經律異相 15.31

15.31

佛在舍衛國。時患中風。呼阿難。往婆羅門家乞牛乳。阿難即如言求索。婆羅門言。牛在彼間自往搆取。阿難即往到牛所。牛常喜觝踏人不可得近。阿難自念。我所事師法。不得自搆取牛乳也。忉利天王釋即來下。化作婆羅門被服住牛傍。阿難請搆取牛乳。婆羅門言諾。即以右手捫摸牛乳言。佛小中風。汝與我乳。令佛飲之。佛差者汝得福不可稱量。牛言。此手捫摸我乳何益快乎。取我兩乳。去置兩乳。遺我子。我子朝來未飲食也。犢子在母傍。聞說佛聲即語言。持我分盡用與佛。佛者天上天下人之大師也。甚難得值。我自食草飲水。我作人時坐隨惡知識。不信佛經。使我作牛馬十六劫。到今乃得聞佛聲。持我所飲乳。盡用與佛。滿器而去。令我後世智慧得佛道。阿難持乳還。佛問之。牛母子何說。阿難依事而答。佛言。牛母後彌勒佛時。與作沙門得阿羅漢道。犢子死後作人。當為我懸繒散華燒香。持經戒二十劫已後。當作阿羅漢。佛度脫天下萬民（出犢子經）。

When the Buddha was in the state of Śrāvastī, he was suffering from an attack of wind disease. He summoned Ānanda to go to a brāhmaṇa's house to beg for cow's milk. Ānanda sought it as instructed. The brāhmaṇa said, "The cow is over there; go and milk it yourself." Ānanda went to where the cow was. The cow was usually prone to butting and trampling people, so that no one could approach her. Ānanda thought to himself, "The rules of the teacher whom I serve do not permit me to milk cows myself." Śakra, king of the Trāyastriṃśa heaven, immediately descended, transformed himself into a brāhmaṇa in proper attire, and stood beside the cow. Ānanda asked him to milk the cow. The brāhmaṇa agreed, stroked the cow's udder with his right hand, and said, "The Buddha has a slight wind disease. Give me your milk so that the Buddha may drink it. If the Buddha recovers, your merit will be immeasurable." The cow said, "How delightful it feels when this hand strokes my udder! Take two parts of my milk, and leave two parts behind for my calf. My calf has not eaten or drunk since morning." The calf, beside its mother, heard the name of the Buddha mentioned and said, "Take all of my portion and give it to the Buddha! The Buddha is the Great Teacher of humans above and beneath heaven, and it is exceedingly rare to encounter him. I will eat grass and drink water on my own. When I was a human, because I associated with bad companions and did not believe in the Buddha's scriptures, I was made to be a cow and horse for sixteen kalpas; only now have I been able to hear the name of the Buddha. Take all the milk I would drink and give it to the Buddha! Fill the vessel and go. May I attain wisdom and achieve the Buddha Path in future lives." Ānanda took the milk and returned. The Buddha asked him, "What did the cow and her calf say?" Ānanda answered according to the facts. The Buddha said, "Later, at the time of Maitreya Buddha, the mother cow will become a śramaṇa and attain the fruit of an arhat. After the calf dies, it will be reborn as a human; it will hang silk banners, scatter flowers, and burn incense for me, upholding the scriptures and precepts for twenty kalpas, after which it will become an arhat and the Buddha will deliver myriad people throughout the world." (Extracted from the Calf Sūtra.)