中天竺舍衛國祇洹寺圖經 2.7

2.7

At the extreme north, a triple multi-storied pavilion rises higher still than the front hall, its floral adornments towering prominently, brightly illuminating the great void. These three halls and pavilions cast their reflections in succession; gazing north as far as the eye can see, they seem scarcely within human contrivance, being all abodes of ancient sages. In all the images therein, precious pedestals are individually set up, the rarest wonders of the world. The Tathāgata assembled the congregation and dwelt there according to the season, so for twenty-five years he mostly remained without moving. When summer arrived, he dwelt in the multi-storied pavilion; the multi-storied lecture hall mentioned in the sutras is precisely this place. Whether ascending or descending, his actions adapted to circumstances, not fixed by a constant standard; within the pavilion there are only seats, with no other images. Its adornments are as usually described. North of the pavilion, enclosing walls surround the four sides, all covered by verandas and colonnades, adorned with vermilion and powder, without any defect. Two storehouses, east and west, stand at the two corners of the wall. (They are called the Buddha's storehouses, where flowers, incenses, and offering utensils are mostly gathered, and from time to time Buddha-work is performed in the ten directions.)