菩薩從兜術天降神母胎說廣普經 7

English (machine translation) 7

Language: English

7.1

Translated by the Śramaṇa Zhu Fonian of Liangzhou under the Yao Qin

At that time, the Bhagavat entered the samādhi of correct concentration, dividing his body in transformation and emitting a great light—wishing to cause the bodhisattva-mahāsattvas and the fourfold assembly of bhikṣus, bhikṣuṇīs, upāsakas, and upāsikās to destroy the realm of Māra and dwell on the correct ground—and addressed those in the assembly: "I recall that ninety-one kalpas ago, north of the city of Śuddhodana, on the southern border of the Snow Mountains, a master led five thousand people in ascetic practice in the mountains. Among that group, I was the youngest disciple, chanting the scriptures, calculating, learning arts and techniques, astronomy, and geography, leaving nothing unmastered. According to the standard custom of that group, whenever a disciple completed what he had learned, he had to repay his master's kindness. At that time, I was alone and had no wealth or treasures to offer to my master, so I knelt and bowed in gratitude, wishing to go down the mountain among people to beg for alms. The master would not permit it. Begging for permission two or three times in this way, the master still would not permit it. Why was this? Because my clarity and understanding of the scriptures were the best in the assembly. The master said to me: 'I have a scripture containing secret essentials and precious treasuries that you have not yet recited. Why would you leave me to go begging among people?' At that time, the master then gave me the secret essentials, five hundred words to a single phrase, and had me recite them. In less than a few days, I had finished reciting and practicing them, whereupon I stepped forward and said to the master: 'Permit me to go down the mountain to beg, wishing to repay the master's kindness.' The master again did not permit it and said to me: 'You must study books of secret prognostications, the sun, moon, stars, constellations, portents, disasters and blessings, the shifting of mountains and shaking of the earth, which you do not yet know. Why would you wish to leave me to go begging among people?' He again produced a scripture of a thousand words to a phrase and instructed me to read and recite it. Again, in less than a few days, I had mastered it. I addressed the master, begging for permission to repay the master's kindness, but the master still would not permit it: 'I have yet another scripture of ten thousand words to a phrase, the jewel of all scriptures, which you have not yet read and recited. On what grounds would you wish to leave me to beg?' He then produced the scripture again and had me read and recite it. In less than a few days I had already penetrated it, and the techniques, portents, and movements of the constellations were all completely understood."

7.4

"At that time, the master earnestly wished to detain me, but having no other scriptures for me to learn, I took leave of the master, went down the mountain, and proceeded to a village to beg. I saw more than five thousand non-Buddhist brahmacārins gathered in a great settlement to offer sacrifice to the heavens together. Their custom of sacrificing to the heavens was to slaughter five hundred cows, five hundred wethers, five hundred camels, five hundred horses, and among the elephants the robust ones possessing six tusks, along with five hundred women, one gold staff, one gold washing pitcher, one thousand pieces of white fine cotton cloth, and fifty thousand each of gold and silver coins. After the sacrifice to the heavens was finished, all these treasures were to go to the master. At that time, I shook off the dust and grime from my clothes. Having previously practiced austerities in the mountains for years, I wore deer-skin clothing. Hearing that this group of non-Buddhist brahmacārins, a congregation of five thousand led by their master, was holding a great sacrificial assembly, I went over there. At that time, their leader said to me: 'The one who knows many scriptures and techniques shall take the upper seat, while the one with few scriptures shall occupy the lower seat.' That master's knowledge could not penetrate the secret prognostications, so they made me take the upper seat. That master was enraged: 'What sort of man is this? The rare treasures and sundry goods should now belong to me! This man has snatched them away. If we are reborn and encounter each other again, I will surely take revenge, just as he has now snatched them from me!' At that time, I said: 'Wrong views and inversions are neither real nor true. I distinguish between existence and non-existence to expound nirvāṇa for you: free of birth, old age, sickness, and death; free of that and free of this; the intermediate contemplation of the purity of inherent characteristics; the four fearlessnesses; that merit leads to birth in heaven, and sin leads to hell; stinginess and greed lead to hungry ghosts; defaulting on debts leads to animals; and the retribution of good and evil follows like a shadow following a form.' At that time, the minds of the five thousand were awakened, and they immediately invited me to be their master. At that time, the elephants, horses, cows, sheep, and camels were all meant to be slaughtered, but I did not slaughter them. I was supposed to take the gold staff and the washing pitcher, but I gave them to the angry one in the upper seat. The five hundred women were returned to the host of the sacrifice. Of the fifty thousand gold coins, I took five hundred; of the fifty thousand silver coins, I took five hundred; and the remainder was entrusted to the sacrificial host."

7.5

"From village to village, from country to country, I gradually arrived outside the eastern gate of the city of Śuddhodana. I saw five hundred elder brahmacārins of long-standing virtue who had practiced the path for a long time, their appearances ugly and soiled from exposure to the sun and scorching by fire. I then gave each of them one of the five hundred gold coins. Taking leave, I entered the city and saw the people of the city sprinkling scented water on the ground to clear away dust and grime, hanging silk banners and canopies in neat and solemn rows, all wishing to go out of the city. I went forward a short distance and saw a woman holding seven flowers. At that time, I looked to the left and right, seeking perfume and looking for flowers, but could find none at all. I then asked the woman: 'If your flowers are available, I wish to buy them.' The woman answered me: 'These flowers are the king's flowers. The Buddha is about to enter the city, and they are to be offered to the Buddha; they cannot be had.' The Bodhisattva, again using skillful means, spoke further to the woman: 'I have five hundred precious coins, one hundred coins for a single flower. If you would give them to me, I will hand over the money to you.' The woman, eager to obtain the treasure, gave him five flowers. Walking several tens of paces, the woman thought to herself: 'This man is handsome in appearance and wears deer-skin clothing. He craved my five flowers and did not spare his silver coins; this must surely have a reason.' Turning her head, she called out: 'O man! What will you use the flowers for?' He replied: 'To offer to the Buddha.' Hearing the Buddha's name, the woman entrusted two flowers to me. I then left the city and saw from afar the Buddha approaching, with gods and humans filling the road, leaving no empty space on the ground where one could prostrate. In front of the Buddha, there was a puddle of water that could hold one person. I immediately untied my hair and spread it in the water, and praised the Buddha with this gāthā:

7.6

"'You have broken the mind of desire and arrogance, / able to extinguish lust, anger, and delusion;
Supreme in marks of light, / only the Buddha illuminates my mind.
What I aspired to in the past, / today I have obtained sight of the Buddha;
Now I scatter five stems of flowers, / wishing to attain non-regression.
The remaining two are not my flowers; / a king's daughter entrusted them to be offered to the Buddha.
Supreme Great Guide, / out of pity, tread upon my hair.'"

7.7

"At that time, the Tathāgata Prabhākara, seeing that my mind had produced a great and indestructible vow, praised me with a gāthā, saying:

7.8

"'Young man, you have aroused the great mind, / widely delivering countless people;
Your great vow is not for yourself, / planting the roots of many merits.
After countless kalpas from now, / in the world of five cauldrons and five turbidities,
You will become a Buddha to deliver sentient beings, / with the name Śākyamuni.
With the thirty-two marks of light, / the wondrous and extraordinary Venerable One among men;
Having received wisdom and been called a Buddha, / the earth will shake in six ways.
Seeing me receive the prophecy, / devas and people of the world,
With perpetual thoughts of the extinction of all bonds, / all vow to be born in my world.'"

7.9

"At that time, the Tathāgata Prabhākara stepped upon my hair and passed over. Through divine power, the Buddha received my five flowers and suspended my body in the empty air, while the remaining two flowers rested on the Buddha's left and right shoulders. What I practiced in the past broke the implements used by the five thousand brahmacārins for sacrificing to the heavens and serving fire, causing them to practice the eight equal dharmas of right view. Sitting, lying down, or walking, step by step I benefited and delivered sentient beings. From that time onward, I have never fallen into the three bad destinations, the eight difficulties, worldly intellectual acumen, or borderlands after the time of a Buddha."

7.10

At that time, sentient beings belonging to Māra's realm in the assembly grasped at eternalism and annihilationism, claiming that suffering contains joy, calling the impermanent permanent, calling the non-self self, practicing the four inversions, failing to recognize clear wisdom, covered by the five hindrances, and greedily attached to profit and offerings. At that time, wishing to deliver these people of wrong views, the Bhagavat spoke verses once more, saying:

7.11

"Wrong views are not the true Path, / like iron-boring insects;
Breaking the bones and entering the marrow and brain, / the pain and torment are limitless.
Profit and offerings destroy morality and virtue; / the wise do not cultivate them.
Personally practicing with a firm mind, / purely eliminate the dharmas of ignorance."

7.12

At that time, when the Bhagavat expounded the phrased meaning, semantic meaning, and literal meaning of these wrong views, explaining the true Dharma, countless hundreds of thousands of sentient beings all gave rise to the mind directed toward the supreme, correct, and true Path.

7.13

Chapter 27: The Bodily Transformations of Mañjuśrī of the Bodhisattva Garbhastha Sūtra

7.14

At that time, the Bhagavat, the Arhat, the Samyaksambuddha entered the samādhi of the Supreme Sovereign Contemplative Thought and surveyed the past, future, and present kalpa counts of the bodhisattva-mahāsattvas—those who ought to enter parinirvāṇa in one kalpa, two kalpas, up to hundreds of thousands of uncounted kotis of kalpas. There were bodhisattva-mahāsattvas who had made offerings to the buddhas, perfected merit, converted sentient beings, and purified buddha-realms. There were bodhisattva-mahāsattvas who practiced the eighth stage of kumārabhadra, taking no wife or children and eliminating lustful thoughts, dwelling solely on their own ground without parents or siblings, achieving the unexcelled, correct, true, and equal awakening. The Buddha said to Mañjuśrī: "Manifest your ancient [state of] seventy-nine kalpas ago in the Realm of Flower Radiance, where, while in the womb, you taught the Dharma as a complete-body śarīra. The people of that land were a thousand yojanas in height, and the Buddha's body was ten thousand yojanas. To the east, west, south, north, the four intermediate directions, above, and below, it was measureless, boundless, and incalculable, beyond what could be calculated by reckoners or their disciples. Your original [dwelling] was fundamentally pure there; manifest your supernormal powers through the light and physical marks of that Buddha-body, so that this great assembly may behold them at once, benefiting sentient beings within the lineage of the Tathāgata."

