co.

Table of Contents

s.

Summary

s.­1

Bouquet of Flowers is a Great Vehicle sūtra in which the Buddha describes a vast array of wondrous, far-off world systems each inhabited by buddhas who teach the Dharma there. Hearing those buddhas’ names, the Buddha teaches, brings a wide range of benefits, all of which are ultimately directed toward attaining unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening. In this sūtra, the Buddha’s main interlocutor is Śāriputra, but he also interacts with Ajita and Mahākāśyapa.

ac.

Acknowledgements

ac.­1

This text was translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee under the supervision of Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche. Ana Cristina Lopes translated the text from Tibetan into English and wrote the introduction. James Gentry checked the translation against the Tibetan and edited the English.

The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.

i.

Introduction

i.­1

Bouquet of Flowers is set in Rājagṛha, at Vulture Peak Mountain, where the Buddha is dwelling together with a large monastic assembly. Śāriputra rises from his seat and asks, “Blessed One, how many blessed buddhas are there now, dwelling alive and well and teaching the Dharma?” In response to this question, the Buddha describes a vast array of wondrous, far-away world systems inhabited by countless buddhas. The multiplicity of buddhas in the present, one of the main themes accompanying the rise of Great Vehicle Buddhism, is thus the foremost theme of this sūtra. In this respect, Bouquet of Flowers has a strong affinity with sūtras connected to the Pure Land Buddhist traditions of East Asia. Jan Nattier’s definition of Pure Land Buddhism as “the set of all ideas and practices related to Buddhas who are presently living in the world systems other than our own,”1 corroborates this association.

i.­2

Contrary to the usual tendency in Buddhist Pure Land literature, however, Bouquet of Flowers does not emphasize rebirth in a pure land where one can swiftly progress towards unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening. Instead, this sūtra focuses on simply hearing the names of the buddhas that inhabit different world systems, and extols the many benefits that derive from hearing and reciting these names and giving rise to faith in the buddhas. The extremely long distances between our world system and those world systems, always measured in terms of buddhafields, is not a hindrance for those buddhas to positively influence the devout in their spiritual quests.2 The fruition of these buddhas’ past aspirations, the sūtra states several times, is powerful enough to impact beings regardless of such vast spatial divides.

i.­3

This emphasis on the spiritual efficacy of faith, aspiration, and the hearing and recitation of names is yet another feature that connects Bouquet of Flowers with Pure Land literature. In the same way that, for instance, the aspirations Akṣobhya made while traversing the bodhisattva path shaped his pure land Delightful in its physical form and spiritual potencies, the aspirations of these buddhas during their bodhisattva careers infuse their names with the power to place the devout irreversibly on paths towards freedom from saṃsāra and, eventually, the attainment of complete awakening. In this sense, hearing the name of these buddhas brings something of the general framework that characterizes pure lands, namely an environment extremely conducive to the attainment of awakening, into the presence of the devout in this world system. As Nattier reminds us, the significance of pure lands is related not so much to their physical attributes as to the opportunity they bring to encounter buddhas and live in their presence.3 Right at the beginning of Bouquet of Flowers we have a sense of how this can be accomplished by hearing the names of buddhas. We are told there that through hearing the name of the buddha Foremost Sublime Jewel, who dwells in the world system Endowed with Jewels, “a buddha will appear here.” We are beckoned, then, to extend this idea to the other buddhas inhabiting countless world systems.

i.­4

It is indeed this sense of the immediate presence of buddhas that hearing their names brings to the devout. This sense of presence can be understood, in some respects, as a reenactment of the seminal moment in a bodhisattva’s career, namely the encounter with a buddha and the inspiration that ensues from it. We are told by the Great Vehicle Buddhist tradition that all bodhisattvas in their progress towards awakening have to follow the same course of action as the Buddha Śākyamuni. Hence, it is possible to say that Bouquet of Flowers concerns the starting point of this course‍—the event of meeting a buddha‍—which in the case of this sūtra happens through hearing his name. In Bouquet of Flowers, this seminal moment is thus reenacted over and over again, expanding and enchanting as a result how the devout understand the cosmos.

i.­5

Moreover, because hearing the names of buddhas leads to a sense of their presence powered by their past aspirations it can be seen as vital substitute for directly meeting a buddha. In the sūtra, the Buddha seems to imply as much when he tells Ajita, another of his interlocutors, that he himself “turned away from saṃsāra after a hundred trillion eons based on hearing the name of that thus-gone one [All-Conquering Vajra] from the clairvoyant thus-gone one Dīpaṅkara.” The Buddha continues, “Ajita, had I not heard the name of that thus-gone one from the thus-gone one Dīpaṅkara, I would not have fully and perfectly awakened to unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening as I have.” Hence, Bouquet of Flowers presents hearing the names of buddhas not only as a desirable event, but as a necessary condition for the attainment of awakening.

i.­6

Another important condition for the attainment of awakening connected to the existence of a myriad of pure lands is the opportunity to generate merit by directly making offerings in the presence of buddhas. In Nattier’s words, “for a bodhisattva-in-training the possibility of meeting with an endless series of Buddhas‍—in the course of ‘traveling from Buddha-field to Buddha-field,’ as so many early Great Vehicle sūtras put it‍—is not merely optional but required, for there is simply no other way to attain the vast quantities of merit required in order to become a Buddha oneself.”4 Bouquet of Flowers addresses the issue of generating merit in several instances, always extolling the superiority of hearing the buddhas’ names even compared to making offerings to them directly. One example early in the text describes the primacy of hearing the buddhas’ names in the characteristic exuberance of the Great Vehicle sūtras:

i.­7

“Śāriputra, the heap of merit generated by completely filling the trigalactic megagalactic world system with the seven kinds of precious substances and offering it every day to the blessed buddhas for as many eons as there are grains of sand in the Ganges River does not approach even a hundredth part of the heap of merit generated by hearing the name of the thus-gone one Sublime Jewel, giving rise to faith, and joining palms. Neither does it permit of any calculation, reckoning in fractions, analogy, or comparison.” (1.­9)

i.­8

In light of the two main aspects of the sūtra discussed so far‍—namely, the actualization of buddhas in the present and the incalculable heap of merit generated by hearing their names and becoming inspired‍—Bouquet of Flowers could also be read for the distinctive path to awakening it delineates. Unlike the practices of visualization, or the recollection of visual features that a number of the sūtras connected to the Pure Land literature prescribe,5 the spiritual practice emphasized by Bouquet of Flowers is based on the act of hearing. Nowhere in the sūtra do we find much by way of visual descriptions of the more than one hundred world systems inhabited by buddhas that it names. Yet despite its emphasis on hearing over seeing or envisioning, the path of practice it outlines is nonetheless structurally similar to the practices of visualization. Hearing and visualizing buddhas both involve buddhānusmṛti, a practice that Paul Harrison calls “one of the basic features of Pure Land practice.” Harrison tells us that “various forms of anusmṛti (literally, ‘recollection’, ‘remembrance’, and, by extension, ‘calling to mind’, ‘keeping in mind’; cf. smṛti, commonly translated as ‘mindfulness’) had been part of general Buddhist practice since earliest times, and are amply attested in the Pāli Nikāyas and the Chinese translation of the Sanskrit Āgamas.”6 The rise of the Great Vehicle extended this early Buddhist practice to the “idea of many Buddhas, not only in the past and future (Hīnayāna) but in the present as well.”7

i.­9

In Bouquet of Flowers, the names of buddhas reflect their main qualities, which in turn they have acquired through the aspirations they made during their bodhisattva careers. These included aspirations that beneficial, liberating outcomes ripen for all who hear their names. Hearing these names, becoming inspired by them, and sometimes expressing this inspiration or devotion outwardly can thus be considered a practice of buddhānusmṛti in relation to both the physical presence of those buddhas and their qualities. In this respect, we can also compare the kind of practice that seems to animate this sūtra to another kind of practice commonly associated with Pure Land Buddhism: reciting the name of Buddha Amitābha with the aim of being reborn in his pure land Sukhāvatī. Amitābha, also referred to as Amitāyus in the sūtra, figures among the last few of the many buddhas mentioned in the text (1.­138). The possibility of being reborn in his pure land can be granted, according to the sūtra, through merely hearing his name, experiencing great joy, and genuinely longing for his hundreds of thousands of attributes. It should be reiterated, however, that rebirth in these pure lands is not Bouquet of Flowers’ main concern, but only one of the many benefits that can result from hearing the names of a buddha; the idea of rebirth in a buddha’s pure land appears only a few times. Another feature of this text that connects it with Sukhāvatī-related literature is the notion that women who hear the names of buddhas are reborn as men, “superior” physical forms with which to continue their spiritual journeys. Although the Buddha invokes this notion several times in Bouquet of Flowers, he punctuates the lengthiest and most misogynistic instance with a trenchant deconstruction of reifying labels of gender and sex. He exposes both man and woman as false constructs empty of inherent existence, and even criticizes those who would hear the buddhas’ names in order to change their sex as obsessive.


i.­10

In terms of structure, the sūtra divides into three distinct sections marked by changes in interlocutor, content, and form. The first of the Buddha’s interlocutors is Śāriputra. The discourse the Buddha puts forth while addressing him constitutes the bulk of the text (1.­2–1.­141). In this section, the Buddha presents a long list of buddhas and their world systems together with the benefits of hearing their names and giving rise to faith. He often punctuates these promises with the horrific outcomes that await those who hear the names and do not give rise to faith. Warnings about the risks of spending long eons in the hells due to having no faith in these names or being critical of their efficacy point toward a self-defensive posture, common to several Great Vehicle sūtras, that express the ongoing dialogue in India between proponents and detractors of the Great Vehicle.

i.­11

The next and much shorter section (1.­142–1.­150) has Ajita, the paradigmatic bodhisattva, as the Buddha’s interlocutor. Ajita wants to know if there is “some quality that a bodhisattva-mahāsattva can possess to ensure that he or she makes swift and irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening.” This question opens up the possibility of a metadiscussion in the sūtra, in which hearing the names of the buddhas is identified as precisely the “single quality” that a bodhisattva-mahāsattva should possess in order to make irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening. This is where we see the Buddha use his own personal story to illustrate this point.

i.­12

In the last section (1.­151–1.­288), it is Mahākāśyapa who enters the scene as the Buddha’s interlocutor. The Buddha addresses him multiple times, but Mahākāśyapa directly speaks to the Buddha only near the very end of the sūtra (1.­288). It is possible to infer from this detail that Mahākāśyapa is mostly in some kind of absorption while interacting with the Buddha. Indeed, this section of the text includes several allusions to the topic of meditative absorption, with the names of specific absorptions sometimes appearing in the names of the buddhas listed. The topic of emptiness is addressed here for the first time. Throughout this section, the Buddha breaks into verse, summarizing each prose passage in turn.

Translations of Bouquet of Flowers: Past and Present
i.­13

In addition to its Tibetan translation, this text was also translated into Chinese, Korean, and Mongolian. This suggests that it enjoyed some popularity in India, although no Sanskrit version is currently extant. The title in Chinese is Ch’eng yang chu fo kung te ching (稱揚諸佛功德經, Taishō 434). The Chinese translation was made by Kiṃkārya in Pei-t’ai (北臺), in the second year of Yen Hsing (延興), Northern Wei Dynasty (元魏) (472 ᴄᴇ). The date of this Chinese translation does not suggest that this was a particularly early Pure Land sūtra.

i.­14

According to the colophon of its Tibetan translation, Bouquet of Flowers was edited and finalized by a translation team consisting of the Indian preceptor Jñānasiddhi, the chief editor-translator Dharmatāśīla, and others. Although the term translation is conspicuously missing from the colophon, Jñānasiddhi and Dharmatāśīla were both active in Tibet in the late eighth and early ninth centuries and also collaborated on the translation of the Aṣṭa­sāha­srikā­prajñā­pāramitā.8 In the Denkarma (ldan/lhan dkar ma) imperial translation record, compiled in the late eighth century, Bouquet of Flowers is listed as entry 1299 and classified in the Assorted Sūtras (mdo sde sna tshogs) section among works numbering “ten or fewer bam po” (bam po bcu man chad la). In the Kangyurs belonging to the so-called Tshalpa (tshal pa) recension, the sūtra appears among similar-themed sūtras, grouped near the end of the Great Vehicle section of the General Sūtra (mdo sde) section, whose main focus is the merit of knowing and reciting the names of numerous buddhas and prostrating to them. These sūtras include The Sūtra on Liberation (mthar mdo, Toh 264), much recited in Tibetan Buddhism, and its extra chapter (Toh 265), as well as Calling Witness with a Hundred Prostrations (Toh 267), famous for having been one of the first Buddhist texts to appear in Tibet according to traditional histories. The purification of negative karma is also an important aspect of these sūtras, and some of them are used in confession rituals.10 This grouping appears to have been based on the Old Narthang catalogue, which was followed by Butön Rinchen Drup (bu ston rin chen grub, 1290–1364) for the arrangement of sūtras recorded in his History of Buddhism.11 Moreover, Butön also notes in his History that several sūtras preceding Bouquet of Flowers were likewise translated by Dharmatāśīla, suggesting that another organizing rubric may have also been operative.12 In the Kangyurs belonging to the so-called Thempangma (them spangs ma) recension, such as the Stok Palace manuscript version, along with other independent Kangyurs, such as the Shelkar (shel dkar) version, the Bouquet of Flowers appears with an entirely different set of sūtras. Moreover, neither grouping represents the logic of the imperial catalogues, where length seems to have been the organizing rubric.

i.­15

This English translation is based on the Degé version, in consultation with the Stok Palace manuscript and the notes recorded in the Comparative Edition (dpe bsdur ma). The system of sigla used to record variant readings herein is drawn from the University of Vienna’s Resources for Kanjur and Tanjur Studies.13 All personal and place names were translated into English unless well attested in Sanskrit.

Text Body

The Noble Great Vehicle Sūtra
Bouquet of Flowers
1.

The Translation

[F.288.a] [B1]


1.­1

Homage to all buddhas and bodhisattvas!


1.­2

Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was dwelling in Rājagṛha, at Vulture Peak Mountain, together with a large monastic assembly of one thousand two hundred and fifty monks, when Venerable Śāriputra rose from his seat, draped his robe over one shoulder, and knelt on his right knee. Bowing to the Blessed One with palms joined, he asked, “Blessed One, how many blessed buddhas are there now, dwelling alive and well and teaching the Dharma?”

1.­3

The Blessed One replied to Śāriputra, “Śāriputra, listen well and pay attention as I explain!”

1.­4

“Excellent, Blessed One!” said Venerable Śāriputra, and he listened to the Blessed One:

1.­5

“Śāriputra, a trillion world systems beyond this buddhafield to the east, in a world system that is a buddhafield called Illuminated, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Source of Jewels.

1.­6

“Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Source of Jewels and give rise to faith will obtain the seven precious factors of perfect awakening and will progress irreversibly toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening. In sixty eons they will turn away from saṃsāra.

1.­7

“Those who delight in hearing the name of the buddha Source of Jewels, the sun among humans in the world system Illuminated, will be free from saṃsāra in sixty eons.

1.­8

“Śāriputra, led by him, [F.288.b] there are as many blessed buddhas with the name Source of Jewels in the east as there are grains of sand in the Ganges River. They presently live there, alive and well, teaching the Dharma.

1.­9

“A hundred buddhafields beyond here, in the world system called Endowed with Jewels, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Sublime Jewel. Śāriputra, the heap of merit generated by completely filling the trigalactic megagalactic world system with the seven kinds of precious substances and offering it every day to the blessed buddhas for as many eons as there are grains of sand in the Ganges River does not approach even a hundredth part of the heap of merit generated by hearing the name of the thus-gone one Sublime Jewel, giving rise to faith, and joining palms. Neither does it permit of any calculation, reckoning in fractions, analogy, or comparison.

1.­10

“Thus, in the world system Endowed with Jewels dwells the buddha Foremost Sublime Jewel. Through hearing his name, a buddha will appear here.

1.­11

“Six hundred buddhafields from here, in the world system called Fragrant, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Fount of Jewels. Śāriputra, those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Fount of Jewels will turn away from saṃsāra in fifteen eons.

