Day 1

Day 1 covers the first half of Chapter 1, Introductory

Having last month considered in gāthās the Bodhisattvas illumined by the light from the Buddha, we considered the offerings of those Bodhisattvas.

I also see some Bodhisattvas
Offering delicious food and drink
And hundreds of kinds of medicines
To the Buddha and the Sangha.

Some offer garments and beautiful robes
Worth tens of millions
Or beyond monetary value
To the Buddha and the Sangha.

Some offer thousands of billions
Of jeweled houses made of candana
And wonderful bedding
To the Buddha and the Sangha.

Some offer pure gardens and forests
Abounding in flowers and fruits,
And furnished with rivers, springs,
and pools for bathing,
To the Buddha and the Saṃgha.

I see those Bodhisattvas
Making offerings of those wonderful things
Joyfully and untiringly
In order to attain unsurpassed enlightenment.

This is the week of Fall Ohigan, a weeklong focus on living the life of the Six Paramitas. And the No. 1 Paramita: Giving. Just one more example of how the Introductory chapter sets the stage for what is to come.