三寶感應要略錄 2.23

2.23

昔如來滅後一百年中。夜分有一人天。放光來下阿難塔所。散花供養。時有大阿羅漢。號曰近護。即阿育大王師也。問天曰。汝何故常來禮塔。答曰。昔書寫四阿含。得生忉利天。是阿難恩。以此因緣。恒來供養。復問。如彼天有如汝者否。答有百千人同業者。其中持增一阿含生天甚多。

Formerly, within one hundred years after the Tathāgata's parinirvāṇa, in the middle of the night a god came down to Ānanda's stūpa, emitting light, and scattered flowers in offering. At that time there was a great arhat named Upagupta, who was the master of the great King Aśoka. He asked the god, "Why do you constantly come to pay homage to the stūpa?" [The god] replied, "Formerly, by copying the four Āgamas, I attained rebirth in Trāyastriṃśa Heaven. This is due to Ānanda's kindness; for this reason I constantly come to make offerings." He asked again, "In that heaven, are there others like you?" He replied, "There are hundreds of thousands of people with the same karma, among whom those who upheld the Ekottarika-āgama and were born in heaven are exceedingly numerous."