雜譬喻經 1.36

1.36

Formerly, the Buddha and his disciples entered the city of Śrāvastī wishing to beg for food. By the roadside, they saw a pit containing the filth and refuse of the entire city, with all kinds of impure things inside it. He saw an old sow leading several piglets, lying together in the foul pit. Then the Buddha smiled, revealing his forty teeth and showing his four canines. From his four canines he emitted great rays of light that illuminated throughout the three thousand [great thousand worlds] and extended to the ten directions. The light circled the Buddha's body three times and entered through his chest. By the Dharma of the Buddhas, when they speak of hell matters, the light enters from the soles of the feet; when they wish to speak of animal matters, the light enters from the shoulders; when they wish to speak of hungry ghost matters, the light enters from the thighs; when they wish to speak of human matters, the light enters from the navel; when they wish to speak of deva matters, the light enters from the chest; when they wish to speak of śrāvaka matters, the light enters from the mouth; when they wish to speak of pratyekabuddha matters, the light enters from the mark between the eyebrows; and when they wish to speak of the matters of Buddhas and bodhisattvas, the light enters from the crown of the head. Seeing the light enter through his chest, Ānanda knew that the Buddha wished to speak of deva matters, and he immediately knelt on both knees and addressed the Buddha, asking about his intention. The Buddha said to Ānanda: "Countless kalpas ago, there was a śreṣṭhin who lacked male heirs and had only one daughter, who was exceptionally shapely and beautiful, intelligent, and articulate. The girl's parents loved and cherished her deeply. When the girl grew older, she spoke a verse asking her parents: 'All swift currents of water, / and the painful and pleasant events of the world— / from where do they originally arise, / and when will they cease?' Her parents heard this, and while rejoicing at her extraordinary elegance, they did not know what to say in response to this verse. The girl wished to understand this meaning, but received no answer, whereupon she fell into great sorrow and would no longer eat or drink. Seeing their daughter's sorrow, the parents became greatly alarmed and frightened, and immediately arranged a great assembly, inviting all the brahmins and elders of extensive wisdom, who gathered like clouds. After the offerings were set out, a small couch was set up in the midst of the gathering, upon which the girl sat, and she repeated the previous verse to question the crowd. The crowd remained silent, and none was able to answer. The śreṣṭhin then filled a platter with the seven treasures and proclaimed: 'Whoever can answer this, I will give this to him.' At that time, there was a brahmin who was handsome in appearance but of scant wisdom. Coveting the precious treasures, he said: 'I can answer it.' Hearing this, the girl spoke the verse to question the brahmin, who likewise did not understand the import of this verse's meaning, but simply said: 'This matter is completely nothing at all.' The girl contemplated this, and immediately attained the samādhi of nothingness. She then exclaimed herself: 'This is a true great master who has benefited me greatly!' After her life ended, the girl was born above into the realm of nothingness, and after forty kalpas, when her heavenly lifespan came to an end, she came to be born here." The śreṣṭhin's daughter of that time is indeed the body of this old sow. Her heavenly merit having been exhausted and her past offences having arrived, she received a pig's form in this world. When this girl originally spoke the verse and asked her question, had she met an enlightened teacher, she would have attained the Way. Although this girl practised dhyāna concentration, she lacked wisdom; and when the retribution of her concentration came to an end, she fell back into the evil destinies.