48.6 （六）

Thus have I heard:

At one time, the Buddha was at the Karanda Bamboo Grove in the city of Rajagriha, together with a great assembly of five hundred bhikshus.

At that time, Venerable Sariputra was mending his old robe in a secluded place on Vulture Peak Mountain. At that time, ten thousand Brahma-like gods from the Brahma Heaven descended and came to where Sariputra was. They bowed their heads at his feet, each circumambulating and attending him, and also praised him with this verse:

We take refuge in the supreme among humans, we take refuge in the
most honored among humans. Now we cannot rely on any kind of meditation.

At that time, after the ten thousand Brahma-like gods had spoken these words, Sariputra silently consented. Then the gods, seeing that Sariputra had silently consented, bowed at his feet and departed. Not long after the gods had left, Sariputra immediately entered the Diamond Samadhi.

At that time, there were two ghosts, one named Garala and the other Uppaka. They were sent by the King of the North to the King of the East to discuss matters concerning humans and gods. As the two ghosts passed through the sky, they saw Sariputra sitting cross-legged, with his mind focused in front, peacefully and still. The ghost Garala said to the other ghost, "I can now punch this śramaṇa on the head with my fist."

The ghost Uppaka said to the second ghost, "Do not have this intention to punch the śramaṇa on the head. Because this śramaṇa has great spiritual power and great authority. This Venerable One is named Sariputra, the most intelligent and talented among the Buddha's disciples. He is the foremost among the disciples of wisdom. He has endured immeasurable suffering for a long time."

The ghost repeated three times, "I can endure punching this śramaṇa on the head."

The ghost Uppaka said, "If you do not follow my words now, you can stay here. I want to leave you and go."

The evil ghost said, "Are you afraid of this śramaṇa?"

The ghost Uppaka said, "I am indeed afraid of him. If you hit this śramaṇa with your hand, the ground will split into two parts. Then there will be violent wind and rain, and the ground will also shake. The gods will be alarmed, and the ground will shake. The Four Heavenly Kings will also be frightened. The Four Heavenly Kings already know about us and are not at ease."

At that time, the evil ghost said, "I can now endure insulting this śramaṇa." The good ghost, having heard this, then left.

At that time, the evil ghost immediately struck Śāriputra's head with his hand. Then the earth shook violently, and violent winds and rain came from all four directions. The ground immediately split into two parts, and the evil ghost fell into hell with his whole body. At that time, Venerable Śāriputra arose from samādhi, adjusted his robes, descended from Vulture Peak, went to the Bamboo Grove, approached the World-Honored One, bowed his head at the Buddha's feet, and sat to one side.

At that time, the Buddha said to Śāriputra, "Are you now free from illness in your body?"

Śāriputra said, "My body is generally free from illness, but I am suffering from a headache."

The World-Honored One said, "The ghost named Garala struck your head with his hand. If that ghost were to strike Mount Sumeru with his hand, Mount Sumeru would immediately split into two parts. The reason is that that ghost has great power. Now this ghost is experiencing the retribution for his sins, and his entire body has entered the Avīci Hell."

At that time, the World-Honored One told the bhikṣus, "It is truly amazing! The power of the vajra samādhi is indeed like this. Because of the power of this samādhi, there is no harm. Even if Mount Sumeru were to strike its head, it would not be able to move a single hair. The reason is this. Listen, bhikṣus! In this Bhadrakalpa, there was a Buddha named Krakucchanda Tathāgata, Arhat, Perfectly Enlightened One. That Buddha had two great śrāvakas, one named Samantabhadra and the other named Mahāprajñā. Bhikṣu Samantabhadra was foremost in supernatural powers, and bhikṣu Mahāprajñā was foremost in wisdom, just as Śāriputra is foremost in wisdom and Maudgalyāyana is foremost in supernatural powers in my present time. At that time, the two bhikṣus Samantabhadra and Mahāprajñā both attained the vajra samādhi. Once, bhikṣu Samantabhadra was in a secluded place, entering the vajra samādhi. At that time, cowherds, shepherds, and firewood gatherers saw this bhikṣu sitting in meditation and each said to each other, 'This śramaṇa has attained the state of impermanence today.' Then the cowherds and firewood gatherers collected various grasses and wood, piled them on top of the bhikṣu, set them on fire, and left.

At that time, bhikṣu Samantabhadra arose from samādhi, adjusted his robes, and left. At that time, the bhikṣu put on his robes, took his alms bowl, and entered the village to beg for food. At that time, the firewood gatherers saw this bhikṣu begging for food in the village and each said to each other, 'This bhikṣu died yesterday and we burned him with fire. Today he has come back to life. We should give him a name, and call him "Resurrected"." If a bhikṣu attains the vajra samādhi, fire cannot burn him, a sword cannot penetrate him, water cannot float him away, and he cannot be harmed by others. Thus, bhikṣus! The vajra samādhi has such majestic virtue. Now Śāriputra has attained this samādhi. Śāriputra bhikṣu often dwells in two places: the empty samādhi and the vajra samādhi. Therefore, bhikṣus! You should seek skillful means to practice the vajra samādhi. Thus, bhikṣus! You should train in this way."

At that time, the World-Honored One told the bhikṣus, "I will teach you about bhikṣu Śāriputra's wisdom, great wisdom, discerning wisdom, boundless wisdom, swift wisdom, all-pervading wisdom, sharp wisdom, profound wisdom, liberating wisdom, contentment with few desires, solitude, diligence, mindfulness without distraction, accomplished precepts, accomplished samādhi, accomplished wisdom, liberated view, accomplished liberation, gentleness, non-contentiousness, elimination of evil, clear eloquence, tolerance of all words, praise of leaving evil, always mindful of leaving, compassion for the arising of life, blazing the true Dharma, and teaching others the Dharma without weariness."

At that time, the World-Honored One spoke this verse:

Ten thousand heavenly beings, all of them Brahmakāyika, take refuge in
Śāriputra on Vulture Peak Mountain, saying: 'We take refuge in the
supreme among humans, we take refuge in the most honored among
humans. We do not know now on what meditation to rely.'
Thus, the disciples adorn the Bodhi tree of the Buddha like
the Nandana Garden of the heavens, with incomparable happiness and joy.

"The disciples' flowers refer to Śāriputra the bhikṣu. The reason is that this person can adorn the Bodhi tree. The Bodhi tree refers to the Tathāgata, who can provide shelter for all sentient beings. Therefore, bhikṣus! You should be mindful and diligently apply your courage and vigor, just like Śāriputra the bhikṣu. Thus, bhikṣus! You should train in this way."

At that time, the bhikṣus heard what the Buddha said and joyfully upheld it.