經律異相 17.20

17.20

When the Buddha was in the country of Śrāvastī, there was a monk named Panthaka. Having recently gone forth, he was by nature dull and obstructed. The Buddha ordered five hundred arhats to instruct him daily, but over the course of three years he could not master a single verse. The four assemblies in the kingdom all knew of his foolishness and darkness. The Buddha took pity on him, called him before himself, and imparted to him a single verse:
Guard the mouth, restrain the mind, and do not violate with the body;
Practitioners who act like this will achieve deliverance from the world.
Moved by the Buddha's compassionate grace, Panthaka rejoiced, his mind opened, and he was able to chant the verse fluently. The Buddha said to him, "You are now old, and only now have you mastered a single verse. Everyone knows this; it is nothing extraordinary. I shall now explain its meaning to you: with single-mindedness, [contemplate] the sources of the three bodily, four verbal, and three mental [actions]; observe what arises and inspect what ceases. The five destinies within the three realms revolve without cease; through this one ascends to heaven, through this one falls into the abyss, and through this one attains the Way, realizing nirvāṇa naturally." Analyzing it, he expounded boundless wonderful teachings for him; all at once Panthaka's mind opened, and he attained the arhat path. At that time, there were five hundred nuns who had a separate vihāra. The Buddha would dispatch a monk to expound the scriptural teachings for them each day. The next day, it was Panthaka's turn to go. When the nuns heard this, they all smirked in advance: "When he comes tomorrow, we shall recite his verse backward and embarrass him so that he cannot say a single word." The next day Panthaka arrived. All the nuns, young and old, came out to pay homage, exchanging smiles. When they had finished sitting, food was served. After eating, they rinsed their mouths and hands, and requested that he expound the Dharma. Panthaka then mounted the high seat, and speaking humbly of himself, said, "I have little virtue and inferior capacity, and am not yet a [true] śramaṇa. I have long been dull and slow, and what I have learned is not much. I know only a single verse and roughly understand its meaning. I shall expound it for you; please listen quietly." When the young nuns wished to recite the verse backward, they could not open their mouths. Terrified and reproaching themselves, they bowed their heads and repented. Panthaka then followed what the Buddha had taught, analyzing each point in detail: the origins of bodily and mental actions, sins and blessings, inner and outer, ascending to heaven and attaining the Way, the methods of settling the spirit, severing thoughts, and entering meditative concentration. Hearing his exposition, the nuns were greatly astonished at its extraordinary nature and rejoiced whole-heartedly; they all attained the arhat path. Later, King Prasenajit invited the Buddha and the saṅgha to assemble in the main hall. Wishing to manifest Panthaka's awe-inspiring supernatural power, the Buddha gave him his alms bowl, had him carry it, and walked ahead of him. The gatekeeper recognized Panthaka and stopped him, refusing to let him enter: "You are a śramaṇa who does not understand a single verse; why should you receive an invitation? Even I, a layman, know verses, not to mention a śramaṇa. You have no wisdom; giving to you yields no benefit, so there is no need for you to enter the gate." Panthaka remained outside the gate. The Buddha sat upon the hall. When the water offering was concluded, Panthaka held up the bowl, stretched out his arm from afar, and presented it to the Buddha. The king, his ministers, the queen, the crown prince, and the four assemblies saw the arm enter without seeing the body, and in amazement asked the Buddha, "Whose arm is this?" The Buddha said, "This is the arm of the worthy Panthaka Bhikṣu. He has attained the Way. Earlier I had him carry my bowl, but the gatekeeper would not allow him to enter, so he stretched out his arm to give me the bowl." He was immediately invited in, his awe-inspiring power manifoldly greater than usual. The king said to the Buddha, "I have heard that the Venerable Panthaka was foolish and dull by nature, and only now understands a single verse. By what cause did he attain the Way?" The Buddha said to the king, "Learning need not be abundant; practice is supreme. The worthy Panthaka understands the meaning of a single verse, penetrating the subtle truth into the marvelous; body, mouth, and mind are quiescent and pure like celestial gold. Though a person studies much, if he does not practice, he merely dissipates consciousness and thoughts in vain; what benefit is there?" Thereupon the Bhagavat uttered this verse: