Toh 191 — The Prophecy of the Girl Candrottarā

F.224.b Homage to all buddhas and bodhisattvas.

Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was residing at Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest at Vaiśālī. He was staying there with a large saṅgha of monks, which consisted of five hundred worthy ones. All of them had thoroughbred minds, had done what they needed to do, and had accomplished their work, put down their burdens, fulfilled their own purpose, completely exhausted the bonds of mundane existence, thoroughly liberated their minds through correct understanding, and reached the sublime perfection of all mental powers.^[1]F.225.a

There were also eight thousand^[2] bodhisattvas who were renowned for their knowledge, and who had attained recollection and unhindered eloquence,^[3] meditative absorption, and acceptance toward phenomena as nonarising. They were endowed with the five superknowledges, had unobstructed speech,^[4] were not hypocritical, and lacked flattery. Their intention was free of desire for selfish profit and they taught the Dharma without regard for worldly things. They had reached the perfection of patience toward the profound Dharma, were endowed with fearlessness, had completely transcended the activities of Māra, had abandoned karmic obscurations, and were without doubts concerning the nature of phenomena. With their aspiration fully formed over countless hundreds of thousands of myriad eons, they were skilled at speaking in melodious verse with a smiling countenance and without frowning. Their minds were not overwhelmed, they had an uninterrupted eloquence, and they had attained acceptance toward the equality of phenomena. They outshone the limitless audience in attendance with their great fearlessness.

They were skilled in the wisdom that with a single word teaches for a hundred thousand myriad eons. They had conviction that every phenomenon that arises in the past, future, and present is like an illusion, a mirage, the moon in water, a dream, a reflection, and an echo—that it is empty, signless, wishless, void, unfluctuating, and ungraspable, like the nature of space. They were skilled in immeasurable insight and wisdom, and skilled in knowing the functioning of the minds of all sentient beings. They were skilled at teaching the Dharma in accordance with the inclinations of sentient beings. Their unobstructed minds were free from craving for phenomena. They had acceptance that was free from secondary afflictions. They were skilled in knowing phenomena as they are. They were thoroughly immersed in the full range of qualities of limitless buddha fields. They could always and continuously realize the meditative absorption that recollects the Buddha. They were skilled in knowing the supplications to limitless buddhas. F.225.b They were skilled in abandoning obsessions, views, afflictions, and latent impulses. By means of every meditative stabilization and meditative absorption they had fully mastered the one-pointed superknowledges.

Among those eight thousand bodhisattvas were the bodhisattva great beings Mañjuśrī Kumārabhūta, Avalokiteśvara, Mahāsthāmaprāpta, Durabhisambhava, Gandhahastin, Anikṣiptadhura, Sūryagarbha, Dhāraṇī­śvara­rāja, Emitting the Light of Incense, Sound of Thunder, King of Definite Golden Luster, Nārāyaṇa,^[5] Ratnapāṇi, Ratnamudrāhasta, Gaganagañja, Amśurāja, Priyadarśana, Liberator of Beings, Nityodyukta, Nityaprahasitapramuditendriya, Apāyajaha, Vanquishing Vajra State, Vanquishing the Three Worlds State, Vanquishing Unwavering State, Amoghadarśin, Śrīgarbha, Padmaśrī, Gajagandhahastin, Gambhīrapratibhāna, Mahāpratibhāna, Dharmodgata, Without Doubting the Nature of Phenomena, Moves with the Strength of a Lion, Removing All Fear, Sarvanīvaraṇaviṣkambhin, Loud Roar of the Great Lion, Inexpressible, Pratibhānakūṭa, and the bodhisattva great being Maitreya.

Then the kings and eminent persons, city and country folk, attendants, brahmins, kṣatriyas, and householders all paid their respects to the Blessed One. They revered him, worshiped him, and made offerings to him during his stay at Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest at the great city of Vaiśālī. F.226.a

At that time, in the great city of Vaiśālī, there lived a Licchavī known as Vimalakīrti. He was rich and wealthy, an opulently wealthy and prosperous man, with many treasuries and storehouses. His wife, Vimalā, was beautiful, lovely to behold, with a full figure and good complexion. After nine months passed, she gave birth to a daughter with a fine body, beautiful, lovely to behold, with perfect limbs, fingers, and toes. As soon as this daughter was born, their entire home was suffused with a great light, and the earth trembled. Outside, the gutters above the doors dripped with ghee and oil, and those who were weak, defenseless, hungry, and impoverished were satisfied. In the great city of Vaiśālī, large drums, clay drums, gongs, cymbals, and tambourines all resounded without being struck, and a great rain of flowers came down. In the four corners of the house, four large treasure chests filled with a variety of precious gems appeared and then opened, shining light everywhere.

