Having last month considered the reaction of Bodhisattva Fully Composed, we conclude the Sutra of Innumerable Meanings

At that time the Buddha addressed the great-being bodhisattva Fully Composed and the eighty thousand great-being bodhisattvas, saying: “Regarding this sutra, all of you should bring forth a deeply respectful attitude, practice the way of its teaching, and, with determined minds, disseminate it widely and inspire all living beings. You should always diligently endeavor to uphold it day and night and universally cause each and every living being to reap the benefits of the Dharma. In this you will truly be greatly merciful and highly compassionate. Cultivate a transcendent power of will to uphold this sutra, and never let doubt or hesitation arise. Make sure that it is widely practiced in this world in the future, and see that all living beings surely come to experience it, hear it, internalize it, recite it, make records of it, and honor it. This will also enable all of you to swiftly achieve the full dynamic of ultimate enlightenment.”

The great-being bodhisattva Fully Composed and the eighty thousand great-being bodhisattvas then immediately rose from where they sat, respectfully made their way to where the Buddha was, bowed their heads at his feet in homage, and walked around him a hundred thousand times. They then knelt formally on one knee before the Buddha and addressed him in one voice, saying: “World-honored One! We are all happy to receive the World-honored One’s compassion. You have expounded this profound, transcendent, supreme, all-ferrying Infinite Meanings Sutra for all of us equally. We respectfully accept the Buddha’s directive that, after your passing, we should be those who widely disseminate this sutra and inspire all living beings to accept it, keep faith with it, internalize it, recite it, make records of it, and honor it. May the World-honored One not be concerned! Through the strength of our resolve we will see that all living beings everywhere surely come to experience, hear, internalize, recite, make records of, and honor this sutra, and gain the dynamic transcendent power of its teaching.”

The Buddha then said, in praise, “Well done, you of good intent! Well done! Truly you are now successors of the Buddha! You are surely the ones capable of thoroughly eliminating suffering and alleviating misfortune with great kindness and compassion! You will be bountiful spheres of kindness for all living beings, excellent guides who benefit all far and wide, sources of great support for all living beings, and all living beings’ great benefactors! Constantly, with the benefits of the Dharma, be of universal service to all!”

Thereupon the entire assembly greatly rejoiced, paid homage to the Buddha, and, with understanding and acceptance, departed.

See Implanting Our Ideal of the Buddha

Having last month considered the tenth beneficial effect of this sutra, we consider the reaction of Bodhisattva Fully Composed and the the universe of a thousand-million Sumeru worlds.

With that, the great-being bodhisattva Fully Composed and the eighty thousand great-being bodhisattvas addressed the Buddha in one voice, saying: “World-honored One! The profound, transcendent, incomparable, all- ferrying Infinite Meanings Sutra expounded by the Buddha is true and correct in its content and principles, and its value is supreme and unsurpassed! It is embraced by the buddhas of the past, present, and future together. It is impervious to the influence of disruptive forces and the influence of differing views, and is neither corrupted nor destroyed by any deluded perception or the cycle of births and deaths. This sutra therefore has the inconceivable power of ten such kinds of beneficial effect and greatly benefits all living beings inclusively. It enables each and every great-being bodhisattva to attain the specialized focus of mind of infinite meanings, or to gain access to a hundred thousand Dharma-grasping empowerments, or to achieve the various bodhisattva stages and insights, or to attain realization as pratyekabuddha, or to realize the fruits of the four stages of arhatship. The World-honored One has willingly and compassionately expounded such a teaching for all of us and enabled us to harvest the great benefits of the Dharma. This is extremely unusual, unique, and unprecedented! The World-honored One’s compassionate favor is truly difficult to repay!”

At that moment the universe of a thousand-million Sumeru worlds trembled and shook in six ways, and several kinds of heavenly blossoms—blue, crimson, yellow, and white lotus flowers— rained from the sky above. Also, a rain of many and various kinds of heavenly incense and garments, garlands of celestial jewels, and priceless celestial treasures came spiraling down from the skies above as offerings to the Buddha, the bodhisattvas, the śrāvakas, and the great multitude. Celestial bowls and containers were filled to overflowing with hundreds of heavenly delicacies that were spontaneously fully satisfying by appearance and aroma. Celestial flags, celestial banners and canopies, and marvelous celestial amusements were arranged everywhere, and heavenly music and songs were played and sung in praise of the Buddha. Also, buddha worlds in the eastern direction, as numerous as the Ganges River’s sands, likewise trembled and shook in six ways. Heavenly flowers, heavenly incense and garments, garlands of celestial jewels, priceless celestial treasures, celestial bowls and containers, hundreds of heavenly delicacies that were spontaneously fully satisfying by appearance and aroma, celestial flags, celestial banners and canopies, and marvelous celestial amusements also rained down. Heavenly music and songs were played and sung in praise of those buddhas, bodhisattvas, śrāvakas, and great assemblies. In the southern, western, and northern directions, in the four intermediate directions, and in the upper and lower regions it was like this as well.

Underscore: The World-honored One’s compassionate favor is truly difficult to repay!

Having last month considered the ninth beneficial effect of this sutra, we consider the tenth beneficial effect of this sutra.

“O you of good intent! Tenth, this sutra’s unimaginable power for beneficial effect is this: Whether during or after the lifetime of a buddha, if men and women of good intent who obtain this sutra give rise to great joy, realize its rarity in their minds, accept and keep faith with it, internalize and recite it, make records of it, honor it, and practice it as expounded for their own sake, and are similarly able to widely inspire both laypeople and renunciants to accept and keep faith with it, internalize and recite it, make records of and honor it, expound it, and practice the way of its teaching, then, through the energies gained from having led other people to practice this sutra, they will realize the Way and attain its fruits. Fully by reason of the dynamic transformative power of their compassionate minds, these men and women of good intent—just as they are—will opportunely come to gain access to innumerable Dharma-grasping empowerments. Still in the stages of having delusive worldly passions, they will for the first time be able to spontaneously produce countless and unlimited great vows and magnificent aspirations. They will generate a bottomless capacity to help all living beings, manifest great loving-kindness, skillfully and extensively relieve suffering, and amass acts of goodness for the benefit of all. Transmitting the Dharma-abundance that irrigates all that is parched, nurturing any living being with the Dharma’s many medicines, they will cause all to have ease and joy. Their perception will gradually become transcendent as they advance through the stage of the Dharma cloud (dharmameghā-bhūmi). With bountiful, all-embracing benevolence, and with compassion that blankets all without exception, they will lead all suffering living beings to enter the course of the Way. These people will accordingly realize and achieve the full dynamic of ultimate enlightenment before long. O you of good intent! This is known as the inconceivable power of the tenth beneficial effect of this sutra.

“O you of good intent! Such is the incomparable, all-ferrying Infinite Meanings Sutra! It possesses awe-inspiring power to the highest extent, and its value is supreme and unsurpassed! It can open the way for every being that is bound by delusive passions to attain the most sublime fruit—to forever rise above the cycle of births and deaths and attain emancipation. Thus is this sutra named Infinite Meanings! It can open the way for all living beings still in the stages of having delusive worldly passions to germinate the sprouts of all of the countless ways of bodhisattvas and let the tree of beneficial works flourish, thrive, and increase in breadth and reach. That is why this sutra is marked by its ten unimaginable powers for beneficial effect!”

See The Teachings in Nine and Twelve Divisions

Having last month considered the eighth beneficial effect, we consider the ninth beneficial effect of this sutra.

“O you of good intent! Ninth, this sutra’s unimaginable power for beneficial effect is this: If men and women of good intent, upon obtaining this sutra—either during or after the lifetime of a buddha—dance with joy and delight at gaining something marvelous, accept and keep faith with it, internalize and recite it, make records of and honor it, and widely explain to people in great detail what this sutra means, they will immediately and instantly achieve the destruction and elimination of the heavy hindrances from karmic causes and other impurities that remain from the past. They will opportunely achieve purity, come to attain great eloquence, perfectly compose themselves in the spiritual attitudes one by one, and attain various kinds of specialized focus of mind, including that of courageous advancement (śūraṅgama-samādhi). They will gain access to great Dharma-grasping empowerments, obtain the power of diligent endeavor, and swiftly pass to the uppermost stage of development. They will be well capable of widely making their presence felt in all the lands of the ten directions. Rescuing greatly suffering living beings throughout the twenty-five states of existence, they will lead them all to emancipation. This is all because this sutra contains power of this kind. O you of good intent! This is known as the inconceivable power of the ninth beneficial effect of this sutra.

See The Lotus Sutra as a History Lesson

Having last month considered the seventh beneficial effect, we consider the eighth beneficial effect of this sutra.

“O you of good intent! Eighth, this sutra’s unimaginable power for beneficial effect is this: Among men and women of good intent—either during or after the lifetime of a buddha—if there are those who are able to obtain this sutra and revere it, trust it, and look upon it as being nothing less than the actual person of a buddha, such people will come to love and take joy in this sutra, accept and keep faith with it, internalize it, recite it, make records of it, and respectfully embrace it. Following and practicing the way of its teaching, they will strengthen their spiritual attitudes regarding the behavioral principles and forbearance while also perfecting their practice of having consideration for others. Compassion will awaken from deep within them through this unmatched all-ferrying Infinite Meanings Sutra, and they will expound it widely for people’s benefit. If someone has long since completely disbelieved that there are things like impurities and virtues, their presentation of this sutra—employing various skillful means—will have the powerful effect of inspiring such a person to belief. Through the influence of the sutra they will awaken that person’s mind, and he or she will spontaneously experience a change of heart. With the now-awakened trusting mind, that person, through dauntless effort, can acquire this sutra’s dynamic power for great beneficial effect, and he or she will be able to realize the Way and attain its fruits. By this means, men and women of good intent—just as they are— will come to the understanding that phenomena are without origination or cessation, achieve the highest stage of development, and become part of the company of bodhisattvas. They will quickly become able to bring living beings to accomplishment and refine buddha lands, and it will not take a long time for them to realize and achieve ultimate enlightenment. O you of good intent! This is known as the inconceivable power of the eighth beneficial effect of this sutra.

See Merit Powers

Having last month considered the sixth of the 10 Beneficial Effects of the Sutra of Innumerable Meaning, we consider the seventh beneficial effect:

“O you of good intent! Seventh, this sutra’s unimaginable power for beneficial effect is this: During or after the lifetime of a buddha, if men and women of good intent can hear this sutra and joyfully and willingly embrace and trust in it, realize its rarity in their minds, accept and keep faith with it, internalize and recite it, make records of and speak of it, practice the way of its teaching, awaken the aspiration for enlightenment, put forth many roots of goodness, promote great com- passion, and aspire to ferry all suffering living beings, then, even though they do not practice to perfect the six spiritual attitudes, perfection in the six spiritual attitudes will naturally come to them. Just as they are, they will come to the understanding that phenomena are without origination or cessation; they will instantly cast away and destroy delusive worldly passions and the cycle of births and deaths; and they will immediately rise to the seventh stage of development, joining the level of great bodhisattvas. Imagine that a powerful person settles a grudge on behalf of a king. After all hostility has been extinguished, the king is greatly pleased, and, as a reward, grants to that person full rights to all things in half of his realm. So it is also with the women and men of good intent who keep faith with this sutra. Being the strongest and most valiant of those who do practices, attainment of the Dharma treasure of the perfection of the six spiritual attitudes spontaneously comes to them without their pursuit of it, they naturally rout and remove the foes that are birth and death, and they come to the realization that phenomena are without origination or cessation. The treasure of half of a buddha realm with which they are rewarded is tranquility and joy. O you of good intent! This is known as the inconceivable power of the seventh beneficial effect of this sutra.

See Merits of the Six Kinds of Practice