Every world system contains:

1 Mount Sumeru;

1 set of the Four Great Continents, namely:

• • • • Jambudvipa to the south,
      • Pūravavideha to the east,
      • Aparagodānīya to the west, and
      • Uttarakuru to the north;

1 sun, and 1 moon.

One thousand of such world systems is called one small-thousand world system. A thousand small-thousand world systems is called one middle-thousand world system. A thousand middle-thousand world systems is called one great-thousand world system. Because the word “thousand” occurs three times, the great-thousand world system is referred to as the three thousand great-thousand world system. This gigantic world system contains limitless Buddhalands, and in spite of its name, the number of worlds it contains may vary, because phenomena are flexible, not fixed. One should not become too attached to an exact number.

You can plant good roots or bad roots. If you do not believe in and make offerings to the Triple Jewel, your bad roots increase. When you withdraw from the Triple Jewel, your good roots decrease. When you are near the Triple Jewel your good roots increase. Take heed. Do not do bad deeds. Offer up only good conduct.

The inhabitants of Uttarakuru cannot see the Buddha, hear the Dharma, or see the Sangha, and so their good roots die. In order to plant good roots one should first take refuge with the Triple Jewel. To plant further good roots one can receive the five precepts, the eight precepts, or the ten major and forty-eight minor precepts of a Bodhisattva available for laymen; or the 250 bhikṣu or 348 bhikṣunī precepts available for those who wish to leave the home life.

The good roots one plants by accepting and holding the five precepts and cultivating the ten good acts cannot be seen, smelled, tasted, or touched because they are without a mark. “All with marks is empty and false,” but people do not realize that, and only know how to nurture their bodies, not their good roots.

“What are good roots?”

Good roots are another name for your dharma body and your wisdom. Good roots are the firm foundation which comes from cultivation. A good foundation causes your dharma body to manifest, your wisdom to increase, and your originally existent real mark prajña to function.

It Is essential, however, that you plant good roots before the Triple Jewel in order to reap the fruit of Bodhi. If you plant good roots with non-Buddhist religions, you will not be able to reap any ultimate benefit, no matter how many good roots you plant or how long you nurture them.

The words Subhūti said to the Buddha were added by the Venerable Ananda when the sutras were compiled.

Subhūti said, “Is it possible that living beings will hear this sutra which the Buddha has spoken and will actually believe it?” What he was really asking Śākyamuni Buddha was, “Is it the case that they will not believe it?”

The Buddha immediately admonished Subhūti for even suggesting such a possibility, and said that even in the last five hundred years beings would believe the sutra.

1. The first period of five hundred years is called “The Period Strong in Liberation.” It constitutes the time when the Buddha is in the world, and many people certify to the Way and attain liberation.
2. The second five hundred years is called “The Period Strong in Dhyana Samadhi.” That period follows the Buddha’s extinction and is a time when many people gain certification through the cultivation of dhyana samadhi.
3. The third five hundred years is called “The Period Strong in Learning.” During that time many people investigate sutras.
4. The fourth five hundred years is “The Period Strong in Fighting.” That is the period referred to in the text, the present Dharma Ending Age.

Śākyamuni Buddha said, “There will be people in the last five hundred years who believe and maintain the precepts and who cultivate blessings. They will believe the Vajra Sutra and accept its principles as true, actual, and not false. Such people will have planted good roots for limitless kalpas by making offerings to, showing respect for, and believing in the Triple Jewel Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha.”

1. Nirvana of the pure, clear self-nature. The self-nature is inherent in everyone. It is not subject to birth and death and is not larger in sages or smaller in ordinary people.
2. Nirvana with residue. By using the flame of wisdom on the fuel of afflictions, the secondary bonds of delusion are severed; but the basic bond of the body remains. The body which remains is subject to share-section birth and death; that is said to be nirvana “with residue.”
3. Nirvana without residue. When afflictions and the residue of share-section birth and death are extinguished, the multitude of sufferings is eternally stilled. There is no further residue.
4. Nirvana of no dwelling. Here wisdom and compassion are mutually interactive. Those who have attained the nirvana of no dwelling continue to cross living beings over but are themselves not subject to birth and death.

The nirvana without residue mentioned in the text includes the latter two of the four kinds of nirvana.

The Seven Meanings of Mahāsattva will give an idea of his grandeur:

1. He has perfected great roots.

For limitless kalpas the Bodhisattva has made offerings before the Buddha to the Triple Jewel, bowing and revering the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha, and performing many meritorious and virtuous deeds. From these acts great roots develop. In a later passage the Vajra Sutra says:

You should know that such people have not planted good roots with just one Buddha, two Buddhas, three, four, or five Buddhas, but have planted good roots with measureless millions of Buddhas.

2. He has great wisdom.

His great wisdom is evident in his resolve to realize Bodhi. Without wisdom such a decision cannot be made. Good roots and the wisdom acquired from cultivation in past lives enable people to read the sutras and participate in dhyana sessions. A person lacking good roots would, from the moment he entered the monastery door, find his heart jumping as though it were inhabited by a monkey, and pounding so hard that standing would be uncomfortable and sitting unbearable. He would resemble a god manifesting the Five Marks of Decay, squirming and fidgeting in his seat and finally running away. …

3. He believes the great dharma.

The Buddhadharma is deeper than the great sea, higher than Mount Sumeru. It is difficult to fathom and difficult to penetrate, but with faith one can taste its flavor. Entry into the ocean of Buddhadharma is impossible for the person who lacks faith. Just as one might gaze at the ocean and heave a great sigh, saying, “It’s so big I could not drink it dry in my entire life,” so too might one react when confronted with the precious store of Buddhadharma, saying, “How can I ever study all the sutras?” However, if one has faith, if one truly believes, then from the shallow one can enter the deep; from the near one can reach the far; from a little one can gain a lot. With constant investigation, little by little one penetrates the precious store of Buddhadharma. Deep faith, firm vows, and actual practice are the ingredients. No matter how wonderful the great dharma is, without firm faith the wonderful cannot be obtained. …

4. He understands the great principle.

This is the understanding that one is, oneself, originally a Buddha. The principle is Buddha; Buddha is the principle. The Buddha is one who has already realized Buddhahood. The Mahāsattva understands that he himself has not yet realized Buddhahood, but that basically the Buddha and he are one, not two and not different. The Buddha’s cultivation of virtue is perfected, that of living beings is not. Living beings are not-yet-realized Buddhas; Buddhas are already-realized living beings. One should not become confused about this and profess to be a Buddha, saying, “I am Buddha and the Buddha is me.” The Buddha is a living being who has realized Buddhahood; living beings are not-yet-realized Buddhas. …

5. He cultivated the great conduct.

In cultivation one should not have a little success and feel satisfied, mistaking the transformation city for the ultimate truth. People of the two vehicles obtain some small advantage and are content. Their satisfaction with certification to the first, second, third, or fourth fruits of Arhatship prevents them from turning from the small to the great.

Some come halfway and think they have reached the goal. There is the case of the ignorant bhikṣu who obtained the state of the fourth dhyana and thought he had certified to the fourth fruit of Arhatship, saying, “I’ve already arrived at my goal.” He was actually only halfway there.

Common men go halfway and then turn back. Without even reaching the fourth dhyana heavens they begin to retreat, “It is too far, too hard, for the likes of us,” they say.

Some are waylaid in a transformation city, like the one described in the Wonderful Dharma Lotus Blossom Sutra. Why was such a city conjured up? Followers of the two vehicles cultivated a day or so seeking the Bodhisattva Way without attaining it. Then they cultivated another day, and still did not become Bodhisattvas. The following day, although they reached the Bodhisattva Way, they did not reach its end, and they decided the process was just too long. These “days” represent years, decades, aeons of time. The longer the cultivators sought to obtain their goal, the more bitter their suffering became. The more weary they grew, the less they were able to proceed. “I cannot go on. It is too far. I didn’t know it was such a long way. I am really tired,” they cried.

Seeing their plight, the Buddha conjured up a transformation city and called to them, “Look! There’s a city ahead where we can rest a few days. Our goal is but a short distance beyond the city.” When they entered the city, the people of the two vehicles became infatuated with the abundance of gold, silver and precious gems and decided to settle there. “This place is a real treasure house,” they thought. …

6. He passes through great kalpas.

The cultivation of a Bodhisattva involves planting good roots, but not before one Buddha only. One who fully cultivates passes through three great asaṃkhyeya kalpas.

7. He seeks the great fruit.

The Bodhisattva Way is cultivated by those who seek the great fruit. Foreign lands are not sought after, because Bodhisattvas are not small landlords who set about conquering other countries in order to build an empire. Only Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi, the highest fruit of cultivation, is the goal of great beings.

A Mahāsattva, one whose conduct encompasses those seven aspects, should thus subdue his thoughts.

The Buddha took his bowl and entered the great city of Sravasti to beg for food. Members of the sangha beg for food in order to give living beings an opportunity to plant seeds in the field of blessings. Because living beings did not know about going before the Triple Jewel to plant blessings, the sangha members went to the living beings by entering the cities and begging from door to door, neither bypassing the poor to beg from the rich, nor bypassing the rich to beg from the poor, unlike Subhūti who exclusively begged from the wealthy.

The Buddha reprimanded his two disciples Subhūti and Great Kāśyapa for their manner of begging. First he scolded Subhūti for thinking, “Wealthy people have money because in former lives they fostered merit and virtue. If I don’t beg from them and give them the opportunity to plant further blessings, then next life they will be poor. They will not continue to be wealthy and honored.” So Subhūti only begged from the rich. However, wealthy people eat good food. Although he said it was to help them plant blessings so they could continue to be wealthy in future lives, I believe that in actuality Subhūti liked to eat good food and that is why he begged from the rich. That is what I say, but perhaps Subhūti was not like the rest of us, who constantly think about eating well. It is true that he wanted to help them continue their blessings.

