佛祖統紀 3.72

3.72

On the ninth day of the second month, the Tathāgata contemplated the king of trees with a single mind for seven days, and reflected to himself: "The Dharma I have attained is extremely profound and difficult to understand; only a Buddha with a Buddha can comprehend it. All sentient beings have meager merit and dull faculties; how could they understand the Dharma I have attained? I would rather enter parinirvāṇa." At that time, the Great Brahmā King departed from his heavenly palace and went to where the Tathāgata was, saying: "World-Honored One, you have only now attained the unexcelled path; why remain silent and not expound the Dharma? Yet there are sentient beings who planted roots of various virtues in past lifetimes and are capable of hearing the Dharma. We only pray that the World-Honored One, through the power of great compassion, will turn the wondrous wheel of the Dharma for their sake." Śakra Devānām Indra up to the Paranirmitavaśavartin devas also did likewise. At that time the Brahmā kings and others made up to three entreaties, and having completed the seven days, he accepted in silence. In the second period of seven days, with the Buddha eye he contemplated sentient beings' superior, middling, and inferior faculties, as well as their afflictions. In the third period of seven days he reflected: "Now I should open the Dharma gate of amṛta; who should hear it first? Ārāḍa made a vow to be the first to be delivered when the path was accomplished." A voice in the air said: "He passed away yesterday." He then thought: "Kālāma is of sharp faculties and should also hear it first." The voice in the air again said: "He passed away last night." He then thought: "The five men sent by the royal ministers made vows in the past and ought to be the first to hear the Dharma." Thereupon he arose from his seat and went to Vārāṇasī. (Guo qu ying guo jing. The Wenju cites the Guo qu ying guo jing, whose account of three periods of seven days is not different from the Lotus Sūtra. Furthermore, the Shi qian fully cites various sūtras showing that accounts of the three periods of seven days are all different; only the Guo qu ying guo jing is broadly the same as our Master's view. Therefore, the text of the present Buddhist Chronicle mostly relies on this sūtra. The two rṣis Ārāḍa and Kālāma, together with the five men including Kauṇḍinya, all appear in the second fascicle of the Basic Annals.)