“As soon as the Bodhisattva had washed his body and strength had returned to his body after he had eaten the food, he went to the seat of awakening. An earth-dwelling deity nearby there, named Subhūma, addressed all the earth-dwelling deities, saying:

“ ‘An earth bearer, unwavering and unshakeable, Without craving and devoid of enmity, The Bodhisattva is approaching that tree. I will decorate the surface of the fertile ground.’

“Joyous earth-dwelling deities responded, ‘Great idea!’ And cleansed this whole cosmos of a billion worlds, Scattered flowers, burned the most fragrant incense, And sprinkled the fertile earth with scented water.

“Bowl-holding deities and, indeed, garland-bearing deities, As well as deities who dwell in floating palaces in the sky Were joyous, too, when they looked upon the Bodhisattva, And they showered him with heavenly flowers.

“The lokapālas from the four continents And, indeed, their whole assemblies Covered this whole cosmos of a billion worlds With golden nets out of devotion to the Conqueror.

“In this billion-world cosmos, the Śakras, too, possessors of superhuman power, Lit up the Vaijayanta Palaces in the Heavens of the Thirty-Three And similarly made the billion worlds shine and decorated them As an act of veneration of the Bodhisattva.

“All the gods of the Yāma Heaven were joyous, too, And they covered the skies of the billion worlds Of this Sahā realm with a net of beryl As an act of veneration of the Supreme Being.

“The gods of the Heaven of the Contented and their chief Decorated him with a net of pearls, And, indeed, adorned him with crescent moons, And rained upon him a shower of coral and pearls.

“The divine kings of the Heaven of Delightful Magical Forms made a net To the knots of which they tied bells made of gold from the Jambu River That filled the whole Sahā realm with brilliant light and pleasant sound When, delighted, they draped it over this billion-world cosmos.

“There were divine jewels, and truly they were clear, Radiating boundless light, immaculate and resplendent, Out of which the power-possessing gods magically created a net With devotion to the One with the Confidence to Accomplish All Aims.

“The nāgas, gandharvas, and mahoragas, And all the daityas and garuḍas along with the kinnaras Made the desire realm beautiful and adorned it With splendid arrangements like the surfaces of their own abodes.

“Now, Śāntamati, it so happened that when Great Brahmā, the powerful one who was lord over this cosmos of a billion worlds, saw the Bodhisattva approaching the seat of awakening, he spoke to all the gods in the Heaven of Brahmā’s Assembly:

“ ‘Friends, know this! This is the Bodhisattva, the Mahāsattva! He has arrayed himself with great armor for the battle. He has not cast aside his great vow. He has arrayed himself with rock-solid armor. His mind is not wearied. He is an adept at all the conduct of a bodhisattva. He has perfected all the perfections. He has achieved mastery of every stage of the bodhisattva’s path. He has completely purified every one of a bodhisattva’s motivations. He understands the faculties of all beings. He has fully comprehended all the secrets of the realized ones. He has transcended all of Māra’s actions. None of the roots of his virtues depend on someone else. His authority has been empowered by all the realized ones. He is the great caravan leader who shows all beings the path to liberation. He is the one true hero of this cosmos of a billion worlds who will rub out Māra’s whole assembly. He is the great king of doctors who has acquired all the medicine of the Dharma. He is the great Dharma king who wears the royal turban of liberation. He is the king whose mighty banner gives off the light of great wisdom. Unstained by the eight worldly concerns, he is the true great lotus. Being one from whom the powerful memory of all the teachings and the formulas that support it have not been stolen, he is the true great ocean. Being unmovable, unshakeable, and devoid of aversion and attachment, he is the true mighty Mount Meru. Completely unblemished, utterly pure, and possessing an intellect that is dazzlingly clear, he is the true priceless gem. Possessing power over all things, he has a mind that is ready for any endeavor.

“ ‘The Bodhisattva, who is the true Great Brahmā, is approaching the seat of awakening. He wishes to awaken to unsurpassable and perfect awakening for the sake of conquering the soldiers of Māra. He wishes to do so for the sake of perfecting the ten powers, the forms of self-assurance, and the eighteen unique attributes of a buddha. He wishes to do so for the sake of turning the great wheel of the Dharma, for the sake of roaring the great lion’s roar, for the sake of satisfying all beings with the gift of the Dharma, for the sake of purifying the Dharma eyes of all beings, for the sake of using the Dharma to defeat all the proponents of other doctrines, for the sake of demonstrating the fulfillment of all his past promises to the blessed buddhas, and for the sake of gaining lordship over all things. Therefore, friends, you should all be restless with the longing to worship and serve the Bodhisattva!’

“Then, with a feeling of great joy in his heart, Great Brahmā, sovereign of this Sahā world and lord of the cosmos of a billion worlds, spoke to all the gods of the Heaven of Brahmā’s Assembly: ‘Friends, this great and true person is an accumulation of the vows and austerities he has undertaken over many hundreds of thousands of eons. He is now approaching the seat of awakening. Therefore, you should decorate the entire cosmos of a billion worlds with great, splendorous arrangements.’

“Then, at that moment, Great Brahmā, sovereign of this Sahā world, spoke the following verses:

“ ‘A purified being whose vow is resolved on the Dharma, Who acts for the benefit of the world with its gods, Supreme God of Gods, worshiped by gods and men, The Great Sage is walking to the seat of awakening.

“ ‘For the sake of conquering Māra and his army, For the sake of awakening the knowledge that is wakefulness, For the sake of perfecting the qualities of complete awakening, For the sake of turning the wheel of the true Dharma,

“ ‘He has the aim to roar the great lion’s roar, And, indeed, the purpose of satisfying all embodied beings. For the sake of purifying the eye of the supreme Dharma, The Guide is going to the seat of awakening.

“ ‘For the sake of defeating the proponents of other doctrines, For the sake of fulfilling the promises he made previously, For the sake of displaying the deeds of a perfect buddha, too, The Guide is going to the seat of awakening.

“ ‘Therefore, all of us, gathered together, We will adorn the fertile ground properly. Oh, let us see the billion worlds adorned! Let us see the desire realm adorned!’

“ ‘We will adorn the form realm in precisely the same way!’ the brahmās said, And the Paternal Grandfather, gladdened at heart, said, ‘Good.’ Then they set about decorating the rest of this Sahā world So that it appeared just like the splendid array of the desire realm.

“Yet, what they displayed far exceeded that worship With an abundance of flowers and clouds of incense. With heaps of jewels and symphonies of music, It was something that incited rapture and reverence.

“With splendid arrays like the surfaces of their own abodes, The brahmās and all the deities up to the Supreme Heaven Enraptured truly everyone in the Sahā world And made them feel they should bow down before it.

“The assemblies of gods displayed adornments That rose higher and even higher into the sky, While down here six hundred billion apsarases Decorated the vajra seat of awakening.

“They sprinkled scented water everywhere, And upon the surface of the fertile ground That had been prepared they scattered Many-colored flowers and splendorous jewels.

“The tree of awakening was displayed with adornments, The totality of which cannot be expressed in words. The splendid array that they made there Was at a scale just like that.

“Then, Śāntamati, as the Bodhisattva was settling down upon the seat of awakening, Great Brahmā, lord of a thousand and sovereign of this Sahā world, spoke to all the gods of the Heaven of Brahmā’s Assembly: ‘Friends, this great person and preeminent being has been walking the proper path and undertaking vows and austerities for many hundreds of thousands of millions and billions of eons. He is sitting down now upon the seat of awakening. Therefore, you all should decorate this whole cosmos of a billion worlds with great, splendorous arrangements.’

“Then, Great Brahmā, sovereign of this Sahā world, spoke these verses to the gods of the Heaven of Brahmā’s Assembly:

“ ‘A purified being whose vow is resolved on the Dharma, A magnanimous one who wants to help and does what is useful, He has drawn near to the tree of awakening To defeat the misguided Māra and his family, too.

“ ‘Indeed, all of us, gathered together, shall proceed To decorate this Sahā world in its entirety. For this world, including its gods, he is the Lord of Dharma. So if we honor him with worship, we will gain infinite merit.’

