法苑珠林 11.22

11.22

Question: Why is it called the Place of the Ṛṣis' Discourse? Answer: If one states that the Buddhas invariably turn the wheel of the Dharma in this place, they say: The Buddha is the supreme ṛṣi, and all [Buddhas] first turn the wheel of the Dharma here; hence it is called the Place of the Ṛṣis' Discourse. If one states that the Buddhas do not invariably turn the wheel of the Dharma here, they say: It should be called the Dwelling Place of the Ṛṣis. That is to say, when a Buddha appears in the world, it is the dwelling place of the Buddha, the Great Ṛṣi, and the community of holy disciple ṛṣis; when a Buddha does not appear in the world, it is the dwelling place of pratyekabuddha ṛṣis; when there are no pratyekabuddhas, it is inhabited by worldly ṛṣis possessing the five supernormal knowledges. Because ṛṣis have always dwelt, dwell now, and will dwell here, it is called the Dwelling Place of the Ṛṣis. Some say it should be called the Place Where the Ṛṣis Fell: in the past, five hundred ṛṣis were flying through the air, and upon reaching this place, they encountered the causes and conditions of regression, and all fell at once. Question: Why is it called the Deer-Bestowed Forest? Answer: Because herds of deer constantly roamed and stayed in this forest, it was called the Deer Forest. Formerly, a king named Brahmadatta gave this forest to a herd of deer; hence it is called the Deer-Bestowed Forest. Just as the elder Kalandaka excavated a pond in the Bamboo Grove at Rājagṛha to give to the kalandaka birds so that they might disport themselves, which was accordingly named the Kalandaka-Bestowed Pond; this is also like that, and hence it is called the Deer-Bestowed Forest (the old translation named it the kalanda bird; the Samantapāsādikā says its shape is like a magpie).