Having last month considered the elephant with six tusks and seven limbs, we consider the procession of the elephant.

The elephant’s trunk becomes the color of a red lotus flower. On the trunk, the manifested buddha form emits a beam of light from between its eyebrows. The beam is golden-colored and, as before, goes into the elephant’s trunk, emerges from inside the trunk and enters the elephant’s eyes, then comes out of the elephant’s eyes and curls back to enter its ears. The beam comes out of the elephant’s ears and extends to the top of its neck; then it gradually moves up to the elephant’s back and transforms into a golden saddle. The saddle is inlaid with the seven precious metals and gems, it has posts on four sides made of the seven precious metals and gems, and a multitude of jewels adorn it so as to form a jeweled platform. In the middle of the platform is a single lotus flower made of the seven precious metals and gems. One hundred jewels combine to form the stamens of this lotus flower, and its pod is a magnificent maṇi jewel. A single bodhisattva will be there, sitting erectly in the lotus posture: his name is Universal Sage. His body is the color of a white jewel, fifty kinds of rays of light, in fifty kinds of colors, are radiating from the nape of his neck, and golden rays of light are coming forth from all the pores of his body. Innumerable manifested buddha forms are at the ends of these golden rays, accompanied by manifested bodhisattva forms as their retinues.

Walking slowly and with quiet purpose, raining numerous jewel-like flowers, the procession will pass before the practitioner. The elephant will open its mouth, and the exquisite maidens in the pools at the tips of its tusks will sing and strum pleasant music, their sublime voices lauding the one genuine path of the Great Vehicle. Feeling both joy and reverence after perceiving this, the practitioner should further internalize and recite the extremely profound sutras, pay homage to all of the innumerable buddhas respectively in the ten directions, pay homage to the stupa of Many-Treasures Buddha and to Śākyamuni, likewise pay homage to Universal Sage and the various eminent bodhisattvas, and speak aloud this declaration:

“If I am worthy of seeing Universal Sage as a happy result of past actions, I petition you, O Universally Virtuous One, to show me your body and form!”