月明菩薩經

Thus have I heard:

At one time the Buddha was dwelling on Mount Gṛdhrakūṭa in the city of Rājagṛha, together with a great assembly of bhikṣus, one thousand two hundred and fifty in number, and ten thousand bodhisattvas.

At that time, in the land of Rājagṛha, there was a great householder of immense wealth named Sudatta. Sudatta had a son named Candrapāla (Moonlight), who was of pure and noble conduct. The Buddha likened this son to a young man, and therefore called him Moonlight.

The young man came to where the Buddha was, paid homage to him, and then sat down to one side. The Buddha said to the young man Moonlight:

"A bodhisattva-mahāsattva, whether dwelling at home or living as a bhikṣu, practices the giving of the Dharma, and always welcomes all people with a wholesome intention. With a mind that upholds the Four Vows, he constantly gives rise to the aspiration to seek the Buddha Way, swiftly realizing the unsurpassed, true, and right Way.

"What are the Four Vows?

"1. To vow that all people may swiftly attain skillful means and adaptive expedients.

"2. To vow that life after life one may meet good spiritual friends.

"3. To vow to give one's precious possessions to all people.

"4. To vow to practice the two things—namely, the giving of the Dharma and the giving of food—and always to delight in this conduct.

"These are the four vows.

"Furthermore, young man Moonlight, the great being, the bodhisattva, whether dwelling at home or having left the household life, always delights in giving the Dharma of the scriptures, skillfully uses adaptive expedients to receive all people, has no mind of greed or stinginess, abides in the true Dharma, and guards the prohibitory precepts in accord with the Dharma.

"Moonlight, there is also this: if there should be a bhikṣu afflicted with illness and pain, who is also in want, one must supply him with medicines so that this bhikṣu may be at ease. Not only must one provide medicines, but one must also not begrudge even one's own flesh and skin, offering them so that this bhikṣu may be cured of his illness.

"Moonlight, when the great being, the bodhisattva, gives, he must have no doubt. Why is this so? In ages past, countless asaṃkhyeya kalpas ago, an immeasurable span of kalpas so remote that it cannot be reckoned, there was at that time a Buddha named Royal-Vow-of-Mindful-Resolve, the Unsurpassed, the Tathāgata, the One Free of All Attachment, the One of Equal and Right Enlightenment, who manifested by taking on a body in the world, and in accordance with what living beings delighted in, displayed deeds of exalted nobility.

"Moonlight, at that time the Royal-Vow-of-Mindful-Resolve, the Unsurpassed Tathāgata, the Truly Worthy One of Equal and Right Enlightenment, one day manifested the mark of Equal and Right Enlightenment, and at once conjured an incalculable number of bodily forms. In accordance with what beings delighted in, he opened the Way to them, causing innumerable people to attain the Way of the Srotaāpanna, innumerable people to attain the Way of the Sakṛdāgāmin, innumerable people to attain the Way of the Anāgāmin, innumerable people to attain the Way of the Arhat, innumerable people to attain the Way of the Pratyekabuddha, innumerable people to be born among the Four Heavenly Kings, innumerable people to be born in the Trāyastriṃśa Heaven, innumerable people to be born in the Yāma Heaven,

innumerable people to be born in the Tuṣita Heaven, innumerable people to be born in the Nirmāṇarati Heaven, innumerable people to be born in the Māra Heaven, innumerable people to be born in the realm of the Brahmā Heaven, and innumerable people each to give rise to the resolve toward the Unsurpassed, Right, and True.

Each and every person would pass along the great road to Nirvāṇa.

"At that time, the Mindful-Resolve, the Unsurpassed Tathāgata, the One Free of All Attachment, the One of Equal and Right Enlightenment, having through his manifested body taught and liberated all in a single day, entered Nirvāṇa. After the Buddha entered Nirvāṇa, his teaching of the Dharma remained in the world for two billion thousand years. The final period, when the teaching of the Dharma was about to come to an end, lasted twenty years. There were a great many bhikṣus who did not deeply believe in the scriptures, who for the most part delighted in shallow matters, and so the Dharma of the scriptures dispersed and dwindled until nothing remained.

"At that time, in the land of Jambudvīpa there was a king named Power-of-Wisdom, who constantly practiced the three matters concerning the Buddha. What are the three matters?

"1. He constantly supported the Buddha and deeply believed in the teaching of the Dharma.

"2. He received and practiced the profound Dharma of the Buddha.

"3. He firmly believed in the profound Dharma of the Buddha.

"At that time, there was in the world a bhikṣu named Dharmadhara (Sincere and Resolute Intention), who constantly practiced three matters. What are the three matters?

"1. He constantly upheld samādhi.

"2. He constantly guarded samādhi.

"3. He constantly recited samādhi.

"In addition, there were eight matters:

"1. He constantly practiced the mind of loving-kindness.

"2. He constantly practiced the mind of compassion.

"3. He constantly practiced the mind of pity.

"4. He constantly practiced the mind of protection.

"5. He constantly practiced the mind of wisdom.

"6. He constantly practiced the mind of question and answer.

"7. He constantly practiced the mind of joy.

"8. He constantly practiced the foremost mind.

"By this, this bhikṣu subdued the ninety-six kinds of other paths, and thoroughly penetrated all the profound Dharma without any doubt.

"The bhikṣu Sincere and Resolute Intention and King Power-of-Wisdom were constantly close to one another. The king greatly revered the master, and the people of the whole land likewise loved and revered him. The king longed to see this bhikṣu without ever growing weary. When this bhikṣu expounded the Dharma of the scriptures, the king listened without ever growing weary. At that time, a great boil grew upon the bhikṣu's knee, and the medicines of the land were unable to cure it. The king grieved and felt such pity that he shed tears, and both of the king's consorts likewise loved and revered this bhikṣu. At that time, King Power-of-Wisdom dreamed that a heavenly being came and said to the king:

"'If you wish to cure the illness of the bhikṣu Sincere and Resolute Intention, you must obtain the flesh and blood of a living person for the sick one to eat and drink, and the illness will be cured at once.'

The king awoke, troubled and joyless, thinking of the grave illness of the bhikṣu and how that remedy was needful yet hard to obtain. The king issued a command to his ministers, asking how the flesh and blood of a living person might be found.

The king's eldest crown prince, named Jñānakara (Resolute Restraint), reported:

"Royal father, do not grieve or worry. The blood of a person is a very ordinary thing. Because the people of this world esteem the Way, they will begrudge nothing."

The king replied:

"Excellent, excellent!"

The crown prince quietly returned to his dwelling to eat, and with a knife cut his thigh, took the flesh and blood, and brought them to the bhikṣu. The bhikṣu recovered, the boil healed at once, and his body was made at ease.

When the king heard that the bhikṣu had been cured, he rejoiced with a joy beyond all telling, his heart mindful only of the bhikṣu, forgetting the pain of the crown prince.

Because of the wholehearted joy that had brought about the bhikṣu's recovery, the crown prince's wound likewise healed of itself. The king bestowed upon the crown prince the precious treasures of the land. The crown prince replied with a verse:

By giving flesh and blood, peace and joy are given;
Cutting flesh and blood, he bestowed them upon another.
Being cured of illness, free from worry and fear—
This the Buddha praised as worthy of offering.

The Buddha said to the young man Moonlight:

"The bhikṣu Sincere and Resolute Intention of that time is now the Buddha Dīpaṃkara; King Power-of-Wisdom is now the Bodhisattva Maitreya; and the crown prince Resolute Restraint is none other than I myself.

"The Tathāgata, the One Free of All Attachment, the One of Equal and Right Enlightenment, brings benefit to the world beyond all reckoning. He accumulates merit because he wishes to liberate all living beings; the great beings, the bodhisattvas, all practice in this way. If there should be a good man or good woman who wishes to seek to transcend all the sufferings of the world, he must give rise to the unsurpassed, right, and true Way, and recite and cultivate this samādhi."

When the Buddha had finished speaking this sutra, all rejoiced, gave rise to their vows, and then withdrew.