Commentary on the Pitāputrasamāgama Sūtra (216)

The Guide in Perilous Places

A Bodhisattva vows to be a guide in perilous places. What are the perilous places? The three realms offer no safety, like a house on fire; nowhere within the three realms is secure and peaceful, all are like a burning house. The Lotus Sutra uses the metaphor: the three realms are like a house already engulfed in a great fire, yet the beings within the house are still playing inside, unaware that suffering is imminent, unaware of the need to escape the burning house. Out of compassion for beings trapped in suffering and unable to escape, the Buddha, though outside the burning house, re-enters the three realms' burning house to deliver sentient beings. Yet we are still playing within the three realms, unaware that fierce flames are about to erupt everywhere, cutting off all paths of return, while malicious ghosts and ferocious beasts surround us, and the house is about to collapse. We are already in grave danger, yet we remain oblivious. The metaphors in the Lotus Sutra all speak of the foolishness of sentient beings, dwelling in the perilous places of birth and death without awareness. From this, we can see the Buddha's great compassion. He could have abandoned the human form, the shell of the body, yet he dons the human shell again, taking birth among humans to return and deliver us. Truly, this is unconditional great compassion and great compassion of shared origin. We should emulate the Buddha, vowing in the future to fear no peril and to deliver sentient beings.

What is the prerequisite for being a guide? It is having already traversed the perilous places of birth and death, possessing the capability to be a guide. If one does not know where the perils lie, where the dangers are, one cannot guide beings to escape the dangers. Therefore, we must first understand how to escape the three realms and possess the capability to transcend the three realms. Only then can we turn back to guide sentient beings, helping them avoid perils and return to the place of peace and bliss.