Khenpo Sodargye - The Diamond Cutter Sutra

Thus have I heard, once the Bhagavan was dwelling in Shravasti, at the Jeta grove of the Anatapindada garden, together with a great sangha of 1,250 monks.

O NCE WHEN Buddha Shakyamuni was living with a sangha of 1,250 fully ordained monks at Jetavana Anatapindada garden in Shravasti, I heard the Buddha say thus. According to Mahayana, this passage explains the five perfections:

The perfect place: Jetavana Anatapindada garden in Shravasti.

The perfect time: sometime after Buddha Shakyamuni reached buddhahood.

The perfect followers: 1,250 fully ordained monks.

The perfect teaching: the profound meaning explained in the Diamond Cutter Sutra.

The perfect teacher: the guide of the three realms, Buddha Shakyamuni.

These words, added by sutra compilers, mean, I heard these vajra words at that time. What did they hear? The Diamond Cutter Sutra that is about to be explained.

Before entering the great parinirvana, Buddha Shakyamuni gave permission to Ananda and other disciples to compile the three baskets (Tripitaka) of teachings: the Sutra, Vinaya, and Shastra. In order to demonstrate the authority of a sutra, they should add (1) at the beginning, Thus have I heard, once; (2) connections in the middle, like the Bhagavan asked and Manjushri answered; and (3) at the end praise, like gods, nagas, humans, asuras, and gandhavas all rejoiced.

Furthermore, sutras fall into three categories: taught by the Buddha in person, taught through the blessings of the Buddha, and taught with the permission of the Buddha. Thus have I heard was not said by the Buddha in person but it was added with permission of the Buddha.

After the Buddha entered parinirvana, three councils were convened to compile the Buddhas doctrines. There is disagreement on when these councils were held. Some say they occurred two years after the Buddhas parinirvana, others say 110 years, or 180 years, or close to 400 years after. It is impossible to be certain. What is known is that through these three compilations, the Tripitaka was written down.

In regard to the compilation of the Tripitaka, it is generally agreed that the Sutra Pitaka, or Basket of Discourses, was compiled by Ananda, who was the foremost disciple in scholarship and memory; the Vinaya Pitaka by Upali, who was the foremost disciple in upholding pure precepts; and the Abhidharma Pitaka by Mahakasyapa, the disciple who was unexcelled in ascetic practices.

Since the Diamond Cutter Sutra belongs to the Sutra Pitaka, I in Thus have I heard refers to Venerable Ananda.

Once could be explained in two ways:

1. When the Buddha gave a teaching. There have been debates on how long the Buddha taught the Dharma. Some believe for forty-nine years, while others say for only forty-five years. Since it was not clearly recorded in which year and on which day this Diamond Cutter Sutra was taught, here once could be explained as one day.

2. When an ordinary being gives a Dharma teaching, it must have a specific time, place, audience, and subject, but for the Buddha, these are not necessarily fixed. The Buddha could give various teachings to different sentient beings in countless worlds in the past, in the present, and in the future simultaneously. This state is inconceivable and unfathomable. In this way, once could also include the three times of past, present, and future.

According to the Commentary on the Ornament of Clear Realization, just like Vaishali and Sarnath, Shravasti was one of the six great cities of ancient India and was ruled by King Prasenajit at the time of the Buddha.

There is a story about this garden: After taking refuge in the Buddha, the lay practitioner Anatapindada requested the Buddha to give teachings in Shravasti and planned to buy land to build a monastery there for the Buddha. He searched and found that the garden of Prince Jeta was pleasant, peaceful, and suitable for meditation. So he explained to the prince his intention to buy this land.

Reluctant to sell this garden, the prince joked with him, Unless you can cover the whole land with gold, I will not sell it. Since he had made offerings to six buddhas in his past lives, Anatapindada had the supreme merit of being able to see treasures buried underground. So he went home, opened his treasure house, and with the help of his elephants, transported enough gold to cover the land.

Inspired by his earnestness, Prince Jeta said, When we discussed this transaction, we didnt include the trees. The land is now yours, but the trees are still mine. Lets offer this garden to the Buddha together.