The Buddha Speaks of the Mahayana School - 4

The Buddha Speaks of the Infinite Life Sutra of Adornment, Purity, Equality and Enlightenment of the Mahayana School

Translated into Chinese during the Ts'ao-Wei dynasty
by the Tripitaka Master Samghavarman from India

translated from Chinese by Hisao Inagaki

Chapter 21 - Flowers and innumerable rays of light emitted from them "Again, as the breeze blows, flowers are scattered throughout the Buddha-land; they spontaneously divide into different colors, not mixed together. They are soft and pleasant to touch, glow brilliantly, and diffuse rich fragrances. When one's foot is placed on them, they sink down four inches, but when the foot is lifted, they rise to their former level. When the flowers have served their purpose, the earth opens up and they vanish, leaving the ground clean and without trace of them. At the right moment, six times a day, the breeze wafts, scattering the flowers in this way. Moreover, lotus-flowers of various jewels fill the land; each has a hundred thousand kotis of petals with lights of numerous colors -- blue lotuses glow with a blue light, white ones with a white light, and, likewise, dark blue, yellow, red, and purple lotuses glow with lights of their respective colors. The brilliance of these lights is so magnificent that it outshines the sun and the moon. Each flower emits thirty-six hundred thousand kotis of rays of light, each sending forth thirty-six hundred thousand kotis of Buddhas. The bodies of these Buddhas are purple-gold, and their physical characteristics and marks are superb beyond compare. Each Buddha emits a hundred thousand rays of light and expounds the wonderful Dharma to beings in the ten quarters, thus setting innumerable beings on the right Path [272b] of the Buddha. Chapter 22 - Fulfillment of the 11th, 17th, and 18th vows The Buddha said to Ananda, "Sentient beings who are born in that Buddha-land all reside among those assured of Nirvana. The reason is that in that land there are neither beings who are destined to adverse conditions nor those whose destinies are uncertain. "All Buddhas, Tathagatas, in the ten quarters, as numerous as the sands of the River Ganges, together praise the inconceivable, supernal virtue of Amitayus. All sentient beings who, having heard his Name, rejoice in faith, remember him even once and sincerely transfer the merit of virtuous practices to that land, aspiring to be born there, will attain birth and dwell in the Stage of Non-retrogression. But excluded are those who have committed the five gravest offenses and abused the right Dharma." Chapter 23 - Three grades of aspirants: (1) higher grade The Buddha said to Ananda, "Devas and humans in the worlds of the ten quarters who sincerely aspire to be born in that land can be classified into three grades. The higher grade of aspirants are those who leave their homes and abandon worldly desires to become monks. Having awakened aspiration for Enlightenment, they single-mindedly remember Amitayus and perform meritorious practices, aspiring to be born in his land. When they are about to die, Amitayus, together with a host of sages, will appear before them. Then they will follow him and attain birth in his land. At once they will be born by transformation spontaneously from within seven-jewelled lotus-flowers. They will dwell in the Stage of Non-retrogression, attain steadfast wisdom and be capable of freely exercising supernatural powers. For this reason, Ananda, sentient beings who wish to see Amitayus while in this world should awaken aspiration for the highest Enlightenment, do meritorious deeds, and aspire to be born in his land." Chapter 24 - Three grades of aspirants: (2) middle grade The Buddha said to Ananda, "The middle grade of aspirants are the devas and humans in the worlds of the ten quarters who sincerely desire to be born in that land. Although unable to become monks and cultivate much merit, they awaken aspiration for the highest Enlightenment, single-mindedly think on Amitayus, perform some good deeds, observe the precepts of abstinence, build stupas, donate Buddhist statues, give alms to mendicants, hang banners, light candles, scatter flowers, burn incense, and so forth. They transfer the merit of those practices to his land, aspiring to be born there. When they are about to die, Amitayus will manifest his transformed body, [272c] which is fully possessed of the same radiance and physical characteristics and marks as those of the real Buddha, and make it appear before them, together with a host of sages. Then they will follow this transformed Buddha and be born in the Pure Land, where