菩薩本行經

When the Tathagata spoke such true and wondrous words, all the disease-causing demons fled toward the kingdom of Magadha, and thus the epidemic in the kingdom of Vaishali was completely eradicated. But when the Buddha had to return to Magadha, those disease-causing demons fled back to Vaishali. Therefore, the Blessed One had to travel between the two kingdoms seven times. Finally, he said:

-Throughout innumerable kalpas until now, whatever merit I have created has all been dedicated to making great vows. Today, through this righteous deed, I shall eliminate the afflictions of mind and the illnesses of body of all sentient beings.

The Buddha recounted:

-When I was a king named Shibi, I cut flesh from my own body for the sake of a dove, and I made a solemn vow to eliminate every danger threatening all sentient beings.

When I was the prince named Mahasattva, I relinquished my own life so that a starving tigress and her cub might live.

When I was the king named Shashi, I cut flesh from my own body and gave it to the sick for twelve years.

When I was the king named Amitayaliang, I fell ill and prepared medicine for myself. At that time, a pratyekabuddha afflicted with the same illness as the king came to ask him for medicine. The king refrained from taking it and offered his own portion to the pratyekabuddha. He then made a great vow: May the illnesses of all afflicted sentient beings be completely eliminated.

When I was the king named Sudasumi, I saved the lives of one hundred kings who were about to die, and I transformed King Kamasabha, enabling him to attain right view. Thus, the evil vows Kamasabha had maintained for twelve years were completely dispelled.

When I was the prince named Sudana, I gave away in generosity both my wife and my two children.

When I was Prince Mahoshadha, I provided medicine to cure all sentient beings. I also entered the great ocean, found a mani jewel, and brought it back to deliver the people from hunger and poverty.

When I was the king named Mahabali, for twenty-four days I supplied the sick with flesh from my own body.

When I was the rishi named Shantivala, my hands and feet were severed, yet no anger arose in my mind.

When I was the king named Kashi, the people of the kingdom were afflicted by disease. The king observed the Eight Precepts for a day and a night and brought forth a mind of great loving-kindness and compassion toward all sentient beings; consequently, all the people of the kingdom recovered from their illnesses.

When I was a master of dispelling spells named Vibhavu, the people were ravaged by an epidemic. I gave my own blood and flesh to the disease-causing demons as food in order to dispel the calamity, and all the people recovered from their illnesses.

When I was King Brahma, for the sake of a single verse, I flayed the skin from my own body to make paper upon which to transcribe it.

When I was the king named Vilingajiri, for the sake of a single verse, I endured having one thousand nails driven into my body.

When I was the rishi named Uttari, for the sake of a single verse, I flayed my skin to make paper, split my bones to make a pen, and used my blood as ink.

When I was the king named Bami, the people of the kingdom were afflicted with ulcerous sores. While traveling, the king saw a poisonous tree. Its leaves fell into a stream, and anyone who inadvertently drank that water became ill. The king immediately ordered its branches cut down, its roots dug up, and the whole tree burned to ashes. Half the people then recovered, but the illness of the other half remained as before, without improvement. The king asked the royal physician:

-Why have some of the afflicted people not improved?

The royal physician replied:

-These sores are extremely severe. They will improve only if the sufferers eat fish.

Upon hearing the royal physician’s words, the king went to a tree beside the river and vowed to become a fish, saying:

-Today I offer my body to eradicate the illnesses of all beings. May I dedicate the merit of this deed to the attainment of Buddhahood, so that I may eliminate the immeasurable afflictions of mind and illnesses of body throughout all sentient beings, and may everything be fulfilled according to this vow. If any sentient being eats my flesh, may all that being’s illnesses be completely cured.

After making this solemn vow, he cast himself from the tree into the stream. The king’s body transformed into a fish capable of speaking in a human voice. The fish said:

-Whoever is ill should come, catch this fish, and eat its flesh; that person will recover.

When the people heard these words, they all came to catch the fish and eat its flesh. Thus, all their illnesses were completely cured.

The Blessed One thus personally recounted his deeds in former lives, and today all those vows have been fulfilled. The Buddha said:

-Today I use the true Dharma to eliminate the calamities afflicting all sentient beings. The Buddha then manifested his single body as one with two heads. One head faced the kingdom of Vaishali, and the other faced the kingdom of Magadha. All the disease-causing demons fled far away into the open sea. The people of both kingdoms recovered from every kind of illness, the grain and crops yielded abundant harvests, and all the people dwelt in peace and happiness. He taught and transformed them through the Buddhadharma, causing the mental afflictions and desires within everyone to be purified. They abided in the true Dharma, and all the people rejoiced exceedingly.

At that time, the bhikshus praised him with one voice:

-The merit of the Tathagata is truly immeasurable, wondrous beyond conception.

The Buddha further told the bhikshus:

-I have not only eliminated calamities, hunger, thirst, and disease for sentient beings in this present life; I did the same in the past as well.

In the distant past, innumerable kalpas ago, in this realm of Jambudvipa, there was a king of a great kingdom named Brahma. Eighty-four thousand kings of lesser kingdoms throughout Jambudvipa were subject to him. The king had twenty thousand consorts and ten thousand palace women, but he had no crown prince. Grieving day and night, he offered fervent prayers at the shrines of the deities: Brahma, Shakra, and Mahabali Deva. He prayed to heaven and earth, to the moon, and to the sun. Through these prayers, a crown prince was finally born.

At birth, the prince possessed a noble bearing and extraordinary beauty, with the marks of a great man. He was given the honored name Maheshvara Deva. The prince was benevolent, intelligent, and wise.

He mastered all worldly books, all the movements and transformations of the stars, solar and lunar eclipses, and every worldly art and craft, without exception. The prince also studied medicine and the preparation of remedies. He then proclaimed to all the sick people in the kingdom: “Whoever is ill should come here, and I shall provide medicine, food, and care.” When the people received this news, all who were ill flocked to the prince’s residence.

Everyone in the kingdom, old and young alike, rejoiced, and there was no one who did not praise this meritorious deed. The sick no longer went to other physicians. Some of those physicians became contemptuous, and most of them harbored resentment and jealousy toward the prince.

At that time, an epidemic spread among the people of Jambudvipa, while firewood became as costly as cinnamon and rice as precious as pearls. The king assembled all the renowned physicians, yet they were unable to cure the disease. The number of people who fell ill and died increased greatly with each passing day. The king was deeply distressed and issued a decree summoning the renowned physicians to court to ask them for a remedy that could save the people.

At that time, one physician who had long been jealous of the prince thought to himself: “This prince is my enemy, and now a rare opportunity has finally presented itself.” He immediately reported to the king:

-Your Majesty, I recall a certain prescription. Please allow me to return and examine it thoroughly.

The king consented, and the physician departed. He returned the following morning, came before the great king, and reported:

-Your Majesty, I have found a prescription. If Your Majesty approves it, all these illnesses can be completely cured.

The king immediately asked:

-What medicinal ingredients are required? Tell me!

The physician replied:

—You must find someone who, from birth until the present day, has always been filled with loving-kindness and compassion for all sentient beings and has never given rise to anger. His blood must be mixed with the medicine and given to them to drink, and both of his eyeballs must be removed to expel the demons; only then can these illnesses be cured.

The king said:

—A person who, from birth until this very day, has never given rise to anger—such a person is difficult to find. This is exceedingly difficult; perhaps no such person can be found!

When the prince heard these words, he immediately said to his royal father:

—This is easy; there is nothing difficult about it!

—I am your son. From birth until the present day, I have never given rise to anger, nor have I ever harbored malice toward anyone. I have always regarded all sentient beings with loving-kindness and compassion, and never before have I entertained a single evil thought. This body of mine is impermanent and has nothing firm or enduring about it; before long, it too will meet with death. I humbly beseech Your Majesty to consent to have my body made into medicine to cure sentient beings of their illnesses.

The royal father lamented:

—I had no child, so I went to pray to the deities at the shrines of the sun, the moon, and the stars, at the five lofty peaks and the four great mountains; only then were you born to me. Even if I must relinquish my body and lose my kingdom, I will certainly never consent to your wish.

The prince again entreated his royal father:

—I now seek the Buddha Way and offer my blood to sentient beings. I vow, through this merit, to comprehend all the scriptures of the Tathagata. I now offer these fleshly eyes to sentient beings. I vow, through this merit, to attain the Tathagata’s eye of wisdom, and for the sake of all sentient beings, I vow to become a true and upright Guide. Although Your Majesty would no longer have a crown prince, you would still remain king. But if this realm had no people, over whom would my royal father reign? If all the people are cured of their illnesses, my royal father will surely be freed from sorrow.

The king again wept sorrowfully and said to the prince:

—I would rather relinquish the throne than abandon this beloved son of mine. I truly cannot give you up.

The prince again knelt and prostrated himself, joined his palms, and said:

—I am now wholly resolved to seek the fruit of unsurpassed, true, and perfect enlightenment. If I cling to this filthy, foul-smelling body, how could I awaken to the profound, sublime Dharma and wisdom of the Tathagata? How could I attain the all-seeing wisdom-eye? I humbly beseech my royal father not to reject my resolve to seek the unsurpassed Way.

His royal father remained silent and said not a word. The physician then addressed the king:

—Your servant will first take a little blood, mix it with the medicine, and give it to the patients to drink. If their illnesses are cured, only then will I remove the eyes. If they are not cured, the eyes should not be removed.

Thereupon, the prince pierced his own arm with his own hand to draw blood and made this vow:

—I shall use this blood to eradicate the illnesses of sentient beings. I vow, through this merit, to attain the fruit of unsurpassed, true, and perfect enlightenment. If it is indeed true that I shall attain Buddhahood, then all sentient beings who drink this medicine shall be freed from illness.

The physician immediately mixed the blood with the medicine and gave it to the patients to drink. All of them were completely cured.

The physician again addressed His Majesty:

—Every patient who drank this medicine has been restored to health. Your Majesty sees the evidence plainly before your eyes; how could you not believe it?

At that time, the eighty-four thousand vassal kings and all the officials and people throughout Jambudvipa heard that the prince, out of loving-kindness and compassion and wishing to save all the people, was going to have both his eyes removed. There was not one among them who did not weep sorrowfully. They all assembled before the prince, knelt and prostrated themselves, joined their palms, and said:

—We humbly beg Your Highness to reconsider. We would rather each relinquish our own life than bear to let the prince destroy both his eyes. Your loving-kindness and compassion for sentient beings have already produced sufficient merit for you to attain Buddhahood before long. We implore Your Highness not to destroy both your eyes.

The prince then consoled all the vassal kings, officials, and people, saying:

—I now give my blood and flesh, even these two eyes, to eradicate the illnesses of sentient beings. I vow, through this merit, to seek and attain Buddhahood. When I become a Buddha, I shall assuredly eradicate your illnesses of mind and body. You must not obstruct my resolve for the unsurpassed Way.

When the vassal kings and all the officials and people heard the prince speak with such determination, they all stood in silence.

The prince then ordered an attendant to bring the instruments with which his eyes were to be removed. The prince asked the attendant:

—Who is able to remove my eyes for me?

The attendants on his left and right and all the people refused, for none had the courage to do such a thing. The physician, who was jealous of the prince, immediately spoke up:

—I am able to do it.

The prince joyfully said:

—I am greatly pleased!

He then took the knife, handed it to the physician, and instructed him:

—Remove the eyeball and place it in the palm of my hand.

The physician immediately removed one eyeball and placed it in the prince’s hand.

Thereupon, the prince made this vow:

—I now offer this fleshly eye to sentient beings. I do not seek to become a Wheel-Turning Sage King; I do not seek to become a Mara king; nor do I seek the pleasures of Brahma kings or the five desires of form, sound, scent, taste, and touch. I vow, through this merit, to attain the fruit of unsurpassed, true, and perfect enlightenment, so that I may fully possess the eye of wisdom, become a great King of Medicine for the immeasurable sentient beings throughout the ten directions, eradicate the illnesses of mind and body afflicting all beings, and become their eye of wisdom.

After making this vow, the prince took the eyeball and placed it upon a small table beside him. The prince continued:

—If my heartfelt vow is true, then may all sentient beings be cured of their illnesses.

When his royal father and mother witnessed this scene, they immediately collapsed unconscious and only regained consciousness after a long while. The vassal kings, officials, and people all cried and wailed so grievously that heaven and earth were moved. Some beat their own bodies, while others fainted and lost consciousness.

At the very moment the physician took the knife and removed the prince’s eyeball, the entire great trichiliocosm shook violently. All the devas of the three realms descended. Seeing the bodhisattva remove his own eye and draw his own blood for the sake of sentient beings, countless devas wept sorrowfully, their tears falling like a great downpour.

Then Lord Sakra came before the prince and said:

—Today, out of loving-kindness and compassion for sentient beings, Your Highness does not cherish even your own body and life, but has removed your fleshly eye. Such suffering is indeed exceedingly difficult to endure. What do you seek through the merit of this deed? Do you seek to become Lord of the Devas, a Mara king, a Brahma king, a royal prince, or do you seek something else?

The prince replied:

—I do not seek the station of a Wheel-Turning Sage King, Lord of the Devas, Mara king, or Brahma king, nor do I seek the pleasures of the five desires—form, sound, scent, taste, and touch—within the three realms. Through this merit, I seek only the fruit of unsurpassed, true, and perfect enlightenment. For the sake of all sentient beings, I shall become a great King of Medicine, eradicate the illnesses of mind and body afflicting all beings, and become the eye of wisdom that guides them, so that all sentient beings may be freed from the calamity of birth and death.

Lord Sakra and all the devas praised him in unison:

—Excellent! Excellent! This is supremely great and beyond compare! In accordance with this vow, you will surely attain Buddhahood before long.

Lord Sakra then replaced the eyeball in the socket from which it had been removed. At once, the prince’s eye was restored as before, and its radiance and beauty were many times greater than those of the former eye. Immeasurable devas scattered celestial flowers over the prince, and there was none who did not rejoice. His royal father and mother, the palace women, the lesser kings, the officials, and the people were all filled with boundless joy and delight.

Indra further ordered the great general Vibhadanma to drive all disease-causing ghosts back to the distant ocean. Everyone afflicted by illness recovered. Indra then rained down all kinds of food and drink, followed by rice and grain, then clothing, and afterward the seven treasures. All the sick regained their health, everyone had plenty, and no one suffered hunger or thirst. The people rejoiced, and the kingdom prospered.

Several years later, the king, his father, passed away, and the crown prince ascended the imperial throne and resided in the principal palace. The seven precious treasures appeared of themselves, and he became a wheel-turning sage king who ruled the four continents beneath heaven. There was no one who did not benefit from his grace.

Thus, even in that very lifetime, the merit of that deed brought such blessed recompense.

The Buddha told the bhikshus:

“The Crown Prince Sovereign Deva of that time was I in a former life. King Brahmadeva, his father, is now my father, King Shuddhodana. The queen, his mother, is now Queen Maya, my mother. The physician who gouged out my eyes is now Devadatta. The people of Jambudvipa at that time are now the people of the two kingdoms of Vaishali and Magadha. At that time, I likewise dispelled calamity, sickness, hunger, and thirst for the myriad people. Now I likewise utterly dispel the sicknesses of mind and body for sentient beings, enabling them to obtain the eye of wisdom, establish their vows, and realize the path.

“Thus does a bodhisattva diligently and painstakingly practice generosity, entirely free from attachment to characteristics.”

When the bhikshus heard the Buddha’s teaching, they all rejoiced and bowed to the Buddha.

*

Thus have I heard:

At one time, the Buddha was dwelling in Prince Jeta’s Grove, in Anathapindika’s Park, in the kingdom of Shravasti. The Buddha, together with one thousand two hundred and fifty shramanas, was about to enter the city to beg for alms.

As the Buddha was about to enter the city, five hundred devas released fragrant winds that swept over the great thoroughfares and the narrow lanes of the villages, cleansing them all. Impure and filthy places, along with foul-smelling excrement, naturally sank into the earth, and every road became clear and clean. Five hundred devas sent down a rain of fragrant droplets, moistening every road, large and small, while scattering celestial flowers.

When the king, his ministers, and the people saw these auspicious signs, they knew that the Buddha was about to arrive. Everyone therefore put aside the work they were doing and hastened together to welcome the Blessed One. Among the people who came to behold the Buddha, some swept the roads, some scattered flowers, some burned incense, some removed their robes and spread them upon the ground, and some loosened their hair and spread it across the road, hoping that the Buddha would tread upon it as he passed.

Some lay prostrate upon the ground, hoping that the Buddha would step over their bodies; some held banners and canopies; and some played music. Everyone joined their palms and, with single-minded purity, gazed reverently upon the Tathagata. Each sentient being brought something different as an offering to the Blessed One.

At that time, there was a Brahmin who was exceedingly poor and had neither flowers nor incense to offer to the Tamer. He felt sorrowful and, though he considered a hundred different means, there was nothing he could do but gaze upon the Buddha with single-minded purity. He therefore composed his bearing with solemn dignity and, with utmost sincerity, reverence, and an uplifted heart, stood motionless with palms joined, gazing upon the honored countenance of the Tathagata. He praised the Buddha in verse:

Your honored countenance shines with golden light;

The thirty-two excellent marks are manifest.

All classes of sentient beings

Behold you and offer praise.

Seeing the Buddha, their hearts rejoice;

Their grief and sorrow are at once extinguished.

You have crossed beyond the ocean of birth and death;

I bow my head to the Compassionate Honored One.

At that moment, the Blessed One smiled joyfully, and five-colored light streamed from his golden mouth, displaying hundreds of thousands of wondrous manifestations. Each ray of light contained innumerable beams. Upon each beam was a lotus made of the seven treasures, and upon each lotus appeared a transformation Buddha. The light spread throughout the ten directions, reaching downward into the great hells and upward to the Heaven of the Thirty-Three. It illuminated every dark place within the five destinies and reached to the furthest Buddha realms, leaving no place unilluminated.

When the devas and people throughout the great trichiliocosm saw the Buddha’s radiance, there was no one who did not rejoice exuberantly. They abandoned every sensual pleasure, left their palaces, and together went toward the place where the Buddha was dwelling. By hearing the Buddha teach the Dharma, they attained deliverance. Some saw the radiance and attained deliverance. Some heard the transformation Buddhas teach the Dharma and attained liberation. Others saw the radiant light, sought out the place where the Buddha was dwelling, and attained deliverance.

All instruments of torture throughout the innumerable hells ceased their work, and after the sentient beings dwelling there died, they were all born in Buddha realms.

The birds and beasts throughout the animal realm awakened wholesome minds and treated one another with loving-kindness, no longer harboring thoughts of killing. After death, they too were born in the heavens.

In the realm of hungry ghosts, food of a hundred flavors appeared naturally. No one remained troubled by hunger or thirst, and so they all rejoiced exuberantly and no longer harbored stinginess. After death, they were all born in the heavens.

Innumerable blind beings regained their sight. The deaf could hear, and the mute could speak. Those whose hands were bent or deformed could flex and extend them naturally, and the lame could walk. The disabled and those afflicted by hundreds of diseases were all healed. All those imprisoned or bound in the hells were released.

At that time, among the entire assembly, the devas, and the myriad people throughout the great trichiliocosm, there was no one who did not rejoice. Their minds became pure, and greed, anger, and delusion no longer arose. Among them, some were born in the heavens; some attained the fruits of stream-enterer, once-returner, non-returner, arhat, or pratyekabuddha; some aroused the aspiration to seek unsurpassed, right, and true awakening; and some became firmly established in the Dharma of non-retrogression. The number of those who attained such realizations was beyond reckoning.

The Blessed One’s radiance illuminated the worlds throughout the ten directions, then returned, circled the Buddha three times, and entered the space between his eyebrows.

At that time, Venerable Ananda adjusted his robes, composed his deportment, knelt before the Buddha with palms joined, and said:

“The Blessed One’s smile today must surely have a cause. I humbly ask the Blessed One to explain that cause.”

The Buddha said to Venerable Ananda:

“Venerable one, do you see that Brahmin?”

Venerable Ananda replied:

“Yes, Blessed One, I see him.”

The Buddha said:

“This Brahmin, with a pure mind, has uttered a verse in praise of the Buddha. Therefore, from now until thirteen kalpas hence, whether he is born among devas or humans, he will naturally possess wealth, a handsome and dignified form, wisdom, and eloquence, and he will be praised by everyone. He will not fall into the three evil destinies or encounter the eight difficulties. Later, he will become a pratyekabuddha named Joyful Delight.”

When the entire assembly heard the Buddha’s words, everyone gave rise to joy and praised the merit of the Tathagata.

Venerable Ananda said to the Buddha:

“The merit of the Tathagata is truly inconceivable. By uttering a single verse in praise of the Buddha, that Brahmin has attained immeasurable merit. The merit of the Tathagata is indeed exceedingly vast.”

The Buddha told Venerable Ananda:

“It is not only in this present life that this Brahmin has praised me and thereby gained such wholesome benefit.

“In the distant past, the king of Varanasi was named Brahmadatta. When the king went hunting, the divisions of his army—elephant troops, cavalry, chariots, and others—

all followed, clearing the way and escorting him. While hunting in the mountains, he captured a white elephant. Its body was as white as snow, its skin smooth and beautiful, and its appearance endearing; moreover, it had six tusks.”

The king was overjoyed to obtain the white elephant and immediately entrusted it to an elephant trainer to be trained and brought under control. At that time, the elephant trainer shackled the elephant to a large wooden post and locked the chains. The elephant wept sorrowfully and went for seven days without eating or drinking. The elephant trainer feared that if the elephant continued without food or drink, it would soon die, so he reported to the king:

“The captured white elephant refuses to eat or drink and weeps sorrowfully.”

Upon hearing this report, the king immediately came to see the elephant. The great king asked:

“Why do you refuse to eat?”

The elephant answered in a human voice:

“My heart is filled with grief. I humbly beg the great king to relieve my sorrow.”

The great king asked:

“What causes you such grief?”

The white elephant said:

“My parents are still alive, but they are extremely old and feeble and cannot walk. They have no one to care for them. I alone gather food and carry water back for them. If I remain chained here, there will be no one to support them, and they will both die. This thought fills me with sorrow. Great king, if you possess loving-kindness and compassion, please release me so that I may return and care for my parents. When their lives have ended, I shall return to serve the great king and shall never break this promise.”

Hearing the white elephant’s words, the king became sorrowful and unhappy. He praised the elephant, saying:

“Although you are an animal, you perform the deeds of a human being; although I am a human being, I have acted like an animal.”

The king then knelt down, removed the chains, and ordered the elephant to depart.

The white elephant returned and cared for his parents for twelve years. When their lives had ended, he returned to the royal palace.

Seeing the white elephant return, the king’s joy increased all the more. He adorned the white elephant with jeweled necklaces and the seven precious substances. Whenever the great king went forth, the white elephant led the way, and thus the king cherished him even more than the crown prince. Among the king’s herd, the white elephant had the most extraordinary history, so he was named Elephant Banner.

At that time, there was an impoverished brahmin who wished to ask the king for alms. He asked the people:

“How can I induce the king to give me great wealth?”

Someone told him:

“The king has a white elephant whom he cherishes exceedingly. If you can praise that white elephant, you may obtain great wealth.”

The brahmin then kept watch and waited until the king went forth. Standing by the roadside, he raised his voice and praised the white elephant:

When the king heard this verse praising the white elephant, he was greatly delighted and immediately rewarded the brahmin with five hundred gold coins. The brahmin thereby became wealthy.

The Buddha told the Venerable Ananda:

“Elephant Banner at that time was I in a former life. That brahmin is now this brahmin. At that time, the brahmin praised me, obtained benefit, and through my aid escaped poverty. Now that I have attained Buddhahood, the brahmin has again praised me and will therefore receive immeasurable blessings. Through these causes and conditions, he will be rescued by me and delivered from the perils of birth and death.”

The Venerable Ananda then knelt before the Buddha and asked:

“If someone praises the Tathagata with a four-line verse, what meritorious reward will that person receive?”

The Buddha said:

“Suppose that hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of millions, and countless living beings all obtained human bodies and all attained the fruition of pratyekabuddhahood. Suppose someone made offerings of robes, blankets, food, medicine, beds, and bedding to those pratyekabuddhas for one hundred years. Would that person’s merit be great?”

The Venerable Ananda replied:

“Extremely great! Extremely great! It could never be calculated!”

The Buddha continued:

“If someone, with a joyful heart, praises the Tathagata with a four-line verse, that person’s merit will exceed the merit of the one who made offerings to those pratyekabuddhas by hundreds of thousands of tens of thousands of times, by countless hundreds of millions upon hundreds of millions of times—beyond the power of any analogy to express.”

When the Venerable Ananda and the entire great assembly heard the Buddha’s teaching, they were all filled with immense joy. They circumambulated the Buddha three times and bowed in homage with their heads and faces touching the ground.

*

Thus have I heard:

At one time, the Buddha was staying in a monastery in the kingdom of Varanasi. In accordance with the practice of all Buddhas, three times by day and by night he surveyed living beings with the eye of a Fully Awakened One. Whenever he saw someone capable of being liberated, he immediately went to liberate that person. At that time, there was a brahmin prime minister who served the king of Varanasi. He had only recently married and was deeply devoted to his wife.

His wife said to the prime minister:

“My husband, please grant me one request.”

The prime minister replied:

“Whatever you desire, you may have as you wish.”

His wife then said:

“My husband, please permit me to arrange an offering for the Buddha and the bhikshu Sangha, to pour water for them with my own hands, and to hear the Buddha teach the Dharma.”

The prime minister immediately agreed, saying:

“I shall comply with all that you desire.”

At that time, the Blessed One knew that the prime minister and his wife were ready to be liberated. At daybreak the following morning, he donned his robe, took up his alms bowl, and went directly to their home. When the prime minister and his wife heard that the Buddha had arrived outside their gate, they were filled with immense joy.

They immediately went out to welcome him, bowed in homage with their heads and faces touching the ground, prepared a seat, and invited the Buddha to be seated. The prime minister and his wife then offered him exceptionally pure and delicious food. When the Blessed One had finished his meal, the couple personally held a vessel and poured water for him to wash his hands and rinse his mouth.

When this was done, the Buddha taught the Dharma for the prime minister and his wife. The Buddha praised the merit of generosity and the observance of precepts, through which one is reborn in the heavenly or human realms and naturally enjoys wealth, honor, nobility, prosperity, and boundless happiness. Yet although one may attain an exalted station and fulfill one’s every wish, one still cannot escape the sufferings of the three evil destinies:

The sufferings of hell include blazing fires, boiling water, mountains of blades, forests of swords, furnaces of burning charcoal, knives that cut, and saws that sever. Such suffering is exceedingly cruel and cannot be fully described.

The sufferings of hungry ghosts include gaunt and emaciated bodies, enormous bellies, and throats as narrow as needles. Every joint in their bodies is continually racked with pain, as though scorched by fire. For hundreds of thousands of tens of thousands of years, they do not even hear the names of food and drink. The torments of their hunger and thirst are beyond description.

There are also the sufferings of animals, who maul, devour, and kill one another, as do tigers, wolves, lions, pythons, venomous snakes, scorpions, and other creatures.

The malicious minds of beings in the three evil destinies continually surge with great force, without even the slightest wholesome thought. Therefore, they must revolve endlessly through wretched and painful states, with no time of escape. Only by relinquishing sensual desire and contemplating the truth can one become free from all suffering and affliction.

To assume a body anywhere within the three realms is to undergo the results of suffering. All such suffering arises from the truth of the origin of suffering. Its origin lies in the defilements of craving and desire produced by the three poisons, and in the results of volitional karma, which in turn give rise to further suffering. If the three poisons are completely ended and all desires extinguished, there will be no volitional karma. When volitional karma has ceased, one no longer receives a body and sense faculties. When there is no body and no sense faculties, all suffering immediately ceases. To extinguish completely the bonds of volitional karma, the sole means is to contemplate and practice the Noble Eightfold Path.

The Buddha expounded the Dharma in this way for the Prime Minister and his wife. The couple rejoiced exceedingly and awakened to the Dharma of the Four Noble Truths; there, in the Buddha’s presence, they attained the fruit of stream-entry. Having attained the fruit of the path, they regarded household life as a prison and sensual desire as a blazing fire. No longer attached to conjugal affection, they prostrated themselves before the Buddha and asked to become monastics. The Buddha accepted them. At once, their hair and beards fell away by themselves, and Dharma robes appeared upon their bodies. The husband became a bhiksu and the wife a bhiksuni, and both attended the Buddha as he returned to the monastery.

Upon returning to the monastery, the Buddha further taught them the thirty-seven factors conducive to awakening and the various Dharma teachings concerning meditative concentration and samadhi. Through contemplation, their minds opened to awakening, and they completely severed all desires. Both became arhats, endowed with the wondrous functions of the six superknowledges.

At that time, the bhiksus together praised the spiritual powers and wisdom of the Tathagata. They also extolled the two arhats as persons possessing exceptionally rare causes and conditions. The husband had enjoyed an exalted position, yet had renounced wealth, honor, official emoluments, and distinction; the wife was still in the prime of youth, yet had been able to abandon sensual pleasures. What the two had done was exceedingly difficult, and no one could equal them.

The Buddha told the assembly of bhiksus:

—In a past age, these two arhats also brought forth wholesome aspirations, and their wholesome resolve has remained the same down to the present day.

The Buddha continued:

—Immeasurable kalpas ago, in the distant past, King Brahmadatta of Varanasi had a prime minister named Vidhura. He was benevolent, intelligent, and widely learned; there was nothing he did not thoroughly understand. He constantly taught the people by means of the ten wholesome deeds. From the king down to the common people, everyone studied and practiced them, and the king held him in the highest esteem.

At that time, in the ocean there lived a naga king named Varuni. The naga king had a consort named Manasi, whom he cherished dearly. One day, the naga king was preparing to ascend to the palace of Sakra to attend a great assembly. He therefore entrusted his consort to five hundred palace maidens, instructing them to care for her and under no circumstances to disturb or offend her, lest her mind become unhappy.

After the naga king had departed, the consort sat quietly at home and reflected upon her deeds in past lives. She remembered that in a former life, when she had possessed a human body, she had violated the precepts at will, and consequently had now fallen into the naga realm. At once she became unhappy and sorrowfully wept, tears streaming down her face. Seeing that their lady was unhappy, the attending maidens asked her together:

—Why is our lady unhappy?

The consort replied:

—I recall my past life. When I was formerly a human being, I heedlessly violated the precepts, and therefore I must now bear the body of a naga and assume this ugly, wretched form. For this reason, I am unhappy.

The consort then asked the maidens:

—Do any of you know how I may escape the body of a naga and be reborn in the heavenly realm?

The maidens replied:

—With this naga body, filled with ugliness and evil, it is exceedingly difficult to seek rebirth in the heavenly realm. Even rebirth in a human body is unattainable, much less rebirth in heaven!

Among them, one maiden said:

—I once heard that King Brahmadatta of Jambudvipa has a prime minister who is exceedingly benevolent and unequaled in wisdom. There is no scripture he does not comprehend. He understands all the Dharmas governing birth among the five destinies, including humans and devas, and he teaches everyone through the five precepts and the ten wholesome deeds. We could go and ask him. Only then would we learn how to escape the naga body and what practices should be undertaken to attain rebirth in the heavenly realm.

When the naga king returned and saw that his consort’s countenance was unhappy, he immediately asked:

—Why is my queen unhappy?

The consort replied:

—I have heard that in the kingdom of Varanasi in Jambudvipa, King Brahmadatta has a prime minister named Vidhura. He is exceedingly benevolent and compassionate toward sentient beings, possesses unsurpassed wisdom, and thoroughly understands every kind of scripture without exception. I wish to obtain his heart to eat and his blood to drink. Only if he is captured will my sorrow be relieved.

The naga king replied:

—My beloved, do not be distressed. I shall fulfill your wish.

The naga king had an intimate yaksa friend named Purnaka. The naga king said to the yaksa:

—My consort suddenly heard that in the kingdom of Varanasi in Jambudvipa, the king has a prime minister named Vidhura, who is benevolent, foremost in wisdom, and thoroughly understands every kind of scripture without exception. My consort wishes to obtain his heart and blood to eat and drink. For the sake of our friendship, please capture him and bring him here.

Having spoken, the naga king took two luminous pearls and gave them to the yaksa. The yaksa agreed at once, put away the luminous pearls, and departed.

When the yaksa reached Jambudvipa, he transformed himself into a merchant. Carrying the two mani jewels, he entered the city of Varanasi. A traveler asked the merchant:

—Do you wish to sell the jewels you are carrying?

The merchant replied:

—I shall not sell them. I intend to wager them in a game of chance.

Upon hearing this, the man immediately entered the royal court and reported to the king:

—Outside there is a merchant carrying two precious jewels who wishes to test his skill in a game of chance.

When the king heard this, he was delighted, for he had always been overconfident in his gambling skill and believed that he was certain to win. The king ordered the merchant to be admitted, and the merchant entered the inner palace. The king asked him:

—What do you wish to wager in this game of chance?

The yaksa replied:

—If I win, Your Majesty shall hand the great minister Vidhura over to me. If the king wins, these two luminous pearls shall belong to the king.

The king immediately agreed. All the ministers attending at his left and right remonstrated with him, but because the king coveted gain and relied upon his gambling skill, he told them:

—I am certain to win. You need not try to dissuade me.

They then began the game. In the end, the yaksa won and obtained the great minister Vidhura. Thereupon, the yaksa seized Vidhura and flew straight up into the sky.

Having lost Vidhura, the king was overcome with sorrow. All the ministers addressed him, saying:

—If a king engages in these five activities, he will lose his throne and his kingdom:

1. Delighting excessively in gambling.

2. Taking pleasure in drinking intoxicants.

3. Indulging in women and becoming infatuated with music.

4. Taking pleasure in hunting.

5. Refusing to heed the remonstrations of loyal ministers.

If one follows these five activities, one will not retain the royal throne for long.

As for the yaksa, he carried Vidhura into the mountains and prepared to kill him. Vidhura asked the yaksa:

—Why do you wish to kill me?

The yaksa replied:

—The consort of the naga king heard that you are benevolent, intelligent, and foremost in wisdom. She wishes to obtain your blood and heart to eat and drink. That is why I must kill you.

Vidhura said:

—You are foolish and do not understand the consort’s intention. When she heard of my reputation and wished to obtain my blood, it meant that she wished to hear my Dharma teaching. When she wished to obtain my heart, it meant that she wished to acquire the wisdom within my mind. Come, let the two of us go together to meet the consort and see what she requires. I shall give her everything.

Vidhura then taught the Dharma to the yaksa:

—Those who commit evil exhibit five traits:

1. They act rashly, without careful thought or consideration.

2. After acting, they are often filled with deep remorse.

3. They harbor much anger and possess no loving-kindness.

4. Their evil reputation spreads far and wide, and everyone detests them and does not wish to see their faces.

5. After death, they fall into the three evil destinies.

—Those who perform wholesome deeds receive five benefits. What are these five?

1. Before undertaking any task, one must reflect carefully and establish a clear course of action, neither rushing nor acting hastily, so that there will be no regret afterward.

一. Be rich in loving-kindness and compassion, never harboring the intention to harm others.

一. One’s good reputation will spread everywhere.

一. One will be loved and respected by everyone, who will regard one as a parent or teacher.

一. 5. After death, one will be reborn in heaven, or among human beings, where one will enjoy every kind of peace and happiness.

Upon hearing this explanation, the yaksha’s mind was immediately awakened. He bowed with his head and face at Vidura’s feet and begged Vidura to accept his repentance. Vidura then taught the yaksha the ten wholesome dharmas that lead to rebirth in heaven. Having heard the Dharma, the yaksha rejoiced and gladly vowed to practice it.

The yaksha then brought Vidura to the Dragon Palace. When the queen saw Vidura, she was filled with joy. She bowed with her head and face to the ground, lowered her head, and took refuge in him. She then prepared a precious seat and offered him a hundred exquisite delicacies. At that time, Vidura taught the Dragon King and his queen the Dharma of cause and effect, calamity and blessing, throughout the five destinies:

-Keep the body from committing the three evils:

. With loving-kindness and compassion, cherish and pity sentient beings, and do nothing to harm them.

. Abandon greed and stinginess; perform righteous deeds and help one another, without giving rise to thoughts of stealing.

. Contemplate sexual indulgence as defiling; turn the mind away from sensual beauty, live a pure life, and abstain from sexual misconduct.

-Keep the mouth from committing the four evils:

. Always speak truthfully, without deceit.

. Always speak gentle words, without coarse or harsh speech.

. Do not speak words that provoke disputes or factions; instead, reconcile all conflicts.

. Speech must be sincere and should not be embellished for the sake of deception.

-Keep the mind from committing the three evils:

. Let the mind constantly abide in loving-kindness, compassion, patience, and forbearance, without giving rise to anger.

. When seeing others prosper and succeed, rejoice for them without jealousy.

. Single-mindedly revere the Three Jewels and the precepts; clearly understand wrongdoing and merit, without doubt.

Those who fully practice these ten wholesome deeds without transgressing them will immediately be reborn in heaven, dwelling in palaces made of the seven treasures, where everything they desire will arise naturally according to their wishes.

Those who fully observe the five practices—not killing, not stealing or robbing, not engaging in sexual misconduct, not lying, and completely abstaining from intoxicating drink—will be reborn among human beings, in a royal family or the household of a wealthy elder, possessing exalted status, riches, and immeasurable happiness.

Those who lack loving-kindness, kill sentient beings, seize the property of others, steal and act unlawfully, have illicit relations with another’s wife, indulge without restraint in sensual desire, speak falsely, engage in divisive speech, utter harsh and abusive words, become angry and jealous, fail to honor and obey their parents, disbelieve in the Three Jewels, and abandon the right to follow the wrong—whoever commits these evils will, after death, fall into hell. There they will be burned and beaten and subjected to myriad cruelties, undergoing sufferings too numerous to describe.

Those who do not repay their debts, fail to return what they have borrowed, disbelieve in cause and effect, act arrogantly and conceitedly, and slander the Three Jewels will, after death, fall into the animal realm as horses, camels, pigs, goats, dogs, lions, tigers, wolves, venomous snakes, scorpions, monitor lizards, and other birds and beasts. Their minds will be exceedingly vicious, and they will kill and harm one another, revolving endlessly in suffering with no time of release.

