Commentary on the Mahayana Vijnaptimatrata Sutra
Section Two: The Youthful Bhadrapāla, Blessed by the Buddha, Requests the Dharma
Original text: 佛见贤护。举身放光。流照贤护。贤护尔时。便获无畏。绕佛三匝。顶礼佛足。而白佛言。
Explanation: When the Buddha saw the Bodhisattva Bhadrapāla, His entire body emitted light that shone upon Bhadrapāla. After the Buddha's whole body radiated light streaming onto Bhadrapāla, the Bodhisattva Bhadrapāla gave rise to pure faith in the Buddha's Dharma, and in his heart he deeply wished to hear the Buddha proclaim the wondrous Dharma. Having received the Buddha's blessing, Bhadrapāla circumambulated the Buddha to the right three times, expressing his reverence and respect for the Buddha, then bowed at the Buddha's feet and began to ask the World-Honored One his questions and request the Dharma.
The Buddha's emission of light had a purpose: it was to encourage Bhadrapāla to request the Dharma from the Buddha, so that Bhadrapāla would be free of fear and able to ask questions before the Buddha. Because once he raised his questions, the Buddha, through this karmic condition, could then expound and deliver a supremely profound teaching. Sometimes when the Buddha wished to teach a certain Dharma but no one requested it, and there was no cause or condition, the Buddha generally could not teach spontaneously. So the World-Honored One would deliberately prompt a certain person, causing doubts to arise in his mind, leading him to request the Dharma and pose questions; the Buddha would then, based on the questions he raised, expound a sutra of Buddhist teaching.
Sentient beings' faith in the Buddha is sometimes impure and sometimes pure. For those newly studying the Buddha's Dharma, their faith in the Buddha is impure. In what way is it impure? They blindly believe in the Buddha with requests and expectations of Him; they do not yet understand the Buddha's merits, nor do they understand the Buddha's spiritual powers and great wisdom, or all of His virtues. Therefore they cannot give rise to pure faith, and there remain many doubts in their minds; hence it is not called pure faith.
Original text: 唯愿世尊。悲愍教授。我今始于佛所。得净信心。心悕妙法。欲有所问。而我久处生死。溺烦恼苦。乱念纷杂。于戒等业。无作冥资。虽心奇重。我今不知。于此愚惑。疑网之中。如何超出。得度生死。
Explanation: Bhadrapāla said to the World-Honored One: I hope the World-Honored One will compassionately pity me and instruct me. I have only now, here with the World-Honored One, attained pure faith, and my heart deeply longs to hear the supreme wondrous Dharma; I have questions I wish to ask of the World-Honored One. For immeasurable kalpas I have long dwelt in birth-and-death, submerged in the suffering of afflictions of greed, anger, and delusion; my mind is filled with scattered, jumbled thoughts and delusions, and I have been careless in upholding the precepts, having made no provisions of merit and provisions for the Path. Although my heart intensely longs to escape birth-and-death, I still do not know, trapped as I am in this net of ignorance and doubt, how I can break through and cross over the sea of birth-and-death.
The Bodhisattva Bhadrapāla repented of his lax state of mind in cultivation—his indolent mental conduct of failing to cultivate the precepts, meditation, and wisdom—yet he had nevertheless received the hidden blessings of the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. He understood part of his own karmic actions and afflictions of greed, anger, and delusion, but not yet completely; his mind was still in a state of ignorance, without having attained true wisdom and liberation, and he still had many doubts. He wished to resolve all his doubts, to eradicate his ignorance and dispel his uncertainties. He asked the Buddha how one could transcend the abyss of afflictions and the wheel of birth-and-death, escaping the sea of suffering of saṃsāra. In fact, his doubts represent the doubts of all sentient beings newly studying the Buddha's Dharma: how can one be delivered from birth-and-death, transcend the sea of suffering of the cycle of birth-and-death, and attain liberation? Only if this question is resolved can studying Buddhism yield truly great benefit.
