22b: 500 Monastics become Arahats – 775
Buddha who is gifted with five kinds of eyes: the eye of a Buddha who
sees the heart of humans (
Buddha-cakkhu
); the eye of truth which means
attainment of the path-knowledge (
Dhamma-cakkhu
); the eye of all round
knowledge or omniscience (
samanta-cakkhu
); the Deva-eye which is all
pervading, seeing all that proceeds in the hidden worlds (
dibba-cakkhu
) ;
the physical eye which is exceptionally powerful and sensitive (
maṁsa-
cakkhu
).
These youthful Arahats have done away with the thorns of greed (
lobha
),
hatred (
dosa
) and delusion (
moha
) by the sword of the fourfold path-
knowledge (
magga-ñāṇa
). They have struck off and destroyed the
crossbars and bolts on the door of the chamber of existence: greed, hatred
and delusion, which hinder any escape from Saṁsāra. By the same
weapon of path-knowledge (
magga-ñāṇa
), they have uprooted the pillars:
greed, hatred and delusion, stoutly standing at the gate of the city of
personality-belief (
sakkāya-diṭṭhi
), by means of the fourfold path. Being
devoid of craving, free from taints and desires, they freely roam about in
all
[566]
four directions without the hindrance of defilements. We have
come to pay homage to these youthful Arahats.
Then he went back to the edge of the western hemisphere of the universe and
like his predecessors remained standing there.
Then the Brahma who had descended on the edge of the northern hemisphere of
the universe entered into absorption based on the meditation device of white
colour (
odāta-kasiṇa
); and to signify his presence at the Great Assembly emitted
radiance of white colour from his body enveloping all the Devas and Brahmas
from the 10,000 world-element as though they have been wrapped up in robes
made of jasmine flowers. Then like the previous Brahmas, he approached the
Buddha and recited the verse he had composed:
Ye keci Buddhaṁ saraṇaṁ gatāse,
na te gamissanti apāya-bhūmiṁ,
pahāya mānusaṁ dehaṁ,
Deva-kāyaṁ paripūressanti.
Most exalted Buddha, any person who has taken refuge with confidence in
the Buddha will not be reborn in the four realms of misery: the realm of
suffering, animals, Petas and Asuras. Having thrown off the human body,
they will fill up the Deva realms.