they will dwell in the Stage of Non-retrogression. Their virtue and wisdom will be next to those of the higher grade of aspirants." Chapter 25 - Three grades of aspirants: (3) lower grade The Buddha said to Ananda, "The lower grade of aspirants are the devas and humans in the worlds of the ten quarters who sincerely desire to be born in that land. Although unable to do many meritorious deeds, they awaken aspiration for the highest Enlightenment and single-mindedly concentrate on Amitayus even ten times, desiring birth in his land. When they hear the profound Dharma, they joyfully accept it and do not entertain any doubt; and so, remembering the Buddha even once, they sincerely aspire to be born in that land. When they are about to die, they will see the Buddha in a dream. Those aspirants, too, will be born in the Pure Land. Their merit and wisdom will be next to those of the middle grade of aspirants." Chapter 26 - Bodhisattvas' visit to the Pure Land from other lands The Buddha said to Ananda, "The majestic virtue of Amitayus is boundless. All the innumerable, uncountable and inconceivable Buddhas, Tathagatas, in the worlds of the ten quarters praise him. Innumerable and uncountable bodhisattvas in the Buddha-lands of the eastern quarter, as numerous as the sands of the River Ganges, all without exception, visit Amitayus in order to worship and make offerings to him and to the assembly of bodhisattvas and shravakas. Having heard the teaching, they expound it to lead people into the Path of the Buddha. As in the eastern quarter, so it is in the southern, western and northern, as well as in the four intermediate quarters, above and below." Chapter 27 - Verses on bodhisattvas' visit Then the World-Honored One spoke the following verses: 1. In the eastern quarter there are Buddha-lands, As numerous as the sands of the River Ganges; Bodhisattvas dwelling in those lands Go to pay homage to Amitayus, the Enlightened One. 2. So it is in the southern, western, and northern quarters, The intermediate quarters, above and below; Bodhisattvas dwelling in those lands Go to pay homage to Amitayus, the Enlightened One. 3. All those bodhisattvas, taking with them Exquisite heavenly flowers, Precious incense and priceless robes, Make offerings to Amitayus, the Enlightened One. 4. Playing heavenly music in concert, Producing harmonious and delicate sounds, They praise the Most Honored One with hymns And make offerings to Amitayus, the Enlightened One: 5. 'You have perfected supernatural powers and wisdom, With which you freely enter the gates of the profound Dharma; You also possess stocks of merit and virtue And unparalleled supreme knowledge. 6. Illumining the world with the sun of wisdom, You disperse the clouds of birth-and-death.' Having reverently walked round him three times, They pay homage to the Unsurpassed One. 7. Having seen the glorious Pure Land, Wonderfully resplendent, [273a] They are led to awaken supernal aspiration And wish their lands to be like his. 8. Then Amitayus, the Enlightened One, Changes his countenance and smiles; From his mouth come forth innumerable rays of light, Which illuminate the worlds in the ten quarters. 9. These rays of light return, encircle his body Three times, and enter the crown of his head. All devas and humans are delighted to see this And are filled with great joy. 10. Avalokiteshvara, the Exalted Being, having respectfully arranged His clothes and bowed his head, Asked the Buddha, 'Why are you smiling? Reverently I enquire. Please tell me why.' 11. The Buddha's majestic voice was like thunder, Producing wonderful sounds in eight qualities of voice; 'Because I am about to give predictions to the bodhisattvas. I now explain to you. Listen carefully! 12. I am fully aware of the vows of the bodhisattvas Who come from the ten quarters; They seek to glorify their pure lands. After receiving my predictions, they will become Buddhas. 13. While realizing that all dharmas are like a dream, An illusion or an echo, They will fulfill their excellent vows And surely establish pure lands such as this. 14. Knowing that dharmas are like a flash of lightning or a shadow, They will pursue the Bodhisattva Path to its end And amass a stock of merit. After receiving My predictions, they will become Buddhas. 15. While thoroughly knowing that the nature of all dharmas Is empty and without substance, They will single-mindedly seek to produce their pure lands And will surely establish lands such as this.' 16. The Buddhas tell the bodhisattvas to go and pay homage To the Buddha of the Land of Peace and Provision. 'Listen to his teaching, joyfully receive and practice it, And then quickly reach the Realm of Purity. 17. When you go to his glorious Pure Land, You will instantly acquire supernatural powers. Having, without fail, received predictions from Amitayus, You will attain perfect Enlightenment. 18. By the power of that Buddha's Original Vows, All who hear his Name and desire birth, Will, without exception, be born in his land And effortlessly enter the Stage of Non-retrogression. 19. Bodhisattvas, if you make vows That your lands will be like this, While aspiring to save all beings everywhere, Your name will be renowned throughout the ten quarters. 20. In order to serve millions of Tathagatas, You can assume various forms and fly to those lands; After worshipping them with joyful hearts, You will return to the Land of Peace and Provision.' 21. Without a stock of goodness from past lives, One cannot hear this sutra; But those who have strictly observed the precepts Can hear the right Dharma. [273b] 22. One who has met a World-Honored One in the past Can accept this teaching. Such a person respectfully worships, hears And upholds it, and rejoices so greatly as to dance. 23. Arrogant, corrupt and indolent people Cannot readily accept this teaching. But those who have met Buddhas in their past lives Rejoice to hear it. 24. Neither shravakas nor bodhisattvas are able to know The Sage's Mind exhaustively; They are like those who are born blind And yet wish to guide others. 25. The ocean of the Tathagata's wisdom Is deep, vast and boundless. Even sages of the Hinayana cannot fathom it; Only the Buddha clearly knows it. 26. Let us suppose that all human beings, Without exception, have attained Enlightenment And, with pure wisdom, realized original emptiness. Even if they pondered on the Buddha's wisdom for myriads of kalpas, 27. And expounded it with the utmost effort all through their lives, They would not come to exhaustive knowledge of it. The Buddha's wisdom is thus limitless And pure to its depths. 28, To obtain human life is difficult in the extreme; To meet a Buddha in this world is also difficult; It is difficult, too, for a man to attain faith and wisdom. Once you have heard the Dharma, strive to reach its heart. 29. If you have heard the Dharma and do not forget it, But adore and revere it with great joy, You are my good friend. For this reason, You should awaken aspiration for Enlightenment. 30. Even if the whole world is on fire, Be sure to pass through it to hear the Dharma; Then you will surely attain the Buddha's Enlightenment. And everywhere deliver beings from the river of birth-and-death. Chapter 28 - Bodhisattvas in the Pure Land The Buddha said to Ananda, "All the bodhisattvas in the land of Amitayus will ultimately attain the Stage of Becoming a Buddha After One More Life. Excepted are those who have made original vows for the sake of sentient beings, resolving to cultivate the merit of realizing their great vows to save all sentient beings. Ananda, each shravaka in the Buddha-land of Amitayus emits light for one fathom around his body. The light of a bodhisattva shines a hundred yojanas. There are two bodhisattvas who are the most dignified; their majestic light shines everywhere in the universe of a thousand million worlds." Ananda asked, "What are the names of those two bodhisattvas?" The Buddha replied, "One is called Avalokiteshvara and the other, Mahasthamaprapta. They had both performed Bodhisattva practices in this world, and, at the end of their lives, were born by transformation in that Buddha-land. Ananda, the sentient beings born there all fully possess the thirty-two physical characteristics of a Great Man as well as perfect wisdom, with which they penetrate deeply into the nature of all dharmas and reach their subtle essence. Their supernatural powers know no obstruction, and their physical senses are sharp and clear. The bodhisattvas of lesser capacities attain two insights. [273c] Those with superior capacities attain innumerable [merits by the] insights into the non-arising of all dharmas. Those bodhisattvas will not be subject to rebirth in evil realms before they become Buddhas. Excepted are those who seek birth in the worlds of other quarters during the turbulent period of the five defilements, manifesting their forms in the likeness of the beings there, as in this world. They can freely exercise supernatural powers and always remember their past lives." The Buddha said to Ananda, "By the Buddha's power, bodhisattvas of that land go to innumerable worlds of the ten quarters, in as short a time as it takes to eat a meal, in order to pay homage and make offerings to the Buddhas, the World-Honored