釋氏要覽 2.312

2.312

摩訶剎頭經云。佛告大眾。十方諸佛。皆用四月八日夜半子時生。所以者何。為春夏之際。殃罪悉畢。萬物普生。毒氣未行不寒不熱。時氣和適。今是佛生日。人民念佛功德浴佛形像（而今江浙用四月八日浴佛）○譬喻經云。佛以臈月八日現神變。降伏六師。六師。負墮。遂投水而死。徒黨有存者。佛為說法開悟。同白佛言。世尊以法水洗我心垢。今我請佛僧。洗浴身垢（今淮比。乃至三京。皆用[膜-大+(句-口+匕)]八。浴佛）○浴佛功德經。清淨慧菩薩白佛言世尊若佛在世。及滅度諸未來世中。諸眾生云何浴像。佛言。不作空有想。於諸善品心懷渴仰。不生疲厭。何以故。為成就如來法報身故。我今為汝說浴像法。諸供養中最為殊勝。為眾香湯置淨器中。先作方壇敷妙床座。於上置佛。以諸香湯次第浴之。用香水畢。復以淨水。淋洗其像。人各取少許洗像水。置自頭上（彼經有用香煎湯設壇法式）。初於像上淋水時應誦此偈云。我今灌沐諸如來。淨智功德莊嚴聚。五濁眾生令離垢願證如來淨法身○摩訶剎頭經云。浴像得錢。當分作三分。一分屬佛。一分屬法。一分屬僧。若佛錢得作佛像用。若法錢得造寺樓塔籬落墻壁內外屋舍等用。若僧錢各給與比丘用。

The Mohe chatou jing says: The Buddha told the great assembly: All Buddhas of the ten directions are born on the eighth day of the fourth month at midnight during the zi hour. Why is this? Because it is the boundary between spring and summer, when calamities and sins are all ended, the myriad things are universally born, poisonous vapors have not yet spread, it is neither cold nor hot, and the seasonal weather is harmonious and comfortable. Today is the Buddha's birthday; people mindful of the Buddha's merit bathe the Buddha's image. (Now in Jiangnan and Zhejiang, they bathe the Buddha on the eighth day of the fourth month).\n\nThe Piyujing says: On the eighth day of the twelfth month, the Buddha displayed divine transformations and subdued the six teachers. The six teachers were defeated and fell, subsequently throwing themselves into water and dying. For those of their followers who survived, the Buddha preached the Dharma and awakened them; together they said to the Buddha: "The World-Honoured One washed the defilements of our minds with the Dharma water; now we invite the Buddha and the saṅgha to wash and bathe the defilements of the body." (Today from the Huai River northward, down to the three capitals, they all bathe the Buddha on the eighth day of the twelfth month).\n\nThe Yufogongde jing says: Pure Wisdom Bodhisattva said to the Buddha: "World-Honoured One, while the Buddha is in the world, and in all future ages after your parinirvāṇa, how should sentient beings bathe the image?" The Buddha said: "Do not form notions of emptiness or existence; cherish thirsty longing toward all good factors, and do not give rise to weariness. Why? Because it is to accomplish the Tathāgata's Dharma-body and reward-body. Now I shall explain to you the ritual of bathing the image, which is the most supreme among all offerings: prepare a decoction of varied aromatics placed in a clean vessel; first make a square altar, spread a wondrous couch and seat, place the Buddha upon it, and successively bathe it with the aromatic decoction. Having finished using the aromatic water, rinse the image again with clean water. Each person takes a little of the water used to wash the image and places it upon their own head." (That sūtra contains the ritual procedures for decocting aromatic soup and setting up the altar). When first pouring water onto the image, one should recite this gāthā:\n"I now bathe all the Tathāgatas,\nWho gather pure wisdom and virtues as adornment.\nMay sentient beings of the five turbidities be freed from defilement,\nAnd vow to realize the Tathāgata's pure Dharma-body."\n\nThe Mohe chatou jing says: Money obtained from bathing the image should be divided into three portions: one portion belongs to the Buddha, one portion belongs to the Dharma, and one portion belongs to the Saṅgha. Money of the Buddha may be used for making Buddha images. Money of the Dharma may be used for building monastery towers, stupas, fences, walls, inner and outer rooms, and the like. Money of the Saṅgha is given individually to the monks for their use.