Buddhist-Meditation-Systematic-and-Practical

The writer here requested that Mr. Chen tell a story
he had mentioned once before about the skillful
means of a bodhisattva. Mr. Chen then recounted
the following:
Once collecting alms a bodhisattva passed before a
house. A girl came out to give him some food, and,
seeing his noble appearance, fell in love with him. So
strong was her passion that she immediately invited him
to follow her into the house. The bodhisattva, through
his power of penetrating the minds of others, knew her
desire and did not consent, quietly going on his way. As
he went he thought, "As it is now, she will just continue
to lust after worldly pleasures and so go from bad to
worse in the realms of samsara. Supposing I were to go
back and do as she wishes, but at the same time convert
her?" So he went back and had intercourse with her,
living with her for some time. At first, she found great
pleasure in sexual union but after a time the bodhisattva
began to change his organ into a knife. The girl found
that her former pleasure became painful, and the
bodhisattva was able to preach to her on the
unsatisfactory nature of all existence. Pleased at, and
convinced by, his preaching, the girl renounced her
household life and became a nun.
If the bodhisattva had only adopted Hinayana methods,
then she could not have been converted as by these
means. Only good people (who in any case will come to
the Dharma sooner or later) can be saved in that way.
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