The Wondrous Adornments of the Rulers of the Worlds

Chapter One, Part Three

 

Sutra:

The Buddha appears in the world to save all sentient beings.
He completely reveals the path to All-Wisdom,
Enabling all beings to cast off suffering and attain bliss.
Pervasive Illumination expounds this meaning.

Commentary:

The Buddha appears in the world to save all sentient beings. The Buddha is Sãkyamuni Buddha, who represents all Buddhas ten directions of the ten directions and three periods of time. When any Buddha appears in the world, his aim is to teach and transform sentient beings so that they may leave suffering and attain bliss, end birth and death, bring forth the resolve for bodhi, and realize Buddhahood. For those reasons, he completely reveals the path to All-Wisdom, so they can certify to All-Wisdom. Or, he may use expedient dharma doors to help beings certify to All-Wisdom. He comes to explain this, to teach and save all sentient beings—which is why the text says: “He completely reveals the path to All-Wisdom.” The Buddha tells everyone about this, enabling all beings to cast off suffering and attain bliss. With the Buddha’s help, every sentient being forsakes suffering and attains happiness, obtaining what they want. Pervasive Illumination expounds this meaning. Asura King Pervasive Illumination extensively propagates and understands this state and this passage into liberation.

Sutra:

All oceans of blessings in the world
Universally purified, manifest through the Buddha’s strength.
The Buddha reveals the place of liberation.
Solid Practices and Adornment enters this passage.

Commentary:

All oceans of blessings in the world / Universally purified, manifest through the Buddha’s strength. That’s the place. The Buddha reveals the place of liberation: You see, the place of liberation is there! Ah, Solid Practices and Adornment enters this passage; he came in the door. [Two disciples explain the passage, and then the Venerable Master comments.] “The world” here refers to the world of all sentient beings. “All” refers to all sentient and insentient beings in the world. As to “All oceans of blessings,” multitudes of blessings are accumulated bit by bit. In order to have all oceans of blessings, you must cultivate good karma, create all kinds of merit and virtue. After you amass all sorts of merit and virtue, you can have all kinds of rewards of blessing. By then you will have blessings like an ocean.

A matching couplet used by Chinese in wishing someone a happy birthday translates as:

May you have blessings like the Eastern Sea’s ever-flowing waters.
The waters of the Eastern Sea flow and flow non-stop, symbolizing blessings that last forever.

The second line says:

May your life span be like the Southern Mountain’s never-aging pines.
This expresses the hope that one’s life will be like the pines on Southern Mountain, which never age.

If you have blessings, you can have wisdom. The Buddha is replete with both blessings and wisdom. The sea of multitudes of blessings is accumulated bit by bit. The great sea does not reject tiny streams. It became a vast ocean by accepting any water, whether great or small in quantity. It doesn’t say, “You’re just a drop of water, I don’t want you. I’m such a big sea, your tiny drop doesn’t help me a bit. I don’t want it.” Instead, it accepts any amount of water, no matter how minimal, which is how it became a great sea. And if you are willing to cultivate any amount of blessings, however small, they can accumulate to form a sea.

Universally purified, all the oceans of blessings in the world manifest through the Buddha’s strength. The power of the Buddha’s awesome spiritual strength can bring forth all kinds of blessings. This line is connected with the line before it. The Buddha’s strength can produce all sorts of blessings, and they are all pure blessings. He enables sentient beings to obtain those kinds of pure blessings. “Universally purified” means he everywhere enables sentient beings to acquire such pure rewards of blessings. That is, he tells everyone to leave home. Can you do it? If you could all leave home, you would all be universally purified. You would obtain pure blessings.

All this can be brought forth and universally purified through the Buddha’s strength. Furthermore, the Buddha can reveal, open and disclose the principles so all sentient beings can understand them and reach the place of liberation. Solid Practice and Adornment entered this door. See!

