(17) 富商献供　天王呈钵

成道后，佛陀独处菩提树下四十九日，入解脱法喜，二富商行经，睹佛庄严德相，乃献酪蜜。四大天王（注5）龙宫取钵，化一成四，呈献佛陀，以盛供物，佛接供后，神通合四成一，此后持钵应人天供。

The Rich Made Offerings, the Heavenly King Offered Alms Bowl.

After the path to enlightenment was completed, Buddha sat alone under the Bodhi tree for forty-nine days, rejoicing at finding the way to liberation from suffering. Two wealthy merchants passed by and so impressed by the sublimities of the Buddha that they offered the Buddha honey milk. The Four Heavenly Kings (5) took an alms bowl from the dragon’s palace and turned one into four, and used them to hold offerings for Buddha. When the offering was over, the four bowls turned into one again and became the alms bowl of Buddha in which offerings by human and heaven realms would be placed.

注五

　　四大天王：东方持国天王、南方增长天王、西方广目天王、北方多闻天王。为帝释之外将。须弥山之半腹有一山，名由犍陀罗。山有四头，四王各居之，各护一天下，因之称为护世四天王。其所居云四王天，是六欲天之第一，天处之最初也。参考《佛学大辞典》

(5)The titles of the four deva-kings are: The Eastern Deva ,keeper of kingdom; the Southern Deva, of increase and growth; the Western Deva who are Broad-Eyed; and the Northern Deva who hears much and is well-versed. They are external generals of King Indra, the mighty Lord of Devas. Half way up the Sumeru Mountain lays the Gandhara Mountain. The mountain has four sides each housing the domain of one Deva King who protects one world in each direction. Hence, the four deva-kings are also known as the
Guardians of the Worlds. They reside in the atur-maharaja-kayikas, or the four heavens of the four deva-kings, the first tier in the Desire Realm, the beginning of Celestial Realm.

(18) 梵天请法　甘露门开

佛陀以众生顽愚，难信真理，想入涅槃（注6），免众生谤法受罪，时梵天出现，恳请普施甘露法雨，滋润众生田，世尊应请，法筵广开，乃有华严、阿含、方等、般若、法华涅槃五时（注7）说教。

Brahmadeva Invited Buddha to Preach, thus the Door of Nourishing Dews Opened.

The Buddha saw that sentient beings were stubborn and foolish, they will hardly trust the truth, and so he pondered about entering nirvana (6) as a way to prevent them from blaspheming the Dharma. However, Brahmadeva appeared and invited the Buddha to preach the Dharma to nourish the field of sentient beings. Buddha accepted the invitation and thus, began the five period (7) teachings of Avatamsaka, Agamas, Vaipulya, Prajna, and the Lotus Nirvana.

注六

　　涅槃华译灭度、寂灭、圆寂、大寂定等，是超越时空的真如境界，也是不生不灭的意思。参考《佛学常见辞汇》

(6)Nirvana refers to the state of liberation through full enlightenment, in which one abides in neither Samsara nor ultimate quiescence. (Excerpted from The Seeker’s Glossary of Buddhism.)

注七

　　五时指天台智者大师，判释尊所说之法，为五时八教。五时是就时间的先后分出，即华严时、阿含时、方等时、般若时、法华涅槃时。参考《佛学常见辞汇》

(7)The “five periods” is a chronological account of Buddha’s teachings compiled by Master Zhi-zhe of the Tian-tai school. (Excerpted from The Seeker’s Glossary of Buddhism.)

(19) 初转法轮　度五比丘

为实现诺言，佛陀动身前往鹿野苑（注8）度憍陈如等，五侍遥见佛陀，互约不礼，却为佛陀万德庄严所摄，恭敬下跪，佛说「苦集灭道」四圣谛义，法轮（注9）初转，五侍得证阿罗汉，是为五比丘，于是三宝（注10）成立。

At the First Turn of the Dharma Wheel, the Five Former Attendants were Converted.

In order to fulfill his promise, the Buddha set out to the Deer Park (8) at Sarnath to convert his five former attendants, among them was Ajnata-Kaundinya and the rest. When they saw the Buddha from a distance, they concurred to ignore the Buddha. As the Buddha approached, they could not help but be moved by the Buddha’s sublimities. Together they knelt down and listened to Buddha’s teaching on the Four Noble Truths, that “of pain, of coming together, of extinguishing of pain, and of the way to such extinction.” Thus began the first turning of the Dharma wheel (9), and the five attendants attained arhatship and became known as the five bhiksus. This marked the establishment of the Triple Gems (10).

注八

　　鹿野苑位于古印度中部的波罗奈国， 旧称伽尸国，近世称为贝那拉斯（Benares），即今之瓦拉那西（Varanasi）。据《大唐西域记》卷七载，此国都城临西殑伽河。城西北之鹿野苑，即佛陀成道后最初教化五比丘之地，尔后，佛常游化至此教化众生，係六大说法处之一。

(8)The Deer Park (Mrgadava) in Sarnath located on the outskirts of Benares, AKA Varanasi. It was here where Buddha Sakyamuni first taught the contents of his enlightenment to the original five disciples. It was also one of the six major locations where the Buddha later gave lectures to the public.

注九

　　法轮是比喻佛所说之法，能够辗碎众生的一切烦恼，好像巨轮能够辗碎一切的岩石和沙砾一样。另一说是佛所说之法，辗转传人，好像车轮的旋转，无远弗届。参考《佛学常见辞汇》

(9)Dharma Wheel symbolizes the preaching of a Buddha. A Dharma wheel is likened to a wheel because it crushes all illusions. It also symbolizes that the Dharma passes on to infinite generations like a wheel keeps turning and reaches unlimited distance. (Excerpted
from The Seeker’s Glossary of Buddhism.)

注十

　　三宝係指为佛教徒所尊敬供养之佛宝、法宝、僧宝，又作三尊。历史上实存之佛，即指于印度成正觉之佛身释尊为佛宝；佛陀之正觉内容、所说之法为法宝；修学佛所
说之教并传诸后世之僧团为僧宝。

　　佛，乃指觉悟人生之真象，而能教导他人之佛教38 教主，或泛指一切诸佛；法，为根据佛陀所悟而向人宣说之教法；僧，指修学教法之佛弟子集团。以上三者，威德至高无上，永不变移，如世间之宝，故称三宝。参考《佛学常见辞汇》

(10)Triple Gem represents the Buddha, which is the supremelyenlightened being, the Dharma, which is the teaching imparted by Buddha, and the Sangha, which is the congregation of monks and nuns, or of genuine Dharma followers. In Buddhism, these three fundamental aspects that form a basis for belief and practice are extremely precious, thus the name of Three Jewels, or Triple Gem. (Excerpted from The Seeker’s Glossary of Buddhism.)

(20) 智度耶舍　僧团建立丘

佛于鹿野苑度化耶舍长者子及其亲友，共五十人为徒，都证得阿罗汉，建立常随众僧团组织。耶舍的母亲皈依佛陀，成为佛教第一位优婆夷（注11）。

Yasas was Converted, Order of Monks Established.

Buddha ordained Yasas and his relatives, fifty people in total, to form the first regular order of monks who would follow Buddha as he moved around to teach. Yasas’s mother took refuge with the Buddha and became the first upasika (11) (Buddhist lay-woman) in Buddhist history.

注十一

　　优婆夷是梵语，华言清淨女，谓虽在家，亦能坚持不杀生、不偷盗、不邪淫、不妄语、不饮酒等五戒，清淨自守，故名优婆夷。参考《三藏法数》

(11)Upasika is a Sanskrit term for a female lay-disciple or laywoman who vows to observe the five precepts of no killing, no stealing, no sexual misconduct, no lying, no drinking intoxicants. She was pure and abided strictly to these precepts. She was thus
named Upasika.

(21) 引三迦叶　归正觉门

拜火教优楼频螺迦叶、那提迦叶、伽耶迦叶三兄弟，共有一千弟子，佛陀入火龙窟智伏频螺迦叶及其弟子，教令弃除贪瞋痴三毒火，二位弟弟随后折服，亦皈佛门，一千人从此常随佛侧为常随众。

Leading the Three Kasyapa Brothers to the Right Awakening.

Uruvilva Kasyapa, Nadi Kasyapa and Kaya Kasyapah had one thousand followers who worshipped the Hindu fire god, Agni. Buddha went into the fire serpent grotto and conquered the fiery serpent. Uruvila Kasyapa and his followers were in awe. They listened to Buddha’s summon and let go of the three poisonous fire of greed, anger and delusion. The other two brothers were later converted and took refuge in the Buddha. From then on, one thousand followers became the disciples of Buddha.

(22) 王城说法　祇园演教

舍利弗、目犍连闻偈顿悟，带二百弟子皈投佛下，不久，三迦叶来朝，从此一千二百五十馀清淨圣众，常随佛侧听法。入王舍城说法，得频婆娑罗王献竹林精舍。北方舍卫国渴法滋润，给孤独长者，黄金佈地，感祇陀太子献树，筑成精舍，祇树给地命名祇树给孤独园，于是法流北印。

Preaching at Rajagha, Teaching at Jetavana Park.

After listening to the Buddha’s gatha, Sariputra and Maudgalyayana instantly awakened and led 200 students to follow the Buddha, followed by the three Kasyapas who led more than 1250 students to follow Buddha in his journey. When they arrived at the Rajagha city, King of Bimbisara offered the Venuvana-vihara to the Buddha. The northern state of Sravasti also yearned to hear the Dharma, and by the sincerity and enormous wealth of the elder Anathapindika, he impressed Prince Jeta to sell him a forest glade and erected monasteries in the named Jetavana park for the order of monks to stay, and thus began the propagation
of Dharma in northern India.

(23) 返迦毘国　度弟难陀

佛受淨饭父王恳请回迦毘罗卫国，适母弟「难陀」册封太子、结婚两大喜事，佛陀慰服父心，使难陀调伏情欲，随佛出家，成为十大弟子调伏诸根第一。

Back to Kapilavastu and Redeemed his Cousin, Nanda.

King Suddhodana invited the Buddha to go back to Kapilavastu when Nanda, son of Buddha’s maternal aunt, was about to be crowned and married. Buddha consoled his father and convinced Nanda to subdue his sensual desires to become a monk. Nanda later became one of the ten chief disciples of Buddha most famous for his ability to control his senses.

(24) 阿难众等　投入僧团

佛回国后，不久从弟阿难、阿冕楼驮、摩诃那摩、提婆达多等随佛出家，罗侯罗随舍利弗出家，皆为法门龙象，罗侯罗密行第一，阿难多闻第一，结集经典，正法长留。

Ananda and Others Joined the Sangha.

Not long after Buddha’s arrival at Kapilavastu, his cousins Ananda; Aniruddha; Mahanaman; Devadatta and others joined the Sanhga (order of monks), while Buddha’s son, Rahula, was ordained by Sariputra; and all had become great monks in due time. Rahula became the chief of esoteric practice, and Ananda became the chief among Buddha’s hearers, who helped in the compilation of the Buddhist canon, thereby allowing the Dharma to remain in this world.