These bhūmi theories represent organized schemas for the bodhisattva path, each stage associated with specific virtues (like faith, merit, etc) and practices (like the pāramitās).
[3][4] It is called "very joyous" because the bodhisattva works at the perfections of generosity and develops the ability to give away everything without regret and with no thought of praise or reward (for themselves).
They train in ethics in order to cleanse their minds of negativity and so they prepare themselves for the cultivation of mundane meditative absorption that comes on the second level.
Tsong Khapa states that the third bhūmi is called the "Light-Maker" because when it is attained "the fire of wisdom burning all the fuel of objects of knowledge arises along with a light which by nature is able to extinguish all elaborations of duality during meditative equipoise.
As a result, the bodhisattva feels not anger, but a deep sadness and compassion for this cruel person, who is unaware of the operations of karma.
Rather, their equanimity remains constant, and all sentient beings are viewed with love and compassion: All anger and resentment rebound on the person who generates them, and they do nothing to eliminate harms that one has already experienced.
Through training in these thirty-seven practices, bodhisattvas develop great skill in meditative absorptions and cultivate wisdom, while weakening the artificial and innate conceptions of true existence.
The sixth level is called the "Manifest" because the bodhisattva clearly perceives the workings of dependent arising and directly understands "the signless" (Mtshan ma med pa, Tibetan.
[12] Having overcome all attachments, bodhisattvas on this level can attain nirvana, but because of the force of the mind of awakening they decide to remain in the world in order to benefit other sentient beings.
They cultivate the Perfection of Wisdom, through which they perceive all phenomena as lacking inherent existence, as being like dreams, illusions, reflections, or magically created objects.
Bodhisattvas on the seventh level develop the ability to contemplate signlessness uninterruptedly and enter into advanced meditative absorptions for extended periods of time, thus passing beyond both the mundane and supramundane paths of śrāvakas and Pratyekabuddhas (Hearers and solitary realizers).
"[13] According to Nāgārjuna, The seventh is the Gone Afar because The number of his qualities has increased, Moment by moment he can enter The equipoise of cessation,[14] On this level bodhisattvas perfect their skill in means of meditation and practice (Thabs la mkhas pa, Tibetan; Upaya-Kausalya, Sanskrit), which is their ability to cleverly adapt their teaching tactics to the individual proclivities and needs of their audiences.
The eighth level is called the "Immovable" because bodhisattvas overcome all afflictions regarding signs and their minds are always completely absorbed in the dharma.
[15] Although they resolve to work for the benefit of others and they pervade the universe with feelings of friendliness toward all sentient beings, these bodhisattvas have transcended any tendency to misunderstand anatta.
On the eighth through tenth bhumi, however, bodhisattvas make huge strides toward buddhahood, like a ship that reaches the ocean and unfurls its sails.
On the ninth level, they fully understand the three vehicles - hearers, solitary realizers, and bodhisattvas - and perfect the ability to teach the doctrine.
On this level they also cultivate the perfection of virya, which means that because of the strength of their mastery of the four analytical knowledges and their meditation they are able to develop paramitas energetically and to practice them continually without becoming fatigued.
Like a cloud that pours rain on the earth, these bodhisattvas spread the dharma in all directions, and each sentient being absorbs what it needs in order to grow spiritually.
Thus Nāgārjuna states that The tenth is the Cloud of Dharma because The rain of excellent doctrine falls, The Bodhisattva is consecrated With light by the Buddhas.
[18] At this stage bodhisattvas enter into progressively deeper meditative absorptions and develop limitless powers with regard to magical formulas.
The main ideas of this schema were inherited by Yogacara from the Sarvāstivāda Vaibhāṣika Abhidharma texts as well as Vasubadhu's Abhidharmakośakārikā (AKBh).
[21] This schema continues to be developed in Yogacara texts like Asanga's Mahāyānasaṃgraha (MS), where it is given a more Mahayanist explanation and becomes tied to the bodhisattva path and the bhūmis.
[27] It is also mentioned by other East Asian traditions, like Pure Land and Chinese Mantrayana, even if they hold that one can skip these stages through their special methods.
[31] In explaining this Huayan theory of the bodhisattva path, Imre Hamar writes:The Buddhāvataṃsaka -sūtra is said to describe the religious practice in fifty two stages, starting from initial faith up to complete enlightenment.
Fazang and Chengguan solved this contradiction by explaining the stages from two aspects: gradual (cidi xingbu 次第行布) and mutual interfusion (yuanrong xiangshe 圓融相攝).
The famous Huayan lay hermit Li Tongxuan stressed the importance of faith in the identity of living beings with Buddha.