諸經要集 8.35

8.35

Furthermore, the Mahāprajñāpāramitopadeśa states: In a past age, the people suffered greatly from diseases of jaundice, dropsy, wasting, and fever. At that time, the Bodhisattva was born as a red fish and gave his own flesh to the sick to cure their ailments. Furthermore, there was a bodhisattva who assumed the body of a bird and dwelt in a forest. He saw a man who had entered deep water, a place not traversed by humans, and was ensnared by a water spirit so that he could not untie himself. If one could go to Mount Gandhamādana, take a medicinal herb, and apply it to the snare, the rope would instantly rot away and the man would be freed. The Bodhisattva performed countless such jātaka deeds in past lives, largely delivering beings; these are called jātaka sūtras.