往生集 3.16

3.16

天竺雞頭摩寺。五通菩薩。以神力往安樂國。見阿彌陀佛。陳云。娑婆眾生。願生淨土。無佛形儀。請垂降許。佛言。汝應先行。尋當現彼。五通還。聖儀已至一佛五十菩薩。各坐蓮華。在樹葉上。遂傳寫流布。見感通傳。

At the Kukkuṭārāma Monastery in India, a bodhisattva with the five superknowledges traveled by spiritual power to the Land of Peace and Joy, met Amitābha Buddha, and stated: 'Sentient beings of the Sahā world wish to be born in the Pure Land, but lack the Buddha's form and bearing. We request that you deign to grant it.' The Buddha said: 'You should go first; it will soon appear there.' When the one of five superknowledges returned, the holy image had already arrived: one Buddha and fifty bodhisattvas, each sitting on a lotus, upon tree leaves. It was subsequently transcribed and disseminated. This is seen in the Gantong zhuan.