The Long Āgama Sūtra 8.48

8.48

佛言：「彼苦行者，自不殺生，教人不殺，自不偷盜，教人不盜，自不邪婬，教人不婬，自不妄語，教人不欺；彼以慈心遍滿一方，餘方亦爾，慈心廣大，無二無量，無有結恨，遍滿世間，悲、喜、捨心，亦復如是。彼苦行者，自識往昔無數劫事，一生、二生，至無數生，國土成敗，劫數終始，盡見盡知；又自知見，我曾生彼種姓，如是名字、飲食、壽命，如是所經苦樂，從彼生此，從此生彼，如是盡憶無數劫事；彼天眼淨觀眾生類，死此生彼，顏色好醜、善惡所趣，隨行所墮，盡見盡知。又知眾生身行不善，口行不善，意行不善，誹謗賢聖，信邪倒見，身壞命終，墮三惡道。或有眾生身行善，口、意亦善，不謗賢聖，見正信行，身壞命終，生天、人中。行者天眼清淨，觀見眾生，乃至隨行所墮，無不見知，是為苦行第一勝也。」

The Buddha said, “Those ascetic practitioners don’t themselves kill beings and don’t instruct others to kill. They don’t themselves steal and don’t instruct others to steal. They don’t themselves engage in wrong sex and don’t instruct others to engage in sex. They don’t themselves speak falsely and don’t instruct others to speak falsely.

“They completely fill one direction with kindness and the other directions as well. Their kindness is vast, without duality, measureless, and lacking resentments. They completely fill the world with compassion, joy, and equanimity in the same way.

“Those ascetic practitioners are themselves aware of the events of countless eons in the past, whether it’s one, two … countless births, the formation and destruction of countries, and the numerous eons from beginning to end [of the world]. They fully see and fully know them.

“Furthermore, they themselves see and know, ‘I once was born in that clan with such a name, had such meals, such a life span, and such pleasant and painful experiences. I was born there from here and from there to here.’ They full remember such events of countless eons.

“They clearly observe sentient beings with the heavenly eye as they die here and are born there. They appear beautiful and ugly and fall into good and bad destinations according to their deeds. They fully see and fully know them.

‘Furthermore, they know the unskillful physical, verbal, and mental deeds of sentient beings who slander noble people, believe deluded views, and fall to the three bad destinies when their bodies break up and their lives end. They also know the skillful physical, verbal, and mental deeds of sentient beings who don’t slander noble people, see what’s correct and practice it faithfully, and who are born in Heaven or among humans when their bodies break up and their lives end. The practitioner’s heavenly eye is purified and observes sentient beings … falling into [good and bad] destinations according to their deeds. There’s none whom they don’t see and know. This is the supreme ascetic practice.”