釋迦方志 2.47

2.47

The kingdom of Kosala (Central India) is over 6,000 li in circuit. Mountain ridges encircle its borders, and forests and marshes are contiguous. The city is over 40 li in circuit, and towns and villages look out on one another. They have great faith in the Buddha's Dharma. There are over a hundred monasteries and somewhat fewer than 10,000 monks, all studying the Mahāyāna. There are seventy deva temples where tīrthikas dwell mixed together. South of the city is an old monastery and stupa, the place where the Buddha once displayed supernatural powers and subdued tīrthikas; later, Bodhisattva Nāgārjuna resided in this monastery. Over 300 li southwest is Mount Bhramaragirī (meaning 'Black Bee'), which towers aloft, its crags steep and sheer; having no cliffs or ravines, it resembles a single solid rock. Formerly, King Yin-zheng of this kingdom quarried the mountain to make a monastery for the bodhisattva. Several tens of li from the mountain, he excavated an entrance passageway; directly beneath the mountain, he pierced upward through the stone, creating long galleries and covered walkways, lofty terraces and layered pavilions. The pavilion had five storeys, each storey having four courtyards, all with vihāras of the most exquisite artistry. From the mountain summit cascading springs flowed, intersecting and communicating in tiers; openings were bored to let in light, making the interior bright and clear. When human labour was exhausted and the treasury was also depleted, the work not even half done, the king was deeply worried. Nāgārjuna secretly used divine medicine to drop upon the great rocks, and they all turned into gold. Seeing this, the king was overjoyed and emboldened, and thus brought it to completion. In the five storeys he cast four great golden statues of equal measure to the Buddha's body; what was left over still filled the storehouses. Later, because the monks quarrelled and the artisans' expenses mounted, it fell into decline and was dispersed long ago. Now only pure men (śuklakarman) guard it, in very great numbers; they conceal its openings ever more tightly so that it cannot easily be seen. Furthermore, after the collection of the Dharma treasury, all the scriptures were gathered in this mountain and not permitted to be carried out. Recently there was one who brought medical prescriptions; he went inside to treat illnesses and later came out with his face covered, so those who reach it are rare. Travelling over 900 li through the southern forest, one reaches [the following kingdom].