Then the great yakṣa general Saṃjñeya, accompanied by twenty-eight yakṣa generals, rose from his seat and with his robe over one shoulder, kneeling with his right knee on the ground and with palms together, bowed toward the Bhagavat and said to the Bhagavat, “Venerable Bhagavat, wherever this Lord King of Sūtras, the Sublime Golden Light appears, in the present or in future times, whether in a village, town, market town, region, wilderness, mountain cave, or royal residence, Bhagavat, I, the great yakṣa general Saṃjñeya, accompanied by twenty-eight yakṣa generals, will come to that village, town, market town, region, wilderness, mountain cave, or royal residence.

“I will make my body invisible and will guard that dharmabhāṇaka bhikṣu. I will defend him, take care of him, protect him, save him from punishment, and bring him peace and well-being.

“All men, women, boys, or girls who listen to the Dharma, whoever hears and retains even one four-line verse from this Lord King of Sūtras, the Sublime Golden Light, or even one line, or even the name of one bodhisattva from this Lord King of Sūtras, the Sublime Golden Light, or the name of one tathāgata, or even hears and retains just the name of this Lord King of Sūtras, the Sublime Golden Light, I will defend them all, take care of them, protect them, save them from punishment, and bring them peace and well-being. I will defend, take care of, protect, save from punishment, and bring peace and well-being to all those families, those homes, those villages, those towns, those market towns, those wildernesses, and those royal residences.

“Venerable Bhagavat, why am I called the great yakṣa general Saṃjñeya? Venerable Bhagavat, it is because I know all Dharmas, I understand all Dharmas, I comprehend all Dharmas. Whatever the number of Dharmas, the nature of the Dharmas, or the classes of Dharmas, venerable Bhagavat, I have direct knowledge of all Dharmas.

“Venerable Bhagavat, in all Dharmas my illumination by wisdom is inconceivable, my clarity of wisdom is inconceivable, my activity of wisdom is inconceivable, and my accumulation of wisdom is inconceivable.

“Venerable Bhagavat, in all Dharmas my engagement in the field of wisdom is inconceivable.

“Venerable Bhagavat, it is because of my correct knowledge, my correct examination, my correct view, and my correct comprehension of all Dharmas that I am named the great yakṣa general Saṃjñeya.

“Venerable Bhagavat, I will bring eloquence to the dharmabhāṇaka bhikṣu in order to beautify his words. I will bring brilliance to his pores and develop in his body great power, strength, and diligence; I will make the illumination of his wisdom inconceivable; and I will make his memory comprehensive and make him greatly enthusiastic, so that the dharmabhāṇaka’s body will not become fatigued, his body’s faculties will be blissful, he will feel great joy, and so that for the sake of those beings who have planted good roots with hundreds of thousands of buddhas, this Lord King of Sūtras, the Sublime Golden Light will remain for a long time in Jambudvīpa and will not soon vanish, and so that beings will hear this Lord King of Sūtras, the Sublime Golden Light and will attain an inconceivable accumulation of wisdom, will possess an accumulation of merit, and in the future will experience inconceivable happiness among devas and humans for many hundreds of thousands of quintillions of eons, will be in the company of tathāgatas, will in a future time attain the highest, most complete enlightenment of buddhahood, and will cease to experience the suffering of the hells, of birth as animals, or of the world of Yama.”

Saṃjñeya, the great yakṣa general, then said, “Bhagavat I have a dhāraṇī-mantra and through compassion and for the benefit of beings I will recite this mantra in the presence of the Bhagavat.

“The mantra is:

namo buddhāya | namo dharmāya | namaḥ saṃghāya | namo brahmāya | nama indrāya | namaś caturnāṃ mahārājānāṃ | tadyathā | hili hili mili mili gauri mahāgauri gandhari mahāgandhari drimiḍi mahādrimiḍi daṇḍakhukhunti haha haha hihi hihi huhu huhu halodhame gudhame caca caca cici cici cucu cucu caṇḍeśvara śikhara śikhara atiṣṭhāhe bhagavān saṃvidjñāya svāhā |

“I will bestow on anyone who possesses and keeps this vidyāmantra all the requisites of life, alms, clothing, flowers, fruits, wealth, jewels, and so on.

“Anyone who wishes for requisites such as sons and daughters, male and female slaves, gold, silver, jewels, adornments, and so on, I will bestow them according to their individual wishes.

“Because this mantra possesses great power and majesty when it is repeated, I will quickly come there and accomplish anything without impediment.

“In the rite for practicing this mantra, first paint an image of Saṃjñeya, the great general of the yakṣas, four or five hands in height, holding an axe in his hands. In front of that, make a square maṇḍala and in its four corners place four vases filled with liquid honey or molasses, and make offerings with ointments, powders, burning incense, and flower garlands. Alternatively, dig a fire-offering pit in front of the maṇḍala and in a fire that has no smoke burn a mixture of butter and mustard seeds, making a fire offering with each repetition of the mantra. In that way, make a burnt offering a hundred and eight times. I will reveal my body there and ask the mantra practitioner, ‘What is it that you want? Tell me what it is that you desire!’ and I will give them whatever they desire. If someone wishes for gold or silver, or wishes to search for treasure, or wishes to be a divine ṛṣi, it will be accomplished and they will attain the ability to fly in the sky and moreover all the higher cognitions, such as divine sight and knowing the minds of others. They will gain as wished for power over all beings and they will end the continuum of all the kleśas and will attain liberation.”

The Bhagavat then congratulated Saṃjñeya, the great general of the yakṣas, saying, “It is excellent, excellent, that you have inconceivably increased your merit by speaking these mantra words in order to bring benefit and happiness to all beings and to protect this sublime Dharma.”