As soon as she was born, the girl neither wailed nor shed tears. Instead, she placed her ten fingers and palms together and spoke these verses:

Having spoken these verses, the girl said no more.

Due to the ripening of roots of virtue acquired during previous lives, her body appeared as if it was dressed in precious celestial garments, and from her body there radiated extraordinary golden-colored light that far surpassed the radiance of the moon. For that reason, her parents named her Candrottarā.

Then at that instant, that moment, that very second, it appeared to everyone as if the girl Candrottarā had already reached the age of eight, and wherever she stood, or walked, or sat, or took a rest, it was as if the ground beneath her was illuminated by a golden-colored light, a fragrance of the finest sandalwood rose from every pore of her body, and from her mouth came the scent of the blue utpala flower.

When merchants, householders, princes, and others from important families and high-ranking castes in the city of Vaiśālī heard about this girl Candrottarā’s physical form and her perfect complexion, their minds were ensnared by lustful desire, and they thought, “How good it would be if she were to become my wife.”

Whereupon a great number of men set about trying to obtain her.

Some among them made approaches to the Licchavī Vimalakīrti, staying close to him and venerating him. Some tried to rouse his interest by making gifts of jewels, gold, silver, diamonds, beryl, cat’s-eye, sapphire, conch, crystals, and coral, as abundant as grains of sand. F.227.b Some showed off^[7] their wealth in cattle, grain, houses, luxuries, and food. Some showed their ferocity by killing, binding, and beating male and female slaves, workers, and laborers. Some threatened Vimalakīrti, saying, “If you do not give us the girl Candrottarā, then we will cause great suffering and will inflict great harm upon you.”

The Licchavī Vimalakīrti thought, “Right now, armed groups are on their way to arrest and overthrow me. They will surely kidnap my daughter and kill me too!” At this thought, he panicked and with his hair standing on end, was immobilized by fear. Losing his mindfulness, and intimidated by others, he wept in distress, staring without blinking at his daughter.

When the girl Candrottarā saw her father crying, his face covered in tears and ashamed, she asked him, “Father, why are you weeping and staring like this?”

The Licchavī Vimalakīrti replied to his daughter Candrottarā, “Daughter, do you not understand that you will be kidnapped, and that there will be fighting and conflict everywhere in this city on account of you? Because of you, there are armies approaching, and we will be destroyed. If I thought you wouldn’t be captured, I would not weep so.”

The girl Candrottarā then spoke to her father in verse:

After speaking these verses, the girl Candrottarā then told her parents, “Father, Mother, I request that bells be rung and that this be proclaimed on every road and at every crossroads and intersection: ‘In seven days from now, the girl Candrottarā will come out, and when she comes out, she will choose for herself whichever husband she wishes. You should prepare for this: decorate the roads, crossroads, and intersections in all directions with ornaments; sweep them and ritually cleanse them with flowers, incense, perfumes, garlands, and ointments.’ ”

Then both parents of^[8] Candrottarā came out from their home and announced, “Seven days from now, Candrottarā will come out, and when she comes out, our daughter will choose whichever husband she wishes. You should prepare for this: decorate the roads, crossroads, and intersections in all directions with ornaments; sweep them and ritually cleanse them with flowers, incense, perfumes, garlands, and ointments.” F.228.b This they proclaimed to all.

Everyone heard it, and a great number of men in Vaiśālī then set about decorating every road, crossroad, and intersection accordingly, but each was scheming in his mind, “How can I, and no one else, win the girl Candrottarā?” So they competed with one another to beautify themselves. Merchants and householders, ministers, brahmins, and princes, all the way down to workers, washed themselves thoroughly, rubbed their bodies well, dressed in fine clothing, and adorned themselves with various kinds of jewelry. They told their servants, “Be attentive! If the girl Candrottarā looks like she will not come with us of her own accord, we will have to take her by force.”

And so, seven days passed, and a large crowd of men, enthralled and amazed, gathered to see the girl Candrottarā.

Then, on the sixth day, during the full moon, the girl Candrottarā took the full eight-branched purification vows. That night, just as people were going to sleep, she went to the roof of the mansion and sat down. Then, by the power of the Buddha, a lotus appeared in the right hand of the girl Candrottarā. It was beautiful to behold and radiated clear light. Its stalk was gold, its petals silver, its anthers beryl, its center emerald, and it had many hundreds of thousands of petals. In the middle of this lotus appeared the figure of a thus-gone one, the color of whose body was like gold, and blazed with splendor. He was fully adorned with the thirty-two marks of a great being and further by the eighty excellent marks. Seated in full lotus posture, light rays from the thus-gone one’s body illuminated the entire house, making everything clearly visible.

