1. Introduction

      1.1. Explanatory notes concerning the fragments

    In the winter of 1974, in the Yanqi district of the Xinjiang Autonomous Region, China, close to a 1000-Buddha Temple, some forest workers discovered accidentally 44 leaves, i. e., 88 pages of the manuscript remains of a Tocharian A version of the Maitreyasamiti-Nāṭaka. Although they are far from complete, they are the longest manuscript remains of this text discovered till now and are therefore worth notice. The original manuscripts are written in Central Asian slanting Brāhmī on yellowish paper, circa 32 cm in length and 18.5 cm in width. Most of them contain eight lines on every page; on a few of them, only six lines survive. Having been burnt by fire, the manuscript remains are heavily damaged, mostly on the left side; the left margin and corners are always entirely lost. There is not even a single page or a single line complete. On the most damaged pages, there remain only a few words. The order of the pages is totally in confusion, which causes a lot of difficulties for the deciphering work. A few manuscript remains of the same text have already been published in E. Sieg and W. Siegling's Tocharische Sprachreste (Berlin-Leipzig, 1921); they are in a similarly damaged condition.

    1.2. Fragments of the Maitreyasamiti-Nāṭaka published by E. Sieg and W. Siegling in Tocharische Sprachreste

    In 1906, the German archeologists Albert Grüinwedel and Albert von Le Coq discovered during the third Prussian Turfan Expedition some Tocharian A fragments of the Maitreyasamiti-Nāṭaka texts in Xinjiang, China. These fragments were later on published by two German scholars, Emil Sieg and Wilhelm Siegling, who had deciphered the Tocharian language, in two volumes, one containing facsimiles, the other the romanized transliterations (Berlin-Leipzig: Walter de Gruyter ＆ Co., 1921). In the following, I enumerate the texts of the Maitreyasamiti-Nāṭaka according to the original numbers of Sieg and Siegling.

    No. 212-216

    Here we find, among others, the names Bādhari, Mogharāja, Maitreya (Metrak), Vaiśravaṇa, and Indra. In 212-213, we read part of the list of the Mahāpuruṣalakṣaṇas ("marks of the Great Man") of Śākyamuni. In 215, there is the name Nirdhana, who asks Bādhari to give him 500 dinars. Here we find also the name Pūrṇabhadra.

    No. 217-238, 239-242

    Here we have the text of the Maitreyāvadānavyākāraṇa. This is a different work which, although the leading role is also played by Maitreya, is not a drama, but a kāvya, i. e., an epic-like poem.

    No. 251-294

    Here again we have the Maitreyasamiti-Nāṭaka.

    No. 295-305

    We find here a "Zweite Abschrift" of our text, as Sieg and Siegling call it.

    No. 306-310

    "Eine dritte Abschrift" of our text.

    No. 311-311A

    Sieg and Siegling write: "Die Erwähnung des Maitreya (Metrak) in Strophe 2 weist darauf hin, dass der Text der Maitreya-Literatur angehört."

    No. 348-349

    Sieg and Siegling write: "Den Inhalt bilden Bitten an Maitreya."

    No. 399-404

    Sieg and Siegling are of the opinion that "Das Werk war jedenfalls eine Avadānasammlung." In No. 399 "treten sprechend auf Maitreya, die Bodhisattvas Padmaprabha, Jvalaprabha and Maṇijvāla und die Prinzessin Padmāvatī."

    1.3. Old Uighur version or translation

    There are two copies of the same version, one discovered by the German Expeditions to the Turfan oasis in Xinjiang, China in 1902-1914, and now kept in Germany. This copy is incomplete and sometimes badly damaged. The manuscript remains were edited and published by the German scholar, Annemarie von Gabain, in her work:

    Maitrisimit. Faksimile der alttürkischen Version eines Werkes der buddhistischen Vaibhāṣika-Schule. Teil I mit Beiheft I. ― Teil II mit Beiheft II (Wiesbaden: Franz Steiner Verlag, 1957-1961).

    This copy was translated into German by Şinasi Tekin in:

    Maitrisimit. Die uigurische Übersetzung eines Werkes der buddhistischen Vaibhāṣika-Schule. Schriften zur Geschichte und Kultur des alten Orients, Berliner Turfantexte IX (Berlin: Akademie Verlag, 1980). 1. Teil: Transliteration, Übersetzung, Anmerkungen. ― 2. Teil: Analytischer und rückläufiger Index.

    A second copy was discovered in Hami, Xinjiang, in April 1959 by an Uighur shepherd; it is now kept in the Xinjiang Regional Museum, in Urumqi, China. The text was published by Israpil Yüsüp, Dolqun Qambiri and Abduqeyum Ḫoğa:

    Qädimki Uyġur yeziġidiki Maitrisimit. 1

    [Chinese title: Huihu wen «Mile huijian ji.» 1.]

