經律異相 23.6

23.6

At that time in the kingdom of Śrāvastī, an elder's wife gave birth to a daughter of exquisite beauty, with few equals. At her birth, she came forth wrapped in fine, soft white cotton cloth. Her parents were astonished at it. Her physical marks were examined and found to be extremely auspicious, so they gave her the name Śuklā (in the language of Liang, “White”). As Śuklā grew up, the cloth grew along with her body. This maiden was extraordinarily lovely, and from near and far across the land suitors vied to propose marriage to her. The maiden said to her parents: “I wish to leave the household.” Her parents loved and cared for her, and did not go against her wish. They immediately brought out cloth, intending to make the fivefold monastic robes. The maiden told her parents: “What I am wearing is already fully complete; there is no need to make more. I only ask that you permit me to go to where the Buddha is.” She went to the Buddha, paid homage, and asked to leave the household. The Buddha said: “Welcome!” Her hair fell off of its own accord, and the white cloth she wore immediately turned into the fivefold robes. She was entrusted to Mahāprajāpatī to become a bhikṣuṇī, and practicing vigorously, before long she realized the path of an arhat. Ānanda said to the Buddha: “What virtue did Śuklā cultivate in the past, that she was born together with cloth and, leaving the household, attained the Way?” The Buddha said: “In the past there was a Buddha named Vipaśyin. At that time the king, ministers, and common people made many offerings. There was then a woman named Danikoṭī who was exceedingly poor. The husband and wife shared only a single piece of cloth between them. When the husband went out, he wore it, while the wife stayed naked. When the wife wore the cloth, the husband sat naked. An alms-gathering bhikṣu came walking to their house, saw this woman, and thereupon exhorted her, saying: ‘A Buddha's era is rare to encounter; a human body is difficult to obtain. You should listen to the Dharma and practice generosity.’ The woman returned and said to her husband: ‘There is a śramaṇa outside who exhorts me to see the Buddha, listen to the Dharma, and practice generosity.’ The husband answered her, saying: ‘Our family is destitute; although we may have the intention, what can we give?’ The wife said: ‘My wish is to give this cloth as an offering.’ The husband said: ‘You and I share this one piece of cloth, going out and coming in seeking resources to keep ourselves alive. If we now use it as an offering, we shall both stay here and die!’ The wife said: ‘Human beings are bound to die. If we do not give, we will still die. Dying having given alms brings hope for future lives; dying without giving will lead to far greater misery hereafter.’ The husband rejoiced and said: ‘Let us accept death and make the gift!’ The wife then went out again and said to the bhikṣu: ‘O Venerable One, please enter my name upon the donor register.’ The bhikṣu answered: ‘If you wish to give, you must present the offering in person so that I may pronounce a blessing for you.’ Śuklā said: ‘I wear only this cloth and have no other clothes beneath it. A woman's form is base and repulsive, and it is not fitting to strip here.’ She then returned inside, took off the cloth from her body from afar down below, and handed it to the bhikṣu. The bhikṣu pronounced a blessing and brought it to where the Buddha was. The Buddha said: ‘Bhikṣu, bring that cloth here.’ The bhikṣu offered it to the Buddha, and the Buddha received it with his own hands. This cloth was filthy and stained. At that time, the assembly of the king felt slight contempt in their hearts that the Buddha received such soiled cloth. Knowing the minds of the assembly, the Buddha told them: ‘I see that in this assembly, no pure and great giving surpasses this offering made with the cloth.’ Hearing this, the great assembly was awestruck. The king’s consort rejoiced, immediately took off the decorative jewels, necklaces, and precious robes she was wearing, and sent them to Danikoṭī. The king was also delighted, took off his own clothes, sent them to her husband, and commanded them to come to the assembly.” The Buddha said to Ānanda: “Do you wish to know who the poor woman Danikoṭī was at that time? She was none other than the present bhikṣuṇī Śuklā. Because at that time she gave the cloth with a pure mind, wherever she was reborn for ninety-one kalpas, she was always born with cloth, lacking nothing.” (Drawn from the Sūtra of the Wise and the Foolish, Fascicle 7)