r/bodhicitta

After exploring the massive academic ruins of Nalanda, we are traveling to the ancient city of Rajgir to climb a very specific mountain. This is Gridhrakuta, also known as Vulture Peak. If you practice any form of Mahayana Buddhism today, including Zen or Tibetan traditions, the roots of your practice were spoken into existence right here on these rocks.

The Pinnacle of Mahayana (Pic 1): We are starting right at the summit with this vibrant outdoor shrine. This altar sits at the very top of Vulture Peak, marking the sacred spot where the Buddha delivered his most profound discourses. The most famous of these is the Lotus Sutra (Saddharma Pundarika Sutra). This specific teaching is the absolute cornerstone of Mahayana Buddhism, introducing the revolutionary concept that all sentient beings inherently possess Buddha nature and can achieve full awakening. This specific location is also profoundly important for women in Buddhism. It was right here that Mahapajapati Gotami (the Buddha's foster mother who founded the female monastic order) gathered with thousands of Bhikkhunis (female monks). At this summit, the Buddha officially predicted their future enlightenment, demonstrating that revolutionary teaching of universal awakening in action.

The Namesake (Pic 2): To give you a sense of where that shrine actually sits, here is the massive rock formation that gave this mountain its name. Ancient texts state it was named Gridhrakuta because the jagged peak resembles a folding vulture, and because actual vultures constantly circled the valleys below. This rugged, isolated peak was the Buddha's preferred place of retreat.

The King's Path (Pic 3): Monks descending the ancient stone steps. Over 2,500 years ago, King Bimbisara, the ruler of the powerful Magadha kingdom and a devoted patron of the Buddha, had a massive stone road built straight up the side of this mountain simply so he could visit the Buddha to hear him teach. Millions of pilgrims have walked this exact same path ever since.

The Heart of Wisdom (Pic 4): Looking over the shoulder of the golden Buddha as practitioners gather to chant. Vulture Peak is also the traditional setting for the delivery of the Heart Sutra. This is where the profound concept of Sunyata (Emptiness) was distilled into the famous phrase "Form is emptiness, emptiness is form," a teaching chanted daily in monasteries all across the globe today.

Ananda's Cave (Pic 5): Just below the summit are several small, shallow caves used by the Buddha and his closest disciples. This specific cave shrine, beautifully adorned with gold leaf by visiting pilgrims, is famously dedicated to Ananda, the Buddha's devoted personal attendant. Legend says that while Ananda was meditating here, Mara (the demon of illusion) appeared as a terrifying vulture to frighten him. The Buddha, meditating nearby, reached his hand through the solid rock to touch Ananda's shoulder and calm his mind.

The Flower Sermon (Pic 6): A quiet moment captured on the mountain. Vulture Peak is also the site of the legendary Flower Sermon. The story goes that a massive crowd gathered to hear the Buddha speak, but instead of using words, he simply held up a single white lotus flower in absolute silence. Only one disciple, Mahakashyapa, understood the profound silent teaching and smiled. That exact moment of wordless transmission is considered the origin of the entire Zen (Chan) Buddhist tradition.

The Living Sangha (Pic 7): A beautiful, candid moment of a monk smiling on his ascent. Despite being the site of ancient assassination attempts (the Buddha's jealous cousin, Devadatta, famously tried to kill him here by rolling a massive boulder down the mountain), Vulture Peak remains a vibrant, joyful place of living pilgrimage.

The Winds of Dharma (Pic 8): Ending with these vibrant prayer flags draped over the ancient stones. The colors represent the five elements, and the belief is that the wind will carry the mantras printed on them across the world. It is incredibly fitting here, as the teachings spoken on this specific mountain 2,500 years ago really did blow across the Himalayas to shape the entire Eastern world.

Considering the incredible teachings that were delivered on this mountain, which sutra or specific Buddhist concept has had the biggest impact on your own life?

>Verses depicting the uncertain, brief, and suffering-laden nature of mortal life, emphasizing the inevitability of death for all beings, like ripe fruits fated to fall. The Buddha counsels against futile grief and lamentation over the departed, urging the wise to understand the world’s relentless course of decay and death.

Uncertain and unknown,
is the life of mortals here;
it is difficult and brief,
and bound up with suffering.

For there is no means,
by which those who have been born will not die;
having reached old age, there is death,
for such is the nature of living beings.

Just as for ripe fruits,
are ever in peril of falling;
so for mortals who are born,
there is constant fear of death.

