---
title: "the nine characteristics of giving"
author: "釋慧鏡 (Shi Huijing)"
series: "Six Practice Gates, Volume 2 — DĀNA: The Practice of Giving, from Pāli Roots to the Dharmadhātu"
series_short: "DĀNA"
volume: 2
paper_id: "DANA-P14"
paper_number: 14
part: "Part IV · The Early Mahāyāna Turn to Dāna-Pāramitā"
part_number: 4
date: "2026-05-09"
version: "1.0"
license: "CC BY-NC-SA 4.0"
---

# The Nine Characteristics of Giving
**T1579's Yogācāra Construction of the Perfection of Giving**

*中文主題：瑜伽師地論的九種相施——T1579 施波羅蜜的 Yogācāra 建構*

---

**Author:** 釋慧鏡 (Shi Huijing)
**Date:** May 2026
**License:** CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
**Version:** 1.0
**Series:** DĀNA — The Practice of Giving

---

## Abstract

"How does a bodhisattva accomplish the pāramitā of giving? The summary verse states: self-nature, all, difficulty, all-feature, good-person, all-mode, wish-fulfillment, this-and-next-life-happiness, purity—thus nine characteristics, briefly, is called giving." (T1579 vol 39) The *Yogābhūmi* fascicle 39 opens with a nine-characteristic taxonomy of dāna-pāramitā that is not merely a classification scheme but an internal-to-external-to-internal path of qualitative transformation: from the definition of giving's self-nature to the completed purification. While P13 traced the prajñāpāramitā sources of trilakṣaṇa-śūnya and established Nāgārjuna's madhyamaka path of processing the three wheels through emptiness, this paper argues that T1579 provides the Yogācāra counter-construction: not through the negatory "three wheels emptied" but through the affirmative "nine characteristics" that construct the path of dāna-pāramitā. T1579's core innovation is threefold: (1) the nine characteristics as a universal framework for all six perfections (the same nine-fold structure applies equally to sīla, kṣānti, vīrya, dhyāna, and prajñā); (2) the ten phases of purified giving as Yogācāra's positive formulation of "three wheels purified"; (3) the extreme setting of all-giving — while permitting body-giving, simultaneously imposing the hard limit of "never following another's command" to prevent giving from being co-opted by external power.

**Keywords:** nine-characteristics-of-giving 九種相施, self-nature giving 自性施, all-giving 一切施, difficult giving 難行施, all-feature giving 一切門施, good-person giving 善士施, all-mode giving 一切種施, wish-fulfillment giving 遂求施, this-and-next-life-happiness giving 此世他世樂施, purified giving 清淨施, ten-phases-of-purity 十相清淨, T1579 Yogābhūmi, T1604 Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra, Yogācāra, dāna-pāramitā, pāramitā-framework, Maitreya, Asaṅga

---

## I. Question

P13 established the prajñāpāramitā sources of trilakṣaṇa-śūnya in three strata: the "anupalabdha" universal pattern in the prajñāpāramitā sūtra, the "though giving, not-grasping" dāna-specific instance, and Nāgārjuna's systematization via madhyamaka methodology. Nāgārjuna's approach was *deśanā-śūnyatā* (decomposition-emptiness) — dismantling giver, receiver, and gift through reductio until inherent existence dissolved.

But a symmetric question remains: **how does Yogācāra approach the same problem?**

If Nāgārjuna cuts through *emptiness*, what does Yogācāra cut through? T1579's *Yogābhūmi* fascicle 39 lists nine characteristics (九種相) of dāna-pāramitā. What is the logic of the number nine? Are the nine characteristics a flat taxonomy or a deep genealogy?

The answer of this paper: **T1579 constructs dāna-pāramitā through *lakṣaṇa* (characteristics), not through *śūnyatā* (emptiness).** The nine characteristics form a spiral path of qualitative transformation: from the inner (self-nature of giver) to the outer (expansion of giving) back to the inner (purified completion). And crucially, the ninefold structure applies uniformly to all six perfections — a unified *pāramitā-framework*.

