法苑珠林 35
English (machine translation) 35
- Language
- English
35.1
Compiled by the Śramaṇa Shi Daoshi of Ximing Temple
35.2
Section 30: Kāṣāya
Section 31: Lighting Lamps
35.3
Section on the Kāṣāya (contains six parts)
35.4
1. Stating the Intention
2. Efficacy
3. Explanation of Names
4. Relieving Difficulties
5. Sympathetic Retribution
6. Violations and Losses
35.5
Part 1: Stating the Intention
35.6
Now, the kāṣāya is the robe of the field of merit; it is revered as a stūpa of the Buddha. The nivāsana is the inner robe close to the body; it is honored like the Dharma. The robe is called 'emaciating', meaning it can emaciate afflictions. The armor is named 'forbearance', meaning it can subdue the hordes of māras. It is also compared to a lotus flower, not soiled by muddy filth. It is also called the 'banner mark', not overthrown by heretical multitudes. It is also called the 'patterned mark of fields', so that those who see it do not give rise to evil. It is also called the 'garment that rescues nāgas', so that they are not eaten by golden birds. It is also called the 'robe that subdues heterodoxy', not destroyed by non-Buddhists. It is also called the 'subdued color', not coveted by worldly defilement. Therefore, teachings differ between the internal and external; people differ between the religious and secular. Laypeople rely on the external teachings: they wear the ritual vestments of former kings and follow the lawful words of former kings. Above, there are the rites of revering parents and serving the ruler; below, there are the responsibilities of wives, children, office, and glory. These traces of respect and filial piety accord in principle with the Confucian statutes. Those who have gone forth rely on the internal teachings: they wear the robes of the Buddhas and practice the Dharma-conduct of the Buddhas. Above, they abandon the heavy ties of loving respect toward rulers and parents; below, they sever their fondness for wives, children, office, and glory. With the good of rituals and chanting, they support their parents; with the merit of walking the Path, they repay the heavy grace of the state. Since they are permitted not to consider shaving the body and altering their clothes an offense, how could they properly be reproached with the rites of revering parents and serving rulers? Therefore, on the day one shaves the head, the celestial māras hear of it and tremble from afar; on the day one dyes the robes, Śakra sees it and rejoices from a distance. An actress who merely draped it achieved the culmination of non-outflow; a drunkard who momentarily had [his hair] shorn instantly cast aside evil conditions. The nāga's offspring relied on it to cease their terror; the elephant king saw it and stopped his fear. Thus we know: the three Dharma-robes cover the body with frugality; the three subdued colors subdue our defiling attachments. Modeling after the rice fields, they naturally possess the virtue of being worthy of offerings; distantly conforming to the former Buddhas, they truly observe the way of harmony and reverence. How could transcending the dust and turning away from the world be valued as anything other than this!
35.7
Part 2: Efficacy
35.8
As the Avataṃsaka-sūtra says: 'Those who wear the kāṣāya abandon the three poisons.' Furthermore, the Mahākaruṇā-sūtra says: 'If someone merely has the nature of a śramaṇa, defiles the conduct of a śramaṇa, calls himself a śramaṇa, looks like a śramaṇa, and wears the kāṣāya, from Maitreya Buddha down to Rucika Buddha, they will be able to enter nirvāṇa without any omission or failure.' Furthermore, the Karuṇāpuṇḍarīka-sūtra says: 'In the past, before Ratnagarbha Buddha, Śākyamuni Buddha generated the bodhicitta and vowed: “When I attain Buddhahood, may my kāṣāya have five virtues. First, after I have attained Buddhahood, if any sentient beings enter my Dharma, leave home, and wear the kāṣāya, and yet violate the grave prohibitions, fall into wrong views, or disrespect and lack faith in the Three Jewels, amassing all grave offenses—whether bhikṣus, bhikṣuṇīs, upāsakas, or upāsikās—if in a single thought they give rise to a reverent mind that honors the Buddha, Dharma, and Saṃgha, then to every such sentient being, down to even a single person, I shall surely bestow a prophecy that they will achieve non-retrogression within the three vehicles. Second, after I have attained Buddhahood, if heavenly beings, dragons, ghosts, spirits, humans, or non-humans are able to show reverence, make offerings, honor, and praise anyone who wears this kāṣāya, and if that person merely gets to see even a small portion of this kāṣāya, they will immediately achieve non-retrogression within the three vehicles. Third, if sentient beings are afflicted by hunger and thirst, or if poor ghosts, spirits, lowly people, or even hungry ghosts and animals obtain even a small portion of the kāṣāya, down to four inches, they will immediately obtain an abundance of food and drink, and whatever they wish for will quickly be fulfilled. Fourth, if sentient beings turn against each other, perceive each other as foes, and repeatedly quarrel, or if the devas, nāgas, the eight classes of beings, humans, and non-humans quarrel with one another, and they recall this kāṣāya, they will immediately give rise to a mind of compassion, a tender mind, a mind free of enmity and malice, a peaceful and extinct mind, and a subdued, good mind. Fifth, if someone is in the midst of armed combat, litigation, or judicial judgment, and they take a small piece of this kāṣāya into their company for self-protection, and they offer, venerate, and honor the kāṣāya, then no one will be able to harm, harass, or demean them; they will always triumph over others and overcome these various difficulties. If my kāṣāya cannot accomplish these five sacred virtues, then I would be deceiving the present Buddhas of the ten directions and would not attain bodhi to become a Buddha in future ages.”' Furthermore, the Saddharmasmṛtyupasthāna-sūtra says: 'If there are sentient beings who uphold the precepts with pure faith, know the Saṃgha to be a field of merit, and, for the sake of the Dharma robes, donate the value of a single fruit as the cost of a robe, always rejoicing and sharing in joy, at the end of their lives they will be born in the Grove-Play Heaven, roaming and playing at will wherever they wish. If born among humans, their divine power and virtue will be autonomous. If sentient beings have pure faith in their hearts and dye and prepare kāṣāya Dharma robes for the saṃgha of bhikṣus, at the end of their lives they will be born in the Varied-Ground Heaven, amusing themselves with celestial maidens in the five desires, drinking nectar without intoxication or confusion. When their lives in heaven end, they will obtain human bodies and be loved and revered by people.'
