The Sutra on Impermanence
I
prostrate and take refuge in the Unsurpassed One
Who, with endless vows of
great compassion,
Ferries sentient beings across the stream of birth and death,
To
reach the safe haven of nirvana.
With great charity, morality, tolerance, and
diligence,
One-mind, expedience, right wisdom, and power,
Having reached
perfection in benefiting self and others,
He is called the Tamer, Teacher of
Heavenly and Human Beings.
I prostrate and take refuge in the wondrous
Dharma Treasury;
The principle of three "Fours" and two "Fives"
are perfect and clear,
The "Seven" and "Eight" can open
the gate to the Four Truths,
By which cultivators reach the shore of the Unconditioned.
The
Dharma clouds and Dharma rain imbue all beings,
Eliminating searing afflictions
and illnesses,
Tempering and converting the obstinate,
Guiding everyone
appropriately, not by force.
I prostrate and take refuge in the saints,
The
superior beings of the eight stages,
Who can be freed from defilements.
With
the vajra scepter of wisdom,
They shatter the mountain of delusions,
Forever
severing the beginningless ties and fetters.
In the epoch from Deer Park to
the Twin Trees,
They follow the Buddha in propagating the True Teaching.
According
to individual vows and karma, they complete
Their missions, realize nonbirth,
and abide in stillness
With body and knowledge extinguished.
I prostrate
and venerate the Three Jewels,
The true source of liberation for all,
Leading
those drowning in samsara
From foolish delusion to enlightenment.
All
who are born will die,
All beauty will fade,
The strong are stricken by
illness,
And no one can escape.
Even the great Mt. Sumeru
Will erode
by the kalpa's end.
The vast and fathomless seas
Will eventually dry up.
The
earth, sun and moon
Will all perish in due time.
Not one thing in the world
Can escape impermanence.
From the Neither Thought nor Non-Thought Heaven,
Down
to the Wheel-Turning Kings,
Accompanied by the seven treasures,
Surrounded
by a thousand sons,
When their lives have ended,
Without a moment's delay,
They drift again in the sea of death,
And suffer according to their karma.
Transmigrating
within the Triple Realm
Is like the turning of a well-bucket's wheel,
And
also like a silkworm,
Spinning a cocoon to confine itself.
Even the unsurpassed
Buddhas,
Pratyekabuddhas and shravakas,
Give up their impermanent bodies,
Why
not ordinary beings!
Parents, spouses, and children,
Siblings and other
relatives,
Witnessing the separation of life and death,
Don't all lament
and grieve?
Therefore everyone is urged
To heed the true Dharma,
Renounce
what is impermanent,
And practice the Deathless Path.
Like sweet dew that
cools and purifies,
The Dharma eradicates all afflictions.
So listen with
one-mind!
Thus have I heard.
Once, the Bhagavat was at the Jetavana
Grove
in Anathapindada Park in Shravasti.
At that time the Buddha told
the bhiksus:
In this world there are three things
that are not likable,
not lustrous, not desired, and not agreeable.
What are the three? Aging, illness,
and death.
Bhiksus! Aging, illness, and death, of all things in this world,
are truly not likable, not lustrous, not desired, and not agreeable.
If
there were no aging, illness, and death in the world,
Tathagata, the Worthy
and Fully Enlightened One,
need not appear in this world, to speak to all
sentient beings
on how to cultivate and what can be attained.
Therefore,
you should know that aging, illness, and death,
of all things in this world,
are not likable, not lustrous, not desired, and not agreeable.
Because
of these three things, Tathagata,
the Worthy and Fully Enlightened One,
appears
in the world, to speak to all sentient beings
on how to cultivate and what
can be attained.
Then the World Honored One
reiterated this teaching in
a gatha:
All external splendor will perish,
Likewise the body will
decay.
Only the superior Dharma will endure.
The wise should discern clearly.
Aging,
illness, and death are resented by all;
Their appearance is dreadful and repulsive.
The
countenance of youth is fleeting,
Soon it will wither and fade;
Even living
to a hundred years, still
One must give in to the force of impermanence.
The
suffering of aging, illness, and death
Constantly afflicts all sentient beings.
When the World Honored One had spoken this sutra,
all the bhiksus,
devas, dragons, yaksas,
ghandaras, asuras and so forth greatly rejoiced;
they
accepted and followed the teaching faithfully.
Always pursuing worldly
desires,
And not performing good deeds,
How can you maintain your body and
life,
And not see the approach of death?
When the breath of life is ending,
Limbs
and joints separate,
The agonies of death converge,
And you can only lament.
Eyes
roll up, the blade of death
Strikes down with the force of karma.
The mind
fills with fear and confusion,
And no one can save you.
Gasping, the chest
heaves rapidly;
Shortened breaths parch the throat.
The king of death
demands your life,
And relatives can only stand by.
All consciousness becomes
hazy and dim,
As you enter the city of peril.
Friends and relatives
forsake you,
As the rope drags you away
To the place of King Yama,
Where
fate is determined by karma.
Virtuous deeds give rise to good destinies,
And
bad karma plunges one into hell.
There is no vision clearer than wisdom,
And
nothing darker than ignorance,
There is no sickness worse than hatred,
And
no greater fear than death.
All that live must die;
Commit sins and the
body suffers.
Be diligent in examining the three karmas,
Always cultivate
merits and wisdom.
All your relatives will desert you,
All possessions will
be gone;
You have only your virtues
As sustenance on this treacherous path.
Like
those who rest by a roadside tree,
They will not linger long;
Wife, children,
carriages, and horses
Will likewise soon be gone.
Like birds that gather
at night,
Going their separate ways at dawn;
So death callously parts all
relatives and friends.
Only Buddha's enlightenment is our true refuge.
I
have spoken in brief according to the sutras
The wise should reflect and take
heed.
Devas, asuras, yaksas and so forth who come,
Hear Buddha's
teachings with utmost sincerity!
Uphold the Dharma so it may endure,
Each
of you should practice with diligence.
All sentient beings who come for the
teachings,
Whether on land or in the air,
Always be kind-hearted in this
world,
Abide in the Dharma day and night.
May all worlds be safe and peaceful;
May
infinite blessings and wisdom benefit all beings.
May all sinful karma and
suffering be removed;
May all enter perfect stillness.
Anoint the body with
the fragrance of precepts,
And sustain it with the strength of samadhi;
Adorn
the world with flowers of bodhi wisdom,
Dwell in peace and joy wherever you
are.