The Flower Ornament Scripture

by Thomas Cleary

  “The king had a son named Conqueror, who had twenty-eight of the marks of a great man, and lived in the palace surrounded by many graceful women. He heard the frightful cries of those who were bound up in prison; agitated and upset by these cries, moved with compassion, he left the palace and went into the prison, where he saw those people cast into the dungeons, bound by all sorts of fetters and shackles, chained together and thrown into the darkness, shrouded in smoke, exposed to unhealthy drafts, emaciated, hungry and thirsty, naked and homeless, filthy and unkempt, being subjected to various tortures, screaming in pain.

  “Seeing the prisoners, the prince was inspired with great compassion and an unprecedented determination to help others. He comforted the prisoners, intending to deliver them from their bonds. Giving them assurance, he went to the king and said, ‘Know, O king, that I have given assurance to the people in prison. Please set them free.’

  “The king called his five hundred ministers together and asked them what they thought about this. They said, ‘These people are plunderers of the royal treasuries, attackers of the king, arrested entering the royal palace; they should be executed. Furthermore, anyone who wants to save them is also guilty of crime against the king.’

  “The prince, overwhelmed with great compassion, said to those ministers, ‘Let it be as you say. Just release these convicts—I can endure all pains for their sake. Whatever you would do to them, do to me. To free them from bondage I will undergo all kinds of torture and give up my body and life. Why? If I cannot liberate these people from bondage, how can I liberate those who are bound to the world, who are tied up by the ropes of craving, who are in the abyss of ignorance, who are cast into the darkness of delusion, who suffer the pains of poverty, who have fallen into the depths of evil ways, who act senselessly, whose minds are confused, who see no way to emancipation, who are without illumination, who are attached to the world, who lack virtue and knowledge, who have lost their faculties of knowledge, whose minds are tainted with various afflictions, who are flung in the mud of suffering, who are under the control of demons, who are tormented by birth, old age, death, grief, lamentation, misery, depression, and sorrow?’

  “Then the prince released all those prisoners from their bonds, by giving up himself, his whole retinue, and all his wealth. Freeing them, he removed all that was torturing them once and for all. At that point the five hundred ministers, up in arms, went to the king and said, ‘Know that the law of the king has been broken by the will of the prince, and all of our lives are uncertain. If you do not punish the prince, your own life will not last long.’

  “The king, enraged, set out to kill his son and those convicts as well. The queen, hearing of this, was very upset: her hair undone, her jewelry and makeup removed, she went to the king with a thousand of her ladies, beating her breast and throwing dust on her head, weeping and wailing; she said to him, ‘Let the prince go free, let him live.’ The king turned to the prince and said, ‘Give up on these criminals. If you do not, you will die for their sake.’

  “The prince, facing death, was not fazed, being focused on omniscience, dedicated to the welfare of others, guided by great compassion. The queen, his mother, asked the king to allow a fortnight for observation: ‘Let the prince give people whatever they need for half a month; then do whatever you want with him.’ The king agreed to this.

  “North of the city there was a large park called Sunlight that had been made in the past as a sacrificial ground. The prince went there and gave to anyone who asked whatever they needed. Thus for half a month he freely gave away various goods—food, clothing, utensils, and so on—to whoever needed them.

  “Then, on the last day of the fortnight, the whole population gathered—the king, his ministers, his women, the grandees, the landlords, the townspeople, and all the religious impostors. Now the buddha-king Illumining Space with the Voice of Truth, realizing it was an opportune time to teach people, went to that sacrificial ground, respectfully surrounded by celestial and spiritual beings. The crowd of people, and the prince, saw the buddha coming from afar, serene, pleasant to see, senses calm, mind quiet, self-controlled, master of his faculties, tranquil as an elephant, clear as a pool of water, purified, undefiled, miraculously radiating light by the great power of a buddha, overpowering with the mastery of a buddha, shining with the magnificence of a buddha, adorned with the marks and embellishments of a buddha, pervading all worlds with the light of his aura, illuminating them with rays of light, emanating orbs of fragrant jewel fire from every pore, causing all worlds to quake with the quaking of a buddha-land, destroying all beings’ afflictions, coming forth as a buddha raining multitudes of all kinds of supernal manifestations, bearing himself as a buddha, increasing the flow of joy in all beings, conveying the power of the sight of a buddha. Seeing the buddha thus, everyone’s mind became clear and serene.

  “Then the prince and the people, going out to meet the buddha, their minds clear, prostrated themselves before the buddha, made offerings of many kinds, and said, ‘Welcome, welcome, Blessed One; the Buddha has turned his attention to us, the Buddha has bestowed his favor on us.’ Then the prince pointed out a seat of honor to the buddha and said, ‘Please sit down, O Blessed One—this seat has been prepared.’ Then, as the buddha approached, the gods of purity, by the power of the buddha, changed it into a calyx of a lotus of fragrant diamonds. The buddha sat on it, and enlightening beings sat on surrounding seats. As soon as they saw the buddha, everyone in the assembly was relieved of afflictions and obstruction and disturbance, and became fit vessels for the holy teachings.

