Mr. Altig’s Overview of the Wonderful Dharma of the Lotus Sutra

The Lord then spoke to the Bodhisattva Mahasattva Satatasamitabhiyukta, meaning “Ever and Constantly Strenuous.” He declared that anyone, whether a young man or a young woman from a noble family, who shall preserve, read, teach, or write this Teaching, or have it written, will gain extraordinary qualities. They will receive eight hundred fine traits of the eye, twelve hundred of the ear, eight hundred of the nose, twelve hundred of the tongue, eight hundred of the body, and twelve hundred of the mind. These many hundreds of fine traits will fully perfect these six senses.

With the natural eye, inherited from one’s parents, being perfect, one will see the entire universe outwardly and inwardly. This includes all its mountains and forests, all the way down to the great hell known as Avici and the furthest reaches of existence. One will see all of this with the natural eye and the beings within it, understanding the consequences of their actions.

At that moment, the Lord expressed these verses:

Listen well to my words, a tale of grace,
Of one who preaches Sutra, undeterred,
With courage strong, a bright and fearless face,
To all who gather ’round to hear the word.

His eyes shall gleam with virtues, pure and bright,
Eight hundred qualities shall make them clear,
Correct in sight, untroubled by the night,
A vision that is calm, devoid of fear.

With eyes bestowed by parents at his birth,
He’ll see the world, both inward and without,
A sight that spans the corners of the earth,
A view unbounded, leaving none to doubt.

The mountains Meru, Sumeru he sees,
The seas, the horizons, all within his gaze,
A vision vast as skies and endless seas,
A sight that captures all in wondrous ways.

The hero’s eyes reach down to depths unknown,
To Avici’s dark hell, and heights sublime,
Up to existence’s farthest edge, alone,
Such is his carnal sight, untouched by time.

Yet still, the divine eye eludes his grasp,
Not yet awakened, not yet fully seen,
His carnal eye described, we pause to clasp,
A range so wide, a sight so pure and keen.