經律異相 31.21.4

31.21.4

trusted Jīvaka's words regarding food and drink. The rest [of the court, however, had eaten] fruit and water, and, stricken by the medicine, suffered from diarrhea for three days; only now were they somewhat relieved, knowing that they had been on the verge of death. During the three days before Wu returned, the king's illness had already subsided. He regretted having dispatched Wu. Seeing Wu return, he was both joyous and sorrowful, saying, 'It is fortunate that you did not immediately bring the lad back! In my fury, I surely would have beaten him to death. Having received his favor, I now survive; yet had I killed him instead, such perverse wickedness would have been beyond measure!' Those who had previously been wrongfully put to death were all reburied with great honor, their households had their statuses restored, and they were bestowed money and goods. Longing to see Jīvaka to repay his kindness, he immediately dispatched an envoy to welcome him back. Although Jīvaka knew that the king's illness had subsided, he still harbored dread and did not wish to go again. The Buddha said to Jīvaka, 'In past lives you already made a great vow to accomplish merit; how can you stop midway? You ought to go once more. You have already cured his external illness; I too shall cure his internal illness.' Jīvaka then departed with the envoy. The king was exceedingly joyful to see Jīvaka. Drawing him close to sit beside him, he grasped his arm and said, 'Relying upon the benevolence of the Humane One, I have now been given back my life! How can I repay you? I shall divide the realm to share half with you; the palace handmaidens and the treasures of the storehouses shall all be divided in half.' Jīvaka said, 'I was originally a crown prince; though indeed of a minor realm, it too had its people and was fully equipped with rare treasures. Because I took no pleasure in ruling a state, I sought to become a physician to travel about curing illnesses. What use would I have for land, handmaidens, or treasures? I have no need for any of them. Previously, Your Majesty granted my five wishes, and your external illness was cured; if now you grant me one more wish, your internal illness will also be removed.' The king said, 'I shall heed only the Humane One's teachings. Please ask it.' Jīvaka said, 'I wish that Your Majesty would invite the Buddha and receive the clear Dharma from him.' He then expounded on the Buddha's virtues for the king. Hearing this, the king was overjoyed and said, 'Now I wish to dispatch Minister Wu with a white elephant to welcome the Buddha; can he be brought here or not?' Jīvaka said, 'There is no need for a white elephant. The Buddha knows thoughts from afar. Simply observe the fast, be pure and clean, prepare all the offerings, burn incense, pay reverence from afar, and kneel long to invite the Buddha; the Buddha will surely come of his own accord.' The king did as he said. The Buddha came together with one thousand two hundred and fifty monks. When the meal was finished, he expounded the sūtras for the king. The king was immediately enlightened, gave rise to the mind set on unsurpassed awakening, and young and old throughout the whole kingdom observed the five precepts. When Āmrapālī was born, there were already wondrous portents. As she grew, she was intelligent and studied under her father; widely knowledgeable in the scriptures, the Way, astronomy, calendars, and various arts, she surpassed her father. In addition, she was skilled in music, with a voice like Brahmā. Daughters from the families of gṛhapatis and brahmacārins, totaling five hundred persons, all went to study under her and took her as their great master. Āmrapālī regularly led her five hundred disciples in lecturing on scriptures and arts, or they would disport together in gardens and pools and play music. The people of the state did not understand the reason for this, and so gave rise to slander, calling her a courtesan, and the five hundred disciples were all termed 'the band of courtesans.' When Āmrapālī was born, two other girls were born at the same time in the state: the first was named Sumanā, and the second Padmā. Sumanā was born in the house of a gṛhapati who frequently pressed sumana flowers to make fragrant ointment. Beside the stone used to press the ointment, a nodular knot suddenly formed, as large as a pellet and as long as a rolled hand. The stone then burst open, and within the knot of stone, gleaming like firefly light, [something] shot out and fell to the ground; after three days, a sumana plant sprouted, and after another three days it blossomed into a flower. Inside was a little girl. The gṛhapati took her and raised her, naming her Sumanā. When she grew up, her talents, discernment, and wisdom were second only to Āmrapālī's. As for Padmā, in the bathing pond of a brahmacārin's household, a blue lotus grew, growing daily until it was as large as a five-sheng jar. When the blossom opened, inside was seen a little girl. The brahmacārin raised her, naming her Padmā. When she grew up, her talent, wisdom, and understanding were equal to Sumanā's. When the kings of various realms heard that these two maidens possessed peerless beauty, they vied with one another to seek them in marriage. The two maidens said, 'We were not born from a womb, but came forth from within plants and flowers, different from ordinary mortals. Why should we follow worldly customs and marry?' Hearing that Āmrapālī was intelligent without peer in the world and had been born of the same nature as they, both took leave of their parents and went to serve Āmrapālī, requesting to become her disciples. Their bright wisdom and broad understanding both surpassed the five hundred persons. At that time, the Buddha arrived in the realm of Vaiśālī. Āmrapālī led her disciples out of the city to welcome and pay reverence to the Buddha, kneeling and saying, 'May the Buddha take a meal tomorrow in my grove.' The Buddha accepted in silence. The king came out of the palace to welcome him, and likewise invited him to eat at the palace the next day. The Buddha said, 'Āmrapālī invited me first; Your Majesty is second to her.' The king said, 'As sovereign of the state, I invite the Buddha with the utmost sincerity and surely hope for your compassionate assent. Āmrapālī is merely a courtesan who daily leads five hundred disciples in improper conduct; why should the Buddha cast me aside and accept her invitation?' The Buddha said, 'This woman is not a courtesan. In past lives she possesses great merit, having already made offerings to three hundred million buddhas. Long ago, she was also constantly sisters together with Sumanā and Padmā. Āmrapālī was the eldest, Sumanā was the next, and Padmā was the youngest. Born into a great clan, they were richly endowed with wealth and treasures. Guiding one another as sisters, together they made offerings to five hundred bhikṣuṇīs, providing food, drink, and making garments, supplying whatever was lacking for the duration of their lives. The three vowed, "May we in future lives encounter a buddha, be spontaneously transformed into birth, not come from a womb, and be far removed from filth and defilement!" Now, according to their original vow, they have taken birth and encountered me. In the past, although they made offerings to five hundred bhikṣuṇīs, because they were born into nobility and wealth, their words were haughty and unrestrained. Once, teasing the nuns, they said, "You practitioners have held your grief for so long; you must surely wish to marry. It is only because you are constrained by our offerings that you cannot indulge your passions!" Therefore, they now suffer the remnants of this bad karma: though they lecture on scriptures and the Way, they are falsely slandered as courtesans. The five hundred disciples at that time joined forces with one mind, and in this life have again come to follow them. Jīvaka was at that time a young boy of a poor family; seeing the offerings of Āmrapālī and the others, his mind was filled with admiration and joy, but he had no wealth. Thus, he constantly swept and cleaned for the bhikṣuṇīs, and having done so, he would always think, "May I be able to remove the illnesses of the people of the world!" Āmrapālī pitied his poverty, and moreover, noting his diligence, she always called him her son. Whenever those bhikṣuṇīs fell ill, they would always dispatch Jīvaka to fetch a physician and compound broths and medicines. They all said, "May you in a future life obtain this merit together with us!" Those treated by the physicians Jīvaka fetched were all healed. He then made a vow: "May I in my future life become a great king of physicians, constantly curing the illnesses of the four great elements in all human bodies, healing all wherever I go!" When the king heard the Buddha's words, he repented of his error and postponed his date to a later day. The next day, the Buddha went with the monks to Āmrapālī's grove and expounded in detail the merit of their original vows. Hearing the sūtra, the three maidens were all enlightened