Inconceivable
Life Span of the Buddha
Lotus Sutra,
chapter, 16
Since
I attained buddhahood, The number of kalpas that have passed
Is incalculable
hundreds, thousands, myriads, And billions of long aeons.
Constantly I have
voiced the Dharma, teaching
Countless millions living beings, So that they
entered the Buddha Way;
All this for immeasurable kalpas.
In order to
liberate all beings,
As skillful means I appear to have entered nirvana,
Yet truly I am not extinct, Ever dwelling here to voice the Dharma.
I forever
abide in this world, But use my powers of spiritual penetration
So that confused
living beings, Though nearby, fail to see me.
All those viewing me as extinct
Everywhere venerate my relics.
All harbor feelings of yearning, And arouse
adoring hearts.
When beings have become sincerely faithful,
Honest and
upright, with gentle intention,
Wholeheartedly wishing to behold the Buddha,
Not begrudging their own lives,
Then I and the assembled sangha
Appear
together on sacred Vulture Peak.
Then I tell the living beings
That in
this world I exist without end,
By the power of expedient means, Appearing
to be extinct, or not.
Other countries contain living beings, Reverent and
with faith aspiring;
Among them as well, I give voice to supreme Dharma.
Those who do not hear this
Only suppose I am passed into extinction.
I behold the living beings, Sunk within the sea of suffering.
Hence I do not
reveal myself, But set them all to yearning,
Till when their hearts are filled
with longing,
I then emerge and proclaim the Dharma.
With such pervasive
spiritual power, Through long cycles of kalpas
I abide on sacred Vulture Peak,
And every other dwelling place.
When living beings see the kalpa's end,
With all consumed in a great blaze,
My domain stays serene and calm,
Ever
filled with human and heavenly beings,
Gardens and groves, pavilions and palaces,
Adorned with every kind of gem
And jeweled trees lush with flowers and fruit,
Where living beings delight and play.
The heavenly beings beat celestial drums,
Ever making pleasing music,
Showering white Mandarava flowers
Over Buddha
and the great assembly.
My Pure Land is not destroyed, Yet all view it as
being burnt up,
So that anxiety, horror, and distress Fill them everywhere.
The beings vexed with their offenses,
Caused by their unwholesome karma,
Through vast rounds of kalpas,
Hear not the name of the Three Treasures.
But those who practice virtuous deeds, Are gentle, upright, and sincere,
These
all see that I exist, Abiding here, proclaiming Dharma.
At times for the sake
of that assembly,
I describe Buddha's life span as immeasurable.
For those
who after great lengths see the Buddha
I explain how rarely is Buddha encountered.
Such is the power of my wisdom
With beams of insight shining beyond measure.
This life span of countless kalpas
Was gained from long-cultivated practice.
You who are possessed of wisdom,
In regards to this, entertain no doubts,
Cast them off, forever ended, For Buddha's words are true, not false.
Like
the good physician who with skillful means,
In order to cure his deranged
children,
Though truly alive spreads word he is dead,
Yet cannot be charged
with falsehood,
I too, as parent of the world, Savior of all suffering and
afflicted,
For the sake of confused, worldly people,
Though truly living,
am thought extinct.
If due to always seeing me, Their hearts become selfish
and arrogant,
Dissolute and set on the five desires, They'd fall into evil
destinies.
I always know which living beings Practice the Way, and which do
not.
In accord with what their salvation requires,
I give voice to the
various teachings,
Ever making this my thought:
How can I cause the living
beings
To gain entry into the unsurpassed way
And promptly embody Buddha?