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Sự tích 16 vị La-hán
được chép trong sách Pháp Trụ Ký. Sách này do vị Đại A-la-hán
Nan Đề Mật Đa La (Nandimitra) trước thuật và Tam Tạng Pháp sư
Huyền Trang (600-664) dịch ra chữ Hán.
Ngài Nan Đề Mật
Đa La (còn có tên là Khánh Hữu) người Tích Lan, ra đời khoảng năm
800 năm sau Phật Niết bàn. Theo Pháp Trụ Ký (Fachu-chi), thì Ngài
chỉ lược thuật lại kinh Pháp Trụ Ký do Phật thuyết giảng mà thôi.
Sách này trình bày danh tánh, trú xứ và sứ mệnh của 16 vị La-hán.
Các Ngài đã đạt được Tam minh, Lục thông và Bát giải thoát, vâng
thừa giáo chỉ của Phật, kéo dài thọ mạng, trụ tại thế gian tại thế
gian để hộ trì chánh pháp và làm lợi lạc quần sanh. Mỗi khi các tự
viện tổ chức lễ hội khánh thành, làm phúc, cúng dường trai Tăng,
các Ngài cùng với quyến thuộc thường vận dụng thần thông đến để
chứng minh, tham dự, nhưng chúng ta không thể nào thấy được. Hiện
nay, tuổi thọ trung bình của loài người là 80 tuổi. Tuổi thọ này -
theo Pháp Trụ Ký - sẽ giảm dần còn 10 tuổi là giai đoạn cuối cùng
của kiếp giảm. Sau đó, sang giai đoạn kiếp tăng, tuổi thọ con người
từ 10 tuổi tăng dần đến 70000 tuổi. Bấy giờ các Ngài sẽ chấm dứt
nhiệm vụ và nhập Niết bàn. (Bởi vì khi tuổi thọ loài người đến
80000 tuổi thì đức Phật Di Lạc sẽ ra đời).
Danh tánh
và trú xứ của các Ngài như sau:
1. Tân Đâu Lô Bạt
La Đọa Xà (S: Pindolabharadvàja), vị tôn giả này cùng 1000 vị A-la-hán,
phần lớn cư trú tại Tây Ngưu Hóa châu.
2. Ca Nặc Ca Phạt
Sa (S: Kanakavatsa), vị tôn giả này cùng với 500 vị A-la-hán, phần
lớn cư trú tại phương Bắc nước Ca Thấp Di La.
3. Ca Nặc Ca Bạt
Ly Đọa Xà (S: Kanakabharadvàja), vị tôn giả này cùng 600 vị A-la-hán,
phần lớn cư trú tại Đông Thắng Thân châu.
4. Tô Tân Đà (S:
Subinda), vị tôn giả này cùng với 700 vị A-la-hán, phần lớn cư trú
tại Bắc Cu Lô châu.
5. Nặc Cự La (S:
Nakula), vị tôn giả này cùng 800 vị A-la-hán phần lớn cư trú tại
Nam Thiệm Bộ châu.
6. Bạt Đa La (S:
Bhadra), vị tôn giả này cùng 800 vi A-la-hán, phần lớn cư trú tại
Đam Một La châu.
7. Ca Lý Ca (S:
Kàlika), vị tôn giả này cùng với 1000 vị A-la-hán, phần lớn cư trú
tại Tăng Già Trà châu.
8. Phạt Xà La
Phất Đa La (S: Vajraputra), vị tôn giả này cùng với 1100 vị A-la-hán,
phần lớn cư trú tại Bát Thứ Noa châu.
9. Thú Bát Ca (S:
Jìvaka), vị tôn giả này cùng với 900 vị A-la-hán, phần lớn cư trú
tại trong núi Hương Túy.
10. Bán Thác Ca
(S: Panthaka), vị tôn giả này cùng với 1300 vị A-la-hán cư trú tại
cõi trời 33.
11. La Hỗ La (S:
Ràhula), vị tôn giả này cùng với 1100 vị A-la-hán, phần lớn cư trú
tại Tất Lợi Dương Cù châu.
12. Ma Già Tê Na
(S: Nàgasena), vị tôn giả này cùng với 1200 vị A-la-hán, phần lớn
cư trú tại núi Bán Độ Ba.
13. Nhân Yết Đà
(S: Angala), vị tôn giả này cùng với 1300 vị A Lan Hán, phần lớn cư
trú tại trong núi Quảng Hiếp.
14. Phạt Na Bà Tư
(S: Vanavàsin), vị tôn giả này cùng 400 vị A-la-hán, phần lớn cư
trú tại trong núi Khả Trụ.
15. A Thị Đa (S:
Ajita), vị tôn giả này cùng với 1500 vị A-la-hán, phần lớn cư trú
tại trong núi Thứu Phong.
16. Chú Trà Bán
Thác Ca (S: Cùdapanthaka), vị tôn giả này cùng với 600 vị A-la-hán,
phần lớn cư trú trong núi Trì Trục.
Sau khi Pháp Trụ
ký được dịch sang chữ Hán, Thiền sư Quán Hưu (832-912), vốn là một
họa sĩ tài ba đã vẽ ra hình ảnh 16 vị A-la-hán. Tương truyền, nhân
Thiền sư nằm mơ cảm ứng thấy được hình ảnh của các Ngài rồi vẽ lại.
Những hình ảnh này ngày nay người ta còn tìm thấy tàng trữ nơi vách
tường Thiên Phật động tại Đôn Hoàng thuộc tỉnh Cam Túc, Trung Quốc.
Sau Thiền sư Quán Hưu còn có hoạ sĩ Pháp Nguyện, Pháp Cảnh và Tăng
Diệu cũng chuyên vẽ về các vị La-hán.
Vì sao 16
vị La-hán trở thành 18 vị?
Từ khi có hình
ảnh 16 vị La-hán, các chùa thường tôn trí hình ảnh của các Ngài, và
từ con số 16 người ta thêm tôn giả Khánh Hữu thành 17 và tôn giả
Tân Đầu Lô thành 18 (nhưng không biết ai là tác giả đầu tiên của
con số 18 này).
Thật ra tôn giả
Khánh Hữu (tên dịch nghĩa ra chữ Hán) vốn là Nan Đề Mật Đa La (tên
phiên âm từ chữ Phạn), người đã thuyết minh sách Pháp Trụ Ký; còn
Tân Đầu Lô chính là Tân Đầu Lô Bạt La Đọa Xa2, vị La-hán thứ nhất
trong 16 vị. Do khômg am tường kinh điển và không hiểu tiếng Phạn
mà thành lầm lẫn như thế!
Về sau, Sa môn
Giáp Phạm và Đại thi hào Tô Đông Pha (1036-1101) dựa vào con số 18
này mà làm ra 18 bài văn ca tụng. Mỗi bài đều có đề tên một vị La-hán.
Rồi họa sĩ Trương Huyền lại dựa vào 18 bài văn ca tụng của Tô Thức
mà tạc tượng 18 vị La-hán, nhưng lại thay hai vị 17 và 18 bằng tôn
giả Ca Diếp và Quân Đề Bát Thán. Do thế mà từ con số 16 lần hồi trở
thành con số 18. Từ đời Nguyên trở đi, tại Trung Quốc cũng như Việt
Nam, con số 18 này được mọi người mặc nhiên chính thức công nhận,
con số 16 chỉ còn lưu giữ trong sổ sách mà thôi. Nhưng, tại Tây
Tạng, ngoài 16 vị trên, người ta thêm Đạt Ma Đa La và Bố Đại Hòa
Thượng; hoặc thêm hai tôn giả Hoàng Long và Phục Hổ, hoặc thêm Ma
Da Phu nhân và Di Lặc để thành ra 18 vị.
Ngoài ra,
còn có hai sự tích khác về 18 vị La-hán
1. Sự tích thứ
nhất được kể trong tập sách viết bằng chữ Hán của thầy Giáo thọ
Hoằng Khai, trụ trì chùa Càn An, tỉnh Bình Định, vào năm Tự Đức thứ
tư (1851). Theo sách này thì nước Triệu có nàng công chúa tên là Hy
Đạt, vốn rất chí thành mộ đạo, nàng chuyên niệm danh hiệu đức Phật
A Di Đà. Năm 15 tuổi, nàng ăn một đóa hoa sen vàng rồi hoài thai
đến 6 năm mới sinh ra 18 đồng tử. Các đồng tử ấy về sau được đức
Quan Âm hóa độ và thọ ký để họ trở thành 18 vị La-hán.
Nội dung sự tích
này khá lý thú, tương đối có giá trị về mặt văn chương, nhưng cốt
truyện lại pha trộn tinh thần Phật, Khổng, Lão nên ít có giá trị về
mặt lịch sử.
2. Sự tích thứ
hai: tương truyền ngày xưa tại Trung Quốc có 18 tên tướng cướp rất
hung hãn. Về sau họ hồi tâm cải tà quy chánh, nương theo Phật pháp
tu hành và đắc quả A-la-hán.
Sự tích này tương
đối có ý nghĩa, nhưng lại có tính cách huyền thoại, do đó ít được
người ta chấp nhận.
Thích Phước Sơn
Tham khảo:
-
Phật Quang Đại Tư Điển, tr.359, 394, 4791, 6787;
-
Phật học Đại Tư Điển, tr. 2844-2845;
-
Pháp Trụ Ký, Hán tạng tập 49 tr.12;
-
Phật Tổ Thống Kỷ, quyển 33, Hán tạng tập 49, tr. 319;
-
Phật Thuyết Di Lặc Hạ Sanh Kinh, Hán tạng tập 14, tr.421
English
Article
The Eighteen Lohans of Chinese Buddhist Temples.
WATTERS, T.
The Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, 1898.04, pp.329--347
-oOo-
When you enter
the chief hall of a Buddhist temple in China you cannot fail to
notice two rows of large yellow figures -- one along the east and
the other along the west wall. These figures, which are usually
numbered and labelled, are called the Eighteen Lohan, and if you
ask your guide what they are he will probably reply "belong jess."
This answer may not be deemed satisfactory, but further inquiry
will only elicit the information that these are images of Buddha's
eighteen great disciples. The names, however, show that this
information is not quite correct, some of them being unknown to the
original Buddhist canon. If you go on to Korea and visit the
curious old Buddhist temples in that country, you will find that
Buddha's Hall has rows of similar figures, but sixteen in number.
If you continue your journey and visit Japan, you will find there
also Sixteen Rakan lining the side walls of the Buddhist temples.
Lohan and Rakan are for A-lo-han, the Chinese way of expressing the
Sanskrit word Arhan for Arhat. Suppose you could go back and travel
to Lhassa, there also you would find Sixteen Arhats, or as they are
called there, Sthaviras, in the Chief Hall of Buddha's temples.
Tibet, however, seems to have also its Eighteen Lohan, imported
from China apparently in modern times.
