經律異相 6.30

6.30

In the past, a prince named Mahāsattva went roaming in the forests and wilds. He saw a tigress that had newly given birth to seven cubs; starving for many days, their lives were on the verge of extinction. He thereupon stripped off his clothes, pierced his neck with a bamboo stalk, leaped down from a height, and lay before the tigress. The tigress licked his blood, gradually consumed him entirely. Hearing that their son had not returned, the Great King and the palace sent people to search for him. The messenger returned and recounted the matter in full. The king ordered his relics to be gathered and a stūpa of the seven treasures to be built. (Extracted from the Golden Light Sūtra, fascicle 4)