The Flower Ornament Scripture

by Thomas Cleary

  “I also perceive the successive buddhas of the future, beginning with Maitreya, seeing a hundred buddhas in a single mental instant, then a thousand, and so on, uninterruptedly seeing as many buddhas as atoms in untold buddha-lands. I also see the order of their aspiration and preparation and so on, and distinctly remember their teachings, take them up mindfully, examine them, follow them, and elucidate them. And just as I see the succession of past, future, and present buddhas in this world-system, so do I also comprehend the succession of all buddhas in as many past and future world-systems in the ten directions as atoms in untold buddha-lands. I also comprehend the order of the aspiration and preparations of those buddhas, and I comprehend the unbroken continuity of the successive incarnations of those buddhas.

  “I am also aware of the succession of buddhas of the present in all worlds in the ten directions, beginning with Vairocana, incomparable, accessible to faith and the vigorous resolution of enlightening beings, increasing the energy of enlightening beings, unsurpassed by any worldlings, individual illuminates, or enlightening beings who have not reached that sphere. In a single mental instant I see a hundred buddhas; in the next instant of awareness I see a thousand buddhas, continuing thus without interruption until I meet as many buddhas as atoms in untold buddha-lands.

  “I see whatever buddhas I wish, whenever I wish, and I hear all that has been, is being, and will be spoken by those buddhas I meet, and I take up what I hear, remember it, examine it in action, analyze it, follow it with discernment, and elucidate it with wisdom.

  “I know this enlightening liberation of ultimate nonextinction; how can I know the practice or tell of the virtues of the enlightening beings who have attained instantaneous knowledge of past, present, and future, who dwell in all concentrations in the space of an instant, who are imbued with the light of those who realize Thusness, who realize the equality of all thoughts and imaginations, who are focused on the equality of all buddhas, who abide in the nonduality of self, sentient beings, and buddhas, whose realm is the manifestation of principles, whose nature is clarity, whose workings of knowledge pervade the network of worlds, who dwell unwavering on the seal of the teaching of all buddhas, who are in the range of knowledge making known all realms of reality, who are in the range of knowledge conveying the teachings of all buddhas?

  “South of here is a mountain called Potalaka, where an enlightening being named Avalokiteshvara lives. Go ask him how to learn and carry out the practice of enlightening beings.”

  Then Veshthila said in verse,

  Go, Sudhana, to Mount Potalaka in the ocean, a pure abode of the valiant,

  Made of jewels, covered with trees, scattered with flowers, complete with gardens, ponds, and streams.

  On the mountain the steady, wise Avalokiteshvara dwells for the benefit of the world.

  Go ask him the virtues of the Guides—he will teach you great, wonderful means of attainment.

  So Sudhana paid his respects to Veshthila and went on.

  Avalokiteshvara

  Reflecting on the teaching of Veshthila, entering the treasury of zealous application of enlightening beings, remembering the power of mindfulness of enlightening beings, remembering the power of the succession of enlightened guides, realizing the unbroken continuity of buddhas, remembering the progression of the hearing of the names of buddhas, following the principles of the teachings of the buddhas, entering into the array of collective practice of the buddha-teachings, intent on the the exclamation made by buddhas on becoming perfectly enlightened, focusing his attention on the inconceivable action of buddhas, Sudhana made his way to Mount Potalaka.

  Climbing the mountain, he looked around for Avalokiteshvara and saw him on a plateau on the west side of the mountain, which was adorned with springs, ponds, and streams, sitting wakefully on a diamond boulder in a clearing in a large woods, surrounded by a group of enlightening beings seated on various jewel rocks, to whom he was expounding a doctrine called “light of the medium of great love and compassion,” which concerns the salvation of all sentient beings.

  Transported with joy on seeing Avalokiteshvara, his eyes fixed on him, his mind undistracted, full of the energy of faith in the spiritual benefactor, thinking of seeing spiritual benefactors as at once seeing buddhas, thinking of reception of the multitudes of all truths as originating in spiritual benefactors, thinking of the attainment of all virtues as deriving from spiritual benefactors, thinking of how hard it is to meet spiritual benefactors, thinking of spiritual benefactors as the source from which the jewels of knowledge of the ten powers are obtained, thinking of spiritual benefactors as the source of vision of inexhaustible knowledge, thinking that the growth of the sprouts of goodness depends on spiritual benefactors, thinking that the door of omniscience is revealed by spiritual benefactors, thinking that the way to enter the ocean of great knowledge is pointed out by spiritual benefactors, thinking that the accumulation of the store of omniscience is fostered by spiritual benefactors, Sudhana went up to Avalokiteshvara.

  The enlightening being Avalokiteshvara, seeing Sudhana approaching in the distance, said, “Welcome, you who have set out on the incomparable, lofty, inconceivable Great Vehicle, intending to save all beings who are oppressed by various firmly rooted miseries and have no refuge, seeking to directly experience all the teachings of buddhas, which are beyond all worlds, incomparable, and immeasurable; you are filled with the energy of great compassion, determined to liberate all sentient beings, directed toward practice of the vision of universal good, intent on purifying the sphere of great vows, born of the ocean of knowledge of Manjushri, correctly proceeding on the instructions of spiritual benefactors, with the tireless will to build up roots of goodness, seeking to retain the multitudes of teachings of all buddhas; a mine of lotuses of virtue, fit to receive the empowerment of buddhas, imbued with the energy of the light of concentration, seeking to keep in mind the teachings of all buddhas, thrilled with the joy of the vision of buddhas, your mind expanded by the incalculable energy of achievement of virtue, wishing to reveal to others the power of the measure of omniscience to which you have access through your own mystic knowledge, determined to sustain the energy of light of knowledge of buddhas, firmly rooted in the power of great compassion.”

  Then Sudhana went up to Avalokiteshvara, paid his respects, and said, “Noble one, I have set my mind on supreme perfect enlightenment, but I do not know how to learn and carry out the practice of enlightening beings. I hear you give enlightening beings instruction, and I ask you to tell me how to learn and carry out the practice of enlightening beings.”

  Avalokiteshvara said, “It is good that you aspire to supreme perfect enlightenment. I know a way of enlightening practice called ‘undertaking great compassion without delay,’ which sets about impartially guiding all sentient beings to perfection, dedicated to protecting and guiding sentient beings by communicating knowledge to them through all media. Established in this method of enlightening practice undertaking great compassion without delay, I appear in the midst of the activities of all sentient beings without leaving the presence of all buddhas, and take care of them by means of generosity, kind speech, beneficial actions, and cooperation. I also develop sentient beings by appearing in various forms: I gladden and develop them by purity of vision of inconceivable forms radiating auras of light, and I take care of them and develop them by speaking to them according to their mentalities, and by showing conduct according to their inclinations, and by magically producing various forms, and by teaching them doctrines commensurate with their various interests, and by inspiring them to begin to accumulate good qualities, by showing them projections according to their mentalities, by appearing to them as members of their own various races and conditions, and by living together with them.

  “Perfecting this practice of unhesitating compassion, I have vowed to be a refuge for all sentient beings, to free them from fears of calamity, threat, confusion, bondage, attacks on their lives, insufficiency of means to support life
, inability to make a living, ill repute, the perils of life, intimidation by the crowd, death, miserable conditions, unknown hardships, servitude, separation from loved ones, living with the uncongenial, physical violence, mental violence, sorrow, and depression. I have undertaken a vow to be a refuge for all beings from all these fears and perils. I have also caused a way of remembrance to appear in all worlds, to extinguish the fears of all beings; I have caused my name to be known in all worlds to drive away the fears of all beings. I have caused the tranquillity of all beings, in endless forms, to appear in my body, to communicate to all beings individually according to the time. By this means I release beings from all fears, inspire them to seek supreme enlightenment, and cause them never to regress in the attainment of the qualities of buddhas.

