傳法正宗記 3.48

3.48

伽耶舍多者。摩提國人也。姓欝頭藍氏。父曰天蓋。母曰方聖。初方聖得孕之時。夢有人持一寶鑑而嚮之曰。我來也。及寤覺體暢於平日。然其室即有異香。祥光數現。方七日而誕大士。其體瑩然若淨瑠璃生十二歲。不浴而常潔。每以閑寂自處。或與人語。言必高勝。其家本居寶落迦山。及生大士乃有紫雲蓋之。初僧伽難提來其家相求。大士因而師之。尋得付法。遂往化於月支國。先是其國有婆羅門。曰鳩摩羅多。家有一犬而食息。偏處其舍之簷下。霖潦漬濕未始暫離。如此十載。雖苦驅亦不之去。羅多疑訝。欲得所決。當時羅多年方三十。意氣勇壯。不顧有果報。唯外道自然之說。樂聞而師之。尋以問其所師梵志曰。此犬者何以而然。梵志曰。犬之心自好而然。非因緣也。羅多復曰。我夜嘗夢一金日。其明赫然照曜天地。而我與梵志方在暗室。其日之光忽來燭之。我之身即如瑠璃。徐有無數螻蟻。周而食之。師之體則洗然無物。斯何自而然。幸師原之。梵志亦以自然說之。皆無所驗。羅多疑既不決。遂曰。非適人意也。皆謂自然。何異夢而說夢。若別遇智者能為解釋。我願師之。即絕梵志而還。當此大士俄見有異氣起。即座而謂其眾曰。今所見者。大乘之氣也。復釋之曰。氣如金環。其事必圓。氣若玉璫。菩薩在旁。今氣類璫。其下必有聖人焉然佛亦記曰。吾滅之後。後五百年間。當有菩薩現月支國。其後復出一大士於此天竺國。繼世為二十祖。今之此瑞必其應也。尋率眾往其氣所。至是少頃果有婆羅門者。狀類三十許。人來問侍者曰。此師何人。侍者曰。此佛弟子也。婆羅門即返閉戶。大士曰。適氣乃驗在此家。遂叩其扉。內有應曰。此舍無人。大士曰。答無者誰。鳩摩羅多以外語有異。疑必智者。思求決前事。乃開戶納之。遜大士坐其主榻。盛列供養。因以犬事問之曰。若智者所說。解我疑心。即師事之。大士曰。吾說若有所驗。汝實如其言乎。曰不妄。大士遂為辯之曰。此犬者是汝之父。以有微業乃墮畜中。昔汝父。先以黃金千𮡻。貯於器中而竊埋簷下。及其死。會汝不在。未得所付。今故戀此。若汝取之。是犬必去。羅多命工發掘。果然得金。其犬即去。羅多信之。乃慕佛法。復以昔夢聞之。大士亦為原之曰。汝夢日者。蓋佛日也。照曜天地者。度二眾也。二人處暗室者。心未明了也。日光照身者。出無明宅也。身如瑠璃者汝所清淨也。彼體無物者。自利一身非能度他也。蟻食汝身者。必眾知識之所湊泊。食汝法味也。羅多以二事皆決。意大廓然。益加歎伏。遂師之出家。擔專給侍。然大士以其道力夙充。雖列之弟子。獨器異之。故命聖眾與受具戒。欲速其證果。後果命曰。昔如來以大法眼付之迦葉。乃至於我。我今用傳於汝。汝受吾教。聽是偈曰。

Gayāśata was a native of the country of Mātī. His surname was Uddalaka. His father was named Tiangai, and his mother was named Fangcheng. When Fangcheng first became pregnant, she dreamed of a person holding a jeweled mirror and facing her, saying, 'I have come.' When she awoke, she felt her body was more refreshed than usual. Thereupon an extraordinary fragrance filled her chamber, and auspicious lights appeared several times. In just seven days, she gave birth to the Great Being. His body was sparkling and pure like clear lapis lazuli. At twelve years of age, he was always clean without bathing. He always remained in leisure and stillness; whenever he spoke with others, his words were invariably lofty and superior. His family originally lived on Mount Baoluoja, and when the Great Being was born, purple clouds formed a canopy over it. At first, when Saṅghanandi came to his home to seek him out, the Great Being took him as his teacher and soon received the transmission of the Dharma. He then traveled to convert [beings] in the country of the Yuezhi. Prior to this, there was a brāhmaṇa in that country named Kumāralata. In his household there was a dog that ate and rested exclusively beneath the eaves of his house; even when drenching rains soaked the ground, it never left for a moment. It went on like this for ten years, and although he tried hard to drive it away, it would not go. Lata was suspicious and astonished, and wished to have this resolved. At that time Lata was just thirty years old, high-spirited and vigorous; paying no heed to karmic retribution, he only took pleasure in hearing and following the non-Buddhist doctrine of nature. Soon he asked the brāhmaṇa master whom he followed, 'Why is this dog like this?' The brāhmaṇa said, 'The dog's own heart likes it, that is why; it is not due to causes and conditions.' Lata said further, 'At night I once dreamed of a golden sun whose brilliance shone brightly across heaven and earth, while the brāhmaṇa master and I were in a dark room. The sun's light suddenly came to illuminate it, and my body became like lapis lazuli. Slowly, countless ants swarmed all over and devoured it, whereas the master's body was clean and devoid of anything. Whence did this arise? I hope master will explain it.' The brāhmaṇa also explained it through nature, but none of it proved true. His doubts remaining unresolved, Lata thereupon said, 'This does not satisfy me! Saying everything is nature—how does that differ from speaking of dreams within a dream? If I can meet another wise person who can explain this, I vow to take him as my teacher.' He immediately broke off with the brāhmaṇa and returned. At that moment, the Great Being suddenly saw an extraordinary vapor arise. Seated, he said to his assembly, 'What we see now is the vapor of the Mahāyāna.' He further explained it, saying, 'When the vapor is like a golden ring, the matter will surely be complete; when the vapor is like a jade earring, a bodhisattva is nearby. Now the vapor resembles an earring; beneath it there must surely be a sage. Furthermore, the Buddha also predicted: "Five hundred years after my extinction, a bodhisattva shall appear in the country of the Yuezhi; after that, another Great Being shall appear here in India to succeed the lineage as the twentieth patriarch." Today's auspicious sign must surely correspond to this.' Soon he led the assembly to the location of the vapor. A short while after arriving, there was indeed a brāhmaṇa, looking about thirty years old, who came to ask an attendant, 'What person is this master?' The attendant said, 'This is a disciple of the Buddha.' The brāhmaṇa immediately went back and shut his door. The Great Being said, 'The vapor just now was verified at this house.' He then knocked on the door. From inside came the reply, 'There is no one in this house.' The Great Being said, 'Who is answering that there is no one?' Kumāralata, finding the words outside extraordinary and suspecting he must be a wise man, thought to seek a resolution to the previous matters, and so opened the door to receive him. He deferred to the Great Being to sit on the host's couch and set out abundant offerings. He then asked him about the matter of the dog, saying, 'If what the wise one says resolves my doubts, I will serve you as my teacher.' The Great Being said, 'If what I say is verified, will you truly act in accordance with your words?' He replied, 'I will not speak falsely.' The Great Being then explained it to him, saying, 'This dog is your father. Because of a slight karma, he fell into the realm of animals. Formerly, your father stored a thousand ingots of yellow gold in a vessel and secretly buried it beneath the eaves. When he died, you happened not to be present, so he had no way to entrust it to you. Now he remains attached to it for this reason. If you retrieve it, this dog will surely leave.' Lata ordered laborers to dig it up, and indeed found the gold. The dog immediately departed. Lata believed him, and thus came to admire the Buddha's Dharma. He then recounted his past dream to him. The Great Being also explained it for him, saying, 'The sun you dreamed of is the Buddha-sun. Its illuminating heaven and earth means the salvation of the two assemblies. The two people in a dark room means that your minds were not yet clear. The sunlight illuminating your body means departing the house of ignorance. Your body being like lapis lazuli means the purity of your state. His body having nothing on it means benefiting only his own person and being unable to cross others over. The ants devouring your body means that spiritual friends will converge and partake of your Dharma-flavor.' Lata, having both matters resolved, felt his mind greatly opened and clear, and admired and submitted even more. He thereupon took him as teacher and left home, bearing tasks exclusively to serve him. Because his spiritual power had long been replete, though he ranked him among his disciples, the Great Being uniquely regarded him as an extraordinary vessel; therefore he instructed the holy assembly to administer the full precepts to him, desiring him to quickly realize the fruit. Later, he indeed instructed him, saying, 'Formerly the Tathāgata entrusted the great Dharma-eye to Kāśyapa, down to myself; I now transmit it to you. Receive my teaching and listen to this verse:'