Padmakara Translation Group

Chapter 24 - An Examination of the Truths of the Aryas

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1. "If all phenomena are empty [it is argued]

They do not arise nor do they cease to be.

It follows that for you [Madhyamikas]

The four truths of the Aryas do not exist.

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2. "And since the four truths of the Aryas do not exist,

Perfect understanding and relinquishing,

Meditation and attainment

None of these is tenable.

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3. "If these do not exist, the four results also do not exist,

And if the four results do not exist,

There are no 'beings who abide by the result,'

There are no 'candidates for the result.'

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4. "If these eight kinds of person don't exist,

It follows that there is no Sangha.

Since the four truths of the Aryas do not exist,

The supreme Dharma, too, does not exist.

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5. "If there is no Dharma and no Sangha,

How can Buddha come to be?

If thus you speak of emptiness,

You have impugned the Triple Gem—

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6. "And likewise the existence of results [of actions],

Virtue and nonvirtue.

And the world's conventions-

All these things you have impugned as well."

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7. To you who thus object, I say:

You have no understanding of the need of emptiness,

Of emptiness itself, and of the sense of emptiness.

And therefore it is you who have impugned these things!

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8. The Dharma that the buddhas teach

Is wholly founded on two truths:

The "all-concealing" truth of mundane beings

And the truth of ultimate reality.

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9. Whoever fails to understand

How the two truths are distinguished

Also fails to understand

The profound suchness taught by the enlightened ones.

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10. Without recourse to the conventional,

The ultimate cannot be shown.

Without the realization of the ultimate,

There is no gaining of nirvana.

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11. Because their view of voidness is inept,

Those with little wisdom are brought low.

It is as if they grasped a snake ineptly

Or ineptly cast a magic spell.

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12. Knowing thus how hard it is

For feeble minds to sound its depths,

The Buddha's heart did utterly draw back

From setting forth the Dharma.

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13. Falsely do you draw your consequences.

With regard to emptiness, they are not valid.

Your denial of emptiness

For me has no validity.

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14. Where emptiness is granted,

Everything is likewise granted.

Where emptiness is unacceptable,

All is likewise unacceptable.

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15. You charge me with a fault

That is your very own.

You're like the mounted man

Who overlooks the horse on which he rides!

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16. If you think phenomena exist

By virtue of their own intrinsic being,

Your view must be that, this being so,

All things are without causes and conditions.

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17. Thus results, together with their causes,

Agents, tools, and objects of activity,

Production and cessation and results:

All this you have disproved by such a ploy!

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18. Whatever is dependently arisen

This has been explained as empty.

In dependence upon something else it is imputed [as existent].

This is the Middle Way indeed.

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19. Because there's nothing that is not

Dependently arisen,

There is nothing

That's not empty.

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20. And if they were not empty, all these things

Could not arise, nor could they cease.

For you it therefore follows

That the four truths of the Aryas do not exist.

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21. How can suffering come to pass

If it does not dependently arise?

Impermanence, it has been taught, is suffering.

It cannot therefore have intrinsic being.

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22. If it has intrinsic being

How can it have origins?

For those therefore who impugn emptiness,

There is no [truth of] origin.

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23. If suffering has intrinsic being,

No cessation can it have.

By nature it will utterly remain.

Cessation therefore is refuted.

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24. If the path possesses an intrinsic being,

Its cultivation is untenable.

If the path is something we must cultivate,

It does not have the being you ascribe to it.

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25. If suffering, origin, cessation,

All are inexistent,

What end of sorrow, through the path,

Do you believe can be attained?

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26. If the lack of perfect understanding

Has itself intrinsic being,

How can perfect understanding come?

Do not intrinsically existent things remain?

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27. Likewise, what you call

Relinquishing, attainment, meditation,

Together with the four results,

These will, like perfect understanding, be impossible.

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28. For those who cling to an intrinsic being,

How can the result be gained,

When, through its own intrinsic being,

Nonachievement also has existence?

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29. If the result does not exist, there's no one who abides by the result,

Nor are there candidates for it.

Since these eight beings have no existence,

It follows that there is no Sangha.

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30. And since there are no Noble Truths,

Neither is there sacred Dharma.

And if there is no Dharma and no Sangha,

How could Buddha come to be?

