..續本文上一頁tient beings of the future see them

　　"

　　The Buddha said to Vaidehi, "Those who wish to see that Buddha should form an image of a lotus-flower on the seven-jewelled ground. They visualize each petal of this flower as having the colors of a hundred jewels and eighty-four thousand veins like a celestial painting, with eighty-four thousand rays of light issuing forth from each vein. They should visualize all of these clearly and distinctly. Its smaller petals are two hundred and fifty yojanas in both length and breadth. This lotus-flower has eighty-four thousand large petals. Between the petals there are a hundred kotis of king-mani-gems as illuminating adornments. Each mani-gem emits a thousand rays of light which, like canopies of the seven jewels, cover the entire [343a] earth.

　　The dais is made of Shakra-abhilagna-mani-gems and is decorated with eighty thousand diamonds, kimshuka-gems, brahma-mani-gems and also with exquisite pearl-nets. On the dais four columns with jewelled banners spontaneously arise, each appearing to be as large as a thousand million kotis of Mount Sumerus. On the columns rests a jewelled canopy similar to that in the palace of the Yama Heaven. They are also adorned with five hundred kotis of excellent gems, each emitting eighty-four thousand rays shining in eighty-four thousand different tints of golden color. Each golden light suffuses this jewelled land and transforms itself everywhere into various forms, such as diamond platforms, nets of pearls and nebulous clusters of flowers. In all the ten directions it transforms itself into anything according to one”s wishes, and performs the activities of the Buddha. This is the visualizing of the lotus-throne, and is known as the seventh contemplation."

　　The Buddha further said to Ananda, "This majestic lotus-flower was originally produced by the power of the Bhiksu Dharmakara”s Vow. Those who wish to see the Buddha Amitayus should first practice this contemplation of the flower-throne. In doing so, do not contemplate in a disorderly way. Visualize the objects one by one -- each petal, each gem, each ray of light, each dais and each column. See all of these as clearly and distinctly as if you were looking at your own image in a mirror. When this contemplation is accomplished, the evil karma which you have committed during five hundred kotis of kalpas of Samsara will be extinguished, and you will certainly be born in the Land of Utmost Bliss. To practice in this way is called the correct contemplation, and to practice otherwise is incorrect."

　　[15] 佛告阿難及韋提希。谛聽谛聽善思念之。吾當爲汝分別解說除苦惱法。汝等憶持。廣爲大衆分別解說。說是語時。無量壽佛住立空中。觀世音大勢至。是二大士侍立左右。光明熾盛不可具見。百千閻浮檀金色不得爲比。時韋提希見無量壽佛已。接足作禮。白佛言。世尊。我今因佛力故。得見無量壽佛及二菩薩。未來衆生。當雲何觀無量壽佛及二菩薩。佛告韋提希。欲觀彼佛者。當起想念。于七寶地上作蓮花想。令其蓮花一一葉作百寶色。有八萬四千脈。猶如天畫一一脈有八萬四千光。了了分明皆令得見。華葉小者縱廣二百五十由旬。如是蓮華有八萬四千大葉。一一葉間。有百億摩尼珠王。以爲映飾。一一摩尼珠放千光明。其光如蓋七寶合成。遍覆地上。釋迦毗楞伽摩尼寶以爲其臺。此蓮花臺。八萬金剛甄叔迦寶。梵摩尼寶妙真珠網。以爲交飾。于其臺上。自然而有四柱寶幢。一一寶幢如百千萬億須彌山。幢上寶缦如夜摩天宮。複有五百億微妙寶珠。以爲映飾。一一寶珠有八萬四千光。一一光作八萬四千異種金色。一一金色遍其寶土。處處變化各作異相。或爲金剛臺。或作真珠網。或作雜花雲。于十方面隨意變現施作佛事。是爲花座想。名第七觀。佛告阿難。如此妙花。是本法藏比丘願力所成。若欲念彼佛者。當先作此妙花座想。作此想時不得雜觀。皆應一一觀之。一一葉。一一珠。一一光。一一臺。一一幢皆令分明。如于鏡中自見面像。此想成者。滅除五百億劫生死之罪。必定當生極樂世界。作是觀者名爲正觀。

　　8) contemplation of the image of Amida

　　[16] The Buddha said to Ananda and Vaidehi, "After you have seen this, next visualize the Buddha. Why the Buddha

　　 Because Buddhas, Tathagatas, have cosmic bodies, and so enter into the meditating mind of each sentient being. For this reason, when you contemplate a Buddha, that mind itself takes the form of his thirty-two physical characteristics and eighty secondary marks. Your mind produces the Buddha”s image, and is itself the Buddha. The ocean of perfectly and universally enlightened Buddhas thus arises in the meditating mind. For this reason, you should single-mindedly concentrate and deeply contempl…

《The Sutra On Contemplation Of Amitayus(觀無量壽經)》全文未完，請進入下頁繼續閱讀…