釋迦譜 1.397

1.397

The Puyao jing says: At that time, the warriors and elders of the Śākya clan reported to King Śuddhodana, "If the prince becomes a Buddha, the lineage of the universal monarch will be severed." The king said, "What fair maiden would be suitable as consort to the prince?" The Bodhisattva thought to himself: "I am free from desire and have come, descending from Tuṣita. Through skillful means, I shall now test them." He commanded a master artisan to fashion an exquisite golden statue, inscribed with characters stating: "Only a woman whose virtue and righteousness are as I have stated may respond to the betrothal." Thereupon King Śuddhodana commanded the right-hand brāhmaṇa to enter Kapilavastu and make a comprehensive search. The brāhmaṇa traversed the city and beheld a fair maiden, pure as a lotus blossom and resembling the jewel of a maiden. The king asked, "Whose daughter is she?" The brāhmaṇa replied, "She is the daughter of the Śākya Daṇḍapāṇi." The king said, "Lest she not be to his liking, let him choose for himself." He summoned the beautiful maidens of the city to gather in the lecture hall. At that time, the Śākya maiden Gopī went to the Bodhisattva's place and gazed intently upon the Bodhisattva without blinking. The Bodhisattva smiled with joy, took a precious flower, and gave it to Gopī. Gopī replied, "I do not covet jewels; one should adorn oneself with merit." The king sent the brāhmaṇa to act as matchmaker for this maiden. The Śākya Daṇḍapāṇi said, "By our custom, she will only be given in marriage to one who possesses the martial arts." The king asked the Bodhisattva, "Can you display the arts?" The Bodhisattva said, "I can." The king issued a widespread edict throughout the kingdom, sounding the bell and beating the drum: "Seven days hence, the prince will display his arts. All who possess the arts shall assemble; to the victor the Śākya maiden shall be given." Thereupon Devadatta dragged an elephant with his right hand and struck it dead with his left. When Nanda came out of the city, he dragged it and moved it to the roadside. When the Bodhisattva came out of the city gate, he said, "This elephant's body is huge and its stench foully permeates the interior of the city." Thereupon, catching it with his right palm, he cast it outside the city. At that time, the great minister Arka was foremost in mathematics; in discourse and calculation, he too could not match [the Bodhisattva]. The Bodhisattva could know one by one the count of trees, medicinal herbs, and drops of water. In gambling games of dice and liubo, astronomy, and geography—among all the eighty thousand distinct arts and in all assemblies, none could equal the Bodhisattva. Devadatta and Nanda wished to grapple barehanded with the Bodhisattva. Pitying them, the Bodhisattva lifted Devadatta's body into the air and spun him around three times without causing his body any pain. The king and the Śākyas wished further to test archery. Devadatta set up an iron drum at forty li; Nanda alone set one at sixty li; the Bodhisattva at one hundred li. Devadatta shot and struck the drum at forty li, but could not pierce it. Nanda at sixty li likewise could not hit the mark. When the Bodhisattva drew his bow, the bow immediately broke. He asked, "Is there another bow capable of being used by me?" The king said, "The bow held and used by my grandfather is unique and peerless; none has been able to use it. It is placed in the heavenly temple; it may be brought forth." None among all the Śākyas was able to string it. The Bodhisattva strung it with a press of his hand; the twang of the bow was heard throughout the entire city. Nocking an arrow, he loosed it; it struck the drum at one hundred li. The arrow sank into the earth, and a gushing spring spontaneously surged forth; it struck the Iron Encompassing Mountains, and the trichiliocosm shook in six ways. All the Śākyas marveled, for such a thing had never occurred before. At that time, the Śākya Daṇḍapāṇi gave his daughter Gopī to be the Bodhisattva's consort. Conforming to worldly customs, they manifested mutual amusement. / The Xiuxing benqi jing says: When the prince reached the age of seventeen, the king selected famous maidens for him, but none pleased him. There was a king of a small state named Suprabuddha, which in Chinese means 'Good Awakening'. His daughter was named Gopī, extraordinarily upright and with few peers. Eight kingdoms all sought her hand, but he gave her to none of them. King Śuddhodana summoned him and told him, "I wish to wed your daughter to the prince." Suprabuddha was sorrowful, fearing that if he did not grant it, he might face punitive attack, but if he gave her, he would incur enmity with the other states. The daughter said, "Declare to King Śuddhodana: 'Only to the one in the kingdom who is supreme in valor and martial arts will I belong.'" The king ordered his ministers all to go forth to the martial grounds. The prince hurled the elephant and struck the Iron Encompassing Mountains with his arrow. Suprabuddha sent his daughter directly to the prince's palace. / The Ruiying benqi jing says: When the prince was seventeen, the king arranged a marriage for him. Having screened and selected several thousand maidens, the final one was named Gopī, foremost in uprightness and complete in decorum and righteousness; she was indeed the flower-selling maiden from past lifetimes. Although the prince married her, long went by without intimate contact. The woman, having sexual desire, had the wish to draw near to him. The prince said, "If we constantly obtain fine flowers and place them between us, viewing them together, would that not be delightful?" Gopī then prepared fine flowers and wished again to draw near to him. The prince said, "Cast away these flowers, lest their sap stain the bed mat." A long time later, he said again, "If we obtain fine white cotton cloth and place it between us, viewing it together, would that not also be delightful?" The wife then prepared the cloth and again wished to draw near. The prince said, "Cast it away; a person's sweat and grime will surely defile this cloth." The wife did not dare draw near. The maidservants all suspected that the prince was incapable of being a man. The prince pointed with his finger at his consort's belly and said, "Six years from now, you shall give birth to a boy." Thereupon she became pregnant.