The lotus of the wonderful law : $b or, The lotus gospel...

The Buddha now addresses the body of his disciples, telling them that once upon a time there was a Buddha named Universal-Surpassing-Wisdom. An immeasurable time has passed since his Nirvana, and the Buddha tries to impress on his hearers the meaning of timelessness in the following manner:

“Suppose the earth element in a Three-Thousand-Great-Thousandfold-World were by some one ground into ink, and he were to pass through a thousand realms in an eastern direction, and then let fall one drop as large as a grain of dust; again, passing through another thousand realms, once more he let fall one drop; suppose he thus proceeds until he has finished the ink made of the earth-element—what is your opinion? All these realms—is it possible for mathematicians, or their disciples, to find their end or confines so as to know their number?”

“Bhikshus! Suppose all those realms which that man has passed, where he has dropped a drop and where he has not, were ground to dust, and suppose one grain of the dust be a kalpa—the time since that Buddha became extinct till now still exceeds those numbers by innumerable, infinite, hundreds, thousands, myriads, kotis of asamkhyeya kalpas. By the power of my Buddha-wisdom, I observe that distant time as if it were only to-day.”

The whole story is too long for insertion here. In brief, the Buddha, Universal-Surpassing-Wisdom, after routing the army of Mara, common to Buddha-realms, sat cross-legged, motionless in mind and body, for ten minor kalpas, but still did not attain to Perfect Enlightenment.

“Then the gods of Indra’s heavens spread for that Buddha a lion-throne, a yojana high, under a bodhi-tree, so that the Buddha might on this throne attain Perfect Enlightenment. No sooner was he seated on it, than the Brahma heavenly kings rained down celestial flowers over an area of a hundred yojanas. A fragrant wind from time to time arose, sweeping away the flowers as they withered and raining fresh ones.”

Other wonders are described until, at the end of ten minor kalpas, the great Buddha-law of Perfect Enlightenment is revealed. His sixteen sons, born while he was a prince before he left home to become a monk, also his father, with his hundred ministers and myriads of people, all drew near to the Throne of Enlightenment, doing homage to its occupant. They besought him to roll the Wheel of the Law and proclaim the Truth.

Thereupon the Brahma-kings of the East in five hundred myriad kotis of realms, with all their palace train, each follower bearing a great bag, full of celestial flowers, set forth to investigate the sign. They found the Buddha surrounded by vast expectant throngs, and immediately joined them, strewing their flowers before his feet till they rose high as Mount Sumeru, and each offering to him his magnificent palace. In like manner there appeared, in turn, the Brahma-kings of each of the other regions, making similar offerings. This is told in plenitude of detail, covering many pages of prose and verse. The four quarters, together with the zenith and nadir, are each portrayed in similar style, with sufficient variation to avoid mere verbal repetition.