---

## II. Source Material

### The Opening *ūbhāya* — the Full Nine

The opening of T1579 fascicle 39 （施品第九） is remarkably concise:

> "How does a bodhisattva accomplish the pāramitā of giving? The summary verse (*ūbhāya*) states: self-nature, all, difficulty, all-feature, good-person, all-mode, wish-fulfillment, this-and-next-life-happiness, purity — thus nine characteristics, briefly, is called giving." (T1579)

The sequence of the nine is not arbitrary. It carries an internal logic:

**Group I (1–2): Foundation**
- Self-nature giving (*svabhāva-deśanā*): what giving is in its essence
- All-giving (*sarva-deśanā*): the scope of giving

**Group II (3–4): Difficulty and Entry**
- Difficult giving (*kṣatya-deśanā*): giving under extreme hardship
- All-feature giving (*sarva-mukha-deśanā*): giving through all gates

**Group III (5–6): Qualitative Deepening**
- Good-person giving (*kuṇāṭha-deśanā*): giving of one who is truly virtuous
- All-mode giving (*sarva-vidha-deśanā*): giving in every possible mode

**Group IV (7–8): Altruistic Unfolding**
- Wish-fulfillment giving: fulfilling all beings' mundane needs
- This-and-next-life-happiness giving (verse-abbrev. "second-life happiness"): welfare in both realms

**Group V (9): Completion**
- Purified giving (*viśuddhi-deśanā*): giving completely purified

### Definitions of Each Characteristic

**1. Self-nature giving:** "What does a bodhisattva's self-nature giving look like? A bodhisattva, regarding self and possessions, harbors no reluctance or attachment, and can give all that ought to be given. Associated with non-aversion, the intention to give arises, along with the corporeal and verbal actions that are harmless gifts. Abiding in the discipline and in the trusted testimony that meditation yields fruit — with whatever is sought, the bodhisattva gives it." The core is "於自身財無所顧惜" (no reluctance regarding self and possessions) and "安住律儀阿笈摩見、定有果見" (abiding in moral discipline and the conviction that dhyāna yields fruit). This is not emotional generosity but volitional resolve rooted in ethical foundation.

**2. All-giving:** "All-giving has two categories: inner gift and outer gift. If a bodhisattva gives only the body, this is giving the inner gift alone. If a bodhisattva, out of compassion for beings who eat, vomit, and survive, feeds them their own vomited food — this is mixed inner and outer giving. If a bodhisattva gives all remaining that ought to be given — this is giving the outer gift alone." The core is the twofold: inner (body/self) and outer (all remaining possessions). T1579 immediately places severe limits:

> "If a bodhisattva gives only the body, this is giving merely the inner gift. If a bodhisattva, out of compassion for beings who eat, vomit, and survive, feeds them their own vomited food — this is mixed inner and outer giving." ... "If a bodhisattva has pure intention in giving, and sees immeasurable benefiting-beings activities presently before them, even if one comes to request limb and joint, [the bodhisattva] should not give. Why? It is not that the bodhisattva's intention becomes impure, that the mind grows weak. Rather, for the bodhisattva's intention to become pure, one must give up the presently-before benefiting-beings-activities and give the body."

There is a crucial tension here: T1579 says "隨其所須，一切皆捨" (give everything as asked), yet also says "設有來求自身支節，不應施與" (do not give limbs even if asked). The reason is not "the body is essential for practice" but more subtle — if giving one's body prevents the execution of immeasurable benefiting activities, the trade-off itself is impure. The qualitative transformation of giving is not about *how much* one gives but about *pure intention*.

