諸經要集 17.60

17.60

又賢愚經云。佛告波斯匿王曰。過去久遠阿僧祇劫。此閻浮提有一大國。名波羅奈。於時國王。名波羅摩達王。將四種兵入山獵戲。王到澤上馳逐禽獸。單隻一乘獨到深林。王時疲極下馬小休。爾時林中有牸師子。懷欲心盛行求其偶。困不能得值於林間。見王獨坐。婬意轉盛思欲從王。近到其邊舉尾背住。王知其意而自思惟。此是猛獸力能殺我。若不從意儻見危害。王以怖畏故。即從師子成欲事已。師子還去。諸兵群從已復來到。王與人眾即還宮城。爾時師子從是懷胎。日月滿足便生一兒。形盡似人唯足斑蘭。師子憶識知是王有。便銜擔來著於王前。王亦思憶知是己兒。收取養之。以足斑駮字為斑足。養之漸大雄才志猛。父王崩亡斑足繼治。時斑足王有二夫人。一是王種。二是婆羅門種。斑足出遊。勸二夫人。隨我後往誰先到者。當與一日極相娛樂。其隨後者吾不見之。王去之後。其二夫人極自莊飾。嚴駕俱往到於道中。見於天祠梵志種者。下車作禮。禮已後到。王從本言而不前之。於是夫人瞋怨天神。由禮汝故使王見薄。若有天力何不護我。後壞天祠令平如地。守天祠神悲惱至宮。欲傷王宮。天神遮不聽入。有一仙人住止山中。王恒供養。日日食時飛來入宮。不食餚饌粗食麁供。偶值一日仙人不來。天神知之化作其形。坐於常處不肯就食。欲得魚肉。即如語辦食已還去。明舊仙來為設肉食。仙人瞋王王言。大仙。先日勅作今何不食。仙人語言。昨日有患一日不來。是誰語汝。但相輕試。令王。是後十二年中恒食人肉。作是語竟飛還山中。是後厨監忘不辦肉。臨時無計。出外求肉。見死小兒肥白在地。念且稱急。即却頭足擔至厨中。加諸美藥作食與王。王得食之覺美倍常。即問厨監。由來食肉未有斯美。此是何肉。厨監惶怖腹拍王前。若王原罪。乃敢實說。王答之言。但實說之。不問汝罪。厨監白王具述前報。王言。此肉甚美。自今已後如是求辦。厨監白王。前者偶值死兒更求叵得。王又語言。汝但密取。設令有覺斷處由我。厨監受教。夜恒密取得便殺之。日日供王。於時城中人民之類。各各行哭云亡小兒。展轉相問何由乃爾。諸臣聚議。當試微伺。即於街里處處安人。見王厨監抄他小兒。伺捕得之縛將詣王。具以前事白。王言。是我所教。諸臣懷恨各自外議。王便是賊食我等子。噉人之王云何共治。當共除之去此禍害。一切同心咸共齊謀。一時同合即圍其王。當取殺之。王見兵集驚怖問言。汝等何故而圍逼我。諸臣答言。夫為王者。養民為事。方驅子厨殺人為食。不任苦酷。故欲殺王。王語諸臣。自今已後更不復為。唯見恕放當自改勵。諸臣語曰。終不相放不須多云。時王聞已自知必死。即語諸臣。雖當殺我小緩須臾。聽我一言。即自立誓。我身由來所修善行。為王正治。供養仙人合集眾德。迴令今日我得變成飛行羅剎。其語已訖。尋語而成即飛虛空。告諸臣曰。汝等合力欲強殺我。賴我大幸復能自拔。自今已後汝等好忍。所愛妻兒我次第食。語訖飛去。止山林間飛行搏人。擔以為食。人民之類恐怖藏避。如是之後殺噉多人。諸羅剎輩附為翼從。徒眾漸多所害轉廣。後諸羅剎白斑足王。我等奉事為王。願為一會。王即許之。當取諸王令滿五百。與汝為會。許之已訖。一一往取閉著深山。已得四百九十九王。殘少一人。後捕得須陀素彌。大有高德。從羅剎王乞得七日假。假滿還來。須陀素彌廣為說法。分別殺罪及其惡報。復說慈心不殺之福。斑足歡喜敬戴為禮。承用其教無復害心。即放諸王各還本國。須陀素彌。即使兵眾還將斑足安置本國。前仙人立誓十二年滿。自是已後更不噉人。遂還霸王治民如舊。爾時須陀素彌王者。今我身是。斑足王者。今央掘摩羅是。時諸人十二年中。為斑足王所食噉者。今此諸人央掘摩羅所殺者是。此諸人等。世世常為央掘所殺。我亦世世降之以善。央掘摩者。指鬘比丘。是時波斯匿王復白佛言。指鬘比丘。殺此人多食已得道。當受報不。佛告。大王。行必有報。今此比丘在於房中。地獄之火從毛孔出。極患苦痛酸切叵言。佛勅一比丘。汝持戶排往指鬘房刺戶孔中。比丘即往奉教為之。排入戶內尋自融消。比丘驚愕還來白佛。佛告比丘。行報如是。王及眾會莫不信解。

Furthermore, the Sutra of the Wise and the Foolish says: The Buddha told King Prasenajit: "Long ago in the remote past, incalculable kalpas ago, in this Jambudvīpa there was a great country named Vārāṇasī. At that time the king of the country was named King Brahmadatta. He led the four kinds of troops into the mountains to hunt for sport. When the king reached a marsh, he gave chase to birds and beasts, and riding completely alone, arrived by himself deep in the forest. The king was then utterly exhausted, so he dismounted to rest a little. At that time in the forest there was a lioness whose lustful desires were intensely aroused, and she was wandering about seeking a mate. Hard-pressed and unable to find one, she chanced upon the king in the midst of the forest and saw him sitting alone. Her lustful thoughts grew even stronger, and she desired to submit herself to the king. She approached his side, raised her tail, and turned her back to him. The king understood her intention and thought to himself: 'This is a fierce beast, capable of killing me. If I do not comply with her wish, I might be harmed.' Out of fear, the king then complied with the lioness and accomplished the act of desire, after which the lioness departed. The king's soldiers and retinue arrived soon after, and the king returned with his entourage to the palace city. At that time, the lioness became pregnant from this. When the months and days were fulfilled, she gave birth to a boy. His form was entirely like a human, except that his feet were spotted. The lioness remembered and knew that he belonged to the king, so she took him in her mouth and carried him before the king. The king also remembered and recognized him as his own son, took him in, and raised him. Because his feet were spotted, he was given the name Kalmāṣapāda ('Spotted-Foot'). As he was raised, he gradually grew up, endowed with heroic talents and a fierce will. When the father-king passed away, Kalmāṣapāda succeeded to the throne. At that time King Kalmāṣapāda had two consorts: one was of royal caste, and the other was of Brahmin caste. When Kalmāṣapāda went out on an excursion, he exhorted the two consorts: 'Follow behind me; whoever arrives first, I shall take immense pleasure with her for a whole day. The one who arrives later, I shall not see.' After the king departed, the two consorts adorned themselves splendidly, prepared