經律異相 26.28

26.28

昔有國王。名曰多福。太子名曰增福。王奉六師。其子事佛。世無沙門。唯一白衣以為師首。外道五百人嫉其名德。即白王言。國事兩法令心不一。願與佛師各現奇德。約不如者役屬為奴。王即可之。外道與師剋日結約。王前各試功藝。梵志善射即行入山。五百人各射大鹿。皆貫左目負來角伎。賢者入山精思念佛。求威佐助以彰大道。有五色鹿踊從地出。歡喜持歸。外道知之。伺賢者行。往語其婦曰。卿夫捨家作沙門。但坐此鹿。破汝家法。婦聞恚怒以鹿乞之。賢者來歸不見其鹿。即問所在。婦曰。此不祥之物今已失去。夫甚愁憂。復還山中至誠悔過。即有明月神珠忽從地出。便持此珠察梵志出行。往詣其門衒賣奇物。梵志婦曰。吾家亦有異物可以相比。即出五色鹿。賢者便言。王使吾齎此鹿。汝今盜之其罪不測。婦遽還之。至其試日。梵志各送鹿皆傷左眼既穢且臭。王甚惋之。賢者來奉奏神鹿齎明月神珠入王殿上。二物飛騰俱戲星流電耀。舉宮讚奇。婆羅門五百人。知術藝不如。即役為奴。其婦為婢。賢者導示經教以為弟子（出雜譬喻經第三卷）。

Formerly, there was a king named Bahupuṇya (Abundant Merit), and his crown prince was named Vardhamāna (Increasing Merit). The king revered the six heterodox masters, while his son served the Buddha. At that time, there were no śramaṇas in the world, and a single white-robed layman served as their leading teacher. Five hundred non-Buddhists envied his reputation and virtue, and they told the king, "The state follows two teachings, so people's minds are not unified. We wish each to display extraordinary arts against the Buddha's master; whoever is inferior shall be bound as a slave in service." The king consented.

The non-Buddhists set a date and made a pact with the master, and before the king they each were to test their skills. The brahmacārins were skilled in archery, so they went into the mountains. All five hundred men shot large deer, each piercing the left eye, and carried them back to compete in skill. The virtuous layman went into the mountains and intently meditated on the Buddha, seeking majestic spiritual aid to make the Great Way shine forth. A five-coloured deer leaped up out of the earth, and he joyfully brought it home.

The non-Buddhists learned of this, waited for the layman to go out, and went to tell his wife, "Your husband has forsaken the household to act as a śramaṇa, yet solely because of this deer he has ruined your household rules." Hearing this, the wife became angry and gave the deer to them. When the layman returned and did not see the deer, he asked where it was. The wife said, "That inauspicious thing has now been lost." The husband was deeply grieved; he returned to the mountains and sincerely repented. Thereupon a divine bright-moon pearl suddenly emerged from the earth. Holding this pearl, he observed the brahmacārins going out, went to their gate, and offered the rare object for sale. The brahmacārin's wife said, "My house also has an extraordinary thing that can rival it," and brought out the five-coloured deer. The layman then said, "The king ordered me to bring this deer; now you have stolen it, and your crime is immeasurable." The wife hurriedly returned it to him.

When the day of the contest arrived, the brahmacārins each presented deer that had their left eyes wounded, which were filthy and foul-smelling; the king was deeply disgusted. The layman arrived, presented the divine deer, and brought the divine bright-moon pearl into the king's palace. The two objects soared and danced together, flashing like shooting stars and shining like lightning. The entire palace praised them as extraordinary. The five hundred brāhmaṇas, knowing their arts were inferior, were made into slaves, and their wives became handmaidens. The layman instructed them in the sūtras and teachings, making them his disciples. (Extracted from the third fascicle of the *Za piyu jing*).