Original text: 世尊是一切智。普见一切。佛出甚难。希有逢遇。如如意珠。施众生乐。佛是大如意宝。一切众生。咸由依佛。得大安乐。是大父母。众生善本。因佛父母。得见正路。唯愿悲愍。开晓疑闇。
Explanation: The Bodhisattva Bhadrapāla continued, praising the Buddha: The World-Honored One is the Omniscient One, able to universally see all dharmas and to know each sentient being's indriya and the root of their afflictions; for immeasurable kalpas, whatever karmic actions sentient beings have performed and whatever retributions they will receive in the future—the World-Honored One knows all of this. It is truly rare and difficult for a Buddha to appear in this world, so very hard to encounter. The Buddha is like a wish-fulfilling jewel, bestowing all happiness upon sentient beings; the Buddha is the great wish-fulfilling treasure, and all sentient beings can rely on the Buddha to attain great peace and bliss. The Buddha is our most dear and most revered parents, able to bring sentient beings the most fundamental benefit; He is the root of sentient beings' wholesome dharmas. Relying on the Buddha as their parents, sentient beings can see the correct path, walk the right way, and ultimately attain liberation. May the World-Honored One compassionately pity us and dispel the doubts and darkness in our minds.
A Buddha's appearance in the world is indeed extremely rare and hard to encounter. The Buddha told us in the sutras how long it takes for a Buddha to appear in the Sahā world: in the Auspicious Kalpa (Bhadrakalpa), one thousand Buddhas will appear; Śākyamuni Buddha is the fourth, and the fifth Buddha will be Maitreya Buddha. The sutras record that the time between Śākyamuni Buddha's appearance and Maitreya Buddha's appearance is 5.67 billion years—and this gap between the appearances of these two Buddhas is considered the shortest. Often, not a single Buddha appears within many great kalpas, and sometimes not even one Buddha appears within several tens of great kalpas.
How long is several tens of great kalpas? One complete cycle of the earth's formation, abiding, destruction, and voidness equals one great kalpa. One great kalpa contains four intermediate kalpas, and one intermediate kalpa contains twenty small kalpas. Only 16.8 million years (one small kalpa) multiplied by four and then by twenty makes one great kalpa. If not a single Buddha appears within several tens of great kalpas, then how anguished must the sentient beings living in this world be—no one to deliver them from birth-and-death, no end to their transmigration. For such a long time without a Buddha appearing in the world, a Buddha's appearance in this world is truly rare and so very hard to encounter.
Sentient beings rely on the Buddha to attain great peace and bliss; the Buddha is the great parents. From the perspective of ultimate reality, all sentient beings can only attain great peace and bliss by relying on the Tathāgata Buddha within the five-aggregate body. The tathāgatagarbha is the parent that gives birth to the five aggregates, the parent that brings sentient beings all dharmas. The Buddha within the five-aggregate body can bring sentient beings the Tripitaka and the twelve divisions of scriptures, the dharma of becoming a Buddha, and the dharma of liberation; by cultivating and studying in accordance with these, sentient beings can attain great peace and bliss. All sentient beings can only attain great bliss by relying on their own tathāgatagarbha. The tathāgatagarbha is also the parent of sentient beings, bringing them all the dharmas they need. The tathāgatagarbha is the root of goodness for sentient beings; only with the tathāgatagarbha can sentient beings cultivate wholesome dharmas. Because of the Buddha as their parents, sentient beings can see the correct path of cultivation; once on the right path, there is hope for liberation. May the World-Honored One compassionately pity us, expound the dharma of becoming a Buddha, dispel the darkness within our minds, and remove our ignorance and doubts.
Original text: 佛告贤护。汝有所疑。恣汝意问。我当为汝。分别解说。尔时贤护。蒙佛听许。心专请问。在一面住。
Explanation: The Buddha told Bhadrapāla: Whatever doubts you have, you are free to ask as you wish; whatever you ask, I shall answer one by one. In fact, the Buddha already knew what Bhadrapāla was going to ask, which is why He spoke thus. Knowing that the Buddha had permitted him to ask questions, Bhadrapāla stood to one side of the Buddha, his mind fully intent on posing his questions.