1.­12

“A thousand buddhafields beyond here, in the world system called Brilliant, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Shining Jewel. Śāriputra, those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Shining Jewel and give rise to faith will not go to the three lower realms.

1.­13

“Far beyond five hundred thousand buddhafields from here, in the world system called Victory Banner at the Peak, [F.289.a] dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Jewel Peak. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Jewel Peak and, giving rise to faith, recollect that thus-gone one, will become like jewels.

1.­14

“Well beyond two thousand buddhafields from here, in the world system called Shining with All Qualities, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Brilliant Jewel. Śāriputra, those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Brilliant Jewel and, upon hearing it, become wholeheartedly devout and prostrate, touching the ground with the five parts of the body, will turn away from saṃsāra in twenty eons.


1.­15

“Far beyond a thousand buddhafields from here, in the world system called Delightful, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Akṣobhya. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Akṣobhya and give rise to faith will make irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening and will not be disturbed14 by evil māras.

1.­16

“Now, Śāriputra, when I taught on proclaiming the name of the thus-gone one Akṣobhya and his virtues, the evil Māra heard about it. Assembling all his troops he came before me and said, ‘To proclaim the names of the thousand blessed buddhas will be impossible,15 but that’s not the case for the thus-gone one Akṣobhya’s name. Why? Because he is not within my purview. So for those listening to the name of that thus-gone one, I shall create obstacles.’

1.­17

“The Blessed One said to the evil Māra, ‘Evil one, who are those for whom you will create obstacles?’ [F.289.b]

1.­18

“To this he replied, ‘Blessed One, it will be for those who have embarked upon the Great Vehicle and who will hear the name of that thus-gone one. The proclaiming of the name and virtues of that blessed one in this world system, Blessed One, sickens16 and torments me. But in order to create obstacles for those listening to that name, I am taking up arms. Why? So that those who hear the name of that thus-gone one will fall under my control.’

1.­19

“Then the Blessed One said to the evil Māra, ‘Evil one, do not take up arms. You cannot create obstacles for those sublime persons. Why is that? Because I have entrusted them to the thus-gone one Akṣobhya, and to other thus-gone ones as well, so the thus-gone one Akṣobhya will care for them and bless them.’ ”

1.­20

Then, Venerable Śāriputra said to the Blessed One, “Blessed One, when the evil Māra previously came before the Thus-Gone One, and with those words you sounded the lion’s roar, who were the people hearing the name of the thus-gone one Akṣobhya, to create obstacles for whom and bring them under his control the evil Māra then took up arms?”

1.­21

The Blessed One replied to Venerable Śāriputra, “Śāriputra, it is like this: I saw that there are beings who have heard about proclaiming the thus-gone one Akṣobhya and his virtues, but presently have given up doing so and cling rigidly to a teaching that will lead them to the hells.”

1.­22

Śāriputra replied, “Blessed One, please explain well: how many beings have given it up?”

1.­23

The Blessed One replied, “Śāriputra, throughout the ten directions the name of that thus-gone one will be heard, [F.290.a] and in other world systems when the thus-gone ones accordingly teach the Dharma beginning with his virtues, beings’ wisdom increases and expands, such that even when taught about his virtues in full they will never be satiated. Śāriputra, that those who directly perceive that thus-gone one would give up proclaiming his virtues is impossible and will not happen.

1.­24

“For those blessed buddhas to appear in the degenerate age of afflictions is impossible. It is like this: as a comparison, during this present age of the five degenerations in which I have appeared, even the beings here in this Sahā world system who have such17 weak intelligence can comprehend the virtues that I am explaining, and so it goes without saying that those beings who are dwelling in the thousand-fold world system of Akṣobhya can do so. Śāriputra, that being the case, this Dharma discourse extolling those virtues will gradually spread in the different directions,18 where all the sublime beings who have embarked on the Great Vehicle will propagate it.

1.­25

“But now, Śāriputra, listen to how those who are not sublime beings will listen to this Dharma discourse and, having heard it, will forsake it!”

1.­26

“Very well, Blessed One!” said Venerable Śāriputra, and listened as the Blessed One had instructed as the Blessed One continued.

1.­27

“In a country called Gandhāra to the north, there are those who will incur the karma of being in the Hell of Endless Torment for a hundred thousand years. Along that same northern stretch, toward the region of Kaśmīra, where this sublime teaching will grow to be extremely powerful, there will appear fifty thousand beings who forsake it. Having forsaken it, those sons of noble family will go19 to a place where there is no end to torment. All those who gather en masse to severely disparage this sūtra will go there. There will be eighty million and five hundred thousand beings who will forsake this sūtra in the north. Having forsaken it, they will fall into the Hell of Endless Torment. [F.290.b]

1.­28

“In the east, there will be a few who have faith; the majority will incur the karma for the Hell of Endless Torment. Many hundreds of thousands of beings there will go to the Hell of Endless Torment.

1.­29

“In the south, two hundred thousand beings will forsake this Dharma discourse. Having forsaken it, they will go to the terrible Hell of Endless Torment.

1.­30

“In the west, hundreds of thousands of beings, having forsaken this Dharma discourse, will go to the Hell of Endless Torment.

1.­31

“Śāriputra, the qualities of buddhas are not even shared with20 pratyekabuddhas, let alone with śrāvakas, or ordinary beings who perpetuate saṃsāra. Śāriputra, these qualities correspond only to themselves, for buddhas are inconceivable. The qualities of buddhas are also inconceivable, for the qualities of buddhas are known only by those possessing the actual nature of buddhas. One cannot know them, and one should not forsake them without knowing them. To forsake just a four-line verse of a sūtra like this is to incur a mass of demerit to the same extent as was mentioned earlier.

1.­32

“Śāriputra, sons or daughters of noble family should therefore not forsake this Dharma discourse. They should delight in it.

1.­33

“Those who listen to this Dharma discourse with the following thought will acquire the melody of the buddhas’ speech: ‘By not forsaking such a sūtra as this, I will be free from the karma of remaining for an eon, so that I will not dwell among the hell beings who have forsaken the sublime Dharma.’


1.­34

“Ten thousand buddhafields from here, in the world system called Immeasurable, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Bright Light. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Bright Light and give rise to faith will never part from the blessed buddhas and will make irreversible progress to unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening. [F.291.a]

1.­35

“Six thousand buddhafields from here, in the world system called Flowered dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Immeasurable Melody. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Immeasurable Melody give rise to faith and joyously exclaim three times ‘Homage to the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha!’ will acquire immeasurable melody, the melody of the buddhas’ speech.

1.­36

“Four thousand buddhafields from here, in the world system called Immaculate, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Ambrosia Melody. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Ambrosia Melody and become devout upon hearing it will turn away from saṃsāra in twelve eons.

1.­37

“Twenty thousand buddhafields beyond here, in the world system called Impervious, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Highly Renowned. Śāriputra, all those who hear, proclaim, and uphold the name of the thus-gone one Highly Renowned will be impervious to the evil Māra.

1.­38

“Twelve thousand buddhafields from here, in the world system called Blissful, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Infinite Renown. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of Infinite Renown and, with palms joined, say the words, ‘Homage to the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha Infinite Renown!’ will acquire a limitless heap of merit. [F.291.b] The heap of merit that comes from offering a heap of jewels equal in size to Mount Sumeru for a hundred years does not approach even a hundredth part of the former heap of merit, nor does it withstand analogy to it.

1.­39

“Three thousand buddhafields from here, in the world system called Crystalline, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Bright Jewel. Śāriputra, those who uphold the name of Bright Jewel will turn away from saṃsāra in ten eons. Furthermore, they will make irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening. However, those who lack faith will incur the karma of dwelling in the Hell of Endless Torment for an eon.

1.­40

“Fifteen thousand buddhafields from here, in the world system called Luminosity, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Possessor of Great Bliss. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Possessor of Great Bliss will liberate all beings into bliss. Furthermore, they will obtain a limitless heap of merit.

1.­41

“Seven thousand buddhafields from here, in the world system called Shining Gem, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Shining Star Lamp. Śāriputra, those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Shining Star Lamp and have faith will acquire the powers called the powers of a thus-gone one.

1.­42

“Eight thousand buddhafields from here, in the world system called Truthful,21 dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Melody of Truth. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Melody of Truth will attain unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening.

1.­43

“Two thousand buddhafields from here, in the world system called Golden, dwells the [F.292.a] thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Infinite Purity. Śāriputra, the merit generated by hearing the name of the thus-gone one Infinite Purity and also giving rise to faith far exceeds the merit that comes from offering the trigalactic megagalactic world system completely filled with the seven kinds of precious substances. With little merit, one cannot hear the name of the thus-gone one Infinite Purity. Those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Infinite Purity have not produced roots of virtue with respect to just one buddha. Nor have they produced roots of virtue with respect to just two, three, four, five, or up to ten buddhas. Rather, those beings have produced roots of virtue with respect to a hundred buddhas. They will turn away from saṃsāra in fifty-eight eons.

1.­44

“Nine thousand buddhafields from here, in the world system called Melodious, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called White as the Moon. Śāriputra, the virtuous qualities of all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one White as the Moon will wax like the moon. They will make irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening.

1.­45

“A thousand buddhafields beyond here, in the world system called Possessing Sun, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Moonlight. Śāriputra, those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Moonlight and, having heard it, kneel on their right knees and joyously proclaim three times, ‘Homage to the thus-gone one Moonlight!’ will, upon making such a joyful proclamation, swiftly arrive at unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening.

1.­46

“Thirty thousand buddhafields from here, in the world system called Stainless, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha [F.292.b] called Stainless Light. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Stainless Light, be they gods, nāgas, or humans, will make irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening. They should not be frightened or worried about falling into ruin.

1.­47

“Two thousand five hundred buddhafields from here, in the world system called Shining with Beryl, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Pristine Light. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Pristine Light, be they gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, kinnaras, mahoragas, humans, or nonhumans, will obtain a human existence. Their desire, hatred, and ignorance will also be purified.22 Śāriputra, if those who, through the nonvirtuous karma of not having faith or confidence in the virtuous roots of the faithful that have heard the name of that thus-gone one, so much as say, ‘How could such things come about?’ they will roast in the terrible hell called Howling for sixty thousand years.

1.­48

“A hundred buddhafields away from here, in the world system called Endowed with Excellent Attainment, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Sunlight. Śāriputra, the virtuous qualities of all those who remember the name of the thus-gone one Sunlight will be like the orb of the sun. They will destroy all the hordes of demons and vanquish non-Buddhists. In thirty eons they will turn way from saṃsāra.

1.­49

“Far beyond sixty thousand buddhafields from here, in the world system called Well Adorned with the Factors Conducive to Awakening, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Infinite Jewel. Śāriputra, all of those who hear the name of the thus-gone one [F.293.a] Infinite Jewel will attain the factors of awakening. Furthermore, they will establish beings in the sublime Jewels. Day and night, they will acquire immeasurable heaps of merit.

1.­50

“Five hundred buddhafields from here, in the world system called Endowed with Lotuses, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Lotus Guru. Śāriputra, those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Lotus Guru and give rise to faith will all be like lotuses in the world; they will be exalted in virtuous qualities. Just as a lotus grows from water but is not mired in it, they will turn away from saṃsāra in fifty-five eons.

1.­51

“Far beyond one trillion buddhafields from here, in the world system called Beyond All Sorrow and Harm, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Branch Guru. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Branch Guru will be ferried across the great ocean of the waters of existence23 to the world system called Liberation from All Sorrow and Harm. They will become worthy of veneration in all worlds. All those who hear the name and give rise to faith will become like flowers, serving as teachers in all worlds. They will become as firm as the body of Nārāyaṇa and they will make irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening. Moreover, any woman who hears the name of the thus-gone one Branch Guru and, having heard it, gives rise to faith, will thus be transformed from being a woman. Śāriputra, for that reason, if a son or daughter of noble family were to desire these benefits and give rise to the resolve set on unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening in order to liberate suffering beings, then he or she should hear the name of the thus-gone one Branch Guru. [F.293.b]

1.­52

“Two thousand buddhafields from here, in the world system called Replete, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Sublime Golden Light. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of Thus-Gone One Sublime Golden Light and, having heard it, give rise to faith, will obtain illumination. For they will acquire the light and power of the buddhas. They will also obtain the varieties of fearlessness and the beneficial qualities of the buddhas. They will cause others to have faith in all buddhas and produce immense merit. Those whose merit is meager should not expect all that. Hearing this name is not difficult for those who, through this kind of teaching of the thus-gone ones, have given rise to a vajra-like resolve and thus inspire others to give rise to the resolve for awakening in order to have them attain awakening. In twelve eons, they will turn away from saṃsāra.

1.­53

“Eighteen buddhafields from here, in the world system called Pristine Pearl Lattice, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Sovereign King of Brahmā. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Sovereign King of Brahmā and, having heard it, acquire faith and join their palms, will never part from that thus-gone one and will be universal monarchs in that24 realm. All of them will make irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening.

1.­54

“Two thousand buddhafields from here, in the world system called Endowed with Moon, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Shining Like Gold. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Shining Like Gold will be taught extensively, even in their dreams, that the nature of phenomena is like a hallucination. They will also not fall into ruin, [F.294.a] for they will acquire a great heap of merit. They will bring pleasure and happiness to an immeasurable number of beings. They will rule the world and reach perfection through the Great Vehicle.

1.­55

“Ten buddhafields away, in the world system called Meteor, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Source of Gold. Śāriputra, previously the thus-gone one Source of Gold, while engaging in the conduct of the bodhisattvas, thought, ‘I shall perfect all the qualities of a buddha, so that all beings that will be born in the buddhafield where I awaken to unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening, and all beings from other world systems will, upon hearing my name, make irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening!’

1.­56

“Eighteen buddhafields from here, in the world system called Endowed with Honey dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Sovereign King of Nāgas.

1.­57

“Śāriputra, when the nāgas cast lightning bolts toward their village or region, those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Sovereign King of Nāgas should kneel on their right knees and say, ‘By the truth and true words, the thus-gone one Sovereign King of Nāgas became a nāga while previously engaged in the conduct of the bodhisattvas and liberated nāgas from each of their agonies. Because he liberated several hundreds, thousands, and hundreds of thousands of nāgas from agony, he made the following aspiration: “By these virtuous roots may I perfectly awaken to unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening, such that uttering my name, whether I am still alive or have passed beyond suffering, may prevent harm and bring, through that word of truth, well-being wherever nāgas [F.294.b] should cast lightning bolts or harmful hail, or spread peril, illness, harm, or contagion, even if it takes place in other world systems!” ’

1.­58

“Śāriputra, through the truth and those true words, even the retribution of these beings was directed toward happiness. The mere utterance of the name will prevent nāgas from sending lightning bolts. For when they die, they will be reborn in his buddhafield and make irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening. Moreover, those who have devotion and faith will acquire, day and night, an immeasurable heap of merit. It will not be difficult for them to acquire the wisdom of the buddhas.

1.­59

“A trillion buddhafields beyond here, in the world system called Moon-like, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Sovereign King of All Flowers’ Fragrance. Śāriputra, those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Sovereign King of All Flowers’ Fragrance will waft the fragrance of discipline throughout as many world systems as there are grains of sand in the Ganges River. Moreover, Śāriputra, all those who hear his name, whether that thus-gone one still remains or has passed beyond suffering, will become endowed with all the qualities of a buddha. Why is that? It is because this is the previous aspiration of that very thus-gone one. Therefore, one should have wholehearted faith in the blessed buddhas. Having faith in the blessed buddhas will thus bring great benefit. Through single-pointed faith, one will obtain whatever is desired. [F.295.a] Those who join their palms with one-pointed faith in thus-gone ones like this who inspire us to uphold their advice and who uttering the words ‘Homage to the buddhas!’ are steadfast in their love, will make irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening. If they have wholehearted faith, they will perfect those qualities. Therefore, one should continuously recite the name of the thus-gone one. If those who wish to travel in that vehicle recollect the qualities of that thus-gone one, they will turn away from saṃsāra in fourteen eons.

1.­60

“Two billion buddhafields from here, in a world system called Endowed with the King of Stars, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha King of Sāla. Śāriputra, those who hear the name of the thus-gone one King of Sāla and, lacking faith, disparage and mock it, will be roasted in the terrible Crushing Hell for six thousand years. By expressing their lack of faith they will experience for seven thousand years the suffering of hungry ghosts who eat burning embers.