When the girl Candrottarā F.229.a saw the lotus and saw the figure of the thus-gone one, she rejoiced with great delight. Elated, joyful, and happy, she spoke the following verses to that figure of the thus-gone one:

The figure of the thus-gone one then spoke these verses to Candrottarā:

The girl Candrottarā replied to the figure of the thus-gone one in verse:

Then that figure of the thus-gone one replied to the girl Candrottarā in verse:

At this, the girl Candrottarā was delighted and she rejoiced. She was delighted, ecstatic, and joyful, and the sight of the thus-gone one made her thirst for more.

In response, she spoke these verses to the figure of the thus-gone one:

The emanation then said to her:

Then^[18] the girl Candrottarā, holding that very lotus with the figure of the thus-gone one seated upon it, descended from the roof of the mansion, went before her own father and mother, and spoke to her parents in the following verses:

At that time, on the seventh day, many hundreds of thousands of people gathered to see the girl Candrottarā. Among them, some had minds completely ensnared by lust, some just wanted to look at her, and some had the idea to decorate the entire great city of Vaiśālī with ornaments. Boys and girls also came out to watch from the platforms, gatehouses, pediments, windows, balustrades, and roofs of the manors and mansions.

The girl Candrottarā then emerged from her home, carrying the figure of the thus-gone one sitting on a lotus, accompanied by her parents and surrounded and escorted by a large retinue who carried flowers, incense, perfumes, garlands, ointments, powders, clothing, umbrellas, victory banners, and silk flags, and played a variety of cymbals and drums.

When the many hundreds of thousands of people saw her setting off toward the center of the city, they came running, thinking, “I must catch her!” At that very moment, just as a great crowd of men from the great city of Vaiśālī were rushing at her together, laughing and shouting, “Ha, ha! Come here! Come here!” the girl Candrottarā,^[22] at that very moment, seeing this large crowd of people running, and still holding in her hand the figure of the thus-gone one sitting upon the lotus, rose into the sky to the height of a palm tree, and remained there. Sitting there, she addressed that crowd of men in verse:

As soon as the girl Candrottarā finished speaking these verses, at that very moment, the great earth trembled and the devaputras, who were residing in the vault of the sky, cried, “How wonderful!” and a great clamor of cheers and laughter erupted from the hundreds and thousands of people there. A rain of flowers also fell, as billions upon billions of cymbals resounded.

This greatly affected the men in the crowd, who were astonished and afraid—it made, so to speak, their hair stand on end. Some of them were thenceforth without desire, hatred, delusion, anger, quarrelsomeness, deceit, malice, and conflict.^[30] All of them were freed from mental obscurations, F.232.b physically refreshed, and freed from all afflictions. The girl Candrottarā became as dear to them as a mother, a sister, or a teacher, and they revered her, showering her with whatever flowers, incense, perfumes, garlands, and ointments they were holding. And as they were being strewn, at that very moment, those flowers were transformed through the power of the Buddha into a flowered canopy half a league in size that hovered above the crown of the figure of the thus-gone one. The girl Candrottarā then descended from the sky to hover some four finger-widths above the earth, and walking on air without touching the ground, she left the great city of Vaiśālī. As eighty-four thousand residents of the great city of Vaiśālī followed closely behind the girl Candrottarā, the earth trembled with every rise and fall of their feet.

Early the next morning, the venerable Śāradvatīputra, together with about five hundred monks dressed in their upper and lower robes and carrying alms bowls, entered the great city of Vaiśālī to gather alms. As they approached from afar, these great hearers saw the girl Candrottarā surrounded by that great host of people. Seeing her, the venerable Śāradvatīputra said to the venerable Mahākāśyāpa, “Venerable Mahākāśyāpa, if this girl Candrottarā is to go before the Blessed One, shouldn’t we know whether or not she has attained acceptance? We should ask her some questions.”

So the venerable Śāradvatīputra, together with those monks, approached the girl Candrottarā and asked, “Where are you going, girl?” F.233.a

“Honorable Śāradvatīputra,” replied the girl, “you ask, ‘Where are you going, girl?’ Elder, wherever you are going, I am going too.”

“Girl, I am going to Vaiśālī, and you are coming from Vaiśālī,” said Śāradvatīputra. “How does it make any sense for you to say, ‘Elder, wherever you are going, I am going too’?

“Honorable Śāradvatīputra,” replied the girl, “where do you raise your feet and where do you lower them?”

“Girl,” replied Śāradvatīputra, “I raise my feet in space and lower them in the same space.”

The girl continued, “Honorable Śāradvatīputra, I too raise my feet in space and lower them in space. In the element of space there is not even the slightest difference, so for that reason, Honorable Śāradvatīputra, I say, ‘Wherever you are going, I am going too.’ Honorable Śāradvatīputra, where are you going?”

“Girl, I am going to nirvāṇa,”^[31] replied Śāradvatīputra.

“Honorable Śāradvatīputra,” said the girl, “since all dharmas are in nirvāṇa,^[32] I am already there.”

Śāradvatīputra then asked, “Girl, if all dharmas go to parinirvāṇa,^[33] then why are you not going to parinirvāṇa?”

“Honorable Śāradvatiputra,” replied the girl, “that which is in parinirvāṇa does not pass into parinirvāṇa, for that which is in parinirvāṇa has no arising and no disintegration. So apart from that which is in parinirvāṇa, there is nothing at all that can become in parinirvāṇa. Why is that? Because that which is in parinirvāṇa is itself parinirvāṇa.” F.233.b

Thus she spoke, and the venerable Śāradvatīputra then asked the girl Candrottarā, “So, girl, are you a follower of the Hearer Vehicle, a follower of the Solitary Buddha Vehicle, or a follower of the Great Vehicle?”

“Honorable Śāradvatīputra,” replied the girl, “you have asked me what vehicle I follow. Honorable Śāradvatīputra, ask yourself! Begging your forbearance, may I ask,^[34] Honorable Śāradvatīputra, what is the Dharma that you realize? Are you a follower of the Hearer Vehicle? Or a follower of the Solitary Buddha Vehicle? Or a follower of the Great Vehicle?”

“Girl, I am none,” replied Śāradvatīputra. “Why? Because in the Dharma, there are no concepts or elaborations, and there is neither difference, nor identity, nor diversity.”

The girl continued, “Honorable Śāradvatīputra, for that reason, with regard to all dharmas—nonexistent conceptualizations, nonexistent elaborations, all nonexistent phenomena that are distinguished, anything that is dwelt upon, or phenomena that are completely beyond suffering—there is nothing to be apprehended.”

“Girl, your eloquence is a marvel,” said Śāradvatīputra. “How many thus-gone ones have you served?”

The girl replied, “Honorable Śāradvatīputra, you have asked me how many thus-gone ones I have served. As many as there are in suchness and the realm of phenomena.”

“Girl, how many are there in suchness and the realm of phenomena?” asked Śāradvatīputra.

The girl replied, “Honorable Śāradvatīputra, there are as many as there are in ignorance and craving for existence.” F.234.a

“Girl, how many are there in ignorance and craving for existence?” asked Śāradvatīputra.

The girl replied, “As many, Honorable Śāradvatīputra, as there are in the realms of sentient beings.”

“Girl, how many are there in the realms of sentient beings?” asked Śāradvatīputra.

“Honorable Śāradvatīputra,” replied the girl, “they are as numerous as the realms of blessed buddhas of the past, future, and present.”

“Girl, what are these answers you give?” asked Śāradvatīputra.

“Honorable Śāradvatīputra, I have answered whatever question the elder has asked me!” she replied.

“Girl, what have I asked?” said Śāradvatīputra.

“Honorable Śāradvatīputra,” she replied, “the words with which you questioned were certainly instructive.”

“Girl, words are inherently limited because they do not designate anything, so they cannot be ‘certainly instructive,’” said Śāradvatīputra.

“Likewise, Honorable Śāradvatīputra,” replied the girl, “the one who asks about all dharmas being unproduced, lacking cessation, and being without characteristics, and the one who gives answers—neither is apprehended.”

“Girl,” said Śāradvatīputra, “in this way you have attained patience and have the pure form of a bodhisattva, so it will not be long before you reach complete buddhahood in unexcelled and perfectly complete awakening.”

The girl replied, “Honorable Śāradvatīputra, the word ‘awakening’ is a conceptual elaboration, ‘reach complete buddhahood’ is a conceptual elaboration, and ‘near’ and ‘far’ are conceptual elaborations as well.

