Heart Sutra: The Heart of the Blessed Mother Perfection of Wisdom

Homage to the Perfection of Wisdom, the Blessed Mother.

Thus I have heard. At one time the Blessed One was dwelling in Rajagriha on Massed Vultures Mountain together with a great assembly of monks and Bodhisattvas. At that time, the Blessed One was absorbed in the concentration of the countless aspects of phenomena, called Profound Illumination.

At that time also the Superior Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva, the Great Being, was looking perfectly at the practice of the profound perfection of wisdom, looking perfectly at the emptiness of inherent existence also of the five aggregates.

Then, through the power of Buddha, the Venerable Shariputra said to the Superior Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva, the Great Being, “How should a son of the lineage train who wishes to engage in the practice of the profound Perfection of Wisdom?”

Thus he spoke, and the Superior Avalokiteshvara, Great Being, replied to Venerable Shariputra as follows: “Shariputra, whatever son or daughter of the lineage wishes to engage in the practice of the profound Perfection of Wisdom should look perfectly like this: subsequently looking perfectly and correctly at the emptiness of inherent existence also of the five aggregates.”

“Form is empty; emptiness is form. Emptiness is not other than form; form also is not other than emptiness. Likewise, feeling, discrimination, compositional factors and consciousness are empty.”

“Shariputra, like this, all phenomena are merely empty, having no characteristics. They are not produced and do not cease. They have no defilement and no separation from defilement. They have no decrease and no increase.”

“Therefore, Shariputra, in emptiness there is no form, no feeling, no discrimination, no compositional factors, no consciousness. There is no eye, no ear, no nose, no tongue, no body, no mind; no form, no sound, no smell, no taste, no tactile object, no phenomenon. There is no eye element and so forth up to no mind element and also up to no element of mental consciousness. There is no ignorance and no exhaustion of ignorance, and so forth up to no ageing and death and no exhaustion of ageing and death. Likewise, there is no suffering, origin, cessation or path; no exalted wisdom, no attainment and also no non-attainment.”

“Since that is the case, Shariputra, Bodhisattvas do not attain anything. By relying upon and abiding by way of the Perfection of Wisdom, their minds have no obscuration and no fear! By passing completely beyond mistaken minds they go to ultimate nirvana. It is by relying upon the Perfection of Wisdom that all Buddhas of the three times manifest full awakening in unexcelled, complete, perfect enlightenment!”

“Therefore, the mantra of the Perfection of Wisdom, the mantra of great knowledge, the unsurpassed mantra, the equal-to-the-unequalled mantra, the mantra that thoroughly pacifies all suffering, since it is not false, should be known as the truth. The mantra of the Perfection of Wisdom is proclaimed:

TAYATHA OM GATE GATE PARAGATE PARASAMGATE BODHI SOHA

“Shariputra, a Bodhisattva, a Great Being, should train in the profound Perfection of Wisdom like this.”

Then the Blessed One arose from that concentration and said to the Superior Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva, the Great Being, that he had spoken well: “Good, good, O son of the lineage. It is like that. Since it is like that, just as you have revealed, in that way the profound Perfection of Wisdom should be practiced, and the Tathagatas will also rejoice!”

When the Blessed One had said this, the Venerable Shariputra, the Superior Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva, the Great Being, and that entire assembly of disciples as well as the worldly beings – gods, humans, demi-gods and spirits – were delighted and highly praised what had been spoken by the Blessed One.

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Introduction

The Heart Sutra (Tib. sherab nyingpo, Skt. Prajnaparamita Hridaya Sutra) is the short title for the Heart of Wisdom scripture which belongs to the well-known class of Buddhist scriptures known as the Perfection of Wisdom sutras. The central theme of the Heart Sutra is the empty nature of all phenomena. The Perfection of Wisdom or Prajnaparamita sutras were set forth by the Buddha on Vulture’s Peak in what is known as the second turning of the Dharma wheel.

There are three versions of the Perfection of Wisdom sutras: extensive, middling and brief. According to the Tibetan historian Buton Rinchen Drub (Bu-ston) (1290-1364 CE), the different versions of the Prajnaparamita sutras were all spoken simultaneously by the Buddha. (E. Obermiller (tr.), History of Buddhism by Bu-ston, Heidelberg, 1932)

The Perfection of Wisdom means the wisdom realising emptiness (sunyata) that is endowed with the mind of enlightenment (bodhicitta). There are two types of Perfection of Wisdom:

1. the “causal Perfection of Wisdom,” which is the wisdom realising emptiness possessed by bodhisattvas. It is causal because it acts as the direct cause of attaining the resultant Perfection of Wisdom; and
2. the “resultant Perfection of Wisdom” which is the wisdom truth body (dharmakaya) of a Buddha, Buddha’s omniscient wisdom.

Atisha divided the Prajnaparamita sutras into two types: those that teach the essence of the doctrine and those that teach the realisations (abhisamaya) whereby bodhisattvas proceed to enlightenment. The Heart Sutra teaches the first and the longer sutras expound the second.

There are two versions of the Heart Sutra: a shorter and a longer. The shorter version is also known as the Chinese version. It begins with Avalokiteshvara contemplating the meaning of the profound Perfection of Wisdom and ending with the mantra. The longer version, known as the Tibetan version, begins with a prologue in which the Buddha enters into samadhi and ends with an epilogue in which he rises from samadhi and praises Avalokiteshvara.

The Heart of the Perfection of Wisdom Sutra or Heart Sutra is called “the sutra of sutras” because all the intentions of the Buddha are found here. The term “heart” means that this text is the essence of all the Perfection of Wisdom sutras. It is the concise presentation of the teachings of the three extensive, middling and brief mother sutras.

Title

The title of the Heart Sutra in Sanskrit is Bhagawati Prajnaparamita Hridaya which is translated into English as “The Heart of the Blessed Mother Perfection of Wisdom.”

Homage

The Sutra begins with a homage from the Tibetan translators so that their work would be completed successfully and be of benefit to all sentient beings. They are paying homage to the Perfection of Wisdom. “The Blessed Mother” is the name given to the Sutra. In general, both emptiness and the wisdom realising emptiness are referred to as “mother” because superior beings (aryas) are born from them. Therefore, it can be said that all superior beings are born from emptiness and the wisdom that realises emptiness. Prajnaparamita also refers to the female Buddha embodying the resultant Perfection of Wisdom of enlightened beings. Regarded as the highest form of Tara, she is also called the “Great Mother of Transcendental Wisdom” as well as the “Mother of all Buddhas.”

The Prologue

The main body of the Sutra begins with a Prologue which presents the context or the background of the teaching. According to H.H. the 14^th Dalai Lama, there are two different contexts: the common context and the uncommon context. The common context presents the worldly origin of the teaching. The text indicates three perfect conditions that came together:

• the presence of the perfect teacher, “the Blessed One,” i.e. Buddha Shakyamuni;
• the presence of a perfect audience, the “great assembly of monks and bodhisattvas”;
• and the coming together of these first two conditions at a perfect location, the “Massed Vultures Mountain” at Rajagriha.

The great assembly of monks here refers to the ultimate sangha, such as the great arhats.

The uncommon context presents the ultimate origin of the teaching: the Buddha, “the Blessed One” (Bhagawan) was absorbed in the concentration of the countless aspects of phenomena, called Profound Illumination. The term “Blessed One” means the Buddha has conquered all obstructive forces, i.e. the four maras: the mara of the delusions, the mara of the aggregates, the mara of (uncontrolled) death, and the Devaputra mara (the mara of desire). “Profound Illumination” refers to the realisation of emptiness of all phenomena directly and simultaneously.

The Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara (Chenrezig in Tibetan) is the next figure we encounter. He is described as “the great being,” which refers to his quality of great compassion. The name “bodhisattva” indicates an infinitely altruistic being, who through wisdom, heroically focuses on the attainment of enlightenment out of compassion for all sentient beings. At the same time, Avalokiteshvara was “looking perfectly and correctly at the emptiness of inherent existence also of the five aggregates.” He was meditating on the profound view of emptiness. The word “also” implies that Avalokiteshvara had also looked at the emptiness of inherent existence of the self, or person. The five aggregates are the five interlinked processes which make up a human being: form, feelings, perception, compositional factors and consciousness. The term “inherent existence” refers to an imagined mode of existence whereby phenomena are held to exist from their own side, independent of other phenomena.

The Question and the Answer

The actual sutra begins with the question of Shariputra. Avalokiteshvara’s answer comprises the body of the sutra and that has a brief and extended version. The brief answer is given first. “Then, through the power of the Buddha” refers to the blessings conveyed mentally by the Buddha (who was in a state of deep contemplation) to speak the doctrine. Both Shariputra’s question and Avalokiteshvara’s answer occur as a result of the Buddha’s empowerment. Shariputra was a master of the Abhidharma, unexcelled in wisdom, son of Shari (his mother, the most intelligent woman of Magadha) and Tishya (his father). “Lineage” means the family of the Tathagatas; “son or daughter of the lineage” is a bodhisattva, a child of the Conqueror (jinaputra) born from the Mahayana Perfection of Wisdom scriptures. The words “emptiness of inherent existence also of the five aggregates” mean that these aggregates do not exist from their own side.

The Fourfold Profundity

“Form is emptiness, emptiness is form, Emptiness is not other than form, form is not other than emptiness.”

“Form” refers to conditioned things, the object of the eye consciousness, the first of the five aggregates, the physical aggregate which provides the material support for the other four. Form encompasses visible form, including colour, shape, sound, odour, taste, tangible objects, and the five sense powers (sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch). “Form is emptiness” means they are exactly the same. The Buddha taught this to discourage sentient beings from becoming attached to form. “Emptiness is form” means that emptiness is not to be discovered apart from form; both are equally empty. Clinging to emptiness leads to the extreme of nirvana, the solitary peace of the Hinayana. The words “feeling, discrimination, compositional factors, and consciousness are empty” signify that the remaining four aggregates are equally empty. They are based on the form aggregate which acts like a vessel (the support). If the vessel breaks, there is no place for the mental aggregates (the supported).

The fourfold profundity is the union of form (phenomena/relative truth) and emptiness (ultimate truth). Form and emptiness are not different entities. Seeing the truth, one dispels ignorance (the conception of inherent existence) which is replaced by wisdom (the realisation of the lack of inherent existence) and liberation is possible. The meaning of “in the same way, feeling, discrimination, compositional factors, and consciousness are empty” is: “in the same way, it is taught that the rest of the aggregates, from feeling to consciousness, like form, are empty of inherent existence.” Thus it is to be understood this way: feeling is emptiness, emptiness is feeling. Emptiness is not other than feeling, feeling is not other than emptiness. This is to be applied to discrimination, etc.

The Eightfold Profundity

“Shariputra, like this, all phenomena are merely empty, having no characteristics. They are not produced and do not cease. They have no defilement and no separation from defilement. They have no decrease and no increase.”

This means that all phenomena in the universe are empty. The words, “like this, all phenomena are merely empty“ mean that just as it was explained with regard to the five aggregates, Shariputra should also know that all mundane and supramundane phenomena, from the six sources (ayatana) to the knowledge of all aspects (omniscience, sarvakarajnana) are empty. The phrase “having no characteristics” means that because all phenomena are beyond signs, they are without characteristics, e.g. the aggregates lack the characteristic of having their own entity or being established by such an entity. The terms “not produced and do not cease” mean that phenomena are not ultimately produced or ceased. Production is the arising of that which did not exist before and cessation is the present non-existence of something that existed at a prior moment. Both production and cessation exist conventionally but neither is analytically findable. “No defilement” means that because all phenomena are empty, they are not intrinsically defiled by samsara. “No separation from defilement” means that because nirvana is also empty of inherent existence, phenomena are also not intrinsically free from defilement. “No decrease and no increase” means that because ultimately neither samsara nor nirvana exist, phenomena are not diminished by faults or filled with good qualities.

The Negations and Enlightenment

This section of the Sutra defines the existence of all phenomena in terms of their non-existence in the face of emptiness. The negation of the classification of phenomena are expressed as follows:

“no form, no feeling, no discrimination, no compositional factors, no consciousness.” This refers to the negation of the five aggregates.

“no eye, no ear, no nose, no tongue, no body, no mind; no form, no sound, no smell, no taste, no tactile object, no phenomenon.” This refers to the negation of the twelve sources of consciousness, comprising the six senses and their six objects.

“no eye element, and so forth up to no mind element and also up to no element of mental consciousness.” This refers to the negation of the eighteen constituents (dhatu) which comprise the twelve sources and the six consciousnesses.

