文／蓮生活佛 盧勝彥
有一位顯教法師曾經問我：
「根據佛典，釋迦牟尼佛涅槃之後，至彌勒佛尚未示現的這一段時期，稱為無佛世界。也就是沒有佛在世界上居住的時期，這種說法，你認為對不對？」
我反問法師：「你學佛作啥？」
法師答：「成佛。」
我說：「既然無佛可成，你又學什麼佛？」
法師啞口。
據我所知，釋迦牟尼佛涅槃之後，即身成佛的也很多，例如：烏金第二佛「蓮華生大士」、「密勒日巴祖師」、「宗喀巴祖師」等等。文殊菩薩在北方成正覺，號「極歡喜藏摩尼寶積玉佛」。佛的大弟子舍利弗，號「華光佛」。五百羅漢將來成佛，號「普明佛」。又【妙華蓮華經】中說：「娑竭羅龍玉女，以八歲童齡，於剎那頃發菩提心，即於南方無垢世界成正等正覺。」這是龍女成佛。
我告訴法師：「這些都是成佛例子，禪宗也有很多成佛的，他們都見性成佛了。」【六祖壇經】：「若識本心，見自本性，即名丈夫、天人師、佛。」
法師木訥的說：「那經典怎會如此說！」
我答：「釋迦牟尼佛絕不會阻止眾生在這期間成佛，也不會遮止眾生即身成佛，這是後人誤解經意。據我所知，釋迦牟尼佛在娑婆世界的示現，是大權示現之佛，而彌勒佛在龍華三會廣度眾生，也是大權示現之佛。其實在這中間，也有很多成佛的例子啊！」
禪宗可以見性成佛。密教，可以在一生之中，同時圓證法、報、應三身，證得無上菩提，即身成佛。密教綱要曰：「密教之正機，雖有大小之別，皆以父母所生肉身，一生即身成佛。」
A Buddha Manifestation of Great Authority
Written by Lian-shen Linving Buddha Sheng-yen Lu
Translated by Cheng Yew Chung edited by Victor Hazen
True Buddha Foundation Translation Team
A monk from the Sutric tradition once asked me, “According to the Buddhist scriptures, the period between the time Sakyamuni Buddha entered Nirvana and the time of the appearance of Maitreya is known as the Buddha-less World. This means a period of time where no buddha is found living on earth. Do you agree with this viewpoint?”
I asked the monk, “Why do you practice Buddhism?”
The monk answered, “To become a buddha.”
I said, “Since there can be no attainment of buddhahood, why do you want to study Buddhism?”
The monk was speechless.
From what I know, after Sakyamuni Buddha entered Nirvana, many have attained buddhahood in their very bodies; for example, Padmasambhava, who was the second Buddha of Uddiyana, Milarepa, Tsongkhapa and so forth. Manjusri Bodhisattva was enlightened in the North, whose epithet is “the Treasury of Extreme Joy Mani Gem Buddha”. Shariputra, the main disciple of the Buddha, was given the epithet “Lotus Light Buddha”. The five hundred Arhats, on attaining buddhahood, will be collectively known as “Samantaprabhasa, the Pervading Light Buddha”. In the Lotus Sutra, it is said, “The daughter of the dragon king Sagara who had turned eight, conceived the desire for bodhi in the space of an instant, and attained the correct and perfect enlightenment in the Spotless World of the South.” This was how dragon girl became a Buddha.
I told the monk, “These are all examples of beings attaining buddhahood. Many in Zen Buddhism have attained buddhahood as well, for they have gained Self Realization. The Sutra of Hui Neng writes, “If you discern your own original mind and see your own original nature, you are what they call a great man, a teacher of humans and angels, a Buddha.”
The monk, fumbling away, uttered, “But why does the scripture state it that way?”
I replied, “Sakyamuni Buddha would never forbid any sentient beings to attain buddhahood during this period, neither would He stop anyone from attaining buddhahood in this very body. The scripture was misinterpreted by later generations of Buddhist students. From what I know, the appearance of Sakyamuni Buddha in the saha world marks the appearance of a buddha of great authority. And likewise, it will be the same for Buddha Maitreya when he delivers sentient beings during the times of the three blossoms of the dragon flower tree. The time between these two appearances is filled with many cases of beings attaining buddhahood.”
One can attain Self Realization through Zen Buddhism, and one can also gain the perfect attainment of the Truth, the Bliss and the Emanation Bodies, and realize the Supreme Bodhi, becoming a buddha in this very lifetime. The Essentials of Tantrayana writes, “While the doctrines of Tantrayana may differ in their scope of approach, they all aim to use the physical body given by one’s parents to attain buddhahood in this very body within one’s lifetime.”
