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
7. Golden Flames Bodhisattva praises the meritorious qualities of the Buddha’s Ten Powers

Sutra:

At that time, Bodhisattva Mahasattva Full Radiance of Golden Flames received the Buddha’s awesome spiritual power, universally contemplated the oceanic multitudes in the bodhimanda, and spoke the following verses.

As the Buddha cultivated practices for bodhi,
He clearly understood all states of being.
Whether they were right or wrong, he remained pure and doubtless.
This is the first of the Thus Come One’s powers of wisdom.

Commentary:

The next set of verses extols the inconceivable realm of the Buddha’s Ten Powers.

At that time, Bodhisattva Mahasattva Full Radiance of Golden Flames received the Buddha’s awesome spiritual power, universally contemplated the oceanic multitudes in the bodhimanda. Some were members of the influential assembly, while others were those for whom the Dharma was being spoken. This great Bodhisattva contemplated the entire assembly and spoke the following verses to explain the preceding passages of prose. 

As the Buddha cultivated practices for bodhi—as he cultivated the Path to Enlightenment consisting of the Six Perfections and the myriad practices—he clearly understood all states of being. / Whether they were right or wrong, he remained pure and doubtless. The Buddha understands all dharmas, all principles, and all states. All dharmas are clear to him. He also understands the minds and intentions of all sentient beings. In general, whether something is right or wrong in a situation, he is free from doubts. Why does he have no doubts? He understands everything. This is the first of the Thus Come One’s powers of wisdom. This is the first of the Buddha’s Ten Powers of wisdom. Endowed with these wisdom powers, he is not confused by ignorance or afflictions.

Are there any questions?

Disciple: How should mantras be recited?

Venerable Master: Everything is made from the mind. In general, when you are teaching others, mantras should be recited slowly.  Once you have mastered the mantra, you can recite it quickly yourself. Mantras should be recited swiftly. A response can be almost simultaneous with the recitation. When you don’t know the mantra, of course you should slow down. Once you have mastered it, you can speed up.

For example, in the time it takes an ordinary person to recite a mantra once, one who has attained the first stage of sagehood can recite it a hundred times. He is a hundred or more times faster than you. A Sage of the Second Stage can recite it a thousand times in the time it takes you to recite it once. A Sage of the Third Stage can recite the mantra ten thousand times in that time. Wouldn’t you call that fast? A Sage of the Fourth Stage can recite the mantra one million times in the time it takes you to recite it once. In that amount of time, a Bodhisattva can recite the mantra ten million times and a Buddha can recite it a hundred million times. That’s how great the difference is.

If you can recite quickly without mistake, the faster you recite, the better. The faster you recite, the faster the responses. Not even a single thought-instant passes in vain.  

Sutra:

Just as in the past he impartially viewed the nature of dharmas*
And clearly fathomed the sea of all karma,
All of this, now, in the net of radiance,
Is universally enacted in the ten directions.

*Note: The Ven. Master reads this line with one character different, so that the meaning becomes: “The Thus Come One impartially viewed the nature of dharmas.”
There may be more than one version of the sutra.

Commentary:

The preceding verse spoke of the wisdom power of knowing what is right or wrong in every condition. This verse speaks of the wisdom power of knowing the karma of the three periods of time.

What is meant by “what is right or wrong”? This was not explained fully earlier. If you plant a good cause and experience happiness as a result, then this is proper and reasonable. If you plant a good cause and receive suffering as a result, then that is wrong and unreasonable.

[Just as in the past he impartially viewed the nature of dharmas.] The Thus Come One impartially and universally viewed the nature of all dharmas. In other words, he contemplated how people were deluded, created karma, and underwent retribution in the past; are deluded, create karma, and undergo retribution in the present; and will be deluded, create karma, and undergo retribution in the future. And thus he clearly fathomed the sea of all karma. The karmic obstacles of the past, present, and future can be likened to a huge ocean, yet the Buddha’s wisdom power enables him to fully comprehend such karma. All of this—the states of the ocean of karma—now, in the net of radiance woven of lights emitted by the bodhi tree, is universally enacted in the ten directions. These states appear not only under a single bodhi tree in a single Buddhaland; they manifest in every Buddha’s Way-place, under every bodhi tree throughout the ten directions to the ends of space and the Dharma Realm. This particular Buddha’s Way-place and bodhi tree appear in the ten directions, and the Way-places and bodhi trees in the ten directions likewise appear here, creating a situation of infinite levels of interreflection.

Sutra:

In former eons he cultivated great expedients,
Transforming and guiding sentient beings according to their roots,
And purifying the minds of all in the assembly.
Thus the Buddha perfected the wisdom power of faculties.

Commentary:

This verse speaks of the Buddha’s wisdom power of knowing whether sentient beings’ faculties are superior or inferior. Superior faculties refers to good roots. Inferior faculties refers to the lack of good roots. In former eons he cultivated the Bodhisattva Path and attained great, skillful expedients, / Transforming and guiding sentient beings according to their roots. He expediently educated sentient beings, according to the saying:

To lead someone to enter the Buddha’s wisdom,
First bait the hook with something they like.

If you wish to teach and transform a sentient being and convert him, you might not want to speak the Dharma to him right away. You ought to observe what he likes and give him some of that, and then teach him the Dharma. That is what it means to “transform and guide.” For example, children all like candy. You can first give them some candy and then tell them a story, and they will be delighted. If you tell them the story without giving them candy first, they won’t listen. The Buddha “using his empty fist to rescue a child” was a case of expediently “transforming and guiding” sentient beings.

What is meant by “using an empty fist to rescue a child”? When the Buddha was in the world, once he came across a crawling toddler who of course liked candy. The child was crawling toward a well, and the Buddha knew that if the lad fell into the well, he would drown. If someone were to chase the child from behind to try to stop it, the child would only crawl faster and fall into the well more quickly. Instead, the Buddha held out his fist and said, “Little one, come here! I have candy for you!” The toddler heard the word “candy” and crawled back to the Buddha. Of course the Buddha didn’t have any candy in his hand. “So the Buddha tells lies, too,” you say. That was not a lie; it was an expedient that saved the child’s life. Therefore, it cannot be considered a lie. Cultivators should not be too rigid in their thinking. You have to know how to apply the Buddhadharma in a versatile way.

Not only children, but adults also need to be taught with all sorts of expedients. If you know people’s dispositions—what they like and dislike—you can talk to them about what they like and avoid talking about what they dislike. Cultivators should be able to understand the disposition and outlook of any person they meet. They should know whether that person has good roots. Therefore students of the Buddhadharma need to have an understanding of psychology—the study of the mind. Once you understand the psychology and faculties of sentient beings, you will be able to teach and transform them.

And purifying the minds of all in the assembly. Since the Buddha understands the dispositions of sentient beings, he can purify the minds of sentient beings in all Way-places and Dharma assemblies in this world and limitlessly many other worlds in the ten directions. All sentient beings’ minds become pure and free from false thoughts. All false thinking vanishes. One returns to the pure source. Thus the Buddha accomplished the wisdom power of faculties. Since the Buddha cultivated great expedients, he is able to know whether sentient beings’ faculties and potentials are superior or inferior. He obtained that wisdom power.

Sutra:

Sentient beings’ understandings are not the same.
Their inclinations and ways of behaving are each distinct.
Accordingly he speaks the Dharma that they should hear.
The Buddha, by his wisdom power, can be this way.

Commentary:

Sentient beings’ understandings are not the same. This four-line verse speaks of the Buddha’s wisdom power of knowing various understandings. Having identified sentient beings’ dispositions, one can then understand the distinct characteristics of sentient beings. Sentient beings understand different things, and the Buddha understands that sentient beings have different understandings. Sentient beings of every kind have their own particular dispositions. Humans have human dispositions; dogs have dog natures; cats have the temperaments of cats. Mice have mice natures. Frogs leap; rabbits hop; fish swim in the water; birds fly in the air. Every kind of sentient being has its own unique capabilities and wisdom.

Moreover, different kinds of sentient beings like different things. Their inclinations and ways of behaving are each distinct. Dogs, for example, will bite strangers. Cats eat mice, yet are friendly with humans. Rabbits run off when they see people. Frogs also leap away at the sight of people. Tigers see people and want to eat them. Thus, different kinds of creatures have different tendencies and different things that they like. And you can’t force them to all be the same. Instead, you have to recognize what they understand, and then you will be able to teach and transform them.

Accordingly he speaks the Dharma that they should hear. The Buddha sees what kind of Dharma a sentient being needs to hear to be liberated, and speaks that Dharma for him.  For example, adherents of different religions hold different views and understandings. In Taiwan there was a Buddhist layman who lived on the grounds of a monastery. Although he was a Buddhist, his son originally professed himself a Catholic. While the father had no wish to convert his son, the son wanted to convert the father, so the son explained the Bible to him. The son once told his father, “Let me give you an analogy. Your believing in Buddhism is like standing in the middle of a crowded thoroughfare. Sooner or later, you are bound to get run over and lose your soul.” The father did not say anything.

Later when the son was in college, he read in the Bible about the Crusaders killing many people. He questioned a priest, saying, “Believing in Christ should lead one to be good. Why did it lead to killing?” The priest answered, “You don’t understand enough yet, so I can’t answer you right now.”

The son was not satisfied with that reply. Eventually he encountered a good Buddhist teacher and became a Buddhist. Now he is translating sutras. Originally he wanted to convert his father, but his father was firm in his faith and did not give in to his influence. Instead, the son was converted by the father. This is a case of how each person has his or her individual conditions. The Buddha is able to speak for each sentient being just the Dharma which that particular being can accept. The Buddha, by his wisdom power, can be this way. The Buddha can contemplate each situation and speak the appropriate Dharma for the sentient beings involved. That is his wisdom power of knowing various understandings.

Sutra:

Oceans of lands to the ends of the ten directions
And all realms of sentient beings as well
Manifest within the Buddha’s pores
By virtue of his impartial, space-like wisdom.

Commentary:

To the ends of the ten directions / And all countries and realms of sentient beings as well, / Manifest within the Buddha’s pores / By virtue of his impartial, space-like wisdom. The Buddha’s wisdom is equally impartial like space. Although all the Buddhas’ lands and realms of sentient beings are vast and boundless, the huge can appear inside the tiny. The Buddhas’ pores are tiny, yet what is huge can appear within them. The tiny can also manifest inside the huge. Huge and tiny are mutually nonobstructive. The Buddha’s wisdom power can thoroughly fathom all kinds of realms of sentient beings. He can use various dharmas to transform the different realms of beings.

Sutra:

The Buddha knows where every path leads.
A single thought exhausts the three periods completely.
He can entirely reveal and manifest
All eons, sentient beings, times, and lands in the ten directions.

Commentary:

This verse describes the wisdom power of knowing where all paths lead, also known as the wisdom power of traveling to all destinies. If the path you cultivate is pure and free from defiled dharmas, you will quickly attain enlightenment. If you cultivate impure, defiled dharmas, then you cannot leave suffering and attain happiness, nor can you become enlightened. Since the Buddha understands all this, the text says: The Buddha knows where every path leads. If you want to leave suffering and attain happiness, you must cultivate pure dharmas. If you have no wish to leave suffering and gain happiness, you can simply follow along with defiled dharmas. The Buddha has the wisdom to know where all paths and practices take one.

A single thought exhausts the three periods completely. The past, present, and future can completely be manifested in the space of a single thought. Not only that, but he can entirely reveal and manifest / All eons, sentient beings, times, and lands in the ten directions. The Buddha can instruct sentient beings and enable them to perceive and understand these kinds of states.

Sutra:

Just as his dhyana concentration and liberation are boundlessly strong,
So, too, are his samadhi and expedient means.
The Buddha appears for the delight of sentient beings
And cleanses away their dismal afflictions.

Commentary:

Just as his dhyana concentration and liberation are boundlessly strong. Dhyana, a Sanskrit word, is translated to mean “thought cultivation” and “stilling reflection.” Liberation implies freedom and ease; the absence of all restraints. The Buddha has the wisdom power of dhyana, liberation, and samadhi, and the power of this wisdom is measureless and boundless. So, too, are his samadhi and expedient means. The power of his samadhi and expedient means is also measureless.

The Buddha appears for the delight of sentient beings / And cleanses away their dismal afflictions. The Buddha uses the water of samadhi and wisdom to cleanse away sentient beings’ dismal afflictions. These dismal afflictions refer to greed, anger, and delusion. Greed, anger, and delusion are nothing but affliction! Once these afflictions are washed away, sentient beings return to their origin. 

Sutra:

Unhindered, Buddha’s wisdom encompasses the three periods,
Which instantaneously appear in his pores.
The Buddhadharma, countries, and sentient beings
All manifest by his power of knowing upon reflection.

Commentary:

This verse describes the eighth of the Buddha’s Ten Powers, the power of knowing past lives upon reflection. The Buddha knows all the events and conditions of sentient beings’ past lives. This is basically the spiritual power of the knowledge of past lives.

Unhindered, Buddha’s wisdom encompasses the three periods. The Buddha’s wisdom is unimpeded. There is nothing he does not understand. He knows everything in the past, the present, and even the future. His wisdom contains the three periods, which instantaneously appear in his pores. In a brief instant, he can manifest the causes and conditions of the three periods of time right in his pores. The Buddhadharma, all the Buddhas and how they turn the Dharma wheel and speak the Dharma, all the Buddhas’ countries, and sentient beings / All manifest by his wisdom power of knowing past lives upon reflection.

Sutra:

The Buddha’s eyes are as pervasive as space.
They see the entire Dharma Realm, missing nothing.
On the ground of nonobstruction, he achieved peerless functioning.
Only Buddhas can describe the depth of his eyes.

Commentary:

This verse describes the wisdom power of the unobstructed celestial eye, also known as the wisdom power of the unobstructed Buddha eye. The Buddha’s eyes are as pervasive as space. The Buddha eye is one of the Five Eyes. Here, “the Buddha’s eyes” includes all kinds of eyes. The Buddha’s eyes are huge to the point of being boundless. Think about how huge that is. You cannot even see the edges of these eyes. They are as immense as all of space. This line describes the Buddha’s wisdom eyes being as great at space.

They see the entire Dharma Realm, missing nothing. The Buddha can see everything throughout space to the ends of the Dharma Realm. Not only that, but the Buddha can see all the thoughts of sentient beings. He knows what any given sentient being is thinking at any time. On the ground of nonobstruction, he achieved peerless functioning. When the Buddha was at the level of planting causes, he cultivated the dharma door of nonobstruction. As a result, his functioning is incomparable. Only Buddhas can describe the depth of his eyes. Only Buddhas are able to give expression to this state of having eyes endowed with such measureless, great functioning and power.

Sutra:

Every sentient being is tied up in knots
And bound by all the derivative afflictions and habits.
The Tathagata appears everywhere in the world
And expediently releases those bonds.

Commentary:

This verse speaks of the wisdom power of non-outflows. The Buddha has the wisdom to help sentient beings attain nonoutflows and become Buddhas. Since the Buddha himself has already put an end to outflows and realized Buddhahood, he can teach and transform sentient beings to do the same. Every sentient being is tied up in knots. These knots are the karmic obstacles and offenses they have created. These knots keep them from being liberated. What keeps them tied up? Their karmic obstacles. Originally, they were pure. When they created karma and became defiled, they lost the light of wisdom and were left in darkness. They are obstructed by karmic obstacles and bound by all the derivative afflictions and habits. The knots refer to karmic obstacles of the present. Derivative afflictions are seeds planted in the field of the eighth consciousness. These are seeds for the future creation of karma. Habits refer to things you have become accustomed to doing in life after life.

Here are some simple examples of habits. Sometimes smokers manage to quit smoking, but once in a while their former habit comes back and they get the urge to smoke again. In that case, their habit still has some energy left in it.

Some people quit drinking, but still often fantasize or dream about drinking. These are leftover habit-energies. They have not pulled their habits out by the roots. There are gamblers who vow to quit gambling, but then always find an excuse to go back and visit the casinos. These are all examples of leftover habits.

Greed, anger, delusion, and pride are also habits. The Buddha’s disciple, Kalodayin, “Black Light,” was one with the leftover habit of greed. People with the habit of anger can be compared to Sãriputra. Although Sãriputra had great wisdom, he also had a big temper. People with the habit of delusion are like Suddhipanthaka, who, even after becoming enlightened, still had the appearance of a fool because of his habitual delusion which carried over from the past.

Pilindavatsa had the habit of arrogance. His tremendous conceit was a carry-over from past lives. The Tathagata appears everywhere in the world, / And expediently releases those bonds. Using expedient dharmas, the Buddha gets rid of sentient beings’ habits.

VIII. Multitudes issue forth from the lion throne                
J. They speak verses in praise
8. Dharma Realm Bodhisattva praises the Buddha’s perfect practice of the Ten Paramitas leading to his present attainment of a perfect fruition

Sutra:

At that time, Bodhisattva Mahasattva Sound Pervading the Dharma Realm received the Buddha’s awesome spiritual power, universally contemplated the oceanic multitudes in the bodhimanda, and spoke the following verses.

The Buddha’s awesome spiritual power pervades the ten directions.
Vast and great, he manifests without discrimination.
Great bodhi practices and paramitas—
All beings see how he perfected these in the past.

Commentary:

At that time, Bodhisattva Mahasattva Sound Pervading the Dharma Realm received the Buddha’s awesome spiritual power, universally contemplated the oceanic multitudes in the bodhimanda, and spoke the following verses to further explain the principles mentioned earlier.

This next verse is spoken by the Bodhisattva named Sound Pervading the Dharma Realm. In fact, the next ten verses are all spoken by him. This differs from the earlier sets of verses, which were spoken by ten spirits, ten Bodhisattvas, ten yaksha kings, ten rakshasa kings, ten gandharva kings, and so on, each one speaking one verse. Here, these eleven verses are all spoken by the same Bodhisattva. The first verse is a general summary, and the following ten verses individually describe the Ten Paramitas.

People who cultivate the Buddhist path must put the Ten Paramitas into true practice. They must personally and sincerely practice them and not have a sloppy attitude. There are the Six Paramitas and the Ten Paramitas.

The Six Paramitas are:

1.   giving
2.   morality (holding precepts)
3.   patience
4.   vigor
5.   dhyana samadhi
6.   prajña wisdom

The last four paramitas are:

7.   expedient means
8.   vows
9.   power
10.  knowledge

That makes Ten Paramitas in all. The Buddha’s awesome spiritual power pervades the ten directions. The Buddha’s awe-inspiring virtue, great spiritual powers, and tremendous strength fill all of space to the ends of the Dharma Realm. The Buddha is vast and great. He manifests everywhere without discrimination. He appears impartially without discriminating. He cultivated great bodhi practices, made a great resolve to seek enlightenment, and cultivated great paramitas. Practicing what was difficult to practice and enduring what was hard to endure, he vigorously cultivated all the dharma doors for arriving at the other shore. All beings see how he perfected these in the past. Everyone in the Dharma assembly now personally sees these dharma doors of the Ten Paramitas and myriad practices that the Buddha perfected in the past.

Sutra:

Giving rise to great compassion for sentient beings,
He cultivated the paramita of giving.
Thus his body is most sublime and wondrous,
Causing delight in the beholder.

