Quotes from Gene Reeves

Because he always teaches the unexcelled way, He will be called Universal Light. His land will be clean and pure. And all its bodhisattvas will be daring.

With the appearance of this light, the body of Universal Sage Bodhisattva will become as dignified as a mountain of purple gold, so well ordered and refined that it has all the thirty-two characteristics. From

If you want to dwell in the Buddha way And gain natural wisdom, You should always be diligent about making offerings To those who receive and embrace the Dharma Flower.

World-Honored One, now you should preach the Dharma of supreme awakening for our sake. Once we have heard it, we will study and practice it together. World-Honored One, we are determined to gain the insight of a tathagata. What is deep in our hearts the Buddha must already know.

The Buddha preached this sutra for eight thousand eons without resting. When he had finished preaching it, he entered a quiet room and meditated for eighty-four thousand eons.

I also see bodhisattvas Who leave behind all play and laughter And all foolish companions, And seek association with the wise. Single-mindedly removing distractions, Concentrating their thoughts while in mountain forests, For tens of thousands of millions of years, They seek the Buddha way.

Monks and nuns full of arrogance, Proud laymen, and laywomen of little faith: In the assembly of the four groups, such people Were five thousand in number. Not seeing their own errors, Failing to observe the precepts And carefully defending their faults, These people of little wisdom have already left. Those dregs of the assembly left Because of the Buddha's dignity and virtue. Such people of little merit and virtue Are incapable of receiving the Dharma.

All these lands—is it possible even for mathematicians or their disciples to count all of them and know the number of all the lands visited?

The number of eons since that buddha passed into extinction until now still vastly exceeds that number by innumerable, unlimited hundreds of thousands of billions of eons. Yet by the power of the Tathagata's insight, I observe that distant time as if it were today.

His distinguishing thirty-two characteristics And the eighty different attractive features seem to be visible, Yet in reality, his form is neither with nor without features. All visible features are transcended. Without having features His body has features. This is also true of the features Of the bodies of all living beings.

Wherever such a teacher lives or stays, Walks, sits, or lies down, Or teaches even a verse, There a stupa should be erected. It should be wonderfully And beautifully adorned. And offerings of many kinds Should be made to it. When children of the Buddha live in such a place, It means that the Buddha accepts them And always lives among them, Whether walking, sitting, or lying down.

The buddhas, the most honored of people, Know that nothing exists independently, And that buddha-seeds arise interdependently. This is why they teach the one vehicle. Things are part of the everlasting Dharma, And the character of the Dharma in the world endures forever. Having come to know this at the place of the Way, Leaders and teachers teach it in skillful ways.

Ananda always wanted to listen and learn, while I was devoted to active practice. This is why I have already managed to attain supreme awakening, while Ananda has been taking care of my teachings. He will take care of the Dharma storehouses of future buddhas, and teach, transform, and develop multitudes of bodhisattvas. Such was his original vow. So now he receives this assurance.

Now, I am like them. For the peace and comfort of living beings I use various gateways to the Dharma To proclaim the Buddha way. Through the power of wisdom, Knowing the nature and desires of living beings, I teach them the Dharma using skillful means, Bringing them great joy.

In continuous, Unending suffering, They are firmly rooted in the five desires Like an ox chasing its own tail. Blinded by greed and desire, They are blind and can see nothing. Seeking neither the Buddha With his great power Nor the Dharma, Which can bring an end to suffering. With deeply entrenched wrong views, They try to use suffering to get rid of suffering.

Then I thought to myself: "If I merely praise the Buddha-Vehicle, Beings sunk in suffering Will not be able to believe this Dharma. "And by rejecting the Dharma through unbelief They will fall into the three evil paths. It would be better not to teach the Dharma And quickly enter nirvana.

Now, having no more doubts, I dwell at peace in the Buddha way. As a skillful means, I will be a servant To protect and embrace the buddhas' teachings.

In brief, all the teachings of the Tathagata, all the unhindered, divine powers of the Tathagata, the hidden core of the whole storehouse of the Tathagata, and all the profound matters of the Tathagata are proclaimed, demonstrated, revealed, and preached in this sutra.

By cutting off pride and arrogance, He has acquired such a glorious body.

Medicine King, after the extinction of the Tathagata, if there are good sons or good daughters who want to teach this Dharma Flower Sutra for the four groups, how should they teach it? Such good sons or good daughters should enter the room of the Tathagata, put on the robe of the Tathagata, sit on the seat of the Tathagata, and then teach this sutra everywhere for the four groups.

To enter the room of the Tathagata is to have great compassion for all living beings. To wear the robe of the Tathagata is to be gentle and patient. To sit on the seat of the Tathagata is to contemplate the emptiness of all things. One should dwell in peace with all three and then, never becoming lazy or careless, teach this Dharma Flower Sutra everywhere to bodhisattvas and the four groups.

Those who are able to receive and embrace The Wonderful Dharma Flower Sutra, Having given up the pure land, Have been born here out of sympathy for the living. Know that such people, Free to be born where they want, Chose to be in this evil age To teach the unexcelled Dharma everywhere.

For eight billion eons, With the most wonderful colors and sounds, And what is most pleasing to smell, taste, and touch, Make offerings to those who embrace this sutra! If you make such offerings And hear the Dharma even for a moment, You will rejoice and say, "I have gained great benefit." Medicine King, I tell you now, Of the sutras I have preached, Among all of them The Dharma Flower is the greatest.

Then Maitreya Bodhisattva thought: "Now the World-Honored One has displayed a marvelous sign. But what is the cause or reason for this auspicious sign? Now that the Buddha, the World-Honored One, has entered into concentration, whom can I ask about such inconceivable and unprecedented wonders? And who will be able to answer?