Between Day 32 and Day 1: Purification of the Senses

Having completed my 47th cycle through the Lotus Sutra, I mark the The Dharma Practice of Universal Sage Bodhisattva with the verses for purification of the six senses:

If you have evil in your eyes,
Impure with hindrances from actions in the past,
You should recite the Great Vehicle
And reflect on its first principle.

This is called eye repentance.
It exhausts past bad actions.

When the ears hear noise,
The principle of harmony is upset.
This produces craziness,
Like that of a foolish monkey.

You should recite the Great Vehicle
And meditate on the emptiness and formlessness of things,
To exhaust all evils for a long time,
And hear sounds from all directions with heavenly ears.

The nose is attached to scents.
In accord with its contamination, contacts occur.
In this way the deluded nose, in accord with its contamination,
Gives birth to all kinds of entanglements.
If you recite the Great Vehicle sutras
And meditate on the reality of things,
You will long be free from evil actions done in the past
And not do them in future lives.

The tongue causes five kinds of bad consequences
From harsh words spoken in the past.

If you want to control it yourself,
You should make an effort to practice compassion,
Think of the meaning of the true quiescence of things,
And not conceive by making distinctions.

The mind is like a monkey,
Never resting for a moment.

If you want to subdue it,
You should make an effort to recite the
Great Vehicle,
Keeping in mind the Buddha’s great awakened body,
His power, and his freedom from fear.

The body, master of its organs,
Dances freely among these six harmful faculties
Without obstacle,
Like dust swirling in the wind.

If you want to be rid of these evils,
Long separated from dirt and trouble,
Ever in the comfort of nirvana,
And at ease with a calm heart,
You should recite the Great Vehicle sutras
And keep in mind the mother of bodhisattvas.

Innumerable excellent skillful means will be obtained
By reflecting on the true nature of things.
These so-called six methods
Purify the six sense organs.

The whole ocean of hindrances from past actions
Arises from illusion.
If you want to repent, you should sit upright
And reflect on the true nature of things.

All sins are like frost and dew.
The sun of wisdom can dissipate them.
For this reason, with all your heart
You should repent of the six senses.

(Reeves, p417-419)

See The Heart of the Entire Lotus Sutra