Recently, I was thumbing through my copy of a massive Buddhist text, the Flower Garland Sutra, and in particular the last chapter, known as the Gandavyuha Sutra.1 The Gandhavyuha Sutra is thought by some to have been a separate text at some point that got bolted onto the end of the Flower Garland Sutra and covers the story of Sudhana’s spiritual journey to becoming a bodhisattva. It’s a long, but beautiful story as Sudhana meets one figure after another on his journey, many of whom are famous bodhisattvas themselves.
In this verse, Sudhana met an enlightened goddess and sings her praises:
You are not attached to the world
You are independent and aloof
You do not dwell in the defilement of the world,
Your mind is free as the sky.You practice lofty deeds of enlightenment,
Beautiful light of virtues;
You appear in the world
Radiating lights of knowledge.You do not leave the world,
Translation by Thomas Cleary
Nor are you stained by worldly things;
You traverse the world unattached,
Like the wind through the sky.
I thought these were nice verses and just wanted to share. They encapsulate the Buddhist ideal in positive ways. it also reminds me of this verse from the much shorter Heart Sutra:
Because there is nothing to attain, bodhisattvas rely on Prajñāpāramitā [perfection of wisdom], and their minds have no obstructions. With no obstructions, they have no fears.
source: Wikisource translation
Thus one who achieves great wisdom, one who is no longer entangled by the greed, passion, anger and ignorance of the world, is utterly liberated, free and a shining beacon to others. They are beings with no limits.
Namu Amida Butsu
Gleanings in Buddha-Fields 