Buddha or
Buddha Gautama,
also known as
Shakyamuni Buddha,
was a great
spiritual Master from
ancient India.
Born as Prince
Siddhārtha Gautama
in 5th century BC,
he would have naturally
inherited the vast wealth
of a kingdom.
However,
the prince one day left
the palace life in search
of spiritual knowledge.
After years of
contemplative seeking,
the Buddha attained
enlightenment
under the Bodhi tree.
He then shared
the merits of his practice
by providing a method
for other sentient beings
to be freed from the cycle
of death and rebirth.
The rich treasury
of Buddha’s spiritual
teachings on universal
truths are studied and
revered to this day
for their deep wisdom
and compassion.
Today we would like to
share with you
the sage teachings
of the Buddha,
excerpts of chapter three
of The Sutra of the Lotus
of the Wonderful Dharma,
also known as
the Lotus Sutra.
Cherished viewers, it has been a pleasure
to have you with us
for today’s episode of
Between Master
and Disciples
here on
Supreme Master Television.
Join us again
next Wednesday
for part 2 of
“Buddhism’s
Sacred Scripture:
The Sutra of the Lotus of
the Wonderful Dharma,
Chapter 3.”
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is up next after
Noteworthy News.
We wish you
much love and kindness
in the days ahead.
Enlightened viewers, thank you
for your gentle presence
for today’s episode of
Between Master
and Disciples.
Join us again
next Wednesday
for part 3 of
“Buddhism’s
Sacred Scripture:
The Sutra of the Lotus of
the Wonderful Dharma,
Chapter 3.”
Please stay tuned
to Supreme Master
Television for
Planet Earth:
Our Loving Home,
coming up next after
Noteworthy News.
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from the Divine.
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for today’s episode of
Between Master
and Disciples.
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The Sutra of the Lotus of
the Wonderful Dharma
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The Sutra of the Lotus
of the Wonderful Dharma
(Lotus Sutra)
Chapter Three:
Simile and Parable
At that time
Shariputra's mind
danced with joy.
Then he immediately
stood up, pressed
his palms together,
gazed up in reverence
at the face of
the Honored-One,
and said to the Buddha,
"Just now,
when I heard from
the World-Honored One,
this voice of the Dharma
(true teaching),
my mind seemed to dance
and I gained what
I had never had before.
Why do I say this?
Because in the past
when I heard
a Dharma of this kind
from the Buddha and
saw how the bodhisattvas
received prophecies
that in time they would
attain Buddhahood,
I and the others felt
that we had no part
in the affair.
We were deeply grieved
to think we would never
gain the immeasurable
insight of the Tathagata.
World-Honored One,
I have constantly lived in
the mountain forest
or alone under the trees,
sometimes sitting,
sometimes walking around,
and always
I have thought to myself,
since I and the others
all alike have entered into
the nature of the Dharma
(true teaching),
why does the Tathagata
use the Dharma
of the Lesser Vehicle
to bring us salvation?
But the fault is ours,
not that of
the World-Honored One.
Why do I say this?
If he had been willing to
wait until the true means
for attaining
anuttara-samyak-sambodhi
(the highest perfection)
was preached,
then we would surely
have obtained release
through the Great Vehicle.
But we failed
to understand that the
Buddha was employing
expedient means
and preaching
what was appropriate
to the circumstances.
So when we first heard
the Dharma of the Buddha,
we immediately believed
and accepted it,
supposing that we had
gained understanding.
World-Honored One,
for a long time now,
all day and
throughout the night,
I have repeatedly taxed
myself with this thought.
But now I have heard
from the Buddha what
I had never heard before,
a Dharma (true teaching)
never known in the past,
and it has ended
all my doubts and regrets.
My body and mind are
at ease and I have gained
a wonderful feeling
of peace and security.
Today at last
I understand that truly
I am the Buddha's son,
born from
the Buddha's mouth,
born through conversion
to the Dharma
(true teaching),
gaining my share of
the Buddha's Dharma!"
At that time Shariputra,
wishing to state
his meaning once more,
spoke in verse form, saying:
When I heard
the sound of this Dharma
(true teaching),
I gained what
I had never had before.
My mind was
filled with great joy,
I was released from all
bonds of the net of doubt.
From past times
I have received
the Buddha's teachings
and have not been denied
the Great Vehicle.
The Buddha's sound
is very rarely heard, but
it can free living beings
from distress.
Already I have put an end
to outflows, and
hearing this, am freed
from care and distress.
I lived
in the mountain valleys
or under the forest trees,
sometimes sitting,
sometimes walking around,
and constantly
I thought of this matter –
how severely
I taxed myself!
"Why have I
been deceived?" I said.
"I and the others are sons
of the Buddha too, all alike
have entered the Dharma
that is without outflows,
yet in times to come
we will never
be able to expound
the unsurpassed way.
The golden body,
the thirty-two features,
the ten powers,
the various emancipations –
though all alike share
a single Dharma
(true teaching),
these we will never attain!
The eighty types of
wonderful characteristics,
the eighteen
unshared properties –
merits such as these
are all lost to us!"
When I was
walking around alone,
I saw the Buddha among
the great assembly, his fame
filling the ten directions,
bringing benefit
far and wide
to living beings,
and I thought to myself,
I am deprived of
such benefits!
How greatly
have I been deceived!
Constantly,
day and night, whenever
I pondered over this,
I wanted to ask
the World-Honored One
whether I had indeed
been deprived or not.
Constantly, when I saw
the World-Honored One
praising the bodhisattvas,
then day and night I would
mull this matter over.
But now as I listen to
the voice of the Buddha,
I see he preaches
the Dharma (true teaching)
in accordance with what
is appropriate, using this
hard-to-conceive doctrine
of no outflows
to lead people
to the place of practice.
Formerly I was attached
to erroneous views,
acting as teacher
to the Brahmans
(members of a cultural
and social elite).
But the World-Honored One,
knowing
what was in my mind,
rooted out my errors
and preached nirvana
(eternal bliss).
I was freed of all my errors
and gained understanding
of the Dharma
of emptiness.
At that time
my mind told me
I had reached
the stage of extinction,
but now I realize that
was not true extinction.
