Buddha Treasury Sutra
Buddha Treasury Sutra
仏蔵経 (Chin Fo-tsang-ching; Jpn Butsuzo ﾭkyo )
A sutra translated into Chinese in 405 by Kumarajiva. A Tibetan translation also exists. The sutra takes the form of a discourse between Shakyamuni and Shariputra held on Eagle Peak near Rajagriha, the capital of Magadha. It maintains that all phenomena are without birth or extinction, and that to perceive this truth of phenomena means to behold the Buddha. It also says that monks who preach from an impure motive, i.e., to gain profit and support, suffer the retribution of falling into hell.
The sutra goes on to refer to the time following the passing of the Buddha Great Adornment in the far remote past.One hundred years after Great Adornment's death, his followers split into five schools, led by the monks Universal Practice, Shore of Suffering, Sawata, Shoko, andBatsunanda, respectively. Among these five leaders, only Universal Practice correctly upheld the Buddha's teaching. The four other leaders held erroneous views and, along with their followers, cursed Universal Practice. For this reason, these four monks and their followers fell into hell. In the following section, Shakyamuni Buddha speaks of his past existences, saying that, although he practiced under various Buddhas in order to gain enlightenment, he was not given a prophecy of enlightenment by these Buddhas because of his attachment to making distinctions among phenomena and his ignorance about the truth of nonsubstantiality.