  “Then the buddha, knowing that those people had become capable of receiving the Teaching, gave them a systematic talk. He expounded to them a scripture called Illumination of the Multitude of Causes, including all elements of the Teaching, which he spoke in the languages of all people. At that, eighty million people in that crowd attained dispassionate, pure, objective vision of things. Many millions reached the stage beyond learning. Ten thousand were led to the Great Vehicle, introduced to the way of fulfillment of the great vows of universally good enlightening action. Thus as the buddha turned the wheel of teaching by the great miraculous power of buddhas, as many beings as atoms in a hundred thousand buddha-lands in the ten directions came to the guidance of the Great Vehicle. An infinite variety of beings in the interrelated buddha-lands in the worlds of the ten directions put an end to evil. Countless beings were established in the way to paradise. And as for the prince, he attained this enlightening liberation made of roots of goodness fostering the perfection of all beings according to their mentalities.

  “Now then, you may think that the prince in that time, who gave up his body and life, his wealth and retinue, and all human pleasures, in order to liberate those people from bondage, was somebody else. Who was it who made that great sacrifice without reservations, who won the favor of the buddha of that time, who resolved to attain perfect enlightenment when he saw the buddha, who attained this enlightening liberation made of roots of goodness fostering the development of all beings according to their mentalities? It was none other than I myself who was that prince in that time. As that prince, overwhelmed by great compassion, set on the welfare of all beings, unattached to the things of the world, desiring only perfection, with no wish for glory, fame, or repute, not elevating myself, not degrading others, unattached to things, without any notion of existents, without desire for anything in the world, material or immaterial, indifferent to the pleasures of the world, attentive to the sphere of the enlightened, purely intent on enlightenment, having developed an indomitable will, benevolent toward all living beings, compassionately resolved to quell the suffering of all beings, intent on the power of the enlightened, purifying the path of enlightenment, preparing the paths of emancipation of the Great Vehicle, contemplating the path to omniscience, I did these difficult deeds. This is how long ago I attained this liberation.

  “And who do you think those five hundred ministers were, who unjustly incited th
e king to execute me? They were none other than five hundred people whom Devadatta incited to kill the Buddha. The Buddha subsequently guided them and foretold their enlightenment, predicting that in the future, after as many eons as atoms in a polar mountain, in an age called Good Light, there would be five hundred buddhas, with buddha-lands of various qualities, born of various races, tribes, and families, showing various miracles at birth, undergoing various spiritual transmutations on leaving society, manifesting various lights at the tree of enlightenment, approaching the pinnacle of enlightenment in various ways, showing various ways of destroying demons, showing various miracles on attainment of enlightenment, articulating various terms for the principles of their teachings, expounding various scriptures, speaking various languages, surrounded by various audiences, emanating various auras of light, having various life spans, their teachings to remain for various lengths of time, their teachings variously circulating, and their names to be various, all embodiments of great compassion. The first buddha of the age to attain supreme enlightenment in the world Jewel Light would be one named Great Compassionate One, the second would be named Moon of Commitment to the Welfare of All Beings, the third would be Lion of Great Compassion, the fourth would be Desirous of the Welfare of All Beings, and the last one would be Supreme Healer.

  “Who do you think those criminals of that time were, doomed to die, whom I released from bondage by sacrificing my life? They were none other than the buddhas of the present age, Virtue, beginning with Krakucchanda, and countless millions of other enlightening beings who were inspired to seek enlightenment by seeing the buddha Resolution Born of the Glory of the Proclamation of Endless Power, and are now carrying out enlightenment practice throughout the universe, and are cultivating and extending this enlightening liberation born of roots of goodness aiding the development of all beings according to their mentalities.

  “Who do you think the Victorious Light of that time was? It was none other than the great debater Satyaka. And who do you think were the retinue and servants of the king, but the sixty thousand philosophers whom Satyaka brought to the buddha to debate and whom the buddha predicted would become enlightened and appear in the world as buddhas, with variously arrayed buddha-lands, in various ages, with various names.

  “To continue, the prince, Conqueror, given permission by his parents, after having released the prisoners, gave up his great wealth and family and went to the buddha. For five thousand years thereafter he cultivated spiritual practice, during which time he perfected ten thousand concentration methods, attained ten thousand ways of mental command, entered into ten thousand channels of mystic knowledge, attained ten thousand great treasuries of enlightening beings, produced ten thousand currents of momentum toward omniscience, purified ten thousand facets of tolerance, carried out ten thousand contemplations, developed ten thousand bodies of power of enlightening beings, entered ten thousand doors of knowledge of enlightening beings, produced ten thousand ways to transcendent wisdom, became aware of ten thousand channels of conscious vision of thousands of buddhas, and accomplished ten thousand vows of enlightening beings. With these realizations, in each mental moment he went to ten thousand buddha-lands in the ten directions, and in each moment of thought remembered ten thousand buddhas past and future in each world; and he perceived ten thousand multitudes of emanations of those buddhas radiating throughout the ten directions. In each moment of thought he saw all the beings in ten thousand buddha-lands, passing away and coming to life in various states, undeveloped and developed, felicitous and miserable, of good and bad appearance, following their desires; and he understood the passing away and coming to life of those beings, as well as the revolving of their minds, the conduct of their minds, the continuity of their thoughts, the variety of their inclinations, the multitude of their faculties, the courses of their endeavors, their habits of action, and the proper timing to develop and guide them.

