English
But for one who intends non-division, it is allowable with the perception of concord. For one who acts with the perception of concord, there is neither division nor an ānantarika karma, nor for one who acts with a smaller assembly. For it was said, "In one place, Upāli, there are four, in another place four, and a ninth announces." Among these five ānantarika karmas, division of the Saṅgha is a verbal action, the rest are bodily actions, but all of them arise from both the body-door and the speech-door. For even the division of the Saṅgha, when one makes a division with a hand gesture, arises from the body-door, and the division of the Saṅgha here lasts for an aeon. Only at the destruction of the aeon is one freed from the division of the Saṅgha, but there is no such rule for the others. And of the five karmas that have been done, only the division of the Saṅgha ripens in hell, the rest are reckoned among those such as "the action was, but the result of the action was not." In the absence of division of the Saṅgha, there is the shedding of blood, and in the absence of that, the killing of an arahant. Or, failing that, matricide or patricide, even if he is highly virtuous. The first four are common to all, laypeople and renunciants alike, but schism in the Sangha is unique to a bhikkhu who is capable of it, not shared by others; for a bhikkhuni does not cause schism in the Sangha, let alone others. And all five, it should be understood, are associated with painful feeling and rooted in aversion. Regarding "he would be reborn for an eighth existence," by what is the limit of eight existences determined for a noble disciple? By insight. For one whose insight is sharp, after generating just one more existence, attains arahantship and is called "one-seed." One whose insight is weak, in the second...pe... or sixth existence, attains arahantship and is called "clan-to-clan." But one whose insight is very weak does not exceed the seventh existence, and there, by necessity, attains arahantship and is called "supreme seven-times-more." Even if, in his seventh existence, while he is asleep, a thunderbolt or a mountain peak were to fall on his head, even at that moment he would attain arahantship and pass away. It is with reference to the non-exceeding of seven existences at the highest limit that it was said, "assured, destined for enlightenment." Regarding "in one world-system, there are two arahant Fully Enlightened Ones," the birth-field, reckoned as ten thousand world-spheres, is called one world-system, because there is no possibility of the arising of Buddhas in the sphere of command. There, the prohibition of the arising of two Buddhas is made only in the birth-field. Except for this world-sphere, Buddhas do not arise in other world-spheres, because the causes of Buddhahood, such as the beginningless lineage of Buddhas, are such. It is for that very reason that beings do not attain complete extinction. For if Buddhas were to arise in all world-spheres, all beings would have attained complete extinction before now, but that is not the case; therefore, they arise only in this world-sphere, which is the abode of those endowed with the conditions for the unfolding of the beginningless lineage of Buddhas. This is to be understood. Even here, they are rare. Because of their rarity, even countless eons here are devoid of a Buddha's arising. If they were easily found, in one expanding eon, sixty-four Buddhas could arise, due to the interval between Buddhas in an intermediate eon. But in fortunate eons, only five Buddhas arise here. How much rarer would they be in other world-systems? The rarity of Buddhas is due to the rarity of causes. Therefore, do Buddhas arise only in this world-system? Even here, not in the realms of gods and Brahmās, but only in the human realm do they arise. For here alone is the complete manifestation of the Sangha jewel, the basis of the threefold Dhamma, and in other realms, such a possibility is entirely absent. If Buddhas arose in the realms of gods, humans would not even be able to approach them out of fear, let alone perform acts of hearing the Dhamma or ordination. Therefore, our Bodhisatta, to dispel the curiosity of people who thought he was a non-human, due to the power of his physical form and other attainments, grew up in the manner of one lying on his back, and engaged in marriage and so on. Even after he had renounced, when Bimbisāra saw him entering Rājagaha for alms, sitting on the slope of Paṇḍava Mountain, and consuming the alms-food, he dared to approach him only after carefully ascertaining his human nature in various ways, not otherwise. For Buddhas arise for the sake of liberating the world, not for their own gain of honor and so on. Therefore, it should be understood that they arise only among humans. Even there, only in this Jambudīpa. Even there, only in this Middle Country. Not only Buddhas, but also Paccekabuddhas, chief disciples, great