佛說彌勒下生成佛經

The Greatly Wise Śāriputra, who is able to follow the Buddha in turning the Wheel of Dharma, is a great general within the Buddha Dharma.

Out of compassion for sentient beings, he addressed the Buddha, saying:

"O World-Honored One! As the Buddha has expounded in the earlier sutras, the Venerable Maitreya will descend to be born and become a Buddha. I now wish to hear in full detail about the merit, spiritual power, and the adornments of his land. How must sentient beings give alms, uphold the precepts, and cultivate wisdom in order to behold the Venerable Maitreya?"

At that time the Buddha said to Śāriputra:

"I shall now explain it to you in detail. Listen single-mindedly.

O Śāriputra! When the waters of the four great oceans recede by 3,000 yojanas, then the land of Jambudvīpa will be 10,000 yojanas long and 8,000 yojanas wide, and level as a mirror. Upon the land there will be beautiful flowers and soft grass everywhere. There will be myriad kinds of trees, and their flowers and fruits will be most luxuriant. Those trees will all be 30 li in height.

The cities and towns will be near to one another, separated only by the distance of a chicken's flight. Human beings will live to 84,000 years. They will possess majestic virtue and wisdom, abundant complexion and strength, and will live in joy, ease, and leisure.

There will be only three afflictions:

1. the need to relieve oneself

2. the need to eat and drink

3. the inevitability of growing old and feeble

Only when a woman reaches 500 years of age will she be given in marriage.

At that time there will be a great city, upright, majestic, sublime, pure, and adorned, named Wondrous Banner Form (Ketumatī), 12 yojanas long and 7 yojanas wide, and within it will be filled with people of merit and virtue. Because of their merit and virtue, their lives will be peaceful and prosperous. That city will be made of the seven treasures. Upon it will be towers and pavilions; the doors, eaves, and window frames will all be made of jewels. Nets of pearls will be draped over them as a canopy. The crossroad avenues will be 12 li wide, sprinkled with water and swept clean.

At that time there will appear a great and powerful dragon king named Water Light (Jalāmbara). Near the city there will be a lake, and the palace of the dragon king will be within that lake. In the depths of the night, the dragon king will rain down a fine mist to spray upon the dusty ground until the earth is moistened as though with oil. Whoever walks upon it will not be soiled by dust.

Because of the merit and virtue of the people of that time, along all the roads and paths there will be pillars of luminous pearls, each 10 li in height. That light will shine day and night, gentle and uniform. The light of lamps and torches, compared with this light, falls far short. Upon the paths, the dwellings, and indeed throughout the entire city, there will not be even the tiniest clod of earth; the ground will be strewn entirely with golden sand. Everywhere there will be accumulations of gold and silver.

At that time there will be a great yakṣa deity who will always guard this city, named Wholesome Teaching (Sudharma). This deity will sweep clean every place. Should anyone relieve themselves and leave impurity, the ground will split open to receive it and close again as before when finished.

When the people of that time are about to reach the end of their lives, they will of their own accord go to the burial ground to pass away.

The world at that time will be most peaceful and joyful, without enemies, bandits, or robbery. The gates and doors of the cities, towns, and villages will never be shut. Nor will there be suffering and distress caused by water, fire, weapons of war, famine and thirst, or any kinds of poison and harm. The people will always be kind and gentle, reverent and harmonious, with their faculties subdued and their speech humble.

O Śāriputra! I shall now speak briefly of the prosperity and joy within the cities and towns of that land.

The ponds and springs in the parks and groves there will naturally have water of the eight virtues. Upon the surface of the water there will be lotus flowers everywhere, of many different colors, such as: blue, pink, red, and white. The terraced steps surrounding the ponds will all be made of the four treasures. There many kinds of birds will come to alight, such as: geese, mandarin ducks, kingfishers, parrots, herons, fair-eyed birds, jīvaṃjīvaka birds, and countless other rare and wondrous birds with their warbling songs. Fruit-bearing trees and fragrant trees will fill that land everywhere.

At that time Jambudvīpa will always have a sweet and pervasive fragrance, accumulated like a mountain of incense. The taste of the flowing waters will be most delicious and sweet, and able to dispel misfortune. Rain will moisten in due season. The rice plants will be lush and flourishing, without weeds, and though sown but once will be harvested seven times. The people of that time will use but little effort yet reap a great harvest. When the rice enters the mouth it will be most fragrant and delicious, and will further make one's vital energy and strength abundant and full.

At that time in that land there will be a Wheel-Turning King named Conch (Śaṅkha). He will possess the four kinds of army, yet he will not use force to rule the four continents of the world. The king will have 1,000 princes, brave, valiant, and full of might, able to crush all foes. The king will possess the seven treasures, namely: the precious golden wheel, the precious white elephant, the precious blue-green horse, the precious divine pearl, the precious jade maiden, the precious treasury-steward, and the precious commander of the army.

In that land there will also be a tower of the seven treasures, soaring to 1,000 zhang in height and 60 zhang in width, with 1,000 helms and 1,000 wheels.

At that time there will be four great treasure stores. Surrounding each great treasure store will be four koṭis of smaller treasure stores.

– The great treasure store Elāpattra, in the land of Fragrant Grove (Gandhāra).

– The great treasure store Pāṇḍuka, in the land of Mithilā.

– The great treasure store Piṅgala, in the land of Suraṣṭa.

– The great treasure store Śaṅkha, in the land of the Deer Park (Vārāṇasī).

The circumference of each of these great treasure stores will be 1,000 yojanas. Within them will be filled with precious treasures, and each great treasure store will have four koṭis of smaller treasure stores surrounding it. Moreover, there will be four great dragon kings who will guard these four great treasure stores together with the smaller treasure stores there. Those treasure stores will spring forth of their own accord, taking the shape of lotus flowers. Then countless people will all come to behold them. The treasures of that time will have no one to guard them. When the people see these treasure stores, their hearts will harbor no craving or attachment. They will leave them upon the ground like tiles and stones, grass and trees, clods of earth.

Having seen them, they will all give rise to a mind of weariness and disgust, thinking thus:

'In ages past, sentient beings, for the sake of these treasures, harmed one another. They stole from one another, deceived one another with false speech, and caused the karmic bonds of birth-and-death and suffering to increase day by day.'

Draped over the city of Wondrous Banner Form will be a net of treasures. Hanging upon it will be precious bells, majestic and ornate. When the wind blows through them, they will give forth harmonious and gentle sounds, like the resonance of a chime when struck.

At that time within the city there will be a great Brahmin chief named Wholesome Purity (Subrahmā). His wife will be named Pure Wonder (Brahmāvatī). When Maitreya descends to be born, they will be the parents of the Bodhisattva.

The body of the Venerable Maitreya will be of a purple-gold color and complete with the 32 marks. When sentient beings behold him, their eyes will not wish to turn away for even an instant.

The power of the Venerable Maitreya will be immeasurable—beyond conception. His radiant light will shine forth, and nothing will be able to obstruct it. The light of the sun, the moon, and the fire-pearl will all fail to appear.

– His body will be 100 zhang in height.

– His chest will be 30 zhang in breadth.

– His face will be 12.4 zhang in length.

The Venerable Maitreya will have a perfect bodily form, accomplished in the excellent marks, upright and incomparable, and like a golden statue.

The Venerable Maitreya will have pure physical eyes and will see for 10 yojanas. He will always have a halo, shining all around for 100 yojanas. The light of the sun, the moon, and the fire-pearl will no longer appear—only the Buddha's light is supremely subtle and wondrous.

At that time Maitreya Bodhisattva will contemplate the innumerable harms of the five desires in the world. With compassion he will pity the sentient beings who must sink and drown in the current of birth-and-death. Having thus reflected, he will with right mindfulness contemplate, and will take no delight in worldly life.

At that time, King Conch together with his great ministers will bring that precious tower to offer to the Venerable Maitreya. When the Venerable Maitreya has received it, he will give it in alms to the Brahmins. When the Brahmins have received it, they will divide those objects among themselves.

When Maitreya Bodhisattva sees the impermanence and brevity of that subtle and wondrous precious tower, he will know that all dharmas are subject to decay and destruction. Thereafter, he will cultivate the contemplation of impermanence, then will leave the home life to study the Way and sit beneath the Dragon Flower Bodhi tree (Nāgapuṣpa). That tree will be 50 li in height. And on the very day he leaves the home life, he will attain Supreme Perfect Enlightenment (Anuttarā Samyaksaṃbodhi).

At that time the devas, dragons, ghosts, and spirits will conceal themselves without manifesting their bodies, and will rain down fragrant flowers to make offerings to that Buddha. Then the Three-Thousandfold Great Thousandfold World System will quake in six ways. The body of the Buddha will emit light, shining upon immeasurable lands. Whatever sentient beings are ready to be liberated will all behold the Buddha.

At that time the people will all think thus:

'Although we may enjoy the pleasures of the five desires for a thousand myriad koṭis of years, yet we still cannot escape the suffering and bondage of the three evil paths. Wife, children, and possessions cannot rescue one another. The world is impermanent, and life is brief. Now let us cultivate pure conduct.'

Having thought thus, they will straightway leave the home life to study the Way.

Then 84,000 great ministers, surrounding King Conch with reverence, will likewise together leave the home life to study the Way.

Furthermore, 84,000 wise and talented Brahmins will likewise together leave the home life to study the Way within the Buddha's teaching of Dharma.

There will also be an elder named Wholesome Giving (Sudāna), who is now none other than the Elder Sudāna, who together with 84,000 people will likewise leave the home life.

There will also be the two brothers Sage's Lifespan and Long Antiquity, who together with 84,000 people will likewise leave the home life.

There will also be two great ministers whom the king cherishes and esteems. The first will be named Sandalwood (Candana), the second named Good Intent, who together with 84,000 people will likewise leave the home life within the Buddha's teaching of Dharma.

The jeweled woman of King Conch, named Quiet Constancy, who is now none other than Lady Mṛgāramātṛ (Viśākhā), together with 84,000 attendant women will likewise leave the home life.

The crown prince of King Conch, named Heavenly Golden Color, who is now none other than the son of the Elder Loved-by-Devas, together with 84,000 people will likewise leave the home life.

Wondrous Intent, son of a Brahmin, who possesses bright and luminous wisdom and is also a kinsman of the Buddha Maitreya, who is now none other than the son of the Bhikṣuṇī Surpassing Wholesome Worthy, together with 84,000 people will likewise leave the home life within the Buddha's teaching of Dharma.

There will also be immeasurable thousands of myriads of koṭis of multitudes such as these, who, seeing the suffering and distress of the world, will all together leave the home life within the teaching of Dharma of the Buddha Maitreya.

When he has seen the great assemblies gathered together in full, the Buddha Maitreya will say:

'Now you have come to the place of the Tathāgata, not for the sake of seeking birth in the heavens to enjoy pleasures, nor for the sake of comfort and joy in this present life, but solely for the sake of the causes and conditions of the permanence, bliss, self, and purity of Nirvāṇa. All of you here have in the past planted wholesome roots within the Buddha Dharma. In ages past, the Buddha Śākyamuni dispatched you here and entrusted you to me. Therefore, you have all now come to my place. Now the Tathāgata shall embrace and receive you.

Among you here, some have come to be born at my place through cultivating various merits, such as reciting and discriminatingly expounding the Sutras, the Vinaya, and the Treatises.

Or by taking clothing and food and giving them in alms to others, upholding the precepts and disciplines and cultivating wisdom—through cultivating this merit they have come to be born at my place.

Or by using banners, parasols, and incense and flowers to make offerings to the Buddha—through cultivating this merit they have come to be born at my place.

Or by practicing almsgiving, observing a vegetarian diet and upholding the precepts, and cultivating a mind of loving-kindness—through cultivating this merit they have come to be born at my place.

Or by relieving the suffering and distress of sentient beings and causing them to attain peace and joy—through cultivating this merit they have come to be born at my place.

Or by upholding the precepts and practicing patience, cultivating the conduct of a pure and loving heart—through cultivating this merit they have come to be born at my place.

Or by always offering vegetarian food to the Saṅgha coming from all directions to attend the Dharma assembly—through cultivating this merit they have come to be born at my place.

Or by upholding the precepts, being widely learned through much hearing, and cultivating meditative concentration together with undefiled wisdom—through cultivating this merit they have come to be born at my place.

Or by building stūpas to make offerings to relics and commemorate the Dharma-body of the Buddha—through cultivating this merit they have come to be born at my place.

How excellent! The Buddha Śākyamuni was able to teach and transform hundreds of thousands of myriads of koṭis of sentient beings and cause them to come to my place.'

At that time, the Buddha Maitreya will thus praise me three times.

Thereafter, he will expound the Dharma in this way:

'You sentient beings were able, in that evil age, to perform such difficult deeds—able to uphold the precepts and perform deeds of merit amid people full of greed, hatred, delusion, ignorance, and short lifespans. How exceedingly rare!

The sentient beings of that time did not revere their fathers and mothers, the śramaṇas, and the Brahmins. They did not know the Way and the Dharma; they harmed one another and gave rise to war. They were sunk in the five desires, jealousy, flattery, deception, cunning, and lacked any heart of compassion. They killed one another and ate flesh and drank blood. Yet you were able, in their midst, to cultivate wholesome deeds. How exceedingly rare!

How excellent! The Buddha Śākyamuni, with great loving-kindness and compassion, was able amid suffering and distressed sentient beings to speak the truthful words that he, in a future age, would liberate you. Such a teacher is most difficult to encounter. With profound compassion, he uproots the suffering and distress of sentient beings in the evil and turbid age and causes them to attain peace.

The Buddha Śākyamuni, for your sake, gave away his head in alms, cut off his ears and nose, his hands and feet, his body, and endured many sufferings and distresses to bring benefit to you.'

Then the Buddha Maitreya will thus reveal and instruct. He will comfort immeasurable sentient beings so as to cause them all to rejoice, and thereafter expound the Dharma. People of merit and wisdom will fill that land everywhere. They will reverently receive in faith, and each and every one will yearn with longing to hear the Dharma from the great master.

They will all think thus:

'The five desires are impure, the source of all suffering and distress. If one is able to cast off worry, sorrow, suffering, and distress, and to know which dharmas are suffering and which are joy, then one will see that they are all impermanent.'

Then the Buddha Maitreya will contemplate and know that the minds of the great assembly in the Dharma gathering are all pure, subdued, and gentle, and so he will expound the Four Noble Truths. Then all the listeners will simultaneously attain the Way of Nirvāṇa.

At that time the Buddha Maitreya will be in the Garden of Wondrous Flowers. That garden will have a circumference of 100 yojanas. Within it the great assembly will be densely gathered.

– When he expounds the Dharma at the first assembly, 96 koṭis of people will attain the Way of the Adept (Arhatship, "Beyond Learning").

– When he expounds the Dharma at the second assembly, 94 koṭis of people will attain the Way of the Adept.

– When he expounds the Dharma at the third assembly, 92 koṭis of people will attain the Way of the Adept.

After turning the Wheel of Dharma to liberate the host of devas and humans, the Buddha Maitreya will lead his disciples into the city to beg for alms. Then immeasurable hosts of devas from the Pure Abode Heavens (Śuddhāvāsa) will reverently follow the Buddha and enter with him into the city of Wondrous Banner Form.

As he enters the city, the Buddha Maitreya will manifest myriad kinds of spiritual power and immeasurable transformations.

Then the Lord of Devas Śakra, the devas of the heavens of the Desire Realm, the kings of the Great Brahmā Heavens, and the devas of the heavens of the Form Realm, will sound forth hundreds of thousands of kinds of music and praise in song the merit of the Buddha. Heavenly flowers and powdered sandalwood incense will fall down to make offerings to the Buddha. Banners and parasols will be raised at the crossroads. Many kinds of precious incense will be kindled, and the smoke of the incense will spread like clouds.

When the World-Honored Maitreya enters the city, the Great Brahmā Heaven King together with the Lord of Devas Śakra will join their palms in reverence and praise him with a verse, saying:

'Honored Among the Two-Footed, the Perfectly Enlightened One

Throughout the devas and humans, none is his equal

How rare is the World-Honored One of the Ten Powers

The supreme and most excellent field of merit

Whoever makes offerings to him will be born in the heavens

We bow our heads to the supreme one of great diligence'

At that time, when the host of devas, humans, rākṣasas, and immeasurable thousands of myriads of koṭis of sentient beings see the Buddha subdue the great and powerful Māra king, they will all give rise to a mind of great joy and, joining their palms, will proclaim:

'How exceedingly rare! How exceedingly rare! The spiritual power and perfect merit of the Tathāgata are beyond conception!'

