The Flower Ornament Scripture

by Thomas Cleary

  Adorn a single land,

  Each radiating light,

  Produced by the Buddhas’ vows.

  There are some lands

  Purified by the power of vows;

  In each of their adornments

  Are seen all oceans of worlds.

  The pure lands realized by those

  Who practice the vows of universal good

  Manifest within themselves the adornments

  Of past, present, and future lands.

  You should observe, O Children of Buddha,

  The spiritual power in the systems of worlds:

  The worlds of the future, all

  They’ll show you, like in a dream.

  The worlds of the ten directions,

  The oceans of lands of the past,

  All within a single land

  Show their forms, like phantoms.

  All Buddhas of past, present, and future,

  As well as their lands,

  Can all be observed

  In a single world system.

  The spiritual power of all Buddhas

  Shows many lands in an atom:

  Of various kinds, all clearly seen,

  Like reflections, they have no true reality.

  There are many lands

  Whose forms are like oceans;

  And lands like polar mountains

  Are inconceivable in number.

  Some lands are well disposed,

  Formed like Indra’s net;

  Some are shaped like forests,

  With Buddhas filling them.

  Some are shaped like jewel discs,

  Some like lotus blossoms,

  Or octagonal, with all decorations;

  They’re various, and all pure.

  Some are shaped like seats,

  Some again are triangular;

  Some are like pure jewels,

  Castle walls, or celestial bodies.

  Some are like gods’ topknots,

  Some like the half-moon;

  Some are like crystal mountains,

  Some like the solar orb.

  The shape of some of the worlds

  Is like whirlpools in a fragrant sea;

  Some are spheres of light,

  Purified by Buddhas past.

  Some are shaped like wheel rims,

  Some are altar-shaped;

  Some are like Buddha’s hair curl,

  His flesh topknot, or large long eyes.

  Some are like Buddha’s hand,

  Some like thunderbolts,

  Some are like mountains of flames;

  Enlightening beings fill them all.

  Some are shaped like lions,

  Some like seashells;

  Of infinite colors and forms,

  Their substances are each distinct.

  In one system of worlds

  Are endless forms of lands;

  All depend on Buddhas’ vow power

  For protection and stability.

  Some lands last an eon,

  Some exist for ten eons,

  Or for more eons than atoms

  In a hundred thousand lands.

  In a single eon

  Lands are seen to dissolve;

  Measureless or countless,

  Or inconceivably many of them.

  Some lands have a Buddha,

  And some lands do not;

  Some have just one Buddha,

  And some have countless Buddhas.

  If a land has no Buddha,

  Then a Buddha from another world

  Will mystically appear there

  To manifest the works of Buddhas—

  Dying in heaven and descending in spirit,

  Residing in a womb and being born,

  Vanquishing demons and becoming enlightened,

  Turning the wheel of the unexcelled teaching;

  According to the inclinations of beings’ minds

  Buddha manifests various forms,

  Teaching them the sublime truth

  In accord with each of their faculties.

  In each buddha-field

  A Buddha appears in the world,

  Spending billions of years

  Expounding unexcelled truths.

  If beings are not vessels of truth,

  They cannot see the Buddhas;

  If any have the will,

  They see Buddha everywhere.

  In each individual buddha-field

  Is a Buddha appearing in the world;

  The Buddhas in all lands

  Are inconceivable in number.

  Herein each and every Buddha

  Shows countless mystic transformations,

  Pervading the entire universe,

  Taming the ocean of beings.

  Some lands have no light;

  They’re dark and full of fear,

  With pains like knives and swords:

  Those who see them suffer by themselves.

  Some have heavenly lights;

  Some, lights of palaces;

  Some have sun and moon lights:

  Inconceivable are the networks of lands.

  Some lands are inherently luminous,

  In some the trees emit pure light;

  There has never been suffering there,

  Due to the power of beings’ virtue.

  Some have lights of mountains,

  Some have crystal lights,

  Some are lit by lamps:

  All the force of beings’ deeds.

  Some have Buddhas’ auras,

  Filled with enlightening beings;

  Some are lotus blossom lights

  With magnificent blazing colors.

  Some lands are lit by flower lights,

  Some by the sheen of fragrant waters,

  Or by perfumes and burning incense;

  All comes from the force of pure vows.

  Some are lit by cloud lights,

  Some by jewel oysters’ lights;

  The light of Buddhas’ mystic power

  Can intone gladdening sounds.

  Some are lit by jewel lights,

  Some by diamond flames.

  Their pure sounds can shake far-off realms;

  Wherever they reach there are no pains.

  Some have crystal lights

  Or lights from ornaments

  Or from enlightenment scenes

  Shining in the crowds.

  Buddha emanates a great light

  Filled with phantom Buddhas;

  That light touches all with its glow,

  Pervading the whole cosmos.

  Some lands are terrifying,

  With great howls of pain,

  Those voices most bitter and harsh,

  Frightening all who hear.

  The realms of hells and beasts

  As well as the nether worlds:

  These are polluted, evil worlds,

  From which always come cries of pain and distress.

