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

Moreover, Satatasamitabhiyukta (Ever and Constantly Strenuous), whether a young man from a noble family or a young woman who shares and teaches this Sacred Teaching to others, will possess twelve hundred fine qualities of the ear. They will hear all the sounds produced in the universe, from the depths of the great hell known as Avici to the furthest reaches of existence, inwardly and outwardly.

These sounds include those of horses, elephants, cows, peasants, goats, and vehicles; the cries of sorrow and fear; the sounds of conch trumpets, bells, and cymbals; the melodies of music and singing; the noises of camels and tigers; the voices of women, men, boys, girls; sounds associated with righteousness and unrighteousness, pleasure, and pain, wisdom, and ignorance; pleasing and displeasing noises; sounds from gods, mythical serpents, spirits, celestial musicians, demons, legendary birds, heavenly beings, great reptiles, humans, and non-human entities; the voices of monks, disciples, solitary enlightened ones, Bodhisattvas, and Enlightened Ones.

They can hear all these sounds emanating from the three realms of existence, inwardly and outwardly, with their natural, perfect sense of hearing. Yet, they don’t possess the divine ear. They can comprehend and discern the sounds of these different creatures, and their hearing is not overwhelmed by any of these sounds. The sense of hearing that Satatasamitabhiyukta (Ever and Constantly Strenuous), the Bodhisattva Mahasattva, acquires is extraordinary, yet it does not include the divine ear.

Thus declared the Lord; following those words, He, the Sugata (Well-Gone One), the Master, continued:

The organ of hearing in one so wise,
Though natural, is clear, without disguise,
Perceives the varied sounds that fill the earth,
Each tone, each note, in all its wondrous girth.

The trumpets of elephants, horses’ hooves beat,
The cows, the goats, and sheep, their voices sweet,
Drums, tabors, lutes, and flutes all fill his ear,
Vallaki-lutes, each sound he’ll clearly hear.

The singing, lovely, sweet, does not beguile,
He hears the voices of kotis, all the while,
The speech of men, wherever they may be,
Yet stays unswayed, his mind forever free.

The voice of gods and Nagas graces him,
The tunes of song, both soft and vibrant, brim,
Men, women, boys, and girls, their voices blend,
A symphony of life that knows no end.

The cries from mountains, glens, the birds’ sweet call,
Kalavinkas, cuckoos, peafowls, pheasants all,
Their tender notes, a music pure and wild,
Nature’s own song, both gentle and beguiled.

The hells’ heart-rending cries, the Spirits’ yell,
Vexed by hunger, in torment where they dwell,
The ocean’s demons, their voices strong and deep,
All these he hears, yet his calm he does keep.

From his place on earth, he hears without dismay,
The sounds of life, in chaos and in play,
Not overpowered, but ever clear and bright,
His hearing perfect, a beacon of insight.

Stationed here on earth, he hears the brute realm’s speech,
Conversations wild, within his clear ear’s reach,
The sounds of life, in all its forms and hues,
A world of voices, none he shall refuse.

The voices of the angels in their sphere,
The Brahma world, Akanishthas, Abhasvaras clear,
Calling each other in celestial song,
He hears them all, discerning right from wrong.

The monks on earth, their reading, preaching sound,
Under Sugatas’ command, it echoes all around,
Engaged in law, their voices rise and blend,
He hears them too, on that, you can depend.

The Bodhisattvas’ voices here on earth,
In synods, readings, filled with sacred mirth,
He hears them all, each voice distinct and true,
A symphony of wisdom, ever new.

The perfect law, announced by Buddha’s grace,
The tamer of men, in assembly’s embrace,
He hears as well, the truth in every word,
A melody of insight, ever heard.

The triple world’s sounds, within, without, they ring,
From Avici’s depths to existence’s furthest wing,
He hears them all, each cry, each laugh, each call,
A universe of voices, he knows them all.

His ear is open, all beings’ voices clear,
Six senses keen, each source he’ll rightly hear,
Natural in hearing, yet his grasp is wide,
A universe of sound, none can he hide.

The divine ear, not yet within his reach,
His natural ear, the world’s vast sound does teach,
Such are the qualities, wise and profound,
In one who keeps this Sutra, truth unbound.