  “I have only attained this way of enlightening practice through unhesitating great compassion. How can I know the practice or tell of the virtues of the universally good enlightening beings, who have perfected the vows of all enlightened ones, who have gone the way of the practice of the universally good enlightening being, who are uninterrupted streams of performance of good works, who are always focused on the perception of the concentrations of enlightening beings, who continue their practice without deviation or regression through all ages, who continuously adapt to the times everywhere, who are familiar with the changing currents in all worlds, who continuously work to extinguish all sentient beings’ bad thoughts and to increase their good thoughts, who continuously work to turn all sentient beings away from the repetitious circles of the mundane whirl?”

  Then this was said:

  Having respectfully rendered honor and praise,

  Sudhana, well controlled, went south.

  On a cliff of a mountain he saw Avalokiteshvara,

  the seer who abides in compassion.

  On a diamond slope, adorned with jewels,

  Sitting on a lion seat in a lotus calyx, the Steadfast,

  Surrounded by various creatures and enlightening beings,

  Expounds the Teaching to them.

  Seeing this, Sudhana, his joy unequaled,

  Went and bowed to the feet of the Ocean of Virtue

  And said, “Teach me, noble one, with compassion,

  To attain this good conduct.”

  Extending his undefiled arm of a hundredfold auspicious splendor,

  Radiating far-reaching pure light,

  Avalokiteshvara, the purified being, the sage,

  Laid his hand on Sudhana’s head and spoke:

  “I know a gate of liberation, the embryo of knowledge

  Of clouds of compassion of all buddhas,

  Born of my own love and operating everywhere

  To protect and care for all beings.

  “I protect all beings from many disasters;

  Those caught in the grip of enemies,

  Physically injured, and imprisoned

  Are freed from their bonds on hearing my name.

  “Arrows shot at the condemned do not wound them,

  Weapons break and swords are deflected

  If they remember my name.

  “In disputes among kings, those who remember my name

  Defeat their adversaries and gain what is good,

  Increase in repute among friends and relatives,

  And their property becomes inviolable.

  “Any who remember my name

  Go without fear

  To forests infested with bandits and wild animals,

  Conquering all enemies.

  “For those who are thrown from a mountain into burning coals

  By malefactors to harm them,

  The flames become lotus sprouts in a pond of water

  If they remember my name.

  “Thrown into the sea, they will not die,

  Nor will they be swept away by a river or burned in fire:

  No harm will come to them, but rather benefit instead,

  If they remember my name, even for a while.

  “From fetters, chains, and beatings,

  Scorn, humiliation, and constraint,

  Abuse, whipping, threats, and scolding,

  Those who remember my name will gain release.

  “The inimical, faultfinders,

  Those who always maliciously slander,

  Become friendly on sight

  When they hear my name remembered.

  “Evil magicians trying to kill them are appeased,

  And no poison can injure those who remember my name.

  “Malicious spirits, fiends, demons, and goblins, life-sapping, dangerous,

  Are all quelled, even in dreams, once my name is recalled.

  “One will not be separated from family and friends

  Or be joined with the unfriendly

  Or become materially destitute,

  If one remembers my name, even for a while.

  “Those who remember my name will not go to hell

  Or become animals or ghosts

  Or fall into other unfavorable states;

  They will be reborn as celestial or human, purified beings.

  “People remembering my name will not

  Be blind, deaf, or infirm;

  They will not be violent, but friendly

  And sound in mind and body for countless ages.

  “Those who scatter a handful of flowers over me,

  Calling my name, go to my refuge of bliss;

  Those who give me offerings with a clear mind

  Will be worthy of receiving offerings in my buddha-land.

  “Purified beings, passing away, are born here,

  Face to face with the buddhas of all worlds;

  Those who remember my name see the buddhas

  And hear their teaching.

  “By this and infinite other means

  I guide sentient beings in the world;

  I have developed one liberation,

  And cannot know all the virtues of the virtuous.

  “Sudhana has attended spiritual benefactors

  In the worlds of the ten directions

  And has not tired of hearing the teaching of the offspring of Buddha;

  Why would joy not arise while hearing the Teaching?”

  At that moment an enlightening being named Ananyagamin descended from the eastern sky and stood on the top of the mountain range surrounding this world. As soon as he set foot on the mountain, the whole world quaked and appeared to be made of jewels. The body of that enlightening being gave off such a light that the sun and moon were overwhelmed, the lights of all realms of being, fire, jewels, and stars were obscured, the great hells were lit up, the dark recesses of the realms of animals and ghosts were illumined, all ills and miseries were allayed, sentient beings were not bound by afflictions, and all sorrows ceased. He also appeared to go to the buddha, causing clouds of all kinds of offerings—jewels, flowers, perfumes, garlands, robes, parasols, banners—to rain all over the buddha-land, and he also appeared reflected in the abodes of all beings, appearing to them so as to please them according to their inclinations, and he also appeared to have come to the enlightening being Avalokiteshvara on the peak of Mount Potalaka.

  Then Avalokiteshvara said to Sudhana, “Do you see the enlightening being Ananyagamin in this assembly?”

  Sudhana said, “Yes.”

  Avalokiteshvara said, “Go to Ananyagamin and ask him how to learn and carry out the practice of enlightening beings.”

  So then Sudhana paid his respects to Avalokiteshvara and went.

  Ananyagamin

  Then Sudhana, with Avalokiteshvara’s verse of knowledge in mind, had not seen enough of Avalokiteshvara but obeyed his words and went to the enlightening being Ananyagamin. Paying his respects, Sudhana said, “Noble one, I have set my mind on supreme perfect enlightenment, but I do not know how to learn and carry out the practice of enlightening beings. I hear you give enlightening beings instruction, so please tell me how an enlightening being is to learn and carry out the practice of enlightening beings.
”

  Ananyagamin said, “I have attained an enlightening liberation ‘speeding forth in all directions.’”

  Sudhana asked, “What buddha did you learn it from? How far away is that buddha’s world, and when did you leave that world?”

  Ananyagamin said, “This point is hard for celestial, human, and titanic beings, for monks and priests, to know, being the power of an enlightening being, the unregressing energy of an enlightening being, the accomplishment of the energy of an enlightening being. It cannot be heard or retained or believed in or comprehended by those who are not under the tutelage of spiritual benefactors, who are not under the attention of buddhas, who have no accumulated roots of goodness, who have not purified their intentions, who have not attained the faculties of enlightening beings, who do not have the eye of wisdom.”

  Sudhana said, “Please tell me, noble one—I will believe, I will have faith, by the empowerment of buddhas and the assistance of spiritual benefactors.”

  Ananyagamin said, “I come from the buddha-land of a buddha named Born of Universal Light in a world to the east called Full of Light. I attained the enlightening liberation ‘speeding forth in all directions’ at the feet of that buddha. As many eons as atoms in untold buddha-lands have passed since I left that world Full of Light. With each thought I take as many steps as atoms in untold buddha-lands, and with each step I pass as many buddha-lands as atoms in untold buddha-lands, in all of which are buddhas. I go to all those buddhas, and honor each buddha with the finest mentally produced offerings, stamped with the cosmic seal that has no formation, approved by the buddhas, pleasing to all enlightening beings. I also observe the oceans of sentient beings in all the worlds, penetrate their minds, discern their faculties, and appear to them bodily in accord with their inclinations and interests, speak of the Teaching, radiate auras of light, and provide them with various material necessities. I adapt my form for them, ceaselessly striving to guide them to perfection. And just as I proceed in the east, so do I also proceed in the south, west, north, northeast, southeast, southwest, northwest, the nadir and the zenith.