經律異相 25.18

25.18

舍衛國有別住處。地甚平博。時佛往坐。梵天帝釋及四天王。諸人間王瓶沙王等。各白佛言。欲為世尊安處高座。佛言。且止我自知時。時諸居士有信外道者。各安價直百千之座。復有信樂供養佛者。從月初日至十五日。摩竭瓶沙諸王更設供養。諸座中央自然而有七寶師子座。如來坐之。時皆就坐。時有檀越。次爾日設供授佛楊枝。世尊嚼已棄著背後。即成大樹根莖枝葉扶疎茂盛。時諸大眾覩佛神力歡喜讚嘆得未曾有。時佛世尊。以無數方便種種說法令得歡喜。是時座上無數百千人遠塵離垢得法眼淨。如是現於神變至十五日種種不同。大眾見佛神力變化皆大歡喜。佛為說法得法眼淨。時摩竭王瓶沙王。次十五日飯佛及僧并波羅殊提王。憂陀延王梵施王。波斯匿王末利夫人。長者梨師達多富羅那一切大眾。皆設供養食既滿足捨鉢行水。瓶沙王更取卑床於佛前坐。於時世尊。壞加趺坐曳脚橙上。時地六反十八種震動。時佛足下相輪輪有千輻輪郭成就輻輪相具足。光明晃耀照三千土。時摩竭王。見即從坐起偏露右肩右膝著地白言。世尊。往昔作何福得此相好。佛告瓶沙。過去世時閻浮提地。有王名利眾生。時國豐饒人民熾盛。領八萬四千城五十五億聚落。王所住城名曰慧光。王第一夫人字曰慧事。初無兒息。為求繼嗣禮事諸天山河鬼神處處求願。後時懷身。上白王言。我今懷妊。王倍供侍飲食衣服醫藥。後生一男顏貌端正。時兒生日。八萬四千伏藏自然涌出隨物成行。王語其母。名兒為慧燈。後王崩殂。太子年八九歲。其母教學技藝書算騎乘。至年十五。時諸臣啟言。大王崩背次應登位。太子答言。我前世經六年為國王。後墮地獄六萬歲。以是故不能為王。諸臣言。頗有方便得作王不。答言。閻浮提人若男若女能言之類皆行十善者我當為王。時諸臣人聞太子令。即四方唱令。閻浮提人皆行十善不殺生。諸臣具以啟太子。今可登位。太子即自繼登位。諸臣啟王言。王初生時。有八萬四千伏藏自然涌出。今可取入王藏。王言。不須入藏。即勅隨所出處四交道頭。布施沙門及婆羅門貧窮孤老。時諸大臣即奉王勅。隨藏所在。於八萬四千城門四交道頭。以為布施。時天帝釋化作男子自相謂言。王教我行十惡。大臣啟王。有此勅耶。王答。我先勅。閻浮提內能言之類。皆行十善初無是語。即駕寶象往至其所。王問。汝言慧燈教汝行十惡耶。化人答曰實爾。王復問言。汝能行十善不。答曰。若欲成菩薩道者。我當生食其肉生飲其血。然後身行十善。王作是念。我於無始來經歷眾苦。輪轉五道備更屠戮。即取刀自割股肉以器盛血授與之曰。男子汝可食肉飲血。奉行十善。是化男子即沒不現。還現帝釋身而問之曰。布施為一天下為四天下耶。王曰為求無上道度未度耳。帝釋以天甘露灌之瘡即平復利益眾生。爾時父王者今我父王是。第一夫人今我母是。慧燈王者我身是（出四分律第二卷）。

In the kingdom of Śrāvastī there was a separate place where the ground was exceptionally flat and broad. Once, the Buddha went there and sat down. Brahmā, Śakra, the Four Heavenly Kings, and various kings of men such as King Bimbisāra, each addressed the Buddha, saying, "We wish to arrange a high seat for the Bhagavat." The Buddha said, "Stop for a while. I know the proper time myself." At that time, among the householders there were some who had faith in non-Buddhist teachings, and each set up a seat worth hundreds of thousands [of coins]. There were also those who joyfully had faith in making offerings to the Buddha. From the first day of the month until the fifteenth day, Bimbisāra and the other kings of Magadha took turns presenting offerings. In the middle of all the seats, there spontaneously appeared a seven-jeweled lion seat. The Tathāgata sat upon it, and everyone then took their seats. At that time, a dānapati whose turn it was that day to provide offerings presented a tooth-stick to the Buddha. The Bhagavat chewed it and cast it behind him, whereupon it immediately became a great tree with roots, trunk, branches, and leaves spreading luxuriously. The great assembly, beholding the Buddha's spiritual power, rejoiced and praised it as unprecedented. Then the Buddha, the Bhagavat, expounded the Dharma in various ways using countless skillful means to make them rejoice. At that time, countless hundreds of thousands of people on their seats distanced themselves from dust and separated from defilement, attaining the purification of the Dharma-eye. In this manner, different kinds of spiritual transformations were manifested up until the fifteenth day. Seeing the Buddha's spiritual powers and transformations, the great assembly all rejoiced greatly, and when the Buddha expounded the Dharma to them, they attained the purification of the Dharma-eye. Then, on the fifteenth day, King Bimbisāra of Magadha provided food for the Buddha and the Saṅgha, as well as for King Pradyota, King Udayana, King Brahmadatta, King Prasenajit, Queen Mallikā, the householders Ṛṣidatta and Pūraṇa, and the whole great assembly; he presented offerings to them all. When they had finished eating to their satisfaction, they relinquished their bowls and water was distributed. King Bimbisāra then took a low seat and sat before the Buddha. At that time, the Bhagavat released his cross-legged posture and extended his feet onto a footstool. Thereupon the earth shook with the eighteen aspects of the sixfold earthquake. On the soles of the Buddha's feet, the marks of the wheels had a thousand spokes, with the rims and hubs perfectly accomplished, fully complete with the mark of the spoke-wheels. Their brilliant radiance shone upon the three-thousandfold world. King [Bimbisāra] of Magadha saw this, immediately arose from his seat, bared his right shoulder, knelt with his right knee on the ground, and addressed [the Buddha], saying: "Bhagavat, what merit did you perform in the past to obtain these marks and signs?" The Buddha told Bimbisāra: "In a past age, in the land of Jambudvīpa, there was a king named Benefiting Sentient Beings. At that time the kingdom was abundant and prosperous, and the population flourished. He governed eighty-four thousand cities and fifty-five billion villages. The city in which the king resided was named Splendour of Wisdom. The king's principal consort was named Wisdom Deed. At first they had no children. To seek a successor, she worshipped and served the devas, mountains, rivers, spirits, and deities, seeking her wish everywhere. Later, she conceived and reported to the king, saying: 'I am now pregnant.' The king doubled her attendants, food, clothing, and medicines. Later she gave birth to a boy whose facial features were upright and handsome. On the day the child was born, eighty-four thousand hidden treasures spontaneously welled up, forming rows according to their materials. The king said to his mother: 'Name the boy Lamp of Wisdom.' Later the king passed away. The crown prince was eight or nine years old. His mother taught him the arts, writing, calculation, and horse-riding. When he reached fifteen years of age, the ministers addressed him, saying: 'The great king has passed away; you should succeed to the throne.' The crown prince replied: 'In a previous life I was a king for six years, and afterwards I fell into hell for sixty thousand years. For this reason, I cannot be king.' The ministers said: 'Is there any means by which you might become king?' He replied: 'If the people of Jambudvīpa, male or female, anyone capable of speech, will all practice the ten wholesome deeds, I will become king.' When the ministers heard the prince's command, they immediately proclaimed the order in the four directions: 'All people of Jambudvīpa must practice the ten wholesome deeds and not kill living beings.' The ministers fully reported this to the prince, saying: 'Now you may ascend the throne.' The prince then succeeded to the throne. The ministers addressed the king, saying: 'When the king was first born, eighty-four thousand hidden treasures spontaneously welled up. Now they may be gathered into the royal treasury.' The king said: 'There is no need to enter them into the treasury.' He then ordered that at the crossroads where they had emerged, they should be given in charity to śramaṇas, brāhmaṇas, the poor, the destitute, the orphaned, and the elderly. The ministers then complied with the king's order and, wherever the treasures were located, gave them away in charity at the four crossroads outside the eighty-four thousand city gates. At that time, Śakra Devānām Indra transformed himself into a man and went about saying to others: 'The king has instructed me to commit the ten unwholesome deeds.' The ministers reported to the king: 'Was there such an edict?' The king replied: 'I previously ordered that all who can speak within Jambudvīpa must practice the ten wholesome deeds; I never uttered such words.' He immediately mounted a precious elephant and went to that place. The king asked: 'Did you say that Lamp of Wisdom instructed you to commit the ten unwholesome deeds?' The transformed man answered, 'Indeed it is so.' The king asked again: 'Can you practice the ten wholesome deeds?' He replied: 'If one who wishes to achieve the Bodhisattva Path will let me eat his flesh raw and drink his blood warm, then I will personally practice the ten wholesome deeds.' The king reflected: 'From beginningless time I have passed through manifold sufferings, transmigrating in the five paths of rebirth and undergoing slaughter everywhere.' He immediately took a knife, cut the flesh from his thigh, filled a vessel with blood, and handed it to him, saying: 'Man, you may eat the flesh and drink the blood, and respectfully practice the ten wholesome deeds.' The transformed man instantly vanished, reappeared in the form of Śakra, and asked him: 'Is your giving for the sake of one world, or for the four worlds?' The king said: 'It is only to seek the unexcelled Path and deliver those who have not yet been delivered.' Śakra poured heavenly ambrosia over him, and his wounds immediately healed, bringing benefit to sentient beings. The father king of that time was my present father king. The principal consort was my present mother. King Lamp of Wisdom was myself." (Extracted from the second fascicle of the Vinaya in Four Parts)