釋迦譜 1.93

1.93

瑞應本起云。王自到田上。遙見太子樹為曲枝隨陰其軀。王悚然寐寤驚。不識下馬作禮。太子拜曰。今一適此。大王何宜抂來。得道當還不忘此誓。菩薩脫寶衣以付車匿。還啟白父王及以舍夷。若成正覺當復來還。車匿淚下如雨。白馬跪地舐菩薩足。王覩寶衣車匿白馬來還。不見太子。自投墮地。我子今為所至。俱夷悲哀抱白馬頸。太子乘汝何以獨來。王念菩薩不捨心懷。普召大臣。卿等長子抱孫共相娛樂。吾有一子。離別入山。擇取卿等子弟五人追而侍之。若中來者還滅汝族。五人追之不能及逮。心自念言。是為逸人。行不擇路。何道之有。歸去滅種不如住此。甘菓美泉悉無所乏。菩薩自念欲。作沙門至山水邊。定止天王知心持刀來。帝釋受髮。則成沙門。肉髻在處。大善權經云。菩薩自剃頭髮。諸天龍神無能見頂。況能除髮。菩薩念白淨王。當起恨意。誰剃子首。聞自剃之王乃默然。是為方便。菩薩往至尼連水邊。閑居寂然。思惟六年示大勤苦。日服一麻一米。結跏趺坐亦不傾側。大雨雷電冬夏默坐。未曾舉手以自障蔽。眾人怪之。取草木投耳鼻中。亦不棄去。

The Ruiying benqi jing says: The king went in person to the fields, and saw from afar that the tree had bent its branches over the prince, following him to shade his body. The king was startled awake from a daze, and in astonishment, not realizing what he was doing, dismounted and bowed in homage. The prince bowed and said: 'I have merely come here this once; why should the Great King have troubled himself to come? When I attain the Path, I shall return and not forget this vow.' The Bodhisattva took off his precious robes and gave them to Chandaka: 'Return and report to my father the king and to Sheyi: "When I attain correct awakening, I will return once more."' Chandaka's tears fell like rain. The white horse knelt on the ground and licked the Bodhisattva's feet. When the king saw the precious robes, Chandaka, and the white horse returning, but did not see the prince, he threw himself upon the ground: 'Where has my son gone now?' Guoyi grieved and embraced the white horse's neck: 'The prince rode you; why have you returned alone?' The king, thinking of the Bodhisattva, could not let go of the longing in his heart. He summoned all his ministers: 'You, my elders, hold your grandchildren and take delight together. I have an only son, who has departed to enter the mountains. I select five of your sons and younger brothers to pursue and attend upon him. If any of you return halfway, I shall exterminate your clan.' The five men pursued him but could not catch up. They thought to themselves: 'This is a fugitive, traveling without choosing roads; what Path could he possess? If we return, our clans will be destroyed; it is better to remain here, where sweet fruits and fine springs are completely without lack.' The Bodhisattva thought to himself that he wished to become a śramaṇa. Reaching the edge of the mountain waters, he settled there. A heavenly king, knowing his thought, came holding a knife. Śakra received the hair, and he thereby became a śramaṇa, with the uṣṇīṣa remaining in place. The Da shanquan jing says: The Bodhisattva shaved his own hair; neither the devas, nāgas, nor spirits could see the crown of his head, much less cut his hair. The Bodhisattva thought: 'King Śuddhodana would surely feel resentment, asking who had shaved his son's head.' Hearing that he had shaved it himself, the king fell silent. This was an expedient means. The Bodhisattva went to the banks of the Nairañjanā River. Living in quiet seclusion, he contemplated for six years, demonstrating great austerities. Daily he took a single hemp seed and a single grain of rice, sitting cross-legged without tilting to either side. In heavy rains, thunder, and lightning, through winter and summer, he sat in silence, never once lifting a hand to shield himself. People marveled at him, and inserted grass and sticks into his ears and nose, yet he did not brush them away.