The Quest for Spiritual Enlightenment
Before the great assembly, the Buddha extended His golden arm to circle His palm on Ananda’s head and said: ❝There is a Samadhi called ‘The King of the Foremost Surangama Transmitted from the Crown of the Buddha’s Head’; it is the perfection of the myriad practices, a wondrous and magnificent path, the single portal through which all the Tathagatas of the ten directions gained transcendence. You must now all listen attentively.❞ Ananda humbly bowed and waited for the Buddha’s compassionate instruction.
The Buddha said to Ananda, “You and I are from the same family, and we share the natural bond among relatives. At the time you first made the resolve to become enlightened, what excellent attributes did you see in my Dharma that immediately led you to reject the familial affection and conjugal love found in the world?”
Ananda replied, “Ever since I saw the thirty-two manifestations of supremely wondrous radiance emanating from the Buddha’s whole body, as clear as crystal, I often thought to myself that a body with such purity and magnificence could not be the consequence of sexual activities. Why? The energies of desire are coarse and murky. Foul and putrid intercourse results in a turbid merging of procreative substances, which cannot possibly generate a body with such a pristine concentration of purple-golden light. That is why I admired the Buddha and why I shaved my head to follow the Buddha’s teachings.”
The Buddha said, “Excellent, Ananda! Now, all of you should know that since the beginningless time, all beings have been undergoing death and rebirth over and over, simply because they have not been awakened to the pure wisdom which is the essential nature of the mind. Instead, the workings of their minds are all distorted, and because the workings of their minds are distorted, they are bound to the endless cycles of death and rebirth.
“Now since you all wish to attain enlightenment and discover the truth of your own nature, you should answer my questions straightforwardly, because that is the path that the innumerable Buddhas everywhere have taken, as they freed themselves from death and rebirth. Their minds were pure, their words were straightforward, and therefore, at every point in their progress, from the first stage to the last, they were never devious and evasive.
“Now, Ananda, when you first made the resolve to attain full awakening (in response to the thirty-two manifestations), just what was it that saw those manifestations, and who was it that took delight in them?”
Ananda replied, “I took delight in them with my mind and eyes. Because I saw with my eyes and admired with my mind. In this way I became resolved to extricate myself from death and rebirth.”
The Buddha said, “It is as you say: your mind and eyes were the reason for your admiration and delight. Someone who does not know where his mind and eyes are will not be able to overcome his attachment and obsession. For example, when bandits invade a country and the king sends forth his soldiers to drive them out, the soldiers must first know where the bandits are. It is the fault of your mind and eyes that you are bound to the cycles of death and rebirth. I am now asking you: precisely where are your mind and eyes?”
尔时世尊在大众中，舒金色臂，摩阿难顶，告示阿难，及诸大众：有三摩提，名大佛顶首楞严王，具足万行；十方如来，一门超出妙庄严路。汝今谛听！阿难顶礼，伏受慈旨。
佛告阿难：汝我同气，情均天伦，当初发心，于我法中，见何胜相，顿舍世间深重恩爱？阿难白佛：我见如来三十二相，胜妙殊绝 ，形体映彻，犹如琉璃。常自思惟：此相非是欲爱所生。何以故？欲气粗浊，腥臊交遘，脓血杂乱，不能发生胜净妙明，紫金光聚。是以渴仰，从佛剃落。佛言：善哉阿难！汝等当知 ，一切众生，从无始来，生死相续，皆由不知常住真心性净明体，用诸妄想 ，此想不真，故有轮转。汝今欲研无上菩提，真发明性，应当直心，酬我所问。十方如来，同一道故，出离生死，皆以直心；心言直故，如是乃至终始地位，中间永无诸委曲相。
阿难！我今问汝，当汝发心，缘于如来三十二相，将何所见，谁为爱乐？阿难白佛言：世尊！如是爱乐，用我心目 。由目观见如来胜相，心生爱乐。故我发心，愿舍生死。佛告阿难：如汝所说，真所爱乐，因于心目。若不识知心目所在，则不能得降伏尘劳。譬如国王为贼所侵，发兵讨除，是兵要当知贼所在。使汝流转，心目为咎。吾今问汝 ，唯心与目，今何所在？
Buddha Mind 