5 （五）初小缘经

Thus have I heard:

At one time, the Buddha was at the Deer Mother's Lecture Hall in the Pure Faith Garden in the country of Shravasti, together with a great assembly of 1,250 bhikṣus.

At that time, there were two brahmins who went to where the Buddha was with firm faith, left home to practice the path, one named Vashita and the other Varadatta. At that time, the World-Honored One came out of the quiet room and was walking back and forth on the lecture hall. Vashita saw the Buddha walking back and forth, and immediately quickly went to Varadatta and said, "Do you know? The Tathāgata has now come out of the quiet room and is walking back and forth on the hall. We should go together to where the World-Honored One is. Perhaps we will hear the Tathāgata speak." Varadatta, having heard his words, immediately went together to where the World-Honored One was, bowed his head at his feet, and followed the Buddha in walking back and forth.

At that time, the World-Honored One said to Vashita, "You two have left the brahmin caste and practiced the path in my Dharma out of firm faith, is that correct?"

He replied, "Yes!"

The Buddha said, "Brahmin! Now that you have left home to practice the path in my Dharma, do the brahmins not reproach you?"

He replied, "Yes! I have received the great kindness of the Buddha in leaving home to cultivate the path. Indeed, I am seen as objectionable by those brahmins."

The Buddha said, "What things do they find objectionable about you?"

He then said to the Buddha, "They say, 'Our brahmin caste is the most supreme, the others are inferior. Our caste is pure, the others are dark. Our brahmin caste is born from Brahma, born from Brahma's mouth, and in this present life attains pure understanding, and in the future is also pure. Why do you abandon your pure caste and enter that different Dharma of Gautama?' World Honored One! They see me leaving home to cultivate the path in the Buddha's Dharma and rebuke me with such words."

The Buddha said to Vasistha, "You see, these people are ignorant and foolish, like animals. They falsely claim, 'The brahmin caste is the most supreme, the others are inferior. Our caste is pure, the others are dark. Our brahmin caste is born from Brahma, born from Brahma's mouth, and in this present life attains purity, and in the future is also pure.' Vasistha! In my unsurpassed true path, I do not need caste, I do not rely on the arrogant mind of 'I'. The worldly Dharma needs this, but my Dharma is not like that. If there are śramaṇas or brahmins who rely on their caste and have an arrogant mind, they will never attain the unsurpassed realization in my Dharma. If they can abandon their caste and remove their arrogant mind, they will be able to attain the realization of the Way in my Dharma and be worthy of receiving the true Dharma. The evil and inferior people, my Dharma is not like that."

The Buddha said to Vasistha, "There are four castes, in which good and evil dwell. The wise praise them, and the wise blame them. What are the four? First, the kṣatriya caste, second, the brahmin caste, third, the householder caste, and fourth, the śūdra caste. Vasistha! Listen, among the kṣatriya caste there are those who kill, steal, engage in sexual misconduct, lie, slander, speak harshly, engage in idle talk, are stingy, jealous, and have wrong views; the brahmin caste, householder caste, and śūdra caste are also like this, mixed with the ten unwholesome actions. Vasistha! Unwholesome actions have unwholesome results, and dark actions have dark results. If these results were only in the kṣatriya, householder, and śūdra castes, and not in the brahmin caste, then the brahmin caste would be able to say, 'Our brahmin caste is the most supreme, the others are inferior. Our caste is pure, the others are dark. Our brahmin caste is born from Brahma, born from Brahma's mouth, and in this present life attains purity, and in the future is also pure.' If unwholesome actions have unwholesome results, and dark actions have dark results, and they must be in the brahmin, kṣatriya, householder, and śūdra castes, then the brahmins cannot claim alone, 'Our caste is pure and most supreme.'

"Vasistha! If among the kṣatriya caste there are those who do not kill, do not steal, do not engage in sexual misconduct, do not lie, do not slander, do not speak harshly, do not engage in idle talk, are not stingy, jealous, or have wrong views; the brahmin caste, householder caste, and śūdra caste are also like this, practicing the ten wholesome actions together. The practice of wholesome dharmas must have wholesome results, and the practice of pure dharmas must have pure results. If these results were only in the brahmin caste, and not in the kṣatriya, householder, and śūdra castes, then the brahmin caste would be able to say, 'Our caste is pure and most supreme.' If the four castes all have these results, then the brahmins cannot claim alone, 'Our caste is pure and most supreme.'"

The Buddha said to Vasistha, "Now we can see that the brahmin caste marries and gives birth, no different from the world, yet they falsely claim, 'We are of Brahma's caste, born from Brahma's mouth, attaining purity in this life, and also in the future.' Vasistha! You should know that now my disciples, of different castes and origins, have left home to practice the path in my Dharma. If someone asks, 'What is your caste?' you should answer, 'I am a śramaṇa of the Śākya caste.' You can also claim, 'I am of the brahmin caste, born from the mouth, born from the Dharma, attaining purity in this life, and also in the future.' Why is this? The name of Mahābrahmā is the title of the Tathāgata. The Tathāgata is the eye of the world, the Dharma is the wisdom of the world, the Dharma of the world, the Brahma of the world, the Dharma wheel of the world, the ambrosia of the world, the lord of the Dharma of the world.

"Vasistha! If among the kṣatriya caste there are those who have faith in the Buddha, the Tathāgata, the Arhat, the Perfectly Enlightened One, endowed with the ten titles, who have faith in the Dharma, who have faith in the Tathāgata's Dharma, which is subtle and pure, can be practiced in the present, is taught without time, shows the essential path to nirvāṇa, is known by the wise, and is not within the reach of ordinary fools; who have faith in the Saṃgha, whose nature is good and straightforward, who have accomplished the fruits of the path, who have accomplished the retinue, who are true disciples of the Buddha, who have accomplished the Dharma and the Dharma-accomplishments; namely, the Saṃgha, which has accomplished the Saṃgha of precepts, the Saṃgha of concentration, the Saṃgha of wisdom, the Saṃgha of liberation, and the Saṃgha of liberation and insight. Those who are heading towards the stream-enterer, who have attained the stream-enterer; those who are heading towards the once-returner, who have attained the once-returner; those who are heading towards the non-returner, who have attained the non-returner; those who are heading towards the arhat, who have attained the arhat; the four pairs and eight individuals - these are the Saṃgha of the Tathāgata's disciples, who are worthy of respect and veneration, who are the field of merit for the world, who should receive offerings from others; who have faith in the precepts, who are fully endowed with the holy precepts, without any gaps or flaws, without any stains, praised by the wise, fully endowed with peace and tranquility. Vasistha! The brahmin caste, householder caste, and śūdra caste should also have such faith in the Buddha, faith in the Dharma, and faith in the Saṃgha, and be fully endowed with the holy precepts. Vasistha! There are also among the kṣatriya caste those who make offerings to arhats, who pay respect and make obeisance to them; the brahmins, householders, and śūdras also all make offerings to arhats, and pay respect and make obeisance to them."

The Buddha said to Vasistha, "Now my relatives, the Śākya clan, also serve and pay respect to King Prasenajit, and King Prasenajit also comes to make offerings and pay respect to me. They do not think, 'The śramaṇa Gautama comes from a noble clan, while our clan is lowly; the śramaṇa Gautama comes from a family of great wealth and great prestige, while we are born into a humble, poor, and lowly family. Therefore, we make offerings and pay respect to the Tathāgata.' King Prasenajit observes the Dharma and discerns the true and false. Therefore, he gives rise to pure faith and pays respect to the Tathāgata.

Vasistha! Now I will tell you the origin of the four castes. When the world was first formed, at the end of a kalpa, when it was destroyed, all living beings ended their lives and were reborn in the Ābhāsvara Heaven, born spontaneously, subsisting on thought, self-illuminated by their own light, flying through the air with supernatural powers. At that time, this earth completely turned into water, covering everywhere. At that time, there were no sun, moon, stars, or day and night, no months or years. There was only great darkness. Later, this water turned into solid ground, and the Ābhāsvara gods, whose merits and life spans were exhausted, were reborn here. Although reborn here, they still subsisted on thought, flew through the air with supernatural powers, and were self-illuminated. After dwelling here for a long time, they each called out, 'Beings! Beings!' Later, sweet springs gushed forth, resembling butter and honey. The gods who were born here first, being of a light and easy nature, saw these springs and thought to themselves, 'What is this? Let us try it.' They dipped their fingers into the springs and tasted them, doing so again and again, finding them increasingly delicious. They then scooped up the water with their hands and ate to their fill. Enjoying it so much, they became insatiable. The other beings followed suit and ate it, doing so again and again, also finding it increasingly delicious. As they ate it endlessly, their bodies became coarser, their flesh and muscles hardened, they lost their heavenly beauty, and they no longer had supernatural powers. They walked on the ground, and their bodies lost their light, and the world became dark.

Vasistha! You should know that it is the constant law of heaven and earth that after great darkness, the sun, moon, and stars will appear in the sky, and then there will be day and night, the waxing and waning of the moon, and the passage of years. At that time, beings only ate the earth's essence. Living in the world for a long time, those who ate a lot had coarse and ugly complexions, while those who ate little still had pleasant and lustrous complexions. This is where beauty and ugliness first arose. The beautiful ones gave rise to arrogant minds, despising the ugly ones. The ugly ones gave rise to jealous and evil minds, hating the beautiful ones. The beings then quarreled with each other. At that time, the sweet springs naturally dried up. Later, natural earth fat grew on this ground, with color, taste, and fragrance, edible and fragrant. At that time, beings again took it to eat, living in the world for a long time. Those who ate a lot had coarse and ugly complexions, while those who ate little still had pleasant and lustrous complexions. The beautiful ones gave rise to arrogant minds, despising the ugly ones. The ugly ones gave rise to jealous and evil minds, hating the beautiful ones. The beings then quarreled with each other. At that time, the earth fat no longer grew.

Later, coarse and thick earth fat grew on this ground, also fragrant and delicious, but not as good as before. At that time, beings again took it to eat, living in the world for a long time. Those who ate a lot had increasingly coarse and ugly complexions, while those who ate little still had pleasant and lustrous complexions. The beautiful and ugly ones argued with each other, and the earth fat then no longer grew. Later, natural glutinous rice grew on this ground, without husks, with color, taste, and fragrance, edible and fragrant. At that time, beings again took it to eat, living in the world for a long time. Then men and women looked at each other, gradually giving rise to desire, and they became intimate with each other. The other beings saw this and said, 'What you are doing is wrong! What you are doing is wrong!' They then expelled them outside of human society. After three months, they returned.

The Buddha told Vasistha, "What was considered wrong in the past is now considered right. At that time, those beings were accustomed to unrighteousness, indulging their desires without restraint. Out of shame, they began to build houses. This is where houses first appeared in the world. Indulging in unrighteousness, their sexual desires increased, and they began to have children through the womb, born from impurity. This is where the womb first appeared in the world. At that time, those beings ate natural glutinous rice, which grew whenever they took it, never running out. At that time, there were lazy beings who silently thought to themselves, 'I take it in the morning for breakfast and in the evening for dinner. It is too much work. Now I want to take it all at once to last for a day.' They then took it all at once. Later, their companions called them to take rice together, but that person replied, 'I have already taken it all at once to last for a day. If you want to take it, you can do so as you please.' That person then thought to themselves, 'This person is wise. They can store it in advance. Now I also want to store it to last for three days.' That person then stored enough rice for three days. Other beings came and said, 'Let's take some rice together.' The person replied, 'I have already stored enough rice for three days in advance. If you want to take it, you can go and take it yourself.' That person then thought, 'This person is wise. They can store rice in advance to last for three days. I will emulate them and store enough rice to last for five days.' They then went to take it.

At that time, those beings competed to store it, and the glutinous rice became coarse and produced husks. When harvested, it did not grow again. At that time, those beings saw this and became unhappy, and they became confused. They each thought to themselves, 'When I was first born, I ate thoughts, had divine feet, flew through the air, and my body was self-illuminating. I lived in the world for a long time. Later, a sweet spring gushed forth from this ground, resembling ghee and honey, fragrant and delicious. We all ate it together at that time. As we ate it for a long time, those who ate a lot had coarse and ugly complexions, while those who ate little still had pleasant and lustrous complexions. Because of this food, our complexions became different. Beings then had different opinions about each other and hated each other. At that time, the sweet spring naturally dried up. Later, natural earth fat grew on this ground, with color, taste, and fragrance, edible and fragrant. At that time, we again took it to eat, living in the world for a long time. Those who ate a lot had coarse and ugly complexions, while those who ate little still had pleasant and lustrous complexions. Beings then again had different opinions about each other and hated each other. At that time, the earth fat then no longer grew. Later, coarse and thick earth fat grew again, also fragrant and delicious, edible. At that time, we again took it to eat. Those who ate a lot had coarse complexions, while those who ate little had pleasant complexions. Again, different opinions arose, and we hated each other. At that time, the earth fat then no longer appeared. Then natural glutinous rice grew again, without husks. At that time, we again took it to eat, living in the world for a long time. The lazy ones competed to store it. Because of this, the glutinous rice became coarse and produced husks. When harvested, it did not grow again. Now what should we do?' They then said to each other, 'We should divide the land and set up boundaries.' They then divided the land and set up boundaries.

Vasistha! It is because of this cause and condition that the name of farmland first appeared. At that time, those beings divided the farmland and set up boundaries. Gradually, they gave rise to the mind of stealing and stole others' crops. The other beings saw this and said, 'What you have done is wrong! What you have done is wrong! You have your own farmland, yet you take others' things. From now on, do not do this again!' Those beings still did not stop stealing. The other beings reprimanded them again, but they still did not stop. They then struck them with their hands and told the people, 'This person has their own farmland and crops, yet they steal others' things.' That person then said, 'This person hit me.' At that time, those people saw the two disputing and became worried and unhappy. They lamented, 'Beings are becoming more and more evil. The world now has this unwholesomeness, giving rise to impurity and filth. This is the source of birth, old age, sickness, and death. The suffering of afflictions and retribution leads to falling into the three evil paths. It is because of farmland that this dispute arises. Now, should we appoint one person as the ruler to govern it? Protect those who should be protected, reprimand those who should be reprimanded. Let the people reduce their rice and provide for him to handle disputes.'

At that time, among the people, they themselves selected one person with a tall and handsome body, dignified appearance, and majestic virtue, and said to him, 'You should now be our impartial ruler. Protect those who should be protected, reprimand those who should be reprimanded, and banish those who should be banished. We will all gather rice to provide for you.' At that time, that person heard the people's words and immediately became the ruler, adjudicating disputes. The people then all gathered rice to provide for him. At that time, that person further comforted the people with kind words. The people, upon hearing it, were all greatly delighted and all exclaimed, 'Excellent! Great King! Excellent! Great King!' Thus, the world then had the name of king. Because he ruled the people with the right Dharma, he was called a kṣatriya. Thus, the world first had the name of kṣatriya.

At that time, among the people, there was one person who had this thought: 'The household is a great affliction, the household is a poisonous thorn. I should now abandon this household and live alone in the mountains and forests, practicing the path in tranquility.' He then abandoned his household and entered the mountains and forests, contemplating in silence. At mealtime, he entered the village with his alms bowl to beg for food. The people, upon seeing him, all joyfully made offerings and praised him, saying, 'Excellent! This person is able to abandon the household and live alone in the mountains and forests, contemplating in silence and practicing the path, abandoning various evils.' Thus, the world first had the name of brāhmaṇa. Among those brāhmaṇas, there were some who did not enjoy sitting in meditation and contemplation in solitude. They then entered the human realm and made reciting and studying their profession. They also called themselves 'non-meditators.' Thus, the worldly people called them 'non-meditating brāhmaṇas.' Because they entered the human realm, they were called 'human brāhmaṇas.' Thus, the world had the brāhmaṇa caste. Among those beings, there were some who enjoyed managing household affairs and accumulating wealth and treasures. Because of this, the people called them 'householders.' Among those beings, there were some who were skillful and accomplished many things. Thus, the world first had the name of śūdra craftsmen.

Vāseṭṭha, now in this world there are four kinds of names, and the fifth is the name of the assembly of śramaṇas. Why is this so? Vāseṭṭha, among the kṣatriya class, sometimes there are people who are disgusted with their own Dharma, shave their beards and hair, and don the Dharma robes. Thus, the name of śramaṇa first arises. Among the brāhmaṇa, householder, and śūdra classes, sometimes there are people who are disgusted with their own Dharma, shave their beards and hair, and practice the path in Dharma robes, called śramaṇas. Vāseṭṭha, among the kṣatriya class, those who engage in unwholesome bodily, verbal, and mental actions will definitely experience suffering upon the disintegration of the body and the end of life. Among the brāhmaṇa, householder, and śūdra classes, those who engage in unwholesome bodily, verbal, and mental actions will definitely experience suffering upon the disintegration of the body and the end of life. Vāseṭṭha, among the kṣatriya class, those who engage in wholesome bodily, verbal, and mental actions will definitely experience happiness upon the disintegration of the body and the end of life. Among the brāhmaṇa, householder, and śūdra classes, those who engage in wholesome bodily, verbal, and mental actions will definitely experience happiness upon the disintegration of the body and the end of life. Vāseṭṭha, among the kṣatriya class, those who engage in two kinds of bodily, verbal, and mental actions will experience both suffering and happiness upon the disintegration of the body and the end of life. Among the brāhmaṇa, householder, and śūdra classes, those who engage in two kinds of bodily, verbal, and mental actions will experience both suffering and happiness upon the disintegration of the body and the end of life.

Vāseṭṭha, among the kṣatriya class, there are those who shave their beards and hair, don the Dharma robes, and practice the seven factors of awakening, soon attaining the path. Why is this so? Because those noble sons, having renounced the householder life, practice the unsurpassed holy life, and in this very life they personally realize: 'Birth is exhausted, the holy life has been established, what was to be done has been done, there is no more of this mundane state.' Among the brāhmaṇa, householder, and śūdra classes, there are those who shave their beards and hair, don the Dharma robes, and practice the seven factors of awakening, soon attaining the path. Why is this so? Because those noble sons, having renounced the householder life, practice the unsurpassed holy life, and in this very life they personally realize: 'Birth is exhausted, the holy life has been established, what was to be done has been done, there is no more of this mundane state.' Vāseṭṭha, among these four classes, all those who have attained the perfection of wisdom and arahantship are the best and foremost among the five classes.

The Buddha told Vāseṭṭha: "The Brahma King has a verse that goes:"

Among the born, the kṣatriyas are supreme, able to abandon their caste and leave; those
who have attained the perfection of wisdom and arahantship are the foremost in the world.

The Buddha told Vāseṭṭha: "This Brahma spoke well, not unskillfully; this Brahma received well, not unskillfully. I then approved his words. Why is that? Now I, the Tathāgata, the Arhat, also speak of this meaning:

Among the born, the kṣatriyas are supreme, able to abandon their caste and leave; those
who have attained the perfection of wisdom and arahantship are the foremost in the world.

At that time, after the World-Honored One had spoken this Dharma, Vāseṭṭha and Brāhmaṇadatta attained the liberation of the mind free from taints. Having heard the Buddha's teaching, they joyfully accepted and practiced it.