35.9
Section 3: Harmonizing the Names
35.10
As the Mahāvaipulya Dhāraṇī Sūtra says: 'The Buddha said: "If one proceeds toward the bodhimaṇḍa, one should cultivate the various pure practices according to the rules for bhikṣus. One should possess the three robes, tooth-wood, cleansing water, eating vessels, and sitting mats. A practitioner should keep these in such a way, going to the bodhimaṇḍa according to the rules for bhikṣus."'
35.11
'The Buddha told Ānanda: “There are three kinds of robes. The first is the robe of one who has left home, made according to the rules and forms of the Buddhas of the three times. The second is the secular robe: I enjoin that when my disciples proceed to the bodhimaṇḍa, they should wear this one garment, always keeping it on their person without departing from it by an inch. If they part from this robe, they commit an offense that obstructs the path. The third robe consists of the secular garment brought to the bodhimaṇḍa and constantly used for sitting and rising. Their names are such; you should accept and uphold them.”'
35.12
Furthermore, the Sarvāstivāda-śāstra asks: 'Does the Buddha always shave his hair?' The answer says: 'It is not so. The Buddha's hair is always as it was seven days after shaving.' It asks again: 'When the Buddha first attained the Way, did he wear the kāṣāya?' The answer says: 'No one clad in white clothes attains Buddhahood; one must possess the thirty-two marks, leave home, wear the Dharma robes, be fully endowed with deportment, cast off afflictions, and have the knowledge of all aspects enter into one's body. “Kāṣāya” in the language of Qin means “dyed robe”; fetters, affection, and the like are also termed “dyed”. Those who wear this robe are not feared by beasts; therefore, hunters falsely wear this robe so that beasts see them from afar.'
35.13
Furthermore, the Śāriputraparipṛcchā-sūtra says: 'The Mahāsāṃghika school diligently studies the various scriptures and expounds the true meaning; because they occupy the fundamental and dwell in the center, they should wear yellow robes. The Dharmaguptaka school thoroughly understands the taste of the truth, giving guidance and benefit; to manifest their preeminence, they should wear red robes. The Sarvāstivāda school possesses broad understanding and sharp intelligence to guide people with the Dharma's transformation; they should wear black robes. The Kāśyapīya school is energetic and courageous, gathering and protecting sentient beings; they should wear magnolia-bark-colored robes. The Mahīśāsaka school has subtle meditative contemplation, plumbing and clarifying the profound and secret; they should wear blue robes.' For this reason, when the bhikṣu Luo-xun-yu begged for food, he could get none. Later, by wearing the five kinds of Vinaya robes interchangeably, he obtained an abundance of food. Why was this? In his past life, his obstinate nature was full of jealousy. When he saw a śramaṇa coming, he would hurriedly close the door and say: 'The master is not home.' Seeing others give alms, he felt joyful and focused his thoughts, generating the wish to become a śramaṇa. Therefore, although he was able to leave home in this life, he was impoverished and destitute like this. In my Dharma, those who leave home wear purely ragged silks and the garments of corpses; it was on account of Luo-xun-yu that various kinds of robes were permitted. Furthermore, the Three Thousand Rules of Deportment says: 'In four situations, going to another country without wearing the kāṣāya incurs no offense: first, there are no stūpas or monasteries; second, there is no saṃgha of bhikṣus; third, there are thieves and bandits; fourth, the ruler of the country takes no pleasure in the Way.'
35.14
Section 4: Rescuing from Difficulties
35.15
As the Mahāsāṃghika Vinaya says: In the past, when the Buddha was in the world, the Venerable Dhaniya secretly took state timber, an offense that was unforgivable. At that time, King Bimbisāra had faith and reverence for the Three Jewels. Seeing Dhaniya wearing the kāṣāya, although he had taken state timber, the king let it go without questioning. The bhikṣus saw this and said to the Buddha: 'What past karma did this Dhaniya cultivate that King Bimbisāra should pardon him so?' The Buddha told the bhikṣus: 'Long ago in the past, there was a garuḍa king whose body was exceedingly vast, the span between his two wings being more than six thousand li. He would constantly enter the ocean to seize nāgas and eat them. It was the customary practice of the nāgas to fear the garuḍa, so they always sought kāṣāyas to hang over the gates of their palaces. When the bird saw the kāṣāya, he gave rise to reverence and would not advance to eat those nāgas. When the bird ate nāgas, he would strike the ocean water with his wings, parting it to reveal the nāgas and taking them to eat. At that time, a nāga was pursued by the bird; he immediately took a kāṣāya and wore it upon his head, fleeing along the shore. The garuḍa transformed into a brāhmaṇa, pursued the nāga, and reviled him in various ways: “Why do you not release this kāṣāya now?” Fearing death, the nāga held fast to it without letting go. At that time, there was an ascetic on the seashore; in his terror, the nāga took refuge with the ascetic. Seeing the ascetic, the bird did not dare advance further. The ascetic then came out, preached the Dharma to the bird, and instructed the bird to repent together with the nāga, after which each departed.' The Buddha told the bhikṣus: 'The ascetic of the past was myself; the garuḍa was King Bimbisāra; and the nāga at that time was Dhaniya. In the past, relying upon the kāṣāya, he escaped being eaten by the bird; now, again, through the conditions of my kāṣāya, he escapes the calamity of the king, leaves home to practice the Way, and attains arhatship. Therefore, you should know that the mighty power of the kāṣāya is inconceivable.'
35.16
Furthermore, the Sāgaranāgarājaparipṛcchā-sūtra says: At that time, the Nāga King said to the World-Honoured One: 'In this ocean there are countless kinds of nāgas, and there are four kinds of garuḍas that constantly eat these nāgas and their wives and children. We pray that the Buddha will protect us so that we may always attain peace and safety.' Thereupon, the World-Honoured One took off his black robe and told the Ocean Nāga King: 'Take this robe and divide it among the nāgas so that it covers them all completely. If one encounters even a single thread, the garuḍa king will not be able to harm or touch them; and those who uphold the prohibitions and precepts will surely attain what they wish.' At that time, the nāgas were all filled with fear, and each thought: 'This black robe of the Buddha is exceedingly small; how could it cover all the nāgas of the great ocean?' The Buddha, knowing the doubts in the nāgas' minds, told the Nāga King: 'Even if all the people of the trichiliocosm were each to take a share of the Tathāgata's black robe, it would never be depleted. Just like empty space, it arises naturally according to whatever they desire.' Then the nāgas took the Buddha's robe and divided it into countless hundreds of thousands of millions of pieces, distributing them to each according to their needs; whether broad or narrow, large or small, it was naturally provided, and the robe remained as before, its supply inexhaustible. 'You should revere this robe as you revere the World-Honoured One and as you revere stūpas and monasteries.' The Buddha said: 'Those who gaze upon the Tathāgata's robe will be freed from the body of a nāga; and in this Bhadrakalpa, all will attain non-attachment and enter parinirvāṇa.' At that time, the four garuḍa kings, each together with a thousand attendants, said to the Buddha: 'Today we take refuge in the Three Jewels, repent of our past offenses, and uphold the prohibitions and precepts. From this day forward, we shall always bestow fearlessness upon all nāgas, protect the True Dharma until its disappearance, and not violate the Buddha's teachings.' The Buddha told the four garuḍa kings: 'In the past, at the time of Krakucchanda Buddha, you were four bhikṣus named Abhirati, Mahābhirati, Uttara, and Uttaramitra. These four bhikṣus violated the precepts, craved offerings, and did not guard their body, speech, and mind, committing numerous evil deeds; yet the offerings they made to Krakucchanda Buddha were also beyond reckoning. For this reason, they did not fall into hell, but fell into this state of birds and beasts, having killed living beings beyond measure from first to last.' The Buddha manifested his supernatural power, causing them to recognize their past lives, and they completely recalled all their offenses and merits. [They said:] 'We would rather lose our bodies and lives than dare to commit evil.' The Buddha expounded the scripture for them and bestowed upon them the prophecy: 'At the time of Maitreya Buddha, all of you will be delivered at the first assembly.'
35.17
Section 5: Sympathetic Retribution
35.18
As the Avadānaśataka says: When the Buddha was in the world, there was an elder in the city of Kapilavastu named Ghoṣa. His wife gave birth to a daughter who was exceptionally beautiful, born wrapped in a white fine-cotton cloth. Therefore, they named her Śuklā. As she grew older, the cloth also grew with her, remaining fresh, white, and clean without need of washing or dyeing. When people saw her, they vied to ask for her hand. She said to her parents: 'I do not crave the worldly glory and splendor of the present; I wish and desire to leave home.' Her parents loved her and could not go against her wishes; they immediately took her to the Buddha's place to seek to enter the Way. The Buddha said: 'Welcome!' The bhikṣuṇī's hair fell out on its own, and the white cloth on her body transformed into a kāṣāya; she became a bhikṣuṇī, practiced diligently, and attained the fruit of arhatship. When Ānanda saw this, he asked about its cause. The Buddha told Ānanda: 'In this Bhadrakalpa, a Buddha appeared in the world named Kāśyapa, who led his bhikṣus in wandering through villages to teach and transform sentient beings. At that time, a woman saw the Buddha and the Saṃgha, felt joy in her heart, took a piece of fine-cotton cloth, offered it to the Buddha and Saṃgha, made a vow, and departed. By virtue of this merit, in the heavens and among humans, she was always born wrapped in clean cloth, down to the present day when she encountered me, left home, and attained the Way.' Hearing this, the bhikṣus rejoiced and respectfully put it into practice.
35.19
The Avadānaśataka also says: When the Buddha was in the world, in the country of Vārāṇasī there was a King Brahmadatta. His wife gave birth to a daughter whose body was draped in a kāṣāya. She was shapely and extraordinarily wonderful, rare in the world, and so they gave her the name Kāśisundarī. As the years grew and she grew bigger, the robe also grew bigger. By nature she was virtuous, kind, benevolent, and filial. Leading her attendants, she went out of the city to sport, gradually making her way into the Deer Park. Seeing the Buddha's marks and features, her heart was filled with joy. She stepped forward to pay homage at the Buddha's feet and withdrew to sit to one side. The Buddha expounded the Dharma for her; her heart opened and her mind understood, and she attained the fruit of srotāpanna. She then sought to go forth. The Buddha said to her, "Welcome!" Her hair fell away of itself and the kāṣāya was clad upon her body; she became a bhikṣuṇī. Diligently cultivating and practicing, she attained the fruit of an arhat, revered and looked up to by the devas and people of the world. At that time, the bhikṣus, seeing this matter, asked about its causes and conditions. The Buddha told the bhikṣus: "Long ago, in past immeasurable ages, there was a Buddha who appeared in the world, named Kanakamuni, leading bhikṣus as he wandered converting [beings]. At that time, a king's daughter, traveling, saw the Buddha; her heart was filled with joy. She stepped forward to pay homage at the Buddha's feet and invited the Buddha and the Saṃgha. For three months she received the invitation and made the fourfold offerings. Then, with wonderful robes, she gave one to each. By the karmic cause of these merits, among heavenly beings and humans she was honored, prosperous, and noble, and always had a kāṣāya born along with her body." The Buddha told the bhikṣus: "If you wish to know who that king's daughter was, she is none other than this Bhikṣuṇī Sundarī today." Having heard this, the bhikṣus rejoiced and upheld it.
35.20
The Avadānaśataka also says: When the Buddha was in the world, King Prasenajit's queen gave birth to a boy. He was shapely and extraordinarily wonderful, rare in the world, and his body was draped in a kāṣāya. Having been born, he could already speak. He asked his royal father, "Is the Tathāgata, the World-Honoured One, present today or not? Are the Venerable Kāśyapa, Śāriputra, and Mahāmaudgalyāyana—are they all present or not?" He asked all around whether they were present. The royal father replied, "They are all present." [The boy said,] "My only wish, Great King, is that you provide an offering for me, inviting the Buddha and the Saṃgha." Thereupon [the king] ordered an invitation to be made for him. After the Buddha entered the palace, he saw the prince and asked him, saying, "Do you yourself recall whether at the time of the Buddha Kāśyapa you were a tripiṭaka bhikṣu or not?" He replied, "I truly was." [The Buddha asked,] "Was staying in this womb peaceful and secure or not?" [He replied,] "Relying on the bequeathed grace of the Buddha, I was able to preserve my life and pass the days." At that time, the king's queen, seeing this prince and the Buddha, the World-Honoured One, conversing with each other, was beside herself with joy. She addressed the Buddha, saying, "What merit did this prince plant in the past, that as soon as he was born he could speak, and could even have this question-and-answer resonant [with the Buddha]? We only wish that the World-Honoured One would expound and explain it." At that time, the World-Honoured One immediately spoke a gāthā for the king:
35.21
"The various good conditions created in past lives / Do not decay even in a hundred kalpas. / Due to the causes and conditions of good karma, / One now obtains a retribution such as this."
35.22
"In this Bhadrakalpa, a Buddha appeared in the world, named Kāśyapa, who led his bhikṣus to wander and teach, arriving at the kingdom of King Kāśi. At that time, the king's prince, named Sujāta, saw the Buddha, the World-Honoured One, and gave rise to deep faith and reverence. He returned to tell the Great King, seeking to enter the path. The king would not grant permission, saying: 'I have only one son, who must succeed to the royal throne and nourish the people; I will never permit you to go forth and enter the path.' At that time, the prince, having heard this, was distressed and emaciated, cutting off grain and not eating for six days. Fearing that his life would not be preserved, [the king] ordered that prince to make a covenant together: 'If you can now chant and recite the tripiṭaka scriptures with complete fluency, I will permit you to go forth, after which you may see me.' At that time, having heard this, the prince's heart was filled with joy, and he immediately went forth, reciting and studying the tripiṭaka until he was completely fluent in all of it. The king was greatly delighted and immediately said to the bhikṣu: 'Whatever wealth and goods are in my storehouses, take and use them as you wish; I will never begrudge them.' Thereupon the prince bhikṣu, having heard this, took the wealth and prepared food of a hundred flavours, inviting the Buddha Kāśyapa and twenty thousand bhikṣus. Having completed the offering, to each and every bhikṣu he presented the three robes and six requisites. By virtue of these merits, he did not fall into evil destinies; among heavenly beings and humans, he always had a kāṣāya wrapped around his body as he was born. Coming down to the present day, he encountered me, and therefore had a kāṣāya, went forth, and attained the path." Having heard this, the bhikṣus rejoiced and upheld it.
35.23
Section 6: Transgression and Damage
35.24
As the Sūtra of the Wise and the Foolish says: Long ago, immeasurable asaṃkhyeya kalpas in the past, in this Jambudvīpa there was a great king named Devī, who had overall command of eighty-four thousand small kingdoms. At that time, there was no Buddha in the world; there was a pratyekabuddha residing in the mountains and forests, blessing and liberating sentient beings, and birds and beasts also attached themselves to him. At that time, there was a lion named Dṛḍhapratijña, whose body was golden-colored, who ate fruits and grazed on grass, and did not harm the multitude of living beings. There was a hunter who shaved off his beard and hair, put on a kāṣāya, and, secretly carrying bow and arrows, went and saw the lion. In his heart he thought: 'I could kill it and take its skin to present to the king; this would be sufficient to escape poverty.' It happened that the lion was asleep; the hunter then shot and wounded it with a poisoned arrow. The lion was startled awake and immediately went to harm him, but seeing him wearing a kāṣāya, it thought to itself: 'A person wearing a kāṣāya will not remain long in the world and will certainly attain liberation. Why is this so? This kāṣāya is the sign of the sages of the three times. If I harm him, I would be giving rise to an evil mind toward all the worthy and holy ones of the three times.' Having so thought, it ceased harming him. The poisoned arrow penetrated its body, and its life was not long for this world. It then spoke a gāthā:
35.26
When it spoke these words, the earth shook greatly and rain fell from a cloudless sky; the devas, beholding it, rained down flowers in offering. After it died, [the hunter] flayed its hide and carried it to present to the king, seeking a reward. Seeing it, the king thought to himself: 'The scriptures say that if there is a beast with a golden body, it must be a bodhisattva. How could I now give him goods as a reward? If I reward him, I would be no different from him.' The king then asked, saying, 'When the lion died, what auspicious omens were there?' The hunter replied, saying, 'Its mouth spoke eight syllables; flowers rained down, the earth shook, and rain fell from a cloudless sky.' Having heard these words, the king was overcome with mingled sorrow and joy. He immediately summoned his ministers, ordering them to explain this meaning, but none could explain it. At that time, in the mountain forest there was an ascetic named Śama, who was adept at explaining the meaning of syllables. The king immediately invited him to come and explain it for the king: 'Ye-ra-ra means that those who shave their heads and wear kāṣāyas shall swiftly attain liberation from saṃsāra. Va-śa-ṣa means that those who shave their heads and wear dyed robes all bear the marks of the worthy and holy of the three times, and are close to nirvāṇa. Svāhā means that those who shave their heads and wear dyed robes shall be revered and looked up to by all devas and worldly people.' When the ascetic finished explaining, the king was greatly delighted. He immediately summoned the eighty-four thousand lesser kings, all gathering together to make a high carriage of the seven treasures to carry the lion's hide, burning incense and scattering flowers, making offerings with all their hearts. They beat gold to make a coffin, containing the lion's hide to erect a stūpa for it. At that time, because of this good mind, after the people ended their lives, all were able to be born in heaven. The Buddha told Ānanda: "Because the lion at that time gave rise to a good mind toward the person in dyed robes, for a billion kalpas it was a cakravartin, amply providing for sentient beings, widely planting meritorious karma, and achieving buddhahood. That lion was none other than myself today. King Devī at that time, due to the cause of making offerings to the lion's hide, for a hundred billion kalpas was foremost in honor and nobility among devas and humans, cultivating roots of goodness; he is Maitreya today. The ascetic at that time was Śāriputra today. The hunter at that time was Devadatta today. For this reason, if there are sentient beings who hold an evil mind toward śramaṇas wearing kāṣāyas, know that such people have given rise to an evil mind toward all the Buddhas, worthies, and sages of the three times. Because of giving rise to evil, they obtain immeasurable sin. If there are sentient beings who can give rise to a faithful mind and revere those who have gone forth and wear kāṣāyas, they obtain immeasurable merit."
35.27
Also, the Candragarbha-sūtra of the Mahāsaṃnipāta says: The Buddha said: In the past, for the sake of all sentient beings, I practiced various austerities and gave rise to great compassion, abandoning bodies, heads, eyes, ears, noses, tongues, and the like, each like Mount Vipula, as well as abandoning elephants, horses, kingdoms, cities, wives, and children, through three thousand asaṃkhyeya kalpas, having pity on all tormented sentient beings, as well as those who slander the True Dharma, revile the worthy and holy, are without shame and without conscience, unwholesome sentient beings, and those sentient beings cast aside by all pure Buddha-lands. For the sake of such sentient beings, I made vows to attain the unsurpassed path in the evil world of the five turbidities, to rescue the tormented sentient beings of the three evil paths and establish them in the good paths and the bliss of nirvāṇa. If there are sentient beings who, within my Dharma, go forth for my sake, shaving off beard and hair and wearing a kāṣāya, even if they do not receive the precepts or have received and broken them, if someone protects and makes offerings to such a person, they will obtain a great reward, not to mention making offerings to those who fully uphold the precepts. If, in future eras, kings, great ministers, and judges scold, insult, beat, bind, or drive as servants my disciples and those wearing kāṣāyas, or seize their wealth, property, and necessities of life, these people thereby destroy the true retribution-body of all Buddhas of the three times, gouge out the eyes of all devas and humans, and obscure the True Dharma of all Buddhas, causing devas and humans to fall into hell. At that time, Kauṇḍinya and the Brahmā King addressed the Buddha, saying: 'If there are those who for the Buddha shave off beard and hair and wear a kāṣāya, but do not receive the prohibitive precepts, or having received them break them, if kings, great ministers, and judges scold, insult, beat, or bind them, how much sin do they incur?' The Buddha told the Brahmā King: 'I shall now speak of it briefly for you. If a person sheds the blood of a trillion Buddhas, would the sin be great or not?' The Brahmā King answered the Buddha: 'If a person sheds the blood from the body of merely one Buddha, the sin is already immeasurably and boundlessly great, how much more so shedding the blood of a trillion Buddhas? In the end, no one could fully describe that person's sinful karma and its retribution.' The Buddha told the Brahmā King: 'If someone disturbs, scolds, insults, beats, or binds one who for my sake shaved his hair and wore a kāṣāya without receiving the prohibitive precepts, or having received them broke them, the sin incurred is greater than shedding the blood of a trillion Buddhas. Why is this so? Because this person went forth for my sake, shaving his hair and wearing a kāṣāya, even though he did not receive the precepts or received and broke them, this person can still show the path to nirvāṇa to devas and humans. This person has already given rise to respect and faith in the Three Jewels within his mind, surpassing all ninety-five paths. That person will certainly be able to enter nirvāṇa swiftly, surpassing all householders and worldly people. Therefore, devas and humans should make offerings to them. If a king sees an ordained person committing a major sinful deed, he is only permitted to banish him in accordance with the Dharma, expelling him from the realm and keeping him outside the monastery; he must not whip, beat, or insult him. None should act according to the sin of his body. If one intentionally beats and insults him, this person has already fallen away from liberation and departed from all the good paths of humans and devas, and will certainly go to the Avīci Hell. How much more so whipping and beating those who went forth for the Buddha and fully uphold the precepts!' The verse says:
35.28
Pure without and bright within, / Jointly aiding the Pure Land; / The grades of precepts are without flaw, / The kāṣāya dignified and orderly. / Having imitated the patterns of fields, / It also rescues from the dragons' suffering. / The deportment is admirable to behold, / And grace is moistened by the rain of Dharma.
35.29
Accounts of Sympathetic Resonance (briefly citing five verifications)
35.30
Verification of the Buddha's kāṣāya from the Records of the Western Regions;
Verification of Emperor Ming of Wei having an asbestos kāṣāya;
Verification of the Song dynasty śramaṇa Shi Sengmiao having a kāṣāya;
Verification of the Tang dynasty śramaṇa Shi Huiguang having a kāṣāya;
Verification of the Tang dynasty śramaṇa Daoxuan's sympathetic resonance with a kāṣāya.
35.31
The Records of the Western Regions says: By the side of the grove of twin śāla trees, there is separately a couch, on which is an unadorned statue of Śākyamuni Buddha, lying on his right side, two zhang, two chi, and four cun in length, covered over with a golden kāṣāya. It still exists today and frequently emits divine light. Furthermore, to the northeast of Rājagṛha is Mount Gṛdhrakūṭa, where there is the Buddha's kāṣāya stone. When the Buddha was in the world, about to bathe in the pool, he took off his robe here. A vulture bird took the kāṣāya in its beak and flew upward, but then dropped it to the ground, which transformed into this stone. The criss-cross patterns of patches are clearly visible today. To its south is the place where the Buddha viewed the fields and commanded his disciple Nanda to make the kāṣāya; auspicious light also frequently appears there. Envoys of the Great Tang, Wang Xuance and others, went there three times in all, and those who saw it were not just one.
