維摩義記 1.32

1.32

Above, the noble assembly was listed; below, the ordinary assembly is listed. Therein, first the assembly of devas is listed, next the ghosts and spirits are listed, and afterwards the assembly of humans is listed. Because ghosts and spirits are the attendants of the devas, they are listed next to the devas. Among the devas, first the assembly of Brahmā gods is listed, next Śakra is listed, and afterwards the remaining devas are listed. Among the Brahmā gods, the initial statement "ten thousand Brahmā kings" lists their number and distinguishes the assembly. These should all be Brahmā kings of the first meditation, with Śikhin listed by name. Here [in Chinese] this is rendered as "Topknot"; this probably refers to the Brahmā king with his hair gathered to one side, and the "Snail-Topknot" mentioned below must be this person. "From other worlds below the heavens" specifies their places of origin. This statement is somewhat abbreviated; if stated in full, it should say from other four-continent worlds below the heavens. They came up, proceeded to the Buddha's location, and reached the place where the Dharma was being preached. Regarding Śakra, "moreover, twelve thousand" gives their number. "Heavenly sovereign" distinguishes the assembly. "Sovereign" is like a lord; the lord of the Trāyastriṃśa Heaven is called the Heavenly Sovereign. "Also from other heavens" again shows their places of origin. "Were in the assembly" is where they arrived. Below, the remaining devas are listed; saying "together with other [beings of] great majesty and power" distinguishes those before while including those after, hence it says "together with." This refers to the remaining assemblies of devas within the desire realm. Next, the ghosts and spirits are listed. "Dragons" are animals; among them there are the distinctions of the four modes of birth. Possessing great spiritual virtue, they were able to come and hear the Dharma, and thus they are listed now. "Yakṣas" are swift and agile ghosts. "Gandharvas" are celestial musicians, also subsumed under the destiny of ghosts. Regarding "asuras," some people interpret the name as gods who do not drink liquor, but it is not known whether this is correct or not. Others call them "inferior devas." According to the Abhidharma, asuras are solely ghosts. According to the Saddharmasmṛtyupasthāna Sūtra, there are both ghosts and animals among them. For example, that asura king Rāhu is the offspring of a lion and is essentially an animal. According to the Gāthā Sūtra, there are three distinct types: devas, ghosts, and animals. Asuras generally have five distinct levels of residence: First, among the mountains of various characteristics upon the earth, as stated in the Daśabhūmika Sūtra, their power is the lowest. Second, twenty-one thousand yojanas beneath the great ocean north of Mount Sumeru, there is an asura king named Rāhu who commands immeasurable multitudes of asuras. Third, another twenty-one thousand yojanas below Rāhu, there is an asura king named *Sūra (Yongjian). Fourth, another twenty-one thousand yojanas below *Sūra, there is an asura king named Mālādhāra (Huaman). Fifth, another twenty-one thousand yojanas below Mālādhāra, there is an asura king named Vemacitrin, who also commands immeasurable multitudes of asuras. Vemacitrin's mother was originally born from heaven, hence they are called "inferior devas." When the kalpa first began to form, celestial maidens came down to bathe in the sea. When the water touched their bodies, they lost their generative essence, which flowed into the water and formed a fleshy egg. After eight thousand years had passed, it gave birth to a daughter who had nine hundred and ninety heads, each head with a thousand eyes, nine hundred and ninety-nine mouths, each mouth with four fangs from which fire burst out like thunderbolts, and twenty-four thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine legs. Later, when this woman was floating and sporting in the sea, the essence of the water entered her body and produced a fleshy egg. After eight thousand years had passed, it gave birth to Vemacitrin, who had nine heads, each head with a thousand eyes, water coming out of his mouths, ninety-nine hands, and only eight legs. His form was four times larger than Mount Sumeru. He fed purely on mud and lotus roots, and frequently fought with the devas, as stated in the Saddharmasmṛtyupasthāna Sūtra. "Garuḍas" are bird spirits. Among them are the golden-winged birds that feed purely on dragons, and they have the distinction of four modes of birth: those born by transformation feed on dragons of all four modes of birth; those born from a womb feed on dragons of three modes of birth, excluding those born by transformation; those born from eggs feed on dragons of two modes of birth, excluding those born by transformation and from a womb; those born of moisture feed only on moisture-born dragons. In this world of four continents there is a transformation-born garuḍa king named Zhengyin (Right Sound) with a lifespan of eight thousand years, who each day devours one great dragon king and five hundred small dragons, circling the four continents around and around to devour them in succession. When his life comes to an end, the dragons vomit poison so that he can no longer eat; burned by the fire of hunger, he spreads his wings and plunges straight down to the wind wheel, is blown back up by the wind, going back and forth seven times without a place to rest his feet, and finally reaches the peak of the Cakravāḍa Mountains where he dies. Because he fed on dragons, the poisonous vapors of his flesh ignite a fierce blaze. The dragon kings Nanda and Upananda, fearing it will burn the jeweled mountain, send down heavy rain with drops as thick as chariot axles to extinguish the fire. His body and flesh dissolve away, leaving only his heart, the size of a human spleen and made of pure blue lapis lazuli; when a wheel-turning king obtains it, he uses it as a wish-fulfilling jewel; when Śakra obtains it, he uses it as the jewel in his topknot. "Kiṃnaras" are called "doubtful spirits." In substance they are animals, but their appearance resembles humans, their faces are exceedingly handsome, and they have a single horn on the crown of their heads. When people see them they give rise to doubt, not knowing whether they are human, ghost, or animal, and thus they are called doubtful spirits. These are also heavenly musicians. "Mahoragas" are bellied-crawling spirits; ordinary people pass down the tradition that they are demon spirits. Below, the assembly of humans is listed. "Bhikṣus" are as explained above; "[bhikṣu]ṇī" means female. An "upāsaka" is called a "man who abides well," dwelling while cherishing goodness; it is also said to mean "dwelling near goodness," and also "purely faithful gentleman." "Upāsikā" is as explained before, with "[upāsi]kā" meaning female. The above has been the second part, listing his accompanying retinue.