經律異相 23.22

23.22

The elder Sudatta had an elderly mother[-like servant] named Vairātī, who diligently managed the household affairs and was entrusted with the treasury and everything. The elder Sudatta invited the Buddha and the Saṅgha and provided for their needs. When sick bhikṣus made many requests, the old woman was stingy and greedy, grew furious at the Buddha, Dharma, and Saṅgha, and said: “The elder of our house is foolish and deluded. He falls for the śramaṇas' tricks; they beg insatiably—what path could they possess?” Having spoken thus, she made an evil vow: “When will I ever be able to not hear the names of the Buddha, Dharma, and Saṅgha?” When Queen Mallikā heard of this, she said: “Why is it that Sudatta is like a fine lotus flower yet harbors four poisonous snakes?” She immediately ordered Sudatta: “Send your wife here.” When the wife arrived, [the Queen] told her: “The old servant of your house utters evil speech and slander; why not drive her out?” The wife replied: “The Buddha's appearance in the world brings vast moisture and benefit; how much more so for an old servant!” When the Queen heard this, her heart was filled with great joy, and she said: “I wish to invite the Buddha; send your servant to attend.” The next day, when the Buddha arrived, the elder sent the servant holding a jar filled with gold, capped with mani jewels, to assist the royal house in making offerings to the congregation of monks. When the Buddha entered the gate, the old servant saw him and felt displeasure in her heart; she immediately wished to withdraw and escape through the dog-hole. But the dog-hole and the small alleyways on all four sides were blocked at once; only the main road remained open. The old woman covered her face with a fan. The Buddha stood before her and caused the fan to become like a mirror, without any obstruction. When she turned her head and looked around in all four directions, she saw the Buddha everywhere. When she lowered her head and prostrated to the ground, even from the ten fingers of her hands the Buddha was manifested. When the old woman saw the Buddha and these diverse manifestations, she eliminated eighty hundred thousand koṭis [of kalpas of sins]. Although faith did not arise in her, she was still able to dispel the sins of birth and death. The Buddha saw that she manifested differently: the servant ran back home, crawled into a wooden cage, and wrapped her head in white cotton cloth, fearing to see the Buddha again. The Buddha said: “This servant’s sins are heavy, and she lacks affinity with the Buddha. Rāhula has great affinity with her; he should be directed to convert her.” At that time, Rāhula, relying on the Buddha’s spiritual power, entered the samādhi of wish-fulfillment and transformed his body into a wheel-turning sage king. The one thousand two hundred and fifty bhikṣus were transformed into a thousand sons; Ānanda became the minister of the treasury; Nanda became the minister of arms; the seven treasures and the fourfold army were all fully provided. The golden wheel treasure rested in the empty sky, riding on a lotus platform, heading straight for the house of the great elder Sudatta. A yakṣa proclaimed: “The sage king has appeared in the world, expelling all evil people and proclaiming the wholesome Dharma!” When the old woman heard this, her heart was filled with great joy: “The sage king who has appeared possesses a wish-fulfilling jewel; he seeks nothing from others. To him I can speak!” At that time, the sage king struck bells and beat drums, riding a great jeweled carriage, and arrived at Sudatta’s house. When the old woman saw him, she was exceedingly joyful: “The sage king's appearance brings much benefit; he discerns good and evil and certainly will not be deluded by the śramaṇas.” She came out of the wooden cage and paid homage to the sage king. The sage king at once dispatched the minister in charge of the treasury to go to the woman and announce: “Sister, you possess past merit that corresponds to the marks of royalty. The sage king now wishes to take you, sister, as his woman-treasure.” The old woman addressed him: “My person is lowly and base, just like filth. The sage king condescends to regard me, which brings immeasurable joy and celebration. How could I be worthy of being the woman-treasure? If he has pity on me, let him command my master to release me and set me free; that would already be a great gift.” At that time, the sage king addressed Sudatta, saying: “The elderly woman of your household possesses majestic features; I now wish to have her serve as the woman-treasure.” Sudatta replied: “I obey only your command; I wish to offer her to the Great King.” When the old servant heard she was freed, her delight was extraordinary. The sage king then illuminated the woman’s face with the wish-fulfilling jewel, causing her to see herself as the woman-treasure. Her joy was doubled, and she said: “Those śramaṇas talk loftily and speak grandly, claiming to possess the path, yet there is not a single proof! The sage king has appeared in the world with manifold benefits; he has made an old and decrepit woman like me into the woman-treasure!” Having spoken thus, she threw her five limbs to the ground and bowed to the sage king. Then the minister of the treasury proclaimed the king’s gracious decree and unfolded the teachings of the ten wholesome deeds. When the woman heard the ten wholesome deeds, her heart was overjoyed, and she said: “What the sage king has spoken contains nothing that is not good.” She bowed to the king, repented, and blamed herself. Once her mind was tamed, Rāhula resumed his original form. The old woman lifted her head and saw the one thousand two hundred and fifty bhikṣus. She immediately said: “The Buddha’s Dharma is pure; he does not abandon sentient beings. Even someone decrepit and vile like me was still converted and delivered!” Having spoken thus, she sought to receive the five precepts. Rāhula then explained the three refuges and conferred the five precepts on her. Upon hearing this teaching, before she had even raised her head, she became a srotāpanna. Then Rāhula led this old woman to the Jeta Grove. Having arrived, she saw the Buddha, and with joyful, joined palms bowed in repentance, begging the Buddha to let her renounce the world. The Buddha told Rāhula: “Take this woman to Gautamī.” While on the way, Rāhula explained to her the teachings on suffering, emptiness, impermanence, non-self, and the like. Upon hearing them, the old woman’s hair fell out on its own, and she became a bhikṣuṇī, equipped with the three knowledges, the six supernormal powers, and the eight liberations. King Prasenajit and Queen Mallikā rejoiced greatly and said: “Bhagavat, what past sin did this old woman have, and what auspicious merit, that she could attain the path of an arhat?” The Buddha told the Great King: “In a kalpa long ago, there was a Buddha, a Bhagavat named Jewel-Canopy Lamp King. After that Buddha’s demise, during the semblance Dharma, there was a king named Variegated Jewel Flower Light. That king had a son named Kṣemadarśin, who sought to renounce household life, and his father granted permission. The prince went to the monastery seeking to renounce household life. At that time, there was a bhikṣu, intelligent and of great wisdom, who deeply understood the true nature of reality; he accepted him as his disciple. There was also a bhikṣu named Virtue Flower Light, skilled in expounding the essentials of the Dharma to attract and advance beginners. Although the prince bhikṣu had renounced household life, he still harbored arrogance. His preceptor explained to him the profound, wondrous Dharma of the Prajñāpāramitā and the meaning of great emptiness. When the prince heard it, he misunderstood it and explained it perversely. After the bhikṣu passed away, the prince said: ‘My great preceptor was completely devoid of wisdom; he could only praise illusory, empty matters. May I never wish to see him in future lives! May my ācārya, who has wisdom and eloquence, be my virtuous friend in life after life!’ Having spoken thus, the prince bhikṣu declared the Dharma to be non-Dharma and non-Dharma to be Dharma, teaching all his followers to practice wrong views. Although he observed the prohibitive precepts and his deportment was flawless, because of his mistaken understanding, upon the end of his life he fell into the Avīci hell as swiftly as an arrow flies, constantly enduring great torment for eighty hundred million kalpas. When he emerged, he became a poor and lowly person, deaf, foolish, and sightless, serving as a slave to others. The preceptor of that time was none other than myself; the ācārya was Rāhula; and the prince bhikṣu was this old woman. (Extracted from fascicle 6 of the Guanfo sanmei jing.)”