35.32
During the reign of Emperor Wen of the Wei, he did not believe that there was fire-washed cloth in the south. The Emperor said: "The power of fire can melt stone and dissolve metal; why would it not burn this cloth?" After Emperor Wen passed away and during the time of the Crown Prince, Emperor Ming, a Western country offered a kāṣāya made of fire-washed cloth. Emperor Ming at first followed his father's words and did not believe it. He tested it with fire; though burned for a long time, it was not damaged. Only then did he know that there was empirical proof, and that the words were not false. Previous passages recorded in the historical records by Emperor Wen stating his disbelief in fire-washed cloth were all privately amended to affirm its existence.
35.33
The Song dynasty śramaṇa Sengmiao was a native of Shangdang. His family surname was Feng, and he lived in Shangming Village in Jiangling. In the early years of the Daming era, Miao traveled to Lingling to beg for alms, and subsequently resided at Longhua Hermitage in the commandery seat. He engaged in trade and accumulated wealth, gathering up to several thousand bushels of grain. In the eighth year of the Daming era, he died at Longhua Temple, which was then utterly consumed by a disastrous fire. On his deathbed, Miao had entrusted his wealth to his disciple Fazong, instructing him to build a lecture hall and monks' quarters. Fazong completed the hall, but procrastinated, saying that the time was not yet ripe to build the quarters. In the first month of the third year of the Taishi era, [Fazong] fell gravely ill. At that time, there was the bhikṣu Daomeng, who accompanied Xu Jinghui, the magistrate of Quanling from Gaoyang, staying in the county; this county was the seat of the commandery. Meng went to visit Zong in his illness. Having entered the temple a few steps, he saw a śramaṇa wearing a peach-blossom cloth skirt and a single light-yellow small mantle, who was walking along and scolding: "That young fellow Fazong disobeyed my instructions! He did not build the monks' quarters and squandered the wealth!" and so forth. Turning around and seeing Daomeng, he looked startled and ashamed, covered his head with the mantle, and entered Fazong's room. Meng frequently came and went from this temple but had never seen this śramaṇa. Not wishing to intrude upon him rashly, he first visited the man of the Way Fachao and recounted what he had heard and seen. Chao suspected Meng might be deceiving or mistaken, and questioned him closely about the figure's appearance, voice, and bearing. Meng described them in full. Chao said: "That is Fazong's master. He passed away several years ago!" Together they sighed in sorrow. That evening, through a spirit speaking [through a medium], Fazong was urgently summoned. When Fazong arrived, [the spirit] severely rebuked him multiple times, still taking the monks' quarters as the subject. The voice and tone were no different from when he was alive. After Fazong finished bowing his head in apology, he asked: "Upādhyāya, where are you reborn now? How are the good and bad [retributions]?" Miao said: "The place of rebirth is reasonably tolerable, but I must endure a minor punishment, which I can only be freed from after two years. In addition, I have suffered a small injustice and wish to lodge a complaint with the authorities, but because I have no kāṣāya, I cannot go. You must quickly make one for me." Fazong said: "The kāṣāya can be prepared, but I do not know how the Upādhyāya can receive it." Miao said: "You may invite the monks to make an offering, using the kāṣāya as the dakṣiṇā, and I will then receive it." Fazong fed the monks and offered the robe as instructed. Daomeng was present at the assembly at that time, and again saw Sengmiao leaning outside the door of the hall, standing with hands folded, listening to the sūtra recitation. When the meal and offering were concluded, Meng saw that the kāṣāya was already on Miao's body. He then entered the hall, intending to take a seat according to monastic seniority. He asked Meng his monastic age. Meng said: "I have forgotten the year; it was the second month of the year the Suolu barbarians approached the river." Miao said: "Your monastic age is the same as mine; I am merely one month older than you." Thereupon he sat below Meng. Meng then left one seat vacant. Miao sat upright and silent, listening, and was seen no more once the assembly dispersed. At that time, there were more than a hundred clergy and laity in the hall, and Yang Chan of Taishan, the Grand Administrator of Lingling, also attended the Dharma assembly. Throughout the back-and-forth conversation between Meng and Miao, the assembly only heard Meng speaking alone. The reason they all knew it was genuine was that Meng and Miao were not previously acquainted, yet when he described his appearance, conduct, and monastic age, young and old, none did not match. When Fazong first fell ill, he was in dire distress and on the verge of death; but when the spirit spoke, saying: "Your bedridden illness will immediately heal," [he recovered]. The spirit had possessed a young servant boy, yet the voice and diction were indistinguishable to the listeners, and therefore they all believed and marveled at it. Initially, Chan did not much revere the Dharma, but because of this, he was greatly awakened to reverence and repeatedly established gatherings for merit. In that very year, he arranged lectures at this temple, observed the fasts, and practiced dāna.
35.34
In the fifth year of the Zhenguan era of the Great Tang, there was a disciple of Dharma Master Huiguang of Anyang Temple in Liangzhou. His mother's family was poor and lacked undergarments indoors. She came into her son's room, took an old kāṣāya, altered it, and wore it. While she was gathered together chatting and laughing with neighboring mothers, she suddenly felt her feet growing hot, gradually rising to her waist. In an instant, a thunderbolt struck. It hurled the neighboring mothers more than a hundred paces away, filled their ears with mud, and left them unconscious for a whole day before they revived. The mother who had used the robe was struck dead by the thunder, burned black and curled up. Inscribed on her back was: "Due to using the Dharma robe improperly." Her son collected her remains for burial, but a thunderbolt struck them out again. Only when her skeleton was left exposed beneath the trees did it finally dissolve and disperse. By this, one knows that the blessings of receiving and upholding the Dharma robes protect even dragons who have taken the three refuges; truly this is not false! Recently, there was a monk dwelling in the mountains who lodged in a deep cliff cavern. He hung his robe in front as a barrier. An anomalous spirit came, exceedingly terrifying in form. It stretched out its arm to reach inside, intending to seize the lodger, but fearing to touch the kāṣāya, it was obstructed and could not enter. Thus he managed to escape. (The above two confirmations are drawn from the Tang Biographies of Eminent Monks.)
