妙法蓮華經 1.28

1.28

“I recall in ages past, immeasurable, countless kalpas ago, / There was a Buddha, the Most Honoured among men, named Candrasūryapradīpa. / The Bhagavat expounded the Dharma, delivering immeasurable sentient beings / And countless kotis of bodhisattvas, causing them to enter the Buddha’s wisdom. / Before the Buddha left home, he had eight sons; / Seeing the Great Sage leave home, they likewise followed to practice the brahma-faring. / Then the Buddha preached the Mahāyāna, a sūtra named Immeasurable Meanings, / Extensively distinguishing it among the great assembly. / Having spoken this sūtra, right upon the Dharma-seat, / He sat cross-legged in the samādhi named the Abode of Immeasurable Meanings. / Mandārava flowers rained from the sky, heavenly drums sounded spontaneously, / And the devas, nāgas, ghosts, and spirits made offerings to the Most Honoured among men. / All the Buddha lands then shook mightily; / The Buddha emitted a ray from the mark between his brows, revealing wondrous and rare occurrences. / This light illuminated the eastern direction, eighteen thousand Buddha lands, / Showing where all sentient beings receive their karmic recompense of saṃsāra. / Some saw those Buddha lands adorned with diverse jewels, / The colour of lapis lazuli and crystal, all revealed by the Buddha's light. / They also saw devas, humans, nāgas, spirits, yakṣas, / Gandharvas, and kinnaras, each making offerings to their Buddha. / Again, they saw the Tathāgatas spontaneously attaining the Buddha path, / Their bodies the colour of gold mountains, upright, majestic, and exceedingly subtle, / As within pure lapis lazuli an image of true gold is revealed; / The Bhagavats in the great assemblies expounded the profound meaning of the Dharma. / In each of the Buddha lands the śrāvakas were countless; / Illuminated by the Buddha's light, that whole assembly was fully visible. / There were also bhikṣus living in mountain forests, / Vigorously upholding pure precepts as if guarding a bright pearl. / Again, they saw bodhisattvas practicing giving, patience, and the like, / In numbers like the sands of the Ganges, all revealed by the Buddha's light. / Again, they saw bodhisattvas deeply entering dhyāna concentrations, / Their bodies and minds still and unmoving, seeking the unsurpassed path. / Again, they saw bodhisattvas knowing the tranquil aspect of phenomena, / Each in his own realm preaching the Dharma and seeking the Buddha path. / At that time the fourfold assembly, seeing the Buddha Candrasūryapradīpa / Manifest such great supernatural power, were all joyful at heart / And asked one another: ‘What is the cause of this event?’ / The Honoured One revered by gods and men had just arisen from samādhi / And praised Bodhisattva Varaprabha: ‘You are the eye of the world, / The refuge and faith of all, able to uphold the Dharma treasury; / As for the Dharma I preach, only you can bear witness and know it.’ / The Bhagavat having praised him, causing Varaprabha to rejoice, / Preached this Lotus Sūtra for a full sixty minor kalpas / Without rising from this seat. The supreme and subtle Dharma that was spoken / This Dharmabhāṇaka Varaprabha was entirely able to receive and uphold. / The Buddha, having spoken this Lotus and gladdened the assembly, / Then on that very day announced to the assembly of gods and humans: / ‘The meaning of the true aspect of phenomena has already been preached to you; / Tonight at midnight I shall enter nirvāṇa. / Be single-minded in vigorous exertion, and remain free from heedlessness; / Buddhas are exceedingly difficult to meet, encountered only once in kotis of kalpas.’ / The sons of the Bhagavat, hearing that the Buddha would enter nirvāṇa, / Each harboured sorrow and grief: ‘How swift is the Buddha’s passing!’ / The Holy Lord, King of the Dharma, comforted the immeasurable assembly: / ‘When I enter parinirvāṇa, do not be anxious or afraid; / This Bodhisattva Guṇagambhiragarbha has already attained / A mind fully penetrating the unblemished true aspect of phenomena. / Next he will become a Buddha named Vimalagātra, / And he too will deliver immeasurable beings.’ / The Buddha entered parinirvāṇa that night, like fire extinguished when the fuel is spent; / His relics were distributed and immeasurable stūpas raised. / Bhikṣus and bhikṣuṇīs, in numbers like the sands of the Ganges, / Redoubled their vigorous exertion to seek the unsurpassed path. / This Dharmabhāṇaka Varaprabha upheld the treasury of the Buddha’s Dharma, / And for eighty minor kalpas broadly proclaimed the Lotus Sūtra. / These eight princes were instructed and converted by Varaprabha, / Firmly set on the unsurpassed path, destined to see countless Buddhas. / Having made offerings to those Buddhas, they followed and practiced the great path, / Successively attaining Buddhahood and passing on the vyākaraṇa. / The last Deva of Devas was named Dīpaṃkara Buddha, / Guide of the sages, delivering immeasurable multitudes. / This Dharmabhāṇaka Varaprabha then had a disciple / Whose mind was constantly indolent, greedy for fame and profit, / Insatiable in seeking fame and profit, frequently visiting noble families; / He discarded what he had studied and recited, neglecting and forgetting without fluency. / For these reasons he was called Yaśaskāma. / Yet he also practiced many wholesome deeds, came to meet countless Buddhas, / Made offerings to the Buddhas, followed and practiced the great path, / Perfected the six pāramitās, and now meets the Lion of the Śākyas. / Hereafter he will become a Buddha named Maitreya, / Broadly delivering sentient beings in numbers beyond measure. / After that Buddha entered parinirvāṇa, that indolent one was you; / And the Dharmabhāṇaka Varaprabha is now none other than myself. / When I saw the lamp-illumined Buddha, the original portent of light was like this; / Therefore I know that the present Buddha wishes to preach the Lotus Sūtra. / The present sign is like the former omen; this is the upāya of the Buddhas. / The present Buddha emits a ray of light to help reveal the meaning of the true aspect. / All people should now know and, with palms joined and single-minded, await: / The Buddha will rain the Dharma rain to satisfy those who seek the path. / Those who seek the Three Vehicles, if they harbor doubts and regrets, / The Buddha will cut them off and dispel them, leaving none remaining.”