六大國品第三
Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3
Chapter 3: The Six Mahādeśas
[0175c14] 是剡浮樹外有二林。形如半月。圍繞此樹。其內有林。名呵梨勒。外名阿摩勒。阿摩勒菓。是子熟時。其味最美。不辛不苦如細蜂蜜。菓形大小。如二斛器。其核如自性阿摩勒核。呵梨勒菓。是子熟時。其味最美。不辛不苦。如細蜂蜜。菓形大小。兩倍於前。核亦如是。阿摩勒林南。復有七林。七河相間。其最北林。名曰菴羅。次名剡浮。三名娑羅。四名多羅。五名人林。六名石榴林。七名劫畢他林。如是諸菓。其子熟時。不辛不苦。甜如蜂蜜。
Outside this Jambu Tree are two forests which have the shape of half-moons and which encircle the Tree. The innermost forest is called Harītakī, while the outermost is called Āmalakī.
When the Āmalakī’s fruits ripen, their flavour is supremely delightful, is neither astringent nor bitter, and is like fine honey. Its shape is similar to a vessel which holds two-khāris in volume, while the pits are like the usual pits of āmalaka fruits.
When the Harītakī’s fruits ripen, their flavour is supremely delightful, is neither astringent nor bitter, and is like fine honey. The size is more or less the same as the two before, and the pits are likewise.
South of the Āmalakī Forest are another seven forests, with seven rivers between them.
The northern-most forest is called Āmra;
The next is called Jambu;
The third is called Śāla;
The fourth is called Tāla;
The fifth is called Naravana;
The sixth is called Dāḍimavana;
The seventh is called Kapitthavana.
When their fruits ripen, their flavour is supremely delightful, is neither astringent nor bitter, and is like fine honey.
是人林中菓形似人。如剡浮提勝人王種。其姓拘梨。若男十六歲。女十五歲。莊嚴具足。狀如行嫁。是人林菓可愛如是。其子蔕形。如人頭髻。未離欲者。見此菓子。便生愛心。諸外道等有離欲人。若見此菓。退失禪定。欲心還生。其子熟時。唯鳥競食。鳥食之餘。殘落在地。如尸陀林。甚可厭惡。諸退定者。見是相已。深生厭離。還得本定。是二林廣五十由旬。東西達海。
Within the Naravana Forest, there are fruits shaped like human-beings who resemble the most royal clan of people in Jambudvīpa, the Koliya Lineage. They all appear like boys of sixteen years of age and girls of fifteen years of age, adorned as if waiting for marriage. These fruits are agreeable in this way. Their stalks also resemble human hair tied up in a topknot.
For beings who have not yet renounced lust, seeing these fruits gives rise to attachment. Even for externalists who are people freed from desire, were they to see these fruits, they would retrogress from their samāpatti, and a mind of lust will re-arise.
When these fruits ripen, only birds compete to eat them. Whatever is leftover of what the birds had eaten, the remains therein fall to the ground. The place there resembles a Śītavana and is extremely distasteful. Those who had retrogressed from their samāpatti, having then seen these sights, develops a mind of distaste and once again regains their original samādhi.
These two forests are fifty yojanas in width. And from east to west, they extend all the way to the ocean.
其一一河。廣五十由旬。東西達海。林河相次。互相間錯剡浮提地。林河所覆。七百由旬。
Each and every river is fifty yojanas in width, and from east to west they extend all the way to the ocean. With forests and rivers interspersed and alternating with one-another upon the ground of Jambudvīpa. The extent of these forests and rivers measures seven-hundred yojanas.
其劫畢他林南有六大國。其最南國名曰高流。次名俱臘婆。三名毘提訶。四名摩訶毘提訶。五名欝多羅曼陀。極北名捨喜摩羅耶。
South of the Kapitthavana Forest are the Six Mahādeśas:
The southern-most kingdom is called Kuru;
The next is called Gurava;
The third is called Videha;
The fourth is called Mahāvideha;
The fifth is called Uttaramandā;
And the northern-most is called Śaśimāraya.
是六國內。人皆貞善。持十善法。自不殺生。不教他殺。其獸將死。自至人所。既自死已。乃噉其肉。是處犛牛。其數最多。以其髦尾用覆屋舍。其地生麥。不須耕墾。是麥成粒。無有糠糩。是其國人磨蒸為飯。而是麥飯氣味甘美。如細蜂蜜。
Within these Six Mahādeśas, the people are all upright and good, they uphold the Ten Kuśaladharmas, abstain themselves from killing, and do not teach others to kill.
