The Flower Ornament Scripture

by Thomas Cleary

  “Great enlightening beings are protected and sustained by the power of Buddha, they live according to the conduct of buddhas, their action is truthful and never degenerates. They reflect that they do not see any conduct in themselves that would provoke the criticism of others. Therefore their minds become fearless and they teach calmly among the masses. This is enlightening beings’ fourth fearlessness.

  “The physical, verbal, and mental actions of great enlightening beings are all pure, immaculate, harmonious, free from all evils. They reflect that they do not see any physical, verbal, or mental action in them that is blameworthy. Therefore their minds become fearless, and they are able to cause sentient beings to live by the teachings of Buddha. This is enlightening beings’ fifth fearlessness.

  “Great enlightening beings are always accompanied and guarded by powerful thunderbolt-bearers, celestial rain spirits, demigods, celestial musicians, titans, Indra, Brahma, the world-guardian gods, and so on; and all buddhas watch over them heedfully. They reflect that they do not see that there are any demons, false teachers, or people with set views that can hinder their practice of the path of enlightening beings in any way. Therefore their minds become fearless and they ultimately reach the Other Shore of great fearlessness. They become very joyful and carry out the deeds of enlightening beings. This is enlightening beings’ sixth fearlessness.

  “Great enlightening beings have developed the faculty of recollection and are free from forgetfulness, as approved by buddhas. They reflect that they do not see any sign of forgetfulness of the ways of expressing the path of attainment of enlightenment as explained by the buddhas. Therefore they become fearless in mind, absorb and hold all buddhas’ true teachings, and carry out the practices of enlightening beings. This is enlightening beings’ seventh fearlessness.

  “Great enlightening beings have already attained knowledge and skill in means, and have consummated the powers of enlightening beings. They always strive to edify all sentient beings. Their aspiration is always focused on perfect enlightenment, yet because of compassion for sentient beings, to perfect sentient beings, they appear to be born in the polluted world of afflictions, noble, with a full retinue, able to satisfy all their desires at will, leading a pleasant and happy life. Yet they reflect that although they are together with their family and associates, they do not see anything to be attached to to the extent of giving up their cultivation of the ways of enlightening beings, such as meditation, liberations, concentrations, mnemonic spells, and analytic and expository powers. Why? Because great enlightening beings are already free in the midst of all things and have reached the Other Shore. They cultivate the practices of enlightening beings and vow never to stop. They do not see any object in the world that can disturb the path of the enlightening being. Because of this their minds become fearless, and they ultimately reach the Other Shore of great fearlessness. By the power of great vows they manifest birth in all worlds. This is enlightening beings’ eighth fearlessness.

  “Great enlightening beings never forget the determination for omniscience. Riding the Great Vehicle, they carry on the practices of enlightening beings. By the power of the great determination for omniscience, they demonstrate the tranquil comportment of all saints and individual illuminates. They reflect that they do not see in themselves any sign of needing to gain emancipation by means of the lesser vehicles of individual salvation. Because of this their minds become fearless and they ultimately reach the other shore of great fearlessness. While able to demonstrate to all the paths of all vehicles of liberation, they ultimately fulfill the impartial Great Vehicle of universal liberation. This is enlightening beings’ ninth fearlessness.

  “Great enlightening beings perfect all good and pure qualities, are imbued with virtue, fully develop spiritual powers, ultimately abide in the enlightenment of all buddhas, fulfill all practices of enlightening beings, receive from the buddhas the prediction of coronation with omniscience, and still always teach sentient beings, carrying on the path of enlightening beings. They reflect that they do not see any sign of even a single sentient being who can be developed to maturity to whom they cannot show the masteries of buddhas in order to develop them. Because of this, their minds become fearless and they ultimately reach the Other Shore of great fearlessness. They do not stop the practices of enlightening beings, do not give up the vows of enlightening beings, and show the sphere of buddhahood to any sentient beings who can learn, in order to teach and liberate them. This is enlightening beings’ tenth fearlessness.

  “These are the ten fearlessnesses of enlightening beings; based on these, enlightening beings can attain the supreme great fearlessness of buddhas without giving up the fearlessness of enlightening beings.

  “Great enlightening beings have ten unique qualities. Without depending on the teaching of another, they spontaneously practice the six transcendent ways: they always gladly give generously and are not mean; they always keep pure precepts, without transgression; they are full of patience and forbearance, their minds imperturbable; they have great energy, never backsliding; they skillfully enter the various meditations, never distracted; they skillfully cultivate wisdom, getting rid of all wrong views. This is their first unique quality, practicing the six transcendent ways according to the path of transcendence without being taught by another.

  “Great enlightening beings are well able to take care of all sentient beings: that is to say, they practice charity, giving material goods as well as teaching; they are rightly heedful at all times; they are mild of countenance and friendly in speech; their hearts are joyful as they point out what is true; they foster understanding of the enlightenment of buddhas; without aversion they impartially benefit all. This is enlightening beings’ second unique quality, striving to unite sentient beings according to the four integrative methods, without being taught by another.

  “Great enlightening beings skillfully practice dedication—dedication without seeking resulting rewards, dedication in conformity with enlightenment, dedication unattached to any worldly meditations or trances; dedication to benefiting all sentient beings, dedication to perpetuating the knowledge and wisdom of buddhas. This is enlightening beings’ third unique quality, developing roots of goodness and seeking enlightened knowledge and wisdom without relying on the teaching of another.

  “Great enlightening beings arrive at consummate skill in means; they are always concerned with the welfare of all sentient beings, they do not reject the realm of common ignorance, do not seek individual escape, do not cling to their own happiness. They only strive to edify and liberate others; they are able to enter and exit meditations and liberations, and have attained mastery of all concentrations. They come and go in birth and death as though roaming through a park, never getting sick of it. They may live in the palace of demons or may be celestial beings—they manifest their bodies in all realms of life. They may become mendicants in non-Buddhistic groups, yet they always avoid all false views. They display all secular literature, incantational arts, writing and mathematics, and even entertaining song and dance, being highly skilled in all of these. They may appear as beautiful women, intelligent and talented, foremost in the world. They are able to ask about and to answer about all mundane and transmundane principles, able to ultimately resolve all doubts. They also comprehend all mundane and transmundane phenomena to the ultimate degree. All sentient beings look up to them. Though they manifest the behavior of mendicants and individual illuminates, still they do not lose the mind of the Great Vehicle. Though they show attainment of true enlightenment moment to moment, still they do not stop the practice of enlightening beings. This is their fourth unique quality, the ultimate consummation of skill in means without relying on the teaching of another.

  “Great enlightening beings know well the path of simultaneous practice of the provisional and the true; their intellect is free, and they reach the other shore. That is to say, they abide in nirvana, yet give the appearance of birth and death; they know there are no sentient being
s, yet they diligently carry out teaching activities; they are ultimately calm and dispassionate, yet they appear to have afflictions; they abide in the one indestructible mystic reality-body of wisdom, yet they manifest infinite bodies of sentient beings everywhere; they always enter meditative concentration, yet they give the appearance of experiencing sensual pleasure; they are always aloof from the triple world, yet they do not abandon sentient beings; they always enjoy the pleasures of spirituality, yet they appear to have concubines who sing and play; though their bodies are arrayed with a multitude of marks and embellishments of greatness, yet they appear as ugly derelicts; they always accumulate virtues and are free from faults, yet they manifest birth in hells or as animals and hungry ghosts; though they have arrived at the furthest reaches of buddha-knowledge, they do not abandon the body of knowledge of enlightening beings. Even saints and solitary illuminates cannot know such infinite knowledge and wisdom developed by great enlightening beings—how much less can infantile sentient beings. This is enlightening beings’ fifth unique quality, the simultaneous practice of the provisional and the true without being taught by another.

  “Great enlightening beings’ physical, verbal, and mental actions are carried out in accord with knowledge and wisdom and are all pure. That is to say, they are imbued with great compassion and forever abandon malice; they are imbued with true understanding and have no false views. This is enlightening beings’ sixth unique quality, of physical, verbal, and mental action in accord with knowledge and wisdom, without depending on the teaching of another.

  “Great enlightening beings are full of great compassion and do not abandon sentient beings; they accept suffering in place of all sentient beings—the sufferings of hell, the sufferings of animals, the sufferings of hungry ghosts. They do this in order to help, and do not become weary—they are only devoted to liberating all sentient beings. They never become addicted to objects of desire. They always diligently work to extirpate suffering for sentient beings. This is enlightening beings’ seventh unique quality, always exercising great compassion without depending on the instruction of another.

  “All beings like to see enlightening beings and never tire of seeing them, because great enlightening beings have for ages been pure in deed, without fault. This is enlightening beings’ eighth unique quality, being a welcome sight to all sentient beings, without depending on the instruction of another.

  “Great enlightening beings’ determination, the adornment of the great commitment to omniscience, is unbending; though they be in dangerous, difficult places, among ordinary people, Buddhist disciples, or self-enlightened people, they never lose the clear, pure, wonderful jewel of the determination for omniscience. Just as there is a jewel called pure adornment whose luster does not change when it is put in mire, and which can clarify muddy water, in the same way, great enlightening beings, even though they be in places of confusion and pollution, among fools, they never lose or spoil the pure jewel mind seeking omniscience—they can even cause those evil sentient beings to get rid of erroneous views, afflictions, and defilements, and gain the pure mind-jewel seeking omniscience. This is enlightening beings’ ninth unique quality, not losing the precious will for omniscience even though in difficult situations, even without the instruction of another.

  “Great enlightening beings achieve the knowledge of the realm of self-awakening and become enlightened spontaneously without a teacher. Ultimately free, they arrive at the other shore. The turban of the state of freedom from defilement crowns their heads. Still they do not give up association with the wise and always gladly honor the buddhas. This is enlightening beings’ tenth unique quality, attaining the supreme state without abandoning the wise or giving up honoring buddhas, without depending on the teaching of another.

  “These are the ten unique qualities of enlightening beings, based on which they can attain the buddhas’ supreme, grandiose unique qualities.

  “Great enlightening beings have ten kinds of activity: activity related to all worlds, able to purify them all; activity related to all buddhas, able to provide offerings to them all; activity related to all enlightening beings, planting the same roots of goodness; activity relating to all sentient beings, able to teach and transform them all; activity relating to the future, able to take in the whole future; activity of all spiritual powers, able to reach all worlds without leaving one world; activity of all light, emanating lights of infinite colors, with an enlightening being sitting on a lotus seat appearing in each light beam; activity perpetuating the lineage of the three treasures, preserving and sustaining the buddhas’ teachings after the demise of the buddhas; activity of all miraculous transformations, expounding the truth and teaching the sentient beings in all worlds; activity of all empowerments, instantly appearing to sentient beings according to their mental inclinations, causing all aspirations to be fulfilled. Based on these ten kinds of activity enlightening beings can achieve the supremely great activity of buddhas.

  “Great enlightening beings have ten kinds of body: the noncoming body, not being born in any world; the nongoing body, impossible to find in any world; the nonreal body, realizing all worlds as they really are; the nonfalse body, showing the world the truth; the inexhaustible body, never being annihilated; the stable body, impossible for demons to destroy; the imperturbable body, impossible for demons and false teachers to disturb; the formal body, manifesting pure marks of virtue; the formless body, the forms of all things being ultimately formless; the omnipresent body, being the same one body as all buddhas of all times.