7.15

At that time, the Bhagavat spoke verses, saying:

7.16

"Mañjuśrī originally attained buddhahood, / and while in the womb manifested transformations. / His square body was ten thousand yojanas, / and the marks of his radiant light shone brilliantly. / His eyes were like blue lotuses; / his lips were as bright as pearls and fire. / Square and white were his forty teeth; / the blinking of his eyes met those above and below. / Devas, nāgas, and spirits / took refuge and paid homage with fragrant flowers. / Now I reside in this womb; / compared to that realm of yours, / [it does not match even] a hair's tip out of sixteen parts. / The Tathāgata's divine virtue and transformations / reach everywhere without obstruction. / The fragrance of his precepts spreads afar, / praised by all buddhas. / These present at this assembly now / wish to ask about rare teachings; / Soft-Headed One, manifest your power / and dispel their knots of doubt."

7.17

At that time, Mañjuśrī Bodhisattva-mahāsattva, without leaving his original seat and using the power of supernormal samādhi, in the time it takes a strong man to bend or stretch his arm, brought the Flower World into the Sahā World, right into the assembly in Śākyamuni's mother's womb. The two buddha-worlds did not obstruct one another. He manifested his physical Buddha marks complete with all primary and secondary characteristics, sitting under the King of Trees, expounding the profound and supreme Dharma. The bodhisattvas of that land also came to approach Śākyamuni Buddha, making offerings, attending upon him, and presenting fragrant flowers, banners, and canopies. The disciples of Śākyamuni Bodhisattva likewise went there to pay homage, attend upon him, and make offerings. The voices of both spoke the profound and wondrous Dharma, mutually illuminating without impediment. When that [realm] taught non-arising, this [realm] did likewise; when I taught the smṛtyupasthānas, that [realm] did likewise; the samyakprahāṇas, indriyas, balas, bodhyaṅgas, and the path were without difference between the two; when that [realm] taught suffering, emptiness, and non-self, this [realm] did likewise. At that time, Mañjuśrī spoke verses, saying:

7.18

"Viewing internal and external purity, / the cessation of conditions and conceptualization are also like this. / In the buddha-realms of the ten directions, / divine virtues are without difference. / It is entirely due to sentient beings' capacities / that the wondrous and non-wondrous appear. / Considering the body in which I attained buddhahood, / this realm is the smallest. / Because there were doubts in the assembly, / transformations were manifested within the womb. / My body is like a speck of dust, / yet now I am in another Buddha's realm. / The thirty-two marks are brilliant; / nowhere do they fail to appear. / Originally I was the teacher of the Able Sage (Śākya); / now, however, I become his disciple. / The Buddha Path is vast indeed, / pure, without increase or decrease. / If someone wishes to see a buddha-body, / two Honoured Ones do not stand together. / In this realm teachings are received, / while in my realm the Buddha's body is seen. / In this realm there is kalpa-conflagration; / my land knows no destruction. / The Buddha's power is all-pervading, / but the minds of sentient beings are not uniform. / Let the great assembly listen to what I teach: / beyond this there are still others. / There is a buddha-realm named Unobstructed, / where the Buddha is named Supreme Ascending Sage. / His land is twofold upon twofold [vaster], / pure and free from defilement. / His cities are all made of the seven treasures, / with grounds of crystal and lapis lazuli. / In the ambrosia pools of the eight liberations, / they bathe to remove dust and dirt, / causing them to dwell in the unobstructed realm, / brilliantly beholding the great illumination. / That Ascending Sage Buddha— / do not take him to be someone else; / if the assembly wishes to know, / my own person, the Soft-Headed One, is he. / Setting this aside, there is yet another / realm named Ultimate, / where the Buddha is named Great Wisdom, / surpassing the measure of all bodhisattvas. / There are no practices of the two vehicles there, / neither pratyekabuddhas nor śrāvakas. / The bodhisattva-mahāsattvas / are free from desire, anger, and delusion; / when roots are ruined, leaves do not grow, / how much less could there be fruit? / Endowed with the marks of the great person, / they first rescue others and only later liberate themselves. / Life is like the five rivers, / the five proclivities and the five entanglements; / sucked into the five grasping aggregates, / they transmigrate through the five paths. / The seven proclivities take firm hold, / never leaving the seven states of rebirth. / The unconditioned eightfold noble path / eliminates the eight wrong actions. / The eight wisdoms of pure contemplation / are washed with the water of the eight liberations. / The eight abodes and eight spheres of liberation / form the path of the eight conditioned phenomena. / The dharmas of suffering have nine divisions, / practiced by sentient beings in the six destinies. / Ultimately possessing the nine non-obstructions, / they adorn the tree of the Buddha Path. / With the ten powers and the fearlessnesses, / they put on the great armor of compassion and vow. / Holding the sword of wisdom in hand, / they cut down the forest of defilements. / Sentient beings in this realm / are covetous and become arrogant. / When severe illness lacks a good physician, / attempts to treat it make it worse; / just like a raging wildfire / burning mountains, forests, and marshes, / blown by the great vairambha wind, / when will the blazing fire ever be extinguished? / Now in our world, / Great Wisdom is expounded extensively; / the body I have today / is that very Tathāgata of Great Wisdom."

7.19

When Mañjuśrī had spoken these verses, immeasurable asaṃkhyeyas of sentient beings all aspired to be born in that flower realm. Then Mañjuśrī retracted his supernormal powers and reappeared as a bodhisattva-disciple of Śākyamuni Buddha, and the number and size of the lands returned to as they were before.

7.20

Bodhisattva Garbhastha Sūtra, Chapter 28: The Eight Worthies and Sages' Uposatha

7.21

At that time, there was a bodhisattva in the assembly named Jñānākara, who had cultivated many roots of virtue under past buddhas and subdued Māra's hordes, who was skilled in expedient transformations to adorn buddha-lands, who had practiced forbearance for uncounted kalpas without his patient mind failing or his meditation practice lapsing, who roared the lion's roar among the great assembly, who walked alone through the three realms ascending and descending at will, entering everywhere and responding without limit, who could turn mountains, rivers, and stone walls into the seven treasures; who bestowed alms upon the poor so they lacked none of the four necessities, who comprehended the contemplation of emptiness and the purity of dharmatā, distinguishing the rules of deportment across the three times as like an illusion, a transformation, an image in a mirror, a mirage in the heat, or an echo in the empty sky; whose retinue had perfected their roots and upheld the precepts without transgressing even a hair's breadth. He immediately rose from his seat, bared his right shoulder, knelt with his right knee on the ground, joined his palms together, and stepped forward to address the Buddha, saying: "How wonderful, Bhagavat! The Tathāgata's conversions are all-pervading. Devas, nāgas, humans, and spirits have all arrived at the place of awakening; the sentient beings of the sky realm, as well as those born from womb or transformation whom you have rescued, are beyond measure. We only pray that the Bhagavat will distinguish the good and evil conduct, deportment, and precepts of the six destinies—explaining in detail the good in the beginning, middle, and end—so that those who have not yet trained may train, and those who do not yet know may know."

7.22

The Buddha told Jñānākara Bodhisattva: "Excellent, excellent! You are able to ask the Tathāgata about such profound meaning. I will now distinguish for you the good and evil precepts and the destinations to which they lead. Listen closely, listen closely, and reflect upon it well! Once in the past, uncounted kalpas ago, I was a garuḍa king. My seven-jeweled palace, pleasure gardens, and bathing pools were all made of the seven treasures. Roaming through the gardens and parks, my mind was free and at ease, and the rules I followed were like those of a wheel-turning sage king. The women of the inner palace resembled devas. Over hundreds of thousands of myriads of kalpas, I would occasionally enter the sea to seek nāgas for food. At that time, in that ocean, there was a miraculously born young nāga who, on the eighth, fourteenth, and fifteenth days, observed the Tathāgata's uposatha of the eight precepts: not killing, not stealing, not engaging in sexual misconduct, not lying, not speaking frivolous words, not encouraging the drinking of alcohol, not listening to or performing music and songs, not using fragrant flowers, cosmetics, or high and broad beds, and not eating at improper times—upholding the eight rules of the worthies and sages. At that time, the garuḍa king was eight thousand yojanas in length, with each of his left and right wings being four thousand yojanas long, and the ocean was three million three hundred and sixty thousand li across. The garuḍa cleaved the water with his wings to catch the nāga, and before the water could close again, he flew out with the nāga in his beak. By the custom of garuḍas, when wishing to eat a nāga, they always swallow it tail first. To the north of Mount Sumeru was a great tied-iron tree, sixteen myriad li high. Carrying the nāga in his beak to that place, he wished to eat it, but looking for the nāga's tail, he could not find it, and a whole day and night passed. The next day, the nāga showed his tail and said to the garuḍa: 'The miraculously born nāga is I. Had I not observed the eightfold uposatha precepts, you would have reduced me to ashes.' When the garuḍa heard this, he repented and blamed himself: 'The Buddha's divine power is truly profound and immeasurable! I have a palace not far from here; come with me there so we may delight together.' The nāga then followed the garuḍa to view the palace. [The garuḍa said:] 'My retinue here has not heard the Tathāgata's eightfold uposatha precepts. I pray that you will instruct them in the precepts and proper deportment, so that after their lives end, they may be reborn among humans.' At that time, the young nāga had them recite the precepts in full, and directly in the king of birds' palace, he spoke verses, saying:

7.23

"'Though this seven-jeweled palace / is adorned and extremely delightful, / having filled your actions while lacking precepts, / you received this garuḍa body. / I am a young nāga prince / who practiced the Way for seventy thousand kalpas; / by piercing a tree leaf with a needle, / I violated a precept and became a nāga. / I am not a womb-born nāga, / nor moisture-born or egg-born; / in my next rebirth I shall be irreversible, / causing the assemblies of the Buddha's Dharma to flourish. / If you now receive the eightfold uposatha / and convert your retinue and others, / upholding the precepts without violation, / you will surely be born in a good realm. / My palace is within the ocean water, / also made of the seven treasures: / with mani gems, crystal, / bright-moon pearls, gold, and silver. / You may follow me there / to view it and cultivate Buddha practices, / which will further increase your roots of virtue, / moistening and nourishing all thoroughly.'"

7.24

"At that time, having heard what the young nāga said, the garuḍa received the eightfold uposatha precepts. He declared with his own mouth: 'From this day forth until the end of my life, I will not kill, in accordance with the teachings of all buddhas.' When the garuḍa's retinue had taken the three refuges, they followed the young nāga to his palace in the sea. In that palace was a seven-jeweled stūpa containing the profound treasury of all dharmas taught by the buddhas; separately there was a seven-jeweled casket filled with Buddhist sūtras, the twelve links of dependent origination, and dhāraṇī-samādhis. They saw the young nāga and the nāga maidens paying homage and making offerings of fragrant flowers, just like the golden palace of Nandavana in the heavens without difference. The young nāga said to the garuḍa: 'Though I received a nāga body and my kalpa lifespan is not yet exhausted, I have never killed living beings or disturbed water creatures.' At that time, the young nāga spoke further verses to the garuḍa, saying:

7.25

"'Killing is an unwholesome act, / reducing lifespan to premature death; / one's body is like a morning-dew insect, / dying as soon as it meets the light. / Upholding the precepts and honoring the Buddha's words, / one is born in the heavens of long life; / accumulating merit through successive kalpas, / one does not fall into the animal realm. / Though my present body is that of a nāga, / my precept virtue is clear and pure in practice; / although fallen among the animals, / I will surely hope to deliver myself.'"

7.26

"When the young nāga spoke these verses, the minds of the nāga prince and the nāga maidens opened and attained understanding, and after their lives ended, they were all to be born in Amitābha Buddha's land."

7.27

The Buddha said to Jñānākara Bodhisattva: "The moral virtue I practiced in my past lives was complete and perfected, so that I was able to become a bodhisattva, manifesting transformations at will and entering everywhere—entering into garuḍas, into young nāgas, and into fish, turtles, softshell turtles, and crocodiles. Such was my transformation."

7.28

Bodhisattva Garbhastha Sūtra, Chapter 29: Five Delights

7.29

At that time, the Bhagavat observed the thoughts in the minds of sentient beings: "They wish to know the places through which the Tathāgata has passed—that he was once born among the garuḍas and received instruction from the nāga prince, delivering immeasurable and incalculable beings. Is it only this, or is there yet more? We wish to hear its meaning." Knowing the thoughts in the minds of sentient beings, the Buddha was about to reveal the actions of body, speech, and mind that he had previously cultivated: "Sons and daughters of good family! Listen to what I say. In the past, there was a Śakra, king of the gods. Countless kalpas have passed since his demise, yet his celestial blessings were spontaneous, and among all the Śakras throughout the trichiliocosm, he was supreme and foremost. The asura king Rāhula fathered a daughter who was upright and graceful, fully endowed with the sixty-four arts of womanhood. In walking and standing still, she never violated deportment; her face was like the colour of peach blossoms, the breath from her mouth was like the fragrance of the utpala lotus, and her body gave off the scent of gośīrṣa sandalwood. Neither too tall nor too short, neither too pale nor too dark, neither too fat nor too thin, she was fully endowed with the ways of womanhood. Then Śakra Devānām Indra thought to himself: 'Now in this palace of mine there are many goddesses, and their beauty surpasses all other gods; yet they do not equal that asura maiden. I would do best to assemble my armies and do battle with him, so that I may take his daughter to serve me.' Having thought this, he immediately summoned the gods to deliberate on waging war. The gods addressed Śakra: 'In waging war, the gods will surely not equal him. You may expediently send the gods of music, holding in their hands the lapis lazuli ninety-nine-stringed lute and the single-stringed lute, to sing praises of our heaven’s enjoyment of blessings and delight, and of its immeasurable merits.' The gods praised this: 'These words are sound and may be followed.' He then ordered Pañcaśikha, son of the gods and master of music, and others to prepare their musical instruments. Instantly they disappeared from heaven, and in the time it takes a strong man to bend or stretch his arm, they were already standing before Baha, king of the asuras. Plucking the lute, they produced music and spoke this verse:

7.30

"‘I am Śakra, king of the gods, / a consummate master of the lute; / the melodies and notes blend in harmony, / pure and utterly exquisite in sound. / In the celestial delights of our realm, / there are no notions of sorrow or fear; / upon a mere thought, clothing and food arrive, / treasures of the seven jewels and amṛta. / Couches of gold and silver, stools of jade; / turn the pivot, and the body whirls around; / beholding such delights, one never tires— / he is supreme and foremost among the gods. / Now he has sent us here, / wishing to speak of non-contention, / and to present delicacies of amṛta, / seeking to form an alliance in marriage. / In the palace of my lord, / rare treasures are beyond measure; / celestial maidens serve as his retinue, / numbering not merely tens of millions. / Knowing that Baha has a daughter, / she should be given to serve my lord; / if she is not given to him, / our armies will straightaway march in conquest.’ / When the asura heard these words, / his wrath flared with extreme fierceness: / ‘A petty creature conceives grand designs, / and actually presumes to undertake this! / Though I have no amṛta, / I have already plenty to satisfy myself; / I also possess great armies, / quite sufficient to withstand and repel him.’

7.31

"At that time, after Pañcaśikha and the others heard these words, they immediately returned and recounted them in full to Śakra, king of the gods. Then Baha, king of the asuras, at once ordered his attendants urgently to assemble the troops: 'I have a campaign to wage. Prepare everything straightaway, and let none of you doubt.' He then spoke to those he had ordered in this verse:

7.32

"‘The noble Śakra, king of the gods, / has sent his envoy Pañcaśikha, / singing hymns in the five tones, / asking me for marriage. / Before he gathers his troops, / I should first assemble my forces; / going to attack, we shall need no great effort, / sure to succeed ten thousand times without a single fail.’

7.33

"Then the ministers of that asura, having heard this command, immediately assembled the fourfold army and proceeded to the waist of Mount Sumeru. They destroyed the palace of the Qujiao gods, next destroyed the palace of the Vāyu gods, next destroyed the palace of the Aśva gods, and next destroyed the palace of the Alaṃkāra gods. At that time, a son of the gods named Mahābala went to Śakra Devānām Indra and said: 'Celestial King! You should know that the asura Baha has assembled all his troops and has already destroyed the sons of the gods at the four gates. Celestial King! What do you now wish to do?' Then Śakra, king of the gods, recalled what he had previously recited and uttered this verse:

7.34

"‘May the awesome spiritual power of the Buddhas / rescue and protect me in my present distress; / forbearance and wisdom destroy wrath and anger, / a place of liberation and peace. / Formerly I never slept, / but yesterday I suddenly fell into slumber; / this sleep was no auspicious sign— / the asura has invaded my realm.’