“When the multitudes of brahmā gods heard that high praise, They decorated this Sahā world in its entirety. They cleaned it well, adorned it with flowers and banners, And transformed this Sahā world into something made of jewels.

“They magically created tens of millions of parasols in the sky That were just like a splendid array of sunlight and moonlight; They magically created sāla trees variegated with the finest flowers, Which were comparable to the trees in divine pleasure groves.

“As the Wise One walked down the path, They magically created a train of seven chariots And surrounded him with seven concentric railings Made with jewels and inlaid with golden lotuses.

“The whole splendid array that Śakra made there Truly had never been seen before by gods or humans. Verily, the continents were made to shine So that they were adorned like Śakra’s Vaijayanta Palace.

“Gods of the Yāma Heaven, the Heaven of the Contented, The Heavens of Delighting in Magical Creations and Transforming Others’ Delight, And the Supreme Heaven, bearing strength and excitement, Were all intent upon decorating the sublime seat of awakening.

“As the Bodhisattva came close to the seat, The most splendorous arrays were all displayed At that very moment here in the desire realm By the nāgas, deities, and kinnaras.

“From the four directions came tens of millions of apsarases, Who decorated the tree of awakening With flowers, incense, and scented oils, And sprinkled scented water everywhere.

“The tree of awakening was so well decorated It shone like the Pārijāta tree in the Heaven of the Thirty-Three. The splendorous arrays magically created by myriads of gods Shone so brightly they were impossible to describe.

“Indeed, Śāntamati, as the Bodhisattva was stepping upon the seat of awakening, a light emanated from the thousand-spoked wheels on the soles of his feet. This light relieved the painful suffering of the beings in all the hell realms, the realm of animals, and the realm of Yama. The abode of the nāga king Kālika was also pervaded with a great radiance. When the nāga king Kālika saw the Bodhisattva’s light, he felt joyful, enraptured, glad at heart, delighted, and filled with pleasure. He then spoke these verses to all the women of his inner chambers as well as their attendants:

“ ‘When this golden light Bathed this abode of mine, I felt a thrill in my body And delight in my mind.

“ ‘I saw signs like these Of the previous buddhas. Doubtless, a great hero, a buddha, Will be coming into the world.

“ ‘It is good that we take powders, Garlands, scented oils, perfumes, Gold, jewels, and pearls, Conches and necklaces.

“ ‘Grasping cymbals and musical instruments, And holding aloft parasols And banners of victory, We will worship the Teacher.

“ ‘Joyfully we will serve the Sage With those ornaments That are most splendorous In this abode of nāgas.’

“At that point, the nāga king Kālika, along with the women from his inner chambers, his attendants and relations, and his sons and the members of his assembly, left his abode, all of them bearing flowers, incense, garlands, perfumes, powders, clothes, parasols, banners, and flags while playing cymbals, drums, and other musical instruments. They created clouds full of fragrant water, produced rain showers of fragrant rain, and made it rain a shower of nāga pearls and nāga flowers. Thus, with the great marvelous presence of the nāgas and the great superhuman power of the nāgas, they approached the Bodhisattva. Once they and their retinues had approached him, they worshiped the Bodhisattva, bowing down before him with their heads at his feet, and they circled around him while playing cymbals and musical instruments. Then they stood to one side, praising him in verse. This is what they said:

“ ‘When the supreme person released that light This entire buddha domain was illuminated. For a moment, the three bad rebirths also ceased, And Kālika’s abode was pervaded with light.

“ ‘The king of nāgas appeared truly delighted, Seeing that light, and he spoke these words: “Without a doubt, a buddha will come into being today, For this light is, indeed, his golden-colored radiance.

“ ‘ “Accompanied by multitudes of nāga girls Carrying parasols, banners, and clothes, Delighted, we come before the Bodhisattva To worship him with deep respect.

“ ‘ “Adorned with an abundance of jewels and flowers, the whole earth is glittering; All the groves of trees and medicinal shrubs are bending to the tree of awakening; All the rivers here are standing still, and the wind has likewise ceased to blow, For today you conquer Māra and become a buddha celebrated in the three worlds.

“ ‘ “Today, you have dimmed the rays of light of the sun, moon, Brahmā, and Śakra With your light, Incomparable One, the touch of which has appeased the three bad rebirths. May the coming of your light to our abode today, announcing the arising of a buddha, Make us happy, too, and may your arising today, Worthy One, gladden our hearts.

“ ‘ “Just like these gods who come bearing full vessels and circle you, Just like flocks of Indian rollers that come and wheel around in the sky, This world, too, with its gods and humans stands intent on worshiping you, For today you become a true path for seekers of wisdom, worthy of the world’s veneration.

“ ‘ “One can acquire no wealth greater than what we have found here, Swift One. Indeed, I have worshiped Krakucchanda, and the other preeminent sage named Kanaka. I honored the best of conquerors, Kāśyapa, and today also the great bull of the Śākyas. Aspiring for the state of the all-knowing, I have never been deprived of seeing the sages.

“ ‘ “Release your lion’s roar, O Sage, its resonance pleasant like the sound of holy water, So that your speech will ever shake the earth and its tall mountains, our whole world. For one whose mind is fixed upon awakening and is uplifted by this ambition even now, It is not possible that such a being could be stayed from coming to possess the ten powers.” ’

“At that point, Śāntamati, the chief queen of the nāga king Kālika, whose name was Suvarṇaprabhāsā, came forward surrounded by many nāga girls. They were holding many parasols, they were holding many cotton cloths, they were holding many pearl necklaces, they were holding many precious jewels, they were holding many high-quality garlands made by gods and humans, they were holding many bowls of incense, and they were playing many cymbals and other musical instruments. They scattered many jeweled flowers on the path on which the Bodhisattva was walking, and they praised him with these verses:

“ ‘To you who are not bewildered; to you who have no trembling, no fears, no frights; To you who are not dismayed or dispirited, joyful, unyielding, dispassionate; To you who have no anger, no ignorance, no lust; to you who are free of craving; To you who have become liberated—to you, Great Seer, we pay homage!

“ ‘You are a physician who removes the dart, a leader of those who are led; Truly learned doctor, you free beings from their sufferings. Recognizing those who are without sanctuary, refuge, or shelter, You, a sanctuary, you, a refuge—you have arisen in the three worlds.

“ ‘Just as congregations of gods, faithful and delighted, Rain down great showers of flowers from the sky And cast down great bolts of cloth, Great Seer, Be delighted, for today you will become a victor!

“ ‘Approach the lord of trees and sit there without fear. Shake off the army of Māra and tear apart the net of afflictions. Awaken to the calm, the supreme, the highest awakening, Just as the victors of the past were awakened.

“ ‘The time has come for the fulfillment of your aspiration, The reason you have worked so many tens of millions of eons, Undertaking difficult deeds for the sake of freeing beings. Sit beneath the lord of trees and touch the highest awakening.’

“At that point, Śāntamati, the Bodhisattva stepped out from the abode of the nāga king, Kālika, and approached the seat of awakening. As he approached the seat, on the right-hand side there was a grass seller named Svastika who was collecting grass. He saw that the Bodhisattva was heading toward the seat of awakening, and, impelled by the gods, he gathered up a bundle of grass that was soft, tender, agreeable, attractive, curved like a peacock’s neck, spiraling nicely to the right, fragrant, and pleasant to touch like the down of the kācalindika bird. He took the bundle of grass, approached the Bodhisattva, and offered it to him with the ambition that he would conceive the aspiration for unsurpassable and perfect awakening.

“Now, Śāntamati, if one were to think that the grass seller Svastika had not previously given grass and conceived the aspiration for awakening, or that he had done so for the last time, one should not see it in that way. For it was because of the previous vow made by the grass seller Svastika—namely, ‘I will be responsible for spreading out the mats upon the seat of awakening for all the bodhisattvas of this Fortunate Eon.’ Now, what was the cause of this? I know from first-hand experience, Śāntamati, that in the past, ninety-one eons before our Fortunate Eon, a realized one, a worthy one, a perfectly awakened buddha named Vipaśyin arose in the world. He was perfected in knowledge and conduct, a sublime one, a knower of the world, an unsurpassable trainer of those ready to be trained, a teacher of gods and humans, a blessed buddha.

“While giving a teaching, he made a prediction for a group of one thousand monks who were leading the holy life with satisfaction. He said, ‘You will all awaken fully to unsurpassable and perfect awakening during the Fortunate Eon.’ At that time, there was a householder sitting in that very assembly whose name was Matimat. When he heard the prediction made on behalf of those bodhisattvas as he was sitting there, he conceived the aspiration for unsurpassable and perfect awakening, and made this vow: ‘I will prepare the lion’s seat for those realized ones of the Fortunate Eon as they are going to the seat of awakening.’

“Now again, Śāntamati, if one were to have the doubt, the differing opinion, or the question that perhaps the person who was the householder Matimat at that moment and time was someone else, one should not see it in that way. That is because the grass seller Svastika was at that moment and time the householder named Matimat. Furthermore, Śāntamati, in this very same manner you should understand the previous vow of the grass seller Svastika to be such that he gives a bunch of grass to some of the bodhisattvas and he presents some bodhisattvas with lion’s seats set with splendid arrays of jewels, according to the motivations of beings and according to the degree of maturity of their spiritual faculties.

“At that point, Śāntamati, as the Bodhisattva arrived at the seat of awakening, which was at the base of the tree of awakening, the deity of the tree of awakening approached the Bodhisattva together with a thousand divine girls from the ten directions who were holding bouquets of flowers as well as incense, powders, and scented oils. Once they had approached the Bodhisattva, they bowed their heads at his feet and scattered the flowers, incense, powders, and scented oils that they had brought all around the Bodhisattva. Then they praised him with these verses:

“ ‘Homage to you, Magnanimous One; to you, fearless, steady, calm one; To you, disciplined, delighted, contented, and brilliant one; To you, the one who brings happiness; to you, blameless one; To you who are liberated from faults. Homage to you, Teacher.

“ ‘Homage to you, the one and only source of help Who bestows happiness on helpless folk mired in great suffering. Homage to you, illustrious king of the physician-kings, Who rids the world of the illnesses that are the afflictions.

“ ‘Just as sure as congregations of gods, faithful and delighted, Have rained down showers of heavenly flowers upon you, In the same way, once you have defeated Māra with love, You are certain to attain the supreme awakening today.

“ ‘Approach the lord of trees and sit down upon this seat. Once you defeat Māra, all the darkness will dissipate. You will awaken to that calm, supreme, highest awakening, Just as those lordly sages of the past were awakened.

“ ‘Just as you have become purified for the sake of freeing the world Through your completion of difficult deeds for tens of millions of eons, In the same way, Great Seer, your supreme ambition has reached completion. Today, beneath the lord of trees, you will awaken to awakening.’

“At that point, Śāntamati, the Bodhisattva came to the seat of awakening carrying the bundle of grass, which he spread out as his very own seat of grass at the base of the tree of awakening. He then bowed down to the tree of awakening and walked around it seven times, keeping it on his right. Just as soon as the Bodhisattva had spread out his seat of grass, Śāntamati, eighty-four thousand deities also prepared eighty-four thousand lion’s seats for the Bodhisattva. These seats were multicolored, beautiful to behold, tall, and lofty. They were entirely studded with jewels, raised upon jeweled daises, covered by jeweled nets, and draped with nets that had tiny bells woven into them. The seats had strands of pearls hung on them, and they were arranged upon several thousand bolts of cloth. Śāntamati, the Bodhisattva then displayed himself seated upon each and every one of those eighty-four thousand lion’s seats. Yet, the deities did not see each other. They were not aware of each other. Rather, each and every deity knew only this: ‘The Bodhisattva is seated upon my lion’s seat. Seated upon my lion’s seat, he will awaken to unsurpassable, perfect awakening.’ As a result of the joy and pleasure they felt at this very thought, they all became unable to be turned back from unsurpassable, perfect awakening.