure mind-ground dharma door. I attained the cessation of the mind and entered samādhi. Observing the knowing of taste, I realized it was neither substance nor object. In response to this realization, I transcended all the outflows of the world. Internally freed from body and mind, externally detached from the world, I distanced myself from the three realms of existence, like a bird escaping from a cage. Stains were eradicated, dust vanished, and my Dharma-eye became pure. I attained Arhatship. The Tathāgata personally certified me as having reached the stage of non-learning. When the Buddha inquired about perfect penetration, according to my realization, returning the taste and revolving the knowing, this I consider foremost."

Explanation: Kaundinya arose from his seat, prostrated at the Buddha's feet, and replied to the Buddha: "I previously created evil oral karma. In a past kalpa, I mocked a monastic, saying he ate like a cow chewing grass. From then on, life after life, I ate as if ruminating like a cow. Later, when I encountered the Buddha, he taught me a cultivation method called the single-flavored pure mind-ground dharma door. Following the Buddha's instruction, I cultivated and extinguished mental formations, seeing all dharmas as empty, without arising thoughts. Thus I entered samādhi, observing the knowing nature of the taste-dust, realizing it had no intrinsic substance nor was it any object—it was empty. With the arising of this realization, I transcended all worldly afflictions; my mind became pure. Internally, body and mind were freed; the world of the five aggregates vanished. Externally, the world was also emptied; the world ceased to exist. Thus, internally, I distanced myself from the conditioned phenomena of the three realms, like a bird freed from a cage. Defilements and stains were eradicated; all dust-like objects vanished. My Dharma-eye became pure, and I became a Fourth Fruit Arhat. The Tathāgata personally certified that I had attained the stage of non-learning. When the Buddha asked about the method of perfect penetration, according to my realization—contacting the taste-dust, observing the knowing of the taste-dust, and then contemplating that knowing as empty—I consider this dharma door the foremost method of perfect penetration. All those who attain the fruits do so through profound and exceedingly subtle contemplation within samādhi, realizing the emptiness of the five aggregates and the eighteen realms, thereby emptying both body and mind and shattering the four marks. It's merely that the degree of emptiness differs, the level of marks broken through varies, and thus the attained fruit differs. There are certainly none who attain the fruits without upholding precepts, cultivating samādhi, or engaging in contemplation. Those who attain the fruits fulfill all Thirty-seven Factors of Enlightenment. None attain the fruits through the reasoning, analysis, or deduction of the thinking mind alone. None, after attaining the fruits, remain deeply afflicted and create evil karma everywhere like ordinary beings. Those with an empty mind perceive no dharmas; they see no dharma worthy of creating evil karma. Therefore, those whose minds still cling to marks certainly have not severed the view of self—they are not even Stream-enterers, let alone First Fruit attainers. Kaundinya's past oral karma of mocking a monastic resulted in such heavy karmic retribution. Nowadays, many people harbor deep afflictions; the evil karma they create towards monastics far exceeds mere mockery or sarcasm by many times. Their future retribution will certainly be far heavier than Kaundinya's by many times. What should these ignorant people do? They should consider and weigh this clearly. However, many, due to ignorance, will not seriously contemplate or weigh this matter. They will only have to undergo the retribution and suffer these evil karmic results. Thus, beings in the three evil destinies follow one after another, never ceasing.