法苑珠林 43.9

43.9

As stated in the Dīrgha-āgama: The Buddha told the monks, "In the world there is a wheel-turning sage king (cakravartin) who accomplishes seven treasures and possesses four supernatural virtues. What is the accomplishment of the seven treasures? First, the golden wheel treasure; second, the white elephant treasure; third, the dark blue horse treasure; fourth, the divine pearl treasure; fifth, the jade woman treasure; sixth, the householder treasure (in other sūtras called the treasurer); seventh, the commander-in-chief treasure. How is the golden wheel treasure accomplished? When a wheel-turning sage king appears in the land of Jambudvīpa, of the kṣatriya consecrated-head caste, on the fifteenth day at the time of the full moon, having bathed in scented water, he ascends to the high palace and enjoys himself with his court ladies. The heavenly golden wheel treasure suddenly appears before him. The wheel has a thousand spokes, fully endowed with light and colour, made of heavenly gold, fashioned by heavenly artisans and not possessed of this worldly realm; its diameter is one zhang and four chi. Having seen it, the wheel-turning king secretly thinks to himself: 'I have previously heard such words from elders and ancients: If a kṣatriya king of the consecrated-head caste, on the fifteenth day at the time of the full moon, bathes in scented water, ascends the Dharma hall, surrounded by court ladies, a spontaneous golden wheel will suddenly appear before him; the wheel has a thousand spokes, is fully endowed with light and colour, fashioned by heavenly artisans and not of this worldly realm, with a diameter of one zhang and four chi—such a one is named a wheel-turning sage king. Now that this wheel has appeared, could it be this? I should now test this wheel treasure.' The king then summoned the fourfold army, bared his right shoulder before the golden wheel treasure, placed his right knee upon the ground, stroked the golden wheel with his right hand, and spoke to it, saying: 'Turn toward the east in accordance with the Dharma; do not violate the regular rule.' The wheel then turned toward the east. The king then led the fourfold army and followed behind it. Wherever the wheel stopped, the king halted his chariot. At that time, the minor kings of the east, seeing the great king arrive, filled golden bowls with silver grains and silver bowls with golden grains, came to the king's presence, bowed their heads, and said: 'Excellent, Great King! Now this eastern region is abundant and delightful, rich in precious treasures, teeming with people; their character is humane, harmonious, compassionate, filial, moderate, and compliant. We only wish that the sage king will govern here; we shall serve at your left and right and receive your governance.' At that time the wheel-turning king said to the minor kings: 'Desist, desist, worthy sirs! You have already made offerings to me. You need only govern and transform with the saddharma; do not allow partiality or injustice. Do not allow non-dharmic deeds in the realm: refrain from taking life yourself, and teach others not to take life; [reform] those who commit theft, sexual misconduct, divisive speech, harsh speech, false speech, frivolous speech, greed, anger, jealousy, and wrong views. This indeed is my governance.' When the minor kings heard these words, they followed the great king in touring the various lands to the boundary of the eastern sea. Next he traveled to the south, the west, and the north; wherever the wheel went, the kings of those lands each offered their territories, just as the minor kings of the east had done. Wherever in this Jambudvīpa was reputed to have fertile soil, abundant fields, many precious treasures, pure forests and waters, and flat and wide expanses, the wheel circumambulated them. Marking out and planning the land, it was twelve yojanas from east to west and seven yojanas from north to south. Heavenly deities constructed city walls at midnight; the city had seven tiers, with seven tiers of railings, seven tiers of nets, and seven tiers of tree avenues, decorated in an interlocking pattern all around, made of the seven treasures, down to countless birds singing in harmony. After constructing this city, the golden wheel planned and demarcated land within the city, four yojanas from east to west and two yojanas from north to south. Heavenly deities constructed palaces at midnight, made of the seven treasures, down to countless [ornaments]. After constructing the palaces, the sage king leapt with joy and said: 'This golden wheel treasure is truly my auspicious sign; I am now truly a sage king.' This is the accomplishment of the wheel treasure. What is called the white elephant treasure? Returning at dawn to sit upon the palace hall, a spontaneous elephant treasure suddenly appeared before him. Its hair was pure white; it stood flat on seven points; it possessed the power to fly through the air; its head was multicoloured, and its six tusks were slender and sharp, inlaid with genuine gold. When the king saw it, he thought: 'This elephant is docile.' He then tested and trained it, and it was fully equipped with all abilities. He then mounted it at dawn and rode out of the city, circumambulated the four seas, and returned by mealtime. The king leapt with joy and said: 'This is truly my auspicious sign.' This is the accomplishment of the elephant treasure. What is called the accomplishment of the dark blue horse treasure? Returning at dawn to sit upon the palace hall, a spontaneous horse treasure suddenly appeared before him. Its body was dark blue, with a jewel-like mane and tail, and its head and neck were like an elephant's; it was skilled at flying through the air. When the king saw it, [he thought] this horse was worthy and docile. He then tested and trained it, and it was fully equipped with all abilities. He then mounted it at dawn, rode out of the city, circumambulated the four seas, and returned by mealtime. The king leapt with joy and said: 'This is truly my auspicious sign.' This is the accomplishment of the horse treasure. What is called the accomplishment of the divine pearl treasure? Returning at dawn to sit upon the palace hall, a spontaneous divine pearl suddenly appeared before him. Its substance and colour were limpid and transparent, without blemish or impurity. When the king saw it, [he thought] this pearl was wonderful and fine; if it had radiance, it could illuminate the interior of the palace. The king wished to test it, so he summoned the fourfold army, placed this precious pearl upon a high banner, and carried the banner out of the city in the darkness of the night. The pearl's light illuminated an area of one yojana; the people in the city all rose to work, thinking it was day. The king leapt with joy and said: 'This is truly my auspicious sign.' This is the accomplishment of the divine pearl treasure. What is called the accomplishment of the jade woman treasure? At that time the jade woman treasure suddenly appeared. Her complexion, appearance, and countenance were upright and beautiful; she was neither tall nor short, neither stout nor slender, neither white nor dark, neither hard nor soft. In winter her body was warm; in summer her body was cool; sandalwood fragrance issued from all the pores of her body, and the scent of utpala flowers issued from her mouth. Her speech was gentle, her movements graceful and calm; she was first to rise and last to sit, never departing from proper conduct. When the king saw her, his mind did not set her aside for even a moment, much less when intimate with her. Leaping with joy, he said: 'This is truly my auspicious sign.' This is the accomplishment of the jade woman treasure. What is called the accomplishment of the householder treasure? At that time the householder suddenly appeared on his own. His treasure-houses and wealth were immeasurable. Through the householder's past merit, his eyes could see clearly into hidden treasures within the earth; whether they had an owner or lacked an owner, he saw and knew them all. Those that had an owner he was able to protect, and those that lacked an owner he took to supply for the king's use. The householder treasure then went to address the king, saying: 'Great King, should you have anything to provide, it is not worth worrying about; I can manage it myself.' The sage king, wishing to test him, ordered a boat prepared for an excursion upon the water. He told the householder: 'I need gold and jewels; give them to me quickly.' The householder replied: 'Great King, wait a little while until we reach the shore.' Thereupon the householder treasure knelt upon the boat, inserted his right hand into the water, and treasure-vases came out in succession, just as insects crawl up a tree; so it was with that householder treasure: when he put it into the water, treasures climbed up his hand and emerged, filling the boat. He addressed the king, saying: 'How much of the treasure needed earlier do you require?' The king said to him: 'Stop, I need nothing; I was only testing you earlier.' Having heard the king's words, he immediately submerged the precious items back into the water. The sage king leapt with joy and said: 'This is truly my auspicious sign.' This is the accomplishment of the householder treasure. What is called the accomplishment of the commander-in-chief treasure? At that time the commander-in-chief treasure suddenly appeared. His wisdom and stratagems were heroic and fierce; his distinguished planning made resolute decisions alone. He then went to the king's presence and said: 'Great King, should there be any campaigns, it is not worth worrying about; I can manage them myself.' The king, wishing to test the troops, assembled the fourfold army and told him: 'Now deploy the troops: assemble those not yet assembled; release those already assembled; arm those not yet armed; disarm those already armed; dispatch those who have not yet departed; halt those who have already departed.' The commander-in-chief treasure then commanded the fourfold army according to the king's words. Seeing this, the king leapt with joy and said: 'This is truly my auspicious sign.' These are the wheel-turning sage king's accomplishments of the seven treasures. As for the four supernatural virtues: first, long life without premature death, in which none can equal him; second, physical strength without illness or affliction, in which none can equal him; third, an upright and handsome countenance, in which none can equal him; fourth, treasure-houses overflowing, in which none can equal him. When the king traveled, the people of the state were compassionately nurtured as a father loves a child; the citizens admired the king as a child looks up to a father. They offered all the rare treasures they possessed to the king, hoping he would deign to accept them to bestow as he pleased. The king replied to them: 'Hold, all of you! I have my own treasures; you may use them yourselves.' The king's land was secure, abundant, and delightful, flat and even like the palm of a hand; clothing and food came naturally without need of striving. They only practiced the ten good deeds and committed no non-dharmic acts, just like Uttarakuru, beyond full description."