Second, the Buddha scolded Great Kāśyapa because, in his arduous practice of asceticism, he not only ate just one meal a day, but he begged only from the poor. His thought was, “These people are poor because in former lives they did not foster merit and virtue. They did not do good deeds when they had money, and so in this life they are poor. I will help them out of their predicament by enabling them to plant blessings before the Triple Jewel so next life they will be wealthy and honored.” The poorer the house, the more he begged there, even to the point that the poor people took the food out of their own bowls in order to have an offering for him. I believe that because Patriarch Kāśyapa cultivated asceticism he wanted to undergo suffering, and did not want to eat good things. He knew how people with money eat, and did not want to eat well himself. There is a Chinese proverb which says:

To be sparing with clothing increases life.
To be sparing with food increases blessings.

Great Kāśyapa was one hundred twenty years old when he took refuge with the Buddha. Life after life he had been frugal, and in this life, because he did not like to eat rich food, he only begged from the poor, just the opposite of Subhūti. Both of those methods are extreme, and not in accord with the Middle Way, and it is for this reason that the Śūraṅgama Sūtra says that the Buddha scolded them and called them Arhats.

The Buddha was equitable in his begging and did not favor rich or poor. His disciple Ananda followed his example and practiced equal compassion. “Ananda already knew that the Tathagata, the World Honored One, had admonished Subhūti and the Great Kāśyapa as Arhats whose minds were not equable.”

“How does one conquer greed, anger, and stupidity?” One counters them with morality, concentration and wisdom.

Greed, anger and stupidity are morality, concentration and wisdom, and vice versa. It is a matter of how one uses them. For example, one can use money to buy marijuana and get high, or he can use the money to help someone else. Relieving someone else’s suffering is a far better use of money than selfishly smoking marijuana. It is the same money; only the use differs.

So it is with greed, anger and stupidity; morality, concentration and wisdom. When one understands how to use them, they are morality, concentration and wisdom; when one is so deluded that one cannot make them function, they are greed, anger and stupidity. Ice does not differ from water, and water does not differ from ice. Just as water is ice and ice is water, so too afflictions are Bodhi and Bodhi is afflictions. Bodhi and afflictions are not two. If one cannot use it, Bodhi changes to afflictions; if one can, afflictions become Bodhi. However,

What is spoken is dharma.
What is practiced is the Way;
Even if you speak extremely well,
With no real practice, there is no real Way.

One must actually go and do it. One must honestly, truly, rely on the Buddhadharma and cultivate.

Relentlessly cultivating morality, concentration and wisdom, and putting to rest greed, anger and stupidity, are the means to subdue the mind. When one subdues the false mind, the true mind eternally dwells as a matter of course. The “eternally dwelling true mind, clear nature, bright substance” results from putting to rest the false mind, which allows the true mind to manifest.

Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi is a Sanskrit word which means “unsurpassed, proper and equal, right enlightenment.” The term is not translated because it is an honorific designation for the ultimate fruit, that of Buddhahood. Anuttara means “unsurpassed.” Samyak is translated as “proper and equal,” and saṃbodhi means “right enlightenment.” Right enlightenment is testified to by those of the two vehicles, and it is what differentiates them from common unenlightened people. The proper and equal enlightenment of the Bodhisattvas differs from the right enlightenment of the two vehicles in that those who have it have testified to an enlightenment equal to the Buddha’s. It is, however, still not the unsurpassed enlightenment. Once they have testified to proper and equal enlightenment, Bodhisattvas are called “surpassed lords.” The Buddha is known as the “unsurpassed lord,” because there is nothing above him. The Dharma Masters of great virtue who translated sutras in the past retained the original Sanskrit name of the Buddha’s position, and Dharma Masters who followed them honored the decision in their own translations.

At that time the Elder Subhuti arose from his seat in the assembly, uncovered his right shoulder,  placed his right knee on the ground, put his palms together with respect and said to the Buddha…

The ritual performed in requesting dharma symbolizes the purity of the Three Karmas:

1. Uncovering the right shoulder and placing the right knee on the ground represents the purity of body karma.
2. Placing the palms together respectfully represents pure mind karma.
3. Verbalizing the request indicates the karma of the mouth is pure

Subhūti has three meanings: “empty-born,” “well-manifest,” and “good luck.” In Subhūti’s household there were one hundred eight storehouses filled with the Seven Precious Gems: gold, silver, lapis lazuli, crystal, mother-of-pearl, red pearls, and carnelian. When Subhūti was born, it was found that the storehouses were entirely empty. One after another the vaulted doors were opened to reveal absolutely nothing within. “Who has stolen my jewels?” cried Subhūti’s distraught father. “We had such wealth and now are penniless. What is the meaning of this son?” He went to a diviner who calculated that the disappearance of the jewels and the birth of the child had been simultaneous, and so his father called the infant “empty born.” Analyzing the child’s birth-chart, the diviner declared it very lucky, whereupon the child was further named “good luck.” Seven days after Subhūti’s birth, all of the family wealth reappeared in the one hundred eight storerooms. That moved the father to rename his son “well-manifest.” Subhūti grew up while Śākyamuni Buddha was in the world teaching and transforming living beings, and he left home under the Buddha.