法苑珠林 65.49

65.49

如大悲經云。佛告阿難。過去之世有大商主。為採寶故將諸商人入於大海。彼所乘船眾寶悉滿。至海中間其船卒壞。時彼商人心懷悑畏極生憂惱。其中或有得船版者。或有浮者。有命終者。我於爾時作彼商主。在大海中。用以浮囊安隱而度。時有五人呼商主言。大士商主唯願惠施我等無畏。說是語已。爾時商主即告之言。諸丈夫勿生。悑畏。我令汝等從此大海安隱得度。阿難。彼時商主身帶利劍。而作是念。大海之法不居死屍。如其我今自捨身命。此諸商人必能得度大海之難。作是念已。即喚商人。置己身上令善捉持。彼諸商人有騎背者。有抱肩者。有捉髀者。爾時商主為欲施彼無悑畏故。興大悲心起大勇猛。即以利劍斷己命根。速取命終于時大海漂其死屍置之岸上。時五商人便得度海。安隱受樂。平吉無難還閻浮提。阿難。彼時商主豈異人乎。我身是也。五商人者。今五比丘是也。是五比丘昔於大海而得度脫。今復於此生死大海而得度脫。安置無畏涅槃彼岸。

As the Mahākāruṇika-sūtra says: The Buddha told Ānanda: In a past age, there was a great caravan leader who, in order to gather jewels, led merchants into the great ocean. The ship they rode was filled with all kinds of jewels. When they reached the middle of the ocean, their ship suddenly broke apart. At that time, those merchants harbored fear and distress in their hearts, and great sorrow and anxiety arose. Among them, some obtained planks of the ship, some floated, and some lost their lives. At that time, I was that caravan leader. In the great ocean, I used a floating bladder to cross over safely. At that time, there were five men who called out to the caravan leader, saying: "Great Being, Caravan Leader, we only pray that you bestow fearlessness upon us!" Having spoken these words, the caravan leader then said to them: "Gentlemen, do not give rise to fear! I will cause you to cross over safely from this great ocean." Ānanda, at that time, the caravan leader carried a sharp sword on his body and had this thought: "The law of the ocean is not to harbor dead corpses. If I now abandon my own physical life, these merchants will certainly be able to cross over the perils of the great ocean." Having had this thought, he immediately called the merchants and placed them upon his body, telling them to hold on firmly. Among those merchants, some rode on his back, some hugged his shoulders, and some grasped his thighs. At that time, the caravan leader, wishing to bestow fearlessness upon them, aroused great compassion and brought forth great courage. He immediately cut off his own life-faculty with the sharp sword and quickly met his death. At that time, the great ocean drifted his corpse and cast it upon the shore. Then the five merchants were able to cross the ocean, experience happiness in safety, and return to Jambudvīpa safely and without peril. Ānanda, could that caravan leader of that time have been someone else? It was my own person. As for the five merchants, they are the present five bhikṣus. These five bhikṣus formerly attained deliverance in the great ocean; now they have again attained deliverance in this ocean of birth and death, and have been established upon the fearless other shore of nirvāṇa.