1.­61

“Fifty-five buddhafields from here, in a world system called Powerful, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Leader of Loyal Heroes Who Uses Weapons to Eliminate Afflictions. Śāriputra, those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Leader of Loyal Heroes Who Uses Weapons to Eliminate Afflictions, will become vajra-like, even in their dreams. They will become impervious to the control of Māra and his entourage. They will be rescued from grave battles and obtain the wisdom of omniscience. Śāriputra, the sons or daughters of noble family who become faithful and delighted through just recollecting the name of that thus-gone one should think, while engaging in conduct for the sake of awakening, ‘We shall see the thus-gone one and know him perfectly!’

1.­62

“Alternatively, they should engender the mind of awakening as follows: [F.295.b] ‘We shall make irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening. We shall perfectly delight in the expansive resolve. We will benefit many beings by hearing from them the name resounding in our ears and by delighting in that. Such is its great miraculous power.’

1.­63

“Śāriputra, I will explain a little bit about the heap of merit that comes from hearing the name of a thus-gone one and becoming devout upon hearing it. Suppose someone were to fill with jewels as many world systems as there are grains of sand in the Ganges River and offer them to as many blessed buddhas as there are grains of sand in the Ganges River, every day, for as many eons as there are grains of sand in the Ganges River. The heap of merit from that would not compare to even a fraction of the heap of merit that comes from hearing the name of a thus-gone one. Suppose someone, with the wish to hear the name, were to make an offering of that many world systems filled with the seven kinds of precious substances. Without having made the requisite merit, even that person would not be able to hear it. Why is that? It is because if one were to hear the name without making the necessary merit, then even hell beings, animals, beings in the world of Yama, and the long-lived gods would hear it and understand the qualities extolled. For they would all possess the right amount of merit.

1.­64

“Ten buddhafields from here, in the world system called Glorious,25 dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Shining Essence of Glory. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of that thus-gone one and become devout with a resolute frame of mind will obtain an immeasurable heap of merit. They will not be scared of the lower realms. They will pass beyond suffering by means of the unexcelled Buddha Vehicle exactly in accordance with the aspirations they have made. Whether that thus-gone one still remains [F.296.a] or has passed beyond suffering, all those who hear his name will be endowed with the ease and happiness of the Great Vehicle. Even while cycling among humans and gods, they will pass away with the great array of the qualities of a buddhafield, exactly in accordance with the aspirations they have made. Thus is the heap of merit that comes from buddhas. They will not fall to ruin for as many eons as there are grains of sand in the Ganges River, so inconceivable are the roots of virtue engendered with respect to buddhas.

1.­65

“Unless they commit actions with immediate retribution and disparage the noble ones, they will pass away after a long time exactly in accordance to the aspirations they have made. Śāriputra, they should not commit any evil deeds. I have taught that one should not give rise to ill will even toward a burnt log, much less a human. Furthermore, if getting angry even at ordinary humans leads to rebirth plagued by the many kinds of suffering of the terrible hells, how much worse is getting angry at the faithful who have devotion for the teachings of the thus-gone ones, let alone getting angry at a thus-gone one endowed with infinite wisdom? For I have not seen those foolish beings escape such a fate in one, two, three, or even as many as a hundred eons, and they do not escape from the hells in even a trillion eons. I have taught that those who forsake the awakening of the buddhas will suffer. One should give rise to the mind of awakening with the following thought: ‘Anyone who does not forsake the authentic way of Dharma, whose words do not preach duality, will come to acquire, without ever regressing, the wisdom of the buddhas!’

1.­66

“Eighty buddhafields away, in the world system called Fragrant with an Ocean of Incense, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Shining with Immeasurable Incense. Śāriputra, [F.296.b] all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one called Shining with Immeasurable Incense and, upon hearing it, become wholeheartedly devout and keep it in mind, will make irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening. Upon attaining unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening, all the pores of their body will waft a pleasant fragrance and radiate light all around. Moreover, those with meager insight cannot aspire for this great wisdom. I have seen that those with more expansive insight will become filled with faith upon hearing this name proclaimed. They will truly achieve insight from other buddhas for many eons. Śāriputra, it is impossible and implausible for those that hear this Dharma from other buddhas in the final period of five hundred years to be impious, distrustful, and misunderstand it. This is impossible and implausible because they will turn away from saṃsāra in forty-five eons. Those with deep faith in this Dharma will be endowed with a moon-like insight and become objects of veneration in the world with its gods.

1.­67

“Fifteen buddhafields away, in the world system called Endowed with Nāgas, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Melody of Lions. Śāriputra, all those who, upon hearing the name of the thus-gone one Melody of Lions, recollect discipline and are devout and trustful, will never waver from virtuous qualities. In twenty eons, they will turn away from saṃsāra. Any women who hear the name of that thus-gone one will change sex and become like shrines in the world.

1.­68

“Thirty buddhafields away, in the world system of Yaṅgarvatī, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha [F.297.a] called Delivered through Powerful Diligence. Śāriputra, those who, upon hearing the name of Delivered through Powerful Diligence, give rise to faith and, kneeling on their right knees with palms joined, say ‘Homage to the thus-gone one Delivered through Powerful Diligence!’ will never be deluded in future lifetimes within saṃsāra. They will become formidable weapons against all demons, non-Buddhists, and false teachers. In twenty-five eons, they will turn away from saṃsāra.

1.­69

“Forty buddhafields away, in the world system called Well-Settled Ocean, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Triumphant on the Seat of Awakening with His Brilliance. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone Triumphant on the Seat of Awakening with His Brilliance and become filled with faith and devout upon hearing it, will settle well upon the seat of awakening and attain the Supreme Vehicle. Thus endowed with the boon of the gift of Dharma, they will gather immeasurable heaps of merit from the gift of Dharma throughout day and night.

1.­70

“Thirty-six buddhafields away, in the world system called Luminous, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called King of the Drum’s Melody. Śāriputra, the heap of merit generated by completely filling the trigalactic megagalactic world system with the seven kinds of precious substances and offering it every day to pratyekabuddhas for as many eons as there are grains of sand in the Ganges River does not approach even a hundredth of the heap of merit generated by hearing the name of the thus-gone one King of the Drum’s Melody, joining palms with their ten fingers, and saying, ‘Homage to the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha King of the Drum’s Melody!’ Nor does it withstand so much as an analogy. [F.297.b]

1.­71

“Fifty buddhafields away, in a world system called Endowed with Moon, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Guru of the Moon. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Guru of the Moon, be they gods, nāgas, yakṣas, humans, or nonhumans, will become like lotuses in the world, untainted by nonvirtuous qualities. If a woman hears it, has strong faith in it, or becomes wholeheartedly devout toward it, that will be her final birth in a female body. Those who distrust and forsake it will be forsaking the power of the buddhas. For a full twenty eons, they will roast in the terrible Hell of Endless Torment. By contrast, Śāriputra, those who trust in, long for, and have devotion for the inconceivability of the blessed buddhas will in nineteen eons turn away from saṃsāra.

1.­72

“Three trillion buddhafields away, in the world system called Steady Pillar of Sandalwood, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Outshining Flower. Śāriputra, previously, while the thus-gone one Outshining Flower was engaging in the conduct of the bodhisattvas, he thought, ‘In the buddhafield where I awaken to unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening, may there be none of the eight unfavorable states!’

1.­73

“In accordance with the aspiration he made, the buddhafield of that thus-gone one was thoroughly purified, such that the beings in his field are filled with perfect happiness. Furthermore, Śāriputra, those who hear the name of that thus-gone one and give rise to faith are wondrous in the world. Even after they have perfectly and completely awakened, none of the eight unfavorable states will occur in that buddhafield. [F.298.a]

1.­74

“Two trillion buddhafields away, in the world system called Placid River of Jambu, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Light of the World. Śāriputra, unless they commit actions with immediate retribution and disparage the noble ones, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Light of the World will be free from rebirth in the lower realms. Even those who have committed actions with immediate retribution and disparaged the noble ones will, if they hear it, eventually become awakened once their negative karma is exhausted. In twenty eons, they will turn away from saṃsāra. [B2]

1.­75

“Eight trillion buddhafields away, in the world system called Clear Light, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Fire. Śāriputra, why, do you think, is the world system called Clear Light? The trigalactic megagalactic world system is even like the palm of a hand and appears like a lotus. Śāriputra, in that world system, the thus-gone one Fire teaches the Dharma, blazing radiantly‍—glittering, gleaming, and glistening‍—like an inferno of flames in the dark, and communicates through melody to the entire trigalactic megagalactic world system. The heap of merit generated by covering the trigalactic megagalactic world system with planks of gold, ornamenting all its trees with silk, and offering it every day to as many countless blessed buddhas as there are grains of sand in the Ganges River, for as many eons as there are grains of sand in the Ganges River, does not approach even a hundredth part of the heap of merit generated by hearing the name of that thus-gone one, [F.298.b] nor does any analogy suffice. Those who, having heard it, take pleasure in it and persevere in what they desire will turn away from saṃsāra in sixty eons and acquire an unexcelled buddhafield.

1.­76

“Śāriputra, in the east there is the world system called Fully Arrayed. There dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Jewel Foundation.

1.­77

“Śāriputra, in the east there is a world system called Awakened. There dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Forever Passed Beyond Sorrow, where he turns the irreversible Dharma wheel.

1.­78

“Śāriputra, in the east there is the world system called Slope of Mount Sumeru. There dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Mind without Torment.

1.­79

“Śāriputra, in the east there is the world system called Free of Poverty. There dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Appearance of Countless Emanations.

1.­80

“Śāriputra, in the east there is the world system called Smooth as Kācilindika Fabric. There dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Astride Mount Sumeru.

1.­81

“Śāriputra, in the east there is the world system called Endowed with the Glory of Sublime Evenness. There dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Sublime Elephant of Jewels.

1.­82

“Śāriputra, in the east there is the world system called Source of Preciousness. There dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Glory of Assembled Jewels.

1.­83

“Śāriputra, in the east there is the world system called Free of Impurity. There dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha [F.299.a] called Eternally Glorious Meaning of the Precious Irreversible Wheel. Surrounded by an assembly of bodhisattvas, he turns the irreversible wheel.

1.­84

“Śāriputra, in the east there is the world system called Perfectly Pure Abode. There dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Attainer of Purity of Universal Illumination.26

1.­85

“Śāriputra, an infinite number of blessed buddhas, led by these buddhas, currently dwell in the east, alive and well, teaching the Dharma. One should kneel on one’s right knee, and, joining one’s palms with the ten fingers, proclaim the names of these buddhas and repeat three times the joyous expression, ‘Homage to those blessed buddhas endowed with infinite qualities!’ Those who proclaim the names of those illuminators in the east will acquire an immeasurable heap of merit.

1.­86

“In the south, a trillion buddhafields away in the world system called Freeing, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Lamp of Sun and Moon. Śāriputra, the sons or daughters of noble family who happen to hear the name of the thus-gone one Lamp of Sun and Moon and feel great joy and become devout upon hearing it, and who then get goose bumps and shed tears when reflecting on the hundred thousand aspects of the thus-gone one’s words, should understand that they will see that thus-gone one while they are engaging in the conduct of the bodhisattvas. Women too should delight at the thought that by hearing the name of the thus-gone one Lamp of Sun and Moon, their female bodies will be their last and they will all also attain unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening.

1.­87

“All the myriad beings throughout the ten directions who hear it will make irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening. [F.299.b] For, just like the aforementioned beings, these beings too will not be obscured. It is not easy for even mathematicians or great mathematicians to calculate or tally how many beings exist in this Sahā world system. The evil Māra will not create obstacles in any world system where the name of that thus-gone one resounds, and it is not easy to comprehend the full scope of how many have heard the name of the thus-gone one Lamp of Sun and Moon and become filled with faith on that account. Yet, Śāriputra, the evil māras in this world system make efforts, with their troops and mounts, to create obstacles for beings that hear such sūtras as this, because those hearers have committed and accumulated actions that will lead to their obscuration. Śāriputra, such events will come to pass at a later time. At that time, the beings that have devotion and faith in the merit of uttering the name will be like the uḍumbara flower. They will be worthy of worship in the world.”

1.­88

The venerable Śāriputra now asked the Blessed One, “Blessed One, since this will be so very rare27 in the future, how many beings, at that time, will hear the name of the thus-gone one Lamp of Sun and Moon and how many will truly give rise to faith upon hearing the names of other blessed buddhas?”

1.­89

The Blessed One replied to Venerable Śāriputra, “Śāriputra, I see those who will hear the names. To give an example based on the beings seen at present: Śāriputra, just as there is right now only one white-clad householder amidst the assembly of saffron-clad monks, beings that will hear the names of the thus-gone ones will be equally rare. Those who will become filled with faith upon hearing it, Śāriputra, will acquire an immeasurable heap of merit. Those who will become filled with faith upon hearing it, Śāriputra, [F.300.a] will, in the future, have no fear of faltering. They will never part from the blessed buddhas. They will become especially exalted above the world. The blessed buddhas will teach the Dharma to them first and they will benefit many beings. Those who hear the Dharma taught and give rise to genuine faith in it will uphold my buddha awakening from the depths of their hearts. In a hundred eons, they will turn away from saṃsāra.

“Moreover, I also see those who do not give rise to faith, just as I presently see you.”

1.­90

Śāriputra now asked, “Blessed One, how large will be the heap of demerit for those who, upon hearing the names of those blessed buddhas, do not give rise to faith and forsake the buddhas’ awakening?”

1.­91

The Blessed One replied, “Śāriputra, they will dwell in the hells for six hundred million years and experience the sensation of great agony there. Śāriputra, wherever the teachings flourish there will be a great many foolish people who will forsake the sublime Dharma. For this reason, Śāriputra, the sons or daughters of noble family who do not forsake this Dharma discourse should truly give rise to exultation and raise a banner with the knowledge that they will be free from all lower realms. Suppose someone were to say, ‘I will hear this name after having filled the trigalactic megagalactic world system with jewels.’ That expresses only a small part of it‍—those wishing to settle into an understanding of the wisdom of omniscience should hear the names after having completely filled with jewels as many countless world systems as there are grains of sand in the Ganges River.

1.­92

“Ten thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Endowed with the Light of Ethical Conduct, [F.300.b] dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Mount Sumeru. Those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Mount Sumeru will not disparage the noble ones even in their dreams. They will have pure altruistic intention. They will make irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening, and they will swiftly understand that all phenomena are like a dream. In eight eons, they will turn away from saṃsāra.

1.­93

“Five thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Beautiful Golden Form, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Manifest Mount Sumeru. Those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Manifest Mount Sumeru and uphold it continuously will turn away from saṃsāra in ten eons.

1.­94

“Twenty thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Endowed with Light, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Image of Mount Sumeru. Śāriputra, if someone were to hear the name of the thus-gone one Image of Mount Sumeru and, upon hearing it, bring it to mind with reverence for even as brief as a mere finger snap, and if someone else were to offer as a gift the trigalactic megagalactic world system covered with planks of gold from the Jambu River, then the latter’s heap of merit would not approach even a hundredth part of that of the former, who brought this thus-gone one to mind. Nor would any analogy suffice. Why is that? It is because the words for buddhas are very powerful, not to mention the veneration of thus-gone ones while they are still present and the worship of their bodily remains after they have passed beyond suffering.

1.­95

“Innumerable thousands of buddhafields away, in the world system called Attainment of All Powerful Forces, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Always Fragrant. [F.301.a] Śāriputra, while engaging in the conduct of the bodhisattvas, the thus-gone one Always Fragrant made the following aspiration: ‘May I, through any roots of virtue I have accomplished by venerating the buddha and burning as little incense as a grain of mustard for the thus-gone one Dense Cloud, emit a pleasant fragrance from every pore of my body once I perfectly awaken to unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening! May this cloud of incense spread to as many world systems throughout the ten directions as there are grains of sand in the Ganges River! When all the beings in those world systems attain unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening by smelling this fragrance and hearing my name, may they also emit a pleasant fragrance from the pores of their bodies!’