If the time should come
when I can
become a Buddha,
then I will possess
all the thirty-two features
and heavenly
and human beings,
the many yakshas
(nature spirits), dragons,
spirits and others will
hold me in reverence.
When that time comes,
then I can say that at last
all has been wiped out
without residue.
In the midst of
the great assembly,
the Buddha declared that
I will become a Buddha.
When I heard
the sound of this Dharma
(true teaching)
my doubts and regrets
were all wiped away.
At first, when I heard
the Buddha's preaching,
there was
great astonishment
and doubt in my mind.
Is this not a devil
pretending to be the Buddha,
trying to vex
and confuse my mind?
I thought.
But the Buddha
employed various causes,
similes, and parables,
expounding eloquently.
His mind was peaceful
as the sea, and
as I listened, I was freed
from the net of doubt.
The Buddha said
that in past ages
the countless Buddhas
who have passed
into extinction
rested and abided
in the midst of
expedient means,
and all likewise preached
this Dharma (true teaching).
The Buddhas
of the present and future,
whose numbers are
beyond calculation,
they too will use
expedient means
in expounding this same
Dharma (true teaching).
Thus the present
World-Honored One,
being born and later
leaving his family,
attaining the way
and turning
the wheel of the Dharma,
likewise employs
expedient means
in preaching.
The World-Honored One
preaches the true way.
Papiyas
would not do that.
Therefore
I know for certain
this is not a devil
pretending to be the Buddha.
But because
I fell into the net of doubt
I supposed this
to be the devil's work.
Now I hear the Buddha's
soft and gentle sound,
profound, far-reaching,
very subtle and wonderful,
expounding and
discoursing on the pure
Dharma (true teaching),
and my mind is
filled with great joy.
My doubts and regrets
are forever ended,
I will rest and abide
in true wisdom.
I am certain
I will become a Buddha,
to be revered by heavenly
and human beings,
turning the wheel of
the unsurpassed Dharma
(true teaching) and
teaching and converting
the bodhisattvas.
At that time the Buddha
said to Shariputra,
"Now, in the midst of
this great assembly of
heavenly and human
beings, shramanas
(wandering monks),
Brahmans (members of
a social and cultural elite)
and so forth, I say this.
In the past, under
twenty thousand million
Buddhas, for the sake of
the unsurpassed way
I have constantly taught
and converted you.
And you throughout
the long night
followed me and
accepted my instruction.
Now, because I want to
make you recall to mind
the way that you originally
vowed to follow,
for the sake of
the voice-hearers
I am preaching
this Great Vehicle sutra
called the Lotus of
the Wonderful Dharma,
a Dharma to
instruct the bodhisattvas,
one that is guarded
and kept in mind
by the Buddhas.
Shariputra, in ages to come,
after a countless,
boundless inconceivable
number of kalpas
(a kalpa is a period of
432 million mortal years)
have passed,
you will make offerings
to some thousands,
ten thousands millions
of Buddhas, and
will honor and uphold
the correct Dharma
(true teaching).
You will fulfill
every aspect of the way
of the bodhisattva and
will be able to become
a Buddha with the name
Flower Glow Tathagata,
worthy of offerings, of right
and universal knowledge,
perfect clarity
and conduct, well gone,
understanding the world,
unexcelled worthy,
trainer of people,
teacher of heavenly and
human beings, Buddha,
World-Honored One.
Your realm will be called
Free from Stain,
the land will be level
and smooth, pure
and beautifully adorned,
peaceful, bountiful
and happy.
Heavenly and human
beings will flourish there.
The ground will be
of lapis lazuli,
roads will crisscross it
in eight directions,
and ropes of gold will
mark their boundaries.
Beside each road
will grow rows of
seven-jeweled trees
which will constantly
flower and bear fruit.
And this
Flower Glow Tathagata
will employ the three
vehicles to teach and
convert living beings.
Shariputra, when
this Buddha appears,
although it will not be
an evil age, because of
his original vow he will
preach the Dharma
(true teaching) through
the three vehicles.
His kalpa will be called
Great Treasure Adornment.
Why will it be called
Great Treasure Adornment?
Because in that land
bodhisattvas
will be looked on
as a great treasure.
Those bodhisattvas will
be countless, boundless,
inconceivable in number,
beyond the reach
of reckoning
or of simile and parable.
Without the power
of Buddha wisdom,
one cannot understand
how many.
Whenever these bodhisattvas
wish to walk anywhere,
jeweled flowers
will uphold their feet.
These bodhisattvas
will not have just
conceived the desire
for enlightenment,
but all will have spent
a long time planting
the roots of virtue.
Under countless
hundreds, thousands,
tens of thousands,
millions of Buddhas
they will have carried out
Brahma practices
in a flawless manner,
and will have been
perpetually praised
by the Buddhas.
Constantly they will have
cultivated Buddha wisdom,
acquiring great
transcendental powers and
thoroughly understanding
the gateways
to all the doctrines.
They will be upright
in character,
without duplicity,
firm in intent and thought.
Bodhisattvas such as this
will abound in that land.
Shariputra, the lifespan of
the Buddha Flower Glow
will be twelve small kalpas,
not counting the times
when he is still a prince
and before
he becomes a Buddha.
The people of his land
will have a lifespan
of eight small kalpas.
When Flower Glow
Tathagata has lived
for twelve small kalpas,
he will prophesy that
the bodhisattva Firm Full
will attain
anuttara-samyak-sambodhi
(the highest perfection).
He will announce
to the monks,
'This bodhisattva Firm Full
will be the next
to become a Buddha.
He will be named
Flower feet Safely Walking,
tathagata, arhat,
samyak-sambuddha.
His Buddha land
will be like mine.'
Shariputra, after
the Buddha Flower Glow
has passed into extinction,
the era of
the Correct Dharma
will last for
thirty-two small kalpas,
and the era of
the Counterfeit Dharma
will last for another
thirty-two small kalpas."
At that time
the World-Honored One,
wishing to state
his meaning once more,
spoke in verse form, saying:
Shariputra,
in ages to come
you will become a Buddha,
of universal wisdom,
venerable, bearing
the name Flower Glow,
and you will save
countless multitudes.
You will make offerings
to numberless Buddhas,
be endowed with all
the Bodhisattva practices,
the ten powers
and other blessings,
and will realize
the unsurpassed way.
After countless kalpas
have passed,
your kalpa will be named
Great Treasure Adornment.
Your world will be called
Free from Stain, pure,
without flaw or defilement.
Its land will be
made of lapis lazuli,
its roads bounded by
ropes of gold,
and seven-jeweled trees
in a jumble of colors
will constantly bear
blossoms and fruit.
The bodhisattvas
of that realm
will always be firm
in intent and thought.
Transcendental powers
and paramitas
(paths to perfection) –
each will be endowed
with all of these, and
under numberless Buddhas
they will diligently study
the bodhisattva way.
Thus these great men
will be converted by
the Buddha Flower Glow.
When that Buddha
was still a prince,
he gave up his country,
abandoned worldly glory,
and in his final incarnation
left his family and
attained the Buddha way.
Flower Glow Buddha
will continue in the world
for a lifespan of
twelve small kalpas.
The numerous people
of his land
will have a life span
of eight small kalpas.
After that Buddha has
passed into extinction,
the Correct Dharma
will endure in the world
for thirty-two small kalpas,
saving living beings
far and wide.
When the correct law
has passed away,
the Counterfeit Dharma
will endure
for thirty-two kalpas.
The Buddha's relics
will circulate widely;
heavenly and human
beings everywhere will
make offerings to them.
The actions of
Flower Glow Buddha
will all be as I have said.
This most saintly
and venerable
of two-legged beings
will be foremost
and without peer.
And he will be none
other than you –
you should rejoice and
count yourself fortunate!
At that time, when
the four kinds of believers,
namely, monks, nuns,
householder men
and householder women,
and the heavenly beings,
dragons, yakshas
(nature spirits),
gandharvas (demi-gods),
asuras (supernatural beings),
garudas
(wise bird creatures),
kimnaras (half-human,
half-bird celestial
musician), mahoragas
(great serpents),
and others
in the great assembly
saw how Shariputra
received from the Buddha
this prophecy
that he would attain
anuttara-samyak-sambodhi
(highest perfection),
their hearts were
filled with great joy
and danced without end.
Each one removed
the upper robe that
he or she was wearing
and presented it as
an offering to the Buddha.
Shakra Devanam Indra,
King Brahma,
and the countless sons
of gods likewise
took their wonderful
heavenly robes, heavenly
mandarava flowers and
great mandarava flowers
and offered them
to the Buddha.
The heavenly robes
they had scattered
remained suspended
in the air and
turned round and round
of themselves.
Heavenly beings
made music,
a hundred, a thousand,
ten thousand varieties,
all at the same time
in the midst of the air,
raining down quantities
of heavenly flowers and
speaking these words:
"In the past at Varanasi
the Buddha first turned
the wheel of the Dharma.
Now he turns the wheel
again, the wheel
of the unsurpassed,
the greatest Dharma of all!"
At that time
the sons of gods, wishing
to state their meaning
once more,
spoke in verse form, saying:
In the past at Varanasi
you turned
the wheel of the Dharma
of the four noble truths,
making distinctions,
preaching that all things
are born and become extinct,
being made up of
the five components.
Now you turn the wheel
of the most wonderful,
the unsurpassed great
Dharma (true teaching).
This Dharma (true teaching)
is very profound and
abstruse; there are few
who can believe it.
Since times past
often we have heard
the World-Honored One's
preaching,
but we have never heard
this kind of profound,
wonderful and superior
Dharma (true teaching).
Since the World-Honored
One preaches this
Dharma (true teaching),
we all welcome it with joy.
Shariputra
with his great wisdom
has now received
this venerable prophecy.
We too in the same way
will surely be able to
attain Buddhahood,
throughout
all the many worlds
the most venerable,
the unsurpassed goal.
The Buddha way
is difficult to fathom,
but you will preach
with expedient means,
according to
what is appropriate.
The meritorious deeds
we have done
in this existence
or past existences,
and the blessings gained
from seeing the Buddha –
all these we will apply
to the Buddha way.
At that time Shariputra
said to the Buddha:
"World-Honored One,
now I have
no mere doubts or regrets.
In person I have received
from the Buddha
this prophecy
that I will attain
anuttara-samyak-sambodhi
(highest perfection).
These twelve hundred
persons here
whose minds are free –
in the past they remained
at the level of learning,
and the Buddha
constantly taught and
converted them, saying,
'My Dharma can free you
from birth, old age,
sickness and death
and enable you
at last to achieve nirvana
(eternal bliss).'
These persons, some of
whom were still learning
and some who had
completed their learning,
each believed that,
because he had shed
his views of 'self,'
and also his views of
'existing' and 'not existing,'
he had attained nirvana
(eternal bliss).
But now from
the World-Honored One
they hear what they had
never heard before,
and all have fallen
into doubt and perplexity.
"Very well,
World-Honored One.
I beg that for the sake of
the four kinds of believers
you will explain
the causes and conditions
and make it possible
for them to shed
their doubts and regrets."
At that time the Buddha
said to Shariputra,
"Did I not tell you earlier
that when the Buddhas,
the World-Honored Ones,
cite various causes
and conditions
and use similes, parables,
and other expressions,
employing expedient means
to preach the Dharma,
it is all for the sake of
anuttara-samyak-sambodhi
(the highest perfection)?
Whatever is preached
is all for the sake of
converting the bodhisattvas.
Moreover, Shariputra,
I too will now make use
of similes and parables to
further clarify this doctrine.
For through
similes and parables
those who are wise
can obtain understanding.
Shariputra, suppose
that in a certain town
in a certain country
there was a very rich man.
He was far along in years
and his wealth
was beyond measure.
He had many fields,
houses and menservants.
His own house
was big and rambling,
but it had only one gate.
A great many people –
a hundred, two hundred,
perhaps as many
as five hundred –
lived in the house.
The halls and rooms
were old and decaying,
the walls crumbling,
the pillars rotten
at their base,
and the beams and rafters
crooked and aslant.
At that time
a fire suddenly broke out
on all sides,
spreading through
the rooms of the house.
The sons of the rich man,
ten, twenty perhaps thirty,
were inside the house.
When the rich man saw
the huge flames
leaping up on every side,
he was greatly alarmed
and fearful and
thought to himself,
I can escape to safety
through the flaming gate,
but my sons are
inside the burning house
enjoying themselves
and playing games,
unaware, unknowing,
without alarm or fear.
The fire is closing in
on them, suffering
and pain threaten them,
yet their minds have no
sense of loathing or peril
and they do not think of
trying to escape!
Shariputra, this rich man
thought to himself,
I have strength
in my body and arms.
I can wrap them in a robe
or place them on a bench
and carry them out
of the house.
And then again
he thought, this house
has only one gate,
and moreover
it is narrow and small.
My sons are very young,
they have
no understanding, and
they love their games,
being so engrossed in them
that they are likely
to be burned in the fire.
I must explain to them
why I am fearful
and alarmed.
The house is already
in flames and I must
get them out quickly
and not let them
be burned up in the fire!
Having thought in this way,
he followed his plan
and called to all his sons,
saying, ‘You must
come out at once!’
But though the father
was moved by pity
and gave good words
of instruction,
the sons were absorbed
in their games and
unwilling to heed them.
They had no alarm,
no fright, and in the end
no mind to leave the house.
Moreover,
they did not understand
what the fire was,
what the house was,
what the danger was.
They merely raced about
this way and that in play
and looked at their father
without heeding him.
At that time the rich man
had this thought: the house
is already in flames
from this huge fire.
If I and my sons
do not get out at once,
we are certain to be burned.
I must now invent
some expedient means
that will make it possible
for the children
to escape harm.
The father understood
his sons and knew
what various toys
and curious objects
each child customarily liked
and what would
delight them.
And so he said to them,
'The kind of playthings
you like
are rare and hard to find.
If you do not take them
when you can, you will
surely regret it later.
For example, things like
these goat-carts,
deer-carts and ox-carts.
They are outside
the gate now where
you can play with them.
So you must come out of
this burning house at once.
Then whatever ones
you want, I will
give them all to you!'
At that time, when
the sons heard their father
telling them about these
rare playthings, because
such things were just
what they had wanted,
each felt emboldened
in heart and, pushing
and shoving one another,
they all came wildly
dashing out
of the burning house.
At that time the rich man,
seeing that his sons
had gotten out safely
and all were seated
on the open ground
at the crossroads and
were no longer in danger,
was greatly relieved and
his mind danced for joy.
At that time
each of the sons
said to his father,
‘the playthings
you promised us earlier,
the goat-carts and
deer-carts and ox-carts –
please give them to us now!'
Shariputra, at that time
the rich man gave to
each of his sons
a large carriage of
uniform size and quality.
The carriages were tall
and spacious and adorned
with numerous jewels.
A railing ran
all around them and bells
hung from all four sides.
A canopy was stretched
over the top, which was
also decorated with
an assortment of
precious jewels.
Ropes of jewels
twined around, a fringe
of flowers hung down,
and layers of cushions
were spread inside,
on which were placed
vermillion pillows.
In addition, there were
many grooms and servants
to attend and
guard the carriage.
What was the reason
for this?
This rich man's wealth
was limitless and he had
many kinds of storehouses
that were all filled
and overflowing.
And he thought to himself,
'There is no end
to my possessions.
It would not be right
if I were to give my sons
small carriages
of inferior make.
These little boys are all
my sons and I love them
without partiality.
I have countless numbers
of large carriages
adorned with
seven kinds of gems.
I should be fair-minded
and give one
to each of my sons.
I should not show
any discrimination. Why?
Because
even if I distributed
these possessions of mine
to every person
in the whole country
I would still
not exhaust them,
much less could I do so
by giving them to my sons!
At that time
each of the sons mounted
his large carriage,
gaining something
he had never had before,
something he had
originally never expected.
Shariputra,
what do you think of this?
When this rich man
impartially handed out
to his sons
these big carriages
adorned with rare jewels,
was he guilty of
falsehood or not?"
Shariputra said, "No,
World-Honored One.
This rich man simply
made it possible
for his sons
to escape the peril of fire
and preserve their lives.
He did not
commit a falsehood.
Why do I say this?
Because if they were able
to preserve their lives, then
they had already obtained
a plaything of sorts.
And how much more
so when, through
an expedient means,
they are rescued
from that burning house!
World-Honored One,
even if the rich man
had not given them
the tiniest carriage,
he would still not be guilty
of falsehood. Why?
Because this rich man had
earlier made up his mind
that he would employ
an expedient means to
cause his sons to escape.
Using a device of this kind
was no act of falsehood.
How much less so, then,
when the rich man knew
that his wealth
was limitless and
he intended to enrich
and benefit his sons
by giving each of them
a large carriage."
The Buddha
said to Shariputra,
"Very good, very good.
It is just as you have said.
And Shariputra,
the Tathagata is like this.
That is, he is a father
to all the world.
His fears, cares
and anxieties, ignorance
and misunderstanding,
have long come to an end,
leaving no residue.
He has fully succeeded
in acquiring
measureless insight,
power and freedom
from fear and gaining
great supernatural powers
and the power of wisdom.
He is endowed with
expedient means and
the paramita of wisdom,
his great pity
and great compassion are
constant and unflagging;
at all times he seeks
what is good and
will bring benefit to all.
He is born into
the threefold world,
a burning house,
rotten and old.
In order to
save living beings from
the fires of birth, old age,
sickness and death, care,
suffering, stupidity,
misunderstanding,
and the three poisons;
to teach and convert them
and enable them to attain
anuttara-samyak-sambodhi
(highest perfection).
He sees living beings
seared and consumed by
birth, old age,
sickness and death,
care and suffering,
sees them undergo
many kinds of pain
because of their greed and
attachment and striving
they undergo
numerous pains
in their present existence,
and later they undergo
the pain of being reborn
in hell or as beasts
or hungry spirits.
Even if they are reborn
in the heavenly realm or
the realm of human beings,
they undergo the pain of
poverty and want,
the pain of
parting from loved ones,
the pain of encountering
those they detest –
all these many
different kinds of pain.
Yet living beings drowned
in the midst of all this,
delight and amuse
themselves,
unaware, unknowing,
without alarm or fear.
They feel
no sense of loathing and
make no attempt to escape.
In this burning house
which is the threefold
world, they race about
to east and west,
and though
they encounter great pain,
they are not
distressed by it.
