The Wonderful Lotus Sutra

• bohiruci

  19 Aug 06, 06:47

  Translated by Burton Watson
  Chapter One: Introduction
  
  This is what I heard:
  
  At one time the Buddha was in Rajagriha, staying on Mount Gridhrakuta. Accompanying him were a multitude of leading monks numbering twelve thousand persons. All were Arhats whose outflows had come to an end, who had no more earthly desires, who had attained what was to their advantage and had put an end to the bonds of existence, and whose minds had achieved a state of freedom.
  
  Their names were Ajnata Kaundinya, Mahakashyapa, Uruvilvakashyapa, Gayakashyapa, Nadikashyapa, Shariputra, Great Maudgaly~yana, Mahakatyayana, Aniruddha, Kapphina, Gavampati, Revata, Pilindavatsa, Bakkula, Mahakaushthila, Nanda, Sundarananda, Purna Maitrayaniputra, Subhuti, �nanda, and Rahula. All were like these, great Arhats who were well known to others.
  
  There were also two thousand persons, some of whom were still learning and some who had completed their learning.
  
  There was the nun Maha Prajapati with her six thousand followers. And there was Rahula's mother, the nun Yashodhara, with her followers.
  
  There were bodhisattvas and Mahasattvas, eighty thousand of them, none of them ever regressing in their search for anuttara-samyak-sambodhi. All had gained dharanis, delighted in preaching, were eloquent, and turned the wheel of the Law that knows no regression. They had made offerings to immeasurable hundreds and thousands of Buddhas, in the presence of various Buddhas had planted numerous roots of virtue, had been constantly praised by the Buddhas, had trained themselves in compassion, were good at entering the Buddha wisdom, and had fully penetrated the great wisdom and reached the farther shore. Their fame had spread throughout immeasurable worlds and they were able to save countless hundreds of thousands of living beings.
  
  Their names were Bodhisattva Manjushri, Bodhisattva Perceiver of the World's Sounds, Bodhisattva Gainer of Great Authority, Bodhisattva Constant Exertion, Bodhisattva Never Resting, Bodhisattva Jeweled Palm, Bodhisattva Medicine King, Bodhisattva Brave Donor, Bodhisattva Jeweled Moon, Bodhisattva Moonlight, Bodhisattva Full Moon, Bodhisattva Great Strength, Bodhisattva Immeasurable Strength, Bodhisattva Transcending the Threefold World, Bodhisattva Bhadrapala, Bodhisattva Maitreya, Bodhisattva Jeweled Accumulation, and Bodhisattva Guiding Leader. Bodhisattvas and mahasattvas such as these numbering eighty thousand were in attendance.
  
  http://www.buddhistinformation.com/chapter_1.htm
• bohiruci

  19 Aug 06, 06:48

  At that time Shakra Devanam Indra with his followers, twenty thousand sons of gods, also attended. There were also the sons of gods Rare Moon, Pervading Fragrance, Jeweled Glow, and the Four Great Heavenly Kings, along with their followers, ten thousand sons of gods.
  
  Present were the sons of gods Freedom and Great Freedom and their followers, thirty thousand sons of gods, Present were King Brahma, lord of the Saha world, the great Brahma Shikhin, and the great Brahma Light Bright, and their followers, twelve thousand sons of gods.
  
  There were eight dragon kings, the dragon king Nanda, the dragon king Upananda, the dragon king Sagara, the dragon king Vasuki, the dragon king Takshaka, the dragon king Anavatapta, the dragon king Manasvin, the dragon king Utpalaka, each with several hundreds of thousands of followers.
  
  There were four kimnara kings, the kimnara king Great Law, and the kimnara king Upholding the Law, each with several hundreds of thousands of followers.
  
  There were four gandharva kings, and gandharva king Pleasant, the gandharva king Pleasant Sound, the gandharva Beautiful Sound, each with several hundreds of thousands of followers.
  
  There were four asura kings, the asura king Balin, the asura king Kharaskandha, the asura king Vemachitrin, and the asura king Rahu, each with several hundreds of thousands of followers.
  
  There were four garuda kings, the garuda king Great Majesty, the garuda king Great Body, the garuda king Great Fullness, and the garuda king As One Wishes, each with several hundreds of thousands of followers. And there was King Ajatashatru, the son of Vaidehi, with several hundreds of thousands of followers.
  
