經律異相 24.29

24.29

波吒利弗多國（雜阿含云巴連弗邑）王姓孔雀。名頻頭娑羅（父名日月護）有子。名阿輸柯（梁言無憂。又名阿育王。前生名闍耶。為童子時。值釋迦入王舍城。心念佛故。於大路邊以沙為糉。內佛鉢中。以申供養。因發願言。我未來為一金地王。廣興供養。佛即記之。我入涅槃百年之後。當生波吒利弗多城。姓孔雀。名阿育。為四分轉輪王。起八萬四千塔。供養舍利。出阿育王經第一卷）身體麁澁父不愛念。乃於後時。使善相師相。諸兒子誰堪為王不。召阿育母密報之。汝宜就次。阿育啟母。父王不喜。母言但去。大臣成護問。今何行。答以實事。成護駕最勝象。給其乘御。設諸子食皆悉寶器。不及阿育。母私辦饌器食皆勝。相師曰。阿育最勝是堪為王。大王曰。我所不重。必當見殺可更搜算。相師又曰。今好乘好食好器者。此堪為王復無勝者。後境內小國。名德叉尸羅。欲為返逆。王勅阿育。汝集四兵掩奪彼國。器仗資物悉不給汝。阿育奉命。即自思惟。若有功德應為王者。願自能涌出地即震裂器食無數。德叉尸羅國聞阿育來。莊嚴道路望風奉迎。一切人民競興供養。初不嫌。二遣使往佉師國。求二健兒力能摧山覆岳。時諸天發言。語二人云。此四分轉輪王。領閻浮提不可逆也。一切雄賢莫不奉覲。諸天以天寶冠置其頭上。大王聞之。即遣大兒修私摩。大興兵力竟不能罰。大王。身遇重疾倍更瞋恚。復聞不剋。口吐熱血即便命終。阿育即登大位。拜成護為第一大臣。領理國事。修私摩等聞父亡背立阿育為王。心生不忍。即集諸兵來伐阿育。二大力士與成護各鎮一門。王頓東門。立大火坑以物覆之。無有煙炎。作機關木人。王騎大木象。遲行示弱。脩私摩率其銳卒。現殺阿育。見諸木人行步劣動。督軍直前墮大火穽被燒而死。二十八萬里皆臣屬之。陸地龍及夜叉悉皆降伏。但有一龍所止之地。廣三百餘里。得佛舍利最初起塔。在羅摩村。有大功德。獨不從化。阿育因募得旃陀羅使。名耆利柯。能行殺戮。即立牢獄以治不從。莊嚴獄門極令華麗。見者愛樂入不得出。時鷄寺比丘誦修多羅。修多羅說地獄事。耆利柯聞之。隨造鑊湯鑪炭刀山劍樹等。有海意比丘。早起著衣持鉢入城乞食。遇入地獄門。耆利柯執之。比丘泣而告之曰。人身難得出家難遇。我皆已得道法。乞申一月。答曰。我受王命。終不可得。聽至七日。比丘晝夜精勤。并見王子。共內人語。有勅付獄。耆利柯即鐵臼杵碎之。比丘心增怖畏。第七日夜思惟得羅漢果。明日耆利柯。置比丘於鐵鑊中。盛沸屎尿雜穢膿血。以猛火煮之經時不壞。比丘獨坐蓮華。王聞與一切人民共往看之。比丘即以神力身昇虛空。現十八變。王大歡喜曰。汝身同人身。汝力過人力。應令我知之。為汝作神足。答曰。王稱佛語廣作塔廟供養舍利。為法饒益佛滅諸陋。慈悲無比最勝論邪師。我為弟子。佛記轉輪王。取我舍利起八萬四千塔。廣作諸佛事。王先起地獄等殺害甚無數。當除諸罪業施於無畏。王即合掌。向此比丘自說懺悔。即自入地獄出之。耆利柯言。我先奉勅無所蠲除入不得出。王曰。汝欲殺我耶。答曰如此。王問。初立此獄誰最先入。答曰。耆利柯先入。王語獄卒。以耆利柯置作膠舍裏以火燒之。然後毀地獄去也。便於五部僧。以千金銀琉璃甖。盛以香水。種種飲食香華等供養。受八戒竟。手執香爐。而登高殿請四方僧。說言。世尊弟子在四方者。為攝受我故悉應來此。而說偈言。