Shariputra,
when the Buddha sees this,
then he thinks to himself,
I am the father
of living beings
and I should rescue them
from their sufferings
and give them the joy
of the measureless and
boundless Buddha wisdom
so that they may find
their enjoyment in that.
"Shariputra, the Tathagata
also has this thought:
if I should merely employ
supernatural powers and
the power of wisdom;
if I should set aside
expedient means and
for the sake of living beings
should praise
the Tathagata's insight,
power and freedom
from fear,
then living beings
would not be able to
gain salvation. Why?
Because these living beings
have not yet escaped
from birth, old age,
sickness, death,
care and suffering, but
are consumed by flames
in the burning house
that is the threefold world.
How could they
be able to understand
the Buddha's wisdom?
Shariputra, that rich man,
though he had strength
in his body and arms,
did not use it.
He merely employed
a carefully contrived
expedient means
and thus was able to
rescue his sons
from the peril
of the burning house,
and afterward
gave each of them
a large carriage
adorned with rare jewels.
And the Tathagata
does the same.
Though he possesses
power and freedom
from fear,
he does not use these.
He merely employs wisdom
and expedient means
to rescue living beings
from the burning house
of the threefold world,
expounding to them
the three vehicles,
the vehicle of
the voice-hearer,
that of pratyekabuddha
(lone Buddha),
and that of the Buddha.
He says to them,
'You must not be content
to stay in this burning house
of the threefold world!
Do not be greedy for its
coarse and shoddy forms,
sounds, scents, tastes
and sensations!
If you become
attached to them
and learn to love them,
you will be burned up!
You must come out
of this threefold world
at once so that you can
acquire the three vehicles,
the vehicles
of the voice-hearer,
the pratyekabuddha
(lone Buddha)
and the Buddha.
I promise you now
that you will get them,
and that promise
will never prove false.
You have only
to apply yourselves
with diligent effort!'
The Tathagata employs
this expedient means
to lure living beings
into action.
And then he says to them,
'You should understand
that these doctrines
of the three vehicles are
all praised by the sages.
They are free,
without entanglements,
leaving nothing further
to depend upon or seek.
Mount these three vehicles,
gain roots
that are without outflows,
gain powers, awareness,
the way, meditation,
emancipation, samadhis,
and then enjoy yourselves.
You will gain the delight
of immeasurable peace
and safety.'
Shariputra, if there are
living beings who are
inwardly wise in nature,
and who attend the Buddha,
the World-Honored One,
hear the Dharma
(true teaching),
believe and accept it, and
put forth diligent effort,
desiring to escape quickly
from the threefold world
and seeking
to attain nirvana,
they shall be called [those
who ride] the vehicle
of the voice hearer.
They are like those sons
who left the burning house
in the hope of
acquiring goat-carts.
If there are living beings
who attend the Buddha,
the World-Honored One,
hear the Dharma,
believe and accept it, and
put forth diligent effort,
seeking wisdom
that comes of itself,
taking solitary delight in
goodness and tranquility,
and profoundly
understanding
the causes and conditions
of all phenomena,
they shall be called those
who ride the vehicle
of the pratyekabuddha
(lone Buddha).
They are like the sons
who left the burning house
in the hope of
acquiring deer-carts.
If there are living beings
who attend the Buddha,
the World-Honored One,
hear the Dharma,
believe and accept it, and
put forth diligent effort,
seeking comprehensive
wisdom, the insight
of the Tathagata, powers
and freedom from fear,
who pity and comfort
countless living beings,
bring benefit to heavenly
and human beings,
and save them all,
they shall be called those
who ride the Great Vehicle.
Because the bodhisattvas
seek this vehicle, they are
called mahasattvas
(great saint).
They are like the sons
who left the burning house
in the hope of
acquiring ox-carts.
Shariputra, that rich man,
seeing that his sons
had all gotten out of
the burning house safely
and were
no longer threatened,
recalled that his wealth
was immeasurable and
presented each of his sons
with a large carriage.
And the Tathagata
does likewise.
He is the father
of all living beings.
When he sees that
countless thousands of
millions of living beings,
through the gateway
of the Buddha's teaching,
can escape the pains
of the threefold world,
the fearful and perilous road,
and gain the delights
of nirvana,
the Tathagata at that time
has this thought:
I possess measureless,
boundless wisdom,
power, fearlessness,
the storehouse of the
Dharma of the Buddhas.
These living beings
are all my sons.
I will give
the Great Vehicle
to all of them equally
so that there will not be
those who gain extinction
by themselves,
but that all may do so
through the extinction
of the Tathagata.
To all the living beings
who have escaped from
the threefold world
he then gives
the delightful gifts
of the meditation,
emancipation, and
so forth, of the Buddhas.
All these are uniform
in characteristics,
uniform in type,
praised by the sages,
capable of producing
pure, wonderful,
supreme delight.
Shariputra, that rich man
first used three types
of carriages
to entice his sons,
but later he gave them
just the large carriage
adorned with jewels,
the safest, most
comfortable kind of all.
Despite this,
that rich man was
not guilty of falsehood.
The Tathagata
does the same, and
he is without falsehood.
First he preaches
the three vehicles
to attract and guide
living beings, but later
he employs just
the Great Vehicle
to save them. Why?
The Tathagata possesses
measureless wisdom,
power, freedom from fear,
the storehouse
of the Dharma.
He is capable of giving
to all living beings
the Dharma
of the Great Vehicle.
But not all of them are
capable of receiving it.
Shariputra, for this reason
you should understand
that the Buddhas employ
the power of
expedient means.
And because they do so,
they make distinctions
in the one Buddha vehicle
and preach it as three."
The Buddha, wishing
to state his meaning
once more, spoke
in verse form, saying:
Suppose
there was a rich man
who had a large house.
This house was very old,
and decayed
and dilapidated as well.
The halls, though lofty,
were in dangerous condition
beams and rafters
were slating and askew,
foundations and steps
were crumbling.
Walls were
cracked and gaping
and the plaster
had fallen off of them.
The roof thatch was
in disrepair or missing,
the tips of the eaves
had dropped off.
The fences surrounding it
were crooked or collapsed
and heaped rubbish
was piled all around.
Some five hundred persons
lived in the house.
Kites, owls, hawks,
eagles, crows, magpies,
doves, pigeons, lizards,
snakes, vipers, scorpions,
centipedes and millipedes,
newts and ground beetles,
weasels, raccoon dogs,
mice, rats, hordes
of evil creatures scurried
this way and that.
Places that stank
of excrement overflowed
in streams of filth
where dung beetles and
other creatures gathered.
Foxes, wolves and jackals
gnawed and trampled
in the filth
or tore apart dead bodies,
scattering bones
and flesh about.
Because of this,
packs of dogs
came racing to the spot
to snatch and tear,
driven by hunger and fear,
searching everywhere
for food, fighting,
struggling and seizing,
baring their teeth,
snarling and howling.
That house was
fearful, frightening,
so altered was its aspect.
In every part of it there
were goblins and trolls,
yakshas (nature spirits)
and evil spirits
who feed on human flesh
or on poisonous creatures.
The various evil birds
and beasts
bore offspring,
hatched and nursed them,
each hiding and
protecting its young,
but the yakshas
outdid one another
in their haste
to seize and eat them.
And when they had
eaten their fill,
their evil hearts
became fiercer than ever;
the sound of their
wrangling and contention
was terrifying indeed.
Kumbhanda demons
crouched on clumps of earth
or leaped one or two feet
off the ground,
idling, wandering
here and there,
amusing themselves
according to their whims.
Again there were demons
with large tall bodies,
naked in form,
black and emaciated
constantly living there,
who would cry out in
loud ugly voices, shouting
and demanding food.
There were other demons
whose throats
were like needles,
or still other demons
with heads like the head
of an ox, some
feeding on human flesh,
others devouring dogs.
Their hair
like tangled weeds,
cruel, baleful, ferocious,
driven by
hunger and thirst,
they dashed about
shrieking and howling.
The yakshas
and starving spirits
and the various evil birds
and beasts
hungrily pressed forward
in all directions,
peering out at the windows.
Such were the perils
of this house,
threats and terrors
beyond measure.
This house, old and rotting,
belonged to a certain man
and that man
had gone nearby
and he had not been out
for long when a fire
suddenly broke out
in the house.
In one moment
from all four sides
the flames rose up
in a mass.
Ridgepoles, beams,
rafters, pillars
exploded with a roar,
quivering, splitting,
broke in two and
came rumbling down
as walls and partitions
collapsed.
The various
demons and spirits
lifted their voices
in a great wail,
the hawks, eagles
and other birds,
the kumbhanda demons,
were filled with
panic and terror,
not knowing how to escape.
The evil beasts
and poisonous creatures
hid in their holes and dens,
and the pishacha demons,
who were also living there,
because they had done
so little that was good,
were oppressed
by the flames
and attacked one another.
Foul smoke swirled
and billowed up,
filling the house
on every side.
The centipedes
and millipedes,
the poisonous snakes
and their kind,
scorched by the flames,
came scurrying out
of their lairs, whereupon
the kumbhanda demons
pounced on them
and ate them.
In addition,
the starving spirits,
the fire raging about
their heads,
hungry, thirsty,
tormented by the heat,
raced this way and that
in terror and confusion.
Such was the state
of that house, truly
frightening and fearful;
malicious injury,
the havoc of fire –
many ills, not just one,
afflicted it.
At this time
the owner of the house
was standing
outside the gate when
he heard someone say,
"A while ago
your various sons,
in order to
play their games,
went inside the house.
They are very young
and lack understanding
and will be wrapped up
in their amusements."
When the rich man
heard this,
he rushed in alarm
into the burning house,
determined
to rescue his sons
and keep them from
being burned by the flames.
He urged his sons
to heed him,
explaining the many
dangers and perils,
the evil spirits
and poisonous creatures,
the flames
spreading all around,
the multitude of sufferings
that would follow
one another without end,
the poisonous snakes,
lizards and vipers,
as well as
the many yakshas
and kumbhanda demons,
the jackals, foxes
and dogs, hawks, eagles,
kites, owls, ground beetles
and similar creatures
driven and tormented
by hunger and thirst,
truly things to be feared.
His sons could not stay
in such a perilous place,
much less
when it was all on fire!
But the sons
had no understanding
and although they heard
their father's warnings,
they continued engrossed
in their amusements,
never ceasing their games.
At that time the rich man
thought to himself:
My sons may behave
in this manner, adding
to my grief and anguish.
In this house at present
there is not a single joy,
and yet my sons,
wrapped up in their games,
refuse to heed
my instructions and will
be destroyed by the fire!
Then it occurred to him
to devise
some expedient means,
and he said to his sons,
"I have many kinds of
rare and marvelous toys,
wonderful
jeweled carriages,
goat-carts, deer-carts,
carts drawn by big oxen.
They are outside the gate
right now
you must come out
and see them!
I have fashioned these carts
explicitly for you.
You may enjoy
whichever you choose,
play with them as you like!
When the sons heard this
description of the carts,
at once they vied with
one another in dashing
out of the house,
till they reached
the open ground,
away from
all peril and danger.
When the rich man saw
that his sons had escaped
from the burning house
and were standing
in the crossroads,
he seated himself
on a lion seat,
congratulating himself
in these words:
"Now I am content
and happy.
These sons of mine
have been very difficult
to raise.
Ignorant, youthful,
without understanding,
they entered
that perilous house
with its many
poisonous creatures and
its goblins to be feared.
The roaring flames
of the great fire
rose up on all four sides,
yet those sons of mine
still clung to their games.
But now I have saved them,
caused them
to escape from danger.
That is the reason,
good people,
I am content and happy."
At that time the sons,
seeing their father
comfortably seated,
all went to where he was
and said to him:
"Please give us
the three kinds of
jeweled carriages
you promised us earlier.
You said if
we came out of the house
you'd give us
three kinds of carts
and we could choose
whichever we wished.
Now is the time
to give them to us!"
The rich man was
very wealthy and
had many storehouses.
With gold, silver,
lapis lazuli, seashells,
agate, and other
such precious things
he fashioned large carriages
beautifully adorned and
decorated, with railings
running around them
and bells
hanging from all sides.
Ropes of gold
twisted and twined,
nets of pearls
stretched over the top,
and fringes
of golden flowers
hung down everywhere.
