經律異相 44.44

44.44

昔有一人。聞外國有仙水入中得仙。便向外國寄他宿止。主人問客。君欲何去。答曰學仙。主人懷惡。語客言曰。我有仙樹。君能與我一年苦作。便與君仙何煩遠去。客言甚善。一年苦作恒無慍色。一年既滿。其主人公本心相欺。既無仙樹。將至山中指臨巖樹云是仙樹。君上其頭。我喚若飛應聲飛擲。客人心至。即於此樹飛騰虛空。遂得仙道。主人公見我令其死。何悟得仙。深重此樹情言是聖。復經少時。父子相與共到樹下。讓父先上。兒便喚言阿耶可飛。父即欲飛。墮巖石上。身體粉碎（出雜譬喻經）。

Formerly, a man heard that in a foreign land there was immortal water, and that by entering it one would become an immortal. He then set out for the foreign land and lodged with someone. The host asked the guest: 'Where do you wish to go?' He answered: 'To learn the way of the immortals.' Harboring evil intentions, the host told the guest: 'I have an immortal tree. If you can perform hard labor for me for one year, I will grant you immortality; why trouble yourself to go far away?' The guest said: 'Very well.' He performed hard labor for one year without ever showing a countenance of resentment. When the year was completed, the host—who had intended all along to deceive him and actually had no immortal tree—led him into the mountains, pointed to a tree overhanging a cliff, and said: 'This is the immortal tree. Climb to its top, and when I call you to fly, cast yourself off into flight upon my voice.' With sincere devotion, the guest soared into the empty sky from this tree and attained the way of the immortals. Seeing this, the host thought: 'I intended for him to die; how could I have realized he would become an immortal?' Deeply venerating this tree, he believed it was divine. After a short time, the host and his son went together to the base of the tree. Yielding to his father to go up first, the son called out: 'Father, you may fly!' The father then attempted to fly, but fell onto the rocks of the cliff and his body was smashed to pieces. (Extracted from the Miscellaneous Parables Sūtra).