In the kingdom of Pāṭaliputra (in the Saṃyuktāgama called the city of Bālempha), the king was of the Maurya clan and named Bindusāra (his father was named Candragupta). He had a son named Aśoka (in the Liang language, 'Without Sorrow'; also called King Aśoka. In a previous life his name was Jaya. When he was a young boy, he encountered Śākyamuni entering Rājagṛha. Because his mind was mindful of the Buddha, by the side of the great road he made an offering using sand as dumplings and put them into the Buddha's bowl to express his veneration. He then made a vow, saying: 'May I in the future become a king of the golden earth and extensively sponsor offerings.' The Buddha thereupon made a prophecy for him: 'A hundred years after I enter parinirvāṇa, you will be born in the city of Pāṭaliputra, of the Maurya clan, named Aśoka. You will be a wheel-turning king over one quarter [of the world], erecting eighty-four thousand stupas to make offerings to my relics.' Extracted from fascicle 1 of the Sūtra of King Aśoka). His body was coarse and rough, and his father did not love him. Sometime later, the king sent for an expert physiognomist to examine which of his sons was fit to become king. King Bindusāra secretly informed Aśoka's mother: 'You should take your turn.' Aśoka addressed his mother: 'My royal father does not like me.' His mother said: 'Just go.' The great minister Radhagupta asked: 'Where are you going now?' Aśoka replied with the truth. Radhagupta harnessed the finest elephant for him to ride. The meals set out for the other sons were all in precious vessels, but none was provided for Aśoka. His mother privately prepared fine dishes and vessels, superior to all others. The physiognomist said: 'Aśoka is the most superior; he is fit to become king.' The great king said: 'He is the one I do not value; he will surely be killed. Make another calculation.' The physiognomist said again: 'The one with the best mount, best food, and best vessels now is fit to become king; no one is more superior.' Later, a small country within his borders named Takṣaśilā wished to rebel. The king commanded Aśoka: 'Assemble the fourfold army and take that country by surprise. Weapons and provisions will not be given to you.' Aśoka received the order and thought to himself: 'If I have the merit and am destined to become king, may they emerge of themselves!' Thereupon, the earth quaked and split open, and countless weapons and provisions [emerged]. When the country of Takṣaśilā heard that Aśoka was coming, they swept and adorned the roads, awaiting him from afar and welcoming him. All the people vied to present offerings. At first he did not harbor resentment. Second, messengers were dispatched to the kingdom of Kāśī to seek two valiant men whose strength could smash mountains and overturn peaks. At that time the devas spoke and said to the two men: 'This king who turns the wheel over a quarter rules over Jambudvīpa and must not be opposed. None among the valiant and worthy fail to pay homage to him.' The devas placed a divine jewel-crown upon his head. When the great king heard of this, he dispatched his eldest son, Susīma, with a grand army, but he was entirely unable to punish him. The great king contracted a grave illness and became even more enraged. Hearing that Susīma had not prevailed, he vomited hot blood from his mouth and immediately passed away. Aśoka thereupon ascended the great throne and appointed Radhagupta as his foremost minister to govern state affairs. Susīma and the others, hearing of their father's death and Aśoka's installation as king, could not bear it, and they gathered forces to attack Aśoka. The two mighty warriors and Radhagupta each defended a gate, while the king was stationed at the eastern gate. A great pit of fire was dug and covered with objects so that there was no smoke or flame. Mechanical wooden men were made. The king rode a large wooden elephant and advanced slowly to show weakness. Susīma led his crack troops forward to kill Aśoka. Seeing the wooden men moving weakly, he urged his army straight ahead, fell into the great fire pit, and was burned to death. Two hundred and eighty thousand li all submitted to Aśoka as subjects. The nāgas and yakṣas of the land were all subdued. Only the land where one nāga dwelled—more than three hundred li in breadth, which had obtained the Buddha's relics and originally built a stupa at Rāmagrāma—possessed great merit and alone did not submit to conversion. Aśoka therefore recruited a caṇḍāla executioner named Girika, who was capable of slaughter. A prison was immediately built to punish those who did not obey. The gate of the prison was adorned to be extremely resplendent; anyone who saw it was charmed, entered, and could not leave. At that time, a monk from Kukkuṭārāma was reciting a sūtra, and the sūtra spoke of the matters of the hells. When Girika heard it, he accordingly fashioned boiling cauldrons, charcoal pits, mountains of blades, and forests of sword-trees. There was a monk named Samudra who rose early, put on his robes, took his bowl, and entered the city to beg for food. He happened to enter the prison gate. Girika seized him. The monk wept and said to him: 'A human body is difficult to obtain, and leaving the household life is rare to encounter. I have already attained the teachings of the Path; I beg for a delay of one month.' Girika replied: 'I have received the king's command; that can never be granted.' He allowed him seven days. Day and night the monk was vigorous. He also saw a prince speaking with a woman of the palace; an edict sent them to the prison, and Girika immediately crushed them in an iron mortar with a pestle. The monk's terror increased. On the night of the seventh day, through contemplation he attained the fruit of arhatship. The next day, Girika placed the monk into an iron cauldron filled with boiling feces, urine, and filthy pus and blood, cooking him with a fierce fire, but after much time he was not harmed. The monk sat alone on a lotus flower. Hearing of this, the king went with all his people to see it. The monk then, by his spiritual power, ascended into the sky and displayed the eighteen transformations. The king rejoiced greatly and said: 'Your body is like a human body, but your power surpasses human power. Pray let me know how you perform such psychic powers.' The monk answered: 'The king must follow the Buddha's words to build stupas extensively and make offerings to the relics. For the benefit of the Dharma, the Buddha eradicated all taints; he is the Master of compassionate and peerless, supreme debate who crushes heterodoxy. I am his disciple. The Buddha prophesied that a wheel-turning king would take his relics and build eighty-four thousand stupas, extensively performing the Buddha's work. The king previously established a hell and killed countlessly; you must eliminate your sinful deeds and bestow fearlessness.' The king then joined his palms, confessed his faults to the monk, and entered the prison to release him. Girika said: 'I previously received an edict that there would be no exceptions: those who enter cannot leave.' The king said: 'Do you wish to kill me?' Girika replied: 'It is so.' The king asked: 'When this prison was first established, who entered first?' Girika answered: 'Girika entered first.' The king said to the guards: 'Place Girika inside a house of glue and burn him with fire.' Then the prison was destroyed. Thereupon, to the Saṅgha of the five divisions, the king presented a thousand jars of gold, silver, and lapis lazuli filled with scented water, and offered various foods, perfumes, flowers, and the like. After receiving the eight precepts, holding an incense burner in his hands, he ascended a high palace and invited the Saṅgha of the four directions, saying: 'May the disciples of the World-Honoured One in the four directions all come here to receive me.' And he spoke a verse: