佛說婆羅門避死經

Thus have I heard:

At one time the Buddha was dwelling in the city of Rājagṛha, in the Kalandaka Bamboo Grove, together with a great assembly of five hundred bhikṣus.

At that time there were four brahmins who had all attained the five supernatural powers and who cultivated wholesome practices. Dwelling together in one place, they discussed with one another, saying: “When the spirit of death arrives, it spares not even the strong and healthy. Let us all hide ourselves so that the spirit of death will not know where we have gone.”

Then one brahmin flew up into the open sky, wishing to escape death; yet he could not avoid it and died there in the open sky. The second brahmin plunged to the bottom of the great ocean, wishing to escape death, and straightway died there. The third brahmin, wishing to escape death, bored into the heart of Mount Sumeru and died within it. The fourth brahmin burrowed down into the earth as far as the diamond layer, wishing to be freed from death, yet he too died there.

At that time the World-Honored One, with his divine eye, beheld the four brahmins, each one seeking to avoid death, and yet all of them dying alike. The World-Honored One then spoke this verse:

Not in the empty sky, nor in the sea,

Not by entering among the rocky mountains,

There is no place anywhere

Where one may escape and not be subject to death.

At that time the World-Honored One addressed the bhikṣus:

“Here, O bhikṣus! There were four brahmins who gathered together in one place, wishing to escape death. Each one turned about seeking a place to flee, yet they did not escape death. One was in the open sky, one entered the great ocean, one entered the heart of the mountain, one went down into the earth—and all of them alike died. Therefore, O bhikṣus! If you wish to escape death, you should contemplate the four fundamental dharmas. What are the four?

All formations are impermanent—this is the first fundamental dharma that should be remembered and cultivated; all formations are suffering—this is the second fundamental dharma that should likewise be contemplated; all dharmas are without self—this is the third fundamental dharma that should likewise be contemplated; cessation is Nirvāṇa—this is the fourth fundamental dharma that should likewise be contemplated. Thus, O bhikṣus! You should together contemplate these four dharmas. Why is this so? Because one will then be freed from birth, old age, sickness, death, sorrow, worry, and affliction. This is the source of suffering. Thus, O bhikṣus, you should train in this.”

At that time the bhikṣus, having heard what the Buddha taught, rejoiced and respectfully put it into practice.

The Sūtra Spoken by the Buddha on the Brahmin Who Sought to Avoid Death