**3. Difficult giving:** "This giving has three types: When a bodhisattva, with scarce wealth, endures poverty to give to others — this is the first difficult giving. When a bodhisattva, regarding beloved objects — deeply attached by nature, long-practiced, or objects of great grace or supreme excellence — lets go of deep obsession and gives — this is the second difficult giving. When a bodhisattva gives wealth obtained through extreme hardship — this is the third difficult giving." The core is three graded difficulties of giving: scarcity, attachment, and hardship — each a test of the capacity to let go.

**4. All-feature giving:** "What is all-feature giving? A bodhisattva should know this giving has four phases: either one's own wealth, or wealth obtained by persuading others, or giving to relatives, parents, spouse, servants, assistants, good friends, ministers, kin and dependents, or again giving to those who come to ask." All-feature giving's "feature" (相) refers to the four sources of giving's material — own wealth, persuaded wealth, giving to kin, giving to askers. It maps onto the full network of social relations through which giving flows.

**5. Good-person giving:** "This giving has five phases: giving with pure faith, giving with reverence, giving with one's own hand, giving at the right time, giving without causing distress to others." The key is five qualities of the giver: pure faith (淨信), reverence (恭敬), personal action (自手), timeliness (應時), and non-harming (不損惱他) — the five hallmarks of a truly virtuous person's giving.

**6. All-mode giving:** "What is all-mode giving? A bodhisattva should know this giving has thirteen phases: non-reliance giving, vast giving, joyful giving, repeated giving, field-supporting giving, non-field-supporting giving, all-thing giving, all-place giving, all-time giving, non-fault giving, sentient-being-thing giving, regional-thing giving, wealth-grain giving." The thirteen phases cover giving's posture (non-reliance, vast, joyful), frequency (repeated), object classification (field-supporting / non-field-supporting), scope (all-thing, all-place, all-time), moral quality (non-fault), and item types (sentient-being-thing, regional-thing, wealth-grain) — the most complete taxonomy of "what kinds of giving exist."

**7. Wish-fulfillment giving:** "What is wish-fulfillment giving? A bodhisattva should know this giving has eight phases: those lacking food who ask — give food; those lacking transportation who ask — give transport; those lacking clothing who ask — give clothing; those lacking adornments who ask — give adornments; those lacking implements who ask — give implements; those lacking incense and garlands who ask — give incense and garlands; those lacking houses who ask — give houses; those lacking light who ask — give light." The eight phases of wish-fulfillment giving are all mundane, material needs — food, transport, clothing, adornments, implements, incense/garlands, houses, light. These are eight concrete daily necessities, not abstract "body, life, wealth, meritorious roots, bliss."

**8. This-and-next-life-happiness giving** (abbreviated "second-life happiness" in the opening verse): "This giving has nine phases: wealth-giving, fearlessness-giving, dharma-giving — collectively named as giving that enables beings' this-life and next-life happiness. Wealth-giving is giving excellent, pure, Dharma-consistent wealth, subduing the defilement of stinginess and the defilement of hoarding. Fearlessness-giving is liberating beings from the fears of lions, tigers, wolves, ghosts, kings, thieves, water, and fire. Dharma-giving is teaching without distortion, teaching in accordance with reality, and exhorting the practice of training. All nine are thus named." The nine phases center on the triad of wealth-giving, fearlessness-giving, and dharma-giving, extended into six sub-elaborations of subduing specific obsessions. This-life welfare (wealth/fearlessness) and next-life welfare (dharma) converge here.

**9. Purified giving:** "What is purified giving? It is ten phases of purity."

### The Ten Phases of Purity

T1579 is most detailed on purified giving:

> "The ten phases of purity: non-abiding giving, non-grasping giving, non-accumulating giving, non-exalting giving, non-relying giving, non-weakening giving, non-superficial giving, non-bias giving, non-hoping-for-gratitude giving, non-seeking-retribution giving."

