The Seven Meanings of Mahāsattva will give an idea of his grandeur:

1. He has perfected great roots.

For limitless kalpas the Bodhisattva has made offerings before the Buddha to the Triple Jewel, bowing and revering the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha, and performing many meritorious and virtuous deeds. From these acts great roots develop. In a later passage the Vajra Sutra says:

You should know that such people have not planted good roots with just one Buddha, two Buddhas, three, four, or five Buddhas, but have planted good roots with measureless millions of Buddhas.

2. He has great wisdom.

His great wisdom is evident in his resolve to realize Bodhi. Without wisdom such a decision cannot be made. Good roots and the wisdom acquired from cultivation in past lives enable people to read the sutras and participate in dhyana sessions. A person lacking good roots would, from the moment he entered the monastery door, find his heart jumping as though it were inhabited by a monkey, and pounding so hard that standing would be uncomfortable and sitting unbearable. He would resemble a god manifesting the Five Marks of Decay, squirming and fidgeting in his seat and finally running away. …

3. He believes the great dharma.

The Buddhadharma is deeper than the great sea, higher than Mount Sumeru. It is difficult to fathom and difficult to penetrate, but with faith one can taste its flavor. Entry into the ocean of Buddhadharma is impossible for the person who lacks faith. Just as one might gaze at the ocean and heave a great sigh, saying, “It’s so big I could not drink it dry in my entire life,” so too might one react when confronted with the precious store of Buddhadharma, saying, “How can I ever study all the sutras?” However, if one has faith, if one truly believes, then from the shallow one can enter the deep; from the near one can reach the far; from a little one can gain a lot. With constant investigation, little by little one penetrates the precious store of Buddhadharma. Deep faith, firm vows, and actual practice are the ingredients. No matter how wonderful the great dharma is, without firm faith the wonderful cannot be obtained. …

4. He understands the great principle.

This is the understanding that one is, oneself, originally a Buddha. The principle is Buddha; Buddha is the principle. The Buddha is one who has already realized Buddhahood. The Mahāsattva understands that he himself has not yet realized Buddhahood, but that basically the Buddha and he are one, not two and not different. The Buddha’s cultivation of virtue is perfected, that of living beings is not. Living beings are not-yet-realized Buddhas; Buddhas are already-realized living beings. One should not become confused about this and profess to be a Buddha, saying, “I am Buddha and the Buddha is me.” The Buddha is a living being who has realized Buddhahood; living beings are not-yet-realized Buddhas. …

5. He cultivated the great conduct.

In cultivation one should not have a little success and feel satisfied, mistaking the transformation city for the ultimate truth. People of the two vehicles obtain some small advantage and are content. Their satisfaction with certification to the first, second, third, or fourth fruits of Arhatship prevents them from turning from the small to the great.

Some come halfway and think they have reached the goal. There is the case of the ignorant bhikṣu who obtained the state of the fourth dhyana and thought he had certified to the fourth fruit of Arhatship, saying, “I’ve already arrived at my goal.” He was actually only halfway there.

Common men go halfway and then turn back. Without even reaching the fourth dhyana heavens they begin to retreat, “It is too far, too hard, for the likes of us,” they say.

Some are waylaid in a transformation city, like the one described in the Wonderful Dharma Lotus Blossom Sutra. Why was such a city conjured up? Followers of the two vehicles cultivated a day or so seeking the Bodhisattva Way without attaining it. Then they cultivated another day, and still did not become Bodhisattvas. The following day, although they reached the Bodhisattva Way, they did not reach its end, and they decided the process was just too long. These “days” represent years, decades, aeons of time. The longer the cultivators sought to obtain their goal, the more bitter their suffering became. The more weary they grew, the less they were able to proceed. “I cannot go on. It is too far. I didn’t know it was such a long way. I am really tired,” they cried.

Seeing their plight, the Buddha conjured up a transformation city and called to them, “Look! There’s a city ahead where we can rest a few days. Our goal is but a short distance beyond the city.” When they entered the city, the people of the two vehicles became infatuated with the abundance of gold, silver and precious gems and decided to settle there. “This place is a real treasure house,” they thought. …

6. He passes through great kalpas.

The cultivation of a Bodhisattva involves planting good roots, but not before one Buddha only. One who fully cultivates passes through three great asaṃkhyeya kalpas.

7. He seeks the great fruit.

The Bodhisattva Way is cultivated by those who seek the great fruit. Foreign lands are not sought after, because Bodhisattvas are not small landlords who set about conquering other countries in order to build an empire. Only Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi, the highest fruit of cultivation, is the goal of great beings.

A Mahāsattva, one whose conduct encompasses those seven aspects, should thus subdue his thoughts.

The Buddha took his bowl and entered the great city of Sravasti to beg for food. Members of the sangha beg for food in order to give living beings an opportunity to plant seeds in the field of blessings. Because living beings did not know about going before the Triple Jewel to plant blessings, the sangha members went to the living beings by entering the cities and begging from door to door, neither bypassing the poor to beg from the rich, nor bypassing the rich to beg from the poor, unlike Subhūti who exclusively begged from the wealthy.

The Buddha reprimanded his two disciples Subhūti and Great Kāśyapa for their manner of begging. First he scolded Subhūti for thinking, “Wealthy people have money because in former lives they fostered merit and virtue. If I don’t beg from them and give them the opportunity to plant further blessings, then next life they will be poor. They will not continue to be wealthy and honored.” So Subhūti only begged from the rich. However, wealthy people eat good food. Although he said it was to help them plant blessings so they could continue to be wealthy in future lives, I believe that in actuality Subhūti liked to eat good food and that is why he begged from the rich. That is what I say, but perhaps Subhūti was not like the rest of us, who constantly think about eating well. It is true that he wanted to help them continue their blessings.

Second, the Buddha scolded Great Kāśyapa because, in his arduous practice of asceticism, he not only ate just one meal a day, but he begged only from the poor. His thought was, “These people are poor because in former lives they did not foster merit and virtue. They did not do good deeds when they had money, and so in this life they are poor. I will help them out of their predicament by enabling them to plant blessings before the Triple Jewel so next life they will be wealthy and honored.” The poorer the house, the more he begged there, even to the point that the poor people took the food out of their own bowls in order to have an offering for him. I believe that because Patriarch Kāśyapa cultivated asceticism he wanted to undergo suffering, and did not want to eat good things. He knew how people with money eat, and did not want to eat well himself. There is a Chinese proverb which says:

To be sparing with clothing increases life.
To be sparing with food increases blessings.

Great Kāśyapa was one hundred twenty years old when he took refuge with the Buddha. Life after life he had been frugal, and in this life, because he did not like to eat rich food, he only begged from the poor, just the opposite of Subhūti. Both of those methods are extreme, and not in accord with the Middle Way, and it is for this reason that the Śūraṅgama Sūtra says that the Buddha scolded them and called them Arhats.

The Buddha was equitable in his begging and did not favor rich or poor. His disciple Ananda followed his example and practiced equal compassion. “Ananda already knew that the Tathagata, the World Honored One, had admonished Subhūti and the Great Kāśyapa as Arhats whose minds were not equable.”

“How does one conquer greed, anger, and stupidity?” One counters them with morality, concentration and wisdom.

Greed, anger and stupidity are morality, concentration and wisdom, and vice versa. It is a matter of how one uses them. For example, one can use money to buy marijuana and get high, or he can use the money to help someone else. Relieving someone else’s suffering is a far better use of money than selfishly smoking marijuana. It is the same money; only the use differs.

So it is with greed, anger and stupidity; morality, concentration and wisdom. When one understands how to use them, they are morality, concentration and wisdom; when one is so deluded that one cannot make them function, they are greed, anger and stupidity. Ice does not differ from water, and water does not differ from ice. Just as water is ice and ice is water, so too afflictions are Bodhi and Bodhi is afflictions. Bodhi and afflictions are not two. If one cannot use it, Bodhi changes to afflictions; if one can, afflictions become Bodhi. However,

What is spoken is dharma.
What is practiced is the Way;
Even if you speak extremely well,
With no real practice, there is no real Way.

One must actually go and do it. One must honestly, truly, rely on the Buddhadharma and cultivate.

Relentlessly cultivating morality, concentration and wisdom, and putting to rest greed, anger and stupidity, are the means to subdue the mind. When one subdues the false mind, the true mind eternally dwells as a matter of course. The “eternally dwelling true mind, clear nature, bright substance” results from putting to rest the false mind, which allows the true mind to manifest.

Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi is a Sanskrit word which means “unsurpassed, proper and equal, right enlightenment.” The term is not translated because it is an honorific designation for the ultimate fruit, that of Buddhahood. Anuttara means “unsurpassed.” Samyak is translated as “proper and equal,” and saṃbodhi means “right enlightenment.” Right enlightenment is testified to by those of the two vehicles, and it is what differentiates them from common unenlightened people. The proper and equal enlightenment of the Bodhisattvas differs from the right enlightenment of the two vehicles in that those who have it have testified to an enlightenment equal to the Buddha’s. It is, however, still not the unsurpassed enlightenment. Once they have testified to proper and equal enlightenment, Bodhisattvas are called “surpassed lords.” The Buddha is known as the “unsurpassed lord,” because there is nothing above him. The Dharma Masters of great virtue who translated sutras in the past retained the original Sanskrit name of the Buddha’s position, and Dharma Masters who followed them honored the decision in their own translations.

At that time the Elder Subhuti arose from his seat in the assembly, uncovered his right shoulder,  placed his right knee on the ground, put his palms together with respect and said to the Buddha…

The ritual performed in requesting dharma symbolizes the purity of the Three Karmas:

1. Uncovering the right shoulder and placing the right knee on the ground represents the purity of body karma.
2. Placing the palms together respectfully represents pure mind karma.
3. Verbalizing the request indicates the karma of the mouth is pure

Subhūti has three meanings: “empty-born,” “well-manifest,” and “good luck.” In Subhūti’s household there were one hundred eight storehouses filled with the Seven Precious Gems: gold, silver, lapis lazuli, crystal, mother-of-pearl, red pearls, and carnelian. When Subhūti was born, it was found that the storehouses were entirely empty. One after another the vaulted doors were opened to reveal absolutely nothing within. “Who has stolen my jewels?” cried Subhūti’s distraught father. “We had such wealth and now are penniless. What is the meaning of this son?” He went to a diviner who calculated that the disappearance of the jewels and the birth of the child had been simultaneous, and so his father called the infant “empty born.” Analyzing the child’s birth-chart, the diviner declared it very lucky, whereupon the child was further named “good luck.” Seven days after Subhūti’s birth, all of the family wealth reappeared in the one hundred eight storerooms. That moved the father to rename his son “well-manifest.” Subhūti grew up while Śākyamuni Buddha was in the world teaching and transforming living beings, and he left home under the Buddha.

After Śākyamuni Buddha had put away his robe and bowl, washed his face, arranged his seat and sat down, an Elder named Subhūti stood up in the assembly. There are Three Kinds of Elders: the elder in years, the dharma-nature elder, and the elder in blessings and virtue.

1. The elder in years must be old and have held the precepts for a long time, as had Mahākāśyapa, the oldest and longest precepted of those in Śākyamuni Buddha’s dharma assembly. There are three grades of elders in years:

a) Low rank, those who have held precepts for at least ten years;

b) Middle rank, those who have held precepts for more than twenty years; and

c) High rank, those who have held precepts for more than thirty years.

2. The dharma-nature elder may be young, but he must possess great wisdom and be able to lecture sutras and speak dharma with sufficient power to teach and transform living beings. His stature comes from his deep understanding of dharma, his penetration of wonderful principle, and his unobstructed eloquence. For example, the Buddha’s disciple Śāriputra mastered the entire Buddhadharma in just seven days and became an elder at the age of eight. At that time he mounted the high seat and spoke dharma, totally confounding the best debaters from the five parts of India. All they could do was prostrate themselves before the eight-year-old child and confess themselves defeated. Of all Śākyamuni Buddha’s disciples, Śāriputra was foremost in wisdom and had unobstructed eloquence.

There are Four Kinds of Unobstructed Eloquence: of phrasing, principle, dharma and delight in speech.

a) Unobstructed eloquence of phrasing enables one to answer any question, however difficult, without perplexity.

b) Unobstructed eloquence of principle is a necessary complement to that of phrasing, because along with having limitless powers of debate, one must always speak in accordance with principle.

c) Unobstructed eloquence of dharma means that no matter what is said, one can counter with a higher principle. There is a saying, “Everything is the Way. Left and right meet the source.”

d) Unobstructed eloquence of delight in speaking enables one to obtain the Delight in Speech Samadhi. Then, even if the audience is unwilling to listen, one’s words flow like water and no one can resist the current.

3. The elder in blessings and virtue must have the reward from having planted blessings and acted with virtuous conduct.

Elder is a term of respect and definitely not a title one assigns oneself saying, “I am an elder. Everyone should call me ‘Elder.”

