法苑珠林 14.52

14.52

又問。今涼州西番（音盤）禾縣。山裂像出。何代造耶。答云。迦葉佛時有利賓菩薩。見此山人不信業報。以殺害為業。于時住處有數萬家。無重佛法者。菩薩救之為立伽藍。大梵天王手造像身。初成以菩薩神力能令如真佛。不異游步說法教化。諸人雖蒙此道猶故不信。于時菩薩示行怖畏。手擎大石。可於聚落欲下壓之。菩薩揚威勸化諸人。便欻迴心信敬於佛。所有殺具變成蓮華。隨有街巷華如種植。瑞像方攝神力。菩薩又勸諸清信上令造七寺。南北一百四里。東西八十里。彌山亘谷。處處僧坊佛殿營造。經十三年方得成就。同時出家者有二萬人。在七寺住。經三百年。彼諸人等現業力大。昔所造惡當世輕受不入地獄。前所害者在惡趣中又發惡願。彼害我者及未成聖。我當害之。若不加害惡業便盡。我無以報。共吐大火焚燒寺舍。及彼聚落一時焚蕩縱盜得活。又以大水漂溺殺之。無一得存。時彼山神寺未破前。收取此像遠在空中。寺破以後下內石室安置供養。年月既久石生室滅。至劉薩何師禮山。逆示像出。其薩何者。前身元是利賓菩薩。身首別處更在別篇。

He also asked: "Now, in Fanhe County of Liangzhou, a mountain split open and an image emerged. In which era was it made?"
He answered, saying: "At the time of Kāśyapa Buddha, there was the Bodhisattva Libin. Seeing that the people of this mountain did not believe in karmic retribution and took killing and harming as their livelihood—at that time there were tens of thousands of households in their dwelling places, none of whom respected the Buddha's Dharma—the Bodhisattva, to rescue them, established a saṃghārāma for them. The Heavenly King Mahābrahmā fashioned the body of the image with his own hands. When it was first completed, by the Bodhisattva's supernatural power, he caused it to be like a real Buddha, strolling about, preaching the Dharma, and transforming beings without any difference. Although the people were exposed to this path, they still did not believe. Thereupon the Bodhisattva displayed terrifying conduct: holding up a great rock in his hand, large enough to cover the settlement, he appeared about to drop it and crush them. The Bodhisattva demonstrated his majesty to exhort and transform the people, who then suddenly turned their hearts to faith and reverent devotion to the Buddha. All their instruments of slaughter turned into lotus blossoms, and in every street and lane, flowers bloomed as if planted. Only then did the auspicious image withdraw its supernatural power. The Bodhisattva also exhorted all the upāsakas to construct seven temples, spanning one hundred and four li from north to south and eighty li from east to west, filling the mountains and traversing the valleys. Monastic quarters and Buddha halls were constructed everywhere, taking thirteen years before they were completed. At the same time, twenty thousand people renounced household life and dwelt in the seven temples. After three hundred years had passed, those people had great power from their present karma: the evil they had formerly committed was borne lightly in the present life, and they did not enter hell. But those whom they had previously harmed made an evil vow while in the evil destinies: 'Before those who harmed us attain sagehood, we shall harm them. If we do not inflict harm on them, their evil karma will be exhausted, and we will have no way to repay them.' Together they spat forth great fire, burning down the monastic dwellings and incinerating the settlement all at once; even if some stealthily escaped with their lives, they were then drowned and killed by great waters, so that not one remained. At that time, before the temple was destroyed, the mountain spirit had taken this image far up into the sky; after the temple was destroyed, he brought it down and installed it inside a stone chamber to make offerings. After a long passage of time, the rock grew over and the chamber disappeared. When Master Liu Sahe came to pay homage to the mountain, he foretold that the image would emerge. That Sahe was originally the Bodhisattva Libin in a previous birth. His relics in other places are recorded in another chapter."