Mahāyāna — Northern Canon · Linh Sơn Vietnamese Mahāyāna Canon

合部金光明經

Chinese title:合部金光明經

📖5,123 words · ~20 min read

Interpreted by Inti AI (English)

🪷 AI interpretation

CHAPTER SEVEN: PRAISE

At that time, the Buddha said to the earth goddess Firm and Steadfast:

“Good heavenly maiden! In the past there was a king named Venerable Golden Dragon, who constantly praised the Buddhas of the past, future, and present with these words:

I now revere,Pay homage to, and praiseThe Buddhas of the ten directions,Past, future, and present.

The Buddhas are pure,Quiescent, wondrous, and sublime;Their supreme complexionShines with golden light.

Among all voices,The Buddha’s voice is supreme,Like that of Great Brahma,Deep, far-reaching, and thunderous.

The Buddha’s hair is blue-black;His spiral curls shine brightly.Neither blue-black bees nor peacocksCan equal their color.

His teeth are bright white,Like snow and precious jade;His golden countenance shines forth,Its features even and distinct.

His eyes are long and broad,Stainless, pure, and clear,Like blue lotus blossomsOpening upon azure waters.

His tongue is long and broad,Its color radiant red;Its brilliant light shinesLike a newly opened flower.

The urna between his browsIs white as moonlight,Curling to the right, moist and lustrous,Pure as crystal.

His eyebrows are long, slender, and curved,Shaped like the crescent moon;Their deep, glossy blacknessSurpasses that of the king of bees.

His nose is high, rounded, and straight,Like an ingot of cast gold,Delicate and wondrous,Set at the center of his face.

The Tathagata’s excellent marks,Supreme in their ordered perfection,Are truly and rightly attained;None can equal them.

From every poreGrows one curling hair,Fine, soft, and blue-black,Like a peacock’s neck.

When he had just been born,His body emitted lightIlluminating throughout the ten directionsMeasureless lands.

Throughout the three realms, it dispelledEvery kind of sufferingAnd caused all beingsTo experience joy.

Those in hell, among animals,And among hungry ghosts,As well as all humans and devas,Became peaceful and free from affliction.

All the measureless evil destiniesWere entirely dispelled.His wondrous physical formWas like a mass of molten gold.

His countenance, pure and clear,Was like the full moon.The Buddha’s body shone brilliantlyLike the newly risen sun.

In advancing and halting, his majestic bearingWas like that of the lion king.His long arms hung downPast his knees,

Like sala branchesSwaying in the wind.His halo, a fathom wide,Shone beyond measure,

Like the assembled radianceOf hundreds of thousands of suns and moons.The Buddha’s body, pure and wondrous,Was entirely without defilement.

That light shone everywhereThroughout all Buddha lands.The Buddha’s light, vast and majestic,Blazed like a mighty fire,

Outshining altogetherMeasureless suns and moons.The Buddha is the sun, lamp, and torchIlluminating measureless realms,

Causing all beings,By following that light, to behold the Buddha.Having cultivated in the pastHundreds of thousands of practices and deeds,

He accumulated merit and virtueThat adorn the Buddha’s body.His arms are slender and rounded,Like the trunk of the king of elephants.

His hands and feet are pure and soft,Delightful to behold without weariness.The Buddhas of the past and futureAre as numerous as motes of dust;

The Buddhas of the presentAre likewise as described above.Before all such TathagatasI now bow in homage!

With body and speech pure and clear,And mind likewise purified,I offer and presentExcellent flowers and fragrances.

With hundreds of thousands of merits,I extol them in eightfold hymns.Even if I had a hundred tonguesAnd praised them for a thousand kalpas,

The Buddha’s merit and virtueCould never be exhausted!The virtues possessedBy the present Blessed One

Are manifold, profound, and steadfast,Wondrous and foremost.Even if one had a thousand tonguesAnd wished to praise a single Buddha,

One could not finish describingEven a small portion of his virtues!How much less could one wish to praiseThe merit and virtue of all Buddhas!

Suppose the great earth and the heavens aboveWere made into a vast ocean,And water filled everythingUp to the Heaven of the Summit of Existence;

One might still use a single hairTo count and know the number of its drops,Yet one could never knowThe virtues of a single Blessed One!

I have now paid homage toAnd praised the Blessed One!May my deeds of body, speech, and mindAll become pure and clear.

May all the measureless wholesome deedsThat I have cultivatedEnable me, together with all beings,To realize the unsurpassed path.

Having thus praised the Buddha,That human kingFurther madeThese measureless vows:

If in future lives,Throughout measureless, boundlessAsamkhyeya kalpas,Wherever I am born,

May I always see in dreamsA golden drum,And hear its soundProclaiming profound confession!

Having now praisedThe pure countenance,I vow that in future livesI too shall attain such a form.

The virtues of the Blessed OneAre inconceivable;Even in hundreds of thousands of kalpas,He is exceedingly difficult to encounter.

Throughout measurelessLives to come,May I see this in dreams at nightAnd speak of it truthfully by day.

I shall cultivateThe six paramitas in full,Rescuing beingsAnd carrying them across the sea of suffering.

Thereafter, may I myselfAttain the unsurpassed path,And may my worldBe without equal.

Through the cause and conditionOf offering the golden drum and praising the Buddha,May I, by this recompense,In a future age

Encounter the Venerable ShakyaAnd receive a prediction of awakening.May my two sons,Golden Dragon and Golden Light,

Always be born into my familyAnd likewise receive predictions.If there are beingsWith no one to rescue or protect them,

Oppressed by every sufferingAnd with nowhere to rely or rest,Then in the future I shallBecome for them

A great rescuer and protector,A refuge and resting place,Able to remove their sufferingAnd bring it utterly to an end.

I shall bestow upon beingsEvery wholesome peace and joy.In future ages, I shallPractice the path of bodhi

For kalpas beyond reckoning,Until the end of time.Through the causes and conditionsOf confession before that Golden Light,

May the ocean of my evil,The ocean of my karma,And the ocean of my afflictionsAll dry up and cease to be;

May the ocean of my meritAnd vows be perfectly fulfilled;May the vast ocean of wisdomBecome complete, pure, and clear.

May measureless merit and virtueSupport the path of bodhi,Like a boundless oceanFully endowed with precious treasures.

Through the power of confessionBefore the Golden Light,May the merit of bodhiBecome unobstructed radiance,

And may the stainless light of wisdomShine through in purity and clarity.In future lives, may the light of my bodyShine universally.

May the majestic lightOf my brilliant merit and virtueBe uniquely and supremely excellentWithin the three realms.

May the power of these virtuesNever diminish in any way.I shall carry beingsAcross the sea of suffering

And establish them securelyIn the vast ocean of merit.For many kalpas in future lives,I shall practice the path of bodhi,

Just as the Buddhas of oldPracticed the path of bodhi.May the pure and wondrous landsOf the Buddhas of the three times,

And the measureless virtuesOf the supremely honored Buddhas,Enable me in future livesTo obtain such distinctive qualities:

A pure land adorned with merit,
Like that of the Buddha, the Blessed One!

“Faithful Appearance, you should know!The king at that time,The venerable Golden Dragon,Was none other than you yourself!

His two sons at that time,Golden Dragon and Golden Light,Were your sons,Silver Appearance and the others.”

CHAPTER EIGHT: EMPTINESS

Translated from Chinese by the Tripitaka Master Dharmakshema of India, during the Northern Liang dynasty.

Measureless other sutrasHave extensively taught emptiness;Therefore this sutraExplains it only in brief.

Because beings of dull facultiesPossess little wisdomAnd cannot extensively comprehendThe measureless meaning of emptiness,

This sutra thereforeSpeaks of “emptiness” only in brief.Through wondrous skillful meansAnd various causes and conditions,

For those of dull facultiesI arouse great compassion;I shall now expoundThis wondrous sutra.

According to my understandingOf the intentions of beings,This body is false and deceptive,Like an empty aggregation.

The six entrances are like a villageWhere the bandits of the fetters abide;Each dwells on its ownAnd knows nothing of the others.

The eye faculty receives forms;The ear distinguishes sounds;The nose smells various scents;The tongue tastes flavors;

The bodily facultyCraves and receives various contacts;The mental faculty distinguishesAll objects of Dharma.

The six sense facultiesEach engage their own objects;Amid the realms of sensory objects,None engages the objects of another.

The mind is like an illusion,Running after the six senses,Constantly forming false conceptionsAnd discriminating among all dharmas,

Like a worldly personRunning in pursuit of empty space.The harm wrought by the six banditsIs not guarded against by the foolish.

The mind constantly relies uponThe realms of the six faculties;Each knows on its ownThe place where it lies in wait.

Following forms, sounds,Scents, tastes, contacts, and dharmas,The mind among the six sensesIs like a bird caught in a net.

That mind, in every place,Constantly abides in the faculties,Pursuing sensory objectsWithout abandoning them even briefly.

The false, empty bodyCannot be nurtured to permanence;There is no contention within it,Nor is there any ruling master.

It exists through the conjunctionOf various causes and conditions;It has no reality or permanence,But arises from false conception,

A mechanism driven by karmic power,A perilous, false, empty aggregation.Earth, water, fire, and windCombine to constitute it;

Though at times they decrease or increase,Together they injure one another,Like four snakes confinedWithin a single basket.

The natures of these four great-element snakesAre clearly different:Two move upward and two downward,And two toward each direction.

In this way the great-element snakesWill all perish and cease to be.The two snakes, earth and water,Are by nature heavy and sink;

The two snakes, wind and fire,Are by nature light and rise.The mind and consciousnessAre restless and never still;

Following karma, they receive retributionIn the human and heavenly destinies;According to the deeds performed,They fall through the three kinds of existence.

When earth, water, fire, and windDecay and disperse,The greater and lesser impuritiesFlow outward.

The body breeds wormsAnd becomes impossible to cherish;It is cast away in the charnel groundLike a rotten tree.

Good maiden, you should contemplate:Since all dharmas are thus,Where, then, is there a personOr any living being?

Their original nature is quiescent and empty;They appear because of ignorance.The great elements described aboveAre each unreal.

Originally they do not arise;Their natures do not unite.Because of the foregoing causes and conditions,I say that the great elements,

Originally neither real nor true,Come to exist through conjunction.The essential nature of ignoranceOriginally has no existence of its own;

Through false conceptions, causes, and conditions,It arises by conjunction.Since it possesses nothing,“Ignorance” is merely a provisional name.

Therefore I speak of itAnd call it ignorance.Formations, consciousness, name-and-form,The six entrances, contact, and feeling;

Craving, grasping, existence, and birth;Aging and death, sorrow and distress—These karmic processes of sufferingAre inconceivable.

Samsara has no beginning;It turns ceaselessly without end.Originally there is no arising,Nor any conjunction;

Unwholesome thoughtCreates mental formations.I sever allBinding views

And use the sword of wisdomTo cut through the net of afflictions.I contemplate the dwelling of the five skandhasAs entirely quiescent and empty,

And realize the unsurpassed path,Sharing its wondrous virtue.I open the gate of amrita,Reveal the vessel of amrita,

Enter the city of amrita,And dwell within the house of amrita.I cause beingsTo partake of the flavor of amrita.

I blow the great conch of Dharma,Beat the great drum of Dharma,Light the great lamp of Dharma,And rain down the supreme rain of Dharma.

I now destroyAll hostile bonds,And raise the banner of Dharma,Wondrous and foremost.

I carry all beingsAcross the sea of samsara,And cut off the three evil destiniesAnd their measureless sufferings.

The blazing fire of afflictionBurns living beings;They have no one to rescue or protect themAnd nowhere to rely or rest.

I use the delicious,Cool flavor of amritaTo fill them completely,So that their burning heat is instantly relieved.

Throughout measureless kalpas,I cultivated various practices,Made offerings to and reveredThe Buddhas, the Blessed Ones,

Steadfastly and constantly cultivatingThe path of bodhi,Seeking to attain the true and realDharma body of the Tathagata.

I relinquished the things most highly prized:My limbs, hands, and feet,My head, eyes, brain, and marrow,My love for women and men,

Wealth and precious treasures,Pearls, gold, and silver,Crystal, jeweled necklaces,And every extraordinary object.

If all the trees throughoutthe trichiliocosm were cut into counting slips,And the earth of the three-thousandfold worldWere ground into motes of dust,

And those motes filled all of space;If all beings possessing wisdomGave that wisdom to a single learned person,And learned persons such as this were as numerous as those motes;

Though they calculated the number of those motes
And knew their full measure,
They could never calculate the Tathagata’s wisdom.
Even a single thought of the Blessed One’s wisdom

Could not be fully calculated
Throughout incalculable kalpas.

CHAPTER NINE: RELYING ON EMPTINESS, WISHES ARE FULFILLED

Translated from Chinese by Tripitaka Dharma Master Paramartha during the Liang dynasty.

At that time, the heavenly maiden Wondrous Wish-Fulfilling Jewel-Light arose from among the assembly, bared her right shoulder, knelt with her right knee upon the ground, respectfully joined her palms, and addressed the Buddha in verse:

I ask the Honored One of Twofold Perfection,
The Supremely Victorious One illuminating the world:
What is the bodhisattva’s right practice?
I pray that you compassionately permit my question!

The Buddha said: “Good heavenly maiden,If you have any doubts,Ask freely as you wish;I shall explain them distinctly!”

“How do bodhisattvas practiceThe true and proper practice of bodhi,Transcending samsara and nirvanaWhile benefiting themselves and others?”

The Buddha said:

“Good heavenly maiden! Relying upon the dharmadhatu, one practices the Dharma of bodhi and cultivates the practice of equality. Good heavenly maiden!

What does it mean to rely upon the dharmadhatu, cultivate the Dharma of bodhi, and cultivate the practice of equality? Good heavenly maiden! The five skandhas can manifest the dharmadhatu, and the dharmadhatu is precisely the five skandhas.

Yet the five skandhas cannot be spoken of, nor can what is not the five skandhas be spoken of. Why is this? If the five skandhas were the dharmadhatu, that would be the view of annihilation.

If the dharmadhatu were apart from the five skandhas, that would be the view of permanence. One transcends both extremes, clings to neither, and cannot perceive any fault. That vision which is nameless and markless is called the expression of the dharmadhatu.

“Good heavenly maiden! How can the five skandhas manifest the dharmadhatu? Good heavenly maiden! The five skandhas do not arise from causes and conditions. Why is this? If they arose from causes and conditions, then either what has already arisen would arise, or what has not yet arisen would arise. If what has already arisen were to arise, from what causes and conditions would it arise? If what has already arisen did not arise from causes and conditions, then what has not yet arisen could not arise. Why? Because dharmas that have not arisen are nonexistent, nameless, and markless, beyond the capacity of calculation or analogy to know. Their arising is not produced by causes and conditions.

“Good heavenly maiden! It is like the sound of a drum, which issues forth in dependence upon wood, skin, a drumstick, human effort, and so forth. That drum sound is empty: it does not exist in the past, the future, or the present. Why? The drum’s sound does not arise from the wood, the skin, the drumstick, or human effort. Since this sound does not arise in any of the three times, it is therefore unborn. If its arising cannot be apprehended, its cessation cannot be apprehended. If its cessation cannot be apprehended, there is no place from which it comes. If there is no place from which it comes, there is likewise no place to which it goes. If there is nowhere it goes, it is neither permanent nor annihilated. If it is neither permanent nor annihilated, it is neither one nor different.

“Why? If it were neither one nor different without qualification, it would simply be the dharmadhatu. If that were so, ordinary beings could see ultimate truth and attain the unsurpassed bliss of nirvana. This meaning is incorrect; therefore they are not one. Yet if one says that arising is different, then all the practices and characteristics of the Buddhas and bodhisattvas would constitute attachment; those not yet freed from the bonds of affliction could not attain unsurpassed, complete, perfect awakening. Why? Because all noble ones, regarding practice and non-practice within the Dharma, act in accord with wisdom. Therefore they are not different.

