Explanation of the Mahāyāna Sūtra of the Revelation of Consciousness

Original text:佛见贤护。举身放光。流照贤护。贤护尔时。便获无畏。绕佛三匝。顶礼佛足。而白佛言。唯愿世尊。悲愍教授。我今始于佛所。得净信心。心悕妙法。欲有所问。而我久处生死。溺烦恼苦。乱念纷杂。于戒等业。无作冥资。虽心奇重。我今不知。于此愚惑。疑网之中。如何超出。得度生死。世尊是一切智。普见一切。佛出甚难。希有逢遇。如如意珠。施众生乐。佛是大如意宝。 一切众生。咸由依佛。得大安乐。是大父母。众生善本。因佛父母。得见正路。唯愿悲愍。开晓疑闇。

佛告贤护。汝有所疑。恣汝意问。我当为汝。分别解说。尔时贤护。蒙佛听许。心专请问。在一面住。

Explanation: Bhadrapāla said to the World-Honored One: "I hope the World-Honored One will take pity on me and teach me. I have just now, here with the World-Honored One, gained pure faith, and my heart earnestly longs to hear the sublime Dharma; I have questions I wish to ask of the World-Honored One. For countless kalpas I have long dwelt in birth and death, drowning in the suffering of afflictions of greed, hatred, and delusion, with scattered and jumbled thoughts in my mind, without cultivating the precepts, and without accumulating provisions and provisions for the path. Although my heart deeply longs to escape birth and death, I still do not know how, trapped in this net of ignorance and doubt, I can break free and cross over the ocean of birth and death."

The Bodhisattva Bhadrapāla repented of his lax state of mind in cultivation — his indolent bodily, verbal, and mental actions of failing to cultivate the precepts, meditative concentration, and wisdom — yet he nevertheless received the unseen blessing and protection of the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. He understood part of his own karmic actions and afflictions of greed, hatred, and delusion, but not yet completely; at present his mind was still in a state of ignorance, had not attained true wisdom, and still harbored many doubts. He wished to resolve all his doubts, to free himself from ignorance and dispel his uncertainties. He asked the Buddha how one could rise above the abyss of afflictions and the wheel of birth and death, and escape the ocean of suffering that is saṃsāra. In fact, his question represents the question of all sentient beings who are new to learning the Buddha's Dharma: how can one be delivered from birth and death, rise above the ocean of suffering that is the cycle of birth and death, and attain liberation? Only when this question is resolved can studying Buddhism bring true benefit.

The Bodhisattva Bhadrapāla continued: "The World-Honored One is the omniscient one, able to universally see all dharmas, and also able to know the spiritual faculties (indriya) of each sentient being and the roots of their afflictions — what karmic actions sentient beings have performed over countless kalpas, and what retributions they will obtain in the future — all of this the World-Honored One can know. It is truly rare and extremely hard to encounter a Buddha appearing in this world. The Buddha is like a wish-fulfilling jewel, bestowing all happiness upon sentient beings. The Buddha is the great wish-fulfilling treasure; all sentient beings can rely on the Buddha to attain great peace and bliss. The Buddha is the most dear and beloved parent of sentient beings, able to bring them the most fundamental benefit, and is the root of sentient beings' wholesome dharmas. Relying on the Buddha as their parent, sentient beings can see the correct path, walk upon it, and ultimately attain liberation. I only hope the World-Honored One will take pity on us and enlighten us, dispelling the doubts and darkness in our minds."