  Each of these, after bowing in obeisance before the Buddha's feet, withdrew and took a seat to one side.
  
  At that time the World-Honored One, surrounded by the four kinds of believers, received offerings and tokens of respect and was honored and praised. And for the sake of the bodhisattvas he preached the Great Vehicle sutra entitle Immeasurable Meanings, a Law to instruct the bodhisattvas, one that is guarded and kept in mind by the Buddhas.
  
  When the Buddha had finished preaching this Sutra, he sat with his legs crossed in lotus position and entered into the samádhi of the place of immeasurable meanings, his body and mind never moving. At that time heaven rained down mandarava flowers, great mandarava flowers, manjushaka flowers, and great manjushaka flowers, scattering them over the Buddha and over the great assembly, and everywhere the Buddha world quaked and trembled in six different ways.
  
  
• yamizi

  19 Aug 06, 08:35

  I don't exactly know the difference but if people were to ask me for the English version of the Lotus Sutra, I'll suggest to read up "The Threefold Lotus Sutra" published by KOSEI. Since this translated version includes the commonly accepted prologue and epilogue, The Sutra of Immeasurable Meanings and The Sutra of Meditation on the Bodhisattva Universal Virtue. KOSEI is a publishing company under Rissho Kosei-Kai, a recognised Nichiren buddhist denomination.
  
  Burton Watson on the other hand, translated for Soka Gakkai with assistance from the Nichiren Shoshu International Center.
  
  For your information.
• bohiruci

  19 Aug 06, 10:07

  Originally posted by yamizi:

  I don't exactly know the difference but if people were to ask me for the English version of the Lotus Sutra, I'll suggest to read up "The Threefold Lotus Sutra" published by KOSEI. Since this translated version includes the commonly accepted prologue and epilogue, The Sutra of Immeasurable Meanings and The Sutra of Meditation on the Bodhisattva Universal Virtue. KOSEI is a publishing company under Rissho Kosei-Kai, a recognised Nichiren buddhist denomination.
  
  Burton Watson on the other hand, translated for Soka Gakkai with assistance from the Nichiren Shoshu International Center.
  
  For your information.

  Well ,The lotus sutra translation in English by Burton Watson is for Sokka Gakkai
  
  but anyway we are only posting as it is the most readily available unabridge Lotus Sutra
  
  We will NOT follow the Commentary by Sokka Gakkai International as it is
  not recognised by Wisdom Bliss ,Compassionate Affnity and
  
  Buddhism Chan ,Dzogchen and Mahamudra
  
  For Everyone knowledge.
  
• bohiruci

  19 Aug 06, 10:09

  At that time the monks, nuns, laymen, laywomen, heavenly beings, dragons, yakshas, gandharvas, asuras, garudas, kimnaras, mahoragas, human and nonhuman beings in the assembly, as well as the petty kings and wheel-turning sage kings - all those in the great assembly, having gained what they had never had before, were filled with joy and, pressing their palms together, gazed at the Buddha with a single mind.
  
  At that time the Buddha emitted a ray of light from the tuft of white hair between his eyebrows, one of his characteristic features, lighting up eighteen thousand worlds in the eastern direction. There was no place that the light did not penetrate, reaching downward as far as the Avichi hell and upward to the Akanishtha heaven.
  
  From this world one could see the living beings in the six paths of existence in all of those other lands. One could likewise see the Buddhas present at that time in those other lands and could hear the sutra teachings which those Buddhas were expounding. At the same time one could see the monks, nuns laymen, and laywomen who had carried out religious practices and attained the way. One could also see the bodhisattvas and Mahasattvas who, through various causes and conditions and various types of faith and understanding and in various forms and aspects were carrying out the way of the bodhisattva. And one could also see the Buddhas who had entered parinirvana, towers adorned with the seven treasures were erected for the Buddha relics.
  
  At that time the Bodhisattva Maitreya had this thought: Now the World-Honored One has manifested these miraculous signs. But what is the cause of these auspicious portents? Now the Buddha, the World Honored One, has entered into samádhi. An unfathomable event such as this is seldom to be met with. Whom shall I question about this? Who can give me an answer?
  
  And again he had this thought: this Manjushri, son of a Dharma King, has already personally attended and given offerings to immeasurable numbers of Buddhas in the past. Surely he must see these rare signs. I will now question him.
  
  At this time the monks, nuns, laymen and laywomen, as well as the heavenly beings, dragons, spirits, and the others all had this thought: this beam of brightness from the Buddha, these signs of transcendental powers - now whom shall we question about them?
  
  
• bohiruci

  19 Aug 06, 10:10

  At that time Bodhisattva Maitreya wished to settle his doubts concerning the matter. And in addition he could see what was in the minds of the four kinds of believers, the monks, nuns, laymen and laywomen, as well as the heavenly beings, dragons, spirits and the others who made up the assembly. So he questioned Manjushri, saying, "What is the cause of these auspicious portents, these signs of transcendental powers, this emitting of a great beam of brightness that illumines the eighteen thousand lands in the eastern direction so we can see all the adornments of the Buddha worlds there?"
  
  Then Bodhisattva Maitreya, wishing to state his meaning once more, asked the question in verse form:
  
  Manjushri,
  Why from the white tuft between the eyebrows
  of our leader and teacher
  does this great light shine all around?
  Why do mandarava
  and manjushaka flowers rain down
  and breezes scented with sandalwood
  delight the hearts of the assembly?
  Because of these
  the earth is everywhere adorned and purified
  and this world
  quakes and trembles in six different ways.
  At this time the four kinds of believers
  are all filled with joy and delight,
  they rejoice in body and mind,
  having gained what they never had before.
  