“Thus, the five skandhas neither exist nor arise from causes and conditions, yet neither are the five skandhas nonexistent. They do not pass beyond the domain of the noble ones and cannot be reached by language. They are nameless, markless, causeless, and conditionless, without an objective domain and without analogy; from beginning to end they are quiescent, and originally they are empty of themselves. Therefore, the five skandhas can manifest the dharmadhatu.

“Good heavenly maiden! If a good man or good woman wishes to seek unsurpassed, complete, perfect awakening, the ultimate and the conventional are distinct. This is difficult to conceive! Within the domain of the noble ones, one does not conceive ordinary beings as different; one abandons neither the conventional nor the ultimate, and, relying upon the dharmadhatu, performs the practice of bodhi.”

When the Blessed One had spoken these words, the heavenly maiden rejoiced greatly. She immediately arose, bared her right shoulder, knelt with her right knee upon the ground, respectfully joined her palms, single-mindedly bowed in homage, and said to the Buddha:

“Blessed One! I shall now train in what you have taught concerning the right practice of bodhi!”

At that time, Great Brahma, heavenly king and lord of the Saha world, asked the heavenly maiden Wondrous Wish-Fulfilling Jewel-Light in the midst of the assembly:

“This practice of bodhi is difficult to cultivate. How can the mind attain mastery in this practice of bodhi?”

The heavenly maiden replied to the Brahma king:

“Great Brahma King! If the Buddha’s words are extremely profound and true, all ordinary beings have not tasted their flavor. This domain of the noble ones is subtle, wondrous, and difficult to know! If it is true that my mind, relying upon this Dharma, abides in peace and bliss, then I vow that the measureless and boundless beings in all evil worlds of the five turbidities shall attain golden bodies endowed with the thirty-two marks, be neither male nor female, sit upon precious lotus blossoms, and experience measureless joy. May beautiful celestial flowers rain down, celestial music sound without being played, and all offerings become complete.”

When the heavenly maiden had spoken, all the beings throughout every evil world of the five turbidities became golden in color and fully endowed with the thirty-two marks. Neither male nor female, they sat upon precious lotus blossoms and experienced measureless joy like that of the Heaven of Mastery over Others’ Transformations. There were no evil destinies; jeweled trees stood in ordered rows; lotus blossoms of the seven treasures filled the worlds; supremely wondrous celestial flowers of the seven treasures rained down; and celestial music resounded. Wondrous Wish-Fulfilling Jewel-Light immediately transformed her female form into the body of a Brahma deity.

Great Brahma, the heavenly king, asked the bodhisattva Wondrous Wish-Fulfilling Jewel-Light:

“What practice did you formerly employ to perform the practice of bodhi?”

The bodhisattva replied:

“Brahma King! If the moon reflected in water can perform the practice of bodhi, then I too have performed the practice of bodhi! If a person in a dream can perform the practice of bodhi, then I too perform the practice of bodhi! If a mirage within firelight can perform the practice of bodhi, then I too perform the practice of bodhi! If the echo of a sound can perform the practice of bodhi, then I too perform the practice of bodhi!”

Having heard these words, Great Brahma said to the bodhisattva:

“On what basis do you speak these words?”

She replied:

“Brahma King! There is not a single dharma that possesses a real characteristic! Thus are the characteristics of cause and effect established!”

The Brahma King again said to the bodhisattva:

“If this is so, then all ordinary beings should attain unsurpassed, complete, perfect awakening!”

The bodhisattva replied:

“What conception causes you to speak thus? Brahma King! Is a deluded person different, a wise person different, bodhi different, non-bodhi different, liberation different, and non-liberation different? Brahma King! All these dharmas are equal and without difference. Within this dharmadhatu, suchness is not different. There is nothing in between that can be grasped or maintained, and there is neither increase nor decrease.

“Brahma King! It is like a magician skilled in magical arts and his apprentice, who stand at a crossroads, gather earth, sand, trees, leaves, and so forth into one place, and then perform various illusions, causing people to see elephants, horses, carts, soldiers, heaps of the seven treasures, various granaries, and other things. If foolish, ignorant beings incapable of reflection do not know the basis of the illusion, then upon seeing or hearing it they form this thought: ‘The elephants, horses, and so forth are truly just as I see them.’ They regard them as real. According to the power of their attachment to what they see and hear, they themselves declare it true, although it is not true for others, and afterward they do not reconsider.