    (Urumqi: Šinğan Ḫalq Nešriyati/Xinjiang renmin chubanshe, 1988).

    This copy was published with the Old Uighur original facsimile text, romanized transcription, Chinese translation, and notes. Only the prologue and the chapters 1-4 were published. A continuation is expected.

    Beside the above mentioned works, a few Chinese scholars, including Prof. Geng Shimin and Prof. Li Jingwei, transcribed and translated into Chinese some chapters from the original Uighur texts, which were published in different Chinese periodicals. I will not enumerate the titles and references here, as foreign scholars not familiar with the Chinese language will not be able to use them.

    Prof. Geng Shimin (University of National Minorities, Beijing, China), in collaboration with Prof. Hans-Joachim Klimkeit (University of Bonn, Germany), published some translations of the Uighur version of the Maitrisimit:

    1) "Das 16. Kapitel der Hami-Version der Maitrisimit", Journal of Turkish Studies 9 (1985): 71-132.
    2) "«Der Herabstieg des Bodhisattva Maitreya vom Tuṣita-Götterland zur Erde》. Das 10. Kapitel der Hami-Handschrift der Maitrisimit", Altorientalische Forschungen 14 (1987): 350-376.
    3) "«Das Erscheinen des Bodhisattva». Das 11. Kapitel der Hami-Handschrift der Maitrisimit", Altorientalische Forschungen 15 (1988): 315-366.
    4) Das Zusammentreffen mit Maitreya. Die ersten fünf Kapitel der Hami-Version der Maitrisimit. Teil I: Text, Übersetzung und Kommentar. — Teil II: Faksimiles und Indices (Asiatische Forschungen, Bd. 103), Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, 1988. — Other collaborators of this volume were Helmut Eimer and Jens Peter Laut; the book contains texts from the prologue (yükünč) and chapters 1-4.
    5) "《Die Weltflucht des Bodhisattva». Das 13. Kapitel der Hami-Handschrift der Maitrisimit", Altorientalische Forschungen 18 (1991): 264-296.
    6) "«Der Gang zum Bodhi-Baum». Das 14. Kapitel der Hami-Handschrift der Maitrisimit", Materialia Turcica 16 (1992 [93])： 25-47.
    7) "«Das Erlangen der unvergleichlichen Buddhawürde». Das 15. Kapitel der Hami-Handschrift der Maitrisimit, Altorientalische Forschungen 20 (1993): 182-234; "Nachtrag", ibid.: 416-437. Papers n° 2, 3, 5, 6, 7 were prepared in collaboration also with J. P. Laut.

    In the following edition of the Yanqi manuscript of the Tocharian A text, the reader will find references to the Turfan recension and to the Hami recension of the Uighur text Maitrisimit.

    1.4. Parallel versions in other languages

    To the Tocharian A version of the Maitreyasamiti-Nāṭaka, there are many parallel versions in different languages other than Uighur.

    1.4.1. Chinese

    In the Chinese translation of the Tripiṭaka, there are numerous parallels to the Tocharian text; their degree of similarity varies greatly. It is very difficult and indeed not necessary to enumerate all of them. A. von Gabain (1957: 16-17; 1961: 12-13) provides a rather detailed description of some of the Maitreya works in the Chinese Tripiṭaka. In the following I choose only a few important ones, and quote their names. In section 5, giving the outline of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 5th acts, I shall translate some of them from Chinese into English.

    1.4.1.1. Zengyi ahan jing, k. 44.

    Répertoire du Canon bouddhique sino-japonais, édition de Taishō (Fascicule annexe du Hōbōgirin, Paris-Tōkyō, 1978) no. 125 (Skt. Ekottarāgama = Pāli Aṅguttara-Nikāya).

    Taishō-Tripiṭaka, Vol. 2, pp. 787c -789c .

    1.4.1.2. Xian yu jing, k. 12

    Répertoire du Canon bouddhique sino-japonais, édition de Taishō, no. 202. Taishō-Tripiṭaka, Vol. 4, pp. 432b -434a .

    Because this is the most complete story of Bāvarī (the same as in Pāli, Bādhari in Tocharian), I shall translate the first half of it into English in section 1.5.1.

    1.4.2. Tibetan

    Three Tibetan parallel versions are mentioned by A. von Gabain (1957: 17; 1961: 12), two of them translated from Sanskrit, one from Pāli.

