The Past Deeds Of The King Wonderful Adornment

Chapter 27

 

At that time the Buddha told the great assembly, “Long ago, in the distant past, uncountable, boundless, inconceivable asamkhyeyas of eons ago, there was a Buddha by the name of Cloud Thunder Sound Constellation King Flower Wisdom, Tathagata, Arhat, Samyaksambuddha. The name of his country was Adorned by Light, and the name of his eon was Delight to Behold.”

“Within the Dharma of that Buddha, there was a king by the name of Wonderful Adornment. The wife of the king was called Pure Virtue. She had two sons, the first named Pure Storehouse, the second named Pure Eye. These two sons had mighty spiritual powers, blessings, virtues, and wisdom. They had long cultivated the path practiced by the Bodhisattvas--the dana paramita, shila paramita, kshanti paramita, virya paramita, dhyana paramita, and prajna paramita, the paramita of skillful means, kindness, compassion, joy and giving, as well as the thirty-seven Dharmas Aiding the Path. They had completely understood and penetrated all of these.

"They had also obtained the Bodhisattva's Pure Samadhi, the Samadhi of Sun and Stars; the Samadhi of Pure Light; the Samadhi of Pure Form; the Samadhi of Bright and Pure Illumination; the Samadhi of Extensive Adornment; and the Samadhi of the Storehouse of Great Awesome Virtue. All of these samadhis they had also completely penetrated.”

At that time, the Buddha, wishing to guide King Wonderful Adornment and also to be compassionate towards and mindful of living beings, spoke the Dharma Flower Sutra.

The two sons Pure Storehouse and Pure Eye went before their mother, placed their palms together and said, “We entreat you, Mother, to visit the Buddha Cloud Thunder Sound Constellation King Flower Wisdom. We should follow, draw near to, make offerings to, and worship him. Why? The Buddha is speaking the Dharma Flower Sutra for all the hosts of gods and humans. We should listen to it and receive it!”

The mother said to her sons, “Your father believes in an externalist way and is deeply attached to the Dharmas of the Brahmanism. You should ask him if he wants to go along.”

With their palms together, Pure Storehouse and Pure Eye said to their mother, “We are Dharma Princes and yet we have been born into this house of deviant views!”

The mother replied, “Out of concern for your father, you should manifest spiritual transformations. If he sees them, his mind will be purified and perhaps he will permit us to go to the Buddha.”

Then, out of concern for their father, the two sons rose up into space to the height of seven tala trees and manifested various spiritual transformations.

In space, they walked, stood, sat, and reclined. From the upper part of their bodies, they emitted water; and from the lower part, fire. From the lower part of their bodies, they emitted water; and from the upper part, fire. They manifested in huge bodies filling up all of space, and then they manifested as being small. From being small, they again manifested as being large. In space, they disappeared and then suddenly reappeared on the earth. They entered the earth as if it were water, and walked on the water as if it were earth.

Manifesting such spiritual transformations of all kinds, they led their father’s mind to purity, belief, and understanding.

Seeing his sons’ spiritual powers, the father rejoiced greatly and gained what he had never experienced before. Placing his palms together, he said to his sons, “Who is your Master? Whose disciples are you?”

The two sons said, “Your Majesty! He is the Buddha Cloud Thunder Sound Constellation King Flower Wisdom. He now sits on the Dharma seat beneath the seven treasures Bodhi tree proclaiming the Dharma Flower Sutra for all the hosts of gods and humans. He is our teacher. We are his disciples.”

The father said to his sons, “I now also wish to meet your Master. Let us go there together!”

The two sons then came down from space, went to their mother, and with their palms joined, said, “Our father, the king, now believes and understands. He has been able to bring forth the resolve for Anuttarasamyaksambodhi. For the sake of our father, we have carried out the Buddha’s work. We pray, Mother, that you will give us permission to leave the home-life and cultivate the Way under that Buddha’s guidance.”

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