Ones. If those bodhisattvas so wish, uncountable and innumerable offerings, such as flowers, incense, music, silken canopies and banners, spontaneously appear before them as soon as they are imagined. They are rare and marvelous, unlike anything in this world. They are, accordingly, offered to the assemblies of Buddhas, bodhisattvas and shravakas. The flowers remain in the sky and gather into canopies. Their brilliance is dazzling and their fragrance pervades everywhere. The flower-canopies range in size, from those of four hundred li in circumference up to those large enough to cover the universe of a thousand million worlds. As new flower-canopies appear, old ones disappear. These bodhisattvas all rejoice together, and, while poised in mid-air, play heavenly music and praise the virtues of the Buddhas with hymns accompanied by wonderful sounds. They listen to the Dharma and attain immeasurable joy. After thus worshipping the Buddhas, they quickly return home to the Pure Land before their meal." Chapter 29 - Amida's preaching and exquisite sounds produced by the trees, etc. The Buddha said to Ananda, "When Amitayus expounds the Dharma to shravakas and bodhisattvas, they all assemble in the seven-jewelled lecture-hall. There he fully expounds the teachings of the Way and proclaims the wonderful Dharma. The whole audience rejoices, comprehends, and attains Enlightenment. At that time a breeze spontaneously arises in each of the four directions and wafts over the jewelled trees, producing sounds of the pentatonic scales and causing innumerable exquisite flowers to fall like rain and scatter everywhere. Natural ways of glorification such as these are endlessly repeated. All the devas bring with them a hundred thousand flowers and pieces of aromatic wood and thousands of musical instruments to use as offerings to the Buddha and the assembly of bodhisattvas and shravakas; they scatter flowers, diffuse perfumes everywhere and play various kinds of music. They come and go in succession, giving way to each other. At such times their joy and happiness are beyond description." Chapter 30 - Bodhisattvas' virtues The Buddha said to Ananda, "The bodhisattvas born in that Buddha-land expound the right Dharma whenever appropriate and, because they are in accord with the wisdom of enlightenment, their expositions are infallible and free of error. In regard to the myriads of things in that land, they have no thought of possession or attachment. Whether going or coming, proceeding or remaining, their hearts are unattached, their acts are in accordance with their will and are unrestricted, and they have no thought of discrimination. In them there is no idea of self or others, no idea of competition or dispute. With the heart of great compassion to benefit all living beings and with tenderness and self-control, they bear no enmity or grudge against anyone. Free of mental hindrances, they are pure in mind and without indolence. Unbiased, noble-minded, sincere and tranquil, [274a] their hearts can revere, appreciate and enjoy the Dharma. "Having extinguished all evil passions, they are free of those tendencies which cause one to fall into evil realms. They have accomplished all the duties of a bodhisattva and are fully endowed with immeasurable virtues. Having reached deep meditation and gained supernatural powers, transcendent knowledge and wisdom, they are established in the seven practices leading to Enlightenment and are devoted to the Buddha Dharma. "With the physical eye they see clearly, discerning objects without error; the sight of their heavenly eye reaches everywhere without limit; with the Dharma-eye they observe and know thoroughly the teachings of the Way; with the wisdom-eye they see truth and attain the Other Shore; with the Buddha-eye they completely realize the nature of dharmas; and with unhindered wisdom they expound the Dharma to others. "Although they observe with the eye of equality that the three worlds are empty and non-existent, they strive to learn the Buddha Dharma and acquire varied eloquence in order to rid living beings of affliction caused by evil passions. Since all dharmas have arisen from Suchness, the bodhisattvas see them as they really are and know skillful means of speech that will develop good habits and destroy bad ones in living beings. They dislike secular talk, enjoying only right discourse on the Dharma. "They cultivate roots of virtue, revere the Path of the Buddha, and know that all dharmas are completely tranquil and non-existent. Their samsaric bodies and evil passions have been extinguished together with their remaining karmic tendencies. When they hear the profound Dharma, their minds are free of doubt and fear. They are always able to cultivate great compassion which is deep and subtle, embracing everything like the sky and bearing all like the earth. Having reached the end of the Single Path, they have gone to the Other Shore. Having cut the net of doubt, wisdom arises in their minds. Within the Buddha Dharma there is nothing that they do not comprehend. "Their wisdom is like the ocean, and their samadhi, like the king of mountains. The light of their wisdom, being brilliant and pure, outshines the sun and the moon. They are in complete possession of the pure, undefiled Dharma. They are like the Himalayas, because the brilliance of their virtues is reflected evenly and clearly. They are like the great earth, because they have no discriminative thoughts, such as pure or impure, beautiful or ugly. They are like pure water, because they wash away afflictions and defilements. They are like the king of fire, because they burn the firewood of all evil passions. They are like a great wind, because they travel throughout the worlds without hindrance. They are like the sky, because they have no attachments. They are like lotuses, because nothing in the world can defile them. They are like a great vehicle, because they carry the multitude of beings out of birth-and-death. They are like a heavy cloud, because they cause the great thunder of the Dharma to roar and awaken the unenlightened. They are like a great rain, because they cause the nectar of Dharma to fall like showers to nourish living beings. They are like the Adamantine Mountains, because demons and non-Buddhists cannot move them. They are like the king of the Brahma Heaven, because they are foremost in the performance of various good deeds. They are like the nyagrodha tree, because they afford shelter to all beings. They are like the udumbara flower, because they rarely appear in the world and are difficult to encounter. They are like the gold-winged garuda, because they subdue non-Buddhists. They are like a flock of playful birds, because they do not store things. They are like the king of bulls, because they are invincible. They are like the king of elephants, because they conquer adversaries. They are like the king of lions, because they fear nothing. They are like the vest sky, [274b] because their great compassion reaches everywhere without discrimination. "They have destroyed envy by not being jealous of the superiority of others. With singleness of heart they seek the Dharma tirelessly. Always desiring to expound the doctrine, they never grow weary. Striking Dharma-drums and hoisting Dharma-banners, they cause the sun of wisdom to shine forth and dissipate the darkness of ignorance. They perform the six acts of accord and respect, and always provide others with the gift of the Dharma. Strong-willed and diligent, their determination never falters. Thus they become lamps to the world and fields of supreme merit; they always become teachers and harbor no thought of discrimination, aversion, or attachment. They seek only the right Path, finding neither joy nor sorrow in other matters. They extract thorns of passion and give peace of mind to multitudes of beings. Because of their supreme wisdom, there is no one who does not revere them. "They have destroyed the hindrances of the three defilements and mastered the supernatural powers. They also possess the power of good karma from their past lives, the power of guiding others, of the will, of vowing, of employing skillful means, of continuous practice, of doing good, of meditation, of wisdom, of hearing the Dharma widely. They also possess the power of the Six Paramitas -- generosity, morality, patience, effort, meditation and wisdom -- and the power of right mindfulness, concentration, contemplation, the supernatural faculties, transcendent knowledge, and the power to tame and train living beings in the right way, as well as other powers. "Fully possessed of all the physical characteristics and marks, virtues, and eloquence, they have no equals. They revere and worship innumerable Buddhas and are, in turn, always praised by them. They have completed the bodhisattva's course of Paramitas and practiced the samadhis of emptiness, non-form and non-desire, the samadhi of non-arising and non-ceasing and many other samadhis; they have gone far beyond the stages of shravakas and pratyekabuddhas. "Ananda, bodhisattvas of that land have innumerable virtues such as these, of which I have given you only an outline. If I were to expound them in full detail, a thousand million kalpas would not be long enough to do so."