    1.4.3. Khotanese Saka

    See the first edition: Ernst Leumann, Maitreyasamiti, das Zukunftsideal der Buddhisten. Die nordarische Schilderung in Text und Übersetzung. 1-2, Strassburg: Karl J. Trübner, 1919. This work is the chapter 22 of the manual of Buddhism known as the Book of Zambasta; a new edition and translation are given in: The Book of Zambasta. A Khotanese poem on Buddhism, edited and translated by Ronald E, Emmerick (London Oriental Series, vol. 21), London: Oxford University Press, 1968, pp. 301-341.

    1.4.4. Sogdian

    A Sogdian version of our text has not yet been discovered. Olaf Hansen mentioned in Jahrbuch der Preussischen Akademie der Wissenschaften 1939: 68 a book concerning Maitreya written in Sogdian (vide A. von Gabain, 1961: 13).

    1.4.5. Pāli

    1.4.5.1. Cakkavatti-Sīhanāda-Suttanta, chapter 26 of the Dīgha-Nikāya

    See the Dīgha Nikāya, vol. Ⅲ, edited by J. Estlin Carpenter (Pali Text Society), London: Luzac ＆ Co., 1910, reprinted 1992, pp. 58 - 79. The text contains the prophecy of the birth of Metteyya (= Maitrey a) in the future city of Ketumatī. Translations: R. Otto Franke, Dīghanikāya. Das Buch der langen Texte des buddhistischen Kanons in Auswahl übersetzt, Göttingen: Vandenhoeck ＆ Ruprecht, 1913, pp. 260-272; Karl Eugen Neumann, Die Reden Gotamo Buddho's aus der langeren Sammlung Dīghanikāyo des Pāli-Kanons, Bd. III, Munchen-Leipzig: R. Piper ＆ Co., 1918, pp. 57-79; Dialogues of the Buddha, translated by T. W. and C. A. F. Rhys Davids, Part III (Pali Text Society Translation Series no. 33), London: Oxford University Press, 1921, reprinted 1995, pp. 53-76.

    1.4.5.2. Anāgatavaṃsa

    Edited by J. Minayeff, Journal of the Pali Text Society. 1886, pp. 33-53; facsimile reprint in Journal of the Pali Text Society. Vol. II (1885, 1886, 1887), London, 1978.

    1.4.5.3. Pārāyanavagga, chapter V of the SuttaNipāta

    See the SuttaNipāta, ed. by Dines Andersen and Helmer Smith (Pali Text Society), London: Oxford University Press, 1913, reprinted 1990, chapter 5, pp. 190-223. Translations: V. Fausböll, The Sutta-Nipâta. A Collection of Discourses (Sacred Books of the East, Vol. X, Part II), 2nd edition revised, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1898; K. R. Norman, The Group of Discourses (SuttaNip, ta), Vol. I (Pali Text Society Translation Series, no. 45), London: Routledge ＆ Kegan Paul Ltd., 1984, pp. 159-185.

    1.4.6. Sanskrit

    Maitreyāvadānavyākāraṇa, in the Divyāvadāna; see Edward B. Cowell and Robert A. Neil, The Divyâvadâna. A Collection of Early Buddhist Legends. Sanskrit text in transcription, edited from the Nepalese manuscripts in Cambridge and Paris. First published, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1886, reprinted Amsterdam: Oriental Press, 1970, chap. 3, pp. 55-66.

    1.5. Brief outline of the contents of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 5th acts

    The story of Bādhari and Maitreya seems to have been quite popular even in ancient India. We find in the SuttaNipāta in Pāli (vide supra) the name Bāvarī and the questions asked to the Buddha by his disciples.

    There are different versions of this story. In order to give the readers a general idea of the very involved and complicated story, I translate in the following first one version from the Chinese Tripiṭaka, not necessarily the standard one, but a least a complete one. Then I shall give a brief outline of each above-mentioned act of the Tocharian version. In my translation, I try to follow the wording of the text as closely as possible.

    1.5.1. From the "Tales of the Wise and the Fool"

    Damamūka (-nidānasūtra) or the Sūtra on the Cause, or Tales of the Wise and the Fool. Chapter 57: Bāvarī = Taishō edition of the Tripiṭaka, Vol. 4, pp. 432b -434a .

    So I have heard. Once the Buddha stayed in Rājagṛha City on Gṛdhrakūṭa-Hill, together with 1,250 venerable disciples. At this time, the king of Vārāṇasī (= Benares), whose name was Pramada, had a chancellor who begot a boy, endowed with the 32 Mahāpuruṣalakṣaṇas [marks of the Great Man] and all (80) Anuvyañjanas [minor marks], with purple-gold colored body and good-looking appearance. The chancellor saw all these and was doubly pleased. Thus, he summoned a fortuneteller and ordered him to practice divination. The fortuneteller looked carefully at the baby and said: "Wonderful! He is endowed with all Lakṣaṇas and Anuvyañjanas, and provided with all merits, and his intelligence and eloquence are perfect and without hindrance, exceeding all expectations." The chancellor was most pleased and wanted to give him a name. The fortuneteller asked again: "What wonders have appeared since his birth?" The chancellor answered: "The wonders were unusual. His mother was by nature not kindhearted. During her pregnancy she became merciful to distressed people, showed mercy to common people, and supported and protected them equally." The fortuneteller was pleased and said: "This is the desire of the baby!" and gave him therefore the name Metrak (Skt. Maitreya ‘Merciful’). The parents were pleased and joyous beyond measure in their minds. The distinguished name of their son became known throughout the country. The king heard it, became afraid and said: "I think, this little boy is distinguished in name and form. If he accumulates high virtues, he will surely seize my throne. Before he grows up, I must annihilate him for sure. Waiting too long will bring me surely disaster." Thus thinking he said to the chancellor: "I have heard, you have just got a son with distinguished appearance. Bring him to me! I would like to see him." At this time, the people in the palace heard the news about the baby's radiance. They knew that the king was hatching a sinister plot and felt as if hot water and fire were pouring into their hearts. The baby had an uncle (mother's brother), whose name was Bāvarī [the same as in the Suttanipāta in Pāli], living in Pāṭaliputra. He was the Purohita [priest] of that country. He was wise, learned, farsighted, and superhumanly intelligent. He had 500 disciples who followed him constantly and asked him for advice. At this time, the chancellor loved his son tenderly and was afraid that his son might be slain (by the king). He made secret plans and dispatched somebody to send his son on an elephant to his uncle. His uncle saw Metrak and his good-looking appearance, loved him, and brought him up with special care. He respected him in his mind. When Metrak grew up, gradually he taught him to learn. The boy could learn on one day more than other people in one year. After learning less than one year he knew perfectly all the classical canons. At this time Bāvarī saw that his nephew after only a short period of learning could already master all books. He wished to arrange a meeting in order to display his abilities. He sent then a disciple to Vārāṇasī to inform the chancellor of what the boy had already learned and asked for jewels to arrange such a meeting. On the way the disciple heard about the immeasurable merits of the Buddha. He wanted to see him and went directly to the Buddha. Before he came to him, he was devoured on the way by a tiger. Owing to his merit, he was reborn in the first four heavens. Bāvarī exhausted all his properties, collected money and arranged a big festival to which he invited Brahmins. After everything was ready, he supplied meals and all kinds of delicious food. After the festival, he gave the dakṣiṇā [alms]. Everybody got 500 gold coins. After the almsgiving, he had exhausted all his money and valuables. A Brahmin by the name of Lao-du-cha (Raudrākṣa) came last of all. He saw Bāvarī (and said): "I come last of all. Although I cannot get any food, yet you ought to give me 500 gold coins according to the rule." Bāvarī answered: "All my properties are exhausted. I really am not able to fulfill your wish." Lao-du-cha said: "I have heard that you are giving alms and therefore come here with good hope. How is it possible for me to see you in vain, without being favored by you with alms? If you really refuse to give me anything, after seven days your head will be split into seven pieces." At this time, after hearing these words, Bāvarī thought to himself: "In the world there are malicious curses and other bewitchments. This matter cannot be taken as slight. If it were really so, and all my properties have already been exhausted, I have no way out." Thinking thus, he was worried and deeply terrified. The above-mentioned disciple who was reborn in heaven, saw from afar his teacher worrying without any support. He descended from heaven, came to his teacher and asked him: "Why are you worrying?" His teacher told in detail what happened. The god heard his words and instantly told him with respect: "Raudrākṣa does not know the law of ‘top’ [Pāli muddha, Skt. mūrdhan]. He is a foolish, bewitched, bad, and evil man, what can he actually do? Why do you worry about this? Now only the Buddha knows best the law of ‘top’. He is an immeasurable king of Dharma. You can seek refuge with him." At this time, Bāvarī heard the god speaking about the Buddha and asked him again: "Who is the Buddha?" The god said: "The Buddha was born in Kapilavastu in King Śuddhodana's family. He was born from the right side of his mother's upper body. Being just born, he went seven steps. He was called the Bhagavat of gods and human beings, being endowed with 32 Mahāpuruṣalakṣaṇas and 80 Anuvyañjanas, glorifying heaven and earth with light, the gods Brahmā and Śakra being his attendants. The 32 auspicious signs were astonishing and brilliant. The fortuneteller came with respect to him and foretold two possibilities. If he stays in his home, he will be a Cakravartin-emperor; if he leaves his home and becomes a monk, he will be a Buddha. He saw old age, sickness, and death and took no interest in his throne. He went out of the palace and left the capital. He practiced austerities for six years. He defeated under a Bodhi tree 18 myriads (koṭi) of Māras, In the latter part of the night, he was enlightened, endowed completely with 3 vidyas, 6 ṛddhis, 10 balas, abhaya and āveṇikā buddhadharmāḥ, [The enumeration here is not quite in order, because the 18 āveṇikā buddhadharmāḥ consist normally of: ten powers (bald), four confidences in oneself (catvāri vaiśāradyāni), three applications of awareness (trīṇi smṛtyupasthānāni), and great compassion (mahākaruṇā). ] He went to Vārāṇasī. He turned the Wheel of the Law (dharmacakra) for the first time. The kleśas of the five men headed by Kauṇ ḍinya ended. 80,000 gods got the dharmacakṣur-viśuddha. Numberless gods and men cherished the longing for the great perfect wisdom (mahābodhi). He went again to Māgadha, where he rescued Urubilvā-Kāśyapa, and Śāriputra, Mahāmaudgalyāyana, etc. (i. e., caused them to become monks). He had now 1,250 monks as his disciples. They formed a Community (saṅgha). Their merits and intelligence could not be counted (i. e., they were numberless and boundless). In short he was called the Buddha. Now he is staying in Rājagṛha, on the Gṛhrakūṭa-Hill." As Bāvarī heard the praise of the virtue of Buddha, he thought: "There must be a Buddha. This is stated in my books. The Buddha-star is appearing. The heaven and earth tremble vehemently. A sage will be born. Now all the things have happened. This must be meant." He ordered then the 16 disciples including Metrak to go to see Gautama. They were to look for his Laksanas and Anuvyanjanas. "If he is endowed with all these, you then bother him by putting questions to him in your minds: «How many marks does our teacher have?» Now I have only two marks: one, my hair is blue; the other, I have a long and broad tongue. If he knows it, you have further to bother him by putting another question to him in your minds:《How old is now our teacher Bāvarī?» Now I am 120 years old. If he knows it, bother him in your minds again: «To what caste does my teacher Bāvarī belong？》If you want to know my caste, I am a Brahmin. If he gives the right answer, bother him again in your minds: 《How many disciples does my teacher Bāvarī have?» Now I have 500 disciples. If he gives the right number, he is really the Buddha. You all must become his disciples. You send one person to tell me the news." At this time Metrak and the others went to Rājagṛha, and arrived at the Gṛdhrakūṭa-Hill nearby. They saw the Buddha's foot marks endowed with 1,000 wheel marks, so brilliant like a picture. They asked the people: "Whose foot marks are these?" Somebody answered: "These are Buddha's." At this time Metrak and the others with admiration and respect walked to and fro beside the foot marks. Their admiration increased in anticipation. At this time a bhikṣuṇī [nun], Salā by name, took a dead insect and threw it onto the Buddha's foot marks. She showed it to Metrak and others. Everybody saw it. (The bhikṣuṇī said:) "You all highly praised these foot marks. He tramples to death living beings — what is wonderful with it?" Metrak and others stepped forward to look closely at the form of the insect: it was an insect which had died naturally. They asked then the bhikṣuṇī: "Whose disciple are you?" The bhikṣuṇī answered: "I am a disciple of the Buddha." At this time everyone said to himself: "Who would expect that among the disciples of the Buddha, there is such a person!" They went gradually to the residence of the Buddha. They saw from afar the Bhagavat glorified by lights. All the marks were brilliant there. They counted then his marks, two of them being hidden. The Buddha then stretched his tongue covering his own face. Again with superhuman power he showed them his own penis. They saw that the number of the marks was complete and were greatly pleased. Then they acted according to the instructions of their teacher. They tried to put the Buddha in a difficult position by asking in their minds: "How many marks does our teacher have?" The Buddha answered from afar: "Only two marks: the first, blue hair; the second, a long and broad tongue." They again tried to create difficulties for the Buddha by asking in their minds: "How old is now our teacher Bāvarī?" The Buddha answered from afar: "Your teacher Bāvarī is 120 years old." After hearing these words they again created difficulties by asking in their minds: "To what caste does our teacher Bāvarī belong?" The Buddha answered from afar: "Your teacher Bāvarī belongs to the Brahmin caste." After hearing these words, they again created difficulties by asking in their minds: "How many disciples does our teacher Bāvarī have?" The Buddha answered from afar: "Your teacher has 500 disciples." At this time all the men present here, after hearing what the Buddha had said, wondered very much: "How did the Tathāgata manage to tell?" And then all the disciples kneeled down and asked: "Why did the Bhagavat say just these words?" The Buddha told the bhikṣus: "There is a Bāvarī in the country of Pāṭaliputra. He sent 16 disciples to come to my place, in order to see my marks and put difficult questions to me in their minds. Therefore I answered them one by one." At this time Metrak and the others heard the answers of the Buddha which were precisely what they thought; no answer was wrong. They felt deep admiration and went to the Buddha, kneeled down with heads and faces touching the ground, moved back and sat by the side of the Buddha. The Buddha preached the Law (dharma) to them. The 16 young men got the purification of religious insight (dharmacakṣur-viśuddha). Everyone stood up from the seat and asked the Buddha to permit them to leave the home. The Buddha said: "Welcome!" Their beards and hair fell down by themselves, kāṣāyas [yellow robes] were put on their bodies. They became śramaṇas [religious mendicants]. The Buddha again made use of different means to preach to them; 15 of them became Arhats. At this time Metrak and the others consulted among themselves: "Our teacher Bāvarī is now far away from here. We must send somebody to inform him." Among the 16 young men, one was called Piṅgiya, who was the son of Bāvarī's sister. The people sent him to bring the news to Bāvarī. He came back to his native country, to the home of Bāvarī, and told him all in detail. After hearing these news, Bāvarī was pleased in his mind. He stood up from his seat, kneeled down, put thd hollowed hands together, facing Rājagṛha, said earnestly and sincerely: "I am living now in a holy age, which is an exceptional opportunity. I wish to see your face and get instructions from you. I am too old, my feet are now feeble. Although I am pious and sincere, yet I cannot come to see you personally. You, the Bhagavat, are infinitely merciful and know the thoughts of other men beforehand. I beg you to honor me with your presence and save me." At this time, the Tathāgata knew his intention from afar. In a moment just like a man crooks and stretches his arm he came to Bāvarī. After worshipping the Buddha, Bāvarī raised his head and saw the Bhagavat instantly. He was pleasantly surprised and jumped up. He saluted and extended his greetings and asked him politely and sincerely to sit down and stood at the Buddha's side in attendance. The Buddha preached the Law (dharma) to him. Bāvarī got the status of Anāgāmin. At this time the Bhagavat came back soon to the Gṛdhrakūṭa-Hill. At this time king Śuddhodana heard that the Buddha was enlightened and was wandering to teach his doctrines and caused many people to leave the home. He missed his son very much with pious admiration and wanted to see him. He asked Udaya: "Go to the Buddha to inform him of my intention and say respectfully to Siddhārtha: You formerly promised to come back after enlightenment. Now I hope you will keep your former promise and come back at the right time to see me." Udaya arrived at Buddha's place and told him in detail what the king had said. Buddha agreed instantly: "After seven days I will go there." Udaya was pleased, came back and reported the news to the king. Hearing this, king Śuddhodana told his ministers: "Udaya came back and told me that the Buddha will come. You have to adorn the city and make it clean to the utmost degree, clean the streets, erect flags and banners all over the city, provide abundant flowers and perfumes and wait for consecrating him." After finishing the adoration works, the king with his ministers went as far as 40 li outside the city to welcome the Bhagavat. At this time, the Tathāgata was with the Community (saṅgha), and eight Vajrapāṇis (protecting gods) standing in the eight directions. At this time four heavenly kings (catvāro mahārājānaḥ) formed the vanguard. Then Indra and the gods dwelling in the realm of desire (kāmāva-carā-devāḥ) stood at his left side in attendance. God Brahmā and the gods of the world of form (rūpadhātu-devāḥ) stood at his right side in attendance. The Community of monks (bhikṣu-saṅgha) followed behind him. The Buddha among all of them shed tremendous light, glorified heaven and earth, his dignity surpassing sun and moon. He flew with all his attendants and arrived near the king. He descended as low as human height. The king, his ministers, common people, their wives and court-maids, and the servants saw the Community (saṅgha) in the middle of which stood the Buddha bright and glorious, just like the moon among the stars. The king was highly pleased, and unconsciously kneeled down. After the worshipping ceremony he asked about the Buddha's health and came back together with him to the city. The Buddha stayed in the monastery (saṅghārāmd) of Nyagrodha. At this time the law of the land made a difference between men and women. The king, the ministers, and the people listened to the Law (dharma) preaching everyday and were enlightened by the Law, many of them being rescued. The women felt grudge and resentment, (saying): "Although the Buddha and the Community (saṅgha) come back to his native country, yet only the men have the good fortune to see him and hear his preachings. We women alone are not favored by the Buddha." The Buddha knew their thoughts and then told the king: "From now on, you order that men and women are allowed to hear my preaching every day in turn, one day for each group." Hereafter, many people were rescued. At this time Buddha's aunt (stepmother) Mahāprajāpatī Gautamī, (because) Buddha had become a monk, spun and wove with her own hands and prepared beforehand a piece of gold-colored cloth. She thought in her mind and waited eagerly for the Buddha. After she had the opportunity to see the Buddha, she was deeply pleased in her mind. She brought this cloth and presented it to the Tathāgata. The Buddha told the Gautamī: "You bring this cloth and present it to the Community!" At this time Mahāprajāpatī told with respect again the Buddha: "Since you the Buddha left the home and became a monk, I missed you very often. Therefore I spun and wove with my own hands, waited intensively for you, the Buddha. I hope sincerely you will take pity on me and receive if from me!" The Buddha told her: "I know that you, my mother, wish with single-hearted devotion to present it to me. But the benevolent love cannot get much merit. If you present it to the Community, you can get much more rewards. I know this matter and therefore advise you thus." The Buddha said again: "If a munificent man (dānapati) donates among the 16 groups separately to a special individual, although he can get some fortunate rewards, yet they cannot be very numerous. Which are the 16 groups? Monks and nuns each of them have eight groups. It would be better to donate to four persons as you like it. You can thus get much more blessings than by the individual donation, the merit of which is less than 1/16 of the latter. In the future when the decadent period (kaliyuga) arrives, the Law (dharmd) is declining to vanish. The monks will marry wives, who give birth to sons. More than four members can be called a Community (saṅgha). One ought to worship them like Śāriputra and Mahāmaudgalyāyana."

    So far the translation. This is not the end. The story of Bāvarī in the Taishō edition of the Chinese Tripitaka ends on page 436c . Because the Xinjiang Museum version of this text touches only upon the beginning few scenes, it is not necessary for me to translate the remaining parts. — In the following, I will keep the Tocharian form Metrak as the name of the hero, since it is closer to the Old Chinese pronunciation of the Chinese name Mi-le (cf. Japanese Miroku ).

    The thread of the story of our text is, as I have pointed out above, very involved and complicated, sometimes even unlogical. The translation from the Damamūka-nidāna-sūtra only serves as a guide to the story jungle. In the following I give very brief accounts of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 5th acts of the Tocharian version.

    1.5.2. Act I

    The title of this act is: "Sacrifice of Bādhari".

    Three generals of Vaiśravana, great king of the heaven, Satāgiri, Haimavati, and Purnaka are flying across the sky, chatting with each other: Śākyamuni has just attained the Buddhahood. Māra leading myriads (koṭi) of troops has tried to distract the Buddha, but in vain. Now the Buddha is wandering to preach his Law (dharma) to gods and human beings. He is now staying on the Pāṣāṇaka-Hill.

    At this time, Maitreya (Metrak) is eight years old with superhuman intelligence and is pursuing studies under the guidance of his teacher, Bādhari the Brahmin, who is already 120 years old and has 500 disciples. In order to accumulate merits by aiming at seeing the present Buddha Śākyamuni and meeting with the future Buddha Maitreya (Metrak), he arranges a big sacrifice festival, in which he exhausts all his properties.

    At this time, a Brahmin, named Nirdhana ("Moneyless, Pauper", in the Damamūka-nidāna-sūtra, Lao-du-cha = Skt. Raudrākṣa), comes to ask for alms. But Bādhari has now nothing to give to him. Nirdhana then curses him. Bādharī is terribly horrified. A god, Pūrṇabhadra by name, consoles him, saying that Nirdhana does not know what is ‘top’ and what is the ‘fall from the top’. He tells Bādhari in detail about Śākyamuni: where and how he was born, his royal ancestry and how he left the palace and finally got the Buddhahood. Badhari is longing for seeing the present Buddha and weeps all night.

    1.5.3. Act II

    The title of this act is: "Bodhisattva Maitreya becomes a monk."

    Bādhari is told in a dream by a god that the Buddha is now staying on the Pāṣāṇaka-Hill. He is very desirous to see the Buddha personally. But owing to his old age, he is unable to make his desire come true. He is very worried. He sends then Metrak, Tiṣya, etc., altogether 16 disciples, to go to the Buddha to pay homage to him. He tells his disciples, the Buddha is endowed with 32 physical marks of the Great Man (mahāpuruṣa-lakṣaṇa). They have to observe carefully and precisely the marks of the Buddha. If he is really endowed exactly with the 32 marks, he is the real Buddha. Then they have to become religious mendicant (śramaṇa) in the presence of the Buddha. The disciples do according to the instructions of their teacher Bādhari and finally join the Buddhist Community (saṅgha). The story here is minutely described in the Damamūka-nidāna-sūtra translated above. It is not necessary for me to repeat it again.

    1.5.4. Act III

    The stepmother of the Buddha, Mahāprajāpatī Gautamī, is told that the Buddha will come to the Nyagrodhārāma shrine. She sends a maidservant, Paṭ ṭinī by name, to the temple to inquire about whether the Buddha has arrived there or not. Answering to a lay-woman (upāsikā), the maidservant says that Mahāprajāpatī with her own hands scattered cotton seeds, hoed weeds, watered them, picked cotton bolls, cleaned them, fluffed them, spun and wove a cloth, the result of which is a piece of gold-colored cloth. She comes to the Buddha and wishes to present this cloth to him. At this time, the Śākyas lay down regulations: only the men are allowed to hear the Buddha's preachings; women are forbidden to do so. Mahāprajāpatī reports to King Śuddhodana who permits the women to attend the Law preaching of the Buddha. When she meets the Buddha and presents the gold-colored cloth to him, the Buddha asks her to present it to the Community (saṅgha). We find the same story in the above-mentioned translation of the Damamūka-nidāna-sūtra.

    1.5.5. Act V

    In order to make the damaged text easily understandable I quote a paragraph from "The Buddha-spoken Sūtra of the Descending from Heaven and Becoming Buddha of Mai trey a", Mile xiasheng jing = Répertoire du Canon bouddhique sino-japonais, édition de Taishō, no. 453.―Taishō-Tripiṭaka, Vol. 14, pp. 423c -424a :

    At this time, there was a big city, Ketumatī by name, twelve Yojanas in length, seven Yojanas in breadth. It was sublime and wonderful, decorated and clean, full of virtuous people. Owing to their merits, its people were rich and safe. The city was built of seven jewels; above there were storied buildings and pavillions. The doors and windows were all made of different jewels. It was covered totally by pearl nets. The streets and lanes were twelve li in breadth, swept clean. There was a strong dragon-king Duo-luo-shi-qi (Talaśikhin?) by name. His pond was close to the city, and the palace of the dragon-king was in the pond. He used to drizzle at midnight, in order to submerge the dust. The ground here was moist, as if it was smeared with oil. The people came and went, there was no dust. At this time, owing to the religious merits of the people, in the lanes there were pillars made of pearls everywhere, each being ten li in height. The light being so bright, there was no difference between day and night and there was no more use of lamps and candles. In the city, the houses and lanes had no fine dust lumps of earth. The ground was covered totally with gold: everywhere there were stores of gold and silver. There was a great Yaksa-god, Bhadraśikṣa (？ Chinese "Good-teaching") by name, who always protected this city and cleaned it. If there was any excrement, the earth would split, take it and close again. When a man was near the end of his life, he himself went naturally to the tomb and died there. At this time, the world was peaceful and pleasant. There was no worry about being robbed by hateful thieves. In the cities and villages, no one closed the door. There were also no calamities of being old and being worried of flooding, fire, wars, famines, poison, eta Everybody was benevolent, polite, and amiable, controlled the sense organs, was modest in speaking. Śāriputra! Now I would like to tell you roughly the pleasures within the boundaries and in the cities of that country. In the ponds of the groves and gardens, there was natural water of eight merits. Blue, red, purple, white, and multicolored lotus-flowers covered them totally. On the four sides of the ponds there were steps made of four jewels. All birds ― geese, ducks, mandarin ducks, peacocks, kingfishers, parrots, śārika, ku-ṇāla, jīvaka-jīvaka, etc. ― came together; such sweet-voiced birds were always in them. Besides, there were other kinds of sweet-voiced birds, of which the number is not countable. Fruit-trees and fragrant trees filled the country. At that time, in the Jambudvīpa, there were always excellent perfumes, piled up like fragrant mountains. The flowing water was excellent, of which the sweet taste could cure diseases. It rained timely and the crops were flourishing. No injurious grass grew. Having sown once, one could reap seven times. Less labor procured more products. The grains thus growing there delicious in taste and stimulated the human energy.

    1.6. Technical remarks

    1.6.1. Principles of section division of the text

    Although the text is incomplete and the numbers given to the fragments by the Xinjiang Museum are totally in confusion, fortunately the extant fragments belong chiefly to the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 5th acts. After being arranged according to their original order, they form a rather consistent sequence. Therefore the principle of section division is rather simple. Every fragment, i. e., two pages: the obverse side (recto) and the reverse side (verso), is assigned to one subsection.

    With the exception of the not yet identified fragments (section 2.5), for which only facsimiles and transliterations are provided, every subsection consists of:

    1) transliteration in Roman characters,

    2) English translation,

    3) notes.

    The facsimiles are given at the end of the book. For the convenience of the readers I put notes after every subsection, which is much better than at the end of the whole book.

    1.6.2. Previous editions of fragments of the Yanqi manuscript