三寶感應要略錄 1.43

1.43

安息國人不識佛法。居邊地鄙質愚氣。時有鸚鵡鳥。其色黃金青白文飾。能作人語。王臣人民共愛。身肥氣力弱。有人問曰。汝以何物為食。曰我聞阿彌陀佛唱以為食。身肥力強。若欲養我。可唱佛名。諸人競唱。鳥漸飛騰空中還住地。鳥曰。汝等欲見豐饒土不。答欲見之。鳥曰。若欲見當乘我羽。諸人乘其羽翼。力猶少弱。鳥勸令念佛。即飛騰虛空中。指西方而去。王臣歎異曰。此是阿彌陀佛。化作鳥身。引攝邊鄙。豈非現身往生。即於彼地立精舍。號鸚鵡寺。每齋日修念佛三昧。以其已來。安息國人。少識佛法。往生淨土者蓋多矣。

The people of Parthia did not know the Buddha's Dharma; dwelling in a border land, they were uncultivated and ignorant. At that time, there was a parrot, its colors adorned with patterns of gold, blue, and white, and it could speak human language. The king, ministers, and common people all cherished it. Its body was plump, but its strength was weak. Someone asked it, 'What do you eat?' It replied: 'I hear the chanting of Amitābha Buddha and take it as food; my body becomes plump and my strength strong. If you wish to nourish me, you should chant the Buddha's name.' Everyone vied to chant it. The bird gradually flew up into the air and returned to alight on the ground. The bird said: 'Do you wish to see an abundant and opulent land or not?' They replied: 'We wish to see it.' The bird said: 'If you wish to see it, you must mount my feathers.' When the people mounted its wings, its strength was still slightly weak. The bird urged them to be mindful of the Buddha, and it immediately flew up into empty space, pointing to the west as it departed. The king and ministers sighed in wonder, saying: 'This was Amitābha Buddha transforming into a bird's body to guide and gather the people of this border region. Was this not a bodily rebirth [in the Pure Land]?' Thereupon they established a vihāra on that ground, named the Parrot Temple. On every vegetarian fast day, they cultivated the samādhi of mindfulness of the Buddha. From that time onward, the people of Parthia came to know something of the Buddha's Dharma, and those who attained rebirth in the Pure Land were exceedingly many.