Subhūti, the elder in the Vajra Prajña Dharma Assembly, was an elder in years, a dharma-nature elder, and an elder in blessings and virtue.

At that time, at mealtime, the World Honored One put on his robe, took up his bowl, and entered the great city of Sravasti to beg for food. After he had finished his sequential begging within the city, he returned, ate the food, put away his robe and bowl, washed his feet, arranged his seat, and sat down.

At that time has five meanings:

1.  It was the time when the Buddha wanted to speak, began to speak, and was speaking.
2. It was the time which breaks up the views of outside ways. Some outside ways deny the existence of past, present, and future, “At that time” means the explanation has occurred in the past, is occurring in the present, and will occur in the future. These words therefore separate the Buddhadharma from the dharma of outside ways.
3. It was the time of planting seeds. Seeds that are planted and nourished will grow. Uncultivated seeds will perish. If one has developed good causes in past lives, but does not cultivate that fruit further in this life, he will have roots that wither and die. If these good roots are continually cared for, they will bear further fruit. So if you have roots that are sufficiently good to allow you to hear sutra lectures, do not just come occasionally; come as often as possible. The more you come, the deeper your roots will grow.
4. It was the time to listen to sutras. That does not mean just listening once or twice. It means listening regularly, for the more you hear the more you understand. In listening to sutras three conditions must be fulfilled: a) a true teacher, b) a true teaching, and c) true study. With only one or two of these conditions fulfilled, study is useless. For instance, if you have a true teaching and truly study, but lack a true teacher, then you cannot understand that teaching. All three conditions must be met for cultivation to succeed.
5. It was the time when the Buddha wanted to speak the dharma and beings wanted to listen. The Buddha wished to speak in the way living beings wanted to hear. The Buddha and living beings are not two, one high and the other low. They are equal.

The mention of mealtime clearly shows that the Buddha, like ordinary people, still eats and drinks. When it was time to eat, the World Honored One put on his robe. There are three robes worn by members of the sangha:

1. The antarvasas, the five-piece robe, is a work robe. It is made in a pattern of five strips, each of which contains two pieces, one long and one short;

2. The uttarasanga, the seven-piece robe, is worn for ceremonies and when listening to dharma; and

3. The samghati, also called the “perfect robe,” or “great robe,” is composed of up to 108 pieces in twenty-five strips. Each piece in the robes represents a field and so they are also called “field of blessings” robes. Members of the sangha wear the samghati when receiving offerings from laymen, who thereby “plant fields of blessings.” When putting on the robe a verse is recited which says,

Good indeed is the liberation cloth!
Unsurpassed field of blessings robe…

This robe is worn when lecturing sutras and speaking dharma from the high seat, when accepting offerings of pure food from the king or ruler of a country, and when begging for food.

Together with a gathering of great bhikṣus. After Śākyamuni Buddha realized Buddhahood, he went first to the Deer Park to cross over the Five Bhikshus including Ājñātakauṇḍinya. Then he contemplated and saw that Uruvilvā Kāśyapa, who had a large following of disciples, could be converted. Śākyamuni Buddha was an Elder Sanghan and had the manner of a High Master, but when he arrived to pay his visit, Uruvilvā Kāśyapa did not acknowledge him with respect because he thought, “I am the leader of many men. Everyone calls me the Worthy One…” Unaware of the Buddha’s background, he unceremoniously launched into an investigation of dharma with him. Soon, however, he realized what he had confronted, for no matter what he said, he never managed to have the last word. He could not defeat the Buddha in debate! Having failed with words, he resorted to his spiritual power as a fire worshipper. With the intention of burning the Buddha, he conjured up a great fire. His strength was impressive, but the fire failed to touch the Buddha, and, in fact, veered back toward Kāśyapa himself, who, on the verge of being burned alive, was helpless and immediately surrendered to the Buddha.

Uruvilvā had five hundred disciples, and his brothers had two hundred fifty each, all of whom took refuge with the Buddha, bringing the number of disciples to 1005.

Later the Buddha converted Śāriputra and Mahāmaudgalyāyana who had one hundred disciples each. When they took refuge, the Buddha’s disciples amounted to 1205 in all. Yasas, the son of an elder, and his disciples also took refuge with the Buddha. This actually makes a total of 1255 disciples who were the Buddha’s constant followers. Sutra texts round off the number to 1250.