經律異相 19.10

19.10

When the Buddha was dwelling in the Araṇya Monastery at Rājagṛha, there were five hundred monks who all begged to build cells. When merchants saw the monks coming, they would shut their shops and return home to avoid them. The monks intercepted them along other roads, continuously preaching karmic retribution and instructing them to generate faith, even seizing them by their heads to force them to give, saying: 'This is so that you may obtain bodily form, strength, and longevity, increase merit, and attain the fruit of nectar.' Hearing this, the merchants generated faith and gave somewhat. Later, seeing Śāriputra, they complained to Śāriputra of this matter in detail. Having heard them, Śāriputra preached the Dharma to delight them, and returned to report fully to the Buddha. The Buddha told the monks who managed affairs: 'In a past age, there was a monk named Bāskala who dwelt in a forest. At that time, a flock of śakunta birds also roosted in this forest. Their disordered cries at dawn and dusk troubled Bāskala. Bāskala went to the Bhagavat's place, bowed his head to the Buddha's feet, and stood to one side. The Bhagavat inquired after his comfort: "Do you have little illness and little trouble, dwelling peacefully and happily in the forest?" The monk replied: "I have little illness and little trouble, and dwell happily therein, but the cries of the śakunta birds disturb and perturb me so that I cannot contemplate." The Buddha told the monk: "Do you wish to make none of these birds come at all?" He replied: "May it be so." The Buddha said: "Monk, when these birds come, you should beg a feather from each bird." Following the instruction, the monk begged for feathers; each bird dropped a feather. When they left every morning, he begged again like this. The birds then moved to a different place for the night, but not finding peace, soon returned. The monk again begged feathers from them, and each gave one again. The birds said to one another: "The śramaṇa's begging for feathers is endless; we fear that before long our plumage will be completely gone, and we will no longer be able to fly." They further consulted together, saying: "This monk constantly dwells in the forest; we should leave and seek another roost." The monks reported this fully to the Buddha, saying: "The monk in the forest was timid and weak, easily disturbed, and frightened by the sounds of the bad birds." The Buddha said: "Not only today was he timid and weak; in a past age there was an elephant king who lived in a forest. A fierce gale suddenly arose and snapped the trees. Hearing the sound of breaking, the elephant was terrified and fled. When his fear slightly subsided, he sheltered under another tree; the other tree snapped again, and so he fled again. At that time, a deva saw the elephant and thought: 'This elephant runs about wildly without cause.' He then spoke a verse: