Then the Bhagavān said to the bodhisattva Bhaiṣajyarāja and eighty thousand other bodhisattvas, “Bhaiṣajyarāja, do you see this assembly’s numerous devas, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas, humans and nonhumans, bhikṣus and bhikṣuṇīs, upāsakas and upāsikās, and followers of the Śrāvakayāna and the Bodhisattva­yāna who have heard this Dharma teaching directly from the Tathāgata?”

“I see them, Bhagavān,” he answered. “I see them, Sugata.”

“Bhaiṣajyarāja,” said the Bhagavān, “these are all bodhisattvas, mahāsattvas. Whoever among them has heard even one verse, or heard one line of a verse, or with just one aspiration has rejoiced in this sūtra, for all those in the fourfold assembly, Bhaiṣajyarāja, I prophesy that they will attain the highest, complete enlightenment.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, if anyone after my nirvāṇa hears this Dharma teaching, or hears just one verse of it, or with just one aspiration rejoices in it, I prophesy that those noble men or noble women will attain the highest, complete enlightenment.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, those noble men or noble women will have served a full hundred thousand quintillion buddhas.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, those noble men or noble women will have prayed to many hundreds of thousands of quintillions of buddhas.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, know that those noble men or noble women will have taken birth as humans in this Jambudvīpa out of compassion for beings.

“Whoever retains even just one verse from this Dharma teaching, or reads it, or teaches it, or recites it, or writes it, or having written it remembers it, or from time to time looks at it; and whoever has the same veneration for the text as one would have for the Tathāgata, and honors, venerates, and makes offerings to it, venerating it as if it were the Teacher; and whoever offers flowers, incense, perfume, garlands, ointments, powders, clothing, parasols, banners, divine flags, the sound of music, and so on, to the text, while bowing down and putting hands together in homage; and those noble men or noble women, Bhaiṣajyarāja, who rejoice in just one verse from this Dharma teaching, Bhaiṣajyarāja, I prophesy that all of them will attain the highest, complete enlightenment.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, if any man or woman asks, ‘What kind of beings are these who will become tathāgatas, arhats, perfectly enlightened buddhas in the future?’ Bhaiṣajyarāja, those men or women, those noble men or noble women should be taught in this way: ‘Behold! Whoever possesses or hears even one four-line verse from this Dharma teaching, or teaches it, or honors this Dharma teaching, it is that noble man or noble woman who in the future will come into the world as a tathāgata, arhat, perfectly enlightened buddha.’

“Why is that? Bhaiṣajyarāja, any noble man or noble woman who retains just one verse from this Dharma teaching should be seen by the world and its devas as tathāgatas and be honored by them as if they were tathāgatas, let alone someone who obtains the entirety of this Dharma teaching and retains it, teaches it, recites it, writes it, or having written it remembers it, and honors it by making offerings of flowers, incense, perfume, garlands, ointments, powders, clothing, parasols, banners, divine flags, the sound of music, and so on, to the text, and with hands together in homage bows down to it.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, that noble son or noble woman should be known to have attained the highest, complete enlightenment. They should be known to have seen the tathāgatas. They have, out of compassion, in order to benefit the world, been born as humans in this Jambudvīpa through the power of prayer in order to teach this Dharma teaching. Know that they will leave behind vast Dharma activity and rebirth in buddha realms, in order to perfectly teach this Dharma teaching, and after my nirvāṇa they will be born here out of compassion for beings and in order to benefit them.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, after the Tathāgata’s passing into nirvāṇa, the one who teaches this Dharma teaching, even someone who secretly and deviously teaches it to just one being, Bhaiṣajyarāja, that noble man or noble woman should be known to be the Tathāgata’s messenger. That noble man or noble woman should be known to have been sent to do the Tathāgata’s work.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, I state that if someone speaks badly to dharmabhāṇakas who hold this sūtra, be they laypeople or renunciants, and whether what is said be true or not, the bad karma will be much more dreadful than if a being with an angry mind, an evil mind, and a wrathful mind were to speak badly to the Tathāgata to his face for an entire eon. Why is that? Bhaiṣajyarāja, it is because that noble man or noble woman should be known to be an adornment that adorns the Tathāgata.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, those who write out this Dharma teaching to create a text and carry it on their shoulder carry the Tathāgata on their shoulder. Wherever they go, there beings should honor, venerate, and make offerings to them, and with hands together in homage, they should honor those dharmabhāṇakas by making offerings to them of flowers, incense, perfume, garlands, ointments, powders, clothing, parasols, banners, divine flags, the sound of music, food and drink—hard food and soft food—carriages, and supreme, divine heaps of jewels. They should offer heaps of divine jewels to those dharmabhāṇakas. Why is that? It is because through this Dharma teaching being taught just once, through hearing it, countless, innumerable beings will quickly attain the highest, complete enlightenment.”

Thereupon the Bhagavān recited these verses:

“Those who wish for the state of buddhahood, Those who long for self-arising wisdom, Those who keep to this way: Those beings should be honored. {1}

“Those who wish for omniscience, Who wonder how to attain it quickly, Those who have obtained this sūtra, Those who possess it, should be honored. {2}

“The ones who will read this sūtra Because of their compassion for beings Will have been sent by the Lord of the World In order that beings may be guided. {3}

“Those who will possess this sūtra Because of their compassion for beings Will have forsaken a good rebirth, And those courageous ones will come here. {4}

“Teaching in the later times This unsurpassable sūtra, Those ones who will appear Will have power over rebirth. {5}

“Scatter jewels on those dharmabhāṇakas; Make offerings to them of divine flowers And all the perfumes of human beings, And cover them with divine clothing. {6}

“Always place your hands together in homage, As you would for the Lord of Jinas, the Self-Arisen One, To the ones who possess this sūtra after my nirvāṇa In these later, extremely dreadful times. {7}

“In order to make offerings to the bodhisattvas Who recite this sūtra just one time, Give them food and drink—hard food and soft food— And millions of residences, beds and seats, and clothing. {8}

“The ones who in the later times write out This sūtra, possess it, and listen to it, I will have sent to that human existence In order to accomplish the tasks of the Tathāgata. {9}

“If there were a man who stood before me And with a frowning face and with malice Spoke unpleasant things to me for an entire eon, Then that man would create vast bad karma. {10}

“I declare that even greater bad karma will be created By those who speak unpleasantly and abusively To those who possess this sūtra And who are teaching this sūtra. {11}

“If a man were to stand before me and praise me With his hands together in homage for an entire eon, With many quintillions of verses While seeking for this supreme enlightenment, {12}

“He would obtain great merit Through praising me while feeling great joy. The one who praises those dharmabhāṇakas Will obtain a supremely greater amount of merit. {13}

“If someone were to make offerings Of forms, sounds, tastes, divine textures, And divine perfumes to images of the Buddha For a hundred and eighty billion eons, {14}

“And if the one who offered to those images For a hundred and eighty billion eons Were to hear this sūtra just one time, That one would obtain a greater wonder. {15}

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, I declare to you, I proclaim to you that I, Bhaiṣajyarāja, have given, am giving, and will give many Dharma teachings, but from among all those many Dharma teachings, Bhaiṣajyarāja, it is this Dharma teaching that is unacceptable to the entire world, and which will not be believed by the entire world.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, this is the great secret from the higher knowledge of the Tathāgata that has been kept through the power of the Tathāgata and has not previously been revealed, has not previously been told. Bhaiṣajyarāja, many beings will reject this Dharma teaching while the Tathāgata lives, let alone after the Tathāgata has passed into nirvāṇa.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, the noble men or noble women who, after I have passed into nirvāṇa, have faith in this Dharma teaching, read it, write it, honor it, and make others hear it, should be known to be wearing the Tathāgata’s Dharma robes. The tathāgatas who are present in other world realms will see them and bless them. They will have the power of their faith, the power of their roots of merit, and the power of their prayers.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, those noble men and noble women dwell in the same temple as the Tathāgata. The Tathāgata places his hand upon their heads.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, wherever this Dharma teaching is spoken, or taught, or written, or recited for oneself, or chanted for others, in that place, Bhaiṣajyarāja, one should build a great caitya of the Tathāgata that is made from precious materials. However, it is not necessary to place the relics of the Tathāgata within it. Why is that? It is because the relics of the Tathāgata have all been combined into one within it. The stūpa that is in that place where this Dharma teaching has been spoken, taught, recited for oneself, chanted for others, or written out and made into a text that is kept there, should be honored, venerated, shown respect, and offerings made to it. One should make offerings of all flowers, incense, perfume, garlands, ointments, powders, cloths, parasols, banners, flags, banners of victory, songs, music, dance, and the sounds of musical instruments, and of percussion instruments.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, the beings who come to that caitya of the Tathāgata in order to pay homage to it, or to see it, should all be known, Bhaiṣajyarāja, to be close to the highest, complete enlightenment. Why is that? Bhaiṣajyarāja, many bodhisattvas, both householders and renunciants, even though they have practiced bodhisattva conduct, have never encountered listening to, writing, or making offerings to this kind of Dharma teaching.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, as long as they have not heard this Dharma teaching they are not skilled in bodhisattva conduct. When they listen to and hear this Dharma teaching, and aspire to it, engage in it, understand it, and possess it, then at that time they have come near to the highest, complete enlightenment—they are close to it.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, it is like this: There is a man who wants water and is searching for it. In order to find water, he digs a well in an arid land. While he is digging, but sees that the soil being dug out is dry and pale, he will know, ‘The water is still farther down than this.’ But when, at another time, that man digs out wet earth and mud dripping with water, and sees that the bodies of men digging the well are covered in mud, that man, Bhaiṣajyarāja, will take those sights as a sign, and without any uncertainty or doubt he will think, ‘The water is near.’