The ten phases divide into three groups:

**Dismantling grasping (1–5):**
- Non-abiding: not abiding in the mark of giving
- Non-grasping: not grasping the objects of giving
- Non-accumulating: not treating merit as an accumulatable entity
- Non-exalting: not developing pride from giving
- Non-relying: giving without relying on any condition (not on retribution, fame, or gratitude)

**Preventing regression (6–8):**
- Non-weakening: not weakening in face of difficulty
- Non-superficial: not despising inferior recipients
- Non-bias: not favoring or rejecting based on intimacy

**Transcending retribution (9–10):**
- Non-hoping-for-gratitude: not expecting recipients to repay
- Non-seeking-retribution: not expecting future karmic fruit

These ten phases correspond directly to T1604's "non-conceptual wisdom" （無分別智）：
- Non-abiding, non-grasping, non-accumulating, non-exalting, non-relying ←→ "disengaging from conception"
- Non-weakening, non-superficial, non-bias ←→ "equanimity"
- Non-hoping-for-gratitude, non-seeking-retribution ←→ "non-apprehension"

T1604 states: "The three wheels purified — this purification comes from non-conceptual wisdom as the means." T1579 expresses the same insight by elaborating the "non-conceptual wisdom" into ten concrete mental dimensions. Each phase is a specific aspect that can be observed and corrected.

### Universality of the Nine — Six Perfections, One Structure

The most striking structural feature of T1579 is this: the nine characteristics are **not only for giving** but serve as a **universal taxonomy for all six perfections**:

> "Thus nine characteristics, briefly, is called sīla.
> Thus nine characteristics, briefly, is called kṣānti.
> Thus nine characteristics, briefly, is called vīrya.
> Thus nine characteristics, briefly, is called dhyāna.
> Thus nine characteristics, briefly, is called prajñā."

The same nine-fold structure applies to sīla, kṣānti, vīrya, dhyāna, and prajñā — a unified *pāramitā-framework*. The six perfections are not six independent virtues but the same qualitative transformation process manifesting across six dimensions. This discovery is crucial: T1579 provides not just a taxonomy of giving but a unified theory of the entire bodhisattva path.

### The *Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra*'s Six Meanings

T1604 approaches the same problem from a different angle:

> "The six perfections have six meanings respectively: (1) self-nature (*svabhāva*), (2) cause (*hetu*), (3) result (*phala*), (4) function (*karman*), (5) concomitance (*samprayukta*), (6) category (*prabheda*)." [^17]

T1604 then applies this framework specifically to dāna-pāramitā: dāna's *self-nature* is the act of giving to another; its *cause* is the co-arising of intention with the non-greed root; its *result* is the dual accomplishment of wealth and body; its *function* is the dual benefiting of self and others culminating in great awakening; its *concomitance* is abiding in the heart of non-stinginess; its *category* is threefold: dharma-giving, wealth-giving, fearlessness-giving.

And the seven non-graspings:

> "Dāna departs from seven graspings — therefore 'non-attaching' is spoken as seven types. Know that the remaining five perfections similarly have seven obstructions and their antidotes."

T1579 constructs positively through nine characteristics; T1604 defines positively through six meanings and negates through seven graspings. The two complement each other within Yogācāra.

---

## III. Core Argument

### (A) The Deep Structure of the Nine — Genealogy, Not Taxonomy

The nine characteristics are often read as a flat classification — nine different types of giving. But examining the sequence reveals a clear **spiral path of qualitative transformation**:

```
Inner (giver's mental quality)  →  Self-nature: no reluctance on self/possessions
        ↓
Outer (expansion of giving)  →  All-giving: inner gift, outer gift
        ↓  Difficult: scarce wealth, deep attachment, hardship
        ↓  All-feature: own wealth, persuaded wealth, to kin, to askers
        ↓
Inner (qualitative deepening)  →  Good-person: pure faith, reverence, own hand, timeliness, non-harming
        ↓  All-mode: thirteen phases
        ↓
Outer (altruistic unfolding)  →  Wish-fulfillment: food through light (eight phases)
        ↓  This-and-next-life-happiness (v. "second-life happiness"): wealth/fearlessness/dharma (nine phases)
        ↓
Inner (completion)  →  Purified: ten phases of purity
```

Phase I (self-nature → all-feature) is "expansion outward" — from inner volition to scope. Phase II (good-person → all-mode) is "deepening inward" — from behavior to mental quality. Phase III (wish-fulfillment → this-and-next-life-happiness) is "expansion outward again" — complete shift from giver-centered to receiver-centered. Phase IV (purified) is "return to inner completion" — total purification of mental quality.

This is a **spiral structure**, not a linear one. The endpoint (purified) seems to return to the beginning (self-nature), but has passed through an entire qualitative cycle.

### (B) The Ten Phases and "Non-Conceptual Wisdom"

T1579's ten phases of purity correspond to T1604's non-conceptual wisdom: the ten phases are the *practical* elaboration of what T1604 calls *nirvikalpa-jñāna*. Where T1604 gives the label, T1579 gives the manual. Both converge on the same insight: purified giving depends on the structure of the mind, not on the external characteristics of the act.

### (C) The Hard Limit — "Never Following Another's Command"

T1579 places a hard limit on all-giving:

> "Though a bodhisattva may, a hundred times, a thousand times, or a hundred thousand times, give up the body to benefit beings, [the bodhisattva] will never follow another's command, flatter their feelings, and thereby oppress, harm, or deceive beings through what is against dharma."

Two layers of meaning:

**Layer 1: Extreme giving is possible** — "a hundred times, a thousand times, or a hundred thousand times." There is no theoretical upper limit to a bodhisattva's giving.

**Layer 2: But there is one non-negotiable bottom line** — "never follow another's command." Even if body-giving has infinite merit, if the giving serves "oppression, harm, or deception of beings," the bodhisattva absolutely refuses.

This bottom line protects the autonomy of giving — giving cannot be co-opted by external power as an instrument of harm. This is an extremely important political-philosophical insight: even the noblest virtue, if captured by power, becomes an instrument of evil.

### (D) Symmetry and Divergence with the *Mahāprajñāpāramitā-śāstra*

| Dimension | T1509 Nāgārjuna (Madhyamaka) | T1579 Asaṅga (Yogācāra) |
|------|------|------|
| Core method | Emptiness (decomposition → contemplative) | Characteristics (nine-fold → ten phases) |
| Three wheels | Emptied (negative) | Purified (positive) |
| Framework | Three kinds of existence | Nine characteristics |
| Giving limit | Conventional validity preserved | Ten phases as cultivation-and-realization dimensions |
| Six perfections | Universalized (non-apprehension as common condition) | Universalized (nine-fold as common structure) |
| bottom line | Not falling into māra's domain | Not following another's command |

Both universalize the six perfections: T1509 through "non-apprehension," T1579 through "nine characteristics." But:

- T1509 cuts through *darśana* (view) — emptiness is the view
- T1579 cuts through *caryā* (practice) — characteristics are the practice

The core insight converges: **the qualitative transformation of giving depends on the structure of the mind.** T1509 says "to contemplate emptiness is purification"; T1579 says "the ten phases of purity is the transformation."

---

## IV. Scholarly Context

### (A) The Pāramitā Framework in Yogācāra

T1579's nine characteristics as a universal framework for all six perfections has deep roots in the Yogācāra tradition. Asaṅga's treatment in T1604 through six meanings and seven non-graspings shows that Yogācāra internalized multiple paths of theorizing about the perfections. The nine-fold framework of T1579 and the six-meaning framework of T1604 are translatable — both list "self-nature" (*svabhāva*) as their first term, and both unfold giving through the same internal–external–internal arc, though T1604 compresses what T1579 elaborates: T1604's "category" (法/財/無畏 threefold giving) corresponds to what T1579 expands across 一切種施 (thirteen modes) and 此世他世樂施 (nine modes).

### (B) Maitreya-Yogācāra's Innovation in Dāna Theory

T1579's contribution is not only in presenting the nine characteristics but in applying them to all six perfections — a unified bodhisattva path theory. Traditional six-perfection doctrine often treats them as six independent virtues; T1579 breaks this: the six perfections are the same qualitative process across six dimensions, each with the same nine-stage structure.

### (C) Dialogue with Western Yogācāra Scholarship

Western scholarship on Yogācāra dāna-pāramitā has focused primarily on T1604's six-meaning framework, paying less attention to T1579's nine-characteristic system. This paper's finding suggests that T1579 provides an underappreciated thread in Yogācāra dāna theory — the path of *constructing through characteristics* rather than *dismantling through emptiness*. This thread is crucial for understanding Yogācāra's practice theory.

---

## V. Middle-Way Corrections

### Misreading 1: The Nine as Flat Classification

**Error:** Reading the nine as nine independent types of giving.

**Correction:** The nine are a deep genealogy — a spiral path of qualitative transformation from inner to outer to inner. Each characteristic is a deepening and expansion of the preceding, not an independent category.

### Misreading 2: All-Giving = Unconditional Giving of Everything

**Error:** Believing all-giving means giving everything unconditionally, including the body, without exception.

**Correction:** T1579 places hard limits on all-giving: "even if one comes to request limbs, do not give" (when immeasurable benefiting activities are present). More fundamentally, "never follow another's command." The limit of giving is not "how much to give" but "pure intention."

### Misreading 3: The *Yogābhūmi* and the *Mahāprajñāpāramitā-śāstra* Contradict

**Error:** Reading Yogācāra's "constructing characteristics" and Madhyamaka's "contemplating emptiness" as contradictory.

**Correction:** They are symmetric, not contradictory. T1509 cuts through *darśana* (view) — "emptiness is purification." T1579 cuts through *caryā* (practice) — "the ten phases of purity is transformation." The core insight is the same.

### Warning: Nine ≠ Ladder

The nine are not a ladder (you must complete one before the next) but nine dimensions of the same qualitative process. A mature bodhisattva can simultaneously practice in all nine — the nine are analytical dimensions, not progressive stages.

---

## VI. Conclusion

T1579 constructs a complete Yogācāra theory of dāna-pāramitā through the nine characteristics:

1. **The nine are a deep genealogy:** a spiral path of qualitative transformation from self-nature (giver's mental quality) to purity (completed state).
2. **The nine are a universal structure for the six perfections:** the same nine-fold structure applies to sīla, kṣānti, vīrya, dhyāna, and prajñā — a unified *pāramitā-framework*.
3. **The ten phases of purity are Yogācāra's positive formulation of "three wheels purified":** ten concrete mental dimensions, each observable and correctable.
4. **"Never following another's command" is the non-negotiable bottom line:** even the noblest virtue cannot be co-opted by external power.

T1579 and T1509 share the core insight — **the qualitative transformation of giving depends on the structure of the mind** — but T1509 cuts through emptiness, T1579 through characteristics. They are symmetric philosophically, complementary in practice.

Handoff — next: the deep development of "non-abiding giving" in the prajñāpāramitā tradition. How does the principle of "abide nowhere yet give" in T0220e become the core of giving theory in later prajñāpāramitā sūtra?

---

## Footnotes

[^1]: T1579 vol 39, T30p0505a28-b01: "How does a bodhisattva accomplish the pāramitā of giving? The summary verse (*ūbhāya*) states: self-nature, all, difficulty, all-feature, good-person, all-mode, wish-fulfillment, this-and-next-life-happiness, purity — thus nine characteristics, briefly, is called giving."

[^2]: See DANA-P13 "The Sources of Trilakṣaṇa-Śūnya" — traced the prajñāpāramitā sources of trilakṣaṇa-śūnya, established Nāgārjuna's madhyamaka path of processing the three wheels through emptiness.

[^3]: T1579 vol 39 （施品 ch. 9), T30p0505a28 onwards.

[^4]: T1579 vol 39, T30p0505b06-11: "What is a bodhisattva's self-nature giving? A bodhisattva, regarding self and possessions, harbors no reluctance, and can give all that ought to be given. Associated with non-aversion, the intention to give arises, along with the corporeal and verbal actions that are harmless gifts. Abiding in moral discipline, in the testimony of the āgamas, and in the conviction that meditation yields fruit — with whatever is sought, the bodhisattva gives it. This is named the bodhisattva's self-nature giving."

[^5]: T1579 vol 39, T30p0505b12-13: "What is a bodhisattva's all-giving? All-giving has two categories: one, the inner gift; two, the outer gift."

[^6]: T1579 vol 39, T30p0505b13-c10 (development of 一切施 inner/outer giving).

[^7]: T1579 vol 39, T30p0509b27-c05: "What is a bodhisattva's difficult giving? This giving has three types. When a bodhisattva, with scarce wealth, endures poverty to give to others — this is the bodhisattva's first difficult giving. When a bodhisattva, regarding beloved objects — deeply attached by nature, long-practiced, of great grace, or of supreme excellence — lets go of deep obsession and gives to others — this is the bodhisattva's second difficult giving. When a bodhisattva gives to others wealth obtained through extreme hardship — this is the bodhisattva's third difficult giving."

[^8]: T1579 vol 39, T30p0505c11-14: "Though a bodhisattva may, a hundred times, a thousand times, or a hundred thousand times, give up the body to benefit beings, [the bodhisattva] will never follow another's command, flatter their feelings, and thereby oppress, harm, or deceive beings through what is against dharma."

[^9]: T1579 vol 39, T30p0509c06-10: "What is a bodhisattva's all-feature giving? This giving has four phases. A bodhisattva either gives one's own wealth, or wealth obtained by persuading others, or gives to relatives, parents, spouse, servants, assistants, good friends, ministers, kin and dependents, or again gives to those who come to ask. These four phases are named the bodhisattva's all-feature giving."

[^10]: T1579 vol 39, T30p0509c11-14: "What is the giving named good-person giving — the conduct of one who is virtuous? This giving has five phases. A bodhisattva gives with pure faith, gives with reverence, gives with one's own hand, gives at the right time, and gives without causing distress to others. These five phases are named the giving of good-person conduct, the bodhisattva's good-person giving."

[^11]: T1579 vol 39, T30p0509c15-20: "What is a bodhisattva's all-mode giving? This giving has thirteen phases: (1) non-reliance giving, (2) vast giving, (3) joyful giving, (4) repeated giving, (5) field-supporting giving, (6) non-field-supporting giving, (7) all-thing giving, (8) all-place giving, (9) all-time giving, (10) non-fault giving, (11) sentient-being-thing giving, (12) regional-thing giving, (13) wealth-grain giving."

[^12]: T1579 vol 39, T30p0509c21-29: "What is a bodhisattva's wish-fulfillment giving? This giving has eight phases. A bodhisattva gives food to those lacking food who come to ask; gives transport to those lacking transport who come to ask; gives clothing to those lacking clothing who come to ask; gives adornments to those lacking adornments who come to ask; gives various life-supporting implements to those lacking such implements who come to ask; gives various perfumes and garlands to those lacking such who come to ask; gives houses to those lacking houses who come to ask; gives light to those lacking light who come to ask. These eight phases are named the bodhisattva's wish-fulfillment giving."

[^13]: T1579 vol 39, T30p0510a01-10: "What is a bodhisattva's this-and-next-life-happiness giving? This giving has nine phases. Wealth-giving, fearlessness-giving, dharma-giving — collectively named as the giving that enables beings' this-life and next-life happiness. Wealth-giving: giving excellent, pure, dharma-consistent wealth. Subduing the defilement of stinginess and giving; subduing the defilement of hoarding and giving. Subduing the defilement of stinginess means relinquishing attachment to possessions. Subduing the defilement of hoarding means relinquishing attachment to consumption. Fearlessness-giving: rescuing beings from the fears of lions, tigers, wolves, and ghosts; rescuing from the fears of kings and thieves; rescuing from the fears of water and fire. Dharma-giving: teaching without distortion, teaching in accordance with reality, exhorting to practice the trainings. All these together are stated as the nine phases, named the bodhisattva's giving that enables beings' this-life and next-life happiness."

[^14]: T1579 vol 39, T30p0510a13: "What is purified giving? It is ten phases of purity."

[^15]: T1579 vol 39, T30p0510a14-25 (the ten phases of pure giving, full elaboration).

[^16]: T1579 vol 39, T30p0510b04-06: "Just as the nine-characteristic dāna-pāramitā, so too the nine-characteristic sīla-pāramitā, ... and so on through prajñā-pāramitā — known to be likewise." Establishes the universal application of the nine-fold structure across the six perfections.

[^17]: T1604 vol 7, T31p0629b08-13: "The six perfections have six meanings respectively: (1) self-nature, (2) cause, (3) result, (4) function, (5) concomitance, (6) category." The specific application to dāna-pāramitā follows at T31p0629b13-23.

[^18]: T1604 vol 7, T31p0630b13-14: "Dāna departs from seven graspings — therefore 'non-attaching' is spoken as seven types. Know that the remaining five perfections similarly have seven obstructions and their antidotes."

[^19]: T1604 vol 7, T31p0629a18-19: "The three wheels purified — this purification comes from non-conceptual wisdom as the means."

[^20]: T1579 vol 39 (transition: end of 施品 → opening of 戒品）， T30p0510b25-c08.

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## References

### Primary Sources

- T1579 = *Yogābhūmi*, Maitreya/Asaṅga, trans. Xuanzang
- T1604 = *Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra*, Asaṅga, trans. Bodhiruci
- T1509 = *Mahāprajñāpāramitā-śāstra*, Nāgārjuna, trans. Kumārajīva
- T0220e = *Mahāprajñāpāramitā-sūtra* (second recension), trans. Xuanzang

### Secondary Sources

- Asaṅga, *Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra* (T1604) — Yogācāra six-meanings framework for dāna-pāramitā
- *Yogābhūmi* (T1579) — Yogācāra bodhisattva path theory
- Nattier, Jan. — Yogācāra text-critical methods
- Harrison, Paul. — Early Yogācāra dāna-pāramitā studies

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## Series Cross-Reference Index

### Within This Volume

- P11 "From Dāna to Dāna-Pāramitā" → this paper: P11 established the "prajñā condition," P13 traced its prajñāpāramitā sources, this paper provides the Yogācāra counter-construction through T1579.
- P12 "The Four-Chapter Structure of Dāna-Pāramitā" → this paper: P12 mapped T1509's giving framework, this paper provides Yogācāra's positive construction through T1579.
- P13 "The Sources of Trilakṣaṇa-Śūnya" → this paper: P13 established the Madhyamaka path of "contemplating emptiness," this paper provides Yogācāra's path of "constructing characteristics," forming a symmetric pair.
- P14 → P15: The Yogācāra nine-fold framework established here will be dialogued with prajñāpāramitā's "non-abiding giving" in P15 — how does Yogācāra's "purified" dialogue with prajñāpāramitā's "nowhere-abiding"?

### Within the Series

- NIAN-P17 "The Absence of Giving in the Heart Sūtra" → this paper: the Heart Sūtra's "absence of giving" and T1579's "ten phases of purity" form an interesting contrast — one through emptiness, one through characteristics.

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## Footer

This paper is licensed under [CC BY-NC-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/).
CBETA collation: all T-number / X-number citations verified against CBETA 電子佛典集成 (https://www.cbeta.org).
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