Mantra for detoxification — "sampragata"

佛說解毒神咒緣起 — 三缽囉佉多

典故摘自《雜譬喻經》

Translated from Sutra on Various Metaphors

Once in Buddha’s time in the city of Rajagrha, there was a householder named Shri Gupta, who was a disciple of a non-Buddhist school that practiced nudity. However, Shri Gupta’s wife, Jyotiska, was a devoted Buddhist. 

One day, Jyotiska said to her husband, “The Buddha and the sangha are the most supreme merit fields. If you make a meal offering to the Buddha in person, you will receive immeasurable blessings.”

Shri Gupta replied, “I will make a meal offering to the Buddha if you also prepare a sumptuous banquet to offer to my master Purana and his disciples.”

Jyotiska thought, “If I refuse, then there is no chance that he will make an offering to the Buddha.” Therefore she agreed and made all kinds of delicious food to offer to his husband’s master Purana.

The next day, Shri Gupta went to invite the Buddha and his sangha to his house for a meal offering. The Buddha knew the householder harbored malicious intention, but he also saw that his time to hear the Dharma and attain liberation had come; therefore, the Buddha accepted his invitation in silence.

When Shri returned home, he dug a large pit in front of the entrance to the house and threw some red hot burning charcoal inside the pit. When the fire started to diminish, he covered the pit with a layer of soil. Moreover, he put poisons in the food offering, intending to poison the Buddha. In order to keep this plan a secret, he even locked his wife in the bedroom.

As the Buddha and his disciples were getting ready to head to Shri Gupta’s house, devas from the heavens rushed down to beg the Buddha, “the World Honored One, you must not go! He has dug a large fire pit in front of his house in order to harm you!”

The Buddha calmly replied, “I have already used the water of Dharma wisdom to extinguish the fire of desire, the fire of anger, and the fire of ignorance in my mind. How can any fire in this world harm me?”

The Buddha and disciples then continued on their way. Shortly, they arrived at Shri’s front door. As they walked toward the house, suddenly, blue lotus flowers emerged from the fire pit, one after another. Stepping on the path of the lotuses, the Buddha entered the house peacefully. When Shri witnessed this scene, he was amazed but also ashamed of his evil act. Not having the courage to face the Buddha, he ran into his wife’s room to confess and repent his wrong doing.

Jyotiska immediately took her husband to the Buddha to beg for pardon. When the Buddha compassionately forgave the householder, Shri joyfully requested the Buddha to stay and allow him to prepare a pure meal offering for him.

However, the Buddha said, “My mind is free of the three poisons of greed, anger, and ignorance; therefore, no poison in this world is able affect me in any way. You can offer me the food you prepared before.”

The Buddha said to Ananda just before the meal, “Go tell all the monks that no one should start eating before chanting the sampragata mantra.”

After relating the Buddha’s instruction, Ananda asked a monk to lead the chanting of the mantra before taking his seat. Having chanted the mantra, the Buddha and all his disciples took the food offering peacefully and free of harm.  The householder thought: “The poison I put in the food can kill a person immediately, but the Buddha and the monks are all unharmed!” Shri gained utmost faith in the Buddha.

When the Buddha and the monks finished eating, Shri and his wife respectfully requested the Buddha’s teaching. As they joyfully listened to the Buddha speak the Dharma, both attained the fruit of stream-enterer. ☸︎

 

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