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, in that way, while bodhisattva mahāsattvas do not hear, do not possess, do not comprehend, do not practice, and do not contemplate this Dharma teaching, those bodhisattva mahāsattvas are far from the highest, complete enlightenment.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, when the bodhisattva mahāsattvas hear, possess, comprehend, practice, recite, contemplate, and meditate on this Dharma teaching, at that time they are near to the highest, complete enlightenment. Why is that? It is because this Dharma teaching is the supreme elucidation of the teachings that have an implied meaning of the secret aspect of the Dharma taught by the tathāgatas, arhats, perfectly enlightened buddhas so that the bodhisattva mahāsattvas may attain complete accomplishment.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, if a bodhisattva is frightened of this Dharma teaching, is afraid and terrified of it, then you should know that bodhisattva to be new to the Bodhisattva­yāna. Also, if a follower of the Śrāvakayāna is frightened of this Dharma teaching, is afraid and terrified of it, then, Bhaiṣajyarāja, you should know that this individual who is following the Śrāvakayāna is conceited.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, if in the later times, after the Tathāgata has passed into nirvāṇa, a bodhisattva mahāsattva teaches this Dharma teaching to the fourfold assembly, then, Bhaiṣajyarāja, that bodhisattva has entered the residence of the Tathāgata, wears the Dharma robe of the Tathāgata, sits upon the seat of the Tathāgata, and then teaches this Dharma teaching to the fourfold assembly.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, what is the residence of the Tathāgata? Bhaiṣajyarāja, it is the vihāra of love for all beings.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, what is the Dharma robe of the Tathāgata? Bhaiṣajyarāja, the Tathāgata’s Dharma robe is great patience and gentleness.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, what is the Dharma seat of the Tathāgata? Bhaiṣajyarāja, it is entering the emptiness of all phenomena.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, that noble man will sit upon the Dharma seat of the Tathāgata. Having sat there he will teach this Dharma teaching to the fourfold assembly. The bodhisattva without any lack of confidence will teach before the fourfold assembly, which is a gathering of bodhisattvas who have entered the Bodhisattva­yāna.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, I will be residing in another world realm but I will emanate to be that noble man’s assembly. I shall send emanations as bhikṣus and bhikṣuṇīs, upāsakas and upāsikās to listen to the Dharma. They will not turn away or reject that dharmabhāṇaka’s teaching. If he is in the forest, I will emanate as many devas, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, and mahoragas to listen to the Dharma.

“Bhaiṣajyarāja, although I reside in another world realm I will reveal my face to that noble man. Whatever sentences and syllables of this Dharma teaching that are taught I will myself repeat and recite them.”

Then the Bhagavān recited these verses:

“Cast aside all hesitation And listen to a sūtra such as this. It is very difficult to hear it. It is difficult to aspire to it. {16}

“It is like someone who wants water And digs a well in arid land, Who upon seeing dry soil Keeps on digging deeper: {17}

“On seeing that, he thinks The water is still far down. The earth he sees dug out Is a sign that the water is still far. {18}

“When he sees repeatedly Earth that is wet and muddy, When it is in that condition, It means the water is not far. {19}

“The wisdom of buddhahood Is similarly far away When this sūtra has not been heard Or meditated on repeatedly. {20}

“When this profound, Definitive king of the sūtras Of the śrāvakas is heard And contemplated repeatedly, {21}

“Then those wise ones are near To the wisdom of buddhahood, Just like earth that is wet Means that water is near. {22}

“Enter the residence of the Jina And wear my Dharma robe. Be seated upon my seat And teach this sūtra fearlessly. {23}

“The power of love is the residence. Patience and gentleness is the robe. Emptiness is my seat. Sit upon it and teach. {24}

“If while teaching one is attacked With clods of earth, sticks, knives, Or with abuse and threats, It will be endured by remembering me. {25}

“In an enduring body In billions of realms I teach the Dharma to beings For countless millions of eons. {26}

“After I have passed into nirvāṇa When there is a hero Who will give the teaching of this sūtra I will send there many emanations. {27}

“Those bhikṣus and bhikṣuṇīs, Upāsakas and upāsikās Will make offerings to him And the assembly will rejoice. {28}

“Those who come with clods and sticks, And likewise abuse and threats, Whatever it is that they try to do They will be prevented by my emanations. {29}

“If one is staying alone, Chanting this by himself In an uninhabited place In the forest or the mountains, {30}

“I will manifest there My shining body And I will correct Any error in his recitation. {31}

“When one stays alone, Living in the forest, I shall send devas and yakṣas In great numbers to be his companions. {32}

“He who teaches the fourfold assembly Will have such qualities as these. I will see him performing his recitation As he stays alone in the forest and mountains. {33}

“He will have unimpeded eloquence And will know many Dharma definitions. He will satisfy billions of beings Through the blessing of the Buddha. {34}

“Those beings who rely upon him Will all quickly become bodhisattvas. All who depend upon associating with him Will see buddhas as numerous as the sands of the Ganges.” {35}