Day 12 concludes Chapter 7, The Parable of the Magic City, and completes the Third Volume of the Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma.

Having last month heard the explanation of the Parable of the Magic City from Śākyamuni, we repeat the tale of Great-Universal-Wisdom-Excellence Buddha in gāthās.

Thereupon the World-Honored One, wishing to repeat what he had said, sang in gāthās;

Great-Universal-Wisdom-Excellence Buddha sat
At the place of enlightenment for ten [small] kalpas.
He could not attain the enlightenment of the Buddha
Because the Dharma of the Buddhas had not yet come into his mind.

The gods, dragon-kings,
And asuras rained down
Heavenly flowers,
And offered them to him.

The gods beat heavenly drums,
And made many kinds of music.
Withered flowers were swept away by fragrant winds;
And fresh and beautiful flowers were rained down.

After the ten small kalpas elapsed,
He attained the enlightenment of the Buddha.
The gods and men of the world
Felt like dancing with joy.

Surrounded by their followers,
Thousands of billions in number,
The sixteen sons of that Buddha
Came to him.

Worshipping the feet of the Buddha with their heads,
They begged him to turn the wheel of the Dharma, saying:
“Lion-like Saint! Send the rain of the Dharma
On us and on all others also!”

It is difficult to meet a World-Honored One.
He appears only once in a very long time.
When he appears, he causes all the worlds to quake
In order to awaken all living beings.

My recent reading on the “Beginnings of Buddhism” focused on the man who gained enlightenment. Sounds so simple when you consider that Great-Universal-Wisdom-Excellence Buddha sat at the place of enlightenment for ten small kalpas. He could not attain the enlightenment of the Buddha because the Dharma of the Buddhas had not yet come into his mind.