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31. It follows that the Buddha, in your view,

Does not depend upon enlightenment.

And, in your view, enlightenment

Does not depend upon the Buddha.

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32. Those who are not buddhas (in your view intrinsically)

Although they strive in bodhisattva deeds

That they may gain enlightenment,

Enlightenment they cannot gain.

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33. No one ever practices

Virtue or nonvirtue.

For what is to be done with what's not empty?

There is no activity in that which has intrinsic being.

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34. And even when there is no right or wrong,

Their fruits, in your view, must exist.

Results that come from right or wrong,

According to your view, do not exist.

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35. If, in your view, results exist,

And come from good or ill,

Results like these how could they not be empty,

Coming as they do from right or wrong?

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36. Those who have rejected emptiness

Of that which is dependently arisen

Have rejected likewise

All the common practices of worldly beings.

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37. If you do away with emptiness,

There's no activity at all.

For there would be activity without its being started,

And agents there would be who do not act!

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38. If beings have intrinsic being,

They are unborn, and they can never cease.

They abide forever,

Free of any change of situation.

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39. If there is no emptiness,

No attainment can there be of what is unattained,

No ending can there be of sorrow,

No relinquishing of karma and defilements.

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40. But those who understand that things arise dependently

See likewise [the four truths]

Of Suffering and Origin,

Cessation and the Path.

Garfield

Chapter 24 - Examination of the Four Noble Truths

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1. If all of this is empty,

Neither arising nor ceasing,

Then for you, it follows that

The Four Noble Truths do not exist.

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2. If the Four Noble Truths do not exist,

Then knowledge, abandonment,

Meditation and manifestation

Will be completely impossible.

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3. If these things do not exist,

The four fruits will not arise.

Without the four fruits, there will be no attainers of the fruits.

Nor will there be the faithful.

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4. If so, the spiritual community will not exist.

Nor will the eight kinds of person.

If the Four Noble Truths do not exist,

There will be no true Dharma.

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5. If there is no doctrine and spiritual community,

How can there be a Buddha?

If emptiness is conceived in this way,

The three jewels are contradicted.

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6. Hence you assert that there are no real fruits.

And no Dharma. The Dharma itself

And the conventional truth

Will be contradicted.

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7. We say that this understanding of yours

Of emptiness and the purpose of emptiness

And of the significance of emptiness is incorrect.

As a consequence you are harmed by it.

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8. The Buddha's teaching of the Dharma

Is based on two truths:

A truth of worldly convention

And an ultimate truth.

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9. Those who do not understand

The distinction drawn between these two truths

Do not understand

The Buddha's profound truth.

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10. Without a foundation in the conventional truth,

The significance of the ultimate cannot be taught.

Without understanding the significance of the ultimate,

Liberation is not achieved.

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11. By a misperception of emptiness

A person of little intelligence is destroyed.

Like a snake incorrectly seized

Or like a spell incorrectly cast.

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12. For that reason-that the Dharma is

Deep and difficult to understand and to learn

The Buddha's mind despaired of

Being able to teach it.

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13. You have presented fallacious refutations

That are not relevant to emptiness.

Your confusion about emptiness

Does not belong to me.

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14. For him to whom emptiness is clear,

Everything becomes clear.

For him to whom emptiness is not clear,

Nothing becomes clear.

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15. When you foist on us

All of your errors

You are like a man who has mounted his horse

And has forgotten that very horse.

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16. If you perceive the existence of all things

In terms of their essence,

Then this perception of all things

Will be without the perception of causes and conditions.

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17. Effects and causes

And agent and action

And conditions and arising and ceasing

And effects will be rendered impossible.

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18. Whatever is dependently co-arisen

That is explained to be emptiness.

That, being a dependent designation,

Is itself the middle way.

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19. Something that is not dependently arisen,

Such a thing does not exist.

Therefore a nonempty thing

Does not exist.

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20. If all this were nonempty, as in your view,

There would be no arising and ceasing.

Then the Four Noble Truths

Would become nonexistent.

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21. If it is not dependently arisen,

How could suffering come to be?

Suffering has been taught to be impermanent,

And so cannot come from its own essence.

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22. If something comes from its own essence,

How could it ever be arisen?

It follows that if one denies emptiness

There can be no arising (of suffering).