disciples, wheel-turning monarchs, and other meritorious beings arise here. "Apubbaṃ acarimanti" here, before the taking of rebirth in the mother's womb is called "pubbaṃ," and after the disappearance of the element is called "carimaṃ," and between the two is called "apubbaṃ acarimaṃ." In this interval, another The arising of another Buddha is prevented when the relics disappear, but when only the doctrine disappears, the arising of another is not prevented. Even though it is not prevented, it should be understood that they arise only after the end of an inter-era. For there are five disappearances, namely: the disappearance of attainment, the disappearance of practice, the disappearance of learning, the disappearance of the monastic signs, and the disappearance of the relics. Here, attainment means the paths, fruits, higher knowledges, and analytical knowledges; as it declines, it declines beginning with the analytical knowledges. For only for a thousand years after the final passing away are they able to produce the analytical knowledges; after that, the higher knowledges; unable to produce even those, they become dry-insight arahants, then non-returners, then once-returners, and stream-enterers. Even while these remain, attainment is still not completely gone; but with the death of the last stream-enterer, attainment is said to be gone. This is the disappearance of attainment. Then, unable to produce the paths and fruits, thinking, "Now there is no attainment of the noble Dhamma for us," they come to an end in absorption and insight, becoming lazy, keeping only the fourfold purity of morality, not exhorting each other, not reminding each other, being without remorse; from then on, they violate minor rules, then they commit serious offenses, keeping only the pārājika rules; even while these remain, practice is still not completely gone; but with the breaking of the morality or the death of the last bhikkhu, practice is said to be gone. This is called the disappearance of practice. Learning means the three baskets of the Buddha's word together with the commentaries; as time goes on, the donors become poor due to unrighteous kings of the degenerate age and the failure of crops and other resources, and the bhikkhus, troubled by the requisites, are unable to take on students. Then the commentaries decline, and they maintain the learning only in the Pāli language; then they are unable to maintain the entire Pāli canon; first the Abhidhamma Piṭaka... A portion diminishes, and that diminishing begins from the top. First, the great treatises diminish, then the Yamaka, the Kathāvatthu, the Puggalapaññatti, the Dhātukathā, the Vibhaṅga, and the Dhammasaṅgaṅi diminish in sequence. Then, beginning from the top, the Suttanta Piṭaka diminishes. First, the Anguttara Nikāya diminishes, starting from the eleventh book down to the first. Then, beginning from the top, the Saṃyutta Nikāya diminishes. First, the Mahāvagga diminishes, then the Saḷāyatanavagga, the Khandhakavagga, the Nidānavagga, and the Sagāthāvagga. Thus, the Majjhima Nikāya, the Dīgha Nikāya, and others diminish, beginning from the top. Then only the Vinaya Piṭaka remains. That too diminishes, starting from the Parivāra down to the Mahāvibhaṅga. Then they retain only the Mātikā from the Uposathakkhandhaka. Even then, as long as even a four-line verse circulates among humans, the teaching is uninterrupted. By that uninterrupted teaching, it is called uninterrupted. This is called the disappearance of the teaching. As time goes on, the manner of taking robes and bowls is not pleasing. Like the Nigaṇṭhas and others, they carry gourd bowls and such, either tucked under their arm, or hanging down, or suspended from their shoulder. The dyeing of robes is also not proper; they dye them the color of a camel's bone and wear them. Then there is no dyeing or piercing of the ears. Cutting off the fringes, they wear just a piece of ochre cloth like wanderers. Then, when the time is depleted, they tie a small piece of ochre cloth on their hand or neck and do farming and such, supporting their families. Then, when people give offerings, they give to these, intending it for the Sangha. With this in mind, the Blessed One said, "There will be, Ānanda, in the future, those who are born of the lineage, with ochre cloths around their necks, immoral and of evil ways. To these immoral ones they will give offerings, intending it for the Sangha. Then, Ānanda, the offering given to the Sangha will be immeasurable, incalculable." "I will speak." Then, "This is elaboration, what is it to us?" cutting that piece of robe and throwing it into the forest, at this time the sign disappears, this is called the disappearance of the sign. Then, not receiving honor and respect in various places, the relics, by the power of the Buddha's determination, will go to places where honor and respect are received, then, not receiving it everywhere, all the relics will go to the great Bodhi-mandala itself.