The Lotus Sutra

The Lotus Sutra

Chapter 1, Introduction, Page 18

The prose response of Manjusri to Maitreya’s question, continued:

At this time there was a Bodhisattva named Wonderful Light who had eight hundred disciples. Because of the Bodhisattva Wonderful Light the Buddha Bright Lamp of the Sun and Moon rose up from Samadhi and taught the Great Vehicle Sutra called The Lotus Blossom of the Wonderful Dharma, explaining the spirituality of the Bodhisattvas that is protected and kept in mind by the Buddhas. For sixty small kalpas he did not rise up from his seat, and those in the assembly that listened also sat in one place for sixty small kalpas, their bodies and minds motionless. The time that they listened to the Buddha's teaching seemed like the same as that for taking a meal. During this time not a single person in the assembly grew tired or weary in body or mind.

The Bodhisattva Wonderful Light (S. Varaprabha) is the one to whom the Buddha Bright Lamp of the Sun and Moon teaches The Lotus Sutra after arising from The Samadhi of Limitless Meanings (the conteplation of the limitless meaning that arise out of the one Dharma). Chih-I explains that this makes the Bodhisattva Wonderful Light analogous to Sariputra, as the Buddha Sakyamuni teaches The Lotus Sutra to Sariputra after arising from The Samadhi of Limitless Meanings. The Bodhisattva Wonderful Light is the teacher of the eight sons of the Buddha Bright Lamp of the Sun and Moon, just as Sariputra is the teacher the Rahula, the son of the Buddha Sakyamuni.

The idea of the compression of time is an important one in The Lotus Sutra and the idea of The Three Thousand Aspects in a Single Thought. Time is a phenomenon of the threefold realm, the mortal realm of Life & Death. Here, everything is born and then is extinguished. We are born, and the clock starts ticking towards our old age and our mortality. We are all on the clock in this world, with deadlines, milestones, rites of passage, etc. These mark and compartmentalize our lives as individual selves. As we approach Nirvana (eternity), time seems to come to a halt. As one face death, one's whole life suddenly appears before one in a flash. The spiritual realm of the Dharma is timeless and eternal. The Three Treasures and the spiritual nature of enlightenment are neither born nor extinguished.

The Lotus Sutra has already alluded to the compression of time with the teaching of the Dharma by the Buddha Bright Lamp of the Sun and Moon, when sixty kalpas seemed like the time it takes to have a single meal. In the 15th Chapter of the Sutra, when the Bodhisattvas rise up from the bowels of the earth, fifty kalpas will seem like the passing of a half a day. In the 16th Chapter, time will be completely compressed into the eternity of the here and now and the original enlightenment. This is the place of the Bodhimandala, where enlightenment is realized.

The Bodhimandala is the place where one enters into the timelessness of the spiritual realm (S. Dharmadhatu) where there is the purity of the single mind.

Having taught this Sutra for sixty small kalpas, the Buddha Bright Lamp of the Sun and Moon spoke the following words to Brahma, Mara, the Sramaneras, the Brahmans, as well as the gods, the people, and the asuras in the assembly:

"Tonight at midnight The One That Has Come will enter into the Nirvana that is without a trace."

The Bestowal of Prophecy:

At this time there was a Bodhisattva named Treasury of Virtue. The Buddha Bright Lamp of the Sun and Moon bestowed a prophecy of enlighenment upon him.:

"This Bodhisattva Treasury of Virtue will become the next Buddha and be named Pure Life, Tathagata, Arhat, and Samyak-Sambuddha."

Having bestowed the prophecy, he entered into the Nirvana that is without a trace.

The bestowal of prophecy: The prophecy of enlightenment (S. Vyakarana) is an important part of the Great Vehicle teaching. Traditionally the Bodhisattva offered his vow (S. Pranidhana) in the presence of the Buddha and was then given his Prophecy of Enlightenment (S. Vyakarana) with the laying on of hands upon the crown. It is the point in one's spiritual journey at which one understand the purpose and meaning of one's life. It is the point at which one sees ahead to the destination of one's spiritual journey. It is the point at which one receives one's 'Buddhist name' that describes one's spiritual purpose. It might be said that your given name at birth, given to you by your parents, describes your past life in this world whereas your Buddhist name, given to you by your spiritual preceptor, describes your future spiritual life. The Sanskrit word Vyakarana literally means 'grammar' or 'analysis' (extracting the meaning from the words), and in this sense the Buddha read into the lives of his disciples and revealed their purpose.

In this chapter Manjusri explains that the Buddha Bright Lamp of the Sun & Moon bestows a prophecy of enlightenment upon a Bodhisattva. This occurs in a number of the Great Vehicle Sutras. Later in this Sutra, however, the Buddha will bestow prophecies of enlightenment on his spiritual disciples (Sravakas), which does not occur in other Sutras.

The Bodhisattva Treasury of Virtue (Punyagarbha) is the one to whom the Buddha Bright Lamp of the Sun & Moon gives the prophecy of enlightenment as the Buddha Pure Life.

The Bodhisattva Wonderful Light personifies the spiritual knowledge which turns into spiritual wisdom, which is the teacher of spiritual enlightenment. Although spiritual knowledge is required to properly teach of enlightenment, it is the Treasury of Virtue, that is, actual practice that will lead to enlightenment. The Treasury of Virtue personifies the respository of good spiritual roots (spiritual capacities - virtues) that are used in service to the work of enlightenment. Together wisdom and virtues are called 'the two adornments of enlightenment'.

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