付法藏因緣傳 4.2

4.2

King Aśoka had another son named Dharmavardhana. His appearance was handsome and proper, and his eyes were exceedingly extraordinary. At that time there was a bird named kuṇāla, whose eyes were bright and clear, resembling that child's; hence they named this son Kuṇāla. When he grew up, a wife was wed to him, named Śuddhamatī. The King brought his son to the Kukkuṭārāma monastery. The elder Yaśas, knowing that he was destined to lose his eyes, told him: "Eyes are impermanent; they must inevitably be destroyed and cannot be relied upon. You should exert diligent effort to seek supreme liberation." At that time, Kuṇāla accepted the instruction and returned to the palace, contemplating these eyes as suffering, empty, and perishable. The King's chief queen, named Tiṣyarakṣitā, gave rise to extreme lustful attachment toward Kuṇāla; with the fire of desire blazing vehemently, she pressed him to have sexual intercourse. By nature the prince was inherently pure and chaste; his resolve was firm, and he would not comply with her command. Tiṣyarakṣitā harbored intense hatred. At that time Kuṇāla was governing within the city of Takṣaśilā; that chief queen was constantly watching for an opportunity. It happened that the King fell ill, becoming exceedingly distressed and critical; the queen treated him, and he was immediately cured. She requested the wish to take the King's throne for seven days. Having received permission, she then wished to avenge her grievance, and secretly sealed a letter ordering that his eyes be gouged out. The prince complied with the order, seeking a villain to extract his right eye and place it in his palm to look upon it. He then remembered Yaśas's original admonition and said: "True indeed is the Venerable's instruction! It is authentic, certain, and not false. He said eyes are impermanent, just like an illusion. Formerly I regarded these eyes as extraordinary and subtle; today, deeply contemplating them, what can be loved and attached to? I shall renounce this fragile and rotting phenomenon, and single-mindedly seek the most supreme, pure eye of wisdom." While making this contemplation, he attained the fruit of srotāpanna. Having the other eye extracted, he again contemplated deeply; his feeling of disgust reached its culmination, and he attained the fruit of sakṛdāgāmin. When his wife Śuddhamatī heard that her husband's eyes had been gouged out, weeping loudly with tears falling like rain, she came in shock and weeping; having seen him, she fell unconscious, reviving only after a long while. At that time Kuṇāla spoke a verse to instruct her, saying: