經律異相 43.33

43.33

佛住舍衛城南有大林邑。商人驅八牛。到北方俱哆國。復有一商人。共在澤中放牛。時離車捕得一龍女。穿鼻牽行。商人見之。即起慈心。問離車言。汝牽此欲作何等。答言。我欲殺噉。商人言勿殺。我與汝一牛。貿取放之捕者不肯。乃至八牛。方言。今為汝故我當放之。即取八牛放去龍女。時商人復念。此是惡人恐復追逐更還捕取。即自隨逐看其所向。到一池邊。龍變為人身。語商人言。天施我命今欲報恩。可共我入宮。當報天恩。商人答言。汝等龍性卒暴瞋恚無常。或能殺我。答言。前人繫我。我力能殺。彼但以受布薩法故。都無殺心。何況天今施我壽命。而當加害。小住此中。我先入摒擋。是龍門邊見二龍繫在一處。問言。汝為何事。答言。此龍女半月中三日受齋法。我兄弟守護此龍女。不堅固為離車所得。以是故被繫。唯願天慈語令放我。此龍女若問欲食何等食者。當索閻浮提人間食。龍女摒擋已。便即呼入。坐寶床蓐上。龍女白言。天今欲食何等食。答言。欲須閻浮提人間食。即下種種食。問龍女言。此人何故被繫。龍女言。此有過我欲殺之。商人言。汝莫殺。不爾要當殺之。商人言。汝放彼者我當食耳。白言。不得直爾放之。當罰六月擯置人間。商人問言。汝有如是莊嚴用受布薩為。答言。我龍法有五事苦。何等五。生時龍。眠時龍。婬時龍。瞋時龍。一日之半三過。皮肉落地熱沙煿身。復問。汝欲求何等。答言。我欲求人道中生。問我已得人身應求何等。答言。出家難得。又問。當就誰出家。答言。如來應供正遍知今在舍衛城。未脫者脫。汝可就出家。便言。我欲還歸。龍女即與八餅金語言。此是龍金。足汝父母。眷屬終身用不盡語言。汝合眼。即以神變持著本國。行伴先至。語其家言。入龍宮去。父母謂兒已死。眷屬宗親聚在一處悲號啼哭。時放牧者及取薪草人。見已先還語其家言。某甲來歸。家人聞已即大歡喜。出迎入家已為作生會。作生會時以八餅金持與父母。此是龍金。截已更生。盡壽用之（出僧祇律第三十三卷）。

When the Buddha was dwelling in Śrāvastī, south of the city was the village of Mahāvana. A merchant drove eight oxen to the northern country of Kūṭa. Another merchant was with him, pasturing oxen together in a marsh. At that time, a Licchavi caught a nāga maiden, pierced her nose, and led her along. When the merchant saw this, thoughts of compassion arose in him. He asked the Licchavi, “What do you intend to do, leading this [creature]?” He replied, “I want to kill and eat her.” The merchant said, “Do not kill her. I will give you an ox in exchange for her release.” The captor refused, until [the merchant offered] up to eight oxen, at which point he said, “Now, for your sake, I will release her.” He then took the eight oxen and let the nāga maiden go. Then the merchant thought again, “This is an evil man, and I fear he will pursue her and capture her again.” So he followed behind, watching where she went. Arriving at the edge of a pool, the nāga transformed into human form and said to the merchant, “You, my lord, have spared my life, and now I wish to repay your kindness. You may come into the palace with me, and I shall repay your lordship’s kindness.” The merchant answered, “The nature of you nāgas is sudden, violent, angry, and fickle; you might kill me.” She answered, “The earlier man bound me, and I had the power to kill him, but only because I was observing the poṣadha precepts did I have no thought of killing at all. How much less would I harm my lord, who has just bestowed life upon me? Stay here for a short while; I will go in first to arrange things.” At the gate of this nāga [palace], he saw two nāgas bound in one place. He asked them, “Why are you here?” They answered, “This nāga maiden observes the fasting precepts three days every half-month. We brothers failed to guard this nāga maiden securely, so she was caught by the Licchavi. For this reason we are bound. We only pray that in your lordship’s compassion, you will tell her to release us. If this nāga maiden asks what kind of food you wish to eat, you should ask for the human food of Jambudvīpa.” Once the nāga maiden finished arranging things, she summoned him inside. He sat on a precious couch with mats. The nāga maiden addressed him, saying, “What kind of food does my lord wish to eat now?” He answered, “I desire human food of Jambudvīpa.” She immediately set out various kinds of food. He asked the nāga maiden, saying, “Why are these persons bound?” The nāga maiden said, “They have committed a fault, and I wish to kill them.” The merchant said, “Do not kill them.” [She said,] “If not [killed], they must at least be executed.” The merchant said, “Only if you release them will I eat.” She said, “They cannot be simply released like that; they must be punished by being banished to the human realm for six months.” The merchant asked, “You possess such adornments; why do you observe the poṣadha?” She answered, “In our nāga existence, there are five kinds of suffering. What are the five? At birth one is a nāga; while sleeping one is a nāga; during lust one is a nāga; in anger one is a nāga; and three times in the middle of a single day, one’s skin and flesh fall to the ground and hot sand roasts one’s body.” He asked again, “What do you seek?” She answered, “I seek to be born in the human realm.” He asked, “I have already attained a human body; what should I seek?” She answered, “Leaving home is hard to attain.” He further asked, “Under whom should I leave home?” She answered, “The Tathāgata, Arhat, Samyaksambuddha is now in the city of Śrāvastī; he liberates those not yet liberated. You may go to him to leave home.” He then said, “I wish to return home.” The nāga maiden then gave him eight cakes of gold, telling him, “This is nāga gold; it will suffice for your parents and family members to use for their entire lives without being exhausted.” She said, “Close your eyes.” Then, by supernatural power, she transported him back to his native country. His traveling companions had arrived earlier and told his family, “He entered the nāga palace.” His parents thought their son had died, and the family and clan gathered in one place, wailing and weeping. At that time, cowherds and gatherers of firewood and grass saw him and returned first to tell his family, “So-and-so has returned.” Hearing this, the family rejoiced greatly, going out to welcome him into the house, and held a feast to celebrate his survival. During the feast celebrating his survival, he took the eight cakes of gold and presented them to his parents, [saying], “This is nāga gold. When a piece is cut off, it grows back again; use it for your whole lives.” (From the thirty-third fascicle of the Mahāsāṃghika-vinaya.)