CHANT OF EIGHTFOLD PATH SUTRA

 

CHANTING WITH INCENSE

All of my homage

Sent with this incense

To very high cloud

Offer to Buddha.

 

Please accept my heart

Follow forever

On only His way

To the sublime place.

 

SACRED VIEW

I am nothing, Buddha is everything

There is always a sacred link

Anywhere is also everywhere

All Buddhas appear completely

I seem to kowtow in front of every Buddha

To offer my endless homage.

 

 

KOWTOW TO BUDDHA

With my best homage, Namo Sakiya Muni Buddha, and all of the Buddhas in the universe. (1 kowtow)

With my best homage, Namo the sutras taught by Buddha, and all of the Dharma in the universe. (1 kowtow)

With my best homage, Namo saintly monks were led by Buddha, and all of the Sangha in the universe. (1 kowtow)

ENTER THE SUTRA

Dharma is very profound and sacred

How can it be easy to see and learn

Now I can see to chant and apply

So I try my best to understand it.

Namo Sakiya Muni Buddha. (3 times)

 

THE SUTRA OF

THE EIGHTFOLD PATH

Kowtow to Buddha

In fact we heard that

After enlightened

Buddha came a way

To the Deer Forest.

 

Taught the Kondannas

All became Arhats

Buddha gave advice

About middle way

Not hard not easy.

 

Then Buddha began

To preach a sermon

The most important

For His disciples

The Four Noble Truths

Cover all the truths

In the universe

All Buddhas would preach.

 

Why life is all grief

Because all beings

Must struggle unstopped

To keep them alive,

 

Why life is all grief

Because Nirvana

Must be out of grief

Out of birth and death.

 

Where the grief came from

Ignorance and self

What Nirvana is

All bright and peaceful.

 

Which path leads into

The absolute peace

Out of all the grief

We call Nirvana?

 

Kowtow to Buddha

We pay homage to

Supreme Eightfold Path

Leads to the bright mind.

 

RIGHT VIEW  is the first

Is to understand

About the Karma

Cover life to life.

 

Once karma we made

Would have its results

No matter how long

But never get lost.

 

Why we’re rich or poor

We’re happy or sad

All from past karma

We did to beings.

 

Completely bright mind

Means complete No-Self

Means complete wisdom

Complete compassion.

 

All Buddha’s children

Must apply themselves

To No-Self purpose

In every second.

 

All of principles

Of morals and truths

In the universe

Must be realized.

 

Clearer and clearer

When we get more time

Going on the path

As Buddha has taught.

 

RIGHT THOUGHT  is second

Is to make our mind

To become better

By every good thought.

 

If wrong thought comes out

Must be ended fast

Regretful feeling

And aware later.

 

When things come about

We must keep good thoughts

There’s truly No-Self

For anger and greed.

 

We remind ourselves

To live for people

Harmonious mood

With a modest style.

 

Often pay homage

To Buddha, Dharma

Sangha forever

Like dust to mountain.

 

Often spread our love

To vast universe

Heaven or dark hell

Leaves and trees and grass.

 

Keep far away from

Dirty evil thoughts

Keep always within

Saintly good conducts.

 

Smarter and smarter

To control our mind

Discover wrong thoughts

Which are so subtle.

 

RIGHT WORD  is the third

Master every word

To fill people’s heart

With only good things.

 

Not much for the cost

Not much for labor

But too much karma

Whatever we speak.

 

Easy disparage

May fall in the sage

Bad karma begins

Animal life starts.

 

Try to praise the good

So others can hear

Then they can follow

What the good has done.

 

Praising Buddhism

To take man by man

Come back to the truth

So they’ll be happy.

 

Talk about karma

Reincarnation

Enlighten people

Out of the evil.

 

Never say bad words

Never praise oneself

Never say quarrel

Never say a fraud.

 

Many things to say

To make good karma

So please be careful

When starting a word.

 

RIGHT DEED  is the fourth

Is to do right things

Very specific

Help people with love.

 

Not do cruelty

Not harm all beings

Just do charity

To serve all people.

 

Or we step backward

Give the good some ways

Or we step forward

To receive hard work.

 

Or we must be strict

To stop all the bad

Or we give a hand

To support the good.

 

Even in hard times

We always try to

Little by little

Doing good karma.

 

Kowtow to Buddha

Remorse all past sins

To avoid bad deeds

To increase good deeds.

 

The Boddhisattva

Often help people

In secret silence

To save most blessing.

 

Abundant blessing

The Boddhisattva

Can help more people

All around the world.

 

The worlds are endless

So are good chances

For us to make out

Endless superb bliss.

 

RIGHT LIVING  the fifth

Is the profession

To support oneself

Through this tired life.

 

Right deeds made blessing

Made many options

For good profession

Create more blessing.

 

Good profession is

Including two things

When working daily

Also creating

Much new good karma

And have more spare time

To apply oneself

To Buddha’s teachings.

 

But for Buddhist monks

Has his own living

By receiving food

While walking on street.

 

Not any business

Not entreat favor

Just be dignified

In a tranquil soul.

 

Using a pure life

To teach all beings

In return for food

Sauntering away.

 

RIGHT DILIGENCE  sixth

Try to meditate

On spiritual way

With endless hardship.

 

At first, mind’s not calm

Thoughts are in chaos

Body’s very sore

But never give up.

 

Sometimes our family

Try to make hindrance

Or disease persists

Or sudden problems.

 

No matter what comes

We always stay firm

Such as rock mountain

Among thunder storm.

 

Determine ourselves

Over countless lives

With strong diligence

Head to No-Self goal.

 

Sit in lotus shape

Focus all body

Aware all body

Keep the whole body

To be lose and firm

Eyes open, look down

Two hands together

Two feet together.

 

Realize the fact

Body goes shortly

Getting old and sick

Ending at the death.

 

Then body’s decayed

Even the hard bones

Become soil and dust

At last nothing’s left.

 

Knowing whole body

Watch your breath clearly

Body’s inhaling

Body’s exhaling.

 

In the normal life

To keep aware of

Knowing whole body

Is impermanent.

 

RIGHT MINDFULNESS  next

The mind is conscious

The spirit’s lucid

But thoughts keep coming.

 

From this lucid mind

We can control thoughts

Thoughts no more lead us

Wandering outside.

 

We can make good thoughts

About compassion

About No-Self goal

To improve morals.

 

We can make good thoughts

To erase our greed

To erase anger

Mind gets more morals.

 

It begins serene

But only begins

Not very deep state

Of meditation.

 

Such as walking on

Thin ice of a lake

This stage need being

Extremely careful.

 

If we make wrong thoughts

Latent arrogance

Even no one knows

But one day we will

Get mental illness

Cause the lucid mind

Often makes us think

We are in high rank.

 

We must make more thoughts

That we’re just small dust

We love all beings

We pay to Buddha

Absolute homage

We offer ourselves

To supreme Buddha

Ever and ever.

 

We have to spend through

Near thirty next lives

Between Earth-Heaven

To finish the stage.

 

Finish this level

We eliminate

Five dark obstacles

Inside the spirit.

 

Those are greed, anger

Budging, sleepiness

And hesitation

Which hinder the mind.

 

Far from Buddha’s time

One gets this level

Often thinks himself

Become saintly man.

 

Sometimes illusions

Make many strange things

Cause more arrogance

Push him to failure.

 

Or mystic wisdom

Can make one foretell

He thinks he’s sublime

Fall into devils.

 

So we try our best

Kowtow to Buddha

Think we are nothing

Pass our own abyss.

 

RIGHT ECSTASY  eighth

Includes four levels

At the first level

Body is fulfilled

With soft happiness

Lust instinct ended.

 

But tiny ideas

Of philosophy

Still run in the deep

So it’s imperfect.

 

Second level  mind

Is entirely clean

Any tiny thoughts

Be extremely calm.

 

And the whole body

Fulfilled happiness

Fulfilled awakened

Like water fills stream.

 

Third meditation

Mind covers all space

Matter is spirit

Everywhere’s happy.

 

Fourth meditation

Absolutely calm

All the universe

Appears in essence.

 

If the practicer

Focus on past lives

He can remember

Endless number lives

Called Past Brilliance.

 

If the practicer

Focus on beings

He can know karma

Lead beings reborn

Called View Brilliance.

 

If the practicer

Focus on the Truths

He can realize

The Four Noble Truths

Wisdom Brilliance.

 

Oh my great Buddha

Supreme Eightfold Path

Is above our mind

But we follow then.

 

How many people

Sink in wrong bad ways

Drown in suffering

Can not end rebirths.

 

Buddha gave savings

Let this great doctrine

Cover everywhere

For human beings.

 

We vow to be brave

Talk to all mankind

About Eightfold Path

As best offering.

Namo Sakiya Muni Buddha. (3 times)