When an animal is about to die there, they approach those people by themselves. And having then died, the people then eat the flesh.
Within that land there are many yaks who are the most abundant animal there, and their cāmara tail-hairs are used to cover houses.
The land produces barley without the need of cultivation or ploughing, and the barely grows into grain that is without husk or chaff. The people there in that land then grind and steam into food. The barley-meal is still yet sweet and delightful in fragrance and flavour, and is like fine honey.
云何知耶。過去久遠有王出家。其王夫人亦得 出家。國師婆羅門亦隨出家。既出家已。各相捨離。入山學道。是王夫人有時月水。月水淨時。往至王所。與王相見。即白王言。大王我 今有月水。古昔之人尊重兒息。王欲棄捨不從妃意。思惟事重。復恐不可。遂共和合。乃有大福德子。男女二人俱時託胎。捨王而去。
How did this become known?
In the distant past there was a king who had renounced the household-life, his queen had also renounced the household-life, and his brahmin minister had also renounced the household-life.
Having left the household, they withdrew from one another, and entered into the mountains to train in the Brahmacarya.
At one time the queen had her monthly menstruation, and when she had cleansed her monthly menstruation, she then went to visit the dwelling of the former king.
Having then approached the king she turned to him and said:
“O Mahārāja! I am having my monthly menstruation.”
In ancient times people highly valued having offspring. The king wishing not want to abandon or reject the queen’s intentions, considered the matter deeply, feared it to be improper, but ultimately united with her. And in this way children of great merit, two babies, a boy and a girl, took conception in her womb, and after some time the king withdrew.
既經時節。其後腹大。從諸村落。次到郡縣。乃至諸州。人人訶罵云。此女人都無道心。出家破戒。妃聞是語。深生愧悔。是時國師大婆 羅門已成仙人。得五神通。隨一山林。依止而住。爾時王妃聞婆羅門在彼山住。仍往尋覓。 既見師已。乃問妃言。是娠誰作。妃即答言。 是王所為。爾時仙人憶王昔恩。仍於別處。為起葉屋。即語王妃。汝止是中。我今當採樹根 菓子以相供贍。太妃依語。仍住其中。於是仙人。如法採拾樹根菓子。供給是妃。妃懷孕月滿。遂產二子。一男一女至斷乳已。驅斥是 妃。汝今遠去。我當隨得根菓養飴二兒。妃棄二子。依語而去。仙人隨得根菓。養育此兒。
After some time had passed, and after her belly grew large, she travelled through various villages, various districts, and up to and including various provinces.
People everywhere scolded her, saying:
“This woman entirely lacks the Mind of One on the Path. She has transgressed her renunciant precepts!”
The queen having heard what they had said gave rise to deep feelings of guilt and shame.
Therein, the great brahmin minister had already become a ṛṣi, and had attained the Five Abhijñās. He withdrew to a mountain’s forests, and therein dwelt.
At that time, the queen had heard that the brahmin was dwelling in that mountain, and went to seek after him.
After having met with him, he asked her:
“Who helped conceive of these babies?”
The queen then replied to him:
“It was a deed of the king’s.”
Then, the brahmin remembering the past kindness of the king, therein selected a place to erect a a leaf-hut.
He then said to the queen:
“Stay here. I will now go in search of the roots of trees and their fruits to help support you.”
The queen then consented to what he had said and stayed there, and the ṛṣi then, in line with the Dharma, gathered the roots of trees and their fruits as offerings for the queen. And when the queen’s pregnancy had reached its full term, she gave birth to two babies. And as the boy and the girl had finished weaning, the queen then left:
“You may now depart, I shall now support the two children with tree roots and fruits.”
The queen then left the two babies, and having consented to what he said, she then departed. And the ṛṣi then gathered roots and fruits, and raised the two babies.