Just as the clay pots,
made by a potter;
all eventually end in breakage,
so too is the life of mortals.

Both the young and the old,
the immature and the wise alike;
all fall under the sway of death,
all have death as their destination.

When those overpowered by death,
are departing from this world to the next world;
a father cannot protect his son,
nor relatives their kin.

Even as the relatives are looking on,
and wailing profusely;
see how each of the mortals is led away,
like a cow being led to slaughter.

Thus the world is stricken,
by death and by old age;
therefore the wise do not sorrow,
having understood the nature of the world.

For one whose path you do not know,
by which they’ve come or where they’ve gone;
not perceiving either end,
yet mourn without purpose.

If while he is mourning,
a bewildered person, injuring himself;
could derive some benefit,
a clear-seeing one would do the same.

For neither with weeping nor with sorrow,
does the mind attain peace;
rather, greater suffering arises,
and the body too is harmed.

One becomes thin and pale,
self-inflicting harm upon oneself;
the departed are not protected by this,
vain is such mourning.

The person who does not abandon sorrow,
sinks into even greater suffering;
grieving for the one who has passed away,
one falls under the sway of sorrow.

See how others too must go,
each according to their deeds;
coming under death’s dominion,
living beings tremble just so.

However they may imagine it,
it turns out otherwise;
such is separation—
See the way of the world.

Even if a person were to live,
for a hundred years or longer;
there is separation from one’s group of relatives,
when one abandons life in this world.

Therefore, having heard it from the Arahant,
and having alleviated sorrow;
having seen that he has departed and died,
realize, “I cannot [bring the dead back to life].”

Just as, if one’s shelter were blazing,
one would extinguish the fire with water;
so too, the steadfast, discerning person,
learned, skillful person;
swiftly blows away arisen sorrow,
as the wind scatters a tuft of cotton.

[Blow away] sorrow and yearning,
and one’s own displeasure;
seeking happiness for oneself,
one should draw out the dart from oneself.

With the dart drawn out, unattached,
having attained peace of mind;
having overcome all sorrow,
sorrowless, one is quenched.

---

Key Terms:

[1] suffering [dukkha] ≈ discomfort, unpleasantness, discontentment, dissatisfaction, stress, pain, disease, i.e. mild or intense suffering

[2] immature [bāla] ≈ lacking in discernment or good sense, child-like in understanding

[3] wise [paṇḍita] ≈ astute, intelligent, learned, skilled

[4] bewildered [sammūḷha] ≈ confused, deluded

[5] clear-seeing one [vicakkhaṇa] ≈ discerning one, wise person

[6] sorrow [soka] ≈ grief, sadness

[7] peace [santi] ≈ calm, tranquility

[8] is harmed [upahaññati] ≈ is disturbed, is distressed

[9] pale [vivaṇṇa] ≈ of sickly appearance

[10] imagine [maññati] ≈ think, suppose, conceive

[11] Arahant [arahant] ≈ a worthy one, a fully awakened being, epithet of the Buddha

[12] steadfast [dhīra] ≈ firm, stable, wise

[13] discerning [sapañña] ≈ intelligent, wise

[14] yearning [pajappā] ≈ prayer, lit. muttering

[15] displeasure [domanassa] ≈ a negative state of mind; disagreeable feeling or unease born of mental contact, mental pain

[16] unattached [asita] ≈ untied, free

[17] quenched [nibbuta] ≈ liberated from mental defilements

---

Picture: “Standing Buddha offering protection,” Gupta period, India, late 6th–early 7th century. Photo by Vincent Tullo for The New York Times

Related Teachings:

• This life is brief, even before a hundred years it passes away (SnP 4.6) - The Buddha shares a reflection on aging and the impermanence of life and possessions. Seeing that all we call ‘mine’ must be lost at death, one should not cling to self. The sage, like a lotus leaf unstained by water, does not cling or spurn what is seen, heard, or sensed.
• Verses on Old Age (DhP 146 - 152) - Verses exploring impermanence, the nature of the body, and the inevitability of aging and death. Through metaphors of a world ablaze, a decaying body, the house-builder and a city of bones, they point to life’s transience and the futility of clinging to sensual pleasures.
• “I will recount the urgency for awakening, as it has been stirred within me” (SnP 4.15) - The Buddha shares in poignant terms his observations on the agitation all beings experience which led to his urgency to awaken. He then shares on the path to awakening and describes the dwelling of an awakened being.