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23. If suffering had an essence,

Its cessation would not exist.

So if an essence is posited,

One denies cessation.

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24. If the path had an essence,

Cultivation would not be appropriate.

If this path is indeed cultivated,

It cannot have an essence.

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25. If suffering, arising, and

Ceasing are nonexistent,

By what path could one seek

To obtain the cessation of suffering?

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26. If nonunderstanding comes to be

Through its essence,

How will understanding arise?

Isn't essence stable?

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27. In the same way, the activities of

Relinquishing, realizing, and meditating

And the four fruits

Would not be possible.

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28. For an essentialist,

Since the fruits through their essence

Are already unrealized,

In what way could one attain them?

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29. Without the fruits, there are no attainers of the fruits,

Or enterers. From this it follows that

The eight kinds of persons do not exist.

If these don't exist, there is no spiritual community.

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30. From the nonexistence of the Noble Truths

Would follow the nonexistence of the true doctrine.

If there is no doctrine and no spiritual community,

How could a Buddha arise?

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31. For you, it would follow that a Buddha

Arises independent of enlightenment.

And for you, enlightenment would arise

Independent of a Buddha.

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32. For you, one who through his essence

Was unenlightened,

Even by practicing the path to enlightenment

Could not achieve enlightenment.

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33. Moreover, one could never perform

Right or wrong actions.

If this were all nonempty what could one do?

That with an essence cannot be produced.

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34. For you, from neither right nor wrong actions

Would the fruit arise.

If the fruit arose from right or wrong actions,

According to you, it wouldn't exist.

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35. If, for you, a fruit arose

From right or wrong actions,

Then, having arisen from right or wrong actions,

How could that fruit be nonempty?

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36. If dependent arising is denied,

Emptiness itself is rejected.

This would contradict

All of the worldly conventions.

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37. If emptiness itself is rejected,

No action will be appropriate.

There would be action which did not begin,

And there would be agent without action.

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38. If there is essence, the whole world

Will be unarising, unceasing,

And static. The entire phenomenal world

Would be immutable.

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39. If it (the world) were not empty,

Then action would be without profit.

The act of ending suffering and

Abandoning misery and defilement would not exist.

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40. Whoever sees dependent arising

Also sees suffering

And its arising

And its cessation as well as the path.

Batchelor

Chapter 24 - Investigation of the Ennobling Truths

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1. "If all were empty, nothing could come about or perish. It would follow for you that the four ennobling truths could not exist.

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2. "Since the four ennobling truths would not exist, understanding, letting go, cultivating and realizing would no longer be valid.

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3. "Since they would not exist, the four fruits would also not exist. If the fruits did not exist, there could be no abiding in the fruits. Experiencing them would also not exist.

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4. "If those eight beings did not exist, the Community would not exist. Since there would be no ennobling truths, the sublime Dharma could also not exist.

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5. "If the Community and the Dharma did not exist, how could Buddha exist? When you talk of emptiness, the three Jewels are maligned.

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6. "The existence of actions and fruits, what is not Dharma and what is Dharma, the conventions of the world: all these too are maligned."

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7. An explanation for that: since you do not understand the need for emptiness, the nature of emptiness, and the point of emptiness, therefore in that way you malign.

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8. The Dharma taught by Buddhas perfectly relies on two truths: the ambiguous truths of the world and the truths of the sublime meaning.

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9. Those who do not understand the division into two truths, cannot understand the profound reality of the Buddha's teaching.

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10. Without relying on conventions, the sublime meaning cannot be taught. Without understanding the sublime meaning, one will not attain nirvana.

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11. If their view of emptiness is wrong, those of little intelligence will be hurt. Like handling a snake in the wrong way, or casting a spell in the wrong way.

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12. Therefore, knowing how difficult it is for the weak to understand the depths of this Dharma, the heart of the Muni strongly turned away from teaching the Dharma.

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13. Since [those] erroneous consequences do not apply to emptiness, whatever rejections you make of emptiness do not apply to me.

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14. Those for whom emptiness is possible, for them everything is possible. Those for whom emptiness is not possible, for them everything is not possible.

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15. You are transferring your own mistakes onto me. This is like mounting a horse but forgetting about the horse itself.

