Bodhisattvas comprehend exactly which teachings lead to the attainments of a stream enterer, a once-returner, a non-returner, and a worthy one who has exhausted defilement. They know which teachings sever the ties of existence, dissolve the processes of continued existence, and truly deliver the transcendence of suffering. Likewise, they know exactly which teachings lead to the attainment of a single rhinoceros-like solitary buddha. All this bodhisattvas comprehend by the power of genuine insight. Yet they do not actualize any of those attainments. Why? Because they think as follows:

‘The realms of sentient beings are my responsibility. I have roared like a lion, promising to liberate all beings who are confined to the wilds of cyclic existence. It would not be right of me to escape from that wilderness alone.’ Such is the bodhisattvas’ expertise with respect to the vehicles of the hearers and solitary buddhas.

Buddha Shakyamuni

The Noble Great Vehicle Sūtra “The Jewel Cloud”, 1.141

translated by Dharmachakra Translation Committee


source: https://read.84000.co/translation/toh231.html


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