Multicolored decorations
wound around and
encircled the carriages,
soft silks and gauzes
served for cushions,
with fine felts of
most wonderful make
valued at
thousands or millions,
gleaming white and pure,
to spread over them.
There numerous
grooms and attendants
to accompany
and guard them.
These wonderful carriages
the man presented
to each of his sons alike.
The sons at that time
danced for joy, mounting
the jeweled carriages,
driving off in all directions,
delighting and amusing
themselves freely
and without hindrance.
I say this to you,
Shariputra –
I am like this rich man.
I, most venerable
of the sages,
am the father of this world
and all living beings
are my children.
But they are
deeply attached to
worldly pleasures and
lacking in minds of wisdom.
There is no safety
in the threefold world;
it is like a burning house,
replete with
a multitude of sufferings,
truly to be feared,
constantly beset
with the grief and pains
of birth, old age,
sickness and death,
which are like fires
raging fiercely
and without cease.
The Tathagata
has already left
the burning house of
the threefold world and
dwells in tranquil quietude
in the safety
of forest and plain.
But now
this threefold world
is all my domain,
and the living beings in it
are all my children.
Now this place is beset
by many pains and trials.
I am the only person
who can rescue
and protect others,
but though
I teach and instruct them,
they do not believe
or accept my teachings,
because, tainted by desires,
they are deeply immersed
in greed and attachment.
So, I employ
an expedient means,
describing to them
the three vehicles,
causing all living beings
to understand the pains
of the threefold world,
and then I set forth
and expound a way
whereby they can escape
from the world.
If these children of mine
will only determine
in their minds to do so,
they can acquire all
the three understandings
and the six
transcendental powers,
can become
pratyekabuddhas
(lone Buddhas)
or bodhisattvas
who never regress.
I say to you, Shariputra,
for the sake of living beings
I employ these
similes and parables
to preach
the single Buddha vehicle.
If you and the others
are capable of believing
and accepting my words,
then all of you are certain
to attain the Buddha way.
This vehicle is subtle,
wonderful, foremost
in purity;
throughout all worlds
it stands unsurpassed.
The Buddha delights in
and approves it,
and all living beings
should praise it, offer it
alms and obeisance.
There are immeasurable
thousands of millions of
powers, emancipations,
meditations, wisdoms,
and other attributes
of the Buddha.
But if the children
can obtain this vehicle,
it will allow them
day and night
for unnumbered kalpas
(a period of 432 million
mortal years) to
find constant enjoyment,
to join the bodhisattvas
and the multitude
of voice-hearers
in mounting
this jeweled vehicle
and proceeding directly
to the place of practice.
For these reasons, though
one should seek diligently
in the ten directions,
he will find
no other vehicles
except when
the Buddha preaches them
as an expedient means.
I tell you, Shariputra,
you and the others
are all my children,
and I am a father to you.
For repeated kalpas
you have burned
in the flames
of manifold sufferings,
but I will save you all
and cause you to escape
from the threefold world.
Although earlier
I told you that you
had attained extinction,
that was only the end
of birth and death,
it was not true extinction.
Now what is needed
is simply that you acquire
Buddha wisdom.
If there are bodhisattvas
here in this assembly,
let them with a single mind
listen to the true Dharma
of the Buddhas.
Though the Buddhas,
the World-Honored Ones,
employ expedient means,
the living beings
converted by them
are all bodhisattvas.
If there are persons
of little wisdom
who are deeply attached
to love and desire,
because they are that way,
the Buddha preaches
for them
the rule of suffering.
Then the living beings
will be glad in mind,
having gained what
they never had before.
The rule of suffering
which the Buddha preaches
is true and never varies.
If there are living beings
who do not understand
the root of suffering,
who are deeply attached
to the causes of suffering
and cannot for a moment
put them aside,
because they are that way,
the Buddha uses
expedient means
to preach the way.
As to the cause
of all suffering,
it has its root
in greed and desire.
If greed and desire
are wiped out, it will
have no place to dwell.
To wipe out all suffering –
this is called the third rule.
For the sake of this rule,
the rule of extinction,
one practices the way.
And when one escapes
from the bonds of suffering
this is called
attaining emancipation.
By what means
can a person
attain emancipation?
Separating oneself from
falsehood and delusion –
this alone may be called
emancipation.
But if a person
has not truly been able to
emancipate himself
from everything,
then the Buddha will say
he has not achieved
true extinction,
because such a person
has not yet gained
the unsurpassed way.
My purpose
is not to try to cause them
to reach extinction.
I am the Dharma King,
free to do as I will
with the Dharma.
To bring peace and safety
to living beings –
that is the reason
I appear in the world.
I say to you, Shariputra,
this Dharma seal of mine
I preach because
I wish to bring benefit
to the world.
You must not recklessly
transmit it wherever
you happen to wander.
If there is someone
who hears it,
responds with joy
and gratefully accepts it,
you should know that
person is an avivartika
(non-regressing
bodhisattva).
If there is someone
who believes and accepts
the Dharma of this sutra,
that person has already seen
the Buddhas of the past,
has respectfully
offered alms to them and
listened to this Dharma.
If there is someone
who can believe
what you preach then
that person has seen me,
and has also seen you
and the other monks
and the bodhisattvas.
This Lotus Sutra
is preached for those
with profound wisdom.
If persons of shallow
understanding hear it,
they will be perplexed
and fail to comprehend.
As for all the voice-hearers
and pratyekabuddhas
(lone Buddhas),
in this sutra
there are things that are
beyond their powers.
Even you, Shariputra,
in the case of this sutra
were able to gain entrance
through faith alone.
How much more so, then,
the other voice-hearers.
Those other voice-hearers
it is because
they have faith
in the Buddha's words
that they can
comply with this sutra,
not because of
any wisdom of their own.
Also, Shariputra,
to persons who are
arrogant or lazy or taken up
with views of the self,
do not preach this sutra.
Those with the shallow
understandings
of ordinary persons,
who are deeply attached
to the five desires,
cannot comprehend it
when they hear it.
Do not preach it to them.
If a person fails
to have faith but instead
slanders this sutra,
immediately he will
destroy all the seeds
for becoming a Buddha
in this world.
Or perhaps he will scowl
with knitted brows and
harbor doubt or perplexity.