Then the devas together with the host of humans will hold lotus flowers of many different colors and flowers that delight the heart, and will scatter them upon the ground before the Buddha; the heaps of blossoms will pile knee-deep. And the devas in the open sky will sound forth hundreds of thousands of kinds of music and praise in song the merit of the Buddha.

Then the Māra king, at the beginning of the night and at the end of the night, will rouse and admonish the people of that world, speaking words such as these:

'Now you have obtained a human body and have moreover encountered a good age. You should not sleep deeply throughout the night, causing your mind and intellect to be obscured. At all times—whether standing or sitting—you must always be diligent, with right mindfulness, and contemplate in detail that the five aggregates are all suffering, empty, impermanent, and without self. Do not be heedless and fail to practice the Buddha's teaching. Whoever gives rise to evil karma will surely have regret hereafter.'

Then all the men and women at the crossroads will pass on to one another words such as these:

'Do not be heedless and fail to practice the Buddha's teaching. Whoever gives rise to evil karma will surely have regret hereafter. We must diligently cultivate skillful means, with diligence seek the Way, and not lose the benefit of the Buddha Dharma so as to fall into birth-and-death. Such a great master, who so skillfully uproots suffering and distress, is most difficult to encounter. We must be diligent and firm of mind, and then we shall attain the permanence and bliss of Nirvāṇa.'

The disciples of the Buddha Maitreya at that time will all be upright and fully endowed with dignified deportment. They will all be weary of and disgusted with birth, old age, sickness, and death, will be widely learned through much hearing, will skillfully guard the Dharma-treasury, and will diligently cultivate meditative concentration. They will be far removed from all desires, like a bird emerging from its eggshell.

At that time the Buddha Maitreya will wish to go to the place of the Elder Mahākāśyapa (Great Drinker of Light). Thereafter, together with the four assemblies of disciples, he will go to Vulture Peak (Gṛdhrakūṭa). And upon the summit of the mountain, they will behold the Venerable Mahākāśyapa. Then within their hearts the great assembly will all be astonished.

The Buddha Maitreya will praise him, saying:

'The Buddha Śākyamuni, often amid the great assembly, would praise the Bhikṣu Mahākāśyapa as foremost in ascetic practice, penetrating in meditative concentration, liberation, and right concentration. Although this one possessed the power of great spiritual majesty, he was never arrogant or proud. He was able to bring sentient beings great peace and joy, always pitying the wretched and the lowly, and rescuing suffering and distressed sentient beings so that they might attain peace and security.'

The Buddha Maitreya will praise the relics of the Venerable Mahākāśyapa, saying:

'How excellent, Bhikṣu Mahākāśyapa! Great disciple of the lion-lord of great spiritual virtue, the Able-and-Benevolent One (Śākyamuni), who was able, in that evil age, to cultivate his own mind.'

When the people see the Buddha Maitreya praise the Bhikṣu Mahākāśyapa, because of that cause and condition, hundreds of thousands of koṭis of people will grow weary of and disgusted with the worldly and will attain the Fruit of the Way. Those people will recall the Buddha Śākyamuni, who in the evil and turbid age taught and transformed immeasurable sentient beings, causing them to be fully endowed with the six kinds of spiritual penetration and to become Worthy Ones (Arhats).

The place where the Buddha Maitreya expounds the Dharma at that time will be 80 yojanas in width and 100 yojanas in length. Each person in the great assembly—whether standing or sitting, whether near or far—each of them will see the Buddha before himself, expounding the Dharma to him alone.

The Buddha Maitreya will abide in the world for 60,000 years. Out of compassion for sentient beings, he will cause them all to attain the Dharma-eye. After his passing into extinction, the True Dharma of the Buddha Maitreya will likewise abide in the world for 60,000 years.

You should be diligent, give rise to a pure mind, and perform all wholesome deeds. When you behold the bodily form of the Buddha Maitreya, you too will cut off all doubts."

When the Buddha had finished expounding this Sutra, Śāriputra and the great assembly joyfully received and upheld it.

The Sutra Spoken by the Buddha on Maitreya Bodhisattva's Descent to Be Born and Attain Buddhahood