The Big One: California quake (sutra)

The Buddha said there are eight reasons for earthquakes, when the might plane of the earth (Bhumi, Gaia, Tierra, Urth) trembles and shakes. What could these eight reasons be? Surely, there have to be hundreds of reasons (disruption of the elements) or just one (tectonic plate movement). But the Buddha assures us there are eight. What are they? It's not worth mentioning, since most modern readers will not believe, falling into the realm of superstition. But there is one awe-inspiring reason given, which paints our position in the cosmos or multiverse in an amazing way in line with Buddhist, Hindu (Vedic), and Jain cosmologies about what our "planet" is and what it rests on.

SUTRA: “The Final Journey”

Soon after Māra departed, the Buddha entered a samādhi [an absorption] of serene (settled, still, absorbed) mind at Cāpāla Shrine, relinquishing his lifeforce.

Right at that moment there was a great earthquake, and everyone in the entire country was startled and frightened by it followed by goosebumps. The Buddha then emanated a great radiance. There was nowhere that it did not illuminate. Even the darkest places were made bright, and the beings there saw each other. The Blessed One (Bhagavān) then spoke in verse:

“Two formations, being and nonbeing,

I now let go of those conditioned states.

Focused in samādhi and settled,

I’m like a bird emerging from its egg.”

It was difficult for Venerable Ānanda to think because he was so startled with goosebumps. He hurried to the Buddha, bowed at his feet, withdrew to stand respectfully to one side, and said: “Bhagavān, how strange it is! What was the reason for that earthquake?”

The Buddha told Ānanda: “An earthquake usually has eight causes. What are those eight?

1. The earth rests on water. Where the water stops, there’s air. Where the air stops, there’s space. Sometimes a great gale rises by itself in that empty space, which creates a large wave in the water. That large wave of water then makes the whole earth tremble. That is one cause.
2. “Sometimes a monk, nun, great spirit, sage, or exalted deva achieves awakening and observes how much water there is and how little earth there is. Wanting to test his, her, or its power and makes the whole earth shake. This is the second cause.
3. “When a bodhisattva’s spirit (gandhabba) first descends from Tuṣita Heaven into his mother’s womb while focused and undisturbed, there is a great earthquake. This is the third cause.
4. “When a bodhisattva first emerges from his mother’s womb, he is born from her side while focused and conscious, and the whole earth quakes. This is the fourth cause.
5. “At the moment a bodhisattva first achieves unsurpassed (supreme) and perfect awakening, there is a great earthquake. This is the fifth cause.
6. “When a buddha first achieves awakening and turns the unsurpassed Dharma wheel, which cannot be set in motion by [devas such as Śakra and Brahmā,] or Māra, demons, and spirits, or wandering ascetics and Brahmin priests, or ordinary worldly people and devas, then the whole earth quakes. This is the sixth cause.
7. “When a Buddha’s Teaching is nearing its end and he relinquishes his lifeforce while focused and undisturbed, the whole earth quakes. This is the seventh cause.
8. “Furthermore, Ānanda, when the Tathāgata (Wayfarer) attains final nirvana (parinirvāṇa) without remainder, there is a great earthquake. This is the eighth cause.

“These are the eight reasons that lead to an earthquake.” The Buddha then spoke in verse:

“The unsurpassed sage of two-footed beings,

He’s a great ascetic who lights up the world.

Ānanda asked the teacher of devas,

‘What is the reason for this earthquake?’

The Tathāgata explained it in a kind voice

That sounded like a kalaviṅka.

‘I will say to all, so listen:

There are these causes of earthquakes.

The earth depends on water, which remains.

Water depends on air, which abides.

If a wind rises in that space,

Then the earth is shaken greatly.

Sometimes, a monk or nun

Wants to test his or her miraculous power.

The mountains, oceans, grasses, and trees,

The whole earth is shaken.

Śakra, Brahmā, and the venerable devas

Sometimes want to shake the earth.

Demons and spirits of mountains and oceans

Also make the earth quake.

When bodhisattvas and two-footed sages,

Replete with a hundred signs of merit,

First enter their mother’s womb,

Then the earth is shaken greatly.

They dwell in the womb for ten [lunar] months

Like nāgas (reptilians, dragons) lying on a mat.

When they first emerge from her right side,

Then the earth is shaken greatly.

When the Buddha was a young man

He eliminated the conditions that fettered him,

Achieved awakening supreme and measureless,

Then the earth was shaken greatly.

Become a sage, he turned the Dharma Wheel

There in the Deer Preserve.

When he defeated Māra with awakening’s strength,

Then the earth was shaken greatly.

The deva Māra came to press his request,

Urging the Buddha to final nirvāṇa.

When the Buddha relinquished his lifeforce,

Then the earth was shaken greatly.

The worthy human, the great teacher,

The miraculous sage ended future rebirths.

He was hard to move but chose to go out,

And the earth was shaken greatly.

The pure eye explained these reasons,

These eight situations that cause earthquakes.

When there is this, there is also that;

These are the occasions of earthquakes.”

• DA 2: 遊行—Charles Patton (trans.) Digha Agama, Long Discourses of the Buddha 2, "The Final Journey" (sutra excerpt); Dhr. Seven, Amber Larson, Pat Macpherson (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly