傳法正宗記 1.20

1.20

天地更始。而閻浮洲方有王者興曰大人。大人者沒。後王因之繼作而不已。古今殆不可勝數。然其聖神而有異德者。謂之轉輪王。德不至者。謂之粟散王。既德有大小。而其所治亦從之降殺。自四天下減之至于三二。至于一天下。至于列國。其所謂王者。雖更萬億之世。而釋氏一姓相襲不絕。益後世有王者曰大善生。大善生出懿師摩。懿師摩出憂羅陀。憂羅陀出瞿羅。瞿羅出尼浮羅。尼浮羅出師子頰。師子頰出淨飯（亦曰浮飯）然此七世皆王。獨懿師摩淨飯號為聖王。如來即出於淨飯聖王者也。生於中天竺國。釋迦其姓也。牟尼尊稱也。始如來以往世會然燈佛。於蓮華大城。因布髮席其所履。以至敬然燈。遂受之記曰。汝後成佛如我。其號釋迦牟尼。後之更劫無數聖人。皆積修勝德。逮迦葉佛世。迺以菩薩成道。上生於覩史陀天。應其補處。號護明大士。說法天上。以度天眾。及其應運適至。迺會天人。議所下生。眾未有所定。大士乃自以迦毘羅國處閻浮提之中。白淨飯王者。其家世世帝王。聖德之至真轉輪族。宜因之以生。於見示天衰相。將欲下化。然天眾皆泣。願更留之。大士乃為說往生成佛之意。以釋其攀緣。大士即捐天壽。示乘白象從日中降神于其母右脇。淨飯之后摩耶氏。是夕遽白王曰。令我潔身請奉八關齋法。王從之。尋夢。大士以所乘入其右脇而止諸天慕為其屬。同時生於人間者無限。其始在孕。則母體大寧。自得禪樂。及其將生。摩耶乃意往園苑。如宮監者即嚴寶輦。王復廣詔侍衛以從之。至園之無憂樹下。其花方妍。后欲取之舉手。而聖子乃自其右脇而誕。神龍即澍水以澡之。地發金蓮以承之。聖子乃四方各蹈七步。以手上下指之曰。四維上下唯我最尊。如內謁者以喜入奏。王聞以其無數貴屬偕至視之。乃不勝大慶。是時也天神地祗皆見而祝之曰。願大士速成正覺。王尋持之與謁天廟。天像起為之致禮。還宮大集賢者。為其名之。眾乃上號曰薩婆悉達。及募相者。而仙人阿私陀應召。方見聖子。遽禮其足而泣曰。此三界之至尊也。年至十九當為轉輪王。不爾則出家成佛。度人無量。恨吾老矣。不能見之。王以仙人之言憂之。益謹寶守。稍長當命師傅教以世書。聖子乃以其法問之。而師皆不能對至。於世所有藝天文地理射御百工之事。皆不待教而能之。未幾立為太子。而付之國寶。然聖人已大潔清。雖示同世娶。而非有凡意。以夙業緣乃指其妃之腹云。却後六年汝當生男。一旦命駕欲遊。雖更出四門。而皆有所遇。終以其老病死與沙門者感之。而出家之意愈篤。既還乃以其志建白父王。王以國無聖嗣。乃執太子手泣之。欲阻其心。會淨居天人自天而至。禮太子足曰。大士夙務勝德。出家今其時矣。請宜往之。太子曰。如汝之言。然宿衛甚嚴。欲何以往。天人乃以神通厭其守者。皆昏睡不能覺。太子遂密命御者車匿。車匿控神驥犍陟來前。然而馬悲御泣。太子慰之。明相遽發。光燭大千。太子曰。過去諸佛出家亦然。於是諸天為捧馬之足。并接車匿。自其城之北門。超然陵虛而去。太子復曰。不斷八苦不轉法輪。不成無上菩提終不還也。天之眾稱善。為其誌之。及至其山號旃特者。初小息林間。遂釋衣冠。自以所佩寶劍絕其鬚髮。誓曰。願共一切斷此煩惱。即以髮授之天帝。當是淨居。天化人以麁布（別本或云鹿布）僧伽黎。請易太子寶衣。因得法服。服之益進。其山之嘉處曰彌樓寶山。居其阿藍伽藍其舊隱仙人。見太子皆致敬讓。坐與其論法。及遣還車匿。父王思甚。必欲歸之。雖諫者不聽。卒詔迎之。其臣屬來請者萬計。雖諭勸懇至。而確然益不迴其意。乃留憍陳如等五人。以充侍衛。於此聖人乃習不用處定三年。既而以其法非至捨之。復進欝頭藍處。習非非想定三年（即調伏阿羅邏迦蘭二仙人處也）復以其法不至。進象頭山雜外道輩。為之苦行。日食麻麥。居六載而外道亦化。聖人乃自思之曰。今此苦行非正解脫。吾當受食而後成佛。即沐浴於泥連河。天為之偃樹。聖人援之而出。受牧牛氏女所獻乳糜。尋詣畢鉢樹下。天帝化人。擷瑞草以席其坐。景雲祥風雜然交至。天魔駭之。帥其眾乃來作難。聖人以指按地。而地大震。魔皆顛仆。於是降之尋以二月七日之夕。入正三昧。八日明星出時。示廓然大悟。乃成等正覺。是時大地震搖。天地瑞事畢出而應之。天者魔者人者神者。交集以致敬。及昇金剛座。天帝師之。請轉法輪。先是憍陳如五人。侍從於山中。至此首與度之。故入鹿野苑談四諦法。然因是而得道果者亦億計。既而語諸比丘曰。汝等皆可為世福田。宜其各往化物。如來遂獨之摩竭提國。其國先有奇人。號優樓迦葉。弟兄三人。皆得仙術。頗以其道自高。有徒數千。及如來至。乃靡然從化。與其徒皆得證道。初瓶沙王有竹林園。號為美景。王嘗心自計曰如來若先詣我。我則捨此。如來即知其意。遂往止其園。王喜聞遽大列導從。不啻千萬來趨。如來既見。而眾或疑之。如來即命迦葉。為之說法。以解其惑。王眾與無量天人遂得法眼。乃施其園為之精舍。請如來館之。居未幾。會有比丘分衛於王舍城。而舍利弗目犍連聞法於其人。因得開悟。遂與之返如來曰。彼二來者當為我上足弟子於是。度之。初大迦葉自去鬚髮入山習禪。一旦空中有神告曰。今佛出世。汝蓋師之。以是亦趣竹林精舍既至如來起迎顧謂眾曰。吾滅後而法被來出六萬歲者。此人之力也。是時如來成道已六載矣。而與其父王未始相見。王甚懷之。侍臣優陀夷。請往道王久別之意。因請歸國。陀夷既來。如來慰之。尋亦得道成第四果。即遣還國告父王曰。佛後七日乃來歸也。至期王出其國四十里。大羅儀仗以迎如來。慶動天地。王相見大喜。因詔其族五百貴子從之出家。及其還宮也羅睺羅禮之。持聖人之衣而告之曰。此正如來也。用是為母釋其群疑。然而福被無極。生靈賴之。家國遂大。嚮其教化。自是應機說法。天上也人間也。龍宮也他方也。所至皆作大饒益。然其聖神之所為。不可得而備紀。其後以化期將近。乃命摩訶迦葉曰。吾以清淨法眼涅槃妙心實相無相微妙正法。今付於汝。汝當護持。并勅阿難副貳傳化無令斷絕。而說偈曰。

When heaven and earth began anew, on the continent of Jambudvīpa there first arose kings called 'great men'. After the 'great men' passed away, subsequent kings succeeded them continuously in succession; from antiquity to the present, they are scarcely countable. Among them, however, those who were holy and spiritual and possessed extraordinary virtues were called wheel-turning kings (cakravartin). Those whose virtues did not reach this standard were called 'scattered millet' kings. Since their virtues varied in magnitude, the realms they governed were diminished accordingly: reduced from the four continents to three, to two, down to a single continent, and down to the various regional realms. Though those called kings underwent tens of thousands of eons of generations, the single Śākya lineage succeeded one another without interruption. Later there was a king named Mahāsaṃmata (Great Good Birth). Mahāsaṃmata begot Rōza; Rōza begot Vararocana; Vararocana begot Kalyāṇa; Kalyāṇa begot Varakalyāṇa; Varakalyāṇa begot Siṃhahanu; Siṃhahanu begot Śuddhodana (also called White Rice). These seven generations were all kings, but only Rōza and Śuddhodana were titled sage-kings. The Tathāgata was born from this sage-king Śuddhodana. He was born in the land of Central Tianzhu (India); Śākya was his clan name, and Muni was an honorific title. Formerly, in a past age, the Tathāgata met Dīpaṅkara Buddha in the great city of Padmāvatī. Spreading his hair on the ground over which the Buddha walked to express utmost veneration to Dīpaṅkara, he received the prophecy: 'In the future, you will become a Buddha like me; your name will be Śākyamuni.' Later, traversing countless kalpas, as a sage he constantly accumulated and cultivated supreme virtues. When the time of Kāśyapa Buddha arrived, he attained the path as a bodhisattva and ascended to be reborn in Tuṣita Heaven, fulfilling the station of being in the next life to become Buddha, with the title Great Being Bright Protector (Prabhāpāla). Preaching the Dharma in heaven, he delivered the heavenly hosts. When his destined time to respond arrived, he assembled the devas and deliberated on where to descend and be born. While the assembly had not yet decided, the Great Being saw that the kingdom of Kapilavastu was situated in the center of Jambudvīpa, and that King Śuddhodana's family had been emperors and kings for generations, possessing supreme sage-virtues, truly a lineage of wheel-turning monarchs; it was fitting to take birth through them. Thereupon he manifested the five signs of decay of a deva, preparing to descend to transform [the world]. The heavenly assembly all wept, wishing him to remain longer. The Great Being then expounded to them the intention of going to take birth and attain Buddhahood in order to release their attachment. The Great Being then relinquished his heavenly lifespan, manifested riding a white elephant descending from the sun, and entered spiritually into his mother's right side. That evening, King Śuddhodana's queen, Lady Māyā, suddenly addressed the king, saying: 'Please allow me to purify my body and uphold the Eightfold Precepts.' The king consented. Soon she dreamed that the Great Being, on his mount, entered her right side and remained there. Countless devas, longing to become his retinue, simultaneously took birth in the human realm. When he was first in the womb, his mother's body was in supreme tranquility, naturally experiencing the joy of dhyāna. When he was about to be born, Māyā wished to go to the pleasure garden. The palace superintendent immediately adorned a jeweled carriage, and the king further issued a broad decree for guards to accompany her. Arriving under an aśoka tree in the garden, its blossoms were in full splendor. The queen raised her hand wishing to pluck them, and the Holy Child was born from her right side. Spiritual nāgas then showered water to bathe him; the earth produced golden lotuses to receive his feet. The Holy Child took seven steps in each of the four directions, pointed one hand upward and one downward, and said: 'Above, below, and in the four cardinal directions, I alone am the most honored.' The inner palace usher joyfully entered to report to the king. Hearing this, the king, accompanied by his countless noble kin, went to behold him, filled with boundless great celebration. At that time, the heavenly gods and earth spirits all appeared and prayed, saying: 'May the Great Being swiftly attain complete enlightenment.' The king soon took him to visit the temple of the gods; the statues of the devas stood up and paid homage to him. Returning to the palace, a great assembly of wise men was held to name him; the assembly presented the title Sarvārthasiddha. When fortune-tellers were recruited, the hermit Asita answered the summons. Upon seeing the Holy Child, he hastily bowed at his feet and wept, saying: 'This is the most honored one of the three realms. At the age of nineteen, he will become a wheel-turning king; otherwise, he will leave home and become a Buddha, delivering immeasurable people. Alas, I am old and will not live to see it.' The king was troubled by the hermit's words and guarded him even more carefully as a treasure. As he grew older, teachers were appointed to instruct him in worldly texts. The Holy Child questioned them on their principles, and the teachers were unable to respond. As for all the worldly skills—astronomy, geography, archery, charioteering, and the hundred crafts—he mastered them all without needing instruction. Before long, he was installed as the crown prince and entrusted with the realm's treasures. However, the sage was already exceedingly pure; though appearing to take a wife according to worldly custom, he harbored no ordinary desires. By virtue of past karmic conditions, he pointed to his consort's belly and said: 'Six years from now, you will give birth to a son.' One day, he ordered his chariot to go on an excursion; though he went out through the four gates in turn, each time he encountered something. Ultimately moved by the sight of old age, sickness, death, and a śramaṇa, his resolve to leave home became even firmer. Upon returning, he presented his intention to his father, the king. Because the realm lacked another sage heir, the king took the prince's hand and wept, wishing to dissuade his mind. It happened that devas from the Śuddhāvāsa Heaven arrived from above, bowed at the prince's feet, and said: 'Great Being, you have long cultivated supreme virtues; the time to leave home has now arrived. Please depart.' The prince said: 'It is as you say, but the palace guards are very strict; how can I depart?' The devas then used supernatural powers to enchant the guards so that all fell into a deep sleep and could not awaken. The prince then secretly ordered his charioteer Chandaka, who led the divine steed Kaṇṭhaka forward. The horse grieved and the charioteer wept; the prince consoled them. The morning star suddenly appeared, its light illuminating the great trichiliocosm. The prince said: 'The leaving-home of the past Buddhas was likewise thus.' Thereupon, the devas held up the horse's hooves and lifted Chandaka; soaring through the air, they departed from the northern gate of the city. The prince further declared: 'If I do not sever the eight sufferings, do not turn the Dharma wheel, and do not attain unsurpassed bodhi, I will never return.' The heavenly assembly praised him, saying 'Excellent!', and recorded his vow. Arriving at the mountain called Chandaka, he first rested briefly in the forest. He then took off his robes and crown, cut off his beard and hair with his own jeweled sword, and vowed: 'May I, together with all beings, sever these afflictions.' He then handed his hair to Śakra. At that moment, a deva of the Śuddhāvāsa transformed into a person offering a saṅghāṭī of coarse