經律異相 41.21

41.21

昔有龍王。名曰拔抵。志性暴虐。數為風雨霹靂雹殺人民。鳥獸蠕動死無央數。有尊羅漢萬人共議。若殺一人墮地獄一劫罪猶不畢。今者此龍殘害眾生。前後不訾。轉恐難度。幸當共往諫止之耳。時佛知之。讚言善哉。時諸羅漢萬人俱行。龍放風雨雷電霹靂。萬人驚怖頓伏來還。是時佛在耆闍崛山。與萬菩薩萬羅漢俱到龍所。龍便瞋恚。暴風疾雨雷雹霹靂。其放一雹令壁。方四十丈。若至地者入地四尺。欲以害佛及菩薩僧。時諸羅漢見龍災變。各懷恐怖前依近佛。龍自見雹石化為華蓋。復自念言。我當以身堅自盤結令四十丈。欲以撲佛及眾僧上。即時自撲無所能中。舉頭開目諦視見佛。疑是尊妙無上神人。於是小龍而皆自撲無所動搖。龍王是時即便命盡上生為天。諸餘小龍亦皆併命得作天子。皆悉來下住於佛邊。佛告阿難。汝知是天所從生不。對曰不及。佛言。屬者諸龍興惡意者。自撲在地發一善心知佛為尊。命盡為天此者是也。天聞佛言。及諸天子皆發無上平等度意。佛言。昔龍王拔抵與釋迦文佛共為婆羅門。拔抵弟子。時有萬人。捨其師事釋迦文。拔抵懷恚為龍。佛德既成多度一切。弟子萬人皆得羅漢。龍懷毒惡故欲為害。萬人四道雖備。猶受其辱。若為菩薩龍不敢也（出舊雜譬喻經下卷）。

In the past there was a dragon king named Bhadra. By nature he was cruel and violent, frequently bringing about winds, rain, thunderbolts, and hailstorms to kill people; birds, beasts, and wriggling insects died in countless numbers. Ten thousand venerable arhats deliberated together: "If one kills a single person, one falls into hell for a kalpa and the retribution for that sin is still not ended. Now this dragon harms living beings incalculably over time. It is feared that converting him will become ever more difficult. We should go together to admonish and stop him." At that time, the Buddha knew of this and praised them, saying, "Excellent!" Then the ten thousand arhats set out together. The dragon unleashed wind, rain, thunder, lightning, and thunderbolts. Terrified, the ten thousand fell prostrate, yielded, and returned. At that time, the Buddha was on Mount Gṛdhrakūṭa. Together with ten thousand bodhisattvas and ten thousand arhats, he went to the dragon's dwelling. The dragon then grew enraged and unleashed a fierce storm, pouring rain, thunder, hail, and thunderbolts. Each hailstone he cast was like a wall forty zhang square; when hitting the earth, they penetrated four chi into the ground. He intended thereby to harm the Buddha and the saṃgha of bodhisattvas. At that time, seeing the dragon's calamities, the arhats were terrified and came forward to stay close to the Buddha. The dragon saw for himself that the hailstones transformed into jeweled canopies. He thought to himself again: "I shall coil my body tightly to a size of forty zhang, and cast myself down upon the Buddha and the saṃgha." He immediately threw himself down, but was unable to strike anything. Raising his head and opening his eyes to look closely, he saw the Buddha, and suspected that he must be an exquisitely noble, supreme spiritual being. Thereupon, the small dragons all threw themselves down without moving. At that time the dragon king's life ended, and he was reborn above as a god. The other small dragons also all lost their lives simultaneously and became sons of gods. They all descended and stood beside the Buddha. The Buddha told Ānanda, "Do you know from where these gods were born?" Ānanda replied, "I do not." The Buddha said, "A moment ago, those dragons aroused evil intentions, threw themselves upon the ground, but then gave rise to a single wholesome thought, recognizing the Buddha as the Most Venerable One. When their lives ended, they became gods; these are they." Hearing the Buddha's words, the [dragon king] god and the other sons of gods all gave rise to the anuttarasamyaksaṃbodhi-citta. The Buddha said, "In the past, the dragon king Bhadra and Śākyamuni Buddha were both brāhmaṇas together. Bhadra had ten thousand disciples at that time, who abandoned their teacher to serve Śākyamuni. Bhadra harbored resentment and became a dragon. Once the Buddha's virtue was accomplished, he extensively delivered all beings. The ten thousand disciples all attained arhatship. Because the dragon harbored toxic malice, he wished to harm them. Although the ten thousand had completed the four stages of the path, they were still subjected to his humiliation. Had they been bodhisattvas, the dragon would not have dared." (From the lower fascicle of the Old Sūtra of Diverse Parables.)