Listen and I will tell you
the penalty
this person must pay.
Whether the Buddha is
in the world or has already
entered extinction,
if this person
should slander a sutra
such as this,
or on seeing those
who read, recite, copy
and uphold this sutra,
should despise, hate, envy,
or bear grudges
against them, the penalty
this person must pay
listen, I will tell you now:
When his life
comes to an end he will
enter the Avichi hell,
be confined there
for a whole kalpa,
and when the kalpa ends,
be born there again.
He will keep
repeating this cycle
for a countless number
of kalpas.
Though he may emerge
from hell, he will fall
into the realm of beasts,
becoming a dog or jackal,
his form lean and scruffy,
dark, discolored,
with scabs and sores,
something for men
to make sport of.
Or again he will be hated
and despised by men,
constantly plagued by
hunger and thirst,
his bones and flesh
dried up,
in life undergoing
torment and hardship,
in death buried beneath
the tiles and stones.
Because he cut off
the seeds of Buddhahood
he will suffer this penalty.
If he should
become a camel or be born
in the shape of a donkey,
his body will constantly
bear heavy burdens and
have the stick or whip
laid on it.
He will think only
of water and grass and
understand nothing else.
Because
he slandered this sutra,
this is the punishment
he will incur.
Or he will be born
as a jackal
who comes to the village,
body all scabs and sores,
having only one eye,
by the boys
beaten and cuffed,
suffering grief and pain,
sometimes
to the point of death.
And after he has died
he will be born again
in the body of a serpent,
long and huge in size,
measuring
five hundred yojanas,
deaf, witless, without feet,
slithering along
on his belly,
with little creatures
biting and feeding on him,
day and night
undergoing hardship,
never knowing rest.
Because
he slandered this sutra,
this is the punishment
he will incur.
If he should
become a human being,
his faculties will
be blighted and dull,
he will be puny, vile,
bent, crippled, blind,
deaf, hunchbacked.
The things he says
people will not believe,
the breath from his mouth
will be constantly foul,
he will be possessed
by devils, poor and lowly,
ordered around by others,
plagued by many ailments,
thin and gaunt,
having no one to turn to.
Though he attached
himself to others, they
would never think of him;
though he might
gain something,
he would at once
lose or forget it.
Though he might practice
the art of medicine
and by its methods
cure someone's disease,
the person
would grow sicker
from some other malady
and perhaps in the end
would die.
If he himself
had an illness,
no one would aid
or nurse him, and though
he took good medicine,
it would only make
his condition worse.
If others should
turn against him,
he would find himself
plundered and robbed.
His sins would be such
that they would bring
unexpected disaster on him.
A sinful person
of this sort will
never see the Buddha,
the king of the many sages,
preaching the Dharma
(true teaching),
teaching and converting.
A sinful person of this sort
will constantly be born
amid difficulties, crazed,
deaf, confused in mind,
and never will hear
the Dharma (true teaching).
For countless kalpas
numerous as Ganges sands
he will at birth
become deaf and dumb,
his faculties impaired,
will constantly
dwell in hell,
strolling in it as though
it were a garden,
and the other evil paths
of existence
he will look on
as his own home.
Camel, donkey, pig, dog –
these will be the forms
he will take on.
Because
he slandered this sutra,
this is the punishment
he will incur.
If he should become
a human being, he will
be deaf, blind, dumb.
Poverty, want,
all kinds of decay
will be his adornment;
water blisters, diabetes,
scabs, sores, ulcers,
maladies such as these
will be his garments.
His body
will always smell bad,
filthy and impure.
Deeply attached
to views of self,
he will grow
in anger and hatred;
aflame with
licentious desires,
he will not spurn
even birds or beasts.
Because
he slandered this sutra,
this is the punishment
he will incur.
I tell you, Shariputra,
if I were to describe
the punishments
that fall on persons
who slander this sutra,
I could exhaust a kalpa
and never come to the end.
For this reason
I expressly say to you,
do not preach this sutra
to persons
who are without wisdom.
But if there are those
of keen capacities,
wise and understanding,
of much learning
and strong memory,
who seek the Buddha way,
then to persons
such as this
it is permissible
to preach it.
If there are persons
who have seen
hundreds and thousands
and millions of Buddhas,
have planted
many good roots
and are firm and deeply
committed in mind, then
to persons such as this
it is permissible
to preach it.
If there are persons
who are diligent,
constantly cultivating
a compassionate mind,
not begrudging life or limb,
then it is permissible
to preach it.
If there are persons
who are respectful,
reverent with minds
set on nothing else,
who separate themselves
from common folly
to live alone among
mountains and waters, then
to persons such as this
it is permissible
to preach it.
Again, Shariputra,
if you see a person who
thrusts aside evil friends
and associates with
good companions, then
to a person such as this
it is permissible
to preach it.
If you see
a son of the Buddha
observing the precepts,
clean and spotless
as a pure bright gem,
seeking
the Great Vehicle Sutra,
then to a person
such as this
it is permissible
to preach it.
If a person is
without anger,
upright and gentle
in nature, constantly
pitying all beings,
respectful and reverent
to the Buddhas, then
to a person such as this
it is permissible
to preach it.
Again,
if a son of the Buddha
in the midst
of the great assembly
should with a pure mind
employ various causes
and conditions,
similes, parables,
and other expressions
to preach the Dharma
in unhindered fashion,
to a person such as this
it is permissible
to preach it.
If there are monks who,
for the sake of
comprehensive wisdom,
seek the Dharma
in every direction,
pressing palms together,
gratefully accepting,
desiring only to accept
and embrace the sutra
of the Great Vehicle
and not accepting
a single verse
of the other sutras,
to persons such as this
it is permissible
to preach it.
If a person,
earnest in mind,
seeks this sutra as though
he were seeking
the Buddha's relics,
and having gained and
gratefully accepted it,
that person shows
no intention
of seeking other sutras
and has never once
given thought
to the writings of the
non-Buddhist doctrines,
to a person such as this
it is permissible
to preach it.
I tell you Shariputra,
if I described
all the characteristics
of those who seek
the Buddha way,
I could exhaust a kalpa
and never be done.
Persons of this type
are capable of believing
and understanding.
Therefore for them
you should preach
the Lotus Sutra of
the Wonderful Dharma.