英語訳
[Right Upper Section]
Would there be fear?
Reconciling explanation: That Buddha was probably a transformation body of the defiled land. The four assemblies of the arrogant were already in that semblance Dharma period, and the matter of slandering and beating completely did not accord with the characteristics of a pure land. Regarding the Buddha's lifespan, it truly exceeded the portion of defiled lands, but this should be understood as a place where the transformation body of the defiled land also explained the lifespan of pure land Buddhas. Such examples are not just one.
Inquiry: If the sutra's explanation already extends to both pure and defiled sides, why first determine and establish it as a defiled land body, and reconcile the lifespan to one side? Regarding Great Universal Wisdom Excellence Tathāgata, though there are profound praises for both reward and transformation land sides, it is judged as an other-enjoyment body. We should know that in such matters, the superior is taken as the basis.
Answer: This objection is reasonable. However, based on the sutra's originating cause, we should understand its fundamental meaning. Since Bodhisattva Never Disparaging was initially at the stage of completed preparatory practices, we know the teaching Buddha was neither a great transformation body nor reward body. In the lesser transformation land, it was also not a pure land. When Never Disparaging was about to die, though his life was later extended, since he initially reached the time of death, this does not accord with pure land characteristics. Moreover, the four groups of the arrogantly proud created Avīci karma. Based on these fundamental conditions, the land's characteristics are generally determined.
Question: In Great Universal Wisdom Excellence Buddha's world, people like Śāriputra who retreated from their positions became the fundamental disciples of the princes. Also, when the princes became monks, their mothers wept. These should all correspond to transformation body defiled lands. Why judge it as reward land?
Answer: That [teaching] took the sixteen princes as the basis of disciples. The princes' stage was above the grounds. Also, the flowers were like Mount Sumeru, with faces of one hundred yojanas. Based on these matters, it is generally considered reward land. Speaking according to reality, definitive judgment cannot be made. Now we only show one approach.
[Right Lower Section]
The private record states: Question: Among transformation bodies, what body is Powerful Sound King Buddha? Answer: A great transformation body. Because it universally taught the three-vehicle Dharma for gods, humans, asuras, and others. Question: The sutra says the Buddha's lifespan was forty myriads of billions of nayutas of Ganges sand kalpas, the true Dharma abided in the world for kalpas numbering like the dust-motes of one Jambudvīpa, and the semblance Dharma abided for kalpas numbering like the dust-motes of the four continents. Transformation Buddhas undergo formation and destruction together with worlds. If so, they don't exceed lifespans of eighty thousand years. Yet why does this exceed that? Answer: The Profound Praise doesn't explain this. Master Jingxing says: "Buddha's lifespan of forty myriads of billions of nayutas of Ganges sands" generally reveals the total measure of Buddha's lifespan, which is the same as Vipaśyin Buddha's lifespan of eighty thousand kalpas. The abiding of true and semblance Dharma also extends through formation and destruction. Therefore, though the kalpa numbers are many, there is no contradiction in principle. This is the same as Puṣya Buddha's Dharma exhausting half a bhadrakalpa.
The Water Commentary (Volume 2) states: Anguo says: This bodhisattva's life is naturally long during the preparatory practice stage. How much more regarding the power of hearing Dharma. Question: How are there four assemblies during the practice stage? Answer: Anguo says: This bodhisattva is at the end of the preparatory stage. Therefore there are four assemblies. In the interval between the two abundances when about to enter preparatory practices, there are four assemblies. Question: "Long life" refers to the preparatory practice stage, and explaining the four assemblies is called "the final mind of the preparatory stage." This explanation is inappropriate. Lu says: Powerful Sound King Buddha is an other-enjoyment Buddha. His dwelling is reward land, the bodhisattva dwells within it, and his lifespan is long. Saying there are four assemblies means this is the different perception of one place in transformation land. This is also incorrect. Different perception of one place applies to Buddha's teaching; bodhisattvas don't have this function. One current explanation says: Receiving and maintaining thousands of myriads of billions of verses and increasing lifespan are all within preparatory practices. Question: How are there four assemblies?