“A wise person, however, can clearly discern the basis of the illusion. Upon seeing or hearing it, that person reflects: ‘The elephants, horses, and so forth that I see are not real. They are merely illusions that deceive people’s eyes. These so-called elephants, horses, granaries, and so forth possess only names and no real substance!’ According to the power of what the wise person has seen and heard, that person does not cling to the perception or declare it true when it is not true for others, and afterward does not reconsider. In conformity with worldly speech, wise people speak because they wish others to know the true meaning, although what is seen and heard is not actually as it appears.

“Brahma King! Likewise, if there are foolish ordinary beings who have not attained supramundane noble wisdom and do not know that the suchness of all dharmas is inexpressible, then upon seeing or hearing of a practice or a non-practice, they think: ‘Such dharmas truly exist, exactly as I see and hear them!’ According to the power of their attachment to what they have seen and heard, these ordinary beings cling to their perceptions and themselves declare them true, although they are not true for others, and afterward they do not reconsider.

“If there are beings who are no longer ordinary persons, who have seen ultimate truth, attained supramundane noble wisdom, and know that the suchness of all dharmas is inexpressible, then when these noble ones see or hear of practice or non-practice, they do not, according to the power of what they have seen, cling to perception or themselves declare it true when it is not true for others, and afterward they do not reconsider. There is no real practice and no real non-practice. What is seen and heard consists only of false conceptions of the characteristics of practice and non-practice that delude human wisdom. What is called practice or non-practice in that context possesses only a name and no real substance.

“According to the power of what they have seen and heard, they do not cling to perception or themselves declare it true when it is not true for others, and afterward they do not reconsider. These noble ones speak in conformity with worldly language and follow its expressions because they wish others to know the true meaning. Thus, Brahma King, the noble wisdom and vision of these noble ones cannot be said to grasp practice or non-practice within the suchness of dharmas. This suchness of dharmas is wisdom realized individually; therefore it is expressed through various names.”

Great Brahma, the heavenly king, asked the bodhisattva Wondrous Wish-Fulfilling Jewel-Light:

“How many beings are able to understand and penetrate such an extremely profound and wondrous true Dharma?”

The bodhisattva replied:

“Brahma King! However many illusory minds there are, that many beings are able to understand and penetrate this profound Dharma.”

The Brahma King asked again:

“Since illusory persons do not exist, whence could such a number of minds be obtained?”

The bodhisattva replied:

“Brahma King! In this way, the dharmadhatu is neither existent nor nonexistent. Thus can beings understand and penetrate this profound meaning!”

At that time, the Brahma King said to the Buddha:

“Blessed One! This bodhisattva Wondrous Wish-Fulfilling Jewel-Light has penetrated such inconceivably profound meaning!”

The Buddha said:

“So it is! So it is, Brahma King! It is exactly as you say. Why? Because this bodhisattva Wondrous Wish-Fulfilling Jewel-Light has taught you to train in contemplation of the patient acceptance of the non-arising of dharmas!”

Then Great Brahma, the heavenly king, together with the Brahma assembly, arose, bared their right shoulders, knelt with their right knees upon the ground, respectfully joined their palms, bowed at the feet of the bodhisattva Wondrous Wish-Fulfilling Jewel-Light, and said:

“Rare indeed! Rare indeed! Today we have beheld a great teacher and heard the true Dharma!”

At that time, the Blessed One, whose penetration of all dharmas was unobstructed, said to the Brahma King:

“This bodhisattva Wondrous Wish-Fulfilling Jewel-Light will in a future age become a Buddha named Tathagata Auspicious Treasury of Jeweled Flames, Worthy of Offerings, Perfectly and Completely Awakened.”

When this wondrous Sutra of Golden Light was taught, three hundred billion bodhisattvas attained non-retrogression from unsurpassed, complete, perfect awakening. Eight hundred billion devas attained stainless purity and accomplished the pure Dharma eye with respect to the Dharma. Measureless and innumerable kings and subjects attained the purified Dharma eye. Five billion bhikshus who had practiced for bodhi but wished to retreat from the mind of bodhi heard the Dharma taught by the bodhisattva Wondrous Wish-Fulfilling Jewel-Light. They attained inconceivably complete and steadfast vows, again generated the mind of bodhi, removed their robes to offer them to the bodhisattva, and once more generated the mind of unsurpassed advancement.

After generating the mind of unsurpassed advancement, they vowed: “May the wholesome roots, merit, and virtue of us all never regress; may we dedicate them to unsurpassed, complete, perfect awakening.” Relying upon this merit and cultivating accordingly, those bhikshus would attain accomplishment after ninety great kalpas. When they had escaped samsara, the Buddha predicted for them that after thirty asamkhyeya kalpas, in the Buddha land of the King of Difficult-to-Conquer Light, a land named Stainless Light, they would simultaneously attain unsurpassed, complete, perfect awakening. They would all bear the same name: Buddha King Blazing Adornment of Vows.

At that time, the Buddha said to the Brahma King:

“This Sutra of Golden Light possesses great power when it is rightly recited and rightly heard. Brahma King! Even if for hundreds of thousands of great kalpas you cultivated the six paramitas without skillful means, if a good man or good woman has heard this Sutra of Golden Light, copied it, and single-mindedly read and recited it once every half month, then the accumulation of wholesome merit from this, multiplied hundreds of thousands of times, would still be incomparable to even one part of the former merit—indeed, no calculation or analogy could express the comparison.

“Brahma King! Therefore I now instruct beings to study, accept, and uphold it, and extensively explain it to others. Why? Because this wondrous and extremely profound sutra is like a battlefield: when I practiced the path of bodhi, I did not cherish my body or life, but sought to understand this sutra thoroughly, accept and uphold it, read and recite it, and explain it to others.

“Brahma King! It is like a wheel-turning sage king: while the king remains in the world, his seven treasures do not disappear; but when the king dies, all seven treasures naturally vanish. Brahma King! If this wondrous Sutra of Golden Light remains present in the world, the great treasure of the true Dharma will not disappear. Therefore, relying upon the Sutra of Golden Light, one should hear, read, recite, accept, and uphold it, explain it to others, and copy it. In practicing the perfection of diligence through these meritorious deeds, one should not cherish one’s body or life and should not fear weariness. My disciples must diligently train in this way!”

Then Great Brahma, lord and heavenly king, together with measureless Brahma beings, Shakra, the Four Heavenly Kings, and the assembly of yakshas, all arose, bared their right shoulders, knelt with their right knees upon the ground, respectfully joined their palms, and said to the Buddha:

“We shall all protect the true Dharma and cause this wondrous Sutra of Golden Light to circulate! If Dharma masters who teach it encounter calamities or difficulties, we shall remove them, causing them to be fully endowed with wholesome appearance and vigor, unobstructed eloquence, and expansive bodies and minds. We shall cause everyone in the Dharma assembly to experience joy.

If the country where the Dharma is taught suffers famine, hostile bandits, terror from nonhuman beings, or other calamities, we shall drive them all away. If the people of that country are wealthy, prosperous, joyful, and at ease, this too will be through the benevolent favor of us Four Kings and the others. If anyone makes offerings to a copy of this sutra, we shall likewise grant that person great protection, no differently than we would protect the Buddha.”

🌏Why is this sūtra summarized by Inti AI?

The version you're viewing was faithfully rendered by Inti AI in keeping with the tradition. Switch to the other language tab to read a human translation.

Translation source: Linh Sơn Pháp Bảo Đại Tạng KinhLicense: Linh Sơn Pháp Bảo Đại Tạng Kinh (Việt dịch) · nguồn: rongmotamhon.net (Liên Phật Hội) · EN: AI translation from Vietnamese source, awaiting source English

Translations belong to the translator/source credited above. The bilingual compilation, presentation, and AI translations compiled by Inti are © Inti Foundation. Please attribute when quoting; do not bulk-copy or use commercially without permission.

←Previous合部金光明經 Next合部金光明經→

🕯️ Light a candle