Day 10 concludes Chapter 6, Assurance of Future Buddhahood, and opens Chapter 7, The Parable of a Magic City.

We begin with the assurance of Buddhahood for Subhuti, who will become a Buddha called Beautiful-Form in a world named Treasure-Born. Then Great Katyayana learns he will become a Buddha called Jambunada-Gold-Light. And Great Maudgalyayana learns he will become a Buddha called Tamalapattracandana-Fragrance in a world named Mind-Happiness. Finally, the Buddha adds that “five hundred disciples of mine” are assured of becoming Buddhas in their future lives.

In closing this chapter, the Buddha offers a tantalizing glimpse into what lies ahead:

Now I will tell you
About my previous existence
And also about yours.
All of you, listen attentively!

That previous existence occurred “a countless, limitless, inconceivable, asarpkhya’ number of kalpas ago,” in the time of a Buddha called Great-Universal-Wisdom-Excellence in the Well-Composed world.

Yet I remember [the extinction of] that Buddha by my power of insight as vividly as if he had passed away today.

And in gathas:

According to my remembrance,
There lived a Buddha, an Honorable Biped,
Called Great-Universal-Wisdom-Excellence,
Countless kalpas ago.

Suppose someone smashed
All the earth-particles
Of one thousand million Sumeru-worlds
Into ink-powder.

He went, [carrying the ink-powder with him,]
And inked a dot as large as a particle of dust
On the world at a distance of one thousand worlds.
He repeated the inking until the ink-powder was exhausted.

Suppose the worlds
Through which he went,
Whether they were inked or not,
Were smashed into dust.

It is innumerable kalpas,
More than the number
Of the particles of dust thus produced,
Since that Buddha passed away.

I remember the extinction of that Buddha
As vividly as if he had passed away just now,
By my unhindered wisdom; I also remember
The Sravakas and Bodhisattvas who lived [with him].

Bhiksus, know this!
My wisdom is pure, wonderful,
Free from asravas and from hindrance.
I know those who lived innumerable kalpas ago.

Great-Universal-Wisdom-Excellence wished to attain Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi but “could not because the Dharma of the Buddhas had not yet come into his mind.” He sat motionless for 10 small kalpas.

I always enjoy the idea of the gods and heavenly kings helping out:

[Before he sat at the place of enlightenment,] the Trayastrirnsa Gods prepared him a lion-like seat a yojana high under the Bodhitree so that he might be able to attain Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi on that seat. When he sat on that seat, the Brahman-heavenly-kings rained heavenly flowers on the area extending a hundred yojanas in all directions from that seat. From time to time withered flowers were blown away by fragrant winds and new flowers were rained down. [The Brahman-heavenly-kings] continued this offering to him for fully ten small kalpas. [After he attained Buddhahood also,] they continued raining flowers until he passed away. “[When he sat on that seat,] the four heavenly-kings beat heavenly drums, and the other gods made heavenly music and offered it to him. They continued these offerings also for fully ten small kalpas. [After he attained Buddhahood also,] they continued these offerings until he passed away.

Great-Universal-Wisdom-Excellence, the son of a wheel-turning-holy-king, had 16 sons before leaving home to become a Buddha.

The first son was called Accumulated-Wisdom. Each of the sons had various playthings. When the sons heard that their father had attained Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi, they gave up the playthings, left home, and came to that Buddha.

The princes praise their father:

Seeing that you have peacefully attained
The enlightenment of the Buddha,
We, too, have obtained benefits.
Congratulations! How glad we are!
All living beings are suffering.
Being blind, they have no leader.
They do not know how to stop suffering,
Or that they should seek emancipation.
In the long night fewer people go to heaven,
And more people go to the evil regions.
They go from darkness to darkness, and do not hear
Of the names of the Buddhas.

You are the Most Honorable One.
You have obtained the peaceful Dharma-without-asravas.
Not only we but also all gods and men
Will be able to obtain the greatest benefit.
Therefore, we bow and devote ourselves to you,
The Most Honorable One.