1.­96

“Śāriputra, sons or daughters of noble family who wish for deliverance through the same vow by which the thus-gone one Always Fragrant reached deliverance will extol his qualities, as revealed in hearing his name, even if they have to forgo eating for seven days. Why is that? It is because they will acquire an immeasurable heap of merit immediately upon hearing his name.”

1.­97

Venerable Śāriputra then said to the Blessed One, “Blessed One, could you please elaborate on the collection of merit that comes from hearing such praises of the qualities of the thus-gone one Always Fragrant?”

1.­98

The Blessed One replied, “In the future, sons or daughters of noble family will become overjoyed and exultant upon hearing those qualities. The more they hear about the qualities of buddhas, the more invulnerable they will be to evil Māra. Why is that? It is because the buddhas will care for them, and while being so cared for, they will not forsake unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening.”

1.­99

The Blessed One continued, “Śāriputra, if I told you about the entire collection of merit belonging to the thus-gone one Always Fragrant, beings would go mad. [F.301.b] For they do not have the merit to be devout towards or have faith in the roots of virtue acquired from hearing his name. For those who think, with devotion, faith, and true joy, that they will not turn away from the qualities of buddhas, Śāriputra, I will explain a mere portion of that heap of merit. They will partake of the teaching intended for sages endowed with great wisdom. If someone were to completely fill ten world systems the size of the Sahā buddhafield with the seven precious substances and offer it every day as a gift to infinite buddhas for an infinite number of eons, that would not account for even a fraction of the former heap of merit. The heap of merit generated by recollecting infinite thus-gone ones and prostrating with the five parts of the body will be infinitely and innumerably greater than that. For in ten eons, they will turn away from saṃsāra.

1.­100

“A hundred million buddhafields away, in the world system called Endowed with Immaculate Light, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Perfectly Pure Light. Śāriputra, the heap of merit generated by completely filling as many world systems as there are grains of sand in the Ganges River with the seven precious substances and offering it every day to as many buddhas as there are grains of sand in the Ganges River, for as many eons as there are grains of sand in the Ganges River, does not compare to a mere fraction of the heap of merit that comes from hearing the name of the thus-gone one Perfectly Pure Light, cultivating loving-kindness for as brief as a finger snap, and with yearning faith and devotion saying, ‘Through my virtuous roots of hearing the name of the thus-gone one and cultivating a loving mind, may all beings become endowed with the wisdom of the buddhas!’ Why is that? [F.302.a] It is because through the latter heap of merit one will attain28 awakening. Why is that? Śāriputra, it is because bodhisattvas who are courageous in the gift of Dharma, in that they bestow on others into the gift of Dharma, are close to attaining unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening. Therefore, Śāriputra, one should bestow on others the supreme gift of Dharma, not material gifts. Those who offer gifts to sublime persons should give only the gift of Dharma, not material gifts. For in this way they will approach unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening. In eighty29 eons, they will turn away from saṃsāra.

1.­101

“A hundred thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Endowed with Dharma, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Guru of Dharma. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Guru of Dharma, give rise to faith, and join palms will train in accomplishing the Dharma under the teaching of this buddha. Those who desire these qualities should reverentially long for them. When it comes to the thus-gone ones’ virtues so extolled, the wisdom of a thus-gone one cannot be assessed by the knowledge of an ordinary being, indeed the wisdom of buddhas30 cannot be assessed by even pratyekabuddhas. Thus, based on learning these examples, one should not deride the wisdom of buddhas, just as one should not take up actions by which a single intention or verbal act will lead to the many kinds of births in the terrible hells. Why is that? It is because it is rare for the blessed buddhas to appear in the world. It is even rarer to be born as a human and obtain excellent leisure. I will offer an analogy to illustrate this point. Śāriputra, suppose for example that this great earth were one giant ocean, and within it, there were a yoke with one opening and a blind tortoise. Suppose that across that giant ocean there blew the wind called the one that blows up and down. [F.302.b] Suppose now that the blind tortoise were to surface once every hundred years. One might say that the neck of the blind tortoise that surfaces suddenly once every hundred years might enter the opening of the yoke; not so for becoming a human after falling into the lower realms. It is much rarer for those who have fallen into the lower realms to later become human.

1.­102

“One should truly congratulate oneself by thinking: ‘I have completely avoided inopportune states, and now that I am a human, I have pleased the buddha that has appeared. Having acquired faith in a thus-gone one endowed with the sublime wisdom supreme throughout all worlds, I have achieved an ideal human existence. I will therefore long, with but a single resolve, for the thus-gone one endowed with the great wisdom of omniscience!’ Those who do so will turn away from saṃsāra in thirty eons.

1.­103

“Fifty-five thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Lord of Movement, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Sovereign King of Incense. Śāriputra, those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Sovereign King of Incense and, with faith and devotion, say with palms joined, ‘Homage to the blessed thus-gone one Sovereign King of Incense!’ will gain an immeasurable heap of merit. I will partially illustrate this. Śāriputra, the heap of merit generated by filling the trigalactic megagalactic world system with the seven precious substances and offering it every day to the blessed buddhas for a thousand years does not approach a hundredth part of the merit of hearing the name of the thus-gone one Sovereign King of Incense and, with faith and devotion, saying with joined palms, ‘Homage to the blessed thus-gone one Sovereign King of Incense!’ [F.303.a] Nor will any analogy suffice. For those who do so will turn away from saṃsāra in thirty eons.

1.­104

“Ten thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Endowed with Truth, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Great Qualities. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Great Qualities will obtain the qualities of a buddha, unless they have already secured assurance of the final attainment.31

1.­105

“Eight thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Endowed with Great Ornament, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Light of Incense. Śāriputra, while engaging in the conduct of the bodhisattvas, the thus-gone one Light of Incense made the following aspiration: ‘Once I have perfectly awakened to unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening, may all those who hear my name and become devout upon hearing it make irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening and, henceforth, never go to lower realms!’

1.­106

“Hence, Śāriputra, all those who hear that thus-gone one’s name and become wholeheartedly devout upon hearing it will, due to that previous aspiration, make irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening.

1.­107

“Thirty thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Immaculate One, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Radiant Light. Śāriputra, the few who hear the name of the thus-gone one Radiant Light and become devout and filled with faith upon hearing it will obtain an immeasurable heap of merit. Those who disregard it will incur an immeasurable heap of demerit.

1.­108

“Fifteen thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Fully Joyous, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, [F.303.b] the completely perfect buddha called Immeasurable Light. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Immeasurable Light and wholeheartedly give rise to faith will obtain the light of that thus-gone one. Those who lack faith will roast in the hot hells for twenty eons.

1.­109

“Twenty thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Endowed with Essence, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Emanating Light. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Emanating Light and give rise to faith immediately upon hearing it will be impervious to the power of evil Māra.

1.­110

“Twenty thousand five hundred buddhafields away, in the world system called Replete with Coral Trees, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Moon Light. Śāriputra, those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Moon Light will be worthy of veneration in the world with its gods. Wherever they dwell will become a shrine. Why is that? It is because in the future, sublime32 beings that hear the name of the thus-gone ones will be rare.

1.­111

“Eight thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Supreme Fragrance, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Moonlight. Śāriputra, all who hear the name of the thus-gone one Moonlight, even in a dream, and genuinely give rise to faith will generate a great heap of merit. They will become like mountains, impervious to all demons.

1.­112

“Twelve thousand33 buddhafields away, in the world system called Endowed with Sun, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Light of the Moon. Śāriputra, in the buddhafield of the thus-gone one Light of the Moon, [F.304.a] there is nobody in the lower realms.34 Śāriputra, previously that thus-gone one made the following aspiration: ‘Upon my attainment of awakening, may all those who hear my name and hear about my transcendence of suffering make irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening! May the arrangement of their buddhafields be exactly the same as mine is now!’

1.­113

“Śāriputra, such things will come to pass for anyone who hears the name of the thus-gone one Light of the Moon, precisely in accordance with the aspiration he made while previously engaging in the conduct of the bodhisattvas.

1.­114

“Eighteen thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Luminous Golden Gem, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Firelight. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Firelight will carry the lamp of the Dharma. They will free all world systems and all beings from the ocean of saṃsāra. They will pass their days and nights immersed in bringing benefit to beings. They will give the gift of Dharma. They will be unassailable by all demons and non-Buddhists.

1.­115

“Ten thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Luminous Form, dwells the thus-gone one called Victorious Melody. Why is this world system called Luminous Form? All the beings that were, are, and will be born in this world system transcend the appearance of humans. Their forms are beautiful and exquisite. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Victorious Melody will have bodies that are beautified by the qualities of unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening.

1.­116

“Thirteen thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Triumphant, dwells the thus-gone one [F.304.b] called He Who Acts as Supreme. Śāriputra, those who hear the name of the thus-gone one He Who Acts as Supreme and give rise to faith will be supreme in the world with its gods, humans, and asuras. In twenty eons they will turn away from saṃsāra.

1.­117

“A trillion buddhafields away, in the world system called Overcoming through Triumph in Battle, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Guru of Many. Śāriputra, for those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Guru of Many, be they gods, nāgas, yakṣas, humans, or nonhumans, just hearing that will be the cause for them all to attain unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening. In thirty eons those beings will turn away from saṃsāra. Those who do not give rise to faith in this name will roast in the hells for twenty eons and a thousand years.

1.­118

“Five thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Seven Precious Substances, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Lotus Commander. Śāriputra, those who fill the entire trigalactic megagalactic world system with jewels and offer it every day to the blessed buddhas for as many eons as there are grains of sand in the Ganges River with the thought, ‘By means of giving away these jewels, may I hear the name of the thus-gone one Lotus Commander!’ will see the buddha and thus be able to hear his name. Why is that? Śāriputra, it is because that thus-gone one has reached deliverance through inconceivable conduct, such that those who hear his name and give rise to faith will, as a lotus arises from water, rise above the three worlds entirely.

1.­119

“Thirty thousand buddhafields from here, in the world system Endowed with Moon, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, [F.305.a] the completely perfect buddha called Melody of a Lotus. Śāriputra, why do you think he is called Melody of a Lotus? It is because that thus-gone one perfectly awakened to unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening while seated on a lotus, whereupon the gods of the Heaven of the Thirty-Three exclaimed, ‘Hurray, a thus-gone one, a worthy one, a completely perfect buddha‍—the melody of a lotus‍—has appeared!’

1.­120

“Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Melody of a Lotus, give rise to faith, and say, kneeling on their right knees, ‘Homage to the thus-gone one!’ will possess the quality of not falling into negative rebirths; that is, unless they have committed actions with immediate retribution and disparaged the noble ones.

1.­121

“Thirty thousand buddhafields from here, in the world system Place Endowed with Great Power, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Myriad Jewels. Śāriputra, why do you think he is called Myriad Jewels? In that buddhafield there is a great many bodhisattvas and few followers of the Vehicle of Hearers, and every day he reveals infinite teachings for them. That is why that thus-gone one is called Myriad Jewels. Śāriputra, if any son or daughter of noble family kneels on his or her right knee and, with palms joined, repeats three times the joyous utterance, ‘Homage to the thus-gone one Myriad Jewels!’ he or she will perfect the conduct connected to that thus-gone one’s previous aspiration and become a servant endowed with jewels.

1.­122

“Twenty thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Endowed with Flowers, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Lion’s Roar. Śāriputra, if those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Lion’s Roar kneel on their right knees and repeat three times the joyous utterance, ‘Homage to the thus-gone one, the worthy one, [F.305.b] the completely perfect buddha Lion’s Roar!’ they will all roar the lion’s roar, overwhelming the three worlds in order to liberate all beings. In five eons, they will turn away from saṃsāra.

1.­123

“Ten thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Endowed with Wilderness, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Lion’s Melody. Śāriputra, those who recollect the thus-gone one Lion’s Melody and simply toss a flower in the sky‍—let alone worship him by erecting a stūpa for him and making offerings‍—will all become like flowers in the world. They will acquire a melodious voice, which is the melodious voice of buddhas.

1.­124

“Fifteen thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Devoid of Sorrow, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Leader of Heroes. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Leader of Heroes, give rise to faith, wholeheartedly long for the world system Devoid of Sorrow, and give rise to faith with only a mere thought wholeheartedly generated in relation to that thus-gone one will witness that thus-gone one teaching the Dharma. Why is that? It is because that blessed one previously made the following aspiration: ‘Once I have attained awakening, may those in other world systems who hear my name, after death, be reborn in my buddhafield and perfect all the qualities of a buddha!’

1.­125

“Those who hear the thus-gone one’s name but impiously forsake it, and those whose ears are tuned but do not listen, will incur the karma for living in the hells for as long as ten million years.

1.­126

“Sixty thousand buddhafields away, in the world system [F.306.a] called Gentle Voice, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Resolver of Doubts Regarding Transgressing All Vows. Śāriputra, those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Resolver of Doubts Regarding Transgressing All Vows, give rise to faith, and become devout will do exactly as proclaimed in their vows. Having tamed all demons and preachers of false doctrines, they will resolve all doubts and become thus-gone ones, worthy ones, completely perfect buddhas.

1.­127

“Eighteen thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Infused with the Fragrance of Flowers, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called One like a Jewel Wheel and Fire. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one One like a Jewel Wheel and Fire and give rise to faith immediately upon hearing it will become like jewel wheels and fire. Furthermore, they will swiftly turn the wheel of the Dharma in the world.

1.­128

“Accordingly, faith in buddhas has great miraculous power. For heaps of merit will be accomplished precisely according to how beings dedicate them, whether it be through the Vehicle of Hearers, the Vehicle of Solitary Realizers, or the unexcelled Great Vehicle. Among them, those with more expansive insight will take up the unexcelled Great Vehicle in order to accomplish awakening. The insightful with more meager inclinations will forgo such an immeasurable accomplishment as awakening, and take up the Vehicles of Hearers and Solitary Realizers to accomplish their results. When they have found such great treasures and, without stinginess, feel inclined to offer them to the Thus-Gone One, they thereby give rise to the resolve set on unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening. Their dedication of all the merit from doing so toward the welfare and happiness of all beings should be understood as amazing! [F.306.b] Śāriputra, all those who do not have faith in the virtues of that thus-gone one or other buddhas will dwell in the Black Line Hell for forty thousand years.

1.­129

“Sixty thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Created with Joy, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Devoid of Sorrow. Śāriputra, all those who find joy by merely hearing the name of that thus-gone one will be untainted by secondary afflictions and free of sorrow. After attaining awakening, they will also free many beings from sorrow. Beings with faith in that thus-gone one, whether he still remains or has passed beyond suffering, will be amazingly superior in all the worlds. They will acquire an immeasurable heap of merit and never part from the blessed buddhas.

1.­130

“Forty thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Endowed with Sustenance, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Endowed with Sublime Happiness. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Endowed with Sublime Happiness, feel joy and elation upon hearing it, and say, kneeling with their right knees on the ground and their palms joined, ‘Homage to the thus-gone one Endowed with Sublime Happiness!’ will benefit many beings. They will not be afraid of falling into lower realms.

1.­131

“Eight thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Light of the Moon, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Source of Power. Śāriputra, [F.307.a] those who successively hear the name of the thus-gone one Source of Power will obtain an immeasurable heap of merit. All those who hear the resounding of the name, be they gods, nāgas, yakṣas, humans, or nonhumans, will make irreversible progress toward great wisdom.

1.­132

“Two trillion buddhafields away, in the world system called Superior to All Cymbals, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Boundless Melody. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Boundless Melody and think ‘By means of these virtuous roots of mine, may I obtain the highest wisdom!’ will attain unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening. Those who do not have faith in him create the karma for dwelling in the hells, the retribution for displeasing the buddhas. Why is that world system called Superior to All Cymbals? Śāriputra, that world system is called Superior to All Cymbals because in the interval between that thus-gone one’s death in Tuṣita and his attainment of great nirvāṇa, all the gods and humans of this trigalactic megagalactic world system held up and rang their cymbals. And why is that thus-gone one called Boundless Melody? Śāriputra, it is because when the thus-gone one Boundless Melody teaches the Dharma, he conveys it in melody for as far as two thousand world systems throughout the ten directions.

