repent of all their sins and be cleansed of all their sores, so that they may all be released from the cycle of transmigration and be born in the land of purity.
We pray to all the Buddhas, all the Bodhisattva-Mahasattvas in the ten quarters, of the past, present, and future, and to Mahaprajna-paramita, that by virtue of this merit universally prevailing, not only we but all beings shall equally attain Buddhahood.
By the Bhikshus all present here The mystic formula of Surangama has been recited as above, Which is now dedicated to all the Nagas and Devas who are protectors of the Dharma, And also to all the holy assemblies of the spiritual beings who are guardians of this monastery and surrounding district. May all beings in the three evil paths of existence variously suffering the eight kinds of disasters be thereby released from the afflictions! May all beings in the triple world who are recipients of the fourfold benefaction thereby participate in the merit! May the state continue in peaceful prosperity with all its warlike activities stopped! May the wind blow in time, the rain fall seasonably, and the people live happily! May the entire congregation sharing in the exercise cherish the higher aspirations! To go beyond the ten stages with a cap, and this without much difficulty! May this monastery keep on its quiet life, free from disturbances. And the patrons and devotees grow not only in faith but in wisdom and bliss! [We pray this to] all the Buddhas and Bodhisattva-Mahasattvas in the ten quarters, of the past, present, and future, and to Mahaprajna-paramita! Would that the sound of the bell might go beyond our earth,
And be heard even by all the denizens of the darkness outside the Iron Mountains (cakravala) !
Would that, their organ of hearing becoming pure, beings might attain perfect interfusion [of all the senses],
So that every one of them might come finally to the realization of supreme enlightenment![1]
Properly speaking, the dharani has no legitimate place in Zen. That it has nevertheless crept into its daily service is clue to the general characteristics of Chinese Buddhism of the Sung dynasty, when the Japanese Zen masters visited China and imported it as they found it then, together with the Shingon elements of Chinese Zen. In China the Shingon did not thrive very long but left its traces in Zen.
Dharani, the root of which is dhr, “to hold” or “to convey”, is ordinarily translated by the Chinese tsung-ch'ih, “general holder”, at neng-ch'ih, “that which holds”. A dharani is considered as holding magical power in it or bearing deep meaning. When it is pronounced, whatever evil spirits there are ready to interfere with the spiritual effect of a ritual, are kept away from it.
In the following pages the three most frequently read dharanis are given. When translated they convey no intelligent signification. They mostly consist of invocations and exclamations. The invocation is an appeal to the higher powers, and the exclamation is to frighten away the evil spirits. That the practical result of these utterances is not to be judged objectively goes without saying.
I. DHARANI OF REMOVING DISASTERS
II. DHARANI OF THE GREAT COMPASSIONATE ONE