You should understand the meaning of adornment with solid practices. You should ask yourselves whether or not your practices are solid, and whether they adorn you. If so, you should have more. If not, you should go forward even more vigorously. But you shouldn’t use your temper to be vigorous. Be vigorous using patience instead. Being vigorous requires patience. You must bear what you can’t bear, and yield what you can’t yield. See? That’s how Solid Practices and Adornment entered this passage. If you enter this passage, you are an “insider.” But if you don’t enter this passage, you remain an “outsider.”

Sutra:

The Buddha’s peerless body of great compassion
Travels freely everywhere, visible to all.
Like a shadow or a reflection, it appears in the world.
Wisdom Regarding Causes proclaims this merit and virtue.

Commentary:

The Buddha’s peerless body of great compassion. What is great compassion? Compassion can pull out sentient beings’ suffering. That is, it rids sentient beings of all their woes. Compassion means looking upon the troubles of others as if they were one’s own, and considering the happiness of others one’s own happiness. That leads to the wish to pluck out all miseries which beings are experiencing, so beings can leave suffering and attain bliss. That’s the body of great compassion, which is incomparable. Nothing in the world can equal the Buddha’s body of great compassion, and so it is said to be incomparable.

The Buddha’s body of great compassion travels freely everywhere, visible to all. All sentient beings have a chance to see that compassionate body. Since it is pervades everywhere without hindrance, sentient beings in the worlds of the ten directions can all perceive it.

Like a shadow or a reflection, it appears in the world. A shadow or an image never separates from the shape it follows. The shadow does not leave the shape, nor does the shape leave the shadow. For example, wherever a person’s body goes, its shadow follows and accompanies it. That’s known as appearing in the world like a shadow or an image, universally manifesting in the world of sentient beings.

Wisdom Regarding Causes proclaims this merit and virtue. Asura King Vast Wisdom Regarding Causes is able to express this type of merit and virtue of the Buddha, entering this passage into liberation.

Sutra:

With unequaled, rare, and great spiritual penetrations,
He displays bodies throughout the Dharma Realm.
Each is seated beneath the bodhi tree.
Supreme Virtue pronounces this meaning.

Commentary:

With unequaled, rare, and great spiritual penetrations. “Rare” means extremely precious and scarce. What is rare? It is great spiritual penetrations that are unobstructed. And whose great spiritual penetrations are they? Only Buddhas have those rare and unobstructed great spiritual penetrations. That they are “unobstructed” refers to how he displays bodies throughout the Dharma Realm. [A disciple points out that the text reads “unequaled,” instead of “unobstructed.”] My text has “unequaled” too. Since I wasn’t looking at the book, I recited it as “unobstructed,” but it does read “unequaled”—incomparable. However, “unequaled” is “unobstructed,” and “unobstructed” is “unequaled.” Due to their being unobstructed, they are unequaled. And because they are unequaled, they are unobstructed. They have no impediments, and nothing can compare to them. That’s right, it says “unequaled.” Nothing can match great spiritual penetrations of this sort. Such spiritual penetrations cannot be conceptualized by thought or described in words. He makes a body appear in each and every location throughout the Dharma Realm.

The Buddha’s Dharma body fills the Dharma Realm, incomparable and free of obstructions, each manifestation seated beneath the bodhi tree. Each Buddha is seated underneath the Bodhi tree in his own world. We have also planted a bodhi tree here, and when the bodhi tree has grown up, a Buddha will sit under it and realize the Way. Each sits beneath the tree of bodhi and achieves Proper Enlightenment.

Supreme Virtue pronounces this meaning. Whose meaning, whose state, and whose passage into liberation was this? The Asura King Displaying Supreme Virtue could express the principle of this kind of state. Whose state is it? It’s the Buddha’s state. This Asura King understood this one particular state of the Buddha. But the Asura King only understood this one state among the Buddha’s limitless and boundless states. He didn’t know the others.

Sutra:

The Thus Come One has cultivated practices throughout the three periods of time,
Passing through all destinies on the turning wheel.
He frees all beings from suffering, omitting none.
King Splendid Sound praises thus.

