佛祖歷代通載 1.198

1.198

始帝王祖三未多王。是時田分互起侵盜。初發偷盜。被王推問言不曾偷。始起妄語。王法誅戮。即有殺害。不善法生。爾時眾生造不善法。命終之後。即生傍生。次生餓鬼。漸生地獄。次無間獄生一有情。時成劫終。如是有情行諸不善。壽量漸減受用乏少。閻浮提人壽八萬歲。無間地獄生一有情。是二同時。如是情世界成。十九中劫器世界成。即一中劫。如是成劫二十中劫。閻浮提人八萬歲時。始為住劫。住劫亦經二十中劫。至十歲時刀兵災起。唯七晝夜。疾疫災起七月七日。飢饉災起七年七月七日。多分死歿。餘者相覩。起希有心互相睦戀。遠離殺害漸生善故。壽量受用復增益盛。至八萬歲增上之時。轉輪王出依法化民。下減之時婆伽梵出拔濟眾生。增減時間獨覺出世。令諸有情而作福田。住劫亦經二十中劫始壞劫。初情世界壞。無間獄中無有情生。先生業盡。即生別趣。若有未盡生上地獄。或別世界地獄中生無間獄空。如是向上地獄漸空生餓鬼趣。如是餓鬼傍生趣空。人趣之中除鳩婁人。餘共欲天無師法然獲初靜慮生初禪天。北鳩婁人生欲界天。獲初靜慮生初禪天。無師法然獲二靜慮生二禪天。從無間獄至梵世空。如是亦經十九中劫。然後四洲有七日出。初不降雨藥草叢林悉皆枯槀。二日出時溝池乾涸。三日出時殑伽河等悉皆枯竭。四日出時無熱池竭。五日出時海水沒膝。六日出時大海亦竭。七日出時彼器世界一聚火聳。從無間獄直至梵世以火燒壞。經一中劫壞劫總經二十中劫。空劫亦爾。如是成住壞空即八十劫。總此八十名一大劫。為梵眾等壽量之數。

Beginning with King Sammata, the ancestor of the first kings, at that time mutual encroachments and thefts of land divisions arose. When stealing first arose, upon being questioned by the king, [the thief] said he had not stolen; thus false speech began. The king's law carried out executions, whereupon there was killing; thus unwholesome phenomena arose. At that time, sentient beings committed unwholesome deeds, and after their lives ended, they were born as animals, then as hungry ghosts, and gradually were born into the hells. Next, one sentient being was born into the Avīci Hell; at that time, the kalpa of formation came to an end. As such sentient beings practiced various unwholesome deeds, their lifespan gradually decreased and their provisions became scarce. When humans in Jambudvīpa lived eighty thousand years, one sentient being was born into the Avīci Hell; these two occurred simultaneously. In this manner, the sentient world was formed; nineteen antarakalpas were required for the sentient world to form, while the bhājana-loka formed in one antarakalpa; thus, the kalpa of formation comprised twenty antarakalpas. When humans in Jambudvīpa lived to eighty thousand years, the kalpa of abiding began. The kalpa of abiding also lasts twenty antarakalpas. When [lifespan] reaches ten years, the disaster of weapons arises, lasting only seven days and seven nights; the disaster of pestilence arises for seven months and seven days; the disaster of famine arises for seven years, seven months, and seven days. The majority die. The survivors, upon seeing one another, give rise to rare appreciation and cherish each other affectionately. Turning away from killing, they gradually produce wholesome deeds; hence their lifespans and provisions increase and flourish again. When [lifespan] increases to eighty thousand years, a cakravartin king appears and transforms the people in accordance with the Dharma. When it decreases, the Bhagavān appears to rescue sentient beings. Between the times of increase and decrease, pratyekabuddhas appear in the world to serve as fields of merit for all sentient beings. The kalpa of abiding also passes through twenty antarakalpas, and then the kalpa of destruction begins. First, the sentient world is destroyed: no sentient beings are born into the Avīci Hell. When the karma of those previously born there is exhausted, they are born into other destinies; if their karma is not yet exhausted, they are born in higher hells, or born into hells in other worlds, and the Avīci Hell becomes empty. In this way, the hells upward gradually empty and beings are born into the realm of hungry ghosts. Thus the hungry ghost and animal realms become empty. Among the human realm, except for the people of Uttarakuru, the rest, together with the desire-realm devas, without a teacher naturally attain the first dhyāna and are born into the First Dhyāna Heaven. The people of North Uttarakuru are born into the desire-realm heavens, and attaining the first dhyāna, are born into the First Dhyāna Heaven. Without a teacher, they naturally attain the second dhyāna and are born into the Second Dhyāna Heaven. From the Avīci Hell up to the Brahmā world, all becomes empty. This also passes through nineteen antarakalpas. Afterward, seven suns appear over the four continents. At first, no rain falls, and medicinal herbs, thickets, and forests all wither away. When the second sun appears, ditches and ponds dry up. When the third sun appears, the Gaṅgā River and others all run dry. When the fourth sun appears, Lake Anavatapta dries up. When the fifth sun appears, the ocean water drops to knee depth. When the sixth sun appears, the great ocean also runs dry. When the seventh sun appears, that bhājana-loka surges into a single mass of fire; from the Avīci Hell straight up to the Brahmā world, it is burned and destroyed by fire. This lasts for one antarakalpa; the kalpa of destruction in total lasts twenty antarakalpas. The kalpa of emptiness is likewise. In this manner, formation, abiding, destruction, and emptiness constitute eighty [antara]kalpas. In total, these eighty are called one mahākalpa, which is the measure of the lifespans of the Brahmapariṣadya and others.