When we examine
the Buddhist literature preserved in the libraries of the great
monasteries in China, we find in it mention of only sixteen great
Arhats, the number eighteen being apparently unknown even to the
comparatively modern native treatises. As for the pictures and
images of these sixteen, they are mainly derived from the works of
one or two painters of the T'ang dynasty. About the year 880 an
artist named Kuan Hsiu made pictures of the Sixteen Lohan, which
were given to a Buddhist monastery near Ch'ien-t'ang in the
province of Chekiang. These became celebrated, and were preserved
with great care and treated with ceremonious respect. In the reign
of Kien-lung of the present dynasty an official, while on duty in
the district, had copies of these pictures made by competent
artists and sent them to the emperor. His Majesty had further
copies made, and ordered them to be printed and distributed. It was
found that wrong names had been given to several of the figures, so
the emperor ordered that all the names should be compared with the
original and correctly transcribed according to the new system. But
the question remains, who are these Arhats? and the answer is to be
found in the Buddhist scriptures. They are patrons and guardians of
Sakyamuni Buddha's system of religion and its adherents, lay and
clerical.
An early mention
of spiritual protectors of Buddha's religion after his decease is
found in the "Sutra of Sari putra's Questions," No. 1,152 in Mr.
Bunyio Nanjio's Catalogue. We do not know when or by whom this book
was translated or when it Teas brought to China, but its
translation has been referred to the fourth century of our era. In
this treatise the Buddha is represented as com mitting his religion
to the protection of Sakra and the four Devarajas. He also entrusts
the propagation of his system after his death to four "Great
Bhikshus." The names of these are given as Mahakasyapa, Pindola,
Kun te-pan-t'an, and Rahula. These men were to remain in existence
and not experience final Nirvana until the advent of Maitreya as
Buddha. Three of these names are well known, and the unknown one is
apparently the Kun-t'ou p'o-han of the " Tseng-i-a-han-ching " (ch.
23). These characters evidently represent the Pali name Kundo-vahan,
which means Mungoose-bearing, a name to be remembered in connection
with what follows. The composition of this sutra may probably be
referred to the end of the last century B.C. Then in a sastra, the
name of which is restored as " Arya-Vasumitra-bodhisattva-
sangiti-sastra," Nanjio, No. 1,289, we find mention of sixteen
"Brahmans" over whom Buddha is lord. These are probably the Sixteen
Arhats, although a note added to the text gives the name of the
second one as Ajita- Maitreya. This treatise, which was probably
composed in the first century of our era, was translated in the
year 384.
In another
treatise called the "Ju-ta-sheng-lun," the "
Mahayanavataraka-sastra" of Nanjio, No. 1,243, we have further
mention of guardians of Buddhism. Here we have ninety-nine lakhs of
" great arhats" and also sixteen called "Great Sravakas." Of these
only two names are given, Pindola and Rahula, the reader being
supposed to be acquainted with the sutras from which the author
quotes. These guardians of Buddha's religion are dispersed over the
world, the names of some of their spheres being given. Among these
are Purva-Videha, the Wheat (Godhuma) region, the Chestnut (Priyangu)
region, the Lion (Simha) region, and the "Bhadrika place." This
sastra was corn posed by the learned Buddhist Sthiremati, and
translated into Chinese by Tao-t'ai and others about A.D. 400.
The test,
however, from which all our knowledge of the names of the Sixteen
Arhats or Lohan of Buddhist temples in China, Japan, and Korea may
be said to be derived is that entitled " Ta-A-lo-han-Nan-t'i-mi-to-lo-so-shuo-fachu-chi."
This means "The record of the duration of the law, spoken by the
great Arhat Nandimitra." The treatise, which was translated by the
celebrated Yuan-chuang (Hiouen Thsang), is No. 1,466 in Nanjio's
Catalogue. The name of the author is not known, but he must have
lived long after the time of Nandimitra, and apparently he was not
a native of that arhat's country. There seems to have been also a
previous translation of the same or a similar original, and to it
Yuan-chuang and other writers appear to have been indebted.
The book begins
with the statement that according to tradition within 800 years
from Buddha's decease there was an arhat named Nandimitra at the
capital of King Sheng-chun in the Chih-shih-tzu country. Nanjio
took Sheng-chun to be Prasenajit and Chih-shih-tzu to be Ceylon
according to the Chinese notes in the " Hsi-yu-chi." But
Prasenajit's capital was Sravasti in Kosala, and we do not find any
king with that name in the annals of Ceylon. The " Chih-shih-tzu "
country of this passage is probably the Shih-tzu-kuo which we know
from the 16th chapter of the " Tseng-i-a-han-ching " was in the
Vrijjian territory. The original home of the Aryan immigrants into
Ceylon was not far from this district, and the name Simhala-dvipa
may have been derived from this Lion-country. The words Sheng-Chun
may stand for either Prasenajit or Jayasena. (1)
The sutra then
proceeds to narrate how the great Arhat Nandimitra answered the
questions of his perplexed and desponding congregation about the
possible continued existence of Buddhism in the world. He tells his
hearers that the Buddha when about to die entrusted his religion to
sixteen great Arhats. These men are to watch over and care for the
religious welfare of the lay-believers and generally protect the
spiritual interests of Buddhism. They are to remain in existence
all the long time until Maitreya appears as Buddha and brings in a
new system. Then, according to Nandimitra, the Sixteen Arhats will
collect all the relics of Sakyamuni and build over them a
magnificent tope. When this is finished they will pay their last
worship to the relics, rising in the air and doing pradakshina to
the tope. Then they will enter an igneous ecstasy and so vanish in
remainderless nirvana. At his hearers' request Nandimitra gives the
names of these Protectors of the Faith, their homes or spheres of
action, and the numbers of their retinues. These Arhats are the
Sixteen Rakan of the Japanese and Koreans and constitute sixteen of
the Eighteen Lohan of the Chinese. They have incense burnt before
their images, but generally speaking they are not worshipped or
consulted like the gods and P'usas of the temples.
The names of the
Sixteen Arhats or Lohan, together with their residences and
retinues, are now given according to this sutra of the Duration of
the Law and in the order in which that work gives them. Variations
as to the names which have been noticed in other lists and in
different temples are also given. But as to the pictures and images
of the Sixteen we must remember that these, whether merely works of
art or consecrated to religion, are not supposed to be faithful
representations of the men indicated by the names attached. The
pictures and images are to be taken merely as symbols or fanciful
creations. (2)
1. Pin-tu-lo-Po-lo-to-she,
Pindola the Bharadvaja.
He has a retinue
of 1,000 arhats, and his place is the Godhanga region in the west.
Sometimes the name of this arhat is transcribed Pin-tou-lo, and
sometimes he is styled Bharadvaja simply. Pindola was one of
Buddha's great disciples, became an arhat, and was distinguished as
a successful disputant and defender of orthodoxy, with a voice like
the roar of a lion. (3) But he had a weakness for exhibiting his
magical powers before all sorts of people, and sometimes for
unworthy objects. On one occasion, according to the Pali and other
editions of the Vinaya, in order to show his superhuman powers, he
rose in the air, took a sandal-wood bowl off a very high pole, and
floated about with it for a time over the heads of an admiring
crowd. This proceeding brought a severe rebuke from the Master, and
was the occasion of a rule prohibiting the use of sandal-wood
bowls. (4) The Buddha also on this occasion announced to Pindola
that he was not to "take Nirvana," but was to remain in existence
protect Buddha's system until the coming of Maitreya. (5) We read
also of Pindola working a miracle with a hill in order to go to a
breakfast given by Sudatta's wife, and some make this to be the
occasion on which Buddha rebuked him and told him he was to remain
in existence to foster Buddhism until the advent of Maitreya to
bring in a new system. (6) But Pindola sometimes wrought miracles
for good purposes, and his exhibition of magical powers at
Rajagriha led to the conversion of an unbelieving lady. (7)
Pindola has been
living ever since Buddha's time, and he has appeared on several
occasions to pious workers for Buddhism. In India it was once the
custom for lay believers when giving an entertainment to the
Buddhist monks to " invite Pindola." The arhat could not be seen,
but the door was left open for him, and it was known by the
appearance of the flowers or the condition of the mat reserved for
him whether he had been present. (8) When King Asoka summoned his
great assembly Pindola was living on the Gandhamali (or
Gandhamadana) mountain with a company of arhats 60,000 in number.
Called to the assembly, he flew swan-like to the place of meeting,
and on account of his undoubted seniority he was chosen president.
He was then a very old man with white hair and long eyebrows, which
he had to hold back with his hands in order to see." (9) As he
often has very long eyebrows in his pictures and images, the
Chinese have come to know him popularly as the "Ch'ang-mei-seng" or
"Long-eyebrowed Monk." But Lohans with other names also have this
characteristic in the fancy portraits which adorn temples and
pictures.
In the seventh
century Pindola came to China and appeared to Tao-hsuan, the great
Vinaya doctor and signified his approval of the work which that
zealous monk had been doing. (10)
We find the name
Pindola explained in Chinese com mentaries as meaning Pu-tung or
Unmoved, but this cannot have been intended for a translation of
the word. The Tibetans give "Alms-receiver" as the equivalent,
connecting the name with pinda, but it may have been derived from
the name of a place transcribed Pin-t'ou in Chinese. This was a
town or village in the Kosala country in Buddha's time. In a
far-back existence Pindola had been a bad son and a cruel man, and
owing to his bad Karma he had to suffer in hell for a very long
period. Here his food was "tiles and stones," and even when he was
born to be a pious arhat of wonderful powers, he retained a
tendency to live on "tiles and stones." (11) We cannot wonder that
he was thin and ribbed.
Some pictures and
images represent Pindola sitting and holding a book in one hand and
his alms-bowl in the other; others have him holding a book
reverently in both hands; and sometimes we find him with an open
book on one knee and a mendicant's staff at his side.
2. Ka-no-ka-Fa-tso,
Kanaka the Vatsa.
This arhat is
appointed to Kashmir with a retinue of 500 other arhats. He was
originally a disciple of Buddha, and it was said of him that he
comprehended all systems good and bad. (12) The Tibetans, in their
usual manner, have translated the name literally "Gold calf."
3. Ka-no-ka-Po-li-tou-she,
Karaka the Bharadvaja.
This arhat's
station is in the Purva-Videha region and he has 600 arhats under
his authority. He is sometimes pictured as a very hairy old man,
and some paintings give him a small disciple at his side.
4. Su-p'in-t'e,
Subhinda.
His sphere of
action is the Kuru country in the north, and he has a retinue of
800 arhats. This name does not occur in several of the lists, but
it is found in the temples in China, Korea, and Japan. Instead of
it we find occasionally Nandimitra, and the new recension and the
Tibetan give A-pi-ta, which may be for Abhida. The Tibetan
translation of the name is inseparable or indissoluble, and this
seems to point to an original like Abhinda or Abhida.
This arhat
appears as a venerable sage with a scroll in his right hand, or as
sitting in an attitude of meditation. He is also represented as
sitting with an alms-bowl and an incense-vase beside him, holding a
sacred book in the left hand, while with the right he "cracks his
fingers." This gesture is indicative of the rapidity with which he
attained spiritual insight.
5. No-ku-lo,
Nakula.
The sphere of
this arhat's action is Jambudripa, that is, India, and his retinue
is composed of 800 arhats.
This name is
found in the Chinese, Korean, and Japanese temples, but in some
lists instead of it we find Pa-ku-la or p'u-ku-lo, that is, Vakula.
This was the name of one of Buddha's great disciples, often
mentioned in the scriptures. Vakula became an arhat, but he led a
solitary, self-contained life; he never had a disciple and he never
preached a word. He was remarkable for his wonderful exemption from
bodily ailments and for the great length of life to which he
attained. When King Asoka visited his tope and showed his contempt
for Vakula by offering a penny, the arhat was equal to the occasion
and refused the coin. (l3)
We must, however,
go by Yuan-chuang's text and read Nakula. This word means Mungoose,
and we remember the arhat called Kundo-vahan or Mungoose-bearer
already mentioned. We read also of a Nakula's father, in Pali.
Nakula-pita, who became a devoted lay adherent of Buddha's
teaching. Nakula was a Vrijjian resident at Uruvilva, but we do not
find much about him in the scriptures. He may be the same person
with Nakulapita converted when he was 120 years old, but made young
and happy by Buddha's teaching. (14)
Nakuls is often
represented, as in the Tibetan picture, with a mungoose as his
emblem, and sometimes instead of that animal he has a three-legged
frog under his left arm. Sometimes he is represented as meditating
or as teaching with a little boy by his side.
6. Po-t'e-lo,
Bhadra.
This arhat was
appointed to T'an-mo-lo-Chow, that is, Tamra-dvipa or Ceylon, and
he was given a retinue of 900 other arhats. We sometimes find him
called Tamra Bhadra, apparently from the name of his station.
The Bhadra of the
Buddhist scriptures was a cousin of the Buddha and one of his great
disciples. He was a good preacher, and could expand in clear and
simple language the Master's teaching. Hence he is often
represented as expounding the contents of a book which he holds in
one hand. He took his profession very seriously and aimed at
spiritual perfection.
Bhadra often
appears in pictures and images accompanied by a tiger which he
soothes or restrains, but he is also represented without the tiger
and in an attitude of worship.
7. Ka-li-ka,
Kalika or Kala.
This arhat has
1,000 other arhats under him and resides in Seng-ka-t'a. This has
been supposed to be Ceylon, but it is evidently the name of some
other region. The Chinese characters may stand for Simhata, and
something like this may have been the name of the "Lion country "
in the Vrijjian territory already mentioned. (l5)
This arhat is
apparently the great disciple called "Lion King Kala", who attained
arhatship and was honoured by King Bimbisara. (16) He is
represented as studying a scroll or sitting in meditation, or
holding a leaf of a tree, or he has extremely long eyebrows which
he holds up from the ground.
8.
Fa-she-lo-fuh-to-lo, Vajraputra.
He has 1,100
arhats and resides in the Po-la-na division of the world, that is,
in Parna-dvipa perhaps.
In some temples
and lists of the Lohan the name is given as Vajriputra. This may be
the Vajjiput of the village of the same name who became a disciple
and attained to arhatship. (17) He is represented as very hairy, or
as very lean and ribbed.
9. Shu-po-ka,
Supaka perhaps.
This arhat is
stationed on the Gandhamadana mountain and has an establishment of
900 arhats. Instead of the character for Shu we find in some places
Kie, that is Ka, making the name Kapaka, but this is evidently
wrong. In the new transcription we have Kuo-pa-ka, that is, Gopaka.
The Tibetans have the two Chinese transcriptions Kapaka and Supaka,
but their translation is Sbed-byed, which requires the form Gopaka
(or Gopa), meaning protector. We do not know of any disciple of
Buddha named Supaka, but we read of one named Gopaka, a sthavira at
Pataliputra.
The
representations of this arhat often show him with a small figure of
a saint above his right shoulder or close to his side, but he also
appears with a book or a fan in his hand.
10. Pan-t'o-ka,
Panthaka or Pantha.
This arhat's
sphere is the Trayastrimsat Heaven, and he is attended by 1,300
arhats.
He is sometimes
called simply Pantha or Panthaka, and sometimes Ta or Maha-Panthaka,
Great Panthaka, to distinguish him from his young brother, who is
No. 16 of this list. The name is explained as meaning way or road,
or "born on the road," and a legend relates how it was given to the
two boys because their births occurred by the roadside while their
mother was making journeys. (l8) But we find the name also
explained as meaning "continuing the way," that is, propagating
Buddhism, and the Tibetan translation gives "doctrine of the way"
as its signification. But this explanation belongs rather to the
younger brother, who also is frequently styled simply Pantha or
Panthaka. We occasionally find in books Pa (or Sa) -na-ka for Pan-
thaka, apparently a copylst's error. Pantha is also found
transcribed Pan-t'a, and for the second syllable we find t'u or t'e.
Panthaka was
distinguished as among the highest of Buddha's disciples, who " by
thought aimed at excellence." (19) He was also expert in solving
doubts and difficulties in doctrine for weaker vessels, and he had
extraordinary magical powers. (20) He could pass through solids and
shoot through the air, and cause fire and water to appear at
pleasure. He could also reduce his own dimensions little by little
until there was nothing left of him. (21) These magical powers were
called into request by Buddha when he made his expedition to subdue
and convert the fierce dragon-king Apalala. (22)
The various
pictures and images represent Panthaka as sitting under a tree or
teaching from an open book, or as holding a scroll, or as sitting
in profound meditation with his arms folded. He is also frequently
depieted in the act of charming a dragon into his alms-bowl.
This Panthaka is
not to be confounded with the Upasaka of the same name who
accompanied Mahinda in his mission for the conversion of Ceylon.