“Honorable Śāradvatīputra, you said, F.234.b ‘It will not be long before you reach complete buddhahood in unexcelled and perfectly complete awakening.’ Honorable Śāradvatīputra, because awakening is unexcelled and completely perfected, it is unproduced, lacks cessation, lacks annihilation, lacks permanence, is not a unity nor a multiplicity, lacks coming, lacks going, is inexpressible, lacks arising, and lacks an intrinsic nature, so any complete buddhahood is not apprehended. Why? Because awakening cannot be defined dualistically, because awakening is not dual and is free from duality.”

Then the honorable Śāradvatīputra said to the girl Candrottarā, “Girl, you should go before the Thus-Gone One. We are also going there to listen to the Dharma.”

The girl Candrottarā replied to the elder Śāradvatīputra, “Honorable Śāradvatīputra, the Thus-Gone One does not teach the Dharma to those who wish to listen.”

“Well then, girl, to whom does the Thus-Gone One teach the Dharma?” asked Śāradvatīputra.

“Honorable Śāradvatīputra,” replied the girl, “to those who, though they listen, are not pleased—to those who are not really pleased.”

“Girl,” said Śāradvatīputra, “many sentient beings have gone before the Thus-Gone One for the purpose of listening to Dharma teachings. Does the Thus-Gone One not teach the Dharma to them?”

“Honorable Śāradvatīputra,” replied the girl, “those sentient beings who maintain an idea of the Thus-Gone One or who believe the Dharma has an intrinsic identity think, ‘This is the Thus-Gone One,’ ‘He teaches us the Dharma,’ and ‘This is the Dharma that he teaches.’ F.235.a But those who have understood the realm of phenomena do not have any such thoughts of ‘the Thus-Gone One,’ ‘the Dharma,’ or ‘the teaching’ like this.”

Then the elder Mahākāśyapa spoke, addressing his words to the elder Śāradvatīputra: “Venerable Śāradvatīputra, since a girl with such eloquence is going before the Thus-Gone One, there will surely be a great Dharma teaching there, so it would be better for us to cut short our going for food and return. It would not be right if we were absent when such a teaching is heard.”

Those great hearers then turned around and headed back.

The girl Candrottarā proceeded to Kūṭāgāraśālā in the Great Forest. She went to where the Blessed One was, bowed her head at the feet of the Blessed One, circled the Blessed One three times, and presented him with the flowers, incense, perfumes, garlands, ointments, powders, clothing, parasols, banners, and flags that she had brought, laying them out before him.

The crowd of men also presented the Blessed One with what they had brought: flowers, incense, perfumes, garlands, and ointments. As soon as they laid them out, at that very moment, the flowers transformed into a flower canopy about ten leagues wide. It settled directly above the crown of the Blessed One’s head.

Mañjuśrī Kumārabhūta then addressed the girl Candrottarā: “Girl, from where did you die and transmigrate when you came here? And when you die here, where will you go?”

The girl replied, “Mañjuśrī, what do you think? From where did this this figure of a thus-gone one that sits on a lotus in my right hand die and transmigrate when he came here? F.235.b And when he dies here, where do you think he will be reborn?”

“Girl, this is an emanation,” said Mañjuśrī. “As an emanation, he has no death, transmigration, and rebirth.”

“Mañjuśrī,” continued the girl, “all phenomena are by nature just like emanations, and even I have not seen their death, transmigration, and rebirth.”

Then the bodhisattva Amoghadarśin addressed the girl Candrottarā: “Girl, since perfect and complete awakening to buddhahood is not possible in the body of a woman, why do you not transform your female body?”

“Son of noble family,” replied the girl, “all phenomena are characterized by emptiness, and in emptiness there are no changes to be made and no transformation.”

Then the bodhisattva Dharaṇīṃdhara addressed the girl Candrottarā: “Girl, do you see the Thus-Gone One?”

“Son of noble family,” replied the girl, “just as this figure of a thus-gone one sees, so do I see the Thus-Gone One.”

The bodhisattva Pratibhānakūṭa spoke: “Girl, have confidence to tell us about the Dharma.”

“Son of noble family,” replied the girl, “in the realm of phenomena, there is no narrating and no recounting, for the realm of phenomena cannot be enumerated in words.”

The bodhisattva Asaṅgapratibhāna asked, “Girl, what Dharma teachings have you heard in the presence of previous thus-gone ones?”

“Son of noble family,” replied the girl, “if you want to know, look up. A thus-gone one is like the sky; the Dharma taught is just like the thus-gone one, as are those who listen. Son of noble family, all phenomena are just like the sky.”

The bodhisattva Gaganagañja asked, “Girl, how did you make offerings to previous thus-gone ones, and how did you dedicate the merit?” F.236.a

“Son of noble family, it is like this,” replied the girl. “If, for example, the emanation of a thus-gone one were to make offerings to a buddha, his saṅgha of monks, and so forth, what would happen?”

“Girl, with an emanation, nothing would happen,” said Gaganagañja.

“Son of noble family, I gave offerings to previous thus-gone ones and dedicated the merit in just that way,” said the girl.

The bodhisattva Asaṅgacitta asked, “Girl, how do you make beings suffused with loving-kindness?”

“Son of noble family, I leave beings just as they are,” replied the girl.

“How are those beings, girl?” he asked.

“Son of noble family,” she said, “there is no past, there is no future, and there is no present. Since the mind too has no past, no future, and no present, the cultivation of loving-kindness cannot be captured by saying ‘it is like this.’ ”

The bodhisattva Prāmodyarāja asked, “Girl, have you obtained the Dharma eye?”

“Son of noble family,” replied the girl, “if I have not even obtained the physical eye, how would I obtain the Dharma eye?”

The bodhisattva Sthiramati asked, “Girl, how long have you been advancing toward unexcelled, perfectly complete awakening?”

“Son of noble family,” replied the girl, “for as long as water advances toward a mirage, that is how long I have been advancing toward awakening.”

Then the bodhisattva Maitreya asked the girl Candrottarā, “Girl, how long will it be before you reach the complete buddhahood of unexcelled, perfectly complete awakening?” F.236.b

“As long as it takes the bodhisattva Maitreya to pass beyond the stage of an ordinary being and also pass beyond the stage of a buddha,” replied the girl.

Then the venerable Śāradvatīputra addressed the Blessed One: “Blessed One, this sister dons the great armor of a great leader and with her followers speaks with utter fearlessness and without any inferiority—the girl’s eloquence is amazing.”

The girl Candrottarā then said to the venerable Śāradvatīputra, “Honorable Śāradvatīputra, it is like this. Take the example of fire—no matter small it is, its nature is to burn, so anything brought close to it will be burned. In the same way, Honorable Śāradvatīputra, since there is not the slightest difference between the bodhisattvas with respect to the course of all the thus-gone ones, all of them stay close in order to burn away all the afflictions of themselves and others.”^[35]

“Girl, once you have attained awakening, what will your buddha field be like?” asked Śāradvatīputra.

“Honorable Śāradvatīputra,” replied the girl, “in my buddha field, as in any buddha field, Elder Śāradvatīputra, there would not be any trace whatsoever of those who trust in lesser beings, who have weak insight, who do not look out for the benefit of others, and who follow the Hearer Vehicle—not even their names would be heard.”

“Girl, what are you saying?” asked Śāradvatīputra “If it is said ‘the realm of phenomena is one, suchness is one,’ then how can you see hearers as inferior, and buddhas as superior?”

“Honorable Śāradvatīputra, it is like this,” replied the girl. “To give an analogy, although there is not even the slightest difference between the water in a cow’s hoofprint and the water in an ocean, F.237.a nevertheless, in a hoofprint there is no room for immeasurable numbers of sentient beings like there is in an ocean. In the same way, Honorable Śāradvatīputra, although it is the case that both the thus-gone ones and hearers certainly arise from the same realm of phenomena, nevertheless, hearers are incapable of acting for the benefit of immeasurable and innumerable sentient beings like thus-gone ones do.

“Honorable Śāradvatīputra, it is like this. To give another analogy, although there is not even the slightest difference between the space element that fills the inside of a mustard seed and the space element that fills all the world systems in the ten directions, nevertheless, in the space element inside a mustard seed there is no room for the towns, cities, kingdoms, and royal palaces that there are in the space of the ten directions. Nor is there room for the Mount Merus and great oceans. In the same way, Honorable Śāradvatīputra, although thus-gone ones and hearers certainly arise from the same emptiness, signlessness, and wishlessness, nevertheless, hearers are incapable of acting for the benefit of immeasurable and innumerable sentient beings like thus-gone, worthy, perfectly complete buddhas do.”

“Girl, is not the liberation of buddhas and of hearers the same?” asked Śāradvatīputra.

“Honorable Śāradvatīputra, what are you saying?” replied the girl. “To say that the liberation of buddhas and of hearers is the same is a calumny.” F.237.b

“Why is that, girl?” asked Śāradvatīputra.

