Ultimate Praise of Mañjuśrī

Ultimate Praise of the Noble and Venerable Mañjuśrī

by Nāgārjuna

In the language of India: ārya-bhaṭṭārakamañjuśrīparamārthastuti-nāma
In the language of Tibet: 'phags pa rje btsun 'jam dpal gyi don dam pa'i bstod pa
In the English language: Ultimate Praise of the Noble and Venerable Mañjuśrī

Homage to the youthful Māñjuśrī!

You do not arrive and do not depart;
You do not rise and do not remain.
You thoroughly transcend this world.
Yours is the domain beyond words.

O protector, how should I praise you?
As the world conceives of you,
Just so, I too exalt and honour you
In my devotion for you, O guru.

By your very nature you are unborn,
For you there can be no arising.
Protector who neither comes nor goes,
To you, the insubstantial, I offer homage and praise.

You are neither real nor unreal.
Neither a nullity nor everlasting,
Neither constant nor transitory.
To you, the non-dual, I offer homage and praise.

You’re not red or green or crimson;
You’re not yellow, white or black.
You do not have any colour at all.
To you, the colourless, I offer homage and praise.

You are neither large nor small,
Neither heavyset nor slender.
Your form is neither tall nor short.
To you, the sizeless, I offer homage and praise.

In your wisdom, you’re not confined to existence;
Out of compassion, you do not dwell in peace.
You do not remain in either saṃsāra or nirvāṇa.
To you, the non-abiding, I offer homage and praise.

You do not reside in phenomena;
Yours is the realization of all things.
You are sustained by supreme profundity.
To you, the profound, I offer homage and praise.

Like this, I could exalt you repeatedly.
For how else might I offer you praise?
In the emptiness of all phenomena
Who is there to offer praise? To whom?

You have no limits, no centre.
To you, the inconceivable
Beyond perceiver and perceived,
I offer homage and praise.

This is the expression of the ultimate attributes
Of the guru and protector Mañjughoṣa.
Through the merit of this, may this world
Come to resemble the one gone to bliss.

This concludes the Ultimate Praise of the Noble and Venerable Mañjuśrī composed by the great master Nāgārjuna.

| Translated by Adam Pearcey, 2021.

Bibliography

Tibetan Edition

Nāgārjuna. "'phags pa rje btsun 'jam dpal gyi don dam pa'i bstod pa." Toh 1131, Derge Tengyur vol. 1 (bstod tshogs, ka): 80a.5–80b.5

Nāgārjuna. "'phags pa rje btsun 'jam dpal gyi don dam pa'i bstod pa." bstan 'gyur/ (dpe bsdur ma). 120 vols. Beijing: krung go'i bod rig pa'i dpe skrun khang, 1994–2008. Vol. 1: 242–244

Version: 1.1-20230418