中天竺舍衛國祇洹寺圖經 2.18

2.18

Then Mahākāśyapa, having prostrated to Ānanda and circumambulated him to the right three times, went before him to inquire after him no differently than to the Buddha, and asked Ānanda: 'You followed the Tathāgata for more than twenty years: where was the teaching of the Vinaya formulated by the World-Honoured One first established? At the time of the poṣadha, what tally should be used? What is the length of the tally? What method is used when reciting the precepts? When ordination was first received, how did the preceptors and disciples ascend the platform? When the first ordination platform assembled the community, what cubit measurements did its height and width rely upon, and from what era? Were śarīra placed therein or not? What material was used to pave all around the four sides? How many stair-paths were opened? What forms and images were made circling the four sides of the platform? In a land without stone, can a platform be made? In a land without earth, can sand be used? What are the orientations and forms of the monastery's compounds? How many monks are needed to confer ordination in a border region? In the period of the final Dharma, when there are no pure monks, how can a novice receive the full precepts? If there is no previous bhikṣuṇī community, can bhikṣus confer the bhikṣuṇī precepts?' In this sequence, there were three thousand eight hundred questions.