Section 19
Original Sanskrit
तत्किं मन्यसे सुभूते यः कश्चित्कुलपुत्रो वा कुलदुहिता वेमं त्रिसाहस्रमहासाहस्रं लोकधातुं सप्तरत्नपरिपूर्णं कृत्वा तथागतेभ्योऽर्हद्भ्यः सम्यक्संबुद्धेभ्यो दानं दद्यात् । अपि नु स कुलपुत्रो वा कुलदुहिता वा ततो निदानं बहु पुण्यस्कंधं प्रसुनुयात् । सुभूतिराह । बहु भगवन्बहु सुगत । भगवानाह । एवमेतत्सुभूते एवमेतत् बहु स कुलपुत्रो वा कुलदुहिता वा ततो निदानं पुण्यस्कंधं प्रसुनुयादप्रमेयमसंख्येयं । तत्कस्य हेतोः । पुण्यस्कंधः पुण्यस्कंध इति सुभूते अस्कंधः स तथागतेन भाषितः । तेनोच्यते पुण्यस्कंध इति । सचेत्पुनः सुभूते पुण्यस्कंधोऽभविष्यत् न तथागतोऽभाषिष्यत् पुण्यस्कंधः पुण्यस्कंध इति ॥१९॥
Musean translation
Mouseia’s complete machine-assisted Musean translation, made directly from the Sanskrit of F. Max Müller’s 1881 Anecdota Oxoniensia edition, all 32 sections, with the printed section numbers kept.
"What do you think, Subhūti? Suppose a son or daughter of good family filled this threefold thousand-great-thousand world-system with the seven treasures and gave them as an offering to the Tathāgatas, the Worthy, the Perfectly Awakened. Would that son or daughter gain much merit from it?" Subhūti answered: "Much, Blessed One, much, Sugata." The Blessed One said: "So it is, Subhūti, so it is. That son or daughter would gain much merit, a heap of merit immeasurable and countless. Why? 'Heap of merit, heap of merit': the Tathāgata has said that this is no heap; therefore it is called a heap of merit. And if there were a heap of merit, the Tathāgata would not have spoken of a heap of merit." [19]
Plain English translation
Mouseia’s complete Plain English edition, made independently and directly from the same Sanskrit, covering all 32 sections with the printed section numbers.
The Buddha said: "What do you think, Subhūti? Suppose a son or daughter of good family filled a world as large as three thousand great thousands with the seven treasures, and gave them to the Tathāgatas, the Worthy, the Fully Awakened Ones. Would that person gain a great deal of merit?" Subhūti said: "A great deal, Blessed One, a great deal, Sugata." The Buddha said: "So it is, Subhūti, so it is. That person would gain a great deal of merit, a heap that cannot be measured or counted. Why? When the Tathāgata says 'heap of merit, heap of merit,' he means it is not really a heap. That is why it is called a heap of merit. If there really were a heap of merit, the Tathāgata would not have said 'heap of merit.'" [19]
About this section
Section 19 is part of Diamond Sutra (Vajracchedikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra) by Unknown. This page sets the Sanskrit original beside 2 direct-source translations, so any line can be checked against the source. It is section 19 of 32 in the work, which is kept in the Buddhist tradition.
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