Abiding in the Mind of Great Loving-Kindness
Sudhana breaks into an extended verse hymn, opening with five stanzas: Maitreya's own great loving-kindness and sublime merit; his place as the eldest son of every buddha, abiding in the ground of coronation; every child of the Buddha journeying the Great Vehicle's own path; and one who has reached the far shore of every pāramitā and every dharma of the three times.
Five Opening Stanzas
爾時，善財以偈頌曰：
「安住大慈心， 彌勒摩訶薩，
具足妙功德， 饒益諸群生。
住於灌頂地， 諸佛之長子，
思惟佛境界， 安住此法堂。
一切諸佛子， 常履大乘行，
遊行諸法界， 安住此法堂。
施戒忍精進， 禪智方便願，
究竟彼岸者， 安住此法堂。
無礙智如空， 普照三世法，
了知一切者， 安住此法堂。
At that time, Sudhana spoke a verse, saying:
"Abiding in the mind of great loving-kindness, Maitreya the mahāsattva,
Endowed with sublime merit, benefits every multitude of beings.
Abiding in the ground of coronation, the eldest son of every buddha,
Contemplating the buddha's own domain, he abides in this Dharma-hall.
Every child of the Buddha, ever treading the Great Vehicle's own practice,
Journeying through every dharma-realm, abides in this Dharma-hall.
Giving, precepts, forbearance, diligence, meditation, wisdom, skillful means, and vow —
One who reaches the very far shore of these abides in this Dharma-hall.
Unobstructed wisdom like empty space, universally illumining the dharmas of the three times —
One who fully knows all abides in this Dharma-hall."
This hymn opens by naming Maitreya "the eldest son of every buddha" and placing him "in the ground of coronation" (灌頂地) — the tenth and final bodhisattva ground, at which a bodhisattva is formally anointed as a future buddha, exactly as a crown prince is anointed before succeeding to the throne. Fazang reads the refrain that closes nearly every stanza, "abides in this Dharma-hall," as doing double work: naming Maitreya's own literal location within the tower, and affirming that each quality just praised is itself what makes that abiding possible.
Part 289 In Progress
This vast hymn has only just begun. Part 290 continues with Maitreya's understanding of non-arising, his freedom from the three poisons, and his mastery of the three gates of liberation.
Continue to Part 290 →