  
• bohiruci

  19 Aug 06, 10:11

  The beam of brightness from between the eyebrows
  illumines the eastern direction
  and eighteen thousand lands
  are all the color of gold.
  From the Avichi hell
  upward to the Summit of Being,
  throughout the various worlds
  the living beings in the six paths,
  the realm to which their births and deaths are tending,
  their good and bad deeds,
  and the pleasing or ugly recompense they receive -
  all these can be seen from here.
  We can also see Buddhas,
  those sage lords, lions,
  expounding and preaching sutras
  that are subtle, wonderful and foremost.
  Their voices are clear and pure,
  issuing in soft and gentle sounds,
  as they teach bodhisattvas
  in numberless millions.
  Their Brahma sounds are profound and wonderful,
  making people delight in hearing them.
  Each in his own world
  preaches the correct Law,
  following various causes and conditions
  and employing immeasurable similes,
  illuminating the Law of the Buddha,
  guiding living beings to enlightenment.
  If a person should encounter troubles,
  loathing old age, sickness and death,
  the Buddhas preach to him on nirvana,
  explaining how he may put an end to all troubles.
  If a person should have good fortune,
  having in the past made offerings to the Buddhas,
  determined to seek a superior Law,
  the Buddhas preach the way of the Pratyekabuddha.
  If there should be Buddha sons
  who carry out various religious practices,
  seeking to attain the unsurpassed wisdom,
  the Buddhas preach the way of purity.
  Manjushri,
  I have been dwelling here,
  seeing and hearing in this manner
  many things numbering in the thousands of millions.
  Numerous as they are,
  I will now speak of them in brief.
  I see in these lands
  bodhisattvas numerous as Ganges sands,
  according with various causes and conditions
  and seeking the way of the Buddha.
  Some of them give alms,
  gold, silver, coral,
  pears, mani jewels,
  seashell, agate,
  diamonds and other rarities,
  men and women servants, carriages,
  jeweled hand carriages and palanquins,
  gladly presenting these donations.
  Such gifts they give to the Buddha way,
  desiring to achieve the vehicle
  that is foremost in the threefold world
  and praised by the Buddhas.
  There are some bodhisattvas
  who give jeweled carriages drawn by teams of four,
  with railings and flowered canopies
  adorning their top and sides.
  Again I see bodhisattvas
  who give their own flesh, hands and feet,
  or their wives and children,
  seeking the unsurpassed way.
  I also see bodhisattvas
  who happily give
  heads, eyes, bodies and limbs
  in their search for the Buddha wisdom.
  Manjushri,
  I see kings
  going to visit the place of the Buddha
  to ask him about the unsurpassed way.
  They put aside their happy lands,
  their palaces, their men and women attendants,
  shave their hair and beard
  and don the clothes of the Dharma.
  Or I see bodhisattvas
  who become monks,
  living alone in quietude,
  delighting in chanting the sutras.
  Again I see bodhisattvas
  bravely and vigorously exerting themselves,
  entering the deep mountains,
  their thoughts on the Buddha way.
  And I see them removing themselves from desire,
  constantly dwelling in emptiness and stillness,
  advancing deep into the practice of mediation
  until they have gained the five transcendental powers.
  And I see bodhisattvas
  resting in meditation, palms pressed together,
  with a thousand, ten thousand verses
  praising the king of the doctrines.
  Again I see bodhisattvas,
  profound in wisdom, firm in purpose,
  who know how to question the Buddhas
  and accept and abide by all they hear.
  I see Buddha sons
  proficient in both meditation and wisdom,
  who use immeasurable numbers of similes
  to expound the Law to the assembly,
  delighting in preaching the Law,
  converting the bodhisattvas,
  defeating the legions of the devil
  and beating the Dharma drum.
  And I see bodhisattvas
  profoundly still and silent,
  honored by heavenly beings and dragons
  but not counting that a joy.
  And I see bodhisattvas
  living in forests, emitting light,
  saving those who suffer in hell,
  causing them to enter the Buddha way.
  And I see Buddha sons
  who have never once slept,
  who keep circling through the forest
  diligently seeking the Buddha way.
  And I see those who observe the precepts,
  no flaw in their conduct,
  pure as jewels and gems,
  and in that manner seeking the Buddha way.
  And I see Buddha sons
  abiding in the strength of fortitude,
  taking the abuse and blows
  of persons of overbearing arrogance,
  willing to suffer all these,
  and in that manner seeking the Buddha way.
  I see bodhisattvas
  removing themselves form frivolity and laughter
  and from foolish companions,
  befriending persons of wisdom,
  unifying their minds, dispelling confusion,
  ordering their thoughts in mountain and forest
  for a million, a thousand, ten thousand years
  in that manner seeking the Buddha way.
  Or I see bodhisattvas
  with delicious things to eat and drink
  and a hundred kinds of medicinal potions,
  offering them to the Buddha and his monks;
  fine robes and superior garments
  costing in the thousands or ten thousands,
  or robes that are beyond cast,
  offering them to the Buddha and his monks;
  a thousand, ten thousand, a million kinds
  of jeweled dwellings made of sandalwood
  and numerous wonderful articles of bedding,
  offering them to the Buddha and his monks;
  immaculate gardens and groves
  where flowers and fruit abound,
  flowing springs and bathing pools,
  offering them to the Buddha and his monks;
  offerings of this kind,
  or many different wonderful varieties
  presented gladly and without regret
  as they seek the unsurpassed way.
  
• bohiruci

  19 Aug 06, 10:12

  Or there are bodhisattvas
  who expound the Law of tranquil extinction,
  giving different types of instruction
  to numberless living beings.
  Or I see bodhisattvas
  viewing the nature of all phenomena
  as having no dual characteristics,
  as being like empty space.
  And I see Buddha sons
  whose minds have no attachments,
  who use this wonderful wisdom
  to seek the unsurpassed way.
  
  Manjushri,
  there are also bodhisattvas
  who after the Buddha has passed into extinction
  make offerings to his relics.
  I see Buddha sons
  building memorial towers
  as numberless as Ganges sands,
  ornamenting each land with them,
  jeweled towers lofty and wonderful,
  five thousand yojanas high,
  their width and depth
  exactly two thousand yojanas,
  each of these memorial towers
  with its thousand banners and streamers,
  with curtains laced with gems like dewdrops
  and jeweled bells chiming harmoniously.
  There heavenly beings, dragons, spirits,
  human and nonhuman beings,
  with incense, flowers and music
  constantly making offerings.
  Manjushri,
  these Buddha sons
  in order to make offerings to the relics
  adorn the memorial towers
  so that each land, just as it is,
  is as outstandingly wonderful and lovely
  as the heavenly king of trees
  when its flowers open and unfold.
  When the Buddha emits a beam of light
  I and the other members of the assembly
  can see these lands
  in all their various outstanding wonders.
  The supernatural powers of the Buddhas
  and their wisdom are rare indeed;
  by emitting one pure beam of light,
  the Buddhas illuminate countless lands.
  I and the others have seen this,
  have gained something never known before.
  Buddha son, Manjushri,
  I beg you to settle the doubts of the assembly.
  The four kinds of believers look up in happy anticipation,
  gazing at you and me.
  Why does the World-Honored One
  emit this beam of brightness?
  Buddha son, give a timely answer,
  settle these doubts and occasion joy!
  What rich benefits will come
  from the projecting of this beam of brightness?
  It must be that the Buddha wishes to expound
  the wonderful Law he gained
  when he sat in the place of practice.
  He must have prophecies to bestow.
  He has showed us Buddha lands
  with their adornment and purity of manifold treasures,
  and we have seen their Buddhas -
  this is not done for petty reasons.
  Manjushri, you must know.
  The four kinds of believers, the dragons and spirits
  gaze at you in surmise,
  wondering what explanation you will give.
  
  
• bohiruci

  19 Aug 06, 10:14

  At that time Manjushri said to the bodhisattva and Mahasattva Maitreya and the other great men: "Good men, I suppose that the Buddha, the World Honored One, wishes now to expound the great Law, to rain down the rain of the great Law, to blow the conch of the great Law, to beat the drum of the great Law, to elucidate the meaning of the great Law. Good men, in the past I have seen this auspicious portent among the Buddhas. They emitted a beam of light like this, and after that they expounded the great Law. Therefore we should know that now, when the present Buddha manifests this light, we will do likewise. He wishes to cause all living beings to hear and understand the Law, which is difficult for all the world to believe. Therefore he has manifested this auspicious portent.
  
  
• bohiruci

  19 Aug 06, 10:15

  "Good men, once, at a time that was an immeasurable, boundless, inconceivable number of asamkhya kalpas in the past, there was a Buddha named Sun Moon Bright, Thus Come One, 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, who expounded the correct Law. His exposition was good at the beginning, good in the middle, good at the end. The meaning was profound and far-reaching, the words were skillful and wondrous. It was pure and without alloy, complete, clean and spotless, and bore the marks of Brahma practice."
  
  "For the sake of those seeking to become voice-hearers he responded by expounding the Law of the four noble truths, so that they could transcend birth, old age, sickness and death and attain nirvana. For the sake of those seeking to become Pratyekabuddhas he responded by expounding the Law of the twelve-linked chain of causation. For the sake of the bodhisattvas he responded by expounding the six paramitas, causing them to gain anuttara-samyak-sambodhi and to acquire the wisdom that embraces all species."
  
  "Then there was another Buddha who was also named Sun Moon Bright, and then another Buddha also named Sun Moon Bright. There were twenty thousand Buddhas like this, all with the same appellation, all named Sun Moon Bright. And all had the same surname, the surname Bharadvaja. Maitreya, you should understand that from the first Buddha to the last, all had the same appellation, all were named Sun Moon Bright. They were worthy of all the ten epithets and the Law they expounded was good at the beginning, in the middle, and at the end."
  
  "The last Buddha, when he had not yet left family life, had eight princely sons. The first was named Having Intention, the second Good Intention, the third Immeasurable intention, the fourth jeweled intention, the fifth Increased Intention, the sixth Cleansed of Doubt Intention, the seventh Echoing Intention, and the eighth Law Intention. Dignity and virtue came easily to them, and each presided over a four-continent realm."
  
  "When these princes heard that their father had left family life and had gained anuttara-samyak-sambodhi, they all cast aside their princely positions and followed him by leaving family life. Conceiving a desire for the Great Vehicle, the constantly carried out Brahma practices, and all became teachers of the Law. They had already planted good roots in the company of a thousand, ten thousand Buddhas."
  
  "At that time the Buddha Sun Moon Bright preached the Great Vehicle sutra entitled Immeasurable Meanings, a Law to instruct the Bodhisattvas, one that is guarded and kept in mind by the Buddhas. When he had finished preaching the sutra, he sat cross-legged in the midst of the great assembly and entered into the samádhi of the place of immeasurable meanings, his body and mind never moving. At this time heaven rained down mandarava flowers, great mandarava flowers, manjushaka flowers, and great manjushaka flowers, scattering them over the Buddha and the great assembly, and everywhere the Buddha world quaked and trembled in six different ways."