1.­133

“Three billion buddhafields away, in the world system called Light of Victory, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Dīpaṅkara. Śāriputra, the thus-gone one Dīpaṅkara is so called because, with his light, one trillion buddhafields throughout the ten directions are flooded everywhere with dazzling radiance. [F.307.b] Śāriputra, those who, upon hearing the name of the thus-gone one Dīpaṅkara, give rise to faith and discover and experience an ocean of joy and ecstasy will be unwavering. All of them will obtain that luminosity.

1.­134

“Eighty thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called All Luminous Incenses, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Jewel Light. Śāriputra, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Jewel Light and, upon hearing it, give rise to faith and become wholeheartedly devout, will become like jewels, make irreversible progress toward the qualities of a buddha, and never part from the blessed buddhas. They will turn away from saṃsāra in five eons while practicing the conduct of the bodhisattvas.

1.­135

“That is why, Śāriputra, one should not give rise to hostile thoughts toward thus-gone ones and toward great persons who have embarked on the Great Vehicle. Śāriputra, those who do not trust their elder siblings‍—the thus-gone ones and the great persons who have entered the Great Vehicle‍—will distance themselves from the awakening of a buddha even if they have approached it; that is, unless they have secured assurance of the final attainment and have devotion for the Bouquet of Flowers. They should not come in the vicinity of bodhisattva-mahāsattvas. Those who have ill will toward those sublime beings will incur the suffering of the great hells for ten million years. If it is taught that one should not have ill will even toward those in the animal realm, how much worse would it be to have it toward those sublime beings!

1.­136

“Śāriputra, anyone who hurts, distrusts, disturbs, and insults those great persons with devotion for the Bouquet of Flowers will incur the terrible karma of the hells. Why is that? [F.308.a] It is because the appearance of those sublime persons, bodhisattvas who set their minds on awakening and do not turn away from it, is extremely rare in the world. Therefore, I have taught that those who stabilize their vows without getting discouraged once they have set their minds on awakening and, having perfectly and completely awakened to awakening, satiate seekers with the gift of Dharma according to their needs are like the uḍumbara flower.

1.­137

“Śāriputra, there are countless, innumerable blessed buddhas, such as those I have mentioned, who presently dwell in the south, alive and well, teaching the Dharma. If someone pays homage by prostrating in their direction with the five parts of the body touching the ground, hears the name exactly as it is taught, and contemplates the extolled qualities, he or she will obtain an immeasurable heap of merit.

1.­138

“A trillion buddhafields away to the west, in the world system called Sukhāvatī, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Amitāyus. Śāriputra, all those who, by merely hearing the name of the thus-gone one Amitāyus, experience great joy and genuinely long for his hundreds of thousands of attributes will obtain immeasurable merit. They will have no fear of falling into the lower realms, for once they die, they will be reborn in his buddhafield. Those who continuously contemplate him will, upon death, sit amidst an assembly of monks before the thus-gone one Amitāyus. Why is that? It is because the thus-gone one Mahākaruṇa, out of his awakened intent to benefit beings, protects beings that evil māras plan to create obstacles for, even when he is dwelling in another buddhafield. After they die, they will be born in Sukhāvatī, precisely where they will all perfect the qualities of a buddha. Why is that? It is because the thus-gone one [F.308.b] made the following aspiration: ‘May I fulfill all the wishes of beings who, having embarked on the Great Vehicle, are born in the buddhafield where I attained awakening, ensuring they have all the qualities conducive to awakening! May followers of the Vehicle of Hearers who are born in that buddhafield become arhats in that very place!’

1.­139

“Śāriputra, any son or daughter of noble family who in the future has faith in and wholeheartedly rejoices in the extolled virtues of Amitābha, and wholeheartedly delights in that thus-gone one, will be born in that buddhafield. Those residing there will have all their wishes fulfilled and approach awakening, exactly as taught. They will see the assembly of thus-gone ones, and they will see the beings born in that buddhafield. Those who distrust, disparage, and forsake the extolled qualities of that thus-gone one will incur the karma for dwelling in the hells for five eons.

1.­140

“A hundred thousand buddhafields away, in the world system Endowed with the Vanquisher of All Demons, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Possessor of Victory. Śāriputra, those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Possessor of Victory will entirely sever the lasso of Māra. In sixty eons, they will turn away from saṃsāra.

1.­141

“A hundred thousand buddhafields away, in the world system Vanquisher of All Demons, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Melody of Victory. Those who hear the name of the thus-gone one Melody of Victory will acquire the ability to speak in all manner of voices and will drive evil Māra far away. [F.309.a] In eight eons they will turn away from saṃsāra.” [B3]


1.­142

The bodhisattva-mahāsattva Ajita then asked the Blessed One, “Blessed One, is there some quality that a bodhisattva-mahāsattva can possess to ensure that he or she makes swift and irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening?”

1.­143

The Blessed One said to the bodhisattva-mahāsattva, “There is, Ajita. To the north, in the world system Pile of Śrīgarbha Jewels, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called He Who Is Proclaimed King of the Pile of Śrīgarbha Jewels. Ajita, all those who hear the name of the thus-gone one He Who Is Proclaimed King of the Pile of Śrīgarbha Jewels will, making irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening, swiftly and perfectly awaken to it. In ten million complete eons, they will turn away from saṃsāra. Ajita, those who hear the name of the thus-gone one He Who Is Proclaimed King of the Pile of Śrīgarbha Jewels have been in the company35 of fifty buddhas. Thus, after they die, they will never be deprived of miraculous powers. Until they pass beyond suffering, they will never36 be deprived of divine37 hearing, nor of sublime beauty. They will never be killed or bound. They will not have any ear illnesses, nose illnesses, tongue illnesses, or any other bodily illnesses. Until they pass beyond suffering, they will not be born in world systems without a buddha, or in world systems where a buddha will not come. [F.309.b] They will never be deprived of Dharma. They will never be born in unfavorable circumstances. They will never be devoid of training. Nor will they ever be devoid of mindfulness. Until they pass beyond suffering, they will never be devoid of wisdom. Ajita, all those who hear the name of that thus-gone one and have confident devotion and deep faith in my omniscience will acquire that state and become supreme, sublime, utmost, and unsurpassable throughout all worlds. That is why those who wish to acquire that state in full and reside as supreme, sublime, and utmost throughout all worlds should hear the name of that thus-gone one, who is supreme throughout all worlds. Upon hearing it, they should prostrate, saying, ‘Homage to the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha He Who Is Proclaimed King of the Pile of Śrīgarbha Jewels.”

1.­144

The bodhisattva-mahāsattva Ajita then asked, “Blessed One, how far away is the world system where that thus-gone one dwells? How long ago did he appear there?”

1.­145

The Blessed One replied to the bodhisattva-mahāsattva Ajita, “Ajita, suppose there were a heap of sand one hundred leagues around and each grain of sand were removed from the heap and taken to stand for a single buddhafield until all the sand were separated out. Now suppose that all the world systems, as represented by the sand, were in turn filled with sand. The world system called Pile of Śrīgarbha Jewels is innumerably many more world systems away than all the particles of sand in those sand-filled world systems. [F.310.a]

1.­146

Therein dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha He Who Is Proclaimed King of the Pile of Śrīgarbha Jewels, alive and well, teaching the Dharma. Ajita, an eon has passed since the thus-gone one He Who Is Proclaimed King of the Pile of Śrīgarbha Jewels attained complete and perfect awakening. Moreover, Ajita, while seated on this very seat, I see with my innate fleshy eye that thus-gone one, together with an assembly of hearers, and that world system. While seated on a seat in that world system, that thus-gone one also sees with his fleshy eye this Sahā world system and me along with my entourage. Ajita, those who have trust, devotion, and strong faith in a thus-gone one’s fleshy eye, who have faith and conviction in my omniscience and, furthermore, have trust, devotion, and no hesitation or doubt regarding the perfected blessing of that thus-gone one’s aspiration will obtain all the qualities exalted beyond all worlds. They will make irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening. Therefore, Ajita, the son or daughter of noble family should traverse the trigalactic megagalactic world system filled with fire in order to hear the name of that thus-gone one and his blessed aspiration.”

1.­147

The bodhisattva-mahāsattva Ajita then asked the Blessed One, “Blessed One, is there single quality, aside from that, that a bodhisattva-mahāsattva [F.310.b] can possess to ensure that he or she makes swift and irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening?”

1.­148

The Blessed One replied to the bodhisattva-mahāsattva Ajita, “Ajita, there is a single quality that a bodhisattva-mahāsattva can possess to ensure that he or she makes swift and irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening.

1.­149

“Ajita, countless world systems away to the north, in the world system called Endowed with the Essence of Vajra, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called All-Conquering Vajra, alive and well, teaching the Dharma. Ajita, those who hear the name of the thus-gone one All-Conquering Vajra will make irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening and then fully awaken to it. In a hundred trillion eons they will turn away from saṃsāra. Such is the great power of this thus-gone one, worthy one, completely perfect buddha. Ajita, I turned away from saṃsāra after a hundred trillion eons based on hearing the name of that thus-gone one from the clairvoyant thus-gone one Dīpaṅkara. Ajita, had I not heard the name of that thus-gone one from the thus-gone one Dīpaṅkara, I would not have fully and perfectly awakened to unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening as I have. What do the words ‘All-Conquering Vajra’ mean? Well, for example, Ajita, just as a vajra destroys and penetrates gems, stones, clods of earth, pebbles, gravel, [F.311.a] or earth, those who hear the name of that thus-gone one and have faith in his blessings and my omniscience will likewise scatter, demolish, destroy, and tear apart all the levels of ordinary beings and solitary realizers until they attain omniscience. This is why his name is All-Conquering Vajra‍—with his aspiration being so excellent, he is a thus-gone one endowed with inconceivable qualities.

1.­150

“A trillion world systems away to the north, in the world system called Luminous Gem, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Jewel Flame. Those who hear that thus-gone one’s name that have not38 yet secured assurance of the final attainment will make irreversible progress toward unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening. In that world system, there are no followers of the Vehicle of Hearers, or of the Vehicle of Solitary Realizers. There are only bodhisattva-mahāsattvas, who serve the thus-gone one Jewel Flame.”


1.­151

The Blessed One then said to Venerable Mahākāśyapa, “Kāśyapa, the blessed buddhas have inconceivable power. Kāśyapa, fifty thousand buddhafields away, in the world system called Fragrance of Aloeswood, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Moon’s Light. Kāśyapa, if sons or daughters of noble family hear the name of that thus-gone one, they will attain the absorption called the blessing of turning away from birth. If they settle into it, they will see as many buddhas as the grains of sand in the Ganges River, fully retain whatever they say, and learn and preach any Dharma teaching that they desire to learn and preach. Why is that? [F.311.b] It is because that comes from the power engendered by a previous aspiration made by that blessed one. He made the following aspiration: ‘May whoever hears my name attain this absorption!’ ”


1.­152

The Blessed One then spoke the following verses:

“Fifty-five thousand buddhafields from here,
In the finely-emanated world system
Called Fragrance of Aloeswood,
Where fragrant incense wafts,
1.­153
“Dwells the perfect buddha
Light of the Sublime Precious Moon.
Those who hear the name of
That protector and lord of the world
1.­154
“Will attain the sublime absorption
Called limited to one more birth and blessed,
Which perpetually
Illuminates everything.
1.­155
“Upon attaining this absorption,
They will see the guides of the world
Teaching immeasurable Dharma teachings
In order to benefit all living beings.
1.­156
“The lord of the world will teach
That all phenomena are devoid of essence.
Correctly retaining these words,
Beings will generate virtue.
1.­157
“Given that all constituents lack existence,
They will regard their own constituents in that way.
Given that phenomena lack characteristics,
Their non-existence is proclaimed.
1.­158
“Their existence cannot be found,
And neither can their non-existence;
Since they are without self, they have no essence‍—
Phenomena are shown to be like this.
1.­159
“The Dharma that is taught,
Is the unexcelled truth.
Therefore, it applies to wisdom,
Just as it does to ignorance.
1.­160
“Neither ignorance, nor wisdom,
Nor both exist.
In this there is no phenomenon
Either purified or polluted.
1.­161
“The lords will teach in this way,
Resolving the nature of all phenomena.
Having taught that there is no remaining,
The buddhas will not remain.
1.­162
“When they reach awakening,
They will not find phenomena
And thus bodhisattvas do not abide.
Yet in this way they abide for a long time.39
1.­163
“Because word and meaning do not exist,
The wise will not apprehend them.
Satisfied with their prodigious learning,
They will not debate with worldly beings.
1.­164

“Kāśyapa, sixty thousand buddhafields away to the north, [F.312.a] in the world system called Elation, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Glory of Sublime Goodness. Kāśyapa, if sons or daughters of noble family hear the name of that thus-gone one, they will not regress, and they will acquire throughout all their lifetimes the karma to be attractive, to be in an assembly, and to retain words. Their eloquence will become profound. They will have devotion for the Dharma that the Dharma teachers are teaching to beings. If a woman hears the name, that will be her final existence as a woman.”


1.­165

The Blessed One then spoke the following verses:

“Perfectly located sixty thousand buddhafields away,
Is the world system‍—
A complete and unspoiled field‍—
Called Elation.
1.­166
“The buddha who dwells there
Has perfected all qualities.
He is the unexcelled lord of the world
Called Glory of Sublime Goodness.
1.­167
“Those who hear the name
Of the protector of the gods
Will be attractive and pleasing
Wherever they are born.
1.­168
“Endowed with agreeable speech and supreme knowledge,
They will teach the Dharma to beings.
Having heard it,
Those beings will attain sublime joy.
1.­169
“Even when women hear
This buddha’s name,
They will be liberated from the birthplace of great fear‍—
Birth as a woman.
1.­170
“They will become profound and wise
In that which the world does not understand.
And their minds will become
Precisely in accordance with the stainless state.
1.­171
“Both the real and the unreal
Are non-existent.
When one has become weary of phenomena,
How can there be any discussion of it?
1.­172

“Kāśyapa, eighty thousand buddhafields away to the north, in the world system called Beautiful Entrance, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Departed to a Lotus. [F.312.b] If sons or daughters of noble family hear his name, then after they pass away, their bodies will become exquisite and beautiful, beings will be delighted to behold them, and they will become attractive and captivating. They will recollect countless eons and know them exactly as they are. They will be endowed with unexcelled eloquence and teach the Dharma uninterruptedly throughout all their lifetimes. Their aspirations and vision will also become completely pure.”


1.­173

The Blessed One then spoke the following verses:

“Eighty thousand
Complete buddhafields away
Is the utterly excellent
World system Joyful Entrance.
1.­174
“The buddha who dwells there
Is the unexcelled protector of the world,
The illuminating protector of the world
Called Departed to a Jewel Lotus.
1.­175
“Those who hear his name
Will have purified vision,
An exquisite form,
And be beautiful to behold.
1.­176
“While that buddha was in equipoise
His hearers were also present‍—
With their liberation, they reached tranquility,40
Such that the world does not comprehend them.
1.­177
“Even after a full one thousand years,
When the buddha arose from his absorption,
His hearers remained,
For as long as he did.
1.­178
“By hearing the name of that excellent and supreme buddha,
One will become like those hearers.
Those who hear his name here
Will experience his qualities
For a countless eon.
1.­179
“Then, the heroic ones will come to know his qualities.
And moved by sublime devotion,
They will teach beings the Dharma,
The excellent sūtras,
In unimpeded and unobstructed language.
1.­180

“Kāśyapa, among the sons and daughters of noble family who hear the name of the thus-gone ones, the worthy ones, the completely perfect buddhas, the fact that women, Kāśyapa, who hear the name of the thus-gone ones transform from their existence as women is just as I taught previously. Thus, I will put the topic aside for now. They will have the opportunity for all the qualities as explained, without distinction. For when hearing these names, [F.313.a] they will acquire the features of these qualities just as explained.”


