Saṃyukta Āgama (293), Part One

(1) Original text: 如是我闻。一时。佛住王舍城迦兰陀竹园。尔时世尊告异比丘。我已度疑。离于犹豫。拔邪见刺。不复退转。心无所著故。何处有我。为彼比丘说法。为彼比丘说贤圣出世空相应。缘起随顺法。所谓有是事故是事有。是事有故是事起。所谓缘无明行。缘行识。缘识名色。缘名色六入处。缘六入处触。缘触受。缘受爱。缘爱取。缘取有。缘有生。缘生老死忧悲恼苦，如是如是纯大苦聚集。乃至如是纯大苦聚灭。

Explanation: The World-Honored One told a bhikṣu who had come from elsewhere: I have already crossed over all doubts, departed from hesitation, and pulled out the thorn of wrong views. Because I no longer regress from the path of bodhi and my mind abides nowhere and clings to nothing, there is nowhere that I see a self preaching the Dharma to those bhikṣus, teaching those bhikṣus the dependent-arising dharma in accord with the emptiness realized by the noble ones that transcends the world. The law of dependent arising is that because this matter exists, that matter appears; because this matter exists, that matter is produced.

This is the dharma of the twelve links of dependent origination: because there is ignorance, the mental formations of the manas arise; because there are the mental formations of the manas, the six consciousnesses arise; because there are the bodily, verbal, and mental actions of the six consciousnesses, the name-and-form of future lives arises; because there is name-and-form, the six sense bases arise; because there are the six sense bases, contact arises; because there is contact, feeling arises; because there is feeling, craving arises; because there is craving, grasping arises; because there is grasping, existence arises; because there is existence, birth arises; with birth there is aging, death, sorrow, grief, suffering, and distress, and thereafter the great mass of birth-and-death suffering accumulates; and furthermore, through cultivation, the great mass of birth-and-death suffering is extinguished.

"Crossing over doubt" means that the Buddha has already severed all ignorance, has no doubts whatsoever, and is completely certain in knowing all dharmas, knowing the principles of all dharmas in the world and what the true reality of these dharmas is. But sentient beings have not yet crossed over doubt; they have far too many doubts and too much they do not understand, and therefore they love to quibble over appearances and phenomena—all of this stems from ignorance. The scope of ignorance is very broad; what sentient beings do not know is simply countless. If it were to be counted by number, the ignorance of sentient beings would be as numerous as the dust particles of the worlds in the ten directions.

Ignorance is of three kinds: fundamental ignorance, beginningless ignorance (avidyā), and dust-like ignorance/ignorance as numerous as dust. Even after enlightenment, there are still many things one does not understand on the path to buddhahood, as numerous as dust and sand. Even bodhisattvas of equal enlightenment still have fundamental ignorance that has not been broken; only when it is completely severed can one become a Buddha. To dwell long in ignorance is to dwell long in darkness. The most fundamental wrong view is self-view (ātma-dṛṣṭi); because there is a self, all afflictions come, and all wrong views arise from the self. Once self-view is severed, the other wrong views will be severed one by one along with it. The World-Honored One pulled out the thorn of wrong views for us; when all incorrect views are completely severed, ignorance is also completely severed. Where there is ignorance there are wrong views; even after enlightenment there are still wrong views—only upon becoming a Buddha are there no more wrong views.