兩兒稍大。已至識地。是時仙人以生熟雜菓。 試與二兒。於是二兒自能分別。熟者即噉。生者便棄。仙人作是思惟。是兒身已長大。心至識地。能分別菓生熟差別。我令當住何處國土。豐樂安隱以置立之。以五通故。見是麥地。即以神力携二小兒。飛空而往。安置是地。教是兒言。此草名麥。爾時仙人即自刈取。磨以為食。種種教示。汝等從今當依此法以為資糧。汝住此中。莫生愁惱。我當數數來看視汝。是兩小兒乃住其中。仙人後時數往瞻視。是二小兒隨年月長。男女二根各皆成就。遂為夫妻。子孫生長。分成六國。爾時大王既學道已。捨於人身。往生天上。
The then two children grew older, and reached the stage of maturity. Therein the ṛṣi wished to test the two children and so gave them a mixture of raw and ripe roots. The children were then able to discern them, such that they would eat the ripened ones and would throw away the raw ones.
The ṛṣi then produced this thought:
“These children have now grown larger, and their minds have reached maturity. They are now able to discern fruits, distinguishing the raw ones from the ripe. Where now could I establish them, such that the land is abundant and peaceful?”
Using his Five Abhijñās he saw a fertile land of barley. Therein, using his ṛddhibala, he carried the two children through the air and then placed them down within that peaceful land.
There he taught the children, saying:
“This grass is called barley.”
At that time, the ṛṣi cut one of the plants and picked it up. He then grounded it up for them to eat.
For each and every plant he instructed them:
“You two should now on support yourselves by preparing these provisions. You may now dwell here where there is no strife. I shall now come to visit you time to time.”
And in this way the two children dwelt there.
The ṛṣi would thus repeatedly visit them to check up on them. And over the long months and years, the two children grew up, and each fully developed one of the two strīpuruṣendriyas. They then became husband and wife, and their descendants thus multiplied, forming the Six Mahādeśas.
At that time the Mahārāja had already been on the Path of Training, and having left behind the human body, he then dwelt within the heavenly-svargas above.
捨上天身。還受人身。受人身已。依佛所說無上正法。出家學道。至得無礙六種神通。以六通故。觀自宿命。見六大國。作是思惟。是六大國皆我子孫。為怜愍是六國人故。往彼乞食。得麥飯還。不問諸比丘前食。而獨自食時。諸比丘稱此比丘名。而大罵辱。汝長老。大慳嫉妬。咄汝惡人 得是麥飯。不問諸比丘。而獨自食。
Having left behind that deva body, he once again received a human body, and having received a human body, he took refuge in the Buddha, followed the Anuttarā Saddharma, left the household-life, and attained the unobstructed Sixfold Abhijñās.
Using these Six Abhijñās, he investigated his past lives and saw the Six Mahādeśas.
He thought to himself:
“These Six Mahādeśas are my descendants.”
And out of karuṇā for the peoples of these Six Mahādeśas, he went to receive alms in those lands. Having received barley from there he returned but did not inform the other bhikṣus of where he had received this food. But when he began to eat it alone, the other bhikṣus called him out by name and scolded him, saying:
“You, O Āyuṣmat, are stingy and jealous! Lo! You are an evil man who obtains food but does not share and instead eats it by himself!”
比丘答言。我今不為嫉妬。而不布施汝等。何以故。如是飲食。未離欲人則不得食。時是比丘三過洗鉢。再過棄之。以最後汁。取其少分。施諸比丘。是剡浮提無有一味等此味者。於是比丘為諸比丘說此食味次第因緣。彼六大國本我子孫。是故利益彼國人故。往彼乞食。有餘比丘往彼乞食。大目揵連亦往乞食。佛世尊為諸比丘說是六國次第因緣。是故得知六大國事。六大國品究竟。
The bhikṣu the relied to them, saying:
“I am not acting out of jealousy nor am I refusing to share these with you. Wherefore? Because such a food as this is something that should not be consumed by those not free from desire.”
Then he poured water into his bowl three times, discarded the water twice, and gave the last portion of water to offer to the bhikṣus:
“Within this Jambudvīpa there is no flavour equal to that of this barley meal.”
Therein the bhikṣu explained to the other bhikṣus the sequence of these various causes and conditions of this food and flavour:
“Those Six Mahādeśas are my descendants, and therefore, out of benefit for those beings, I went there to beg for alms.”
Mahāmaudgalyāyana and the other bhikṣus also went there to beg for alms.
The Buddha then explained to the various bhikṣus of the sequence of causes and conditions of these Six Mahādeśas. And thus was how the matter of the Six Mahādeśas came to be known.
Thus ends the Six Mahādeśas Chapter.
Saddharmatā 