35.35
Vinaya Master Daoxuan of Ximing Temple resided [there] during the mid-spring second month of the second year of the Qianfeng era; the conditions of his sympathetic resonances are fully recorded at the beginning of fascicle ten. At that time, a minister of the Four Heavenly Kings said to Vinaya Master Xuan: "Three months before the Tathāgata entered nirvāṇa, he commanded Mañjuśrī: 'Go to the ordination platform and ring the bell to summon the bodhisattvas of the four quarters, as well as the bhikṣus and the eight classes of devas and nāgas, to gather at Jetavana.' When Mañjuśrī had gathered them as ordered, the World-Honoured One said to Mañjuśrī and the great assembly: 'When I first climbed over the city wall and entered the mountains to learn the Way, I exchanged my priceless jeweled garments for a deer pelt to wear. A tree deity manifested a body, holding a saṃghāṭī in hand, and told me: "Crown Prince Siddhārtha, as you now cultivate the Way, you will surely attain saṃbodhi. When the past Kāśyapa entered nirvāṇa, he entrusted this cotton saṃghāṭī robe to me, ordering me to guard it well until the Benevolent One appears in the world, and to hand it to Siddhārtha." At that time, as I was about to accept the great robe, the earth shook violently. The tree deity told me: "I now spread open the robe for you to show the form of the field of merit." Once the tree deity spread it open and I saw the form of the field of merit, I immediately entered the vajrasamādhi, and the earth shook violently again. The tree deity said further: "You are still a layperson now, and it is not yet fitting for you to wear this Dharma robe. You should place it on the crown of your head and respectfully make offerings to it, so that your seeking of the Buddha's path will not be disturbed by Māra." I followed the tree deity's words and bore it upon the crown of my head. When I first placed it upon my head, the great earth shook and could not support my weight. Then the earth deity Dṛḍhā surged forth from the vajra-stratum as a vajra mountain, supporting me wherever I walked, and only then was I able to abide in peace. During my six years of asceticism, my body was emaciated, yet the robe remained upon my head and I dared not complain of weariness. Only the King of the Brahmā realm frequently came to see me; deeply moved by great compassion, pitying my toil, he carried my saṃghāṭī up to the Brahmā heaven. The earth shook violently again, and the sun and moon lost their light. The earth deity told Brahmā: "You must take the robe back and place it upon his head." The Brahmā King followed this instruction, and only then did the great earth settle into peace and the sun and moon shine again. The Prince also asked the Brahmā King: "Do you know the intention behind the saṃghāṭī resting on my head?" He answered: "I do not know." The Prince said: "This is because in the future, evil bhikṣus and bhikṣuṇīs will fail to revere my robe of liberation, so I keep the robe on the crown of my head; and it is in order to subjugate heavenly demons and non-Buddhists." When I entered the river to bathe and received the milk porridge from the two cowherd maidens, wearing this great robe, I immediately attained the joy of the third dhyāna, and all suffering came to an end. When I sat beneath the Bodhi tree and first turned the wheel of the Dharma, the tree deity brought a stūpa and offered it to me, telling me to take off this robe and place it inside the stūpa. In the fifty years since I attained buddhahood until now, I have revered this great robe, guarding and washing it myself. I have always had a Vajra spirit hold and support the jeweled stūpa, never setting it on the ground. Whenever I turned the wheel of the Dharma, I would wear this robe; since attaining the Way, I have worn it fifty times. As I am about to enter nirvāṇa, it must be entrusted [to someone].'"
35.36
The Buddha told Mañjuśrī, the bhikṣus, and the eight classes of devas and nāgas: "This coarse cotton saṃghāṭī of Kāśyapa Buddha possesses great majesty and virtue. Viewing with my Buddha-eye the devas, nāgas, ghosts, spirits, and bodhisattvas of the ten stages, none are able to move this great robe even by the width of a hair. Since they cannot move it, only the Tathāgata can lift this robe-stūpa." He circumambulated the ordination platform three times, ascended onto the platform from the western steps of the southern face, turned from west to north, and stood upon the northern side. The World-Honoured One tossed the robe-stūpa up into the air; the robe-stūpa emitted light that shone universally upon a hundred million lands. All beings in the painful destinies who received the light had their suffering removed, like beings in the realm of wonderful joy beneath the heavenly trees. The Tathāgata raised his voice and universally addressed the Buddhas: "I am about to enter nirvāṇa. There is this coarse cotton saṃghāṭī of the ancient Kāśyapa Buddha, which was entrusted to me to maintain for the sentient beings of the final age of the Dharma. May each of the Buddhas who have come from the ten directions relinquish one robe to together support the final age of the Dharma." When the Buddhas of the ten directions heard these words, each removed their saṃghāṭī to donate it to Śākyamuni Buddha. After the World-Honoured One accepted them, the Demon King spoke to the Buddha: "I prostrate and pray that you, in your pity, will grant permission: I wish to offer gold and jewels to make stūpas to store the robes. May you please grant permission." After the World-Honoured One permitted it, by his spiritual power, in a single thought-moment all the stūpas were completed. Once completed, the World-Honoured One personally placed the great robes one by one into the jeweled stūpas. The demonic host said to the Buddha: "We do not know to whom these stūpas are to be entrusted and where they are to be installed." Thereupon the Tathāgata, on the verge of entering nirvāṇa, told Rāhula: "Go summon Ānanda." When Ānanda had come, the World-Honoured One emitted light that illuminated the great chiliocosm, and a hundred million Śākyamuni Buddhas all gathered at Jetavana. When the Buddhas had assembled, the World-Honoured One arose from his seat and ascended onto the ordination platform. He further told Ānanda: "Go to the land of Cīna, to the cave at Mount Qingliang, and summon Mañjuśrī; I wish to entrust the saṃghāṭī of Kāśyapa to him." The assembled Śākyamuni Buddhas, together with Mañjuśrī, arrived at the ordination platform in the snap of a finger. The Buddha said to Mañjuśrī and the assembled multitude: "I am entering nirvāṇa now, and wish to entrust to you Kāśyapa Buddha's robe-stūpa to uphold my bequeathed teachings. After I enter nirvāṇa, place Kāśyapa's robe-stūpa to the north of my ordination platform for a period of twelve years." He also told the Four Heavenly Kings: "You shall constantly make offerings to the robe-stūpa with heavenly music."