  There are some lands

  That always produce enjoyable sounds,

  Pleasing, in accord with the teaching;

  This is attained by pure deeds.

  In some lands are always heard

  Heavenly sounds of various gods,

  Pure sounds of celestial realms,

  Or the voices of leaders of the worlds.

  There are some lands

  That produce wonderful sounds from clouds;

  They’re filled with jewel seas,

  Crystal trees, and music.

  In the auras of the Buddhas

  Are endless magical voices

  And those of enlightening beings

  Heard throughout all lands:

  The voices expounding the teaching

  In inconceivably many lands,

  The voices produced by the ocean of vows,

  The wondrous tales of practical action.

  The Buddhas of past, present, and future,

  Are born in the various worlds,

  Fulfilling all their epithets,


  Their voices without any end;

  In some lands is heard

  The voice of all Buddhas’ powers;

  The stages, the transcendent ways, and such

  Teachings are all expounded.

  The power of the vows of universal good

  Intones wondrous sayings in billions of worlds,

  That sound like thunder shaking,

  Remaining for endless ages.

  The Buddhas in pure lands

  Manifest independent speech

  Heard by one and all

  Throughout the cosmos, everywhere.

  BOOK SIX

  Vairocana

  THEN THE ENLIGHTENING BEING Universally Good went on to say to the great assembly, “Children of Buddha, in the remote past, as many eons ago as atoms in a world—nay, even twice as long ago as that, there was an ocean of worlds called All-Sided Pure Light. In that ocean of worlds was a world called Supreme Sound, which rested on a sea of nets of crystal flowers, and had as many satellite worlds as atoms in the polar mountain. It was perfectly round in shape, and its ground was replete with innumerable adornments. It had around it three hundred circles of surrounding mountains, forested with trees of myriad precious substances. It was covered by clouds of all kinds of gems. It was illumined by pure shining light. Its cities and mansions were like great high mountains. Food and clothing appeared whenever thought of. The age then was called Variously Adorned.

  “In that world Supreme Sound was a sea of fragrant water called Pure Light. From the midst of that sea rose a great polar mountain of lotus flowers, called Banner Adorned All Over with Flowery Flames. It was surrounded by balustrades made of ten kinds of precious elements. On the mountain was a great forest, called Circle of Branches with Jewel Flowers. Arrayed all around it were innumerable flower towers and jewel terraces. Everywhere was richly embellished with innumerable banners of exquisite fragrances, jewel mountain pennants, and jewel lotus blossoms. Innumerable nets of aromatic crystal lotus blossoms were draped all around. There was music, harmonious and pleasing. Fragrant clouds shone. All of these were countless, impossible to fully record.

  “There were a million billion trillion cities all around the forest, with various beings living in them. East of this forest was a huge city called Flame Light, the capital city of a human king, surrounded by a million billion trillion cities, all made of pure, beautiful jewels, each one seventy leagues long and seventy leagues wide, with walls made of seven kinds of precious substances. The armory towers to repel attackers were all high and beautifully adorned, with moats made of jewels and precious metals filled with fragrant water, with blue, red, and white lotuses, all of jewels, spread here and there as ornaments. Seven layers of jewel trees also surrounded the city. The palaces and mansions were all adorned with jewels, draped with various beautiful nets, and graced within with perfumes and scattered flowers. There were a million billion trillion gates, all decorated with jewels, with forty-nine jewel banners in front of each gate, arrayed in ranks. There were also a million billion gardens and groves all around, with various mixed scents and the fragrances of crystal trees wafting through them and perfuming everything. Myriad birds sang in harmony, a delight to the hearer.

  “The inhabitants of this great city had all perfected the bases of mystic power as a result of what they had done. They could travel through the sky like celestial beings. Whatever they wanted came to them when they thought of it.

  “Just south of that city was a celestial city called Adorned with Tree Blossoms. To the right of that was a great dragon city called Ultimate. Next to that was a yaksha city called Supreme Banner of Diamonds. Next was a gandharva city called Beautiful Palace. Next was a titan city called Jewel Wheel. Next was a garuda city called Array of Beautiful Jewels. Next was a royal Brahma heaven city called Various Wonderful Adornments. There were a million billion trillion such cities, each surrounded by a million billion trillion palaces, each with innumerable adornments.

  “In this great forest Circle of Branches with Jewel Flowers was a sanctuary called Jewel Flowers Illumining Everywhere, arrayed with many huge jewels, with wreaths of crystal flowers blooming everywhere, blazing with fragrant lamps, covered by flaming clouds containing the colors of all jewels, with webs of light shining everywhere. All the ornaments constantly produced exquisite jewels, and all kinds of music played with elegant sounds. Diamonds showed the bodies of enlightening beings. There were various exquisite flowers everywhere.

  “In front of that sanctuary was an ocean called Fragrant Diamonds, which produced a huge lotus flower called Flaming Circle of Flower Pistils. That flower was a hundred billion leagues across; its stem, leaves, pistils, and base were all of wonderful jewels. It was surrounded by unspeakable hundreds of thousands of billions of trillions of lotuses, constantly radiating light and emanating beautiful sound filling all directions.

  “In the first eon of that world Supreme Sound as many Buddhas as atoms in ten mountains appeared in the world. The first Buddha was called Supreme Clouds on the Mountain of All Virtues. A hundred years before that Buddha was to appear in the world, all the adornments in the great forest Circle of Branches with Jewel Flowers all became pure. That is to say, they produced inconceivable numbers of clouds of jewel flames emanating voices praising the virtues of Buddhas; radiant nets of light intoning the voices of countless Buddhas covered all quarters; the palaces and mansions reflected each other in their glow; lights from jewel flowers clustered into clouds and produced sublime sounds telling of the extensive roots of goodness practiced by all living beings in past times, telling of the names of the Buddhas of past, present, and future, telling of the ultimate path of the vows and deeds carried out by all the enlightening beings, telling of the sublime teachings of the enlightened ones. The manifestation of such magnificent signs revealed that the Buddha was about to appear in the world.

  “Because the kings in that world all saw those signs, their roots of goodness became mature and they all came to the site of enlightenment desirous of seeing the Buddha. Then the Buddha Supreme Cloud on the Mountain of All Virtues suddenly appeared on a big lotus blossom in that sanctuary. His body was everywhere, equal to the cosmos, appearing to be born in all buddha-fields, going to all sites of enlightenment. His boundless pure form was thoroughly pure and could not be outshone by any being in any world, replete with all noble characteristics, each one distinctly clear. His image appeared in all palaces, and all living beings could witness it with their own eyes. Boundless phantom Buddhas emanated from his body, with auras of various colors filling the universe.

  “As on the top of the mountain Banner Adorned with Flowery Flames in this sea of fragrant water Pure Light, in the midst of the great forest Circle of Branches with Jewel Flowers, that Buddha appeared bodily sitting there, so did he appear and sit atop every one of the sixty-eight trillion high mountains in the world Supreme Sound.

  “At that point the Buddha emitted a great light beam from between his brows. That light beam was called Producing the Sounds of All Roots of Goodness, and was accompanied by as many light rays as atoms in ten buddha-fields. That light filled all lands in the ten directions, and if there were any sentient beings with the potential to be harmonized, that light touched them with its radiance and they immediately awoke on their own, ending all feverish confusion, sundering the web of obstruction, smashing the mountains of barriers, clearing away all pollution, developing great faith and resolution, producing excellent roots of goodness, forever leaving the fears of the various difficulties, annihilating all the miseries of mind and body, conceiving the will to see the Buddha and head for omniscience. At that time, all the world leaders and their retinues, countless hundreds of thousands, having been awakened by Buddha’s light, all went to the Buddha and prostrated themselves before him.

  “In the great city Flame Light was a king called Benevolent Mind a Joy to Behold. He reigned over a million billion trillion cities. He had thirty-seven thousand wives and concubines, the principal one bei
ng Auspicious Sign of Blessings. He had five hundred sons, the eldest being Light of Great Power, who himself had a thousand wives, the principle one being Exquisite Sight. At that time, the prince Light of Great Power, having seen the Buddha’s light, due to the power of the roots of goodness he had cultivated, immediately realized ten kinds of teachings: he realized the concentration of the spheres of the virtues of all Buddhas; he realized all-sided memory power of all Buddha teachings; he realized transcendent knowledge containing a vast store of skillful techniques; he realized the great culture of kindness harmonizing and pacifying all living beings; he realized great compassion whose reverberations are like clouds extending everywhere; he realized the great joy of the supreme mind which gives birth to boundless virtues; he realized the great equanimity which is aware of all things as they really are; he realized the great spiritual power of the impartial treasury of extensive skill in means of liberation; he realized the great aspiration which increases power of faith; he realized the gate of brilliant intellectual powers entering into omniscience.

  “Then Prince Light of Great Power, having attained illumination of these teachings, receiving mystic power from the Buddha, looked over the great masses and spoke some verses, saying,

  The Buddha sits on the site of enlightenment;

  Pure and clear is his great radiant light,

  Like a thousand suns emerging

  Illumining all over space.

  After countless billions of ages

  Does the Guide appear;

  Now the Buddha’s come into the world,

  Beheld and attended by all.

  Observe the Buddha’s light,

  Its inconceivable phantom Buddhas,

  In every single palace

  Reposed in true absorption.

  See the Buddha’s mystic powers

  Producing clouds of flames from his pores,

  Illuminating the world

  With light that has no end.

  Behold the Buddha’s body,

  With webs of light most pure,

  Manifesting forms equal in number to all beings,

  Filling the ten directions.

  His wondrous voice pervades the world

  And all who hear rejoice;

  In the languages of all living beings

  They praise the Buddha’s virtues.

  Illumined by Buddha’s light,

  All beings are peacefully happy;

  All pains of existence cleared away,

  Their minds are filled with joy.

  See the hosts of enlightening beings

  Gathering from the ten directions,