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282
SADDHARMA-PUNDARÎKA.
xiv.

in their train, who at the end of time, at the last period after my extinction, shall keep, read, proclaim this Dharmaparyâya.

No sooner had the Lord uttered these words than the Saha-world burst open on every side, and from within the clefts arose many hundred thousand myriads of kotis of Bodhisattvas with gold-coloured bodies and the thirty-two characteristic signs of a great man, who had been staying in the element of ether underneath this great earth, close to this Saha-world. These then on hearing the word of the Lord came up from below the earth. Each of these Bodhisattvas had a train of thousands of Bodhisattvas similar to the sands of sixty Ganges[1] rivers; (each had) a troop, a great troop, as teacher of a troop. Of such Bodhisattvas Mahâsattvas having a troop, a great troop, as teachers of a troop, there were hundred thousands of myriads of kotis equal to the sands of sixty Ganges[2] rivers, who emerged from the gaps of the earth in this Saha-world. Much more there were to be found of Bodhisattvas Mahisattvas having a train of Bodhisattvas similar to the sands of fifty Ganges rivers; much more there were to be found of Bodhisattvas Mahisattvas having a train of Bodhisattvas similar to the sands of forty Ganges rivers; of 30 3 , 20, 10, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 Ganges river; of 111111111 1 1 1

' 4' 6' 10' 20* 50* llH)' 1000* 100,000' 10,000,000' 100x10,000,000' 1000 x 10,000,000[3]


  1. Or, a train of sixty thousand Bodhisattvas similar to the sands of the river Ganges.
  2. Shashty eva, which is ungrammatical, for shashtir eva, or it is a corrupt reading.
  3. The text goes on repeating the same words, save the difference of number; I have given the contents in a shortened form.