Commentary:

The first verse discusses the paramita of giving. The Buddha cultivated the perfection of giving in the past. Why should we cultivate giving? It’s said that, “giving money is as painful as cutting off a piece of flesh.” There are six kinds of faults that block the path of bodhi for sentient beings. The first is stinginess, the inability to give. When a stingy person earns a penny, he would rather clutch it so tightly that it melts than spend it. How far does his stinginess go? He reckons his accounts very clearly. When he gives a present, he does his best to save money. Everything costs money, so on his friend’s birthday, he decides to draw a picture of a birthday cake. Then he takes it to his friend, saying, “I don’t have anything good to give as a present, so I’m giving you this cake.” The friend, not to be outdone in stinginess, says, “Fine, when your birthday comes around, I won’t even bother to draw a cake on paper; I’ll simply give you an invisible cake and show you how big it is with my hands.” That’s how stingy people behave. One guy is so miserly that he gives his friend a picture of a cake; his friend returns the gesture by simply pointing to an invisible cake in the air and talking about it. The first person draws a cake on paper; the second one draws a cake in the air. Stinginess is the first fault.

Another fault is that of violating the precepts. After taking the precepts, some people fail to carefully uphold the vajra jeweled precepts. They often transgress them by telling lies, killing, stealing, engaging in sexual misconduct, and taking intoxicants. When they received the precepts, they promised not to lie. Yet later on, they lie. They say, “I won’t kill, I won’t kill,” and then they swat a mosquito, killing it. They say, “I won’t steal, I won’t steal,” but then they take a fancy to someone else’s belong and take it for themselves. Violating the precepts is the second fault.

The third fault is anger. People with this fault blow up at the least provocation. Their tempers seem to appear out of nowhere. They themselves don’t even understand how they get angry. They feed on anger and the fire of ignorance, consuming these things gluttonously, as if they tasted better than steamed buns, dumplings, pork chops, and steak.

The fourth fault is laziness. Lazy people are bored with everything. They feel most comfortable when they’re doing nothing at all.

The fifth fault is scatteredness. If one is lazy, one will lack wisdom and be scattered.

After scatteredness comes the fault of malicious intelligence. Instead of wholesome wisdom, they have unwholesome wisdom. An example of this would be the Seven Snakes Gang in the United States. Would you say they are stupid? They are highly intelligent, yet their intelligence is used for evil ends. The sixth fault is malicious intelligence.

With these six faults, one cannot practice giving. One thinks, “Why should I give you anything? Why don’t you give me something?” Even some left-home people don’t want to give anything to others, yet hope that others will make offerings to them. All day long they calculate how much money each layperson can give. Their thoughts run: “How rich is this layman? How much can that layman give?” How pathetic!

Giving rise to great compassion for sentient beings, / He cultivated the paramita of giving. The Buddha has tremendous compassion for sentient beings. Compassion can alleviate suffering. How? When sentient beings are suffering, you can practice charity. Thus, the Buddha practiced the paramita of giving. Wishing to relieve sentient beings’ suffering and make them happy, he gave to them.

Cultivation is a gradual process. You advance one small step at a time. No matter how small a deed is, if it is part of cultivation, you have to do it. You can’t skip the small deeds and do only the big ones, or skip the big deeds and do just the small ones. In cultivation, you have to practice all deeds, large and small.

There are three types of giving: the giving of wealth, the giving of Dharma, and the giving of fearlessness. As to the giving of wealth, there is inner wealth and outer wealth. Inner wealth includes one’s head, eyes, brain, and marrow—all of these can be given. Outer wealth includes one’s country, city, wife, and children. One can give large things, such as one’s entire country or city. It’s not easy to give away one’s wife, but one is willing to yield her to others. And if anyone wishes to have one’s children, one can give them away as well.

The giving of Dharma takes place when one lectures the sutras and speaks the Dharma. Of all offerings, the gift of Dharma is supreme. It is a wonderful thing to bestow the gift of Dharma upon someone. The gift of Dharma is more valuable than material gifts. The giving of fearlessness refers to consoling those who are scared and making them feel safe.

The Sanskrit word paramita means “arriving at the other shore,” that is, finishing the task at hand.

Thus his body is most sublime and wondrous. Due to the Buddha’s cultivation of the paramita of giving, his body is adorned with the Thirty-two Hallmarks and Eighty Subsidiary Characteristics. The Buddha practiced giving to the ultimate. He was not like ordinary people, who consider it foolhardy to give their money away to others. The Buddha gave away whatever he had. He was able to give his very body, mind, and life to sentient beings. What great kindness, compassion, joy, and renunciation—the Four Limitless Aspects of Mind—he had! That’s why the Buddha had such a superb physical appearance, causing delight in the beholder. Everyone was overjoyed to see the Buddha. Since the Buddha had cultivated affinities with sentient beings in the past, everyone happily made offerings to him and adored him.

Sutra:

During oceanic, boundless great eons in the past,
He cultivated the paramita of pure precepts.
Thus, he gained a pure body pervading the ten directions,
And he extinguishes intense sufferings in all worlds.

Commentary:

This four-line verse speaks of the paramita of holding the precepts, which is one of the Six Paramitas. The precepts serve to stop evil and prevent wrongdoing. The precepts can be summed up as follows: “Do no evil. Practice all good.” When you do no evil, then the karma created by your body, mouth, and mind are pure. You do not commit the three evils of the body, the three evils of the mind, or the four evils of the mouth. By refraining from the four evils of the mouth, you are actually doing four good deeds. By refraining from the three evils of the mind and the three of the body, you are doing six good deeds.

In general, when you refrain from the ten evils, you are practicing the ten good deeds. The three evils of the body are killing, stealing, and sexual misconduct. The three evils of the mind are greed, anger, and delusion. The four evils of the mouth are indecent speech, lying, harsh speech, and divisive speech. When you refrain from the ten evils, thereby practicing the ten good deeds, then the karma of your body, mouth, and mind is pure. That is to do no evil.

To practice all good means to carry out every act that is beneficial to others. Practicing all good also means diligently cultivating precepts, concentration, and wisdom. Doing no evil means extinguishing greed, anger, and delusion. The precepts protect you and keep you from committing offenses, and they also encourage you to practice good.

During oceanic, boundless great eons in the past, uncountably many eons resembling an ocean in their boundlessness, he cultivated the paramita of pure vajra bright, jeweled precepts. There are the Five Precepts which prohibit killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, lying, and intoxicants. There are also the Eight Fasting-Day Precepts for laypeople, the Ten Sramanera Precepts for novice monks and nuns, the 250 Bhikshu Precepts, the 348 Bhikshuni Precepts, and the Ten Major and Forty-eight Minor Bodhisattva Precepts. If one can wholeheartedly uphold these pure precepts, one will arrive at the other shore of purity and nirvana. Paramita means “to reach the other shore.”

The Buddha maintained all the precepts and cultivated all kinds of skillful dharmas for teaching and transforming sentient beings. Thus he gained a pure Dharma body pervading the ten directions of the Dharma Realm, / And he extinguishes intense sufferings in all worlds so that all sentient beings can experience happiness.

Sutra:

In the past he cultivated the purity of patience.
His faith and understanding were true and undiscriminating.
Therefore he has perfect features and characteristics.
And his radiance lights up the ten directions.

Commentary:

In the past the Buddha also cultivated the dharma of patience. The previous paramita of holding precepts prevents us from disturbing others. In cultivation, we should constantly reflect upon ourselves to see if we have afflicted or disturbed anyone. The dharma of patience applies in a situation where we are disturbed, insulted, or bullied by others. We have to endure what others cannot endure. Even if we feel something is unbearable, we have to be patient. Since we understand the Buddhadharma, we should keep it in mind at all times, particularly the dharma of patience under insult. If someone berates us, we endure it. If someone beats us up, we can take it. Even if someone kills us, we are not afraid and we endure it. This requires the greatest patience.

When someone castigates us and we do not retaliate, even in our hearts, then we are being patient. If someone hits us and we don’t strike back, we are also being patient. If you can bear what most people cannot, then you will also accrue merit which surpasses that of others.

I often tell you this verse:

Patience is a priceless jewel
That no one knows how to mine.
If you were able to use it,
Everything would turn out fine.

Patience is an invaluable treasure. It is worth more than anything. Unfortunately, no one is able to practice it. If you could practice it, things would all go smoothly and there would never be any trouble. Maitreya Bodhisattva also spoke a verse. I’ve often recited it to you, but you’ve probably forgotten over time, so I’ll tell you again.

The Old Fool wears a tattered robe,
And fills his belly with plain food.
He mends the rags to keep his body warm,
And lets the myriad affairs just take their course.
Should someone scold the Old Fool,
The Old Fool just says, “Fine.”
Should someone strike the Old Fool,
He just lies down to sleep.
“Spit right in my face,” he says,
“And I’ll just let it dry.
That way I save energy
And you don’t get afflicted.”
This kind of paramita
Is the jewel in the wonderful.
Now that you know this news,
How can you worry about not attaining the Way?

The old monk wears a robe of patched up rags. He fills himself with simple food, to keep from going hungry. When his robe gets ripped, he mends it with more patches to chase off the cold. He lets all things, good and bad, take their natural course, and does not become attached to them. He takes everything in stride. If someone were to rebuke him, he would say, “Fine! Okay!” Should someone beat the old man up, he would simply fall to the ground and fall asleep. If someone were to spit on his face, he wouldn’t even bother to wipe it off, but would let it dry there. This paramita of patience is the most wonderful treasure. If you know about this, you need not fear that you will not attain the Way.

If any of you can cultivate the paramita of patience, your belly will be huge. A verse in praise of Maitreya Bodhisattva says,

His mouth is open wide in laughter.
Seldom does he speak.
His cloth bag is not as large as his belly.
Blessings constantly come his way,
For he is able to take everything in stride.

There was a monk in China known as the Cloth Bag Monk, who was recognized as an incarnation of Maitreya Bodhisattva. He always carried a large cloth bag around, but it wasn’t as big as his belly. He enjoyed plenty of blessings, because of his ability to accept whatever came his way. He could hold the myriad things in his belly. There is a saying, “The prime minister’s belly can sail a ship.” The prime minister’s tolerant, magnanimous heart is like a belly that is large enough to sail a ship in. This is the opposite of someone who is so sensitive that he cannot withstand the slightest criticism or adversity, and so petty-minded that he is constantly calculating who did what to him. His “belly” is so full of such petty thoughts that there is no room for a ship to sail.

In the past he cultivated the purity of patience. The Buddha formerly cultivated the pure dharma door of patience under insult. His faith and understanding were true and undiscriminating. He regarded all sentient beings in same way, as his parents in past lives and as future Buddhas. Contemplating them as his past-life parents, he could not be unfilial to them. Seeing them as Buddhas-to-be, he could not be disrespectful them. Thus, he cultivated patience under insult. Therefore he has perfect features and characteristics. The Buddha had flawless features and a handsome appearance. His body had the thirty-two hallmarks and eighty Subsidiary Characteristics. Having cultivated patience, his radiance universally lights up the ten directions, enabling sentient beings who are able to cultivate patience to quickly realize Buddhahood.

Sutra:

Long ago, for many oceans of eons, he cultivated with vigor
And managed to reverse the weighty obstacles of sentient beings.
Therefore his division-bodies pervade the ten directions
And appear beneath the majestic bodhi tree.

Commentary:

Long ago, for many oceans of eons, he cultivated with vigor. The World Honored One cultivated with ever-increasing zeal and vigor. He was never lazy. To cultivate vigorously has three meanings:

1. To don the armor of vigor. In ancient times, soldiers wore armor to protect them from lances and halberds. Wearing the armor of vigor, one can only advance, not retreat. No matter what happens, one cannot surrender. One must win! How can one gain victory? With the help of great vows. One must make expansive vows and resolves. The only direction to go is forward. There is no possibility of retreat.

For example, after you have left the home-life, you must advance daily in your cultivation. You may not entertain thoughts of returning to lay life, or else you won’t be wearing the armor of vigor. You must sacrifice everything and work zealously for the cause of Buddhism each day. One dons the armor of vigor and makes great vows. Great vows are themselves the armor of vigor.

2. To gather in the good. This means to apply assorted expedient means to advance oneself along the bodhi path, as well as to help other sentient beings cultivate and advance.

3.  To benefit beings and make them happy. One exhorts and transforms sentient beings, bringing them all to realize anuttarasamyaksambodhi and to attain a happy reward.

The Buddha cultivated through great eons so numerous they resemble oceans and managed to reverse the weighty obstacles of sentient beings.  These karmic obstacles blocked the bodhi path. The Buddha was able to transform them. He turned afflictions into bodhi, and birth and death into nirvana. Therefore his division-bodies pervade the ten directions / And appear beneath the majestic bodhi tree.The Buddha’s division bodies pervade all lands in the ten directions, and they all appear in the Way-place beneath the bodhi tree.

Sutra:

The Buddha long cultivated—for measureless eons—
Purifying the entire great ocean of dhyana samadhi.
Upon seeing him, beings rejoice profoundly
And completely cast out their turbid, obstructive afflictions.

Commentary:

The Buddha long cultivated—for measureless eons. The Buddha didn’t just cultivate one or two days to realize Buddhahood. He cultivated month after month, year after year, for infinitely many great eons without slacking off, thus purifying the entire great ocean of dhyana samadhi. We sit in chan for a couple hours and think we’re pretty special. The Buddha sat in meditation for millions of great eons. Within that great ocean of dhyana concentration, his false thoughts subsided and disappeared and his wisdom came forth. With false thoughts gone, one is no longer stupid. With all kinds of wisdom arising, one becomes smart. The Buddha purified the entire ocean of dhyana samadhi. Upon seeing him, beings rejoice profoundly. Sentient beings who see the Buddha are filled with happiness and adoration and completely cast out their turbid, obstructive afflictions. The happiness obliterates all defiling obstacles of afflictions. In other words, sentient beings’ idle thoughts vanish and their wisdom unfolds; they regain their original source.   

Sutra:

The Thus Come One cultivated a sea of all practices,
Fully perfecting prajña paramita
Thus he releases universal illumination,
Dispelling all ignorance and gloom.

Commentary:

The Thus Come One cultivated a sea of all practices. “Thus Come One” is one of the Buddha’s ten titles. The Buddha cultivated an ocean of all practices in his quest for wisdom, thus fully perfecting prajña paramita. The perfection of wisdom signifies crossing over the sea of delusion and affliction to reach the opposite shore, representing nirvana and wisdom. He cultivated wisdom; thus he releases wisdom’s universal illumination, / dispelling all ignorance and gloom. The Buddha’s light of wisdom dispels the obscurity of delusion and false thoughts, enabling all sentient beings to bring forth their own inherent light of wisdom.

