Sutra of the Past Vows of Earth Store Bodhisattva

by Buddhist Text Translation Society

Reminiscent of Dante’s Inferno but largely unknown in the West, this sutra, which discusses the workings of karma and rebirth, describes the various Buddhist hells and the reasons for falling into them. Spoken by Shakyamuni Buddha, it tells us that he entrusted Earth Store (Ksitigarbha) Bodhisattva with the endless task of rescuing all living beings from suffering. Earth Store’s long history and extraordinary vows to accomplish this impossible task have made this an extremely popular Buddhist text and the predominant funeral scripture in East Asia for centuries. Master Hsuan Hua and his disciples published the first ever English translation from Classical Chinese.

Genres: Buddhism, Religion

127 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1974

Reviews

[Fu Sheng Wilson Wong · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whether or not one subscribes to Buddhism or any religion for that matter, the book does contain many gems in the form of reminders of mindfulness and karmic actions.

[Linda Vituma · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Everything is created from the mind alone.” 288.lpp
”Outside of the mind, there are no hells.” 319.lpp
Master YongHua, 永化 Thích Vĩnh Hóa

[Alex Drivdahl · Rating 5 out of 5]

powerful

[Ben Lucas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rather than interpreting this sutra as being about an external bodhisattva who will save beings if properly invoked, I see this sutra as a meditation on the nature of awareness as inexhaustible and present in oneself even in dark times and hellish places.

[Michael Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was A Mahayana sutra and I found that it contained some interesting dhamma in it. It chronicles the Great Vows of the Bodhisattva of the earth and some about his past life.