Those who are greedy, stingy, and jealous, who refuse to give, dare not even spend on their own food and clothing, and disbelieve in the Three Jewels, are consumed by the fire of stinginess. After death, they fall into the realm of hungry ghosts, their bodies haggard, their joints weakened and disintegrating, and their entire forms as though scorched by fire. For hundreds of thousands of myriads of years, without a moment’s respite, they suffer hunger and thirst day and night, never even hearing the names of food and drink.

By practicing only the ten wholesome deeds and always guarding body, speech, and mind, one will continually be reborn in heaven and enjoy immeasurable wondrous bliss.

At that time, the Dragon King, his queen, and all the dragons were so alarmed that the hairs on their bodies stood on end. They all joyfully accepted and upheld the ten wholesome deeds, guarded body, speech, and mind, and observed the Eight Precepts. Just then, a golden-winged garuda came intending to devour the dragons, but even after exerting all its supernatural power, it could not approach them. All the dragons rejoiced exceedingly at this unprecedented occurrence.

The Dragon King, his queen, all the dragons in the great ocean, and all the yakshas practiced the Dharma of the Ten Wholesome Deeds. Every one of them rejoiced and bowed their heads in homage to Vidura.

The Dragon King then asked Vidura:

-Great Master, do you wish to return to Jambudvipa?

Vidura replied:

-I wish to return.

The Dragon King then offered sandalwood incense, mani jewels, and other precious objects to the bodhisattva. The queen, her maidservants, all the dragons, and the yakshas likewise presented Vidura with rare and precious gems. Together they escorted him back as far as the kingdom of Varanasi, where they bowed their heads and joyfully took their leave.

The vicious minds of the dragons and yakshas dwelling in the great ocean were completely extinguished, and after death they were all reborn in heaven.

When King Brahmadatta, his ministers, and all the people saw Vidura return, they rejoiced exceedingly. Bowing with their heads and faces to the ground, they asked him what had happened. Vidura recounted the entire affair to the king from beginning to end. The great king and his subjects all rejoiced and praised this unprecedented occurrence. Vidura then hung the mani jewel atop a banner and prayed with utmost sincerity. Immediately, throughout Jambudvipa, the sky rained down the seven treasures, garments, blankets, food, drink, and other necessities. Countless citizens and ministers all became wealthy and lived in peace and happiness.

At that time, Shakra, king of the gods; the king of the human realm; the Dragon King of the great ocean; and the golden-winged Garuda King Kalu all renounced sensual pleasures and entered deep mountains and secluded marshlands. There they ate vegetarian food, practiced meditation, and restrained their bodies and minds. Each one declared that he had gained the greatest merit.

The king of the gods said:

-I have renounced the sensual pleasures of heaven and come here today to guard body, speech, and mind. I have gained great merit.

The king of the human realm said:

-I have renounced all the pleasures of the five desires within my palace and come here to restrain body, speech, and mind. I have gained great merit.

The Dragon King said:

-I have renounced all the sensual pleasures of the palace made of the seven treasures in the great ocean and come here to subdue body, speech, and mind. I have gained great merit.

The golden-winged Garuda King also said:

-This Dragon King is my food, yet I now observe the fast and guard body, speech, and mind. I no longer harbor any intention to harm, and I have even ceased eating flesh. I have gained great merit.

At that time, the four kings lamented that they could not determine which of them had gained the greatest

merit, so they discussed the matter together:

-We should go together and ask the Great Master Vidura.

The four kings immediately went to Vidura, bowed with their heads and faces to the ground, and each of them

said in unison:

-We beg the Great Master to examine which of us has gained the greatest merit.

The bodhisattva replied:

-Set up four banners: one blue, one

white, one yellow, and one red.

The four kings obeyed and immediately erected the four banners.

The bodhisattva then asked:

-Are the shadows of those four banners different from one another? Or are they all

of a single color?

The four kings replied in unison:

-The color of each banner is different, but their shadows are all

of one color, without distinction.

The bodhisattva said:

-You four kings have each renounced all your own sensual pleasures and have come here together to observe the precepts and guard body, speech, and mind. The merit of each of you is equal, without distinction, just as the four banners are different in color, while their shadows are all alike, without difference.

At that time, when the four kings heard the bodhisattva speak thus, their minds were completely opened and they rejoiced exceedingly. Śakra, Lord of the Devas, presented the bodhisattva with a celestial cotton robe as an offering. The king of the human realm offered the bodhisattva all kinds of precious jewels. The Dragon King of the great ocean took the precious mani jewel from his topknot and offered it to the bodhisattva. The golden-winged Garuda King offered the bodhisattva the cord that bound his hair.

At that time, the four kings rejoiced greatly, paid homage, expressed their gratitude, and departed. Thereafter, the people of Jambudvipa, together with the dragons and yakshas, constantly practiced the Ten Wholesome Deeds. Whenever any of them died, they were reborn in the heavens, and none fell into the three evil destinies.

The Buddha said to the bhikshus:

“The great teacher Vidūri of that time was I myself in a former life. The Dragon King Pāruṇi of that time is now the chief minister, and Lady Manasi of that time is now the chief minister’s wife. Formerly, when they were dragons, they followed me and listened to the Dharma.

Rejoicing, they retained it in their hearts, escaped their dragon bodies, and were reborn in the heavenly realm. Now that I have attained Buddhahood, they again followed me and listened to the Dharma. Their minds filled with joy and their understanding awakened, they immediately went forth into the monastic life.

Contemplating in accordance with wisdom, they severed all desires, and both attained arhatship. In the past, this was also due to their wholesome minds, and even to this day it is likewise due to wholesome minds.”

When the bhikshus heard the Buddha’s words, they all rejoiced and reverently bowed at the feet of the Blessed One.