  “Great enlightening beings have ten kinds of physical action: filling all worlds with one body; ability to appear before all sentient beings; ability to undertake birth in all states of being; traveling in all worlds; going to the assemblies of all buddhas; ability to cover all worlds with one hand; ability to grind the iron surrounding mountains of all worlds to dust with one hand; manifesting the formation and disintegration of all buddha-lands in one’s own body to show sentient beings; admitting all realms of sentient beings into one body; in one’s own body manifesting all pure buddha-lands, with all sentient beings attaining enlightenment therein. Based on these ten, enlightening beings can attain the supreme action of buddhas and be able to enlighten all sentient beings.

  “Great enlightening beings also have ten more kinds of body: the body of transcendent ways, due to correctly practicing them all; the body of the four integrative methods, due to not abandoning sentient beings; the body of great compassion, due to accepting immeasurable suffering in place of all sentient beings without wearying; the body of great benevolence, due to saving all sentient beings; the body of blessings and virtue, due to benefiting all sentient beings; the body of wisdom, being of the same one nature as the bodies of all buddhas; the body of reality, being forever free from undergoing birth in conditioned states; the body of expedient means, appearing in all places; the body of spiritual powers, manifesting all mystic transformations; the body of enlightenment, achieving true awareness at any time, as desired. Based on these, enlightening beings attain the supreme body of wisdom of buddhas.

  “Great enlightening beings have ten kinds of speech: gentle speech, causing all sentient beings to be calm; sweet elixir speech, causing all sentient beings to be clear and cool; nondeceptive speech, everything they say being true; truthful speech, not lying even in dreams; great speech, being honored by all the gods; profound speech, revealing the essence of things; steadfast speech, expounding truth inexhaustibly; straightforward speech, their statements being easy to understand; various speech, being spoken according to the occasion; speech enlightening all sentient beings, enabling them to understand according to their inclinations. Based on these, enlightening beings attain the supreme subtle speech of buddhas.

  “Great enlightening beings have ten ways of purifying speech: joyfully listening to the voice of Buddhas; joyfully listening to explanations of the virtues of enlightening beings; not saying anything unpleasant to sentient beings; truly avoiding all
faults of speech; joyfully praising the enlightened; singing the praises of buddhas aloud at the monuments of deceased buddhas; giving teachings to sentient beings with a profound, pure mind; praising Buddha with music and song; listening to the true Teaching without worrying about one’s body or life; giving oneself up to serve all enlightening beings and teachers of truth, and receiving the sublime teaching from them.

  “Based on these ten things which purify speech, great enlightening beings gain ten kinds of protection: they are protected by all celestial beings, by all nagas, all yakshas, all gandharvas, all titans, all garudas, all kinnaras, all maharagas, all Brahmas, and all teachers of truth, beginning with the buddhas.

  “Having received this protection, great enlightening beings are able to accomplish ten great works: gladdening all sentient beings; going to all worlds; knowing all faculties; purifying all devotions; exterminating all afflictions; getting rid of all habit energy; purifying all inclinations; increasing all profound determinations; causing all to pervade all universes; causing all nirvanas to be clearly seen.

  “Great enlightening beings have ten kinds of mind: a mind like the earth, able to hold the roots of goodness of all sentient beings and make them grow; a mind like the ocean, with the water of truth of infinite great knowledge of all buddhas all flowing into it; a mind like the polar mountain, placing all sentient beings on the supreme transmundane foundations of goodness; a mind like the finest jewel, their desires being pure and unpolluted; a mind like diamond, deeply penetrating all truths with certainty; a mind like the adamantine world-surrounding mountains, being invulnerable to disturbance by any demons or false teachers; a mind like a lotus blossom, which worldly things cannot affect; a mind like an udumbara flower, difficult to encounter through all time; a mind like the clear sun, destroying the darkness; a mind like space, being immeasurable. Based on these, enlightening beings can attain the supreme pure mind of buddhas.