經律異相 13.27

13.27

In the past, in the kingdom of Śrāvastī, there was a great elder named Kuru, possessed of immeasurable wealth, who had no children. He prayed everywhere to all the spirits, but could not obtain one at all. A deity in mid-air said: “You shall obtain a blessed son. A certain deva-king is on the verge of death and will be born into your house, elder.” The elder was overjoyed. Seven days later, his principal wife felt she was pregnant. When the months were full, she gave birth to a boy named Subhūti. His appearance was supreme, and he was intelligent, eloquent, universally loving, broadly knowledgeable, and respected by the noble and humble alike. Whatever he saw or heard, or whatever he did, he continually turned it into the joy of Dharma to exhort and benefit all. His uncles and brothers were all jealous and resentful of him, and said to his mother: “This child does not think about managing the household; he wanders about without measure.” The mother said: “This child’s merit is not the same as that of ordinary people.” Later, Subhūti asked for food. The mother instructed a maidservant to wash an empty vessel beforehand and tell him there was none. Subhūti uncovered the vessel and looked into it; spontaneously, food of a hundred flavors appeared, fragrant and delicious. When all ate together, all attained peace and security. Only then did the uncles and brothers realize he was no ordinary person. They invited the Buddha and the great assembly of bodhisattvas and laid out food. When the meal was over, the son asked his parents for permission to become a śramaṇa. The father then granted it. He followed the Buddha back to the Jetavana and became a śramaṇa. Right then he attained the non-retrogressing stage (avaivartika), manifesting as an arhat among the disciples. (From the Ten-Fascicle Avadāna Sūtra, fascicle 1.)