中陰經卷上
The Intermediate State Sutra, Volume 1
後秦涼州沙門竺佛念譯
Translated by the Later Qin Dynasty monk Zhu Fonian of Liangzhou.
如來五弘誓入中陰教化品第一
Chapter 1: The Tathagata's Five Great Vows for Guiding Beings in the Intermediate State
如是我聞：
This is what I heard:
一時佛在迦毘羅婆兜雙樹北四十九步耶維處。
At that time, the Buddha was in the place of his cremation, forty-nine steps north of the twin sal trees in Kapilavastu.
八日夜半明星出時，爾時，如來忽然離碎身舍利，如諸佛五弘誓法：
At the eighth watch, in the middle of the night, when the morning star appeared, the Tathagata suddenly left the physical relics, in accordance with the five great vows of all Buddhas.
當生之時，天地六反震動，十方諸佛皆來扶助，是謂一弘誓法。云何為六反震動？東踊西沒、西踊東沒、北踊南沒、南踊北沒、四面都踊則中央沒、中央踊則四面沒。
At the moment of his birth, heaven and earth quaked in six ways, and all the Buddhas of the ten directions came to support him. This is known as the Great Vow. What are these six ways of quaking? The east rises while the west sinks; the west rises while the east sinks; the north rises while the south sinks; the south rises while the north sinks; all four sides rise while the center sinks; the center rises while all four sides sink.
當其如來初舉一足行七步，天下大動，十方諸佛皆來扶助，是謂二弘誓法。
When the Tathagata first took a step and walked seven paces, the entire world quaked, and all the Buddhas of the ten directions came to assist. This is called the Second Great Vow.
如來往詣菩提樹下結跏趺坐：「吾不成佛不起于坐。」爾時天地大動，十方諸佛皆來扶助，是謂三弘誓法。
The Tathāgata went to the Bodhi tree and sat in the lotus position, vowing: "I will not rise from this seat until I attain enlightenment." At that moment, heaven and earth quaked, and all the buddhas of the ten directions came to support and assist. This is known as the three great vows.
如來之名波旬雖聞心不怯弱，誓願力故，天地大動，十方諸佛皆來扶助，是謂四弘誓法。
Even when the demon Pāpīyas hears the name of the Tathāgata, the mind does not shrink in fear. By the power of their vow, heaven and earth tremble greatly, and all the buddhas of the ten directions come to support and aid them. This is known as the Dharma of the Four Great Vows.
如來捨身壽命，現取滅度，入於中陰教化眾生，爾時天地大動，十方諸佛皆來勸讚，是謂五弘誓法。
Thus the Tathagata relinquished his physical lifespan and appeared to enter final liberation, abiding in the intermediate state to teach and transform beings. At that time, the heavens and earth trembled greatly, and all the Buddhas of the ten directions came to encourage and praise him. This is known as the teaching of the Five Great Vows.
爾時，世尊入火炎三昧，離碎身舍利，去地七仞坐寶蓮華，使無量無限那由他眾生——天、龍、鬼神、阿修羅、甄陀羅、乾闥婆、迦留羅、鳩槃荼、富單那、人非人——皆見如來坐寶蓮華。
At that time, the World-Honored One entered the Fire-Transforming Samadhi. He left behind discarded bodily relics and rose seven fathoms above the ground to sit upon a jeweled lotus flower. He enabled countless, limitless beings—gods, dragons, spirits, asuras, gandharvas, kimnaras, garudas, kumbhandas, putanas, and non-human beings—all to see the Tathagata seated on the jeweled lotus flower.
爾時，世尊向舍利而說頌曰：
At that time, the World-Honored One spoke a verse to Shariputra:
「於無數劫中， 養汝地種界，
吾今離汝去， 如蛇脫皮樂。
五道生死中， 無處不有汝，
權時得相離、 寂滅無所著，
威神接地種， 非汝不得度。
咄嗟！別離苦， 生死牽連著，
諸佛威神接， 所度阿僧祇。」
"For countless eons, I have nourished your earthly realm; Now I depart from you, Like a snake shedding its skin—what bliss!
In the five paths of birth-and-death, You are present everywhere; At last I can part from you for a time, In utter stillness, without any clinging.
Your mighty spirit, tied to earth, Without you, I could not be saved. Alas! The pain of parting, Bound as we are by life and death;
But the power of all Buddhas embraces, Saving countless beings beyond measure."
爾時，世尊說此頌已，從脚心上至肉髻放八十四千億光，普照三千大千世界，上至虛空界，其中眾生皆見光明，或有尋光來者、或有諸佛遣諸菩薩來至忍界者。
At that time, the World-Honored One, having spoken this verse, emitted eighty-four thousand billion rays of light from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head. This light illuminated the entire universe of three thousand great worlds, reaching all the way to the realm of space. All beings within this realm witnessed this radiance. Some followed the light and came forth, while others were sent by various Buddhas—those Buddhas dispatched bodhisattvas to come to this world of Endurance.
爾時，世尊內自思惟：「此中陰形極為微細，唯佛、世尊獨能覩見，然此眾生——有學、無學，一住、二住乃至九住——非彼境界所能覩見。吾今以佛威神入照明三昧，令四部眾，比丘、比丘尼、優婆塞、優婆夷，覩此微形。」
At that time, the World-Honored One thought to himself: "This intermediate form is extremely subtle; only a Buddha, a World-Honored One, can perceive it. However, these beings—those in training, those beyond training, those in the first stage, the second stage, and so on up to the ninth stage—cannot perceive such a state with their own abilities. Now, by my Buddha’s majestic spiritual power, I will enter the Illumination Samadhi, so that the fourfold assembly—monks, nuns, laymen, and laywomen—may see this subtle form."
爾時，世尊次入無礙定，觀此空界眾生，生者、滅者，如諸如來所行禁戒，虛無寂寞，觀不淨想、百七十行苦本因緣乃至生死十二縛著。
At that time, the World-Honored One entered the state of unobstructed meditation and observed the beings in this realm of emptiness—those being born and those passing away. He saw them in accordance with the precepts and practices of all Tathāgatas: empty, still, and tranquil. He contemplated the perception of impurity and the one hundred seventy kinds of conduct that are the root causes of suffering, extending even to the twelve entanglements of birth and death.
爾時，世尊復說頌曰：
At that time, the World-Honored One spoke these verses:
「今當入微妙， 極細中陰形，
化彼眾生類， 倍於閻浮提。
常相無所著、 樂相空無定，
建立道德根， 捨壽無所染。
本從阿僧祇， 濟彼難度人，
況此微妙形？ 無過此最難。
吾今弘誓心， 無雜、無所染，
菩提道德根， 梵行究竟法。」
"I now enter the subtle form — the extremely fine intermediate state — to transform countless beings, more than in Jambudvīpa.
The mark of 'permanence' is ungraspable; the mark of 'bliss' is empty, without fixed abode. I establish the roots of virtue, leaving life without attachment.
From beginningless eons, I have rescued those hard to save — how much more so with this subtle form? Nothing is more difficult than this.
Now, with this vow of great compassion — undivided, undefiled — I realize the root of enlightenment and the pure, ultimate path."
爾時，世尊說此頌已，復放眉間白毫相光，普照東方無量無限那由他世界；南方、西方、北方亦爾。爾時，世尊還攝光明，繞佛七匝從頂上入。
At that time, after the World-Honored One had spoken this gatha, he once again emitted a white hair-mark light from between his eyebrows, universally illuminating countless and infinite worlds in the eastern direction—and likewise in the southern, western, and northern directions. Then the World-Honored One retracted that light, which circled the Buddha seven times before entering through the crown of his head.
爾時，彌勒菩薩即從坐起，偏露右臂，右膝著地，合掌叉手，前白佛言：「快哉，世尊！昔所未聞、昔所未見。中陰眾生形質極細，壽命長短、飲食、好醜為何等類？願樂欲聞。」
At that time, the bodhisattva Maitreya rose from his seat, bared his right shoulder, knelt on his right knee, joined his palms together, and addressed the Buddha: "Excellent, World-Honored One! This has never been heard before, nor ever been seen before. For beings in the intermediate state (bardo), their forms are extremely subtle—what are the lengths of their lifespans, their sustenance, and their appearances—whether beautiful or ugly? We eagerly wish to hear this."
世尊告曰：「諦聽諦聽，善思念之，吾當與汝一一分別。云何，彌勒！閻浮提兒生墮地乃至三歲，母之懷抱為飲幾乳？」
The World-Honored One said, "Listen carefully, listen carefully, and reflect on this well. I will explain it to you in detail. Tell me, Maitreya, from the moment a child is born in Jambudvipa until the age of three, how many times does the mother nurse the child in her arms?"
彌勒答曰：「飲乳一百八十斛，除母腹中所食血分。」
Maitreya replied: "Drink one hundred eighty hu of milk, excluding the blood portion consumed while in the mother's womb."
「東弗于逮兒生墮地乃至三歲，飲乳一千八百斛；西拘耶尼兒生墮地乃至三歲，飲乳八百八十斛；北欝單曰兒生墮地坐著陌頭，行人授指，𠲿指七日成人，彼土無乳；中陰眾生飲吸於風。
A child born in East Pūrvavideha drinks 1,800 hu of milk from birth to age three. A child born in West Aparagodānīya drinks 880 hu of milk from birth to age three. In North Uttarakuru, a newborn is laid at a crossroads. Passersby put a finger in its mouth, and after seven days of sucking on fingers, it becomes an adult. There is no milk in that land. Beings in the intermediate state sustain themselves by inhaling wind.
「閻浮提眾生壽命百歲、東弗于逮壽命五百歲、西拘耶尼壽命二百五十歲、北欝單曰壽命千歲、中陰眾生壽命七日。
"Human beings in Jambudvipa have a lifespan of one hundred years. In Purvavideha, the lifespan is five hundred years. In Aparagodaniya, the lifespan is two hundred fifty years. In Uttarakuru, the lifespan is one thousand years. Beings in the intermediate state have a lifespan of seven days."
「閻浮提人面上廣下狹、弗于逮人面正圓、拘耶尼人面上狹下廣、欝單曰人面正方、中陰眾生面狀如化自在天。」
Floating Continent beings have faces that are broader at the top and narrower at the chin. Eastern Continent beings have perfectly round faces. Western Continent beings have faces that are narrower at the top and broader at the chin. Northern Continent beings have faces that are square. Beings in the intermediate state between death and rebirth have faces like those of the gods of the realm of freely enjoying creations.
自此以還，釋迦牟尼名號已滅，妙覺如來出現於世。如來、應供、正遍知、明行足、善逝、世間解、無上士、調御丈夫、天人師、佛、世尊在虛空中坐寶蓮花，放舌相光明，照東方八十七億恒河沙數。
From this point onward, the name Shakyamuni has faded away, and the Wondrous Enlightenment Tathagata appears in the world. The Tathagata, the Worthy One, the Perfectly Enlightened One, the One with Perfect Knowledge and Conduct, the Well-Gone One, the Knower of the World, the Supreme One, the Tamer of Humans, the Teacher of Gods and Humans, the Buddha, the World-Honored One—sits in the sky on a precious lotus, radiating the light of his tongue, illuminating eighty-seven billion Ganges sands’ worth of worlds in the eastern direction.
彼國名化，佛名堅固，十號具足，一乘教化。見此光明，告諸菩薩、諸族姓子：「汝等見此光明不乎？」對曰：「唯然已見。世尊！不審此光，何佛光明照此世界？」彼佛告曰：「西方去此八十七億恒河沙數，世界名娑呵，佛號釋迦牟尼，今取滅度，捨身舍利，欲入中陰教化，是妙覺如來光明。汝等欲往，今正是時。」爾時，彼土菩薩百三十億，受佛教誡來至忍界。佛告之曰：「汝到彼土禮事供養，勿懷懈慢，持吾名號問訊妙覺如來：『興居輕利、遊步強耶？』」菩薩受教，禮彼佛足，右繞七匝，忽然不現，來至娑呵世界。
The name of that land is Transformation, and the Buddha there is called Adaman. He is fully endowed with the Ten Epithets and teaches through the One Vehicle. Seeing this light, the Buddha said to the Bodhisattvas and disciples: "Do you see this radiance?" They replied: "Yes, World-Honored One, we see it. May we ask which Buddha’s light is shining on this world?" That Buddha replied: "To the west from here, passing through eighty-seven billion Ganges sands of worlds, there is a land called Saha. The Buddha there is Shakyamuni, who has now entered Parinirvana, abandoned his body and relics, and is about to enter the intermediate state to teach. This is the light of the Buddha of Wonderful Enlightenment. If you wish to go there, now is the time."
At that time, thirteen billion Bodhisattvas from that land, under the Buddha’s instruction, arrived in the Endurance World. The Buddha told them: "When you reach that land, honor and make offerings with reverence, without negligence or arrogance. In my name, greet the Buddha of Wonderful Enlightenment, asking: 'Does Your Reverence rest well, walk with ease, and remain in good health?'" After receiving these instructions, the Bodhisattvas bowed at the Buddha’s feet, circumambulated him seven times to the right, and vanished instantly, arriving in the Saha World.
南方去此八十七億恒河沙數，世界名解脫，佛號真淨如來，十號具足，告諸菩薩：「汝等見此光明不乎？」對曰：「唯然見之，不審此光是何佛光照此世界？」彼佛告曰：「北方去此八十七億恒河沙數，世界名娑呵，佛號釋迦牟尼，今取滅度，捨身舍利，欲入中陰教化，是妙覺如來光明。汝等欲往，今正是時。」爾時，彼土菩薩百三十億受佛教誡來至忍界。佛告之曰：「汝到彼土親事供養，勿懷懈慢，持吾名號問訊妙覺如來：『興居輕利、遊步強耶？』」菩薩受教，禮彼佛足，右繞七匝，忽然不現，來至娑呵世界。
Eighty-seven billion Ganges-river sand grains' distance to the south of here lies a world called Liberation. Its Buddha is named the Thus-Come One of True Purity, complete with the ten epithets. He announced to the Bodhisattvas there, "Do you see this light?" They replied, "Yes, we see it. We wonder which Buddha's light is shining on this world." That Buddha said, "To the north, eighty-seven billion Ganges-river sand grains' distance away, is a world called Saha. Its Buddha is named Shakyamuni. He is now entering Parinirvana, having abandoned his body and relics, and is about to enter the intermediate state to teach. This is the light of the Thus-Come One of Wonderful Enlightenment. If you wish to go, now is the time."
Then, thirteen billion Bodhisattvas from that land, having received the Buddha's instruction, came to the realm of endurance. The Buddha told them, "When you arrive in that land, serve and make offerings with respect. Do not be negligent or arrogant. In my name, ask the Thus-Come One of Wonderful Enlightenment: 'Are you at ease and well? Is your movement free and strong?'" The Bodhisattvas accepted the teaching, bowed at the Buddha's feet, circumambulated him seven times to the right, and vanished instantly. Then they arrived in the Saha world.
北方去此八十七億恒河沙數，世界名琉璃，佛號雷音如來，十號具足，告諸菩薩：「汝等見此光明不乎？」對曰：「唯然已見，不審此光是何佛光明照此世界？」彼佛告曰：「南方去此八十七億恒河沙數，世界名娑呵，佛號釋迦牟尼，今取滅度，捨身舍利，欲入中陰教化，是妙覺如來光明。汝等欲往，今正是時。」爾時，彼土菩薩百三十億，受佛教誡來至忍界。佛告之曰：「汝到彼土禮事供養，勿懷懈慢，持吾名號問訊妙覺如來：『興居輕利、遊步強耶？』」菩薩受教，禮彼佛足，右繞七匝，忽然不現，來至娑呵世界。
"To the north, at a distance of eight billion, seven hundred million Ganges-river sands, there is a world called Lapis Lazuli. The Buddha there is called the Thunderous Voice Tathāgata, fully possessed of the ten honorable titles. He said to the bodhisattvas: 'Do you see this light?' They replied: 'Yes, we already see it. But we do not know which Buddha’s light it is, illuminating this world.' That Buddha told them: 'To the south, at a distance of eight billion, seven hundred million Ganges-river sands, there is a world called Saha. The Buddha there is called Shakyamuni. He is now entering final cessation, relinquishing his body and relics, and wishes to teach within the intermediate state. This light is that of the Wondrous Enlightenment Tathāgata. If you wish to go, now is the time.'
At that time, thirteen billion bodhisattvas from that land received the Buddha’s instruction and then came to the world of endurance. The Buddha told them: 'When you reach that land, pay homage and make offerings. Do not be negligent or disrespectful. Carry my name and inquire after the Wondrous Enlightenment Tathāgata, saying: "Are your daily activities light and pleasant? Do you roam at ease?"' The bodhisattvas received the teaching, bowed at that Buddha’s feet, circumambulated him seven times to the right, and then vanished instantly, arriving in the Saha world."
東北方去此八十七億恒河沙數，世界名空淨，佛號虛空藏，十號具足，菩薩百三十億；東南方去此八十七億恒河沙數，世界名熾然，佛號廣顯如來，十號具足，菩薩百三十億；西南方去此八十七億恒河沙數，世界名星宿，佛號月光如來，十號具足，菩薩百三十億；西北方去此八十七億恒河沙數，世界名壞魔，佛號勇猛伏如來，十號具足，菩薩百三十億；上方去此八十七億恒河沙數，世界名海跡，佛號上妙如來，十號具足，菩薩百三十億。
下方去此八十七億恒河沙數，世界名通達，佛號無畏如來、應供、正遍知、明行足、善逝、世間解、無上士、調御丈夫、天人師、佛、世尊，告諸菩薩：「汝等見此光明不乎？」對曰：「唯然已見，不審此光明是何佛光明照此世界？」彼佛告曰：「上方八十七億恒河沙數，世界名娑呵，佛號釋迦牟尼，今取滅度，捨身舍利，欲入中陰教化，是妙覺如來光明。卿等欲往，今正是時。」彼佛土菩薩百三十億，受佛教誡來至忍界。佛告之曰：「汝到彼土禮事供養，勿懷懈慢，持吾名號問訊妙覺如來：『興居輕利、遊步強耶？』」菩薩受教，禮彼佛足，右繞七匝，忽然不現，來至娑呵世界禮事供養妙覺如來，頭面禮足，各一面坐。
爾時，妙覺如來出廣長舌，左右過耳，如優鉢赤蓮花色：「吾從無數阿僧祇劫行至清淨，無有虛妄。吾所度眾生因緣已畢，如棄屍骸在曠野中，今復造緣，更始立行。今此菩薩有立根得力、有初發意者，復有四眾未踐跡者，當以佛力威神接引，令彼大眾知過去、當來、今現在佛不可思議難有之法。」
爾時，世尊即說頌曰：
「世多愚惑人， 不入無漏撿，
還在五道中， 染污不淨行。
我雖於忍界， 拔濟五欲苦，
善哉！昔所願， 今日已成辦。
如人唾於地， 智者誰能飲？
吾從無數劫， 修佛清淨行，
捨身復受身， 非一劫、二劫。
若有明智者， 把土畫舍利，
況復覩我形， 有不解脫者？
生死晝夜長， 愚在五道長，
斷滅無道長， 求佛泥洹長。
本號釋迦文， 留身舍利化，
今當入空界， 中陰度萌類。」
爾時，世尊說是頌時，八萬四千那由他眾生厭患生死，皆發無上正真道意；復有七十億眾生諸塵垢盡，得法眼淨；魔界菩薩七千萬眾即從坐起，收攝衣服，摩訶而去。