Prabhūtaratna ( Skt: प्रभूतरत्न;

Traditional Chinese A tradition is a belief or behavior (folk custom) passed down within a group or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. A component of cultural expressions and folklore, common examples include holidays ...

: 多寶如来 or 多寶佛;

Simplified Chinese Simplification, Simplify, or Simplified may refer to: Mathematics Simplification is the process of replacing a mathematical expression by an equivalent one, that is simpler (usually shorter), for example * Simplification of algebraic expressions ...

: 多宝如来 or 多宝佛;

pinyin Hanyu Pinyin (), often shortened to just pinyin, is the official romanization system for Standard Mandarin Chinese in China, and to some extent, in Singapore and Malaysia. It is often used to teach Mandarin, normally written in Chinese fo ...

: ''Duōbǎo Rúlái'' or ''Duōbǎo Fó''; Japanese

romaji The romanization of Japanese is the use of Latin script to write the Japanese language. This method of writing is sometimes referred to in Japanese as . Japanese is normally written in a combination of logographic characters borrowed from Ch ...

: ''Tahō Nyorai'' or ''Tahō Butsu''), translated as Abundant Treasures or Many Treasures, is the

Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in L ...

who appears and verifies Shakyamuni's teachings in the

Lotus Sutra The ''Lotus Sūtra'' ( zh, 妙法蓮華經; sa, सद्धर्मपुण्डरीकसूत्रम्, translit=Saddharma Puṇḍarīka Sūtram, lit=Sūtra on the White Lotus of the True Dharma, italic=) is one of the most influ ...

and the Samantabhadra Meditation Sutra.

In the Lotus Sutra

In the 11th chapter of the Lotus Sutra, Prabhūtaratna is described as living in a land "tens of millions of billions of countless worlds to the east" called "Treasure Purity.". Here he resides within a stupa translated variously as the "Precious Stupa," the "Treasure Tower," the "Jeweled Stupa," or the "Stupa of the Precious Seven Materials." Prabhūtaratna is said to have made a vow to make an appearance to verify the truth of the Lotus Sutra whenever it is preached in the present or future. In the chapter, as Shakyamuni is preaching, Prabhūtaratna's stupa arises from under the earth and hangs in midair. It is of unimaginable height and length. Traditionally

stupa A stupa ( sa, स्तूप, lit=heap, ) is a mound-like or hemispherical structure containing relics (such as ''śarīra'' – typically the remains of Buddhist monks or nuns) that is used as a place of meditation. In Buddhism, circum ...

s were edifices where relics of Buddhas are stored. Those gathered to hear Shakyamuni preach at

Vulture Peak The Vulture Peak (Pali: गिज्झकूट, Sanskrit: गृद्धकूट), also known as the Holy Eagle Peak or Gridhakūta (or Gādhrakūta), was the Buddha's favorite retreat in Rajagaha (now Rajgir, or Rajagrih). It was the scene ...

assumed the stupa from below the earth would contain relics. Instead, it contained within a living Prabhūtaratna who verified the truth of the teaching. Prabhutaratna e Sakyamuni

"Great-Eloquence Bodhisattva" wants to see the Buddha in the stupa but Prabhūtaratna´s vow makes it a prerequisite for showing his body that the Buddha who proclaims the Lotus teaching collects all his manifestations. At this point Shakyamuni summons from around the universe countless Buddhas who are his emanations, lifts the entire assembly into the air, and opens the stupa. Prabhūtaratna praises Shakyamuni and invites him to sit next to him. Shakyamuni then continues to preach the

Dharma Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...

. In the 22nd "Entrustment" chapter of the Lotus Sutra, Prabhūtaratna and his stupa return to under the earth.

Interpretations

According to Nichiren, in their interaction Shakyamuni and Many Treasures agreed to the perpetuation of the Law throughout the Latter Day. Nikkyō Niwano states Prabhūtaratna's stupa symbolizes the

buddha-nature Buddha-nature refers to several related Mahayana Buddhist terms, including '' tathata'' ("suchness") but most notably ''tathāgatagarbha'' and ''buddhadhātu''. ''Tathāgatagarbha'' means "the womb" or "embryo" (''garbha'') of the "thus-gon ...

which all people possess, while the springing-up of the stupa from the earth is said to imply the discovery of one's own buddha-nature. According to ''The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism'', "Prabhūtaratna (Many Treasures) invites Shakyamuni to sit beside him inside his bejeweled stūpa, thus validating the teachings Shakyamuni delivered in the scripture." Thich Nhat Hanh states that Prabhūtaratna symbolizes "the ultimate Buddha" and Shakyamuni "the historical Buddha"; the two Buddhas sitting together signifies the non-duality of the ultimate and the historical, that at a given moment in the real world, one can touch the ultimate. Akira Hirakawa argues that "the union of the eternal nature of the dharma (Prabhutaratna Buddha) and the eternal nature of the Buddha (Sakyamuni Buddha) is symbolized in the two Buddhas seated together inside the stupa."

Applications

The scene of Prabhūtaratna and Shakyamuni Buddhas sitting together in the Treasure Tower has been the theme of much Buddhist art over time. Nichiren also placed Prabhūtaratna on the

Gohonzon is a generic term for a venerated religious object in Japanese Buddhism. It may take the form of a scroll or statuary. The term typically refers to the mainstream use of venerated objects within Nichiren Buddhism, referring to the calligr ...

, his calligraphic representation of the Treasure Tower.

Notes

References

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Bibliography

* * Silk, Jonathan (2006)
Body Language: Indic Śarīra and Chinese shèlì in the Mahāparinirvāna-sūtra and Saddharma-pundarīka
Studia Philologica Buddhica Monograph Series XIX, Tokyo: The International Institute for Buddhist Studies {{Buddhism topics Buddhas Nichiren Buddhism