“no ignorance and no exhaustion of ignorance, and so forth up to no ageing and death and no exhaustion of ageing and death.” This means that the twelvefold dependent arising of samsara and its twelvefold extinction are equally empty. The Sutra mentions the first and last links, indicating the process by which the cycle of rebirth functions, and mentions the extinction of the first and last, indicating the process by which the cycle of rebirth is destroyed. The order of the twelve links are: Ignorance (avidya), Action (samskarakarma), Consciousness (vijnana), Name and form (namarupa), Sources (ayatana), Contact (sparsha), Feeling (vedana), Attachment (trsna), Grasping (upadana), Existence (bhava), Birth (jati), Ageing and Death (jaramarana).

“no suffering, origin, cessation or path.” This means that the Four Noble Truths are also empty. The Four Noble Truths are: the varieties of experience that are qualified by suffering are to be identified; the origins of those sufferings, such as desire, hatred and ignorance, are to be abandoned; the cessation of suffering, nirvana, is to be actualised; and the paths to nirvana, are to be cultivated. The order of the Four Truths follows the medical model of disease, diagnosis, prognosis, and cure. (Vasubhandu)

“no exalted wisdom, no attainment, and also no non-attainment.” This means that it is impossible to attain or not attain that which has never been lost, the dharmadhatu, the Buddha nature, that abides naturally in all sentient beings. There is no attainment of anything that is not empty. This section sets forth the good qualities (guna) of the Perfection of Wisdom.

How Negations Relate to Enlightenment

“Bodhisattvas do not attain anything. By relying upon and abiding by way of the Perfection of Wisdom, their minds have no obstructions and no fear!” To rely on the Perfection of Wisdom means one must not abide in any signs (concepts). This means the bodhisattvas’ mind is free of obstructions (i.e. internal predispositions and all signs of external objects). The benefit of relying on the Perfection of Wisdom is that by understanding the meaning of emptiness, one’s mind is freed from all obstructions and all reasons for fear.

“mistaken mind” means not having interest in reality and seeing phenomena as real, thinking that sentient beings of the three realms exist ultimately.

“beyond mistaken minds” means the bodhisattvas have abandoned the obstructions (i.e. the error of “mistakenly seeing the unmistaken ultimate truth.”

“they go to ultimate nirvana. It is by relying upon the Perfection of Wisdom that all buddhas of the three times manifest full awakening in unexcelled, complete, perfect enlightenment!” This means that having passed beyond the mistaken conception of self, the bodhisattva also passes beyond the nirvana sought by shravakas and pratyekabuddhas and arrives at Buddhahood. This Perfection of Wisdom is the sole path travelled by all the buddhas of the past, present and future.

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The Mantra & Its Benefits (from Gungthang & other masters)

Mantra: TAYATHA OM GATE GATE PARAGATE PARASAMGATE BODHI SOHA

“mantra of the Perfection of Wisdom”: it brings about the realisation of the ultimate “mantra of great knowledge”: abandonment of ignorance.

“the unsurpassed mantra”: the way of seeing of which there is none higher.

“mantra that is equal to the unequalled”: that which causes one to be equal to the unequalled (the Buddha or space).

“Mantra that thoroughly pacifies all suffering”: that which protects from all suffering.

According to Gungthang, all the meanings of the sutras are included in the Heart Sutra, all the eight subjects and seventy topics of Maitreyanatha’s Abhisamayalamkara should be present in the Sutra. The quintessence of the 84,000 collections of doctrine is the Perfection of Wisdom sutras.

The quintessence of the Perfection of Wisdom in 8000 Lines (Astasahasrikaprajnaparamitasutra) and so forth is the Heart Sutra. The concentrated meaning of the Heart Sutra is the mantra. Therefore, the mantra is the pith of all doctrines and contains the beneficial qualities of all the doctrines.

“It should be known.” This means that the Perfection of Wisdom should be known as the cause of going to Buddhahood.

“The mantra of the Perfection of Wisdom is proclaimed.” The meaning of this statement is that this mantra serves as the cause of mundane and supramundane merit. Mundane merit is effectively able to prevent harm and protect one from afflictions, demons and obstacles. Regarding supramundane merit, relying on this dharani serves as a cause of wisdom and knowledge.

The mantra can be translated as “Gone, gone, gone beyond, gone completely beyond, enlightenment.” (Srimahajana)

The meaning of the mantra in four aspects are: the illusion-like, emptiness, signlessness, and wishlessness.
“tadyatha om” (like this; it is so). This refers to the arising of action.

“gate gate” (gone, gone). The first “gate” refers to the path of accumulation (in which one primarily hears and thinks about reality). The second “gate” refers to the path of preparation (in which there is primarily the wisdom arisen from meditation, having a clear perception of the mental image of emptiness.)

“paragate” (gone beyond) refers to the path of seeing (the three entanglements: wrong view, doubts, and bad ethics) are abandoned.

“parasamgate” (gone completely beyond) refers to the path of meditation (beyond the illusion-like and emptiness, one goes beyond to signlessness).

“bodhi svaha” (become enlightened) refers to the path of no more learning (having purified the afflictions and all objects of knowledge, one transcends awareness).

“Om” and “svaha” bless the mantra with power.

The mantra is said to be “secret” in the sense that even if it is taught to those of dull faculties, they are not able to see it; it remains hidden from them. (Vimalamitra)

Atisha distinguishes the audience of the Sutra into those of dull faculties and those of sharp faculties. The former require the full teaching of all of the characteristics of the five paths, whereas the latter understand merely through a statement of the major headings.

This abbreviated teaching for those of sharp faculties becomes a secret mantra for those of dull faculties because they cannot understand it. “Being secret or not being secret exists in the mind; in actuality there is no difference in what is taught. The Teacher does not have a closed fist.” (Atisha)

The mantra is secret from all but Bodhisattvas of the sharpest faculties. (Gungtang)

The main function of the mantra is to secretly teach the stages of the path.

The mantra teaches emptiness.

Gungtang reads the mantra as an exhortation by Avalokiteshvara: “Proceed, proceed, proceed beyond, proceed completely beyond, be founded in enlightenment.” It is a veiled reference to the five paths.

It is an example of the Buddha’s skilful methods, subtly mixing the taste of tantra into the sutra for those who currently are incapable of practicing the tantric path. (Gungtang)

The mantra prevents downfall. (Prasastrasena)

The mantra clears away obstacles and causes wisdom. (Prasastrasena)

By understanding the mantra the mind is freed. (Vajrapani)

The perfection of wisdom itself may be considered a secret mantra and protects those whose minds abide in it. (Vimalamitra)

The perfection of wisdom is secret because of its profundity and a mantra because of its capacity to protect the mind. (Vimalamitra)

The mantra of the perfection of wisdom is the heart of the meaning of all secret mantras. (Vajrapani)

Correlation of the mantra to the Five Paths

The first “gate” refers to proceeding from the state of a worldly being, involved in great desire, to the path of accumulation, the first of the Bodhisattva paths.

The second “gate” refers to moving from the first path to the second, the path of preparation.

“Paragate” (Gone beyond) indicates moving from the path of preparation to the path of seeing. It is with the attainment of the path of seeing that emptiness is seen directly for the first time, making the bodhisattva a Superior (arya) and destroying the seeds for future rebirth as an animal, hungry ghost, or hell being. Because of the special qualities of this path, it merits are “gone beyond” rather than a simple “gone.”

“Parasamgate” (gone completely beyond) refers to the path of meditation.

“bodhi” (enlightenment) means Buddhahood, the path of no more learning.

“svaha” is a word of blessing for achieving the effect of repetition. (Srimahajana)

The Epilogue

Avalokiteshvara completes his answer to Shariputra’s question with an exhortation to Bodhisattvas to practise the Perfection of Wisdom, at which point the Buddha rises from his meditative absorption.

“Good, good” The Buddha praises what Avalokiteshvara had said, expressing his pleasure and dispelling the doubts of any who might question the validity of what had been taught.

“son of the lineage, it is like that” If the profound reality is understood, the mind is freed.

“and the Tathagatas will also rejoice” This means even the Buddhas who have thus come and thus gone, who have understood reality and taught it accordingly, are delighted by what Avalokiteshvara has taught.

“that entire assembly of disciples” These are the Bodhisattvas, monks, laymen, and laywomen.

“those of the world” These are the gods, humans, demigods, and gandharvas who are seated with the gods.

“the world” The disintegrating base whose nature is the five aggregates.

“what had been spoken by the Blessed One” The entity of the explanation itself

“praised” They had clear joy and were grasped with joy.

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