their carriages, and set out together. When they reached the middle of the road, seeing a shrine of the gods, the one of Brahmin caste got down from her carriage to pay homage. Having paid homage, she arrived later. The king kept to his original word and did not admit her. Thereupon this consort resented the deity of the shrine: 'Because I paid homage to you, you caused the king to slight me! If you have divine power, why did you not protect me?' Later she destroyed the shrine, leveling it to the ground. The spirit guarding the shrine was grieved and distressed, and went to the palace, intending to harm the royal palace; but the palace-guarding gods barred the spirit and would not allow entry. There was a rishi living in the mountains whom the king constantly made offerings to. Every day at mealtime, he would fly into the palace. He did not eat rich delicacies, only plain food and coarse offerings. It so happened that one day the rishi did not come. The spirit of the shrine learned of this, transformed into the rishi's shape, sat in his usual place, and refused to eat the food, saying that he wanted fish and meat. It was immediately prepared according to his words, and after eating he departed. The next day, when the former rishi came, meat was served to him. The rishi was angry with the king, and the king said: 'Great Rishi, you ordered it to be made the other day, so why do you not eat it now?' The rishi said to him: 'Yesterday I was ill and did not come for a whole day. Who told you this? You are merely slighting and testing me! I cause you to constantly eat human flesh for the next twelve years.' Having spoken these words, he flew back into the mountains. After this, the master of the kitchen forgot to prepare meat. Facing the moment without a plan, he went out looking for meat and saw a dead infant lying on the ground, plump and fair. Thinking it would meet the emergency, he immediately cut off the head and feet, carried it to the kitchen, added various fine spices, prepared the food, and gave it to the king. When the king ate it, he found it twice as delicious as usual. He immediately asked the kitchen master: 'I have eaten meat all my life, but never had anything so delicious. What kind of meat is this?' The kitchen master was terrified, threw himself on his belly before the king, and said: 'If the king will pardon my offense, only then dare I tell the truth.' The king replied to him: 'Just speak the truth; I will not hold you guilty.' The kitchen master reported to the king, detailing the previous circumstance. The king said: 'This meat is exceedingly delicious. From now on, you shall seek and prepare it like this.' The kitchen master told the king: 'Before, I merely chanced upon a dead child; seeking another will be difficult.' The king further told him: 'Just take them secretly. Even if someone finds out, the judgment lies with me.' The kitchen master accepted the instruction and constantly took them secretly by night, killing them upon obtaining them to supply the king daily. At that time, among the populace in the city, people walked about crying here and there, saying their young children were missing. They asked one another back and forth how this could be happening. The ministers gathered to deliberate: 'We should try to watch discreetly.' So they stationed men everywhere in the streets and alleys. They saw the king's kitchen master abducting other people's young children, staked him out, captured him, bound him, and brought him before the king, reporting the whole affair. The king said: 'It was my instruction.' The ministers harbored resentment and conferred among themselves outside: 'The king is indeed a bandit who eats our children! How can we govern together with a man-eating king? We should eliminate him together and remove this disaster!' All of one mind and sharing the same plan, they assembled together at once and surrounded the king, intending to seize and kill him. Seeing the troops gather, the king asked in alarm and fear: 'For what reason do you surround and press upon me?' The ministers answered: 'One who is a king takes the nurturing of the people as his duty. Yet you have just dispatched your kitchen servant to kill people for food. We cannot bear such cruelty, and therefore we wish to kill you, O King.' The king said to the ministers: 'From now on I will never do it again. Only grant me forgiveness and release, and I will correct and reform myself.' The ministers said: 'We will never release you; there is no need for many words.' Hearing this, the king knew he was certain to die. He then said to the ministers: 'Though you must kill me, delay for a brief moment and hear one word from me.' He then made a vow himself: 'By whatever good deeds I have cultivated in my life, by ruling righteously as a king, and by making offerings to the rishi, let the collective merits be transformed today so that I become a flying rākṣasa!' When his words ended, following his words it was accomplished, and he immediately flew into the empty sky. He announced to the ministers: 'You united your strength wishing to kill me by force, but thanks to my great fortune, I was able to deliver myself. From now on, endure well! The wives and children you love, I shall eat them one by one!' Having spoken, he flew away. He stayed in the mountains and forests, flying to seize people and carrying them off for food. The populace hid and fled in terror. After this, he killed and devoured many people. Various rākṣasas attached themselves to him as his retinue; his followers grew gradually more numerous, and his harm spread ever wider. Later, the rākṣasas said to King Kalmāṣapāda: 'We serve you as king; we wish to hold an assembly.' The king then agreed to it: 'I shall capture various kings to make a full five hundred and hold an assembly for you.' Having promised this, he went one by one to capture them, locking them in the deep mountains. He had already obtained four hundred and ninety-nine kings, lacking just one person. Later he captured Sutasoma, who possessed great and eminent virtue. Sutasoma begged the rākṣasa king for a leave of seven days, and when the leave was up, he returned. Sutasoma expounded the Dharma extensively for him, distinguishing the sin of killing and its evil retribution, and further explained the merit of a compassionate mind that does not kill. Kalmāṣapāda was joyful, respectfully received him with obeisance, adopted his teachings, and no longer had a mind to harm. He immediately released the kings, each returning to his own country. Sutasoma then had his troops escort Kalmāṣapāda back and establish him in his own country. The twelve years of the former rishi's curse had been fulfilled; from that time on, he never devoured human flesh again, and ultimately returned as a reigning king, governing the people as before. The King Sutasoma of that time was my present self. King Kalmāṣapāda was the present Aṅgulimāla. Those people who were eaten by King Kalmāṣapāda during those twelve years were the people killed by Aṅgulimāla in this life. These people were killed by Aṅgulimāla life after life, and I also tamed him with goodness life after life. 'Aṅguli-māla' means the 'Finger-Garland Bhikṣu'." At that time King Prasenajit further said to the Buddha: "The Finger-Garland Bhikṣu killed so many people and has now attained the Way. Will he still undergo retribution or not?" The Buddha told the king: "Great King, deeds must have their retribution. Currently this bhikṣu is in his room, and the fires of hell are issuing from his pores; he suffers excruciating, piercing agony beyond words." The Buddha ordered a bhikṣu: "Take a door-bolt, go to Aṅgulimāla's room, and thrust it through the door-hole." The bhikṣu went immediately and did so according to the instruction. As the bolt entered the room, it immediately melted away on its own. The bhikṣu was astonished, and returned to report to the Buddha. The Buddha told the bhikṣu: "The retribution of deeds is like this." The king and the assembled multitude all believed and understood.