諸經要集 3.29

3.29

As stated in the Minor Adbhutadharma-sūtra: The Buddha told Ānanda, 'If there were a person who transformed all the grasses and trees filling the four continents into human beings, all of whom attained the four fruits of the path and the stage of pratyekabuddha, and this person provided them throughout their lives with the four requisites so that everything they needed was complete, and after they attained extinction, built stupas for each of them and made offerings of incense, flowers, pennants, banners, and jewelled canopies; and furthermore built a great magnificent palace for Śakra using 84,000 jewelled pillars, 84,000 jewelled windows, 84,000 skylight jewelled windows, and 84,000 towers, pavilions, and halls, surrounded on four sides and decorated with manifold jewels—if a good man or good woman were to construct hundreds of thousands of koṭis of such great magnificent palaces as described above and bestow them upon the saṅgha of the four directions, though their merit would be great, it would not compare to a person who, after the Buddha's parinirvāṇa, builds a stupa with a relic the size of a mustard seed, [a stupa] as large as an āmalaka fruit, its spire like a needle, with a dew-basin canopy placed atop it like a jujube leaf, or makes a Buddha image as large as a barley grain. [The latter] surpasses the previous merit a hundredfold; even a thousand times, ten thousand times, or a hundred thousand myriad times could not match it—it cannot be weighed or calculated. Ānanda, you should know that the Tathāgata's immeasurable merit, the aggregate of morality, the aggregate of concentration, the aggregate of wisdom, the aggregate of liberation, and the aggregate of the knowledge and vision of liberation, possesses immeasurable merit, great supernatural powers and transformations, and the six pāramitās—immeasurable merit such as this.' Furthermore, the Anuttarāśraya-sūtra states: Ānanda joined his palms toward the Buddha and spoke these words: 'Today, when entering Rājagṛha to beg for alms, I saw a great multi-storeyed pavilion, newly completed, ornate, and exquisitely finished inside and out. If a person of pure faith were to donate it to the saṅgha of the four directions along with the four requisites; or, on the other hand, if after the Tathāgata's extinction one were to take a Buddha relic the size of a mustard seed, erect it within a stupa, building a stupa the size of an āmalaka seed, bearing a spire like a needle, with a large dew-basin the size of a jujube leaf, and make a Buddha [image] the size of a wheat grain—between these two merits, which is superior?' The Buddha told Ānanda, 'Suppose the holy persons of the four fruits and the pratyekabuddhas filled the four continents like forests of sugarcane, bamboo, reeds, and hemp fields, and someone were to make offerings to them throughout their lives with the four requisites fully supplied, and after their entry into nirvāṇa, were to build great stupas for all of them, making offerings of lit lamps, burned incense, robes, pennants, and banners. Ānanda, what do you think? Would that person's merit be great?' Ānanda said, 'Extremely great, World-Honoured One!' 'Ānanda, set that aside. Again, just as in the dwelling of Śakra's heavenly palace there is a great flying pavilion named the Palace of Supreme Victory, adorned with various jewels, each [type] numbering 84,000, if a man or woman of pure faith were to construct hundreds of thousands of koṭis of such jewelled palaces of supreme victory and donate them to the saṅgha of the four directions; or if another person, after the Tathāgata's parinirvāṇa, were to take a relic the size of a mustard seed, build a stupa the size of an āmalaka seed, bearing a spire like a needle, with a large dew-basin the size of a jujube leaf, and make an image of the Buddha the size of a wheat grain—this merit would surpass what was spoken of before; a hundredth part could not equal it, nor a thousandth, a ten-thousandth, a koṭi-th, or even an asaṃkhyeya-th part could equal one part of it, and no metaphor could encompass it. Why is this? Because of the Tathāgata's immeasurable merit. Even if one were to grind the Sahā world into fine dust, each particle becoming successively an attainer of the four śramaṇa fruits or a pratyekabuddha, and a man or woman of pure faith were to make offerings to them for the rest of their lives, and after their extinction build stupas and make offerings, this would still not equal taking a relic the size of a mustard seed, up to making an image the size of a wheat grain. This merit surpasses what was spoken of before; one part in a hundred, a thousand, ten thousand, or a koṭi could not equal it, nor could calculation or metaphor encompass it. Thus, Ānanda, all Tathāgatas in the past, when on the causal ground, knew that the realm of sentient beings is inherently pure by nature, yet defiled and polluted by adventitious afflictions; but without entering the pure realm of sentient beings, they are able to preach the profound, wondrous Dharma for all sentient beings to eliminate their affliction-hindrances. One might give rise to an inferior mind, but because of great capacity, one gives rise to a mind of respect for all sentient beings, generating reverence for them as great masters, generating prajñā, generating jñāna, and generating great compassion. Relying on this, the Dharma is established; bodhisattvas are able to enter the stage of avaivartika (which means non-retrogression), and relying on knowledge of reality as it is, realize great skill-in-means and attain anuttara-saṃbodhi.'