35.37
The Buddha told Mañjuśrī: "There will be evil bhikṣus who will quarrel with one another and destroy my correct Dharma. In northern India, an evil king will rule who believes in and accepts the Hīnayāna and slanders the Mahāyāna. Scholars of the Hīnayāna will agitate and confuse one another, snared by the evil demon, and will therefore slaughter scholars of the Mahāyāna Tripiṭaka." The Buddha told Mañjuśrī: "For this reason, I permit it to remain north of the ordination platform for twelve years. When the evil king rules the world and the correct Dharma is being destroyed, you must use your spiritual power to hold aloft the robe-stūpa and travel throughout that country, gathering all the Mahāyāna teachings inside the stūpa. For those precept-holding bhikṣus who are killed by the king, each having a saṃghāṭī that they received and upheld in accordance with the Dharma, you shall also collect them and place them within my robe-stūpa. For those precept-holding bhikṣus whose lives are not yet ended, you shall use spiritual power to take them up and place them upon the summit of Mount Sumeru." At that time, the Demon King said to the Buddha: "I will protect and maintain the correct Dharma in future ages. When that evil king appears to eradicate the Mahāyāna, I will drop a great rocky mountain from the summit of Mount Sumeru to crush that evil king and the evil bhikṣus into fine dust. I have a thousand sons, all of great power, who will descend to be born in Jambudvīpa, and in those various countries, each will build ten thousand saṃghārāmas, filling Jambudvīpa and the other three continents, in order to dispel anxiety and protect and uphold the correct Dharma." The Buddha told Mañjuśrī: "Carry my stūpa of robe and bowl all around Jambudvīpa and the other three continents, and even throughout the great chiliocosm, installing it everywhere to anchor my bequeathed teachings. Where there are stūpas of King Aśoka, also encourage people to build them throughout the three thousand realms."
35.38
The Buddha further said to Mañjuśrī: "By your supernormal power, go above the western jewel pavilion of the central hall in Jetavana, take my jewel casket, and show it to the great assembly. When I first vaulted over the city wall and departed from my father the king's palace, after traveling forty li I reached that grove. My body was slightly weary, so I paused for a short rest. At that time, the deity of that tree appeared before me and told me: 'You are now cultivating the path; you will certainly attain a golden body and become the great teacher of the tridhātu. When Kāśyapa Buddha entered nirvāṇa, he entrusted to me a jewel casket along with a silk saṃghārāṭī, commanding me to pass them on and entrust them to you.' I said to the deity: 'Your silk saṃghārāṭī is not for my use. I have heard what the elders of the past have said: when Buddhas appear in the world, they do not wear garments made from silkworms. Now that I am cultivating the path, how could I harm living beings and put on what you entrust to me to wear? You are a demon now, coming intentionally to afflict me.' The tree deity told me: 'You are a person of great wisdom; why do you utter harsh words so hastily? The Buddhas are compassionate and indeed do not wear garments made from silkworms; this silk was magically manifested and was not produced by harming living beings. If you now accept this jewel casket and open it, there is writing inside.' I thereupon opened the casket and fully saw all the extraordinary matters: there were the great Vinaya and Sūtra Piṭakas; Kāśyapa's bequeathed teachings were all inside it. I also saw the saṃghārāṭī and that Buddha's handwritten testamentary letter, which entrusted [the casket] to the tree deity to give to me. Kāśyapa Buddha's letter said: 'When I first attained awakening, the king Mahābrahmā gave me this silk; it was magically manifested, not reeled from cocoons. The Brahmā king gave the warp silk, and the king of the firm earth deities gave the woof silk; by these two donors, a single Dharma robe was jointly completed. For this reason, it was brought and given to me. Ever since I attained awakening, I have always worn this robe, and it has never suffered any damage. I now entrust it to Siddhārtha. When he succeeds in becoming a Buddha, he should take my saṃghārāṭī and place it in Jetavana; when turning the wheel of the Vinaya, he should wear it for my sake. I now leave this robe behind. One hundred years after your nirvāṇa, there will first be ignorant monks who will divide the Vinaya Piṭaka into five divisions; after one hundred years, they will divide your sūtras into immeasurable divisions. Controversies will arise from this, causing the Dharma to perish quickly. It will be because those foolish monks are not conversant with the Tripiṭaka that, upon hearing the permission to wear silk robes, they will kill silkworms. After you attain awakening, this silk will manifest spontaneously in various lands and will not involve killing silkworms. Therefore, I have entrusted it to the tree deity, and now it is transferred and entrusted to you. Inside this casket are all my bequeathed teachings; they are also transferred and entrusted to you to maintain the bequeathed Dharma.' After I read the letter, the earth shook in six ways, the jewel casket opened by itself, and it also emitted a great light. The tree deity also told me: 'You may place this robe casket upon your left shoulder; always give rise to reverence and do not place it elsewhere. When the jewel casket is on your shoulder, it can destroy all demons and subdue non-Buddhists, causing you to quickly become a Buddha.' Ever since I received the casket, it has always been on my shoulder, up until I received the milk gruel. When I sat beneath the Bodhi tree, Śakra came to my place, took the casket from my shoulder, opened it, took out the saṃghārāṭī, and made me put it on. He also took Kāśyapa Buddha's coarse-cloth saṃghārāṭī and placed it over the silk robe. The Brahmā king and Śakra once again offered a large cloth robe, and I accepted it as before. Having put on the three layers of robes—two were Kāśyapa Buddha's robes and one was mine—the king Mahābrahmā came and told me: 'I have seen that past Buddhas also put on three great robes, which the earth could not bear. The World-Honoured One should remove two of the great robes and restore them to their original place; by wearing the robe given by me, the great earth will then be able to remain secure.' I thereupon followed the king's words, and the great earth was then secured."
First 37 of 74 passages. Read on
Linked texts (1)
- 法苑珠林 — 道世, Classical Chinese