經律異相 33.4

33.4

There was a king named Brahmāyu who made offerings to the Buddha and the saṅgha. On every fast day, the king, accompanied by his retinue, would go to the Buddha's presence. Whenever the Buddha preached the Dharma, the king would rejoice and listen to the sūtras with reverence. His crown prince was named Kolita; with earnest mind and vigorous effort, he realized that the world is impermanent and that none who are born escape death, having no craving for worldly glory. He said to the king, "A Buddha's era is difficult to encounter, and the teachings of the sūtras are difficult to hear. I beg to become a śramaṇa." The king immediately granted permission. Kolita then took leave of the king, went to the Buddha's presence, and begged to become a bhikṣu. The Buddha stroked his head with his hand; his hair fell off naturally, and kāṣāya robes appeared on his body. Upholding the weighty precepts and cultivating with diligence day and night without wearying, after three months had passed, he attained arhatship. At that time, the king did not know he had already attained the Way. Seeing his toil and his meals of coarse vegetables, whenever the king went to make offerings, he treated him differently from the rest of the saṅgha, having a different attitude toward him, and would say to him, "In my kingdom, rare treasures, the seven jewels, and sweet and delicious delicacies abound; there is nothing lacking. Why do you delight in being a śramaṇa?" Kolita then lightly lifted himself up into the air, flying, transforming, dividing his body, dispersing his form, and entering and exiting unobstructed. Seeing him do this, the king was filled with mixed grief and joy, threw himself to the ground with his five limbs, and paid homage to Kolita. The Buddha instructed Kolita to explain to the king the Dharma of suffering, emptiness, impermanence, and the Four Noble Truths. The king's mind immediately understood, and he attained the fruit of stream-entry. (Extracted from the King Brahmāyu Sūtra.)