Verses from The Bodhicaryavatara

Posted By Mahabodhi on Aug 8, 2022 | 0 comments

I would be a protector
For those without protection;
A guide for those who wander;
A boat, a bridge, a causeway
For those who long for the other shore.
For all beings,
I would be a lamp for those needing a lamp;
A bed for those needing a bed;
A slave for those desiring a slave.
For all beings,
I would be a wish-fulfilling gem,
An inexhaustible vase,
A magic spell,
A wishing tree,
A cow of plenty.
Just as the earth and other elements
Are serviceable in many ways
To the infinite number of beings,
Inhabiting limitless space,
So may I become
That which maintains all beings
Situated throughout space,
So long as all have not attained
To peace.

As the Buddhas of ancient times
Grasped this Bodhi-heart,
And followed resolutely
The practice of the Bodhisattva path
So shall I awaken this precious heart,
For the welfare of the world,
And I too shall follow that path
In all its fullness.
And like a wise man,
Who joyfully seizes that Bodhi-heart,
I shall rejoice
So that it will grow and thrive in me.

Today my birth has born fruit
And my humanity has been fulfilled;
Today I am reborn in the Buddha-family
And I am now a son of the Buddha.
And now I must live up to my birth
And by my actions must place no stain
Upon that spotless family.
Just as a blind man may find by chance
A priceless jewel in a heap of refuse,
So, somehow, this Bodhi-spirit is hidden
Even in me.

It is the elixir of life
Which destroys death, the destroyer of all;
A limitless treasure to destroy all poverty;
The supreme cure for the world’s sickness;
It is a tree of rest for the wearied world,
Wandering on the road of being.
It is a bridge for all travelers
Passing over the waters of suffering;
It is the heart’s waxing moon,
Cooling the heat of passion;
It is a great sun
Dispelling the darkness of the
world’s ignorance.
It is fresh butter,
Churned from the milk of the True Dharma.
For the caravan of famished beings
Blundering on the road of existence,
It is a banquet of joy,
Which refreshes completely
All who hunger for happiness.

Today, I invite the world to Buddhahood,
And to all the happiness of the Dharma.
May gods, titans and all rejoice!