“Subhuti, what do you think? If someone were to fill the three thousand-fold world system with the seven treasures, used them for giving, and attained merit for this, would the merit be great?”

Subhuti said, “It would be very great, World-honored One. And why is this? Such merit is not the nature of merit; thus the Tathagata says it is great.”

“If someone else were to receive and uphold as few as four lines of verse from this sutra, and if he were to explain them to others, his merit would be even greater than that. And why is this? Subhuti, all Buddhas and all the supremely enlightened teachings of the Buddhas are born of this sutra.”

In the above passage the Buddha says that the merit of someone who is able to faithfully receive and uphold the Diamond Sutra, even a mere four lines of verse from it, and explain them to others far exceeds that of a person who gives the seven treasures. Why?

Because even a gift as massive as filling the three thousand-fold world system with the seven treasures is a conditioned phenomenon. Since such a gift has limits, the merit of such a gift is limited. But giving the Dharma through teaching others is an unconditioned phenomenon. Offering teachings can help living beings eliminate their afflictions, end the cycle of birth and death, transcend the three realms, and attain Buddhahood. This is why the merit of giving the Dharma exceeds that of giving wealth.

The Buddha also says in the above passage that all Buddhas and all enlightened teachings are born out of the Diamond Sutra. The Diamond Sutra‘s teaching on “not abiding in anything” is derived from the larger teaching on emptiness as containing both existence and non-existence. This is prajna, which is also called “the mother of all Buddhas,” and all living beings are endowed with intrinsic prajna nature.

“Subhuti, suppose a person give a quantity of the seven treasures equal to all the Sumeru mountains within a three thousand-fold world system; if another person were to use this Prajnaparamita Sutra, even as few as four lines of verse, and receive, uphold, read, chant, and explain it to others, his merit would be one hundred times-nay, a hundred million, billion times, nay, an incalculable number of times that cannot even be suggested by metaphors-greater.”

As the Buddha explains, no matter how many times one were to give the seven treasures, the merit and wisdom obtained does not equal even one hundred million billionth of that obtained through the giving of the Dharma. Indeed no numerical analogy can possibly quantify the difference, because giving the seven treasures is necessarily done so with certain notions. Whether a gift is as high as the mountains or as deep as the ocean, there will come a time when the mountain crumbles and the ocean dries up. In the same way, the merit and wisdom of such a gift will be exhausted. But one who receives and upholds the profound, notionless, prajna wisdom of the Diamond Sutra or explains it to others, even so little as four verses of the sutra, the merit and wisdom is immeasurably, incalculably large. It is infinite.

Once Manjusri Bodhisattva asked the Buddha, “What does it mean to ‘give the seven treasures of the body’?”

The Buddha answered, “Such is the gift of non-desire. The eye without desire to see marvelous things is the gift of the sight treasure. The ear without desire to hear pleasant music is the gift of the sound treasure. The nose without desire to smell fine fragrances is the gift of the smell treasure. The tongue without desire to taste fine delicacies is the gift of the taste treasure. The body without desire for fine clothing is the gift of the touch treasures. The mind without desire for fame, fortune, or affection is the gift of the dharma treasure. Having no worldly desires is the gift of the Buddha treasure. If you can realize the gift of the seven treasures within your own body, the merit obtained will exceed the merit of giving the seven treasures of gold, silver, lapis lazuli, pearls, carnelian, coral, and amber. The merit of giving the seven treasures does not amount to one hundred million billionth of the former, even such a numerical analogy falls short:’

Not having desire for something means not clinging or attaching to it, which is the same as “not abiding” in it. We cannot possibly exchange the seven treasures to obtain our intrinsic prajna nature. Our intrinsic prajna nature is extraordinarily precious. Only the pure, enlightened mind makes it possible to give the gift of the Dharma to others, so its merit will naturally exceed the giving of wealth.

“Subhuti, suppose a good man or good woman were to give as many of his or her lives as there are grains of sand in the Ganges River in the morning, and give as many of his or her lives as there are grains of sand in the Ganges River at noon, and give as many of his or her lives as there are grains of sand in the Ganges River in the afternoon, and that this giving continued for infinite hundreds of millions of billions of kalpas; if someone were to hear this sutra, believe it, and not tum his mind against it, his merit would be greater-what of the merit of one who copies, receives, upholds, reads, chants, and explains it to others?”

“Subhuti, in summation, the virtue of this sutra is infinite and unlimited. The Tathagata speaks this sutra to those who have initiated the mind of the Great Vehicle; he speaks it to those who have initiated the mind of the Supreme Vehicle. For those who receive, uphold, read, chant, and explain this sutra to others, the Tathagata fully knows and fully sees that such people will attain infinite, immeasurable, limitless, inconceivable virtue. All such people will shoulder the anuttara samyaksam-bodhi of the Tathagata. And why is this? Subhuti, those who delight in the lesser Dharma cling to a view of self, a view of others, a view of sentient beings, and a view of longevity, and thus they are not able to listen to this sutra, to receive it, to read it, to chant it, or to explain it to others.”

In the above passage from the Diamond Sutra the Buddha says that the merit of giving the Dharma even exceeds giving one’s own life. If someone were to give his life as many times as there are grains of sand in the Ganges River three times a day for hundreds of millions of billions of kalpas, the merit gained from this would be impossible to calculate. Even so, if a person listens to the teachings of the Diamond Sutra, realizes the truth of prajna, and vows to practice according to its teachings and goes on to copy, receive and uphold, read, chant, and explain the Diamond Sutra to others, then the merit such a person would gain would exceed that of giving one’s life so many times. However, if someone were to cling to a view of self, a view of others, a view of sentient beings, or a view of longevity, then they cannot possibly attain realization into prajna wisdom that is notionless and abides in nothing, nor can they possibly read and chant the sutra, much less explain it to others.

There are ten common practices for sharing the Diamond Sutra as a gift of Dharma with others. They are:

1. Copy and transcribe the sutra.
2. Make offerings of the sutra in a temple or Buddha hall.
3. Bestow the sutra on others by printing and circulating it.
4. Listen to the sutra and devote attention to learning its teachings.
5. Explain the sutra to others, removing their impediments to understanding the text.
6. Receive and uphold the teachings of the sutra and apply them in life to benefit oneself and others.
7. Teach the sutra by giving Dharma talks on the meaning of the sutra, enabling other to realize their intrinsic nature.
8. Chant mindfully and concentrate upon the sutra.
9. Contemplate the sutra, and silently plumb the depths of its ideas, and gain insight into its profound meaning.
10. Cultivate the sutra by thinking and pondering its profound meaning, practice its teachings extensively, and attain enlightenment.

The Flower Adornment Sutra states:

Just as a gemstone in the dark
Cannot be seen without a light;
If no one preaches the Dharma,
Even the wise cannot attain realization.

People who teach the Dharma are like bright lamps, for they are able to illuminate the subtleties of the Dharma for others. Without someone to teach the Dharma, there can be no attainment of enlightenment, no matter how intelligent living beings may be. This is a clear demonstration of the value of giving the Dharma.

Source: Hsing Yun. Four Insights for Finding Fulfillment: A Practical Guide to the Buddha’s Diamond Sutra. Los Angeles: Buddha’s Light Publishing, 2012.