ཟླ་བའ་མད intro.2
The Sūtra of the Moon (2) intro.2
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intro.2
The Sūtra of the Moon (2) is a short sūtra explaining how a lunar eclipse involves the covering of the moon by the asura Rāhu. While the Buddha Śākyamuni is staying at the Traveler’s Pond in Campā, the moon is covered by Rāhu, lord of the asuras. Candramas, the god of the moon, asks the Buddha for refuge, after which the Buddha urges Rāhu to release the moon. Seeing that Rāhu has set the moon free, Bali, another lord of the asuras, asks Rāhu why he did so. The asura explains that if he had not released the moon, his head would have split into seven pieces. The text concludes with a verse praising the emergence of buddhas.