經律異相 12.18

12.18

佛在羅閱祇。菩薩及四部大會。佛說法。有迦羅婦懷妊在座。腹中懷子。叉手聽經。佛欲使眾會見之。便見大光明照迦羅婦坐。眾人皆見腹中女叉手聽經。猶如照鏡。佛持八種聲。問腹中女言汝以何故叉手聽經。用佛威神即答佛言。以世間人皆行十惡。我欲令行十善。又以世人生死不絕。又世間人不孝從父母。不供養沙門婆羅門道人。是故叉手聽經。時女說是語竟便生。譬如太子從右脇生。地為六反震動。虛空中有自然天樂。雨天眾花。千葉蓮花大如車輪。以寶作莖。狀如青瑠璃。女即坐蓮花上。帝釋持天衣。與女著之。女報言。汝為羅漢。我為菩薩。汝非我輩。不與我同類。我自有衣。舍利弗白佛。此女為從何國來。當送衣也。佛言。此女從東南方佛剎清淨國來。去此十萬佛剎。本國衣便自然在虛空中來肅肅有聲。女見衣來便著之。當得五通。又女本國人盡得五通。女得衣著訖。便從蓮華上下行至佛前。女一舉足。地為六反震動。頭面著地為佛作禮。三言南無佛。便長跪白佛。今坐中大有諸迦羅婦。願佛為說經。令得男子身。佛言。我亦不使汝作男子。亦不使汝作女人。皆自從身行得耳。佛言。有一事可疾得男子。何等為一。發心為菩薩道。又女人身當內自觀。譬如機關。骨節相拄。但筋皮在上。女人常畏人。譬如蚖蛇蝦蟇。不敢晝出。時坐中迦羅婦七十五人。聞佛說經歡喜踊躍。前以頭面著地。為佛作禮白佛言。我願發菩薩心作男子。我若不得男子身。我終不起。時七十五迦羅越。從舍衛國來至佛所。見諸婦皆在佛前。便心念言。已失我曹婦。便問舍利弗。此諸女人是我曹婦。何為是間。舍利弗答言。欲作比丘尼。卿當聽不。迦羅越答言。先使我曹作比丘。舍利弗白佛言。是七十五迦羅越。皆欲作比丘。佛呼。善男子來。皆作比丘。頭髮自然墮。袈裟便來著身。手持應器。皆前為佛作禮。時七十五婦。各脫珠環皆以散佛上。便自然虛空中。化作七十五交露珠瓔珞。帳中有七寶床。上有座。佛邊有無數菩薩聽經。七十五婦人。見是變化。皆大歡喜即用佛威神飛住虛空。自然有花雨散佛上。從虛空中來下。便得男子身。前白佛言。我願作比丘。佛語彌勒菩薩。將去授戒。彌勒菩薩即授戒。作比丘僧。女自然有化花蓋七重莖如蓮華。即持與母言。佛是天上天下度人之師。母以花蓋上佛。是天上天下之師蓋上之。後母亦當為天下之蓋。女語母言。今當發菩薩心。母答女言。我始懷汝時。於夢中常見佛及法比丘僧。無三毒心。身體安隱。知我腹中子為是菩薩摩訶薩。以是安隱。時發菩薩心。以母得華蓋。便持上佛。地為六反震動。佛語舍利弗。四天下星宿。尚可知數。是女前後所度父母。不可知數（出胎中女聽經）。

The Buddha was in Rājagṛha, at a great assembly of bodhisattvas and the fourfold community. As the Buddha preached the Dharma, there was a pregnant woman of the Jiala clan in the assembly. The child in her womb joined its palms and listened to the sūtra. Wanting the entire assembly to see this, the Buddha then manifested a great light that illuminated where the Jiala woman was sitting. The multitude all saw the female child in the womb joining her palms and listening to the sūtra, as if reflected in a mirror. With eight kinds of voice, the Buddha asked the female child in the womb: 'For what reason do you join your palms and listen to the sūtra?' By the Buddha's spiritual power, she immediately answered the Buddha: 'Because people in the world all practice the ten unwholesome deeds, I wish to cause them to practice the ten wholesome deeds. Furthermore, because birth and death among worldly people do not cease, and because people in the world are unfilial to their parents and do not make offerings to śramaṇas, brāhmaṇas, and men of the Way, for these reasons I join my palms and listen to the sūtra.' When the female child finished speaking these words, she was born, just as the Prince was born from the right side. The earth shook in six ways. Spontaneous heavenly music sounded in the air, and a multitude of heavenly flowers rained down. There was a thousand-petalled lotus flower as large as a chariot wheel, with a stem made of jewels, resembling blue lapis lazuli. The female child then sat upon the lotus flower. Śakra held heavenly garments and gave them to the child to wear. The female child told him: 'You are an arhat, and I am a bodhisattva; you are not my peer and not of my kind. I have my own garments.' Śāriputra addressed the Buddha: 'From which country has this female child come, that clothes should be sent to her?' The Buddha said: 'This female child comes from a pure buddha-realm in the southeast, a hundred thousand buddha-realms away from here.' Garments from her native country spontaneously arrived through the air with a rustling sound. When the female child saw the clothes arrive, she put them on. She was destined to attain the five supernatural faculties; moreover, the people of her native country all attained the five supernatural faculties. When the female child had finished putting on the clothes, she stepped down from the lotus flower and walked before the Buddha. With each step the female child took, the earth shook in six ways. Touching her head and face to the ground, she paid homage to the Buddha, saying three times, 'Namo Buddhāya.' Then kneeling upright, she addressed the Buddha: 'Now in this assembly there are many women of the Jiala clan. May the Buddha preach the sūtra for them, so that they may obtain male bodies.' The Buddha said: 'I do not cause you to become a man, nor do I cause you to become a woman; it is entirely obtained from one's own bodily deeds.' The Buddha said: 'There is one matter by which a male body can be quickly attained. What is this one? Generating the aspiration for the bodhisattva Way. Furthermore, a woman's body should be contemplated internally: it is like a mechanism, with bones and joints propping one another up, covered only by sinews and skin. A woman is constantly afraid of others, like a viper or a toad, not daring to come out by day.' At that time, seventy-five women of the Jiala clan in the assembly, hearing the Buddha preach the sūtra, rejoiced and leaped with joy. Stepping forward, they touched their heads and faces to the ground, paid homage to the Buddha, and said to him: 'We vow to generate the bodhisattva mind and become men. If we do not obtain male bodies, we will never rise.' At that time, seventy-five Jiala householders came from the country of Śrāvastī to the Buddha's place. Seeing all their wives before the Buddha, they thought to themselves: 'We have already lost our wives!' They then asked Śāriputra: 'These women are our wives; why are they here?' Śāriputra answered: 'They wish to become bhikṣuṇīs. Will you permit it or not?' The householders replied: 'First allow us to become bhikṣus.' Śāriputra addressed the Buddha: 'These seventy-five householders all wish to become bhikṣus.' The Buddha called out: 'Come, good sons!' They all became bhikṣus: their hair fell off spontaneously, kāṣāyas came onto their bodies, and with alms bowls in hand, they all came forward and paid homage to the Buddha. At that time, the seventy-five women each took off their pearl circlets and scattered them over the Buddha. Thereupon, in the sky, they spontaneously transformed into seventy-five pearl-encrusted canopies with hanging ornaments; inside the curtains were seven-jewelled beds with seats upon them, and beside the Buddha were countless bodhisattvas listening to the sūtra. Seeing this transformation, the seventy-five women all rejoiced greatly, and using the Buddha's spiritual power, they flew and remained in the sky. Flowers spontaneously rained down and were scattered over the Buddha. Coming down from the sky, they obtained male bodies, stepped forward, and addressed the Buddha: 'We wish to become bhikṣus.' The Buddha said to Maitreya Bodhisattva: 'Lead them away and confer the precepts upon them.' Maitreya Bodhisattva immediately conferred the precepts, and they became bhikṣus. For the female child, there spontaneously appeared a sevenfold transformed canopy of flowers with a stem like a lotus flower. She took it and gave it to her mother, saying: 'The Buddha is the teacher who delivers people in heaven and on earth. Mother, offer this flower canopy to the Buddha; it is a canopy for the teacher of heaven and earth. In the future, mother, you will also be a canopy for the world.' The female child said to her mother: 'Now you should generate the bodhisattva mind.' The mother replied to the female child: 'When I first conceived you, I constantly saw the Buddha, the Dharma, and the saṅgha of bhikṣus in dreams; I was free from the minds of the three poisons, and my body was peaceful and secure. I knew that the child in my womb was a bodhisattva mahāsattva; because of this, I was at ease. At that time, I generated the bodhisattva mind.' Having received the flower canopy, the mother took it and offered it to the Buddha. The earth shook in six ways. The Buddha said to Śāriputra: 'The stars of the four continents may still be counted, but the parents delivered by this female child throughout past and future cannot be known.' (Extracted from the Sūtra on the Girl in the Womb Listening to the Sūtra)