經律異相 9.30

9.30

In the past, the Bodhisattva entered the ocean with five hundred merchants to gather treasures. After several months in the ocean, having gathered treasures to heavy capacity, they were returning to their native land when they met a violent gale on the way. Thunder and lightning shook the earth, and the water spirits gathered like clouds. The four quarters became like a city wall, fire issued from their eyes, and surges of waves flooded the mountains. The multitude wept, saying: "We are dead!" In fear and trembling, their faces changing color, they looked up to heaven and pleaded for mercy. The Bodhisattva, grieved at heart, conceived a plan, thinking: "My seeking Buddhahood is solely for the sake of sentient beings. Ocean spirits abhor dead corpses. To sacrifice my life for them to save the multitude—this is indeed the noble vocation of a great being (bodhisattva).