cloth (another edition says deer hair), requesting to exchange it for the prince's precious robes. Thus obtaining the Dharma robes, he wore them and advanced further. At a fine place on the mountain called Mount Meru, dwelling in the hermitage of Ārāḍa Kālāma, the former recluse hermits saw the prince, paid homage, yielded their seats, and discussed the Dharma with him. When Chandaka was sent back, his father the king missed him intensely and insisted on his return; though counselors advised otherwise, he would not listen, ultimately issuing an edict to welcome him back. His ministers and subordinates who came to plead numbered in the tens of thousands; though their persuasion was earnest and deep, his resolve remained steadfast and unswerving. Thereupon, five men including Ājñāta-Kauṇḍinya were left behind to serve as his attendants. Here the sage practiced the samādhi of the sphere of nothingness for three years, and then abandoned it because its method was not ultimate. He advanced further to the place of Udraka Rāmaputra and practiced the samādhi of neither perception nor non-perception for three years (this was the place where he subdued the two hermits Ārāḍa and Kālāma); again, because this method was not ultimate, he proceeded to Mount Gayāśīrṣa among non-Buddhists to engage in austerities, eating only a single grain of hemp and wheat each day. Dwelling there for six years, even the non-Buddhists were converted. The sage then reflected: 'These current austerities are not true liberation; I must accept nourishment and only then attain Buddhahood.' He then bathed in the Nairañjanā River. A deva bent down a tree branch for him, and the sage took hold of it and emerged. He accepted the milk-rice porridge offered by the cowherd maiden Sujātā, and soon proceeded to the foot of the Pippala tree. Śakra transformed into a human and gathered auspicious grass to spread for his seat. Auspicious clouds and propitious winds mingled and arrived together. The heavenly māra was alarmed and led his hordes to create obstacles. The sage touched the ground with his finger, and the earth shook violently; the demons all tumbled over, and he thus subdued them. Soon after, on the night of the seventh day of the second month, he entered true samādhi. On the eighth day, at the appearance of the morning star, he manifested vast, great enlightenment and attained equal, complete awakening. At that time, the great earth trembled, and auspicious signs of heaven and earth all appeared in response. Devas, māras, humans, and spirits gathered together to pay homage. When he mounted the vajra seat, Śakra took him as teacher and requested him to turn the Dharma wheel. Prior to this, the five men including Kauṇḍinya had served him in the mountains; now, he delivered them first. Thus he entered the Deer Park to expound the Dharma of the Four Noble Truths. Those who attained the fruits of the path through this also numbered in the hundreds of millions. Afterwards, he addressed the monks, saying: 'All of you can serve as fields of merit for the world; each of you should go forth to transform beings.' The Tathāgata then traveled alone to the kingdom of Magadha. In that land there were previously extraordinary men known as Uruvilvā-Kāśyapa and his two brothers, all of whom had mastered hermit arts, took great pride in their ways, and had several thousand disciples. When the Tathāgata arrived, they surrendered and were converted; he and his disciples all attained the realization of the path. Formerly, King Bimbisāra possessed a bamboo grove park known for its beautiful scenery. The king had once privately resolved: 'If the Tathāgata visits me first, I will renounce this.' The Tathāgata, knowing his intention, went and stayed in that park. The king was overjoyed to hear this, hastily arranged a grand retinue of tens of thousands, and rushed to see him. When they met the Tathāgata, some among the assembly harbored doubts. The Tathāgata then commanded Kāśyapa to preach the Dharma for them to dispel their confusion. The king's assembly and immeasurable devas and humans thereupon attained the Dharma-eye. The king then donated the park as a monastery and invited the Tathāgata to dwell there. Not long after, a monk was receiving alms in Rājagṛha, and Śāriputra and Maudgalyāyana heard the Dharma from him; gaining enlightenment through this, they returned with him. The Tathāgata said: 'Those two who are coming shall be my foremost disciples.' Thereupon he ordained them. Earlier, Mahākāśyapa had personally shaved his hair and beard and entered the mountains to practice dhyāna. One day, a spirit in the sky told him: 'A Buddha has now appeared in the world; you should take him as your teacher.' Because of this, he also hastened to the Bamboo Grove Monastery. Upon his arrival, the Tathāgata rose to greet him, looked back, and said to the assembly: 'That my Dharma will spread for sixty thousand years after my parinirvāṇa is through this man's effort.' By this time, six years had passed since the Tathāgata's attainment of enlightenment, yet he had not once met his father, the king. The king longed for him deeply. His minister Udāyin requested permission to convey the king's feelings of long separation and ask him to return to his homeland. When Udāyin arrived, the Tathāgata consoled him; soon he also attained the path and achieved the fourth fruit (arhatship). The Buddha then dispatched him back to the realm to report to his father the king: 'The Buddha will return in seven days.' When the time arrived, the king went out forty li from his realm, setting out an elaborate ceremonial guard to welcome the Tathāgata, with a rejoicing that shook heaven and earth. The king was overjoyed to meet him and issued an edict allowing five hundred noble sons of his clan to follow him into the monastic life. When he returned to the palace, Rāhula bowed to him, took hold of the sage's robes, and told his mother: 'This is indeed the Tathāgata.' Through this, his mother's various doubts were dispelled. In this way, blessings were bestowed boundlessly, sentient beings relied upon him, and families and realms turned in great numbers toward his teachings. From then on, responding to capacities, he expounded the Dharma in the heavens, in the human realm, in the dragon palace, and in other realms; wherever he went, he wrought great benefit. However, the deeds of his holy spiritual presence cannot be fully recorded. Later, as his time of teaching was drawing to a close, he commanded Mahākāśyapa, saying: 'The pure Dharma-eye, the wondrous mind of nirvāṇa, the subtle, correct Dharma of the formless true aspect—I now entrust it to you. You must protect and uphold it, and instruct Ānanda to assist in transmitting and teaching it so that it is never cut off.' He then spoke a gāthā, saying: