諸經要集 16.63

16.63

As the Za piyu jing says: In the past, there was a man named Sābó (Sārthavāha) who heard that in a foreign land there were rare jewels, and he wished to go there to trade. However, between the two countries there was the danger of rākṣasas, so that one could not pass through. As Sābó was traveling, he saw at the western gate of the market a man of the Way sitting on an empty couch, saying that he was selling the five precepts. Sābó asked: 'What are the five precepts like?' He answered: 'They are formless. Simply receive them orally and uphold them in mind, and you will later be born in heaven; in the present life, they can avert the peril of rākṣasa demons.' Sābó wished to buy them and asked how much money he demanded. He answered: 'A thousand gold coins.' He thereupon received them completely. [The man of the Way] spoke to him, saying: 'When you head to the foreign land and reach the border, if a rākṣasa comes, you need only say: "I am a disciple of Śākyamuni who observes the five precepts."' Shortly after, Sābó reached the border between the two countries and saw a rākṣasa thirteen feet tall, with a head like yellow thatch, eyes like red nails, his entire body covered in scales and armor, opening his mouth in turns like a fish fanning its gills, craning upward to catch flying swallows, sinking to his knees into the earth when he trod, his mouth steaming hot with blood flowing, leading a horde of several thousands. He seized Sābó directly. [Sābó] said: 'I am a disciple of Śākyamuni who observes the five precepts.' When the rākṣasa heard this, he refused ever to let him go. Sābó tried striking him with both fists; his fists entered the scales and armor, and he could not pull them out. He then kicked with his feet and rammed with his head, but again could not pull them out. His five limbs were sunken into the scales and armor; only his back could move. The rākṣasa spoke to him in verse: