Summary
s.1In this discourse, the Buddha Śākyamuni describes his past life as King Śrīsena of Ariṣṭa, a bodhisattva renowned for his unstinting generosity and spiritual resolve. In that life, a sage orders his disciple to ask King Śrīsena for his beautiful wife, Jayaprabhā. Out of compassion, King Śrīsena gives his wife to the disciple. Śakra, lord of the gods, then claims that King Śrīsena is also able to give away his own body. The other gods have doubts about this, so to prove his point, Śakra disguises himself as an old brahmin whose lower body has been eaten by a tiger, and then asks King Śrīsena to gift him his own lower body. With altruistic motivation, King Śrīsena agrees to the request and orders carpenters to saw him in half. He offers the bottom half to the brahmin, whose body is magically made whole again. King Śrīsena claims he has felt no regrets and by the power of his words, his own body is restored. During this ordeal, Śakra has kept the king alive and carefully monitored his reactions. Observing nothing but pure altruism, Śakra then confirms that the king is a true bodhisattva who is capable of the highest acts of generosity. With this past life story, the Buddha illustrates the kinds of personal sacrifice a bodhisattva will make to attain awakening, even when these go against the protestations of those closest to him.
s.1在這部經典中，佛釋迦牟尼講述了他過去生作為吉祥城的吉祥軍王的故事。吉祥軍王是一位菩薩，以其無盡的佈施和精進而聞名。在那一世，一位賢者命令他的弟子向吉祥軍王討要他美麗的妻子光勝王后。出於慈悲心，吉祥軍王把妻子給了那個弟子。帝釋天（眾天神之主）隨後聲稱吉祥軍王也能夠佈施自己的身體。其他天神對此表示懷疑，所以為了證明自己的說法，帝釋天化身為一位下身已被老虎吃掉的老婆羅門，然後向吉祥軍王請求佈施他自己的下身。抱著利他心，吉祥軍王同意了這個請求，並命令木匠用鋸子把他鋸成兩半。他將下半身奉獻給了那個婆羅門，婆羅門的身體因此神奇地恢復了完整。吉祥軍王聲稱他沒有感到任何後悔，而憑藉他言語的力量，他自己的身體也得到了恢復。在這場磨難中，帝釋天一直讓國王活著，並仔細監測了他的反應。看到國王心中只有純淨的利他心，帝釋天隨後確認了國王是一位真正的菩薩，具備進行最高尚佈施行為的能力。通過這個過去生的故事，佛用來說明菩薩為了達到覺悟而願意做出的個人犧牲，即使這些犧牲與他最親近的人的反對相悖。