“Honorable Śāradvatīputra, for this, ask yourself!” said the girl. “Begging your forbearance, may I ask, Honorable Śāradvatīputra, when your mind was liberated, did the great trichiliocosm of world systems become fully settled and smooth like the palm of your hand?

“Did all the trees and mountains face you and bow, bow low, bow deeply?

“Were all bad transmigrations thoroughly pacified?

“Did all sentient beings become free from affliction?

“Was the great trichiliocosm of world systems from the Avīci hells below right up to the Akaniṣṭha heavens above illuminated as if by colored light?

“Did all the gods salute you?

“Did an army of māras swarm the earth and sky for thirty leagues?

“Was there liberation through the insight of the single unique instant^[36] of intention?

“At the very moment of your awakening, did you vanquish all māras?”

“Girl, not one of the things you have described occurred,” replied Śāradvatīputra.

“Honorable Śāradvatīputra,” the girl continued, “these distinctive qualities, and limitless others, occur for a bodhisattva at the sublime seat of awakening. So, Honorable Śāradvatīputra, the liberation of a thus-gone one and the liberation of a hearer are different.”

The Blessed One then gave his approval to the girl Candrottarā. “Excellent!” he said. “Excellent, girl! Excellent! What you have taught is most excellent.”

Then, through the power of the Buddha, F.238.a the figure of the thus-gone one seated on a lotus in the right hand of the girl Candrottarā rose from its lotus seat. It circumambulated the Blessed One three times, then entered into the navel of the Blessed One himself.

The very next instant, through the power of the Buddha, the great earth shook, and a golden-colored lotus appeared from each of the Blessed One’s pores; their stems were gold, their petals silver, and their centers were made from the śrīgarbha gem. On each of those lotuses appeared the figure of a thus-gone one seated on a lotus and excellently adorned with all the marks. Those figures of thus-gone ones then departed for the endless worlds in the limitless ten directions, illuminating them all by teaching the Dharma in those worlds that were without a buddha. Through the power of the Buddha, those Dharma teachings were heard everywhere, even here.

On seeing such a great magical display, the girl Candrottarā rejoiced with joy and delight. With tremendous joy, happiness, and exultation, she tossed the lotus she had been holding in her right hand toward the Blessed One. As soon as she threw it, the lotus transformed into a square storied pavilion of flowers supported by four pillars, which hovered directly above the crown of the Blessed One’s head. In the pavilion was a throne, its legs bedecked with jewels and draped in divine fabric with many hundreds of thousands of threads. Upon the throne appeared the figure of a thus-gone one just like the Blessed Thus-Gone Śākyamuni.

Having thrown the lotus, she said to the Blessed One, “Blessed One, by this root of virtue, may I F.238.b become a teacher of the Dharma^[37] so that beings who persist in grasping at ‘I’ and ‘mine’ may abandon grasping at ‘I’ and ‘mine.’ ”

Then again, through the power of the Buddha, a second lotus appeared in her hand, and again she tossed it toward the Blessed One. As soon as she threw it, it too transformed into a second pavilion of lotuses above the Blessed One. And again she spoke:

“Blessed One, by this root of virtue, may I become a teacher of the Dharma so that beings who hold the view of the destructible collection may abandon the view of the destructible collection.”

Then again, through the power of the Buddha, a third lotus appeared in her hand, and again she tossed it toward the Blessed One. As soon as she threw it, it too transformed into a third pavilion of lotuses above the Blessed One. And again she spoke:

“Blessed One, by this root of virtue, may I teach the Dharma to beings so that conceptual thought, ideation, imputation, attraction, aversion, and ignorance^[38] are abandoned.”

Then again, through the power of the Buddha, a fourth lotus appeared in her hand, and again she tossed it toward the Blessed One. As soon as she threw it, it too transformed into a fourth pavilion of lotuses above the Blessed One. And again she spoke:

“Blessed One, by this root of virtue, may I teach the Dharma to beings so that the four errors are abandoned.”

Then again, through the power of the Buddha, a fifth lotus appeared in her hand, and again she tossed it toward the Blessed One. As soon as she threw it, it too transformed into a fifth pavilion of lotuses above the Blessed One. And again she spoke: F.239.a

“Blessed One, by this root of virtue, may I teach the Dharma so that beings who have the five obscurations may be rid of the five obscurations.”

Then again, through the power of the Buddha, a sixth lotus appeared in her hand, and again she tossed it toward the Blessed One. As soon as she threw it, it too transformed into a sixth pavilion of lotuses above the Blessed One. And again she spoke:

“Blessed One, by this root of virtue, may I teach the Dharma so that beings who depend on the six sense fields may come to understand the six sense fields.”