Commentary:

The Thus Come One is the Buddha. Some people say “Thus Come One Buddha.” In China many uneducated Buddhists who’ve never heard sutra lectures or investigated the Buddhadharma don’t even know who the Thus Come One is, or who the Buddha is. Actually, the Thus Come One is the Buddha, and the Buddha is the Thus Come One. If you say, “Thus Come One Buddha,” you are pronouncing two titles used to refer to Buddhas. When you say, “Thus Come One,” that is the Buddha; and “Buddha” refers to the Thus Come One. Throughout limitlessly many eons, the Buddha has cultivated practices throughout the three periods of time. He cultivated in the past, is cultivating in the present, and will cultivate in the future.

This also means cultivating last year, continuing to cultivate this year, and also wanting to cultivate next year. Last month one wanted to cultivate, this month one still wishes to cultivate, and one is even more determined to cultivate next month. It’s similar to how we are cultivating here. Yesterday we practiced that way, today we are cultivating that way, and tomorrow we will still be cultivating that way. Cultivation must not be interrupted. You can’t cultivate today but not tomorrow, then resume the following day. That won’t work. You must continue to cultivate day after day non-stop. When the Buddha was cultivating the Way, he was willing to perform any good deed, no matter how small. And he would never commit any evil act, however insignificant it might seem. Consequently, those small good deeds accumulated to form great goodness, and he perfected his 84,000 doors of practice.

During the time that the Buddha was cultivating, he was passing through all destinies on the turning wheel. “All destinies” means all the good destinies and the evil destinies: those of gods, humans, asuras, hell-beings, hungry ghosts, and animals. He equally underwent birth in all of them, and equally taught and transformed their sentient beings. Within all the destinies, he was subject to the revolving wheel. “Revolving wheel” refers to how after being born, one dies; and having died, one is reborn. One revolves on the six-fold wheel of rebirth. He passed through all the destinies without exception. No matter the destiny, he experienced it, how much the more the path of humans. He went among asuras to teach and transform asuras. The Buddha made appear bodies of sentient beings of all types. Provided they were beings who had breath and blood, he would manifest among those kinds of beings to teach and transform them, which is why it says, “without exception.”

He frees all beings from suffering. How did he teach and transform sentient beings? He freed sentient beings from the sufferings that they were undergoing, so they could escape from suffering and attain bliss. When beings failed to understand the Buddhadharma, he used enormous amounts of patience to teach and transform them so they would understand. If beings already understood the Buddhadharma, he taught them how to cultivate. He employed the highest level of patience to teach and transform sentient beings, helping beings to cultivate. If beings were already cultivating, he aided them to bring their work in the Way to successful completion. If beings had already perfected their work in the Way, he enabled them to achieve liberation. That is, seeking the Way, cultivating the Way, accomplishing the Way, and enlightening to the Way. He helped sentient beings attain their fundamental perfect fruition of Enlightenment. That’s how he was freeing beings from suffering, omitting none. No sufferings remained. All sufferings were ended. King Splendid Sound praises thus. Asura King Splendid Sound praised the state of this passage to liberation, this dharma door.

Does anyone have anything to say?

Disciple: May I ask a question? I’ve been trying to recite the Buddha’s name but have trouble with the Amitabha Sutra where it says that one should hold the name of Amitabha Buddha and vow to be born in the Western Paradise . I have trouble making that vow. I realize part of this difficulty must be that I have that kind of attachment to this world. But also, if I could get to the point where I could go to the Western Paradise, I would be at the point where I could help other people here. Wouldn’t it then be wrong to go flying off there and not help people here? I hope the Venerable Master can tell me something to help me resolve this difficulty.

Venerable Master: Within Buddhism, your vows are sure to be fulfilled. If you vow to be reborn in the Land of Ultimate Bliss , you will be reborn there. Should you make a vow to be reborn in the Land of Ultimate Bliss and then return to teach and transform sentient beings, it will happen that way. If you prefer to reside permanently in the Western Paradise, you may do so; but you can also come back. However, when you return from the Western Paradise , you do so riding upon your vows. That’s how it differs from your life right now. At present, you are more confused than enlightened. But when you come back through the strength of the vows you have made, you are more enlightened than confused. Enlightenment has then prevailed over confusion. Hence, if you wish to stay here to help people and teach them to recite the Buddha’s name, you can. That’s the resolve of a Bodhisattva. Bodhisattvas want to help others first. This is a world entangled in a multitude of sufferings. It’s very bitter here. Nonetheless, if you don’t fear the suffering, you can aid the Buddha to teach and transform sentient beings. The Buddhadharma is interpenetrating without obstruction, and however you explain it can tally with principle. It’s your preference. Everything is possible, provided you have no attachments.

Sutra:

Moreover, Day-ruling Spirit Making Palaces Appear gained a passage into liberation of universally entering all worlds.

Commentary:

Moreover indicates that there is still more concerning what was previously said. Now we’re discussing Day-ruling Spirits. These spirits watch over the events of the daylight hours, more about that later. The Day-ruling Spirit here is named Making Palaces appear. She can manifest all sorts of palaces: palaces of kings, palaces of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, as well as adorn them. She gained a passage into liberation of universally entering all worlds. She can enter worlds everywhere and leave the worlds. She manifests palaces in such a way that worldly dharmas, that is, world-entering dharmas can make world-transcending Dharma appear. That’s the passage into liberation she obtained.

Sutra:

Day-ruling Spirit Exuding Fragrance of Wisdom gained a passage into liberation of universally contemplating all sentient beings, benefiting them, making them happy and content.

Commentary:

Day-ruling Spirit Exuding Fragrance of Wisdom can send forth the three types of fragrance: fragrance of precepts, fragrance of samadhi, and fragrance of wisdom. In addition to those three fragrances of precepts, samadhi and wisdom, there are the fragrance of liberation and the fragrance of liberated knowledge and vision. Because this day-ruling Spirit knows sentient beings like fragrance and dislike stench—which is why no one cleans toilets—she exudes all sorts of fragrance. The fragrance of precepts refers to how from holding precepts your body will give off a kind of fragrance, that of precepts. If you cultivate samadhi, your body will have a fragrance of samadhi. If you cultivate wisdom, you will exude the fragrance of wisdom. To those three types of fragrance are added the fragrance of liberation, and the fragrance of liberated knowledge and vision. She uses those five kinds of fragrance to fulfill sentient beings’ wishes. If you enjoy fragrance, she exudes some. If you dislike stench, she cleans the toilets so they won’t stink. All that is through the Day-ruling Spirit’s power. She gained a passage into liberation of universally contemplating all sentient beings, benefiting them, making them happy and content. She observes all beings everywhere, brings benefit to them, and secures their happiness and contentment.

Sutra:

Day-ruling Spirit Adornment with Supreme Bliss gained a passage into liberation of being able to emit light of boundlessly many likable dharmas.

Commentary:

Why does Day-ruling Spirit Adornment with Supreme Bliss have that name? It’s because her cultivation of all kinds of blessings and possession of various sorts of merit and virtue led to the arising of a kind of bliss of a superior grade, differing from ordinary happiness. She is also adorned and beautiful. “Day” refers to the daytime. There are spirits of the daytime and spirits of the night. This spirit named Adornment with Supremacy of Bliss oversees the merits and offenses done in the daylight hours, recording the deeds of sentient beings. However, records kept by spirits are not like human records, which must be written down. Spiritual record-keeping is far more wonderful than our computers and calculators. You don’t have to push buttons for records to appear. If an event needs to be retrieved, the event will very naturally reappear. If you have to access something that happened between heaven and earth, you don’t need to push buttons and have the computer retrieve the data. All you have to do is take a look and you know. That’s why it’s called “spiritual.” Our human contrivances don’t count as spiritual. Spirits only need to use spiritual wisdom. They don’t require any kind of apparatus like a calculator or an abacus. See how much trouble is saved with such spiritual penetrations. They penetrate, which is described as intertwining response.

