Buddhist Apocrypha: 生天經(偽造) The Scripture on birth in the Heavens

 生天經(偽造)

The Scripture on birth in the Heavens  (APOCRYPHAL)

This is the third of a series of buddhist apocrypha from that are collected in this 1931 edition of Chanmen Risong: 禪門日誦 Zen Daily Recitations. For an introduction to what this book is, you should read this post about another apocryphon in the same collection, the Scripture of Wondrous Sand

Unlike the others, this rather short apocryphon has a moral dimension, describing immoral acts that one must abstain from to have a fortunate rebirth in the Heavenly Realm. However, like all the other apocrypha in this collection, it contains an incantation. It is my speculation that this incantation caused the scripture to remain in circulation, perhaps as a funerary text. as far as i can tell, however, it is not used as such today, and the scripture, like most of the others in this collection, have ceased to be recited or printed. 

The Scripture as presented in the Zen Daily Recitations. 

https://books.google.com/books?id=qObnAAAAMAAJ&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&pg=PP94#v=onepage&q&f=false

  

 

如是我聞。一時佛在庵羅樹國。與大比丘。比丘尼。優婆塞。優婆夷。及諸大菩薩。眾所知識。俱在會坐說法。

Thus I heard:Once the Buddha was in the country anluoshu , with great bhikkius and bhikkiunis, upāsakas and. Upāsikās, as well as all the great bodhisattvas, and all the wise ones知識. Who gathered together to hear the dharma.  

 

時有天人。從座而起。胡跪合手。前白佛言。世尊。我死以來。得生三十三天。鬼神下拜。故身自摩枯骨。神言。此是我故身。

At that time, a heavenly person rose form his seat, knelt on one knew 胡跪 and placd his palms together, saying to the Buddha “World honoured one, Ever since I died, and was reborn in the heaven of the thirty-three, the ghosts and gods bow down to me, [while] my old body [has] been ground itself into a withered skeleton. The god said “This was my former body” 

 

 

世尊問言。汝因何得生三十三天。

The World honoured one asked “Why did you get reborn into the heaven of the Thirty-Three”. 

天人白佛言。世尊。我前身。曾受佛教。恭敬三寶故。

盡形不殺生。

盡形不偷賊。

盡形不邪淫。

盡形不毀謗。

盡形不欺誑。

盡形不妄語。

盡形不飲酒食肉。

盡形不貪嗔。

盡形不邪見。

是故得生天上。

The heavenly person said “World honoured one, in my previous incarnation, I received the teaching of the buddha, and respected the three jewels. 

To the end of my incarnation, I never killed; 

To the end of my incarnation, I never I never stole; 

To the end of my incarnation, I never lusted; 

To the end of my incarnation, I never slandered; 

To the end of my incarnation, I never cheated; 

To the end of my incarnation, I never said false words; 

To the end of my incarnation, I never drank wine or ate meat; 

To the end of my incarnation, I never got greedy or angry; 

To the end of my incarnation, I never had False Views 邪見

 Thus I got born in the Heavens. 

 

爾時世尊即説咒曰。

南無薩嚩怛哆薩哆喃。唵冒秩。薩婆訶。

At that time the buddha said the mantra

Namo sawa dando sado nan an motie sapohe 

 

爾時佛告天人。所願自然。皆得快樂。如是無極。十善之人。竝得生天應。以種種香花供養故身。

At that time, the Buddha told the Heavenly Person,  “Those who make those vows spontaneously, will all get happiness. Those who boundlessly practise the Ten Goodnesses, shall all get the reward of Heaven." Offerings were made with many kinds of incense and flowers to the [Heavenly Person's] former body. 

天人跪拜作禮。乘空而去。

The Heavenly Person knelt, prostrated and saluted, and ascending into the void, departed.