Summary
s.1In The Question of Maitreya, the bodhisattva Maitreya asks the Buddha what qualities a bodhisattva needs to attain enlightenment quickly. The Buddha outlines several sets of qualities, foremost among them the altruistic intention of perfect bodhicitta. The Buddha then recounts to Ānanda how, in a former life, Maitreya revered a previous Buddha and, wishing to become just like him, at once realized that all phenomena are unproduced. Ānanda asks why Maitreya did not become a buddha sooner, and in answer the Buddha compares Maitreya’s bodhisattva career with his own, listing further sets of qualities that differentiate them and recounting examples of the hardships he himself faced in previous lives. Maitreya, on the other hand, has followed the easy bodhisattva vehicle using its skillful means, such as the seven branch practice and the training in the six perfections; the aspirations he thus made are set out in the famous “Prayer of Maitreya” for which this sūtra is perhaps best known. The Buddha declares that Maitreya will become enlightened when sentient beings have fewer negative emotions, in contrast to the ignorant and turbulent beings he himself vowed to help.
s.1在《彌勒提問經》中，菩薩彌勒向佛陀請問，菩薩需要具備什麼樣的品質才能迅速證得菩提。佛陀闡述了幾組品質，其中最主要的是圓滿菩提心的利他意樂。佛陀隨後向阿難講述了彌勒在前世的故事：他恭敬事奉過去的一位佛陀，希望能像他一樣，因此立即證悟到所有現象都是無生的。阿難問為什麼彌勒沒有更早成佛，佛陀就此將彌勒的菩薩修行與自己的進行比較，列舉了使他們有所不同的其他品質，並講述了自己在前世所經歷的種種艱辛。相比之下，彌勒遵循著簡易的菩薩乘，運用它的方便法，例如七支供養和六波羅蜜的修習。他因此所立下的願力，在著名的《彌勒願文》中得以闡述，這部經也因此而聞名。佛陀宣說，當眾生的負面情緒減少時，彌勒就將證得菩提，這與佛陀自己曾發願幫助的那些愚癡和煩擾的眾生形成對比。