Day-ruling Spirits know how much merit and how many offenses each sentient being has. Their naturally-operating memory-bank remembers it all very clearly. Since their memory is so precise, they oversee the events of the day as Day-ruling Spirits. This Day-ruling Spirit gained a passage into liberation of being able to emit light of boundlessly many likable dharmas. She can send forth infinitely many, inconceivably many dharmas, which all sentient beings like and which make sentient beings happy. And they have the light of wisdom, the light from likable dharmas that illumine all sentient beings. Why is that good? It makes sentient beings happy, inspiring in them thoughts of liking the Buddhadharma. That was the passage into liberation that she obtained.

Sutra:

Day-ruling Spirit Fragrant Flowers’ Wondrous Light gained a passage into liberation of inspiring pure faith and understanding in the minds of numberless beings.

Commentary:

The Day-ruling Spirit now being discussed is named Fragrant Flowers’ Wondrous Light. She makes the kinds of flowers and fragrance appear that each sentient being prefers, which explains that part of her name. She is also called “Wondrous Light” because her light is subtle, wonderful, and inconceivable. Hence she is called Day-ruling Spirit Fragrant Flowers’ Wondrous Light. She keeps an eye on the good and evil, merit and offenses done by sentient beings during the daytime. This Day-ruling Spirit gained a passage into liberation of inspiring pure faith and understanding in the minds of numberless beings. This is like developing the uncultivated wilderness. The land has to be cleared by human labor before crops can be sown. Sentient beings’ fields of blessings, which have not yet been cultivated, are like a barren wilderness. They require an excellent and wise advisor with the resolve of a Bodhisattva to inspire and develop them, and afterwards plant seeds of bodhi in them. The seeds of bodhi that should be planted are seeds of pure faith and understanding of mind. That’s why she must open up pure faith and understanding of mind in innumerable beings.

For the most part, the minds of sentient beings are not pure. Since beings’ minds are predominantly defiled, they have no faith and understanding. They are unreceptive when you speak Buddhadharma for them. No matter how reasonably you present it, they won’t believe. Lacking faith, they fail to understand. That’s what is meant by lacking pure faith or understanding of mind. What does it mean to have them? If you have no ignorance, no afflictions, no temper, then you have pure belief and understanding. If you have ignorance, afflictions, and a big temper, then you have a defiled mind without faith or understanding.

Your mind’s defilement outweighs its purity. But if your mental defilement becomes lighter, your purity of mind will increase. That’s why, in all their words and deeds, cultivators need to look within and take stock of themselves. They need to ask, “Do I have more defilement or more purity? Do I have more faith and understanding or more disbelief and nonunderstanding?” Add up your accounts. If you understand this kind of state, you too enter this passage into liberation of pure faith and understanding.

Sutra:

Day-ruling Spirit Everywhere Collecting Wonderful Medicines gained a passage into liberation of developing the power of universal radiance through amassing adornments.

Commentary:

The next Day-ruling Spirit is named Everywhere Collecting Wonderful Medicines.

This spirit accumulated all kinds of supremely wonderful happiness. How did she do that? She performed all sorts of meritorious deeds, and that brought supremely wonderful happiness into being--hence her name. She did any good deed, no matter how large or small it might be. For that reason she could universally collect wonderful bliss of the highest caliber, and have such a name.

This Day-ruling Spirit gained a passage into liberation of developing the power of universal radiance through amassing adornments. She amassed each and every meritorious deed by accumulating every practice, all the various methods of cultivation. Having amassed a considerable amount of them, she had merit, and as a result, she was adorned. It’s like planting flowers: if you add lots of fertilizer, the flowers will grow prolifically. The prolific growth of the flowers is comparable to the adornments. The blooming flowers are both fresh and beautiful, and so form flourishing adornments. What makes the flowers flourish and be so exquisite and beautiful? The fertilizer. What makes the flowers so flourishing and beautifully adorned? It’s from amassing all sorts of meritorious virtues. Those meritorious virtues are like fertilizer. They nurture the wisdom life and Dharma Body.

Therefore she obtained the power of universal radiance, which is the light of great wisdom. With great wisdom you will recognize any state you encounter. You will understand those states and not be influenced by them. You will be able to turn the states around, changing bad states into good ones. You can also convert defiled states into states of purity. For this you need the light of great wisdom, which is here called “power of universal radiance.” There is a kind of power involved. It is the power of prajña wisdom. Prajña is like a sharp knife, and so it is referred to as the wisdom sword. If you lack prajña wisdom, then you are ignorant. You don’t have a sword of wisdom. The wisdom sword is of the utmost importance. That’s why the Song of Enlightenment says:

The great hero wields the wisdom sword.
From its prajña point, a vajra blaze!
It not only counters externalists’ persuasions;
From early on it has terrified the celestial demons!

“The great hero wields the wisdom sword.” Left-home people are all great heroes. Sãkyamuni Buddha is a great hero, and we, as disciples of Sãkyamuni Buddha, are all great heroes too. Any left-home person, whether male or female, is called a great hero.Sãkyamuni Buddha is a great hero, and so Buddha Halls are called the Jeweled Halls of Great Heroes. We disciples of the Buddha should all be called great heroes. A great hero holds the sword of wisdom. “From its prajña point, a vajra blaze!” Prajña is like the tip of a knife. It glows like blazing vajra, or scintillating diamond. “It not only counters externalists’ persuasions.” The sword of wisdom not only smashes externalists’ intentions, but also “from early on it has terrified the celestial demons.” Since a very long time ago it has been scaring the celestial demons. How can you do that? You need the light of wisdom, the power of universal wisdom, and then you can enter this passage into liberation.  

Sutra:

Day-ruling Spirit Happy Eyes Creating Joy gained a passage into liberation of universally enlightening both suffering and happy sentient beings so that they obtain the bliss of Dharma.

Commentary:

Day-ruling Spirit Happy Eyes Creating Joy is always blissful and happy. Not only is she delighted and joyous herself, she helps all sentient beings achieve happiness and joy. She draws in sentient beings with kindness and compassion. For that reason, she gained a passage into liberation of universally enlightening both suffering and happy sentient beings. She enables all livings beings to become enlightened, regardless of whether those sentient beings are suffering or happy.

There are Three Sufferings, Eight Sufferings, and limitless sufferings.

The Three Sufferings

1. The suffering of suffering.
2. The suffering of decay.
3. The suffering of process.

The Eight Sufferings

1. The suffering of birth.
2. The suffering of aging.
3. The suffering of sickness.
4. The suffering of death.
5. The suffering of being apart from what one loves.
6. The suffering of being together with what one hates.
7. The suffering of not obtaining what one seeks.
8. The suffering of the raging blaze of the five skandhas.

Besides those Three Sufferings and Eight Sufferings, there are limitless sufferings.

Among the Three Sufferings, the “suffering of suffering” refers to the suffering and difficulty of poverty. The “suffering of decay” means suffering from the decay and loss of wealth and status. If one is neither rich nor poor, but simply ordinary, one still experiences the “suffering of process” throughout one’s life.

An example of the suffering of suffering is when someone is poor, and the house he lives in is blown apart by the wind or rain starts to leak in. Such lack of food and shelter is suffering within suffering. There may be other situations, such as someone already poverty-stricken getting sick and having no money for medical treatment. That, too, is suffering within suffering.

In the suffering of decay, someone has money to start with, but after a period of wealth he encounters disasters and calamities that destroy his wealth and position. That’s the suffering of decay. The suffering of process is growing up from childhood to maturity, then going from maturity to old age, and from old age to death. There is an ongoing, non-stop, instant-by-instant process involved, which is the suffering of process. Those are the three kinds of suffering.

There are eight more sufferings. The suffering of birth: Being born is like pulling the shell off of a turtle. The suffering of aging: Gradually the skin becomes wrinkled and the hair becomes white; walking becomes difficult. Aging is characterized by disobedience of the ears and eyes: the ears become deaf and the eyes become cloudy. They say, “We have been with you for so many years; it’s time we should retire.” So the ears won’t work, and the eyes won’t work. More importantly, the two hands go on strike, and the two legs go on strike, too—they won’t walk. Your legs won’t help you get around; the hands won’t help you eat. Wouldn’t you say this is suffering or not?! Your teeth fall out, and nothing tastes good anymore. Isn’t old age miserable?

This suffering of aging wouldn’t be so bad, but when you are old and sick, too, you become too sick to eat and you can’t walk at all. Not only do the eyes, ears, nose, and tongue want to retire, even the whole body would like to retire; all of them want to go on strike. The suffering of aging is not easy to tolerate. The suffering of illness is even harder to bear. But these are not bad compared to the suffering of death. Death is even more painful than old age and illness. The moment of death is similar to skinning a live cow. Wouldn’t you say that skinning a live cow would cause great pain? In addition, there is the suffering of being apart from those you love, the suffering of being together with those you hate, the suffering of not getting what you seek, the suffering of the raging blaze of the five skandhas.

There are also various types of happiness. There is the happiness from the self, the happiness from others, the happiness shared by oneself and others. Happiness is also boundless and endlessss. Living beings live between happiness and suffering, sometimes happy and sometimes miserable. This is not easy to endure. Whether you are a suffering or a happy sentient being, you can receive the bliss of Dharma. So that they obtain the bliss of Dharma: They will become filled with the joy of Dharma. For instance, one may obtain the bliss of Dharma by listening to the sutra lectures and hearing Dharma. This spirit entered that passage into liberation, achieving that state of mind.

Sutra:

Day-ruling Spirit Contemplating All Directions and Universally Manifesting gained a passage into liberation of manifesting a variety of bodies in the dharma realms of the ten directions.

Commentary:

The next Day-ruling Spirit is named Contemplating All Directions and Universally Manifesting. This Day-ruling Spirit can contemplate potentials and entice with teachings, speaking Dharma in accordance with the person, prescribing medicine to suit each illness. That’s why she is named, “Contemplating All Directions and Universally Manifesting.” She contemplates the dharma realms throughout the ten directions, and everywhere makes bodies appear to speak Dharma for sentient beings—hence her name.

What was the state that she gained? She understood how the Buddha, throughout the dharma realms of the ten directions, pervading as many lands as there are dust motes in lands, is able to manifest various bodies. “A variety of bodies” means all different kinds of bodies. For example, if someone needs to be taught by a Buddha, the Buddha appears in the body of a Buddha and speaks the Dharma for him. If someone needs to be taught by a Pratyekabuddha, the Buddha appears in the body of a Pratyekabuddha and speaks the Dharma for him. If someone needs to be taught by a Bodhisattva, the Buddha appears as a Bodhisattva and speaks Dharma for him. In general, the Buddha manifests in whatever types of bodies are needed to liberate sentient beings, and then he speaks the Dharma to teach and transform those particular types of beings. For that reason, the passage into liberation that this spirit gained is called that of manifesting a variety of bodies in the dharma realms of the ten directions. She attained that passage into liberation and understood that state of the Buddha.

Sutra:

Day-ruling Spirit Awesome Power of Great Compassion gained a passage into liberation of saving and protecting all beings, enabling them to be happy and secure.

Commentary:

Thenext Day-ruling Spirit is named Awesome Power of Great Compassion. With great compassion, she can eradicate all the sufferings of sentient beings and bestow all types of happiness upon them. She has the great might of awesome virtue. Inasmuch as this Day-ruling Spirit has the great compassion to eradicate sentient beings’ sufferings and the great awesome might to subdue all vengeful demons, she is called Day-ruling Spirit Awesome Power of Great Compassion. She attained a kind of state whereby she understood how the Buddha can save and protect all sentient beings, enabling them to leave suffering and attain bliss. That’s why the text says she gained a passage into liberation of saving and protecting all beings, enabling all of them to be happy and secure. She entered that kind of passage into liberation.

Sutra:

Day-ruling Spirit Illumination of Good Roots gained a passage into liberation of generating an all-pervasive power of delightful and perfect meritorious virtue.

Commentary:

The next Day-ruling Spirit is named Illumination of Good Roots. In her past lives, this Day-ruling Spirit planted all kinds of good roots and cultivated various kinds of wisdom light. That is why she is called Day-ruling Spirit Illumination of Good Roots. Having become a Day-ruling Spirit, she in turn teaches and transforms sentient beings, enabling them to plant and nurture all sorts of good roots and also obtain the light of wisdom. For that reason, the text goes on to say she gained a passage into liberation of generating an all-pervasive power of delightful and perfect meritorious virtue. What is delightful and perfect is the power of merit and virtue. The strength of one’s meritorious qualities is full, complete, and perfect. She gained such a passage into liberation.

Sutra:

Day-ruling Spirit Lovely Flower Garlands gained a passage into liberation of having one’s renown spread far and wide, benefiting all beings who see or hear one.

At that time, Day-ruling Spirit Making Palaces Appear receiving the Buddha’s awesome spiritual power, contemplated the multitudes of Day-ruling Spirits, and spoke the following verse.

Commentary:

Thenext Day-ruling Spirit is named Lovely Flower Garlands . She gained a passage into liberation of having one’s renown spread far and wide, benefiting all beings who see or hear one. Her reputation extends throughout the ten directions, and beings in the ten directions who either see her or hear her name are benefited and experience the bliss of Dharma. She attained that kind of passage into liberation.

At that time, after the sutra passage concerning Day-ruling Spirit Lovely Flower Garlands had been spoken, Day-ruling Spirit Making Palaces Appear, from having that ability, receiving the Buddha’s great awesome spiritual power, universally contemplated the multitudes of Day-ruling Spirits in the Dharma assembly, and spoke the following verse. She used lines of verse to repeat the principles that she had spoken previously.

Sutra:

Like space, the Buddha’s wisdom is inexhaustible.
His light shines universally throughout the ten directions.
He completely knows the mental stirrings of all sentient beings.
There are no worlds he fails to enter.  

Commentary:

Venerable Master: Would anyone like to talk about these four lines?

Disciple: Like space, the Buddha’s wisdom is inexhaustible. Sentient beings may be somewhat intelligent, but they can’t match the Buddha’s world-transcending wisdom, which resembles space. Actually, this is simply an analogy, because the Shurangama Sutra says, “Space arises in the sea of great enlightenment just like a single bubble in the ocean.” Space in the sea of great enlightenment is no more than a bubble of foam, indicating that the wisdom of the Buddha must be huge, so it is said to be inexhaustible. This infinite wisdom has a radiance that shines throughout the ten directions. The ten directions are east, west, south, north, northeast, southeast, northwest, southwest, above and below, and the light of the Buddha’s wisdom can illuminate them all. His light shines universally throughout the ten directions. / He completely knows the mental stirrings of all sentient beings. Without having to ask, the Buddha knows exactly what every single being is thinking and doing. The Buddha has that kind of wisdom based on his spiritual powers. There are no worlds he fails to enter. The Buddha has great spiritual powers, immense wisdom, and also the power of vast, great vows. Undaunted by suffering, he comes to the world on the power of his vows to teach sentient beings. In the nine dharma realms there is not one place where the Buddha does not go to teach and rescue sentient beings, which is why the text says, “There are no worlds he fails to enter.”

Venerable Master : [To another disciple] Now translate her explanation into Sanskrit, Portuguese, Spanish and German for them. [Note: That disciple translated into French, and then the lecture ended. There were a lot of visitors that day, including some Spanish speakers.]

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