Lotus Sutra - Ray Of Light - by Julian Colgan

Lotus Sutra - Ray Of Light

(Invocation To Manjusri)

O Manjusri,

why does Lord Gautama

emit from His forehead a brilliant

white light that covers all

directions of space simultaneously?

Shaking the entire earth

with His transcendent wisdom,

the ray which now illuminates

our auspicious consciousness

gladly shows us a sign of

the nearness of nirvana.

Spanning the six rounds of rebirth,

Lord Gautama liberates

the imprisoned minds of those 

who are suffering in the hellish states

and in the deceptively heavenly states.

Mystically spectacular,

many gandharvas and holy persons

softly emanate in pure voices

of celestial realization

the numberless teachings of the Buddha.

Each having a different level

of meditative penetration,

their knowledge

makes all creatures rejoice

without knowing why.

Delivering a particular message

to each sort of ailing being,

the diseased are given

the medicine of the four noble truths,

whereas the accomplished ones

are given the medicine of ultimate enlightenment.

For those who are supremely attached

to the supreme wisdom of Lord Gautama,

the purest of ways is pointed to

as quickly as a flash of lightning.

Peering into the infinite realms

of the infinite varieties of practitioners,

every gem of consciousness

blends into the overall atmosphere

as grains of sand lose themselves

on the limitless banks of the Ganges.

Endowed with riches and natural resources,

many give alms as a way to

embark upon the glorious Buddha Way.

Some, extending this principle

even further, selflessly offer themselves

as vehicles of enlightenment for other sentient beings.

O Manjusri,

great kings and princes

abandon their palaces and

positions of power in order to

shave their attachments away

through putting on the varying robes of renunciation.

Entering into the emptiness

of mountains and other secluded spots,

holy persons constantly dwell

in the profundity of peaceful meditations.

Others, taking to an active life

of preaching, extol to the masses

the virtues of the Buddha Way.

Transforming minds by

declaring war on Mara's armies,

bodhisattvas calmly reduce

the haughtiness of the bewildered 

by pronouncing the merits of

one who never sleeps in the coils

of a hellish consciousness.

Taking to the path of austerities,

the misguided become

as pure as pearls are

and laugh and play for

millions of future lives.

As abundant as a flower garden

that extends indefinitely,

may I offer these flower like verses

to the buddhas and bodhisattvas

of my perpetually bleeding heart.

Like the neutrality of space,

a buddha's mind

sees everything in its completion,

whereas others only see parts

of an intricately unsolvable puzzle.

Taking to the path of worshiping

a buddha's relics and adornments,

majestic stupas are built

in order to demonstrate the

most wonderful accomplishments

of a purified life stream.

Having all of the members of the six realms

pay homage to Lord Gautama,

a fully blossoming heart is the reward

of not thinking of rewards.

Emitting a ray of light,

He is the Truth of Reality.

Being the Truth of Reality,

the four noble truths are His most noble of sons. 

 

 

 

by Julian Colgan (Copyright)

Awake to Buddhahood

http://emptinessofmind.blogspot.ca/2013/01/lotus-sutra-ray-of-light.html