[Left Upper Section]
Answer: This is a bodhisattva in preparatory practices. It doesn't prevent the four assemblies from seeing [him]. Just like Vasubandhu and Asaṅga in the western lands, who were beyond preparatory practices and first-ground saints. What prevents the four assemblies from seeing them?
Question: Bodhisattva Never Disparaging cultivated Never Disparaging practices during the semblance Dharma of Powerful Sound King Buddha. If so, did he encounter the first Powerful Sound King Buddha or the last Powerful Sound King Buddha? If the first Buddha, the sutra says Bodhisattva Never Disparaging encountered two thousand billion Sun-Moon-Lamp-Light Buddhas and two thousand billion Cloud-Sovereign-Lamp-King Buddhas, but doesn't say he encountered twenty thousand billion Powerful Sound King Buddhas. If it was the first Powerful Sound King Buddha, didn't he encounter the subsequent Buddhas? Therefore, looking at the True Dharma Lotus, after twenty billion thousand Silent-Destination-Sound-King Buddhas successively passed into extinction, there was already a bodhisattva who was constantly despised. If following this view, seeing the sutra text [mentions] "the first Powerful Sound King Tathāgata." How should this be understood?
Reconciling explanation: Among the twenty thousand billion Powerful Sound King Buddhas, Bodhisattva Never Disparaging was despised by the four assemblies during the first Buddha's semblance Dharma period. Regarding the subsequent Buddhas, whether he encountered them or not is difficult to know. What the present sutra explains are events after the first [Buddha's] extinction. Therefore the sutra says: "After the first Powerful Sound King Tathāgata had already passed into extinction, after the true Dharma's extinction, during the semblance Dharma period, there was one bhikṣu named Never Disparaging." However, regarding the subsequent Buddhas, the sutra doesn't explain encounters. This cannot be fathomed by speculation. Perhaps after encountering one Buddha, he was born in other Buddha-lands, so he didn't encounter subsequent Buddhas in the original land? Or perhaps Sun-Moon-Lamp-Light and Cloud-Sovereign-Lamp-King were different types of Buddhas, so their names are separately mentioned, while the subsequent Powerful Sound Kings were of the same type, so they were abbreviated? Perhaps the True Dharma Lotus first fully explained the successive appearance of subsequent Buddhas, then returned to explain the Never Disparaging events of the first semblance Dharma? If there is actually a meaning of encountering subsequent Buddhas, there's no need for reconciling explanation. Through the clear text of the True Dharma Lotus, we can understand the hidden meaning of the Wonderful Dharma. Therefore, the matter of having fundamental conditions like Bhadrapāla in the final Buddha's world absolutely cannot be permitted. This is because Kumārajīva's translation is clear.
[Left Lower Section]
The sutra says: In ancient times past, beyond countless, boundless, inconceivable, incalculable kalpas, there was a Buddha named Powerful Sound King Tathāgata. That Buddha, having benefited sentient beings, then passed into extinction. After the true Dharma and semblance Dharma were exhausted, in this land, another Buddha appeared, also called Powerful Sound King Tathāgata. In this sequence, there were twenty thousand billion Buddhas, all with the same title. After the first Powerful Sound King Tathāgata had already passed into extinction, after the true Dharma's extinction, during the semblance Dharma period, arrogantly proud bhikṣus had great power. At that time there was one bodhisattva bhikṣu named Never Disparaging.
The True Dharma Lotus states:
Question: Should Bodhisattva Never Disparaging have encountered all twenty thousand billion Powerful Sound King Buddhas? If he encountered them, the sutra only shows him encountering the first Powerful Sound Buddha. If following this view, since he already encountered the first Powerful Sound King Buddha, heard the twenty thousand myriads of billions of verses of the present sutra, attained the purification of the six sense faculties and transformed the four assemblies, why wouldn't he also encounter the subsequent Buddhas through those causes? Moreover, in certain sutras, Bhadrapāla encountered twenty thousand billion Powerful Sound King Buddhas. Even the slandering assemblies still encountered those Buddhas. How much more so for the great being Never Disparaging?