Then again, through the power of the Buddha, a seventh lotus appeared in her hand, and again she tossed it toward the Blessed One. As soon as she threw it, it too transformed into a seventh pavilion of lotuses above the Blessed One. And again she spoke:

“Blessed One, by this root of virtue, may I teach the Dharma so that beings with the seven states of consciousness may come to understand the seven states of consciousness.”

Then again, through the power of the Buddha, an eighth lotus appeared in her hand, and again she tossed it toward the Blessed One. As soon as she threw it, F.239.b it too transformed into an eighth pavilion of lotuses above the Blessed One. And again she spoke:

“Blessed One, by this root of virtue, may I teach the Dharma so that beings who are fixed on the eight errors may abandon the eight errors.”

Then again, through the power of the Buddha, a ninth lotus appeared in her hand, and again she tossed it toward the Blessed One. As soon as she threw it, it too transformed into a ninth pavilion of lotuses above the Blessed One. And again she spoke:

“Blessed One, by this root of virtue, may I teach the Dharma so that beings who persist in the nine causes of resentment may fully abandon the nine causes of resentment.”

Then again, through the power of the Buddha, a tenth lotus appeared in her hand, and again she tossed it toward the Blessed One. As soon as she threw it, it too transformed into a tenth pavilion of lotuses directly above the crown of the Blessed One’s head. And again she spoke:

“Blessed One, by this root of virtue, may I become a buddha endowed with the ten powers, just like the Blessed One who right now pervades the ten directions with light.”

The height of those storied lotus pavilions, one stacked above the other, reached as high as the brahmā realms above. At that moment, drawn by those stacked lotus pavilions, limitless tens of millions of gods gathered, from the gods above the earth up to the brahmā deities. Whereupon, at that moment, the Blessed One smiled.

It being the nature of blessed buddhas when they smile, from the mouth of the Blessed One issued light rays of many colors, in many hundreds of thousands of hues—blue, yellow, red, white, rose, and the colors of crystal and silver—that completely illuminated limitless, innumerable world systems, and, rising up to the brahmā worlds, outshone the sun and moon, and then returned again and dissolved into the crown of the Blessed One’s head.

Then the venerable Ānanda rose from his seat, F.240.a draped his upper robe over one shoulder, placed his right knee on the ground, and bowed toward the Blessed One with his palms joined. He addressed the Blessed One in melodious verse, asking about the meaning of his smile:

The Blessed One then replied to the venerable Ānanda in verse:

When the girl Candrottarā directly heard this prophecy in the presence of the Blessed One, she was so joyful, so supremely joyful, that she rose into the sky to the height of some seven palm trees, and as soon as she did so, the girl transformed her female body into the actual body of a man. In the world, the earth shook, a rain of flowers descended, the sound of many hundreds of thousands of cymbals played by gods and humans resounded, and the entire world was suffused by bright light.

Then, as the bodhisattva Candrottara hovered in the sky, he praised the Blessed One with these verses:

After speaking these verses, the bodhisattva Candrottara descended from the sky and touched the two feet of the Blessed One. As soon as he touched them, many hundreds of thousands of buddhas appeared. Those blessed buddhas also prophesied his unexcelled and perfectly complete awakening. Directly seeing those blessed buddhas and again hearing his own prophecy, he was delighted and rejoiced. With great happiness and joy, he made the request to go forth in the presence of the Blessed One. He requested permission to go forth in the Dharma and Vinaya that was excellently spoken by the Blessed One himself.

The Blessed One replied, “Child,^[44] your parents must grant permission.” Then the parents of the child, having seen the great miracle and having directly heard the prophecy, said, “Blessed One, we give permission for this child to go forth. F.243.b We also request to hear these teachings again later.” So the Blessed One sent the child forth. The child went forth as a renunciant, and ten thousand living beings generated the mind set on unexcelled and perfectly complete awakening.

When this Dharma discourse was taught, seventy billion gods and humans purified the dustless and stainless Dharma eye that looks upon phenomena. Five hundred monks freed their minds from contaminations with no further clinging, and two hundred nuns and twenty thousand living beings who had not previously generated the mind of awakening, generated the mind set on unexcelled and perfectly complete awakening.

When the Blessed One had finished speaking, the bodhisattva Candrottara, the venerable Ānanda, and the bodhisattvas, the hearers, and the entire entourage rejoiced along with the world of gods, humans, asuras, and gandharvas, and praised what the Blessed One had said.