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16. If you view all things as existing from their own nature, then you would view all things as not having causes and conditions.

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17. Cause and effect itself, agents, tools and acts, production and cessation, the effects too would be undermined.

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18. Whatever is contingently related, that is explained as emptiness. That is contingently configured; it is the central path.

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19. Because there are no things at all, which are not contingently emergent, therefore, there are no things at all, which are not empty.

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20. If all were not empty, nothing could come about or perish. It would follow for you that the four ennobling truths could not exist.

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21. If things were not contingently emergent, how could anguish exist? Impermanent things are taught to be anguish; in their very own nature they do not exist.

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22. If it did exist from its own nature, why would it have an origin? Therefore, for those who undermine emptiness, it can have no origin.

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23. If anguish existed by its own nature, there could be no cessation. Because its own nature would be totally present, cessation too would be undermined.

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24. If the path existed by its own nature, cultivation would not be appropriate. If the path is to be cultivated, your own nature cannot exist.

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25. When anguish, origins and cessation cannot exist, what ceasing of anguish could one seek to attain by the path?

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26. If non-understanding existed by its very own nature, how could one ever understand? Doesn't it abide also - by nature?

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27. In the same way, your letting go, realizing, cultivating and the four fruits too are as impossible as understanding.

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28. How can any fruits, which totally hold their own nature and by their own nature are unattained, be attained?

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29. If the fruits did not exist, there could be no abiding in the fruits. Experiencing them would also not exist. If those eight beings did not exist, the Community would not exist.

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30. Since there would be no ennobling truths, the sublime Dharma could also not exist. If the Community and the Dharma did not exist, how could Buddha exist?

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31. It would also follow that your Buddha does not depend on awakening. It would also follow that your awakening does not depend on Buddha.

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32. For you, someone who by their very nature is not Buddha, could not attain awakening however much you strive in the practice of awakening for the sake of awakening.

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33. No one would ever do what is Dharma and what is not Dharma. What can that which is not empty do? Inherent nature is inactive.

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34. Even without Dharma and not-Dharma, you would have the fruits. You would not have the fruits which have arisen from the causes of Dharma and not-Dharma.

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35. If you have the fruits which have arisen from the causes of Dharma and not-Dharma, why are the fruits which have arisen from the Dharma and not-Dharma not empty?

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36. Whoever undermines emptiness which is contingent emergence also undermines all the conventions of the world.

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37. If one undermines emptiness, there would be no actions at all and actions without an author and agents who do not act.

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38. If there were inherent nature, all beings would be unborn and unceasing, would be fixed in place forever, separated from the variety of situations.

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39. If [things] were not empty, there could be no attainment of what had not been attained, no ending of anguish and no letting go of all actions and afflictions.

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40. He who sees contingent emergence sees anguish and origins and cessation and the path itself.

Streng

Chapter 24 - An Analysis of the Holy Truths (aryasatya) - 40 verses

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1. If everything is empty, there is no origination nor destruction.

Then you must incorrectly conclude that there is non-existence of the four holy truths.

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2. If there is non-existence of the four holy truths, the saving knowledge, the elimination [of illusion],

The "becoming" [enlightened] (bhavana), and the "realization" [of the goal] are impossible.

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3. If there is non-existence, then also the four holy "fruits" do not exist.

In the non-existence of fruit there is no "residing in fruit" nor obtaining.

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4. When the community [of Buddhists] does not exist, then those eight "kinds of persons" [i.e., four abiding in the fruit and four who are obtaining] do not exist.

Because there is non-existence of the four holy truths, the real dharma does not exist.

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5. And if there are no dharma and community, how will the Buddha exist?

By speaking thus, [that everything is empty] certainly you deny the three jewels [i.e., the Buddha, the dharma, and the community].

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6. You deny the real existence of a product, of right and wrong,

And all the practical behavior of the world as being empty.

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7. We reply that you do not comprehend the point of emptiness;

You eliminate both "emptiness" itself and its purpose from it.

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8. The teaching by the Buddhas of the dharma has recourse to two truths:

The world-ensconced truth (T1) and the truth which is the highest sense (T2).

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9. Those who do not know the distribution (vibhagam) of the two kinds of truth

Do not know the profound "point" (tattva) (T3) in the teaching of the Buddha.

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10. The highest sense [of the truth] (T2) is not taught apart from practical behavior (T1),

And without having understood the highest sense (T2) one cannot understand nirvana (T3).

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11. Emptiness, having been dimly perceived, utterly destroys the slow-witted.

It is like a snake wrongly grasped or [magical] knowledge incorrectly applied.

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12. Therefore the mind of the ascetic [Guatama] was diverted from teaching the dharma,

Having thought about the incomprehensibility of the dharma by the stupid.

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13. Time and again you have made a condemnation of emptiness,

But that refutation does not apply to our emptiness.

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14. When emptiness "works", then everything in existence "works". (A)

If emptiness "does not work", then all existence "does not work". (B)

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15. You, while projecting your own faults on us, (i.e. objectifying emptiness)

Are like a person who, having mounted his horse, forgot the horse!(i.e. a tool)

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16. If you recognize real existence on account of the self-existence of things,

You perceive that there are uncaused and unconditioned things.

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17. You deny "what is to be produced," cause, the producer, the instrument of production, and the producing action,

And the origination, destruction, and "fruit."

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18. The "originating dependently" we call "emptiness";

This apprehension, i.e., taking into account [all other things], is the understanding of the middle way.

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19. Since there is no dharma whatever originating independently,

No dharma whatever exists which is not empty.

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20. If all existence is not empty, there is neither origination nor destruction.

You must wrongly conclude then that the four holy truths do not exist.

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21. Having originated without being conditioned, how will sorrow (dukkha) come into existence?

It is said that sorrow (dukkha) is not eternal; therefore, certainly it does not exist by its own nature (svabbava).

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22. How can that which is existing by its own nature originate again?

For him who denies emptiness there is no production.

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23. There is no destruction of sorrow (dukkha) if it exists by its own nature.

By trying to establish "self-existence" you deny destruction.

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24. If the path [of release] is self-existent, then there is no way of bringing it into existence (bhavana);

If that path is brought into existence, then "self-existence," which you claim does not exist.

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25. When sorrow (dukkha), origination, and destruction do not exist,

What kind of path will obtain the destruction of sorrow (dukkha)?

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26. If there is no complete knowledge as to self-existence, how [can there be] any knowledge of it?

Indeed, is it not true that self-existence is that which endures?

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27. As in the case of complete knowledge, neither destruction, realization, "bringing into existence,"

Nor are the four holy fruits possible for you.

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28. If you accept "self-existence," and a "fruit" is not known by its self-existence,

How can it be known at all?

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29. In the non-existence of "fruit," there is no "residing in fruit" nor obtaining [the "fruit"];

When the community [of Buddhists] does not exist, then those eight "kinds of persons" do not exist.

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30. Because there is non-existence of the four holy truths, the real dharma does not exist.

And if there is no dharma and community, how will the Buddha exist?

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31. For you, either the one who is enlightened (buddha) comes into being independent of enlightenment,

Or enlightenment comes into being independent of the one who is enlightened.

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32. For you, some one who is a non-buddha by his own nature (svabhava) but strives for enlightenment (i.e. a Bodhisattva)

Will not attain the enlightenment though the "way of life of becoming fully enlightened."

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33. Neither the dharma nor non-dharma will be done anywhere.

What is produced which is non-empty? Certainly self-existence is not produced.

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34. Certainly, for you, there is a product without [the distinction] of dharma or non-dharma.

Since, for you, the product caused by dharma or non-dharma does not exist.

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35. If, for you, the product is caused by dharma or non-dharma, be non-empty?

How can that product, being originated by dharma or non-dharma empty?

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36. You deny all mundane and customary activities

When you deny emptiness [in the sense of] dependent co-origination (patytya-samutpada).

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37. If you deny emptiness, there would be action which is unactivated.

There would be nothing whatever acted upon, and a producing action would be something not begun.

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38. According to [the doctrine of] "self-existence" the world is free from different conditions;

Then it will exist as unproduced, undestroyed and immutable.

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39. If non-emptiness does not exist, then something is attained which is not attained;

There is cessation of sorrow (dukkha) and actions, and all evil is destroyed.

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40. He who perceives dependent co-origination (patytya-samutpada)

Also understands sorrow (dukkha), origination, and destruction as well as the path [of release].