1.­181

The Blessed One then spoke the following verses:

“Those who hear and understand
The names of the buddhas,
Who have quelled the craving of desire
And exhausted the fetters,
1.­182
“Will have an abundance of special qualities.
When they die, those qualities will emerge.
If women, upon hearing the name
Of the lord and protector of the world,
1.­183
“Were to make the aspiration,
They will be born as supreme men.
Those who want to discard their existence as women,
Will avoid a woman’s existence,
1.­184
“Which would be unsuitable in the world.
They will swiftly become
Unexcelled spiritual friends to beings.
Those who abandon desire
1.­185
“Will generate merit in many ways.
Establishing themselves and others
In virtue,
They will be completely liberated from suffering.
1.­186
“Those who are born as women again and again
Desire to discard their female existence
And attain complete liberation.
When a big poisonous tree
1.­187
“In the middle of a city
Is cut down,
Living beings are happy.
Likewise, when the evil,
1.­188
“Poisonous existence of womanhood
Is discarded,
One is situated
On the path to awakening.
1.­189
“Neither one’s own existence,
Nor the existence of beings is found.
For wherever bondage is not found
Is the unexcelled path.
1.­190
“Neither men, nor women,
Exist ultimately.
Wherever existence is not found,
Aspiration has been perfected.
1.­191
“Where there is no aspiration,
No consciousness will emerge.
That is the ultimate limit,
Because it cannot be observed.
1.­192
“Nor does one find the mind
That investigates the existence of a woman.
When the mind is not found,
This is the unexcelled aspiration.
1.­193
“Whoever engages in investigation,
Intently focused
On discarding the existence of a woman,
Dwells in obsession.41
1.­194
“The existence that is described as a woman’s existence
Does not exist.
Those who understand this [F.313.b]
Connect to the teachings.
1.­195
“Neither connection,
Nor non-connection, exists at all.
The non-existence of phenomena
Is also termed connection.
1.­196
“Those who hear the names
Of the protectors and guardians of the world
Will generate much virtue
At the feet of all buddhas.
1.­197
“Those who hear all the names of the all-seeing ones
And those of similar beings,
Will acquire these qualities
No matter where they are born.
1.­198
“I see those who will hear.
I also see those who will explain.
I see many
Who will not believe in this teaching.
1.­199
“And I see those
Who will claim ‘The buddhas did not teach this.’
They will forsake the Dharma teachings of the buddhas,
And go to the hells for many lifetimes.
1.­200
“Due to the karma generated
By completely forsaking
The Dharma teachings of the friends of the world,
They will go to lower realms.
1.­201
“They will be fools who are stupid and mute
And will likewise have impaired faculties.
Having forsaken the mind of awakening,
Their minds will go astray.
1.­202
“They will have little power, bad complexion,
And faded luster, and be ugly.
Those people will be born
In evil, inferior places.
1.­203
“They will not understand the Dharma
Taught by complete and perfect buddhas.
Neither will they enter the profound,
For they will be deprived of the Dharma of fruition.
1.­204
“Having heard what is deprived of Dharma,
Those people will have faulty knowledge.
The illuminating protectors of the world,
Those with great wisdom, will not be pleased.
1.­205
“Monks, and likewise
Lay people, should understand:
The deprivation that comes from contravening the Dharma
Is suffering.
1.­206
“The awakened guides dwell
In worlds throughout the ten directions
Teaching the profound Dharma,
Wherever there are beings.
1.­207
“Therefore, beings become devoted
To the protectors of the world.
The guides teach the Dharma,
The unimpeded Dharma of perfect awakening.
1.­208
“The wise with devotion
For the names
Will be endowed
With immeasurable merit. [F.314.a]
1.­209
“The people here who retain
The names of such beings42
Will moreover have sublime eloquence
And become supremely wise.
1.­210
“If they proclaim, without impediment,
The names of such beings as those,
They will be honored by the whole world
And always have pleasing speech.
1.­211
“Those who proclaim those names
Throughout the four directions
Will be fearless,
Wherever they are born.
1.­212
“For those who,
Having heard the names of buddhas,
Revere such names,
Awakening is not far.
1.­213
“For those who introduce many beings
To the names of such buddhas
The purview of the protectors of the world
Will not be difficult to attain.
1.­214

“Kāśyapa, monks endowed with four qualities will have devotion for those names. What are the four qualities? (1) They previously honored the blessed ones; (2) they long for the profound; (3) they long for solitude; (4) and in reliance on a virtuous spiritual friend, they have neither performed nor accumulated actions that lead to being deprived of the sublime Dharma. Kāśyapa, monks who possess these four qualities have devotion for the names of the thus-gone ones, the worthy ones, the completely perfect buddhas.”


1.­215

The Blessed One then spoke the following verses:

“Previously they have seen and worshiped
The perfect buddhas.
Through that very root of virtue,
They will hear their names.
1.­216
“Moreover, they long for the profound,
And have heard about my awakened qualities.
Because their previous actions are pure,
Then they have come here.
1.­217
“Also, when this sūtra was taught previously,
No doubts arose for them.
They never contravene this sūtra
Taught by the perfect and complete one.
1.­218
“They have devotion for the guides
Of those with limited patience.43
Moreover, they should listen to what I have taught
With pure intention.
1.­219
“They should delight in the instructions [F.314.b]
And pursue reality.
By conceiving of them as Dharma,
They collect all of them.
1.­220
“Neither perception,
Nor non-perception, exists.
They understand
The inconceivable objects of all buddhas.
1.­221
“There is no disputation
Among the many faithful,
Who long for the profound,
About the reality of those objects.44
1.­222
“Those who partake of the profound
Will have no doubts.
It will not at all be like
A treasure for one craving wealth.45
1.­223
“One should know that
Those who are hesitant
About the protectors of the world
Will have dull faculties, and will be mad and lazy.
1.­224
“For those with devotion,
Doubts will not arise.
Those who create obstacles for them
Will not collect the fruits of their efforts.
1.­225
“Upon hearing the names of the buddhas,
Which are eloquently spoken,
They will extol praises for the buddhas,
As protectors of the world, throughout the ten directions.
1.­226
“Those who praise the names of the perfect buddhas,
Recollecting the buddhas’ names
Again and again,
Will swiftly become immaculate.
1.­227
“Venerated by living beings,
They will teach the buddhas’ awakening
With unimpeded eloquence.
1.­228

“Kāśyapa, above there is a world system called Guru of the Moon. There dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Overwhelming with Golden Light.

1.­229

“Kāśyapa, above this buddhafield, in the world system called Pile of Bad Colors That Delights in Disputation, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Glory of Invincibility.

1.­230

“Above, in the world system called Endowed with Teachers, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Thus-Gone King, Guru of Immeasurably Many.

1.­231

“Above, in the world system called Victory Banner of Mount Sumeru, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, [F.315.a] the completely perfect buddha called Sublime Elephant Out of Rut.

1.­232

“Above, in the world system called Awakening of Beautiful Thought, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Glory of Being Immersed in Incalculable Effort.

1.­233

“Above, in the world system called Non-grasping, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Inexpressible Intention.

1.­234

“Above, in the world system called Ornamented by Pure Conduct, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Glory of the Incense of Non-ignorance.

1.­235

“Above, in the world system called Light of the Sun, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Glory of the Moon.

1.­236

“Above, in the world system called Supreme Dharma, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Light of Non-conceptuality.

1.­237

“Above, in the world system called Religious Practice, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Light of the Sky.

1.­238

“Above, in the world system called Mass of Virtue, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Peak of Pure Conduct.

1.­239

“Above, in the world system called Victorious, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called King of the Well-Settled Treasury of Peace.

1.­240

“Above, in the world system called Source of Diligence, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Accomplisher of All Goals.

1.­241

“Above, in the world system called Power of Aspiration, [F.315.b] dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Glory of the Protection by Knowledge.

1.­242

“Above, in the world system called Region of Joyous Radiance, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Complete Purifier of Speech.

1.­243

“Above, in the world system called Cave of Sandalwood Fragrance, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Essence of Vaiḍūrya.

1.­244

“Above, in the world system called Endowed with Jewels, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Overwhelming All with Precious Qualities.

1.­245

“Above, in the world system called Glory of Immeasurable Qualities, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Well Established in Perfectly Pure Qualities.

1.­246

“Above, in the world system called Future Hearers, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Stūpa That Overwhelms with Jewel Light.

1.­247

“Above, in the world system called Sleepless Eye, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Glory of the Finest Gold of Immeasurable Propriety.”


1.­248

The Blessed One then spoke the following verses:

“The buddha Endowed with the Moon of Glory
Is a great king, supreme among humans,
And the buddhas, supreme among humans,
Range over46 all phenomena.
1.­249
“The buddhas, by means of their names,
Range across the buddhafields.47
People who hear their names
In this eon,
1.­250
“And become filled with faith
And reverential toward them48
Will be heroes with great insight. [F.316.a]
They will become sublime buddhas.
1.­251
“Their wisdom will be infinite;
Have no doubt about it!
1.­252

“Above, in the world system called Beautiful Lotus, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Glory of the Manifestation of the Sublime Lotus. Those who hear his name will be cut off from the three lower realms. In thirty-six eons, they will turn away from saṃsāra.”


1.­253

The Blessed One then spoke the following verses:

“In the finely-adorned world system
Called Beautiful Lotus,
Which is permanently and exquisitely adorned
Like a divine grove,
1.­254
“Dwells a buddha,
Skillful in the Glory of the Lotus Guru.
In that buddhafield he performs miracles
And teaches the Dharma to living beings.
1.­255
“Once men and women
Have heard his name,
They will avoid the three lower realms
And see many buddhas.
1.­256
“After thirty-six eons they will renounce saṃsāra,
Reject all compounded things,
And henceforth make irreversible progress
Toward the awakening of a buddha.
1.­257
“They will not become blind, or crippled,
Nor will they ever become dumb.
In all their future worlds they will have complete faculties,
And their wisdom and merit will exponentially increase.
1.­258
“If they pay homage to the thus-gone ones,
Evil companions will not proliferate,
Nor will killers and opponents,
And they will find a virtuous spiritual friend.
1.­259
“If they pay homage to that buddha
And other objects of veneration in the world,
They will gain the knowledge that understands all phenomena
And thereby have no hesitations about awakening.
1.­260

“Above, in the world system called Precious Tārā, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Glory of the Origin of Pure Jewels. Those who hear his name will obtain the seven precious factors of awakening. In thirty eons, they will turn away from saṃsāra.” [F.316.b]


1.­261

The Blessed One then spoke the following verses:

“In the supreme world system Precious Tārā,
Is the buddha called Origin of Jewels.
Upon hearing his most excellent name,
Living beings will obtain the factors of awakening.
1.­262
“In thirty eons, they will renounce saṃsāra
And be perfectly poised for awakening.
They will also see many sublime persons
Who are preachers of unshakable courage.
1.­263

“Above, in the world system called Flash of Lightning, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called King of the Tip of the Lamp of Lightning. Those who hear his name will avoid all unfortunate rebirths. In twenty eons, they will turn away from saṃsāra.”


1.­264

The Blessed One then spoke the following verses:

“In the field called Flash of Lightning,
There is a buddha with great miraculous power
Called King of the Tip of the Flash of Lightning,
Who was excellently born from a sublime lotus.
1.­265
“Those who hear his name
Will avoid all unfortunate rebirths.
After twenty eons, they will renounce saṃsāra
And, henceforth, swiftly awaken to awakening.
1.­266

“Above, in the world system called Adorned with Golden Palmyra Trees, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Glory of the Exalted King of Palmyra Trees. Those who hear his name will be exalted above all beings.

1.­267

“Above, in the world system called Palmyra Trees Reaching the Sky, dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Lamp of the Sky of Dharma. Those who hear his name will, after sixty eons, turn away from saṃsāra and henceforth their progress toward truly going to a buddhafield will be irreversible. In this lifetime, they will have visions of the thus-gone ones. Even in their dreams, they will prostrate to that thus-gone one, touching the ground with the five parts of their bodies. [F.317.a] They will wholeheartedly revere the blessed buddhas. They also will find beings with unexcelled wisdom to esteem, honor, and serve. In this lifetime, they will obtain these qualities. For, Śāriputra, those thus-gone ones have immeasurable qualities and virtues.”


1.­268

The Blessed One then spoke the following verses:

“In the field Fully-Adorned Sky,
Is a highly-renowned buddha,
Supreme among humans,
Named Lamp of the Sky of Dharma.
1.­269
“Those who hear his name
Will, after sixty eons, reject saṃsāra
And obtain the unexcelled qualities of a buddha
And the destiny to become awakened.
1.­270
“In this very lifetime, they will see
The great awakened heroes.
With a wholeheartedly loving mind,
They will prostrate to them, using the five parts of their bodies.
1.­271
“Even in their dreams, they will see
The perfect, ideal buddhas.
Understanding the thoughts in others’ minds,
And recollecting the king of Dharma,
1.­272
“They will find beings adept in wisdom
To serve.
These will be their qualities in this lifetime,
For the teacher has immeasurable qualities
And has achieved mastery over all phenomena.
1.­273
“Those who seek all sublime qualities
Should lovingly pay homage!
1.­274

“Above, in the world system Well Proportioned,49 dwells the thus-gone one, the worthy one, the completely perfect buddha called Source of All Good Qualities. Why is that world system called Well Proportioned? It is well proportioned because that world system has a gold surface outlined in a checked pattern with beryl gems and having fragrant trees such as flower trees, jewel trees, sandalwood trees, and the like in each of its squares. Fragrance wafts from these trees, spreading out in a single canopy that covers all buddhafields. Those who hear the name of thus-gone one Source of All Good Qualities, as he sits on his Dharma seat, will obtain the well-proportioned qualities of a buddha. [F.317.b] In eighty eons they will turn away from saṃsāra.”


1.­275

The Blessed One then spoke the following verses:

“The unexcelled world system
Called Well Proportioned
Is decorated with fragrant trees
That form a checkered pattern.
1.­276
“A fragrance wafts from them
That spreads over all lands.
It lingers in the air,
Forming a single canopy.
1.­277
“There dwells a buddha,
Source of All Good Qualities‍—
His name is extremely sublime,
That fearless Dharma king.
1.­278
“Those who hear his name
Will have exquisite bodily limbs,
Beautiful, captivating faces,
Exquisite forms pleasing to behold,
1.­279
“And well-proportioned bodies
With a circumference like that of a banyan tree.
Blazing with glory,
They will travel to the fields of the buddhas.
1.­280
After eighty eons they will renounce saṃsāra,
Reject all conditioned things,
And then swiftly attain
The well-proportioned qualities of a buddha, in all their aspects.
1.­281
“Upon recollecting the buddha
Source of All Attributes of Good Qualities,
Their qualities and virtues will be pristine,
Thus poising them for the state of a buddha’s qualities.
1.­282

“Above, in the world system called Supreme Goodness, dwells the thus-gone one called King Victory Banner at the Pinnacle of Goodness. Those who hear his name will not regress from the qualities of a buddha. They will turn away from saṃsāra in fifty eons.”


1.­283

The Blessed One then spoke the following verses:

“In the world system Supreme Goodness,
Also called Delight in Goodness,
Dwells a perfect buddha,
The sage Victory Banner at the Pinnacle of Goodness.
1.­284
“He is a supreme victor, a king of Dharma,
Who possesses thirty-two supreme names.
For those who hear his names,
The qualities of a buddha will never wane.
1.­285
“After fifty eons,
They will renounce saṃsāra
And swiftly become gods among gods [F.318.a]
Highly renowned throughout the world.
1.­286

“Above, in the world system called Family of Jewels, dwells the thus-gone one called He Who Possesses a Body Adorned with All Jewels. Why is that world system called Family of Jewels? Kāśyapa, it is because the beings in that buddhafield have genuinely set out for unexcelled, perfect and complete awakening. For in the moment it takes to snap one’s fingers, many hundreds of thousands upon trillions of bodhisattvas can emerge from that buddhafield, ripen for awakening beings in as many world systems throughout the ten directions as there are grains of sand in the Ganges River, worship as many blessed buddhas, and then return to that world system.”

1.­287

Mahākāśyapa now asked the Blessed One, “What are those bodhisattva-mahāsattvas’ names?”

1.­288

The Blessed One replied, “Kāśyapa, they are Lion’s Play,50 Lion’s Yawn,51 Lion’s Pinnacle, Lion’s Emanation, Exceedingly Firm Power, Sword of Vajra Intelligence, and so forth. All those who hear any of the names of the bodhisattvas that constantly apply effort, such as these, will obtain the eighteen distinct qualities of a buddha belonging to the thus-gone one He Who Possesses a Body Adorned with All Jewels. They will also obtain the irreversible Dharma wheel. After a full hundred eons, they will turn away from saṃsāra.”


1.­289

The Blessed One then spoke the following verses:

“In the world system Family of Jewels,
Adorned with all great families,
Dwells a buddha
Surrounded by heroes.
1.­291
“The guide dispenses Dharma teachings
Surrounded by bodhisattvas,
Turning the irreversible wheel
That has not been turned in the world.
1.­292
“Those who hear his name
Will not, after a hundred eons, continue to cycle through saṃsāra,
And will obtain the unexcelled,
Irreversible wheel.
1.­293
“The Dharma kings
Whose52 names are proclaimed,
Whether they dwell in a self-arisen place
Or in the world systems,53
1.­294
“Have pure names and families,
Pure conduct,
Pure Dharma vision,
And perfect mastery over all phenomena.
1.­295
“There are many beings, Śāriputra,
Who, with their insightful purview,
Long for
Unexcelled wisdom.
1.­296
“In the future,
During fearful times,
They will hear this Dharma teaching
And have faith upon hearing it.
1.­297
“In so doing, they will have, without a doubt,
Honored me, Śāriputra.54
Just as when a pauper feels discouraged
Upon seeing a priceless gem,
Thinking it impossible for him to find a jewel
And come into such wealth;
1.­298
“Likewise, how could those with little merit
And jaded perspective
Become filled with faith
When hearing about unexcelled awakening?
1.­299
“Upon hearing about
The many kinds of gems and treasuries,
One should truly seek them out,
Hoping to adorn oneself well with them.
1.­300
“So it is also with great insight,
That when one hears the names of buddhas,
One should thoroughly seek them out,
Expecting that this is how one will reach awakening.
1.­301
“Those with meager karma
Who indulge in evil deeds, are deceitful,
And lack merit and insight
Do not hear such things.
1.­302
“Those engrossed in desire,
Mired in delusion,
Or overcome by attachment
Do not hear such things.
1.­303
“Those who are proud, arrogant,
Lazy, have meager intelligence,
And are preoccupied with other, extreme views
Do not hear such things.”
1.­304
Then, a billion gods exclaimed:
“Hail Buddha!
Hail Dharma!
Hail the unexcelled Saṅgha!”
1.­305
They also cast down a rain of flowers,
Strewing them throughout the trigalactic megagalactic world system. [F.319.a]
They rang ten million cymbals,
And doused the ground with perfume.
1.­306
Having illuminated this realm,
They caused the earth to shake in six different ways.
All those
In the assembly
1.­307
Who hear the teaching of this sūtra,
The sublime Bouquet of Flowers,
Will attain unexcelled awakening;
That is, unless they live in a period between buddhas.
1.­308
Bodhisattvas came
From as many realms throughout the ten directions
As there are grains of sand in the Ganges River,
Listened to the teaching, then disbanded.
1.­309
When this sūtra was taught,
Many tens of millions of monks
All55 became arhats
And saw the guides.
1.­310
A hundred thousand monks,
And nuns too‍—
Sixty thousand in full‍—
Attained acceptance of reality.
1.­311
Having attained unexcelled acceptance
That all phenomena are unborn,
They beheld the buddhas,
And taught the Dharma to beings.
1.­312
Five hundred nuns
And forty lay women
Clothed the body of the Thus-Gone One
With their own robes.
1.­313

When the Blessed One finished speaking, Venerable Śāriputra rejoiced. The bodhisattva-mahāsattvas, the monks, and the world with its gods, humans, asuras, and gandharvas rejoiced and praised what the Blessed One taught.

1.­314

This concludes the Noble Great Vehicle Sūtra “Bouquet of Flowers.”

c.

Colophon

c.­1

This text was edited and finalized by the Indian preceptor Jñānasiddhi, the chief editor-translator Venerable Dharmatāśīla, and others.56

ab.

Abbreviations

C Choné
D Degé
H Lhasa (zhol)
J Lithang
K Peking Kangxi
N Narthang
S Stok Palace Manuscript
U Urga
Y Peking Yongle
n.

Notes

n.­1
Nattier (2000), p. 74.
n.­2
The benefits of hearing, remembering, and reciting the names of sets of buddhas is mentioned in a large number of sūtras, and is the principal theme of several other shorter sūtras such as The Seven Buddhas (Toh 270), The Eight Buddhas (Toh 271), The Sūtra of the Ten Buddhas (Toh 272), and The Twelve Buddhas (Toh 273). Some of these, perhaps because they also contain dhāraṇīs (e.g. Toh 270 and Toh 273), are duplicated in the Action Tantra and Dhāraṇī sections of the Degé Kangyur. See also i.­14 below.
n.­3
Nattier (2000), p. 75.
n.­4
Nattier (2000), p. 89.
n.­5
c.f. Harrison 1978; 1990.
n.­6
Harrison (1978), p. 36.
n.­7
Harrison (1978), p. 39.
n.­8
’phags pa shes rab kyi pha rol tu phyin pa brgyad stong pa, Toh 12, Degé Kangyur, vol. 33 (brgyad stong, ka), folios 1.b–286.a.
n.­9
Denkarma, F.298.a. It is entry 129 in Yoshimura (1950), p. 130; and entry 130, according to Lalou (1953), p. 322.
n.­10
I would like to thank Dr. John Canti for calling my attention to this information. See also n.­2.
n.­11
Skilling (1997), p. 101.
n.­12
bu ston chos ’byung, folio 152.a.
n.­13
http://www.rkts.org/collections.php. See also abbreviation section of this text.
n.­14
mi ’khrugs pa, rendered here as “will not be disturbed,” is a play on words with the name Akṣobhya (mi ’khrugs pa).
n.­15
S: mi rngo’i; D: mi dngo’i; C: mi lang gi; Y, J, K, N: mi mang gi (“to not be more”).
n.­16
Y, J, K, N, C: pas bdag; D: bag.
n.­17
N, H: de ’dra ba dag gis; D: de ’dra bdag gis.
n.­18
S: mthar gyis kyang phyogs ’gro bar ’gyur; Y, J, D, N, C, H: mthar gyis byang phyogs su ’gro bar ’gyur, “will eventually spread north.”
n.­19
Y, J, K, N, C, H: - ’gro bar; D: ’gro bar.
n.­20
S: kyi; D: kyis.
n.­21
Y, J, K, N, C, H, S: bden; D: bde.
n.­22
J, N, H: sbyong bar (“purify”); D: spyod par (“engage”).
n.­23
Y, K, N, H: srid; D: sred.
n.­24
Y, J, K, N, C: na; D: nas.
n.­25
D: dpal; Y, J, K, C: dpa’.
n.­26
rnam par snang mdzad (“illumination”) commonly translates the name of Buddha Vairocana.
n.­27
J, K, N, C, H: dka’ (“rare”); D: dga’ (“joy,” “enjoy”).
n.­28
D: ’gyur; Y, J, K, N, C: + mi.
n.­29
D: brgyad; U: brgya.
n.­30
Y, J, K, N, C: la; D: ni.
n.­31
nges par zhugs likely renders the Sanskrit term niyāmāva­kramaṇaṃ. Edgerton (p. 298) offers very little in the way of explanation, but the Abhi­dharma­kośa­bhāṣya explains this as “entry into the ‘assurance of the eventual attainment,’ ” e.g., nirvāṇa.
n.­32
D: dam pa; Y, J, K, C: - dam pa.
n.­33
Y, K, N, H: + stong; D: phrag bcu.
n.­34
D actually reads zhing na ngan song gi gzhi, rather than zhing nang song gi gzhi as recorded in the Comparative Edition (dpe msdur ma).
n.­35
Or spyad pa ma yin (“have not been in the company”) per Y, J, K, N, C, instead of D: spyad pa yin.
n.­36
D: nams kyang (“unattested”) corrected to nam du’ang (“never”).
n.­37
S: + lha’i; D.: - lha’i.
n.­38
Y, J, K, N, C: + ma (negation); D: - ma. This choice was made based on the appearance of this term (nges par/pa la zhugs pa, Skt. niyāmāva­kramaṇaṃ) elsewhere in this text to describe exceptional cases not in need of the salvific powers of hearing the names of buddhas.
n.­39
N, H, and S reflect the variant thos for gnas, in which case these two lines would read, “Bodhisattvas will not remain; / Thus are they highly learned (byang chub sems dpa’ mi gnas pa/ /de ltar mang du thos pa yin).
n.­40
Y, J, K, N, C, H, S: gyur; D: ’gyur.
n.­41
Skt. paryutthāna.
n.­42
K, U: ’di lta yi; D: ’di lta yis.
n.­43
Tentative translation of nyi tshe ba yi bzod pa la ’dren pa dag ni mos par byed.
n.­44
Tentative translation of de dag gi ni chos nyid ’di/ zab mo la ni gang mos shing / mos pa dag ni mang rgyur pa/ de dag la ni rtsod pa med.
n.­45
This is a tentative translation of zab mo spyod pa de dag la/ yid gnyid dag ni yong med do/ nor la sred pa gter dang yang / ’dra bar ’gyur ba ma yin no [F.314.b.2]. The analogy in the final two lines of this verse seems to resonate with the following passage from the final verses of the sūtra: “Just as when a pauper feels discouraged / Upon seeing a priceless gem, / Thinking it impossible for him to find a jewel / And come into such wealth; / Likewise, how could those with little merit / And jaded perspective / Become filled with faith / When hearing about unexcelled awakening?”
n.­46
S has the variant “purify” (rnam par sbyong) for “range over” (rnam par spyod).
n.­47
This is a tentative translation of D: sangs rgyas de dag ming rnams kyis/ /sangs rgyas zhing ni rnam par spyod. S (F.427.b.3) reads instead: sangs rgyas de dag mi rnams kyis/ /sangs rgyas zhing ni rnam par sbyong (“The buddhas, with people / Purify the buddhafields”).
n.­48
This translates ri mor bcas pa, which seems to be a corruption or an alternate form of ri mor byed pa.
n.­49
Also the name of an absorption (Tib. shin tu rnam par phye ba; Skt. suvibhaktam).
n.­50
Also the name of an absorption (Tib. seng ge rnam par rol pa; Skt. siṃha­vikrīḍitaḥ).
n.­51
Also the name of an absorption (Tib. seng ge rnam par bsgyings; Skt. siṃha­vijṛmbhita).
n.­52
Y, J, K, N, C: gi; D: gis.
n.­53
This verse is a tentative translation of the following: gang dag gi ni mtshan brjod pa/ /chos kyi rgyal po de dag dang / /rang byung dag na bzhugs pa dang / /’jig rten dag gi khams kyang rung. With D’s variant reading of gis the verse would start, “Those who proclaim the name…”
n.­54
These two lines are a tentative translation for the following: the tsom med par de dag gis/ /shA ris nga la bsnyen bkur byas. Stok Palace has for the final line shA ri’I bu la bsnyen bkur byas. This tentative translation follows the correction of shA ris to shA ri in pad dkar bzang po (2006), p. 367.
n.­55
K, C, U, H: tshang ba; D: chad pa.
n.­56
Y and K include after the translation colophon the mantra of dependent origination: ye dharmā hetu prabhavā hetun teṣāṃ tathāgato hyavadat teṣāñcayo nirodha evaṃ vādī mahā­śramaṇaḥ. S also includes the mantra, but adds before it, oṃ vajra aṁyuṣe svāhā/ oṃ, and after it, svāhā/ oṃ sarva vidyā svāhā/ oṃ supratiṣṭḥe vajre svāhā.
b.

Bibliography

Tibetan Sources

’me tog gi tshogs (Kusuma­sañcaya). Toh. 266, Degé Kangyur vol. 67 (mdo sde, ’a), folios 288a–319a.

me tog gi tshogs. Stok Palace Kangyur (stog pho brang bris ma, T), vol. 72 (mdo sde, zha), pp. 763–865.

’phags pa me tog gi tshogs zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo. bka’ ’gyur (dpe bsdur ma) [Comparative Edition of the Kangyur], krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe sdur khang (The Tibetan Tripitaka Collation Bureau of the China Tibetology Research Center). 108 volumes. Beijing: krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang (China Tibetology Publishing House), 2006–9, vol. 67, pp. 770–858.

bu ston chos ’byung. In rin chen grub gsung ’bum, vol. 24, pp. 619–1042. Lhasa: Zhol par khang, 2000.

Modern Sources

Harrison, Paul. “Buddhānusmṛti in the pratyutpanna-Buddha-saṃṃukhāvasthita-samādhi-sūtra.” Journal of Indian Philosophy 6, no. 1 (1978): 35–57.

Harrison, Paul. The Samādhi of Direct Encounter with the Buddhas of the Present: An Annotated English Translation of the Tibetan Version of the Pratyutpanna-Buddha-Saṃmukhāvasthita-Samādhi-Sūtra. Tokyo: The International Institute for Buddhist Studies, 1990.

Harrison, Paul. “Vajracchedikā Prajñāpāramitā: A New English Translation of the Sanskrit Text Based on Two Manuscripts from Greater Gandhāra.” In Buddhist Manuscripts, vol. 3, edited by Jens Braarvig. Oslo : Hermes Publishing, 2006.

Nattier, Jan. “The Realm of Akṣobhya: A Missing Piece in the History of Pure Land Buddhism.” Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies 23, no. 1 (2000): 71–102.

Pekar Sangpo (pad dkar bzang po). mdo sde spyi’i rnam bzhag. Beijing: Mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 2006.

Schopen, Gregory. “Sukhāvatī as a Generalized Religious Goal in Sanskrit Mahāyāna Sūtra Literature.” Indo-Iranian Journal 19: 177–210.

Skilling, Peter. “From bKa’ bstan bcos to bKa’ ’gyur and bsTan ’gyur.” In Transmission of the Tibetan Canon, edited by H. Eimer, pp. 87–111. Vienna: The Austrian Academy of Sciences Press, 1997.

g.

Glossary

Types of attestation for names and terms of the corresponding source language

AS

Attested in source text

This term is attested in a manuscript used as a source for this translation.

AO

Attested in other text

This term is attested in other manuscripts with a parallel or similar context.

AD

Attested in dictionary

This term is attested in dictionaries matching Tibetan to the corresponding language.

AA

Approximate attestation

The attestation of this name is approximate. It is based on other names where the relationship between the Tibetan and source language is attested in dictionaries or other manuscripts.

RP

Reconstruction from Tibetan phonetic rendering

This term is a reconstruction based on the Tibetan phonetic rendering of the term.

RS

Reconstruction from Tibetan semantic rendering

This term is a reconstruction based on the semantics of the Tibetan translation.

SU

Source unspecified

This term has been supplied from an unspecified source, which most often is a widely trusted dictionary.

g.­1

absorption

  • ting nge ’dzin
  • ཏིང་ངེ་འཛིན།
  • samādhi

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

In a general sense, samādhi can describe a number of different meditative states. In the Mahāyāna literature, in particular in the Prajñāpāramitā sūtras, we find extensive lists of different samādhis, numbering over one hundred.

In a more restricted sense, and when understood as a mental state, samādhi is defined as the one-pointedness of the mind (cittaikāgratā), the ability to remain on the same object over long periods of time. The Drajor Bamponyipa (sgra sbyor bam po gnyis pa) commentary on the Mahāvyutpatti explains the term samādhi as referring to the instrument through which mind and mental states “get collected,” i.e., it is by the force of samādhi that the continuum of mind and mental states becomes collected on a single point of reference without getting distracted.

g.­2

Accomplisher of All Goals

  • don thams cad grub pa
  • དོན་ཐམས་ཅད་གྲུབ་པ།
  • —

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Source of Diligence.

g.­3

Adorned with Golden Palmyra Trees

  • gser gyi shing ta la rab tu brgyan pa
  • གསེར་གྱི་ཤིང་ཏ་ལ་རབ་ཏུ་བརྒྱན་པ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Glory of the Exalted King of Palmyra Trees.

g.­4

Ajita

  • ma pham pa
  • མ་ཕམ་པ།
  • ajita

Epithet for the bodhisattva and future Buddha Maitreya.

g.­5

Akṣobhya

  • mi ’khrugs pa
  • མི་འཁྲུགས་པ།
  • akṣobhya

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Delightful (Abhirati).

g.­6

All Luminous Incenses

  • spos thams cad snang ba dang ldan pa
  • སྤོས་ཐམས་ཅད་སྣང་བ་དང་ལྡན་པ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Jewel Light.

g.­7

All-Conquering Vajra

  • rdo rjes rab tu ’joms pa
  • རྡོ་རྗེས་རབ་ཏུ་འཇོམས་པ།
  • —

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Endowed with the Essence of Vajra.

g.­8

Always Fragrant

  • kun tu spos
  • ཀུན་ཏུ་སྤོས།
  • —

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Attainment of All Powerful Forces.

g.­9

Ambrosia Melody

  • bdud rtsi dbyangs
  • བདུད་རྩི་དབྱངས།
  • —

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Immaculate.

g.­10

Amitābha

  • ’od dpag med
  • འོད་དཔག་མེད།
  • amitābha

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Sukhāvatī. Alternate name for Amitāyus.

g.­11

Amitāyus

  • tshe dpag med
  • ཚེ་དཔག་མེད།
  • amitāyus

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Sukhāvatī. Alternate name for Amitābha.

g.­12

Appearance of Countless Emanations

  • sprul pa tshad med par snang ba
  • སྤྲུལ་པ་ཚད་མེད་པར་སྣང་བ།
  • —

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Free of Poverty.

g.­13

Astride Mount Sumeru

  • ri rab rnam par gnon pa
  • རི་རབ་རྣམ་པར་གནོན་པ།
  • —

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Smooth as Kācilindika Fabric.

g.­14

Attainer of Purity of Universal Illumination

  • kun tu rnam par snang mdzad rnam par dag pa thob pa
  • ཀུན་ཏུ་རྣམ་པར་སྣང་མཛད་རྣམ་པར་དག་པ་ཐོབ་པ།
  • —

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Perfectly Pure Abode.

g.­15

Attainment of All Powerful Forces

  • stobs kyi shugs thams cad thob pa
  • སྟོབས་ཀྱི་ཤུགས་ཐམས་ཅད་ཐོབ་པ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Always Fragrant.

g.­16

Awakened

  • sangs rgyas
  • སངས་རྒྱས།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Forever Passed Beyond Sorrow.

g.­17

Awakening of Beautiful Thought

  • shin tu mdzes pa rtog pa’i byang chub
  • ཤིན་ཏུ་མཛེས་པ་རྟོག་པའི་བྱང་ཆུབ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Glory of Being Immersed in Incalculable Effort.

g.­18

Beautiful Entrance

  • legs par ’jug pa
  • ལེགས་པར་འཇུག་པ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Departed to a Lotus. Likely the same as the world system Joyful Entrance.

g.­19

Beautiful Golden Form

  • gzugs gser mdog bzang po
  • གཟུགས་གསེར་མདོག་བཟང་པོ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Manifest Mount Sumeru.

g.­20

Beautiful Lotus

  • shin tu mdzes pa’i pad ma
  • pad mo shin tu mdzes
  • ཤིན་ཏུ་མཛེས་པའི་པད་མ།
  • པད་མོ་ཤིན་ཏུ་མཛེས།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Glory of the Manifestation of the Sublime Lotus.

g.­21

Beyond All Sorrow and Harm

  • mya ngan dang gnod pa thams cad las ’das pa
  • མྱ་ངན་དང་གནོད་པ་ཐམས་ཅད་ལས་འདས་པ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Branch Guru. Alternative name for the world system Liberation from All Sorrow and Harm.

g.­22

Black Line Hell

  • thig nag
  • ཐིག་ནག
  • kālasūtra

One of the eight hot hells.

g.­23

blessed one

  • bcom ldan ’das
  • བཅོམ་ལྡན་འདས།
  • bhagavān
  • bhagavat

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

In Buddhist literature, an epithet applied to buddhas, most often to Śākyamuni. The Sanskrit term generally means “possessing fortune,” but in specifically Buddhist contexts it implies that a buddha is in possession of six auspicious qualities (bhaga) associated with complete awakening. The Tibetan term‍—where bcom is said to refer to “subduing” the four māras, ldan to “possessing” the great qualities of buddhahood, and ’das to “going beyond” saṃsāra and nirvāṇa‍—possibly reflects the commentarial tradition where the Sanskrit bhagavat is interpreted, in addition, as “one who destroys the four māras.” This is achieved either by reading bhagavat as bhagnavat (“one who broke”), or by tracing the word bhaga to the root √bhañj (“to break”).

g.­24

blessing of turning away from birth

  • skye ba las rnam par log pa’i byin gyi rlabs
  • སྐྱེ་བ་ལས་རྣམ་པར་ལོག་པའི་བྱིན་གྱི་རླབས།
  • —

A kind of absorption.

g.­25

Blissful

  • bde ba can
  • བདེ་བ་ཅན།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Infinite Renown.

g.­26

Boundless Melody

  • dbyangs tshad med
  • དབྱངས་ཚད་མེད།
  • —

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Superior to All Cymbals.

g.­27

Branch Guru

  • yan lag bla ma
  • ཡན་ལག་བླ་མ།
  • —

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Beyond All Sorrow and Harm/Liberation from All Sorrow and Harm.

g.­28

Bright Jewel

  • rin chen snang
  • རིན་ཆེན་སྣང་།
  • —

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Crystalline.

g.­29

Bright Light

  • ’od chen po
  • འོད་ཆེན་པོ།
  • mahāprabha

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Immeasurable.

g.­30

Brilliant

  • ’od zer can
  • འོད་ཟེར་ཅན།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Shining Jewel.

g.­31

Brilliant Jewel

  • rin chen rab snang
  • རིན་ཆེན་རབ་སྣང་།
  • —

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Shining with All Qualities.

g.­32

Cave of Sandalwood Fragrance

  • tsan dan gyi dri’i phug
  • ཙན་དན་གྱི་དྲིའི་ཕུག
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Essence of Vaiḍūrya.

g.­33

Clear Light

  • ’od gsal
  • འོད་གསལ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Fire.

g.­34

Complete Purifier of Speech

  • gtam shin tu yongs su dag par mdzad pa
  • གཏམ་ཤིན་ཏུ་ཡོངས་སུ་དག་པར་མཛད་པ།
  • —

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Region of Joyous Radiance.

g.­35

Created with Joy

  • dga’ ba dang bcas par skyed pa
  • དགའ་བ་དང་བཅས་པར་སྐྱེད་པ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Devoid of Sorrow.

g.­36

Crushing Hell

  • bsdus gzhom
  • བསྡུས་གཞོམ།
  • —

Third of the eight hot hells of Buddhist cosmology. The guardians of the Crushing Hell repeatedly crush its inhabitants between mountains.

g.­37

Crystalline

  • man shel can
  • མན་ཤེལ་ཅན།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Bright Jewel.

g.­38

Delight in Goodness

  • bzang po dga’ ba
  • བཟང་པོ་དགའ་བ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Victory Banner at the Pinnacle of Goodness. Another name for the world system Supreme Goodness.

g.­39

Delightful

  • mngon par dga’ ba
  • མངོན་པར་དགའ་བ།
  • abhirati

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Akṣobhya.

g.­40

Delivered through Powerful Diligence

  • mthu chen po’i brtson ’grus kyis nges par ’byung ba
  • མཐུ་ཆེན་པོའི་བརྩོན་འགྲུས་ཀྱིས་ངེས་པར་འབྱུང་བ།
  • —

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Yaṅgarvatī.

g.­41

Dense Cloud

  • sprin stug po
  • སྤྲིན་སྟུག་པོ།
  • —

Name of the thus-gone one venerated by Always Fragrant when he was engaged in the conduct of the bodhisattvas.

g.­42

Departed to a Jewel Lotus

  • rin chen pad mo bzhud
  • རིན་ཆེན་པད་མོ་བཞུད།
  • —

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Joyful Entrance. Likely an alternate name for the thus-gone one Departed to a Lotus.

g.­43

Departed to a Lotus

  • pad mo la bzhud pa
  • པད་མོ་ལ་བཞུད་པ།
  • —

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Beautiful Entrance. Likely an alternate name for the thus-gone one Departed to a Jewel Lotus.

g.­44

Devoid of Sorrow

  • mya ngan med pa
  • མྱ་ངན་མེད་པ།
  • —

(1) Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Created with Joy. (2) Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Leader of Heroes.

g.­45

Dīpaṅkara

  • mar me mdzad
  • མར་མེ་མཛད།
  • dīpaṅkara

Lit. Illuminator. Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Light of Victory.

g.­46

eight unfavorable states

  • mi khom pa brgyad
  • མི་ཁོམ་པ་བརྒྱད།
  • aṣṭākṣaṇa

Being reborn in hell, or as a preta, an animal, or a long-lived deity (of the formless realms), or being a human in a time without a buddha’s teaching, in a land without the teaching, with a defective faculties, or without faith.

g.­47

Eighteen distinct qualities of a buddha

  • sangs rgyas kyi chos ma ’dres pa bca+wa brgyad
  • སངས་རྒྱས་ཀྱི་ཆོས་མ་འདྲེས་པ་བཅྭ་བརྒྱད།
  • aṣṭādaśāveṇikābuddhadharma

Eighteen special features of a buddha’s physical state, realization, activity, and wisdom that are not shared by ordinary beings.

g.­48

Elation

  • rab tu dga’ ba
  • རབ་ཏུ་དགའ་བ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Glory of Sublime Goodness.

g.­49

Emanating Light

  • ’od btang ba
  • འོད་བཏང་བ།
  • —

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Endowed with Essence.

g.­50

Endowed with Dharma

  • chos ldan
  • ཆོས་ལྡན།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Guru of Dharma.

g.­51

Endowed with Essence

  • snying po dang ldan pa
  • སྙིང་པོ་དང་ལྡན་པ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Emanating Light.

g.­52

Endowed with Excellent Attainment

  • legs par thob pa dang ldan pa
  • ལེགས་པར་ཐོབ་པ་དང་ལྡན་པ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Sunlight.

g.­53

Endowed with Flowers

  • me tog can
  • མེ་ཏོག་ཅན།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Lion’s Roar.

g.­54

Endowed with Great Ornament

  • rgyan chen po dang ldan pa
  • རྒྱན་ཆེན་པོ་དང་ལྡན་པ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Light of Incense.

g.­55

Endowed with Honey

  • sbrang rtsi can
  • སྦྲང་རྩི་ཅན།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Sovereign King of Nāgas.

g.­56

Endowed with Immaculate Light

  • dri ma med pa’i ’od dang ldan pa
  • དྲི་མ་མེད་པའི་འོད་དང་ལྡན་པ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Perfectly Pure Light.

g.­57

Endowed with Jewels

  • rin po che dang ldan pa
  • རིན་པོ་ཆེ་དང་ལྡན་པ།
  • —

(1) Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Sublime Jewel/Foremost Sublime Jewel. (2) Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Overwhelming All with Precious Qualities.

g.­58

Endowed with Light

  • snang ba can
  • སྣང་བ་ཅན།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Image of Mount Sumeru.

g.­59

Endowed with Lotuses

  • pad mo can
  • པད་མོ་ཅན།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Lotus Guru.

g.­60

Endowed with Moon

  • zla ba can
  • ཟླ་བ་ཅན།
  • —

(1) Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Shining Like Gold. (2) Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Guru of the Moon. (3) Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Melody of a Lotus.

g.­61

Endowed with Nāgas

  • klu dang ldan pa
  • ཀླུ་དང་ལྡན་པ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Melody of Lions.

g.­62

Endowed with Sublime Happiness

  • dam pa’i dga’ ldan
  • དམ་པའི་དགའ་ལྡན།
  • —

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Endowed with Sustenance.

g.­63

Endowed with Sun

  • nyi ma dang ldan pa
  • ཉི་མ་དང་ལྡན་པ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Light of the Moon.

g.­64

Endowed with Sustenance

  • ’tsho ba dang ldan pa
  • འཚོ་བ་དང་ལྡན་པ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Endowed with Sublime Happiness.

g.­65

Endowed with Teachers

  • slob dpon dang ldan pa
  • སློབ་དཔོན་དང་ལྡན་པ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Thus-Gone King, Guru of Immeasurably Many.

g.­66

Endowed with the Essence of Vajra

  • rdo rje’i snying po can
  • རྡོ་རྗེའི་སྙིང་པོ་ཅན།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one All-Conquering Vajra.

g.­67

Endowed with the Glory of Sublime Evenness

  • mnyam pa dam pa’i dpal dang ldan pa
  • མཉམ་པ་དམ་པའི་དཔལ་དང་ལྡན་པ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Sublime Elephant of Jewels.

g.­68

Endowed with the King of Stars

  • skar ma’i rgyal po dang ldan pa
  • སྐར་མའི་རྒྱལ་པོ་དང་ལྡན་པ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one King of Sāla.

g.­69

Endowed with the Light of Ethical Conduct

  • tshul khrims kyi ’od dang ldan pa
  • ཚུལ་ཁྲིམས་ཀྱི་འོད་དང་ལྡན་པ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Mount Sumeru.

g.­70

Endowed with the Moon of Glory

  • dpal gyi zla ba can
  • དཔལ་གྱི་ཟླ་བ་ཅན།
  • —

Name of a thus-gone one.

g.­71

Endowed with the Vanquisher of All Demons

  • bdud thams cad rab tu bcom pa dang ldan pa
  • བདུད་ཐམས་ཅད་རབ་ཏུ་བཅོམ་པ་དང་ལྡན་པ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Possessor of Victory.

g.­72

Endowed with Truth

  • bden pa dang ldan pa
  • བདེན་པ་དང་ལྡན་པ།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Great Qualities.

g.­73

Endowed with Wilderness

  • dgon pa can
  • དགོན་པ་ཅན།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Lion’s Melody.

g.­74

Essence of Vaiḍūrya

  • bai dUrya’i snying po
  • བཻ་དཱུརྱའི་སྙིང་པོ།
  • —

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Cave of Sandalwood Fragrance. Vaiḍūrya is a type of semi-precious stone, often identified as beryl.

g.­75

Eternally Glorious Meaning of the Precious Irreversible Wheel

  • phyir mi ldog pa’i ’khor lo rin po che rtag tu don dpal
  • ཕྱིར་མི་ལྡོག་པའི་འཁོར་ལོ་རིན་པོ་ཆེ་རྟག་ཏུ་དོན་དཔལ།
  • —

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Free of Impurity.

g.­76

Exceedingly Firm Power

  • shin tu brtan pa’i mthu rtul
  • ཤིན་ཏུ་བརྟན་པའི་མཐུ་རྟུལ།
  • —

Name of a bodhisattva.

g.­77

factors of awakening

  • byang chub kyi yan lag
  • བྱང་ཆུབ་ཀྱི་ཡན་ལག
  • bodhyaṅga

See “seven precious factors of perfect awakening.”

g.­78

Family of Jewels

  • rin po che’i rigs
  • rin chen rigs
  • རིན་པོ་ཆེའི་རིགས།
  • རིན་ཆེན་རིགས།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one He Who Possesses a Body Adorned with All Jewels/He Who Possesses a Body Adorned, Exalted by All Jewels/Victory Banner at the Pinnacle of Dharma.

g.­79

final period of five hundred years

  • lnga brgya’i tha ma
  • ལྔ་བརྒྱའི་ཐ་མ།
  • —

The final five hundred years in which the Buddha Śākyamuni’s teaching will be present in this world system.

g.­80

Fire

  • me
  • མེ།
  • —

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Clear Light.

g.­81

Firelight

  • me ’od
  • མེ་འོད།
  • —

Name of the thus-gone one of the world system Luminous Golden Gem.

g.­82

five parts of the body

  • yan lag lnga
  • ཡན་ལག་ལྔ།
  • pañcamaṇḍalaka

Both arms, both legs, and head.

g.­83

Flash of Lightning

  • glog gi ’od
  • glog snang
  • གློག་གི་འོད།
  • གློག་སྣང་།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one King of the Tip of the Lamp of Lightning.

g.­84

Flowered

  • me tog can
  • མེ་ཏོག་ཅན།
  • —

Name of the world system of the thus-gone one Immeasurable Melody.

g.­85

Foremost Sublime Jewel

  • rin chen dam pa gtso bo
  • རིན་ཆེན་དམ་པ་གཙོ་བོ།