  “Subsequently the prince passed away from there and was reborn in the same city Array of Delights, in the same royal family, and attained sovereign rulership. As the king, following the demise of the buddha-king Illumining Space with the Voice of Truth, he propitiated a buddha named Glorious King Risen in the Sky of Truth. After that, at that same enlightenment site, having become a chief god, he propitiated a buddha named Sanctuary of Celestial Rulers. After that, in the same world, having become a celestial chief of the heaven of timely portion, he propitiated a buddha named Fiery Energy of the Radiant Mountain of Mental Command. After that, having become a celestial chief of the heaven of satisfaction in the same world, he propitiated a buddha named King Proclaiming the Light of the Wheel of the Teaching. After that, having become a celestial chief of the heaven of good emanation in the same world, he propitiated a buddha named King Like the Moon in the Sky. After that, having become a celestial chief of the heaven of command of others’ emanations in the same world, he propitiated a buddha named Paragon of Indestructible Power. After that, having become a chief Brahma god in the same world, he propitiated a buddha called Sound of Projections of the Wheel of Teaching Reflected Everywhere. Beginning with these, ten thousand buddhas emerged in the age Beautiful Light in the world Jewel Light, all of whom were propitiated by the prince Conqueror.

  “Following that age Beautiful Light was an age called Subtle Light; in that age I was a king called Great Wisdom. As a king, I propitiated a buddha named Glorious Mountain of Marks of Greatness. Next, in the same age, as a householder I propitiated a Buddha named Restrained in Body and Mind. Next, in the same age, as a government minister, I propitiated a buddha named Undefiled Child. Next, in the same age, as a titan chief, I propitiated a buddha named Holder of Energy. Next, in the same age, as a tree spirit, I propitiated a buddha named Polar Mountain of Marks of Greatness. Next, in the same age, as a caravan leader, I propitiated a buddha named Undefiled Arms. Next, in the same age, as a city spirit, I propitiated a buddha named Walking Boldly As a Lion. Next, in the same age, as a god of riches, I propitiated a buddha named Crown of the Lord of Gods. Next, in the same age, as a celestial musician, I propitiated a buddha named Spiritual Renown. Next, in the same age, as a goblin chief, I propitiated a buddha named Crown of Light.

  “In this way, I propitiated sixty million buddhas in the age of subtle light, beginning with these ten. I honored and served those buddhas in various forms of existence, and as I went to each buddha I matured countless beings for supreme perfect enlightenment. And as I went to each buddha I attained various concentrations, various mental commands, various accomplishments, various types of specialized knowledge, various perspectives on truth, various operations of knowledge, various perceptions of the totality of realms, various awarenesses of the totality of lands, various perceptions of the totality of visions of Buddha; all these I entered into, purified, enlarged, and devoted my attention to from start to finish.

  “And just as I propitiated the buddhas in the age of Subtle Light, so did I propitiate all the buddhas who arose in as many eons as atoms in all oceans of worlds and came from other worlds and taught, and I listened to their teaching and remembered it. I have retained all their teachings, and from all of those buddhas I got this enlightening liberation born of roots of goodness aiding the development of all beings according to their mentalities, by various means of attainment and by various ways of liberation.”

  Then the night goddess spoke these verses to Sudhana elucidating this liberation:

  This supreme liberation is inconceivable;

  Resolute, you ask me about it.

  Listen as I tell you all,

  By the power of the Buddha.

  Endless, vast, inconceivable eons ago,

  Countless worlds away,

  There was a pleasant world

  Called Jewel Light.

  There was an age called Beautiful Light

  In which numberless buddhas emerged;

  I propitiated those supreme sages

  As I cultivated this liberation.

  There was a great and glo
rious metropolis there

  Called Array of Delights

  In which there lived both

  Pure-minded people and evildoers.

  The king there was Victorious Light,

  Who ruled his people justly;

  His son was called Conqueror,

  A fine man with the marks of greatness.

  Thousands of offenders had been

  Condemned to death by the king;

  Seeing them, the prince was seized with compassion

  And asked the king to release them.

  Hearing this, the king called his ministers

  And told them all about it:

  They all said, bowing to the king,

  “He is out to destroy you.”

  Incited by the ministers, the king

  Hastened to kill the prince.

  Undismayed, indifferent to his own death,

  The prince did not abandon the convicts.

  Grieved to hear the prince was condemned,

  The queen and the palace ladies asked the king

  To free the prince for a fortnight

  To give all kinds of gifts to the people.

  Granted permission by the king, the prince

  Made gifts of all that was asked for,

  Day and night, for half a month,

  Giving charity to all who came.

  Whatever the needy required,

  That he gave them, prepared for death;

  The whole population of the city came out,