經律異相 14.39

14.39

目連承佛聖旨。西方有一世界。名光明幡。佛名光明王。現在說法。目連到彼聽佛語辭。其身長四千里。諸菩薩身長二千里。其諸菩薩所食鉢器。其高一里。目連行鉢際上。時諸菩薩白世尊曰。唯然大聖。此蟲何從來。被沙門服。行鉢際上。於時彼佛言。諸族姓子慎勿發心輕慢此賢。所以者何。今斯少年名大目連。是釋迦文佛聲聞弟子中神足第一。時光明王佛告大目連。吾土菩薩及諸聲聞。見卿身小咸發輕慢。仁當顯神足力承釋迦文威德。目連稽首足下右遶七匝却在佛前。白言。今欲跏趺此地容不。佛曰。如意所樂。時大目連踊在虛空億百諸仞。在彼寶城便作一床。跏趺而坐。從其床座垂眾寶珠億百千姟。一一珠瑛出百千光。一一光明各有蓮華。一切蓮華現釋迦文身坐蓮華上。其所言說如釋迦文。音響清淨班宣經典等無有異。目連顯神足已。復住佛前。時諸菩薩歎未曾有。白佛言。是目連以何等故詣此世界。世尊告曰。欲試釋迦文佛音響所澈遠近故到此土。時光明王佛告大目連。仁者不宜試如來音響。如來音響無遠無近廣遠無量不可為喻。時大目連自投足下改懺悔過。唯然世尊。我身不敏。佛音無量而橫生心欲知其限。其光明王告大目連曰。汝雖遠來到此佛土。復白佛言。甚遠天中天。身勞極不能復還至其本土。世尊告曰。云何以汝神力到此世界。故是世尊釋迦文佛威德所立。當遙自歸稽首作禮於釋迦文佛。自當得至。假使卿身以己神足欲還本國一劫不至。目連右膝著地向於東方釋迦文佛所叉手自歸。屈申臂頃即時得至（出密迹金剛力士經第三卷）。

Maudgalyāyana, receiving the Buddha's holy intention, [went to] a world in the west named Light Banner, where the Buddha named King of Light was currently preaching the Dharma. Maudgalyāyana arrived there to listen to the Buddha's words. That Buddha's body was four thousand li tall, the bodhisattvas' bodies were two thousand li tall, and the bowls from which the bodhisattvas ate were one li high. Maudgalyāyana walked along the rim of a bowl. Then the bodhisattvas addressed the Bhagavat: 'O Great Holy One! From where has this insect come, clad in the robes of a śramaṇa, walking along the rim of the bowl?' At that time, that Buddha said: 'Sons of good family, do not conceive a mind to despise or belittle this worthy. Why is that? This young man is named Mahāmaudgalyāyana; he is foremost in supernatural powers among the śrāvaka disciples of Śākyamuni Buddha.' Then the Buddha King of Light told Mahāmaudgalyāyana: 'The bodhisattvas and śrāvakas of my land, seeing your small body, have all conceived contempt. Worthy one, you should display the power of your supernatural feet, relying on Śākyamuni's majestic virtue.' Maudgalyāyana bowed down to his feet, circumambulated him to the right seven times, and stepped back before the Buddha, saying: 'I now wish to sit cross-legged in this place; will it accommodate me?' The Buddha said: 'As you please.' Then Mahāmaudgalyāyana leaped into the empty sky hundreds of millions of fathoms high, and above that jewelled city fashioned a couch and sat cross-legged. From his couch hung hundreds of thousands of koṭīs of diverse jewelled pearls. Each pearl emitted hundreds of thousands of rays of light, and in each ray of light there was a lotus flower. On every lotus flower, the body of Śākyamuni was manifested sitting upon the lotus flower, speaking just like Śākyamuni, his pure voice proclaiming the scriptures, identical and without difference. Having displayed his supernatural powers, Maudgalyāyana stood again before the Buddha. Then the bodhisattvas praised it as unprecedented and said to the Buddha: 'For what reason did this Maudgalyāyana come to this world?' The Bhagavat told them: 'Wishing to test how far the sound of Śākyamuni Buddha's voice penetrates, he came to this land.' Then the Buddha King of Light told Mahāmaudgalyāyana: 'Worthy one, you should not test the Tathāgata's voice. The Tathāgata's voice knows neither far nor near; it is vast, far-reaching, and immeasurable beyond comparison.' Then Mahāmaudgalyāyana cast himself at his feet, reformed, and repented his error: 'Indeed, Bhagavat! I was not discerning; the Buddha's voice is immeasurable, yet I recklessly conceived the thought of knowing its limits.' The King of Light told Mahāmaudgalyāyana: 'Although you have come far to this Buddha-land—' [Maudgalyāyana] further addressed the Buddha: 'It is very far, Deva among Devas; my body is utterly exhausted, and I cannot return to my own land.' The Bhagavat told him: 'How could you have reached this world by your own supernatural power? It was established solely by the majestic virtue of the Bhagavat Śākyamuni Buddha. You should take refuge from afar, bowing your head and paying homage to Śākyamuni Buddha, and you will naturally be able to reach it. If you were to use your own supernatural feet to return to your native country, you would not arrive in a kalpa.' Maudgalyāyana placed his right knee upon the ground, clasped his hands towards the east where Śākyamuni Buddha was, and took refuge; in the time it takes to bend and extend an arm, he immediately arrived (from the third fascicle of the *Guhyakādhipati-sūtra* [Miji jingang lishi jing]).