法苑珠林 65.56

65.56

Furthermore, as related in the *Sūtra on Saving the Pup*: Once, in an ancient state, grain became exorbitant, and the people were starving. At that time, a śramaṇa entered the city on his alms round. He went everywhere from door to door, but gained not a thing. Next he arrived at the gate of a prominent elder of great nobility and obtained some coarse, foul food; just as he was about to leave the city, within the gate he met a hunter-butcher holding a pup, taking it home intending to kill it. Seeing the śramaṇa, he was delighted and stepped forward to pay homage. The śramaṇa pronounced a benediction: 'May you enjoy longevity and long life.' The śramaṇa, knowing he had the pup and suspecting he intended to kill it, purposely asked him: 'What are you carrying now?' He replied: 'I walk empty-handed, having obtained and carried nothing.' The śramaṇa asked again: 'I have already seen it; why conceal it? The sin of taking life is exceedingly unwholesome. I wish to trade my food for this pup, so that its life may be saved, and your merit will be immeasurable.' The man replied: 'I cannot give it to you. I intentionally went to seek it so my family could eat together. How could this small amount of food of yours be sufficient?' The śramaṇa earnestly reasoned with and pleaded with him, but the man was recalcitrant and refused to heed his words. The śramaṇa said again: 'If you are unwilling, you can at least show it to me.' The man thereupon took it out to show the śramaṇa. The śramaṇa held up the food to feed the pup, stroked it with his hand, pronounced a prayer, and wept, [saying]: 'It is by your sins that you have received this dog's body, obtaining no self-determination, only to be killed and devoured. May your sins be extinguished and merit be born life after life; may you leave the body of a pup and be born as a human being, wherever you are encountering the Dharma and naturally [trusting] the Three Jewels.' Having received the food, wholesome thoughts arose in the pup; leaping with joy, it knew to take refuge of itself. The man took it home, slaughtered it, and [his family] ate it together. When the pup's life ended, it was immediately reborn in the family of a noble and great elder. As soon as it fell to the earth at birth, it had a mind of compassion. At that time, that śramaṇa on his alms round happened to arrive inside the elder's gate. As he was begging for alms, the elder's son saw the śramaṇa, recalled his past circumstances, and thereupon stepped forward, prostrated at the śramaṇa's feet, and invited him in to make an offering of food and drink of a hundred flavours. He went forward to address his parents, saying: 'Now I wish to follow this great preceptor, receive the sūtras and precepts, and become his disciple.' His parents, cherishing him, would not permit it: 'In our whole family we now have only you, an only son, who ought to succeed as master of the household. For what reason do you wish to abandon home and leave?' The young child wept and refused to eat or drink: 'If you will not permit me, I will simply go to my death.' Seeing this, the parents then permitted him to go. Following his master to study the Way, he shaved off his beard and hair, put on the three Dharma robes, chanted the Buddhist sūtras, and deeply understood their meaning. He then attained samādhi, established himself in non-retrogression, transformed everyone, and brought forth the mind of the Great Way. A Buddha's era is difficult to encounter; the path of the scriptures is difficult to hear. For anyone who can meet with them, there is none who is not delivered. Even beasts can attain the Way, how much more so humans—how could they fail to obtain the fruit? Even if one has breaches and offenses, if shame and remorse return and pure goodness comes forth, dark defilements will naturally be extinguished.