11. Lo-hu-lo,
Rahula.
To Rahula was
assigned the Priyangu-dvipa, a land of aromatic herbs, (23) and he
had a suite of 1,100 arhats.
Rahula, the son
of Buddha, was distinguished as a disciple for his diligent study
of the canon and his uncompromising thorough strictness in carrying
out the rules of his profession. He is often represented in
pictures and images as having the large "umbrella-shaped" head,
prominent eyes, and hooked nose which some books ascribe to him.
But in many cases he is apparently represented without any
distinctive features or attribute. It is his lot to die and return
to this world as Buddha's son for several times, and he is not to
pass finally out of existence for a very long time.
12. Na-ka-si-na,
Nagasena.
This arhat was
appointed to the Pan-tu-p'o or Pandava Mountain in Magadha, with a
retinue of 1,200 arhats.
Nagasena is, I
think, the disciple called Seni in the " Tseng-i-a-han-ching " and
the "Fen-pie-kung-te- lun." In the former this bhikshu is selected
for praise as an orthodox expounder of the principles or essentials
of Buddhism. The latter treatise also calls him first in
exposition. It adds that he was a bhikshu thirty years before he
attained arhatship, because he made the laying down of dogma the
one chief thing postponing to this release from sin, that he was
skilled in analysis and the logical development of principles, and
that he left a treatise embodying the results of his studies. (24)
Now this Se-ni
is, I think, the Nagasena who composed the original work which was
afterwards amplified into the '" Questions of Milinda." In the "
Tsa-pao-tsang-ching " We have this Nagasena, called also Se-na, a
man of commanding presence, proud and learned, subtle-minded and
ready-witted, and he is put through a severe ordeal by a king
called Nan-t'e or Nanda. (25) Then these Nanda and Nagasena are
evidently the Min-lin-t'e and Nagasena of one translation of the ''
Abhidharma-kosa-vyakhya-Sastra '' and the Pi-lin-t'e and Lung-chun,
Dragon-host of the other translation. (26) They are also the Mi-lan
and Na-hsien of the " Na-hsien-pi-chiu-ching " (27) and the Milinda
and Nagasena of the " Questions of Milinda." (28)
This Nagasena
was, or was taken to be, a contemporary of the Buddha and Sariputra,
although he is also supposed to be living long after Buddha's time.
He is called arhat by the author of the introduction to the
"Questions," but in the body of the book he is not an arhat. In
this treatise he defends against his cross-examiner the unity and
consistency of Buddha's teachings, and explains and expands hard
doctrines with great learning and richness of illustration. He
became the head of the Church in Milinda's country to watch over
and maintain Buddhist orthodoxy. His treatise must have existed in
various lands and in different forms from a comparatively early
period. The " Abhidharma-kosa-sastra " and the "
Tsa-pao-tsang-ching " quote from a text which is neither the "Na-hsien-pi-chiuching"
nor the "Questions," and these two last differ very much.
13. Yin-kie-t'e,
Angida.
This arhat's
station is the mountain called Kuaug-hsie or Broad-side, that is,
Vipulaparsva, and he has a retinue of 1,300 arhats. In one place I
have seen Mu instead of Yin, and the Tibetans have Angija, but all
other tran- scriptions are apparently either Angida, or Angila.
One of Buddha's
great disciples was named Angaja, and he was noted for the
cleanness and fragrance of his body. (29) Another great disciple
was Angila, who was described as being perfect in all things. (30)
These two names may possibly indicate only one person.
The Lohan called
Angida is sometimes the fat, jolly creature who is supposed to be
Maitreya or his incarnation. Other pictures or images make him a
lean old monk with a staff and a book containing Indian writing.
This latter is the old traditional representation handed down from
the period of the T'ang dynasty.
14. Fa-na-p'o-ssu,
Vanavasa.
A Korean temple
has Fa-lo-p'o-ssu, giving Varavasa, but all the other
transcriptions seem to have Vanavasa.
This arhat, who
has a retinue of 1,400 other arhats, is stationed on the K'o-chu or
Habitable Mountain. He is sometimes represented sitting in a cave
meditating with eyes closed, or his hands make a mudra, or he
nurses his right knee.
15. A-shih-to,
Asita or Ajita.
These characters
do not represent Yuan-chuang's ordinary transcription either for
Asita or Ajita, and it is probable that here he adopted the
transcription of a predecessor. The new authorized reading gives
Ajita, and it is so in the Tibetan. But Ajita is Maitreya, and that
Bodhisattva, according to all accounts, remains in Tushita Paradise
until the time comes for him to become incarnate on this earth.
So he cannot
properly be a guardian of Sakyamuni's system, which must have
passed away before he can become Buddha.
This arhat, whom
we may call Asita, resides on the Gridhrakuta Mountain, and has
1,500 arhats in his suite. It cannot be that he is the old seer
Asita who came from his distant home to see the newly-born infant
who was to become Buddha. The images and pictures generally
represent the arhat as an old man with very long eyebrows, nursing
his right knee or absorbed in meditation.
16. Chu-ch'a, (t'a)
-Pan-t'o-ka, Chota-Panthaka.
The first part of
the name is also given as Chou-li or Chu-li. These transcriptions
stand for the Sanskrit Kshulla and Pali Chulla (or Chula), and
Chota is a dialectic form still preserved in the vernacular. The
words mean little, small, and this Panthaka received the above name
in order to distinguish him from his elder brother already noticed.
He is also called Hsiao-lu or Little Road, the elder brother being
Ta-lu or Great Road.
Chota-Panthaka
has a household of 1,600 arhats, and his station is the Ishadhara
Mountain, a part of the great range of Sumeru. As a disciple Little
Pantha was at first and for a long time exceedingly dull and
stupid, the result of bad Karma. He could not make any progress in
the spiritual life, being unable to apply his mind or commit to
memory even one stanza of doctrine. (31) He was accordingly
slighted by the Brethren and their lay patrons, but the Master
always had pity and patience. On one occasion the King invited
Buddha and the disciples to breakfast, but Little Pantha was
excluded. When Buddha discovered this he refused to sit down to
breakfast until the despised disciple was bidden to the feast. (32)
And when Little Pantha was expelled by his elder brother as being
incorrigibly dull and stupid, Buddha brought him back and would not
allow him to be expelled. He comforted the sorrowing disciple and
gave him the words "Sweeping broom" to repeat and keep in mind. In
the effort to do so the intellectual faculties of the poor dullard
were stimulated, and he came to see that the two words meant that
all attachment to things of this world was defilement and to be
swept away by the broom of Buddha's doctrine. (33) Having entered
on the good way he went on towards perfection, and became noted as
one of the first disciples in "mental aiming at excellence"; he was
chiefly occupied with the mind and mental contemplation. (34) By
his determined perseverance he attained a thorough insight into
religious truths, and expounded these with such power and eloquence
that even giddy nuns, who came to laugh and mock, remained to be
impressed and edified. (35) In process of time Little Pantha
attained arhatship, with the powers of flying through the air and
of assuming any form at pleasure. He had also other miraculous
powers, and on one occasion he produced 500 strange oxen and
proceeded to ride one of them. (36)
This arhat is
sometimes pictured as an old man sitting under and leaning against
a dead tree, one hand having a fan and the other held up in the
attitude of teaching. He is also represented as a venerable sage
sitting on a mat-covered seat and holding a long staff surmounted
by a hare's head.
17 and 18.
There does not
seem to be any historical account of the first introduction of the
Lohan into the Halls of Buddhist temples, nor can it be ascertained
when the number of these guardians was raised from sixteen to
eighteen in Chinese temples.
In some of these,
down to the present time, the number of the Lohan is still sixteen,
e.g. in the Pao-ning-ssu, near Mount Omi, visited by Mr. Baber.
(37) Some Chinese have supposed that there were formerly eighteen
gods regarded as protectors of Buddhist temples, and that the Lohan
took their places. But we know nothing about these gods, and the
supposition need not be taken into consideration. Another
suggestion, and one which seems not improbable, is that the
Buddhists in this matter imitated a certain Chinese institution.
When we read the
history of the reigns of T'ang Kao Tsu and T'ai Tsung, we find the
record of an event which may have given the idea of grouping the
Lohan in the Chief Hall of a temple and of raising their number to
eighteen. In the year 621 T'ai Tsung instituted within the palace
grounds a very select college composed of eighteen members. These
dons were officials of high standing, of sound learning and good
literary attainments, and faithful adherents and personal friends
of the founder. Among them were such famous men as Tu Ju-mei and
his friend Fang Hsuan-ling; Yu Chi-ming, learned scholar and loyal
statesman, who wrote the preface to Yuan-chuang's " Hsiyu-chi "; Lu
Te-ming, and K'ung Ying-ta. The members took their turns in batches
of three in attending on duty, and while in the college they were
liable to be visited and interrogated by the emperor. He had
portraits of the members made for the college, and each portrait
was furnished with a statement of the name, birthplace, and honours
of the original. The merits of each were described in ornate verse
by one of the number, Chu Liang. These favoured men were called the
Shih-pa-hsue-shih or Eighteen Cabinet Ministers, and they were
popularly said to have teng-ying-chou, to have become Immortals. It
is this Hall of the Eighteen which I think may have led to the
installation of the Eighteen Arhats in Buddha's Hall. The names of
these venerable ones are given, and sometimes their stations and
retinues are added. There are also temples in which the Lohan are
arranged in groups of three.
But these
Eighteen Lohan have never received authoritative recognition, and
they are not given even in the modern accepted Buddhist treatises.
We find them, however, occasionally in modern Chinese works of art.
The South Kensington Museum has a pair of bowls on which they are
painted, and the British Museum has them on an incense-vase. This
vase is remarkable for departing SO far from the established
doctrine of the Lohan as to represent three of the eighteen as boys
or very young men. The modern Chinese artist, followed by the
Japanese, apparently takes the Lohan to be Immortals, and he shows
them crossing to the Happy Land of Nirvana or leading lives of
unending bliss among the pines of the misty mountain-tops.
As to the persons
who should be admitted as guardian Lohans of Buddha and his
religion, there has been a great diversity of opinion, and
consequently different worthies have been added in different
places. In many old temples we find the 17th and 18th places given
respectively to Nandimitra and a second Pindola. This Nandimitra,
in Chinese Ch'ing-yu, is the arhat already mentioned as describing
the appointment and distribution of the Sixteen Arhats. As one of
the additional Lohans we sometimes find the well-known Imperial
patron of Buddhism, Liang Wu Ti (A.D. 502 to 550), or Kumarajiva,
the great translator who flourished about A.D. 400.. In some
temples we find Maitreya or his supposed incarnation the Pu-tai-ho
shang, or Calico-bag (cushion) Monk. This monk is said to have
lived in the sixth century A.D., but he was not honoured as a Lohan
until modern times. He is the special patron of tobacco-sellers,
and his jolly fat little image often adorns their shop-fronts.
Another interesting person sometimes found among the Eighteen Lohan
is the Indian Buddhist Dharmatara (or Dharmatrata), in Chinese Fa-Chiu.
This is perhaps the Dharmatara who was a great master of Dhyana and
learned author, and lived about the middle of the first century of
our era probably. He is sometimes called a great Upasaka, and is
represented as receiving or introducing the Sixteen (or Eighteen)
Lohan. Writing about Lhassa the learned Mr. Chandra Das has the
following: "In the Na-chu Lha Khang Chapel erected by one of the
Sakya Lamas named Wang Chhyug Tsondu, were the most remarkable
statue-like images of the Sixteen Sthaviras called Natan Chudug,
arranged to represent the scene of their reception by Upashaka
Dharma Tala, one of the most celebrated and devout Buddhists of
ancient China." (38) In Tibet the Sixteen Arhats are called
Sthaviras, and "Natan Chudug" means Sixteen Sthaviras. Then "Dharma
Tala" is for Dharmatara, who was Indian, not Chinese. He is also
now one of the Eighteen Lohan in Tibet as in China. Another
illustrious personage installed as one of these Lohan in many
temples is Kuanyin P'usa. He appears as such in his capacity as
Protector of Buddhism and Buddhists.
NOTES:
(1) The "
Chih-shih-tzu-kuo" of this sutra and the " Shih-tzu-kuo" of the "
TSeng-i-a-han-ching" are probably the Simhadvipa of Schiefner's "
Tara- natha," S. 83. This last cannot be Ceylon, and the mention of
the Lusthain. in it reminds us of the garden in the Shih-tzu-kuo.
In the Sarvata Vinaya Yao-shih, ch. 8, we have mention of a Shih-tzu
district which lay between Sravasti and Rajagriha.
(2) For
illustrations and details of the Lohan see Anderson's "Catalogue of
Japanese and Chinese Paintings in the British Museum"; Pandar's "Das
Pantheon d. Tschangtscha Hutuktu, " S. 83f.; Hsiang-chiao-p'i-pien,
ch. 2.
(3) Tseng-i-a-han-ching,
ch. 3 (Bun., No. 543, tr. A.D. 385) ; Fo-shuo-a-lo-han-chu-te-ching
(Bun., No. 897, tr. about 900).
(4) Vinaya Texts,
iii, p. 79.
(5)
Ch'ing-Pin-t'ou-lu-ching (or-fa) (Bun., No. 1,348, tr. 457).
(6)
Tsa-a-han-ching, ch. 23 (Bun., No. 544, tr. between 420 and 479).
(7)
Tsng-i-a-han-ching, ch. 20.
(8)
Ching-Pin-t'ou-ching.
(9) Divyavadana,
p. 402; Burnouf, Introd., p. 397; Tsa-a-han-ching, l.c.
(10) Ta-Sung-seng-shi-liao,
ch.2.
(11) Ken-pen-shuo-i-ch'ie-yu
Vinaya Yao-shi, ch. 16 (tr. by I-ching about 710)
(12)
Fo-shuo-a-lo-han-chu-te-ching.
(13) Tseng-i-a-han-ching,
chs. 3, 23.
(14)
Tsa-a-han-ching, ch. 5; A-lo-han-chu-te-ching.
(15) In the
Sarvata Vinaya Yao-shih, ch. 8, we find mention of the "Lion Town"
which lay between Sravasti and Rajagriha.
(16) Sarvata
Vinaya Yao-shih, ch. 17.
(17)
Tsa-a-han-ching, ch. 29.
(18)
Fen-pie-kung-te-lun, ch. 5 (Bun., No. 1,290, tr. perhaps about
200).
(19) Abhidharma
pa-kan-tu-lun, ch. 27 (Bun., No. 1,273, tr. 383).
(20) A-lo-han-chu-te-ching.
(21) Tseng-i-a-han-ching,
ch. 3.
(22)
Fen-pie-kung-te-lun, l.c.
(23) But the
Chinese pilgrims were taught that priyangu was the Indian name for
the chestnut.
(24) Tseng-i-a-han-ching,
ch. 3; Fen-pie-kung-te-lun, ch. 5.
(25)
Tsa-Pao-tsang-ching, Ch. 9 (Bun., No. 1,329, tr. 472).
(26)
Abhidharma-kosa-vyakhya-sastra, ch. 22 (Bun., No. 1,269, tr. 565) ;
Abhidharma-kosa-sastra, ch. 30 (Bun., No. 1,267, tr. 652).
(27) Na-hsien-pi-chiu-ching
(Bun., No 1,358, tr. between 317 and 420).
(28) " The
Questions of King Milinda Milinda," translated from the Pali by T.
W. Rhys Davids.
(29) Tseng-i-a-han-ching,
ch. 3.
(30) A-lo-han-chu-te-ching.
(31) Tseng-i-a-han-ching,
ch 11; Fen-pie-kung-te-lun, ch 5; Sarvata Vinaya Yao-Shih, ch. 17.
Compare the account of Chulla-Panthaka in Jataka (Chalmers), p. 14,
and see note at p. 20.
(32)
Fa-chu-pi-yu-ching, ch. 2 (Bun., No. 1,353, tr. about 300) ;
Ch'u-yao- ching, ch. 19 (Bun., No. 1,321, tr. 399).
(33) Tseng-i-a-han-ching,
l.c.
(34)
Abhidharma-pa-kan-tu-lun, ch. 27 (Bun., No. 1,273, tr. 383) ;
Abhidharma- fa-chih-lun, ch. 18 (Bun., No. 1,275, tr. about 660).
(35)
Fa-chu-pi-yu-ching, I.c.
(36) Tseng-i-a-han-ching,
chs. 3 and 22.
(37) " Travels
and Researches in Western China," p. 31.
(38) "Narrative
of a Journey to Lhasa," p. 145.
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