7.35

"At that time, as Śakra, king of the gods, recollected the Buddha's merits, the asura forces gradually retreated, and from the rear garden of the four gates they entered the water of the pool and hid within the thread-like pores of the lotus stems. Then Śakra Devānām Indra ordered his great ministers: 'Quickly assemble the troops; I wish to pursue the asura forces.' Thereupon the ministers of Śakra, receiving the celestial king's order, gathered the celestial host and searched at the four gates. They saw only swords, armour, bows, and arrows lying on the ground, but did not see the asura host. Advancing step by step, they entered straight into the asura's palace, where they saw tens of millions of Baha asura maidens, but did not see the asuras themselves. They took all the maidens and returned to the Trāyastriṃśa palace. At that time, all the asuras begged for mercy and took refuge before Śakra Devānām Indra, saying: 'We were foolish and deluded, not knowing that the spiritual power of a disciple of the Buddha was sublime like this. Our ancestors had faith in and honoured the Tathāgata, and we have heard that the Buddha has a precept against taking what is not given. Now you, celestial King Śakra, have taken our retinues and filled your celestial palace with them entirely; this is not the practice followed by a disciple of the Buddha.'"

7.36

"Hearing this, Śakra was despondent and displeased: 'These words of the asura prove that I have violated the precept against taking what is not given. I would rather uphold the prohibition and not commit theft.' He immediately returned the maidens. At that time, the asura king offered the maiden he most revered to Śakra, king of the gods; Śakra, king of the gods, in turn presented delicious amṛta to the asura. The asuras and the gods lived in harmony and together cultivated goodness: not killing, not stealing, not engaging in sexual misconduct, not lying, not drinking alcohol, not using fragrant flowers, oils, and powders, and not eating at improper times; and they upheld the Tathāgata's Dharma of the three refuges.

7.37

"In my past practices through countless births, I was a wheel-turning sage king; through countless births, I was Śakra, king of the gods; through countless births, I was a Brahmā king. Upholding the noble eightfold poṣadha precepts, I crossed over difficulties and rescued those in distress. Even if the four continents were filled with blazing flames like the conflagration at the end of a kalpa, if one single-mindedly takes refuge, calls upon the name of the Tathāgata, and upholds the eightfold poṣadha precepts, though one throws oneself into the flames, they cannot burn; if filled with water, the water cannot drown. The eightfold poṣadha precepts are the father and mother of all Buddhas."

7.38

Bodhisattva Garbhastha Sūtra, Chapter 30: Kinnaras

7.39

At that time, in the assembly there was a bodhisattva named Adhimuktivimukti. In the past, countless asaṃkhyeya kalpas ago, he was a kiṃnara king. North of Mount Sumeru, past Mount Vaiḍūrya, north of Mount Vaiḍūrya, past the Minor Iron Enclosure Mountain, north of the Iron Enclosure Mountain was the Great Black Mountain, where the kiṃnara king ruled and transformed [his realm]. Past countless Buddhas [as numerous as] the sands of the Ganges, he neither saw them nor heard the Dharma, nor were there noble assemblies to teach and transform, nor was he illuminated by the light of the sun, moon, and stars. Due to the recompense of a single act of generosity accumulated in the past, he dwelt in a palace of the seven jewels with an extremely long lifespan. Why is that? Originally, in the human world he encountered a fertile field of merit: there was a great elder who was building a stūpa for the Buddha. This kiṃnara donated a single stūpa mast to complete the temple and also gave pure food to those artisans. When his lifespan came to an end, he became a chest-creature king (uraga king) between two mountains, having natural palaces and residences of the seven jewels. In the past, when he lived in the human world possessing immeasurable wealth, there was a śramaṇa who at noon held his alms-bowl begging for food. The wife saw the śramaṇa begging at the gate and immediately presented food and gave it to him. When the elder saw his wife giving food to the śramaṇa, he became furious: 'What kind of beggar is this, staring at my wife? I will see to it that this person's hands and feet are broken!' After his life ended, he received this ugly form, continuously lacking hands and feet for eighty-four kalpas. When he was in the human world, he studied the methods of ṛṣis in the deep mountains, reciting and practicing incantations, able to move the sun and moon, turning night into day and day into night; in the space of a breath he could spew forth gold, silver, and the seven jewels; he could cause withered trees all to produce branches, leaves, flowers, and fruits; he could cause seawater to evaporate; entering fire he was not burned; his body could fly; his eyes could see through everything; he himself knew his past lives and knew the minds of others; his ears heard distant sounds; and he had a retinue of five hundred disciples. Hearing that a Buddha had appeared in the world named Pure Light Tathāgata, Arhat, Samyaksambuddha, Vidyācaraṇasampanna, Sugata, Lokavid, Anuttara, Puruṣadamyasārathi, Śāstā Devamanuṣyāṇām, Buddha, Bhagavat, who expounded the subtle and wondrous Dharma, good in the beginning, middle, and end, whose great compassion and impartiality had merits difficult to measure, I led the disciples out from the deep mountains. Flying past the bathing pool in the rear garden of the royal palace, we saw the court ladies bathing in the pool. Looking down and seeing the women, I and my disciples gave rise to attachment and lust; all of us lost our supernatural powers of flight and immediately fell into the garden. At that time I became angry that coming to seek the Buddha had caused me to lose my supernatural powers. Then the assembly of court ladies saw the five hundred men all in the garden, and immediately entered to report to the king. The king ordered his attendants: 'Bring those men here; I wish to question them.' They were immediately brought to the king. The king questioned them, saying: 'Who are you people?' They replied: 'We are practitioners studying the path of ṛṣis in the mountains. In the mountains we recited and practiced incantations, able to move the sun and moon, turning night into day and day into night, up to having ears hearing distant sounds, with a retinue of five hundred disciples. Hearing that a Buddha had appeared in the world named Pure Light, I led the disciples out from the deep mountains. Flying past the bathing pool in the rear garden of the royal palace, we saw the court ladies bathing in the pool. Looking down and seeing the women, I and my disciples gave rise to attachment and lust; all of us lost our supernatural powers of flight and immediately fell into the garden.' Then the king told them: 'How long has it been since you came to study the path of ṛṣis in the deep mountains?' They replied: 'Twenty-two small kalpas.' The king further asked: 'Accumulating kalpas studying the path, the mind is like dead ashes, unmoved and unshaken; how could a lustful thought cause you to lose your supernatural powers?' They replied: 'Originally we thought the true path was spiritually supreme, where rising and sinking were at our ease and whatever we wished was accomplished. We never expected that today we would suddenly lose the path. Ashamed before the sage-king, we submit to the king's punishment.' The king told them: 'You originally studied the path for twenty-two small kalpas; your bodies are withered and your minds fatigued, but what you practiced was not genuine—like a foolish, deluded person seeking jewels in empty space, failing to obtain the true nature in the Dharma of the ultimate reality. The master whom you seek, the Tathāgata, the Fully Awakened One, is nearby in the Yuezhi Mountains. I shall lead you to the Buddha's abode; if the Buddha has something to teach, you should practice it.' At that time the great king immediately prepared a feather-jeweled chariot endowed with the fivefold deportment, and led his retinue and the five hundred students of the ṛṣis to the Yuezhi Mountains. The king then descended from the chariot, untied his sword, set aside his parasol, put away the fivefold deportment, and walked to the Buddha's abode. He bowed his head at the Buddha's feet and sat to one side. At that time, after sitting for a moment, the king withdrew, stepped forward, and said to the Buddha: 'These five hundred men studied the ṛṣis in the mountains for twenty-two small kalpas. Hearing that a Buddha had appeared in the world, they wished to come and see the Buddha, but flying over the rear palace, they became greedy and attached to lust and immediately lost their supernatural powers. We only pray that the Bhagavat will expound the subtle and wondrous Dharma to them, so that they may recover the path of the five supernatural powers.' The Buddha told the great king: 'The roots of goodness practiced by these five hundred people, once accomplished, were ruined and never reached the ultimate. Formerly he was an elder; when a bhikṣu begged for food, he said in anger: "May you have no hands or feet!" For countless kalpas he was a chest-creature king between the Great Iron Enclosure and the Black Mountain. Although he received this retribution where the sun and moon do not shine, earlier in the human world he had given a stūpa mast to others. By the benefit of that single gift given to a pratyekabuddha, he later obtained a human body and studied the ṛṣis in the mountains. His lustful mind flared up and he again lost his supernatural powers; this karmic condition has existed for a long time, not just now. When these five hundred people end their lives in this present life, they will all be born in the abode of the Buddha Without Anger. That Buddha will expound to them the twelve links of dependent origination—birth, old age, sickness, and death—as well as suffering, non-suffering, original origin, cessation, and the fruit of the path, and it will be likewise.' When the Buddha spoke this, the king's mind opened in understanding, and he also wished to be born in the abode of the Buddha Without Anger. At that time the king and the five hundred ṛṣis rose from their seats, bowed to the Buddha, and departed.

7.40

Bodhisattva Garbhastha Sūtra, Chapter 31: Gandharvas

7.41

At that time, the Bhagavat, knowing the thoughts in the minds of the assembly, entered the Formless Samādhi of Fixed Intention, to deliver beings according to their voices. 'In the past, I was a gandharva in the human world, ruling one Jambudvīpa, two Jambudvīpas, up to countless Jambudvīpas [numerous as] the sands of the Ganges. The male and female retinues took fragrance as food, and their robes and adornments were all perfumed with scent. Or I was born in the northern realm of Uttarakuru, Godānīya, or Pūrvavideha; wherever born, I was a gandharva king, sometimes with a lifespan of one kalpa, two kalpas, three kalpas, up to countless asaṃkhyeya kalpas. Knowing that there were the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Bhikṣu-Saṃgha, my mind was always distant and did not draw near to them. Why is that? Greedily attached to the five pleasures, we took fine fragrances as pleasure; amid fine fragrances we heard no other sounds, hearing only the songs, praises, and play of the five desires, day and night without knowing satiation. There was a good friend who had cultivated roots of goodness in the past. Emerging from the earth, half of his human body appeared, and he told me: "Is this place delightful? Why be greedily attached to it? This is not true and pure conduct. Discarding the perfumed smoke, you can attain a place of peace. This fragrance is a disaster, an illusion, a phantom. Now a Buddha is in the world; you may go and receive his teaching, obtaining pure fragrance that pervades all directions." The gandharva king, hearing this, rejoiced greatly: "Excellent, excellent, Good Friend! You wish to guide me and show me pure fragrance; now is precisely the time. Where is the Buddha? Let us go together to pay homage." At that time, the earth deity who had emerged addressed the gandharva with a gāthā, saying:

7.42

'The Tathāgata is free from attachment, / now in the southern realm;
In the pure contemplation within the womb, / with a retinue without measure.
Burning all wondrous fragrances, / hanging silks, flowers, parasols, and banners,
Making offerings [countless as] the sands of the Ganges. / The fragrance of profound moral virtue
Pervades the realms of the ten directions; / whoever smells this fragrance
All attain the unexcelled path. / You may lead your retinue
And go to Jambudvīpa; / with single-minded devotion take refuge in the Honored One,
And you will see the Buddha face to face. / The Buddha's virtues are boundless;
According to each one's former practice, / once hearing the meaning of the three verses,
One accomplishes the path without moving from one's seat. / The power of wisdom and samādhi in the three voids,
The eighteen unshared dharmas, / and the complete major and minor marks of a great man,
You will certainly obtain hereafter. / A body of purple-burnished gold,
Delicate and unstained by dust; / the dharmakāya, wisdom, and samādhi,
You will obtain in full. / Arriving there, do not harbor fear;
With a straightforward mind, give rise to no doubt. / Courageous and not cowardly,
You will then attain the lion's stride. / Contemplating the distinctions of body and mind,
Fully comprehending the spontaneous emptiness, / visual consciousness has no material basis;
Removing opposition, create no defilement. / You should practice the three Dharma doors
In the present, future, and intermediate state, / obtaining the pure threefold penetrative wisdom
And the dhāraṇī of unhindered phenomena. / With the thought of impermanence and non-pleasure,
Evils created over kalpas / are burned in the snap of a finger by the fire of wisdom;
Gold, silver, jewels, and lapis lazuli— / Mount Sumeru is formed of the four jewels;
When the kalpa burns, it is consumed by fire, / but karmic retribution cannot be destroyed.
The Tathāgata transforms beings in the world / out of pity for them, not for himself.
Taking birth here and there, / he binds and ties all who are attached,
Like a man shooting an arrow into empty space: / when the arrow is exhausted, it returns to the ground.
When making offerings to the fields of merit, / do not choose only the worthy and noble;
It is also like taking poison / and seeking antidotes everywhere—
The poisonous vapor grows increasingly intense, / and death is not far off.
If from previous lives there is a good friend / who provides the materials for an antidote,
Taking them in succession without picking and choosing, / one will encounter the method of the antidote.
Practicing generosity and performing meritorious deeds / without choosing between high and low:
This merit is praised by the sages, / the most honored and foremost.'

7.43

'At that time, the gandharva king, hearing the words of the earth deity who had emerged, had his mind opened in understanding and threw his five limbs to the ground: "You are my teacher, transforming my childish ignorance. Now, foolish and deluded, I did not distinguish the genuine from the false. Accept my repentance for being as though blind and foolish." At that time, the earth deity immediately emerged from the earth, manifesting the golden body of a Buddha with the thirty-two marks and radiating great light. By supernatural power he brought the gandharva king to the contemplation in the womb, without any of the assembly being aware of it. The Buddha told all those who had assembled: "For countless asaṃkhyeya kalpas, I have been able to become large or small, entering into the subtle without hindrance. Sometimes in the heavens for kalpas I have taught and transformed; sometimes among humans I have suffered on their behalf; sometimes among animals, hungry ghosts, and hells, dividing my body to teach and transform, entering everywhere." Then the gandharva king and his retinue of seventy-two billion immediately generated the unexcelled [aspiration] and abided in the stage of non-retrogression.'

7.44

Bodhisattva Garbhastha Sūtra, Chapter 32: Earth Deities

7.45

At that time, in the assembly there was a bodhisattva named Kuśalakarma, who immediately rose from his seat, bared his right shoulder, knelt with his right knee on the ground, joined his palms with fingers interlaced, and said to the Buddha: 'I wish to ask about my doubts, if you will permit me to speak.'

7.46

The Buddha told Kuśalakarma: 'Ask as you wish; I will analyze and explain each for you.'

7.47

Kuśalakarma said to the Buddha: 'How is it, Bhagavat? Among the spirits of the six great elements, which one is the most wonderful? Earth, water, fire, wind, space, or consciousness?'

7.48

At that time the Bhagavat, by his supernatural power, caused that earth deity to emerge from the earth and stand in the realm of earth; the water deity to emerge from water and stand in water; the fire deity to emerge from fire and stand in fire; the wind deity to emerge from wind and stand in wind; the space deity to emerge from space and stand in space; and the consciousness deity to emerge from consciousness and stand in consciousness. The Buddha told Kuśalakarma: 'Ask these six spirits yourself.'

7.49

Kuśalakarma Bodhisattva then asked the earth deity: 'Among the six great elements, are you the most wonderful or not?'

7.50

The earth deity replied: 'Among the six spirits, I am the most supreme. Why is that? All things produced—mountains, rivers, rocks, cliffs, trees, flowers, and fruits—all abide depending on me. All living beings of material form depend on me to exist. For this reason, I am the most wonderful.'

7.51

At that time, Kuśalakarma Bodhisattva asked the water deity: 'Among the six spirits, are you the most wonderful or not?'

7.52

The water deity replied, saying: “Among the six deities, I am the most superior. Why is that? If there were no water, the earth would be parched and dry without any moisture; grasses, trees, flowers, and fruits would all wither away; and all embodied classes of sentient beings would perish of thirst. For this reason, I am the most superior.”

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Linked texts (1)

菩薩從兜術天降神母胎說廣普經 — Classical Chinese