འཕགས་པ་བྱམས་པས་ཞས་པ་ཞས་བྱ་བ་ཐག་པ་ཆན་པའ་མད 14

14

who uttered these verses of praise to the Tathāgata, the Arhat, the perfectly enlightened Buddha Jyoti­vikrīḍitābhijña.”

The venerable Ānanda asked, “Blessed One, if this bodhisattva mahāsattva Maitreya developed acceptance so long ago of the fact that all phenomena are unproduced, why did he not quickly realize supreme, perfect enlightenment and become a buddha?”

The Blessed One replied to the venerable Ānanda, “Ānanda, the bodhisattvas set in place and protect¹⁷ two things. What two things? They set in place and protect sentient beings, and they set in place and protect their buddha realms. But of these two, when formerly the bodhisattva mahāsattva Maitreya was engaged in the conduct of a bodhisattva, he set in place, consecrated, and protected his buddha realm.

“Ānanda, when I myself was formerly engaged in the conduct of a bodhisattva, I set in place and protected sentient beings, and I also set in place and protected my buddha realm. Ānanda, I knew through foresight that forty-two eons after the bodhisattva mahāsattva Maitreya entered the path I would first arouse the mind of supreme, perfect enlightenment. Ānanda, with the knowledge that, ninety-four eons after that good eon had passed, I would realize supreme, perfect enlightenment, I applied myself, Ānanda, with burning diligence