The Wondrous Adornments of the Rulers of the Worlds

Chapter One, Part Four and Five

 

VIII. Multitudes issue forth from the lion throne                
J. They speak verses in praise
5. Inconceivable Bodhisattva praises the majestic virtues of the tree

Sutra:

At that time, Bodhisattva Mahasattva Inconceivable Meritorious Virtues and Precious Seal of Wisdom received the Buddha’s awesome spiritual power, universally contemplated the oceanic multitudes in the bodhimanda, and spoke the following verses.  

The Buddha cultivated an ocean of blessings
As numerous as the motes of dust in all lands.
His spiritual powers and vows made this possible.
The bodhimanda is adorned, pure, and unsullied.

The roots are made of magnificent, wish-fulfilling jewels.
The body of the tree is made of vajra and mani.
 Jeweled nets cover it from high above.
A mist of sublime fragrance circulates around it.

Myriads of jewels adorn the branches of the tree.
Its trunk of mani vigorously stretches upward.
The dense covering of branches resembles layered clouds.
The Buddha sits in the bodhimanda below.

Commentary:

At that time, Bodhisattva Mahasattva Inconceivable Meritorious Virtues and Precious Seal of Wisdom received the Buddha’s awesome virtue and spiritual power, universally contemplated the oceanic assembled multitudes in the bodhimanda, and spoke the following verses.

In the past when the Buddha was cultivating the Way, he cultivated blessings and wisdom. He cultivated all kinds of blessings, so many that they are said to be an ocean of blessings, / As numerous as the motes of dust in all lands. That’s how abundant his blessings were. His spiritual powers and vows made this possible. Such abundant blessings were transformations resulting from the Buddha’s spiritual powers and the vows he made while cultivating. The bodhimanda is adorned, pure, and unsullied. Each Way-place is immaculate and beautiful, untainted by filth.

The roots of the tree are made of magnificent, wish-fulfilling jewels. / The body of the tree is made of vajra and manijewels. Jeweled nets cover it from high above. / A mist of sublime fragrance circulates around it. The tree is constantly surrounded by a rare fragrance.

Myriads of jewels adorn the branches of the tree. The tree’s branches are elegant and decorated with all kinds of gems. Its trunk of mani vigorously stretches upward. The trunk of mani jewels grows ever higher. The dense covering of branches resembles layered clouds. The branches and twigs are closely interwoven like layers of clouds in the sky. The Buddha sits in the bodhimanda below, teaching and transforming sentient beings. The bodhi tree serves as the Buddha’s Way-place for propagating the Dharma.

Sutra:

The bodhimanda is vast beyond conception—
Covered entirely by the shade of the tree.
Its flourishing leaves and flowers protect and reflect one another.
A mani fruit grows in each blossom.

Shimmering rays shine between the branches,
Lighting up the entire bodhimanda.
Such pure, infinite resplendence
Appears by the power of the Buddha’s vows.

The flowers are made of mani gems in abundance.
The shadows and radiance resemble exquisite clouds,
Enshrouding the tree with all-pervasive fragrance
And decorating every part of the bodhimanda.

Commentary:

The bodhimanda formed by the bodhi tree is vast and great beyond conception. / Covered entirely by the shade of the tree. The bodhi tree has a huge circumference and covers an immense area. Its flourishing leaves and prolific jeweled flowers protect and reflect one another. The leaves reflect the flowers, and the flowers shine upon the leaves. A mani fruit grows in each blossom. Each flower will bear a fruit of mani jewels.

Shimmering rays shine between the branches of the tree, lighting up the entire bodhimanda. Such pure, infinite resplendence has no heat to it. It is cool, clean, and undefiled, yet has the appearance of a blazing fire. This light appears by the power of the Buddha’s vows. The bodhi tree manifests this kind of state as a result of the vows the Buddha made in the past.

The flowers are made of mani gems in abundance. / The shadows and radiance resemble exquisite, five-colored clouds in the sky—extremely beautiful. Enshrouding the tree with all-pervasive fragrance / And decorating every part of the bodhimanda. The entire bodhimanda is beautifully adorned and filled with a fine fragrance.

Sutra:

Look inside the bodhimanda of the Well Gone One.
The precious nets of lotuses are pure and clean.
Emerging from them are flaming orbs of light.
Bells tinkling and tolling are heard in the clouds.

All beautiful trees of wondrous colors
That grow in the lands of the ten directions
Appear within the bodhi tree.
Beneath that tree, the Buddha transcends all defilement.

Commentary:

Look inside the bodhimanda of the Well Gone One. This line beckons you, me, and the sentient beings of the present to take a look. At the time when the Buddha was speaking the Dharma, this line was telling those sentient beings who were in the Dharma assembly to take a look. Now we are far from the time of the Buddha, so when we explain this Sutra, we interpret this line as telling all of us to take a look. If we don’t look, the sutra is useless to us. The Buddha spoke the Dharma to liberate sentient beings. You and I are both sentient beings. We are among the sentient beings taught and transformed by the Buddha. Thus, you should not think that this line of the sutra has nothing to do with you. You should connect it to your own body and mind. It is fully your own business, nobody else’s. If you have that kind of attitude, the sutra will mean something to you.

What should you look at? Look at the Well Gone One. “Well Gone One” is one of the ten titles of a Buddha. Literally, it means one who has gone to a good place, but in the sutra it refers to the Buddha. You are to look inside the Way-place where the Buddha dwells.

Due to the Buddha’s presence in the Way-place, the precious nets woven of lotuses are pure and clean. / Emerging from them are flaming orbs of light. The lotuses radiate many kinds of light of various colors, resembling flames. The flames naturally assume a circular shape, like wheels. Not only are there wheels in the light, there are sounds of bells. Bells tinkling and tolling are heard in the clouds. [Note: In Chinese there are two words, ling and duo, for bells. Ling are small round bells, and duo are bells with clappers, usually wooden.] In China, a disciple of Confucius once said, “Heaven is about to use the Master [Confucius] as a bell with a wooden clapper [to arouse the age].” In other words, Heaven would employ Confucius to make a great sound like the tolling of a bell. Within the clouds various lights and forms appear, and various sounds of bells are heard.

All beautiful trees of wondrous colors / That grow in the Buddhas’ lands of the ten directions—the four cardinal directions, the four intermediate directions, and above and below. This refers to all types of trees, not just a single type. Bodhi trees also come in many shapes and colors, but they are always exceptionally handsome and magnificent. The mere sight of a bodhi tree causes people to bring forth the resolve for bodhi. Having made that resolve, they will eventually bear the bodhi fruit and realize Buddhahood.

All those trees appear within the bodhi tree. In all the years that the Flower Adornment Sutra has been lectured, we have seldom discussed the bodhi tree. It just so happens that the editor and distributor of the Taiwanese journal Bodhi Tree are here today, and we are also talking about the bodhi tree in the sutra. As mentioned earlier, people who see the bodhi tree are bound to bring forth the aspiration for bodhi. Similarly, when people who have no understanding of Buddhism read the Bodhi Tree magazine, they gain a little taste of Buddhism and want to study in greater depth.

The wish to study in greater depth amounts to bringing forth the aspiration for bodhi. They want to investigate the principles discussed in Bodhi Tree magazine. That is what is meant when the sutra says all the trees “appear within the bodhi tree.” There is nothing that does not appear there. The Five Roots, the Five Powers, the Seven Bodhi Shares, the Eightfold Proper Path, the Four Applications of Mindfulness, the Four Right Efforts, and the Four Psychic Bases are all manifested there.

The bodhi tree expounds Theravada doctrines, such as the Four Noble Truths and the Twelve Links of Conditioned Causation. It also expounds Mahayana doctrines—the Six Perfections and the Ten Thousand Practices—and speaks of how by practicing the Bodhisattva Way, one eventually realizes the perfect fruition of Buddhahood, attains the three types of enlightenment and the ten thousand virtues, and is replete with both blessings and wisdom. Thus, nothing does not appear in the bodhi tree. The bodhi tree encompasses all phenomena. All 84,000 dharma doors appear in the bodhi tree. What’s the purpose of revealing so many dharma doors? They counteract an equal number of sentient beings’ illnesses and problems. Sentient beings afflicted by illnesses need these dharmas to save themselves. If sentient beings ceased being ill, these dharmas would be rendered useless.

Every conceivable thing appears in the bodhi tree—all kinds of images, sounds, and dharma doors.

Beneath that tree, the Buddha transcends all defilement. This text ought to be changed. It says that the Buddha transcends all defilement beneath the tree. Of course the Buddha has renounced defilement. Otherwise, how could he be a Buddha? How should it be altered? It should say: “Beneath that tree, sentient beings transcend all defilement.” When sentient beings go to the base of the bodhi tree, they renounce all defilement. Although I say this, the sutra was spoken by the Buddha and cannot be altered. However, you should understand that the Buddha is free from defilement. We sentient beings are the ones who are impure. The Buddha had returned to original purity. You cannot say that the Buddha transcended all defilement only after he sat beneath the bodhi tree. Even before he went to the bodhi tree, the Buddha was already free from all defilement. If we sentient beings were to sit beneath the bodhi tree, bring forth the resolve for bodhi, practice the Bodhisattva Path, and realize the bodhi fruit, then we would also transcend all defilement.

Therefore we should not think that this line is talking about the Buddha transcending all defilement. The Buddha did that long ago. He didn’t have to wait until he was sitting under the bodhi tree to transcend defilement. What we need is for sentient beings to leave all defilement behind. Defilement characterizes sentient beings, not the Buddha. Since he had left defilement, what is there for him to transcend?

Sutra:

The vast, expansive bodhimanda results from blessings.
Jewels rain down endlessly from the branches.
From each jewel emerge Bodhisattvas,
Who serve and make offerings to Buddhas in the ten directions.

The realm of the Buddhas is inconceivable.
They universally cause their trees to make music.
Hearing the sound, the multitudes are able to see
The Buddhas’ past practices on the bodhi path.

Commentary:

How did the Buddha’s incredibly vast, expansive bodhimanda come about? It results from the cultivation of blessings and wisdom. The full realization and adornment of blessings and wisdom brought that great Way-place into being. Jewels rain down endlessly from the branches, twigs, and leaves of the bodhi tree. There is no end to the shower of precious gems. From each jewel emerge transformation Bodhisattvas, / Who serve and make offerings to all Buddhas in the ten directions.

The realm of all Buddhas is inconceivable. You cannot conceptualize it using an ordinary frame of mind or use ordinary language to describe it. The Buddhas’ realm is beyond mental conceptualization and verbal expression They universally cause their bodhi trees to make music. Upon hearing the sound, the multitudes of sentient beings produce the aspiration for bodhi and are able to see the Buddhas’ past practices that they cultivated and accumulated on the bodhi path. When those in the great ocean-like Flower Adornment assembly hear such sounds, they are able to see such states.

VIII. Multitudes issue forth from the lion throne                
J. They speak verses in praise
6. Hundred Eyes Bodhisattva praises the tree’s perfect virtues and its masterful proclamation of the
Dharma to transform beings

Sutra:

At that time, Bodhisattva Mahasattva Hundred Eyes and Lotus Flower Topknot received the Buddha’s awesome spiritual power, universally contemplated the oceanic multitudes in the bodhimanda, and spoke the following verses.

The mani gems all emit marvelous sounds
Praising the names of Buddhas of the three periods of time.
The numberless miraculous deeds of those Buddhas
Are entirely visible within this bodhimanda.

Arrayed like jeweled necklaces, the flowers compete in beauty.
Clouds of light drift and spread through the ten directions.
The spirits of the bodhi tree present these to the Buddhas,
Using their single-minded gaze as an offering.

Commentary:

At that time, when the assembly was listening to the Buddha speak the Dharma, Bodhisattva Mahasattva Hundred Eyes and Lotus Flower Topknot came forth. This Bodhisattva was introduced earlier, so we need not say anything now. He received the Buddha’s awesome spiritual power—that of Sãkyamuni Buddha and all Buddhas of the ten directions. This Bodhisattva was not like ordinary people, who are attached and say, “I did this. I did that.” Such people cannot forget their own importance. They think that nothing can be accomplished without their help. This Bodhisattva very modestly said, “I myself cannot speak verses. I am able to pronounce these verses only by virtue of the Buddha’s awesome spiritual power. Without such power to back me up, I couldn’t do it.” The Bodhisattva gave all the credit to the Buddha. He contemplated the oceanic multitudes in the bodhimanda—the assembly was so prolific it was like an ocean, and spoke the following verses to elaborate further upon the principles he had been discussing, so that sentient beings—such as you and I—would find them easier to understand. From his attitude, we can perceive the compassion and understanding that Buddhas and Bodhisattvas have for us sentient beings. They take care of everything for us down to the very last detail. There is nothing they neglect to remember.

The mani gems all emit marvelous, inconceivable sounds. How are these sounds marvelous? When deluded beings hear them, they become wise. Isn’t that marvelous. Originally deluded, they hear the Dharma and develop great wisdom. They “deeply enter the Sutra Treasury and have wisdom like the sea.” Isn’t that wonderful? Think about it. That’s the first effect.

When angry sentient beings hear these wonderful sounds, they unconsciously forget their anger. They don’t know where their anger goes, but they can’t get it back. Wouldn’t you say that’s wonderful? What is more, when greedy beings hear these sounds, they cease being greedy. Before, they were insatiably greedy; now they are satisfied and happy. Instead of craving things, they start giving. Aren’t those wonderful sounds? They convert people’s greed, anger, and delusion into morality, concentration, and wisdom. Wouldn’t you say it’s wonderful? They are that powerful, but that still can’t be considered wonderful. What other wonderful effects are there? When sentient beings who are dying hear these wondrous sounds, they are pulled back from the brink of death. When sick beings hear these marvelous sounds, their sicknesses vanish. Those who were chronically ill instantly become well upon hearing those sounds.

“Dharma Master, this is totally illogical. How could such things happen?” you ask. If it weren’t that marvelous, how could these be marvelous sounds? Marvelous sounds bring about effects that you never imagined. The most important effect concerns our interminable afflictions. When we hear these marvelous sounds, we can finally end our afflictions. What is more, these sounds are constantly praising the names of Buddhas of the three periods of time. Why do these sounds cause fools to become wise, greedy beings to renounce their greed, and angry beings to stop being angry? Why are these sounds able to heal the sick and bring the dead back to life? It’s because these marvelous sounds praise the names of the Buddhas of the three periods of time. That’s why all afflictions turn into bodhi, all greed into generosity, all anger into compassion, and all foolishness into wisdom. Through merely praising the Buddhas’ names, these sounds have an inconceivable power.

“What proof is there that there are such inconceivable, marvelous sounds with such inconceivable powers?” The next lines of verse says clearly: The numberless miraculous deeds of those Buddhas / Are entirely visible within this bodhimanda. The Buddhas’ limitlessly many spiritual penetrations and wonderful functions can be seen at the Way-place beneath the bodhi tree. What I have explained of these inconceivable states is equivalent to one drop in the huge ocean or to a single mote of dust. I have brought up one aspect to hint at something limitless. Once you understand this one aspect, you will understand infinitely many aspects.

The responses from his spiritual powers and wonderful functionings are not limited to causing fools to become wise. If you have not ended birth and death, you will be able to do so upon hearing those marvelous sounds. In fact, you will eventually realize Buddhahood, so getting rid of delusion is a trivial matter in comparison. 

Arrayed like jeweled necklaces, the flowers compete in beauty. Bodhi flowers bloom on the bodhi tree. There is an infinite variety of bodhi flowers; they are not all the same kind. These myriads of flowers compete with each other: “You look quite lovely, but I am even lovelier.” These blossoms resemble jewels floating in the air. This lovely sight inspires people to bring forth the unsurpassed bodhi resolve.

Clouds of light drift and spread through the ten directions. These flowers have a radiance that resembles clouds drifting about in the ten directions. The bodhi spirits of the bodhi tree present these flowers and lights to the Buddhas of the ten directions, using their single-minded gaze as an offering. They focus their gaze upon the Buddhas, not letting their eyes leave the Buddhas for even a second. They constantly want to behold the Buddha. They seem as if catatonic, but they are not. The bodhi tree spirits are lucid as they gaze at the Buddha. They can’t bear to blink or shut their eyes, so they keep their eyes open for several days and nights.

The analogy between the bodhi tree spirits and those who are catatonic is an interesting one.  If those who are catatonic could stare at the Buddha without blinking, they might soon become Buddhas themselves. However, if they met the Buddha they might simply close their eyes, not knowing who he was.

Who is the Buddha? What would you say? Well, let me finish explaining this verse first. The bodhi tree spirits can’t bear to divert their gaze from the Buddha for even a second, so the text says, “Using their single-minded gaze as an offering.” Such sincerity is rare indeed! 

Sutra:

Blazing light from mani forms a banner.
The glowing banner produces an exquisite fragrance.
The fragrance permeates the entire assembly,
Making the place entirely adorned and pure.

Commentary:

Blazing light from mani forms a banner. The mani jewels on the bodhi tree in the Way-place give off blazing light, which form a great Dharma banner. The glowing banner produces an exquisite fragrance. The Dharma banner is all aglow and flaming, and from the flames comes a sublime fragrance that no one has ever inhaled before. The fragrance permeates the entire assembly, causing everyone to bring forth the bodhi resolve and making the place entirely adorned and pure. The entire bodhimanda becomes especially beautiful and pure. This fine ambience inspires everyone in the assembly to develop the unsurpassed resolve for the Way.

Sutra:

Lotus blossoms sprinkle golden rays of light.
Within the light, the Buddha’s wondrous sounds—like clouds
Spread and cover all lands in ten directions,
Quelling sentient beings’ burning afflictions forever.

The magnificent bodhi tree, with sovereign power,
Constantly releases rays of the purest light.
The boundless assemblies in the ten directions
Are all reflected without fail in the bodhimanda.

The effulgence from jeweled branches resembles bright lanterns.
That brilliance pronounces great vows.
The Buddha’s past cultivation
In all levels of existence is fully told.

The spirits beneath tree, as numerous as dustmotes in lands,
Have all drawn near to this bodhimanda.
At the tree where each Tathagata realizes the Way,
They proclaim passages to liberation in thought after thought.

Commentary:

In the bodhimanda, wondrous lotus blossoms sprinkle golden rays of light all around. Within the light, the Buddha’s wondrous sounds can be heard like clouds. The Buddha’s Dharma sound can be heard within the light. For sentient beings, it is like listening to the radio. They very naturally hear the sound of Dharma. These clouds of sound spread and cover all lands in ten directions, not just in one location; rather, they broadcast the Dharma to sentient beings throughout the ten directions of the Dharma Realm. These clouds cover all the sentient beings in all Buddhalands throughout the ten directions, quelling sentient beings’ burning afflictions forever. This light travels to the worlds of the ten directions to speak the Dharma. When sentient beings hear the Dharma sounds within the light clouds, their afflictions and ignorance are obliterated. Their greed, anger, and delusion disappear, and sentient beings have no idea where these poisons went.

The magnificent bodhi tree, with sovereign power, / Constantly releases rays of the purest light. / The Way-places and their boundless Dharma assemblies in the ten directions / Are all reflected without fail in the bodhimanda. All the bodhimandas in the ten directions manifest in the bodhimanda of the magnificent bodhi tree. The bodhimanda of the magnificent bodhi tree in turn appears in every bodhimanda throughout the ten directions. There is this mutual inter-reflection of light between this bodhimanda and all bodhimandas throughout the ten directions.

The effulgence from jeweled branches resembles bright lanterns. The branches of the bodhi tree all radiate light. That brilliance emits a sublime Dharma sound that pronounces the past great vows of all Buddhas. The Buddha’s past cultivation / In all levels of existence is fully told. The Buddha’s past cultivation in the Three Realms and the twenty-five levels of existence—the methods and dharma doors he cultivated—are proclaimed little by little. It is almost like watching a television show—you can see it all.

The infinitely many spirits beneath bodhi tree are as numerous as dustmotes in lands. These spirits have all drawn near to this bodhimanda to protect it. At the tree where each Tathagata realizes the Way, / They proclaim passages to liberation in thought after thought. Each Buddha attains the Way beneath a bodhi tree. When the bodhi tree spirits come to protect the bodhimanda, they help the Buddha propagate the Dharma. Thus, in every thought they proclaim the principles of the passage into liberations in the Flower Adornment Sutra.

Sutra:

Every practice cultivated by the World Honored One:
His making of offerings to all Thus Come Ones, and
All his past cultivation and renown
Appear entirely in the mani pearl.

Commentary:

Look at every practice cultivated by the World Honored One. World Honored One is one of the ten titles of the Buddha, who is honored both in and beyond the world. Among all the practices he cultivated—the Six Perfections and Ten Thousand Practices—primarily there was his making of offerings to all Thus Come Ones.
[Universal Worthy Bodhisattva’s ten great kings of vows begin:]

The first is to worship and respect all Buddhas.
The second is to praise the Thus Come Ones.
The third is to extensively make offerings.

He extensively made offerings to all Buddhas, Thus Come Ones, throughout the ten directions and the three periods of time. All his past cultivation and renown. The Buddha gained great renown for his cultivation. Everyone came to know how he cultivated the Way. All these scenes from the past appear entirely in the mani pearl on the bodhi tree, inspiring those who see them to bring forth the bodhi resolve.

Sutra:

Everything in the bodhimanda makes marvelous sounds
Far-reaching sounds that pervade the ten directions.
Sentient beings who are receptive to the Dharma
All become purified and subdued.

Commentary:

Everything in the bodhimanda—the trees, the lion throne, the light emitted from the bodhi tree, the flowers—makes marvelous sounds proclaiming the wonderful Dharma. These far-reaching sounds emitted from all the adornments in the bodhimanda pervade the ten directions. / Sentient beings who are receptive to the Dharma / All become purified and subdued. Sentient beings who are receptive to this Dharma are completely tamed and purified by it. Purity refers to the absence of greed, anger, delusion, and all afflictions. Sentient beings hear these marvelous sounds and become happy.

Sutra:

Long ago, the Thus Come One everywhere cultivated
Innumerable deeds that developed these adornments.
All the bodhi trees in the ten directions
Have a measureless variety of adornments.

Commentary:

This set of ten verses praises the bodhi tree and describes how everything appears in that tree.

Long ago, when the Thus Come One was cultivating, he cultivated all kinds of Dharma, not just one kind. Thus the text says, he everywhere cultivated / Innumerable deeds that developed these adornments. Since he cultivated every dharma door, he perfected every kind of adornment—innumerable adornments. All the bodhi trees in the Buddha worlds of the ten directions / Have a measureless variety of adornments. Each tree and each bodhimanda has its own unique adornments. Measureless bodhimandas thus have measureless adornments.

previous   next   Contents

Chapter 1 Part 4 & 5 pages:  1    2    3    4    5    6    7    8    9    10    11    12    13
   
                                                  14    15    16    17    18    19    20    21    22    23

return to top