三寶感應要略錄 2.3

2.3

執師子國沙門釋迦彌多羅。此云能友。是第三果人也。麟德之初。來儀晨旦。情聖迹遍歷名山及寺。至京師西大原寺。勵諸僧轉讀花嚴經典。乃命譯語問云。此是何經。答是花嚴經。能友肅然改容曰。不知此處亦有是經耶。合掌歡喜讚言。若聞花嚴題目字者。決定不墮四惡趣。此大方廣功德難思。西國相傳。有人以水盥掌。將讀此經。水之所霑灑及虫蟻。因此捨命。後得生天。何況受持讀誦。益不可思議之福也。甞聞。于填國東南二千餘里。有國名遮拘槃。王宮側有精舍。於中大乘沙門轉讀花嚴。王臣供養之。夜中分忽然有大光明。遍滿城中。光明之中。有百千天人。以種種天衣珠寶瓔珞。奉獻王及沙門。王問曰是誰。天答曰。我是精舍側蜫虫也。沙門以水盥掌。將讀花嚴。水之所霑。因此捨命。生忉利天。天上法爾初知本因。故來下報恩。王聞天語。悲喜立制。我國偏重大乘。不可流通小法。從其已來。彼王歷葉敬重大乘。諸國名僧。入其境者。並皆試練。若小乘學。則遣不留。摩訶衍人。請停供養。至今不改。王宮內自有花嚴摩訶般若大集法華等經十二部並十萬偈。王自受持。親執戶鑰。轉讀。則開香花供養。如此等異蓋多矣。

The śramaṇa Śākyamitra—here translated as 'Nengyou' [Able Friend]—of the Lion Kingdom [Siṃhala], was a person of the third fruit [anāgāmin]. At the beginning of the Linde era [664–665], he arrived in the Land of the Dawn [China]. Seeking holy traces, he traveled widely through famous mountains and monasteries. Arriving at the Western Great Taiyuan Monastery in the capital, he urged the monks to chant the Avataṃsaka-sūtra. He then had an interpreter ask them, 'What sūtra is this?' They replied, 'It is the Avataṃsaka-sūtra.' Solemnly changing his countenance, Nengyou said, 'I did not know that this sūtra existed here as well!' He joined his palms with joy and praised it, saying: 'If one hears even the words of the title of the Avataṃsaka, one will definitely not fall into the four evil realms. The merits of this Mahāvaipulya sūtra are inconceivable. In the Western Countries it is traditionally told that a person washed his hands with water when he was about to recite this sūtra. The water was sprinkled upon insects and ants; by this means they cast off their lives and subsequently gained rebirth in heaven. How much more so for those who accept, uphold, read, and recite it—their benefit is of inconceivable blessing! I have heard that more than two thousand li southeast of Khotan there is a country named Cakkuka. Beside the royal palace is a vihāra wherein Mahāyāna śramaṇas chant the Avataṃsaka, and the king and ministers make offerings to them. In the middle of the night, a great light suddenly filled the city. Amid the light were hundreds of thousands of devas, who presented various divine robes, pearls, and jewels to the king and the śramaṇas. The king asked, "Who are you?" The devas replied, "We were the insects beside the vihāra. The śramaṇa washed his hands with water when he was about to recite the Avataṃsaka. Sprinkled by the water, we cast off our lives and were born in the Trāyastriṃśa Heaven. In the heavens, by the nature of phenomena, one immediately knows one's original cause; therefore we have come down to repay the kindness." Hearing the devas' words, the king, moved with grief and joy, established a decree: "Our country esteems the Mahāyāna exclusively; the minor teachings must not circulate." From that time on, the kings of that land through successive generations have revered the Mahāyāna. Famous monks from various lands who enter their borders are all tested: if they study the Hīnayāna, they are sent away and not retained; if they are people of the Mahāyāna, they are invited to remain and receive offerings. Even to this day this has not changed. Within the royal palace itself are twelve divisions of sūtras including the Avataṃsaka, Mahāprajñāpāramitā, Mahāsaṃnipāta, and Saddharmapuṇḍarīka, totaling one hundred thousand verses. The king personally accepts and upholds them, holding the key to the door himself. When chanting, he opens it and makes offerings of incense and flowers. Anomalies such as these are indeed numerous.'