Sutra:

With various expedients he transforms sentient beings,
Leading them to succeed in their every practice.
He travels pervasively through the ten directions,
Never resting during boundless eons.

Commentary:

This verse corresponds to the paramita of expedients, one of the Ten Paramitas. With various expedients he transforms sentient beings, / Leading them to succeed in their every practice. The Buddha teaches and transforms sentient beings expediently, so that they can eventually attain actual benefit. Through various expedients, he makes sure all sentient beings succeed in whatever practice they undertake. He travels pervasively through limitless Buddhalands in the ten directions, not staying in one location. Never resting during boundless great eons. The Buddha never gets lazy in teaching and transforming sentient beings. He has no concern for himself; he only wants to save sentient beings. If we sentient beings want to repay the Buddha’s kindness, we must cultivate the way the Buddha does. 

Sutra:

The Buddha cultivated for seas of great eons,
Purely perfecting the paramita of all vows.
Hence, he appears throughout all worlds
And rescues sentient beings to the end of time.

Commentary:

The Buddha cultivated for seas of great eons, eons so unreckonably numerous they are like a sea, purely perfecting the paramita of all vows. The paramita of vows is the eighth of the Ten Paramitas. Each cultivator must make vows and practice in accord with them. It should not be that one makes a vow today and forgets about it tomorrow. At all times, one must cultivate in accord with one’s vows. Then one will not daydream too much or be too sloppy. Vows are like a boat that transport one from one side of the ocean to the other side. Without the boat of vows, one will have a hard time crossing the ocean. Since the ocean is too huge to cross without a boat, one must make one’s vows and then practice accordingly.

Why was the Buddha able to become a Buddha? He made a vow to realize Buddhahood. Let’s take another example. If we vow to never lie down, then we must always sleep sitting up. If we vow to teach and transform sentient beings, then we must focus on doing that at all times. If we vow to eat only one meal a day, then we must uphold that vow faithfully. If we vow not to hold money, then we should not regard money as being that important. If we vow to leave the home-life and study the Buddhadharma in life after life, then we should not have thoughts about returning to lay life. If we vow to be Dharma protectors, then we ought to always protect and support Buddhism. Again, it is essential that our vows guide our cultivation, so that we can reach the other shore.

Hence—since the Buddha cultivated the paramita of vows—he appears throughout all worlds / And rescues sentient beings to the end of time. The Buddha has vowed to save sentient beings forever.

Sutra:

For countless eons, the Buddha cultivated and cured
The paramita of the power of all dharmas,
Thereby accomplishing spontaneous strength
And appearing in all lands of the ten directions.

Commentary:

For countless eons, the Buddha cultivated and cured… Cultivation is not always a smooth process. Sometimes when one resolves to cultivate, one will be tested by demonic obstacles. For example, one may want to practice the paramita of giving. But then one has second thoughts: “If I give my money away, then I won’t have any money for food or for the bus.” At that point, you need to counteract these thoughts and cure the illness (of stinginess): “But that guy is really suffering! I can skip a meal and still survive.” So you give him some money and counteract your stinginess. If it’s a matter of your bus money, you can cure your stinginess and think, “I’ll still give to the guy and walk instead.”

This is only one example of “cultivating and curing,” but it applies to everything. If you experience some difficulties as you start out cultivating, you can use all sorts of expedients to overcome the problems. The previous verse used the phrase “purely perfecting,” which has the connotation of purifying. When you have a lot of false thoughts that you cannot get rid of, you can purify them. When there is a great deal of defilement, you can purify yourself. 

The paramita of the power of all dharmas. The Buddha cultivated the power of the 84,000 dharma doors to the point of reaching the other shore, thereby accomplishing spontaneous strength of wisdom. Such wisdom is effortless and full of light. And appearing in all lands of the ten directions. The Buddha’s Dharma body and wisdom light appear in all Buddhas’ lands to proclaim the Dharma.

Sutra:

The Buddha cultivated the wisdom of the universal door.
The nature of all wisdom resembles the void.
Thus he achieved unobstructed power
And shines his light upon lands in the ten directions.

Commentary:

The Buddha was able to cultivate all Ten Paramitas, and in particular, the paramita of wisdom. The Buddha cultivated the wisdom of manifestation through the universal door. Universal door wisdom is simply level and equal wisdom.

The nature of all wisdom resembles the void. The fundamental substance of wisdom is devoid of form, like empty space. Thus he achieved unobstructed power. Nothing obstructs him. This state of nonobstruction encompasses the Great Perfect Mirror Wisdom, the Wisdom of Wonderful Contemplation, and the Wisdom of Accomplishment.

And then the Buddha shines his light upon all lands in darkness in the ten directions, in order to teach and transform sentient beings in the six paths so that they will quickly develop great wisdom and realize Buddhahood.

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