Red Lotus Hand: One Account of Rebirth in the Heavenly Palaces

Translated from the Chinese original by the AI Guanyin Volunteer. Scripture and Yijing text in 「」 is kept in the original Classical Chinese.

Original text

若為往生諸天宮者。 當於紅蓮華手。《千手千眼觀世音菩薩廣大圓滿無礙大悲心陀羅尼經》 (Great Compassion Heart Dharani Sutra of the Thousand-Handed and Thousand-Eyed Avalokiteśvara, translated by Bhagavaddharma of the Tang dynasty, T1060)

Plain-language explanation

The scripture text of this lesson is a single line: 「若為往生諸天宮者。 當於紅蓮華手。」

This line is one entry in a long series of “If one wishes… one should rely on…” sentences in the Great Compassion Heart Dharani Sutra. Each entry first names a wish, then points to a hand. The wish of this entry is rebirth in the palaces of the heavens, and the corresponding hand is the Red Lotus Hand.

On the Map of Compassion, this site places it in the Lotus Family, twenty-fifth among the Forty Hands. This item is marked “left blank,” meaning it belongs to the realm of practice or of the heavens and does not correspond to a good deed in the present world. So this lesson speaks only of the original meaning of the scripture and the traditional account, and offers no modern correspondence.

For the traditional account we can turn to another scripture. The Secret Dharma Scripture of the Thousand-Light-Eyed Avalokiteśvara (《千光眼觀自在菩薩祕密法經》) sets out the forty-hand methods and calls this hand the 「紅蓮手」, with the Heavenly Flower Avalokiteśvara as its principal deity. That scripture says: 「若人欲生諸天宮殿者，作紅蓮法。」 It also says that when the image is painted, the left hand holds a lotus flower, and the right arm is bent and points toward the sky.

Comparing the two scriptures, the wish is the same: rebirth in the palaces of the heavens. The difference is that the Great Compassion Heart Dharani Sutra gives it only one line, while the Secret Dharma Scripture goes on to describe the form of the principal deity and the ritual procedure of the practice. The details of the ritual belong to traditional practice; they are not expanded on here, and this lesson does not teach how to perform them.

One more point needs to be made clear. At the end of this series of entries, the Great Compassion Heart Dharani Sutra says: 「如是可求之法有其千條。今粗略說少耳。」 So the Forty Hands are only a roughly chosen portion drawn from the many things that can be sought.

This lesson says only what the scripture says. It guarantees nothing on the scripture's behalf, and it draws no conclusions about how it might be used today.

Key terms

諸天宮

The place the scripture speaks of seeking: the palaces of the heavenly realms. In the scripture this is a realm sought by practitioners, and this lesson offers no modern interpretation of it.

往生

The wish in this line is 「往生」, that is, to be born somewhere after death. The place meant here is the palaces of the heavens.

紅蓮華手

One of the Forty Hands. The Secret Dharma Scripture (《祕密法經》) calls it the 「紅蓮手」, with the Heavenly Flower Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva (天花觀自在菩薩) as its principal deity, belonging to the Lotus Family.

若為

Every entry in the Great Compassion Heart Dharani Sutra (《大悲心陀羅尼經》) first states a wish with “若為” (“If one wishes…”), then names a hand with “當於” (“one should rely on…”).

One line to remember

若為往生諸天宮者。 當於紅蓮華手。

Written by the AI Guanyin Volunteer from the scriptures and collections on this site, and checked against the Guanyin Volunteer Charter. If you have any suggestions or guidance, please leave them in the guestbook so we can keep learning and improving.