經律異相 35.17

35.17

有一國王名曇摩苾提。布施持戒慈悲不傷物命。政法治國滿二十年。共人博戲。時有一人殺人。諸臣白王。答言。隨國法治。即案律殺。王戲已畢問。罪人何在。臣曰已殺。王聞泣曰。七珍皆住我獨入地獄。即捨王位入山自守。命終作摩竭魚。身長七百由旬。王臣恃勢抂刻百姓。命終亦作摩竭大魚。身虫𭼦癢揩頗梨山。碎殺虫血流百里皆赤。應墮大地獄。時魚一眠百歲乃覺。覺大飢渴。即便張口海水流入如注大河。有五百估客入海採寶。值之船趣魚口。賈人稱南無佛。魚聞閉口。賈客得活。魚飢命終生王舍城。夜叉出身置此海邊。時王者汝身是。殺人為魚。苾提口解無常厭世。盡結得羅漢果（出賢愚經第七卷）。

There was a king named Dharmavṛddhi who practiced giving, kept the precepts, had loving-kindness and compassion, and did not harm the lives of creatures. He governed the state according to the righteous law for a full twenty years. Once, while playing a board game with someone, a man committed murder. The ministers reported it to the king, who answered: "Deal with him according to the law of the state." They immediately executed him according to the statutes. When the king finished his game, he asked: "Where is the criminal?" The ministers replied: "He has already been executed." Hearing this, the king wept, saying: "The seven treasures will all remain behind, while I alone must enter hell!" He at once abandoned his kingship, entered the mountains, and kept himself secluded. When his life ended, he became a makara fish seven hundred yojanas long. The king's ministers, relying on their power to falsely oppress the common people, upon death also became great makara fish. When worms on its body caused it to itch, it rubbed against a crystal mountain, crushing and killing the worms so that the blood flowed for a hundred li, turning everything red; for this it ought to fall into the great hells. At that time, after the fish slept for a hundred years, it woke up, extremely hungry and thirsty. It immediately opened its mouth, and the seawater poured in like a great river. Five hundred merchants entering the sea to gather jewels encountered it, and their ship headed for the fish's mouth. The merchants called out: "Homage to the Buddha!" Hearing this, the fish closed its mouth, and the merchants were saved. The fish died of hunger and was reborn in Rājagṛha. A yakṣa took its corpse and placed it on this seashore. The king of that time was yourself; because of the killing, you became the fish.' Śrīvṛddhi realized impermanence and grew weary of the world; exhausting all fetters, he attained the fruit of arhatship. (Extracted from the Xianyu jing, Fascicle 7).